“After a week when David Villa found himself constantly linked with a move away from Barcelona in the upcoming January transfer window, the speculation can finally stop. No one wanted it to happen this way, though. Spain’s record goal scorer broke his left tibia during Barcelona’s easy win over Al-Sadd in the Club World Cup semifinal Thursday. He faces around six months on the sidelines.” ESPN
Zak Whitbread
“It would be easy for Zak Whitbread to look back at the last nine months and think about what could have been.With better-timed good health, the 27-year-old Norwich City center back may already be on his way to the international career that has yet to materialize. In the midst of helping the Canaries earn promotion to the Premier League last spring, Whitbread was called in for the United States’ friendlies against Argentina and Paraguay in March, only to be forced to withdraw with a back injury. Not only did he miss a chance to acclimate himself with the U.S. setup for the first time on the senior level, but he missed what would’ve essentially been a tryout for the U.S. Gold Cup roster.” SI
“One of the more eye-catching managerial appointments this summer was former Barcelona B coach Luis Enrique taking over at Roma. It was a surprise appointment. Though Enrique had enjoyed success with Barcelona’s second string, he had no top-level coaching experience. He wasn’t really that much more qualified than Vincenzo Montella, who took over at Roma last season having previously worked in the youth system at the club.” Zonal Marking
“It has been a busy few months for Barcelona, the European champions, making sure of their place in the knockout stage of the Champions League and taking the field in all their domestic games knowing that every point they drop makes it harder for them to retain their Spanish title. Then, of course, Pep Guardiola’s side won their most important match of the season so far, beating Real Madrid 3-1 in the Clasico.” ESPN – Tim Vickery
“Six games in 2011, four in just over a month, have been suspended in Paraguay due to crowd violence. The latest suspension came on last weekend’s crunch game between league leaders Libertad and title chasers Cerro Porteño, two points behind with three games to play. With Cerro Porteño leading one-nil at half time the players and officials came out ready for what was set to be a thrilling and potentially season-defining 45 minutes of football. But before the second half could begin a flare thrown from the Cerro Porteño end struck the linesman who had to leave the stadium in an ambulance.” In Bed With Maradona
“Even before arriving in Spain, Luis Figo was at the heart of transfer controversy. Having unwittingly entered an agreement with Juventus in 1995 due to the influence of his club, Sporting Lisbon, an angered Figo then attempted to sign a contract with Parma. As a result, Figo was banned from transferring to an Italian club for two years, something he attributes to the influence of corrupt Juventus director Luciano Moggi. However, Barcelona came to the rescue with a bid of £2.25 million for the Portugal international.” TheFalse9
“Sometimes, the textbook way isn’t always the right way. That’s what David Moyes and Everton found out and in the end, they were outdone by a stunning volley from Robin van Persie. The goal didn’t look like coming in the second-half – while Robin van Persie had one of his most ineffective games yet this season – and that was due to the turnaround in tactics by Moyes.” Arsenal Column
“Seven goals scored and consequent qualification in the European Cup for a Lyon team which until then had found scoring in the group so difficult. True, Dynamo did have a man sent off in the first half, but seven goals? Michel Platini, ever more controversial and disappointing President of UEFA, seems airily unconcerned, reassured it would seem, by the fact that there was no sign of unusual betting at the bookmakers.” World Soccer
“Jose Mourinho surprised many with his team selection, but Pep Guardiola adapted to guide Barcelona to victory. The surprise was with the use of Mesut Ozil, who most expected to be omitted in favour of an extra defensive midfielder. In fact, it was Real’s usual front four in a 4-2-3-1 system. Lassana Diarra did start, but in place of Khedira, whilst Fabio Coentrao played at right-back.” Zonal Marking
Guardiola’s tactical switch swings clásico in favor of Barcelona
“There are still those, remarkably, who ask whether tactics really matter, still those who persist with the Luddite insistence that the best players will win out come what may. No matter that Lionel Messi never produces his Barcelona form for Argentina or that Dani Alves regularly flounders for Brazil, Barcelona, these flat-earthers keep saying, win because they have the best players.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
