Inhaltsverzeichnis für September 2019 in FourFourTwo UK

If the new domestic season is anything like the last one, FourFourTwo can’t wait. At the top, the highest-quality title race in Premier League history – Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City 98 points, European champions Liverpool 97 points. In the Championship, the remarkable promotion race, featuring the roller-coaster ride of Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds. In Scotland, competitive Old Firm matches: Celtic two wins, Rangers two wins. In Birmingham, someone threw a cabbage at Steve Bruce. So how do you follow that? In the nine months of mystery that lies ahead, we’ll find out. How will Frank Lampard fare at Chelsea? He’s the first Englishman to manage one of the ‘Big Six’ since Tim Sherwood at Spurs – for his sake, let’s hope he lasts a little longer than Sherwood did. Lampard will…

MOST ILL-ADVISED SPONSOR 2016: Romania’s football federation suspends three coaches and 14 players at a second division club because of match-fixing allegations, after previously making a decision to ban betting on matches. 2019: Romania’s second division unveil a new logo – ‘Liga 2, the home of betting’ – after agreeing a shiny new sponsorship deal with gambling firm Casa Pariurilor. BEST CROSSOVER SPORT Do you like football? And do you like motorbikes? If so, we have just the sport for you: motoball. The sport follows largely the rules of football - apart from the fact the ball’s a bit bigger and everyone’s riding motorbikes, except for the goalkeepers. The European Championships took place recently in Germany, and Russia (in action, right) lifted the title for the fourth year in succession,…

West Brom 3 Reading 0 September 9, 1992 Division Two “My professional debut, but also against my childhood hero Ossie Ardiles, who managed West Brom at the time. I grew up as a huge Spurs fan, and he was my favourite player. After the game, I nervously waited for him to sign my programme – it still has a central place in my collection. The game itself was early in the season, in what’s now known as League One. At the last minute, our first-choice goalkeeper got injured and manager Mark McGhee asked me to play. It was a major shock for me and we lost 3-0, but I accomplished my dream of becoming a professional footballer.” Newcastle 2 Liverpool 1 November 4, 1995 Premier League “My first season with…

XI BEST: Bryan Gunn, Max Aarons, Ian Butterworth, Duncan Forbes, Robbie Brady, Ruel Fox, Marco Stiepermann, Darren Huckerby, James Maddison, Ted MacDougall, Chris Sutton. WORST: Michael Theoklitos, Ignasi Miquel, Jurgen Colin, Steve Walsh, Fernando Derveld, Papa Seydou Diop, Mike Milligan, Mark Fotheringham, Raymond de Waard, Gary Doherty, Dean Coney. PLAYER B: Martin Peters [below]: In terms of medals, our greatest player was a World Cup winner who put in a good shift at Carrow Road while spending his summers flogging windows. W: Michael Theoklitos played just once, but after conceding seven against Colchester in August 2009 he changed his name to Michael Theo. MOMENT B: Beating Bayern Munich away in the UEFA Cup – October 19, 1993. W: Losing at Portman Road virtually dropping us to the third (April 19,…

Oakland, California isn’t associated with ‘soccer’. The NFL, NBA and MLB have long dominated sports fans’ attention in the area. But times are changing. In the summer of 2016, a group of passionate locals gathered to discuss the idea of a semi-professional football team to engage the community. Fast-forward three years and that ambitious dream from co-creators Edreece Arghandiwal and Benno Nagel, a former coach with Dinamo Zagreb and Twente, has become reality. Their idea has produced Oakland Roots Sports Club, a professional team on the brink of their debut season in the fourth tier of America’s football pyramid. Their timing couldn’t be more perfect. Two of the three major franchises are on their way out of Oakland: the NFL’s Raiders are off to Las Vegas in 2020, and the…

“I COULD SEE THE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT AND THE SMOKE RISING ABOVE THE RUINS” On the morning of Saturday April 26, 1986, a helicopter landed on a football pitch in northern Ukraine. Players from FC Pripyat were preparing for a big cup semi-final against FC Borodyanka later that afternoon. They watched as men wearing protective suits and carrying radiation detectors clambered out of the helicopter. As the detectors clicked with audible warnings, the men informed the footballers that the match would not be played. There had been an incident at the nearby Vladimir Ilyich Lenin Nuclear Power Plant, also known as Chernobyl. Pripyat was a commuter town located a couple of miles from the nuclear power plant and around 10 miles from the city of Chernobyl. Founded in 1970, Pripyat…

Grief and anger populate the streets of Doncaster. Lining the roads leading to Belle Vue, hundreds of mourners march in unison towards the ground, surrounding a funeral procession that carries a sign reading: ‘The Rovers, Cruelly Taken Away’. Led by a pallbearer dressed in a full black suit and top hat, the cortege snakes its way to the foot of the old stadium’s family stand, where a number of wreaths and handmade memorials are laid to commemorate the departed. Despite the sombre atmosphere created by the mock funeral Doncaster Rovers fans are holding, no one has died. But as the supporters edge their way to Donny’s final fixture of the 1997-98 season, a feeling of loss is everywhere. “It felt like a real funeral, like the death of the club,”…

