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Premier League news. Stories from the newspapers and BBC sport – sports news from tabloids Daily Mail, Daily Express, Daily Star, the Guardian, Daily Mirror, the times, daily telegraph
One Jose Mourinho: every variation of ‘The Special One’
On June 2 2004, Jose Mourinho arrived at Cheslea FC. “Please don’t call me arrogant,” he told the Press, “but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”
And so he became The Specual One. And where that led other ‘Ones’ followed. Jose Mourinho has been:
Posted: 5th, December 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment
Arsenal put West Ham boss on the ‘brink’ of getting chairman’s understanding
Arsenal tonked West Ham united 5-1 at the Hammers’ soulless Olympic Stadium – hear the Arsenal fans singing “Is this the Emirates?” – and the tabloids are full of speculation. Is West Ham manager Slaven Bilic soon to be sacked?
“Bilic on the brink,” says the Mirror. “His job is understood to be hanging by a thread.”
“Slaven’s still safe,” counters the Star. “Slaven Bilic is safe at West Ham”, says the paper. “It is understood West Ham’s owners are ready to keep faith with him as they still believe the Croat can turn things around.”
“Bilic’s job is not under any immediate threat,” adds the Mail.
In short: nothing has changed. Bilic is the West Ham manager.
Posted: 5th, December 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment
Spurs cave in and agree to Harry Kane’s massive loyalty bonus
Spurs striker Harry Kane secured a huge pay rise because the club “caved in” to his demands. So says the Times, which calculates Kane’s Tottenham at around £150,000-a-week, based on a base salary of £120,000-a-week plus bonuses.
The new contract, which runs until 2022, contains no buy-out clause should Spurs fail to reach the Champions’ League.
Kane’s manager Mauricio Pochettino tells media, “If you ask him he is sure that is not about the money.” He then says he was always sure Kane would remain at the club.
Yeah, right. Kane bleeds for Spurs. He’s one of their own. Nonsense. It’s always about the money. He’s more than doubled his money from the £60,000-a-week deal that had four years to run. Give it a year of good form and he’ll be asking for more.
Feel the love.
To secure Kane, Spurs had to obliterate their wage structure. The club wanted Kane to sign a new deal in September, but he wouldn’t. The paper talk was of him wanting £100,000 a week. Then it was parity with Jamie Vardy’s £120,000 a week. Now Kane earns the same as Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez.
The Times says it wasn’t until last week that Kane and Spurs talked about the contract – and the club “caved into his wage demands and completed the deal in the space of two days”.
Below Kane, the club’s top earner is Hugo Lloris – and you can expect the captain’s agent to be knocking on the chairman’s door very soon. He’ll be in a queue behind Dele Alli’s agent. The young Englishman earns £50,000-a-week.
Spurs’ wage bill is set to rocket.
Posted: 3rd, December 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs | Comment (1)
Arsenal balls: Ralph Hasenhuttl has not replaced Arsene Wenger
As headlines go, the Sun’s is unequivocal: “RALPH HAS THE JOB”. The paper reports that Arsene Wenger is to replaced as Arsenal manager by Ralph Hasenhuttl. Reading on, we get more facts: “Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger to be replaced by RB Leipzig coach Ralph Hasenhuttl.”
Wow! Wenger’s finally been given the heave-ho.
As Gunners fans look up Hasenhuttl, the Sun whispers, “Austrian sensationally confirms he could takeover the Gunners.”
Could?
The Sun adds: “Austrian chief, who has led his side to the top of the Bundesliga table, claims he may take over at the Emirates next season.”
May?
The facts that had Arsenal fans excited are now less than factual.
So how did the Sun gets the story? Well, the Austrian appears to have seen q story in the Sun that he’s bene linked to the Arsenal job and responded:
“It was a well-researched story. There was a lot of truth to it. I have heard of worse fates than succeeding the longest-serving manager in England. It’s not damaging my reputation, is it? We don’t have to put too much thought into [the Arsenal job]. I have found my luck here.”
Which bits contained truth and which bits contained non-truths, Hasenhuttl didn’t say.
Posted: 2nd, December 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Manchester United balls: Why everything’s ‘wrong’ at Old Trafford (it’s not Mourinho)
“What wrong at Old Trafford,” asks the Sun’s Neil Curtis? Nothing. Manchester United are in great shape. This we know because on 6th September 2016 Neil Curtis told us about the “RED-OLUTION” at Old Trafford. “Jose Mourinho has turned Manchester United around to become the force of old in just three months,” said Curtis. Mourinho has “lifted the clouds” at United. “Mourinho is trusting the players abilities, letting them breathe.”
Today Curtis tells us that Manchester United have had their “worst start to a season in 27 years”. Why? Well, it’s not because Jose Mourinho is failing. It’s about him “unpicking Louis Van Gaal’s philosophy”. That would be Van Gaal who unpicked David Moyes’ philosophy. (You can read more about Jose’s philosophy here.)
Curtis adds that United have “NO TOP-CLASS STRIKER”. Really. Because Curtis wrote:
In his £250m splurge, LVG made two that excited but could not get the best out of either in Angel Di Maria and Memphis Depay. Mourinho has made four and so far Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba and Eric Bailly have been immediate hits.
And:
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has got his Manchester United career off to a blistering start
Another reasons: “NEW SIGNINGS STRUGGLING.” So much for Mourinho’s “immediate hits”.
