Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has admitted he has no issues with the recent comments made by number one goalkeeper Jose Reina.
The Spain international suggested he would remain at the club until the end of the season at least, leaving journalists believing his lack of future planning could signal the end of his Anfield career.
But Hodgson insists he is unconcerned with his remarks.
"That is fair enough, what's wrong with that?" he said.
"There is always spin put on these things, but as far as I am concerned we are very happy to have Pepe Reina and I hope he will stay a lot longer than that.
"If at the end of the season he doesn't want to play for Liverpool anymore then we'd have to deal with that situation when we come to it.
"But I don't understand why, seven or eight months from the date, I'm being asked to give my opinion on it.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
"He is an excellent goalkeeper and I hope he plays for Liverpool for years and years to come.
"If he doesn't want to play for years and years to come we'll deal with the situation when it occurs."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
On Sunday the unstoppable force will meet the immovable object in a clash of the titans at Old Trafford. When the Premier League’s top two clash it is a massive game whoever they may be but when the game is also a Manchester derby it is bound to be a battle of epic proportions.
There is no doubt that both managers want to win this game with the winner claiming top spot but Sir Alex Ferguson still believes that the biggest game in football is Manchester United v Liverpool, claiming that he has always “considered it to be the game of the season in English football”.
And despite his vast experience as a manager and unquestionable success, it is difficult to see why he thinks this Sunday’s game is not the biggest match of the year.
Roberto Mancini’s sit top of the tree having only dropped two points so far as their free-flowing attacking football lives up to the high expectations put on the star-studded side. While in recent years the signings made by Mancini and those before him have resembled a kid in a sweet shop, this summer has seen some very shrewd buys with top transfer Sergio Aguero making a bigger impact than anybody could have imagined, looking like a world-class player and making Carlos Tevez throw a tantrum in order to get noticed.
At the same time the arrival of Samir Nasri from Arsenal has allowed David Silva more freedom behind Aguero to weave his magic, while Clichy and Savic have given the Italian even more strong defensive options at a club that doesn’t concede many goals and Owen Hargreaves will give them the vital knowledge of how to win big trophies.
These additions have meant that the side Fergie’s men will come be facing is stronger than anything that City have ever had at their disposal and as the Blue half of Manchester look to claim only their second victory in the league at the Theatre of Dreams since 1975 and go five points clear at the top of the Premier League.
If City cross into the red half of Manchester and come away with victory, not only will they prove that they are capable of beating the big teams but it will send a message that they are ready to take over the mantle as the country’s biggest club from their closest foe. And it is this matter that makes this the biggest game of the season.
When a young Alex Ferguson trotted into the offices of Old Trafford his mission was to end the dominance of Liverpool who won trophy and trophy in the 70’s and 80’s. This instantly reignited the ferocious relationship between the sides that has lasted the past quarter of a century and although it took time, 12 Premier League titles later his side have now become the figurehead of the league while Liverpool have fallen into the depths of anonymity, living on their history to maintain a space in the footballing limelight.
Any match between Manchester United and Liverpool is massive because they are the two most successful clubs in the history of the English game and that rivalry will always remain but it is no longer a championship deciding battle. The title threat from the Merseysiders is now non-existent and despite the enthusiasm that surrounded the club after Dalglish’s appointed in January, the only thing that will enter the Liverpool trophy cabinet this season is dust.
They have been trophyless since 2006 and are shrinking more and more in their stature with the departures of big players such as Fernando Torres and Xabi Alonso suggesting they are becoming a selling club and the overpriced purchases of Downing, Henderson and Carroll highlighting their desperation to cling on to the tails of the big teams. The only thing preventing total meltdown at Anfield is the support, which backs its team to the hill. Last weekends the home fans were more influential than the preverbial 12th man and spurred their team to a draw. Without that backing the side would be dwindling around the relegation zone as it was under Roy Hodgson.
