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 24 23

MY FOOTBALL:
BILLY BRAGG

74

YOU ASK... FEATURES

6 Giovanni van Bronckhorst talks 30 FFT meets Alexander-Arnold
Rangers, rivalry and Ronaldinho After helping his club into title

64
contention, the Liverpool star
UPFRONT wants to shine with England
42 The greatest full-backs... ever!
12 Pitch-invading monster trucks Our rundown, featuring badgers,
18 Ian Harte’s very finest matches raw chicken and a magic dwarf
19 Jules Breach on Kobbie Mainoo 48 Catalonia’s noisy neighbours
20 The curse of the crocodile arena How Girona stunned Barcelona
23 Gillingham’s Gladiators signing and shot to the top of La Liga
24 Billy Bragg inspires Stuart Pearce 54 Sean Longstaff exclusive
26 The Brit boss managing Taiwan The Newcastle midfielder on his
27 Is Financial Fair Play working? revival under boss Eddie Howe

82 84
54

FEATURES AROUND THE GROUNDS

60 Euro 2024 play-offs previewed
Wales, Luxembourg, Kazakhstan
and Gus Poyet, all vying for glory
64 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in India
The Norwegian speaks to FFT
about his tenure at Old Trafford
74 Xabi Alonso’s tactics analysed
How would he fare in England?
98 Ottmar Hitzfeld’s Perfect XI
THE MIXER
90 Foosbots, get your foosbots
78 Shaun Maloney: Wigan gaffer
79 Kaiser Chiefs star’s Leeds role 60
80 Best & Worst: Raith Rovers
81 The sad rejection of Beer Albion
82 Clive Woodward at St Mary’s
Southampton’s rugby misery
THE PLAYERS LOUNGE
84 Gordon Strachan on Fergie rows
“I’d be a sarcastic sod with him”
86 Albert Ferrer: Dream Team ace
88 Micky Hazard hails Glenn Hoddle

48 72 42

THE RISE
OF GIRONA
 YOU ASK
THE
QUESTIOnS
“I almost had a dream farewell,
with the World Cup trophy in my
hands – then suddenly it dawns
on you that your career is over”
F
ew footballers can say
that they played their last
ever match in a World
Cup final, but Giovanni
van Bronckhorst is one of them. The
Dutchman earned that honour in 2010
after scoring the most famous goal of
his career just four days earlier, firing
home sensationally from 30 yards in
a semi-final victory over Uruguay.
As Oranje captain, he wanted to bid
farewell by lifting the famous trophy
on his 106th and last appearance for
his country. But, as with France skipper
Zinedine Zidane four years prior, it
ultimately ended in defeat – though
thankfully without any headbutts.
After a fine playing career in which
Van Bronckhorst won the Champions
League with Barcelona and the Premier
League at Arsenal, he transitioned into
management with two of his old clubs
– and duly took Feyenoord to their first
league title in 18 years, before guiding
Rangers to a Europa League final.
His tenure at Ibrox came to an end in
November 2022, just six months after
that European showpiece. He has since
6 April 2024 FourFourTwo
been spending some quality time with
his wife and sons in his home city of
Rotterdam, and that’s where FFT meets
the 49-year-old today.
As rain falls outside, Van Bronckhorst
sits down with a cappuccino, ready to
answer your questions…
Did you ever consider representing
Indonesia, your ancestral homeland?
Bayu Widodo, via Instagram
No, to be honest. My ancestors might
come from Indonesia – the Moluccas,
an archipelago – but I was born and
raised in the Netherlands and so were
my parents. My grandparents came to
the Netherlands back in the 1950s. I’m
really proud of my roots, but I’ve never
doubted my decision to represent the
Dutch national team.
After retiring, I spent a number of
days in Jakarta and that felt special.
I even played in a charity match there.
I realised that the Indonesian people
are very proud of me and what I’ve
achieved in the game – I have a lot of
Interview
Guus Hetterscheid
Indonesian followers on Instagram.
I’m planning to visit the Moluccas with
my family, as I’m curious about where
my ancestors come from.
What would you consider the most
important moment during your time
playing for Feyenoord?
Korneel Trilsbeek, Rotterdam
I made my debut for Feyenoord in 1994
but my real breakthrough came a year
later, when I became a starting player
in Willem van Hanegem’s team. I’d
been training with the first team since
1992 and went out on loan to RKC
Waalwijk before my Feyenoord debut.
Things moved very quickly from 1995
onwards: I joined the Dutch national
team, making my debut in a friendly
against Brazil. I played as a left-winger
and Cafu was my opponent. I went on
to compete in the Champions League
at Feyenoord, so had to prove myself
at a higher level.
At Feyenoord I played with Ronald
Koeman for a couple of seasons, which
was very special – he’d just come back
from Barcelona. I was a massive fan of
Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona, including
Koeman – the so-called Dream Team –
so when Ronald played for us, I kept
bombarding him with questions about
how he played football but also how
he lived as a professional. We practised
a lot of free-kicks together, too. I often
asked Koeman if I could take a free-
kick during a match, but he’d simply
look at me and say, “No, this one is for
me”. The hierarchy was clear! [Laughs]
After Koeman retired, I scored from
free-kicks regularly.
What was it like to play with Henrik
Larsson at Feyenoord and eventually
become playing rivals in Glasgow?
Aimee McCabe, Hamilton
Henrik and I met at Feyenoord and
soon became friends. We’re similar in
character – both quite introverted. He
went from Feyenoord to Glasgow
before I did: he signed for Celtic, I later
went to Rangers, and after my transfer
we frequently visited each other. Both
clubs’ fans were already familiar with
our friendship, so that never caused
any problems. The first time we faced
each other in an Old Firm Derby, I hit
Henrik with a big tackle – he looked at
me angrily and yelled, “What are you
doing?” [Laughs]
Later, we became team-mates again
at Barcelona and we were neighbours
there. When I looked over the hedge in
the evening, I noticed Henrik, and the
 YOU ASK

CLUBS (PLAYER)
1993-98 Feyenoord
1993-94 RKC Waalwijk (loan)
1998-2001 Rangers
2001-04 Arsenal
2003-04 Barcelona (loan)
2004-07 Barcelona
2007-10 Feyenoord

COUNTRY (PLAYER)
1996-2010 Netherlands

CLUBS (MANAGER)
2015-19 Feyenoord
2020 Guangzhou R&F
2021-22 Rangers
 YOU ASK
question was always where we’d have
a barbecue. It’s wonderful that we’ve
watched our children grow up together
through all of these years. Our families
get on well.
Did Dutch players joining Rangers
always fit in straight away, due to
the sizeable contingent already at
the club?
@Geo_Football, via X
In my first year at Rangers, I was there
with Arthur Numan and the manager,
Dick Advocaat, plus his backroom staff.
There were several players left who’d
worked with the previous boss, Walter
Smith, but although we were the new
guys, I never felt like we were looked
at strangely. We were quickly accepted
into the club and showed an interest in
understanding the history and culture
of Rangers. The results were generally
good, so not many people complained
that there might be excessive Dutch
players in the squad, then Ronald de
Boer, Fernando Ricksen, Michael Mols
and Bert Konterman joined us. In my
first season, we immediately won the
treble, then celebrated the double the
season afterwards.
There was a good atmosphere in the
squad, obviously with all of the Dutch
guys but with the other players as well.
We’d go out for dinner in Glasgow with
about a dozen of us. I only lived half an
hour’s drive from the city centre, near
Arthur Numan and Barry Ferguson. It
was a very quiet neighbourhood, which
I liked. I still keep in touch with many of
my neighbours from back then.
You joined Rangers just after their
run of nine successive league titles
had come to an end, in 1998, so how
did you seize back the title in your
first season and secure the treble?
Steven Moss, Carlisle
Wim Jansen had won the league with
Celtic the season before I moved to
Scotland, which had stopped Rangers
winning 10 in a row. With Advocaat,
a new era began at Rangers. Around
10-12 players came into the squad –
Numan, Andrei Kanchelskis, Gabriel
Amato, Rod Wallace, Stefan Klos and
more – and things clicked between the
new guys and the players who were
there the previous year. Advocaat was
an excellent fit, too. We played some
attractive football, and if you win lots
of trophies, life can’t be much better.
I thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere
at Ibrox, especially when we played
Celtic. The noise that the fans made
for 90 minutes was so exciting – I’ve
never experienced that so intensely
anywhere else.
You scored some belters at Rangers.
Which was your favourite?
Lee Willets, via X
I immediately think of a goal against
Dundee at Ibrox – a superb shot into
“I WAS HAPPY THAT
WEnGER KEPT DEnnIS
AnD HIS QUALITIES On
THE BEnCH In 2006”
the top corner. I scored a special goal
against Motherwell, with the outside
of my left foot into the top-left corner.
There was a lob against Kilmarnock...
I actually scored some decent goals!
[Laughs] Another memorable effort
was against Monaco in the Champions
League, against Fabien Barthez, with
a kind of Roberto Carlos curve. I scored
in three Champions League games in
a row during that period – I was in top
form. I’d scored in a Scottish Cup final
against Aberdeen, too; we won 4-0,
but Aberdeen played 87 minutes with
an outfield player in goal because their
goalkeeper, Jim Leighton, got injured
and they had no keeper on the bench.
I felt a bit sad for Aberdeen – it never
turned out to be a real match. I’ll also
never forget my goal against Celtic.
It’s quite a long list, isn’t it? [Laughs]
What was Gennaro Gattuso like to
play with at Rangers?
Flynn Nicolson, Nottingham
Rino was a great team-mate. We all
called him ‘Tasmanian Devil’! [Laughs]
I kept in touch with him even after our
time at Rangers, and we occasionally
met each other when I played against
Milan or Italy.
Lorenzo Amoruso once played a joke
on me. I was sitting next to Rino and
Lorenzo said, “Pour water into Rino’s
glass with your hand facing outward”.
I had no weird thoughts about doing
that, but Rino looked at me and said,
“Hey, what are you doing, man?” He
was talking in his Italian-English and
gave me a typical Italian hand gesture
– he was pretty angry about what I’d
done. Then I heard that in the Italian
region where he comes from, it brings
bad luck to pour your glass like that,
so I promptly said that Amoruso had
made me do it!
What are your recollections of the
Euro 2000 semi-final against Italy
on home soil, when the Netherlands
missed five penalties – two during
the match, three in the shootout –
and lost against 10 men?
Basten Jacobsen, Groningen
It remains bizarre that we didn’t win
that match. It was one of those days
where everything went wrong for us –
I’ve never experienced such a game
again. The day after we were knocked
out, I drove to my house in Rotterdam,
and to do so I needed to go past the
Excelsior stadium where Italy were
training. I saw the buses, and then it
hurt even more. If we’d scored one
of our penalties in normal time, we’d
have had a huge chance of reaching
a European Championship final in our
own country. Unfortunately, it wasn’t
meant to be.

How devastating was it when the
Netherlands missed out on the 2002
World Cup? What went wrong during
qualifying under Louis van Gaal?
David Marissen, London
It was a time full of setbacks, for the
Dutch national team but also for me.
I did score with a good shot in the first
qualifier against Ireland in Amsterdam,
but we couldn’t win that match. Then
there were games against Portugal in
which we missed opportunities. During
that period, Frank de Boer, Jaap Stam
and Edgar Davids were suspended due
to the nandrolone affair. And I’m not
sure if the pain of the earlier semi-final
defeat against Italy had an impact on
the squad. I picked up a knee injury and
had to miss a large part of qualifying.
I wouldn’t have featured at the 2002
World Cup even if we’d been there, but
it remains a great shame to have failed
to qualify, particularly with a group of
such high quality.
Were you given enough of a chance
at Arsenal? How did Arsene Wenger
‘sell’ the club to you, and what was
your anticipated role?
David Gray, via X
I was signed by Arsene Wenger as
a midfielder, but when I joined I wasn’t
quite fit – I got injured at Rangers near
the end of the 2000-01 season. Initially
the plan was actually to go to Chelsea.
With Arsenal’s help, I trained by myself
in southern France that summer and
after several months I began to prove
myself, but then I suffered that knee
injury. It put me out for seven months.
I received a Premier League medal, but
it feels strange to be a champion when
you’ve been out for so long.
Did you enjoy linking up with Dennis
Bergkamp at Arsenal?
Nathan Gent, via X
Of course, I already knew Dennis from
the Dutch national team. We always
Clockwise from below
“No Koeman in my way
now...”; kings of Europe;
Advocaat was a big hit
at Ibrox; double Dutch
delight; not quite like
signing for Sunderland;
a painful setback on
home soil at Euro 2000
had a good relationship and I quickly
noticed how immense his status was
in England. Dennis is a Premier League
icon and it’s not without reason that
he now has a statue at the Emirates
Stadium. What he could do with a ball
was unbelievable, but he’s really kind
as a person as well. Dennis and his wife
helped me and my wife to settle after
first moving over to London – we lived
by Cockfosters at the time. Dennis and
I shared a room for away games. We
often played card games such as Uno
or watched a DVD.
How much did your serious knee
injury affect your time at Arsenal?
Joe Foster, Bishop’s Stortford
Due to my injury, I wasn’t able to nail
down a regular starting role there, and
that’s a shame. I was originally brought
in as a midfielder but mainly played as
a full-back, partly because Gilberto Silva
was signed for my position in midfield
YOU ASK
and immediately did really well. But
I showed my qualities as a left-back
and was therefore able to make the
move to Barcelona. In 1999, I started
at left-back for the Netherlands under
Frank Rijkaard, and ultimately I had
the best period of my whole career in
that position. The knee injury opened
a new door for me.
How did your transfer to Barcelona
come about, initially on loan?
Maggie Miller, Milton Keynes
I got a call from Rijkaard, saying that
he wanted to sign me but I had to wait
another two weeks because Barcelona
had several options for the left-back
position. I remember when I read that
Frank had become Barça’s new coach:
I said to my wife, “Oh, maybe he’ll take
me there”. I always had a very positive
relationship with him.
But sometimes in life, you also have
to be a little lucky in terms of timing.
My advantage was that I was a cheap
option for them: Barcelona weren’t in
a strong financial position at that time
and I signed on loan. It was a dream
come true for me, because I used to
be a fan of Barça. Some of the boys at
Arsenal were surprised by my transfer;
I told Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira
after training that I wouldn’t be back
the next day because I was flying to
Barcelona and they were like, “What?!
When you go out on loan from Arsenal,
you usually join clubs like Sunderland
or Middlesbrough, not Barça!” Looking
back, I’m very grateful that I was able
to play for Arsenal, in such a great side
and at Highbury. It was a brilliant time,
even if I didn’t play all of the matches.
Can you give us an inside story on
the Brazilian great Ronaldinho that
nobody’s heard before?
‘The Arsenal Way’, via X
I have so many fantastic memories of
Ronaldinho. I played with him for four
years at Barcelona and we found each
other blindly on the left flank. He was
wonderful as a player and as a person.
I once flew back to the Netherlands
with my family and noticed a group of
journalists and fans standing around
someone at Barcelona airport. It was
Ronaldinho. When he saw us, he sent
everyone away and gave us a hug. My
sons went crazy with him, and he was
the same with them. We played at the
Camp Nou one Sunday and there was
a training session in the stadium on
the Saturday; our wives and children
were allowed to sit in the stands and
the kids went on the field afterwards.
You could see ’Dinho dribbling with all
of the children. That was great.
It was always fun with the Brazilian
lads in the dressing room – there was
FourFourTwo April 2024 9
 YOU ASK

music and lots of laughter. Sometimes,

with my Dutch way of thinking, I’d say
to myself, ‘Those boys aren’t focused
on the game’. But after the first whistle,
they were always machines. I thought
that was impressive – that they could
switch from relaxation mode to utmost
concentration so fast.

Having played in De Klassieker, the

Old Firm Derby, the North London
Derby and El Clasico, which would
you say was the most intense?
Emilio Martinez Baniela, via Instagram
The Old Firm was the most intense, on
and off the pitch, but the Clasico was
the biggest derby I ever played in. The
whole world was watching. In my time
at Barcelona, Real Madrid had all of the
Galacticos, but we usually won those
games. Real Madrid weren’t dominant
in Spain, despite their stars. One of my
most beautiful Clasicos was the away
match we won 3-0, when Ronaldinho
received a standing ovation. I scored
against Real at the Camp Nou as well.
I think my best Klassieker between
Feyenoord and Ajax was a game when
I was a manager, in the cup. We won
in injury time through an own goal by
Joel Veltman, went into the next round

“THAT GOAL AGAInST

URUGUAY WAS THE
PERFECT KICK, In MY
PEnULTIMATE MATCH”
and eventually won the cup. That was
my first trophy as coach of Feyenoord.
I’ve always enjoyed derbies, including
the build-up to them. Sadly, I never
scored in a North London Derby against
Tottenham, although I scored against
Chelsea and that counts as a London
derby, right?
As the only player to appear in every
game of Barça’s Champions League-
winning campaign in 2005-06, which
game stands out the most, and what
did it mean to lift the trophy?
Tomas Cabratos, Tarragona
I was called ‘The Talisman’ at Barcelona
that season. Rijkaard would often keep
me on the substitutes’ bench ahead of
a big Champions League game – in La
Liga, I played one match and Sylvinho
started the other. We had a successful
Champions League campaign, and to
go all the way and win the final in Paris
was a dream come true.
For me, it was extra special that the
final was against Arsenal and so many
former team-mates. I was happy that
Wenger kept Bergkamp, with all of his
qualities, on the bench. It was his last
ever match. Robin van Persie didn’t get
on the pitch, either, although that was
partly because of the early red card for
Jens Lehmann and the fact they had
a slender 1-0 lead to hold onto. Henrik
Larsson made the difference for us as
a substitute, setting up Samuel Eto’o
and Juliano Belletti.
I have my shirt from the final framed
and I still have the medal. I was given
a matchball by UEFA years later when
I was there for a training course. That
was a lovely gift – all of the marks from
our boots were on it.
As a left-back, did you have to mark
Lionel Messi in training at Barcelona
sometimes? How tough was it?
Rosa Verge, Barcelona
Everyone at Barcelona quickly realised
that Leo was a player we would rarely
encounter again in our lives – incredibly
good, even at such a young age. I had
the feeling that he could train at just
50 per cent – and I still had a difficult
time against him! [Laughs] In terms of
the playing level, training sessions at
Barça were generally higher than the
games in Spain. If you ever ended up
in the centre during a rondo, because
you’d had a pass intercepted, it took
ages to get back out. I was usually in
a rondo with the Catalan and Spanish
guys, plus Henrik Larsson, while Messi
was with the young lads, but he didn’t
find himself in the middle too many
times. We’d also let the Brazilian boys
play rondo and they’d put on a show.
Who was the best player you faced?
@bazthekid1, via X
I faced many top players, but primarily
I think about Kaka, Luis Figo and Arjen
Robben. Kaka was so good at making
a preliminary move towards the ball –
he turned away from you easily if you
tried to get close. He was a sensational
player. Figo was very fast and used his
strong body well. Arjen could send you
in all directions with his dribbling and
pace – I was pleased that he tended to
be on my team in training!
You were one of four players sent off
in the Netherlands’ 2006 World Cup
clash with Portugal, when 16 players
were booked. What did you say to
your Barça pal, Deco, when you were
pictured sitting together after you’d
both been dismissed?
Nikolai Turku, via Instagram
Everybody has a match in their career
that they want to forget, and that’s one
of them for me. We were eliminated
from the World Cup and I received two
yellow cards in a match full of yellow
and red cards. I’m often reminded of
that moment with Deco, sitting on the
steps in the ground. We just expressed
our amazement at how a game could
have got so out of hand.
Why did you decide to leave Barça
and return to Feyenoord?
Stijn Stadlander, Dordrecht
I decided to leave for private reasons.
My wife and I were keen to go back to
Rotterdam with our kids, to be closer
to our families. Our eldest son was six
and our youngest son was one, and at

10 April 2024 FourFourTwo


one stage I was away with Barcelona
four days a week. We had wonderful
years there, but I thought it was time
to prioritise my wife and children, and
obviously the opportunity to return to
Feyenoord was special for me.
Was your best international goal the
rocket at the 2010 World Cup? Surely!
Kyle Seth Dunn, via Facebook
Yes, that goal against Uruguay stands
out. That the ball went in like that from
30 yards, into the top corner, touching
the inside of the post, in a World Cup
semi-final… it couldn’t have been any
better. It was the perfect kick, in the
penultimate official game of my career.
I’d scored in a similar way against PSV
about five months earlier, so I’d done
the warm-up already!
What were your emotions before the
2010 World Cup Final, as captain and
knowing it’d be your last ever game?
@donnyfaison, via X
I had a healthy tension for the final, of
course, but I tried not to think about it
HIGHS & LOWS
HIGH: 1999
Wins domestic treble during
first season with Rangers
LOW: 2000
Part of Oranje side defeated by
Italy on home soil in Euros semi
HIGH: 2006
Helps Barcelona win Champions
League, beating old club Arsenal
LOW: 2010
Suffers defeat in World Cup final
against Spain, his last ever match
HIGH: 2017
Guides Feyenoord to Eredivisie
title in his first job as a manager
being my last game. We were focused
on winning the World Cup. We were so
close – what if Robben’s huge chance
had gone in when Iker Casillas stopped
the ball with his toe? I don’t think back
to the final and I’ve never seen the TV
images again. I was sick that we didn’t
become world champions, but I put it
all into perspective in the period that
followed. Life goes on. I spoke to Carles
Puyol and Xavi after the final, and then
it suddenly dawns on you that your
career is over. Sure, it could have been
a dream farewell, with the World Cup
trophy in my hands, but it wasn’t to be.
How did it feel to become Feyenoord
manager, then help them to win their
first trophy for eight years and first
Dutch title for 18 years?
Lotje de Reuver, Zoetermeer
It was very special to be so successful
with Feyenoord in my first few years as
Clockwise from left
A triumphant return to
Rangers; “Hey Gio, how
could you?”; Ronnie: top
bloke; derbies don’t get
more intense than the
Old Firm; bringing glory
back to Feyenoord in his
maiden manager’s job;
“DID YOU SEE THAT?!”
a coach – I learned so much in those
early seasons. Feyenoord weren’t in as
good a position then as they are now,
financially. We had to build a side and
managed to win five trophies during
my time there – that’s not normal for
Feyenoord. It makes me proud, also of
my staff and players. We had a terrific
group of experience and young talent.
How was your time working in China?
Aiden Spencer, Cirencester
I’d just become coach of Guangzhou
R&F when the COVID pandemic broke
out – in China, of all places. So, I was
stuck there with my Dutch assistants
due to coronavirus rules. I soon said to
myself, ‘After this season, I’ll go back
to Europe’. It was really tough to be so
far away from my family, for so long.
China is a beautiful country – within the
limitations we had, we went to Beijing,
the Forbidden City and the Great Wall
of China – but the timing couldn’t have
been worse to embark on that journey.
What did it mean to you to be named
Rangers manager?
Tom Harris, Sanquhar
It was brilliant to return to Ibrox as the
manager. Rangers first appraoched me
when I was still working for Feyenoord,
but I chose to stay and compete in the
Champions League. When they came
YOU ASK
in for me the second time, I was back
from China. In a week, my whole world
turned upside down. It felt like going
home – and as manager I did have my
home in the city, in the West End. My
family stayed in the Netherlands, but
regularly travelled to Glasgow.
Ultimately, it was a very intense 12
months: from my presentation until
dismissal, we had two games almost
every week. There was hardly any time
to hone in on training, but we won the
Scottish Cup and reached the Europa
League final. That was special, when
you consider where Rangers had come
from in the years before that. In the
end, we were one penalty away from
becoming Europa League champions.
Did you receive the proper backing
to succeed, following such fantastic
achievements in the Europa League?
Every Other Saturday Podcast, via X
As far as I’m concerned, our squad
could have been strengthened after we
reached the Champions League group
stage that August at PSV’s expense.
Unfortunately, it didn’t happen. When
I got fired a few months later, I missed
the support from above. Things didn’t
go well at that stage, especially when
we fell nine points behind Celtic – that
isn’t allowed – but it’s also good to look
at the broader picture. I believe some
guys on the board could have handled
the situation in another way, especially
if you assess how we performed in the
previous campaign, but that’s quickly
forgotten. I had other meetings with
the board in November 2022 and told
them what needed to happen to turn
things around. I hope Rangers can find
their way back to the top, as I’ll forever
be associated with the club and cherish
the wonderful memories. Sadly, I didn’t
leave in the way I wanted.
Was Michael Beale disrespectful in
attending a Rangers match shortly
before he replaced you as manager?
@Aaron72__, via X
I don’t think you should really do that
as a fellow manager. You shouldn’t sit
in the stands at a match when your
colleague is feeling the pressure at that
moment. I would never have done it.
Would you like to coach the Dutch
national side if that position became
vacant in the future?
Sander, via Instagram
Yes, it’s one of my ambitions. I had so
many memorable moments with the
Dutch national team as a player. If the
opportunity comes along one day, that
would be great. [FFT: What about the
Arsenal or Barcelona job?] That would
be special, but I can’t predict what the
future will bring.
FourFourTwo April 2024 11
 UPFROnT

Playing off the last defender, it’s the big-man-

little-man partnership of football and funnies

12 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 UPFROnT

THE
BEAUTIFUL
GAME
↑
TRUCKING HELL

ROSTOCK, GERMANY
A word of warning: never upset
German football supporters. The
DFL did just that with a proposal
to flog Bundesliga TV rights to
private equity investors, which
sparked protests at a range of
matches – one involving a pitch
invasion by two remote control
monster trucks carrying smoke
bombs. The people said ‘Nein!’
Photo Joern Pollex/Getty

←
NATIONAL HEROES

ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST

Hosts Ivory Coast won AFCON
despite losing 4-0 to Equatorial
Guinea, finishing third in their
group, then changing the coach
mid-tournament – after such
a triumph, little wonder that the
parade went a bit bonkers. The
maddest tournament win ever?
Photo Sia Kambou/PA/Getty

FourFourTwo April 2024 13

 UPFROnT
↑ ↑
RED SKY AT NIGHT,
LUTON DELIGHT
LUTON, ENGLAND
There are few more remarkable
sights in the world than Luton at
sunset, as the light fades on its
natural beauty for another day.
Hatters fans could only admire
the view at Kenilworth Road in
February – a handy distraction
from Sheffield United’s 3-1 win.
Photo Marc Atkins/Getty
14 April 2024 FourFourTwo
SLOW BOAT IN CHINA
HONG KONG, CHINA
Hong Kong pushed the boat out
when Lionel Messi visited for an
Inter Miami friendly, the vessel
also bearing the Adidas slogan
‘Impossible Is Nothing’. Sadly,
injury meant Messi playing was
in fact impossible – after paying
big money to see him, the locals
were suddenly extremely angry.
Photo Peter Parks/AFP/Getty
↑ ↑
DANCE WITH WOLVES
LONDON, ENGLAND
Wolves made sure they enjoyed
victory at Tottenham – dancing
around the dressing room, as is
tradition when they win at Spurs.
They did similar in 2018, when
a viral clip showed Conor Coady’s
bare arse in the background – on
this occasion, though, it was just
Mario Lemina pulling a silly face.
Photo Jack Thomas/WWFC/Getty
LIFE’S A BEACH
DUBAI, UAE
Mexico took on Portugal during
the Beach Soccer World Cup last
month, and one player looked
like he’d been watching a few
too many Nigel de Jong videos.
No one was mutilated, but the
Portuguese chap’s left arm has
disappeared – perhaps that was
the result of a previous tackle?
Photo Aitor Alcalde/FIFA/Getty
UPFROnT
 UPFROnT

→
WARNOCK FOOTBALL
AT ITS VERY FINEST

ASHBOURNE, ENGLAND
Pep Guardiola has left his mark
across England in recent years –
so too has Neil Warnock. OK, this
wasn’t actually a soccer school
of his, but the Royal Shrovetide
football match – a free-for-all
with scant rules apart from ‘no
murder allowed’. Get into ’em!
Photo Christopher Furlong/Getty

16 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 UPFROnT

FourFourTwo April 2024 17

 UPFROnT
n E O F T H E B EST
“IT WAS O LEEDS HISTORY.
nIGHTS In EBUMPS WHEn
I GET GOOS OUT THAT GAME”
I THInK AB

IAn HARTE
GAMES THAT CHAnGED MY LIFE
Leeds 3-0 Deportivo Rep of Ireland 2-0 Iran Carlisle 3-2 Hartlepool B’ham 2-4 Bournemouth
April 4, 2001 November 10, 2001 December 1, 2009 March 29, 2014
Champions League quarter-final World Cup qualification play-off League One Championship

“What naturally stands out from that
game is the free-kick I scored [above].
I hit the ball as hard as I could and it
flew in off the crossbar. Not only that,
we won 3-0 and it was probably one of
the best nights in Leeds United history.
Whenever I took free-kicks, I imagined
lines on a motorway and tried to strike
the ball within those. I always used to
visualise where I wanted to place my
free-kicks, which I’d combine with my
technique. Though we went on to lose
the second leg in Spain 2-0, thankfully
that didn’t matter because we’d done
enough to progress to the semi-finals
against Valencia. Leeds supporters still
love reminiscing about that season to
this day, and I get goosebumps when
I think about beating Deportivo. It was
an amazing achievement to go so far.”
“A huge game for obvious reasons, so
it was great to score a penalty to set us
on the way to a crucial first-leg victory.
Robbie Keane then added our second
goal to give us a healthy advantage to
take into the second leg, which we lost
1-0. To win a match like that in front of
a full Lansdowne Road was something
special, and scoring a goal that helps
to send your country to the World Cup
finals is difficult to beat. The Irish fans
always made an unbelievable amount
of noise and it gave us the edge in a lot
of games. We also had some fantastic
lads who were never afraid to get stuck
into opponents – guys like Roy Keane,
Robbie Keane, Damien Duff and many
others. It was a wonderful time to be
a Republic of Ireland player and pulling
on the green shirt was massive for me.”
“I scored some good goals during my
spell at Carlisle, and bagged 18 in that
season alone. I played predominantly
at centre-half and scored via headers,
free-kicks and penalties. To almost get
20 goals from that position is a fact I’m
very proud of. In this particular match,
a rainy Tuesday night at Brunton Park,
I equalised with a tap-in, but it was so
important in the context of the season.
Carlisle had some superb players back
then, including Richard Keogh, James
Chester, Graham Kavanagh and Scott
Dobie. We had a top manager in Greg
Abbott too, so I relished my time there.
I was into my 30s by this stage, but still
loved playing football as much as ever.
Being an older, wiser head and getting
to share my knowledge of the game
with the young players was rewarding.”
“My only goal for the Cherries came in
this match and capped off an excellent
away victory. A set piece was cleared
back out to me on the touchline. I took
a couple of touches on my left foot and
whipped the ball into the top corner
beyond Birmingham goalkeeper Darren
Randolph. Fortunately he couldn’t quite
reach it, despite diving full stretch. That
always makes goals look that bit more
eye-catching. It was a memorable day
for me and to finish it with three points
meant I could enjoy it. Bournemouth
was the last stop in my career, having
left Carlisle for Reading. I didn’t want it
to end, but eventually you accept that
your body can’t hold up forever. Being
a professional footballer is an incredible
life and I reflect on my career with such
pride. I loved every single minute of it.”

