The Athletic UK Football Coverage

  • The Fighting Cock is a forum for fans of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Here you can discuss Spurs latest matches, our squad, tactics and any transfer news surrounding the club. Registration gives you access to all our forums (including 'Off Topic' discussion) and removes most of the adverts (you can remove them all via an account upgrade). You're here now, you might as well...

    Get involved!

Latest Spurs videos from Sky Sports

So, I've now subscribed (been using a mates sub until now).

Since launching their subscription has never been charged at full price but even their constant offers haven't been enough to entice me in. Until now.

It runs out tomorrow but their latest offer is £1 per month!! I think this is an absolute bargain (£12 per year) that's less than a broadsheet Sunday for one week! Just make sure you put in your diary ahead of time to cancel your sub before the auto-renew kicks in at full face value!
Yeah I jumped on that $1/month deal as well. Really enjoying it so far.
The article today on the Sugar era was good.
 
Yeah I jumped on that $1/month deal as well. Really enjoying it so far.
The article today on the Sugar era was good.
It will be interesting to see if they survive. The vibe when a company discounts so heavily is usually one of desperation, so my gut tells me they might be struggling. But I believe they are well funded so maybe this latest attempt at a grab for subscribers means they have enough funds for a year.

My issue with them, not just them but everything related to football, is that it's all based on subscriptions. It all adds up over the course of a year, from TV/Newspapers/Specialist publications/even the likes "the "Extra Inch" from within the "Fighting Cock" has a % of content behind a paywall/Spooky's "Dear Mr Levy" too!!

I begrudge no one doing this, content is king, the better it is the more likely it is to be paid for, as this is where the value is. But it all adds up and I haven't even got to the cost of actually going to a game yet!!! Something has to give.

Anyway, £1 per Month is perfect for me, this represents value, especially as I think many of the writers are some of the very best in the game. It stops being "value" when it's the full price, hence 100% I will not renew.

I feel sorry for those who subscribed when they first set-up, I think the deal then was £8pm(???) and what they got for that was only half a season!!!
 
Last edited:
I subscribe and then just immediately cancel. It basically just turns off the auto-renewal so I don't re-sub at full price.

There was an interesting piece up today on the Sugar era at Spurs - I was going to link to it but couldn't find a good thread...
Yep did exactly that, I although I diarized it I thought hell why not cancel it now, the agreement is to commit to the 12 months (£12)!

Yeah, very good article. Well balanced even if the majority of the quotes were from Sugars perspective. I was particularly interested that they managed to get a quote from Scholar, as he has literally disappeared off the face of the earth (with strong rumours of him passing away a year or two back). I contacted Jack Pitt-Brook and suggested that a retrospective with him would be fascinating as apart from his book I've seen nothing of him mentioned since he walked out of Forrest.
 
It will be interesting to see if they survive. The vibe when a company discounts so heavily is usually one of desperation, so my gut tells me they might be struggling. But I believe they are well funded so maybe this latest attempt at a grab for subscribers means they have enough funds for a year.

My issue with them, not just them but everything related to football, is that it's all based on subscriptions. It all adds up over the course of a year, from TV/Newspapers/Specialist publications/even the likes "the "Extra Inch" from within the "Fighting Cock" has a % of content behind a paywall/Spooky's "Dear Mr Levy" too!!

I begrudge no one doing this, content is king, the better it is the more likely it is to be paid for, as this is where the value is. But it all adds up and I haven't even got to the cost of actually going to a game yet!!! Something has to give.

Anyway, £1 per Month is perfect for me, this represents value, especially as I think many of the writers are some of the very best in the game. It stops being "value" when it's the full price, hence 100% I will not renew.

I feel sorry for those who subscribed when they first set-up, I think the deal then was £8pm(???) and what they got for that was only half a season!!!
I think that's a fair point. I will say though that I'm more than happy to pay for good content. I don't have a lot of time to be able to trawl through all sorts of shit to find the good stuff so if I can pay a small fee for guaranteed quality then I'm happy to do it.
 
Last edited:
Great article about Serge on there today.
I especially like how The Athletic seems to be very good at getting quotes and opinions from ex-players. Stephen Carr and Pascal Chimbonda quoted in the Serge article.
 
