Bad to Worse

Not going to waste words on Newcastle's 1-2 loss at home against Watford.  Nor on their 0-1 loss (at home) in the League Cup to (second division) Sheffield Wednesday Wednesday.  Dennis has nothing to say about Villa's 0-1 derby loss to West Brom.  He did tell me that this loss was way less painful than the previous week's come-from-behind defeat at the hands of Leicester City, proving that it is NOT better to have led and lost than never to have led at all.  No, let's look around the league to see more interesting stuff.

Here Comes the Son

Seems unlikely that a $30m + signing could go under the radar, but Tottenham's acquisition of Son Heung-min from Bayer Leverkusen didn't get anywhere near the attention of other summer signings.  The striker had a great performance in Tottenham's mid-week Europa Cup win and finished his week with the game winner on Saturday against Crystal Palace.  His pace and explosiveness may be just what Spurs need to boost their offense.  Getting Eriksen back didn't seem to hurt either; he was on the pitch for all of four minutes before connecting with Son on a pass down the wide open left side that the South Korean made the most of.  Must be nice.

Goalscorer: Heung-min Son scored the winner in Tottenham's win over Crystal Palace Ian Walton/Getty Images

The Martial Arts

Traveling south down to the coast, we find another summer signing, Anthony Martial scoring two of Manchester United's three goals in an exciting 3-2 win over Southampton.  The French teenager has three goals in just 115 minutes of playing time and added another in Manchester's League Cup win over Ipswich.  The $55 million transfer fee (highest ever for a teenager) to get Martial from Monaco raised eyebrows but I'm not hearing any complaints right now (well, actually I am because Louis van Gaal was whining that Man United always has to pay $15 million more for players than other teams but that's another story).  Aiding the Red Devils cause was an outstanding performance in goal from David DeGea. Several good saves to choose from; here's two of the better ones, this week's YouTubeableMoments.


No Undefeated Season

Manchester City had gotten through five matches without surrendering a goal or failing to secure a victory.  West Ham's Victor Moses took care of the former with a tally just six minutes into Saturday's match and his teammates put together a fine performance to take care of the latter with a 2-1 win at The Etihad.  West Ham had a 2-0 lead by the 31st minute, then spent the rest of the day defending Man City attacks.  The stats give you an idea of what they withstood - outshot 17-6, corners were 16-3 and possession was 65-35.  So West Ham now sit in third with away wins over Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool.   Recall though that they were here last year but ended the season 12th.  Maybe new manager Slaven Bilic can keep them in the top half.


Upon Further Review

Not only was Chelsea-Arsenal a snoozer - think a heavyweight fight where neither boxer attempts any serious moves out of fear of a counterpunch - it featured more Chelsea silliness.  Koscielny's face ran into Costa's hand a couple of times, Gabriel, then got into it with Costa, yellow cards were issued, then Gabriel raised his cleat at Costa and got a straight red.  "Brilliant" move by Gabriel to be sucked in by Costa but so was Mike Dean.  Subsequent video showed Gabriel did not make contact and his red card was rescinded while Costa's actions got further scrutiny and he was slapped (appropriate word) with a three game ban.  Chelsea are furious, blah, blah, blah.  The only good thing to come out of this match was Graeme LeSaux's observation that after light contact, Pedro "went down in installments."



Why does everybody love to rag on Alan Pardew?

In their top ten talking points from the weekend, The Guardian suggested that Pardew may be less than perfect, noting "amid all the backslapping, there are still question marks about some of the former Newcastle manager’s team selections and substitutions this season."  I have seen many of CP's matches and this was not their best effort - Tottenham did have the run of play.  Still, the Eagles saw two shots denied by the woodwork and could easily have left White Hart Lane with one or even three points.  People just seem to go out of their way to find things wrong with the guy.  I don't know the man - maybe he's an insufferable lout; I do know he's got a bit of a temper.  Maybe I'm just reacting to the tone; it seemed like he got no credit for what he had done.  I would have been fine with equally critical remarks along the lines of  "he has taken Crystal Palace to a comfortable mid table stature but will need to sharpen up his personnel decisions if he wants to take on the top sides."


