The Nottingham-born lacemaker, who died in 1916, seems to be Milan’s first guiding spirit after heading to Italy at the end of the 19th century but only now is he being recognised in his home townToday the body of a Nottingham lacemaker who helped found one of the world’s most important football clubs lies alongside those of famous poets, sculptors, actors, politicians, musicians and racing drivers in Milan’s Cimitero Monumentale, a place of ornate marble tombs and elegant tree-shaded avenues. But when Herbert Kilpin died on 22 October 1916, aged 46, the memory of his role in establishing the place of football in Italian life already seemed to be fading fast enough to deny him even a name plate on...
The former United forward has failed to establish himself as a starter in Turkey but his fortunes could change as the two sides meet in the Europa LeagueIn 2012 “the little boy inside” told Robin van Persie to leave north London and head north. Van Persie listened and swapped Arsenal for Manchester United, playing an instrumental role in the club winning the Premier League title for an unprecedented 20th time. Related: Wayne Rooney confident Manchester United can build on Anfield draw Continue reading...
Facing his first wobble in England, the City manager arrives back in Barcelona denying he has been caught out by the intensity of the Premier LeagueAfter three games without a win Manchester City find themselves in the awkward position of trying to end a disappointing sequence in Barcelona. Ever since the draw was made Pep Guardiola’s homecoming has been the standout attraction of the Champions League group stage but City supporters must be wondering which of his sides is going to turn up. The one that opened the season with 10 straight wins or the one more recently held by Celtic and Everton, with a comprehensive beating at Tottenham in between.The great thing about Barcelona, as Guardiola not only knows...
Slowly but surely, Germany’s friendliest town is getting back on to the map again, helped by a super-hot striker and a hard-working, tactically astute teamOnly the most prominent 1. FC Köln supporter refused to join in the fun on the stroke of five o’clock on Saturday. Eyewitnesses at the RheinEnergieStadion reliably claimed that Hennes VIII, the four-legged football deity, bleated out a displeased “Määähhh!” as news of a goal from another stadium was read out over the public address system.Bayern Munich had just conceded an equaliser to make it 2-2 away at 10-man Eintracht Frankfurt. Under normal circumstances, that turn of events would have done little to get fans in Cologne excited. But circumstances refuse to be normal this season....
Jorge Sampaoli’s side recorded their first away win for 511 days at Leganés last weekend but while there are signs of progress, there’s much work to do“Players end up fearing they’ll never win away again,” Jorge Sampaoli said and you could see why. Sevilla hadn’t won on the road since 2015 – you know, back when there was hope. Worse, they hadn’t won away for a year and four months: 511 days had passed since a 3-2 victory at Málaga on the final weekend of 2014-15. An entire season had been and gone but they hadn’t been and won. They’d defeated lesser clubs Logronés and Mirandés in the Cup and Athletic in Europe, true, but travelling just wasn’t their thing....