Argentina’s obsession with the number 5

ARGENTINA MADE IT THROUGH to the 2014 World Cup final having defeated Holland in a penalty shootout. Lionel Messi, the star of the show, wearing the nation’s iconic number 10, didn’t have a…

The wonderkids that failed to escape purgatory

FOOTBALL IS LITTERED WITH PLAYERS that have failed to live up to the expectations placed upon their young shoulders. Players that play their careers in a type of footballing purgatory. The rise of…

How Philippe Coutinho escaped purgatory

Illustration by Red Star Liverpool. Find more of his great work here Modern football has created a purgatory. A place where players that fail to live up to their initial hype are consigned…

Breaking down Jürgen Klopp’s Gegenpressing with Tim Lees

Since coming to Liverpool, eccentric German coach Jürgen Klopp has become somewhat of a darling of the written press. With his bubbly, likeable character and intensity winning over many onlookers, thoughts have since…

Tactics and counter-tactics by Tim Lees

FOLLOWING ON FROM OUR RECENT INTERVIEW with former Liverpool, Wigan and Watford academy coach Tim Lees, we talk to the young trainer about tactics, formations and countering threats on a football pitch. *…

Wonderkids and football’s desperate need for patience

THE TERM ‘WONDERKID’ IS OFTEN USED when referring to a talented young footballer. A player that shows great promise or stands out amongst players older than him. Like a drop of blood falling…

The value of central defenders in a warped world

MODERN DAY MEDIA, ESPECIALLY IN ENGLAND, has had a negative impact on the way central defenders are perceived. Gone are the days when a team was applauded for being defensively sound; instead of…

The goalkeeper stands alone

MANUEL NEUER MADE GOALKEEPING FASHIONABLE AGAIN. Coming third in the Ballon d’Or reaffirmed that point. The face of the ‘new’ breed of goalkeeper, the German phenomenon is currently at the pinnacle in his…