#those last two seasons is like they’re literally having a affair whether they realise or not

[gregmarriage]

my brother said he’s willing to give succ another chance. on one hand, this is extremely good news. on the other, he just doesn’t understand it, like i do

[gadgetsrevv]

B/R Football Ranks: 10 Most Exciting International Teams to Watch Right Now | Bleacher Report

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

Domestic football takes its second pause for the 2019-20 season as the international window steps forward.

And it might well be that you’re looking for some inspiration; without a club team to reliably check in on, and with your nation perhaps not playing games of the utmost importance, you need something to tune in to.

We’ve got you covered.

As B/R Football Ranks host Jack Collins proclaimed during the last international window, there’s a lot of fun to be had during this period—if you know where to look, and if you watch the right teams and games.

Here, we’ve ranked the top 10 most exciting teams to watch in international football, hopefully handing you a few ideas on when and where to lay your gaze over the next week-and-a-bit.

Download the B/R Football Ranks podcast. New episodes every Wednesday. 

             10. Algeria

Key reason: Exciting, slick football

Visionhaus/Getty Images

The reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions are always likely to be a decent watch, and Algeria live up to the hype.

Riyad Mahrez is still the face of the team, and the form he’s begun this Premier League season in bodes well for the Fennecs’ hopes of victory this month. His connection with Islam Slimani, who has rediscovered his scoring boots at Monaco, is a serious danger to any defence.

Midfielder Ismael Bennacer won the Africa Cup of Nations Best Player award this summer, and that helped secure a high-profile move to AC Milan. Things haven’t quite gone to plan for him at San Siro so far, but he could well revert back to his controlling, metronomic best in Algeria colours.

And perhaps the most eye-catching attraction on show—yes, even more so than Mahrez—is rumbling right-sider Youcef Atal, who should be on most top clubs’ shopping lists in 2020. Watching him carry the ball forward is exciting for viewers but petrifying for opponents.

Fixture to watch: Algeria vs. Colombia (October 15, 8 p.m UK / 3 p.m. ET)

                 9. Kosovo

Key reason: Potential to make history

MB Media/Getty Images

An independent nation since 2008. Only recognised by FIFA since 2016. Nine of their first 10 games lost as the difficult realities of international football hit home hard and fast.

And yet, Kosovo have emerged from the other side of that baptism of fire, adapting and creating a template for exciting football with a good group of players on the fly.

It took an opponent of England’s calibre to end their unbeaten run of 15 games last month, with the defeat finally coming in a 5-3 thriller. 

In Milot Rashica and Bersant Celina, Kosovo have a pair of creative midfield engines that excite and ignite, while Arber Zeneli can help supply striker Vedat Muriqi.

Euro 2020 qualification is possible if they can find a way to get results in their next three games, starting with Montenegro at home next week. What an incredible achievement that would be if they manage it.

Fixture to watch: Kosovo vs. Montenegro (October 14, 7:45 p.m UK / 2:45 p.m. ET)

                 8. Venezuela

Key reason: Literally anything can happen in their games

DOUGLAS MAGNO/Getty Images

Venezeula are football’s answer to Forrest Gump’s famous “box of chocolates” quip; it really is impossible to know exactly what you’re going to get out of them results- and performance-wise, but you will enjoy what you see.

There’s a nice mix of in-form, established stars (like Salomon Rondon and Darwin Machis) and emerging, talented youngsters (like Yangel Herrera and Yeferson Soteldo) in this squad.

Moving forward and into 2020, expect to see plenty of the exhilarating prospects from their under-20 side, such as Jan Carlos Hurtado, Christian Makoun and Samuel Sosa—all names you should store in your minds—break into the team and begin to impress.

If Venezuela find their gear, they’re a team that purrs; if they don’t and become besieged, enigmatic goalkeeper Wuilker Farinez is a joy to watch as he pulls off incredible saves left and right.

It’s win-win, no matter what happens, for the viewer.

Fixture to watch: Venezuela vs. Bolivia (October 10, 11 p.m UK / 6 p.m. ET)

              7. Senegal

Key reason: Stacked squad

GIUSEPPE CACACE/Getty Images

Senegal’s collection of players is quite something.

