This Is Not Your Father's Union

With the situation rapidly deteriorating at Newcastle-on-Tyne, we choose to turn our attention to Chester-on-Delaware, where things are going much better.  The weekend was pretty much status quo at the top of the EPL table and more good news from the virtual city of Chester

Who Is This New Union?

For about 90 minutes, the Union had played Orlando to a draw and that would have been a fair result.   In years past, however, that never would have been the end of the story.  No, we would have a found a way to throw away that precious point.  But apparently this is a new era.  The first un-Union thing they did was to score in the 90th minute on a clinical free kick from Tranquillo Barnetta that started three to five feet wide of the goal but curled just inside the right post.  We'll make it the YouTubeable Moment of the week, seen here from the Sons of Ben perspective.The second un-Union thing they did was to protect this lead.  Not that they didn’t try to give it away.  Less than 30 seconds after going ahead, a very typical Union defensive breakdown allowed Orlando a clear shot on goal.  Fortunately, we have perhaps the most athletic keeper in the MLS and Blake made a marvelous save, leaping high to his right to push the ball away.  Three points from a match we would have surely lost in previous years.  Results aside, this is an eminently more watchable team than any previous edition.

Not Unexpected But Disappointing Anyway

We were under no illusions that Newcastle would come back from the coast with anything but their tails between their collective legs.  Still, it was distressing to watch how easily Southampton took apart the Magpies.  An early goal made it clear that it would be a long afternoon and the 3-1 score tells you all you need to know.  Well, not exactly.  Many, including the more pessimistic Newcastle blogs, have been very complimentary of Benitez even with a lack of results.  To some extent I can agree - how quickly can you expect him to turn around five plus years of mistakes.  Yet, the Magpies continue to not show up in the first half of matches critical to their first division survival; to me some of that has to come down to the manager.  Maybe I’m being unrealistic but I was hoping for a better fight under Benitez.

Fortunately nothing changed at the bottom.  Aston Villa went down to Bournemouth, Sunderland fell to Leicester and Crystal Palace somehow found a way to stop Norwich.  But time is running out.

Time is actually up for Villa.  If the Villans fail to win any of their final 5 matches OR Norwich secure one measly point in their 5 matches, they are officially relegated (there are other scenarios that have them relegated, but this is the easiest).  Even if both of those things were to happen and Sunderland and Newcastle remained at or below 31 points, the Villans would need to recover a massive goal differential - something around 20 goals.  Not that any of this matters because they have obviously been going down for months, but there is still the finality of knowing for certain.  I'll come to grips with that when it actually happens -  why worry about something today when you can worry about it tomorrow?    

More Compelling Stuff at the Top

Well sort of.  Leicester’s 2-0 win over Sunderland will not go down as a classic.  I will say that the Black Cats showed more heart in their effort against Leicester than anything we saw from Newcastle.  At least they are going down fighting.  Tottenham couldn’t break through against Man United until the 70th minute.  Alli’s goal opened the floodgates and two more tallies sent the White Hart Lane faithful home happy.  Man City stumbled early against West Brom but righted matters quickly enough to come away with a 2-1 win.  The best match of week easily was the classic West Ham-Arsenal London derby - the last time the two will square off at Upton Park as the Hammers move into Olympic Stadium.  Arsenal was off to a 2-0 lead and neutrals were wondering what happened to pitched battle we were hoping for.  Fortunately (though not for Gunners fans), the Bunned One - Andy Carroll - tallied two before the half ended and added another shortly into the second half.  To their credit Arsenal did not fade and grabbed a draw with Koscielny's goal in the 70th minute.  But the draw (correctly predicted in the BFS model) was a blow to the Gunners title chances.


Chester Rolls On

Not the prettiest of football but with the schedule so crowded (four matches in eight days) we were in survival mode.  First, there was a 0-0 draw at Chelsea (yes, we parked the bus) that eliminated them from the title chase.  Next was a trip to Brittania Stadium for a 0-0 versus Stoke (yes we parked the bus) that eliminated all but Man City from contention.  Then a trip to Milan for the second leg of the Europa Cup semi against AC Milan.  We did not park the bus but we played entirely second teamers.  The 1-2 defeat was enough for us to win 4-3 on aggregate and send us to the final against Bayern.  We closed out with a solid 2-0 win at home against Tottenham.  We only need one point from the final three matches (Newcastle, Aston Villa and Sunderland) or anything less than wins by Man City in their matches against Wolves and Newcastle and the EPL crown is ours.


The Weekend

Limited viewing for me though not expecting any sympathy as we are in the south of France.  The BFS model calls for Newcastle to draw against Swansea; but this is one of the matches where the Magpies must get all three points if they hope to catch Norwich.

At the top, Leicester have a home match against West Ham; the chase pack is hoping this is one of the stumbles for the Foxes, without which there is no chance to catch Leicester.  Tottenham are on the road to Stoke - not an easy match but there is no room for anything less than a W.  Arsenal, really up against it now, face Crystal Palace at home and should be able to get three points.  Man City must travel to Stamford Bridge and must get a result.

Norwich and Sunderland face off at Carrow Road.  Newcastle are hoping for a draw here, as a win for either side may put one of these two teams out of reach.  Aston Villa are on the road to Man United and points seem unlikely and are pretty much irrelevant anyway.

On the MLS side, the Union face a tough test in Seattle on the road on Sunday.  The Red Bulls early season troubles continued with an 0-2 loss at San Jose on Wednesday; they are still on the road this weekend against Colorado.

Somebody going to watch these matches for me?

Next Stop, Championship Division

Another stoppage time loss for Newcastle; this one to relegation rival Norwich leaves the Magpies six points in from safety and precious few opportunities to make up ground.  Aston Villa's match was the car wreck we envisioned and the Union spent much of the day a man down and lost.  Please tell me Chester did okay.