What do you remember about the day you joined Wolves? Graham Taylor had just been coaching the England national team when he became the new manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1994. I was a big signing for him. I arrived on December 5 that year, and the next day Taylor told the squad, “Guys, he will become our leader.” I was flabbergasted. But I was able to handle that pressure. I came from Feyenoord where I’d achieved a lot. If you have managed to stand firm at De Kuip, you can handle almost everything. What was your first game for the club? It was a home match against Notts County – for the first time in 17 games, Wolves kept a clean sheet. We won 1-0 and moved into 2nd…

Well, wasn’t that fun? For the first time in years, the 2018-19 Premier League had a proper title race that went down to the wire. In the end, Pep Guardiola’s charges succeeded in becoming the first team in a decade to retain the Premier League title – but the fact that Manchester City had to win their final 14 matches in order to do so is proof that England’s ‘Big Six’ is now a ‘Big Two’. Realistically, City and Liverpool have detached themselves from the erstwhile sextet through consistent excellence. The former have strengthened again and in the area they needed to most, making Atletico Madrid midfielder Rodri (23) a club-record signing as heir presumptive to Fernandinho (34). City are title favourites, naturally – this is, after all, the best…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 5th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Tammy Abraham (26) CAN BOYHOOD FANS SMITH AND GREALISH KEEP ASTON VILLA UP? MAT KENDRICK @MATKENDRICK When Aston Villa submitted plans to develop Villa Park to the city council this summer, it’s a wonder the architect’s drawings didn’t include statues of Dean Smith and Jack Grealish. The four small words ‘One of our own’ can carry with them an enormous burden of expectation, as well as the huge dollops of support homegrown heroes are often afforded. But as ‘two of our own’ Deano and Super Jack have teamed up to rise to the challenge – and then some. These aren’t fans of the badge-kissing-just-for-show variety, of course. Smith and Grealish are proper Villa. Always have…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 15th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Third Round EUROPA LEAGUE Play-off TOP SCORERS Ashley Barnes, Chris Wood (13) WHICH OF THE TWO BURNLEYS WILL SHOW UP THIS SEASON? CHRIS BODEN @BODENKNIGHTS After finishing 7th in 2017-18 and qualifying for the Europa League, Burnley suffered something of a hangover in the first half of last season, not helped by a summer transfer window which Sean Dyche said left him two or three players light. They took just 12 points from their first 19 games, the last of which was a 5-1 Boxing Day humbling at home to Everton. With the Clarets in the drop zone, Dyche recalled club captain Tom Heaton and brought in 19-year-old winger Dwight McNeil. Burnley went on an eight-game unbeaten run…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 8thFA CUP Fourth RoundLEAGUE CUP Third RoundTOP SCORERS Richarlison, Gylfi Sigurdsson (14) SHOULD FARHAD MOSHIRI EXPECT A LOT MORE FROM HIS OUTLAY? JIM KEOGHAN @JIM_KEOGHAN When you invest around £325 million in a football club, you probably expect a bit of a return on your outlay. Instead, Farhad Moshiri has seen Everton’s league position deteriorate, European football become a rarity and opportunities to bring home longed-for silverware remain relatively scarce. It wasn’t supposed to be like this, though. When the British-Iranian investor first arrived at Goodison Park in 2016, Everton were seen as the ‘best of the rest’, a club on the cusp of the elite. The big idea was that all it would take for Everton to bridge the gap to the elite was…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 1st FA CUP Winners LEAGUE CUP Winners CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Quarter-Finals TOP SCORER Sergio Aguero (32) IS IT TIME TO FOCUS ON THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE? STEVE ANGLESEY @SANGLESEY Nowhere lately, not even in Donald Trump’s wildest dreams, has there been so much winning. But after the 100-point campaign of 2017-18 was followed by a domestic clean sweep, this might be the year when less is more. Some might say City don’t really need to pick their battles, coming three wins short of a quintuple despite spending months without the injured Kevin De Bruyne. Many, though, would urge Pep Guardiola to prioritise the Blues’ only remaining unscratched itch. City would be far more likely to win the Champions League if they played fewer competitive games: 60 in…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 1st FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Teemu Pukki (30) HOW CAN THE CANARIES SHORE UP A LEAKY DEFENCE AND STAY UP? MICHAEL BAILEY @MICHAELJBAILEY The reason promoted sides bank on continuing momentum in their new surroundings is easily pinned down: going up is a heady experience. Points, wins and goals paper over the cracks until everyone is convinced they’re watching perfection. The end result only reaffirms the feeling. Norwich had the lot in abundance last season, and the supporters went to town as they lifted the Championship trophy. Then the summer arrived… Norwich fans have enough recent Premier League experience to see the open expanses their players created at either end of the pitch, and know even the mid-table sides you…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 4th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Semi-Finals CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Runners-Up TOP SCORER Harry Kane (24) HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE HARRY? JAMES MAW @JAMESMAWFFT They say traditions are few and far between in modern football, but Tottenham appear to have developed an unwanted one in recent years. Harry Kane’s knack for ankle knocks is well-known – he has suffered five in the past three seasons, missing 31 matches in total – and clearly that isn’t good news. But does Tottenham’s biggest problem come in the aftermath of his hasty returns, not when he’s actually missing? You can’t knock Kane’s desire to play in his club’s first ever Champions League final, but he was a long way off being fully sharp and it…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 7th FA CUP Semi-Finals LEAGUE CUP Third Round TOP SCORER Raul Jimenez (17) CAN WOLVES AVOID THE DREADED SECOND-SEASON SYNDROME? TIM NASH @TIMNASH_1 Across a decade and a half, Wolves’ five Premier League finishes were 20th, 15th, 17th, 20th... and 7th. The last of these came in 2018-19 – the highest position of any newly promoted Premier League club since 5th-placed Ipswich in 2000-01. No wonder Molineux feels different these days. The way Wolves qualified for European competition made the nation sit up and take notice. It wasn’t just about results; Nuno Espirito Santo’s easy-on-the-eye playing style tested the very best. You don’t win six games against the ‘Big Six’ in all competitions within a single season without implementing an identity first. Every player is…

