“The England national side may have battled bravely through the Euro 2012 group stage this summer before their limitations were exposed, but there can be no doubting the strength of the English game at club level.” World Soccer
“Manchester United took more corners than any other team bar Liverpool in the EPL last season. They also scored 20% of their goals from headers. On top of this only Blackburn and Manchester City scored more goals from set-pieces than United. For these reasons Differentgame thought they’d be the best team to have a look at to set some things straight about the corner kick. Actually, mainly just one thing: ‘How can a professional footballer not even beat the first man from a corner?'” Different Game
“When I look ahead to the 2012-13 Premier League season — which starts Saturday, if you can believe that — when I gaze into the swirling void of the future, and try to answer urgent questions like ‘How many points will Manchester City win by’ and ‘Reading: ??’ — when I think about the Premier League at all in terms other than Robin van Persie, nightclub groping incidents, and money, I see a darkness, and the name of the darkness is Liverpool.” Grantland
“Paul Lambert, Aston Villa. A large part of Lambert’s success at Norwich was his ability to switch seamlessly between systems – between and within matches – using a 5-3-2, a 4-4-1-1, a midfield diamond and a 4-4-2 at various points last season. Three of his summer recruits, Brett Holman, Karim El Ahmadi and Matthew Lowton, are versatile, indicating that Lambert intends to continue this approach at Villa Park. But these reactive tactics do not necessarily result in defensive football – last season, only the top six scored more goals than Lambert’s side, only the bottom three conceded more. Having seen Alex McLeish’s side score only 20 goals in 19 home games last season, Villa fans will enjoy the entertainment. …” Guardian
“They called it The Greatest Season Ever, and in terms of drama, the 2011-12 Premier League campaign will be hard to beat. A little more than three months, another Spanish tournament victory and a successful Olympic Games later, and the Premier League is back and likely to dominate the British sporting agenda — like it or not — for the next nine months. Here are 10 storylines to monitor in the run-up to kickoff.” SI
“he countdown is in full swing: in just nine days’ time the Barclays Premier League returns to action after its annual summer hiatus and the anticipation is building for what promises to be the most exciting season to date. Manchester City’s stunning title victory in the dying breaths of a rollercoaster 2011/12 season signalled a renaissance for the self-proclaimed ‘Greatest League In The World’, for so long monopolised by Manchester United and a small coterie of clubs whose title wins have peppered a landscape otherwise traditionally swathed in the distinctive red of the Manchester monolith.” Sabotage Times (Video)
“With more possession, more passes completed, fewer shots conceded, and more shots per game than any other team in the Premier League, you may think Manchester City don’t need to change a thing as they look to defend their Premier League crown. But City will want to improve on last season’s disastrous Champions League campaign, as well as firmly cement themselves as the best team in England.” FourFourTwo
“The City manager, who struck a conciliatory note towards the club’s hierarchy by insisting they should no longer pay excessive fees for transfer targets, has yet to add to the squad who delivered the Premier League title to the Etihad Stadium last season. And while the Italian admits the priority this season is to retain the title and progress merely to the knockout stages of the Champions League, he insists that his recent calls for reinforcements have been rooted in his determination to elevate City from European also-rans to contenders for the club football’s premier competition.” Telegraph
“When Sergio Aguero crashed home the injury time winner to secure Manchester City’s Premier League title, he almost certainly gave little thought to the financial ramifications of his well taken goal, but it could be argued that this sublime moment provided the impetus for last week’s record television deal, which has climbed around 70% to £3 billion over the next three-year cycle. As the Premier League’s chief executive, Richard Scudamore, said, ‘We couldn’t have gone to market at a better time.'” Swiss Ramble
“Once a turnip, now reincarnated as a goldfish. Suppose they’re roughly the same colour. At the back end of 2010 few people would have predicted that come the end of the following season Roy Hodgson would be announcing his first England squad on the day his successor at Anfield, Kenny Dalglish, was being handed his P45 by the Fenway Sports Group.” World Soccer