Mitro's On Fire, Your Defense Is Terrified

True, but our defense is terrifying.  Three times on Saturday Newcastle managed to let Norwich take the lead.  The first was a set piece just as the first half was ending.  Then, a scant three minutes after Mitrovic had leveled things at 71 minutes, the defense didn't close down Mbokani and he fired a shot past Darlow.  But the final dagger came after Mitro had converted a PK in the 86th minute and Newcastle showed some interest in taking the lead.  Right.  In the 93rd minute, the defense failed to close down Olsson and his fine shot beat Darlow and the three points went to Norwich.

A draw would not have been completely unjustified and Newcastle did display moments of heart.  But for such a critical match they came out flat and certainly didn't play like a team facing Premier League extinction.  The second half was better but still a notch below where it needed to be.  And even had they managed a draw, that would have left the Magpies with serious ground to make up.

The math is extremely daunting at this point.  I now have Newcastle coming up four points short.  Where to make those up?  Well, I only have Norwich getting one more point (a draw with Sunderland) so that can only get worse.  I have Newcastle getting draws against Crystal Palace, Swansea, and Aston Villa; turning two of those into wins gets the four points. Points from Southampton, Man City, Liverpool and Tottenham matches would help but don't seem likely.

Are they playing better under Benitez?  Maybe but the first half against Norwich left me unimpressed.  He doesn't seem likely to stay.  I'll give him a pass if he leaves to take over as the manager for Spain.  But a club like Valencia?

On a positive note, even disasters like this game have their lighter moments.  Check out this "tickle incident" between Steven Naismith and Daryl Janmaat; in many countries they are now considered married, in others, felons.  What's that Emily?  You say he had it coming?


Car Crash for Aston Villa

As suggested, nothing good came out of Aston Villa's home match against Chelsea.  Fans littered the field with torn up protest signs and walked out in protest late in the 0-4 beating.  Actually, there was a positive aspect;  American Matt Miazga made his EPL debut and did very well thank you.  Hopefully this means he's going to get some regular playing time.  Or was it just because the opponent was Aston Villa?

The worst part about this to me was actually the first Chelsea goal.  Look, we all knew Chelsea was going to win, and likely by a lot.  But Aston Villa were playing decently well and at least showing a little spirit to start the match.  Then Chelsea scored on a weak shot (which was also right at Guzan) that was majorly deflected.  Then the flood gates opened.  It's not like we were ever going to win, but do we also have to the luck go against us as well?  Can't Chelsea at least really earn it?  I guess not.    


Somewhere Where the Sun Is Shining Bright

All kinds of points at the top of the table.  Leicester ground out another 1-0 win, this time against Euro contender Southampton.  Arsenal (4-0 over Watford), Man City (4-0 over West Brom) and Man United (1-0 over Everton) all got three points.  Tottenham played well but Liverpool at Anfield is never easy so a 1-1 draw isn't awful, even if it drops Spurs seven points behind the Foxes.  Elsewhere, Crystal Palace cut into West Ham's momentum, after Kouyate's red card in the 67th minute left the Hammers a man down the Eagles took advantage to grab a 2-2 draw and steal a point at Upton Park.

The BFS exclusive model now shows Leicester winning the league by three point over Tottenham. The worse news for Spurs fans is I have them with five wins and draw in the final six matches.  Looks like it will require stumbles from Leicester; I have them with wins over Sunderland (A), Swansea (H) and Everton (H) plus draws against Man United (A), Chelsea(A) and West Ham (H).  Certainly some chances to drop points but not obvious ones.


We Do Not Dream

Claudio Ranieri wrote a piece for the Players' Tribune in which he attempts to explain the Leicester mentality for this season.  In most sports, I assume most players do a lot of listening to their manager but don't exactly "buy into the system".  In this instance, it is impossible to deny that the Foxes bought what Ranieri was selling.  In particular, before the first match of the season, he said this to the players: 

"I want you to play for your teammates. We are a little team, so we have to fight with all our heart, with all our soul. I don’t care the name of the opponent. All I want is for you to fight. If they are better than us, Okay, congratulations. But they have to show us they are better"

I'm not sure there is a description that better fits the way Leicester started the season - by making bigger name teams show them who was better.  Things have obviously changed since then (see the 5 1-0 wins in their previous six games) but it's interesting, for me at least, to see a manager really affect his players this way.


Union Shorthanded

Warren Creavalle's ill-advised challenge earned him a second yellow and a sending off early in the second half.  Chicago scored shortly afterwards.  But the Union frankly looked to be the better side, even down a man.  Twice they hit the crossbar and once the post and always looked capable of leveling the match at any point.  A lost opportunity no doubt but a positive performance given the circumstances.


Smoke and Mirrors

That's all I can figure it is.  Chester hosted AC Milan in the first league of the Europa Cup semi final and bested the Italian side 3-1.  But I played with a squad made up of entirely second teamers and set up in a 4-1-3-2 with a very defensive philosophy.  How did this happen?  Maybe things will be different in next week's away leg; I'll be playing the second string again.  We now have Chelsea away on 4/21, Stoke away on 4/23, and Tottenham at home on 4/26; going to be juggling line ups to keep fresh players on the pitch.


Getting Down To It

Sunday morning has the good stuff.  First Leicester travels to the Stadium of We're Ahead of Newcastle But Still Going Down to face Sunderland at 8:30; this one might not be a 1-0 win for the Foxes. Then at 11 we have Spurs hosting Man United; pretty close to a must win for Tottenham.  Saturday morning's 7:45 match is London derby probably worth checking out - West Ham hosting Arsenal.  I have the Gunners coming up six point short in the title chase and a win here would cut that to four points.  Man City probably gets to keep pace with the leaders since they'll be hosting West Brom; with DeBruyne's return they've been looking better - even snatching a draw against PSG in Paris despite this U-11 moment.

Down in Relegation Land, Newcastle travel to Southampton; I see no reason to believe the Magpies come home with any points here.  Meanwhile, Norwich are in London to face Crystal Palace. Not sure what delusions I was under when I put this down as a win for the Eagles; Norwich could easily steal a point or three here, which would of course, basically seal Newcastle's fate.  Aston Villa take on Bournemouth; after littering the field and storming out, not sure what's left for Villa fans - not show up all?  A loss (or a Norwich win) would make clinch relegation.

