Welcome to the first official edition of the MiB Newsletter. 

What a weekend to kick off our extreme makeover! Arsenal overcome Everton at the last. Sixteen-year-old Max Dowman becomes a child star at levels known to Haley Joel Osment, Lindsay Lohan or Rupert Grint. Tottenham find a sliver of life at Dr. Liverpool. Richarlison scoring at Anfield, proof that spite is the rocket fuel of human motivation. And Liam Rosenior’s Chelsea lay siege to the referee, then surrender that crucial marginal gain with barely a whimper. 🎢

ii. The change to the MiB Newsletter isn't the only new thing around here. A few days ago, we unveiled our new logo for the Men in Blazers Media Network, a simplified and beautiful wordmark that takes a step towards modernity with a nod to the glories of the past. But, there’s even more.

Yes, we also have a new badge for our flagship Men in Blazers podcast. Inspired by both classic football crests and American mascots, we’d like to introduce you to the new pup, yet to be named. We wanted a logo that would put some much needed joy and good vibes out into the world, and this is it. Simply put, the world needs a lot more optimism, and we hope our football-loving hound offers you a sliver of elation every time you see it. 🍻

iii. I want to marvel at Max Dowman again for a second. Arsenal won against an admittedly very impressive Everton. The Gunners were rattled. Everton had arguably the better chances. Dowman came on in the 74th minute, 16 years and 73 days old, and when his team needed him, he bent the game to his will. First, the cross which set up the opener. Then the mood-swinging, full-field charge in which he defenestrated two Everton players—the second, Dewsbury-Hall, could not believe the move he was eviscerated by—taking an Emirates which was nervy during the Everton corner into a collective ecstasy.

With Pickford behind him, I do wonder what emotions Dowman experienced in the calm seconds before he rolled the ball home. What an incredible moment, one which left his experienced, veteran teammates lifting him as if he was their child leader, their Joan of Arc, and Mikel Arteta celebrating as if he knew, with relief, the race was nearly won. Max Dowman… Too young to drive. Too young to vote. But old enough to break my heart. 

More: My reaction at the final whistle. Emotion filled. 💙

iv. BIG BOI IS JOINING US IN ATLANTA. That’s right, the OutKast man and music industry icon will be sitting down with me for our World Cup countdown show on March 27. Atlanta soccer meets Atlanta hip-hop, a beautiful cultural collision. Get your tickets here. 🍑

v. And now, three beautiful weekend goals (and almost goals) from around the world:

🇪🇸 There are long shots and deep shots and then there’s this sorcery Real Madrid’s Arda Güler launched from within his own half. Steph Curry could never.

🇹🇷 Meanwhile in Türkiye, this went from potentially the goal of the season to the save of the season in the blink of an eye. With all due respect to Victor Osimhen’s aerial acrobatics, that keeper’s fingertips should take a bow.

🇪🇸 OK, now back to La Liga for a strike from Atlético Madrid’s Nahuel Molina that’s so violent, all the big man in goal could do was stare in amazement. What a rocket!

vi. Lastly, ICYMI: Have a look at the USMNT’s official World Cup kits. What do you think of the swaying red and white stripes? I’d love to hear your thoughts. 🇺🇸

Courage,
ROG

PS - This is how every opposing player should celebrate a red card. Perfect, no notes. 💯

By Tommy Stewart

Liverpool 1-1 Tottenham ❤️🤍

Anfield was stupefied when this usually lifeless Tottenham Hotspur side burst out of the traps yesterday, but Spurs were soon undone by their ambivalent goalkeeping situationship with Guglielmo Vicario. He was culpable for another Dominik Szoboszlai free-kick special, which despite its power, was pretty much in the middle of his goal, but not long after pulling off a miraculous finger-tip save from a Cody Gakpo shot. Former Evertonian Richarlison’s personal vendetta against Liverpool is of Sideshow Bob vs. Bart Simpson proportions, and he seemed determined to score with constant threats on Alisson’s net. The Brazilian forward’s persistence paid off when he finished his fifth goal at Anfield in the 90th minute and celebrated like a heel wrestler who thrives on his villainous role, all while Arne Slot was serenaded with boos from his own fans at full time.

Spurs Show Spirit in the Trenches 📈

In his press conferences, post-match interviews and touchline mannerisms, Igor Tudor has puzzled not just Tottenham fans fearing a first relegation since 1977, but the whole football universe. Yesterday, however, his Spurs side didn’t just rob a late point at one of the toughest places to travel in the Premier League, they earned it, and possibly deserved to come away with more. With a threadbare squad devastated by injury and suspension, Tudor finally saw some spirit and fight in his players, who until yesterday, hadn’t won a game or a point for the former Juventus manager.

West Ham 1-1 Manchester City

Manchester City might have missed the supercharged presence of the suspended Pep Guardiola, who watched helplessly from the Gods of the London Stadium, like a handsome Statler without Waldorf. A delicate Bernardo Silva chip that wouldn’t look out of place in the Louvre was quickly nullified by Konstantinos Mavropanos, whose thumping header from a corner was the diametric opposite of what had come before. It was also West Ham’s only shot of the match compared to City’s 21 – many of which were had by Erling Haaland, who has now managed just three goals in his last 12 league games, two of which were penalties. But it was Marc Guehi’s late sitter that could be the death knell for City’s title challenge as the gap between them and Arsenal now stretches to nine points.

