“As a football fan it’s highly likely that at some point in your life you’ve collected football cards or stickers. For many of us it will have been Panini stickers, and for today’s kids it’s all about Topps Match Attax. But the addictive combination of football and collecting has been around for more than 120 years, and young Victorian football fans just couldn’t get enough of Baines Football Cards.” In Bed With Maradona
“What makes a great season? If it’s the quality of soccer played, then this has been a dismal year for Serie A, something shown up by the performances of Italian clubs in European competition. Internazionale limps on in the Champions League, somehow in the last eight despite a back line about as well-drilled as a class of five year olds on their first school trip. However, AC Milan and Roma went out in the last 16 and Italian interest in the Europa League ended when Napoli lost to Villarreal in the last 32. Juventus and Palermo didn’t even make it out of the groups.” SI
“I’ve worked full time with hundreds of football bloggers for the past two years now and prior to that, another two years part time with a handful of dedicated guys (and girls). So, into my 5th year of football blogging, what have I learned?Well, the first thing is that there are plenty of people who have been doing this for a lot longer than me! But I’ll get to that.” FootballUnited
“FC Twente moved ahead of PSV Eindhoven, thanks to two goals from Theo Janssen. Nikolay Mihaylov replaced Sander Boschker in goal, in Michel Preud’homme’s only change – Bryan Ruiz was only on the bench. Fred Rutten named an unchanged side from the XI which beat Utrecht the previous weekend. The game started at a slow tempo.” Zonal Marking
“What an extraordinary weekend here in Spain, where events in La Liga took place in a counter-intuitive fashion, and more or less set the seal on the destiny of the league title, give or take an improbable implosion of form at Barcelona FC over the next eight weeks.” ESPN
“Whilst the Premier League now is enjoyed by millions around the world, Norway has always had a unique relationship with the English game. Welcome to IBWM, Michael Moruzzi.” In Bed With Maradona
“José Mourinho is looking mean and moody on the front cover of Monday’s edition of AS. Then again, the Madrid manager is always looking mean and moody. But in this particular photograph it looks as if Mourinho had spent the past two months living next door to The Libertines in their drug-addled pomp and is about to blast the band’s front door down with a shotgun.” FourFourTwo
Scissors Kick 