Outside the Box – Football on TV: An incident-packed week at the BBC leaves Savage short of support and Lineker lost for words

They say a week in football is a long time and it can certainly be said that there was enough controversy, incident and wonder crammed into the last seven days of football to keep Joey Barton’s Twitter account going for years. The fallout from the Manchester derby, the return of Scholes and Henry, t...

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Outside the Box – Football on TV: A battle of wits ends in defeat for Worthy’s warhorses, but football marches on

Let’s face it. Our footballing heroes don’t have the greatest reputation when it comes to brainpower and academia do they? A cautionary glance at the post-match interviews every week on Match Of The Day show us superstars struggling to grasp the complexity of questions such as, “How do you feel the ...

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Outside the Box – Football on TV: A bad week for JT just gets worse and worse as the news hacks attack!

It’s been a bad old week for Chelsea and England captain John Terry hasn’t it? The on-going racism row between Terry and his accuser Anton Ferdinand has been front and back page news since the incident occurred a week ago and the story shows no signs of halting. Like most I have seen the footage...

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St Johnstone: Who will replace McInnes as Saints' manager?

Following the success he achieved at McDairmid Park, Derek McInnes was always going to be poached by a club in England. Not only had he guided St Johnstone to the SPL, he did so playing some damn fine football. After leading the Saints to the top half of the table, he has decided now is the right ti...

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Can any player, including Messi, be considered 'the greatest'?

Ah, the Champions League. Bringer of drama, stopper of dreamers, platform for Ray Wilkins to say ‘my word’ 50 hundred thousand times. And there are other things that are nearly always discussed, certainly when seeing the two dominant Spanish sides play. The great debate has moved from trying to ...

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Scotland: Can Levein’s men shock the world champions Spain?

Scotland’s narrow win over Liechtenstein, combined with Spain’s 2-0 win over the Czech Republic, has given Craig Levein’s men a glimmer of hope of qualifying for their first major tournament since France 98. All they need to do is better what the Czechs do against Lithunia. Unfortunately their oppon...

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Who's Going To Be At Euro 2012?

The qualifying groups for Euro 2012 are reaching the business end and its becoming a little clearer which players will be in Poland and Ukraine and which ones will be spending extra time on the beach. Places Booked As usual Germany have headed the way in qualification. Aside from a sticky period a...

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Scots Corner: Is summer football the future for the SPL?

As the nights begin to draw in, getting shorter and shorter, and the weather quickly deteriorating, the age-old prospect of summer football has reared its head again. With the football season only a few weeks old and already the Scottish winter setting in, why not? Last season saw a record number o...

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Scots Corner: Is The SPL Really That Bad?

Scottish football suffered a shock to the system on Thursday night, with all three Europa League representatives posting disappointing results in the first legs of their respective ties. It was the most damning evidence that Scottish football has declined considerably in recent years, as Hearts and ...

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Scots Corner: Hearts broken by Jefferies' shock dismissal

The SPL has had a hectic week, with domestic, European and friendly action, as well as the first managerial casualty of the season. Following Hearts 1-0 home defeat to Dundee United last Sunday, extending their winless streak even further, manager Jim Jefferies and assistant Billy Brown were sacked...

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Will the new season throw up any shocks across Europe's top leagues?

Here we go again ... Its that time of year again. Your club has had some embarrassing/great results in pre-season friendlies and the anticipation builds up as the new season approaches, but what can we expect from the big leagues around Europe? Some countries, of course, have already kicked off, su...

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Squarefootball's Fantasy football invitation

There is less than two weeks to go until the start of the 2011/12 Premier League season and time is running out for you to enter the Squarefootball fantasy football competition. Last season more than 100 teams competed for the Squarefootball title, which was won by P Oxenby and his team FC Poxo. He...

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What five things would you do before the season starts?

Isn’t it normally New Years Eve when you get a top 100 favourite moments of the year or top 500 best movie credits or some other poor excuse for a programme? Well I thought I would also use it as a poor excuse for an article, but rather than boring you all with a list consisting of 100 or more items...

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Would you like to write for Squarefootball?

