Interesting Facts about the 2023/24 EPL, Laliga, Serie A Season

The 2023/24 club football season promises to produce another ten months of thrilling football action around Europe. The top football players and coaches will entertain the fans with their techniques, skills, and tactical acumen in their pursuit of silverware across different competitions. The new season rave will see football fans eager to watch all the action and share in the joy of victory of their favourite clubs.

As we usher in the new football season, here are some interesting facts to know before the action starts:

Full-blown football fest on DStv and GOtv: MultiChoice is making the season a special one for GOtv customers, as they can now access all Premier League matches on their decoder. Customers can now upgrade to the new GOtv package, GOtv Supa+ to enjoy EPL, La Liga, Serie A, UEFA Champions League, Europa League, Conference League, CAF Champions League, FA Cup, and Carabao Cup matches, just like DStv Compact, Compact Plus, and Premium subscribers do.

The rise of Guardiola’s mentees: Arguably the best football manager in the world, Pep Guardiola has owned the Premier League since he joined Manchester City seven seasons ago. He has won five of the last seven league titles, breaking almost all the records in English football. Having worked with several talents, some of his prodigies have taken to coaching and will lead teams against him in the Premier League this season. Arsenal’s coach, Mikel Arteta was Guardiola’s righthand man at City for four years; Burnley’s coach, Vincent Kompany captained Guadiola’s City team to two Premier League titles, while Brighton’s coach, Roberto De Zerbi said Guardiola inspired him to become a coach. Guardiola will face Kompany in the 2023/24 opening match on August 11th, available to DStv and GOtv Supa+ customers.

Barcelona’s temporary home: This is definitely a good one for all opponents that will be facing Barcelona this season. They won’t have to worry about the home advantage that over 100,000 fans provide at Camp Nou every matchday.  The famous stadium is under reconstruction, so Barcelona will play all their home matches for the 2023/24 season at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis, which is more like a neutral ground. This temporary home will host the first El Clasico of the season (Barcelona vs Real Madrid) on 29th October, live on DStv and GOtv.

No to Referee harassment: The Premier League has a cult followership in Nigeria. As the new season rolls in, it’s important that fans are abreast of the new rules and changes effected by the Premier League management. English football’s authorities aim to reset the attitude of players and managers towards officials this season. Referees will be encouraged to issue at least a yellow card if they are surrounded by two or more players. Managers will also be punished if they step out of their technical area on the touchline into the pitch to confront any match official at half-time or full-time.

First Belgian Manager In EPL: Former Manchester City captain, Vincent Kompany, will become the first Belgian coach to manage a team in the Premier League when he leads his Burnley team out against Man City on Friday.

Goal celebrations timing: As part of the effort to reduce time-wasting by players during goal celebrations, referees have been asked to give additional time at their discretion at the end of each half. So, get ready for lengthy Premier League, Serie A, Laliga, and Champions League matches that could last over 100 minutes, all available on DStv Compact, Compact Plus, and GOtv Supa+.

Napoli vs Millan: While the likes of Ademola Lookman, Isaac Success, and Tyronne Ebuehi will also feature prominently in the Serie A this new season,  matches involving AC Millan and Napoli will get more attention from Nigerians, with Samuel  Chukwueze and Victor Osimhen featuring for the respective clubs. Nigerian football fans will be keen to see who gets the better of the other when both sides take to the field in what is usually one of the big fixtures of every Serie A season. The first leg of their Serie A encounter will be at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on 29th October, live on DStv Compact, Compact Plus, and GOtv Supa+

Influence of Spanish managers: The Exploits of Guardiola appears to be luring more Spanish coaches to England. Four Premier League teams will start the season with Spaniards as their managers. This is the joint most by any country at the start of the 2023/24 EPL season (England and Spain). The Spanish managerial contingent comprises Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, Pep Guardiola at Man City, Unai Emery at Aston Villa, and Andoni Iraola at Bournemouth.