Happy New Year!

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“Observant visitors will note that there has been a lack of new posts on Football Further over the past fortnight. Due partly to the traditional indulgences occasioned by the festive season, it is mainly down to the Ligue 1 winter break and the blog will thus remain dormat until the French top flight resumes in mid-January. In the meantime, I’ll post regular pieces of French football news (read: transfer tittle-tattle) on Twitter – as well as updates and insights from the Asian Cup in Qatar, where I’ll be reporting for AFP from January 8 onwards.” Football Further

Real Valladolid v Tenerife

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“What better way to kick off 2011 than a six hour journey, north by northwest, from our traditional Spanish festive season HQ in Salinas del Manzano to Valladolid for a slice of Segunda Division action. This is European Football Weekends, it’s what we do, and – after the briefest of mid-season winter breaks – we’re not just back, but back with a bang, an explosion, a thermo-nuclear explosion at that.” European Football Weekends

Opponents of FC Barcelona, here is your New Year’s Resolution

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“Barcelona have shuffled their pack in 2010, starting to prefer to Messi to play centrally rather than in the inside right role. Not formed in the archetypal central forward role, his pee-wee frame would perhaps lead some central defenders preferring to battle against the Lilliputian Argentinian.” Talking About Football

Good Day, Bad Day: Perfect Pedro and Awful Atlético
“The league has got to such a barmy bipolar state that panic breaks out across the Spanish sporting media unless Barcelona thrash another side a billion nil. In the English Premier League, sides such as Manchester United have off days – ones where they eke out points rather than rubbing their tackle in their opposition’s faces for 90 minutes – without everyone flapping their arms about in panic. But in Spain, this simply isn’t tolerated. Barça weren’t great against a disciplined Levante, but Pedro was with two goals that gave his team the three points, which is all that matters really.” FourFourTwo

Michael Laudrup – would you back him as the next Liverpool manager?

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“If not a truly ‘formative’ episode in my football timeline, the 1986 World Cup is still a regular feature in my mind’s private cinema. Maybe not the most regular feature, ahem, but still a vivid series of memories. The drama during my country’s qualification, the loss of Big Jock at Ninian Park, the palaver over whether Kenny and Jocky were gonna play, Strachan’s ‘refusal’ at the ad hording hurdle… ” Level3Football

It’s never too old – Lubo Moravcik

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“Barely had the dust settled from another round of SPL fixtures when news came in that Celtic had completed the signing of a new midfielder. Freddie Ljungberg the ex-Arsenal and Seattle Sounders player had signed on a free transfer. The timing of the move meant the possibility of a debut in Sunday’s Old Firm game.” gib football show

Liverpool set to delay search for Roy Hodgson successor as prospect looms of Kenny Dalglish return

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“Exclusive: Liverpool’s owners are so determined to end Roy Hodgson’s reign as manager that they are now prepared to delay the search for his long-term successor until the summer and install a caretaker until June, raising the prospect of an emotional return to the club for Kenny Dalglish.” Telegraph

Grumbling on towards an inevitable conclusion
“Football supporters turning on their club’s manager is not new but for a manager to turn on his club’s supporters is more unusual. Roy Hodgson’s dismal and utterly predictable time as Liverpool manager effectively came to an end last Wednesday night. Hodgson is just a patsy, one of the last remaining figures from the old regime. The hopes of the Fenway Sports Group that the club could stagger on until the summer vanished with that defeat to Wolves.” Independent

Liverpool 2 – 1 Bolton Wanderers
“Liverpool earned manager Roy Hodgson some breathing space, but nothing more, with a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Bolton at Anfield. With reports suggesting owners New England Sports Ventures are now actively seeking a replacement, the 63-year-old knows he is living on borrowed time after a woeful six months in charge.” ESPN

Liverpool 2-1 Bolton Wanderers – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

