Dominica players celebrate after edging BVI 2-1.
Concacaf
Both Dominica and Aruba clinched promotion to League B after they registered contrasting away victories in their respective League C Concacaf Nations League encounters on Thursday.
British Virgin Islands vs. Dominica
Dominica will be back in familiar territory in League B for the next edition of the Nations League, as they sealed promotion with a 2-1 win over British Virgin Islands in Group C at the A.O. Shirley Recreation Ground in Road Town, BVI.
With the result, Dominica are guaranteed of top spot in the three-team group with a match to spare. They are on seven points, while BVI, on five points, remain in the mix for promotion as the best-ranked second-place team in League C.
After playing out a goalless first half, where both teams created chances, the best of which fell to BVI, as Luka Chalwell's shot that was saved, while Taylor Scarff's header was tipped over the crossbar by Glenson Prince, in goal for Dominica.
Dominica's best effort in the first 45 minutes, fell to Javid George, whose right-footed effort came back off the post.
However, Dominica’s pressure finally bore fruit in the 52nd minute, as George played a cut-back pass to Audel Laville, who bounced home a shot for a 1-0 lead.
BVI replied 11 minutes later courtesy of T’Sharne Gallimore in the 63rd. Gallimore received a pass and then made a slick cut before curling a right-footed shot into net to make it 1-1.
But Dominica regained the ascendancy in the 68th through Eustace Marshall, who expertly headed home after being left unmarked in front of goal.
Dominica fended off a late BVI charge to nail down the precious three points and secure their place in League B.
US Virgin Islands vs. Aruba
Aruba are also on their way back to League B thanks to their 4-1 triumph over United States Virgin Islands in Group B at the Bethlehem Soccer Complex in Saint Croix.
The victory gives Aruba nine points from three games, five points ahead of second-place Cayman Islands.
It was an ideal start for Aruba, who grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 23rd through Jaydon Dania, who tapped in a cross from Benjamin Maria.
Aruba kept their foot on the gas, and doubled the advantage before halftime and it came in sensational fashion, as Rovien Ostiana launched a shot from over 50 yards out that sailed over the head of USVI's goalkeeper Dylan Ramos to make it 2-0 at the break.
USVI came out strong on the resumption and pulled one back in the 47th when Quinn Farrell headed in a weighted free kick from Zahmyre Harris.
Aruba restored their two-goal cushion in the 52nd, with Maria once again playing provider for Ostiana, who applied a tidy finish.
Maria then took one of his own when he converted from the penalty spot to cap the win and the three points for Aruba.
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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