LAST SEASON LEAGUE ONE 2nd FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER Kieffer Moore (19) FAN FILE LEWIS ROBINSON @_robinsonlewis The big talking point among the fans was whether captain Adam Davies would leave. His contract wasn’t extended and he has joined Stoke. This season will be different because we’re in the Championship. Better opposition and fuller stadiums. I won’t be happy unless we stay up. It will be a great platform for the development of this young squad. Our most underrated player is Dani Pinillos. He struggled in his first six months but looked sharp last season. Look out for Jacob Brown. He can prove his worth on a bigger stage. The best away ground is Griffin Park for sentimental reasons. We might be the last…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 11th FA CUP Fifth Round LEAGUE CUP Third Round TOP SCORER Neal Maupay (28) FAN FILE GRAHAM BALL This season won’t be any different because as ever, we’ll balance the books, play attractive football, finish top-half and be happy. Four decades of lower-league football does that. I won’t be happy unless we smash another former “big club”, preferably with European Cup credentials, and read their deluded supporters bang on about “teams like Brentford”. Look out for Josh Dasilva. The former Arsenal kid made a low-key start, but is now looking the business. The best away ground is Fulham’s (leafy area, allegedly ‘upmarket’ fans, competitive game) or Millwall’s (tricky area, vocal fans, competitive game). The best away fans are Preston’s, if it’s Gentry Day. The opposition player I…

LAST SEASON LEAGUE ONE 3rd FA CUP Second Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER Lyle Taylor (25) FAN FILE LOUIS MENDEZ @LouisMend The big talking point among the fans has been Lee Bowyer’s contract. The manager [below] signed a one-year extension hours after owner Roland Duchatelet said Bowyer would be off. This season will be different because it will be a massive step up, working with the division’s smallest budget. I won’t be happy unless there’s a takeover. Duchatelet’s cost-cutting measures leave Charlton hamstrung. Our most underrated player is Anfernee Dijksteel. The 22-year-old Dutch right-back kept club captain Chris Solly out of the team at times. Look out for teenager Albie Morgan, a superb passer of the ball. The best away ground is Elland Road. It’s a famous old-fashioned…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 20th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Karlan Grant (4) FAN FILE MARCUS MIDDLETON downatthemac.proboards.com The big talking point among the fans is how many players will leave and whether our new chairman has sufficient funds to replace them. This season will be different because we should score goals and win games. I won’t be happy unless we start to show an identity again. Our most underrated player is Isaac Mbenza. Can look like Bambi on ice, but he’s shown glimpses of quality. Look out for midfielder Lewis O’Brien. He did well at Bradford last season. The best away ground is Barnsley’s – it’s local and the away end is massive. The best away fans are Reading’s – classily magnanimous when…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 21st FA CUP Quarter-Finals LEAGUE CUP Third Round TOP SCORER Lee Gregory (13) FAN FILE MERV PAYNE @mervpayne The big talking point among the fans is a huge rebuilding job on a small budget. Lee Gregory has gone, and the lack of activity has been worrying. I won’t be happy unless we manage to hold on to a lead in injury time. Our most underrated player is Shane Ferguson [below]. The forgotten man fought his way back into the side. Look out for Ben Thompson. Millwall through and through. The best away ground is The Valley. It’s no footballing Mecca, but every trip there is like a home game for us. The best away fans are Leeds’, who provide the best atmosphere, and we’re usually good for…

When Paderborn were relegated to Germany’s Regionalliga West two years ago, only the bravest of loyal fans would have predicted a Bundesliga return by 2019. But this month, they’ll step out at the BayArena to face Bayer Leverkusen for their opening game of the season, back in the top flight. No club in Europe has experienced drama quite like Paderborn in the past five years. Promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time in their history in 2014, by that September they were top of the league after a 2-0 win over Hannover – secured thanks to Moritz Stoppelkamp’s goal from 90 yards, firing into an open net from just outside his own penalty area after Hannover’s goalkeeper had gone up for a free-kick. The success didn’t last. By the…

