Eden Hazard scores after 392 days

 

Well, if you ask a Real Madrid fan when you last witnessed the best of the costly-signed Eden Hazard in a white shirt; surely, he won’t be able to answer. Since that eventful signing, the fans of Los Blancos have been eagerly waiting for Hazard to do justice to the number 7 short. But until now, he has proved nothing.

The last time he was seen in action, Manchester City outclassed them in the Round of 16 of the Champions League last season. Hazard was pale and his position in the team was questioned.

Then the fitness issues; such as gaining weight, poor eating habits, and injuries undermined his progress. Anyhow, he overcame all of those and featured in the starting XI for the first time this season in a white shirt.

An early kick-off at Valdebebas saw Real Madrid take on Huesca — a side that came to Alfredo di Stefano with the aim to block the spaces and use their hit-man Rafa Mir as much as possible during transitions because, in this season, the backline of Real Madrid has been the target of many due to its shakiness.

Actually, the opening 40 minutes were slow and lacked excitement – Real Madrid were stagnant in the midfield which forced Sergio to come up and link-up with the players upfront. Huesca did well to plug the half-spaces, making it nearly impossible for Luka Modric to combine with Marcelo, Benzema, and Hazard on the left.

Real Madrid used the flanks as usual and let the wing-backs advance to produce those diagonal crosses for Ramos and even Casemiro, who positioned themselves as the hitmen.

A Sergio Ramos header that Andres Fernandez saved midway through the half serving was the first real scoring chance. At the other end, Huesca weren't exactly on target, but they were putting Real Madrid's defence under pressure.

In the 40th-minute the deadlock was broken – from an open play Hazard produced one of his thunderous strikes, which made him famous at Stamford Bridge and gave Real Madrid the lead. He found the net after 392 days much to the relief of manager Zinedine Zidane, the players and Florentino Perez.  

Real Madrid were poking and prodding in trying to open up the Huesca defence, but found the going too difficult. It was then that Hazard took matters into his own hands when he collected a pass in the Huesca half and uncorked a swerving strike that Andres had no chance of saving.

The goal ignited Real Madrid and they found another one moments before the break, as Lucas Vazquez flighted a cross to Benzema, who took the ball down with his chest and fired in past Andres to make it 2-0.

Zidane's first change was an experimental one and it came shortly after intermission, with usual left-back Ferland Mendy on for Lucas Vazquez at right-back.

Real Madrid were in good control of the game and Fede Valverde made it 3-0.

Huesca failed to clear and Benzema flighted a pass across to Fede Valverde, who hammered a right-footed shot into the net.

On the hour mark, Zidane made another three changes, with Isco on for Fede Valverde, Rodrygo Goes for Asensio, and Vinicius Junior replacing Hazard.

The interplay between Vinicius Junior and Benzema were brilliant and definitely, such an understanding on the field buried all the rumours, which circulated in the social media over the past few days.

A fantastic run from Vinicius ended with a cross to the Frenchman, who bounced a shot over the crossbar.

The final change for Real Madrid saw Toni Kroos come on for Casemiro, but in the final 20 minutes, the Los Blancos played sloppy football with David Ferreiro scoring off an excellent cross from Rafa Mir.

After failing to connect the first time around, Vinicius and Benzema hooked up again in the final minutes and this time made good, as Vinicius' knockdown header took a bounce and was headed in by Benzema to round out the 4-1 scoreline.

Full points earned, but the lack of fluidity and creativity in the midfield exist. Hazard has scored, which is a ray of hope, but one must not forget, he scored before and got lost. Hope so he continues to deliver and increases his fitness level to play the full 90 minutes.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 31/10/2020 Eden Hazard scores after 392 days

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Faisal Caesar 

 

Barcelona victory in Turin: Juventus need a leader and that leader is Cristiano Ronaldo

 

It was dubbed as the reunion of two of the greatest footballers of this era, but ultimately the best footballer on the planet, Cristiano Ronaldo could not make it ultimately because of his RT-PCR for COVID-19 came positive again. And for which, it was up to Lionel Messi to own the pitch all his own – ultimately Barcelona left Turin with a much-needed victory after the defeat at the El Clasico and chaos in the boardroom.

Ousmane Dembele and Messi, who scored from the penalty spot again, were on target as Barca defeated Juventus, who under Andrea Pirlo, still finding it tough to get into shape.

Playing for the first time since Josep Maria Bartomeu’s step down, Barca started sharply and went ahead inside 15 minutes thanks to Dembele's second goal of the season.  

Juve would feel hard done by after Alvaro Morata had three efforts ruled out for offside. It was that VAR again, and certainly, Ronald Koeman would not comment that the referees are always against Barcelona. A Morata hat-trick was denied by three offside decisions, which cost Juve dearly.

Pirlo started with two pivots – Bentacur and Rabiot like Koeman. Danilo pushed rather left and became a center-back to counter the press orchestrated by Messi, Antoine Griezmann, and Ousmane Dembele. Barca maintained a highline defence and pushed the other higher.

Pirlo countered with their defenders paying back the same – the motive was to take out the pressing of Barca by exploiting spaces behind them and pass the ball through risky passing lanes to Federico Chiesa, Paulo Dybala and Morata.  

Bonucci made those line-breaking passes, for which Morata dropped deeper to collect with Kulusveski providing the width. If Kulusveski was occupied, then Rabboit would provide the depth. It helped Morata to break down the Barca defence.

With Danilo operating as the left center-back, it allowed Cuadrado to play the more offensive role and for which, Juventus attacked 45% of times from the right-hand side of the flank.

He provided effective crosses to Morarta from there and when Barca overloaded the right flank, the long passes were dished out to Chiesa.

This allowed Juve to pressurize Barca, but the Catalans had their answer to this: The double pivots were split and Frenkie de Jong became the sheer leader as the center-back with Sergi Roberto becoming conservative and Pique remaining in his usual position. Jordi Alba counter-pressed when Cuadrado was high-up and joined the midfield to help the others dominate the center of the park as the Barca shape changed to 3-4-3 with the ball at their feet.

Messi dropped deep because the spaces were there to occupy and thus Juve started to lose the grip over the game.

In the course of time, surprisingly, Messi was left free and Pedri roamed from the angles to aid him and dictate the game.

 Barca twice came close to taking the lead inside the opening two minutes, Wojciech Szczesny pawing away former Juve midfielder Miralem Pjanic's powerful drive before Antoine Griezmann lashed against the post from 10 yards.

However, they were rewarded for their bright start in the 14th minute when Dembele's shot from outside the penalty area looped over Szczesny after taking a significant deflection off Chiesa.

Pirlo searched for goals and it left more spaces – his pivots pressed high enough. Szczesny denied Dembele and Griezmann in quick succession as Juve - who had just two shots in the opening 45 minutes - contained Barca to a one-goal lead at the interval. 

When Demiral picked up a second caution for a late challenge on Pjanic, the hope of a Juventus comeback was lost.

Messi ensured Barca extended their unbeaten away run in the UEFA Champions League group stage to 11 games, slotting home from the spot after the substitute Ansu Fati had been brought down in the area by Federico Bernardeschi.

Pirlo was going pretty well with his tactics until and unless his efforts were backfired by VAR and lack of intensity in the final third. As time progressed, the intensity was gone, the fluid nature of Barca motored the game.

More often, the importance of Cristiano Ronaldo is overshadowed in Turin, but time and again it is evident that Ronaldo is the heart and soul of this Juve unit and the ultimate leader. Clearly, Chiesa did not have the cutting-edge like CR7 to dominate the left flank and take on the resistance put up by the back three of Barca in the second half. Neither anyone could find the soul of Dybala!

Someone was needed to cut-back from the left and split open the defence or try and a long-range shot from the angle who else but Ronaldo could offer such!

The project of Pirlo is under construction, as it seemed from last night’s match, and he would able to change it with CR7 given the role of a leader.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 29/10/2020 Barcelona victory in Turin: Juventus need a leader and that leader is Cristiano Ronaldo

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Faisal Caesar 

 

 

Real Madrid escape the Monchengladbach scare

 

The victory against the arch-rivals Barcelona should have been a huge confidence-booster, which was expected to bring out the best from Real Madrid in Germany against Borussia Monchengladbach, but as a matter of fact, a stoppage-time finish was needed to save the face and stay alive in the competition.

 Gladbach toyed with Real Madrid

Gladbach never left spaces like Barcelona during the transitions and meanwhile, their transitions even until the last few minutes of the game were absolutely rapid, they were compact and hard to play through at the back and pressed the Los Blancos to win the ball back higher up the pitch.

An error from Toni Kroos allowed the hosts an attack in which Marcus Thuram profited from some sloppy marking to score the opener, and the Frenchman netted a tap-in shortly before the hour mark to leave Madrid reeling.

