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Bootsmann
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| Posted: 23 July 2018 at 09:15 | IP Logged
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On a Premier League Wednesday with nine games played
simultaneously, spectacular goals and the top five teams
each victorious, it was another home loss for Manchester
United taking the headlines. Whenever United loses, its
crisis. When other top teams slip up, its the quirky
nature of the Premier League. The predictable reaction
speaks to the sky-high expectations for a team proven
perennial contender and 13 times Premier League champion.
While its premature to suggest United have abdicated
their throne, retaining their title this term has become
improbable. Setting the bar lower to Champions League
qualification even seems an uphill climb for a team
reflecting United only in colours and crest. The mighty
have fallen. But how far? After Wednesdays 1-0 loss to
Everton, Manchester United sits 9th: Uniteds lowest ever
position after 14 games. The home form is most
disconcerting. David Moyes side has already been shut
out twice at Old Trafford this campaign. Their eight
home goals for is equal to the likes of West Ham, who
have no true striker and one less than last place
Sunderland. In comparison, Manchester City has scored 29
at home in the same number of games. Thats a Grand
Canyon sized difference between supposed rivals on the
field. The gap, incredible considering United finished
11 points ahead of City a season ago. Wednesdays loss is
merely salt in the wound. The Everton away support
mocked Moyes throughout. United support most likely felt
like doing the same, if it were not the previous
instructions by his predecessor, "your job now is to
stand by our new manager." Wariness persists about the
new man. While the players and staff all say the right
things, belief amongst even the most ardent supporter
wavers. Patience is preached. That narrative is
difficult to swallow for supporters who have grown
accustomed to winning trophies at a club with the
bankroll to support ambition. Perhaps Sir Alex saw this
coming. Perhaps he had got everything he could out of
this group of players. Perhaps he knew the team needed an
overhaul. And perhaps that was a little bit too much for
a 71-year-old manager with nothing to prove to start over
and rebuild. And perhaps banking on ownership to
actually use the clubs financial might to address the
issues in the side was something Ferguson could no longer
stomach. This argument is less about the man in charge,
rather than the team on the field. The goals United
would score a year ago are now finding the woodwork. The
challenges are sloppy. The shape leaves much to desire.
Its striking the team couldnt rise up to the challenge of
Everton; a fixture that was always going to be circled on
the calendar, no matter where Everton and Manchester
United sat in the table. The fact Moyes former team sat
above his current gave added urgency. The Reds didnt
respond. Yes, Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck hit post
and crossbar respectively. But the chances for Everton
were as good, or better than what United could muster.
The irony, plain to see, with a United transfer targets
injury replacement Bryan Oviedo scoring the match winner.
The Everton midfield, which was plucked of Marouane
Fellaini at the transfer window, was dominant throughout,
with Fellainis replacements James McCarthy and Gareth
Barry keeping the shape United only wished they could
have. And Fellaini, fortunate to have stayed on the
field after an ugly challenge, and looking a shell of the
influential player he was while wearing blue. "We never
felt inferior," remarked a jubilant Everton manager,
Roberto Martinez. A Martinez managed team had never
scored a goal at Old Trafford, let alone win. His
Everton team in one try did what Moyes Everton couldnt
accomplish in over a decade – win at Old Trafford. It
was a measured, calculated and composed approach by the
visitors. Time after time, they exposed the weakness in
Uniteds midfield. United can still maintain possession
of the ball in the middle of the park. But the east-west
ball movement lack cutting edge and fluidity. The end
result is a stale, predictable product. Most noticeably,
Uniteds inability to put high pressure on the ball, and
subsequent lack of numbers in attack on the counter left
United at the mercy of a superior Everton midfield.
Vintage United teams over the last two decades were
deadly at forcing mistakes through putting pressure on
the ball and forcing teams out of their element. It was
always near textbook counter-attacking football. That
was the Manchester United way. When in possession, Sir
Alex Fergusons United would attack in waves. It would be
relentless and it would break you down. This new United
sits back. And when on the ball, there are very few
options in support. Everton were vastly superior at both
pressing the ball and attacking in numbers, just as West
Brom were in a shock away victory at the Theatre of
Dreams earlier this season. Fluid movement on and off
the ball and purposeful possession broke down United.
