Champions League Group Stages

The conclusions of the Champions League groups will be played out tonight but with half of the groups completed yesterday one trend has again occured. The group stages are a waste of time and devalue the cup competition.

With the top eight seeds qualifying for the round of 16 last night the three month long group stages were not really worth while. No huge upsets have occured and are very unlikely to. So once more the validity and point of the group stages are questionable.

Ok, so the idea is straight-forward a four team group stage format where two teams go through, six games home and away decide the outcome. The trouble is that by round five and six some teams have already qualified. Now if these teams decide to play weaker players then this is an unfair disadvantage to the team or teams that have already played them twice. This was apparent in Shaktar Donetsk’s win over Barcelona at the Nou Camp last night, Barca rested eight first team players for this match in which a full strength Barca team would be expected to win easily.

A simple solution would be to seed the teams and then draw a round of 32. Play over two legs and have 16 teams at the end of it. This would cut out four arguably pointless games and would help to solve fixture conjestion crisis for the bigger clubs in Europe. This may decrease revenue but it would also cut out any ‘dead rubbers’ in which the teams basically threw matches.

Classy Norwich Stun Rivals

A wonderstrike from Lee Croft and a two-yard tap in for Matty Pattison gave Norwich City a 2-0 win in Sunday’s East Anglian derby against Ipswich Town. The Carrow Road faithful were rewarded for their patience with a terrific performance by the Canaries.

The pressure was on Norwich and their boss Glenn Roeder as the side were hovering very close to the relegation zone.  Before the kick off some fans were calling the biggest game of Roeder’s reign and certianly the season but this only seemed to spur the side on as they won comfortably.

Norwich City dominated the match and fully deserved to go ahead midway through the second half when Lee Croft’s run and shot from the edge of the area curled majestically into the top corner of the net. One of the strikes of the season and probably the best goal of Croft’s career both in terms of importance and class. Roeder looked like a giddy school girl as he celebrated his relief was plain to see.

Norwich Fans were probably expecting City to defend their lead as they often tend to do but they kept pushing forward and a testing snap-shot from Leroy Lita was well saved by Richard Wright. Ipswich could not hold the Canaries out for long though as after a freekick was crossed into the box it fell perfectly for Matty Pattison who rifled the ball home from around two yards. The shot hit the underside of the bar and almost missed but nobody in the ground cared as Norwich had all but killed off the game and won when they needed to. There was controversy because Ipswich defender Gareth McAuley was off the field at the time of the goal.  Lita had highlighted to the referree that McAuley’s head was bleeding and as is the law in these circumstances he had to leave the field, much to the disgruntelment of the Ipswich player.

Ipswich looked out of sorts all afternoon and never really got anything going. Any chances they did have were thwarted by another brilliant goalkeeping performance by City’s keeper David Marshall. Marshall almost ruined his day however when he brought down Danny Haynes in the area but the penalty was not given a decision that summed up Town’s day.

This win was certainly vital for a Norwich side that has struggled in the league this season. If they continue to play in this form they should move up to the top half of the Championship. The problem is that consistancy has been sadly lacking this season and the mid-week game at Watford will be a real test of just how good this side is and whether or not Norwich just upped their performance for a derby match.

As for Ipswich they still have play-off aspirations but that looks a distant dream after a drab performance. They will need to bounce back quickly.

The Problem With Manchester City

So you are a club who lose your last game of the season 8-1 against Middlesborough. Your manager has just been fired despite getting the club into Europe for the first time in five years. The club’s owner, who may be arrested for corruption, has expressed a desire to sell your club and your captain has voiced huge discontent at the whole situation.

This was Manchester City seven months ago. The club was in disarray and the future looked bleak for their fans.

When highly regaurded young manager Mark Hughes was hired the mood was lifted slightly. But there were still rumblings from skeptical fans who thought Hughes would not encourage his players to play good football. Hughes is a manager who was focused on physical aggression and assertiveness from his players during his time at Blackburn.

There was some light at the end of the tunnel though when Abu Dhabi United Group Investment and Development Limited completed a takeover of Manchester City. This instantly made the club the richest in the world. Sadly, the deal was made on the transfer deadline day and the club only managed to sign one player Robinho who was previously on the verge of signing for Chelsea. This was a huge coup for the club and broke the British transfer record costing £32.5 million.

So, with a renewed confidence around the club the new season started but Man City have not set the league alight. They are currently hovering just two points above the relegation zone with nearly half the season gone.

With the transfer window opening again at the start of next month the press and the fans are already buzzing with transfer rumours. Sky Sports News reported yesterday that Man City had offered £128 million for Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Iker Casillas. A ludicrous amount perhaps but it is certainly money that the owners can afford to spend in abundance.

