“In the build-up to Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg, Jonathan Wilson analyses how Bayern Munich and Barcelona have changed since they last met in 2013; how Pep Guardiola might set up his team and who will he play up front if Robert Lewandowski doesn’t make it; and how Barcelona have evolved under Luis Enrique from the team that Pep built” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“The biggest event on the footballing calendar is drawing close, and we’re at the last stop on the road to Berlin. With excitement coming close to fever pitch, we at Outside of the Boot decided to get a closer look at the challenges and opportunities each team will face at this stage. Here are the opinions of one of our writers.” Outside of the Boot
Champions League Semi Final: The Bayern Munich perspective Outside of the Boot
“The list of achievement is impressive: a penalty decider in the thrilling Pokal shootout against Leverkusen, an away goal in Porto keeping Bayern’s UCL hopes alive, and finally the opener in Bayern’s 6-1 dismantling of FC Porto. These key moments make Thiago Alcantara’s return to Bayern’s starting lineup appear perfect. Doubts about the Spaniard lengthy injury exodus and wider future have quickly disappeared. According to this convention thinking, Thiago’s arrival back on the field has been a combination of perfect timing brilliant football. But a question can be posed, is this conventional thinking true?” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Dortmund progressed to the DFB-Pokal final on penalties following a 1-1 draw. Pep Guardiola started with a three-man defence, and surprisingly named Rafinha, traditionally a right-back, as the left-sided centre-back. Further forward, Mitchell Weiser was handed the right-sided midfield role for the newly-crowned Bundesliga champions, with Arjen Robben fit enough only for the bench. Thiago Alcantara returned to the head of a midfield triangle, so Mario Gotze was on the bench.” Zonal Marking – Michael Cox
“One expected a comedown after the midweek Champions’ League quarter-final heroics against FC Porton, and this was clear as FC Bayern took on strugglers Hertha BSC at a packed Allianz Arena. The tight 1-0 win was enough to send Bayern fifteen points clear of second-placed VfL Wolfsburg with four matches remaining, and the Wolves’ defeat by the same score in Mönchengladbach was enough to ensure a record-extending twenty-fifth Bundesliga crown (and twenty-sixth German championship in all) for Die Roten.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Todern football was invented in Barcelona in the mid-90s. Of this season’s Champions League quarter-finalists, four sides are managed by players who turned out for Barça in 1996: Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique, Julen Lopetegui and Laurent Blanc. Within a couple of years, they had been joined by Frank de Boer and Phillip Cocu as well as the coach, Louis van Gaal, and his assistant, Ronald Koeman. In slightly differing ways, the eight are apostles for the Barcelona way – or, more accurately, given the influence of Ajax on that style, the Barçajax way. However, there was another presence there, initially as a translator and then as a coach. In the Barçocracy of modern football, there is a fallen angel.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“The Champions League semifinal draw was conducted Friday and while the names may be familiar, the opportunity for new storylines to arise is bountiful. There will be reunions for coaches and a chance to avenge previous defeats, and, with three teams still dreaming of clinching a European, league title and domestic cup treble, plenty at stake.” SI
“It’s one of the most pernicious myths in soccer: Defending is easy. Any manager can order his players to stay behind the halfway line, kick some shins, clear a few corners, and voilà: He’ll have a clean sheet. Fans lob this accusation against opposing teams all the time, but tune in to enough postgame interviews and you’ll see managers are often no different. After the infamous Steven Gerrard slip game last year, Brendan Rodgers said it about José Mourinho, and a week later, Mourinho himself dropped a similar bomb in response to Norwich’s tactics. Seemingly anybody who’s ever played against Tony Pulis or Sam Allardyce has lodged a comparable complaint: What’s so special about you? All you do is defend.” Grantland
“It was: The Week That Shook German Football (RealD 3D). First, late on Tuesday night, Bruno Labbadia was appointed manager of the bottom team, Hamburger SV. The former Kaiserslautern striker and inventor of the fist-pump goal celebration had already graced (?) the AOL/Nordbank/Imtech/Kühne-Palace/Whatever-Arena bench five years ago and the sporting director, Dietmar Beiersdorfer, had no choice but to go back to a familiar face in the club’s hour of need: HSV had run out of the German-speaking coaches that had not yet been hired at some point over the last two decades. Within a few hours, however, the new/old messiah’s wings – messiahs do have wings, don’t they? – were already clipped when Beiersdorfer involuntarily dispensed with the charade that the hot contender Thomas Tuchel had been turned down by the club the night before.” Guardian
