Tony Evans

Feb 2, 2024 | inews.co.uk | Tony Evans

Liverpool’s reaction to Jurgen Klopp’s announcement that he is leaving Anfield at the end of the season could hardly have been more impressive. Since the manager made his shock declaration, the team have scored nine goals in two games and approach Sunday’s fixture against Arsenal at the Emirates with soaring morale. A week on, the squad appear to have responded to Klopp’s rallying cry: do not look beyond the next match. The future is now.

Jan 26, 2024 | inews.co.uk | Tony Evans

Liverpool has had its share of shock managerial departures. Those old enough to remember July 12, 1974, still recall the wave of despair that swept Merseyside when Bill Shankly resigned. The day in 1991 that a broken Kenny Dalglish left the club, his mental strength undermined by the aftermath of Hillsborough, left the entire city stunned. Jurgen Klopp’s announcement that he will exit the manager’s post at the end of the season is on par with those two extraordinary moments.

Nov 16, 2023 | tonyevans92a.substack.com | Tony Evans

The hardest thing in journalism is when you know something but cannot write it because of the threat of legal action. A lot of people do not understand this. Some of those people operate at the executive level at football clubs. One very senior figure phoned me when I was football editor at The Times. He had a story for the paper, he said. This was not unusual. Plenty of people in the public eye – and not just sport – pass on snippets in a manner that keeps their fingerprints off the leak.

Nov 1, 2023 | tonyevans92a.substack.com | Tony Evans

Back in 2010, it appeared Fifa could not get any worse. On the day Russia and Qatar were awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, it seemed football could not sink any lower. We would find out in the ensuing years just how deeply corrupt the game’s global ruling body was. Fifa’s executive committee, the 22 men who made the decisions on Russia and Qatar, were amoral in the extreme. When the full extent of their venality became known, it was clear the sport needed to be cleaned up.

Oct 30, 2023 | tonyevans92a.substack.com | Tony Evans

I went to China to see Rafa when he was managing Dalian. We spent the day at the club and went back to his hotel in the evening. There, a number of funny things happened. Just after we got into the suite, Rafa got excited. “You’ve got to see this,” he said, directing me towards the bedroom. I was hesitant, he was insistent. Political football is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.