No one can argue that 2020 has been an awful year that we all want to put behind us. But before we look ahead 2021, we have to take a minute to appreciate how sports have provided something resembling normality in recent months.
Considering the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been incredibly lucky to have soccer leagues playing regularly since June.
LIVERPOOL, England — Roberto Firmino headed a 90th-minute winner as Liverpool beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 at Anfield on Wednesday to open up a three-point lead at the top of the Premier League table over the London club.
Liverpool has 28 points while Spurs are now second on 25 points with both teams having played 13 games. Southampton and Leicester are both on 24 points.
BOBBY! LIVERPOOL LEAD! pic.twitter.com/6de9Awilcz
2020 has been a tough year financially both for clubs and for players.
The economic effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has seen transfer values deflate, with the value of many players decreasing independent of their form on the pitch by 10-20 percent.
For clubs this means their assets are worth less to go with a sharp decrease in revenue caused by matches without fans. For players, this means their skills are worth less as well as a decrease in salaries.
Barcelona will face Paris Saint-Germain and former striker Neymar while title holders Bayern Munich are up against Italy's Lazio in the last 16 of the Champions League after UEFA's draw was held on Monday.
The clash of Lionel Messi and Barça with last year's runners-up PSG is a repeat of their remarkable meeting at the same stage in 2017 when Barça overcame a 4-0 first leg loss to beat the French club 6-1 in Spain with Neymar scoring twice for the Catalans.
Sunday’s Premier League encounter between Liverpool and Wolves featured the return of supporters to Anfield for the first time since March. The ground has a normal capacity of nearly 54,000, but 2,000 lucky fans got to be in attendance today in accordance with COVID-19 security measures.
While 500 of those fans were sat in the Main Stand, the Kop End housed 1,500 spectators, and it was that section that belted out Liverpool’s anthem of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” as the team took to the pitch.
Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp has claimed Chelsea are favorites to lift the Premier League title this season because of the strength and depth of the squad that coach Frank Lampard has at his disposal.
Jurgen Klopp has spent most of the last two months complaining about the timing of fixtures as Liverpool fights to defend its Premier League title while simultaneously competing for another Champions League crown. With that in mind (and a slew of injuries), the Reds boss started a number of youngsters against Ajax on Tuesday, including two teenagers and a goalkeeper who had just four prior senior appearances, none in the Champions League.
Caoimhin Kelleher has waited patiently for his chance to play first team football. A product of Cork, Ireland, Kelleher joined Liverpool's youth setup from his local club Ringhamon Rangers back in 2015. He slowly made his way through the U-18s to the U-23s while also playing at the international level for the Republic of Ireland underage sides.