Ajax 0-1 Chelsea: Lampard’s stock rises as solid Blues take a big scalp in Amsterdam October 23, 2019 Youthful exuberance is a phrase which has generally defined Chelsea’s 2019-20 season so far under Frank Lampard. With a former player in charge and a transfer ban in effect the Blues have called back youngsters from loan deals and integrated them into the first team. That has lead to a lot of excitement and impressive [...]
Chris Tremlett: We need to change our mindset to make The Hundred a success October 23, 2019 I watched about an hour of The Hundred draft on Sunday evening before I fell asleep. The concept was good, but I found it long-winded and boring. The interviews were generally inane and some of the players looked like they didn’t want to be there. When The Hundred was first announced I was in the [...]
Tottenham 5-0 Red Star Belgrade: Kane, Son and Lamela run riot to rejuvenate Spurs October 22, 2019 Red Star Belgrade were exactly what Tottenham required after being shaken by a terrible run of form. Colchester, Bayern Munich, Brighton and Watford were not forgotten – not yet – but for 90 minutes Spurs fans were able to enjoy their side running riot against a wide-open, error-prone and haphazard opponent. Tottenham’s first Champions League [...]
West Ham win simply has to be the turning point for Everton and Marco Silva October 22, 2019 When you break it down, Everton’s weekend win over West Ham – ending a run of four Premier League defeats with victory over a team with similar ambitions – could prove absolutely massive. They mustn’t celebrate it too much, though. For the sake of their season and Marco Silva’s prospects of still being manager in [...]
Sheffield United 1-0 Arsenal: Five things we learned as Blades cut Emery and Gunners down to size October 21, 2019 That Arsenal come unstuck against opponents they would expect to beat, particularly away from home, should no longer be a surprise; it is as predictable as their pedestrian build-up play. Following this defeat at Sheffield United, they have taken just two points from their last four Premier League games – a sequence that has dragged [...]
French win can spark resurgence for Nicolas Colsaerts October 21, 2019 Until Sunday, Nicolas Colsaerts had not won anywhere for seven years, since beating Graeme McDowell to win the Volvo Match Play Championship in May 2012. A few months later the Belgian would make his Ryder Cup debut, holing eight birdies and an eagle in an amazing fourball in the week that Europe pulled off the [...]
Man Utd 1-1 Liverpool: Five things we learned as the leaders stumbled October 20, 2019 It would be a stretch to call this a slip for Liverpool, yet it was a stumble of sorts in their quest to become champions of England for the first time in 30 years. Instead of equalling Manchester City’s record of 18 consecutive Premier League wins, they had to battle back from Marcus Rashford’s opener [...]
Out of Order at Southbank Centre review: It’s hard to stay focused on this experimental, dialogue-free play October 18, 2019 If you’re going to see Out of Order, the latest project by experimental theatre company Forced Entertainment, you’ll need to leave your understanding of what constitutes a play at the door. There’s no dialogue – instead, you watch a group of six mime-clowns in tartan suits repeatedly trying to sit down at a table as [...]
The outsider: England coach Eddie Jones ready for Rugby World Cup showdown with homeland that divorced him October 17, 2019 There can be few matches that stir as many emotions for Eddie Jones as tomorrow’s. On Saturday in Oita, Jones will lead his adopted nation of England into a Rugby World Cup quarter-final against his native Australia, a tie being staged in his mother’s homeland, Japan. But the match is more than just a collision [...]
Goal drought dragging Manchester United towards relegation zone October 17, 2019 Manchester United welcome Liverpool to Old Trafford on Sunday already 15 points adrift of the Premier League leaders. If there was any lingering debate among United die-hards over a shift in power between England’s two most successful teams last season, that has surely been laid to rest this campaign. While European champions Liverpool look to [...]