INSIDER
Talking points ahead of the Premier League restart
Read full article: Talking points ahead of the Premier League restartFILE - In this file photo dated Thursday, April 9, 2020, gates stand locked outside the closed English Premier League soccer Manchester City Etihad Stadium, in Manchester, northern England. The Premier League resumes Wednesday June 17 after its three-month suspension because of the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/Jon Super, File)Some talking points ahead of the resumption of the Premier League following a three-month suspension caused by the coronavirus pandemic:RECORD-BREAKING REDSThe fact that Liverpool will win its first English league title in 30 years is not really in doubt. The 25-point lead is the biggest in English history, while 22 straight home wins over the past two seasons is also a Premier League record. Given the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak on soccer, staying in the Premier League has rarely been so vital economically.
Bournemouth in free fall as fairy-tale journey hits problems
Read full article: Bournemouth in free fall as fairy-tale journey hits problemsBournemouth's manager Eddie Howe walks on the field at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Bournemouth and Liverpool at the Vitality stadium in Bournemouth, England, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019. So, a decade later, Howe will be putting Bournemouth’s current plight in the context of its perilous recent history. Bournemouth is in free fall in the Premier League, with its injury-ravaged team having lost five straight matches to drop within a point of the relegation zone. It is brave — some might say reckless — but it’s a philosophy that Howe, seven years into his second spell as Bournemouth manager, hasn’t wavered from. The current Bournemouth squad is the youngest since the club came into the Premier League, with many of the leaders no longer regulars.