Friday, 01.03.2024

Penalties and the magician: How Spain came close to reaching the final

A magician not pulling a trick in-front of thousands of spectators doesn’t mean the failure of the magic trick. Behind any magic trick, hours and hours of creativity are followed by more hours of practice. Alone in his room, a magician might perform the trick seamlessly without any interruptions but circumstances on the day of the show can result in the trick not coming off as intended.

The vein in Spain: A different approach from Spain in possession

There’s more than one way to the heart. Different approaches work with different people. Scientifically speaking, there is more than one way to the heart. Veins, which are blood vessels that carry blood towards the heart, fill our human body. Their amount? Numerous. All of them lead to heart. Football is the same. Different approaches work against different teams.

Canada stuns stagnant USA

CONCACAF’s inaugural Nations League group stage pitted neighbors USA and Canada against each other in competition for just the second time this decade, with Canada seizing the opportunity in Toronto as the United States failed to impose their style onto the match.

Cote d’Ivoire edge South Africa in scratchy opener

To kick off their 2019 AFCON campaign, South Africa took on traditional powerhouses Cote d’Ivoire in Cairo. Stuart Baxter’s charges lined up in a 4-4-2 shape with Percy Tau playing as a secondary striker/playmaker next to Racing Strasbourg’s Lebo Mothiba, who occupied a more traditional target striker role. 

Cote d’Ivoire on the other hand lined up relatively similarly in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Aston Villa’s Jonathan Kodjia playing as a front-man with strong tendencies to drift to either wing, particularly in potential counterattacking moments. His movements would be balanced by Fulham FC’s Jean Michael Seri, whilst veteran Max Gardel and Nicolas Pepe provided the threat from out wide.