The Stoketshirts.co.uk blog

Stoke City’s evolution can now begin in earnest.  Saturday’s thrilling victory over Chelsea demonstrates we needn’t fear anyone in this league… it also shows fortune favours the brave.  When Jon Walters was substituted on 84 minutes Mark Hughes could have been forgiven for utilising a defensive option.  Instead he chose  Oussama Assaidi and it proved a masterstroke.  Assaidi’s winning goal was worthy of winning any match.  Sealing a victory against one of Europe’s top teams  was an appropriate backdrop for such a moment of opportunist brilliance.  There is however, still much to improve.  We still give the ball away too easily in our own third of the pitch and in the attacking third our play is often too shapeless.  Overall though we’ve now seen what our team is capable of and there is no reason not to maintain the same level of endeavour.  If we maintain the same level of ambition we can shrug off the patchy start to the season and develop into a stronger unit.  At Hull on Saturday we need to go all out to win the game.  If we are as adventurous and resilient as we were against Chelsea we have a good chance of winning any match. It was particularly pleasing that Assaidi earned his moment of glory.  Since arriving at Stoke he’s shown fleeting glimpses of skill yet failed to produce regularly.  This was especially frustrating as a player like Assaidi can provide some of the extra dimensions we need to progress.  Against Cardiff in midweek he was subdued, failing to run at defenders suggested a severe lack of confidence.  After the victory over Chelsea Mark Hughes admitted Assaidi was disappointed he’d been left out of the starting eleven but had made it clear he must make the most of any chances he gets to impress.  He certainly made the most of Saturday’s chance!  From his reaction he enjoyed the moment as much as any of us!  Great work Oussama Assaidi, more of the same please!

The World Cup draw has left England with a huge task to progress to the knockout stage of the tournament.  Facing Italy Uruguay and Costa Rica will be an uphill struggle.  The campaign starts against Italy in the hot humid city of Manaus.  Prior to the draw Roy Hodgson was far too talkative regarding his wish to avoid playing in Manaus.  While hoping to dodge it was perfectly understandable his words gave an air of defeatism and excuse making before we’ve even reached 2014.  Now there’s also the possibility locals will side with Italy which isn’t crucial…. but  hardly helps our cause.  At least this time the England team won’t be dogged with the inexplicable high levels of expectation that have proved as damaging as they are groundless.  Australia  also lacked  good fortune in the draw…. their task is almost insurmountable.  Facing Chile Netherlands and Spain will be a torrid struggle.  Anything Australia achieve in Brazil will be  almost entirely based on a rigid formation and tactical discipline.  You can’t outplay them but you can outnumber them.  It will be a huge challenge for Ange Postecoglou and his players but it will prove useful experience to take into the 2015 Asian Cup.

Brisbane Roar sealed their place at the top of the table with victory in Adelaide. It’s been a productive season for Roar so far.  Generally the games have been enjoyable and a good advert for football.  The A-League reached a milestone on Sunday  when Melbourne Victory and  Newcastle Jets played the 1000th A-League match.  Since the inaugural 2005/06 season the A-League has become a solid part of  the Australian sporting landscape.  That’s not to say it’s all been a breeze.  The embarrassment of expansion clubs folding left a stain on the league and FFA’s credibility.  For all that the competition remains intact.   Eight years and a thousand games, hopefully our game will continue to grow here.

On the final day of the Brazilian Championship Atletico Paranaense met Vasco da Gama.  With Atletico chasing a place in next season’s Copa Libertdores and Vasco da Gama threatened with relegation it was always likely to be an intense affair, and so it proved.  In the opening exchanges of the game Atletico took the lead which lead to rival supporters involved in violent exchanges.  The match was delayed for over an hour while security forces attempted to seize control of the situation.  The violence was so extreme a military helicopter landed on the pitch to take some of the injured to hospital… which led to rumours circulating suggesting (erroneously) some had been killed. While it’s highly unlikely violence on this scale will erupt inside a stadium during the World Cup, it’s hardly the image they wanted to project to the world.  Combine this with the threat of protests outside the stadiums and the ongoing confusion over the completion dates for stadium construction, the 2014 World Cup is already proving to be a very confused episode for everyone involved.

The recent stories about spot fixing in football are distressing.  A point worth emphasising however is while some players may be corrupt, the vast majority aren’t. If the players concerned are charged and found guilty it could lead to any error or strange result tainted by suggestions of impropriety.  It’s crucial to football for this issue to be addressed and perpetrators exposed and punished accordingly.  A salient question is how did we ever get to this point?  Well, in recent years the finance of football has become increasingly prominent.  Broadcasters new deals for TV rights often generate countless headlines and the finance dissected.  Many players, at all levels, see contemporaries transfer to new clubs and one can reasonably assume they involve a hefty pay rise.  Some (but by no means all) of the aforementioned transfers are no doubt motivated by agents who themselves stand to gain from the moves in question.  Sponsors, betting companies, pubs, clothing manufacturers all use football for their own commercial gain.  The Championship play off final is one of the year’s annual showpieces.  Reaching football’s highest level is an achievement to celebrate yet the build up to the game is dominated by headlines regarding the financial riches at stake.  It gets billed as the 20 million 35 million or 50 million pound match… depending on which newspaper you read.  In short, football generates billions, of most currencies you choose to name, every year.  As corrupt and sickening as it is, if some players have been taking illegal payments…. are they evil or are they just a product of their environment?

