All posts by h79snht.top

We may be entering the cold winter period, but the Premier League title race is only hotting up.

Liverpool took top spot last weekend with a 6-1 thrashing of Watford while Chelsea also announced themselves as contenders with a 5-0 demolition of Everton.

With perennial title-winner Pep Guardiola at the Manchester City helm and Arsenal currently embarking on a 16-match unbeaten run a winner is tough to call – only two points separate the four teams.

And that’s discounting a Tottenham Hotspur side that are still unbeaten and welcomed Harry Kane – last year’s Golden Boot winner – back from injury in the north London derby.

With so many clubs vying for top spot, an old adage hold more significance than ever before – the team leading after the Christmas period usually goes on to win the title.

The rule generally holds true – five out of the last seven champions have been at the top of the table as they enter the New Year: it was Arsenal who let their advantage slip twice, last season and in 2014.

So what makes being top at Christmas so vital?

One of the main factors is that the Christmas period is usually the busiest part of any season. All the Premier League clubs can expect to play three matches in the space of a week, making it arguably the most important seven days of any campaign.

It is the time where teams really feel the rigours of the first half of the season take their toll as rotation, fatigue and injuries come into play. Usually, the team that can survive the best over such a punishing period i the side best-equipped to win the league.

Whilst this year may hold even more significance: two of the teams at the top are reaping the rewards of not being involved in any European football. Both Chelsea and Liverpool finished outside of the European places last year and as such have no continental commitments.

It’s certainly having an effect this year. Both Jurgen Klopp and Antonio Conte are free to choose their best lineups week-in, week-out with little need to rotate, and that has resulted in some incredible performances. They need to be careful, however. There are two reasons why they may come unstuck.

The first is that while consistently using the same players improves their understanding of each other, it can cause problems when other players need to come in. Should players like Diego Costa or Philippe Coutinho pick up an injury it could hugely effect the team as a whole and lead to dropped points.

On top of that, there may come a time when their rivals are no longer in Europe and focus solely on the league. Spurs may not make it out of the group stages while Arsenal often exit around March while the same could happen to Manchester City, making them likely to finish strongly.

In 2013/14 Liverpool – with an attacking team already drawing parallels to the current Reds squad – looked set for a first ever title win but lost out after dropping points against Chelsea and Crystal Palace. Manchester City, fully-committed to the league after a European exit to Barcelona, won their final five games to triumph.

This year’s title race has a unique trait in that almost every club is currently managed by a title-winning manager. Klopp and Conte won multiple titles in Germany and Italy, Arsene Wenger has three Premier Leagues at Arsenal whilst Guardiola has won almost everything with Barcelona and Bayern Munich. And that’s forgetting Jose Mourinho would could yet inspire a United charge.

All those managers have experience of what it takes to win over 38 games and know how important it is to head into the New Year on top. You can bet they will each fight tooth and nail to make sure it’s them.

The title race may be hotting up, but when the New Year comes around, it’ll be at boiling point.

It’s not quite going to plan for Arsene Wenger this afternoon. A slow start against Stoke was compounded by a Charlie Adam penalty that put the visitors ahead at the Emirates.

Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka was the man at fault, strong arming Joe Allen in the box and forcing him off the ball. The referee showed no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

The Gunners’ fans were not best pleased with a big performance required to dig them out of a hole against Mark Hughes’ men.

With Arsenal playing before all of their title rivals this weekend, it’s important to set the standard and put pressure on the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool with a win.

Can Wenger’s men produce a comeback worthy of potential champions?

They’ve already started, Theo Walcott coming up with the goods to kickstart Arsenal’s day.

Funnily enough it was Granit Xhaka again involved, his turn on the ball giving Sanchez room to provide a pass for Bellerin who assisted Walcott’s smart finish.

It’s 1-1 at half-time and with Alexis Sanchez lurking, who’d put it past them to go on and win?

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The pressure on football managers in this day and age is relentless, but new Swansea City boss Paul Clement wants to embrace it rather than run away from it.

The 44-year-old was hired by the Welsh outfit earlier this week, not long after they sacked Bob Bradley less than three months after appointing the American coach.

Bradley oversaw just two wins in 11 games, and the fact that the Swans are on their third manager in less than a year indicates that Clement will need to hit the ground running.

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An eight-month spell at Derby County is Clement’s only previous job as manager, but he has had experience as a number two at the likes of Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.

The Reading-born coach, who was initially overlooked by Swansea when they opted for Bradley, vacated his position as Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant at Bayern Munich to take a stab at the Swansea job.