Time must be called on Roy Hodgson’s tenure at Liverpool

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François Perrier, Olinde et Sophronie sur le bûcher
“With the derisory and ironic chants of ‘Hodgson for England’ from the Anfield crowd ringing fresh in his ears, following Liverpool’s stunning and stultifying 1-0 home loss to then bottom-placed Wolves, coach Roy Hodgson committed probably the final fatal two verbal missteps in what has been a tortuous six-month reign.” SI

The Media Narrative In Full Swing.
“Originally published on July 1st 2010. As much as I remain a fan of the Guardian and its football output, I continue to find Paul Hayward’s take on Liverpool as daft as any I’ve encountered. But it’s not like I’m being wise after the event…” Tomkins Times

An historic year in review
One of the most dramatic years in the history of Liverpool Football Club is almost at an end, so we asked those who support, work for and write about our famous institution for their reflections on 2010. From new owners and boardroom battles to a change of managers and on-the-field pain, the last 12 months will never be forgotten by those who lived through them.” Liverpool FC

100 football blogs to follow in 2011

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“The year of the blog? Very possibly, especially with the current batch of outstanding sites out there which have grown, improved, developed and cross-pollinated in recent time. Aided by social media, an increasingly specialised selection is out there, waiting for you to wade through and bolster your knowledge of the game, and I thoroughly recommend losing yourself in as many of the following as possible.” Guardian

La Liga Shuffles to End of Year Shambles

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“It appeared that the biggest cultural change to life in Spain since the controversial 1986 deregulation of the ham market was just too much for a small chunk of the country’s work force. Being unable by law to smoke in bars – without exceptions or loopholes, this time – from the 2nd of January and having to play football on the same day apparently caused such a rumpus for Spain’s dilettante, pipe-puffing footballers that their union went to court to request the suspension of any activity, on Sunday, involving kicking a ball about in front of paying punters – even the meagre handful who bother to turn up to see either Getafe or Mallorca.” Football 365

Leaked!

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“The news that the unemployed Rafa Benítez has returned to his Liverpool home creates remarkable artistic opportunities for the staff of The Run of Play. Our problem is to decide among the many options.” Run of Play

Liverpool vs Wolves – A Horror In Chalkboards.
“I’m back to take another depressing look at the chalkboards. Skipped a few games in between largely down to the fact that the chalkboards didn’t have any interesting tale to tell. While the news from the Wolves game isn’t positive, there are a few things worth noting.” Tomkins Times

Ward’s strike leaves Hodgson reign hanging by a thread
“Roy Hodgson has been waiting a long time to hear the Kop sing his name but never did he think it would be quite like this. The bitterly ironic barbs of ‘Hodgson for England’ rained down on him last night as his Liverpool side fell to a dispiriting and justified defeat to a club which arrived with the worst away record in all four English divisions.” Independent

Broughton: The big interview
“Liverpoolfc.tv spoke exclusively to Chairman Martin Broughton about the appointment of Roy Hodgson as well as the future of the club.” Liverpool FC

Hodgson hits back at Kop boo boys
“Under-pressure Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has risked incurring further wrath from disgruntled fans by claiming they should be getting behind the team instead of directing their anger at him.” ESPN

Wolves slay troubled Reds
“Liverpool’s lack of match practice cost them dearly as they lost an ei,ghth Premier League match of the season and bottom side Wolves picked up their first three-point haul since last March with a 1-0 win.” ESPN

Liverpool 0-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

Modern football journalism…

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“Football and chess are two games that have caught my fascination at a very early age. Not that I’m particularly good at one or the other, but the amount of depth available in interpreting, analyzing and enjoying these games has fascinated me from an early age on. Therefore, as a closing post to the year 2010, in contrast to the usual 11tegen11 match reports, I’ve decided to share my view on the parallels and differences between football journalism and chess journalism.” 11tegen11

