“The illegal streaming of football matches remains a problem for the football industry and there are few signs that that’s about to change. But why is illegal streaming so popular? And why is it even an option? Tifo conducted its own survey, alongside industry research to find out why football fans illegally stream, and what the authorities are doing about it. Written by Seb Stafford-Bloor, illustrated by Craig Silcock.”
YouTube
“Pep Guardiola’s way of surprising Mikel Arteta was by not surprising him. Instead, Guardiola maintained the system he’d used in a comfortable weekend win over Aston Villa, which was most notable for the presence of Bernardo Silva as a left-sided ‘half-back’: a central midfielder when his team was in possession, a left-back without it. …”
The Athletic – Michael Coxfo
“‘I am ashamed of what I’ve seen. We will take action.’ These were the words of Barcelona president Joan Laporta after the second leg of last season’s Europa League quarter-final with Eintracht Frankfurt. In April 2022, his club had just suffered their second European embarrassment of the season. The first was elimination at the Champions League group stage that autumn. The second saw them knocked out of the Europa League at a Camp Nou overflowing with away fans. …”
The Athletic
“The phone rang at 8 a.m., and the Manchester City communications official answered right away. A reporter was on the line, requesting comment on the news emanating from the Middle East that morning in 2008: that City, a Premier League soccer team with an unremarkable history and dust gathering in its trophy cabinet, had just been purchased by a wealthy Arab sheikh, the brother of the ruler of the United Arab Emirates. … Within an hour, the news that Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan had become the owner of Manchester City was out. A new era had begun. With the stroke of a pen, a venerable, well-liked and occasionally tragicomic member of English soccer’s establishment had become one of the richest teams on the planet, a usurper-in-waiting to the game’s elite. …”
NY Times
YouTube: Could Manchester City be relegated?
“Most of Valencia’s fans didn’t see the goal that momentarily pulled them clear of the relegation zone but they did see the goals that pushed them back in again. They were at Mestalla on Saturday night but not in Mestalla when Samu Castillejo’s 16th-minute shot put them one up against Athletic Club. Instead, they were still outside, desperate to escape the abyss. Beyond the wall, Castillejo’s first goal since September came to a backdrop of empty seats and packed streets, yellow everywhere, but at least offered brief hope of a first win in three months; when those fans finally headed in, it was taken away again, a 2-1 defeat deepening their desperation. …”
Guardian
“For many years, the Champions League has decided the narrative of the whole season for Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, regardless of their domestic performances. In this one, that applies more than ever. The turbulence both of these European giants are experiencing in their own leagues has put more pressure on the playing squads and their respective managers, Julian Nagelsmann and Christophe Galtier, going into their face-off in the Champions League’s round of 16. …”
The Athletic
Guardian: Kingsley Coman returns to haunt PSG and give Bayern Munich the edge
“Europe’s top competition is back. For those who have missed the soothing tones of the Champions League anthem, fear not. The knockout stage is upon us and we have 16 more games to feast on over the next four weeks. Using FiveThirtyEight’s well-respected prediction model, Bayern Munich stand as favourites to win the competition, edging ahead of Manchester City, Real Madrid and dark horses Napoli. However, we all know how knockout football works — do not expect things to go the way you might predict. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“In the first half of the season, the consistency of Arsenal’s selection provided the foundation for their success. From pre-season through until January, manager Mikel Arteta was largely able to keep his preferred XI on the field. But after taking just one point from their last two Premier League games, Arteta must be toying with the idea of whether to twist rather than stick. …”
The Athletic
“Luciano Spalletti has worked wonders since arriving to the scene of Naples in 2021. The Italian manager helped Napoli to a third-place finish last season, and now prepares to lead the closing stages of their title charge in 2023. With some supremely smart acquisitions in the summer working their magic, Gli Azzurri currently sit ten points clear atop the table, and have more than double the points of Serie A’s historical dominator – Juventus. If Spalletti can continue to get his tactics right and maintain the remarkably positive culture he’s built since arriving, Napoli will walk away with the title this year. So with that, here is our analysis of the club from Naples so far in 2022-23. …”
