You might hate the Premier League for its determination to suck all the money out of football, but at least it has now become so weird it’s almost like fake news. Who would not have been gobsmacked by West Ham’s comeback with just 15 minutes left from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 against Tottenham?
And it wasn’t really a day to tell the grandchildren about for the lavishly remunerated golfer Gareth Bale, who came on with 20-odd minutes to go, was hardly mentioned, and missed a sitter. Still he only costs £600,000 a week. Maybe in these days of bailouts, Mourinho should have followed suit and left Bale out.
Can Liverpool retain the title without Van Dijk? Pretty doubtful
And you, like me, might have regarded Jordan Pickford’s assault on Virgil van Dijk as something more worthy of a jail term than the red card the referee didn’t give him. Still it has had the effect of putting the Liverpool centre half, arguably the best defender on the planet, out for the rest of the season. Which will, whisper it, bring some relief to a few forward lines. Can Liverpool retain the title without him? Pretty doubtful, I think, though they deserve it for Jürgen Klopp’s vivid message of cheer to supporters as the extent of Van Dijk’s injury became clear: ‘We will wait for him like a good wife is waiting when the husband is in jail.’ Maybe Klopp thought the image had particular poignancy on Merseyside.
But ask any Evertonian about their goalkeeper’s assault on van Dijk and they will say:‘There’s no story here — it was fine.’ The rest of us will just regret that we won’t see this most elegant of players in action for months.
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in