FOOTBALL RIOT

El Classico: Real Madrid vs Barcelona

2009-05-03T02:42:00.000-07:00

Middlesbrough vs Manchester United

2009-05-03T02:34:00.002-07:00

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Chelsea vs Fulham

2009-05-03T02:34:00.001-07:00

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Internazionale vs Lazio

2009-05-03T02:33:00.001-07:00

Portsmouth vs Arsenal

2009-05-03T02:07:00.000-07:00

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Manchester United vs Arsenal

2009-05-01T11:36:00.001-07:00

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A stalemate? No surprise there

2009-05-01T11:23:00.000-07:00

It was a game many were looking forward to, Chelsea's power coming up against Barcelona's artistry, brawn against brain, lung capacity against grey matter. 'Beauty and the Beast', one of the Barcelona newspapers called it. Which is a little harsh on Chelsea's personnel, but we got the point.

Guus Hiddink had predicted a classic, just like Chelsea's wonderful quarter-final against Liverpool a fortnight earlier. The Camp Nou was full, the television audience massive, the expectation jangling. And what did we get? A stalemate.

Sure, it was on a more elevated level tactically and skill-wise than the bore draw served up the night before by Newcastle and Portsmouth. Yes, there were elements to savour, in the defensive obduracy of John Terry, the buzzing, inventive midfield play of Andres Iniesta and Xavi and the strength on the ball of Yaya Toure. Overall, however, it was not one to live long in the memory. 0-0 draws rarely do.

But then this was a semi-final. And how many classic semis can you recount? Maybe a couple involving England. There's France against Germany in the 1982 World Cup. There's Germany v Italy in the last World Cup, itself goalless for 118 minutes. There's Crystal Palace against Liverpool in the FA Cup 1990. I'm sure there are few others that might be recalled under sustained water-boarding. But generally they turn out like last night: cagey, careful, pragmatic. Which is perfectly understandable. The closer you get to the prize, the less you are prepared to risk.

Just consider what was at stake last night. For Barcelona there is a huge quantity of self-esteem on the table. This is a club that reckons itself different, apart from the rest of Spain by dint of history and geography, apart from the rest of football by the manner of its ownership, aloof from the forces of mammon as personified by the Premier League juggernaut.

Their fans like to see the club as the last representative of the forces of light remaining in the competition. This is a club that thinks of itself as doing things properly. Winning the European Cup only twice in its history is a gap in its CV everyone at the club is desperate to address. Now it has a team not only capable of winning it for a third time, but doing so in style. The pressure to get there is overwhelming. When Lionel Messi miscontrols a ball, you realise it is also a pressure that afflicts even the greats.

For Chelsea, the pressure is no less intense. The desire to right the wrongs of Moscow last season, to put their mark on history, finally to deliver to the man who has bankrolled so much his fervent wish: these are not small concerns. And they are concerns which, while always there, move from the back of the mind to the front as the prize hoves into view. It is ever thus: no-one wants to balls up a semi.

It was just the same in the FA Cup the other weekend. The game between Manchester United and Everton was one of the dullest in recorded time, a match which could have gone on another fortnight and still failed to deliver anything worth remembering. Ultimately Everton deserved their moment. But it was still a stinker. And that, whatever Alex Ferguson's urgent post-rationalisation, wasn't solely down to the pitch.

Unless I can be persuaded otherwise, it was down to this irrefutable law of football: semis are almost always rubbish.

By: Jim White

Barcelona vs Chelsea

2009-04-29T22:36:00.000-07:00

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Ryan mighty?

2009-04-27T10:05:00.000-07:00

Can somebody who starts one match in three ever be considered the best player in the Premier League?

The answer, apparently, is yes, after Ryan Giggs won the PFA Player of the Year award despite appearing in Alex Ferguson's starting XI just 12 times this season.

Has Giggs been more influential than Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Phil Neville or even Titus Bramble? Of course not.

This is a lifetime achievement award by another name, voted for by players who had just seen countless replays of his admittedly sumptuous goal against West Ham.

The argument for Giggs is that this represents fair reward for his body of work. He is one of the best players of the last 20 years and certainly the most decorated, so what better way to celebrate his continued influence than with a big tin pot?

The anti-Giggs lobby can point to the fact that he has hardly played. Which, you might imagine, must count against him.

Andrei Arshavin has every chance of making more Premier League starts than Giggs despite spending fewer taxable days in the UK than Lewis Hamilton.

And as for the lifetime achievement award, Giggs might have longevity but ED does not remember him being a serious contender for one of these PFA awards before.

The perennial contenders from United were always Eric Cantona, David Beckham, Roy Keane, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Peter Schmeichel.

But not Giggs. Not even in that dark period around the turn of the millennium when United had no serious domestic opposition and a decrepit Teddy Sheringham won the PFA award.

Clearly the baffling custom of announcing the awards with a month of the season still to play (and polling the players several weeks before that) has had an effect on proceedings.

If the voting were held back until the end of the season, would Nemanja Vidic have been nominated for Player of the Year ahead of Frank Lampard? Or Gabriel Agbonlahor nominated for Young Player ahead of Theo Walcott?

And the team of the season would certainly not contain Chelsea's Nicolas Anelka, who has gone staler than a week-old baguette since Big Phil got the push.

Ashley Young's victory in the Young Player category is so 2008, they might as well have picked Duffy.

If the vote were being taken at the end of the season, is there any doubt that Stephen Ireland would have won?

'Complex' personality aside, the Irishman has been by far Manchester City's most consistent and influential player.

There would be an almighty clamour for Fabio Capello to call him up if he were English. And if he hadn't retired from international football following Grannygate.

Does it really matter though? The PFA award does not claim to be some objective measure of performance.

The players have been asked for their footballer of the year and they have expressed a preference. If you don't like their choice, tough. Become a Premier League player and vote for someone else.

