Tag: Juventus

Europe

Juve’s crown seriously under threat from Inter

INTER MILAN went back to the top of Serie A after beating SPAL 2-1 while Juventus surprisingly slipped-up against Sassuolo, relying on a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo – his first goal since the end of October – to maintain their unbeaten record. While Juve still haven’t been beaten, Inter’s resilience under Antonio Conte underlines that they are genuine contenders for the first time in years, … Continue reading Juve’s crown seriously under threat from Inter

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Europe

Inter’s benchmarking exercise shows why Juve are champions

THEY CAME, they saw, they rained on Inter’s parade – and how it frustrated the home fans in the 75,000 San Siro crowd!  It was Serie A champions against pretenders to the throne and once more, Juventus, perpetual wearers of the crown of Italian football for almost a decade, demonstrated they are still the big occasion team. Neutral Italy, indeed neutral Europe, has been hoping … Continue reading Inter’s benchmarking exercise shows why Juve are champions

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Europe

Inter’s chance to show they can end the hegemony

ITALY has needed a team to seriously challenge Juventus for almost a decade and Inter Milan have started the Serie A campaign as if they mean to fill that role. Although some people are suggesting that six wins out of six have flattered the Nerrazzuri, the club seems to have been rejuvenated by the arrival of Antonio Conte. This weekend (October 6), Inter play host … Continue reading Inter’s chance to show they can end the hegemony

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Europe

Italy needs someone to challenge Juventus – maybe Inter

INTER MILAN’s dogged pursuit of Romelu Lukaku underlines the determination of the “nerazzuri” to try and break the Juventus stranglehold in Italy, an era of domination that includes eight consecutive Serie A titles, four Coppa Italia wins and two UEFA Champions League finals. Inter, the last Italian club to win the Champions League (2010), have not won a single piece of silverware since 2011 when … Continue reading Italy needs someone to challenge Juventus – maybe Inter

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The Grey Neutral

Doubles all round?

IF BAYERN Munich win the Bundesliga this weekend, it will complete a clean-sweep for the five champions of the major European leagues, in oither words, every winner from 2017-18 will have retained their title. Across the big five (England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain), we have seen monopolies emerge over the past eight seasons – Juventus (8 titles), Bayern (7), Paris Saint-Germain (6) Barcelona (5) … Continue reading Doubles all round?

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Europe

A throwback to unpredictable days: Ajax’s marvellous Italian job

THE neutral observer could be forgiven for believing Ajax Amsterdam had already enjoyed their moment in the sun with their spectacular victory against Real Madrid. Underdogs rarely have more than one day and when up against a team that includes the UEFA Champions League’s resident expert, Cristiano Ronaldo, it would be easy to assume that Juventus would march comfortably through to the semi-finals. Ahead of … Continue reading A throwback to unpredictable days: Ajax’s marvellous Italian job

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Europe

Another brick in the wall – Ajax’s Turin task

WHILE Ajax’s stunning victory against Real Madrid was a major upset, it was also a welcome reminder that unpredictability, if you scratch the surface deep enough, can still be found in modern football. The romantics would love to see Ajax rekindle the fires of European Cups past – let’s not forget Amsterdam’s finest have won the competition more times than Manchester United, Juventus and Inter … Continue reading Another brick in the wall – Ajax’s Turin task

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Talking Points

Why a super league could work if handled properly

NATURALLY,  nobody is happy about the clandestine discussions that may or may not have taken place over the past few months involving certain clubs to create a closed football league comprising the wealthiest names across the top five nations. A “super league” is what they are calling it, but effectively, it is a cartel of the “super rich”, a group driven by greed and entitlement. … Continue reading Why a super league could work if handled properly

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Finance & Business

CR7 and Juve, why it will make sense

AT the age of 33, and after a career at Real Madrid laden with glittering prizes, Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus may seem like a surprising decision. But it could be a very lucrative business transaction for both sides that enhances the reputation of the player and helps shift his employer up a gear or two. From Ronaldo’s perspective, the timing of the announcement was … Continue reading CR7 and Juve, why it will make sense

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Premier League

2017-18: A new script is needed

NEXT season, the British football landscape is going to have to find a new narrative. “Wenger out” has become “Wenger gone”, and therefore a considerable chunk of pundit and supporter dialogue has disappeared. With VAR likely to remove another slice of conversation – refereeing errors – you have to wonder what “your Linekers and Ferdinands” are going to talk about in a few years. As … Continue reading 2017-18: A new script is needed

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Finance & Business

United the most valuable, Barca the strongest in the latest brand report

MANCHESTER United may have been overshadowed by neighbours City in the Premier League this season, but the Old Trafford club remains the world’s most valuable football club brand. In a new report by Brand Finance, United’s US$ 1.9bn brand value tops the Football 50, ahead of the Spanish duo Real Madrid and Barcelona, the latter in possession of the world’s strongest football club brand. Once … Continue reading United the most valuable, Barca the strongest in the latest brand report

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Europe

The concentration game – UEFA Champions League

THE LAST eight of the UEFA Champions League kicks off this evening and it is largely a case of “business as usual”. While the latter stages of the competition are undeniably exciting and generally of the highest quality, half of this season’s participants have featured in each of the last three UCL quarter finals. KPMG’s Football Benchmark, in its latest report, says the composition of … Continue reading The concentration game – UEFA Champions League

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Culture

The clubs that became flag bearers

IF YOU asked 10 people in a room to name a German club, they would undoubtedly come up with “Bayern Munich”. Ask them the same question about Portugal, and they’d probably reply, “Benfica”. Have you noticed that wherever you are in Europe, if you bump into a Portuguese, ask them who they support and it will invariably be “Benfica”. In the town I live, I … Continue reading The clubs that became flag bearers

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