These were no fluky, lucky away victories. They were
well earned. We should fall short of calling United a bad
team. They are still a good team with a collection of
players able to compete. But they have simply fallen
back to the pack. Hanging in and grinding out points is
where the team is. Thats not a bad thing. Its just not
typical United. Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney have
match changing, game winner abilities. Outside f the
two, the squad falls short on top talent. So system,
discipline, and effort need be relied upon. No matter
what happens in January, Moyes number one job is to get
his midfield right. He would likely trade his entire
midfield roster for the likes of one of Eden Hazard, Yaya
Toure, or Mesut Ozil – all top players for title
contending teams. Likewise for Juan Mata, Oscar Aaron
Ramsey, Santi Cazorla – you get the picture. In the
midfield, Manchester United is playing from a deficit.
The discourse coming from Old Trafford has to change. It
cannot be about moral victories. Executive vice-chairman
Ed Woodward saying United will remain strong financially
without winning trophies sends the wrong message. The
expectation is winning, not profit. The league is
becoming clearer: Arsenal, Manchester City, and Chelsea
are clear title threats. Liverpool, Everton, and Spurs
are in the second tier. Is United better than the
aforementioned three? Certainly not based upon form.
This is the challenge for United and their new manager.
These may be early days, but its gut-check time. A
suspended Wayne Rooney Saturday doesnt make matters any
easier. The team has responded before. Will they
respond this time around, for this manager? Other Musings
- Luis Suarez is on a run for the ages, scoring 13 goals
in nine games this season. The bite seen around the
world and the summer of discontent seems to be a distant
memory. But this is Suarez were talking about.
Dependability is not his middle name. One has to wonder
what is his value now? Liverpool famously rejected
Arsenals audacious bid of just over £40 million. What is
Barcelona or Real Madrid offer £80 million? Can
Liverpool afford to lose him, no matter the price?
Qualifying for Champions League is massive for the short-
term future of the club. And could very well determine
if Suarez continues on at Anfield. - After just 90
seconds Wednesday, Niklas Bendtner scored his first
Arsenal goal in 1,005 days. In very Bendtner like
fashion, he later missed an absolute sitter. Can Arsene
Wenger afford not going into Januarys transfer window to
buy another striker? Or can Theo Walcott and Lukas
Podolski be decent enough options, providing cover for
Olivier Giroud? The decision could be the difference
between winning the league. - Andre Villas-Boas outburst
at the press doesnt bode well for the Spurs manager. The
Portuguese manager has bigger fish to fry than petty
public spats with those who cover the team. Finding
requisite width and appropriate attacking formation tops
his to-do list. The lack of influence through the wing
positions despite worlds of talent is troubling. Two
late goals at Craven Cottage spared his blushes.
Maintaining focus is paramount. AVB has the players.
Time to bring it all together. - Southamptons dream run
has been derailed for the time being. A difficult
stretch has seen the team lose their top goalkeeper and
concede eight times in their last three after giving up
just five in their previous 11. It doesnt get any
easier, with games against top teams Manchester City,
Newcastle and Spurs in their next three Twitter -
@WheelerTSNEmail - gareth.wheeler@bellmedia.ca.
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his opening seven holes in a round of 64, South African
Thomas Aiken (70) and Denmarks Thorbjorn Olesen (68) on a
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fourth in the post-season (Sunday at 2pm et/11am pt on
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Stamkos scored his first goal since returning from a
major injury, Ryan Callahan had his first goal with Tampa
Bay, and the Lightning beat the Florida Panthers 5-4 on
Thursday night.It seems only fitting, with the ridiculous
number of injuries this season, the Majors would be
marking an anniversary of some note. This is the 100th
season of the disabled list. It was first instituted in
the National League in 1915. At that time, it was for 10
days. Now its seven days for a concussion, and 15 or 60
days if its a long term injury. I did a rough count and
came up with 64 players currently out with injuries. But
that list didnt include some of the players whove been
out since Spring Training, including Tampa Bay lefty Matt
Moore. It also doesnt include the myriad of banged up
players listed as day-to-day. Going with the 64 figure
though, that means just less than 10% of the 650 players
on Major League rosters on any given day are hurt. Blue
Jays fans know this only too well. This is the third
straight season that is being scuttled in part because of
injuries. In 2012, it was the Jays losing Kyle Drabek,
Brandon Morrow, and Drew Hutchison, all in one fateful
week in June. Last season it was Jose Reyes, Brett
Lawrie, and Jose Bautista, just to name a few. Right now
the Jays are dealing with injuries to their 4, 5, and 6
hitters in Edwin Encarnacion, Adam Lind and Lawrie, with
no definitive timetable for their return. With the All-
Star break rapidly approaching, you could actually put
something close to an All-Star squad for each League made
up of players on the DL or just listed as day-to-day.
