Champions League Round of 16 - Part One

The very peak of club competition in Europe is back. The UEFA Champions League. The group stage is over and the round of 16 has begun, with four huge games taking place. The Champions of Europe Real Madrid facing off against Paris Saint Germain, or as Spanish publication Marca put it 'Champions vs Contenders.' The two most lethal attacks in England faced off against two giants of their respective domestic leagues. As FC Basel and Porto hosted Manchester City and Liverpool. And Harry Kane faced the task of breaking through one of Europe's most rigid back lines as Italian champions Juventus welcomed Spurs.

Juventus 2-2 Tottenham

Goals -  Higuian 2', 9' (P) - Kane 35' & Eriksen 71'

We'll start in Turin on Tuesday night. The atmosphere was electric for what promised to be a masterclass in defensive football against the in form striker in Europe. But is was the home side which fired first. After Dembele gave away a silly free-kick inside the first 30 seconds 35 yards from goal. The ball was clipped into the channel to the waiting Gonzalo Higuian who expertly took it first time on the volley into the bottom left hand corner. Lloris got a touch on the ball but not enough to keep it out.

Juventus started the game brilliantly, and they continued to cause problems for the visitors. The ball was played in from the left where Federico Bernadeshi beat Ben Davies to the ball and went down in the area. Penalty to Juventus. And much like the first goal, Higuian fired the ball into the bottom left corner. Lloris again getting his right hand to the ball but not enough to make the save. Inside 10 minutes the home side lead by 2.

It took going down by two for Spurs to finally show some signs of life. Harry Kane made a darting run into the box before going down just to the left of the six yard box. The referee however correctly judged it to not be worth a penalty. Then a beautifully played ball into the box by Christan Eriksen found it's way onto Harry Kane's head. Six yards out, he couldn't beat Buffon. The Italian producing an excellent point blank save, when the Englishman really should score. Harry Kane however wouldn't be denied again. Dele Ali played a perfectly waited ball through and Kane took it on his right, past the on rushing Buffon, before slotting it into the empty net with his left. Spurs have a crucial away goal and a way back into the game.

Enter Douglas Costs. The Brazilian made a sublime run down the left, taking two Tottenham players out of the game before being brought down in the box by Aurier, another Penalty. On the stroke of half time Higuian stepped up for his hat-trick, only to be denied by the cross bar after blasting the spot kick down the middle! The half ends 2-1 to Juventus.

As the second half began Juve kept us their masterclass performance, with Bernadeshi cutting in from the right and whipping the ball towards the corner. Hugo Lloris pulling out a big save to keep the deficit to one. But as the half went on Spurs played their way more and more into the game. This time is was Spurs winning a free-kick just outside the penalty area, and up stepped Christian Eriksen. A sublime free-kick, curling it down low, to the right of the wall, wrong footing Buffon and into the corner. The Italian, much like Lloris in the first half, got to the ball, but it still found it's way in. The English side had fought back level.

And that is how the game ended. A brilliant example of Champions League football. All to play for in London in two weeks time. Juve 2-2 Spurs.

FC Basel 0-4 Manchester City

Goals - Gundogan 14', 53' & Bernando Silva 18' & Aguero 23'

We're used to seeing City blow teams away at this point in the season and Basel welcomed the English champions elect with the hopes of stopping them. The first chance of the game actually fell to the home side, a ball over the back to Dimitri Oberlin, the Cameroonian striker beating Ederson to the ball but failing to make any real contact on he ball. This miss would cost the home side as City then turned it on. A corner from City's left was played into the near post, where Gundogan produced a brilliant header, inside the post, no chance for the goal keeper. The away side where one up after 14 minutes.

Less then four minutes later City where doubling their lead. Sterling played the ball across the box where Bernado Silva collected it and played the ball towards the top left hand corner. The Basel keeper made a mess of it, allowing the ball to go through his hand and into the net. City where out to end this tie quickly.

Up stepped EA's Premier League Player of the Month for January, Sergio Aguero to make it three for City five minutes after Silva's goal. Picking the ball up 30 yards from goal, he took one touch to set it before striking the ball into the bottom left corner. Again questions must be asked about the keeper who didn't even move. The Argentine striker is in fine form, and he had put the game beyond Basel inside 23 minutes. The rest of the half played out comfortably for the away side, ending the half 3-0 up.

With all the respect to Basel, City were in a class of their own on the night, as they have been for much of the season. And the goal of the game was to follow, Gundogan getting his second. As he stepped inside a defender and whipped a delicious shot into the bottom right corner. Coolness personified, the tie now surly beyond Basel's reach.

The away side easily could have had more but the game finished 4-0 to the Premier League leaders. A walk in the park for most of the night.

