“To label Javier Pastore as the Serie A revelation of the season so far would be slightly inappropriate. For those who are familiar with calcio, El Flaco has long been a boy to keep an eye on. Nevertheless, for many in Europe, he was almost unknown before links with Real Madrid and Manchester City were established.” (Italia)
“Emilio Nsue headed a shock equaliser to sting Barcelona as Pep Guardiola’s fell three points behind Primera Division leaders Valencia after a 1-1 draw with Real Mallorca. Lionel Messi gave Barcelona the lead after 20 minutes on his first league start since injuring an ankle in the 2-1 win at Atletico Madrid two weeks ago.” (ESPN)
FC Barcelona 1-1 Mallorca – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – La Liga
(The 90th Minute)
“I’m flying to back to Rio and feeling a bit jealous of people who live in the Midlands – not a sentence you’re likely to come across every day. The reason? Next Monday, Brazil come to Derby to face Ukraine, giving fans at Pride Park the chance to have a close look at a fascinating moment in the development of the five-times world champions.” (BBC – Tim Vickery)
“Last weekend was somewhat lacking on the goals front, but Saturday and Sunday more than made up for that with an absolute deluge. Only two matches featured fewer than two goals: Arsenal’s 1-0 away win over Quilmes on Friday, and Estudiantes’ win by the same scoreline away to San Lorenzo, which leaves Seba Verón & Co. five points clear at the top of the table. Saturday’s goals didn’t get posted last night because I was celebrating a friend’s birthday, but you can watch them here along with Sunday’s, and all the scores. Boca Juniors lost, River Plate drew away to Banfield in a highly-charged match, and Gimnasia La Plata and Argentinos Juniors served up a partidazo on Saturday. All this and more, right here…” (Hasta El Gol Siempre)
“There were three Premier League matches on October 3 including Chelsea v Arsenal. In that match, Chelsea won 2-0 while Liverpool lost at home to Blackpool and Man City edged Newcastle United.” (The 90th Minute)
The Country Concert, Tiziano Vecellio
“An entertaining first half, but a second period where both sides were happy to take a point. Juventus were broadly in Luigi Delneri’s favoured 4-4-2 shape, with Fabio Qugliarella dropping to the left, just off Vincenzo Iaquinta. Milos Krasic played on the right and stayed high up the pitch, whilst Claudio Marchisio was tucked in on the opposite side. Rafael Benitez didn’t consider Diego Milito fit enough to start, so Samuel Eto’o was used upfront with Jonathan Biabiany and Coutinho either side. Ivan Cordoba continued at the back with the captain’s armband.” (Zonal Marking)
“Chelsea’s defending, Rafael van der Vaart’s passing, Manchester United’s shooting and Liverpool’s predictability in the final third” (Guardian)
“You saw this one coming – Arsenal dominated possession, but Chelsea were more clinical. Chelsea’s side was unchanged from last week’s defeat to Manchester City – Yuri Zkirjov had replaced Ramires in midweek for the win over Marseille, but dropped back to the bench. Arsenal fielded the expected line-up, with Lukasz Fabianski starting in Manuel Almunia’s absence, and Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci at the back.” (Zonal Marking)
“It has now gone far enough to stop even being amusing to the neutral. Supporters of Manchester United and Everton may seek to disagree, but there was something sombre about Liverpool’s home defeat at the hands of Blackpool this afternoon. We are some way from reading the last rites of the club, but there is something in the air at Anfield. That familiar stench of dry rot hangs over the club this evening. The spirit of Liverpool Football Club feels broken. With each passing week, the feeling that this is but a mere blip has receded further and further into the distance and the dread reality for Liverpool supporters, that a season of having to fight the unthinkable fight – the fight to hold onto the club’s place in the Premier League itself – might be looming on the horizon.” (twohundredpercent)
Hodgson under pressure as Liverpool fans turn
“Just weeks after hailing Roy Hodgson’s arrival as Liverpool manager and predicting a return to glory, fans have turned on the veteran coach and started chanting the name of the man who once led them to domination of the English game.” (Yahoo)
“With Barcelona and Real Madrid hogging every inch of Spain’s media duvet, it’s easy to get the impression that la Liga shares the philosophical poser of whether falling trees make any noise when there’s no-one around to hear them. For the most part, news of managerial hirings and firings, injuries or even matches taking place far from the attention-demanding duo are covered by a couple of sentences stuck away on page 37 of the country’s main sporting pages.” (Football 365)
