AZ Alkmaar came from a goal down to beat Vitesse Arnhem 3-1 in the Eredivisie, furthering their quest for European football next season.An upset looked in the offering in Friday’s sole league encounter after Japan defender Michihiro Yasuda fed striker Marco van Ginkel shortly before half-time for the 18-year-old’s fourth league goal of the season.But – much to their home fans’ delight – the second half belonged to AZ, with Sweden midfielder Pontus Wernbloom kick-starting the recovery with his 63rd-minute strike.Danish winger Simon Poulsen put his AZ in front in the 81st minute, before his darting run down the left flank ended with Belgian midfielder Maarten Martens stabbing home in a crowded penalty area to ice the game for Gertjan Verbeek’s men.The win moves AZ Alkmaar to fourth ahead on 46 points, while Vitesse remain just one place above the relegation zone but still with a seven-point buffer on 16th-placed Excelsior.
Football chairmen hold a position of great power and therefore great responsibility yet it is amazing how often they abuse this power and ignore their responsibility. If you think Mike Ashley is a bad chairman, he’s not a patch on some of the spectacular meddlers to grace the boardrooms (and changing rooms) of Britain. A quick look around the leagues of British football brings up more tales of relentless interference, selfishness and stupidity than the premiership has kiss and tells.
There are two types of terrible chairmen. The first is the meddler. Some of these men are under the dangerous illusion that owning a football club suddenly qualifies them as a professional manager. Others just do what they want because they can. It’s their money and they’ll be damned if someone else gets to play with it.
The most high profile meddlers in British football are Flavio Briatore and Vladimir Romanov. Briatore has now relinquished his role as Q.P.R boss but was known to have dabbled in team selections and once ordered a substitution by phone from Malaysia. Romanov, the current chairman of Hearts, is currently working with his 9th manager since gaining ownership of the club in 2004. His involvement in team affairs is common knowledge with a succession of managers forced to fax their team selections to him on Friday morning and then field whatever team Romanov faxed back. He has essentially just worked his way through a string of puppet managers, unsurprisingly without great success.
Of the chairmen who actually took on the title of manger, here are two particularly fine examples: P.E. teacher and sports science enthusiast Michael Knighton nearly led Carlisle United to back to back relegations before he came to his senses and hired Nigel Pearson to rescue the club. And American Football coach Terry Smith led Chester City to a triumphant relegation fielding three captains at once in the process. One for offense, one for defense and one for midfield he reasoned.
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The other type of terrible chairman is the financial liability. The most famous of course is Peter Ridsdale. As Leeds chairman he gambled on Champions league success that wasn’t achieved and left the club with a debt of £103 million. Miraculously he stayed in the game and in 2010 left Cardiff with a debt of £66 million. Probably time to retire Peter.
In the lower leagues there have been numerous examples of unsavoury owners running clubs into the ground. However there has only been one example of the owner burning it to the ground. In 1995 Doncaster chairman Ken Richardson hired two men to burn down the main stand for insurance purposes. One of the men left their mobile phone at the scene and Richardson was sentenced to 4 years in prison.
It is surprising how many fraudsters and disreputable people manage to get their hands on football clubs. Anton Johnson owned two clubs (which is illegal), Rotherham and Southend, in the early 80’s and was found guilty of financial malpractice at both!
In a world where some Chairmen pick the team every week and burn down the stadium, the Premiership looks blessed with a fairly hands-off and honest bunch. The only problem the top tier chairmen really face is debt. Let’s hope they’ve learned from Ridsdale’s mistakes.
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Paul Scholes has never been one to speak to the press with any regularity. He was, throughout his Manchester United career, notoriously difficult to get hold of. Even Inside United, the club’s official magazine, would struggle to pin Scholes down for more than ten minutes, noting in its goodbye article to him that the midfielder would often schedule his interviews ten minutes before the start of training. Scholes wasn’t being stand-offish, selfish or rude; he is simply a very shy and retiring man who seems genuinely uncomfortable in front of a camera or a microphone.
