Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2016 i FourFourTwo UK

In honour of our feature on the ultimate football bucket list, here are a few things you need to do this month... 1) Convert to the cult of Zlatan. Think you know Ibra? Think again. Behind the bluff and bluster of the ‘I Am Zlatan’ persona is a model pro and workaholic who demands total commitment from himself and those around him. But can he restore Manchester United to their former lustre? Turn to page 32 to find out. 2) Tick something off your bucket list. Whether it’s at the church of Diego Maradona or in Borussia Dortmund’s Yellow Wall, make a start on our 53 things every football fan should do before they die (page 54). 3) Follow Victor Wanyama. The Spurs midfielder is as likeable on Twitter as…

“BACK IN 1987 MARADONA SENT PEOPLE TO MUNICH WITH ONE MILLION DEUTSCHE MARKS IN A BOX, WANTING ME TO SIGN FOR NAPOLI” CLUBS 1979-84 Borussia Monchengladbach 1984-88 Bayern Munich 1988-92 Inter Milan 1992-2000 Bayern Munich 2000 MetroStars MANAGERIAL ROLES 2001-02 Rapid Vienna 2002-03 Partizan Belgrade 2003-06 Hungary 2006 Atletico Paranaense 2006-07 Red Bull Salzburg 2008-09 Maccabi Netanya 2010-11 Bulgaria DID HE BOTTLE A PENALTY IN THE ITALIA 90 FINAL? WHY DIDN’T HE GET ON WITH JURGEN KLINSMANN? DID HE LIVE DOWNSTAIRS FROM DONALD TRUMP? It’s a Sunday afternoon in Munich, and it feels as if FFT has stumbled into an extremely upmarket, slightly more German version of Cheers . We’re inside what must be the city’s finest hotel, the Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski, and…

Italy vs Spain October 6 Spain get a chance for Euro 2016 revenge in this Group G qualifying match for World Cup 2018 Liverpool vs Man United October 17 Monday Night Football sees Mourinho – hardly Mr Popular at Liverpool – turn up with their rivals Barcelona vs Man City October 19 Pep Guardiola and Claudio Bravo return to the Camp Nou for a Champions League group game Inter vs Southampton October 20 Saints visit the San Siro in the Europa League for arguably their most glamorous tie in decades Juventus vs Napoli October 29 Last term’s top two face off in Serie A as Gonzalo Higuain takes on the club he controversially left Birmingham vs Aston Villa October 30 The Second City Derby returns, but in the Championship and…

It was all going so well for Norrby’s Mehmed Dresevic. The defender had already trebled his goal tally for the season with a brace in a Swedish third-tier clash with Tvaaker, when he crashed home a volley to finish off a quite incredible hat-trick. Understandably, he couldn’t contain his excitement, and celebrated by leaping over the advertising hoardings, taking a seat in the first row of the stand and applauding his own fine strike. “I thought, ‘What the hell: this will be the only hat-trick of my career’ – so I went for it,” the 24-year-old Dresevic tells FFT. However, his return to the pitch was greeted by a red card, as he earned a second booking for leaving the field of play. “Unfortunately the referee didn’t have the same…

There are bad starts to a season, and then there’s this. When Dumitru Mitu scored Soimii Pancota’s first goal of the campaign, the cheers could be heard all the way across Romania. By that stage, the second-division club had already let in 55 goals in five and a bit matches. A 16-0 loss in their first match of the season was then followed by defeats of 7-0, 18-0 and 9-0. “Sadly, the local authorities lost all interest in football so we just fielded kids,” explains Soimii’s honorary president Pavel Piros (not that it’s too much of an honour these days). “I offered the team to several Italian businessmen and I think things will get better now.” Indeed, they lost their fifth game only 2-0, before Mitu’s goal in a 4-1…

