European Team of the Season

All of Europe’s major leagues have drawn to a close, and it is that time when we look back and reflect on the star performers over the last 9 months. There have been many players bursting onto the scene this season, many upcoming young players enhancing their reputations, and many established stars continuing to do what they do best. Here are my picks for the best players across the five major leagues.

GK: Thibaut Courtois, Atletico Madrid

The Belgian keeper, still only 22 years old, has progressed more than anyone could have imagined in his three years on loan in Madrid from Chelsea. This season has been simply incredible for Madrid’s second club, as they won their first La Liga title since 1996, and were within  a few minutes of winning a first ever Champions League. Diego Costa grabbed the headlines for them, but equally as important was their outstanding defence and goalkeeper. As Courtois won’t be able to return to Atletico next season due to the rule forbidding players from spending more than three years on loan at the same club during one contract, he is at something of a crossroads in his career. He has stated that he has no emotional attachment to parent club Chelsea, and as one of the world’s best keepers he would not be prepared to be the understudy to Petr Cech. He had been linked with Barcelona, but their capture of fellow young keeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen seems to have scuppered any chance of him moving there. There is always the chance Atletico could sign him permanently, but would Chelsea be prepared to let him leave? The most likely outcome is that he will return to Chelsea and become their number one, and Petr Cech will move on.

RB: Serge Aurier, Toulouse

He might not be the most famous name, but the versatile Ivorian Aurier has had as good a season as anyone. The attacking right back has contributed 6 goals and 6 assists in the league for Toulouse, which is a record any full back would be proud of. He has also played at centre back and right midfield. Aurier is only 21 still, and is set to play at the World Cup for the Ivory Coast, which will see his stock rise even more if he puts in a good showing. Toulouse only finished 9th in Ligue 1, so it is unlikely they will be able to hold on to him over the summer. He has been strongly linked with Arsenal as a replacement for the departing Bacary Sagna, and if they were to be able to sign him, it would be a very smart piece of business.

CB: Diego Godin, Atletico Madrid

Another crucial member of Atletico Madrid’s squad is the Uruguayan defender Diego Godin, who has been described as their John Terry due to his willingness to throw himself in front of anything. He has a perfect partnership with Miranda, and there is very little between the two of them. The team conceded only 26 goals in their 38 league games thanks mainly to this pair and the keeper behind them. They put in the defensive performance of their lives in the Champions League final, keeping Real at bay for 92 minutes, and it was so close to being enough to win them the trophy.

CB: Mehdi Benatia, Roma

In the first 10 rounds of Serie A, Roma won every single game, and somehow conceded just a single goal in those 10 games. A big reason for that is Moroccan defender Benatia, a summer arrival from Udinese for around £10million. He is arguably now worth around three times that. Last season Roma were excellent going forward but hopeless at the back, and after bringing in Benatia to solve that problem, they were able to return to the Champions League, and for much of the season, they were pushing Juventus all the way for the title. Sadly for Roma, Benatia seems set on a move away to Barcelona. If he were to make that move, it would be exactly the signing Barcelona need to make to return to challenging for the Champions League.

LB: Ricardo Rodriguez, Wolfsburg

Wolfsburg had their best season in a long time, and a big part of that was the 21-year old full back Rodriguez. Rodriguez has excellent stats for a full back, scoring 5 goals and making 9 assists in the Bundesliga, and he is considered one of the best crossers of a ball in the game. Next season, with Wolfsburg in the Europa League, he will get to show what he can do on the European stage, and more people will stand up and take notice of him.

DM: Philipp Lahm, Bayern Munich

The captain of last season’s treble winners has always been one of the most consistent players in the world. That was no different this season, and he took to playing in a new position as if he was born to it. Traditionally a full back, he played mainly as a defensive midfielder this season, and did it so well he kept Javi Martinez, one of the world’s best defensive midfielders, out of the team. Pep Guardiola has called him the most intelligent player he has ever coached – high praise from a man who has coached geniuses such as Xavi, Iniesta and Messi. Sergio Busquets was credited as one of the most important players for Barcelona under Guardiola, and Lahm has all the attributes to play the same role for him at Bayern.

CM: Yaya Toure, Manchester City

In 2010, Manchester City spent £28million on a defensive midfielder called Yaya Toure. This year, that same Yaya Toure finished as the top scorer in a squad containing Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Alvaro Negredo. He has been transformed from a decent defensive midfielder into a colossal attacking powerhouse. The goal he scored in the penultimate game of City’s title-winning season, summed up his season, when he picked the ball up deep in his own half, and just run all the way down the pitch, shrugging off challenge after challenge, and expertly finishing it off. He has also become something of a free kick specialist this season, and to have finished with 20 goals in the league is simply remarkable for a midfielder. The best business City could do this summer is convince him to stay, because he is simply irreplaceable.

CM: Angel Di Maria, Real Madrid

The arrival of Gareth Bale at Real Madrid seemed to signal the end of Di Maria’s time at the club. 9 months on, Di Maria arguably outshined the Welshman, playing in a different position and still managing to contribute 17 assists in La Liga. He was named man of the match in the Champions League final against Atletico, a game when Bale and Ronaldo were virtually anonymous. After being seemingly discarded by Real, he emerged as one of their most important players.

RW: Alexis Sanchez, Barcelona

Alexis has constantly been outshone at Barcelona by his more glamorous team mates, and with the arrival of Neymar this summer, many didn’t think he would get a look in any more. Despite an excellent season when he scored 19 goals and made 10 assists in the league, he continues to be unappreciated by Barcelona, with them reportedly offering him to other clubs to make room for new signings. Whoever signs him will be getting a brilliant player at probably a bargain price.

