The Weekly Take, Issue 30: Snub of the Year

The FIFPro World XI, comprising the players deemed to have been the world’s best at their position over the last year, has been named. Some of the world’s biggest football stars, such as David de Gea, Raphaël Varane, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and newly-crowned FIFA player of the year Luka Modrić, were all named to the team, and deservedly so, for they have all truly excelled over the course of the year.

However, this year’s team contains one glaring omission.

This player was the star of a team that finished second in a major European league and also won the Europa League.

Despite not being a pure target man, he scored 29 goals in all competitions for his club, including 19 in the league.

He also played an extremely important role in his country’s World Cup run and was man of the match in the final. He also won the Bronze Ball at the tournament.

This player is Antoine Griezmann.

Those of you who have followed my column from its inception may remember that the first thing I ever wrote was about how underrated Griezmann’s club, Atlético Madrid, is. In that sense, it is somewhat apt that Griezmann was overlooked for a spot on the team of the year.

Nevertheless, it is clear that Griezmann deserves the honour.

The two wingers selected to the team were Eden Hazard and Kylian Mbappé.

Now, with Mbappé, it’s an interesting comparison. Both Griezmann and Mbappé were absolutely essential to France’s World Cup triumph. The duo combined for eight goals and two assists during the tournament. Mbappé also won the Best Young Player award.

At club level, it is also fairly close. While Mbappé’s PSG team did win a league and cup double, Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France are significantly less competitive than La Liga and the Copa del Rey. PSG also failed to make a deep Champions League run. However, while Atlético did win the Europa League, it’s not even close to the level of difficulty of the Champions League.

It is also close from a statistical standpoint, as Mbappé managed 21 goals from 44 appearances.

However, this number must be contextualised: as I said, Mbappé plays in a much less competitive league than Griezmann does. Although Mbappé has the higher ceiling, given the fact that he is still only 19 years old, it cannot be definitively said that he is a better player than Griezmann right now. Regardless, you could easily make a case for either being on the FIFPro team.

Now we come to Hazard.

As great a player as Eden Hazard is, he has absolutely no business being selected ahead of Griezmann.

Hazard’s Chelsea team were knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16 and only finished fifth in the Premier League, missing out of Champions League qualification. Hazard’s form had also been fairly inconsistent during certain parts of the season.

At the World Cup, Griezmann’s France knocked out Hazard’s Belgium in the semifinals. The only area in which Hazard could conceivably be said to have been ahead of Griezmann was the fact that Hazard won the Silver Ball at the World Cup. However, as has been mentioned, Griezmann won the Bronze Ball, so this small advantage in favour of Hazard should not even have been close to enough to overhaul the advantage that Griezmann had already built up.

Honestly, the biggest reason why Griezmann was snubbed was because he plays for Atlético. Had he achieved what he did for a more well-known club, there is a significant chance that he would have made the team over Hazard, Mbappé, or perhaps even both.

Nevertheless, what Griezmann needs to do in the coming season is use this snub to fuel his inner fire and show the voters how wrong they were to exclude him.

We have already seen what he is capable of under normal circumstances, but an angry yet motivated Griezmann could really take his game to the next level.

Should Griezmann go on a successful “revenge tour”, he could end up being the catalyst for a campaign in which Atlético might even win La Liga or the Champions League, and though it may be unlikely, he could perhaps even lead them to a double.

The Weekly Take, Issue 29: More than a Dynasty

The UEFA Champions League is now underway, and with the exceptions of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, all of the teams expected to be in contention for the title came away with victories.

One such team are three-time defending champions Real Madrid, who swept aside Roma in a dominant 3-0 win and in doing so, sent a clear message that they will not give up their stranglehold on the Champions League easily.

What made this all the more impressive was that it was Real’s first Champions League game after losing Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus. This victory also came against last season’s semifinalists.

Despite having lost their superstar in the off-season, Real do not seem to miss Ronaldo at all, with the likes of Isco, Gareth Bale, and Luka Modrić all producing excellent performances throughout the season so far.

