Mourinho's man-management key for Chelsea's success:

Jose Mourinho. Arguably one of the finest managers ever to grace the beautiful game that we call football. Made a name for himself at Porto and Chelsea, before going to Inter Milan and Real Madrid. 

Chelsea faithful: The fans had been singing Mourinho's name for the last year before he returned.

Hard not to see why: Mourinho was very successful when he first managed Chelsea.

Pressure to succeed: Even though Chelsea have won trophies since he left, the way they play has changed significantly. The fans will be hoping Mourinho can integrate a new style to the way they play football. 

Now he's back at The Blues for his second spell in charge of the Londoners, and this time he wants to reassert his dominance in the EPL in a more competitive and open league than ever before. 

Back in business: Mourinho is desperate for another successful spell in charge of Chelsea.

This time, it will be harder to get every one of his players on side, agreeing with his style of play and custom tactics, because less of the players he had when he began his first spell at the club are still here (the likes of Lampard, Terry and Essien) 

There is increasing pressure in English football for clubs to grow and nurture their young talent, especially homegrown players who have a chance to play for England in the future. Chelsea have some players in their under-21 squad who could become world-class in the future, along with some players currently on-loan at other clubs across Europe. 

One of those players is Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku. He signed for Chelsea from Belgian club Anderlecht in 2011 for a reported transfer fee of around £19million pounds, surprising for an 18-year-old teenager (at the time) who was tipped to be the "next Drogba" in 5 years time, but had not been proven at a competitive level like the Premier League where his mental toughness and strength would be tested to the limit. 

He was immediately sent off on a season-long loan deal (not exactly surprising) to West Brom, who were currently struggling at the time to stay mid-table without a clinical striker. Lukaku turned out to be a sensational loan coo, scoring 17 goals in all competitions and ending the season well with a hat-trick against Manchester United.

Consistent: Lukaku fired West Brom into a comfortable position in the TOP half of the table last season.

Inspired form: Lukaku was blossoming at West Brom, while Chelsea were inconsistent with Di Matteo in charge

And then at the end of last season, he returned to Chelsea where he did pre-season training with the rest of his team-mates before playing in a few friendlies across the world. A few weeks later, former Inter Milan and Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o joins Chelsea on an undisclosed fee, and Lukaku is unveiled at Everton on a season-long loan. So what happened? Was he not doing well? 

The answer is yes. But Mourinho returned, and decided to loan him out again because he felt he still "was not ready to play for Chelsea."

Lukaku (you cannot blame him) admitted that he would rather leave the club on another loan deal than stay on the bench for the majority of Chelsea's matches, and Everton were first to approach The Blues over a possibility of a loan deal. 

And now? Well Lukaku has scored 8 goals in all competitions so far, which is more than all of Chelsea's strikers COMBINED. How is that Mourinho? 

You watching Mourinho? Lukaku has started this season in great form, just like last year.

Only Suarez, Sturridge and Aguero have scored more goals than Lukaku in the EPL this season

Unstoppable: Mourinho should be kicking himself for letting Lukaku go back on-loan.

Ironically, Mourinho and Lukaku have been in the newspapers the past week after an apparent row over playing for Chelsea and decisions being made over Lukaku's future. 

Mourinho has made some sarcastic remarks about Lukaku in the press, saying "maybe there is a rule change where.. every player is free to decide his future," which is a direct response to Lukaku not explaining the full reason why he left the club on another loan spell.

The Belgian did have this to say though:
"Imagine I was playing for Chelsea now, I would play maybe five games... (instead) now everyone in England is talking about me."

That suggests that he did not feel he would get his chance at Chelsea this season, which is true as both Torres and Eto'o were preferred to him in the striking role. 

You have to feel that he needs to play for a bigger club after he leaves Everton next summer, otherwise he will not be able to develop while playing with the best players in the world. 

Tuesday Night Football - Crystal Palace vs West Ham Review:

Hello and welcome to my latest blog post, where I have a review of the only EPL game being played last night, between bottom placed newcomers Crystal Palace and 15th placed West Ham at Selhurst Park. 

A win was important for both sides, especially in the run up to Christmas where the games are running thick and fast in a short period of time. The match itself was very tight, with both sides defending solidly despite wanting to go on the counter attack quickly to set up a goal-scoring opportunity. 