LW: Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid

After being continually outshone by Lionel Messi ever since he moved to Spain, this was the season when Ronaldo finally stepped out from behind Messi’s shadow. With the little Argentine sidelined by injury for several months, Ronaldo took the opportunity to fire Real Madrid to the Champion’s League title, scoring a record 17 goals in the competition. and a total of 51 goals in 47 games. His statistics since joining Real Madrid continue to defy logic, and now the argument for who the best player in the world is is more difficult than ever before.

ST: Luis Suarez, Liverpool

Love him or loathe him – and most people do the latter – Luis Suarez was easily the best player in the Premier League this season, and almost single-handedly dragged Liverpool to what would have been an unbelievable title win. His 31 goals and 12 assists in the league are even more remarkable considering he missed the first 6 games of the season, and they were enough to win him the Player of the Year award. And yet he came so close to leaving Liverpool before the season started – some Liverpool fans were even hoping he would leave after bringing so much controversy to the club. Those people have almost certainly changed their minds about him now, even if does still infuriate many with his diving antics.

Substitutes

GK: Keylor Navas, Levante

It was a big surprise when the Costa Rican Navas was named in La Liga’s team of the season over Courtois, but it was totally deserved. In his first season as a first choice keeper in La Liga, he kept 15 clean sheets for mid-table Levante.

CB: Sergio Ramos, Real Madrid

It was his last-gasp goal in the Champions League final that allowed Real to go on and win in extra time, and that was the pinnacle of a season when many believe he proved himself as the best defender in the world.

RB: Seamus Coleman, Everton

Coleman, and Leighton Baines on the opposite flank, were a major reason for Everton’s excellent season, and at £60k he is one of the best bargains in football.

CM: Arturo Vidal, Juventus

While Juventus continue to dominate in Italy, they flopped in European competition this season, despite Vidal’s heroics. He is a very well-rounded footballer, scoring 11 league goals and also defending very well.

LW: Antoine Griezmann, Real Sociedad

The Frenchman who has spent his whole career so far in Spain had his best season yet, scoring 16 league goals. and scored an incredible overhead kick to take Sociedad into the Champions League group stage. At only 23, he will only get better.

RW: Eden Hazard, Chelsea

Hazard improved on his first season at Chelsea, scoring 14 goals and assisting 7. He was also crucial in their run to the Champions League semi finals.

ST: Lionel Messi, Barcelona

He may have had a ‘below-par’ season in the minds of some, but Messi was still the second-highest scoring player in Europe behind Ronaldo, with 36 goals in 38 games. He now heads to a World Cup many are tipping Argentina to win, and if he were to help them do so, he would surely go down as the best player of all time.

Game of Thrones Review: S4E7 “Mockingbird”

The season is really hotting up now, with shocking events coming in every episode, and this one was no different. Spoilers to come.

After Tyrion’s epic speech at the end of episode 6, everyone wanted to know who he would name as his champion for his trial by combat. Jaime however was not impressed by his outburst, having negotiated with their father to get Tyrion away with his life. Jaime tells Tyrion he can’t be his champion – he is simply no good with his left hand. Tyrion sends Jaime to find Bronn, and asks who Cersei will be naming as her champion. The answer probably didn’t make him very happy – she has named the Mountain, Gregor Clegane, the gigantic, psychopathic knight who we now see for the first time since season 2. If you didn’t recognise him, it’s probably because this is the 3rd actor to play him. We see him slaughtering some random peasants (because he’s crazy?) and Cersei looks pretty impressed. 

We then found ourselves with his little(but still pretty big) brother the Hound and Arya. After a conversation with a farmer that dragged on a bit too long, they gave him the gift of mercy, and then Sandor was attacked by Biter, and received a nasty neck wound. Rorge was also there, and Arya stabbed him through the heart, although it was a bit daft that he didn’t even try to defend himself. Later on, the Hound’s wound isn’t doing well, and he refuses to let Arya burn out the corruption because of his terrible fear of fire. He says he wishes he’d never taken her captive.

Jon then returned to the Wall after his excursion to Craster’s. He failed to convince Alliser Thorne to seal the tunnel, insisting that it would be impossible to defend the tunnel from the giants in Mance Rayder’s army. The battle at the wall is set to take up the entirety of of episode 9, as the battle at the Blackwater did in season 2, and it should be a pretty spectacular affair. 

We then returned to Tyrion’s chamber as Bronn arrived sporting some fancy new clothes. Cersei has got to him before Tyrion could, and sorted him out a marriage to a woman far above his station. Despite Tyrion’s pleas, Bronn bluntly explains that it isn’t worth the risk of fighting the Mountain. Bronn is an opportunist – he fought for Tyrion at the Eyrie because he thought he could win, and he had nothing to lose at the time, but this fight simply isn’t worth the risk. They said an emotional goodbye, and one of the best partnerships in the show came to an end. On the bright side, it has been leaked that Bronn’s new wife, Lollys Stokeworth, is being cast for season five, which means Bronn should be coming back next season.

Across the world to Meereen, and Daario’s attempts to woo Daenerys are finally paying off. Dany’s storyline has been a weak point all season, and sadly that will probably continue into next season if there aren’t big changes from the books. Jorah expresses his distrust of Daario, and why Dany’s plan to execute all of the slave masters in Yunkai is a bad idea. She agrees with him, and Daario is sent off to retake the slave city. 

