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Ignition point

ManishTilwani — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:13:26 GMT

Sometimes the most important goal is not the winner.

Six minutes left, 3-1 behind. All heads down. Except one. Scholes rose high to nod in the cross, instill belief in his team and ignite the comeback.

Minutes later, they were level and through to the knockout stages of Europe’s premier club competition.

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Young gun proves deadly

ManishTilwani — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:15:29 GMT

When you’re young, you think you can take on the world – sometimes you’re right.

With his team 2-0 down to Juventus, Marek Hamsik decided enough was enough.

On 58 minutes, he slotted in at the far post to ignite the comeback. But that was just the beginning.

Less than 10 minutes to go, 2-2. Marek ran onto a perfectly cushioned ball and lashed a shot into the top corner for all three points.

Just wait until he’s unleashed in South Africa next year.

Bitter rivals, sweet victory

ManishTilwani — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:42:43 GMT

Cesc stands in the centre circle. His first North London derby as captain. His team 1-0 up. Time to kill the game.

The match re-starts. Cesc bursts out of the traps. Steals the ball, dances past one player, two, three. Then, with the goal at his mercy, calmly strokes the ball home.

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Cesc Fabregas: Total Control

ManishTilwani — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 04:25:12 GMT

At the heart of the game stands the playmaker. The one whose first touch is already the start of the second. Who creates space out of chaos. Who sees runs no-one else sees or imagines. The one to whom precision is the norm and the spectacular expected. The one the other players look back to when their shot hits the net.

Watch Cesc take total control.

In total control

ManishTilwani — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:46:22 GMT

The CTR360 is the ultimate control boot. Developed for players who pull the midfield strings. Players who specialise in killer through-balls. Players like Cesc.

On Saturday, Cesc wore the CTR360 for the first time, getting a chance to see how the boot would improve his game.

Over 90 minutes Cesc gave a stunning masterclass in the art of midfield play – setting up four of Arsenal’s six goals and netting one himself. No arguments who made the difference.

Want to dominate the game like Cesc?

Explore the CTR360

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CTR360 is ready for action

ManishTilwani — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 04:42:57 GMT

How do you make Cesc, Iniesta and Mascherano even better?

Give them a boot specifically developed for their game.

So this week, we gave the players who pull the strings in midfield, the ultimate control boot. One built to spark counter attacks, play defence-splitting passes, to dominate the game – the CTR360.

Look out.

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Rise above it

ManishTilwani — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:12:03 GMT

Sometimes, build-up threatens to overshadow the game.

The rookie manager challenging his former master. The once-beloved player returning to face his former fans. The first genuine Manchester-wide title tussle for years.

But amid a swirling cauldron of screaming fans, Man Utd proved the benefit of keeping cool and playing the game, not the occasion.

When all was done, the red half of Manchester walked off with their 61st Derby win.

Ronaldo rewrites history

ManishTilwani — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 02:58:46 GMT

Didn’t take him long.

After just four games in the white of Madrid, Cristiano has stamped his name in the club’s record books. Last night he became the first player ever to score in all of his first four games for the club.

Who knows what he’ll do in the next 34.

More Milestones for Rooney

ManishTilwani — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:46:05 GMT

For all the luck that plays into the game of football, it won’t alone take you to a championship. So sure, Wayne Rooney’s 25th goal for England, capping their 5-1 victory over Croatia on Saturday, was due in large part to a goal keeper’s blundered clearance, but lesser players would be caught off guard by the mistake without the controlled reflexes to do something with the gift. Not Rooney, whose 76th minute point-blank bullet came with the precision of a man taking no prisoners. It was his ninth goal in this qualifying campaign, a new record for England.

With two games left to play, Rooney and partners sit at the top of the group, and already booked for South Africa.

Dead ball – buried

ManishTilwani — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:40:03 GMT

Sometimes you get a whole game. Sometimes a cameo. But when Ribery came on for Bayern, he took centre stage.

His inch-perfect free-kick put the German champions 3 up, kick-starting a 5-1 drubbing. Some players only need a second to make the difference.

Nice wins nothing

ManishTilwani — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:23:30 GMT

What is nice? What’s it ever won? Let’s see its medals.

Ribery knows that nice never Made the Difference. To yourself in training. To the weaknesses in your game. To every last opponent.

The Stars of Italy

DonJulio — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:02:00 GMT

There’s no one like Inter. The only club to have never dropped from the country’s top tier, it’s been a century since they won their first major trophy. And they’re not finished yet.

The classic blue and black stripes of the new home shirt – unaligned from back to front – echo the design worn during the 1965/66 season when the club won their tenth Scudetto. The star earned as a result sits proudly above the club’s crest, which itself is enclosed within the Italian flag – an honour only granted to the country’s reigning champion.

The same details are included in the away kit. Only the colours are different – a white polo collared shirt with a black and blue royal band. Inside, both strips display a woven label reading ‘Inter Centenario Del Primo Scudetto’ – Centenary of the First Scudetto. Here’s to another unstoppable 100 years.

Ronaldo’s Rebirth

ManishTilwani — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:06:39 GMT

All hands on deck and all eyes on one man. Every football fan in the world had a thought to Cristiano Ronaldo’s Spanish debut, and it would be understandable for even the consensus world player of the year to be a bit nervous. But if you tuned in for failure, you don’t know this coolest of competitors.

In the 35th minute, with the eyes of the world upon him, Ronaldo stepped to the penalty spot. A deep breadth, a swipe of a sleeve to catch the sweat from his face. Then no hesitation. A bullet barely caught on camera whizzed across the grass and passed the outstretched arms of a goal keeper who even guessed correctly, diving exactly where the ball had been. Past tense, had been. There was no stopping Ronaldo’s perfect penalty strike, and given the moment, perfect can’t pay it due justice.

Derby Demolition

ManishTilwani — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 03:01:42 GMT

The best teams learn from experience and build upon the past. Inter Milan did just that in only the second week of the season, and against their crosstown rivals, with whom they share a stadium. How’s 4-0 for a derby thrashing? If week one had Italian football fans questioning the defending champions, week two provided all the answers.

Inter’s new signings made the difference on Saturday, having a hand in nearly every goal. Wesley Sneijder, only signed by the team on Friday, was a surprise starter and tested the goal early. From their it was engineered destruction. Inter never let up. All that preparation showed from tactics to the intangibles. From building the squad, to preparing them properly, Inter were kings for the day, an unstoppable machine every team in Italy will now be fearing.

Better than a Derby

ManishTilwani — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 02:48:05 GMT

Back and forth action featuring the precise passing of Arsenal and the muscled management of Manchester United. Fans got what they asked for in the first meeting of the season for two English powerhouses.

A 20-meter strike from Andrei Arshavin, Arsenal’s newest all star, finds the upper 90, powering through the keeper’s hand to start the scoring. A solid penalty from Wayne Rooney, Manchester’s now unquestioned offensive leader, brought the match even. It was edge of your seat madness for 90 minutes.

The red devils took the lead with their second goal in a 5-minute span, which sealed the home victory for Rooney and crew, and left Arsenal forced to look forward. The rematch in London, exactly 5 months from now, will again put the players in the pressure cooker, right where the fans want them, with a much better idea of how the league table is shaking out. January 30th can’t come soon enough.