Recaps

Churchill Brothers 0 – 0 Punjab FC

This was a match that happened.

Ross County 1 – 2 St. Johnstone

In the first match-day back on the British Isles, Yan Dada did his Welsh family proud with some insightful passing that set up a great opener from Jordan White. But two goals in two minutes from Alistair Crawford undid all that good work…sigh…

Punjab FC 1 – 0 Gokulam Kerala FC

The Warriors of Punjab continued their strong end to 2022 with another win, and remained undefeated at home (just down the road from Chandigarh). Luka Majcen was the man behind the big goal, getting revenge on his former team after a sloppy tackle, with his fourth goal in 6 matches. He’s rapidly becoming our favorite Slovenian!

Kotoku Royals 0 – 3 Legon Cities FC

On the one hand, the Royals are firmly rooted to the bottom of the table in Ghana. On the other hand, you need victories over poor teams just as much as you need them over good teams. Legon got their holiday started early with three goals, their most since April, and will hope to kick off 2023 with as much panache as they finished up their 2022.

News & Notes

Small Man Lifts Big Trophy

We had a heck of a time watching the World Cup final with your grandpa.

Okay, I had a heck of a time watching the World Cup final with your grandpa, and you guys had a great time running around, smashing legos into walls and singing/dancing to your hearts content while jacked up on sugary donuts that grandpa brought. But you both watched for at least 15 to 30 minutes, cheering, clapping, and generally getting sucked into the same feeling that your grandpa and I did: it was very nice to watch Lionel Messi, a man whose nickname should probably be “statistical outlier“, finally win the biggest trophy of them all. Alex in particular has decided that the blue and white shirts are his new favorite. So congrats Leo, you are officially in the stratosphere of Pele and Maradonna…and you have another 5 year old fan.

Player of the Week

We’re late in getting back to these, but it’s worth saying that almost every highlight we see of Punjab FC includes the man-bunned #99, Lucka Majcen celebrating with someone else. So let’s thank him the only way we know how: by writing his name in an obscure corner of the internet, where maybe his mom will be amused!

Standings

The Table remains pretty locked in place, but Legon did see their win vault them up past Montana, and Punjab ended up just outside of the top three. We’ll see if Grenoble or Ross County can adjust their place again.

Team	W	D	L	PPG	GFA	GAA
Rosenborg BK–b	36	11	17	1.86	2.23	1.2
Minnesota–b	28	8	15	1.80	1.84	1.27
Freiburg–b	26	14	14	1.70	2.41	1.54
Punjab	12	6	7	1.68	1.52	1.36
Alebrijes–b	14	14	8	1.56	1.28	0.83
Vozdovac–b	14	9	12	1.46	1.03	1.14
Legon Cities	12	13	10	1.40	1.06	0.60
Montana–b	7	7	6	1.40	1.25	0.85
Grenoble Foot	21	10	21	1.40	1.25	1.19
Ross County	13	9	19	1.17	1.12	1.46
Emelec–b	17	13	18	0.67	1.50	1.27

What’s Next

Thursday, December 22nd

Friday, December 23rd

Ross County v. Rangers

Saturday, December 24th

Sunday, December 25th

Elves v. Reindeer (North Pole Classico)

Monday, December 26th

Quevilly v. Grenoble (M)

Tuesday, December 27th

Wednesday, December 28th

Dundee United v. Ross County