Meddling media equally to blame for England's failings

Tired, robbed and under too much pressure are just a few of the excuses which accompanied England's disastrous exit from the World Cup in South Africa at the hands of a classy Germany outfit.

That was the long and short of it. Germany were classy, far classier than England, but why has it become so hard to admit? It may have something to do with being beaten by our nemesis but it may have more to do with our unjustified belief that we are a force to be reckoned with on the international stage.

The facts are stark and paint the picture, a real picture. England have won just one World Cup, in 1966, and have not won a single European Championship. Yet somewhere along the way we, as a nation, lost all touch with reality almost as though we are still caught in a drunken haze which has lasted for forty-four long years. The truth is, bear we admit it, we're just not good enough.

This isn't to say we can never win a major tournament, far from it. With the right balance and work ethic we could beat any nation on our day but it is rarely our day and the players rarely display the work-rate the adoring fans so desperately expect. David Beckham divides opinion as a footballer but if a poll was conducted to find out his greatest match as an England player, it would, undoubtedly, be his ninety minutes as captain versus Greece in a qualifier for the 2002 World Cup Finals. It was inspiring, it exuded pride, it was magnificent. It says a lot that 8 years on, that single performance has not been matched, yet alone topped.

In South Africa it was reported by the media that England's poor performances in the group stage were because of Fabio Capello's disciplinarian approach. Not once did the media take a step back and wonder if their own input was helpful. After all it is the media who coined the phrase "golden generation" in an attempt to glamourise a core group of players which were, given the term, seen as world-beaters. Yet, on their exit from the finals, pundits and sections of the media were baulking at the failure of this "golden generation" whilst conveniently forgetting that this was a label forced upon these players, not the other way around.

Not that the players don't like it of course. Why wouldn't they? Labels like "golden generation" and the infinite number of superlatives lauded upon our players week after week massage their ego's better than any Indian head masseur could ever achieve. So why then, did the media object so strongly to Capello's proposed introduction of a player-rating system? The Capello Index, as it was titled, was a process whereby the nation would be able to see how the England manager rated every player's individual performance via the Football Association's (FA) web site. These plans were, shamefully, shelved in the wake of a media onslaught which questioned the benefit and effect this would have on the players. Did the media stop their own ratings of players during the tournament? Of course not.

And here we stumble on the incessant disease which manifests itself within the coverage of the England football team. As with so many of his predecessors, Capello was not allowed to manage. Perhaps if he was given free reign to do as he pleased the results may have been different, maybe they wouldn't; we'll never know. The Capello Index was the perfect tool to bring a much-needed sense of reality to a squad of players who are so often criticised for losing touch with reality. Perhaps the media didn't want it because it would mean one less criticism to stab at the players or perhaps the media felt redundant that their own player ratings and comment would be overlooked by fans wanting to see what the man in charge thought.

For whatever reason it was, the FA should not have entertained any comment from the media but, in allowing them to voice their disapproval, the FA only served to undermine Capello and, in doing so, may have just lost one of the best manager's in the world.

FFF have no one to blame but themselves

After a dour start to their World Cup campaign France succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Mexico in a match that left them needing a "miracle" to qualify for the Second Round.

The abject display will undoubtedly have the French media up in arms and raises serious doubts about the squad's mentality and that of manager Raymond Domenech.

Even at 1-0 down Domenech, the much-maligned manager, looked as though his mind was elsewhere and showed little emotion when his side conceded the penalty that made it 2-0 to the Mexicans. Unruffled in exterior, the interior was surely reeling at the French Football Federation's (FFF) decision to name his successor, Laurent Blanc, before the team had even arrived at their World Cup base in South Africa.

World Cup winners in 1998 and European Cup winners in 2000, France have established themselves as a major force in international tournaments in the last decade but since their loss to Italy in the 2006 World Cup Final they have flattered to deceive on an enormous scale.

Domenech was at the helm when France suffered a humiliating exit from Euro 2008, finishing bottom of the group and only managing a solitary goal in the process. Stories were rife at the time that all was not well within the camp, a feeling which has seemingly intensified during his reign.

The FFF have to be applauded in some respects for sticking to their guns whilst all around seemed to be reaching for theirs. Loyalty is a fragile quality, not least in football, but some would argue that the writing was on the wall; especially when a manager loses the confidence of his player's.