Lets start with the American League: (C) Matt Wieters-
Orioles(1B) Edwin Encarnacion - Blue Jays or Joe Mauer-
Minnesota(2B) Brett Lawrie- Blue Jays (OK maybe not quite
an All-Star yet)(3B) Will Middlebrooks- Red Sox (Ditto)
(SS) Yunel Escobar- Rays (defensively at least)(LF)
Carlos Beltran- Yankees(CF) Michael Bourn- Indians(RF)
Shane Victorino- Boston or Wil Myers- Rays(DH) Adam Lind-
Blue Jays (Platoon at least) (SPs) Masahiro Tanaka-
Yankees, C.C Sabathia- Yankees, Justin Masterson-
Clevleand, C.J Wilson- Angels(Closer) Joel Hanrahan
Detroit (not based on this season of couse) The National
League squad may be even more impressive (C) Yadier
Molina- Cardinals, Evan Gattis- Braves, or Caarlos Ruiz-
Phillies(1B) Joey Votto- Reds(2B) Brandon Phillips-
Reds(3B) Pablo Sandoval- Giants (not on DL, but cant
straighten his arm due to elbow injury and is day-to-day)
(SS) Chris Owings- Diamondbacks(LF)) Mark Trumbo-
Diamondbacks(CF) A.dddddddddddd. Pollock-
Diamondbacks(RF) Carlos Gonzalez- Rockies (SPs) Michael
Wacha- Cardinals, Cliff Lee- Phillies, Josh Beckett-
Dodgers(Closer) Aroldis Chapman- Reds (listed as day-to-
day after a stint on the DL earlier in the season, when
he took a line drive in the head.) I stretched it a bit
calling some of these guys All-Stars, but Im sure you get
the point. I dont really have any answers short of
reducing the length of Spring Training and cutting back
the regular season to 154 games, the way it used to be.
Ditching interleague play to cut down on travel a bit
more might be another solution. Sanchez growing with the
Bisons Aaron Sanchez, who could be up with the Blue Jays
at some point down the stretch or even used as trade
bait, is still looking for his elusive first Triple A
victory at Buffalo. Sanchez came up with a solid, and
longer, outing Thursday night at home against Durham. He
threw 83 pitches over six innings, but was saddled with a
3-2 loss that dropped his record to 0-2. Jeremy Moore
tagged him for a long, game-winning two-run homer in the
sixth but overall his numbers were pretty good. It was
his third straight quality start: he gave up five hits,
three runs (one unearned), walked two and struck out six.
Jays begin crucial series with Rays At the beginning of
the season, I actually felt Tampa Bay would win the AL
East. Injuries and a lack of depth did them in in the
first half. Although the Rays are still nine and a half
back of front running Baltimore in the East and eight
back of Seattle for the second Wild Card, they are now
the second hottest team in the AL East next to the Os.
Theyve won seven out of 10 and 10 out of 14. Theyre
getting healthy again as well, outfielders Wil Myers and
David DeJesus should be back in the next couple of weeks.
The Rays could make some noise down the stretch, and
thats why the Jays cant afford to be swept by them this
weekend at Tropicana Field. In fact, if the Jays can win
or sweep the series themselves, it could push the Rays
right out of the race and turn them from potential buyers
into sellers at that July 31st non-waiver trade deadline.
Soriano DFAd I wonder if the Blue Jays will take a flyer
on Alfonso Soriano, who was designated for assignment by
the Yankees the other day. He can still hit lefties,
something the Jays have struggled with all season long.
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Topic: ged him for a long, game-winning two-r
