Great Football Pub Bore Myths of Our Time – Part 2

A welcome return to the Champions League saw RTG spend two nights of football viewing followed by the subsequent attempts by Sky Sports, and ITV to a lesser extent, to fill the void in the satellite TV schedule. Consequently, after much inane punditry, RTG learned the following:

* Arsenal have it all to do in Milan but they are a good team and will be going all out to get the result (following a 0-0 home result);

* Laser pens are dangerous, could affect important results and should be banned but it is difficult for UEFA to do anything about them;

* Had Adebayor’s header not hit the bar but gone in instead, it would have given the tie a completely different result (because it was 0-0 at home);

* United’s late equaliser makes their job a lot easier at Old Trafford (because it was 1-1);

* Gordon Strachan stated that he wouldn’t bet his house on Celtic progressing further against Barcelona.

Apart from the last point there was little else interesting or amusing to report. So, as per last week RTG delves once more into the Great Football Pub Bore Myths of Our Time which the media are so fond of propagating.

Great Football Pub Bore Myths of Our Time – Part 2

Great player = Great manager. “Shearer undoubtedly will manage Newcastle one day”. Well, he’s a great player therefore he must inevitably turn out to be a great manager. Given the millions of pounds that are now at stake in the football ‘industry’ how can this God given right continue to be bestowed on Alan Shearer. For that matter, Brian Robson was the latest managerial casualty this week. He was a great player. He certainly isn’t a great manager. Lest we be tempted to mention a certain Bobby Charlton and his brief foray into the world of football club management, RTG thinks you’ll get our point.

Speaking of managers, Messrs Wenger, Ferguson, Grant and Benitez, of big four fame, never take the FA Cup seriously because they always pick second string teams. Well, actually, they can afford to pick second string players because their squads usually have more strength in depth. Hence, why one of them seems always destined to win it. The truth is, in fact, that just about every team, including those in the Championship chasing Premier League spoils, and even lower league teams seeking promotion, play second string sides in the FA Cup. And the simple fact is that those teams really can’t afford to if they really want to take the FA Cup seriously.

Whilst we are on the subject of the riches of the Premier League, Peter Kenyon is one of the shrewdest businessmen you’ll find when it comes to wheeling and dealing in the transfer market. Well, actually, he consistently failed to make the most of Manchester United’s huge bargaining power by paying way over the odds for players, even when other clubs apparently weren’t even interested. Stand up the three million pound David Bellion from Sunderland who United could actually have got for nothing. Even Peter Ridsdale, he of Leeds United infamy, was shocked at Kenyon’s naivety when he paid £30 million for Rio Ferdinand. Not to be made a laughing stock by his critics over this, he then saw the chance to make amends by refusing to pay £16 milllion to PSG for the future world number one, Ronaldhino, and subsequently waved the Brazilian maestro goodbye as he departed for Barcelona. Nice one Peter. Now he’s at Chelsea, of course, he’s in the best place possible. He can afford to waste loads of money and nobody will bother to question why.

Peter Ridsdale sunk Leeds United because he had an expensive goldfish aquarium in his office that cost £20 per month. Well OK, perhaps a luxury he didn’t need but Mr Ridsdale was guilty of far worse financial mismanagement during his tenure at Leeds. Take, for instance, his negotiation with Seth Johnson’s agent. The agent discussed with Johnson, prior to the meeting, that they wouldn’t accept a penny less than £18K per week. Ridsdale, however, opened negotiations by saying he wouldn’t pay more than £26K and that was his final offer. The agent, by the way beat him up to £30K. Add to that hiring private jets for lavish trips to Monaco, just to watch the Champions League draw, and a few goldfish seem quite reasonable.

Part 3 to follow – watch this space

Reclaim the Game – The Week’s Events

• The Premier League puts its proposals for the 39th game before the FA this morning. A proposal that, sadly, more and more people seem to be coming out and saying we should explore in principle. Arsene Wenger, the Chelsea board, Peter Gold of Birmingham City and a few ex-player pundits have all added their view that we should look into this as a viable way of moving the Premier League forward. The FA has specific criteria which the proposal must not contravene:

  1) There must be no risk to England’s 2018 World Cup bid
  2) There is no impact on fixture congestion
  3) There is no impact on the England team itself
  4) The format of the Premier League competition must be kept fair
  

  Frankly, none of those conditions could possibly be met.

• Reports from Newcastle suggest Paul Gascoigne has been sectioned under the mental health act. Gazza was a good player but is paying the price for being one of the first over-hyped media football stars. His record never lived up to the billing the media gave him and he is now suffering the consequences. RTG wishes him well.
• Chelsea boss, Avram Grant, received death threats via a package in the mail this week. Aside from the sinister racist undertones and the ‘mysterious powder’ that it contained, this is another sad example of how, in modern times, extreme views seem to be prevailing.
• For once, a big ‘up’ to Richard Keys who pointed out the hypocrisy of his panel when chastising Eboue for his obvious dive last night. Keys, quite rightly, reminded certain members of the panel that they had previously praised players who gained penalties as being ‘perfectly entitled to go down’. Intriguingly, he failed to point out that those that were praised tended to be the English players who, as we know, never dive. Well, except when they’re ‘perfectly entitled’, obviously.