Kroos responded with a 25-yard curling shot that stung the palms of Gladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer, who pushed it around the post

But 5 minutes later the hosts stormed ahead when Alassane Plea spotted the sloppy defending of Los Blancos who left Thuram unmarked advancing into the penalty area and passed the ball that he met with a stunning first-time finish into the top corner of the net, leaving Thibaut Courtois stunned!

The nightmares of the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium revisited and Real Madrid, the best team in the history of Champions League, were left pondering about their plans and started to script a comeback.

The comeback of Real Madrid

Casemiro headed a Kroos corner wide early in the second half as Madrid rallied, and Vinicius Junior ballooned over the crossbar from 12 yards when Federico Valverde played him in.

But the Los Blancos were shaky at the back - Plea received the ball unmarked in the box and when his shot was only parried by Courtois, Thuram tucked the rebound home from close range.

Courtois then denied Plea one-on-one as Madrid threatened to lose all control – it was one hell of a save from Courtois, who kept Madrid alive. Otherwise, they would have been down 3-0.  

Zidane decided to bring on Luka Modric and Eden hazard.

Time was running out and the Los Blancos were undone by the attacking intent of the hosts until Benzema found the net with an overhead kick from a Casemiro header to set up a tense finish in the 87th-minute!

Three minutes into added time, Luca Modric's looping cross was headed down by Sergio Ramos, and Casemiro netted the equalizer from six yards out.

Marco Rose is paying back the faith invested in him

Credit must be given to Monchengladbach for the way they played.

Arguably, they were the better side at Borussia Park and deserved full points, but were undone by the individual brilliance of Real Madrid rather than the collective efforts.  

And their manager Marco Rose deserves the accolade.  

Ever since the successful spell at RB Salzburg, Rose has been tipped as one of the most exciting coaches in Europe.

Rose two back to back titles with Salzburg and also got them to play slick, direct football, much to the delight of the fans.

There was a lot of expectation upon his move to Borussia Park, and so far, he has been satisfactory. Rose guided the Foals to a superb fourth-place finish last year. After a relatively shaky start this season, the 44-year-old was just a minute and a half away from taking all three points off the Los Blancos.

Still, it was a great display from his men, who suffocated Real Madrid.

What should Real Madrid do?

It was pretty surprising to see the way Real Madrid are struggling so early in the competition, in which they have always been regarded as the ultimate Kings.

Real Madrid rely mostly on attacking through the flanks and produce crosses so that the hit-man at the center can exploit it, sadly, the Madrid hit-men: Benzema and Jovic were more often well-isolated by the opponent defenders and Benzema also had to drop deep to aid the midfield.

Then the quality of crosses has not been good either.

No player in the squad has completed more than one successful cross from the open play.

When Real Madrid attack and throw more bodies up front, their shape changes to 2-3-5: The two center backs take the load and in transitions, most of the time, look very shaky. The three midfielders at the center of the park basically pass the ball horizontally until there is a shred of space available for a cross. Even if an opportunity for a cross arrives, the quality of the crosses and the quality of movement inside the box are neither good nor enough in quantitative measures.  

 The offensive play in the final third remains another problem for Real Madrid: The players in the center just don’t commit enough to outweigh the defenders and left spaces for the scorer.

Real continue to repeat the mistakes.

Not every time they can escape.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 27/10/2020 Real Madrid escape the Monchengladbach scare

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Faisal Caesar 

The conquest at San Siro

 

The contest was another thrilling one in a season, where you just find it tough to catch your breath for a moment. They just keep on coming and if you miss one of them, you would be left feeling guilty thinking, you should not have slept. In the historic San Siro Stadium in Milan, The Rossoneri and Giallorossi were engaged in another exciting game where AC Milan lost their 100% record in Serie A when a defiant AS Roma came from behind three times to draw 3-3 in a game featuring two controversial penalties and another Zlatan Ibrahimovic brace.

The dramatic first half

 Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored inside the opening two minutes with an instinctive finish, but Edin Dzeko responded to his opposite number by taking advantage of a misjudgment by Ciprian Tatarusanu – playing instead of the number one keeper of Milan, Gianluigi Donnarumma, to level. Donnarumma has been down with a COVID-19 and could not feature. Certainly, Milan missed him at the San Siro. Meanwhile, Jens Petter Hauge was also absent due to a positive case of COVID-19.

It couldn’t have been much easier for the Rossoneri to take the lead as they instantly cut through Roma with their first attack of the game. Rafael Leao found space to run into coming in off the left and lifted a perfect ball in behind the Roma’s 3-man defence, where Ibrahimovic was waiting to toe-poke past Mirante first time.

 A productive interchange between Mkhitaryan and Pedro exploited the same areas of Milan’s defence – the gap between Calabria and Kjaer – but the latter intervened once again before the former Chelsea man could get a shot away.

Roma won a corner and from the resulting corner they leveled - it was a moment to forget for Tatarusanu, who came to try and claim the cross, but got nowhere near the ball and Dzeko was allowed to head into an open net after getting the better of Romagnoli.

Mirante was then called into action in the 22nd minute as Calhanolgu launched his first effort towards goal; the Turkey international firing from around 20 yards out and drawing a fairly comfortable low save in the end.

Mirante was left sprawling again by Calhanoglu when just before the half-hour mark he whipped in a dangerous in-swinging corner from the left side that he flapped clear. From the resulting set-piece, Theo Hernandez was teed up on the edge of the box but saw his low first-time shot deflected wide, and then Mirante again was at full stretch to deny a Romagnoli header.

With their fourth corner in succession, Milan came closer to score with Kjaer meeting Calhanoglu’s corner on the penalty spot and hitting the far post with his glancing header as everyone stood still.

Tatarusanu was then called into action twice at the other end as the game began to open up – Firstly, he denied center-back Ibanez with an unconventional save from his low shot, and secondly, punching away a fierce Pellegrini strike that was destined for the far corner.

The Rossoneri wasted a wonderful chance during a superb counter-attack as Leao chose to pass wide to Theo from a four-on-three breakaway, and the Frenchman pulled a poor pass back into the box.

Then, Milan won a free-kick just beyond the edge of the box as Ibrahimovic was clattered, and Calhanoglu whipped a shot through the wall that was palmed away for a corner buy Mirante.

The drama continues in the second half

Ibrahimovic went up for a header that ended up being a perfect flick in behind for Leao, but the Portuguese forward spurned the opportunity with a bad first touch.

After scoring less than two minutes into the first half, the Rossoneri did the same again and Leao deserved all of the credit. A fantastic run by the left-winger saw him win the race to the flanks and he cut a perfect ball back to Saelemaekers, who was waiting to thump home with the ball on a plate.

The Rossoneri were nearly punished for a sloppy giveaway inside Roma’s half while firmly on top in the game as Theo surrendered possession; the Giallorossi’s swift break ending with Dzeko firing over at the far post from Mkhitaryan’s feed.

Roma pressed forward in the search of an equalizer.

Mancini arguably should have done a lot better when he headed over from a corner.

There was a moment of real confusion moments later though as the referee Piero Giacomelli pointed for a penalty after Bennacer was stood on in the box, with no consultation with the Video Assistant Referee. After a lot of protests, Veretout tucked the penalty past Tatarusanu who dived the right way but couldn’t get near the ball that was immaculately placed.

Ibra's opener was the fastest of the 57 he's scored for AC Milan in Serie A, and also drew him level with the number of goals he scored for Inter Milan. His second goal brought him into the top 10 of all-time goal-scorers.

In response to the equalizer, Stefano Pioli brought Rade Krunic and Samu Castillejo off the bench in place of Leao and Saelemaekers.

Milan had their own penalty shout up the other end with 15 minutes to go as a ball towards Ibrahimovic appeared to strike the arm of Mancini, but Giacomelli gave a booking to the striker instead.

The home side continued to push for their third lead of the game and the goal was gaping for Calhanoglu as a knock-down from Krunic found him in space inside the box, but the former Leverkusen man saw his effort blocked by Ibanez.

Giacomelli felt the need to even things up at the other end as Calhanoglu was bundled over inside the box albeit softly as a penalty was immediately awarded. Ibrahimovic grabbed the ball and dispatched the spot-kick into the bottom left corner!

What Milan needed was to maintain their composure n the last moments of the match.

A corner from Roma’s left side was flicked on at the near post by Ibrahimovic who couldn’t get solid enough contact to clear, and Kumbulla ghosted in at the far post to convert from close range and make it 3-3.

Roma kept on fighting and were rewarded.

