Haalander: There Can Be Only One
Haalander: There Can Be Only One
The Week In Ball
Premier League football is BACK baby!
It kicked off on Friday with Crystal Palace v Arsenal at Selhurst Park. Arsenal came out in their delicious pink third kit and well, they looked good at football too!
Zinchenko is fantastic. A player who I'd never given much heed to is now someone I love with an unholy strength. His header for the first goal was sublime and it's great to have someone so talented and solid at the back.
Speaking of which, finally, William Saliba is a proper Arsenal player and my timeline was on fire with praise and love for him and he received MOTM from Jamie Carragher and the Arsenal supporters.
This is not to say things were perfect. Aaron Ramsdale provided a couple of moments of panic and there were too many moments where I felt nervous. You can't argue with an opening day 2-0 win though.
On the opening day proper we started with newly promoted Fulham hosting Liverpool. It was a scrappy game but Fulham were good for it. After a shock goal to put them in the lead at 32 minutes, it took a leggy looking Liverpool until the 64th minute to hit back, with a goal from new boy Darwin. Fulham hit back again with a clumsy penalty given away by Van Dijk then Salah rounded off the scoring to draw the match at 2-2.
In the three o'clocks Spurs looked impressive, even without any of their new signings starting. Kulusevski yet again proving to have been a superb signing but all the team pulled it out the bag, including Eric Dier who grabbed a goal for the first time in three years. Their win leaves them top of the table.
Bournemouth, who many people, including me, had already written off, managed to beat Aston Villa and keep a clean sheet while the other new boys, Forest, fell to Newcastle and another unlikely scorer in Fabian Schär with a second from Callum Wilson.
Finally on Saturday Chelsea eked past Everton and earlier in the day Leeds beat Wolves.
On Sunday I experienced an unusual emotion: excitement for a United game. No I wasn't looking forward to the new era of Ten Hag, I was of course giddy to watch Christian Eriksen.
My boy was looking his usual gorgeous self but that can't be said for the United team. Even with new signings Christian and Lisandro Martinez the same old issues reared their heads, leading eventually to Brighton slotting home via Pascal Groß. He popped up again just nine minutes later to double the lead which they held onto admirably until a calamitous moment in the six yard box that culminated in an Alexis Mac Allister own goal.
Brighton held on though and battled well, managing the game excellently and seeing out the 1-2 win.
The final Premier League game of the weekend involved the player everyone was waiting for: Erling Braut Haaland.
Having finally moved to City this summer we'd seen glimpses of him during the Community Shield but this was his opportunity to really stamp his authority on his new league. I think it's fair to say he did that.
I said at the beginning of the match, during the not unfounded but possibly excessive chat about him, that it's probable that if he didn't look like he did he wouldn't get anywhere near as much attention and I stand by this.
He's not just a brilliant footballer but he lopes about the pitch, striding up and down it like the Iron Giant: unmissable and unbeatable.
His first Premier League goal came via the penalty spot after Areola tore him down in the area. It was a great penalty but at the end of the day it was a penalty. The second goal however was a work of art. It began with a sublime pass from Grealish to De Bruyne (let's give Jack his credit, it was really beautiful) who in turn released Haaland for the goal.
Overall it was a fantastic performance and the subs Pep used, all five, only went to show the strength and depth of his squad.
Because of this and because of both the Bundesliga starting with a 6-1 for Bayern and Ligue 1 starting with a 5-0 win for PSG there was a lot of chat that all three leagues were over already but let's not forget, tempting though it is to think this, not only is the first game of the season so we shouldn't lose our heads, it's a season that will be interrupted by a World Cup. A season where because of this anything could happen.
Look around you, all sorts of transfers are happening, there have already been results you may not have been expecting, it's going to be a long, mad season and it's only just begun...
Kick Off
Of course, among all the joy of men's league football returning there's been a cloud hovering over the game, threatening to ruin the buzz of the first game.
Note: I won't be talking in great detail about any cases but I understand that this is a sensitive subject so please do skip this section if you feel uncomfortable reading about sexual assault and gender based violence.
During the close season a Premier League player was accused of several counts of rape and indecent assault. He was bailed and no further action was taken on one offence due to a technicality (as confirmed by the police in question).
The player then continued to play for his club both in the pre-season friendlies, the Emirates Cup and was then named in the first 11 for the opening Premier League game of the season.
There has, to my knowledge, been no statement from his club.
The fact we know who it is is due to one of the victims waiving her anonymity to confirm his identity and the offences committed. An act so brave I cannot contemplate the strength nor the depth of hurt and anger that lead her to do so.
While I won't name him here I expect you all know who it is and the fact that he plays for the club I love and support.
What I want to talk about is not what needs to be done or how we can more forward from this, those issues have been addressed brilliantly in this Athletic article published today (Monday) but rather how this feels, how I look at my club now and what it means to be a female fan of a club with an accused player.
