“BBC Sport’s fourth Price of Football study prompted a national debate about ticket prices, not to mention the sums clubs charge for pies and cups of tea. Football club owners, players, pundits and fans all had their say, but what did we learn? Here, we take a look at some of the key talking points.” BBC
“Once upon a time English clubs envied the Italian model of renting municipal stadia and thus avoiding the financial weight of owning and running their own home. The giants of Serie A were thus ‘free’, from the 1950s to the 1970s, to pay the highest transfer fees and most lucrative wages. Then came the TV, sponsorship and new media explosion and England developed the Premier League model and cashed in on the new generation of stadia built and rebuild post-Hillsborough. With restaurants, conference facilities and even sometimes hotel built into the grounds new revenue streams opened up.” World Soccer
“Sports can be a mirror to life, and sometimes it is better than that. In Warsaw on Saturday night, Poland beat Germany in soccer for the first time. For 93 years, since the Poles played their first international game, people have dreamed of this. And while its bigger neighbor has had three months to celebrate the fourth World Cup title in its history, the best Poland could do was celebrate that Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski, both born in Poland, were part of the German team that won the Cup in Brazil. Now, at least for one unforgettable night, the roles were reversed.” NY Times
“The marquee match of Group D’s Euro 2016 qualifiers takes place in Warsaw Saturday evening as Germany travel across their eastern border to play Poland. Germany are unbeaten in all 18 previous matches against Poland, holding a record of 12-6-0 in those matches. The last time the two met in a competitive match was in the EURO 2008 group stage where Germany, on the back of a Lukas Podolski brace, were 2-0 winners. The sides have met twice since in friendlies with both contests ending in draws. Only Luxembourg and the Czech Republic, of the nations that border Germany, have faced the current world champion fewer than has Poland. Luxembourg however do hold some bragging rights from their 13 battles with the neighbors, as they have actually beaten Germany once, while Poland still awaits their chance to say they’ve accomplished the same.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Now that we have settled in the last part exactly how Portugal arrived at the situation in which they find themselves, we take a look at the short term future of the Portuguese senior National Team. On October 3rd, new coach Fernando Santos revealed the list for the first call up of his tenure, which broke every taboo and controversy Paulo Bento had stirred in one way or another, by bringing back some very familiar names along with some new blood.” Outside of the Boot
“His Peterborough team-mates are playing Crawley this weekend, but League One defender Gabriel Zakuani is making a much longer trip during the international break. The 28-year-old is a Democratic Republic of Congo international and will be aiming to stop Yaya Toure, Gervinho and Wilfried Bony when his country face Ivory Coast on Saturday and Wednesday in two crucial Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in Kinshasa and Abidjan. Zakuani was born in Kinshasa but grew up in London. He made his DR Congo debut in 2005 and was part of the squad at the Cup of Nations in South Africa in 2013.” BBC
“Over the course of Arsene Wenger’s 18-year reign, Arsenal have become accustomed to World Cup winners. In 1998, Patrick Vieira teed up Emmanuel Petit for the clinching goal in France’s 3-0 final victory over Brazil, prompting the Daily Mirror to famously lead with ‘Arsenal win the World Cup’ on their front page. Four years later, Wenger signed Gilberto Silva on the strength of his World Cup-winning displays for Brazil, while in 2010 Cesc Fabregas assisted Andres Iniesta’s winning goal against the Netherlands.” ESPN – Michael Cox
“When the expected 2,800 Hungary fans arrive in Bucharest for their Euro 2016 qualifier against Romania on Saturday, they will be escorted directly to the stadium in an attempt to avoid the trouble that broke out when the sides met last year in a World Cup qualifier. The stadium will be sold out, with tickets given by the Romanian football federation (FRF) to ultras from each of the major Bucharest teams.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“Here is a quick list of six recent articles I’ve had published elsewhere. From the language of football to the First World War, with a healthy dose of Southampton and some very personal, gonzo-style pieces for a new and brilliant site based in Ireland. I will be contributing more ‘flash features’ to The Upright, largely because I enjoy doing them and I really admire the bold editorial stance taken by the site, allowing people to write personal, reflective pieces that are not your standard sort of sports writing (but maybe should be more widely represented?). The False Nine piece is part of a series I want to develop for them, looking irreverently at the use of language in football.” Put Niels In Goal