Porto 0-5 Liverpool

Goals - Mane 25', 53', 85' & Salah 29' & Firmino 69'

Portuguese side and hosts Porto have an exceptional home record in the Champions League, and welcomed five time European Champions Liverpool on Valentines day. Both visits to Porto for Liverpool in the past have ended in draws. A record they looked to end on the night. Despite their fierce front line Liverpool always look shaky at the back, and it showed in the opening minutes. A strike from the edge of the box deflected onto the roof of Karius' net with the keeper stranded, however it was a brilliant block by Lovren. However the English side then started to click. Gini Widjnaldum worked his way into the box, and after his shot was blocked he played the ball out to the waiting Sadio Mane. The Senegalese wide man slotted the ball under the goal keeper and into the net. For all their good work at the start of the game the home side were behind.

Porto then looked the side shaking defensively, and they were punished. A poor clearance was picked up by James Milner, who worked his way inside and rattled the post with a curling effort. Only for Mo Salah, the King of Egypt, to pick the ball up on the bounce, flick it over the keeper, then keep it up with his head, committing the defender and tap it into the empty bottom right corner. Quality from the winger, his 30th goal of an incredible debut season for the reds. It was 2-0 to the away side. Porto tried to find their way back into the game throughout the remainder of the half, but with no luck. The half ended with Liverpool in the driving seat.

No team in the world can tear a team apart on the break just like Liverpool, and Porto found that out minutes into the second half. Milner won it back just outside Liverpool's penalty area, and Mane played it into Firmino. A sublime flick out to the right found Mo Salah, who made up 30 yards instantly and played a pass through the defence back into Bobby Firmino. The Brazilian's shot was saved, but Sadio Mane fired in the rebound for his second and Liverpool's third. One foot in the quarter finals.

Liverpool were rolling, and Porto were at 6's and 7's at the back. Mane dispossessing his man in midfield, showing great strength to hold off the challenge before playing a pass into James Milner. The Englishman pulled it back into the on running Roberto Fimino, who mad no mistake this time and fired into the bottom left hand corner. 4-0. Liverpool's front three all on the score sheet. It was getting worse for the home side, the energy really sapped out of the stadium with this goal.

Mane saved the best for last however. A delightful flick over the defender into Danny Ings, the Englishman played it back into Sadio, with all the space in the world. He struck through the ball brilliantly, unstoppable to the keepers left, Mane had his hat-trick, Liverpool had five!

A masterclass from Jurgen Klopp's men who, much like Man City the night before, can almost start thinking about the next round! Porto 0-5 Liverpool.

Real Madrid 3-1 PSG

Goals - Ronaldo 45' (P), 83' & Marcelo 86' - Rabiot 33'

The last side the lift the famous trophy hosting many peoples favourites to be the next. The former most expensive player on the planet versus the current. Real Madrid taking on PSG. Out of form in the League, Madrid's season relies 100% on this competition. And the French league leaders would love nothing more then to end that season. The opening stages played out mostly in midfield, with the first chance coming for the home side. Kroos curling a left footed shot to the goalkeeper's right. The save was made easily enough, only for Marquinios to almost knock the ball into his own net. The ball luckily for PSG went behind for a corner, which came to nothing.

The home side continued to press, Marcelo looking brilliant from left back, and he darted down the left before playing a brilliant ball to the right for Cristiano Ronaldo to run onto. But the man on 99 Champions League goals for Madrid couldn't beat Areola in the PSG goal. Despite their early chances it was Madrid who found themselves behind just after the half hour. A ball played in by Mbappe was poorly dealt with by the Madrid defence, Neymar with a deft flick behind into the onrushing Frenchman Rabio. Who dispatched brilliantly to put the away side ahead.

The goal didn't do much to knock Madrid's attitude to the game, Ronaldo blazing over with his left when he really should have done better. And with minutes to go until half time a cleverly whipper left footed strike from Benzema was denied brilliantly by Areola down to his right. However from the resulting corner Kroos went down under a challenge from Meunier, too easily perhaps, but the referee pointed from the spot. For CR7 to fire expertly into the bottom corner for Madrid's equaliser and his 100th Champions League goal for Los Blancos. Capping off the half at 1-1.

Conceding right on the break seemed to light a fire under the away side, who came out flying in the second half. Mbappe firing across goal from right to left, forcing Navas into a good save. Dani Alves then arrived a fraction of a second too late to turn a cross into the net for his side, PSG were on top in the Bernabeu. However much like when they scored against the run of play in the first half, the hosts hit right back in the second. Substitute Marco Asensio made his way down PSG's right hand side and drilled in the cross. Areola at fault for the first time all game, parried the cross to the one man you don't want a ball to fall to in your box, Ronaldo. Who turned the ball off his knee with seven minutes to play for the holders to take the lead.

Marcelo who was sublime all night then put the nail in the coffin for PSG. Playing the ball down the left, first into Kroos then to Asensio, he struck a first time shot straight at the keeper. But a deflection off of a Paris Saint Germain defender made it unstoppable for Areola. The ball lifted past him and into the net, Madrid had struck twice in four minutes to put the tie massively in their hands. 3-1 to the holders.