It was just a normal training session for Sporting Hackney. But wait: isn’t that the top-scoring goalkeeper in football history? When the squad gathered for a chat about their next Middlesex County Premier Division fixture, Brazilian legend Rogerio Ceni (131 goals for Sao Paulo) was lurking mysteriously at one end of the pitch. “Before our coach, Dan, told everyone it was Rogerio, I was the only one who knew it was him,” laughs Raul Dutra, Sporting Hackney’s midfielder. “I have watched the Copa Libertadores since I was a kid, so when I saw him I thought, ‘What the f**k is he doing here?’ When Dan explained, it started to click with people: ‘Oh, Rogerio – the guy who scored from free-kicks!’” Rogerio retired last year; visiting England for a coaching…

Supporting a team in non-league is all about being local, yes? Not for a group of hardcore Staines Town supporters, who make regular pilgrimages of over 1,000 miles from Sweden to see the Isthmian League side. Well, why not? Well known as the Swedish Massive – no doubt Ali G, Staines’ favourite son, would approve – they jet to Wheatsheaf Park several times each and every season. “We all support different teams in the Premier League and Championship, but we wanted one club that we could support together,” says Goran Rorvall, one of the group’s founders. “Staines is one of the most convenient places to get to from Heathrow airport, so we started coming here in 2010. There were eight of us at a match against Lowestoft. “People in Sweden…

ENGLAND: BLANC SLATE Sam Allardyce is not going to move England forward – let’s get a man with experience at the top, like Laurent Blanc. Henry Wadsworth CRYING FOUL The new refereeing rules are ruining football. Refs, players and us fans are now confused by what is a foul and what isn’t. Leon Davis BALDWIN THE BOSS Watford just seem to be appointing a string of lookalikes – firstly the Spanish Phil Brown, now an Italian Alec Baldwin. Alex McCain CITY FOR THE TITLE second Pep Guardiola’s reader lethal of attacking football it’s and taken high-pressing intensity figure out will clinch the title line for . Man City, without doubt.t Ben Grace be a top-six KOEMAN PRAISE Everton underachieved , so 262 when issues Roberto to finally Martinez was…

1 “I’m not used to winning nothing – it’s the first time it’s happened to me. I’m disappointed. It’s a failure” 2 “I prefer to play and lose rather than win, because I know in advance I’m going to win” 3 “A ball is like a woman: she loves to be caressed” 4 “I didn’t injure you on purpose, and you know that. If you accuse me again, I’ll break your legs” 5 “I came like a hero, left like a legend” 6 “I’m proud of what I achieved there, but a life built on memories is not much of a life” 7 “When people are talking about you, it means that you exist” 8 “We are looking for an apartment; if we do not find anything, we will just…

Less than a year before the start of the First World War, Tommy Benfield scored the first goal at Arsenal’s new Highbury stadium. He was the top scorer at Leicester during the 1913/14 season, with over 100 appearances, before joining Derby and helping them win the Second Division in 1914/15. Benfield returned to make guest appearances for Leicester during the war, before heading off to the Western Front with the Leicestershire Regiment. He was a sergeant, and two months before the end of the war, he was shot by a sniper. He died eight days later. Walter Tull was one of the first black players in England’s top flight, He played for Tottenham from 1909–11, before moving to Northampton Town. Tull experienced racial abuse from the terraces but became a…

How did you first feel about going on loan? My first spell was at Yeovil and I really enjoyed that. It wasn’t about picking a style of club back then; it was about experiencing men’s football and the mentality that comes with it. It was great fun. You were put in a pressurised situation and had to stand on your own two feet. It’s a challenge to leave home and your club but you adapt, learn how to cook and do things that would otherwise be done for you. What did you learn from your 11 loan spells? You pick up things from every club. I was at Charlton with Yann Kermorgant and then at Brighton with Leonardo Ulloa, and I took a lot of things away from the way…

The global loan system – described as “football’s Wild West” by The Guardian’s Owen Gibson – is open to an element of interpretation. Just ask Simone Verdi, co-owned by Milan and Torino for four years but finding himself at Empoli for two of them. He was sold in a blind auction (obviously) after co-ownership in Italy was outlawed. Then there’s Allan Nyom. The West Bromwich Albion full-back was signed by Udinese in 2009 and spent six years with the club, without playing or even training with them. He told FFT he’d been to Italy only once – for his medical. Instead, Nyom spent six seasons on loan at Granada (below left), signing a new contract ‘with Udinese’ in 2013, before joining their other sister club, Watford, in 2015. It puts…

