Ciao Mario

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As Mario Balotelli departs English football, James Dutton bids a fond arrivederci…

And so with barely a whimper he was gone. Mario Balotelli has departed these shores, seemingly, for the final time. He returns to the fashion capital Milan, this time to parade around in the red and black, not the black and blue, where his flamboyant hats will be accepted.

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Serie A 2012/13: Midseason Review

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The False Nine’s Kyle Hulme casts his verdict on how the big hitters in Serie A have got on so far, as well as offering them his own current and predicted grade…

 Juventus

Going into the new season, fans of the Bianconeri were hoping for more of the same. Fortunately, Juventus have delivered so far this season. Continue reading

Euro 2012: The Last of Its Kind

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In the first of a series of reviews of the 2012 football calendar, editor James Dutton looks back at that thrilling June in Poland and Ukraine and a tournament likely to be fondly remembered as the last of its kind…

Viva España

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Time for Balotelli to Reclaim the Spotlight

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Ahead of tomorrow’s Manchester derby, False Nine editor, Andrew Belt, calls for one of the current Premier League champions’ stars to emerge from the shadows and take centre stage again…

Admit it.

You thought Mario Balotelli was the best striker at Euro 2012.

One Fernando was being touted for great things but Llorente was consigned to a watching brief as Spain slay all before them playing the much-lauded ‘false 9’ formation, in which the other Fernando, Torres, managed to bag three goals and restore some much-needed confidence. Continue reading

The Strange Case of Mathieu Flamini

False Nine editor Hugo Greenhalgh considers the career of one of his favourite players, Mathieu Flamini, and what the long-term implications of his departure meant for Arsenal…

How does one measure such an abject fall from grace?

In 2008, Mathieu Flamini was arguably one of the best central midfielders in the Premiership and a key member of an Arsenal side that should have won the title that season. Two years previously, he had demonstrated his versatility by filling in at left-back in a Champions League campaign that took Arsenal to the final. Yet just this summer, Flamini became a free agent and was forced to take a significant wage cut to re-join AC Milan. His is a cautionary tale that the grass isn’t always greener. Continue reading