Olivier Dall’Oglio’s side have managed to strike a balance between adapting to the league and playing the kind of attacking football with which they ascendedBy Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football News“We wanted to play high and hinder Lyon’s recovery, it worked rather well. We try to play. When it does not work so well, I’ll be fired, but I want to continue anyway.” Dijon are not the most fashionable or famous of Ligue 1 clubs but, as manager Olivier Dall’Oglio confirmed, they have the right attitude as their unusual blend of fluidity and physicality fast becomes one of Ligue 1’s most eye-catching styles. For a side only promoted last season, despite a substantial top flight history,...
Serie A matches were postponed after Davide Astori’s death on Sunday, casting Saturday’s dramatic results into insignificance It felt so all-consuming on Saturday night. A last-minute winner, a six-goal thriller, a title race turned on its head. Then a young man died, and suddenly it did not seem to matter at all.The passing of Davide Astori put all of Italian football into mourning. Genoa and Cagliari’s players were already on the pitch at Marassi, warming up for their lunchtime kickoff, when news filtered through. Several wept as they retreated to the changing rooms. An announcement that the match had been abandoned was met by the fans with applause. Related: Leader Davide Astori is fondly remembered as Serie A falls quiet...
At the start of the season, Eibar, Getafe and Girona all had the same objective: survival. Now it can shift to EuropeThe alarm went off again at Ipurúa on Wednesday, siren echoing around the Ego valley as if there was an air raid coming, but it was nothing to fear. Although the noise assaults eardrums, loud, piercing and heard all across Eibar, it’s a source of comfort now, not concern. Cause for celebration, too. For years the siren wailed at 7.3am every morning to wake up workers employed in the Alfa metal factory, a cooperative where they made Smith and Wesson revolvers, Singer sewing machines and bicycles, until one day production was moved out of town. The factory was knocked...
Max and the pod discuss the Carabao Cup final, Mourinho’s game-changing substitutions, goalkeeping howlers, Sol Campbell’s self-confidence and moreRate, review, share on Apple Podcasts,Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Amy Lawrence and Lars Sivertsen to look back at a weekend of thrills and spills in the Carabao Cup, the Premier League and beyond. Continue reading...
In the blink of an eye, Costa had been and gone, a hurricane tearing though Sevilla, its impact likely to be lastingDiego Costa shot up the left, bundled Gabriel Mercado to the floor, pushed Clement Lenglet into Éver Banega and then bulldozed into the back of the Frenchman, forearm first, sending him crashing to the ground, and tumbled on top of him with a thud. He got up, crashed into Lenglet for a third time and flew backwards, holding his face, which hadn’t been hit, went to ground again and got up again, wearing a menacing look, and paced at his “aggressor”, looking for more. He was held back by Gabi, handed a yellow card by Juan Martínez Munuera, protested...