On the MLS side, the Union take on Orlando Friday night at home with a chance to move into first with a win.  The Red Bulls, still struggling, host Sporting KC.

Stumbling Towards the Hex

A decidedly mixed set of results for the USMNT, another injury for Newcastle, and the passing of a legend. Yes it was another week where the good news mostly came from Football Manager.


Splitting with Guatemala

Is not a good way to ensure advancement to the next round of World Cup qualifying and even worse, suggests a bumpy road assuming we get to the Hex.  In this round of qualifying there are three groups of four teams with the top two advancing the final round (lovingly referred to as the Hexagonal because there are six teams).  As Chris K has pointed out, the margin for error in this round is actually smaller because you only have six games (two against each of the others in your group) as opposed to 10 in the Hex.

The draw against Trinidad and Tabasco was bad enough but the 0-2 loss to Guatemala on Friday was much worse.  You can't say they didn't deserve to lose that match; there was nothing redeeming I saw in that performance.  The Friday loss meant that Tuesday's return match was virtually a must win; a loss or even a draw could have left others in control of the US chances of advancing.  Fortunately they delivered a resounding 4-0 win.

The Sirius shows were filled with analysis of the team's woes.  Line-ups and tactics (i.e. Klinsmann) were roundly criticized.  I have been a defender of Klinsmann but I must admit I was puzzled by how many athletes were playing out of position in Friday's match; yes there were many key injuries/scratches (Besler, Johnson, etc.) and other players were involved in the U-23 team's (failed) last ditched effort to make the Olympics but I'm not sure that explains all of the decisions.  Certainly, players weren't out of natural positions on Tuesday even though the injury situation was unchanged and the U-23s had a game as well and look at the result (the fact that it was Guatemala at home aside).

Then there were discussions on the inability of US Soccer to identify and develop quality players; this criticism was directed more at the administrative level and Sunil Gulati, the president of the US Soccer Federation but also at Klinsmann. This rings true to some extent; it does often seem like our players just aren't good enough.  Somebody pointed out that for all his ability, DeAndre Yedlin's second touch is a tackle.  Ouch.

But maybe we asking for something that can't happen, at least not yet.  Ray Hudson was sort of alluding to it on one of the shows.  Let's face it, at best soccer is probably the fourth choice as a career for a talented US athlete.  That simply isn't the case in almost every other country in the world.  Had he been born in, say Costa Rica, Steph Curry would be creating havoc as a winger, not making unworldly three pointers.  The strongest evidence I can offer on this point is the US Women's National Team.  We do have some of the best women players in the world and we regularly compete for World Cup and Olympic titles, so obviously we are replacing the top players as they age out.  Same country but consistently better results.  What's different?  No NBA, NFL, and MLB getting first dibs on the best athletes.

Of course that doesn't mean the issue still isn't identifying and developing talent but accepting this reality might result in changes in how we do things.  And I'll admit I haven't worked this line of thought all the way through yet but hey, if you can't put half-baked theories in a blog, what's the point?


RIP Johan Cruyff

Last week's edition was already to the printer when we got the news that soccer legend Johan Cruyff had passed away.  I was listening to Sirius just as the announcement came out and heard Ray Hudson choke up on the radio as he tried to speak of what Cruyff meant to the game.  A very touching moment. I don't feel qualified to write about the details; I only knew that he was more than just an awesome player, responsible for a broader outlook on what the game meant and how it should be played.  Check out this article in the Economist for thoughts from someone more qualified to talk about the man.



Another Newcastle Injury

Jeebus this feels like "The Martian" where every time Matt Damon solves a problem, something else goes wrong. This time it's keeper Rob Eliot blowing out his ACL in Ireland friendly (another reason to dislike friendlies). The relatively untested Karl Darlow will be in goal for the rest of the season.  I can recall his (only?) performance against West Brom - not awful but very shaky.  Perfect.

Scuttlebutt is that Benitez will not stick around if Newcastle are relegated.  I'm with Ray Hudson on this; if you want to prove you're a great manager, turn around a sinking franchise like Newcastle instead of going to a side that regularly competes for Champions League spots.


Aston Villa Let Down Their Garde

With seven matches to go and relegation pretty much assured, Aston Villa sacked manager Remi Garde.  Mostly likely a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Not sure why you'd do it now.  Garry Monk has been mentioned as a replacement.


Chester to Euro Semi-final

With all the "good" news elsewhere, once again the virtual world of Football Manager comes the rescue.  First, again using mostly second teamers, we beat Man United 1-0 to take the Europa Cup quarter final by an aggegrate 3-1.  The fact that we now face AC Milan in the semis in the middle of an already overcrowded schedule is beside the point - we'll burn that bridge when we get to it.  We then feasted on three bottom table teams, beating Wolves, Birmingham and Portsmouth in rapid succession.  We're now four points clear of Man City with six to go and two games in hand.  Piece of cake right?  I will allow that a top three finish looks likely but the schedule favors Man City for the top spot.  They'll likely win all four of their remaining matches.  Our schedule has four road games and features all top to mid-table sides.  Certainly doable but by no means assured.


Questions for the Weekend

League play resumes with many critical questions to be answered.

Can Newcastle make a stand against Norwich?  A loss is basically the end.  A draw is not great but there are places to recover those points.  Understanding that relegation battles can generate some interesting football, this match is on USA at 10 am on Saturday (welcome to DST England).

How does Leicester handle a more capable opponent than Newcastle or Crystal Palace?  The Foxes host Southampton, a side with European aspirations that plays attractive football; this should be well worth watching on Sunday morning at 8:30 on NBCSN.  I have this as a draw in my model.

Will Tottenham keep pace or gain on Leicester?  Spurs travel to Anfield to face a slightly confusing Liverpool squad.  Not an easy match but Tottenham will want a result here.  I have the match as a draw but could see Spurs taking all three points.  This is the featured match at 12:30 Saturday on NBC.