“For nearly three years, I’ve been giving myself the same speech. Since my one and only heartbreaking trip to Old Trafford in the fall of 2009, it’s been the go-to pep talk for the voices inside my head. Having supported Manchester City since the age of 11, finally daring to step inside Manchester United’s famous ground as a 40-year-old and then being forced to witness City lose a soul-crushing classic to a Michael Owen goal that made it 4-3 nearly two minutes after the final whistle should have been blown, this became my mantra: Nothing can ever hurt me again.” Grantland
“Like everyone else, I blacked out when Manchester City scored two goals in stoppage time to snatch the Premier League title from Manchester United. In my case, I woke up three days later, in a bathtub full of ice. My right kidney was missing, and a piece of paper containing the following text was folded in my hand. I have no idea what to make of this.” Grantland – Run of Play
Joe Hart, Manchester City
“To change an old football cliché slightly, this was a season of two halves. The likes of Demba Ba and Jose Enrique were superb before Christmas but then faded badly, while Papiss Cisse and Paul Scholes had a superb impact but played only in the second half of the campaign. Then there are players like Lucas Leiva and Alejandro Faurlin, who excelled early on but saw their seasons end prematurely due to injury. This season, more than any other, highlighted the importance of consistency. With that being a crucial consideration, here is a Premier League team of the season, complete with two backups at each position.” ESPN
“Manchester City’s improbable Premier League title is a story of redemption. A few weeks ago City looked to have blown their chance at the trophy, blowing a sizable lead with a string of middling performances and dropped points. For the squad to end up with ultimate glory, they had to display a great deal of resolve and character. During much of that stretch, they played without enigmatic striker Mario Balotelli. Depending on who you ask, that was a positive rather than a negative. When we last left our hero, he had earned a red card (and really should have been sent off after about 20 minutes) in a 1-0 loss at Arsenal. His manager claimed he’d never play for the club again and essentially deemed him unmanageable. Pundits all over the globe said he wasn’t the kind of player who wins clubs titles.” The Classical (YouTube)
“By tomorrow evening, half of Manchester – a phrase that in itself provokes so much debate that it is worth pointing out that it is being used for the purposes of simplicity alone – will be celebrating a Premier League championship victory. Either Manchester City or Manchester United will be crowned as the champions of England. That such a set of circumstances should have come about on the final day of the season is a situation that has likely caused Peter Scudamore to make some faintly obscene gurgling noises over the last couple of weeks or so, but it has also sparked a debate over the nature of Manchester City’s sudden, testosterone-fuelled rise to the summit of the game, a rise fuelled by the money of the Abu Dhabi United group.” twohundredpercent
“This coming Sunday we will all be overwhelmed by an overwhelming amount of Premier League football. I’m seriously overwhelmed just thinking about it all. All the Premier League teams will take part in matches, all kicking off at the same time so that no competitive advantage can be had by any one club. We’ll get to Manic Sunday in a bit, but for now, let’s take a different kind of look at this past weekend’s proceedings: three snapshots of three goals in three games that hugely impacted the Premier League’s second-to-last weekend.” Grantland (YouTube)
The Reducer, Week 35: Manchester Civil War (YouTube)
“Marcus Christenson: Is it more difficult to take Newcastle to the brink of the Champions League or Manchester City to the brink of the title?” Guardian
“Football suffers from anterograde amnesia. There tends to be an overriding trend amongst lovers of the Beautiful Game to live in the moment, focusing on the last match to evaluate the progress of an individual or a team. Harry Redknapp has been labelled as the nation’s saviour one minute before being described as an intransigent squad rotator who may have destroyed Spurs’ hopes of Champions League qualification the next. It is funny how a consecutive victories or defeats can shift public opinion so quickly. Athletic Bilbao have attracted unanimous praise for the way they have stylishly steered their way into the Europa League final against Atlético Madrid in Bucharest.” In Bed With Maradona
“Vincent Kompany’s header won the game – and City returned to the top of the league. As expected, Roberto Mancini named an unchanged XI. That meant Pablo Zabaleta continuing at right-back, and Samir Nasri starting wide in midfield. Sir Alex Ferguson switched formation to a 4-5-1 with Wayne Rooney upfront alone. Ryan Giggs and Park Ji-Sung were given starts in in midfield, while Nani was used rather than Antonio Valencia on the right. Jonny Evans was ill and Rafael was dropped, so Chris Smalling and Phil Jones were at the back.” Zonal Marking
