Valentin de Boulogne, A Musical Party
“There’s no La semaine en France this week due to the international break, but you can catch up on everything that happened in Week 4 (including all the fixtures for this weekend) here. Instead, here are five carefully chosen videos showcasing the best of some of Ligue 1′s most promising young players.” (Football Further)
“Glossy, shiny wonderful thing, sat on the newsagents shelf, ready to be plucked and digested. More sales than ever you say? but are you ok? really? IBWM editor Jeff Livingstone worries for a favourite publication. I was a little concerned to read recently that publishers IPC are looking to offload/sell World Soccer magazine.” (In Bed with Maradona)
“A fiery, frenetic affair saw the Turkish national team prevail from yet another of the epic games they habitually partake in. With two wins from two games, Turkey will push Germany all the way. I was flabbergasted upon reading the Belgium line-up – Toby Alderweireld, Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen, Daniel van Buyten, and Thomas Vermaelen – all of whom play centre-back at club-level – started.” (Tactics, analysis, opinion, & scouting)
“One of the world’s finest football leagues, the Italian Serie A is underway and this season all eyes will once again focus on whether reigning league champions Inter Milan can finally be dethroned. The Nerazurri have been collecting the Scudetto for five seasons in a row, albeit the first title from that five year run was pretty much a gift because of the Calciopoli scandal. Still, Inter’s domination has been so powerful that only last season were we finally witness to an interesting finish in the league.” (Just Football)
“From Mr Fallrueckzieher to Roger Boli, via Mark Hughes, here are half a dozen of the best acrobatic belters ever” (Guardian)
“To most people, Andrey Arshavin would have registered on their consciousness in the summer of 2008. He was boyish in his looks; his plum cheeks and fluffy hair were never going to hide his impish charm but it wasn’t before long he displayed all his cunning trickery. Suspended for the first two games of the European Championships with Russia – one of which included a 4-1 defeat to Spain – Arshavin made an instant impression. He was instrumental in seeing his side progress out of the group stages in the final game against Sweden before producing a performance which made everyone stand up and notice. Arshavin was devastating in a 3-1 win over Holland, scoring a fantastic counter-attacking goal to see off the Dutch and was so effective every time he got the ball that ITV pundit Andy Townsend claimed it would be the best £20million a club could spend in the transfer window.” (Arsenal Column)
Scissors Kick 