The Mastermindsite
“The writing was on the wall for Nathan Jones. Southampton had lost 2-1 at home to Wolves, having been a goal up and played with an extra man for over an hour. For the first time since 1998, it was five straight defeats at home. At the final whistle, as boos reverberated around St Mary’s and a supporter was thrown out for attempting to hand him a P45, Jones walked straight down the tunnel. …”
The Athletic
“… Barely a year after reaching the Champions League final, Dortmund went on a run that saw them lose 11 of their first 19 games of the Bundesliga season. In early February they were bottom of the table, an astonishing fall from grace for Klopp and his team. Eventually, they rallied to win five and draw two of their next seven games, moving away from the relegation zone and ending up in seventh position. But after seven years, two Bundesliga titles, a German Cup, two German Super Cups, one Champions League final and more magical moments than their fans could ever have dreamed when he arrived from Mainz in 2008, Klopp told the Dortmund hierarchy in early April 2015 that he, his players and the club needed a change. …”
The Athletic
The Athletic: The problems facing Liverpool in the biggest crisis of Jurgen Klopp’s reign (Video)
“Sabri Lamouchi’s first media commitments as Cardiff City’s new manager brought a pertinent question about a figure he had yet to meet. With two predecessors sacked in a season only just beyond its halfway mark, was he aware of owner Vincent Tan’s impatience? … Lamouchi knows the eccentricities of the Championship after 15 months in charge of Nottingham Forest, a club familiar with volatility under Evangelos Marinakis, but Cardiff’s downward spiral has begun to chew up and spit out its managers at pace. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“Deciding the best teams in history is never easy, but FourFourTwo thrives on making the tough decisions. So, each staff member armed with their personal favourites, FFT gathered in a darkened room one evening to narrow things down. Deliberations continued long into the night. In between the bickering, name-calling and hair-pulling, one thing became apparent – this list had to be about more than just cold, bare trophy hauls. Football is also about intangibles: how cool a team is; what effect they have on future generations; their aura. …”
FourFourTwo
“Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson departed Manchester United the club has struggled to find a successful manager. That is until this season and the arrival of Erik ten Hag. The dutchman has revolutionised the way United play. Seemingly overnight he has moved the team from a counter-attacking style under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, to a possessional style similar to the Ajax team he created. So how has he done it? Which players have improved the most? How far are United from challenging the very best clubs? Jon Mackenzie explains. Henry Cooke illustrates.”
YouTube
“As the players finish their warm-ups prior to kickoff at the Arena, “Freed From Desire” blares out and the stadium shakes with Taadeech on fiiiire! It’s the same routine before every match, so even though I’m busy buying a pint, I know that Dušan Tadić, captain of Ajax, is the only remaining player on the pitch. I know that he gets the ball just outside the box and takes a few touches before cutting inside on his weaker right foot. He shoots, looks up towards the fans, and applause ensues. …”
Football Paradise
“In life, transitional periods put us under pressure for a certain period of time. Moving from one state or condition to another can present difficulties and, if you aren’t prepared, it might hit you hard. Whether it’s transitioning from an old job to a new one, moving houses, or maybe a different head coach at your football club. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“It was in November 2021 that people started to talk about Gavi’s laces. A photo showed Nico Gonzalez tying the player’s boots for him during a Champions League match for Barcelona at Dynamo Kyiv. Gavi, then 17, stood with his hands on his hips, watching as his midfield team-mate apparently came to his aid. Later, Gonzalez posted the picture on Instagram with the caption: ‘It’s really time you learned…’ But the truth is there was no lesson going on, nor did the scene have anything to do with the Kyiv cold. …”
The Athletic
W – Gavi
