The post-World Cup exodus of England’s old guard continued with the announcement by Nick Knight that he was retiring from one-day internationals. The news follows similar decisions by Nasser Hussain and Andy Caddick, and signals from Alec Stewart that he is ready to step down as well."I have decided to call it a day," Knight, 33, told Sky Sports. “I’ve had a fantastic time and enjoyed every moment of it. I’ve been planning it for a while and it’s something I’ve thought long and hard about recently. It’ll be nice to spend some time at home and at Warwickshire.”I was desperate to play in the World Cup having missed out on the last one, but I’ve got other challenges ahead of me. There is an incredible amount of talent in the game, it’s four years before the next World Cup, I’m not going to make it, so it’s a chance for other guys to make it.”Asked whether the England selectors had tried to talk him out of the decision, Knight was cagey. “They were very good but I’ve made the decision and it’s something I’m going to stick by.” David Graveney, England’s chairman of selectors, explained that he had talked with Knight recently, adding that “you have to respect players’ views in that situation”.Knight only retired from ODIs, insisting that he would, “still like to play some Test cricket”. But he was realistic enough to admit that he was not sure that he would “get the call”.In 100 ODIs Knight scored 3637 runs at 40.41 including five hundreds, but he never cemented his place in the Test side, making 719 runs at 23.96 in his 17 Tests, with a highest score of 113 against Pakistan in 1996.
Indian stand-in captain Rahul Dravid issued a warning to the other twosides participating in the Coca-Cola Cup after India beat Sri Lankaconvincingly by seven wickets in the sixth match of the tournament atthe Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Saturday."We can be very dangerous from here on. If we have some luck fromhere on, we can be a real threat to the other two sides," said theright handed batsmen who came in as captain for this game after SouravGanguly was given a one match suspension."It was just for this one game," said Dravid, reflecting on his roleas captain in today’s match. "At this moment I am happy to play underSourav. He’s done a wonderful job as captain during the last year. Iwas in for today because of an unfortunate incident."Sri Lanka started off very well with the dangerous opening duo ofRomesh Kaluwitharana and Sanath Jayasuriya putting on an openingpartnership of 103 runs off 24.2 overs, but thereafter things changedquickly and Sri Lanka were shot out for 183."With Sanath and Kalu in the middle, the pressure was really on us.But the run rate was under control and when we got that wicket ofJayasuriya I knew we had a real chance," said Dravid.Chasing a modest target, the Indian batsmen initially struggled a bit,but in the end they reached it comfortably. "We just didn’t want loseour wickets to Murali chasing such a small target. That’s why we justplayed him off" said Dravid on his side’s policy of playing MuttiahMuralitharan whose 10 overs just cost 28 runs today.Man of the match, VVS Laxman made an unbeaten 87 and made sure Indiareached the score without much difficulty. "We didn’t want to loseearly wickets with the experiences of the past few games. I justwanted to play as straight as possible and stay there. Luckily thebowlers had done a great job for us."Laxman has to undergo a knee surgery, which will take at least fourweeks to heal. He was to return to India for his surgery and wasunlikely to play this game, but the suspension of Ganguly ruled outany chances of his going back to India to attend to his injury;"You can’t be worrying about injuries or anything once you are in thefinal eleven. After Sourav was out, I had to play. Our physiotherapisthas done a tremendous job," reflected the right-hander who might goback to India if the injury does not heal.Chasing the small target, the Indian batsmen had problems against theSri Lankan bowlers. Laxman himself struggled against Murali but in theend he finished off in style, "Initially it was very difficult toplay Murali," said Laxman. "This is the first time I have playedhim, so it was a big challenge for me to face him. He’s a greatspinner no doubt about it, but I won’t disclose my tactics of playinghim."Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jaysuriya accepted that his side had put upa poor performance."It was a disappointing performance by our batsmen once again. Weshould have pushed for more singles and worked out our ways of scoringoff the Indian bowlers. But to be honest the Indians bowled well."However the captain said the team has played relatively wellthroughout the tournament, "There’s nothing to panic. If you take thelast game we came back well. This was just one of those days wherenothing went our way."