The EPL Sack Race

Speaking of ragging on managers, I checked the SkyBet odds on the next manager to leave. I figured Brendan Rodgers might be high on the list after a 1-1 draw with Norwich on the heels of losses to Man City and West Ham.  Sure enough, he was second at 2-1 odds, behind Sunderland's Dick Advocaat (even money) and just ahead of Newcastle's Steve McClaren (11-2).  Fifth on the list?  His Douchiness Jose Mourinho, whose Chelsea club may be sued by physio Eva Carneiro for his actions involving her late in the match versus Swansea City back in August.


Tiny Weary Derby

This tells you everything you need to know about the state of football in the northeast of England.  Newcastle lost to Watford but actually moved ahead of Sunderland in the standings on goal differential because the Black Cats lost 0-2 to Bournemouth. 


Not That It Matters...

...but the Union won this week, playing pretty well.  Barnetta continues to impress and it looks like getting Edu back in central defense made a difference.  But Montreal continues to win, cashing in one their games in hand and now lead the Union by six points with two games still in hand. Not completely true that it doesn't matter; good performances like this may put the squad in a confident mood going into the US Open Cup Final.  Big win for the Red Bulls on the road in Portland; the 2-0 victory keeps them in first in the East and edges them into the lead for the Supporters Shield.


 
Let Me Know When I Can Open My Eyes

Newcastle gets to host Chelsea in the 12:30 match on Saturday (NBCSN).  Perfect timing, I'm sure a visit by Jose Mourinho's charges will fix everything for the Magpies.  I'm not even buoyed by the fact that Mourinho has never won at St. James' Park.  A 3-0 loss might be a moral victory.

Aston Villa goes to Anfield to take on Liverpool but won't be on TV, as Man Utd hosting Sunderland (NBCSN) and Arsenal at Leicester (USA) get the Saturday 10 am TV spots.  Figure MUN should crush Sunderland, Liverpool is not an easy match up for the Villan and will probably watch Arsenal-Leicester as that has some possibilities. And all this is after the morning kicks off at 7:45 with hearty breakfast of Tottenham-Man City at White Hart Lane.

The Union have a tough road match in New England on Saturday but that's secondary to the Cup Final at PPL Park on Wednesday night.  BFS will be there to report.  The Red Bulls have what looks like an easy game at home versus Orlando; don't want to let that one get away.

If you see the Pope, say hi for me.

Competent and Clueless

Great goals.  Exciting matches.  Too bad none of my teams were involved.  Dennis's team was but got no points.  Once again, I'm left with my Football Manager side - the Chester Blues - providing me with the only positive news.


Newcastle looked competent in the first 2/3's of the field but clueless in the final third.  West Ham were smart and let Newcastle play with the ball, waiting for the opportunity to counterattack; this they did numerous times, two of which were successful.  The 0-2 scoreline is actually a touch flattering to the Magpies.  Other than Janmaat, nobody seemed too enthused, even the normally reliable Jack Colback.  Newcomers Wijnaldum and Thauvin had very disappointing outings.  Siem de Jong and Ayoze Perez were decent when they came on late and probably should see more time in future games.

We really shouldn't be panicking at this point, just five games into the season; plus they are maybe only 2-3 points below what could have been reasonably expected at this point.  But they haven't scored since the start of the second half of the first match.  McClaren must be thinking about personnel changes and maybe positioning adjustments as well - as in maybe ditching the single striker approach.  Way too much pressure for a win against Watford this Saturday.

A Loss Is A Loss

We ask Dennis if an exciting match with awesome goals makes for enjoyable viewing even if your side loses.

I have honestly not thought about this game since the second it ended.  Just completely blocked it out.  And I liked it that way.  But duty calls, I suppose...

I guess I’ll start with the good in the hopes that it will sustain me through the bad.  Villa scored two goals of unusually high quality.  Both Grealish (39’) and Gil (63’) scored their first premier league goals on lovely shots that curved around defenders and posts.  Agbonlahor set up the Gil goal and actually showed several other instances of good attacking play.  Ummm….I guess the rest of the team wasn’t awful?  I think that’s the best I’ve got left.  This game really boils down to two shining moments surrounded by a slow motion train wreck.

