Nick Lanier: Soccer Writer

It appears that Liverpool and England midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will miss the 2018 World Cup this summer through a knee injury sustained playing in the Champions League. A key member of the England squad, this is a huge blow for the Three Lions. Chamberlain has improved tremendously since making his switch to Liverpool from Arsenal. The player has expanded his flexibility as a player, no longer just comfortable playing wide, but also now playing well centrally. His pace and stamina on the field has gotten better, as has his shooting and passing ability. Many ruled out Liverpool being successful after losing Coutinho, but players including Chamberlain have stepped up, propelling the side to the Champions League semi final. England have an abundance of talent in the midfield, perhaps the strongest they have had in a while. Chamberlain was one of a host of players that would have been battling for a starting spot. Now, the likes of Deli Alli, Jesse Lingard, Marcus Rashfo...

Earlier today, Arsene Wenger announced that he will be stepping down as head coach of Arsenal FC at the end of the season. After many years of some supporters calling for his resignation, Wenger has finally decided that the time has come to part ways with the team he has coached for almost his entire managerial career. The main reason why people were out for blood over the last few seasons was due to the lack of motivation seen from far too many Arsenal players on the field. As any fan or player will attest, it is difficult to win games if the team isn’t galvanized and working together for a common goal. Many blamed this failure on the manager. Moreover, the past couple of seasons have brought an end to some staple Arsenal commodities, namely their presence in the prestigious Champions League.  This, paired with an ever evolving game, meant that Wenger’s time at the helm was always coming to an end if he did not evolve his coaching method equally as fast, which he did not. It i...

Be it the historic Maracana in Brazil in 2014, or the new magical Soccer City in South Africa in 2010, stadiums are the heart of the World Cup. They are the venues for players to showcase their talent, for fans to cheer on their teams, and for memories to be made. Russia is no exception, with the 2018 host nation having an array of spectacular stadia in use for the tournament. Many new architecture is built in the lead up to a World Cup. For example, Amazonian city Manaus built its very own stadium in the jungle for the 2014 World Cup. The stadium held a few high profile games, but unfortunately has been largely unused since, becoming little more than a playground and homeless shelter in the city. Nevertheless, new stadiums most definitely galvanize a town, leading to some terrific atmospheres during games. Sadly, the rush to industrialize, modernize, and grow often comes at a price. Many are aware of the latest news stories regarding working conditions in building these new st...

As someone who has played soccer for years, I have experienced some very poor refereeing. Whilst extremely frustrating in the moment, this is to be expected at the grassroots level, as officials are often just beginning to learn their trade, or are just working for fun. There are often some instances in the professional game too where referees make questionable calls, leading to uproar from fans. Luckily, FIFA has some fantastic men and women working for them to ensure that all games are played out fairly.  Interestingly, for the first time in 80 years, there will be no English referees at the World Cup. Noted as having one of the best referee developmental systems in the world, England has been represented consistently for decades and English officials have taken charge of the last few finals of major tournaments, both club and international. Most notably in recent time was Howard Webb who took charge of the 2010 World Cup final. Webb showed 14 yellow cards in that match, ...

After Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s masterclass in his MLS debut, he has proven that despite his age, he can still impact games. After coming on as a substitute against LAFC, Ibrahimovic first scored a worldly 45 yard volley, followed by a pinpoint header to secure a comeback victory for LA Galaxy in the first ever “El Trafico” derby. Despite retiring from international soccer in 2016, Ibrahimovic has been quoted as saying that he is open to coming out of retirement for the World Cup in Russia, as “if Zlatan wants to play, he will play.” Unquestionably, the 6’5” striker would add talent to any side, and a player like him most definitely galvanizes a team, strengthening the squad as a whole. The problem for Sweden coach Janne Anderson is that he managed to get the national team to the World Cup without Ibrahimovic. The current squad knows how to play with one another, and well. Sweden reached the World Cup via the playoff stage in Europe, beating Italy over two legs, shutting the Italian...

Coach Dave Sarachan selected a largely inexperienced roster for the game against Paraguay last week. The young players performed quite well on the day, winning the game 1-0  via a Bobby Wood penalty kick. However, many have been critical of Sarachan’s coaching strategy in the wake of the victory, stating that since the US has nothing to fight for, he should’ve tested out a wider variety of players. I strongly disagree with this belief. Mass substitutions take the speed out of the game, and when playing against a team with players like Miguel Almiron, a lack of cohesion would’ve led to a defeat. The worst thing that young players can experience at this stage is defeat. By ensuring the victory by making fewer changes to the team, Sarachan kept the US on a path to rebuilding for the next major tournament. Had they lost the game, people would have called for Sarachan to be fired, and would have been skeptical as to how many changes or improvements the USMNT has had since that fatef...