The Big Match Centre

Who will be Liverpool's next boss?

2010-06-07T05:46:00.000-07:00

So, after only one poor season (but admittedly two or three of political in-fighting with the clubs Yankee-doodle-dandies) Rafa Benitez has left Liverpool FC by 'mutual consent.' So while the two cowboys wipes their backsides with the money they are charging Liverpool in interest payments, who is there out there that can take Liverpool as they stand and make them viable contenders for the title next season - even though said new man will not have any cash to spend?
Here are the names being rumoured for the Liverpool post:

1. Martin O'Neill
2. Guus Hiddink
3. Roy Hodsgon
4. Kenny Dalglish
5. Oswaldo De Oliviera
6. Jurgan (No)Kluesman
7. Manuel Pellegrini.

Let's begin with No.1 shall we?

1. O'Neill.
Only successful in Scotland. Scotland? There are only two teams in Scotland and both teams have done nothing in Europe for so many years, if they were a married couple this would represent celibacy.
Took Villa to a final. With English players. So what? Watching his teams is like watching paint dry. Boring and ridiculously predictable. 4-4-2. Wingers. Big-man and pacy-man up front. The game has moved on from such simplistic tactics. That's why he's at Villa.

2. Hiddink. Had a brief spell in England with Chelsea and was successful. Won a cup with an expensively assembled squad. I could do that. Couldn't get technically brilliant players in Russia to qualify for the WC (not the toilet, the World Cup) and so has opted to lead Turkey instead. I shall refrain from the usual jokes. People say he's a good manager though. But any time a job comes up he's always linked with it. Maybe cos most of the jobs he has taken were just a tad (think South korea folks) but let's face the only reason his record looks good is because he won 90% of it in Holland.

3. Woy Hodgson. Most likeable man in football. Who cares. Football is about winning. Ferguson is feared and respected because he is a winner. He doesn't give a monkey's left you-know-what if anyone likes him. Good ol' Woy has only ever won anything in Switzerland and Sweden. Apart from plaudits but, let's face it, you can't polish plaudits.

4. King Kenny.
Deserted Liverpool (after leaving an ageing squad with way too much influence) claiming the pressures of the game. And who could blame him: Heysel and four years later one of the worst and politically horrifying tragedies of all time at Hillsborough. Then decided to join Blackburn. Eight months later. Moneybags Blackburn bought their way to the title under Dalglish who guided them to the First Division Play-Off victory. Only manager apart from Fergie, Wenger and Ancelotte to win the Premiership. Possibly been out of management too long to fully understand the game now but the biggest doubt is whether he would be able to handle the stress levels with the game even more of a global game under the glare of the media spotlight.

5. Oswaldo De Oliviera.
Who? (Brazilian manager currently plying his trade in the J-League)
And why would he be linked? No idea. Possibly because he would come cheap and is used to the purely coaching side common to so many continental set-ups. The Yanks want someone that will not rock the boat too much.

6. Klinsmann. Couldn't manage to down a pint never mind a football club of Liverpool's stature. Proved that by being a total failure at Bayern Munich. Finally they saw sense and got rid of him. Good players do not make good managers. Why do chairmen not understand this? Idiots. The only reason why Germany looked good was because of Joachim Low. And who is Germany manager now? Oh, hang on.... I know this... Is it... Joachim Low? Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a manager. Managing players of questionable ability to produce performances way beyond their capabilities. Always overlooked this is a real manager that should be commended far more for his tactical and managerial nous than PR gurus like Hiddink et al. IMO a better choice because he has the qualities of Benitez but is more low profile and that's what the Wanks-sorry- Yanks want.

7. Manuel Pellegrini.
Another great manager but will always be carrying around the weight of this: Failed to win anything with over £400 million pounds worth of talent at his disposal in his only season in charge despite scoring 102 (fuck me) league goals and still coming second in the league.
So, who will Liverpool go for? There is now talk of Harry Redknapp but the wheeler-dealer needs money (as he has proven by helping to drive Portsmouth to administration and spending lavishly at Spurs) which he will simply not get at Liverpool until new owners materialise. If they ever do. The logical answer to this question is that with the current situation and uncertainty surrounding the two clowns, no manager will want to come to Liverpool despite claims by silly ex-players who like to fantasise about the lure and stature of "a club like Liverpool" attracting any big-name. Benitez is still one of the biggest names in European football and the way they have systematically attempted to destroy him means that no coach worth his salt would touch the poisoned chalice that is Liverpool Football Club.

Economic Commodity Sacks Boss

2010-06-03T08:56:00.000-07:00

What manner of man would say that a player has to stay at the expense of a manager? What manner of person would qualify that statement with the kind of drivel one would expect from the publicist of Lindsay Lohan after another night on the tiles? David Fairclough, former super-sub of Liverpool Football Club back in the seventies when Liverpool were winning everything under the sun because of the unique philosophies of Shankley and Paisley, that's who when asked about Rafa's potential departure at the expense of Steven Gerrard.
"You have to have Steven here and I think their only hope, probably, was to try and re-structure a change and a new name at the top to perhaps make Steven commit," Fairclough said in an interview with Sky Sports.
"I think he wants to be a Liverpool player for the future but I think he has to be clear about the way Liverpool are moving forward."

Steven Gerrard, captain and supposed inspiration of Liverpool Football Club, spent most of last season sulking (on the pitch during games no less) and looking a shadow of the player that has so often destroyed opposing defences. What right does a player that quite clearly did not have the interests of the club at heart by playing so abysmally and sulking like a petulant schoolboy, to demand the resignation of the manager? Unfortunately, the Yanks loan sharks are only interested in player shirt sales and Gerrard's name sells shirts so it was obvious there would only be one winner.

Ever since the advent of the Premiership and the obscene levels of pay handed out to players since the Sky TV deal started back in the nineties, the cliche "player-power" has grown but it has always been noticeably (and welcomely) absent. Until today. If reports are to be believed then it was a falling out with "senior players" that was ultimately Rafa's downfall but it is not the job of a player to determine the fate of his boss. Unless you are an economically-viable commodity of course.

The Liverpool way used to be "no-one is bigger than the club" but it seems Mr Fairclough has forgotten the philosophy that endeared him to the hearts of Liverpool fans.

England's Chances in South Africa

2010-05-22T06:27:00.000-07:00

Under Fabio Capello, England have looked a much stronger unit especially against mid-range opposition they have traditionally slipped up against. For the Group Stage, Capello's men will face USA, Algeria and Slovenia and I do not foresee any slipups with England topping their group easily. The only question being how many will they score.
The first knockout phase of the World Cup is where the real test begins with a possible fixture against the runner-up of Group D from Germany, Australia, Serbia and Ghana. Germany will win this group easily with the only real threat possibly coming from Serbia who finished top of their qualifying group ahead of France. Serbia possess some dangerous players and can be difficult to break down with players like Jovanovic (Liverpool), Nikola Zigic (Valencia), Milos Krasic (CSKA Moscow) and Dejan Stankovic (Inter) all potentially match-winners. It is likely England will face either Serbia or Ghana in the first knockout stage with my money going on a tie against Serbia who I think will be too good for Ghana.

