Reality Bites

Newcastle get a dose of reality but the Union keep on trucking.

After four weeks in the EPL, here are some groupings.

Teams with a perfect record

Arsenal

Man City

The Gunners didn't exactly dismantle Sunderland at the Stadium of Shite Light but eventually came away with a 2-0 win.  Man City played over 70 minutes of the their Manchester derby down a man but still left Old Trafford with a 1-0 win.  See "You Make the Call "  for some interesting refereeing decisions from those two matches.

Teams with no losses

Arsenal

Man City

Leeds

Hull City

Brentford

Liverpool

Everton

Leeds huddle: Kick Newcastle's butt on three, 1, 2...

As Jim Beglin noted, the chickens came home to roost at Elland Road Park for Newcastle in a 4-1 defeat to Leeds.  The stats had been telling us that the Magpies were mighty lucky to be sitting with a win and two draws after three matches.  Leeds had them on the ropes from the kickoff though it took a little while for it to show up on the scoreboard.  An own goal and an excuse me header in the space of few minutes could have been brushed off as bad luck but it was really the result of relentless pressure.  A third goal just before the half made the game 3-0 and essentially out of reach.  The 4-1 final is kind to Newcastle.

Hull City weren't the ones scrambling for a draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.  Other than possession, the stats are pretty even and Hull actually have the better xG (1.57-1.18).  Bournemouth - Brentford was always expected to be close so the 2-2 draw is not a surprise.

Liverpool stayed undefeated but it isn't exactly what they wanted.  They add the 0-0 draw with Fulham to the 2-2 results with Newcastle and Nottingham Forest.  Surely they would have expected more than three points from those fixtures.  And please don't call me Shirley.

Their Merseyside rivals are in the same boat recordwise but likely happier with their lot.  The 0-0 final at Spurs gives them three draws in a row, having previously drawn Man United and Bournemouth 

Newly promoted teams in the top 10

Hull

Ipswich

Hull actually fell to fourth after Leeds dispatched Newcastle. For the second time this season, Ipswich grabbed all three points in the dying seconds of a match, this time snatching a 3-2 win at Crystal Palace with a 90th minute goal from Flemming.  They did play with a man advantage for over 65 minutes so the W isn't a total shock.  Wins over Sunderland and Palace bode well for their relegation challenge.

Teams with no wins

Bournemouth

Spurs

Fulham

Aston Villa

Coventry

Alysson:My Aim Is True (apologies to Elvis Costello)

Aston Villa did finally get a league goal (a nifty header from Alysson) but didn't get any points against Nottingham Forest in a 1-2 defeat.  A bit of bad luck here as Villa had to burn a sub at 24 minutes when Torres went down with injury, then played the final 10+ minutes down a man when Maatsen was injured and Villa had no subs left.  Forest took advantage of that advantage and scored the game winner at 88 minutes.  It wasn't entirely bad luck that left Villa without any subs. Emery made two changes at halftime and another two more just after 60 minutes trying to find a combination that could score a goal.  They got the goal but had no options left when Maatsen went down.

Coventry City were plastered 5-0 by Brighton. Already down 0-2 they had a man sent off at 53 minutes and things just snowballed.  

Teams with no goals

Spurs

Coventry

A subset of the previous group as you cannot win if you do not score

Teams without a point

Coventry

A subset of the previous group as you can only earn a point without scoring by holding the other team scoreless.  Coventry have yielded ten goals in four matches.

You Make the Call

He started it

A few interesting calls this weekend to spice things up.  Arsenal players and fans are up in arms (see what I did there?) about the PK called on Ezri Konsa in the 55th minute of their then scoreless match with Sunderland.  Raya saved the PK, Arsenal scored two minutes later, and eventually won 2-0.  Never mind, they still have to complain.  You can see the play here (should open to the incident).   Looking at the still photo (left), I'm having trouble rousing any sympathy for Konsa.  Yes, Ballard does have a hold on Konsa's jersey.  But Konsa has both arms around Ballard.   I am in the minority of those who are okay with this call but right now I'd rather see a bias towards calling defenders for this kind of grappling.

On to the Manchester derby which had two interesting calls.  Phil Foden got sent off at 23 minutes after this entanglement with Bruno Fernandes.  Reaction was all over the place from play on it's a derby, to yellows for each, to red for Foden yellow for Fernandes to Michael Oliver got it right to red cards for both.  The play on view seems ridiculous to me; so we're going to excuse a certain amount of violence just because it's a derby. Dennis notes, shouldn't you call a derby closer preciously because it could get explosive.  I have little sympathy for the two yellow approach because Foden kicked out in anger and made contact.  Even if the contact was minimal (and it's not clear that it was) to me it's like attempted murder; we know what you were trying to do, you just weren't very good at it.  I would have been okay if Oliver had shown Fernandes a yellow or a red for his actions.  The fact that Fernandes didn't get any sanction does seem unfair but it shouldn't affect the consequences for Foden.  The majority of "informed" opinion that I saw does seem to say that Oliver got it right.

"Hurtling horizontally in the precise direction of the ball"
apparently does not constitute an attempt to play the ball

And then we have the granddaddy of them all, the only one of the weekend that led to an apology from the league.  Shorthanded Man City got a goal in the 60th minute from Haaland; you can see the play here.  A bit to unpack on this one.  To most of us watching, Haaland was obviously in an offside position.  Except he wasn't.  See Error, parallax.  The semi-automated system provided factual support for Haaland being onside.  Ah, but what about Enzo Fernandez diving through the box?  Incredulously, the conclusion was that Fernandez was deemed not to have played the ball.  Granted that is a subjective decision but it's hard to conclude that Fernandez did not affect the defenders with his action of going for the ball.  Former EPL referee Graham Scott unpacks the process (what happened, what should have happened) here.  I checked and the apology from the league and the referees association does not come with a point for Man United.

Time To Carabao It Yet?

Dennis was happy enough with Aston Villa's 3-1 win over Coventry,  Spurs almost made the end of their fixture with Liverpool interesting but the Reds prevailed 3-1 

Here are the fourth round matchups:

Fleetwood Town v Arsenal

Man City v Brighton

Everton v Newcastle

Sunderland v Brentford

Liverpool v Chelsea

Bradford City v Peterborough

Fulham v Crystal Palace

Bournemouth v Aston Villa

These will be played during the week of 10/26.