“FIFA 11 reinvents player authenticity – on and off the ball – for every player and at every position on the pitch with Personality+, an all-new feature that sees individual abilities reflected in game, enabling clear differentiation for every player.” (EA)
The twohundredpercent FIFA 11 Review
“Football games on consoles. FIFA vs Pro Evolution Soccer. There was a time when it was all so much easier than it is now. EA Sports had spent all of the money for FIFA on the licences and seemed to have very little left over for the game itself. Konami, on the other hand, knew that with Pro Evolution Soccer, if you wanted something that felt like the real thing, you would put up with Merseyside Blue playing against Connaught. With the seventh generation – the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 – of consoles, however, the balance tipped dramatically in the other direction. Pro Evolution Soccer stood still, while FIFA 2008, FIFA 2009 and FIFA 10 made quantum leaps in terms of the actual game-playing experience itself.” (twohundredpercent)
FIFA 11 – Demo Impressions
“It’s that time of year again football fanaticos. It’s FIFA time. Europe’s top leagues are now all underway and the transfer window has just slammed shut. The World Cup is now nothing but a memory, and a great one at that. While fans get used to their favorite European club’s new players and lineups, this time of year is full of hope, ambition, and potential for soccer fans the world over. There’s only one thing missing: an up to date FIFA!” (mmomfg)
FIFA ’11 Features You Won’t See
“It shouldn’t come as a surprise that one of our super-secret-sources has given us the heads up about some of the features that DIDN’T make it into FIFA ’11. So when you put your brand spanking new copy into your PS3/Xbox today, you can think about what could have been.” (Cheeky Chip)
FIFA 11 – Arsenal vs Real
(YouTube)
“Liverpool’s much-publicised issues off the pitch have been eclipsed by their problems on it as the side slumped to an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at home to Premier League newcomers Blackpool. Thousands of fans staged a pre-match protest march against the continuing ownership of Tom Hicks and George Gillett but there was a real danger of revolt inside Anfield at the final whistle.” (ESPN)
Pressure mounts on Roy Hodgson as Liverpool lose to Blackpool
“Fourteen games as Liverpool manager and the Kop has returned its verdict on Roy Hodgson. It was 11 minutes before five o’clock, Blackpool were seconds from a thoroughly merited win that cemented the Anfield club’s position in the bottom three and then it started: ‘Dalglish. Dalglish, Dalglish!’ came the chant. On current form it will not be the ownership that changes hands in mid-October but a manager who is looking increasingly out of his depth.” (Guardian)
“Chelsea moved four points clear at the top of the table as they beat Arsenal 2-0 at Stamford Bridge. Didier Drogba, who has relished his appearances against Arsenal down the years, broke the deadlock as a tight first half was drawing to a close, neatly flicking the ball beyond Lukasz Fabianski.” (ESPN)
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
(The 90th Minute)
“Andrea Pirlo’s wonderul goal gave Milan all three points at the Tardini. Dino Marino used a 4-2-3-1 formation, although it was lopsided, as Jose Marques stayed high up the pitch supporting Hernan Crespo, whilst Angelo (usually a right-back) made his debut on the right of midfield. Massimo Gobbi played as a holding player with license to come forward.” (Zonal Marking)
“As one of the most liked and respected managers in English football, Roy Hodgson would probably have expected a little more time to settle in after deservedly taking his seat at the highest profile job of his career. As it is, his Liverpool side welcome Blackpool to Anfield today in dire need of a result, and with less confidence in achieving it than might ever have been anticipated. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, of course. Hodgson arrived as the reliable, steady hand to settle things after the turbulent final year of Rafa Benítez’s reign.” (WSC)
“I guess it must be Dennis Bergkamp. He may have never won any of football’s major prizes – there were three UEFA Cups, but no Champions League, no European Championship, no World Cup – but who cares? Playing football should never be just about winning trophies, Johan Cruyff’s ‘best to be remembered by the style’ approach was one to be admitted, and Bergkamp was all about style – poise, control, use of space, thought and action.” (The Equaliser), (The Equaliser)
“Dame N’Doye scored the first, created the second, and Gilberto Silva received two yellow cards for fouling him twice. Nikos Nioplias selected his usual 4-2-3-1 formation. Gilberto Silva dropped into a centre-back position alongside Josu Sarriegi, leaving Kostas Katsouranis playing just ahead of Simao in the centre of midfield. Luis Garcia started in a central playmaker position.” (Zonal Marking)
