Cultured Football #102

Feyenoord's Rebuild and more...

Mar 11, 2023

By Alex Donaldson for Cynical Foul // 1,910 words

Feyenoord have successfully rebuilt their squad after losing many of their key players during last summer. The majority of the new players were tailor-made acquisitions for coach Arne Slot’s system. They have trusted their scouting team to identify compatible prospects undervalued by their league or the situation at their club. It seems to have worked: they currently top the Eredivisie.

How confident should Arsenal fans feel?

By Mark Thompson for Get Goalside // 1,123 words

A lot is my answer to that question. Depends on what model you look at, is what this article says.

The Bundesliga Relegation Battle

By Adam Khan for The German Football Weekly // 2,482 words

Such is its rarity that a lot is being written about the title race in Germany. Yet matters are just as interesting at the bottom with some big names risking relegation. Which three out of Hertha Berlin, VFB Stuttgart, Hoffenheim, FC Schalke 04 and FC Bochum will claw their way out of trouble?

Hi, this is Paul Grech, editor of Cultured Football. Every week, I sift through numerous football articles to carefully select the cream of the crop that I'm confident you'll enjoy. If you're finding any pleasure in reading this newsletter, I would be very grateful if you could spread the word to your fellow football enthusiasts.

By Adam Bate for Sky Sports // 1,959 words

Remaining on the theme of German football, the story of Union Berlin’s rise has been one of the most heartwarming of recent years. Whatever happens from now till the end of the season, no one can deny the brilliant achievement that manager Urs Fischer has managed to engineer.

Chasing the impossible dream: Why football is far from 'the beautiful game' for so many young players

By Neil Jones for Covering Liverpool // 3,011 words

Phil Foden, Jadon Sancho, and Eric García are just a few of the players alongside whom Ryan Corrigan has played. Unlike them but like the majority of academy players, however, he has not made it in the game: that is the harsh reality for young player. All of which does not mean that clubs have the right to treat their young players in the manner to which Corrigan was subjected.

Something Else We Loved This Week

Sports book publishers Pitch Publishing and Floodlit Dreams have joined forces to bring a new series of publications titled Football Shorts publishing three books a year of around 30,000 words each by high quality writers telling personal stories about aspects of football and its characters, and the effect of the game on their own lives.

One of the first in this series is The Homecoming which will be Jane Purdon’s passionate, heartfelt account of the summer of 2022, when the Lionesses dazzled the nation and brought football home. It’s also Jane’s remarkable personal story as a fan, activist, administrator and leader in the beautiful game. Jane reflects on what’s happened to women’s football in the aftermath of the Lionesses’ historic victory and what needs to happen next.

This is a interesting experiment and one well worth following.

Last Week’s Most Read: From Falling by the Wayside to Leading the Charge: Borussia Dortmund's Spectacular Rise in 2023

By Adam Khan for The German Football Weekly / 1,644 words

For stretches during the pre-World Cup part of the season, it looked as if this was going to be another wasted year for Borussia Dortmund. All that has changed and they have gone from a club struggling to keep up with the race for Europe to one that is now in the running for the Meisterschale. Three key changes have allowed them to make the shift.