A Madman Who Never Stopped Running

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“It is a statement that has been made by thousands of children. When Nelson Valdez promised that he would score at a World Cup tournament for Paraguay to his mother, who was crying after Paraguay had been eliminated in 1998, it was a promise that had been heard by many other parents. Nelson Valdez was different though, he would strive to fulfil this pledge.” In Bed With Maradona

Games of 2010: 40-31

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Andrea Pirlo
“Here’s the first in four-part series reviewing the matches of the year. As ever, the focus is upon tactics rather than entertainment or importance, though naturally the ‘bigger’ games are featured prominently. It’s also limited to games that were covered on ZM, though that includes most of the contenders for the game of the year.” Zonal Marking

Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea: Arsenal’s poor run against title contenders comes to an end

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“Alex Song, Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott scored the goals as Arsenal stormed to victory. Arsene Wenger chose Robin van Persie rather than Marouane Chamakh, with Theo Walcott in for Andrei Arshavin, and Samir Nasri moving to the left. Lukasz Fabianski returned in goal.” Zonal Marking

Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

No break for me, thanks.

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“Its December, which in my part of the world means that the snow is falling, the roads have iced over and its impossible to open an Airport, a school, or more importantly a football stadium. As a result, countless games have been called off up and down the country in Scotland and England to deal with the ‘danger’ of fans commuting to games and risking their very lives to follow their sides. Such behaviour leaves one to ponder, why can’t we have a winter break?” The Oval Log

Dimension of adventure – A full back story

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“This season and last, Blackpool has been lauded for their adventurous approach to playing the beautiful game. The majority of the mainstream media point to the influence Charlie Adam has had on the way that Blackpool play. However, one player doesn’t make a team and Holloway has reshaped the way that Blackpool play and there are facets of that play that help make watching Blackpool a superbly enjoyable experience. For the focus of this article the spot light will shine on the full backs. What role do they play? How have they been playing and where (if any) has adjustment (in role) been made for life in the Premiership?” Tangerine Dreaming

Dancing with U.S. Soccer: A Gentleman’s History of the Stanky Legg and a Look to the Future

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“Goal scorers have pumped fists, stripped down, slid on the ground, assembled in Voltron-like formations with teammates, climbed on top of teammates, screamed at television cameras, pointed to the heavens, made out with their team badges, assaulted corner flags, paid tribute to pregnancies by giving birth to soccer balls, displayed shirts with birthday and freedom messages, planted corner flags like an explorer, snorted end lines, and sprinted off into a corner to share a few dance moves with an adoring or enraged public. Anything and everything goes after scoring a goal. That’s the beauty of the soccer celebration.” Nutmeg Radio

AFRICA10: feature documentary finishing funds

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“AFRICA10 is a character-based feature documentary about the incredible spirit of soccer in Africa. We feature five inspiring stories from across the continent, intercut with commentary from famous Africans including Kofi Annan, Desmond Tutu and players such as Michael Essien, Emmanuel Adebayor and Roger Miller. AFRICA10 illustrates, in a dramatic and visual way, how soccer is helping Africans lift themselves up.” KickStarter

On the third day of Christmas – The best journalist

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Jonathan Wilson
“We love Twitter. It is like visiting a Roman Forum back in 50BC, stopping to chat to all and sundry about everything under the sun. Want some chat about the wrong tactics used by Inter Milan at the weekend, then touch base with Jonathan Wilson or Zonal Marking. Fancy trying to understand what on earth is going on at Upton Park then have a chat with Jacob Steinberg, Mark Segal from ITV Sport, Matt Law from the Express or Dan Silver from the Daily Mirror. And want to get a Pro’s view on life now or as it was a few years ago then have a chat with Martin Allen, Garry Nelson or Bolton Wanderers Kevin Davies.”
On the first day of Christmas – The best website, On the second day of Christmas – The best game, On the third day of Christmas – The best journalist

