Gabriele MarcottiNov 10, 2025, 07:31 AM ETCloseGabriele Marcotti is a senior soccer writer for ESPN.com. Read his archive here and follow him on Twitter: @Marcotti.Follow on X
play1:03Ogden: Liverpool have made too many changes to title winning teamMark Ogden questions Liverpool’s next move after a heavy 3-0 defeat to Manchester City.
play2:06Laurens: Slot starting Wirtz vs. Man City made no senseGab Marcotti and Julien Laurens discuss Florian Wirtz’s performance in Liverpool’s 3-0 loss to Manchester City.
play1:29How did Sunderland get a point against Arsenal?The ESPN FC TV crew react to Sunderland’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal in the Premier League.
play1:48Should Estêvão be starting for Chelsea?The ESPN FC TV crew debate if Estêvão should be starting for Chelsea after coming off the bench to help Chelsea beat Wolverhampton 3-0.
play1:03Are Atletico Madrid having an issue with set pieces?Luis Garcia believes Atletico Madrid defence are ‘vulnerable’ in set pieces as they get a 3-1 win over Levante.
play1:33Moreno: Alonso’s decisions didn’t make sense vs. RayoAle Moreno analyses Xabi Alonso’s tactical approach in Real Madrid’s 0-0 draw to Rayo Vallecano.
play2:34Who will be more happy with a point Tottenham or Man Utd?The ESPN FC TV crew react to Tottenham and Manchester United’s dramatic 2-2 draw in the Premier League.
play2:06Were Bayern Munich lucky to get a draw against Union Berlin?The ESPN FC crew react to Bayern Munich’s dramatic 2-2 draw against Union Berlin in the Bundesliga.
Arne Slot’s to-do list just got longer as Jeremy Doku leads Man City past Liverpool and into second place
Is Jérémy Doku ‘unplayable’ when at his best for Man City? (2:04)Gab Marcotti and Julien Laurens praise Jérémy Doku after Man City’s 3-0 win vs. Liverpool. (2:04)
Ogden: Liverpool have made too many changes to title winning teamMark Ogden questions Liverpool’s next move after a heavy 3-0 defeat to Manchester City.
Laurens: Slot starting Wirtz vs. Man City made no senseGab Marcotti and Julien Laurens discuss Florian Wirtz’s performance in Liverpool’s 3-0 loss to Manchester City.
Gab Marcotti and Julien Laurens discuss Florian Wirtz’s performance in Liverpool’s 3-0 loss to Manchester City.
How did Sunderland get a point against Arsenal?The ESPN FC TV crew react to Sunderland’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal in the Premier League.
Should Estêvão be starting for Chelsea?The ESPN FC TV crew debate if Estêvão should be starting for Chelsea after coming off the bench to help Chelsea beat Wolverhampton 3-0.
The ESPN FC TV crew debate if Estêvão should be starting for Chelsea after coming off the bench to help Chelsea beat Wolverhampton 3-0.
Are Atletico Madrid having an issue with set pieces?Luis Garcia believes Atletico Madrid defence are ‘vulnerable’ in set pieces as they get a 3-1 win over Levante.
Luis Garcia believes Atletico Madrid defence are ‘vulnerable’ in set pieces as they get a 3-1 win over Levante.
Moreno: Alonso’s decisions didn’t make sense vs. RayoAle Moreno analyses Xabi Alonso’s tactical approach in Real Madrid’s 0-0 draw to Rayo Vallecano.
Who will be more happy with a point Tottenham or Man Utd?The ESPN FC TV crew react to Tottenham and Manchester United’s dramatic 2-2 draw in the Premier League.
The ESPN FC TV crew react to Tottenham and Manchester United’s dramatic 2-2 draw in the Premier League.
Were Bayern Munich lucky to get a draw against Union Berlin?The ESPN FC crew react to Bayern Munich’s dramatic 2-2 draw against Union Berlin in the Bundesliga.
Lewandowski back with a bang for Barcelona as they claw back two points on Real Madrid
Napoli lose and Antonio Conte says he’s doing a “bad job”
In LaLiga, Robert Lewandowski returned to the pitch after injury and led Barcelona to a 4-2 win at Celta Vigo that closed the gap on Real Madrid (who drew this weekend) in the title race. Bayern Munich’s 16-game win streak (all competitions) was snapped with a 2-2 draw at Union Berlin in Bundesliga action, while Arsenal also dropped points at newly promoted Sunderland to narrow their edge atop the Premier League.
– Ogden, Lindop: Man City cap big week with Liverpool win – Reaction: Spurs vs. Man United another rollercoaster for fans – VAR Review: Why Van Dijk’s headed goal was disallowed
It was Pep Guardiola’s 1000th game as manager and he couldn’t have had a better afternoon despite the driving rain at the Etihad: a resounding 3-0 win over Liverpool that was not driven by Erling Haaland (though he did score because, well, he almost always does). Nope, the star of the show was Jeremy Doku, who had the sort of game those of us who drooled over his skill set years ago have been waiting for.
