"Watching Micky van de Ven surge through the pretty much the entire FC Copenhagen team in the Champions League last week, two sensations occurred. The first was awe, that somebody so powerful and so quick would still have the composure to finish as he did. And the second was that this didn't feel entirely fair. It was as though Gulliver had landed himself a deal in the Lilliput Premier League."
"The same evening, Liverpool, who have at times struggled physically in the Premier League this season, bullied Real Madrid, their threat at set plays so marked that eventually it was the 5ft 7in Alexis Mac Allister who headed the vital goal. The following day, Newcastle swatted Athletic Bilbao aside, largely by being bigger than them: for the opening goal, the Spanish side's defence appears to have looked at Dan Burn and decided there was no point even trying to mark him."
Micky van de Ven overpowered nearly the entire FC Copenhagen team while retaining composure to finish clinically. Liverpool used physicality and set-piece threat to dominate Real Madrid, with Alexis Mac Allister heading the decisive goal. Newcastle relied on size to unsettle Athletic Bilbao, with Dan Burn effectively unmarked for the opener. The Premier League's physical advantage over most other competitions is especially pronounced at present. Elite football appears to be shifting toward a more direct, set-play-focused style, and English clubs are leading that shift. High-tempo, high-octane football faces challenges at international level because of heat and limited preparation time.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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