You’ve made it to the British edition of ESPN. Keep the existing version or upgrade to the US version.
ATM
Another weekend of European football is planned, so let’s take stock!Bayern Munich shrugged off some recent problems with (another) complete win over rivals Borussia Dortmund in the German Bundesliga, while Arsenal were angry after a debatable 1-0 loss to Newcastle United. in the Premier League that he was referring to VAR and its applications. Oh, and in La Liga, Barcelona pulled off an impressive (and lucky) win over Real Sociedad, while Real Madrid couldn’t beat mid-table Rayo Vallecano. It also means that Girona, a remarkable story, is still among the most sensible in the Spanish league. )
Elsewhere, there have been talking points around Manchester United, Liverpool, Juventus, Napoli, Manchester City and more.
– ESPN Stream: LaLiga, Bundesliga and (USA)
It’s Monday and Gab Marcotti is reacting to the most important moments in world football.
Looking at the 4-0 scoreline, other people will probably conclude the same. The last time Bayern faced Borussia Dortmund, things were far from quiet on Sabenerstraße. There were infighting: sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic would be sacked in a few weeks. — they had just sacked coach Julian Nagelsmann and appointed Thomas Tuchel, they were second in the table, on April Fool’s Day after a break abroad. . . everything was in place for Dortmund to take advantage of the situation.
What happened? Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel had one of his worst outings in living memory when Bayern led 3-0 after 23 minutes. It ended 4-2 against the Bavarians and could have been much worse for their opponents.
Fast forward to Saturday. Before the game, Bayern were back to six and seven. Midfielder Joshua Kimmich is suspended, they are coming off a surprise cup game against Saarbrücken’s third division in midweek and Tuchel is a bundle of nerves, complaining about movement activity and clashing with Lothar Matthaus and Dietmar Hamann, former Bayern legends turned TV commentators. The most sensible thing is that this game will be away from home and Dortmund, still unbeaten in the league, have a real chance not only to overtake them in the table, but also to leave Bayern in fourth place, five points behind the Bundesliga leaders.
What happened? A series of lousy defences (commonly poor, but given the way Nico Schlotterbeck has played this season, more is expected of him) and within 10 minutes Bayern were 2-0 up and the Yellow Wall had been silenced. Bad Dortmund, with all the traffic jams and insecurity, at the back. Bayern finished 4-0, the home team created a few chances (Donyell Malen and Marco Reus), no one would have hesitated if the visitors had scored six or seven goals: this time Kobel could be said to be Dortmund’s man of the match.
What have we learned? You have to be a little careful in your analysis, because winning 2-0 (or losing 2-0) so early in a game has a huge effect on games like this. But it’s safe to say that at the moment, Harry Kane is more than up to the task (17 goals in 14 games, adding his third hat-trick), Leon Goretzka is still a force when he has compatibility and Leroy Sané is almost unplayable. (If he nevertheless systematically exploited his enormous abilities and reached adulthood at the age of 27, he is arguably among the 10 most sensible players in the world. )
Oh, and Bayern are ridiculously effective on the counter-attack, when you mix the passes of Kane and Jamal Musiala with the solid speed of Kingsley Coman and Sane.
Tuchel is much more pragmatic than some of his predecessors in this role and, unlike them, he is not obsessed with top pressing and does not play the entire match on the opposite side with 60-70% possession. They can’t afford to have a multi-goal lead in most games and that while the skill gap will allow them to get away with it against most opponents, that arguably wouldn’t be the case against bigger teams. That’s what critics, like Matthaeus, mean when they say Bayern “aren’t developing”. And that’s why, in an intense post-match showdown with Matthaus, Tuchel was still unable to hit back.
Gab and Juls talk about the favourites for the Champions League.
Even in victory, he looks like a ball of nerves (he was booked when Bayern were 3-0 up) and you feel that if Bayern need to succeed, a more focused Tuchel will be part of the solution.