Team collective more important than individuals

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“When he was first making his name with Santos, former Manchester City striker Robinho often spoke of his big ambition to be elected Fifa World Player of the Year. True, he was seeking to place himself in a tradition of some of his illustrious compatriots, but even so I always found it a depressing declaration. For what it is worth, my view is that far too much attention is given to these individual awards.” BBC – Tim Vickery

Bundesliga: Top Players of 2010-11 Season at Winter Break

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“Winter break in Bundesliga is underway. First half of the league finished last week with much clamor and glamour. We have witnessed fall of the giants and rise of the pretenders in this half, to say the least. This statement is true for the teams and the players alike. Some famous players departed and fresh new faces arrived and the ‘business’ went on with the same passion of the fans.” Football Stryder

La Maisa: Where Barca’s stars are produced

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“Xavi Hernandez, the world’s finest midfielder, remembers the advice he received when, at age 10, he made a first tentative journey to La Masia, the 18th century farmhouse in the shadow of the Camp Nou where Barcelona school their youngsters.”‘My coach said, ‘Watch how Pep Guardiola plays. He is perfect in his position – your position.’ And he was right. If Pep was still playing he’d be in the side ahead of any of us.” Xavi’s progress meant he eventually played alongside Guardiola, now the first La Masia graduate to coach the first team.” The National

Arsène Wenger is confident brains can beat the brawn of Chelsea

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“Arsenal against Chelsea always seems much more than just a match between two title and city rivals. It’s a little symbolic even. It’s a battle between self-sustenance and foreign investment. Aesthetics v results. Romanticism v pragmatism. Okay, perhaps that is a disservice to Chelsea because they are capable of playing some breathtaking football while Roman Abramovich has worked on implementing a structure to ensure greater sustainability for the future. Indeed, an increased focus on youth has been displayed this season although not in the way it may have been intended.” Arsenal Column

What did the noughties do for you?

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Portugal
“So ten years into the third millennium and football just keeps on changing. The last decade has seen the game become a huge global game where the amount of money in the Premier League itself is more than most countries GDP. Below are some of our regular contributors, and readers highlights of the last decade and our video of where we’ve been, but first 10 facts from 10 years ago…” The Ball Is Round

The 2010 Team of the Year
“2010 is likely to be a year remembered, in footballing terms, by Spanish fans most fondly after their side lifted the famous Jules Rimet trophy for the first time. It has also been a year in which a Barcelona side, possibly the greatest team of all time, have continued to revolutionise football with their style of play.” The Free Role

Barcelona to Rooney: the best and worst of 2010
” WSC contributors give their best and worst moments in football from the past year” WSC

Awards Season
“It’s awards season and never one to miss out on a way to reward my fellow man, here’s my own. In honour of this blog they shall be known as the ‘Nakys’” I Know Who Cyrille Makanaky Was

The Twohundedpercent Vault: 10 Must-See Football Films & Tv Shows
“Twohundredpercent is on its Christmas holidays for a a few days so, until then, we’re keeping the site ticking over with some of the best from our almost five year old archive. In this article, Ian King points you in the direction of 10 films and television shows which demonstrate that the relationship between the game and the box in the corner of your living room doesn’t have to be a fractious one.” twohundredpercent

Argentines Abroad bumper Christmas special
“This extended Argentines Abroad has been made possible by the fact that I didn’t have time to do one last week, but forgot to let my correspondents know – and as a result we’ve got two weeks’ worth of submissions from Spain and Portugal, as well as a very belated (my fault, not Tom’s) report on the climax of the Mexican top flight championship early this month. All this, plus the Carlos Tevez saga and news of a loan deal to Spain for Martín Demichelis. How I spoil you all, this festive season.” Hasta El Gol Siempre

The Question: How did tactics develop in 2010?

