Want to watch your team play? Can't get a ticket? Here is what to do

Connor Cunningham (a fitting name) was despertatly trying to get a ticket to see his beloved Ireland take on Estonia but when he showed up ticketless to the stadium hoping to find a fairly priced tout he was out of luck... Or so he thought. After being quoted 600€ for a ticket he decided to see if he could talk his way into the stadium but the security guard was having none of it! Determined as ever, the cunning man that he is, (see what I did there) saw a window of opportunity, or should I say a door of opportunity. He saw an unmanned door which was open so he decided to slip in, as you do. The door led him to a dead end corridor with nothing in it except for a bag of footballs, he lifted up the bag and underneath was an Estonia team tracksuit. He whipped on this tracksuit over his jeans and football shirt, flung the ball bag over his shoulder and walked back out. Now in his disguise he headed to the main entrance where security guards let him through with no problem, after having got in he claims he didn't know what to do at that point so he thought he might as well keep up with the act. He made his way pitch side to the Estonian dug out and took a seat. He only ended up sitting next to the manager... He says about 10-15 minutes passed when suspicion arose and an official realised he wasn't part of this team at all. Instead of kicking him out the stadium the just put him in the stands where he calmly watched the rest of the game. Ireland went on to smash Estonia 4-0 and after the game he went back and got onto the pitch to celebrate with the Irish and even wormed his way down the tunnel and watched some post-match interviews. This man has some seriously big cajones. I would like to say, if you're to ever try to sneak into a stadium to watch a game, do it this way.

Side note: Try not to arouse suspicion by taking videos on your phone during the game

Here he is again, ball bag included, getting back onto the pitch and celebrating after the game.

Player Profile

Name: Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu
Age: 20
Nationality: Ghanaian
Position: Centre Midfielder
Club: Udinese

Badu is an exciting young talent, I first saw him play against Arsenal in the first leg Champions League play-off and was extremely impressed. He dons the number 7 shirt but is a centre midfielder which dumbfounded me a bit during the game as he sat in front of the Udinese back line. As moronic as it sounds it was an odd sight to see. He played this role excellently, he was very strong in the tackle and extremely disciplined in his positioning - braking up play effectively, stopping opposition moves, as well as starting attacks. Udinese played a 4-1-4-1 that game; Badu being the -1- in the holding position, Udinese played great counter-attacking football and he was vital in them doing so as he never pressed on too much as everyone else around him did so he provided efficient cover for the five players in front of him who pressed on heavily that match. The young lad possesses great pace, both with and without the ball at his feet. He is a dynamic player, able to play that holding role as well as being a more "rounded" box to box midfielder who helps with both attack and defence. Badu features regularly in an ever changing Udinese line-up.

He follows in a line of Ghanaian midfielders to pass through Udinese such as Appiah, Muntari and Asamoah who is another promising talent. Badu says his game is similar to Black Star legend Michael Essien and has spent time with him in the national squad and has been trying to learn from him. He has already tasted international glory at youth level, forming part of the Ghanaian squad which won the U20 World Cup in 2009 against Brazil, making them the first African team to win that tournament.

Udinese have an excellent scouting and coaching team, one of the very best in the world for finding young talent and developing it. I believe the stocky midfielder will prove to be another excellent find.

Is Serie A exciting?

I was brought up in the Serie A golden years, my Sunday afternoons would consist of waiting for my lunch whilst watching James Richardson on Channel 4 with my Dad. Seeing players like Zidane, Ronaldo, Veron, Batistuta, Ortega, on my tv every week was nothing short of a privilege and as the years went on all of these great footballers either went abroad or retired. Once Channel 4 stopped their Football Italia show, Serie A seemed to drop off the map for us, there were no more superstars in that league and the quality of the English game was ever improving. Soon enough Serie A was labelled that "boring" league. I will be the first to hold my hands up and say that I was one of those people who shunned it. The league that I'd fallen in love with and once followed so closely was nothing on what it used to be, the Premier League held the keys to my heart. It was more competitive, the game was faster and the quality of football seemed higher - it was unrivalled, in my eyes.

