Articles
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Bruno Soriano: The Heart and Soul of Villarreal
If you had to ask any Villarreal CF supporter to name one player that represents the club and city of Vila-real, 99% of the fans would name their captain, Bruno Soriano, as the one to represent them. Coincidentally, Bruno’s life story directly mirrors the rise of Villarreal CF, both unlikely and hard working. Based in the…
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History of Designated Players in MLS
Major League Soccer is one of the quickest growing leagues in the history of the sports world. The league began in 1996 with just ten teams and a hockey-style shootout which fans now look back and laugh on. With some 1994 American World Cup Heroes returning to their homeland to grow a league in the…
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Scout Report: Nordi Mukiele
After ending the 16/17 season in 15th place and conceding 66 goals, the third highest in Ligue 1, there were not very high expectations for Montpellier this season. Now under the stewardship of defensive specialist, Michel Der Zakarian, the club look anew. They’re going into the winter break in 7th place and have conceded the least amount of…
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Who Should Replace Coutinho?
What Liverpool fans were dreading for the entirety of last summer came to fruition this past weekend. Coutinho traded in his Merseyside-red shirt for the most famous kit in Catalonia. Barcelona have paid a king’s ransom of £142 million total for the attacking midfielder known as “the Little Magician”. That number makes him, at the…
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Virgil Van Dijk: Liverpool’s most important signing in recent years?
On Wednesday, it was finally announced. The news that all Liverpool fans were waiting for during the entire summer transfer window. Both Liverpool and Southampton had finally agreed a deal to sign defender Virgil Van Dijk – after manager Jurgen Klopp fought hard all summer to secure the Dutchman’s services to Anfield. After the Anfield…
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Breaking The Lines: One Year On
I launched Breaking The Lines as a young, confused kid coming off his first semester of college. I came into first semester thinking I was ready for the real world; it turns out I wasn’t even ready for secondary school. I dreaded every single option around me, from the mountain of student loan debt I’d…
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On Emre Can
With the January transfer window almost upon us, it’s time for speculation to take centre stage again. ITK accounts on Twitter, the customary meltdown on social media and the false dawns of premature excitement is almost upon us yet again for the first time in five months. Will Philippe Coutinho get his dream move to…
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Borussia Dortmund 2 – 1 Hoffenheim: Tactical Analysis
With the Borussia Dortmund hierarchy deciding Peter Bosz’ departure as necessary for BVB achieving their desired level of success, Peter Stoger was quickly brought in to manage Die Schwarzgelben. Despite some considering the swap of bosses a downgrade, with Stoger’s far more compact approach compared to Bosz’ more attractive possession-based style, the new gaffer’s initial…
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Mourinho, Guardiola and… The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
“Language is the foundation of civilization. It is the glue that holds the people together. It is the first weapon drawn in a conflict.” There’s a tribe in Namibia that doesn’t have a single word for the color “blue,” but they have a plethora of words for the color “green.” If you put a color…
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The Manchester Derby: A Tactical Analysis
The Manchester derby wasn’t just a game between the clubs that occupy the first two spots in the Premier League, nor was it a match between the two richest clubs in England, but it was, well and truly, the umpteenth tactical battle between Josè Mourinho and Pep Guardiola – two of the most successful managers…