Next up is a tie against the winner of Group A from South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay or France against the runners-up of Group B from Argentina, Nigeria, South Korea and Greece. In all likelihood, France will probably win Group A but with the in-form Mexico and the dangerous Uruguayans, it will be tough for France as well as the host nation South Africa. Previous World Cups have always sprung a surprise in this regard, with South Korea and Japan both doing well when they jointly hosted the World Cup in 2002, but the two South American sides are very dangerous and might prove too much for a well-supported Bofana-Bofana. I predict Mexico to finish as runners-up to France whose likely opponents will probably be Greece or Nigeria who should not pose a problem for the French.
So, a tie against the former champions looks likely failing any slipups, who became the first team to inflict defeat upon Fabio Capello as England manager but the French are not the force they once were and England should edge past to a semi-final berth with Brazil, Holland, Spain, Italy and Portugal all possible opponents.
Against teams of this calibre you will be looking to your key-men to make something happen but England only really have Gerrard, Lampard and Rooney who can do any real damage against teams of a higher quality. There are just too many slightly above average players in the England squad and against the likes of Spain, Brazil and Italy it will be too much of a struggle if the first eleven are unable to create decent chances. Already, the Spanish have exposed England's weaknesses in a friendly in 2009 after emerging 2-0 victors in a test of how far England had improved under Capello but with the strength of this current Spanish side only seeming to increase, all bets are on Spain to lift the World Cup this year.
England under Fabio Capello are certainly a stronger prospect than ever but the quality of the opposition is such that a semi-final place will be the highest England will achieve in South Africa.

Graham Matheson

The real state of Liverpool FC

2010-05-12T23:57:00.000-07:00

(The following is reproduced from the website forums on http://www.raotl.co.uk/ as well as http://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/index.php?topic=257942.0 )

While "senior sources" at the club (Christan Purslow) try to facilitate a smear campaign against the manager, pretend everything is rosy at the club and briefs the press to headline the Rick Parry pay off on the day the club's financials are tactically released on election results day; here's what's really going on at Liverpool Football Club:

The figures released on Friday 8th May 2010 indicate that Liverpool FC is in net debt to the tune of £351m; an increase of £52m from last year’s figure.

A total of £233.996m is owed to RBS, in addition to an inter-company loan of £144.441m owed to “Kop Cayman”; a company owned by Gillett and Hicks based in the Cayman Island for tax reasons; a company that have loaned Liverpool FC £144.441m at an interest rate of 10%. This is the “own money” that Gillett and Hicks claim to have put into the club. In reality, they’re just charging the club 10% interest for lending that money through an offshore limited liability company that they aren’t even personally liable for – Liverpool FC are.

Liverpool FC are not paying the interest off on that £144.4m however. It is being charged as a “compound interest”, meaning the interest isn’t paid, but is instead “rolled up” to the grand total. For example, this year (if I’ve got this right):

£144.4m @ 10% interest = £14.44m payable this year.

Instead of paying that £14.44m, it is rolled onto the total making the outstanding debt owed to Kop Cayman £158.88m. The following year this is then charged at a further 10% interest:

£158.88m @ 10% interest = £15.88m payable next year.

Instead of paying that £15.88m, it is rolled onto the total making the outstanding debt owed to Kop Cayman £174.76m. The following year this is then charged at a further 10% interest:

£174.76m @ 10% interest = £17.76m payable next year.

Instead of paying that £17.76m, it is rolled onto the total making the outstanding debt owed to Kop Cayman £192.52m etc etc etc...

The debt soon spirals out of control, as you can see; and don’t forget, this only concerns the £144.4m owed to Gillett and Hick’s Cayman Islands company – it doesn’t concern the huge £234m owed to RBS.

The financial figures released last week are for the 2008/09 season.

Those figures declare the club made a loss of around £52m for that year, due to the interest repayments on the loans and another £22m spent on the new ground; on what that was spent on we have no idea. There’s nothing to show for it anyway – and the total spend on the new ground now exceeds £50m. To put that into perspective – Sunderland managed to build the 48,000 seat Stadium of Light for a lot less than that. We have a few fences up at the back of the Anfield Road End!

Anyway – we made a loss of £52m that year despite finishing 2nd in the league and reaching the latter stages of the Champions League. The accounts also declared a profit made on player transfers (despite Purslow telling us we don’t need to sell players to balance the books and service debt, and Rafa being accused of wasting millions on players – the accounts prove otherwise).

What are next year’s figures (which will reflect the financial state we’re in today) going to look like with a 7th place league finish and an early elimination from the Champions League? We will also have an increased debt to service as explained above.

Then what about the figures for the next financial year when there’s no Champions League money at all coming in?

While the current owners are in place, we are going to continue to fall further and further into debt. We cannot meet the repayments on the loan as it stands now, and with our revenue due to fall with the lack of Champions League football, we’re on the brink of going into administration.

Anyone with hopes of making any signings in the summer or any future transfer windows needs a reality check. We are going to be very lucky to be hold onto the players we’ve got, never mind being able to bring anybody else in.

Gerrard and Torres don’t want to leave because they don’t like the manager (Purslow is feeding this story to the media to whip up the “Rafa Out campaign”); they want to leave as they know there is zero chance of any new players of any quality arriving at the club in its current state. They also know there’s zero chance of any top class manager coming to the club if Benitez decides to walk or is pushed; no manager worth his salt would come to work at the club under these conditions. They know the club is only going one way.

Until Gillett and Hicks are removed from the club, we’re only going to decline. It really is as simple as that. Nothing else matters.

And remember – these debts haven’t been accumulated through overspending in trying to buy success and compete like was the case at Portsmouth, Leeds and various other clubs – they are entirely generated through debt loaded onto the club just so Gillett and Hicks can own us and bleed us dry with expense claims, management fees, arrangement fees for every refinance deal and wasting over £50m of the club’s money on a non-existent new stadium.

This isn’t the result of bad individual club management as Richard Scudamore of The Premier League claims; it is the result of a leveraged buyout that has loaded the cost of buying the club onto the club to repay. Something The Premier League, The FA, UEFA and FIFA should be doing everything in their power to prevent ever happening again.

2007: £44m debt (£3m per year to service)
2008: £350m debt (£36.5m per year to service)
2009: £378m debt (£40m per year to service)
2010: ???

Those are the levels of debt on the club, with it being only £44m before Gillett and Hicks bought the club. Therefore the club’s profits were able to be invested back into the squad, allowing us to compete on the pitch. We’re now crippled by debts we cannot service, when that £40m leaving the club each year in interest repayments should be being spent on new players.

£76.5m has left the club in interest repayments alone in the past 2 years – and in that time – the manager has not spent a single penny on new players. It’s been a sell to buy policy, with profits being made on transfers in the past few transfer windows as the books needed to be balanced; all while the clubs around us are spending to strengthen. How can we be expected to compete under those conditions?

The debt is growing with every passing day. As a result of the lack of investment in the squad (as well as bad luck with injuries / poor decisions / players out of form etc), we’re paying the price on the field with declining performances which will therefore reduce the club’s revenue even further – giving us even less money to service increasing debts. A vicious circle. It’s unsustainable.

