The Run of Play is a blog about
the wonder and terror of soccer.

We left the window open during a match in October 2007 and a strange wind blew into the room.

Now we walk the forgotten byways of football with a lonely tread, searching for the beautiful, the bewildering, the haunting, and the absurd.

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The Champions League Draw, Which Was in No Way Rigged

Inter have just drawn Chelsea in the first Champions League knockout round, and Manchester United have drawn A.C. Milan. In case years of overexposure to the media haven’t ruined your brain in such a way that the mere mention of these pairings caused the fact to come spinning out of the computer screen in giant letters of fire, this means that José Mourinho will be making his return to Stamford Bridge and David Beckham will be going back to Old Trafford.

So…nice quiet little story, eh? Casual mention near the bottom of the sports page. They’ll probably just walk in through the front gate; I can’t see anyone wanting to make a fuss. I only wonder what substantive issue people will find to talk about for the next two months. Personally, I plan to spend some time thinking about the tactical subtleties of the Olympiacos – Girondins Bordeaux match.

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The Champions League Draw, Which Was in No Way Rigged

by Brian Phillips · December 18, 2009

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