Monthly Archives: February 2024

Erik ten Hag is imagining bad faith from Jamie Carragher. Perhaps he senses the ground shaking

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“As Erik ten Hag addressed reporters in a media suite at the club’s Carrington training ground, he opted for the oldest trick in the book of any Manchester United manager: go after a man from Liverpool. Sir Alex Ferguson was never shy in reminding the BBC how many former Liverpool pundits the national broadcaster had on its books. In 2012, Ferguson accused the ex-Liverpool defender Alan Hansen of criticising United publicly as a favour to his friend and then Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish in a bid to rile United before a cup tie between the two clubs. …”
The Athletic

How Football Works: The triggers, traps and tempo of pressing

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“Even the best defences don’t press high all the time. Sometimes they hardly do it at all. Like a veteran boxer backing against the ropes, a lot of the best pressing sides spend long stretches of the game crouched in a mid-block, tightening ranks in midfield while they wait for the right opening to come out swinging. Players watch for a ‘trigger’, their cue to burst forward and catch the team in possession off guard. They may plan to spring a ‘trap’, luring the ball toward some designated area where the defence will snap shut on it, but the most important principle in pressing tactics is an underappreciated third T: tempo. …”
The Athletic

The Bayern Munich contradiction: Vast, invulnerable, deeply troubled and fixable

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“On Saturday night, at the end of a long week full of dark clouds, drizzle and reflection, Bayern Munich won for the first time in four games, beating RB Leipzig and ending their worst sequence since 2015. Bayern’s decision to announce that Thomas Tuchel will be leaving the club in the summer was intended to quieten the noise and liberate the players. But while the form has changed, the page is yet to turn. They won late at the Allianz Arena, with the second of two ruthlessly well-taken Harry Kane goals giving them a 2-1 win, but it was a bloodless game, full of inaccuracy and nerves, and played in front of an agitated crowd. …”
The Athletic

The first African diaspora

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Cabo Verde vs Ethiopia, January 2022.
“Football, at times, can be an emotional catalyst, and is capable of uniting the hearts of an entire population. Particularly, if this population is made up of barely a half a million people distributed over seven habitable islands of an archipelago nation. The islands of Cabo Verde sit a little bit more than 500 miles off the coast of Senegal in West Africa. Their independence, conquered after years of armed struggle in the forests of Guinea [Bissau], came in 1975. The leader of this liberation movement, called the PAIGC (Partido Africano para a Independência da Guiné e Cabo Verde), was Amílcar Cabral, one of the most important names of African liberation. …”
Africa Is a Country

Introducing the 8.5, the hybrid role that is shaping the Premier League title race

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“This season’s battle for the Premier League title is now unquestionably a three-horse race. In May, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City will become the first side in English football history to win four titles in a row. Or Jurgen Klopp will win his second Premier League title before departing Liverpool. Or Mikel Arteta will lead Arsenal to their first league title in two decades. Whichever outcome transpires, the victorious side will have depended on a player who has fulfilled an unusual role this season. …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox

The chaotic 24 seconds that showed Arsenal how fine the Champions League margins can be

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“Welcome back to the Champions League knockouts, Arsenal. Given the club’s lack of recent experience at this level, this was always likely to be an educative evening for Mikel Arteta’s team. Unfortunately, this learning moment made for a particularly painful lesson. Of Arteta’s starting XI, 10 were playing in the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time. Only Kai Havertz had featured in a tie of this magnitude before. Porto, by way of contrast, had a 40-year-old Pepe anchoring a significantly more experienced side. …”
The Athletic

Napoli and Barcelona both look out of place in the Champions League

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“Occasionally, you hear people speaking wistfully about the days when the Champions League was precisely that: a tournament solely for domestic champions. That was how the tournament was conducted until around the turn of the century when it was opened up to include runners-up and, subsequently, third and fourth-placed sides from the major leagues. There were positives to this format: the high barrier to entry created a sense that you were watching a truly select group of teams. …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox

Liverpool could face 26 games in 99 days – can they cope?

