EUROPE'S LONGEST WINNING STREAK

With Chelsea a win away from equaling the highest winning run from any team in England a record held by arsenal, wetake a look at the longest winning run in Europe.

Bordeaux(champions)2008/2009-Former psg coach Laurent blanc was the hero when Bordeaux embarked on a remarkable 11 game winning run that eventually led them to the ligue 1 title finishing  3 points ahead of Marseille. The best run in Ligue1 till date.

Chelsea(pending)2016/2017-After a 3-0 loss to arsenal, pressure was mounting on newly appointed coach Antonio conte with speculation that the Italian was going to be sacked with less than seven months into the job. a return to his favored 3-4-3 formation which has been the trademark of the Italians success in his managerial career saw Chelsea keep 5 clean sheets in a row and  scoring more than 15 goals in the process and are currently on a 12 game winning run.

Arsenal(champions)-The 2001/2002 season was one to remember for arsenal fans as they did the double. they went on a 13 game winning run which included a 1-0 against united in the last game of the season and followed it up with an fa cup final victory against chelsea.

Barcelona(champions)2010/2011-Pep Guardiola was the man in charge as Barcelona went on an unstoppable 16 game winning run. the Spaniard set up his team in a way which they dominated the ball and pressed higher up the pitch whenever they lost it with xavi integral to the system. The tikitaka was given life by guardiola and many suspect that was the reason Spain became world champions and won the euros in succession as guardiola had already laid the blueprint for Vicente Del bosque to work with.

Inter Milan(champions)2006/2007-Inter Milan won the Serie a title under former man city coach Roberto Mancini, losing just once in the process. Luis Figo was integral to the inter Milan setup. A 17 game winning run was too much for other title contenders to meet up.They won the league by 22 points.

Bayern Munich(champions)2013/2014-For the second time in this list Pep guardiola has featured but this time in Bavarian colors. Bayern Munich became champions in incredible fashion as they won the league with 7 games remaining with a 19 point margin. They looked invisible and a 19 game winning run was a beauty to behold which is the highest ever winning run in European history.

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THE TITLE RACE

Arsenal 

After spending over 80m in a busy transfer market, reinforcing their defence with mustafi, holding, midfield with xhaka, attack with lucas and a young lad takumo asano who was sent out loan to stuttgart, for the first time in a long while they actually look like they can compete for the title. But their is always this fear that in between the crisp and wonderfully orchestrated football they play, their is still a psychological loop hole and anxiety that sets in when expected to deliver. until that is rectified, wenger's men still has some way to go to claim the most prestigious prize in english football which has eluded them for 12 years.


                                   Chelsea

After the sacking of jose mourinho in a season which turned out to be highly anonymous culminated with the worst defence of a pl title they won just 18 months ago, antonio conte was brought in amidst a spectacular euros though he was already appointed before then. The Italian was assigned a herculean task of restoring the confidence of the players and in particular their best players such as hazard, costa and co.The defense was also an area looked into but more surprisingly this is a team which is known for its defensive prowess which has been the bedrock of its success in recent years but after shipping in more goals in 10 matches than they did in the entirety of their title winning season something had to be done fast. The signing of kante, alonso and the surprising return of luiz was a welcome development but most importantly is the fighting spirit conte is expected to bring with him whether is enough to win them the title is left to see.

Liverpool

You can score goals but we gonna outscore you seems to be the reds trademark these days. Suarez papered over their cracks when they mounted a genuine title challenge only to be let down by a gerrard's slip and a disappointing 4-3 loss to alan parsew's then crystal palace at seilhurst park.Having said that despite all of their attacking brilliance no team  has ever carried the premier league with a weak defence. A lot of 4-3 wins can't do the job rather the hard fought 1-0s. If they can change their approach in that sense then their will be a sense of optimism that this could be their year.

Manchester city

The arrival of pep guardiola was said to be the final piece of the jigsaw after their underwhelming season was blamed on departed manager pellegrini. He(guardiola) is expected to bring charisma with him while coming to Manchester. The bookers have already declared them as runaway champions but with their squad and a hugely successful manger if not the best presently we can't argue can we? either way we shall wait till the end of the season o see their standing be it at the top of the pile or wherever will depend mainly on guardiola no doubt.

Manchester united

The special one was appointed after the united hierarchy dismissed lvg in what was a dismal season as united missed out on the champions league. Some may say he left with pride after their fa cup exploits. Whichever, they were simply below substandard and were branded boring by the united faithful. The appointment of jose mourinho was seen as a welcome development.The Portuguese himself had gone through a tumultuous year with Chelsea which saw him eventually axed. rumour has it that he was given a 200m warchest during the transfer window. Ibrahimovic,mikitaryan, balily and pogba were brought in with the later returning to old trafford after leaving in 2012 with reports he was overlooked by the then manager sir Alex. He (pogba) is presently the monalisa of football after being signed of an astronomical reported figure of 105m. How mourinho is going to select his team is what for me will decide if they will lift the title.There are some damming stats of last season united became famous with such as keeping more of the ball but creating lesser chances and scoring fewer goals than each of their fellow title contenders. mikitaryan and zlatan were brought in to change that with the former having recording more assists than any player in Europe top five leagues. Baily will be expected to shore things up defensively. If they can stick to what the manager wants, then they certainly would be title challengers.

