The Double Pivot: Soccer analysis, analytics, and commentary

Chelsea's sudden stumble is on the verge of an all-out spiral, and the two Mikes are trying to figure out why it happened and the reasonable steps should it not get any better. Should Sarri be given another year and allowed to keep shaping the roster for the future? At the other end of the table, Crystal Palace, Southampton, Burnley, Newcastle, Brighton and Cardiff are fighting to stay out of the spot above Fulham and Huddersfield in the relegation battle. Who does enough to stay up?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Thanks to injuries, some key players have been moved around in Liverpool's formation, and it's not going great, as evidenced by draws to West Ham and Leicester. Meanwhile, City don't look like their usual steamroller selves, but it hasn't mattered. What does it all mean? And what would it take for Spurs to get a serious run in the race? The two Mikes are here for you.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Sound the conch! The top six teams in England are nearly all in some state of disarray as January turns into February, so the two Mikes assess the damage and determine what's worth sweating and what's worth dismissing — for now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

This week Mike and Michael are joined by Wall Street Journal sportswriter Jonathan Clegg, co-author of the new book, The Club: How the English Premier League Became the Wildest, Richest, Most Disruptive Force in Sports. It's a history of the business of the Premier League, how it was formed and negotiated, how it grew, the structural forces that shaped its growth. It's catnip for a Double Pivot conversation, and we had a lot of fun.You can follow Jonathan on twitter at @cleggjon and read more about the book from the publisher here: https://www.hmhbooks.com/shop/books/The-Club/9781328506450. The other book discussed on the podcast was David Goldblatt's The Game of Our Lives.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

On this week's premium episode, available at patreon.com/doublepivot, we preview the second half of the season in the Bundesliga and Serie A. Lots of scouting the stats as we break down one title race and two top four races with a bunch of intriguing teams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Harry Kane is out for a while, so are Spurs doomed? The two Mikes take a look at the stakes while Tottenham Hotspur's talisman is out. Plus, fullback apocalypse at City and Liverpool, and why it may not matter for two very different reasons. Finally, David Wagner's tenure at Huddersfield has come to a close. So, uh, was he actually good? Or sort of good? Or lucky? It's tricky.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Over at patreon.com/doublepivot you can check out the rest of our team. Which strikers were left, which ball progressors and ball winners interest us? Who's popping the goalkeeper stats? Which of these players are in the team of the season because of what they do for their team, and who's there that could be a star in another team's system?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Most cup matches are irrelevant to the two Mikes. Nevertheless, they attempt to draw sweeping conclusions about the state of affairs with Spurs and Chelsea. Then it's on to Real Madrid, which might be pulling a Manchester United with a sudden fall from the top. Finally, you asked for it, and now you get it. They close out by picking the first few players of the season thus far — from non-top six Premier League clubs.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

Over at patreon.com/doublepivot, the Mikes are trekking to the continent with regularity! A preview of the second half of the La Liga season is on the pod, plus a mailbag with subscriber questions about Marcus Rashford, Spurs transfers, substitute effects and players outside the Champions League that could help the top clubs. And we're also doing some 10-minute game previews for double premium subscribers, that one this week is for Sevilla - Atletico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show

What a game! The Mikes had an incredible amount of fun watching City play Liverpool with the title pretty much on the line, and they take you through the game, hitting on the big moments, the tactical shifts, and what this game means for the title race. Then it's over to the big transfer news and the American Christian Pulisic going to Chelsea for over £50m. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the show