”He changed our tactics and gave us character.” Spartak Moscow captain Denis Glushakov on Massimo Carrera. Spartak Moscow haven’t won the Russian Premier League title since 2001, but they...
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Following Herbert Kilpin: From Nottingham to Milano with the relatives of AC Milan’s founder
James Kilpin returns to the table with a pint of beer in each hand. He slides one across the table to me. It catches a sticky patch, causing a...
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Antonio Conte at Juventus: The anatomy of a renaissance
Juventus are a strange anomaly among the traditional footballing giants of Europe. This is a club whose fans were surprised by a new badge mid-season, and yet there was...
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Magical Marek Hamsik: Napoli’s comic book hero
Bologna’s Twitter account raised the social media equivalent of the white flag when they hosted Napoli last weekend. ‘Enough of that,’ ‘You can take him off now’, they...
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My Aunt Rose Reilly: A World Cup winner with Italy
“My aunt has won a World Cup final for Italy.” This can be quite the conversation starter, especially if you’re Scottish! There aren’t too many footballers from our small...
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Tales from the Peninsula: Pisa will not bend – Ultras, protests & injustice in Tuscany
The message from the protesting fans is clear: ‘Pisa will not bend’ It is Thursday, 2 February 2017, and I am making a familiar journey to Tuscany to take...
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The Football Italia love affair
Gazzetta Football Italia: now that was a television programme. Although Channel 4’s live Italian matches were more than welcome it was the Saturday morning review and pre-cursor to...
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Tales from the Peninsula: The night an unrecognisable Fiorentina beat Juventus
“I stopped playing 30 years ago, but this welcome is worth one or two Scudetti,” new Fiorentina Vice President Giancarlo Antognoni told the press after Fiorentina’s home game with...
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Grande 50: Part IV
KEITA BALDE DIAO Age: 21 Club: Lazio Country: Senegal Kicked out of Barcelona’s youth team for putting an ice cube in a team-mate’s bed, Keita Balde Diao has gradually...
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Grande 50: Part II
ANTONIO BARRECA Age: 21 Club: Torino Country: Italy A product of the Torino youth system, Antonio Barreca captained the club’s primavera to the finals of the Campionato Primavera in 2013...
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