Crystal Palace striker Marouane Chamakh (formerly of Arsenal, remember?) broke the deadlock for the hosts with a surprising header in the 41st minute from a corner kick, as the 29-year-old Moroccan targetman was open in space and headed the ball powerfully past the helpless Jaaskelainen who could do nothing but flap at the ball as he saw it beat him into the bottom corner of the net. 

Un-marked: Chamakh took advantage of not being picked up to score before half-time. 

Surprise: Chamakh wheels away to celebrate his 2nd goal in 14 appearances for Palace. 

The second-half was much more entertaining, with both sides knowing that the game was still up for grabs in terms of the points. Former Liverpool winger Stewart Downing was denied an equaliser after defender Joey O'Brien was judged to have fouled Chamakh in an offside position just beforehand, with both sides looking very dangerous on the counter attack.  

Cameron Jerome had a great opportunity to double the hosts' lead, after a great through ball found himself in space with only Jaaskelainen to beat, but the forward ran into space before hesitating and placing the ball to the goalkeeper's left where he dived just at the right time to parry the strike away from goal. 

Great save: Jaaskelainen dived the right way to keep West Ham in the game.

The West Ham players felt frustrated, annoyed and most importantly hard done by at the end of the game, because they ended up losing 1-0 away from home thanks to a goal they could have defended against and should have ended up winning after Downing's equaliser in the second-half and an offside goal in the first-half. 

Silly: West Ham wonderkid Ravel Morrison was given a yellow card at full-time for this (below)

Stupid: Ravel Morrison took his anger out at full-time, at Palace defender Joel Ward.

Controversial: Ravel Morrison is in the headlines again, this time for the wrong reasons.

Palace were obviously happy at full-time, glad for a vital three points with a tough run of fixtures to play;
with Cardiff, Chelsea, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Manchester City all to play from now until the 28th of December. 

Another positive to come out of this for Palace:
The fact that new manager Tony Pulis has taken over the club for less than two weeks, and has already won a match against a side everyone did not expect. The newly-promoted side look stronger and more of an attacking thorn already.... could they stay up with this kind of form? Who knows? 

Experienced: Stoke supporters are still scratching their heads as to why Pulis lost his job.

Improving: Tony Pulis has already won in charge of Palace, less than 2 weeks after taking over

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United - LIVE Commentary

Interesting game: Tottenham host United at home in a crunch match in the early kick-off.

Hello and welcome to my latest blog post, where I have a LIVE Commentary of an early afternoon kick-off on a Sunday, with Tottenham desperate to bounce back from a 6-0 thrashing against Manchester City to beat United at home today. 

Team Line-ups:

Tottenham:
Lloris, Walker, Dawson, Chiriches, Vertonghen, Sandro, Paulinho, Chadli, Dembele, Lennon, Soldado.

Is he good enough? Many people are criticizing Soldado's performances and whether he is good enough to succeed at Spurs

Pressure: Soldado has scored 6 goals in 14 games since his £26m move from Valencia.

Subs: Friedel, Kaboul, Holtby, Capoue, Townsend, Defoe, Sigurdsson.

Manchester United:
De Gea, Smalling, Vidic, Evans, Evra, Jones, Kagawa, Cleverley, Valencia, Welbeck and Rooney.

David De Gea is now the second youngest goalkeeper to play 100 games for United.

Subs: Lindegaard, Rafael, Anderson, Young, Nani, Hernandez and Fellaini. 

11:55 - 8th placed United travel to London to play against Spurs, who are a point and a place below them. A win for either side will move them into the top 4, even if it is just for a few hours based on the other matches being played today. 

11:58 - The teams have warmed up, and are ready to start the first-half of action at White Hart Lane. The atmosphere is building already...

12:00 - And the referee blows his whistle to start the first-half.

10: Tottenham have started the game lively, have not conceded as of yet which they could not say at this stage last week against Manchester City, conceding in the first 30 seconds of play. 
They are certainly taking the game to United, with pacy right-back Kyle Walker having the best chances on the flank but so far being unable to take his chances. 

13: Lloris comfortably catches a deflected strike by Smalling on the flank which bounced off Chiriches awkwardly towards the near post.

15: And now it's United who are looking bright, as if they are about to score. Cleverley and Rooney doing well to pass their way into the Spurs box, but defensive midfielder Sandro makes two great blocks to deny Rooney from breaking the deadlock.

