In this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes, wrote Benjamin Franklin in 1789 but evidently he had not envisaged the ingenuity of French football.

There comes a moment in every season when the tough have to get going.

Cristiano Ronaldo is a sensitive soul. As Sepp Blatter discovered last October, it is unwise to make fun about how much an actor spends on his appearance.

At 8.47pm on Sunday night, Italian football returned from its winter break; at 10.37pm, the title race was over.

Football’s January transfer window is a weird business, and never more so than in a World Cup year.

Christmas festivities are much the same the world over these days, but not in Spain.

El City — No! was the headline in El Mundo Deportivo before the Champions League draw yesterday.

For most of Europe this is Champions League match day six.

Italian football is the continuation of politics by other means rather than war.

Going into the fifth match of their Champions League campaign, the four German clubs ought to be full of confidence.