It’s headed up by familiar star names in Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly, but scratch a little further beneath the surface and you’ll find a mass of talent that all start—or are good enough to start—for top European sides.

Moussa Wague of Barcelona and Salif Sane of Schalke form part of a good defence, which is backed up by an excellent goalkeeper in Edouard Mendy. Midfielder Idrissa Gueye has made Paris Saint-Germain impervious to attacks so far this season, and he can do the same for Senegal.

In Ismaila Sarr (Watford), Krepin Diatta (Club Brugge), Keita Balde (Monaco) and M’Baye Niang (Rennes), they have so much variation in attack to switch up approaches.

Charismatic coach Aliou Cisse has the Lions of Teranga playing good football and winning games. That will be put to a stern test this month, though!

Fixture to watch: Brazil vs. Senegal (October 10, 1 p.m UK / 8 a.m. ET)

              6. Brazil

Key reason: Star power

TF-Images/Getty Images

Sometimes, it really is as simple as following the star power.

While their old continental rivals Argentina continue to try to figure out how to arrange themselves around Lionel Messi, Brazil have found a zen synchronicity whether their own star, Neymar, is there or not.

The PSG forward is back in the mix after missing the Copa America win due to injury, so how he integrates into the XI is intriguing. Both he and Philippe Coutinho are running hot, with the latter rediscovering his mojo since moving to Bayern Munich; what sort of devastation will they cause together this month?

Alisson Becker’s injury gives the Selecao an element of uncertainty between the sticks—Ederson Moraes only has seven caps for his country—and therefore a glimmer of hope for their two upcoming opponents.

Fixture to watch: Brazil vs. Senegal (October 10, 1 p.m UK / 8 a.m. ET)

                5. England

Key reason: The new SAS combo

Clive Mason/Getty Images

England have many charms as a football team in 2019, but in imploring you to watch them, we’ll simply dial in on one: You simply can’t be passing up the chance to watch Raheem Sterling and Jadon Sancho combine on a football pitch.

They’re two incredible, exciting forwards who feed off each other and rip defences apart. Pivoting off Harry Kane, who distracts, occupies and scores a few himself, the three represent one of the most formidable attacks in the sport.

That naturally leads to quite a lot of goals—England have scored at least four goals in four of their six games this year—and that helps take some of the focus off what is a pretty leaky defensive unit.

Fixture to watch: Czech Republic vs. England (October 11, 7:45 p.m. UK / 2:45 p.m. ET)

                4. Mexico

Key reason: Goals from all over

Omar Vega/Getty Images

One of the most satisfying experiences you can get during an international window is watching Mexico’s goal reels. 

They come from absolutely all over the place, all in different guises and styles. Strikers score poachers’ efforts, midfielders chip in from distance or having crashed into the box, centre-backs contribute from set pieces and even the full-backs are so gung ho at times they get in on the act.

Occasionally this backfires—you only have to look at the 4-0 loss to Argentina in September to realise that—but they play an exciting brand of attacking football that resonates with their passionate fans.

They’re up against Bermuda (ranked 167th in the world). It will be a case of guess how many.

Fixture to watch: Bermuda vs. Mexico (October 12, 2 a.m. UK / October 11, 9 p.m. ET)

               3. Italy

Key reason: They’re back

Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

For the first time since 2014, Italy are looking like the team you always imagine them to be: imperious, packed with top-level talent and capable of winning in automatic mode.

In Marco Verratti, Stefano Sensi, Nicolo Barella and Jorginho, they have the world’s most diminutive and technically talented midfield set, and they’re running games with ease from the centre.

The two Federicos, Chiesa and Bernardeschi, are absolute menaces from the flank, and the former, in particular, is an incredible player. Lorenzo Insigne adds spice to the unit, too.

The Azzurri are on a seven-game win streak and have won every match of 2019 so far. Keep that record going this month and Euro 2020 qualification will be secured. Also, peep the kits they’ll be wearing on Friday!

Fixture to watch: Italy vs. Greece (October 12, 7:45 p.m. UK / 2:45 p.m. ET)

              2. Germany

Key reason: They’re a real head-scratcher

PAUL FAITH/Getty Images

For the neutral, at least, Germany are an exciting and intriguing watch. 