Woah! Yeboah? Yep, the Ghanaian made a huge impact in England – and on several crossbars – after arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt in 1995. At Leeds he scored two of the Premier League’s greatest ever goals: a thunderous volley against Liverpool and a similar worldie at Wimbledon that won Goal of the Season. Did things go kaput at Leeds after that? Inevitably. Yeboah won Leeds’ Player of the Year but his Yorkshire pud-inspired fireworks fizzled out, as Howard Wilkinson was replaced as boss by grim pragmatist George Graham. Tony returned to Germany for four up-and-down seasons at Hamburg, then went to Qatar. So he quit in Qatar? As you do. He’s since used local nickname Yegoala (geddit?) to open an eponymous hotel and football team. And he’s still royalty over…

1 JOHN WARK IPSWICH TOWN As a UEFA Cup winner with Ipswich and film star in Escape to Victory, midfielder Wark commanded respect... or he would’ve done if his moustache’s wispy tendrils hadn’t reminded people of cartoon dog Droopy. 2 ARTUR JORGE BENFICA The great Eagles striker and itinerant manager fashioned the very definition of a soup-strainer – in fact, the fish and salad courses were probably in there as well. Part Tintin’s Thomson and Thompson, part Tosh Lines from The Bill, it was entirely magnificent. 3 ALBERT IREMONGER NOTTS COUNTY We’re not saying the keeper definitely assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, but if the Edwardian monobrow wasn’t villainous enough, his surname was Iremonger. He monged ire. It’s a short step from arguing with refs (and he did) to starting a…

 Paul, you were one of the best passers of a football we’ve ever seen – what was your secret? “I always looked forward when I had time on the ball. Passing it sideways or backwards was the last resort” Passing was something that came naturally to me. Until the age of 18 I was a striker, but [former Manchester United youth team coach] Eric Harrison always thought I would be a central midfielder. He saw something in my passing and felt I could be a creative player. I was lucky at United, because Alex Ferguson would constantly tell me to play the ball forwards. When I had time on the ball, my first thought was always to look for my two wide players and my two strikers. The last resort…

Barnsley First John Stones, now Mason Holgate – we want to know what they feed their young defenders. Boxfit A fast-growing fitness craze, it’s a fun way to get in shape – and a real stress-buster. Quinoa This South American source of carbs is packed with protein and won’t leave you with love handles. Hashtag philosophers Apparently a modern man’s workout isn’t complete without telling Twitter how they #eatclean and #traindirty. Yawn. Snapbacks They’re the latest sartorial favourite among gym posers. Who knew sunstroke was such a risk inside a local leisure centre? The dab Remember when goal celebrations were a spontaneous, unrehearsed display of emotion? Take note, Jesse Lingard and Paul Pogba.…

ADIDAS TIRO 15 STADIUM JACKET Waterproof? Check. Understated? Check. Good value? Check. It’s time to raid that piggy bank of yours. Cost £50 Buy www.prodirectsoccer.com UNDER ARMOUR SPORTSTYLE ANORAK This lightweight bit of kit has a fuller fit for more comfort, and repels water without sacrificing breathability. Cost £60 Buy www.underarmour.co.uk NEW BALANCE PRECISION RUN JACKET Laser-perforated venting will prevent overheating, while the blue and cherry colour will bring out your eyes. Honest. Cost £130 Buy www.newbalance.co.uk…

Simon Austin: The former BBC journalist learned what it’s like to work for maverick Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino: “Neil Redfearn opened a window into a surreal world where the trickiest opponent was actually the owner himself.” Richard Cannon: The star snapper visited Spurs’ Victor Wanyama armed with an unusual prop: “Walking into Victor’s house with a box concealing a stuffed cockerel could have either been a disaster or made for a great shot. Fortunately it was the latter!” Alec Fenn: Our performance writer visited an industrial estate in Manchester to meet the man trying to create the next Cristiano Ronaldo: “I thought CR7 was a one-off, but his former fitness coach may just have found the secret to making his clone...”…

