Thursday, October 10, 2024

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Three of the Most Underrated Derbies in English Football

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An AI Map of the UK made of footballs

A part of what makes football the most loved, and tribalistic, of all sports is the embrace of a good old-fashioned derby. These intense sporting rivalries are often based upon a near geographical connection breeding fierce competition between teams that inhabit the same city or county, but sometimes these feuds are born out of more obscure scenarios. 

 

Either way, the vast majority of fans understand that however heated these football clashes get, we all love the same game and there’s no excuse for taking things too far. Which is why the violence between West Bromwich Albion and Wolves supporters, when The Baggies recently hosted the latest Black Country derby in the FA Cup 4th round, were roundly condemned.  

 

Thankfully, this mindless idiocy is a rare occurrence, and football derbies usually concentrate on spirited, good-natured verbal abuse instead! With that in mind, this article looks at three examples of the most underrated derbies in English football...

The Rub Of The Green- The Rise, Fall & Rise Again of Plymouth Argyle

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The Plymouth Argyle club badge (via Wikipedia)

Plymouth Argyle have made a relatively decent effort at reacclimatising to the Championship, after finally making it back up under Steven Schumacher following thirteen long seasons away. But new boss, and former Al Ettifaq assistant, Ian Foster will doubtless be hoping for a return to the comparative glory days of his near-namesake Holloway, not to mention Paul Sturrock’s first spell at Home Park. 

 

Foster swapped Dammam for Devon in replacing Schumacher, who departed once Stoke dangled the promise of a bigger playing budget under his nose, after similar overtures were made to tempt Alex Neil from Sunderland before him...

Playing To The Vissel

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The Vissel Kobe club badge (via Wikipedia)

Now that we've all had time to digest the last of the Christmas dinner leftovers, I can tell the tale of a miracle which actually occurred a month before the festive season even kicked off. Vissel Kobe won the J-League title courtesy of a 2-1 win over Nagoya Grampus, and in so doing became the first ever promoted team to win the country's top division. Remarkably, their story begins as early as 1995, when the entity formerly known as Kawasaki Steel Soccer Club reached an agreement to move to Kobe and turn professional, with the aim of eventually sealing a J-League berth, having previously been in the semi-pro Second Division.

US Women's National Team - The Land of the Free and Home of the Hayes

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Emma Hayes doing a thumbs up

Now that Emma Hayes is leaving Chelsea and preparing to head Stateside upon the expiration of her contract, there's probably scope to wonder who this represents the biggest gamble for- herself, or the United States Soccer Federation, with time to peer into the wreckage of their most recent Women's World Cup campaign? 

Almeyda in AEK Athens

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A pondering Matías Almeyda

Matías Almeyda. Remember him? The Argentine defensive midfielder was a decent player, who enjoyed a twenty year career between 1991 and 2011, representing his country forty times on the international stage and who played at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups. However, these days he's ten years into a managerial career that's seen him building a body of work that is increasingly legitimising his position in the dugout and finds him now based in the birthplace of democracy.

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