I don’t think I have ever seen a team as scattered and disorganized as Villa were for the second half, and especially the final 25 minutes.  Every pass was off target, every touch was too hard or too soft.  We were a step slow to every loose ball and were out of position constantly.  Thousands of miles away and 3 hours delayed, the Leicester momentum was still tangible in my living room.  They scored in the 72^nd minute, leaving plenty of time for more.  They scored in the 82^nd minute, still leaving plenty of time for more.  And the final goal came in the 89^th minute, as Guzan topped off his horrible day by absolutely destroying Nathan Dyer, but failing to make contact with the ball and having to watch it trickle over the line. 

This was easily the most painful loss I can remember as a Villa supporter.  They actually showed some real improvement in quality but managed to make it feel completely wasted.  The biggest issue is how much sloppy defense will be punished.  The team has too many missed passes out of the back and too many times trying to dribble around an opponent, both of which often lead to good chances for the opponent.  The other issue is that Guzan has been mediocre at best in the past few weeks, including internationally.  These issues really need to be addressed so that any future 2-0 leads at least become only 2-2 draws.

Jose's Naismith Nightmare

Naismith scores for his hat-trick. Photograph: Ed Sykes/Reuters

He wasn't even in the starting lineup.  Steven Naismith came in for the injured Muhamed Besic in the 8th minute.  He proceeded to score in the 17th, 22nd, and 82nd minutes, powering Everton to a 3-1 win over Chelsea.  Here's Naismith's first goal  - not bad though it will finish a distant second in the goal of the week race (see below). His second, just five minutes later wasn't bad either.  Matic had a lovely strike for Chelsea, also worthy of goal of the week honors in any other week, that kept the game close but Naismith's third (left) put the match out of reach.  A high quality match, great viewing for the neutral/Everton fan/Chelsea disparager.



For the goal of the week, we go to the Manchester United - Liverpool contest, also great viewing for the neutral.  MUN had a 2-0 lead late in the match when Benteke unleashed a stunner, this week'sYoutubeableMoment to bring Liverpool to within one.  But, newcomer Anthony Martial responded minutes later with a tally of his own to end the drama.  I can hear the rumblings about Rodgers at Anfield again as Liverpool after consecutive losses.

Noblesse Oblige

We've been down this road before.  Us bottomfeeders feel that the upper table teams have a responsibility to take care of business when they face other bottomfeeders.  Clearly Swansea and Southampton do not get the concept.  Bad enough that the Saints could only muster a draw against West Brom.  Worse was Swansea's 0-1 loss to Watford, despite playing the final 27 minutes a man up; it was the Swans' first loss of the year.  Tottenham got the memo.  Though they took their sweet time, Mason's late goal gave Spurs a narrow 1-0 win over Sunderland.  Same for Arsenal, they seemed to cruise past Stoke 2-0.



Another Union Loss

Down 1-2 to the Columbus Crew.  Columbus didn't exactly sparkle but then they didn't have to.  I look at the roster and think most of the players are good enough but can you be this inconsistent and be considered good enough? With five matches left, the Union are still mathematically in the playoff chase but practically speaking, it's not gonna happen.  Montreal have a three point lead after road draws with LA and San Jose plus three games in hand.  Speaking of games in hand, the Red Bulls "spent" one of theirs on Wednesday, losing 1-2 to the now first place Revolution.  But NY still leads on points per game and has two games in hand; both the division title and the Supporters Shield are attainable.


Chester Blues

It's late November on the Football Manager calendar and as I mentioned at the top, at least these guys are not letting me down.  We sit 4th in the EPL table, nine points out of first and two out of second with two games in hand.  We've reached the quarters of the league cup after a 1-0 upset at Everton and need one more win to advance out of the group play in the Europa Cup.  Biggest issue is disgruntled players who feel they should be seeing first team action.  Unfortunately, I'll probably have to transfer list some of them because they are simply too many better players ahead of them. One is the last player left from the roster I inherited as a fifth division side five years ago; but there's no room for sentimentality in this business.


