Category: Planet Football

When we look back on Liverpool’s time in the Premier League in decades to come, it is safe to say that the Hicks and Gillett era is not one that will be fondly remembered. American businessmen Tom Hicks and George Gillett took ownership of the Reds in February 2008 amid vocal protests from the fans. […]

Read More… from Ranking Liverpool’s 10 signings in the Hicks & Gillett era

The summer of 2014 was a big one at Barcelona. It was the first of Josep Maria Bartomeu’s ill-fated presidency, and the club was still reeling from being pipped to the La Liga title by Atletico Madrid. The response was to spend over €160million in the transfer market, with almost half of that outlay on […]

Read More… from How the six players Barcelona signed alongside Luis Suarez fared

Mikel Arteta and his predecessor Unai Emery have managed almost exactly the same number of games in charge of Arsenal, which gives us an opportunity to compare their records. The two coaches also pitted their wits against one another in the Europa League semi-final. Emery’s Villarreal came out on top in the first leg, winning […]

Read More… from Comparing Arteta’s and Emery’s records at Arsenal

Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo formed one of the most ruthless attacking trios seen in Manchester United‘s history – 13 years on, Bruno Fernandes, Edinson Cavani and Paul Pogba look like they’re trying to match them. When Tevez signed for the Red Devils in the summer of 2007, questions were raised as to […]

Read More… from Bruno, Cavani & Pogba draw blueprints for Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo 2.0

Since their disastrous performance at Euro 2000, Germany and its elite clubs have been committed to bringing through young footballers. This approach has paid dividends. The national team won the 2014 World Cup and a generation of attacking talent has managed to shift perceptions of German football. The Fritz Walter medal, named after the 1954 […]

Read More… from Where are they now? Germany’s 15 Fritz Walter U19 medal winners

Hugo Rodallega enjoyed mixed success in England. At his best, he was scoring screamers for a rollicking Wigan Athletic side. At his worst, on the sinking ship of Rene Meulensteen’s Fulham, he looked wasteful and sulky. Come to think of it, that ‘best’ was a very long time ago. Rodallega, signed by Wigan for £4.5 […]

Read More… from Hugo Rodallega is a better striker at 35 than he was at 25

Having sacked Jose Mourinho, Tottenham look to be taking a completely different approach and have been linked with Ajax manager Erik ten Hag. Ten Hag is known for his attack-minded style of football, leading Ajax to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2018-19, where they dramatically lost against Spurs. We’ve taken a look at quotes from the man himself and […]

Read More… from ‘Cruyffian’ – 10 quotes to explain Erik ten Hag’s philosophy

The narrative following Manchester City‘s 1-0 victory over Tottenham in Sunday’s League Cup final centred around Harry Kane. The Guardian‘s Barney Ronay summarised it best: “Harry Kane versus a team that has everything except a Harry Kane.” The thinking here is that, for all their brilliance, City would still benefit from the presence of an elite […]

Read More… from De Bruyne’s bicycle kick a sign that Man City are daring to dream

If you know anything about former Manchester United midfielder Bebe, chances are you’ll know a shorthand version of his rags-to-riches tale. Raised by his grandmother before spending his teenage years in an orphanage, Tiago Manuel Dias Correia (nicknamed Bebe, ‘baby’, by his older brother) became a celebrity overnight after United sanctioned a £7.4million fee for the player back in […]

Read More… from Bebe’s back, baby: From Man Utd punchline to Rayo cult hero