5 Things We Learnt From Real Madrid vs Barcelona
“1) There is a reason why Valdes is Spain’s number three… It’s not rocket science, for the first 15 minutes of any big game the number one rule is do not take any risks, if your unsure always do the simple thing. Somebody forgot to inform Victor Valdes of this. 22 seconds had elapsed when the keeper was far too casual and gifted the ball to Real and Benzema punished him with a nicely taken vollied finish.” Sabotage Times
Bewitched, bothered and bewildered
“There are several ways of saying ‘bewitched’, or ‘under the spell’ in Spanish. I particularly like the words hechizado and embrujado. These words form part of the reason Real Madrid seem unable to function when they come to play Barcelona. Bewitched, bothered and bewildered.” ESPN
Barca ends Real’s winning streak
“Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 3-1 to move into a tie (on points) atop the league standings, although Madrid does have a game in hand. Barcelona is now undefeated (6-0-1) in seven straight league meetings with Madrid, including three in a row at the Bernabeu. Here are five more notes on Saturday’s Clasico — which marked an end to Real’s run of 10 straight victories in La Liga.” Five Aside (Video)
Real Madrid 1 – 3 Barcelona
“Barcelona recovered from conceding the quickest El Clasico goal in history to end Real Madrid’s 15-match winning run and strike a potentially decisive blow in the race for the Primera Division title. Despite having lifted the trophy for three years in a row and enjoying both domestic and European dominance over Madrid over recent times, Pep Guardiola’s men went into tonight’s match as the underdogs, trailing the capital club by three points and having played a game more.” ESPN
Capital punishment for Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid as Barcelona show they aren’t ready to be dethroned just yet
“Pep Guardiola remains unbeaten as a coach at the Bernabeu as the Catalans recorded what could turn out to be a hugely significant victory over their arch rivals in El Gran Clasico” Goal
“In April 1958, Rachid Mekhloufi stood on the brink of international superstardom. Having scored 25 goals in thirty games to help AS Saint-Étienne win their first Championnat the year before, Mekhloufi was about to win his fifth France cap in a friendly against Switzerland, with coach Paul Nicolas including him in the forty-man pre-selection for Les Bleus’ highly fancied World Cup squad.” In Bed With Maradona
“Crunch time is approaching for this year’s two outstanding South American clubs.
Over the next few days both Santos of Brazil and Universidad de Chile are seeking to scale new heights. The Chileans, ‘la U’ for short, extended their unbeaten run to 34 games on Sunday, brushing aside Union Espanola to book their place in the semi-finals of the local championship. This, though, is hardly the priority. They already have 14 Chilean titles to their name, including the first of the two played this year.” BBC – Tim Vickery
“Queens Park Rangers had won just one of their previous 20 league games at Anfiled, and have won only one Premier League match at all against Liverpool. Liverpool themselves may have felt like they were due some luck having hit the woodwork 12 times this season – more than anyone else.” Tomkins Times
Liverpool 1 – 0 Queens Park Rangers
“Liverpool striker Luis Suarez showed just why he is prized and feared in equal amounts with an impressive all-round performance as he guided the Reds to a home victory over QPR. The Uruguay international, who has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons during a two-month lean spell in front of goal, was at his threatening best as he scored his first goal in the Premier League since October 1.” ESPN
“‘Ella, Ella, Under my Umbrella’….just five days prior to our arrival in Poland’s third biggest city, those words has reverberated across the Stadion ŁKS as one of the most famous and sought after artists in the world, Rhianna played in front of a sell out crowd in the adjacent Atlas Area. One hundred and fifteen hours later, Danny Last and I were wrapped up like Michelin men outside the football stadium, huddled under a canopy, waiting to pick up our press passes from ŁKS Łódź . Now don’t get me wrong, I love Danny Last but he’s no Rhianna and so when he uttered the chorus line for the umpteenth time I told him exactly where he could stick his bloody ‘Ella’ and I wandered off in a huff to find some football socks for my collection.” The Ball is Round
