WELCOME

Back in July, with the season set to

COLLECTION WELCOME

So it happened then. The moment that many

CONTENTS

8 Eche Liebe: Jude Bellingham Birmingham City’s youngest-ever

ROBERTO MARTIN EZ

“I came from a culture of Spanish

THE BEST OF FOOTBALL

KIT • FASHION • ART DESIGN • TECH

UPFRONT

Playing off the last defender, it’s the big-manlittle-man partnership of football and funnies...

THE ULTIMATE QUIZ

Test yourself with our teasers, featuring puzzlers on Zlatan, the Cup Winners’ Cup and Premier League birds

JULES BREACH

The TV presenter and journalist on the Three Lions and the Red Devils

MY FOOTBALL

The Reverend and the Makers chief on dinner dates with Carvalhal, decking Calzaghe and his big love for Big Nev

MEANWHILE IN ...

…France, fans are willing to try anything to help their team – even baring backsides

BEST PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYERS RIGHT NOW

The 2022-23 season has brought drama at the top and bottom of the league – FFT ranks the stars who have shone the brightest

“IF WE WIN THE FACUP, I’LL BE FREE AGAIN TO EAT ALL THE BURGERS I WANT”

Manchester United’s Brazilian midfielder has been enjoying his improved form since Erik ten Hag arrived at Old Trafford, even if some tempting food items have been taken off the menu...

“I PLAY EVERY MATCH WITH THE SAME BOXER SHORTS – WHEN THE SEASON ENDS, I THANK THEM FOR THEIR WORK AND PUT THEM IN THE BIn”

Forget Pep and Kev: Manchester City’s success in recent years has been down to their Brazilian goalkeeper’s lucky pants...

“THE BALLON D’OR MUST BE BETWEEN HIM AND MESSI”

ERLING HAALAND MANCHESTER CITY

THE BRIDGE TO HAPPINESS

Mauricio Pochettino’s time at PSG was largely joyless, after an equally sad end to his Tottenham era. Now the Argentine wants to smile again and remind everyone of the talents that transformed Spurs and Southampton

“IF GOD TOOK MY BROTHER, IT WAS BECAUSE HE WAnTED ME TO DO SOMETHING IN FOOTBALL”

The Marseille match-fixing scandal turned Emmanuel Petit into a zombie, but the midfielder hit back to become a champion with Arsenal and France, driven by a desire to honour the sibling he lost as a teenager

THE RISE OF PARMA

A little-known Italian club became one of Europe’s leading lights in the 1990s, boasting a squad packed with cult heroes and future legends. Three decades after Parma lifted their first continental trophy, FFT learns from those involved just how they did it

BRIAn M CDERMOTT

Despite a lifetime feeling plagued by doubt, Brian McDermott reached the very top as a manager – but, as he tells FFT, one day he woke and knew he needed a cry for help

EnGLAnD 8 AMERICA 2 HOW EnGLISH BOSSES RULED THE WOMEn’S GAME In THE US

The USA are favourites to win their third Women’s World Cup in a row this summer, but England are continuing to close the gap off the field as well as on it. At the beginning of the 2023 season, two-thirds of coaches in the NWSL were actually born in Blighty

THE GREATEST PLAY-OFF FINAL EVER

Charlton met Sunderland at Wembley in 1998, eyeing up the Premier League. Cue: mayhem. Now, 25 years later, FFT speaks to the protagonists, from Quinny and Curbs to the man who slayed his heroes...

MY PERFECT XI BENITO CARBONE

The Italian includes former team-mates from Inter, Sheffield Wednesday and Aston Villa, and squeezes in a Ballon d’Or winner he helped to hit the big time

STEVEn SCHUMACHER

After an unbelievable title win in League One, the Plymouth Argyle gaffer tells FFT why he’s waited years for the second tier...

PLAYInG MInD GAMES

Personal trainers, nutritionists and sleep therapists have become ten a penny as footballers look to improve their game – others hire a hypnotist on the sly...

BABIES On BOARD

Walton & Hersham were on their knees before a group of teenagers made the mad decision to acquire the club in 2019 – now, with the help of the ‘Non-league Erling Haaland’, they’re targeting the National League

THOMAS HITZLSPERGER

TEAMS 48 Aston Villa Chesterfield (loan) Stuttgart Lazio

BARRY VEn ISOn

The former England defender discusses King Kenny, Kevin Keegan and serving under Souey at three different sides

GLENN MURRAY

The ex-Crystal Palace and Brighton forward chats psychology, potty-mouthed team talks and Dougie Freedman’s nice beds

AROn WIn TER

The Dutchman looks back on emerging under Johan Cruyff and sharing a dressing room with a different sort of genius

ECHTE LIEBE

Real Love, that’s what those who have worked with Jude Bellingham feel for the Borussia Dortmund teenager. English football’s new superstar wooed the rest of the world too, in Qatar – but who’ll win the race to sign him?