Will Arsenal build off of the Everton win?  They have Watford at home and should get all three points but can't come in overconfident against the pesky Hornets.  You can see this one at 10 am Saturday on NBCSN.

What happens to the chase pack?  Man City is on the road to Bournemouth - not a slam dunk for the Citizens.  Man United host Everton; I have this as a draw but wonder if there is any spillover from the Toffees awful outing against Arsenal.  West Ham have a chance to tighten the race up, hosting Crystal Palace.

Do you like car crashes?  If so, tune in at 7:45 Saturday morning on NBCSN to watch Aston Villa host Chelsea.  Hard to imagine anything good coming out of this fixture.

Are the Union better than last year?  A road match at 5 pm on Saturday against the Chicago Fire will be a good test.  If we are truly better, this should be at least a draw.  You can see this match on TCN.

Does El Classico have the same cachet this year?  I'm hearing that the Barcelona - Real Madrid contest may not have the same bite as usual given the standings.  I'll leave that to our La Liga experts.

Judgment Day Delayed - For Now

A late goal from Aleksandar Mitrovic kept Newcastle's chances of staying up on life support and the Union were, well, very un-Union like in their home opener.  The news for Aston Villa was not as good.  Another busy weekend.


Tiny-Weary Derby

No one will mistake the Newcastle-Sunderland clash for quality football but it was compelling.  As has become habit for this fixture, Defoe scored late in the first half to give the Black Cats a 1-0, with Newcastle looking like they had no clue how they might score a goal.  The Magpies were better in the second half, generating more chances but in truth, none were that threatening.  The best attacking football had come from Andros Townsend and there was second guessing at 6911 when Benitez took him off late for Papiss Cisse.  What do I know?  Shortly thereafter Mitrovic headed a cross from Wijnaldum to level the match in the 83rd minute.  The picture below gives you can an idea of how precise Mitro had to be from that angle to get the ball in.  After the goal, there was some thought that Newcastle might even get a winner but when Mitrovic went down with a head injury, the Magpies had to play the last minutes a man down.  So Newcastle dodge a bullet and sides like Norwich and Crystal Palace were probably more than happy with the result.

Benitez appears to be making wholesale changes in the Newcastle approach to everything from organization of the training ground to the style of play on the pitch.  We can't know for sure but right now he is not acting like a manager who's leaving if we go down to the Championship.


We're Not Dead Yet and other Tales from the Top of the Table

In the first game of the weekend, Arsenal served notice that they are not planning to go quietly into the night.  Fresh off of FA Cup and Champions League exits and facing a rejuvenated Everton side, I had expected difficulties for the Gunners at Goodison Park.  Uh, not so much.  Welbeck started the scoring in the 7th minute and Iwobi added a second right before halftime.  Arsenal was so controlling and Everton so off form in this 2-0 win that you could hear the grumbling around Goodison Park.  Tottenham had no difficulty disposing of Bournemouth (3-0) while Leicester chalked up their third straight 1-0 win over mediocre opposition (Crystal Palace this time) so the top three kept their relative standings.

United's 1-0 win over City in the Manchester derby tightened things for the 4th Champions League spot.  West Ham could have moved into that coveted position but were foiled by a (marginal) PK call in the 89th minute against Ruben Tongue-inLoftus-Cheek and had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge.

Probably marvelous viewing and a match with implications for Europe was Southampton's comeback 3-2 win over Liverpool; the Saints sit in 7th, just four points out of 4th.  And in other news, Norwich took down West Brom 1-0; grumble, grumble, that was three unexpected points for the Canaries that are going to make life difficult for Newcastle.

We're not dead yet also applies at the bottom of the table, but with a slightly different meaning.  After losing yet again, 1-0 to Swansea, Villa find themselves 13 points from safety with only 21 points left to possibly earn.  They looked better this week than most, mustering a whole bunch of quarter chances (we're working our way towards half-chances) and maintaining decent possession.  But the thing US fans will want to know most ahead of the international break is that Guzan looked shaky once more and was directly responsible for the only goal.  He chose to come off his line on a weak free kick from 40+ yards away and missed his punch, allowing a ricochet into the empty net behind him.  He has not had a good few months - the gum spitting incident, being benched, and generally poor play - and I would watch him carefully if he is indeed in net this week for the Americans.


90s DIY Music Moment

Speaking of Aleksandar Mitrovic, he is becoming a fan favorite and has a special chant.  For context, listen to Gala's "Freed From Desire" here.  Then check out some of the Toon Army with their chant for Mitro here (you have to scroll down a bit to get the video).  Mitro's on fire, your defense is terrified.  Jason Sudeikis was right - raving lunatics.


Hospital Ball (not a fund raiser)

Philip S was the first to explain to me the concept of a hospital ball, a pass that is so weak or ill-conceived that it subjects the intended recipient to a heavy challenge and possibly injury.  This weekend saw a textbook example in Demichelis' careless and soft pass back to his keeper Joe Hart.  Couldn't find a great clip but here's the video;  Hart being carried off on a stretcher tells you how bad it was.


BFS Predictor Model

Model is probably too generous.  All I did was take every remaining EPL match and put down win-lose-draw.  Based on those predictions, we get projected final standings.  FWIW, I get Leicester winning by a point over Tottenham (79-78) with Arsenal just behind with 75 points.  Down at the bottom, I get Newcastle scraping by with 31 points to Sunderland's 30 and Norwich's 29. A model based on me guessing the results of 80 or so matches?  Sounds foolproof to me.  I'd take the results as gospel.


Who Are These Guys?

Jeff H and I headed out to the recently renamed Talen Energy Stadium.  Didn't look all that different from PPL Park.  Wait, that's not true.  The home team didn't remind me of the side we've grown accustomed to.  Attacking football, lots of scoring chances, didn't cough up a lead.  A relatively easy 3-0 win over New England.  We are not used to this.  In fact, at about 40 minutes with the Union up 2-0 and up a man, Jeff and I had the same thought - let's just get try to get into the locker room with the two goal intact.  Wouldn't you know it, a minute later a Revolution shot hit both posts before bouncing safely into the arms of Andre Blake.

