Ask the Spanish about Joaquín and they’ll remember the jokes, the dances, the stories. But there’s more to him than thatYou must be Joaquín, they said, and he was: unique, no one quite like him, a cheeky scamp with a glint in his eye, a grin on his face, an endless supply of gags, the uncontainable urge to tell them and, armed with a gaditano accent, the delivery to do them justice. Ask anyone in Spain for their favourite Joaquín moments and their face will light up much like his and they won’t want for one. Or two, or three, or four.Maybe they’ll say the day he was presented at Málaga and decided that keepy-ups were fine but stand-up was...
The 32-year-old coach has transformed Schalke with a defender three years his senior and victory over Dortmund in the Revierderby left them on the verge of the Champions LeagueIt began with a 31-year-old rookie boss, with just months of head coaching experience, no European football to look forward to, and a public needing to be won over. On Sunday afternoon, it reached an apparent denouement, gloriously, with sweet victory over their fierce local rivals Borussia Dortmund, with Champions League football within touching distance and with that coach, Domenico Tedesco, wildly celebrating with the fans as Schalke enjoyed their best day in recent memory.Fittingly, as the jubilant players approached the hardcore on the Nordkurve, Tedesco – now a seasoned 32 –...
Chances were created, woodwork struck and forwards denied by extraordinary saves. And Juve were left celebratingWhat a weekend it promised to be. A Rome derby on Sunday night, with the capital clubs joint-third and fighting desperately to cling to their Champions League berths. Inter, one point behind, kicking off 24 hours earlier away to an Atalanta team with European ambitions of its own. In between those two games, Milan-Napoli at San Siro. Anything could happen. And so, inevitably, nothing did. All three of the aforementioned games, along with two others, finished without a goal being scored.Put your preconceptions about Italian football to one side. This is hardly the norm in a division that has averaged more goals per game than...
Lazio are in pieces after a shattering Europa League exit a day after Roma’s miracle comeback against Barcelona but a Champions League spot is at stake on SundayThe biggest Rome derby in at least half a decade has been overshadowed by events preceding it. On Tuesday, Roma pulled off one of the great European comebacks: recovering from three goals down to eliminate Barcelona from the Champions League and reach the semi-finals. The shoe was on the other foot for Lazio two days later, as their 4-2 lead from the first leg became a 6-5 defeat to RB Salzburg in the Europa League.Such results define entire seasons. Even if Roma lose to their semi-final opponents Liverpool, this would still be the...
Players and fans of Gunners and CSKA Moscow produced a life-affirming football occasion, despite concerns about securityMidway through the second half of a match whose tension levels had amped up beyond recognition, Danny Welbeck conjured up a moment that promised everything and nothing. Arsenal were rocking and CSKA Moscow raucous but there was Welbeck, burning away from a panting Kirill Nababkin on the left flank, eating up 50 yards of turf and offering a self-made opportunity on the counter. His centre, scuffed and misdirected with team-mates waiting, was poor and at that moment it was tempting to wonder whether Arsenal, who had rarely reached anything like that speed in the previous 65 minutes, would pay the ultimate price for not...