And finally, lest you think Curtis will blame Mourinho, he asks himself: “Have they got the right manager?” “In my opinion,” says Curtis, “most definitely they have.”
Next question is one of ours: Would Manchester United fans prefer to have signed Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola instead of the chippy Mourinho?
Over in the Mail, you can read: “Inside the troubled World of Mourinho – An obsessive man at odds with himself and his players.” So much for the RED-VOLUTION.
Posted: 29th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Tony Pulis: Crystal Palace spank West Bromwich Albion manager
Tony Pulis, manager of West Bromwich Albion, is a “LIAR”. So says the Sun, which leads its sports coverage with news that Pulis has been told to pay Crystal Palace £3.7m – but his total bill following defeat in a High Court fight is closer to £6m. The Mirror and Express say it’s around £5m.
The story goes that Pulis was paid a £2m bonus for saving Crystal Palace from the drop when he managed the team in 2014. Palace said he was due the money if he stayed at the club until August 31 2014 – after the season had kicked off on August 16. Pulis asked for the bonus early, saying he had an “urgent” need for the cash to buy land for his children. He got the cash on August 12. On August 13, Pulis told Palace he wanted to leave, says the Express. Pulis left the club on August 14.
The matter went before an independent tribunal in March 2016, which ruled in Palace’s favour, saying Pulis had created a “false impression” that he would remain at the club. Pulis took the case to he High Court. And lost again.
The Sun says the case hinged on the date of a “fiery meeting”. Pulis, reportedly, claimed his loyalty to the club was damaged following a “heated player meeting” on August 12. But Palace were able to prove that that meeting occurred on August 8.
Pulis was undone.
High Court judge Sir Michael Burton said the Tribunal found Pulis had “deliberately sought to deceive with his claims about needing the bonus early”. The Sun quotes the Premier League Managers’ Arbitration Tribunal report which brands Pulis’s conduct “disgraceful”. His case was “untrue”. “It was must more likely he intended to seek more lucrative employment with another club and that is the real reason he sought early payment.”
Pulis must repay the £2m bonus plus £1.5m as he was “already in employment with another club”.
The Mail says Pulis has been “branded a fraudster”. He “deliberately mislead” Palace chairman Steve Parrish over his intention to stay at the club.
The Mirror says Pulis’ “reputation is in tatters”.
The rest of us marvel at how much money and greed there is in football.
Posted: 29th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment (1)
Media balls: Wilshere’s Arsenal future as clear as mud
How’s Jack Wilshere getting along at Arsenal? He’s playing for AFC Bournemouth but he’ll be back the Gunners soon enough. The Evening Standard confirms the news: “Arsene Wenger confirms Jack Wilshere will be offered new Arsenal contract.”
Good for Jack. And good for Arsenal.
But in September the Metro told us: “Mesut Ozil set to sign bumper new Arsenal deal that will see him inherit Jack Wilshere’s No.10 shirt.”
Ozil hasn’t signed any new deal. He wears the Number 11 shirt.
The Metro added that Wilshere “sees his long-term future away from the club”.
He doesn’t.
On October 22, the Mail reported on one of its own columnists: “Jack Wilshere’s future is away from Arsenal after Bournemouth loan, says Jamie Redknapp… Jack Wilshere’s career at Arsenal is over.”
No. It isn’t.
Such are the facts.
Posted: 27th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment
Media Balls: Mourinho does a Wenger, Pogba does a Van Gaal and Manchester United wait for Fergie
Media Balls: Was it right that Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was red carded as his side fought back to secure a 1-1 draw with West Ham United? Can we know what’s what from reading the experts?
The BBC: “Off to the stands! He aims an almighty kick at a drinks bottle down on the touchline in anger at a booking for Paul Pogba – who looked to be jumping to avoiding getting clattered – and is directed from the touchline by Jonathan Moss.”
Pogba was avoiding a clattering and jumped. It was self-preservation. The referee got it wrong. Jose just reacted to the poor decision.
Manchester United assistant manager Rui Faria: “I think there was frustration from Jose after the yellow card for Pogba. It should be a foul for us but the referee understood it in another way.”
United were robbed.
Saj Choudry (BBC): “The Portuguese boss kicked a water bottle in reaction to referee Jon Moss showing Paul Pogba a yellow card for diving. Replays showed West Ham’s Mark Noble did not make contact with the France midfielder.”
Pogba dived. The referee was correct – he did fool for the player’s cheating. Jose Mourinho did make contact with the water bottle.
The West Ham website: “The Frenchman, falling after going past Mark Noble, was correctly booked for diving, prompting the explosive bottle-kicking moment from his boss.
Dive!
The Manchester United website: “Mourinho was then sent to the stands after he reacted furiously to referee Jonathon Moss’ decision to book Pogba for an apparent dive.”
An apparent dive?
Manchester Evening News: “He [Pogba] appeared to dive over Mark Noble’s challenge and was booked by Jonathan Moss. Mourinho… kicked a water bottle in frustration and was sent to the stands.”
He appeared to dive. Jose was not poorly behaved and wrong. He was frustrated.
