While soccer fans around the globe were disappointed by the postponement of the first leg of the Copa Libertadores final on Saturday, fans were treated to a 3-2 thriller between rivals Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich in Germany.
And few of the Bayern board members got as wet as the Bombonera pitch after Paco Alcacer’s thrilling winner for Dortmund.
For the second straight year — after 19 straight seasons in the Champions League — Arsenal is plugging away on Thursday nights in the Europa League. As someone who enjoys watching the Gunners, I’m kind of loving it.
While I would probably prefer to watch Arsenal on Tuesdays or Wednesdays back in the Champions League, facing teams like PSG and Barcelona instead of Sporting and Qarabag, Arsenal in the Europa League is so much more fun this year for one reason and one reason alone: Univision Deportes.
The MLS Playoffs are a lot of fun. I watched last Sunday’s nine-hour marathon of Conference Semifinal first legs, so you’ll have to trust me on that point. I say trust me because you did not. Don’t even lie to me. How do I know that? The attendance numbers have been dirt nasty so far (including season-low gate numbers at Toyota Stadium, Yankee Stadium and Rio Tinto . . . and yes, we’re talking about the playoffs vs. the regular season).
When Lionel Messi broke his arm against Sevilla back on Oct. 20, the prognosis was that he’d need three weeks to recover. By the time Barcelona hosts Real Betis on Sunday, that timeframe will’ve been achieved. But will Messi actually suit up for the Blaugrana with the assurance of November’s international break directly following the game, giving Messi an extra two weeks of rehabilitation before the titanic clash with Atlético Madrid at the Wanda on Nov. 24?
On Election Day in the U.S., Red Star fans fully got into the spirit of American politics watching their club beat Liverpool 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday in Belgrade.
After Liverpool crushed Red Star 4-0 at Anfield a couple weeks ago, the fans of Serbia’s most successful club were more than ready to welcome the English club to one of the most hostile environments in world football.
Despite thousands of signatures mustered in support, we won’t be seeing a Harry Maguire 50 pound note anytime soon.
I know, very sad.
Last month, with the Bank of England decided it would introduce a new design for the £50 note. Spearheaded by soccer writer Jonny Gabriel, a campaign quickly picked up steam to put a picture of Harry Maguire, shirtless, riding an inflatable unicorn, on the £50 note.