Keep Momentum. Why Liverpool have to keep Mo Salah.
Age is a number 1. In this sort of form and mood, Liverpool would be mad not to extend Mo Salah’s contract. The owners prefer to invest in younger players long-term and Salah will be 33 in June when his contract expires. Yet he looks in his prime. Salah has not suffered a major injury in his career which might have the clock ticking louder. He has missed only 36 games through injury in 12 seasons. He's disciplined, picking up a yellow only once every 30 games. Salah’s last booking was 27 games ago for the hardly heinous crime of appealing too vigorously for a free-kick against Arsenal at Anfield. He’s a great ambassador for Liverpool, a role model for younger players with his total dedication to his craft. He’s too good to let go to Saudi next summer.
Age is a number 2. Kasper Schmeichel is still producing at 37. He didn’t have too much to do against Rangers but the Dane’s concentration was again spot-on. He now has four clean sheets from his four Scottish Premiership appearances for Celtic. Schmeichel made four saves against Rangers and his distribution was good, 92% pass accuracy (35/38). And now he heads off for Nations League duty against Switzerland and Serbia, looking for his 106th and 107th caps. Like his father Peter before him, Kasper’s a rock of ages.
Also keeping up standards. “Incroyable,” tweeted Bordeaux as their 21-year-old goalkeeper,
Lassana Diabite, headed in a late equaliser against Poitiers on his debut. And so began a new life for Bordeaux in the fourth tier of French football, having been sent down two divisions for financial problems. Bordeaux rebuild with lads, dads and amateurs, in a borrowed stadium, and gained a point through the determination of Diabite. As he spoke afterwards, a smiling Diabite was sprayed with water by his delighted team-mates. The fight back and journey back has begun.
Central perk. Liverpool’s midfield ran the show against Manchester United. Yes, their attack was ruthless, hard-working and pressing. Yes, their defence has been tightened by Arne Slot. But it is midfield which has most caught the eyes as there was concern about whether Slot had the resources. It is midfield where Slot’s alchemy and intelligence is most seen. After failing to bring in Martin Zubimendi, Slot calmly blended a three of Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister attacking as well as anchoring, and Dominik Szoboszlai slightly further forward passing and pressing. Trent Alexander-Arnold steps in to add to Liverpool’s control of midfield. They effortlessly dominated a supine United. They turned over possession and countered. They were the bedrock on which Liverpool’s victory was built. They all play as 6s and 8s. Mac Allister was back harrying Amad and also scheming on the edge of United’s area. Gravenberch drove through United’s midfield for two of Liverpool’s goals. Szoboszlai was again contributing in and out of possession. The right aptitude and attitude are a ferocious combination.
Home-grown. PSR encourages developing players but also encourages selling them (for “pure” profit). That cannot be good for the player, the manager and the fans who love “one of our own”. There surely has to be a way of including wages of a number of home-grown players per club in costs that can be offset against PSR. If investment in infrastructure is included, surely investment in home-grown players’ wages is part of ensuring a club’s sustainability.
Marcus Rashford. Viewed dispassionately the lightning rod for Manchester United fan’s frustration was no worse than Alejandro Garnacho at Old Trafford on Sunday. Yet Garnacho was not playing on his favourite side, on the left where Erik ten Hag starts Rashford. Amad did more than either when replacing Garnacho, although Rashford did put in a cross that Joshua Zirkzee wasted. Rashford’s body language is poor but there also appears a tactical issue here. He seems to be turning inside move, running into traffic, rather than unleashing his pace down the flank, an obvious strength. There is a good player still inside Rashford, who is bereft of confidence and more tactical advice. He needs to take responsibility for his own performances, of course, but Erik ten Hag could give him a clearer plan, too.
Human cost of relegation. When Sheffield United were controversially relegated in 2006, “many staff lost their job because of the (Carlos) Tevez decision”. So says Kevin McCabe in a new biography about him titled “Mucky Boots”. Sheffield United’s former owner is still aggrieved about the authorities’ failure to deduct points from West Ham for fielding a player with forbidden third-party ownership. McCabe describes it as “probably the biggest injustice since the sport of football began”, which is quite a claim.
McCabe came on the radio show I co-host on a Sunday morning and tried to put a figure on the number of staff he had to lay off. He reckoned between “50 and 70”. That’s not only 50 and 70 individuals affected but also their families, emotionally and financially. It affects a whole community. McCabe’s players could have done more to keep themselves up but the Tevez affair was a scandal, the authorities did let Sheffield United down, and up to 70 families were the innocent victims.
Declan Rice. The Arsenal midfield player was impressively sanguine in reflecting on his dismissal against Brighton. He accepted both offences were yellow, the mistimed challenge in the first half and then delaying a restart. “Look, this is the law of the game. If you touch the ball away, even a little bit, obviously it’s a red card, after my challenge in the first half,” Rice told the BBC. There has still been a pile-on on referee Chris Kavanagh for the decision, and he undoubtedly erred in not applying the letter of the law more consistently, especially to Joao Pedro for belting the ball away in frustration. But Kavanagh was right to punish Rice. And the pile-on exacerbates the problem, not only in putting pressure on Kavanagh and his family, but also on aspiring referees lower down the pyramid. Some will be put off continuing, so reducing the rise of talent up the pyramid. And Premier League fans will eventually lose out.
Sean Dyche. More than one caller to a phone-in on Saturday evening argued for Everton’s manager to be removed after the 2-0 up, 3-2 down embarrassment against Bournemouth. The callers ignored the quality of Everton’s play for 86 minutes before individual errors by players cost them. They ignored that Dyche’s personality and man-management kept Everton up against all odds and against all points deductions last season. They ignored that Dyche is just the type of committed manager Everton need now.
RIP Sol Bamba. When her husband passed away on Saturday, Chloe Bamba posted a beautiful, heart-rending tribute saying that her soul-mate “left this earth knowing, without a shadow of a doubt, that he was loved wholeheartedly”. And he was by her so deeply, by family, friends, team-mates and all inspired by his positive personality. Sol was such a lovely guy as well as a strong leader for Leeds, Cardiff and Middlesbrough, as well as Dunfermline, Hibs, Leicester and Ivory Coast. Many were inspired by his stoic fight against Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in 2021. “Sometimes I sat at home, I was down and I’d check my phone and I’ve got messages from people I don't even know, saying ‘stay strong’ or ‘we love you’,” Sol told me later in 2021 when returning to Cardiff with Boro. And it is the same now, this outpouring of love for Sol. As a centre-back and leader, Sol Bamba commanded respect. As a man, he was very easy to like, just a great guy to chat to, humble, friendly and fun. Thoughts with Chloe and the family. Rest In Peace, Sol.