A wicket apiece for Australia’s trio of fast bowlers consolidated their position of dominance at the end of the second day of the Melbourne Test. Justin Langer eventually reached a career-best 250 and Steve Waugh 77, while an unbeaten 62 from Martin Love contributed usefully to another awesome total of 551 for six before Waugh’s declaration. By the close England had reached 97 for the loss of Marcus Trescothick, Michael Vaughan and Mark Butcher.Glenn McGrath made Australia’s first breakthrough when Vaughan, after reaching 11 without apparent difficulty, got a bottom edge onto his stumps as he tried to force a delivery of the back foot.Brett Lee then accounted for Trescothick, and was unfortunate not to dismiss Nasser Hussain as he reached 97 miles per hour in a hostile spell. Trescothick had made 37 and was threatening a major innings when he tried to avoid a short ball which brushed his glove on the way through to wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist.Hussain survived a concerted appeal in Lee’s next over when a delivery brushed his shoulder. The England captain also survived trial by television when he drove Stuart MacGill to mid-on, where Jason Gillespie appeared to take a low catch. Hussain was ruled not out when replays were inconclusive. However Gillespie had his own slice of good fortune when he removed Butcher lbw despite an inside edge.Earlier Langer moved past his highest Test innings of 223 against India in Sydney three years ago. He would not have done so if Vaughan had held on to a straightforward catch at short extra cover off Craig White, allowing Langer to move on to 224. Eventually after hitting a six and 30 fours, he was dismissed two overs before the declaration, caught at short third man by Andrew Caddick off the expensive Richard Dawson.England’s first success of the morning was the wicket of Waugh, who had added 15 runs to his overnight total when he edged a lifting White delivery to James Foster. Martin Love was missed on 25 when he drove Mark Butcher to Vaughan at point, who again spilled the catch. Love had added 151 runs for the fifth wicket with Langer when he was finally dismissed. Gilchrist was then bowled heaving at Dawson to trigger the declaration.
Arsenal captain Robin van Persie has stated that his side are still confident of finishing third in the Premier League, despite losing at the weekend.
The Gunners were beaten 2-1 by London rivals QPR at Loftus Road, whilst Tottenham moved level on points with Arsene Wenger’s men with a 3-1 win over Swansea.
Despite this, the Netherlands international still believes that Arsenal can finish above Spurs.
“We have seven more games to play and I believe we can come third,” he told Mirror Football.
“It won’t be easy, everyone is fighting for every point and our opportunity is next week against Man City. We have to go for it and believe and we will.
“It is a shame we have to wait eight days for the game against Manchester City but it is how it is. It is a big blow but we have to look forward and the next one is a big one.
“Even last week when we were three points ahead (of Spurs) with eight games we never thought it was done. Chelsea won and came closer but we have to look at ourselves.
“Everyone is disappointed but towards the end of the week I am sure the spirit will be how it was. We’ll have a couple of days to be disappointed but after that our focus is on Manchester City.
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“They are second but drew against Sunderland so they will need the points. We have seven big games to play but if you look at the big name teams then we have City and Chelsea. As a fan of football I always like to play those games and one of them is next week,” he concluded.
Ahead of Saturday’s Champions League final, Manchester United’s Patrice Evra admits he may have been complacent against Barcelona in 2009.United went down 2-0 against Barcelona at the same stage of the competition two years ago, with Samuel Eto’o and Lionel Messi scoring the winning goals in Rome.
The sides meet again at Wembley this weekend, with French fullback Evra determined to make amends for the disappointment of defeat at the Stadio Olimpico.
“I am honest. I was confident in Italy. Maybe too confident,” Evra said.
“It hurt so much when we lost. We did the team pictures the following season. We had three trophies. But we were missing the one with the big ears.”
Evra acknowledges Barcelona deserve their favourites tag, but insists United should not be discounted.
“Everyone says Barcelona are the best team in the world now,” he said.