Stoke City’s season so far has been dogged with a chronic lack of goals.  Those who felt a stroke of good fortune was required have been granted their wish.  Asmir Begovic’s goal against Southampton was a gloriously crazy way to start any game!  To take the lead after a matter of seconds, to a goal so bizarre  was the kind of good fortune any team experiences once a decade at the most!  Initially Southampton seemed unsettled.  We pressed forward and looked capable of adding to our lead.  However, when Ryan Shawcross squandered a great chance of adding a second it was  ominous.  Shawcross should have done better.  It could be argued a defender shouldn’t be expected to finish clinically but, as a professional footballer, he should have made contact to get a shot on target. From that point Southampton grew in confidence and their equaliser on the stroke of half time wasn’t a shock.  The second half consisted of both teams trying to carve out an opening with neither creating enough to win the game.  While we can have no complaints about the result it’s frustrating to have failed to win another home game.  It was particularly disheartening to gain only a draw from a game in which we had such a marvellous, albeit outlandish, start.   It’s a simple request, but soon, as soon as possible, we need to start winning games of football.

Mark Schwarzer’s retirement from international football came as a surprise.  At the age of 41 he has 109 international caps…. an Australian record.   Having experienced two World Cup campaigns with the national team there seemed every possibility he’d again play on the biggest stage next year in Brazil.    Australia will miss his presence stature and experience.  Schwarzer himself might have made a mistake when he still has a World Cup left in him.  In June he may come to rue this decision.

Joe Hart in another keeper in the news.  Did Hart’s omission from Manchester City’s starting line up really merit the media attention it generated?  His form has been erratic for months.  Manuel Pellegrini’s decision was relatively straight forward.  Costel Pantilimon performed steadily against Newcastle in midweek so keeping him in the team was a sensible decision in the best interests of the team and the club as a whole…. including Hart himself.  Off form he can use the time away to rest, recuperate and return to his best.  The press have exaggerated the importance of this.

Roma’s perfect start to the season finally reached it’s conclusion when they drew 1-1 at Torino.  Winning the first ten games of any season is impressive for anyone.  The odd thing is after such a dominant start the leaders find themselves only three points ahead of second place Napoli who, worryingly for Roma, are only ahead of Juventus on goal difference.  Manager Rudi Garcia has made a staggering start to his reign in Rome, he now needs to ensure his players can maintain their brilliant start and remember they are still on top and the team to beat.  Also, at the start of the season they wouldn’t have turned down the chance to be three points clear after eleven games!

Brisbane Roar’s 3-0 victory over Melbourne Heart was the archetypal game of two halves.  At half time nobody watching could have guessed the second half would be something of a stroll for Brisbane.  In the first period Heart wasted several great opportunities to take the lead and at half time there was a feeling they may have blown their chance.  To see the hosts effortlessly glide to victory in the second half was a huge surprise!  After the game it was disappointing to get chatting to several football fans who rarely attend A-League matches because they consider the quality of football on offer to be poor.  Of all the reasons not to go to matches the perceived low quality of play is lame.  Not least because the A-League is improving.  It isn’t, and has never claimed to be, a rival to the European Champions League.  It does however have some decent matches and holds it’s own as a national competition.  To dismiss an entire league on the basis of poor quality is to suggest the only football worth spending time on is the absolute pinnacle.  Why watch Brentford when they aren’t as good as Chelsea?  Why watch Piacenza when you can watch Milan?  For that matter, only Bayern Munich Barcelona and Real Madrid would attract crowds at all.  Is this a healthy scenario?

Sepp Blatter has pledged to seek explanations from Qatari authorities regarding the continuing controversy surrounding the 2022 World Cup.  His posturing and talk may be an attempt to recover some integrity.  If his organisation is to regain any credibility at all he needs to assert governance and strip Qatar of hosting rights and re-open the bidding process….. before resigning.

Football can be a cruel game.  There are times when a team doesn’t get what it deserves from a game.  Stoke City v Norwich on Sunday was no such occasion.  The only injustice emerging from the Britannia Stadium on Sunday was how Stoke had somehow managed to stay in the game to the end and have any chance at all of salvaging an unlikely point.  Not that there was ever any serious doubt about the result.  From the moment Jonathan Howson’s speculative effort caught Begovic out and put the visitors ahead, the game was only ever destined to be an away win.   Howson’s goal exposed many of the faults on Sunday.  As Howson carried the ball forward Huth stood off far too deep allowing Howson a strike on goal. The shot itself was decent enough but Begovic was far too slow to get down, allowing the ball  to bounce past him into the net.  Stoke’s play consisted of a litany of misplaced or under hit passes combined with miscontrolled balls and a discordant series of vague disjointed attempts to perhaps create a chance of scoring a goal.  Our only route to goal appeared to be a series of underhit crosses dealt with far too easily by the Norwich defence.  Too often our players were caught in possession which is indicative of the sluggish lethargic approach our players took to the game.   Our next game is at Craven Cottage and Fulham manager Martin Jol is under pressure…. as  Chris Hughton was on Sunday. We must ensure Jol and his team aren’t gifted victory as feebly as Norwich were.   Mark Hughes has made a bright start to his Stoke city career.  How he deals with his first major setback will be a challenge of his motivational and strategic expertise.  Hopefully he addresses the issues properly and we are spared another appalling ‘performance’.

Preparations for the 2022 World cup in Qatar were coated in yet another layer of filth last week when The Guardian exposed the treatment of migrant workers in the country. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/25/revealed-qatars-world-cup-slaves many of the workers in Qatar are treated as slaves.  This report even ruffled the feathers of those who hide behind empty soundbites.  FIFA’s vice president Jim Boyce called for an examination of working conditions.  The 2022 organising committee have also announced they are “appalled” by such barbaric treatment.  It’s strange to hear FIFA’s surprise at the latest revelations.  Are they not regular visitors to Qatar?  Qatar are after all going to host the World Cup.  If they do visit how do they spend their time?  How can they be shocked when it’s a nation they have to work with so closely?  More importantly, now they have been informed what are they going to do about it?  Do they want it to just blow over and hope everyone forgets?  The article itself was a great piece of work from The Guardian.  An example of media working for the common good.  Tenacious investigative journalism and the public’s clamour for truth and justice saw Lance Armstrong exposed as the cheat he’s been.  It’d be easy to see the Armstrong case in isolation but the clamour for truth over football’s administrators is just as strong.  So many unanswered questions yet the ruling body rolls on.  Resilient journalism and public pressure can yet shake the complacency of those who hide away in Swiss ivory towers.  It may be a long drawn out struggle but the Lance Armstrong story proves it can be done. Have your say here.  http://www.rerunthevote.org/

