Player Development
Why Players Born Late in the Year Get Overlooked
My nephew was born on 19 August. At his first proper trial, aged eleven, he was put in a group with a boy born the previous...
Fan culture and club history writer
Dario grew up going to matches with three generations of his family before he ever picked up a notebook about it. He writes about the parts of football that happen away from the pitch, the chants, the rivalries, and the identity questions clubs rarely answer honestly.
Player Development
My nephew was born on 19 August. At his first proper trial, aged eleven, he was put in a group with a boy born the previous...
Match Tactics
A corner comes in, a forward drifts unmarked to the penalty spot, heads it in, and the stand around me erupts in the same...
Club Heritage
Every club wants a song that makes the hair on your arms stand up, and most clubs that try to manufacture one end up with a...
Fan Culture
You want a scarf for your first season ticket, and the club shop offers six of them at 18 to 25 pounds each, all looking...
Club Heritage
Most fans can name their club's mascot but have no idea why a seven foot dinosaur, a monkey or a swan is dancing on the...
Fan Culture
Your first away game can feel like walking into someone else's house party where everyone already knows the rules.