On 8 December 2001 Manchester United lost at home to West Ham United, their third successive defeat and sixth of the season so far. The team that had won the last three Premier League titles was on shaky ground, and one of the scapegoats was Juan Sebastián Verón. The Argentine midfielder had signed for a […]
Argentina
Argentine Superliga round-up week 9: Boca take first loss while Colon remain unbeaten
The international break is over and the Superliga is finally back. We kicked things off on Friday where Argentinos jrs. hosted Cólon. Argentinos Jrs. came into this game full of confidence after winning 3 out of their last 4 matches. However, it was Colon who took all three points back home to Santa Fe. Argentinos […]
Argentines in England Part Three: The Four Retirements of Mauricio Taricco
I was an avid collector of Merlin’s Premier League stickers for the 1995 season, with the battered album residing in the loft to this day. Memories of rushing to the local shop on a Sunday morning, pocket money burning a hole in my pocket, endure. Taking the packets home and ripping the top off to […]
Argentine Superliga round-up week 8: Boca clinch Superclasico & goalkeeper heroics in Santa Fe
The 200th edition of the Superclásico between River Plate and Boca juniors took place on Sunday. It was a spectacular game with all the elements you’d expect from a South American derby. The Monumental was rocking until the 38th minute. Ignacio Fernandez got himself sent off for a Nigel de Jong esque-challenge on Edwin Cardona. […]
Argentine Superliga roundup week 7: Rotation cost River and Lanus while Boca stroll to success
The Superliga returned this weekend after last week’s elections. Banfield kicked Fecha 7 off against Colon. Banfield drew their first game in over a year last weekend and added another draw to that number this weekend. A tight game saw both sides sharing the points, 1-1. Argentinos Juniors have started the season brightly but found […]
5 South American youngsters you may not have heard of
Yeferson Soteldo (21, Huachipato, Chile) Yeferson Soteldo is a tricky Venezuelan winger who plays his games for Huachipato, Chile. The 21-year old did superbly in Venezuela with Zamora FC and earned a move after a wonderful campaign with Venezuela’s U20 side in the U20 World Cup. Venezuela finished second, with Soteldo being one of the […]
Argentines in England Part Two: Tevez, Mascherano, Dodgy Deals, and Trophies
Part One: Ardiles, Villa, War & Wembley Fans of South American football and/or the Football Manager series uttered sheer disbelief when West Ham United completed a double swoop for Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano on transfer deadline day of 2006. With a grin that would make the Cheshire Cat look miserable, Hammers manager Alan Pardew stood […]
A tactical analysis of Boca Juniors playing style
Boca are quickly becoming the team to beat in Argentina. After winning the league last season they have made the best start to a season in their history this year winning 6 out of 6 and scoring 15 goals. In this article I will be breaking down the tactics of Guillermo Barros Schelotto’s side and […]
Argentina Superliga round-up week 6: San Lorenzo remain unbeaten while Boca extends their lead
He has featured quite a lot in these round-ups and he was once again vital for Lanus: Pepe Sand. There are not many strikers like him. His movement, anticipation and instinct up front is superb and he proved that again on Friday. He had only two shots in the entire game but both ended up […]
Argentine Superliga roundup week 5: The weekend of bore draws and Arsenal shock Banfield
It was the last round before the vital international break. Argentina need a win in the Bombonera against Peru to stay in the race for World Cup qualification. This definitely wasn’t the most exciting round of the season but let’s get into the action. Union de Santa Fe continued their fine start to the season […]
Argentine Superliga round-up week 4: Boca unstoppable and Nelson Vivas resigns
We opened fecha 4 in Cordoba where Belgrano hosted Tigre. Tigre were still looking for their first win of the season and knew it was going to be a tough game. Belgrano, on the other hand, started the season brightly and were favourites before kickoff. However, neither side ended up with three points as the […]
Argentine’s in England Part One: Ardiles, Villa, War & Wembley
In February 2008, as part of Tottenham Hotspur’s 125th anniversary celebrations, Argentine duo Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa became inductee 22 and 23, and the first foreigners, in the club’s Hall of Fame. However, it could have been so different had an event beyond their control not occurred in 1982. Osvaldo Ardiles and Ricardo Villa […]
Argentine Superliga round-up week 3: Boca and River maintain 100% record & off the pitch controversy for Temperley
Patronato continued to pick up important points in a 1-3 win over Tigre. Midfielder Martin Rivero was excellent and popped up with 2 goals. He also completed 97%(!) of his passes. Tigre are yet to pick up a victory and will need to improve if they don’t want to drop into the relegation zone. Tigre […]
Argentina Superliga round-up week 2: Boca and River make no mistakes and the Maxi Romero show
The international break is (finally) over and we are back to recap all the action in the Superliga this weekend. There were three games on Friday. First of all, Arsenal were beaten 0-1 at home by Colon, goal by Chancalay. That leaves Arsenal with 0 points from their first two games and they will have […]
Brains over brawn: Juan Román Riquelme’s style divided opinion, but his talent was plain to see
Silverware often guarantees greatness and a player’s position in football folklore, but a lack of thereof does not necessarily tarnish a claim to the same status. A romantic player whose beauty is not matched by his universally recognised decoration is one who will, arguably more than any other player, show why the ‘beautiful game’ is […]
5 U23 players to keep your eye on in the Argentine Superliga
Wilmar Barrios, Boca Juniors The 23-year old Colombian midfielder joined Boca in 2016 after he made over 100 appearances for Deportes Tolima in his home country. Barrios is a defensive minded midfielder and his strong points are tackling, intercepting and is in general very good in breaking down play. To add to that, he’s also […]
Argentina Superliga round one: High scoring affairs and Boca impress early on
The Argentina Primera División or the Superliga, as it’s now called, is finally back. As always many European clubs were looking to strengthen their sides with talented youngsters from Argentina. Estudiantes’ young defensive midfielder Santiago Ascacibar left for VfB Stuttgart in Germany and both Rigoni and Driussi were sold to Zenit in Russia. It was […]
Morons in Cup and the League Kicks Off
Club Deportivo Morón caused a huge upset in the Copa Argentina earlier this week, defeating “Big Five” team San Lorenzo to progress to the last 16. The winning goal came in the 86th minute when super sub Leandro Guzmán, who only came on in the 70th minute, sent a superb left-footed shot from the edge […]
Argentina’s Night of Shame
On 5 September 1993 Argentina welcomed Colombia to the intimidating Estadio Monumental, home of River Plate, located in the Nuñez district of Buenos Aires. Going into the final fixture of the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying group, the visitors led by one point, and knew that a victory or even a draw would seal their place […]
Argentina’s 25 years of hurt and the 1993 Copa America
It’s hard to believe that 2018 will represent 25 years since Argentina won a major international football tournament, especially given the players at their disposal during the last quarter of a century. Argentina did win gold medals at the Olympic Games of 2004 and 2008 but the last full, senior triumph came in 1993’s Copa […]