MATCH OF THE DECADE???

The Manchester derby was certainly one of the best games of the Premier League era.

It had everything from goals and controversy, not to mention outrageous errors. It included players rolling back the years, other players wishing they could roll back the years, and helpless fans getting whacked by star players.

Firstly, I want to give my view on the stoppage time saga. According to Fifa's directives, referee Martin Atkinson got it right. He added on the right amount of time for Craig Bellamy’s goal celebration and for Michael Carrick’s substitution (a very canny move by Sir Alex).

The reason the whole affair is such an issue is that these directives do not always appear to be carried out correctly. Even with a goal in stoppage time, referees never seem to add on so much time.

For example, if three minutes stoppage time is allotted, usually, give or take a few seconds, three minutes is allowed.

I think many of us are blinded by the fact that the game was at Old Trafford and therefore it is a bigger issue than it should be.

It is, after all, so rare for two goals to be scored after 89 minutes 47 seconds, as was the case on Sunday. This is the reason why added on time lasted so long, and why it’s grabbed everyone’s attention.

Many people have correctly pointed out that in the seven minutes added on, Manchester City could also have scored, so why are they so unhappy?

What also has to be said is that the momentum is always with Manchester United when they are the home side, and, it was always going to favour the Champions to have the extra ‘extra’ minutes.

Manchester City though, only have themselves to blame. I don’t know if it’s the effects of having swine flu in the summer, but Michar Richards’ positioning for Michael Owen’s winning goal was unforgivable.

However, it was a super finish and once again the former Liverpool star has proved many doubters wrong just at the right time.

That goal was typical Owen. There are few strikers in world football who are better equipped in such a high pressure situation. That’s why he’s so special, and that’s why he was bought.

It’s moments like this which illustrate why Owen should be in the England squad. Even as a substitute he can change a game in an instant. Be honest, who would you rather have in that position at that time? Michael Owen or Jemaine Defoe?


Another thing which struck me about Sunday was an unexpected, but welcome statistic.

Of the 22 players who started the Manchester derby on Saturday, 14 were British or Irish born. In addition, Michael Carrick and Michael Owen also made substitute appearances.

In the modern English game, where so much is said and written about the lack of players from the British Isles playing at the very highest level, both teams had plenty of players from these shores. Better still, all seven goals were scored by British players.

Manchester United, Manchester City, plus Tottenham and Aston Villa (both of whom also have a large pool of English first team regulars) will probably all finish in the Premiership top eight this season. This is encouraging and keeps a respectable amount of authenticity that many people thought has disappeared from our game.

Two of those seven goals were scored by the enigma, better known as Craig Bellamy. Is he finally living up to his undoubted talent at the age of 30?

It’s just amazing how something always happens to Bellamy which makes us forget how well he played in the game.

Both of the Welshman’s goals were terrific. One goal was engineered due to superb technique, while the other goal was glittered with frightening pace and awareness.

However, at the end of the match in true Bellamy style, he appeared to slap a helpless fan (who, granted, shouldn’t be on the pitch) while the stewards are holding him back. It was like something out of a Godfather film.

The FA have said they will take no further action, but is this incident not worse than Adebayor’s goal celebration last weekend? Surely it is.

Equally as bad as Adebayor’s antics, in my view, were those of Gary Neville’s. A player with 85 England caps he may be, and that may be the reason he got away with it.

The way in which the Manchester United skipper celebrated towards the Manchester City fans was quite comical, but under the FA’s guidelines should definitely be classed as incitement.

No action will be taken against Neville either. But why does he escape any punishment?

Again there is no consistency from the FA, and they appear to be just as incompetent as UEFA.


There were endless talking points during Sunday’s contest, and it does have to be said that the best team won the game. However, the victors have issues that need addressing.

As an England fan I am particularly concerned about Rio Ferdinand.

It’s not just the individual errors that are worrying. The former Leeds captain is prone to those on rare occasions. It is the fact that he was outpaced so emphatically by Bellamy, a player also injury prone and approximately the same age.

At his best, Ferdinand is one of the world’s top defenders and very rarely gets beaten for pace. But it is alarming how frequently he gets injured these days.

The veteran of three World Cups has had both back trouble and calf trouble in recent years, but also seems to pick up injuries that crop up in different areas of the body. These types of injuries are, to some extent, of more concern than a one-off long term injury, because they suggest the body is breaking down.

I just hope that two of Ferdinand's poor performances this season (one on Sunday and one for England in Amsterdam last month) were down to lack of match practice and not the rapid decline of a great player.


Talking of great players, it would be churlish to sign off without once again heaping praise on Ryan Giggs.

Like many, I questioned his PFA award last year and placed it down as a sentimental gesture.

However, in the last three games the veteran has been nothing short of sensational.

One slalom style run he had on Sunday was vintage Giggs and it was almost like the clock had been turned back to 1994.

Despite the poor performance of Michar Richards at right back, Giggs showed that if you keep yourself in good shape, you can play at the very highest level well into your thirties. His pass to Michael Owen for the winning goal was wonderful awareness.

It must be remembered that the 35 year old has had many injury problems throughout his career. But now, maybe the long, frustrating lay off’s have actually helped keep him fresh and prolonged his career.


The former Welsh captain is one of the few United players of the last fifteen years who seems to be respected by everyone, fans and players alike, whatever team they support. He fully deserves his Indian summer, and we will all miss him when he finally retires, if he ever does.....

Even Liverpool and Manchester City fans should take a bow to this true legend of the game.

EVERYTHING SEEMS TO REVOLVE AROUND ARSENAL THESE DAYS..