And what a job it is! The club currently reside second from bottom in the top flight, one point from safety after winning just four of their 20 matches.

“I wanted a new challenge, a new experience,” Clement told reporters. “Working with Carlo I became better in my relationships with players, I became more confident in my ability and I felt comfortable at that level.

“But I’ve never settled for that, I want to feel the pressure. The worst thing about pressure is having none of it. It’s nice to have pressure, it makes you feel alive.

“It’s the right time for me. I’ve been coaching for 20 years, since 2009 at the highest level, and I want to see if I can build a career moving forward as a head coach – as the one making the big decisions.”

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The aim for Newcastle United at the start of the season was clear: win promotion straight back to the Premier League. They remain on course with 2017 upon us.

With 25 matches of the Championship season down, Benitez’s side sit in second position with 49 points, six points ahead of third-placed Reading.

Despite losing their two opening league fixtures, the Toon have bounced back and they have certainly been helped by the impressive performances of players such as top goalscorer Dwight Gayle and midfielder Jonjo Shelvey.

While there have been some brilliant runs of form and victories such as the 6-0 thrashing of Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road, there has been some disappointing results too for the Magpies, and that is something that their Spanish manager will look to put right in 2017.

Here are THREE things that Newcastle must improve on this year…

Avoiding complacency

While they have been in brilliant form for parts of the season, you do get the feeling that Newcastle may have got complacent at points during the campaign when you look at some of their results.

It was a feeling that would have started at the beginning when Rafa Benitez’s side lost their opening two matches against Fulham and Huddersfield.

However, more surprising would have been the performances and results against relegation strugglers Blackburn Rovers, with a surprise 1-0 home defeat against the Lancashire outfit being followed up with a loss by the same scoreline on Monday at Ewood Park. This is something that Benitez must rectify in 2017 as the push for automatic promotion continues.

This is something that Benitez must rectify in 2017 as the push for automatic promotion continues.

Improve home form

Newcastle have lost seven of their 25 Championship matches this term, with four of those being at St James’ Park.

With the squad he has at his disposal, Benitez and the board would be expecting the Magpies to be doing a lot better than that – despite how notoriously difficult the division is.

What might be even more concerning for the Spaniard though is that in those four defeats, they scored just the solitary goal meaning Wolves, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn needed to net just the once to take all three points, although the former netted twice in their win on Tyneside.

Getting goals from all over the pitch

With the players they have at their disposal, Benitez will be slightly disappointed that they have had to heavily rely on Dwight Gayle for goals this season.

The former Crystal Palace man has netted 19 league efforts and is the Championship’s top scorer, but the next highest marksmen are midfielders Matt Ritchie and Yoan Gouffran, who have four each to their name.

Benitez, in particular, would have expected more goals from the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic and Ayoze Perez, and he will surely be looking for solutions to that problem during the January transfer window and into the second half of the campaign.

Manchester United face huge competition in the race to land Ajax starlet Kasper Dolberg, as The Mirror report Borussia Dortmund are also keen on his services.

What’s the word?

Kasper Dolberg, the highly-rated Ajax attacker, is one of Europe’s finest young talents and he’s got himself on Manchester United’s radar this season, after scoring an impressive 11 goals in 28 games- earning himself a call-up to Denmark’s senior squad.

A host of Premier League sides are said to have sent representatives to check out the forward, including Everton and Manchester City, but the interest is now solely from English shores- as German giants Borussia Dortmund are also keen.

Faced with the daunting prospect of losing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Dortmund will find it difficult to find a replacement but Dolberg has the potential to fill the void- and Thomas Tuchel’s side could swoop in January.

With Aubameyang away at the African Cup of Nations with hosts Gabon, Dortmund return from the Bundesliga’s winer break without a recognised centre-forward, which affects their chances of finishing in the Champions League spots.

Why’s he so good?

You read about him scoring 11 goals in 28 games right? Well, the lad is just 19- and he was identified by the same man who tipped off Ajax to the likes of Christian Eriksen and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. So yeah, he’s a big deal.

That man, John Steen Olsen, is full of praise for young Dolberg, previously stating:

“Kasper is an extraordinary talent. I knew he would be a perfect player for Ajax. Kasper has exceptional qualities: speed, technique, intelligent play and good in the air.”

With a player of that ability, it’s unlikely Dolberg will remain in the Eredivisie for too long.

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Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United managed to pick themselves up from Hull-caused frustration in midweek to thrash Leicester on Sunday.

