@McKane

In a Nations League group featuring Germany, Italy, England and Hungary one would've expected Germany to top the group, Italy and England to tussle for second position while Hungary gets relegated. However, reverse is the case here. With one round of games to go, Hungary tops the table on 10 points, Italy is second on 8 points, Germany sits third while England gets relegated. A home draw for Hungary against Italy next week qualifies them for the semifinals. That's hugely unexpected. If Italy wins in Hungary, they will advance from the group. That's a huge surprise for a team that has struggled since winning Euro 2020 (or 2021, whichever you choose to call it). Even till now I still don't understand what the Nations League is all about. But, this group has served plenty of excitement.

For some reasons, I forgot to update my FPL team before the Friday deadline despite warning other managers against it. I will be lucky to score 30 points this week.

Roger Federer is retiring after the Laver Cup. What a career he's had. He is the biggest inspiration to this current generation of tennis players.

The man who made me fall in love with Tennis is retiring. Thank you, Roger, for all you've done. You are the greatest of this generation.

Bayern Munich and Barcelona played out a highly entertaining match last night. The attacking intent was relentless, which is what makes football an enjoyable watch. However, Barcelona surprisingly couldn't score a single goal despite having at least three goal scoring opportunities. Lewandowski was guilty for wasting two gilt edged chances. Others overplayed when they should shoot the ball. In all, the match was a good assessment of Barcelona's growth since the summer splurge that led to a lot of quality incomings. They will learn from this and improve.

Getting set for the Bayern vs Barcelona match. Won't miss a single minute of that thriller. #ChampionsLeague

Six straight wins, a 116 point advantage with six races to go; surely, nothing will stop Max Verstappen from claiming his second F1 championship now. Even though last year's win was laced with controversy, no one can deny the fact that he deserved the win. He's only gone ahead to solidify his claim to being the best driver in F1 with a more impressive performance this season. A lot of people will point to rule changes being the deciding factor in Verstappen's dominant displays this season. Well, Hamilton only had one championship in 8 years before the rule change that propelled Mercedes to the fore.

Even though EPL games have been postponed, do not forget to make necessary FPL transfers on time. The next time you check, that player you desperately wants to get in may have a bloated price. Check your teams before its too late.

Graham Potter has been appointed Chelsea's manager on a 5 year deal, less than 40 hours after Thomas Tuchel was sacked.

Already joined the noise.app movement, I'm feeling excited right now. https://noise.app/McKane

Europa League is really back, and I'm excited. But, what worries me the most is Ronaldo's mindset. Will he play against Real Sociedad tonight? He spent the whole summer trying to engineer a move to a Champions League playing club. Whatever happens tonight, tongues will wag about Ronaldo tomorrow morning.

Club1BCH Fantasy Premier League Week 6 Review https://read.cash/@McIrx/club1bch-fantasy-premier-league-week-6-review-ee6e904b

Aston Villa 1:1 Man City Thank you, Aston Villa for slowing down the speedily moving Manchester City train. Haaland scored his 10th goal in just six EPL games for City. That dude is a beast. Will the 1-1 draw save Gerrard? It's not enough, but it will buy him three more games to save his job.

9 Is The Magic Number https://ecency.com/hive-101690/@mckane/9-is-the-magic-number Dundee United, FC Bournemouth, what do they have in common right now?

Jorge Mendes wants to negotiate a Ronaldo-Osimhen swap. I hope it works; Osimhen is young, fast and physical. However, Aurelio de Laurentiis is a tough negotiator. He values Osimhen at over £100M and won't take less. If Man U buys Antony there is no way they are pulling off another expensive deal this summer.

Wolves once again suffered the harsh reality of the Premier League. Whenever you are dominating, take your chances else you will be punished. Wolves ended the first half with 12 shots, Spurs had just 1 shot. The game ended Spurs 1 : 0 Wolves.

Problem Solver? https://ecency.com/hive-101690/@mckane/problem-solver Casemiro's move to troubled Manchester United is close to being completed. Will he come in to help the team forward? Or, will he join the list of top players who moved to Old Trafford and become nothing?

Casemiro to Man U is reportedly close. If he joins, he will definitely be an upgrade on the mediocre central midfielders currently on the club's books.

Last night's Battle of the Bridge II was an instant classic! A beautiful game with high tempo. It has everything ; drama, intrigue, last minute goals, coaches squaring up to each other. Phew! What a game.

New season, same old story. Manchester City just walloped Bournemouth, putting four goals past them. Actually, it should've been more than those four goals. Though it's early season, the signs are ominous; City should win this one yet again.

Hi, My Name Is... https://ecency.com/introduceyourself/@mckane/hi-my-name-is Learnt it's always good to introduce oneself on Hive, so I came up with this. I discussed a little about myself. Big thanks to those who helped me all the way.

When all is said and done and everyone has gone to bed, Jurgen Klopp will sit quietly on a chair. He will get a mirror and stare at it, with only one question going through his mind, why didn't I start Nunez?

Does Lyrics Really Matter? https://read.cash/@McIrx/does-lyrics-really-matter-0fec35b2 So, I deviated from writing about football. I wrote about listening to songs I barely understand the language or lyrics, and how I do feel about it. I think its quite relatable as we've all at some point gyrated to a song which we have no clue what the singer was saying.

Trouble in Leicester? https://read.cash/@McIrx/trouble-in-leicester-dc627850 Leicester City are flirting with trouble. Yet to sign a single player with just over a month of the transfer window, and letting go some of their best players. They may regret their inactivity in few years time. The Premier League is too mean to be taken for granted!

Transfer Drama https://ecency.com/hive-101690/@mckane/transfer-drama So, I finally have enough resource credits to post on Hive. I dropped an article on the drama surrounding this summer's transfer window. It's still my first week and I'm quietly learning to navigate the platform, but couldn't find a way to add an headline image to the post. Anyway, it's definitely an interesting read. Also, I'm open to suggestions on how to maximize the platform.

Happy to see Bernd Leno finally depart for another club. He was crucial at some point at Arsenal, but I felt he was grossly maltreated since the arrival of Ramsdale. Good luck, Bernd.

Here once again with the preview of Premier League teams before the first game of the season is played this Friday. I'm starting with Man City, last season's champion. https://read.cash/@McIrx/season-preview-manchester-city-4c81b3a7

I've been hugely impressed with Manchester City's decisiveness in this summer transfer window so far. They sold players that needed to be moved on, got in players they want without paying over the odds for them, and kept those they need without any drama or noisemaking. Impeccable business concept. I thought they will go all in for Cucurella but they stood their ground with their £30M offer, while the desperate Chelsea is about to pay £50M for the player. Afterall, Nathan Ake can always fill in at left back if Cancelo becomes unavailable. So they need not pay over the odds for a backup. Another wonderful decision making.

Finally, I Found Motivation https://read.cash/@McIrx/finally-i-found-motivation-c25b4c17 This is my 'introductory' post on read.cash explaining why it took me so long to take the platform seriously despite having an account a year ago. Do enjoy the read.

80 points is definitely way too big to close, especially when the closest competitor is highly inconsistent. For supporters of Red Bull and Max, the season has been incredible. For me, the season has been average so far. Only a miraculous capitulation will deny Max his second title. And this time, it won't be controversial.