Even after his greatest games for United, Scholes wouldn’t utter more than a couple of sentences to the TV reporters trying to squeeze a quote out of him. After watching Scholes rifle home the 40-yard thunderbolt that knocked Barcelona out of the 2007-08 Champions’ League, propelling United up for the final and setting himself a personal date with destiny after being suspended in 1999, I remember Scholes’ entire interview. “Yeah, wasn’t a bad hit… great game… lads did well.. looking forward to the final.” That was about it.
So it comes as some surprise to see Scholes featuring in this Sky Sports story, discussing the Carlos Tevez saga. (It also comes as a massive shock to find out he once made the same “mistake” as Tevez, albeit over a League Cup game, back in 2001.)
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In this interview, Scholes’ opinion, characteristically difficult to identify, appears to be that Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is making a mistake by excluding the Argentine from his first-team squad, on the basis that it would help the team. Perhaps that should come as little surprise, given that Scholes saw Sir Alex Ferguson time and again make decisions for the team’s benefit that flew in the face of logic and popular opinion – the sales of David Beckham, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Roy Keane; the promotion of youngsters like Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo to the first team before many believed they were ready. Ferguson was rarely wrong.
On this occasion, though, Scholes’ pragmatism may well be incorrect. His line of thinking is obvious – if it benefits the team, Tevez should play; if it doesn’t, he shouldn’t. He points out that Tevez has been starved of football in recent weeks and that that will obviously have contributed to the striker’s sour mood. Tevez’ former teammate during his turbulent final months at Old Trafford, Scholes has experienced this situation first-hand.
But he is missing the point. Tevez has alienated himself from the City squad. He has inevitably offended and let down the very men with whom he should be closest – his teammates. He has infuriated his manager and the City fans; and to make matters worse, Tevez is refusing to apologise to the club and doesn’t appear to believe he was in the wrong.
Scholes may be right to suggest that City would be a better side with Tevez in their squad than without him. But, much as this will disappoint the former England international, this is not just about the football. It is about the club, its morals and its future. And Tevez is good for none of those.
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You often got the impression during Harry Redknapp’s reign as Tottenham manager, that if he’d won the Europa League, he’d use the trophy as a doorstop or an elaborate vase, such was the way in which he valued Europe’s secondary cup competition. The pain of playing league games on a Sunday, the indignity of appearing on Channel Five and the unglamorous Thursday night excursions to Eastern Europe, seemed to be a little too much for the now former Spurs manager.
But for all its misgivings, it still represents the chance to bring some silverware to the club that requires a fair bit of prestige and pedigree to attain it. Considering their last European triumph, in the guise of the Uefa Cup, came in 1984, why shouldn’t Tottenham Hotspur try to win the Europa League next season?
The detractors are probably already reading this aghast with mockery and there can be no denying that the current Europa League format has its fair share of serious faults. The group stage element feels bloated and unnecessary, especially to clubs looking to make a sustainable assault on the Premier League as well.
There are obvious issues in the concept of starting a full-strength XI in Kazan on a Thursday and then expecting them to come out all guns blazing for the league game on the Sunday. Considering you have to play six times before you even reach the knockout stages, then it is understandable that managers and fans have reservations about putting all their resources into the Europa League’s opening phases.
The riches and necessity of the Uefa Champions League , also serve to blur the relevance of it’s little, Europa brother. The swell in Spurs’ revenue to the tune of over £30million during their Champions League season, tells you everything you need to know. Champions League football brings in more money, more money means better players, etc. It’s not rocket science to divulge why everyone around the club wants and needs to get back in there and if that means sacking off a trip to PAOK Salonika, then so be it.
As a footnote too, the opportunity to blood some of Tottenham’s youngsters was a pleasure to see for all involved. Much more could be done to give some of the kids a chance in the Premier League, but credit where it’s due to Redknapp.