17: Great footwork by Paulinho to get past the United defence, before he is brought down by Jonny Evans from 20 yards out. Dangerous free-kick for the hosts in a goal-scoring position, with Walker to take..

Walker can score a few decent free-kicks, anyone remember his strike against Blackburn last year?

18: GOAL! What did I say? Walker smashes the ball powerfully underneath a poorly-constructed United wall from 20 yards out to open the scoring for Spurs and give The Red Devils a wake-up call after starting out of the blocks slower than their hosts.

Taking advantage: Walker smashed the free-kick past the United defence to break the deadlock.

Breakthrough: Walker celebrated scoring his first goal for Spurs in 19 months.

20: Spurs have been pressing for the opener, but it's slightly a surprise that it has come like this! After their truly shocking performance against City, they have certainly turned it around - but there is still a long way to go before they take a famous three points from United. 

30: Still 1-0 to Spurs, with Soldado having missed a golden chance to double the lead for the hosts - Paulinho with a great through ball into his team-mate who hits the strike over the bar and kicks the advertising board in frustration. They could go on to rue missing that chance. 

31: GOAL! Manchester United have equalised thanks to none other than English talisman and striker Wayne Rooney! Great play by Phil Jones down the right flank with an unstoppable cross into the box for Rooney, Walker deflects off the ball straight into Rooney's feet to equalise! 1-1, and it's all to play for now - again!

35: Soldado will be absolutely kicking himself now for missing that golden chance to give Spurs a 2-0 lead, he is under increased pressure already, he needs a goal and soon.

36: Vertonghen does well to tackle Rooney and clear the ball away from the danger zone as United press for another goal. Rooney's workrate again today has been good, he's been everywhere working hard to win the ball and find a team-mate in space.

39: Tottenham looking dangerous on the counter attack as usual, with Lennon running fast on the overlap getting past Evra before crossing the ball into the box but no Spurs team-mates are in space to shoot and the English winger goes to ground.

44: United are looking as if they are ready to pounce on Spurs with another goal before half-time, but Tottenham want to go into the break with the scoreline intact at 1-1 - solid defending all-round.

45: The fourth official signals for just one minute of stoppage time to be added on at the end of the first-half, with United about to take a corner from Rooney.

45+1: Spurs partially clear the ball away twice before Chiriches finally smashes the ball away near the touchline. The referee blows his whistle for half-time as soon as the ball reaches the half-way line. 

HALF-TIME: Tottenham dominated the first 30 minutes but allowed their visitors time to get back into the match and create chances. 
Despite the fact that their defence has been solid, it is hard not to concede against a United team, especially when they are constantly pressing you in the centre of midfield and on the flanks. The equaliser eventually came through none other than Wayne Rooney, who scored his 8th EPL goal against Tottenham to make it 1-1. 

The game was always going to be interesting, but it will be even more interesting to see who gets the next goal - if there is another. 

13:00 - Second half has begun...

54: GOAL! Tottenham have gone back in-front, what a goal to make it 2-1! Defensive midfielder Sandro cuts inside from 25 yards out and wraps his foot around the ball around it cleanly to hit the ball past De Gea into the top corner of the net, who got nowhere near the ball. You can't exactly blame him either, it was truly an unstoppable finish. 

Absolutely stunning strike. Sublime goal. 

57: PENALTY! United win a penalty soon after Spurs go back in-front, with French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris rushing out to tackle Welbeck on the counter attack, bringing down the striker with a faint touch with his trailing arm. 

The hosts are not happy with the decision, and it looks slightly soft but it is a good decision nonetheless.

58: Rooney to take the penalty, he looks fearless as he steps up to shoot.... GOAL! United have equalised again, with Rooney scoring his second goal of the day, this time from the penalty spot. 2-2, and the game has opened up again!

65: Both sides going for the winner now even though there is 25 minutes to play, Rooney being denied by Chiriches and Welbeck doing well on the counter attack but no-one is in support to help him on the flank or inside the box.

67: Tottenham SUB:
Aaron Lennon OFF
Andros Townsend ON

Townsend replaces Lennon to a chorus of boos; the hosts feel that if anyone should be taken off, it should not be Lennon because he has worked hard on the flank throughout the game, whereas fellow winger Nacer Chadli has been anonymous so far.  

69: Cameras show that Tottenham striker and England player Jermain Defoe is getting ready to come on for Spurs, warming up and recieving instructions.

