The Weekly Take, Issue 206: The Downward Spiral Carries On

For much of this season, it appeared that Sevilla were on course for their best La Liga campaign in many years and would be Real Madrid's closest challengers for the league title, given the struggles of perennial powerhouses Barcelona and Atlético Madrid. Sevilla have either been second or third in the league for large portions of this season and at some points, even seemed as though they were a serious threat to make a run at a first league title since the 1945-46 season.

However, Los Rojiblancos were handed a severe reality check in their most recent match against Real. The Andalusian club squandered a 2-0 lead and ended up losing 3-2. Karim Benzema continued his hot streak by scoring Real's winning goal in stoppage time and further bolstering his Ballon d'Or credentials in the process.

The loss left Sevilla in third place in the league, 15 points behind Real and with their grip on a Champions League spot next season slipping with each passing matchday. Earlier this season, Sevilla had been keeping pace with Real at the top of the league and appeared to be locks for a top-four finish. This is clearly no longer the case; they are now embroiled in a five-way battle for the last three Champions League spots with Barça, Atlético, Real Betis, and Real Sociedad.

In the last three months, Sevilla have won just three league matches and collected a mere 16 points out of a possible 36 while doing so. They also suffered a shocking elimination in the Europa League round of 16 when they lost to West Ham United 2-1 on aggregate.

The most glaring issue concerning this Sevilla team and the main reason behind their slump is their lack of output on the offensive end. Sevilla's leading league goalscorer thus far is Rafa Mir, who has just nine goals to his name this season. It isn't as though the rest of the team are necessarily picking up the slack, either - Sevilla's team total of 46 league goals ranks them well behind every other club in the top six except Real Sociedad. It should go without saying that such figures will clearly not cut it at this level.

In my most recent post about Sevilla, I mentioned that it would have been in their best interest to pursue a centre-forward in the mid-season transfer window. Sevilla did attempt to address this issue by bringing in Anthony Martial on a loan deal from Manchester United. However, in a turn of events that just about everyone should have seen coming, Martial has made absolutely no positive impact at all since arriving at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. His career numbers should have been a clear red flag - only once in his career has he averaged more than half a goal per match during the course of a season. Unsurprisingly, many Sevilla fans have already soured on the Frenchman and understandably cannot wait for his loan deal to end. This was an ill-advised acquisition and a waste of an open spot which could've been filled by a far more capable centre-forward.

Ever since January, Sevilla have also struggled to close matches out. Their 12-match slump includes seven draws of which at least three or four could have been wins. Perhaps it was their relative lack of experience in such a position in the league that made the difference, but it was obvious in many of those matches that Sevilla seemed much tighter and tenser, especially as the final whistle approached. This is something they will undoubtedly have to work on for the rest of this season as well as throughout the off-season. Signing one or two players with significant league title race experience might prove to help.

That said, it's not all bad news for Sevilla. Their defense is still as sturdy as ever; the 25 goals it has conceded ranks as the fewest in La Liga and has more or less carried them all season long. Marcos Acuña and Jules Koundé have been especially impressive during this current campaign.

Nevertheless, throughout the second half of this season, Sevilla's frailties have been on full display. Regardless of whether they make it to next season's Champions League, there are obvious problems to be addressed in the off-season. A season which once seemed so promising might just end up being Sevilla's most disappointing in recent memory.

The Weekly Take, Issue 205: Halfway to the Most Astonishing Exit

When the draw for the Champions League quarterfinals was released, no one paid much attention to the fixture pitting Villarreal against Bayern Munich. Villarreal, currently in seventh place in La Liga with just 45 points to their name and not even close to a Champions League spot for next season, were widely expected to be easily swept aside by the prohibitive favourites to win European football's biggest tournament this season.

However, as it turned out, Bayern failed to deliver in a way that almost no one could have seen coming. After losing the first leg 1-0 due to an early goal scored by Arnaut Danjuma, the Bavarian powerhouse will have it all to do when they host the Spanish club at the Allianz Arena in next week's second leg.

To make matters even worse for Bayern, this was not a case of a "smash and grab" victory. Villarreal outplayed Bayern for almost the entirety of the match and arguably should have won by more. Bayern were also clearly inferior on the tactical front - a stunning development given the fact that at the age of 34, head coach Julian Nagelsmann is regarded as one of the best young coaches in world football. Despite this fact, Nagelsmann was easily outwitted by his veteran counterpart Unai Emery.