18 April 2024 FourFourTwo Interview James Hilsum


S
eeing a young academy
graduate break into the
first team of your football
club is one of the most
wholesome joys as a fan.
This Premier League season, we’ve seen
some outstanding breakthrough displays
from players who, in the last few months,
have become household names.
The excitement around Kobbie Mainoo at
Manchester United had been building for
a while but, after picking up an ankle injury
in pre-season, United fans had to wait until
November to see the 18-year-old make his
first league start. It was well worth the wait.
In a 3-0 win at Everton, the Stockport-born
teenager was awarded man of the match
and hasn’t looked back since.
Mainoo joined United’s academy at just
eight years old, and he’s now one of the first
names on the team-sheet. His composure on
the ball has brought a calmness to United’s
midfield in what’s been, at times, a chaotic
season. He followed up his first senior goal
in the FA Cup with his first Premier League
goal, a stunning late winner at Wolves. Many
youngsters would struggle when thrust into
the spotlight at a club like United, but Mainoo
has thrived and is almost certain to develop
into one of the best midfielders in the Premier
League. If he continues to perform at this
level over the coming months, it could be
very difficult for Gareth Southgate to ignore
him for this summer’s Euros.
In the blue half of Manchester, City have
their own academy star who has made his
senior bow this season and contributed
significantly to their Treble defence. Oscar
Bobb was always destined for big things after
picking up City’s Elite Development Squad
Player of the Year award in each of the last
two seasons, and it’s testament to his talent
that he’s been able to seamlessly squeeze
into arguably the best squad in world football.
At 20 years old, he scored the injury-time
winner in a thrilling 3-2 comeback against
Newcastle in January. His maiden Premier
League goal, taken so calmly in the cauldron
MAInOO COULD
BECOME REALLY
HARD TO IGnORE
FOR THE EUROS
OPInIOn
The TNT Sports presenter
pays tribute to the young
stars shining this season
of St James’ Park, instantly secured him hero
status among City supporters. The fact that
Pep Guardiola puts his trust in him is all the
reassurance you need that Bobb is another
future maestro in the making.
Newcastle kicked off this season with great
expectation after reaching the Champions
League for the first time in 21 seasons and
making a number of big-money signings in
the summer. However, it’s been 17-year-old
academy prospect Lewis Miley who’s had all
the fans talking on Tyneside.
Eddie Howe has had to cope with a long
injury list, but the teen talent, who joined
Newcastle’s academy at just seven years old,
has been a shining light. Miley hasn’t looked
out of place in Howe’s team, using the ball
intelligently and playing with a maturity well
beyond his years. The baby-faced midfielder
scored his first senior goal in December’s
victory over Fulham, becoming Newcastle’s
youngest ever Premier League scorer.
Conor Bradley had been on the fringes of
first-team football at Liverpool since joining
the club in 2019, but after spending last term
at Bolton and winning their player of the year
award, the Northern Ireland right-back has
become a key asset with Trent Alexander-
Arnold spending large chunks of this season
on the sidelines. Liverpool were facing calls
to invest in another right-back last summer,
so it’s credit to Jurgen Klopp for trusting that,
in Bradley, they already had everything they
needed in abundance.
UPFROnT
When given the chance, the 20-year-old
has stood out, starring in a home win over
Chelsea. It was a special night for him and
his family, as it would be the last match his
father watched before sadly passing away.
Klopp will leave Anfield this summer knowing
that one of his most significant legacies will
be the young players, like Bradley, who he’s
handed first-team debuts to.
Brighton are known for developing young
players with their smart recruitment, but
they also have an academy churning out
talents like Jack Hinshelwood. Seagulls fans
have particular admiration for the 18-year-
old, who joined Albion’s youth system at the
age of seven. He’s the fourth generation of
his family to play professionally, with father
Adam also featuring for Brighton.
After progressing along the conveyor belt
as a central midfielder, Hinshelwood actually
made his debut at full-back and has regularly
played out of position, with Roberto De Zerbi
crediting his versatility. After a man-of-the-
match performance on his full European
debut in Athens, his first game at the Amex
saw him make a goal-saving clearance and
then net his first senior goal seconds later.
In the modern game, it’s probably harder
than ever for academy prospects to break
into the first-team picture, with clubs under
increasing pressure to compete with rivals
and splash serious cash on transfers. It just
makes the continued success of these young
starlets even more impressive.
FourFourTwo April 2024 19
 UPFROnT

CELEBRITY SIGNING
Portuguese second-tier club
Vilaverdense have struggled in
front of goal this term, but had
a solution: signing Paris Hilton’s
45-year-old brother-in-law.
Courtney Reum isn’t a pro, but
his brother is married to Hilton,
so can maybe network his way
to a hat-trick or something.
“The decision was taken by

WEIRD our scouting department,” the

WORLD OF
Canadian-owned club insisted.
“His age isn’t a problem – he has
FOOTBALL the energy of a 20-year-old.”
The plan showed no early sign
of working: bad results went on,
with Reum nowhere to be seen.

• Despite recently breaking into

the first team, teenager Amney
Moutassime has been released
by Serie B side FC Sudtirol after
...Turkey, Bursaspor’s cursed crocodile stadium may lead them down to the fourth tier he stole a team-mate’s car and
was chased by police at speed
through the streets of Bolzano.

When Bursaspor moved into
the Timsah Arena in 2016, they
hoped their crocodile stadium
would lead them back to the
summit of Turkish football –
and host Euro 2024 this year.
The 44,000-capacity venue
was part of Turkey’s bid to host
the Euros and quickly gained
fame because of its croc design,
to match Bursaspor’s nickname
of the Green Crocodiles.
The future looked bright for
a club who were Turkish champs
as recently as 2010 – taking on
Manchester United and Rangers
in the Champions League later
that year, before recruiting, er,
Scott Carson, Kenny Miller and
Anton Ferdinand.
Turkey lost out to Germany in
their Euros bid though, and their
new stadium has been about as
intimidating as a baby crocodile
with its mouth taped up. Once
European regulars, they didn’t
reach continental competition
again after moving into their
new home – instead, they fell
into financial problems, were
relegated in 2019, then went
down another level in 2022.
This season, it’s got worse –
with just 14 points from their
first 20 matches, they sat 18th
in the third tier, on course for
a drop to the fourth division.
Is the stadium cursed, or are
they just rubbish? Either way, to
avoid yet another relegation,
they really need to turn around
results – and make it snappy.
• TNS have reached this month’s
Scottish Challenge Cup final,
despite being Welsh (and based
in Oswestry, England). Every
year, teams are invited from
Northern Ireland and Wales, but
no guest club has ever won it.
• Colo-Colo went all out when
they unveiled Arturo Vidal on his
return after 17 years away – the
midfielder arrived via helicopter,
then rode around the pitch on
a horse, wielding a sword.

“IS THAT ME? UNBELIEVABLE, JEFF!”

Have you always wanted to know what Chris Kamara would look like, if his face was made entirely of
scrapped car parts? Well, today’s your lucky day.
David Badcock and colleagues created the artwork out of tyres, steering wheels, metal, nuts and bolts
to mark Kammy’s TV appearance on World’s Most Dangerous Roads – the 66-year-old teamed up with Jeff
Stelling, of course, to drive the perilous Devil’s Staircase in Sri Lanka, even crashing a jeep at one point
(“There’s been a crash, but by who, Chris Kamara?”). It’s the most difficult thing either has had to do since
trying to work out what the hell Paul Merson was going on about on Soccer Saturday.

20 April 2024 FourFourTwo

   
 
  

  



 
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 UPFROnT WAnT MORE? VISIT FOURFOURTWO.COM/QUIZ

Can you conquer our latest collection of teasers concerning Gary Lineker, Raumdeuters and Barcelona’s ‘MSN’?

01 Who was the last Italian manager to win

the Premier League title? 11 The ‘Raumdeuter’ position is generally
associated with which Bayern Munich
and Germany favourite: Franz Beckenbauer,

02 In which German city would you find the

magnificent Veltins-Arena (right), set to
Thomas Muller or Manuel Neuer?

host Euro 2024 fixtures?

12 Who are the only Premier League club
with a ship or a boat on their badge?

03 Which legendary former Premier League

attacker is nicknamed ‘the Ice Man’ and
‘the non-flying Dutchman’? 13 Each of Barcelona’s ‘MSN’ triumvirate
was their nation’s all-time top scorer,
but who has netted the most: Lionel Messi,

04 Who has coached Ivory Coast, Morocco,

Saudi Arabia and the France Women
Luis Suarez or Neymar?

side at World Cups?

14 In 2022-23, how many of Europe’s top
five leagues were won by clubs based in

05 Who are the only English team to have

become female European champions?
a capital city?

06 Sven-Goran Eriksson, Ian Holloway and

Gary Megson have all managed which
15 How many goals did Gary Lineker (left)
score for England: 44, 48 or 52?

Football League club?

16 Which player lost and won consecutive
World Cup finals, played for Roy Hodgson

07 Aside from Old Firm rivals Rangers and

Celtic, which Scottish outfit have played
the most seasons in the top flight?
at Inter and assisted a Zinedine Zidane goal
in a Champions League final?

08 Which Italian behemoths are known as

the Biancocelesti?
17 Who won the FA Cup final in 1966, the
year that England won the World Cup?

09 Who was the last English footballer

to receive the Young Player Award at
18 Nineteen men have won the Champions
League five or more times – but only two
have done it with Real Madrid and one other
a World Cup? team: name both players.

10
These four players all made it onto the Ballon d’Or podium: who are they?
11. Thomas Muller 12. Manchester City 13. Lionel Messi 14. One (Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1) 15. 48 16. Roberto Carlos 17. Everton 18. Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
1. Antonio Conte 2. Gelsenkirchen 3. Dennis Bergkamp 4. Herve Renard 5. Arsenal 6. Leicester 7. Heart of Midlothian 8. Lazio 9. Michael Owen 10. Jean Tigana, Predrag Mijatovic, Davor Suker, Hristo Stoichkov

22 April 2024 FourFourTwo


Thirty years ago, the Kent side gave a surprise debut to a 42-year-old Gladiator
On a dark night at Priestfield in October
1994, one name leapt out on the team-
sheet. Number five, Andy Arnott. Number
six, Robin Trott. Number seven, ‘The Wolf’.
Real name Michael van Wijk, the star of TV
show Gladiators was 42 years of age, with no
previous football career to speak of, but was
starting for Gillingham’s reserves at home to
Cambridge. Because why not?
Back then, the Gills were languishing near
the bottom of the fourth tier and struggling
financially. Van Wijk was a household name
after becoming Gladiators’ pantomime villain
since its launch in 1992, and ran a gym not
far from the area, so there were suggestions
his appearance was an attempt to bring in
362 SPINE LINE “‘Barcelona, Milan, Bayern, Bayern, Monaco, Barcelona, Bayern’ are the teams who eliminated Arsenal on their previous appearances in the Champions League last 16,”
says Dominic McMahon. Correct! Cracked the Spine Line? To win an Art Of Football A4 print or T-shirt, email us at fourfourtwo@futurenet.com or enter on X with the hashtag #FFTSpineLine
UPFROnT
JAMES BOnD,
BUSBY BABE?!
Like Wolf, these three celebrities also
found themselves dabbling in football
SEAN CONNERY
The James Bond star donned boots for
Bonnyrigg Rose and was later spotted by
Manchester United boss Matt Busby, who
offered him a contract in the early 1950s.
“I was already 23 – I decided to become
an actor,” explained Connery. It worked
out quite well, to be fair.
DALEY THOMPSON
After winning Olympic gold medals as
a decathlete in 1980 and ’84, Thompson
turned out for Mansfield’s reserves and
made one appearance for Stevenage’s
first team, before heading to Ilkeston
Town. In 1994, Daley even featured for
Reading in a friendly.
RALF LITTLE
The Royle Family actor joined Staines
Town in 2002 and had further spells at
Maidstone, Edgware, Windsor & Eton,
Chertsey and Stone Dominoes. Later,
he captained Sealand, an unrecognised
micronation based on an off-shore
platform in the North Sea. Standard.
The Mumbai-born star never appeared for
Gillingham again – he’d already agreed to
appear in a Woking panto in the run-up to
Christmas, in any case – and the club went
into receivership less than three months later,
eventually turning their fortunes around after
being bought by Paul Scally.
Van Wijk wasn’t the only man to combine
football and Gladiators – John Fashanu was
still playing for Wimbledon when he started
hosting the show, continuing his presenting
role despite the 1993 controversy of breaking
Gary Mabbutt’s eye socket against Spurs,
then 1995 allegations of match-fixing, which
he was later cleared of.
His Dons team-mate Vinnie Jones appeared
as a contestant on a 1993 celebrity special,
which largely consisted of him trying to wind
much-needed gate money. The club insisted up the Gladiators and immediately regretting
it wasn’t a publicity stunt – of course not, it, as they repeatedly rugby-tackled him to
a long and prosperous Football League career the floor like he was a ragdoll. Jones was big,
could have been ahead of him. but the Gladiators were bigger.
The plan worked to an extent: 561 people Lee Sharpe briefly hosted kids’ spin-off
turned up, about 10 times the normal crowd show Gladiators: Train 2 Win, with Ian Wright
for a reserve game, and not much less than presenting when Gladiators re-emerged on
the 963 that watched the first team against Sky One in 2008 – the second Sky series was
Brighton weeks earlier – the Gills’ lowest gate won by Rugby Town midfielder David Staff.
for a senior game in more than two decades. This year’s relaunch on the BBC has featured
Sadly, it would be Van Wijk’s only outing. not just former Premier League referee Mark
He caused controversy by flying into tackles Clattenburg, but ex-Worcester Ladies player
too enthusiastically – exactly as you’d expect, Livi Sheldon – a Gladiator known as Diamond.
based on his Gladiators career – then picked All of the show’s new stars have been trying
up an injury and went off after 69 minutes. to follow in the footsteps of the big bad Wolf
“He was s**t,” said one fan who was there. – great Gladiator, terrible footballer…
 UPFROnT
The Barking-born
singer-songwriter
and activist recalls
meeting Bobby
Moore, making
Stuart Pearce roar,
and playing a gig
during a Euros final
What was the first match that you
ever saw live?
I can’t remember! I used to go with
friends and my family in ’64-65. I can
remember going to see West Ham
bring back the FA Cup, and that would
have been around the time I first
went to games as a kid – the Moore,
Hurst, Peters period. What happened
is: in ’64, West Ham won the FA Cup;
in ’65, they won the Cup Winners’
Cup; and in ’66 they won the World
Cup. I’m going to keep saying that
until the day I die. That cemented
not just West Ham but football
as the main interest in my life.
Who was your childhood hero
and did you ever meet them?
Obviously, Bobby Moore was
a big figure in my childhood. He
was a Barking lad, so he was a giant
in all three of those key moments in
’64, ’65 and ’66. I met him once at, of all
places, the East Of England show. I think he
was opening the show there. I was living up
near Peterborough at the time and I went
with a friend’s family; we were wandering
around and there he was. I think that if you
see someone you really admire, you’ve got
to say to them, “I’ve always admired your
work”. That’s all you need to say – you just
want to tell them what they mean to you.
And that’s what I did with Mooro.
Who from your club’s past would you
bring back for the current side?
Maybe Billy Bonds to fill a Declan Rice-shaped
hole in the middle there – someone to come
in and run things again. We’ve always been
a team based around a midfield general; in
our best manifestations of West Ham-iness,
that’s a key thing, and I think Bonds was
24 April 2024 FourFourTwo
EXCLUSIV
InTERVIE E
W
at football as well. You can
get a moment where you
feel that you’re not the only
person who cares about this
thing, not the only person
who’s upset by this situation,
not the only person who is
elated by this situation – and
so much of the way that we
experience culture now is on our
own on a screen, so to still have
something communal, there’s an
emotional solidarity in it.
How has watching football
changed for you since you
were a kid?
In the old days, when West Ham
were in Europe, you had to listen to
them on the radio. I had to sit upstairs
with my headphones on and listen to
the matches that way. Obviously now
you can watch it live on TV, but I’m still
cool with listening to it on 5Live. I think
the biggest thing that’s changed in the
sense of football itself is that it’s become
much less of a local experience. When
I was a kid, the players lived around
where we were – sometimes you might
see one or two of them over at Barking
BILLY BRAGG Park. I’ve got nothing against players
coming from all over the world. It’s
WEST HAM UNITED brilliant and it’s incredibly vibrant and
it’s great for diversity. But when West
Ham got into the cup final in ’75, it felt
like a very local thing, and I’m not sure
you really get that any more. That’s one
quite a good boss of a team. I would like to of the biggest changes.
see that kind of grit in the middle there,
commanding back and forth. Where’s the best place you’ve
ever watched a game?
What do you like most I don’t know if it’s the best place,
about going to a match? but I was on stage during the
The atmosphere, the Women’s European Championship
singing, the shouting... final last year, trying to do a gig
there’s not many places and control the mood of an
you get to do that in audience who were looking on
normal life – a load of their phones. I went on stage just
people screaming at the as extra time started – it was
top of your voice in a nightmare. When I’m on stage,
disappointment. It’s a form I like to think I can gauge the
of communion we have in mood of an audience and lift it
rock music as well: you have up – that’s my job – but it was
that communal moment. hard because I was looking at
There’s a communion you the people close to the stage
get there that you can’t get who were watching on their
online, and you can get that phones, trying to look at their

faces and judge what’s happened. Then all
of a sudden, in the middle of Greetings To
The New Brunette, the whole place went
mad and the full-time whistle had gone.
Everything ground to a halt. I got rather
emotional and I didn’t know what to do, so
I got the audience to sing Blake’s Jerusalem
and that was the end of the gig.
What’s your favourite football book?
I used to have a load of books about 1966.
I went through a period of being obsessed
with that. But then, a couple of years ago,
I thought, ‘This is an old man’s thing’
and I ended up culling my library, and I think
almost all of them went. I know that story
inside-out. It was the great event of my
youth; it was like the moon landings, the
effect it had on me and my mates. But I’ve
let that go a little bit now, so I’m not quite
so obsessed. The Eduardo Galeano book on
South American football, Football In Sun And
Shadow, is pretty good.
What’s the most important piece of
memorabilia that you have, or wish you
still had?
I’ve got the programme for The Three Versus
The Six [AKA The Common Market Match].
It was in January 1973 at Wembley Stadium:
one of those friendly-type games where
they put the teams together, and the three
UPFROnT
“THERE AREn’T MAnY
PLACES YOU CAn SCREAM
In DISAPPOInTMEnT. IT’S
A FORM OF COMMUnIOn”
were Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland
and Denmark, and the Six were the then-
members of what was called the Common
Market at the time. It was to commemorate
Britain joining the Common Market. The
Three won 2-1. It was an amazing game.
For instance, the goalkeepers were a choice
between Ray Clemence, Gary Sprake or
Pat Jennings: England, Wales and Northern
Ireland. They had a couple of Danish players
in the team, along with Peter Lorimer and
Alan Ball. The Six were due to have Johan
Cruyff but I don’t think he played, although
Gerd Muller, Luigi Riva and Dino Zoff all did.
It’s a shame we didn’t have a Brexit match!
Which footballer, past or present, would
you choose as your room-mate?
I’ll go for Gareth Southgate. I’d love to have
some time with Gareth and talk about
Englishness. I think he’s got a really good
take on it. I’d like to sit down and have a talk
with him over a mug of Bovril about the best
way to bring people together in a diverse
team and a diverse nation; to bring people
together around an idea that’s also an ideal.
Where’s the strangest place you’ve ever
met a manager or player?
Stuart Pearce was at one of my gigs. I went
through a period when I was pulling out the
flag of St George on stage and saying, “Look,
if we’re going to take on the British National
Party, we’ve got to be comfortable with
seeing this flag”. I could hear a voice and see
someone at the back punching the air, and
only afterwards my soundman told me it was
Stuart Pearce. He just went mad when I got
the flag out – fist in the air and everything.
I was like, ‘Cool, that’s really great’.
Who’s your current favourite player?
It has to be Jarrod Bowen, after all he did in
the Europa Conference League final [left].
He’s really, really great. I was at Glastonbury
with Jamie Webster, who plays a lot at the
Left Bobby Moore Liverpool fan zones; I got him on the
could even levitate Leftfield stage at Glastonbury this year and
Top Local boys done he just happened to mention to me that he
good back in 1975 gets texts from Jarrod Bowen. I’m jealous!
Above Bowen is I see him and I’m like, ‘How’s he going?!’
“really, really great”
If you could drop yourself into your
all-time five-a-side team, who would you
be playing alongside?
The Ramones. I’d put Joey in goal because
he’s huge, Johnny up front because he’s like
a bullet going forward, and then Dee Dee
and Tommy left and right with me in the
middle. The whole method of play would be
really fast: “1-2-3-4, vroof!”
Niall Doherty
FourFourTwo April 2024 25
 UPFROnT
Qualification for the 2026 World Cup resumes in various parts of the globe this month –
meet five English managers hoping to steer their adopted nations to unlikely success
CHRIS KIWOMYA
BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
Huddersfield native Kiwomya
is best known for stints with
Ipswich and QPR, either side
of a spell at Arsenal in the
mid-90s. Years later, he took
charge of Notts County, where
he loaned in a teenage Jack
Grealish from Aston Villa, but
left after just eight months.
Then, in 2021, Kiwomya was
sounded out by the British
Virgin Islands – one of the
lowest-ranked teams in world
football. “I like a challenge,”
he said. “It also helps that
they have beautiful islands.”
This isn’t a holiday, though:
he took the side to a first win
in 11 years in November. That
CONCACAF Nations League
victory over the Turks & Caicos
Islands earned a visit from
the nation’s Chief Minister.
Now, to repeat the trick
against the US Virgin Islands
(the Richard Branson Derby?)
in World Cup qualifying. May
the best Virgin win…
26 April 2024 FourFourTwo
RICKY HILL
TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
The Luton Town legend’s
passport has more stamps
than a postbox, its owner
having coached in England,
USA, Trinidad & Tobago and
Jamaica prior to landing the
Turks & Caicos Islands job last
year, suffering that defeat
to Kiwomya’s men early on.
In World Cup qualifying, they
face Anguilla – second from
bottom of the FIFA rankings,
above only San Marino.
Further English bosses are
scheduled to join the region’s
bunfight for CONCACAF’s next
round of qualifying in June:
former Wolves gaffer Terry
Connor, now in charge of
Grenada, Montserrat coach
Lee Bowyer and Puerto Rico
supremo Charlie Trout, an
ex-Gainsborough Trinity
player who later moved into
coaching in the US, having
previously worked as
a postman. He’ll need to
deliver once again (sorry).
ASHLEY WESTWOOD
AFGHANISTAN
“The same Ashley Westwood
who made 286 Premier
League appearances for
Aston Villa and Burnley?” we
hear you ask. Nope: the other
one, formerly of Sheffield
Wednesday and Wrexham
(confusingly, they both
played for Crewe).
Westwood’s
managerial
career took him
from Kettering
to Kolkata, then
he took charge
of Afghanistan in
November. He has
found it tough so far in Asia’s
second round of World Cup
qualifying: an 8-1 hammering
in Qatar in their first group
game preceded a 4-0 defeat
at home to Kuwait.
The Shropshire native will
hope his previous adventures
on the subcontinent help this
month, when his Afghanistan
side face India twice.
GARY WHITE
CHINESE TAIPEI
The former Bognor Regis
midfielder’s CV already
boasted the British Virgin
Islands, the Bahamas, Guam,
Hong Kong and Chinese
Taipei, prior to his return to
the latter in May 2023.
Southampton-born
White got off to
a lightning start to
World Cup 2026
qualifying, with
a 7-0 aggregate
victory against
Timor-Leste in the
first round, although
subsequent group-stage
losses to Oman and Malaysia
mean they need results from
this month’s double-header
with Kyrgyzstan.
Few international gaffers
operate in the shadow of as
much political tension as
White does. Chinese Taipei
are only known as such
due to China’s refusal to let
them compete as Taiwan.
STEPHEn COnSTAnTInE
PAKISTAN
If the Londoner’s playing
career was unremarkable – he
retired from amateur football
in the US at 26 – Constantine’s
managerial journey has been
anything but. Roles include
managing Nepal, India,
Malawi, Sudan, Rwanda and,
since September, Pakistan.
The 61-year-old began with
two games against Cambodia
and, in his birthday week, he
helped Pakistan to their first
ever World Cup qualifying win,
following 32 unsuccessful
attempts. He said of his
players, “They made history,
got the win and went on to
smash two cakes in my face.”
Yet batterings at the hands
of Saudi Arabia and Tajikistan
have left Pakistan bottom of
their second-round group.
They now play at home and
away to Jordan – also winless
in the group, but coming into
this as surprise Asian Cup
finalists in February. A big ask.
 UPFROnT

Are the Financial Fair Play

rules really working?
nO YES
CHRIS FLANAGAN ED MCCAMBRIDGE
SENIOR STAFF WRITER STAFF WRITER

@CFlanaganFFT @edmccambridge

Since FFP regulations were introduced to the Premier League
in 2013, only one of 10 titles has been won by a club who haven’t
faced an investigation from the English football authorities.
Manchester City deny the 115 charges put to them, and will contest
them at a hearing. Chelsea have also been facing a probe, after the
club themselves discovered that “incomplete financial information”
had been submitted during Roman Abramovich’s reign.
Even Leicester, fairytale title winners in 2015-16, later
paid £3.1m for an FFP issue during their Championship
promotion season in 2013-14. Their £20.8m loss during
that campaign was £12.8m more than permitted, albeit
the EFL said the Foxes had merely interpreted the rules
differently, rather than broken them deliberately.
Similarly, QPR and Bournemouth faced only financial
penalties for breaking FFP rules on the way to their own
Premier League promotions in 2014 and 2015, whereas
in the ensuing years, other clubs have received points
deductions for their FFP indiscretions. Each case is
different, but it was always going to lead to this
season’s situation, with Everton fans protesting that the
rules seem to be applied inconsistently.
FFP has muddied the waters of what is and isn’t
allowed. It’s the same in other sports: a team is found
to have fallen foul of the cap, by which time the season
when it happened is long gone. It leads fans to suspect
that what we’re watching isn’t actually fair competition.
If a club has money, why shouldn’t they be allowed to
spend it? FFP protects the big teams who already had
more than enough protection, as
it’s now harder for a smaller club
to rise to the top with investment
while also staying within the rules.
FFP is only worthwhile if it levels
the playing field, and makes the
outcome unpredictable. Instead,
Manchester City have been
champions in five of the past six
seasons, and the four highest
points totals in Premier League
history have come since 2018.
Either City won their titles fairly
and FFP hasn’t levelled the playing
field at all, or they won them
unfairly and several seasons are
retrospectively tarnished forever.
Neither eventuality was one
people wanted when the rules
were introduced in 2013.
In November, Everton were deducted 10 points for breaches of
FFP, subject to appeal. At the time of writing, no other clubs in the
Premier League or the EFL have been penalised this season. There
are ongoing FFP investigations into Nottingham Forest, Chelsea
and Manchester City, but as long as only one club have taken
a caning over the headmaster’s desk, it all feels a bit… cheap.
As with any law in society, though, FFP wasn’t
enacted to elicit punishments, but rather to deter
T H E R E S U LT S A R E I n mishaps and misdemeanours in the first place. We
are required to wear seatbelts in cars not in order to
provide traffic officers with some kind of Machiavellian
Social view via @FourFourTwo sport, but to prevent people from flying through
followers on X windscreens at 70mph.
And football clubs have been flying through
windscreens. Ask Bury fans if they wish their club had
taken more precautions before overspending resulted
in a 133-year-old footballing institution being booted
out of the EFL and placed on the brink of extinction.
What I personally think about how well FFP is
Yes 10% working feels a little redundant when one look at the
January transfer window tells you that it is serving as
No 90% a deterrent. Premier League clubs’ gross spend of
925 votes
£100m during the 2024 window was £715m lower
than the record-breaking total spent in January 2023.
The mid-season transfer window tends to be even
more desperate, risky and hare-brained than the
summer (Andy Carroll to Liverpool, Fernando Torres to
Chelsea, Kostas Mitroglou to Fulham...), yet this time
there was barely a signing worthy
Tell us what you think of discussion. For top-flight fans
via #FFTDebate on and writers, it was a disaster, but
X, or email us at also a sign that FFP was having an
fourfourtwo@ effect on clubs. The EFL’s total
futurenet.com gross transfer expenditure also
fell this January, from £25m
a year earlier to just £15m.
Do I think it’s right that Everton
have been in a relegation battle
due to points docked, as other
clubs’ cases drag on? No. Do
I want to see Manchester City
stripped of their medals and
relegated if they’re found guilty?
Not particularly. But I do want to
see football clubs take greater
care of their finances, and
January suggested that they just
might be starting to do that.