If you were disappointed that Dany’s sex scene with Daario was left to the imagination, never fear because Melisandre is taking a bath. Her scene with Selyse seemed like it was just there to get some nudity into the episode, not that I’m complaining. Brienne and Podrick met up with a familiar face from season 3, Hot Pie. Their scenes haven’t really been thrilling thus far, but that will hopefully change soon. 

Time for one last visitor to Tyrion’s chamber – Oberyn Martell. He tells the story of when they first met, while Tyrion was still a baby, and Cersei blamed him for their mother’s death. Oberyn then makes the offer to be Tyrion’s champion. It was a really emotional and well acted scene, and increased the love for Oberyn even more. 

To cap off the episode, we visited the Eyrie. Sansa built her snow version of Winterfell, before Robin came and stomped on it. Sansa slapping him was rather out of character, but most show viewers probably didn’t mind. Then it was time for what 3 seasons of Littlefinger’s creepiness had led up to – his kiss with Sansa, with his new wife Lysa looking on from above. Lysa then summoned Sansa to the Moon Door – and almost threw her out of it. Littlefinger talks her out of it, and explains that he doesn’t love Sansa, he’s only ever loved one woman – only Cat. He then shoved Lysa out of the Moon Door. Why exactly the line ‘Only Cat’, one of the most iconic lines of the series, was changed is a mystery – but it was still a shocking moment, and further demonstrated the lengths Littlefinger will go to to get what he wants. 

9/10

What can West Ham expect from Mauro Zárate?

West Ham have completed the signing of 27 year old Argentine striker Mauro Zarate from Velez Sarsfield. Having been one of Europe’s biggest young talents several years ago, Zarate fell off the radar somewhat recently, but he is still an excellent player, and should he play to his best, he will be an amazing signing for West Ham. He is also one of my favourite players, so I really hope he is a success in the Premier League.

Club History

Mauro began his career at Velez Sarsfield in Argentina. At 17, he was promoted from the youth team into the first team. His breakout season was in 2006/07, when he scored 19 goals, and was promptly signed for around £15m by Qatari side Al-Sadd. After only six months in Qatar, he joined Birmingham City on loan for six months of the 2007/08 season. He scored 4 goals in 14 appearances for Birmingham, not enough to keep them from relegation, but although he was only there for a brief period, he scored some memorable goals and Blues fans have fond memories of him. The following season, he joined Serie A side Lazio on loan, and that was the season he really burst onto the scene of European football. He scored 13 goals in Serie A, and also helping them to win the Coppa Italia with a goal in the semi-final and final. His performances for Lazio convinced the normally stingy president Claudio Lotito to splash out £20m for his permanent signing. However, his next season would be something of a let down, as he only scored 3 league goals, and only 8 in total. The next season was a little better, with 9 goals, but the manager Edy Reja was critical of his use of the ball, saying he is “too in love with the ball” and should pass more. In 2011/12, he went on loan to Inter Milan, scoring just twice in 22 league appearances, although he was used mainly as a substitute. When Inter decided against making his signing permanent, he returned to Lazio, and with Reja gone, he got his head down and prepared for the new season at Lazio. However, despite playing regularly in the Europe League, manager Petkovic couldn’t find room for him in the team for league games. This led to a falling out with the management, and he was ostracised from the team. He ended the season with only league appearance, and just one goal in the Europa League. His Lazio contract was terminated at the end of the season, and he returned to his first club Velez. This move seems to have revitalised him – he finished the top scorer in Argentina last season, with a tally of 20 goals in 35 games in all competitions. This has persuaded Sam Allardyce to bring him to West Ham.

Style of Play

Zarate is most comfortable playing up front, but he has also played on the left wing, allowing him to cut inside onto his stronger right foot. He is a very pacy and skillful dribbler, but has often been accused of being too greedy. He has scored several free kicks and spectacular long range strikes in his time, and he certainly has an eye for the spectacular. The best way for West Ham to utilise him would probably be in a front two with Andy Carroll, allowing him to benefit from Carroll’s flick-ons.

After showing so much early promise, Zarate clearly became unhappy in Italy and failed to play like he could. However, his brilliant form in Argentina shows that he is still an excellent player, and if Big Sam can find a way to get him playing to his best, there is no reason why he can’t be a brilliant addition to the Premier League. As a big fan of him myself, I wish him all the best.

Game of Thrones Review: S4E6 “The Laws of Gods and Men”

Somehow, we’re already half way through season four already. But this isn’t just a bad thing, because this is the time when things really start going crazy. So much is going to happen in the remainder of the season, and it’s going to amazing. Spoilers to come. 

After two episodes without them, Stannis and Davos returned, and they arrived at one of the most interesting places in the world of ASOIAF – Braavos, with the Titan guarding the entrance to the bay. They were going to the Iron Bank to appeal for some of their gold. After declining the offer at first, an impassioned and well-argued speech from Davos managed to sway the bankers. If Stannis had all the awesome lines in the book’s version of this storyline, Davos is getting them in the show. Salladhor Saan also made his first appearance since season three, and he is always entertaining. 

Another returning face was Asha (or if you prefer, Yara) Greyjoy. Her mission to rescue Theon from Ramsay Snow was a big change from the book and spawned many theories about how it would tie in to the Ironborn storyline, but in the end it fell a bit flat. After fighting their way through the Dreadfort, the islanders beat a hasty retreat when Ramsay released his dogs. Really, the world’s bravest and best warriors frightened by a dog, and a lunatic with his shirt off? On a better note, Asha stating that Theon was ‘dead’ means the Ironborn storyline is on track to follow the books exactly next season. Theon and Ramsay then had another disturbing scene together, with Ramsay asking ‘Reek’ to pretend to be someone he isn’t – Theon Greyjoy. Alfie Allen is still doing an amazing job at showing Reek’s physical and pyschological torment. 

