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Zidane 2.0
“It has been difficult from the outside looking in. I am looking forward to working with the players again, to competing again…I want to put Real Madrid back where it belongs.” And here we are: just 284 days after he walked away, 284 days during which two managers were sacked as Real Madrid’s season sank…
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Marko Pjaca’s Career Derailed by Second ACL Injury
For a small nation, Croatia has historically been an incredible breeding ground for footballers, and that tradition has been incredibly maintained since the country earned independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Despite containing a population of approximately 4 million, its football team remarkably reached the 2018 World Cup Final, only to be defeated 4-2 by France…
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From Overweight to Overachieving: Luis Muriel
“If he wants to talk with me, he should lose 5 pounds. I repeat, he does not speak with me until he has a physique of an athlete, he must work hard.” Those were the harsh words of Udinese coach Francesco Guidolin in an interview with Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport in July 2012…
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How Eintracht Frankfurt became Germany’s favorite underdogs
When Ben Manga became chief scout of Eintracht Frankfurt in July 2016, the club had just finished 16th in the Bundesliga, only staying up thanks to their victory over 1. FC Nürnberg in the relegation playoffs. They exited early in the DFB Pokal second round, and they desperately needed someone to turn them around. Thanks…
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Luís Campos: The rise of football’s most underrated sporting director
Just under two years after he stepped down from his role as the technical director of AS Monaco, Luís Campos vowed to replicate his successes from his tenure at Stade Louis II. “I don’t want to appear arrogant, but I assure you I will create other ‘masterpieces’ like this in my career,” Campos said in…
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Mohammed Ihattaren: PSV’s Next Big Thing
Born in Utrecht, Netherlands on February 12th, 2002 to Moroccan immigrants, Mohammed Ihattaren joined the PSV academy in 2009 at 8 years old. He became the 4th-youngest debutant in the history of PSV to make his Eredivisie debut, when he made a 4-minute cameo against FC Groningen in a 2-1 win on January 26th, 2019.…
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Ramos’ Folly and Tadić’s Triumph
After the final scene in Alfonso Cuáron’s 2000 film “Amores Perros,” the screen fades to black, and a dedication in white text appears: “A Luciano, porque también somos lo que hemos perdido.” This translates as “To Luciano, because we are also what we have lost.” In “Amores Perros,” each character is defined by what…
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Gattuso’s Milan: A Rossoneri Side in the Spitting Image of Rino
Every manager has a set of faithful servants in the team; servants who exude how the manager wants things to be done on the pitch. These players are the reflection of the manager and how he wants the game to be played. Without players like these, a manager is bound to fail. Be it Roy…
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Claudio Ranieri and Fulham: The Tinkerman’s Last Stand
After a hot-and-cold managerial track record, Claudio Ranieri etched his name into legend when he took a Leicester City side fancied for relegation and miraculously guided them to a staggering Premier League title in 2016. But the man who gained plaudits and admiration from football fans around the world with his smiley, eccentric attitude, has…
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Reece James: Chelsea’s Long-Term Answer to César Azpilicueta?
Wigan Athletic are having a poor season in the Championship, hovering just 3 points above the drop zone. The Greater Manchester outfit have struggled to pick up points and have been dragged into a relegation scrap, but despite these adverse conditions, Reece James, a 19-year-old Chelsea loanee, has flourished at the DW Stadium. James has…