I have mentioned before that last season’s Champions League victory, Real’s third in a row and fourth in five years, made the current Real Madrid team the greatest football team of all time.

However, I will go a step further: if Real were to win this season’s Champions League, they would become the greatest dynasty in the history of team sports.

Consider the contenders from other team sports.

I will begin by eliminating all national teams, regardless of how dominant they were. With apologies to the likes of Brazil 1958-70 (football), New Zealand 2010-present (rugby), Germany 2002-12 (hockey), and Australia 1999-2007 (cricket), international sports have a huge element of luck involved, as they often come down to which country happens to have the most elite players born there.

As I consider Real Madrid 2014-present to have already surpassed all other football teams, I will now compare them to the greatest club dynasties from other team sports: the Crusaders 1998-2008 (rugby), the New England Patriots 2001-16 (American football), the Chicago Bulls 1991-98 (basketball), and the New York Yankees 1947-62 (baseball).

Over 11 seasons, the Crusaders won eight Super Rugby titles and were runners-up twice. While that is a truly staggering mark in terms of sheer dominance, Super Rugby only had 12 teams between 1998 and 2005, and 14 from 2006 to 2010.

In contrast, Real Madrid are currently on an eight-season streak of semifinals or better in the 32-team Champions League, including, as mentioned, four titles in the last five seasons. This eight-season streak is an all-time record.

Thus, I would rank Real Madrid ahead of the Crusaders.

Since 2001, the New England Patriots have reached eight Super Bowls, winning five. They have also reached at least the conference championship 12 times in 17 seasons. This statistic is fairly similar to the Real streak I just mentioned. Furthermore, like the Champions League, the NFL contains 32 teams.

It’s close, but I would put the Patriots ahead of Real because of their dynasty’s sheer longevity. However, a deep run by Real this season would cause me to change my mind on this, because in 2002 and 2008, the Patriots missed the playoffs. This gives Real a clear chance to surpass them.

Throughout the 1990s, the Chicago Bulls were the NBA’s dominant force. Between 1989 and 1998, the Bulls won six NBA championships and, over those 10 seasons, reached at least the Eastern Conference Finals eight times. All six championships came as part of a three-peat, and the Bulls also won a then-record 72 games in 1996.

For those reasons, I currently rank the Bulls ahead of Real; however, if Real were to win the Champions League this seasons, they would move ahead of the Bulls, because in 1994, without Michael Jordan, the Bulls only made the conference semifinals before being knocked out by the Knicks. Real have an opportunity to win the Champions League without Cristiano Ronaldo, and thus outdo the Bulls in this regard.

Finally, we come to the New York Yankees, who won 10 World Series titles in 16 seasons. This was easy for me: Real are ahead of the Yankees. In the 1950s MLB, there were hardly any non-white or non-US players, and expansion had not yet taken place, so the league was much smaller than it is today. The 1950s Yankees are not even on the same planet as 2010s Real.

All things considered, this Real team continues to make more history with each game. However, only time will tell if they end up “only” the greatest football team of all time, or something beyond even that accolade.

The Weekly Take, Issue 28: The Mad Genius of Merseyside

Things have been going well for Liverpool.

Last season, they made an unexpected run to the Champions League final, only losing to Real Madrid because of goalkeeping errors by Loris Karius.

Superstar striker Mohamed Salah has been named one of the three nominees for FIFA’s Player of the Year award.

This season, the Reds have begun their Premier League campaign by winning five consecutive games, including an impressive 2-1 victory over Tottenham, their latest triumph.

During the match, it was clear that despite the close final scoreline, Tottenham were clearly overmatched, as Liverpool proved themselves to be a formidable team who will be in contention to win titles, both domestically and in Europe.

It is interesting to note how things have turned around so rapidly for the Merseyside club.

Between 2010 and 2016, Liverpool only finished in the top four of the Premier League once, reached the FA Cup semifinals twice, and never made it out of their Champions League group. The only moments of note during this stretch were a second-place Premier League finish in 2014, a Carling Cup victory in 2012, as well as runs to the FA Cup final and Europa League final in 2012 and 2016 respectively.

So how did this turnaround happen?