“I respect that. Maybe the opposite will happen. But, two years ago, everyone said we were going to beat Barcelona easily in Rome.”
“Barcelona are very good at keeping the ball but football is not about keeping the ball, it is about scoring goals.”
Evra and his teammates will need to stop arguably the world’s best player, Lionel Messi, if they’re to stand any chance of winning a fourth European Cup.
Messi has scored 49 goals in all competitions this season and is widely regarded as the man who can prove the difference during the final.
Nevertheless, he insists the weight of expectation does not affect him.
“It’s a privilege. It hasn’t put any extra weight on my shoulders,” Messi said.
“I love seeing people enjoying themselves while watching me and my team-mates playing and to be able to win all these titles for them. I always take things easy – and I’m very relaxed about it because things have gone our way for a long time.”
As well as being a club built on tradition, West Ham have also built themselves a rather large celebrity following over the years.
Alf Garnett may be what springs to mind when you think of West Ham fans, but even a top ten list cannot contain all of the Hammers celebrity followers, so apologies to Pixie Lott, Elijah Wood, Matt Damon etc, although how much they actually ‘support’ the club must be highly debatable. Without further ado, here is my top ten.
Click on the scarf below to see the celebrities that choose to don the claret and blue
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So there you have it. If you wish to add to the list feel free to comment below, I know there are far more than the 10 I have put in this list. So if you have a source that tells you Carlos Santana has a season ticket in the Bobby Moore Lower, or that Chesney Hawkes actually sells Over Land and Sea on Green Street, then let me know below.
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Eden Hazard has revealed that Arsenal is a potential destination for him to move to at the end of the season, according to the Sun.
Earlier this week Hazard had hinted at a move to Spurs in an interview he gave to Belgian TV calling them a great club, but in his most recent interview it seems Hazard is more favourable to a move to Arsenal and Arsene Wenger in particular.
Hazard said: “There are several clubs that interest me in England and Arsenal is really a part.
“Of course, it’s always more fun when it’s the football is beautiful.
“In addition, at Arsenal, there is a French coach and French players, as well as my compatriot Thomas Vermaelen.”
Hazard has been linked with a host of Premier League clubs, and although the Belgians future remains unclear, the Premier League is his most likely destination.
“That’s the championship where I think I can express myself better. Where I can learn more, too.
“It’s difficult to explain why, It’s a question of feeling.
“The level of the matches, the atmosphere in the stadiums, this is still well above anything I’ve experienced so far in France and that attracts me.
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“And I know many people in England — this is another added attraction.”
Despite his recent revelation, bookmakers still make Tottenham favourites to sign the speedy winger, with odds as short as 6/4.
Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney could face FA action after threatening one of his Twitter followers.Rooney, 25, signed up to the social networking site in late April and has already accumulated more than 570,000 followers.
But he did not take kindly to an abusive tweet on Tuesday and suggested a meeting at Manchester United’s training ground.
“I’ll put u asleep within 10 seconds,” Rooney posted, before adding: “hope u turn up if u don’t gonna tell everyone ur scared u little nit. I’ll be waiting.”
Rooney then tried to defuse the situation, tweeting: “Haha bit of banter and people go nuts chill all people.”
The account of the follower who taunted the former Everton player was later deleted.
Rooney could join the likes of West Ham’s Carlton Cole and Liverpool’s Ryan Babel in being fined for inappropriate comments on Twitter this season.
Rooney was recently charged by the Football Association and banned for two matches after he swore into a television camera just after scoring a goal for Manchester United in a 4-2 win at West Ham in April.
Many great footballers have graced the Premier League over the years. Since the league started back in 1992 English football has been revolutionised and the standard of football in this country has been transformed. The Premier League has been renowned for being lit up by many great foreigners who have brought skill and flair to the English game, but there have been plenty of great British players too who have wowed Premier League crowds for many years.