Source: Eurosport

Napoli vs Inter Milan

2009-04-26T23:21:00.002-07:00

AC Milan vs Palermo

2009-04-26T23:21:00.001-07:00

Sevilla vs Real Madrid

2009-04-26T23:08:00.000-07:00

Arsenal v Middlesbrough

2009-04-26T23:04:00.000-07:00

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Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur

2009-04-25T22:35:00.000-07:00

Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur

Hull city vs Liverpool

2009-04-25T22:19:00.000-07:00

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West Ham United v Chelsea

2009-04-25T22:07:00.001-07:00

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Valencia vs Barcelona

2009-04-25T21:58:00.000-07:00

Everton v Manchester City

2009-04-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

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Bolton Wanderers v Aston Villa

2009-04-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

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Fulham vs Stoke City

2009-04-25T21:37:00.000-07:00

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Fiorentina vs AS Roma

2009-04-25T21:19:00.001-07:00

Manchester United vs Portsmouth

2009-04-23T17:32:00.001-07:00

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Chelsea v Everton

2009-04-23T17:22:00.001-07:00

Chelsea v Everton
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All hail the Ginger Prince

2009-04-23T17:14:00.000-07:00

Paul Scholes played his 600th game for Manchester United last night. Yet all Early Doors can do is wonder why he is nearly 200 behind Ryan Giggs, who has chugged on to 799.

Whatever ED's landmark-related gripes, there is no doubt that United's older players have contributed enormously to the club, which has rightly treated them well in return.

Nobody would argue that Scholes, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs are automatic first-team selections or that they are the players they were at their peak. Yet their value remains.

Anderson had a superb game against Portsmouth last night. It is impossible to quantify how much he benefits from Scholes's example - both his attitude and the extraordinary natural ability that allows him to ping 80 yard balls at team-mates taking a leak by the side of the pitch in training and whack them on the back of the head.

Compare that to Arsenal, where players over 30 are treated as damaged goods and begrudgingly offered a one-year contract and a Zimmer frame. Even if they are Dennis Bergkamp.

Watching Denilson get outmuscled against Chelsea and Liverpool, it was impossible not to wonder how much more savvy and steely the Brazilian might be had Patrick Vieira tutored him through the early years of his career.

Despite his penchant for abysmally-timed, leg-breaking tackles, there is nobody more respected by his fellow professionals than Scholes, yet he retains his complete antipathy towards and the perks of being a superstar footballer. Like money.

In 2005 when Rio Ferdinand (recently returned from an eight-month ban for missing a drug test) was haggling over the details of his bumper £100,000-a-week* contract, United quietly got Scholes in and the midfielder duly signed the first piece of paper that was put in front of him.

The problem was, Scholes's deal was worth only £70,000-a-week*. Not a bad wage, admittedly, but over £1 million less than Ferdinand took home every year, and all because Rio is a greedy beggar with a ball-breaking agent.

If it were up to Early Doors, and this statement alone probably proves why it is not, Scholes would always be the highest player at his club.

What better way to reward loyalty than to take the man with no agent, no PR machine and no interest in negotiation and give him £200,000 every week?

Want to get top dollar, Rio? Sack your agent, stop funding violent gangster movies while simultaneously campaigning against knife crime, shut down your preposterous lifestyle magazine and get your bloody head down.

*These figures have been plucked out of a tabloid newspaper at best, or thin air at worst.

Source: Eurosport

Barcelona vs Sevilla

2009-04-22T20:22:00.000-07:00

Liverpool v Arsenal

2009-04-22T15:05:00.000-07:00

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Real Madrid vs Getafe

2009-04-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

Send in the clowns

2009-04-20T10:09:00.000-07:00

The two best managers in English football have lost their marbles. There is no other conclusion to draw from the weekend's FA Cup semi-finals.

Between them, Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have won the Premier League 13 times in its 16 years of existence, and have seen their sides lift the FA Cup on nine occasions.

They are the men responsible for bringing to these shores such players as Schmeichel and Vieira, Ronaldo and Henry.

They are revered around the world for their tactical nous, their ability to spot a talent and for their well-judged, inspirational team-talks.

So why is it that Manchester United and Arsenal would both have been better off with a feral cat sitting in the dugout at Wembley?

We will start with United, the cause of whose demise is slightly easier to pinpoint - Fergie's selection of a group of players so infantile they looked like they should have been extras in a Danny Boyle movie or competing in an Olympic diving event.

Is it Early Doors, or are kids getting younger?

When Alan Hansen uttered the immortal words "you'll win nothing with kids" in August 1995, he was referring to the likes of David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville who had all celebrated their 20th birthday.

Now it seems you have to bear significant physical similarities to a foetus before anyone even considers you to be young.

United's comical team that lost on penalties to Everton contained the barely-shaving likes of Danny Welbeck, Rafael and Fabio da Silva (all 18) and Federico Macheda (17).

Goodness only knows why Fergie did it, but ED suspects it is because he - like most United fans - is willing to sacrifice almost anything to ensure Liverpool do not win the Premier League.

You would never get him to admit it, but for Ferguson Wednesday's game against Portsmouth is more important than both the Everton semi-final and last week's Champions League semi-final in Porto.

It is less easy to accuse Wenger of wilful negligence, as his selections of Emmanuel Eboue and Lukasz Fabianski - aka Dumb and Dumber - were dictated by injuries rather than megalomania.

However, Wenger's decision to drop the brilliant Andrei Arshavin so he could deploy Denilson as some bizarre midfield hatchet man must rank among his worst as Arsenal boss.

True, Arsenal could have done with a Patrick Vieira-style enforcer, but they simply do not have such a player. Accordingly, they should just pick the best of what they do have, and Denilson is most definitely not that.

It is not that Denilson is a better tackler than Arshavin or the equally snubbed Samir Nasri; he is just so much worse at everything else that his defensive deficiencies appear less glaring.

Time and again he was left for dead by Frank Lampard and Michael Essien, clutching hopelessly at a blue shirt that was long gone.

And whenever he did get on the ball he might as well have put a little bow on it and formally presented it to a Chelsea player.

His best contribution was when the red mist descended and he pushed referee Martin Atkinson in the chest, but the official disappointed Gooners everywhere by only showing a yellow card.

While Ferguson and Wenger compiled their catalogue of errors, Guus Hiddink and David Moyes emerged triumphant by doing the little things right; little things like picking Didier Drogba instead of Miroslav Stoch and not deploying Tony Hibbert as a creative midfielder.

And when all was said and done, the grand old men of English football did the decent thing and accepted where responsibility lay - with the Wembley pitch.