It was then time for some long-overdue proper dragon action. Drogon roasted some goats, and the farmer laid them at the feet of Daenerys in her throne room. Some fans were surprised that the farmer wasn’t bringing something else, but there is still time for that to come – it’s too important a detail to be left out. Then we were introduced to Hizdahr, one of many Meereneese nobles in Dany’s storyline. It was far easier to empathise with him than it was in the books, and his exchange with Dany was very emotive. 

Then it was time for a meeting of the new-look Small Council, with new members Oberyn and Mace. They did a good job at showing Mace Tyrell to be the spineless suck-up he is, and Oberyn was once again the star of the show. The Red Viper – can they just call him that once on the show, please? – then had a conversation with Varys, that gave some interesting insight into the eunuch’s apparent asexuality. 

Finally, it was time for a long-awaited scene that took up most of this episode – Tyrion’s trial. Witness after witness came up to give ludicrous testimonies against him. Jaime rightly points out the farcical nature of what is going on to Tywin. He then offers to give up his white cloak if Tywin will spare Tyrion. It is debatable whether he would do that – he would hate to be an oathbreaker again, but he does love his little brother. After Jaime tells Tyrion what he must do, the next witness steps up…

… and it’s Shae, Tyrion’s former whore-turned-girlfriend that he sent away in episode two. After telling a totally made up story that seems to put it in no doubt that Tyrion killed Joffrey, Tyrion stops her – and gives in my opinion the best speech this show has seen so far. Absolutely amazing acting from Peter Dinklage, with some brilliant writing too, and it was undoubtedly the best moment so far this season. That by itself makes this the best episode of the season so far. 

9/10

Game of Thrones Review: S4E5 “First of his Name”

After the surprising changes made in episode 4, we were all excited and a little nervous to see what direction the show was taking, and it’s fair to say it didn’t disappoint, as episode five was the best so far this season. Spoilers to follow. 

The episode began with the crowning of the new king, Tommen Baratheon. As different to Joffrey as it is possible to be, it may put some of the Lannister haters in something of a dilemma, as he’s just so difficult to dislike. Cersei did well to veil her contempt for Margaery, because she needed to butter up her father, Mace Tyrell, and one of the judges for Tyrion’s trial. She would also have scenes with the other judges, Tywin and Oberyn, as she tries to get them on her side and secure Tyrion’s execution. During her scene with Tywin, we discover that the Lannister’s gold mines have run dry – an interesting development, as they are the source of all their wealth and power. 

Over to the now conquered Meereen, and Daenerys has finally changed out of that blue dress. She was informed of Joffrey’s death, and makes the big decision not to sail for Westeros until she has learnt to rule, and defeated Yunkai and Astapor once again. Emilia Clarke’s acting continues to frustrate many, but I personally think her writing has been pretty sub-par this season. 

Then we were back in the Vale for the first time since season one, and re-introduced the the crazy Lysa Arryn and her bratty son Robert. We had the big reveal that Littlefinger was behind the death of Jon Arryn, and that it was Lysa who actually poisoned him – this is a big reveal and it was a surprise that it was revealed so early. Thankfully we were spared seeing Petyr and Lysa’s wedding night in person, but Sansa suffered an uncomfortable night’s sleep. 

Over to Arya and the Hound, and Arya’s death prayer has had a few different names added to it – Beric Dondarrion and Thoros of Myr were quite surprising, but given the change to the plot that involved them selling Gendry to Melisandre, it makes sense. The Hound then gave her a reality check about her ‘water-dancing’ – ‘Syrio’s dead, and Meryn Trant’s not, because Meryn had armour, and a big fucking sword.’ Her sister Sansa was having much fun either – Lysa went full insane mode and asked her if Littlefinger had got her pregnant, but she persuaded her he hadn’t. 

We had our first introduction to the great double act that is Brienne and Podrick. Podrick’s utter cluelessness is great entertainment, although Brienne’s disdain for him is somewhat out of character. Podrick is becoming more and more likeable every week – kudos to Daniel Portman for his great portrayal of him. 

Then we were back to Craster’s Keep, where everyone was keen to say what would happen with Bran and company. Locke scouted the keep, and reported back to Jon, but he lied about the hut that Bran was in, so that he could sneak Bran away while the other’s were distracted. Karl almost raped Meera, but was distracted by the attack by the Night’s Watch rangers. The rangers made light work of the mutineers, but Jon was pushed all the way by Karl, and only saved by one of Craster’s wives intervening. Meanwhile, Locke attempted to kidnap Bran, who warged into Hodor and broke Locke’s neck using the giant’s body. Hodor’s confused and scared expression when he realised what ‘he’ had done was really good – Bran’s use of Hodor like this is taboo, and you had to feel sorry for the big guy. Bran called out for Jon to help him, but Jojen convinced him otherwise – he correcly pointed out that Jon would never let him go north. A huge sigh of relief was released as we realised there would not be a Stark reunion – as nice as it would be, it’s horrible cliche and too big a deviation from the book’s plot. Finally, Jon was reunited with Ghost, and Craster’s Keep was burnt to the ground. 