EPL Still Perfect in Europe

Sunderland, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth all got wins in the first round of league play in the Europa Cup.  That makes the EPL 8-0-0 in European competitions so far.

That Bubble Didn't Burst

Cavan Sullivan: Coming to a national team near you

Each test the Union face has been theoretically tougher but they keep coming through with flying colors.  The latest was a 5-0 win at San Diego. Though each side had their moments in the first half, they were about to head into the lockerroom knotted at 0-0.  Then Vasilev put a tasty cross into the box that Cavan Sullivan turned into one of the more audacious goals of the year.  You can see it here at this week's  YouTubeableMoment.  The second half was really no contest.  Cavan got the first brace of his career with a second goal at 62 minutes.  Sullivan helped on the third just five minutes later on the through ball that Westfield crossed into the box for Damiani to deposit into the net.  An own goal at 87 minutes and a stoppage time tally from Malik Jakupovic (his first MLS goal) got them to the 5-0 final.

This time they did finish the weekend in one of the real playoff spots - 7th, just one point behind Orlando.  There are nine games to go and five teams close on their heels so nothing is for certain yet.  Still, this has been so much more fun.

"Conversation" That Took Place

Dennis:  I need to quick get a commentator job so I can repeatedly say that Philly are the playoff team no one wants to face.

 

Compromised Viewing Ahead

I'm on the road the next two weekends so not sure exactly what I'll get to see.  Probably means watching Peacock replays long after everyone else has gone to sleep.

Friday's 3 pm fixture does not look like a nap waiting to happen.  Brentford are hosting Chelsea and are only very slight underdogs (40/36/24).  Saturday's early 7:30 game also looks very worthwhile as Spurs host Aston Villa.  These sides are mirror images of each other right now - clubs that were expected to challenge for top six positions that have struggled so far.  They both have the personnel to succeed so maybe this is where they both start to gel.  I'm a little surprised how big a favorite Spurs are at 49/26/25.

If I was home, the 10 am choice for me would be Newcastle - Hull.  Opta likes the Magpies big time at 60/20/20.   I would like to think this will be an easy win for Newcastle at home but those numbers don't match up with either side's recent form.   The other choices are reasonably good too - Brighton hosting Arsenal or Everton vs Ipswich.

Not sure how Nottingham Forest vs Coventry ended up as the "feature" 12:30 match on NBC but there it is.

Three choices Sunday at 9 am, none all that tantalizing.  Bournemouth host Liverpool, Crystal Palace are at Elland Road to take on Leeds and Man City will face Sunderland at the Etihad.  I'd probably go with Bournemouth - Liverpool to see if the Reds can build on their Carabao Cup win over Spurs.  The 11:30 match doesn't overwhelm either as winless Fulham will host Man United.

The Union look to extend their streak with another road game, this time at Sporting KC.  That's Saturday at 8:30 on Apple.

If I read everything right, there is no mid-week action.

Bubble Didn't Burst Yet

Good results continue to pour in.  How long can it last?  Six of ten EPL matches ended in a draw.

An Acceptable Draw

Jacob Ramsey lowers his transfer fee to goals ratio
from $27m to $18m (Photo:Scott Heppell/Reuters)

We knew Bournemouth would be tough.  The Cherries manager Marco Rose had a game plan that effectively interrupted Newcastle's ability to move the ball.  When an own goal from Thiaw put Bournemouth up 2-0 at 35 minutes, things looked bleak.  The match turned a mere two minutes later on this pearl of a goal from Harvey Barnes. The team woke up and the crowd was back.  The Magpies were the better side in the second half but didn't grab the equalizer until the 88th minute.  The goal came on a precise shot from the top of the box by Jacob Ramsey, whose Newcastle career is still a work in progress.  Momentum at that point was such that a win didn't seem out of the question but it ended 2-2.

It seemed like a draw was a fair result but stats are telling me different.  Other than possession, they tilt in the Cherries favor, with shots 17/8, shots on  target 5/2 and xG 1.54/.81.  Rallying from a two goal deficit was cool though.

Two Out of Three Ain't Great (apologies to Meat Loaf)

Aston Villa entered the weekend's match with Hull City shotless, goalless, and pointless.  They did register a shot on target (two actually) and came away with a point for the 0-0 draw.  You'll notice that still leaves them goalless and winless so we're not exactly celebrating.  Watching live it felt like the Villans dominated and deserved more but maybe it was just the massive possession advantage (76/24).  Shots weren't all that different, though xG did favor Villa 1.66/.73.  

Spurs are basically matching Aston Villa with their poor start.  They could only manage a 0-0 draw at Nottingham Forest.  Sure it was their first point but like Villa, they are still goalless and winless.  

The Rest of the Draws

Brighton got a 71st minute goal to rescue a 1-1 tie at home to Leeds while Sunderland went until the 82nd minute to get their equalizer for a 1-1 draw with Brentford.  Everton waited even longer, almost too long, to get their 2-2 draw with Man United.   This was a pretty lively contest that went down to basically the last second.  We make Maitland-Niles late equalizer this week's YouTubeableMoment.

At the Top

In the feature match up, the final was only 2-1 but Arsenal looked much better than Chelsea.  Somehow, the outcome never seemed in doubt. I didn't see the match so I have no idea why Man City was only a 1-0 winner over Coventry City.  With Hull City's draw at Aston Villa, these are the only two left with perfect records after just three weeks.  We note that predicted last place finisher Hull City are still in third.

EPL Perfect in Champions League

Aston Villa finally got goals and a win away at Club Brugge. Man City dispatched Porto, also on the road.  Arsenal dominated Napoli but slinked home with a 1-0 win.  Liverpool and Atleti played a tough match at Anfield with the Reds eventually prevailing 2-1.  And Man United cruised 4-0 over CL debutants Sabah.

Edu That Voodoo That You Do

Regular readers know that we are admirers of Nuno Espirito Santo and were quite annoyed last year when he got sacked by Nottingham Forest just three games into the season.  Difficulties with newly appointed Global Head of Football Edu Gaspar were among the reasons cited.  Also recall how Forest then proceeded to go through a string of managerial sackings that included Postecoglou (10/20/25), Dyche (2/12/26) and Pereira (7/1/26).  Now we read that Edu has been terminated from his position - details here.  This just enhances my opinion of owner Evangelos Marinakis.  All that chaos for a guy he doesn't even keep for 15 months.  Though I like many of the players, I'm rooting for them to be relegated.

How Little We Carabao It?