HIGH: 1980 Plays in UEFA Cup final as four German clubs make the semis LOW: 1987 Captains Bayern in European Cup final: they lead Porto but lose 2-1 HIGH: 1991 Named first FIFA World Player of the Year after Italia 90 triumph LOW: 1993 Part of the Bayern Munich side beaten at home by Norwich City HIGH: 2000 Plays in ninth tournament for Germany, 20 years after his first... LOW: 2000 ...but his 150th and final cap is in a group stage exit at Euro 2000 HIGH: 2014 Marries Anastasia Klimko – his fifth wife – and son, Milan, is born…

 Hi Neil. You just created the Armchair Managers Association. Do you have a favourite armchair that other family members are prohibited from using? “WE HAVE RABBITS IN OUR GARDEN, BUT I HAVEN’T GOT THE HEART TO SHOOT THEM” Hello, pal. I’m not actually a big fan of the armchair; I’m more of a settee man. We’ve got a really comfy one. I like to get pillows down from the bedroom to be extra comfy. If it’s TV, I lie down. Last night I watched Victoria. I love a period drama; a bit of Downton. But if there’s a match on, I will sit up. I can’t watch football lying down. I can’t concentrate. Are you physically able to stay seated, without jumping up and calling the linesman a cheat? No.…

Jamie Vardy: From Nowhere – My Story (Ebury, £20) Autobiographies in football are a mixed bag. But if the least we expect is honesty, then thankfully there is plenty of that in Vardy’s new book. English football’s most well-known rags-to-riches tale was always going to make for a good story, but Vardy fills in all the gaps with a frank account of his career so far: how a tearaway who only turned pro at 24 then topped the Premier League and wooed his national team, via arrest, family feuds and threatening to quit the game for good just a couple of seasons before his sensational 2015-16. The 29-year-old reflects remorsefully on the casino fracas that could’ve brought his ascent to an ugly halt, explains why he rejected Arsenal, and shares…

Forget Fergie Time – anything after 90 minutes is Wenger Time. Across the last 10 seasons in all divisions, Arsenal have scored 14 more stoppage-time goals than any other current Premier League side, and 22 more than Manchester United. Nearby, though, you may as well try to beat that Stratford traffic. CHILL OUT Boss Sebastian Beccacece lost the plot during a Universidad de Chile match, directing a karate kick at a pitchside fridge…

JOSE MOURINHO CHELSEA PHONE CASE Remember when Jose Mourinho’s appointment at Manchester United was held up in the summer because Chelsea still held his image rights? Maybe the Londoners were determined to keep hold of this lucrative moneymaker – an exquisite Special One iPhone case that puzzlingly remains on sale from Chelsea’s online store. It’s the perfect gift for any Blues fan ahead of Manchester United’s visit to the Bridge on October 23, and good news: it’s been reduced from £15 to 50p. We can’t think why.…

@mansfieldtownfc EVENTS NEWS: Due to unforeseen circumstances, clairvoyant Trisha will not be appearing in the Kevin Bird Suite tomorrow night. @BoringMilner I just asked Mignolet if he realises that the last five shots on target he’s faced have all gone in. He said, ‘Now’s not the time, James.’ @jimfrompreston Should my stepdad sign up as his doppelganger?! @FourFourTwo #klopp @ODonnellDale The Jurgen Klopp feature by @OliverKayTimes in @FourFourTwo is excellent. A must-read. @Matt_Barlow_DM John Hart starts in goal for Torino. Disappointing for Joe and those who came to see him make his debut.…

