ON THE PITCH
Weekly soccer report: Kane finishes as 2017 top scorer, Premier League drama kicks off World Cup Year
Jan 2, 2018, 12:29 pm
Club America fans were in high spirits as they witnessed their team win 4-0 over Liga MX rival Toluca on Saturday, December 30, 2017 at BBVA Compass Stadium. Jorge Clara/Deporte Total USA
Soccer fans worldwide are rejoicing as 2018 - a World Cup year - is finally here with the most important tournament in the sport taking place in less then six months. As for the holiday season, the Premier League took much of the attention this week with action from Boxing Day opening the new year with high drama. This was the week in soccer:
Premier League
Boxing Day action got under way with a historic accomplishment as Harry Kane bagged a hat-trick against Southampton to bring his 2017 tally to 39 - breaking Alan Shearer’s 1995 record of 36 Premier League goals in a calendar year. The accomplishment also grabbed headlines because it made Kane Europe’s top scorer for the year, and the first player not named Leo Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo to do so this decade.
On the manager’s end, Arsenal’s Arsène Wenger broke a record of his own as he surpassed the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson for most matches managed in the Premier League. Wenger’s tenure at Arsenal has been a topic of discussion for a few seasons as supporters have grown frustrated not seeing their team win the league since 2004 and failing to qualify for the Champions League this last season.
Liverpool stood out most this week with 5-nil thrashing of Swansea on Boxing Day, a 2-1 win over Leicester on Saturday and a 2-1 win on New Year’s Day thanks to a stoppage time winner by Ragnar Klavan. Chelsea easily won two straight while Manchester City had a 1-0 win over Newcastle and a ni-nil draw against Crystal Palace.
Manchester United were - of the top clubs - under the most scrutiny after being eliminated from the Football League Cup by Bristol City and the scrutiny heightened with two league draws to end the year. United bounced back on New Year's Day as Paul Pogba led the Reds to a 2-0 win at Everton.
Honorable mention goes to Burnley, who despite their last minute loss to Liverpool on New Year’s, held Manchester United and Huddersfield to draws and are quietly in seventh place behind the top teams in the Prem. Leicester City began the year with a 3-0 win over Hudderfield and are in eighth place, a great turnaround considering their start to the season.
Top 5: Manchester City (59), Manchester United (47), Chelsea (45), Liverpool (44), Arsenal (38)
La Liga
No action in Spain over the weekend as clubs took a holiday break. The league returns this weekend as clubs begin the second half of the season. Before then, 12 La Liga teams will take part in the Copa del Rey round of 16 first leg matches on Wednesday and Thursday.
The 5: Barcelona (45), Atlético Madrid (36), Valencia (34), Real Madrid (31), Sevilla (29)
Bundesliga
Still another week of winter break in the Bundesliga before clubs even return for domestic cup action.
Top 5: Bayern Munich (41), Schalke 04 (30), Dortmund (28), Bayer Leverkusen (28), RB Leipzig (28)
Ligue 1
No league play in France this weekend but many Ligue 1 clubs will take part in the domestic cup as the Coupe de France round of 64 takes place. Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Lyon and Nantes will all be on the road as they look to advance to the next round.
Top 5: Paris Saint-Germain (50), Monaco (41), Lyon (41), Marseille (38), Nantes (33)
Serie A
Four draws this weekend in Italy’s top flight and wins by the top two combine to make it look as if Italy is turning into a two-horse race. Given what has happened this season in Italy, it would be hard to discount Inter Milan and Roma but it does look like Napoli and Juventus have hit their stride after early bumps in the road. Inter Milan and Lazio battled to a scoreless draw in the only match between top teams this weekend. Inter were eliminated from the Coppa Italia midweek by rivals A.C. Milan, who did not translate their cup win over to league play. The once great Milan are winless in seven of their last nine league games and sit 11th in the standings.
The top 5: Napoli (48), Juventus (47), Inter Milan (41), Roma (39), Lazio (37)
Liga MX
Houston was host to a Liga MX preseason bout as Club America defeated Toluca 4-0 at BBVA Compass Stadium. Oribe Peralta - who will most likely be a part of Mexico’s World Cup squad this summer in Russia - scored twice as Silvio Romero and new signing Henry Martin scored the other two. Joe Corona, who won the CONCACAF Gold Cup with the U.S. men’s national team last summer, also got some playing time with his new club.
The second half of the Liga MX calendar kicks off this weekend with the Clausura 2018 season. Among the matches to watch will be a rematch of last month’s playoffs between Monterrey and Monarcas Morelia. Defending champions Tigres will go on the road, after a short preseason, to take on Puebla. Pachuca-Pumas UNAM, Toluca-Guadalajara and Queretaro-America will also be matches to keep an eye on. Portuguese manager Pedro Caixinha - who won the Clausura 2015 title with Santos Laguna - will debut as the new manager of Cruz Azul as he returns to Mexico following a stints in the Qatari and Scottish first divisions.
