July issue available online and in stores
The new WSC is out now, available from all good newsagents or to order from the WSC shop.
This month
Sunderland drop | Man Utd Euro victory | Celtic unbeaten | Forest Green move up | In defence of pitch invasions | Feyenoord title triumph | Third Lanark to rise again? | The other teams in Rome | Liverpool’s Sixties revolution | Cult football cards
Plus 32-page bonus magazine
For better for worse Experiences of the 2016-17 season
Featuring Aston Villa, Edinburgh City, Coventry City, South Shields, Tottenham Hotspur
Buy here to read the bonus magazine
Inside WSC 365
Match of the month Forest Green Rovers 3 Tranmere Rovers 1
“Welcome to the Vanarama Big Day Out 3.” The message on the giant LED screen on Wembley’s glass-fronted exterior is impossible to miss, catching the eye the moment you exit Wembley Park station. There are two and a half hours to kick-off and only a trickle of spectators outside the stadium, yet there is no disputing the significance of this so-called Big Day Out. It will draw an attendance nowhere near the crowds assembling elsewhere in the capital today – Tottenham Hotspur say goodbye to White Hart Lane, and West Ham United host Liverpool – but for those involved, the National League play-off final is as sizeable as its billing.
Buy here to read the full article
Triple threat Football League Review
There is a very talented and healthy mix of homegrown and foreign managers in the Championship, many of whom would flourish in the Premier League, and over 2016-17 the professionalism, consistency and quality of football has been as good as I can remember in this league. This season predictability was the winner as the top four remained pretty constant and no one was overly surprised at the three clubs to be relegated. Teamwork shone through rather than individual stars, so managers and club owners took centre stage.
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Fighting an uphill battle Mental heath
“Of late, when it gets really on top of me, the thought of taking my own life becomes more rational.” Jason Brown is a former goalkeeper who had Premier League experience with Blackburn Rovers and won caps for Wales Under-21s. Now 35, he has found himself under-employed and lacking direction since quitting professional football in 2015. Throughout our conversation at a cafe in north London, he speaks slowly as he works his way through his emotions. “Before it was very much an irrational thought, driven by fear. Now I think, maybe it is time. Maybe I have served my purpose.” I spoke to Brown two weeks after Everton winger Aaron Lennon was detained under the mental health act by police and taken to hospital after an incident in early May.
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Stick ’em up Football cards
When my father-in-law took me aside at a recent family gathering I assumed he wanted to get my thoughts on Brexit, or at the very least ask when I was going to get a proper haircut. Instead he handed me a small green wallet embossed with a large gold Merseyside Police badge and the words “England World Cup Squad Italia 1990”. “Thought you might like these,” he said.
Buy here to read the full article
Availability
WSC is the only nationally available independent football magazine in the UK, and you can get it monthly for a very reasonable £3.95. You should be able to find a copy in your local newsagent, otherwise outlets that stock WSC include WH Smith, mainline train stations plus selected Tescos. If you’re having trouble finding the magazine, you could do one of the following:
1. Subscribe now and also get access to the complete digital archive
2. Buy the latest issue direct from WSC
3. Sign up for our digital edition and apps for iPhone, iPad and Android
4. Email us
5. Ask your local newsagent to order it for you
Photo by Paul Thompson, illustration by Ben Tallon