The Football season has finally arrived. After a prolonged hiatus and delayed conclusion of the 19/20 season. The world’s top 5 leagues are back with their 20/21 seasons. Sure we all miss the fans packing the stadium, roaring chants, and cheering their teams due to “you know who”, but the flurry of goals and nail-biting finishes that we have witnessed till now has kept up the tempo of the world’s most beloved sport.
Speaking of goals reigning European and Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich kicked off their season with an 8-0 win over FC Schalke 04, while there direct rivals Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig also enjoyed comfortable opening victories. But all three were winless in matchday 2 when FC Hoffenheim thrashed the champs 4-1 while Dortmund was defeated by minnows Augsburg 2-0. So at the end of matchday 2, FC Hoffenheim leads the rest of the pack with perfect 2 wins out of 2. While newly-promoted Arminia Bielefeld finds themselves in a surprising 6th place above Bayern Munich. This Bundesliga season is surely going to be a rollercoaster.
South of Germany in France something unusual is going, where defending Ligue1 champions PSG lost their opening 2 clashes to newbies Lens and arch-enemy Marseille finding themselves 7th in the ligue1 standings. Rennes currently occupy the top spot, remaining unbeaten in their opening 5 matches, they are followed by Lille in second place.
Over the border in Italy, Cristiano Ronaldo has already kicked off his season with 3 goals in 2 matches to keep his Juventus side undefeated after a nervy draw with AS Roma. Other top clubs AC Milan, Napoli, Atalanta, Inter, and Lazio have started their campaigns with wins.
But outside the football pitch, the league that has seen the most drama this season is surely Spain’s La Liga, where FC Barcelona and Real Madrid both lost their top striking options in the transfer window when Luis Suarez moved to direct title rivals Athletico Madrid and Gareth Bale left the league altogether and moved back to his boyhood club Tottenham Hotspur. But these setbacks didn’t affect the world’s two biggest clubs performances on the pitch as both of the clubs remain unbeaten in the league. Other heavyweights Athletico Madrid destroyed their opponent Granada in their opening match 6-1 with new signing Luis Suarez bagging a brace and an assist to a cap off a magical debut for his new side. FC Sevilla also enjoyed an opening match victory over the league’s new boys Cadiz.
And to round up our weekly update we go to the world’s biggest league, England’s The Premier League, where the opening weekend was full of drama, goals, and milestones. Defending winners and arguably the league’s best team Liverpool seemed out-of-place when they hosted the championship winners Leeds United, who returned to the top flight after a massive 16-year absence. Leeds managed to score 3 fabulous goals against the run of play but couldn’t resist the formidable Liverpool attack and lost 3-4. Elsewhere Arsenal, Leicester, and Chelsea all enjoyed comfortable victories. But the teams with the most surprising start to the season are Everton who under the stewardship of Carlo Ancelotti and star signing James Rodriguez remain unbeaten in the league. While these teams have enjoyed a fairly good start, we can’t say the same for both the Manchester clubs. United lost their opening fixture to Crystal Palace and barely scraped past Brighton and Hove Albion, while City who managed to beat the rising stars of league Wolves but were pummeled by the brilliance of Leicester city at the Etihad. Speaking of which, Leicester currently tops the league table winning all 3 of their matches, and their star striker Jamie Vardy tops the scoring charts with 5 goals alongside the young and dynamic English and Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
The coronavirus outbreak surely put the brakes on the footballing world but seeing this returning of the leagues and the high-level drama it brings with it. We can definitely say that “Football is back”
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