‘We support our local team…’ It’s an oft-repeated chant. The suggestion being that the foe to whom the sentiment is directed is not a local club for local people. It therefore lacks any real identity or authenticity. In essence, the supporters are largely frauds from remote cities and foreign lands. Quite often the sentiment is […]

10 years ago

Well did he or didn’t he? Crystal Palace centre-half Damien Delaney is adamant he did not touch Liverpool’s Christian Benteke to give away a match-losing penalty deep into injury time on Sunday. BUT!…if he did, it wasn’t enough to cause the Belgian to go down in the manner that he did. We’re glad that that’s been […]

10 years ago

In fairness, it would be rude not to… You may have noticed that Borussia Dortmund’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang recently rocked up to a game wearing a very striking item of winter outerwear. The French-born Gabonese international is wanted by nearly all of Europe’s top clubs, but it’s certainly not for this East 17-inspired garb… https://twitter.com/TarjetasLiga/status/698581752735014912 It turns out the […]

10 years ago

Alan Pardew is not in a good place. His Crystal Palace side lost 2-1 at home to Liverpool courtesy of a Christian Benteke penalty deep into injury time, despite their player advantage after James Milner was sent off for the visitors. The defeat means that the Eagles are now 12 Premier League matches without a win […]

10 years ago

The moment that shook the world. Conor McGregor’s surprise defeat at the hands of Nate Diaz in UFC 196’s main event was witnessed by fight fans the world over. In every sense of the word it was a truly global event. Millions of people in all seven continents shared in the gripping drama. And when Diaz forced the tap from […]

10 years ago

Man United visit West Brom knowing a win puts them firmly in the frame for a top four place. With Man City, Arsenal (and West Ham) in their sites, Louis van Gaal’s men know a victory is imperative if they are to finish their league campaign with a flourish. Not that it’s ever easy against […]

10 years ago

Yeah boy! We thought we’d seen it all when Snoop Dogg tried his hand at narrating wildlife (and absolutely smashed it), but nothing quite prepared us for Flavor Flav presenting the weather. The legendary (and infamous) Public Enemy hype man made a very special appearance on Fox 13 in Salt Lake City, Utah on Saturday to give […]

10 years ago

This truly beggars belief. It doesn’t matter what standard you’re playing at, you expect the match officials to behave with a level of intelligence and common sense. Both attributes seemed to have escaped referee Trevor Kettle during AFC Wimbledon’s home game with Accrington Stanley (who are they, etc) on Saturday. With the game at 0-0, and the […]

10 years ago

He knew it was a stupid question as soon as he’d asked it. Leicester City mean business. They sit proudly atop the table with a healthy five point lead, and there’s only nine games to go. The most sensational story of the Premier League era is looking more than likely. Throughout their thrilling campaign, the Foxes […]

10 years ago

God love Liam Gallagher. In an age when media luvvies and celeb friends are constantly trying to outdo each other in the sycophancy stakes, the Burnage native simply couldn’t give a f*ck. And so when a spurious claim resurfaced that Liam had once promised physical harm upon Grimsby star Sacha Baron Cohen, the ex-Oasis man wasn’t going to let […]

10 years ago

Nice try, Petr. On Friday, Arsene Wenger placed the p*ss-glased cherry upon Arsenal’s sh*tcake of a week by confirming that Petr Cech, their one constant of reassuring infallibility, would be out of action for around a month. This, of course, means the divine helmet will miss vital fixtures against Spurs (a), Hull City (a), West Brom (h), Barcelona (a), […]

10 years ago

It was only a matter of time. Marcus Rashford has started his senior Man United career like a bullet out of a gun. Partly because of the potential he has shown in the youth ranks, but mainly due to Louis van Gaal’s wafer-thin squad experiencing an injury crisis, the local lad was given his opportunity and has […]