“If English football needed proof of how hard it can be to dispel the clouds cast by a major financial scandal, they need only look at Italy. While Manchester City are only beginning to confront over 100 claims that they breached financial regulations over a nine-season period, Juventus — the most successful club in the history of Serie A — have been under siege for almost two years. The scrutiny on the Turin giants has been four-pronged. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“On Wednesday night, the U.S. men’s national team and its interim coaching staff kicked off the 2026 World Cup cycle in administrative limbo. On Thursday morning, they awoke in Los Angeles to what U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) president Cindy Parlow Cone called ‘a clean canvas.’ Already without a full-time manager for the foreseeable future thanks to the review and investigation into Gregg Berhalter’s on-field performance and off-field conduct, the USSF now finds itself without a sporting director and a men’s general manager. …”
SI
“On the 16th floor of an office complex in downtown Barcelona, we’re inside a meeting room that’s surrounded by glass walls and filled with trophies. This is the main headquarters of Mediapro, a Spanish communication group founded by Jaume Roures in 1994. Maybe you haven’t heard of Roures, but there are plenty of reasons The Athletic has come to meet him. …”
The Athletic
“Imagine this situation: you’re playing in a game of football and your side have won a corner kick. The planned routine is a short corner and your task is to get on the end of the eventual ball into the box. What if you could 100 per cent guarantee you would have several yards of space at the start of this move and you could be relatively sure that no one would track your run? …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox
“The problem for A-grade students all over the world is that a B on any test raises eyebrows. Despite their recent victories, Manchester City’s performance on the ball has not been as convincing as it was early in the season, or recent years. The movement and the dynamics against Wolverhampton Wanderers last Sunday felt like City were picking up their rhythm, but against Arsenal it was off the pace again. …”
The Athletic
“More than 13 years have passed since the 68th and previous staging of a fixture which is 123 years old but on Saturday has only a fourth edition since 1972: Preston North End v Tottenham Hotspur. The last time the northern and southern Lilywhites clashed came on 23 September 2009 at Deepdale when Alan Irvine’s Preston suffered a 5-1 loss to the Spurs of Harry Redknapp in a League Cup tie decorated by Peter Crouch’s hat-trick and strikes from Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe, the visitors also fielding Jermaine Jenas, Wilson Palacios and a youthful Gareth Bale. …”
Guardian
“It was 19 August 2022 – a day before Leeds were set to host Chelsea – with Jesse Marsch doing his usual pre-match press conference. The defining days of the transfer window were fast approaching, and an interest in Wilfried Gnonto, an 18-year-old forward at FC Zürich, had been circulating in the days leading up to the match. With Marsch rarely one to return an abrupt answer, it was always worth asking him to shed some light. …”
The Analyst
“When Mohamed Salah finished joint top of the Premier League’s scoring charts with Tottenham’s Son Heung-min in May, it earned the Liverpool attacker his third Golden Boot in five seasons. In the absence of a major international tournament, Salah then had an extended summer break and his contract saga was resolved when he signed a new three-year contract worth more than £350,000 per week — making him the highest-paid player in the club’s history. …”
The Athletic
“On April 10, 1993, Manchester United needed a win to regain top spot in the inaugural Premier League season. A draw against Sheffield Wednesday would not have been enough to return to the summit with only five games remaining afterwards. The final minutes of that game played a major role in United’s first Premier League title. …”
The Athletic
“Positions are constantly evolving in modern football. Or rather, there are no new ideas in football. Just new contexts in which old ideas seem revitalised. None more so than the role of the full back. Liverpool’s Robertson and Alexander-Arnold appeared to have redefined the modern full back, but more recently we are seeing ‘inverted’ full backs. And some full backs, like Diogo Dalot can be like Robertson and Alexander-Arnold, and invert. Jon Mackenzie explains how. Marco Bevilacqua illustrates.”
YouTube
“If Arsenal’s 3-2 victory over Manchester United on Sunday afternoon felt particularly momentous, it’s because it was essentially two types of big win combined. On one hand, it was about Arsenal completely outplaying United, dominating possession and territory, and creating far more chances. On the other, there was the drama of a late winner providing a definitive, exhilarating moment. …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox
The Athletic – Arsenal 3-2 Manchester United analysed: Are Arteta’s men really going to win this title?
We knew it was going to be 0-0, it was 0-0, and we still committed to 16 Conclusions on Liverpool v Chelsea. Only ourselves to blame.
