Gilmour can break into Scots squad for Euros
...and other talking points from the Premier League
Silence is golden for Moyes
It speaks to just how deeply the stain of David Moyes’ failings at Manchester United had seeped on to his record that, following an ignominious spell in Spain at Real
Sociedad and relegation with Sunderland in 2016/17, his fall from grace seemed complete.
He could have been forgiven for looking to forge a career elsewhere in the game, especially after his next job
– at West Ham – was spent overseeing another battle against relegation that was played out amid a crescendo of rancour which included a pitch invasion and supporters turning on those inside the directors’ box.
Even after his reappointment as Hammers manager in December 2019, there was significant supporter disquiet. Perhaps, more than any other manager, Moyes has benefited from their absence.
At one time chucking away a three-goal lead, as his side did yesterday against Arsenal, would have had the boo-boys spitting out their larynxes, the ire would have spilled over to the next game and there would have been a predictable selfperpetuating run of defeats.
Instead, shorn of the
London Stadium’s poisonous atmosphere, West Ham boast the second best home record in the league this season.
There was a bit more clarity over the identity of which team will suffer relegation
It is fairly safe to assume that Sheffield United are gone, West Brom too, but Fulham’s fate looks less well defined.
Meanwhile, Newcastle’s abject defeat at the hands of Brighton brought their sixth successive game without a win under Steve Bruce and they have won just twice since the turn of the year. That form would be risible enough in isolation but compounding fears that relegation is inevitable comes from a study of Newcastle’s opponents in their run in. Tottenham – admittedly with problems of their own – are up next but then comes a series of fixtures which will have Newcastle fans suffering heart palpitations. West Ham, Liverpool, Arsenal, Leicester and Manchester City are all on the calendar.
Should it come to pass this would be Newcastle’s third relegation under Mike Ashley. In 2010, club revenue dropped by £34 million, seven years later that figure had leapt to £40m – it promises to be higher this time around. They have bounced back before; there seems much less likelihood of it happening a third time.
Nothing stopping City
No team have completed the domestic treble in England. Manchester United managed to secure a famous hat-trick of trophies in 1999 when they won the league title, FA Cup and
Champions League but were knocked out of the League Cup by eventual winners Tottenham in the quarter-finals. Spurs finished mid-table that season attesting to just how difficult it is to fight on three fronts let alone four.
Since then, of course, United have ceded their status as England’s dominant team to Manchester City. It would be another slap in the face for the Old Trafford club were their neighbours to become the first English club to not just equal their record of winning a treble but go one better by claiming the first quadruple.
The Premier League is theirs, they face a mutinous Spurs in next month’s Carabao Cup final and were paired with a beatable Borussia Dortmund in Friday’s Champions League draw. Chuck in a dogged 2-0 win over Everton on Saturday to reach the FA Cup semi-final and it is definitely
on. At odds of 8/1 you would not be raiding the life savings for a punt, but the price reflects just how live bookies think their chances are of achieving the feat.
A bit of a balls up
Dion Dublin carried out the FA Cup semi-final draw on his own during half time in Leicester City’s win over Manchester United. He extolled the virtues of the tournament as “the best in the world” and one that had lost none of its lustre, despite staggered kick-off times and Premier League matches also running this weekend.
It was a claim that lost the rest of its credibility the minute he started to pluck balls out of a bag to pair teams up in the midst of a match in which that game’s winners knew who they would play next – unlike the other quarter-final winners Chelsea, Southampton and Manchester City.
Gilmour deserves a call-up
Thomas Tuchel was almost apologetic to Billy Gilmour in his press conference prior to Chelsea’s FA Cup quarter-final win over Sheffield United, saying that he kept him at Stamford Bridge in January for selfish reasons.
The decision closed the door on loan offers from others and almost certainly cost Gilmour his place in Steve Clarke’s squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Austria, Israel and Faroe Islands.
The Chelsea manager urged Clarke to pick him anyway saying the only reason he was not making his starting line-up was because of the presence of Ngolo Kante, Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho – three players whom Tuchel says are never injured.
Debates about the respective merits of at least one of that trio vis-a-vis Gilmour’s ability aside, he had a general point. Gilmour is already worthy of inclusion in the Scotland squad as evidenced by his general performance yesterday and one cameo where he won a 40-60 ball against John Fleck, a midfielder who has been included in Clarke’s selection.