“Roberto Soriano was born to Italian parents in the German city of Darmstadt in 1991. Having started out with local amateur teams in the region, his performances quickly attracted attention from scouts representing professional clubs. As is so often the case in Germany, Bayern Munich came out on top and Soriano joined the Bavarians’ youth setup aged 15 in 2006.” FourFourTwo (Video)
“As we told you a few weeks ago, the drama’s all but gone from the major domestic leagues across Europe. Thankfully, the Champions League is here to save us. The quarterfinals of soccer’s greatest annual competition kick off today with Atlético Madrid hosting Real Madrid in a rematch of last year’s final and Monaco traveling to Juventus. Tomorrow, FC Porto welcomes Bayern Munich and Barcelona visits Paris Saint-Germain.” Grantland
“Borussia Dortmund have announced the departure of their manager, Jürgen Klopp, at the end of the season. The BVB manager has asked the club to be released after enduring a difficult season and Dortmund called a press conference at 1.30pm (12.30pm BST) on Wednesday, where chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke confirmed that the club had agreed to release him early from his contract.” Guardian (Video)
“Since his emergence, ascendancy and achievement with Barcelona, Pep Guardiola has carried the label of ‘purist’ with a penchant for high-pressing, short-passing football. His battle has seemingly always been to win and keep the ball, not the match. As far as his managerial career thus far is concerned, the former has always preceded the latter anyway. Yet, as his Bayern Munich side edged to victory away to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday afternoon, Guardiola showed signs of pragmatic adaptability previously thought of as asymmetric to his mentality.” backpagefootball
“The 2014-15 season has been one of contrast for the two sides that were in action on Saturday night at the Signal Iduna Park. While the home side have been languishing near the bottom and the middle of the table for long periods of the season, the visitors, Bayern Munich, have been threatening to run away with the title throughout the season. The difference in their respective positions on the table didn’t really matter in the super charged atmosphere that greeted both sides. The noise level at the stadium was deafening, with the home fans looking to get behind their side.” Outside of the Boot
“Wolfsburg’s 4-1 demolition of Bayern Munich at the end of January sent shock waves through the football world, announcing Wolfsburg to the neutrals who hadn’t yet noticed their success this year. Despite a Bas Dost double, including a beautifully ambiguous intentional volley, one man stole the show – Kevin De Bruyne, his assist and brace exemplifying his role as the star man of the team.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“It’s inconceivable. Less than three years ago, Borussia Dortmund was its second consecutive Bundesliga crown. A year later, it was a second place finish, both domestically and in the Champions League final. And last season, Dortmund came second yet again. It’s inconceivable, then, that Jürgen Klopp’s side, ahead of Saturday’s Klassiker, is now 10th, 31 points back of first. But that word, to evoke a famous cinematic trope, may not mean what you think it means.” Soccer Gods
“Can you believe it’s April already? While there have been times over the past eight months when the season’s felt like an interminable drag — those weeks of domestic cup games, the handful of international breaks, consecutive weekends in which the best game involves Newcastle — we’re finally here. With just about two months left in most leagues across Europe, it’s the stretch run, where the rubber meets the road, the standings approach finality, and things become truly exciting. Except, maybe not this year.” Grantland
“Having booked my trip to Munich to see FC Bayern take on Borussia Mönchengladbach at the Allianz Arena, I started to consider my schedule for the weekend. With Bayern playing on the Sunday evening and my arriving on the Saturday morning, my immediate thought was to look for a game taking place in the city that afternoon. Having trawled through the fixture list, I found two matches: Regionalliga Bayern side VfR Garching against FC Eintracht Bamberg 2010, and the third division match between SpVgg Unterhaching and Stuttgarter Kickers.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“If you came here looking for a brief recap of Paul Weiland’s 2006 film, Sixty Six, then you are in luck. The story of a Jewish boy whose Shabbos spirit was dampened by his barmitzvah tragically falling on the same day as the World Cup final between England and West Germany in 1966 (spoiler alert: England win in controversial circumstances) was a niche topic that was met with mixed reviews, but it struck a resounding chord with me.” Guardian (Video)