ALFREDO DI STEFANO Real Madrid Signed from Colombian club Millonarios after a complicated tug of war with Barcelona, the Blond Arrow established Real Madrid as the world’s greatest club side, able to buy the finest talent. He also opened the floodgates for more South American players to move to Europe, something that soon became commonplace. RUUD GULLIT Chelsea Nearly 33 and past his best, the dreadlocked Dutchman was nevertheless the most important signing in Chelsea’s modern history as a statement of the club’s intent to bring glamour and glory back to the Bridge. As player-manager, he then won the Blues’ first major trophy for 26 years and made Gianfranco Zola his first signing. JOHAN CRUYFF Barcelona According to the New York Times, he did “more for the spirit of Catalan…

“Who on Earth is A.H. Chequer?” That was the question asked by spectators when they saw this unfamiliar name on the Wanderers team-sheet ahead of the very first FA Cup Final, played between Wanderers and Royal Engineers in March 1872. In fact, ‘A.H. Chequer’ was a pseudonym for Morton Betts, who usually played for Harrow Chequers (hence ‘A Harrow Chequer’). The Chequers had decided to pull out of the tournament after the first round, but that didn’t stop Betts playing in the final. And, inevitably, he scored the game’s only goal. The loaning of players was common during football’s early amateur days, although – as the use of the pseudonym suggests – the practice of borrowing ringers for big matches was frowned upon as being rather unsporting. More often than…

ANDREW HOWARD WYCOMBE WANDERERS CHAIRMAN “The reality is that a window-to-window loan allows you to work with the player a lot more, and that’s a really important element of our long-term planning. Loans are obviously a really important part of life in League Two, but for us it’s absolutely critical that a proportion of our squad is made up of players who are with us on a window-to-window basis, rather than a short-term one. “I can understand the nervousness of some clubs, but picking up the phone and going for a quick-fix option isn’t always the right thing to do. To get a window-to-window loan you have to have proper relationships with the clubs that the lads are coming in from. I think of some of the players that Gareth…

Julien Faubert West Ham to Real Madrid, 2009 The lasting image from Faubert’s spell in Spain is Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano looking baffled while unveiling him. The Frenchman missed a training session because he thought he had the day off, and was accused of falling asleep on the bench. He denied it, but few players find that they have to. Facundo Ferreyra Shakhtar Donetsk to Newcastle, 2014-15 You may well ask, “Who?” – most Newcastle fans still do. Ferreyra played precisely nil minutes in his one season on Tyneside and confessed he wasn’t ready for the Premier League. No kidding: there were rumours that team-mates in his first training session mistook him for a competition winner. Andy Booth Sheffield Wednesday to Tottenham, 2001 Allow David Pleat, then Spurs’ director…

MYTH BUSTER “Living in Italy is like being in a foreign country” Ian Rush never really said these words – it was Kenny Dalglish making a gag at the Welsh striker’s expense Items supplied by the National Football Museum Also courtesy of The Neville Evans Collection, Arsenal FC and Paul Atkinson – www.nationalfootballmuseum.com…

A DOG’S LIFE United-haters: blame a big hound. After ‘Major’, the St Bernard mascot for Newton Heath, went missing in 1901, John Henry Davies found him, kept him and then became chairman, launching the ‘MUFC’ rebrand a year later. G.O.A.T. GOAT After Major retired, Billy the Goat became club mascot. Fond of a tipple or two, Billy guzzled the champers after the 1909 FA Cup Final win and died of alcohol poisoning. Billy’s (presumably pickled) head is now in United’s museum. KOPPING IT The Stretford End faithful once had to sing from the Kop. Banned from Old Trafford at the start of 1971-72 following trouble the previous campaign, United beat Arsenal 3-1 at Anfield. Then it kicked off outside. Obviously. “OI, LADS…!” You thought Peter Schmeichel was a bit shouty?…

The Soccer Syndrome John Moynihan’s ode to the beautiful game neatly sums up football in the ’60s. It’s a brilliant, grown-up book for the thinking fan. Newcastle 1980-83 kit Barcode stripes have long been on show at St James’ Park, but this incarnation, with the Newcastle Brown Ale blue star (and Kevin Keegan perm), is simply majestic. Rummenigge Ever thought that ex-Bayern Munich forward Karl-Heinz Rummenigge had “sexy knees”? Well, novelty German folk duo Alan and Denise did in 1983, singing, “Rummenigge, what a man!” Weirdos.…