Looking at the starting lineups, one could argue that Nagelsmann overthought matters by attempting to catch Villarreal off-guard. This could be seen in his decisions to deploy Kingsley Coman on the right as well as Serge Gnabry on the left rather than in their usual spots. One could also make the case that Leroy Sané should have started in place of either Coman or Gnabry as his two-way play as well as his dribbling and passing skills would have done much to open up the field and present Bayern with several clear goalscoring chances.

The decision-making on the part of Bayern's playmakers was also extremely questionable. Again and again, they would choose to freeze out Robert Lewandowski for just about no reason at all. Almost every time he would find himself in position to create a chance for himself, he would not receive the ball. Even on the few occasions when he had the ball in the final third, he would almost always find himself stranded without any help. In short, Bayern were disjointed, discombobulated, and a mere shadow of the team which they had been for the vast majority of this season.

That being said, Bayern are probably still the favourites to advance to the semifinals. It must be kept in mind that in the first leg of the round of 16 tie against Red Bull Salzburg, they only managed a 1-1 draw against the Austrian underdogs in the first leg before storming back to destroy Salzburg 7-1 in the second. This is a Bayern team which has several "gears"; they can seemingly flip the switch and play at the peak of their powers at any given time.

Nevertheless, even if they beat Villarreal in the second leg and advance to the final four, serious changes will need to be made if Bayern are to win the Champions League for the seventh time in the club's history. These tactics and this level of play will simply not cut it against Liverpool, the team Bayern will likely play against in the semifinals.

Could this have been a case of complacency and underestimation of Villarreal? More than likely. Bayern appeared to have bought into their own hype and strode into Estadio de la Cerámica assuming that they would be handed the victory on a plate. Perhaps this mentality was fueled by their unchallenged domination of the Bundesliga - a league in which they are about to win for the 10th consecutive season by a large margin, as they always do.

For Bayern, a quarterfinal elimination at the hands of Villarreal would be one of the most shocking upsets in Champions League history. Yet, that is the reality of the situation that Bayern face right now. While they can (and arguably should) turn it around, their spot in the semifinals which once seemed guaranteed now looks very shaky indeed.

We could be on the verge of witnessing a failure of truly epic proportions.

The Weekly Take, Issue 204: La Xavineta Continues to Roll On

In November 2021, Barcelona's season lay in ruins. The Catalan giants were in ninth place in La Liga and on their way out of the Champions League group stage. The club was in disarray both on the field and off it - not even the firing of former head coach Ronald Koeman did much to stem their horrendous run of form.

Barça proceeded to surprise many by selecting Xavi, the legendary midfielder who spent 17 amazing years as a Blaugrana player, as Koeman's replacement. Prior to his appointment at Camp Nou, Xavi's only prior coaching experience had been two-and-a-half years at Qatari club Al-Sadd - not exactly a stint which would've prepared him for life at the helm of a major European club.

As it turned out, however, the selection of Xavi has paid major dividends - a fact underscored once again in Barça's 1-0 victory over Sevilla during the most recent La Liga matchday. Pedri scored the only goal of the match to elevate Barça to second place in the league - ahead of Atlético Madrid and Sevilla on head-to-head record. Barça have also played one match fewer than both of those teams.

Over the past several years, there have been several glaring examples of players who have struggled after making the transition to the dugout. Names that come to mind include Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Santiago Solari, and most notably of all, Andrea Pirlo. Given this trend, some apprehension surrounding Xavi would have been understandable. However, much to the satisfaction of the Barça faithful, Xavi has bucked this trend without much difficulty thus far.

Xavi's tactical approach is clearly superior to the obsolete methods which his predecessors had utilized. High pressing is the cornerstone of Xavi's tactics; Barça's front three have been pressing far more under Xavi than they did under Koeman. This tactical change has brought Barça's playstyle more in line with the current metagame.

Xavi has also brought back the inversion of the full-backs - something which had not been a fixture at Barça for several years. The interplay between the full-backs, wingers, and central midfielders tends to open up much more space for strikers and wingers to go forward and attack. It should thus come as no surprise that with Xavi at the helm, Barça have become far more lethal in the final third.

