Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee: Arsenal’s tale of two strikers
Arsenal have top-class strikers in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette. Can Unai Emery unlock their hidden potential for the club’s success? It isn’t every day that you get to watch footballers live,…
El Dorado – Origin Story of Colombian Football: Part 2
From 1949-1953, Colombia may have had the strongest football league in the world. But was the so-called ‘El Dorado’ league such a glorious time for Colombian football? All that glitters is not…
Unai Emery: The long road from Basque Country to Islington
As the 2018/19 season kickstarts, Unai Emery faces the the unenviable prospect of following in the steps a football colossus. His ability to withstand the pressure of Arsene Wenger’s shadow will define…
Football has no home: Enough with the negativity
As we repeatedly stumble upon examples of banter and general negativity crossing lines and limits, it is maybe time to sit back and reevaluate how and why we watch football. I did…
Manchester United have their totem within reach, they just need to look
Five years since Fergie left, and Manchester United still look in transition. What’s gone so wrong with a club of this size? The key to their solution is probably lurking around the…
Chelsea: Next stop for Jorginho and Maurizio Sarri’s Neapolitan fine-arts
Chelsea’s two biggest hires this season can transform the way the club has looked at their own football identity. Jorginho and Maurizio Sarri promise an era filled with sunshine at a place…
Ajax Amsterdam: The dance between hope and pain
We explore the angst and optimism of AFC Ajax supporters, uncovering the factors behind the club’s decline and reasons to keep believing. As the old saying goes, there is no rest for…
Seattle Sounders: MLS, B-teams and a search for identity
With frequent rebranding and relocations, it wasn’t easy to be a soccer fan in USA, but the sport and its communal pull have both strengthened over time. Seattle Sounders and their B…
The finals of Euro 2016: The night of contradictions, the night of Pepe
The final of Euro 2016 served as the perfect stage a man who was fighting eleven men and his own reputation. It was Pepe’s night. 10 July 2016. Portugal v France. Final…
Finland: A Tale Of Hope and Close Misses
Finland are yet to occupy a space of any relevance in world football’s consciousness, but their story is one that needs telling. A lion’s share of you are probably familiar with the…
The dance of the virtuoso: Lessons from the World Cup
The platitude of football being a team game has been heard by everyone, but we are conditioned to focus on individuals in brilliance and failure. This World Cup has taught us a…
Mohamed Salah: More Than A Footballer
Over the last year, Mohamed Salah has not just been a successful footballer, but a much-loved missionary for his sport, country and community. “Look at this!” My mom burst excitedly through my…
A walk through Hungary: Once the axis of football, now a distant admirer
Our in-house writer visited Budapest, the focal-point for the best of European football not so long back, and saw signs that clearly portrayed how far Hungary have receded. The World Cup is…
Neymar: Brazil’s little misunderstood genius behind all the theatrics
Neymar at Russia 2018 came out with the reputation of a farceur, but behind everything else, there is a man who is already Brazil’s third highest goalscorer. Brazil versus Mexico, July 2018.…
Doped Up on Delirium – The madness of World Cup 2018
World Cup 2018 was one of the most memorable major football tournaments in recent times, and there were a lot of myths debunked and friends made by Russia in the process. “The…
Argentina at Russia 2018: The self-destructive version of viveza-criolla
There was a lot to dislike about Argentina’s conduct at this World Cup, and it’s important to remember they have a long history of defying moral boundaries. The best thing to come…
Jo Hyeun-woo – South Korea’s accidental World Cup hero
When the World Cup started, South Korea’s choice of goalkeeper lay elsewhere. Jo Hyun-woo used this surprise opportunity to make a name for himself. The South Korea manager Shin Tae-yong was very…
“If He Was Brazilian” – In Defence of Jordan Henderson
If Jordan Henderson’s surname was Hendrao or Hendrinho, every forward pass would have been memorable and the perception would have been different. He would have been looked at differently than a boring…
The Messi vs Ronaldo Debate is the Low-point of Modern Football Conversation
Like the mythological snake, Ouroboros, the self-consuming egos of Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi have devoured Portugal and Argentina’s World Cup chances. And we, the fans, are responsible. For those who only…
To Football, With Love – A fan’s ode to the beautiful game
Between the despair of defeats to the elation when you see a mazy dribble, football is captivating, and takes us to great emotional heights. It’s The Beautiful Game indeed. On a bright…
Luka Modric – The Monk of Silent Spaces, Between Bombs and Bravura
You might not see his face on magazine cover pictures or Times Square billboards, but Luka Modric, as this World Cup should drive home, is a credit to this sport and Croatia.…
No Man’s Land: Navigating an increasingly political World Cup 2018
FIFA has gone to great lengths talking about the separation of football and politics, but World Cup 2018 has shown how closely the both are linked. Obscure Balkan studies professors are suddenly…
Belgium’s Exemplary Success Through Ethnic Integration
For long, Belgium had struggled to integrate the ethnic groups that form their demographic. Their football team has made an example by working past that. From the 13th of June 2010 to…
‘What if?’ – The story of India’s lost opportunity at the 1950 World Cup
Known as a cricketing country around the world today, India’s football story would’ve been vastly different if only they made the trip to Brazil in 1950. Many among the capacity crowd in…
Hidetoshi Nakata – The real-life Captain Tsubasa
Peroxide-bleached hair, a passion for sake and a career that showed light to the entire continent of Asia. Hidetoshi Nakata made Captain Tsubasa come to life. You always remember your firsts; they…
Iceland’s Long Trek to the World Cup – A Tale of the Nordic Nerve
Even with Iceland’s elimination from their maiden World Cup, their tale of fearless Viking vigour rising up from the ashes of past anonymity has been the talk of world football, very deservedly.…
Croatia’s ‘Golden Generation’ and their chance of redemption at Russia 2018
It has taken twenty long years, and many tournaments, but Croatia finally have a team that can emulate their French conquest of 1998. 25th June, 1991 was a remarkable day in Soviet…
How Denmark’s 1986 World Cup Shirt Became the World’s Best
1986 was a prolific year for pop-culture: The Oprah Winfrey show aired on national tv, Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns hit the newsstands, and Denmark launched the most futuristic kit in…
Alan Dzagoev’s Glass Ceiling – Rise and Fall of Russia’s Original Wonderkid
Four years ago, there were very few Football Manager saved games without Alan Dzagoev in it. In 2018, in what should have been his breakthrough year, the wonderkid is struggling to catch…
Wembley ’73: When a Socialist Poland Clowned Sir Alf Ramsey’s England
1973 was a good time to be an Englishman in London, until Poland and Jan Tomaszewski came over to play the last qualifying game for the World Cup the following year. The…