FourFourTwo April 2024 27

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 TREnT
ALEXAnDER
ARnOLD

There’s been plenty of noise around Trent Alexander-Arnold’s performances for club and country over the past
12 months, but the man himself has maintained a cool head. Donning a retro shellsuit for FFT, the Merseyside
maestro insists he’s still got lofty ambitions – none more so than becoming the best footballer on the planet...

Words Matthew Ketchell Portraits Nick Eagle

 TREnT
ALEXAnDER
ARnOLD
 itting across the table
from FourFourTwo,
Trent Alexander-Arnold
is silently, agonisingly
looking for perfection.
It’s six years since our
last proper sit-down
with him, and plenty
has happened.
Back in early 2018,
a teenage Trent was
yet to collect his first
England cap, but had
officially installed
himself into Liverpool’s first-team picture. It
was a new status – one he was relishing, one
he was desperate to hold on to and develop.
Boy, has he.
During that chat in the Alexander-Arnold
family home, FFT asked the young right-back
where he saw himself in a few years’ time.
His prediction was as accurate as one of his
famous dead-ball deliveries: “Still at Liverpool
– an important figure in a team that’s won
a lot of silverware.”
If the first phase of his career as a Liverpool
regular has been important, the second is
crucial. You get the feeling he knows it. Now
25 and the Reds’ vice-captain, repeating the
question ‘Where do you see yourself in a few
years’ time?’ has sent Alexander-Arnold into As the poster boy of Adidas’ new marketing Above Everyone fields’ car park has been transformed into the
deep, silent thought. He wants his reply to be campaign, various shots of Trent posing and wants a piece of compound for an Adidas photo and video
as measured as one of his signature passes. pinging footballs around in his new boots are Trent right now shoot, taking place nearby, with Trent as the
He won’t be rushed. He’s stewing, searching being beamed around Liverpool and various Below “FFT, who leading man. Winnebagos, trucks, cars, even
for a big answer to a big question. other cities worldwide. In November, he inked are they? Exactly” a double-decker bus serving as a canteen for
“Wow. Where will I be? Where will I be?” one of the most lucrative contracts in Europe dozens of crew members, are tightly parked
he quietly repeats to himself, before exhaling with the sportswear giant – everyone wants for an event that dominates the first part of
through pursed lips. FFT waits, as eager to a piece of Alexander-Arnold. the England international’s day. The rest of
hear his answer as we are to watch the next Illustrating just how box office he’s become his afternoon is dedicated to FFT.
chapter of what has been a wondrous career. is a scene we pass on the way to the secret Our secret location, it turns out, isn’t very
location where we’ve arranged to meet and secret after all. As we arrive, a smattering
SHANKLY, THEN TRENT snap the Reds’ star. The Bill Shankly Playing of Liverpool fans, young and old, are already
Fields were named after Liverpool’s revered milling around the car park and reception
Stepping outside Liverpool Lime Street station title-winning boss of the 1960s and ’70s, and area of the venue. It’s hours before their hero
into a blindingly bright but freezing morning, are a stone’s throw from the semi-detached is scheduled to show up, but his supporters
a 30ft tall image of Alexander-Arnold beams house where he once resided in West Derby. are happy to wait, just for a glimpse of him.
back at FFT from a giant advertising screen in It’s the area where Alexander-Arnold grew Later, with the room finally ready and the
crystal clear high definition. up as well. Today, the council-run playing sun beginning to set, two large vehicles with
blacked-out windows crawl into the car park.
Alexander-Arnold emerges from one and
calmly strolls inside to our allocated space,
flanked by an entourage of two.
In 2018, the 19-year-old we interviewed
had big potential and big dreams. In 2024,
he has both Premier League and Champions
League winner’s medals to his name, plus
a ticket on England’s plane to Euro 2024 in
Germany all but booked.
“Everything’s just kind of evolved,” he tells
FFT, reflecting on the passage of time since
his breakthrough campaign, cogitating on
whether or not there was a specific moment
where he felt like he officially belonged in the
Liverpool first team.
“There have been significant moments that
changed my mentality. After Kyiv [where the
Reds lost the 2018 Champions League Final
to Real Madrid], I went from being a young
player who’d played in a Champions League
final at 19, to needing to experience it again
and wanting to be back there. Simply feeling,
‘This is where I belong’.
 TREnT
ALEXAnDER
ARnOLD

“I DOn’T FEAR MISTAKES.

IF THERE’S A CHAnCE TO
DO SOMETHInG AnD HELP
US WIn, I DOn’T SECOnD
GUESS MY JUDGEMEnT”
“It was always a dream to reach that level,
and to do it so young, it wasn’t like, ‘OK, I’ve
achieved that now’. It was more like, ‘I need
to play in as many finals as possible’ because
those were the feelings I chased so much.
That really motivated me, so I think Kyiv was
a big moment.”
That late May night in Ukraine’s national
stadium, Alexander-Arnold experienced the
thrill of playing on the biggest stage in club
football but also the devastation of having
his teenage dreams crushed by the holders,
featuring some robust defending from Sergio
Ramos and acrobatic Gareth Bale brilliance.
Twelve months on, he helped to right that
wrong in an extraordinary semi-final second
leg at Anfield, as Liverpool overcame a 3-0
first-leg deficit to beat a Lionel Messi-inspired
Barcelona 4-3 on aggregate.
It was a script that even the scattiest of
screenwriters would be nervous submitting.
The key scene saw Alexander-Arnold take
possibly one of the most famous corner-kicks
of all time – rather than wait for Virgil van Dijk
to march up from defence, the rookie right-
back instead caught the entire Barça team
napping with a swiftly-taken set piece that
allowed Divock Origi to bag the winning goal.
“It was just natural,” he says, shrugging off
the significance of his quickly-whipped corner.
“I felt like the big occasions might alter the
way I thought, or affect me in a different way.
Whereas when I got to those big occasions,
I felt like that’s where I belonged.
“That’s what brought the best out of me –
rather than downing tools a little bit and not
being able to perform to the level, it was more
I had to elevate myself to a high level. Those
sorts of games naturally demand you to play
the best that you can and think on the spot, Top Righting the and hopefully put it on Virg’s head? Or do you the Premier League title race to the final day
and have those moments of brilliance – I was wrong of 2018 trust your gut and not think, ‘If I cross it now of the season. They won their last nine games
able to come up with one.” Above Stunning and Divock doesn’t turn, Barça will clear it, or to finish on 97 points, then the highest total
The context of the moment – 11 minutes Barcelona with it might go straight through the box and I’ll in their history, only for Manchester City to pip
of normal time remaining, 3-3 on aggregate, the corner that get shouted at’. Those sorts of things never them on 98 after a 14-match winning streak.
all-star opponents – made the audacity of shook the world really change the way I make my decisions.” A year earlier, Pep Guardiola’s team topped
what the 20-year-old did in front of the Kop the table with a record 100 points. Using the
almost laughable. Even goalscorer Origi had “MORE IMPORTANT THAN SALAH” modern day tennis theory of Roger Federer,
his back to play as Alexander-Arnold pulled Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic driving each
the trigger on his cross. What prompted the Football IQ and bravery combined to create other to heights no one thought ever existed,
tyro to even attempt such a high-risk move? an incredible moment, and a route from 3-0 and applying it to the current Premier League
“I just thought, ‘It’s there’,” he reflects. “I’m down in Barcelona – Joe Gomez had started era, have Klopp and Guardiola found levels in
someone who doesn’t fear mistakes. It’s not the first-leg loss at the Camp Nou rather than their sides that they might not have thought
something that will change the way I play the Trent – to Atletico’s Madrid’s Metropolitano possible without each other?
game. If I believe there’s a chance to create Stadium and a 2-0 Champions League final “Oh by far. By far!” Alexander-Arnold tells
an opportunity or do something to help the triumph against Tottenham. It was Liverpool’s FFT. “It’s no coincidence that the best points
team win a game, then I don’t second guess sixth European Cup success, lifting their tally tallies ever have all come in the last five or six
my judgement on it. above Barça’s once more. years. Without us, I don’t know if Manchester
“In that split second, you weigh up all of the That night in Spain’s capital went some way City consistently post those numbers, and I’m
options. Do you wait for your centre-backs to to healing the domestic pain suffered three sure that without City, we wouldn’t have hit
come up, whip the ball into the penalty area weeks earlier, when Jurgen Klopp’s men took those numbers consistently.

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November 2023 33
April 2024 37
 TREnT
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“It needs to be demanded to reach those
numbers – you can’t get to them with luck.
It’s hard to do it if every other team achieves
low-80 points, but when you know one team
is capable of reaching 100, you need to get in
and around 100 to even stand a chance. It’s
been about demanding the maximum from
each other – us and City have been able to do
that consistently.”
The momentum generated after defeating
Tottenham in Madrid catapulted Liverpool
into the 2019-20 campaign, navigating the
COVID pandemic to finally secure their first
league title in 30 years.
It was clinched in statistical style: earliest
title win ever (with seven games remaining,
even though it was actually in June), biggest
points lead at any stage of the season (25)
and most consecutive home victories (24, of
which seven were carried over from 2018-19).
Their record points haul of 97 had lasted just
one season – they topped the table with 99.
“If it wasn’t for COVID, we’d have broken
every record out there, in terms of number of
points won and goals scored, but it wasn’t
meant to be,” reflects Alexander-Arnold, still
pondering ways they could have improved on
their best ever league campaign. Having won
34 April 2024 FourFourTwo
a ludicrous 27 of 29 games before football
was halted, they drew twice and lost twice in
their final nine matches.
“But the way we played, and how incredible
we were that season was… I don’t think we’ll
ever see anything like it again,” adds Trent.
“How far we got without really dropping any
points is something I’m sure not many teams
will ever go on to achieve.”
The title was confirmed in slightly strange
circumstances, with the Reds’ squad and staff
gathered at Formby Hall, socially distanced
from fans, watching Manchester City lose to
Chelsea behind closed doors. The pandemic
denied the team the celebrations they had
shed blood, sweat and tears for.
“It was unfortunate,” recalls the right-back
now. “But we made the best out of a different
situation to what it could have been, and we
did celebrate – that night was unbelievable.”
Alexander-Arnold picked up the PFA Young
Player of the Year prize that term. Four years
on, his displays have put him in contention to
receive the senior award at some stage and
join an elite group of men to gobble up both
honours: Andy Gray, Ian Rush, Mark Hughes,
Steven Gerrard, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ryan Giggs,
Wayne Rooney, Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard.

Clockwise from the helm. But while there’s been a lot of noise
top Van Dijk and about Liverpool’s star trio, Alexander-Arnold
Trent have been has remained focused on the task at hand.
key for Klopp; the That means not worrying about individual
Premier League’s accolades, too. Deep down he would love to
top youngster of bag the PFA Players’ Player of the Year prize
2019-20; devilish in the near future – on the surface, though,
deliveries galore; he’s relaxed about the fact his name was
kings of England mentioned among the potential contenders
again at long last earlier this campaign.
“You hear things, but no, it’s not something
“IF IT WASn’T FOR COVID, I actively think about,” he says. “If your team
does very well and you perform, then you’ll be
LIVERPOOL WOULD HAVE honoured at the end of the season. You need
to be able to help the team get wins, because
BROKEn THE POInTS AnD it would be quite rare that you find someone
whose team finishes sixth or seventh winning
GOALS RECORDS In 2020” a big individual award. It’s always from the
teams that come first or second. I want to
be the best player I can be, and I’ve always
been a firm believer that
individual awards follow
team awards.”
“I think he’s stepped up,” said Reds legend Liverpool are certainly on
Jamie Carragher, praising Alexander-Arnold course to contend this term,
on the Stick to Football podcast. The former sitting top of the table after
defender was pointing to the fact that Virgil 25 matches, but still being
van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent all have there after 38 games is what
deals due to expire in the summer of 2025. matters most – something
“Maybe with Jordan Henderson and James the Reds are all too aware of
Milner not being there, you feel there’s a bit after suffering more final-day
more of a presence about him now. Trent is despair in 2021-22, finishing
the one you’ve got to build this team around one point behind Manchester
for a new manager coming in – he’s the most City once again. Last season
important one. was frustrating for different
“Salah and Van Dijk? In 12 months, the club reasons, floundering to fifth
will look at that and go, ‘You have six months and failing to qualify for the
left, how are you feeling?’ They’re both on big Champions League, so with
wages and rightly so, but 18 months is a long the surprise news that Klopp
time in football. In 18 months, Salah and Van will be leaving at the end of the campaign,
Dijk will be 33 and 34, so while there’s all of this particular title race has suddenly taken
this panic about losing them, it might be the on added significance.
right decision in 18 months.” One defeat in their first 22 fixtures means
there’s every chance of a fairytale finish for
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE the German boss, so what’s been the secret?
“Our consistency has been back this time,”
The three giant elephants in the room can’t Alexander-Arnold explains to FFT, describing
be ignored, even if the more pressing priorities the renewed vigour with which the side have
have been challenging for a second Premier attacked this season, after a disappointing
League title and preparing to say goodbye to 2022-23. “Barring maybe one or two seasons
their beloved boss after almost a decade at where consistency hasn’t been there, I think
TREnT
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AFTER ACADEMY
Last year, the Reds’ ace launched
The After Academy, helping those
who didn’t make it professionally
to secure work outside the game.
According to PFA statistics, 99 per
cent of kids signed to an academy
aged nine don’t reach the pro ranks
– of starlets who sign a scholarship
at 16, just 17 per cent are pros at 21.
The After Academy now has a jobs
board on the PFA website, listing
roles open to ex-academy players.
The hiring process doesn’t focus on
traditional qualifications, instead
prioritising those who can display
transferable skills picked up while
at academies, from leadership and
teamwork to resilience.
On top of assistance from the
PFA, Trent has enlisted help from his
club and commercial partners, as
well as injecting some personal cash
into the project – he tells FFT why...
When did you come up with the
idea for The After Academy?
At the back end of 2020. I saw a lot
of people in unfortunate situations
due to COVID, including pals I grew
up with. Helping them is something
I’ve been passionate about for ages.
How will it help people?
By giving chances to young people
who drop out of academy systems.
The most important word
is opportunity – that’s all
you can ask for between
16 and 21. You need to be
ready to take it, whether
that’s football or not. So,
we provide opportunities
through work experience
and internships at brands.
Is there a player you
saw at academy level
who you’re shocked
never made it as a pro?
More than I can name, to
be honest. You wouldn’t
believe the amount of
talent in the academies.
There were many players
I came up against and played with
who I always thought were better
than me – technically better and
physically better – but key decisions
didn’t go their way, injuries kicked
in or they just never kicked on, then
found themselves out of football.
The endless amount of players that
happens to yearly is extraordinary,
and that’s why creating something
like The After Academy is incredibly
important to me.
FourFourTwo April 2024 35
 TREnT
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THE SCOUSER
In OUR TEAM
Matt Ladson from fan site This
Is Anfield is relishing Alexander-
Arnold’s chase for the numbers
set by Liverpool’s iconic players
Jurgen Klopp once (half joking, half
serious) said he dreamed of a “team
full of Scousers” – while that won’t
come to fruition, he’s provided Reds’
supporters with a truly world-class
local talent.
Alexander-Arnold’s “the Scouser
in our team” chant needs pluralising,
now that Curtis Jones has evolved
into an important player as well, but
the sentiment shows how vital the
right-back is to Liverpool supporters.
Having a local lad in the line-up is
always something the fans crave,
and after the golden era of Robbie
Fowler, Steven Gerrard and Jamie
Carragher, Trent’s development
under Klopp has provided fans with
another of their own – a player who
grew up within walking distance of
the Reds’ training ground, and was
one of those children who stood on
wheelie bins and peered over the
wall for a glimpse of their heroes.
Alexander-Arnold is now a hero
to supporters himself, and his No.66
has become iconic – immortalised
in paint on one of numerous murals
around the roads of Anfield. On that
artwork is a quote which sums him
up perfectly: “I’m just a normal lad
from Liverpool whose dream has
just come true.” His story, fans may
think, could be their story – if only
they were as exceptionally talented
at football as Trent.
The 25-year-old represents more
than just a footballer. He’s a lad who
inspires local kids and understands
the values of the club, the city, the
community and its fans. He isn’t
merely a representative of Liverpool
Football Club, but Liverpool as a city.
Now Liverpool’s vice-captain and
destined to become skipper himself
one day, his 300-plus outings mean
he could become the first Liverpool
player since Gerrard and Carragher
to rack up 700 appearances for the
Reds. Could Trent even surpass the
revered Phil Neal as the club’s most
decorated player of all time? Neal
held 23 trophies aloft – Alexander-
Arnold is on his coattails after lifting
a magnificent seven.
over the course of the last five years it’s been
incredibly consistent from me and the team.
“We showed last season that we could beat
any team on our day, but we just lacked that
consistency. We were never able to back up
the performances – our great performances
last season were often followed by a more
disappointing one. I think that’s been the big
difference this year: being able to continue
game after game, going and winning games,
and getting the results we need. We know
that from now to the end of the season it’s
going to be extremely difficult, but we back
ourselves – we know what it takes, and what
we need to do.”
Beat Guardiola and Manchester City, that’s
the first thing they need to do. A ‘do-it-for-
Jurgen’ mantra for the mentality monsters
might be what it takes to dethrone the sky
blue juggernaut’s bid to clinch four top-flight
championships on the bounce, a feat that’s
never been achieved in the history of English
football, dating back to 1888.
“It’s difficult,” admits Alexander-Arnold.
“You’re up against a machine that’s built to
win – that’s the simplest way to describe City
and their organisation. Looking back on this
era, although they’ve won more titles than
us and have probably been more successful,
our trophies will mean more to us and our
fanbase because of the situations at both
clubs, financially. How both clubs have built
their teams and the manner in which we’ve
done it probably means more to our fans.
“From the turn of the year, City switch it on
and it’s a difficult machine to stop. But we’ve
shown in the past that we’ve been able to do
it and there’s no reason why we can’t go and
match them this season. We’re excited to be
involved with City and know we’re in a good
position. I’m sure they’ll be motivated, as are
we. It’s going to be an exciting end.” Above Silencing Alexander-Arnold could still be seen up the
the Etihad after road, identifiable by a three-quarter-length
ICE MAN TO VICE MAN scoring to earn all-white puffer jacket he reluctantly removed
the Reds a draw when the cameras started rolling. It was 2C
Alexander-Arnold in 2024 still looks exactly and pretty repetitive work, so FFT was starting
like the teenager that FFT encountered six to worry that our interview subject might be
years ago: fresh-faced, trim, his eyes scanning a tad chilly and moody by the time we finally
as intently for the correct answers to our sat down to natter.
questions as they would for a killer through- Thankfully that didn’t prove to be the case,
ball to Salah. If the pressures of playing at but there’s a marked change in demeanour
the highest level weigh mentally, they don’t between the teenage Trent we met in 2018
show physically. and the 25-year-old Trent of 2024. There’s
Once FFT had arrived in Liverpool and got a calmness and seriousness. The boy is now
set up ahead of our afternoon with the star, a man, equipped with the quiet confidence
we had some time to spare so snuck on to that persuaded Klopp to award the lifelong
the outdoor film set where he was spending Red the vice-captaincy following the exits of
the first half of his day, on a closed residential Henderson and Milner.
road. A gaggle of crew members huddled in With Van Dijk acquiring the armband from
a black gazebo, while most of the action took Henderson, the moment Alexander-Arnold
place 50 yards into the distance. discovered that he was to become second in
Unexpectedly, a boy appeared wandering command was touchingly captured by the
down the street as he returned home from Reds’ media team, as Klopp pulled him aside
school – noticing something odd was going in the middle of a pre-season training session
on, he politely requested permission to cross while on tour in Singapore.
the road and enter his house. “Of course!” “I don’t know why he chose that moment,”
said a friendly film crew member, producing reminisces Trent. “I think it was more that he
a packet of sweets by way of apology for the maybe felt like it was going to get out into the
intrusion into his commute. Moments later, press. I think he just wanted to let me and
the lad was stood in his doorway eating the Virgil know, then later on that evening he told
sweets and wearing a cheeky smile, having the whole leadership team. It was a very, very
changed into full Everton kit. special moment for me.”
 TREnT
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“CITY CAn SWITCH IT On

AnD IT’S A HARD MACHInE
TO STOP, BUT THERE’S nO
REASOn WHY WE CAn’T
MATCH THEM THIS SEASOn”
 TREnT
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The element of surprise has been a Klopp
signature – in February, Alexander-Arnold
informed the media that he knew nothing of
the manager’s decision to leave at the end
of the season until the day it was announced.
“I was as shocked as anyone else – it was
a huge surprise to all of us,” he said. “But it’s
a personal decision that he’s taken and you
have to respect it. I’ve loved absolutely every
minute of working with him.”
The vice-captaincy is a wonderful leaving
gift, from the only club boss that Trent has
ever played under. “It’s something I worked
incredibly hard for,” he tells FFT. “Something
the not-too-distant future. He smiles when
FFT asks if he’s already begun rehearsing his
version of the ‘Hendo shuffle’, the former
captain’s distinctive trophy-lifting technique,
when it’s his own turn to raise aloft a trinket.
“No, I haven’t thought about it,” he insists.
“But I’m sure if that day does come, I’ll need
to think of something creative that fits right
with me! That’s something I dreamed of as
a kid – lifting trophies, being the leader.
“But it’s much more than just being able to
lift a trophy at the end of a season. It’s about
helping the team get there and things behind
the scenes that you have to do as a leader,

PUBLICITY
I set my sights on for a while, and something
I’ve not been shy in speaking about: being
a leader and being a captain; leading in my
way, which is being fearless, always getting
on the ball and always trying to make things
helping the team to bond and really sacrifice
for each other. There’s a lot that goes into it.
The icing on the cake is lifting trophies at the
end. Potentially one day that’ll be something
that is a reality for me.”

GOALS
happen. The competitiveness that I bring to
the team, a will to win in training and games, Below A midfield “IT’S LOSE-LOSE FOR GARETH”
hopefully drags other guys through with me.” role might get the
Given Van Dijk’s age, Alexander-Arnold best out of him in Lifting more trophies, and the prospect of
appears likely to succeed him as skipper in an England shirt doing it as Liverpool’s homegrown captain,

Adidas’ unveiling of their latest

Predator boots had been planned
for December 1 – but Alexander-
Arnold may have accidentally-on-
purpose let the cat out of the bag.
“I STILL BELIEVE I HAVE
It’s 30 years since the sportswear
giant released the first Predators in
A BIG ROLE TO PLAY WITH
1994 – three decades on, they’re
still worn by countless European
EnGLAnD, TO HELP THE
superstars, with Liverpool’s No.66
among those to don them in this
TEAM WIn SILVERWARE”
campaign. That included during
a vital Premier League showdown
at Manchester City on November
25, six days before the official roll-
out of the Predator 24s, when Trent
not only wore a custom pair of the
cleats, but crashed in a late leveller
in them. Subtle.
The 25-year-old had been given
‘familiarisation boots’ – unbranded,
sample pairs, typically in all-black
or all-white – which players wear
in training sessions to test and get
used to before the real McCoy is
unleashed. Adidas Football’s VP of
Design, Sam Handy, smiles when
he explains that Trent’s ‘unveiling’
at the Etihad Stadium wasn’t quite
in the initial proposal.
“Normally people have to wait
until we launch the product and just
wear them in training,” Handy tells
FFT. “But we had a fair few players…
begging is not the right word, but,
you know, asking really nicely, ‘Can
I wear these now?’. As far as I can
remember, it’s the first time we’ve
had players immediately taking
them from familiarisation directly
into matches.”
All publicity’s good publicity, right?
And it doesn’t get much better than
bagging a belting goal at the home
of the champions.

is fairytale stuff. On the international stage,
the fable hasn’t been so utopian. For a player
as talented as Alexander-Arnold, his current
tally of 23 caps feels on the lean side. Fellow
25-year-olds Declan Rice and Mason Mount
have 48 and 36 respectively, even if the latter
has been going through a difficult period at
club level in recent times.
Alexander-Arnold is philosophical about his
own situation – there have been extenuating
circumstances to factor in such as injury,
club versus country tactical differences and
the avalanche of talent that England have at
right-back, where he’s been competing with
Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier and Reece James.
“I think a lot of it comes down to timing,”
says Alexander-Arnold after a lengthy pause.
“In a different era and different generation,
I’d have played much more for my country.
However, I’m a firm believer in my own ability,
what I bring to a team and what I can do on
a football pitch. I still believe I’ve got a big
role to play with England, to go and help the
team win silverware – whether I play every
Above Trent is
obvious captain
material once
Van Dijk departs
minute of a tournament or I play no minutes
at all in a tournament.
“I fully understand that decisions have to
be made and I’ll never throw my toys out the
pram. I feel like I’ve enjoyed the good side of
it at club level, as someone who knows he’s
going to play most games, and I’ve got that
trust in the manager. I’m fortunate enough
to not have to think about that too much at
Liverpool, and just go and perform.”
Alexander-Arnold has travelled to a couple
of major tournaments with the Three Lions:
the World Cups of both 2018 and 2022 – he
was named in the squad for Euro 2020, but
pulled out after injuring a thigh in a warm-up
game against Austria.
Even at the two World Cups, he only played
a total of 112 minutes, appearing in the third
and final group match of both competitions.
Against Belgium in 2018, he started when the
Three Lions had already qualified for the next
round; against Wales in Qatar, he jogged on
when England were 2-0 in front. On a handful
of occasions, he’s found himself omitted from
the squad entirely, most recently last March.
Gaffer Gareth Southgate has always been
regarded as someone who treats players with
care and respect, and Alexander-Arnold’s
experience with him seems to reinforce that.
“No matter what, no matter how the news
is presented to you, it’s always disappointing
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TREnT
ALEXAnDER
ARnOLD
when you’re told you’re not in the squad or
you’re not in the team,” he admits. “But I’m
someone who’s very rational around those
kinds of things.
“I know how difficult it must be. You’ve got
so many options, so many decisions to make,
and I’ll never hold it against a manager for
making that decision. Every player thinks they
should start. It’s natural. You think, ‘I can win
games and I can help the team’. You believe
you’re good enough and you need that belief.
So no matter what, no matter who you pick,
you’re always making the wrong decision –
it’s a lose-lose situation.”
Clearly, playing for his country means an
awful lot to Alexander-Arnold. “Oh, so much,
so much,” he stresses. “When I was younger,
I dreamt of being able to play for my country,
to win trophies for my country, to be a part
of England teams that win titles. I’ve still got
those ambitions, and every time I’m able to
wear the shirt, words don’t really describe it.”
The chance to fulfil those ambitions lies in
wait in Germany, with Alexander-Arnold’s
evolution into a hybrid defender-midfielder
adding a tantalising option to the Three Lions’
arsenal heading into Euro 2024. Southgate
picked him in midfield for England’s qualifiers
against Malta and North Macedonia in June
2023, then repeated the trick for the reverse
fixtures against the same sides in November.
Should everything go to plan, the next four
or five months could prove sensational for the
25-year-old – another Premier League crown
remains up for grabs, while the Merseysiders
also have their eye on a Europa League final
in Dublin at the end of May. Force his way into
England’s starting XI and get his country over
the line at the Euros, and that would make for
a pretty good 2024.
None of it will be easy, and he hasn’t been
helped by a knee injury limiting his game time
since early January, but as he pointed out at
the start of our interview, Trent isn’t someone
who lets big moments affect his thinking or
actions. Just as well, because we’ve still got
the big question to ask before his day is done.
Where does he see himself in five years’ time?
“Ah, what do I even say?!” he smiles. “I’ll
be 30 – now that’s scary.” After a long pause,
he has his answer. “Winning big individual
honours, being the best player in the world,
being a captain, playing my part in winning
trophies for England, cementing a legendary
status within football.”
Bold, ambitious, not illogical. Roll on 2029.
Turn over to read more from Trent on tactics
FourFourTwo April 2024 39
 TREnT
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I like to impact the game at both ends of the

Alexander-Arnold tells Adam Clery about his
hybrid role – and his admiration for Brighton
Your role has changed recently, moving
from full-back to central midfield when
Liverpool are in possession. When did
those conversations start, and what was
your reaction?
I was excited. It was a couple of days before
the Arsenal home game last April, the 2-2
draw, but we didn’t have much time to work
on it. I always felt, without putting a label on
it, that I’ve been given freedom – not so much
to play as a double six or right in midfield but
being able to drop into a back three, or push
up high almost like a right-winger, or take
possession in the right half-space. I’ve been
able to create for eight years, so we didn’t
change too much. In my opinion, I’ve always
believed that the ability and skill set I’ve got
is best suited to playing in the middle of the
pitch. You get the best out of my specific skill
set by playing in the middle, and I saw it as
an opportunity to show the world that. That’s
what excited me.
pitch. If the feeling of the match is that I’m
not going to get the ball too much and not
be able to dictate things, then you have to
find another way. If that means defensively
doing your job as well as you can, stopping
the attackers and getting a clean sheet, then
I’ve helped the team to win the game.
Does any particular game stand out where
you realised that system was a great fit
for you, and was going to work long term?
I’d say it was gradual, and already it’s evolved
and been adapted in many ways. I think the
first game that worked amazingly was when
we played Leeds away in April, right after we
played Arsenal. We won 6-1 and I think I had
the most touches and most passes – I’d like
to see all of the data. I thought I dictated the
game and that’s when I said, “Yeah, this will
work, it’s natural.” I was moving, I was on
the ball, I was able to do what I needed and
so was everybody else. When you win 6-1,
that usually means you’ve done something
right. But then there have also been games
where I’ve been man-marked, I can’t get on

When you’re approaching a game now, do

you try to focus on the defensive side of
your role, or are you thinking about how
you can impact the game from the middle?
Both, to be honest. My main focus always
has, and always will be, what I need to do to
help the team win the game. Whether that’s
defensively or offensively, I’m prepared to do
that. People will talk about the games where
I’ve been able to dictate the play, but there
have been matches where I’ve had to be
more defensively sound and not been able
to get on the ball. For me, it doesn’t matter.