Do you live, breathe and sleep football? Do you have a passion for writing and want your views to be read by a potential audience of millions? Then we at Squarefootball Towers would love to hear from you. Whether you follow Aberdeen or Accrington Stanley, West Ham United or Wolfsburg, we can offer ...

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Squarefootball fantasy football invitation 2010/11

I saw more action and excitement this summer down at the mortuary than I did at the World Cup in South Africa. There was also a better atmosphere between me and my ex-girlfriend than there was inside the grounds, thanks to the constant drone of those awful vuvuzelas. And as for entertainment, I th...

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Scotland: Burley faces axe as Keegan approached

Square football sources understand that George Burley will be sacked tonight by Scotland if they fail to beat Iceland and it’s claimed that officials have already opened talks with former England managers Kevin Keegan and Steve McClaren as possible replacements.George Burley’s tenure as Scotland bos...

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Scotland v Iceland - The History

ScotlandsWorld Cupqualifierwith Iceland at Hampden has become a critical test for George Burleys squad now that Holland are running away with Group Nine. The under pressure Scottish boss will be hoping his side can maintain a 100% record against the visitors. The Icelanders were part of Scotlands W...

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Gemmill or Gazza: Who scored the better goal? You decide

We’re currently in the middle of an international break so what better time to look back at two of the best goals scored in international football by England and Scotland and ask: Which was better, Archie Gemmill for Scotland against Holland or Paul Gascoigne for England against Scotland? Both goal...

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Saturday Yankee - Home internationals

The five British and Irish international teams are all in action today; with England playing Slovakia in a friendly but Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Wales and Scotland all in competitive action trying to qualify for the 2010 World Cup. Lets see Group 4 - Wales vs Finland (3pm) With Germ...

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Why avoid the easy answer to Team GB at the 2012 Olympics?

There are reports that FIFA is to allow a British team to compete at the Olympics without affecting the beaurocratic meetings that the home nations consider so important to belong to. This of course being the real reason that the Scottish FA so vociferously object to an Olympic team. Part of the a...

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Who has the Heart to take over at Tynecastle?

What does a manager have to do to impress Vladimir Romanov? George Burley made the best start in the club's history but after just 12 games they parted company. Graham Rix managed to keep the momentum for a Champions League place going but was sacked in late March for speaking out against the Lithua...

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5105 Memories of Groups of Death

by : Hugh Larkin The draw for Euro 2008 threw up yet another unfeasibly tough section, almost immediately given the title Group of Death. These sections have become a feature of the publicity for modern tournaments. Has their always been a Group of Death? The first time I can recall hearing the ph...

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4927: Georgia On Scottish Minds

by : Hugh Larkin So after an epic 10 match campaign in what seemed to be an impossible group before it opened, Scotland now have to produce a win in Georgia to put themselves in the dominant position to qualify for Euro 2008 from Group B. Square Football looks at the issues; Can A Win Send Scotlan...

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4921: Scotland holds her breath

by : Daniel Law A trip to the Vicente Calderon in Madrid then awaits the Dons on November 29. The Spanish giants possess some well-known names, although they had to win the Intertoto Cup to qualify for the competition. Atletico, who have won La Liga and the Copa del Rey nine times, the last time in...

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4802: Scotland Seek More Revenge For

by : Hugh Larkin It was back in March 2002 when Berti Vogts took his first Scotland selection to the Stade De France. The result that night was a 5-0 hammering which gave warning of what was to come under the German coach. If the Scots need any motivation on Wednesday night when they return to Fran...

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4320: Scotland are Unofficial World

by : Hugh Larkin Alex McLeish is now managing the current World Champions. No, it isn’t a shock call from the Italians after discovering his hidden Azzuri ancestry- when Scotland beat Georgia at Hampden yesterday they became world champions. There is a bit of a catch though. The Scots only become...

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4121: Scotland; Is Big Eck The Righ

by : Stephen Orford Manchester United: The two players who have constantly been linked with Manchester United this month are Owen Hargreaves and Gareth Bale – yet the Reds are finding it difficult to land either. But Heinze, Richardson and Rossi are three names with a question mark over their futu...