In my opinion, the person who deserves the lion’s share of the credit is the coach, Jürgen Klopp.

“Kloppo” has always been a coach who has shunned conventional strategies in favour of his own idiosyncratic ways.

Before Klopp came to Liverpool, his unique outlook on the game had already brought great success to Borussia Dortmund.

In seven seasons as Dortmund coach, Klopp led the Schwarzgelbe to two Bundesliga titles, a DFB-Pokal, and a Champions League runners-up finish. He had transformed a relatively low-budget team from an unglamorous city of less than 600,000 into a powerhouse and a perennial contender for titles, and his unique tactics and coaching genius had won him many admirers across the football world.

Thus, when he replaced Brendan Rodgers at Anfield in October 2015, much was expected of him.

Klopp’s first season at Liverpool had mixed results.

Although Liverpool only finished eighth in the Premier League, they did reach the finals of the Capital One Cup and Europa League.

Furthermore, Philippe Coutinho was beginning to emerge as the star Liverpool were desperate for ever since the departure of Luis Suárez to Barcelona.

The following season saw further improvement.

On the field, Klopp’s tactics were starting to work, the team was beginning to gel, and aided by off-season pickups Sadio Mané and Georginio Wijnaldum as well as Coutinho’s continued excellent play, Liverpool made the Champions League for just the second time in eight years by finishing fourth in the league.

The following season, Klopp would put together arguably his best season as a coach since his 2012-13 campaign at Dortmund.

The main story of Liverpool’s season was their acquisition of Salah from Roma and how he had by far the best season of his career, scoring 44 goals in all competitions including 32 in the league, leading Liverpool to the Champions League final, and winning multiple awards.

However, it is worth noting that as soon as he joined Klopp’s Liverpool, Salah went from being a solid striker to a true football superstar.

That is another testament to Klopp’s greatness as a coach: how he is able to get the best out of his players.

Some other players whom Klopp has been able to make stars out of include Robert Lewandowski, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Coutinho, and Mats Hummels.

All are among the world’s best players today, and none would be where they are now if it weren’t for Klopp.

Jürgen Klopp has always marched to the beat of his own drum. He has never coached a team in a way one would expect, his tactics have sometimes been derided as gimmicky and unsustainable, and he even seems to go out of his way to cultivate this image sometimes.

And yet, though some may call him crazy, he’s more like a “mad genius” and clearly one of the best coaches in world football today. With the man from Stuttgart at the helm, as well as a fully-loaded team containing the likes of Mané, Salah, Roberto Firmino, and Virgil van Dijk, this could turn out to be one of Liverpool’s best seasons in a long time.

The Weekly Take, Issue 27: No Need for a Reset

The inaugural edition of the UEFA Nations League is now underway. As national teams across Europe battle to earn a spot in the UEFA Nations League finals to be held in June, compelling storylines will play out.

One such storyline was the one that unfolded during Germany’s match against France, which finished in a 0-0 draw.

This match, which featured the newly-crowned world champions against the team they deposed, was accompanied by much interest because there were many questions about how these teams would follow up their World Cup campaigns.

This was especially true of Germany, because against all expectations, Die Mannschaft were knocked out of the tournament in the first round, losing to Mexico and South Korea along the way. Furthermore, Germany had also been affected by the fallout of a picture showing Mesut Özil and İlkay Gündoğan with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, which ultimately led to Özil’s retirement from international football.

Given such adverse circumstances, one would expect Germany to be soundly beaten by Les Bleus. However, not only did Germany manage a draw, they even outplayed France for large portions of the game.

What’s more, every single player in Germany’s starting 11 was a member of their dismal World Cup campaign.

So just what happened here? How were they able to turn it around so quickly?

One reason for this is the fact that, despite being knocked out in the group stage, Germany didn’t actually play as badly as many think during the World Cup.

In Germany’s first World Cup game against Mexico, Germany dominated the game, taking 25 shots to Mexico’s 12 and earning eight corner kicks to Mexico’s one. Germany also had 61% of the possession, but somehow couldn’t quite finish off El Tri.

