Pinboard: United Scrapbook

 

Manchester United won the Premiership! No; as a United supporter, I’m not hiding my happiness. However, I didn’t come here just to jump and wave my flag on your faces. In fact, as you can see, that picture is not even recent (unless you’re Doctor Who).

Now, the thing is, I know many pinners will jump on the United bandwagon, create boards for the Devils, and pin two or three pictures of Robin van Persie. Now, I have nothing against the prodigious Dutchman (thank you, thank you Wenger) but, in the midst of so many simple United boards, it’s a pleasure to find a board with great pictures, such as this one you are seeing (which, by the way, it’s United on 68, after winning the Europan Cup).

Yet, Warren Elliott does exactly that. In his massive United Scrapbook board, you will find pictures ranging from the 60’s, such as this one, a historical Sir Bobby injured and resting on an hospital bed after the Munich Air Disaster, and a young-ish Sir Alex at his desk. If you keep scrolling, you will find pins of EVERY SINGLE ONE of Ryan Giggs’ trading cards, from 93 to this present day. Believe me, unless you hate Giggsy with a passion, it’s interesting and even fun to see how the Welshman has lost his curly hair and gained wrinkles. And then, there’s a young Cristiano Ronaldo joining the club, before anyone thought he would look good shirtless. Making a long story short, we get to today.

But now, I’m going to show you my favorite pin of the board. I know, you may love it or hate it (and me) but you have to agree it’s BLOODY EPIC. With you… Piero della Francesca’s Cantona.

 

United, Champ20ns, here.

Pinboard: Juventus F.C.

 

Ah, Juventus. The Old Lady of Turin.  “Winning is not important, but it’s the only thing that counts!” says the quote by Giampiero Boniperti, an ex-footballer in love with the club. Not only him, but many people are, including me. It’s a big club, after all, even if its shady reputation has threatened to pull it down. Even if Bayern kicked them out of the Champions League when they looked like they were about to win–they’re lovable. Or you hate them. Big club indeed.

However, what happens with big clubs in Pinterest is that everyone has a board devoted to them with perhaps two or three pins of recent victories and nothing else. Jump in the bandwagon, anyone? Fortunately, this is not the case with this board by Diego Eichberger and Laura (even though Diego is the most active member).

Of course, you will find pins that show the most recent Juventus, the one that has grown alive and dangerous again under the leadership of Antonio Conte (and there are numerous pictures of him as well). Yet, there’s even more to look at. There are also former heroes, from the legendary (and even ubiquitous) Pavel Nedved and well-known Edgar Davids to Michel Laudrup (I didn’t know he had been a Juventino!). There’s also Dino Zoff (that was history class for me) Paolo Montero, Ciro Ferrara… names presented in shots, or Panini album stickers. There are also squads, from the recent ones, back to the 70’s, and even one from 1903.

Is that not enough? Maybe the only bad thing of the board is that some pins are duplicated, but it’s still a very good board, considering the myriad of bad boards about a popular club out there. And… do you wanna drool?

 

Love them or hate them as you do Juve, that’s the bianconeri against Napoli and that’s Maradona against Michel Platini. Really, that’s enough football to bust your screen without a ball.

 

More Juve, vecchia signora, here. 

Pinboard: Old School Football

 

 

Old school and vintage are the new “in fashion”. Yet, I doubt anyone would want to wear one of those vintage football kits from Derby County, the ones in the picture. But the pic’s cool, right? Well, if you liked it, this is what you will find in the pinboard “Old school football” by James Gowans.

This pinboard is great for the reason that it is truly a historical archive. Sure, you might find some familiar faces around the pictures, such as Pelé, Oliver Kahn, a young Sir Alex Ferguson and Peter Beardsley; but there are also some true jewels. With this pinboard, you can go as far back as the 1920’s, the 1910’s… even the 19th century, as we can see in the previous picture… or, even further back in time.

So, what are you waiting for? Every football fan enjoys a history lesson even if you don’t support Liverpool! And, anyways, here’s something that I know will fascinate everyone as much as it did me and will make you click the link:

 

 

The world’s oldest football, dated 1497, found in Mary, Queen of Scots’ bedchamber. Apparently, it’s now a part of the Scottish Football Museum. And you can admire it here in this pinboard! Come on! What else do you need?

 

Go old school here.

Pinboard: Legends of Football

 

Legends of football. They’re a thing of pride, almost a national treasure. Names that, when spoken, can evoke glory and achievements that bring awe to us lovers of the beautiful game. We may argue about who’s the best one ever, such as the Kaiser (pictured), Pelé, Maradona, or Cruyff (I chose the last one, if you wanted to know) but there are always names we chose for ourselves. Legends for the country, the club, and our personal hearts.

And this is what happens in Frank Lara Risco’s pinboard. In it, you may find the usual suspects: the aforementioned legends plus Zizou, Platini, van Basten, Figo, Ronaldo (the first one, the Brazilian one, the fat one, to quote Sir Alex Ferguson) and several others. Yet, there are some names that many won’t consider the usual legends. Edmilson. Remember him? Long-nosed Brazilian who played for Barcelona? Would you place Rui Costa among the titans? Is Jamie Carragher legend enough to rival or outmatch Ronaldinho or Maldini?