Liverpool FC is paying £110,000 every single day in interest repayments to service a debt we should never have in the first place. That’s £110,000 a day of the club’s money that me and you generate, that we should be seeing spent on new players or developing the club; instead – we are standing back and watching the club being raped in front of our very eyes.

YANKS OUT!"

---

Please pass the information in this post on to anyone you can - our club is paying £110,000 PER DAY in interest, and that figure will only grow. We need to act now.

Please keep checking the group frequently for updates on what we can do.

Terry Tamed by Bridge

2010-03-04T09:19:00.000-08:00

When I was asked to write the following column, I was slightly concerned that it would detract from being a sports column to more of a preachy, moral argument about the rights and wrongs of relationships...but I’ll try anyway.
Tiger Woods, Ashley Cole and now John Terry, it’s as if being unfaithful is fashionable and the ‘in’ thing for this season. We all know that Tiger and Ashley have been linked with a number of women recently, with JT being involved with one known girl. So why is JT getting the most of the bad press? Simple, Ashley and Woods were with a string of random girls, JT on the other hand just happened to sleep around with former team-mate Wayne Bridge’s girl.
Now I’m not interested or even bothered about the details, but as far as I’m concerned, you don’t go for your mate’s missus, no matter how drunk/hot/desperate she is. It’s an unwritten rule and JT broke the rule.
So let’s look at Saturday, Chelsea v Man City, Terry and Bridge on the pitch together, would sparks fly, would there be fists, maybe a dreaded FA inquiry on conduct? No, aside from the refusal of Bridge to shake JT’s hand, it was business as usual. Was Bridge right to snub JT’s outstretched hand? In a nutshell, yes, I doubt that any sane man would have shook hands with him. OK then, the furious encounter never transpired – both maintained a degree of professional behaviour, suggesting that the managers must have pleaded for calm before the match.
Long-term implications? Bridge has pretty much ruled himself out the World Cup this summer, citing team unity – last thing the media need is a bust-up in team England’s camp in South Africa; but we should feel for the guy, he’s a solid defender, something that we lack and being 33-34 when the next World Cup comes around, who’s to say he’ll be in the running then.
Moving on to last night – JT playing for England, aside from a few wayward passes and occasional booing, the performance was acceptable and as the commentators said; there are still 100 days until the World Cup and lots can change between now and then. Here’s hoping Capello reaches out to Bridge privately and rationally asks him back to the team.
We all know football is a funny game and shame that all this took place in a World Cup year, but here’s hoping for another major story between now (foreign story ideally) and then so all parties involved can get aboard that plane to South Africa and show unity.

Omar Malick

An Unholy Alliance

2010-02-24T07:45:00.000-08:00

Something amazing is happening in the North West. Born from a mutual hatred of uncaring, selfish and money-orientated owners two of football's biggest rival supporters, Liverpool and Manchester United, are on the verge of a truce in hostilities to join forces in a single voice against the ownership of American businessmen that have taken both clubs severely into debt and failed on promises made at the beginning of their tenure.
Manchester United are nearly £800million in the red (maybe the Americans think that if their team's shirts are red, then so should everything else!) which consists of £500million raised through a recent bonds issue that has only given the
Glazer's extra time to pay back the staggering debt, and payment in kind (PIK) notes, debt for which they are personally responsible taking the total borrowing to £716.5 million, are due to be repaid in 2017. Payment in kind? Isn't this just an elaborate name for an IOU note? And these people call themselves serious businessmen? I think the key question here is whether this is making a mockery of the values of football when a club can be bought with, effectively, monopoly money.
Liverpool's owners, Hicks & Gillett, fare no better in the scales of decency as they struggle to find investors willing to stump up at least £100million before the deadline in July. Part of the agreement of last year's refinancing demanded the investment of £100 million by this July before a longer refinancing agreement could be put in place with money released to begin work on the (needed) new stadium. Without the new stadium, Liverpool Football Club look in danger of slipping out of the top four, unable to compete on a financial playing field with the other Big-Four clubs. Although a 60,000 seater stadium suits a big London club like Arsenal where prices are very high, for a club from the North with traditionally lower prices (which fits the socialist policy of the great Bill Shankly) is a 60,000 seater stadium enough for Liverpool to compete with Manchester United whose stadium holds over 76,000?
Plans to stage the joint protest at the game at Old Trafford are currently at the discussion stage and, reportedly, will probably be limited to protests within the ground due to the history of animosity between the two clubs, if it happens at all.
Whatever the outcome, this joint show of strength from two rivals shows the level of disappointment that fans currently feel towards the way their clubs are run by owners that do not understand the footballing side nor the history of their respective clubs and is a step in the right direction for all football. But with some clubs being mismanaged to the point of farce (Portsmouth and Notts County to name just two) and the authorities seemingly powerless or reluctant to do anything about it, is it now time for football clubs to be handed back to the communities from whence the beautiful game emerged and hand ownership to the supporters?

Fourth-Place Playoff Plans for Premiership

2010-02-16T11:45:00.000-08:00

So Game 39 was a non-starter, what else can the bureaucrats at Premiership HQ come up with to generate even more money? Eureka! Someone cried, “Let’s have a play-off for fourth-place.” Is this a good idea? Really?
There have been many blogs and articles written of late supporting this idea providing a variety of reasoning why it should be at the very least considered, with one of the strongest being that it might break the monopoly of the Big-Four on the Champions League places. From the need to inject some excitement at the end of the season (what? the title race isn't exciting?) to the desire to break the stranglehold of the Big-Four. But the need for change has to be carefully considered before drastic action should be taken. Also, just because there are four teams that vie for the top four places every year, is this league not exciting?

Let's look at the example of The Championship. After a long, hard gruelling season, a team finishes third only to have to engage in further battles against teams that have not proven themselves good enough over the course of a season as they fight for a place in The Premiership. Think of it as the last-chance-saloon (or father Christmas) for those who have failed to consistently perform. The general idea behind the play-offs is that it provides an additional incentive towards the end of the season to keep interest alive for football fans that would otherwise (supposedly) lost interest if their teams did not have anything to play for. This may well work for the Championship and lower leagues but to have this kind of competition in what is considered to be the most elite league in the world has the potential to devalue not only the Premier League itself, but also the Champions League.

Like-it-or-not, the teams that get into the Champions League deserve to be there because they have consistently performed better than the teams below them in the league. Whilst it may be argued that the level of money being thrown at the Big-Four because they are constantly in the Champions League is providing them with greater resources with which to make that an almost-certainty every year, should we be punishing them simply because they are successful?

In the one season for a long time when there is genuine competition at the top, the Premier League big-wigs decide to come up with a plan that has only worked for lower league sides. Do any of the top European sides have this? Would they consider it? The Champions League is a reward for a team that has worked hard to get itself into a position to test itself against Europe's best. It is not a competition to be taken lightly.

I understand that there is a great need for change but that change should not come at the expense of quality or the very ethos of the world's most cherished sport.

