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Gameweek 28: The Headlines

Gameweek 28: The Headlines
Photo by Tim Bechervaise / Unsplash

I hope you — unlike my family and I — were not watching the Champion's League Round of 16 game between Arsenal and Porto at an Arsenal bar with poorly functioning audio feeds ...

... while corralling a vivacious 17-month-old determined to use her fries as makeshift spoons to lick the ketchup off her plate.

Ketchup-happy baby aside, I'm aware that Champion's League is not the Premier League. But humor me while I let my Arsenal bias show because I have a story to tell you.

Mikel Arteta got petty. Or did he?

Arsenal won their battle against Porto on a 2-1 aggregate after advancing through penalties. Headlines noted that this is the first time in 14 years that Arsenal have made it through to the Champion's League quarterfinals. Other headlines called out Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta for allegedly insulting Porto manager Sergio Conceicao.

In a post-game press conference, Sergio claimed that Mikel used the words "concha de tu madre" (via The Daily Mail), insulting a specific part of Sergio's late mother's anatomy. Unfortunately, it doesn't sound too far-fetched because we're talking about the same man who did this.

And this.

And said this.

However, Mikel flatly denied using this derogatory phrase.

As it turns out, Sergio has a history of confrontational run-ins with managers who beat him. In 2020, he threw major shade at Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, telling the media (via SportBible) that, "Guardiola's attitude was extremely unpleasant. The whole Manchester City dugout was because if anybody should have been complaining, it was the Porto bench, because we were extremely hard done by." Sergio also butted heads with then-Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel, saying "I was insulted by this man [Tuchel] who is next door."

Sensing a pattern here.

Feuds are a time-honored cornerstone of both sports and pop culture, but we'll have to wait and see whether this merits a Taylor Swift- Katy Perry "Bad Blood"-level comparison.

The biggest comeback in 20 years

To be up 3-0 at halftime, and go on to lose 4-3 is rough. To be Luton Town, where a single win can make the difference between you staying in the Premier League and being relegated to the Championship, is devastating.

The stunning comeback win made Bournemouth only the fifth team in EPL history to go on to win a game after being 3-0 down. The name of their home turf — Vitality Stadium — has never felt more appropriate.

Kudos to Antoine Semenyo, who scored the game winner, and condolences to all the Hatters.

John McGinn's kung-fu kick

The battle for Europe is well and truly on, with Aston Villa's John McGinn proving he's ready to fight for it. And by this, I mean take a literal kung-fu kick at Tottenham defender Destiny Udogie.

It wasn't as egregious as that time Luis Suarez decided to try his hand at goal keeping, but pundits agreed it definitely merited a red card.

And because Tottenham have the joint most red cards this season, it was a nice change to see someone other than Yves Bissouma get sent off.

Aston Villa was already imploding before their captain decided to channel his inner Bruce Lee; however, his ugly red card paved the way for Tottenham to run away with the W. Aston Villa manager Unai Emery later pointed to McGinn's "passion for the game" as a potentially good thing, but admitted to being disappointed with the challenge.

With McGinn set to miss the next three matches, and their top striker Ollie Watkins dealing with an injury, they're looking a little more fragile than usual. Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal may have the first-third spots in the table gobbled up, but that fourth place is up for grabs, guys!

Clash of the titans

This week's headlining fixture was the Liverpool-Manchester City game at Anfield. Media had a lot to say about it being Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola's last meeting. The duo have dominated the Premier League in recent years, with Klopp's 11 wins standing as the most by any manager against Guardiola.

More importantly, they actually like each other.

One John Stones header and Alexis Mac Allister penalty later, and the game ended all square. It feels fitting for Klopp to bow out on even footing to Pep. I'd say the Cityzens agree.

Another thing to admire about Klopp is his vulnerability to admit to burnout and call it a day. I too, would like to follow his inspirational example.

What a leader. What a manager.

Honorable mention this week goes to Newcastle, whose awful defensive record continues. Their latest shellacking by Chelsea was just another game in a string of many this year where they've conceded three or more goals.

Then again, there's always another game to look forward to ... for the likes of Newcastle AND Luton. That's football for you!