If this same game were to be played under the same set of circumstances 10 times, Germany would likely win at least six or seven times. Unfortunately for them, they experienced the result which was far less likely.

The same was true of Germany’s loss against South Korea, which knocked the Germans out of the tournament. Once again, Germany dictated play right from the start of the game, drawing 16 fouls to the Koreans’ seven, taking 26 shots to South Korea’s 11, and having 70% of the possession.

Once again, somehow, in spite of their otherwise solid play, Germany managed to lose a game which ordinarily, they would have won.

Although the group-stage exit was a result which nobody saw coming, it wasn’t as if Germany were taken apart during the World Cup.

Furthermore, Germany appear to have a promising crop of youngsters that have come or are coming through the pipeline.

The likes of Niklas Süle, Leroy Sané, Antonio Rüdiger, Timo Werner, Julian Brandt, and Leon Goretzka easily have another six to eight prime years left in them, if not more.

What’s more, looking at their under-21 squad, there is certainly much potential there. Players such as Jonathan Tah, Thilo Kehrer, Mahmoud Dahoud, and Salih Özcan all seem like very promising prospects who have good chances of being part of Germany’s team for the 2022 World Cup, if everything goes as it should.

The fact that Joachim Löw is still in charge of this team also should not be overlooked.

Löw is arguably the greatest international football coach of all time. Over 12 years at the helm of the German national team, Löw has led them to at least the semifinals of every major tournament they have entered, with the obvious exception of the 2018 World Cup. He took them to World Cup victory in 2014, and also led a Germany squad mostly made up of backups to the 2017 Confederations Cup title.

Although what happened in Russia was clearly not his best work, given his track record, it was an aberration, not an indictment on his coaching.

Given all the factors laid out above, as well as the fact that Germany managed a solid result against the reigning world champions, despite the outlook from the outside, it is certainly not time to panic yet. Although the World Cup didn’t quite go according to plan for the Germans, they are in better shape than most think, and will certainly be contenders for Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup.

The Weekly Take, Issue 26: A Powerhouse Reborn?

Over the last five years, AC Milan have not had the easiest of times.

In the period spanning the 2013-14 season to the 2017-18 season, this iconic club never finished higher than sixth in Serie A, lost two Coppa Italia finals, and only played in European competition twice, with both runs ending in early exits. On top of all these, Milan had previously been banned from the 2018-19 Europa League due to Financial Fair Play violations, though this ban was revoked in July 2018.

However, for the first time in a very long time, the Rossoneri’s future appears to be fairly bright.

In their match this past weekend, Milan beat last season’s Champions League semifinalists Roma 2-1, with substitute Patrick Cutrone netting the winning goal in stoppage time.

This victory could very well be a sign that after a protracted stretch of poor results, the team may finally be beginning to gel.

If one just takes a look at the players currently at AC Milan, one would expect them to be doing significantly better than they have in the last few years.

This is a team containing some very solid players such as Hakan Çalhanoğlu, Franck Kessié, Gianluigi Donnarumma, and Ricardo Rodríguez, among others. Though none of these players can be called superstars, nor are any of them even close to that coveted label, they are all good enough to function as important pieces of a team that can challenge for top-four status in the league and make a deep run in Europe.

That’s not even mentioning the fact that this past off-season, Milan brought in players such as Pepe Reina, Mattia Caldara, Diego Laxalt, Ivan Strinić, and of course, Gonzalo Higuaín. Now, although I have been critical of Higuaín in the past, he, along with the other signings I have just mentioned, are all significant upgrades over the players who were already at the club, as well as those who have recently left the San Siro, such as M’Baye Niang, Nikola Kalinić, and Carlos Bacca.

Another important factor to consider is the coach.

Since taking over at the helm of Milan in November 2017 after replacing Vincenzo Montella, Gennaro Gattuso has only enhanced his status as a club legend, having played for AC Milan for 13 years, during which he won five major trophies including two Champions League titles.

Gattuso was able to reverse a horrible start in the league to steer the club to a final position of sixth, which put them into the Europa League. Such an outcome seemed unthinkable when Gattuso first took the job.