I am on the £1 deal as well and must say that it is very good at that price. £7/mo ? Not really sure. Certainly for me as it is only Spurs and Scotland articles that are interesting. I have no interest in NHL/NBA/NFL etc.
 
In football terms they are having to rehash a lot of stuff because there's no football at the moment. I find them very good during the season if you want a 'long-read' view of things.

Up until a week ago we had the Euros & Copa America in full swing....... Are they really that 'domestic-centric'?

I don't subscribe.... Do they not have a tonne of critical analysis of transfer business, friendly performances, post-tournament breakdowns etc.?
 
Up until a week ago we had the Euros & Copa America in full swing....... Are they really that 'domestic-centric'?

I don't subscribe.... Do they not have a tonne of critical analysis of transfer business, friendly performances, post-tournament breakdowns etc.?
They're more American centric if anything, as that's where The Athletic originates.

I find the subscription well worth it as I follow the three main US sports as well. With that in mind, my dashboard is always full of a fuck ton of new content every time I go on
 
They're more American centric if anything, as that's where The Athletic originates.

I find the subscription well worth it as I follow the three main US sports as well. With that in mind, my dashboard is always full of a fuck ton of new content every time I go on

Rather than English; I just meant national vs international......

Shame from a football perspective, that they're not providing hardcore coverage of the global game.

Someone needs to do a similarly focussed TV show too..... Not all of us can be arsed to watch 15000 games per week but are no less interested in the holistic picture.
 
Up until a week ago we had the Euros & Copa America in full swing....... Are they really that 'domestic-centric'?

I don't subscribe.... Do they not have a tonne of critical analysis of transfer business, friendly performances, post-tournament breakdowns etc.?

I suppose what I meant is that there are quite a lot of fluff pieces at the moment, rather than the kind of thing they have when the season is in full swing. The main headline today is about whether Jordan Henderson is going to get a new contract. But they do have a huge amount of analysis stuff, there is an in-depth article on Wolves' new manager and what it means for they formation and style of play.

The Tottenham stuff is good, they have an article called 'Nuno’s Tottenham start: Intense training, plans to play on front foot and a chance for Dele'. They do go far more in-depth than national newspapers for example.
 
I suppose what I meant is that there are quite a lot of fluff pieces at the moment, rather than the kind of thing they have when the season is in full swing. The main headline today is about whether Jordan Henderson is going to get a new contract. But they do have a huge amount of analysis stuff, there is an in-depth article on Wolves' new manager and what it means for they formation and style of play.

The Tottenham stuff is good, they have an article called 'Nuno’s Tottenham start: Intense training, plans to play on front foot and a chance for Dele'. They do go far more in-depth than national newspapers for example.

Any chance of a copy pasta?
 
Any chance of a copy pasta?

As he posed for photographs with supporters and signed autographs after Tottenham Hotspur’s 1-1 draw at Leyton Orient, new head coach Nuno Espirito Santo may have felt like taking a moment to reflect on a busy first couple of weeks in north London.


Having been appointed following an excruciatingly drawn-out managerial search, Nuno has set about restoring some calm and equilibrium to a club who have been exhaustingly volatile over the last couple of years. Of course, this being Spurs, there will always be a dark cloud or two on the horizon. At present, these largely concern Harry Kane, whose future continues to be the subject of much speculation.


But generally, the feeling is positive about Nuno’s opening fortnight, which has taken in the start of pre-season training, an unveiling press conference and this initial game in charge.


Starting with the first of those elements, Tottenham’s players have enjoyed his sessions, which are said to have felt like a step up in intensity from Jose Mourinho’s. This has been a relief to those in the squad who felt like they were underworked under Nuno’s predecessor.


Others point to a feeling of a fresh start and say Nuno has so far shown passion and a skill for communication at Hotspur Way. This is perhaps unsurprising given it’s the training ground where the man who led Wolverhampton Wanderers for four years until the end of last season really comes alive.


He loves to be hands-on in sessions, often stopping them to make a point.


