“Forty million Euros. That is what Turkish Super Lig club Fenerbahce have spent in summer transfers this season a scenario which was all but unimaginable not so long ago. Of course the bulk of that cash was utilized in acquiring the services of the former Manchester United duo of Robin van Persie and Nani who are aiming to resurrect their careers at the Istanbul based club.” backpagefootball

“The aftermath of a summer, which as Mike Ashley promised, was not devoid of activity at Newcastle United, began on Sunday with a credible two all draw against last season’s surprise package, Southampton. Any residual sympathy for the memory of John Carver and Steve Stone had vanished quickly with an encouraging first half display. New signing Georginio Wijnaldum quickly endeared himself to the fans soon after half time with a quite sensational header. Despite this, new manager, sorry head coach, Steve McClaren seemed to be frantically reaching for the phone at every break in play. Rumours his Geordie accent is already almost as broad of Paul Gascoigne’s have yet to be confirmed.” backpagefootball

“Newcastle United and Southampton entered the 2015-16 season on the back of contrasting campaigns the last time around. The Magpies endured a tumultuous campaign with relegation a real possibility towards the latter stages. Southampton on the other hand were a revelation as they put behind a mass exodus to thrive in what was Ronald Koeman’s first season in charge.” Outside of the Boot

“Over the past few seasons, there has been much to admire about the way Southampton football club go about their business. From the development of young players and establishment of a state of the art training complex, to the ‘easy on the eye’ style of their play, it’s easy to see why clubs from across the continent have been casting a jealous eye over proceedings on the south coast on England. While I as Outside of the Boot’s resident Southampton fan could wax lyrical over any aspect of my club, today I intend to look at the one angle that neutrals have only just begun to appreciate – our transfer policy.” Outside of the Boot

“Not all leagues are the same. We know this from looking at different shot profiles between leagues, different levels of parity between leagues, and of course just from watching different leagues ourselves. This creates a problem when we want to compare different players who play in different leagues. Is a goal in La Liga worth the same as a goal in the Premier League? It’s hard to know and we usually base our opinions on these issues by anecdotally comparing the performances of players who have played in multiple leagues. There are better ways however to do these comparisons using data.” StatsBomb

“Nuno Espirito Santo seems to be getting his wheels in motion to upset the apple cart in the UEFA Champions League, with a two-legged play-off match on the horizon. A 4-1 drubbing to Bayern Munich excluded, Valencia have been producing solid displays in their pre-season and will look to take the next step this season – to return to the competition that broke their hearts at the turn of the century: the Champions League.” Outside of the Boot

“As a player, Phillip Cocu was a midfield general who also had an eye for a goal or two. During his professional career he was famously known for his spell with Barcelona which saw him become the most capped foreign player in the club’s history until Lionel Messi came along. Over the 6 years he featured 291 times scoring 31 times in all competitions. Towards the end of his Barcelona spell he couldn’t agree contract terms with them and decided to return to his beloved PSV Eindhoven who he has now come to manage.” Outside of the Boot

Tactical Philosophy: Ronny Deila
“Coming from a less attractive footballing country in Norway, Ronny Deila was a surprise to many Celtic fans across the world. However, he did have success to back up his managerial ability. Starting off in management at Stromsgodset during the 2007/2008 season, his team struggled against relegation. This was later overshadowed by winning the Norwegian Cup in 2010 and later becoming champions of Norway in 2013. Gaining attraction from European clubs, Deila was eventually appointed as manager of Celtic in June 2014.” Outside of the Boot

Tactical Philosophy: Nuno Espirito Santo
“The whistle is blown. The stadium erupts. The gentleman jumps into the air, fist pumping, before passionately embracing his assistant. The bald, bronze-skinned tactician pointed at the fans with his utmost passion. His actions resembled a thanking feeling, appreciation for the moments of success, a token of unity and respect between himself and the Valencianistes. The feeling is grasped – the glory days are slowly returning to the fierce and vociferous Mestalla, an arena now overwhelmed by the overzealous enthusiasm generated through the voices of more than 50,000 fiery supporters.” Outside of the Boot

