As the COVID pandemic loosens its grip on football ever so slightly, a case study in its knock on effects- Matt Byard, Ipswich Town's physio, was open in his support for the suspension of the Football League season as the virus took hold. Ahead of a raft of Boxing Day postponements over the 2020 festive season- including the Tractor Boys' own post-Christmas game, he told the club website-
As Bury & Macclesfield reel from effective expulsion from the Football League, at least one bastion of its Northern heartland has something to cheer after a long road back from abuse at the hands of those entrusted to run it. Beaten to within an inch of its life & ridden roughshod like a seaside donkey- Simon Sadler’s takeover at Blackpool has given the Tangerines hope for a better future after the Oystons exited via the back door.
Manchester United's 2019/20 UEFA Cup run came to an end despite being spearheaded by former Sporting Lisbon man Bruno Fernandes, & the final part of their season rounded out with an FA Cup exit & third place Premier League finish. So what of the fortunes of the Verde e Brancos (Green & Whites)?
Espanyol are a club used to being overshadowed, although to be fair, their nearest rivals have had a habit of overshadowing the best teams in Europe for much of their history. Ultimately, when you are the 2nd best professional football team in Barcelona, it means that you have to get used to struggling for attention.
With the fiscal state of football again making the news, & perhaps the best-known example of such mismanagement reaching its centenary year & being on the cusp of automatic promotion back to the promised land, helped by a 3-1 win at fellow former Premier League stalwarts Blackburn on Saturday), what better time than now to take a metaphorical walk past the imposing statues of both Don Revie & captain Billy Bremner outside Elland Road. Permanent reminders of former glories, & a time when the men in white were far from pearly…