The "R" Word?

Another disappointing performance from Newcastle has some people talking about the Magpies as a relegation candidate.  The Union continued their unbeaten streak.

No Yeah, Buts As Union Extend Unbeaten Streak to 15

The glass half empty people will find a way to devalue the Union's 2-2 draw with Charlotte and we have a few nits to pick as well but this was a good result.  Charlotte are a solid team, they had most of their key personnel available and they played the whole match at full strength.  As in, there weren't any of the "yeah, buts" that have taken some of the shine off results during the streak.  Like, yeah, but they are a lousy team or yeah, but they played 60 minutes down a man, etc. 

The Union came out of a lively first half with a 1-0 lead thanks to a PK from Iloski.  They completely lost the plot for the first 20 minutes of the second half and fell behind 1-2.  Damiani got the equalizer with this week's YouTubeableMoment at 73 minutes.  Both sides had decent chances to win in the final 20+ but couldn't convert.  Expected goals at 2.8 to 1.8 suggest that maybe the Union could have gotten all three but to my eye this looked like a fair result.  

Quinn Sullivan's name didn't show up on the scoresheet
 but he had a big impact

The biggest positive was how they rallied after falling behind.  They looked so lost for a time that we feared the wheels were going to come off.  Getting Quinn Sullivan on the pitch earlier than usual (at 55 minutes instead of 60 or later) was probably a key to getting momentum back.  Sullivan family members sitting right behind us pointed out that though he didn't get an assist on the play, his pass set up Damiani's goal.  Danley put in a great shift at midfield, including an assist on Damiani's goal. Neil Pierre was also solid at center back. 

Nits include a relatively poor outing for Kai Wagner as his deliveries into the box weren't up to his standards and he had trouble with Charlotte's speed down the wing.   Harriel did a good job breaking up multiple Charlotte attacks but he was also badly beaten for their first goal and missed a late header that could have won it.  Iloski did convert the PK but missed a wide open shot that would have given the U a 2-1 lead.

They are just two points out of fourth but the next two matches are New England and Nashville, 3rd and 1st respectively in the standings.  They do finish with Cincinnati and Toronto so there could be a few more points to collect.

A Fractious Fillebrown Derby

Manzambi was supposed to do this for us not against us

Jon Champion's words, not mine, but there were 25 fouls and eight yellow cards (six for the Magpies). Though Aston Villa left Saint James' Park with just a 1-0 win, it didn't feel that close.  Except for a spell late in the second half, Newcastle weren't much of a threat to score.  Sure, they had 16 shots but just one on target.  The Premier League website says they had no big chances.  I'm a little surprised to see xG at .99 - it didn't feel anywhere near that high.  They only surrendered the one goal (nice header by Manzambi, who was supposed to be playing in black and white this season until Villa snatched him up) but the defending did not inspire confidence.  New hires Fernandez-Pardo and Nico Gonzalez haven't offered much yet and Wissa looks like he left all his goals at the World Cup.  We are fans of Lewis Miley but not so much at right back.

There is probably enough talent here to avoid relegation but Matthias Jaissle needs to figure out a system that works.  Getting Livramento and Elanga back would probably help too.

Sack Time?

It's almost November and at least half a dozen managers are at risk. You can see the latest odds here.  Right now the two leading candidates are Crystal Palace's Pierre Sage (we hardly know him yet) and Michael Carrick (last year's manager bounce winner).  Sage's situation was certainly hurt by a 5-0 blowout at Brighton in their non-derby derby.  Man United could only manage a 1-1 draw at Leeds (totally fair result based on what I saw and the stats) so Carrick's position became more tenuous too.  Alvara Arbeola may have bought himself some time with Fulham's 1-0 win over Hull City.  Same for DeZerbi with Spurs 3-1 at home to Coventry; that one featured goals from Maddison and Marmoush plus the return of Kulusevski, things which suggest better days ahead for Tottenham.

Nottingham Forest may have deserved a little better than an 0-1 defeat against visiting Arsenal - the Gunners had one shot on target and xG was only 1.01 - .83 - but the result does nothing to take the pressure off Oliver Glasner.  No surprise to see Matthias Jaissle up there on the list, though with Newcastle in 11th, he's the highest in the table of the favorites to be sacked.  I wasn't paying attention but with Sunderland now bottom of the table, Regis LeBris moved up the list; the 0-2 loss to struggling Bournemouth did not help.

We will argue that it's nuts that any of these guys are top candidates for the sack.  Sage, Arbeola, Glasner, Jaissle and essentially DeZerbi are new in their positions.  Carrick lifted Man United out of the doldrums last year and all of a sudden he's a lousy manager?  Same for LeBris; he took Sunderland from a sure-fire relegation candidate to Europa League last year and now he sucks?  Right.

