Another angle would be nice, but technique is great

So I can't really see how his body shapes that way, but goals are goals, and who doesn't love seeing them?

Beats working.

Of course van Persie would score; Don't rush Messi

Robin van Persie was bound to score the winner against Arsenal. It was a reminder that Manchester United are far from out of the title race, and Arsenal aren't the clear favorites for the league. Both teams will be there or thereabouts in the run up to Christmas, but much will depend on the strength of their squads when the league, cup and European games are coming thick and fast.

One player United won't be bragging about in their squad is Marouane Fellaini - if Tom Cleverly is coming on before you in a big game, you cant be that good. He doesn't fit in at Old Trafford, and I can only think that Moyes wanted him as a familiar face around the place - but he really wanted Leighton Baines, and seems to have ended up with Fellaini when he couldn't get anyone else.

Manchester City, Chelsea and Spurs are 3 teams I just can't work out. Great one week, awful the next. Spurs probably haven't been great all season, but they should be so much better. They don't create anything, and Soldado looks completely lost. Andros Townsend was the savior of England a few weeks ago, but cutting in and shooting every time you get the ball is probably the reason he wasn't offered a second month's loan spell at Leyton Orient. In the words of John Barnes, 'there's only one way to beat 'em, get round the back.' Soldado needs crosses to score, surely that's why they have all these wingers.

City are a strange team. They have no excuses (Joe Hart wasn't playing) for not beating Sunderland. Smashing Norwich by 7 doesn't mean much if you are going to allow Phil Bardsley to bully his way into the box and finish (and yes, he did finish well, I'll give him that).

Chelsea were saved by a dive to maintain Mourinho's run at home. Get Lukaku back as soon as you can/play Mata/sell Obi Mikel/get Courtouis back to replace Cech. Because no one else can understand why you haven't done these things already.

***

PSG are going to win Ligue Un. Zlatan is just too good. End of.... Juventus are going to win Serie A. Not as certain on this one, but Roma are coming back down to earth after their amazing start, Napoli couldn't live with Juve yesterday, and Tevez, Pirlo, Llorente and Pogba have all the quality they need to compete in multiple competitions... Bayern Munich are too good.

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Will Barcelona miss Lionel Messi? What do you think? But they need to be patient. His hamstring injury could keep him out a few months, but they still have more than enough quality to beat the majority of teams in La Liga. Xavi, Iniesta and Neymar don't become bad players because Messi isn't there. Real Madrid will be hot on their heels now that Ronaldo, Bale and Benzema seem to be clicking, but the overall quality of the opposition in La Liga means that Barca should be able to at least keep pace until Messi's return in late-January.

Michael Owen and Lionel Messi in the same sentence?

News is breaking that Lionel Messi is out for 6-8 weeks with a hamstring tear.

Hopefully he takes time to let it heal and Barcelona don't rush him back.

Michael Owen's game was all based on pace, and once his hamstrings went, he really didn't have much left. Messi has so many more talents than just his speed, but hopefully this is not the start of a decline for Messi - he's a young man, but has played a lot of football and probably needs a rest.

Moyes probably won't have the answers for Arsenal

Arsenal against Manchester United on Sunday - any interest? No, didn't think so!

People keep expecting Arsene Wenger's team to fail, but we're now over a quarter of the way through the season and they are top of the league and have the most in-form player in the Premier League, if not Europe right now.

David Moyes on the other hand spent 27.5 million pounds on Marouane Fellaini. He wasn't that good at Everton, and looks completely out of his depth at Manchester United. He deserves time to find his feet, but maybe he can't see them through all that hair - i know, the tumbleweed is rolling right now, and I'm ok with it.

United have to hope they can outscore Arsenal, as it's unlikely they will dominate the ball, even at Old Trafford.

A defeat for Arsenal isn't the end of the world, and while it's another reason to question what is going on with Moyes's team, it's not the end for them either. They are more than capable of going on a streak, but a defeat here would create a lot of questions that the Scotsman doesn't appear to have the answer for.

I can't see Palace or Sunderland picking up points against Everton or Manchester City, and you have to fear for both of them already. West Ham against Norwich isn't quite a 6-pointer yet, but if the Hammers fail to score again, the decision to put all the eggs in the Andy Carroll basket will look even worse.

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It seems we just wait for El Clasico in Spain now, or for one of them to face Atletico. Really not much to say about La Liga except that we hope for a shock result rather than another record to be broken by Messi or Ronaldo.... German and French football don't have any huge games this weekend, but I do appreciate that they start the weekend fixtures on a Friday night - really helps me through the day!

