The Devil's Den

Football is Dead [viz. by Varun Sangwan] Yesterday, the footballing world was shaken to its core by the announcement of a European Super League, potentially disrupting the existing European competitions, i.e., UEFA Champion's League and The Europa League. Gone will be the days when any team could dream of playing in the European competitions as an attempt to challenge the status quo about the big teams in their respective leagues. Teams who have done well recently - the likes of West Ham, Leicester, Real Sociedad, Atalanta, and so on, who rose above expectations to challenge the top tier teams in their divisions will probably find their herculean efforts to have been in vain because the owners of the so-called big clubs have decided that football is just supposed to make money and shouldn't mean anything to the fans. WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN SUPER LEAGUE? What is the European Super League? [via GiveMeSport] The European Super League is an initiative lead by the biggest teams in wor...

Manchester United beat Granada 0-2 Manchester United move a step closer to Europa League Semi-Finals after a comfortable 2-0 first-leg win over Granada at Estadio Los Carmenes. The Red Devils displayed a much-improved game as compared to the one against Brighton. MATCH REVIEW The Men of the Moment United took control of the match early on in the game. They restricted Granada to the odd sight of goal, as they engaged De Gea into some Routine Saves. On-loan Chelsea forward Kenedy blazed a volley from a small frame. Former Spurs striker Roberto Soldado lashed a shot into the side netting. United switched off from a freekick and nearly paid the price 5 minutes before the break, but the woodwork came to their rescue as on-loan Manchester City midfielder Yangel Herrera's cross-shot cannoned off the post. Besides these, the Spanish side did not threaten United . Fernandes was yet again on target from the spot Rashford notched his 8th European Goal of the season in the 31st minute. Rashfo...

Granada vs Manchester United [via UEFA Europa League] TRIVIA Venue - Estadio Nuevo de Los Carmenes Kickoff - Thursday, April 8, 20:00 BST                    Friday, April 9, 00:30 IST Manchester United exited the FA Cup in a disappointing manner as they allowed Leicester City to run over them in the Quarter-Final. The result and moreover, the performance came as a shock to everyone as the same team had just beaten City, AC Milan, and West Ham in a span of 2 weeks. The International Break couldn't have come at a better time for Ole. Most of our players got about the right amount of rest and game time during their time with their countries. We were expected to come back fresher as we restarted PL action. But quite evidently, our team took a while to get out of their blocks against Brighton, conceding yet another early goal. Although we managed to come back from behind, yet again, we need to start winning games more comfortably. Taking...

Should Manchester United Let Eric Bailly Go? [viz by The Devils Den] Bailly Arrives At Manchester United Eric Bailly signs for Manchester United [via Daily Express] On 8th June 2016, Eric Bailly became the first signing of the Jose Mourinho era when he was signed from Villarreal on a 4-year contract for a fee of €30 mn. The promising young Ivorian was regarded as the "next big thing" at the heart of the central defence for Manchester United. But his ride has been rough in England. A host of consecutive injuries have halted the Ivorian's career growth at Old Trafford. The Ivorian Came With A Reputation Bailly established himself as one of the best CBs in La Liga [via BBC] Eric joined the Red Devils as one of the best center backs in the La Liga during the 2015-16 season and playing a key role in the impressive Europa League run of Villarreal seeing them progress to the semi-finals. With a United Defence which lacked a strong, physical and brutal defender at that time, the...

Europe’s Most Wanted Defender An analysis on one of the world’s most sought-after centre back, and no it's not Phil Jones Not many players are privileged to play for their hometown club, many youth players may not be good enough to make the grade and hence, released once their youth contract expires. The demands of a footballer are high, especially in Europe where money can be spent seamlessly to fill a hole in the team. That said, when Torres became Villareal’s first local debutant in 13 years against CD Toledo in the Copa del Rey in the 2016/17 season, expectations on him were high and we can see him relishing his potential today.   Pau Torres is currently living the dream as a boyhood Villarreal fan, playing regular football for both club and country whilst being amongst the radar of Europe’s elite. The centre back has impressed alongside Raúl Albiol at the heart of defence for the yellow submarines, as they chase European football for the second successive season, this tim...

Man Utd name Darren Fletcher technical director and promote Murtough to football director [via FotMob] Manchester United Director of Football Yes, they're in the same sentence! For the first time in the history of the club, Manchester United have appointed a Director of Football . John Murtough has been promoted from Head of Football Development to Director of Football. Ex-Red Devil, Darren Fletcher takes up the helm of Technical Director alongside Murtough. John will have overall leadership and responsibility for operations and strategy across all football functions. Murtough presided over the recruitment reboot two years ago with Solskjaer and his work on the three fronts has seen him gain a reputation as a fixer at Manchester United. He has worked closely with  Solskjaer and the rest of the football staff to create the structures, processes and culture to deliver sustained success on the pitch. This has included successful overhauls of the club’s Academy and recruitment departm...