|
The Archives
-
05.03.13What next for Barça and where next for Mourinho?Adios amigos. The two Spanish teams are out of the Champions League and it will be an all-German affair come May 25th when Bayern Munich take on Borussia Dortmund at Wembley. The last time a Bundesliga club won this trophy was back in 2001. But while German football continues to increasingly shine, lots of people are wondering what next for Spain's "big two". "End of an era" is what many journalists wrote on Wednesday night after Barcelona's 7-0 aggregate defeat against Bayern Munich. Some players, such as Xavi, dismissed such headlines. "There's no need to be drastic," he told Spanish television. "The ...
-
03.04.12Another manager required at Chelsea. Apply within.Just the one win in Chelsea's last seven matches and only three from their last 12 in the league, billionaire owner Roman Abramovich acted the way he knows best in these situations: by giving yet another manager the chop. This time on the receiving end of it was André Villas-Boas. Saturday's 1-0 league defeat to West Brom was the final straw for the powers that be at Stamford Bridge. What next for the Blues? Well, Roberto Di Matteo will take charge for the mean time, but who will be the next permanent manager (if such a title is possible at Chelsea)? Already ...
-
02.29.12London calling for The Special One?International fixtures are what's on the menu this week for many a footballer and football fan. But Real Madrid manager José "Special One" Mourinho began his week by taking a flight to London on Tuesday morning and, according to Madrid-based sports newspaper AS, went house hunting in the English capital alongside his wife, Matilde. Is he leaving Real Madrid? He may well do. Despite Madrid's current league advantage over rivals Barcelona, Mourinho has not had the easiest of relationships with club president Florentino Perez or indeed some of the Spanish press - some of whom quite publicly do not respect Mourinho's work ...
-
09.08.11Here comes the sonFootball el Mundo was in Milan at the weekend. Sadly there was no time to take in a pilgrimage to the San Siro. But there was time to read the local football press. One of the main stories was José Mourinho including a 16-year old youth to join his first team training this week. His name? Enzo Zidane. You read that surname correctly. It is his son. Of course, Zizou was, in my opinion, in the top three of the greatest players to ever play the game. A World Cup-winner and himself a Madrid 'galactico' who retired at the top of ...
-
08.19.11Has José Mourinho taken it a little too far this time?Eye-gouging on the touchline. Well, it's certainly a new approach to get under someone's skin from The Special One as his Real Madrid side travelled to Barcelona's Camp Nou during the week for the 2nd leg of the Spanish Super Cup. Following Marcelo's two-legged tackle on Barça's Cesc Fabregas, chaos ensued at the sideline. Red cards were being thrown around to Marcelo, Mesut Ozil and David Villa. Then Mourinho very calmly walks up behind Pep Guardiola's number two Tito Vilanova and very bizarelly sticks his finger in the Barça assistant's eye. Vilanova retaliated by pushing The Special One who in turn ...
-
07.21.11Always read the small printIn January, Blackpool midfielder Charlie Adam was linked with a move away from Bloomfield Road and was rumoured with a transfer to Liverpool. The seasiders' manager Ian "Ollie" Holloway would make a percentage of any transfer Adam completes and came under criticism as many claimed this was the reason he held off bids from Liverpool even labelling their £4 million offer as "disgraceful". Adam eventually made the move to Anfield for £7 million last week, Ollie made a nice few bob out of the deal and the media said nothing about it. But Holloway personally making a nice lump sum of ...
-
04.03.11Ones to watch #6 : Alvaro MorataReal Madrid president Florentino Pérez's famous galactico policy in the early 2000's meant that youngsters coming through the ranks of los blancos might find it hard getting into the team alongside the Beckhams, Zidanes, Figos and the likes. However some (though very few) did. Perez is currently in his second stint as Madrid president and his so-called second galactico era is in full swing with Madrid forking out absolute millions for the likes of Kaká, Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo. Young players like Pedro Leon and Sergio Canales are all enjoying life on Madrid's most senior roster - though neither are graduates. ...
recent posts
- It’s “adios Chelsea” from Benitez, and “farewell football” from Beckham
- Will Pellegrini be an improvement on the way Mancini ran things at Man City?
- The Fergie era ends as Moyes’ first task is to try hang on to Rooney
- What next for Barça and where next for Mourinho?
- Champions League semi-final preview
- So long, QPR. But is Harry going down with you?
- When North Korea went to the World Cup
- Ones to watch #13: Mateo Kovačić
- Di Canio may not win over some fans, but he needs to win over Sunderland’s players
- Trap out … but who do we want in?