Matt Jones

When an established elite side are performing badly, you can’t help but watch. In the case of Chelsea, who have been in meltdown since the first day of the Premier League campaign, that’s been the case for a lot of fans, transfixed by the deterioration of class players and the undesirable antics of Jose Mourinho. […]

While a lot of the European leagues have settled down, for those in the United States, the competition is bubbling up to an intriguing climax. Indeed, this Sunday will see the conference semi-finals get underway in the MLS Cup and there are a couple of standout encounters included in or selections this weekend. In addition […]

Arsenal will be looking to continue their sparkling recent form when they host Everton in the Premier League on Saturday (12:30pm ET kickoff, live on NBC network in the United States). Three points for the Gunners would see them move to the summit of the Premier League table ahead of Sunday’s Manchester derby and after […]

At this stage of the domestic season there are regularly teams who have strung together a surprise run of early results. But as we edge closer to November, there seem to be a lot of sides, many who were written off before the campaign got underway, thriving in the upper reaches of the table. Our first […]

There was little flashy about Manchester United’s 3-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday. The Red Devils were supremely organized, tireless off the ball and ruthless in their attacking advances. Anthony Martial offered raw glimpses of his stunning potential, David de Gea made decisive stops when called upon and Chris Smalling continued his recent […]

Soccer is a sport of aesthetic delights. The ball crashing into the net off the underside of the crossbar, a perfectly timed sliding tackle, a goal in front of a raucous away end, a dinked finish over the goalkeeper; they’re minor facets which strike a chord with the game’s fanatic followers. Seeing a player who […]

There are few regions anywhere in the world that boast a history quite as rich as Merseyside when it comes to soccer. With Liverpool, Everton and Tranmere Rovers giving the region three teams who have long been in the upper echelons of the Football League pyramid, successes and heartbreaks, icons and villains, are often recounted in this […]

It’s dangerous to look at the Premier League table early on in the season, making the adulation Manchester United received after they scaled the summit following a 3-0 win against Sunderland a little premature. This current spell was always going to say more about Louis van Gaal’s reshaped side than the nascent stages of the […]

After a surprisingly entertaining international break, domestic soccer is back on the menu around the globe again this weekend. And while this week’s quintet of must-watch games don’t quite compare to the previous round’s almost perfect weekend of fixtures, there are still a plethora of tremendous matches to savor. There’s a treat from France to […]

For years now, the Merseyside derby previews penned for World Soccer Talk have been about Everton puffing their chest out and proactively wrestling back some initiative from local rivals, Liverpool. Sadly, for those who favor the blue half of the city, that shift in dynamic has never happened. It’s a due to a mindset which […]

Soccer fanatics in years to come will look back on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2015, and wonder if there’s ever been a day of action that rivals it. Across the globe there are a host of gripping clashes to savor between elite teams, bitter enemies and title competitors. Fans with an eclectic tastes would probably struggle to write a […]

In amongst what has been a whirlwind start for Manchester City in the 2015-16 season, the performances of Sergio Aguero have been a little overlooked. With just three goals scored in 10 appearances so far in all competitions in the early stages of this campaign, the Argentina international has been short of the levels which […]

It’s always entertaining when a division which has been dominated by a certain team starts with the champions a little out of sync, and that’s what’s happened in Serie A this season. No surprise, then, that two of our five selections this week do come from the Italian top flight, which has settled into an […]

There were plenty of parallels to draw between the fortunes of Everton and Ross Barkley last season. They were each jaded, tepid and lacking confidence. Fanatical supporters lost patience with both and were more than happy to make those feelings heard. The result was an underwhelming campaign; foreboding feelings of promise would go unfulfilled. At the start […]

Each of our five games comes from a different league this weekend, as domestic actions gets down to the weekly grind in a host of European leagues. Once again, there’s a cracking contest to come from the Premier League which will get the weekend underway, this time with two local rivals desperate to get their […]