While Liverpool have been falling City have been rising and our now in a position where victory over United could see them become the head of English football for the next 20 years. The Manchester derby has not been this big in a long time with City often fighting battles at the other end of the table to the Reds but the teams are now closer than ever and it is up to Sir Alex to take this threat seriously if they want to return to the top.
Although they come into the game as underdogs, Mancini has guided his team to victory over United in the League Cup and most recently in the FA Cup semi-final on the way to ending the club’s 35-year wait for a trophy. With one piece of silverware in the bag they are hungry for more and although Sunday’s game won’t decide the title race, it will be the clearest sign so far which half of Manchester may be celebrating in May.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Liverpool versus United will always be a big game. History, traditional and the rivalry between fans will never burn out. But there is a noisy new kid on the block and on Sunday we will see why the Manchester derby is now the biggest game in English football.
If you want to talk about this topic or anything else to do with sport leave a comment below or follow me on Twitter @jrobbins1991.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has stated that he has to be careful with young superstar Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, but believes the winger should be in England’s Euro 2012 squad.
The wideman has impressed since moving to north London from Southampton, with many surprised that he was not included in The Three Lions squad to face Netherlands in an international friendly on Wednesday night.
Despite this, Wenger feels Oxlade-Chamberlian could feature in Poland and Ukraine this summer.
“Physically we have to monitor him because after every game he can have a little problem,” he told the club’s official website.
“We know now that a large percentage of players who play a lot of games between the ages of 18 and 21 have bony stress responses. I never expected the number to be so high.
“[It happens] because your skeleton is not completely finished and the bones are not completely developed to absorb the kinds of shocks you get in the Premier League.
“We have to be cautious about that. But you are always in a trap when the player is as good as he is, like Jack Wilshere is too.
“You cannot take him out of the team, you have to keep him there. They can win you games.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“Until the end of the season there is no problem and if he continues to play like this I am convinced he will go to Euro 2012,” Wenger concluded.
Over the years football has produced many eccentrics. Some players show their uniqueness on the pitch, some through their behaviour both on and off it. After Mario Balotelli’s backheel created such a furore this weekend now seems the time to look at those players who are currently baffling the fans with their bizarre behaviour.
The majority of these players are on this list for the simple reason that they are interesting. They are not all nice guys. Bellamy, Barton and Cole are here because they stand out, they are the ones who can’t behave, who don’t seem to respond to discipline or public condemnation. Many of them are complete jerks but they are all entertaining.
Their predecessors are cult heroes: there is the 5’6” Mexican goalkeeper/part time striker Jorge Campos who designed his own offensively loud kits and spent as much time as possible outside his area. He literally lit up my USA ’94. There is the Reading and Cardiff legend of Robin Friday, rumoured to have scored the greatest goal of all time whilst on LSD and then there are the household names; Paul Gascoigne, still as mad as a hatter and Eric Cantona, master of the pitch, poetry, film and Kung Fu.
Whilst the majority of these players may lack the originality to reach the heights of these true showmen, they are still finding new and ingenious ways to generate headlines, whether they are trying to put phones into completely impractical places or confronting bullies at school, at least they aren’t just tweeting about having a nap and playing Fifa. (Well Rooney might be!)
Click on Cisse below to unveil top 10 unpredictable footballers
[divider]
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Who makes your list and what makes them mad? http://twitter.com/#!/philipwroe
Following Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the quarter finals of the Champions League last night, the knives are out once again for Fernando Torres. The Spanish striker who cost Chelsea £50 million from Liverpool in January is still yet to score for the Blues and doesn’t look like doing so any time soon. So that begs the question, is Fernando Torres the biggest waste of money ever?
This is an accolade for which there is plenty of competition, including previous Chelsea signings for starters. This comes in the form of the likes of £30m man Andriy Shevchenko, while Man United can boast Juan Sebastian Veron at £28.1m and Man City spent £32.5m on Robinho. Liverpool fans will want to forget £17m they spent on Alberto Aquilani, while could the £35m spent on Andy Carroll be considered a waste in the future? As like Torres, the former Newcastle striker is still yet to score for his new club. A special mention also has to go to Winston Bogarde who was more than happy to take the £40,000 given to him by Chelsea.