The paper does find lots of room for the thoughts of journalist Duncan Castles:
Picking that apart. The slight on Louis Van Gaal is odd given that the hammer-headed Dutchman was pretty animated:
And as for any other manager not being sent off for kicking a water bottle, well, the Arsenal manager was:
For Jose Mourinho, well, it wouldn’t be so bad were it not for the fact that his old club Chelsea – the one he left spent and in mid-table – are top of the league under their new manager.
PS: Manchester United have failed to win four league games in a row at Old Trafford for the first time since February 1990. And they have drawn four consecutive league games at their place for the first time since December 1980. Yeah. it’s time for Fergie all over again. Oh for a manager who intimidates referees, fails to talk to the BBC and fosters a siege mentality. On second thoughts, as you were Jose…
Posted: 27th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Key Posts, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Media balls: ‘disgraceful’ referee saves Leicester and robs Middlesbrough with ‘stonewall’ penalty
Media Balls: a look at biased football reporting. Today Leicester City took on Middlesbrough in the Premier League. Leicester got a penalty. Should it have been given?
BBC: “A high ball is pumped into the box and catches the hand of Calum Chambers. Referee Lee Mason points to the spot. The Boro defender probably feels a little aggrived [sic] given he looked to be fouled by Wes Morgan.”
Lucky Leicester. It was ever so.
Sky: “Chambers is having a poor few minutes as he leaps with his hands in the air and the ball hits him. It’s stonewall and after a quick check with the linesman, the referee points the spot. Mahrez is over it…”
Stonewall penalty.
The Sun: “Morgan clearly shoves Chambers into the ball but incredibly Lee Mason points to the spot. It’s another refereeing howler!”
Stone me! Penalty?
Hard luck, Calum Chambers.
Leicester Mercury: “Surprisingly, no second yellow for defender Chambers for his handball despite having been booked just minutes earlier for a foul on Vardy.”
Lucky, Calum Chambers.
Was it a penalty?
Yes, it hit the arm of Calum Chambers.
But the considerable weight of Wes Morgan had a considerable part to play in that.
The defender was all over Chambers and made his presence felt…
The Gazette then quotes an expert:
Such are the facts.
Posted: 26th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment
Football paedophile panic: Hundreds becomes thousands as Barry Bennell grows ever more prolific
The Mail leads with the football sex abuse story. “THERE COULD BE THOUSANDS” thunders the paper’s lead sports story.
Be in no doubt it’s getting worse. Earlier in the week it was “hundreds”.
The hundreds and thousands are not the paedophiles working as football coaches who abused young players – although given the nature of the reporting, they might be – but the victims.
The Mirror’s front-page story was based on words by their columnist Robbie Savage, who was a youngster at Crewe Alexandra, where convicted paedophile Barry Bennell coached. Bennell has served three prison sentences, amounting to 15 years, since 1994 for many offences committed against boys.
Says Savage: “Sometimes I’d go into training on a Monday and hear some of the lads say, ‘I stayed at Barry’s at the weekend.’ And I’d be thinking, ‘Why not me? Why didn’t he ask me? Am I not a good enough player? Have I done something wrong?’ Of course, I now know what happened to some of those boys and I know I’m one of the lucky ones but, at the time, that’s what went through my mind.”
He then speculates: “We need to know how many more Barry Bennells are out there. And how many victims are still suffering because of what happened to them.”
And from Savage’s guesstimate of hundreds, we turn to the Mail’s “thousands”. “Thousands of young footballers could have been abused by a nationwide paedophile ring,” says the Mail today.
The number is provided by former Manchester City youth player Jason Dunford, “who says he was targeted” by Barry Bennell:
‘There could be thousands of boys abused and I’m not exaggerating,’ said Dunford, who had fought off Bennell as a 13-year-old schoolboy at a Butlin’s camp.
Dunford came forward after Andy Woodward, a former Crewe player who was abused by Bennell, gave an account of his own experiences… triggering an earthquake within the game.
‘Andy has not even touched the surface with telling his own stories,’ added Dunford. ‘He told how he had been on a camp to Gran Canaria and Bennell had a different boy every night. So take the school holidays, training nights, tournaments. Over 30 years, it absolutely could be thousands.’
The story of depraved criminality has taken on a life of its own.
What of the police? Four police forces are not involved in the investigation.
The Metropolitan Police, Britain’s biggest force, said it “has received information relating to non-recent sexual abuse in football clubs in London”…
Hampshire Police said its detectives are investigating non-recent child abuse “within the football community”.
Cheshire Police said it had received ”a growing number of disclosures” and that allegations have been “made against more than one individual”…
Northumbria Police said it was investigating an allegation by an unnamed former Newcastle United player that he was abused in the club’s youth system.
The Guardian also leads with the story.
The story runs:
Crewe Alexandra, the club most heavily implicated in the Barry Bennell case, were warned he had sexually abused one of his junior footballers but allowed the man who turned out to be a serial paedophile to stay at the club for a number of years, the Guardian has been told…
Hamilton Smith, who was on the board from 1986 to early 1990, has told this newspaper he was so concerned at the time he asked for specially convened talks about concerns over Bennell’s relationship with young boys at the club and, specifically, to inform his colleagues that someone had marched over to him at a junior football match to allege that a friend’s son had been abused.
Crewe, we learn, “have declined to comment.”
Such are the facts.