Wenger called it "laughable" while Ferguson said it was "dead" and even blamed it for his team selection, adding: "When I saw the pitch what I didn't want was to go into extra time with my strongest squad."

Source: Eurosport

AC Milan vs Torino

2009-04-19T19:00:00.000-07:00

Valencia vs Sevilla

2009-04-19T14:13:00.000-07:00

Arsenal vs Chelsea

2009-04-19T14:08:00.000-07:00

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Roma vs Lecce

2009-04-19T13:49:00.000-07:00

Aston Villa v West Ham United

2009-04-19T09:02:00.000-07:00

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Portsmouth v Bolton

2009-04-19T08:01:00.000-07:00

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Sunderland v Hull City

2009-04-18T19:52:00.000-07:00

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Stoke city v Blackburn Rovers

2009-04-18T19:40:00.000-07:00

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Juventus vs Inter

2009-04-18T19:29:00.001-07:00

Getafe vs Barcelona

2009-04-18T19:18:00.000-07:00

Let's hear it for Phil

2009-04-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

Looking at this year's shortlist for the PFA Footballer of the Year, with no fewer than five of the six candidates hailing from one club, two things are obvious.

First, the list passes its sell-by date quicker than a prawn stuffed down the back of the sofa.

What might have seemed a good idea in February when nominations were sought looks decidedly odd come April. Clearly influenced by Manchester United's defensive record, the Premier League professionals nominated three players back then whose claims have been conspicuously undermined by subsequent lapses.

But the more significant thought raised by that shortlist is this: do professional footballers actually watch the game they play?

If they did they would surely realise that there are three names missing from that list that sing out for a nomination, belonging to three players who, week-in, week-out, not only put in the most colossal shifts, but, through their efforts, have altered the direction of their clubs.
Since the PFA selection is well populated by defenders, let's start at the back. How, you might ask, can any serious assessment of the season's finest players not include Brede Hangeland of Fulham?

The towering Norwegian centre-back was one of Roy Hodgson's first purchases when he arrived at Craven Cottage. And you can understand why. From the moment he arrived in January 2008, a defence that had been a byword for generosity started to get mean.

With Hangeland directing matters, a team that had looked doomed to relegation escaped at the last. This season, safety came in early March. What's more, that same bunch of players who last year looked doomed are in with a serious chance of European qualification.

At their heart has been Hangeland, quick, intelligent, strong, a master of all he surveys. He is the most naturally talented defender this side of Ledley King. And he is blessed with two complete knees.

At many a junior club there is a category in the end-of-season awards for Most Improved Player. Hidden within it is something of an insult: last year you were crap but this you're all right.

But if you were going to include in the six a Most Improved it would have to be Wigan's Titus Bramble. At Newcastle, a laughable byword for comical ineptitude, under the tutelage of Steve Bruce at Wigan he has blossomed.

Always blessed with power and pace, he has added a level of concentration that was entirely missing from his game at Ipswich and Tyneside. When it came to reading the game at Newcastle he could sometimes look illiterate, now he picks up the nuances of an attack with an immediacy that marks out the good player. Bruce, understandably given his own approach and something of a connoisseur of fore-square centre backs, has allowed Bramble to develop largely by trusting him.

And like Hangeland at Fulham, his performances have provided a security in which the rest of the team can prosper. With him around, Wigan have never looked relegation fodder.

He might be the least considered footballer in the rest of the country - and certainly he's the most cackled at - but you won't find many Evertonians laughing at Phil Neville.

When Mikel Arteta ruptured his knee ligaments in February, it was widely assumed that would be that for Everton's season. Already bereft of strikers, Arteta was their most influential, intelligent midfielder. A slow sink towards mediocrity was predicted.

But that was to ignore Neville. Now fully relocated from defence, he has become an outstanding holding midfielder. When he leads his team out at Wembley against his old club Manchester United on Sunday, we can be certain of what we will get from Neville: effort, guts, many a teeth-rattling, in-your-cartilage challenge.

But there is something else to his game that largely goes unnoticed: subtlety. With Arteta no longer there to receive his three yard passes and do something clever with the ball, Neville has been obliged to do it himself. These days, around the edge of an opponent's penalty area, he is capable of the most intelligent of interventions.

If you remain a Neville-knocker, if you still believe that a man so closely resembling Cletus, the slack-jawed yokel, could not possibly be a proper footballer, then just watch him on Sunday. It will be an education. And don't be surprised if he gets a call up to Fabio Capello's end-of-season international jamboree.

For him, that would be the nomination that counts.

By: Jim White

Back with a bang

2009-04-16T05:41:00.000-07:00

Forty yards. Sixty-five miles per hour. Two numbers that have restored Cristiano Ronaldo's reputation.

The sixth-minute howitzer from the Portuguese in the 1-0 win at Porto that has sent Manchester United into a semi-final against Arsenal has suddenly put his 'poor season' into context. The revised opinion is now 'Yes, he's had a poor season, but he scored a nice goal'.

When the shortlist for PFA Player of the Year was announced, there was much consternation over the fact that five of the six on the list were United players, with some even declaring that it was C-Ron who was least deserving of his place.

Mind you, most of those names can be picked at - Edwin van der Sar can only take partial credit for his clean sheet record, votes were cast before Nemanja Vidic's recent meltdown, Ryan Giggs getting the votes for body of work rather than this year.

Despite still regularly getting on the scoresheet - although his strike last night was only his second in Europe - there have still been regular complaints about Ronaldo's body language and attitude.

However, now that the big games are starting to come thick and fast, he looks interested again, and the same can be said for the team as a whole.

United had gone over a month without a convincing victory - since their 4-0 hammering of Fulham in the FA Cup - but their stubborn performance at the Estadio do Dragao was as nervous as Arsenal's against Villarreal was emphatic.

The Gunners - another side who have been revitalised recently - were busy putting an admittedly weakened Villarreal to the sword to set up a fixture that has helped define the Premier League era but has so far evaded the European arena.

Not so long ago, the demise of Arsene Wenger's scout troop was all but confirmed. Not enough experience, not enough strength, not enough execution were all common criticisms levelled at them.