Well, while looking at this pinboard, you may or might not agree (and if you don’t agree, Mr. Lara Risco has other footy pinboards you can check out). But I can guarantee, you will have a great time looking at the pictures and will agree some are treasure, such as this one:

 

Di Stefano, Italy’s candidate for one of the best ever, with his club… Espanyol! Did you know that bit of trivia?

 

More legendary football here.

Pinboard: Oranje Cruyff

Johan Cruyff was named the best footballer, albeit unlucky, by no one but Franz Beckenbauer himself. Now, there’s no need to take the word of the German Kaiser–the proof is scattered all over the internet. There are reruns of games dating from the seventies, and now that Barcelona is super-popular… don’t let them tell you otherwise. Johan Cruyff made them.

Cruyff invented total football. Now, many of us might not have seen him play live, but that doesn’t stop his sphere of influence. Then again, I don’t know how old Roxana Vergara, the pinner of this board, is. Judging by her picture, she might have done so–but we’re not here to guess ageing, are we?

So, the board might not be the most complete Cruyff account ever, but at least, it’s honest and heartfelt. Ms Vergara says she fell in love with sport and with the Oranje because of this guy, and who are we to contradict her? If anything, we should imitate her. If not convinced, this pinned video might do the trick.

 

Johan Cruyff being amazing.

 

All hail him here.

Pinterest Account: 444 gramos

 

Pinterest account for any Spanish-speaking follower I have! Or, any La Liga fan. As their bio says, they speak football, seen by journalists, fans and players.

So, they have one pinboard for each team in La Liga. Surprise! Barcelona is not the one with the most pins. Not so much of a surprise: it’s Real Madrid. The pinboards are not that rich in pictures; I consider this kind of Pinterest accounts should be better handled by sports networks. However, they do give an idea of how a Pinterest account dedicated to a single football league should look like.

444 gramos of pins here.

Pinboard: What’s on the back of your shirt?

What’s on the back of your shirt? We could be mean and say nobody cares. Well, apparently Manchester City does care!… As long as your shirt is a City one, of course.

Manchester City FC’s Pinterest account boasts several pinboards, including one dedicated to James Milner and another one dedicated to… er.. Balotelli’s hair (should I talk about it in another post?). Yet, this collaborative board is the one that meets the eye because it’s practically interactive. As you can see, fans are not satisfied with their idols’ (or crush’s) name on their backs. (I’d never thought I’d see a Mrs. Nasri, though).

Most of the kits are personalized with the fan’s surname: however, there are some prints that are fun to watch, including a Mancini one. And, even though I’m definitely not a City fan (United, people. Manchester is red) I have to admit, I tilt my hat to this. I’d date Mr. Hart, what can I say?

What’s in the back of these shirts?

Pinboard: Newcastle United 2011-12

Newcastle United might not be the most popular team in the Premier League: you know, there are some others that sell lots of kits. Like Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and lately, Manchester City. Following that, the official Pinterest account for the club only shows three pinboards: one with merchandise (albeit empty), one with the managers and this one. But, mind you, this one is the one that calls attention powerfully, if you’re a fan.

Season 2011-2012 was a great one for this club. And this pinboard is a comprehensive account of everything that happened that season. There’s a picture representing the victories and the losses, together with the links for a full report. For a fan, this is the perfect way to relive a spectacular season (I’m not exaggerating. I mean, they defeated Manchester United. Twice. What the hell). Meanwhile, for the non-fans, this is a reminder of the beauty of football, and how a team that can be considered “small” can be a David to a Goliath.

In fact, I leave you now with a picture that represents what I had just said: ladies and gentlemen, that’s Newcastle defeating Chelsea. Yes, it is. Feel the joy in the celebration!

 

Newcastle’s memory lane pinboard here.

Pinboard: Celebrations

 

Celebrations. That sublime moment of a goal, of the moment in which a ball can change history. It doesn’t matter if you’re playing or watching: if you love football, you know that’s intense.

This is what Bridgette, together with Cindy Lake (remember her?) try to show in the pinboard appropriately called “Celebrations”. From goals to the moment of absolute victory, with players holding a Cup, pictures that convey the euphoria of the moment, with jumping, hugging, kissing and whatever else rule the board.

Unfortunately, perhaps it might be a bit too Liverpool oriented, but there are still some jewels to look at. For example, King Kenny Dalglish in all his royal power, yelling at the fans in the stand, celebrating a title-clenching goal, one of those that mark days that will be remembered for years to come.

 

 

 

(Or a different kind of jewel. Like this one. No, I don’t know who the owner of the butt is).

Celebrate here. 

News: Kickette, don’t go!

First of all, I hope you all had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Unfortunately, I don’t have good New Year news for all girls reading this. It’s because kickette.com, the site where you could get a fix of hot football players, has gone into an undefinite hiatus. Yes, goodbye gossip, pictures of shirtless players, and even daydreams of bromance (John Terry and Frank Lampard, what can I say? I’m looking at you).

However, the good news here is that they have their Pinterest site up. So, if you girls feel like you’re experiencing withdrawal from hot footballers, you only have to take a look at this:

 

Kickette’s archive of more men with and without suits here.