La Liga 2015-16 Season Preview: Sporting Gijon

It’s a never-ending cycle. Three years of dwindling in the Segunda Division later and Sporting Gijon are back in La Liga, but it will take a super-human effort for the Asturian outfit to avoid relegation this time out.

Like last season, though, Coach Abelardo Fernandez will be relying on the flair of his youthful set-up to produce the goods. Indeed, Sporting entered 2014-15 without any new signings and were forced to rely on the young graduates from Mareo. Yet, against all the odds, the courageous attitude of the young side saw them secure promotion on the final matchday, when most believed they would only qualify through the playoffs.

Despite their lack of signings, however, Sporting find themselves in good stead for the new campaign. The likes of Jony and Carlos Castro matured significantly throughout 14-15, the former playing a key role for the side in midfield as he made 39 appearances and scored six goals in the process. The emergence of Miguel Angel Guerrero too is promising for the season ahead. The striker scored 10 goals in 34 appearances.

Key to Sporting's form has been the appointment of Abelardo, who is Rojiblanco through and through. Indeed, his ability to manage a team brimming with inexperience has been by far the greatest achievement in his short managerial career. And as the 45-year-old prepares to pit his wits against the best in the business this season, he will have to rely on the side’s defensive stability. The former Barcelona player established a backline which conceded just 27 goals last season, the fewest in La Segunda.

Read the rest of my preview for Football Espana

La Liga 2015-16 Season Preview: Sevilla

It all seemed like a well-directed film; no bloopers, no retakes as three, astonishingly, inch-perfect free-kicks left a 52,000-strong crowd in Georgia with their jaws dropped. Eventually, it all culminated in nine goals in an unforgettable 120 minutes of play as Barcelona narrowly edged out Sevilla 5-4 in the UEFA Super Cup.

If anything though, that very match exhibited all the qualities that we have come to associate with Unai Emery’s troops. Resilience, as well as possessing the ability to break down the best defences with breathtaking efficiency, has come to define what is now Andalucia's undisputed No 1 side.

Their previous season began with the sales of the likes of Alberto Moreno and, more significantly, Ivan Rakitic to Barcelona. However, the acquisitions of starlet Denis Suarez and the arrival of the relatively-untested Polish midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak helped ease the duo's departures.

It it all began with a bang as the Andalucians won seven of their opening nine matches to reach as high as second, before inconsistency throughout the season saw them challenge Valencia for a Champions League spot, a battle they eventually lost.

Nevertheless, back-to-back Europa League titles, the latest of which saw them edge out Dnipro 3-2 in the final marked their return to Europe’s elite club competition this season.

Read the rest of my preview for Football Espana

Serie A preview: Juventus the favourites again, but Milan and Roma could challenge this season

Italian football may not be what it was during its 90s pomp, with match-fixing scandals taking some of the gloss off and Serie A outfits often treated more like accessories than businesses by their owners.

However, with Juventus reaching last year's Champions League final and Thai businessman Bee Taechaubol’s injecting some cash at AC Milan, it feels like a new era is being ushered in.

No doubt the Old Lady have helped place Italy on Europe’s footballing map again. The Bianconeri, under the tutelage of Massimiliano Allegri, steamrolled their way to a fourth consecutive domestic title before claiming an unprecedented domestic double, narrowly edging out Lazio in the Coppa Italia. And while they failed to lift the Champions League crown against Barcelona in Berlin after wins over Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid, they certainly have done their bit in paving the way for another exciting season.

Read the rest of my season preview for Mirror Football

Shaqiri not in tune with Inter

In many ways, Roberto Mancini seemed to have lost touch. Upon his return to the Nerrazzuri in mid-November, the 50-year-old acted as if the post-Mourinho hardships had never happened. Inter, he claimed, were still a top European club and for that they could attract the continent’s best talent was taken as read.

Inter, after all, are one of the most iconic clubs in Europe with 18 Serie A titles, three Champions League crowns and a host of other domestic and intercontinental honours. However, recent struggles meant Mancio’s optimism seemed rather unrealistic - that is until Xherdan Shaqiri joined the club.

Not since Wesley Sneijder has a player mustered so much popularity within the club. So much so that supporters gathered in their thousands and made their way to the airport to greet the new signing. For a League, and club, that had lost its appeal to the wider public, Shaqiri’s agreement to join the club on a loan deal before signing on for another five years, was quite a coup.

The 23-year-old’s first few months were indeed promising. With legends such as Oliver Bierhoff claiming that he had everything to become a fan favourite, Shaqiri got off to a perfect start by scoring on his debut, combining with fellow new recruit Lukas Podolski to eliminate Sampdoria from the Coppa Italia.

