Man Down

Several teams played a man down this weekend.  Some were punished, others were not.  The Union played like they were down a man but were not.

You Can Only Beat Who You Play

Chalobah did go in with force; whether or not it was red,
it did make the day easier for Newcastle (Photo: Reuters)

Newcastle were missing players (ASM, Joe L Linton, E-sock) but at least had 11 on the pitch, unlike Fulham.  Maybe the red on Chalobah in the 8th minute was harsh but if so, not by much.  Dark orange at least.  The Magpies, who had the run play up to that point anyway, were quick to take advantage with Callum Wilson celebrating his return with a poacher's goal in the 8th minute.  Nothing cheap about the second goal hook-up between Guimaraes and Almiron.  Both the pass and the finish were top shelf as you can see in this week's YouTubeableMoment.  Early candidate for Goal of the Year.  Two more and even I was counting the three points before the final whistle.

We can discount this as much as we want - it was Fulham, a man down, etc - but it's still a solid win, especially given the quality of personnel who didn't even dress for the match.

Good Derby

Spurs were down 1-2 to Arsenal mid-way through the second half but it had been more than a decent North London derby to that point; good back and forth action with both sides getting chances.  Tottenham looked like they might have the equalizer in them and we were poised for an exciting finish.  That is, until Royal got sent off at 62 minutes.  Definitely a harsher call than Chalobah's.  You can see the play here (notice that Xhaka and Richarlison nearly get into it - would have been terrible if two of my favorite players had been sent off).  Arguably, Anthony Taylor should have gone to the monitor to check this one.  No doubt, he saw a straight leg coming in high at a direct angle; replays showed it was actually more of glancing blow.  Unfortunately, it killed whatever excitement neutrals and Spurs fans might have enjoyed for the finish.  Arsenal added one after the sending off, effectively ending the match.  

Bad Derby

Scary, very scary

Last week we noted that the 538 prediction for Man City Man United suggested it would be a derby in name only.  They were right.  Foden got City up in the 8th minute.  Though City continued to dominate, the next score took awhile.  Haaland got one at 34, then another at 37.  Foden added his second at 44 minutes and there was no need to pay close attention from there on in.  The final was 6-3 with both Foden and Haaland logging hat tricks.  United's last two goals came in the closing minutes only serving to make the final look closer than it was, not that 6-3 sounds all that close to begin with.

Exception to the Rule

Aston Villa, alas, showed that a man advantage doesn't always convert to three points in the table.  Villa were probably the better side for the first half and looked to be in excellent shape when Sinisterra got sent off for his second yellow at 48 minutes (surprised the announcers didn't go for the lay up - as in you couldn't say there was nothing sinister in that challenger).  Villa dominated but could not score and were left wondering how they were leaving with a 0-0 draw.   All the stats say Villa win (56% possession, shots 19-6, shots on target 7-1, xG 1.95-.5), but the table says one point.

He's Not Dead Yet

We should be careful about writing off Brighton after Graham Potter's departure.  I didn't see the match, only the progression of the score.  The Seagulls had a 2-0 lead against Liverpool but we watched as the scoreline inevitably turned back in Liverpool's favor and the Reds carried a 3-2 lead late into the match. Welcome to life without Graham Potter.  Not so fast.  Brighton got the equalizer at 83 minutes and came home with a unexpected point that keeps them fourth in the table.

Not Living Lage Anymore

West Ham won the match of "used to be top sides that are struggling" 2-0 over Wolves.  That contest was Bruno Lage's swan song for Wolves.  He was let go on Sunday.  Seems like they have never been the same since Nuno Espirito Santo left for Spurs.  Julen Lopetegui, himself just sacked by Sevilla this week, is considered the most likely replacement.

In Other Action

Crystal Palace gave Chelsea fits all day but were denied a point on a late goal from Conor Gallagher.  Everton slow start looks over - 2 wins and 4 draws in last six.  Not so much for Nothingham Forest, who have lost five straight - some to relegation rivals - after an okay start.  The 4-0 final was Leicester's first win of the season and allowed the Foxes to trade places in the table with NF; yeah they are 19th but it's better than 20th.