There was time for a late Neymar chance, for the Brazilian to blaze over with the last kick of the game. The 12 time champions of Europe have a huge advantage going to Paris in two weeks time. But Rabiot's away goal means that the tie is still very much alive. Real Madrid 3-1 Paris Saint Germain.

All in all week one of the Round of 16 was an example of the elite level of European football. Liverpool and Manchester City both blowing away their opponents away from home. Spurs showing they can hang with the elite, and they don't come much more elite then Juventus. And Real Madrid answering their critics the only way they know how, winning in Europe. Onto week two.

Coming up -

Bayern Munich vs Besiktas

Chelsea vs Barcelona

Sevilla vs Manchester United

Shakhtar Donetsk vs Roma.

Mane's red card - Right or Wrong?

The tens of thousands of fans inside the Etihad Stadium last Saturday was witnessed to perhaps the biggest talking point of the Premier League season so far. In a game where two of the early front runners, Manchester City and Liverpool, faced off and the home side ran away convincing 5-0 victors, for one referee's decision to be across the back pages the following day, you know it had to be a big one. Okay, for those of you who have been living under a rock since last Saturday, here is what happened. Sadio Mane had only the day before been named the Premier League's Player of the Month, and looked to continue from where he left off before the international break. 1-0 down, but with the game certainly still in the balance, a long ball from the back was played over the Senegalese winger for him to chase. As Mane charged towards the ball, City's newest keeper Ederson came flying off his line to challenge the Liverpool forward, a complete 50/50. The Brazilian goal keeper won the race, with a strong clearing header, however he was met, a fraction of a second later, by the boot of Sadio Mane. Mane had jumped up to try and knock the ball around Ederson, knowing if he won the ball he was in for a guaranteed goal, but instead the full force of the attacker went flying into the face of Manchester City's shot stopper. Jon Moss instantly blew up, and without a second though, brandished a straight red to a bewildered Sadio Mane who instead of protesting his innocence, simply crouched down and looked on in disbelief. Gary Neville on commentary was adamant that the referee had got it wrong. where as Jamie Carragher voted it was the correct decision. So lets break it down.  

Okay just look at that picture for a moment and try and explain to me how it ISN'T a red card, I'll wait... 

Yes it is very true that ANY foul, in fact any tackle, can be made to look a lot worse then it is with the right angle, the right shot. In real time Mane's tackle looked a lot more inconspicuous than the picture indicates, but and as much as this pains me to say from a Liverpool fans point of view, it's impossible to miss why the referee gave the red card. Mane's foot is a whole 6ft in the air, and as soon as his standing foot also leaves the floor he is out of control. When both feet leave the floor in a more traditional tackle there is no argument, it's a straight red. The incident was simply an example of serious foul play, one of the seven offences that warrant a red card under the laws of the game. Do you want me to quote from the rule book? Of course you do! Law 12, under fouls and misconduct. 'A player is guilty of serious foul play if he uses excessive force or brutality against an opponent when challenging for a ball while it is in play. A tackle that endangers the safety of an opponent must be sanctioned as serious foul play. The second half of that statement is what has landed Mane a three match suspension. Whether intentional or not, at the height Mane's foot was when challenging Ederson, he is putting the opposition goal keeper in serious danger. And as the Brazilian spent the remainder of the day in a near by medical facility, I'm sure he'd be inclined to agree. Sadio Mane, while chasing down the ball and jumping for the touch, you'd imagine has an idea of Ederson's presence, and even though he couldn't back out of the challenge once he had left the ground, the didn't have to go in for it in the first place. Later in the game Jordan Herderson found himself in a very similar position, charging towards the substitute goal keeper Claudio Brave who had committed to coming and getting the ball. The Liverpool captain saw the danger early, and (perhaps with Mane's red card on his mind) proceeded to run around the goal keeper, preventing any sort of collision. Yes the Englishman was not up to speed the likes of Mane which had reached, but he showed that a bit of pre thinking could have been done to avoid the situation entirely. 

In the immediate moments following the red card I was CONVINCED that is wasn't a red, a foul yes, a yellow, yes, but not a sending off. Why? It's just as simple as my previous argument. Intent. 