Paolo Di Canio’s brief reign at the Stadium of Light came to an abrupt end.  His departure, following an explosive team meeting, concluded a bizarre  episode in Sunderland’s history.  Despite leaving in the wake of a 0-3 defeat at West Brom the point has to be made he wasn’t a total disaster.  His initial aim was to avoid relegation… which he did.  In doing so they beat Newcastle 3-0 at St James Park, a game which will surely go down in Mackem folklore.  For all that he failed to adapt to the differences involved in managing at the top.  At Swindon Di Canio would publicly lambast players and shamelessly expose their weaknesses to all and sundry.  In the Premier League that style of humiliation wasn’t going to work.  Instead of players feeling motivated through it they felt resentful.  Some things have to be kept behind closed doors.  His failings at Sunderland have a precedent.  When Brian Clough  arrived at Leeds in 1974 he instructed his new players (who Clough had ruthlessly slated in the press for several years previously) to throw their medals in the bin because it was time to do things properly.  At Hartlepool or Derby that eccentricity might have amused the players or stimulated them.  At Leeds, dealing with top level players who’d been around the block… and had the medals to prove it… it was just foolish.  For Brian Clough 1974 see Paolo Di Canio 2013. If he manages again Di Canio would be best advised to treat players as adults.

The majority of football fans in Germany feel the games administrators aren’t doing enough to address the issue of bigotry in football.  18% of German supporters feel the German Football Federation doesn’t do enough to deal with homophobia and 46% would like more done to handle racial discrimination.  German football is often considered to be amongst the world’s most fan friendly and progressive.  It will be interesting to see if the administrative bodies take action on these issues.

It was sad to learn football innovator and pundit Jimmy Hill is in a nursing home suffering Alzheimer’s.  In 1961, as chairman of the PFA Hill motivated the campaign to abolish the 20 pound a week minimum wage.  The threat of unanimous strike action pressured the FA to drop the rule.  While some may feel this is partly responsible for some of the modern  games ills, the campaign was entirely appropriate and shrewdly co-ordinated.  It was Jimmy Hill who proposed a new system of three points for a win.  Like many others, he felt attacking football needed greater reward.  In 1981 three points for a win was introduced in England and is now the accepted format across the globe.   Hill is best known for presenting football programmes on television.  He revolutionised football coverage while working for ITV on the 1970 World Cup by introducing the panel.  In the modern age, punditry is often regarded as a credible career for ex players, yet until 1970 no such job existed.  In short, he understood the power of television.  For a long time Jimmy Hill was unpopular.  He often seemed pompous and isolated from the fan on the street.  For all that it’d be harsh to deny his legacy.  Hopefully, his final years will be as comfortable as they can be.

Stoke City’s long-awaited evolution is underway.  At West Ham we played with style and panache, emerging worthy winners.  The most telling difference was simply going all out to win an away game.  Steve Nzonzi carrying the ball forward and initiating play combined with overlapping full backs gave is a platform to dictate the play and apply pressure to our lacklustre opponents.  Jermaine Pennant’s impressive winner was just reward for an impressive showing from The Potters.  However we still have a long way to go and we have a precedent to limit our expectation.  At the end of the 1996/97 season Lou Macari left Stoke.  Despite his popularity it did seem he’d reached the end of the road with us.  During a poor run of form near the end of the season Macari repeated with monotonous regularity his belief Stoke had to play 100 mph football to be effective.  Many of us felt he recited his mantra to hide a lack of ideas.  In October of the 1997/98 campaign we won 1-0 at Maine Road to move up to a handily placed 6th in the table.  Macari’s replacement Chic Bates had adopted a softer approach and we played with more craft.  The wheels fell off soon after however.  We quickly became a shambles and were deservedly relegated.  Mark Hughes has made an impressive start to his Stoke City career.  We must however keep expectations in check.  Hopefully the coming years will be as enjoyable as the first three games have been.

England women’s football coach Hope Powell was sacked.  Powell had been in the job for fifteen years and oversaw a complete overhaul of the women’s game in England.  As a result  women’s football has a much higher profile.  That experience shouldn’t be wasted.  When the FA didn’t renew Bobby Robson’s contract in 1990 it wasn’t just  his managerial services that were lost.  It meant eight years of experience were also dismissed and the new manager had to start from scratch and grow into the role.  The same mistake shouldn’t be repeated.  Powell has an understanding of what is required and her experience and familiarity with the various challenges involved could prove useful to her successor and the FA as a whole. To repeat the mistake of 1990 would be foolish, she could still be a useful asset to football.

In World Cup qualifying England showed  discipline to play out a 0-0 draw away to Ukraine.  The game itself was hardly a classic but the visitors earned a priceless point and took a significant step to Brazil.  While England’s focus was a positive from the game the ongoing deficiencies continue to blight the team.  In particular, the inability to keep possession is a glaring fault which never gets addressed.  This ongoing flaw is why we should be spared any bombastic posturing from anyone attached to the Three Lions next year.  Of course, there are still people who inexplicably expect England to challenge for trophies.

One of the main talking points emerging in recent weeks is the increasingly fragile Joe Hart.  His errors are too common and it’s  surely only a lack of competition ensuring his place in the England team.  His error in the recent friendly against Scotland was indefensible and with some crucial qualifiers imminent it’s a legitimate point of concern.  For many years David James was a frustrating figure.  James could make saves no other keeper could.  He had a valuable combination of sharp reflexes and rare agility, yet he never had the nuts and bolts of the job right.  Too often positioning was flawed and crosses were flapped at… these flaws overshadowing his many positive qualities.  Hart is only 26, if he is prepared to apply himself and strive  to improve he can avoid being the next David James.