“Well, that wasn’t thrilling, was it? Last season, Liverpool and Chelsea played each other on the way to finishing second and third in the Premier League and contested both domestic cup finals. These clubs have won half of the past four Champions League finals. But their 2022-23 reality is a bit bleaker and they look very unlikely to compete for top-four places over the season’s remaining four months. …”
The Athletic
Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea: 16 Conclusions on a game that showed why ninth v tenth doesn’t usually get 16 Conclusions
Guardian: Mykhailo Mudryk cameo livens up Chelsea’s goalless draw at Liverpool (Video)
“Newcastle’s 1-0 victory over Fulham last weekend solidified their place in the top four and marked a fifth consecutive Premier League clean sheet. The winning goal came in the 89th minute after an attack down the right saw Kieran Trippier set up Sean Longstaff, whose cross into the box was eventually headed home by Alexander Isak. …”
The Athletic
“It was in the heat of summer that Mikel Arteta finally decided to press the button on a strategy he had been brewing for almost a year. For much of the previous season he had become convinced that Ben White was a right-back in the making: quick, calm on the ball and blessed with sound positional sense and a high level of tactical intelligence. The problem was everyone else. None of the squad, he decided, was capable of replacing White in the centre of defence. …”
Guardian
“‘Of course I’m going to defend you until the last day of my life at the press conference,’ Pep Guardiola once memorably told his Manchester City players. Just how concerned must he be, then, to have come out with all of this? On Thursday night, after his side produced a stirring comeback from 2-0 down at half-time to beat visitors Tottenham Hotspur 4-2, he spoke at length about their lack of desire. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“Jurgen Klopp said he could not recall a worse performance in his career as a manager than Liverpool’s defeat to Brighton on Saturday, adding on Monday that it “shouldn’t be that difficult” to play better against Wolves in the FA Cup replay on Tuesday evening, but how can he improve his team quickly? Klopp said they need to ‘go back to basics’, putting an emphasis on improving their defending. Having lost only twice in the league in the whole of 2021-22, Liverpool have already been beaten six times this season. …”
The Athletic
“Niclas Füllkrug isn’t your archetypal modern German striker. When the Germans warmed up for their 2022 World Cup campaign with a friendly against Oman in mid-November, Füllkrug came off the bench at half-time. In doing so, he became the oldest outfielder to make his debut for Germany in 20 years (29 years, 280 days). Did he make an impact? You could say that. He scored the only goal of the game within 35 minutes of his international introduction with what was only his second shot for the national team. …”
The Analyst
“In a World Cup full of notable moments, there was one early in the tournament that grabbed the attention more than most. Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand, in his team’s opening game with England, suffered a violent and high-speed clash of heads with a team-mate. Sitting on the turf with his swollen nose heavily bleeding onto his kit, Beiranvand was treated for several minutes on the pitch by medical staff. Despite clearly being in serious discomfort, he was allowed to continue. …”
The Athletic
“It was a good week for Barcelona. Seven days after beating Atletico Madrid 1-0 at the Wanda Metropolitano, they defeated Real Madrid 3-1 to win the Super Cup, bringing Xavi Hernandez his first trophy as Barcelona manager. The performances were, in many ways, very similar. In another way, there was a crucial difference. …”
The Athletic – Michael Cox
“As Aleksandar Mitrovic pulls up his seat, a black and white cat appears at his feet and starts nuzzling its head against some of the more valuable legs in English football. It is clear we are not going to be alone for this interview. Any introductions? Well, yes, it turns out this cat wanders into Fulham’s training ground every day and miaows outside until someone opens the door. It has been christened Miaow Palhinha (to clarify: not Joao, but Miaow) and Mitrovic is stretching out one of those big, powerful arms to give his furry friend a bit of love. …”
The Athletic
“In November 2022, Andrea Agnelli, the Chairman of Juventus, and the rest of the board announced they were resigning. Agnelli had been the Chairman for 12 years. They had decided to leave following an investigation into Juventus’ finances. Why were Juventus’ finances being investigated? What did the investigators find? Why did it cause the board to resign? What happens to Juventus now? James Horncastle explains. Philippe Fenner illustrates.”
YouTube
“Barcelona won their first piece of silverware under Xavi as they comfortably beat Real Madrid 3-1 in the Supercopa de Espana final in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Gavi put Barca ahead in the 33rd minute after a slide-rule pass from Robert Lewandowski before returning the favour for the striker, who put his side in full control when he scored himself in the 45th minute. Pedri put the finishing touches on the rout when he turned home another fine pass from Gavi in the 69th minute. Karim Benzema scored a consolation goal in stoppage time, but it was nowhere near enough for Carlo Ancelotti’s side. …”
The Athletic (Video)
The Athletic: Barcelona vs Real Madrid – an alternative guide to the first Clasico of 2023
Guardian: Villarreal find their level after Setién ‘shock’ to see off Real Madrid
