More of the Same

Which is good news for the Union but for Newcastle, not so much.


We Love VAR, Part Infinity +1

VAR is the gift that just keeps on giving.  For over 50 minutes on Saturday night, the Union were looking like your father's Union, just not getting anywhere in a critical home contest with New England.  Then, in the 53rd minute, Burke took a pass from Medunjanin and broke in on goal alone.  Everybody in the stadium - except Burke -  probably saw that the AR's flag was up but referee Drew Fischer never blew the whistle.  So Burke never stopped, went around the keeper, deposited the ball into the net and promptly removed his jersey.  The call on the field was offside.  But it took Fischer only about 10 seconds to look at the still picture on the video replay screen to conclude that Burke was clearly onside.  Here's the video of the play and here's the video of the VAR, this week's YouTubeableMoment.  It could also be this week's U-12 Moment, as in you always play to the whistle.

Of course the awarding of the goal did mean yellow for Burke.  My question is whether he would have gotten a yellow if the goal had not been awarded.  The Laws of the Game specifically say - under a section entitled Celebration of a Goal - that a player must be cautioned for "removing the shirt or covering the head with the shirt."  But it's not clear what happens if a player does either of those things not in celebration of a goal.  Anyway, I digress.

Blake's performance against the Revs got him named
to the MLS team of the week.
Photo: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Burke's tally proved to be the only scoring of the night and the Union got a big 1-0 win.  I would be remiss if I did not mention the stand-out keeping of Andre Blake.  Used to be he'd make great saves in a losing cause that only kept the margin of loss down but now his saves are adding up to big points.  Also noteworthy was Ray Gaddis becoming the Union's all-time minutes played leader late in the match. 

Wednesday the Union headed down to the nation's capitol to face a surging DC United.  The "not your father's" Union reappeared.  The passing between Dockal, Medunjanin and Bedoya is, in Jeff H's words, "getting ridiculous."  Yes, the Union benefited from some near misses by Rooney but our finishing was much more clinical.  Goals by Sapong (29th minute) and Picault (61st minute) were enough for a big 2-0 win.  

Updating the BFS projections for the MLS East, we see how big the win over DC was.  Forecast as a loss by 538, this swing in points puts the Union on track to finish 5th with a seven point cushion over 7th place.  Still work to be done but as somebody said, better to be in the playoff spot instead of chasing it.


At Least It's Still Early

That's about the only positive spin we can put on events Tyneside.  Newcastle parked the bus big time against Chelsea and it almost worked.  They played what looked like a 5-4-1 but at times seemed to be a 10-0-0.  Missing Kenedy (couldn't play against parent club), Shelvey (injury) and Lascelles (injury but maybe a dust up with Benitez too), the Magpies probably had little choice.  And the defense was solid.  Yeah, it was a 1-2 loss but the goals were a PK and a late own goal.  The PK on Schar?  I have to concede it was the correct call.  Others aren't convinced but what I saw was a play on the ball followed by some scissor action to take out the legs of the Alonso.  If there had been VAR, I seriously doubt the call would have been reversed; maybe more telling, I think if the call on the pitch had been no foul, it's highly likely that VAR would have convinced the ref that there was indeed a foul.

Do I need to explain?

Actually, I'm being a bit harsh on the boys here.  After the the deflating PK call, they broke out of the shell and crafted a goal out of a simple cross and header by Joselu.  Hopes were high that we might steal a point.  The own goal off of Yedlin four minutes after drawing level was just unfortunate.  But there it is, another loss and we fall to 16th in the table. 

Benitez, who has been taking heat from the pundits for complaining about his transfer budget, got an earful this time for his defensive tactics.  Something to the effect of "a big club like Newcastle shouldn't be resorting to this type of football at home."  Blah, blah, blah.  These are the same pundits who have no problem comparing Newcastle's transfer budget with the likes of Watford and Bournemouth but then turn around and call Newcastle a "big club."  C'mon, which is it guys?

Adding injury to insult, Newcastle crashed out of the League Cup with a 1-3 away loss to Championship Division Nottingham.  The lineup provides a hint as to how seriously Benitez took this competition but the loss was still embarrassing and does nothing for the atmosphere surrounding the club.


Around the League

We'll start with the statement 3-0 win by Tottenham over Man United (a Northwest Philly Cycling Coalition Derby).  Harry Kane never scores in August and never at Old Trafford.  Until Monday.  Two sweet finishes by Lucas Moura provided the added cushion to put Spurs 2nd in the table.  Kind of annoying that the post-game focus was on the Special One, seeming to trivialize Tottenham's accomplishment. 