“Juventus produced a classic away performance to win this tie comfortably. Jurgen Klopp named his default 4-2-3-1 formation. Kevin Kampl made his Champions League debut on the right, with Henrikh Mikhitaryan on the left flank – neither are natural wingers, and both prefer to drift inside. Soktatis Papastathopoulos started at right-back, with Lukas Piszczek still out following the injury he collected in the first leg.” Zonal Marking
“Poor Werder Bremen. When struggling, its woes went unheard, so loud were the laughs at Borussia Dortmund’s expense. But when soaring, in comes Wolfsburg, knocking in five goals two weeks ago to crunch Werder’s near-success into a throw-away sentence at the end of a paragraph. All this team wants is someone to notice it, damn it, but in this league of showoffs and scrappy strugglers and this weekend’s hedgemonic opposition, Bayern Munich, people are constantly swiping left when encountering the insipid green diamond that is Werder Bremen.” Soccer Gods
“In 2015, there is something of a gulf between the German Bundesliga and the Italian Serie A. While the former was booming with full grounds and exciting football, the latter was in the doldrums both on and off the pitch – a situation best summed up by FC Bayern München’s 7-1 demolition of AS Roma in the group phase of the champions league and Parma FC’s financial collapse.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Week 24’s game was an attempt from the Royal Blues to come back after the most humiliating defeat to Dortmund at the Revierderby the week before. I among many was convinced this club was not good enough for any Champions League position in the league. My mind still has not changed. That being said, Roberto DI Matteo, who I will still stand by as not truly being at fault for the club’s shortcomings, made some tactical changes for this home match against Hoffenheim that paid off. First of all, with the lack of any offence and most of all midfield movement, the club changed from a 3-5-2 to a 4-4-2. This allowed players who have been absent in recent weeks, such as Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting to be more present in the game, with EMCM in particular having an impressive game with a few shots and setting up both of Max Meyer’s goals.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“After another minor break, the Talent Radar Player Rankings return, with the men in the middle of the park the focus of our attentions. A lot has changed since the last time the rankings were out, Borussia Dortmund’s fall was only just starting, Liverpool were still in the Champions League and the Italian Serie A race actually looked interesting. While the rankings itself saw Marco Verratti on top, with a couple of challengers looking to dethrone him. Here’s who continue to impress us as we move into the business end of the football season.” Outside of the Boot
“Watch any Arsenal game, and you’ll very quickly notice something: Alexis Sánchez is really good at soccer. The lovable Chilean buzzes around the field from start to finish, and it’s clear what he brings to the side. He shoots a lot, he runs with the ball at his feet, he shoots some more, he gets fouled, he puts crosses into the box, and he presses defenders who have the ball. In other words, Sánchez is always, visibly, doing stuff. Now, all that stuff came with a price tag, as Arsenal had to pay somewhere around £35 million to bring him over from FC Barcelona last July. As we’ve already said, signing Sánchez has added a dangerous, active component to Arsenal’s attack, but there was also a bit of a statement behind the signing: It marked the second summer in a row the Gunners spent big money on a big-talent, big-name attacker from one of the two big clubs in Spain.” Grantland
“Dortmund’s chaotic season has taken us all by surprise and Jurgen Klopp’s men are in a situation where they are having to balance their Champions League aspirations along with a bid to move away from the lower half of the Bundesliga. Schalke on the other hand are in the middle of a push for a spot of next season’s Champions League and would have backed themselves to get a result despite the home side’s recent resurgence.” Outside of the Boot
“Post-derby matches, especially post-Revierderby matches, are letdowns. Make no mistake about it. Dortmund’s somewhat undeserved 2-0 road win the Pokal round of 16 on Tuesday evening was a letdown match. Sometimes we forget that athletes are humans, and, like humans, are psychological beings, despite the apparatuses of mechanization and technique that supposedly beats the human out of them. As psychological beings, Dortmund’s Startelf against Dynamo Dresden were emotionally (and physically?) depleted after Saturday’s cathartic Revierderby win. The match’s biggest news, however, was Marco Reus’ injury. Inside 20′, He was hacked by a vicious challenge from Dynamo centerback Dennis Erdmann. The former Schalke man tracked up Reus in an off-the-ball play.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“The round of 16 never fails to throw up a few interesting fixtures every year. Chelsea-PSG, and Manchester City-Barcelona are both fixtures that took place last season, and were both quite enjoyable, but the real thought provoker from this season has been Borussia Dortmund vs Juventus. In terms of their performance domestically, the two teams are on different ends of the spectrum. Juventus enjoy sole domination of Italy, but Dortmund are having to wage war to avoid the ignominy of relegation. Despite such stark differences in their league performances, even the many observers that bettingwebsites.org have monitored cannot brand this as anything other than a close tie, featuring two pretty evenly matched sides. The element of the unknown that comes into play with 2 vastly different teams like these simply adds to the intrigue.” Outside of the Boot
