This feature is part of The Masterminds: 10 Under 45 Vincenzo Montella is not entirely dissimilar to Roberto Mancini. Like the former Inter and Manchester City manager, Montella exudes effortless charisma and…
Tag: ac milan
ARTISTS, EXPERT, INVENTORS, composers, producers and virtuosos; few exist in isolation. Creative license, by design or by necessity, can camouflage or gloss over the painstaking hours of practice and relentless hard work…
This feature is part of The Masterminds THE HISTORY OF FOOTBALL has seen a litany of great managers come from the Italian peninsula since the earliest days. These strategic thinkers and innovators…
“I DON’T FEEL pressure … I don’t give a toss about it. I spent the afternoon of July 9 in Berlin sleeping and playing the PlayStation. In the evening, I went out…
This feature is part of The Masterminds THE PRESS CONFERENCE was an explosive three minutes, leaving a cluster of Germany’s top journalists stunned and bewildered. Bayern Munich coach Giovanni Trapattoni was addressing…
And so, another one-nation final and yet another all-Madrid Champions League final awaits us. Beyond the obvious delight of the Spanish capital’s fan base and their decampment to Milan for 28 May,…
WHEN IT COMES TO LISTING THE GREATEST DEFENDERS OF ALL-TIME, Paolo Maldini is up there with the best there ever was. His calibre is proven in the European Cup and the Champions…
IN 1973, a tall, handsome Swede bought the Villa Boemia estate in the Monferrato hills in the Asti region of Italy. A verdant area known for its fine wines and amazing vistas, this…
There is one man who towers above the rest when it comes to the uncomfortable entwining of football and politics: Zvonimir Boban. The former AC Milan midfielder enjoyed a richly successful club career,…
“Only those who have the courage to take a penalty miss them. I failed that time. Period.” These are the words of a man who has been forced to defend his reputation on…
Fabio Capello appeared to be on the brink. Two victories in his last 10 games in charge of the Russia national team prompted a crisis meeting with his bosses on Wednesday, talks that…
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…
As featured on Guardian Sport A FEW WEEKS AGO, THERE WAS A SUDDEN FRISSON OF ENTHUSIASM surrounding Michael Carrick. Having played for Manchester United for nearly a decade and having been capped by…
The year was 1966; the month, November. American singer-songwriter Little Richard had just performed a brief but energetic gig at L’Olympia in Paris. In the surroundings of one of the French capital’s most…
It was a wet December night at Stadio San Nicola in 1999 as FC Bari played host to Inter Milan in Serie A. Inter were already clear favourites prior to the game as…
Reggiolo is a rural cheese farming town in the heartlands of Italy’s north. Famous not only for its parmesan cheese, but a certain eyebrow-raising, world-class footballer and manager: Carlo Ancelotti. Born the son of…
AT THE 1958 Congress of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) in Rio de Janeiro, the president of UEFA, Henry Delaunay, put forward a proposal for a competition between the top clubs…
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…