We interviewed your cousin Les Ferdinand a while back, and he said he was an expert at pulling wheelies on a bike. Are you a wheelie king too? Wheelies aren’t my forte. I can ride a bike OK, but I’m not a wheelie man, I’ll leave that to the kids. Les does some fucked-up stuff, he flies helicopters. Do you have any pointless skills? I’m very good at ironing. I’m a top ironer, right in the top bracket there. The secret is to not burn anything, and you’ve got to get all the creases in the right place. That’s the main chore for me, I’ve done it since I was a kid. Ironing is like riding a bike, once you’ve got the skills, they don’t leave you. Sir Les has…

You’re the last member of Brazil’s World Cup winning squad still going strong. Are you still enjoying playing? Of course! I have to if I still want to be playing at my forties, training every day. I’m playing for Brasiliense, a small club in my home town. As long as I can perform on a good level, I’ll keep going. What’s it like in Brazil’s fourth tier? It’s a brutal difference to everywhere I’ve ever been, but despite leaving Brazil to play abroad at a very young age, I knew what to expect. The conditions aren’t the same, but it gives me the chance to do what I love, and pass on my experience to help young kids in their careers. I still love the game: these days, I take…

On November 5, 1986, only six months after Chernobyl, Celtic travelled to Dynamo Kiev in the second round of the European Cup. The Bhoys became the first western club to visit Ukraine’s capital city – 80 miles south of the nuclear power plant – since the accident. Mo Johnston had scored a late Celtic equaliser in a 1-1 first-leg draw in Glasgow, but none of the players fancied the return trip to Dynamo’s Republican Stadium. The official advice from the UK Foreign Office was to “avoid the area if at all possible.” However, a spokesperson for the Soviet Embassy in London said, “There is no danger, and I can assure Celtic they need have no fear.” The Scottish champions took their own provisions with them, “in view of a doubt…

Manchester United defender Phil Jones won’t go upstairs because of the house monster, QPR chairman Tony Fernandes recommends some soup in a Stockholm restaurant, and Leicester striker Jamie Vardy breaks a potter’s hand with his chin. And then farmer Harry Maguire runs over the potter with his tractor. Of course he doesn’t. But these are just a few highlights of a morning spent watching a recording of Athletico Mince, the increasingly unhinged podcast that has veered away from its football-based origins into a fantasy world with the loosest foundation in reality. Created by self-facilitating media node Andy Dawson and millionaire television celebrity Bob Mortimer, the genesis of the show ultimately lies in an ill-advised supermarket purchase. “Bob started to follow me on Twitter,” says Sunderland fan Andy, “which I was…

What Stephen McPhail and Stephen Bradley have had to endure over the past two decades is a tale of glory and triumph, tragedy and despair. Both seemed destined for stardom and were praised or pursued by the Premier League’s top managers. But then came the brutal stabbing which almost took Bradley’s life, never mind career, while he was an Arsenal apprentice, and the cancer battle that shook former Leeds United prodigy McPhail to his core – a battle that began in November 2009 and that, ultimately, he has been able to win. McPhail, now 39, is the sporting director of Shamrock Rovers, Ireland’s most successful club, where he works in tandem with Bradley, 34, the Hoops’ head coach. They’re united by a desire to help change the landscape of Irish…

