Odisha FC beat East Bengal 6-4 in the pair’s first meeting of the 2021/22 Indian Super League season. However, it wasn’t until the 13th minute that the first goal arrived, and it wasn’t Odisha who had scored. Darren Sidoel, formerly of AFC Ajax, gave East Bengal the lead with a stunning volley into the top right corner – setting the tone for what was to come. It took until the 33rd minute for Odisha to get back into the game, which they did through centre-back Hector Rodas. The Spaniard nodded in a cross from his compatriot Javi Hernandez at the back post, restoring…
Author: Akshat Mehrish
Akshat Mehrish
Akshat Mehrish is a football expert who has a keen interest in tactics and player recruitment aspects of the sport.
Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata scored for Juventus in their comfortable win over relegation-threatened Salernitana. Elsewhere, Dusan Vlahovic scored in Fiorentina’s win over Sampdoria. A terrible start to the season has left Juventus mid-table, looking up to their rivals. The Old Lady languishes in seventh place, some eleven points off the top of the table – a gap reduced only by a 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Salernitana on Tuesday night. Against I Granata, Dybala – now the leading man for the Bianconeri – and Dejan Kulusevski tested the waters with early shots from distance. Then, in the 21st minute, the two combined to give Juve the lead; Dybala played…
The Catalans will reportedly attempt to sign Anthony Martial from Manchester United as a replacement for Sergio Aguero, whose career is at risk due to an arrhythmia. However, the club could end up losing Ousmane Dembele for nothing, as the winger is currently not keen on signing a renewal. All signs point towards the Blaugrana being active in the upcoming transfer windows as they continue their “cultural rebirth” under new head coach Xavi Hernandez. The club has been linked with Spanish striker Ferran Torres (Man City) recently, but reports from elsewhere suggest that Manchester United forward Martial is of interest to them too. Also read…
Lallianzuala Chhangte and Anirudh Thapa scored on either side of a Vishal Kaith own goal to help Chennaiyin beat NorthEast United 2-1. The Chennaiyin duo netted a pair of wonder strikes as the Marina Machans climbed to second in the table. A couple of wonderful goals from Lallianzuala Chhangte and Anirudh Thapa helped Chennaiyin maintain their perfect start to the season. The Marina Machans beat NorthEast United 2-1 to record their second successive win. The Highlanders, on the flip side, were left waiting for their first success of the season. https://twitter.com/OptaJeev/status/1465352306845577221 Both teams exchanged early blows without making much of an impact. Chhangte forced Subhasish Chowdhury into making…
Lionel Messi won a record seventh Ballon d’Or, ahead of Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski and Chelsea’s Jorginho. Chelsea, meanwhile, were named the Club of the Year in France Football’s awards ceremony. Messi collected his seventh Ballon d’Or at the Theatre du Chatelet on Monday night, setting a new milestone in the process. The former Barcelona and the current Paris Saint-Germain attacker was also the last recipient of the award when it took place two years ago in 2019 and is currently two ahead of his closest rival Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of the silverware. https://twitter.com/VarskySports/status/1465428748380086277 The Argentine, who went on an outstanding run in…
Manchester United have confirmed the appointment of Ralf Rangnick as the interim first-team manager on a six-month deal. The German will take a consultancy role with the club at the end of his stint for the next two years. The German tactician will replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – who was sacked last week – in the dugout for the next six months, following which he will join the backroom in a consultancy role for two further years. Rangnick was working with Lokomotiv Moscow in a similar consultant role when Manchester United came calling. https://twitter.com/ManUtd/status/1465282005369860098 Credited with influencing several modern football…
24-year-old Ashique Kuruniyan scored at both ends of the pitch in Bengaluru FC’s draw against Kerala Blasters. The youngster’s first in the 84th minute rewarded Bengaluru for their dominance while his second, unfortunately at his end, four minutes later, rescued a point for Kerala. Kerala started the game brightly with Vincy Barretto and Adrian Luna picking up where they left off. Luna attempted to pick out Barretto with a ball over the top of the opposition defence in the ninth minute, but custodian Gurpreet Singh Sandhu read the danger well and got to the ball ahead of the youngster. At the other end, Harman Khabra kept a close…
Chelsea star Jorginho had a hand in both the goals – one at each end – in the Blues’ 1-1 draw against Manchester United. The Italian central midfielder’s error allowed Jadon Sancho to open the scoring at Stamford Bridge with his first league goal for Manchester United. However, the 29-year-old later scored from the spot to rescue a well-deserved point for Thomas Tuchel’s side. Callum Hudson-Odoi nearly scored for the home side after just four minutes. The youngster capitalized on a poor attempted clearance from Victor Lindelof to dash into the penalty box with the ball. But, his attempt to curl it past David…
Youngster Ferran Torres might be on his way back to Spain, a year-and-a-half after signing for Manchester City from struggling Valencia. The Spaniard is keen on a switch to Barcelona with officials from the club spotted in Manchester, reports The Athletic. The Spaniard signed for City in the summer before the 2020/21 season from Valencia and has been a sporadic starter for Pep Guardiola’s side since. However, despite starting the season brightly and nailing his position down in the first team – before an injury ruled him out for a long spell – the 21-year-old attacker is open to the idea of leaving the…
One of either Italy or Portugal will not be heading to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The pair have been drawn in the same block of the European play-offs and will be competing for the one available berth. The last two European champions are on the same side of the draw for the playoffs, which means that, at best, the pair will take on each other in a mini-final for one of three available berths. There is also a slight possibility that neither of those two teams makes it to the intercontinental competition, given that they will first…