Should Manchester City accept Tevez's apology?
So Carlos Tevez has come crawling back to England, offering apologies to his club Manchester City.
Just over a week after his return to the UK - on Valentine's Day - the Argentina international has finally said sorry for going missing for the past three months, having fallen out with City manager Roberto Mancini.
It’s hard to tell exactly what has gone on behind the scenes in the past seven days at the English Premier League leaders, but Tevez now appears ready to show a commitment that he has notably lacked so far in his highly-paid stint at the Etihad Stadium. FULL POST
Does football really need transfer windows?
If the road to hell is paved with good intentions, then football’s transfer windows are a super highway to sporting madness.
The concept of defined periods of buying and selling players has been enshrined in international law for nigh on a decade now, but every time January 31 comes around, whenever August 31 looms on the calendar … well, I don’t look forward to it with any joy.
It’s a system that’s supposed to stop big clubs with big budgets gaining an unfair advantage over smaller teams. But, unless UEFA’s new financial fair play rules are more strictly adhered to, that is plainly a nonsense in Europe at least. FULL POST
Can anyone stop champion Djokovic?
The contrast between the men’s and women’s finals at the Australian Open could not have been greater.
On Saturday, Victoria Azarenka thrashed Maria Sharapova to claim her first grand slam title and the No. 1 ranking. It was a result that suggested this year’s WTA season will be just as much as a free-for-all as 2011 was.
On Sunday, however, Novak Djokovic won his third successive major title as he overcame Rafael Nadal in one of the most amazing finals in tennis history. We can debate until the cows come home about whether it was indeed the greatest, but it was definitely the longest.
And what are the odds against the world No. 1 becoming the first man to hold all four grand slam titles since Rod Laver in 1969, when he goes to Nadal’s stronghold at Roland Garros in May? FULL POST
Who will be 2012 Australian Open victors?
There are two burning questions ahead of the tennis season’s opening grand slam in Melbourne: can Novak Djokovic repeat his stellar form from last year, and will the women’s No. 1 be a major winner ?
Djokovic’s Australian Open preparations have been relatively low-key again, an approach that worked last year as he launched a 43-match winning streak in Melbourne and ended the year as world No. 1 with three of the four coveted crowns.
While in 2011 he played in the non-sanctioned Hopman Cup mixed teams event, this month the Serbian made do with scooping $250,000 at an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi. FULL POST
Olympic countdown: IOC president answers your questions
With London 2012 just 200 days away, this is a significant year for the International Olympic Committee.
The British organizers of the four-yearly sporting showpiece have contended with ticketing controversies and faced transport, security and budgeting challenges in their bid to follow in the footsteps of Beijing four years ago.
Illegal gambling has also been on the rise in worldwide sport, and London chiefs have identified it as a bigger threat to this year’s Games than drugs. FULL POST
Socrates – The day a football dream died
The anticipation prior to the 1982 World Cup finals tournament in Spain was electric.
Were the rumors true? Did Brazil really have a team to match the great 1970 World Cup-winning side? Could 12 years of hurt be finally over with the "Class of '82" living up to the hype by taking the trophy back to Brazil for a fourth time? FULL POST
Is Nadal's clay domination good for tennis?
Another clay-court tournament, another win for Rafael Nadal.
This part of the tennis season is becoming all too predictable, with the world number one hoovering up titles in Monte Carlo and now Barcelona with imperious ease for the loss of just one set.
It was his seventh straight title in Monaco, a record which will take some beating, and sixth in seven years in the Catalan capital. FULL POST
An ominous sign ahead of the 2022 World Cup?
The Iran vs. Iraq game was billed as one of the highlights of the 2011 Asian Cup in Qatar. Two giants of Asian football with passionate support and a shared past that has been bloody and violent.
In anticipation of a bumper crowd, street hawkers gathered outside the remote Al Rayyan stadium, 15 miles from the capital Doha, to sell maroon vuvuzelas (the color of the Qatari flag), scarves, flags and packets of sunflower seeds. But business was surprisingly slow.
The supporters from both sides - largely ex-pat Iraqis and Iranians living in Doha mixed with several who had flown in from as far as Shiraz, Tehran, Oslo and London - were loud and vociferous outside the ground, chanting their teams' names as they entered the stadium. But inside, a different picture was painted. FULL POST
Is the Ryder Cup the ultimate in team sport ?
Forget the rain delays or the row over ticketing arrangements for the final unexpected day of play at Celtic Manor, the Ryder Cup has cemented its status as the biggest and best one-off team event in world sport bar none.
It brings together a collection of multi-millionaires, who spend their whole year in pursuit of individual glory, to play for their country, or in Europe's case their continent, with no prize money at stake.
Was Schumacher's return a big mistake?
The alarm bells will no doubt be ringing loud and clear in Michael Schumacher’s helmet after another disappointing display in qualifying for his home grand prix.
Eleventh fastest would have simply been unacceptable for Schumacher in the past, but it is now becoming the norm.
Since his return to the racetrack for the 2010 season after a three-year hiatus, Schumacher has looked a shadow of his former seven-time world champion self and it's beginning to look like a big mistake.
