Three Major Things From The Past Weekend

1. Liverpool Face Lengthy Spell Without Van Dijk

Liverpool played their city rivals Everton in the Merseyside Derby on Saturday at Goodison Park. The game ended 2-2 with Mohamed Salah scoring his 100th goal for Liverpool, becoming the third-fastest player to reach that milestone while Dominic Calvert-Lewin continued to score goals, scoring from a powerful header to salvage a point for the home side. The game wasn’t without controversy as Liverpool were denied a late winner from Jordan Henderson as the goal was ruled out for offside. Everton winger Richarlison was sent off for an aggressive challenge on Liverpool midfielder Thiago but the biggest one happened very early in the game when Jordan Pickford collided with Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk, resulting in an early substitution for the Dutchman. Now, the club has reported that the defender tore his ACL and will require surgery. Meaning he will be out possibly for the whole season. That will heavily alter Liverpool’s chances of retaining the title as Van Dijk has played every single league minute since making his debut in January 2018. The likes of Joel Matip and Joe Gomez will have to step but the Reds will surely miss their record signing defender.

2. Both Barcelona And Real Madrid Lose

There were some shock results in La Liga this past weekend but none expected both Barcelona and Real Madrid to lose in the same matchday for the first time since September 2018, with El Clasico coming up in a week. Real Madrid played against newly-promoted side Cadiz on Saturday at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano. Despite Madrid dominated possession and taking 14 shots, they were unable to break the Cadiz defence as the Andalusian side beat the defending champions 1-0 with Honduran striker Anthony Lozano scoring the winner in the 16th minute. As for Barcelona, they lost 1-0 against Getafe. The goal came in from the penalty spot from Jaime Mata after Frenkie de Jong brought down Djene Dakonam. Given the strangeness of the season already, both Real Madrid and Barcelona could struggle to win La Liga this season, and with El Clasico coming up, they will have to get back on track in a convincing way and quickly.

3. Osimhen and Nwankwo Highlight #EndSARS In Italy

Nigeria has been engulfed by the #EndSARS protests and many Nigerian personalities have highlighted that on social media. Both Victor Osimhen and Simeon Nwankwo used their platforms to highlight it in Serie A this past weekend. Osimhen, who became Napoli’s record signing, scored his first game for the club in Napoli’s 4-1 win against Atalanta on Saturday at the San Paolo. It was the fourth goal of the game with Mexican winger Hirving Lozano scoring a brace. A great day for the Naples side and for Osimhen but he delivered a message to the football world that should not be ignored. Simeon Nwankwo did the same thing in Crotone’s 1-1 draw against Juventus on Saturday. The Nigerian scored from the penalty spot to give the host a shock lead against the defending champions but Alvaro Morata scored to salvage a point for the Old Lady.