So maybe there was some luck here.  Sapong's shots didn't seem all that dangerous but they snuck through.  The foul?  Live I thought there was a chance of a red card because of the high boot and the locked knee; others who saw replays weren't so sure it involved excessive force.  But Shuttleworth guessed right and saved two PKs and the Union barely missed some other chances.  The defense was pretty tight too.  I'm not saying they're great but it is a more interesting team to watch.

NJ Red Bulls also broke through with a win.


International Break

Pretty much everybody is shut down this weekend for the international break.  A lot of friendlies but some serious business too, none more so than the US-Guatemala home and home on Friday and Tuesday.  Six points would put the USMNT into the Hexagonal, or final round of qualifying.  History says six points are possible but this team has been out of sorts since 2014 so they shouldn't be taking anything for granted.

This might be the weekend to get the grass seed and fertilizer down...

Better Is Still Zero Points

The two main BFS sides took on the two teams at the top of the EPL table this weekend.  Though both Newcastle and Aston Villa were improved over recent performances in their matches against Leicester City and Tottenham respectively, neither managed to score or take away any points.  Close only counts in horse shoes, hand grenades and atom bombs so all we can take from the Magpies 0-1 loss and the Villans 0-2 loss is, well, pretty much nothing.  Fortunately there is better news from MLS and Football Manager.


New Man In Charge

Newcastle did end up sacking McClaren and installing Rafa Benitez; McClaren's title was Head Coach while Benitez wears the mantle of Manager.  We'll see if this is meaningful but it does suggest that owner Mike Ashley has given Benitez more authority than others who have previously held this position. 

Of course the change did not immediately translate into points.  However, there was a marked improvement on the pitch.  Against the high scoring Leicester side, the defensive was much tighter than we've seen in recent months, even with key personnel out.  In fact, the only goal of the evening came on a spectacular bicycle kick from the irrepressibly high spirited Okazaki.  Arguably, Newcastle were the better side in the second half.  All of this is less than meaningless if it doesn't carry over to this weekend's match against Sunderland.

Watching this match from the Leicester perspective, I reached the same conclusion.  Newcastle looked much more composed and organized than usual, and even a little threatening at times.  The fact that the Foxes pulled out a second consecutive "workmanlike" win really bodes well for their chances down the stretch.  The past two weeks were perfect examples of must win but easy to lose matches and Leicester took care of business both times.

We'll see if Dennis has anything to say about Aston Villa.

That would require Dennis having watched the match.  I was away all weekend and came home to a text telling me that the match was not worth watching.  I think I've mentioned this before, but watching my crappy team is one thing, but watching when I know they lose is just too much for me.

However, discussing Villa's futility with Emily did lead us to realize that things could be worse.  As in, Villa are not the most pathetic team in EPL history.  That distinction belongs to 2007-08 Derby, who managed just 1 win and 11 points, while being the only premier league team to be relegated in March.  Don't get me wrong, this season is still an embarrassment and likely to end as one of the 5 worst seasons in EPL history (they'd need 27 points to escape that fate), but things could somehow still be worse.

Man City were a bust against Norwich, managing only a 0-0 draw.  That's two hours of my life I wouldn't mind getting back, plus it was a point for one of Newcastle's main relegation rivals.  Didn't see Bournemouth-Swansea but that 3-2 win for the Cherries may have been the best EPL viewing of the weekend; the Cherries are just about safe from relegation now. 


FA Cup

Does this say FA Cup or what?  Based on today's table, the semi-finals will feature the 5th or 6th, 12th, 14th and 15th place sides.  Crystal Palace was always the favorite against Championship side Reading and got a generous PK call late (karma?) before adding another in stoppage time to take a 2-0 win.  Next up was Everton-Chelsea.  Two fabulous goals from Lukaku were enough to complete Chelsea's bad awful week which saw them bounced from both the Champions League and the FA Cup.  It will be interesting to see where they go from here; I suppose Europa Cup qualification is not out of the picture but it's not entirely in their hands.  Since we're often about the goofier stuff, check out Diego Costa's absolutely bizarre contact with Gareth Barry this week's YouTubeableMoment.  Words fail. 

Sunday saw a listless Arsenal side fall to Watford 1-2, ending the Gunners hope of a three-peat.  They drew Barcelona in the Champions League so that competition is just about over for them as well (late breaking news, it is over for them).  If they don't bring home the EPL title, expect the calls for Wenger to step down to increase.  And the last match of the quarters was a 1-1 draw between West Ham and Man United.  Payet's free kick goal was a thing of beauty, once you get past the fact that moments earlier he should have been sent off for a text book dive in the box (would have been his second yellow on the day).  With both teams still chasing fourth place, I'm sure they're thrilled about a mid-week replay in the next few weeks.


Pontius Pilots Union to Victory (yeah I went there)

Chris Pontius exults after scoring(JAMIE SABAU / Getty Images)

Facing a tough Columbus team on the road, the Union stepped up their game.  We saw much better midfield play and a fair share of attacking.  We were pleasantly surprised when Chris Pontius (left) gave the Union a 1-0 lead just before halftime.  We were even happier when he doubled the lead in the 70th minute.  We had an ominous sense of foreboding when Columbus got one back in the 87th minute; this is a movie we've seen before.  Sure enough, the defense, which continues to have rough patches, gave the Crew several good opportunities.  Fortunately, they were either off target or Blake made the save.  They are still definitely giving up way too many clear cut chances so there's work to do.  But in the last few years, the Union surely would have found a way to squander those precious two points which has always left us too far back to make a realistic run at the playoffs.  So the 2-1 win feels like progress to me.

Yikes, Red Bulls down again.  Still early I guess.


Chester Is On Fire

An amazing string of results.  First a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford against 5th place Man United.  Then a 5-0 pasting of 4th place Everton at home; decided to release the hounds and went all in for attacking football and was rewarded.  We still sit third in the table, two behind Man City and one behind Chelsea with three games in hand on both. 

