Arsenal have two visits to Sunderland on consecutive Saturdays in different competitions and both have the potential to improve the season but could also make it far worse. The focus for now, obviously, has to be on the more immediate fixture that is the upcoming League meeting.

It would be an understatement to suggest that Martin O'Neill has turned the fortunes of the Black Cats around.

Since in many ways this was my first regionals all over again (new sport), I went back and compared the notes I wrote (literally, on an old Apple Newton) and compared them with my experience this last weekend. And there are several similarities and differences:
Similarities:
* Chance to get better games if you perform well
* High pressure, high stakes games
* Some nice comrade with the other officials
But there were some big differences, too.

Train. Wreck.
Absolute train wreck. 30% off at the team store? I'm afraid you'll need to be paying me to wear such an abomination. Which, I suppose, is how they got those gentlemen above to don them. Ignoring for a moment the awfulness of the red away collars and those apparently bloody sleeves.

The Brotherly Game is proud to announce that it has started a charity auction on ebay that is selling a Ryan Richter game/team issued Philadelphia Union jersey. The right back signed the jersey at the last Union home game of the 2011 season, an 1-1 draw against Toronto FC.

The jersey is brand new, an XL, with American flag and MLS patches on separate arms, signature on the front, RICHTER 23 on the back, BIMBO logo and Union crest on front.

Choosing a Tottenham man of the match after yesterday's match at Newcastle may be tricky as most of the side played well in patches without stamping their class on the game and going on to get the three points. As a result, the media focus this morning is all about Newcastle and their comeback.

A win, 1-0 over a second-tier CONCACAF side, and probably just about a deserved one, though by no means hugely impressive. The US showed well in patches against Honduras, and a couple of individuals can be proud of their performances, but collectively, the one word that consistently appears in my notes, often double- or triple-underlined, is sloppy.

Tamir Cohen will always have my heart. It is mostly because of this game, and because I'm sentimental, but the fact of the matter is, while he was good in patches, Cohen was never quite good enough. This move obviously is not surprising as we released Tamir at the end of last season, and a move back to Israel seems appropriate for him.

Bolton Wanderers 2011/12 Kits - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

Reebok and Bolton have recently released very futuristic-looking shirts and this one tops them all off.

The trotters will wear white, red and blue home strip and a black and yellow away strip.

Bolton 11/12 Home Kit

The home shirt is white with blue patches around the neck, shoulders and lower back.

By Chris Wright

Spanish side Sevilla are lending their support to the Spanish cucumber farmers, who have been blamed for a deadly outbreak of E. coli in Germany by sewing patches onto the sleeves of the pre-season strips that read 'I ♥ Cucumbers'.

Sevilla president Jose Maria Del Nido said the message was 'in defense of the cucumber of Murcia, after the war it had with Germany over the cucumber'.

And now the second half of the squad up before the firing line:
Wilson Palacios
Last year: 7
This year: 6
A frustrating season for Palacios, whose form continued to plummet as it had started to at the back end of last season. Opportunities were limited for the tough tackling Honduran and when he was presented with a chance to start, he invariably fluffed his lines and conceded possession far too often.

John Terry is featured in the Guardian this morning speaking ahead of this Sunday's epic Premier League clash at Old Trafford and is quick to point out although United still have a three point advantage and the advantage of playing at Old Trafford, United know that Chelsea will never give up and the comeback at Old Trafford to beat United 2-1 could end up being key.

Jermain Defoe joined an elite band of Spurs players with his 100th goal for the club in the 2-2 draw with West Brom at the weekend. Despite a poor season, Defoe insists he is fit and sharp and looking to keep adding to his tally.

Defoe said: "It was a relief to get to 100. It has been on my mind a lot to be honest.

Frank Lampard spoke after the West Ham game of Fernando Torres and his first goal for Chelsea and believes it will be the start of something special at Chelsea. After coming to Chelsea himself for big money back then, he understands the pressure Torres had been under but has been impressed with Torres' attitude while searching for his first goal.

I want to start with a mention of the PFA awards and the Team of the Year. Congratulations to Wilshere for picking up the Young Player of the Year award, and deservedly so. Gareth Bale was chosen as the Player of the Year and Nasri came in second. And in case you haven't seen it, the team of the year is,

Van der Saar – Sagna, Vidic, Kompany, Cole – Nani, Nasri, Wilshere, Bale – Tevez, Berbatov.

Kingston ‘Buryed' after 10k challenge
Kingstonian 1-1 Bury Town (16:01:11)
Its been far too long since we covered a non league match on these pages, so here's Jamie Cutteridge putting that to rights with his debut article for European Football Weekends:
Every good story starts with a pun, this is where Moby Dick and Pride and Prejudice fell down, yes we remember their opening lines, but their stories?

Ipswich 1 Arsenal 0
Seeing as I don't call things right very often, allow me a moment of self-congratulation: when the teams were announced before the match, I asked why Djourou, Arshavin and Fabregas (among others) were being asked to play in a match of this calibre, and that younger players would probably be more (and I hate this particular cliché) 'up for it'.