The tactics of Paulo Fonesca paid off

Paulo Fonseca's 3-4-2-1 – a break down of 3-4-3 formation caused plenty of problems for the opponents but was not clicking in the end.

In a system which is heavily dependent on the fullbacks being able to attack and defend in equal measure, Fonseca started with Rick Karsdorp and Leonardo Spinazzola in the wingback positions.

The pair struggled quite a bit, with Roma looking much better once Bruno Peres came on in the second half. They attacked through the flanks and tried to exploit the set-pieces as much as possible. The fight shown to come back from a goal down three times in the game showed the rewards are coming by sticking to the format.

AC Milan remain confident

After the match Pioli said, I go home satisfied with the performance, we don’t have to look at the standings. It is useless to hide it, at the end of the game the players were not satisfied, there are regrets, we tried until the end. Romagnoli’s opportunity proves it,” he said.

“The whole performance was of a good level, against a strong opponent. They exploited set pieces better than us. This is the right path, this performance gives us further conviction.”

It is a pity we didn’t win. We created many goal chances, now we continue to work,” he said.

The best player for Milan last night was Leao, who yet again proved his worth as a potential powerhouse. His stay on the pitch was 72 minutes and during that time, he continuously took the attack back to the Roma wing-backs.

He was pretty sad after the draw, but his spirits were not down.

He said, “We want to win every game, we want to remain on top of the table but I am disappointed because we did everything to win the game. We are focused, we want to follow our path and remain on top of the table.

“Ibra is an example for all of us. I am happy with how the team is playing and I am happy he scored. I always try to help the team but today I am disappointed because we didn’t win.”

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 27/10/2020 The conquest at San Siro

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Faisal Caesar  

 

 

Everton missed Richarlison

 

At the Saint Mary’s Stadium, Southampton, the memories of that unforgettable 9-0 thrashing against Leicester City loomed largely. People talked about it more rather than the fact, Southampton have been that team that boast a great record of maintaining more clean sheets against Everton than any other teams in the Premier League. Given the kind of form the Toffees are in, Southampton might not have the brightest of chances on the sun-kissed day at Saint Mary’s Stadium.

A reckless over-the-top foul on Thiago Alcantara from forward Richarlison saw the Brazilian shown a straight red card by referee Michael Oliver in the closing stages, ruling the 23-year-old out of Everton’s next three fixtures.

Richarlison has been in fine form this season with the Toffees’ joint-second-most assists (two) over five appearances, while contributing one goal and his side’s highest number of successful dribbles (16), second-most shots (16), and fourth-most key balls (four), according to WhoScored.

Ancelotti would also be without captain Seamus Coleman after the Republic of Ireland international was forced off during the Merseyside Derby with a hamstring injury, but the good news was, James Rodriguez, did feature finally.

Alex Lowbi played in the position of Richarlison and Godfrey took the right-back position of Coleman.

The lack of winning combination at the pitch might have hampered the rhythm of the Toffees big time.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin failed to cut a satisfactory figure and it has been noticed, yet again, if he is not supported by a winger or striker behind him, he fails to fire. In the previous matches, Richarlison played a key role in getting behind Calvert-Lewin more often and create the space for scoring whereas; Ricahrslison was ideally effective in dominating the left flank lining-up with Lucas Digne.

Doucoure, as usual, went behind Rodriguez to act as the shield for him to roam freely, but the cutting-edge of the Colombian was lacking.

Ancelotti revealed James Rodríguez had barely trained this week after sustaining a knock against Liverpool last weekend and, while he looked undercooked here, that was the least of the Italian’s concerns. Everton were two goals down inside 35 minutes, with Ward-Prowse arrowing in across Pickford after collecting a weighted pass by Danny Ings before Adams doubled Southampton’s advantage after hammering in at the back post.

Ings again turned provider, scooting away from Ben Godfrey and Yerry Mina before hanging a cross towards the back post, where Ward-Prowse was waiting unmarked. But Adams, too, was lurking and, with the Everton defence gone walkabout, he smashed in via a Gylfi Sigurdsson deflection.

Southampton are a side, who exploit the flanks very well, and thus, with James lacking the spark and Doucoure trying to shield him more, it was up to Godfrey to tackle the left-side oriented attacks of Southampton – 43% of their attacks came from the left with 33% of shot directions while at the center of the park they had 30% of the ball to Everton’s 23% with 50% of shot directions.

 Sigurdsson and Allan along with the backline were put on the back-foot by the Adams, Ings, Oriol Romeu, Jaanik Vestergaard, and Ward-Prowse.  

75% of Southampton’s shooting zones were within the 18-yard box in comparison to Everton’s 50%.

From 12 attempts of Southampton, there were 10 open plays!

Everton had enjoyed just 3 from 6!

The compactness of the midfield and back of Southampton prompted Everton to rely on long balls (44 to Southampton’s 34), which was hardly effective. Meanwhile, Southampton invested in short passes (573 to Everton’s 457) and it helped to exploit the spaces on the left and middle.

Everton lacked creativity and were poor in finishing.

Southampton ended the winning streak of Everton and the Premier League is open again!  

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 25/10/2020 Everton Missed Richarlison

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Faisal Caesar 

 

El Calsico: Real Madrid conquer Camp Nou

 

 People kept on saying that the hype of El Clasico has ebbed away because the new generation would take time to reach the level of last decade and script another legendary rivalry like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Those who were trapped by the golden memories of the last decade found it tough to catch their breath because they finally realized, no matter in which era an El Clasico would be played, the amount of intensity would never diminish.

The Los Blancos traveled to the den of their arch-rivals – Camp Nou – as the underdogs: The home team was in a much better shape after the comprehensive victory in the Champions League.

The defeat against the newly promoted Cadiz was a dull affair and it may happen, but after the defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium, it was not an accident; but the lack of coordination was evident. As usual, the manager of Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane came under fire; but he stood for his players and took the responsibility for those defeats on himself.  

Zidane had injury issues. Especially on the right-back position, where he experimented with Mendy the other day against Shakhtar. It failed and he was left with the choice to play Nacho Fernandez and then when Nacho left with niggles, Lucas Vazquez was introduced. The task to tame Ansu Fati was the prime target and each of them had to give their best.

Thankfully, Sergio Ramos was back in the side.

Zidane went with a 4-3-3 formation with Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Fede Valverde operating at the center of the park and Karim Benzema would be aided by two wingers: Vinicius Junior and Marco Asensio.  

High-octane first half

The game took off with a flier - The first chance of a gripping game brought the breakthrough as Karim Benzema played a patient pass-through for Valverde to advance and lift a cool fifth-minute finish over Neto into the top-left corner.

Vinicius Junior blasted off target as Madrid sought a swift second, but instead, they were pegged back three minutes after going ahead when Jordi Alba raced in behind Nacho and squared for Fati to tap in.

Thibaut Courtois and Neto denied Lionel Messi and Benzema respectively at either end as an even, entertaining first half finished all square before Barca started strongly in the second period.

Fati shot across the face of goal and then Philippe Coutinho aimed a header wastefully wide from the goal-scorer's pinpoint cross.

Both teams excelled at a rapid pace as if it was basketball – it left spaces and more of ten Barca posed a threat. Casemiro came big when it was required the most.

His tackle against Messi was like a lifeline, meanwhile, his attempted tackle earned him a yellow card, whereas, there was no contact with the feet of Messi, who reacted as if he broke his shin bone.

Zidane blocked the spaces and attacked in transitions

Zidane realized that the time has come to squeeze the spaces and stranglehold the free-flowing nature of Barcelona. The midfield started to cut off the passing lanes to Messi and Coutinho more and Barca planned to attack through the flanks where Ramos and Raphael Varane became alert enough to block the dangerous crosses.

Sergino Dest, the first-ever player from the USA to feature in an El Clasico, had a fabulous game and on the right, he was a continuous threat, but Ramos and Varane remained focused to cut off the threat as much as possible.

When the transition came, Real Madrid advanced and exploited the spaces – Sergio Busquets was a weak link and more often he was well beaten by Vinicius Junior and Asensio.  Toni Kross remained the commander in the midfield, who created chances and scripted key passes.

Lucas Vazquez, normally a winger, played a wing-back, gave his all to neutralize Fati.

The crucial moment of the game came Lenglet's foolish, off-balance tug on Ramos encouraged an extravagant fall, alerting the VAR to the foul and allowing the visiting skipper to slide his spot-kick beyond Neto.

Real would not let this opportunity waste.

They pressurized the Barca midfield and frontline more – it left spaces and Madrid pounced on it.

Neto came to the rescue, but substitute Rodrygo Goyes split-opened the Barca defence in the stoppage time and assisted another substitute Luka Modric to make a Barcelona comeback impossible.