SALMON Vitamin boost Its bright and healthy complexion means there’s no surprise in hearing that salmon is brimming with benefits. Just 200g will give you more than your recommended daily allowance of vitamins B6 and B12, which help your body to release energy from the other foods you eat, so that you can extract every single ounce of goodness from your diet to fuel your performance. Scientists even believe that eating this ocean-dweller could have big mental health advantages. Researchers at Ohio State University found that 2.5g of omega-3 – that’s around 12-15 ounces of salmon – eased symptoms of anxiety by some 20 per cent. You won’t worry about that goal drought of yours ever again. 1 “In a 100g portion of salmon there is 20g of protein, making…

HE ANSWERS Gabriel Barbosa Inter Milan and Brazil striker “ : best players in the world have faced tough moments, too. Football works in cycles – no player has been prolific for his whole career. If you’ve struggled, it’s probably just down to some bad luck. Be humble enough to accept the dry spell, and work hard to end it quickly. Believe in your strengths – you don’t lose your ability to put the ball in the net overnight. Don’t give up, got it?”…

1 STADIUM BAN FOR BUMBUM, COUSIN OF BOING BOING Brazil Porto Alegre Gremio’s 0-0 draw with Palmeiras was livened up a bit by beauty queen Miss Bumbum Santa Catarina. Danny Morais, cousin of fellow model Sabrina Boing Boing (yes, really), wrestled a steward before stripping down to a bikini and darting onto the pitch, sash and all. “I just wanted to hug Luan,” she said, referring to the Gremio forward. “This was my first time in a football stadium.” It will also be her last time in a football stadium, at least for a while – she has to report to a police station during Gremio’s next 10 home matches. 2 “SORRY, LADS. HAVE SOME BEER” Germany Wedel When Wedeler TSV lost manager Jorn Grosskopf to fellow minnows SV Eichede,…

MASCOT OF THE MONTH Real Valladolid may be in the second division, but few clubs in Spain can boast such a multi-talented mascot. The Estadio Jose Zorrilla is home to Pepe Zorrillo, a sword-brandishing fox who is both cute and vaguely menacing at the same time. Pepe has been the Pucela’s mascot since 2009 and his most memorable moments include his own foxy take on breakdancing, doing the worm in the centre circle and even the odd Robbie Keane-esque forward roll – all while draped in the club’s purple and white colours and carrying a shield. Sadly, Valladolid can only inform FFT that his myriad talents don’t extend as far as talking. He’s a real fox, the club insists – a 6ft tall fox – and definitely not a human…

Answers 1) Franck Ribery; 2) Cristiano Ronaldo; 3) Philippe Coutinho; 4) Manuel Neuer; 5) Paolo Maldini; 6) George Best; 7) Tom Ince; 8) Mikel Arteta; 9) Lionel Messi; 10) Neymar; 11) Cesc Fabregas; 12) Thierry Henry; 13) Kasper Schmeichel; 14) Xabi Alonso; 15) Lukas Podolski; 16) Bobby Charlton; 17) Gerard Pique; 18) Ronaldinho; 19) Alexis Sanchez; 20) Carlos Teve YOU’LL WIN NOTHING WITH KIDS LA Galaxy duo Steven Gerrard and Robbie Keane played a bizarre match against 30 eight-year-olds (and won 3-2)…

ROSS COUNTY Mike Munro Works in pensions, 36 Andrew Davies Defender, 31 Q: Which team did Ross County beat to reach the Scottish Cup Final in 2010? MM: I was there! It was Celtic. AD: It was before I arrived, but I’ll say St Johnstone. 1-0 Fan Q: What’s the name of the club’s mascot? MM: It’s Rosco! AD: Rosco the Staggie! 2-1 Fan Q: How many league goals did Liam Boyce score last season? MM: I reckon... 20? AD: It was quite a few. Er, I’ll go for 17. [Correct answer: 15] 2-1 Fan Q: In what year did Ross County begin their first season in the Scottish League? MM: It was definitely 1994. I can’t get that one wrong, can I! AD: Was it 1996? 3-1 Fan wins…

