---------------------------------
[13] Are we killing football?
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Is the headline in the Indy. There follows the following discusion between an Indy
Journo and Alex Fynn.
JOHN LICHFIELD Manchester United-baiting and hating has reached a new crescendo of
illogic. A year ago, we were being asked to detest England's most successful football
club because they had withdrawn from the FA Cup and flown to Brazil (at the request of
the Football Association). This January, we are supposed to hate United because they
are cantering towards their third Premiership title in succession (and their seventh
in nine years).
I must declare an interest. I've been a Man Utd fan for 46 years. The billion-pound,
multinational corporation of 2001 is not the club I watched home and away in the 1960s
and 1970s. They have knocked down the Old Trafford I adored and replaced it with a
soulless mega-stadium, appended to a shopping mall. But all of football has changed.
The terraces have gone. Money and television rule. This is not just a United problem.
ALEX FYNN The happy coincidence of the advent of the Premiership which changed the way
football is structured, financed and presented, and the emergence of Man Utd as
box-office stars has made football into showbusiness. On one level their quality of
play has even their critics applauding, but there is concern that their monopoly will
devalue the Premiership. With the compliance of BSkyB, the Premiership has become the
only competition that matters in English football, and as a showcase it cannot afford
to be dominated by one club alone. Football is both a live event but more important in
terms of its popularity, a television spectacular. And the omens are not good, with
television audiences falling. If this trend continues and television loses interest
the whole edifice will crumble.
JL It is a peculiarly British kind of logic that suggests English football is being
undermined by the excellence of its most successful, skilful and hard-working team. Is
Tiger Woods destroying golf? Is Pete Sampras undermining tennis?
I reject the argument that United's success is something abnormal; something stolen
from all the other clubs; something destructive. What about Liverpool's domination of
the 1970s and 1980s?
AF United can only be called a great team when they have extended their domestic
dominance to Europe. To date they have underperformed. They have yet to match the
record of Liverpool or even Nottingham Forest. Only when they spent £25m on Jaap Stam,
Dwight Yorke and Jesper Blomqvist did they achieve the treble in 1999. But they have
subsequently fallen short, outspent by the megaclubs of Spain and Italy which have
prioritised success for their fans rather than dividends for their shareholders.
JL Manchester United, the PLC, is a well-run business, perhaps the best-run sporting
business in the world. That does not guarantee anything for the team. Victory does not
follow wealth in football (just look at United's record between 1968 and 1993).
AF What Manchester United do have is exceptional brand value. Their heritage of
triumph, tragedy and glamour gives them an appeal on a worldwide basis that no other
sporting club has. Butif we are going to halt the United bandwagon the ability to raid
the transfer market with impunity should be limited to before and once during the
season. That would prevent rich clubs like United attempting to buy success.
JL Of the 14 players used by United in their last league game, nine had come up though
the club's youth teams. Sir Alex Ferguson has spent a fortune on a few star players in
recent years, but not significantly more than Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal or Leeds
(and far less than European rivals, such as Real Madrid or Lazio).
AF True. Ferguson's far-sighted investment in youth will continue to pay dividends.
The players show exceptional commitment. They've grown up together so we have the
unique situation in English football of talented young players at the summit of their
art who will dominate the game domestically for the next decade.
JL United have played well this season but their points total just after the half-way
point – 50 – is about the level any championship-seeking club needs to
reach. Their nearest rivals have 39 points, well below championship pace. United are
walking away with the Premiership (again) because the other contenders have constantly
fallen flat against the weaker teams. Is this United's fault?
AF Things would change if there was a second division to the Premiership. Clubs and
players would move up and down the system. The chasm between the Premiership and the
rest would be lessened, raising the standard of play and leading to more competitive
club football.
---------------------------------
[12] Getting their priorities right
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Within a quarter-final radius of the Millennium Stadium, which has a capacity of
74,000, there are nearly 70 licensed premises that can soak up 60,000 drinkers.
"We know what the fans will want to do when they arrive in the city and we are
confident there will be enough venues for everyone to enjoy themselves," said Bob
Evans, the Millennium Stadium manager and former acting chief constable of South Wales.
Sounding better already!
---------------------------------
[11] Fergie - Rai won't let us down
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
"In fairness to Fabien he has been loaded all week," said Ferguson (not quite the
expression I'd use!!).
"He played on Monday and he wasn't ready, but he wanted to play because with Arsenal
dropping points during the day, that became a big game for us. He's in bed now and he
won't be joining us, so Raimond van der Gouw will be in goal. Rai has got experience
and he has filled in this position many times before and he won't let us down."