Unlike Koeman, Xavi also seems to have won over the players in the locker room. He clearly connects with and relates to just about every player on a personal level. These positive vibes have permeated the team; they are also a reason why mid-season acquisition Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang appears to be a rejuvenated player. When Aubameyang left Arsenal for Catalonia by way of a free transfer, it appeared that the Gabonese striker was well and truly washed up. This no longer seems to be the case - a fact made most evident by his two goals in El Clásico, when Barça beat arch-rivals Real Madrid 4-0. Such a transformation could not have taken place without Xavi.

Barça have always taken immense pride in La Masia - their iconic youth academy. Since Xavi is a proud dyed-in-the-wool Catalan who became one of La Masia's most successful products, some wondered if this would manifest itself in his coaching and team selection by playing favourites and being biased towards the club's academy graduates. Fortunately, this has not been the case. While Xavi has given heavy minutes to La Masia products such as Gavi, Eric García, Nico González, and veteran duo Sergio Busquets and Gerard Piqué, this has not been at the expense of key non-academy players. On top of this, Xavi was one of the key orchestrators of Barça's mid-season signing of Ferran Torres from Manchester City. The Valencia-born striker has slotted himself into the team without a hitch, adding even more firepower to Barça's surprisingly potent frontline.

Although it's still early in Xavi's tenure, the signs are undoubtedly promising. That said, Xavi just seems to "get it" in the way that other ex-players who moved to the other side of the touchline never did. He is already a Barça legend; however, the opportunity to make his name stand alone in the club's pantheon now lies before him. His first steps in the second part of this journey appear to be all the right ones up to this point.

The Weekly Take, Issue 203: European Champs to European Chumps

In what will undoubtedly go down as one of the most iconic upsets in the history of international football, North Macedonia stunned Italy 1-0 in a 2022 World Cup qualifier. Aleksandar Trajkovski scored a stoppage-time goal to clinch a spot in a winner-takes-all match against Portugal with a spot in the World Cup on the line and silencing the crowd at the Stadio Renzo Barbera.

The Balkan team's victory ensured that the Azzurri would fail to qualify for the global showpiece tournament for a second consecutive edition - something that has never happened before for one of the world's most decorated international teams. Prior to their failure to qualify for the 2018 tournament, Italy had qualified for every World Cup since 1962.

This was a match which the reigning European champions should have had no business losing. The Italians launched a veritable fusillade at the North Macedonian goal, attempting 32 shots compared to just three from their opponents. With 66% of the possession, Italy were fully in control of proceedings right from the opening kick-off. By every metric except for, of course, the most important one of all, Italy should have cruised to victory, but it was just not to be.

There's plenty of blame to be doled out for yet another failure on Italy's part. For starters, goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma deserves a good deal of scrutiny. A goalkeeper of Donnarumma's calibre should have been able to save Trajkowski's shot. However, the Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper made a crucial error in a critical match for the second time in a month after having already committed one which caused PSG to lose their Champions League round of 16 tie against Real Madrid.

Think back to Italy's victorious Euro 2020 campaign. In it, Donnarumma was Italy's best player, putting the team on his back at times and saving three penalties against England in the final to give Italy a first European title since 1968. Somewhat surprisingly, since then, he has faltered on multiple occasions when he has been needed most.

I have gone on and on about the effect which being at a club like PSG has on its players' mentalities. It appears that this is true in Donnarumma's case. When he starred for Italy during Euro 2020, he had not yet played even one match for the French club, but not even half a year after arriving at the Parc des Princes, his big-game mentality has severely declined. This isn't unique to Donnarumma - the same can be said of his PSG teammates Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, and even Lionel Messi.

Head coach Roberto Mancini must also shoulder some of the blame. Mancini got it completely wrong with Italy's starting 11. His decision to forgo Mario Balotelli as part of his team backfired. Though Balotelli has had a checkered and somewhat memetic career up to this point, his playstyle would have been the perfect counter to North Macedonia's tactical approach and would likely have led to one or more goals - not necessarily scored by Balotelli himself; however, his presence and physicality would have done much to open up the front third for his teammates.

Mancini's selection of Emerson Palmieri at full-back was also a poor one. Federico Dimarco and Cristiano Biraghi are both better options but were both ignored in favour of the Chelsea player. This reflects another failure on Mancini's part: blind loyalty to highly-capped players. Emerson has 26 caps to Biraghi's 11 and Dimarco's none; however, the latter two were overlooked despite being obviously superior players.

