If you’ve never heard of Sándor Kocsis, it’s likely that you’re not from Hungary or you’re not a die-hard Barcelona supporter. Held up as a cherished cult hero by both sets of fans, Kocsis’ quality is well known by both the Blaugrana and admirers of Hungarian football history, but outside of those circles he’s generally brought…
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Clutching false papers and disguised as Russian soldiers while sheltering from the bitter winter on the back of a truck, a group of Hungarian men passed through the Alps in search of Austria, which was partially occupied by the US and represented a safe haven. Forced to ditch the vehicle close to the border,…
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This feature is part of The Masterminds: 10 Under 45 “Is it your birthday? No? Then you’re not getting it.” As the seven-year-old child glanced longingly at the table tennis set he had his heart set on, his emotions began to get the better of him. Seeing how distraught the little boy was, the older…
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This feature is part of The Masterminds When one thinks of the Mighty Magyars, thoughts often run to The Galloping Major Ferenc Puskás, the powerful army side Honvéd and England’s first defeat to continental opposition on home soil. Jimmy Hogan – the Englishman whose name ‘”should be written in gold letters when our history is…
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This feature is part of The Masterminds series As the smouldering wreckage morbidly illuminated the snow-drenched gloom, one flame threatened to go out altogether. A few survivors scrabbled through the shredded shards of metal to rescue what remnants they could have one of the greatest teams the world had seen, and amid the panic it…
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This feature is part of The Masterminds Gore Vidal once wrote: “Traitors who prevail are patriots; usurpers who succeed are divine emperors.” If this is the case, then Jimmy Hogan could be said to be the most divine, patriotic emperor to emerge from these shores, but the Lancashire-born son of a staunchly Roman Catholic Irishman would…
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Neuer, Valdés, Menzo, Gatti and Jongbloed all mastered the art of the sweeper keeper; proactive goalkeepers that charge out of their box to intercept through balls from attacking teams, clearing the ball before the opposition form their attack. They’re ‘keepers who are just as adept with the ball at their feet as outfield players, capable of building up…
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In sport, especially within the often wildly unpredictable world of football, there is rarely anything like a guaranteed winning bet. The Europa League final on May 14 2014, was, however, probably as close to being a dead cert as almost anything ever is when the beautiful game is involved. Bet on Sevilla to beat Benfica and…
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Twenty-two years ago my brother and I bought our first console, the Super Nintendo, and our first game was Super Soccer. There were only eight directions you could run or pass in – no such new-fangled nonsense as step-overs or backheels. The sheer simplicity of the gameplay made the accuracy of passes critical, as there were…
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