You missed this, don't pretend you didn't

I now live in Italy and within about 3 weeks of being over here I'd already taken note of how Serie A was different. I'd always kept my eye on how the league was going and who was doing good or bad but Juventus dominated the 00s and it frankly was no fun to follow, their team was better than the rest, only Milan could rival them. Serie A looked to be making a comeback and 2003 there were two Italian teams in the final of the Champions League! It was Juventus versus Milan and as the world waited for what could have and should have been an excellent event it turned out to be possibly the most boring final of all time in any competition, ever. I don't wish to cast your minds back to that awful evening but it was a bore draw after 90 minutes and then we suffered through another half hour of the same monotonous, closed, defensive rubbish. The game was settled on penalties (it finished 2-3) and Milan won their sixth Champions League. Both teams so rich with history, a rivalry that stemmed back 100 years and so many good players, yet they couldn't manage a goal between them after 120 minutes of football. It really put the decisive nail in coffin for anyone who was still debating if Serie A was exciting as it once was, the answer was no.

The most forgettable final, ever

Serie A this year really has been crazy so far! Inter Milan; treble winners in the 07/08 season, sit in 16th place. Napoli, high fliers in Europe but in the league are 7th. Juventus, back from Serie B, reshaped and top of the table with a game in hand. It really looks to be wide open at this point and I've been paying some real close attention to the league and I've been sucked back in. Sure, the names I'd throw out won't get your heart racing or even spark a debate among most football fans but there is some real quality and many exciting prospects playing in the league now. Edinson Cavani, who really knew about him before Napoli entered the Champions League? We may have a few people who will roll out with their excellent footballing input - "Yeah, I signed him on my Football Manager game in 2008 and he became really good so you know..."
It has to be said, at this point he was already in Serie A and scoring goals for a good Palermo side so the comment from the Football Manager scout of decade is nothing short of idiotic babel. Either way, there are so many players in Serie A who really are top drawer footballers but get little recognition on the world stages because the league that they play in is now marked as inferior, not only by public opinion but also by UEFA who have allocated only 3 spots in the Champions League to Serie A teams.

Cavani's first goal in Serie A. Not a bad way to introduce yourself.

Footballing legends from the Serie A of old are a dying breed, Del Piero is retiring, Nesta's career has been riddled with injuries, Totti is getting no younger... The glamour may appear to have worn off but the league has never been so action-packed. Serie A is possibly the second most competitive league in the modern game, after the Premier League. There are so many teams battling it out for the top spots whereas in neighbouring countries such as Spain, France and Germany, there is much less. Maybe it's because the top clubs in Italy have fallen and are no longer untouchable, maybe it's because the standard is getting higher among the "lesser" clubs... All I know is, Serie A has been a very competitive league to watch this year and if you're looking to invest your time in any other foreign league - make it Italian.

3+7=10

Today is Alessandro Del Piero's 37th birthday, the son of the Old Lady may well be playing his last year of football but this is no reason to forget what this man has achieved in his career.

Believe it or not, Del Piero started playing football very young as a goalkeeper as his mother didn't want him to get hurt whilst playing but shifted to an outfield position after his older brother convinced their mother that he was good up front. Six years later, he was spotted playing for his sunday club and he signed for Padova at the age of 13.

Del Piero moved to Juventus from Padova in 1993 and had an almost instant impact. He started as almost all young players do, coming off the bench attempting to make an impact - he grabbed his first goal for the club coming on a substitute against Foggia and on for his first start for the club (3 games into his career, it should be noted) he bagged himself a hat-trick against Parma. Juve went on win their first Scudetto after eight years in 1994, with Del Piero playing his part; he made 29 appearances and scored 8 that season. It was in that season where he scored that goal against Fiorentina.