An eventual 3-0 thumping of the champions was perhaps generous on Claudio Ranieri’s Foxes and Mourinho is showing some understanding of how to balance his team, which alluded him for the early knockings of the campaign.

The heart of their revival in this match in particular was Henrikh Mkhitaryan. The Armenian put in a stellar individual display, terrorising the Leicester defence with his direct dribbling and providing a reliable end product to make him a true danger to any opposition.

For all the talent in Manchester United’s squad, Mourinho has seldom seen individual performances this good this season. Mkhitaryan was signed as one of the world’s best and, having had a rocky first few months at the club, is finally being given the chance to prove just how good he is.

Here are five reasons he can be the hero for Mourinho this season…

Yet another option

Paul Pogba, Juan Mata, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford.

Manchester United’s options in the final third are pretty darn good. That’s without mentioning that Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be leading the attack, of course. Mkhitaryan has stern competition for the No. 10 berth as a result, but he staked one serious claim with his display against Leicester.

Mourinho has the luxury of mixing and matching his forwards however he sees fit, yet its hard to see past Mkhitaryan as the No. 10 from hereon.

Catch him if you can

Mkhitaryan running with the ball at full speed is a sight to give defenders dreadful nightmares. Able to change direction quicker than it should be possible and keeping the ball almost glued to his foot, he is one of the world’s best dribblers at top speed.

As Eden Hazard has done for Chelsea and Lionel Messi for Barcelona have shown, such magical dribblers can be used in numerous ways. Whether to retain possession or weave through an opposition defence, Mkhitaryan’s ability with the ball at his feet is almost unique.

What was Jose doing?

Matching Leicester’s 4-4-2 up seemed like a bad idea. It was a bad idea. Mourinho, though, is a master at picking up tactical issues quickly and shifted the team around immediately. There should still be concern, however, that the Manchester United boss made such an error of judgement.

When you have players as good as Mkhitaryan, Mata, Ibrahimovic and Pogba, though, one tactical mistake does not mean disaster. It was Mata and Mkhitaryan who led the improvement yesterday and their quality, which we are seeing with increasing regularity, just opens up more options for Mourinho.

Bye Wayne

Although Wayne Rooney continues to play an important role as a squad member under Mourinho, the transition from the reliance on him is eased by Mkhitaryan. The former Dortmund man can occupy many of the same areas running from deep and adds energy to the final third that Rooney was so famed for earlier in his career.

Rooney could have a few years left at Old Trafford for all we know, but its hard to see him starting many matches with the attacking options Mourinho has at his disposal.

Going Beyond

One of Manchester United’s issues has been getting players with pace close to Zlatan Ibrahimovic. With Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford rarely starting, Mkhitaryan is the best option for such a role. Feeding off the physical dominance of the Swede, the Armenian is the perfect foil in the final third.

It stretches the game, which in turn creates more space in the middle third for Manchester United’s other creators to work their magic. Runners are key with the central striker like Ibrahimovic, but that is just a small part of Mkhitaryan’s game.

West Ham boss Slaven Bilic has identified Real Madrid ace Luka Modric as the dream player he’d like to sign, when speaking to the club’s official website.

What’s the word?

Widely regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world, Luka Modric and Slaven Bilic have a close relationship due to their Croatian heritage and the fact that Bilic managed the midfielder during his tenure in charge of the international team.

The former Tottenham Hotspur star is a crucial part of Zinedine Zidane’s side but, at 31, his years at the Santiago Bernabeu are limited and a return to English football is a possibility- and the Hammers would certainly benefit from his services.

Whether Modric in a claret and blue jersey is a genuine possibility remains to be seen but Bilic certainly dreams of making that happen.

What was said?

When asked by a young West Ham fan who he’d dream signing would be, Bilic responded by saying:

“Messi. But, there’s one player that I would maybe get before Messi, and that’s Modric. Of course [it’s because he’s Croatian]… and I get a discount.”

Could it happen?

Stranger things have happened but this would certainly be a huge surprise. That said, there is still the chance of Luka Modric plying his trade for West Ham in the future- but don’t expect it to happen anytime soon.

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Real Madrid are ready to offer French defender Raphael Varane in exchange for Manchester United’s David De Gea, Spanish outlet Don Balon reports.

What’s the word?

Real Madrid’s long-term desire to bring David De Gea to the Spanish capital is no secret and the La Liga leaders could have finally found a way to make a deal happen, after sensationally seeing a deal collapse for the goalkeeper in 2015.