Didn't even know there were some third round matches this week.  Newcastle got past Millwall 1-0 with a late goal from Willock.  More matches next Tuesday - Thursday.

Trap Avoided But Barely

Certainly the first half versus Montreal played out like a trap game.  Though I was only following on my phone, Dennis live at Subaru Park confirmed that it was exceedingly boring.  The second half, which I did see, was an improvement but not awesome.  Danley got the Union up 1-0 at 57 minutes with a scruffy looking goal.  That lead looked like it would be short-lived after Pierre was whistled for a foul in the box but Owusu delivered perhaps the worst PK evah - a weak effort right at Blake.  Cavan Sullivan added the insurance goal at 75 minutes.  Stats indicate the Union dominated but somehow this still felt like a shaky effort against one of the weaker teams in the division.

Nightmare at Subaru Park for Cincinnati: Three assists for
 Cavan and a goal plus two assists for Quinn

They were back at Subaru Park Wednesday for what was expected to be a tougher test against Cincinnati.  After an indifferent opening complexion of the match changed when Nwobodo got sent off for a dangerous challenge on Westfield.  Graham noted at the time that this was not necessarily a good thing as Cincinnati would now park the bus and the Union are not very good at breaking down opponents in that situation.  And for the next 30 minutes or so, that's exactly what happened, to the point where you felt that Union were getting too tense and tentative.  Fortunately at 43 minutes, Quinn Sullivan forced a foul just inside the box and he deftly dispatched the PK for a 1-0 lead.  Things got even better when Damiani took a precise pass from Cavan Sullivan to make it 2-0 in first half stoppage time.  For the second half, the Union did not come out looking to protect the lead but rather to add to it.  Which they did.  Damiani got his second at 49 minutes courtesy of a nice pass from Quinn, then completed his "natural" hat trick with a third at 61 minutes, this time with the help of Cavan.  By this point they were playing so loose, like it was practice.  A late PK made the final 5-0.  

For a brief time, the win slipped the Union into 7th, a real playoff spot as opposed to a play-in slot, but Orlando's win over Atlanta leapfrogged them past both Philadelphia and Cincinnati.  The glass is half full people note that the U didn't mess up the trap game and then got the win in what was theoretically a sterner test.  The glass is half empty types say that it's hard to view the Cincinnati match as a serious test since they played most of it a man up so what have we learned.  Those who don't give a crap about how much water is in the glass point out the Union got six points.    

Still Crowded

And with refereeing starting up... 

No Friday fixture or 7:30 Saturday match so that's helpful.  It's a packed 10 am time slot.  Our choice is definitely Aston Villa - Nottingham Forest; we are definitely looking forward to Villa getting their first goals and first win.  We kind of expect Chelsea to burst Hull City's bubble and Liverpool to keep Fulham pointless.  Either Palace - Ipswich or Bournemouth -Brentford could be entertaining to the neutral.  The feature match at 12:30 on NBC is intriguing as two clubs in disarray - Spurs and Everton - face off.  And we have a "special" 3 pm fixture with Sunderland hosting Arsenal.  

Sunday is light but does include a Manchester Derby.  Coventry City host Brighton at 9 before Man United take on Man City at Old Trafford at 11:30.    The match week concludes on Monday at 3 with Newcastle traveling to Leeds.  We'd like to think this is a good chance for a W but the Magpies form is  bit misleading.

No Champions League but fear not, midweek football in the form of Europa League fixtures is available.  Sunderland play AZ Alkmaar Wednesday at 3 while Bournemouth face Real Sociedad and Palace take on Lech Poznan Thursday at 3 pm.  

And there's Carabao Cup action too.  We draw your attention to the Liverpool-Spurs fixture at 3 pm on Tuesday.  

The Union have a road match out in San Diego on Sunday at 9 pm.  Their overall performance hasn't been great they have been tough at home, with six wins and three draws in 12 matches.

One Saturday in August

Newcastle and the Union get wins on the same day!

Reports of Our Relegation Threat Are Exaggerated

Elanga makes it two in two
Photo: Michael Zemanek/Shutterstock

The scoreline of Sunday's 2-0 win over Spurs is misleading.  After a scoreless first half the match felt like it could go either way.  Then the Magpies got two improbable finishes from two who, based on last year, would have been considered improbable sources - Elanga and Wissa.  Here's Wissa's goal, presented as this week's YouTubeableMoment.  The stats have a decidedly Spurs bias - shots 16/7, shots on target 5/2, possession 58/42 and most tellingly xG 1.21/.88.  So Newcastle's only shots on target were the goals.  On a positive note, it looks like Spurs' higher xG is just the result of more shots, not higher probability shots.  

With four points from two matches that could have easily yielded one or none, maybe we need to adjust expectations.  Sure it's only two matches in but there are multiple promising signs including:

- an attacking philosophy right from the kickoffs so far

- Elanga and Wissa scoring like they did in 2024/25

- Hornicek looks like an improvement over Pope

- Dedic looks like a great addition to the backline that will also get stronger when Burn and Livramento return from injury

- new acquisitions Nico Gonzalez and Matias Fernandez-Pardo may not be Guimaraes and Tonali but they could start to fill that void

- no Champions League to add 11 matches to an already crowded schedule

I counsel patience for Spurs; they are likely to be okay once they sort out personnel.  The bad news is that patience hasn't exactly been the hallmark of that club.

Stop Dissing the 7:30 am Saturday Matches

First we had Hull's 2-0 upset of Man United, then we got Liverpool rescuing another 2-2 draw with a late goal.  They had fallen behind early but drew level at 60 minutes.  Forest went up again 10 minutes later after a foul in the box.  New arrival Victor Munoz rescued a point for the Reds with this bit of handiwork close to the goal.  

Low Bar

Aston Villa had a better outing this week, though it would have been difficult to duplicate the Brighton debacle.  Losing 0-1 to last year's champion and this year's favorite Arsenal is hardly a disaster.  They held the Gunners to an xG of just 1.21 on just seven shots with only two on target, so the scoreline is not misleading.  The problem is at the other end of the pitch.  They don't have a shot on target yet this season, let alone a goal.  I have same Rx for them as Spurs.

Myth Information

Turns out Erling Haaland's goalscoring prowess is not linked to his hair. The still-shorn Norseman netted two in Man City's 4-1 romp away to Crystal Palace.  This likely sent a shiver down the collective spine of the EPL.

