The List | 10 Things We Learnt From This Weekend's Football - 28/10/2013 - Football News

El Clasico, two Premier League title contenders going head to head, last minute come backs and some quality goals - what a weekend of football. Chelsea backed up their credentials as most people’s favourites this season, whilst United showed that you can change the manager but their spirit is still there.

We also had the showpiece of Spanish football El Clasico, two new managers, one coming out heads and shoulders above the other. New boy Gareth Bale failed to impress whilst Neymar shone. Serie A is getting more exciting by the day and Bayern Munich are looking as strong as ever in the Bundesliga. With that in mind here are ten things we learnt from this weekend’s action.



United’s little pea is too good for the bench – After coming off the bench and scoring the winning goal, it was clear for all to see. Javier Hernandez is too good for a role on the bench and would be more than justified should he choose to look elsewhere come January. Moyes needs to play the forward who has never lost his ability to score despite long periods in the wilderness.

Jose may have done the impossible – Not only has Mourinho gotten Fernando Torres scoring again, but he has managed to instil the confidence he has been missing since his move from Liverpool. Torres now looks interested, willing and full of want. He almost looks like the Torres of old. Has Jose done it again? It looks that way.



Mourinho sides win games they really should not – The ‘Mourinho effect’ has been talked about incessantly since his return to the Bridge and was summed up after the win against City. Despite the away side dominating for long periods of the game, it was Chelsea who got three points. Mourinho kept Torres on for the 90 and was rewarded, keeping his perfect home record intact. It is now 65 league games at the Bridge without defeat for the Special One.



All Sunderland need to do to win a derby is change managers – Clearly a tactic that works for the Black Cats. After looking awful against Swansea, they picked themselves up and recorded a vital win against neighbours Newcastle. The relief was clear to see on new manager Gus Poyet’s face and will go a long way to getting the fans on board.



Vincent Kompany has to start for City – Without their skipper and key defender, City are simply no good. We all saw the dreadful defending that lead to the Chelsea winner on Sunday, and now more than ever they need the Belgium’s presence in the side. Not only to quieten the opposition but to boost their back line and Joe Hart.



Milan is no longer the hotspot for Serie A football – AC Milan and Inter will be mighty lucky to get Champions League football next season. Both sides have suffered a major decline in the last couple of seasons and are showing that not only are they miles behind the top sides in Europe, they are also lagging behind the likes of Roma and Napoli.



Carlo Ancelotti made a huge mess of his first Clasico – Fingers are being pointed after the loss for Real Madrid. The referee, Gareth Bale, Benzema, but there is only one person who should take the blame. Manager Carlo Ancelotti got the team selection totally wrong. From picking Sergio Ramos in the middle of the park to omitting Benzema and Isco, not to mention playing an unfit Gareth Bale. 



United have been awful, yet are only two points behind City – For all the criticism David Moyes and his United side have had thus far this season, they are only two points behind previous title favourites Manchester City. Considering the money spent by City compared to United, not to mention the struggles faced by Moyes, anyone who writes them off is showing how foolhardy they are. The Red Devils always come good post Christmas after all.



The SAS are on a roll – What a partnership Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge have struck up. The duo are terrorising defences for fun and are a major reason why Liverpool are challenging for the title. It seems a long time since Suarez was asking for a move and any clubs looking to land the striker next summer could face a tougher challenge than first thought.



Tottenham cannot keep scraping by – ‘Who is this Soldado Pen that keeps scoring for Spurs’? That pretty much summed up yet another Spurs game; a penalty (that may or may not have been) and a resulting Soldado goal. The club cannot keep scraping past sides via a lucky decision or last minute goal. Sooner or later, they are going to have to click and play as a team, not eleven individuals.

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