In a friendly match Melbourne Heart’s new signing Orlando Engelaar broke his right leg.  He’ll now miss a significant part of the forthcoming A-League season. Injuries are a horrible part of the game for any player.  Hopefully he can make a full recovery and make a contribution to the season.

If anyone was in denial over the scale of Australia’s task to prepare for next year’s World Cup, their 0-6 defeat to Brazil will have been a rude awakening.  There are some crumbs of comfort though.  The point has to be made Brazil are one of the favourites to lift the trophy next year, it’s not as if Australia were expected to win the match, and, of course, it was only a friendly!  There is also a friendly against France in October in which Osieck can start to work on the defensive flaws and, more importantly, how to help his players to keep and use the ball more. Australia’s outlook and expectations will be largely determined by who they face in the group stage.  2014 will be Australia’s third consecutive World Cup and after drawing Brazil and Germany in 2006 and 2010 respectively, Aussies can be forgiven if they hope for  a kinder draw in December.

The Serie A season is underway.  After two consecutive titles Juventus began the campaign with an ominous statement of intent as they hammered Lazio 4-0 in the Italian Supercup.  The acquisition of Carlos Tevez suggests it wouldn’t be a major shock if they added a third consecutive Scudetto to their trophy cabinet. The match also highlighted some of Serie A’s ongoing troubles as racial abuse was heard from the stands.  The issue of bigotry combined with run down stadiums hooliganism and the lingering issue of match fixing have resulted in Serie A losing much of its stature in recent years.  Juventus manager Antonio Conte has stated it could be years before an italian club wins the Champions league again.  There is light at the end of the tunnel.  Some of the clubs signed some big name players in the close season but all the owners fans coaches and managers involved will be hoping Antonio Conte’s words don’t prove to be prophetic.

The loss of Paul Ware is terrible on so many levels. Being honest, Warey was never a Hudson or Greenhoff, but we had a player we could identify with. A player who gave us the 100% we demand and played his part when we had some success. I , like many Stokies, will always cherish the moment at Peterborough when his free kick sent us to Wembley. That moment alone is enough to secure our affection forever. Many people don’t, and will never relate that…. which, quite frankly, is their loss. RIP Paul Ware.

At Queens Park Rangers on Saturday Stoke City finally registered the victory we’ve needed for so long.  We gained three thoroughly deserved points against a home side destined for relegation.  From the moment Peter Crouch gave us the lead shortly before half time the result rarely looked in any doubt.  Our approach to the game was a refreshing change.  It demonstrated that if a team goes all out to win  and commits men forward to support the forwards, you have a chance of winning a game of football!  We now go into the final four games of the season six points ahead of the relegation zone.   Even taking into account our horrendous start to 2013 we can be forgiven for feeling a sixth consecutive Premier League campaign is in touching distance.  After the trauma of recent months many of us will be relieved to see the back of this season and take stock.  Everyone involved must do all they can to ensure a long sparse period like the one we’ve suffered isn’t repeated. The powers that be at Stoke City will have some big decisions to make in the close season.

The A-League season reached it’s climax with Central Coast Mariners crowned champions for the first time.  In the Grand Final Central Coast deservedly beat Western Sydney Wanderers 2-0. Despite losing the final Western Sydney can be justifiably proud of their first season…. their vociferous support has added much needed noise and colour to the Australian sporting landscape.  In the wider perspective, few could deny the arrival of Heskey Ono and Del Piero has raised football’s profile here.  One bone of contention has to be the way the Grand Final was reported.  Much of the media have lauded the crowd of over 42,000 as a sign football has well and truly arrived in Australia.  The point has to be made that the previous two Grand Finals, both played in Brisbane, each attracted crowds of over 50,000.  The A-League has attracted more media attention than ever this season which obviously is beneficial to football’s profile… but the game here isn’t just a product of the last twelve months.  We shouldn’t have to wait until we have a successful team from Sydney to see the game’s growth acknowledged and celebrated.

Throughout last season’s controversy over the Luis Suarez racism charge, Liverpool Football Club stood by the player.  Kenny Dalglish’ support for Suarez was so absolute it’s hard to believe it had no influence on his eventual dismissal.  Suarez has repaid this support by demonstrating he is, quite simply, a loose cannon not to be trusted.  Many  players have made rash tackles or foolishly lashed out but on Sunday overstepped every conceivable mark by biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic.  If the FA take appropriate action and give out a lengthy ban it’s possible he’ll never play for Liverpool again. Nobody denies Suarez is a marvellous footballer but, at this stage, Brendan Rogers should assert some self governance and get rid of him. It is however sickening to think by moving him on Suarez will probably  get a move to a glamour club and a pay rise.

We saw the other end of the scale at Anfield on Sunday when a minutes applause was held in honour of Anne Williams.  She was a marvellous woman whose tireless campaigning has been an integral factor in the marvellous work of the Hillsborough justice campaign.  After losing her 15 year old son Kevin in the disaster Anne Williams spent her life challenging authority figures and gathering evidence to confront the lies associated with that tragic day. RIP Anne Williams.  Justice for the 96.

The PFA’s player of the year ceremony takes place on Sunday.    However, one question that has to be asked is why does the voting have to take place so early in the season?  The awards are dished out before the seasons climax when there is plenty of time for players to impose themselves on a season’s story, yet nominations start in February.  The PFA awards remain the games most prestigious.  Acclaim from fellow professionals remains a great accolade.  But to maintain credibility the timing of the ceremony and the voting procedure needs a revamp.

