It's transfer deadline day in England, and with numerous things still up in the air it remains to be seen whether Blackburn Rovers really are going to secure the signature of Newell's Old Boys' playmaker Mauro Formica - whose move to Monaco collapsed on Friday - for a fee of €4.2 million. Any Blackburn fans... Continue Reading →
Just more passionate fans, eh?
One or two of the comments on my most recent Soccernet article suggest that Argentina's barra bravas are no more than choreographed fans who are more passionate about the game than typical English fans who turn up to the game and eat prawn sandwiches without looking at the pitch (that's a typical English fan, apparently).... Continue Reading →
Torneo Apertura 2009 in review
The Torneo Apertura started in chaos, with no-one sure which TV channels games would be screened on and many finding it so difficult to find just one title contender that Boca Juniors, of all teams, were held up by some commentators as the most likely candidates (I'd never make a silly mistake like that of... Continue Reading →
Copa Libertadores 2009: Lanús 1 – 1 Caracas
Lanús exited the Copa Libertadores a couple of weeks ago with a draw away to Chivas in Guadalajara, but on the day CONMEBOL announced Mexican clubs won't be playing in their own country in this season's competition from now on due to the swine flu epidemic, they said good bye formally, with their final group... Continue Reading →
Ledesma left at home, and Newell’s right of admission
Diego Maradona's not pleased with the AFA, after revealing that the reason for his not calling up Juan Román Riquelme and Sebastián Battaglia was that the governing body insisted Boca Juniors play on Sunday rather than Saturday, even though the date of the France friendly has been fixed for months. He has therefore decided to... Continue Reading →
Torneo Apertura 2008: The campaign in review
Hopefully all HEGS readers had a good few days off for Christmas (those who had days off for it, at least). After a couple of days away from the keyboard myself (you only need a mouse to play Football Manager), I hope I've now got things straight enough to look back on what was a... Continue Reading →
Newell’s wuz robbed!
No funny business at Independiente, where club president Julio Comparada begins a new term in charge of the club. With the elections at Racing still a few days away, the controversy for now has been in Rosario. After fourteen years, there have been presidential elections at Newell's Old Boys, and the incumbent Eduardo López was... Continue Reading →
In need of a revolution
As the city near which the Argentine flag was raised for the first time, and the birthplace of Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, Rosario is perhaps one of Latin America's most revolutionary cities, and on Wednesday that tradition continued with a very small march in Buenos Aires. Che was a Central fan, but this week it's supporters... Continue Reading →
A three-day digest
It's been an interesting few days whilst I've been away, and I hope I don't miss anything out of a whirlwind summary: Saturday's superclásico in Mendoza was a thriller, seeing five goals and four red cards as River avenged their 1-0 defeat of the Torneo de Verano with a 3-2 victory. On the same day,... Continue Reading →
A European roundup, and a couple of pre-season results
Lionel Messi made a return to the starting lineup for Barcelona; Internazionale stumbled at the top of Serie; Carlos Tevez helped take Manchester United through to the 6th round of the FA Cup, whilst Javier Mascherano did likewise for Liverpool, where he may soon be joined by Pablo Aimar. Lionel Scaloni, meanwhile, has already moved to... Continue Reading →
Hasta El Gol Siempre 