Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale come under scrutiny in Michael Walker's Something for the Weekend
This week: Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal kick off the World Cup qualifiers in Israel, Luis Suarez is favoured to sink Paraguay, Charlie Adam and Gareth Bale lock horns once more when Scotland host Wales at Hampden and Brentford travel to Sheffield United in a League One promotion thriller.
1 The weekend started on Friday lunchtime with a World Cup qualifiers between Israel and Portugal in Group F, which was at 12.45pm our time.
This is a game on paper that Portugal should have won and they went 1-0 up early on through Bruno Alves. So far so good.
However, Israel then went 3-1 ahead and Portugal were looking to their main man, Cristiano Ronaldo, to get them back in it.
He was booked for dissent but then set up Helder Postiga for 3-2 and in the 92nd minute Ronaldo's Real Madrid team-mate Fabio Coentrao equalised.
Portugal, though, have won two of their four games - one of those was 2-1 in Luxembourg - and now face an uphill task to qualify.
Level best: Fabio Coentrao (left) celebrates after scoring to make it 3-3 against Israel Crowded out: Cristiano Ronaldo could not inspire Portugal to a victory they needed if they are to qualify for the World Cup2 There are games across the globe this weekend and in Uruguay, the must-have-been-misquoted Luis Suarez is 7/2 to be first scorer against Paraguay.
Back to business: Luis Suarez is with Uruguay in their bid to reach the World Cup in 20143 Do the people of the former Yugoslavia ever consider what a Yugoslavia football team would look like now, with, for example, Nemanja Vidic (Serbia) in defence, Luka Modric (Croatia) in midfield and Edin Dzeko (Bosnia) up front?
The question arises because there will be no more tense country than Croatia today. For them to be drawn in the same group as Serbia was a situation that called for a rigged draw.
What a team: Bosnian Edin Dzeko (right) and Serb Matija Nastasic (left) might have played for YugoslaviaStar man: Luka Modric serves as Croatia's linchpin in the middle of midfield
But Zagreb stages a game that sees away fans banned and police warning they are ready to abandon play at the first sign of trouble. Croatia have 10 points after four games, Serbia have four.
The expectation is a home win. The return is in Serbia in September. A fear will be that any provocation caused today will spill over to then.
4 That those two countries are in the same group as Macedonia is the bad luck of the draw. Also in Group A are Scotland and Wales whose rivalry is small, friendly and sporting by comparison – even with the Gareth Bale-Charlie Adam situation.
This is Gordon Strachan’s first game in charge of the Scots, who are bottom of the group. Wales are second-bottom. Bearing in mind it is Strachan’s moment and the Scots travel to Serbia next Tuesday, the pressure will be on the hosts at Hampden Park.
Feud: Gareth Bale has had run-ins with Charlie Adam when the Scot was at Blackpool (left) and at Liverpool5 Domestically on Saturday, at least the games that survive the weather, the focus will again be on the top of League One and the bottom of League Two.
No matter how many games are played in League One, no team seems capable of putting a run of victories together any more. Every week the crush gets bigger and nine points now separate the top ten, even after midweek fixtures.
Saturday lunchtime sees Sheffield United, whose last three games have been win, draw, lose, take on Brentford whose last four have been lose, lose, win, win. Brentford are second in the division; Sheffield United are fourth but have a game in hand.
Game on: Brentford are pushing for promotion from League One to the Championship
6 Coventry City are in eighth place in League One. By five o’clock on Saturday they could be in a play-off position given that they will just have visited the team bottom of the division.
The concern for every travelling Coventry fan, though, is that when they go to Fratton Park, they are looking into their own future: administration, points deduction, chaos.
Play-offs? Coventry City could push for promotion if they avoid a 10-point deduction7 When Torquay United beat Chesterfield on Tuesday night it was only the second time Torquay had won since December 1. Torquay replaced Martin Ling with Alan Knill recently and this was Knill’s first win. Without it, the Devon club would be second zbottom.
In their place there are York City. They recently replaced Gary Mills with Nigel Worthington but two defeats and a draw have followed. York look vulnerable – they have not won since New Year’s Day, 15 games ago. It’s Torquay v York on Saturday.
Streak? Joss Labadie and Torquay will hope for a string of results to stay in League Two8 The only team below York are Aldershot, who funnily enough also replaced their manager. Andy Scott succeeded the sacked Dean Holdsworth but there has been no take-off. Aldershot must place hope in the fact that when they lose, it is usually by a single goal.
They have not been drubbed, in fact they have had good draws against Gillingham and Bradford lately.
But they have just lost two home games and travel to second-place Port Vale – though the only team Vale have beaten in the last six matches is York.
9 At the top of League Two, Port Vale’s bout of hiccups has given hope to Burton Albion among others.
Burton have won their last nine home games and face Wycombe Wanderers who have taken seven points from the last 24 and are still not mathematically safe from relegation. You’d be surprised if Burton lost.
Top of the tree: Lee Hughes and Port Vale will want to stop the rot against Burton Albion on Saturday10 There is one Football League game on Sunday: Tranmere Rovers v Stevenage.
The visitors do not often make the headlines but they did this week when Gary Smith was sacked.
The League Managers Association sprung into verbal action to decry the 'embarrassing' number of managerial dismissals this season – though not to say that another of their members will take the Stevenage job.
Carry on regardless: Stevenage must take on Tranmere Rovers without sacked boss Gary SmithTranmere have asked supporters to help with clearing snow from the pitch on Saturday afternoon to ensure the game goes ahead. Anyone who does 'will be given a Kop Stand ticket for Sunday'. Given the price of football, that’s comfortably more than the minimum wage.
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