The arrival of Andrei Arshavin and the return to fitness of Cesc Fabregas have helped the youthful side click into gear, and the Gunners are now bringing sexy back as only they know how, embodied by Theo Walcott's early chip. He must have been getting pointers from Carlos Vela.

Chelsea and Barcelona have also both had their blips this season, and look well capable of maintaining top form until the end of the season.

The fact that once again we have three English teams in the semi-finals, guaranteeing at least one in the final for the fifth year running, does take the exotic sheen off the competition somewhat, but it's probably best to enjoy this phase while it lasts.

The cynical approach going into this week's second legs - though there was none around these parts, of course - has been truly cast aside, and all can look forward to two cracking semi-final ties.

- - -

One London-based freesheet worked itself into a right lather when it gleefully reported where and how Chelsea's players celebrated eliminating Liverpool on Tuesday.

The IQ-sapping rag slapped a picture of Frank Lampard on the front page, telling of how he was seen out with a 'mystery brunette' (don't worry guys, no doubt a publicist will be in touch soon enough).

If that wasn't enough, there was also much excitement over the amounts of cash shelled out by the players, although why we need to know that Lamps spent £2,500 on dinner and drinks at Boujis or that Didier Drogba's table drank five grands-worth of champagne and vodka is anyone's guess.

It makes you wonder how much Ledley King must have spent to get in the state he did following Tottenham's Carling Cup victory last season.

- - -

In another piece of shameless celebrity-based tittle-tattle that fulfils the Baby Bentley-loving part of ED's brief, The Sun reports that Wayne Rooney's pregnant wife Coleen has booked herself in for a Caesarean section so that the her husband won't have to miss England's trip for their World Cup qualifier in Ukraine.

In a move that is sure to ring true with fans of her TV show Coleen's Real Women, a 'friend' revealed: "Coleen didn't want to be worrying about whether Wayne would be there or not - so she is being super-organised and has already pencilled in the date of the operation."

If things remain on schedule, then the little blighter could well be punching its first corner flag by December and sarcastically applauding authority figures by next March.

Source: Eurosport

Porto vs Manchester United

2009-04-16T05:40:00.001-07:00

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Arsenal v Villarreal

2009-04-15T20:57:00.000-07:00

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Chelsea v Liverpool

2009-04-15T09:16:00.000-07:00

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Bayern Munchen v Barcelona

2009-04-15T09:14:00.000-07:00

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Not pretty at City

2009-04-13T05:43:00.000-07:00

City's gutless surrender to a side that had only won once away from home all season has heaped the pressure on manager Mark Hughes, who has presided over a recent run of five defeats in their last six games.

Nothing says 'You're getting sacked in the morning' like shots of a star player looking sullen on the bench as his team-mates struggle on the pitch, and the Eastlands fans greeted the introduction of Ched Evans ahead of Robinho with chants of "You don't know what you're doing", to add to the hard time they gave Hughes before the 3-1 defeat in Hamburg last week.

The mass exodus from home fans that followed Clint Dempsey's second goal and Fulham's third is a worrying sign that Sparky's fire may finally have gone out.

But, hang on a second - isn't all this a bit much?

With the UEFA Cup quarter-final second leg visit of Hamburg coming up on Thursday, Hughes defended his team selection by insisting that the most expensive player in Britain needed a rest. It's not that much of a stretch to see why someone who allegedly asks reception for 40 condoms while partying at a Brazilian hotel needs to put their feet up every now and then.

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill was widely criticised - not least here - for playing a weakened side in Europe because he was prioritising a strong league finish. Now Hughes is getting abused for taking the exact opposite approach.

If anything, Robinho's lacklustre performance once he did eventually come on justified Hughes's selection, but let's not get bogged down with details.

Robinho was never meant to be a 90-minute, week-in week-out player. His best years at Real Madrid were spent generally either playing for the first hour or coming on for the final 30 minutes. If he had joined Chelsea as originally planned, he would most likely know every contour of Florent Malouda's hands from all that high-fiving when one replaced the other around the hour mark.

Few managers would refuse such a player if they are not pre-occupied with balancing the books, but Robinho was not a player Hughes actively pursued. Of the players he did target personally, how many of Craig Bellamy, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Shay Given, Vincent Kompany, Nigel de Jong and Wayne Bridge can be described as bad signings?

Securing European football for next season is obviously important if City's deluded owners still believe they can lure Kaka and his ilk to the club in the summer, but surely the club's long-suffering fans would rather end those '33 years and counting' jibes as soon as possible.

And as for those other recent defeats, they came at Chelsea, at Arsenal, at Bundesliga-chasing Hamburg and at Aalborg, a club that began the season in the Champions League. Hardly the most shameful record.

Like many other club's who live in the shadow of more illustrious neighbours, City fans have long sought credibility by projecting themselves as a 'real' club with 'real' fans.

However, less than two years after Stuart Pearce led them to a league finish just six points above relegation, many seem to have already forgotten where they came from.

Source: Eurosport

Aston Villa v Everton

2009-04-12T19:31:00.000-07:00

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Manchester City v Fulham

2009-04-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

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Sunderland v Manchester United

2009-04-11T20:50:00.001-07:00

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Chelsea vs Bolton

2009-04-11T20:40:00.000-07:00

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Liverpool vs Blackburn

2009-04-11T20:30:00.001-07:00

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Wigan Athletic v Arsenal

2009-04-11T20:17:00.001-07:00

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Tottenham Hotspur vs West Ham

2009-04-11T20:04:00.000-07:00

Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham

Middlesbrough v Hull City

2009-04-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

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Portsmouth v West Brom

2009-04-11T19:48:00.000-07:00

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Stoke vs Newcastle

2009-04-11T19:29:00.001-07:00

Stoke City v Newcastle
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Inter vs Palermo

2009-04-11T12:36:00.001-07:00

Lazio vs Roma

2009-04-11T12:30:00.000-07:00

Chelsea's Guus is cooking

2009-04-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

There is no doubt who is the man of the football week. And no, however much we might agree with his comments, it's not Usain Bolt for calling Ronaldo a "wuss". It is Guus Hiddink, the self-effacing, part-time Chelsea coach who masterminded the destruction of Europe's form side Liverpool and then made out as if it was something anyone could have done just as long as they knew where to look.