Wolves continuing to be an exciting watch as they snatched a 1-1 home draw with Man City.  Sure, the tying goal looked like it might have been a "hander" instead of a header but it's in the books.  The match also provided this week's U-12 Moment as someone (can't remember who) was called for a foul throw when he lifted his back leg.  So Man City is no longer perfect.

Watford's 2-1 win over Crystal Palace was full of nastiness, as evidenced by the six yellows, but surprisingly no red cards.  Leicester rallied for a 2-1 win over Southampton after Hjoberg got booked for simulation, his second yellow of the day.  From BFS co-founder and diving judge Dennis F:

Probably only a 3. Good form on the dive but didn't really argue or writhe.  Definitely knew he was caught and decided not to embarrass himself further.

Mitrovic got two in two minutes against Burnley in Fulham's 4-2 win; yeah, that's a bit annoying to Newcastle fans.  Also, what happened to Burnley's defense?  Brighton showed they are no push over in a 0-1 loss to Liverpool.  A 3-1 win for Arsenal got the Gunners on the board and left West Ham still winless.  Bournemouth - Everton did prove to be the interesting contest I suggested it might be, though not for all the right reasons.  Richarlison got himself a straight red for one of those head butts that really don't look vicious.  Still, the Toffees got a 1-0 lead off a nice effort from Walcott.  Then Adam Smith got sent off for DOGSO (ahem, a not so invisible hand? - that line would kill at a convention of economists).  Back at level strength, Everton added a second.  But goals in the 75th and 79th minutes by King (PK) and Ake rescued a point for the Cherries.  All in all, pretty good viewing for the weekend.


Labor Day Weekend

As usual, we think it's a great idea to celebrate a holiday weekend with lots of football. 

The Union travel to Florida to take on Orlando on Saturday night at 7:30.  Other matches in the MLS East include Montreal hosting the Red Bulls, New England home to Portland, NYCFC at Columbus, Toronto hosting LAFC and Atlanta traveling to DC.  If we want to get greedy, the right set of results could push the Union ahead of Columbus into 4th.  I'll be content with a draw and let the other results take care of themselves. 

In the EPL, Newcastle get to travel to Man City.  Yeah, that should work out well, especially after Man City's stumble last week.  Sounds like Shelvey is still going to be out.  This will be the feature match on NBC at 12:30 on Saturday.

Not seeing a whole lot of fixtures to get the blood going.  Leicester are playing okay so maybe the 7:30 Saturday morning match with Liverpool is worth an early rise.  If I were Spurs, I'd be very careful about facing Watford (Sunday at 11); don't want to get complacent about an opponent that is playing pretty well themselves.  Having a hard time choosing from the Saturday 10 am line-up.  Chelsea - Bournemouth is the TV game and not a bad idea; I might go for Crystal Palace - Southampton on NBC Gold.  Sunday you can see Arsenal take on Cardiff at 8:30; Gunners might continue to get better with opponents like that.  Jeff H may be forced onto NBC Gold to see Burnley - Man Untied United Sunday at 11; two teams there that need a result.

Enjoy.

Best Ever?

While Newcastle were stinking up the joint in Wales, at least the Union put on a fine show in Chester.


This Is Not Your Father's Union

Union resurgence coincides with more playing time for Cory Burke

To quote Butch Cassidy -"who are those guys?"  We had seen glimpses of the new look Union - control of the midfield, possession passing, pleasing soccer.  But never to this degree or with this consistency.  Even though the first half was scoreless, it was good stuff from the Union.  Blake had an incredible save and also offered us a hairy moment when he left the goal for others to defend.  The boys came out strong in the second half; Jeff hadn't even gotten back to his seat when Accam was barely denied.  Shortly thereafter Sapong put one over the bar.  Finally, the dam broke with a Dockal pass to Burke down the left side and the Jamaican delivered a clinical finish.  Later Ilsinho confirmed that he is indeed Brazilian with a remarkable solo effort to seal the match.  We'll make that this week's  YouTubeableMoment.  I mean, the goal was so good, Jim Curtin went all the way to the goal line to congratulate Ilsinho.

