“Football has been evolving into a global sport, year after year, the beautiful game is well and truly being recognised as ‘The World Game’. And this evolution is great for the sport; the passion shared by the supporters is unequivocal throughout the World. But despite resources such as the television and the internet, following the game (and your favourite side) is becoming increasingly difficult. Not only the local supporters suffer, but fans from abroad (who share the same passion) are finding it nearly impossible to watch their favourite sides in front of their own eyes. Locals aren’t able to get to as many games due to the rising prices, and the global fanbase is required to carefully plan a savings pattern to be able to afford a ticket at the stadium. It’s almost developing into a rich man’s game.” Outside of the Boot

“It’s a fairly warm September night on the South-West coast of Wales. All eyes in South Wales are turned towards one place: a football match at the Liberty Stadium. It is 0-0. It is the 56th minute and Swansea’s midfield maestro Ferrie Bodde is lining up a freekick. From my seat near the halfway line I feel myself shaking with excitement as I’m certain Bodde can score from here. He’s certainly more than capable of it. Bodde steps up, feints and suddenly Jordi Gomez runs at the ball instead and hits a powerful left-footed drive. It ricochets off the studs off an opposition player and glides into the far corner past the desperate stretch of the goalkeeper. Swansea are 1-0 up and I can literally feel the Liberty Stadium shake.” Outside of the Boot – Part 1, Part 2

“After an obscenely cold beginning to 2013, the great British summer is finally approaching, which means Britons will be subjected to various familiar treats in the coming months — rain-soaked barbecues, miserable family trips to uninspiring wind-swept beaches and, with no domestic football to discuss for two months, the same old transfer rumours splashed across the tabloids. One of the summer’s main targets will be Everton’s Marouane Fellaini. After significant speculation over the past two years, it seems that he’ll finally bid farewell to Goodison Park this summer.” ESPN

“Tottenham Hotspurs’ European dreams were shattered on Thursday night as Swiss club FC Basel got the better of the North Londoners in an enthralling penalty shoot-out after 120 minutes of torrid football were unable to separate the two teams on aggregate. Frankly, Spurs were far from their best and it was surprising to see Andres Villas-Boas’ troops even hang on to a 2-2 stalemate.” Think Football

“It’s quiz time! Your club is one point outside of the relegation zone and sinking fast. Do you: a) call your players and coaching staff together for an energetic pep talk, b) sit in the dark and allow a few tears to roll down your cheeks and into your single malt, c) sack the manager and appoint a man of whom the newspapers have plenty of stock images — you know, the ones in which he is giving a straight-armed salute. Sunderland’s move this week — sacking Martin O’Neill and his coaching team and replacing them with former Swindon Town manager (and until-very-recently self-proclaimed ‘fascist’) Paolo di Canio and his backroom staff — is either one of the worst ideas ever, or a masterstroke.” SI

A Gamble, Wrapped Up In A Gamble, Inside A Gamble: Di Canio To Sunderland
“Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the kerfuffle that has blown up surrounding the appointment of Paolo Di Canio as the manager of Sunderland is how much of a surprise certain aspects of his past seem to have been to so many people. After all, he was hired as the manager of Swindon Town almost two years ago, and the “Roman Salute” business at Lazio happened eight years ago. You might not have thought this had you opened a newspaper this morning, though. It was screaming from the front page of The Sun, whilst other newspapers weren’t far behind with their opinions on the matter. On a week that might be otherwise characterised by a distinct lack of English clubs in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, though, this is a story that the press can really sink its teeth into.” twohundredpercent

“Five Minutes of Your Time is a series of interviews with people from different areas and eras within the game. This one features Leo Morris, a former non-league player and for twenty seven years, Assistant Manager to Gordon Bartlett….” 2nd Yellow (Video)