Next up was Man United again, this time in the Europa League quarterfinal.  With match congestion, I put in mostly the second team, basically saying we'll do what we can.  So the second team delivered a stunning 2-1 result in the first leg at Old Trafford.  Even with the semis within our grasp, I'm going to go with the same line-up in the second leg and see what happens.


Derby, Derby

A big weekend on tap with the Tired-Weary Tyne-Wear and Manchester derbies on Sunday plus a trip to Talen Energy Stadium (nee PPL Park) to see the Union home opener vs New England.  This is after a full slate of games on Saturday.  Not to mention the world indoor track and field championships.

First, the derbies.  Newcastle-Sunderland (9:30 Sunday morning NBCSN with the Brits still not yet on daylight savings time) is about as crucial a contest, in the context of relegation, as you'll get.  Neither side is in particularly good form and it good be some dreadful football but failure to win here is a big problem.  I am uncharacteristically, and probably unrealistically, optimistic about the Magpies chances but I have this feeling that Benitez may have had just enough time to make a difference.  The Manchester derby is at noon on Sunday on NBC.   This one is big in terms of Champions League qualification.  A loss for Man United might end their chances while a loss for Man City puts them at risk of being overtaken by West Ham.  Derbies can be feisty even when they're not relevant to the table; both of these have enormous consequences so Martin Atkinson (Tyne-Wear) and Michael Oliver (Manchester) could have their hands full.

At the top of the table, Leicester are finally getting respect from NBC as their 11 am match on Saturday at Crystal Palace will be on NBCSN; since this is not FA Cup, I expect Crystal Palace to struggle.  Tottenham Bournemouth is only available on live stream since it's up against the Manchester derby.  Bournemouth can be a handful so Spurs should be wary.  And Arsenal, coming off FA Cup and Champions League disappointments have a tough match at Goodison Park against Everton (8:45 Saturday on NBCSN).

And explain this to me - Swansea-Aston Villa gets a feature slot at 1:30 on Saturday on NBCSN (they must be the only match at the time....).  Even Dennis hardly watches them anymore.  In other relegation battles, we're pulling for West Brom to take all three points at home against Norwich.  Yup, if all goes well, by Sunday night Newcastle might be sittin' pretty in 17th place, two points clear of relegation.  And I might run a 4 minute mile...

BTW, BFS Senior IT Specialist Dennis solved the automatic email issue and it appears to be working again so if you haven't signed up, you might try it again.  I'll probably send the email notification myself too for a few more weeks but if all goes well, I won't have to keep it up.

 

Virtual Payback?

Another awful weekend for the BFS teams - we can now add complaints about the Union to the regular agenda - but those train wrecks aside, it was another wild, wacky and totally watchable set of matches in the EPL.


Showing Up When It Counts - Not

Note: special musical accompaniment to this section - Tailspin by the Jayhawks - "you're going down, baby, baby, you're going down."

We'll spend as little time as possible on Newcastle's 1-3 loss at home to Bournemouth.  Recall last week that our gobs were smacked when McClaren decided his best bet to score was to bring in Riviere late.  Imagine the state of our gobs when this week McClaren chose to start him.  Yes, he had some imaginative runs but he was nowhere close to finding the net.  An incredibly lackluster performance overall (Jonjo Shelvey excluded) at a most critical time.  If McClaren survives this, he's probably here for the season.  (Update: as of late Thursday there is much buzz that Rafa Benitez will be brought in but nothing final yet.)

But we'll spend even less on Aston Villa.  With pre-game predictions going all the way up to 6-0, I guess a 4-0 slaughter (with a penalty hitting the post) is good?  As usual, Villa held out for a little while, eventually conceded, and subsequently crumbled.  A goal within the opening 3 minutes of the second half got MC started, who scored again 2 minutes later and added 2 more easy ones later on.  No contest.


What'd I Ever Do to You? 

Last year I got Josh King for my Football Manager Chester side on a free transfer.  He wasn't a bad player - 3 goals and 4 assists in 25 appearances.  But this year he was our fifth best striker and wasn't getting any playing time.  In the January transfer window, he was garnering a lot of interest and I ended up getting a $3.5 million transfer fee from Atalanta in Serie A.  This was by far the largest transfer fee in our history.  So on Saturday, the real live Josh King, who plays for Bournemouth, put a wicked cross into the box that Steven Taylor converted into an own goal.  In the second half, King made a nice move and an even better shot to put Bournemouth up 2-0.  Do you think he was sending me a message - dumped by his virtual manager, he gets back by taking it out on the virtual manager's real life team?  Nah, me neither, I just thought it was ironic.


Red Card Fever

There were five sending offs (sendings off?) in the 10 games this weekend.  Every one of those five clubs did better than Newcastle.  Two lost, though by just one goal, two got draws, and one stole a win; in total, the shorthanded sides managed five goals after the red cards were shown.

Start with the North London derby, where Arsenal's Francis Coquelin earned a second yellow in the 55th minute with the Gunners up 1-0.  Less than 10 minutes later they were down 1-2 (check out this goal from Harry Kane from an impossible angle) and Tottenham had the Gunners by the ba...  were in control.  But Alexis Sanchez came out of his scoring drought with the equalizer in the 76th minute.  A memorable derby that probably left Arsenal fans happy and Tottenham fans wondering how that win slipped away (and Leicester fans thrilled).

Next was Southampton-Sunderland.  The Black Cats, up a goal and up a man, looked ready to leave the coast with all three points.  But Virgil van Dijk scored a shorthanded goal in the 93rd minute to snatch a point back.  Newcastle thank you for that.

Meanwhile, in Liverpool, things were even crazier.  Everton were up 1-0 on West Ham when Kevin Mirallas got his second yellow in the 34th minute.  Ah but the Toffees were undeterred and tallied a second goal in the 56th minute to improbably add to their lead.  And get this, in the 69th minute, Lukaku could have put Everton up 3-0 but he missed the PK.  Still, the lead looked secure as the match drifted past the 75th minute.  And then all of a sudden, it wasn't.  First, Antonio scored in the 78th minute and Sakho followed shortly thereafter and it was 2-2 with the Hammers, well, hammering away.  Payet completed the turnaround with a goal in the 90th minute and West Ham went home with all three points; they sit just one point behind fourth place Man City.

