Ahhhh. Isn’t it good to reload your browser and see that I’ve posted something new? Must be the best feeling in the world! Excited or not, it’s a great time to be alive! It’s a great time to watch football (again, football=soccer)! And, above all, it’s a great time to dive riiiight into Gameweek number 6!
For over 100 years, the Tottenham Hotspurs and Arsenal Gunners have been rivals in the Premier League. Why? Because back in 1913, Arsenal relocated their main facilities to a place roughly four miles from Tottenham’s main facilities. Ever since this “aggressive” maneuver, Tottenham and Arsenal have been huge rivals in the Premier League. The origins of this rivalry show how foundational soccer is to the culture in England; the end all be all tends to be a soccer match or soccer-related event in England; it is where the majority of the English population find their passion. That being said, in this instance, the territorial dispute resulted in a rivalry (like no other) between the Spurs and the Gunners that comes about twice each season. One of these two games occurred in Gameweek 6, and wow did it have everyone on the edge of their seats.
Up until this point, I have kept the score a secret until I finish walking through the game chronologically. However, I feel like doing that again is as boring to read as Boris Johnson would have been as a Prime Minister if he didn’t have any hair (if you don’t understand click here). That being said, this anticipated rivalry ended in a draw, 2-2. “Wow,” you must be thinking. “People really spent all that money just for a cliff hanger?” “Soccer sucks.” Pause right there. Ok sure the game ended in a draw and that is annoying in soccer, but that doesn’t mean the game failed to exceed the benchmark of excitement that was expected. In that respect, it most certainly did meet the benchmark; it actually exceeded it. The game was back and forth in scoring, making it an emotional rollercoaster. Arsenal scored; the Spurs responded with a goal of their own. Arsenal scored again, and then less than a minute later the people who were cheering in the stadium flipped because the Spurs evened it once more. I aim to teach an important lesson here: some of the most “boring” things in soccer can be what makes it so exciting and different from every other sport. I don’t think any other sporting event that ended in a tie could have been more exciting than this game. Soccer is more than winning and losing. It is the atmosphere of the stadium. It the culture. It is the history behind two teams. It is…the people.
You read the caption right; Newcastle scored EIGHT goals this past weekend against Sheffield United. The worst part: Sheffield didn’t respond once. After slaughtering Sheffield 8-0, it is appropriate to coin a new term and say that Sheffield was properly Newcastled. I mean seriously, how do you lose 8-0 in the top league in the world? I had the privilege of watching this game, and it is accurate to say that this kid kicking the shin guards of one of the Newcastle’s players would’ve been a better offensive effort than Sheffield’s. In addition to the scoreline were some interesting facts and history-making. This game was tied for Newcastle’s biggest win in the Premier League; the best part is that when they won 8-0 the last time, it was also against Sheffield (HA!). Another awesome fact about that game is that 8 different players scored for Newcastle: a Premier League record.
There isn’t much else to say for this week. Other than these two games, the Premier League was anything but “premier” this past week. Until next time!
Hi will! Another great dramatization of another gameweek. Your voice really comes through with this one which allows for an effective approach to a blog post. How on earth is it possible for a premier-league team to win by 8 points to nothing? That just seems otherworldly for the world of football.
It is pretty surprising that a team could manage to lose as badly as Sheffield did. I don’t follow soccer (football) but I do play hockey, and the ratio of goals-per-game is pretty similar to soccer. How could a match be this badly imbalanced? Also, I like the inclusion of several links in this post. Your note on how soccer is related to English culture is interesting. Though it has only taken off in the past 100 years, it has really taken over the athletic-cultural scene. Why this was possible, given the myriad other sports already available (track, horseracing, etc) I believe probably has something to do with its entertainment value. Though there aren’t constant goals, someone is always running with the ball and facing the possibility of it being taken. Football is also not very locationally dependent, unlike rowing, for example. Interesting post!
I really enjoyed your recap of the Premier League games. I am also a soccer fan, but I rarely find myself up to date on the current scores and matchups, and if I do it is usually for the MLS games. But, as a casual Tottenham fan, I am glad that the team is at least tying against other big clubs like Arsenal. As for Sheffield, I find the result an interesting testament to the English promotion and relegation system, as smaller clubs can make it to the Premier League, but many do not stay there for long because they tend to lose 8-0 against larger clubs. I felt that you were able to capture the impact of each game in a brief description, and now I’m definitely interested to see how Tottenham performs in the future!