All About The Beautiful Game
In 2014, Russia invaded and annexed Crimea, a strategically located peninsula in neighboring Ukraine. While Russia widely disputed the characterization as an annexation, most of the world — and Ukraine — did not. As a result, Russia was banned from the Group of Eight — they have not been reinstated — and the UN rejected … Read more
The 2022 World Cup in Qatar is just a few short months away, but a lot of factors remain to be determined. One of the most pressing questions is that of hosts Qatar – will they be able to progress through their group, despite having a mainly domestic-based untested squad? I’ve already done a review … Read more
Since the time my last article was written, a lot has changed. At the time, no real challenges had been made towards Russia or Russian teams concerning their eligibility in major tournaments. Only Poland and Ukraine had announced their intentions to not face Russia, whilst Path B rivals Czech Republic had not. Major European sponsor … Read more
When Path B of World Cup qualifying in Europe was drawn up, it had some intriguing matchups. A strong Sweden side were drawn up against Czech Republic, who reached the quarterfinals of the European Championship in 2020. The other matchup saw Robert Lewandowski’s Poland drawn up against a Russian side that were a penalty kick … Read more
Twelve months after the Euro 2020 group stages were supposed to end, they finally have. The group stages had it all – trauma, heartbreak, relief, upsets, joy, heroics – and now it is time for the knockouts. Sixteen teams will be moving on, and eight teams have already gone home. But which sixteen, and did … Read more
Following the conclusion of round one of Euro fixtures, I wrote this article about players whose values could go up after good performances. Just a few days later, the second round of fixtures have been completed. Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands already have now clinched spots in the Round of 16. Some teams, however, will … Read more
The Euros have almost started, twelve months later than they were originally scheduled to take place. At the best of times, the Euros have produced surprise results (think Iceland in 2016 or Greece in 2004), and with condensed schedules for some of Europe’s biggest leagues, there could be even more surprising results. Furthermore, many star … Read more