As for Dortmund, Emre Can has certainly lacked in midfield, but there is also an obvious void in terms of quality and ideas. Niclas Füllkrug is not Erling Haaland in attack: he would probably offer nothing if we don’t get him a service, as happened on Saturday. Midfielder Marcel Sabitzer is rarely very Jude Bellingham: he’s not going to fill the gaps on his own. Meanwhile, full-backs Julian Ryerson and Marius Wolf probably wouldn’t give you what Raphael Guerreiro and Thomas Meunier gave you on the attacking side.
Terzic wants to find patterns of play that work, because individual quality may not be enough. Not when Karim Adeyemi shows signs of regression, Donyell Malen has a day off, Julian Brandt leaves and Marco Reus looks his age.
Janusz Michallik reacts to Newcastle’s 1-0 win over Arsenal and VAR around the decisive goal.
Let’s put the game aside before we move on to the refereeing decisions. Because yes, it’s a football game, and a lively one at that, not just a series of VAR fouls. It’s physical and intense, which is what you would be. Expecting Newcastle at home (perhaps less so from Arsenal), however, they showed that they too can protect themselves in a game of their own. And as angry as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is about the result, it would possibly inspire him.
Both groups have been affected by the lack of players. For Newcastle, it’s not that Sven Botman and Alexander Isak are necessarily much better than Jamal Lascelles and Callum Wilson in defence; it’s that his absence gives Eddie Howe fewer roles on how to play. As for Arsenal, Gabriel Jesus is most appreciated when he is not around, while Martin Odegaard’s absence has been a blow in terms of leadership and quality. His illness – as he explained through the club – might or might not have to do with the unnecessary 11 minutes plus injury time he played against Arsenal in the League Cup when they were 3-0 down, but if so, Arteta will. other.
Let’s move on to the officiants. In my opinion, Kai Havertz’s response to Sean Longstaff may have been either way (Havertz ended up with a yellow card, not a red one), but the non-appeal for Bruno Guimarães’ hit on Jorginho is harder to accept. Referee Stuart Attwell was turning his back on the incident at the time, so it was all down to VAR. They clearly didn’t feel that his forearm punch was intentional, however, it’s hard to understand why Bruno would have his arm there, other than hitting the back of Jorginho’s head. And, in any case, it should be remembered that VAR also exists for incidents that referees do not see. At the very least, he deserves to be the one to make that decision, with the advantages of getting there. On-the-spot review.
As for Anthony Gordon’s winning goal, it’s confusing because it had 3 halves, which is why the review took so long.
The first is if the ball is out of play. I don’t have a problem with Attwell missing this because it’s far away, and I sense there’s no definitive camera angle, because, well, the ball is circular and photographs can be distorted through the angles. . I agree.
The moment was whether Gordon was offside. Here, the challenge was that they couldn’t locate a camera view that would definitively show where the balloon was as it moved away from Joelinton toward Gordon. And as a result, they couldn’t determine when Gordon was offside and when he was back. A clumsy explanation, but a fair one. One wonders about his decision not to invest in semi-automatic offside technology. They were quick to say that the UEFA edition would not have helped in this situation, as it does not come with a chip on the ball. Well, though, the FIFA edition comes with chip. Why not? In any case, without video evidence, it’s understandable why they couldn’t take the offside shot.
Dale Johnson explains the decisions made via VAR regarding Newcastle’s goal against Arsenal and what is likely to be next.
What is mysterious to me is the third element: Joelinton’s touch with Gabriel. It looked like a real-time foul, and it looked even more like a replay foul. Attwell didn’t reveal it and if you look at it again, it possibly has something to do with the fact that he was outside the penalty area, with many players in his path. This is the kind of scenario where VAR makes a difference; instead, as explained on the Premier League’s website, in the words of former referee Dermot Gallagher: “Attwell didn’t think it was a foul. . . the VAR didn’t think there was enough touch to overrule the referee, so the on-field decision was upheld. “
That’s a pretty twisted thought. Unless Gallagher had heard Attwell’s verbal exchange with the VAR (in which case they would have to make it public), he can’t know what Attwell was thinking. Maybe he didn’t think it was a foul, maybe he didn’t have a transparent Vision, so he didn’t call, knowing that the VAR had all the footage.