You joined Chelsea from Zaragoza in 1997 and have described it as the most important move of your career. Why? Because I was 29, I’d been at Zaragoza for seven years and I could have retired there and had a lovely life in Spain. The decision was big – it wasn’t easy. But it proved to be the right decision because I learned so many things. I enjoyed the relationship with the supporters in English football, and my life completely changed. I learned English, and my kids were four and two years old at the time. They had a great education in England. Now, home for me is London. Why did you decide to join Chelsea? When they called and there was a possibility of coming here, I started looking…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 5th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Quarter-Finals EUROPA LEAGUE Runners-Up TOP SCORER (ALL COMPS) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (31) CAN UNAI EMERY FINALLY FIX THE ARSENAL DEFENCE? TIM STILLMAN @STILLBERTO Arsenal’s defence has been a particularly durable fly in the Emirates ointment over the last decade. It’s an issue Unai Emery inherited from Arsene Wenger, and expecting the incoming Spaniard to turn the Gunners into a miserly defensive unit in his first season would have been unreasonable. But there was no real sign of improvement either. As the season wore on, Emery realised he needed to field three centre-halves out of necessity. Laurent Koscielny will turn 34 in September and his Achilles tendon is shot. He remains Arsenal’s best defender, his refusal to travel to the…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 17th FA CUP Semi-Finals LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Glenn Murray (15) ARE THE SEAGULLS IN A POSITION TO PUT STYLE OVER SUBSTANCE? JEM STONE @JEMSTONE When boss Chris Hughton was called in for a 9am meeting at Albion’s Lancing training ground with owner Tony Bloom, it was less than 24 hours after the end of a season in which he’d kept Brighton up for a second successive year, taken them to an FA Cup semi-final and continued to perform with a set of values and class that are rare in the game. He imagined that he’d be discussing recruitment for the 2019-20 campaign. Instead, Bloom sacked him on the spot. Hughton, not prone to hyperbole, later said that he was “hugely disappointed and…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 12thFA CUP Quarter-FinalsLEAGUE CUP Fourth RoundTOP SCORER Luka Milivojevic (12) CAN PALACE POSSIBLY COPE WITHOUT WILFRIED ZAHA? KEVIN DAY @KEVINHUNTERDAY Aaron Wan-Bissaka leaving was an undeniably big blow for Crystal Palace, but as Oscar Wilde so memorably said on Match of the Day, to lose one homegrown superstar is a misfortune, to lose two looks like carelessness. At the time of writing, Wilf is still a Crystal Palace player – and to be honest, writing this preview is hard when I’ve been crossing my fingers so much, I have repetitive strain injury. And that ‘Wilf’ is important. To us he’s not ‘Zaha’, he’s not ‘Wilfried Zaha’, he’s just ‘Wilf’. If you stand at the very top of the Arthur Wait Stand and lean out as…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 2nd FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Third Round CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Winners TOP SCORER Mohamed Salah (27) BUT, SERIOUSLY, IS IT GOING TO BE THEIR YEAR? ANDREW MURRAY @ANDY_MURRAYFFT The width of your little finger. The diameter of a keyboard button. Half a cashew nut. That was the difference between winning the title for the first time in 29 years and finishing an agonising second. Had Sadio Mané’s shot-turned-goalmouth-scramble travelled 1.12cm further to cross the Manchester City goal-line and turn January’s 2-1 defeat into a draw, the Premier League title and an unbeaten season was Liverpool’s. No one ever said life at the top is easy. It’s staggering that, with four months of the season to go, events on January 3 effectively decided the title.…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 13th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Ayoze Perez (13) HOW DO THEY AVOID RELEGATION IN SUCH A TOXIC ATMOSPHERE? TAYLOR PAYNE @TAYLORANDBESTY How do Newcastle avoid ‘doing a Sunderland’? The question has so many caveats, moving parts and other underlying issues that it’s almost impossible to state definitively what the club must do. However, recent events have felt like a tipping point for the fanbase, and if the potential takeover fails to materialise, we’re likely to experience levels of toxicity not witnessed at St James’ Park since the early-90s nadir of Gordon McKeag. Aside from the obvious issues around the Magpies’ infrastructure and management, one of the most pressing matters is getting the supporters back onside. Yet while this seems…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 16th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Nathan Redmond (9) HOW FAR CAN THE HASENHUTTL REVOLUTION TAKE SAINTS? SIMON PEACH @SIMONPEACH Rarely has a manager both unified and enthused a fanbase as immediately as Ralph Hasenhuttl at Southampton. When Hasenhuttl joined on December 5, Saints were on their haunches and heading for the Championship, having taken just nine points from 14 matches under Mark Hughes. That dismal return jolted the club back to life as they scoured Europe for a new coach, and this time they came back with a manager more like Mauricio Pochettino than Mauricio Pellegrino. Those who weren’t aware of the credentials of the man who gave Ingolstadt their first and second ever Bundesliga campaigns, before leading promoted…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 10th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Marko Arnautovic (11) CAN PABLO FORNALS SUCCEED WHERE JACK WILSHERE FAILED? SAM DELANEY @DELANEYMAN West Ham had the makings of a very decent team last season. Lukasz Fabianski was marvellous in goal; a pair of centre-back gems were unearthed in Fabian Balbuena and Issa Diop; and Felipe Anderson, Michail Antonio and (sporadically) the now-departed Marko Arnautovic provided goals and a bit of flamboyance in attack. The missing piece was a midfield schemer to unpick defiant defences. Deep down, West Ham always knew Jack Wilshere would spend most of the season injured. Sadly, so did Manuel Lanzini. An exasperated Manuel Pellegrini has signed a player to replace them both: Pablo Fornals. A conjurer of extraordinary…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 17th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER Che Adams (22) FAN FILE RYAN DEENEY @RyanDeeney2194 The big talking point among the fans is the small matter of Garry Monk, the most popular manager at St Andrew’s in my lifetime, being given the sack. This season will be different because we’ve lost Monk, Jota, top scorer Che Adams and captain Michael Morrison – and Maikel Kieftenbeld is injured. I won’t be happy unless our owners prove they have finally learned since the Rowett/Zola/Redknapp debacle. Our most underrated player is Maxime Colin [below]. A very classy full-back, never fazed in possession. Look out for Jude Bellingham, who has featured heavily on Best Teenage Footballers in the World lists recently. Our best celebrity fans are Jasper…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 8th FA CUP Fifth Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER Famara Diedhiou (13) FAN FILE PATRICK CONNOLLY @bristolpat The big talking point among the fans is whether the club has the ambition to make a real push for promotion. This season will be different because we’re starting the season looking up rather than down. Our most underrated player is Niclas Eliasson [below], our best crosser. If we get him the ball, he creates things. Look out for young Antoine Semenyo, a strong striker who did well on loan at Newport and can scare defenders. The best away ground is Boro’s – it’s such a long way, but our loyal fans are generally rewarded with three points. The best away fans are Leeds’. Win, lose or draw,…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 6th FA CUP Fifth Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Harry Wilson (18) FAN FILE OLLIE WRIGHT @DerbyCountyBlog The big talking point among the fans has been the future of Frank Lampard. He was only ever on loan, much like Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori, but we hoped it’d last longer than a year. Our most underrated player is Richard Keogh [below]. Ridiculed by outsiders, he’s been a solid presence since arriving from Coventry in 2012. Look out for England youth midfielder Louie Sibley, the most hyped member of Derby’s U18 champions of England. The best away ground is Stamford Bridge, if we get Chelsea in the cup… The one change I’d make to the club would be to hire a sporting director, given we apparently…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 13th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Jarrod Bowen (above right, 22) FAN FILE RICK SKELTON @HullCityLive The big talking point among the fans is the inevitable loss of the manager and key players. With the parachute payments gone the budget must be cut, so it’s the end for star performers like Jarrod Bowen and Kamil Grosicki and those out of contract like Fraizer Campbell and David Marshall. This season will be different because we’ll struggle to overachieve again. We’re in for a very tough campaign. I won’t be happy unless the Allams sell the club. Our most underrated player is Eric Lichaj [below]: versatile, experienced and personable. Look out for Max Sheaf. The tall and elegant midfielder made his league debut on…