9/10

Game of Thrones Review: S4E4 “Oathkeeper”

For some time now, fans have been concerned that Game of Thrones will overtake the books in the storyline, owing to how slow a writer George RR Martin is. However, no one expected it to happen this soon. Not only that, but this episode also saw perhaps the biggest deviation from the books, and it lead to quite a lot of confusion and outrage immediately after the episode aired. Spoilers to come.

The episode kicked off with Daenery’s conquest of Meereen. Grey Worm entered the sewers and gave weapons to the slaves, allowing them to kill the masters from within. We then saw the first signs of Dany’s more sadistic side, as she crucified 163 of the masters, one for each of the slave girls they had executed. Barristan tried to counsel her to be merciful – is it possible he was having flashbacks to the Mad King, and trying to steer her away from going down the same path?

Then we had another scene with my new favourite bromance, Bronn and Jaime. After Bronn knocked Jaime to the dirt with his own golden hand, he told him how Tyrion had asked for Jaime to champion him at his trial by combat in the Eyrie – this realisation of how much his little brother valued him finally convinced Jaime to go and visit Tyrion in his cell. Tyrion asked, somewhat ridiculously, that Jaime free him, which he obviously refused to do. Then we were back on Littlefinger’s ship with Sansa, and Littlefinger admitted to killing Joffrey. He then failed entirely at subtley saying who his accomplices were, and we cut straight to them – the Tyrells. Olenna told Margaery that she was involved in Joffrey’s murder. I don’t really like how Margaery seems to have been dumbed down somewhat on the show – in the books she was every bit as good a schemer as her grandmother. However, we started to see how she is learning from her, as she follows her advice on how to get Tommen away from his mother’s clutches and into hers. She entered the boy king’s chambers late at night – fulfilling every teenage boy’s dreams, although it was rather creepy watching a 30 year old woman seducing a young teenager. 

After the confusion over last weeks apparent rape scene, many were anticipating how Cersei and Jaime would act towards each other, and it didn’t exactly do any favours to those who claimed it wasn’t rape. Cersei was completely cold and distant towards Jaime, not even calling him by name. Jaime then gave Brienne his sword, and sent her out to find Sansa. She named the sword Oathkeeper, although it was Jaime who gave it the name in the book, and he sent Podrick along to squire for her. Jaime and Brienne’s parting was suitable emotional, and the great roadtrip of Brienne and Podrick was under way. 

The rest of the episode was spent either at Castle Black or north of the Wall. Roose Bolton’s accomplice Locke showed up at Castle Black training and struck up a friendship with Jon – it will be interesting to see where this goes. Jon gave an impassioned speech to his brothers asking them to come to Craster’s with him and kill the mutineers. It was a great show of camaraderie between him and his friends, including Grenn and Dolorous Edd. 

After that, was where the big changes began to happen. We went to Craster’s Keep and saw Karl, who seems to have taken the place of Chett in the books, drinking wine from the skull of Lord Commander Mormont, which was incredible macabre. He sent Rast out to dispose of one of Craster’s sons, and to feed Ghost on the way (apparently it’s easy to imprison a direwolf in a flimsy wooden cage.) Bran and company heard the baby crying, and Bran sent Summer out to investigate, only for him to be captured as well. After going themselves to find out what was going on, they were taken prisoner by the mutineers. This is a pretty massive change to Bran’s storyline –  and given the other big change, that Sam actually told Jon about Bran going north of the wall, it has lead to speculation that the brothers might be reunited, something that seems far too fantasy cliche for this series. 

The episode ended in an unfamiliar location, possible the Lands of Always Winter, at the northernmost point of the known world. Here, a group of white walkers seemed to transform Craster’s son into one of them – a pretty big insight into how the white walkers work, and one we didn’t yet know about from the books. There was one white walker that looked different to the others, and although he wasn’t referred to by name in the episode, an episode summary on HBO’s website outed him as the Night’s King, a legendary figure in the history of the Night’s Watch. He was the thirteenth Lord Commander, and he fell in love with a white walker and took her to the Nightfort, one of the Night’s Watch’s other castles, and declared himself their king. He sacrificed his sons to the walkers, in a similar way to Craster, and many other atrocities were commited during his thirteen year reign until he was defeated. The fact he is still around, if it is indeed him, is potentially a huge spoiler from the future books – or it could just be something HBO have invented for the show. Either way, this is the first sign of some book readers worst fears becoming reality. 

7/10

Game of Thrones Review: S4E3 “Breaker of Chains”

After the brilliant opening episode, and the dramatic shock in last week’s episode, you could say we were due a slightly more boring episode, and we got one. This week’s episode featured a lot of conversations and not a whole lot of plot progression, but worse than that, there was a pretty awful change from the books that has enraged a hell of a lot of people. Spoilers to come.

We picked up immediately from the end of episode two, with Joffrey’s dead face staring right at us. As Tyrion was arrested, Sansa made a frantic escape with Ser Dontos onto Littlefinger’s ship. It’s the first time Sansa has left King’s Landing since she arrived there way back in season one, and this is where her character really starts to come into it’s own in the books. Hopefully seeing her change as a character will sway the people who still absurdly consider her annoying and weak. Littlefinger remains incredibly creepy.

Margaery and Olenna have a brief conversation about death, which wasn’t as interesting as it sounds, and then we were in the sept with Cersei, Tywin, the new king Tommen and Joffrey’s corpse. Tywin and Tommen had an interesting conversation about what makes a good king, and then it was time for the scene that many fans had been waiting for – Jaime and Cersei having sex in the sept. However, although it was consensual in the books, and the director and writer of the episode claim it was meant to be portrayed as consensual, this was very clearly rape. A really poorly done scene which has quite rightly made a lot of people angry.

