After last week’s goalscoring antics on the loan front, things took a more serene turn in the past seven days with fewer incidents of note, but with many of the young Blues building solid reputations, things remain largely positive.
Gael Kakuta was ineligible to take part for Bolton in their Sunday mauling by Chelsea because of Premier League loan rules, but Patrick van Aanholt continued at left-back for Wigan Athletic, and appears to be first choice for the time being.
Things may change when the Latics have one or two injured centre-backs available again, but for now the Dutchman is playing and playing well. Despite a 2-0 defeat at Villa Park on Saturday he had a decent showing and stands a good chance of continuing as a part of Roberto Martinez’ plans.
Doncaster continued their revival in The Championship under new manager Dean Saunders by taking four points from six this week, but whilst Milan Lalkovic played fifteen minutes as a substitute on Tuesday against Hull, he was an unused member of the bench at Peterborough on Saturday.
It appears uncertain as to whether Saunders rates the Slovakian, and it would seem unlikely that his spell is extended beyond the middle of the month, with just one start in six weeks at the Keepmoat Stadium to his name so far.
Results are back on the up for Sam Walker and Northampton however, as the giant stopper returned to the scene of his first spell in professional football with a 2-1 win at Barnet this weekend.
The Cobblers are moving up the table after an inconsistent start to the campaign but Walker had another good performance at Underhill and is set to continue as very much the club’s first choice in goal.
Moving our attentions abroad, Tomas Kalas conceded for the first time in Eredivisie action as a part of Vitesse’s defence as the Arnhem side conceded a late equaliser on Saturday night against Heerenveen.
The Czech has been outstanding so far, but Mexican forward Ulises Dávila is taking a little longer to settle in and was an unused substitute in the 1-1 draw.
In Germany, Jeffrey Bruma continues to deputise for the injured Michael Mancienne at the heart of the Hamburg defence but struggled to deal with the talented Klaas-Jan Huntelaar for much of the afternoon.
His national team compatriot notched both goals as Schalke won against the managerless HSV, but Technical Director Frank Arnesen is set to name a new chief during the international break.
Much better news from Spain though, as Thibaut Courtois returned to his best form with another clean sheet at home to Sevilla. The Belgian shipped five away to Barcelona last week but has otherwise been in exemplary form, and after conceding a late equaliser in midweek Europa League action away to Rennes, he shut out Sevilla in a Man of the Match performance this evening.
Finally, Matej Delac has still not been able to force his way into Ceske Budejovice’s starting eleven and sat on the bench for their goalless draw away to Hradec Králové, their second consecutive clean sheet.