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O Especial — The Tale Of The Special One
Few partnerships have such bond, glamour, bitterness, love, and duality such as the one with Jose Mourinho and Chelsea FC. Jose Mourinho has visited The Pensioners five teams. Each visit has been nothing short of fireworks and an English novela. Today I look at the hidden tales of O Especial’s first visit at Chelsea. Old…
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The Genie or the Lamp?
Be careful what you wish for at Chelsea. Wishes come true here, but dreams are harder. Storm-clouds of uncertainty circle Stamford Bridge in an almost witch’s familiar- a spell cast upon Chelsea by Roman Abramovich when Chelsea managers are involved. The Genie of Stamford Bridge, who in 2003 granted Chelsea every wish they dreamt of.…
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Zidane is the perfect architect as Madrid plan its future
Zinedine Zidane’s return to Real Madrid was heralded as a move that would save the future of the club, and for good reason. In the week that preceded the official confirmation that the Frenchman had chosen to return, Madrid had been heavily linked with another second-coming, of Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese was in advance negotiations…
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Many managerial changes in Serie A makes for an exciting season ahead
No sooner had the Calcio campaign ended and the rumor mill began about who will go in the hot-seats on the benches on the peninsula. Italian football has long since had a reputation for managerial merry-go around, but the volume of changes that have happened already and that are expected to happen is arguably, something…
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Leonardo Semplici’s steady ship at SPAL
Situated a stone throw away from the Po river, Ferrara is city in the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy that is more known for art and architecture, especially in comparison to their more industrialized regional counterparts. Its football team does not go by the name of the city but the acronym SPAL, which stands…
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José Bordalás’s rise to managerial stardom
It’s been a fairytale season thus far for Getafe FC. And it’s all down to one man: José Bordalás. Many hadn’t even heard of him until a few weeks ago. So, who is the man that’s being compared to Diego Simeone, the man who has Getafe sitting at 4th place in La Liga, ahead of…
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What went wrong with Pablo Machín at Sevilla?
It started so well for Pablo Machín at Sevilla, with Los Nervioneses leading the league in October and dominating teams with pace on the counter. However, slowly the results started to peel away; Sevilla won just two of their last 11 league games and went without a win in their last ten La Liga matches…
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‘Boszball’ and what Julian Brandt and Kai Havertz’s rise means for Joachim Löw and Germany
There are intriguing parallels which can be drawn between Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester United’s breathtaking renaissance post the turn of the year. Handcuffed by their managers’ mundane approaches, hackneyed responses to pointed concerns and an overwhelmingly apparent underutilization of electrifying attacking talent at their disposal – here we had two clubs who found themselves in…
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Athletic Club’s strong principles have carried them to safety
To be historic is to truly be special. In any walk of life or within any profession, we look to succeed like nobody before us. If we can do it “our way,” we can make that success even more enjoyable and important. The 2018-19 season produced several hardships for Athletic Club. However, now with a…
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The Under-Appreciation of Massimilano Allegri: A Tactical Maestro
The night for Juventus following the 2–0 loss to Atlético Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano was nothing short of a disaster for the Bianconeri. After the £88.3 million fee summer acquisition of Cristiano Ronaldo, aka ‘Mister’ Champions League,’ Juventus fans firmly held the belief that this was their year to lift the famous trophy. The…
