It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. In the opening line of "A Tale of Two Cities," Charles Dickens is referring to the French Revolution, but he could have easlity been talking about this game between Stevenage FC and Wycombe Wanderers in the English fourth division. Heck, maybe that is what he was talking about, and he had powers of prophecy that we didnt know about.
Jurgen Klopp said he’s “satisfied” with how his new Liverpool side performed against Tottenham in game one of the Klopperpool regime. Let’s break it down bit by bit, and explore a few other things that happened this weekend in the wacky Premier League.
Liverpool and Tottenham played to a snoozy nil-nil draw, which is good news for Spurs because they weren’t obliterated by Liverpool at home like they’ve been the last two times this fixture was played.
Joe Cole is moving to Coventry City. We are going to repeat that, just because it feels so weird to say. Joe Cole is moving to Coventry City. One more time. Joe Cole is moving to Coventry City.
Seriously, what?
The weekend TV schedule in store for soccer fans this weekend is full of intrigue in the Premier League and Serie A.
These are dark, inexplicable days for Chelsea fans. As the Premier League goes into an international break, it could not have come at a better time for the Blues following another shock defeat at home, this time a 3-1 loss to Southampton. To the sheer glee of the fans of the other 19 clubs in the league, Chelsea currently sits 16th in the Premier League table, having already lost more matches this season after only 8 fixtures than it did during their entire title-winning campaign.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one: Sam Allardyce is coaching a Premier League club.
Yes, the English manager is back in the EPL after not having his contract renewed with West Ham United at the end of last season. This time, he takes the reigns of a struggling Sunderland, who have a mere three points in eight games. If it wasn’t for an equally unimpressive Newcastle United, they’d be rock bottom in the table.
In a rare moment of emotion, Cristiano Ronaldo revealed how former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Reguson won the Portuguese superstar over: compassion.
Really, it's not compassion, it's just acting like a person. You should be able to visit your dad in the hospital without work standing in the way. A lot of managers nowadays it seems feel that football is the only thing that matters. Everything else is secondary.
Team nicknames can be tricky things. American sports tend to struggle with this notion and usually opt for something generic, i.e. the Tennessee Titans. The NBA is especially guilty of meaningless nicknames. There aren’t too many bulls running the streets of Chicago, jazz musicians setting up shop in Utah, or grizzlies terrorizing Memphis. What draws so many to English football is the history, passion, and tribal following of each club. More often than not, Premier League nicknames are a reflection of a club’s identity and heritage.
Wayne Rooney became England’s all-time leading goalscorer earlier this month, but the underwhelming nature in which he did so – a pair of penalties against San Marino and Switzerland – was perhaps a more accurate reflection of how the last 18 months have panned out for Manchester United’s Number 10. By near unanimous consent, Rooney’s career is in decline.
The man scored a beauty earlier in the match, but Daniel Sturridge's 2nd goal vs Aston Villa was one of class and ease. Just like his first goal in the match, Sturridge received the ball and this time dumped it off to teammate Philipe Coutinho, who then gave a cutting Sturridge a perfectly placed back heel pass resulting in a peach of a goal for LFC.