“‘Stability must be the key to progression,’ wrote Everton owner Farhad Moshiri this week in his response to an open letter from the club’s fans’ forum that voiced their concerns over the direction of the club. His words offered a measure of support to Everton manager Frank Lampard, who heads into this weekend’s Premier League game against Southampton under considerable pressure. Everton haven’t won a league game since October and sunk into the relegation zone after their most recent defeat against Brighton. Lampard is not alone. …”
The Athletic
“Boredom will reach Ange Postecoglou eventually. Any manager or player with aspiration of competing in a challenging environment, where there are more than two horses – at most – sees life beyond Celtic. Had Postecoglou not arrived in Glasgow with a reputation for occasionally taking issue with the sporting world, onlookers would be entitled to sense the Australian is already chasing self-created excitement. …”
Guardian
“Strikers dwell on misses, but the time you worry and the time that sleep deserts you is the time chances don’t come. Big moments can linger and you replay them in your mind — nothing stays with you like a penalty gone awry — but they’re rarely symptoms of sickness in your game. That’s why I have few concerns about Darwin Nunez and his form for Liverpool because his ability is obvious and the rest he can learn. If he wants to improve, he will. …”
The Athletic
“… 4-2-3-1 – Terzic employed this formation the most during the Hinrunde, and it appears ideally suited for a centre-forward like Haller. When Haller’s diagnosis was made, Dortmund brought in Anthony Modeste — a similar type of player to the Cote d’Ivoire international — as cover. The Frenchman didn’t shine, scoring just two Bundesliga goals, but Youssoufa Moukoko did better. …”
Bundesliga (Video)
“For a federation that governs more than 12 million participants across a vast expanse of land, U.S. Soccer is a very small outfit. While the governing body for the sport in the country currently has more than 100 employees, it has been dominated for decades by a tiny elite. You have to go back a long way to find a men’s national team head coach who didn’t split off from the same coaching tree—with the notable exception of Jurgen Klinsmann. …”
The Ringer
‘There’s a sigh at the other end of the phone. That seems to happen quite a lot when you ask people about Crawley Town. ‘It’s a mess,’ said more than one person. They’re referring to the club’s situation since it was taken over by WAGMI United — a group of American NFT investors — in April 2022, with the new owners promising to take Crawley up the divisions using innovation. … Regardless, the basic facts aren’t great. Crawley are 21st in League Two and now look more likely to leave the division from the bottom rather than the top. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“‘It’s not a Jürgen Klopp team.’ Jamie Carragher isn’t the first person to say something like that about Liverpool this season and we can’t imagine he will be the last. The Reds saw their four-game Premier League winning streak come to an end against Brentford last week, with the Bees winning 3-1, and are now seven points off a top-four spot. There is a real danger that the 2022 Champions League finalists will have to settle for a Europa League berth next campaign. …”
The Analyst
“If you open the Oxford English Dictionary and search for “set piece”, there is a chance there will soon be a picture of Brentford’s badge alongside the explanation. This is because the London club are becoming increasingly lethal from them. For a couple of years, Brentford have focused on set pieces to give them an edge in an era of football where marginal advantages make the difference. The fact their previous set-piece coaches, Gianni Vio and Nicolas Jover, have gone on to transform Tottenham and Arsenal’s set pieces in the past two years is an indication of how progressive Brentford’s thinking is in this area. …”
The Athletic
“St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson has called for the handball rule to be changed, Celtic are still fuming over it five days after the latest Old Firm game — and now the Scottish FA is set to establish the views of its Professional Game Board (PGB) members before sharing them with the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the body which writes the game’s laws. It is understood the SFA has put the subject of handball on the agenda for the next PGB meeting. Clubs will be asked to share their complaints and possible solutions so the association’s representative can feed those findings into IFAB’s discussion. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“As part of this site, I allow for questions to be thrown my way pertaining to performance problems on the pitch, and how players can solve complex issues. I received a great question a few days ago from a goalkeeper, looking to understand how they can organize the defensive line. With a wonderful view of the action, goalkeepers must be more than just shot stoppers, and participate actively and vocally in communicating with their mates. They should not be solely responsible for organizing the entire team, but have the ability to do so through the vantage point they have on the field, and often the fearless nature they behold. …”
The Mastermindsite
“… There has been a big improvement in Kepa Arrizabalaga’s performances since Graham Potter and his staff took over at Chelsea but he was at fault for Riyad Mahrez’s winner for Manchester City. He failed to cut out Jack Grealish’s cross and Mahrez snuck in at the back post ahead of Marc Cucurella to finish. Where did it all go wrong? Arrizabalaga’s initial positioning was good. He was facing the ball but slightly angled with his body open to see the play in front of him. He was almost in the sweet spot of being aggressive off his line to cut out the cross, yet close enough to his near post should Grealish try and sneak one past him. …”
The Athletic