In the stands at Stamford Bridge they must be asking two questions about the clever Dutchman who has landed in their midst. First: since Roman Abramovich has been paying his salary for more than three years now as Russian coach, how come he didn't get him to come and help earlier? And, now that he is here, can we keep him?

Hiddink's arrival has been a bit of a triumph for Abramovich. Far from being the interfering megalomaniac who doesn't know what he is doing (which is how I for one depicted him back in December) his removal of Luiz Felipe Scolari and hiring of Hiddink appears to have been a masterstroke. Not for one moment could you imagine a Chelsea team prepared by Scolari demolishing Liverpool like they did on Wednesday. Frankly, given how wayward they had become under his direction, you doubt they would have even made the quarter-final in the first place.

Sure, Hiddink has been blessed by the return of Michael Essien, the man who effectively emasculated Liverpool by cutting off all supply to Steven Gerrard. But it wasn't luck that did it on Wednesday night. It was analysis, finding a tactical approach and then preparing the players properly on the training ground for it. Football is a simple game when you know what you are doing. And Hiddink makes it simpler than most.

So, the important question is: will he stay beyond May? At the moment it looks hugely unlikely. Hiddink's is no small task in Moscow. He has been charged not only with ensuring qualification for the World Cup, but, once there, with taking them at least as far as he steered South Korea in 2002 - the semi-finals. Not even a man who makes it all look as easy as he does can do that and control a club of Chelsea's stature.

Besides, Abramovich faces a sizeable problem if he tries to alter the employment conditions of his Dutch associate. After Russia beat England to qualify for Euro 2008, Hiddink became a national hero. Anyone attending the Champions League final in Moscow in May could not escape his image, beaming down from advertising hoardings across the city. He is their adopted son. Abramovich, on the other hand, has a much less savoury public image in his homeland. He is regarded by many as the most brazen of the country's asset strippers, a man who has exported huge chunks of the wealth of the nation. They don't all wander round in Chelsea shirts in Moscow, largely because they wonder why Abramovich didn't pump his booty into a local side. How come Dinamo or Spartak aren't in the Champions League quarter final beating Liverpool? How come all that money extracted from Russian resources is being used to promote English interests?

Thus for him to poach Hiddink would be political suicide. Never mind that, in effect, it would be just a case of a slight switch on the payroll, the wider consequences would be dramatic. And, with so many of his assets still in his homeland, Abramovich cannot afford to antagonise the Russian bear any more than he already has. However much he may dislike it, he knows Hiddink is off limits as far as Chelsea are concerned. This is one man even his money cannot buy.

So therefore, just as it seems as if the solution has been found to Chelsea's managerial woes, it will be taken away. Hiddink will have to leave in May and Abramovich will be obliged once more to begin his search for a coach. Carlo Ancelotti has been widely tipped. The players have said they want a return of Jose Mourinho. Chief executive Peter Kenyon is said to favour the old Chelsea hero Mark Hughes. But whoever comes in will know that they are not the boss's chosen one. That particular individual will be working elsewhere in the Roman empire.

By: Jim White

Liverpool v Chelsea

2009-04-08T20:46:00.000-07:00

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Barcelona v Bayern Munich

2009-04-08T20:44:00.000-07:00

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United's biggest threat? Arsenal

2009-04-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

Before his team's Champions League tie with Chelsea, the Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said something interesting. Responding to a journalist's question about Alex Ferguson's recent generous comments about his old sparring partner Arsene Wenger, Benitez suggested that the Manchester United boss was happy to be magnanimous because he no longer regarded his Arsenal counterpart as a threat.

In which case, if Benitez's psycho-analysis is correct, you wonder what Fergie will be saying over the next few weeks about the Frenchman. While it is undoubtedly true that Arsenal's chances of winning the Premier League title are about on a par with Luton's hopes of remaining in League Two, on two fronts the club are beginning to look a plausible barrier to United's all-conquering ambitions. In the FA Cup and Champions League they could prove to be a nemesis.

Indeed such are the delicious possibilities of Arsenal's late-season rush, you wonder what all those Gooners who, in the depth of winter depression, were seriously and consistently calling for the removal of Arsene Wenger are now thinking. Those who booed the team's departure from the Emirates pitch after insipid goalless draws against Sunderland and Fulham, what would have been their reaction as Emmanuel Adebayor cushioned the ball on his chest before volleying it over his own head into the one unprotected area of the Villarreal goal on Tuesday night? Presumably they would have been working out how they might get tickets for finals that suddenly look reachable. How quickly things turn round.

The funny thing is, with Arsenal's season, the clues were always there. The team was never in terminal decline. No side, however well endowed, can afford to miss their centre forward, their most influential midfielder, their electric-heeled wide man and half their defence for long periods of time and hope to make sustained impression on the league. Not even a player as in-form as Robin van Persie can do it on his own. That really was all that was wrong with Arsenal. Despite what his vocal critics were muttering all winter, Wenger had not lost the plot. He was simply suffering from the most appallingly ill-timed collection of serious injuries.

Now fortune has swung back in his direction and he is gaining the benefit of their enforced absence. Adebayor, Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott have returned rested and ready to freshen up the team at precisely the moment they need it. If nothing else, what a relief it must be for Arsenal fans, to see Nicklas Bendtner returned to the bench.

How Wenger must be smiling after Tuesday's results. Whatever happens in the second leg between United and Porto (and if it is as exciting as the first, who can wait to find out?) he will fancy his chances against the winner in the semi. Porto are clearly an excellent side, but they leak goals; four of them without reply at the Emirates in the group stage.

United's defensive vulnerability to pace is becoming a liability. How they missed Rio Ferdinand's positional sense as three of their back four were in the wrong place when Porto scored their last-minute equaliser. Wenger will have seen that and relished the thought of what Walcott, Van Persie and Adebayor might do to the back-pedalling red line if United manage to overcome the odds and progress.