Also, Gallagher’s language is absolutely wrong here: VAR is not there to “cancel” the referee. The VAR’s task is to see if there is enough video evidence to request an on-field review through the referee. It’s your decision, not the VAR. And as long as there’s the mentality that they should “override” the referee, rather than just helping him make the right resolution, we’re going to have a problem.
A furious Arteta said “after 20 years in England” he was “embarrassed” by the shortcomings of refereeing, and Arsenal doubled down the next day with a helping hand for their manager.
Arteta loses his cool in an impassioned post-match interview. I’m not sure about the club’s achievements, other than making Arteta feel better knowing that his employer supports him (of course he does). Arsenal showed up to work with refereeing leader Howard. Webb and said they would be very happy to “work and achieve the world-class refereeing criteria [that the Premier League demands]. That’s great, but it’s better to do it in person because, after all, Arsenal are a shareholder in the league and Webb is hired through the league.
One last point, and it’s not a bad one, but there’s a parallel universe in which David Raya doesn’t make uncoordinated ball shots and none of that ever happens.
With Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday and a number of injuries to contend with, Milan coach Stefano Pioli’s goal was probably to bring all three problems at home to Udinese as quietly as possible. The visitors hadn’t won every season and were probably expecting a parked bus from new boss Gabriele Cioffi. He thought he would create a marvel by abandoning his old formula in favour of a formula with two centre-forwards (Olivier Giroud and Luka Jovic), while playing with Rafael Leão and Yunus Musah on the outside.
The result? Milan’s worst of the season and 1-0 defeat.
It doesn’t matter, Roberto Pereyra’s penalty was sweet. It would not have replaced the poverty of Milan, nor the anger and confusion of the San Siro crowd. It’s too simple to play captain. In hindsight, to say that this is not the time to replace the formula and, even more, to put Jovic on the pitch with all that implies: Milan lack personnel in midfield, Rafael Leao has to function further away from the goal and Musah has been asked to play a position he has not played in years.
I don’t think managers get artistic and look different, but it’s too extreme. That said, the broader factor with Milan is that they feel they have to go through the double-whammy room to beat a team with 0 wins at home. who are not confident enough in their patterns of play and who lack a great artistic presence in midfield (such as the injured Ismaël Bennacer). They will have to step up against PSG if they need to pray.
Rob Dawson wonders if Manchester United’s win at Fulham will reassure fans after their worst start to a season since 1962.
Well, perhaps “standout” is too strong a word, but Harry Maguire was one of United’s most productive and engaged players in the weekend’s 1-0 win at Fulham. He is the guy the club has tried in every way. move forward this summer. He stayed, now he’s doing it again, and while he’s possibly due to injury, there’s a good chance he’s not going anywhere in January.
This can be taken as a sign of a decline in the level. In a “can’t lose” game against Fulham, Bruno Fernandes (who else?) claimed victory with a delayed goal after a multitude of deflected clearances and Keystone Kops moments from the pitch. Fulham backline.
United lost the long-awaited goal war (1. 01 to 0. 69) and looked preoccupied for long periods. In fact, although they took the three points to give the long-suffering Erik ten Hag some breathing room, they didn’t look like a team decided to fight for their coach, unlike previous games where they played less well. That will have to be a fear for Ten Hag, who knows his long-term career could well be a decision through a combination of when Jim Ratcliffe acquires his percentage of the club (and cuts the first investment cheque) and the effects of the next two Champions League exits. against Copenhagen and Galatasaray.
As for Maguire, he’s right. He rejoined the team. It remains to be seen whether or not he will have a long career at the club, but in fact it represents a big component of his present.
Maybe it’s a hangover from the Clasico, as some have suggested. (If that’s the case, Xavi wants to kick the back. )Maybe it’s Real Sociedad, who have more talent than some think. Or maybe there are deeper problems. Either way, the fact that Marc-André ter Stegen was the man in the attack and Ronald Araújo’s winning goal was delayed in stoppage time only says all there is to know about Saturday’s 1-0 result.
