Tears and glory: Football in 2021

Year 2021 is ending where despite all the problems related to coronavirus, sports, in particular football, made a stunning comeback where fans witnessed a lot of excitement and drama.

Bol News is bringing you a list of all the important events held in a calendar year in the world of football.

January:

Lampard’s removal as Chelsea manager

January remains a tricky month for managers in club football where the hierarchy often push the panic button after concerns with the team’s position. It proved to be a similar case for Frank Lampard, who despite having a legendary status at Chelsea FC, was sacked on January 26, just 18 months after taking charge of the hot seat at Stamford Bridge. During his time with the London-based club, the 43-year-old

managed the side in 84 matches, winning 44 and losing 25 whereas 15 matches ended as a draw. One of the primary reasons for his downfall was his inability to settle Chelsea’s defensive unit.

February:

Bayern’s Club World Cup triumph

FIFA Club World Cup has lost some of its glory over the years but even to this day, it is a trophy worth fighting for the clubs all over the globe. In the 2021 edition of the competition, it was the reigning European and German champions Bayern Munich who emerged victorious at the Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan on February 11. The German side defeated Mexican club Tigres UANL in the final to win their second FIFA Club World Cup title with the score of 1-0, courtesy of a 59th-minute strike from Benjamin Pavard.

March:

PFF house’s unprecedented takeover

The month of March 2021 will be remembered as one of the darkest days in the history of football in Pakistan. The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF)’s headquarters was attacked and taken over on the 27^th of March by a group led by Ashfaq Shah. They reportedly took charge of the building, harassed the Normalisation Committee’s members including its head Malik Haroon who had to escape after

breaking the glass door. The incident was unprecedented in the history of football in the country and what followed was a ban by the football’s governing body FIFA on Pakistan’s participation in international events. To this day, football activities in the country remain suspended as the building is still in control of the Ashfaq Shah’s group and FIFA has categorically stated that unless they give the control back, Pakistan football’s status will remain inactive.

April:

Jose’s untimely Spurs sacking

On April 19, 2021, English Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur sacked manager Jose Mourinho. The decision was an interesting one as the North London-based club were due to play in the final of the league cup in six days against Manchester City, where they ended up on the losing side eventually. Mourinho joined Spurs in 2019 after the departure of Mauricio Pochettino. During his time with the club, he managed in 86 matches, winning 45 of them and losing 24 whereas 17 ended in a stalemate.

May:

Villarreal stun Manchester United

On May 26, Spanish club Villarreal stunned English giants Manchester United to lift their maiden UEFA Europa League title. Despite having very limited resources compared to their rivals at the Stadion

Gdańsk, Gdańsk, the Yellow Submarine showed immense courage and eventually came out on top on penalty shootouts with the score of 11-10.

Chelsea’s Champions League magic

Just three days later, Chelsea produced a remarkable performance and outclassed fellow Premier League club Manchester City to lift their second UEFA Champions League title. The Blues, under the management of Thomas Tuchel who just joined the club four months ago, defeated the already crowned English champions with the score of 1-0, courtesy of a 42nd-minute strike from Kai Havertz.

June:

Eriksen’s on-field scare

On June 12, the football world became united after Denmark’s star midfielder Christian Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest during the UEFA Euro 2020 group fixture against Finland. The 29-year-old collapsed on the field in the 43^rd minute of the match and the game was temporarily suspended. Eriksen received medical support on the field for 15 minutes before he was taken to the hospital. Since then, the attacking midfielder has not played any professional football. On December 17, Italian club Inter Milan suspended the former Tottenham Hotspur star midfielder’s contract with mutual consent as he could not have taken part in the Serie A because of his cardiac device implant.

End of Ramos’ era at Real

On June 17, veteran defender Sergio Ramos announced that he will leave Spanish La Liga giants Real Madrid at the end of his current contract. The 35-year-old left Santiago Bernabéu after 16 seasons in the Spanish capital. He represented Los Blancos after playing 671 matches across all competitions, scoring a whopping 101 goals and winning as many as 22 trophies, including four UEFA Champions League and five La Liga titles. The highlight of his career will be undoubtedly his injury-time equaliser in the final of the Champions League in 2014 against city rivals Atletico Madrid.