Conversation That Did Take Place But Shouldn't Have

Dennis:  Why do you say Lloris reminds you of the disciple Peter?

Steve:  Because they both denied Jesus three times.

We Blame Laura

Came back from a great dinner at Jansen's Saturday night and was fully prepared to watch some TV with Laura and I'd take in the dvred Union match later.  Surprisingly, she was up for watching the game right away.  She doesn't usually view a full match so we are thinking she jinxed us.  How else to explain the absolutely dreadful performance (worst of the season?) in the 4-0 loss at Charlotte?  Even Laura suggested that maybe it was her fault.  Well, that and maybe the porous defense that showed an uncharacteristic lack of marking and closing down. 

Coming on the heels of the lackluster 0-0 draw in Atlanta, we have some cause for concern here.  The positive view would be that they got the stinker out of the way before the playoffs and will be much better prepared going forward.  We also note Bedoya was not available for either of these two games.  I've always been a little skeptical of his on field leadership; sometimes his body language doesn't seem very encouraging to his teammates. These last two data points suggest he may bring more than I realize.

Both Montreal and LAFC won their contests.  The Union still lead the East by two points.  The Supporters Shield, however, is gone based on LAFC's 2-1 win over Portland.  That one had late drama as the Timbers scored in the 81st minute to level things at 1-1.  A draw would not have been great for the Union's chances but at least it would have left things open for the final weekend.  LAFC wasn't interested in that and Denis Bounaga scored his first goal for them in the 95th minute to clinch the Supporters Shield.  The goal, mostly individual skill with a touch of luck, can be seen here.  In reality, the Supporters Shield was always a long shot.  The spate of early season draws came back to haunt them.  

This Weekend

Probably won't be raining all weekend like it was last Saturday and Sunday.  And the matches aren't quite as appealing either but still some good stuff.

If you believe 538, and we tend to do so, the best match of the weekend could be Brighton - Spurs.  Probably in part because Spurs are on the road, 538 has it 37% for Brighton, 39% for Spurs and 25% for a draw.  That's the 12:30 feature match on Saturday on NBC.

Newcastle face stubborn Brentford at St. James' Park (Saturday at 10).  This will not be as easy as 10-man Fulham but we still have to be thinking three points here.  We expect Joe L Linton back and ASM is a possibility; Isak is still out until at least the following week and maybe more.

How will Chelsea fans react to Costa in Wolves kit?
Image: Craig Mercer/MB Media/Getty Images)

Surprisingly, the Newcastle-Brentford fixture may be your best option at 10 am on Saturday and the TV guys maybe think so too as that's the one on USA with the rest on Peacock.   Man City hosting Southampton doesn't look close.  Wolves taking on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge doesn't sound too competitive, though you might want to tune in to see how the Chelsea fans greet Diego Costa. He played for about 30 minutes last week and might start here; he did seem to boost their offense a bit so you wouldn't say he was a sheep in Wolves clothing.  Not sure what to make of Bournemouth - Leicester; if the Foxes have found their footing, they could make things tough for the Cherries.

Sunday is packed.  The drawing card is Arsenal hosting Liverpool at 11:30 on USA.  Recent form suggests you bet against the Gunners at your own peril.  At 538, Liverpool are prohibitive favorites (43% to 34%).  Two games at 9 am to get warmed up for that one - Crystal Palace vs Leeds (USA) and West Ham vs Fulham (CNBC).  Ho hum, another London derby - according to my calculations, there have been on average 1.33 London derbies per week through nine match weeks and no match week has been without one.  For some reason, we get a bonus match on Sunday at 2 pm featuring Everton - Man United (USA).  Monday concludes the match week with Aston Villa traveling to Nottingham Forest for a 3 pm contest on USA.  

The Union - and the rest of MLS - finish their season on Sunday.  Eastern Conference games are at 2:30 and Western Conference games at 5:00.  There are some things still to be decided  - some playoff spots are up for grabs and a few teams can improve (or damage) their playoff seeds.  The Union face Toronto at Subaru Park (PHL 17); win for them, a loss for Montreal (who play at Miami) or a draw for both would be enough for the U to claim the conference title and home field for everything but the final. 

But, shhh, don't tell Laura what time the game is.