Some Bloggers can write whether or not there is something going on but I need the football itself to spur my enthusiasm. I have been "doing other things" during lockdown including a lot of reading, some jigsaw puzzles and reintroducing myself to computer gaming.
Last night I watched Brentford against West Bromwich Albion and felt that the quality was high enough to be a Premier League match. As both clubs have aspirations to play at that level I am not overly surprised but as a tense match at the top of the Championship I thought it might have been more of an attritional contest.
The winning goal was scored by Ollie Watkins who had to kick the ball about two inches to get it across the line as his team had done the hard work getting the ball to the centre of the goalmouth. He has taken the mantle of Neil Maupay who moved on to Brighton and upset Arsenal fans by injuring Bernd Leno then scoring the winning goal in the last few seconds of the match.
Being an Arsenal fan I accepted the defeat to Manchester City although David Luiz was a liability and his contract should not be renewed (too late as I hear it has already been renewed). Mustafi is another liability. He allowed Maupay to beat him in the last minute of the Brighton match. Mustafi has scored some good goals and made some good blocks but there is always a mistake in him.
So the City and Brighton matches did not stir the enthusiasm that I needed (winning always helps) and it had to wait until Thursday night against Southampton where we put in a creditable performance, not dominating, but enough to wake me up again. Following Thursday up with Friday where my Championship pick Brentford beat the league leaders after beating Fulham in the previous match has refreshed my eagerness for the game.
The matches being played behind closed doors has definitely resulted in matches that are not as highly charged as matches earlier this season but those of us that have watched the game of football all our lives just want something to watch. I could say the same about Speedway but that sport seems to be dying on its feet in this country.
This weekend we return to the F.A.Cup which sparked a lot of my enthusiasm for the Football Pyramid. Where did all these teams come from and how many matches did they have to play before the "FIRST" round of the F.A.Cup? The answer in some cases is MANY.
Today we can watch Norwich against Manchester United.
Tomorrow we can start with Sheffield United against Arsenal.
We can continue with the match between Leicester City and Chelsea.
We can conclude the F.A.Cup games with Newcastle United against Manchester City.
Football is back, though changed, and normal life is close to resuming but a big part of my life I now realise was going from week to week with expectations that maybe just maybe this was OUR year.
I have more chances now that I am following more teams. If Arsenal lose (which is happening much more often than it used to before the Krankees took over) then I have Brentford and if they lose I have Southend who always lose so it is on to Exeter and then Torquay United. Now if the top five lose (and it has happened) I can rely on Weymouth to restore the pride, then Tiverton and Barnstaple although they are another team that always loses. At level nine, step five, I have Exmouth and I have been to see them live several times now always enjoying the experience. Elmore (who started the whole thing) are now back at level 10 and I have moved to a village called Liverton who have a team at Level 11 in the newly formed Devon League.
I wonder if next season will be more normal.
Last night I watched Brentford against West Bromwich Albion and felt that the quality was high enough to be a Premier League match. As both clubs have aspirations to play at that level I am not overly surprised but as a tense match at the top of the Championship I thought it might have been more of an attritional contest.
The winning goal was scored by Ollie Watkins who had to kick the ball about two inches to get it across the line as his team had done the hard work getting the ball to the centre of the goalmouth. He has taken the mantle of Neil Maupay who moved on to Brighton and upset Arsenal fans by injuring Bernd Leno then scoring the winning goal in the last few seconds of the match.
Being an Arsenal fan I accepted the defeat to Manchester City although David Luiz was a liability and his contract should not be renewed (too late as I hear it has already been renewed). Mustafi is another liability. He allowed Maupay to beat him in the last minute of the Brighton match. Mustafi has scored some good goals and made some good blocks but there is always a mistake in him.
So the City and Brighton matches did not stir the enthusiasm that I needed (winning always helps) and it had to wait until Thursday night against Southampton where we put in a creditable performance, not dominating, but enough to wake me up again. Following Thursday up with Friday where my Championship pick Brentford beat the league leaders after beating Fulham in the previous match has refreshed my eagerness for the game.
The matches being played behind closed doors has definitely resulted in matches that are not as highly charged as matches earlier this season but those of us that have watched the game of football all our lives just want something to watch. I could say the same about Speedway but that sport seems to be dying on its feet in this country.
This weekend we return to the F.A.Cup which sparked a lot of my enthusiasm for the Football Pyramid. Where did all these teams come from and how many matches did they have to play before the "FIRST" round of the F.A.Cup? The answer in some cases is MANY.
Today we can watch Norwich against Manchester United.
Tomorrow we can start with Sheffield United against Arsenal.
We can continue with the match between Leicester City and Chelsea.
We can conclude the F.A.Cup games with Newcastle United against Manchester City.
Football is back, though changed, and normal life is close to resuming but a big part of my life I now realise was going from week to week with expectations that maybe just maybe this was OUR year.
I have more chances now that I am following more teams. If Arsenal lose (which is happening much more often than it used to before the Krankees took over) then I have Brentford and if they lose I have Southend who always lose so it is on to Exeter and then Torquay United. Now if the top five lose (and it has happened) I can rely on Weymouth to restore the pride, then Tiverton and Barnstaple although they are another team that always loses. At level nine, step five, I have Exmouth and I have been to see them live several times now always enjoying the experience. Elmore (who started the whole thing) are now back at level 10 and I have moved to a village called Liverton who have a team at Level 11 in the newly formed Devon League.
I wonder if next season will be more normal.
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