---------------------------------
[10] Ex rent boy on today
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
As Fulham's Bjarne Goldbaek says:
"Of course we have a chance as we have so much confidence and we are the leaders of
the First Division,'' he said. ''United are the big favourites, they have many
world-class players, they are by far the best team in the Premier League and there is
a big gap. But I still think you can close that gap if you can give 100% on the day
and they have an off-day. Our strengths are that we are technically a good team for
the First Division. Now we'll see whether that's good enough for the Premier League as
well. We have created a lot of goals this season as well.
"The team has improved a lot since I joined, but the club has grown as well. You can
see that everything is growing here every day. At the moment, Chelsea are still years
ahead of us (are you sure?)but we're doing quite well here. We should just try to get
promoted and make sure everything else is well prepared to survive there."
---------------------------------
[9] Fergie backs Ole in Norway row
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
'He is entitled to look after his own interests,' said Ferguson. 'Ole's position is
the right one and maybe other players will follow.'
---------------------------------
[8] As we have suspected for a while
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Jesper Blomqvist's career with Manchester United could be over after a series of knee
operations.
The Sweden winger has not played in Sir Alex Ferguson's first team since sharing in
the European Cup triumph in Barcelona two years ago.
Blomqvist, a keen skier in his youth, arrived at Old Trafford from Italian club Parma
for £4.4million in 1998, but his United contract ends this summer. He has been locked
into a series of rehabilitation programmes during the last two seasons following two
operations on his left knee and the latest surgery to repair similar damage in his
right knee.
'Jesper is now back with us and involved in remedial work,' confirmed Ferguson on
Saturday night. 'He is running OK and looking not bad. We will have to see if he gets
over this most recent op. He is finding it hard to cope with the situation.
It's not been easy for Jesper. I never thought for a moment during that fabulous night
in Barcelona that it would be his last United game for such a long time.'
---------------------------------
[7] Andrew ready to sign for life?
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Another Moral on Sunday exclusive:
Andy Cole is expected to sign a new contract with Manchester United that will keep the
England striker at Old Trafford for the rest of his career.
The 29-year-old is ready to clinch a four-year agreement that will put his pay package
on a par with top earner Roy Keane's £70,000 a week.
Cole is the first of United's elite group of superstars to indicate that they are
ready to put pen to paper to safeguard the future of the strongest squad in the
Premiership.
Of others in that group, Ryan Giggs and Jaap Stam are expected to follow suit in the
near future, ensuring that Sir Alex Ferguson's eventual successor as manager should
have few immediate worries about players' contracts.
Cole, out for two months with a leg injury, emerged from a comeback match on Thursday
unscathed and is ready to return to first-team football, providing Ferguson with a
selection headache after the success in Cole's absence of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and
Dwight Yorke.
---------------------------------
[6] Utd after Barry?
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
The Moral on Sunday has this as an exclusive:
Aston Villa have placed a minimum £20million price tag on Gareth Barry to see off
interest from Manchester United.
Villa insist that their brilliant 19-year-old England defender is not for sale and it
is unlikely that even United would be prepared to offer the £20m which might prompt a
change of heart.
But Dwight Yorke and goalkeeper Mark Bosnich, two of Villa's biggest stars of recent
years, both ended up at Old Trafford despite Villa's initial insistence that they
would not be allowed to go.
Barry is one of the hottest properties in the Premiership and new England coach Sven
Goran Eriksson is a confirmed admirer of the cultured defender, who is equally
comfortable in a three-man unit or as an orthodox left-back.
United believe Barry has all the attributes they are seeking, with Denis Irwin nearing
the end of a magnificent career and their £3.5million signing from Inter Milan, Mikael
Silvestre, still struggling to establish himself.
---------------------------------
[5] Fergie praises Tigana
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
After getting a bottle of something of Tigana. Probably too embarrased to return the
compliment with Champions Lager (1993 vintage)
'I saw Tigana in France just after he got the Fulham job last summer and offered my
congratulations,' said the United manager.
'I told him that if he thought I could help at any time to give me a call. Well, he
has done very well anyway. To come to this country and make a team believe in his own
football beliefs so rapidly is tremendous. Fulham mirror Tigana on the pitch. They are
enterprising, attacking, exciting.
'And they will play us, too. This will be about passing and football, not kicking. But
there are only two words to explain the FA Cup - sudden death. And this, I assure you,
is a hard task for us.'
---------------------------------
[4] Gary Nev - not boring - ruthless
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
'In terms of it all becoming boring, well, we have just got to be ruthless now,' he
said. 'We have to be relentless in what we're doing.
'We can't wait for the others to make a challenge. That's nothing to do with us. A lot
of opposing managers and players seem to be more concerned with what we're doing than
what they're doing themselves.