“The greatest aspect of top-level European competition is the opportunity to witness contrasting footballing styles face one another; pleasingly, despite the globalisation of football and the increased movement of players and coaches across borders, obvious differences remain between Europe’s best leagues. The obvious example from this week’s set of Champions League fixtures is the clash between Borussia Dortmund and Juventus in Turin on Tuesday night. Whereas some of the second round ties are frustratingly familiar — Manchester City vs. Barcelona, PSG vs. Chelsea, Schalke vs. Real Madrid — these two sides haven’t met since the European Cup final of 1997. The clash of styles should be fascinating.” ESPN – Michael Cox
“The Champions League appears to have an effect similar to smelling salts in rousing the consciousness of Germany’s top clubs. Bayern Munich somnolently came out of the midwinter break at the end of January, losing heavily and uncharacteristically in the league. But on Saturday, sensing that such lethargy would be exposed in European competition, it went flat-out against Hamburg. Arjen Robben danced down his wing and cut in to score, once with his left foot and once with the right. Thomas Müller, looking at his sharpest since the World Cup final last summer, also scored twice, as did the substitute Franck Ribéry. Oh, and Mario Götze and Robert Lewandowski got in on the act, too.” NY Times
“Bayern conceded four goals – as many as they’d let in during the entire first half of the Bundesliga season – and were completely outplayed throughout. Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking brought Daniel Caliguiri into the side on the right, which meant Vieirinha was pushed back to a relatively unfamiliar full-back role. In the centre, Max Arnold got the nod over Joshua Guilavogui. Pep Guardiola started with a 4-1-4-1 system. Mario Gotze was only on the bench, while Bayern continue to suffer from injury problems, particularly in midfield positions. Wolfsburg’s performance here was outstanding, and this was one of the best counter-attacking performances of the season.” Zonal Marking
“The long and illustrious history of football is now and again graced with men of pure genius. Footballing giants whose exploits are carried like a torch by fans from around the world; men who wrote their name in gold, footballers who live on in the memories of countless fans long after they have left behind this mortal coil. One man who deserves his place amongst this celebrated band of players is a virtual unknown outside his own country yet his story is one of the most compelling. A story that deserves to be heard, the tale of a great footballer and a great man, of loyalty, triumph and sadly, tragedy. Matthias Sindelar was his name and this is his story.” Football Pink
“SC Freiburg have cause to feel a bit hard done by as they dropped their Tuesday afternoon match 1-0 away to Borussia Mönchengladbach. In spite of Die Breisgauer outplaying their opponents for much of the game it was Gladbach’s Patrick Herrmann who grabbed the only goal of the game in the 23rd minute giving the home side the victory by the very narrowest of margins. With the fight against the drop being so tight, the defeat was a real missed opportunity for Freiburg to put some distance between themselves and the rest of the relegation pack.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“Following the treble winning season in 2012/13, Bayern Munich enjoyed another year of success in 2013/14, once again securing the domestic league and cup double, while reaching the Champions League semi-finals before going down to eventual winners Real Madrid. The excellent season on the pitch was matched off it with revenue surging 13% to €487.5 million and profit before tax up to €25.9 million (€16.5 million after tax). Furthermore, all outstanding debt on the club’s Allianz stadium was paid off 15 years early.” The Swiss Ramble
“Shit happens. As much as you scheme and plan, measure and predict, train and prepare, the games still have to be played — and balls will bounce the wrong way, key players will get hurt, and opposing keepers will make incredible saves. This season, nowhere has more shit happened than at the Westfalenstadion, the 80,000-seat home stadium of Borussia Dortmund. As the Bundesliga returns from its winter break this weekend, Dortmund sits in 17th place out of 18 teams. If the season ended today, the 2013 Champions League runners-up would be relegated. It’s a stunning fall for a team that finished second in both of the last two seasons and first in the two years before that. So, it’s time to ask …” Grantland (Video)