Fast forward to World Cup qualification and France finished second in a group which they were expected to win with ease. Pipped to automatic qualification by a resolute Serbia side meant that they would have to qualify in a two-legged play off against Giovanni Trappatoni's Republic of Ireland side. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Despite the contentious nature in which France qualified for the finals in South Africa, questions were still being asked of Domenech's managerial ability. Eyebrows were raised at his refusal to introduce Karim Benzema, Real Madrid's £30 million striker, when his side were in desperate need of finding a goal in the second leg.

Domenech did little to ease the pressure on his position when his World Cup squad announcement revealed that a number of key players were cut adrift. Although Benzema's omission was not completely unexpected it was met with some disappointment given the striker's impressive strike rate. Arsenal's gifted midfield playmaker, Samir Nasri, was another of those that did not make the grade as was the experienced, former French captain and World Cup winner, Patrick Vieira.

Two games into the tournament and Domenech has admitted that it will take a "miracle" for his side to reach the last sixteen. The stark admission only serves to illustrate the mood within the camp which clearly lacks belief and fight.

But who can blame him? Domenech is on a hiding to nothing and even if he wins the World Cup with France he already knows he'll be looking for a new job on his return. The FFF had the chance to relieve him of his duties after their shambolic display at the Euro 2008 finals. They had the chance to replace him during their qualification for the World Cup but, instead, decided to do the most disrespectful and damaging thing they could and announce his successor before the team had even begun preparations for the tournament.

France's failings have a lot do with Domenech but everything to do with the FFF.

Disgraceful Chelsea cry conspiracy

When the dust settles on Stamford Bridge tomorrow and the Chelsea players wake up to headlines and pictures of their behaviour the morning after the night before they might just understand why there is absolutely no sympathy for them from the footballing world.

In a Champions League semi-final second leg that saw Andreas Iniesta score a 93rd minute goal that sent Barcelona through to the final on the away goals rule, denying Chelsea a second successive European final appearance, was also a game that was marred by the ill-discipline of some of the Chelsea players.

At the final whistle the Norwegian referee, Tom Henning Ovrebo, was surrounded by a number of Chelsea players, notably John Terry, the captain, Michael Ballack and Didier Drogba - who had run onto the pitch to remonstrate with the official - who, it was felt, had ignored four certain penalty appeals. Drogba's rant could see him face action from UEFA as he was caught swearing into the Sky television cameras shouting "It's a disgrace, its a f****** disgrace" and then, reports suggest, further abusing Ovrebo in the tunnel.

So Chelsea felt aggrieved that they were denied, in their opinion, four definite penalties which, presumably, would have settled the tie but the way in which some of their players conducted themselves during the closing stages of the game and at the final whistle was, without question, wholly unacceptable. To see Terry, the captain of both Chelsea and England, berating the referee at the end of the game was an absolute embarrassment, made even more embarrassing when he was quoted as condoning Drogba's actions.

What sanctions UEFA decide to dish out to the Stamford Bridge outfit remains to be seen but with suggestions that UEFA president, Michel Platini, had directed the referee to enforce decisions in order to avoid a second successive all-English final it is unlikely that they will get off lightly.

This conspiracy theory was just one of the many excuses Chelsea used to divert attention away from the fact that they had failed to kill off Barcelona in a game which had presented them plenty of chances to do so. Having made a perfect start through a sublime Michael Essien volley, Barcelona knew that they needed to score to level the tie, something they'd failed to do at the Nou Camp a week earlier. Chelsea were once again resolute in defence but, unlike in Barcelona, also looked willing to attack.

The first of Chelsea's penalty appeals came shortly after the Essien strike when Florent Malouda, the Chelsea midfielder, was held back and felled by the Barcelona right back, Dani Alves, on the edge of the area for which a free-kick was awarded. This would suggest that the referee conceded that it was a foul but, as the offence clearly started outside of the penalty box, only worthy of a free-kick rather than the penalty Chelsea were pleading for. Surely the most hardened Chelsea supporter would admit that, on reflection, it would have been an extremely generous decision had a penalty been awarded.

In the second half, and with Barcelona still failing to find any real rhythm, Chelsea created another opening which lead to the second penalty appeal, which was equally as dubious, but one which often divides opinion. Drogba raced onto a through ball with Barcelona full back, Eric Abidal, in hot pursuit and when inside the area went down claiming that Abidal had tripped him with Victor Valdes, the Barcelona goalkeeper, collecting the loose ball. In real time it did appear that Drogba may have been brought down but the more replays that were shown the bigger the doubt was that it was a penalty. The Chelsea striker may also have been a victim of his reputation for being somewhat theatrical in those situations, nevertheless it wasn't the stone-wall penalty that Chelsea were stating it was at the end of the game.