The 2018 World Cup disaster was almost incomprehensible given the talent levels in their squad, and while things have improved in the Euro 2020 qualifying gauntlet, they’re still a fallible, frail side that gets caught in high-scoring, helter-skelter affairs.

Watch Germany and you see some of the best young players in the world (Serge Gnabry, Niklas Sule, Kai Havertz, Timo Werner) managed by someone (Joachim Low) who doesn’t really seem to have a good handle on how to truly harness them.

The results can be explosive, as their two tussles with the Netherlands this year attest to.

Die Mannschaft are in must-win mode to secure qualification for Euro 2020 and have to beat Estonia on October 13, but it might just be the friendly against Argentina four days before that commands your attention.

Fixture to watch: Germany vs. Argentina (October 9, 7:45 p.m UK / 2:45 a.m. ET)

      1. Netherlands

Key reason: Goals galore

TF-Images/Getty Images

With the exception of the Nations League final against Portugal, every game the Netherlands have played in 2019 has seen at least four goals. It makes Netherlands games appointment viewing.

Most of those have been scored by the Dutch themselves, with attacking sparks like Memphis Depay and Georginio Wijnaldum finding new levels of brilliance when representing their nation. Twenty-year-old Donyell Malen has burst on to the scene, too, giving them further ammunition up top.

The midfield, orchestrated by Frenkie de Jong, is predictably slick, while the Virgil van Dijk-Matthijs De Ligt central defensive pairing might just be the best in the international game.

Their tussle with Northern Ireland this week is a must-win if they hope to qualify for Euro 2020. The pressure is on.

Fixture to watch: Netherlands vs. Northern Ireland (October 10, 7:45 p.m. UK / 2:45 p.m. ET)

       Follow @stighefootball

Instagram.com/brsamtighe

All statistics via Soccerway.com 

Source link . More news

via wordpress https://ift.tt/30WQfGe

[junker-town]

Which Premier League team can least afford to miss out on the Champions League?

Five teams are fighting for three spots behind Chelsea in the top four. We take a look at who really needs to get the job done.

With the international break now upon us, we have a moment to look at the state of play in the world's most important footballing competition: the Premier League's Race for the Top Four. Legends will be made, reputations will be trashed, and money will slosh around the place.

Unusually for the Premier League, there are six teams that will have started the season targeting a top four finish, and accordingly there will be two that will end the season disappointed. We've taken a look at all six, and tried to work out what, if anything, missing out on the Champions League might mean for their futures.

1. Chelsea

played 28, 69 points

Never mind the top four. For Chelsea to blow the title from here would be one of the most spectacular and ludicrous collapses in the history of football, and Roman Abramovich would be morally obliged to shutter the club and start again in non-league. But it isn't going to happen.

2. Tottenham Hotspur

played 28, 59 points

On a practical level, Tottenham, two points clear in second place, are perhaps the side best equipped to end up in the Europa League. This is because Tottenham's Champions League adventures are occasional rather than regular, and so we can probably assume that their business plans, shopping budgets, sponsorship deals, and all that other romantic stuff isn't built around regularly hearing "THE CHAAAAAMPIOOOOOONS (bom bom bom bom bom BOM-BOM)".

However, a late collapse would be symbolically disastrous, because along with Manchester City, Spurs have a certain ingrained farcical quality. In their case, the inherent curse of Spursiness. It's not a constant: at times this season, Spurs have looked genuinely brilliant, and they the only team in England to have beaten Chelsea since Antonio Conte realised that three defenders was better than two, particularly where one of the two is John Terry.

But if they were to slump out of the top four, it would pile up with last season's climax — they almost managed to manufacture a two-horse title race, then came third — and this season's European campaign to suggest that here is a team capable of occasional brilliance, but with an unhappy habit of blowing the crucial moments. A team fundamentally unsuited to campaigns, however well they can play in individual games. And a team that is, despite the joyous football of Dele Alli and Harry Kane and the promise of Mauricio Pochettino, exceedingly and appropriately Spursy.