Simply put, Doku is a ball of energy, speed, strength and guile. When he’s at his best, you’ll struggle to find a better one-on-one player anywhere in the world. At a time when athleticism and defensive structures dominate, there’s still room for having a guy who can simply stand up his defender and then blow past him.
As a weapon, it may be simple or even crude, but there’s no counter. Your guy gets taken out and then somebody else has to slide across, which wreaks havoc and creates a knock-on effect that, in turn, means someone will be open down the line. And if you choose to double him up, well, that means someone else on his team is unmarked.
Ogden: Liverpool have made too many changes to title winning team
Mark Ogden questions Liverpool’s next move after a heavy 3-0 defeat to Manchester City.
City are now four points behind Arsenal and while the Gunners haven’t reached their ceiling — they’ve been doing it without Martin Odegaard, lest we forget — you wonder if City’s might be even higher, given that Rodri has yet to return from injury for something other than the odd cameo appearance.
But that would be silly and wrong. Performance matters, and the worrying part here is that Slot opted for the safety blanket of last season’s set-up, just as he had in previous outings, with Florian Wirtz (out wide in place of Cody Gakpo) and Hugo Ekitike the only newcomers among his outfield players.
Wirtz doesn’t give you Gakpo’s defensive output on the left, while Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai had to come and rescue Bradley on the right, leaving gaps centrally for City to exploit. Throw in the fact that Konate looked like a guy who has had to start every single game this season (the mix-up for the penalty that Mamardashvilii later saved was very unlike him) and Liverpool looked far more fragile than last season’s version.
Laurens: Slot starting Wirtz vs. Man City made no sense
Ideally you do both, but if you have to prioritise at this stage, it has to be the former. The club spent big to extend Salah and Van Dijk; the goal has to be to win something meaningful this season. If that means there’s no time to figure out how to play Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez together (or even just one of them, given how little they’ve both contributed) … so be it. If it means keeping Alexander Isak in the garage (read: the bench) so be it.
The one exception, some would argue, is Wirtz, simply because of the quality brings and the fact there’s nobody in the side with his skill set. Maybe so, but there was nobody in the side with his skill set last season either and they ran away with the Premier League.
Oh, and just to continue the theme of self-destruction, Frenkie De Jong, who really should know better, picked up a needless second yellow in injury time and is now facing a suspension. That said, Real Madrid are now just three points ahead and, you hope, some of the injured players will be back after the break. Right now, it feels as if Barca are competitive in spite of themselves.
Newly promoted Sunderland joined Liverpool and Manchester City as the only teams to take points off Arsenal this season in the league. When you’re that consistent, with 14 wins in 17 matches in all competitions — anytime you don’t win, especially after 10 victories in a row, and especially when the equalizer comes in injury time, it’s going to be jarring. That’s why a reality check is in order.
The ESPN FC TV crew react to Sunderland’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal in the Premier League.
More relevant, I think, is that outside of the two goals, David Raya didn’t have a single save to make, which suggests that defensive solidity is still there (as do the 0.44 Expected Goals Conceded). Leandro Trossard scored a wonder goal, suggesting it made a lot of sense to extend his contract, while Bukayo Saka is getting stronger by the game after returning from injury. And if you really want to go there, that Ballard elbow on Mikel Merino could easily have resulted in a penalty.
Manager Mikel Arteta spoke of “disappointment and frustration” as the run of clean sheets came to an end. Sure, but once he calms down, he may well find his team remain nicely on track. They dropped points, not their level.
“Five defeats are too many for a team that’s supposed to win the title,” Conte said. “We don’t yet have that chemistry that makes us want to fight and compete … it means, I’m doing a bad job. We’re not a team.”
The reality is that right now Napoli are lucky to be where they are in the table. They need to do better and — Conte’s right — their coach needs to a better job. A far better job.
9. Once again, Paris Saint-Germain need an injury time winner to get past Lyon: Here’s a stat for you. If games ended in the 89th minute, PSG would have won just two of their last nine matches in all competitions. Instead, they’ve won five of nine, with the last two wins coming thanks to injury-time strikes: a week ago against Nice, it was Gonçalo Ramos. This time, after a wild game away to Olympique Lyonnais, it was João Neves.
Joao Neves was honest in saying they “need to improve.” He’s right: even without Dembele, Doue, Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi, they should be capitalising on seeing so much of the ball (Fabián Ruiz had a quiet game, which didn’t help). The last thing Luis Enrique needs if he’s going to defend his Champions League title is a legitimate title race in Ligue 1. And that’s what he has to deal with right now.