Okay now look at this picture, it was taken milliseconds before the previous picture, look at Mane's eyes. Notice the concentration that is 100% on the flight of the ball, notice how all that could possibly be going through the attackers head at this time is 'if I get a touch, I score'. Coming from a man who has played the sport all his life, when in the situation Mane was in, you experience 'tunnel vision' all you're thinking about is what is directly in front of you, in this case, the ball. Notice how Ederson has already thrown himself into the challenge, head first, endangering himself, with Mane flying towards him. Now, cards on the table, giving a red card for this challenge is 100% justified, but it comes back to the age old debate. Have the men who write the rules ever played the sport? On BBC's Match Of The Day, Alan Shearer, Ian Wright and Gary Lineker all said that they would have made the same challenge if they where in Mane's boots. The reason for this is, as a striker, all you're thinking about is the next goal, and in this situation the next goal was potentially seconds away. From the point of view of three of the best front men England has ever produced, it was a 50/50 challenge that had to be made. Now in a 50/50 challenge, both men know what they're getting themselves into. They both also know, once they've committed to the challenge if either one of them was to pull out, they would certainly be coming out of it on the wrong end. If Mane was to drop his foot, the 6ft1 200 pound frame of Ederson would have came flying through him, causing potentially serious injury. Potentially also, Ederson's forward momentum could lead to the two men colliding heads, leading to potential concussions for both men, Mane could not back out. 

This scenario was one Ederson has been in several times already in his short Manchester City career, so much so that on Twitter, journalist Nooruddean Choudry predicted the goal keeper's injury a month before the game against Liverpool. Stating how he is quick to launch himself into the ball head first against an onrushing attacker. Simply put Ederson's action were reckless, and 30 yards off his line, he has to be treated the same way as an outfield player. And despite what you may think, this sort of challenge takes place week in week out, on the half way line, or the edge of the box, and rarely if ever is the red card awarded as a punishment. The very next day after Mane was given his marching orders, Matt Richie was shown a yellow card for a high footed lunge towards Swansea's Alfie Mawson. Like Mane, Richie had the run on the ball which brings in the argument of excessive force and endangering the opponent, and like Mane, Richie had eyes only for the ball, no intent to hurt the man. The only difference is that Mawson avoided the complete contact, Ederson did not. If the rules of the sport state that a challenge that endangers an opponent should be met with a red card, then the outcome of the challenge is a mute point. Ederson's injury, as horrible as it was, should not mean Mane deserves a red and Richie does not. Now if Richie had been sent off, and every high footed foul ever had been punished with a red card then this argument would be a lot less fruitful, but you simply can't make a decision as big as the Mane sending off, if all of your peers, the other Premier League referee's, aren't reading from the same play book. 

You could argue that I'm picking at hairs which in all fairness I am. I agree that in the rules of the sport Mane was RIGHTLY given a red card, I just think that it's sad how the sport has developed into one where players should restrain from giving their all as they're running the risk of being given their marching orders. Mane was only ever going for the ball, you see it on every pitch, Premier League or Sunday League, every day of the week. This one isolated incident has been over examined (sorry about that) and it has brought up the same points that always come up when a red card causes controversy. On one side you have the black and white rules of the sport, what is and isn't allowed between the white lines. And on the other, we have interpretation, what a lot of people would say this sport is built on. The cherished 'bar room debate' is built on interpretation, four days after the red card was given I sat in a pub with my dad and uncle, debating the red card. On a table across the room, they were doing the same thing. In a world where some referee's are more inclined to give a red card then other for an almost identical incident, we are bound to continue to have incidents like the one you're reading about today. We also have to take a step back and see what football is becoming, more and more it is becoming a non contact sport. Maybe that is a bit extreme, but the 'no slide tackling' rule you're given in the primary school play grounds is seeping it's way into the professional game. A simple shoulder barge is now considered a foul and a yellow card, jumping for a header along side a goal keeper is a foul, basic body contact and the play is stopped. It may seem like I'm trying to argue a case against Mane's red card but I'm not, I understand that under the rules of the game it WAS a red card. What I am arguing against is the culture that football in this country is becoming, the hard tackling ways of the 1970's and 80's is long gone, and has been replaced with... well, exactly what i'm writing about today!

I may have gone off on a huge tangent about the state of modern football, but it's an argument that needs to be said! But overall should Mane have been sent off? Yes, under the laws of football it was the right call for Jon Moss to make. Now every other referee in the world just has to follow the same rules and we're golden. 

First weekend of the Premier League season - The Talking Points

The Premier League is back and wow was it come back with a bang! 31 goals scored across the ten opening games, a handful of questions answered and a lot more asked. The champions flopped, the favourites flourished, and more then a few surprises were thrown up. So let's look at the talking points from the opening weekend of the new Premier League season and the highlights so far.  

Arsenal 4-3 Leicester City - Wenger in? Wenger out? Wenger in? Wenger out? Rinse, repeat.