“I will not invent light sabers. I will not be able to pull off the Ryan Gosling satin jacket from Drive if I decide to start rocking it. I will not grow old with the grace and dignity of John Slattery. I will not retire to an island off the coast of Dubai where I entertain myself in my latter days by watching robot greyhound races. Secretly, I fully expect all these things to happen. Hell, if it works for Roberto Mancini, why can’t it work for me?” Grantland
Venetian School, Francesco Guardi
“From Ashley Young’s unpopular testing of Newton’s theory of gravity at Old Trafford to some Chelsea fans’ ugly chants and Juan Mata’s ‘ghost goal’ at Wembley, Sunday demonstrated graphically how much the match-going experience has been transformed by the social-networking revolution.” Telegraph – Henry Winter
“Manchester City’s title hopes effectively ended at the Emirates on Sunday. For Samir Nasri, returning to his old club, it was a particularly painful way to lose the title. Nasri has appeared at the stadium three times in 2011-12. The first occasion was on the first day of the season, still in an Arsenal shirt. Arsene Wenger had an injury crisis, and even though Nasri was about to depart, Wenger had to play him. He was booed by his own fans.” ESPN
“Manchester United 2, Queens Park Rangers 1. Arsenal 1, Manchester City 0. In the 13th minute of Manchester United’s game with QPR at Old Trafford, a slashing Ashley Young felt a creaky, possibly arthritic old hand on his back. Considering the hand belonged to QPR defender Shaun Derry, who looks like he punches tree trunks for fun, it was a relatively light touch. And considering that Young was offside, Derry probably thought his contact would be forgiven by the wave of the linesman’s flag. But no matter; Young, in his first season playing with United, knew what he felt and knew where he was on the pitch. And he went down.” Grantland (YouTube)
“Mikel Arteta’s long-range strike settled a match Arsenal could have won by more. Arsene Wenger made one change from the side that lost to QPR last weekend. Aaron Ramsey, who looked uncomfortable out on the left in that match, was dropped and replaced by Yossi Benayoun, a player who more naturally drifts inside from the flank. Roberto Mancini was without David Silva, so used Samir Nasri, James Milner, Sergio Aguero and Mario Balotelli, who almost always starts big games ahead of out-of-form Edin Dzeko. Pablo Zabaleta played at right-back, with Micah Richards on the bench.” Zonal Marking
“I recently chatted with Soccernomics co-author Simon Kuper to discuss several topics regarding world soccer. Kuper, whose latest book Soccer Men is now available in stores, talked about what impact (if any) soccer has on politics, as well as how he began his career in journalism.” EPL Talk
Soccer Men: Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World’s Most Popular Sport
amazon
“Karthik (KV) seeks to establish why more chances don’t necessarily mean more goals. How do you win a football game? The simplest answer would be to score more goals than the other team. So, how do you score more goals than the other team? Create more chances than the other team and you are likely to score more than them. How accurate is that statement? Not very accurate, in fact. What we can conclude with certainty is that, the team that creates chances of higher quality is likely to score more compared to the other team.” The Arsenal Column
“Carlos Tevez and Edin Dzeko helped turn a 0-1 into a 2-1. Manchester City were without Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott, so Micah Richards moved into the middle. Mario Balotelli continues to start ahead of Edin Dzeko in big games, while James Milner was left out with Samir Nasri preferred. Roberto Di Matteo played Fernando Torres upfront, Ramires on the right and John Obi Mikel in the holding role. John Terry was out.” Zonal Marking
“Robin van Persie has almost singlehandedly kept the team afloat until now, with 26 league goals and 5 in the Champions League. But now he’s got real help, as in a real team behind him. In the event of a top-four finish, perhaps his future may yet lay in the red half of North London.” Cult Football
“You know it’s not exactly a scrapbook-worthy weekend of football when managers are reduced to bemoaning what they deserved or how they were the better team or how they ‘bossed it’ (I see you, Martin Jol) following a loss or a draw. Coming at the end of a week where there was plenty of talk about England’s place in European football’s pecking order — what with Arsenal going out of the Champions League and both Manchester sides losing in the Europa League — the weekend’s action did little to quell murmurs that the Premier League is no longer the premier league.” Grantland (YouTube)