Dynamo duo in Charity Match
Hondurans Alberth Elis and Romell Quioto, both forwards who recently finished their first year with the Houston Dynamo, were in their native country taking part in a charity match to raise funds for a friend with health issues. The all-star game of sorts was co-hosted by the Dynamo duo alongside former Premier League midfielder Wilson Palacios at Palacios' sports complex in the northern city of La Ceiba. Elis and Quioto led a young squad composed of teammates from the 2015 FIFA U20 World Cup Honduras team to a 4-2 win over Team Palacios. The cost of admission was 50 Lempiras (USD $2.11).
Elis was named the club's 2017 Player's Player of the Year after helping the Dynamo to their first MLS Cup Playoffs since 2013. Elis scored 10 goals in the regular season and an extra time winner in the knockout round of the playoffs against Sporting Kansas City. Quioto had seven goals off his own, including three in the first three games of the season. Both will be back with the team when the Dynamo begin preseason at the end of this month.
Upcoming Matches (All Times CT):
Tuesday, Jan. 2:
1:45 p.m. - [Premier League] Swansea vs. Tottenham (NBC Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [Coppa Italia] Napoli vs. Atalanta (GolTV)
Wednesday, Jan. 3:
1:45 p.m. - [Premier League] Arsenal vs. Chelsea (NBC Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [Coppa Italia] Juventus vs. Torino (GolTV)
Thurday, Jan. 4:
12 p.m. - [Copa del Rey] Celta Vigo vs. Barcelona (beIN Sports)
2 p.m. - [Copa del Rey] Numancia vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)
2 p.m. - [Premier League] Tottenham vs. West Ham (NBC Sports)
Friday, Jan. 5:
11 a.m. - [Serie A] Chievo vs. Udinese (beIN Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [Serie A] Fiorentina vs. Inter Milan (beIN Sports)
1:55 p.m. - [FA Cup] Liverpool vs. Everton (FS1)
1:55 p.m. - [FA Cup] Manchester United vs. Derby County (FS2)
7 p.m. - [Liga MX] Puebla vs. Tigres UANL (Univision Deportes)
9 p.m. - [Liga MX] Atlas vs. Leon (Univision Deportes)
Saturday, Jan. 6:
6:45 a.m. - [FA Cup] Fleetwood vs. Leicester City (FS1)
9 a.m. - [FA Cup] Manchester City vs. Burnley (FS1)
9 a.m. - [Serie A] AC Milan vs. Crotone (beIN Sports)
12:30 p.m. - [FA Cup] Norwich City vs. Chelsea (FS1)
1:45 p.m. - [Serie A] Cagliari vs. Juventus (beIN Sports)
5 p.m. - [Liga MX] Cruz Azul vs. Tijuana (Univision Deportes)
7 p.m. - [Liga MX] Pachuca vs. Pumas UNAM (Univision Deportes)
Sunday, Jan. 7:
8 a.m. - [FA Cup] Schrewsbury vs. West Ham (FS1)
10 a.m. - [FA Cup] Notthingham Forrest vs. Arsenal (FS1)
10 a.m. - [La Liga] Barcelona vs. Levante (beIN Sports)
12 p.m. - [Liga MX] Toluca vs. Guadalajara (Univision Deportes)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] Celta Vigo vs. Real Madrid (beIN Sports)
1:45 p.m. - [Coupe de France] Rennes vs. Paris Saint-Germain (beIN Sports Connect)
5 p.m. - [Liga MX] Queretaro vs. Club America (Univision Deportes)
X-factor matchups for Houston Texans to make statement rebound versus Colts
Oct 24, 2024, 6:10 pm
Indianapolis (4-3) at Houston (5-2)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, CBS
BetMGM NFL Odds: Texans by 6.
Against the spread: Indianapolis 6-1; Houston 3-3-1.
Series record: Colts lead 33-12-1.
Last meeting: Texans beat Colts 29-27 on Sept. 8, in Indianapolis.
Last week: Colts beat Dolphins 16-10; Texans lost to Packers 24-22.
Colts offense: overall (16), rush (14), pass (17), scoring (18).
Colts defense: overall (29), rush (31), pass (23), scoring (T12).
Texans offense: overall (11), rush (15), pass (10), scoring (14).
Texans defense: overall (2), rush (8), pass (4), scoring (17).
Turnover differential: Colts plus-2, Texans plus-3.