After not seeing them last week, we then back with the Hound and Arya. They met a farmer and his daughter and had dinner with them, before the Hound robbed and beat the farmer up – despite claiming not to be a thief in episode one. I’m starting to agree with the writer of this tumblr post – http://donewithwoodenteeth.tumblr.com/post/83458059934/hi-i-know-everyone-is-talking-about-how-they-screwed – that Arya is becoming something of a comic relief character, and that they have missed out on a lot of her character development, such as her mourning her family, and how she got offended when people thought the Hound was her father – now they’ve got her claiming he is her father herself. Arya never stops hating the Hound in the book, but the show has her almost as his side-kick.

We then had some pretty boring scenes with Sam and Gilly that dragged on far too long, on either side of a scene with Stannis and Davos. Stannis was a lot more interesting this week, pulling out the “I will not become a page in someone else’s history book” line from the trailers, and then a scene with Davos and Shireen that seemed to set in motion where this particular storyline is heading this season – to Braavos. This is a totally new direction from the books, hopefully it will work out alright.

Then we were treated to yet another scene of Oberyn in a brothel, before Tywin comes to ask him to serve as a judge in Tyrion’s trial, and denies telling the Mountain to kill Oberyn’s sister Elia – although he does not deny that it was the Mountain who killed her, as he did in the book. One issue I have with this scene is that Tywin is far too proud to lower himself to going and visiting someone in a brothel – he would have summoned them to him. Pedro Pascal is still playing Oberyn really well however, getting better every week I feel.

Then we came to my personal highlight of the episode, Podrick going to visit Tyrion in his cell. They discussed his trial, and how Podrick was bribed with a knighthood to testify against Tyrion, which he refused. Tyrion told him to escape King’s Landing before it was too late. It was a really moving scene, I had a tear in my eye when Tyrion said “There has never been a more loyal squire.”

Then there was a pretty brutal scene of the wildlings massacring some people living near the wall. The Night’s Watch want to go and defend them, but Jon and Alliser Thorne remind them that that is what the wildling’s want – to draw them out and pick them off. Then, Grenn and Dolorous Edd returned from beyond the wall, where they were being held prisoner at Craster’s Keep. Jon points out that if the wildling army finds the Keep, they will find out how few men there are at Castle Black, and that they should go and kill them. Another deviation from the books, but this one looks more promising.

The episode ended, as they so often do, with Dany. She approaches Meereen – alone, on a horse, a very easy target for any decent archer – and they send out their champion. Since Strong Belwas has been written out, it was expected that Daario would be her champion, and this proved to be correct. However the champion’s fight was over very quickly and felt very anticlimactic. She then gave a speech to the slaves about how she was not their enemy, the slaver’s are their enemies. I find it hard to believe that the slavers would have just stood there and let her put rebellious thoughts into the slave’s heads, which ruined the realism of the scene for me. She then sent barrels full of broken chains flying into the city with catapults – sending a pretty clear message to the slaves, and the moment that gave the episode it’s name.

6/10

Game of Thrones Review: S4E2 “The Lion and the Rose”

It’s only the second episode of the season and we’ve been hit with an absolutely jaw-dropping episode that is sure to have shocked the non-readers. Yes, the long-awaited ‘Purple Wedding’ has arrived, but did it live up to the huge expectations placed on it? Spoilers to come.

Viewers everywhere rejoiced, because Joffrey Baratheon, King of the Seven Kingdoms and one of the most hated characters in television history, is dead. After the heartbreaking deaths of  Robb and Catelyn Stark, it was about time a villain died and this felt like some sort of justice for our fallen heroes. However, it was slightly soured by fan favourite Tyrion being falsely accused of poisoning his wine and being arrested. The real killer is not made obvious, and non-readers must be scratching their heads trying to figure out who did the deed – it’s not as if Joffrey lacked for enemies.

The Royal wedding took up a large part of the episode, and with so many characters flitting around there was lots of opportunites for character interactions we didn’t see in the books. The ones that stood out where Jaime and Loras trading barbs, Cersei giving Pycelle a piece of her mind and Oberyn’s thinly-veiled attack on Tywin. Less interesting where Brienne’s interactions with Margaery and Cersei – Brienne didn’t appear for most of the second part of A Storm of Swords, so the show runners are having to come up with lots of new material to give her enough screen time, and it shows. The wedding went sour when Joffrey unveiled his five dwarves who re-enacted the war of the five kings, which was rather uncomfortable to watch – as was probably his intention. Overall, I felt a little underwhelmed by the wedding, but that was probably just because of the massive amount of anticipation I had for it.

Earlier in the episode, the character interaction I have been looking forward to most took place – Bronn and Jaime training at swordplay. As they are my two favourite characters, I was delighted they would be sharing scenes, and it didn’t disappoint. Hopefully we will see a lot more of them together. Later on, Tyrion sent Shae away to Pentos on a boat – this is a very strong deviation from the books, as Shae is involved in an important scene near the end, which surely won’t be written out. Hopefully D & D know what they’re doing with this storyline.

We also spent some time with the Bolton family and their pet, Reek. Roose returned to the Dreadfort, and chastised Ramsay for mutilating Theon, who was a valuable hostage. Ramsay revealed to Theon that Robb was dead while Theon had a knife to his throat – that Theon did nothing showed how Ramsay has truly broken him. Roose also finds out that Bran and Rickon are alive, and sends Locke out to catch them. This is an interesting deviation from the books. We also saw Ramsay on one of his hunts, with his show-only girlfriend Myranda. Whatever your thoughts on them, Ramsay and Roose are always entertaining to watch.