The decision as to which player is the biggest waste of money ever was too difficult a one for a single man to make, so we’re opening it up to you. Who do you think has been the biggest waste of money ever? Vote now!
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Start as you mean to go on, as the old adage goes. This season has been something of a tumultuous one for Villa both on and off the pitch. Things obviously didn’t get off to the best start with the sale of James Milner seemingly the straw that broke the camel’s back and Martin O’Neill brought down the curtain on his four-year spell in charge just five days before the beginning of the season. But where has it all gone wrong?
The case for the defence – Villa’s 6th place finish last term was built upon solid foundations that quite simply haven’t been there this term. Last season, Villa conceded just 39 goals all term, the fourth best defensive record in the league and kept 15 clean sheets to boot. This season however, in just 21 league fixtures they have conceded 38 goals already and have just four clean sheets to their name.
The form of Richard Dunne has also been a concern. Is there a more inconsistent defender in the Premiership? Brilliant one season, diabolical the next. Brad Friedel has been unusually poor by his standards too. Stephen Warnock has also seen a dip in form sure to put him behind Leighton Baines in the England pecking order once more. Individual errors have proved costly and although a settled unit at the back, collectively and individually they’ve been poor this season.
In such an unpredictable league such as this one has been so far, consistency is the key, grinding out results even when you’re not playing well is what keeps the momentum going. Villa, much like Liverpool who are also struggling, have been bloomin’ awful away from home and able to do this. In 10 away games this season, they’ve collected just 5 points and have shipped 25 goals. Contrast this with last season and they finished the campaign with the 3rd best away record in the league. A side that once proved a tough cookie to crack has all of a sudden become a soft touch on their travels.
Of course, O’Neill’s resignation just 5 days before the start of the season didn’t help matters. A somewhat juvenile exit for a man often ruled by his emotions, brought an end to a largely successful reign. Kevin McDonald did his best under the circumstances and one thing the terraces have him to be thankful for was his willingness to blood young talent – namely Marc Albrighton, Ciaran Clark and Barry Bannan – from the off.
One criticism that you could level at O’Neill, is that during his time at Villa, more often than not he spent his money poorly and most of the fringe players, in an already thin squad, were his signings. You can’t operate across multiple competitions time and time again on limited resources, without trusting your youngsters and without spending wisely. As a result, the squad is a smorgasbord of youthful exuberance and players on the wane.
The exit of James Milner, the catalyst for last season’s driven consistency must not go unnoticed either. His replacement, Stephen Ireland, has floundered and is already looking to leave the club this transfer window.
A lack of firepower has proved a problematic issue to solve for new manager Gerard Houllier, with the club’s top goal scorer in the league being Stewart Downing this season with just five goals to his name. It’s clear that too much pressure has been placed on Gabriel Agbohnlahor in the past and that in order for Villa to succeed again, the already beleaguered Houllier needs to bring in reinforcements up top this transfer window to lighten the load on the native Brummie.
Finally, we come to Gerard Houllier, a familiar face to English fans from his time at Liverpool. He has got off to a frankly appalling start as Villa manager. The club now find themselves in 18th place in the league and Houllier, a quiet man, the antithesis of the confrontational and passionate O’Neill, has led the club to just 7 wins in his 21 games at the club, with 10 defeats on his record already. A similar record to the one that got Roy Hodgson sacked from Liverpool it has to be said.
Reported training ground bust-ups between assistant manager Gary McAlister and Richard Dunne and rumoured unrest at Houllier’s training methods hasn’t helped either and has meant that the club have often been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Some players, such as Warnock, Carew and Ireland, are all apparently disillusioned with life at the club and are eyeing moves elsewhere.
