Steve Coppell wants to see quotas for English players introduced.
Platini needs convincing that England's 2018 World Cup bid is worth bidding for.
Another Busby Babe has died. RIP John Doherty.
Rafa Benitez is weighing up a £10m move for another unknown Spaniard from Espanyol
Wes Brown and Patrice Evra are set to sign new deals at Old Trafford.
Joe Royle is poised for talks with Dave Whelan at Wigan.
David Beckham is likely to train with Arsenal over the MLS close season to stay fit.
John Terry is stepping up his bid for recovery in time for England's EURO 2008 game against Croatia. Not that it'll matter of course.
But don't worry, the FA are keen to resurrect the old summer international against Scotland if both clubs fail to qualify.
Paul Simpson is sacked by Preston, Dave Jones isn't sacked by Cardiff.
Brian Little is set to take the Wrexham job.
And there's an awful lot of disgruntled Ebbsfleet United fans around as the news of their takeover by Myfootballclub.co.uk sinks in. And who can blame them?
Add to this
that the Israeli goalkeeping coach has said that he wants Russia to qualify for Euro 2008 and that Israel are also likely to play alot of youngsters.
Before I start
with the rest of this, I just want to say FUCK OFF to steve coppell. I bet he had a dig at us when he said he wants a quota of english players as well. Wasn't complaining when he got sidwell and harper off us. The cunt.
He didn't mention
any club by name at all. I think he has a point, but any quota will be legally unworkable.
Did you know there were more Scottish players in the Champions League last week than English?
yeah
12 to 11 apparently.
This is because:
a) Celtic and Rangers have a lot of crap scots in their team
b) English players aren't that good.
Yes
except for Scott Brown.
This quota system for English players wouldn't be an issue if English players went abroad. Which of course they don't because of the prohibitive prices clubs would be quoted and that English players are, with one or two exceptions, technically retarded.
exactly
when was the last time you heard an English player linked with a foreign club? I'm ignoring that Lampard to Barca link, because we all know its bollocks.
Absolutely
I maintain that about the only English player that would be a success on the continent would be Michael Carrick. Just about every other player would be lost without the blood and thunder of the Premiership.
do we count Hargreaves?
I don't, seeing as he is canadian.
I would love to see 'Stevie G' go to Italy or Spain. Then everyone would see how overrated he is.
He wouldn't last
5 minutes with his gut busting runs. Until our players learn to let the ball do the work we're always going to be also rans.
Plus
the other thing about Hargreaves is that he learnt his trade on the continent. So I say no to him on two counts.
Good call
to be honest, I think Terry would do alright. As much of a cunt as he may be, he is a brilliant centre back.
*nods grudgingly*
Lampard would do superbly in Spain
cos he's an arrogant cunt, which appears to be vital for succeeding over there. He's also a superb player when given the space, which he'd get on the continent. Stevie G would also do well as he's a class act. Both Owen and Beckham were successful in their time over in Spain, they just fell foul of the bizarre politics that plague la liga.
I think i'd probably do quite well.
Oh dear
Lampard at a push would do well at a team like Barca, if he had 2 holding midfielders behind him. But at the moment, all of Barcelonas central midfielders are streets ahead of him in terms of technical ability.
Gerrard wouldn't last 2 minutes out there. He really wouldn't.
Gerrard is one of the world's best midfielders...
therefore would stand a fairly good chance of succeeding - Thomas Graveson did well in his time at Madrid! I think your view of Spanish attacking midfielders is slightly rose-tinted - they're the ultimate in lightweight prima donnas - look at Barca now? A bit of a struggle and they fall to pieces! Lampard may be an arse but he's clearly got the technical ability (scoring 20+ goals from midfield kinda suggests something there), whilst his work rate is undoubtedly gerater than your typical Spanish attacking midfielder...
I'm sorry but thats a bit silly
but that is ridiculous.
Steven Gerrard is about 55 midfielders away from being one of the best midfielders in the world. As for your comment about Spanish midfielders, I think Xavi and Iniesta can both get stuck in and play a bit. And thats just at Barca.
