One of last season's more startling moments was Mousa Dembele's attempt to rake Diego Costa's eyes. It was the centre point of that fractious encounter between Tottenham and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and the Belgian midfielder only recently returned from his subsequent ban. It was strange because it was out of character. That match may have descended quickly and spectacularly into angry chaos, but Dembele was still an unlikely protagonist. Though his career at White Hart Lane took some time to reach its present heights, his temperament has been a constant. Of all Mauricio Pochettino's players, he is the most emotionally stable and least susceptible to professional football's surrounding forces. Regardless of the score, the atmosphere or the circumstances, Dembele...
If you didn't see our celebrations of top-class English football's 50 foreign bosses last week, you can get up to speed right here.
From the great to the downright terrible, we remembered each imported gaffer's colourful career checkpoint(s) in Blighty– and then asked you to see how many of them you could remember in total (below).
If you're pushed for time, though, try this one. Just name all seven Frenchmen to have managed in the Premier League, then let us know how you got on over at @FourFourTwo. We'll retweet your scores.
Quiz! How many of the foreign managers in Premier League history can you name?
More time-killing quizzes on FourFourTwo.com
Common sense can go a long way. Many pundits and analysts had long encouraged Jose Mourinho to drop Wayne Rooney, and when the Portuguese did so he was rewarded with an efficient playmaking display from Juan Mata and a 4-1 win over Leicester. At the Emirates, Arsene Wenger devised a plan to stop Diego Costa that helped record his first win over Chelsea in five years. Pep Guardiola saw his lopsided system earn a 3-1 win at Swansea, while Claude Puel’s 4-4-2 diamond led Southampton to beat West Ham. 1. Subtle Mata provides missing link In one sense, there was a danger of over-dramatising the effect of Rooney’s absence for Manchester Unitedon Saturday. The 4-0 half-time scoreline suggested dramatic improvement,...
Precisely 50 foreign managers (not counting our friends from Ireland) have been employed at the top level of English football. Some even won things. But who's the overseas overlord? You decide by voting this lot up – or down...
Now, who's the worst-ever overseas Premier League manager?
More 50 Foreign Managers
Wayne Rooney proved the doubters wrong with a majestic performance on the bench as Manchester United thrashed champions Leicester City 4-1 on Saturday. The United captain’s role has evolved vastly over the last few years from striker to deep-lying forward, to winger, to even deeper-lying forward, and now Rooney is being utilised in a new even deeper position seated around five years from the playing surface. While many have questioned how useful the England man can be from a seat next to the pitch, coach Jose Mourinho has seen enough to suggest the 30-year-old could contribute just as much from there as he was on the field of play. “It’s the logical next progression for Wayne as a player,” Mourinho...