In the following years Juventus won another six Scudetti (two being taken away after Calciopoli), the Champions League in 1996, four Italian Super-Cups and a Coppa Italia. Del Piero also found international glory at under-21 level with Italy winning the European Championship twice, back to back. Most notably, with the senior squad in 2006 he won the World Cup - He scored another remarkable goal that tournament; in the semi-final against host nation, Germany, in the dying minutes of extra time he scored a beauty of a goal to guarantee Italy a place in the final.

After Juventus got demoted to Serie B in 2006, Del Piero set an example as club captain to his teammates by declaring he would stay at the club despite their on-going problems, some followed his lead but many super stars left. That season Del Piero was top goal scorer in Serie B, Juventus got promoted, and the following season Juventus finished 3rd with Del Piero as top scorer in Serie A! Along with this record, he has made the most club appearances for Juventus as well being the club's all time top goal scorer. I think it is a shame that he isn't getting as much game time as should be this year as well as not being able to stay on for another year, making his time span at Juventus 20 years rather than 19. Either way, he has been a God to Juventus and Italy fans. You cannot find a bad word to say about that man, he is a model professional and I hope he is not the last of a dying breed. The man exudes class and technique, he played the "fantasista" or the "trequartista" perfectly, threading in passes as well as being a major goal threat. Alessandro Del Piero, dubbed "Il Vero Fenomeno" (the real phenomenon) in a response to Inter fans' given name to Ronaldo "Il Fenomeno" really did go to show what a phenomenon he really was, 285 goals for Juventus and a very respectable 27 for Italy. Happy birthday, Alex.

Here is Del Piero's first 100 goals for the club. On his 6th goal you can see Del Piero scoring his first trademark goal by taking on a very young Fabio Cannavaro at Napoli. Also, Toldo was in goal for Fiorentina when Del Piero scored that wonder goal. How old do you feel right now?

Is the Old Lady back to her old ways?

Juventus are back on top of Serie A, a sight that we were used to seeing once upon a time. Since the Calciopoli scandal in 2006 Juventus have had a long arduous battle to find themselves back where they once were, top of the table. They are starting to look like a team who very well could start to win, or at least contend, for major honours. We'll take a look at some major factors why the bianconeri are becoming, once more, a force to be reckoned with.

Antonio Conte is the new manager of Juventus and what an impact that man has had. He set himself the goal once entering the world of management that he would become Juventus manager in five years, if not, he'd stop. Obviously, he's gone and done just that! It's great to see a great player come back to their old club and bring success with them. During his years as a footballer Conte played under some of the very best managers around - Lippi, Ancelotti, Zoff, Trapattoni and Sacchi. He learnt a lot from all of them has taken aspects from each manager to develop his own style, which has worked out very well. Conte has been a success wherever he has gone, he has had high ambitions and targets - no doubt he has one eye is on the scudetto in the next few seasons. He claims he learnt how to be a winner under Marcello Lippi and says the most important thing he, himself, does as a manager is to transmit that knowledge to his own players.

Since coming straight back up from Serie B they finished 3rd in their first season, then 2nd in the next but the next two years they finished 7th both times. The team hasn't changed drastically, the core is still there and some remain even from Conte's playing days but losing players such as Nedved, Trezeguet and Camoranesi after their first two seasons upon returning to Serie A and failing to replace them with players of similar quality has cost them. Money was invested poorly in players once those stars had left and they brought in the likes of Poulsen, Almiron, Felipe Melo and Tiago. This summer, it's safe to say that they brought in players of real quality and class - Pirlo, Vucinic, Vidal, and Lichtsteiner, they also signed Matri and Barzagli the in January transfer window before. These players all play a role in the new look Juventus.