Barcelona were dominated for much of the match, creating their first two genuine chances with Gavi and Araujo (the goal) in stoppage time. Before that, Real had come close 3 or 4 times and had been denied what looked like a penalty (Jules Koundé on Mikel Oyarzabal). Barça’s play in pre-season was insignificant, their attack impalpable and too evasive in defence.
Of course, injuries – whether it’s the guys who have returned and are still busy (Robert Lewandowski, Kounde, Pedri) or those who are still out (Frenkie De Jong, especially) – are part of this, but it also turns out that if Xavi doesn’t.
It’s a game in which Oriol Romeu may have eliminated part of the opposing attack in midfield. If Kounde is going to play like that, you could also stick with Andreas Christensen in defence, and hope that João Cancelo enjoys himself as a winger. It’s over. There’s a certain irony in the fact that Barca haven’t had a reward since Dani Alves in their glory and, now that they do, Xavi puts them in the top three, while they have the likes of Raphinha and Lamine Yamal. The Bench .
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says Luis Diaz’s goal in the 1-1 draw was “fantastic” amid his father’s abduction.
It’s hard not to get emotional when, after scoring Liverpool’s equaliser in five-minute stoppage time in Luton, Luis Diaz lifted his blouse to reveal the message “Freedom for Dad”. The kidnapping of his father has ruled his life for more than 10 days. . He has missed the last two games; The fact that he was involved in it suggests that, at times, paintings can offer a much-needed distraction.
Liverpool probably deserved the 1-1 draw given the many chances they created, but failed to convert – with Darwin Nunez back revealing that while his skills are exciting, there is still some rawness to him – even though Jurgen Klopp said they didn’t. play especially. In my opinion, that has a lot to do with Luton’s merits on the day, who put in their most productive performance of the campaign.
Something must have gone wrong when Inter visited Atalanta. Simone Inzaghi’s side had won 4 out of 4 away from home, Atalanta had yet to concede a goal at home and it turns out it was Inter who survived the opposition with a 2-1 win that helps keep them as the best in the league.
You can concentrate on the Americans: Hakan Calhanoglou gave a masterful elegance to the midfield, Lautaro Martinez scored a magnificent goal (he reaches thirteen in 14 games in all competitions), but what stands out about this Inter team is their ability to, as Inzaghi says: “play 4 or five games in one”. By this he means changing his technique – from direct to build and back again, from deep to urgent – several times per game. This is a way to throw the opponent off balance. Add to that their love of substitutions, whether planned or improvised, and we have a team that is difficult to prepare for and deal with.
He’s stylish and doesn’t radiate a “winner” vibe, but Inzaghi works incredibly well in difficult circumstances.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said Real Madrid had plenty of resources and relied on Jude Bellingham to score goals.
Rayo Vallecano are no longer the punching bag once and have finished in the middle of each of the last two La Liga seasons. Even without coach Andoni Iraola, they are in the most sensitive part of the table. That said, Real Madrid are expected to be trampled on at the Bernabeu and, if that doesn’t happen (as they did in Sunday’s 0-0 draw), hands will be pointed out.
Regular readers will know that I worry when groups don’t create opportunities; I worry less when they just don’t get rid of them. Fede Valverde missed a one-on-one with the goalkeeper early in the match, and Joselu was able to score just one hat-trick of chances. Real Madrid managed an xG of 2. 19, while Rayo – who defended with numbers – failed to manage a single shot on goal in the direction of 0. 10.
Of course, it’s annoying to drop two topics and maybe if Jude Bellingham hadn’t played injured for much of the match, things might have been different. But the functionality was there from Madrid (and that’s not the case), so I think you can be relatively comfortable with that.
An early goal from Fabio Miretti propelled Juventus to a 1-0 away win over Fiorentina, meaning they have taken 16 of the last 18 points up for grabs and are just two from Inter. Some will see this as a kind of justification for Max Allegri’s approach. , but it wouldn’t slow down much. Wojciech Sczcesny had to make great saves, Fiorentina is the typical team that dominates the game, but lacks vanguard, and the home team did not take advantage of their Ultras, who boycotted the game. (They were absent to protest the fact that the match had not been postponed due to floods that hit the domain and left seven other people dead. )
Dan Thomas joins through Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and more to bring you the latest highlights and discuss the stories. Broadcast on ESPN (U. S. only).