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“In August, I wrote a piece for the Guardian’s pre-season supplement in which I speculated that, after the World Cup and Internazionale’s success in the Champions League, we may be about to witness a return to reactive football. Since when we’ve seen probably the most attacking Premier League in living memory, which goes to show two things: first, never believe anything anybody writes when trying to predict the future of football; and second, the World Cup is no longer a bellwether.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

All Hail Barcelona

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David Villa
“There’s a special feeling of euphoria, a kind of Olympian giddiness, that soccer fans experience while watching F.C. Barcelona. Soccer takes great athletes and makes them artificially clumsy—forces them to show what they can do, in effect, with both arms tied behind their backs. It’s a game of tricks, one that turns the simplest action, just keeping possession of the ball, into a perilous high-wire act.” Slate – Brian Phillips

All quiet on the Western Front

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“It is one of the most storied matches in the history of football, but the identity of its players are unknown, the final scoreline is the subject of much debate and even the situation and circumstances in which it took place are shrouded in myth, supposition and propaganda. The football match, or series of football matches, that took place on Christmas Day, 1914, on the Western Front during World War I are legendary.” ESPN

If Only Life Was Like Pro Evo…

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“I couldn’t believe it when I saw that earlier this month Adriano was awarded the Bidone d’oro – the proverbial wooden spoon, or ‘Golden Bin’, handed out by Italian Rai Radio 2 listeners to Serie A’s worst performer. I was even more flabbergasted to learn that he was a repeat offender. His latest win (or lose depending how you look at it) completes the most undesirable of hat-tricks. I can’t understand it. The Bidone d’oro?! Surely he should be up for the Ballon d’Or.” In Bed With Maradona

Augsburg 0-1 Schalke

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“Schalke struck late to eliminate plucky Augsburg from the DFB-Pokal and move into the quarter-finals. This was the fifth consecutive game the Gelsenkirchen side had won in all competitions, and they’ll be disappointed that the winter break now eats into their momentum. The defeat was the first suffered by Augsburg in over two months, but they won’t be too disheartened as they seek to gain promotion to the top-flight for the first time in their history.” Defensive Midfielder

Carrick, Revisited

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“Michael Carrick is one of my favourite footballers around. I sometimes joke that he’s the Geordie Guardiola, then I realise that Guardiola may have been the Catalan Carrick. I like alliterations. Anyways, he’s come in for a huge amount of stick over the years, and I’ve felt the need to defend him on numerous occasions, not least to my fellow Manchester United supporters.” crimes against humility

Top 10 soccer stories of 2010

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“1. FIFA corruption. It’s been a long time since anybody thought of FIFA as a bunch of do-gooders, but this has been a damaging year for its reputation nonetheless. As Sepp Blatter’s merry troupe was courted by World Cup bidders, two members (Nigeria’s Amos Adamu and Tahiti’s Reynald Temarii) were suspended for offering to sell their votes, and the rest of the executive committee did nothing to quell suspicions that it was standard practice by giving the 2018 and 2022 tournaments to mega-rich, risky options Russia and Qatar, respectively.” SI

Manchester City 1-2 Everton: Everton attack well for 20 minutes, then defend resolutely for 70

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“Everton went ahead early on, and held on despite going down to ten men for the final half hour. Roberto Mancini recalled James Milner to his starting line-up, playing him in a deep midfield role with Yaya Toure as the playmaker. Carlos Tevez started upfront. David Moyes made two changes. Steven Pienaar was out, so Leon Osman played on the left, whilst Victor Anichebe started upfront rather than Louis Saha.” Zonal Marking

Match of the Week: Manchester City 1-2 Everton
“Carlos Tevez, then, has withdrawn his transfer request after what are apparently called “clear the air” talks with the executives of Manchester City Football Club. It feels as if there is an incessant need on the part of the media to create a crisis at Manchester City at every turn this season. We all know that their financial arrangements err on the wrong side of ridiculous, but the suspicion is now starting to form that there is something of a witch hunt going on at The City of Manchester Stadium. City, the upstarts, the perennial failures, are at the point of achieving something and you don’t have to be a fan of the way that they are going about things to start to form the opinion that there are plenty of people out there that really don’t want to them to upset the status quo.” twohundredpercent

