Leicester City’s long-serving Craig Shakespeare finally had his day in the sun and helped to steer Claudio Ranieri’s former strugglers to a 3-1 win over LiverpoolA giant “Forever Fearless” banner was passed around the King Power Stadium, the word Forever having been added to the official one‑word motto that Leicester adopted throughout their title-winning campaign. After last week’s decision to fire the man who led that incredible charge, the Foxes could also have proclaimed that they are now indisputably ruthless, too. And shameless.The death of romance? Not according to the club vice-chairman, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, who used his programme notes for the first match since the ousting of dear Claudio Ranieri to suggest that it was a sacrifice driven by a...
It was raining goals in Manchester on Tuesday but where does City’s 5-3 win over Monaco stand alongside other great Champions League nights?Dynamo Kyiv’s wonderful team of the late 1990s deserved a Champions League final – but on a pulsating night at a packed Olympiyskiy they threw away the best chance they would ever have. It was exquisite fare for much of the evening and, when Andriy Shevchenko squeezed in his second goal of the night two minutes before half-time, seemed to be going precisely as the old master Valeriy Lobanovskiy had designed. Moments later Michael Tarnat’s daisycutter of a free-kick restored some doubt but Vitaliy Kosovskiy’s 50th-minute goal – capitalising on some sloppy defending – suggested Dynamo would cut...
Bona-fide giantkilling seems to be a thing of the past, with bigger teams, Liverpool and Leeds last time out, often making multiple changes and all-but encouraging the smaller ones to put them out of their miseryWho needs a winter break when the FA Cup makes a perfectly good substitute? Everton are sunning themselves in Dubai, Liverpool re-enacting a pre-season (Jürgen Klopp’s words) at La Manga, while Sunderland have been testing their supporters’ patience by flying to New York for a team-bonding session.All of these jollies and a few more were made possible by early exits from the FA Cup. Given that other teams might suffer should Liverpool come back with batteries charged and deliver on their promise to win every...
Manager’s logic questioned as he takes his rock-bottom side to America’s freezing east coast and suggests it will make their home city ‘feel like Dubai’How are you rewarded for failing at work? The question is pertinent in the week David Moyes took his Sunderland squad to New York for a mid-season break – yes, the same Sunderland whose 4-0 thumping by Southampton at the Stadium of Light on Saturday left them rooted to the bottom of the Premier League. Bad at football but now off for a bit of sightseeing in one of the world’s most iconic cities, which may well include a visit to Trump Tower. Make America Great Again? Moyes could do with making his team adequate for...
Jürgen Klopp was kept in dark over training-ground get-together before 2-0 win at Anfield because players needed to step upPinning blame on players may be justified, tempting and good for self-esteem but can come at a price for managers who succumb. “That is killing for a team,” said the Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum. Liverpool repaid Jürgen Klopp for his refusal to give the last rites before Saturday’s comfortable defeat of Tottenham Hotspur was under way.At Melwood last week, while Klopp was continuing to take responsibility for Liverpool’s 2017 slump, the captain, Jordan Henderson, called a team meeting without the manager’s knowledge. The anaemic display at Hull City was the signal for some home truths, with Champions League qualification in danger...