Move onto Sunday and both of those matches involved red cards.  Juan Mata, not one you'd expect to get a sending off, got a second yellow early.  West Brom did just enough to come away with a 1-0 win.  That leaves us with Crystal Palace-Liverpool.  With the Eagles up 1-0, James Milner got a second yellow in the 62nd minute and Liverpool spent the rest of the match a man down.  But a brain cramp (or maybe a slip, not sure) of a clearance from keeper Alex McCarthy gifted the equalizing goal.  Then in stoppage time, Palace defender Damien Delaney, in the box, clipped the heel of Benteke, who added text book embellishment and got the PK call; the Belgian converted and Crystal Palace were SOL.  The internets are fired up about this one with big names speaking up on either side.  In short, one view is that if there's contact the player has every right to go down; the opposing opinion is that embellishment is cheating.  Surprisingly I couldn't find a real good site but you can see some video here of the incident. 

I'm pretty firmly on the embellishment is cheating side of this argument.  If any contact can be an excuse to go down and get a foul called then football ceases to be a contact sport, which I doubt many people want.  The problem is that ridding the game of embellishment is probably impossible - the incentives to go down are simply too strong, with Benteke's game winning PK being the latest example.  It would take something along the lines of every ref being able to spot embellishment and give a yellow (yeah, right) or every player suddenly becoming honest (even less likely than the previous idea) to actually solve the problem.  I'm not holding my breath.  The problem is that embellishment is not a cautionable offense.  I'm pretty sure there was contact on this play.  It was minimal but it was there.  If Benteke doesn't go down, is the foul called?  Probably not.  I'd like to see referees make decisions on the whether the contact was a foul, not whether the player went down.  I try to do that when I call a game.  Sometimes the contact looks really nasty but it's not a foul; sometimes it doesn't look all that significant but if it affects the play, it's a foul.

And while all this was going on, Leicester was simply grinding out a workmanlike 1-0 win on the road at Watford and their lead is now five points.The lightning strike from Mahrez is included below.

Chester to the Europa Quarters

An aggregate 4-2 win in a two-legged tie with Aston Villa puts us in the quarter finals of the Europa Cup, where we will face Man United.  Just like real life, this secondary competition is becoming a nuisance.  We have EPL matches with each of the main competitors for the title over the next 4 weeks and all I can think about is how to keep a fresh squad on the pitch.  I do rely on a rotation system (like Pochettino!) but at some point there's just too many matches.


Next Verse, Same as the Last

Off of the 0-2 drubbing from FC Dallas, one might conclude that not much has changed for the Union.  I'll argue that's a bit harsh given that we were facing arguably one of last year's best sides on the road without two key components - Edu and Barnetta - of our lineup.  I was disappointed in not seeing an attacking, controlling midfield presence for most of the match but again that could be due to the absences.  Blake was certainly great in goal and I thought we were better in the second half with Alberg and Le Toux in the line up.  The schedule makers did us no favor as we now travel to Columbus to face one of last year's MLS Cup finalists Saturday at 7:30 (check your local listings as they say).

Toronto was getting some love from the pundits preseason and backed it up with a 2-0 win over the Red Bulls in New Jersey.  Maybe Chris K will offer comments on the match.


Pay Close Attention

Two factors combine to make this a strange weekend for viewing.  First, the FA cup quarterfinal matches take place Friday, Saturday and Sunday, leading to an abbreviated EPL schedule.  Second, we move to daylight savings time Sunday morning but England doesn't so the normal time differential is out of whack for a week. 

In deference to its storied history, we'll review the FA Cup schedule first.  Friday sees Reading hosting still-smarting Crystal Palace (2:30 on FS2).  Saturday has a potential cracker with Everton taking on Chelsea (12:30 on FS1); but, injuries in the Champions League loss to PSG might leave Costa and Hazard out of the line up for Chelsea.  Sunday has Arsenal vs Watford at the Emirates and Man United vs West Ham at Old Trafford (FS1 at 9:30 and 12). 

Saturday EPL action has Norwich hosting Man City (7:45 on NBCSN) then Stoke-Southampton and Bournemouth-Swansea at 10 am (USA and NBCSN).  Since we've given up on catching Bournemouth and Swansea, they can do what they want but we do need Man City to take care of business against Norwich.  Sunday's EPL match is a mini-BFS derby with Aston Villa hosting Tottenham (noon on NBCSN); Michael B will be expecting to take all three points and Dennis will be resigned to that fate.  Finally, on Monday Leicester host Newcastle ( 4 pm NBCSN) and Dennis will be expecting to take all three points and I will be resigned to that fate.

Damn, and the US Track and Field Championships are this weekend too and the weather doesn't look like it's going to justify staying in all weekend. 

Missing the Point

So much activity - two sets of EPL matches, the Capital One League Cup Final, the start of the MLS season, relegation battles.  We'll only be able to scratch the surface.

Newcastle Travails Continue

Senator Everett Dirksen (R-IL) used to say something like a billion dollars here, a billion dollars there and pretty soon it adds up to real money.  Tyneside, the adapted version is something like a point lost here, a point lost there and pretty soon you're relegated.

To say the Magpies could have picked up a point at Stoke is not the same as saying they played well.  Neither side distinguished itself and the gale in which the matched was contested probably had a lot to do with it.  But a point was well within Newcastle's reach but a late goal from Shakira Shaqiri was enough for a Stoke 1-0 win and all three points.

I realize this is kind of like complaining about poor towel service on the Titanic, but I was absolutely gobsmacked by McClaren's substitutions on Wednesday.  Clinging to a 0-0 draw, the Newcastle manager chose to go for more offense and inserted Emmanuel Riviere for Gouffran .  I'm okay with the philosophy but exactly why did he think Riviere, he of exactly one EPL goal in over a year for Newcastle, was the man for the situation?  Only after they fell behind did he go with the more logical choices of Perez and Doumbia.  Too late, though Doumbia forced Butland to make an awesome save in stoppage time. 

