Guardiola and Klopp rivalry ready to combust as Manchester City head to Liverpool after a week of fanning the flames November 7, 2019 Given the unrelenting quality displayed last season by both Manchester City and Liverpool in the Premier League run-in, it seemed likely that head-to-head fixtures between the two would be equally significant in determining the destination of the title again this term. Liverpool lost just once last campaign – at City on 3 January – as [...]
Red Star Belgrade 0-4 Tottenham: Spurs banish their demons with another rout of Serbian side November 6, 2019 Last month’s seven-goal thrashing by Bayern Munich suddenly feels a long time ago for Tottenham. Back-to-back Champions League wins over Red Star Belgrade with an aggregate score line of 9-0 has gone a long way to banishing the ghosts of Bayern, leaving Spurs four points clear of the Serbian side in Group B’s second place. [...]
Chelsea 4-4 Ajax: Fans get their money’s worth in relentless, epic clash at Stamford Bridge November 5, 2019 There’s rarely a dull moment with Chelsea at the moment, but even so tonight’s Champions League match against Ajax was scarcely believable. Frank Lampard’s exciting, exuberant and confident side only added one point to their total in Group H, yet fans certainly got their money’s worth at Stamford Bridge. The fast-paced nature of the match [...]
VAR has not helped the Premier League at all – but here is a how it can be fixed November 5, 2019 We all want to see the correct decisions being made and that is why video assistant referees were introduced but their implementation doesn’t seem to have been thought through. The introduction of VAR to the Premier League this season has not advanced the game at all but with every passing week has instead created more [...]
23 Capital: Meet the London-based finance company behind Barcelona’s signing of Antoine Griezmann and Atletico Madrid’s deal for Joao Felix November 5, 2019 Football’s two biggest deals of the summer transfer window had something in common, and not just that Atletico Madrid was either the buying or selling club. The other unifying factor in the signings of £113m Portuguese sensation Joao Felix and £108m France forward Antoine Griezmann was the involvement of financing from London-based 23 Capital on [...]
Liverpool v Genk: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain ready to grasp his chance in Jurgen Klopp’s midfield November 4, 2019 There’s no time like the present for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Having featured in just 19 minutes of last season due to a serious injury, the Liverpool midfielder is now making up for lost time. Damage to the cruciate and medial ligaments in the knee and hamstring tendons aren’t injuries you can just shake off and it [...]
Everton 1-1 Tottenham: Andre Gomes injury overshadows low quality match at Goodison Park November 3, 2019 A serious injury to Andre Gomes overshadowed Everton’s scrappy draw with Tottenham, but the video assistant referee still managed to prompt debate. The match contained three penalty shouts – two for Everton and one for Spurs – with VAR checks causing considerable delay only for none to be awarded by referee Martin Atkinson. However, it [...]
Crystal Palace 0-2 Leicester City: Foxes show why a return to the Champions League looks increasingly likely November 3, 2019 They couldn’t do it again, could they? In the era of these Liverpool and Manchester City teams, probably not, but with every passing week Leicester demand to be taken more seriously. On Sunday they kept the bandwagon rolling at Selhurst Park, beating Crystal Palace in tidy and clinical fashion to make it three Premier League [...]
Manchester City v Southampton: Ralph Hasenhuttl faces real challenge to turn around sinning Saints October 31, 2019 When Ralph Hasenhuttl joined Southampton as their new manager on 5 December last year his first task was to fight fires. Saints were 18th in the Premier League and floundering, having become a listless identikit team under his predecessor Mark Hughes. They needed to be motivated, coached and saved from relegation. The Austrian achieved those [...]
If Arsenal have to sack Unai Emery, at least they are finally well placed to manage the change October 31, 2019 However bad the team’s current malaise may seem for Arsenal supporters – and how much the Unai Emery-orchestrated on-field disarray might escalate – there is one element of the club’s recent evolution that offers some succour. Where once the Gunners looked rudderless at the very top, a club drifting under the distracted eye of an [...]