But it some ways it wasn't the result and more about how they did it.  Throughout the match, combination passing allowed the Union to work the ball end-to-end with an ease I've never seen by them before.  One sequence included an audacious side volley by Medunjanin that elicited a collective "wow" from the stands.  In the first half they looked a little vulnerable to NYCFC's direct counterattacking ability (like they have all season really) but in the second half, the visitors offered little in the way of offensive threats.  In the end, possibly the most complete performance by a Union side ever and a big three points against team ahead of them in the standings.

Montreal won but only by a goal so we added one more to our goal differential advantage and New England lost so we're now four points clear.  But DC United is just six points back, with two games in hand and hot; oh, and 9 of their 12 remaining matches are at home, where they are 6-1-1 so far.  As good as things have been, there's precious little room to work with.  I was curious enough about how the run in will play out that I went through the 538 projections for each game and tabulated the final table, presented below.

ATL	69
NYRB	69
NYCFC	67
COL	53
DC	48
PHI	45
TOR	41
MON	39
NE	39
CHI	31
ORL	30

My sense that DC United is a threat looks correct.  But in the end we hang on for 6th with a few points to spare.  I'll update this as actual results come in.


Championship Football

And I mean that in the worst way.  The Cardiff City - Newcastle match looked like a fixture from the second division.  Three things apply to both teams:

1) each played poorly, very poorly
2) each were lucky to get a point
3) each were unlucky not to get three points

There was no jersey big enough for Kenedy to hide behind after
 his performance at Cardiff City (Picture from Getty)

Wah? The seeming contradiction of points 2) and 3) is because although Newcastle played the last half hour or so down a man, they also failed to convert a PK in stoppage time.  The red card came after a rash challenge by Isaac Hayden; fortunately for the Magpies, Cardiff were utterly incapable of doing anything with the advantage.  Late in stoppage (and why did referee Craig Pawson feel that the world needed an extra six minutes of this match?) Newcastle mustered an attack that led to a handball in the box; Kenedy, capping off his bad, awful day (he failed to complete a pass in the first half?!), kicked the ball right at the keeper.  No matter, for Newcastle to have walked away with three points from this performance would have been stealing.

No, a list of good things that came out of this match begins and ends with:

Kenedy did not receive a retroactive three-match ban for a questionable challenge that was called for a foul but not even a yellow by Craig Pawson.

As if to highlight the depth of the mediocrity in the EPL, Newcastle muster a pitiful 0-0 draw against Cardiff City yet move up a place, to 12th, in the table. Yeah, baby.


Other Stuff

The marquee match looked like it was going to disappoint after Chelsea jumped on Arsenal early for a  2-0 lead with the Gunners seemingly content to be skying shots over the crossbar. [Modified golf joke - Alex Iwobi: I think I'm going to drown myself.  Gunners fan: Are you sure you can keep your head down long enough?] But Arsenal did manage a first half comeback with goals in the 37th and 41st minute.  A decent match that was decided with Alonso's goal in the 81st minute. It also provided this week's U12 moment:  Arsenal goal kicks failed to clear the box three times.  I realize that Emery is insisting the Gunners play the ball out from the back as opposed to just kicking the ball downfield but it has been painful to watch these last two weeks.

Tick, tick, tick?

Man City's massive four goal first half against Huddersfield (final 6-1) allowed me to switch over to Burnley-Watford at half time. Two quick Watford tallies in the space of 3 minutes seemed to stun the Clarets and they went down 1-3; surprising to see Burnley surrender that many at home.  Man United had a rough time in Brighton, going down 2-3 (and the 2nd was a stoppage time PK!).  One wonders if the Mourinho third-year-with-a-club meltdown is gathering steam.  Crystal Palace were disappointing in an 0-2 loss to Liverpool; usually even in a loss there's something exciting but this one felt flat.  Spurs started slowly against Fulham but by the middle of the second half they looked to have found their stride and the 3-1 score is a fair reflection of the match.  Newly promoted Wolves got to play a man up again but still went down to Leicester 0-2. Wolves have played 74 minutes of this young season with a man advantage but have just one point so far.


Schedule

Another six pointer for the Union, as they take on New England at Talen Energy on Saturday.  A win and the cushion goes to seven points.  Toronto host Montreal (a draw would be just fine) while the NJ Red Bulls face DC United (happy to see the bovines take all three here).

Newcastle will take on Chelsea without Kenedy - he avoided suspension but because he's on loan from the Blues he can't play against his own club.  Despite his awful game last week, I think we will miss him.  Not hopeful of a result here.

Feature EPL match of the week is easily Man United - Tottenham on Monday (3 pm NBCSN).  The Red Devils have not impressed this season so maybe this is a break for Spurs to get them as they struggle.

