Articles
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Player Analysis: Themba Zwane
A drop of a shoulder and well-timed flicked passes around the corner; a trademark Mshishi move. It is simply hard to visualise a Mamelodi Sundowns performance without Themba Zwane’s silk movement and supreme relationship with the football. The 2019/20 PSL Footballer of the Season, Player’s Player of the Season, and Midfielder of the PSL…
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The Renaissance of John Stones?
As John Stones and Rúben Dias high-fived and fist-bumped on the half-way line at Southampton on Saturday, there was an immense feeling of satisfaction throughout the Manchester City camp. Dias, a sturdy, rugged man, with adrenaline coursing through his veins, was celebrating a hard-fought victory, and yet another clean sheet, with his sensational centre back…
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Player Analysis: Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa has been a standout player for Scott Parker’s Fulham, who are enjoying a mid-season revival following a difficult start. In short, Anguissa is a powerful operator; he is tenth in the league for dribbles completed and eight in the league for attacking duels won. His primary strengths include ball carrying and intelligence…
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Mohamed Ihattaren: PSV’s Diamond in the Rough
It was 2007. The coats were piled up on the touchline in the south-eastern outskirts of Utrecht as Mohamed Amine Ihattaren’s mother watched on, wearing a proud smile. Her son had started his footballing journey at SV Houten and would soon move to Eindhoven, 85 kilometres south. Just over 12 years later, he would make…
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Every Premier League Club’s Brightest U-21 Talent: Part 1
More and more young players are beginning to forge their way in England’s top flight, with the days of starting XI’s with an average age of 30+ becoming a thing of the past. This season has seen the trend of youthfulness in the Premier League continue, with managers forced to use the full depth of…
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Case Study: Jesse Marsch’s Red Bull Salzburg
By: Russell Pope Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Johannes Schmedt – Getty Images
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Player Analysis: Silas Wamangituka
When looking for destinations to visit in south-western France, you would be forgiven for overlooking Alès. With the greatest respect to this town of 40,000, nothing much happens here. Biologist Louis Pasteur performed research on silkworm diseases in the town in the 1860s. World Cup-winning defender Laurent Blanc was born here in 1965. It is…
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Finding a Paul Pogba Replacement
Assuming that Manchester United persist with the 4-2-3-1 formation that has become part and parcel of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s time at the club, which is looking likely due to Bruno Fernandes’s immense form in the #10 position, replacements for Paul Pogba, who has shown no signs of extending his contract past its current expiry of…
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Tactical Analysis: Christophe Galtier’s Lille
Three years ago, Lille Olympique Sporting Club were entrenched in a crisis. The appointment of Marcelo Bielsa as manager had not had the desired effect, with ‘El Loco’ freezing out experienced veterans such as Vincent Enyeama, Rio Mavuba, and Marko Baša and coming to blows with sporting director Luís Campos in a power struggle over…
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Romelu Lukaku: The One-Man Press Resistance Mechanism
Since arriving from Manchester United for a club-record fee of €80 million, Romelu Lukaku has enjoyed a new lease of life at Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan, scoring 47 goals and 8 assists in 67 appearances. More than his goals, Lukaku himself provides a direct route of ball progression, allowing Inter to escape pressure and launch…