It took Alexandre Lacazette less then 120 seconds to announce himself to English football, planting a header beautifully into the bottom left hand corner and waking up the Arsenal fans at the start of the new season. For just over two minutes the Gunners looked to have everything in place, they looked as if they could take on the world and compete for the title, Arsenal Fan TV was set for a positive season premier. And then, a deep ball into the Arsenal box, from a short corner which was completed missed by the Arsenal defence, Cech in no mans land, Okazaki nods in, 1-1, more of the same from the gunners. In one of the most incredible season openers in Premier League history, the champions from two years ago In Leicester looked like upsetting the home side, leading 3-2 with just 7 minutes to go. Jamie Vardy's brace following Okazaki's early equaliser, and the Englishman looked back to his best. But then a brilliantly taken finish from Welshman Aaron Ramsey, followed quickly by a sublime Giroud header, bouncing in off of the bar, gave Arsenal all three points on the opening day. Despite a victory, and a very good attacking display, questions have to be asked about Arsenal. I pointed it out in my season preview, that Arsenal have done NOTHING this transfer window to deal with their immediate problems. Yes, the signing of Lacazette will go a long way to hide those problems, he looked very sharp and he will score you 20+ goals, but even with the £60 million striker, Arsenal looked exactly the same side as they did last year. Going forward they always looked a threat, Jamie Carragher on commentary summarised it perfectly, Leicester (despite conceding 4) didn't look awful at the back, Arsenal just showed the class to create the chances. This was the same last season, and the season before that, and the season before that, and the season... you get the picture. So why did they not splash the cash on a defender or two? This game told Arsenal fans exactly what I told everyone in my preview last week. Expect more of the same from Arsenal, going forward they're world class, defensively they'er poor. Their season will ultimately come down to the same question it always does in North London. Wenger in? Or Wenger out?

Watford 3-3 Liverpool - Corners... Ever thought about defending them Liverpool?

Now... as a Liverpool fan, I can be accused of being biased towards the red men. But my god, I've never seen such a contrast on a football pitch in my life, let alone between an attack and defence from the side team. The first set piece of the season... let me say that again. THE FIRST SET PIECE OF THE SEASON... that Liverpool had to defend, and it lead to a goal. Stefano Okaka, a 6ft something striker, with a huge presence and a massive build, was given a free run into the 6 yard box, to head in from a corner with no challenge from anyone. The Watford striker's performance will have Dejan Lovren having nightmares until they meet again, the Croatian centre back looked like a child trying to keep him out. It's gotten to the point that a corner is as good as a penalty against Liverpool, in fact, Mignolet has a better rate of saving spot kicks then corners if you ask me. And then, just like that, we saw the other side of Liverpool. A lovely passing move, capped off by a perfectly weighted ball through by Emre Can and an even better finish by Sadio Mane, and the 5 time European champions were level. Now remember what I said about Arsenal after Lacazette scored? That everything looked brilliant for all of two minutes? Well... Another ball into the box was poorly dealt with, and Doucoure stabbed the ball into the net to give the home side the lead again heading into the break. Again the Liverpool defence was found wanting, and again they had gone behind to a Watford side that hadn't really posed a threat, making the two goals conceded even worse. Then for 40 minutes we were reminded just how good Liverpool could be. Mo Salah gave us the first real showing of his incredible pace, beating Gomes to a through ball which looked impossible to reach, going down under the challenge and winning a penalty. Firmino calmly slotted into the bottom left corner to equalise, before just three minutes later, the Brazilian lifted the ball over the advancing Watford keeper, for Mo Salah to latch onto and knock in his debut goal, giving his new side the lead for the first time on the day. What followed was 30 minutes of smooth sailing for the leaders, before... you guessed it... another poorly defended set piece. In the 94th minute another corner was whipped in, Liverpool failed to deal with it after a poor header from Wijnaldum, and eventually Miguel Britos bundled the ball over the line to snatch a point for the Hornets. I don't really know what to say about this game to be honest, it's all been said before, not just over the last 24 hours but over the last few years, Liverpool simply look poor at the back. You could take the review of Arsenal's opening day, replace the name Arsenal with Liverpool and you'd have a pretty accurate overview of the state of the club. Going forward last season, Liverpool looked brilliant, and this summer they've strengthened in that area. Bringing in Salah who scored on his league debut, and looked very impressive in doing so. But the priority for Liverpool coming into the summer was to strengthen their back line, their defence, it simply wasn't strong enough, and the new season has started with no change being made! It's almost laughable how poor the red's were defensively against Watford, which is an even bigger shame when you consider how good their front three performed. Salah, Mane and Firmino looked great going forward, and if they hold onto Coutinho, they'll have perhaps the most potent attack in the league. But all of this is wasted because defensively, Jurgen Klopp's side is shocking defensively. A Champions League attack, with a relegation standard defence. It doesn't quite add up.

Chelsea 2-3 Burnley - 5 goals, 2 red cards, 8 yellow cards, 1 huge shock.