Derby, Derby, Derby

Two London and a Midlands derby highlight the weekend.  Saturday gets off to a great start with the Arsenal-Chelsea contest (7:45 NBCSN).  That would be the 16th place Chelsea.  Still, there's every reason to expect an exciting match.  Tottenham face London rival Crystal Palace on Sunday morning (8:30 USA); Spurs would do well to remember the Eagles have been nobody's patsy this season.  Witness their narrow 0-1 defeat against Man City last week, conceding the goal in the 90th minute.

I would think Dennis, despite what he says, is really expecting three points from the home match vs West Brom.

I'll be "relegated" to NBC Live Extra for the Newcastle-Watford match.  Expect the St. James' Park faithlessful to get restless very quickly if things do not go well there.  Other matches of note include Swansea-Everton (the featured 10 am Saturday match on NBCSN) and Southampton-Manchester United (Sunday at 11 on USA);  Southampton have been somewhat puzzling so far this season but Man United just lost defender Luke Shaw to a broken leg.

The Union face a Houston squad that, well, haven't exactly been a dynamo this year.  A result would be nice but right now I think these matches should be about preparation for the Open Cup Final on 9/30 and about evaluating personnel for next season.  The Red Bulls have a tricky road match against Portland.

Definitely will be relying on dvr and Extra Time replays this weekend as refereeing will have me on the field all day Saturday. 

Sporting Casey

Can anybody explain the Union to me?  Last Saturday's match away at San Jose makes no sense.  First, the Union were dominating play against a hot team that is even hotter at home.  Of course, they couldn't finish but they clearly had the run of play.  The only way the Earthquakes are going to get a goal is if the Union give away a pen...wait, there it is.  In the 64th minute, Fabinho sticks his arm up and is called for handling in the box.  Perfect.  Things are starting to make sense.  It is at this point I come up with an idea for a bumper sticker:

BE A FAN OF THE UNION
SUPPORT AGONIZED LABOR

But then things got really weird.  Sebastien Le Toux - who had been on a goal scoring tear until the last two matches - is substituted out for Conor Casey.  Within three minutes, Casey heads home a perfect cross from Ray Gaddis and things are level (pictured below).

  I think to myself, with the way they are playing, the Union have a chance to win this.  Right, get a grip.  Next thing you know, Barnetta is sending a free kick into the box and Casey redirects it for the go-ahead goal in the 86th minute (which is this week's YouTubeableMoment).  Can't say San Jose ever really threatened and the Union took all three points.  Casey's finishing was critical but I would still give the man of the match to Barnetta, whose work rate was incredible and the reason the Union moved the ball so easily all night.

Now for the wet blanket.  Even though the win moved the Union to within one point of Montreal, the Impact still have four games in hand.  Looking at the relative schedules, the playoffs still look 100 miles away.  Still the win was important for two reasons.  First, Montreal could fritter away those games in hand.  Second, games like this one could really put the Union in a good mind set for the Open Cup Final vs Sporting KC at the end of the month.


Euro Qualifiers and International Friendlies

Only two matches left for each country in the European qualifiers but still many spots up for grabs.  Recall that France is automatically in and the first and second place sides - plus the third place team with the best record - will also make the final;  the remaining eight 3rd place teams will compete in playoffs to fill out the final four spots.

BFS favorite Belgium won both of their matches and sit in second place; their qualification hopes look solid with matches remaining against Andorra and Israel.  Gylfi Sigurdsson and Iceland are in after beating the Netherlands and tying Kazakhstan.  The Netherlands are in fourth and in danger of not even qualifying for the third place playoffs after their 0-3 loss to Turkey; but Turkey still have to play the Czech Republic and Iceland while Netherlands face Kazakhstan and the Czech Republic so maybe that's not done yet.