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“… His Liverpool side played 63 games in pursuit of perfection across four competitions during that campaign and now there is the possibility of doing it all over again. That edge is where Klopp and his players want to return before parting ways this summer and last weekend marked the point when the long stretch towards the season’s conclusion began. …”
The Athletic

How Chelsea stopped City initially – and the tactical tweak that earned Guardiola an equaliser

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“When a team performs below their normal standards, questions are often asked about the manager’s decisions and the players’ output. Yet, it takes two sides to play a game of football. The opponent’s level could be one of the reasons a certain team aren’t as good as usual on a given day. ‘It’s in general, when you perform like this always there are many reasons, not just one,’ said Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, when he was asked about his team’s performance in the first half of their 1-1 home draw against Chelsea on Saturday. …”
The Athletic

Victor Osimhen and the stuttering season indicative of Napoli’s title defence

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“Walter Mazzarri reintroduced himself to Victor Osimhen over the weekend. They had met three months ago when Napoli brought the amicably garrulous Tuscan who had been their manager from 2009-13 back in a caretaker role following Rudi Garcia’s dismissal. Mazzarri looked forward to working with the reigning Capocannoniere in Serie A. There was a time when he had a reputation in Italy for turning OK strikers into good ones (from Rolando Bianchi and Nicola Amoruso to Claudio Bellucci) and for taking Edinson Cavani from unfulfilled talent to one of the best centre-forwards of his generation. …”
The Athletic

Arsenal, Manchester City or Liverpool? The Premier League’s title race analysed

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“The maths are pretty simple. Only two points separate the top three with one-third of the season remaining — three points, if Manchester City win their game in hand against Brentford on Tuesday. For the first time in a long time, it looks like we have a proper three-horse race on our hands. There is just a small snag that someone might want to share with Messrs Guardiola, Klopp and Arteta — three does not go into one. So who are the favourites to win the title? …”
The Athletic

How Real Sociedad’s high press gave Paris Saint-Germain a ‘nightmare’

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“For Paris Saint-Germain, the Champions League round of 16 has brought heartbreak in five of the last seven years. They theoretically have one foot in the quarter-finals after a round-of-16 first-leg win over Real Sociedad. Despite winning 2-0 at the Parc de Princes, their struggles against the high press are a concern for the return leg and possible future knockout matches. …”
The Athletic

Bayern Munich are… boring. How did Europe’s most thrilling club become so safe?

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“… Bayern weren’t bad. No, it was worse than that — they were boring. Watch the Champions League for any length of time and the favourites settle into predictable roles, like a high-school rom-com: Barcelona are the pretty ones, Manchester City the nerds, Paris Saint-Germain the rich kids due a comeuppance, Real Madrid the awkward main characters everyone knows will get a third-act makeover and live happily ever after. …”
The Athletic

An English City Gave Soccer to the World. Now It Wants Credit.

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“As far as the man in the food truck is concerned, the patch of land he occupies in Sheffield, England, is about as humdrum as they come. To him, the spot — in the drab parking lot of a sprawling home improvement superstore, its facade plastered in lurid orange — is not exactly a place where history comes alive. John Wilson, an academic at the University of Sheffield’s management school, looks at the same site and can barely contain his excitement. This, he said, is one of the places where the world’s most popular sport was born. He does not see a parking lot. He can see the history: the verdant grass, the sweating players, the cheering crowds. …”
NY Times

Ivory Coast are AFCON champions: From sacking manager to lifting trophy, this is their story

