Federico Barocci
“The end of Diego Maradona’s worldwide ban from his game and the beginning of his greatest challenge, the World Cup in South Africa, are exactly 21 weeks apart. The lapsed Argentine idol, marginalized since FIFA forbade him from any involvement in soccer after his foul outburst in a broadcast news conference in November, is free to resume as Argentina’s head coach this Friday.” (NYT)

“In his WSJ column, Gabriele Marcotti brings up the dearth of British managers at the top of English football. Seven of the 20 Premier League managers are foreign. Sir Alex Ferguson is the only British manager among the so-called “Big Four.” Manchester City dumping Mark Hughes for Roberto Mancini seems only to exacerbate this trend.” (EPL Talk)

“Defending African Cup of Nations champion Egypt came from 0-1 down to open the defence of their title with a 3-1 victory of Nigeria earlier today. Hoffenheim striker Chinedu Obasi put the Super Eagles up in the 12th minute. Emad Moteab, Ahmed Hassan and Mohamed Nagui responded for the Pharaohs in the 34th, 54th and 87th minutes.” (Football Fashion)

“While I was putting together today’s “About Last Night”, three separate Liverpool stories all popped up. Given the option of either condensing each of those stories into a one-line blurb or fleshing out the details of each story and presenting them to you, I decided that more is always better; this is doubly true when we’re talking about clearing the air about some odd stories from last weekend. Let’s do that, then; follow along after the jump!” (Avoiding the Drop)

“I’ve had a soft spot for Brian Laws dating back to 1989 when John Aldridge patted him on the head in thanks for an own goal in an FA Cup Semi Final that Nottingham Forest were almost morally disallowed from winning, coming as it did in the wake of Hillsborough. Liverpool achieved partial solace by going on to win the Cup but Laws retained my strong sympathy for this maltreatment.” (thetwounfortunates)

“Benin earned their first ever point in the Africa Cup of Nations, but were denied victory after Mozambique came back from 2-0 down to earn a draw. Razak Omotoyossi scored Benin’s first with a 15th-minute penalty after goalkeeper Rafael had brought him down. Dario Khan’s own goal from a defensive mix-up put the Squirrels 2-0 up.” (BBC)

“The cold spell which has reduced parts of England to a virtual standstill in the past month has hit a number of sporting fixtures, with the almost inevitable moans from football managers about fixture congestion as postponed matches are crammed into an already tight schedule. However, compared to events in the winter of 1962-63, the last few weeks have been a stroll in the park.” (ESPN)