“Another week, another club left without a manager. The weekend was an uneventful one in Argentina, with few goals and a surfeit of draws to balance out the excitement of the previous round. All the same, there was a change of managers in midweek, as Wednesday brought the completion of the fourth round of matches (yes, the weekend just gone was round eight, you’ve not missed anything) when Estudiantes and Gimnasia La Plata met in the clásico (derby) of the city that’s the capital of Buenos Aires Province.” (In Bed with Maradona)
“Here’s how it would work: The six lowest-ranked teams in the region would have a home-and-home playoff to trim the field to 32. Then eight groups of four teams would play a six-game quarterfinal stage, with the top two in each group advancing. Then four groups of four would play a six-game semifinal stage, with the top two again advancing. Then two groups of four would play a six-game final stage. The two teams that win those groups would earn bids to World Cup ’14. If CONCACAF successfully lobbies FIFA for four spots in Brazil (instead of the previous 3.5), then the two second-place teams would also receive World Cup bids.” (SI)
“Schalke eventually found a way past Benfica, in a game between two sides lacking confidence. Schalke played a 4-3-1-2 / 4-4-2 diamond system, with Raul dropping off Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Jefferson Farfan was the midfielder with most inclination to get out wide.” (Zonal Marking)
“Liverpool escaped with a goalless draw in their Europa League Group K clash in Utrecht after another disjointed and disappointing performance. A point in the Stadion Galgenwaard, where the hosts had won their previous six matches, was no disgrace but it was hardly one of those classic, gritty away performances in Europe.” (ESPN)
FC Utrecht 0-0 Liverpool – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – Europa League
(The 90th Minute)
“Ask any football fan how they’d prefer to beat their fiercest rivals, and they might not say a 5-0 thrashing or a thrilling 4-3 victory with a dramatic winner deep into injury time. For some, there is nothing sweeter than beating your worst enemies in unjust and controversial circumstances after a match in which you’ve been completely played off the park from start to finish. Fans of Saint-Etienne have been celebrating just such a victory this week.” (Football Further)
Oguchi Onyewu
“They’re killing the most important rivalry in American soccer. That’s my unavoidable conclusion after speaking to Chuck Blazer, the general secretary of CONCACAF, who confirmed that he expects FIFA to approve a new regional qualifying format for World Cup 2014. Under the new format, which has already been approved by CONCACAF, the U.S. and archrival Mexico — the two soccer giants in this part of the world — would almost certainly not meet during any of the qualifying games for Brazil 2014. Not even once.” (SI)
“Below are video highlights for all the UEFA Champions League group stage matches on September 29, 2010.” (The 90th Minute)
“Smash and grab – Javier Hernandez’s late goal settled a tight contest. Valencia were without Joaquin, so fielded a fluid Mata-Pablo-Dominguez trio behind Roberto Soldado, who started ahead of Aritz Aduriz. Jeremy Mathieu was preferred to Jordi Alba at left-back. Manchester United were without Wayne Rooney, which made it an easy decision to start with a 4-5-1 (indeed, it would have been interesting what Sir Alex Ferguson would have done if Rooney had been available. Michael Carrick and Anderson’s returns from injury were timed well in the absence of Paul Scholes, whilst Rio Ferdinand replaced Jonny Evans.” (Zonal Marking)
“Mainz are THE story of the European season so far – top of the Bundesliga with six wins from six. Five wins from five was good enough, but few expected the run to continue, since they faced a trip to last season’s champions. But Mainz triumphed 2-1 over Bayern, using a 4-3-1-2 formation and pressing all over the pitch.” (Zonal Marking)
Samuel Eto’o
“Samuel Eto’o put Werder Bremen to the sword as Inter Milan delivered a lesson in clinical finishing at the San Siro tonight. The Cameroon striker scored a hat-trick and the influential Wesley Sneijder was also on target as the Champions League holders showed they are still a force to be reckoned with despite the departure of Jose Mourinho.” (ESPN)
“11tegen11 is enjoying a well-deserved, but short holiday break. In the meantime, here’s an overview of the Eredivisie so far, updated to include match day 7, finishing off with part three.” (11 tegen 11)
“River Plate only managed a draw in the final match of the eighth round of the Torneo Clausura. They were playing Quilmes, a newly-promoted side and as such key opponents in River’s own battle against the relegation promedio as well as supposedly easy targets for three points in the chase for the title. River were dominant throughout the match, and it was difficult to recall more than a couple of chances for Quilmes, but the visitors came away with the result thanks to a healthy dose of good fortune, as much as anything. I was there, and here’s my attempt at making some sense of it.” (Hasta El Gol Siempre)
