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Player Analysis: Declan Rice
After being unable to bring in a single player last summer due to a FIFA transfer ban, Chelsea have had a transfer window for the ages. After signing Hakim Ziyech from Ajax and Timo Werner from RB Leipzig, Chelsea have completed deals for Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva, Malang Sarr and Édouard Mendy. There’s…
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How a Youth Team Coach and Joey Veerman Could Take SC Heerenveen to the Top
An open training session at FC Volendam sparked an intriguing combination of two varying footballers by an idle spectator: “Joey De Bruyne”, he giggled to himself. This seemingly impalpable comparison between a Premier League-winning Belgian and young Joey Veerman did in fact draw similarities. Whilst ignored by Ajax and PSV Eindhoven for playing ‘monotonous…
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Player Analysis: Mohamed Simakan
From Jules Koundé to William Saliba, there are plenty of young French center backs who have broken onto the scene and earned big moves over the past few years, and the next player to do so could be Mohamed Simakan. Born in Marseille on May 3, 2000, Simakan began his career as a striker,…
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Monza and its Milanese Connection
Synonymous with motor racing, Monza is known around the world for its famous racing circuit, the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, which has hosted the Italian Formula One Grand Prix for every year bar one since 1950. Situated about 15 kilometers north of Milan, Italy, the city has started to gain some attention from football fans…
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Scouting Report: Teden Mengi
The Manchester United youth academy serves as a source of great pride for its fans, both local and global. With an unbelievable run of 4000+ consecutive games over 90 years with a youth academy graduate being named in the matchday squad, United have truly earned their reputation as a club that gives youth a…
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What Happened to Lucas Torreira at Arsenal?
Coming off the back of an impressive 2017/18 season both with Sampdoria and the Uruguayan national team, the hype surrounding Lucas Torreira was astronomical. After a decade, Arsenal fans finally thought they had a Gilberto Silva replacement. A fellow South American, embodying the Garra Charrúa mentality, with the heart, desire, energy and determination to rejuvenate…
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The Increasing Value of Left-Footed Sharpshooters
Over the last 3-5 years, public football analysis has, as a field, become increasingly oriented around expected goals (xG). The metric now gets regularly cited by older pundits as well as young, and in general the trend has been positive. It’s an easily accessible way of understanding game-over-game performance (even if it’s more applicable over…
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Davies Accustomed to Adapting
At a young age, Alphonso Davies learned all about making adjustments. Life was going to throw some unexpected challenges his way and still does, yet he handles them with aplomb. Signed to Bayern Munich and viewed as being equipped with the requisite skill to replace the departed goal-scoring exploits of Arjen Robben and Franck…
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Player Analysis: Rivaldo Coetzee
After 5 seasons at Ajax Cape Town, where he made his professional debut at the age of 17. Rivaldo Coetzee, a product of the Ajax Cape Town academy, signed for Mamelodi Sundowns in August 2017, after a failed move to Celtic – it was found that he has an underlying problem with his right-foot during…
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Ralf Rangnick: The Hoffenheim Diaries
“That’s the kind of football we want to play one day,” said Jürgen Klopp after his Borussia Dortmund side were beaten 4-1 by Ralf Rangnick’s Hoffenheim in a Bundesliga fixture in September 2008. Vedad Ibišević (twice), Sejad Salihović and Carlos Eduardo struck for the Sinsheim club to seal an emphatic win in their first-ever season…