Not to mention Andrei Arshavin's contribution in domestic competition. Yes, Arshavin, his brilliant riposte to all those armchair critics who told him what he needed to strengthen his squad. Sure, we all agreed he was crying out for an experienced midfield enforcer, a Patrick Vieira reborn. Plus a centre-back. Someone hard, robust, to give a bit of bite to a side too often lightweight in the absence of its injured heart. There was no doubt about it, we all insisted: muscle was required. So what did he do? He went out and bought yet another ball-playing sprite. You might call it stubborn, but it was a glorious re-statement of principle.

Now Wenger has been rewarded. Rightly so: the espousal of quality should always gain the upper hand. And the fact is, over the next fortnight his team could find themselves within touching distance of two serious pieces of silverware. So all those boo-ers: what do you think now?

By: Jim White

Manchester United vs Porto

2009-04-08T09:20:00.000-07:00

Manchester United v Porto

Villarreal vs Arsenal

2009-04-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

Villarreal v Arsenal

When will I be famous?

2009-04-07T01:08:00.000-07:00

When was the last time Arsenal played a Champions League game on terrestrial television?

Early Doors reckons they have not been on at all this season, their last appearance coming in last year's quarter-final against Liverpool, when they were presumably deemed worthy of ITV1 by dint of being the other team in a Liverpool tie.

Anyway, for those Gooners still using a traditional telly with a bent coathanger sticking out the top, life must be a little frustrating.

Arsenal have played on the same night as Manchester United all this season, meaning ITV make the lazy assumption that more people will want to watch Clive Tyldesley's brave boys, even if they are playing Aalborg.

Admittedly, it is a lazy assumption based on extensive study of ratings and decades of experience, but it doesn't make it any easier to bear for any analogue Gooners.

Arsenal can be particularly galled today because their trip to face Villarreal in Spain looks a good deal more interesting that United at home to Porto, although both fixtures are a little bit old hat.

Not as much as Liverpool v Chelsea, of course, but the two ties have been done before.

Only the potentially excellent Barcelona v Bayern Munich tie seems fresh, and even they have almost certainly played before, just without ED noticing.

---

One reason to tune in to the United game is the possible appearance of Federico Macheda, who has been subjected to more unwarranted hype than Lady Gaga since his goal on Sunday.

Last week he could have gone on a drunken rampage through Manchester city centre and nobody would have recognised him - they would probably have assumed he was a Rangers fan who never made it home - now we are supposed to believe he is the new Ruud van Nistelrooy (or, as our poll suggests, the new Ole Gunnar Solskjaer).

Yesterday, Early Doors saw Macheda's goal replayed roughly 3,000 times on Sky Sports News, who showed it so frequently they must have been taking part in some wacky charity challenge to get as many Aston Villa players as possible to gouge their own eyes out.

Then came the live shots of him at training, narrated with a giddy breathlessness befitting, say, Nelson Mandela's release from Robben Island.

Here he is! In real time! A man who 48 hours ago we thought was a youthful groundsman! Now he's talking to Paul Scholes! I wonder what they are saying! Fascinating!

Basically, the world has become heartily sick of Macheda even though the poor lad has only played 29 minutes of first-team football.

Source: Eurosport

Everton vs Wigan

2009-04-06T10:35:00.000-07:00

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Manchester United vs Aston Villa

2009-04-05T17:54:00.001-07:00

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Juventus vs Chievo

2009-04-05T17:28:00.001-07:00

AC Milan vs Lecce

2009-04-05T17:25:00.000-07:00

Fulham v Liverpool

2009-04-04T23:48:00.000-07:00

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Blackburn Rovers v Tottenham Hotspur

2009-04-04T23:45:00.000-07:00

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Hull city v Portsmouth

2009-04-04T23:43:00.000-07:00

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Arsenal vs Manchester City

2009-04-04T23:36:00.000-07:00

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Newcastle United vs Chelsea

2009-04-04T23:35:00.000-07:00

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Bolton Wanderers vs Middlesbrough

2009-04-04T23:33:00.000-07:00

Bolton Wanderers v middlesbrough
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West Ham United vs Sunderland

2009-04-04T23:30:00.000-07:00

West Ham United v Sunderland
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Valladolid vs Barcelona

2009-04-04T15:03:00.001-07:00

Fan power can save Newcastle

2009-04-03T11:56:00.000-07:00

£1.8 million for eight matches.

Or £225,000 a game.

Or £2,500 a minute.

Now we know the cost of a Messiah on Tyneside. No wonder Alan Shearer decided to forsake his comfortable perch on the Match of the Day sofa. No wonder he decided Gary Lineker was not necessarily the most convivial Saturday night company. Frankly for that sort of money he would have been tempted to try and save Charlton Athletic.

Mind, if he does it, if Shearer proves that a total lack of managerial experience is no bar to success, if he does significantly better than that other dugout rookie Diego Maradona and manages to remain unthrashed for his two months of graft, then it will have been money well spent. Indeed, it might - just might - turn out to be the shrewdest spin of the dice in the career of Mike Ashley, [the ownwer of Newcastle] a man for whom sizeable gambles have become part of his life.

Consider the options open to the Newcastle owner. He has been anxious to sell the club since the point last summer that the previous Geordie Messiah - Kevin Keegan - walked out in disgust. It was at that moment that the relationship between him and the barcode-clad masses soured to the point of no return. He too wanted out. But it was also the point at which the international financial system decided that it could not longer sustain itself on a diet of unseasoned debt. No-one was going to buy a used football club from a man like him, particularly at the price he was quoting.

So, in an evident strop, he turned his back on the place, allowing a pernicious drift to set in. For a while Joe Kinnear did a reasonable job stemming the inertia. But when his health began to succumb to the pressure, the sense of hopelessness really set in: this appeared to be a club sleep walking to disaster. For the many faithful (and let's not for a moment forget it is ultimately their money - in ticket and replica shirt sales - that sustains the club) nothing seemed to be being done to counter the inevitable.

Indeed there were those among the season ticket holders who felt that relegation might just act as the purgative necessary to rid the club of the poisonous elements which had leached off it too long. For Ashley the disaster would not have been one of pride or passion. It would have simply been financial. The asset he hoped to offload would be worth half as much in the Championship.

He had, however, let things slip way beyond the point where conventional medicine would help. Eight matches to go and relegation looks less a possibility and increasingly a certainty. Especially with the rivals for the drop beginning to show evidence of fight and form sorely lacking at St James' Park (well, Stoke and Hull at least).

