One wonders what Nathaniel Clyne was thinking on Thursday night. There was Callum Wilson, once of non-league obscurity, pointing to a bright England future alongside Jadon Sancho. As has been well-documented, Wilson’s rise into the England ranks has come after great suffering. His time in the Premier League with Bournemouth has been ravaged by injury, two separate instances of rupturing his...
Life at Manchester United started sweetly for Eric Bailly. The first signing of the José Mourinho era – joining in a £30million deal from Villarreal – he wasted no time making an impression at the club. Of course, he was far from being United’s highest-profile recruit that summer. During an impressive window, the Red Devils re-signed Paul Pogba from Juventus for a then world-record £89millio...
For young footballers, playing for Barcelona’s La Masia academy is akin to a budding tech entrepreneur getting a big break in Silicon Valley. La Masia is the fabled farmhouse turned football talent factory which produced players like Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Lionel Messi. It teaches future stars not just about the beautiful game, but about life. It’s as comprehensive as education gets...
Wayne Rooney‘s international swansong was always going to be the dominant theme as England saw off the USA 3-0 in Thursday night’s Wembley friendly, and the Three Lions’ record scorer looked impressively sharp in his 35-or-so minutes on the pitch. But the enduring story of this game should be the emergence of a new England hero. Jadon Sancho, who started for the first time at sen...
One wonders what Nathaniel Clyne was thinking on Thursday night. There was Callum Wilson, once of non-league obscurity, pointing to a bright England future alongside Jadon Sancho. As has been well-documented, Wilson’s rise into the England ranks has come after great suffering. His time in the Premier League with Bournemouth has been ravaged by injury, two separate instances of rupturing his...
Life at Manchester United started sweetly for Eric Bailly. The first signing of the José Mourinho era – joining in a £30million deal from Villarreal – he wasted no time making an impression at the club. Of course, he was far from being United’s highest-profile recruit that summer. During an impressive window, the Red Devils re-signed Paul Pogba from Juventus for a then world-record £89millio...
For young footballers, playing for Barcelona’s La Masia academy is akin to a budding tech entrepreneur getting a big break in Silicon Valley. La Masia is the fabled farmhouse turned football talent factory which produced players like Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Lionel Messi. It teaches future stars not just about the beautiful game, but about life. It’s as comprehensive as education gets...
Wayne Rooney‘s international swansong was always going to be the dominant theme as England saw off the USA 3-0 in Thursday night’s Wembley friendly, and the Three Lions’ record scorer looked impressively sharp in his 35-or-so minutes on the pitch. But the enduring story of this game should be the emergence of a new England hero. Jadon Sancho, who started for the first time at sen...
After Manchester United‘s withering defeat to Manchester City on Sunday, José Mourinho legitimised suggestions that football has left him behind. One of the foremost signs of the sport’s evolution in the social media era is the prevalence of stats. Nobody has ever proclaimed that statistics are the definitive tool with which we should analyse football. No, the old adage goes that ̵...
The riches on offer to Premier League sides able to attain the highest possible finish in the table means patience is typically in short supply in the English top flight. As such, clubs often spend big on a player considered the flavour of the month, the man they are sure will bolster their hopes of shooting up the table, only to then cast them aside and move on to the next shiny new transfer targ...
“Quality costs a specific price. With cars it’s the case, and with players too. Nobody thinks about it now.” Jürgen Klopp, speaking after his side’s 2-0 win over Crystal Palace in August, was referring to how the furore which followed Liverpool‘s £75million signing of Virgil van Dijk in January had grown silent since the Dutchman’s Anfield arrival. The Reds had been made to...