10 years ago

What. The. F*ck. We’re all for common decency and politeness, but this is taking the p*ss. Salford council has introduced a Public Space Protection Order to cover the well-to-do Quays area of the city that will outlaw swearing. The area has been rejuvenated in the last decade or so, with the development of Media City – home […]

10 years ago

The perfect response. Both in terms of Liverpool bouncing back to beat Man City so emphatically after the Capital One Cup final, and the manager’s reaction after the 3-0 victory. The home side provided the perfect tonic to the Anfield faithful after Sunday’s penalty shootout disappointment, and they certainly left their manager speechless with glee. […]

10 years ago

Nikos Dabizas. Remember him? He played for Newcastle United at the turn of the century – which also happened to be his cause of death. Some would have you believe that he still walks among us, now a 42-year-old ex-pro, but anyone who was witness to events at St James’ Park on March 2, 2002 will be able […]

10 years ago

At his best, he’s unplayable. On current form, you forget he’s playing. What’s happened to Alexis Sanchez? And who’s this bumbling imposter currently playing for Arsenal? These are questions that have flummoxed the great and the good of the game, as the Chilean talisman suffers a desperate loss of form that simply won’t end. Last […]

10 years ago

Less is more. Whilst Nike have decided to go all trippy and acid house with their new Barcelona effort for next season, rivals Adidas seem to have decided upon the very opposite strategy for their latest creations. The German sportswear giant aren’t interested in strobing your eyes and turning the stomach with colourful monstrosities. Instead […]

10 years ago

The first half ended in concern and confusion. With seconds remaining in the televised game between Bournemouth and Southampton, the game suddenly stopped as referee Mike Dean was alerted to a commotion at the touchline. With confusion reigning as to why the play had not been resumed, Dean was seen speaking to both the management […]

10 years ago

Has someone been watching This Is England ’90? We reckon the lads at Nike HQ must be old-school ravers who spent a little bit too much of their formative years having it large at the Hacienda in the Madchester days. Either that or they’ve been catching the latest instalment of Shane Meadows’ TIE saga. Whatever the reason, […]

10 years ago

Tears from Piers? Yes please… Even the most devastated Arsenal fan – the most desolate Gooner – can take some small satisfaction in the fact that their beloved club losing means Piers Morgan is unhappy. But whilst others drown their sorrows with pals down the pub, or kick some inanimate object, dear old Piers has […]

10 years ago

Oh Simon. It was going so well until the mother of all f*ck ups. Liverpool’s were up in arms after their hapless ‘goalkeeper’ Simon Mignolet allowed Fernandinho’s effort on goal squeeze under his body to put Man City 1-0 in the lead during the Capital One Cup final. Simon, Simon, Simon… 1-0 City #CapitalOneCupFinal pic.twitter.com/fxkEhohauK — SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) […]

10 years ago

This is superb. Manchester United may be a huge money-making behemoth of a corporation, with its multinational tentacles stretching out to all corners of the globe, but there’s something reassuringly local and almost parochial about their famous youth academy conveyor belt. The likes of Remi Moses, Wes Brown, Nicky Butt, Gary and Phil Neville, Paul […]

10 years ago

Can Arsenal make up ground on league leaders Leicester City? Will Man United wreak revenge for their humiliating 3-0 visit to the Emirates in October? It’s a tantalising encounter at Old Trafford for the 2.05pm kickoff on Sunday afternoon. Here are the teams charged with bringing victory for either Arsene Wenger’s title challengers or Louis […]

10 years ago

All the trash talk was pure hype. Carl Frampton beat Scott Quigg on Saturday to unify world super-bantamweight titles. The Norn Iron man was having a relatively comfortable night of it before Quigg came to life in the later rounds and turned it into a meaty scrap. In the end, Frampton won on a somewhat […]

10 years ago

Sophie’s choice. Kind of. Liverpool and Man City are two clubs that definitely polarise opinion. Both have a large and committed fanbase, but are disliked by many rival supporters for various reasons. So their appearance in Sunday’s Capital One Cup final was always going to leave ‘neutrals’ in a quandary. As any true football fan will […]