With the transfer window shut, with the dressing room full of mercenaries looking for the exit, with the crowd subdued and distressed, the room for manoeuvre had long disappeared. The only way to face down impending doom was to galvanise the one thing that might now at this late, late stage make a difference: the renowned local passion. And persuading Shearer to step in will do that. The noise of welcome at St James's will be astonishing.

Sure, anyone who has seen him on Match of the Day might baulk at the suggestion that Alan Shearer is some sort of passion alchemist. As a pundit the man appears to define the word bland. But that is wholly to misunderstand the relationship he has with the crowd at St James's. Tomorrow when the team runs out to face Chelsea, the sound will threaten the superstructure of the stands.

A mix of relief, excitement and possibility, it will stir something in everyone concerned. It might just be enough to remind the players of their responsibilities. It might just be enough to alarm the opposition. It might just be enough to do it. What all this means in short, is that Newcastle have done what every crisis club who have run out of options ultimately has to do: they have turned to the fans.

By: Jim White

England vs Ukraine

2009-04-01T23:18:00.002-07:00

Turkey vs Spain

2009-04-01T23:18:00.001-07:00

Bolivia vs Argentina

2009-04-01T23:11:00.000-07:00

Brazil vs Peru

2009-04-01T23:10:00.001-07:00

Wales vs Germany

2009-04-01T16:46:00.001-07:00

Italy vs Ireland

2009-04-01T16:41:00.000-07:00

Netherlands vs Macedonia

2009-04-01T16:10:00.000-07:00

April Fool

2009-04-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

Alan Shearer, Newcastle manager - it was only a question of when, and now we have the answer; at the worst possible moment.

The Geordie Messiah MK II has no coaching experience whatsoever and has only ever voiced his tactical blueprint from the comfort of a well-lit studio. Now he has eight games to keep Newcastle in the Premier League.

Owner Mike Ashley has made life even harder by waiting until three days before the end of a two-week break to make the switch, giving Shearer just enough time to introduce himself to his players before picking the team to play Chelsea on Saturday.

At least he won't have to waste time moving a bulky collection of medals into his new office.

While the change has been described as 'panic', ED wonders why it was not made earlier.

Chris Hughton may or may not be an excellent coach, but it has long been clear that his tenure as caretaker was going nowhere - the team have not won since February's game at West Brom, before which Joe Kinnear was taken ill.

ED is no medical expert, but it has long seemed clear that Kinnear would not return to the hot seat. Major heart surgery does not sound like the kind of thing you just bounce back from.

In another masterpiece of timing, the news became public just before midnight on March 31, giving everyone the opportunity to write it off as a joke.

Sensational it might be, but when people's first reaction on hearing the news is to enquire whether this is an April Fool, you cannot really consider that a good sign.

Considering Ashley's maverick style and the tribulations he has put the Newcastle faithful through, ED wouldn't entirely write off the prank idea just yet.

At the time of writing, there was still no official word from the club, leaving open the possibility that this is one of the biggest hoaxes since the Hitler Diaries, the moon landing or even the legendary 'made-up' drug, cake.

ED hopes Newcastle go the whole hog and pack 25,000 Geordies into St James' Park for Shearer's presentation, only for some insufferable Sky Sports News presenter to inform them that they have been had.

At that precise moment, a sky-writer plane will soar over the ground spelling out 'YOU MUGS' while the fans spontaneously throw their replica shirts at the presenter in disgust, causing him to choke to death on a combination of sweat, tattoo ink and body hair.

- - -

While the Shearer news could yet turn out to be a colossal pack of lies, here is something that is definitely true. We all know Fabio Capello does not like Peter Crouch, but now it becomes apparent how much.

Whether or not the England boss has really called up a middle-aged man to play against Ukraine, Capello was far from shy in making it very clear how reluctant he is to pick the gangly, robotic striker.

"My first idea was to have a forward who is fast and has movement," he said.

"Now it's another style with Crouch. He is not (Darren) Bent, he is not (Emile) Heskey, but we have to play with Crouch because he's now the best we have who can play."

So Crouch is England's fifth-choice striker behind Wayne Rooney, Heskey, Cole and Bent.

Although he is still ahead Gabriel Agbonlahor (one goal in 17 games), Michael Owen (about to be broken up and his parts sold for scrap) and Kevin Davies (just plain not very good), so that's some reason to be cheerful.

England's visitors have been almost completely ignored, with what little attention they have garnered going the way of Andriy Shevchenko who is apparently dangerous again now he has left Chelsea.

The question is - dangerous to whom? Certainly not opposition goalkeepers if this season's statistics are anything to go by.

Back at his spiritual home in Milan, Shevchenko has scored... oh, that's right, he hasn't scored a single league goal, and 11 of his 13 appearances have been from the bench.

No, the man in form is porn-haired Emmanuel Petit lookalike Andriy Voronin, who is so hot that any bodily contact with him would result in third-degree burns, the former Liverpool man having rattled in eight goals in his last seven games for Hertha Berlin.

Source: Eurosport

Getting Shirty

2009-03-31T02:43:00.000-07:00

It is on days like this that newspaper editors earn their money, with not a shred of meaningful domestic news to report.

They must know their readers, and strive to cater to their unspoken desires. And when that fails, just stick in a few quotes from an England press conference.

Despite this cavalcade of guff, not one of the papers sees fit to give the fatal stadium crush in Ivory Coast any more than a passing nod.

The West African nation is deemed too distant, even though most of their top players are based in this country.

ED understands that readers may not want to read about a disaster several thousand miles away, but it is undeniably news - and it is not like anyone really cares what Lampard thinks about his polo shirt either.

- - -

Artur Boruc's Paul Robinson impression against Northern Ireland has seen him dropped from the Poland team, meaning it will be Lukasz Fabianski or Dundee United's Lukaz Zaluska leaning casually against his post for 90 minutes when San Marino visit on Wednesday.

Polish legend and Cloughie-endorsed 'clown' Jan Tomaszewski showed little sympathy for Celtic keeper Boruc, appearing to suggest that God is, in fact, a protestant.

Tomaszewski said: "Artur has no-one to blame but himself. You could say he has had a punishment from God. He started a religious war in Glasgow and now it's come back to haunt him."