Posted: 26th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Reviews | Comment
Manchester United balls: Jose Mourinho adapts the Chelsea philosophy to be more and less like Van Gaal
How are things going for Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho? “From the moment he arrived, the message has been positive, about winning the title. Nothing on philosophies or things taking time,” said the Sun’s Neil Curtis on 6th September 2016. Philosophy is for losers, like Louis Van Gaal, Jose’s predecessor at United, whose “attempts to reprogramme everyone with his much-vaunted ‘philosophy’ succeeded only in inhibiting all their natural instincts”.
Philosophy is balls.
Unless it isn’t. On November 15 the Sun thought philosophy and football were a good blend. “Johan Cruyff’s debut 52 years ago today: Inventor of Total Football whose philosophy influenced Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola,” chimed the headline.
On November 22, the Manchester Evening News agreed, reporting: “Daley Blind’s view on Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho’s philosophy.” Said Blind of Mourinho: “He is pretty similar to Van Gaal when it comes to their commitment to the team. They used to work together so I reckon that is no coincidence.” He adds: “…his philosophy is slightly different to that of Van Gaal. He is very direct, it is all about winning.”
And as Jose Mourinho put it in 2013: “You need stability in methods, in philosophy within the club. With FFP [Financial Fair Play], and Chelsea wants to go in that direction, you also need stability. You cannot change manager and philosophy every few years.”
So much for much-vaunted philosophy.
Posted: 25th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Chelsea, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Ian Wight Balls: Chelsea must sell ‘foolish’ Costa, the Blues’ best player
Chelsea striker Diego Costa is playing well. Ian Wright has noticed. He says Chelsea are riding high in the Premier League because of Costa above all else. The former Arsenal striker writes in the Sun:
“I have a message to all those who say Diego Costa has finally got his game under control: It always was. There are plenty of people who reckon it’s all down to the fact he has calmed down. Yet to me, even when Costa was picking up yellow cards, he remained massively in control…. he always knew how far to push it. He’d have picked up far more than a single red card in his time at Stamford Bridge if that wasn’t the case.”
In Marxh 2015, Costa was sent off in the FA Cup at Goodison Park. It was his first red card in a Chelsea shirt. It was his first because he’d been lucky / sneaky. Before that red card, Costa was banned twice in a Chelsea shirt, both retrospectively, by the FA for incidents missed by the officials during games against Arsenal and Liverpool.
So much for the facts, then. And what about all those who say Costa is a hothead? People like Ian Wright, who opined in 2015:
“I would sell him at the first opportunity I get for Costa. I’d sell him… He’s antagonised at the moment. If I was a defender I would just keep talking to him, it takes him away from his game.”
And:
“Martin Keown… would have relished the challenge of Costa. Whatever we say about Costa, he plays on the edge. His hold up play and the runs he makes, honestly, he’s good. Martin could deal with all that and the foolishness as well.”
Such are the facts.
Posted: 24th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Chelsea, Sports | Comment
Arsenal, PSG and the case of the missing Serge Aurier
Drama ahead of tonight’s Champions’ League between Arsenal and Paris St Germain. In an “EXCLUSIVE”, the Star thunders: “Serge Aurier’s career could be ruined after he was banned from entering Britain to face Arsenal tonight.”
You can read the same story on the Sun’s back page, where Arsenal’s hopes have received a boost from the Home Office. Aurier has been banned from entering the UK as a result of his conviction for assaulting a police officer in Paris. In September the 23-year-old Ivorian was found guilty of elbowing his victim as he left a Paris nightclub in May. He was sentenced to two months in jail and fined €600.
The club have not sacked him. The incident has not left his carder in ruins. But, apparently, not playing Arsenal might.
The Star’s twist on the story is based on the words of Aurier’s lawyer, Claire Boutaud de la Combe, who “fears it could leave his career in tatters”. Really?
“Under France law he remains innocent until this appeal has been heard,” says de la Combe. “But such an appeal can take quite a long time, especially in Paris. It will take several months, maybe one year. We don’t understand why this has become a problem, there is no reason for his. Now this is a worry because maybe it will stop him being able to travel to other countries to play for PSG or the Ivory Coast because they will also not allow him entry.”
In February, PSG suspended Aurier for a Champions’ League match against Chelsea following comments he made about the coach, Laurent Blanc, and his team-mates on social media. The season before that, Uefa banned Aurier for three matches ‘after last season’s Champions League game against Chelsea following a video posted on Facebook in which he labelled the referee Bjorn Kuipers a “dirty son of a bitch” over the sending-off of his team-mate Ibrahimovic.’
PSG are getting used to playing Champions’ League matches without Aurier, who is, nonetheless, picked to play when not banned. His career is not in tatters. Far from it.
Oh, and to put the tin lid on this balls, note that the source is the Star, the paper that told us – yep – Aurier agreed to join the Gunners is 2014.
A fact echoed by the Star’s sister paper, the Express:
Aurier singed for PSG.
Posted: 23rd, November 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Media balls: Spurs crash out but Jan Vertonghen’s omission was not a shock
Last night Spurs crashed out of the Champions’ League, losing to Monaco in France. The Sun’s Paul Jiggins says Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettinho “sprang a surprise” by playing Eric Dier and Kevin Wimmer in defence in place of the “ever-reliable Jan Vertonghen“.
Really?
When Monaco defeated Spurs 1-2 at Wembley earlier in the CL, Vertonghen was hardly sublime. The Evening Standard reported:
Spurs would come to rue those missed opportunities. Lamela conceded possession in his own half and Fabinho fed Silva, who drove into the box past Jan Vertonghen before unleashing a driven effort with his left foot that flew past Hugo Lloris.
