Goalkeepers

An intriguing Thursday evening fixture between two struggling Premier League giants quickly devolved into controversy when Arsenal scored a goal while Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea was down injured.

The sequence started with an Arsenal corner whipped in by Martin Ødegaard. As the ball went up, Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea had his right heel accidentally stepped on by his teammate, Fred. 

De Gea went down in pain but play continued, and Arsenal's Emil Smith-Rowe put the ball in the back of the net from the edge of the penalty area. 

Andre Blake stopped the first two shots of a penalty kick shootout and the No. 2 seed Philadelphia Union advanced to the Eastern Conference final for the first time with a 1-1 (2-0) result over third-seeded Nashville SC on Sunday at Chester, Pa.

MLS needs more David Ochoas. It needs more players that “enjoy being the villain” and who aren’t — in a league that prides itself on providing the joyful unpredictably of parity — afraid of taking the spotlight and shining it firmly on themselves.

It makes the atmosphere in stadiums better. It makes matchups more intriguing. It creates headlines.

The USWNT’s friendly against Australia on Saturday (well, Friday in certain parts of the States), was in many ways a changing of the guard. Lindsey Horan took over the vaunted No. 10 jersey from Carli Lloyd. Alana Cook and Tierna Davidson started together at center back. And Casey Murphy looked like a star in the making between the sticks.

Murphy made eight saves in her first career U.S. start, helping the USWNT blank the Matildas 3-0 on Saturday afternoon in Sydney, Australia. 

There’s something about snow that brings out both the beauty and the pain of this world. Few things in life are more beautiful than watching frozen water crystals fall to the Earth, transforming the landscape. Few things in life are more painful than taking a blow to the crotch in below-freezing weather, altering your entire world view. Few things in life are more beautiful than a perfectly executed bicycle kick; few things in life are more painful than a complete whiff by a goalkeeper. 

Just give Trinity Rodman a call-up for November’s USWNT friendlies against Australia now. She’s earned it. 

It’s been quite some time since Arsenal has had any sort of swagger to its game. Having slowly fallen from the upper echelon of the Premier League, the Gunners are experiencing their first season out of Europe in nearly three decades. But led by some shithousing from keeper Aaron Ramsdale, Arsenal looks to have rediscovered its confidence.