Europe’s most thrilling and unpredictable competition resumes on Tuesday night, and a glance at the early league standings reveals an exhilarating season ahead. Iconic clubs dominate the top spots, with just a few points separating the top 10 – and in this colossal format, every point and every match is crucial. Indeed, the Championship is a perpetual source of excitement – even for the division’s strugglers, hope remains. Last year at this time, Russell Martin’s Southampton were languishing in 15th place in the second tier, and look at their transformation now, right? Right? Oh.
Meanwhile, the Bigger Cup continues on Tuesday, with Celtic and Aston Villa among the teams enjoying the panoramic view from the summit of the new 36-team league table. Even a 5-1 victory couldn’t propel poor Brendan Rodgers to the top, as perennial Bigger Cup contenders Bayern Munich enhanced their goal difference with a 9-2 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb, who were mercilessly punished for attempting to claw back from a 3-0 deficit at the Allianz Arena. The Croatian champions are enduring the singular humiliation of being ranked 36th in the league table (scroll down to see for yourself), languishing below Paul Jewell’s Derby County, the 2024 Chicago White Sox, and Jemini.
Much like the battered henchmen in Austin Powers [a topical reference – Football Daily Ed], Dinamo’s struggles since Matchday One underscore the real consequences of Bigger Cup cartoon beatdowns. Their manager, Sergej Jakirovic, vowed to “fix things myself” in the aftermath, before chief executive Velimir Zajec (formerly of Portsmouth) took matters into his own hands. Having lost twice before the Bayern trip, Dinamo were then thrashed 4-1 by the league’s bottom club, Slaven Belupo. With Niko Kovac declining the offer to take over, Dinamo have turned to former manager Nenad Bjelica, who orchestrated a 4-0 Bigger Cup victory over Atalanta back in 2019.
Bjelica’s first task is a home tie against Monaco – who stunned Barcelona in their opening match, for crying out loud – but the fixture list, coupled with a format that makes pre-Christmas elimination nearly impossible, offers hope. Their home clash with Slovan Bratislava on 5 November could be the first-ever Bigger Cup six-pointer. Slovan, allowed to continue in the tournament despite a 5-1 loss to Celtic, have netted 12 goals in three domestic games since, but face Manchester City’s second-gear onslaught later. As for former Bigger Cup contenders Feyenoord, languishing in 35th place, they face a “tricky” trip to Girona, which is statistically the toughest game in their eight-match schedule this season. Young Boys (currently 11th in the Swiss league) have the gentlest schedule, which may offer little solace as they head to Barcelona. “We won’t mark Lamine Yamal individually, we will try to control him as a team,” manager Patrick Rahmen blurted. Aye, good luck with that.
Join Scott Murray at 8pm BST for Bigger Cup updates on Arsenal 3-1 PSV, while Rob Smyth will provide goal updates in his rolling clockwatch at the same time. Send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s prizeless letter of the day winner is … Ed Taylor. Terms and conditions for our competitions can be viewed here. Tune in to the latest episode of Women’s Football Weekly here.