The problem is that Man City do not have the pulling power of the big four. They will struggle to attract the huge names they have been linked with such as Kaka and Messi because of the lower prestige of the club. Okay, they did sign Robinho from under Chelsea’s nose but the fact remains that money is not everything in football. Yes, it counts for a lot but Casillas has apparently rejected Man City and many of the big players will follow suit. The club is still considered to be a smaller club than the Premier League’s famous ‘big four’ of Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal. It is unlikely that players will reject the chance to play in the Champions League to play in the UEFA Cup for City.

It is hard to see how they can break into and establish themselves in the top four with such a high standard of football being set by the ‘big four’. The Man City revolution is not likely to have a big impact for a few seasons yet.

So maybe City should set their sights lower down. The huge European clubs will not sell their best players. Perhaps the likes of Lazio’s Pandev and Weder Bremen’s Diego should be main and realistic targets. It seems a waste of time chasing after players at the top clubs such as Barcelona and AC Milan but there are still great players with huge potential playing for smaller European Clubs.

Who knows if the owners are willing to be patient. Maybe they will get fed up without Champions League football and will sell the club on again. Only time will tell, but City fans should be a bit cautious in their glee. The future may not be as bright as the fans hope, they may not be challenging for the title even with the huge cash injection.

Keane Leaves Sunderland

Just five days after Sunderlands dismal 4-1 defeat at home to Bolton, manager Roy Keane has walked away from his job. Although initially a shock departure it had been coming, with Keane hinting at his discontent by stating that he would not sign a new deal any time soon.

The board at Sunderland had backed Keane and showed a lot of faith in him when appointing the rookie manager who had no previous experience in the role. They also gave him plenty of financial backing with Keane having spent around 60 million on players over the past two seasons.

This is sure to come as a blow to Sunderland and their fans, who had hoped that Keane would become on of their best ever managers when he got them promoted and kept them in the Premier League last season.

This year has been a different story and after their fifth defeat in a row Keane clearly was fed up of the job. His future is unclear as although on the surface he did well at Sunderland he walked away at the first sign of trouble not showing any fighting spirit that is required to be a very successful manager.

Perhaps, the temperamental side of Keane has not left him since his playing days. Whilst many United fans will remember Keane as a legendary player most football fans will remember him for his career ending tackles and his refusal to play for his country in the 2002 World Cup.

There is no news yet as to who Sunderland will appoint to replace Keane.

Premier League Weekend Afterthought

The story of the weekend has to be Arsenal’s surprising win at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea who had gone over four years without a Premier League home defeat lost their second home game in recent weeks under dramatic circumstances. Arsenal, however, started the match very shakily and did not look comfortable as Chelsea seemingly dominated the possession and dictated the pace of the match. This was compounded by Djorou who put into his own net to give Chelsea a 1-0 half time lead.

Chelsea deserved their lead and looked good for it until a terrible referreeing decision allowed Arsenal to level midway through the second half. Denilson’s flick fell to Van Persie, who was visably a yard or two offside, no flag was raised and Van Persie slotted home.

A shell shocked Chelsea were outraged by the assistant referees mistake and were further made to pay when a sluggish Chelsea defence failed to clear allowing for Van Persie to turn on the ball and fire home the winner past a helpless Petr Cech a couple of minutes later. Chelsea never looked like scoring and again failed to come from a goal behind against strong opposition.

The Blues can look back on the match as an unlucky defeat but in truth Chelsea did not have enough spark at the Bridge to deserve anything from the match.

Scolari was surprisingly critical of the refereeing after the game. The Brazilian’s cool, calm and colleted reputation is quickly disappearing. The pressure may be getting to Big Phil, Chelsea are not looking they force they did at the start of the season. As the injury list grows and following the annoucement that Chelsea will not be buying players in January it is difficult to see how the home forn will be turned around.

As for Arsenal this result may have saved their season. They now are within 8 points of the top of the league and although it will be an uphill struggle the league title can still be theirs. Arsenal still lack a clear cutting edge but this result is sure to boost their confidence. Hopefully they will spend in January as the board have made it clear they have the funds to. Chelsea have now played all of the other three so called ‘big four’ at home this season and have only taken one point from those games not exactly title winning form.

Perhaps the fiercest derby in English Football went the way of Manchester United this weekend. United dominated the match and were good value for their win. Manchester City could not find the magic of last season to oust their rivals. Rooney scored a rebound tap in to seal the win for the Red Devils.

All did not end well for United, Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for a needless handball late in the second half. The win has meant United have closed the gap significantly at the top and are starting to look like the team of last season again. City are now hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone. People at City will be starting to wonder how much longer their ridiculously rich owners will stand for the poor league position.

Liverpool claimed top spot despite failing to capitalise on Chelsea’s loss and could only draw in a drab match at home to West Ham. The Reds were booed off at full time and the Anfield crowd were less than impressed with another goaless home draw against weaker opposition.