Barca had 60 percent of the possession in the second half but could not muster a single shot on target – kudos to the solidity and composure Zidane’s backline and midfield exhibited.

Real are on top having to win the first El Clasico of the season and at Camp Nou since 2007.

The lost momentum has been gained and hopefully, the Los Blancos don't lose their way again! 

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 24/10/2020 El Calsico: Real Madrid conquer Camp Nou  

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Faisal Caesar 

 

 

 

 

Patrick Bamford ends Aston Villa’s unbeaten run

 

Aston Villa had won all four of their previous matches this season and had not even been behind in a game. But against Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United they found the going tougher. Patrick Bamford's maiden Premier League hat-trick saw him write himself into the record books as Leeds United ran out winners against the team which shocked the Champions Liverpool at Villa Park.

Patrick Bamford was never dubbed as the man to fit in the style of the Premier League. The critics reckoned Aston Villa were about to climb to the top of the table for the first time in 9 years. All those people were made to eat their humble pie as Leeds ran Villa ragged here and clinched victory thanks to a wonderful hat-trick by their center-forward, Bamford.

It was a wonderful display of style and substance from Bielsa’s side at Villa Park. They pressed, ran with the ball with some grace and the search for goals continued even when the lead was enough to nail the opponent. It was a collective effort in a theatre without music. Sadly there were no fans present at the stadium to witness such a football display live.

That sent Marcelo Bielsa’s team to third place in the table and took Bamford’s tally for the season to six goals from six league games. His previous 27 matches at this level had yielded just one, and his strike rate in the Championship was patchy.

It marked only the second competitive hat-trick of the forward's career, having notched his first just over two years ago against his current club for Middlesbrough, and saw him join a select group of legends including Eric Cantona and Gordon Strachan in achieving the feat in the Premier League for the Whites.

Bamford also saw his haul match multiple club records, becoming only the second player to score in each of their opening three away games in a top-flight league season after Gordon Hodgson managed the same in the 1937-38 campaign.

In addition, Bamford became the first Leeds player to score more than once in an away Premier League match since both Mark Viduka and Harry Kewell notched three and two respectively in a 6-1 drubbing of Charlton Athletic in April 2003.

His six goals across the first half-dozen games of a Premier League season meant that he further equaled Cantona's achievements from the 1992-93 season, matching the Frenchman's long-standing record - and he has helped United to match the record for most goals by a newly promoted club across the same opening period, matching Middlesbrough from the same campaign.

Bamford also became only the fifth player to score an away hat-trick at Villa Park, following in the footsteps of Chris Sutton (1997-98), Robbie Fowler (1998-99), Gareth Bale (2012-13), and Sergio Aguero (2019-20).

It caps a remarkable start to the campaign for the former Chelsea-man and former England youth international, whose run of form might impress Gareth Southgate.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 24/10/2020 Patrick Bamford ends Aston Villa’s unbeaten run

Thank You 

Faisal Caesar  

 

The story of Carlos Vinicius

 

Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham Hotspur started their UEFA Europa League campaign with a win against LASK. They might not be one of Europe's giants, but LASK have a sting in their tail and this was a good display from Spurs, make no mistake about it.

The Spurs have netted fifteen goals in four Europa League games now, who controlled the tempo from the start and showed excellent composure to beat the press en route to their first shutout of the season.

Jose Mourinho made eight changes to the side, which blew the opportunity against West Ham United. The Spurs always looked comfortable here despite a few nervy moments, as they claimed only their first clean sheet in 11 competitive outings.

Lucas Moura opened the scoring in the first half following a wonderful pass from debutant Carlos Vinicius, and Tottenham’s lead was quickly doubled when a Gareth Bale cross was turned into the net by the unfortunate Andres Andrade.

Finally, the third goal was added by the in-form Son Heung Min with less than ten minutes remaining.

The center of attraction was Gareth Bale, who made his first start since switching Real Madrid's famous white for Tottenham's once again. He's still some way off full fitness, but he worked hard and produced some calculated crosses, including the one that forced Andrade to put through his own net.

But one player’s performance caught the attention of the world and he was the Brazilian Carlos Vinicius.

Born in Bom Jesus das Selvas, Maranhao, Carlos Vinicius started his football career at the youth ranks of Goiás in 2009, at the age of 14, as a central defender.

In 2011 he moved to Santos but was initially loaned to Desportivo Brasil before returning to the club. Released in 2014, he subsequently joined Palmeiras and finished his formation with the club in the following year.

Carlos Vinicius moved to Caldense for the 2016 season but spent the first year without playing. He made his senior debut on March 19, 2017, starting in a 2–0 away loss against Uberlandia for the Campeonato Mineiro. At the club, he was mainly used as a defensive midfielder.

In May 2017, Carlos Vinicius joined Gremio Anapolis for the second division of the Campeonato Goiano. For the side, he only contributed with two appearances as a substitute, being utilized as an attacking midfielder, but was moved to the forward position for a friendly and scored two goals in that match; he then impressed some Portuguese scouts in the match, which prompted to a move to the country.

A few months later, Carlos Vinicius was presented at Portuguese LigaPro side Real, after agreeing to a one-year loan deal.

He made his debut late in the month, in a 2017–18 Taca da Liga 1–0 win over Belenenses, scoring the only goal.

Carlos Vinicius made his league debut on 6 August 2017, scoring a hat-trick in a 4–1 home routing of Leixoes.

He ended the season with 20 goals in 39 matches.

Carlos Vinicius agreed to a deal with Napoli for around €4 million, effective as of July 1.

In July, he was included in the team's pre-season and scored in a friendly against Carpi late in the month.

After appearing in the pre-season with the club, Carlos Vinicius returned to Portugal after being loaned to Primeira Liga side Rio Ave for one season.

He made his top tier debut on September 1, playing the last 20 minutes in a 2–1 home defeat of Portimonense.

Carlos Vinicius scored his first goal in the main category of Portuguese football in September 2018, in a 3–1 away success over Santa Clara; in that match, he also scored an own goal.

Seven days later, he scored a brace in a 2–1 home win against Boavista.

Carlos Vinicius ended his spell at Rio Ave with 14 goals in 20 matches.

In 2019, Carlos Vinicius joined Monaco on a six-month loan deal. He made his debut for the club three days later, replacing Radamel Falcao late into a 2–1 home win against Toulouse FC.

Carlos Vinicius scored his first goal in France in March 2019, netting a last-minute winner in a 1–0 away defeat of Lille.

Mainly used as a backup to Falcao, he helped the club avoid relegation, scoring two goals in 16 matches.

In July 2019, Carlos Vinicius signed a five-year contract with Portuguese champions Benfica on a transfer fee of €17 million and a release clause of €100 million.

He scored a goal on his debut for the club, sealing a 5–0 win over Pacos de Ferreira on 10 August.

In November 2019, Carlos Vinicius scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 home routing of Maritimo, taking his tally up to 12 goals in 16 matches overall during the season.

It was a breakthrough season for Vinicius and which impressed the Spurs very much.

On October 2, 2020, Tottenham Hotspur announced the signing of Carlos Vinicius on a season-long loan from Benfica for a €3 million fee.

He was signed as the back-up for their injury-prone striker Harry Kane.

The fans of Spurs have been waiting for a long time for their squad to feature a genuine backup for Kane and judging by the game against LASK, it looks like they might’ve found one in Carlos Vinicius.

At the start, he was a bit scratchy and missed a relatively easy chance early in the first half, but once he settled down, his movement and team-play were fabulous. Vinicius marked his debut with two assists, and both of them were impressive.

The first half saw the player pick up Lucas Moura with a pass that Kane himself would’ve been proud of, with his fellow Brazilian finishing off the chance with ease. In the second half, the striker was able to get his head to a ball from Matt Doherty to head into the path of Son Heung Min, who unsurprisingly found the back of the net.

 It was a highly impressive debut for Vinicius, who exhibited no nerves at all.  

“Carlos did very well today,” said Lucas Moura. “He did two assists and made a good game. He’s the kind of player we missed in this squad, another number nine. Another Brazilian as well is good for me,” Moura added.

The boss Mourinho was impressed with the 25-year-old forward as he stated, “He played well but he can do better. Not easy to not speak English so the adaptation to the group isn’t an easy situation. Different football, different way to play, how we want to press. It’s about learning. But with these circumstances, first match he did well. Only thing that was missing was one goal. Showed he’s more than that and that he can play with Harry Kane as well.”

A good start to the Spurs journey for Carlos Vinicius.

Note: This article has been posted in Cricketsoccer as CSdesk The story of Carlos Vinicius

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

 

 

Pele is the ultimate All-time Best

There is no need to explain who Pele is! Even a layman in football knows Pele is the greatest footballer of all time while the so-called fans of particular football players of modern-day know the King by disliking him and dishing out useless comparisons.

