The Run of Play - Attacking Football

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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Russia 0 – 3 Spain: Mercury Parallel Parks

Kind of a compact car of a match, in the …
Germany 3 – 2 Turkey: Not Watching Something Beautiful

Now…that’s reality out of the way. Let’s talk about that …
Links Like Loud Remedies

This imperative mode is better than a bullet list. Read …
Germany 3 – 2 Turkey: Tactics for Outnumbered Armies

Put the outcome to one side. The astonishing thing about …
Viennese Genius

from Chapter 13 (“A Racehorse of Genius Crystallizes the Recognition …
Viennese Theology

from Chapter 7 (“In a Weak Moment Ulrich Acquires a …
The Guus That Played the Golden Leg

Andrei Arshavin is already 27. Did you realize that? That’s …
It Was That, Or Skin My Chauffeurs

Weirdest exchange between Derek Rae and Tommy Smyth during the …
One or Two Cases of St. Vitus’ Dance

First: Zach recently asked why Americans focus so much on …