In between the aforementioned penalty shout and the third potential penalty, Drogba had a glorious opportunity to put the game beyond doubt but could only muster a stab at goal which was saved by Valdes having created the space to score an almost certain goal for a striker of his calibre. Barcelona were also reduced to ten men before the third, and most convincing penalty appeal, arrived when Abidal was harshly adjudged to have brought down Nicolas Anelka, the Chelsea forward, as the last defender when replays showed that no contact was even made.

It was Anelka who was involved in the next episode of Chelsea's spot-kick denials when, having received a ball from the left, he flicked the ball round Barcelona's former Manchester United centre-half, Gerard Pique, who clearly handled the ball, preventing the Chelsea front man a clear shot on goal. Pique's reaction, when running away with the ball, was that of a guilty man and was extremely lucky not to have been penalised.

As the game wore on, with Chelsea still emerging with decent attacks, Drogba was brought off by Hiddink who was of the belief that his striker was injured but, judging from Drogba's reaction, it was another case of the Ivorian feigning injury which, this time, backfired. The withdrawal of Drogba encouraged Barcelona to push forward with more conviction and it soon became an increasingly nervy atmosphere within Stamford Bridge and in the penultimate minute of injury time an Alves cross eventually found its way to Lionel Messi after Essien failed to clear, Messi then rolled an exquisitely weighted ball to the edge of the area which was dispatched with equal aplomb by Iniesta which sparked a mass pile-on involving the Barcelona players and staff near the corner flag.

With the last roll of the metaphorical dice, Chelsea through caution to the wind and adopted Wimbledon tactics which saw them earn a corner for which their goalkeeper, Petr Cech, decided to be a part of. The corner glanced off of Cech's head and found Ballack who hit a first-time volley into the onrushing Samuel Eto'o. Ballack and the Chelsea players instantly claimed a penalty, feeling that Eto'o had blocked the shot with his arm which the referee could not have been better placed to have judged. Ballack was so incensed that he raced alongside Ovrebo for 40 yards which involved him, at one point, grabbing the Norwegian official which resulted in a booking.

The final whistle was blown a few moments later which cued the scenes that will populate the images of tomorrow's media.

It should be a matter of huge concern for the London club as the discipline of three of its more experienced players, all of whom are captains for their respective countries, was far beyond unacceptable and set a horrendous example to the millions of youngsters who were privy to those ugly scenes. People can forgive reasoned arguments but when a referee is surrounded and circled out so publicly as the deciding factor in a game and in the manner in which it was done then there is absolutely no sympathy to be had.

Did you see Frank Lampard or Essien lambasting the referee or Cech having to be restrained by stewards for fear of an attack on the official? No. So that does that mean that they were less disappointed to have fallen short of reaching a European final than Terry, Ballack and Drogba? Or is it, perhaps, that they accepted that despite the disappointment and nature in which they lost they had the chances to have put the game beyond Barcelona?

If the referee was as bad as Chelsea complained he was, then why didn't a single Chelsea player question the dismissal of Barcelona's Abidal? Or is it OK as long as the decisions are going for Chelsea?

Although originally applauded for their efforts in the first leg, Chelsea have, ultimately, paid for the negative approach which not only saw them stop Barcelona from scoring in their own back yard for the first time this season, but also saw them fail to secure an away goal, an avenue rarely sought on the night, which could have proved decisive. And, if to be ultra-critical, Chelsea need look no further than the theatrics of Drogba which, unquestionably, contributed to the four minutes that were added for injury time and, arguably, denied his side a penalty and a place in the Champions League Final on May 27.

Wembley matches will forever leave that empty feeling

The new Wembley stadium and the decisions made since and during its construction to recoup the £787 million outlayed by The Football Association have often come under fierce scrutiny. Aside from the money-spinning American Football matches, the “Man Vs Machine” event which saw Lewis Hamilton race Sir Chris Hoy and the much-disputed FA Cup semi-finals which are to be staged at Wembley leading to claims by the Manchester United and Everton managers, Sir Alex Ferguson and David Moyes, that the cup has been devalued; there is one major oversight that should have been addressed at the planning stage which looks set to spoil every match played at Wembley from now on.