Since Pele retired from international football, the emergence of great players never stopped in football. Apart from Brazil, the other nations produced some outstanding attacking players with goal-scoring abilities, and immediately they were compared with the greatness of Pele. 

For the last five decades, the comparison has been between Pele and others:

Pele vs Johan Cruyff

Pele vs George Best

Pele vs Diego Maradona

Pele vs Zico 

Pele vs Ronaldo O Fenomeno

Pele vs Cristiano Ronaldo

And, obviously, Pele vs Lionel Messi

Of course, there have been others who were compared with the king.

And in doing so, the achievements of the King have been undermined consistently.

But the King remains the King as misinformation cannot overshadow the greatness of Pele.   

Pele played in a weak league?

Whenever someone says such, it seems, the person is either out of his mind or lacks complete knowledge about football and its history. He or she is a typical worshipper of a particular team and player, who blatantly denies the facts like an autocrat. 

Now, remember, Brazil were a stronger force during the Pele era than they are now. That meant the domestic game in Brazil was far from being poor, but were extremely competitive and some of the greatest in the games featured in that League.

His opponents were the likes of Djalma Santos, Nilton Santos, Didi, Gerson, Rivellino, Tostao, Jairzinho, Mauro Ramos, Bellini, Amarildo, Vava, Zagallo, Paulo Cesar, Piezza, Brito, Everaldo, Carlos Alberto Torres, and Garrincha. 

In fact, there were Brazilians, who hardly could make it into the national side, but when it came to sheer talent and skill – any teams in Europe back then would have loved to have them under their wings.

Not only the Leagues in Brazil but in the other parts of South America, the Leagues were rated highly - In the first 10 years of the Intercontinental Cup (known as the Club World Cup today) South American sides won 6, compared to Europe’s 4.

Thus, why would Pele leave such a highly competitive and tough League and fly to Europe?

Again, he was barred from playing in Europe as he was declared a national treasure.

Pele played against weaker opponents and players?

Was it so?

Really?

Would you dare to rate Argentina, Uruguay, Germany, Italy, England, former Soviet Union, Poland, Austria, former Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Peru, Chile, Portugal, Spain, Hungary, France, etc. as the weak opponents? 

When Pele made his international debut against Argentina back on July 7, 1956, at the Marcana, he was just 16. Now, there is no need to describe how good the Argentine team was back then and it was Uruguay and Argentina who were two of the best in South America in those days. They beat Brazil at Maracana by 2-1, but the 16-year-old scored his first-ever international goal against a ragged Argentine defence.

Pele, at the age of 17, arrived in Sweden for the World Cup 1958, sidelined by a knee injury but on his return from the treatment room, his colleagues stood together and insisted upon his selection.

His first match was against the favourites USSR and Lev Yashin where he gave the assist to Vava’s second goal.

Action from the group match between Brazil and the Soviet Union during the FIFA World Cup 1958 in Sweden. Image Courtesy: Russia Beyond

He was the youngest player of that tournament and at the time the youngest ever to play in the World Cup. 

In the nerve-wracking contest against stubborn Wales in the quarterfinals, it was his well-composed goal that secured Brazil’s place in the semifinals.

Against France of Raymond Kopa and Just Fontaine, in the semifinal, Brazil were leading 2–1 at halftime, and then Pele scored a hat-trick, becoming the youngest in World Cup history to do so.

On June 29, 1958, Pele became the youngest player to play in a World Cup final match at 17 years and 249 days.

The 17-year-old Pele in action against France during the semifinal of the FIFA World Cup 1958 in Sweden. Image Courtesy: New Vision

He scored two goals in that final as Brazil beat Sweden, the hosts, Olympic Champions, and favourites to win the title, 5–2 in Stockholm.

The Boy from Nowhere became a story.

Pele also played in the South American Championship.

In the 1959 competition, he was named the best player of the tournament and was the top scorer with 8 goals, as Brazil came second despite being unbeaten in the tournament.

He scored in five of Brazil's six games, including two goals against Chile and a hat-trick against Paraguay.

Defensively, how tough Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay could be, one can just guess.

The 17-year-old Pele in action against Sweden during the Final of the FIFA World Cup 1958. Image Courtesy: Toms Sports World

To be fair, the defenders during the era of Pele were a hard nut to crack. The defenders never stepped back to dish out rough tackles to gun down the best players on the pitch and in those days, man-marking was just like experiencing a jail sentence. If there were four or five defenders at the back, then at the centre of the park, either one or two defensive midfielders, who wandered around to script dirty play on the pitch and hamper the rhythm of the opposition.

Things were not easy for Pele or others back in those days.

Rules have changed a lot with time to favour the attackers. 

At the international level, his opponents in defence were Franz Beckenbauer, Bobby Moore, Velibor Vasovic, Silvio Marzolini, Albert Shestenev, Jose Santamaria, Hector Chumpitaz, Elias Figueroa, Kadlec, Novak, Zebec, Coluna, Voronin, Cesare Maldini, Tarcisio Burghnich, Giacinto Facchetti and co.

To hit the net he had to beat Lev Yashin, Viktor Ponedelnik, Ivor Viktor, Gordon Banks, Sepp Maier, Ladislao Mazurkiewicz,  Milutin Soskic, Vladimir Beara, and some of the toughest keepers in South America and Europe.

Whenever Pele played at the international level, the hype would always be about Pele vs Puskas, Alfredo Di Stefano, Kocsis, Czibor, Kubala, Suarez, Bobby Charlton, Geoff Hurst, Eusebio, Valentin Ivanov, Luigi Riva, Sandor Mazzola, Rivera, Slava Metreveli, Eduard Streltsov, Kopa, Josef Masopust, Pluskal, Francisco Gento, Dragoslav Sekularac, etc.

So what do his opponent players say about him?

“He is the most complete player I ever saw.”

Franz Beckenbauer

“Pele was the most complete player I've ever seen. Two good feet. Magic in the air. Quick. Powerful. Could beat people with skill. Could outrun people. Only 5 ft 8 in tall, yet he seemed a giant of an athlete on the pitch. Perfect balance and impossible vision.”

Bobby Moore

“There’s Pele the man, and then Pele the player. And to play like Pele is to play like God!”

Eusebio

“The greatest player in the history was Di Stefano. I refuse to classify Pele as a player. He was above that”

Ferenc Puskas 

“I sometimes feel as though football was invented for this magical player”

Sir Bobby Charlton

“The best player ever? Pele. [Lionel] Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both great players with specific qualities, but Pele was better.”

Alfredo Di Stefano

“We went up together to head a ball. I was taller and had a better impulse. When I came back down, I looked up in astonishment. Pele was still there, in the air, heading that ball. It was like he could stay suspended for as long as he wanted to.”

Giacinto Facchetti

“I told myself before the game, he's made of skin and bones just like everyone else — but I was wrong”

Tarcisio Burgnich, who marked Pele in the final of the FIFA World Cup 1970

Pele would not have fared well in the European Leagues?

It has already been explained why Pele did not have to play in Europe, but when this question arises, one needs to see how Pele fared against the European Clubs.

In the 1962 and 63 Intercontinental Cups, Santos beat Benfica 8-5 on aggregate over 2 legs & AC Milan 7-6 on aggregate over 3 legs. Both were the best teams in Europe during that time.

Pele scored 9 goals in 5 games against them. His record during Santos’ tours of Europe was similarly emphatic. Factor in his displays in the World Cup and the claim, that his success was down to playing against poor players quickly begins to unravel.

Between 1956-1965, aged 15 to 24 in official games for Santos (not including his European Tours), Pelé averaged at least one goal per game in 10 consecutive seasons. Totalling 463 goals in 351 club games.

1959 - In 1959 Pele toured Europe playing a game every 3 days. In 103 games Pele scored 127 goals aged just 18. On the 17th of June 1959, Santos would play European Champions Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, they would lose 5-3 but Pele would score.

It was later revealed that Real Madrid had been resting players for over a week before the game, whereas Santos was in the middle of playing 19 games in 39 days. Real Madrid would refuse to accept Santos' offer of a rematch in the years that followed.

Just 11 days later Santos would travel to Camp Nou to face a Barcelona side with Kocsis, Kubala, Suarez, and Czibor. But it wouldn’t matter. Santos hammered them 5-1, with Pele scoring twice.

Just two days earlier Santos had played Inter Milan at the San Siro.

The outcome again, is similar.

Santos hammered the Italian Giants 7-1. This time, Pele scored 4.

At his peak in the early ’60s, Pelé did things that no one had done before or since. From 1961-63 Pelé competed in 11 tournaments, winning 10.

Pele had a great team – so what?

