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Player Focus: Same Old Arsenal but Different Giroud

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Player Focus: Same Old Arsenal but Different Giroud So Arsenal have done it again. They stumbled through another Champions League group stage before crashing out of the competition in the the most predictable style, failing gloriously after yet another unassailable first leg defeat. Whether or not this was a fault of their own or the doing of that da...

Team Focus: Everton Flying Flag for England while Martinez Struggles with Juggling Act

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Team Focus: Everton Flying Flag for England while Martinez Struggles with Juggling Act While Arsenal and Manchester City are the only remaining teams flying the flag for England in the Champions League – and only just – there is one Premier League side excelling in this season’s edition of Europe’s second competition. Liverpool crashed straight out to Besiktas ...

Match Report: 10-Man PSG Battle to Unlikely Champions League Progress

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Match Report: 10-Man PSG Battle to Unlikely Champions League Progress It was clear from the demeanours of the two managers on this Champions League night at Stamford Bridge what the tasks were that lay ahead of their respective teams. Laurent Blanc of Paris Saint German was poised from the very start on the touchline, his adversary Jose Mourinho took 20 minutes to eve...

Player Focus: Van Gaal to Blame for Frustrated Angel Di Maria’s United Woes

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Player Focus: Van Gaal to Blame for Frustrated Angel Di Maria’s United Woes The demise of Ángel Di María has been pretty painful to watch. A fall in the space of a year from £60m record Manchester United signing and best creator on the planet to dismissed onlooker having been sent off against Arsenal for the pettiest of double bookings on Monday night ha...

Player Focus: Why Unassuming Azpilicueta Has Cemented His Place at Chelsea

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Player Focus: Why Unassuming Azpilicueta Has Cemented His Place at Chelsea When facing this Chelsea team, the aim of opposition managers must be to attempt to highlight any slight weakness of which they can try and take advantage. So far this season, their only defeats have come when Nemanja Matic has been missing or had a rare off day. It isn't at all clear how, therefore...

League Focus: Inescapable Inconsistency Set to Decide Championship Promotion Race

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League Focus: Inescapable Inconsistency Set to Decide Championship Promotion Race If those in power at the Championship's promotion-chasing clubs needed any more reason to motivate their players as the season approaches its final quarter, a £5.1bn television deal will have whetted their appetites for the big time sufficiently. And yet, it seems the players chasing the top s...

Team Focus: N’Doye Signing Gives Hull Boost but Bruce Should Aim Higher

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Team Focus: N’Doye Signing Gives Hull Boost but Bruce Should Aim Higher It might seem obvious to state it in such simple terms but here goes anyway: Steve Bruce will never be England manager. Not just because he is one of the least glamorous options going, nor of the blanket indignation across England’s fanbase if he were to be appointed, but because his talents d...

Team Focus: Are Manchester United the Most Underwhelming Team in the Premier League?

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Team Focus: Are Manchester United the Most Underwhelming Team in the Premier League? “It does not give me any pleasure to say that at the moment I am struggling to watch Louis van Gaal’s team with any great enjoyment. They beat Burnley on Wednesday night but it was Burnley who had by far the best of the first half. At times, United’s football is miserable.” P...

Player Focus: Happy and Committed Zouma Has Potential to Become Chelsea Stalwart

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Player Focus: Happy and Committed Zouma Has Potential to Become Chelsea Stalwart It all started, as with so much in the world of football at present, with Harry Kane. Tottenham had started the game at Stamford Bridge at breakneck speed, with the striker picking Gary Cahill’s pocket on the left wing before turning him inside out and getting a shot away. A clash of heads for...

Team Focus: Pochettino's Youthful Tottenham Built for Bright Future

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Team Focus: Pochettino's Youthful Tottenham Built for Bright Future The list of superlatives left to describe Harry Kane’s phenomenal rise over the past months is fast running out. Praise upon praise has been heaped on the man-of-the-moment, with past players and pundits alike demanding an England call-up whilst talk persists of the likes of Real Madrid sendin...