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“Children were dancing on the pitch, kissing the turf and throwing confetti in the air while a security guard chased after them. Three hours after Ivory Coast beat Nigeria 2-1 to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for the third time, hundreds of people were still inside the Alassane Ouattara Stadium. Volunteers wanted to go home, but supporters wanted to cling to this magical moment for as long as possible. They gatecrashed the mixed zone, where players speak to reporters, and grabbed selfies with Max Gradel or asked him to sign their shirts. Sebastien Haller and Odilon Kossounou flashed their medals for the cameras. Oumar Diakite, Christian Kouame and Jean-Philippe Krasso walked through with a speaker blasting music. The group of children running around the centre circle briefly disappeared to follow the team bus but came charging back minutes later. …”
The Athletic
GuardianIvory Coast’s Afcon win shows there’s no blueprint for tournament success – Jonathan Wilson
W – 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
The Athletic: AFCON final: Haller’s fairytale finish seals glory as Nigeria and Osimhen fall short
YouTube: HIGHLIGHTS | Nigeria 🆚 Côte d’Ivoire

The 4-4-2 is dead. Long live the 4-4-2

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“Nobody plays 4-4-2 anymore. Correction, nobody attacks with a 4-4-2 anymore. Almost 44 per cent of Premier League line-ups in the 2008-09 season were a 4-4-2; it is down to just seven per cent this season. Realistically, teams play multiple formations — 43, if you ask Mikel Arteta about his Arsenal side — throughout a game, depending on the phase of play. And the top ones are defending in the midfield third, a mid-block, with a 4-4-2. …”
The Athletic

How Xabi Alonso’s caution and the in-form Alex Grimaldo helped Leverkusen destroy Bayern

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“Bayern Leverkusen didn’t simply do it, they did it in style. Leverkusen’s 3-0 victory over Bayern Munich on Saturday might be, all things considered, the most momentous league victory in European football for many years — perhaps going back to Leicester City’s 3-1 victory at Manchester City back in February 2016 on their way to the Premier League title. …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox

Nigeria vs Ivory Coast: Star men, key battles and how the AFCON final will be won and lost

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“This year’s Africa Cup of Nations has been packed with incredible nail-biting drama, and we now have a showpiece final ahead of us. Nigeria, who are hoping to win the competition for a fourth time, face host nation and two-time winners Ivory Coast in the deciding game on Sunday night. These two sides already met in the group stage, with Nigeria winning 1-0, and have been on completely different journeys to reach the final. …”
The Athletic
The Athletic: The story of Amad Diallo – and the man accused of trafficking him to Europe
Africa Is a Country: Palestine at AFCON
BBC – Afcon 2023: Kolo Toure hopes Ivory Coast beat Nigeria in final to spark party

Traders at Adjame market
AFCON and juju – an attempt to explain African football and superstition. “Football – wherever it is played in the world – carries a streak of chaos. … Fans can shrug off freak results. But a string of bizarre occurrences often leads to suggestions of something else. At AFCON, that means talk of juju. It is a nebulous and catch-all term, trying to cover an array of practices that do not fit anything found in major organised religions. Be it called juju, voodoo, black magic, muti, otumokpo or something else; there is the idea that AFCON sees players, fans, and even coaches turn to alternate forces to affect games. …”
The Athletic: AFCON and juju – an attempt to explain African football and superstition
BBC – Afcon 2023: Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong dreams of lifting trophy (Video)
BBC – Afcon 2023: Ivory Coast ‘spirit’ praised after rollercoaster run to final (Video)

A voodoo priest in Benin tries to bring luck to their team at Afcon in 2019.