Which Brazilian legend after the Second World War did not enjoy having a great side? But could each and every one of them lift the World Cup or make their respective teams the greatest in history?

Certainly not!

Then there are other great players with teams who failed to create a legacy and win it big when it was required.

Of course, Pele had a great team, but he was the nucleus of the team and without him, the team was a ship without radar most often. This was evident in the competitions at the top level, as for example, World Cup 1966 – Pele was injured and Brazil faced a sad outcome.

4 years later he would lead from the front of a side, which is still regarded as the greatest football in history.

In Mexico 70, Brazil played with 5 number 10s up front and each one of them was marvellous in their respective positions. But the ultimate greatest was Pele, who had been crowned the best player of the tournament.

It is never easy to be the best among the best.

Pele was the best among the great Brazilian players during his era.

When Pele played there was no offside rule – Are you sure?

The offside rule was introduced in 1925 and in fact, this rule was an antagonist to the attackers until Italia 90 when FIFA changed the rule to mean that the attacker level with the 2nd last defender was onside, previously they were judged to be offside.

Now, imagine, Pele, who was born in 1940 and started his international career in 1957, playing with the current offside rule – he would have devastated everything also don’t forget to imagine how Pele managed to score so many goals with the previous offside rule and the ragged defenders he faced.

He made his Santos debut aged 15!

- Aged 16 he scored 41 goals in 38 games for Santos & 2 in 2 for Flag of Brazil

- Aged 17 he scored 66 goals in 46 games for Santos & 9 in 7 for Flag of Brazil

- Winning the World Cup, scoring 6 goals from the quarterfinals and onwards.

He was not even 18 and think about the offside rule back then.

Does Pele count goals scored in the army?

Only 13 of Pele’s career total of 1283 goals were scored while in the army. An extremely minute number that can be easily dismissed without any great statistical damage. Something that is not at all really relevant.

Cup Final record

Pelé’s Cup Final Record stands head and shoulders above everyone else in the Greatest of All Tome discussion.

In his career, he played in 23 Cup final matches scoring 29 goals. He scored at least once in 69.56% of games & 42.02% of all Santos and Brazil’s Goals!

Percentage of team goals scored

Analysis of Pele’s goal contribution concludes that over an 18-year career, he scored a greater percentage of his club's goals than both Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi. During his peak, he was far more statically valuable from a goal-scoring perspective.

Throughout his whole Santos career, Pele scored 37.8% of all Santos goals. Compared to Messi: 34.8%. Cristiano Ronaldo: 33.3% His peak in 63 he scored an astonishing 51.9% of all Santos goals.

Conclusion

Personally, I don’t like comparing players from different because it becomes a never-ending argument that never ends and ultimately becomes ugly.

But still, one can just remain quiet all the time when wrong information dominates and is given more importance to tarnish the image of someone like Pele.

Very few sportsmen have been able to create a legacy in their respective nations and Pele is one of those.

The fans and critics forget time and again, at the end of the day, they compare their favourite players with Pele.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

The night of Fabinho at Amsterdam

 

Back in 1966, Liverpool visited Amsterdam and the evening was foggy and from the fog, a legend named Johan Cruyff was born. Last night, at Amsterdam, there was no fog, but the overcast conditions were evident over the state of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool team. After being jolted by Aston Villa, they were heavily shaken at Goodison Park by VAR and the injury to their big man – Virgil van Dijk aka VVD. Over the years, VVD has been one of the vital cogs in Liverpool’s rejuvenation. Without him, certainly, the backline of Liverpool look fragile.

Ajax are a different kettle of fish in Amsterdam and despite losing many of the stars of that eventful campaign in 2018-19, their forward line has some promising youngsters who could exploit any loopholes in the defence of the opposition.

Amsterdam is a tough venue for the visiting teams and given the current state of the Reds, Klopp would have been thinking of avoiding a defeat rather than bagging full points. But he took the flight to Anfield with full points and surely, the Liverpool backline played a huge part in this Joe Gomez with his new partner at the center-back position, Fabinho weathered the storm with enough calm and composure.

Luck played its part in Liverpool’s victory with the Ajax defender Nicolas Tagliafico settling the outcome with an outlandish own goal. Klopp will feel it overdue given the injuries that dominated the buildup and shaped his team selection.

“The medical department made the lineup pretty much,” he said. But there was determination and resilience in the visitors’ performance, typified by Fabinho denying Dusan Tadic an equalizer with a spectacular overhead clearance on his goal-line.

Yes, Fabinho was outstanding last night and it was much-needed because it was one of those nights where the Liverpool frontline failed to cut a satisfactory figure, and to keep the fight going they needed a leader and it was Fabinho who led from the front.

Fabinho, starting at the heart of the backline, relished a brilliant night for Liverpool.

Filling in for the injured VVD, the Brazilian stepped up to the plate to ensure the Dutchman isn't missed. His excellent positional awareness and distribution skills kept everything sound at the back.

The wonderful goal-line clearance in the first half is what has everyone raving about his performance. Fabinho read the danger and got back quickly to clear Tadic's chipped effort off the line to keep the score 1-0.

“Was there pressure on that situation tonight? Yes,” said Klopp of his central defensive problems. “It’s clear for the two in the back as it was their first game together, I think. Fabinho can play the position, he likes ­playing it actually. If I asked him to play right‑back, I don’t think he would enjoy it as much. In our situation, we have to keep the boys fit. But I’m really pleased for tonight. It gave him ­confidence for sure.”

“It was good but even Fabinho can play better. Joe and Fabinho need to get used to each other, they need to get used to the verbal demands of the position and helping the midfield. It was a good performance but there is a lot to improve, and that is good. It was absolutely good tonight.”

Klopp admitted Liverpool required “a bit of luck” to keep a clean sheet with Fabinho’s clearance and Davy Klaassen, the former Everton midfielder, striking a post in the second half.

“We don’t hang the clean sheet too high because there were two ­situations where we were far away from perfect,” he said.

The Reds need not worry about VVD’s lengthy absence as long as Fabinho continues to deliver in this fashion.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 22/10/2020 The night of Fabinho at Amsterdam

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

Brilliant Shakhtar Donetsk shock Real Madrid

 

The first match of Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League of this season was at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium against Shakhtar Donetsk, who surfaced a team without 10 of their first-team players who were ruled out due to COVID-19. It seemed to be set up for a straightforward Madrid win, with Shakhtar clear underdogs even before losing half their squad to COVID-19 in a situation coach Luis Castro described as “a nightmare.”

But it was Real Madrid who experienced an absolute nightmare in the first half. They were completely outthought and outfought for 45 minutes by the Champions of Ukraine. Rocketing strikes from the inspiring 20-year-old Brazilian Mateus Tete and Israel’s Manor Solomon sandwiched a Raphael Varane's own goal to secure a three-goal half-time lead.

Real Madrid disaster-class

The absence of Sergio Ramos came as an excuse, but if you are the champions of La Liga and dream big then you need to rely on the players you have. But, in turn, the absence of Ramos was felt every second as Raphael Varane and Eder Militao put up a disastrous display as a center-back.

Real defenders just could not cope up with the pace and intensity of the Brazilian Tete, who moved like an electric train and the rest, followed him to crush the Madrid defence.

The understanding between Militao and Raphael Varane was non-existent. The coverage from Marcelo and Mendy on the flanks was absent. Not long before Shakhtar’s first goal, Mendy was in a central attacking midfield role while Asensio was the team’s right-back. On the goal itself, Militao ended up over on the right-hand side, and the ball ended up at Tete’s feet on the left.

On Shakhtar’s second goal,  Courtois spilled Tete's shot at the feet of Dentinho, prompting Varane into a desperate lunge that succeeded only in turning the ball past his own goalkeeper, and the winger's cute back-heel then teed up Solomon to make it three.

Throughout the first half, the press was disjointed, and the defensive loopholes were exposed badly.

Offensively, there were no clear solutions.

At the back – Dodo, Bondar, Kocholava, Korniienko, and with Maycon in front as a pure defensive midfielder put up a solid display and blocked whatever Real Madrid threw at them. The Real Madrid flank decided to rely on crosses to exploit the aerial route because it was tough to break the well-drilled backline of Shakhtar.

Luka Jovic – who started as the hit-man of Los Blancos – was lost in the forest of Ukraine and thus Zidane. Rodrygo Goes was struggling big time and Zidane decided to change things in the second half.

Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior were brought on.

Real Madrid switched to the fourth gear – offensively they looked braver than ever and merciless.

Luka Modric dished out a marvelous strike from the distance to reduce the deficit and then the grand entrance of Vinicius was evident when he quickly made it 3-2. Fede Valverde’s stoppage-time magical strike was ruled out by VAR, which would have been a consolation; but Shakhtar’s spirited display deserved to be rewarded.