Top Four

Chelsea had a relatively easy time with Brighton and Hull dispatched relegation rival Coventry City so four sides remain undefeated.  Here's the table after two weeks:

Exactly as predicted.

The Transfer Window Madness

Part of me wants to rail about how Man City was able to spend $257m to get Enzo Fernandez ($169m) and Illiman Ndiaye ($88m) as the summer transfer window closed.  Doesn't sound like financial fair play to me.  But they made a lot selling other players so that their net spend for the window was about $255m, just the fourth highest in the EPL.  The full table is below.

At one point it felt like dominos.  Gakpo was going to City, Ndiaye was going to Spurs and Richarlison was going to Everton.  Then, Gakpo wasn't leaving so City grabbed Ndiaye, leaving Spurs with a very disgruntled Richarlison.  

It was ultimately a frustrating window for USMNT striker Folarin Balogun.  His signing with Everton looked to be a formality until issues arose during his medical.  Monaco did not agree with the Everton medical assessment but they did continue to negotiate and reached a revised deal.  Except Balogun was no longer comfortable signing with Everton, feeling disrespected by the club and medical staff.  Details can be had here.  Just found a more detailed blow-by-blow accounting here.

And just for fun, here's one man's ranking of all 155 transfers this window.  Not necessarily surprised but see a couple of Villa deals near the bottom (looking at you Jackson and Garnacho); at least Manzambi, Goretzka, Suzuki and Gomes rate highly.   His generally positive views on the Newcastle deals mostly match mine.

Still Not Financially Fair

As a reminder, the EPL made a slight tweak to their financial fair play rules.  Previously, spending was controlled by limiting the size of the operating loss a club could sustain.  In other words, costs could only exceed revenues by a targeted amount.  Now they will use a squad cost ratio, which basically limits spending on players to 85% of their revenue.  It's a slightly different calculation with basically the same effect - your ability to spend $ on players is limited by your revenues.  

Given the massive variation in revenue between the clubs, this still doesn't look like a move towards greater fairness.  The most recent data I can find is from the 2024/25 season, available here.  Several clubs are over $900m while many are under $300m.  The chart below shows how that translates into a massive difference in allowable spending on players.

There's a fivefold difference between top and bottom and most clubs can only spend half or less of what the top four can spend.  Sure looks like the rules will still protect those with existing high revenue bases while preventing others from breaking through.

Milking the Cows

Pierre used his feet this time, not his head

Decidedly distracted viewing on my part but the Union's 3-1 win over Red Bulls sure looked deserved.  Stats mostly back that opinion; for example, xG was 3.5/2.1.  Check out this peach (link revised) of a goal from Cavan Sullivan.  Pierre got another one, not via the header but instead used his long frame to poke the ball into the net.  

They are now just one point out of a "play-in playoff" spot and four away from a real playoff position.  

Midweek Football Is Back

Just a three day match weekend for the EPL but plenty of Champions League action midweek.

Friday's 3 pm match/nap has Liverpool traveling to Ipswich.  At 59/20/21 that might be more of a nap, though maybe it will be Liverpool's third straight 2-2 draw?

No dissing this week's Saturday 7:30 fixture with Newcastle hosting Bournemouth; the Magpies are prohibitive favorites (44/31/25) but this could be a close one.  The 10 am time slot is crowded with five fixtures.  TV picked the Man City - Coventry City mismatch.  I'd go with Nottingham Forest v Spurs on Peacock as the most interesting pick; off recent form Spurs are slight underdogs (40/33/27) but this may be where they start to figure things out.  Other choices at 10 are Brentford - Sunderland, Fulham - Palace and Brighton -Leeds.  The feature match is Hull hosting Aston Villa; I believe this is the match where Villa get a shot on target and a win.  

Sunday is light but decent.  At 9 you get Everton vs Man United, then at 11:30 there's a solid London Derby with Arsenal hosting Chelsea.  In the latter, Opta sees the Gunners as a massive favorite at 57/19/24 but that seems high to me.

For midweek football lovers we have a complete Champions League schedule as they begin league play.  Full schedule is here.  Being EPL-centric, we note Tuesday has Aston Villa vs Club Brugge at 12:30 and Man City - Porto at 3.  Wednesday is Napoli- Arsenal and Liverpool-Atletico Madrid, both at 3.  The EPL's fifth entry, Man United, play Sabah at 3 pm on Thursday.

The Union look to extend their unbeaten streak to eight as they host Montreal at Subaru Park Saturday at 7:30.  A home match versus the struggling 14th place side?  Has trap game with a capital T written all over it.  Hopefully they don't fall into it.  They also have Cincinnati on Wednesday at 7:30, again at home.  They could significantly boost their playoff chances with some results here.  

Days off are going to be scarce for a while.

Missed It By That Much

(Apologies to Maxwell Smart)

Newcastle were five seconds away from defeating Liverpool.  Some EPL sides stumbled badly out of the gate. The first "round" of the season is in the books.  What did we see?

We Played As Our Handicap Would Have Predicted

Arsenal 3-0 over Coventry

Chelsea 3-2 over Fulham

The Gunners got up early on visiting Coventry and were never pressed.  Not that we expected they would be.  Chelsea maybe should have done a little better against the Cottagers but it was an away derby; ex-Villan Morgan Rogers scored in his first league match for the Blues.

Maybe Our Handicap Is Better Than We Think

Ipswich beat Sunderland 2-1 

Leeds 1-0 at Nottingham Forest

Everton 2-0 home to Crystal Palace

None of these are big upsets but maybe better results than expected.  Ipswich got a 90th minute tally (from Jack Clarke seen here as this week's YouTubeableMoment) to nip Sunderland, who might be fighting with the Tractor Boys to avoid relegation.  Leeds stole all three away at Nottingham Forest.  I watched Everton - Palace until the Toffees went up 2-0 at 53 minutes; mildly surprised at how easily they dispatched Palace. 

Double Bogeys On the 18th Hole Spoil A Good Round

Bournemouth lose 1-2 at Man City

Newcastle draw Liverpool 2-2 at Saint James' Park

More accurately, Bournemouth bogeyed 17 and 18.  Up 1-0 on City, the Cherries surrendered goals to Guehi at 84 minutes and Gvardiol in the second minute of stoppage time.  They get no points for their valiant effort.