Graham Matheson

The Football Edition of Monopoly

2010-02-13T03:17:00.000-08:00

Notts County and Portsmouth. Both clubs will have to go through a “fit and proper persons test” to prove that potential new owners will be able to manage the club yet this isn’t the first time that both clubs have changed hands this year. For the fourth time this season, Portsmouth are looking for new owners once more after Ali Al-Faraj failed in his bid to attract new investors. The current “owner” does not wish to own the club and only took over after Portsmouth failed to pay back the money he had loaned the club.

This farce has been allowed to happen even though the Premier League has its “fit and proper persons test” which is supposed to allow only those who are financially responsible to run a football club. What it does is investigate whether potential owners have fallen foul of any financial irregularities and will then disqualify potential directors on the back of any findings. So the question remains: why has this farce at Pompey been allowed to continue? These rules need to be tighter to encompass suitability to run a football club without the use of debt because now we are seeing far too many Championship and League 1 teams in danger of going into administration with Crystal Palace joining the list of clubs teetering on the brink. Even Chester City are in serious trouble in the Blue Square Premier League after their players refused to travel for a game after not being payed. They will now have to explain their reasoning to the FA. Perhaps potential new owners should provide full and detailed evidence of their accounts as well as their plans to the Premier League so that they can be held accountable in the event of the club incurring debts or provide proof that their wealth is not based on loans and they can genuinely run a football club in the same way a business is run - spend what you earn not what you want.
Notts County now have a new owner but one with experience of football ownership having been chairman of Lincoln City previously. Ray Trew bought the club for £1 last week with debts of £3.9 million and has immediately dismissed the "fanciful" idea of being in the Premiership "within five years" instead concentrating on the more realistic target of survival which should have always been the target for a club in trouble in the first place. Don't run before you can walk should have been the motto of Notts County before making big name signings in Sven Goran Eriksson and Campbell. Admittedly, Eriksson has done the decent thing and written off the debts the club owes to him, something in the region of £2.5 million. It is precisely this unselfish attitude which will save these clubs and provide supporters with a little of belief that not everyone in the game is a mercenary.
Look at the other clubs with significant debt levels, Liverpool and Manchester United being prime examples. £237 million and £790 million in debt respectively, both clubs were "purchased" by their current owners with the promise of providing a more competitive club. But very little of the owners money has gone into the clubs with Liverpool needing to conjure up £100 million before July to satisfy the bank's conditions for the debt repayments. UEFA has promised to ban any clubs in significant debt, although whether this is to "save" the clubs or to quell the growing might of the Premier League is another question that only Michel Platini can answer.
Football is not a game of Monopoluy: it is a century old game with firm roots in the psyche of the football supporter and the treatment of Portsmouth, it's staff and fans is nothing short of disrespectful and greedy. Paying for a club with nothing more substantial than the loans of businessmen is not the way to run any club. Public opinion is now firmly against this type of behaviour but the mentality of "a white knight" needs to be removed from the psyche also. Then we can get down to the business of paying agreeable rates for players with money earned by the clubs instead of nearly bankrupting clubs in search of success.

Graham Matheson

Left Back... In the Changing Rooms!

2010-02-12T04:40:00.000-08:00

The problems just keep piling up for Fabio Capello. More injury worries for a coach already tarting to feel the stresses and strains of a predatory national media. The biggest news this week is that Ashley Cole has been ruled out for three months with a broken ankle. This is worrying news indeed, especially when you consider the problems English players have had this season. Glen Johnson’s season has been injury-plagued making him a doubt, Rio Ferdinand off-form and injured some of this season, John Terry mired in a personal crisis. Midfield is no different. Steven Gerrard has barely hit top form when fit this year, Gareth Barry has been steady but virtually anonymous for Manchester City, Joe Cole has been injured for much of the season, Frank Lampard has played well in a top-of-the-table Chelsea team but has failed to hit the goal-scoring form of previous seasons, Shaun Wright-Phillips has not played well at all for City while Aaron Lennon, in wonderful form for Spurs, has failed to reproduce that at international level - and is currently injured.
In attack, the old work-horse Emile Heskey could not score if his kid’s lives depended on it - that’s presuming he ever gets into a scoring position anyway. Much like Jim Morrison of The Doors who turned his back on the audience because he was so nervous of performing, Heskey has his back permanently to the goal that it is a wonder that he remembers what an opposition goalkeeper looks like. That leaves only Rooney. A player that has taken on the mantle of main-man at Manchester united since the departure of the Portuguese Prince, Christiano Ronaldo, bloggers and reporters are slowly running out of superlatives to describe how brilliant Rooney has been this season with many dramatically carving into print their fears should Rooney suffer an injury before the World Cup.
Rooney’s importance to United cannot be overstated this season as his goals have kept a side shorn of much of their defence for long spells, breathing down the neck of Chelsea. But it is not just his goals that have captured the attention of scribes all over the land. His performances this season have been so fantastic that more begrudging supporters have applauded his effort, work-rate and obvious quality, evident in the applause he received from Villa fans after chasing Ashley Young down the left-flank in the 80th minute with no sign of tiredness. That coupled with a maturity not previously seen from a player known for his fiery temper has seen those pundits look at Rooney with a new-found admiration.
Should Rooney suffer an injury before the World Cup has begun, many pundits and journalists fear England’s bid to win the tournament for a second time will be over such has his form been this season. So those of a religious nature should start praying now because England without Rooney will not stand a chance in South Africa.

Graham Matheson

Weekly Predictions - Results

2010-02-10T06:21:00.000-08:00

The Big Match Centre Weekly Predictions - Results

Saturday, 6 February 2010
Barclays Premier League

Bolton 0-0 Fulham,
Burnley 2-1 West Ham

Hull 2-1 Man City,
Liverpool 1-0 Everton,
Man Utd 5-0 Portsmouth,
Stoke 3-0 Blackburn,
Sunderland 2-0 Wigan,
Tottenham 0-0 Aston Villa,

Sunday, 7 February 2010
Barclays Premier League

Birmingham 2-1 Wolverhampton,
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal,

Graham got five results right with two perfect scores!

This Week's News

2010-02-09T04:59:00.000-08:00

Blackburn fan dies after collapsing during Stoke match

Whilst there was some fantastic and exciting football over the weekend, it must not be forgotten that a man lost his life at the Stoke v Blackburn match. The Blackburn fan, Mr Taylor, was found unconscious just after half-time after an incident in the Brittannia Stadium's South Stand. Police have detained a 25 year old man to "help with their enquiries" after details where released of how the incident transpired. It was alleged Mr taylor was hit with a bin and had to be treated immediately at the scene for a serious head injury and cardiac arrest. He later died in hospital at 1:55am.
Staffordshire Police are appealing to anyone who witnessed the incident, or who may have videoed it on their mobile phone, to contact the Major Investigations Department on 01785 233600, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

La Liga News

Barcelona finish with nine men against Getafe but still manage to win 2-1 thanks to goals from Messi and Xavi... Real keep the gap to only 5 points with a routine 3-0 victory over Espanyol at The Bernabau, the goals coming from Ramos, Kaka and Higuain... Deportivo continued their miserly defensive record with a 0-0 draw away at Malaga taking them a point behind Sevilla in 6th place... whilst Valencia maintained their grip on third place with a 2-0 victory over Valladolid, the goals coming from Banega and Villa.

