Michael Cox – Page 7 – Football Scout

Style Points: Ranking all 20 Premier League clubs by how they play the game (sorry, Man United)

Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane’s pace suits Jurgen Klopp’s high-pressing style of play perfectly.
Managing a football team used to be rather straightforward. Managers were tasked with getting results — also known as the Golden Age of Jose Mourinho — without much, if any, concern about playing beautiful football. Style didn’t matter; three points did. But all that’s changing. These days, there’s a greater demand for managers to create an obvious stylistic identity for their side.

This season, for the first time in a long time, the Premier League is enjoying a new era of refreshingly diverse…

Mo Salah’s struggles aren’t a big deal but he has room for improvement

It’s a telling demonstration of Mohamed Salah’s outstanding 2017-18 campaign that just seven games and three goals into the new campaign, we’re already questioning why he isn’t quite himself.

Salah’s output is a good return from a player who has carried Liverpool’s main threat in almost every game this season. Yet after a debut campaign that featured 32 goals and 10 assists, we’ve come to expect Lionel Messi-esque numbers. Of course, that might prove unreasonable considering last season’s goalscoring…

Why Jorginho is more important than N’Golo Kante for Chelsea as Maurizio Sarri rebuilds club

In the 26-year history of the Premier League, it’s difficult to remember many more dramatic shifts in style between Chelsea pre-Maurizio Sarri and Chelsea under the Italian manager.
Even Arsenal’s transition from George Graham’s defensive-minded football to Arsene Wenger’s artistic attacking was aided by the one-season reign of Bruce Rioch, who had the demeanour of Graham but preached the importance of playing out from the back and loaded his side with creative talent. Chelsea have not had that…

Arsenal’s rapid-succession goals secure win after defence wobbles vs. Everton

Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang teamed up once again, leading Arsenal to a comfortable 2-0 victory over Everton. LONDON — Three points from the Emirates Stadium after Arsenal’s 2-0 Premier League victory over Everton on Sunday.

1. Rapid-succession goals secure Arsenal win

Arsenal had struggled to create chances throughout the first half, and it took a truly wonderful individual strike from Alexandre Lacazette for the Gunners to take the lead, 10 minutes into the second half. Receiving a pass from Aaron Ramsey in an inside-left position, the French striker took a touch, opened up his body and thumped the…

Cardiff’s direct, no-nonsense style can test Manchester City

ESPN FC’s Alexis Nunes and Steve Nicol square off in predicting every fixture in the sixth week of Premier League action.

Resident fantasy expert Mark Donaldson shares his tips for this weekend’s Premier League fixtures.

Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero admitted he was very happy to extend his current contract at the club until 2021.
On Saturday, the greatest stylistic mismatch of the 2018-19 Premier League campaign takes place when promoted Cardiff City, managed by Neil Warnock, host Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.
The statistics tell the story effectively. Man City’s pass completion rate this season is 90 percent, a reflection of their determination to build patiently from the back and move the ball through a technically proficient midfield trio.
Cardiff, on the other hand, have a pass completion rate of just 64 percent….

Lyon shock sloppy Manchester City as Nabil Fekir delivers the goods on the big stage

MANCHESTER, England — Three points on Lyon’s 2-1 win over Man City in Group F of the UEFA Champions League. 

1. City shocked in UCL opener
The Champions League group stage is often criticised for being too routine for the big boys, but this was an eventful, unpredictable contest that ended with a genuine shock result. Manchester City entered arguably as the favourites to win the entire competition, never mind this game, while Lyon have started poorly in Ligue 1. A comfortable home win seemed…

Champions League questions: Can Madrid win without Ronaldo? Can Juventus win with him?

From a neutrals point of view, the FC panel feel the 2018/19 Champions League group stage will be full of mouth-watering fixtures.

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ESPN FC’s Paul Mariner sifts through the Champions League draw and determines who has the best path to the knockout stage and who may struggle.

With negotiations reportedly ongoing to play the UEFA Champions League final in New York, the FC crew weigh the pros and cons of playing in the U.S.

Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola insists his side aren’t thinking about a Champions League final this season and that they remain focused on the Premier League.

The FC panel are cautiously optimistic of Manchester United’s chances of advancing from Group H, indicating Jose Mourinho must fix their current problems fast.
The Champions League group stage begins with 31 teams attempting to deny Real Madrid a fourth straight triumph. All of the main contenders have questions to answer, so we asked Michael Cox to look at one key issue for each of the likely challengers.

The major surprise from the European Cup holders’ summer was not that Real Madrid sold Cristiano Ronaldo, but that they did not really replace him. Kylian Mbappe, Eden Hazard and Neymar seemed the obvious choices, but instead Madrid are taking the…

Pochettino vs. Klopp a battle of Premier League’s brightest minds

The FC crew disagree with former Man United defender Gary Neville, who believes Liverpool should direct their focus on the Prem this season.

Alejandro Moreno and Shaka Hislop believe Liverpool’s trip to Wembley will provide some early evidence as to whether they’re the real deal.

Jurgen Klopp admits how tough it is to leave someone of Fabinho’s cost and quality on the bench at Liverpool.

From the multitude of talented foreign coaches currently operating in the Premier League, Mauricio Pochettino and Jurgen Klopp are the ones who have contributed most to the division’s current tactical feel. We’ve long since moved past the defensive era defined by Jose Mourinho and the possession-based approach epitomised by Pep Guardiola was actually more popular several seasons ago, before he joined Manchester City.

This is the Premier League’s pressing era, and it’s Pochettino and Klopp, more…

England’s wing weakness exposed: Gareth Southgate needs a plan B

England manager Gareth Southgate looks forward to seeing how his side cope with the challenge of facing Spain.

As Marcus Rashford keeps scoring for England, the FC crew discuss whether he should leave Man United in search of minutes in a central position.

Steve Nicol breaks down both sides’ performances in Spain’s 2-1 win over England and responds to the controversial call on Danny Welbeck.
At half-time of England’s World Cup semifinal against Croatia in July, Gareth Southgate’s side were cruising. A goal up from the fifth minute courtesy of Kieran Trippier’s free-kick, England had dominated, enjoyed further chances, and should have been out of sight.
Instead, they couldn’t sustain their performance. Croatia rallied, enforced long spells of pressure, equalised, continued to dominate, and eventually scored an extra-time winner.
England’s major problem wasn’t about fitness, a constant…

Jean-Michael Seri, Richarlison, Danny Ings lead list of top summer Premier League signings

The Exploding Heads look back at August in the Premier League which included Jose Mourinho’s mind games, forced rivalries and Jurgen Klopp’s shopping spree.
At this stage of the season, we’re usually reflecting upon the last-minute deadline day signings, and speculating about how they might perform. With the Premier League’s transfer window closing before the start of the campaign, however, we instead have an opportunity to assess the performances of summer captures. Here are five summer signings who have impressed so far.
Jean-Michael Seri, Fulham

Even in an age where we’ve become accustomed to bottom-half Premier League clubs punching above their…

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