Rob Lee: Newcastle United owners should hire Alan Shearer as top advisor December 7, 2021 Newcastle United’s new owners can bring the good times back to St James’ Park by hiring an icon of the club’s most recent glory days, Alan Shearer, to oversee football matters, says Rob Lee. Fellow Newcastle great Lee played alongside Shearer for six seasons as they challenged Manchester United’s domestic supremacy and enjoyed their first [...]
San Francisco 49ers in position to buy Leeds United in coming years December 6, 2021 The San Francisco 49ers could exercise a clause in their deal with Leeds United which could see them buy the Premier League club by 2024. The group that funds the NFL this year increased their stake in United to 37 per cent in January before acquiring another seven per cent last month. The deal would [...]
Premier League talking points: Rangnick debut win heaps woe on Palace December 6, 2021 It was a tale of contrasting fortunes for the men in the Old Trafford dugouts for Sunday’s Premier League clash. While Ralf Rangnick formally began his Manchester United tenure with a scrappy 1-0 win over Crystal Palace, secured through Fred’s fine late goal, Patrick Vieira saw his team lose for a third consecutive game. With [...]
Academics find fairer format for penalty shootouts, but will football accept it? December 2, 2021 Football took a chance on the ABBA format in the hope of minimising the inherent unfairness of penalty shootouts, but that experiment swiftly met its Waterloo. Now, though, economists at Durham University have devised a new way of ordering penalty kicks that they believe could change the name of the game. They tested a score-dependent [...]
Ed Warner: Crouch review recommendations could drive Premier League away December 2, 2021 I really wanted to embrace the “fan-led” Tracey Crouch review of football governance in England. But with each turn of its 162 pages my heart sank further at the unmistakable sight of the heavy hand of Whitehall. The Crouch review’s recommendations revolve around the creation of an independent regulator for the sport. This displays a [...]
Rafa Benitez feels heat as struggling Everton prepare to host red-hot Liverpool December 1, 2021 A Merseyside derby represents a dangerous time for an Everton manager under pressure, as Marco Silva can attest. The Portuguese was fired in early December 2019 after suffering a 5-2 drubbing at Liverpool, the final straw in a run of eight defeats in 11 Premier League games. Two years later, almost to the day, Rafa [...]
Newcastle takeover optimism fizzling out as reality of relegation battle dawns November 30, 2021 The songs for Amanda Staveley have faded, the fake sheikh outfits dwindled in number and the #CANS of celebration long since been drained. Almost eight weeks on, Newcastle United’s takeover by a group led by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has not had the immediate uplift hoped for at St James’ Park. It may arrive [...]
Trevor Steven: Teacher Ralf Rangnick will shake up Manchester United November 29, 2021 In a former life as a football agent, I once asked a German contact for some up-and-coming names in the Bundesliga. One of them was a forward-thinking coach, who I spoke to and made known to a few English clubs who were in the market for a new manager. None took up the chance to [...]
Ralf Rangnick confirmed as new Manchester United manager November 29, 2021 Manchester United have confirmed the appointment of Ralf Rangnick as their new manager until the end of the season. The influential German coach, whose arrival has been widely expected, will remain at the club after the summer in a consultancy role. “I am excited to be joining Manchester United and focused on making this a [...]
Five things we learned this weekend: United show Rangnick hallmarks to hold Chelsea November 28, 2021 We may not yet know how much he influenced Manchester United’s approach in their 1-1 draw at Chelsea on Sunday but their approach bore some of the hallmarks of Ralf Rangnick. Rangnick is expected to arrive at United this week to take up the role of interim manager until the end of the season, when [...]