40 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 TREnT
ALEXAnDER
ARnOLD

the ball, I can’t really do anything and I have

to think, ‘How do I make things happen?’.
Looking back to the Aston Villa home game
this season, there was a big contrast because
we played them at the end of last season and
they were so compact, so tight, that I couldn’t
get on the ball. I felt restricted and couldn’t
do anything. This season, we changed things
and adapted. I was dropping to the backline,
and because they were still tight with a high
line, I was able to play balls in behind and it

“THE WAY BRIGHTOn BUILD

worked that way – similar to Arsenal at home
this season when I was spraying balls into Mo
Salah. So, it’s changed and it’s adapted. It’s

AnD PLAY FROM THE BACK not a set mould where it’s very restricted and
rigid. It’s free-flowing. I have that freedom to

IS BRAVE AnD EXCEPTIOnAL, be able to just feel where’s right.

BUT TRYInG TO STOP IT IS The England squad announcements now

always seem to list you as a midfielder.

An ABSOLUTE nIGHTMARE!” Is that how you see yourself in the team?

Yeah, I think so. For England, I’d say I’m now
a midfielder and that’s something that really
excites me and gives me the opportunity to
get into the team. I think if it’s working, then
long term I don’t see a reason to change that.
You’ve got to judge it all off performances
and the results.

Have there been many other teams this

season who’ve stood out to you tactically?
Probably the most interesting team over the
last year or two in the Premier League have
been Brighton. When I’m able to watch one
of their games, it’s always entertaining and
free-flowing football. The way that they build
up and play out from the back is exceptional
and really brave.

Is Brighton’s approach just as enjoyable to

play against, though?
Oh, it was an absolute nightmare to try to
stop it! Yeah, that’s a very, very difficult game.

It’s probably too far away to think about,

but given how you’ve learned and adapted,
have you ever envisaged becoming a coach
in the future?
Er… [thinks]... no, I haven’t, not yet anyway. In
fairness, it’s something I’d never rule out as
the passion I’ve got for football is something
I’ll never lose. Potentially further down the
line, I could see that happening, but I’ve still
got loads of learning to do within the game.
Hopefully there’s still hundreds of matches
left for me to play, so I’m excited about that
first and foremost. Then, who knows what will
happen about management?

WATCH THE InTERVIEW

Scan the code to watch
more tactical analysis
videos, including Adam’s
exclusive interview with
Alexander-Arnold in full,
on FFT’s YouTube page

FourFourTwo April 2024 41

 GREATEST
FULL-BACKS

FFT ranks the finest to step foot on Planet Football, via Jon Flanagan superfans, raw chickens and a magic dwarf

Words Tom Hancock

42 April 2024 FourFourTwo

30 JOSIMAR
Selected in FIFA’s 1986 World Cup All-Star
Team, Brazilian right-back Josimar only won
16 caps, yet established himself among the
planet’s premier right-backs during the ’80s.
Incredibly, he made his debut in Mexico and
scored in each of his first two internationals.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT Doing what apparently
comes naturally for Brazilian full-backs and
bagging a belter at the World Cup – against
Northern Ireland great Pat Jennings, no less.
29 ERIC ABIDAL
A league winner in France, Spain and Greece
(of course), in addition to starting the 2006
World Cup Final, Abidal had a stunning career.
He needed surgery on a liver tumour in 2011,
yet won the Champions League two months
later with Barcelona. After a transplant, he
still managed to return to first-team action.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT Hoisting the European
Cup at Wembley following his initial surgery –
captain Carles Puyol handed him the honour.
Top left Josimar
scored in each of
his first two caps
28 BRAnDI CHASTAIn
for Brazil... at the An idol of the women’s game, Chastain won
World Cup finals 192 caps for the United States from 1988 to
2004. A highly versatile right-back who could
also operate in midfield or up front, Chastain
slammed home the winning spot-kick in the
1999 World Cup Final shootout against China.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT After that penalty, she
removed her shirt in celebration, making for
what was later described as the “most iconic
photograph ever taken of a female athlete”.
27 DEnIS IRWIn
The greatest full-back known by their middle
name? Possibly. Perfectly competent on both
flanks, (Joseph) Denis Irwin played a crucial
role in Manchester United’s ’90s dominance.
He won a dozen major titles at Old Trafford,
including the Treble, and helped the Republic
of Ireland to reach the last 16 of USA 94 after
a shock defeat of eventual runners-up Italy.
THEY SAID “He would be the one certainty”
– Sir Alex Ferguson on his all-time United XI.
26 GIAnLUCA ZAMBROTTA
A World Cup winner in 2006, few moments
summed up what the Italian was capable of
better than his strike against Ukraine in the
last eight – surging forward from right-back,
then crashing home a left-footed 25-yarder.
Adept on either wing, he won 100 caps, as
well as Serie A titles with Juventus and Milan.
DID YOU KNOW? The Como native went on
to become manager of the mighty FC Chiasso
of Switzerland, plus Delhi Dynamos in India.
25 MARCELO
Hoarder of a hefty 25 trophies at Real Madrid,
including five Champions Leagues, left-back
Marcelo is one of the most decorated players
of all time – you don’t do that unless you’re
half-decent. The fuzzy-haired Brazilian ended
his Bernabeu spell by becoming the first non-
Spaniard to wear the armband for 97 years.
DID YOU KNOW? Marcelo never managed to
win the World Cup, but did make it into the
team of the tournament in 2014 and 2018.
FourFourTwo April 2024 43
 GREATEST
FULL-BACKS
24 GARY nEVILLE
Before he was making alarming noises in the
commentary box, Neville was one of the top
right-backs around, scooping up trophy after
trophy during 19 years at Manchester United.
A Treble winner and club captain, the irritable
defender accumulated 85 caps for England
and was picked for five major tournaments.
HE SAID “Shut up, ya f**king dick” – swatting
away a prank caller, who claimed to have got
his phone number from Tony Adams’ son.
23 JORDI ALBA
A European champion for club and country,
Alba has to go down as one of Barcelona and
Spain’s greatest ever defenders. Diminutive at
5ft 7in, the attacking left-back moved to the
Camp Nou from Valencia in 2012 and racked
up 459 outings, winning the Treble in 2015.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT Legging it through to
score Spain’s second goal in their 4-0 rout of
Italy in the Euro 2012 Final, three days after
his Barça switch had been rubberstamped.
44 April 2024 FourFourTwo
22 GIACInTO FACCHETTI
Top right “I just
really like skiing.
Got a problem?”
Key to the success of Helenio Herrera’s fabled
‘Grande Inter’ team of the ’60s, Facchetti was
one of the first to master the attacking full-
back role. A dominant presence on the left for
Inter and Italy (he was a European champion
with both), the one-club man came second
in the voting for the 1965 Ballon d’Or behind
some bloke called Eusebio, who wasn’t bad.
WEIRDEST MOMENT He was sent off once in
his career, for sarcastically clapping a referee.
21 LUCY BROnZE
Arguably England’s ultimate female player of
all time, Bronze has enjoyed a trophy-laden
career at club and international level. Born in
Northumberland, the marauding right-back
has bagged the Women’s Champions League
four times – thrice at Lyon, once at Barcelona
– and tasted Euros glory with the Lionesses.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT Rocking up to England’s
Euros parade in Trafalgar Square donning ski
goggles (some suggest she was hungover…).
20 MAnFRED KALTZ
What’s your favourite German word? Ours is
Bananenflanken – the fond name given to the
curving crosses of Euro 1980-winning right-
back Kaltz. Capped by West Germany on 69
occasions, he spent almost his entire career
at Hamburg, where honours included three
Bundesliga titles and the 1983 European Cup.
DID YOU KNOW? His 581 Bundesliga outings
is the second highest in the league’s history,
pipped by Eintracht Frankfurt’s Charly Korbel.
19 PATRICE EVRA
Perhaps the world’s number one left-back at
his peak, Evra reached five Champions League
finals with Monaco, Juventus and Manchester
United, where he also pocketed five Premier
League titles. An 81-cap French international,
he played as a winger early on in his career.
WEIRDEST MOMENT Posting a bizarre video
of himself kissing and sucking a raw chicken.
“When I see it now, I think, ‘What the hell?!’”
he later admitted – you and us both, Patrice…

18 KELLEY O’HARA
Considered one of the finest defenders in the
history of the women’s game, O’Hara was an
ever-present for the USA side that dominated
the 2010s, winning 2012 Olympic gold and
back-to-back World Cups in 2015 and 2019.
An attacking right-back, she previously won
the 2009 Hermann Trophy – an annual prize
awarded to the leading college soccer player.
DID YOU KNOW? Her off-pitch ventures have
included advertising chocolate milk. Yummy.
17 MAURO TASSOTTI
A Milan legend, Tassotti lined up in some of
the most robust backlines the game has ever
seen. Predominantly a right-back, and with
monikers as disparate as ‘The Professor’ and
‘The Badger’, Tassotti guided the Rossoneri
to European Cup glory in 1989, 1990 and ’94.
DID YOU KNOW? A month after celebrating
a third European triumph, he was banned for
eight games for elbowing Luis Enrique in the
face at the World Cup. No prisoners taken…
16 JAVIER ZAnETTI
Top left Players
took on Tassotti
at their own risk,
as Luis Enrique While Zanetti did sometimes play in midfield,
would discover it was at full-back where he became revered
and featured in many of his famous matches,
such as Inter’s 2009-10 Champions League
semi-final elimination of Barcelona en route
to the Treble. Recruited in 1995, the Argentine
spent almost two decades in the Nerazzurri
side and is currently serving as vice-president.
THEY SAID “He was my toughest opponent”
– Ryan Giggs on the South American stopper.
15 WIM SUURBIER
A rock at right-back as the Dutch established
themselves as one of football’s major forces
in the ’70s, Suurbier was a crucial cog in the
‘Total Football’ movement. A two-time World
Cup runner-up, he spent 13 years with Ajax,
guiding the Amsterdam giants to a hat-trick
of European Cup final victories from 1971-73.
DID YOU KNOW? Suurbier signed off across
the pond, playing indoor football for Golden
Bay Earthquakes and the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
GREATEST
FULL-BACKS
14 HAnS-PETER BRIEGEL
A teenage athletics star, Briegel could have
been a long jumper or triple jumper; instead,
he chose to be a left-back and didn’t do too
bad. The 1985 German Footballer of the Year
won Euro 1980, then swapped Kaiserslautern
for Verona where he helped Hellas to seal the
Serie A title for the only time in their history.
DID YOU KNOW? An intimidating opponent,
Briegel was nicknamed ‘The Steamroller’ and
didn’t believe in wearing shinpads. Blimey.
13 GIUSEPPE BERGOMI
Even as a youngster, Bergomi sported such an
impressive moustache that he acquired the
nickname ‘Lo Zio’ (‘The Uncle’). The defender
spent his whole career with Inter – the 1982
World Cup winner was ranked by The Times
as the ninth hardest player of all time. Feisty.
DID YOU KNOW? He went to four World Cups
but never played in a qualifier – he debuted
before Spain 82, Italy were holders in ’86 and
hosts in ’90, then he returned for France 98.
FourFourTwo April 2024 45
 GREATEST
FULL-BACKS
12 AnDREAS BREHME
The late Brehme scored the best part of 100
goals in his career, but was a full-back for the
most part. A two-time Bundesliga winner and
Serie A champion at Inter, he’s easily among
the foremost players to hail from Germany.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT Using his left foot to
net a deflected free-kick against England in
the 1990 World Cup semi-final, then his right
foot to score the decisive penalty in the final.
He finished third in that year’s Ballon d’Or.
11 LILIAn THURAM
Speedy, studious, simply sublime – Thuram
enjoyed a decorated career, lining up at right-
back throughout France’s triumphant 1998
World Cup and Euro 2000 campaigns. He won
142 caps from 1994-2008 as well as bagging
back-to-back Serie A crowns with Juventus.
CAREER HIGHLIGHT His shock brace to seal
victory in France’s 1998 World Cup semi-final
against Croatia – incredulously, they were the
only two international goals he ever scored.
46 April 2024 FourFourTwo
10 PAUL BREITnER
Top Breitner: big
hair, and a man
for a big game
A scorer for West Germany in the 1974 World
Cup Final before notching again in the 1982
showpiece, Breitner was named in Pele’s FIFA
100 list of the greatest living players (though
Pele ended up picking 125...). Also masterful
in midfield, the left-back won a European Cup
at Bayern Munich and La Liga at Real Madrid.
DID YOU KNOW? Breitner was the only player
to boycott the 1978 World Cup finals, due to
it being staged in military-junta Argentina.
09 DJALMA SAnTOS
Few players can claim to have made 400-plus
appearances for TWO clubs – but Santos did
exactly that, for Sao Paulo outfits Portuguesa
and Palmeiras. Brazil’s right-back in the team
that won consecutive World Cups in 1958 and
1962, Santos represented his nation 98 times
and achieved the rare feat of making three
different World Cup teams of the tournament.
DID YOU KNOW? Considered an exemplar of
sportsmanship, Santos was never dismissed.
08 RUUD KROL
Arguably the Netherlands’ supreme defender,
Krol collected 83 Oranje caps from 1969 to
1983. Suitably versatile for a mainstay of the
Dutch’s legendary ‘Total Football’ era, he was
an integral member of the celebrated Ajax
side that won three successive European Cup
finals, to add to his six Eredivisie league titles.
DID YOU KNOW? Krol opened a snack bar in
Amsterdam with team-mate Arie Haan, while
the pair were still starring at De Meer Stadion.
07 ASHLEY COLE
England’s finest full-back, Cole is also one of
his country’s most-capped players, totalling
107. Already a Premier League winner with
Arsenal, Cole ruffled feathers by joining rivals
Chelsea in 2006, then won another title and
the Champions League. One of the few left-
backs to give Cristiano Ronaldo a tough time.
WEIRDEST MOMENT That Roma team photo,
with Cole lurking to the side. Maybe he was
hedging his bets in case Lazio came calling...

06 CAFU
Defending is serious business, but steadfast
Brazilian legend Cafu always seemed to play
with a smile on his face (winning the World
Cup twice probably helped). An extraordinarily
energetic presence down the right flank, he
won Serie A at both Roma and Milan, as well
as the Champions League with the Rossoneri.
WEIRDEST MOMENT Being a Jon Flanagan
superfan – the Liverpool full-back retired at
29 after stints with Charleroi and HB Koge.
05 PHILIPP LAHM
It didn’t matter where you played Germany’s
2014 World Cup-winning skipper – right-back,
left-back or even in midfield – he was always
nothing short of elite. That applied whether
he was representing his country – he netted
the opening goal of the 2006 World Cup on
home soil – or Bayern Munich, who he guided
to the Treble under Jupp Heynckes in 2013.
DID YOU KNOW? Standing at 5ft 7ins, Lahm
was pretty harshly nicknamed ‘Magic Dwarf’.
04 DAnI ALVES
Above Paolo
picked up Ol’ Big
Ears five times,
and even lost A winner of league crowns in Spain, Italy and
three finals too France, Alves was remarkable at right-back
in possibly the greatest club side there’s ever
been: Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona. Lured from
Sevilla after winning consecutive UEFA Cups,
he helped the Camp Nou club to clinch the
Champions League in 2009, 2011 and 2015.
DID YOU KNOW? Alves is the oldest Brazilian
to feature in a World Cup match, after facing
Cameroon in 2022 aged 39 years, 210 days.
03 CARLOS ALBERTO
It remains one of the most illustrious strikes
in World Cup history – Brazil’s exquisite team
move in the 1970 final against Italy – and it
was fitting that Carlos Alberto finished it off.
The flying full-back blasted home Pele’s pass
before raising the trophy aloft in Mexico. “It
defined us to the rest of the world,” he said.
DID YOU KNOW? Inducted into the Brazilian
Football Museum Hall of Fame, he went on to
become manager of Oman and Azerbaijan...
GREATEST
FULL-BACKS
02 ROBERTO CARLOS
Brazilian full-backs have a thing for scoring
screamers, but none have ever done it with
as much elan as Roberto Carlos. Le Tournoi
against France in 1997 – need we say more?
If that wasn’t enough for you, he then hit ‘the
impossible goal’ for Real Madrid at Tenerife
a year later, from virtually on the byline. He
was so much more than any old left-back.
THEY SAID “He can cover the entire wing all
on his own” – Real boss Vicente del Bosque.
01 PAOLO MALDInI
Did you know that Paolo Maldini means full-
back in Italian? OK it doesn’t, but it should do
– Il Capitano became a legend, largely at left-
back, despite being naturally right-footed and
starting his career on the opposite flank. The
ultimate one-club man, he played 902 times
for Milan, winning just the five European Cups.
THEY SAID “You needed to put together 15
players to make one like him” – Roberto
Baggio. There can be no higher compliment.
FourFourTwo April 2024 47
GIROnA

irona
m in nows G
oup, na to
F o otball Gr past Barcelo
City ing this
n e d by the C ity b y surg
ped La Liga w
w r p
Part-o M a ncheste and even to fi nd out ho
ted cy ow t o
emula an suprema e in the kn
l s
gain C
ata to tho
FF T speaks
n.
seaso
itten
rd s A ndy M
Wo
 GIROnA

B
arcelona supporters war
trickle of Girona fans goin
away section at the Cam
a nondescript Monday
and among the travellin
couples like Xavi Bautist
rves of each club.
Monica, wearing the sca
Xavi is a lifelong Girona
gure crowds for home
when they had three-fi
games, while Monica sup
re, for Xavi to see
simply happy to be the
watched play fifth-
Girona, whom he once
sam e
tier football, in the
It’s the only game of the
y fan
so low risk that awa
wear their club shirts in
The two clubs have nev
y’ve bar ely played eac
the
miles north of the Catala
threat. Els Blanquiverme
7 and , wh
La Liga until 201
fans were pleased for the
na tha
more fans in Giro
che s from the var iou
coa
clubs hitting the A7 mo
ry gam e at the Cam
eve
targ et
Barcelona, on
points clear of Real Mad
py eno
relaxed and hap
tors, wh o bec om e
visi
take a point at the Cam
want La Liga survival for
have recovered fro
mly greet the m a poor start in even bigger story is that Girona go
top of La
season back in the their first
g into the ise start
in 20
top flight since rel
egation Liga, after 16 games. This is no surpr
p Nou. It’s 19 . There is applause, too – susta ined
for Catalan indep , for the chants to the season that quick ly fades
Apr il 202 3, en Girona’s
in
sets of fans share
dence, a sentimen
t both talk of a Spanish Leicester prevails.
g few are . It is a warm eve main aim this season had been stayi
ng up,
mutual backslappin ning of
and wife never
a
Girona have never
g and appreciatio
n. yet by early February, a club who have
beaten Barcelona. all were seco nd in the
s clubs know their Both played Europ ean footb
from the day pla and only
fan ce in the pecking
order. table, six points clear of Barcelona
Bar ça. The y’re TH E SP AN ISH LE ICE ST ER ?
two behind Real Madrid.
hted
ports “Nobody expected this,” says a delig
of the 2,000 away fans
Th e next time Giron Xavi Bautista, one
a play Barcelona present in December. “Beating Barce
lona
December 2023 at away, in
leag ue as Barcelona. Barça’s temporar
Oly mpic Stadium ho y
season classed as me, they win 4-2
hell breaks loose. , and all
s are allo wed to Home fans boo an
an grily. The defeat, d whistle
home sections. Barcelona’s secon
e the lea gu e,
d in
er been rivals, sinc represents the kill
champions’ hope ing of the
h other. Girona, 62 s of retaining the
title. The
n capital, are no
lls hadn’t played in
en they did, Barça
m. They have
n Girona, with
s supporters’
torway for
p Nou.
to win the title, are 12
rid, with Cule fans
ugh to applaud the
onl y the third team to
p Nou all season. They
little Girona, who
 GIROnA

“YOU SEE GIROnA SHIRTS

In THE STREETS nOW –
I KnOW THE OTHER CLUBS
RESPECT AnD ADMIRE US”
and scoring four comfortably was the
highlight of an amazing season so far. We’re
in a Champions League position. The rest of
Europe usually came to the Girona area for
a holiday, I never imagined leaving the city
to see Girona playing European football.”
His reasoning is fair. Girona is no football
hotbed and the club spent 49 years outside
the top two divisions between 1959 and
2008. Basketball and hockey games were
better attended in the city during the 1990s,
and Girona’s Montilivi stadium was fraying
around the edges, with only three sides in
use. For some time, the team’s budget was
typical of that of a mid-table second division
club – they finished in the top four three
times before winning promotion in 2017, the
year they also became part of the City
Football Group. We’ll come to that.
Montilivi, located in a verdant, prosperous,
upper middle-class neighbourhood by the
city’s university, seated just 7,000 until 2013,
more than adequate for their modest
support. Even in 2021-22 when the team
were promoted back to La Liga, average
crowds were only 5,972.
Temporary stands have been built around in 2028. Work on a new training ground starts Above Girona’s first a decade. He was twice a Girona player in the
the small bowl of original seating to boost this year, but for now the first team train at victory against late-1980s and mid-2000s and also turned
the capacity to 14,624 – more than enough La Vinya by the PGA Catalunya resort – Barcelona sparked out for Atletico Madrid and briefly Barcelona.
for last season’s average of 11,471, but it’s a stunning location framed by the Pyrenees. a title challenge “When I first played, it was a small club,
full for almost every game now. That still “Girona have historically played at the third very few fans in the regional third division,
only takes Girona from being last term’s and fourth level,” president Delfi Geli tells FFT. with economic issues just to survive. There
worst-supported top-flight team to 18th this, Perhaps best known in England for scoring were 800 to 1,200 fans at games. Players
ahead of Getafe and Rayo Vallecano. The the extra-time own goal that gave Liverpool used to meet at a bar in the town. We’d play
main stand, currently just a dozen rows of a 5-4 win over Alaves in the 2001 UEFA Cup table football and chat. The actual table
seating, is tiny and there are plans to rebuild Final, he’s been in his current role for nearly football game is now in the dressing room at
the stadium, and the players can still play.”

GROUP ACTIVITY
Geli, 54 and long a local, never thought
he’d see Girona sitting first or second in La
Liga. In his day, shirts on the streets were in
As well as Manchester City and Girona, the City Football Group has acquired a stake in 10 other clubs

NEW YORK CITY MELBOURNE CITY YOKOHAMA MONTEVIDEO SHENZHEN

(2013)
A new franchise that played
a first MLS season in 2015, the
club signed Frank Lampard,
Andrea Pirlo and David Villa
for their launch, plus current
Bournemouth boss Andoni
Iraola. They were MLS Cup
2021 champions under
ex-Celtic gaffer Ronny Deila.
(2014)
Previously known as
Melbourne Heart, the club
were rebranded following
their January 2014 takeover
by the CFG and have finished
top of the A-League table
in each of the previous three
seasons, winning the Grand
Final in back 2021.
F MARINOS (2014)
Having recruited Ange
Postecoglou as boss, Marinos
became J.League champions
for the first time in 15 years
in 2019 – they won it again
under Kevin Muscat in 2022.
Harry Kewell took over last
year. The CFG owns 20 per
cent, Nissan the rest.
CITY TORQUE (2017)
Known as Club Atletico
Torque before a name
change, the club were only
founded on Boxing Day 2007
but reached Uruguay’s top
flight in their first year in the
CFG. After yoyo-ing around,
they’re now back in the
second tier once again.
PENG CITY (2019)
Five years ago, the CFG
bought 46.7 per cent of
Chinese third-tier side Sichuan
Jiuniu, based in Chengdu. The
club rose to the Super League
for the first time this year and
have now relocated 800 miles
to Shenzhen, accompanied
by a name change.

50 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 GIROnA

Barça’s colours. “It’s been wonderful for our
players, staff, fans and sponsors,” he says.
“For everyone. You see Girona shirts on the
streets. Other clubs respect and admire us,
I feel that when I speak to people there.
“We’d been working towards getting in La
Liga and at times it was very frustrating. We
lost three play-offs in the last minutes. We
were finally promoted in 2017, then went
down in 2019. Our club’s objective is to stay
in this division, but also to have economic
security and stability.”
This season, Girona only lost three of their
opening 25 league games, including home
Above right “Did and away defeats to Real Madrid by a 7-0
you know we’re in aggregate score. They were missing two key
Game of Thrones?; players at the Bernabeu – one of them the
Montilivi has had suspended Daley Blind, who’d featured in
some upgrades, every previous game and has shone all
with more expected campaign. The 33-year-old former Ajax and
Manchester United man joined Girona when
it became clear Bayern Munich wouldn’t
extend last season’s short-term deal, but
Bayern to Girona is still a huge status drop.
Girona had to play to their strengths. The
city, population 100,000, is one of the richest
in Spain and culturally strong. The climate is
temperate and sunny, it’s picturesque and
used as a setting in Game of Thrones, the
food excellent: Girona restaurant El Celler de
Can Rocca has twice been voted as the best
in the world. Some of the world’s top cyclists
live in the city, close to the mountains, then
there’s the proximity to Spain’s French
border and the stunning Costa Brava. It’s an
area Blind knew about because so many
Dutch people holiday there. Frenkie de
Jong’s early love for Barcelona came from
spending summer holidays in Girona.
It was the football philosophy of coach
Michel, formerly boss of Rayo Vallecano and
Huesca, that convinced Blind. “The manager

MUMBAI CITY (2019)
Already boasting the City
suffix before their takeover
(plus Peter Reid as manager),
Mumbai became Indian Super
League champions for the
first time in 2021 and topped
the regular season table again
in 2023, before boss Des
Buckingham joined Oxford.
The CFG owns 65 per cent.
LOMMEL (2020)
The Belgian club finished third
in the second tier in 2021,
having recruited boss Liam
Manning from a youth role at
New York City. They slipped
backwards after he joined
MK Dons, but have shown
promise again under former
Arsenal centre-back and
coach Steve Bould this term.
TROYES (2020)
The French club reached
Ligue 1 in 2021 but have
been battling relegation to
the third tier this term, amid
fan anger. Ex-Melbourne City
manager Patrick Kisnorbo
delivered awful results and
Savio, on loan at Girona, may
join Manchester City without
playing at all for Troyes.
PALERMO (2022)
After years of off-field chaos
that saw them drop to Serie
C, the Sicilians were bought
shortly after promotion back
to the second tier. Under
Eugenio Corini, le Aquile
finished ninth in their first
year in the CFG, and have
been pushing for a return to
the top flight this season.
BAHIA (2023)
Based in Salvador, north-east
Brazil, the CFG’s most recent
acquisition – the collaboration
with Istanbul Basaksehir
involves no equity – finished
16th in Serie A last year. The
legendary Rogerio Ceni is
manager, so the current
goalkeeper may now take all
free-kicks and penalties.

FourFourTwo April 2024 51

 GIROnA
gives us confidence and he’s realistic,” he
tells FFT. “We’re not a team top of the league
who can dominate an opponent for 90
minutes, but when we can play, we do it.
There’s also room for mistakes and we don’t
change our style of play because of them.
“He likes the style of Spanish football. It’s
more technical than English, Dutch and
German football. Players want the ball to
feet – they’re gifted and comfortable on the
ball. I’m playing as a centre-back. It suits me
well. Sometimes we play with three at the
back, sometimes four. I try to help the team
with my experience. It’s difficult sometimes
with the language, but I’m learning.”
GUARDIOLA THE CHAIRMAN
You can’t write about Girona without
mentioning their ownership. In 2017, City
Football Group acquired 44.3 per cent of the
club, with Pep Guardiola’s football agent
brother Pere holding another 44.3 per cent
and a fans’ group the rest. It’s not a link
either party likes to play up – Girona are keen
to keep their independence and make sure
that no party owns more than 50 per cent.
Girona have not taken the ‘City’ name and
wear red not blue. The only change to their
badge was to get rid of the royal crown,
14 April 2024 FourFourTwo
a bow to Catalan independence sentiments
rather than any view in Manchester.
Many Manchester City executives holiday
nearby on the Costa Brava and own homes
there. It’s where Pep Guardiola plays golf in
the off season. His brother, Girona chairman,
keeps a low profile. “Pere does a lot of work
in the shade,” one source tells us. “He’s well
thought of, he comes to some games, too.”
Jordi Cruyff, Barcelona’s sporting director
until last summer, has been an interested
onlooker at the club’s progress. “Even though
they’re part of the City Football Group, they’re
well synchronised locally and they have
independence from City,” he tells FFT.
“I played with president Delfi Geli at Alaves
and with the sporting director Quique Carcel
at Barcelona. They’re special people. Quique
isn’t in the media a lot. He’s allowed to work
and has complete authority on what he
wants to do. They talk with the City Football
Group, but he decides who they go for.
They’ve made some excellent signings. Savio
was a Brazilian who was at PSV Eindhoven
and not playing. Yes, he’s on loan from
Troyes, also part of the City Football Group,
but he’s been fantastic at Girona.”
Left-footed right-winger Viktor Tsygankov
is on the other flank. “Then there’s another
Ukrainian, Artem Dovbyk, who nobody knew,”
Top to bottom says Cruyff. “He’s going to be worth €40-50
Pere Guardiola million and nobody had heard of him.”
(front row, Dovbyk was at Dnipro when Girona signed
second left) is him for a club-record €7m in August. He
a co-owner; quickly became top scorer ahead of former
president Geli; Middlesbrough forward Cristhian Stuani,
full-back Valery who’s often used from the bench.
is highly rated “This season has been amazing,” Tsygankov
tells FFT. “We didn’t think it would be like this.
 GIROnA

It’s already historic but it isn’t done yet. The

atmosphere has been incredible inside the
club. It feels like a family and we help each
other on and off the pitch. That’s the secret.
I feel great here. I’m learning Spanish,
everything is positive, which really helps.”
It’s interesting that Tsygankov says Spanish,
since Girona is the most ‘Catalan’ of the
region’s four capitals (Barcelona, Girona,
Tarragona and Lleida). Catalan is routinely
the area’s first language – one Madrid-born
coach Michel learned from his neighbours,
hugely impressing locals – and is more widely
spoken than in Barcelona. Over 70 per cent
of people in Girona voted for independence
in the unauthorised 2017 referendum. Fans
sing ‘Michel Catalan’, a light-hearted chant
to show they consider their coach, born and
raised in the working-class barrio of Vallecas
(home of Rayo Vallecano), to be one of them.
Michel’s style of play is winning fans, too.
“Modern football, with the full-backs coming
inside and into midfield,” Cruyff says. “Lots
of changing of positions. Very offensive,
dynamic and good in transition. When they
recover the ball, their first thought is to go
forward. Michel has done a very, very good
job and he’s left his stamp on the team. The
club were also patient when they needed to
be with him, and results weren’t that good.”