The Athletic: Man City’s Plan A looked doomed to fail at Chelsea – it was Plan C that worked in the end – Michael Cox
The Athletic: Manchester City were far from fluent against Chelsea but did what champions do – won (Video)
“Southampton may be bottom of the league on 12 points after 18 games of the 2022-23 Premier League season, but one ounce of comfort is that they have already surpassed the worst points tally in a single Premier League campaign, set by Derby County in 2007-08. We look at the lowest points tallies in a single Premier League season. …”
The Analyst
“… At times, football games can be looked at from different angles to provide different perspectives. Arsenal’s goalless draw with Newcastle United on Tuesday meant that their five-game winning streak in the league came to an end. After an exciting 10 minutes in which Arsenal looked threatening, Newcastle’s solid defensive organisation limited the host’s chances in open play. A view from this angle gives the impression that Arsenal might have had a poor game, but football isn’t black and white. …”
The Athletic
The Athletic – Why Arsenal need Mudryk: Stalemate shows attacking reinforcements crucial to title charge (Video)
Guardian: Newcastle thrive off Big Dan Burn energy to wrestle point from Arsenal
“Feyenoord currently lead the Eredivisie over pre-season favourites Ajax and PSV Eindhoven. Their strong 2022-23 campaign so far confirms that their European exploits last season were no flash in the pan. Despite only having four players that started last season’s UEFA Europa Conference League final defeat to Roma still at the club, Feyenoord’s aspirations of topping the Dutch league this season felt questionable. Even more so when you consider that the pair held 10-point (PSV) and 12-point (Ajax) advantages over the Rotterdam club in the 2021-22 table. …”
The Analyst
“It turns out there was no need to panic. The build-up to Brentford’s incredible 3-1 victory over Liverpool was dominated by fitness concerns around Ivan Toney. The forward had to be taken off on a stretcher in the final minutes of Brentford’s 2-0 win over West Ham United just four days earlier with a nasty-looking leg injury. He fell awkwardly trying to clear the ball from a corner and the initial fear was that he could be out for months. …”
The Athletic (Video)
The Athletic: New year, same problems for disjointed Liverpool
“Napoli are bossing things in Italy, right now. The Naples side are eight points clear of second-place Milan as the Italian top-flight returns to action following the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and our supercomputer is struggling to see past a third Serie A title for them in 2022-23. Their chances of winning their first scudetto since 1989-90 thanks to the brilliance of Diego Maradona are rated at 88.7%, while Napoli fans are almost certain to enjoy UEFA Champions League football again in 2023-34, with the supercomputer rating their chance of finishing outside the top four places in Serie A at just 0.06%. …”
The Analyst
“… Those were the thoughts of a young Bruno Guimaraes as he started his football career back home in Brazil. It’s a journey that has taken him to the league he regularly followed as a kid — the Premier League. Less than a year after his arrival from French club Lyon, Guimaraes is proving to be exactly what head coach Eddie Howe and Newcastle United wanted in their midfield — an off-ball battler who also has the necessary technical skills on the ball to help the team progress up the field. …”
The Athletic (Video)
“The Celtic manager, Ange Postecoglou, has called on the match officials for the first Old Firm game of 2023 to ensure VAR delays do not disrupt the marquee fixture. VAR’s arrival in the Scottish Premiership – it was first used at matches in October – has, perhaps unsurprisingly, proved controversial. Postecoglou was unperturbed about the introduction of the technology but, like umpteen managers, has since grown frustrated at the time taken to reach decisions. Monday’s Glasgow derby at Ibrox will bring with it intense focus on every refereeing decision. …”
Guardian
“On 2 August 2022, 21-year-old Enzo Fernández made his Benfica debut in a UEFA Champions League third-round qualifier against FC Midtjylland. He was uncapped at senior international level for Argentina and his move to Portugal was his first foray into European football. 138 days later, the young midfield maestro is a world champion with Argentina, was named the FIFA Young Player of the Tournament in Qatar, is an integral part of a Benfica side that is top of the Primeira Liga, has gained passage into the UEFA Champions League knockout stages helping As Águias top their group ahead of Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus, and he has yet to lose a single match for his new club. It’s fair to say that Enzo Fernández’s rise has been nothing short of meteoric. …”
The Analyst
“Early this month and within days of the Scottish Football Association introducing groundbreaking guidelines on the heading of balls at training, the Partick Thistle goalkeeper Jamie Sneddon nodded home a stoppage-time equaliser at Cove Rangers. Was the association’s bid to protect players, after links were established between head injuries and neurodegenerative disease, destined to be in vain? …”
Guardian
“It has long been hypothesized that ‘Zone 14’ is the holy grail of chance creation. The ideas around this concept were built around a study from the late 1990s that specified that successful teams had a higher frequency of getting into this zone when compared against their peers. Since opposition clubs often compact central channels out of possession, it’s logical to reason that teams who are more successful in advancing into one of the most congested areas of the pitch are more successful overall. …”
The Mastermindsite
Scissors Kick 