3. Manchester City

played 28, 57 points

For Spursiness, read Cityitis. As with the north Londoners, a meander down the table at this point would, when taken with their European exit, feel very on brand. Whether it would have any more serious impact beyond being funny is an interesting question.

The general utility of finishing in the top four isn't just the Champions League football and the money that comes with it. It's the ability to attract the best players, and so ensure that progress is always being made. A virtuous circle of status and reward that in theory returns glory and giant silver vases, but at worst means that Champions League football one season begets Champions League football the next.

The implication is that if a club misses out on the Champions League, then all the world's best players will look at them with disdain and contempt. Or at least ask for more money. And we know that City have plenty of rebuilding to do this summer. There's nearly an entire defence needed, along with half a midfield, and the Europa League won't be doing much of the heavy lifting.

So it's just as well they've got the Pep Guardiola Project and the money to back it up. They'll be fine regardless.

4. Liverpool

played 29, 56 points

As a proud and righteous warrior against English football's obsession with the transfer market, Jurgen Klopp presumably has little time for the get into the Champions League to get the best players line of thinking. He's here for the project, and his Liverpool side, once he's finished, will consist entirely of youngsters moulded by progressive coaching into gegenpressing soldiers. His inevitable victory will be both literal and moral.

Still, missing out on the top four this season might not be a promising sign. Like Chelsea, Liverpool have had the benefit of no European football this season; unlike Chelsea, they haven't been able to alchemise this extra training time into consistent brilliance. And since they're likely to end up with European football of some kind next season, re-cluttering the calendar, it might as well be the one that has more money and prestige. It's a fun competition. And if they did want to pick up a player or two, it couldn't hurt.

Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Liverpool missing out would also be kind of peculiar. Last weekend's draw against City completed Liverpool's set of fixtures against the rest of the top six, and means that they've gone the whole season undefeated against their other Champions League pretenders. Finishing behind at least four of them would truly demonstrate that league football, despite the television scheduling, isn't about competing in the big games. It's about charging through the smaller ones.

5. Manchester United

played 27, 52 points

For United, missing out on Champions League football for the second season in a row would raise all sorts of intriguingly awkward questions. That, after all, was one of the reasons Louis van Gaal was asked to clear his desk. There is also reportedly a clause in their deal with Adidas that, in the event of a second season outside the elite, cuts the amount of money United receive from 'cosmically ridiculous' to just plain old 'ridiculous'.

United, being a money-fuelled monstrosity with a lopsided squad, will be doing some serious shopping come the summer. But while their name and their wage budget remain as potent as ever, this would be a second season outside the Champions League. It would also be another campaign in which Jose Mourinho has looked distinctly mortal. Both those things look, from some angles, like a pattern.

In any case, watching them fail to score against the Premier League's mid- and lower-table, it's hard to put together any kind of case that will get into the top four. Yet the incompetence of Arsenal means that United's long, passionate affair with sixth place is over. They have two games in hand and only a four point gap to Liverpool in fourth, and there's the wild card option of the Europa League. Maybe everybody gets to play in the Champions League …

6. Arsenal

played 27, 50 points

… well, almost everybody. The arrival of the international break means March will end with Arsenal's Victories losing 2-1 to Arsenal's Protest Planes. They've been dumped out of the Champions League in brutal fashion, slipped below a deeply ordinary United side in the league, and while they did manage a 5-0 win, that came against non-league Lincoln City.

This might be down to Arsene Wenger's fundamental obsolescence, and so require his departure; alternatively, it might just be that Arsenal can cope just fine with three superior teams and struggle when presented with four. But Wenger's case isn't helped by the fact that in his late period, he's placed so much emphasis on regular Champions League qualification as an achievement — a trophy! — in itself. No matter how embarrassingly they depart the competition, they're back again next year.

As such, Arsenal and Champions League qualification are fundamentally intertwined, to the point that the thought of the club missing out is vaguely unsettling. It's almost an existential question: at the moment their fifth place finish is confirmed, the sun will dim and the earth will shake. The mural of Arsenal's legends that wraps the Emirates will rip from top to bottom. Most unlikely of all, Ivan Gazidis will make a statement:

"Weird."

And then Arsene Wenger will sign his new contract.