Gonzalo Higuain received his first Chelsea start on Wednesday, a bystander as the Blues were stomped by mid-table Bournemouth. Given another chance against Huddersfield Town on Saturday, the Argentine showed he may actually be the man Maurizio Sarri needs to turn Chelsea’s season around.
If you’ve paid any attention to Chelsea’s current Premier League season in comparison to last season, or the season before that, things seem odd. At this point in time last season, Chelsea was fourth in the Premier League table. Now, after Chelsea’s most recent loss to Bournemouth, the Blues have dropped to fifth.
The Super Bowl is Sunday, an event American-centric viewers like to think of as the greatest sporting event in the world (it isn’t). But with the New England Patriots set to face off against the LA Rams in one of the least-inspiring Super Bowl matchups imaginable, we can’t help but think about the Super Bowl owners MLS clubs — and how pathetic they are.
And just like that, Marouane Fellaini has gone from indispensable Manchester United siege tower — a man who could’ve put rivals City in “big, big trouble” — to Shandong Luneng. We shouldn’t feel bad for the 31-year-old Belgian because he’s reportedly signed a contract worth $12.5 million per year after tax.
It’s not unusual for ball boys to become a part of a soccer match, as we’ve highlighted plenty of times before. Who can forget when Eden Hazard kicked an unflinching Swansea lad?
For a couple years, Andrey Arshavin was one of the most exciting footballers in the world. Today, people are asking: Is Arshavin dead?
It’s true Arshavin dropped off the face of the British-centric soccer world when he left Arsenal to return to his native Russia in 2013. He only just retired in December 2018, after a few years with Zenit Saint Petersburg, Kuban Krasnodar and Kairat. That last club plays in the Kazakhstan Premier League, so you’d be excused for not knowing about it, but the Russian winger did score nine goals in 31 league appearances in 2018.
Pep Guardiola will not have enjoyed this.
Last season, the Manchester City boss escaped his first-ever trip to St James’ Park with the narrowest of 1-0 victories. “We did absolutely everything but it is difficult to play when the other team doesn’t want to play,” said Guardiola after that one.
Newcastle put 10 men behind the ball at all times, and City could’ve easily been up 4-0 inside 30 minutes, but a draw was almost snatched by Rafa Benitez’s men in the final five minutes. That particular footballing lesson stayed with Guardiola until today’s encounter.
According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sky Sports, Taylor Twellman and The Telegraph (so if Mike Ashley gets blackout drunk and firebombs the deal, don't blame me), Newcastle United and Atlanta United have finally agreed to terms on the transfer of Miguel Almiron to the Premier League.
You’ve heard this before: A broken foot is threatening to prematurely end Neymar’s club season, and he could be facing a race for fitness ahead of a major international tournament.
Last season, Neymar sustained a crack to the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot during a match against Marseille on Feb. 25. The injury was worse than first expected, required surgery and Neymar missed PSG’s Champions League Round of 16 return leg against Real Madrid before sitting out the rest of the season.
Burnley did not have a great day at the office on Saturday. The club traveled to the Etihad to play Manchester City in the FA Cup and was routinely routed 5-0. But it was nothing compared to what happened to the poor Man City corner flag.
To no one’s surprise, the Citizens ran rampant, spreading five goals across the 90 minutes and five different goal scorers. The pick of the bunch was Kevin de Bruyne’s blistering shot from about 20 yards out.
Manchester City are in control.