Football’s dark arts. You may have read, heard or watched a bit about that subject this week. Wind-up merchants, rule benders, injury fakers, divers, pinchers, medical staff who love running on the pitch, time-wasters… every club has them, but how dark arts-y is your team? We can — and will — use metrics and data […]
Ranking each Premier League club for ‘dark arts’ Read More »
One penalty, 25 fouls, countless blasts of the referee’s whistle and 14 yellow cards… behold the worst-behaved game in Premier League history. Chelsea players received eight bookings and Bournemouth six at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday, setting a record for cautions, under the stewardship of match official Anthony Taylor. The previous highest number of yellow
Plenty of attention has been paid to the new ‘Dynamic Kick-off’ regulations in American football’s NFL in the early days of its 2024 season but even in the fluid realm of the Premier League, how a team begins play is an increasingly-rehearsed process. And despite the ongoing evolution in intricate tactics, even the greatest of
How do Premier League teams kick off games in 2024-25? Read More »
Nothing heralds the beginning of autumn more than people stating that it is “too early to look at the league table”. Listen to some and you might be convinced there was once a glorious era when those interested in football didn’t even glance at the standings until eight, 10, maybe even 12 games in. The
Three games in is too early to trust the Premier League table… or is it? Read More »
U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker looked down at his phone as he stood in his home gym in Southampton, England, and saw the message from Mauricio Pochettino. Several days earlier, the U.S. had failed to progress from the group at Copa America under Gregg Berhalter. A “comprehensive review” was underway and every option was
Inside Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT deal: Hayes’ role, Chelsea delays and Argentine steak Read More »
The night before Liverpool’s former owners faced the media for the first time at Anfield in February 2007, a meeting was held about the running order for business. George Gillett, a junk bond millionaire, had initially been batted away from the club because he did not have deep enough pockets. To change his possibilities, he
Chelsea are learning the hard way that co-owners rarely work in football Read More »
Welcome to the ‘Beverly Hills of Britain’, where the only thing missing is sunshine. There are luxury cars, fancy restaurants, gated mansions and enough high-level professional footballers to create the United Kingdom’s most dominant five-a-side league. ‘Elmbridge Borough Council welcomes you to Cobham’, the sign reads as you enter the village made famous by Chelsea
Although the Premier League’s summer transfer window has closed, many big-name players still have their futures unresolved. Other transfer windows remain open, including in Turkey, whose clubs can do business until September 13, so moves could still happen. But with four months until the start of the January window in the major European leagues, The
Premier League players who didn’t get a move: The Uncertain XI Read More »
At Premier League HQ, it wasn’t just the summer transfer window that closed on Friday evening. There was also a deadline to apply for two senior positions in the legal department as — to quote from the job spec — “the scope and complexity of the league’s financial regulations continues to evolve”. That is an
Why the Premier League transfer window is messier than ever Read More »
The Premier League world has already been rocked just two days after the conclusion of the season as Chelsea‘s head coach dramatically quits the club, owned by Todd Boehly, by mutual consent, less than a year into the job. It news comes after the 52-year-old met with the club’s sporting directors, Paul Winstanley and Laurence
Pochettino leaves Todd Boehly's Chelsea Read More »