“It is tempting to look at the top half of the Premier League table and see rows of upright dominoes. At some point soon, one will teeter and tap its neighbor’s shoulder, and then who knows how many, and which, will follow. What if Harry Redknapp takes the England job? (What if Spurs lose to Manchester United this weekend, and Arsenal beat Liverpool?) What if Chelsea does not get back into the Champions League places? What if Roman Abramovich sacks Andre Villas-Boas? What if he’s the replacement? Why? When?” SI
“I’m fairly certain that, while Kenny Dalglish may not exchange Christmas cards with Arsene Wenger … … they can both agree on this: It is more important to not lose the Carling Cup than it is to win it. On Sunday, Liverpool narrowly defeated championship side Cardiff City, winning 3-2 (technically 2-2) after a comical, watch-through-your-fingers shootout that seemed to encapsulate 40 years of English penalty-taking in a matter of minutes.” Grantland (YouTube)
“I want Andre Villas-Boas to succeed. It could be because he and I are the same age and I’d like to think I’m at the point in my life where I, too, could manage a Premier League club. (Hey, I’m keeping my options open.) Or it could be that I am mildly charmed by his roughly translated, vaguely post-structural declarations about time and space. For instance: ‘Players compete, in the end, for their place and for their place towards the future in the team. So if you want to be in the team in the future, you are competing to win something against your colleague. I would put it exactly like that: performance to have reward … reward in terms of results and reward in terms of future continuity.’ Slow your roll, Roland Barthes. John Terry has not quite finished Elements of Semiology.” Grantland (YouTube)
“There were no fine robes, no rings, and the fatted calves of Manchester survived the night untroubled. But the prodigal son is back at the Etihad, and give or take a few weeks of fitness work, it seems that we will once again be treated to the sight of Carlos Tevez seated on the bench he famously refused to disembark four months ago. The possibilities are fascinating, and it can only be hoped that his sense of humor has survived the intense golfing holiday.” ESPN
“What is the most you have ever paid for a ticket for football? An official one, mind, not one from a tout. £50? Certainly not if you follow your team away from home and have been to the Emirates, Stamford Bridge, White Hart Lane or even in the nPower Championship at Upton Park recently where £50 will get you entry and not even a sniff of a bottle of Emirates water or pie and mash in East London. What about for a cup final? The FA think fans will bend over backwards to be shafted for these tickets but rarely do they go into three figures.” The Ball is Round
Fernando Torres
“‘It was a great game for the neutral watching,’ said Sir Alex Ferguson, in what might have been a knowing nod to the many Americans — new or newish to the English game — who had just casually watched Manchester United play out a six-goal draw with Chelsea on Sunday. Had United come up short in their comeback, or had they never mounted one at all, Fergie would probably not be feeling so concerned about the experience of the neutral, American or otherwise. He would have been too busy turning purple, inventing new Scottish profanities, and finalizing plans to sell Jonny Evans to a third-division club in Kazakhstan. But as it happened, all was full of love.” Grantland (YouTube)
“Liverpool went with the same formation they have started every big game with this season – the 4-1-2-3. There were no surprises in the starting line up either, with the only question mark before the match about how the front three would be arranged. In the end, it turned out to be Downing and Kuyt on their “natural” flanks, and Bellamy as centre forward. The alternative would have been to have Kuyt in the centre and Downing/Bellamy as inverted wingers.” Tomkins Times
“Liverpool ended a 16-year wait for a return to Wembley as they drew 2-2 with Manchester City to secure a 3-2 aggregate success and set up a Carling Cup final against Cardiff next month. Former City striker Craig Bellamy was the hero for the team he rejoined in August, scoring the decisive goal 16 minutes from time. The Wales international played a pivotal role throughout and will now face another former club – and city of his birth – Cardiff, as the Reds seek to end a trophy drought dating back to 2006.” ESPN
Cup Competitions Are What You Make of Them
“Cup competitions never mean the same thing each year; or indeed, the same thing to each and every club. For starters, when it’s your team that’s in a final, even the League Cup can hold some importance.” Tomkins Times
