Every week, Sportsnet.ca will chat with Sportsnet soccer commentator James Sharman about the big stories and issues in the Premier League, and preview the weekend’s games.
Bournemouth confirmed this week that striker Callum Wilson will be out for six months with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. How much will this hurt the Cherries’ hopes of avoiding relegation?
Dreadful luck for Wilson, who was beginning to look like a player whose form in the lower leagues was more than a case of him being a good lower league player. The fact that his five goals compares so dramatically with his teammates (who top out at one goal so far) demonstrates how important Wilson would have been this season.
Having said that, Bournemouth would always have been in tough to survive, and defensively is often the difference between staying up. Perhaps without Wilson’s goals the team shores up its defensive strategy? Regardless, it was difficult to see the club staying up even with Wilson; now it’s that much harder.
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Jose Mourinho benched John Terry, Nemanja Matic and Eden Hazard in the midweek Champions League loss to Porto. Was this a sign that nobody at Chelsea is untouchable? Or was this a one-off move from Mourinho?
JT has been benched for a while now, and that was quite a statement in itself. Matic being dropped is not too surprising given how poorly he has played—a loss in form that goes back to last season. As for Hazard, it does appear that he is a player who responds to being challenged as he showed last season after Mourinho called him out in the summer. I would think that Hazard returns to the team quickly, but the boss is clearly at the end of his tether with this team.
Perhaps sitting Branislav Ivanovic will be his next move as the interim captain has been a liability, and that was never more obvious than on Tuesday night. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Terry back in the team this weekend, and he too is someone who will likely rebound positively. Don’t forget Mourinho benched Iker Casillas at Real Madrid, so this is not a man concerned with appearances or upsetting the establishment. He’ll do what needs to be done to get his team back on track.
Another FIFA date is approaching. Which English player in the Premier League that hasn’t yet been capped would you like to see get called up by England manager Roy Hodgson?
Jack Grealish has finally announced he is available to play for England, and although he can’t play over the next couple of international dates due to registration issues, he will likely get a cap soon. Grealish has been a bright spot in Aston Villa’s tough start to the season, and is the type of player that England has been missing for a long time: creative, intelligent, and great passer. With Ross Barkley also making his mark these days it is a good time to celebrate that England has some decent young attacking talent on the way.
Newcastle United visits Manchester City on Saturday. After starting the season with five clean sheet victories, the Citizens have stumbled of late, and dropped out of first place. How do you account for their recent slide?
Vincent Kompany is an enormous figure at this club. Last year when his form slipped or he missed games through injury, City lost its swagger; otherwise they’d have likely won the league. Since his dodgy calf let him down again this season, City has lost its way. Don’t forget that at the time of his injury City was holding Juventus at 0-0 in the Champions League. They’d go on to lose 2-1, and the slide had begun.
Such a great team on their best day, City are also such a fragile bunch, and if all it takes is for one key player to upset the apple cart, then that is a serious concern. Of course they will rebound, they’ll be in the hunt for the title again this season, but they need their captain back and healthy as soon as possible.
Swansea City hosts Tottenham on Sunday. Spurs are coming off that 4-1 win over Manchester City. Is that a sign of things to come from them? Have they turned a corner?
When Mauricio Pochettino arrived at Spurs he came with a plan. It has taken a while, but we are now seeing the fruits of that plan. He has moved out the deadwood, has nurtured the league’s youngest starting XI and has a group of players who understand what he wants. Spurs are high energy, they press like crazy, and are harassing teams much like his Southampton team did so successfully, and it is great to see.
Being young, Spurs will still have their rough times this season, but you see the plan and you see it being executed. I think Spurs will enjoy a very good season, and might be the one team that manages to slip into the top four at the expense of one of the usual suspects. I didn’t see that happening ahead of this campaign, but would be happily proved wrong.
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