Jonathan Liew's Blog, page 97
February 12, 2021
Part of the joy in watching Fran Kirby is knowing what she has overcome | Jonathan Liew
Kirby has returned to her best form at Chelsea after years when illness, injury and depression threatened her career
One of the most stirring and affective qualities of sport – really good sport, mind – is its ability to express long stretches of time in the flicker of a moment. The goal you celebrated wasn’t just a goal: it was the product of a choreographed move, a tactical plan, days and weeks of training and drilling. The outrageous nutmeg you shared in the group chat wasn’t just a nutmeg: it was the hundreds of failed nutmegs that went into honing and chiselling that particular skill. And when you watch a great athlete, on some level you’re not simply gawping at a coloured blob on a screen. You’re seeing the years of work they put in, the obstacles they have overcome to entertain you. You’re seeing the journey.
But of course there are grades and shades to this process. If you didn’t know anything about Fran Kirby in advance of watching her play, you wouldn’t enjoy the experience any less. You would glimpse the magnetic close control, the command of space, the four-dimensional movement, the anticipation and the vision and the speed, and think: “Hey, that Chelsea No 14’s pretty decent.” And yet to a greater extent than with most footballers, Kirby is one of those players who seems inseparable from her journey. Or, put another way: you don’t need to know what Kirby has been through away from the pitch to appreciate her skill on it. But in a weird way, it helps.
Related: Less posturing, more fun: Hege Riise takes England Women reins
Two assists and a goal for @frankirby in the London derby ✨#BarclaysFAWSL highlights ⤵️
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February 8, 2021
English football is consumed by racism and hatred. Can the cycle be broken? | Jonathan Liew
Wave of abuse directed at players on social media is part of a deep societal crisis but perhaps football can provide a solution
Four decades ago, before his England debut, Cyrille Regis was sent a bullet in the post by a racist fan. In 2008, shortly after being appointed as Chelsea’s manager, Avram Grant was deluged with dozens of antisemitic emails. These days, as footballers continue to be subjected to racist abuse on Twitter and Instagram, the temptation is to wonder whether anything has changed except the method of delivery.
The recent wave of social media abuse – directed primarily at prominent black footballers – follows a well-worn pattern. The incidents begin to cluster with a grisly momentum: Marcus Rashford, Axel Tuanzebe on two separate occasions, Anthony Martial, Reece James, Romaine Sawyers, Alex Jankewitz and Lauren James. Statements are issued. Governing bodies, broadcasters and public figures clamber over each other to offer their condemnation, often by way of a fancy social media graphic. And then, like any wave, the anger subsides. The news cycle gets bored. Racism carries on, and so does everyone else. Until the next wave, at least.
Last July one police force contacted Twitter to ask for details about a racist post. They finally received a reply in January
Continue reading...February 6, 2021
A tale of two innings: how Joe Root finally learned how to disappear | Jonathan Liew
The story of England’s first two days in Chennai is the story of one man, and how the score, the bowler, the day, and possibly even the year, faded into irrelevance
It’s 2016. Joe Root is batting against Pakistan at Lord’s. The score is 114 for one. The runs are flowing. Everything works. Yasir Shah strays on to his pads and Root lap‑sweeps for four. The crowd purrs appreciatively. For Root, at this moment, Test cricket feels like the easiest game in the world. The next ball is tossed up invitingly outside off stump. “That’s 50,” Root thinks to himself, a split second before launching into a slog-sweep that flies off the top edge and is caught at midwicket.
It’s 2021. Root is batting against India at Chennai. The score is 433 for four. The runs are flowing. Everything works. Ravi Ashwin flights the ball on a length and Root deposits him into the empty concourse for six. There is no crowd, no roar: no sound at all, in fact, bar the distant ripple of applause from his teammates in the dressing room. And this is how Root first became aware of the fact that he had reached his double-century.
Related: Joe Root's superb 218 gives England commanding position against India
Continue reading...February 4, 2021
Premier League away-days, that 9-0 and rule changes – Football Weekly Extra
Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Jonathan Liew and John Brewin to review the midweek action, VAR and broadcasting
Rate, review, share on Apple Podcasts , Soundcloud , Audioboom , Mixcloud , Acast and Stitcher , and join the conversation on Facebook , Twitter and email .
Wednesday night’s Premier League games saw every away side win, including Liverpool losing to Brighton at Anfield, Everton triumphing at Leeds and West Ham humbling Villa.
Continue reading...February 1, 2021
Channel 4 return would be a significant, poignant development for Test cricket
The India v England series could be free-to-air and help make up for the failure to capitalise on the gospel of 2005
Fifteen seconds to live. Paging Richie Benaud and Tony Greig. Paging Michael Atherton and Ian Smith and Dermot Reeve. Ten seconds. Dusting off the Analyst’s truck and firing up the Snickometer. Applying a final coat of varnish to Mark Nicholas. Five seconds. Everyone to positions. Queuing up the Lou Bega in three … two … one.
