Michael Cox – Page 5 – Football Scout

Why the Premier League should be afraid of ‘Sarri-ball’ once Chelsea master it

The FC crew answer your tweets on N’Golo Kante’s positioning under Maurizio Sarri, what Unai Emery will do with Mesut Ozil and much more.

Stewart Robson analyses how Maurizio Sarri’s tactics mixed with quality individual performances were enough to inflict Manchester City’s first loss of the season.

The Premier League currently finds itself with the most impressive array of managers in its 27-season history, and the eclectic cast includes three managers who have contributed significantly to the evolution of modern football.

The first is Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola. His hugely successful Barcelona side repopularised possession football across the continent before he became an increasingly flexible manager during his period in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich. The second is Liverpool’s…

Transfer window can save Premier League’s strugglers from relegation

Craig Burley and Steve Nicol answer your questions on the Premier League, Alisson, Alvaro Morata, favorite Christmas beverages, and more.
The 2018-19 Premier League season has a markedly different feel from 2017-18. This is a campaign of identities, of philosophies, of ideologues.
The change has been evident at the top, where Chelsea’s Maurizio Sarri and Arsenal’s Unai Emery have stamped their authority upon their sides with remarkable speed. In midtable, Everton finally have a clear playing identity under Marco Silva, and Watford appear more settled under Javi Gracia.
But the pattern is also evident among bottom-half sides, which…

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s brace, Unai Emery’s adjustments ensure Arsenal rule North London

Arsenal got two decisive goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Lucas Torreira in the second half that ended an exciting match at the Emirates.
LONDON — Three points from the Emirates on Arsenal’s 4-2 North London derby win over rivals Tottenham in the Premier League.

1. Arsenal win, recapture North London
Unai Emery’s start to life at the Emirates has, by common consent, been broadly positive. Decent football, good results, fans and players on board with his vision. But it had lacked something — some spark, some drama, some out-and-out thrills, a truly memorable game.

So how about an end-to-end, come-from-behind, utterly bonkers…

Arsenal rule North London as Emery gets team to fight in pulsating comeback vs. Spurs

So how about an end-to-end, come-from-behind, utterly bonkers…

This is the new Arsenal: Torreira, Aubameyang signal the real start of the Emery era

Arsenal got two decisive goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Lucas Torreira in the second half that ended an exciting match at the Emirates.

Shaka Hislop credits Arsenal for being “simply outstanding” against a Tottenham side whose difference makers disappeared in the North London derby.

LONDON — Sunday, December 2 was billed as “derby day” on the English television networks, with three consecutive local derbies. Fulham vs. Chelsea convened in west London and Liverpool hosted Everton on Merseyside. Realistically, though, there was one standout game and it was in north London.

Arsenal vs. Tottenham has been the Premier League’s best fixture over the past decade, combining traditional local rivalry with league table significance. More often than not, it also produces great football….

Football’s dark arts: Your guide to the set-piece trickery, diving and sneaky fouls that make a difference

The FC panel share their thoughts on the impact football’s ‘dark arts’ are having on the game.
Football’s laws are always evolving. In recent years, there have been changes to the kickoff, alteration to the punishment for “last man” fouls and the long-awaited rollout of VAR.
The rules and regulations have not adapted much in terms of clamping down on gamesmanship, and in a way, that is the point: It is not about breaking laws as such but more about pushing their boundaries in search of an advantage.
A popular description of these actions is “dark arts,” but what are its major forms? Here…

Trent Alexander-Arnold is already a world-class full-back but he might not be there for long

After a limp first-half display, Liverpool burst into life in the second period winning in the end very comfortably 3-0 against Watford

Trent Alexander-Arnold praises Liverpool’s resilience and breaks down the relief after he scored against Watford.

It was a complex offside situation. Sadio Mane had converted the rebound, seemingly giving Liverpool a 1-0 lead at the Emirates, but a linesman’s flag had thwarted him. Mane had been offside when the initial pass was played, but wasn’t interfering with play. When he was interfering with play, in the second phase, he’d been level with Roberto Firmino as the Brazilian volleyed towards goal. Mane was onside, the goal should have stood.

From the freeze-frames on the replay, we were looking at the…

Selfless Eden Hazard is Chelsea’s game-changer but short of Ballon d’Or level

Mark Donaldson and Stewart Robson square off in predicting every fixture from this weekend’s Premier League action.
Despite being one of Europe’s best footballers, Eden Hazard is consistently spoken about in terms of what he can’t do, and what he hasn’t done.
This is a footballer who has, twice in the last four seasons, won the Premier League and subsequently been voted his side’s best player by his supporters. The other two seasons have been, admittedly, below-par — but Hazard has followed those campaigns by recording the most assists at Euro 2016, and then the most assists at World Cup 2018, a tournament where…

Juan Mata has saved Jose Mourinho’s Man United career… for now

The FC team answer your tweets asking them to apologise to Man United after their comeback at Juve, discuss Cristiano Ronaldo’s goal celebration and more.

After Jose Mourinho’s postgame antics, the FC panel question how much credit he really deserves for Man United’s late win in Turin.
If there’s been one constant throughout Jose Mourinho’s managerial career in England, it’s been his love of bold substitutions.
Mourinho, perhaps more than any other manager in the modern game, uses his replacements swiftly, decisively and often unusually. He has made substitutions within the first 25 minutes to completely change formation; he has introduced players primarily tasked with communicating tactical messages to teammates; he’s made a half-time treble substitution; he even once made a…

Dortmund’s reemergence among Champions League group stage’s highlights

The Champions League groups are beginning to take shape ahead of Matchday 4. Paul Mariner and Mark Donaldson have their say as to who will come out on top.

With the Champions League group stage at its midway point, Michael Cox dives into what’s left to play for and what’s most intriguing about European nights under the flood lights before the knockout rounds begin.

Are Dortmund really this good?

There’s little doubt about the most impressive side from this season’s Champions League so far. Borussia Dortmund started slowly, with a 1-0 victory over Club Brugge courtesy of a late Christian Pulisic goal, but then they thrashed Monaco 3-0 before recording…

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