Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

@unexpecteddelirium.substack.com.web.brid.gy

Writing on football culture, history, finance and more. Click to read Unexpected Delirium, by Ian King, a Substack publication with […] 🌉 bridged from 🌐 https://unexpecteddelirium.substack.com/: https://fed.brid.gy/web/unexpecteddelirium.substack.com

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Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

@unexpecteddelirium.substack.com.web.brid.gy

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: Send Not For Whom The Bell Tolls, Michael Carrick, It Tolls For TheeAn absolute kicking at home to Bournemouth has almost certainly ended Michael Carrick’s spell as Manchester United’s head coach, but very little of what’s gone wrong at Old Trafford is his fault.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Clapton Community 1-0 Benfleet - The Only Way to Treat The Common Cold is With ContemptPouring rain and high winds, a dreadful cold and a football team dicking me about for the second time in a year was ultimately offset by a last-minute winner in East London.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 19th October 1983 - Midweek Sports SpecialThere will no more Match of the Day for a month because of strike action, but European competitions started in September, and the English clubs are going pretty well.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comI’m Sorry, But No-One Can Make Me Care About The Ballon D’OrThe idea of individual awards mattering to any significant extent in a team sport is as absurd as they come.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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[Audio] [Original post on unexpecteddelirium.substack.com]

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Football Kickback: A Come and Get Me Plea to Bryan JohnsonManchester United have been at it again, but that’s nowhere near as important as trying to sell our bodily excretions to a venture capitalist millionaire.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Occasional Spurs: Defying The Desired NarrativeSo Spurs finally won a Premier League match, and you could almost smell the disappointment from the rest of the division, the media and even the broadcasters.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: The Partisan Financial Regulation DebateDiscussion of financial regulation in football has become soured by tribalism, but the real reason for it means that it won’t be going anywhere.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Sholing 2-0 SE Dons - A Bridge Too FarNeither of these clubs have reached the First Round before, so there’s all to play for on the easternmost side of Southampton in this FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round match.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 15th October 1983 - If The Rains Comes, They Run & Hide Their HeadsThis week’s Match of the Past features a match which sank under the water, but televised football was about to be sunk almost completely for the next few weeks.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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[Audio] [Original post on unexpecteddelirium.substack.com]

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Football Kickback: Never Read The Terms & ConditionsManchester United are back in crisis, and that’s about as close as we get to football on this week’s Kickback.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Independent Football Regulator Has Some Difficult Truths It Needs Us to HearAnd this is only the *interim* report. The Independent Football Regulator has surveyed the state of football in this country and it doesn’t like what it sees.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comLisandro Martinez Blows The Bladdy Doors OffThe Manchester United defender had some choice words for the senior management of his club following his team’s anaemic Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Occasional Spurs: There Will Be No Goals For You, Children, Not This YearEverything else starting to come together will count for little unless Spurs actually start scoring some goals, and three in six matches doesn’t fill you with a great deal of confidence.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: The Pointless 2026-27 Premier League SeasonI needed an extra 24 hours to allow the Liverpool vs Manchester City match to settle in my brain, and my ultimate conclusion is... what’s the point in the 2026-27 Premier League season?

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Eastbourne Town 1-1 Sittingbourne - The Empress of Watering PlacesEastbourne is, according to a song, known for “old people and seagulls”, but the serenity of the town itself was in sharp contrast to the feistiest match I’ve seen in donkeys years.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 8th October 1983 - The Star-Studded Second DivisionA midweek England match means a weekend off for the First Division, so it’s time for the closest thing to a success story at the time to step into the spotlight.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comYes, a Three-week International Break *is* Too LongIt feels counter-intuitive, in a way, to be agreeing with Europe’s biggest football clubs, but even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comSingle Parenthood & I: The Biggest Decision I’ll Ever Have To Make For The Rest of My LifeIt’s almost time for me to make a Big Boy decision, and that requires me understanding that nowadays I’m the Big Boy in the first place.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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[Audio] [Original post on unexpecteddelirium.substack.com]

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Football Kickback: Why is That Alien Speaking English?The international break is almost at an end, friends, and we’re jonesing for the return of the actual football, even if one of our schedules wasn’t unduly bothered by its absence.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comDerby County’s Narrative Arc Has Undergone a Startling Shift in 2026-27Derby County had been following a very distinct narrative arc since their 2022 takeover by David Clowes, but that has come to a juddering halt so far in 2026-27.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMan Who Denies Allegations Also Seeks to Deny Ageing ProcessCristiano Ronaldo is now a middle-aged man so, as an older middle-aged man than he (bordering on old, really), I’m urging him to drop this “I’m still a footballer” nonsense.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: England Have a Thoroughly Strange Saturday Night in CroatiaA crowd of 6,000 lent an otherworldly atmosphere to the Nations League match between Croatia and England, but the shrieking of thousands of kids didn’t seem to do the home side much good.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Uxbridge 3-1 Hungerford Town - 152 Years & Still CountingIt’s time for our fifth FA Cup match of the season, as one of the oldest teams in London seek to to something they haven’t previously managed for just over a century and a half.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 2nd October 1983 - Live & Exclusive on ITVThe first weekend in October 1983 isn’t quite done yet, with the first live televised Football League match in 23 years being broadcast.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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[Audio] [Original post on unexpecteddelirium.substack.com]