If you had the supreme fantasy football task of picking your Ultimate Premier League XI who would make the grade? You may find that you are selecting a player from any of the Premier League champions over the years including Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United, Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea and Arsene Wenger’s unbeaten Arsenal team of the late 1990s, or players who have helped carry certain clubs and become cult heroes. From prolific strikers to solid defenders, we are looking to create a team mixing strength with speed, skill with determination. Flick through the FIVE nominees that have been pre-selected and give us your choice in the comments below.
The first jersey that needs filling is the Goalkeeper’s one – click on the shirt below to see those in contention to fill it.
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Select your chosen goalkeeper in the comments below…
Well, there you have it then, the four-year reign of terror of Fabio Capello is at an end, let’s all take to the streets and rejoice, right? This is not an article about Harry Redknapp and the England job, for he is such an overwhelming favourite that his eventual coronation is something of a moot point. No, this is an article that pleads for context amongst the rubbish about Fabio Capello that’s likely to be spouted in the coming days, months and years and his apparent tyrannical tenure as England boss.
Capello appears to have fallen on his sword in protest to seeing his captain, John Terry, stripped of the captaincy by the FA board. He said shortly after his shocking resignation that: “The FA insulted me and undermined my authority.” Not many managers would be content to sit by as a board stripped a player of the captaincy, no matter how odious a fellow he happens to be, and be happy to go on in their employ. A step that essentially left Capello as a lame-duck manager desperately trying to see out the final days of his contract.
The Terry decision is the right one. He cannot go to Euro 2012 as if nothing has happened, whether he is guilty or not, it sends all kinds of mixed signals and wrong messages. He should have either stepped down (something seemingly out of the realms of possibility when dealing with the Lionheart), or been stripped of it earlier on and banned from the squad. Now we are left with the inevitable half-measure of Terry going to the championships anyway, just not as captain. It’s nonsense half-measure that’s left whoever takes over in no-mans land over the issue.
After the debacle of the Steve McClaren years, where England failed, yes, you read that correctly, failed to qualify for Euro 2008, there were calls for more order to be brought to the ranks.
The job eventually went to Fabio Capello, a manager with a truly glittering CV that included seven Serie A titles with the likes of Juventus, AC Milan and Roma, two La Liga titles with Real Madrid and a Champions League triumph with Milan. A world-class manager in every single respect and someone not afraid to crack the whip.
After the McClaren reign, during which he cringeworthingly referred to players by their nicknames in press conferences, Capello was brought in to restore order, professionalise the ranks and exert his influence over an underperforming squad.
But here is where the problem enters – he cracked the whip so hard, that he forgot to involve the media in every step of his decision-making like McClaren did. He barred them from the training ground, rather unreasonably requesting that the players focus on, you know, actually training rather than showing off for the cameras and doing interviews.
He was criticised for telling the delicate souls in the dressing room who was going to be starting just a mere hour before kick-off – a practice that is designed to mentally focus every single player in the squad. A tactic that Capello has used throughout his career to great success and is common place in clubs all over the world. But not here, oh no, not with our brave boys, they need a bit more time to adjust to being told to go out and do their jobs.
This lack of access makes finding interesting copy terribly difficult to come by for most reporters you see, so the majority took to throwing giant rocks at Capello in the manner of a child forced to stay indoors while all his friends were outside playing. And if the England job has taught us one thing in recent years, it’s that much like the captaincy now, it’s essentially as much an ambassadorial role now mixed in with a bit of PR as it is to do with coaching and selecting a team.
To put it into perspective – Capello negotiated England to two successive unbeaten qualifying campaigns with a squad that had failed to qualify for the previous international torunament. He boasts the highest win percentage of any England manager in history at 66% and lost just two competitive games.
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The main criticism levelled at Capello is that he failed to get the best out of a talented England side. For those of you that still believe this current squad to be anything even approaching ‘talented’, you seriously need your head re-examining.
As far as I can work out, he’s being blamed solely for not making a group of overhyped and underperforming players overcome generations worth of poor coaching and technical defaults in a short four-year spell. Shame on you Fabio for not teaching old dogs new tricks in the 20-odd days a year that you get to spend with them.