We continue to have a 7:30 Saturday morning match; this one is Wolves - Man City which doesn't sound too thrilling.  For the Saturday 10 am group, I'd be inclined to go with Bournemouth (2 wins so far) at Everton (win and a draw); these look like they might be two evenly matched mid-table sides.  That's on NBCGold.  In the 10 am TV match winless Arsenal take on winless West Ham in a London derby.

The NBC match is Liverpool-Brighton.  The Seigels Seagulls are coming off the big win against Man United but Liverpool are yet to have conceded a goal.  Might try to catch Watford - Crystal Palace Sunday at 8:30. The Hornets are off to a great start, sitting 4th in the table.

A crowded non-soccer schedule and nice weather mean the DVR better be working properly this weekend.

A Decent Weekend

Most of the news is on the good side.  The Union got an important road win, Newcastle lost but didn't look awful.  Biggest issue was that of all weekends, this was definitely not the best for the cable box to go on the fritz. #Firstworldproblems, I know but damn inconvenient.


Deputized Defender

Elliott makes his second deposit of the night
(Photo USA Today)

The Union got off to a quick start against the Revolution thanks to the work of Jack Elliott, deputised as they say in England, to fill in for the injured Mark McKenzie.  He became the first Union defender to score two goals in a match, notching one at 14 minutes and another at 24 minutes.  The first half went pretty much the Union's way.  Not so much the second half.  New England struck in the first minute after play restarted and were on the front foot after that.  When they leveled things in the 64th minute, you felt this was going to end 2-3 or even 2-4.  Fortunately, with some renewed energy and some good midfield play from Dockal, the situation stabilized a little.  Then we got a big break when defender Delemea was whistled for handling in the box; Picault buried the PK and the Union finished strong to take all three points.

Later that night in Salt Lake City, Montreal drew with Real Salt Lake.  That left the Union tied with the Impact on points but we have a better goal differential (plus two games in hand).  So 5th place is ours for the time being.  With 11 matches to go and every club below them no farther than 9 points behind, the hold on a playoff spot is precarious.  There are matches against New England, DC United, Orlando and Montreal in the near future but the run-in looks pretty rough.  Buckle up.


Unlucky?

Spurs margin of victory?

Many pundits are suggesting that Newcastle were unlucky not to come away with a draw against Spurs.  Yeah, they hit the post a few times in the second half but Newcastle were mostly awful in the first half. That they were only down 1-2 was probably lucky.  So many giveaways, often in really dangerous positions.  Vertonghen's header goal at 8 minutes was scruffy looking but there it was.  Past the line by a good 1/4 inch (see photo right).  Not the greatest defending there by the Magpies.  Fortunately, Matt Ritchie, who was thought maybe to be leaving Tyneside, put a lovely cross into the box that Joselu, another player you wouldn't have necessary expected in the starting 11, deftly headed to level the match.  But then Aurier sent an equally good cross into the box that Dele headed in at 18 minutes.  Newcastle looked much better in the second half, possibly even the better side for that 45 minutes.  Unfortunately all we got for the efforts were some shots off the woodwork and the Magpies went down 1-2.

Overall though a decent outing, especially in the second half.  To be fair, Tottenham were a touch flat, especially Kane and Eriksen.  And the match ended with Yedlin hobbling off with a knee injury.  Fortunately he's not expected to miss a lot of time.  Looking at the table, we sit equal 13th with Leicester based on goal differential.  Woo woo, clear of the relegation zone!


Only the Best for the Magpies

There has been a bit of pundit pushback (example here) against Rafa Benitez, suggesting he's getting appropriate support from Mike Ashley and should shut up and manage.  On the one hand I get it that managers may be prone to complaining that they don't have the personnel they want as a way to protect themselves when results don't follow.  On the other hand, can you objectively look at the Newcastle roster and not see shortfalls?  And Newcastle didn't even spend a dime in this window; they were a net seller.  In the article, Key says that last season's result proves that Ashley was right about the club's transfer policy.  Sure, if right means you got away with spending nothing while avoiding relegation.  But that's a low bar, one that the club has failed to meet twice during Ashley's tenure.  If Ashley is saying one thing to Benitez about the club's goals but essentially undermining the the manager's ability to attain those goals, Rafa has every reason to speak out.   

Speaking of resources available to Benitez, courtesy of BFS archivist Mackenzie W, we have a glimpse into the reason injuries may be a problem for Newcastle.  Check this out.