“When Daniel Passarella was Falcao’s coach during his time at River Plate he famously said: ‘He’s like Van Basten, he scores goals, he attacks on all sides and he heads like a god.’ While this was definitely lavish praise from the former World Cup winner, I’m sure he probably wouldn’t have imagined just how good a career his charge would go on to have. And against Everton, a game in which he opened his scoring account for his new club, he showed that his former manager was pretty spot on in his assessment.” Licence to Roam
“Whilst chaos clings to everything around Leeds United – a chairman with “elusive intent”, accusations of breaking United Nations Security Council resolutions and player complaints to the PFA – the squad has quietly being making progress on the pitch, with Neil Redfearn and Darko Milanič rubbishing Dave Hockaday’s claim that he could get ‘more out of these players than anyone else could’. For the first time in a while, we actually look pretty good. Really good, even. Form has stuttered in the last few weeks since Milanič took the job yet this is no real cause for concern – it’s the first time he’s managed in England, and this is the first season in English football for seven of the starting XI.” The False Nine
“It’s October 4th and the sun is shining down on the Volkswagen Arena. I’m sitting close to the pitch watching the match unfold amidst the Wolfsburg faithful. In the 58th minute Dieter Hecking’s men have finally managed to crack the Augsburg defence wide open. The Brazilian defender Naldo had taken the ball upfield and continued his run, then engaged in a lovely one-two with Sebastian Jung, and a few seconds later the former Werder man placed the ball in the back of the net of Marwin Hitz’s goal. The roughly 25,000 fans who have found their way to the stadium in Wolfsburg celebrated, because finally their team looks like making its way towards what the supporters consider to be the right end of the table.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“The international weekend gives everyone a chance to look back and take stock of the Premier League season so far. Tactics writers are no different, and there have been a number of notable features since the middle of August to consider. Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea have all provided us with something to consider since the English domestic campaign began. Let’s take a look at five tactical features that have caught the eye in the 2014-15 season.” Bleacher Report – Jonathan Wilson
“With 25 goals in 44 games for Bulgaria and a record 253 in 333 games in domestic football, Petar Zhekov’s place in national football history is assured. As he turns 70, UEFA.com spoke to the five-time title winner – with PFC CSKA Sofia – who won the European Golden Boot in 1969, as well as Bronze Boots in 1970 and 1973.” UEFA
“Lionel Messi played in his first competitive match for FC Barcelona 10 years ago this month, on October 16, 2004. He was already famous, of course, among the hardest-core coterie of Barça fanciers, the types who write forum posts about training-academy gossip; to the rest of the world, his eight scoreless minutes at the end of Barcelona’s 1-0 win over Espanyol didn’t do much to make him a household name. Still, if you watch the video now, it’s pretty clear, even allowing for the benefit of hindsight, that at 17 Messi was a frightening talent. He’s not ready yet, not quite, but he already has that strange quality of slant directness, that mysteriously straightforward elusiveness, that would later make him seem magical, insoluble.” Grantland
“Once upon a time, an international break was extremely useful for almost every Premier League manager. In the days before foreign imports dominated England’s top division, relatively few players were selected by their country — put simply, the majority of players in the division were English, but only around 25 were called up to the England side. Therefore, the majority of the squad would continue to train at the club — although they might, however, use the absence of upcoming matches to spend the afternoons at the pub.” ESPN – Michael Cox
“With no competitive fixtures for almost a year, the post-World Cup period is a perfect opportunity for South American nations to assess, experiment and in some cases, rebuild in preparation for the next qualification campaign. Tom Robinson takes a look at the future of the Colombian side that we recently witnessed at the FIFA World Cup.” Outside of the Boot