The deal two-years ago would have seen Keylor Navas move to Manchester United as a like-for-like replacement but there is no chance of that deal being reignited, which means Real president Florentino Perez has to find another avenue.

Varane is a key-player in Zinedine Zidane’s set-up but Perez could overrule his manager and use the French defender as makeweight in a De Gea deal, with Real Madrid eyeing Paris Saint-Germain ace Marquinhos as a replacement.

Why Varane?

During his time at Real Madrid, Raphael Varane was a favourite of Jose Mourinho’s and was signed in 2011, before being brought through the ranks at the Santiago Bernabeu. Now, the 23-year-old has ousted Pepe from Real’s defence and has created a solid partnership with Sergio Ramos.

Florentino Perez clearly thinks he’s expendable though and Manchester United would be expected to raise an interest in the French defender if his signature was to become available. As such, Real are ready to use Mourinho’s admiration for the player to secure their own target.

Losing David De Gea would be a bitter blow for Manchester United, and isn’t likely to be considered, but if the Spaniard was to push for an exit United may find themselves backed into a corner- but landing Varane as part of a deal would work in their favour.

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Leeds United supporters have been debating on who Garry Monk should field for Saturday’s Championship clash against Queens Park Rangers at Elland Road.

The manager has a selection headache now that Charlie Taylor has returned from injury and Luke Ayling is available.

On Tuesday night in a 1-1 draw with Fulham at Craven Cottage, Ayling was left out of the squad to attend the birth of his daughter.

Monk opted to play Taylor and Gaetano Berardi in the full-back positions, but now that Ayling is back in the fray for the visit of QPR, fans have been discussing who should start.

Berardi has been hugely impressive since stepping into the fold in Taylor’s absence, and many supporters believe that he deserves to keep a place in the first XI.

Despite spending around three months on the treatment table, Taylor looked comfortable playing 90 minutes in midweek, so there is a case for him getting the nod.

As for Ayling, he has been consistently strong but is one yellow card away from serving an automatic two-match ban, and given that QPR do not pose a huge threat to Leeds’ playoff hopes, he might be rested.

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Alessandro Del Piero famously once said “There have only been two footballers that have made me cry. The first one was Roberto Baggio; the second was Ryan Giggs.”

The most decorated athlete in football history, Giggs was a once-in-a-lifetime type of player who could make grown men shed a tear. In a 23-year career the Welshman won 13 Premier League titles, nine FA Community Shields, four FA Cups, four English League Cups and two Champions Leagues all with Manchester United. The midfielder was the face of the Red Devils in the 90’s and 2000’s, going down as one of the greatest ever.

Giggs will aim to add yet another trophy to his collection when he joins Darren Clarke’s Rest of World Team at ICONS of Football 2017 at The Belfry on 23rd-25th June.

Although he was born in Cardiff, Giggs and his family moved to Salford, Greater Manchester, when his father, a rugby player, signed with Swinton RLFC in 1980. He was so impressive as a teen playing for his local team that Sir Alex Ferguson showed up at Giggs’ house on his 14th birthday and offered him two years at schoolboy level with Manchester United.

Giggs would make his League debut in 1991 as a substitute and, in the following years, he slowly worked his way into a permanent spot in the Manchester United lineup at left midfield. Almost immediately he found success, winning PFA Young Player of the Year in consecutive seasons.

A even-tempered player who was never sent off during his time with Manchester United, Giggs ended up winning Premier League Player of the Year three times and went on to spearhead the Manchester United dynasty, becoming the face of the Premier League. He even had his own television show at 21-years-old, the program appropriately titled Ryan Giggs’ Soccer Skills.

When it was all said and done, Giggs broke the record for most Premier League assists with 162, a record which still stands today. His 632 League appearances is also a record. Club-wise, Giggs appeared in a record 963 games for the Red Devils and ranks seventh all-time in goals scored with 168.

On the international stage, Giggs appeared for the Welsh national team 64 times, but never in a major tournament. He still scored 12 times for Wales, and played for the Great Britain squad in the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Very rarely does a player of Giggs’ pedigree remain with one club for twenty-plus years, but that is exactly what he did. After a stint as player-manager for United, Giggs retired for good in June 2014.

He could score from anywhere and he made Alessandro Del Piero cry. Clearly, Ryan Giggs was one of the best to ever take the pitch. Now he will be looking to make his teammate cry with joy again – this time as the two team up to take down England at ICONS of Football 2017.

Tickets for Icons of Football 2017 are available now at icons-series.com