There has been criticism, but don’t expect fans to mobilise in huge numbers against their own clubs, not like in EnglandPoor Roberto Carlos. It was his first and hopefully his last day in the job, and he had to deal with that. At the end of every game, former Real Madrid striker Emilio Butragueño faces the cameras. Impeccably polite, instantly likeable, part of Butragueño’s role as director of institutional affairs is to gently, expertly navigate match-day interviews; essentially to say not very much but do it nicely. Although there is the occasional leading question and sometimes a message to deliver, an idea to implant, it’s rarely a big deal.This time though it was the biggest deal of all, maybe ever...
Hansi Flick is a players’ man and that meant his tenure at the club could not last longer than 18 exhilarating monthsIt had been a week heavy with a feeling of finality; first in Paris, then in Wolfsburg. Bayern Munich’s stride towards retaining the Champions League had come to a halt in the French capital, with Leon Goretzka’s withdrawal through injury perhaps the straw that broke the camel’s back in a campaign beset with personnel issues. Everything, this time, wasn’t enough.After everything that happened in the two legs with Paris Saint-Germain – the setbacks, the comebacks, the good-but-not-quite-ruthless-enough performances – it felt good to move on with a relative test against one of the Bundesliga’s surprise packages, and a likely...
That Atalanta should pick this weekend to record their first win over Juventus in two decades felt powerfully poignantHours before 12 of Europe’s leading football clubs announced plans for a breakaway Super League that would shield them from the consequences of sporting failure, one was busy demonstrating why such protection might be desired. Juventus, winners of the last nine Serie A titles, fell to fourth in the table as they lost 1-0 at Atalanta, dropping behind their opponents in the process.The Bianconeri could have slipped all the way out of the Champions League places if Napoli had beaten Inter later that evening. In the event, those clubs drew, but Juventus’s margin for error has evaporated. The gap to Napoli is...
The clubs behind the proposed tournament must find competitive sport offensive, all the way from the grassroots game to the World CupPerhaps once all this has shaken out, once the imminent threat of a breakaway European super league has been resolved one way or the other, football will find the time for a little reflection.How we reached this point. How the game’s elite clubs managed to engineer a scenario in which a hostile takeover came to feel inevitable, even irresistible. How the world’s most popular sport managed to hand over so much of its power and wealth and influence to people who despise it. Related: Premier League condemns European super league after English clubs sign up Related: ‘Pure greed’: Gary...
Attempts to ruffle Manchester City feathers by home fans did not work and City then neutralised Erling HaalandThe explosions were so loud some hotel staff feared the building was shaking. Three times during the early hours of Wednesday morning Dortmund fans released industrial-strength fireworks outside the Radisson Blu, waking several of the Manchester City players inside.Pep Guardiola remained impervious. “I was sleeping like a baby, I didn’t hear a thing,” reported City’s manager before watching his defence come as near as any team’s to tranquilising Erling Haaland. Related: Foden thunderbolt puts Manchester City in semis after Dortmund scare Continue reading...