It was the same result at Villa Park as a gutsy Fulham earned a good point. Villa missed out on the chance to consolidate their position in the top four and have now fallen to fifth. The league has tightened even more this week and no one at the top is taking control over their rivals.

Towards the foot of the table things are so close that a win can take some teams up six or seven places.

West Brom lost again despite leading away to Wigan and look like the real certainties to go down at the moment.

The other team on a downward spiral are Sunderland, hammered at home 4-1 by Bolton of all teams. An embarressing result and it looks as though Roy Keane has become disillusioned with life in the North-East. He will not sign a new contract and has admitted he may leave the club which is hardly reassuring to the players and fans. It is difficult to see how they can turn their fortunes around under such a fickle manager. Maybe Keane should just leave now so that the club can appoint a new manager and raise the spirits on the club before it is too late.

There were also good wins for Everton away at Spurs and Portsmouth at home to Blackburn. Stoke and Hull managed a draw as did Middlesborough and Newcastle.

1	Liverpool	15	13	34
2	Chelsea	15	27	33
3	Man Utd	14	16	28
4	Arsenal	15	8	26
5	Aston Villa	15	6	25
6	Hull	15	-2	23
7	Everton	15	-2	22
8	Portsmouth	15	-4	22
9	Bolton	15	1	20
10	Fulham	14	1	19
11	Wigan	15	-1	19
12	Middlesbrough	15	-6	19
13	West Ham	15	-5	18
14	Stoke	15	-10	18
15	Man City	15	6	17
16	Tottenham	15	-4	15
17	Newcastle	15	-5	15
18	Sunderland	15	-11	15
19	Blackburn	15	-12	13
20	West Brom	15	-16	11

The foreign players versus home grown players debate

Anyone who has followed football over the last few years will have heard many different views on how foreign players have effected club and international football. There has been a huge increase in foreigners across most of Europe’s leagues in the past decade. This has caused suggestion that the amount of foreign players playing for a club should be capped. FIFA president Sepp Blatter and UEFA president Michele Platini have both backed proposals thata their must be a minimum of 6 home grown players and a maximum of 5 foreign players per team.

Whilst such a proposal would expect to result in an increase in standard of certain national teams whose youngsters will get the chance to play top flight football, it is of little doubt that the standard of football in these leagues would decrease.

Maybe the argument is purely a club versus country debate. Which is more important and which do the fans prefer.  Well, it is tough to judge whether international football is preffered to club football. Fans tend to like both types of football and without polling Europe to find out, it is very difficult to draw any significant conclusions because of the undeniable popularity of both.

So rather than try to determine which is favoured it is probably easier to analyse whether foreign players have improved the top European leagues and whether less foreign players will help national teams to prosper.

Using the English Premier League as an example, most people will agree that the quality of football has dramatically increased over the past few seasons. With English teams dominating the champions league’s latter stages not many would deny that the English Premier League now has the highest standard of football anywhere in Europe and probably the world. The bigger nations in Europe such as Spain, Italy and Germany also seem to have gained something with the increase in foreign players. This has seen the revenue of these leagues increase by millions and millions in recent years.

Perhaps this increase in revenue and popularity still would have occurred without foreigners and of course there is no definite way to judge it but it is hard to dismiss the impact of foreigners in the bigger European nations.

The countries that have suffered most from the increase in foreign players in the top leagues in Europe are the smaller European countries and the rest of the world. Countries such as Holland, Brazil and Argentina are finding it increasingly difficult to hold onto their home grown players. As soon as players within these countries start attracting interest from the big European footballing nations they have an impossible task to hold onto their players.

So on the upside in England, Spain, Italy and Germany the standard of football has improved over the last few years. On the negative side pretty much every other country’s club football is suffering because of it.

The next question is whether or not the state of the national teams in England, Spain, Italy and Germany are deteriorating because of the influx of foreigners into their leagues.

A lot of Englishmen will point to England’s failure to qualify for Euro 2008 as a prime example of how foreigners have ruined the state of their national team. However, even before the decrease in English players in the Premier League England failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup, a tournament in which they made the semi-finals four years earlier. Of the other main European footballing nations who have a similar amount of foreigners in their league, Spain won Euro 2008, Germany were the beaten finalist’s and Italy are the current World Cup holders. So on the whole it can be argued that in fact the impact of foreign players has not had a negative effect on the leading European nations national sides and may have even had a good effect. Even England, who can have the most complaints in this respect, are having a great qualifying campaign this time around.

It is unclear if countries should limit the number of foreigners playing in their club teams. It would be a great shame to see the worlds best clubs being limited in talent and the top European leagues would probably lose a lot of global appeal. Maybe this is the reason FIFA and UEFA have failed to sanction such a proposal despite their head henchozs both being in favour of it.