Before Brazil's Copa America opener against Venezuela, there was a moment of silence to recognise the victims of the pandemic and those leading the fight against COVID-19.
It was a poignant scene. Somehow, it was made more powerful by the fact it was staged in front of thousands of empty seats at Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha, the fans kept away from matches at a tournament held in part as a distraction from the global health crisis.
Yet the Selecao's simple victory, secured through goals by Marquinhos, Neymar and Gabriel Barbosa, only compounded the uncomfortable feeling that, perhaps, this tournament shouldn't be taking place at all.
CONMEBOL's decision to remove the event from co-hosts Colombia and Argentina over concerns around civil unrest and coronavirus cases, and relocate it to a country struggling with both, was questionable to say the least. The Brazil squad certainly thought so, reluctantly taking part only after making it clear they were deeply unhappy with South American football's governing body. Head coach Tite decried it as a "politicised" decision.
In the weeks leading up to the tournament, protests erupted across the country against the handling of the pandemic by president Jair Bolsonaro, who has been criticised for playing down the severity of a virus that has killed more than 460,000 of his citizens. Then, just when Brazil had agreed to play, Sunday's opponents were struck by a surge of positive test results, wrecking their preparations for a match where few gave them a chance anyway.
So it was that the Brazil and Venezuela players stood arm in arm in the centre circle on Sunday, in silent tribute before those empty red seats, faceless reminders of the awful toll COVID-19 has taken. It felt like this was why these teams had gathered here, that the football match to follow was an afterthought.
There were still things to admire about the subsequent 90 minutes. A depleted Venezuela performed admirably to keep Brazil at arm's length for 23 minutes and rode their luck when Richarlison's touch let him down and Gabriel Jesus steered a header wide. It took a set-piece for Tite's mean to break through, Marquinhos bundling the ball in from Neymar's delivery.
Joel Graterol in the Vinotinto goal had kept the scoreline down but was beaten again just past the hour mark, Neymar side-stepping and stuttering his way to the penalty spot before slotting home international goal number 67 after a foul on Danilo. Brazil's number 10 would have had two more sublime solo goals had his shooting been a little more accurate; instead, he put a pinpoint cross into Gabriel's chest for 3-0 after another drive into the box.
The players celebrated their goals with gusto but, after the full-time whistle echoed around the arena, there were few cheers or beaming smiles. This was job done, formalities over, onto the next one. They retreated back down the tunnel. The eerie silence lingered.
Zenden: Off-the-field uncertainty at Man Utd unhelpful for Ten Hag
Boudewijn Zenden believes ongoings off the pitch at Old Trafford have not made Erik ten Hag's time at Manchester United any easier.
Ten Hag's first season at Old Trafford was promising, finishing in the top four and ending the club's trophy drought as the Red Devils lifted the EFL Cup.
However, Ten Hag's second season in Manchester has not reached the same standards, and though the club will face rivals Manchester City at Wembley in the FA Cup final later this month, United currently sit eighth in the Premier League, 14 points off the Champions League places.
Ten Hag's tenure at Old Trafford has included a number of off-the-field incidents, with a fallout between himself and Jadon Sancho leading to the winger going out on loan to Borussia Dortmund, while Jim Ratcliffe also became co-owner of the club earlier this year.
Zenden feels that events off the pitch have not made Ten Hag's job easy, as well as the lofty expectations that managing a club the size of United comes with.
"I have a feeling a bit that at United, there's more going on than just the results, and that doesn't make it easy for Ten Hag," Zenden told Stats Perform. "As I said, you have the press, the pundits that all have their view on United.
"That also comes probably with the frustration of the fact that United are one of the biggest clubs in the world that also had their time in Europe where they were very strong.
"For that matter, they were a little bit off the pace, and that upsets people of course. You have to be able to guide the club, the team, the players, the crowd, everybody through that particular period and seize out the storm."
With United stumbling in the Premier League, Ten Hag has come into increasing conflict with reporters of late.
Ten Hag's countryman Arne Slot is reportedly in the frame for the Liverpool job with current incumbent Jurgen Klopp leaving at the end of the season.
Zenden believes Slot's composure with the media will serve him well should he join Liverpool, an area where he feels Ten Hag has sometimes been lacking.
