On the southern fringes of Rotterdam’s eclectic centre, deposited between train tracks and the River Maas, Stadion Feyenoord encapsulates many of its city’s nuances. Better known by its moniker De Kuip (The…
Month: July 2016
FOR OVER two decades, Edgar Davids did more than just nip at the heels of his opponents. On the way to a hat-trick of Serie A titles, as many Eredivisie winner’s medals,…
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…
SOMETIMES IN FOOTBALL, it’s difficult not to feel sorry for goalkeepers. Yes, in the modern game they may be protected species, but they’re still faced with the answerable putdown of having a…
When Sheikh Mansour sanctioned the purchase of Manchester City back in September 2008, many neutral supporters believed that the Arabian Deputy Prime Minister would leave the club soon after. That, however, was…
The Liverpool class of 1987/88, featuring Aldridge, Barnes and Beardsley, is rightly considered by many to have been the greatest English club side ever
Social media has become something of a breeding ground for letting the average supporter know what former football greats (and not-so-greats) are currently up to. However, somewhere mixed in with the postmen,…
Illustration by Alex Noriega WHEN I LEAVE my flat to go to work later on today, a number of events may occur. That number is, in fact, infinite. Some of these events…
PELÉ, RONALDO, SÓCRATES, GARRINCHA: Brazil has had its fair share of legends, players so great a nickname in Portuguese is enough to identify them the world over. But there’s another who sits as equal…
Guillermo Stábile ran up the pitch, hoping for someone to pick him out. As the ball came sliding across the surface, the Argentine striker latched on to it deep on the right…
Sam McGuire caught up with former Liverpool, Wigan and Watford academy coach Tim Lees, now in the US as Academy Director at St. Louis FC, to discuss England’s disappointing Euro 2016 campaign from…
I. Stade de France, 12 July 1998. It was a cathartic moment that struck an emotional chord across a whole nation. World Cup 98 hosts France, two goals to the good against a…
On Thursday Independiente del Valle will play Boca Juniors in the semi-final of the Copa Libertadores in what is by far the biggest game in their history and one of the biggest…
It’s always hard if you’re seen as the sidekick in a successful partnership. Ricardo Carvalho has often had to play second fiddle to bigger names in the various teams he’s played for…
This feature is part of The Tsars of Football Nowadays the term ‘fair play’ has degenerated into kicking the ball out of the pitch when a player is faking an injury while…
The meaning of Zlatan – ‘the golden one’ – has always revealed a lot about him, at least to those that admire the striker. If football numbers are any sort of indicator…
Building a respectable reputation in any line of work requires time, effort, the right results and plenty of satisfied customers. It’s the very same in the world of football management. Yet something gives…
Club Deportivo Leganés, a small team from a quiet suburb in southern Madrid, will this autumn become the 61st club to contest a La Liga season, just two years after even tinier…