Suffice to say, when a club as seemingly stable as Villa were going into this season, goes into a sudden freefall, there cannot be just the one reason for their demise, but several. Rather than it simply all being Houllier’s fault, which seems to be the popular trend at the minute on the terraces, to blame the manager, it’s the players that have to take more responsibility for their woeful underperformance thus far and it is ultimately at their door that the blame for the fact that they now find themselves in a relegation dogfight lies.
If Houllier is to last until the end of the season, with pressure already mounting on the terraces, who were sceptical upon his appointment right from the very beginning it has to be said, he is going to have to spend his money more wisely than O’Neill did at times at the club. He’s certainly going to have to spend it more wisely than he did during his last foray into English football with Liverpool.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
This transfer window looks to be pivotal in turning the tide and it looks as if Houllier is going to be given some money to deal with Jean Makoun, out of favour at Lyon this season, is a decent if unspectacular holding midfielder and this sort of acquisition looks a step in the right direction. Consolidation, while it might not sound too sexy when put to fans, is the name of the game now.
It’s not all doom and gloom though, this season could be the one where the club sheds some of the dead wood and they’ve already began to blood an extremely promising set of youngsters. If Houllier lasts until the summer, which it looks like he might just do, this poor season could be the start of something much more promising in the future.
[divider]
Love fantasy football? Love live footy? You’ll love live fantasy football! Take part in the Spurs v Man United match and play Picklive for FREE Go on, give it a go!
Fulham owner Mohamed Al Fayed has criticised former boss Mark Hughes, calling the Welsh coach ‘an odd man’ and stating he has lost his spark.
Hughes surprisingly left Craven Cottage in the summer after stating he was not happy at the club, and recently slated the London outfit for lack of ambition.
The Egyptian businessman has hit back however in damning fashion.
“What a strange man Mark Hughes is,” an open letter revealed in The Telegraph reads.
“Sacked by Manchester City, he was becoming a forgotten man when I rescued him to become manager of Fulham Football Club.
”Even when results were bad, I did not put pressure on him. I gave him every support – financial, moral and personal. He received everything he asked for and more.
”He fully negotiated a two-year extension to his contract.
”On the day he was due to sign, he walked out without the courtesy of a proper explanation for such capricious and potentially damaging conduct.
”And now he insults the club that saved his career, claiming it lacks ambition and he insults the players as too old, even though they delivered an eighth position finish last season and a place in the Europa League.
”He is not just disrespectful but entirely wrong.
”Fulham has just announced plans for a splendid new riverside stand that will substantially increase the capacity of Craven Cottage.
”The playing squad has been strengthened with many fine young players and Fulham is progressing in every way, with an outstanding manager in Martin Jol, the man we really wanted when Hughes was appointed.
”Fulham will endeavour to prosper without him simply because, when the challenge came, Mark Hughes lacked the courage and commitment to take on the task of leadership.
”If people are looking for a flop, they only have to no further than the man who has lost his spark.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“If ever there was a man [who] lost his spark, I fear it is Mark. I would feel sorry for him had he not acted so dishonourably,” it concluded.
Hughes has been out of the game since leaving the Cottagers in the summer, but is one of the favourites for the vacant Leicester City post.
Steve Bruce accused referee Stuart Attwell of gifting Liverpool a “joke” opening goal during Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Sunderland at Anfield.
Dirk Kuyt put the Reds ahead in the fifth minute after latching onto Fernando Torres’ pass to sweep the ball home.
However, it was a controversial lead as Torres had seized on Michael Turner’s free-kick to run unchallenged on goal.
Turner nonchalantly back-heeled the free-kick back towards Simon Mignolet in what he later described as a pass back for his goalkeeper to restart play.
But Attwell agreed with Torres and Kuyt’s assertion that Turner himself had restarted play.
“The first goal is a joke. The only person who knew it wasn’t intentionally taken was possibly the referee,” said Bruce.