By February, Inter’s faithful came flocking back to San Siro, as their attendances almost doubled, not to mention the fact that Shaqiri was, perhaps, the Nerrazzuri’s best player throughout the month as he contributed in every facet possible, in particular setting alight the Europa League. So much so, that club legend Javier Zanetti compared the Swiss to Sneijder for his ability to spark the team to life.

Read the rest of my piece on Football Italia

Top Five Inter Youngsters 2015-16

It’s fair to say that for the past few seasons, Inter have ultimately flattered to deceive. In fact, such were the lacklustre team performances last term that not only did the Nerazzurri get dumped out of the Coppa Italia in the quarter-finals, but they ultimately finished in eighth position in Serie A, and are set to miss out on European football this time around.

The re-appointment of Roberto Mancini at the expense of Walter Mazzarri has, thus far. failed to show much promise with the tactician seemingly finding it tough to successfully integrate his players into his own philosophy.

There is good news amongst all this negativity, however: Inter’s youth structure continues to produce talented starlets capable of becoming world-class players, and with president Erick Thohir insisting that the squad for the new season will be limited to just 25 players, it seems now is the time for Mancio to rely on the younger generation as they attempt to re-build.

Here, I took a look at five promising Inter youngsters for Forza Italian Football

Perth Glory, Wellington, WS Wanderers all through to FFA Cup final 16

Last year's runners-up Perth Glory progressed into the round of 16 of the FFA Cup after a narrow 4-3 penalty shootout victory over the Newcastle Jets after the scores were locked at 2-2 after extra time on Tuesday evening.

The stakes were high heading into the match with both sides looking to rebuild following their respective controversies last season. The Glory were ousted from the A-League finals following their salary cap scandal while the the Jets have begun a new era under FFA control following their recent financial struggles.

It was the Novocastrians who got off to a better start with new recruit Labinot Haliti almost drawing first blood in the eighth minute when a marauding run eventually saw his shot across the face of the goal saved by former Wanderers teammate Jerrad Tyson.

The Jets built upon their early dominance when David Carney opened the scoring midway through the first half after pouncing on a defensive error from Antony Golec before blasting a powerful shot past a helpless Tyson.

Haliti continued to threaten as he stung the palms of Perth's custodian in the 33rd minute with a crisp strike before sending a volley into the back of the net from the far post only to be ruled offside.

A frenetic start to the second half saw the Glory immediately place their opponents on the back foot as Scott Miller's men struggled to retain possession.

Read the rest of my FFA Cup review at ESPN FC

Sydney FC and Adelaide United progress to the FFA Cup round of 16

Adelaide United proved to be a class above minnows Darwin Olympic as they opened their FFA Cup title defence with a comfortable 6-1 win at Darwin Football Stadium on Wednesday night.

The stakes were undoubtedly high coming into the fixture. Darwin's encounter marked a historic moment for football in the Northern Territory as Steve Lolais' side became the first Territory side to compete in the nation-wide competition.

Meanwhile, the match also marked Adelaide United's first fixture since Josep Gombau's shock departure a little less than two weeks ago, with former Barcelona midfielder Guillermo Amor subsequently taking over the reins of the club.

There was very little to separate both sides in the opening stages with some pulsating end-to-end play in the opening 10 minutes whereby neither team were able to gain foothold in the match.

All of Olympic's good work thus far in the match soon came undone in the 17th minute when Marcelo Carrusca made no mistake from the penalty spot after Billy Kathopoulis cynically brought down Osama Malik to give the Reds the lead.

Read the rest of my FFA Cup review at ESPN FC

Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City win, make last 16 in Australia's FFA Cup

A-League champions Melbourne Victory began their FFA Cup campaign in scintillating fashion as they ruthlessly progressed to the last 16, defeating Balmain Tigers FC 6-0 at Leichardt Oval on Tuesday evening.

Coming into the match, Tigers manager Tass Fiakos was hopeful that the New South Wales State League side could pull off an upset, claiming that they were "certainly not going to lie down."

Despite a lively start where they were able to shut down space in midfield in the opening 10 minutes, the Tigers were brought back down to earth when the Victory drew first blood in the 11th minute when Besart Berisha slotted into the bottom corner off a Jesse Makarounas assist.

Kevin Muscat's side doubled their lead minutes shy from half-time when a well worked move on the right flank saw a Jason Geria cross find attacker Connor Pain unmarked at the far post for a simple tap in.

The Victory began the second half from where they left off, applying pressure on Balmain's defence as they easily monopolised possession, and they netted their third in the 56th minute when Kosta Barbarouses slotted home from 15 yards out.

Read the rest of my FFA Cup review at ESPN FC