“Mario Balotelli’s late penalty gave City a crucial victory. Roberto Mancini’s side was as expected, although he continues to be attack-minded with the use of Samir Nasri on the flank and James Milner in the middle, rather than opting to name the more defensive-minded Nigel de Jong in the starting XI. City are still without the Toure brothers and Vincent Kompany.” Zonal Marking
Arsenal 1-2 Manchester United: attacking the full-backs and better substitutions the key
“Danny Welbeck hit the winner as United emerged victorious at the Emirates. Arsene Wenger left out Andrei Arshavin and is without Gervinho, so Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was handed a surprise start. Mikel Arteta was injured so Tomas Rosicky played in midfield, while Thomas Vermaelen made his comeback from injury out of position at left-back in place of Ignasi Miquel, who struggled at Swansea last weeend.” Zonal Marking
“It is often said that when building a side, you should start with the defence, but Andre Villas-Boas seems to be doing things in reverse. Chelsea barely evolved from the Jose Mourinho days to Carlo Ancelotti’s final season. The spine of Petr Cech, John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba remained intact – Chelsea were an old side depending upon players who, whilst still capable of good performances, were probably all four or five years past their peak.” Zonal Marking
“With the fallout from recent incidents involving Luis Suarez and Patrice Evra, and John Terry and Anton Ferdinand, dominating the back pages, racism in English football is once again a hot topic. An opportune time, then, to ask Stan Horne about (among other things) his experiences as the first ever black player for a trio of current Premier League clubs: Villa, Fulham and his beloved Man City…” thetwounfortunates
“The buying and selling of Brazilian footballing talent has undergone a sea change in the last couple of years. While European currencies totter, the local economy booms, tempting the youngsters (Neymar, Ganso, Lucas, Damião) to tarry a while longer, and plenty of elder statesmen (including Ronaldinho, Luis Fabiano, Adriano and Fred) to spend more than just their retirements back home. A boatload of just-shy-of-Balzaquiano*, mid-level talent has also traipsed back across the Atlantic, boosting the Brasileirão’s quality quotient further.” Sabotage Times
“The stereotypical game of two halves… 1. Roberto Mancini went with a midfield triangle featuring Nigel de Jong at the base, with James Milner and Samir Nasri ahead. This is a change from the usual system City play, which features two deeper midfielders with a more creative player at the tip. A major reason for that was the unavailability of both Yaya Toure and Gareth Barry, and Mancini clearly feels de Jong is better as a sole holding player, rather than in a double pivot – a judgement difficult to argue with.” Zonal Marking
“It has long been known that the absence of a winter break reduces quality and increases injuries in the final part of the season, but the counter argument from English football fans has always been about protecting the spectacle, excitement and tradition of football over the Christmas period. Actually, playing so many matches in such a short period of time may reduce the quality on display, but most importantly reduce the fairness of the league when TV scheduling is taken into account.” Footballistically
“A few quick comments as the minutes tick closer to midnight. Robin rules. It would be impossible to heap too many superlatives on his form this season. He finally got to show what he could do when he remained injury-free. Long may it continue. He’s shown himself to be a great captain so far and hopefully he sees his future with the Arsenal going forward. Welcome back, Henry! But this does not mean we don’t need another striker… Repeat, this does not mean we don’t need another striker.” Cult Football
“It’s that time of year again where we look back on a selection from the standout soccer stories in the year just passed. Here’s the best of 2011…” SI
“In the good old days, the rules of playing football were simple, and so were the tactics. The big and sturdy lads played in the centre of the park and upfront, the hard lads guarded the back, the bright ones played as inside forwards and the little, quick ones played on the wings. The left footed ones played on the left, and the right footed ones played on the right. And the one who had no partner to rely on, played in goal.” The False 9
“Chelsea’s Andre Villas-Boas may be a forward-thinking, progressive coach, but his attempts to impose a high line on players who seem reluctant, or unable, to adapt have resulted in defeats this season against Manchester United, Queens Park Rangers, Arsenal, Liverpool (twice) and Bayer Leverkusen.” World Soccer – Jonathan Wilson