“It’s the first game of the 2012 Rückrunde and bottom side SC Freiburg are facing FC Augsburg at home and neither side have found a way to score as the clock ticks down to 90 minutes. Trainer Christian Streich decides on a final throw of the dice and sends on eighteen year old academy graduate Matthias Ginter for his debut. Two minutes from time the substitution pays off as Ginter heads home the winner from a Michael Lumb freekick. Fast forward to last summer and having just been a non-playing member of Germany’s World Cup winning squad, Ginter sealed a €10 million switch to Borussia Dortmund. Not a bad piece of business for the Breisgau club and absolutely fitting with the way the club is run.” Bundesliga Fanatic
“After having been perennial title challengers over the past three seasons, Borussia Dortmund find themselves in the horrible and unexpected position of ending the Hinrunde in the relegation spots. In a word, the campaign so far has been a catastrophe – Riddled with a number of false starts and illusions of a new hope that simply did not materialize. Manager Jürgen Klopp undoubtedly still has the complete support of everyone at BVB, but the question is whether the manager can steady a ship that has been punctured below the water-line through a number of factors, physical and mental.” Vavel
“The most charismatic manager in soccer is at a crucial crossroads. Borussia Dortmund’s Jurgen Klopp was once considered the hip, whip-smart up-and-comer, storming onto the European scene. His designer glasses, stylish stubble, enormous wry grin, and animated sideline behavior were all a heavy breath of fresh air in a managerial landscape filled with grey-haired curmudgeons, unsmiling and monotonously professional.” Soccer Pro
“Manuel Neuer, the Bayern Munich and Germany international shot-stopper, is currently the world’s best goalkeeper. Forget Spain’s Iker Casillas, Italy’s Gianluigi Buffon, Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois or even USA’s bearded Tim Howard: Neuer, the Germany number one, is in a whole bracket above his closest rivals. In fact, he was recently named on the final, three-man shortlist for the 2015 edition of FIFA’s Ballon D’Or alongside outfield players Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. This is no mean feat, particularly for a goalkeeper. But, you see, Neuer is so much more than just a goalkeeper. He is a footballer, too. Ever since he emerged from the youth setup of his hometown club, Schalke 04, in 2006, Neuer has adopted a unique playing style that has truly captivated fans, managers and pundits around the world.” backpagefootball (Video)
“With South American football currently slumbering through its high summer siesta, I hope I might be forgiven for glancing backwards at what has just become last year’s World Cup. The tournament was well worth remembering – for the protests it engendered beforehand, for the spectacle it provided us with during and for the memories that linger afterwards. These are some of mine.” The World Game – Tim Vickery
“For most fans, supporting their club conveys pride and joy, to see the fruits of their youth team set up burgeoning is the greatest feeling on earth. They will follow their team through its highs and its lows. They will travel hundreds of miles to watch them playing, be they opposing Slavia Prague, or Real Madrid’s ‘Galacticos’. Supporting a football club is almost akin to marrying; you know, at the point you start supporting a team, that you will dedicate the rest of your life to watching them play. However, if you happen to be supporting a team going by the name of FC St. Pauli, the fact that you are supporting them at all may have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that you’re passionate about football; supporting St Pauli is about making a statement.” THE FOOTBALL PINK
“Hakan Calhanoglu grew up in Mannheim of Germany, before moving on to Karlsruhe, Hamburg and Leverkusen while getting called up to the Turkish National team in 2013. An attacking midfielder by trade, Hakan’s style and elegance on the ball has seen him sought out by some of the world’s best. Mini-Analysis: Operating behind the striker or across the midfield, Calhanoglu’s style of play is easy on the eye. A mainstay in the Hamburg team that narrowly escaped relegation last season saw him bag 11 goals and assist 4 in 32 games.” Outside of the Boot
Marquinhos
“Following the huge success of our 2014 list, we have compiled a list of the 100 Best Young Players to Watch in 2015 under our Talent Radar feature after careful evaluation and consultation. For more details on how we went about this and any other questions you may have, read these FAQs.” Outside of the Boot