LAST SEASON LEAGUE ONE 1st FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER James Collins (25) FAN FILE OLI WALKER @olivermpw_ The big talking point among the fans is the appointment of Graeme Jones [below] and the start of a new era. This season will be different because we probably won’t wipe the floor with the division this time around! I won’t be happy unless we stay up. Our most underrated player is Andrew Shinnie [above]. He makes us tick and always uses the ball smartly. The best away ground is Griffin Park. We played there in our last match before relegation out of the Football League in 2009; it’ll be sweet to go there again as a Championship team. The opposition player I secretly admire is Barnsley’s…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 9th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Lewis Grabban (17) FAN FILE LEE CLARKE @SeatPitch The big talking point among the fans is the sudden dismissal of boss Martin O’Neill, replaced by unknown quantity Sabri Lamouchi. The 18-minute gap between the firing and the hiring was bonkers, even by our standards. This season will be different because last time we were fancied to do well. This year we aren’t and we won’t! I won’t be happy this season unless we regain an identity. We simply need to find a way of playing that picks up points, and then stick to it. To be fair to Aitor Karanka, he gave us optimism of that being the case for a little while. Our most underrated…

1 CARABAO CUP DRAW IN MORRISONS? HOLD OUR IRN-BRU... Forget the UEFA Cup, here’s the Wafer Cup. The Scottish Challenge Cup was already weird: clubs from outside Scotland’s top flight face Scottish Premiership U21 teams, teams from the Highland League and Lowland League, teams from Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, plus Wrexham and Solihull Moors from England’s National League. Now it’s got weirder. Formerly the Irn-Bru Cup, the newly renamed Tunnock’s Caramel Wafer Challenge Cup kicks off this month, so the SPFL did the only sensible thing: they mocked up the draw to make it look like it was being held in a confectionery shop. Suddenly, the EFL’s decision to hold the Carabao Cup draw in Morrisons seems sensible by comparison. While Billy Dodds gamely plucked out…

When Fabrizio Maiello’s football career turned bad, he came up with a sinister solution to his problems. Once a youth team player at Monza in Italy’s Serie B, Maiello sustained a cruciate ligament injury and was told he couldn’t play football any more. Then came drugs and prison. Then, in 1991, he was locked up in a criminal asylum in Reggio Emilia. He was granted special leave three years later, but didn’t return to the asylum. As a fugitive, he instead decided to plan the kidnapping of a top Serie A star. The victim was planned to be Gianfranco Zola, then playing for Parma, who were owned by Calisto Tanzi and the Parmalat company. Maiello hoped that Tanzi would pay a big ransom to release the diminutive star. “We often…

Paul Merson may have won two league titles with Arsenal, but one of his finest goals came during four years at Aston Villa. A few months after coming off the bench to score his penalty in England’s shootout defeat to Argentina at the 1998 World Cup – helped by some positive thinking from super-spiritual coach Glenn Hoddle – Merson moved to Villa Park from Middlesbrough. “I played the best football of my career at Villa,” he tells FourFourTwo. He helped a talented side finish sixth in both of his first two campaigns, before John Gregory’s side opened the 2000-01 campaign with just two defeats in their first 10 games – aided by Gareth Southgate, Dion Dublin and a young Gareth Barry. “It was a shallow squad, we struggled whenever we…

Graeme Souness swaggers. He struts even when he’s sitting down. When he speaks, people listen. The 66-year-old Scot is a natural born leader. There were times during his brilliant career when it seemed like he was bent on heading a suicide mission, but Souness was the greatest captain the game has seen. Fearless, uncompromising and sometimes brutal, former team-mates talk about the man they still call ‘Champagne Charlie’ with awe. “It was all about leadership with Charlie,” said Steve Nicol, who played alongside him for Liverpool and Scotland. “Apart from the fact he was a superb, brilliant footballer.” The great Diego Maradona agrees, recently naming Souness in this magazine as one of the two best British players of his generation (see FFT 301). The other was Bryan Robson, whose nickname…