More news to follow

Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal: Effectiveness triumphs over the effete

2010-02-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

A war of attrition yesterday in Merseyside; today, a contrast of styles in North London. Arsenal's inventiveness and crisp passing style, epitomised by the diminutive attackers Nasri, Fabregas and Arshavin, against the power and aggression of Chelsea's Drogba, Terry and Carvalho. Super Sunday is Sky's moniker for weekly Premier league battles and this was indeed a Super Sunday game.

Arsenal had a point to prove after being so easily swept aside by Manchester United last week, prompting Wenger to pronounce, "Now, instead of being intimidated, I believe we have to really have a go..." That job was made extremely difficult as Drogba popped up at the far post in the eighth minute with too much room having lost his marker, Song, to tap in for the opening goal. For all of Arsenal's controlled possession and determination to get the ball, they were sorely lacking any real threat or quality up front as through balls directed at Arshavin were easily mopped up by Terry and Carvalho.

Before the game, Ancelotti was asked how he planned to stop Arsenal. His emphatic answer was simple and demonstrated so ably by his plaers: "counter attack." And counter attack they did, with the second goal coming courtesy of a swift counter as Lampard broke through the middle of the park before passing to Drogba on the edge of the Arsenal box. A quick turn past the defender, an admittedly lucky bobble, but there could be no mistake about the assured left-foot finish from Drogba who, before the game, revealed in an interview that he wanted to "score a hat-trick" against Arsenal.

In the good old days of Mourinho, Chelsea would easily go two goals up and close out games and it was no different today, despite a determined Arsenal performance. Plenty of possession and good work outside the penalty box but, as is so often the case when describing Arsenal, no presence in attack to counter the physical approach of the Chelsea back-line. Even with the introduction of Nicolas Bendtner Arsenal failed to fashion any real clear chances and things could have been much worse later in the game when Drogba fired a free-kick against the bar.

Wenger may have learned that his side have a little determination left in them but it is simple mistakes and a lack of concentration at set-pieces that are hampering his gifted side at present. Two of the big four have been played in the space of a week and on both occasions his side have been found out. Too easily crowded out around the penalty box and forced out wide where, forced to cross the ball, big central defenders can ply their trade with relative ease against diminutive attackers. Arsenal face a resurgent and fighting Liverpool at The Emirates on Wednesday and it will take a monumental slice of luck, as they received at Anfield with the Johnson own goal, and a similarly determined performance coupled with a more clinical attitude to get anything against a more compact Liverpool side that have only conceded one goal in seven league games.

Graham Matheson

England to face Wales in Euro Qualifying

2010-02-07T05:43:00.000-08:00

England face a tricky couple of games against Wales in their qualifying group for Euro 2012. The draw for the Championship was made today and sees England face Switzerland, Bulgaria, Wales and Montenegro whilst current holders, Spain, have the Czech Republic, Scotland, Lithuania and Liechtenstein to contend with. While the rest of the home nations have a few long flights to eastern Europe to battle with the likes of FYR Macedonia, Estonia, Russia and Slovakia. Not too mention the poor quality of football pitch and fabled eastern bloc facilities.
The only real interesting thing of note to mention was Capello's immediate response to a reporter, "No questions about Rio Ferdinand, John Terry or the captaincy. I have spoken with John and will speak with Rio. No problem with the captaincy. Thanks and bye." Obviously knew the question was going to arise. Cracking answer, though.
Group A: Germany, Turkey, Austria, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan
Group B: Russia, Slovakia, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND, FYR Macedonia, Armenia, Andorra
Group C: Italy, Serbia, NORTHERN IRELAND Slovenia, Estonia, Faroe Islands
Group D: France, Romania, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Belarus, Albania, Luxembourg

Group E: Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, Moldova, San Marino

Group F: Croatia, Greece, Israel, Latvia, Georgia, Malta

Group G: ENGLAND, Switzerland, Bulgaria, WALES, Montenegro

Group H: Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Cyprus, Iceland

Group I: Spain, Czech Republic, SCOTLAND, Lithuania, Liechtenstein

So it looks like more of the same for the Championships in 2012. The same teams tournament after tournament. Or will there be a surprise sprung just this once? Let's hope so.

Graham Matheson

Committed thuggery wins the day

2010-02-06T09:13:00.000-08:00

There are too many superlatives to describe this bitter, hard-fought encounter between the Merseyside rivals which saw two red cards in each half as well as a number of crunching and poorly-timed, plus some nasty, tackles. So I will dispense with a poetic introduction talking of "passion and combativeness in a war of attrition" and instead focus on the finer details of a game that, minus the ball, was nothing more than brutal example of a city divided in hate.

A finely disciplined Liverpool side, down to 10 men for almost 60 minutes of this truculent match, easily held at bay a guileless Everton attack to win 1-0 in the 213th Merseyside derby. The goal came courtesy of an inch-perfect corner from Steven Gerrard right onto the head of the battling Kuyt who easily out-muscled Howard and Neville to glance a header into the net.

Everton should have been ahead just before the break when Tim Cahill, unmarked, sent a diving header just over the bar that a struggling Reina would never have saved if on target. After the break, Liverpool sat back with two banks of four that closed the space, not allowing Everton any room to get behind, and easily dealing with any crosses or long balls that were Everton's only hope of breaking through. The only real weakness in the Liverpool rearguard was the left-back, Insua, who was unable to stop Donovan making a decent run into the box and Anichebe which, on both occasions were stopped by either a resolute Daniel Agger and Liverpool rearguard or poor decision-making from the Blue forwards.

Now let's talk about the tackles that forced Atkinson into making a decision. There can be no doubt about it; Fellaini should have been sent off. His was an over-the-ball challenge which in any other game and with any other referee, would not have been tolerated, a challenge which has been the cause of serious injuries for many players; precisely the type of challenge that referees are supposed to be punishing. The challenge by Pienaar on Mascherano beggars belief: why did the referee not send him off? Okay he got a booking, but again, this is an over-the-ball tackle that could have been damaging for Mascherano who, coincidentally, was sent off against Portsmouth for a similar tackle. What was going through Mr Atkinson’s mind when he saw this challenge? Because everyone in Anfield knew it was a red-card. Also, why was Phil Neville’s deliberate scything on Gerrard as he went through on the wing, not given a yellow card just as Kuyt’s challenge on Donovan was mid-way through the first half?

Noticeably absent was the opinionated trill of Sky’s bulldog-in-chief, Andy Gray, who failed to make a single comment on any of Neville’s finely crafted attempts to stop a player’s momentum, especially after he cynically scythed down Maxi in the second half with a trailing leg three feet in the air. Complete silence greeted viewers upon showing of the replay.

Interviewed after the game, Steven Gerrard was surprisingly diplomatic in his assessment of the "committment" shown on both sides proclaiming, "that's what the supporters want to see: passion." Of that he is correct, but what they do not want to see is poor refereeing in an atmosphere that required a greater sense of character and judgement.

The game itself lacked quality and finesse, even when Arteta came on for the "injured" Fellaini whose leg, remarkably, showed no sign of a break after being X-rayed.

