Midweek football really is my favourite thing on earth. Who would have guessed that a Tuesday or Wednesday night in early April could have been so brilliant?
English football kicked off with some fantastic games, none more so than Everton’s efforts at Old Trafford, albeit with most of the action coming in the last thirty seconds.
The most fascinating feature for me, however, was the sheer weight of games involving some sort of run. Be it a winning run, an undefeated run, or just some sort of mad run of results, countless games seemingly had something of the sort. Fixtures not only in the UK but further afield will hopefully make this argument a lot clearer.
Man United’s draw with Everton means they have now extended their unbeaten run to an astonishing 20 games, although Jose won’t like to hear that nine of these have been home draws. Their league table spot looks set in stone now, and so good luck to anyone wishing to rob United of that coveted sixth place.
In stark contrast, Leicester’s 2-0 victory over Sunderland has provided them with a six-game winning streak, and Craig Shakespeare’s side are now sitting … in the league, an unthinkable feat not so long ago when poor old Claudio got the boot. Maybe the oh-so loathed chairman isn’t so evil after all?
Fellow Premier League side Burnley defeated Stoke in a particularly drab affair, but importantly have now ended their seven-game winless run, but the less said about this one the better.
Watford’s Troy Deeney also hit a positive run, becoming the first Watford player to score in four consecutive home Premier League games, while their losing opponents West Brom are now without a win in their last six Premier League away games.
Hull City and Marco Silva are reaping the rewards, with the club now unbeaten in seven league games at the KC Stadium, while the manager is unbeaten in an unbelievable 40 home matches in league competition.
If Hull were the winners of this midweek football, Sunderland were certainly the losers, as the club have now failed to find the back of the net in six consecutive top-flight matches for the first time since 1981. Yep, 1981.
Up north, Aberdeen made it ten home league wins in a row with a victory over relegation-threatened Inverness Caledonian Thistle, yet it was the Champions again making all the noise, who are still unbeaten this season after a rather dull draw at home to Partick Thistle. Someone has to stop them, seriously, this is getting ridiculous now. Imagine Kolo Toure, yeah that’s right, Kolo Toure, becoming the first player in history to achieve unbeaten seasons at two different clubs. What a story that would be.
Slightly further afield and the runs still prevail, with Hoffenheim beating Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich 1-0, ending their ridiculous 20-match unbeaten run. The goal came from Leicester reject Andrej Kramaric of all people, but it was an absolute stunner to be fair to the guy.
What a midweek fixture list this was, more of the same next time around, please.