Sam Allardyce’s return to Premier League management with Crystal Palace was everything we’ve come to expect from the big man. Palace secured a point at Vicarage Road, moving them two points clear of the relegation zone, and Allardyce got involved in a spat between Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Watford mascot Harry the Hornet.
Christmas is widely considered to be the most wonderful time of the year by many, but football is different. There is no winter break and many teams will be thinking of the Boxing Day game as opposed to a turkey dinner, and it can be hard. What would make it even harder, however, is awarding those sides with what can only be described as the worst Christmas gifts of all time.
Chelsea — Crowd Noise Generator
For me, it was an old VHS tape called Ooh Aah Cantona - The Cantona Phenomenon that changed everything. Before the days of soccer on ESPN or NBCSN, well before the era of YouTube skill show compilations and with the lasting memories of the 2002 World Cup seared into my mind, I was introduced to Eric Cantona.
The number seven emblazoned on his red shirt, striding around the pitch with dad bod physique, his collar upturned and with all the beguiling qualities of an existential Frenchman on his third glass of absinthe, Cantona was a side of football I’d never seen before.
Jamie Vardy’s dismissal on Saturday for his lunge on Mame Biram Diouf was predicated on everything but the tackle itself. Having lost the ball to Glen Johnson in the buildup, that particular spirit that invokes images of Skittles Vodka and murmurs of “Chat Shit Get Banged” could be felt through televisions around the globe: Vardy, looking like Pokemon’s Rattata with Red Bull coursing through his mouse veins, was probably about to do something he’d regret.
Tottenham have apparently forgotten which holiday is approaching, and I think that's great. A picture from the club's Christmas party revealed the players had dressed up in costumes like it's Halloween.
It doesn't have to be Halloween for wearing costumes to be a good idea. Any holiday can work, or any day, really. Tottenham aren't letting convention define them, and that's great. Now, to the costumes.
The Merseyside derby was today. It had everything you'd expect from such an occasion: tackles, fouls, more fouls, lots of fouls, all the fouls, every foul, grabbing, holding, kicking, Ross Barkley doing something extremely stupid, Jordan Henderson stomping around with his chest puffed like a guy who's had a few too many and thinks everyone is looking at his girlfriend, more fouls and exactly one goal.
But what a goal.
West Ham fans are devoted, rowdy and funny as hell. This isn’t based solely off of Green Street Hooligans, it’s a verifiable truth. For a club that’s never finished higher than third in England’s top tier and whose last major triumph came in the 1980 FA Cup, it’s remarkable that they still draw nearly 60,000 fans a game at the London Stadium.
Ilkay Gundogan. Gone but not forgotten.
The German midfielder's teammates paid a touching tribute to their fallen comrade before their match against Arsenal Sunday. Gundogan figured to be a big part of Manchester City's title challenge this season before he was stricken down.