PETER BEARDSLEY The former Newcastle forward (above) is re-imagined as a morose, downtrodden, egg-obsessed loser, taking solace in the beauty of a solitary buttercup, possibly while his domineering wife cavorts with Mark Lawrenson. “I’ve got to turn things around for Peter,” says Mortimer ruefully. MARK LAWRENSON Visits the Beardsleys, but the suspicion is he’s not just there for the eggs. Unusually, it’s a fairly authentic impression of the dour pundit. “We know Mark is aware of it because his son’s a big fan,” says Dawson. “I think Mark is bemused by podcasts in general, but he quite likes that it’s a thing.” STEVE MCLAREN Ably assisted by Casper, his pet snake, the effete McLaren remains in thrall to angry chairman Mr Fernandes, culminating in a memorable serenade. “I don’t want…

Maybe the heat’s getting to FourFourTwo. It’s 35 degrees in Luxembourg, the dehydration is kicking in and some sort of weird hallucination has presented itself: a load of students holding a press conference in front of a massive wasp. We’re inside the Stade Municipal in the sleepy town of Differdange, a couple of miles from the border with France. The wasp is livid and peering over the students’ shoulders, staring FFT straight in the eye. All while holding a football underneath its arm. Thankfully, it isn’t real – not least because wasps don’t actually have arms. It’s a giant club crest of host team Progres Niederkorn, and it’s serving as the backdrop for a piece of history. The students are from Cardiff Metropolitan University, and they’re about to become the…

England came close to reaching the World Cup final. Do you think it’s only a matter of time before they win something? I do. We host the Euros in 2021, and Great Britain will have a team at the Olympics in Tokyo next year. We are close now. Previously when we were going to big tournaments, we were looking at the quarter finals, or wouldn’t a semi-final be amazing. Now we’re third in the world, and the team are more than capable. You were in the team that reached the Euro 2009 Final. How big an achievement was it? At that time, no one expected us to get to the final. We actually lost our first group game and finished third in the group. For us, to reach the final…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 14th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Quarter-Finals TOP SCORER Callum Wilson (15) ARE THE CHERRIES NOW GOING BACKWARDS? AMIT KATWALA @AMITKATWALA After a decade of forward momentum, there are fears that Eddie Howe’s side have hit the limit of their potential. Bournemouth have slid since their second top-tier season, 2016-17, took them to 9th. Finishing 14th in the Premier League is a remarkable achievement when they faced obliteration as recently as 2009, but last year felt like a missed opportunity. After a strong start, Bournemouth flagged badly. At the end of October, they weren’t just 6th – they had the most points of any Premier League team to ever be 6th at that stage. But then they folded in the face of tougher opposition,…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 3rdFA CUP Fifth RoundLEAGUE CUP Runners-UpEUROPA LEAGUE WinnersTOP SCORER Eden Hazard (21) CAN THE ACADEMY BOYS REALLY CUT IT AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL? CLIVE MARTIN @THUGCLIVE For Chelsea, the big question this season is one that has been echoing around the forums, threads and phone-ins for some time. Now, in 2019-20, we may finally get an answer either way. Successive managers have found excuses to kick the can down the road, blaming top-down pressure to play it safe in the quest for results. They put all of their chips on experience, assured that Eden Hazard or a set-piece would earn the Blues a result. But with Hazard having departed to Real Madrid and the London club’s hand forced by a well-documented transfer ban, the time…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 9th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Quarter-Finals TOP SCORER Jamie Vardy (18) CAN BRENDAN RODGERS REBUILD HIS REPUTATION IN ENGLAND? JOE BREWIN @JOEBREWINFFT You could forgive Brendan Rodgers a wry smile when Divock Origi wrapped up Champions League victory for Liverpool in June. Not because it was the Northern Irishman who signed him in 2014, but something bigger: the Reds had finally moved on. It wasn’t the top-flight title that has eluded them since 1989-90, but it was enough – just reward for a terrific season which has surely put to rest those demons of 2013-14. A mortifying misstep meant it wasn’t to be for Rodgers five years ago – or indeed ever at Liverpool – but all parties have recovered serenely since; the…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 6th FA CUP Quarter-Finals LEAGUE CUP Third Round CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Quarter-Finals TOP SCORER Paul Pogba (16) HOW LONG DOES OLE REALLY HAVE AT THE WHEEL? SAM PILGER @SAMPILGER It has been more than 30 years since Manchester United supporters approached a new campaign consumed with this much gloom and pessimism. This is largely due to the nagging fear many harbour that the club acted too rashly in hiring Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager. The lusty chants of ‘Ole’s at the wheel’ that reverberated around the grounds during his caretaker reign have faded, and been replaced by the concern that United might be saddled with a boss fatally out of his depth. After arriving last December, the Norwegian kicked off his Old Trafford tenure by introducing…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 2nd FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP First Round TOP SCORER Billy Sharp (24) CAN THEY STICK TO THEIR PRINCIPLES AND SURVIVE? DANNY HALL @DANNYHALL04 It’s the question that has been on the lips of most Blades fans since Sheffield United pipped rivals Leeds to a place in the Premier League. Their huge success under Chris Wilder has been based on his wise recruitment, his fostering of an unshakeable team spirit, and his ability to raise a player’s ceiling to dizzy new heights – but there’s no doubt that it’s also attributable to an innovative, exciting and even downright baffling 3-5-2 formation. For the uninitiated, it’s unlike anything ever seen before. Under Wilder, United’s wing-backs operate like wingers – nothing too leftfield there – but then…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 11th FA CUP Runners-Up LEAGUE CUP Third Round TOP SCORER Gerard Deulofeu (12) WILL THEY SUFFER A HANGOVER FROM THE FA CUP FINAL DEFEAT? DAVID CAMERON WALKER @D_C_W By now, most Watford fans will have lost count of how many times they’ve been asked, “Are you over the cup final yet?” In truth, most of the fanbase had moved on long before the final whistle, proudly waving their red and yellow flags in celebration of the huge achievement of even being there in the first place. Emotional turmoil is nothing new for Hornets fans, but the hope is that the players dealt similarly swiftly with the disappointment. Certainly, the club are alive to the prospect of one of those lingering late-morning hangovers that just refuses…