“In November 2003, Lionel Messi made his debut for Barcelona in a friendly to inaugurate Porto’s new stadium. He was 16 years and 145 days old, and the third youngest player to play for the club. The youngest had been Paulino Alcántara in 1912, the second-youngest Haruna Babangida in 1998. The contrasting fortunes of the three say much about the difficulties of predicting which players will make it. Messi has gone on to be one of the greatest payers in the history of the game. Alcántara was – until Messi came along – Barcelona’s record goalscorer (and he gave up the game at 31 to become a doctor). Babangida never played a competitive game for Barcelona, won only one cap for Nigeria and ended up drifting through Metalurh Donetsk, Olympiakos, Apollon Limassol, Kuban Krasnodar, Mainz, Vitesse and the Austrian second-tier side Kapfenberger before retiring in 2012.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson
“Champions League holders and arguably Europe’s most in-form team Real Madrid were drawn against German side Schalke 04 in the last 16 of Europe’s most prestigious competition. Real, which defeated city rival Atletico Madrid 4-1 in Lisbon last year to win ‘La Decima’ — it’s 10th title — is attempting to become the first team to successfully defend the Champions League. Two of England’s three clubs face tough ties, with Chelsea drawn against Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City paired with Spanish giants Barcelona.” CNN
Rematches, Wenger reunion headline Champions League knockout draw
“After a group stage in which the main lesson was that Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are still the teams to beat in this competition, the draw for the round of 16 took place Monday. The odds on the two favorites will have shortened considerably after decent draws, and two big guns will fall by the wayside after Paris Saint-Germain was drawn against Chelsea and Manchester City against Barcelona in a pair of repeat matchups from last season. There was also a moment of sentimentality in the draw, as Arsenal was drawn against AS Monaco, where coach Gunners coach Arsene Wenger was manager from 1987-1994. Here’s a breakdown of Monday’s draw…” SI
“The final day of the Champions League group stage saw Manchester City produce probably the best Champions league performance in its history to book its place in the last 16 for only the second time. Barcelona outlasted PSG for first in their group behind goals from Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, and Schalke 04 also secured its place in the knockout phase on a night when John Obi Mikel broke a long-standing personal drought.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“It’s no secret that the 2014-15 Bundesliga season has been a rough one for Borussia Dortmund. After a few seasons of success, the tradition-rich club has spent much of the fall slumming it in the table’s depths, at one stage bottoming out in dead last. It’s been a shock for everybody, especially considering the team’s good form in the Champions League, but a closer look at the standings reveals a wider truth: Many of German’s traditional powers are in terrible shape.” Soccer Gods
“We are back with the 2014-15 Bundesliga Power Rankings – the post-Match Day 14 edition. Since our last edition, Bayern mocks the others, FC Augsburg reaches historic heights, Eintracht decides it might really want to challenge for Europe, darkness shrouds the middle table, while old faces revisit the relegation zone. Hold onto your butts, kids. The Power Rankings do not necessarily reflect the current table standings, since they account both for form and expectations, all the while acknowledging the fluctuation and random effects riddled through a single match day weekend, yet also acknowledging that the weekly randomness does something like work itself out over the long run. Thus, we proudly present our Match Day 14 Power Rankings. Debate. Discuss. Rinse and repeat. Huzzah! Bundesliga Fanatic
“So you’ve heard about Bayern Munich, and what the Bavarian titans are doing to the Bundesliga? Vacuuming up the league’s best players. Hiring the brainiest guy in soccer, then letting him pull all kinds of tactical stunts. The club’s paid off all it’s stadium debt and now is now stacking money higher than the Allianz itself. It’s as if Bayern’s tap-dancing in golf shoes on the Bundesliga’s helpless mug. Just think of the puncture wounds when Dortmund star Marco Reus arrives this summer.” Soccer Gods
“1 out of 58. To the uninitiated, these are simple numbers, but those who know better, realise that this is representative of the number of goalkeepers that have been honoured by being handed a tag that says, ‘World Player of the Year’, or any such variation. A look at the list of winners will reveal that a few defensive players have won it, few enough to count on one’s left hand. Moving away from the point, most of us believe, and understand that football is a game that consists of two functions; score goals, stop the opponent from scoring goals. Most will agree that each function is as important as the other.” Outside of the Boot
“There is a Borussia Dortmund shirt exhibition on at the moment, with 32 shirts displayed from 1966 to 2014. The venue is a Catholic church in Dortmund and above the entrance in the building are the words, in big black and yellow letters: ‘Church, football, trust in God.’ Dortmund has slumped to the bottom of the Bundesliga, and, with coach Jurgen Klopp struggling to find answers, some fans might want to start looking for divine inspiration.” SI