10 years ago

Let this be a lesson – don’t act the big I am without being able to back it up. This QPR fan was feeling pretty hard in a Loftus Road ground filled with his fellow supporters on Saturday afternoon. The opposition were Birmingham City and the cocky chap didn’t appreciate the away end’s presence. So he […]

10 years ago

This is perhaps jumping the gun a bit. Marcus Rashford experienced the sort of debut that was surely beyond his wildest dreams on Thursday night, when he was hastily drafted in to replace the injured Anthony Martial against FC Midtjylland. The 18-year-old starlet scored a brace in the 5-1 victory, and earned rave reviews for his composure and […]

10 years ago

Leicester City may be on the rise, but Claudio Ranieri is under no illusions. Riyad Mahrez is a wanted man, and his suitors are amongst the very best in the world. To his credit, Ranieri is frank and honest about the situation regarding the creative gem of his side. Barcelona, Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United and Man […]

10 years ago

Well. Well well well. It was bound to happen. Liverpool and Man United will face each other in Europe for the first time ever. Such is the epic nature of the two-legged encounter that it kind of overshadowed the rest of the Europa League draw. But how did the respective sets of fans react to […]

10 years ago

Bitter rivals Liverpool and Manchester United will face each other in an explosive Europa League last 16 tie. The two giants of English football are both struggling outside the Champions League spots in the Premier League, and may need to win Europe’s ‘B’ competition in order to qualify for next year’s elite tournament. United were rewarded […]

10 years ago

No inch given. Kolo Toure is known for his infectious enthusiasm and loveable persona, and it’s clear that he loves his brother Yaya very much indeed. But he certainly won’t allow that affection to stop him achieving his Wembley dream. Liverpool face Man City in the Capital One Cup final on Sunday, with a chance […]

10 years ago

What the actual f*ck. We thought the general idea of sporting mascots was to look cute and cuddly on the sidelines and engage youngsters going to games – not to haunt their nightmares and prolong bed-wetting. Japanese rugby union side Sunwolves (or HITO-Communications Sunwolves to give them their full name) obviously decided something a little […]

10 years ago

It was only Midtjylland FFS. A side that has played fewer games than Ryan Giggs. A club that is younger than Anthony Martial. Yes it was only Midtjylland, but Old Trafford didn’t much care. Because for one night only, they had their Manchester United back. Worse sides have entered the Theatre of Broken Dreams and encountered a cold porridge of […]

10 years ago

Reports in Italy suggest that Man United have tabled a €28m bid for Fiorentina’s Federico Bernardeschi, but who the hell is he? Let us educate your brain via words and sentences. First things first, Bernardeschi is a 22-year-old winger who plays for Serie A side Fiorentina. He is the product of the Viola youth academy, which […]

10 years ago

This is certainly an interesting one. During their post-match summing up on BT Sport, Gary Lineker, Rio Ferdinand, Ronald Koeman and Ian Wright noticed something dodgy in the game-time footage of Arsenal vs Barcelona. In the 84th minute, shortly after Barca had scored their second goal in a 2-0 victory, their manager Luis Enrique was seen calling […]

10 years ago

It’s the one we’ve all been waiting for. Arsenal versus Barcelona – a game that promises attractive football, intricate passing and plenty of goals. And both teams are jam-packed with attacking talent. These are the starting lineups that Arsene Wenger and Luis Enrique have charged with prevailing in arguably the prestige game of the week… The […]

10 years ago

It was just one of those days. Arsenal played with purpose and passion, and had a number of excellent chances, but sometimes it’s just not your day. Hull were the immovable object to Arsenal’s not quite irresistible force on the day, and their keeper Eldin Jakupovic had an absolute blinder. But football fans being football fans, […]

11 years ago

What a save! Hull City keeper Eldin Jakupovic was in heroic form against Arsenal in the FA Cup on Saturday, and made all sorts of remarkable saves (11 in total) throughout the game, which ended 0-0. But the pick of the bunch came in the 54th minute, when the Bosnian was at full stretch to […]