“Roberto Di Matteo is very much one of football’s managerial curiosities. The Swiss-born former Italian international went from managing English League One side MK Dons to a Champions League winner with Chelsea in under four years. And yet no sooner had he won the trophy Roman Abramovich had been craving for nearly a decade, he was replaced. Two years on, and having been handsomely paid in compensation by Chelsea throughout that period, Di Matteo has returned to football management. His appointment by Schalke to replace Jens Keller is sure to provoke a very mixed response. Some will be hopeful that a Champions League winner will bring stability and consistency to the club, while others will fear that the Champions League trophy aside, this is not a manager with a fantastic CV.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“The Sir Bobby Charlton suite is the most luxurious room in the hotel currently occupied by England at St George’s Park albeit hardly the Ritz. The Gary Lineker pitch (No 11) is, contrary to expectation, more than two six-yard boxes. Yet nowhere at England’s training base is there any room or pitch named in tribute to Jimmy Greaves, the distinguished international lying third behind Lineker and Charlton as his country’s all-time goalscorer. Greaves’s photograph does hang alongside those of Lineker and Charlton on the walls of the corridors that Wayne Rooney will walk along on this morning, heading off out to Pitch 6, the main England practice area. Rooney will soon pass the fabled trio in the record books as well as the corridor, starting with Greaves possibly this week. His elevation will stir sadness as well as admiration. Rooney can equal the maths but not the history.” Telegraph . Henry Winter
“Normally one needs to die to gain Sainthood, but footballers seem to be granted a special exception. At the end of this week, Landon Donovan will play his final match for the US Men’s National Team. As is par for the course when announcements like these are made, there has been an immense of praise and detractors coming out of the woodwork for the former US Captain. Despite all of the hostility and passion that comes from such a debate, there is still a question that is not answered: just how good was he?” backpagefootball
“Unless you’ve been hiding under a stone for the past month you’ll have noticed the media, and in particular the BBC, working itself into a frenzy over the 20th anniversary of ‘Britpop’. To many this level of nostalgia for a musical movement which was, if anything, merely the collection of a handful of zeitgeist wresting retrograde magpies sticks in the craw. ‘Britpop’ wasn’t a cohesive genre, less still a cultural movement, it was a confection – a label for ideas at best, a marketing tool at worst. This is right, to a degree. Britpop was a label. As Alexis Petridis noted in the Guardian last week, there’s little to sonically link the titans of the era in the way that there was with grunge, its direct precept.” thetwounfortunates
“For the second game in a row, the Primeira Liga champions had to wait until the last 20 minutes to breakthrough a stubborn defence. Benfica eventually ran out 4-0 winners over Arouca at the Estádio da Luz but for a long time it seemed to heading for a stalemate. This game was an interesting one as it was the first time ‘Aguias’ fans got to see Lisandro López in action. The 25-year-old Argentinian centre back signed for Benfica from Argentinian side Arsenal de Sarandi in 2013 but was loaned out to La Liga side Getafe for all of last season. López was signed as a long term replacement for Ezequiel Garay who joined Zenit Saint Petersburg in the summer. Arouca defended deeply in the first half forcing Benfica to shoot from distance. Arouca looked far more dangerous going forward and forced Artur into making a couple of decent saves.” backpagefootball
“When Georgia arrive in Glasgow this Saturday, the fallout from September’s independence referendum will mean more to many Scotland fans than Euro 2016 qualifying points. The Scotland support could never match the recent emoting of politicians but has long been regarded as the voice of raw Scottish nationalism. The encouragingly narrow defeat for the Yes campaign may therefore have echoed the national team’s 2-1 loss at World Champions Germany last month. But the Scottish Football Association is not the SNP.” WSC
“If watching a London derby, with the two top teams from the capital wasn’t enough for anyone, the fact that there is so much history between the two warriors, Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, had to attract eyeballs to this mouth watering fixture. However, all talk of Christmas cards, specialists in failure and all else were cast aside as soon as the players were on the pitch. Coming into the game, Wenger had never picked up a win against his big rival Mourinho, and the pressure was on him to deliver after a few sluggish results in the league. The hat-trick from Welbeck in midweek did a lot for them in terms of confidence. Chelsea as a team have been near unstoppable this season, with 2 draws aside from all their wins. Both sides were unbeaten, and something had to give.” Outside of the Boot
