Everyone at Stamford Bridge breathed a huge sigh of relief as Eden Hazard took to social media to announce that he is fit for the weekend. Yes, no longer the quiet little fitness test. None of the mind games with the opposition manager to make him think the star man might not play. No, just follow Eden on Instagram if you want the inside track.
Football needs a healthy dose of common sense from time to time and it is pretty clear who you throw the ball to when it is most required. Yes, come on down Kloppo. We need you to charm the world into being far less sensitive and a little more grounded in the real world. Jurgen was at his press conferencing finest, witheringly reminding reporters that 99% of players that they idolised as kids “drank like devils and smoked like crazy.” Rooney, consider yourself off the hook and I actually think you should be off the hook. I know, sticking up for Rooney, whatever next? But take a step back a minute. Forget the pay packet, underneath that incredibly fake hair is a human being who has, whether you rate him or not, always given his all on a football pitch. And what does he get in return? Non-stop abuse from people probably far more influential than this column. Yes, I did say probably. The guy is under quite a bit of pressure at the moment, and he chose to drown his sorrows in a load of beer. He regretted it the next day, almost sounds normal to me. Move on folks!
Slaven Bilic says West Ham “won’t panic” in the January transfer window. Well, if Gold and Sullivan sell out to Qatar then Bilic may not even be there to usher Alvalaro, Tore, Zaza and anyone else not up to scratch out the door.
Arsene Wenger is going to watch a video of Chile’s match before deciding whether Sanchez is fit to play United. Arsene, a couple of things mate. Firstly, nobody watches videos anymore. Secondly, he scored twice and played 84 minutes. You’re going to stick him on the bench, aren’t you.
Dusan Tadic will be delighted to have been passed fit for Southampton’s match against Liverpool. I mean, who wants to miss one of the biggest auditions of their life?
Bob Bradley is opting for the “deny everything” approach to managing Swansea. The American, who must half half an eye on a quick exit if Klinsmann gets canned from the USA national side, claims Swansea “are not in crisis!” With Moyes not panicking and Swansea not in crisis, the teams above them must be bricking it.
Finally, Manchester United have seen millions added to their debt due to Brexit. Finally, some good might come out of the whole shambles.