He has been in the newspapers recently, with transfer rumours running rampant about a potential move away from White Hart Lane in January to boost his World Cup selection hopes as he feels that he is not getting a significant amount of playing time to justify his place in Brazil next year.

72: Tottenham SUB:
Roberto Soldado OFF
Jermain Defoe ON

Soldado has seriously had a game to forget, missing a golden chance to double his side's lead in the first-half and he has not contributed as much to the play as he should have, just staying in the 16-yard box and waiting for a counter attack to begin constantly instead of tracking back and trying to win the ball. 

73: Manchester United SUB:
Danny Welbeck OFF
Javier Hernandez ON

Welbeck was relatively quiet in the first half for the most part, but was more involved in the play in the second half despite none of his team-mates supporting him in the box.
Super sub Hernandez replacing him isn't exactly the worst substitution in the world - he can score a goal either very early or very late on in a game. 

74: Townsend goes on another lung-busting run but nothing comes off it because his cross is cleared away by the United defence. He needs to skip past defenders and cut inside into the area and have a strike on goal instead of going down the flank to cross.

80: 10 minutes left plus stoppage time to play at White Hart Lane, still 2-2 with Spurs trying to keep pressure on United with yet another free-kick in a dangerous position.
Young and Nani are ready to come on for Manchester United meanwhile.

81: The free-kick is blocked well and United are able to clear effectively.

85: Manchester United SUB:
Antonio Valencia OFF
Shinji Kagawa OFF
Ashley Young ON
Nani ON

86: Tottenham SUB:
Nacer Chadli OFF
Gylfi Sigurdsson ON

90: The fourth official has signalled for 3 minutes of stoppage time to be added, on the electronic board. 

90+1: Both teams are both looking for the late winner, but I doubt it will come at this rate.

90+2: Last chance for United as an inviting ball into the box narrowly misses Hernandez's head at the far post, that's surely game over.

90+3: The referee Mike Dean blows his whistle to end the game at White Hart Lane, an entertaining 2-2 draw between two of the best teams in the English Premier League who are currently not exactly on the best of form in the league.

My Player Ratings and Man Of The Match: 

Tottenham:
Lloris - 6/10. 
Walker - 6/10.
Dawson - 5/10.
Chiriches - 7/10.
Vertonghen - 6/10.
Sandro - 7/10.
Dembele - 6/10.
Lennon - 7/10.
Townsend - 5/10.
Paulinho - 6/10.
Chadli - 4/10.
Sigurdsson - 5/10.
Soldado - 5/10.
Defoe - 4/10.

Manchester United:
De Gea - 6/10.
Smalling - 7/10.
Evans - 6/10.
Evra - 6/10.
Jones - 6/10.
Vidic - 6/10.
Cleverley - 5/10.
Valencia - 5/10.
Kagawa - 6/10.
Welbeck - 5/10.
Hernandez - 4/10.
Rooney - 9/10.

Wonderkid #4 - David Alaba

Growing into one of the best full-backs in the world, 21-year-old Bayern Munich left-back David Alaba has quickly burst onto the scene as an established but quick full-back who knows how to defend and can score with unpredictable movement and attacking intelligence.

Landmark achievement: David Alaba is one of the world's best full-backs, at age 21.

He burst onto the scene for both club and country in 2009 where he came up from the Bayern youth system to play for the first-team, and also broke Austria's record to become their youngest ever player to play for the senior team in the same year. 

Representing at international level: Alaba is a key player for both Austria and Bayern.

Talisman: Alaba has scored 6 goals in 30 senior appearances for his country.

He has impressed not only his club fans and fellow team-mates with his consistent performances at such a young age, but also other clubs in Europe are monitoring his progress just in-case he wants to leave Bayern or he suddenly becomes available. Among those teams are Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Facts and Figures:

FACT: Earlier this year in April, Alaba scored the seventh-fastest goal (25.02 seconds) in Champions League history to break the deadlock for Bayern in their 2-0 win over Juventus. 

That was quick: Alaba (jumping) pictured here is celebrating his goal against Juventus

FACT: In May, he played the full 90 minutes at left-back in the all-German Champions League final between Bayern and Dortmund, with his side winning 2-1.

No nonsense: Alaba is one of few full-backs who can both attack and defend.

Alaba has done well to sustain the kind of performances fellow full-back Lahm has done.