On the US friendly front, there was a 2-1 win over Peru and the 1-4 thrashing at the hands of Brazil. When I saw the starting back four against Brazil, I have to say I was puzzled.  Hell if I know what Klinsmann's thinking was.  Player availability?  Not have players he wants for the Mexico match in October get their confidence mangled?  I don't know.  But you didn't need a weatherman to know which way the wind was going to blow.  They were simply outmatched.  Not going to judge Klinsmann by performance in friendlies.  In my book, he got a decent grade for the World Cup, not so much for the Gold Cup.  I  don't like putting too much emphasis on one game but the team really needs to put in a good showing at the playoff with Mexico for the Confederations Cup berth.


Break's Over

Everton and Chelsea get the weekend off to a good start at 7:45 on Saturday.  Not finding as much to recommend about the 10 am matches.  Crystal Palace hosting Manchester City gets my vote; hoping the Eagles can put up a good fight against the undefeated Citizens.  Some might prefer Arsenal - Stoke City for the 10 am slot.  The 12:30 game on NBC looks okay - Man United hosting Liverpool.  Sunday has Tottenham traveling to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland in a match of winless sides at 8:30 and Aston Villa on the road to face third place (!?) Leicester City at 11. 

The soft expectations part of Newcastle's schedule is over.  Even though Monday's match with West Ham is on the road, they need to come away with a result.  The Hammers have lost two easier matches at home but won two difficult contests away from Upton Park.  Queasy is how I'd describe my feelings heading into this one; I think they are capable of winning but the team hasn't really put anything consistent together yet.  I can see anything from a close win to a frustrating 0-2 loss.

The enigmatic Union face Columbus at home on Saturday night.  Everything is must win at this point.  Plus Montreal has to lose, first to the Galaxy this weekend, then to San Jose on Wednesday as they spend one of their games in hand.  Both on the road against decent opponents so maybe we can narrow the gap.  The Red Bulls have a chance to improve their chances of winning both the Eastern Conference and the Supporters Shield.  By the time you read this, their match against last place Chicago will be in the books.  Then they get to "redeem" one of their games in hand with a midweek match against New England.  Six points would be big.


Refereeing starts this weekend. Hoping my leg will hold out.  And the DVR too, as I won't be able to watch too much live for a while.

Reckless and Undisciplined

Six sendings off sending offs red cards this weekend in EPL action.  The Union also had a player sent off.  Must have been the full moon.


Serbs Him Right

Any hope of an interesting Newcastle-Arsenal match ended in the 16th minute when Aleksandar Mitrovic was issued a straight red for strafing Coquelin's shin.  We can debate whether he deserved the red.  Real time I didn't think so, on the replay I could see why Marriner elected to go red, though I think he could have chosen to issue a yellow and not have been viewed as lax.  So in four matches he has two yellows and a red.  He's going to get a reputation, if he doesn't already have one.  McClaren has to sit him down and say reckless and undisciplined is no way to go through life, son.


Down a man, we were reduced to rooting for a 0-0 draw.  To their credit, the Magpies nearly pulled it off.  Arsenal's only goal came on a rebound that fell serendipitously at Oxlade-Chamberlain's feet and his shot clipped unserendipitously off Coloccini's leg for an own goal.  Yes, it was a spirited performance.  Sometimes too spirited.  Besides the red, Newcastle picked up six yellows, though I thought two were not merited.  Krul, Thauvin, Wijnaldum, Mbemba all had fine outings and 0-1 to Arsenal is the best result they've had against the Gunners in years.  They have two points through four matches but it is exactly where a realist would have put them based on the schedule.  The matches coming up against West Ham and Watford will provide a more complete picture of how good or bad they really are.  I just hope they can keep 10 men on the field.

Upsets

Not the best of weekends for the Axis of Evil clubs (Manchester City, Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool).  Man City did fine against Watford (2-0) and Arsenal got their win at Newcastle but the others all went down.  If you've been watching Swansea so far this year, you'd agree that their 2-1 win at home over Man Utd wasn't all that surprising.  Here they fell behind at the start of the second half but got two of their own in the space of five minutes.  New acquisition Andre Ayew had a goal and an assist and Bafetimbi Gomis had the game winner, prompting his patented panther (I thought it was a lion) celebration.

