British greatest import

The Rise and Fall of Coutinho El Cholo. BRITISH GREATEST IMPORT

Heavy the head that wears the crown. When Jurgen Klopp arrived at Liv- erpoll FC in 2017 he couldn’t have asked for a better playmaker, skil- ful, quick, visionary and a lethal right foot most importantly a playmaker that score goals...Philippe Coutinho. The Brazilian was at the heart of the Kloop’s troops and the heartbeat of the team before Barcelona came calling, two bids were rejected and Barcelona’s director Albert Soler said Liverpool wanted ri- diculous sum of £183m for the player.

Eventually, after Jurgen Klopp had lost patience with his star man, and froze him out of the side, he was sold a year later for £142m. “I only have good things to say about Philippe, but I think he left Liverpool because he wanted to play for one of the two big Spanish clubs,” Liver- pool chairman Tom Werner revealed. The move happened and what was supposed to be a fairy-tale move quickly become a nightmare for the Brazilian, with such a hefty price-tag comes expectation. Barcelona fans wanted a new saviour after losing Neymar to PSG. However Coutinho struggled, often overlooked to play in the No.10 position that Messi operates in. He was placed on the left hand side of the attack and couldn’t influence games like he did previously in England.

A return of 21 goals in 75 games has highlighted his poor form in La Liga since he joined the club. That’s when they (Bar- celona) started to entertain offers to release the big-earner from their wage bill. Bayen Munich took a gamble on the attacker given there is no doubt in his ability the Brazilian moved to Germany on loan to save his career. Success seemed to have been achieved by the Brazilian almost overnight, once he became trusted by the manager given his form. In his second and third starts against Koln and Paderborn, he bagged a goal and assist in each victory and set up Rob- ert Lewandowski during the 2-7 demolition of Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League during his fourth. But then the things went south again for the Brazilian. Initially dislodging the hometown favourite from the starting line-up, Coutinho’s performances began to dip and Thomas Muller returned to the starting line up to replace him. Then the criticism from local media outlets increased and was picked up on by their Catalan counterparts back in Barcelona to justify that getting shut was a master stroke.

Previously appearing has though he had his career back on track, Coutinho is now at a crossroads. No doubt talented, he boasts an unwelcomed habit of fading in games and be- ing unable to keep up with their physical demands. A return to Barcelona is off the table with Barcelona spending over $100m on Antoine Griezmann, Coutinho finds himself flittering with a return to England again. Having left Liverpool it’s under bad terms and the Liverpool looking up better without him unclear where Brazilian will land Tottenham Hospur,Chelsea and Arsenal have all put their names in the hat to secure his ser- vices, however Coutinho needs to find his feet again before any club and gamble on him.

City’s Greatest In 2011 Manchester City announced the signing of an Argentine Sergio Agureo, fans in Man- chester waited in anticipation of the highly rated young Argentine while Atlético Madrid fans where in tears as they knew they lost a prize asset. The fee that initially was $34m includ- ing add on fees in today’s market a player of Agureo’s attributes would be worth $140m, one would say Man City got him at a bargain. The move didn’t come without it’s fair share of crit- icism as Atlético Madrid fans hated the man- ner in which Agureo left the club, Agureo made it clear that he wanted to play for a club that can challenge for titles & Man City was that club. He didn’t have to wait long before the tro- phies started to come.

The final day of the 2011/12 season both Manchester clubs are in the line to win the English Premier League (EPL) title, Manchester City needed only a win to secure their first title in EPL history. On the other hand Manchester United needed a win while hoping Man City dropped points. Man United won their game 2-0 while waiting results from anoth- er game as Man City were in need of a goal to secure their name in the history book.

‘’ Agueroooo’’ the famous cries from the United corner as a last minute goal from Sergio secured the first EPL title for the ‘‘noisy neighbours’’ at the expense of their cross town rivals Man United. The 2011/12 season will forever be in the hearts of every Man City fan more so in the United corner as Agureo’s last minute goal against QPR secured the first EPL title for Manchester City and cementing Agureo’s name in the history books of the club. Further success was to follow as Man City secured anoth- er title in 2016 under the guidance of Manuel Pellegrini to add more landmarks to his city career. However not all has been smooth sailing for the Argentine in Manchester as the forward had to deal with his fair share of trails both on and off-the pitch. The separation of him and his wife and a fair share of injuries, however that never put his career in doubt at City until the arrival of Pep Guardila in 2017.

The highly rated manager with a fair share of critics for not been afraid to drop star players when they not playing his brand of football, (Zlatan Ibrahimović, Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o) new on his list was Agureo and the Argentine need- ed to respond after been dropped. The arrival of Gabriel Jesus didn’t help Agureo’s case, unlike the others players Aguero didn’t leave the club, he responded by doing what he does best. Scoring goals and in 2018-19 handed Pep his first English Premier League (EPL) trophy and another the following year. More landmark goals were to follow as Agureo become the highest for- eign goal scorer in the EPL with 180 goals and the forth all-time in the EPL with the most hat- ricks in the EPL(12). The EPL is on hold due to COVID-19 Man City can rest assured that they got one of the deadliest strikers not just in the EPL but in the world.



El Cholo Before the world knew Diego Simeone as the renowned and respected coach of Atlético Madrid, there was Diego Sime- one the player, a midfielder who instilled the Argentine fight- ing spirit and covered every blade of grass with clenched fists and gritted teeth. Diego Simeone had the attributs that were adored by his team’s supporters, yet enthused hatred in rival fans. Committed, courageous and heroic in the eyes of their own; obsessive, ruthless and dirty to everyone else. It is the same nev- er die attitude that has seen Simeone rise to the panicle of great manag- ers in world foot- ball. Looking at his army in red and white strips when they step on the pitch, they go to war for their manag- er.

Diego Godin was quoted ‘’the players would die for him. He gives the belief that we can compete against much bigger teams. We have great confidence in him, we are with him to the death and also he is with us and that shows on the pitch. That is how you achieve things.” In the 2013-2014 season, Atletico Madrid conceded just 18 goals the entire season as they lifted the La Liga title after 18 years (incidentally, Simeone was in the Atletico team as a player when they last won the league in 1996).

The Argentine has led Atletico to a league win, a Copa Del Rey victory in 2013, beating Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid 2-1 in the final. To add more to their trophy cabinet they also won two Europa Leagues and two UEFA Super Cups. There is no doubt that under his guidance Atletico has ris- en to the top of European clubs, the obsession to win at all cost meant that Simeone began to face criticism as his team was seen as been too defensive, but as far as Atlet- ico fans are concerned, he is the man under whom they have become one of the best clubs in Europe. It wasn’t so long ago that Atlético was a stepping stone for players, a waiting room for a move to one of Europe’s big- ger clubs. Now world-class players see it as a great place to be, trophies can be won and money can be earned, most importantly add your name in the history books of the club. Football, as Simeone played it, was war. On the pitch, a soldier, he embodied a general. Now, as a manager, he commands his army, fighting every battle from the side-lines.

Simeone wears his heart on his sleeve as his no-nonsense approach and bold attitude is reflected by his players on the pitch. Diego Simeone’s controversial on-field antics on the touchline has led to his dismissal on multiple occa- sions. However, we often see that it only galvanises his team to perform better. Hero and villain, with him or against him – that’s Diego Simeone. That’s El Cholo