“It’s been scintillating six months of English football. We’ve had blow outs (8-2, 5-3, and 6-1 between some big guns) and some stunning individual performances (numerous hat-tricks and goal line saves). With half a season to go, it’s time to decide who has made the Team of the Season so far, settling in a traditional English 4-4-2 formation.” EPL Talk
“David Silva scored the winner in a match that should have produced more goals. Roberto Mancini left out Edin Dzeko, which seems to be standard for big Premier League games. Gael Clichy was suspended so Pablo Zabaleta moved to the left with Micah Richards starting at right-back. Samir Nasri started in midfield over James Milner. Arsene Wenger was short of full-backs and named an unchanged side from the XI which beat Everton 1-0 last weekend. This was end-to-end and exciting – neither side ever had control of the game.” Zonal Marking
David Silva’s inside game creates tactical anarchy for Arsenal
“David Silva is quite a player, isn’t he? Shorn of many outstanding individuals, Silva has risen above the challengers to claim the crown as the Premier League’s top talent. But perhaps, therein lies the question. Manchester City-Arsenal was a great advert for the league, argues Michael Cox for ZonalMarking.net – it was played at a pulsating pace, full of trickery and cunning and not to mention great technical ability – but it lacked a certain control the best European counterparts, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona, are masters at. Indeed, is it that the hectic nature owes in part, to the failure of English sides in the Champions League and thus the extra space allowing David Silva to become the best in the league?” Arsenal Column
City deal blow to resurgent Gunners
“Exit Arsenal. A title challenge that appeared to have ended in ignominy on their last trip to Manchester is all but over after their return. But a departure in December, rather than during their awful August – and following an unfortunate 1-0 defeat, rather than the historic humiliation of an 8-2 thrashing – means they can take their leave rather more respectably. Another piece of silverware is set to elude them but, after seven wins and a draw in the eight preceding games, pride has been restored.” ESPN
“One of the most interesting developments of the Premier League so far this season has been the strategy of Andre Villas-Boas. He took over on the back of a highly successful season at Porto where he had a very specific way of playing. He tried to recreate that at Chelsea and did so with some success, though he also encountered problems with his defensive line, particularly in the defeat to Arsenal.” Zonal Marking
“In this day and age, with the proliferation of Continental coaches and international players in the Premier League, with Nicolas Anelka going to China, Joey Barton listening to Bon Iver, and the league’s top team funded by the royal family of Abu Dhabi, led by an Italian manager and starring an Ivorian, an Argentinian, a Spaniard, and a Ghanaian-born Italian, the question needs to be asked … what is English football?” Grantland (Video)
“Sometimes there are Premier League weekends where it’s all paradigm-shifting, faith-questioning madness that makes The Reducer pull off Johan Cruyff Turns in his living room and Zidane-headbutt the drywall. This was not one of those weekends. So rather than deep dive on one match, let’s speed race through several different results.” Grantland (Video)
Roberto Mancini
“After many years in the wilderness, these are good times to be a Manchester City fan. Last season their team recorded its best ever performance in the Premier League by finishing third, thus qualifying for the Champions League for the first time, and won its first major trophy for 35 years when defeating Stoke City in the FA Cup final. Their momentum has continued this season (at least on the domestic front), as they lead the Premier League by five points after a series of impressive victories, including an astonishing 6-1 triumph against local rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford, and have reached the semi-finals of the Carling Cup. However, they have found life more difficult in Europe, where they now have to rely on others to avoid elimination at the Champions League group stage.” Swiss Ramble
“After a Saturday that saw Stoke and Chelsea recover from dips in form, Arsenal and Manchester United slip up, and Tottenham continue its fire-hazard win streak, a darkness descended on the Premier League. Sunday morning, before the kickoffs of Liverpool versus Manchester City and Swansea versus Aston Villa, news broke that Gary Speed, a heroic figure in the recent history of British football and manager of the Wales national team, had been found dead in his home from an apparent suicide. He left behind a wife and two children.” Grantland (Video)
