English Clubs

The career trajectories of England’s Marcus Rashford and the USA’s Christian Pulisic have escalated quicker than Donald Trump’s various horrible statements.

It hasn’t been the dream beginning that many anticipated following three straight victories to open their 2016-17 Premier League campaign, and many within the Manchester United camp are already beginning to feel the heat.

Wayne Rooney has been in dire form, and his inclusion in the starting XI has been relentlessly questioned. Zlatan Ibrahimovic hasn’t scored a Premier League goal since September 10th. Paul Pogba has hardly justified his gargantuan transfer fee, and Jose Mourinho’s personnel choices, including the ostracizing of Bastian Schweinsteiger, have been criticized.

There’s no doubting Mesut Ozil’s quality. You don’t win 81 caps and a World Cup for Germany, a La Liga title with Real Madrid and collect two FA Cup winner’s medals with Arsenal by riding on the coattails of others. However, a criticism of that nature is frequently thrown at Ozil. His languid style leads to cries of having gone AWOL during big matches — particularly during his time with Arsenal.

Aston Villa suck, and as such are in the market for a new manager who can (hopefully) make them not suck anymore. They appear to have their sights set on Huddersfield Town manager and Jurgen Klopp protege David Wagner.

The problem here is, again, Aston Villa suck, and Huddersfield Town, at least in the context of the Championship, do not suck. Huddersfield Town are in first place with 25 points. Villa are in 19th place with 10 points.

There is nothing worse from a football supporters’ perspective than not knowing how to find your side’s game on television. Perhaps it’s a sign of the times that with a click of the remote or a flick of one’s fingers on the keyboard, you’re immediately given access to a global range of football matches. 

Long gone are the days of pouring through websites in Russian or staying up until the early hours of the morning to catch a game on tape delay. Soccer has truly arrived — unless of course you’re a Newcastle United supporter and want to watch the English League Championship.

The accolades for 15-year-old Vancouver Whitecaps forward/winger Alphonso Davies continue to stack up. The Liberian-born Davies, who has represented Canada at the under-20 level, became the youngest player to score a goal in USL history on May 15, 2016. In July, he became the third youngest player of all-time to sign an MLS contract. He’s appeared in eight matches for Vancouver this season, including two starts.

Well, the moment Chelsea fans have been thinking about since last spring has finally arrived. Antonio Conte has officially unveiled his 3-5-2. 

Conte had tremendous success with the formation while managing Juventus and the Italian national team. When his hiring was announced at Stamford Bridge, everyone wondered what this would look like in the Premier League. 

We finally found out on Saturday morning when Chelsea traveled to Hull City. And the performance was . . . interesting.