The head coach will not necessarily pick the better player, or the one in form, but the one who best fits a specific role ...Thomas Tuchel’s plans are coming in to focus ... Tuchel has been refreshingly consistent in prioritising balance over individuals.
Theories range from obvious mismatches to Premier League clubs not being able to defend from open play. There were 68 goals in the last 16 of the Champions League, which is not only a lot but goes against the trend of the previous four seasons ... ....
The mood already appears to be turning against the earnest coach with the fashionable glasses and box-fresh trainers. The temptation is always to make excuses for Chelsea. They have a young and inexperienced side ... ....
Humbled English clubs must realise that what works against the very good turns out to be inadequate against the best. If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail ... But the Champions League is not like the Premier League.
Spurs’ slide from title hopefuls to relegation candidates is a story of complete mismanagement and widespread injury. Sign up for Soccer with JonathanWilson here. Last week, after Tottenham had lost 4-1 at home to Arsenal, Igor Tudor was bullish ... ....
The starkest improvement under the interim manager has been the Slovenian supersub’s attacking potency ... There’s a very obvious explanation ... He was caught offside twice ... ....
The ever-increasing number of games, combined with financial regulation, has produced flat play on the field but a tighter table overall. Sign up for Soccer with JonathanWilson here ... ....
Their best players and managers may move on, but this thoroughly modern club keep punching above their weight. When the news cycle spins so fast, it’s worth remembering where Brentford were in the summer ... They had lost their goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
City again needlessly threw points away but Solanke showed what Tottenham, with their long injury list, have been missing ... It was a case of multiple immutable but incompatible laws running into each other ... ....
English clubs stroll through Champions League group phase but fatigue tends to take its toll by the spring ... But that’s the way of the modern game ... ....
The Africa Cup of Nations has been a brilliant display for a continent carrying no doubt about quality on the pitch ... Is a World Cup win for Africa any closer than it was half a century ago? ... ....