“It was a simultaneously inspiring and sad sight. Returning to Valencia for a few nights’ decompression after the Festival Internacional de Benicassim – located an hour north of the city, on the Costa Azahar – we looked down from the roof of our hotel, looming over the Nou Mestalla. In the falling dusk, it could easily have been mistaken for a titanic sporting arena, rather than just the skeleton of one. When we spoke to the locals about it, they told us of rumours that the foundations of the stadium had shifted since work stopped on it over a year before, and that the whole lot may have to be pulled down.” Fusion
“Mario Balotelli has started only four Premier League games for Liverpool this season, yet already he is being doubted, dismissed as a flop. That might not be entirely fair, but it is understandable. Although Liverpool signed twelve players over the summer, Balotelli is the one who stands out. He wasn’t their most expensive signing, but he was probably the biggest name and, more than that, he’s the one who is seen the replacement for Luis Suárez. And that really is the biggest problem: Balotelli isn’t Suárez.” Who Scored
“Another week, another dominant performance by Chelsea. This time it was Arsenal that José Mourinho’s squad dispatched without particularly breaking a sweat. And what’s so incredible for Chelsea, and so disturbing for the rest of the league, is that Arsenal didn’t play badly at all in the 2-0 loss. Chelsea still rolled them with ease.” Grantland
“Assem Allam should be the most popular man in Hull. But he isn’t. Far from it. You have probably heard of the 75-year-old owner of Hull City. You may have read about him, too. He is the man who launched a thousand headlines after going public with his desire to alter the club’s name to Hull Tigers, having viewed it as a more marketable brand. Some have labelled him a dictator, others call him crazy. But what about the man behind the bluster? Talk to those who know Dr Allam and a very different picture begins to emerge. He is, they say, generous to a fault, polite and kind.” BBC
“The fixture list has been contrasting for the two teams as they’ve both endured disappointing starts to the campaign. On paper, United had a relatively easy start to the season but in reality it has been far from smooth sailing as they’ve tried to find their feet under Van Gaal. For Everton, playing Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and United all in the first 7 games isn’t what Martinez would have wanted and their low points tally heading into the game represents just that. As it stood both sides would have fancied their chances of obtaining a result ahead of the International break.” Outside of the Boot
“Or, to put it another way: Mauricio Pochettino 1, Mauricio Pochettino 0. Against a team crafted in his image, against a club he abandoned in the summer, this was a match that Tottenham Hotspur’s manager dared not lose. Thanks to a performance of real substance, they did not. It was flawed and it was nervous, but Tottenham stood firm, which is not something we have always been able to say about them.” Telegraph
“If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two imposters just the same… A Kipling today might have been tempted to add: You’ll be a successful football manager. For his words possess a sympathetic ring for England boss Bobby Robson. He took his battered, depleted England squad off to South America under round condemnation for the manner — rather than the size — of a 2-0 Wembley defeat by the Soviet Union. He returned with a balanced record of three games played, one won, one drawn and one lost. Respectable by any light. Doubly so in general, international opinion because of that 2-0 victory over Brazil in Rio de Janeiro. Yet critical echoes accompanied Robson and Co on the long flight home from Santiago because the ensuing displays and results against Uruguay and a dismal Chilean Olympic team didn’t match up to the expectations raised in Maracana.” In Bed With Maradona
“Sports, like many other things in life, often comes down to one generation putting faith in the next. We witnessed the manifestation of that during Arsenal’s 4-1 victory over Galatasaray here in north London on Wednesday. It was the night of Arsène Wenger’s 18th anniversary as Arsenal manager and the night that Danny Welbeck scored a hat trick of goals for the first time in professional soccer. Welbeck was five years old when Wenger, now 64, arrived in England. The Frenchman has coached Arsenal through 1,022 games and has managed some exquisite players through his seemingly eternal quest to win the Champions League.” NY Times
