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There’s never been a Premier League weekend quite like it, and until next winter’s World Cup, the idea will be lost and there will be nothing to do.
The 10 steps that led us to this different place in time brought us problems and angry minds on the fly. More than a week after Qatar emerged as the center of the football world, there were still many fears.
A total of 102 players expected to meet their national teams this week took part in Premier League games on Saturday or Sunday. More importantly, 35 percent of all players used in those 10 games went to Qatar quickly. Some are on their way.
There were those who loved every minute, such as Rodrigo Bentancur and Darwin Nunez, who signed the image of champions by winning for Tottenham and Liverpool, but others were left with a curse during the final of the World Cup starts in November. All they can do is wait and hope.
Unlike the 2018 World Cup in Russia, when there were 32 days between its first match and the final round of the Premier League season, there are no weekend arrangements this time around. .
All of this made for a sense of panic and creeping anxiety. The Athlete reflecting the unusual circumstances of the final weeks before the start of the World Cup.
It’s 2.29pm on Saturday and there will be a pen about the thoughts of England manager Gareth Southgate. Manchester City’s home game against Brentford provided opportunities for John Stones and Phil Foden to be scouted but the England manager opted to leave out his 26-man squad. talk.
Not only did Ivan Toney open the scoring, he was the winner in a 2-1 win over the Premier League champions. “Life goes on,” said Brentford manager Thomas Frank as he paid tribute to his influential striker. “You’re as sad as he is but the main thing is why we love football.”
Reece James, who has received negative comments from Southgate after failing to recover from injury, appreciated an Instagram post from Toney, closing his eyes and fingers in his ears as he celebrated. in his prime at the Etihad Stadium. “If I say I’m in big trouble,” James replied, echoing Jose Mourinho’s famous quote. Some, it seems, have got Southgate’s call wrong.
Manchester City’s defeat to Brentford was also notable. Thirteen of the 22 players to start the game will be in Qatar, Norwegian Erling Haaland is one of Manchester City’s starting XI that will start in a month.
Asked if that was a problem for his side, City manager Pep Guardiola was willing to take the bait. “I don’t think so,” he said later. “I saw how well they trained, how focused they were, but of course we had a problem managing it.”
Aymeric Laporte gave Spain coach Luis Enrique something to worry about with a head injury, but he was able to finish the game once the concussion scare subsided. Bryan Mbeumo, David Reya and Mathias Jensen, three of Brentford’s World Cup players, were not idle. Everyone took a jumper to the Etihad, where they could go straight to join their international teams. Toney, alas, should not have been so quick.
It has to happen, doesn’t it? With no World Cup preparations and no injury fears, England will focus on the midfielder who half the country is calling for.
James Maddison, whose fortunes have been broken in recent weeks ahead of Qatar, opened the scoring in Leicester City’s 2-0 win at West Ham United but went down the tunnel midway through the first half. , ended his evening.
Watch the social media frenzy as supporters mourn the life of a playmaker who played 34 minutes for England in 2019.
Oh nooooooo. @Madders10 wandered off.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) November 12, 2022
Maddison, to everyone’s delight, soon regained composure. Not only did he appear in the stands to watch his Leicester team continue their good run, he was seen smiling. He never laughs if he’s ripe, right?
“He’s fine,” Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers said afterwards. “It’s just a warning, a little pain in the side of the knee. It’s a difficult day for the players going to the World Cup. We tried to protect them.”
And Antonio Conte? It’s less. Eight of his Tottenham players who will start on Saturday are in the World Cup squad, including England captain Harry Kane. A few days after saying Kane was “very, very tired,” Conte replaced him for his club’s 22nd start of the season.
The mood changed when Kane scored in Spurs’ 4-3 win over Leeds United. “He is going to the World Cup in great physical and mental condition,” Conte said.
Defender Cristian Romero was also absent. Romero, who is part of the Argentina squad, has not played since October 29 with Conte previously denying that the player had abandoned his domestic duties weeks earlier in Qatar.
A minor part of Tottenham’s win over Leeds was the Battle of the Phones. Kane and Eric Dier take on Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams, 13 days before England face the USA at the Al Bayt Stadium. Adams, sent off in the closing stages, could not claim to have suffered an early mental blow, nor could USMNT captain Christian Pulisic, who was no different from England’s Kieran Tripper in the Chelsea lost 1-0 to Newcastle United on Saturday. evening
Tyler Adams was sent off for Leeds at Spurs in his last game before the World Cup (Photo: John Walton/PA Photo via Getty Images)
A Premier League club with little interest in the World Cup finals may have enjoyed a good weekend of results, Brentford aside. Bournemouth started with just one player who arrived in Qatar – Wales midfielder Kieffer Moore – and cruised to a 3-0 win over Everton. Moore was withdrawn in the second half, his work done after scoring Bournemouth’s second goal.
The two evening games were enough to leave the ranks of the world’s managers watching with fingers crossed. Cesar Azpilicueta could only play 45 minutes in Chelsea’s defeat at Newcastle, leaving at half-time before his meeting in Spain. “I’m not sure where that leaves him in Spain,” says Graham Potter. “I don’t think it’s too bad but it’s not good enough to continue.”
Switzerland defender Granit Xhaka scored just 16 minutes into Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers. Fear not, though. An explanation soon came from Mikel Arteta. “He’s fine. We have a few boys with stomach problems.” More than that, Xhaka will miss Switzerland’s match against Cameroon on Thursday.
And on to the final matches before the Premier League pulls its shutters until Boxing Day. One last evening he came out unharmed.
For the Ecuadorian couple of Brighton Pervis Estupinan and Moises Caicedo, it was a very uneventful project. Just seven days passed between the home match with Aston Villa and the opening match of the World Cup final against hosts Qatar. One error, one extension, a potential barrier. Brighton’s Ecuador international Jeremy Sarmiento was left out as defense, along with Kaoru Mitoma, from Japan’s 26-man squad.
Alexis Mac Allister briefly enjoyed his day when he opened the scoring in his final game before joining Argentina but Villa and England international Danny Ings had the final say in a 2-1 win. .
Manchester United also signed with an encouraging victory for Christian Eriksen, who goes to Qatar with more reason to leave his mark in a major tournament after suffering a heart attack at Euro 2020. win the stoppage time at Fulham.
That last goal came after Wales international Dan James became the 102nd and last World Cup player to play in this unusual Premier League weekend, scoring the equalizer in Fulham lost 2-1.
After Heathrow, and soon, Doha.
(Top photo: All photos Getty Images)
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