Capello is regarded as a world-class manager all over the world, everywhere it seems, except here. There has been a clamour for an English manager for quite some time now, with the media agenda carrying a fairly sickening xenophobic tone to it.
Mike Ingham of BBC 5 Live had this to say immediately after the resignation: “Isn’t it symbolic that he made his comments about John Terry in Italian? Looking back, the fans have found it difficult to relate to him and they have been tense and joyless years.” Before going onto offer: “My problem with Capello is that he never embraced our footballing culture.” What exactly is our footballing culture? Mollycoddling semi-talented footballers to the extent that they become excuse-making cry babies. is not a definable culture.
Neil Warnock had this to say: “He brings humour to the dressing room and that has been missing in Fabio’s time and in Sven-Goran Eriksson’s time too.” Whereas the monosyllabic Alan Shearer stated: “England should be managed by an Englishman.”
So instead of getting in the best man for the job regardless of his nationality, according to Mike Ingham,Neil Warnock and Alan Shearer we need a joyful comedian, but an english one. This apparent ‘golden generation’ is a fallacy. No manager in the world would have made England world beaters, they simply aren’t good enough. The playing field had clearly been changed, the media no longer wanted what they once called for in an England manager; all of the qualities Capello brought to the job were now obsolete, he wasn’t playing along after all.
The irony behind all of this, of course, is that if Jose Mourinho were to leave his job tomorrow at Real Madrid and suddenly become available, the clamour for an English manager would surely die down. He’s a headline-helping, quotable manager if ever there was one, and Redknapp would soon find himself out of the running, so save me this whole ‘an english manager for the english’ shtick, it’s just so patently hypocritical.
Capello has brought in a whole raft of young players ranging from Kyle Walker to Jack Wilshere to Joe Hart and made them regulars. If an Englishman had Capello’s record they would lauded for such achievement. But not Fabio, though, oh no, because he’s one of those jonny foreign sorts isn’t he.
In the interests of balance, though, I think that it’s fair to say that Capello has at least made some rather large mistakes. I’ll just list them so as to not appear unbiased – appointing John Terry as captain, leaving Scott Parker at home during WC 2010, starting both Robert Green and David James instead of Joe Hart at WC 2010, the Capello Index, the bundling of a last-ditch attempt to coax Paul Scholes out of international retirement, his handling of David Beckham’s international future, the re-appointment of John Terry as England captain.
He is not faultless, far from it, but he is immensely qualified and most importantly, widely respected in the footballing world, particularly among the players. He commands respect from everyone except journalists, who repugnantly take to creating pressure where there is none, driving wedges where none exist and question his committment, passion and decisions at every turn, always with the added help of hindsight.
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In short, the press wants Redknapp as manager not just because he’s done a good job at Spurs, but just as much because he’s a rent-a-quote who enjoys a great rapport with them. Capello has and will never bow down to playing the media game, and that more than anything appears to have cost him his job.
Somewhat prophetically back in 2007 while Real Madrid manager, Capello offererd two kernels of wisdom most managers worth their salt abide by and two instances why his relationship with the British press and ultimately the England job was always doomed to failure. “I can’t stand the crap that gets talked by everyone: players, fans, the media, club officials,” and “why should I waste my time listening to people who are clearly less intelligent than me?”
Call it arrogance, call it self-serving, but Capello has been undermined at every turn and hounded out of a job that he clearly just didn’t want anymore. Hamstrung by his nationality, brutally undermined and let down on the pitch, it’s reactionary hysteria of the worst kind. He wasn’t perfect, far from it, but the rationale that he’s rubbish simply because he failed to make a rubbish team not as rubbish is both flawed and illogical.
Now it looks as if the media’s choice of England manager, Harry Redknapp, will finally get his chance. They’ve managed to get what they always wanted. After branding McClaren clueless, Keegan tactically inept and Eriksson passionless, England have just let a manager resign who is the antithesis of every single one of these attributes. Good luck Harry, something tells me that you’re going to need it.