July:

Mancini’s Euro 2020 masterclass

On July 11, Italy registered a memorable triumph at the UEFA Euro 2020 after beating hosts England in the final on penalties as the game ended in a stalemate at the end of regular plus injury time. The victory was a special one for Gli Azzurri as it was the first mega event after they missed out on a place in the World Cup 2016. Italy remained thoroughly dominating in the competition where they won every single match on their way to the grand finale, something manager Roberto Mancini deserves a lot of credit for. The biggest surprise in the competition turned out to be Switzerland who knocked out world champions France in the round-of-16 clash.

End of Messi’s long wait for international glory

On the same day, Argentina won their first major title in more than 25 years as they defeated Brazil in the final of the Copa America with the score of 1-0, courtesy of a 22nd-minute strike from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG)’s Angel Di Maria. The victory ended star striker Lionel Messi’s long wait to lift a major title with the national team. The 34-year-old was inspirational for the winning team during the competition where he was the leading scorer (4) and the leading assist provider (5).

August:

Messi’s teary farewell

On August 05, teary-eyed Messi announced that he will leave Barcelona as a free agent. The Catalan giants could not renew the contract of the Argentina international because of their financial crisis. He left Barcelona as undoubtedly their best player ever. The 34-year-old represented the Spanish club in 778 matches across all competitions, scoring 672 times and providing 301 assists. During that time, Messi won 35 major titles with Barcelona which included 10 La Liga and four UEFA Champions League triumphs.

September:

Ronaldo leads international goals tally

On September 02, 2021, Portugal’s star striker Cristiano Ronaldo became the all-time leading scorer in the history of international football. The 36-year-old broke Iran’s Ali Daei’s record of 109 goals in international fixtures after scoring a brace in the World Cup Qualifiers against Ireland. As things stand, Ronaldo has scored 115 goals in international football and provided 41 assists in 184 matches in all competitions.

October:

End of painful era for Magpies

On October 7, 2021, English Premier League club Newcastle United’s fans witnessed the end of painful and rather frustrating reign of Mike Ashley as the owner of the club. A consortium consisting of PCP Capital Partners, Reuben Brothers and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) bought the club in a deal worth more than £300 million. The involvement of Saudi Arabia’s PIF, who now owns 80 per cent of the club’s shares, was the big talking point as that development made Newcastle the richest football club on the planet. After that, the Magpies’ new management sacked manager Steve Bruce and he was replaced by former Bournemouth’s coach Eddie Howe.

Koeman’s anticipated dismissal

On October 29, 2021, Ronald Koeman was sacked as the head coach of FC Barcelona. The 58-year-old, who was appointed as the club’s manager back in August 2020, left the club after managing the side in 67 matches, where they went on to win 40, suffering 16 defeats whereas 11 matches ended as a draw. He was replaced by former midfielder and a club legend Xavi Hernandez.

November:

Spurs’s Conte jackpot

On November 02, 2021, Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur appointed Antonio Conte as their head coach. He replaced Nuno Espirito Santo who was sacked after the side’s dismal start to the current campaign. Conte is a proven campaigner at the highest level and has already won league titles in Italy and England with Juventus, Inter Milan and Chelsea.

Portugal, Italy’s failure

On November 16, international football witnessed a series of surprising results which left 2016 Euro champions Portugal and current European champions Italy missing out on a direct place in the next year’s FIFA World Cup. The Portuguese side needed just a draw in their last match on the home ground against Serbia but they suffered a defeat, courtesy of an injury-time winner from Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrović. On the other hand, the reigning European champions, despite starting brilliantly

in the qualifying stage, failed to win any of their last four matches and eventually finished second in Group C behind Switzerland with 16 points. Both teams are also on the same pathway in the playoffs which means that one of the two European giants will miss out on a place in the next year’s mega-event.

Ole no-more at the wheel        

On November 22, 2021, Premier League giants Manchester United sacked manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after the team’s horrific 4-1 defeat against relegation-battling Watford. The 48-year-old, who joined the Red Devils after the departure of Jose Mourinho in March 2019, failed to win a single major title despite spending millions during his more than 30 months’ reign at the club. Solskjaer managed United in 149 matches in all competitions, winning 78 times, losing on 38 occasions whereas 33 matches ended as a draw.

December:

Kun’s sad ending

On December 15, 2021, veteran striker Sergio Aguero announced his retirement from all forms of football due to a cardiac problem. The 33-year-old suffered a minor heart attack during the match against Deportivo Alaves on October 30. Aguero will always be remembered as one of the best strikers in the history of modern football, especially for heroics for his former club Manchester City. He left the football arena after having played 664 matches in all competitions, scoring 380 times and providing 118 assists.

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