So, Liverpool, another clean sheet to back up their claims of "turning the corner" head to The Emirates midweek after only conceding a single goal in seven matches to face an Arsenal team that were easily brushed aside by a far-from-impressive United. can the run continue? If it does, will fourth spot be the limit to Liverpool's ambition or will that third spot be up for grabs?

Graham Matheson

Fight Club (Or the fight for fourth)

2010-02-06T03:51:00.000-08:00

As the media circus over the Terry affair continues even after Capello's decision to demote the defender and the nation's army of bloggers are inundated with slavering, barely comprehendible comments from football fans, the issue of the fight for a top-four place renews with some interest today. Liverpool have the chance to sneak into the top four, if only for a few hours, before Tottenham face Aston Villa at White Hart Lane if they can overcome an in-form Everton who have won their last three league games and produced a near-match winning performance at the Emirates before succumbing to a late Rosicky goal. Victory is far from assured for Liverpool who are also on a good run, unbeaten in the last six league games, winning 4 and drawing two of those matches.

Liverpool face a crucial period of their stuttering season as they prepare for the 213th Merseyside derby, with Arsenal and Manchester City to follow. Benitez has reaffirmed the importance of this period for their hopes of finishing in the top four, "It is important to keep winning games to maintain the momentum and it would be fantastic to win all three but you have to start with the first one. We want to make sure we get back into the top four and this is the first opportunity to try and do that." Looking at the table, it is weasy to see how close the fight for fourth place is, but Harry Redknapp reportedly has said that even third spot is up for grabs, "Someone could get third spot. Manchester City could. We could. Liverpool could. Anyone is capable with a run. Arsenal are not 100% sure to be there if they get beaten by Chelsea and other teams pick up good results." Liverpool currently lie eight points behind Arsenal in 5th place, a win today against the Toffees and a Chelsea win would see them close the gap to five points with the game at The Emirates to come next week.

POS	NAME	P	W	D	L	F	A	W	D	L	F	A	GD	PTS
1	Chelsea	24	11	1	0	37	8	6	3	3	21	12	+38	55
2	Man Utd	24	10	1	1	31	8	7	1	4	25	12	+36	53
3	Arsenal	24	9	1	2	35	14	6	3	3	25	14	+32	49
4	Tottenham	24	8	1	3	28	8	4	5	3	17	17	+20	42
5	Liverpool	24	8	2	2	30	11	4	3	5	12	15	+16	41
6	Manchester City	22	8	3	0	28	14	3	5	3	16	16	+14	41
7	Aston Villa	23	6	4	2	17	7	5	3	3	14	11	+13	40

But first is the small matter of a derby victory. Derbies are rarely ever pretty on the eye as the home crowd bays for blood and bragging rights until the next meeting but Liverpool have the upper hand as they are unbeaten at Anfield since 1999 and can boast a record of only 2 defeats in the last 20 games. The Merseyside derby has always been a hotly contested affair but during the eighties it was also touted as "The Friendly Derby" with both sets of supporters enjoying the game and taking the inevitable banter after games in the spirit it deserved. But the nineties saw a change in attitude. What constituted that, I could not say precisely but the animosity still lingers. Some say it is because of the Heysel disaster and Everton's subsequent downfall from the pinnacle of Division 1 (pre-Premiership) but Paul Tomkins, a best-selling Liverpool author, believes "Liverpool’s superior record on the pitch has also played its part in straining the relations between supporters, with Liverpool adopting the role of the smirking older brother, and Everton the put-upon younger sibling." Whatever the reason, the intensity is there, let's just hope that passion is played out on the pitch in a positive manner so that we can all enjoy a cracking game of football for a change.

Graham Matheson

The Big Match Centre Weekly Predictions

2010-02-05T04:22:00.000-08:00

The Big Match Centre Weekly Predictions

Saturday, 6 February 2010
Barclays Premier League

Bolton 1-0 Fulham,
Burnley 2-1 West Ham

Hull 1-2 Man City,
Liverpool 2-1 Everton,
Man Utd 4-0 Portsmouth,
Stoke 1-1 Blackburn,
Sunderland 2-0 Wigan,
Tottenham 2-1 Aston Villa,

Sunday, 7 February 2010
Barclays Premier League

Birmingham 2-0 Wolverhampton,
Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal,

Another huge game this weekend as two of the colossal 'big-four' come face-to-face at Stamford Bridge. Ancellotti versus Wenger; Terry versus the world! This is a clash that will determine whether Arsenal stay in the hunt for the title or will they emerge as toothless and easily shut-out?

Graham's Weekly Predictions - Results

2010-02-03T04:24:00.000-08:00

Saturday 30th January 2010

Birmingham 1-1 Tottenham

Burnley 1-2 Chelsea

Fulham 0-2 Aston Villa

Hull 2-2 Wolves

Liverpool 2-0 Bolton

West Ham 0-0 Blackburn

Wigan 0-1 Everton

Sunday 31st January 2010

Man City 2-0 Portsmouth

Arsenal 1-3 Man Utd

Graham got 5 results right with 2 perfect scores this week.

A brief affair...

2010-02-02T11:50:00.000-08:00

For years, many have complained at the lack of available talent amongst British coaching staff and that of the good coaches working in the lower leagues, an extremely small amount are given the chance to try their luck at a bigger club or a more difficult league. So it came as a surprise this season when, after sacking previous manager Darren Ferguson (who had achieved a remarkable feat of back-to-back promotions) the club opted to appoint a manager from outside the Football League; the impressive Kettering boss, Mark Cooper.

Mr Cooper certainly impressed Posh owner, Darragh MacAnthony, who was reported as saying he was impressed with Cooper’s study of sixteen DVDs and this was enough for the owner of the Posh to bravely state that this was a positive new era for the club. Diligent preparation for interview aside, what other credentials did the former Kettering boss have that could back up such a glowing statement? His record for Kettering was excellent (forgetting the standard of the league he plied his trade in) with a 57.41% win ratio from 108 games. Not bad.
Starting at Peterborough United, Cooper was tasked with dragging a club out of a relegation fight that many thought they would struggle to get out of due to the poor quality of the squad for the Championship. But only one win from thirteen games proved too much for the board who, obviously felt that, jumping four divisions was too much for Mark Cooper.
But how can someone prove themselves if they are not given the time to do so? Thirteen games is not enough. They were already in the relegation zone, perhaps Paul Daniels may have been a wiser appointment. Then again, he only does tricks, not magic. And Debbie McGee is a bit of a distraction. On second thoughts - maybe the Chairman should just have thought a little harder first before being impressed with someone's DVD collection.
There are not too many teams that have escaped relegation after changing managers midway through a season. There are certainly not any that I can think of that have escaped relegation after changing their manager TWICE in the same season. Come to think of it, are there any that have changed their manager this many times before the beginning of February?
Having spent a considerable amount of his own cash building a squad his managers thought would be competitive, it is the owner’s choice to dispense with any component part that is not working. But football is not business; you cannot just replace a broken part/crappy worker and expect the new one to work fine. Any coach will tell you that this approach will only lead to trouble. The trouble is, Posh may have just booked their ticket back to League One.