11 years ago

The last-16 of the FA Cup is upon us. Arsenal entertain Hull City in Saturday’s early kickoff, and the teams are in. Wenger has one eye on Tuesday’s Champions League game with the mighty Barcelona, which perhaps explains David Ospina replacing Petr Cech in goal. New signing Mohamed Elneny also starts. Hull will be hoping to capitalise on […]

11 years ago

It’s like Blue Dream meets Blue Peter. When we think of Seth Rogen, there’s two things that come to mind – bawdy Judd Apatow comedies and weed, glorious weed. Here the Rogemeister (we just made that up, it’s not a thing) focuses on the latter as he goes through rolling the perfect joint in admirable detail. If you […]

11 years ago

There are no words. Arsenal Football Club have a lot of things to be proud of. Their tradition, their celebrated manager and their committed support around the world to name but three. But they’ve got a shocking record for rank awful songs. And we don’t mean football chants either, oh no. We’re talking about the […]

11 years ago

Something needs to change. Manchester United look completely rudderless, and Louis van Gaal is nothing but a sitting duck. It’s got to the point where it’s actually crueler to keep him in the job. Ed Woodward needs to do what he should have done at Christmas and relieve the Dutchman of his duties. The current […]

11 years ago

Face/Off. Johnny Depp is world-renowned for being one of the best looking men on the planet. Donald Trump resembles a satsuma wearing a wig. But a strange combination of the two make for an extremely bizarre reveal, as the square-jawed actor removes prosthetics disguising him as the Presidential-hopeful. Funny or Die have produced a star-studded movie starring Depp as […]

11 years ago

Surely this is the nadir for Man United. The Old Trafford faithful thought things were bad under David Moyes, but at least he reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League, only to be knocked out by the mighty Bayern Munich. Fast-forward two years, and Louis van Gaal’s men lost 2-1 to FC Midtjylland in the Europa […]

11 years ago

FC Augsburg bloody love Merseyside. Hot on the heels of their pastiche of the Beatles’ Abbey Road album cover, in anticipation of playing Liverpool on Thursday, the Germans are at it again. The Bundesliga side have produced a handy German translation for common Scouse phrases so that the visitors can make themselves understood during their Europa League […]

11 years ago

During his glittering career, Zinedine Zidane elevated football. Not only can the legendary Frenchman boast World Cup, European Championship, Champions League, La Liga and Serie A winners medals amongst many others, but he won them in style. Rarely has a player married aesthetic beauty with end product so perfectly. The Real Madrid manager is quite rightly […]

11 years ago

Wow. Just…wow. Worlds collide in this brilliant footage of Sunderland’s Steven Fletcher performing the opening rap of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air to his Marseille teammates. The Scottish international is on loan at the Stade Vélodrome, and the video was recorded during the player’s initiation into the French squad. We can’t quite find the words to describe […]

11 years ago

We’re so glad we asked. Gianni Infantino has been announced as the next President of Fifa, replacing Sepp Blatter as the most powerful man in football. The Swiss administrator is familiar to most of us due to his regular gig of hosting European draws and watching over the tickling of balls by footballing royalty. Of course Infantino […]

11 years ago

We’ve had the Higuita scorpion kick, the rabona, the Cruyff turn and the no-look pass. But Benfica youngster Renato Sanches may have invented a whole new skill that youngsters around the world will be trying out for themselves. Introducing – the Renatackle. The 18-year-old Portuguese prodigy is a target for Man United, Liverpool, Real Madrid and […]

11 years ago

When it rains it pours for Louis van Gaal. Many assumed Wayne Rooney was being rested when he wasn’t listed in the squad to travel to Denmark for Man United’s Europa game with FC Midtjylland. But now it has emerged that he will face up to two months on the sidelines after suffering knee ligament damage. […]

11 years ago