SniperTactics: Emmanuel Adebayor

This weekend sees Arsenal visiting near neighbours Tottenham in the North London derby. A little extra spice is added to this particular recipe for disaster with Emmanuel Adebayor set to line up against his former employers, whom he left to join Manchester City in rather acrimonious circumstances in 2009.

Just 4 games into his City career, he was making his very first appearance against the gunners, when in the 80th minute, he scored his 4th goal in as many games to put his side 3-1 up. In the jubilation that followed, Adebayor ran the length of the field to celebrate in front of the fans of his former club:

This was quite a bold tactical move, bringing the Arsenal fans forward and leaving space in behind for the police to exploit. Who would have thought goading the away fans like that would provoke such a response? In the end, the linesman refused to give the goal,  England lost 4-1, and David James hasn’t played for England since.

Lesson learned.

Artwork: Wheeler Dealer

Harry Redknapp during the transfer window

The bit after International fixtures and the league kicks off again leaves one pining for days when things were actually happening. This abstract picture is titled “Memories of the Transfer Window,” and depicts Harry Redknapp talking to reporters in typically exicted fashion with his car window down.