Author Archives: Michael James

August is finally here, and with it comes the final run-in to the start of the 2008-2009 Premiership season. You all know my preview plans by now — I’ll cover all 20 teams in the next 10 days — and … Continue reading →

Before I get to Scolari’s appointment as Chelsea manager, I just want to announce that there will no Euro 2008 daily recaps from me for today’s and tomorrow’s action. I’m taking a five-week summer school class right now and had to … Continue reading →

An alarming trend is developing after one round of games at Euro 2008 — eight matches have been played so far, and only one of them has featured goals from both teams. Once a team takes the lead, they’re basically … Continue reading →

It’s fair to say that the third day of Euro 2008 didn’t necessarily provide us with entertaining soccer for the duration of both games (certainly not in the first one), but the results of those games were perhaps the most … Continue reading →

Was it just me, or did you all also get a sense of déjà vu when watching today’s action from Group B? I felt like I was witnessing yesterday’s games all over again. Consider: • Both yesterday’s first game and … Continue reading →

The 13th edition of the European Championships started out in decent fashion today, as both games had their exciting moments and neither ended in draws. The picks of many to advance from Group A, Portugal and the Czech Republic, both … Continue reading →

 The long wait for Euro 2008 is just about over as we’re roughly 17 hours away from kickoff in the tournament opener between Switzerland, the co-host, and the Czech Republic. The group stage will end on June 18, with two … Continue reading →

I’ve been building up to the start of Euro 2008 for two weeks now, providing you with a one-stop-shop of sorts with final rosters for each of the 16 nations involved, previews of each nation and group, and my predictions … Continue reading →

The countdown to Euro 2008 is now on in earnest as we’re less than three days away from kickoff in the opener, Switzerland-Czech Republic. Along with my final prediction on Friday, I’ll post the complete TV schedule for the group … Continue reading →

Manchester City announced the arrival of Mark Hughes to the Eastlands today, where he signed a three-year contract to manage the team he hated playing against when he was at crosstown rivals United. Hughes took Blackburn as far as he … Continue reading →

OK, I’m back. Quarterfinal #3 (June 21, 2:45 PM; St. Jakob-Park, Basel): Italy (Group C winner) vs. Russia (Group D runner-up): This would be a sneakier game for Italy then many people would think, especially if they just looked at … Continue reading →

Last week was devoted to previewing each of the four groups in Euro 2008 and with the start of the tournament less than a week away, it’s time for me to take those previews and make predictions for the knockout … Continue reading →

Spain: On paper, this team is stacked. There’s no other, more profound way to put it. Player for player, Spain is loaded and may have the most individual talent in this tournament. The key for coach Luis Aragonés is to … Continue reading →

Apologies for the delay in getting this out, but here we go, it’s the final group preview for Euro 2008. Next week, I’ll make my predictions for the knockout rounds, with the quarterfinals on Monday, semifinals on Wednesday, and the … Continue reading →