“THIS SEASOn IS ALREADY

Clockwise from Tsygankov concurs. “I like his ideas and support, which now includes French Catalans
top Michel has mentality,” the 26-year-old says. “I’ve never from over the Pyrenees, whose ancestors left

HISTORIC BUT IT ISn’T

Girona playing seen such a motivated coach and he wants during the Spanish Civil War in the late-1930s.
an attractive to put his theories into practice with us. In the “It was initially very difficult economically

DOnE YET – THE CLUB

tune; a fanbase future, he’ll be at one of the biggest clubs.” and a lot has changed in the 10 years since
re-energised; Though underplayed, Girona’s access to I arrived,” sporting director Quique Carcel

FEELS LIKE OnE FAMILY”

Dovbyk has City Football Group’s scouting network and
shone in his first information clearly helps. The club have also
La Liga season benefited from using Manchester City’s
training facilities in pre-season, as well as
loans, recruiting promising City players on
a temporary basis. Brazilian Yan Couto has
spent the three of the past four campaigns
on loan from City – since 2017, others to
have made the same switch have included
Yangel Herrera and Aleix Garcia, both now at
the club permanently, plus Patrick Roberts,
Marlos Moreno, Pablo Maffeo and Douglas
Luiz, who later joined Aston Villa for £15m.
Manchester City see their playing assets
appreciate if they can hold their own in Spain,
while holding a substantial stake in a La Liga
club. Yet local players have also featured
prominently for Girona – Catalonia is
a football factory and the club want to take
advantage of the talent on their doorstep.
Rival fans accuse them of being just a little
Manchester City and they’ve started to
attract envious comments for the first time.
There are even suggestions that, if both clubs
qualify for the Champions League, a degree
of structural change will be needed to
circumvent UEFA rules that prevent the same
entity from having “control or influence”
over two sides in the same competition.
Girona, though, are content to have such
growing pains. European football would
mean they’d need permanent rather than
temporary stands to house a burgeoning
tells FFT. That was when Girona had entered
insolvency proceedings with debts of £2.7m.
Starting in 2015, Pere Guardiola was key to
the sale that followed. “Under new owners,
the club has become more professional. In
terms of football, I was influenced by Johan
Cruyff’s style as a young player at Barcelona.
We went for Michel as manager because he
fitted our profile. He wanted what we wanted:
attacking football, young players. He made
an excellent impression right from the start.
I consider it a privilege to work with him.”
Carcel visits Manchester several times each
year and liaises with City’s director of
football, Txiki Begiristain. The link-up works.
“The key question is how they retain their
best players at the end of the season,” says
Cruyff. Savio has already agreed a deal to
join, you guessed it, Manchester City in the
summer. “There will be interest in their three
attackers and the full-backs [Miguel Gutierrez,
formerly of Real Madrid, who still hold 50 per
cent of his rights, plus Couto, now a Brazil
international]. Can they keep those types of
players and become a top-six club, or do
they lose them and become a trampoline
club bouncing up and down?”
Girona have bounced around the leagues
for most of this century. Right now, they’ve
sprung to their highest ever level – certain to
improve on last term’s record-equalling
10th-placed finish. Barcelona’s cuddly poor
relations? Not this season and maybe beyond.

FourFourTwo April 2024 53

 SEAn
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 SEAn
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Like Liverpool’s Trent

Alexander-Arnold, Sean
Longstaff has shone for
his boyhood club this
season. The midfielder
tells FFT all about his
Newcastle revival under
Eddie Howe, a £50m
move to Manchester
United that never was,
and why he hasn’t
been herding sheep...

Words Matthew Ketchell

 SEAn
LOnGSTAFF
Sean Longstaff is speaking to FourFourTwo at
Newcastle United’s training centre, and has
realised mid-conversation that he’s applying
the same honesty and commitment to this
chat as he would to a match in the Premier
League or Champions League. It’s like he only
knows one mode: zeal.
As the 26-year-old homegrown midfielder
talks frankly about his first-team journey at
St James’ Park, via Rafa Benitez, Steve Bruce,
Eddie Howe and a heavily-rumoured transfer
to Manchester United, he briefly turns to the
Newcastle press officer to check that he isn’t
overstepping the mark.
The journey hasn’t always been easy – he
previously suffered from mental health issues,
as he candidly discusses – but it has taken
the academy product to a point where he
has delivered some of the finest form of his
career this campaign, playing Champions
League football for the first time and scoring
at the Gallowgate End in a famous 4-1 win
over Paris Saint-Germain.
Choosing his words carefully but eager
to explain how he got here, Longstaff deftly
divulges some of his current gaffer’s secret
powers, such as Howe’s ability to predict the
future and capacity to instil belief in human
beings they previously thought impossible.
Longstaff isn’t even halfway through his
playing days, but there have already been
enough twists and turns, highs and lows,
fun and fallouts to fill a book. Six pages of
a football magazine will have to do for now…
Your father, David, was the first man ever
to receive 100 caps for Great Britain’s ice
hockey team – was your introduction to
sport on ice rather than grass?
It was a mixture. Being from Newcastle, it’s
football first and foremost, but we went to
ice hockey training a lot. You soon work out
which one you’re better at. It sounds bad,
but there’s loads more money to be made in
England playing football! My dad probably
pushed me down that [football] alley. I thank
him, because it’s worked out. I really enjoyed
when he was coaching ice hockey at Whitley
Bay. I’d go down there all the time and jump
on the ice. That was my first taste of a team
environment; how to act around a dressing
room. He’s been my biggest influence and
he’s the person I’m always trying to impress
– even more than the manager, sometimes!
Your younger brother, Matty, played for
Newcastle and your uncle, Alan Thompson,
started there before representing Bolton,
Celtic and England. The family barbecues
must be interesting!
[Laughs] It’s always competitive, no matter
what we’re doing. We would play Frustration
almost every night – I think my mam’s still
got that game – and, I’m not lying, there’d
be big fights. My dad would wind us up, or I’d
wind my brother up, or he’d wind me up. It
was funny. Winning was always the most
important thing. Family get-togethers always
had a game of some sort. There were some
huge arguments, but it’s all love in the end.
In 2020, you spoke of your mental health
struggles. Did you come out of it stronger?
I think so. Looking back, it probably helped to
make me mentally tougher in dealing with

setbacks, whatever life throws at you. You
think it’s always going to be rosy, but it’s not
like that. It’s great now because I’m out the
other side of it, playing every week and with
a coach who really trusts me. Beforehand,
I remember walking in, training every day
and going home, and it was just a spiral of
negativity. Matty Ritchie was massive for me,
as he put me in contact with a professional.
I remember the first phone call; you think,
‘Is this really going to help?’ Two and a half
years later, you’ve seen how far I’ve come.
Do you still speak to that person?
I still speak to them every morning on the
way in and then after training. As I’ve gotten
better, I can go a few days without speaking
to them, but for me it’s like a safety blanket,
knowing that I’ve spoken to them. It helps,
so why would I change?
What meant more to you: scoring twice
against Southampton to send Newcastle
to a League Cup final, or scoring to help
defeat PSG in the Champions League?
It’s difficult to say – probably the PSG goal,
because it was in the Champions League.
It was a night made in heaven. Hopefully
“PEOPLE STILL TALK
ABOUT nEWCASTLE VS
BARÇA – I HOPE OUR
PSG WIn IS THE SAME”
I’ll get to play in it again – you never know,
football’s a strange game – but I could never
experience that again. I hope the PSG match
will be like Newcastle vs Barcelona [in 1997],
where people still talk about that night in 15
or 20 years’ time. And in general, just to walk
out, hear the anthem, feel the atmosphere...
I remember watching the Champions League
on the telly and being a ballboy in the Europa
League. Sadly the rest of the campaign didn’t
quite work out but, for us, the experience of
being in it was unbelievable. Football is about
making memories and that’s a memory I’ll
have for the rest of my life.
You were injured for the away match in
Paris. Is it true you watched it in a local
pub next to your old secondary school?
Clockwise from Yeah – me, my brother and my mates. The
below Rafa: all people in there are people I’ve known since
football, all the I was five or six – people who watched me at
time; kid brother North Shields Juniors, then watched me go
Matty turned out to Newcastle – so I don’t get much hassle.
for the Magpies Everybody wants Newcastle to win. It was
as well; sealing funny: people in the pub were FaceTiming
a Wembley final; pals who were in Paris. Malcolm Macdonald
Donnarumma’s watches matches in there sometimes, too,
rubbish, really... so you get to pick his brain and listen to his
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stories. It’s rare that I get to be a fan. Mine
and my brother’s tops are on the wall in the
pub as well, so it’s like a home from home.
Another famous Geordie, Sam Fender, went
to your school. He’s slightly older than you
– do you remember him?
No, though you hear about people who were
really talented and he was one of those. We
actually speak fairly regularly now. It’s easy
to get caught up in the world of football, so
it’s great to hear his stories. I love his music
and it’s on at the training ground all the time.
Did you go to his shows at St James’ Park
last summer?
Yeah I did, they were incredible. That was the
culmination of a fantastic year. He’s had two
albums come out that were massive, and
we’d had an unbelievable season – it felt like
the whole of Newcastle went over the two
days. I went with my family; it was perfect
timing after the end of the season. It was the
first time I’d ever drank a pint with my dad.
You had a Sliding Doors moment in 2019
when, having been touted for an England
call-up at the age of 21, you sustained
a serious knee injury at West Ham. Declan
Rice played in that game, and days later
he was picked by Gareth Southgate for the
first time. Do you think about that much?
Dec’s a top player, and someone else I speak
to a lot. He has gone on to do brilliant things.
I don’t look back with any regrets; I tried to
tackle someone that day and that’s the way
the world goes. I got home that night and
just thought, ‘Ugh’ – everything’s going well,
then you feel like the world has ended. It’s
funny: from that stage, everything Declan did
went whoosh – everyone at West Ham loved
him – then when I came back, the club were
struggling. There was a little bit made of it
[Rice vs Longstaff], but we never saw it that
way. We’re slightly different players in terms
of positions, so it was more the media trying
to build it up. Dec’s a really nice lad, so when
someone who’s so nice does so well, you feel
nothing but happiness for them. I’m on my
own journey now, but his first campaign in
the Champions League has been in the same
season as mine and he’s at a great team like
Arsenal while I’m at a top club in Newcastle.
Hopefully we’ll both keep on doing well.
By the time you returned from injury, Rafa
Benitez had gone. Did you feel the weight
of responsibility, as the team’s young hope
and a local lad?
To a degree. Under Rafa it was all great, then
I did my knee. Whether I was ready to come
back and play, I wasn’t sure, but with a new
manager [Steve Bruce], I felt like I needed to.
You could feel the negativity seeping in – it
sounds bad, but I have to be honest. If you’re
playing and the side’s not winning, it’s easier
to go after a lad from North Shields than it is
to go after a lad from Spain or wherever. It
was a weird time, and annoying, because you
knew there was much more there. From my
point of view, if you got rid of the two years
that followed Rafa and fast-forwarded to this
FourFourTwo April 2024 57
 SEAn
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manager now, I feel as though some people’s
opinions of me would maybe be higher. It can
be tarnished by those two and a half years.
Now, with the new manager, it’s been about
trying to change people’s opinions about me.
What is it about Eddie Howe that brings
the best out of you?
He just believes in me more than anyone else
ever has. I think he believes in me more than
I believe in myself. I’ve not had someone like
that for a long, long time. When I get pulled
into his office, my initial thinking is, ‘Oh no,
what’s going to happen here?’ Then I come
out feeling a million dollars. He builds you up
and you think, ‘I’m more than good enough
– I’ve played very well at this level’. He also
has a weird knack of saying something, then
a couple of weeks later that thing happens.
He’ll say, “We need to work on playing against
10 players”, then on the Saturday, someone
will get sent off. He could say anything and
lads are here until really late and we’ll just sit
in the canteen and talk about life. I think that
for the majority of us, this will be the team we
speak about when we retire.
You captained the team in the League Cup
at Old Trafford this season and Newcastle
beat Manchester United 3-0. It doesn’t get
much better than that, right?
No it doesn’t. I didn’t see that coming, either.
Miguel Almiron and Bruno Guimaraes were
in the changing room saying, “Oh, who’s the
captain?” I was like, “I don’t know – probably
Dummy [Paul Dummett].” When our kitman
gave me the armband, I chucked it over to
Dummy and he said, “What are you doing?”
I was like, “Was that for me? Oh, all right.”
That was really special – a moment I’ll look
back on, and a game I’ll never forget. What
makes it more special is that we won 3-0 and
I played alongside Matty Ritchie, the reason
I was in that position. I remember giving the

“EDDIE BELIEVES In ME
I’d do it for him. He has helped to change my manager a big hug and just saying, “Thank
career in such a positive way. I love coming you” after the game. He said, “Don’t thank

MORE THAn I BELIEVE In

in every day. I love working with him and his me – you’ve earned it.” I’ll have to get my top
coaching staff. I feel like they’ve always got from that game framed. I have the armband,

MYSELF. I’VE nOT HAD

my best interests at heart; there’s a lot more but my missus washed the shirt and turned
to come from me and I think they just want the white stripes green! It’s sorted now: back

THAT FOR A LOnG TIME”

to get it out of me. The next stage is to score to black and white. Jacob Murphy and Matty
more goals, be more creative and be more of Ritchie said they should give me an armband
a leader. You can see that happening a bit every game – not even to be captain; simply
more this year. put the armband on and pretend – because
it’s the most focused I’ve been.
You’ve played under three very different
managers, all big characters in football. It was ironic that you captained Newcastle
What have you taken from each? at Old Trafford, having been linked with
Rafa was great for me: a person who’d speak a £50 million move there in 2019 when Ole
about football all of the time. Whether you Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge...
were walking down corridors at the training I’m a firm believer that everything happens
ground, having lunch or walking off the pitch, for a reason and I felt the same that night,
he was always trying to coach you. You think walking out and looking around. If that move
you know what football is, then you speak to had happened, I’d never have been about for
him and there’s just so much more to it. His the Newcastle takeover, I’d never have met
defensive block – if you were half a centimetre this manager and I’d never have been able
out, he’d stop the training session and say,
“You need to do this.” Steve Bruce was more
about trying to be the man-manager and
getting players motivated to play. Whether
people agree or not with how he did it, that’s
not for me to say. He was much different to
the other two. Rafa and Eddie want to really
coach you, whereas Steve was a manager: he
picked the team and that’s it. Working under
Rafa, you think you know a fair bit about the
game – then Eddie comes in and his attention
to detail is out of this world. We’re more high-
pressing and aggressive. People won’t realise
it, but we’ve got numerous patterns of play –
we have seven different types of crosses! If
I was an aspiring coach now, I’d be trying to
copy Eddie every day.

At Burnley, Howe made his players herd

sheep on a team bonding trip. Has he had
you doing any unusual exercises like that?
[Laughs] Nah, none of that yet. I heard that
on a podcast and asked him about it – he
was like, “Ah, I just can’t get rid of this story.”
His assistant, Jason Tindall, is very good at
keeping everyone together. I’ve been involved
in squads where the lads play, go home and
that’s it, but here it’s the total opposite. The

58 April 2024 FourFourTwo


to captain the club. There are so many things
I wouldn’t have been able to do. I’m happy it
didn’t happen in the end, because what I’ve
gone on to achieve over the last two years –
scoring in a League Cup semi-final, getting to
play in a cup final, playing in the Champions
League – have been things I never thought
would happen, playing for Newcastle. When
the Manchester United stuff came around,
I was still so young. I’d probably deal with it
differently now and not allow myself to get
caught up in every little thing going on with
it. I was coming back from my knee injury at
the time, trying to get fit to prove I could still
play. People are talking about you and have
built you up so much that the perception is,
‘Now you’re like Lionel Messi’. Everyone was
expecting too much. Meanwhile, I was in the
gym thinking, ‘I can’t even do one leg squat’.
There was so much going on, but none of the
Manchester United stuff came to fruition and
I seemed to go from up here to down there.
How close was the move?
To be honest, I’m not 100 per cent sure. At
the time, Rafa had left, and I’ll be the first to
say that as soon as I saw Rafa go, I thought,
‘Oh, he’s just given me a chance – he knew
Clockwise from me’. Then the new boss comes in and straight
below Adding away you get a feel for people, and I could
goals has been sort of tell that we were going to butt heads.
on the agenda; Then the club stated, “We want £50 million
Longstaff got to for you” and you think, ‘Well, that’s because
lead United out they’ve lost Rafa’. Then they said, “We’ll give
at Old Trafford you a new contract”, but they never gave me
after all; “Keep a new contract. It plays with your head a bit,
running!”; Howe and I just thought it was very disrespectful.
does he do it...? My contract was winding down and you think,
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LOnGSTAFF
‘Ah, I’m probably not going to be here any
more’ – then the takeover happens, the new
manager comes in and you think, ‘Oh s**t,
I’ve only got a year left on my contract and
now I really want to stay here!’ It’s bygones.
I love coming in every single day now, and
hope I can be here for a while.
If you played consistently for Newcastle
into your mid 30s, you could conceivably
reach Jimmy Lawrence’s club record of
496 Magpies appearances. How does that
make you feel?
Lawrence’s number is up on the wall here at
the training ground. I remember walking in
one morning and thinking, not necessarily the
top, but the top 10: ‘Is that achievable?’ I sit
here now, look at it and think, ‘All being well,
touch wood injury-wise, it’s something that
could be achievable’. That would be amazing.
You’ve got to play well and deserve to be at
the club, but if I can keep playing well, trying
to score and trying to be as useful as I can in
the team, then there’s no reason why I can’t
be here for a very long time. Whatever figure
I end up on is a bonus. I’ve always said, since
I was a kid, that I wanted to play one match
– and I played that one match. Every other is
just a massive bonus.
Consistently playing for the club in Europe
would get your numbers up. How have you
found the jump in the volume of matches
this season?
At the start, we played Milan, then Sheffield
United after that. It was like, ‘Ah, it’s sound,
this, I don’t feel too bad’. It’s when you have
to do it again the next week, then play in the
League Cup, then a few lads get injured and
people start saying, ‘Oh, they look tired’, then
some players probably think, ‘Oh, I am tired’
– they hear this stuff and it probably makes
them feel a bit worse. It makes you have even
more respect for the top teams; the fact they
do it every year and they’re still outstanding.
They’ve done it before, so they’re used to it,
but the respect you have for those players is
unbelievable. We’ve got the experience now:
we know what it’s going to be like. Now we
want to be back in those situations to show
that we can do it better next time. Hopefully
it’s better injury-wise and we can rotate a tad
more, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it. Every
player’s the same: they’d rather be playing
matches than training. It’s been difficult, but
a great learning curve, and hopefully one we
can use in the future.
Given your family’s ice hockey background,
is the dream scenario to eventually see out
your career at one of MLS’ Canadian clubs?
Oh, a million per cent. It’s funny actually: the
boss of Toronto, John Herdman, was here not
long ago. I met him and was then talking to
[ex-sporting director] Dan Ashworth, saying,
“Just so you know, I want to play for Toronto
before I retire – two, three years in Toronto
please.” In an ideal world, that’s how it’ll end.
That’s where I want to retire, so maybe that
could happen, but hopefully I’ve got plenty of
years left in me here.
 EURO 2024
PLAY-OFFS

Twelve countries tussle in the Euro 2024 play-off semi-finals on March 21, before the winners battle five days
later for the three remaining finals spots. Some want to make history – for others, it’s a chance to forget war...

Words Chris Flanagan

60 April 2024 FourFourTwo


WITHOUT BALE AROUND
TO FINISH, CAN WALES
DEFEAT THE, ER, FINNISH?
WALES VS FINLAND
A CROATIA REPEAT AnD
CARDIFF WILL SURELY
LUXURIATE In MORE
PLAY-OFF JUBILATIOn
POLAND VS ESTONIA
Estonia didn’t have to do much
to reach the Euro 2024 play-offs –
beat Malta and San Marino.
The riddles of the Nations League
decreed that the team ranked 123rd
in the world deserved a play-off spot
over Norway, the Republic of Ireland
or Sweden. Only two League A sides
mucked up qualifying for the Euros
automatically, and the regulations
“They’re not a good side. You’ve seen two
poor sides trying to contest this group –
neither has a glimmer of hope qualifying.”
The last time Wales hosted Finland in
a qualifying match for a major tournament,
Craig Bellamy didn’t pull his punches. The
visitors triumphed 2-0 over John Toshack’s
charges at a sparsely populated Millennium
Stadium in March 2009, and the bristling
Welsh skipper was spot on – neither nation
came close to reaching the 2010 World Cup.
Fifteen years ago, these two countries
had just one major
tournament outing
between them – the
Dragons’ foray to
the 1958 World Cup –
but their chances of
reaching Euro 2024
are decent, as they
go head-to-head in
handed one of the spare spots to the Poland will be licking their lips,
best League D minnow. despite a miserable Euros qualifying
Step forward Estonia, who topped campaign of just three wins. They
their limited three-team Nations lost in Czech Republic, Moldova and
League group but finished bottom of Albania, prompting the sacking of
their Euros qualifying section behind Euro 2016 victor Fernando Santos.
Azerbaijan. They picked up only one Even Robert Lewandowski (right),
point and lost 5-0 to Sweden, who in a perennial contender for top scorer
turn lost twice against Norway in the in qualifying, struck only three times.
Nations League. Make it make sense. Can the 35-year-old still cut it?
EURO 2024
PLAY-OFFS
a play-off semi-final showdown at Cardiff
City Stadium on March 21.
Wales have qualified for three of the last
four major tournaments, Finland made Euro
2020 and, crucially, whoever wins the semi-
final will have a home tie in the final five days
later, against Poland or Estonia.
For both, though, the challenge is to qualify
with their star players either on the wane or,
in Gareth Bale’s case, gone altogether. Bale
scored all three Wales goals in the play-offs
for the 2022 World Cup at home to Austria
and Ukraine, and while Aaron
Ramsey is hanging around,
the 33-year-old won’t play
any part in these matches
through injury. Wales do at
least have other attacking
options: Brennan Johnson,
Harry Wilson, Daniel James,
David Brooks and Nathan
Broadhead (below left) vie
for the two starting positions.
Finland’s Teemu Pukki (left)
is also 33 now and notched
a paltry two goals during the
Huuhkajat’s qualifying group,
compared with double figures
in their successful campaign
four years ago. After ditching
Norwich for MLS last summer,
however, he did net 10 in his
opening 14 appearances for
Minnesota United, including a four-goal haul
against LA Galaxy in October.
Wales are in the play-offs courtesy of the
Nations League – of the 16 sides in League A
during the last edition, only they and Poland
failed to qualify for Euro 2024 automatically,
so both were guaranteed spots, with Finland
slingshotted in from League B to fill one of
the two spare places.
Rob Page’s men are unbeaten in six games,
including an October triumph over Croatia,
following an iffy start to qualifying. Armenia
won 4-2 in Wales last June – any aberrations
like that and the Euros are over, but a repeat
of Croatia and Cardiff will surely luxuriate in
more play-off jubilation. The biggest issue is
in goal – Danny Ward hasn’t played a single
game for Leicester this season, and the same
goes for his back-ups. Rust seems inevitable.
With Bale long departed, Wales need the
new generation to make themselves heroes.
Johnson & Co, your time is now.
FourFourTwo April 2024 61
 EURO 2024
PLAY-OFFS

Situated at the exact opposite ends of
the UEFA confederation, more than 3,000
miles apart, Israel against Iceland may
not seem like an obvious grudge match –
but it is.
The Nordic country is actually one of the
most staunchly pro-Palestinian nations in
Europe. In 2011, they were the first western
European country to recognise Palestine as
ISRAEL’S BEST CHANCE, AT
THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME
ISRAEL VS ICELAND
a state, and have recently faced prolonged
calls from inside their own country to
boycott events in which Israel is taking part,
because of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Any potential boycott showed no initial
signs of being extended to the Euro 2024
play-off semi-final, which will take place in
Budapest, with UEFA deeming it unsafe to
hold games in Israel. It’s an uncomfortable
backdrop to what could be the Middle East
country’s greatest chance of reaching the
European Championship – their only previous
major tournament outing came at the 1970
World Cup, which they qualified for while still
part of the Asian confederation.
Four years later they were expelled from
the AFC, bizarrely switching to Oceania to
contest World Cup qualifying for a period,
then becoming a full UEFA member in 1994.
They made the play-offs for Euro 2000 but
were drubbed 8-0 on aggregate to Denmark,
then succumbed on penalties to Scotland at
Hampden in the play-off semis for Euro 2020.
This time Israel (above) are probably the
favourites to advance to the Path B final. They
topped their Nations League group ahead of
Iceland and also looked on course to qualify
for Euro 2024 automatically, until their key
autumn home matches against Switzerland
and Romania were switched to Hungary and
they took just one point from a possible six.
A faded force these days, Iceland’s own
route to the play-offs has been odd – edging
out Erling Haaland’s Norway in the Nations
League standings, despite the fact that the
Strakarnir Okkar (left) haven’t won a Nations
League match in 14 attempts.
Dropped into League A for the inaugural
edition in 2018, shortly after their Euro 2016
heroics, they finished bottom of their three-
team group and were relegated, only to win
a reprieve when groups were increased to
four teams for the second edition. Iceland
promptly finished bottom of that group and
got relegated again, then were drawn into
a League B group featuring Russia, who were
suspended before any matches took place.
Iceland drew all four of their encounters in
a significantly weakened group with Israel
and Albania – enough to finish second and
narrowly secure a Euro 2024 play-off spot on
goal difference ahead of Norway, who’d come
second in a much stronger four-team group
including Serbia, Slovenia and Sweden. Better
luck next time, Erling…

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA VS UKRAINE

Ukraine are another Path B team
who will have to play on neutral
territory, but that’s only if they
win their semi-final in Bosnia.
Domestic football has continued
in war-torn Ukraine for the past two
seasons – behind closed doors, with
matches sometimes interrupted by
air raid sirens, forcing players into
bomb shelters – but the national side
(right) have hosted ‘home’ fixtures
in Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic
and Germany. Polish city Wroclaw is
set to stage the play-off final if they
get there, as expected.
Ranked 24th in the world, Serhiy
Rebrov’s troops only missed out on
qualification after the controversial
non-award of a late penalty in their
final qualifier against Italy.
Bosnia are 71st. Despite winning
their Nations League group, they
laboured to fifth place in their Euros
qualifying group, with Savo Milosevic
unable to improve matters after his
September appointment. The former
Yugoslav nation featured at the 2014
World Cup but have never reached
the Euros – star man Edin Dzeko will
be 38, so this is his last opportunity.