More please: Elanga, who had no goals in league play last
year, scores in the 5th minute vs Liverpool

Newcastle looked solid against Liverpool with a viable attack and a solid defense.  Goals from Elanga and Willock had the Magpies up heading into stoppage time.  Then, on essentially the last play of the match, Lewis Hall fouled Munoz in the box and Sobersly Showboatslee Szoboszlai converted the PK to get Liverpool the draw.  It was the correct call, especially given how tightly Stuart Atwell had called the match to that point.  So Newcastle get a jump on points dropped from winning positions, although they do trail Bournemouth right now.  Another positive from the week is that they did sign Nico Gonzalez from Man City.  I'm starting to feel like a mid-table is possible. 

Can We Have A Mulligan?

Man United dumped 0-2 by Hull City

Spurs rung up 0-3 by Brentford

Aston Villa embarrassed 0-4 by Brighton

Hoo boy, that was some ugly stuff.  Can the season opener be a trap game?  For Man United it was.  They must have been thinking what a great break to get the consensus 20th place finisher Hull to start the campaign.  Hull just played harder, though not necessarily better.  United however did not look as bad as Spurs, who were thoroughly dominated by Brentford; unlike United, the beating on the field was backed up by the match stats.  Spurs did have more possession but trailed in almost every other category. An unimpressive debut for ex-Magpie Sandro Tonali, who appeared to have no impact on the outcome.  

But for stinking the joint up, no one beat Aston Villa.  Certainly facing Brighton in their friendly confines was never going to be an easy task.  This, however, was ridiculous.  An own goal at eight minutes was a bad sign; Villa were down 4-0 by the 31st minute and that was before Joao Gomes was sent off.  They managed no shots on target and an xG of .32.  Since I didn't watch the last 50 minutes, I have no idea how the score remained at 4-0 after the sending off.  

Conversation That Sort of Took Place

Dennis: Tell me the truth, you would have taken a 2-2 draw with Liverpool before kickoff.

Steve: Hell, I would have taken a 2-2 draw when we were up 2-1 in the 57th minute

Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest

There were plenty of fingerprints on the Villa disaster so perhaps it's unfair to single out Joao Gomes.  He started by getting a yellow card for making the yellow card gesture to the referee.  Not long after he made a challenge that probably wasn't reckless but also one that shouldn't be made by someone on a yellow.  He completed the cycle with a ridiculous kickout on Georginio Rutter to earn a straight red card.  He'll be suspended for three matches.  Emery can't be pleased with that performance.

Modern Day Samson

Stat of the week:

Is a barber the EPL's best defense against this guy?

Erling Haaland

League goals with long hair: 112

League goals with short hair: 0

Yeah, yeah, small sample and all that.  BFS Artistic Director Laura O sends along this video suggesting that others see the correlation as well.

Soccer Version of Hidden Ball Trick

BFS Track and Field Consultant Jack W sends along this clip from the Crewe Alexandra - Northampton Town match.  I saw several commentators suggest this was either offside or possibly a yellow card for re-entering the pitch.  Coach Beard has the correct answer here: 

It's not offside because he didn't receive the ball from a teammate.  It's not a card because he was off the field from the natural course of play.  The goal stands.

Well-heeled Attacker?

BFS Retired Military Matters Consultant Greg M sent us this unbelievable goal from Bristol City's Dom Ballard against Birmingham City.  Can the goal of the year happen in August?

Well, We Did Say It Would Be Okay

I suppose we can't complain about the 1-1 draw at Austin on Saturday night since we suggested it would be an okay result given the circumstances.  This was their ninth match in 32 days since the World Cup, it was an away game and the temperature at kick off was 96 (but it was a dry heat). The teams traded goals in the first 21 minutes and after that it looked like a constant struggle against the heat.  This was a solid performance from the back line of Wagner, Harriel, Pierre and Westfield.  When Garry Maddox patrolled the outfield for the Phillies in the 70s, they used to say that two-third of the world is covered by water, the other third by Garry Maddox.  I'm starting to feel that way about Neil Pierre.  Yes, only a few matches into his MLS career but so far so good.

Too Soon To Carabao It

We will simply note that Newcastle knocked off West Brom 3-2 to advance to the next round.

Let's Try This Again

Friday's 3 pm fixture between Crystal Palace and Man City offers hope of a nap.  And the early 7:30 Saturday contest with Liverpool hosting Nottingham Forest might get the DVR treatment - get up after 8 and use the FF button to be done in time for the 10 am fixtures.

Only two at 10 but one is a classic relegation confrontation, with Hull traveling to Coventry City; I would have had this down as a close one but Opta says 51/24/25 favor Coventry.  Also surprised that Bournemouth are 48/27/25 over visiting Everton in the other 10 contest; I would have thought that would be closer.  

The 12:30 feature match (actually on NBC this time) is maybe the most interesting of the week, with Newcastle travelling to London to face Spurs.  Both sides can be puzzling.  The Magpies may not be as bad as we feared while Spurs, ignoring last week's debacle at Brentford, really should be a vastly improved team from last year.  Opta sees it at 43/33/24 for Spurs and that seems right on target to me, especially with Spurs as hosts.

The packed time slot is Sunday at 9 am, all potentially interesting.  I'm curious how Brighton will do at Stamford Bridge, with some hope they'll be competitive.  Sunderland vs Fulham is a match-up of two sides that will be looking to stay out of the relegation fight.  And Opta has Leeds - Brentford as the tightest match of the week at 38/36/26 favor Leeds.  I have a soft spot for the Seagulls so I'll probably go with Chelsea - Brighton.  Sunday's other match at 11:30 would have been considered a trap game for Man United except for the fact that they lost last week and will probably not be caught off guard hosting Ipswich.

Monday's 3 pm match is scary, as Aston Villa will host Arsenal.  We're certainly hoping for better from the Villans but they are still a team in transition.  The pieces may all eventually fit together but maybe not right away. 

The Champions League league phase draw was held Thursday.  You can see the results here.  Europa League and Europa Conference League have their draws Friday.  Lots of EPL sides to follow but sadly, Newcastle are not one of them.  Or is that a good thing?

Union travel to Harrison to face Red Bulls Saturday at 7:30.  Last week's draw left them three points out of playoff spot.  They are just five behind the 8th place Red Bulls so this is a big six pointer.  Opta does not like our chances (44/29/27); we have some momentum and this is a team we've had some recent success against so maybe it will work out.  

Unfinished Business

I forgot to match the gaffer with his team last week.

I have to work on the pronunciation of Newcastle's new manager (YICE-sluh) before I can start remembering the other guys' names.

