The redraw of the Champions League last 16 was kind to the Premier League clubs and the quartet should progressBayern, as ever, have been dominant in the Bundesliga and they romped through the group stage winning six out of six, scoring 22 and conceding only three. Under Julian Nagelsmann they play with as high a line as they did under Hansi Flick, and Robert Lewandowski remains as prolific as ever. If there are doubts, they are only over two things: Bayern’s squad is not as deep as those of many of their rivals, making them susceptible to injuries, and top-class sides may be able to exploit that high line. Salzburg have in the past caused problems against other hard-pressing teams,...
Roma’s first-half collapse left their manager sniping at the media while Atalanta and Napoli showed the joys of footballJosé Mourinho cancelled his press conference before Roma’s match against Inter on Saturday, denying us a window into his emotions as he prepared to face his former club in Serie A for the first time. Eleven years had passed since he left the Nerazzurri in floods of tears, hugging Marco Materazzi before disappearing into a Madrid night after completing an unprecedented Treble win.He skipped the celebrations in Milan – fearing he could get caught up in a moment and make a commitment that he would regret. Real Madrid were ready to hire him and Mourinho now had his eyes on a different...
The 1998 Uefa Cup final witnessed a goal that was probably the greatest moment of Ronaldo’s greatest gameGrowing up as a football obsessive, by the time I was 17 I thought I’d seen pretty much everything the game had to offer me. You can probably see how I became a sportswriter.Around then, I was also spending most weekday evenings hanging about parks, alleyways and pubs to state-alter in one way or another, often under the guise of watching a game. So in the summer of 1996, my parents – who’d spent a decade resisting my pleas to get Teletext – signed up to Sky, sagely rationalising that beaming industrial quantities of sport into our front room would inspire me to...
The striker returns to Chelsea a better and more experienced player in his prime – and with the title in his sightsWhen Sir Alex Ferguson signed Robin van Persie he knew the Dutchman could score the goals needed to take Manchester United to the title, and he proved his manager right in his first season. Thomas Tuchel is hoping Romelu Lukaku will do the same for Chelsea, as the £97.5m final piece in the jigsaw at Stamford Bridge.The Belgian has proven his capabilities everywhere he has been throughout his career, rarely experiencing a barren spell despite sometimes not being first choice. Lukaku’s form at Internazionale helped to lead them to their first Serie A title in 11 years, ending the...
Success at the Euros and Olympics has created a feelgood factor but high-profile departures have damaged the league’s statusItaly has never known a sporting summer like it. After Roberto Mancini’s Azzurri delivered on his vow to win Euro 2020, the Olympians followed up with a record 40 medals and 10 golds in Tokyo. Fabio Capello spoke for many: “I have never felt so Italian as I do right now.”Will the feelgood factor carry over into a new Serie A season? Or has Italy’s top football league been diminished by the departures of too many leading lights? The Internazionale team who ended Juventus’s nine-year reign as champions have since bid farewell to Antonio Conte, Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi. Their city...