62 April 2024 FourFourTwo


GUS POYET: “IT’S 20 YEARS
SINCE GREECE WON THE
EUROS – THERE’S MASSIVE
PRESSURE ON US NOW”
GREECE VS KAZAKHSTAN
“THE PRESSURE TO
BEAT KAZAKHSTAn IS
HUGE – IT’S A MUST-
WIn, nO EXCUSES”
GEORGIA VS LUXEMBOURG
In 2006, the last time Germany
hosted a major finals, the chances
of Luxembourg playing in it were
zero. Ranked 195th in the world,
they lost all 12 qualifiers.
Now they’re up to 85th, only two
victories from reaching Euro 2024.
Pipped to top spot by Turkey in their
Nations League group, they finished
third in a six-team qualifying group
No, you didn’t dream it, Greece really did
win Euro 2004. Yet since missing out on the
past two editions, it would be unthinkable
for the Ethniki not to be in Germany for the
20th anniversary of their finest football
moment, according to gaffer Gus Poyet.
Two years ago, Poyet took charge of a team
that hadn’t qualified for a tournament since
the 2014 World Cup, swiftly steering them to
top spot in their Nations League group and
securing a play-off place for the Euros. Just
as well, given the horror qualifying group they
subsequently found themselves in. “When we
saw we’d been drawn with both France and
the Netherlands, it was lucky we’d already
won our Nations League group and had the
second option,” Poyet tells FFT.
Greece did draw 2-2 with France, however,
also defeating the Republic of Ireland home
and away, to confirm themselves as play-off
favourites. “Managing at international level
was all new for me, but I can’t complain with
how it’s gone so far – things are moving in
for the Euros, well clear of Iceland – have a slightly higher FIFA ranking
against whom they took four points (77th), not to mention Napoli ace
– and Bosnia, who they beat 4-1 at Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (right).
home and 2-0 away. Yes, they also Willy Sagnol’s Caucasus side want
got absolutely battered by Portugal to avenge missing out on Euro 2020
(15-0 on aggregate), but you can’t – losing at home to North Macedonia
win ’em all, can you? in the play-off final, when COVID
Success in Tbilisi would give them prevented their febrile supporters’
a home play-off final, but they’ll be attendance. This time, 50,000 could
the underdogs in the semi – Georgia be there. Whole different ball game.
EURO 2024
PLAY-OFFS
the right direction,” says the former Brighton
and Sunderland manager, who’d previously
worked in Greece as coach of AEK Athens.
“The main objective has been to qualify for
the Euros and bring people to the stadium –
Greece had lost the connection with the
people, but for our last game it was pretty
much full, which was fantastic.”
There’s been much discussion about the
need to be there this summer, as a fitting
way of marking the anniversary of 2004.
“People have been talking a lot about that,
and obviously it will be so important,” says
the Uruguayan. “Greece need to go to a big
competition – from 2014, there have been
no World Cups, no Euros. It’s been 10 years.”
Their play-off semi-final foes in Athens are
surprise package Kazakhstan, in with a shot
of making a major tournament for the first
time since joining UEFA back in 2002, despite
being situated in Asia – capital city Astana is
six hours ahead of UK time.
The Hawks even came within one game of
reaching this summer’s event
automatically. Having beaten
Northern Ireland twice, to add
to a 3-2 defeat of Denmark,
they needed a victory in their
last qualifier against Slovenia,
only for the hosts to pinch it
in the 86th minute.
“The pressure on us to beat
Kazakhstan is massive – it’s
a must-win and there are no
excuses,” admits Poyet. If they triumph, they
are away in the final. “That would be tough,”
he concedes. “You play the semi-final on the
Thursday night and don’t know where you’re
heading next, only five days later. The trip,
the travel, it’s complicated, but the main one
is Kazakhstan. I’ve watched their games and
have my notes on them.”
There’s another incentive for Greece to get
through, too. At the Euros, they’d play rivals
Turkey first up in Dortmund – their maiden
meeting at a major tournament. “That draw
gives us a little something extra,” says Poyet,
whose contract is due to expire on March 31.
He’s insisted he’d like to extend his deal, if all
goes well. “Knowing that if we qualify, we’d
play Turkey, that’s amazing. Starting a Euros
with that derby? Imagine it...”
Dortmund’s police force have already been
imagining it. Anyone know what the German
for ‘Come on Kazakhstan’ is?
FourFourTwo April 2024 63
 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER

64 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER

Two-and-a-half years since his Manchester United reign came to an end, Ole Gunnar
Solskjaer sits down with FFT for a rare interview, opening up on the club’s post-Fergie
struggles, Cristiano Ronaldo and the challenges of managing modern superstars

Words Andy Mitten

FourFourTwo April 2024 65

 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER

le Gunnar Solskjaer has

something to show us. He
opens his phone. No, the
code isn’t 260599. Heading
straight to his photos app,
he asks us “2019?” and
proceeds to scroll back
through the pictures.
Most from recent years are
of his family. Smiling faces of
his three children in smiley
places – hot and cold. He’s at
stadiums in Milan, Naples
and Dortmund. There are
pictures of mountains, water
and ice in Norway. The
former Manchester United player and
manager learned to sail before he turned 50
last year, coaches his son’s junior football
team and, unlike the previous quarter of
a century, lives a quiet life in his hometown
of Kristiansund on Norway’s stunning
Atlantic coast.
“March 2019?” he asks, and he’s not about
to refer to his picture on the front cover of
that month’s FourFourTwo. He’s swiped
through years as a Manchester United
manager, but there are almost no flashes of
red shirts in the pictures. This was a man
who managed and wasn’t one for photos.
He’s the last person to be active on social
media, but on March 6, 2019, he decided to
get his phone out and film his players for the
one and only time.
“Here,” he says, as he presses play on
a video. The images show the away dressing
room inside the Parc des Princes in Paris. The
sounds are his players singing ‘Ole’s at the
wheel’, to the Stone Roses’ Waterfall: “Tell
me how good does it feel? We’ve got Sanchez,
Paul Pogba and Fred, Marcus Rashford is “Paris looked impossible. The television That’s what you want Marcus to do. Give the Clockwise from
Manc born and bred.” Eric Bailly is the most commentator said it was mission impossible goalkeeper something to think about.” above That night
enthusiastic dancer, standing on a massage to score three times in Paris – I know that, Then Manchester United got a disputed in Barcelona Paris;
table giving it some and kicking pizza boxes. because I’ve watched it and all my United penalty. “Players who can handle that “Now we get to
Eric Cantona and Sir Alex Ferguson have games back. But I wanted to give my players pressure are the best: Cristiano Ronaldo, do the song in the
come down from the stands. belief. That’s when I said: ‘Mountains are Lionel Messi and, after 94 minutes, Marcus dressing room”;
And why not? United have recovered from there to be climbed.’ Manchester United with that penalty – a brilliant one, right in Ole and Sir Alex
a home defeat against PSG in the last 16 first have always thrived in adversity, have never front of the away fans, to send us through to have always been
leg at Old Trafford, beating Thomas Tuchel’s been a club that have given up. the quarter-finals. very close; fans
side 3-1 away with a 94th-minute Rashford “We worked hard for two weeks ahead of “I ran across the pitch to celebrate with in India love the
penalty in front of 3,000 away followers in the the game in Paris. We targeted a couple of the players and the fans in the rain. Then we ex-United gaffer
Parisian rain. The end of that game remains their players – I don’t think it’s respectful of went back to the dressing room. It was
the most exhilarating moment of the post- me to name them – but we thought they electric. Which is where the video is from.”
Ferguson years. It didn’t lead to a trophy – would make mistakes under pressure. We
Solskjaer’s failure to win any silverware in targeted their mentality, which I felt was MANCHESTER TO MUMBAI
nearly three years of management was confidence bordering on arrogance. We
a major reason he didn’t keep his job – but knew they would try and outplay us, but that Five years on from that night in Paris, only
that young, injury-hit United performance in would give us opportunities. one name from ‘Ole’s at the wheel’ remains
pink won’t be forgotten. “I told them to enjoy the Champions at Manchester United.
“One special night in Paris made me League music, the best sound in football, Following his nocturnal January escapades
become the permanent United manager,” and make sure it wasn’t the last time they in Belfast, even Rashford has lost a good deal
he tells FFT. “We lost the first leg 2-0 at heard it that season. Romelu Lukaku scored of his credit – in surveys among fans at the
home. PSG are a difficult team, a very good twice in the first 30 minutes and we led 2-1.” time, more than 80 per cent wanted him to
team, but there was always something where Tell me how good does it feel? leave, Manc born and bred or not. Solskjaer is
I felt we could beat them in Paris. Maybe it “At half-time, I told the lads we just had to speaking to FFT as we accompany the club’s
was too much confidence on their part. hang in there,” Solskjaer continues. “We only 1999 Champions League final hero on a trip
“I knew that everyone would be down if needed another goal. We’d already surprised to India and he knows he’ll be asked about
we lost the game – and we were expected to them by scoring two. I said that if we got to the player he calls ‘Rashy’ throughout the trip.
lose in Paris. We were on an amazing run of the last 10 minutes needing only a goal, then The Norwegian is visiting the country for
10 wins and two draws in my first 12 league it was squeaky-bum time for them, they’d the first time, having accepted an invitation
games, but weren’t going to win the league, wobble. And we did. Marcus was shooting to speak to supporters in Bangalore, Mumbai
though we were still in the FA Cup. from distance against Gianluigi Buffon. and the capital, New Delhi. His connection

66 April 2024 FourFourTwo


with the club’s fanbase is still strong, but in
between fans talking to him about ‘99 – “it
happens every day when I’m not in
Kristiansund,” he says – there’s a press
conference held for him in Bangalore.
The media who attend aren’t as interested
in the past, more his views on Rashford,
Belfast and the present. Solskjaer knows he
must be careful – everything he says risks
being twisted for clickbait and sensationalism.
That’s the Manchester United online world
looking for hits, where exaggerated and fake
news proliferates, profiting only its creators.
He is soon asked about Rashford and the
forward’s poor performances this season. His
reply is measured. “Obviously I managed
Marcus for three years and I know him,”
United’s former boss explains. “It’s not my job
to go out and discuss his performances, but
last season he was fantastic and it’s about
consistency in football. Marcus and many
others haven’t hit the heights this season.
I’m sure he had a wake-up call recently [he
was dropped after the Belfast controversy]
and hopefully that will spur him on.”
The journalist looks for an angle and asks if
it’s up to the manager to get the best from
Rashford. If the Norwegian says yes, then
‘Solskjaer slams Ten Hag’ nonsense
OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER
“TV COMMEnTATORS SAID
PARIS WAS IMPOSSIBLE,
BUT UnITED HAVE nEVER
BEEn A CLUB THAT GIVE UP”
headlines await. But he knows that. “I’m not
sure it’s the manager’s job to get the best
out of Marcus Rashford,” he replies. “Is it the
manager’s job to get the best out of him? Or
is it mostly himself, or any player’s
responsibility to get the best out of yourself?
That’s more important. He’s had a fantastic
career, some ups and downs. Now we hope
he’s going to hit that consistency because
I know, and we all know, there’s a top player
there. It’s difficult to be at the top all the
time, but it takes sacrifice.”
Sensible Solskjaer. He’s proud of his time
as a Manchester United player, reserve boss
and first-team manager. He talks now like
a fan and has opinions like anyone – he’s
optimistic that Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s arrival can
be a positive, he’s torn on whether it’s better
to redevelop Old Trafford or move to a new
stadium. As a former manager who’s spoken
exceptionally rarely in public since his exit in
November 2021, his words carry weight.
Turbulence has prevailed in the near-11
years since the departure of Ferguson, the
boss who’d send Solskjaer, his neighbour of
“two passes away”, to pick up a copy of the
Racing Post, or ask him to pop around and do
trick or treat on Halloween with his grandkids.
“They were scared of me, and I’m still
scared of Sir Alex now when I speak to him,”
Solskjaer laughs. “I don’t want to let him
down, but he’s the kindest man. When I was
playing, he’d sometimes ask me for a ride
home after away games. If we’d lost, that
was the worst 10 or 15 minutes. He’d be in
a bad mood.
“But I had a great relationship with him,
especially after I turned Tottenham down [in
December 1998] to stay at United. He
brought me into his office and said:
‘Tottenham and Alan Sugar have put a bid in
for £5.5 million, Martin Edwards has said yes
and the club want the money, but I don’t
want you to go – if you stay here, you’ll play
and be an important part of the squad.’ So
we agreed for me to stay. Then he said,
‘please don’t tell anyone’, as he’d just lost the
club all that money. I finished that season
scoring the last goal of it in Barcelona…”
Ferguson has been a major figure in his life.
“I look up to him so much and learned much
from him as a manager,” Solskjaer says.
“He always stressed the importance of
hard work in his team talks, yet at the same
time he’d say: ‘You don’t know what hard
work is – ask your parents or grandparents
what hard work is.’
“He got us so grounded, even though we
were the best team in the world. Nowadays,
FourFourTwo April 2024 67
 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER
if you say something like that to a player, his
parents or his agent would call you.
“So much has changed in the way you talk
to players. Everyone has PR agents. If Sir
Alex wanted to speak to me, he rang my
phone and he spoke to me, or we spoke on
the training ground.
“Now, we have to go through different
agents and management. I find that really
strange, because football is a game played
by people, managed by people, and you
need to be able to speak together, to
connect, to get the best out of each other
and trust each other.”
A CRICKET CLUB BEGINNING
Solskjaer’s ability to connect, his club status
both as a legendary player and their former
reserve manager, as well as an impressive
start in club management at Molde, if not
Cardiff, got him the caretaker job when
Jose Mourinho departed. He was brought in
to calm the chaos and make people smile
again: players, staff, supporters. Mourinho
admitted he deserved to be sacked, and the
mood had been toxic.
“I’m stupid but also confident,” says
Solskjaer by way of explanation. “I had in my
contract with Molde that if Man United asked
me to be manager, I was allowed to go for
free. Nobody thought that was going to
happen so they signed it, but it did happen.
“I’ve always been a Football Manager guy,
not a FIFA guy. Always played the manager
games and not the playing ones as a kid.”
Solskjaer had started out in management
aged 13 with a Kristiansund street team he
called ‘Maranico’, a portmanteau of
Maradona, Platini and Zico. Despite his
tender years, he’d cycle around the town
getting the best players to play for him.
“Management was more my dream,” he
says. “I’ve always been fascinated by picking
teams, buying players, selling players and
68 April 2024 FourFourTwo
my dream was to be Man United manager.
Of course, you prefer to be a player because
you’re young and fit and can run around,
plus you only have to concentrate on looking
after yourself and being a good team-mate.
“When you’re the manager, every single
player, staff member and fan is your
responsibility. It’s a lot more stressful and
takes its toll. It’s 24/7, your phone is on and
everyone can call you. Players have problems,
staff have problems, the media is against you,
yet to have that pressure is a privilege. It
comes with being at the biggest club. But it’s
still the second best job after being a player.”
Solskjaer became Manchester United’s
caretaker manager in December 2018.
“I arrived and was asked to go straight to
the staff Christmas party at Lancashire
Cricket Club,” he remembers. “I walked in
halfway through the night. The place was
packed. I was introduced. Everyone – and
United have 1,000 staff – was singing.
Smiling. And we’d not even played a game.
“We went to Cardiff, my old club, in my first
game and scored five. It was just about
letting the players play. Play forward, run
forward, create chances, score and enjoy
being a Man United player. We won our first
eight games and had a great time together.
“Then suddenly the media – I understand
why, because we were playing so well – were
asking, ‘Does he get the job permanently?’.
I’d never thought about doing it permanently,
I was just enjoying myself and the players
were, too. I got the job and something
changed. Tiredness, since we demanded
a lot. That caused injuries. Some players
wanted to leave. I felt that the air came out
of the balloon at the end of that first season,
but in my two full seasons we finished third
and second in the Premier League.”
There were some fine moments aside from
Paris. “Scott McTominay’s goal in the 96th
minute against City in the last league game
before lockdown,” he says. “Scott’s a great
Above CR7 was player and lad. He always gives 100 per cent
the right buy at for the club and represents United in the best
the wrong time possible way. It was wonderful for everyone.
Left It was a big “There was the 9-0 against Southampton.
thumbs up for We played some nice attacking football. At
Ole’s first two our best, we’d go to places like Brighton,
full campaigns Spurs and Everton under Carlo Ancelotti, and
we’d control the game. Or Leeds against
Marcelo Bielsa’s side: we won 6-2 and 5-1 at
home. Beating City away wasn’t an issue.
That was Man United, we had to dig in, yet
run against very motivated teams. Most are
against Man United.
“And I don’t think we got the recognition
for the organised attacks and defending,
which we did well. Other managers and
coaches complimented us on our tactical
approach, with and without the ball.”
Unai Emery was one of those who praised
Solskjaer’s tactical nous during games
played in difficult COVID times. “In a strange
 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER

SAFE TRAVELS
Solskjaer’s Red Devils set a new record for
the longest run of games without an away
defeat in the history of the Premier League

MANCHESTER UNITED 29
“ROnALDO DESERVES MORE When Solskjaer’s men lost 2-0 at Anfield in
CREDIT. HIS SECOnD DEBUT January 2020, their third loss in four on the
road, you’d have got long odds on United’s
WAS OnE OF OLD TRAFFORD’S next away defeat coming in October 2021.
COVID soon forced matches behind closed
MOST ELECTRIC DAYS EVER” doors – 20 fixtures during their long
unbeaten run were played without a crowd.

ARSENAL 27

The Gunners were the previous record

holders after avoiding defeat on the road
from March 2003 to October 2004, spanning
their famous Invincibles season and beyond.
The run came to an end with defeat in the
feisty Battle of the Buffet at Old Trafford,
sparked by the Cesc Fabregas-launched
pizza post-match. Watch out, Fergie!

ARSENAL 23

Before Arsenal, the record was held by, er,

Arsenal – between May 2001 and October
2002. Wayne Rooney, like in 2004, scored to
end the unbeaten run – the 16-year-old
netted a stunning first senior goal, at
Goodison Park. Remember the name…

MANCHESTER CITY 22

The fourth-longest unbeaten away run in the

Premier League had just begun when United’s
record sequence ended. After defeat at
Spurs began 2021-22, City didn’t lose again
on their travels until October 2022, when Mo
Salah consigned them to defeat at Anfield.

way, it helped our young team to not have
crowds there, even though it was a strange
atmosphere, because it was easier to coach
them,” says Solskjaer. “I had very good lads
around me [on his staff]: Kieran McKenna
and Michael Carrick were with me.”
Manchester United came second in 2020-
21 and, though they lost 11-10 on penalties
to Emery’s Villarreal in the Europa League
final, the team looked to be on the up and
capable of mounting a first serious title
challenge since 2013. At that stage, they
hadn’t lost a single Premier League match
away from home since January 2020.
“I KNEW THAT IT WAS OVER”
That summer, the club signed Raphael
Varane and Jadon Sancho. Then Cristiano
Ronaldo. Fans were buzzing. ‘Viva Ronaldo’
was back. “We never wanted him to go to
City,” Solskjaer says of Ronaldo. “We’d had
four wins and a draw, and were top of the
league in September 2021. Raphael Varane
and Jadon Sancho joined, then we made
that next step by signing Cristiano. It felt
right. It didn’t turn out right, but it was the
sensible thing to do at the time. He was
available and still top level.
“He made his second debut against
Newcastle and that was one of the most
electric days at Old Trafford ever – he scored
two goals. He deserved that chance to come
back. He got 24 goals in that first season. He
deserves more credit than what he’s got. He
was still one of the best goalscorers in the
world, he was looking strong for us.”
Just two months after Ronaldo’s return,
though, Solskjaer was out of a job – having
taken 13 points from their first five league
games, Manchester United then lost five of
the next seven. Among that nightmare spell,
their long unbeaten away run came to an
abrupt end, losing 4-2 at Leicester. A month
later, a 4-1 loss at Watford signalled his exit.
“We’d started the season well,” he sighs.
“Bruno Fernandes missing a penalty against
Villa was when things started to go against
us. I knew when I looked at the fixtures it
was going to be a deciding period. We’d play
City and Liverpool, plus Leicester and Spurs
away. After that there was Chelsea and
Arsenal, plus Champions League games.
“We all needed to pull together in the
same direction. Egos came out in a few
players. We beat Tottenham convincingly
3-0 away, but then lost two games. I must
be the only manager to be sacked two games
after beating Spurs away 3-0. My final game
was at Watford… I knew it was over then.”
Home defeats to Liverpool and Manchester
City by an aggregate score of 7-0 meant he
didn’t make it as far as the games against

FourFourTwo April 2024 69

21
 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER
Chelsea and Arsenal. History remembers his
spell as United boss better than at the time
– the club are yet to match the second-
placed finish he achieved in 2020-21.
“Looking back, the managers after Sir Alex
haven’t hit a consistent level,” he says. “We
did it for two years under me, third and
second. There was progress. But in my final
season we didn’t. I enjoyed it, apart from the
end. I tried to do my best every single day,
and tried to make the staff be the best they
could be. That’s my management style.
“There was something missing from my
time at United: a trophy. One penalty [in the
Europa League final] could have changed
that and my time would be viewed differently.
Trophies are important for a club like Man
United and I understand that, but it was also
important to lay down the foundation of
good performances and I did that.
“Bruno Fernandes made a big creative
difference. I scouted him live and saw flashes
of Juan Sebastian Veron in him. We wanted
him, but before that I wanted to be solid at
the back. That was my priority. We signed
Harry Maguire and Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Harry
was a top captain for us. He lifted the mood
when he arrived and I remain an admirer.
He’s always first to the ball with headers.”
Solskjaer had a lot of support from fans –
and a lot of criticism online. Manchester
United dominates. With no shortage of
critics when the team lose, it helped that he
found support from Gary Neville and Roy
Keane, his former team-mates and also
high-profile pundits on Sky Sports.
“My relationship with Roy has turned out
really well,” he says. The pair are in regular
contact and message often. “When we
70 April 2024 FourFourTwo
“SIR ALEX KnEW IF HE PUT
ME On THE BEnCH THEn I’D
BE AnGRY. A LOT OF SUBS
ARE SULKY OR HOPELESS”
played we used to have a few fights. He
demanded 100 per cent every single day. He
pushed the players and wanted to count on
his team-mates all the time.
“The day Roy stopped moaning at you, you
knew you were in trouble. It meant he’d given
up on you. He never stopped shouting at me,
so he saw something in me. When I saw him
stop shouting at certain individuals, I used to
think, ‘You’re finished, you’re done’. And they
usually were.”
LOOKING UP TO ERIC
Solskjaer played with the biggest names, yet
he was an unknown when arriving in England
from Molde in 1996. “Sir Alex wanted Alan
Shearer, and who could blame him?” he says
of that summer, when Shearer instead went
to Newcastle for a world-record £15m. “He Above Ole was
was the best goalscorer. But many goals popular with the
doesn’t guarantee trophies. United signed United faithful
a cheaper striker – and I hope the gaffer was as a player and
happy with me.” later a manager
Back then, Manchester United had just Right “Benched
won a second Double in three seasons, and again? You really
expectations were high. “I felt no pressure do like me when
whatsoever,” Solskjaer insists. “It felt like I’m angry, boss”
a privilege. I was six minutes into my debut
when I scored. Eric Cantona was the first one
to celebrate with me, David Beckham was
the second. I looked around at the crowd
going mad and I had all the players thanking
me. That was a wow moment, the start of
something special. I played with some of the
best players in the world, but then we were
one of the best teams in the world.
“We had a great dressing room. We
challenged each other, we loved each other,
we fought with each other in the dressing
room because we needed to win. We had
some fiery characters. David May was the
joker, Paul Scholes was the silent assassin,
sat there at the back throwing comments.
Giggsy was the entertainer. Eric Cantona set
the mood. When he came into the dressing
room, everyone just sat down and looked at
him. Everyone looked up to him.
 OLE GUnnAR
SOLSKJAER

A DEAL THAT BACKFIRED

Solskjaer before Ronaldo’s arrival
P W D L GF GA
100 53 28 19 182 107
Solskjaer after Ronaldo’s arrival
P W D L GF GA
9 3 1 5 13 19
League games only
something remarkable happened with
substitute Solskjaer. “The game was wrapped
up, yet Ole scored four goals without breaking
sweat,” team-mate David May later told FFT.
“Only one of them was a tap-in, too. They
were difficult chances to finish. I was sat
there, thinking, ‘f**k me, how does he do it?’.
I was laughing at him in the dressing room
afterwards. Laughing and shaking my head
because he was a freak of nature. Ole just
played it down.”
Coach Jim Ryan had a simple instruction:
“We’re winning 4-1, please don’t do anything
stupid – keep the ball and see the game out.”
“That’s not the way I’m made,” the
Norwegian says now, describing his four
goals, the first of which came in the 80th
minute. Manchester United won 8-1. “If
you’re going forward, then you go for goal. If
you score four, then why not five, six, seven,
eight? Sometimes the ball just falls at your
feet and you just must put it in the goal.
A striker should be in the right position and
remember, the goal never moves. I’ve still
got the match ball at home.”
Home, back in Norway, is where he’s spent
the last two-and a-bit years. It’s where he’s
happy to stay, unless the right offer comes in.
“Yes and I’ve had offers,” he says, from two
European national teams in as many weeks.
“And before that, two from Saudi Arabia. Top
money, but I’m not about money. Jobs in
England, too. My agent looks through them
and we talk, but without sounding arrogant,
if you’ve managed Man United, you put your
own criteria about where you want to work.
“Maybe that’s a different challenge where
I need to experience a new culture and learn
a new language – Spanish, Italian, French or
German. I love England and the Premier
League. Even the Championship feels very
strong, but I’m not bound to England. The
DNA and identity of the club is important to
me, a club where I can be the best me. It
must be a match. Maybe I made the wrong
decision to go to Cardiff for example, where
there was a clash of style and identity.”
Right now, as he talks to FFT, he’s in a good
place. Worshipped by fans in India. Happy at
home. Happy to go away – just like his
Manchester United side, who went 21 months
unbeaten on the road in the Premier League.
Knowing what fans have seen since, it
wasn’t quite so easy to achieve, was it?

“Eric and I – plus Jordi Cruyff – became

friends. We had a party at the end of my first
season. We went to a restaurant, partied
hard and said goodbye with our wives and
girlfriends. The next day, we went to London
and heard on the radio that Eric Cantona had
retired. We’d only said goodbye at 4am that
day – that was what Eric was like. He was
about to shock football and he didn’t say
a word to his mates the night before. It was
sad for us all, but I enjoyed one year playing
with one of the best team-mates ever.”
Solskjaer didn’t ever top the strikers’ list at
Old Trafford. “Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Ruud
van Nistelrooy, Scholes. I was down the
pecking order, but I saw so many strikers
come and go. I just stuck up for myself,
believed in myself, fought and proved that
the manager should play me.
“Sir Alex knew that if he put me on the
bench then I’d be angry, but also fired up
and ready to give everything when I came
on. Not every sub does that. A lot of subs are
sulky and hopeless on the bench. I wasn’t,
and nor was Alan Smith. We went on with
the aim of proving the manager wrong.”
At the City Ground against Nottingham
Forest on February 6, 1999 – the 41st
anniversary of the Munich air disaster –

FourFourTwo April 2024 71

 TACTICS
The Hatters were tipped to
finish bottom of the table at
the start of the campaign,
but have adapted their game
to give themselves a chance
of avoiding the dreaded drop
Words Adam Clery
s the old adage goes, it’s not the size
of the dog in the fight, it’s how well
that dog can adapt its fighting style
to match all of the other dogs that
have more money.
To stretch that particular analogy
to breaking point, Luton Town’s first
ever season in the Premier League
has at times been the story of a determined
Bichon Frise that’s slowly managed to learn
Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
72 April 2024 FourFourTwo
A difficult start was met with no surprise,
and the conversations about the size of the
challenge facing them were as predictable
as the ones about the size of their stadium.
A row of houses, yes! And you can see into
that lady’s bathroom from the away end!
But as the months went on, Luton began
to have several of those big dogs sweating
about their top-flight status. Their results
against relegation rivals have been largely
positive, they bagged four points against
01 CHASInG THEIR TAILS
Intensity. It’s one thing no amount
of cash can buy you in the Premier League.
You can be technically outplayed 38 times
across a season, but in each of those games
you’ll still have the chance to ensure you’re
not outworked by the opposition. For Luton,
they’ve turned this tired cliche into a deadly
attacking weapon.
With just 19 seconds on the clock against
Brighton in January, they took a shock lead
(right). Hounding one of the league’s premier
possession teams down from their own kick-
off, they forced a turnover in the middle of
the pitch, then flooded the penalty area with
five players to bundle the ball in. It resembled
the opening moments of a video game where
one player was still staring at their phone and
hadn’t realised the match had started.
At the end it was 4-0, with Luton nabbing
every loose ball in Albion’s half and denying
them the precious seconds and yards needed
to play through a press. For three of their four
goals, by the time the ball hit the back of the
net, the Hatters had five or six players in the
Seagulls’ 18-yard box.
In early August, they’d shipped four goals
at the Amex Stadium and spent an arduous
90 minutes chasing blue and white shadows,
but gaffer Edwards has refined their off-the-
ball approach to make them one of the most
fearless, relentless outfits in the league.
Newcastle, and Brighton weren’t just beaten
recently, but battered 4-0.
Liverpool were held 1-1 at Kenilworth Road,
and while Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester
City eventually departed victorious, they did
so gasping for breath and wiping blood from
their noses. There’s a treacherous road ahead
if they are to seal survival, but Rob Edwards’
men have made a mockery of early-season
forecasts that they would finish rock bottom
of the Premier League table.

02 OLD DOGS, nEW TRICKS
To put Luton’s development purely
down to ‘got that dawg in them’ would be
a disservice to their improvement on the ball.
Where the Hatters looked short of ideas at
the start of the campaign, they’re now able
to comfortably retain possession at the back,
build carefully through the centre of the pitch
and open sides up in the final third. The team
as a whole deserve credit for that, although
one player has proved a massive difference-
maker… Ross Barkley.
Once dubbed (as so many are) the future of
England’s midfield, he didn’t manage more
than 13 Premier League starts in a season for
Chelsea and was considered, at best, a tricky
tactical fit for Thomas Tuchel, Maurizio Sarri
and Frank Lampard. But at Luton, restored to
the deeper role he thrived in with Everton, he
has rediscovered his mojo.
Barkley is Town’s tempo-setter. Receiving
the ball deep from the back four, he can play
immediately into the forward line to bypass
THE VID
the opposition midfield or, as has become his
trademark, carry the ball himself to commit
players and open up space. His numbers have
been outstanding, rating him in the top five
per cent of top-flight midfielders for beating
an opponent (3.8 times per 90 minutes) and
creating opportunities from those take-ons
(0.6 times per 90).
Adebayo
TACTICS
Adebayo
Ogbene
Ogbene
03
DIAMOnDS In THE RUFF
What will ultimately decide Luton’s
Premier League fate is whether or not they
SCAN H can convert their high-pressing and creative
ERE threat into goals between now and the end
TO WAT
CH of the season. Encouragingly, they have been
EO finishing their chances with lethal efficiency.
At the start of February, the Hatters ranked
17th in the top tier for number of shots, 19th
for number of shots on target, but a surprising
fifth for ratio of shots on target to goals. It
placed them between Arsenal and Spurs for
that statistical gauge of ‘taking chances’ and
meant they’d outscored Manchester United.
If Expected Goals (xG) is your sort of thing,
it represented a potent over-performance
that showed how composed Elijah Adebayo
and Carlton Morris have been up front. The
former smashed a hat-trick against Brighton,
before his effort at Newcastle took his tally to
nine in the Premier League this season – not
bad for someone who’d never played in the
top flight and was lining up for League Two
Walsall just three years ago.
If xG isn’t your sort of thing, it still painted
a picture of a team who weren’t going to let
all of their hard work be undone by profligacy
at the vital moments. Woof.
EDWARDS HAS REFInED
LUTOn’S OFF-THE-BALL
STYLE AnD MADE THEM
A RELEnTLESS OUTFIT
 TACTICS

01 HOW LEVERKUSEn PLAY

What has made Leverkusen such an
exciting prospect this term is that their shape
has been really difficult to quantify.
Technically a 3-4-2-1 (right), they easily shift
between a back four and back three. Jeremie
Frimpong and Alex Grimaldo maraud up and
down the pitch as the primary outlets in wide
attacking areas, but also take turns to move
into the defensive line and create a back four.
Frimpong, in particular, might be the most
attacking full-back in European football right
now. As of early February, no defender across
the continent’s top five leagues had touched
the ball more times in the opposition area.
Inside, Leverkusen line up in a box midfield,
with Granit Xhaka and Exequiel Palacios often
operating as a double pivot behind two free-
roaming 10s in Jonas Hofmann and Florian
Wirtz. Xhaka and Palacios work relentlessly
to manufacture passing angles with the back
three, while Hofmann and Wirtz typically play
narrower, allowing the wing-backs to occupy
the wider space.
It’s a risky and potentially very open system,
but they’ve been overwhelming in attack and
rigidly solid at the back. After 22 Bundesliga
rounds, they had the best defensive record
and only Bayern Munich had outscored them.

