Past Their Sell By Date? Harry Richards takes a look at whether managers know the time is right for them to say goodbye and how outstaying their welcome can impact their legacy Everything and everyone has their time – even the greatest football managers of all time. The likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Bob Paisley […]
Chelsea
Monthly Misery: perfect recipe for raging reds
‘It’s getting tickly now – squeaky-bum time, I call it.’ It was 2003 when Sir Alex Ferguson unloaded this gem of a phrase onto the footballing world. Taken to by giggly commentators and pundits ever since, squeaky-bum time has found its neat little perch in the bookshelf of football jargon, picked out whenever big games […]
Sport Editorial: North Korean olive branch?
A barbed, stinging, and ultimately entertaining war of words ensued between Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte over the Christmas period. Mourinho, a predictable culprit, teased Antonio Conte in responding to his “clown” jibe – the Manchester United manager later arguing with a Machiavellian sincerity that it was not aimed at the Italian. Conte, up until […]
Young lions won’t be given a chance if managerial hot seat continues
E ngland’s youth footballing sides have been the focus of much praise over the last few months, with virtually every age group experiencing some degree of success at the tournaments they have participated in. This was arguably topped by the successes of the U17s, who won the World Cup for their age group in India […]
3-4-3 in the Premier League: how it has usurped orthodox formation
A rsenal’s 3-0 defeat of Chelsea back in September last year turned out to be one of the most significant matches of the season. Not only did it cause Antonio Conte to revert back to a 3-4-3 system similar to that he employed at Juventus, but the following success of this formation set a precedent […]
Exeter hold on against Chelsea youngsters
Exeter City ground out a 3-2 win on a cold Tuesday night of Checkatrade Trophy action against a Chelsea U23 side that threatened a late comeback. The game started incredibly well for the hosts. Within two minutes, a cross from Liam McAlinden’s found the head of Ollie Watkins near the six yard box, whose header dutifully found […]
The slippery slope at Stamford Bridge
How the mighty have fallen. Chelsea have transformed from a side that was completely dominant in the Premier League last season, to a side that is currently languishing in the bottom half of the table. The champions’ terrible start to this season has quickly spiralled out of control, losing half of their eight games so […]