Ever since coming through the ranks at Crystal Palace in 2010, Wilfred Zaha has always been someone that gets fans out of their seats due to the pure excitement he brings to the game. In recent seasons, his moments of brilliance have reportedly attracted interest from the likes of Borussia Dortmund, PSG and Arsenal, according to Transfermarkt, but a move has never materialised. Following his underwhelming two-year spell at Manchester United, have clubs turned against Zaha due to his last big move and his lack of consistency? Embed from Getty Images In his time at Selhurst Park, Zaha has always ..read more

Casting an eye over the matches so far in the Premier League this season, various youngsters are impressing for a whole host of top flight clubs. Some on loan, some discarded completely and others given full trust within the set-up, it’s hard to take your eyes away from the wealth of young talent littered amongst the top flight teams currently. In a league that often prioritises the big statement signing over giving youth a go, it’s a refreshingly new outlook from many of the big-hitters this time around. Embed from Getty Images Tino Livramento – Southampton The first youngster under the micro ..read more

Despite being the clear odds-on favourite for the Crystal Palace job for some time, Steve Cooper now looks set to remain in Swansea for a third season. The Welshman was understandably a target for various clubs, after guiding cash-strapped Swansea City to back-to-back play-off appearances. In his first season, the club finished sixth, losing to Brentford in the semi-finals. He went one better last season, knocking out Barnsley to reach the play-off final, before the club were defeated once again by Brentford. Embed from Getty Images After Roy Hodgson stepped down as Crystal Palace boss, the cl ..read more

After Roy Hodgson confirmed he would leave Crystal Palace at the end of the 2020-21 season, there has been much speculation over who will succeed him. Hodgson joined the club in September 2017, taking over from Frank De Boer who was sacked after just four league games in charge. Hodgson, now 73-years-old, announced last month that he would be stepping away from his role, leaving many to wonder who would take his place in the dugout. Frank Lampard was said to be the first choice, but he chose to distance himself from the speculation. Nuno Espírito Santo was also deemed to be close to signing, b ..read more

‘The Brighton Game’, to most Crystal Palace fans, does and always will conjure up memories of that fateful night in 2013 when Sir Wilfried Zaha scored both goals to fire Palace to Wembley and then onto the Premier League. Embed from Getty Images You remember it. The night when sh*t was smeared across the away dressing room at the Amex stadium (it was later discovered to be the coach driver with a dodgy tummy), when an apoplectic Ian Holloway had to calm down rather than hype up his players before the match. When Zaha single-handedly produced two pieces of magic to show why Sir Alex Ferguson ..read more

The expertise that goes into doping your way to success is immense. It’s not lone wolves, rather a team. This is from a European rowing champion we interviewed for Champtalks in 2020 I went for bloods, a Professor went through the results and I went to the [name redacted] University for a day of cardio and training. More blood was taken. Three days passed and I went to our Team Doctor. He’d consulted with those medical people and my coaches, including the National coach. I was testosterone deficient and also anaemic. I went on a course of shots and pills. Jesus, I exploded. Just exploded. Nev ..read more

Tuesday March 10, 2015. German pretenders Schalke against European titans Real Madrid, Champions League last 16. The previous year, Real had spanked them 6-1 at the Veltins-Arena before winning 9-2 on aggregate, going on to win an unprecedented tenth Champions League title and the first of four European titles in five years. Diminutive midfielder Max Meyer played 90 minutes in both games, missing a glorious chance to equalise at 1-0 at the Santiago Bernabéu before Real accelerated away. He wouldn’t be overawed there again. Embed from Getty Images Los Blancos also triumphed 2-0 in Gelsenkirchen ..read more

Not all goals are created equal. There’s joy in every goal – explosive, uncontrollable, visceral joy – but celebrations often feel partial to snobbery, like the way goals are scored needs to be definitive to spark that joy. Like there needs to be an onomatopoeic thud of ball slamming down off crossbar à la Tony Yeboah, or a whoosh as the ball hits the back of the net à la Roberto Carlos to spark chaos. Embed from Getty Images But there can be another way. Andrea Pirlo, whose delicate right foot put overzealous England ‘keeper Joe Hart on his backside with a panenka and strolled off with breath ..read more

With another Premier League season upon us, it’s time to start predictions for how each team will perform over the course of the season. Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham are all expected to be top of the table, that’s a no brainer, but if you want to bet on who will flop this season we have some football betting help for you. Embed from Getty Images Newcastle United Newcastle kicked off the campaign with a 1-0 home loss to Arsenal, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scoring the game’s only goal 58 minutes in after Ainsley Maitland-Niles intercepted Paul Dummett’s pass. Manager Steve Bruce ..read more

The Premier League delivered on its reputation as the world’s most exciting competition by serving up all manner of thrilling twists and turns in 2018/19. Manchester City prevailed in the most gripping title race imaginable after Jurgen Klopp’s brilliant Liverpool side battled them tooth and nail throughout the campaign. Embed from Getty Images There was heartbreak for fans of Huddersfield Town, Fulham and Cardiff City at the other end of the table, as all three were relegated. Along the way, we witnessed feats of dazzling individual brilliance, last-gasp winners, controversial moments and scr ..read more