“However I watched him and he went to his whistle three or four times, he even looked for the linesman.
“Everybody in the ground knew Turner was kicking it back to where the free-kick should have been taken from.
“But to respond the way we did I couldn’t be more pleased.”
Two goals from Darren Bent – the first from the penalty spot – had put the Black Cats ahead at Anfield only for Steven Gerrard to rescue a point for the home side.
Attwell has found himself back in the spotlight again but a post-match statement from Professional Game Match Officials backed their controversial referee.
“According to the Laws of the Game, having stopped the game for any infringement the referee is required to ‘indicate the restart of the match’,” explained the statement.
“In practice, in the majority of cases, referees indicate for the re-start by gesturing to players to take the kick. These gestures can be minimal.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“For the more important ‘ceremonial’ free-kicks, which also involve control of the defensive wall, referees can indicate by using the whistle. However, there is no requirement by law to use the whistle to make the indication.
“The ball is then in play when it is kicked and moves. So, in this case, the ball was in play as soon as it is kicked by a Sunderland player.
“Also, the laws state that the free-kick must be taken from the place where the infringement occurred. Again, in this case, the referee correctly determined that the free-kick was played from the right place.”
Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
I’ll admit it, I’m a bitter man. Like most who write on this site, or have a blog anywhere on the world wide web, I would love to write for a living. To be paid for putting words onto a page, for expressing an opinion. That’s not to say I think I deserve this role, or that I have an astonishing talent that is going to waste (though as it happens…). But feeling like this can make you very cynical. I see the drivel served up by very, very highly paid journalists and columnists (I’m looking at you Richard Littlejohn), and think, “I could do better than that”. And the fact is I could. My mum could. My best friend could. My work colleague who has never fully understood the role of apostrophes could.
But the fact is that those who do write and comment on our most popular sport are so poor, so knee-jerk, opinionated and biased, that it makes my blood boil, in a metaphorical sense.
There have been so many excellent blogs on the terrible standard of TV punditry at this year’s World Cup that I cannot add anything more to the debate. From Alan Shearer’s BAFTA winning expose of apartheid in South Africa to Alan Hansen chiding Lee Dixon for knowing who one of the Slovakia players was, it was an appalling rolling example of how viewers are treated as idiots with very low expectations.
But in print, we consumers fared little better. Having shaken off the nightmares from seeing Terry Venables dance, Chris Kamara and Ian Wright wearing eye shadow and Peter Crouch dancing in Pringle adverts, I turned to the newspapers for some sanity. And failed.
Of course, I knew I would. The summer started with the Triesman affair and a newspaper trying to undermine England’s World Cup campaign before it had even begun. It was ever thus –sex scandals, fake sheikhs, it’s all fair game. In the public interest, innit?
All journalists were up in arms at Triesman’s faux pas, desperately trying to funnel all attention to what he had said and divert away from how we had found out what he had said, because at the back of all their minds was this little thought going round and round saying “we’re all shits really aren’t we?”.
Still look on the bright side – with England not hosting it, they will all get a nice little jolly somewhere nice and warm. Good work at the Mail, though they were probably more concerned about a World Cup in England meaning a huge influx of all those nasty foreigners. We’d probably had to have cancelled Christmas or something so as not to offend them.
The Sun did what it does best – urging the nation to get behind the England team, before doing its level best to undermine, criticise and ridicule them, spending a week mocking Green, with a series of hilarious comments and captions.
Many of these people are nothing more than buffoons allowed to write down their thoughts and be paid for it. It’s so bad, I think I’d rather hear the opinions of the men in the Betfair front room – they look like a right barrel of laughs.
Take Shaun Custis for example. In the Sun he called for David Beckham to replace Fabio Capello as England coach.
Custis, made the case for the former skipper to take over, with arguments ranging from ‘He looked good in that suit’, to ‘he’s quite famous’ right through to ‘the players like him’. Custis is the chief football writer. Of the biggest selling newspaper in the UK. And he advocates making David Beckham the next England manager. And there in a nutshell is the quality of sports journalism in this country.
