The Wrong Kind of Three Points

Is there such a thing?  I am reminded of this scene from Woody Allen's Manhattan.  And yet, a cleared-eyed look at the Union's playoff chances after a home loss to Montreal but a road win in Seattle suggests there may indeed be a wrong kind of three points.

Updating the projected final standings for the MLS East, Montreal, DC United and the Union all show 48 points.  The Impact's win on Saturday added three unexpected points but it also changed 538's projections for some future matches as well.  The good news is that without the Union's upset win against the Sounders, they'd be looking at 7th place.  Additional good news is that the first tiebreaker is wins, with goal differential second.  The Union have 13, Montreal 12 and DC 9; projections show a final tally of Montreal 15, Union 14, and DC United 13, which means we squeak into the last playoff spot.

And how bad was Saturday night's performance at Talen Energy?   Possibly the worst of the year.  This was your father's Union.  After a rare goal off a corner, the Union proceeded to pile up poor passes, poor touches and poor decisions and the 1-4 final might even be a bit flattering.  They couldn't control the midfield and we saw the return of the dreaded dump and chase.  The only positives I could count were that it wasn't raining and the sausage sandwich was tasty.

In Seattle, they weren't exactly awesome either.  With some competent finishing by the Sounders, the halftime score could have easily been 0-3.  But it wasn't and the Union were more organized in the second half.  They even had a goal taken away by VAR (we are still like a net 10 or 12 on VAR decisions so we remain enthusiastic supporters).  Just when it looked like our boys would scrape out a point, there came a most improbable goal in stoppage time.  Possibly the most improbable part is that it involved Jay Simpson, making his first appearance since April.  He pressured Seattle's keeper into a hasty clearance pass that Fafa Picault intercepted and converted into the game winner.  Easily this week's YouTubeableMoment.

The week would have been so much better if they had switched results but I guess the key is that they at least won one of two.  Obviously, going forward every point is precious and scoreboard watching is required too.


Same Old Same Old

Facing Arsenal at home, Newcastle continued to "overachieve" with another 1-2 loss to a top six side  However, there were some differences.  This time they did not park the bus, dropping the back five for Benitez's more preferred 4-2-3-1.  This might be an answer to the critics who jumped all over Benitez for being too defensive-minded in contests with Man City, Chelsea and Tottenham - it doesn't matter.  We might deploy an 0-0-10 and still get a 1-2 result.  I kid.  Sort of.  The bigger problem was that the Magpies were actually worse than in any previous outing this season.  They clearly missed Shelvey and Rondon.  Ciaran Clark's nifty header goal in stoppage time provided little consolation other than keeping our goal differential down. 


Then There Were Two

Man United were able to hold on for a 2-1 win over Watford in a highly watchable contest; that dropped the number of teams with a perfect record down to two.  Liverpool pretty well thumped Spurs, 2-1, with a stoppage time goal making that look closer than it actually was.  Chelsea fell behind early to Cardiff City, then cruised to a 4-1 win.  So the Reds and the Blues sit atop the table with five wins each.

I didn't see the match but Bournemouth continue to do well; their 4-2 win over Leicester might be most notable for the fact that the Foxes scored two goals after going down a man.  West Ham surprised Everton at Goodison Park with their first win of the season, which served to drop Newcastle one place lower in the table.  The 2-2 draw between Southampton and Brighton (and Hove Albion) featuring a late PK for Glenn Murray to allow the Seagulls to come away with a point, was a pretty good watch too.


Wolves in Wolves Clothing?

Okay, so their wins have come against Burnley and West Ham.   But they also have draws with Man City and Everton. Maybe they've been a little lucky too. Whatever.  Newly promoted Wolverhampton sit 9th in the table with eight points.  This is a fun squad to watch, especially in their infectiously energetic home venue.  538 projects them to finish 11th. 


Talkin' Uniforms

Do Spurs have dinner at 4:30? 

Dennis pointed out that Spurs new kit (left) might have been designed by senior citizens.  The styling makes them look like shirts are tucked in and the waistband is pulled up to the midriff.

Then we have Man United's pink away jersey.  I imagined a scenario something like this:

Laundry error at Old Trafford?

Laundry technician: Ah, we have a problem.

Management; Yes?

Laundry technician: Yeah, somebody washed the red home jerseys with the away white jerseys in hot water

Management: No problem, we'll just market the pink ones as our new away kit.  It'll be great for new sales.

Chester Defend

How do we top last year's triple (EPL, FA Cup and Champions League)?  I guess repeat all those plus add the League Cup.   The oddsmakers favor Man City over us for the EPL title.  Hah, we just dismantled them 4-1 in what might have been the best match in Blues history.  Still a little behind on the virtual calendar but we are off to a good start.


What's Next?

Sunday afternoon (1 pm ESPN) sees the Union with a home match versus Sporting KC.  I see this as a draw.  Hope I'm right.  Montreal host slumping NYCFC; would really like to see NY get their act together and at least steal a point here. 

The EPL fixture list is not brimming with excitement.  For the 10 am matches, the TV is offering Cardiff-Man City (CNBC) or Liverpool-Southampton (NBCSN) but I'll be doing Crystal Palace - Newcastle on NBC Gold.  Most of the pundits see that as a draw at best for the Magpies.  Sure it's easier than a top six side but Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park is no picnic either.  Man United - Wolves might also be a good choice if you have Gold.

You can rise early to see Fulham-Watford.  The NBC feature match is Brighton (and Hove Albion) vs Tottenham.  That's probably worth checking out; can Spurs rebound from poor outing vs Liverpool and the mid-week late collapse in Champions League vs Milan?  An early test of Tottenham's resilience.  Sunday am games are West Ham - Chelsea and Arsenal - Everton.  Good enough I guess.

An increasingly useless hip means less no refereeing and more live watching.  I would prefer good hip and using the DVR but that's where things are right now.  New hip coming in time for Christmas though (12/17).