Manchester City 1-2 Everton – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

A Technical Update

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“First, three non-technical updates. Yes, this is a house of contradiction. I realized this morning that I never linked to my Deadspin piece on Football Manager 2011 from a few days back. It’s about reality, and Uruguay, and things that happened in a hard rain that didn’t exist. Check it out. This Rentistas game would have made a tremendous Pro Vercelli-like series if we hadn’t already been through that maze already. …” Run of Play

Barcelona 5 Everyone else 0/1

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“Another week another five-star performance from Barcelona, when you see such artistic brilliance every game it is easy to get complacent. It’s very difficult to take in and appreciate at times, you could question the level of the opposition which is what many do but that would be wrong as these are very good sides. The fact of the matter is if you put this Barcelona up against a Tottenham, Juventus or Bayern Munich next week the result would be very much the same. That’s not to say when they come up against Arsenal in February that they will do the same to them, a lot can change by then and as this team has been trained to reach two peaks in the season following the World cup.” Laligathemidlandsview’s Blog

La Liga Lowdown, Jornada 16: Barcelona hit five in emotional Catalan derby
“El derbi Barceloní, as it’s referred to in Catalan – the meeting of FC Barcelona and Espanyol, one of Spain’s fiercest rivalries, took place at the Cornellà-El Prat stadium this weekend. However, this time round Espanyol were fighting for more than just their pride. They were fighting to stay in 4th place in the race for Champions League qualification.” Just Football

Rafael Benítez makes a tough job more difficult at Inter

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“Following José Mourinho was always going to be a thankless task for Rafael Benítez. Not only did Mourinho win just about everything there is to win during his time in charge at Inter, he was also an exciting, passionate and absorbing public figure and front-man, a pantomime hero and a pantomime villain all at once. Benítez, on the other hand, could not be more different. He has neither the charm nor charisma of Mourinho. In short, he is a PR disaster.” WSC

The IBWM Portuguese Liga Winter Break Awards

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“Christmas, as the saying goes, comes but once a year. Yet for fans of European football, the festive period is something of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, your friends and family can rejoice at the presence of a fully functioning, undistracted human being. On the other, well, there’s no football. This past Monday saw the curtain come down on what’s been a memorable 2010 for football in Portugal: Benfica rolling back the years, the end of the Queiroz era, and a new season that has been as polarising as ever.” In Bed With Maradona

Lower leagues across the globe #1: Portugal
“The geography, languages and footballing cultures might be different, but with the increasing globalisation of football, the problems afflicting lower-league clubs across the world are (depressingly) familiar. Portugal has not escaped this homogenisation. Whilst the três grandes of Benfica, Sporting Clube and FC Porto have exerted a vicelike grip over the silverware since the nationalisation of the Liga in 1938 (previous championships were regionalised, with Lisbon being the most prestigious); smaller clubs have laboured under the financially strafing conditions that a long-term lack of success brings – a state of affairs which has not improved as the level of financial investment in the game has grown.” The Seventy Two

PSV 3 – 1 Roda: Second half turnaround wins the game for PSV

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“In their ultimate match before the winter break PSV faced Harm van Veldhoven’s Roda at home. On match day six both teams met each other before and the 0-0 draw proved that Roda’s 4-4-2 diamond was capable of posing PSV some difficulties. In this match, however, PSV manager Rutten managed to find the solution during the first half, as was illustrated by the day and night difference of both halves of the match.” 11 tegen 11

A Short Swedish Summary

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“Today I write about a country unlike our own, an ordinary sized country based in northern Europe of just over 9 million that defines itself with its beautiful countryside, over priced cities, and miserable weather. Yes I’m of course talking about Sweden. The land of the honourable Henrik Larsson, the not so honourable Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but perhaps more importantly, the land of an interesting football history.” The Oval Log