Real Madrid were enjoying a great run at their temporary home that is the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano. They had a 100% record there until their 1-0 defeat to Cadiz.

Now with a shock defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk, they have lost their second game at the venue.

On top of that, they have already conceded twice the amount of goals this season than they shipped in the six games at the venue last season.

What should Real Madrid do?

Zidane emphasizes on solidity and compactness. But in recent times, his defence seems to lack coordination. Zidane loves to experiment with his players and the presence of Mendy as a right-back was one of his experiments even though he was forced to do such because of the injury of Dani Carvajal.

At times, left-backs playing on the right work wonders, but it is not fruitful always. Mendy looked uncomfortable and failed to link-up with players upfront.

Meanwhile, Marcelo was punished mercilessly by his fellow countrymen Tete.

Zidane might try with a 3-man backline – Ramos, Varane and Militao with Casemiro playing as a defensive midfielder, whose defensive qualities are more than capable of shielding the back.

Marcelo as a wing-back on the left flank could really benefit from the transition, while he could be partnered up with either Asensio or Rodrygo on the right.

Then, whether Luka Jovic deserves a place in the Real Madrid squad or not should be given a hard thought.

Jovic has been with Real Madrid for more than a year now and is yet to settle properly at the club. He is never in sync with his attacking partners and even when opportunities are created for him in the box, he is too slow to react. He had as many touches as goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois – who had been outstanding again to keep Real Madrid alive in the game.

He had a golden opportunity to pull Madrid level just a couple of minutes after Tete's goal. Marcelo found him unmarked in the box with a peach of a cross, only for him to mistime the header.

With the El Clasico knocking at the doors, Zidane needs to fix things quickly.

And, we know, Zidane can fix the problems.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 22/10/2020 Brilliant Shakhtar Donetsk shock Real Madrid

Thank You

Faisal Caesar  

Bissaka and Tuanzebe tame Neymar, Manchester United smile in Paris

 

“The game of PSG flew through Neymar and the rest did not have the mojo to overcome the composure of Manchester United. It was a PSG who were poor in the midfield and did not like to defend. Neymar gave his all, but Bissaka and Tuanzebe were much-more solid”

Almost 19 months have passed since the remarkable 3-1 comeback victory that put Manchester United into the last eight of the UEFA Champions League and sealed Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s ascent to the permanent job. Kylian Mabappe was stunned and Neymar watching from the stands was left clueless. Paris Saint-Germain should not have bottled it, but the late drama scripted by a controversial Marcus Rashford penalty sealed the fate of the match.

Time moved on.

The COVID-19 Pandemic showed and does not seem to know how to slow down.

 Football was absent and returned. Bayern Munich unleashed their true powers. PSG gave the impression, things have started change for them and the best would come in the next season. But all was not well in Old Trafford – the ride had been topsy-turvy and Jose Mourinho made a mess in Old Trafford a few weeks ago.

The once-mighty Red Devils have a backline, which always melts under pressure and at times in rather comical fashion gifts goals to the opposition. So, before the clash against Neymar, Angel Di Maria, and Mbappe – it was dubbed, the Man United defence would melt down again – but wait, one must not forget, Manchester United love to play in Paris.

The Red Devils, unbeaten in five previous visits to France, were returning to the scene of their history-making round of 16 last year, where they became the first side in the Champions League era to recover from a two-goal home first-leg deficit to advance – it was the famous heist in Paris.

Even though the presence of Neymar, Di Maria, and Mbappe would inspire the French side, but to be honest, football is not always about just one or two players; but it is a team game and in Paris, PSG PSG were badly affected by injuries with Marco Verratti, Mauro Icardi, Juan Bernat and Thilo Kehrer all missing and Marquinhos and Julian Draxler confined to bench roles.

As a matter of fact, PSG surfaced a half-strength side.

Thomas Tuchel stuck to the 4-3-3 formation whereas Ole switched to the 3-5-2 formation.

The 3-man defence had Axel Tuanzebe on the left and Aaron Wan-Bissaka playing as a left full-back in the midfield.

Tuanzebe and Bissaka – the vital cogs

Despite having a lesser amount of possession than PSG (61%) Manchester United (39%) – Bissaka and Tuanzebe played a vital role in Paris to shut down Neymar and Mbappe.

The pressing of Manchester united could be noticed from the start- Rashford and Anthony Martial pressed the two center-backs of PSG – Diallo and Kimpembe from the start while Bruno Fernandes pressed the central midfielder – Danilo Pereira.

Such players did not have the skill level like Verratti, Bernat or Paredes to overcome the pressing of United and progress centrally – numbers suggest; PSG could proceed 31% of times through the middle.

Navas played the ball on the flanks – especially on the left flank where it was the job of Layvin Kurzawa to proceed. Kurzawa’s progress would lead either Danilo or Idrisa Gueye to drop down on the left side of the defence. Kurzawa’s task was to pass the ball to Mbappe who was under the marking of Bissaka.

With Kurzawa exploiting the space on the left, Mbappe shifted to the center along with Bissaka and creating the space for Neymar to drop deeper so that he could dictate play from the center of the park.

Neymar caused problems.

By his standards, he might have an off-day, but still, he was a continuous threat to the United defence.

With PSG targeting the left flank to orchestrate their attack more often – 48% of the match to be specific – Neymar progressed through that channel and took on Bissaka, Tuanzebe, and Scott McTominay. He was the only player to complete 4 dribbles successfully and ran through the channels to create chances.

Neymar set the tempo and the rest followed along with Di Maria.

This switched the United backline to back four in a 4-3-1-2 position.

PSG operated with a 4-2-3-1 and Neymar playing as the central attacking midfielder – joined by Di Maria from the right to the center, solidity was the key for United.

Bissaka and Tuanzebe dished out one of the best matches in their careers where they consistently switched positions to block Neymar and Mbappe.

Both the defenders knew Neymar is someone who is extremely daring and loves taking risks. His risky fashion required to cover on the left flank because Kurzawa had to move up o link-up with Neymar and this required the defensive midfielders to switch to the left-back position as a cover, which never came.

Bissaka and Tuanzebe defended with intelligence and courage, they countered with pace and verve, and when the game began to tilt away from them Solskjær’s grip - Paul Pogba was introduced and started operating with a back four consistently.  

Bissaka and Tuanzebe neutralized any threats even before it bloomed from the feet of Neymar and in turn, the lack of shield of Neymar’s risk-taking play left spaces behind for United to counter.  

They exploited it and the night belonged to a more patient and tactically sound Ole.

The game of PSG flew through Neymar and the rest did not have the mojo to overcome the composure of Manchester United. It was a PSG who were poor in the midfield and did not like to defend. Neymar gave his all, but Bissaka and Tuanzebe were much-more solid. 

A lot of things need to change in Old Trafford.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 21/10/2020 Bissaka and Tuanzebe tame Neymar, Manchester United smile in Paris

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Faisal Caesar 

Aston Villa win again: Good for the game

 

Goals, goals, and goals – this has been the scenario in the Premier League this season. But at the King Power Stadium, a potential goalless draw was on the horizon until a goal arrived in the last minutes to settle the score. It was not Leicester City who left the pitch as the winners, but the destroyers of Liverpool – Aston Villa managed to win four out of four so far and sit on the top of the points table.

After collecting a pass from John McGinn midway inside the Leicester half in the first minute of stoppage time, Aston Villa’s on-loan Chelsea midfielder strode forward and essayed a low shot into the bottom corner of the net.

And with that, Villa had won their opening four matches of a campaign for the first time since 1930 and climbed to second in the Premier League.

Leicester know better than anyone that a team can win the title one season after narrowly escaping relegation. It would be ludicrous to start talking to Villa about such notions just yet but there is no doubt that Dean Smith’s side has made huge progress since being thrashed here 4-0 in March.

Attracting players such as Barkley has been part of that improvement.

Villa now have so much creative talent, on top of a solidified defence – the intensity seems to have increased more after the famous thrashing of the Reds.

The football fans are not familiar with such things, but in this season a lot of unthinkable things are happening. Teams like Aston Villa and West Ham United are a tough nut to crack whereas the others: Crystal Palace, Southampton and co are proving to giant killers.

From a neutral point of view, the rise of such teams and their fighting spirit is very good for the game. The domination of the big teams makes it monotonous more often and thus this sort of a thrilling contest and big teams digesting shocks kill the boredom. That is what football leagues are all about Europe most of the time – the body language would never tell, it is a written-script like the T20 Leagues in cricket, rather dignity and the value of a fans’ emotion is taken care of.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 19/10/2020 Aston Villa win again: Good for the game

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Faisal Caesar 

West Ham United complete unbelievable comeback

 

Until Chetan Sharma bowled that full-toss at Sharjah to Javed Miandad in the finals of the Austral-Asia Cup in Sharjah back in 1986; India were the winners. But Javed hit that full-toss for a SIX into Neptune and snatched Pakistan victory from the jaws of defeat – and there are so many instances which would say, Cricket is the game of glorious uncertainty.