The Mail noted:
Silva shimmied into the penalty area and, when Jan Vertonghen showed him the goal, lashed a left-footer inside the far post.
The Telegraph:
Stunning finish, but not great defending from Vertonghen, who lets Silva cut in and get the shot away…
Thomas Lemar jumped ahead of Vertonghen to reach Djibril Sidibé’s cross. The ball broke back to Lemar at the near post and he lashed it high beyond Lloris from close range.
When Spurs were beaten 0-1 by Bayer Leverkusen at Wembley Stadium, Sky Sports reported:
Jan Vertonghen set the tone when he nervously mis-hit a clearance in the opening minutes. Leverkusen were on the front foot immediately and Spurs, usually so aggressive under Pochettino, couldn’t cope with a taste of their own high-pressing medicine.
The Telegraph:
Tottenham in a bit of a pickle as Vertonghen wildly slices a clearance up in the air that Leverkusen pounce on…
Vertonghen’s a good player, but in the Champion’s League he’s been no rock-like presence.
And he’s been lucky in the Premier League:
The Indy: “Confusion reigned at White Hart Lane on Saturday as referee Bobby Madley failed to award a penalty for Jan Vertonghen’s clear pull on Joel Matip’s shirt at a corner.”
The Mail: “Jan Vertonghen had a full hold of Granit Xhaka’s shirt while defending a corner and even beats the midfielder to heading the ball away. A penalty in the laws of the game…”
Posted: 23rd, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs | Comment (1)
Transfer Balls: Harry Kane and Spurs happy to be at loggerheads
Harry Kane, the Spurs and England striker, is at “loggerheads” with his club. Well, so said the Sun on November 14. All “talks ware on hold” Tottenham, are “refusing” to make Kane one of the club’s top earners.
Says Kane today:
“I am happy at the club and want to be here for a long, long time. We are in talks and I’m sure we will get something sorted. I’m not panicking and I’m not demanding anything as I’ve read in the paper.” We’re having a conversation and I have no doubts that we will get it sorted.”
Or as the Sun puts it:
Harry Kane isn’t cool. Harry Kane is “in a contract stand-off” and “pleading” with the club to give him a rise.
“Hopefully we will have no issues with the contract – we have only just started talking about it. Get that down and get that wrapped up,” says Kane on the BBC. “I’m happy,” said the Spurs player four times in the Mail. “Kane pledging future to Spurs, ” says the Express.
In other words: no news. But lots of balls.
Posted: 21st, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs | Comment
Media balls: West Ham hard done by as Spurs trip over the line
Media Balls: a look at biased football reporting in Tottenham’s 3-2 victory over West Hm United in the Premier League.
This is how the Tottenham Hotspur website described the deciding goal, a penalty strike by Harry Kane:
Hammers substitute Harvard Nordtveit tripped Son in the area and the referee again pointed to the spot.
The BBC sees not a clear trip but a dash of the dark arts:
[Son was] smart enough to invite a wild challenge from fellow substitute Nordtveit, cutting inside and leaving his standing leg invitingly in the path of the defender’s needless lunge
The Newham Recorder (in West Ham’s manor):
Havard Nordtveit – on for Payet – was harshly adjudged to have brought down Son as the two jinked and jostled in the area
West Ham sub Havard Nordviet clumsily brought down Heung-Min Son, giving Mike Dean no option but to award the second penalty of the afternoon
No opinion or harsh? Having dealt with the last goal, the game’s first penalty, one awarded to West Ham, is couched in caveats.
The Tottenham website: “Janssen was adjudged to have pulled down Reid in the area at a West Ham corner”
The Newham Recorder: “Janssen dragged down Reid”
Such are the facts.
Posted: 20th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs | Comments (3)
Ugly, fat and thick: Manchester Untied’s Wayne Rooney takes a wedding night bashing in the Sun
How the Sun will miss Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney when he’s gone. This week the Sun spotted the England captain enjoying a drink at a Watford hotel as a wedding party made merry. It was “ROO’S BIG FAT TIPSY WEDDING”.
Lest anyone think that mere pun on the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which spawned TV’s My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, we refer you to past comments made by the Sun’s on Wayne Rooney’s girth and looks.
As for the news of Rooney’s drinking, the report shares the best eye-witness quote of the week, “He was shit-faced”. Wedding guest said – get this – “Wayne was “not a petty sight”.
How they’ll miss Rooney when he’s gone.
Posted: 18th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Transfer balls: Barcelona and pundits conspire to push Philippe Coutinho out of Liverpool
Football reporting wears the cloak of respectability. But in the 21st century, new organs use players to get clicks and earn cash. The sad thing is that the advert-free BBC is full of this balls. The Beeb has told us – and these five news items have all appeared over the past month:
Liverpool need to give playmaker Philippe Coutinho, 24, a new contract and pay rise to fend off interest from Barcelona.
The Reds are confident of keeping the Brazilian as the player does not have an buy-out clause in his contract.
Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho, 24, wants to stay at Anfield despite reported interest from Barcelona, says his former youth coach.
Former Brazil striker Ronaldo is keen to see 24-year-old Liverpool and Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho at Real Madrid.
