Blaine Tulley

While I tell myself it's a long season and one result cannot shape the year, I can't help but look to the opening fixture for a sign of what's to come. I mean, I've been waiting all summer for this! Let me know with some great football that this is going to be a great season! […]

Read part 1 here. The Manchester City Experiment In an ideal world (read: my ideal world) Manchester City will finish in the exact same spot as last season. I'd love to see the cash they shelled out for players this summer come to naught in the table. I have nothing against City in general and […]

'Tis the season... The Premier League finally kicks off again tomorrow and I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. I've been asking mummy for a shiny new League Title for months but I have this fear I'm destined for a pile of knee-socks and hand-knitted sweaters. Honestly, I might not sleep tonight. I'm that […]

Why do I care about the Golden Boot? What does it matter to me as a lover of a club? The Golden Boot doesn't guarantee titles (eh, Mr Anelka?) or even European placement (eh, Mr Phillips?) It is glory for the individual in a collective endeavor and should be a mere footnote to the supporter who hungers for team glory. "Should" […]

On December 31st we throw a party, we have some drinks and we make promises for the new year. I'm going to eat better. I'm going to drink less. I'm going to get myself on track, baby! If we keep one or two of these promises deep into the year, we feel good. But the important thing […]

I'm generally not one to promote proselytizing, but I found this old pamphlet in an antiquarian bookstore in southern Maine. It was written by St. Dickie of Assisi F.C., a reknowned football missionary and Premier League devotee who travelled throughout North America in the late 20th century, bringing the love of English association football wherever he […]

Saturday, 8th Aug 2009 It was the last of the pre-season friendlies. The last chance to gauge how our side looks going into the season proper. We gathered outside the pub in our red kits, awaiting the sound of the deadbolt sliding out of place. All season the sound of that door unlocking will be like […]

Football supporters thrive on animosity. We need to be able to shake our fists in the air and yell all the bad words at our hated teams and players. When Jose Mourinho left Chelsea, I had mixed feelings. On one hand, a gifted manager of a rival team was out the door. I wouldn't have that […]

If Steven Gerrard is the heart of Liverpool then Xabi Alonso was one of the lungs. So Liverpool just lost a lung. It's lung-wrenching. I know they have a potential organ donor lined up (AS Roma) and that a new lung (Alberto Aquilani) could be on the way already, but what if the operation doesn't take? They […]

I am a football writer, but I am football reader too. I demand fresh information. I want it now. I want it in abundance. Coming up to a match, I scour the net for preview. Is player X still injured? Did player Y travel with the team? Did player Z's red card get overturned? An hour before kick-off, I'm "handcuffed" to my laptop hitting […]

Murmers abound: Arsene Wenger may be planning a move for old Arsenal stalwart Patrick Vieira. This is either the perfect plan or a complete waste of time. I haven't figured it out yet. The Vieira who once helped lead Arsenal through the glory days of trophies and titles could be what the Professor needs right now. Wenger's kids are in dire […]

When I first heard of Twitter, I thought it was a dirty verb, like: "Get Twittered!" or "Go Twitter yourself!" (And maybe there's still potential for that.) Turns out it's a social networking website. And it has undeniably become the Next Big Net Thing. In addition to allowing friends to keep up with each other's day-to-day goings-on, all kinds of organizations from restaurants […]

£3.5 million for Arvalro Arbeloa? That's all? Seriously? I mean, I know that's probably what his services are worth but that's not the issue. When Real Madrid have their checkbook out and are licking the tip of their bottomless ballpoint pen there is no call to stop at £3.5 million. Real have made the market insane and […]

I know it's only July... I know the first round proper is months away... But I've decided to give some extra love to the FA Cup this season. Lately the top clubs have been treating the world's oldest football competition like the red-headed step-child of trophy runs. Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and United refuse to devote themselves as […]

Part 2: The Match It took me a while to accept the surreal feeling born of both Milan teams playing in my back yard. I was at Gillette Stadium watching soccer and the place was bursting with energy. Average attendance for the New England Revolution in 2008 was 17,580. Only two sides of the stadium will […]