Manchester City vs Aston Villa Recap

            With Chelsea sitting comfortably at the top of the table, and an uninspiring start to the season for these champions of last season, a win and three points were crucial to City against Aston Villa today. Sluggish and under-performing players have been just one of things hindering the start of the team. Looking to reign English champions yet again this season, Manchester City needed a win and for certain players to “wake up” and reach top form.

            With 68% of the possession throughout the game and 7 shots on goal for a total of 27 shots, Manchester City seemed to be the likely winners. Keeping composed and continuously attacking, City held control of the game for the most part. However, as City kept sending men forward to get involved in the attack, Aston Villa gained more chances on the counter attack and appeared to still be in the fight, with the score remaining 0-0 at half.

            Yet again, players including Yaya Toure were not playing at their best, and it was showing as the game could still go either way. Toure seemed to be only barely enduring another uneventful game for him, and critics still had a point. Attempt after attempt City attacked, but the score still held even at 0, but City kept at it. Finally, at 8 minutes before full time, Yaya Toure hits a long-range strike past the keeper, putting his team up and his critics to rest. From there, City could only grow stronger, with another goal by Sergio Aguero 6 minutes later, seemingly placing Manchester City far enough ahead to last the remaining 2 minutes to a victory. After 90 minutes of possession dominated by City and little attacking power, but defensive composure, from Aston Villa, Manchester City were finally able to reach a much-needed victory over their opponents. This may have been a critical awakening for a large group of City players, and it will be further proven after the next few games, showing whether or not City has a chance at reaching the top of the Premier League once again. Also, the game proves the defensive composure and endurance of the Aston Villa side, holding City to no goals up until the final 10 minutes. If one or more of Villa’s counter attacks would have resulted in a goal, the game could have had a completely different outcome and City may not have been in a position to succeed in the league this season.

Nike Elastico Superfly IV Release

             With all the hype and success that has surrounded Nike’s release of the Mercurial Superfly IV early this spring, it is no surprise that they have chosen to expand on it. This highly anticipated release came with no shortage of technical improvements, and with the mid-cut design with a knitted upper, the boot looked to revolutionize the modern soccer footwear. From the World Cup this summer to the start of club seasons, the top professional players have been promoting and sporting these cleats, drawing the attention of many fans and other players. Now that summer has ended and indoor training is approaching, Nike has released its new line of indoor-specific boots, including a new Elastico-Superfly hybrid.

            This summer, Nike had a limited-release Superfly indoor that was assumed by many to be a sort of test to if customers were willing to pay a premium price for an indoor version of their top-end outdoor shoe. The stock at all places to purchase these boots sold out almost instantly, and the market for premium indoor shoes was proven to be present. Now, towards the beginning of this fall, new colorways of the Elastico Superfly were released alongside the updated Elastico Finale indoor line. With the success of the outdoor version of this shoe being so great, it seemed inevitable that the top-end shoes would end up on the indoor courts. This indoor version of the Superfly keeps the vital technology of the outdoor version, such as the mid-cut design, the Flyknit upper, and the Flywire integrated into the upper. Also, this model adds things more necessary to indoor playing surfaces, such as a viable traction pattern, and gets rid of technology unimportant indoors, such as Nike’s All Conditions Control, an application to the upper that is supposed to help maintain control when playing in all weather conditions. As indoor courts should be free of rain and mud, this feature shouldn’t be necessary and it’s good to see it leave the indoor model as it should help to keep the price down. With this release by Nike of a successful, top-end outdoor model of boot being integrated into an indoor model, with alterations of course, it will be interesting to see if other brands take to similar tactics. Also, we may see further integration by Nike, bringing some of their other top boot lines to indoor courts.

Barcelona Phenomenal Season Kickoff

           When it comes to starts to La Liga this season, it could be argued that Barcelona has one of if not the best. With contenders to the title like Real and Atletico Madrid, it is a tough league to do so well in, especially while keeping the other teams from scoring. Despite the less than satisfactory draw against Malaga, Barcelona has had a great start to the season and has yet to concede a goal. Fans have seen a new side to the Spanish giants, one that attacks as a team, but continues to hold the opponents from scoring.

            On the offensive side, Barcelona have been making plays and combinations that have never been seen by this team before, with Messi having more assists than goals by feeding other strong attackers such as Neymar. This ability of Messi to distribute the ball from the midfield stems from the fact that new signing Ivan Rakitic is placed ahead of Xavi, allowing for Messi to start deeper and even begin to play defense. With the skill of Messi now focused on all-around playmaking, the attack is more consistent and widespread, allowing for goals to originate from all areas of the field. Also, with Luiz Suarez coming soon off of his four month ban and Messi moving further away from the central striker role, there is only more to come for the attacking side of this Barcelona team.

            As Suarez is reaching the end of his ban period, there is some concern as to how he will fit in with the already successful team and if he will even draw away from the success of the other strikers. As his debut with the top Barcelona team approaches, coach Luis Enrique appears to be making arrangements to build the team around his arrival. With Messi playing less of a central striking role, room for Suarez to come in is being created, and the system already is being proven to work as shown by their stunning start to the season. Regardless of Suarez’s form coming to his debut at Barcelona, the team has already proven their effectiveness as a team, and it is continually proving to be a great year for Barcelona fans.

Ronaldo to Wear Red Again?

            With the summer transfer window closed, it has taken no time for new speculations to come up for the next big moves, and one in particular is seeing a lot of headlines lately. Anything to do with Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo is big news, and talk of Ronaldo moving back to Manchester United seems to be at the top of the list now. While many United fans would love to see the star come back and many Real Madrid supporters wouldn’t want to see him go, there are many problems that go along with all of this talk.

            First, with the way that Manchester United is playing this season, the last thing they need is another big attacker. United has had no trouble scoring goals this season, but rather with giving them up. This last transfer season, the major players picked up by United all fit into the attacking role of the team, which is not necessarily bad. However, when the team can score three goals on a team but conceives five, another attacking player should not be the top priority of the team. While it would be interesting and make a good story if Ronaldo were to go back to United, it wouldn’t fit the needs that the team currently has.

            Another problem that United would have by picking up Ronaldo would be the price of the move. Estimated by numerous British newspapers, the move would eventually cost United upwards of 140 million pounds, or 228 million dollars. While the club could potentially afford that price point, it seems hardly reasonable to spend such a large sum of money to improve an attacking side that is already successful and to neglect such a void in the defensive side of United.

            While the move seems hardly likely, and even unworthy of mentioning, it has not failed to spark and excite the energy of United fans. There has been no shortage of signs, posts, and, lately, planes flying banners asking Ronaldo to “come home” to United during his games with Real Madrid. Even as Ronaldo has recently stated that his future lies in Madrid, fans continue to support the idea of a move and will most likely continue until the final decision is made, whether or not the player even gives hint of a move, and even whether or not it would be back to Manchester United.