Around the League

 Even with a balky cable box, I still managed to take in a share of the opening weekend action. Except now I don't remember much.  The scoreline says Man United beat Leicester 2-1 but the Foxes goal came in stoppage time so that wasn't as close as it sounds.  I was watching Chelsea handle Huddersfield while on the phone with the Verizon service person; she didn't seem all that interested in my updates.  Crystal Palace looked pretty competent in handling Fulham in the return of the EPL to Craven Cottage. Wilfried Zaha may not be the top striker in the league but he's no slouch either; he's important to their success and nailing down his contract must be a relief.

Liverpool was having no trouble with West Ham (that ended 4-0) so I switched to Southampton-Burnley; a more competitive, though not necessarily more exciting match that ended 0-0.  The marquee match of the weekend - Arsenal vs Man City - wasn't bad but the 2-0 final offered no suggestion that the Citizens are not fully prepared to defend their title.

Wolverhampton manager Santo.
 "Wolvesman Jack?" (h/t Michael B)

But for me the most fun was Wolves-Everton.  The Wolverhampton Wanderers, or Wolves to their friends, are a storied franchise in English football founded in 1877.  They've been playing in the same venue - Molineux Stadium - since 1889; hopefully they have upgraded the bathrooms a few times.  There have been ups and downs along the way and Wolves have been out of the Premiership since getting relegated after the 2011-12 season.  Preseason forecasts for them are remarkably rosy, with most pundits having them solidly in the mid-table.  So what better opponent to welcome them back than Everton, a solidly mid-table side themselves.  New acquisition Richarlison got the Toffees going with a classic poacher's goal in the 17th minute.  Then Phil Jackie Elka got himself sent off for serious foul play (at least I think that's what everybody eventually decided because you could argue it might have been DOGSO).  The ensuing free kick from Ruben Neves was a beauty and certainly worthy of the Wolves first goal back in the EPL. We'll make it this week's   YouTubeableMoment.  Poor marking allowed Richarlison to get a second goal to put shorthanded Everton back on top in the 67th minute.  But Raul Jiminez rescued a draw for Wolves with a goal in the 80th minute. Great stuff.  Plus it looks like Wolves have a colorful manager in Nuno Espirito Santo.


Up Next

That went so well let's try it again.  I'll be at Talen Energy to see the Union take on NYCFC.  The Union are coming off some good results but this is not a good match up.  Not counting on any points from this one.  With Montreal at home vs Chicago and New England taking on DC United, we could wake up Sunday morning with the Union back in 7th.  Would be great to nick a point in this one but...

The EPL schedule makers obviously do not like me sleeping in on Saturdays and have put the Cardiff City Newcastle match at 7:30 am.  At least it's on NBCSN.  Really, this should be a win for the Magpies; anything less will be a warning sign.

Marquee match of the week looks to be the London derby between Chelsea and Arsenal at 12:30 Saturday on NBC.  Many similarities here.  New managers (Emery and Sarri), both missed out on Champions League last year.  A win here, even though it's early, might provide a clue as to which one of these clubs might rebound.

NBC thinks Spurs Fulham at Wembley is deserving of the TV nod at 10 am on Saturday.  I might be inclined to go to NBC Gold to watch Leicester-Wolves.  Sunday is all about Manchester with City taking on Huddersfield at 8:30 and United traveling to Brighton for an 11 am kickoff.  There's a Monday fixture with Crystal Palace hosting Liverpool at 3 pm; the Eagles are usually a good watch so we'll be checking that out.  Besides, what else are you going to do on a Monday afternoon in August?

US Open Cup Specialists

Despite a checkered history in MLS, the Union do seem quite adept at deep runs in the US Open Cup.  With a 3-0 beatdown of the Chicago Fire on Wednesday night, the Union will advance to the finals for the third time in their relatively short life.  The previous two times ended in overtime losses to Seattle, one of which came down to kicks from the spot.  This time they'll face the Houston Dynamo on September 26, in Houston.

Cory Burke celebrates goal vs Chicago (USA Today)

I did not see the match.  Sounded like a pretty even first half, with both keepers making some nice saves. Second half looked to be all Union.  By the end they had 22 shots and 7 on target compared to 8 with just one on target for Chicago.  All the Union goals came after Curtin subbed Sapong for Accam, making it one of the few times we've seen both C.J. and Burke on the field together.  Hmm, three goals in 34 minutes.  Just sayin'.