Luckily, Poland are well-endowed in the goalkeeper department, providing players to sit on some of the most illustrious benches in world football.

Fabianski is Arsenal's back-up, while Tomasz Kuszczak and Jerzy Dudek perform a similar role for Manchester United and Real Madrid. Clearly, these Poles must have very warm buttocks.

- - -

Hull have submitted their evidence in the Cesc Fabregas 'spitting' row, presumably swabbing Brian Horton's shoes and sending the result off for DNA testing.

Clearly, the accusation will be thrown out on the grounds that it cannot be proven and Hull will respond with a predictable show of overblown dismay, having a good old whinge that it wouldn't be like this if the roles were reversed.

The claim that big clubs have it all their own way is increasingly common, and just as increasingly tiresome.

Yes, it is true that Jamie Carragher would have to murder an opposition striker in cold blood before any referee even considered awarding a penalty in front of the Kop, but this is not exactly a new phenomenon.

Hull just look a bit silly chasing this lost cause instead of concentrating on the fight against relegation.

Source: Eurosport

Ivory Coact vs Malawi

2009-03-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

Ecuador vs Brazil

2009-03-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

Who's the Daddy?

2009-03-30T12:21:00.000-07:00

The world got that little bit more terrifying at the weekend as news broke that Wayne Rooney is going to be a dad.

Wife Coleen is already three months pregnant even though the pair apparently only started trying for a baby at Christmas.

That means Wayne must have hit the back of the net, if you will, within a week. Impressive stuff for a man sometimes accused of shooting blanks on the pitch.

Several papers attempt to draw a parallel between Coleen's expectant state and Wayne's increased maturity on the pitch against Slovakia on Saturday.

It is, obviously, a ridiculous argument. Rooney is described as mature because he managed to get through a meaningless international friendly without kicking anyone or questioning the referee's parentage.

And was Coleen any less pregnant when he went loco on the corner flag at Fulham a week ago?

As anyone familiar with the work of Shannon Matthews or that Max Clifford-backed 13-year-old 'dad' knows, having babies can be a lucrative business.

One agent, who had the gall to warn against excessive commercialisation, has claimed the Rooneys' tot could land them £5 million if they sign up for publicity deals.

These, presumably, will involve the following:

- An ITV2 show in which a team of cameras follow Coleen's every move. Laugh as Wayne lashes out at a cameraman! Cry as Coleen struggles to carry home all those Louis Vuitton bags! Scream as she spends the morning with her head in the toilet!

- Sponsorship deals based on Coleen's cravings. Imagine the marketing opportunities - 'Try peanut butter and asparagus bagels - as devoured by Coleen Rooney!'

- Advertising space on Coleen's expanded belly. What better way to place your product than for the nation to see it smothered in clear jelly as doctors conduct an ultrasound scan?

- OK! magazine purchases legal custody of Coleen's womb.

- Convoluted goal celebrations in which Wayne uses various products for babies. First he recreates the Carlos Tevez 'dummy' celebration, then he pulls on a pair of Pampers, then he places Paul Scholes in a baby booster car seat... you get the idea.

- - -

Rooney's two goals against Slovakia could not have been timed better, as all three of his strike partners went off injured.

Emile Heskey and Carlton Cole are out of Wednesday's game against Ukraine, while Peter Crouch is doubtful. Jermain Defoe and Gabriel Agbonlahor are also injured.

That resulted in the delightful spectacle of Fabio Capello ignoring Michael Owen and calling up Darren Bent instead.

The Owen PR machine continues to insist that he is still world-class and, hilariously, "not injury-prone" but Capello's snub could hardly have been more definite.

England are still a man short as Capello declined to pick a direct replacement for Heskey.

The Italian missed a trick by failing to call up Bobby Zamora. A big, strong, ungainly team player with two goals in 28 appearances this season - the Fulham man ticks all the boxes.

ED would rather see Zamora, knowing he cannot score but will contribute to the team, than the spectacularly wayward Bent.

- - -

You know those popular survival tips that supposedly help you in the event that a wild animal attacks you?

Things like; if a bear approaches you, sing to it; confuse a shark by punching it on the nose; as a crocodile prepares to bite you, wedge a piece of wood between its jaws.

Well, Early Doors has a new one. If Joey Barton attacks, play him a Frank Sinatra song.

Yes indeed, it appears the work of Ol' Blue Eyes is the only thing that can snap the Newcastle man out of his wild-eyed rage.

"It helps me relax. His music is so calming," said Barton, adding that the songs "get me in a good rhythm before stepping on to the pitch."

Although it is hard to be sure, as Barton has only made eight appearances for Newcastle this season.

Considering Barton's attacks on team-mate Ousmane Dabo and a teenager Jordan Spencer, Ol' Black Eyes might be a more appropriate nickname.

Source: Eurosport

Argentina vs Venezuela

2009-03-29T00:47:00.000-07:00

Germany vs Liechtenstein

2009-03-28T19:23:00.001-07:00

Montenegro vs Italy

2009-03-28T19:16:00.000-07:00

Holland vs Scotland

2009-03-28T19:11:00.000-07:00

Lithuania vs France

2009-03-28T19:09:00.000-07:00

Spain vs Turkey

2009-03-28T19:08:00.001-07:00

Newcastle United vs. Arsenal

2009-03-27T21:45:00.000-07:00

Tottenham Hotspurs vs. Chelsea

2009-03-27T21:28:00.000-07:00

Liverpool vs Aston Villa

2009-03-27T20:33:00.001-07:00

Fulham vs Manchester United

2009-03-27T19:36:00.000-07:00

Welcome

2009-03-27T16:48:00.000-07:00

Well, this blog was opened just to experince what all the fun of blogging is about. It will mainly feature highlights from the English Premier League (the best in the world) and a couple of significant matches from other leagues; i.e. El Classico (Barcelona vs. Real Madrid), Inter vs. Ac Milan, etc. I will also be posting articles from the eurosport website called 'Early Doors'. I am making this clear so that am not accused of plagiarism. These articles are fun and sometimes funny. They are featured every weekday. Hope we all enjoy this.

Your soon to be favourite blogger!