“The posters are everywhere around AFC Bournemouth’s newly christened Vitality Stadium. In the reception area, down the corridors, in the gents, they all eagerly speak of the future. … With time rapidly diminishing, Bournemouth’s neat, confined little stadium was frantic during the week with last-minute upgrades. There was work being done on the pitch, on the surrounds, on the media section in the main stand: all are being improved ahead of the new competition. The huge photographs that decorate the ends of the stands to celebrate the club’s march up the divisions are being updated to include the jubilant scenes of last season’s Championship victory.” Telegraph

“Thomas Tuchel is one of these new up and coming coaches who never played at the highest level. He grew up in a tiny Bavarian town named Krumbach near Augsburg. At the age of 15, he joined FC Augsburg where he won the German youth cup twice in 1991 and 1992. Finishing his youth career, Tuchel signed for the second-tier side Stuttgarter Kickers. However, having made 8 appearances during his first professional season, the second season at Stuttgart was a disappointment, as he was dropped from the first team. Afterwards, he joined the Ralf Rangnick-coached SSV Ulm in the third division where he played in 69 matches for the Swabians in 4 years before ending his active career due to a chronic cartilage injury in 1998.” Outside of the Boot

Tactical Philosophy: Unai Emery
“Unai Emery’s father, grandfather and uncle were professional football players and it was in Emery’s genes to follow their footsteps. But the journey was not an easy one for the Basque. After representing Real Sociedad five times at the senior level, Emery was booted out. He spent most of his time playing for lower division clubs until an injury put an end to his playing career during his time at Lorca Deportiva.” Outside of the Boot

“Born in Gjakovë, Kosovo on 25th December 1971, Besnik Hasi started his football career at Liria Prizren (then a team playing in the Superliga of Kosovo), before moving to many different clubs in Balkan leagues, and then in 1994, found as he recalls his 2nd home: Belgium. In 1994 he signed for the KRC Genk, where he played 141 games, winning the Belgian Pro League and Belgian Cup once each.” Outside of the Boot

“Whilst the rest of Europe anxiously awaits the decision on Greece’s financial future, the nation’s football clubs are trying their best to prepare for another league campaign. Unfortunately, it is becoming harder to entice players to head to southern Europe, such is the uncertainty that surrounds both the country and its football, meaning more stars are looking east rather than risk the financial uncertainty in southern Europe. Last season saw Greek football reach its lowest point. There was a surge in crowd violence, including wild scenes before February’s Panathinaikos-Olympiakos derby as visiting coach Vitor Pereira, formally of Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli, was chased from the pitch by angry PAO ultras, whilst one fan was killed before a derby game in Crete.” Football Pink

“British football has a prolonged and uncomfortable history with hooliganism. From 1960 to the 1990s, that destructive culture of criminal behaviour spread dramatically to the extent where violence, fights and rioting became common both outside and in stadiums. Reducing it required a massive operation involving the deployment of more policemen, identifying and banning culprits and restructuring stadiums.” backpagefootball

“How to sum up Tottenham Hotspur’s last season in words – Harry Kane, 5-3 win over Chelsea, runners-up, fifth again or maybe even young talent. However you look at it, it’s been interesting. But what’s lacking? It’s not a goalscorer that’s for sure and it definitely wasn’t a lack of depth, yet something was missing. Now I could write and write, making you read a big anti-climaxing paragraph of what Tottenham need but instead I’m just going to come out and say it…they need a captain.” backpagefootball

“Hamzaoğlu was born in in Greece but after spending 7 years on the west side of the Aegean sea, Hamzaoğlu had to move to Turkey with his family due to problems caused by the Cyprus dispute. The family moved to İzmir following a few traumatic weeks of uncertainty on the road and young Hamza managed to settle quickly in his new city. At the age of 14, he put together a team in his neighborhood and coached the team for local matches. This got him noticed by various local football men. Hamza Hamzaoğlu was always crazy about football, and he played for 8 different clubs including boyhood love Galatasaray.” Outside of the Boot