Liverpool are ready to offer Brazil playmaker Philippe Coutinho, 24, a new contract to fend off interest from Barcelona.
In all that time, amid all that utter tosh, the BBC has produced not a single word from Philippe Coutinho expressing any desire to play for any club but Liverpool. Today the BBC has more on one of the Premier League’s brightest talents.
Brazil international Coutinho, 24, has been influential in helping the Reds go top of the Premier League table… His form has led to links with Spanish sides Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Links made by the BBC.
Today Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp tells media firing question about Coutinho’s future: “We all hope and think his future is here at Liverpool. What everybody forgets about Phil is that he is still very young. At 24, he has a long way to go and lot of space for improvement.”
But: “At the end, it will not be money. If there is a club who can play double what we pay then I bring the player there. Who am I to say ‘no, don’t think about your family, kids, grandkids and all that stuff’. But I don’t know a lot of clubs in the world who can do this.”
And that’s the thing, no? The narrative of Coutinho’s departure to Spain continues in spite of any facts. It’s a media story only. Get this from former Liverpool defender and jobbing pundit Mark Lawrenson. He’s been talking to the Press Association:
“Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid to a certain degree, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are the clubs continually successful in Europe. You can’t keep those top players if those clubs come in for them.”
“I don’t think, apart from arguably Manchester City, anyone can stop them. The clever thing is to plan for it. Rather than say ‘Coutinho might be going, what are we going to do?’ you have something in place already.”
And this from former midfielder Xavi: “There are not many players that can improve Barcelona, but if you are asking me if he [Coutinho] is one of them.”
It’s a pincer movement of nodding heads opining on a man’s career and life to deadline and Barcelona stooges doing the same old trick of talking up a player they hope will join them. They negate the fact that at the heart of the chatter is a professional athlete who wants to do his best.
And they should ask themselves why just one season after Leicester City won the Premier League – a club whose turnover amounts to less than Manchester United’s kit sponsorship, who had won nothing of note in 132-years, and whose first XI were bought for less than one Paul Pogba – the talk is so little about glory and creating something new, exciting and unexpected. It’s about the same old teams winning at all costs.
Posted: 17th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Liverpool, Sports | Comment
Transfer balls: Daniel Levy holds the cards as Spurs play Harry Kane
The news cycle has lots more on Harry Kane, the Spurs player at “loggerheads” with his club over a new pay deal. The Mail leads with the story that Kane is demanding parity with Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy, currently trousering £120,000 a week. But Spurs are “not prepared” to give Kane that kind of cash.
Spurs might have noticed that before Vardy signed his new bumper deal, he was on fire. At this stage last season, hungry Vardy had scored 12 goals. Over the summer he got a new contract. Vardy has now gone 14 matches without scoring. Big pay does not always equate to big performances.
Facts then become a little murky. The Mail says Spurs’ top earner is Hugo LLoris, who earns £90,000 a week. But yesterday the Sun said Spurs midfielder Moussa Sissoko gets £95,000 a week.
The paper says Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, is a “shrewd” operator. His method is to give improving players “incremental pay rises while adding a year or two to the deal”.
(And who cannot agree that Levy gets value? In today’s Express, David Kidd reminds us of Spurs’s battle with West Ham over the Olympic Stadium. Levy wanted to rip up the running track and joint-fund the venture with AEG. He’d also revamp the Crystal Palace stadium for athletics. Instead of that, the taxpayer now funds a soulless bowl where fans sit a long way from the action. “As for West Ham’s claim they would make football more affordable – well, for their first category A Prem home match with Arsenal, even kids and OAPs must pay £50-£80.” Levy was right.)
The issue for Spurs is that Kane wants a big lift on the £60,000 a week he now earns. The good news, we’re told, is that Kane is not “demanding” to be paid the £200,000 a week the likes of Raheem Sterling earns at Manchester City. He’s happy to be on par with Vardy and Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge.
On the flip side, the Mail says Manchester United and Chelsea can pay that sort of cash and both want Kane. If they want him that badly, they will need to cough up. Spurs have shown they are prepared to sell their top talent for big money. It’s not far-fetched to think of Kane leaving – and Spurs doing very well from the deal.
Posted: 15th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs | Comment (1)
Transfer Balls: Spurs and Kane ‘agree’ to be at ‘loggerheads’ over bumper new deal
Spurs fans will tremble at the news that Harry Kane – “he’s one of there own” (insert picture of young Harry in his Arsenal short – ed) – has “KO-ed” a new deal at the club.
Reading the Sun’s headline might lead you to suppose Kane will not be extending his Tottenham contract. The deal has been knocked out. Talks have been “called off”. Surprisingly the story does contain a muon of fact, albeit dressed in speculation, clickbait balls and hype.
Tottenham striker puts contract talks on hold with two parties at loggerheads as Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City circle
From being knocked out and over, the Sun sniffs the smelling salts and says talks to keep Kane at White Hate Lane are “on hold”. Not knocked out, then. Paused. The Sun then pretty much does Kane’s negotiations for him by name-checking a few other clubs and noting: “Kane is paid £60,000-a-week, £35,000 less than Moussa Sissoko.” And, of course, Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United can offer far higher wages than even the Frenchman trousers.
Oh, and so too can Arsenal. After all, the Express reported that Kane had agreed to join the Gunners:
Neil Ashton writes in the Sun:
HARRY KANE and Spurs have agreed to put all talks over a new contract on hold.