Serie A's top brass must also come under fire. They decided against postponing Matchday 30 of the domestic league, thus denying the players more time to prepare for this crucial qualifier. This reduced preparation time was also a likely contributor to their failure in Sicily - something almost everyone should have seen coming but which Serie A's administration somehow did not.

Regardless of whether Italy qualify for the 2026 World Cup, it will have been at least 12 years since their most recent tournament and at least 20 since their most recent appearance in the World Cup's knockout rounds. With the exception of France in the 1960s and 1970s, this is an unprecedented run of failure in the history of any of international football's traditional powerhouses.

Can Italy get back to the top of the mountain? They might - but it will take many years and wholesale changes at all levels.

The Weekly Take, Issue 202: A Critical Missed Opportunity

Prior to their Premier League match against Liverpool, Arsenal's season had been turning for the better after a slow start. With nine win in their preceding 11 league matches including five in a row, the Gunners should have been primed to give Liverpool all that they could handle - especially with Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah restricted to an appearance off the bench due to a foot injury.

However, the match did not go according to plan for Arsenal at all. In a stark demonstration of the gulf in quality between the two teams, Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-0 despite not even exerting anywhere near their maximum level of effort. Diogo Jota scored Liverpool's first goal before being substituted almost immediately; his replacement, Roberto Firmino, wasted almost no time in adding to Liverpool's lead.

Arsenal will certainly rue this loss because a victory would have seen them move four points ahead of Manchester United and solidified their grip on fourth place and the last qualification spot for next season's Champions League. More than anything else, though, this match once again exposed some of Arsenal's most pertinent weaknesses which might just cause them to miss out on the top four.

One important question that hasn't been addressed all season long and has become even more relevant following the departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Barcelona is this: do Arsenal really know who makes up their best attacking midfield trio? Choosing between Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, Martin Ødegaard, and Gabriel Martinelli can prove to be quite the issue, especially now that Aubameyang has left, making Alexandre Lacazette the club's only starter-level striker. Even at this late stage of the season, the evidence on display during the Liverpool match clearly shows that Arsenal still haven't gotten it quite right in this area; if they end up surrendering their spot in the top four, this could have turned out to have been the main reason behind their downfall.

In the upcoming off-season, it might also be prudent for Arsenal to consider signing a new starting goalkeeper. Aaron Ramsdale has been rather inconsistent all season long; there are stretches when he saves just about anything but follows up those hot streaks with errors like the one he committed to allow Liverpool their first goal. Ramsdale is no scrub by any means, but is he really the goalkeeper upon whom Arsenal would like to stake their long-term future? Unfortunately, I just don't see it. He has not always been able to deliver at that level when it has most been needed.

Going back to the other end of the field, it's time to question Lacazette as well. This season, the Frenchman has scored a paltry four league goals. If he finishes the season at his current goalscoring rate, he will end the campaign with just six - his lowest tally in nine years and by far the lowest of his career at the Emirates Stadium. Not only that - at the age of 30, Lacazette does not fit this team's timeline. Arsenal have a young squad; most of their key players are 25 or younger. It does not make sense to continue to make a player who will soon be on the downswing of his career (if he isn't already there) one of the main components of the team.

There can be little doubt that this season has been very much better for Arsenal than was their disaster of a campaign in 2020-21. They do have an intriguing young core - albeit one without an ace like Aubameyang in his prime. That being said, their weaknesses continue to be glaring in many ways. It seems as though Arsenal have a clear idea of what should come next in the post-Aubameyang era, but they have not taken many, if any, steps in that direction.

Arsenal have not had a wider window of opportunity in years, given the ongoing struggles of United, Tottenham Hotspur, and most notably of all, Chelsea. Whether they will take advantage of this opportunity, though, remains to be seen. Although Arsenal might be in a solid position at the moment with regard to their league performance, it cannot be disputed: the only thing consistent about this Arsenal team is their inconsistency.

The Weekly Take, Issue 201: Gaggers in Paris

PSG have done it again.