The current season is drifting to it’s conclusion and it’s something of an anti climax.  Across Europe titles are a formality, most leagues currently have a runaway leader.  Bayern Munich secured their latest Bundesliga title with six games to spare.  In the Dutch league Ajax and PSV Eindhoven were neck and neck but Ajax have started to break ahead and now carry a four point lead.  Hopefully the cup competitions will provide some much needed thrills and spills.

After the Newcastle v Stoke match on Sunday, Tony Pulis stated  “Away from home we’ve played better this season than at any time in our five years in the Premier League”. Reflecting on the season so far it’s hard to see where that view comes from.  We have only won once on the road and the draws we have collected have been the result of stifling tactics as opposed to any great will to attack and win the game.  Sunday was particularly sickening.  Taking the lead on 67 minutes shouldn’t lead to a defeat.  Against a tired and lethargic Newcastle  we rarely threatened but snatched the lead through a Jon Walters penalty.  Given recent spot kick traumas it showed great character for Walters to step up and put us ahead.  We shot ourselves in the foot when Glen Whelan’s careless backpass needlessly put the defence under pressure.  In the ensuing chaos Whelan brought down Sissoko on the edge of the area… handing a free kick to our opponents.  Yohan Cabaye’s free kick was brilliant, inch perfect bouncing into the goal from the underside of the bar. From securing a precious lead we were back to square one immediately, a golden opportunity squandered, and nobody to blame but ourselves.  In the final stages of the game Tony Pulis appeared to settle for the draw when he replaced Cameron Jerome with Dean Whitehead.  The game was indeed fizzling out to a draw  until injury time when our central defence failed to play the offside trap properly, Marc Wilson failed to step out leaving Papiss Cisse with plenty of time to control the ball and gratefully volley home a winner.  Yet another dismal away day.  We hadn’t actually played too badly, we failed to trouble the hosts but having edged ahead should have gone on to win the game and to lose was calamitous.  Next up we face West Brom and it isn’t melodramatic to suggest it’s a must win game for us. There is a lot at stake. We have only won 8 league matches in the last 40.  Failing to win will only exacerbate the mutterings of discontent amongst supporters and it’d be a relief to go into the international break on the back of a victory.

The aftermath of Real Madrid’s Champions League victory over Man Utd continues to resonate.  Attention shifted from Nani’s controversial red card to Alex Ferguson’s decision to omit Wayne Rooney from the starting line up.  Amid the media coverage some have seen fit to re-write history with the assertion that Wayne Rooney has failed to fulfill his potential.  Lets examine the facts.  At the age of 27 Rooney has won four Premier league winners medals… with the fifth a formality.  He also has a Champions League winners medal and two runners up medals.  His England form can be hit and miss but he has scored 33 games in 79 appearances, he still has the potential to reach 100 caps.  With those achievements in mind some of the press appear to be blowing the situation out of all rational proportion.

For a long time many people felt that ex players should fill the game’s administrative roles.  The thinking was that a players  have devoted a huge part of their lives to football, therefore they will be more likely to care about it, protect it and ensure progressive ethical governance.  Since being elected president  of UEFA Michel Platini has proved this theory to be flawed.  He has decided to expand the European Championship from 16 to 24 teams, a move which will dilute the quality of what is often a tremendous competition.  As a result of this expansion, and with UEFA seemingly oblivious to the precarious state of the global economy, the 2020 tournament was short of bidders so will have to be shared across the continent.  Despite attempting to introduce financial fair play rules he contradicted himself by welcoming Qatar Sports Investments bankrolling Paris Saint Germain.  Coincidentally, Platini’s son Laurent is a lawyer employed by PSG.  On the global stage Platini voted for Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup, despite now demanding conditions that weren’t part of the bid during the election in 2010.  As a player Michel Platini embodied much of what makes the game great.  A skillful elegant player able to pass a ball onto the proverbial sixpence.  As an administrator he’s untrustworthy and self serving… just like the rest of them.

In the Scottish Premier League Hearts and Hibs drew the Edinburgh derby 0-0.  Hearts must be relieved with the draw given the astonishing stroke of luck they received.  Surely instances like this give further credence to the introduction of goal line technology.  Leigh Griffiths was denied a place in Hibs folklore.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=3996Mg9qppA

Barcelona’s majestic dismantling of Milan will live long on the memory. A remarkable performance from a remarkable football team.  It was clear that to overturn the 0-2 deficit Barcelona really need an early goal.  Messi delivered the goal with stunning accuracy.  At the moment he struck the ball the Argentinian genius  was well and truly locked in the cage.  Four Milan players surrounded him yet, with a deft flick of the boot, he found the net with power and precision.  In the 38th minute M’Baye Niang rattled the post for Milan   but two minutes later Messi drew Barcelona level.  From that point on the result wasn’t really in doubt.  Barcelona’s passage to the quarter final seemed a formality and so it proved.  On reflection it’s hard to say that Milan actually did anything wrong.  They were simply outplayed and  overpowered by the greatest football team of the modern era that contains  the greatest footballer of the era.