He became Bayern's youngest EVER player in a competitive match, at 17 years, 7 months and 8 days old - making his CL debut just 5 days later. 

He has made 164 appearances for Bayern Munich and Hoffenheim (on-loan) in total since his debut, scoring 14 goals and winning 8 title honours so far in his career (all with Bayern) 

He has recently won the Austrian Sports Personality of the Year for 2013, and has won the Austrian Footballer Of The Year twice in a row (2011 and 2012, 2013 still pending)

Potential: Alaba poses with team-mate Ribery as he wins the Austrian SPOTY 2013.

Saturday in the EPL - Merseyside Derby:

Hello and welcome to my latest blog post where I have a review + analysis of all of Saturday's EPL games including the Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool at Goodison Park as well as matches such as the London derby (West Ham vs Chelsea) and 1st placed Arsenal against 3rd placed Southampton. 

This blog post will be focused on the Merseyside derby itself, but the other matches will be published in a separate blog post :) 

Merseyside Derby:

The Merseyside derby rarely disappoints... it certainly did not on Saturday. 

Saturday saw one of the biggest derby games in the world see centre stage in the early afternoon kick-off from Goodison Park, with both sides impressing so far this season. 

Everton looked dangerous with Lukaku, Deulofeu, Barkley and Mirallas on their attacking force while Liverpool have had their best start to a season in a while thanks to the dangerous partnership of SAS - Sturridge and Suarez. 

The derby itself? One of the best Merseyside derbies to date, with both sides looking stronger than ever in their respective goals to qualify for European football for next season. 

Roberto Martinez vs Brendan Rodgers - two of the best managers in the league, helping their sides to improve.

Everton started the game off quickly, with Barkley and Pienaar doing well to get past the Liverpool back line a few times in the first few minutes of the game.

However, it was Liverpool who broke the deadlock after just 4 minutes thanks to a toe-poke by Brazillian midfielder Philippe Coutinho after he did well to anticipate movement from a Gerrard corner and clinically finished after Suarez pass the ball to his feet in the box. 

Anticipation: Coutinho did well to tap past Howard to break the deadlock.

First: Coutinho celebrates his 1st goal in a Merseyside derby to give Liverpool a lead.

FACT: This was Coutinho's first goal in a Merseyside derby.

FACT: This was the first goal that Everton had conceded in over 5 hours of play.

Everton felt hard done by after trailing, and upped the intensity. A few minutes later (in the 8th minute), Belgian forward Kevin Mirallas equalised for the hosts after a deep free-kick ball from full-back Leighton Baines fell to him inside the box to smash past Mignolet into the top corner from the far post.

Back: Mirallas sends the Everton faithful into celebration after equalising in the 8th minute

Everton were not allowed time or space on the ball after the equaliser, and went back behind in the 18th minute after a well-taken free-kick strike by Liverpool striker Luis Suarez from 20 yards out, with a swerving drive which curled around the wall into the bottom corner of the net out of reach for Tim Howard to save. 

World-class: Suarez gave Liverpool the lead again with a curling free-kick strike.

High reputation: Suarez celebrates yet another free-kick goal for Liverpool. Fantastic

A simply fantastic strike, from a great free-kick taker to give Liverpool the lead again without working extremely hard for it. 

English wonderkid midfielder Ross Barkley gave Mignolet something to save with a well-struck drive from 25 yards out near the box towards Lukaku, but the ball swerved towards the post instead of meeting the Belgian striker and Mignolet had to make a diving save to ensure he was not beaten for the second time in 20 minutes. 

At half-time, the score was 2-1 in Liverpool's favour despite Everton doing well to keep themselves in the game. There was controversy surrounding some tackles in the first-half, including Mirallas' late, high challenge on Suarez and Gerrard's elbow on Barry in the air - both challenges looked dangerous upon reflection on the replays, with Mirallas' the worst because it was high and had studs up.

Mirallas was lucky to still be on the pitch after this late challenge on Suarez in the first-half

Red card? Maybe, but his tackle was not intentional even though he was never winning the ball. 

The second-half started without any substitutions for either side, with many late tackles and challenges (just like you would expect in a derby game of this stature)

Everton equalised for the second time in the 70th minute after Barkley was brought down in a dangerous position by Brazillian defensive midfielder Lucas Leiva and the resulting set-piece was clinically slotted past Mignolet into the net to make it 2-2 thanks to Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku. 

