Louis van Gaal tells Manchester United fans to stop expecting trophies every season December 12, 2015 Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has suggested the club's fans can no longer expect the same level of success they became accustomed to under Sir Alex Ferguson. With comments that risk angering already disaffected supporters, van Gaal suggested it was much harder for United to win every season as more clubs have lots of [...]
Manchester United can still win title, says Louis van Gaal, after Wayne Rooney goal sinks Liverpool January 17, 2016 Liverpool 0, Manchester United 1 Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal insists his team could still snatch the Premier League title after they pilfered an unlikely three points at Liverpool on Sunday. A 78th-minute volley from striker Wayne Rooney – United’s only shot on target – earned Van Gaal’s third victory in four matches since [...]
FA Cup fourth round: How much is winning worth? How its prize money compares to the Champions League and Premier League January 30, 2016 In football's modern landscape of multi-billion pound TV deals, prawn sandwiches and sponsored stadiums it's often taken as a given that cold hard cash rules all. Yet if there's one counter point to that cynicism it's surely the FA Cup, which remains one of English football's most prized assets despite a relatively paltry economic reward for [...]
Happy Hammers have the weapons to harm Man City September 17, 2015 JUVENTUS’ comeback win over Manchester City will have left Manuel Pellegrini feeling like he was mugged by the Old Lady. The 2-1 loss means City will have to do things the hard way in the Champions League again. They’ve only won three of their last 12 home games in the competition so West Ham – [...]
China: The end of dreams and the return of sanity January 25, 2016 Perhaps the most debilitating of all human emotions is disillusionment, for it marks the death of fond hopes, the painful recognition that dreams will simply not come to pass. It is this feeling – as much as any hard empirical data – that is driving the present market crisis in China, where not one but [...]
Solid Stoke will be hard to break down for inconsistent Manchester City December 3, 2015 Will Manchester City come to regret not taking charge of the Premier League title race in its formative stages? They sit top but the heights they’ve hit in their nine wins from 14 have been undermined by some shaky performances. Manuel Pellegrini’s men lost at home to West Ham, were torn apart by Tottenham, and [...]
Under-fire Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho needs to show more humility, says ex-Stamford Bridge boss Ruud Gullit November 8, 2015 Former Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit insists a show of humility would be the first step in under-fire Blues boss Jose Mourinho arresting the tidal of wave of despair engulfing the Stamford Bridge club this season. Mourinho put speculation over his job security to one side yesterday as he watched Chelsea’s under-21 side defeat their Liverpool [...]
Tottenham are in with a shout of winning the Premier League but their reliance on Harry Kane worries me November 24, 2015 Tottenham have been quietly growing in confidence this season and recent results, culminating in Sunday’s 4-1 drubbing of West Ham, show they currently have no reason to fear anyone. Spurs tick all the boxes you want from an effective team. They are technically very good, the team is well balanced, and spirit appears to be [...]
Darkhorse Stratford restaurant review: more nag than stallion January 20, 2016 I'm calling January 2016 as the moment the restaurant template that's dominated London for the last five years finally jumped the shark. Far too many new openings appear to have been cobbled together, Inception-style, from my memories of other restaurants, from the interior design to the locally sourced, modern European menus. There's a cynicism to the uniformity. It's a formula that [...]
Why away teams are winning more in the Premier League this season: Only most clinical teams survive in counter-attack savvy top flight September 30, 2015 West Ham have beaten Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City away from home this season, which is typical of a wider trend You might not have noticed, but something strange is happening in the Premier League this season. All across the country, away teams are winning more frequently than home teams, and it’s stopping any single [...]