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Football Kickback: Truth or ConsequencesOh yes, we’re back, and this time we promise it’s weekly. And this week, there’s only one thing that we could talk about during this otherwise moribund international break. For a while, at least.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comNine. Hundred. Million. Pounds.We’ve known about the verdict for five days, but seeing the full scale of the fiddling by the owners of Manchester City was still a shock to the system.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

@unexpecteddelirium.substack.com.web.brid.gy

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Republic of Ireland’s Players Were Badly Let Down, And They Likely Will Be AgainThe Republic of Ireland team were put in an impossible position by both UEFA and the FAI, and they may have to go through it all again next weekend.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: Nature Abhors a Vacuum of Manchester City AnnouncementsWell, the Premier League haven’t said anything about it, so all there is to do is speculate into the void for what or what might not come next.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Dagenham & Redbridge 1-0 Hampton & Richmond Borough - Two Human Beings and The Pellys and MeIt’s off the the fuzzy line between London and Essex this weekend, but not before we’ve done a bit of a tourist trail through the centre of the city first.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 1st October 1983 - Launch on WarningFive days prior to this episode being broadcast, World War 3 nearly broke out, and we never even found out that this had happened until 1998.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comGuilty as ChargedSo Manchester City have been found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League, but don’t go expecting the punishment to be handed out *this* season.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe FA Have Just Opened a Can of Worms That They May Find Difficult to Close AgainA dodgy penalty decision in an FA Cup qualifier has led to an even dodgier decision by a Football Association sub-committee.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comTo Booze or Not to Booze: On a Matter of Trusting Football SupportersFootball supporters have done plenty to demonstrate that they can’t be trusted over the years, but how much of that has actually involved alcohol?

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comHaving it both ways and having it neitherSam Whyte is guesting this evening, and she’s got a thing or two to say on this Bisexuality Visibility Day.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: You’ve Come a Long Way, BabyBrighton & Hove Albion doing a damn good impression of a team that could challenge for the Premier League title is extremely jarring for those us who remember when they played at an athletics track.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Tonbridge Angels 2-1 Ramsgate - Angels With Dirty FacesThere may be sixty miles between Tonbridge and Ramsgate, but they’re both in Kent and the local yoof are certainly treating this FA Cup match as a local derby.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 17th September 1983 - Flair & The National TeamThe First Division’s biggest match of the season so far features as England come to terms with having taken a big step towards failing to qualify for the European Championship finals.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

@unexpecteddelirium.substack.com.web.brid.gy

unexpecteddelirium.substack.comSingle Parenthood & I: The Balance Between Simplicity & TinkeringI’m always looking for new ways to improve this Substack, and on this particular occasion it involves leaning back into the past.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Occasional Spurs: Well, At Least It Won’t Be Less Than 41 Games This SeasonAt least having beaten Charlton means that they can’t replicate Manchester United’s record minimum matches played in one season, but the EFL Cup trip to Anfield was another disappointment.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: The Conspiracy Against The Richest Clubs on the PlanetThe most-watched Premier League match of the season so far ended up making the League itself look somewhat foolish, but they only have themselves to blame.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Harrow Borough 1-3 Kingstonian - Here We Are Now, Entertain UsHarrow Borough have made an extraordinary decision this week, and their opponents in their first game after confirming that they were selling their ground offer a cautionary tale over thi

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 17th September 1983 - A Plane Crash, A Spurs Crash, and an England CrashThe transition from Ron Greenwood to Bobby Robson was pretty seamless, but by September 1983 it felt as though things weren’t *quite* going according to plan.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Soundtrack to my Life: A Best Ten Glam Rock Songs of All-TimeI might not look like the sort of person who feelz the noize, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not capable of clapping my hands and stamping my feet.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comSingle Parenthood & I: The Difference Between a £400 Jumper and a SunsetI’ve never been much of a one for materialism, but that’s not to say that absence doesn’t make my heart ache. But even though I was sad yesterday, I’ve been happy today, so here’s how that happened.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Monday Almanac: Leicester’s Problem Might Be Russell Martin, But There’s a Theme With Him That Isn’t MentionedRussell Martin is currently taking a kicking over Leicester’s dreadful start to their League One season, but his last three clubs all have one thing in common.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Weekend Match: Wingate & Finchley 0-0 Felixstowe & Walton United - All the World Is a Very Narrow BridgeThis week, we’re off to north-west London, where a club with a convoluted history have a home FA Cup match against a team who missed out on promotion at the end of 2025-26 by a very narrow margin.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comMatch of the Past: 10th September 1983 - It’s My Birthday TooThe Cold War might be about to turn extremely hot, but for one 11-year-old September was a time for celebration, even if his football teams, as would become standard behaviour, were letting him down.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comSingle Parenthood & I: The Great Drum Kit DilemmaFor the first time in ten years, there is a drum kit in my house, and I have no idea idea what I’m going to do with it.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comThe Occasional Spurs: Faces Pressed Against The Transfer WindowIt’s the most wonderful time of the year, unless your club chooses to carry out another club’s rehabilitation process for them, when other options were surely available.

Unexpected Delirium | Ian King | Substack [Unofficial]

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unexpecteddelirium.substack.comEbbsfleet United and Maldon & Tiptree are cautionary tales for modern non-league footballThe 2026-27 season started without two clubs being permitted to kick a ball, and while their circumstances have been different, they both have one thing in common which should worry non-league fans.