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4058: Scotland Manager; The Candida

by : Stephen Orford Walter Smith’s decision to quit as manager of Scotland in favour of a return to Rangers has sparked a legal row, but of more pressing concern to the Scottish Football Association should be the task of finding a replacement. In two short years in charge Smith has helped drag the...

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3749: What the fans think about the

by : Colin Illingworth The FAI cannot sack him on the basis of the Czech game. It cannot even be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. To use it as such would be a heinous and spineless betrayal of the man that they chose. They have a duty to Staunton. They have a duty to give Staunton a chance...

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3728: Scotland v. France: A Chance t

by : Hugh Larkin One reasonable certainty from Scotland’s Euro 2008 qualifier with France is that Walter Smith’s side will do better than the last time the two sides met. That match was a friendly back in March 2002 which marked the beginning of Verti Vogts managerial rein. It ended 5-0 to France. ...

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3593: Scotland: The revival is up an

by : Sam Cullen Scotland scoring 6 in an international, surely not? The last time they achieved such a figure was way back during the dark depths of the 1980s, when they beat the then Yugoslavia 6-1. No doubt many down south will be sneering, claiming it was only the Faro Islands and can’t be use...

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3134: Scotland: Time for a resurgenc

by : Sam Cullen Two years ago, Scottish international football was about to hit its nadir. Berti Vogts shambolic reign ended with the Scots marooned at the bottom of their qualifying group with only 2 point from their first three games. The appointment of Walter Smith may have restored some pride ...

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2095: World Cup 2006: Could Scotland

by : Hugh Larkin There are people out there who still wager money on Elvis reappearing and a London bus being found on the Moon. There may even be those who bet on Elvis being found inside the bus on the Moon, but even these deluded souls wouldn’t have put a bean on Scotland’s chances of making it ...

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1756: Wembley: Why the bridge should

by : Colin Illingworth Bob’s other credits include performing for Rod Stewart’s fathers 80th birthday, appearing with Michael Parkinson in Australia, and having his own cartoon strip published in the Daily Express. A domestic cat is supposed to have nine lives but this cat seems to have nine caree...

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1441: Home Nations Review 2004: Thin

by : Alex Wolstenholme The final blow to Scotland’s footballing pride in 2004 came with the news that they would finish the year with a FIFA World Ranking of 86th, a fall of 32 places over the last twelve months. The appointment of Walter Smith has at least provided for some guarded optimism about...

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1342: Scotland: Walter Smith faces h

by : Stephen Orford In a ground share, the standard arrangement is that, on a given weekend, one team plays at home while the other plays away. The following weekend, the roles would be reversed. In other words, the pitch itself would be used twice as often, more so during both the FA and League ...

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1254: Scotland: Dynamic Duo Dominate

by : David Hulott Given the media coverage, it sometimes seems as though Scottish football doesn’t exist away from the woes of the national team or the latest goings on at Celtic and Rangers. As for life beyond the SPL, the most we usually get south of the border is a rundown of results, with the ...

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1208: Scotland: Does the new Scotlan

by : Stephen Orford And so the Scottish Football Fairy waves her magic wand and makes everything alright with the game north of the border. The evil Berti has been deposed, and Scotland can now look forward to regaining their place at the very top of international football. Anybody who has had...

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1203: Scotland: Bertie Vogts – life

by : Colin Illingworth After weeks of speculation Bertie Vogts has finally announced his resignation from the Scotland post. Citing ‘disgusting personal abuse’ as his reason for quitting Bertie leaves Scotland needing a miracle to qualify for the World Cup in Germany. Here we take a look back at th...

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1184: Scotland: The Sorry State of S

by : Paul Harper It’s pretty safe to say that Scottish football is not in the best of health at the present time. The number of people playing the beautiful game north of the border is on the descent, the national team is struggling under a German and as ever, Celtic and Rangers completely dominate...

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679: SCOTTISH FOOTBALL: You're Shir

by : David Hulott Every team goes through a sticky patch of form at some time, just look at Manchester United of late, but East Stirlingshire are really testing their fans patience with their little dodgy spell. Last season didn’t go particularly well, with the club mustering a mere 13-points in f...

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