Chelsea became only the seconds defending champions to lose the first game of the following season. (For all you trivia lovers, Leicester City last season became the first) But the game wasn't all cut and dry, like the first two I have spoke about so far, it was an action packed 90 minutes. Chelsea's new full time captain Gary Cahill followed were John Terry left off, leaving games at Stanford Bridge early. A horrible tackle saw the Englishman given his marching orders just 14 minutes in, and the red card was the beginning of perhaps the worst half in Chelsea's Premier League history, and that isn't an over estimation. A Sam Vokes Brace, either side of a Stephen Ward goal, saw the champions going into half time, at home, with ten men, 3-0 down to a side highly tipped to be relegated! Changed were quickly made and record signing Alvaro Morata was given his debut and it didn't take the former Real Madrid striker long to continue the trend of debut goals this weekend. The ball was whipped in from Willian and Morata turned the ball in with a diving header to start the comeback. Mortata then went from hero to zero, turning a goal bound effort over the line from an offside position, ruling it out. Before Chelsea had the chance to add to their tally, Cesc Fabregas but in a late contender for worse tackle of the game, earning himself a red card and Chelsea we're reduced to 9! Despite this the final 10 minutes were all Chelsea, and David Luiz added a second for the champions, leading to a very nervy last few minutes. But Sean Dyche's side held on for a famous three points. So... what now? Antonio Conte has openly said he isn't happy with the lack of funds being made available to him in order to boost his squad, the Italian stated he simply doesn't not have enough players to fight on all front this season. And obviously, the early red card to Cahill didn't help things, as a senior figure of the side, the centre back should know better. But that doesn't change the fact that, for the first 45 minutes, Chelsea were second best against Burnley, a side set to battle relegation. All over the park they looked a yard off the pace, it took Mortata coming on in the second half for the champions to have any attacking threat. With Hazard out, Pedro out, and Morata still not deemed fit enough to start, Chelsea's attack looks very thin and it showed on the opening day.  As I previously mentioned only Leicester City had lost on match day one after winning the title the season before, now I am in no way suggesting Chelsea will end up having a season similar to the midlands club from last season, but you have to think how unprepared are Chelsea coming into this campaign. With a full strength starting eleven, they can compete with the best, but beyond that, there simply isn't enough for the London club to compete on all fronts. I would expect Roman Abramovic to get him check book out between now and August 31st, if not, what are the odds on Conte walking out before the end of the season? Think about it.

Brighton and Hove Albion 0-2 Manchester City - Pep's men spoil the party on the coast.

Despite rugged resistance from the home side, the early favourites started their campaign with what was expected from them, a win. When it was announced that Brighton's first ever Premier League game would be against Manchester City you couldn't help but feel sorry for the newly promoted side. And the 22% possession the home side saw made their first outing a lot of hard work, but they truly put up a fight. As expected however, the blue half of Manchester were the better side throughout, Gabriel Jesus coming close early on, forcing a sublime save from Brighton keeper Mathew Ryan, this was followed by the Brazilian having the ball in the net, but disallowed for hand ball. Other then Gabriel's bright spark, Pep's side never quite clicked into gear, which saw half time arrive, with the score still at 0-0. The second half saw more of the same to begin with, all the possession, but few clear chance for City. The best falling to Aguero, who intercepted an under hit back pass, only to put the ball wide of the post. However as I'm sure you could guess, the Argentinian wouldn't waste another chance, picking up the ball to the right hand side of the box, and firing expertly into the far left hand corner, giving City the lead. Once ahead, City started to play themselves more into the game, Kyle Walker impressing on his debut and drawing a free kick. This free kick lead to a corner, which lead to Manchester City's second, and an own goal off of Lewis Dunk, to seal all three points of the blues. Despite not quick clicking into gear fully, City picked up all three points and a clean sheet on the opening day, the same of which can not be said about many sides. What was interesting about this game was, as a unit, they looked a lot more drilled, the side seemed to have a much clearer idea of what their managed wanted from them. The new signings at full back of Danilo and Kyle walker slotted in seamlessly, and the rest of the side seemed to follow suit. The massive possession figure is very reminiscent of Pep's former sides in Barcelona and Bayern Munich, all over the pitch City dictated the play, meaning that despite their attacking ventures not all coming off, they never looked in doubt. Then when you think, with the likes of Jesus and Aguero leading the line, City won't need too many chances to find the back of the net throughout the season. The biggest talking point from this game however is how much room this side still has to grow. At no point during the game did they look like the finished product, and this is what it going to be a sight for sore eyes for City fans. They didn't look like the finished product, and they registered a comfortable win. Now yes it was against Brighton, but last season, that was the kind of game City could have easily slipped up in, but they registered their first win of the season, and left room to grow. Watch this space.

The best of the rest -

Now, before I go over the final game of the weekend lets look at the remaining games from match week one. Huddesfield Town are currently top of the league after beating Crystal Palace 3-0 in their first every Premier League game! Historic. Spurs started their campaign with a 2-0 away win at Newcastle, a game which was perfectly balanced until Jonjo Shelvey stood on Dele Ali's ankle and the Newcastle captain for the day was given his marching orders. Stupid. Wayne Rooney scored the only goal of the game on his return to Goodison Park, breaking the record for longest period between two goals for the same club. 13 years. Despite having less then 30% possession at home, West Brom turned over Bournemouth 1-0. Stats aren't everything. And the only 0-0 draw of the weekend saw Southampton and Swansea play out an even game, a steady start for two sides with potentially tough seasons ahead of them. Stale mate.