Those who remember “Rino”’s career as a player will know that there have been, and will be, very few players who bring the level of intensity and drive that Gattuso did to every single game. This inner fire seems to have continued into his coaching career and, more importantly, has rubbed off on the Milan players. Almost as soon as Gattuso became the Milan coach, it seemed as if the players’ effort and desire for victory doubled overnight.

Another factor working in Milan’s favour is the status of some of the other leading Italian clubs.

AS Roma, Lazio, and Napoli all appear to be weaker this season.

Roma sold Radja Nainggolan, Alisson, and Kevin Strootman during the recently-concluded transfer window. Although they did sign Justin Kluivert and Javier Pastore among others, Kluivert is still just 19, while in my opinion, Pastore is a downgrade when compared to either Nainggolan or Strootman.

Lazio, meanwhile, lost Stefan de Vrij and Felipe Anderson, while making absolutely no signings that moved the needle in any significant way.

Napoli may be the club that suffers the largest drop-off from last season. They have clearly downgraded in goal, replacing Reina with David Ospina. Napoli also sold Jorginho to Chelsea, and most crucially, lost ex-coach Maurizio Sarri to the Blues as well. Although his replacement Carlo Ancelotti is one of the greatest coaches of all time, it may take a while for him to adapt to the club and make a positive impact while there.

All things considered, 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.

The Weekly Take, Issue 25: Justice Goes Undone

Of the four major European football leagues, the Bundesliga was the last to kick off, with its first matchday having been held this past weekend. The most highly-anticipated match to be played was that between overwhelming favourites Bayern Munich and last season’s surprise package Hoffenheim, who defied the odds to finish third in the league.

To the surprise of many, Hoffenheim kept it close for most of the match. However, an 82nd-minute penalty scored by Robert Lewandowski and a 90th-minute goal from Arjen Robben helped the Bavarian juggernauts to a 3-1 victory to begin what is likely to be the first match of yet another Bundesliga title run.

However, this match was also notable for not one, not two, but three questionable officiating decisions.

One of the main talking points of the match was the penalty decision, as it was a very controversial call.

In the first place, the fact that the penalty was even given in the first place was notable, as replays showed that Håvard Nordtveit of Hoffenheim did not make significant contact with Bayern winger Franck Ribéry when Ribéry went down in the penalty area. Even Bayern coach Niko Kovač said that it should not have been given.

Generally, in this situation, the video assistant referee (VAR) would have been consulted, but this time, such was not the case. Because of this, the referee’s incorrect decision to award the penalty remained.

However, what arguably stood out even more was the penalty itself.

With the game tied at 1-1, Bayern superstar Lewandowski stepped forward to take the penalty. His shot was saved by Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann, but Robben rushed in to clean up and put the follow-up shot in the net.

The referee then ordered Lewandowski to retake the penalty because Robben had begun his run into the penalty area too early. On his second attempt, the Polish striker dispatched the penalty.

Although on the surface, there appears to be no issue with the events that took place, consider the following.

What if Robben had missed on his follow-up shot?

If that had happened, Bayern would essentially have been rewarded for having one of their players break a key rule with regard to penalties, because it would have granted Lewandowski another chance to score his penalty.

This is notable because experienced players can often tell if the penalty-taker is about to miss with his shot. If they believe he is going to miss, they may exploit the rules by encroaching into the penalty area to force a retake.

In such situations, I believe that the referee should use his discretion and not order the penalty to be retaken.

In this case, the referee was fortunate that Robben scored on the follow-up, because although he made a bad call, it worked out for the best in the end.

The third incident was yet another which involved the VAR, although in this case, it was Hoffenheim who benefited from it.

Bayern’s Leon Goretzka took a shot that caromed off teammate Thomas Müller en route to the back of the net. Although the ball just happened to deflect off Müller, the VAR incorrectly ruled it as an intentional handball, and what should have been Bayern’s third goal was therefore not counted.

In spite of all the praise that the VAR system has received, particularly during the World Cup, incidents such as this prove that the system is not infallible and may therefore require further tweaks.