“At times it seemed that the players during Manchester United’s Champions League clash at Valencia were on some kind of pre-planned go-slow. It could have been a lot worse, though. Some of them could have actually been on strike. Wednesday was General Strike day in Spain, 24 hours of action called by the country’s main unions in protest over the government’s austerity measures and planned changes to the employment laws, which it claims are required to tackle the country’s debt and improve the crippling 22% unemployment rate.” (Football 365)
“Having essentially admitted that the purchase of Rafael van der Vaart was a transfer deadline day whim, it has been interesting to see how Harry Redknapp has tried to accommodate the Dutchman in his team. Spurs’ success last season was built on a fairly classic 4-4-2 formation, with dashing wingers on either side and a big-man-little-man combination in attack. Redknapp conceded over the summer that the same system would likely prove too naïve and inflexible for the demands of the Champions League, so van der Vaart’s arrival can also be seen as a recognition of the need for greater subtlety and sophistication in Tottenham’s attacking approach.” (Football Further)
“Below are video highlights for all the UEFA Champions League group stage matches on Tuesday, September 28, 2010.” (The 90th Minute)
“An entertaining first half, a much less interesting second half, and a point apiece. Ajax maintained the 4-3-3 shape they used in the 2-2 draw with Twente, making one change – Demy de Zeeuw replaced the ineffectual Rasmus Lindgren, with Eyong Enoh dropping into a deeper midfield position.” (Zonal Marking)
Cornelis van Poelenburgh, Landscape with Roman Ruins
“Chelsea are onto six points after a victory over Marseille that was in doubt for longer than it should have been.
Carlo Ancelotti made two changes from the side that lost to Manchester City at the weekend. Ramires, who had a poor game, was left out in favour of Yuri Zhirkov, whilst Gael Kakuta was in for Didier Drogba, who is serving his traditional start-of-season Champions League suspension.” (Zonal Marking)
“11tegen11 is enjoying a well-deserved, but short holiday break. In the meantime, here’s an overview of the Eredivisie so far, updated to include match day 7, and here is part two.” (11 tegen 11)
“Football management is an extraordinarily harsh business. Managers are judged in the harsh glare of the public eye, with debate over their shortcomings often being led by those that shout the loudest, regardless of whether those doing the shouting are right or not. Many people that we might have expected to be very effective managers have fallen at the first hurdle, and many of them have not been given a second chance. It feels extremely doubtful that the position of manager of a football club could be beneficial in any way for the wellbeing of an individual that has suffered from alcoholism or is understood to have mental health issues.” (twohundredpercent)
The Clash
“Last week was going so well for Arsenal fans. First, their youthful team thrashed North London neighbours, Spurs, in a glorious performance at White Hart Lane, driven forward by an inspirational display from young tyro Jack Wilshere, the poster boy for Arsenal’s strategy of developing players from their academy. Then, away from the pitch, the board announced a sparkling set of financial results that confirmed their status as the best-run club in the Premier League.” (The Swiss Ramble)
“As the Champions League grows and grows, must it follow that domestic leagues sacrifice their native characteristics? Leave aside Spain, where Barcelona breeds its own, inimitable style, and the answer might be that we are rushing toward uniformity. The top matches in England, Germany and Italy over the weekend were all of a type. Manchester City, bankrolled by Abu Dhabi sheiks, beat Chelsea, owned by a Russian oligarch, by a solitary goal.” (NYT)
“Good evening. If you’re reading this in Internet Explorer 7 (or the beta version of IE9, as it goes), there’s a good chance that everything looks a little bit wonky on the site this evening. It’s being sorted, and should be back to normal in the next couple of days or so. Please bear with us while we get it sorted out. Shouldn’t be long. In the mean-time, it’s time for this week’s Video Of The Week, and another peer back into the BBC’s magnificent football archive with the first of six episodes of “Match Of The 80s”, a bit of pre-season filler from the mid-1990s, starting with the 1980/81 season.” (twohundredpercent)