“Four players (Orhan Pamuk, Naguib Mahfouz, Kenzaburo Oe, Barry Hines) on the New York Times writers’ XI violate FIFA statutes by wearing spectacles. Hines, Jorge Valdano and Eduardo Galeano press forward, treading lightly on a manicured wheat-grass surface embossed with words from Mahfouz: ‘We play to forget our sorrows.’ Nabokov studies lepidopterology texts when play switches to the other end.” The Global Game – March 2009
“Saturday night sees the seventh – and final – Clasico of 2011, and perhaps the one with the most tactical possibilities. There are reasons for that on both sides. Real have played a more attacking game this season, and there’s less certainty that they’ll defend deep, park the bus, and invite pressure. Barca, on the other hand, play the same style of football as ever, but they’ve experimented with a new formation – 3-4-3, which they’ve used in over half of their league games this season. With few injuries and squads stronger than last year, it’s surprisingly difficult to predict the 22 players that will start this match.” Zonal Marking
“It’s fair to say that Inter have had better starts to the season. Although they qualified from the Champions League group stage with a game to spare, they currently languish in 16th place in Serie A. Admittedly they have a game in hand, but they are still a colossal 14 points behind league leaders Juventus with a third of the season gone. The triumphant 2009/10 season when the nerazzurri became the first Italian team to win the treble of the scudetto, the Coppa Italia and the Champions League in a single year under the guidance of José Mourinho seems a distant memory. Inter fans have become accustomed to success, as that triumph meant that their team had won five league titles in a row (including the one awarded to them for 2005/06 by the courts after the calciopoli scandal).” Swiss Ramble
“As Barcelona’s Lionel Messi cruised by tens of million pounds’ worth of defensive talent and rolled the ball past Real Madrid’s sprawled goalkeeper last month, I found myself shouting, cavorting and – most important, this – demanding that the world should agree with me that the goal was pretty well as good as the one scored by another small Argentine, Diego Maradona, against England 25 years earlier. My companion that night did his duty and acceded. And that, I thought, was enough for a good evening’s football entertainment. But not a bit of it. Courtesy of Italian television, which is risible in all editorial matters except, predictably, football, I was able to listen to more or less all of Real Madrid manager José Mourinho’s press conference. (British television tends to cut quickly to the sludge of postmatch clichés masquerading as analysis.)” FT
The Football Men
“The great footballers and coaches are rarely glimpsed up close. They shield themselves from the tabloids, hide their personalities behind professionalism, and in the words of the cliche, ‘do their talking on the pitch’. This book gets up close to them. The Football Men is not a series of celebrity profiles, and it doesn’t attempt to unearth secrets in the players’ private lives. Rather, it portrays these men as three-dimensional human beings. It describes their upbringings, the football cultures they grew up in, the way they play, and the baggage that they bring to their relationships at work.” amazon
“A throwback to an era of Cold War paranoia is the latest wave of conspiracy theories which will still be circulating long after the World Cups of 2018 and 2022 have been relegated to football’s history books.” World Soccer
“Manchester United are out of the Champions League after a 2-1 defeat away in Switzerland. Hieko Vogel was without his veteran central midfielder Benjamin Huggel because of a calf strain, so played Cabral instead. Sir Alex Ferguson played Wayne Rooney upfront, supported by Park Ji-Sung, with Ryan Giggs and Phil Jones in the midfield. United dominated possession and created more goalscoring chances – but Basel’s tactics were clever, and although they rode their luck on occasion, weren’t entirely flattered by the victory.” Zonal Marking
“Sócrates is dead. It’s hard to see how anyone could be surprised. It’s also hard not to think that he died because he wanted to, since Sócrates always seems to have done what he wanted to. He smoked incessantly because it gave him pleasure; he seems to have ingested vast amounts of alcohol for the same reason. When people die from alcoholic poisoning — which is in effect what killed Sócrates — it’s usual to speak of their ‘demons’: he could never escape his demons, he could never conquer his demons, in the end his demons destroyed him. Few will use that language about Sócrates, in part because, according to much testimony, drinking didn’t really change his personality. He drank because he liked it, probably.” Run of Play
Socrates so much more than a footballer