Custis writes: ‘He was sat on the England bench, jacket off, chin resting on his up-turned hand, brow furrowed, locked in concentration…As the camera panned in it was easy to forget that this was actually NOT the England manager…Beckham has been learning fast and though he has always said he wasn’t interested in management, looks to have got the taste for it at this World Cup.’
So looking the part whilst sat on a bench now seems the criteria for one of the leading jobs in world football. I’d best get some practice in.
Inevitably, Custis cites the example of Diego Maradona, who’s Argentina side are one of the favourites to lift the World Cup.
‘When the decision was made to appoint one of the world’s greatest ever players, Diego Maradona, as Argentina boss it was met with howls of derision back in his homeland and around the world…
‘But in the finals in South Africa, Argentina are playing with freedom, enjoying their football and Maradona has fostered a bond between himself and his players which appears unbreakable.’
And here Custis shows his utter ignorance of anything outside premiership football (if not all football). Maradona’s qualifying campaign, which I followed with the glee of a young boy late on Christmas Eve, was an utter fiasco. Maradona seemed to try everything he possibly could to derail the campaign, before the team limped over the line. And we all know what happened in the finals – utterly outplayed by the first decent side they came up against.
But back to Beckham…
‘His very presence commands instant respect. He knows what makes English footballers tick and what works for them.’
‘…on the surface he would seem a high-risk successor.’ I think the phrase I’m looking for is “no s**t, Sherlock.”
Then the Sun put forward Sam Allardyce as the next England manager. I’ll repeat that – the Sun put forward Sam Allardyce as the next England manager.
As sure as night follows day, there were calls that the next manager must be English. Harry Redknapp wasted no time making himself available, like the media-friendly whore that he is.
Tony Cascarino suggested that Alan Shearer should become the next manager. Yes, that’s correct; Tony Cascarino suggested that Alan Shearer should be the next manager. Stan Collymore argued that all premiership teams in future should have at least 5 attacking players in the starting lineup BY LAW.
Inevitably there were calls for a winter break to be introduced, as England’s poor lambs were tired. No one seemed able to explain why the non-English premiership players such as Tevez, Kuyt and De Jong seemed to be so full of energy.
Of course by now the recriminations had long begun. Hypocritical journalists went back on what they had said pre-tournament and educated the world on how it had gone wrong and how it could be solved.
Apart from deliberate handball on the line, there’s little worse than hypocritical journalists. Especially if they are dodgy cockney wide-boys, and thus media darlings.
Oh and look, here’s Terry Venables slaughtering Fabio Capello after the defeat to Germany.
‘What a shambles. And while, like the rest of the nation, I was stunned by yesterday’s defeat in Bloemfontein, I must admit I was not altogether surprised because, in my view, it had been coming for months. Or, to be more precise, since Wednesday March 3rd.
‘That was the night we played Egypt at Wembley in the final friendly before Fabio Capello named his provisional World Cup squad. It was also the night I first began to have serious concerns about the Italian’s tactics.
‘Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry were overrun in midfield. And as they chased shadows, our central defensive pairing of John Terry and Matthew Upson were left woefully exposed. That sounds familiar doesn’t it? The writing was on the wall and remained so throughout our unimpressive build-up to the finals.’
Interesting. Presumably Terry was being sarcastic when giving his predictions for the tournament on June 7.
On who would win it: ‘That’s easy, England. Brazil and Spain might be favourites but I tip England to win every time. If we go into big tournaments believing we’re not going to win then we won’t. The whole nation has to be positive.’
On Capello’s selection: ‘Picking 23 players from the talent we have at our disposal is always a pig of a job. But Fabio looks to have selected the strongest squad he could have.’