"I think what could be in Slot's favour is that I think he's relatively calm in his press conferences," Zenden continued. "I don't think he will get tempted quickly to start an argument with the press.
"I'm sure the press will be happy to try and lure him out to get a few controversial phrases out, but the way I look at it now, I think he's a little bit more composed.
"This is something that maybe Ten Hag didn't help himself with also a few times this year. There's been a lot of upset. The results have not been what probably everybody would have expected."
Chelsea 5-0 West Ham: Five-star Blues run riot again at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea claimed another big win at Stamford Bridge on Sunday as they swatted aside West Ham 5-0 to further boost their European hopes.
In the hosts’ second London Derby of the week, Cole Palmer was joined on the scoresheet by Noni Madueke, Connor Gallagher, and Nicolas Jackson, who was at the double.
Palmer’s 15th-minute opener, Gallagher’s volley and Madueke’s header put Chelsea in complete control by the interval, with Jackson’s second half brace providing the icing on the cake.
The victory lifts Chelsea up to seventh, above Manchester United – who face Crystal Palace on Monday – while out-of-form West Ham remain in ninth, with their chances of European qualification all but over.
West Ham broke troubled Djordje Petrovic with a direct Jarrod Bowen corner early on. Caught unsighted, the Serbian had to palm away.
Yet Chelsea had the lead when Palmer was on hand to score his 21st goal of the season after Jackson’s cross had ricocheted off former Blues defender Kurt Zouma.
Bowen struck the crossbar with a fierce header, but Chelsea doubled their lead on the half-hour – Zouma’s block falling kindly for Gallagher, who thundered in on the volley.
It was 3-0 just six minutes later thanks to Madueke, who was on hand on to nod in from Thiago Silva’s flick on.
Gallagher and Bowen exchanged efforts off the crossbar before the interval, after which Chelsea grabbed their fourth when Madueke turned provider for Jackson to tap home.
Bowen struck the crossbar for a third time in the 79th minute, yet Chelsea were soon celebrating again as Jackson broke away and found the bottom-right corner. Although it was initially disallowed for offside, the goal was awarded after a VAR review, as the Blues capped off a dominant performance to move into their highest league position of the season.
Goals easy to come by at the Bridge as Chelsea share the load
Chelsea have now scored 16 goals in their last four home games, and there is clearly now some cohesion to the attacking unit, especially at Stamford Bridge. Indeed, their home record is now 10 wins, four draws, and four losses in 18 Premier League contests.
Palmer was typically brilliant. He has now scored or assisted against 14 different Premier League opponents this season for Chelsea.
He became just the seventh player to have scored or assisted against 14 different teams in a Premier League season for the Blues, most recently Eden Hazard in 2018-19 (15).
But Chelsea shared the load on Sunday, with Madueke and Jackson both ending the day having scored and assisted, so the pressure is not all on Palmer, at least.
Moyes’ west London woe
David Moyes has never won an away Premier League match against Chelsea, now failing with his 19th attempt (D7 L12).
The only instance of a manager taking charge of as many matches at a venue without winning is Moyes himself at Anfield (19 games).
Indeed, Mauricio Pochettino is the 11th different Blues boss Moyes has lost to at Stamford Bridge during his 22 years as a Premier League manager across spells with Everton, Man United, Sunderland and West Ham.
It does look like a sour ending for Moyes at West Ham. He is soon out of contract and both Ruben Amorim and Julen Lopetegui have been heavily linked.
PSV crowned Eredivise champions for the first time in six years
PSV secured the Eredivisie title for the 25th time in the club’s history with a 4-2 win over Sparta Rotterdam on Sunday, ending a six-year wait for a title.
They needed just one point to make sure of top spot with two games to spare, with this victory moving them 12 points clear of Arne Slot’s Feyenoord in second.
Peter Bosz’s side have enjoyed a dominant campaign, scoring an impressive 107 goals, and conceding just 19 on their way to the title.
PSV had to come from behind after Metinho’s early goal for Rotterdam but fought back through Said Bakari and Johan Bakayoko’s own goal.
Despite being pegged back by an own goal by Olivier Boscagli, PSV rallied in the second half, with the defender atoning for his error before Jordan Teze made sure of the points.
PSV are the second-most successful club in Eredivisie history, behind only Ajax, who hold 36 titles.
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