Ivory Coast, at long last, look like a force to be reckoned with again

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“The Alassane Ouattara Stadium is located in Ebimpe, a 50-minute drive north from the main area of Abidjan. When you make the return journey late at night, you pass a bridge that crosses the Ebrie Lagoon, which is lit up in green, orange and white to represent the Ivory Coast’s flag. On Wednesday, it provided a serene and subdued scene compared to the madness that had taken place in Ebimpe a few hours before. Smoke from green and orange flares swirled up into the sky. Emerse Fae leapt around on the touchline, unable to contain his happiness. Sebastien Haller thumped his chest while home fans waved their hands up and down. Outside the ground, police sirens were blaring as they tried to safely control thousands of people partying. It tells you everything that you need to know about this weird and wonderful tournament that, despite sacking their head coach Jean-Louis Gasset after the group stages and being on the brink of elimination multiple times, hosts Ivory Coast will face Nigeria in the Africa Cup of Nations final. …”
The Athletic (Video)
Guardian – Hope and miracles: Afcon’s unlikely semi-finalists carry weight of history – Jonathan Wilson
Africa Is a Country: On eagle’s wings
The Athletic – Haji Wright on his ‘crazy’ World Cup goal: ‘I was like, “OK, I’ll take it!”’
The Athletic – Watching Nigeria make AFCON final with the fans: “My heart can’t take this – I’m going to throw up, bro”
***NY Times: Playing Soccer in $1.50 Sandals That Even Gucci Wants to Copy
BBC – Afcon 2023: Ivory Coast ‘spirit’ praised after rollercoaster run to final

How Inter cracked Juventus’ impenetrable defence using wide centre-backs Inter, Juventus

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“Breaking into a secure bank facility often requires a meticulous plan, the right personnel and the smartest of tools. Trying to sneak through Massimiliano Allegri’s Juventus might be just as hard — an organised defensive unit with special-ops operative Gleison Bremer leading the way is as close as football gets to an unbreakable vault. The men looking to break in? Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan. Allegri recently compared the title race to a game of cops and robbers. ‘The robbers get away and the cops run after them,’ he said when Inzaghi’s side were ahead in the table. …”
The Athletic

2024 Copa Libertadores Map (47 teams) with Club Histories

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“This is the 65th edition of the Copa Libertadores, the most prestigious football tournament in South America. The 2024 tournament is the 8th since it was expanded in 2017, from 38 to 47 teams. Since then, no team from a country other than Brazil or Argentina has won the title (Brazilian teams have won it 6 times since the tournament-expansion, and an Argentinian team has won it once since then). And Brazilian sides have won the last five titles. (Copa Libertadores winner in 2023 was Fluminense, of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; it was the club’s first Libertadores title. Copa Sudamericana winner in 2023 was LDU Quito, of Quito, Ecuador.) …”
billsportsmaps
W – Copa Libertadores

Jurgen Klopp knew exactly what Mikel Arteta had planned, but had little solution

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“A month ago, Jurgen Klopp complimented Mikel Arteta’s tactical approach, even as Arsenal were eventually eliminated by Liverpool in the FA Cup third round. ‘It is difficult to prepare for what Arsenal did tonight, especially in the first half,’ Klopp said. ‘Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard, more or less as ‘double 10s’ in a 4-2-2-2.’  So, for Sunday’s league fixture, Arteta did the same again. …”
The Athletic

Arsenal 3 Liverpool 1: A twist in the title race? – The Briefing

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“The wry smiles from Jurgen Klopp perhaps summed it up best. Arsenal pounced on two defensive errors to beat visitors Liverpool 3-1 and move to within two points of them at the top of the Premier League table. The home side went ahead through Bukayo Saka and dominated the first 45 minutes. Yet a mix-up between William Saliba — under pressure from Luis Diaz — and David Raya meant Liverpool were level by half-time without having had a shot on target after Gabriel Magalhaes had the final touch on their equaliser. …”
The Athletic
Guardian: Gabriel Martinelli runs Arsenal show by mastering moments of chaos

How Football Works: Diagonals

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“If you’re a football team who would like to get the ball past the other team and into the net, you have three basic routes to pick from: over, around or through their defence. Each has its drawbacks. Lobs over the top might as well be gift-wrapped for the goalkeeper. Sneaking around the sides sounds clever until you get trapped against the touchline. And zig-zagging through the middle is just plain hard, what with all those mean people trying to snatch the ball away. …”
The Athletic (Video)

The end of Italian football’s secret advantage

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“Football in Italy had been taking advantage of a loophole in tax legislation. It allowed clubs to recruit and pay players more than they ever had. But now, with a new government in power in Italy, that tax break has gone. So what was the tax break? How did football clubs take advantage of it? What does it mean for the future of Italian football? James Horncastle writes, Craig Silcock illustrates.”
YouTube

What next for Saudi Arabia’s football vision as big ambitions meet player discontent?

