A Shortcut to Mushrooms

If past history is anything to go by, nearly half the world will be watching tomorrow morning as France take on Croatia in the World Cup Final. I've attempted to pour my love for football into an informative piece detailing what to look for tomorrow--whether you love football or are a casual interested in the human side of the game.  For those interested in learning more, Reddit is an incredible place to look-- r/soccer is an excellent source of discussion, highlights, and news, r/footballhighlights  is an amazing way to catch up on (or rewatch) past matches. The Players' Tribune is also amazing for human interest stories, their recent World Cup project of particular interest. France Nickname: Les Bleus Manager: Didier Deschamps (captained the victorious 1998 team) Previous Highest WC Finish: 1998 (champions) The Story This France squad came to Russia as one of the most talented teams in the tournament--with the incredible French talent developmen...

I absolutely hate choke jobs. I really do.  That being said, I’ve been witness to enough botch jobs in my 17+ years as a sports fan that I have many hypotheses about why they happen. And after bearing witness to one of the all-time chokes in yesterday’s Manchester Derby thriller , I decided I’d put pen to paper and jot down my thoughts on the common themes when teams blow games.  (As a disclaimer, none of this is scientific, empirical, or otherwise backed up by anything more than my memory & intuition. I’m not Nate Silver, and I have no desire to be. That dude does data, I tell stories.) The Elements of a Choke Job (or, "Why Teams Blow Big Leads") Squandering Chances to Put a Game to Bed Halftime, the bane of momentum Not Stopping the Flow   [ Context for the uninitiated: In European football, a derby is the name for a match between two teams from the same city. The Manchester Derby is one of the most famous ones in moder...