Tottenham

The north Londoners are still in hunt of a title they last won as far back as 1961. They were closest to win the league last season as they chased Leicester city but ultimately coming short. A run of poor results and eventually the 2-2 draw against Chelsea a  match were sparks flew ultimately confirmed them out of the title race and Leicester as champions. They have a good squad to compete and i think defensively they are the best in the league. The main question is do they have the quality to cope when harry Kane their chief goalscorer is not available? well i think they don't. Players were brought in during the transfer window such as wanyama, sissoko and Jansen to mention a few. They are all expected to improve the existing squad and Jansen in particular to fill into the big shoes of harry Kane. If pochettino can cool the players as discipline is not their watchword, they might as well put up a challenge or even claim the title. If Leicester can do it, hell yes they can.


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REJUVENATED PEDRO A REVELATION

I don't know the psychology behind it but whenever a player is happy it transcends in his performances on the pitch. In the premier league currently, i don't know too many players who are happier than Pedro Rodriguez at the moment. He looked a sad man at the euros and even complained of being left out of the starting eleven. Seeing him play with a huge grin against Bournemouth was a joy to behold. 

He defended from the front, hassling and harrying their defense with tireless running and did not give them a moment of peace. According to opta only one player made more sprints than him which was willian. Whenever he received the ball he looked to break with pace and looked absolutely unplayable to Bournemouth players. His first goal was sheer class after the ball was perfectly worked onto his feet by fabregas while his second was a combination of strong running and great technique. He has become an important figure in this present Chelsea team and his absence is going to be missed after picking up his 4th yellow card of the season. 


With the imminent return of costa and kante after both missed out on suspensions of their own together with the regained confidence of fabregas, i can't help but think that this Chelsea team absolutely look the real deal and i wouldn't be surprised if conte picked up his first

premier league title in what would be an outstanding debut season for the enthusiastic Italian. 
Furthermore, if Pedro continues with performances of this sort then the pfa player of the season wouldn't be a far cry.

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GIROUD DESERVES HIS PLACE

The french man was targeted and blamed as one of the major reasons arsenal title challenge wilted. The talk of bringing in a new striker who could score 20 goals in the league was what supporters wanted as pressure mounted on arsene wenger to sign a striker heightened. Giroud was part of the France squad that went to the euros final and was even booed as fans thought he was not good enough to replace benzema. He eventually had a good euros scoring three goals and starting the final but on returning to arsenal he had lost his place to Sanchez as the clubs no 1 striker. 

There were speculations that he was looking to move away from the emirates in a cash plus swap deal with higuain but a move never really materialised as higuain eventually joined juventus in a mammoth deal. Injuries has also played its own part in the giroud saga but the outstanding performance of sanchez in the central role has ensured he still remained on the sidelines. 


However he made a case for himself after scoring the equaliser against united with a thumping header and showed his frustration by not celebrating the goal. in truth that was their only shot on target in the whole game and should have lost if not for giroud who salvaged a crucial point for the gunners in what was a hugely anonymous evening. The french man has created a knack for scoring after being introduced in a game and now holds the record of scoring the most goals as a substitute in an arsenal shirt. He started his first game this season against west brom and rewarded wenger's faith with a goal in the dying stages of the match. Personally, i think he and sanchez can play together. 

He has different attributes to sanchez which can benefit arsenal. He holds the ball well up the pitch and can bring in other attacking players into play with his slick touches and layoffs. The sooner wenger starts playing giroud the better for arsenal.

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IS RONALDO THE GREATEST EUROPEAN FOOTBALLER OF ALL TIME?

Questions have been asked after the Portuguese picked up his 4th ballond'or on Monday evening.

One thing is for certain for sure though which is that he deserved it. He scored 48 goals in 52 appearances. He led the Los Blancos to the champion league trophy and became himself an European cup winner. 
He now has more ballond'or than platini(2) Cyruff(3), vanbasten(2) who are considered as the best players in the European world.The stats are there for all to see that Ronaldo is the best European football presently. As for all time is still a water under the bridge till he retires. 

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ARSENAL'S TITLE BID

 The gunners look more compact this season after strengthening key areas in the middle of the park and at the back. The signing of xhaka and mustafi was a major statement. 

Both have brought more steel into the team. The former already has two goals to his name this season.

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