CLUB: Milan POSITION: Goalkeeper VALUE £25m FOOT R HEIGHT 1.96m NATION ITA AGE 17 TECHNICAL Quick reaction speeds and good awareness of space and positioning. Also excellent at parrying shots, including penalties: he stared down Toni Kroos during a shootout in a friendly against Real Madrid when he was 16, and saved a 96th-minute spot-kick against Torino this season. Grew up playing on a dirt pitch that also doubled up as a motocross track, learning to throw himself into the fray at an early age. Crucially, he needs to work on playing the ball out with his feet, as he can be a little clumsy with control. Nothing a series of training drills can’t quickly iron out. MENTAL Tranquillita – calmness – is the word that crops up most often…

“PEP RAN ONTO THE PITCH AT FULL›TIME TO TELL ME WHAT I’D DONE WRONG. THAT’S HOW HE WORKS › HE’S FULL OF EMOTIONS” You’ve already established yourself with Bayern Munich and Germany. How pleasing is that? It’s like a dream coming true. First I went from Stuttgart to Leipzig in the third division, then we got promoted, and then I had one year in the second tier before coming to Bayern Munich. I didn’t expect to play so many games! I have played a lot, and in my first season we won the Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal – then I was with the national team at the Euros. It’s been amazing. What was it like to work under Pep Guardiola? He was very important for me. It’s important to have…

Manchester United’s players trudge across the training ground’s manicured lawns to the sanctuary of the changing rooms. But on this nondescript Lancashire morning, the squad’s newest foreign recruit doesn’t join them. Instead he approaches the manager, who’s under pressure to deliver domestic success after another limp campaign. “I need two players,” he tells his boss, a greying disciplinarian well known for his all-encompassing desire to win. “What for?” comes the manager’s perplexed reply. “To practise.” Two keen-as-mustard youth-teamers are soon dispatched to deliver crosses for the newbie, who spends the next half-hour smashing volleys past a helpless goalkeeper with unerring regularity. Word reaches the dressing room, who have already heard about their new team-mate’s reputation as a fierce trainer. The following day, he has company. It’s the same the day…

Almost 1,000 footballers were killed during the First World War. Most clubs were affected. Now today’s fans can commemorate football’s forgotten heroes by planting trees in their honour. The list of those who died is long: nine played for Tottenham Hotspur; five for Manchester United; six for Arsenal; six for Liverpool; 11 for Newcastle; 16 for Leicester. Two-time Blackburn title winner Eddie Latheron fell at Passchendaele in 1917. Bob Torrance, man of the match in Bradford City’s only FA Cup final triumph, died during the German Spring Offensive of 1918… After war was declared in August 1914, football continued as normal; most expected the fighting would be over by Christmas. When it became clear that wouldn’t be the case, an appeal went out for footballers to volunteer. Many obliged, standing…

Ivan Campo Real Madrid to Bolton, 2002-03 Even in a year that saw Big Sam get his Trotters on both Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff, persuading Champions League-winner Campo to swap Madrid for Bolton was some feat. He loved the town – and last-day league survival – so much that he stayed for another five years. Thibaut Courtois Chelsea to Atletico Madrid, 2011-14 In 2013 Courtois was, even at 21, among the world’s best goalkeepers, having just won La Liga’s Zamora trophy for clean sheets. So Chelsea sent him to Atletico for a third year. To show how nonsensical that was, Atleti won the Spanish title and beat the Belgian’s paymasters – who had a 40-year-old Mark Schwarzer between the sticks – in the Champions League semis. Kevin Campbell Trabzonspor…

Ricardo Quaresma Inter to Chelsea, 2009 Dubbed the ‘Golden Bin’ of Serie A in 2008, future European Championship winner Quaresma was sent to Chelsea by Jose Mourinho, who clearly fancied a joke at his previous employers’ expense. The Portugal winger made five appearances in all competitions, four of them as a sub, in a spell that even he probably doesn’t remember. Dean Saunders Swansea to Cardiff, 1985 Saunders crossed a line that few other players have, and we don’t mean by embellishing stories about Brian Clough’s drinking. In 1985, the forward headed down the M4 and failed to score in four games for his club’s bitter rivals. That’s some top sabotage by Swansea. Kasper Schmeichel Manchester City to Falkirk, 2007 Long before he was a Premier League-winner, the second-most famous…

