EUROPEAN football should learn from the trials of Barcelona after reality firmly arrived at the gates of the Camp Nou. Barca were dumped out of the UEFA Champions League at the group stage for the first time since 2000, completing … Continue reading Barcelona’s inflection point arrives in Munich
SERBIA are on the brink of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup, although they still have the daunting task of facing Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal. They are unbeaten in their seven qualifiers so far, but the Portuguese have a game … Continue reading World Cup beckons for Serbia, but club football is left behind
SLAVIA Prague made headlines in 2020-21 when their veteran centre back, Ondrej Kúdela, was accused of racist behaviour in a Europa League tie in Glasgow. Unfortunately, this incident overshadowed what turned out to be an outstanding season for the red … Continue reading Slavia Prague’s invincible season with a side of controversy
CHELSEA and Manchester City will meet in Istanbul on May 29 in the UEFA Champions League final, an appetising fixture in many ways, but to those who like to see two clubs from different countries coming face-to-face, perhaps a little … Continue reading Chelsea v Manchester City: An anti-climax, but only for those that remember
MANCHESTER UNITED and Arsenal made it through to the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League, very comfortably. This came just after Manchester City and Chelsea reached the last four of the UEFA Champions League. There is a reasonable chance that … Continue reading Premier clubs like Manchester United and Arsenal should always be Europa favourites
THE last time a team from outside football’s top 20 clubs won the UEFA Champions League was in 2004, Porto beating Monaco 3-0 and launching the career of a certain José Mourinho. Since then, eight clubs have won the competition … Continue reading Don’t assume European football’s hierarchy cannot change
Game of the people 