Veni, Vidi, Vici: Why Manchester City had to win the Manchester derby
He came, he saw, he conquered. Glumly sat on the bench for 70 mins, Sergio Agüero was sent for just when his team looked like it needed some magic from somewhere. 20 minutes before Agüero’s...
View ArticleThe secret world of Paolo di Canio
Sunday saw a very animated Paolo di Canio on the touchline as Sunderland romped to a 3-0 victory over Newcastle United. Today, Pavan Mano, tongue-firmly-in-cheek, details what must have been going...
View ArticleOn (dis)respect, cannibalism, and Luis Suarez
In the Kop End last night, a flag was unfurled bearing images of the five best managers the supporters deemed Liverpool has had in the last 20 years: Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny...
View ArticleArsene Wenger’s ode to disappointed love
Two nights ago, after the Arsenal-United match, Arsene Wenger got all wistful during the post-match interview, explaining that the barracking the Arsenal fans gave former Gunners captain Robin van...
View ArticleManchester United, Sir Alex, and me
The Theatre of Dreams was a cauldron of noise Sunday night as Manchester United bid farewell to their chief of 26 years. A guard of honour welcomed the Scot who looked slightly bashful as he walked...
View ArticleBuild ‘em up, then tear ‘em down: the allure of the flawed genius
Every generation of footballers sees those one or two special ones who tower above the rest. Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo represent the brightest of their generation; Gareth Bale and Neymar, the one...
View ArticleThe Frenchman of Dar as-sina’ah
The wizened Frenchman stared blankly into the distance as he contemplated the situation he was faced with. The company was doing badly – rivals were outperforming them, profits were plunging and...
View ArticleQui vs. Quoi: When the “who” is more important than the “what”
The Champions League victory that Manchester United recorded over Bayer Leverkusen in the middle of the week was welcome in a number of ways: Wayne Rooney got his 200th goal for the club and is...
View ArticleStrangers on the field
A month ago, France Football Weekly (FFW) celebrated Albert Camus’ centennial birthday with a lovely piece. In some sense, much like his famous work, Camus was an étranger to football — for most of his...
View Article(S)lumbering giants
One hesitates to label the Stoke defeat the nadir of Manchester United’s current campaign – there’s no limit really to how bad the situation can get, even if this latest defeat featured United’s chief...
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