In a turn of events that might seem unexpected on the surface but in reality should not have surprised even one person watching, PSG surrendered a two-goal aggregate lead over Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie. Despite being 1-0 ahead and 2-0 up on aggregate with 30 minutes remaining, PSG once again blew a golden opportunity, conceding a hat-trick to Real striker Karim Benzema and handing their Spanish opponents a spot in the quarterfinals.

Somehow, this team manages to outdo itself year after year when it comes to finding ways to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. From the infamous "Remontada" loss at the hands of Barcelona in 2017 to an inexplicable collapse against a Manchester United team which they should have handily beaten in 2019 to this 3-0 loss against Real - there has never been a team which so completely and utterly freezes on the biggest of stages in spite of their overwhelming talent and abundance of financial resources.

As usual, there is an enormous amount of blame to be divvied up. However, I'll start with the club itself. I don't mean the owners or the front office or anyone else who runs PSG - I'm talking about Paris Saint-Germain, the football club.

With the weight of recent history against them, it almost seems as though PSG's players expect to fail when the stakes are at their highest and the lights are brightest. No matter how large their lead, in a way they have already lost the mental battle just by putting on the PSG jersey.

To make this even more alarming, it seems as though new arrivals at the Parc des Princes have their minds "poisoned" by this negative mindset. Consider Kylian Mbappé, who before signing for PSG had put the world on notice with a stunning breakout run in the 2018 World Cup, playing a key role in France's World Cup triumph all while aged just 19. Certainly, at that point, one would not have considered him a player likely to falter under severe pressure. However, this has completely changed ever since he joined PSG. Despite scoring PSG's only goal during this match, Mbappé once again had a tough time in general - something which is no longer new to him after having joined PSG.

And now, I'd like to turn my attention to the one player who I believe has done more to foster this unprecedented run of choking than anyone else: Neymar. Let's not forget that the Brazilian's only Champions League title came with Barcelona while "riding shotgun" alongside a prime Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez. Again and again and again, Neymar has failed to deliver in the most intense, do-or-die situations. Over the years, he has been arguably the chief culprit behind PSG's repeated Champions League failures.

I have said it time and again: among all the legendary players to come out of Brazil, Neymar is arguably in the top five in terms of pure talent. However, it has become incredibly obvious: you cannot win a Champions League title with a team built around Neymar. He simply does not have that big-match mentality which is needed to elevate a team to that highest level. Of course, PSG are no longer necessarily built around Neymar, which brings me to my next point.

It's time to write the obituary for Lionel Messi's iconic career. Though he may be the greatest to ever do it, there's no more hiding the facts - he is washed. Ever since joining PSG, he has looked like an absolute shell of the player he once was. This is understandable given that he is now 34, but the decline has been utterly astonishing - it calls to mind the likes of Ronaldinho and Ronaldo Nazário, who both completely "fell off the cliff" when they aged. Add to that the fact that even Messi is not immune to the effects of simply playing for PSG, and you have your answer.

What has been happening at PSG over the past few years almost defies explanation - we may never see anything like this again. At this point, as soon as a new Champions League campaign begins, one can already start asking "and just how will PSG blow it this year?"

The Weekly Take, Issue 200: Taking a Look Back

Well, it's another "milestone" edition, so this'll be a little different.

This time, I'll be revisiting some of my takes from past issues and analyzing them through the lens of the present to find out how they ended up. Some aged well; others certainly did not.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2018/11/the-weekly-take-issue-26-powerhouse.html

Date: September 2, 2018
Club: AC Milan

Quote: "(This) season could shape up to be the best in many years for one of Italy’s most storied clubs. While I don’t necessarily think they will hit such heights, do not be surprised if Milan finish as high as second in Serie A, win the Europa League, or both."

Outcome: AC Milan would only finish fifth in the league, once again missing out on the Champions League. In addition, their major mid-season acquisition proved to end up having little to no impact. More on that in the next segment.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-weekly-take-issue-47-best-signing.html

Date: January 28, 2019
Club: AC Milan
Player: Krzysztof Piątek
Quote: "I had been of the belief that AC Milan were one of those clubs who were one key piece away from being serious contenders, both domestically and in Europe. Now, I genuinely feel that Milan have got their man[...] [...]Names such as Gunnar Nordahl, Marco van Basten, Andriy Shevchenko, and Pippo Inzaghi have all shone in the famous red-and-black jersey. Now, Milan may just have brought in the 'heir to the throne'".