However, Allegri can be congratulated for sticking with Moise Kean, having compatibility with Dusan Vlahovic (the latter is a better player, but is still recovering from injury), for making his substitutions and for getting the win. Let’s not say Juve without their captain, Danilo and two great players like Nicolo Fagioli and Paul Pogba in midfield (both suspended, although for different reasons).
Can this kind of formula from Allegri work, with one or two signings in January?This season, perhaps without European football, if they win their games head-to-head. In the long run, I don’t think so.
Jeremy Doku is only 21 years old and has been at the club for less than 3 months, but it’s fair to say that he stole the display on Saturday despite his many teammates being announced, scoring a goal and 4 more in Manchester City’s 6-1 thrashing at Bournemouth is City’s 22nd consecutive home win in all competitions and puts them as the most sensible in the league. table, at least until Spurs face Chelsea on Monday night.
Doku is rarely described as a ‘find’ through City’s recruitment department, which is quite funny given that he made his debut for Anderlecht at 16 and Belgium at 18, playing for their Euro 2020 squad. City paid around €60m in transfer fees to bring him in from Rennes, which is far from exorbitant when you consider that lads of comparable age and position, such as Manchester United’s Antony and Chelsea’s Mykhaylo Mudryk, are paid more.
The blow for Doku was twofold: he gets injured, he’s undisciplined, and he can be a bit self-centered with his dribbling and shooting. In the first one? Well, you hope he stays in shape because it’s a pleasure to watch. In the latter, when you see his back and forth with Rodri, his service to Bernardo Silva, his efforts to press the ball. . . Well, he seems far more polite than his critics suggested.
Credit to Pep Guardiola? Of course, we also have Doku to thank for proving himself very quickly to the skeptics.
Bayer Leverkusen’s 3-2 away win over Hoffenheim was huge, as it means they have achieved 43 numbers out of forty-five imaginable in all competitions this year. No one in Europe’s big five leagues comes close.
They seemed a bit slower compared to recent releases, which is more than understandable. But unlike Hoffenheim, they ran into another problem: they can fight.
By halftime, they led 2-0 (that Florian Wirtz-Victor Boniface partnership is devastating) and had limited the home team to 3 shots and 0. 09 xG. But if you live betting from behind, it hurts you by betting from behind.
Hoffenheim scored twice in the two-minute area to take advantage of Leverkusen squandering the ball in their own half and if Alex Grimaldi scored to save all three points at the end, it would deserve to serve as a reminder to Xabi Alonso. You don’t want to prioritize protection when you have an advantage, but you also need to strike a safe balance. It may have been very costly.
Until 2017, they had never tested the Spanish flight and played in a stadium with a capacity of around 14,000 people, but Girona is first in La Liga, two points ahead of Real Madrid and four ahead of Barcelona. Yes, their schedule was quite weak (they only played two groups of the top nine, losing to Real Madrid and drawing with Real Sociedad on matchday one), but they beat everyone and played well. So is football.
It’s not a fairy tale as it might seem: the club’s two biggest shareholders are City Football Group (as in Manchester City) and Marcelo Claure, who in the past owned Inter Miami CF, but is remarkable.
Will they return to average once they start facing tougher opponents?Probably, and the fact that they’ve scored 28 open goals with an xG of 19. 42 suggests that they’ve been pretty lucky so far. But hey, why not enjoy it while it lasts?
The October break is very complicated for Napoli coach Rudi Garcia, between the accounts of the meetings between his club’s owner, Aurelio De Laurentiis, and the injury to Victor Osimhen, his top scorer. He couldn’t have asked for more on his comeback: 3 wins and a draw in all competitions, and a return to the top four of the championship.
The catalyst in Osimhen’s absence? It’s little Jack Raspadori, who has scored in the last 3 games. Salernitana, who they beat 2-0 on Saturday, are in last place for an explanation (they have yet to win this season), but they are still a home. derby and it’s still the kind of game that you might have noticed this team missed in September. That they haven’t is a big problem for Garcia, who is now counting down the days until Osimhen’s return.