But the lampooning of the Europa League feels like it amounts to something of a witch-hunt in the national press. Nobody denies that the riches and grandeur of the Champions League are unrivalled. But there is something quite macabre and depressing about the mockery and devaluation of the Europa League. Football is all about business and balance sheets, but why are we all so keen to dispose with the chance to go to a European Cup final and win some silverware, just so we can attain a fourth or fifth placed league finish? The annuls of history remember the likes of Mark Falco, Graham Roberts and Steve Archibald as they sank Anderlecht in the ’84 Uefa Cup final. Will they really look back so fondly at a team, who say, finished a gallant fifth under the new manager next season?
There is a clear element of romanticism and nostalgia from 1984 that isn’t quite so applicable in today’s footballing landscape- of course, the game has changed immeasurably since then. But look at the teams and the ties that came about once you discount the excessive group phase element last season. Lazio, Porto, Ajax and Valencia are all European teams with pedigree and history; needless to say, they offer some fantastic away-days for supporters.
Some of the football played in the latter stages too, was outstanding. All of the ties in the round of 16 were highly competitive, superb examples of European football. How can fans turn the nose up at the ‘quality’ on show, after the way Athletic Bilbao dismantled Manchester United? Is it that we’re so blinded by the supposed all-conquering Premier League, we’ve lost sight of what genuine quality and achievement is?
The Bilbao tie against United in particular, raised some uncomfortable truths for English football. But the papers had it down as nothing more than a bad day for United. Of course, how could the Europa League, a European cup-competition, offer anything in the way of real quality? But over two-legs, the team that finished second in our domestic league, were completely outmaneuvered by a team that finished 10th in La Liga. We need to take the blinkers off- winning the Europa League is a superb achievement.
Before people point to it’s glaring lack of financial clout too, it should be noted that the Europa League cannot and should not be viewed in the same league as either of the domestic cups- Fulham’s run to the final in 2010 brought them £12million in extra revenue. It’s hardly anything to be laughed at.
Perhaps the problem lies more with the financial pressures of football, than it does with the aspirations of clubs. The fact any club who simply reaches the Uefa Champions League group stage will earn more than the eventual winners of the Europa League is warped and wrong, and it is skewing the priorities of football clubs.
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Of course supporters want a bite of the big apple and the riches that come with it and Spurs fans are no different. Having sampled the tastes of the San Siro and the Santiago Bernabeu, why would you not want more? Maybe it’s because it has been that long since winning a trophy, that we’ve forgot what it feels like.
Watch the scenes at the end of Atletico Madrid’s 3-0 win over Bilbao in the Europa League final. That is what football should be about. Winning trophies, basking in glory and putting your name in the history books. Once we get past the stigma that this country seems to have built up around the Europa League, hopefully we will give it our best shot to try and lift the thing. Winning one European trophy will feel a hell of a lot sweeter than celebrating qualifying for another. For now, anyway.
How does the Europa League make you feel? A worthless obstacle in the way of Champions League riches? Or the chance to bring some silverware to the mantle at White Hart Lane? I want to hear what you think, for all things Spurs, follow @samuel_antrobus
Former Wigan Athletic defender Paul Scharner is hoping to join Roy Hodgson at Liverpool.
The 30-year-old Austrian is available on a free transfer after leaving the DW Stadium at the end of the last campaign and is hoping Hodgson’s previous interest can lead to a move to Anfield.
The new Reds boss tried to sign Scharner during his time as Fulham manager.
“Roy Hodgson and Paul Scharner – this is a special relationship,” said the player’s agent, Valentin Hobel.
“Hodgson thinks that Paul’s strengths in midfield are better than his attributes in central defence.
“Liverpool would be a dream, of course, but we are in contact with several clubs. Because he is a free transfer, he can choose.”
Meanwhile, striker Nabil El Zhar is looking to leave Anfield this summer after struggling to make an impact at first-team level.
“I want to leave Liverpool. I do not play often enough,” said the 23-year-old striker.
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“There are several European clubs interested and I will not close any doors.”
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Manchester United chief executive David Gill says that manager Sir Alex Ferguson still has a free hand in the transfer market, despite talk of the club's debts placing a curb on potential spending.