The people who occupy the corporate seats or, as Roy Keane famously labelled them, the ‘prawn sandwich brigade’, left a bitter after-taste following England’s 4-0 win over Slovakia on Saturday but, sadly, it is something that doesn’t look like changing. Is it becoming fashionable to miss key moments in football history? If its not ITV replacing Dan Gosling’s extra-time winning goal for Everton against Liverpool in their FA Cup replay at Goodison Park with a Tic-Tac advert it’s the FA doing their best at putting as many disinterested cronies in the stadium as possible, at the expense of ‘real’ supporters.

David Beckham won his 109th cap for England against Slovakia, coming on as a half-time substitute and, in the process, surpassing Bobby Moore’s 108 caps - the record number of caps previously held for an outfield player – and you’d think, with the prospect of witnessing a historic event in English football, that fans would be queuing up to see this happen. How wrong we are.
But these people aren’t fans and, worse still, their seats are directly facing the gantry for the television cameras and so when Beckham stepped onto the Wembley turf, becoming the nation’s second most capped player ever for England, the stadium looked empty. So much so that you’d think it was an England Under -21 international, with no disrespect intended but to underline the appearance of emptiness in the stadium.

It is logical to expect there to be a section of seats for tickets allocated to the corporate sponsors of the England team and The FA but, as has been shown at a number of previous international matches at the new Wembley, these people clearly aren’t there for, what most would consider the sole purpose of Wembley, the football. They have no apparent desire to participate in the atmosphere, so why have we got to see their obvious lack of interest every time a bloody game is played there?

A simple bit of planning would have placed the corporate seats underneath the television cameras so that when fans, up and down the country, watching football either at home or in pubs tune in they see the appearance of a full stadium because the real, paying, fans are in their direct view rather than those who are willing to miss half a match because they’re mulling over the free-food on offer.
More alarmingly is that this problem is commented on every time there is a match of importance yet, unsurprisingly, nothing seems to be done. Surely a simple relocation of the corporate seat allocation out of the sight of the camera is both feasible and sensible.

For a country bidding to host the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup, its hardly the best way in convincing the governing body of world football that we are a nation worthy of hosting the worlds biggest tournament when, on the surface, it looks as though our home stadium is a constant state of emptiness.

No Sympathy for Middles-bore-ough

In what is becoming an increasingly imminent reality for Middlesborough Football Club there will be little sympathy if they do eventually get relegated into the Coca-Cola Championship.

There are a plethora of reasons as to why Boro have, somewhat, outstayed their welcome in the Premier League. Many clubs are guilty of being played by the individual and succumbing to their needs and some could argue that the Teeside club had little choice but to retain the services of their most prized asset, Stewart Downing for the rest of this season. But what desire does a player have who hands in a transfer request?

Despite sustained interest from Tottenham Hotspur, Boro held their nerve and kept a player, an England international, who they believed to be key to securing their Premier League status. The truth of the matter is that Downing, although regularly picked for the England squad, is some way short of being considered international quality and is, astonishingly, yet to register a Premier League goal for Boro this season. Perhaps it may change if he were to move to Spurs, but there is little to suggest that he is the shining light that his manager, Gareth Southgate, and chairman, Steve Gibson, would have hoped he'd be when they ignored Spurs' advances in the January transfer window.

Although Boro secured a surprise and vital win at home to Liverpool a matter of weeks ago, a game in which Downing was inspirational, there have been no stand-out performances from either Downing or his team-mates. It shouldn't solely be down to the left-winger to keep his home-town club in the Premier League but for a player who is so, apparently, desperate to move away from the Riverside, fans would be justified in expecting a lot more. Worse still is that Downing still remains a fan-favourite among the home supporters, despite his written transfer request and ongoing attempts to broker a move away.

Loyalty doesn't account for much these days, especially in the world of football, but why would a player who receives England recognition and is adored by his home fans want to move away? And, furthermore, to a club that has been successful in slowing David Bentley's progress. It is a ludicrous situation.

The ludicrous situation that has evolved at Middlesborough doesn't start or end with Downing, he is merely another cog in a noticeably faltering machine; a machine that could be working a lot more fluently had they accepted a bid for their left-winger and showed some faith in Adam Johnson, the England under-21 international, who many on Teeside believe to be better than the aforementioned.