While in this match, because Bayern went on to score a third goal, the officiating errors did not change the overall result, it is what could happen in other matches that is a cause for concern.

Whether the errors are made with or without the use of the VAR system does not matter, because either way, the net effect on the game is the same.

Hopefully, as the season progresses, matches like this one become the exception rather than the norm, because the myriad of errors committed by the referee ruined the game. Even more than that, in leagues with close title races or in knockout games, refereeing errors can change who will end up taking home the trophy.

It’s time for referees across Europe to take note and step up their game.

The Weekly Take, Issue 24: Back from the Brink

The first matchday of the 2018-19 La Liga season saw a number of enthralling matches. Probably the most notable of these was the clash between Valencia and Atlético Madrid, two of the teams who have qualified for this season’s Champions League.

Ángel Correa opened the scoring for Atlético, but a well-taken volley by Rodrigo proved to be the game-tying goal for Valencia, earning them a point against the Madrid powerhouse.

This result is proof of a remarkable turnaround by Valencia, who not too long ago were in the worst position they had been in for many years.

In both the 2015-16 and 2016-17 La Liga seasons, Valencia finished a dismal 12th in the league, their worst two-season La Liga run since they re-entered the top flight after being promoted from the Segunda División in 1987.

In addition to their league woes, Los Che also suffered early Champions League and Europa League exits in 2015-16, and were also knocked out of the Copa del Rey in the round of 16 the following season.

To give an idea of how badly Valencia were playing at this time, in the 2016-17 season, Valencia’s leading goalscorers were Munir and Rodrigo, who scored a mere seven goals apiece.

This trying period was also marked by coaching instability, with Valencia hiring and firing five different coaches over those two years.

However, things began to change for the better in the 2017 off-season. The club hired Marcelino as coach, and also made a number of extremely shrewd signings. They signed Neto and Simone Zaza, both from Juventus, and crucially, also made multiple solid pickups on loan deals. These players brought in on loan included the likes of Geoffrey Kondogbia, Andreas Pereira, and Gonçalo Guedes, all of whom went on to become solid contributors to Valencia’s eventual revival.

In addition, Valencia also saw significant improvements in the levels of play from players such as Dani Parejo, Rodrigo, and Santi Mina. Ultimately, the 2017-18 season proved to be Valencia’s most successful in three years, as they qualified for the Champions League and reached the Copa del Rey semifinals.

However, in the previous off-season, some questioned if their success last season had just been a fluke and felt that they might not really be back. This feeling of uncertainty was strengthened by the fact that Guedes, Pereira, and Luciano Vietto all left Valencia after completing their loan stints. Valencia also loaned Zaza to Torino.

Despite these losses of personnel, Valencia were also active in the transfer market. They turned Kondogbia’s loan deal into a permanent one by signing him for €25 million. Other signings made by Valencia included the pickups of Daniel Wass from Celta and Kevin Gameiro from Atlético.

In addition, Valencia added Michy Batshuayi and, crucially, Denis Cheryshev on loan from Chelsea and Villarreal respectively.

All things considered, the reversal of Valencia’s fortunes since the end of the 2016-17 season has been extremely impressive. Not many saw this improvement coming at the time.

In fact, such has been their revival that this season, they are the most likely team to challenge La Liga’s dominant triumvirate of Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atlético.

It must also be kept in mind that this isn’t a team with little history. During Valencia’s best era of 1998 to 2004, they won two league titles, a Copa del Rey, and a UEFA Cup (now known as the Europa League). They also reached the final of the Champions League twice, losing to Real Madrid in 2000 and Bayern Munich in 2001.

Valencia’s recent success has shown that even if a team has fallen on hard times, with good planning, shrewd signings, and a clear strategy, they can eventually make their way out of the depths.

Although they have only played one league game, if their performance against Atlético is anything to go by, Valencia can look ahead to this season with much optimism, as it seems to be the case that their fourth-place La Liga finish and deep Copa del Rey run from last season do not appear to be flukes.

If they can continue their renaissance throughout this season, expect Valencia to cause trouble for the three top teams in La Liga and also go far in both the Copa del Rey and Champions League.