Ferguson has stated that he doesn't expect to be very busy in the summer transfer market, with Gill insisting that funds are in place should the Scot decide that a number of new faces are needed at Old Trafford.
Gill told The Independent:"The money is there. People say Alex is saying that because he has to. Anyone who knows Alex Ferguson knows he wouldn't say that if he didn't mean what he said.
"The money is definitely there. The results for the quarter ending 31 March will show the figures are about £95million cash.
"We are not in a situation whereby Alex is restricted in what he wants to do with the club and his modus operandi as a manager.
"We have never said 'you can't do that, we have to pay interest (on the debt)'.
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"I can look you in the eye and say that. He would say exactly the same thing. People don't believe it.
"We never said to him 'you can't go for that player because he's too much'."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
A lot has been made about the need for a massive squad overhaul at Liverpool this summer. Some have even reported that there could be as many as 20 comings and goings over the close season as the Reds start to mould a team capable of competing for major trophies once again. Inevitably then, there have been a vast amount of transfer rumours spreading across newspapers and the internet as to who will be coming in, and who will be departing the club.
One of the most interesting aspects has been the significant split in reports that the Reds are either targeting mainly foreign based players or exclusively British talent. Only a few days ago, it was reported in the Daily Mail that Kenny Dalglish was focusing on bringing in exclusively British talent with Gary Cahill , Phil Jones , Connor Wickham , Charlie Adam , Ashley Young and Stewart Downing all being tipped as potential targets.
In the same measure, in other reports, the Reds have been linked with a vast array of players from France especially. Inevitably this has something to do with having a French Director of Football in Damien Comolli , but it can’t be a coincidence as both Dalglish and Comolli have been spotted at matches in France over the past few months. Sylvain Marveaux, Eden Hazard , Yann M’Vila, Blaise Matuidi , Mamadou Sakho and Hugo Lloris are just some of the names from France that have been linked with the Reds. In addition players such as Diego Perotti, Iker Muniain and Alvario Negredo from Spain, and Ezequiel Lavezzi and Juan Manuel Vargas from Italy have also been rumoured targets.
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This is of course usual for rumours to start flying around as we head into the final stages of the season, but what is most interesting is there seems to be complete confusion in the rumour mill about whether Damien Comolli or Kenny Dalglish will be the one having the greatest influence on transfers. In one instance you will read, Kenny Dalglish ’s name linked with a British player, while it will always be exclusively reported that Damien Comolli is interested in a foreign player.
No one can really know what the summer will hold for LFC. If King Kenny does get the job full time, he will surely have a final say on transfer targets but the collegial strategy which FSG are going for in regards to transfer decisions means that Damien Comolli will surely have some say too. At the moment it looks as if Kenny is favouring players proven in the Premier League, while Comolli is doing his job by scouring Europe for young talent. Hopefully it means that we get the best of both worlds. While we get some good players from England, perhaps such as Ashley Young and Phil Jones , we will also be hopefully looking at the likes of Eden Hazard and Yann M’Vila .
When John Aldridge named his transfer targets of Young, Adam, Cahill a couple of weeks ago, there was some concern among Liverpool supporters that these players might not be good enough to improve the team. In Charlie Adam ’s case especially, I would be very concerned if we opted to buy the player for a sizeable fee, if it was at the expense of a younger, more promising talent from abroad. Of course, only time will tell what sort of strategy the Reds will employ. If we go for player’s purely based on ability, rather than any preconceived notion about home-grown talent, I will be happy.
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Article courtesy of David at Live4Liverpool
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Craig Bellamy insists there are no hard feelings towards Roberto Mancini following his departure from Manchester City.
Bellamy, 31, joined hometown club Cardiff City on a season-long loan in the Championship on Tuesday after being frozen out of the first-team picture at Eastlands this summer.
The Wales striker was left out of Mancini’s 25-man Premier League squad but claims he bears no grudge towards the Italian coach.
“There’s no ill feeling,” explained the well-travelled former Liverpool, Newcastle, West Ham and Blackburn frontman.
“I hope he does well, he’s a top manager.
