Mark Carey

London

Data Analyst and Football Writer at The Athletic

Senior Data Analyst for @TheAthleticFC | PhD in Psychology | Co-host of the Football Fanalytics Podcast @fanalyticspod ⬇️

Articles

Declan Rice was cooking: How Arsenal's all-action midfielder dominated Real Madrid

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Mark Carey

In a tie stacked with nearly one-third of this year's Ballon d'Or shortlist, one player stood out above the rest in Arsenal's Champions League tie with Real Madrid. Sit down, Kylian Mbappe. Don't get up, Vinicius Junior. Step aside for a moment, Jude Bellingham - Declan Rice wants a word. In the first Champions League quarter-final of his career, Rice put in back-to-back man-of-the-match performances to help Arsenal to the final four of the competition for the first time since 2009.
UEFA Champions League semi-finals: How to watch, dates, kick-off times

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Leon Imber |Mark Carey

With just four teams remaining in the Champions League, the competition has truly entered its business end. Holders Real Madrid - 15-time winners of the competition - exited via a 5-1 aggregate quarter-final defeat by Arsenal, leaving Inter as the only remaining semi-finalist to have won the Champions League. Here is all you need to know about the remainder of the 2024-25 Champions League campaign. What happened in the quarter-finals?
Why Liverpool - and their Premier League rivals - love hiring physicists

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Mark Carey

Holding a PhD in particle physics from Harvard University would typically be considered an extraordinary qualification, but for William Spearman, Liverpool's director of research, it was simply par for the course among his colleagues on the club's research team. Spearman was recruited by the former director of research, Ian Graham, who left the club in 2023 and who has a PhD in biological physics from the University of Cambridge.
Which clubs are the best fit for Europe's in-demand strikers?

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Mark Carey |Conor O'Neill

With the summer transfer window fast approaching, many of Europe's finest are poised and ready to start their business. Plenty of clubs are in the market for an elite striker and there is a healthy smattering of forwards to choose from across the continent - ranging from promising young talents to seasoned No 9s already into their peak years.
West Ham are eyeing Jonathan David for their summer rebuild. It's no surprise given their squad age

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Roshane Thomas |Mark Carey

West Ham United head coach Graham Potter is closely guarded with transfer plans but even he could not contain his excitement for the summer - and it is no surprise when a proven goalscorer in Ligue 1 is emerging as their leading transfer target. Jonathan David, the Lille forward, is entering the final months of his deal and does not intend to sign an extension. Since joining Lille from Gent in 2020, the 25-year-old has scored 107 goals across 226 appearances.
Liverpool are set to lose Trent Alexander-Arnold

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Andy Jones |Mark Carey

It is the question Liverpool's recruitment department will have been considering with increasing urgency as Trent Alexander-Arnold edges closer to a move away from Anfield this summer. The simple answer is that you cannot find a like-for-like replacement. The 26-year-old is a one-of-a-kind player with a passing range and ability to create no other right-back can match. Yet replacing Alexander-Arnold is something the Premier League's champions-elect are almost certainly going to have to confront.
Arsenal 3 Real Madrid 0

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Jordan Campbell |Jack Lang |Mark Carey

Declan Rice stunned Real Madrid with two brilliant free-kicks to help Arsenal to a commanding 3-0 win in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie. Rice stepped up in the 58th minute to whip a fine set-piece past Thibaut Courtois that bent remarkably wide of the goal before curling back in. Then 12 minutes later he fired another into the top corner to put Mikel Arteta's men in full control ahead of the return game at the Bernabeu next Wednesday.
Is Graham Potter's tinkering helping or hindering West Ham?

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Mark Carey

Graham Potter might have looked at Bournemouth's Andoni Iraola as a source of inspiration when the pair shook hands on Saturday afternoon. A 2-2 draw at home means Potter now has 12 points from 11 Premier League games since taking charge in east London - firmly in 'good, not great' territory as West Ham's season drifts toward a quiet conclusion, 15 points clear of the relegation zone. Iraola's early months on the south coast were far rockier.
Andy Robertson and Liverpool's left-back situation

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | James Pearce |Mark Carey

Andy Robertson threw his arms up in despair. It was half self-castigation, half bemoaning his misfortune after giving Fulham a helping hand in ending Liverpool's 26-game unbeaten Premier League run. It was 15 seconds to forget for the club's long-serving left-back. His initial blunder just past the half-hour mark, with the score at 1-1, was inexplicable as his crossfield pass dropped straight to Alex Iwobi and left Arne Slot's side exposed.
Analysing the last eight contenders for European football's biggest prize

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Mark Carey

Champions League action in April can only mean one thing - we are approaching the business end of European football's top competition for another season. Though the expanded format saw 36 clubs competing across a wider league phase, an element of familiarity has returned during the knockout stages, with six of last year's quarter-finalists reaching the last eight again. Aston Villa and Inter replacing Manchester City and Atletico Madrid are the only changes.