As the weather begins to change, leaving many of us no doubt hoping for glorious beer garden sunshine, spare a thought for Barnsley and their supporters- having had to sup many a pint of bitter at the second tier table. The Tykes have spent more seasons and thereby played more games at that level than any other club! The circumstances behind their various near misses couldn't be more different, either...
In this unusual season there's been a whole World Cup since my previous new football away day, last October. On that occasion I visited Rodney Parade to see Newport County, and long overdue for my next jaunt I was pleased to get my first trip in for 2023, with a visit to Hertfordshire to see Championship play-off contenders Watford take on Preston North End. This would also be a special away day, as it wouldn't involve any of my usual companions, instead this one was organised as a surprise for my uncle having turned 70.
Having made a surprise post-retirement return to management at Huddersfield, a mere thirty years after his last stint, the man dubbed Colin by those who have a considerably softer spot for anagrams than they do him- that is to say Neil Warnock- is back. It's probably worth pondering the state the Terriers find themselves in now against how things were during that final season at Leeds Road before a move to what was then known as the McAlpine Stadium.
No one stays on top forever, as time inevitably catches up with everyone. That being said, those who excel in their chosen profession can maintain a place near the top of the tree for a long time or, to use a sporting phrase, form is temporary but class is permanent. Bearing this in mind, I always thought that the way José Mourinho was written off by sections of the British press, following his experiences with Tottenham and to some extent Manchester United, felt incredibly premature. And this indeed appears to have been the case judging by how the Portuguese is doing in Rome.
Italy’s premier footballing competition has given us a lot. Nowadays Italy’s top flight is brandished as ‘negative’, holding some truth but not the whole truth. In recent years, a handful of Italian coaches have become prominent due to their innovative styles of football; Roberto De Zerbi, Gian Piero Gasperini and Vincenzo Italiano spring to mind.