The winter break: A catalyst for catastrophe or shot in the arm?

FOOTBALL in Europe is a season of two halves. True, the winter break has become more like a pause in Spain; they start back on Saturday, while Portugal, Italy and Greece have a few more days leave.

But in France and Germany the break lasts ‘til mid-January, and the Dutch have a whole month off this season.

Some of this is simply because of the weather. Austria has a break till February 12 and in Poland the season only restarts at the end of the month. But the break is also part of a football tradition, and one that often has a big effect on the team performance. Sides that have been performing unusually well seem to lose steam while the break seems to act like a shot in the arm for the underperformers.