“I had the greatest time at Manchester City at a great period in their history.
“I was bought to take the club on to the next stage and I feel I played a big part in doing that. The players they’re signing are incredible.
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“The next couple of years I’m sure they’ll get the Premier League title and I hope they do.”
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And the fallout from France’s ignominious World Cup debacle continues. Embarrassed by the conduct of French skipper Patrice Evra, former France captain Marcel Desailly has chimed in with his two cents on the whole affair.
”The Federation president and the coach have already paid the price,” Desailly said. ”And I think that Evra, who is the origin of the strike, should pay too.
”The captain made a mistake and he has to assume the consequences of his actions. He decided not to train, before realising his mistake and apologising. But he deserves at least a temporary suspension.
”He is an excellent player, our best left-back, but he should be suspended for two months, because the captain is the first one to be an example. His behaviour affected the image of France throughout the world.”
Desailly’s comments mirrored those of France’s most-capped player, Lilian Thuram.Speaking after an FFF council meeting, the former Juventus defender said: “I demanded that the players be harshly punished and that Evra never returns to the France squad. When you are captain of the France team, you must have a responsibility to the jersey and the people.”
The shambles that accompanied France’s World Cup campaign has made them the laughing stock of the football world. Whilst one can point to the (often baffling) decisions made by recently departed coach Raymond Domenech, the conduct of the squad, particularly those orchestrating the camp rebellion, was reprehensible.
Although the acts and decisions made by the non-playing stuff may have contributed to the side’s failure to win in South Africa, the majority of the blame must be apportioned to the players for their dismal performances. As captain, Patrice Evra was the figurehead of France’s playing staff, and subsequently responsible for his and their actions. In leading the mutiny, Evra undermined the coach and his authority, an act which breached the fundamental trust and relationship existing between player and coach.
New France coach Laurent Blanc has acknowledged the challenges that face him in rebuilding a damaged side. Having expressed his own disgust at the players’ decision to strike, Blanc has admitted that no player is safe from the axe, stating: “‘I can’t act like nothing happened in South Africa. It wouldn’t go down well. I followed the events, as you all did, with a lot of sadness. I was outraged by certain behaviour. It’s a delicate situation. There are meetings to be had.”
Whether or not Blanc decides to heed the words of World Cup-winning pair Desailly and Thuram remains to be seen. However, Patrice Evra can have no complaints should he find himself succumb to the national team guillotine.
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Click on image below to see the PORTUGAL babes at the World Cup
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini wants the club’s FA Cup triumph over Stoke City to lead to greater success.A 75th-minute strike from Yaya Toure gave City a 1-0 win at Wembley on Saturday and their first trophy since the 1976 League Cup.
Mancini said he was delighted for the fans and wanted the club to build on the win.
“I can say only that I’m very happy for all the supporters. After many years, they deserved to win this trophy,” he said.
“I didn’t feel we dominated this game. We need to improve but we are very happy. We did a small piece of history of Manchester City. We start now.”
Toure, the hero of the day, said the focus all season had been on claiming at least one trophy.
“The dream is now… it’s fantastic to win. It’s fantastic for the history of the club,” the Ivory Coast international said.
“We wanted to win something and get through to the Champions League. It’s amazing.”
Striker Mario Balotelli, who was named man of the match, said the players felt they had the advantage over Stoke heading into the encounter.
“I’m happy. I said to the guys before the game, ‘we’re better than them, we have to respect them and give everything and if we do we’re going to win’,” he said.
Defender Micah Richards agreed with his boss in wanting City to build towards great things on the back of the trophy win.
“It’s unbelievable. Words can’t describe it. We’ve worked hard all season. Now it’s happened, it’s unbelievable,” Richards said.
“This is the first one and this is the most important. We’ve got to build on this.”
Goalkeeper Joe Hart said he only cared about City’s result and not Manchester United’s league triumph at Blackburn earlier in the day.
“It’s nothing to do with Manchester United, it’s about Man City. We deserved to win the cup, we’ve beaten the best and we’ve beaten a very good Stoke side today.”