December 30 – Bob Bradley, the former US national team coach sacked by Swansea City after only 85 days in charge, says he could have made a success of being the first American to manage an English Premier League side if he had been given more time by his fellow Americans who appointed him in the first place.
December 30 – Sevilla midfielder Samir Nasri is being investigated by Spanish Anti-Doping authorities over treatment he received at a Los Angeles clinic.
December 29 – The English Premier League doesn’t take a winter break, but for football fans it felt like it had taken one with a flurry of fixtures over the 10 days of December 10-18 and then a long and lonely wait to the traditional feast of Boxing Day fixtures on December 26.
December 29 – Argentine striker Carlos Tevez has become the latest international star to head for China after signing for Shanghai Shenhua from his boyhood club Boca Juniors.
By Paul Nicholson
December 29 – The increased difficulty of getting Chinese money into Europe to complete club acquisitions has been highlighted with Ligue 1 Olympique Lyonnais owner OL Groupe announcing that it had now received the first €30 million of a €100 million investment by Chinese investment fund IDG Capital Partners. At the same time Dutch club ADO The Hague said it was suing its Chinese owners for €2.3 million in unpaid investments.
December 29 – It would be fair to say that Tottenham Hotspur are not having a love affair with Wembley, either on the pitch where they failed to get the Champions League results to take them to the knock-out rounds, or off it as they prevaricate over committing to playing Premier League games there in the 2017/18 season while their rebuilt White Hart Lane stadium is completed.
December 29 – Officials from the United States, Canada and Mexico are likely to meet next year to discuss a joint bid for the 2026 World Cup, according to CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani.
December 29 – FIFA will continue to “put pressure” on Qatar over the treatment of migrant workers helping to build World Cup stadiums for the 2022 tournament, says Gianni Infantino.
“Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies.” Lord Voldemort, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, JK Rowling
There is something magical about Notts County. They are the world’s oldest league football club, formed six generations ago in 1862, and although relatively few in world football might be acquainted with the Magpies, their impact on the global game is undeniable.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 28 – Despite fierce opposition from Europe’s clubs and the danger of the quality being diluted, FIFA’s member federations are “overwhelmingly in favour” of plans for a 48-team World Cup, almost certainly starting in 2026, according to Gianni Infantino.
December 28 – Perenially challenged, and challenging, midfielder Joey Barton has been charged by the English FA of betting on 1,260 games over the last decade and in breach of the FA’s rules on betting.
December 28 – China has decided to cut the permitted quota of overseas players in domestic teams from five to four in an effort to slow down the escalating demand for expensive foreign stars to the detriment of the development of local talent.
December 28 – Nigerian football’s internal wranglings have come to the fore again following reports that the candidature of federation president Amaju Pinnick (pictured), for a seat on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) executive committee may be under threat.
December 28 – The warm-up for the Beach Soccer World Cup in the Bahamas in 2017 starts with the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship February 20-26 which will qualify two teams for the World Cup.
December 28 – It was always a somewhat risky appointment. But before he had managed to get his feet firmly under the table, Bob Bradley, the first American coach to take charge of a top-flight English club, has been shown the door at Swansea City after only 85 days.