Graham Matheson

Curse a footballer's loins!

2010-02-01T12:11:00.000-08:00

Captain Courageous is now Captain Contradiction after the startling revelations surrounding John Terry's alleged affair with Wayne Bridge's ex-girlfriend, the French lingerie model, Vanessa Perroncel. Reports suggest that Terry paid for the model to have an abortion after learning that she was pregnant with the married Chelsea skipper's child.
This news has come as quite a shock to Wayne Bridge, who has a son with Miss Perroncel, but some have suggested that it was this that soured the previously close relationship between the two England defenders.

Whilst this is a personal matter for Wayne Bridge, it does raise considerable doubts over the pedigree and character of the man who will lead England in this summer's World Cup in South Africa. Terry's wife, Toni, has apparently asked for a divorce and there is currently a media frenzy demanding he be stripped of the captaincy for his supposed antics. If this allegation is proven as true then John Terry should do the honourable thing and resign as England Captain instead of dragging this out and damaging the relationship he currently has with his team-mates.
The matter now rests in the hands of Fabio Capello, who is reportedly monitoring the situation from Switzerland where he is currently recovering from knee surgery.

Graham's Weekly Predictions

2010-01-30T05:02:00.000-08:00

So the time has come for battle to recommence! The War in Iraq may be some brief entertainment on the six o'clock news for a little titillation as we return home from work, kiss the wife and sit at the table to eat our dinners. But it is this weekends wars, fought on the green fields of Blighty that occupy the hearts and minds of this land. Here, for your passionate deliberation, are my predictions for the weekend:

Saturday 30th January 2010

Birmingham 1-1 Tottenham

Chelsea 3-0 Burnley

Fulham 1-0 Aston Villa

Hull 2-1 Wolves

Liverpool 2-0 Bolton

West Ham 2-1 Blackburn

Wigan 0-2 Everton

Sunday 31st January 2010

Man City 3-0 Portsmouth

Arsenal 1-1 Man Utd

Yes, people this weekend is the battle to end-all battles - well, at least 'til next weekend. It is the always-eventful Wenger-Fergie yearly-rematch. The Blind Professor versus the saviour of Wrigleys Spearmint Gum factory. Who will come out on top? Both are in a good run of form but I can see Man Utd taking a point at the Emirates. No Rio and a defence about as solid as OJ Simpson, they'll definitely concede but the midgets of Arsenal will have to score by passing their way through the middle and, if their accuracy is as good as at Stoke, the best they can hope for is just the one. Rooney to score for Man Utd.

The mark of the stoopid

2010-01-30T04:21:00.000-08:00

Some men who are in love tattoo the name of their loved one on their arm to show their devotion, others may tattoo the name "Mum" then their are others who are so devoted to their football team that they get the badge of their loyally supported club emblazoned on their chest even if the wife thinks its nothing more than a pubescent act. But there is one man that has gone even further than this. His name is Chris Atkinson and he supports Man City.
When news broke out of Man City's audacious bid to sign Kaka for £100 million, Mr Atkinson was so overwhelmed with excitement, he decided to add the name of
the silky-skilled Brazilian (let's not confuse this with that other type of Brazilian) to his chest before Kaka opted to sign for Spanish giants, Real Madrid instead. Sensible decision: it rains a bit too too much in Manchester. Not to be deterred, the part-time Hollyoaks actor (probably says a lot about his state of mind, doesn't it?) had a long, but not too long, think and came up with the obvious choice: adding the name of Robinho to his already considerable tapestry of tattooes.
Now, far be it from me to judge, but there is nothing wrong with marking oneself with the name of a loved one or one's team. It shows a devotion few are able to match. But the (very) single Mr Atkinson has possibly just taken things a little too far with this act of devotion. I wonder what his friends said to him when he brought up the subject in the pub over a quiet pint. Oh, to be a fly on the wall! Bet it wasn't a quiet pint for long.

Graham Matheson

This season's Championship is like a box of chocolates...

2010-01-29T00:21:00.000-08:00

January is already bidding us a swift exit. It’s where a football season in years gone by might’ve started to show signs of taking shape. Man Utd would be a million points clear at the Premiership summit, with Arsenal and/or Liverpool fighting over the scraps. Occasionally, this order would swap round. Villa would finish mid table. And rest.
Wind back to now, and witness the change. Certainly within the Premierships’ ranks. Arsenal, Chelsea, Man Utd and Liverpool, the omnipresent “Big Four”, have conducted themselves with about as much dignity as a Dad dancing at a Disco over recent months.

It has been a particularly unpredictable term, none more so than in the Championship. Blackpool have upset the Lancastrian applecart and stormed into a position where they must be considered genuine promotion and play off candidates. On the flip side, Preston, unmatched in their ability to reach this stage of the division, have suffered an unforeseen dip in form and currently languish in lower mid table. Swansea have announced themselves with even greater vigour than the Tangerine Army, they hover like a bothersome fly around the automatic promotion places. And then there is the greatest absurdity of all; Nottingham Forest’s charge to second, and 17 game unbeaten run.
If there is a form book, it should be rewritten. And then written again, because it wouldn’t make sense. While this on paper sounds like lunacy, it doesn’t take much of an intellectual leap to ascertain why the Championship is the way it is. A simple formula would be :- Club A gets promoted to the Premiership. They struggle, struggle some more and come back down, whilst retaining most of their squad. Repeated with a variety of clubs, even over as small a period as ten years, and the problem becomes evident.
17 of the Championships current roster are ex Premiership. Very similar squads, more often than not built out of players that have played for most of the teams in question. Very similar budgets, as dictated by their yoyo-ing of the divisions. Very similar stadia, for the purposes of playing at this tier of football. It goes on, and on, and on. The only team that is the exception to this rule is Newcastle, and that comes fairly obviously as a result of playing in the Premiership for an extended period of time, finishing second and third on a number of occasions.
Pretty soon you have the same sort of phenomenon that sweeps the streets of any major city. Subway, Starbucks, TK MAXX, Primark. Shaggy and Scooby Doo running past the clock, picture and plant over and over. Bill Murray on Groundhog Day. Hmmm. Forget that one. In any case, the point is made. So whilst initially appearing absurd as League tables go, it’s actually absurd to expect any different. This is why my tips for automatic promotion this year are Peterborough and Doncaster. And just to tie things up, the initial mention of the Premiership deserves its own Meat and Two Veg explanatory formula as well. Club A gets bought.

Tom Parmiter

Victor Moses pulled out of Palace match

2010-01-27T10:56:00.000-08:00

Crystal Palace's most saleable asset, forward Victor Moses, has been pulled out of tonight's match against table-toppers Newcastle, in order to prevent him from being injured prior to a hopeful sale.
The teenage star has been linked with a host of elite clubs, including Liverpool, Man City and Barcelona, following a terrific start to this campaign. Manager Neil Warnock is less-than-enthused about the prospect but understands the situation the club is now in, "I'm devastated, shocked and hugely disappointed. No doubt we're going to lose players in the next few days because that's what the administrator does."
Palace, who went into administration on Tuesday (the Football Association later
confirmed that the South London club would be deducted 10 points for entering administration according to FA rules) because of Simon Jordan's recent "cash-flow problems" will (according to manager Neil Warnock) be forced to sell many of their players in order to settle the clubs debts.

