Scott Murray's Blog, page 65
January 22, 2022
Southampton 1-1 Manchester City: Premier League – as it happened
The champions and leaders dominated, but obdurate Saints refused to buckle, ending City’s winning Premier League sequence at 12
4 min: City keep on with the keep ball. But then Rodri miscontrols, Ward-Prowse snaffles, and Dias bowls Adams to the ground. A free kick just outside the centre circle.
2 min: Foden swings it in. Armstrong heads behind, and it’s the first corner of the evening. City play it short. De Bruyne eventually swings it in. Salisu heads it out. Saints have hardly had a touch yet.
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Everton 0-1 Aston Villa: Premier League – as it happened
Emi Buendia’s header in first-half stoppage time was enough to decide a hotly contested match at Goodison
2 min: Mings took a little knock on the shin amid the penalty-box mayhem, but he’s good to go. Villa launch it up the other end. Watkins nearly gets on the end of it, but Pickford gathers on the edge of his area ... then slides out of it, and he’s forced to drop the ball from his hands and hack clear with his feet instead. An early sign that Pickford’s in one of his occasional I’ve-had-17-cups-of-coffee-this-morning moods?
1 min: Richarlison signals Everton’s Ferguson-approved up-and-at-’em approach by immediately racing down the left. McGinn barges him over. Gomes swings the free kick into the mixer, and Martinez claims. A fast start by the hosts.
Continue reading...January 21, 2022
Watford 0-3 Norwich City: Premier League – as it happened
Josh Sargent scored one of the goals of the season – if not the goal of the season – as Dean Smith’s team swept aside their relegation rivals
2 min: It’s a fast start by Norwich, and now Idah storms down the inside-left channel. Sissoko hangs out a leg and brings his man down, just to the left of the D. Big chance coming up for the visitors.
Eight seconds: Sargent bustles down the right and enters the box. He’s dispossessed by Kayembe, then falls over, chancing his arm with a penalty claim. Nope, but full marks for chutzpah. What a start that would have been, though.
Continue reading...The Fiver | Watford, Norwich and making the best of things while the going is good
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Watford and Norwich City may be near the bottom of the Premier League, but both of these clubs can claim to be on a run of form. Whether that means they’re at the start of one, or in the middle, or coming towards the end, is a moot point, given that Norwich’s current sequence is one win in a row, while Watford are on a one-draw tear-up. OK, as form goes, neither trend is quite as hot as Manchester City’s 12 league victories on the bounce, or Fulham’s 19-goals-in-three-games scoring spree, but you have to make the best of things and enjoy life while the going is good. It’s later than you think.
Continue reading...January 20, 2022
Arsenal 0-2 Liverpool: Carabao Cup semi-final, second leg – as it happened
Diogo Jota scored twice as Liverpool set up a Wembley showdown with Chelsea
3 min: A corner on the left leads to a second one, this time on the right. Saka takes. Matip heads clear under intense pressure. A scramble on the edge of the box. Lacazette nearly gets a shot away but the ball squirts through to Kelleher.
2 min: Martinelli twists and turns down the left and nearly breaks into the box along the byline. He settles for the first corner of the evening.
Continue reading...The Fiver | The most preposterous stoppage-time turnaround since Agüeroooooooo
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A different referee, less out of puff, might have sent off Steven Bergwijn for shoving Caglar Soyuncu in the chest after play-acting for a penalty towards the end of the match between Leicester and Spurs on Wednesday night. But thankfully – although Foxes fans are permitted to demur – Jon Moss, blowing hard after 93 minutes of non-stop action, had little appetite or energy for digging deep into his pocket for the red card, and merely brandished yellow instead. Cue the most preposterous stoppage-time turnaround since Mario Balotelli teed one up for Agüeroooooooo. If only Martin Tyler had been commentating.
Continue reading...January 18, 2022
The Fiver | The Best: the Fifa football awards that also sound like a ready meal
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The wonderful world of football hadn’t held a big pointless awards ceremony for 49 days. That’s seven long weeks since the stilted vacuity of the Ballon d’Or, and the best part of two months without any of us having to go along with the patently absurd premise that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the same players they were in 2011. The sweet gaslight-free relief couldn’t last, though, and , the most prestigious of all the football awards that also sound like a premium ready meal. Can you taste the difference?
Continue reading...Football transfer rumours: John McGinn to Manchester United?
Today’s tittle-tattle is multitasking
Everton are all over the shop. Having sacked Rafa Benitez after laying off all the folk he didn’t want, they’ve been rebuffed in their efforts to force the Belgian FA into sharing Roberto Martínez. They’re now considering José Mourinho, for goodness sake. And now there are reports claiming owner Farhad Moshiri is considering upping sticks and cutting his losses. Given the pig’s lug he’s made of the last six managerial appointments, some may be quite sanguine about that particular prospect, but while it wouldn’t necessarily hinder, it wouldn’t necessarily help, either. And Everton could do with some help right now.
Manchester United are a little bit further into the process of getting their house in order. To this end, they want Aston Villa heartbeat John McGinn, Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, and/or RB Leipzig’s Amadou Haidara.
Continue reading...January 15, 2022
Aston Villa 2-2 Manchester United: Premier League – as it happened
Villa debutant Philippe Coutinho came off the bench and inspired his new side to a late two-goal comeback
3 min: This one - United’s 101st of the campaign so far - doesn’t beat the first man. United still haven’t scored from a corner kick this season yet.
2 min: Dalot strokes a long pass down the left wing where the presence of Elanga forces the first corner of the game. Fernandes takes. Digne’s first act in a Villa shirt is to head behind for another. Fernandes to take again.
Continue reading...Manchester City 1-0 Chelsea: Premier League – as it happened
Kevin De Bruyne’s sumptuous second-half strike sealed a huge win for the champions as they look to retain their title
Here we go, then. Chelsea get the ball rolling ... but only after everyone takes a knee. A gesture met with firm approval. There’s no room for racism.
The teams are out. They’re blue, ba-da-be, City wearing sky, Chelsea royal. Anticipation and excitement crackling around the Etihad. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes!
Continue reading...Scott Murray's Blog
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