More: We have a new contender for freeze frame of the season. 📸

Manchester United 3-1 Aston Villa

Mancunians are accustomed to the vicious rain that battered Old Trafford yesterday, however, the wet first-half performance might have had Manchester United fans worrying that their loss against Newcastle wasn’t a misnomer. But like Sean Penn’s Oscar speech, Aston Villa were largely anonymous aside from Ross Barkley’s quick response to Casemiro’s second-half header from a Bruno Fernandes corner. All hope was quickly extinguished by more Bruno magic, as he played in Matheus Cunha for his second assist of the game and 16th of the season, taking him past David Beckham’s 26-year club record. In this UCL spot six-pointer, Villa’s third straight league loss allowed United to leapfrog them, as the 11-point lead they held on the day the messianic Michael Carrick was appointed slipped to a three-point deficit.

Chelsea 0-1 Newcastle

Unfortunately for Newcastle, this match will forever be remembered as the day Chelsea’s pre-match ritual became a generational meme template, as they trapped referee Paul Tierney in their habitual huddle. As hilarious as it was for everyone other than the stranded ref, it was an omen for a possession-heavy performance that lacked killer instinct. The same can’t be said for Anthony Gordon, who’s currently cooking like Chef Ramsay after tapping in his 15th goal of the season. Second-half sub Liam Delap has two goals in 30 appearances since joining Chelsea, and with each miss, it became harder to watch. Reece James was unlucky to hit the post from an injury-time free kick, but with only one win in their last five league matches, and a schooling in Paris last week, Liam Rosenior’s bubble might have burst.

Elsewhere in the Premier League: Arsenal 2-0 Everton, Burnley 0-0 Bournemouth, Sunderland 0-1 Brighton, Crystal Palace 0-0 Leeds, Nottingham Forest 0-0 Fulham

🇪🇸 La Liga: Like Paul Atreides riding a sandworm, Real Madrid harnessed the momentum of their Champions League decimation of Manchester City to beat Elche 4-1 in a game where Arda Güler might have pulled off the next Puskás award winner. A day later, Barcelona saw their four and raised it, destroying Sevilla 5-2 largely thanks to a Raphinha hat-trick that kept Hansi Flick’s side top of La Liga by four points while striking fear into Geordie hearts.

🇮🇹 Serie A: After clawing back some ground in the Scudetto race last weekend, AC Milan couldn’t capitalize on Inter’s draw with Atalanta on Saturday, taking a huge step back in a 1-0 defeat at Lazio. A Rasmus Højlund goal led Napoli’s 2-1 comeback to put them a point behind Milan, while Serie A’s in-form side Como continue to confound everyone’s expectations, beating UCL-spot rivals Roma to hold fourth with their fourth win on the spin.

🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Bayern Munich not winning is always news, but anyone who watched Leverkusen’s accomplished performance against Arsenal last week won’t be surprised that they held the incumbent champions to a 1-1 draw on Saturday. Nicolas Jackson was sent off in the first half, proving you can take the boy out of Chelsea but not the Chelsea out of the boy, while Luis Díaz scored the equalizer before seeing the same fate late on. Dortmund beat Augsburg 2-0, finding a sliver of hope in the Bundesliga race as they cut the gap between them and Bayern to nine points

Premier League: Brentford vs. Wolves (TODAY, 4 p.m. ET, USA) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

It’s another week of Monday night madness for Keith Andrews’ overachieving Brentford, who with less than a quarter of the Premier League season to go, are in the European spots and hot on Chelsea’s tails. Rob Edwards’ rock-bottom Wolves are going down in style, beating Liverpool and Aston Villa in their last two matches while possibly leaving their fans wondering where this classy iteration of their team has been all season.

UCL: Arsenal 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 vs. Bayer Leverkusen 🇩🇪 / Agg. 1-1 (Tuesday, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

With every other English team behind in their ties, Arsenal are the Premier League’s best hope of putting up a Champions League challenge against a sturdy Leverkusen side who held the mighty Bayern Munich to a draw on Saturday. The question is, has Max Dowman earned a starting spot for Mikel Arteta, or is the kick-off time too late with the teenager surely in school on Wednesday?

UCL: Man City 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 vs. Real Madrid 🇪🇸 / Agg. 0-3 (Tuesday, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

In Pep Guardiola’s 50th meeting with the Newman to his Seinfeld, Real Madrid, he was outsmarted by their young coach, Álvaro Arbeloa. Perhaps Pep underestimated this allegedly weaker version of Los Blancos, but it’ll be a Sisyphean effort to overturn a 3-0 deficit against a club who believe winning the Champions League is their bloodright at the Etihad tomorrow. Oh, and to make matters worse, Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham are back and will be in Madrid’s squad 😬.

UCL: Chelsea 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 vs. PSG 🇫🇷 / Agg. 2-5 (Tuesday, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount+)

PSG got their Club World Cup final vengeance and then some against a naive Chelsea, who capitulated in the last 20 minutes at the hands of the sorriest sight for sore legs, substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Stamford Bridge will have to play 12th man if Liam Rosenior’s side are to conquer the holders and progress to the quarters, but they’re still recovering from a weekend humbling in Newcastle's hands.

This week’s question: In the 16 times Real Madrid and Manchester City have faced each other in the Champions League, who’s the top scorer in the tie? Bonus points if you can tell us how many goals they have.

Email us with your answer for a chance to win a much-coveted MiB patch!

Last week’s winner: Congratulations to Steve Rapoport, who was the first to correctly answer that Andriy Shevchenko is the top scorer in the history of Derby della Madonnina with 14 goals! Your patch is in the post, Steve.

👋 We’ll see you on Wednesday for the Champions League. In the meantime, keep sending your stories and questions to [email protected].

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Correction: In Friday’s newsletter, we mentioned that Wrexham were 15 points above Swansea City in the Championship table at the time of publishing. However, they were actually only five points ahead. We apologize for the error.