'We have to concentrate on ourselves and not wait around for the rest of them because,
if we give them a chance, it won't need much for them to catch up.
'We have to make sure we are ruthless and I don't go along with the notion that teams
just don't perform against us now.
'I believe they are trying everything possible to beat us. There's probably more focus
on our matches by the opposition than any other.'
'We can understand people talking about United being so dominant, so superior to
everybody else at the moment because of the position we're in,' Neville explained.
'But they were saying the same things about us three years ago. That's when we lost in
the European Cup quarter-final to Monaco, supposedly the weakest team left, and got
beaten by Barnsley in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
'At the same time we were 12 points clear in the championship and lost that as well
(to Arsenal). We didn't win a single thing that season. I remember, too, my first
season back in 1994-95 and losing a Double inside a week.
'Then they say that this side, these players, have never suffered disappointment. If
that's not disappointment, I don't know what is.
'We have learned more, far more, from disappointment at this club than from any
success. Success here is quickly brushed aside. It is the defeats - the failure - that
stay with you. That is what keeps the hunger going.
'And there is no one-off occasion that surpasses the FA Cup final. It is the greatest
fixture in the English calendar, always will be, and we want to experience it again.'
---------------------------------
[3] Fergie on Cup & Fulham
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
"What put me off the Cup last season was the third round being played in December,"
said Sir Alex.
"I couldn't understand why a decision like that was made. For some clubs, it's the
last chance of glory, so why play in December when half the season is left?
"Historically, crowds go down when a team goes out of the FA Cup, particularly when
the supporters feel they can get to Wembley."
"For me there are only two words to descibe the FA Cup: sudden death," said the United
manager grimly.
"Bang! You can go out to a deflection off a kneecap, an owngoal, a bad pass back.
Anything and you're out on you ear."
Even if the luck balances out today, United will still have to beat an accomplished
First Division side in their own back yard. Again, Sir Alex is aware of the dangers.
"I think this will be a very difficult tie," he assessed.
"The way Fulham have been playing, the expression in their game, has been exciting and
a joy to watch. They look as if they're enjoying their football.
"Tigana has got the team to play with his belief. That's what we're seeing. The way he
wants it played is mirrored on the pitch."
Sir Alex will treat Tigana with the utmost respect this afternoon, and not only
because the Frenchman has defeated him before - as manager of Monaco in the 1997/98
Champions League quarter-finals.
---------------------------------
[2] No pasta da comment
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Manchester United's scouts Martin and Jason Ferguson - brother and son of Sir Alex -
watched today the match between Vicenza and Bari and said: "We won't release any
comments. We are not allowed." Martin Ferguson is expected to watch also the match
between Atalanta and Roma for Cristiano Doni and Zenoni.
---------------------------------
[1] Fergie checks under the sauce for pasta again
---------------------------------
Posted Sunday, January 7, 2001 by tb:
Jason and Martin Ferguson, brother and son of Manchester United supremo Sir Alex met
Vicenza's managing director Rinaldo Sagramola after the match between Vicenza and
Bari:
"We didn't plan any meeting, but they asked me to talk in my office." Sagramola
explained that United are interested in striker Luca Toni and Croatian defender
Stephen Tomas.
---------------------------------
[38] Healy wants to return
---------------------------------
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2001 by tb:
'It would be nice from my point of view to go back there and score the winner.'
Healy wants to win regular first team football with Preston and admitted that
team-mate Jon Macken, another former Old Trafford starlet, is his example to follow.
'I don't feel I ever got the chances I needed at United, but it's hardly surprising
when you see the four strikers who are vying for places at Old Trafford,' said the
21-year-old.
'Jon Macken also left United to play at Deepdale and he has done fantastic since he
came here.
'If I can do as well as Jon, I'll be delighted. I'm confident I can.'
---------------------------------
[38] Hope he's reversing the charges
---------------------------------
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2001 by tb:
Otherwise Mr Potato Head will be in for a hefty phone bill!
Ananova reports that:
Manchester City manager Joe Royle is still waiting to speak to Steve Lomas as the West
Ham captain ponders his future.
---------------------------------
[37] Wenger whinge pt 98989888
---------------------------------
Posted Saturday, January 6, 2001 by tb:
On a 'dodgy tackle' on Vierra:
"Maybe the referee didn't see it happen today but it has happened two or three times
on the trot and you get fed up with it."
"It happened last week at Charlton when a player was not punished and it happened
again today.
The big news of course is that the Scout master has actually been to the optictian's
and cured his 'I deed not zee ze incedent' blind spot.
Wonder how long it will last?
