Guest Article: Outside of the Boot - Evolution of the Sweeper

A sweeper is a kind of withdrawn centre back, playing slightly behind the centre backs/defensive line. Also known as a ‘libero’, the mastery of this position is widely credited to the Italians, led by the legendary Gaetano Scirea in the 60’s and 70’s. Franz Beckenbauer is also widely considered by many as one of the greatest proponents of this position, along with others like Franco Baresi, Mathias Sammer and Lothar Mathauss.

An Appreciation of Shinji Kagawa

Sir Alex Ferguson has expressed his determination to win back the BPL title through his activity in the transfer window, spending £41m to bring Dortmund midfielder Shinji Kagawa, and Dutch goal machine Robin Van-Persie into his already quality Manchester United squad.

With all the hype being centred around the latter of the two players, the fans and the media have overlooked the cheaper, and (in my opinion) better of the two, Kagawa. Most English football fanatics won't even cast an eye over to the other European leagues, but those who do will know just how good a signing this is for the Red Devils, who have lacked an attacking play maker for years.

Guest Article: Outside Of The Boot - The Emergence of the 4-2-3-1

With the announcement of the team news before the start of every game, the first reaction of a football fan is that they try and figure out the formation of the line up and indeed where in the formation each player is set to figure. The formation of the team and the opponents give a clear indication of not only the mindset of the teams but also an inkling of what to expect in the upcoming 90 minutes. For instance, often in big encounters between 2 fierce rivals, the 2 managers plump for the more conservative 4-5-1 formation and as a result the midfield gets crowded and the teams cancel each other out. Thus the formations employed by each team is integral tactically speaking to the game and is often a subject of intense debate.