“Just over five years ago, when Brazil’s 1982 World Cup coach Tele Santana died, team captain Socrates recalled the scene in the dressing room after their elimination by Paolo Rossi’s Italy at the second group stage. As the media were searching for explanations, there were tears and tantrums, dejection and disappointment. Amid the chaos, Santana stood peacefully, proud of his team and the glorious football they had played – still remembered with extraordinary affection all over the world. They had given it their best shot.” BBC – Tim Vickery (Video)
Socrates Dead: Brazil Soccer Captain At 1982 World Cup Dies At 57
“On and off the field, former Brazil star Socrates stood out above the rest. His elegant style and his deep involvement with politics made him a unique figure in Brazilian soccer, setting him apart from the players of his time and even of today. He was mostly known for captaining Brazil at the 1982 World Cup, regarded by many as the best team ever not to win football’s showcase tournament.” Huffington Post (Video)
“Is Group C of the Euro 2012 finals – Croatia, Italy, Ireland and Spain – the most catholic group in international football tournament finals history? That thought occurred with the fourth team in two of next summer’s groups still to be drawn out and Italy’s and England’s balls still to be opened. When Saturday Comes magazine asked the question of one of the 2002 World Cup finals groups – also involving Italy and Croatia, alongside Mexico and Ecuador – so it wasn’t an original thought (when I have one, I’ll surely let you know).” twohundredpercent
“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)
“Chelsea are into the knockout stages after a surprisingly comfortable win over Valencia. Andre Villas-Boas went for his usual 4-3-3, but sprung a surprise with the use of Raul Meireles on the left of the midfield triangle, meaning Frank Lampard dropped to the bench. Didier Drogba was in over Fernando Torres again upfront. Unai Emery’s expected 4-2-3-1 featured Jonas as the central attacker, Sofiane Feghouli on the right, and Antonio Barragan at right-back. Ever Banega was out injured. Chelsea were ahead after five minutes, and had the game sealed by half-time.” Zonal Marking
“Fulham striker Clint Dempsey struck a late winner as Liverpool’s outstanding form on the road ended with a controversial 1-0 defeat at Craven Cottage. Dempsey stabbed home a long-range 85th-minute shot by Danny Murphy that had bounced off the arms of Jose Reina, to secure only Fulham’s third Barclays Premier League win of the season. However, a sense of grievance cloaked Liverpool’s night after they were denied a strong claim to a penalty and a legitimate goal from Luis Suarez was disallowed for offside, before Jay Spearing was shown a straight red card.” ESPN
Fulham 1 Liverpool 0: In-Depth Tactical Analysis
“Fulham had failed to score in six in their last eight Premier League games against Liverpool, and the visitors have the league’s best record in terms of shots conceded (44). Unfortunately, neither record prevailed in the end as Fulham gained a 1-0 victory after Spearing had been received a straight red card.” Tomkins Times
Didier Drogba
“The scoreline makes it look convincing, but Chelsea had to work extremely hard to get the three points. Alan Pardew was without the suspended Jonas Gutierrez and the injured Cheick Toite, so Peter Lovenkrands started on the left, and Danny Guthrie in the middle. Fabricio Coloccini only lasted half an hour before being replaced by James Perch.” Zonal Marking
Newcastle 0-3 Chelsea:The Scoreline Flatters Chelsea
“The scoreline doesn’t tell the whole story, as Chelsea were severely tested by Newcastle United for most of an entertaining game, before finishing them off with two goals in the dying minutes. The home team had the hard-working duo of Jonás Gutierrez and Cheick Tioté out, so Peter Løvenkrands and Danny Guthrie came in. Captain Fabricio Coloccini went off injured after just 28 minutes and was replaced by utility player James Perch. Chelsea started with Didier Drogba up front, while Oriol Romeu continued in the holding role after an impressive outing against Wolves.” The False 9