We also caught up with Team Dragonstone – what I felt was the weakest part of the episode. Their scenes felt rather pointless, as if D & D just wanted to remind us that Stannis and his family exist. Selyse was annoying, Stannis and Davos had the most boring writing possible, but Melisandre was her usual cool self. She had probably the best line of the episode, to Shireen: “There is only one hell Princess. The one we live in now.”

Finally, we caught up with Bran and Co. north of the wall. He had his first experience with a weirwood tree, and we saw a cool vision sequence. A lot of book fans are up in arms that Coldhands seems to have been written out, but I don’t get the hype around him personally, and I don’t think he is that big a loss.

8/10

Game of Thrones Review: S4E1 “Two Swords”

We’ve waited 10 long months for the biggest show on TV to return to our screens, and just like that the first episode is done already. But what an episode it was, setting the tone brilliantly for what is bound to be one of the best seasons of TV ever made. Based on the second half of the third book in the Song of Ice and Fire series, there are so many huge events to come in the next nine weeks we should be blown away.

Spoilers for the episode to come obviously.

The episode began with Lord Tywin Lannister melting down Ned Stark’s greatsword Ice into two smaller swords for Jaime and Joffrey. With The Rains of Castamere playing, and Tywin taking the wolf scabbard and dropping it into the fire, it sent a very obvious message about the focus of the show switching from the Starks to the Lannisters. An amazing opening scene.

Into the opening titles, which included two new locations of the map: Meereen, the next slaver’s city that Dany has set her sights on destroying, and the Dreadfort, the infamous stronghold of House Bolton. This being added to the map, and the amount of material of Roose and Ramsay we have seen in trailers, suggests that they will be quite important characters in their own right this season.

We then see Tywin presenting Jaime with his new sword. Jaime is pleased with it, but the feeling is slightly spoiled when his father commands him to return to Casterly Rock to rule in his stead – away from Cersei and Tyrion, and meaning he would have to leave the Kingsguard. “You would have me break another oath?” Jaime asks. He refuses, and Tywin disowns him. This scene could have packed more of an emotional punch I felt – Jaime was the only child that Tywin was in any way proud of, and disowning him must have been one of the hardest things he had to do.

Over to Tywin’s other son Tyrion, along with Bronn and Podrick as they await the arrival of Prince Doran Martell. However, Prince Doran has sent his feisty brother Oberyn in his stead, and Oberyn has decided to head straight to a brothel rather than arrive the conventional way – he does things his own way. Oberyn has been a fan favourite amongst book readers for a long time now, and most are pleased with Pedro Pascal’s depiction of him so far. The show also decided to show him as bisexual, something that was hinted at in the books. But before the orgy can get under way, he decides to go and stab a Lannister guardsman. Oberyn’s true purpose in coming to King’s Landing is to have his revenge on Tywin Lannister. “Tell your father I’m here, and that Lannisters aren’t the only ones who pay their debts” he tells Tyrion.

Now we’re off to the poster girl of the series, Daenerys, and her rapidly growing dragons. Despite her constantly being made out to be the main character of the series, she really doesn’t have that much story to tell this season. However, the CGI dragon’s are looking absolutely brilliant, and any excuse to have them on screen is welcome. We’re also introduced to Michael Huisman, the new Daario Naharis – he certainly seems a better actor than Ed Skrein, but does he have the required swagger and cockiness to play Daario faithfully?

Now, our first scene with a Stark – Sansa. Shae and Tyrion are trying to cheer her up following the news of the Red Wedding but they’re not doing a great job. Shae then has a bitch-fest at Tyrion because he hasn’t seen her much. This is more like the petulant, bratty Shae from the books, setting her up for the events to come. We also see a spy of Cersei’s listening in on their conversation.

Over to everyone’s favourite incest twins, as Jaime is fitted with his golden hand. Cersei says she has grown fond of Qyburn – some more foreshadowing for when she gives him a very special task in the future. Cersei’s spy shows up again – I felt this whole spy thing was a bit heavy-handed, and could have been more subtle.

Now, over to a storyline that the book readers won’t know anything about – Tormund, Ygritte and the other wildlings as they prepare to attack Castle Black. It will be interesting seeing it from their perspective, as after Jon leaves them we don’t see the wildlings again until the battle. We are also introduced to the Thenns – a group of wildlings who are more sophisticated than most, and just as savage. They are also shown to be cannibals – something not mentioned in the books, but it puts another interesting twist on them.

We know see Jon talking with Sam about Robb, and then as he is put on trial for breaking his vows. Kit Harington seems to have really upped his game this season – I’ve always preferred the book version of Jon, but if he can act like this all season then that might change. Alliser Thorne and Janos Slynt, two of his adversaries in the Night’s Watch are back after not appearing during last season, which is good as Jon’s storyline gets very good soon and those two are important to it.

We then have a brief scene with Queen-to-be Margaery, her sharp-tongued grandmother Olenna and Brienne. Margaery and Brienne are an odd couple, but their conversation feels like good closure for Renly. Then it’s off to Joffrey discussing plans for the wedding with Jaime and Ser Meryn. Joffrey takes a few swipes at Jaime – “Oh look, someone forgot to write down all your great deeds!” – but Jaime handles himself quite well.