“The second gameweek of the UEFA Champions League had some tasty encounters in store for all viewers, with a number of top teams clashing. In terms of results and entertainment too, it didn’t disappoint, with lots of goals, and a lot of good, competitive football. One of the tastiest fixtures was Atletico hosting Juventus. It was a clash of Champions from Spain and Italy. Coming into the game, Juventus had a 100% record, with no goals conceded. Atletico have made a good start, but find themselves in third after a few indifferent results. This was a different situation, as Atletico had lost their opening fixture in Greece, and a positive result against Juventus was absolutely vital. The Italians were up against it, as a daunting home support, combined with Atleti’s usual aggressive approach had meant that they had 17 wins in their last 19 European fixtures.” Outside of the Boot
“Since he joined Porto in 2002, Jose Mourinho has won the league title in his second season at every club he’s managed. That, it seems, is the optimal time, when he has had a chance to embed his method in his players and before the abrasiveness of his personality has had time to sour the mood. This is his second season back at Chelsea, and, sure enough, the Blues go into Sunday’s game against Arsenal already five points clear of its closest realistic challenger.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“Tuesday evening saw Roma drew 1-1 with Manchester City away from home and now sit in second place in Group C. The match – which saw Francesco Totti become the competition’s oldest goal scorer – illustrated a Roma side unfazed after conceding an early penalty and go on to play fluid football. The reigning English champions looked sluggish throughout and Roma were able to dictate long stretches of play. Let’s take a look how they did it.” backpagefootball
“This week, the city of Manchester is hosting a showcase of England’s past, present and future left-backs. Following Ashley Cole’s fine performance in Roma’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City at the Etihad, this weekend Old Trafford is the venue for Leighton Baines versus Luke Shaw. The left-back debate provided the main discussion point ahead of England’s ill-fated World Cup adventure this summer. None of the trio boasted significant experience of playing in other positions, which meant manager Roy Hodgson needed to make a difficult choice. The decision to axe Cole was surprising. While the veteran endured a frustrating season at Chelsea, generally behind Cesar Azpilicueta in the pecking order, he continued to perform extremely competently when required, in big games against strong opposition.” ESPN – Michael Cox
“It still feels as though it was only yesterday – Luiz Felipe Scolari wandering hollow-eyed across the pitch after the final whistle, the Mineirão transformed into his own private Agincourt. Around him David Luiz, Julio Cesar and the rest his fallen troops lay prone, or sat broken on the turf. Others simply stood and stared into space. The chutzpah of a couple of hours before had been cruelly exposed by a lethal Germany. In the stands, the Brazilian fans that had not already left gazed through tears at the wreckage of their dreams or poured opprobrium down on their hapless manager.” Fusion
“It can be tempting to write off any football tournament not named the World Cup, Copa America or European Championship as something of an excess. Without the most prominent international sides taking part, it can seem to the casual observer that tournaments outside of the most prominent few lack major stakes, with a trophy given out for the sake of giving out a trophy.” A Football Report (Video)
“Meet Dickie Borthwick. He’s approaching 79, and still plays football. Beyond the immediate desire to want to kick around with him, this short film by Alex Knowles & James Callum focuses on a man who has been fortunate enough to share his whole life with the game. They made the film with the intent to dispel the myth that ‘old people are past it’ and instead introduce us to inspirational people with invaluable insight, exceptional passion, a never-ending supply of wonderful stories and a thirst for life that refuses to fade.” A Football Report (Video)