Conte came in stating he'd play a 4-4-2/4-2-4 with high attacking wide men but he also plays a very interesting formation in the shape of a 4-2-3-1. I think he has moved more to the latter because it suits the players he has much more. Firstly, the coupling of Marchisio and Pirlo in the centre of the park is working out fantastically. Many thought Pirlo was "over the hill" but he is still dictating the play and delivering those perfectly weighted balls over the top or just defence splitting passes with his usual elegance and grace. Marchisio is also playing with such creative freedom and discipline all at the same time and his efforts are being rewarded in the form of goals, he already has 4 to his name this season. Marchisio is finally being utilised in his decision, the past few years he'd be stuck out wide and it was painfully obvious that he wasn't a winger. The arrival of Vidal has been welcomed by Juventus fans and rightly so, they picked him up for a very good price this summer (especially considering the English transfer market) for 10million €. He sits in front of the perfectly balanced couple of Pirlo and Marchisio and has been playing very well. He supports the attacks and also drops deep to help out. Vucinic has been shifted from playing up front to attacking wide left, this is nothing new to him as he played in that wide penetrating role for Roma for years before his summer switch. He cuts in all the time, finds himself in space and has good feet. On the opposite side is Pepe - he is a work horse for Conte, constantly bombing up and down the wing and swinging in crosses when he can. Up top is another new boy, Matri, who signed from Cagliari midway through last season. He has found himself in some good form, scoring 4 goals and setting a few up along the way. At the back Juventus are having slight problems finding a left back, they've played 3 different players in that position already this season and seem to be sticking with Chiellini. I personally don't think he is good enough for that role, he doesn't move with the ball well, lacks technique and certainly doesn't offer what Lichtsteiner does on the opposite flank. The Swiss full-back is great, he can attack as well as defend which seems simple enough but so many modern day full backs cannot do it... In the centre of defence is Bonucci and Barzagli, the latter returning to Serie A after time in Germany with Wolfsberg. He has been a rock in defence and considering the fact that they signed him for a mere 300,000€ it was an extremely shrewd bit of business. Obviously, in goal we have Gigi Buffon. We know all about him... The team looks very good, a strong base to build on and this is what Conte was aiming to do this season. He is concerned about having a good structure in place and then going on from there, an extremely wise approach. Let's not forget that they have five world cup winners in the squad... Not a bad base, eh?

Juve's 4-2-3-1

Although Juventus are top of the league by a point at the moment they have a real tough few games coming up - Napoli, Palermo, Lazio, Roma and Udinese in their next seven games. They've seen off league title favourites AC Milan already this season and played them off the pitch, they've also taken the scalp of Inter at the San Siro. It's games this season that Juventus has failed to see out is their down fall, they've lost points to stupid draws against Bologna and Genoa most notably - games that they should have won and if they wish to remain in and around their current league position they will need to learn to see a game out or put it to bed.

What I like most about Juventus under Conte is that they are playing very attractive football; they start with a high tempo, they press and move the ball around the park very intelligently. The technique and quality that they have going forward can be devastating at times, also with the players on the pitch they've got different attacking options available. Matri is great in the air, he is big and strong but he is also able to hold the ball up, lay it off and even play it himself, if needs be. Vucinic gives you that penetrating aspect from wide, cutting in the ball and causing havoc in the box. Vidal isn't afraid to shoot from distance. Marchisio times his runs into the box very well, his timing is excellent and he also enjoys getting forward with the ball at his feet. We've yet to see the young Dutch wing wizard, Elia, play much yet. Quagliarella is also on the bench along with Juventus God, Alessandro Del Piero. They've also got Giaccherini, Pazienza and Krasic on the bench who have all weighed in with some appearances as well this season.

“Conte’s men have determination, desire and they have the right man leading them. They have finally rediscovered the Juventus identity.” - Marcello Lippi

I'm not saying this team is the Juventus that we once knew but they are a new Juventus; new manager, new players, new tactics, new stadium. Things are going great right now and Conte is receiving just praise because he has already taken them a long way from where they were when he joined the club. They are playing good football, getting results and really look like they are playing for the club which Conte has been trying to drill into them since his arrival. He seems to be bringing out the best in his players and tactically he has been spot on. A team like Juventus will always rise back to the top. Don't be surprised if they finish in the top 3 this season.