đź“° @TheAthleticFC đź“• Zonal Marking (https://xitter.cf/t.co/fS2lRhH2ml) đź“— The Mixer (https://xitter.cf/t.co/0eHRc0WfPC) @KingstonianFC fan
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Joined November 2009
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Michael Cox retweeted
Manchester United are rather immobile...but it's also refreshing to see a side not hooked on relentless man-marking in midfield. This is how football looked for a long time. It was good! It means you can play technical midfielders instead of runners! ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7615090…
Michael Cox retweeted
🚨SATURDAY POD!🚨
This week @acjimbo, @Zonal_Marking, @oilysailor &
@KuperSimon discuss a player you could clone an entire 11 out of. Plus the manager 🏆đź§
It's Frank Rijkaard 🇳🇱
pod.fo/e/62d57c
Michael Cox retweeted
The first task in Iraola's notional in-tray was presumably 'sort out the midfield'. Some familiar issues against Newcastle: Gravenberch's unique qualities have to be maximised, but Liverpool conceded twice after he lost the ball on the edge of the box. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7534041…
Michael Cox retweeted
When does a “fast-growing” sport become an established mainstream sport? I went to the first London edition of the Premier Padel tour to see whether huge participation figures have translated into serious UK interest in the professional game. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7494965…
Michael Cox retweeted
The best thing about the hosting of World Cup 2026 was the climate - too hot for the pressing-above-everything approach that is the scourge of club football. The beneficiaries were the star attackers, the ball-playing midfielders, and in turn the viewers.
nytimes.com/athletic/7460552…
Michael Cox retweeted
For all the moans that modern football has become homogenous, Spain v Argentina in the World Cup final represents two entirely contrasting approaches to building a team. One is very much system-first, the other is based entirely around Messi. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7452119…
Michael Cox retweeted
Same old England. On first viewing I thought Tuchel’s subs were disastrous. On second viewing, the retreat happened beforehand, a consequence of Argentina pushing on & England being exhausted. The three defensive subs did make sense. Analysis here…⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7448592…
Michael Cox retweeted
Tuchel's double half-time substitution really didn't work and he spent the rest of the game making further changes to fix things. The crucial boost was the sheer energy of Rogers and Spence. Anderson's role changed three times! ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7439673…
Michael Cox retweeted
Another World Cup, another round of “European dominance is collapsing!” early on...and then another last eight dominated by Europe. The emergence of serious challengers from around the world, anticipated for decades, still hasn’t happened ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7430092…
Michael Cox retweeted
Fair play to Switzerland, who are always about 10% better than you expect, and there really is no higher praise than that.
Michael Cox retweeted
A long-ish read on the history of Scotland, the World Cup’s great underachievers. They cracked the code tactically & had the world’s best players when international football took off. Here’s how they wasted that head-start and made themselves underdogs. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7398989…
Michael Cox retweeted
Anthony Elanga scored a brilliant curler to earn a point for Sweden against Japan...then thumped the ground at full-time because he didn't realise his goal had taken them through. A confusing stage of the World Cup, and a somewhat perplexing team. ⬇️
bit.ly/3QkzDIw
Michael Cox retweeted
Austria's (often effective) counter-pressing broken by Argentina's ability to work the ball up to Messi and switch play to the opposite side. Oh, and he scored two goals too and became the outright top goalscorer in World Cup history.
nytimes.com/athletic/7384022…
Michael Cox retweeted
Netherlands 5-1 Sweden was the most tactically interesting game of the World Cup so far. The formation changes led to massive swings in momentum. Analysis ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7379079…
Michael Cox retweeted
One round of matches in, and so far the football at this expanded World Cup has been as good as you possibly could have hoped for. The underdogs have almost all had great moments, the superstars have turned up, there's barely been a bad game. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7370151…
Michael Cox retweeted
Bellingham is a strange player. He’s a “No 10” who never really thrives between the lines and is more effective either higher or deeper. On the evidence of the Croatia game Tuchel might have worked out how to use him best. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7370960…
Michael Cox retweeted
Netherlands 2-2 Japan: good atmosphere, exciting game, unlikely goals (says the xG). A nice moment when Moriyasu stayed behind after his press conference to thank various Dutch coaches for their contribution to Japanese football over the years. Class.
⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7361010…
Michael Cox retweeted
32 teams to 48 teams fundamentally changes the World Cup. Here are the probable ramifications: more rotation, more defensive play in the first two games, Africa the major beneficiary. And other things. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7324882…
Michael Cox retweeted
Good Arsenal gameplan, inevitably more cautious (especially after going ahead early) and they largely defended excellently. But also they just weren’t not technically good enough in attack, especially after the subs, to offer any real goal threat. ⬇️
nytimes.com/athletic/7320465…
Michael Cox retweeted
A possibly unpopular view but I don’t believe Arsenal have been "defensive" this season. I think they’ve simply not been as good in attack as they intended, and had a reliable defence. Saturday against PSG, however, is probably the time to be defensive.
nytimes.com/athletic/7309066…
