West Ham fans may be happier now than they were five months ago. The victory over Tottenham in April played a big part in galvanizing the club, leading to a positive finish to the last campaign. The club ditched last summer’s approach of taking cheap gambles in the transfer market, signing proven performers who have… Read more →
George Honeyman netted his first goal for Sunderland, helping the Black Cats through to the second round of the EFL Cup with a 1-0 win at Bury – but how did players on both teams fare? Here’s our ratings. Bury Joe Murphy – made an excellent save from McGeady early on and used his experience… Read more →
George Honeyman netted his first goal for Sunderland, helping the Black Cats through to the second round of the EFL Cup with a 1-0 win at Bury – but what are the seven talking points from the game? Using the left We saw an end-to-end opening to the contest with both teams attacking down the… Read more →
Exeter could have scored more than just the one goal in their victory over Cambridge last week. After Reuben Reid tucked away the rebound from his fifth minute penalty, Liam McAlinden missed two good chances, Lloyd James one while David Wheeler hit the post with his header. The Grecians might have had slices of luck… Read more →
It is fair to say that Bradford City’s performance, in their 2-1 win over Blackpool last week, was not a vintage one. They relied largely on their centre-backs: Matthew Kilgallon for his man-of-the-match performance and Nat Knight-Percival for his opener just before half-time, after Timothee Dieng flicked on Nicky Law’s free-kick. Another centre-back, Gabriel Zakuani,… Read more →
On the evidence of last season – but more specifically last week – Fulham like their attacking football. They were a joy to watch in the first half of their 1-1 opening day draw with Norwich City. The Cottagers had a speedy front trio of Neeskens Kebano and Sone Aluko either side of Floyd Ayite,… Read more →
Aston Villa edged into the League Cup 2nd Round thanks to a narrow 2-1 win at Colchester – but what are the key talking points from the match? Here’s our six. Colchester’s early blow There were signs in the first five minutes that the hosts would compete well, pressing intelligently with Tom Lapslie covering all… Read more →
Aston Villa edged into the League Cup 2nd Round thanks to a narrow 2-1 win at Colchester – but how did players on both teams do? Here’s our ratings. Colchester United Sam Walker – spilt the ball for the opener but could do little about the second goal that was deflected. 4 Cameron James –… Read more →
Chelsea won their second title in three years last season, but there were plenty of enticing stories elsewhere. Tottenham said goodbye to White Hart Lane with another impressive campaign as both Merseyside clubs progressed significantly. Bournemouth made the top half while Burnley bridged financial waters to win more than half their home games. What’s in… Read more →
The biggest surge of top flight title winners has been complacency. Over the last four years, we have seen champions finish 7th, 2nd, 10th and 12th – an average position of 8th. Chelsea’s best seasons have come when they have acted decisively to address key weaknesses. In 13/14 their main problem was a lack of… Read more →