The most laughable situation that has surfaced at this club isn't the fact that they have kept hold of one of the most over-rated players in English football, or that their supporters still show adoration for a player who fails to reciprocate that emotion, nor is it that Johnson's glittering form for England u-21's is so sorely overlooked. The news that supporters have repeatedly been told, by stadium officials, to keep the noise down is nothing short of ridiculous, especially at a time when their team need them more than ever if they are to retain their Premier League status.

If Middlesborough do get relegated, which is looking increasingly likely, it looks certain that they will be going quietly.

End of the Carlos Tevez saga? We couldn’t be further from the truth

This week it had emerged that an out-of-court settlement had been agreed, believed to be in excess of £10 million, between West Ham United and Sheffield United in relation to the third-party ownership of Carlos Tevez which many saw as the end of one of the sorriest saga’s to blight English football.

Almost as soon as the settlement was confirmed the former Sheffield United manager, Neil Warnock, who was in charge of the club at the time they were relegated from the Premier League, publicly stated his intention to assess his legal rights in regards to potential compensation. And why not? The spiral of hypothetical events that descend from this saga start with Warnock who, as he justly believes, would still be in charge of Sheffield United in his “dream job” had his side not been relegated from the top tier of English football on the last day of the 2006/07 season.

For all his critics, and I don’t possess to be Warnock’s biggest fan, you can’t fail to see that he has an extremely valid point and he may well have just opened up the floodgates on the east London club.

It should not be forgotten that this case was the subject of an independent tribunal due to the nature of the circumstances involving the Premier League, West Ham United, Sheffield United and the third-party ownership rules. Prior to the tribunal’s report there was little sympathy for the Sheffield club, with people questioning why it took so long for them to raise their grievances’ and suggestions that they did not have the quality many thought was needed to stay in the Premier League regardless.

However, there was an increasing feeling of wrongdoing when it emerged that there was a breach, by West Ham, in the registration of their Argentine duo Javier Mascherano and Tevez, both who have now moved on to Liverpool and Manchester United respectively.
Tevez, who was seen to play a pivotal part in West Ham’s survival from relegation, scored seven goals in ten games helping the Hammers to win seven of their last nine matches which, at the time, upset not only Sheffield United but also Fulham and Wigan once news broke of the illegalities involved in his registration.
Since the initial fighting talk that united Wigan, Fulham and Sheffield United in their pursuit of justice Fulham and Wigan’s attention’s became somewhat of a distant memory once they had both secured their Premier League status. Sadly, for United, they were left to fight their own battle.

And so they did, eventually forcing the Premier League to hand out an unprecedented £5.5 million fine for West Ham’s illegitimate registration of both Mascherano and Tevez and, perhaps more importantly, to concede that this ultimately resulted in the relegation of the The Blades.
In all of this, and a view that Warnock has vehemently aired on occasions, is the fact that the one man who is, ultimately, accountable for one of the biggest oversights and amateurish dealings in world football, let alone English football, still maintains his job as chief executive of the Premier League; Richard Scudamore.

Nobody wants to see anybody lose their job, especially at a time when jobs are more valued now than they perhaps ever have been, but there are some obvious exceptions. If the lay person were to do anything similar to that of Scudamore, within context, then they’d be extremely lucky to find themselves still in that job. It is an absolutely absurd situation which was further underlined when the tribunal’s report effectively confirmed that Sheffield United were unjustly relegated.

How wrong we all we were to think that this out-of-court settlement was the end of the 'Carlos Tevez affair', it’s merely the tip of the iceberg and for West Ham United and the ever-evasive Premier League chief executive, Richard Scudamore, it could be an iceberg of Titanic proportion; especially given that Ken Bates, the Leeds United chairman, has hinted that he is also seeking legal advice for his right to compensation following the failure to secure contingency payments from Rob Hulse, Matthew Kilgallon and Ian Bennett as a result of Sheffield United's relegation.

When key decisions are to be made, and not the decisions involving a potential money-spinning ‘39th fixture’ abroad, about the legitimate ownership and registration of players then the Premier League knows who not to call upon but, unfortunately, that person happens to be the one person responsible for maintaining the integrity of the Premiership.

The Walkers Bowl...

Just out of interest, how many packets of Walkers crisps would it take to fill Leicester City's home stadium, the Walkers Bowl?