Sure this was not one of the matches from which we expected to take points but it feels like a lost opportunity.


In the Basement

Fortunately for Newcastle, most of the results from the weekend and the midweek games went our way.  Aston Villa went down twice, as did Norwich, though Leicester certainly waited long enough to put the Canaries away.  Alan Pardew's inability to beat Sunderland continues, as Yedlin's stoppage time goal gave the Black Cats a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace and a point; Sunderland lost on Saturday 0-1 to West Ham.  Swansea lost to Tottenham but did steal away from the Emirates with all three points, beating Arsenal 2-1.  With results at Watford and Southampton, Bournemouth is pretty much out of danger.  Same for West Brom, who got a win against Crystal Palace and a point from Leicester.  The five likely relegation candidates (Aston Villa, Newcastle, Sunderland, Norwich, and Swansea) gathered exactly four points from 27 possible between Saturday and Wednesday.

No real excitement from either Villa match.  They looked awful for the majority of play in both matches (though showed some real life in the second half against Everton on Tuesday) but were never actually in either contest.  Only a few more weeks and we can be officially put out of our misery.

Caballero Was A Horse

The competitive, if not scintillating Capital One Cup Final went to extra time and then kicks from the spot before Man City could claim the title.  The Citizens number two keeper Willy Caballero, who looked nothing like an EPL keeper in the 1-5 FA Cup loss to Chelsea, was the hero, stopping three of Liverpool's spot kicks.  So Pellegrini, who is out at the end of May, got another trophy.  Did you notice that Christian Benteke did not make an appearance in the match?  Curious.


Top of the Table

Leicester didn't look all that great but still came away with more points in the last week than any of the other top four teams.  Home matches with Norwich and West Brom might have sounded like an easy six points but in the end they had to work hard for the four they got.  Tottenham lost ground, beating Swansea but losing to a surging West Ham 0-1.  Arsenal lost both their matches (more below) and Man City lost their EPL match to Liverpool.

For sheer theater, nothing beat the Man United Arsenal classic, though Gunners fans would probably just as soon forget the whole thing.  MUN broke from the line quickly and had a 2-0 lead by the 32nd minute.  It wasn't just the two goals, it was the source of the goals - 18 year old Marcus Rashford who was a last minute replacement as Martial was hurt in warm ups.  This was Rashford's EPL debut; earlier in the week he had made his senior team debut in the Europa League match and tallied two there as well.  As an aside, it's hard to label van Gaal a genius for the move - he really didn't have a lot of options.  Fortunately, Arsenal got one back before halftime and it was game on.  Herrera restored the two goal lead (assisted by Rashford!) but only momentarily before Ozil closed the gap again.  That was the final score but there were plenty of fun moments, including some tussling.  But the highlight had to be the normally stone-faced van Gaal's histrionics on the sidelines, this week's YouTubeable Moment. 

The internet obviously jumped on this one as fast as possible too.  My favorites are below, but there are dozens out there:

Life Imitates Football Manager?

I'm currently at roughly the same place as real life on the calendar in Football Manager.  My Chester team took on Chelsea in the League Cup Final.  And like the real event, the virtual contest went to extra time.  Though we were serious underdogs to Chelsea, we took a first half lead before surrendering the equalizer early in the second half.  We battled through the next 45 minutes and then almost 30 minutes of extra time before giving up the winning goal in the 119th minute.  Disappointing to be that close but a good run in the tournament.  In regular time this was a draw and that level of performance in regular league play might be enough for us to finish top four.

In fact, our next match was Man City at the Etihad.  Ooh, it was ugly with both teams whistled for more than 20 fouls each and the match ending with 20 players on the pitch, each of us having one sent off.  But it was a 0-0 draw on the road against one of the main competitors for the title so it was a good result.


Another Playoffless Year?

MLS play begins this weekend.  The Union will feature many new faces and the buzz about the team is pretty good.  I'm especially looking forward to a young and fast attacking midfield.  Unfortunately, the predictions pretty much conclude the same thing - this is a better team but we're still looking at the lower end of the Eastern Conference standings and the playoffs don't seem likely.

The Red Bulls are little changed from last year's Supporters Shield winning side.  Key defender Matt Miazga is off to Chelsea and hasn't been replaced but otherwise they look pretty good.  Definitely a playoff team and likely contender for both the Supporters Shield and the MLS Cup.  Sigh, what's it like to root for a contender?

I found this website useful in looking at the prospects for each team and the conferences in general.  This one is pretty good too, though it's even less optimistic about the Union's prospects.


Busy Weekend

Big north London derby at 7:45 on Saturday morning (NBCSN).  A loss for either Tottenham or Arsenal would be very damaging at this point.  Frankly a draw probably isn't great for either side.  First place Leicester is off to Watford (12:30 Saturday NBCSN)and the Foxes will need to take care if they don't want to come home with no points.  They might be rooting for a draw in the derby.

Absolutely critical match for Newcastle against Bournemouth at St. James Park on Saturday at 10 - you'll have to stream that one if you're interested, though I can't think of any reason a neutral would want to take in this match.  Aston Villa is facing another loss going on the road to Man City.  Big relegation match between Swansea and Norwich on Saturday.  Not sure where my rooting interests lie; a Swansea win improves our chances over Norwich but could put the Swans out of reach.

We should be keeping a close eye on West Ham, who have now crept back to within one point of the last Champions League spot.  They travel to Goodison Park to take on Everton.  Don't look now but Chelsea are just eight points out of 4th; a key factor may be how much they go in for the Champions League and rest players in EPL matches.  The Blues take on Stoke at home on Saturday.  The Sunday matches are the staggering Crystal Palace at home to Liverpool and West Brom taking on Manchester United at the Hawthornes.

And after the EPL doubleheader you can do an MLS doubleheader with the Red Bulls hosting Toronto in New Jersey and the Union traveling to Texas to face Dallas FC.

Good thing there's not much yard work to do yet.