So both parties are in agreement. Ashton counters that in the every next line:
The England striker’s future is increasingly uncertain as the two parties are at loggerheads.The England striker’s future is increasingly uncertain as the two parties are at loggerheads.
News that Kane and Spurs have “agreed” to be a “loggerheads” will be a “massive worry for Spurs supporters”, says Ashton. Why? Kane’s contracted to Spurs until 2020 and currently earns £60,000 per week. Spurs have no need to rush.
It all amounts to a lot of nothing. But it’s enough for the Mirror to read the Sun’s story and cry: “Harry Kane and Tottenham at loggerheads.”
This is the same Mirror that reported in September:
Kane’s £50,000-a-week basic will be at least doubled in the wake of the money that has flooded into Premier League clubs due to the bumper new television deal.
And back to Sissoko. In today’s Sun, Ashton writes:
There is a feeling at White Hart Lane that Kane’s loyalty is being tested, especially with the club offering Moussa Sissoko £95,000 a week to sign from Newcastle in the summer.
But the Mirror said Sissoko is good news for Kane:
Sissoko’s arrival will see Kane’s basic weekly wage jump to around £120,000 – with bonuses and image rights he could end up taking home a cool £7.5m-a-year – meaning his entire package is likely to be in excess of £35m.
In conclusion: The tabloids haven’t got a clue.
Posted: 14th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports, Spurs, Tabloids | Comment
Transfer balls: Liverpool won’t be drawn on Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona
The news media works in a pack. The BBC says Barcelona fancy Liverpool’s Phlippe Coutinho. The Beeb’s news is based on a reprot in the Liverpool Echo that Liverpool “need” to offer Coutinho, 24, a new deal to see off interest from Barcelona. The Echo says Coutinho to Barcelona is just a “rumour”, albeit one fuelled by the player’s friendship with Barcelona’s Neymar and Luis Suarez.
We read that Coutinho visited Suarez at the Barcelona team hotel in Manchester to collect tickets ahead of their Champions League clash at the Etihad. And there it is. To keep their best player, Liverpool need to be in the best competition. But having given air to the rumours, the Echo tells readers, “Coutinho has never shown any signs of agitating for a move away from Anfield.”
So where does the rumour come from? And it’s growing. The Metro says, “Luis Suarez and Neymar are speaking to Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho about Barcelona transfer.” Well, maybe. Maybe not. The source for that spot of room bugging is Sport, more of which later.
On October 31, the Sun told its readers: “Liverpool transfer news: Philippe Coutinho wants Barcelona move as Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain show interest.”
Having name-checked three of the wealthiest clubs in Europe, we’re interested to know how Coutinho expressed his desire to leave Liverpool and play for Barcelona? Over to Spanish newspaper Sport, then, which claims the Brazilian “tried to force a move to the Nou Camp in the last transfer window. His representatives apparently sounded out Barcelona over a transfer but Luis Enrique wanted to strengthen other positions instead.”
Sport reports: “He’s a player who has been liked by Barcelona for a long time and he’d love to wear the Blaugrana shirt.”
He would?
The reality is that Coutinho would like to play in Barcelona, where his style would fit in. His agents, Kia Joorabchian and Giuliano Bertolucci, sounded out the possibility last year, but Barça ruled out any deal due to the price and the fact they had other priorities. They consider his position well covered, but anything’s possible in the future.
Bit murky, no? No quotes from Liverpool, Barcelona or the player. But it’s enough for the Indy to declare: “Barcelona have made Philippe Coutinho their priority for next summer’s transfer window.” They read that in, yep, Sport.
It might be worth noting that Sports’ slogan is “Sempre amb el Barça”. The paper is printed in Barcelona.
On another note, the Times reports: “Liverpool sure Coutinho will not join Barcelona.”
Liverpool are confident of keeping Philippe Coutinho, despite the attentions of Barcelona, because their influential playmaker does not have an escape clause in his contract.
He’s contracted to Liverpool until 2020. The paper adds:
Coutinho’s eye-catching displays will be recognised by Liverpool should he maintain his high standards. Yet there are no plans in place to rip up his existing contract, which was agreed 18 months ago, and an extension would not necessarily safeguard his future.
Quite.
Posted: 12th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Liverpool, Sports | Comment
Transfer balls: Arsenal’s Ozil to Manchester United and Peter Gwargis arrives
Is Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil all set to join Manchester United? The Guardian fans the rumour by musing, “are Manchester United eyeing Mesut Özil?” If the news media don’t know, the answer should be ‘no’.
Jacob Steinberg says Manchester United “have been alerted to Mesut Özil’s hesitation” in agreeing a new deal to lengthen his stay at Arsenal. How they’ve been alerted is moot. Did Ozil’s agent tell United. Did Arsenal? And why mention this now, just a few days before Manchester Untied host Arsenal in the Premier League?
The thinking is that United manager Jose Mourinho “wants a reunion with Özi”, whom he managed at Real Madrid.
The Sun says United will offer Ozil £250,000 a week, far higher than the £200,000 a week the Gunners are reportedly willing to pay.
It’s a story built on wet sand. We know United pay bigger wages than Arsenal. We know that Ozil is happy in North London. We know that Man United are not soaring ion the Premier League.