“Millions of people every year move to live in a new country and struggle to make sense of their new surroundings as they deal with a different climate, new language and unfamiliar culture. The fascinating thing about footballers is that they go through this process in public. Everything they do is geared towards their performance on the pitch, where their work (i.e. the success of their adaptation) is viewed and judged by thousands in the stadium and millions watching on television.” (BBC – Tim Vickery)
“11tegen11 is enjoying a well-deserved, but short holiday break. In the meantime, here’s an overview of the Eredivisie so far, updated to include match day 7, kicking off with part one.” (11 tegen 11)
“Last year’s Eredivisie top two share the points in an open, attacking game. Michel Preud’homme played a 4-3-3 system that was basically similar in nature to the formation Steve McClaren used at the club last year, even if there have been numerous changes in personnel. Luuk de Jong started upfront in the absence of Mark Janko, and Nacer Chadli returned on the left wing.” (Zonal Marking)
“Arsène Wenger remains puzzled. Just how did a well drilled but not entirely spectacular West Bromwich Albion side manage to score three goals past them? And his team, he says, were ‘unrecognisable’ in attack as well as Arsenal failed to close the gap on leaders Chelsea who similarly succumbed to a loss at the weekend.” (Arsenal Column)
“The Saturday evening tie for Round 6 in the Bundesliga saw Northern rivals Bremen and Hamburger SV face off. Coming seventh in the list of the nine fixtures that comprise the round, Hamburger SV began the clash in 7th place on 8 points, while Bremen found themselves in penultimate place on a mere three points.” (Defensive Midfielder)
“There were Argentine goals in seven European leagues this weekend, as well as plenty in Mexico from players both old and new to that league. Carlos Tevez’s strike for Manchester City against Chelsea was the highest-profile one of the weekend, but Fernando Cavenaghi also got on the scoresheet, getting his first two since his move to Real Mallorca, and also among the goals were Ezequiel Lavezzi, Christian Giménez and more. There was also an early retirement, as Luciano Galletti was forced to call time on his career on Monday. All this and more is right here…” (Hasta El Gol Siempre)
Ferenc Puskas
“Let’s go back to 1956. Hungary had, arguably, the best football team that had ever lived, the ‘Mighty Magyars’. They lost narrowly in the World Cup final 3-2 to West Germany two years earlier after leading 2-0 inside the first 10 minutes, won the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki and famously beat England 6-3 at Wembley in 1953, to strike fear into countries around the World. The Hungarian club sides weren’t bad either, Honvéd, made up mostly of the Hungarian national team, were one of the best teams in Europe, losing narrowly on two occasions to the English champions Wolves in a competitive friendly before the European Cup had been introduced, and two years later to Atlético Bilbao in the 2nd ever European Cup. However, October 1956 changed everything.” (In Bed with Maradona)
“Chelsea’s 100% run ends with a third consecutive defeat to Manchester City. Roberto Mancini chose Dedryck Boyata at right-back to ease his defensive worries, with Pablo Zabaleta at left-back. David Silva got the nod over Adam Johnson, and started on the right.” (Zonal Marking)
“A thoroughly entertaining battle ended with a win for the home side thanks to a late Hugo Almeida goal. Bremen lined up with an attack-minded system which was vaguely a 4-2-3-1, with the front four players allowed to drift across the pitch, with the understanding that two of them would cover the wide positions and defend with two banks of four when they lost the ball. Generally this resulted in Marko Marin on the left and Aaron Hunt on the right, although sometimes Hunt ended up in the centre and one of the strikers provided right-wing width.” (Zonal Marking)
“Watching Garforth Town crash out of this season’s Northern Counties League Cup on the kind of wet and windy Tuesday evening in northern England that foreigners are habitually assumed ‘not to fancy much’, it was difficult to imagine anywhere further from Brazil.” (WSC)
“The first managerial firing in la Primera wasn’t José Aurelio Gay, coach of bottom-of-the-table Zaragoza who are still without a win in the new campaign. Nor was it the mournful figure of Miguel Angel Lotina, whose unabashed love of a 5-5-0 formation now sees his Deportivo team failing to score a single goal from open play in six league games, with just two wins in 18, and so brain-shatteringly dull to watch you’d think you’d chosen Alan Shearer’s dream-state as the location for an ‘inception’ attempt.” (Football 365)
“Gaël Clichy’s aerial struggles, Gareth Barry’s all-round display against Chelsea, Ashley Young’s lateral movement and Michael Essien’s shooting” (Guardian)