At Stamford Bridge, Crystal Palace were giving Chelsea all they could handle.  Down 0-1, Falcao tied the match in the 79th minute (on a really sweet header) but two minutes later Joel Ward put the Eagles up for good with a decent header of his own.  And at Anfield, West Ham were disposing of Liverpool 3-0; Liverpool went down a man at 52 minutes but they were already losing 0-2 by that point.  What to make of the Hammers?  They have wins away against Arsenal and Liverpool paired with home losses to Leicester and Bournemouth.

Was hoping for a little more out of the Everton-Tottenham contest.  Spurs are clearly missing Christian Eriksen; though they did manage eight shots on goal, they could do no better than 0-0 at White Hart Lane.   The Toffees were likely the happier side with that result.

Only a Point?

 Not really our place to complain but Newcastle fans were hoping for a little better from Aston Villa against Sunderland.  Didn't see the match but Dennis has plenty to say.

This could definitely be one of the matches that players/media point to if Villa come up 1 or 2 points short of safety at the end.  After going down early, Villa earned their first penalty of the season (about 30 matches faster than last season, I might add) and Scott Sinclair was on target to level the score.  He put the Villans up 2-1 right before halftime, slamming the ball home from 3 yards on a beautiful cross at the end of a classic counter.  Villa will need many goals coming from this type of play if they expect to go anywhere this season.  Traore will probably be on the end of many of them, but he is currently out with an ankle injury - an injury which Sherwood clearly foresaw with his remarks about Traore not being fit yet.

The Black Cats equalized just after halftime and then spent 40 minutes clinging to their point.  It's not often that Villa are the aggressors when the score is tied late, but they clearly saw the opportunity for 3 points and went for it.  They even generated several decent chances while never really being threatened, but couldn't pull out the victory.  Still an encouraging performance - just need to trim off a few sloppy passes here and a few over zealous dribbles there and we can win games like this regularly.

Villa continued to be active in the transfer market, sending out role players Nathan Baker and Joe Bennett on loan (fine with me), while bringing in several different role players, most notably Joleon Lescott from West Brom.  Not major moves, but these players could matter if the injury bug strikes or if we decide to take the FA Cup seriously again.


No Shot

Describes both the Union's second half against the Revolution and their playoff potential.  After a reasonably competitive first half, the Union fell behind early in the second half, generated precious little offense thereafter and fell 0-1.  This being the first time we had Maidana, Noguiera, Barnetta and Le Toux on the field together, expectations were for something more than say, a shut out.  To make matters worse, Maidana got red carded for spitting (he later claimed his gum came out of his mouth - maybe, but it looked like it came out in the direction of Nyugen); he will sit for two matches (originally was going to be three but was reduced on appeal).

Most dominant team of the weekend was easily the Jersey Cows, or NY Red Bulls as the MLS insists on calling them.  They had absolutely no problem handling DC United.  Bradley Wright-Phillips had two goals, including this thunder volley into the top corner, this week's YouTubeableMoment.  The Red Bulls don't officially take over first with the win but they now lead MLS in points per game.  Now all they have to do is not fritter away those games in hand.

Per Ze Roberto's comment last week, I did check out the Sounders-Timbers match in Seattle.  Aside from the mandatory deduction for the artificial surface, it was pretty good.  Almost 65,000 fans, close contest.  Tough call on the PK that gave Seattle their second goal; reminded me of Julie Johnston's transgression versus Germany - either it's a red card or it's not a foul.  Portland got one back but couldn't level so Seattle got the win.


International Break

No EPL as qualifying for the 2016 European Championships continues.  The Netherlands have already lost to Iceland and are in jeopardy of not making the final.  Their match on Sunday vs Turkey is basically a must-win.  Belgium handled Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-1 today and play Cyprus, also on Sunday.

The US took care of Peru in a friendly 2-1, with Altidore scoring a brace, and will play Brazil on Tuesday night in Foxborough (8 pm ESPN2).

The MLS does not stop for these international breaks - although it is a light schedule this weekend.  The Union will play San Jose Saturday night; the Earthquakes have a legitimate shot at a playoff spot in the Western Conference and will likely be a tough opponent, especially at home where they have six wins and three draws in 11 matches.

Guess I'll be sleeping late this weekend.