“The reports of Barcelona’s death may have been greatly exaggerated. This season has started as perfectly as possible. Any worries after a scoreless draw at Málaga last week were swept aside by Lionel Messi & Co. when they put six on Granada in the next match. New manager Luis Enrique has guided his team to the top of La Liga’s table, with 16 points from their first six games. Barcelona have yet to concede a goal, and, scarily, they are nowhere near their peak form. Luis Suárez has yet to play a minute for his new squad, and Neymar is only now rounding into shape after his World Cup injury. Barcelona’s decline, to the extent that there ever was one, appears to have been arrested. And it’s all thanks to evolution.” Grantland (Video)
Tactical Analysis | PSG 3-2 Barcelona : Marquinhos, Luiz, and Motta steal the show as Messi is thwarted
“One of the Marquee clashes of the group stage would be the two games between PSG and Barca. With Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva and Ezequiel Lavezzi all ruled out due to injury, the Parisian side were definitely on the back foot and were second favourites for the clash. However a performance of tactical discipline and heart saw them emerge triumphant in a five goal thriller.” Outside of the Boot
“The world’s toughest club competition is only in its second match day, but things are already getting very tight. The Group of Death, containing CSKA, Bayern, Manchester City, and Roma, was, always going to be a very close one, but few expected there to be such high stakes, this early on. Going into the game, the English champions, City, needed to pick up 4 points over their 2 clashes with Rudi Garcia’s Roma in order to stake a strong claim for a spot in the next round of the competition. This was no easy task, as Roma came into the game in terrific form, with their last European outing being their thrashing of CSKA. Realistically, both sides were looking at second spot in the group behind the dominant Bayern Munich, and so the game was worth a lot.” Outside of the Boot
“Crimean teams are competing in the Russian league, and Ukrainian titan Shakhtar Donetsk has been forced to Kiev because of conditions around the Donbass Arena. As much as we may want soccer to exist it its own sanctified realm, geopolitics are always ready to intervene, especially when Vladimir Putin’s involved. To talk about that intervention, Igor Levenshtein, editor of the Commentary Daily News in Ukraine, joined the show to detail what effects the region’s uncertainty has had on Ukrainian, Russian, and European soccer.” Fusion (Video)
Marcos Rojo
“With 85% of teams inactive for more than six months of the year, leaving 16,000 players unemployed, Brazil’s professional football clubs are effectively in intensive care. So far they have been sustained by the drip-drip-drip of money from investors keen to buy a stake in players potentially destined for big-money European moves. But with world governing body Fifa’s recent announcement that it is banning third-party ownership, that lifeline is about to be withdrawn. That poses a major problem for Brazilian clubs, but it could be a decisive moment and one which prompts a much-needed revolution in the country’s domestic game.” BBC – Tim Vickery
“After Steven Gerrard had bent in the free-kick that gave Liverpool the lead in Saturday’s Merseyside derby, he ran away with one hand cupped to his ear. The message was fairly clear: where’s your criticism now? ‘I can take constructive criticism, but people go one step further and say you are finished and can’t run anymore,’ he said afterwards. ‘So it was nice to remind people that, at the age of 34, I can still play, I can still run and I am still around and I can still compete with the best players around.’ Which is true and simultaneously not true.” Who Scored
“Southampton have recovered excellently. No Rickie Lambert, no Adam Lallana, no Luke Shaw, no Dejan Lovren, no Calum Chambers…and no problem. Many predicted Southampton would struggle having sold so many star performers, but some intelligent recruitment and clever coaching from Ronald Koeman means Southampton are riding high, in second position in the Premier League table.” Betting Expert – Michael Cox
“Pause the video of Roma’s goal against Manchester City just as the ball reached Radja Nainggolan and City’s problem is clear. There’s the back four in classic saucer shape, the full-backs slightly advanced of the centre-backs and there, where one of the central defenders should be, is a huge hole into which Francesco Totti is beginning to run. Vincent Kompany is perhaps 10 yards advanced of Martín Demichelis, looking to close Nainggolan down and never getting close enough to him.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“‘Ha! Zat eez wot ‘appens when ze Barca do not have ze Granada every week! Ha!’ snarked a much-loved French friend of LLL after PSG’s 3-2 victory in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Actually, that’s a bit of a porky-pie lie. The voice creeped out the imaginary mouth of an imaginary French friend living in the blog’s largely empty head. It is very unloved. Although it’s a little knee-jerk, which is what LLL is all about deep down, this is one possible reaction to Barcelona’s first loss this season – and the first goals conceded for that matter.” FourFourTwo