Here We Go

 

As in "With Eddie Howe gone and the midfield decimated, Steve approached Newcastle's coming EPL season with much trepidation."

Last Minute Transfers

Gonzalez would be a big help in midfield
Photo: Kieran McManus/Shutterstock

Newcastle continue to try to fill holes where they can.  Amar Dedic looks like good value at right back.  He has basically the same skill set as Livramento and is not overpriced at $40m.  There was talk about  bringing in Carlos Baleba or Joao Palhinha to shore up the midfield but those rumors have faded away.  Given that neither was anything close to a replacement for Tonali or Guimaraes and Baleba's price tag was ridiculous and he's currently injured, I view this as a good thing.  Now I'm reading about the possibility of signing Nico Gonzalez from Man City.  I didn't see a $ attached to the potential deal but signing him might reduce some of my trepidation.

Live Table

Apparently the last tie breaker is alphabetical...

Projections

Once again I've loaded a pile of pundit projections into a spreadsheet to see what the collective thinking is for the season.  Here's the table:

I couldn't find projections from last year's winner Ninad Barbadikar but recall that "Average" was the second most accurate.  The Athletic was third.  Two years ago, Average finished third behind Opta and Pinnacle.

Incredible to me that almost every projection has Arsenal first.  Not that it's a terrible pick, just that nobody disagrees.  Man City is clearly a consensus number two.  Third through fifth are tight between Chelsea, Liverpool and Man United.  Aston Villa and Spurs are the picks for the consolation European competition spots.  

The pundits don't see much hope for the newly promoted sides.  Hull are picked by all but one to finish last. Ipswich get 18 or 19 in every pick but one.  Coventry get a little love but most still see them heading down as well.  Sunderland and Fulham look like the only challengers for relegation.

Biggest divergence across the projections is for Nottingham Forest (6th! to 18th).  Newcastle are second biggest with a range of 6th to 17th.  The average puts the Magpies in 9th but this is kind of like head in the oven and feet in the freezer - some see a decent upper mid-table finish but others see a potential relegation battle.  Right now the relegation battle looks more likely.  Others with big spreads include Brentford (7th to 17th), Bournemouth (6th to 16th) and Sunderland (10th to 20th).  

Union Exception To Two Goal Lead Rule?

Regular readers know that I put no stock in the view that a two goal lead is the most dangerous in soccer.  However, recent performances by the Union are making me consider an exception.  On Sunday, they came back from two goals down for the second game in a row for a 3-2 win.  

They had fallen behind NYCFC on two first half PKs.  The first was clear cut but I haven't seen a replay that convinces me that Vasilev was guilty of handling in the box for the second one.  No matter.  Danley JJ got the comeback started with putback goal at 48.  Then Damiani accepted passes on a silver platters from each of the Sullivan brothers for goals at 69 and 75 minutes to put the Union up 3-2.  You can see the two plays in this week's YouTubeableMoment (should open to about 68:10).  Damiani had to be precise but it was really about the quality of the passes from Cavan and Quinn.  Good on the brothers for not taking the shot but making the extra pass for the easier goal.  Jamie Tartt's father would be livid.  

He Ain't Messi, He's My Brother (apologies to The Hollies)

The Union's unbeaten MLS streak continued with a wild and raucous (and highly entertaining) 2-2 draw with Inter Miami on Wednesday night at a Subaru Park packed with far too many people in Messi jerseys.  The U got an early lead thanks to a Vasilev goal off a great cross from Westfield, who had been sprung by an insightful pass from Cavan Sullivan.  Miami countered with two of their own, arguably against the run of play; Messi keyed one of them with a great cross in the box, then got one of his own with a curler that Blake had no chance on.  To their credit, the Union did not wilt, got an equalizer in the second half from Pierre and actually had the better of play in the second half.  Missed chances however meant the final was 2-2.  The stats show the Union's dominance with shots 18/6, shots on target 8/3 and expected goals 3.5/1.6.  That last number highlights why we might be disappointed with the draw.

Cavan:Get your hands off my brother

For my money, Inter Miami was channeling their inner Argentina all night, going down much too easily on contact and feigning injury; I still think it should be a yellow if you grab a body part in pain that was never touched in the contact.  Referee Filip Dujic was far too willing to award free kicks (for both sides) for minimal contact.  Things finally boiled over late in stoppage time when Quinn Sullivan and Ian Fray (his name says altercation!) got tangled up in the box. The real fight ended up being between Yannick Bright and Cavan Sullivan, who quickly moved to stick up for his older brother.  Both got red cards and at that point, Dujic realized his best option was to blow the whistle for full-time.

So we have to say the Union passed this test, coming away with four points against NYCFC and Miami.  They are still 13th but are now just four points out of a playoff spot.   

Still A Travesty...

With new stadium under construction, days of soccer
at Yankee Stadium are mercifully numbered

...to see soccer played in Yankee Stadium.  It's too small, they have to put down sod on the infield and the fans on the near side are 100 miles from the pitch.  Dennis and I debated who hates the situation more - the Yankees or NYCFC.  We concluded that the answer is probably the people who have to convert the field between the two configurations.

What He Meant

Dennis provides the following translations of things actually said by TV commentators this weekend.

Announcer: The team chose to use their depth in mid-week Leagues Cup action

Dennis's translation: The team did not give a shit about the Leagues Cup and played the entire second team

Announcer: She's lucky to be on a team without a prolific scorer

Dennis's translation: On any other team, she would not get any playing time

The Weekend

First week fixtures are mostly a lot of top half contenders versus the bottom half.  We start with Arsenal hosting Coventry on Friday at 3 pm.  The Gunners are 80% favorites to win that one but hey, we'll watch anything on a Friday afternoon.  Not sure I feel the same way about getting up at 7:30 Saturday for Hull vs Man United.  The 10 am slot may have the more competitive fixtures of the weekend - Ipswich v Sunderland, Everton v Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest v Leeds.  The NBC feature match at 12:30 is a London Derby with Brentford hosting Spurs.  Totally surprised that Opta has Brentford favored at 41/34/25.  [Ed note: I'll be using that format to present Opta projections; the first number is percent likelihood the favorite wins, the second is the percent chance for the underdog and the third number is the chance of a draw.]  

Back at it early Sunday with Man City home to Bournemouth and Aston Villa heading to Brighton. Both are at 9 am but we'll go with the Villa game, for which they are surprisingly the underdogs (44/31/25).  The late Sunday fixture is Newcastle's home opener against Liverpool at 11:30.  I may be on delay for that as someone got me Phillies tickets.  Maybe for the best as the Magpies are significant underdogs (50/26/24).