The most depressing aspect of Stoke City’s dreadful showing at Fulham is the predictability.  Yet another failure to impose ourselves on the game, yet another glaring display of tepid inadequacy on the road and inevitably, yet another predictable away defeat.  Sometimes when Stoke play I get a warm thrill of nostalgia.  If we get a corner and the Stokies present give a roar of excitement it sounds like an old friend.  A good Delilah still gets the blood pumping.  When the TV cameras scan the aforementioned Stokies I instinctively look for faces I recognise and smile when one is located.  Saturday night’s game at Craven Cottage was certainly not one such occasion.  From the start our team seemed set up to try and squeeze out a grim 0-0 draw.  Despite failing to sustain any pressure on our opponents we seemed relatively comfortable for most of the first half.  Those few seconds before half time exposed one of the great failings of the approach, Dimitir Berbatov’s volley was the kind of brilliance nobody can really legislate for and the original gameplan has to be altered to get back into the game.  From that stage, especially against a side as devoid of creativity as Stoke are, it’s pretty simple to hold onto a lead…. you just keep discipline and hold positions and play the game out.  Predictably, Fulham easily managed to stifle our laboured efforts to reach parity.  Some of us may choose to hide behind the fanciful notion that had Jon Walters converted his penalty we’d have rallied to win the game, but comfort in ifs and buts is as lame as it is desperate.  The point also has to be made that as Jon Walters stepped up to take the spot kick many of us had little confidence he’d score.  His miss was utterly predictable.  This wretched ‘performance’ also carried some absurd displays of indiscipline.  Steven Nzonzi was outrageously, undeservedly fortunate not to get a red card for smacking Ruiz in the mouth.  That Nzonzi was fired up and seeking retribution for his earlier elbow in the face proves his intent.  Robert Huth may not be so lucky.  His elbow on Senderos was sheer thuggery.  He now faces the prospect of a three match ban and he can have nobody to blame but himself.  Did he really think he could get away with it?  Surely he’s fully aware that every moment of every match is filmed. Hopefully Tony Pulis has asserted his authority and punished him appropriately.  Our next away match is at Newcastle.  Next time it needs to be different.  Our away displays are now worse than at any time since promotion.  For side known to be combative and resilient, away from home we are increasingly easy to beat, a soft touch, dull, insipid and utterly predictable.

There was good news for the A-league last week with confirmation that Alessandro Del Piero will stay with Sydney FC for at least another season.  Despite his clubs lowly league position Del Piero is a huge success for the game here.  His arrival raised football’s profile on the Australian sporting landscape and his decision to activate the second year of his contract increases the league’s credibility.   In addition to all this he can still show moments of intrinsic skill few others can match.  Many of us are already excited about seeing him next season!

Milan’s 2-0 victory over Barcelona was thoroughly deserved.  The Rossoneri played with focus and discipline and stifled Barcelona’s glittering collection of superstars.  Even Lionel Messi couldn’t get out of the red and black  cage.  Milan pressed, took their chances and emerged worthy victors.  At the final whistle the San Siro almost exploded with delight, 80,000  together as one!  The cameras scanned to manager Massimiliano Allegri who was most entitled to savour the euphoria.  At the start of the season Allegri was under serious pressure.  His employers indicated they wanted Pep Guardiola to replace him and his sacking seemed a formality, every match they played had the air of a public execution.  It’s a cliche, but Milan’s passage to the quarter final is far from guaranteed.  While they are in a strong position to go through, Barcelona are fully capable of overturning the deficit.  The point has to be made however, having weathered the early season storm Allegri must have cherished last weeks sunshine.

Next weeks Champions League 2nd leg between Real Madrid and Manchester United could prove to be a defining moment of Jose Mourihno’s reign at the Bernebeau.  The tie is finely poised with Manchester United securing a precious away goal in Madrid but knowing the sheer quality of Real Madrid’s players (one player in particular) suggests deciding to sit back and invite pressure could be football suicide.  The remains of the tie will be shaped by the next goal.  Most importantly Manchester United must make sure they aren’t in a position where they have to chase the game. When Real Madrid took the lead at the Nou Camp Barcelona were forced to press forward in search of an equaliser.  The visitors  played the ball forward with unerring accuracy to expose the spaces behind the hosts increasingly populated attack.  You can be sure Alex Ferguson will have taken note.

The malaise at Stamford Bridge continues.  Talking to the media after the FA Cup victory over Middlesborough, Rafael Benitez criticised Owner Roman Abramavic and the supporters.  During his press conference Benitez emphasized his disappointment at being given the title ‘interim manager’.  His contract only lasts until the end of the season but it’s hard to imagine him lasting that long.  Some may suggest his outburst was ill advised but if he is being undermined by his employer why shouldn’t he speak out?  It’s almost ten years since Roman Abramovic bought and bankrolled Chelsea.  Despite the bottomless pit of spending money, and the chance to work with some very talented footballers, Chelsea remains a very difficult club to manage.

Losing at The Emirates Stadium wasn’t a shock, but to go through an entire match without a period of sustained pressure on the Arsenal goal was as infuriating as it was predictable.  At Old Trafford in October we lost, but at least we made a game of it.  Similarly, at Stamford Bridge Chelsea were mightily relieved to dig out a late winner agaainst us.   Two defeats but we’d taken the game to the opposition and given them something to worry about.  At Arsenal we seemed to set out just to snuff out Arsenal’s threat at the expense of everything else.  The nature of Arsenal’s winner may lead some to suggest we’d been unfortunate.  It’d be a flawed perspective.  Andy Wilkinson made a bad challenge that presented the opportunity.  When you spend so much time camped in your own third of the pitch you are susceptible to the receiving end of the games quirks.  When you give free kicks away, as Stoke do far too often, you are vulnerable.  Overall Arsenal were worthy of their victory but on that showing Bayern Munich have little to fear.  Next up Stoke face Reading.  It isn’t melodramatic to suggest it’s a must win game for us. There is a lot at stake.   We haven’t won since Boxing day.  At Christmas time Reading looked doomed, we looked as if we could make a run at a Europa League spot.  If Reading were to win at Britannia on Saturday they would be only four points behind us and deliver a big blow to our morale and it’d do nothing to quell the mutterings of discontent in the Stoke support.  As with many difficult spells for football teams our current situation is nothing a win won’t put right, and on Saturday we really need to.

Anyone connected with Manchester City casting envious glances at Mario Balotell’s impressive debut for Milan should think again.  Nobody ever doubted Balotelli’s ability.  Few can deny that ‘on his day’ Balotelli would be an asset to any of the top clubs in Europe.  The question is, how often did Mario have ‘his day’?  He’d clearly hit a dead end with Manchester City and when the big money offer arrived it was wise to take it.  Balotelli’s time at Manchester City was far from a failure.  He was part of the team that won the FA Cup and followed it with a Premier League title winners medal.  For all that, the cold hard truth is  when it’s over it’s over. Observe and replace.