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And then there's Juventus v Napoli. Roma have made a great start in Serie A, but these two are teh pre-season favorites and have both started really well. Hopefully the midweek European ties won't have turned this into a defensive game, but then it's Serie A, so expect some of that anyway! Tevez has been running riot in Italy, with Higuain, Hamsik and co. likely to play their own brand of counter-attacking football.

Rafa Benitez deserves a lot of credit, but Antonio Conte has built a formidable team, with Paul Pogba developing into a top-class player. Juventus have the home advantage and that puts them in poll position, but who cares who wins?* It's just another great game in another fantastic weekend of football.

*I care who wins, and I hope it's Juve - but not sure why. Oh that's right, I have money on it! 

Worth a second look - it's against Spurs too!

The Europa League is chugging along nicely, and it made me think of this goal from last season's competition.

Samuel Umtiti with the screamer for Lyon, and it was against Tottenham too, so I had to post it.

The Champions League format needs to change

We're not going back to the old European Cup, but let's mix it up a bit

Play knockout games, Group stages are just a way to make money

Atletico, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City are into the last 16. Real Madrid, Chelsea and PSG are one point away, so I'll gamble and say that's 7 in with 9 still to be decided.

My bet would be Manchester United, Bayer Leverkeusen, Juventus, Benfica, Shalke, AC Milan, Zenit St Petersburg, Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal.

I'm bound to be wrong on one or two, but let's play the hypothetical game for a minute.

Those 16 would make up some fantastic knockout ties, but most football fans would probably have picked at least 12 of those 16 to qualify. So it makes me think again about the validity of the group stages, and whether they are just a way for UEFA to really coin in the TV money. We all know it's true, but it's such a long, drawn-out competition that maybe it needs to be reduced so that we can get the interest back in every game. Group stages are just a way of ensuring every team gets on TV, earns some money and showcases their best players for the bigger teams to buy the next season.

Barcelona v AC Milan was exciting to watch, as was Real Madrid v Juventus, but these massive ties don't have the same significance or importance when they could happen 4 times a season. Let them slug it out once (well twice as the home and away legs are still a factor), and the winner advances.

Oh, but then we won't see Messi v Balotelli or Ronaldo v Pirlo in the latter stages - sure we will, just seed the teams from 1 to 32, It may not be the Champions 'League' anymore, but it gives the smaller teams a chance to progress, places some importance on every game and doesn't just keep lining the pockets of the bigger teams.

Oh, I'm suggesting going back to the old European Cup when the Champions of each league played each other? Yes, and no. Sepp Blatter can keep the money from having 4 English teams, 4 Spanish, Bayern, PSG etc, but we won't have to endure months of games that lead us to the same end - and it creates a fairer system where smaller teams can advance, because ask a Milan fan now about that epic tie with Barcelona in the Champions League, and he/she will say, "When? In 2013, 12, 11, 06, 04?" Or something like that in Italian!

Red Bulls, Dynamo don't need stats

Winner advances to Eastern conference final

This is America so let's look at the stats for tonight's second leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the New York Red Bulls and Houston Dynamo at Red Bull Arena (8pm ET).

The Texas side have been to the last two MLS Cup finals but lost both to the Los Angeles Galaxy. The Dynamo, founded in 2006, have two MLS Cup trophies to their name, missed the playoffs once and is a different animal altogether postseason, given their experience and managerial team led by Dominic Kinnear.

The Red Bulls, meanwhile, have lost all three of their home playoff matches dating back to 2010 (San Jose Earthquakes, Galaxy and D.C. United) when their stadium opened. They also have not won a playoff match at home since 2005 when they played at the old Giants Stadium. 

But the Red Bulls are 11-2-4 at home this season, 3-0 against the Dynamo at home in the past two years and have outscored them 9-3 in three matches since September all in Houston, including last weekend's first-leg draw.

                                     Photo by Danissa Alvarado


Stats aside, tonight's match should be a cracker as Houston will draw on its experience postseason as the Dynamo still boast most of its players from the last two finals with Brad Davis leading the way and Will Bruin and Boniek Garcia bombarding the Red Bulls defense.


For New York, the consistency in the 2013 campaign that resulted in its first trophy last week will be counted upon. Although their backline boulder--Colombian Jamison Olave--is suspended for tonight's return leg, manager Mike Petke is confident in his side's depth as he moves some pieces to avoid its defense missing a beat to contain Houston's dangerous attackers. But the thought of deciding whether Roy Miller comes back from injury or leaving David Carney in is one that Red Bulls supporters are biting their nails over.

One curse down for New York but will they best the home playoff demons?