Having led Bayer Leverkusen

to the top of the Bundesliga,
the upwardly-mobile Basque
was immediately installed as SCAN H
ERE
the hot favourite to take the TO WAT
CH
THE VID
reins at Anfield this summer EO

owever the Jurgen Klopp farewell

tour ends – with silverware, tears or
both – Liverpool face arguably their
most critical coaching appointment
in decades.
Manchester United and Arsenal
have proved that replacing an era-
defining manager is impossible and,
with competition for the Champions League
spots as hot as ever, whoever takes the reins
won’t enjoy the luxury of a lacklustre start.
When Klopp announced his imminent exit,
the name on everyone’s lips was Xabi Alonso:
a former European champion with Liverpool
and a genuine contender for the continent’s
manager of the season after steering Bayer
Leverkusen to the Bundesliga summit.
His CV might be light, and his extraordinary
Leverkusen adventure is still only his first full
season as a gaffer at senior level, but having
worked under Rafael Benitez, Carlo Ancelotti,
Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola, the label of
‘marked for greatness’ appears a fitting one.
Is he the right fit for Liverpool, though?

74 April 2024 FourFourTwo

 TACTICS
Grimaldo
Boniface

02
Wirtz
HOW IT FITS LIVERPOOL
Hofmann
Leverkusen’s system works because Xhaka
Alonso has identified the exact player profiles Tapsoba
needed to make it work. His centre-backs are
all strong and physical but composed on the
ball, while the two holding midfielders refuse Palacios Frimpong
to be bullied when receiving in tight areas and Tah
can turn to play upfield under pressure.
Liverpool are arguably the closest match to
that in the Premier League, with the emerging
Jarell Quansah seemingly an ideal fit next to
Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate if they did Kossounou
want to integrate another defender. Even for
the vital No.10 positions, which Klopp’s team
haven’t employed recently, the Merseysiders

03
have an embarrassment of riches who could
comfortably adapt, like Dominik Szoboszlai. HOW IT DOESn’T
But while several of the side might be able
to sing off that hymn sheet, the music that While discussing how a manager’s
will be more familiar to Liverpool fans’ ears is philosophy might fit a club gives a measure of
the variation of pressing that Alonso’s outfit their potential suitability, it’s never as simple
use out of possession. Switching to a narrow in reality. The real test of Alonso at Liverpool
shape when they lose the ball, they instantly wouldn’t be how well he’d make their existing
close down as a unit and try to win it back as squad fit his style of play, but how well he’d
quickly as possible. adapt his own approach to suit the incredible
It’s not quite Klopp’s patented ‘gegenpress’, wealth of talent at his disposal.
but the German himself has evolved the Reds Case in point is Trent Alexander-Arnold: far
to be less reliant on that and more controlled too talented to be awkwardly shoe-horned
in these transitions. into a double pivot, or forced to sacrifice his
natural game to offer the dynamic attacking
threat of Leverkusen’s wing-backs. Likewise,
Mohamed Salah would prove potent as one
of Alonso’s roaming No.10s but, aged 32 by
the time 2024-25 commences, it’s a role that
would guzzle his remaining pools of energy.
What’s heartening is that Leverkusen have
developed since the moment Alonso arrived.
Taking charge in October 2022, he inherited
a team battling relegation who’d shipped 16
goals in their opening eight league games.
After steadying the ship, Die Werkself ended
the campaign on a run of just two losses in 13
matches and finished sixth.
The summer departure of Moussa Diaby to
Aston Villa required a rethink for this season,
and those alterations have put them firmly in
contention for their first ever Bundesliga title.

THE REAL TEST OF XABI

AT LIVERPOOL WOULD BE
HOW WELL HE’D ADAPT
HIS OWn APPROACH TO
SUIT THE REDS’ TALEnT
 TACTICS

01 InnOVATInG THE BUILD-UP

It all started with one man, Claude
Makelele. Already at Chelsea when Mourinho
strolled in from European Cup winners Porto
in 2004, the Frenchman was deployed as the
deepest of the side’s midfield three and told
to collect the ball from goalkeeper Petr Cech
before moving it forward into midfield. There,
via his combination play with Tiago and Frank
Lampard, the Blues often outnumbered the
opposition’s two central midfielders.
An obvious solution was for teams to use
one of their two strikers to invade Makelele’s
sector of the pitch, effectively matching them
3 vs 3, but that would leave Ricardo Carvalho
or John Terry spare – both central defenders
were comfortable on the ball and could pick
out a team-mate higher up the pitch, or carry
it upfield themselves.
The Blues were also innovative in terms of
how attacking they asked their full-backs to
be, regularly tasking Wayne Bridge and Paulo
Ferreira with bypassing the congested central
zones directly. Just as now we routinely see
*not us sides shift to a back three to accommodate
those runs, part of the Makelele role was to
cover the vacant full-back areas to maintain
a solid back four.
Twenty years since his move
to England, FFT assesses how
a formation tweak allowed
the Portuguese manager to
quickly win two league titles

he early 2000s were a very different

time. Adidas Predators were all the
rage and England were well-fancied
heading into the Euros. OK, perhaps
they weren’t that different.
Back then, however, you’d reliably
go along to your side’s Saturday 3pm
kick-off to witness a good, honest,
British, 4-4-2 – something that soon changed
forever thanks to the arrival of one
man, a special man, who turned up
to dominate the division and your
midfield. Jose Mourinho and his
4-3-3 formation transformed
the Premier League.
That’s not to say he invented
the system, of course (a heartfelt
“grüß gott” to Ernst Happel and SCAN H
ERE
“goedemorgen” to Rinus Michels, TO WAT
CH
if they’re reading up there), but he THE VID
EO
was responsible for popularising both
it, and its principles, in the English game.
Why? Partially as it was a setup he believed
in, but mostly because he’d identified it as an
effective way to outmanoeuvre most teams
in the league.
Whether it was flat, shaped like a diamond
or using a deep ‘second striker’, the reliance
on the functionality of 4-4-2 played right into
his hands. “If I have a triangle in midfield, I’ll
always have an advantage where the central
midfielders are side by side,” he explained.
He wasn’t wrong.

76 April 2024 FourFourTwo


02 InnOVATInG THE ATTACK
While this build-up style was great
at getting the team into gear, it was primarily
modelled to ensure they caused havoc at the
business end of the pitch. A lone striker and
no clear No.10 did feel like a conservative way
to play, but they frequently found themselves
with five guys in the attacking line.
Criticised for a lack of goalscoring in his first
couple of years at Chelsea after signing from
Marseille, Didier Drogba’s chief objective was
to occupy the central defenders – using brute
strength to pin them into position, but also by
luring them into each other’s territories with
clever off-the-ball movement.
The space he created meant the Londoners
could execute their attacking ideals. Constant
rotation of the wide forwards (Damien Duff,
Joe Cole, Arjen Robben or Eidur Gudjohnsen)
helped them to isolate their markers on the
flanks, then cross the ball or drift centrally to
exploit the gaps generated by Drogba.
A late run into those holes was often on the
cards, too (top right). Lampard nearly doubled
his goal tally by making the most of the fact
that Drogba could distract two centre-backs.
Cole
Lampard
Drogba
DROGBA’S LEAP, STREnGTH
AnD BALL-COnTROL MADE
HIM AS PERFECT A ‘CLASSIC
BRITISH nUMBER nInE’ AS
YOU COULD EVER HOPE FOR
TACTICS
Robben Ferreira
03
InnOVATInG nOTHInG, ACTUALLY
Mourinho’s Chelsea won trophies
because of the ways they were different, but
they also won matches by not being different
at all. It was a rare sight to see, but the Blues
were equally as comfortable and competitive
in a 4-4-2 and going route one as any other
team in the league.
Cech didn’t have the footwork to play short,
pinpoint passes in the way we expect elite
goalkeepers to do now, but he had no issues
punting long into Drogba. The Ivorian’s leap,
strength and ball-control made him about as
perfect a ‘classic British number nine’ as you
could ever hope for, boasting the technical
skill to bring his team-mates into play.
With the wide forwards adept at traditional
wing-play, Lampard and Makelele effective as
a two and Gudjohnsen a fine finisher, Jose’s
men were able to switch from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2,
not only between games, but between game
states. Just when teams thought they might
have found answers to Mourinho’s patented
brand of football, he’d have his team change
all of the questions.
EFL • nOn-LEAGUE • SCOTLAnD
InTERVIEW
SHAUn MALOnEY
The Wigan gaffer on why
he could have taken up
tennis, seeking Sir Alex’s
advice and memories of
cup glory with the Latics
Interview Ed McCambridge
Is it true you used to play tennis with
Andy Murray as a kid?
No, though I played against his brother,
Jamie. Andy was a few years younger
than me so we never faced each other,
but we’d often be at the same youth
tournaments. I remember seeing him
play when he was about nine and he
was already super talented. I wasn’t
quite as gifted but I tried hard. I opted
for football instead and, thankfully, it
turned out to be a pretty good choice.
You joined Celtic as a teenager and
played a part as the Bhoys reached
the 2003 UEFA Cup Final. What are
your memories?
Scottish football was in a great place in
the early 2000s. I remember Henrik
Larsson and John Hartson both being
injured ahead of the UEFA Cup last 16
first leg against Stuttgart, and I got my
first big start. We won 3-1 and I scored.
We then beat Liverpool en route to the
78 April 2024 FourFourTwo
final and eventually lost 3-2 to Jose
Mourinho’s Porto – I came on in extra-
time. I’ve still never watched that final
again. We also lost the league title four
days later, with Rangers pipping us on
goal difference. It was heartbreaking
but, looking back, what an incredible
season for a youngster to experience.
You were crowned Scotland’s player
of the year and young player of the
year in 2006. What an achievement…
I’d missed most of the previous season
through injury, then Gordon Strachan
replaced Martin O’Neill as boss and was
keen to develop more of the younger
lads. He changed my role from striker
to left-winger and gave me confidence
to go out and show what I could do.
Obviously we needed a bit of luck and
You signed for Aston Villa in January
2007, but didn’t settle at first. Why?
“SIR ALEX SAID LEAVInG our goalkeeper, Joel Robles, produced
some fantastic saves, but we held on.
I probably wasn’t ready to leave Celtic
and found the first six months difficult.
HIBS MIGHT ACTUALLY Callum McManaman, in particular, was
outstanding. He was the best player on
I spoke to Gordon and he urged me to
give it a proper go – I’m happy I did, as
EnD UP BEInG GOOD FOR the park, and I’m including Yaya Toure,
David Silva, Vincent Kompany, Carlos
we had a brilliant young side with the
likes of Gabby Agbonlahor and Ashley
ME, AnD HE WAS RIGHT” Tevez and Sergio Aguero in that. To lift
the trophy with the Latics was pure joy.
Young. I soon went back to Celtic, but
had loads of injury issues and thought we weren’t on it, we could get hurt, but You won 47 caps for Scotland, scoring
I was letting people down. In the end, it was so much fun and we just loved it. seven goals, but didn’t get to play at
I needed another fresh start. a major tournament. How frustrating
You swung in the corner for Wigan’s was that era?
You headed back down south in 2011 late winner in their 2013 FA Cup Final I look back on my international career
with Roberto Martinez’s Wigan – it upset against Manchester City – can with immense pride. Of course, it would
proved a golden era featuring great you describe your emotions? have been lovely to qualify for a major
football and even greater escapes… It still gives me goosebumps. Martinez tournament, but it was never through
It was an amazing period. The style of was good before big games. He laid out a lack of effort. I’m honestly so thrilled
play was everything I dreamed of. We a tactical blueprint and explained how that the current squad has managed
felt we had a chance against any team to adapt if City changed. But the main to reach two European Championships
on our day, even the top sides. When thing he did was instil a calmness in us. and I’m a massive fan of Scotland now.
 AROUnD THE
GROUnDS

EFL nEWS
You coached Celtic’s youth sides and
joined Martinez’s Belgium backroom

EVERYDAY I LOVE YOU MORE AnD MORE

staff for Euro 2020 – how was that?
The quality of the players we had was
awesome. I love Belgium as a country
and enjoyed going around Europe to
watch the lads. The Euros was tough as
we were the top-ranked nation but lost
to Italy in the last eight. There are fine
margins at major tournaments and it
was crushing, but it was such a brilliant,
intense summer.
You became Hibernian boss in 2021
and won your first two matches. Why
didn’t things work out there?
Things started well, but we lost some of
our best attacking players in January.
My relationship with people behind the
scenes became strained and I left after
four months in the job. I was in a bad
place after that and spoke to Sir Alex
Ferguson. He told me that it might end
up being the best thing to ever happen
to me, which I couldn’t comprehend at
the time. But he was right – it had been
a huge learning curve.
Simon Rix somehow juggles his role as head of Leeds United Supporters’ Trust
with playing bass guitar for rock royalty Kaiser Chiefs – talk about a full-time gig
While many clubs count legendary who always tries to see the positives. he suggested jetting to Montevideo
musicians among their fanbases – Thankfully, my co-presenters help to and giving him a present. We settled
Ozzy Osbourne follows Aston Villa, balance that out a little. Between the on a bucket, like the one he used to
Rod Stewart often turns up at Celtic supporters’ trust and the pod, I think sit on during matches at Elland Road.
and Mick Hucknall is a Manchester it’s fair to say I spend way too much We watched Uruguay beat Brazil 2-0
United diehard, to name just three – time reading and talking about Leeds in a World Cup qualifier and managed
few can claim their celebrity plays United. I’m obsessed.” to see Bielsa afterwards. We handed
as prominent a role in proceedings Anyone who still has doubts about over the gift and he was genuinely
as Leeds United’s. That’s because the 46-year-old’s commitment to the delighted – it was a special moment.
Simon Rix, bassist for local rockers cause clearly missed his participation In an ideal world, he’ll return to Leeds
Kaiser Chiefs, also happens to be in a 7,000-mile pilgrimage to honour one afternoon and listen to the crowd
head of the club’s supporters’ trust. a former Leeds boss in 2023. chanting his name. He needs to know
Lifelong fan Rix was asked to take how loved he still is.”
on the honorary position several years
ago, but quickly found himself unable “I HELP OUT WITH FAn Rix must juggle his passion for the
Championship high-flyers with band

You returned to Wigan in early 2023.

What were your initial targets?
Kolo Toure had only been in the job for
a few weeks and the aim was simple:
to stop leaking so many goals and win
some games. We wanted to stay in the
Championship and did improve, but it
wasn’t enough in the end. By the time
March came around, off-field problems
made survival impossible.
The club has endured incredibly hard
times in recent years and came close
to going bust. How difficult has that
been to cope with?
Really difficult. The toughest time was
when people weren’t being paid. One
of the focal points for the new owners
has been trying to make things more
sustainable, while trying to get the club
on the right track in terms of football.
We all want Wigan supporters to have
a healthy team to follow.
to stay away. “I really wanted to get
involved – I couldn’t help myself,” Rix
recalls to FFT now. “I started joining in
with the email threads and message
boards, lending a hand on ticketing,
fundraising, murals, stewarding and
fan safety. It’s a bit like being an MP.”
Not content with having his say in
off-field decisions, Rix also co-hosts
his own podcast called Don’t Go To
Bed Just Yet – a reference to a tweet
from the club’s account hours before
the 2014 summer transfer window
closed without any further business
taking place. “It’s a weekly chat about
the goings-on at Leeds,” he explains.
“I’m probably supposed to be tougher
on the club, but I’m one of those fans
SAFETY, FUnDRAISInG,
TICKETInG AnD MURALS.
IT’S LIKE BEInG An MP”
“Marcelo Bielsa meant the world to
this fanbase,” says the Yorkshireman,
almost tearing up at the mention of
the Argentine gaffer who guided the
club back to the Premier League after
a 16-year absence, but moved on in
2022. “He wasn’t given the send-off
he deserved, so we decided to go and
visit him after he was named
Uruguay coach,” reflects Rix.
“A friend of mine is a pilot and
duties. A new LP, Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy
Eighth Album, landed in March, and
FFT seizes the opportunity to ask him
the impossible question: if he had to
choose between music and football,
which would get the boot?
“Oh goodness, what a horrendous
thought,” laughs Rix. “Obviously the
Chiefs help to pay the bills, but Leeds
mean the world to me. Both make me
really happy, but only one also makes
me miserable half the time. Actually,
forget it, I can’t choose!”
Spoken like a true football fan.
Ed McCambridge

What were your ambitions ahead of

this season in League One?
We were under a transfer embargo last
summer, so convincing players to come
for free wasn’t easy. Our objective was
clear: stay in this league and maybe go
on a cup run to excite the fans.

You faced Manchester United in the

FA Cup third round, losing 2-0. What
did you make of that performance?
We knew they’d hog the ball, but I was
proud of our display. I didn’t get much
of a chance to chat to Erik ten Hag, but
I asked if I could come over later in the
season and watch how he does things.
He was open to that, so it’s something
we’ll definitely arrange. I want to learn
from more experienced managers and
am really looking forward to it.
 AROUnD THE
GROUnDS
Robbie Weir of podcast Oh No No No on the ‘Mini Messi’ from Kilmarnock and pipping Celtic to the League Cup
XI
BEST: David McGurn, Laurie Ellis, Mark
Campbell, Shaun Dennis, Grant Murray,
Paquito Ortiz, Colin Cameron, Regan
Hendry, Sam Stanton, Lewis Vaughan,
John Baird.
WORST: Andrew McNeil, Chris McLeod,
Sean Kilgannon, Jack Perry, Ross Perry,
Scott Roberts, Jordan Thompson, Willie
Lyle, Chris Johnston, Timmy Abraham,
John Frederiksen.
PLAYER
B: Of Rovers’ recent crop, it’s got to be
Lewis Vaughan [right]. It’s mad that his
story hasn’t attracted more coverage
on a wider scale: an ex-youth teamer
who suffered four ACL injuries (two in
each knee) and has recovered to bang
home goals aplenty.
W: Ross Perry gets my vote. A former
Rangers defender who put in horrific
performances. He ended his short-term
deal by seeing red inside two minutes.
MOMEnT
B: I’ll give you an exact date: November
27, 1994: the day the plucky second-
tier Raith toppled the mighty Celtic in
the League Cup final [below]. Penalties
or not, it was unthinkable.
W: I’m still slightly scarred by the end
of the 2017-18 campaign. Ayr looked
like they’d blown automatic
promotion from League One
as we headed into the final
weekend of the season top
of the table. We simply had
to match their result against
Albion Rovers: they won 2-0,
while we could only draw at
home to Alloa Athletic having
rattled the post in injury time.
Inevitably, Alloa then beat us
in the play-offs.
80 April 2024 FourFourTwo
SEASOn
B: Easy, 1994-95 – winning the League
Cup against all odds (and, in doing so,
qualifying for Europe) was followed by
beating rivals Dunfermline to the title
and sealing promotion to the top flight.
W: 2004-05 was grim. Mired by money
issues after heavy spending in the late
’90s, we brought in Anelka as manager.
No, not Nicolas – his big brother Claude,
who had zero footballing experience.
Surprise surprise, we finished bottom.
OWnER
B: The current group
have transformed the
whole mentality here.
They’re bold in what they do, and since
arriving last summer have made huge
changes. It’s reaping rewards both on
and off the pitch.
W: Property developers Colin McGowan
and Alex Short repeatedly threatened
to sell our beloved Stark’s Park and turn
it into flats. Thankfully, ‘Reclaim the
Rovers’ helped to get our club back.
nICKnAME
B: Peter Hetherston was known as
‘Silky’ and the name befitted the
player. The playmaker went on to
manage the team after amassing
over 100 appearances.
W: Chris Johnston was given the
nickname ‘Mini Messi’ during his
spell with Kilmarnock. It couldn’t
have been further from reality...
CULT HERO
B: Damian Casalinuovo [below] played
around 15 times, scored on his debut in
the derby to defeat Dunfermline, and
later returned to Argentina to become
an accountant. Classic cult hero stuff.
W: Faroese forward John Frederiksen
waited two months for a work permit
after recovering from a brain tumour,
then featured 11 times, netting once,
before moving on by mutual consent.
MAnAGER B: Jimmy Nicholl built
on the foundations laid
by previous boss Frank
Connor and guided us
to a first domestic cup,
while in the second tier,
and on to the top flight.
W: Anelka aside, you’d
be hard pressed to look
past the season we went
through Gary Locke and
John Hughes [2016-17].
Doubters were right about
Locke’s ineptness, but Hughes chucked
the team under the bus and effectively
ruined his reputation.
AWAY DAY
B: The Angus outfits (Arbroath, Forfar,
Montrose) are ‘proper’ away days. The
North Sea wind at the former sorts the
casuals from the diehards.
W: Greenock’s Cappielow Park. Anyone
over 5ft 6in ends up with grazed shins.
HARD MAn
B: Legendary defender Davie Sinclair
was “so tough he’s got tattoos on his
teeth” according to manager Nicholl.
W: Dave Bowman once offered to fight
fans outside the ground. Enough said.

nOn-LEAGUE nAMES
Every year, the FA considers dozens of applications from amateur clubs looking to commence their journeys at
the bottom of the football pyramid. Sometimes, the sensational names alone deserve semi-professional status
INFINITY FC
Rocket-packs at the ready – venturing to Infinity is
a once-a-season requirement for the 15 rival sides
in the Hampshire Premier League. Fortunately for the
likes of Athletico Romsey, Winchester Castle and Bush
Hill, this ‘Infinity’ is based in Sidlesham, West Sussex,
rather than the outer reaches of the universe. Infinity
were granted a place in the pyramid for the 2021-22
season, but had to resign when a necessary
groundsharing arrangement fell through
after allegations of racist language were
made towards a player. The accused
packed his bags, but the damage
was done and Infinity’s league
exploits were expunged.
NEW SALAMIS
Founded in 1971 by supporters of Cypriot
club Nea Salamis Famagusta, New Salamis
previously played in a British-Cypriot league and won
prestigious amateur competition the FA Sunday Cup
in 2016. Too tasty to stay stuck in the expat ranks,
Salamis secured semi-professional status ahead
of 2019-20 – they now compete in the eighth-tier
Isthmian League North Division and share a home
with Haringey Borough on White Hart Lane.
MONTPELIER VILLA
Are they from France? Are they from Birmingham? No,
they’re from Lancing, West Sussex. The Villa were set
up in 1991 but had to wait 20 years to finally become
part of the pyramid. After coming sixth in the 2020-21
Southern Combination League Division Two, a season
curtailed by COVID-19, Villa won the Supplementary
Shield to earn promotion. With a name like that,
they could have bagged a Champions League
berth without anyone noticing.
FC BARESI
As a player, iconic Milan captain Franco
Baresi (right) was known for his quiet
authority and commanding nature.
It’s fair to say that FC Baresi, a club
launched in 1997 and named in
honour of the famous sweeper,
could use his influence. Three
times in the last five years, the
Essex Alliance Leaguers have
applied for promotion to the
Eastern Counties League to no
avail. Mamma mia, have the FA
no respect for greatness?
AROUnD THE
GROUnDS
ROUTE ONE ROVERS
Formed as recently as 2013, Route One Rovers settled
on their name as “a bit of a joke about playing styles”.
It’s hardly proved appropriate – dazzling displays saw
them fly up the amateur leagues before winning the
Bradford District Cup in 2022. The latter achievement,
made all the more impressive by the fact that many
of Route One’s BAME squad members were fasting in
the lead-up to the final, even received praise
from none other than Paul Pogba. “I want
to tell you congratulations on winning the
tournament, Route One Rovers,” smiled
the Juventus and France midfielder
in a bizarre clip shared on the club’s
social channels. “I really appreciate
that.” Rovers made their North West
Counties League debut this term and, if
their rapid rise continues, it may not be too
long until Pog swaps Turin for West Yorkshire.
CATHOLIC UNITED
If you think Celtic vs Rangers is a religiously-charged
affair, you should see Catholic United face Protestant
Town in the Essex Olympian League. OK, we made the
latter up, thankfully, but Catholic United are a genuine
side who date back to 1959. Unsurprisingly, they play
in green and white hoops after being sent some gear
from Jock Stein’s Bhoys in the ’60s. The Southenders
petitioned for pyramid admission in 2019-20, but their
prayers went unanswered. Apparently, the Pope and
FA are no longer on speaking terms.
BEER ALBION
Clashes between bitter foes Cider City, Lager Town
and Guinness Athletic are the stuff of legend –
in our imagination, at least. FFT were shocked
to learn that this 11th-tier team weren’t the
hilarious brainchild of a bunch of pint-swilling
bezzies, but instead a totally normal outfit
based in the coastal village of Beer, Devon.
The Fishermen applied, unsuccessfully, for
a spot in step six ahead of the 2023-24
campaign and have been drowning their
sorrows ever since.
Ed McCambridge
CATHOLIC UnITED WEAR GREEn
AnD WHITE, AFTER BEInG SEnT
KIT FROM JOCK STEIn’S BHOYS
FourFourTwo April 2024 81
 AROUnD THE
GROUnDS
EFL HISTORY
WHAT WOULD WOODWARD DO?
Sir Dave Brailsford isn’t football’s first interloping innovator from another sport, as Southampton fans will recall
W
ith Manchester United’s football operations
now overseen by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos,
and masterminded by former British Cycling
director Sir Dave Brailsford, football fans are
debating whether the Red Devils are about
to get back on track… or if the wheels are going to fall
off completely.
Those curious as to how an expert from a different
sport will fare in football need look back only as far as
2005 for their answer – to an era when Rugby World
Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward was named
technical director at Southampton FC.
A close personal pal of then-Saints chairman Rupert
Lowe, Woodward had been a regular spectator at the
second-tier outfit’s Staplewood training ground for Among the new faces to arrive before the 2005-06
a while prior to his July 2005 appointment. The egg- Championship campaign was Paul Balsom, who was
chasing empresario had suffered a disastrous spell in no stranger to innovation. For his 1985 undergraduate
charge of the British & Irish Lions, following England’s dissertation, Balsom wrote a computer programme
historic World Cup triumph in 2003, and claimed he
wanted a change of scenery.
“I’m interested in football,” stated Woodward at the
time. “I intend to do the certificates, but I may end
up coaching Maidenhead Under-9s. You have to start
at the bottom.”
After Maidenhead’s U9s said no (or so we assume),
Woodward agreed to take over football operations at
Saints, managed by Harry Redknapp, and wasted no
time in overhauling the backroom staff.