On England’s strengths: ‘Our back four. I hoped they would all stay fit, but even now Rio Ferdinand is injured we have more than adequate cover in Upson, King, Carragher and co. We also have a world-class striker in Rooney.’
You were saying, Terry?
There was no sitting on the fence for Paul Merson:
In his ‘Who’s On The Plane’ column for Sky Sports.com, May 30:
‘Emile Heskey – IN – He hasn’t done anything in the Premier League all season, but he’s never let England down. Defenders don’t like playing against people like Heskey and Crouch. I would take him.’
From his ‘Team talk’ column for Sky Sports.com, June 4:
‘I would have taken Darren Bent ahead of Emile Heskey. If you’re not playing for your club team you shouldn’t play for England. It’s been that way for 100 years, so why is it changing now?
Away from the world cup, every article regarding transfer gossip – every single one – would end with “Manchester City are known to be interested”. Teams heroically “fought off interest from Manchester City”, whilst an array of world stars snubbed us despite the fact we had never enquired about them in the first place. But enough moaning, if it helped them get a better contract, I’m glad we could be of some assistance. We are now the go-to club to get agents better deals for their players. City had killed football yet again. Burt what was more illuminating than anything, was that little old City were controlling the upper end of the transfer market, as other clubs waited to react to our trading.
Hey, for a while it looked like the World Cup would have to be suspended for two weeks so that every player could negotiate with them.
The worst offence was still to come though. Something so terrible, I struggle to write about it. Something so disrespectful, so uncaring, so brutal in the disdain shown by the participants. Yes, that’s right, after England’s exit, some of the players were seen not only chatting, and relaxing, but even, and it pains me to say this – laughing.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
A nation was shamed.
This is even worse than to be seen smiling when reminiscing at a funeral. The nation demands no England player is allowed to do anything remotely fun or even attempt a weak smile for at least 3 months. Hey, I don’t make the rules.
There was much spluttering over at The Sun, when they found out.
‘And with feet on tables, the group looked remarkably relaxed at their HQ…despite not even coming close to lifting the tournament’s glittering trophy.’
Relaxing! Imagine! The sheer cheek of it. Look at them SITTING DOWN in their fancy TRACKSUITS drinking their DRINKS! If you squint a bit and turn your head to one side, you might spot a couple of them LAUGHING and – this one is really disgusting – CHATTING.
A few days later, and the Sun had uncovered even more shocking, sickening behaviour.
‘England’s football flops jetted off on their hols yesterday – with a seething nation still wishing they were out in sunny South Africa.’
And look at this. Wayne Rooney has been SPENDING TIME WITH HIS CHILD! Surely the pleasure of seeing his gurgling offspring is one that should’ve been taken away from Wayne. Personally, I’d have banished him from child-caring duties for at least two years.
It gets worse .Frank Lampard was soon off to Sardinia with HIS GIRLFRIEND, where they both LAUGHED and SIPPED ROSE.
But most shocking of all Alex Curran, wife of Steven Gerrard…oh god, I feel sick…HAD HER HAIR DONE.
But as inevitable as a Pete Doherty court appearance, was the news that began to filter through – it was all Manchester City’s fault. In three pieces of 24-carat drivel, Brian Woolnough, Brian Reade and Des Kelly all associated the blame for England’s failures, and the bleak future they faced as being linked to moneybags City and their splashing the cash on fancy foreigners. The famed academy was given the last rites. And the true facts about why England have struggled for decades, why they struggled before foreigners invaded our shores, why they can’t pass to each other, the fact City employ many English players and are pursuing another, the fact our academy never provided much to the England team anyway, well all this was ignored for a cheap swipe. I spoke to Kelly, and other City fans spoke to Woolnough about their pieces. They denied they were just about City despite having our name all over them, having pictures of Garry Cook, and despite the fact they opened the pieces blaming just City. Woolnough admitted he chose City because they were “topical”, Kelly said only 7 of 32 transfers in Premier League has been English players, like this has any relevance to anything. Woolnough’s admission said everything about modern sports journalism – writing to get hits, a response, and a reaction. Forget the quality, feel the quantity. And there’s no one better to write about at the moment than City, and thus the world’s ills are laid at their feet.
