Sport
Seven Days in Seven Points
Now is the time for Vincent Janssen to step up
Tottenham fans breathed a huge sigh of relief when Kane finally managed to open the scoring against Sunderland at the weekend. However, those sighs soon turned to grimaces when Harry limped off the pitch with what looked like a damaged ankle. It appears that he’ll be out for two months or so, which would have been utterly disastrous last season; however, Spurs spent big during the summer to acquire the services of Dutch forward Vincent Janssen, and now is his time to step up and show why he is worth £17m. He scored his first goal for the club from the spot against Gillingham, but now he’s got to start doing it on a regular basis.
This is Real Madrid’s year
There’s something about Los Blancos this year. Bale and Ronaldo are yet to start fully firing, but already Real are top of the league. They’ve scored an average of three goals in each of their opening four league games, and have only conceded three so far this season. Barcelona will of course threaten for the entire season – they are still, arguably, the best team in Europe – but I just have a feeling that this year will end with Ronaldo and Zidane lifting the title.
When will Mourinho drop Rooney?
Whether you’re a Manchester United fan or not, you’re likely to agree that Wayne Rooney has been having a poor run of form. He was relatively useless against Manchester City, practically anonymous against Watford, and didn’t seem to understand where he was meant to be playing against Northampton. Rooney, to my mind, has been playing below his best for almost two seasons now, yet he keeps being picked. Is this yet another example of a player being considered ‘too big’ to drop? A recent poll of Manchester United fans revealed that 99% wanted to see the England captain consigned to the bench, which is ridiculously comprehensive. Mourinho has a big choice to make with regard to Rooney’s future, and it needs to happen quickly.
Some current free agents could really benefit Championship sides
The list of current free agents contains some pretty big names. Emmanuel Adebayor, Junior Hoilett, Royston Drenthe, Sol Bamba, Dimitar Berbatov, Chris Burke, Martín Cáceres, Juan Vargas, Modibo Maïga: you could build a pretty decent Championship side with those players. Perhaps there are issues with wages or match fitness, but surely it’s worth a Championship side taking a punt on one of them. I for one would love to see Adebayor donning a Burton Albion shirt.
Another Nice game, another tremendous Balotelli performance
This must be getting a bit annoying for Liverpool fans. Nice, the side that revitalised the career of Hatem Ben Arfa, are now doing the exact same thing for Balotelli. He managed to bag two goals on his debut against Marseille, and now he’s snatched another brace as his side absolutely hammered early French pacesetters Monaco 4-0. Nobody ever doubted the lad’s quality, only his application. It would appear, however, that he is now putting his head down and getting on with the job at hand, meaning Nice could have a world class talent on their hands.
Can Dortmund topple Bayern?
The way they’ve started this season, you’d be a brave man to bet against Dortmund for the title. In their last three games they’ve scored 17 goals – SEVENTEEN! – and conceded just one. Bayern will obviously be most people’s favourites for the league, but I could genuinely see Dortmund pushing them all the way. The Bundesliga is going to be very interesting this year.
Naismith’s ridiculously fortuitous strike against Everton
We’ve all seen clips of strikers messing up a golden opportunity by slipping at the last moment, but rarely do we see a slip work to their advantage.
[https://streamable.com/185x]