The annual bunfight for the biggest prize in world football starts here. With the Premier League growing ever more lucrative, unconfirmed rumours have suggested that a place in the top flight could be worth at least £7.8 trillion pounds to each promoted side this time around. It’s a prize fund that already has Championship chairmen salivating, as they ponder just how many overpriced Ligue 1 midfielders they will be able to purchase once they reach the promised land. For just £55m, they, too, could buy Jean Michael Seri and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa. But who will those lucky chairmen be this time around? The Championship now appears to be as competitive as ever: more than half of the division will have their eyes on the top flight, and all except Bristol…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 15th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Third Round TOP SCORER Bradley Dack (above, 18) FAN FILE MIKE DELAP @MikeyDelap The big talking point among the fans is just the complete lack of anything happening, unless you count signing Stewart Downing on a free transfer. I won’t be happy unless we can stop shipping goals away from home. Our most underrated player is Danny Graham. Often maligned, he’s done a thankless task marvellously. Look out for midfielder Lewis Travis. Great movement, classy on the ball and ultra-aggressive in the tackle. Our best celebrity fan is Matt Smith of Doctor Who fame. The best away ground is Brentford’s. Old-school and a pub on every corner. The best away fans are Sheffield Wednesday’s. Having said that, I’m told Leeds…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 18th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORERS Victor Camarasa, Bobby Reid (5) FAN FILE BEN JAMES @ViewFromTheNin The big talking point among the fans is who’s coming and who’s going: players, manager, even the chairman. This season will be different because the league is eight games longer and much more of a slog, but I’m looking forward to it and the refs are better. I won’t be happy unless we go back up. Last time our promotion was, in essence, a bonus. Now we’ve almost stayed up, against all odds, and then improved the squad. Our most underrated player is Joe Ralls, a gifted midfielder who keeps things ticking over. Still only 25, too. Look out for Cameron Coxe – the Wales…

LAST SEASON PREMIER LEAGUE 19th FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Fourth Round TOP SCORER Aleksandar Mitrovic (11) FAN FILE JACK COLLINS @FulhamishPod The big talking point among the fans is who will stay and who will move on, particularly Ryan Sessegnon and Aleksandar Mitrovic. This season will be different because it’s a different league! Our previous two Championship seasons brought lovely football and relative success. I won’t be happy unless Fulham rediscover a positive playing style. Scott Parker [above] has to get us passing teams into submission. Our most underrated player is Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa. The club-record, deadline-day signing struggled but could be a top player. Look out for Marlon Fossey. A USA youth international, he could rotate with Cyrus Christie at right-back. The best away ground is Deepdale,…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 3rd FA CUP Third Round LEAGUE CUP Second Round TOP SCORER Kemar Roofe (15) FAN FILE TOMMY DAVIES @tommy_lufc This season will be different because hopefully at least some senior players won’t get injured. At times last year, our substitutes’ bench was comprised entirely of actual children. I won’t be happy unless I finally stop supporting Leeds United. Our most underrated player is young winger Jack Clarke – our fans possibly expected too much too soon from him. Look out for midfield scamp Jamie Shackleton. He has a chant to the tune of Baby Shark. Don’t Google it. The best away ground is Craven Cottage: the ‘neutral stand’ becomes another away stand. Fulham obliged us by being relegated last term, which is downright civil of them. Our…

LAST SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP 7th FA CUP Fourth Round LEAGUE CUP Quarter-Finals TOP SCORER Britt Assombalonga (16) FAN FILE JOSH HOLLIS @joshhollis The big talking point among the fans is the decision to appoint Jonathan Woodgate [above] as manager. Some say his promotion from assistant lacks ambition; for others it’s a step on the way to giving the club its identity back. This season will be different because it’ll be more interesting than watching another season of Pulis-ball. I won’t be happy unless Lewis Wing [below] bags five 25-yard screamers. Our most underrated player is Darren Randolph, who is comfortably a Premier League goalkeeper. Look out for talented teenager Djed Spence, a pacy attacking right-back. The best away ground is Craven Cottage, especially via Boro boat. The best away fans are…