This was certainly much better than the 0-3 loss to Portland on Saturday night.  Not that the Union were awful.  In fact there were long stretches where they had the run of play.  But two unfortunate fouls in the box undid all that good work.  Real time, both looked like fouls and replays confirmed that the calls were correct; sometimes even VAR can't rescue you.

Except for being indoors on artificial turf, Saturday's 2-2 draw between Atlanta and Toronto had the feel of a league coming of age.  High energy, compelling and competitive soccer in front of 45,000 fully engaged fans.  Though maybe not at quite the same level, the Red Bulls 2-1 over LAFC on Sunday also looked pretty grown up.  Maybe we are making progress.


U12 Moment

LAFC almost didn't make it to the semi-final against Houston  In the US Open Cup, teams are allowed to use up to five foreign players.  After losing to LAFC 2-3 in the quarters, Portland filed a protest with US Soccer claiming that LAFC had used six.    The protest centered around Mark-Anthony Kaye.  A Canadian, Kaye counts as a domestic player for MLS purposes.  LAFC said they had notice from US Soccer that he counted as domestic for the US Open Cup as well.  Portland gracefully decided to withdraw the protest, saying it looked like a "good faith misunderstanding."  Details can be had here.


What Did You Do This Summer?

Newcastle - Rearranged the deck chairs on the Titanic

A little unfair but how much better do you think Salomon Rondon is compared to Dwight Gayle?  This was not a great leap forward.  We added Schar but lost Lejeune for the season.  Frederico Fernandez adds some more depth.  All the deals look like good value.  But they leave a squad that underwhelms.  The frustrating part is that Newcastle had money to spend.  In fact, they had the biggest net negative spend in this window of any EPL club - 45 m in players sales vs 17.6m spent for net income of 27.4.  No, the problem is how Rafa was allowed to spend and how slowly they moved.  So they never got the #10 that Benitez craved, we only marginally improved at striker and we didn't get any cover for Dummett at left back.


Tottenham - Nuthin'

Spurs became the first club since the summer transfer window started in 2003 not to make a move.  But maybe keeping Alderweireld and Rose was enough.  Addition by not subtracting.


Manchester United - Played with the kids

Aside from The Special One's rant about his team's quality, we did get to see Man United take on the Late Late Show Football Club.   Highlights are here.


Bournemouth - Surf's Up, Dude

Up the creek but with paddles (Getty Images)

Bournemouth players did a team building exercise at training camp that included the aquatic activity seen at right.  Let me know how that worked for you guys.  Good to see everybody with a life vest.

Preview Tables

I've looked at dozens now and certain trends are emerging.  Everyone of them has Man City first and Liverpool second.  Every one of them has Man United, Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea in places three through six, though in varying orders.  Cardiff City is on everybody's list for relelgation and Watford was only missing from one person's list.  Newcastle?  I saw them as high as 7th and as low as 17th.  Yeah, that sounds about right.


Who Goes First?

Before a ball is kicked in anger, looks like some managers may be already on their way out.  Current odds on who will get the boot are shown here.  Not surprised to see Puel at the top. And Mourinho is in his third year at Man United so that's a sacking waiting to happen.  A little surprised to see Rafa in the top three; I figure he makes it through the year but then leaves on his own when they finish 12th.


Play Time

Before we get to the EPL, note that the Union play New England at 7:30 on Saturday up in Foxborough or whatever town that monstrosity is in.  This is a huge six point match.  The Revolution is one of the teams that the Union will have to catch to make the playoffs.

By the time that match rolls around we might be bleary eyed.  Friday has the season opener with Man United hosting Leicester; this might get one of the top two sack candidates off to a great start.  Saturday early (7:30) sees Newcastle taking on Tottenham at St. James' Park; we keep hearing that Spurs will be missing some key players who are recovering from the World Cup but I'll believe that when I don't see them on the pitch.

The four 10 am games are a mixed bag.  Bob K notes that the Fulham-Crystal Palace fixture features two London sides that play on "matchbox grounds."  I will definitely be checking out the featured match on NBC at 12:30 with newly promoted Wolverhampton taking on Everton; this will be my first look at Molineux Stadium.

Sunday has the marquee match of the week as Man City begin their title defense on the road against a Wenger-less Arsenal (11 am).  For the 8:30 match up your choice is Liverpool - West Ham or Southampton-Burnley.

Well, whatever didn't get done this summer probably ain't going to get done now.