“As ever, with thedraw for the European Championship, the first thought is how many exciting ties there are in prospect in the group stage. Holland vs. Germany, Spain vs. Italy, France vs. England, Portugal’s games against the Dutch and the Germans … this is how tournament soccer ought to be; big games at every turn. The World Cup, ludicrously bloated as it now is, doesn’t offer that sense of immediacy, of giants clashing from the off, and the fear must be that as the euros expand to 24 teams from 2016, it too will be diminished by the grind of small sides packing their half and seeking to frustrate opponents.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“2nd v 1st going into the game, but this draw allowed Bayern Munich to return to the top. Lucien Favre was without Marco Rues, so Raul Bobadilla played alongside Mike Hanke. At the back, Martin Stranzl returned from injury and was in for Roel Brouwers. Jurgen Klopp is still missing Sven Bender after he got injured against Arsenal, so Ilkay Gundogan played instead – otherwise, the side was as expected. This wasn’t a particularly tactical match – the sides played their usual systems, there were no major switches in formation, and the first substitute entered the pitch in the 77th minute.” Zonal Marking
“It may have seemed as if Ireland’s Euro 2012 dreams had suffered a hammer blow as they were thrown into a opening group featuring Spain, Italy and Croatia, yet the reaction in Dublin has been surprisingly upbeat as the gravity of the task facing Giovanni Trapattoni’s rank outsiders was digested.” ESPN
French fancy their chances
“It goes without saying French football owes a big debt of gratitude to Zinédine Zidane, from his headers to help win the World Cup to his silken contribution to the Euro 2000 success and even to his retribution-filled coup de boule – his ‘head-butt’ – on Marco Materazzi. Zizou added another reason for Les Bleus to be thankful to him when he produced another coup de boule – which could also mean ‘ball trick’, honestly, it works in French! – by drawing a clement Euro 2012 group for his old mate Laurent Blanc.” ESPN
“Ever since Barcelona and Pep Guardiola invented football in 2009, the praise has come full and fast, a blue and purple tsunami of love for unparalleled genius. And it’s fair enough. Xavi is the best midfielder of his day, Andres Iniesta the most elegant, able to pass, trick and score with effortless beauty. The most extensive gush is reserved for Lionel Messi. A genius, apparently, but is he actually any good?” ESPN
“Faton Toski grabbed two goals and three assists as Bochum gave Aue a harsh lesson in the virtues of taking your chances. Despite the hosts bossing the ball in the opening 45 minutes of this Sunday afternoon 2. Bundesliga clash between two mid-table sides, Aue actually had more chances, but were profligate and up against Bochum’s impressive goalkeeper, Andreas Luthe. But, at the other end, Toski and Christoph Kramer helped tear Aue open, with Marcel Maltritz, Mirkan Aydın and Toski himself scoring the goals that gave coach Andreas Bergmann’s side a 3-0 lead at the break. The hosts added two more goals to their tally shortly after the restart, with Toski unplayable and Aue seemingly having thrown in the towel, before Aydın grabbed his second and Bochum’s sixth to cap a memorable day.” Defensive Midfielder
“Two of the Bundesliga’s best strikers made their mark as Hannover and Freiburg played out a 1-1 draw that keeps the latter in the relegation zone. For nearly 70 minutes, it had looked as though the class of Mohammed Abdellaoue was going to settle a not particularly memorable tie in the visitors’ favour. They were the better team in the first half, and took the lead through an own goal after great work by the Norwegian international.” Defensive Midfielder
“Southern League Premier Division side Stourbridge finally ended their greatest ever FA Cup run at the hands of League One Stevenage at the War Memorial Athletic Ground earlier today, thanks to two goals from Chris Beardsley and a late third from Robin Shroot.” twohundredpercent
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
“iny cracks may be starting to appear in the previously impregnable armour of Barcelona, with Real Madrid rampant and Pep Guardiola’s side rudely obliged to play catch-up, but this team’s place in history is already secure. The trophies and the unique, hypnotic passing style have made sure of that, but less remarked upon is the tactical legacy that they have bequeathed to the game. As the first budding usupers begin to congregate at the gates of the Barca citadel, Football Further looks at five tactical maxims that Guardiola and his team have torn to shreds.” Football Further
“It remains to be seen how the process of today’s Euro 2012 draw will be structured, although we can assume it will be convoluted and drawn-out – certainly with long speeches and explanations, and possibly cultural dances from the two host countries. Often, the first draw involves deciding which groups the seeds go into – A, B, C or D – before determining which sides anyone will actually play. As it happens, this time around Poland have already been assigned to group A, whilst fellow hosts Ukraine have been placed in group D.” Zonal Marking