I don't see what your point about Gravesen is. He did well because he is a holding midfielder who has a lot of discipline. I would expect him to do well in any country. Unlike 'Stevie G'
ha ha
'I'm sorry but thats a bit silly
but that is ridiculous.'
Ignore that, its still early
Iniesta? He'd break if he tried a tackle!
Gerrard has proved time and time again how great a player he is - literally one of only a few players who can dominate an entire game. Gravesen is an above average midfielder and he succeeded in Spain - he was also used in more attacking roles at Madrid, so if he can do it, there's a fair few English players who'd be able to also...
I'm not having this
Two great Steven Gerrard myths:
1) He won the 2005 Champions league on his own. BOLLOCKS, didi hamaan changed that game, and Milan threw it away.
2) The 2006 FA Cup Final. Gerrard won this on his own. BOLLOCKS. He scored 2 goals (one of which may be the greatest goal in an FA Cup final), but once again, it was West Ham who threw this away.
Andreas Iniesta is about 40 times the player Gerrard is. AND he turns up in the big games, unlike 'Stevie G', who phones his peformances in.
I think you miss the point on that first claim...
Gerrard undoubtedly did more than anyone else to GET Liverpool to that final...and you can't deny he influenced that game as well...likewise with their FA cup victory. It's Gerrard consistency which makes him such a great, during those two seasons, he and Lampard were consistently superb, winning games (and trophies) for thir teams, what more do you want? I know he's in the wrong red and white for you but still...
Gerrard helped win it...
...with that dodgy dive to win the penalty. He tends to do that a lot.
Owen and Beckham
did do well abroad. If you look at international level though, Gerrard and Lampard both treat the ball like a red hot burning coal. On the continent the game is 8 tenths possession. Both players would have to change their mentality to succeed as well. None of this 'receive the ball, run head down for 25 yards and ping a long ball forward' stuff.
Fair point, although I think
this applies more to their style of play for England - for their clubs they're both completely different players. Don't get me started on the FA's/England manager's inability to get the team playing good football...
Are they different players?
Steven Gerrard is incapable of playing a 5 yard pass.
OK, you clearly have some kind of hatred for Gerrard...
We'll leave it there.
The fact that Lampard is phenomenal for Chelsea and only avarage for England )when Chelsea are clearly a better team than England) would suggest a slight difference in when he's playing at club and country level.
I don't like Steven Gerrard
because he is consistently overrated. I think he is a good player, but world class? Not a chance.
I read something interesting
last week with regard to the Russia game. In the post match press conference, Hiddink identified the weakness down England's left hand side early on with Lescott and got his players to utilise this and make Joe Cole a virtual left back.
When McClaren was asked how or why the game was gave an answer along the lines of "now's not the time to analyse, I'm just delighted with the performance, we were unlucky, the ref... etc."
It's like watching Bullseye. "And here's what you could have won had the FA had any sense of sense."
is gary neville fit yet?
he's neville going to be fit again
Fired
No he isn't.
Probably going to be Richards at right back unless they move him in and Wes Brown will take that position instead.
have you copied the bbc front page?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport
rumbled
Leeds lost at home
to Bury.
I think their bubble is slowly bursting now Poyet's gone to Spurs.
Did they?
that passed me by. They didn't look very good at Hereford on Friday. I guess that's what you get for appointing Bassett as assistant.
gos poyet - football mastermind?
good night for League 2 sides in general..
Donny and Leeds crumbling...
Bassett and John Gannon
who has the dubious distinction of being fired as assistant manager by both Mansfield and Notts County in the space of 12 months!
How does a bubble slowly burst?
Draw with Hereford
Lose to Bury
Then gradually slide down the league into oblivion...
Maybe it's like a balloon that someone's slowly letting the air out of...
?
The day Poyet left
Leeds their air supply started cutting itself off!
town are through to the northern semi-final
of the paint trophy.
we might be going down but there's a chance of going to wembley!
Steve Bruce
is odds on favourite to take over at Wigan.