Manchester United 4-0 West Ham United - Saved the best for last.

The best performance by any side on the opening weekend, and it was the last game to be played. Drawing match day one to a close was Jose Mourinho's Manchester United and to put it simply, they were sublime. From the first whistle the red devils looks dangerous, and Lukaku was appearing to be a handful for the West Ham defence, so when he ended a sweeping counter attack, by firing the ball in off of the post, it had been coming, The Belgian always looked to find the space behind the defence and with the home side seemingly always on the front foot, it played right into Lukaku's hands. After conceding West Ham did an okay job keeping United out for the remaining 10 minutes of the first half, but as soon as the second 45 minutes began, Jose's men went up a gear. Again it was the new boy Lukaku, heading in a free kick, out jumping the entire West Ham defence and continuing his near perfect debut! However for the remainder of the game, the striker turned provider, bringing the likes of Rashford and Pogba into the game any chance he got. Speaking of Rashford, the young Englishman look incredibly sharp, opening up his body and steering a shot just wide on the counter attack. This was just before he fired a beautiful curling shot onto the inside of the post, Rashford looked back to his best. Next to create nightmares for the Hammers was Anthony Martial. The Frenchman showed his incredible pace to burst through a weak West Ham back line and provide a smart finish past an on rushing Joe Hart. And last but certainly not least we saw the man who is now formerly, the world most expensive player, Paul Pogba, firing home from outside the box. A very good finish to cap off a very impressive performance from the Frenchman. From start to Finish United were a class above their opponents on the day, and from back to front, man for man, they were the better team. Nemanja Matic anchoring the midfield was a revelation for United, giving Pogba the freedom to roam he was missing last season, suddenly his £40 million price tag from Chelsea looks like a steal. Then as I mentioned we have Pogba himself. He looked like a different player from least season, strong on the ball, involved in every attack, which is what we didn't see from him last time out. With Matic behind him, Pogba isn't required to do the 'dirty work' and he can play in a role he suits. Henrikh Mkhitaryan's involvement seems to have gone very much under the radar so far, the Armenian however was perhaps the stand out performer on the day! Creating two goals and providing that bit of creativity when it was needed, the former Dortmund midfielder had the 'it factor' which lead to so many of the home side's chances. And then of course, last but not least, the man of the hour, the new boy, Lukaku. I was very doubtful of the Belgian striker and his huge price tag, I didn't feel like he was worth anywhere near the £72 million spent on him, with so much of his game yet to be up to standard. But in this game, he proved me wrong. We all know how good he is one on one, and we all know how much of an impact his presence has on his opposition, but for me, he played the perfect game. Moving constantly, splitting the centre backs every chance he got, holding the ball up and bringing the likes of Rashford and Pogba into play, and he was just simply, too much for West Ham to handle. All in all, Manchester United stole the show during an excellent opening weekend, and firmly staked an early claim to be one of the front runners this season.

So match day one has been brought to a close and the Premier League 2017/2018 season is underway, and what a way to start! Over the course of the 10 games we had everything, early goals to late drama, goal fests to tightly contested fixtures, even games to one sides routes. I think it's safe to say, we're all very much glad it's back!

Heavy Metal Football - What needs to change with Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool?

This is a disclaimer before I get too ahead of myself. Jurgen Klopp is one of the world's best managers in my opinion, and I feel his football philosophy will guide Liverpool Football Club to great things in the future. This is in no way me stating that Klopp has failed in his first 12 months as Liverpool manager, it is also not a call for his head. With two cup finals, one semi final and currently in the race for the Premier League title, Liverpool have came on leaps and bounds since his appointment in October 2015. However with no silverware to show for his time in charge just how far has Jurgen's Liverpool actually came and what is left to do before we can start realistically talking about a Liverpool title challenge?

Heavy metal football. The phrase used to describe the German manager's style of play, an incredibly fast paced, high intensity game which when done effectively can force the opposition into submission. Just look at performances against the likes of current league leaders Chelsea at Stanford Bridge and the champions Leicester City at Anfield earlier in the season. Last season Klopp's new brand of football was also showing results, a crushing victory against Manchester City at The Etihad and the Europa League semi-final victory against Villarreal were perhaps some of the best by any English side in any competition. But inconsistency has plagued Liverpool during Klopp's era, much like it did during the previous regime under Brendan Rodgers. Defeats against the likes of Swansea, Burnley and the recent EFL Cup semi-final against Southampton more than demonstrate the clubs inability to produce the performances required of them week in, week out. The side built by the Northern Irishman is still strongly represented in the current team and this is where I feel the problem lies.

