Angry Fans
IS IT just me or is Kevin Doyle being over-hyped by the media? Fair enough
he has scored a few goals in the Premiership but how many of them were of any
real quality? I think he is an average player who’ll be playing Championship
football in a few years.
Talk about kicking a man when he’s down! There’s the rest
of us worried about what Mick Byrne would doubtless call “Kev’s hammer”
and, with perfect timing, along comes Teddy with a daft, studs-up lunge. As your
namesake might say, “Out damn spot” — and take a red card with
you.
BECKHAM could become a big star in the States. Despite all the
nonsense that surrounds him, he does come across as a fairly likable and decent
fellow. Which is what American sport needs at the moment, and while a great player
like Pele couldn’t sell football to the Americans, maybe a great salesman
like Becks can.
SAY Liam . .
. how many yards do you think Becks will rush in his first trimester with all
the bases manned at the bottom of the fifth?
GOTTA hand it to Beckham; humble beginnings, made good use
of two main skills (stamina and good right foot) and looks (Northern soul boy
meets the catwalk). Trophy wife. Now on his way to being the biggest sports star
in the world in terms of earnings. Not bad at all for someone who hasn’t
won anything for four years.
TONY Gale got it right on Sky Sport. Beckham has already started calling
football (the name of the game in the whole of the world apart from areas of Ireland)
soccer. Clearly his voice coach got him up to speed on this very quickly.
There might
be all sorts of reasons to knock Becks but his use of the vernacular in his new
home is not one of them. After all, when in Rome . . . where, incidentally, they
call it calcio. Anyway, good luck to him — just as long as he doesn’t
sign up for Scientology FC AKA The Nutters.
“I’LL BE back”
said Rocky Balboa, sorry Sylvester Stallone, after watching Everton play Reading
on Saturday. Not if he watched the same game as me he won’t be. No passion,
no action, no thrills.
: Maybe it was a trailer for the movie, then?
I SEE that Stephen
Hunt has now acknowledged that the tackle which fractured Petr Cech’s skull
was reckless and clumsy. That’s a big admission, and one that does him credit.
Yes,
but he also said that there was no malicious intent, something Mr Mourinho would
do well to take on board. Speaking of whom . . .
HOW extraordinary that
Mourinho has managed to engineer himself into a position of some sympathy over
the shenanigans at Stamford Bridge. How can any manager be dictated to over the
signing of players and coaching staff? Would it happen to Wenger, Ferguson or
Benitez? Even more extraordinary that his name should be linked to Real Madrid,
the one club in the world where he is guaranteed to have interference over the
players that he signs and the style of football. Oh what a circus, oh what a show.
I AM really enjoying the
Mourinho meltdown at Chelsea. Apart from the quality of the football being played
by United and Arsenal, it’s easily the most entertaining feature of the Premiership.
It almost rivals the saga of whether Sonia has bumped off poor old Pauline Fowler.
Let this one run please.
Aye, call it ‘Westenders’ — but expect rather more imaginative
plot twists.
I’VE thought for a while that there’s a very nasty
streak to Pascal Chimbonda. The way he managed his exit from Wigan was distasteful;
there was that incident with George Boateng (no saint either) and then that sly
little slap at Butt on Sunday. Was very pleased that Newcastle won that game because
of that.
Remember when footballers used to give each other a full-blooded punch? Now
it’s a slap with a hand gloved against the cold.
ACCORDING to the
papers, the Premiership will be all over “once Rooney finds his form.”
Well, I am still waiting. 28 matches, 24 of them without troubling the scorer.
The season depends on Ronaldo, Saha, and now Larsson.
Goal-scorers don’t exist in a
vacuum. The likes of Rooney, Giggs, Vidic, Van der Sar and, particularly, Scholes
are just as essential to United’s terrific run of form.
A NEW survey
says football fans have responded to the rise in costs of going to matches —
17% since the start of last season — by cutting the number of games they
attend. Well, there’s a surprise. What the football authorities need to realise
is that it’s not just the ticket prices, it’s the whole package . .
. rail and air fares, catering around the grounds, prices inside the ground. Of
course the Premiership can say that average attendances are up but they’ve
got the impact of the increased capacities at Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium
to thank for that. The elastic will only stretch so far.
Letter of the week prize winner.
JUST what possessed Neil Warnock to look to Jon Stead as an answer
to his striking problems? He has scored precisely 13 goals in the past three seasons
and was easily one of Mick McCarthy’s worst decisions in his time in charge
of the Black Cats.
Good business by Keano though
DID I really see a story that
Celtic were considering signing Geoff Horsfield and including him in their Champions
League squad? What is it with Celtic and creaking centre-forwards from south of
the border?
Well, Hartson and Dublin worked out okay, didn’t they? I also think the
words “minimal” and “fee” could have something to do with
it.
I SEE that football writers have held a dinner in honour of Ryan
Giggs to mark his contribution to the game and his 693 appearances for Manchester
United. It was an important day for Old Trafford when Giggs senior decided to
move north.
And, as Man City will tell you, the life of Ryan is a reminder of how
important a good scouting system is.
CHELSEA say Micah Richards is too
expensive; Manchester City say Shaun Wright-Phillips is too expensive. It doesn’t
take a one-eyed horse trader to spot the opportunity of a deal.
Ah, Cork Blue. I was wondering where
you were hiding. Nothing to say about the troubled waters at the Bridge then?
Have a red card to hep concentrate the mind.
IF you’re West Ham,
and you’re in trouble, are the first names at the top of your list of transfer
targets likely to be two wingers — Luis Boa Morte and Ashley Young? They’re
in denial. West Ham will be relegated.
Unless Wigan have something to say about it.