Elsewhere in Italy, Napoli briefly got that Maradona feeling on Saturday when they went joint top of the league with Juventus. Edinson Cavani may not quite be a Maradona but he is priceless to Neapolitans right now.  The Uruguayan sits proudly on top the Serie A leading scorers chart.  However, one of several differences between now and the Maradona era is the simple issue of finance.  The Italian League isn’t as prosperous as it was in the 80s.  If some of the European powerhouses come knocking there could be an irresistible offer.  Napoli should treasure days like these, they might not be as sustainable as they’d like.

On transfer deadline day Peter Odemwingie became a subject of ridicule.  Awaiting his transfer to QPR to be finalised he sat in the Loftus Road car park and waited.  And waited.  And waited and waited.  No such deal was made and hapless Peter was left to lick his wounds and endure international humiliation. Some may not accept this but Odemwingie is actually deserving of sympathy.  Going to the effort of driving to London suggests he’d been told to do so, maybe by an agent or a club official, we may never know the full story as clubs take great pride in treating information like this with utmost confidentiality.  Whatever the motivating factor, Odemwingie looked foolish by the end of the day.  Transfer deadline day has become a huge hyperbole drenched media event.  Television cameras are placed outside stadiums across the nation hoping for a slice of information, rumour  or  hint that helps them deliver news  to a grateful populace.  In the days before 24 hour sports channels, and a drooling social media, we may not have learnt of a transfer until reading the following days newspapers, and we didn’t know, or care how the move had come about.  Perhaps Peter Odemingie’s biggest problem was that there is nowhere to hide in 2013.

It was upsetting to see Paul Gascoigne’s latest public meltdown.  At a public meeting he was shaking and incoherent.  Following the incident Gazza travelled to the USA to attend a rehabilitation  centre. Since retiring from playing his numerous problems have been well documented.  He’s rarely far from the headlines and I, like many others, fear the worst when I see his name in a newspaper headline.  We can only hope  he can address his issues and the latest attempt at rehabilitation proves to be successful. As Terry Venables has said, “Only Gazza can save Gazza.”

The Champions league restarts next week with the tie between Real Madrid and Manchester United the fascination of the first week of fixtures.  The Jose Mourinho/Real Madrid situation is almost farcical.  it’s abundantly clear that  Mourinho isn’t wanted at, neither does he want to be at, The Bernabeu.  In recent weeks he’s talked longingly of a return to the Premier League.  Real Madrid’s players seem as if they would be happy to see the back of Mourinho, Iker Casillas in particular.  Amid the bitterness, Mourinho won’t leave and the club won’t sack him!   On taking the reins at The Bernabeu Mourinho’s brief was clear… he needs to win the European Cup.  While they remain in that competition he still has hope of fulfilling the terms of the mission statement.  The players could hasten his departure by having an off day.  The internal politics involved are so overwhelming anyone can be excused for forgetting there will be two football matches taking place!

Losing to Chelsea is no disgrace.  Until they took the lead on the stroke of half time Stoke had matched them.  When Kenwyne Jones squandered a great opportunity early on many of us got the feeling we may have blown our best chance… and so it proved.  Throughout a very entertaining first half Chelsea broke with precision and pace and their movement stretched us.  It was the fluidity which led to Frank Lampard’s opening bringing an impressive save from Asmir Begovic.  We were undone by the aforementioned movement in first half injury time.  The overlap and cross by Hazard created confusion in our defence and Jon Walters ensuing own goal proved to be the turning point in the match.  We started the second half with a burst of pressure, the highpoint of which was N’Zonzi’s thunderous drive being palmed away by Cech.  Unfortunately, having to press and chase the game led to space behind the midfield, space that Chelsea were more than capable of exploiting.  When Jon Walters bagged his second own goal of the game it marked the end of the match as a contest.  4 down after 73 minutes we could have been forgiven for fearing a repeat of the 0-7 battering we took at Stamford Bridge in 2010.  Thankfully we were spared a repeat of that humiliation.  All that remained was for Jon Walters to compound his own miserable day by missing a penalty.  Nobody can deny Chelsea’s quality but losing 0-4 at home to anyone is distressing.  From being a team with an inpenetrable defence we’ve now conceded ten goals in the last three league games.  In the aftermath we can look ahead and disperse many of the gathering clouds in the embryonic stage by bouncing straight back at Swansea.  Most importantly, we must remember that while the defence needs work we still have the attacking armory to press forward and win games.  Intending to play out 0-0 draws would be as unnecessary and inexcusable as ever.

Much of the media attention has understandably focused on Jon Walters.  Scoring two own goals and missing a penalty certainly equates to a bad day at the office!  It was great to hear Stoke City fans giving support by singing his name. Hopefully he understands these things happen in football from time to time and much worse things in life can occur.  If his two goal haul in the FA Cup replay against Crystal Palace is an indicator he’s coming to terms with it!!

Brisbane Roar are languishing 3 places from the bottom of the A-League.  Saturday’s dismal 0-1 defeat at Newcastle was a poor showing from a team whose fall from dominance is as complete as their rise was impressive.  The fall from grace is more striking when considering the players are the same ones who became the most successful team in the history of Australian sport.  The lesson to be learnt is never to underestimate the manager’s influence.  When Ange Postecoglou left the club for Melbourne Victory some demeaned his influence in Brisbane’s success.  It was suggested the real mastermind behind the operation was his assistant Rado Vidosic and Vidosic’s promotion to manager would be a seamless transition.  As has often been the case internal promotion didn’t work out.  Managing a football team can be a good cop bad cop dynamic and often the link between players and manager is the assistant.  Vidosic was replaced as manager a month ago but the club’s current malaise can be traced back to the lazy decision to replace Ange Postecoglou with Rado Vidosic.

