The Zebbug Rangers Gazette
The terraces21 May 2029
The mood at Zebbug Rangers has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Boardroom21 May 2029
Pressure builds in the Zebbug Rangers boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Match21 May 2029
Every point is an argument now for Zebbug Rangers
Position 15 and 23 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Market21 May 2029
Jamie Scerri puts it in writing
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Zebbug Rangers, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad21 May 2029
A row about effort at Zebbug Rangers
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Diogo Cruz was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad21 May 2029
Tempers go at Zebbug Rangers
Jorginho was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad21 May 2029
Mark Buttigieg out for 22 days
The medical room confirms 22 days on the sidelines for Mark Buttigieg, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Market21 May 2029
Still no ink between Zebbug Rangers and Diogo Cruz
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Zebbug Rangers, another week without a signature from Diogo Cruz.
Squad21 May 2029
Lassi Arajuuri wants to go home
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Zebbug Rangers know it.
In brief
- The dugout The manager has not finished forgetting Kyle Gatt's mistake
- The dugout Diogo Cruz knocks on the manager’s door
- The dugout Nathan Sultana gets picked when it counts