Back to Daenerys again, and after some flirting with Daario we see the first of the slave children nailed to sign posts by the Meereneese, in anticipation of her arrival. The episode had been fairly light hearted up until now, but this was a good reminder of what show we are watching, where grim things happen regularly.

Now it’s over to Jaime and Brienne as they watch Sansa in the godswood. The chemistry between these two is still great, although it’s strange to see them in a situation other than slugging through muddy fields. Sansa then has a run-in with an old character, Ser Dontos Hollard, from the first episode of season 2. He gives a surprisingly moving speech about the collapse of his house, and she takes his necklace – which is more important than you might have thought at first, as you’ll see next week..

And finally, it’s over to TV’s best double act, Arya and the Hound. They have amazing chemistry, and the banter is hilarious between them. However, the laughs don’t last for long before they find themselves in a fight with several Lannister soldiers – including Polliver, who took Arya’s sword Needle and killed Lommy Greenhands. And, we get to see a massively anticipated scene from the book, when Arya claims sweet revenge on Polliver, by reclaiming Needle and slowly killing Polliver, repeating the same taunts he said to Lommy before killing him. The episode ends with the Hound eating the chicken that he wanted, and Arya on her pony.

A fantastic start to the season, and belive me when I tell you that things are going to get even better, starting next week, with the royal wedding of Joffrey and Margaery.

9/10

Facing the Abyss: Five Teams in Danger of Relegation

All across Europe, teams near the foot of their respective leagues are starting to panic as the prospect of relegation becomes more and more likely. Relegation is disastrous for any football club, but even more so in the current financial climate, as the loss in revenue can be crippling and it is not uncommon for teams to go into administration, or even go out of business after dropping out of their country’s top division. This season, there are several teams in real danger of relegation that you might not have expected to be back in August.

English Premier League: Fulham and Sunderland

Fulham and Sunderland are two of those teams that always flirt with relegation at some point in the season, but eventually the quality in their relatively expensive squads lifts them out of danger into a boring mid-table position. This season however, they have both been in trouble since the first day and are running out of time to sort things out.

Fulham

After 13 years in the Premier League, which has included a run to the Europa League final and escaping relegation on the final day, Fulham look to have run out of steam and inspiration. A squad with players such as Dimitar Berbatov, Bryan Ruiz, Scott Parker and Lewis Holtby ought to be well clear, but some of those players have been accused of laziness and lacking the ‘fight’ for a relegation battle. As such, Barbatov and Ruiz were shipped out in January and they broke their transfer record to sign Konstantinos Mitroglou – who has gone on to make just two appearances. Sacking two managers also hasn’t helped with stability – Rene Meulensteen replaced Martin Jol in December, who only had 16 days of experience as the main man at a football club, and he was then replaced by notorious megalomaniac Felix Magath, the first German manager to take charge of a Premier League club. The Cottagers are currently five points from safety, but they are at a disadvantage because of their significantly worse goal difference, and have also player more games than the sides just outside the bottom three. As it stands, they look the most likely team to drop out.

Sunderland

Despite several magical moments provided by the on-loan striker Fabio Borini – including a late winner in the Tyne-Wear derby, a winning goal against Chelsea and putting the Black Cats ahead against Manchester City in the Capital One Cup final – Sunderland have had a very disappointing season. They took a big gamble in appointing the unpredictable Paolo Di Canio as boss, and it has backfired spectacularly. After splashing the cash on several little-known players from obscure foreign teams, he then fell out with his players and was sacked after just five games in which they mustered only one point. They appointed Gus Poyet to replace him, who had done well at Brighton in the Championship but results haven’t improved enough to lift them out of danger. They currently have home games remaining against fellow strugglers Swansea, West Brom and Cardiff, coupled with away games at Man Utd, Chelsea, Man City and Spurs, so they simply have to win their home games if they are to survive. Currently four points from safety, but with a game in hand on several of their rivals, they have shown this season that they can pull off a shock win when they need to – but will they be able to do enough?

Bundesliga: Hamburg and Stuttgart

Stuttgart and Hamburg are two of Germany’s biggest and most storied clubs, but they are both in danger of the drop. Stuttgart were Bundesliga champions as recently as 2007, while Hamburg have been in the Bundesliga since World War One, and have never been relegated from the top flight.

Stuttgart

The five-time champions Stuttgart have missed only two seasons of the Bundesliga since it’s conception in 1963. They surrendered a two goal lead to lose to Dortmund at the weekend, and have only one win in 2014. They face Bayern, Schalke and Wolfsburg in their last six games, they need to get something from their next game against Freiburg to try and kickstart a comeback.

Hamburg

German legend Franz Beckanbauer has said it would be ‘unthinkable’ to see Hamburg in the Bundesliga 2, and with players like Rafael van der Vaart in their squad it would be a huge shock to see them go down for the first time in their history. They and Stuttgart are both only two points from safety, so they still have their future in their hands.

La Liga: Real Betis

After last season’s 7th placed finish and entry into the Europa League, Betis seemed to be heading in the right direction. It has all gone very badly wrong this season, following the sale of star man Benat and the long-term injury of star striker Ruben Castro. Popular manager Pepe Mel, who led the club out of the Segunda and into Europe was sacked, their President has recently resigned and they are still in administration. All the signs of a club in chaos. The only highlight of their season was a decent Europa League run, but that ended in heart breaking circumstances – a penalty shootout defeat to bitter city rivals Sevilla. A massive eight points from safety with seven games to play, if they were to escape the drop it would be one of the most dramatic turnarounds in football history – but they have been looking more like their old selves lately, so don’t right them off just yet.