Lukaku took the free-kick because regular taker Leighton Baines was substituted, and it was a deflected strike which was parried away by Mignolet but an Everton player got to the ball quickest to pass back across goal for McCarthy to Lukaku to slot past Mignolet. 

Clinical: Lukaku equalised in the 70th minute to make it 2-2, slotting past Mignolet.

Both teams looked dangerous on the counter attack in the last 20 minutes, with legs getting tired and therefore making there more space being allowed to take advantage of on the counter.

Everton looked even brighter than Liverpool, with pace on the break (Deulofeu, Mirallas, Barkley and Lukaku) with Barcelona forward loanee Deulofeu having two shots parried away well by Mignolet before an inviting cross fell to Lukaku who completed his brace with an unstoppable header past Mignolet to give The Toffees a 3-2 lead with 7 minutes plus stoppages to play.  

Power and strength: Lukaku scored an unstoppable header to give Everton the lead.

On-form: Lukaku celebrates his second of the day against Liverpool to make it 3-2.

Liverpool rode their luck well and made it 3-3 late in the game after an 88-minute header from a cross thanks to English striker Daniel Sturridge who took his chance well and equalised. 

Late equaliser: Sturridge celebrates his late header to make it 3-3 against Everton.

The fourth official held up his electronic board for 4 minutes of stoppage time, with a nervy couple of minutes for both sides. Moses almost gave Liverpool the lead in the 1st minute of stoppage time, before Suarez almost did the same with a bullet volley inside the box but was denied well by Howard's parry out for a corner. 

McCarthy almost scored before the final whistle, and Sturridge scored an offside goal in the 90+3rd minute before the referee blew his whistle to end the match. 

Here is how the table looked after the game had finished at Goodison Park:

Tight at the top: Everton are 3 points behind their local rivals Liverpool after the 3-3 draw.

Thank you for reading my blog post today as always, I will have more football content for you to read including the rest of Saturday's fixtures from the EPL and the derby game from the Bundesliga - Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich.

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England losing twice in 5 days - analysis + review:

England have already qualified for next year's summer World Cup in Brazil, after a nervy finish to their qualification group seeing off the likes of Poland and Ukraine to seal their spot at the international championships next year. However, last week (and this past Tuesday) they were given two very different tests against opposition they should be challenging for wins.

The first of these international friendly tests was against South American side Chile, with the likes of Barcelona forward Alexis Sanchez and Juventus powerhouse midfielder Arturo Vidal in their ranks in the starting line-up. Vidal was unavailable for the game, and Sanchez was forced to lead the line for his country in England at Wembley - lead the line he did well throughout scoring a brace against a helpless England second string with Fraser Forster being deputised as the number 1 goalkeeper ahead of under-fire Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart.

Helpless: Sanchez scored a brace as England lost 2-0 at home to Chile last week. 

Clinical: Barcelona forward Alexis Sanchez celebrates his first of two against England.

The second game was of a higher intensity and more important for England to win, against one of the best international teams in the world: Germany. 

The game was played on Tuesday, at Wembley with England taking the match more seriously than they did against Chile (because they were desperate to win in order to show the world they should be regarded as one of the best international sides in the world), meanwhile Germany brought out a second string side with only 4-5 first-team players in the starting line-up and some debutants who have not played for their country as much but have impressed at club level in the Bundesliga in recent months. 

One of these players was striker Max Kruse, who has 7 goals and 6 assists so far this season in the Bundesliga and was rewarded with a start in attack for Germany. He was playing as a lone striker as Reus and Gotze were assisting him on the flanks giving the England full-backs trouble throughout the game even though The Three Lions started the game better but did not take their chances.

Germany were soon settled into the game after 20-25 minutes, and you could instantly tell it was bad news for England, with Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker breaking the deadlock with a header past under-fire Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart after a great initial save but he failed to parry the follow-up header from the 6 foot 6 tall defender. That shows the difference between a good team and a great team - being clinical with chances. 

Unstoppable: Arsenal's Per Mertesacker scored the only goal of the game with a header.

Germany made substitutions throughout from the start of the second half, with the game opening up and Reus + Gotze easily getting past the English defence on the counter attack but were unable to take their chances. 

Tottenham winger Andros Townsend was a bright spark for England, with a spectacular 25-yard strike hitting the post beating Weidenfeller but not the woodwork as the hosts kept trying for an equaliser.  

