Noisy former officials have added to the local difficulty of a referee who is Manchester-born but an Altrincham fan taking charge of United’s trip to LiverpoolIt is going back a few years now but I can still remember the sense of awkwardness, sitting in the press box at Stamford Bridge one day, and seeing Mark Halsey, off-duty, greeting Gary Cahill before one Chelsea match with the kind of bearhug you would not normally expect to see between a referee and a player.Cahill had previously played for Bolton Wanderers and Halsey used to train with the club, something the authorities no longer allow of referees. Halsey had his own column in the Bolton Evening News, referring to “Davo” (Kevin Davies), “Speedo”...
With the top-flight back in action this weekend, we take a look at the top seven’s strengths, weaknesses, squad depth and key players before asking whether they have got what it takes to win the leagueThe Premier League is back after the international break and, following a breathless start to the season, we assess the top seven sides in the league in search for clues as to which side will lift the trophy come May. Manchester City are the early pacesetters but their defeat at Tottenham Hotspur have given the rest of the clubs hope. It is also worth remembering that seven games into last season, Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United were top, West Ham United third and eventual winners...
Cesc Fàbregas may get his chance for Chelsea, Everton’s attackers can trouble Manchester City and Monday night’s big match at Anfield is too close to callEverything about Arsenal’s performance at Burnley screamed late Wenger era. Manchester City’s defeat at Tottenham gave them the opportunity to make a statement and as such the pressure was on; the game was tricky but hardly impossible. They delivered a performance devoid of intensity, purpose and conviction. Only Alexis Sánchez appeared not to deem the indignity of effort beneath him. Then, in the final seconds, everything changed, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Laurent Koscielny contriving the most glorious finish imaginable. Continue reading...
After a gloomy international break Rooney returns to Manchester United unsure how many chances to shine he will get before England reconvene next monthGlacial is the word that springs to mind when contemplating international breaks these days. Every few weeks the hurly burly of the Premier League gives way to a version of the same sport that operates at a snail’s pace. That is not just watching England either. Time seems to stand still for the whole of the process, making Wayne Rooney losing his place a five-day drip-feed of suggestion, confirmation, reaction and then attempted rehabilitation, with the eventual match a bolted-on afterthought that leaves the landscape oddly unchanged, save for the somewhat surprising discovery that hardcore England fans...
With Manchester United and Liverpool set to meet at Anfield on Monday, one manager’s approach seems stale while the other sounds the voice of modernityJosé Mourinho is only four years older than Jürgen Klopp but in football terms it can feel as though there is a lifetime between them. In part it is an issue of tactics: the hard, high press of which Klopp is such a devotee is modish. When Liverpool and Manchester City went to Tottenham this season and engaged in breathless, percussive styles, it felt like the football of today, the freshest ideas being pitched against each other. Mourinho’s style is more conventional. That does not render it invalid but, with the two managers’ sides poised to...