"AM I THE BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD? IN MY MIND, YES"

Mohamed Salah has become a Liverpool legend in less than five years at Anfield – but he’ll never tell you his appetite is sated. With more trophies to be won and personal accolades to aim for, the Ballon d’Or hopeful exclusively tells FourFourTwo why he’s not satisfied just yet, and why remaining on Merseyside is in his heart

PLAY LIKE ALMIRON

Newcastle is a city that appreciates hard work, and Miguel Almiron’s graft, endeavour and enthusiasm bought him a rare commodity in football: time. Four years after arriving on Tyneside, the Paraguayan winger is flying – and it has nothing to do with Jack Grealish...

A BEE ON AN ARROW, AN ELEPHANT VOLUNTEERING FOR THE RED CROSS AND A LION LOOKING FOR A FIGHT THE 92’S CLUB CRESTS: RANKED

Separating the diabolical badges from luscious logos – where does your side sit in our rundown?

LIFE WAS BETTER IN BLACK AND WHITE

Alessandro Del Piero made himself an icon of late ’90s football in the world’s best league, then lifted the 2006 World Cup in an explosive summer for both club and country. The man himself relives his bumpy ride with FFT: scandals, Jagger and all

THE 40 BEST FOOTBALL VIDEO GAME EVER!

Sports gaming has come on leaps and bounds since Atari brought us Pong way back in 1972 – FFT ranks the finest football titles that have surfaced since then, featuring referee dashes, Kebab Shop FC, a balletic Tony Popovic and the much-loved Tonton Zola Moukoko

THE 50 GREATEST PLAYERS EVER!

A World Cup, Messi’s triumph and Pele’s passing prompted discussion aplenty about the finest footballers ever to play the beautiful game – now, FFT presents to you our definitive ranking. Don’t agree? Of course you don’t! Tell us at #FFT50

33 LOTHAR MATTHAUS

The 150-cap World Cup winner on dreams, despair and Diego

10 GEORGE BEST

Football’s rock star, ‘The Fifth Beatle’ defined his era and more

02 PELE

O Rei dominated the World Cup – and his legacy stays strong

01 LIONEL MESSI

In Doha, the Argentine confirmed himself as the greatest. What does it mean at home?

NEXT STOP, THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE?

Keira Walsh enjoyed a majestic 2022, winning the Euros with England and joining Barcelona for a world-record fee, three years after she had nearly given up on football. The pass-master reveals how she revitalised her career

Artistic Etignette Arsenal

In three years, Mikel Arteta’s non-negotiables have taken the Gunners from a toxic crisis at his December 2019 arrival to a fierce battle with Manchester City at the summit of the Premier League. FFT speaks to players, coaches and fans to find out how the Basque did it

IT’S NOT EASY BEING TWO

The assistant manager hasn’t been immune to football’s frantic growth spurt. A modern number two’s remit has evolved from fancy dress and banter to psychology, data, book deals and even subtle Machiavellianism

ASSISTANT PEP TALKS

Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders is the epitome of a modern number two. The Dutchman has an agent, a book out and the ambition to manage himself. But when it comes to assisting, it’s Klopp and Klopp only, he tells FFT...

GARY NEVILLE’S BLUEPRINT TO SAVE FOOTBALL

The former Manchester United defender has been campaigning to improve the national game for quite some time – now, talking exclusively to FFT, he outlines his seven-point plan. The first priority? No more herding cats…

WOULD LAST SEASON HAVE HAPPENED IF I HAD GONE TO THE OLYMPICS?

SOME THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON

WHEN I SCORED IN THE 119TH MINUTE AGAINST GERMANY, I WENT THROUGH SO MANY EMOTIONS – MY WHOLE LIFE PASSED IN FRONT OF MY EYES

Fabio Grosso was a low-profile left-back for Palermo prior to the 2006 World Cup – by the end of it, he’d netted one of the tournament’s most iconic goals and scored the decisive penalty in the final shootout. The Italian talks FFT through his journey...

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKInG AT?

Roy Keane was the beating heart of a Manchester United side that ruled the Premier League, before he dominated the dugout and TV studio too. When he’s around, though, confrontation follows...

OTTO’S REVENGE

Newly promoted Kaiserslautern stunned football a quarter of a century ago when they won the 1997-98 Bundesliga title. Otto Rehhagel, some nasal strips and the mother of all managerial meltdowns were vital, but it all began with Bayern Munich sowing the seeds of their own downfall…

THE SECOND COMING OF CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN

A year after escaping death, the Danish midfielder has begun life at Old Trafford – if he has his way, Erling Haaland won’t be the only Scandinavian making waves in Manchester this season

THE FUTURE IS HERE

From Chelsea’s record breaker with an over-active thyroid to a Gunner who’s invented a unique skill move, this gaggle of under-23s are making the Premier League the go-to destination for the next generation

FAMILY AFFAIRS

It’s not easy being the offspring of a sporting superstar, but it hasn’t stopped these two showing early potential