“Leicester’s chances of surviving in their return to the EPL for the first time since 2004 was boosted by their high profile come from behind victory against van Gaal’s work in progress on Sunday. However, they have remained firmly favoured to remain in the top flight by the published odds (currently 1.12 with Coral to stay up) even during a difficult start which saw them out shot against superior teams, where points were difficult to come by. This initial confidence in the Foxes was partly down to their impressive record in the Championship, where they gained over 100 points.” Betting Expert
“As Sebastian Polter races towards goal and calmly slots the ball past RB Leipzig keeper Benjamin Bellot, close to 20,000 fans erupt in a cacophony of emotion at the Stadion An der Alte Försterei. Good has prevailed over evil, and order has been restored, if only temporarily. It’s a Sunday afternoon in September, and the 2. Bundesliga’s newest club has made the short two-hour trip to Berlin, sitting pretty atop the table, having gone unbeaten in its first five matches. Leipzig face an FC Union Berlin side lying firmly in the relegation zone after a winless start to their own 2014-15 campaign. The visitors are welcomed with a cold and hostile reception.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Captain Wayne Rooney was sent off after scoring but 10-man Manchester United clung on to beat West Ham 2-1 in the Premier League on Saturday. It was just United’s second victory in seven matches under Louis van Gaal, coming a week after a humbling loss at newly-promoted Leicester. It had started well for Rooney when he put United in front after five minutes with a deft volley. Robin van Persie doubled the lead in the 22nd minute with his 50th goal for United, but West Ham pulled one back before halftime through Diafra Sakho’s header. The attacking trio of Rooney, Van Persie and Radamel Falcao combined well up front, until Rooney was sent off in the 59th minute for kicking out at Stewart Downing. At the back, United looked vulnerable once again, although injuries meant Van Gaal had to give 19-year-old center back Paddy McNair a debut. Of more concern to Van Gaal will be Rooney’s absence, which will last three matches if the dismissal is deemed to be violent conduct by the English Football Association.” SI (Video)
Premier League talking points: Wayne Rooney & a two-horse race
“Wayne Rooney’s red card for Manchester United will claim the headlines from an eventful Saturday in the Premier League. The United and England captain must now serve a three-game ban – but the good news for manager Louis van Gaal is that his 10 men held on for a crucial win against West Ham United to ease some of the wounds from the 5-3 collapse to Leicester City. This was among a number of key talking points from Saturday’s games. Here, we look at Rooney’s conduct and some of the day’s other significant incidents.” BBC
“This year was not the first time that England flopped in a World Cup in Brazil. The fall was even harder in 1950, when making its debut in the competition, England also failed to make it out of the group stage, this time going down 1-0 to United States, still one of the most remarkable results in World Cup history. Great winger Stanley Matthews was not selected for that game, and watched horrified from the stands. He was much more impressed by a trip to the newly built Maracana stadium to watch the hosts in action.” The World Game – Tim Vickery
“Liverpool 1-1 Everton | The Merseyside Derby is often an intense affair, topped off with an aggressive flavour and mixed with an air of resentment. This one at Anfield was thus a bit disappointing, with neither side catching the imagination and not allowing the usual narratives to flow. Though the headlines were made stunningly by both captains, the two sides failed to convince viewers and justify their ambitions for the season.” Outside of the Boot
“Francesco Totti had tears in his eyes as he lined up to face CSKA Moscow. The Champions League anthem had barely kicked in when television cameras picked out the Roma captain looking quite overcome. Three-and-a-half years removed from his last appearance in the competition, Totti had begun to wonder if he would ever get back here again. Never did he doubt that he belonged on such a stage. Totti turned 38 on Saturday, but remains as certain as ever of his own abilities. Asked on the eve of the CSKA game which teams in Europe would not want him in their starting XI, he replied: ‘Few of them’.” Guardian
