A phrase like “Hernán Crespo may just have won the Champions League for AC Milan … Liverpool were all over the place there”, or “They don’t come much simpler than that … Crespo’s…
“SOCCER HAS ARRIVED IN THE UNITED STATES! And it’s here to stay … just look at the watch parties, full stadiums stateside watching the United States Men’s national team play in the World…
On the northern edge of Buenos Aires, on the banks of the Rio de la Plata, resides a giant of Argentine club football: Club Atlético River Plate. The history of the sporting club…
I remember sitting in my British literature class at the clueless age of 16 and reading George Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece, 1984. Admittedly, I think the book should be required reading for anyone who…
This feature is part of The Academy Way ASCENDENCY COMES IN MANY FORMS. For one club, ascendency includes 27 domestic league titles, 18 DFB-Pokal titles and six German Super Cup titles. But…
This feature is part of The Academy Way PLAYER DEVELOPMENT IS AN INEXACT SCIENCE AND TEAMS in the United States must task themselves with finding the best talent in a sporting landscape…
“I WAS OPEN TO ALL THAT BUT I WOULDN’T BE DICTATED BY IT. It was useful if a player questioned what you were saying about his game, or his stats. If we…
Sometimes, all you have to do is watch a single play to figure out if someone is a real player or not. Other times, it’s even simpler – and all it takes is…
IN GLOBAL FOOTBALL, THE NARRATIVE NEVER STAYS THE SAME. Success on the pitch is not defined by population density and landmass. Footballing excellence does not grow from dry, unfilled fields left stagnate…
This feature is part of The Academy Way THE TRULY ICONIC FOOTBALL CLUBS ARE DEFINED BY THEIR ABILITY to dominate on and off the pitch. Perhaps no other enterprise is as results-driven…
“YOUNGSTERS NEED OPPORTUNITIES — everyone needs time. With all conditions being equal, a home-grown player has a better chance than one who comes in from abroad. The Xavis and Iniestas took ten…
A WHILE BACK, Major League Soccer’s website put together a short mash-up video asking the question, “When will MLS produce its own Messi?” The video itself, more paid promotional collateral soaked in corporate…
FOOTBALL THRIVES ON THE ECCENTRIC CAST OF CHARACTERS in its court. In it, we find rival kings like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo leading their powerful armies armed to the teeth with soldiers…
Bobby Robson was what is a known as a true football man. True football men are a rare breed. Their names and faces are etched in the memory of football’s illustrious and chaotic history,…
As a versatile player with a six foot two inch frame and ability to run for days, I often played across the back line or as a central midfield player. The game demanded high levels…
TODAY’S GAME IS DOMINATED by possession-orientated sides that methodically parse and splay opponents with surgical interplay and precision. Watching goalkeepers like Marc-André ter Stegen or Manuel Neuer collect and place the ball at their…
The crowd braces for the inevitable impact as two energetic under-17 players on a collision course with one another refuse to let up in a challenge near the sideline. The larger of the…
In an age where attacking players exude an unrivalled degree of balance and explosive athleticism, there exists an assured, yet waning breed of player relishing defensive confrontation. Traditionally, these players operate under their…