“One of the good things about a very tactical match is that the coaches are pressed for the reasons they made particular decisions at the post-match press conference. Antonio Conte’s approach away to Napoli was very surprising. Having started the season with a 4-4-2 often called a 4-2-4 and more recently moved to a 4-1-4-1, he switched to a 3-5-2 system. Giorgio Chiellini tucked in, Marcelo Estigarribia played on the left, and Simone Pepe moved inside to the centre of midfield, with Claudio Marchisio suspended.” Zonal Marking
“There are currently five La Liga clubs in the regions that spread across northern Spain – Racing Santander in Cantabria, Sporting Gijon in Asturias, Osasuna in Navarre, and Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad in the Basque Country – and with most being situated close to the coast, a weekend football break can easily be accompanied by some seaside relaxation.” World Soccer
“In many quarters, the European Championship is the soccer tournament, ahead of the World Cup, because there is no fluff, no Saudi Arabia, no United States, no Paraguay, no North Korea, no Honduras, no New Zealand … but also no Brazil and Argentina.” NY Times
“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
Victor Valdés
“Tiny cracks may be starting to appear in the previously impregnable armour of Barcelona, with Real Madrid rampant and Pep Guardiola’s side rudely obliged to play catch-up, but this team’s place in history is already secure. The trophies and the unique, hypnotic passing style have made sure of that, but less remarked upon is the tactical legacy that they have bequeathed to the game.” Football Further
“A proposal: when we wile away the hours compiling lists of the Greatest Ever Footballers, we are doing a disservice to this form of discourse if we do not take its premises seriously. To pretend that we can go on existing without this genetically-hewn proclivity for reducing the world to an Excel document is both futile and obscene, and we’ve no interest in arguing as to whether Grand Ranking is real a childish waste of everyone’s time.” Run of Play
“The argument that Arsenal are reliant on Robin van Persie would prove most conclusive when the Dutchman isn’t scoring goals, as opposed to when he is. So, in the first league match in seven games in which he has failed to score, are Arsenal reliant on Robin van Persie? That answer is probably yes although the overriding reason for Arsenal’s mute performance on Saturday seemed to be down to fatigue as well as Fulham’s obdurate defending.” The Arsenal Column
“As the clock ticked down on the final minutes of the match, the onslaught became irresistible. Deeper and deeper they defended. More and more attackers appeared. The siege became overwhelming. Desperate challenges, heroic lunges, astonishing saves. The ball thudding against the post. A penalty turned down. Shots raining down upon them. And ultimately resistance proved futile — eventually the winning goal came. The goalkeeper could do nothing. Nor could his outnumbered defenders. To a huge roar, victory had been secured in the very last minute.” SI
“I flew back to Brazil from London on the day that the group phase of the Champions League kicked off. I well recall that the talk in England at the time was that the entire group stage was dull and predictable. It was almost too easy for the Premier League sides. But that is not the way things have turned out.” BBC – Tim Vickery
“A few months, even a few weeks, ago, it would have been silly to assume that the game between the two Borussias – Dortmund and Mönchengladbach – on the coming Saturday would pair the league leaders with the runners-up. Too difficult was Dortmund’s start to this season, too narrowly did Gladbach avoid relegation in the last season for anyone to predict this match would be anything special.” ESPN
“This week, Celtic start to show their credentials and there is a further recurrence of the depressing violence directed at Old Firm personnel.” ESPN
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
“Marcelo Bielsa might be known as ‘El Loco’ but he is far from stupid, and his decision to turn down Internazionale in the summer was rooted in the most worldly of considerations. And as Gian Piero Gasperini’s ill-fated five games in the San Siro hot seat demonstrated, the grandees of the game simply don’t have time for radicalism – particularly with Inter’s ageing, slow squad simply unsuited to the sort of hard-pressing game favoured by both Bielsa and Gasperini. Instead of Italy, Bielsa went to Spain, where he joined Athletic Bilbao, a club almost as idiosyncratic as he is.” World Soccer – Jonathan Wilson
