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.