Bayern Munich won a record eighth straight Bundesliga title on Tuesday, beating Werder Bremen 1-0. That wasn’t a surprise. What was a surprise was the record-breaking Alphonso Davies speed recorded during the match.
Ante Rebic did his best Nigel de Jong impersonation, sending his cleat into the chest of Danilo immediately following a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty miss. The red card helped Juventus secure a 0-0 draw in the second leg of the Coppa Italia on Friday at Allianz Stadium. The first leg was a 1-1 draw back on Feb. 13 at the San Siro, allowing Juventus to advance on away goals in the first match in Italy in three months.
The Grenal is one of the fiercest rivalries in the world. So with Gremio and Internacional paired up in Group E of the 2020 Copa Libertadores, you knew there would be blood.
We didn’t imagine it would be this much.
Thursday’s Gremio-Inter match at the Arena do Gremio ended 0-0 following a wild brouhaha that resulted in eight red cards. The match was on the verge of being abandoned but was able to finish after 15 minutes of stoppage time as both teams had three players and a substitute sent off.
Most players receive only a few red cards in the course of a career. Red cards can be a last ditch effort for a referee to control a game after it becomes unhinged. Typically, the events that lead up to a red card are unintentional - almost humorous. (We can all thank Fellaini for this comical exchange with Sergio Aguero during the Manchester Derby.)
It’s a tactic that’s frequently implemented during elementary school recess, but its application at the professional level is far less pronounced: After a quick throw-in during a match in Romania between Makedonija Gjorce Petrov and Akademija Pandev, a defender chased after play with a spare ball in his hands before throwing it at the feet of the attacking player and knocking the live ball away.
In just about every major sport in the world, video replay has been installed with little fuss. Sure, it takes a little longer than some would prefer, but with video replay it’s generally accepted the correct calls are made.
Except soccer in England.
Harry Maguire of Manchester United decided to give Chelsea’s Michy Batshuayi the boot . . . literally. During the first half of the Red Devils-Blues showdown, Maguire kicked Batshuayi where it hurts most.
The numbers are ridiculous. Following Tottenham’s remarkable 2-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday, here’s the statistical summary of the Premier League encounters between Spurs and City this campaign.
The VAR era has produced some stunning moments, but here are two of the strangest minutes we’ve seen yet. The scene is Estadio Fernando Torres in Madrid — yes, the stadium’s named after the former Liverpool striker — where Fuenlabrada is hosting Girona in Spanish Segunda División play.
After all the acclaim and praise that Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde received for his tactical red card in the Spanish Super Cup final, it’s only right that we highlight this draw-preserving bit of the dark arts from Garforth Town’s Alex Low.