In Other News...

Maybe not super clear but Yarmolyuk
did move his head into Jacquet

Man City continue to roll, though the 3-2 win over Ipswich does betray a less than impenetrable defense.  Liverpool took another step in the right direction with a 2-1 win over Brentford. The asterisk there is that the Reds trailed 0-1 at halftime and rallied only after Brentford had a man sent off.  Yarmolyuk is the latest player to discover that when it comes to blows to the head, the laws say: 

a player who, when not challenging for the ball, deliberately strikes an opponent or any other person on the head or face is guilty of violent conduct unless the force used was negligible.

In other words the threshold is "not negligible" as opposed to involving "excessive force." We are fine with that.  And, based on their 2-0 win at Everton, Chelsea look to be finding some momentum; this was a chippy affair that featured seven yellow cards.

Conversation That Took Place But Not As Presented Below

Dennis: Spurs hanging on against Coventry is not where you want to be

Steve: Better than losing 4-1 to them like Newcastle did

Dennis: Always with the negative waves

The View From Europe

Liverpool (Villareal), Man City (AEK) and Aston Villa (Viking) all got wins.  Arsenal got a hard fought win away at Bayern.  Man United were not so lucky as they fell 4-1 to Como, a side that has been establishing itself as player in Serie A; this result will only ramp up the pressure on Carrick.  Villa and Liverpool remain perfect through the first three of eight matches in league play.  Last year, nine points got some teams through to the playoff stage so a few more points in the remaining five matches probably gets these two through.  

In Europa action, Bournemouth got a win while Sunderland and Palace got draws; that might buy some time for LeBris and Sage.  Brighton got a draw in Conference League.

Two Goals That Deserve A Second Look

BFS Northern California Correspondent Greg M sends us this clip of Martin Ojeda's piece of artistry for Orlando against DC United.  That is some display of acrobatics.

In the longer distance category, we have this goal from Brighton's Diego Gomez.  Already down 0-1 at that point, Crystal Palace must have realized they were in for a long day.

Future USMNT Material?

BFS Energy Policy Analyst David C (the same one who took me to the Ecuador-Ivory Coast World Cup match), sent along this video of his grandson zipping through the defense before deftly placing his shot in the far corner.

Newcastle strikers may want to check this out for some pointers.

How To Be Sure You're In No Danger of Dehydration

BFS Artistic Director Laura O made sure we did not miss this story about the use of smart urinals to assess how well players are staying hydrated.  You identify yourself (mark your territory?) by clicking on a screen above the urinal when your face appears.  They've come along way from assessing levels of hydration by simply looking at the color of your pee.

Hoping For Better

An early start to the weekend with an intriguing 3 pm Friday match with a  -dare we say it? - overperforming Ipswich hosting an embattled Nottingham Forest. 

Saturday's 7:30 match is worth getting up to see Aston Villa taking on Man City.  Unfortunately we'll be out refereeing and on delay for that.  A very limited 10 am slot with just Coventry - Fulham (a relegation special) and Arsenal - Everton.  The feature 12:30 does deserve that label with Spurs traveling to Stamford Bridge for a London derby with Chelsea; both may be rounding into form so we're hoping for a good one.

The Sunday 10 am slot (UK goes off daylight savings time, which means start times here spring forward) is crowded with four matches, most with some level of interest.  We'll be live with Newcastle facing Crystal Palace at our second favorite venue, Selhurst Park; losing manager there might get a phone call afterwards.  Liverpool host Brighton, with the Seagulls still ahead of the Reds in the table.  Perplexing Man United take on Bournemouth at home; frankly anything less than a win here for the Red Devils could spell trouble for Carrick.  As Hull City may be coming back to earth, their home match with Brentford may not be as pretty as some of their earlier fixtures.  Sunday concludes with a 12:30 match that may not excite many - Sunderland vs Leeds.

The Union are at Subaru Park to host New England Saturday and then go on the road to face conference leader Nashville on Wednesday.  That's a tough week.

The European competitions have the week off.  But there is midweek football with fourth round Carabao Cup action with 8 matches spread over Tuesday - Thursday.  Full schedule is here  Six of the matches involve EPL sides, including Newcastle - Everton and Chelsea - Liverpool.  Somehow, Arsenal got League Two Fleetwood Town while the Bradford City - Peterborough United match (two League One rivals) ensures that a non-EPL side will reach the quarterfinals. 

Enjoy