Graham Matheson

Michel Platini: Football Friend or Foe?

2010-01-24T23:10:00.000-08:00

Michel Platini has never been one to shy away from controversy, the former French striker & the current president of UEFA is a regular when it comes to back page comments, regardless of who they affect & how.
To start off with, the fellow doesn’t exactly have the easiest job in the world; he’s both indirectly & directly responsible for the wellbeing and integrity of some of the best footballers in the world... & their respective clubs. Subsequently it becomes difficult to clearly establish whether or not he is a friend or a foe to the game.

At the risk of sounding one sided, I’m going to focus this article on the single biggest issue that Platini has backed in recent years & hope that our readers can come to a conclusion.
To give an idea of the man, a recent idea that he’s backed is the ‘6+5’ policy – 6 home, or domestic players and a maximum of 5 foreign players. The thinking behind this was to encourage and restore a national identity for football clubs, many who’d resorted to buying big internationally and at the same time the idea was to help reduce the pay gap between big and small clubs. In this increasingly global sports market, an idea like this may seem farfetched & you have to have big names supporting it or it will never take off. Platini, being a pivotal man in Europe, would seem like the ideal candidate for such a plan. He was and is taken seriously with this 6+5 policy & although variations are being made to the policy, the ball is rolling on it. So by supporting such a controversial plan is he seen as a friend or a foe of the game?
Open any paper and read about the ludicrous pay that footballers are on, read about their lavish, sometimes deplorable behaviour – their lifestyle is funded by their pay packages. Ok you can’t stop clubs from paying the rates but by encouraging youth & local player development (as the policy would indicate) would help curb the excessive transfer fees and the pay packages. Unless you are a big, big club, there is no doubt that money & financial problems are always looming – just look at Premiership side Portsmouth, they play in the biggest league of them all & are on the verge of bankruptcy. Why? Player’s fees, agent’s fees, legal fees, all outgoings that, if their players were local could have been avoided.
Lets look at the flip side of this? Define local & define international? Quick example, I go to America & happen to meet some French or Germans, well thats cool because we’re all European, part of the continent, neighbours, locals...I go to Spain and meet Scottish or Welsh people, cool because we’re British...I go to Newcastle & meet a Londoner...you get the idea. Clubs will find great loopholes; they’ll argue that the new Spanish wonder striker’s step-mum’s uncle was conceived in a pub in Walthamstow so he’s classed as a domestic player for Spurs. Now unless FA & UEFA want to do extensive backup checks on every player to grace football pitch, the 6+5 policy would be difficult to police. Clubs have too much power and too little respect for Platini for it to work effectively. Instead of crazy agent’s fees, clubs would be investing in law firms to find loopholes, the easiest being "Uefa definition of "home-grown" which covers any player trained for three years under the age of 21 in the country where their club are based" which can so easily be circumvented as to make the rule change almost laughable and is a policy that many of the English clubs adopt anyway, including LIverpool and Arsenal.
Platini, your heart is in the right place, I’ll argue that with respect to a 6+5 team you are friend to the game, no doubt if it was followed 100% by all, it would do wonders for the game on a local scale and still allow for international exposure; however we all know that it’s not really enough – to have a heart in the right place. So does that mean in order to be a friend of the game, you have to essentially kill off what we recognise as a world-class team? Many would find this unacceptable and I feel that to a degree this is what causes fans to consider him as a foe.

Omar Malick

Liverpool: Camera-shy or simply shoddy(!) this season?

2010-01-24T04:58:00.000-08:00

This season has been a major surprise for Liverpool supporters (but not to the management according to a recent interview with Benitez) who expected their much-loved team to continue the form of the second-half of last season and really challenge for the title. The loss of Alonso, such an integral component to last season's challenge, was keenly felt and was a cause for some worry for most Liverpool supporters but the club assured fans that the purchase of Alberto Aquilani would improve the attacking play to such an extent that Alonso would not be missed. Although he was injured for the first half of the season, Benitez felt confident that the side could cope until his new recruit was ready to fill in the creative hole left with the departure of Alonso.
Unfortunately, this season has not been a particularly happy one for the club and its
supporters with the first real long spell of poor form that Liverpool have had under Benitez. But looking at the stats some interesting FACTS emerge. Liverpool still being considered one of the top teams in the country, the club receive a considerable amount of TV coverage and it is here that the most interesting stats emerge. From a total of 20 games in front of the TV cameras this season, Liverpool's win percentage is 40% as opposed to a win percentage from 12 games played with no TV coverage of 50%. In the league, the stats change remarkeably with a 43|% win ratio in front of the cameras and a staggering 62.5% with no glare of the watching armchair critics. Comparing these stats to home and away form and once again the stats change with home form with no live coverage being 75% from 5 games to 36% win percentage from 11 games. Liverpool's away form in front of the cameras increases to a 44% win rate from 9 games as opposed to a 28% win rate from 7 games with no live coverage.
But these stats do not take into account the horrendous injury list that Benitez has had to cope with coupled with the loss of form of too many players who have always been solid or reliable in the past. One argument against this is that the squad should be able to cope (take Man Utd's win against Wolfbsurg with effectively their reserve side facing the Germans and coming out 3-1 winners) but in a time of need, squad players have failed to justify their salaries with only the youngsters given their chance in the absence of so many first team players who can hold their heads up high in a season of too many lows for England's most successful club.
Another huge problem is that of expectation. Liverpool fans are used to winning but the last nineteen years seem to have been forgotten by its very knowledgeable fans. The inception of the Premier League has seen Liverpool fall of the pace and a poor manager choice (one who made too many drastic changes to an arguably ailing club after Dalglish left) really started the downward spiral of the once-dominant Liverpool. A brief resurgance under Evans was followed by cup success under Houllier but there was never any challenge for the title under the Frenchman: the main cause of the problem being an inability to beat some of the lowlier teams. Under Benitex however, Liverpool's Premiership points tally has improved season upon season culminating in last season's thrilling title chase and best-ever points haul in the Premiership. With this fantastic season, Liverpool fans were rightly expectant that their side should challenge for the title but this season should really show the fans the reality of the situation the club is in. Financially unable to compete with the other top five or six clubs and with a squad that needed improving upon instead of replacing integral parts, the reality is that Liverpool's team is slightly worse than last year but this is also because the style of play will change with the loss of Alonso (essentially a holding midfielder with a fantastic range of passing) to a more creative and forward thinking player in Aquilani. A major change like this cannot expect to happen overnight and it is only now that some sense of solidity is showing in the League performances. This season can be written off by Liverpool fans as a major blip but calls for the head of Benitez are not justified. Comparisons to previous managers, notably Houllier and Souness, are grossly misjudged as both of these managers had two poor seasons before being shown the door. Benitez has had a poor first half of the season and after 22 games, is only 1 point of fourth spot. For any team other than Liverpool this would not be considered a bad season. Maybe it is time for expectation to be managed in line with reality for fans and the media.