ANOTHER ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
Mohammed Salah rediscovered his goalscoring touch following a 4-game goal drought in the Premier League. He was back amongst the goals and assists once again against Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield. The winger timed his run perfectly to turn in Cody Gakpo’s sublime cross into the back of the net with a well-placed header to give Liverpool a deserved lead. He had another goal chalked off for offside & he should have easily had more. His short pass set Harvey Elliot up for the latter’s stunner from outside the box with the former grabbing an assist in the process. He was a nightmarish presence to the Spurs’ defence throughout the match.
Liverpool’s Egyptian King has now recorded double figures in Goals & Assists for the fifth time in his premier league career & failed to do so on only three occasions. He also became the first player to provide at least 10 goals & 10 assists in three consecutive Premier League campaigns. Only Wayne Rooney has reached double figures in both goals and assists on five different occasions in Premier League history. The man can’t just stop rewriting the record books.
BRAHIM DAZZLES AT THE BERNABEU
Starting on the left wing over Vinicius Jnr, Brahim Diaz was keen to impress the Bernabeu faithful and he did just that. Receiving a short pass from Luka Modric on the edge of the box, he turned superbly away from four defenders and curled an unstoppable shot into the far corner. An impressive way to record his first goal involvement in 6 games. The goalscorer turned provider in the second half as his low cross across goal was swiftly dispatched into the back of the net by substitute Jude Bellingham following an incisive pass down the middle from the English midfielder to Luka Modric.
The Moroccan attacker spent 73 minutes on the pitch before he was taken off for Vinicius Jnr in the second half following his immense contribution. He has now recorded 10 G/A for Madrid in the league this season. This win ensured that Madrid were crowned La liga champions with four games to spare with the Moroccan getting his hands on his 2nd league title in the famed white shirt. Much was made of his decision to switch his international allegiance from Spain to Morocco and it hasn’t been difficult to see why.
MANE IMPRESSES ONCE AGAIN
On a night when Cristiano Ronaldo grabbed the headlines for his hattrick heroics, Sadio Mane was equally as vital in Al Nassr’s 6:0 win over Al wehda. The Senegalese picked up a goal and 2 assists as Al Massr ran riot in Riyadh. His slick pass over the top of the Al Wehda defence for Otavio was dispatched into the back of the net superbly by the Portuguese midfielder to increase their lead in the 18th minute. He further extended Al Nassr’s lead grabbing a goal of his own in the 45th minute. Playing a quick one-two with Otavio, he latched onto the midfielder’s pass and raced away from the Al wehda players. He evaded the defenders’ challenge sweetly leaving one of them on the grass and he fired a shot past the opposing goalkeeper from outside the box. A sublime solo goal for the Senegalese winger. He grabbed a second assist in the second half as CR7 latched onto the winger’s through ball to complete his hattrick in the 52nd minute.
He has now been involved in 7 goals across his last 4 appearances for Al Nassr with 5 goals and 2 assists in that period. His penalty goal was vital to send Al Nasser to the King Champions Cup final last Wednesday. He is on course to record double figures in Goals & Assists for the first time in his league career.
JACKSON’S REDEMPTION
Much has been made of Nico Jackson’s finishing woes especially in recent games but he made amends in Chelsea’s fixture against West ham. The striker grabbed a brace & an assist to go with it as Chelsea ran riot over West ham. Cole Palmer dominated the headlines but Jackson was equally vital to Chelsea’s win as they chase down an elusive European spot before the season ends. His deflected touch help set up Gallagher for his goal and Chelsea’s second in the match.
Noni Madueke connected with Chalobah’s long ball over the top of the West Ham Defence and he squared it unselfishly to Jackson to tap into an open goal indicating both players had moved on beyond their squabble against Everton. He doubled his tally from Caicedo’s through ball & he timed his run perfectly to beat the offside trap. A well taken goal by the Senegalese striker. He helped Chelsea record their biggest ever win against West Ham at Stamford Bridge. Give the man his flowers.
THE HAKIM ZIYECH SHOW
Hakim Ziyech played a starring role as Galatasaray cruised to a 6:1 win over Sivasspor. Following a well worked team move, the Moroccan winger found himself unmarked in acres of space in the opposition box and he connected well with Barış Alper Yilmaz’s cross in the 11th minute, hitting the ball first time to give his team the lead. He should have grabbed his second in the 52nd minute after latching on to Zaha’s cross in the opposition box but he was denied by Sivasspor’s goalkeeper.
Delay isn’t Denial! Alas, there was nothing the goalkeeper could do about Ziyech’s powerful shot a couple of minutes later. In the 60th minute, Lucas Torreira’s flick was blocked by the opposing defender and the ball fell kindly to Ziyech. He controlled the ball expertly & unleashed an unstoppable thunderbolt from about 30yards out into the back of the net, completing his brace in grand style.
KETCHER AT THE DOUBLE
Yassine Ketcher grabbed his first two goals of the season in Le Havre’s away match at Strasbourg. The Moroccan winger opened the scoring in the 24th minute with an emphatic diving header from Josue Casimir’s cross to send the away fans into ecstasy. He doubled his side’s lead later on in the 65th minute in a similar fashion. Another cross by Josue Casimir & another header by the Moroccan youth international. Deja Vu for Strasbourg. His persistence has paid off as he got his first & second goals in his 31st league appearance of the season. Double delight for the youngster.
Strasbourg pressed for and got a consolation goal in the 86th minute but Andre Ayew was on hand to restore Le Havre’s two goal lead & ultimately secure the three points for the French club. This win could prove vital in Le Havre’s battle to avoid relegation from Ligue 1 this season.
23-YEAR-OLD X-BOX FAN HELPS FIFTH-TIER SIDE ACHIEVE PROMOTION
Sometime last year, Xbox and Football Manager organised a competition in partnership with Bromley FC to give one lucky gamer the chance of a job at a professional football club. The job description was ‘Support Performance Tactician’. A number of individuals applied and the list was thinned out to 10 individuals eventually. The applicants were reduced from ten to five and three individuals made it to the final stage. The strength of knowledge and the application of the knowledge made one particular applicant stand out in the application process. Nathan Owolabi won the competition and he was hired at Bromley FC. His role involves shadowing and learning from the coaching staff to understand the ins and outs of all the tactical decision-making that goes into preparing a football team for success. A first-team analyst.
Son of Elizabeth Biobaku, Nathan Owolabi played Sunday league football when he was younger, with his mum & best friend highlighting his obsession with football. Football was his whole life. His impact was immediate as he helped Bromley bring their five-game run without a win to an end against league leaders Chesterfield. He played a major part as a member of the coaching staff in unarguably the biggest success in Bromley’s 132-year history as a football club. Bromley triumphed at Wembley against Solihull Moors in the National League play-off final on penalties and ultimately securing promotion to the English Football League. He has become the star of a three-part documentary.