Colts player to watch
RB Jonathan Taylor. Despite the Colts optimism each of the past three weeks, Taylor has continued to sit out. Now, he appears to be close to fully recovered from the sprained ankle that knocked him out late in the victory over Pittsburgh on Sept. 29. It’s unclear how much Taylor will play — or how effective he’ll be — but having Taylor in the backfield will only make QB Anthony Richardson's ability to run more of an option.
Texans player to watch
QB C.J. Stroud. The second-year pro looks to bounce back after throwing for a career-low 86 yards without a TD pass last week. The Texans are focused on improving his protection after he was sacked four times and hit another seven in the loss to Green Bay. He’s been great at home this season, going 3-0 with 936 yards passing.
Key matchup
Houston RB Joe Mixon vs. the Indianapolis run defense. Mixon has had at least 100 yards rushing in each of the three full games he’s played this season. The former Bengal, who is in his first year in Houston, had 115 yards rushing and ran for two touchdowns last week for his 10th career game with at least two rushing scores. Now Mixon, who ran for a season-high 159 yards and a TD in Week 1 against the Colts, will face a run defense which ranks 31st in the NFL by allowing 159.9 yards a game. Indianapolis has allowed at least 185 yards rushing three times this season, capped by 188 yards last week against Miami.
Key injuries
Indy’s injury list finally appears to be shrinking. Richardson (right hip) and Pro Bowl center Ryan Kelly (calf) returned last week against Miami. Taylor is scheduled to return Sunday at Houston and All-Pro DT DeForest Buckner (sprained ankle) returned to practice Wednesday. WRs Michael Pittman Jr. (back), Josh Downs (toe) and Alec Pierce (shoulder) have continued to play through their injuries, leaving one big question mark this weekend — LB E.J. Speed (knee), who missed last week’s game. … Houston LB Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and S Jimmie Ward (groin) missed Sunday’s game and could be out again this week after missing practice. ... LB Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) and CB Kamari Lassiter (shoulder) returned to practice after missing time but coach DeMeco Ryans wouldn't say if they'll play Sunday.
Series notes
Houston has won three of the past four matchups, the past two by a total of six points — both in Indy. ... This will be the third meeting between these franchises in an eight-game stretch. ... Stroud and Richardson were selected two picks apart in the 2023 NFL draft and they developed a friendship while preparing for the draft. But they’ve only played against one another twice. Richardson won the first meeting in Week 2 of 2023, rushing for two scores in Houston before leaving with a concussion. Stroud won the rematch in September.
Stats and stuff
Sunday will mark the second matchup this season between Colts DBs coach Ron Milus and his son, Texas defensive assistant Ryan Milus. ... The Colts have won four of their past five since starting the season 0-2. ... Indy is 4-9-1 in division games since the start of the 2022 season. But the Colts can even the season series with Houston and pull into a tie for the AFC South lead with a victory. ... Indy’s 31 plays of 20 or more yards this season are the fourth most in the NFL this season. ... Pittman needs 2 yards receiving to reach 4,000 in his five-year career. ... Taylor needs 78 total yards to pass Hall of Famer Lenny Moore (6,040 yards) for No. 4 in franchise history. ... Richardson and 39-year-old Joe Flacco have thrown a total of 10 TD passes this season. ... Pierce leads the NFL with an average of 25.5 yards per catch and has a league-high five receptions of 40 or more yards. ... Colts DE Laiatu Latu’s two sacks are tied with Jonah Elliss of Denver for the most among NFL rookies. ... LB Zaire Franklin leads the NFL in tackles with 78. ... CB Jaylon Jones is one of seven players to pick off two passes in a game this season. His eight passes defensed are also tied for No. 5 in the league. … The Texans have forced seven turnovers combined in their past two games. … Houston WR Stefon Diggs has had at least 65 yards receiving in four of his past five games. He has two TD receptions in each of his past two games against the Colts. … WR Tank Dell, who didn’t have a catch last week, had seven receptions for 72 yards a touchdown in the previous game against the Colts in Houston. … DE Danielle Hunter has had a sack in two straight games. … DE Will Anderson has had at least one tackle for loss in three straight games and at least one sack in his past two. He is tied for sixth in the NFL with 6½ sacks this season. … DT Tim Settle had two tackles for losses and a sack last week. … LB Neville Hewitt led the team with a season-high nine tackles last week and had an interception. … S Calen Bullock is tied for first among rookie in the league with three interceptions. He had an interception in the first meeting with Indianapolis. … CB Derek Stingley had six tackles, including one for a loss and defended a pass last week. ... LB Devin White, a Pro Bowler in 2021 with Tampa Bay, signed with Houston on Wednesday.
Fantasy tip
Mixon should be a good pickup this week against Indy’s struggling run defense after he’s combined for 217 yards rushing with three rushing TDs and one touchdown reception in the two games since returning from injury.