On the 25th January 2017, Southampton turned over Liverpool 1-0 at Anfield, to progress to the EFL Cup final at Wembley, just two weeks after beating them by the same result at St Mary's. These two loses came during the worst run of the season so far for the reds, which has seen then pick up just one win in the last seven games. That win being against league two side Plymouth Argyle in an FA Cup 3rd round reply after failing to score at Anfield, drawing 0-0 despite being over 60 places between the teams in the football league. This recent run of bad form has seen Jurgen Klopp's team fall from 2nd in the Premier  League and battling for the title to 4th place and only hanging onto a Champions League place by a thread. Also an almost expected date at Wembley for the EFL cup final has slipped through the clubs fingers despite them being huge favourites in their Semi-final against Southampton. One win in seven in not title winning form, or even challenging form and it could have cost Liverpool the chance to really make the 2016-17 season one to remember, but what has gone wrong? Sadio Mane's departure for the African Cup Of Nations directly correlates with the start of this poor run of form. Now i'm not saying was the only reason for Liverpool's success was the form of the Senegalese international, but more what the winger represents. Mane is the soul attacking player signed by Jurgen Klopp, and therefore the one attacking player signed under the ideology of  'heavy metal football'. The rest of the Red's front line, Roberto Firmino, Philipe Coutinho and Adam Lallana in particular, despite all being more then capable of fitting the German's system, where all signed by Brendan Rodgers and signed simply to fit his style of play, a much more slow based passing game based around dominating possession of the ball. These three players have been stand out performers for Liverpool this season, but without Mane neither of them have been able to carry the side over the last seven games due to again, neither of them fitting the style of 'heavy metal football'. Technically, Liverpool have one of the best front lines in the country, but without Mane running tirelessly to track the ball down and create goals Klopp's Liverpool have looked worn out and out of ideas.

After twelve months in charge and three transfer windows there is really no excuse for Mane being the one player signed by the German capable of playing football the way he wants. With the Dutchman Gini Wijnaldum being the only other non defender signed by Klopp to have appeared this season, the squad at the former Dortmund manager's disposal is extremely thin and a large percentage of the players available to him are either unproven teenagers or players signed during the reign of Rodgers which Klopp does not feel would suit his system. The likes of Emre Can who, despite finding his way into the team more in recent weeks, Jurgen Klopp does not seem to fully back Can to make the team work the way he wants. In the EFL cup semi-final against Southampton, centre back Joel Matip was the only starting outfield player signed during Klopp's time in charge with the rest being signed by Brendan Rodgers or a manager before to fit an almost opposite style of football.

If history has told us nothing else, it has told us that for a completely different style of play to work for a team, usually additions must be made to make the system fit. An example being Pep's current Manchester City team, his 'Tiki Taka' style of play was forced upon City and despite early success, without additions made to fit the style (Claudio Bravo has been a disaster) the Spaniard's side are now struggling domestically to earn even a top four place. Proof of how additions can make a change in style work can be seen with Premier League champions Leicester City. Claudio Ranieri wanted to play a counter attacking style of football, so he signed French midfielder Kante to sit in front of the back four, break up opposition attacks and launch counter attacks. These tactics lead to the most incredible Premier League season in recent memory with the surprise winners shocking world football. But since Kante's sale to Chelsea the champions have struggled significantly showing just how important he was in winning them the title.

Last season, despite Klopp taking over, Liverpool struggled domestically and finished outside of any European places. He was let off with the excuse 'it's still Rodger's team' but since then nothing has changed, and despite a few additions including Sadio Mane and Joel Matip, you could argue it is still a similar team built by Brendan Rodgers but with a new set of ideas which despite proving to be much more effective when done correctly, the current side appears to struggle to maintain Klopp's style for as long as is required to truly challenge at the top of the table. I'm not saying the failure to sign players which fit the mould of 'heavy metal football' is entirely the German's fault, i'm sure if he was given the money and the opportunity by the board Jurgen Klopp would have brought in the necessary signings to both fit his team and provide back up when needed but he is not completely absent of blame. Jurgen has been un-moving in his support of his team and he should be, but even if he doesn't openly admit it, he hopefully sees that his team needs a lot of work and that has never been as evident as it is right now.

Heavy metal football. The style implemented by Jurgen Klopp with the hope of leading Liverpool back to where they were, at the top of world football. As 2016 drew to a close it seemed as if a winning formula had been found and the newest Liverpool manager's methods were sure to lead them to success. However the loss of Mane to the ACON and the failure to recruit reinforcements has perhaps seen Liverpool's season end before it had even really begun. I believe in the coming years this high intensity football will lead to great success for the five -time champions of Europe, hopefully the curse of modern day football managers won't cause Jurgen's time with Liverpool to end before he can achieve what we all know he is capable of.