Thomas Frank claims that the white noise from the transfer market and the pain of near-missers for top goals such as Ebereechi Eze and Morgan Gibbs-White do not distract him. It is the line that they all pedal, but Frank is convincing. He successfully worked as a head coach at Brentford, trusting others to stimulate […]
MATT BARLOW: Why Thomas Frank should give Spurs reason for optimism Read More »
The goals of Mohamed Salah have dried up since Liverpool from Europe almost slid in the bag with the competition title. Those eight days ago against Tottenham, number four of five in one day of pure joy on Anfield, was his 28th Premier League goal of the season and yet his first for seven weeks.
Why MATT BARLOW hope Salah doesn’t score enough to nab record from Magpies star Read More »
Nuno Espirito Santo should win the Premier League's Manager of the Year Award if he can complete the jump from 17 to the top five of a year and take Nottingham Forest back to the European elite. You could make a very good thing for Arne Slot in his debut season in Liverpool or for
MATT BARLOW: Nuno should win PL MOTY only if he can stop Forest fizzling out Read More »
In the days before the name of the name of German football was mentioned, they mentioned the house of Eintracht Frankfurt the Waldstadion, literally Forest Stadium, because of the surroundings in an area of forest outside the city. The path to the 100-year sports location, now fully modernized and Deutsche Bank Park, still includes a
If Harry Kane will end his long pursuit of a big prize by lifting this trophy in Munich in May, then work was done first to kill Celtic. Kane scored in Glasgow, a city where he never set goals. He has them for England in Hampden Park, hits the target with Tottenham against Rangers at
MATT BARLOW: Kane and Bayern still have work to do to kill off Celtic Read More »
As always, Laurie Cunningham was ready for the ball and everyone dared to read which way those dancing hips could wave, and tied around his neck with a red-white scarf for the occasion. A young Leyton Orient -supporter moved through the drizzle of the coronation gardens with an inflatable FA cup, put it on the
Grealish might thrive if he were free from Pep’s control, writes MATT BARLOW Read More »
Well, that didn't last long. Ten months after the replays were canceled without proper consultation and the FA Cup shows the decision for what it was: a betrayal at the bottom of English football. This wonderful old league is like that. It can remove pretensions. It is its beauty and one of the main reasons
For 154 years, heroic Tamworth would have earned a Cup replay,writes MATT BARLOW Read More »
With a backdrop of palms and a hint of tropical warmth, it could pass for a scene from Cocoon, the classic 1985 science fiction film about a group of old friends rejuvenated by aliens living underwater off the coast of Florida. However, this is Coventry and, from the available evidence, free of aliens. The attendees
MATT BARLOW shines a light on the wonderful world of walking football Read More »
Multi-objective thrillers are all very good if you're on the right side. Seven goals in a cup tie on Thursday and this bit of north London was bouncing. Nine goals on Sunday had exactly the opposite effect. The hall was almost empty when Ange Postecoglou dutifully trudged around at the end and expressed his festive
Postecoglou needs reinforcements to rescue patched-up Spurs, writes MATT BARLOW Read More »
Arsenal's threat from set pieces reminded me of Dave Bassett, who once discovered that his Wimbledon team at their peak averaged a goal from every thirteen corner kicks. “Good delivery, smart movement, decoys, blocks, lots of variety,” Bassett said as he picked up the phone. 'Arsenal are working hard at it and they are having
MATT BARLOW: Arsenal’s set-piece mastery mirrors the original corner masters Read More »
The headlines were about Manchester City hitting a wall, the goalscoring hero was James Maddison on his birthday and Dejan Kulusevski was the best player on the pitch, which will come as no surprise to anyone who has kept a close eye on Tottenham. Kulusevski has been a revelation, whether playing on the right wing,
Kulusevski is showing shades of Gazza and Chris Waddle, writes MATT BARLOW Read More »