Maybe Jose can get a new model Ozil, as the Metro says Peter Gwargis – “dubbed the new Mesut Ozil” – is attracting interest from Gunners? “Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has his eye on Mesut Ozil’s apparent successor,” says the paper. How good is this younger Ozil. “The teenager is yet to turn out for Husqvarna’s first-team,” says the Metro. Oh, that good, then.
Finally, ESPN assures Arenal fans that Ozil “won’t betray Wenger”. It then delivers a host of reasons why Ozil to United is non-starter. They can be distilled into one salient point: he’s under contract at Arsenal.
Such are the facts.
Posted: 12th, November 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports | Comment
Transfer balls: Antoine Griezmann wants to join Paul Pogba at Manchester United, PSG, Atletico Madrid or somewhere else
Transfer balls: France and Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann, 25, says he “would like to play alongside Manchester United midfielder and France team-mate Paul Pogba, 23, at club level”. So says the BBC.
Which club, Griezmann doesn’t day. But the media klaxon has been sounded. The Daily Star has Griezmann playing at Manchester United.
The Indy says, “Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann has talked up a potential move to Manchester United.”
Over on Sky Sports, we hear what Griezmann said in reply to a journalist asking him about Man United:
“I always ask Paul Pogba about Manchester United. I think they are a huge club with a really good infrastructure. I ask Paul about some of the players, and if they’re really that good, or if Jose Mourinho is really that good.
“You hear a lot of things [speculation] about Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain but right now I don’t see me moving to a new club. But it would be awesome to play alongside Paul one day.”
Adding via the Star:
“A future transfer depends on how I feel. Right now, I’m a father and moving to another city would the right thing. I’ll see If want to do something else in the future, but right now I’m very happy with Atletico Madrid and I still want to win trophies with this club.”
Pogba to Atletico Madrid it is, then.
Posted: 10th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United: Mourinho scapegoats Smalling and Shaw and demands belief in his way
In today’s episode of Jose Mourinho’s life, the Sun has an exclusive on the Manchester United manager:
Jose Mourinho: Manchester United stars backing boss over incredible bust-up with Luke Shaw and Chris Smalling
Mourinho picked out the England players for his “slurs”, as the Times calls them. They are “bewildered” by his attack on their professionalism.
As it his style, Mourinho builds a siege mentality and invites players to prove their loyalty to him through unstinting effort. After a couple of seasons of believing and running til empty for Mourinho, the team is covered in glory but spent, and Jose moves on.
Neil Ashton writes: “Senior players have accepted that the only way to succeed under the Special One is to accept his ruthless regime. Incredibly, they supported his public attack on Shaw and Smalling, who insisted they were not fit to play in Sunday’s 3-1 win at Swansea.”
Were they fit? “Both have played with pain-killing injections this season but boss Mourinho claims that is common practice for a top-level footballer.”
You run and run and run for Jose. And then you collapse.
The Special One said they refused to be in the match-day squad and had betrayed United’s “culture”.
United culture, or Jose’s way?
In other news the Sun notes:
Manchester United transfer news: Jose Mourinho to axe Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw after bust-up
Mourinho said of the duo: “I have a friend who is a big tennis player and he tells me when he remembered more the times he plays with pain than the times he plays without pain. To compete you have to go to the limit. It is cultural for some – and that is not my culture. More than me, it is Man United. We have players with ‘problems’. At every sport – and I know because I have friends in others sports and they play at the highest level in their sport, and how many times they play when you are not 100 per cent.”
And so it is, as ever it was, that Jose Mourinho divides to conquer. Do you believe in Jose? Is he the one, as the United banner declared on his first day as manager? If you don’t believe utterly in his, it’ll be your fault when it fails.
PS: Shaw and Smalling have been left out of Gareth Southgate’s England squad.
When asked whether he thought Smalling and Shaw were “flaky”, Southgate said: “That wouldn’t be my impression, having worked with Chris, and I know Luke well. He’s had a really tough injury.”
Is Luke Shaw Mourinho’s scapegoat, or the guinea pig on whom the manager can test out his abrasive style of man management?
Posted: 8th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Transfer balls: Chelsea offload Arsenal turncoat Fabregas to West Ham and AC Milan
Transfer balls: West Ham United are keen on Chelsea’s Cesc Fabregas, 29. The former Arsenal captain has played just 87 minutes for the Blues in the Premier League this season.
The Daily Mirror leads with the news that The Hammers wants Cesc in the January transfer window. But why would Cesc want the Hammers?
The Mirror says Chelsea are “even ready” to subsidise Fabregas’s £160,000-a-week wages in order to get shot of him. But there is little on what pull West Ham hold to the World Cup winning midfielder. Indeed, the Mirror says “Fabregas remains determined” to remain at Chelsea.
But the Sun says Fabregas “looks certain to leave Chelsea in January and could replace Dimitri Payet at West Ham”.
Payet recently told a French TV station: ”Leave in January? I’m asking other questions but I’m not closing the door to anything. It’s always the sports project that interests me. I work like that and until I play at a level like this, it will be the case.”
It’s all speculation.
Back in September the Express was reporting that Cesc had agreed to join AC Milan.
On August 16 2016, the Sun and Star reported that Cesc, who played for Barcelona (the club of his heart), wanted to join their fierce rivals Real Madrid and also stay at Chelsea.
Such are the facts.
Posted: 8th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Chelsea, Sports | Comment