Tactical Philosophy: Garry Monk
“Garry Monk’s Swansea journey began back in 2004 where the team was playing in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. His first season saw the Welsh side get promoted and the rise to the Premier League followed. Playing under the likes of Roberto Martinez, Brendan Rodgers and Michael Laudrup, Monk played through times of possession based success and his own management style was only going to go one way. Having played during Swansea’s first major trophy under Laudrup, Monk witnessed how to bring success to a mid-table side, and this high-pressing, possession based game came be heavily seen in Monk’s Swansea side.” Outside of the Boot

“The 4-3-3 formation is designed to both gain control of the central midfield whilst also allowing for variety in attack. It is common for one of the three midfielders to operate as a defensive midfielder whilst the two remaining midfielders have more responsibility in attack. The 3 attackers are often split into two wingers (LW and RW) and 1 striker; the wingers do have some defensive responsibility though and if they are ignored then it can cause plenty of problems when out of possession.” Outside of the Boot

“The 4-1-2-1-2 formation is a variation of the standard 4-4-2 and there are two versions of this formation. In both versions, the back 4, central defensive midfielder, the central attacking midfielder and the two strikers stay the same. The main difference is the role of the two extra midfielders. In one variation, they play as wide midfielders and in the other, as central midfielders. This slight difference in positions has a large impact on the roles of the other players and the team’s overall style of play.” Outside of the Boot

“… The book, translated by David Doherty, is very good but it is as much about its author, Hugo Borst, as it is about Van Gaal. Its success is largely dependent on whether the reader can find Borst as interesting – as engaging, as irritating, as quotable, brilliant, monstrous and human – as his subject. The answer to that changes from page to page – yes, no, maybe, no, yes, maybe, no, no, Jesus no, no, maybe. It’s like reading about a match that goes into extra time and endless mucky replays, between Borst and Van Gaal or, more accurately, Borst and Borst. Borst, the Van Gaal lover versus Borst, the Van Gaal hater; Borst, the man who wants to be Van Gaal’s best friend versus Borst, the man who wants to annihilate Van Gaal; Borst, the gobshite, versus Borst, the astute, passionate, sometimes brilliant, football writer. It’s a great game for the neutral. But those of us who love our football know that there is no such thing as neutrality.” Guardian

Louis van Gaal: the liberal, the enemy and… err, the poet
“He finds enemies when they are not there. There was a falling out between Louis van Gaal and his biographer, Hugo Borst, seven years ago when the former was coach at AZ Alkmaar. Van Gaal accused Borst of giving away his mobile phone number. Borst took exception. Things were never the same between the pair, who had been close, and Borst’s highly entertaining work is not flattering.” Independent

amazon – O, Louis: In Search of Louis van Gaal

“It’s funny how just an idea for a book can make you think differently. In this one, Roger Domeneghetti looks at how the media and football are now almost always intertwined and linked and how they can both dominate our lives. We all remember the Prime Minister talking about David Beckham’s metatarsal, right? Of course we do, it was reported as huge news! I’ve read many a football book, I love reading about different aspects of our beloved game. Yet no book has sent me nostalgically back to the classroom like this one. That is in no way a criticism, I adored my history lessons and this book is a bit like learning from a wonderful historian that can get you thinking of ancient times and relating it to the present day. In the opening chapter it dispels the myth that football was born in England, nope instead it origins probably started in China around 225BC, not many football books will take you to the Tsin Dynasty.” The Footy Blog

amazon

“Every year in the Premier League, around November (though increasingly it seems earlier), the press starts to talk about the ‘sack race’. In this time, it is not uncommon to see headlines like ‘X is one bad result from the sack’ or ‘Loss in game against Y could spell end for Z’. The focus on results has always seemed slightly odd to me. What if manager X inspires a great performance only to lose against the run of play? Should he be sacked? Conversely, if the team puts out the worst performance of the season but manage to scrape a point (or three), should that really influence your decision to sack the current boss?” Statsbomb