“Nobody at Paris St.-Germain seemed particularly upset at being knocked out of the Champions League. Christophe Galtier, the coach, made all the right noises, of course. It was a terrible disappointment, he said. A great shame, because this is a competition that really means a lot to the club. Very sad for all concerned. Kylian Mbappé, meanwhile, came across so phlegmatic that he seemed almost detached, as if the whole thing had happened only in the abstract. …”
NY Times
Daily Archives: March 10, 2023
Union Berlin still dreaming after a night of snow and St Gilloise sucker-punches
“Eisern Union! Eisern Union!” — Iron Union.
“It’s one of the biggest nights in Union Berlin’s history and everyone’s here. On the train out of the city centre down to the Kopenick district, the carriages are full of the young and old, men and women, the loud, the quiet and the wild-eyed. Opposite me, an elderly woman wrapped in a red and white scarf stares out of the window and watches Berlin’s outskirts go by. Behind her, by the doors, three young men all in black, each with a dash of red somewhere, bang the glass and echo chants down the carriage. …”
The Athletic (Video)
Premier League relegation predictions – according to the data
“Things are getting serious at the bottom of the Premier League table. Just eight points separate Southampton (20th) and Crystal Palace (12th), with clubs so desperate to avoid the drop that six of the bottom ten sides have changed managers this season — and Southampton doing so twice. The financial incentive to stay in the division is huge, but with 15 games to go, who looks most likely to be playing Championship football next season? …”
The Athletic (Video)
Carlo Ancelotti: Football’s Greatest Unsung Coach?
“The stare. The brow. The outfit. Everything about Carlo Ancelotti is iconic to its core. He is a man that exemplifies class, and his accolades as both player and coach take him to a stratosphere that even the most revered in the game would struggle to contemplate. He is, in many ways, an enigma that manages to evade the adoration and relentless discussion that his talent deserves. Why is it, after so many years in the game and so many trophies won, that we fail to place Ancelotti in the category that so many managers with less success are put in with ease? …”
Football Paradise
W – Carlo Ancelotti
Why Italian football has no money
“Clubs in Serie A are struggling to spend money. In January 2023 transfer window when the Premier League spent a combined total of 800m Euros, Serie A spent just 33m. But why? What is holding Italian clubs back from competing with their European counterparts? What are the main revenue streams, and why aren’t they fruitful? James Horncastle writes, Henry Cooke illustrates.”
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