that examined movement patterns of individuals in
both rugby and football, analysing the amount of time
they spent walking, jogging and running. Later, he
got to explore those findings further with the Swedish
national team, whom he joined as a coach in 1992,
and then at Sam Allardyce’s Bolton.
“Back then, we were taking desktop computers and
large, heavy monitors to away games with Sweden,”
Balsom recounts to FFT now. “We made presentations
on PowerPoint, which was pretty revolutionary during
that period, too.
“I was introduced to Sir Clive through Simon Hunt,
who scouted for Southampton. I was taken onboard
directly – we had a similar interest in pushing football
forward. Clive had obviously piloted a lot of his ideas
in rugby and the roadmap was to transfer them over
to football. With the vision he had, Clive and I spoke
the same language.”
Alongside Balsom, Scott McCoughlin was recruited
as a performance analyst, while Andy Barr was hired
as Southampton’s head of sports medicine. Perhaps
the most controversial incomer at St Mary’s, though,
was Simon Clifford, the outspoken head of the UK’s
Brazilian Soccer Schools and a man not afraid to voice
an opinion. In one interview, Clifford said footballers
should follow the lead of swimmers and boxers by
getting to the training ground at 4am. “It’s a cultural
thing,” he claimed. “I’m not quite sure why we have
a close-season, either.”
Woodward, meanwhile, worked primarily with the
club’s famed academy, which included Gareth Bale,
Theo Walcott and Adam Lallana among its members.
When he wasn’t nurturing the youngsters, Woodward
could be seen shadowing Redknapp as the boss went
about his managerial duties, offering suggestions on
everything from training methods and team bonding
to nutrition and psychology. It’s fair to say Redknapp
wasn’t totally impressed.
“We were doing this type of stuff with [ex-England
manager] Ron Greenwood about 35 or 40 years ago,”
sniffed the Saints supremo, “so let’s not kid ourselves
that we’ve suddenly found some geniuses who have
changed the face of the game.” Disagreements with
Woodward usually preceded Redknapp storming off
while growling, “Listen, don’t bring all of your Jonny
Wilkinson stuff down here.”
Saints supporters could do little but hope that the
sideshow wouldn’t cause too much distraction, as the
club aimed to bounce back to the Premier League at
the first time of trying. “I don’t think it was really clear
what was going on and what it meant for Redknapp
when Woodward arrived,” recalls season ticket holder
Warren Scarr. “Personally, the more I read, the more
I thought, ‘Why not?’ I think a few Saints fans were up
“IF nIGEL PEARSOn HAD BEEn AT
THE CLUB THEn, THInGS WOULD
HAVE BEEn VERY DIFFEREnT. SIR
CLIVE WOULD HAVE HAD BUY-In”
AROUnD THE
GROUnDS
for anything that meant investment in the coaching
and performance part of the club. That said, you didn’t
need a crystal ball to see it wasn’t going to work out
with Redknapp in charge.”
As tensions continued to flare, the fiery Clifford left
less than three months into his role. “Clifford’s exit is
unquestionably a significant blow to Woodward, who
has been forced to delay plans to use a vision coach,”
journalist Jeremy Wilson explained in The Guardian.
“Dr Sherylle Calder, who worked in that capacity with
the England rugby union team among others, was so
upset by the mocking reaction to her involvement at
Saints that she has stayed away for the time being.”
Just two weeks later, Redknapp also bid farewell
to St Mary’s, ditching Saints and returning to the job
he’d quit 12 months earlier: managing neighbours
Portsmouth. “You don’t even get a plot like this in Star
Wars,” said club director Andrew Cowan, accurately.
Woodward was odds-on favourite to fill the vacant
hotseat, but chairman Lowe plumped for the former
Ipswich and Derby gaffer George Burley, a manager
who shared Redknapp’s old-school approach to the
sport. Woodward’s theories were once again met with
resistance, as already unimpressive results nosedived.
Burley oversaw five defeats in his opening six league
games even with the dynamite displays of a teenage
Walcott, who would be flogged to Arsenal midway
through the campaign.
For all of their investment, Southampton limped to
a 12th-placed finish, 17 points short of the play-off
spots. Chairman Lowe stepped down in July 2006,
with Woodward accompanying him through the door.
“I am enormously grateful for the opportunity that
Southampton and its supporters have given me,” said
Woodward as he weaved his way out of St Mary’s and
onto the M27. “I’ve been massively impressed by the
professionalism in every department at the club, and
the commitment of all the staff to succeed and get
back into the Premiership.”
Three years later, Southampton were relegated to
the third tier and almost went bust. And yet, some feel
the club may have prospered had Woodward’s ideas
received a fairer sounding board.
“I’m convinced that if Nigel Pearson [who eventually
replaced Burley as boss] had been around with Clive,
then things would have turned out very different,” one
ex-Saint tells FFT. “I think the whole project could have
absolutely flown, because he’d have had buy-in from
the most important person at the club, who – at that
point – was the manager.”
Balsom, the innovative coach, would later serve on
the coaching staff of Leicester City’s Premier League
champions in 2015-16. He maintains that football can
learn a lot from other sports. “There’s no doubt in my
mind that every sport can learn from another,” he tells
FFT. “One of the key things we did at Leicester was to
seek assistance from the strength and power coach at
professional rugby team Leicester Tigers. He helped to
restructure our whole strength training programme.”
Woodward’s tenure at Saints has become nothing
more than a footnote in the club’s history, though the
legacy of what he attempted to put in place is now
everywhere you look.
“In hindsight, practically everything recommended
by Clive has since been implemented by top clubs in
world football,” says Balsom. “Unfortunately, football
wasn’t ready for him.”
So, is the beautiful game now ready for a forward-
thinking guru from another sport? As long as Sir Dave
Brailsford doesn’t suggest that Marcus Rashford & Co
start training at 4am, he’ll be off to a flyer.
Richard Edwards
FourFourTwo April 2024 83
 GORDON STRACHAN
ALBERT FERRER
MICKY HAZARD

TEAMS (PLAYER)
Dundee
Aberdeen
Manchester United
Leeds
Coventry
Scotland

TEAMS (MANAGER)
Coventry
Southampton
Celtic
Middlesbrough
Scotland
 GORDOn STRACHAn
“THE BOSS TOLD US
FRAnCE HAD ‘A POOR
MAn’S JOE JORDAn’.
IT TURnED OUT TO BE
A YOUnG CAnTOnA!”
The diminutive Scot reflects on bust-ups
with Sir Alex, scoring at Mexico 86 and
teaming up with Vinnie Jones at Leeds
Interview Richard Purden
Why didn’t you sign for Hibs, your boyhood Gemmell and his assistant, Willie Wallace,
side, despite being offered a contract? were also Lisbon Lions. How did you find
My dad decided it had something to do with working with three Scottish football icons?
boots. I heard some shouting and screaming Once, when I was in hospital after ripping
between my dad and the manager, Eddie a toenails to pieces, Tommy turned up with
Turnbull, then Dad came outside and said, Willie, two bottles of wine and a dozen cans
“You’re not signing for him.” My father took of lager. They then regaled me for four hours
me to my first Hibs game, aged five; I took about the 1967 European Cup Final. It would
him to his last, an Edinburgh derby, in 2011. have been great at any other time, but I was
in agony. The three of them were incredible
So, you started out with Dundee – despite characters. I learned nothing about being
early interest from Manchester United… professional while at Dundee – Thursday was
I was demoralised after my father decided a night out on the drink because that was
I wasn’t going to Hibs, but within a couple of when you received your wages. I always had
weeks I’d signed for Dundee, a good side at a work ethic, but that got muddied by a lack
the time. John Ashton’s dad came to watch of professionalism. It wasn’t just Dundee; it
me as Manchester United’s chief scout; we was all of Scottish football at the time. It was
said I’d given Dundee my word. But 12 years only when I went to Aberdeen and worked
later I was off to United. There are different with Sir Alex that things changed.
ways to get where you need to go in life.
Arguments between Alex Ferguson and his
What was it like to play there with Jimmy Aberdeen players are legendary, and you
Johnstone – Celtic legend and Lisbon Lion? had a public falling-out as well – how are
I was a bit star-struck. Pat Stanton was my things between you now?
biggest hero, and he still is, but I had these Oh, night and day now. We were two really
other satellite heroes like Jinky, George Best stubborn characters who didn’t speak for
and Pele. You’re not going to see much of 15 years, except to say hello.
Pele around. Once, Jimmy and I were injured That changed five
and he said, “Would you like to go for some or six years ago
lunch?” I was used to a pie and Coca-Cola and everything is
outside Boots at lunchtime, but he offered fine. Everyone had
me some wine. I’d never had a glass of wine arguments with him
in my life and I said, “Aye, no bother.” We at Aberdeen. I had
carried on drinking back at my house, then more than anyone
ended up in Perthshire. Walking with Jimmy, else. I was cheeky
I passed this big bay window; I looked to the with him and would
right and the manager, Tommy Gemmell, be a sarcastic sod to
was staring at me. I was sent home in a taxi. get my point across.
Having captained Leeds, formed a brief
partnership with Vinnie Jones and helped
the club to win the league in 1991-92, how
do you reflect on your time at Elland Road?
I’d been in sides with far better players, but
I don’t think I was part of a team with more
camaraderie than that Leeds team. We had
gifted players in the side, like Gary McAllister,
but I also really admired guys like Vinnie, Mel
Sterland and Chris Kamara. I admire players
who aren’t naturally talented but are great
at what they do. We can’t all be Bryan Robson
and Kenny Dalglish! In terms of attitude and
resilience, that group of guys were the best
team-mates and characters you could have.
We had to get promoted or the club was in
trouble – not only did we get promoted, but
we got into Europe and won the First Division.
What was Eric Cantona like to work with,
as part of the Leeds side that won both the
league and Charity Shield?
We didn’t get to know him that well because
he kept himself to himself. On the team bus,
Eric would be looking out the window. Lesley
and I took him to a rugby league match and
he enjoyed that. He was a talent and, funnily
enough, I first met him during a World Cup
qualifier between France and Scotland. Andy
Roxburgh said during the team talk, “They’ve
got a poor man’s Joe Jordan up front.” When
he came to Leeds, he helped us to win the
league – there’s no doubt about that – but we
worked as a unit and Eric couldn’t always see
that. When he went to Manchester United, it
was different. It was perfect for everybody;
for Sir Alex and for the youngsters at United.
I don’t think it would have worked as well at
any other club.
Tell us about one of the most memorable
goals in Scottish football history: your
goal against West Germany at Mexico 86.
I remember thinking, ‘My dad will be in the
golf club with his mates, bouncing about’.
That’s all I could think about: how proud he
would be at that moment. It’s one of those
Archie Gemmell moments, where people ask
about it and say, “Sorry to bother you, but...”
– but they aren’t bothering me at all. I love it.
Having brought you to Manchester United
in 1984, Ron Atkinson signed you again, at
38, for Coventry in 1995. What was he like?
Ron gave up football for celebrity status, but
he was a wonderful man – he knew people
and he loved people. He was a completely
different style of manager to Sir Alex: you
had players like Norman Whiteside and Paul
McGrath, who could do
what they wanted as long
as they always turned up
on Saturday. I was asked
to be his assistant at
Coventry, where I’d later
take over as manager.
Big Ron sucked me in
there – he used to say,
“You should still be
playing, kid.” And of
course, I did end up
playing for Coventry.
FourFourTwo April 2024 85
 TEAMS
Barcelona
Tenerife (loan)
Chelsea
Spain

ALBERT FERRER

“WE ASSUMED WE’D BEAT Describe learning to play at La Masia.

MILAn In 1994, BUT THEY

It imprints a coherent philosophy about the
positional game through constant repetition
in training, which develops the understanding
of those triangles that stitch it all together.

BATTERED US 4-0 – THAT

Then, if you make it to the first team, you’ve
got the clearest possible idea of how to play.

What role did Johan Cruyff play in your

WAS THE BEGInnInG OF THE

development as a footballer?
He was my salvation. I did pre-season with
the first team in 1989, then in January he
said, “I want you to go on loan. Tenerife are

EnD FOR THE DREAM TEAM”

Barcelona’s ‘Dream Team’ defender on rooming with Pep,
learning from Cruyff and facing reality checks at Chelsea…
Interview Andrew Murray
interested. You’ll play six months in La Liga,
then come back and be in the first team.”
Tenerife were fighting relegation so I wasn’t
too sure, but he was as good as his word and
I started straight away [aged 20]. He wasn’t
scared to give debuts to his young players.
I owe him everything.
Was it hard to be a defender in that 3-4-3?
Everyone talks now about Barcelona’s 4-3-3 –
that came later. Cruyff’s 3-4-3 with a midfield
diamond was so unusual: Pep Guardiola at

50 February 2016 FourFourTwo.com

86 April 2024 FourFourTwo

the base, narrow wide midfielders, Michael
Laudrup as a No.10 and Jose Maria Bakero as
a false nine. We were brilliant in transition.
Ronald Koeman was between me and Juan
Carlos – two short, quick full-backs, not three
centre-backs as that formation is now. It was
a daring system because the defence had to
deal with so many attacks. Our midfielders
were there to create, not destroy, so we were
exposed. Cruyff didn’t care: his mantra was,
“If they score three, we score four.” It was
us three and that’s it. But he had confidence
in us to win our one-on-ones. It was fun but,
wow, we did suffer at the back sometimes.
Everything changed in 1990-91, when we
won the first of four titles in a row with four
games to spare. Before that, it felt as if there
was a fatalism to Barcelona, like in losing the
1986 European Cup Final on penalties. From
there, the spell was broken. Barça exploded.
Was it tough, coming back from a ruptured
cruciate knee ligament in November 1991?
For the first month, you feel worthless. You
can barely walk. My first thought was, ‘I have
to be back for the ’92 Olympics in Barcelona’.
I trained every day, including at Christmas,
and I was back playing about 10 days before
the European Cup final against Sampdoria at
Wembley. I started and was marking Roberto
Mancini. I had barely played for six months!
Was Cruyff’s team talk there really “salid
y disfrutad” (“go out there and enjoy it”)?
He always wanted to take the pressure off in
finals. What I remember best from Wembley
is everyone hating the game, the tension and
what it meant to barcelonismo to become
champions of Europe for the first time ever.
Everyone expected us to win easily. Only Juan
Carlos enjoyed himself. It was always close –
we won three of those four titles on the final
day – but it was how we performed our best.
Pep, Laudrup, Hristo Stoichkov... what was
it like to play in the Dream Team?
Amazing. The confidence Cruyff transmitted
to the squad was his biggest skill, even apart
from the tactics. I learned from him that if
you truly believe in something, it makes no
difference what anyone else thinks – you can
always do it. Against Atletico Madrid once,
I was going to be up against a winger called
Manolo: small, quick and incredibly skilful.
Johan said, “Chapi, this kid is very good and
loses his marker really well. So, don’t bother
marking him.” I was like, ‘What?!’ He always
had a different way of looking at the game.
Did you see the coach in Pep Guardiola?
Because of his position, he was used to taking
decisions at an early age. He never stopped
talking to Johan – they were so tight. I can’t
say I saw it at the time, but looking back now,
you can see he was so inquisitive and asked
so many questions that it was inevitable.
What happened in the 4-0 defeat to Milan
in the 1994 Champions League Final?
Too much confidence. We just assumed that
what we’d been doing for four years would
be enough, but tactically they swept the floor
with us. From the first minute to the 90th, at
no stage did we get even close to winning. It
was tough, and the beginning of the Dream
Team’s dissolution. The goalkeeper, Andoni
Zubizarreta, was told to leave on the journey
back to the hotel. I’ve always thought that
was so unfair. That team had another two or
three years left in it, but those who made the
decisions changed everything.
Tell us about Bobby Robson’s cup treble…
He was a gentleman, who did an amazing job
despite the club struggling internally. He was
almost alone, but never stopped. And it was
hard, because it was obvious Louis van Gaal
was going to replace him – but you look back,
see three trophies and think, ‘Bloody hell, not
bad’. It was also Jose Mourinho’s first season
as assistant. As the language link to Robson –
yes, ‘the Translator’ – he was very close to the
players. We spoke more to him than the boss.
How did you find the Premier League?
I stayed for a year under Van Gaal, got back
into the first team, then was told I could find
another club. Chelsea were quite European in
their style of play, but the opposition? Wow.
My first match was at Coventry and the ball
didn’t touch the floor – I couldn’t believe it.
I said to Marcel Desailly, “Marcel, is it always
like this?” The physicality you needed was
incredible. But I loved it in England. The media
left you alone – you could walk the London
streets and nobody knew who you were. It
was like going to a spa for five years. After all
of the stress and pressure of playing for my
hometown club, it was a good move for me.
You were Pep’s room-mate at the Olympics
– is it true he was struggling at that time?
We all did. The training camp in Segovia was
unbearable – there was nothing there. It was
simply training every day in this remote town,
eating, then back to our room. I think he was
semi-depressed. He didn’t leave our room for
two or three days; he just read his books, not
talking to anyone. At one point I thought, ‘I’ll
have to do something here. This is a massive
tournament, on home soil, and he’s one of
our best players’. Those days were so tough.
But by the time we got to Valencia and the
tournament itself, it was all better. And Pep
was superb that tournament – our conductor.
Few footballers have won Olympic gold…
Uff, incredible. I still remember the moment
in 1986 when it was announced the Games
would be in Barcelona. I was 16, and me and
my parents, who still work in their bakery in
the city now, were jumping up and down like
crazy people. Not in my wildest dreams did
I think that a few years later, I’d be playing in
those Olympics, winning gold as a Catalan in
my hometown and playing the final at the
Camp Nou. The European Cup that year was
special but the Olympics were the same level.
Watch LaLiga this season via LaLigaTV and
Viaplay, with 10 games also broadcast on ITV
FourFourTwo April 2024 87
 MICKY HAZARD

“PEOPLE USED TO LAUGH

AT SWInDOn, CALLInG OUR
COACH OUR BEST PLAYER.
BUT GLEnn WOULD’VE BEEn
AnY CLUB’S BEST PLAYER”
The silky midfielder talks
Hoddle’s class, Swindon’s
golden period and Jurgen
Klinsmann’s VW Beetle…

Interview Ed McCambridge

You were signed by Tottenham at 16 but

kept sneaking away from your digs and
returning to Sunderland. Was it that bad?
It had nothing to do with Spurs – I was just
very homesick! I’d never been away from my
family and friends at any point in my whole
life up until the age of 16. So, it was daunting
to suddenly be put up with a strange family
– who were lovely, by the way – in London,
this big capital city I’d never been to before.
I missed home so much in those early days.

Just how good was Glenn Hoddle in his

pomp? What was it like to play with him?
As an apprentice at Spurs, I watched the first
team train and thought he was just the best
player in the world. Glenn Hoddle was simply
brilliant. I don’t think you can paint a picture
of Glenn that does him justice. He epitomises
the footballer who was born to play football,
– he was a complete master of the ball, with
either foot or any part of his body. That never
changed, even when I played alongside him.
It was a privilege to watch him at work.

As a key member of Spurs’ FA Cup-winning

team in 1981-82, how did it feel to win the
trophy so young? What do you recall of the
final against QPR, and its replay?
That was so surreal, because you spend your
whole childhood dreaming about the FA Cup,
playing football with your mates in the street
and pretending to lift the cup. It was much
bigger in those days. It felt ginormous to win

52 February 2016 FourFourTwo.com

88 April 2024 FourFourTwo
 that competition. And when you come into
TEAMS the professional game, you hope to achieve
Tottenham your schoolboy dreams. Some players never
Chelsea get close, but I was one of the lucky ones
Portsmouth and I did it at an early age. My everlasting
Swindon memory of the day was seeing my family
afterwards, and knowing how happy they
were. They sacrificed a lot for me to become
a footballer, too. It was a special moment.
Was setting up goals in both legs of Spurs’
1984 UEFA Cup Final win over Anderlecht
the greatest achievement of your career?
If lifting the FA Cup was a schoolboy dream,
then winning the UEFA Cup surpassed that,
because I hadn’t even dared to dream of it.
The nature of that win made it all the more
special. To play like we did, in manager Keith
Burkinshaw’s final game, and lift the trophy
in front of your fans was very special indeed.
I remember it so fresh in my mind. I still get
goosebumps every time it’s brought up.
What made you leave Spurs for Chelsea?
I never thought I’d leave Tottenham, but the
club received a good offer for me and I was
told that I was being sold. It wasn’t a choice.
I learnt a lot about loyalty from that episode.
You can be as loyal as you want, but business
is business. They chose to cash in on me and
I was off, whether I liked it or not.
You won the Full Members Cup in 1986 –
a replacement for European competition
in the wake of Heysel – but were then part
of the Blues side relegated to the second
tier in 1988. Talk about ups and downs…
I played some of my best football at Chelsea.
The fans adored me and chanted my name
every week. But a lot of politics happened off
the field – Ken Bates owned the club and he
could be a difficult figure. I felt I was used as
a pawn in the political side of things, and left
out of some matches. It wasn’t always easy.
Your former Tottenham team-mate, Ossie
Ardiles, brought you from Portsmouth to
Swindon in 1990 – was he a factor for you?
Definitely. He was my best mate at Spurs –
a wonderful footballer and an even better
man. When a person of that standing wants
to sign you, you don’t have any decision to
make. He did a fantastic job at Swindon but
was a victim of the darker side of the game
when our promotion to the top flight was
cancelled due to financial matters. That was
unfair: the manager, players and fans were
all punished when they didn’t do the crime.
How shocked were you when Hoddle –
another former Spurs team-mate – traded
in Monaco for second-division Swindon?
Very. Suddenly I’m being managed by my
schoolboy hero. I knew when Glenn came in
that I could play to my strengths; I played
nice football and it was a joy to be a part
of that team. That Swindon side was really
good, with an attacking philosophy. Being
promoted through the play-offs, in Glenn’s
second season, was a brilliant achievement
for a club like Swindon. People used to laugh
at us and say it was embarrassing that our
player-coach was our best player, but he was
just that good. He would have been the best
player at any club. It wasn’t our fault.
Give us your memories of Swindon’s crazy
4-3 win over Leicester at Wembley in 1993.
I was disappointed not to be starting, but I’d
had a cartilage operation and my knee kept
swelling up to twice the size. Glenn didn’t
want my knee to break down completely, so
I had to miss much of it. Watching was awful,
especially after our 3-0 advantage slipped
away and Leicester equalised. Thankfully we
won. When I finally did come on, to help see
out the last five minutes, I did my knee again,
so the celebrations were tainted. It was an
epic day for Swindon but a tough one for me.
Even though you’d left, was it tough to see
Swindon relegated the following year with
a record number of goals conceded?
I had an incredible time playing for Swindon,
a lovely family club. To secure promotion and
play for some of the best managers and with
some of your favourite people was an honour.
So, it was hurtful to see them go down in the
manner they did. But I was back at Spurs by
then – the true love of my life.
In your final season, 1994-95, Spurs signed
Jurgen Klinsmann – an absolute superstar
at the time. What was he like as a person?
Jurgen was a winner, pure and simple. When
you come across a winner and you play with
them at training and see what they do on the
pitch – the professionalism, the expertise, the
commitment, the desire to win – it can only
rub off on you. I was a veteran by that stage,
but even I was blown away. He was also an
absolute gentleman around the place. Every
day, he would turn up in his VW Beetle, ready
to work. He was just a class act. Klinsmann
was also one of the most exciting signings
in Premier League history: he was box office,
and he didn’t disappoint. Everything from his
aura, his charisma, his celebrations and, of
course, his amazing goalscoring ability oozed
‘superstar’. It was a pleasure to play with him,
if only for a little while.
FourFourTwo April 2024 89
THE BEST OF FOOTBALL
KIT • FASHION • ART
DESIGN • TECH

PSG X JORDAN
FOURTH KIT
& COLLECTION
From £47
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When Air Jordan, Nike’s
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union continues to go
strong. Year after year
they grind out hits, and
January saw the release
of a fourth strip along
with the now customary
training and lifestyle
collection. Les Parisiens’
players and supporters
remain the best dressed
in the beautiful game.

GOT GEAR? GET IT IN THE MIXER SEND IT TO @KETCHELLFC ON INSTAGRAM

DIRT-ROOTS DRAGON KIT £47.70
nivelcrack.com
Three Asian-based football creatives have teamed up to unveil the most niche
kit you could ever hope to sport at five-a-side. Purple and yellow are both typical
Thai colours, spotted on aristocrats to working-class folk alike, while the all-over
dragon scale graphic salutes the power, luck and strength symbolised by the
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FOOSBOTS £15.80
fatbraintoys.com
Football’s a simple game, really: all you need is one ball, two Foosbots, a pair of
silicone lines and the world is yours. Welcome to Robot Wars meets Subbuteo,
but the skill is in the squeeze rather than the flick. Pinch together your Foosbot’s
arms and its lower torso spins, kicks and volleys like a miniature Mark Hughes.
Dust off your finest Jonathan Pearce impersonation and enjoy: “Sir Killalot! 1-0.”

UWCL PRO
BALL BILBAO
£130
adidas.co.uk
FFT never tires of seeing
a new ball design, which
is handy because they
pop up more often than
an international break.
This spherical beauty will
be blasted around during
the knockout stages of
the 2023-24 Women’s
Champions League, and
with Bilbao hosting the
showpiece on May 25,
patterns on the orb are
inspired by iconic shapes
of Basque architecture.
As suitable in a museum
as it would be nestled in
one of San Mames’ nets.

FourFourTwo April 2024 91

MANCHESTER

REQUIRED
UNITED X
STONE ROSES
COLLECTION
From £40

READInG
adidas.co.uk
Like it or not, three of
the four Roses support
the Red Devils, and the
team has walked out
to This Is The One for
yonks. Local lad Marcus
Rashford is modelling
an Originals Icon shirt
here, while a black and
gold warm-up top and
anthem jacket will also
be worn by players on
matchday. Other items
to be spattered in the
style of the band’s eye-
catching 1989 debut
album artwork include
hats, scarves and tees,
so it’ll be hard to move
in Manchester without
spotting some of this
stuff. Sorry, Blues fans...

THE HALF TURN

Steven Bartholomew
michael terence publishing £8.99
Although Athletic may be a fictional
outfit, the notion of a once great club
temporarily losing its way after the
departure of a legendary manager is
rooted firmly in the past and present
of English football.
The Half Turn is a spirited soap opera
of what occurs when Joe Hendricks is
summoned to turn around Athletic’s
fortunes mid-season. The challenges
he faces in doing so are (for the most
part) very believable: an owner whose
interests don’t always match those of
the club, a critical fanbase, deadwood
that has to be cleared out, the need
for fresh blood, and an all-important
social media image to maintain. The
club’s increasingly perilous financial
state – a perfect storm of rising costs,
capital lost during the pandemic era
and no Champions League revenue –
resonates with various leading lights
across the European game.
With frequent references to real-life
players, major tournaments, training
regimes, dietary requirements and
tactics – a spot of gumshoe research
has clearly been conducted here – the
book occasionally feels more ‘faction’
than fiction. Ultimately, whether the
supremo decides to retain or dispense
with Hendricks’ services at the end of
the campaign, you feel this is far from
the climax of his managerial career.
A lively and pacy read.
Jon Spurling

92 April 2024 FourFourTwo

SKECHERS DIAMOND ICE PACK£195
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When Skechers announced they were leaping into the boot business and that
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OVER THE PITCH X GUINNESS COLLECTION £TBC
overthepitch.com
Guinness is an official partner of the South Korean national team – who knew?
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Each carry the No.59 on the back as a nod to Guinness’ 1759 inception. Cheers!

WERDER BREMEN ANNIVERSARY SHIRT £68.25

hummel.net
Bundesliga giants Werder Bremen turned 125 in February. Hurrah! Though we
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The shirt and accompanying lifestyle range quickly sold out after 50,000 fans
queued online, but worry not – the Danish company has promised to restock.

FourFourTwo April 2024 93

 BLAZEPOD From £399
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GLI AZZURRI LONG SLEEVE TEE £50
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Behold, a gorgeous, 100 per cent organic, cotton-based homage to Italy’s skin-
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it’s a classic, and Art Of Football have produced a garment more suited to the
average fan. On the back is ‘Arte Del Calcio’, which shouldn’t need a translator.

JAMAICA
ORIGINALS
COLLECTION
From £45
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If you don’t look cool in
these, we can’t help you.
Released on what would
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all want to see Jamaica
in similar get-up at the
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94 April 2024 FourFourTwo

CROCS MELLOW RECOVERY CLOGS £54.99
crocs.co.uk
Crocs were the Brexit of fashion when they first burst onto the scene. Footwear
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Nike have made no secret of the target demographic for their new ‘mad ready’
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SAO PAULO
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Brazilian heavyweights
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FourFourTwo April 2024 95

 
            

         
    
 
  

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The legendary manager builds a dream team of his finest Borussia Dortmund and
Bayern Munich charges, including the tireless Scot who kept Zinedine Zidane quiet

OLIVER KAHN leader – everybody sensed it. He stamped his

GK “A fantastic goalkeeper who had outstanding
reflexes. Oliver was mentally very strong and
OLIVER so much more than just a shot-stopper. He’d
KAHN motivate the other players and his influence
improved the team’s performance. One of the
all-time greats of German football.”
authority on the dressing room. He was also
a great playmaker, so became a vital part of
the midfield in terms of ability and control.”
PAUL LAMBERT
“Paul [below] had a wonderful mentality and
was an important player for me at Dortmund.

CB CB
WILLY SAGNOL He was terrific in the 1997 Champions League

RB LB
“The best right-back I worked with was Willy Final, keeping Zinedine Zidane quiet all night.
Sagnol – he was an intelligent defender but His playing style was quite simple, but you’d
PATRIK LOTHAR sometimes hard to manage, mentality-wise. struggle to find anybody who worked harder.
WILLY ANDERSSON MATTHAUS BIXENTE He always felt he knew best and questioned He’s still a cult hero in Germany for his superb
SAGNOL LIZARAZU decisions, so I’d have to ask Bixente Lizarazu, performances over a short spell.”
who was a lot more trusting, to have a word

CM CM
and reassure him about things.” MEHMET SCHOLL
“Mehmet was an artist. He was really creative
PATRIK ANDERSSON and excelled against opponents one-on-one.
STEFAN PAUL “Tactically, Patrik was really perceptive, with He could play intellectually within a team, but
EFFENBERG LAMBERT a typical Swedish attitude prioritising strategy was more individualistic and liked to conjure

AM
and how the side should set up to combat an
opponent. He was such a calm and cool guy,
who spread a sense of tranquillity throughout
MEHMET the squad simply by being there. The sort of
SCHOLL man you could rely on in a crisis.”
something magic out of thin air. It’s essential
to have a bit of flair in any successful side.”
GIOVANE ELBER
“Giovane was a world-class striker who could
score from anywhere. Technically he was very

RF LF
LOTHAR MATTHAUS good, and he had a habit of being in the right

CF
“What more can you say about Matthaus? He
accomplished so much in the game with his
GIOVANE STEPHANE football intellect, and was among the fiercest
ELBER KARL-HEINZ CHAPUISAT and most inspirational leaders I came across.
RIEDLE He was pivotal for the way his teams played
because of the support he offered in midfield,
too. His passing out of defence was amazing.
He could step up and run a game from deep,
and if his team-mates weren’t performing he
whipped them into shape. A man mountain.”
THE GAFFER BIXENTE LIZARAZU
“My left-back has to be Bixente – if not
place at the right time. He wasn’t your typical
egotistical No.9 – Elber had a positive manner
that he transmitted to the whole team.”
KARL-HEINZ RIEDLE
“Riedle’s biggest asset was his prowess in the
air. Other players’ technical ability might have
been better, but he was a classic goalscoring
centre-forward. He netted twice in the 1997
Champions League Final – a first-rate display
having only managed seven Bundesliga
goals that season.”

SIR ALEX FERGUSON
“The greatest. We met in the Champions League
a few times, famously in 1999. For him to spend
so long at Manchester United is just incredible –
we probably won’t see anything like that again.”
just to keep Willy calm! Tactically and
technically he was excellent, plus he
could dart up and down the flank
and had a winning mentality.
He picked up so many titles
during his playing career,
STEPHANE CHAPUISAT
“Stephane was a key player during my
time at Dortmund and one of the most
valuable in my career. Everybody
saw his tricks, but he was so
cunning that nobody knew

THE SUBS
it’s clear what he offered how to stop him. He was
to top teams.” a reserved guy and quiet
in the dressing room, but

01 02 03
STEFAN EFFENBERG a tremendous character
SAMUEL JENS PAULO “Stefan was the boss of to have around.”
KUFFOUR JEREMIES SOUSA
the team and a natural Chris Evans

YOUR nEXT FOURFOURTWO IS On SALE APRIL 4

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