Firstly, I accept fully that any employer is bound by employment and other laws and to just discard someone is not as simple or easy as we would perhaps like (although possible, as we saw when a club immediately suspended a player accused of child sex offences last year). I accept that the press is bound by Britain's extremely strict libel laws (hence my not naming the player) and talking about this can be difficult (though as the Athletic article linked above, not impossible).
I also accept that while I believe and stand by the accusers, the player is entitled to due process, while also knowing that due process lets women and other victims of gender based or sexual violence down time and time again.
What I don't accept is silence. I don't accept that the club has known about some of the allegations since, I believe, 2020 and done nothing. I don't accept that this player can continue to benefit fully from his privileged lifestyle with little to no consequence.
You may think that until he's proven guilty in a court of law he should be afforded these considerations but what we need to take into account here is how this is viewed by supporters and the wider public and the consequences this has.
By choosing to ignore this situation the club is sending a signal that it cares for its assets above all else. This would be disappointing at any club but for it to be happening at a club, my club, that prides itself as such a welcoming beacon of the community it's particularly upsetting.
It creates a sense of doubt and fear among supporters. I look at the squad, the manager and the players now and I wonder who's 'safe'. Who can I continue to support and express love and admiration for without worrying that they're taking the side of a rapist.
I want to know if the manager is choosing to put him in the starting 11 because he backs him or because he's been left with little choice but to keep him in the fold. Does he believe him despite the evidence and the flimsy reasons for one of the counts to be dropped?
As many have said, the fact that another player could be stripped of his captaincy, his starting position and ultimately his job with the team because of a failure to adhere to the manager's personal rule-book makes for extremely uncomfortable feelings.
Having had such a wonderful time at the Women's Euros which gave me a greater confidence and desire to attend more live games I had been considering trying to go along to a couple of the men's games but now I'm not so sure.
I read on Friday of some dreadful chants the fans were allegedly singing about the player and I don't want to be around that, I wouldn't feel comfortable around that. I cannot in good conscience sit in a crowd who are going to be supportive of that person.
I know I'm not the only one. I've seen a couple of different ways people are trying to mitigate these feelings from donating to charities that help rape and violence victims to choosing not to engage with the men's side at all.
For me, I refuse to let them take the club away from me. Change needs to happen but in my opinion this doesn't come about by turning away and pretending it doesn't exist. You need to be in it to change it and I'll continue to speak out about this and hold the club to account, while continuing to support and cheer them. As I saw tweeted on Friday, it should be a given that every expression of support has that underlying caveat of 'except for him'.
In the meantime we have to hope that the changes detailed in the Athletic article (education, victim testimony, stronger and clearer guidelines) improve things.
If you prefer something more hands-on and practical there are protests and before I round off this section I wanted to mention the action taken by Level Up and Protest Stencil on Friday night.
These posters were put up around Selhurst Park and the Emirates:
And this banner was flown over Selhurst Park before kick off.
If you want to make your voice heard you can sign this petition and if you have any spare cash you can also donate to Level Up and help fund not only their Premier League campaign but also all the other good work they do.
Finally I wanted to shout out Borussia Dortmund for their response to the allegations against their player Nico Schulz this weekend. For me the statement was strong, clear and honest and something I would love to see more of from the Premier League (although of course I'd rather see less abuse).
(note: there are two screenshots on the tweet, it doesn't stop after calling for the presumption of innocence)
Football is for everyone and we need to ensure this isn't a pipe-dream but a reality.
The {Offside} Thirst Trap
The first order of thirsty business is that my Premier League Hot List has been released to all my parched followers and beyond. There's some new blood, some blood that's stayed the same and some returning blood. If you haven't already you can check it out here:
Now onto this week's Thirst Trap.
This person isn't someone who'd ever really been on my radar before but he shows that sometimes age and facial hair are all you need to become a stone cold Trapee.
I came across him, despite being fully aware of his existence before, due to following the Ajax Twitter who recently started posting some very interesting pictures indeed. And upon further 'research' I discovered maybe I should have been paying attention all along.
I give you: Dušan Tadić
I also feel that it's my duty to share this here too:
Merch Stand
Hopefully you'll have already seen that I've dropped my Premier League Shirt Ratings Thread when I opine on all the currently available shirts. I've been tipped off that Liverpool's third shirt is likely to be a beauty to expect to see that added here too when it arrives (along with all the other missing shirts)
I've also started a thread for shirts from Europe that I'm fond of though I've already embarrassed myself by mixing up Fiorentina and Toulouse.
Extra Time
Madness in Ligue 2
Lovely to see Aaron thriving already in France
Shrieked at this from Lewis Dunk during United Brighton
Cantona going down a slide? Cantona going down a slide.
Leeds' Luke Ayling and Jermaine Beckford became the first current and former players to march in a Pride event at Leeds Pride this weekend
Ian Wright yet again proving why he's the best of us
Roma's announcing Gini Wijnaldum's season long loan was... interesting
This thread is amazing
And that's it for Gameweek 1! Join me again next week when La Liga and Serie A join us.
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