“An interesting battle between formations and an excellent match ended with a narrow Barcelona win. Max Allegri went for his usual system, Kevin-Prince Boateng shuttling from midfield to link up with the front two, with Robinho starting rather than Pato. Alberto Aquilani started on the right of midfield. Pep Guardiola was without a host of players including both Dani Alves and Adriano, and went for his system featuring a back three, and a diamond in midfield. Barcelona had more of the ball (of course) and created more goalscoring opportunities, but were never completely in control of the game.” Zonal Marking
“Another important, impressive victory for Juventus over a fellow title challenger. Here are eight observations on the game. 1. In the first half, much of the action came down Juventus’ right, the area of the pitch with more energetic, forward-thinking players. Like against Inter, Stephane Lichsteiner was a huge attacking threat, and his surges forward often led to Senad Lulic coming out to meet him – in turn leaving Arturo Vidal free. Lichsteiner, Vidal and Simone Pepe often overloaded Lulic and Stephan Radu down that flank, and there were four very good Juventus chances before Pepe’s goal that came from working the ball down that side. On the other flank, Giorgio Chiellini was more cautious and Juve’s left was more static.” Zonal Marking
David de Gea
“This week, there have been three obvious examples of sides conceding cheap goals by conceding possession on the edge of their own penalty box. First, Angel Rangel gave the ball away for Javier Hernandez’s winner in Swansea’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United. Then, John Obi Mikel was dispossessed by Charlie Adam for Liverpool’s opener in their 2-1 win at Chelsea. Finally, Benfica scored their second in the 2-2 Champions League draw at Old Trafford when David De Gea misplaced a pass.” Zonal Marking
“Regular followers of the blog know by now that I try to take a particular interest in measuring the performances of football teams, and should more and better data be available in the future, of individual players too. This post continues that trend, being the first of a planned three-part mini series looking at team performances in the Eredivisie, with 13 of all 34 games played.” 11 tegen 11: Measuring performances in the Eredivisie – Goal scoring chances, Measuring performances in the Eredivisie – Shot Accuracy, Measuring performances in the Eredivisie – Conversion
“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
“Sparta Praha 0-0 Dukla Praha. A stroke of tactical genius by Luboš Kozel combined with some resolute defending from the Dukla Praha defence saw Sparta Praha stumble to their third successive winless games in front of their own fans. The result will have done no favours for the management duo of Josef Chovanec and Martin Hašek who are rumoured to be moved on by the Sparta hierarchy over the winter break. Sparta lined up in the same manner that they did in their 4-0 demolition of Bohemians 1905 on Monday, and going into the game many expected a similar score-line against another of their cross-town rivals.” The Czech Up
“So, the English Premier League will not be staging that dreaded 39th game overseas any time soon, which perhaps allows some of those grassroots fans to be thankful for something while they see the rest of their game being taken away. Chief executive Richard Scudamore certainly wanted to distance himself not only from his own failed idea but also from Scottish Premier League chief Neil Doncaster’s idea of taking the Old Firm abroad, which could be taken as simply a throw-away comment or a cheeky notice to Mr. Doncaster not to send him a holiday card.” twohundredpercent
“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)
“Paul Savill takes an in-depth look at a relationship which has endured the test of time. During his speech at our wedding, my wife’s father worked in my passion for Arsenal and noted that whilst writing his address he had been looking for a link between the Gunners and his home town club Leicester City. As soon as the words left his mouth I blurted out “First game at Highbury”. My father-in-law said he had asked one of his brothers about a link earlier in the day and had been pointed in the direction of the 3-3 draw of 1954, whilst his own research on the official Arsenal website had led him to the twelve goal thriller that was the 6-6 draw in 1930.” In Bed With Maradona
“Ajax managed to obtain exactly the result they came for in their fifth Champions League Group stage match, duplicating their home result with a 0-0 away draw at Lyon. Considering Real Madrid’s absolute dominance and Dinamo Zagreb’s failure to grab any points so far, the balance in results between Ajax and Lyon see Ajax now firmly hold an advantage of seven goals over their French rivals for a place among the final sixteen of this season’s Champions League.” 11 tegen 11
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