Matchweek 1 concludes with another London Derby, this one pitting Fulham against Chelsea.

It's a quiet week for the Union, as they just have one match, away to Austin on Saturday at 8:30.  The hosts do have a worse record than the Union who are slight favorites (44/31/25) but this is an away match at the end of a congested stretch.  Hoping for the W but would take the D.

Let's do this!

In Case You Missed It

The Union got better.  Eddie Howe "left" Newcastle.  Infantino tried to sell the World Cup. 

Not A New Manager Bounce

Since the World Cup, the Union have three league wins (plus a win and and two losses in Leagues Cup).  The most fun of these was the comeback down 0-2 to Atlanta which featured two goals in stoppage time for the win.  The comeback is chronicled here (video should start at about 72 minutes).  They did lose on Thursday to bow out of the Leagues Cup but I can't see that as a problem; it was a heavily rotated lineup and they don't need the extra matches.

I'm seeing comments about the new manager bounce under Ryan Richter and that Carnell always does worse in his second year with a team.  Not buying either.  Four important pieces to last season's success were not available to Carnell this year - Baribo (leading scorer), Wagner (leading assist provider and part of solid back line), Quinn Sullivan (key to attacking from wing) and Glesnes (center back in solid back four). Without replacements for these changes, what did we expect?

I have no idea about Ryan Richter as a manager; maybe he'll be great.  But he is fortunate to start his tenure with three of those problems addressed.  Wagner was reacquired and has been dishing the assists (3 in 3 MLS matches).  Quinn Sullivan is back from injury and is creating havoc down the right wing.  And Neil Pierre has been a revelation at center back, not just a replacement for Glesnes but an upgrade; besides a being a solid presence in the middle of the back line, he's added two header goals as well.

All of sudden, the playoffs don't look unreachable.  At the very least, the team is entertaining to watch (last night's game excluded).  

Look What They've Done To My Team, Ma (apologies to Melanie)

The exodus of biblical proportions continues Tyneside. The manager's gone (see below).  Gordon, Tonali, Guimaraes, Trippier, Krafth and Ramsdale are gone.  Lewis Hall may be gone soon.  Livramento will likely miss opening day with an injury, as might Lewis Miley.  Pope is likely to be demoted to back up keeper.  Transfers in include Lukas Hornicek, Sean Steur, Aladji Bamba, and Bazoumana Toure. You are forgiven if you don't recognize those names.  They are young, possibly really good players but unproven at this point.  

The starting lineup for the season opener next week versus Liverpool could look like : Hornicek (G), Burn (LB), Botman (CB), Thiaw (CB), Hall (RB), Joelinton (MC), J Murphy (MC), Bamba (MC), Barnes (LW), Elanga (RW), and Osula (ST).  That might actually represent an improved defense as Hornicek could be an upgrade over Pope.  The front line is one that we saw more than occasionally last year but was inconsistent.  The midfield frankly is just plain scary without Tonali and Guimaraes.  

I've seen a few pundits peg Newcastle for 7th but that seems highly optimistic to me.  Top 10 would be amazing from where we stand right now.

Newcastle's Season in Two Pictures

Speaking of replacements, a common thread for last year's disappointing season for the Magpies was that many of the off season acquisitions just didn't get the job done.  Was this because they were bad choices or did they have a bad year?  Courtesy of DataMB, the charts below suggest it was the latter.

This one compares Elanga 24/25 to Elanga 25/26; the blue indicates that he was a shell of his former self at Newcastle last year.  Here's Woltemade's:

Pretty much the same story for Nick.  I tried to compare Wissa but he's not even in the 25/26 data base because he played so little.  These charts do offer some hope of a bounce back season as opposed to these players simply not being good enough.  Of course, another possibility is that prior performance in another league doesn't translate into success in the EPL.

No Howe

Newcastle and Eddie Howe finally parted company last week.  The official story line is that the decision was mutual.  Probably was, at least in the sense that Howe was likely just tired of feeling unwanted.  I for one will miss him as he guided Newcastle through its most successful and entertaining period since I've been a fan.  

I think there's some chance we'll see him in charge of the England squad come the next European Championships.

Know Your EPL Gaffer

Speaking of managerial turnover, the EPL roster has many new names on it. How many managers can you match with their club?

Answers next week.  This story provides some perspective on the number of changes.  No fair reading it before you take the test.

I'll Take That Bet

Dennis and his friend Jeremy have had a standing bet on who will finish higher - Aston Villa or Wolves.  Dennis has been doing pretty well recently.  I predict that trend will continue.

Equal Opportunity Supplier

Apparently Newcastle did not want to put its thumb on the scale when it comes to the North London Derby.  Having providing Spurs with a top quality midfielder in Sandro Tonali earlier this summer, they evened things up by sending Bruno Guimaraes to Arsenal.  I'll miss them both but probably Tonali more - he's just steadier where Guimaraes can be highly flammable (inflammable?) at times.

Not For Sale

Infantino: What was I thinking?
Alexander Hassenstein /Getty Images

You likely read/heard about Infantino's plan to sell shares of the World Cup. As detailed here, thanks to opposition from UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asia federation, that proposal had a shelf life of about three days.  Beyond just being rejected, the way the plan advanced has set in motion a chain of events  that could threaten Infantino's position at FIFA (story here).  And information surfaced that during his UEFA tenure a high level executive got a six figure payout upon leaving the organization; as related here, there are allegations that the executive was Infantino's mistress.  The payout has been confirmed but Infantino denies the allegations.

Many were pleased, including me, with the swift torpedoing of Infantino's plan.  But I caution that we not read into this some sort of grass roots effort to take back the game.  This was basically the second most powerful organization in football (UEFA) telling FIFA to knock it off.  

Girls Got Moves

BFS Track and Field Consultant Jack W sends along this clip of a UVA attacker beating four defenders before slotting the ball in the upper left corner.  

Union Activity

The U have two league matches this week - away to NYCFC on Sunday and home to Inter Miami on Wednesday.  My calendar says I have a ticket for the Miami game.  NY are 5th in the table and Miami 2nd so these will be good tests of how much the team has improved.

