Articles
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Tactical Preview: Porto-Round Of 16
After a trophyless season which saw 3 managers, a failure to challenge for the league title, and a group stage exit in the Champions League, Porto are back. Having played a game more, they sit two points ahead of Benfica in first, and are set to face the Italian champions on Wednesday. In Nuno Espírito…
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Tactical Preview: Bayer Leverkusen-Round Of 16
Let’s not sugarcoat it: it has been a terrible season for Bayer Leverkusen so far. They currently sit in 9th place in the Bundesliga, having accrued a disappointing 27 points. Not only that, they also got knocked out in the 2nd Round of the DFB – Pokal by third tier side Sportfreunde Lotte. One of the problems Leverkusen…
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Antonio Conte’s Miracle
After finding themselves hovering above the relegation zone midway through the season, Chelsea needed a sea change at the club, and the first course of action Roman Abramovich took was firing José Mourinho as manager. Then, when it became clear the London club would finish among the middle of the pack, Abramovich appointed three-time Serie A winner and…
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Tactical Preview: Atlético Madrid-Round Of 16
With an almost perfect group stage run, having won 5 out of the 6 games played, and being the only team this season to have done so, Los Colchoneros couldn’t have asked for a better start in this season’s Champions League. Many people are asking, like Bayern Munich, is the third time the charm for Atleti in the Champions League…
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Tactical Preview: Juventus-Round Of 16
This Wednesday, Juventus and Porto will meet in the Estádio do Dragão in the first leg of what promises to be one of the most thrilling encounters of the first knockout stage of this season’s Champions League. Without losing a game, the visitors topped a complicated group that included back-to-back Europa League champions Sevilla and…
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Tactical Preview: Real Madrid-Round of 16
It is finally that time again, Champions League football is back. The reigning European Champions, Real Madrid, host Napoli on Wednesday, February 15th 2017. However, as a Madridista, I’d be lying to say that there are no worries concerning this season’s performances. Despite Real Madrid topping La Liga this season, they haven’t quite hit top…
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Tactical Preview: FC Barcelona-Round of 16
Today, FC Barcelona will take on reigning French champions Paris Saint-Germain. This tie seems like a yearly occurrence, as the upcoming meeting will be the 7th in the 5 seasons between the two clubs, with Barcelona edging the previous 6 with 3 wins to PSG’s 1, and 2 draws. This tie is, as I like…
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Tactical Preview: Benfica-Round of 16
This Tuesday, Benfica will host Borussia Dortmund at the Estadio De Luz in its quest to break the Curse of Béla Guttmann. After a triumphant decade in Europe, where the Lisbon club won two European Champions Clubs’ Cup Finals, boasting the likes of Eusébio da Silva Ferreira and Mário Esteves Coluna, Benfica relinquished its stranglehold…
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Tactical Preview: Arsenal-Round of 16
As a lifelong Arsenal fan, it’s hard to look ahead to the return of the Champions League and it’s knockout phase without feeling a sense of groundhog day. The Gunners go into their last 16 match having exited at this stage for six consecutive years, and their hopes of finally progressing again were dealt a…
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Tactical Preview: Napoli-Round of 16
The Azzurri are headed into Wednesday’s clash against Real Madrid in fine form having secured their 18th consecutive positive result after an impressive, though not spectacular, 2-0 win over Genoa on Friday. It wasn’t a stunning performance from Sarri and his men but winning without playing your best is an important characteristic for any competitive…