CB: Diego Godin
“2014 is nearly in the books, and with FIFPro, the world players’ union, in the midst of releasing its shortlists for the World’s Best XI, it’s time to consider which players stood out above their peers in a year to remember. An epic World Cup in Brazil saw Germany get crowned for a fourth time, while Real Madrid completed its quest for La Decima and captured a 10th European title. Bayern Munich captured another Bundesliga title, doing so in record time; Atletico Madrid was a surprise champion in Spain; Manchester City won its second title in three seasons in England; Juventus won a third straight crown in Italy and PSG went back-to-back in Ligue 1 to headline Europe’s major leagues.” SI – Jonathan Wilson
“Borussia Dortmund picked up their first points since September in when Jürgen Klopp’s team beat Borussia Mönchengladbach, thanks to Christoph Kramer and his ridiculous own goal. However, the struggling German powerhouse won just a battle, and it will be a long way to obtain the spot in the table they would’ve targeted when the Bundesliga season started. On the other hand, Dortmund’s roster depth promises interesting systems and approaches.” Outside of the Boot
“Borussia Dortmund picked up their first points since September in when Jürgen Klopp’s team beat Borussia Mönchengladbach, thanks to Christoph Kramer and his ridiculous own goal. However, the struggling German powerhouse won just a battle, and it will be a long way to obtain the spot in the table they would’ve targeted when the Bundesliga season started. On the other hand, Dortmund’s roster depth promises interesting systems and approaches.” Outside of the Boot
“In the modern game, versatility is an increasingly important quality. Players are asked to play in different positions, different roles and different systems. While times of the past have often called for this too, we are witness to the proper development of what some call ‘the universal player’, a player who has the ability to do most things required on a football pitch in a fashion that would be beneficial to both his team and himself. In Pep Confidential, the inside story of Pep Guardiola’s first season at Bayern München, the former Barcelona manager outlined his preference on how he would have a squad built. The Spaniard, in an ideal scenario, would want no more than 20 players but would want each of those 20 players to have the ability to play in two or three positions.” Outside of the Boot
“Our Talent Radar Player Rankings, along-with our Talent Radar Team of the Week documents the progress of youngsters across Europe’s top six leagues, with those featuring in these regular pieces, eventually being recognised in our end of season Talent Radar Young Player Awards and 100 Best Young Players to Watch list. Read this document for all your queries on Talent Radar and explanation of the features under it.” Outside of the Boot
“Under Pep Guardiola, Bayern have always pressed high up the field, sometimes so high up the field that the only person behind the half way line is Manuel Neuer, who is very happy to deal with any problems that the defence may encounter while playing such a high line. The flip side of this is some times counter attacks are so fast that playing a high line means you will leak a goal or two on the counter.” Outside of the Boot
“… But guess what? We’ve got another international break on our hands, so there’s no club soccer until next weekend. And since it’s the last such intermission of the year, let’s check in with your favorite European World Cup squads as they’re about to put a bow on 2014.” Grantland
“We are back with the 2014-15 Bundesliga Power Rankings – the post-Match Day 10 edition. Since our last edition, Bayern clings to its undefeated record, Mönchengladbach taunts the league with its, Dortmund continues its stunning crawl through the Bundesliga’s dive bars, Hannover 96 stubbornly clings to respectability, and Freiburg and Werder finally win a match. It’s the Bundesliga, folks. The Power Rankings do not necessarily reflect the current table standings, since they account both for form and expectations, all the while acknowledging the fluctuation and random effects riddled through a single match day weekend, yet also acknowledging that the weekly randomness does something like work itself out over the long run. Thus, we proudly present our Match Day 10 Power Rankings. Debate. Discuss. Rinse and repeat. Huzzah!” Bundesliga Fanatic
“It was a weekend of stalemates as 6 of this weekend’s 9 fixtures ended in draws. The top 6 sides all faced off against each other but all 3 games ended level, including the clash between the top 2 sides, Ingolstadt and Fortuna Düsseldorf. Elsewhere, 1860 Munich moved off of the bottom of the table with a 3-0 victory over a hapless Bochum, who have now gone 7 games without a win. Eintracht Braunschweig moved into the top half of the table with a win over Aalen and Greuther Fürth won, in Berlin, as they bounced back from 2 consecutive defeats. Let’s take a look at the team of the week for matchday 12.” Bundesliga Fanatic (Video)
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