Outcome: Piątek ended up doing next to nothing for AC Milan. After scoring just four league goals in the first half of the 2019-20 season, Piątek was sold to Hertha BSC in January 2020. He never again showed the form which he displayed at Genoa and convinced Milan to sign him.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-weekly-take-issue-61-step-closer-to.html

Date: May 3, 2019
Club: Liverpool
Coach: Jürgen Klopp
Quote: "[At] what point does he (Klopp) no longer get a pass for these late-tournament failures?[...] [...] [A] Champions League title would serve as the ultimate boost to his legacy. Unfortunately for him, however, it appears as though this title might not arrive for quite some time."

Outcome: In the wake of Liverpool's 3-0 loss to Barcelona in the first leg of the 2018-19 Champions League semifinals, it looked as though Liverpool had no shot of advancing to the final. Astonishingly, they reversed the deficit, eliminated Barça in an iconic comeback, then beat Tottenham Hotspur to win the Champions League.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2019/06/the-weekly-take-issue-69-paying-through.html

Date: June 30, 2019

Club: Manchester United

Player: Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Quote: "It’s not that I believe the Londoner will be a complete failure at Old Trafford.[...] [...]What United need right now is a player who will be ready to contribute at a high level straight from his first day at United. Wan-Bissaka does not fit that bill."

Outcome: I pretty much called it exactly. No, Wan-Bissaka has not been a bust; he is now a regular starter for United. However, he has not even come close to living up to his lofty transfer price. This is certainly a transfer that United fans wish could have been undone.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2020/02/the-weekly-take-issue-101-next-great.html

Date: February 11, 2020

Club: RB Leipzig

Player: Dayot Upamecano
Quote: "(It) appears that the potential of the player whom I believe to be the next great French defender is almost limitless."

Outcome: While Upamecano has certainly been a solid player in the time since I made this post, he has not quite fulfilled the praise which I had lavished upon him over two years ago. That said, I was right about the prospect of Upamecano signing for a bigger club (Bayern Munich).

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-weekly-take-issue-111-die-bullens.html

Date: June 21, 2020

Club: Chelsea

Players: Timo Werner, Christian Pulisic
Quote: "It's not every day that a club gets to sign a potential future Ballon d'Or winner. Chelsea now have two."

Outcome: This post was made shortly after Chelsea confirmed their signing of Werner.

...The less said about this one, the better. Let's move on.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2020/10/the-weekly-take-issue-128-one-injury.html

Date: October 17, 2020

Club: Liverpool

Player: Virgil van Dijk

Quote: "This injury is a crushing blow to Liverpool's season. Van Dijk is a force who is truly irreplaceable. His injury hands the status of Premier League title favourites to Manchester City.[...] [...][Overcoming] the loss of perhaps a top-five player in the world for almost an entire season might prove to be a step too far."

Outcome: Liverpool's Premier League title defense never really got off the ground due to van Dijk's ACL tear. They would only finish third in the league and be eliminated in the Champions League quarterfinals.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2020/12/the-weekly-take-issue-136-they-surely.html

Date: December 13, 2020

Club: Real Madrid

Coach: Zinedine Zidane

Quote: "Zidane has clearly built up a body of work which proves that he is an outstanding coach. Firing him would be an epic mistake of almost unparalleled proportions. The decision should be obvious. Only one question remains: will Real finally 'get it', or will they revert to type?"

Outcome: I'll give myself partial credit for this one - Zidane resigned at the end of the season; however, his position had been becoming increasingly untenable at the time. Real failed to win any titles in the 2020-21 season: they finished second in the league and were eliminated in the Champions League semifinals.

Post: https://theweeklytake3.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-weekly-take-issue-172-missing-piece.html

Date: August 22, 2021

Club: Chelsea

Player: Romelu Lukaku
Quote: "Lukaku could realistically claim the status of 'undisputed best centre-forward in the world' as soon as this season.[...] [...]Chelsea badly needed a true goalscoring threat to not only make a serious Premier League title challenge, but also to contend for back-to-back Champions League titles. With Lukaku back at Chelsea, they now have exactly that."

Outcome: Lukaku has not even been close to the player he was at Inter Milan. He is on pace to score just seven league goals this season, which would be a career-low ever since becoming a starter in a major European league for the first time.