Bass Akwards

No "dignitaries" were cropped in this picture of Spain's
celebration (Photo: Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Somehow FIFA accidentally switched the 3rd place and championship matches.  At least in terms of entertainment value, the England - France 6-4 thriller far outdid the Spain - Argentina 1-0 hackfest.  I am not alone in that opinion.  In this NYT article that ranks all of the 104 matches, the final comes in at 102nd (ie 3rd worst) while the 3rd place contest is rated first. Fortunately, this YouTubeableMoment from Ferran Torres saved us from a World Cup winner that failed to take a shot for 117 minutes.  I'm also trying not to let the crappy final overshadow what was largely a great five plus weeks of football.  

The More the Merrier?

Opinion is divided on the wisdom of the expanded 48-team tournament.  Summarizing the arguments I think the pro side says it was good for global growth of the sport, produced some entertaining competitive surprises and certainly generated $.  The negatives suggested are diluted quality, some concerns for player welfare and some logistical strain for the host cities.  There were some blowouts but I thought overall the quality was fine (more on that below).  I'm not buying the player welfare argument as the expanded format meant only one extra match for the players, and only for those teams that advanced out of the group stage.  As for the logistics, that might have been more a function of a multi-country hosting format as opposed to an expanded format.

That said, I am skeptical of moving to a 64-team tournament.  The pros are still there but seems like the negative points will be even stronger.  Also, this World Cup was just at about the right level of saturation; not sure even the most ardent fans will be able to stay on top of a bigger tournament.

A Note On Quality

So how did the additional 16 teams do in the tournament?  Hmm, identifying the 16 teams that would not have been at this World Cup under the old 32-team format was harder than expected.  Not always obvious who wouldn't have made it because the confederation qualifying formats weren't always the same.  So here's how I did it.  CONCACAF used to get three or four but got six this year so I put Panama, Haiti and Curacao on the list.  South America used to get four or five but got six so I put Paraguay (6th in qualifying) in there.  Oceania previously didn't get an auto qualifier so New Zealand goes on the list.  UEFA got 16 instead of 13. After taking out the 12 group stage winners, Turkiye looked the best of the four who got added in the playoffs so that put Bosnia & Herzegovina, Sweden and Czechia in the mix.  Asia got nine instead of four or five so I took out Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, who "qualified" in competition after their group stage qualifiers.  I also took out Jordan, the worst performing side of the group stage runner ups who got a spot.  Africa was the toughest because they did nine groups of four and didn't take any runner ups.  I took teams out based on world ranking; sorry Cape Verde, Ghana and Tunisia.  DR Congo got in via playoff so I took them out as well.  So here's the list:

Bosnia & Herzegovina    DR Congo     Jordan                 Qatar

Cape Verde                      Ghana            New Zealand      Saudi Arabia

Curacao                            Haiti              Panama              Sweden

Czechia                            Iraq                Paraguay            Tunisia

And here are the final standings:

That 10 of the bottom 11 spots were claimed by teams that in previous years would have been watching on TV goes on the con side of the expanded tournament debate.  On the other hand, six advanced out of group stage, with Cape Verde doing it as runner up in Group H.  Also, a poor finish in the tournament doesn't mean there wasn't value to their participation, as the experience may raise the level of the game in those countries.  

Looking at individual matches, I counted nine blowouts (goal differential greater than 3) in the group stage.  All but one involved one of the 16 "added" sides.  In comparison, there were just two in 2022.  In percentage terms this year, 12.5% of the group stage games were routs compared to 4.2% in 2022.

Despite some of these stats, I'm still thinking it was a net positive to expand the tournament.  They do however increase my wariness of moving to a 64-team tournament.

New Laws

IAFB and FIFA rolled out some new laws for the tournament.  How'd that go?

Mistaken identity VAR expanded to include either team 👍 - Any rule change that gives referees a second chance to catch divers is okay with us

Manual countdown on throw-ins and goal kicks 👍 -  Another tool for referees in the continuing battle to cut down on shithousery

Mouth covering ban 👍- Mostly good with this given the number of times a covered mouth is likely giving abuse

One minute sit out for "injuries" "treated" on the pitch 👍- A net positive though we're concerned about consistency in its application

Corner kick VAR 👎- Needs symmetry - if a corner kick is such a threat to the defending team that VAR needs to verify it, then denying a corner kick on a mistaken call is just as bad for the attacking team

Substitutes have to be off in 10 second 👍- We're good with things that cut down on delaying tactics

And Another Thing...

Aside from the disappointing final there were other less than savory aspects to the tournament.  Wikipedia provides a PhD dissertation here on things that went wrong.  The articles hits some of the big points for me (prices, political interference in the game itself, political interference with the logistics and some racist behavior).  I'm disappointed and annoyed that I couldn't find reference to the homophobic chants of Mexican fans in the Ecuador and England contests.  As I've discussed in posts along the way, for me the alleged refereeing controversies were usually due to people 1) not knowing the rules, 2) not understanding the rules, 3) not liking the rules 4) all of the above.  

And yet, for all the things that went wrong, it was not the disaster I feared going in.  

Follow Up on Injury of the Tournament

Recall that Jordan Henderson broke his arm jumping over the advertising signs celebrating an English victory.  Here we see that claim being adjudicated.

Service Restored

He's back!

Kai Wagner is back for another tour of duty for the Philadelphia Union.  He's the club's all-time assist
leader and was the 2025 club leader in minutes, successful crosses, corners, and key passes.  In 2026, we have sorely missed him putting the ball in the box for good scoring chances.

We didn't have to wait long for his return to pay dividends.  His cross set up this goal for Iloski a mere nine minutes into Wednesday's match versus the Red Bulls.  He also assisted via a corner kick that newcomer Neil Pierre neatly headed in to give the U a 3-1 lead at 66 minutes.  That was the final, the U's first win at Subaru Park this year.

Neil Pierre - You can't teach height

Wagner was not the only positive development.  Quinn Sullivan returned from his 10 month absence due to a torn ACL and was quite lively down the right wing.  And we saw a center defender who might help us forget Jack Elliott and Jacob Glesnes.  Neil Pierre, just 18, was the 2025 MLS Next Pro Defender of the Year.  The club roster lists him at 6'5" but other sources say he's 6'7" - whichever, he towered over everybody.  This was also the first match under interim manager Ryan Richter.  

Aside from the win and the three points, they looked like a confident team.  The playoffs are a long shot but if they play like this, at least they'll be fun to watch the rest of the way.

I'll be taking a break for a few weeks, probably returning 8/7, in plenty of time to complain about Newcastle's transfer window and the upcoming season.