Who Is Hot and Who Is Not in World Football After Weekend of October 3-5
Following on from another exciting weekend of world football action, we're taking our usual Monday look at the big upsets and impressions made on the pitch, selecting the players who were worthy of notice—at both ends of the scale.
This time around we're marvelling at on-fire forwards, defensive blunders and key men stepping up when needed most by their clubs, from multiple leagues in Europe and beyond.
Here is our Hot or Not selection from the most recent weekend of games; feel free to leave your own additional selections below as usual!
Hot: Alexandre Lacazette
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We'll begin our round-up in France and Ligue 1, with Olympique Lyonnais forward Alexandre Lacazette.
The young attacker was the match-winner in some style at the weekend, bagging a hat-trick to see off Lille by a 3-0 scoreline.
It takes his tally for the 2014-15 season to seven so far, lifting his team to sixth place in the process.
Not: Alessio Cerci
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Italian attacker Alessio Cerci hasn't really made any impression of note at all at Atletico Madrid since signing in the summer, so for his first notable impact to be an ineffective performance and a red card at the weekend compounds that poor start in La Liga.
He hasn't yet created a chance in his three appearances, didn't get hold of the ball enough to help Atleti come from behind against Valencia and generally doesn't look as though he is fitting into the team or the system at this point. Much more is expected from him once he returns from suspension.
Hot: Arjen Robben
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One wide forward who did have a positive impact this weekend was Arjen Robben.
Either of he or Robert Lewandowski could appear here, as the two linked up repetitively and seamlessly for Bayern Munich against Hannover on Saturday, both scoring twice. However, we'll give the nod to Robben for his countless exciting drives into the penalty box and his willingness to stay on his feet when riding challenges, which doesn't always get appreciated.
There was no stopping the Dutchman once he was on his way and he could easily have hit a hat-trick but for some wayward shooting during the game.
Not: Rais Mbolhi
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Let's set the scene: Philadelphia Union scored an 88th-minute goal to take the lead at home against Chicago Fire, a vital three points which would have left them in sixth place in Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference, just two points behind Columbus Crew who occupied the fifth and final playoff spot with three games to play.
With just 90 seconds of stoppage time to play, Union had a set piece in the attacking half and opted, sensibly, to retain possession and slowly moved the ball all the way back to goalkeeper Rais Mbolhi.
But there it all went horribly wrong; Mbolhi scuffed his first-time clearance straight to Fire sub-forward Robert Earnshaw, who simply ran in and lofted the ball over the Algerian's head and into the net. Union took only a 1-1 draw as a result, and remain seventh—two places and four points below that critical red line.
Hot: Karim Benzema
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Real Madrid ran riot against Athletic Bilbao, winning 5-0 and never letting the Basque side believe they had a chance of taking anything from the game after opening the scoring just two minutes in.
Either of the goalscorers could have been mentioned here but while nobody doubts what Cristiano Ronaldo brings to the side, Karim Benzema has continued to see questions fielded his way about whether the team is better off with him or without him.
The Frenchman scored twice from two shots and was a menace with his movement, even if his link-up play wasn't at the very top this time around.
Not: Miranda
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Staying in Spain, Atletico Madrid centre-back Miranda has been excellent this season—but had a very up-and-down time of things against Valencia.
The Brazilian opened the scoring with an own goal, nodding past his own keeper as Moya came rushing out to claim the ball, before being unable to stop Andre Gomes moments later as he dribbled into the box to make it 2-0.
Miranda's own performance picked up afterward, but the damage was done and Atleti couldn't get back into the game.
Hot: Jordan Henderson
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Liverpool haven't been anywhere near their best this season but an improved midfield performance at the weekend saw them claim a much-needed win, largely thanks to Jordan Henderson.
The powerful midfielder was everywhere, showed great technique to back-heel an assist for the opening goal and then made one of his late runs into the box to slide home the Reds' second goal in a 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion.
Henderson's performance helped his team back into the top half of the table and underlined his growing importance to the side.
Hot: Andre-Pierre Gignac
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We'll finish where we started: with a goalscorer in Ligue 1.
Marcelo Bielsa's Marseille team have made an incredible adaptation to the demands of their new coach and are reaping the rewards, sitting top of the table after nine games with a five-point cushion after a last-minute 2-1 win over Stade Malherbe Caen at the weekend.
Andre-Pierre Gignac was once more the scorer, winning the game for his team with his ninth of the season to keep the feel-good factor flowing around the club and send them clear at the top.