Watching a Leeds United game with Massimo Cellino has always been like buckling up next to the most phobic of flyers. This time, though, he was even more anxious than usual. “He was grabbing my leg, twitching, yelling out in Italian,” Neil Redfearn remembers. “Five minutes from the end, he couldn’t take it any more and walked off, leaving me sat there on my own.” It was October 25, 2014, and Leeds had been beaten 2-1 by Wolves, leaving them 18th in the Championship. Darko Milanic was about to become the latest victim of Cellino’s managerial massacre. Redfearn stayed to the game’s conclusion, trudging away from Elland Road with the rest of Leeds’ disgruntled supporters on that cold autumnal afternoon. As the former Oldham and Barnsley midfielder opened his car…

There are more similarities between football and ballet than you think. Both require spot-on co-ordination, the lightest of feet and the ability to perform the perfect plié on demand. OK, maybe not the last of those – but it didn’t stop Sam Allardyce (back, right) and three of his Coventry City team-mates swapping their boots for plimsoles for a bit of extra training in November 1983. If the England gig doesn’t work out for Big Sam, perhaps Strictly awaits?…

“The fixture of these two clubs in the first round of the Scottish Cup was played on Saturday afternoon. The weather was unpleasant, and the turnout of spectators not particularly large. Bon Accord kicked off, and almost at once the ball was in their territory. A short scrimmage sent the leather towards the goal, and Crawford administered the finishing kick. This was the beginning of a one-sided game, the defence play of Bon Accord unworthy of such a name. Goal after goal was soon notched, and at half-time the score stood: Arbroath 15 Bon Accord 0. Things looked no brighter for the visitors in the second half, all the action being in the vicinity of their posts, and when the whistle blew time, the game stood thus: Arbroath 36 Bon…

What is it? A heavy-duty exercise bike that provides a full body cardio workout. The user has to pedal the wheels while simultaneously pushing the handlebars forwards and backwards. How does it work? The bike adapts to the intensity of your workout. The harder you push and pedal, the greater the resistance produced by the bike, which soon gets the heart racing and muscles burning. Who uses it? Footballers use it as a conditioning tool to help them get back into shape during pre-season, and it’s also proved a popular piece of equipment among Team GB’s Olympic boxers, basketball teams, pro cyclists and sprinters. Why are they using it? The bike is ideal for high-intensity interval training. Footballers often do a 20-second period of work followed by a 10-second period…

If the average Sunday League team can somehow manage to scrape together enough shrapnel to jet off on a summer tour, they have to settle for cattle class on a budget airline. But the world’s biggest football clubs don’t travel on easyJet. In fact, before long, first class on British Airways won’t be sufficient for the game’s star names. Russian plane-maker Sukhoi has unveiled a prototype of the SportJet, a purpose-built aircraft for sports teams. It includes various cutting-edge gadgets designed to aid performance. “In elite sports, where fractions of seconds and inches are of decisive importance, every detail matters in affecting the shape of the athlete,” Evgeny Andrachnikov, Sukhoi’s senior vice-president, tells FourFourTwo. The plane is split into two halves: one prepares players for their next match and the…

Lift light There are few things better for the male ego than throwing your bodyweight in metal around a gym for 10 vein-popping reps, before admiring your taut muscles in the mirror. Don’t pretend it’s just us... But what if we’ve been getting this whole muscle-building thing all wrong? What if lifting lighter weights has always been just as effective as hauling dumbbells the size of small children? Stuart Phillips, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, conducted a study in which one group of men performed a series of exercises using light resistance for 25 reps, while another did the same exercises but with heavy weights for 10 reps. The results showed both groups made near-identical improvements in muscle size and strength, which, according to Phillips,…