But when one looks at other sports, especially, football, uncertainty just reaches a new level.

Even if a team is 4-0 down, they can bounce back and even the best in the business can digest 8 goals!

In the English Premier League, this season, the fans are still thinking, what the hell is happening out there?

Even if a few seconds are left, the result cannot be predicted.

Jose Mourinho and Tottenham Hotspur surely would have been shaken by the astonishing comeback by the Hammers from nowhere – and all the drama took place in the last 10 minutes.

After a nightmare start to the season in losing at home to Everton, Tottenham had begun to stage a recovery under Mourinho.

Spurs overcame a testing schedule prior to the international break to beat Chelsea on penalties in the EFL Cup, and hand out thrashings to Maccabi Haifa and Manchester United in the Europa League and Premier League respectively

The Spurs were 3-0 up - they ran riot in the opening exchanges, Son Heung-min scoring one, the irrepressible Harry Kane two – and it seemed like a fairly easy moment for Mourinho to get Bale on as a substitute, to get the much-trumpeted Second Coming out of the way. Bale almost scripted a memorable finish for the Spurs, but that would not have done justice to the never-say-die attitude of David Moyes’ boys!

Despite being 3-0 down, the conquerors of Leicester City looked much better in the second half. They advanced forward with the intent to score and forced the Spurs to sit back.

Fabian Balbuena headed home from an Aaron Cresswell free-kick in the 82^nd minute. Three minutes later, their second followed, when Davinson Sanchez diverted a Vladimir Coufal cross into his own net. All of a sudden, acute tension took place on the face of Mourinho and Spurs started to lose their composure.

Cresswell bent in a free-kick from the left, which was half-cleared and then prodded out by another substitute, Harry Winks, but only as far as Lanzini - cutting across the first-time shot with his right boot, he sent it into the far top corner, via a little brush from Hugo Lloris’s fingertips. The power was enough there, which Lloris failed to handle.

It is only the third time in Premier League history a side has avoided defeat despite trailing by three or more goals going into the 80th minute.

West Brom managed it in a crazy 5-5 draw with Manchester United in 2013, with Norwich City having also done so in a 4-4 draw with Middlesbrough in 2004.

Wild celebration took place in the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in North London.

The whole team staff poured over Lanzini – Moyes celebrated on the pitch.

Mourinho stunned.

Kane speechless.

Bale wandered off as though in the daze.

Unbelievable game of football!

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 18/10/2020  West Ham United complete unbelievable comeback

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Faisal Caesar 

 

 

 

Determined Getafe, blunt Barcelona

 

After the dismal exhibition by Real Madrid against the newly promoted Cadiz, it was time for their arch-rivals Barcelona to follow the same path. Ronald Koeman tasted a defeat for the first time as the manager of Barcelona as his boys failed to capitalize on the Cadiz victory, slipping to a 1-0 defeat at Getafe and missed the chance to move level on points with their arch-rivals.

Koeman decided to rest some of his players – Philippe Coutinho and Ansu Fati – and included Pedri in the central attacking midfield and Dembele on the left, while Antoine Griezmann was given the role of a scorer with Lionel Messi on the right. The newly signed Sergino Dest was played as a left-back!

No sooner had the game started, Getafe pressed with the ball did not shy being physical when necessary. Barça tried to keep possession and create good offense but kept losing the ball in the final third, though the Catalans did do a good job of pressing without the ball to get it back and never suffered defensively.

Still, Barca created breakthroughs -  Early on it was Lionel Messi who hit the post after a nice pass from Sergino Dest, then Griezmann found himself all alone in front of David Soria but sent his shot over the bar; finally, Clement Lenglet couldn’t get contact on a perfect cross from Messi and missed another good chance.

The controversial moment came on a clear elbow from Allan Nyom to Messi’s jaw that deserved at least a second look from VAR to see if it could be a red card, but the referee decided that Nyom could walk away without a booking.

 Getafe became more physical in the second outing.

Getafe tried to have more of the ball to create some problems, and they were given a huge gift when Frenkie De Jong brought Djené down inside the box to give the home team a penalty, which Jaime Mata scored with ease.

Jaime Mata has scored more penalty goals than any other Getafe player in La Liga - eight penalty goals from nine attempts - one more than Jorge Molina.

Koeman decided to change the shape and called on Fati and Coutinho.

Coutinho and Fati were very active and tried to inject spark but the desired outcome never came.

One thing for sure, Coutinho’s shooting powers have diminished over the years. One of the most dangerous shooters outside the box in world football not so long ago, Coutinho now relies more on depth touches and cool finishes rather than those thunderbolts which were a treat for the eyes.

In the final stages of the game Barca went desperate but lacked the cutting-edge and in turn, started to give Getafe a lot of space to counter. Koeman made one last roll of the dice with Francisco Trincao, Martin Braithwaite, Riqui Puig, and an ultra-attacking lineup, and there were a couple of big moments, including a near spectacular own goal by Cabaco, but the score remained 1-0 in favour of Getafe.

Koeman kept the possession-based football intact with the visitors having 73% of it, but they were on target just once, which indicates, Koeman still needs to improve on the sharpness.

Barca have scored just eight goals after four games in La Liga this season, their lowest tally at this stage since 2015-16: also eight!

Rather than Barca, it was Getafe who displayed the determination to win. This was a performance that typified Jose Bordalas' side; they conceded 20 fouls and were happy to be without the ball for long spells, yet they still had more total shots and more attempts on target than the opposition.

Getafe have recorded their third win against Barcelona in La Liga, all three at Coliseum Alfonso Perez. Their previous win against them in the competition was in November 2011, under Luis Garcia Plaza.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 18/10/2020 Determined Getafe, blunt Barcelona

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Faisal Caesar 

 

 

Dismal Real Madrid

 

First thing first – Real Madrid were absolutely below-par against the newly promoted Cadiz, who stunned them after almost 30 years. The viewers were left to ponder over and over again, what was Real Madrid playing and what their actual game plan was! Yes, against such a newly promoted unit, any big teams would experiment, but that does not mean, the title holders would dish out such a disaster-class which would end their winning streak in such a manner.

Every player who wasn’t called up to their national teams during the international break, bar Marco Asensio and Eder Militao started: Marcelo, Thibaut Courtois, Nacho Fernandez, Lucas Vazquez, Vinicius Junior, Karim Benzema, Isco.

For the remaining positions in midfield, Zidane opted to start Luka Modric and Kroos over Casemiro and Fede Valverde, both of whom traveled extensively to South America and back.

Had Odegaard not gotten injured, he would’ve started this game over an exhausted Modric who went full throttle with Croatia in a box-to-box performance against France.

In the first half, the Los Blancos looked like a ship without a radar – the backline was exposed, the midfield was disorganized and the frontline hard had the ball on their feet.

Cadiz exploited the opportunity to caught Real Madrid in transition and exhibit their defensive solidity.

Cadiz took a well-deserved lead through Anthony Lozano's 16th-minute effort.

Courtois denied Lozano a second before half-time when Zinedine Zidane made four substitutions with an injured Sergio Ramos among the players to make way.

Prior to his injury, Ramos came to Madrid's rescue inside two minutes, hooking Alvaro Negredo's effort off the line.

 Lozano looked set to double his tally just after the half-hour, but Courtois made a fine save at his near post, though Madrid's goalkeeper had a lucky escape when he dropped a cross which no Cadiz attacker could pounce on.

With four new players on, Madrid stepped up the tempo, though Vinicius' wayward strike was the closest they came to troubling Cadiz early in the second half.

Vinicius should have restored parity after the hour, only to head wide from Kroos' left-wing cross.

Kroos, as usual, was the best player on the pitch creating five chances, but his teammates just failed to exploit them.

Under-pressure Jovic found the net but the goal was rightly disallowed for offside from Benzema.

Wearing the pink shirt, the Los Blancos fell flat in a similar fashion like that against Manchester City in the Champions League a few months back.

It was hard to understand what was Marcelo and Nacho doing in the defence whereas, why the forwards lacked the control over the ball remains a moot question.

With such a dismal show and being off-coloured in the previous matches don’t give a very impressive future ahead until and unless Zinedine Zidane decides to get the combination right and lessen his intent to experiment more often.  

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 17/10/2020 Dismal Real Madrid

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Faisal Caesar