OKAY, first things first about Basel. You pass through passport control at the airport. You arrive at a sign. There are flags and colours. Take the left turn and you will end up in Germany or France – in Freiburg or Mulhouse. Take the right turn and you are in...
JÜRGEN Klopp’s journey from touchline to press room after the final whistle fascinates me. I would like to be able to follow him and observe, especially after occasions like Villarreal where it seems as though passion has carried him to another place. How does he find...
THERE is an illuminating interview in this month’s edition of FourFourTwo magazine with Gary McAllister, who reveals that not only did he read Liverpool fanzines upon joining the club in 2000, but also that an editorial line from one of them acted as motivation. Full...
THROUGHOUT my childhood Hillsborough was always there — like a nettle bush prickling at my consciousness in a field of many feelings. I was five years old in April 1989. I can’t remember the afternoon of the 15th at all, the terrible events. Strangely, I...
WITH several other journalists, I was invited to interview Phil Jagielka at a high school in Halewood ahead of the last Merseyside derby. Autumn had almost arrived and Jagielka was flourishing again in the centre of the Everton defence after what he admitted had been...
BRENDAN Rodgers resisted the ray of warm sunshine that flashed through the window in front of him by wearing a long, grey coloured mac. Perching himself on a table he began to confidently explain how his Swansea City team had secured their Premier League future...
IN the days after Johan Cruyff’s death, many of the obituaries were decorated with some of his most famous quotes about football. “Choose the best player for every position, and you’ll end up not with a strong XI, but with 11 strong ones,” he said. “In my teams, the...
FROM here it will be a major surprise if the Premier League does not have a new winner in May. Meanwhile, one of the founding members — a club that since 1992 has not been relegated — will go down in the most humiliating manner possible. Soon, Manchester...
WHETHER it’s age or the work I do, I’ve become less emotionally attached to the football I watch as time has progressed. Being paid to sit in football stadiums and report on matches is a privilege. It’s the best part of the job because, for all of the talk in all of...
THE first time Liverpool’s board floated the idea of appointing a director of football, Roy Evans was in charge and John Toshack — being a mate of his — was the target because it was believed they could work together. There was a feeling inside the...