“This weekend saw the first clash of last year’s Eredivisie’s top two sides. Both clubs managed to win an impressive 16 out of 17 home games last season . Ajax’ only draw was, ironically against to-be-relegated Sparta (0-0), in the second home game of the season and Twente’s against PSV in their first home game of the season. Ajax managed to win their final 14 games of the season, scoring a magnificent 50 goals while conceding only 4 in these series. In spite of that, Twente managed to just hold on to their early season lead, keeping a one point margin intact over the final six matches, ensuring a thrilling end to the 2009/10 Eredivisie season and claiming their first ever title.” (11 tegen 11)
“Substitute Mirko Vucinic scored a superb last minute header to record a crucial win for Roma. Claudio Ranieri lined up with a 4-4-2 / 4-2-3-1 formation that saw Francesco Totti playing off Marco Borriello. Simone Perrotta was naturally more defensive on the left than Jeremy Menez was on the right. Rafael Benitez played the usual 4-2-3-1 system. Their side was also slightly lopsided, as Goran Pandev was both deeper and more central than Samuel Eto’o. Dejan Stankovic played as a deep-lying regista.” (Zonal Marking)
Marx, Engels, Mao, Castro, & now…Vucinic
“You saw the well-timed run. You saw the diving header. And you saw the fiery celebration. But what you didn’t see was…. The simmering tensions amid the eternal struggle between proletariat and owner. First, read John Foot’s excellent piece at Goal on the history of the infamous ‘Sindacato Miliardari’, the Serie A players’ union. Up to speed on the current crisis? (futfanatico)
“It was a busy day in the EPL with a few surprises including West Brom upsetting Arsenal at the Emirates. Other interesting results were Man City’s win over Chelsea and West Ham’s home victory over Tottenham.” (The 90th Minute)
“Seven games into the new season and not a word spent on Vitesse yet in 11tegen11. And yet, in some regards Vitesse has been one of the most dynamic teams so far. Disappointingly, however, this only held true for the off-pitch events so far. A change of ownership last August meant that Vitesse is the first, and so far only, foreign owned club in Holland. Georgian Merab Jordania took over the club, speaking of title challenges within three years and building the club into a stable force in European club football. Not the smallest of ambitions for last year’s number 14 of the Eredivisie, is it?” (11 tegen 11)
“You can talk about barely scratching the surface with this one, but we hope we managed to squeeze enough in to this to justify its Latin American Special tagline. It seems there will be many more to come!” (Cafecalcio)
“After last week’s contrasting results, in which Estudiantes lost to All Boys and Boca convincingly beat Colón, the celebrations switched on Saturday when Estudiantes beat Boca 1-0 thanks to a Marcos Rojo strike in only the first minute of a lively game. Earlier in the day, champions Argentinos Juniors had claimed their first win of the season by the same scoreline against Banfield. Elsewhere Lanús beat All Boys to bring them back down to earth after last week’s brilliant win, and after Independiente’s win yesterday, another of the sides who lost their manager earlier in the week won; Colón, who broke San Lorenzo’s unbeaten streak so far this season thanks partly to a controversially disallowed goal for the visitors. All the goals are right here.” (Hasta El Gol Siempre)
“Chelsea’s 100% run ends with a third consecutive defeat to Manchester City. Roberto Mancini chose Dedryck Boyata at right-back to ease his defensive worries, with Pablo Zabaleta at left-back. David Silva got the nod over Adam Johnson, and started on the right. Carlo Ancelotti named his side on Friday afternoon, and stuck to it. Indeed, with injury problems, there were few other options for him, and Chelsea lined up in the 4-3-3 shape they’ve favoured so far this season.” (Zonal Marking)
Manchester City 1-0 Chelsea – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
(The 90th Minute)
“Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard once again came to his side’s rescue but it was referee Stuart Attwell at the centre of attention with an erratic display in Sunderland’s 2-2 draw at Anfield. The official, who awarded the infamous ‘ghost goal” in the Championship two years ago, allowed Dirk Kuyt’s opening strike to count after ruling Michael Turner had taken a free-kick when he appeared to roll it back to goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.” (ESPN)
“It’s been an interesting week in the Argentine football world, and several clubs will be eagerly waiting for the weekend’s football action to start, so they can put behind them some of the developments of the past few days. Estudiantes, who a year ago stood with the continent at their feet after winning the 2009 Copa Libertadores, were humbled last weekend by newly promoted All Boys (who added a second big scalp to their defeat of Boca Juniors a few weeks earlier), and on Wednesday night exited the Copa Sudamericana – the continent’s second-string tournament – to Newell’s Old Boys.” (In Bed with Maradona)