Before the Orient game, Nuno was out on the pitch overseeing drills, being more involved than Mourinho would be in pre-game warm-ups. And although the last couple of weeks have very much been a case of him just getting started and focusing almost exclusively on fitness work, the intensity of those sessions meant some of his squad had to sit out Saturday’s friendly. “It’s been a hard week of training sessions,” Nuno explained.


Away from training sessions, Nuno has been largely keeping his distance from the players — sizing them up and evaluating whether they are part of his plans. Over the next couple of weeks, he will sit down with those whose futures are uncertain and try to offer some clarity.


Nuno’s decisions will partly be informed by how he sets the team up, and the impression so far is that he will move away from the back three that was his hallmark at Wolves. The noises coming out of the club are that Spurs will play more attacking football than is generally associated with Nuno’s sides, with the possibility of two up front even being considered.


Against fourth division Orient yesterday, Spurs were set up in a cross between a 4-1-4-1 and a 4-2-3-1, with Dele Alli and 18-year-old Nile John taking turns to drop in to play alongside Harry Winks in midfield. The system placed the onus on wingers Steven Bergwijn and Lucas Moura to provide the attacking thrust from out wide, with the full-backs focusing far more on defending than attacking. Whether this is what Nuno will want from his full-backs once the competitive action starts, at home to champions Manchester City on Sunday, August 15, we will have to wait and see.


Waiting and seeing was also the order of the day for Nuno at Orient.


He was a calm, composed figure on the sidelines — watching intently and offering the odd instruction before becoming more vocal once he sent on 10 youngsters for the game’s final quarter (the period in which they conceded the equaliser).


Up until then, Nuno’s circumspection was a marked contrast from Mourinho, whose shouts at his players used to ring around the empty Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during a year of behind closed doors games.


This was in keeping, though, with Nuno’s performance in his introductory press conference on Friday, when considered, thought-out responses were very much the order of the day. And with that soft, soothing, almost soporific delivery, Nuno’s is a voice that you feel could be used on a hypnosis recording. “You will stay at Spurs, Harry…”


In Kane’s absence, there were some encouraging performances. Dane Scarlett, the 17-year-old striker praised by Mourinho this week, was the pick of the bunch. He scored a well-taken opener from a stunning Moura assist and after that, visibly grew in confidence. Who needs Kane?, went the joke on social media.

Nuno’s ability to get the best out of Tottenham’s highly-rated crop of youngsters that includes Scarlett and second-half substitute Alfie Devine, 16, will be an important box for him to tick if he is to be successful at the club. Hopefully, the Europa Conference League will provide good opportunities for them and others including John, who impressed in midfield against Orient.


Another challenge facing Nuno is lifting the various players whose levels fell away under Mourinho.


The poster child for that decline is surely Dele, who faces what feels like a pivotal season.


He looked bulkier on Saturday after a summer spent trying to get himself into peak physical condition rather than trying to win the Euros with England and worked hard, even if he showed the odd, understandable sign of rust. It was interesting to see Dele dropping deep to collect the ball from Spurs’ defenders and attempting to create from inside his own half.


There is a feeling that, after a couple of difficult years, Dele needs to adapt to survive. Perhaps this kind of role is more what we will see from him in the coming season.


Really, though, Saturday and the last couple of weeks have been about Nuno and the team starting to lay the foundations for the months ahead.


As he said after the game: “It’s a process that’s going to take time.”
 
If you're a BT Sport subscriber they're currently offering free subscription to The Athletic for a year.

I already had a good deal where I was only paying £1 per month, but that was going to run out in a few months, so I've just created a new account to get the freebie for a year instead.

If you can get a deal then I'd day it's well worth signing up. If you're into any US sports then their coverage in excellent, and they produce a huge range of podcasts too
 
I subscribed to the Athletic when they first started about 2-3 years ago. It used to be amazing with in-depth articles and information you would not find on other websites. But I feel they have really gone downhill since they tried "breaking" news and giving alert updates. The thing that made them different was they focused on long articles only, now they are just like every other news sources.

Perfect example, the Athletic reported yesterday that players are loving Nuno and his training. Today they reported players feel Nuno is too distant. That's the type of garbage Sky would provide, not the old Athletic.
 
Back
Top Bottom