“Lionel Messi nets goal number 400 of his senior career. His teammate Neymar scores a hat trick. And Barcelona hits Granada for six. Cristiano Ronaldo takes his personal account to eight goals in one week with Real Madrid. Diego Simeone returns in full voice to the coaching area. His new striker, Mario Mandzukic, returns in a black mask nine days after fracturing his nose, and Atlético Madrid crushes Sevilla by four goals.” NY Times
Marseille’s coach Marcelo Bielsa
“Previously I have written about the metric which can help us quantify and assess the strength that a team used to press the opposition; Passes per Defensive Action or PPDA. An introduction to this metric, including its definition and what the numbers represent can be found in this article written in July. In a follow up article which looked at manager tendencies in relation to this PPDA metric it was no surprise to find that Marcelo Bielsa ranked very highly amongst managers that incorporated a pressing game. In fact, over the last four seasons across the Big 5 leagues only six managers used a more agressive level of pressing that Bielsa did.” Stats Bomb
Marcelo Bielsa restless but Marseille are early Ligue 1 pacesetters
“First, the caveats. It was only against Reims, who had the second worst defensive record in the French top flight even before Tuesday, and whose goalkeeper Johny Placide was hampered by an injury that forced him off at half-time. And Steve Mandanda did have to make a couple of decent saves in the second half after the intensity of the game had dropped. So Marseille fans must temper their excitement a little. But only a little.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
Marcelo Biesla’s Marseille lighting up Ligue 1
“After a demoralising, disappointing 2013-2014 season for Marseille, the club knew that something needed to be done to address the situation. That decision saw talented tactician Marcelo Bielsa take the helm at Marseille. The former Argentine, Chile and Athletic Bilbao coach was appointed and started work after the World Cup. Marcelo Bielsa is a hugely respected figure in World Football and was hand-picked as a coach that could re-vitalise and energise this Marseille outfit that despite its sixth place finish insinuates great promise.” backpagefootball
“Only one match in the Premier League this weekend ended the way most people expected. Amusingly, that was the biggest match of all: Chelsea’s cagey draw with Manchester City. Mind you, the path to that draw was about as dramatic as it gets, with a down-to-10-men City getting a late goal from, who else, former Chelsea icon Frank Lampard.” Grantland
“It feels like every time Liverpool plays Everton these days, the game is billed as ‘the most important derby’ for years. Ahead of Saturday’s Premier League encounter, both sides have more in common than usual; managers battling with early-season selection problems, defensive lapses, key players injured and unrealistic expectations after over-achievement last season.” SI
““…Mostovoi…busca posicion para el disparo…sigue el Ruso…Mostovoi…Gol,Gol,Gol,Gol,Gol del Celta…Gol de Mostovoi…” – This was the sound it used to come out of my old television set back in the final years of the 1990s every time I tuned in TVG (Televisión de Galicia) to watch a Celta de Vigo match. That faint satellite connection gave me the opportunity to watch some glorious moments of football that I will never forget, most of them performed by a true artist that I learned to admire and that, to this day, I believe was one of the most talented players ever to have played in the so-called modern football: the one and only Aleksandr Mostovoi.” Russian Football News
“After last season’s unlikely, high-flying, high-scoring, high-octane season, things are looking a lot more mundane for Liverpool at the moment. Their last two Premier League results have been pedestrian losses to West Ham and Aston Villa. Those defeats are bookended by a ludicrous last-second victory over Champions League minnow Ludogorets Razgrad and a League Cup match in which they needed 14 penalty shots to beat Championship side Middlesbrough.” Grantland
“‘Niko Kovač (Croatia’s national team coach) and I speak a common language. He decided that I am needed in the team and I respect his decision, I am Croatia’s solider. I don’t play for the money, a transfer or a record. I just want to help as much as I can’ Darijo Srna, Croatia’s captain, said after the World Cup in Brazil. In 12 years of loyal service the versatile right back collected impressive 118 caps and scored 21 goals for Vatreni . He played at three European and two World championships. After this year’s World Cup in Brazil, where Croatia exited the competiton very early, some players waved farewell to the national team. Srna, although some expected otherwise, didn’t. He remained an integral part of the team and is now, motivated as ever, chasing his fourth European championship qualification.” Outside of the Boot
Scissors Kick 