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Competition for places is always cutthroat in the Chelsea FC first team, so individual footballers will do what they have to do in order to get/retain playing time. Christian Pulisic, an attacking midfielder or winger, played three different positions in Chelsea’s win at Watford last night.
Included among those three was wing back, and that itself is fascinating, the concept of a forward moving over to a defensive position.
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West Ham United host Chelsea in a London derby that kicks off the next weekend of Premier League action. Winless in their last three, they’ll host the league leaders as heavy underdogs. Google Result Probability projects a 56% chance of a Chelsea win, 25% chance for a draw and 19% for a West Ham win.
That said, Blues boss Thomas Tuchel was open about how unimpressed he was with his own side’s victory over Watford last night. The German admitted that he felt very fortunate to escape with all three points against the Moose Men. If they play like that again versus the Hammers, well, they’ll likely drop points.
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It was actually pre-ordained that Marcus Freeman would become the next head coach at Notre Dame; Brian Kelly said so himself many months ago.
Now according to multiple reports, it is actually happening, with official word to come soon from the university itself. Freeman, 35, excelled in his short time as defensive coordinator, and was the leading candidate all along.
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Tomorrow night sees Arsenal visit Manchester United in a match that could convey indications of which club is further along in their rebuild. Both of these traditional big six powerhouses have been down in recent years, but the Gunners seemed to have recently turned the corner.
The Kroenkes were patient with Mikel Arteta, and it seems like the manager’s youth movement is paying dividends now. The North Londonders may find themselves back in Europe next season.
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Other than a disastrous 4-0 loss to Liverpool, Arsenal FC have blanked their last four opponents across all competitions. Winners of four in their last five, and now on the cusp of the top four, the Gunners are nevertheless underdogs when they travel to Manchester United tomorrow night.
The bookies are backing them at the price of +260, the same amount that one would collect for a draw. Meanwhile United are favored to win to the tune of -106. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the latest fitness updates for the North Londoners.
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It’s festive period fixture congestion time my friends! You know the song: “it’s the most, wonderful time, of the year!” With that in mind, the headliner fixture of the Premier League midweek slate is Manchester United hosting Arsenal FC.
Ralf Rangnick won’t be officially cleared to coach, due to international employment paperwork requirements, but he’ll certainly have influence on what Michael Carrick and United do here in shaping the team and approaching the game.
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Although Ralf Rangnick is already in Manchester, and he toured United’s home ground today, he won’t be able to take charge for the first time tomorrow night when the Red Devils face Arsenal. He is still waiting for his work visa to be officially approved.
That means Michael Carrick will have at least one more game in charge, when these two traditional big six rivals meet in midweek. Let’s look at the rest of the MUFC team news now.
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Most young athletes opt for something “traditional” like basketball, baseball, soccer, or football. But if you’re looking for a sport that you can compete in for a long time, even after you finish school, it’s rowing. In fact, we’re major proponents of joining a rowing club and investing some of your time into learning the skills required to advance and become competitive.
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Brian Kelly has bolted Notre Dame for LSU, and now we have to wonder what’s next. Kelly at Louisiana State is an odd hire, a strange fit to be sure, but why not embrace the strangeness of the silliest silly season ever.
Not even to conference championship Saturday yet and we’re already talking about a new hire at USC as well as openings at Notre Dame and Oklahoma. The domino theory is already starting to take shape. With that in mind, let’s look at who could be headed to South Bend.
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(repost from late 2020)
Notre Dame Head Coach Brian Kelly is just now three wins behind Knute Rockne for the most all time by a Fighting Irish mentor. So an ACC title game win tomorrow (game preview at this link), plus two College Football Playoff victories and he would end the 2020 season knotted up with the patriarch of ND Football.
In a case of very strange coincidence, or perhaps just the circle of life, Rockne’s first season in charge was 1918.
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(repost from late 2020)
For #2 Notre Dame the ACC Title Game, against #4 Clemson kicks off Saturday night in Charlotte. The 10-0 (9-0 in ACC play) Fighting Irish handed the Tigers (9-1, 8-1) their only loss of the season back on Nov. 7. Yet the Irish are underdogs here again, almost as substantially an underdog as they were last month when the two teams clashed in South Bend.
The Irish were 8 point dogs heading into the big upset of the then #1 Tigers. For this game, the moneyline prices them at +260.
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(Repost from late 2020)
Yesterday, in a blowout of Syracuse on Senior Day, Ian Book become the all-time winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history. He led the Fighting Irish to victory number 30, by the score of 45-21 over the Orange, and now the ACC Title Game against Clemson awaits a week from Saturday.
As one ND victory record falls, another one approaches. Head Coach Brian Kelly is just now three behind Knute Rockne for the most wins all time by a Fighting Irish Head Coach.
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