“Despite their strong start to the season, Manchester City had only won one of their last 12 league meetings against Liverpool going into this game; and they hadn’t won at Anfield in their last eight attempts. It would prove to be the case again.” Tomkins Times
Confirmation of St Stephan, Vittore Carpaccio
“A good game, but not a particularly fascinating tactical battle. Kenny Dalglish brought Stewart Downing in for Maxi Rodriguez, whilst Craig Bellamy was excused for personal reasons, with Jordan Henderson coming in – although with Kenny Dalglish wanting to be solid in midfield and after Henderson’s fine substitute appearance at Chelsea last week, this switch might have been made anyway. Roberto Mancini left out Edin Dzeko and Mario Balotelli, with Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri coming into the side. City started well, the middle of the game was evenly-balanced, then Liverpool dominated late on (especially after Balotelli’s red card), but both sides will be happy enough with a point.” Zonal Marking
Liverpool 1 – 1 Manchester City
“Ten-man Manchester City survived a serious examination of their title credentials to extend their unbeaten Premier League record to 13 matches at Anfield. Had it not been for goalkeeper Joe Hart the visitors may have tasted a league defeat for the first time since May 7. They barely had time to celebrate Vincent Kompany’s 31st-minute opener before Charlie Adam’s shot was deflected in by Joleon Lescott.” ESPN
City survive deserving Red threat
“Unbeaten but not unbeatable, depleted but not defeated, Manchester City experienced a novel situation. Hanging on for a draw has not been a feature of their superlative start to the Premier League season. A battling point had a rarity value as well as an importance.” ESPN
Joleon Lescott own goal gifts Liverpool a draw against Manchester City
“The quest for the Premier League title is as much a trial as an adventure. Even Manchester City, with fathomless means, know there will be days such as this when they are reduced to an almost impoverished condition. Energy reserves among the outfield had been exhausted before the close, but the goalkeeper, Joe Hart, had the spring to pull off a superb save from a header by the substitute Andy Carroll in stoppage time.” Guardian
“Milan have opened talks with Carlos Tevez’s advisors about a January move for the Manchester City striker. At present, there have been no direct talks between City and Milan over the transfer as Tevez’s advisor first seeks to broker a deal with the Italian champions. Although negotiations are at an early stage, it’s understood that both parties have reached agreement on a couple of significant issues that have stalled his career at City: Tevez will not leave the country when Milan have a game scheduled and, provided he’s in the mood for it, the Argentinian has even deigned to play football when asked to do so by his coach.” World Soccer (Video)
Franck Ribéry
“Twelve Champions League thoughts from Round 5 of the Group Stage…” SI
“The Reducer figures there’s never really a right time to get your lunch money snatched by a 60-year-old Glaswegian, but that being said, Andre Villas-Boas really picked the wrong Sunday to run into Kenny Dalglish. Leading up to the Stamford Bridge clash between Liverpool and Chelsea over the weekend, Villas-Boas, while still cutting as suave a figure as ever, was losing some of his cool. The Blues, in order, lost to QPR in a match in which their delightful captain John Terry (allegedly) racially abused Anton Ferdinand, just squeaked by Everton in a Carling Cup match, got tonked by Arsenal, drew with Genk (Genk!), and barely beat Blackburn.” Grantland (Video)
“City dominated possession but Napoli broke typically well to record a crucial victory. Few managers rotate as little as Napoli – Walter Mazzarri named his usual side and his usual formation, a counter-attacking 3-4-3. Roberto Mancini went for roughly his usual system too, though Sergio Aguero was only on the bench. Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov started rather than Micah Richards and Gael Clichy.” Zonal Marking
Olympiakos 1-1 Panathinaikos: game based around pace in wide areas
“A good Athens derby ended all square, with two very similar goals. Ernesto Valverde chose Hungarian Balazs Megyeri rather than Franco Costanzo in goal, and used David Fuster on the right of midfield, coming inside. In the centre Valverde was without creator Ariel Ibagaza, so Francois Modesto and Jean Makoun played. Jesualdo Ferreira played his expected side, with a flexible front four that saw Quincy Owusu-Abeyie and Zeko switching for much of the game. This was a decent game that saw the majority of the chances – including both goals – coming from pace, particularly when the wide players moved high up the pitch and got in behind the full-backs to get on the end of diagonal balls from midfield.” Zonal Marking
Scissors Kick 