The speculation is over.  Pep Guardiola has confirmed that he’ll be working for Bayern Munich next season.  Speculation was rife that he’d move to the Premier League, which, in effect, meant Manchester City or Chelsea.  His decision is understandable.  In moving to Bayern he’ll get a free rein to fulfill his vision at a club with great stature.  Another positive aspect of the move is it increases the prestige of the Bundesliga.  In an age  when fans in many nations are indoctrinated into believing their exploitation is essential for the clubs to prosper, German clubs have proven there are different methods to sustain success.

The build up to the Arsenal v Manchester City match was dominated by the news of Manchester City being unable to sell their full allocation.  The main factor in this was the extortionate 62 pound ticket price.  At the match Manchester City fan Richard Taylor protested about the hefty cost of watching his team.  His demonstration took the form of displaying a banner asking the simple inoffensive question.. 62pounds!! WHERE WILL IT STOP? A reasonable statement made peacefully.  That didn’t stop a  steward removing the banner.  The steward informed Taylor the banner was in breach of club regulations.  An Arsenal official later stated that the only reason the banner was removed was because it impeded the view of supporters.  This explanation would carry a semblance of credibility were it not for the fact it was taken away before the match had kicked off.

As a gesture of friendship Bobby Charlton invited families of victims of the Hillsborough disaster into the directors box for Sunday’s Manchester United v Liverpool match. It was a magnificent gesture from English football’s finest ambassador.  As a man he exhibits the sheer class he showed as a player.  Bobby Charlton is the embodiment of everything that makes football great.

Football matches can often hinge on a moment.  On Saturday, had Leon Osman scored to put Everton 2 up on the stroke of half time, its hard to imagine the game ending in anything other than an away win.  In his post match interview Tony Pulis correctly stated that Osman’s miss was the turning point. Having taken the lead out of the blue with Ryan Shawcross’ own goal, a second at that stage would have been difficult for Stoke to come back from.  Like the opening goal, our equaliser was rather fortunate.  It was a good ball forward by Shawcross and decent header by Kenwyne Jones but you really don’t expect a goalkeeper to be caught wrongfooted as Tim Howard was.  Despite that, it’d be inaccurate to suggest we weren’t worthy of a point.  As a spectacle it lacked style but both sides displayed great endeavour and a big appetite for the game.  Overall it was an evenly contested game between two competitive teams.  Most of the post match publicity has understandably focussed on Fellaini’s headbutt on Ryan Shawcross.  To his credit David Moyes said his player deserved a ban.  Fellaini’s violent attack was reckless on several levels.  Two combative teams playing an evenly matched contest yet he chose to jeopardise his teams chances with his mindless assault… Fellaini knows he’s a very important player for the team.  The other baffling aspect is that it wasn’t just an instinctive response.  Fellaini knew exactly what he was doing.  Before the butt he actually sneaked a quick look at the ref to make sure it wouldn’t be seen.  Did he really think he could get away with it?  Surely he’s fully aware that every moment of every match is filmed.  Everton’s impressive first half of the season  has seen them challenging for a top four place… they could also be well placed for an FA Cup run.  As Saturday’s game hinged on Osman’s miss, Everton’s season could hinge on Fellaini’s idiocy, and his manager deserves better.

Fans of Zenit St Petersburg have asked their club not to buy any black or gay players.  The plea was carried out by way of a letter which contains one of the most self contradictory statements on record… “We’re not racists but we see the absence of black players at Zenit as an important tradition,”.  Their misguided request is steeped in bigotry.  The clumsy attempt to justify the prejudice serves only to highlight how flawed their entire philosophy actually is.  One of the reasons our game is still blighted by this venomous hate is the refusal of ruling bodies to take strong decisive action.  Despite playing the usual vacuous superficial lip service, FIFA  decided back in 2010 that the votes to decide  the 2018 World Cup hosts  must not be influenced in any way by the subject of racism.  So what was the point of that campaign they have been running?   Wouldn’t the threat of being cast aside in the World Cup bid have been be a just action and a deterrent?

Brazil’s Sao Paulo were awarded the Copa Sudamericana title on their home ground, after Argentinian opponents Tigre refused to return to the field for the second half.  Trailing 2-0 Tigre stayed in the dressing room claiming to have been physically attacked and threatened with guns by security staff… the referee awarded the game to Sao Paolo. Surprisingly a major incident like this didn’t actually receive much media attention.  The scale of the story is exacerbated further bearing in mind Brazil will be hosting the World Cup in 18 months.  Had a similar brawl occurred in Europe it’s hard to believe the press would be so oblivious.

After eleven games of the A-League season Rado Vidosic has been replaced as head coach of Brisbane Roar by Mike Mulvey.  Last time out there were encouraging signs when Roar drew 1-1 away at Melbourne victory.  That may give views of Vidosic’s removal an unrealistic tint.  The fact is that since taking over from Ange Postecoglou Brisbane have undoubtedly deteriorated and currently sit second from bottom on the table. It’s only a year since this group of players  became the most formidable team in the history of Australian sport.  The key lesson to be remembered is that Fabio Capello and  Bob Paisley are exceptions that prove the rule…. promoting the assistant manager to the top job rarely brings success.  The club have made a big point of emphasising that Vidosic was not actually ‘sacked’ as he has been moved into the technical director’s role.   That may be the case but had Roar won the last six games would the same step had been taken?

The original inquest findings have been quashed and a new inquest is to take place into the deaths of the 96 who perished at Hillsborough.  This is a huge step towards justice and  testament to the work of the Hillsborough Family Support group.  We can hope this news can bring the bereaved some comfort at what must be a deeply traumatic time of year for them.