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“When Manchester United’s football director John Murtough arrived in Saudi Arabia at the end of last year, he had only one thing on his mind. United were keen to offload some of the big earners in their squad — including Casemiro, Raphael Varane, Jadon Sancho and Anthony Martial — and Murtough, who was joined by Matt Hargreaves, their lead transfer negotiator, was eager to forge connections in the belief that Saudi clubs would be willing buyers. …”
The Athletic

Back in Bouaké

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“In Saturday, February 3, the Stade de la Paix—Stadium of Peace—will be packed to the rafters as the Ivorian party arrives in Bouaké, the country’s second-largest city. The Elephants come to town still with much to prove despite knocking out African champions Senegal in the previous round of the Africa Cup of Nations. The team is still coming to terms with its 4-0 loss to Equatorial Guinea in the group stage, the country’s most humiliating moment in sport. Since being given a lifeline by qualifying for the Round of 16, the team has been on a journey of redemption and there is nowhere better for it to placate a nation in pain. After all, this stadium has seen it done before. …”
Africa Is Country
Guardian: Diakité’s 120th-minute strike sinks Mali to send 10-man Ivory Coast into last four
The Athletic – Flipped chairs, breakdancing and a flying wig: Watching Ivory Coast upset the odds. Again.

AFCON finally has African managers. But the rest of the world has not caught up

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Gasset was dismissed after Ivory Coast’s final group game
“Somebody had to pay the price for the Ivory Coast’s horrendous performance in the group stage of this Africa Cup of Nations. The hosts beat Guinea-Bissau 2-0 in their opening game, but then lost 1-0 to Nigeria and imploded against Equatorial Guinea. The Ivorians were thrashed 4-0 in the latter match and manager Jean-Louis Gasset was sacked afterwards, even though they ended up progressing to the round of 16 as one of the best third-placed sides and are now in the quarter-finals having beaten holders Senegal in a penalty shootout under interim boss Emerse Fae. …”
The Athletic

Jürgen Klopp and Liverpool ready to buckle up for high-stakes title fight

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“Some unscrupulous chancers are hitting the jackpot thanks to Jürgen Klopp’s leaving of Liverpool. Lower main stand tickets for his final game at Anfield are priced at £12,000 on one resale site (well, they are right behind the dugout) and a seat on the Kop is going for £4,250. They will get it too, and possibly more nearer the time, should the price of a ticket for Wolves on 19 May include the presentation of the Premier League trophy to a departing idol. Klopp was asked on Friday whether he had contemplated the perfect Premier League send-off. …”
Guardian

Lookman knocks Angola out in quarter-finals as Nigeria stick to Afcon script

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“The greatest shock of all, perhaps, is when there is no shock. In a Cup of Nations in which reputation and pre-tournament billing has meant nothing, there was at last a game that went the way that might have been expected, as Ademola Lookman’s first-half goal and a fourth clean sheet in a row carried Nigeria to the last four of the Cup of Nations for the 16th time. …”
Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

The ‘magic’ of the beautiful game

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“‘Magic,’ ‘sorcery,’ and ‘witchcraft’ come up over and over again in discussions about football in Africa. They are allegedly widespread in the African game and make for intriguing and controversial debates. In the ongoing African Cup of Nations, religion has made an appearance: a Ghanaian Christian prophet predicted a player’s demise, and the Egyptian Football Association sacrificed a cow to bring luck to the national team. The prophecy did not come to pass and Egypt was knocked out by the DR Congo. This might be a good moment to reassess debates about religion and spirituality in African football and find better ways to think about them. One perspective is that football ‘sorcery’ is a harmless practice that adds color and uniqueness to the African game and aids in players’ psychological preparation. However, debates about the morality and appropriateness of football ‘magic’ are highly charged. …”
Africa Is a Country