Winning is not everything in Peru

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“Just as a flower can grow on a dung heap, so one of football’s most heartwarming stories of the year began with a depressing staple of the South American game – the mass brawl. It came in the first leg of the final of the Peruvian Championship. The away side, San Martin, are something of a curiosity. They were set up by a university in Lima less than seven years ago and have very few fans. Last year, when I saw them in a Lima derby against Sporting Cristal, they had brought a grand total of 33 supporters across town – plus a dancing mascot dressed up as a tooth.” BBC – Tim Vickery

Luton Town & The VIVA World Cup

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“Next year celebrates the 80th anniversary of the Cyprus Football Association. In 1931, football clubs from the Greek and Turkish communities on the island of Cyprus came together to set up the CFA. Of the eight founding members, 7 were Greek-Cypriot clubs – Anorthosis Famagusta, APOEL Nicosia, Olympiakos Nicosia, AEL Limassol, Aris Limassol, Trast AC and EPA Larnaca. Meanwhile, Nicosia-based Lefkoþa Türk Spor Kulübü were the only Turkish-Cypriot side in the inaugural Cypriot First Division.” In Bed With Maradona

The Polish Year

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“In the last 12 months we’ve suffered heavy defeats to Spain and Cameroon on an international level, while our clubs still have the problem of failing to advance past the early rounds in European competition – only Lech managing to buck the trend. Deciding to delve a little deeper, I wanted to take a closer look at 2010.” In Bed With Maradona

St. Pauli 2-4 Mainz

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“St. Pauli came into this game needing a win to achieve their declared mid-season target of 20 points. Like Mainz, the newly-promoted club started the campaign promisingly before tailing off, only rather more dramatically. Holger Stanislawski’s team had managed just one win in their last eight matches, and faced their guests without ‘keeper Thomas Kessler, red-carded in the defeat at Bayern München last week, Markus Thorandt, also suspended after being sent off, and flu-victims Deniz Naki and Richard Sukuta-Pasu. Thomas Tuchel, who saw his side suffer a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Schalke in Round 16, had the luxury of a near full-strength squad to choose from at the Millerntor – only Bo Svensson and Jan Šimák were ruled out. Although Mainz had dropped to fourth in recent weeks, they knew a win would – temporarily – take them back up to the silver medal spot.” Defensive Midfielder

Tactical Breakdown: How Mainz Overcame St. Pauli In A Six-Goal Thriller
“St. Pauli came into this game needing a win to achieve their declared mid-season target of 20 points. Like Mainz, the newly-promoted club started the campaign promisingly before tailing off, only rather more dramatically.” Goal

Milan 0-1 Roma: Borriello punishes parent club

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“At first it looked like Roma were coming for a draw, but they ended up leaving with a win. Max Allegri stuck with his 4-3-1-2 shape, the only change being Luca Antonini replacing Gianluca Zambrotta at left-back. Claudio Ranieri made five changes from the team which beat Bari last weekend – the major news being that Francesco Totti was omitted, with Adriano making his second start for Roma. Daniele De Rossi returned.” Zonal Marking

AC Milan 0-1 AS Roma – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – Serie A
The 90th Minute

Espanyol 1-5 Barcelona: high line exploited

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“Barcelona scored five for the third time in their last four games. Mauricio Pochettino played a variation of his usual 4-2-3-1 – Luis Garcia started out on the right and Jose Callejon switched to the left. Pep Guardiola chose what seems to be his first choice XI, the same one that started the legendary 5-0 victory over Real Madrid.” Zonal Marking

Spanish Football in 2010: A Retrospective

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“It’s been an historic year in the life of Spanish football. On the evening of the 11th July, with one swing of his right foot, Andrés Iniesta lit up Johannesburg to win his country its first World Cup and confirm Spain’s place at the very pinnacle of the global game. With La Liga commencing its annual winter hiatus next week, I thought I would use this week to review the year and give out some prestigious awards – Los Equalisers de Oro (The Golden Equalisers), as I like to call them.” The Equaliser