Alas, tantalising as the idea is of getting the old gang back together for one more job, it is at this point that you run into a few logistical issues. For one thing, Atherton is contracted to Sky Sports. Nicholas is signed up with TalkSport, while Benaud and Greig have sadly been spirited off to the great rain delay in the sky. Probably best just to take the Indian TV feed for now.
Related: England set to play in front of 25,000 in second Test against India
Continue reading...January 31, 2021
West Ham win delights Klopp as Liverpool close in on Preston defender
Jürgen Klopp believes Liverpool are hitting their stride again, as a convincing 3-1 win against West Ham was accompanied by the news the club are finally preparing to sign a centre-back.
The Premier League champions have agreed a £2m fee with Preston for their 25-year-old defender Ben Davies, with the academy prospect Sepp van den Berg going in the opposite direction on loan.
Related: Mohamed Salah fires thrilling double as Liverpool see off West Ham
Continue reading...Mohamed Salah fires thrilling double as Liverpool see off West Ham
With around a quarter of this match left, West Ham won a corner on the right. Scenting a set-piece equaliser, claret-and-blue shirts piled into the penalty area. Jarrod Bowen picked his spot, ran in and delivered a curling left-footed cross. Fifteen seconds later, Liverpool scored. Game over, handshakes, thanks for having us.
It was Mohamed Salah who delivered the coup de grace, finishing a scintillating counterattack with his second goal of the game and sealing the points in the process. But really, the story here was of a team shedding its inhibitions, learning the lessons from a rotten first half and resolving to be just a little quicker, a little braver. Six points in three days from two visits to London have shaken Liverpool, and the title race, back to life.
Related: West Ham win delights Klopp as Liverpool close in on Preston defender
Related: Inspirational and always shouting: Henderson embodies Liverpool spirit | Jonathan Wilson
Continue reading...January 29, 2021
Paul Pogba shows less can be more after tyranny of expectations | Jonathan Liew
Manchester United midfielder’s game relies on a functioning collective, and he is shining with fewer touches and shots
When Paul Pogba was about nine or 10, a man called Sambou Tati – his youth coach at US Roissy – decided to convert him from a striker into a midfielder. At the time, Pogba was a brilliant footballer with one glaring weakness: he loved the ball so much he would simply dribble and dribble with it for as long as he could. By moving further back, Tati reasoned, Pogba might have less time on the ball, but would offer greater influence on the team as a whole.
Although he probably didn’t know it, in so doing Tati had established an entirely new field of footballing study, one that continues to absorb and confound the game’s greatest minds to this day: How To Get The Best Out Of Paul Pogba.
Related: Manchester United 'disgusted' by racial abuse of Tuanzebe and Martial
Continue reading...January 28, 2021
Tanguy Ndombele holds key to Spurs' future but is held back by Mourinho | Jonathan Liew
Midfielder has superb technical gifts and the team should be built around him but manager’s negative mindset is a problem
Earlier this week a video clip emerged from a recent Tottenham training session. In it, Tanguy Ndombele has the ball in a practice game. He feints to the left, then the right. Then he flicks the ball out of reach with a deft toe, leaving his hapless opponent – a certain Harry Kane – lunging awkwardly at thin air.
Look. Maybe it was pure coincidence that just a couple of days after having his ankles humiliatingly twisted by one of his own teammates, Kane limped off at half-time against Liverpool with an ankle injury. Who can say? In any case, the reason for bringing this up here is to underline the silken, indiscriminate talent of Ndombele, a player who – even in defeat – seems to hold the key to Tottenham’s future.
Related: Firmino and Mané rip Tottenham apart to reignite Liverpool's title defence
Related: Mourinho's firing of darts shows he believes Spurs can win the title | Jonathan Wilson
Continue reading...January 26, 2021
Tomas Soucek double sends West Ham fourth with win over Crystal Palace
Somehow, the Premier League’s perennial tearaways have become the model students. The responsibility for this lies less with a fatally flawed ownership than with impressively drilled players, and a manager in David Moyes who has taken a thin, uneven squad into the upper reaches of the top flight. Whisper it, but believe it all the same: West Ham are very good.
Just how good, of course, remains a matter of some conjecture. Contrary to popular belief, the league table lies freely and often, and West Ham’s ascent into the top four is attributable largely to having played more fixtures than the teams around them. Moyes himself was keen to temper expectations.
Related: West Ham ready to clear way for Lingard loan by buying Benrahma this month
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