Tag: football

Looking at the Premier League title contenders

I think it’s fair to say that this season’s race for the Premier League crown is one of the more interesting and hotly contested ones of the past decade. Liverpool, the Champions, and both the Manchester clubs are battling it out. And it’s got the feel of an epic. One that will go right down to the wire. With the season almost at the halfway mark, and with the most recent results (the 0-0 between Liverpool and United, followed by City’s 4-0 thumping of Crystal Palace), it just all fits really nicely into the storyline that everyone wants to see.

In my opinion, Manchester City are the favourites for the League this season. They are, along with Manchester United, the in-form side in the country. They seem to be getting better each game. Ruben Dias has been a revelation. John Stones seems to be back to his best. And I am a firm believer in the statement “attack wins you games. Defense wins you titles”. City have got the best defense in the league (in part due to Van Dijk, Matip and Gomez being unavailable for Liverpool). And their talent in the midfield and up front has always been a notch above the rest. On paper, they do have the best XI and the best squad. Yes, I know that you don’t win games on paper. But the level of talent they’ve got, you cannot ignore it either. Their solid defense, their deep and talented squad, and Pep’s genius will ultimately take them to the top, I believe.

I do think that the Champions, Liverpool, will not defend their crown. This is a very difficult season for everyone. Having to play game after game in the midst of dealing with a pandemic isn’t easy. And you can see signs of fatigue in this Liverpool side. Riddled with injuries, they still have managed to be at the top end of the table. And even though it is their defense that has been hit the worst, it doesn’t look like their weakest asset. Rather surprisingly that seems to be their famed forward line trio of Salah, Mane and Firmino. They have been disappointing in the past few games, and just look toothless. Something we thought we wouldn’t say. Their injuries coupled with their misfiring forwards are the reason I think they will fall just short and finish the season in second place.

And finally, we now come to Manchester United. The current league leaders (imagine saying that at the start of the season!) are the in-form team in the country. Largely thanks to the Cantona-esque impact that Bruno Fernandes has had on the side. Their home form has to improve, but on the road they have been incredible. In the 0-0 against Liverpool, a draw was probably the fair result (a result United will be the happier with of the two sides). But they can take heart from the fact that they did manage to carve out the better chances. This United team has got a bit of fight in them. They don’t fold after the hour mark or so. They fight to the very end (5 goals in stoppage time in the League). But, even though Bailly has looked good, Shaw has looked solid, Fred and McTomminay look good, it more often than not comes down to the direct influence of Bruno Fernandes. In my opinion, they are a couple of pieces away from winning the title. But I just don’t see the current crop of players sustaining this run and being able to hold off City’s charge. I see United ending the season in third. But, they will use this season as a platform to go even harder in 2021/22.

Corona? It is Sports that will go viral tomorrow

Sports:  One of the few industries that can boom when things go back to normal

The coronavirus has gripped virtually the entire planet. The sports industry is one of the most severely affected due to the outbreak. In a matter of days, some of the biggest sporting events and leagues/tournaments have been called off or suspended for a lengthy period of time. The NBA, the NCAA, the Premier League, the Bundesliga, UEFA games, Tennis, Formula 1 and various cricket matches around the world to name a few prominent ones.

This has not only affected the industry financially, but also emotionally. One look at social media, and we can see how athletes and fans alike are trying to cope in a world without sports. Players have started playing video games! Maybe eSports does deserve to be considered as sport proper after all! Fans and athletes now spend a lot more time communicating with each other. Sporting brands and teams are using this opportunity to be more accessible to their fans, thus increasing their own brand image and enhancing their brand personality.

The coronavirus is a bad thing. But as is often the case, the best in people comes out at the worst of times. A lot of the sporting organizations have been severely financially affected, but they are steamrolled by billionaire owners who can take the hit. The real challenges are faced by the employees of these organizations. NBA players like Zion Williamson, Kevin Love and Blake Griffin have pledged to financially support the people at their respective teams. The entire Golden State Warriors organization (ownership, management, coaches and players) are donating US$ 1 million US to the staff who are financially affected.

And all of this contributes to the way fans look at and feel about the teams and players they love and support.

Sport is a highly emotional industry, on both sides (within the organization and outside, i.e., the fans). Fans feel a sense of belonging when they support a team or a player. They feel part of the organization, part of the highs and the lows. When the team wins, they say “WE WON”. It’s an incredibly deep and pure connection most fans have with their teams. I mean the word fan is short for fanatic! So, there is bound to be an emotional connect. And right now, they are being deprived of it.

People are watching reruns of games gone by, documentaries on teams/players and just doing things to make them feel like the entire vibe still lives on. And because sport is one of the few industries that is majorly emotionally driven, I think that once the gates to the arenas open up, people are going to be packed to the rafters. The sense of reunion, of being part of something bigger and of having your heartbeat go all over the place as if you were on the field will be overwhelming. And just like that, the sports industry will more than recover from whatever losses it ends up making during this pandemic. Because sports offer something that other brands just simply cannot, sports make you feel like the owner, CEO, coach, player and fan all in one. The raw emotion that sport evokes will carry the industry for years and will in my opinion be the reason that this industry will never truly die out. But rather, every time it faces adversity, it might just end up coming back stronger, much like the people who are a part of this wonderful industry.