And this is what we are presented with by way of sports coverage. Winston Smith had it easy – we get an endless stream of drivel, pumped straight into our brains. There is no escape, and soon you’re booing all English footballers, blaming Manchester City for killing football, blaming everything else on immigrants and setting up Facebook pages declaring what a legend Raoul Moat is, because you believe everything you read in the newspapers.
There is another option though. It’s tough, but the quality journalism is out there, and with a couple of exceptions (Samuel and Conn for example), it’s away from the newspapers and written by normal people like you. People who can analyse failures, can see where the problems lie, can see where the solutions may be, can see beyond rhetoric, the bias of journalists trying to keep in the good books of managers they want stories off, and the PR of the clubs themselves. Good luck. You’re going to need it.
Like a bottle of Sir Alex Ferguson’s finest red, midfield veteran Paul Scholes seems to get better with age.
Described as ‘a master of his trade’ by his manager following Scholes’ man of the match display in United’s 3-0 opening victory against Newcastle last Monday, the ginger magician rolled back the years to deliver a midfield master class in touch, timing and technique at Old Trafford.
Little wonder his evergreen team-mate Ryan Giggs has lauded the United craftsmen as the best player he has ever worked with at Old Trafford, putting him ahead of talents such as Roy Keane, Eric Cantona and Cristiano Ronaldo. Giggs enthused:
‘‘I have played with some great players during my time at United but I would have to put Paul Scholes down as the best.”
Yet it is the assessment of French legend Zinedine Zidane, considered by many as the outstanding player of his generation, which is perhaps the most telling evaluation of Scholes’ supreme talents. Zidane revealed he regrets never having played with Scholes during his career and branded him ‘in a class of his own’ despite his growing years.
“There is no doubt for me that Paul Scholes is still in a class of his own,” revealed Zidane.
“He’s almost untouchable in what he does. I never tire of watching him play. You rarely come across the complete footballer, but Scholes is as close to it as you can get.
“One of my regrets is that the opportunity to play alongside him never presented itself during my career.”
Scholes, with nine league titles and two Champions League medals, is certainly one of the best-ever players to grace the Premier League. His pin-point passing and movement is unmatched, while his technical skill and ability to control a game elevates him alongside the best player’s of his generation. And the one man who certainly appreciates such talents, and qualified to make these judgements, is the outrageously gifted Zidane.
The season may be just two games old but the diminutive former England international shows no sign of slowing down just yet, despite his contract running out at the end of the season. Sir Alex may yet persuade Scholes to stay on for another season if he continues to deliver such exquisite performances in the heart of the United midfield this term. The 35-year-old was up to the same old tricks at Craven Cottage on Sunday, firing The Red Devils into the lead with a rasping 25-yard rasping shot which nestled into the corner of David Stockdale’s net, marking his 150th goal for the club.
Despite no longer possessing the pace he once had when he first broke into the United first-team an astonishing 17 seasons ago, his quick footballing brain keeps him one step ahead of his often beleaguered opponents. The midfield veteran was the division’s most accurate passer last term with a remarkable 89.58% of his passes reaching their intended target. Scholes also was the Premier League’s top passer over the opening round of Premier League matches with 104, streets ahead of nearest competitors Yaya Toure and Michael Essien.
United and Ferguson’s next task will be attempting to replace the seemingly timeless Scholes when he finally decides to call it a day and hang up his boots. Yet with Scholes continuing to deliver at the highest level, I wouldn’t bet on this being his last season at Old Trafford.
Do you agree with Zidane’s assessment? Leave your comments below
VIDEO: Pass-master Scholes
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Like this article? Then follow this author by subscribing to his RSS feed or follow him on Twitter. Read more below-