In the end, Germany held on well for a 1-0 away win at Wembley - England's home turf. Another win. Away from home. Without going into fifth gear. With their second string side. 

Questions asked: England struggled against both Chile and a second string Germany side, which begs the question whether they'll do well at the World Cup next year.

Germany manager Joachim Low shakes hands with Roy Hodgson after the game.

Thank you for reading my blog post today as always, I apologise for any blog posts being published late but my schedule is busy and hectic at the moment which hinders me from publishing as consistently as I would like to.

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International Break - World-Cup Play-Off's:

Hello and welcome to my latest blog post where I have analysis and a review of all the international matches being played today, on Friday night where the World Cup Play-Off's are officially underway including the heavily-anticipated Zlatan vs Ronaldo: Sweden vs Portugual. 

Two of the world's best forwards in the world going head-to-head for a place at next year's World Cup in Brazil in June - only one will progress from the play-off's which means one will stay at home and we will miss their individual talent for their country. 

Individual contribution to club and country:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic:

Clubs:
1999-01: Malmo FF (40 apps, 16 goals)
2001-04: Ajax (74 apps, 35 goals)
2004-06: Juventus (70 apps, 23 goals)
2006-09: Inter Milan (88 apps, 57 goals)
2009-11: Barcelona (29 apps, 16 goals)
2010-11: AC Milan - loan (29 apps, 14 goals)
2011-12: AC Milan - permanent (32 apps, 28 goals)
2012 - : PSG (45 apps, 38 goals)

For Sweden:
From 2001, he has made 94 appearances and scored 46 goals. Talisman for both club and country, PSG need his presence or they just simply are not a complete team. 

Cristiano Ronaldo:

Clubs:
2002-03: Sporting CP (31 apps, 5 goals)
2003-09: Manchester United (196 apps, 84 goals)
2009 - Real Madrid (148 apps, 162 goals)

For Portugal: 
He has already got over 100 appearances, with 44 goals from 108 international caps for Portugal since 2003. The hub of his country. 

Zlatan vs Ronaldo: Two of the world's best go head-to-head for a spot at next year's WC.

EPL Super Sunday - Surprises and Shocks:

On remembrance Sunday, there were 4 matches being played in the EPL with both Manchester and London clubs all in action. Here were the games being played:

Tottenham Hotspur 0 Newcastle United 1

A big away win for Newcastle, their second win in two after their shock 2-0 victory at home against title-challengers Chelsea last week thanks to a 13th minute strike by French striker Loic Remy whose power finish beat Friedel and Spurs were unable to answer with a reply despite having shots on goal. Tottenham could have moved up into 3rd place with a home win, but Newcastle took their chance well and moved up 3 places into 11th with their second consecutive win against a London club this season.

Taking advantage: Remy slots the ball past Friedel and the Spurs defence to score.

Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul would have to be given the MOTM for that game, he made a lot of saves and was lucky not to concede at times due to the amount of Spurs pressing at his goal throughout the game. 

Unstoppable: Krul did all he could to deny Tottenham from scoring - and he kept a clean sheet.

Improvisation: Krul did well to deny Eriksen using his leg to parry the ball away.

Sunderland 1 Manchester City 0

Yes, you read that right! 19th placed Sunderland recorded a slender 1-0 crucial win against title-chasers Manchester City thanks to a goal by defender Phil Bardsley in the 22nd minute. A surprise lead for the hosts, but their visitors did not let them win easily, pressing hard for an equaliser especially in the last 20 minutes of the game but they were unable to score thanks to solid defending by centre-backs Phil Bardsley and Wes Brown despite pressure from Negredo, Aguero and Milner.  

Pinpoint: Bardsley did well to break the deadlock lifting the ball past Pantilmon to score.

Surprise scorer: Bardsley celebrates his 7th goal in 172 appearances for Sunderland.

Manchester United vs Arsenal - LIVE:

The 4.10pm kick-off's have just begun, with title-chasers United hosting the leaders Arsenal in a big clash of the two sides who want to win the title the most. 

Swansea City vs Stoke City - LIVE:

In the other game being played at 4.10pm, 14th placed Swansea host 18th placed Stoke in a mid-table clash. 

The Swans could move up to where Newcastle ended their game with a win, but Stoke are an unpredictable side who could score quickly or lose by a landslide.