Oliver Kay

United Kingdom

Senior Football Writer at The Athletic

Senior football writer @TheAthleticFC @TheAthletic Author of Forever Young: The Story of Adrian Doherty @ForeverYoungAD https://t.co/ogl3TwxP0o

Articles

Was Inter vs Barcelona the greatest Champions League semi-final ever?

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay |Nick Miller

Inter's dramatic 7-6 aggregate win over Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals this week seemed to have it all. Wonderkids doing their thing, a creaking centre-back transforming into a fleet-footed centre forward to take the second leg to extra-time, controversial refereeing decisions, six goals in the first leg, seven in the second leg, and a manager in a suit bellowing instructions in the pouring rain. What more could you want?
Trent Alexander-Arnold, the Liverpool legacy question and why so many fans are angry

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

Before every Liverpool home game, the team bus turns off Walton Lane and crawls into Anfield Road, where fans line the street, waving flags, blaring horns and filling the air with red smoke.
Chelsea and their experience problem

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

Enzo Maresca, the inexperienced coach of an inexperienced group of players assembled under an inexperienced ownership regime, has been talking about the importance of experience. He feels Chelsea could do with a little more of it. He cites the example of Liverpool, for whom his club will roll out the red carpet at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, his players lining up to offer a guard of honour to a team crowned Premier League champions with four games to spare.
Is Lamine Yamal already the best footballer in Europe? And if not, who is?

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay |Stuart James

"Lamine is the kind of talent that comes along every 50 years," said Simone Inzaghi after watching the 17-year-old Yamal shine against his Inter team during a breathless 3-3 Champions League semi-final first leg draw in Barcelona.
Picking our best all-time XIs and then arguing about it

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay |Jacob Whitehead

The NFL draft begins in Green Bay on Thursday night - and across in London, The Athletic 's UK football writers are having a draft of their own. Four writers converged in the war room - that is, a podcast studio - to draft their all-time Premier League XIs.The rules were simple - 60 seconds per pick, a snake order, and at least five players who appeared in the division before 2010.
Liverpool, Manchester United, 20 league titles and the battle to be England's most successful club

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

A few months into his retirement, at a time when Manchester United were still the champions of England, Sir Alex Ferguson appeared at the Lowry Theatre for an event to promote his new autobiography. On stage, he was invited to expand on some of the subjects he had discussed in his new book. The make-up of his audience meant he had to choose his words carefully when it came to settling scores with much-loved former United players like David Beckham, Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Trent Alexander-Arnold's parting gift for Liverpool

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

In the rush of euphoria, adrenaline coursing through his veins, Trent Alexander-Arnold tore off his shirt, tossing it aside as he charged towards the corner flag in celebration. He knew what this meant: for his team, for the club, for the supporters, for himself. He was 20 years old when, in the breathless aftermath of a Champions League final, he memorably described himself as a "normal lad from Liverpool whose dream has just come true".
Our writers pick their teams for 2024-25

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

Jacob Murphy has eight goals and 11 assists in the Premier League this season for Newcastle United. He is not the only player to have flown under the radar in 2024-25. With that in mind, we asked five writers to pick their Underrated XI of the Premier League season. There was only one rule: the player could not have been named Premier League Player of the Month this campaign. Agree with any of them? Think you can do better? Let us know in the comments at the bottom of the article...
PSG need to hold their nerve when Champions League chaos strikes to be true contenders

4 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Oliver Kay

In its purest form, the way Luis Enrique likes it, football is about control. At its most enthralling, in the knock-out stages of the Champions League, it is about chaos. On a thrilling night in a white-hot atmosphere at Villa Park, Paris Saint-Germain team took control of this Champions League quarter-final tie with another exhibition of the fluent, elegant football that has made them serious contenders to win the competition for the first time.
Aston Villa 3 PSG 2 (4-5 agg)

4 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Jacob Tanswell |Oliver Kay

Aston Villa are out of the Champions League after a 3-2 win against Paris Saint-Germain saw them lose 5-4 on aggregate to the Ligue 1 leaders. The home side's energetic start mirrored the heady atmosphere inside Villa Park, but PSG absorbed it and used Villa's understandable need to attack against them, scoring twice from typically rapid counter-attacks. The first came from Achraf Hakimi after Emi Martinez had spilled a cut-back, the second from his fellow full-back Nuno Mendes.