Liverpool lost 1-0 to Southampton in the EFL Cup Wednesday, which in and of itself is not all that surprising. Southampton are not bad and were playing at home, plus Liverpool have a huge EPL tie against Manchester United coming up.
Former Aston Villa, Watford and England manager Graham Taylor has died of a suspected heart attack. He was 72.
Taylor is best known for managing England in the 1992 Euros, in which England failed to get out of their group, and throughout qualifying for the 1994 World Cup. He also led Watford from the fourth division to the first division in just five years and made the 1984 FA Cup final.
Former Watford owner Sir Elton John paid tribute to his late friend on Instagram:
“I love West Ham. We had a fantastic season and I can’t wait to play in the Olympic Stadium. I’m 100 percent staying at West Ham, I love the club. I can tell the Hammers fans that.” — Dimitri Payet, July 15, 2016
You could be forgiven for forgetting that, at the age of 24, Juan Mata had already achieved the remarkable feat of winning World Cup, European Championship and Champions League titles. The diminutive Spaniard, now 28, manages to avoid the public eye, and the attentions of defenders, with a cerebral approach that wins plaudits without approaching the levels of adulation that his surrounding cast receives.
The rumor mill has been heating up as clubs start making moves this January. One big-time rumor that might make waves in the coming weeks, should it turn into reality, is Manchester City’s reported interest in Ivan Rakitic.
The Barcelona midfielder has been warming the bench for Luis Enrique’s side since early December, and a move to play under Pep Guardiola might prove alluring to the Croatian playmaker.
Still, how well would he fit into Guardiola’s team?
Bad news first: the FA Cup fourth round will probably be a snoozer. None of the major clubs will play each other, with the best possible game being Arsenal vs. (potentially) a much more boring than usual Southampton team. Yeesh.
The good news: a couple of upsets could turn the whole thing on its head. Say Norwich City get by Southampton and then upset Arsenal, or Wycombe Wanderers beat Tottenham, or Brentford beat Chelsea, or Crystal Palace or Bolton take down Manchester City, or Wigan knock out current FA Cup champs Manchester United? That would be fun, right? RIGHT?
Claudio Ranieri, Leicerster City's twinkly-eyed Italian grandfather, er, manager, has been named the 2016 World Manager of the Year by FIFA. After leading the Foxes to the Premier League title, overcoming 5,000-1 odds, we'd have a hard time seeing anyone else getting the award.
Ranieri's 2016-17 Premier League season hasn't been as successful, with Leicester City mired in 15th, six points above the relegation zone. They are, however, in the Champions League knockout stage, where they have a good chance to advance past Sevilla to the quarterfinals.
Manchester City’s 5-0 demolition of West Ham at the London Stadium was a crushing experience for Hammers fans. The loudest cheer of the night was reserved for an appearance from high school student Peter Parker, better known as Spider-Man.
Spider-Man was felled in the penalty area, his tackler immediately pointing to the spot in a display of sportsmanship that’s rarely seen. But was it really a penalty, or did Spidey take a dive?