Two main issues this week have been Emmanuel Adebayors’s antics at Eastlands and the overturning of Eduardo’s two match European ban.

The former topic is something I have mixed feelings about. But the latter is a ludicrous decision and yet again sends out the wrong message.

The Togo international’s goal celebration on Saturday was predictable, but it could have been worse. He ran up to the Arsenal fans, celebrated and let off steam. Football is about scoring goals and milking it.

So many fans and critics often comment on how boring goal celebrations are these days (Alan Shearer springs to mind)and that there are no characters in the game stirring things up anymore.

Well, the Manchester City striker is certainly a volatile character, and was it really so bad to celebrate so wildly?

I recall Thierry Henry running the length of the field after scoring a wonderful individual goal. This was against Tottenham at Highbury in 2002. I don’t remember the Arsenal fans complaining too much about that at the time.

Football fans have short memories. And that particular celebration was incitement of the highest level.

I can understand the Gunners fans being disappointed with Adebayor last season. His performances when it really mattered were despicable.

Against Chelsea in the FA Cup semi final, he laboured around the field like he didn’t have a care in the world.

Against Manchester United in the Champions League semi final second leg, he actually gave up after United took the lead. Anyone watching the game that night could visibly see that.

Behaviour like this is not what you expect from a top class forward. It is moments like that when fans are justified to complain about the outrageous salaries that footballers receive.


Looking from a different angle, I fully agree with the view of the Times writer, Gabriele Marcotti. He stated that Robin Van Persie also has a lot to answer for concerning Saturday’s brutal encounter.

Adebayor has received a three match ban for his stamp, but I’ve looked at this incident many times on television and I don’t think anyone can prove if he meant it.

He possibly did mean it, but what seems even more viable is that Van Persie deliberately set out to injure Adebayor with his awful tackle.

Following the match, the Dutch international immediately went onto the Arsenal website and complained about Adebayor’s conduct. Sour grapes anyone??

Van Persie, magnificent player that he is, can hardly talk about other players' conduct. His disciplinary record is awful.

Considering the atrocious injury record the forward has you would think that he would try his best not to get suspended, considering the amount of games he misses.

If Adebayor intended to stamp on Van Persie then he deserves a three match ban, but it’s not entirely transparent unless he admits it, which isn’t going to happen.


What is far more clear cut is that Eduardo dived against Celtic.

As I’ve stated before, I was happy to see the Arsenal striker banned, and two matches seemed a fair punishment.

But now it’s been overturned, where do we go from here?

UEFA does this so often. They make a decision, then on appeal they decide to overturn it. Why?

The Croatian international clearly went to ground before he was touched. The Celtic keeper, Artur Boruc, was rash, but it was a completely different scenario to Wayne Rooney against Arsenal or Glen Johnson against Tottenham.

Both of these players were clearly brought down by poor challenges from the prospective goalkeepers.

Two matches is not a harsh ban. Arsenal will qualify from their group quite comfortably and Eduardo should have missed two fairly uninspiring group games.

However, the striker's presence may now affect the outcome of the Champions League group in terms of the position of the other three teams, and that's not right.

I wonder how Standard Liege felt about his winning goal last night. He should not have even been on the pitch.


Remember, Didier Drogba’s ban was also reduced on appeal. Again I ask, why?

Initily, missing four matches meant that Chelsea’s fortunes in Group D could have been substantially affected by losing one of their key players.

This to me is a fair punishment as Drogba misses the majority of their group games.

Reducing the ban by one match now means that he only misses half of the qualification matches.

The Ivory Coast international is such a vital player for the Blues, far more vital than Eduardo is for the Gunnets. He can now inspire them for one more match, and that could yet prove crucial. Qualification can so often depend on one or two points here and there.

I actually believe Drogba deserved a greater ban. He has had that sort of punishment coming for a while.

While he is a supremely giftted player, he does attempt to bend the rules more than any other player I've seen in recent times.

Drogba spends more time on the ground than Emile Heskey, he just get's away with it more because he's so good.

If the Chelsea marksmen scores the goal that decides whether they go through as group winners or whether they finish second in their group, then UEFA have once again made a mockery of the fair play system.

The governing body of European football really needs to take a long hard look at themselves. In my view we are undoubtedly back to square one.

NOW IMAGINE A DAY IN THE LIFE WITHOUT LENNON?

John Lennon become a staunch left wing activist during his post Beatles days.

His namesake was doing the opposite to Croatia last night as he left the Croatian left back, Pranjic, feeling like a ‘Nowhere Man’ at times.

The challenge, by Josip Simunic made him look more like a night tripper than a “Day Tripper’.

Fabio Capello will not stretch further than saying ‘I Feel Fine’ after last night’s performance, but the England fans certainly need a ‘Ticket to Ride’ to South Africa now.

The second England goal was a delicious ‘From Me to You’ between Lennon and Steven Gerrard, and for England fans ‘Across the Universe’ it was time to celebrate.

Croatia were shouting ‘Help’ after only nine minutes. Slaven Bilic’s pre match comments about knowing England’s weaknesses were soon “Instant Khama’ in what can only be described as a ‘Hard Day’s Night’ for the team from the Adriatic.

Steve McLlaren can take note that ‘All You Need is Love’ in the England camp and it really can all ‘Come Together’.

Fabio Capello’s ‘Revolution’ is definetly in full swing and for the first time ‘In My Life’ I can see really see the ‘Wheels Go Round and Round’.

OK so that last one was pretty weak.

I could go on all night, but I won’t…


There are so many positives to come from last night’s performance at Wembley.

The media will always find negative aspects, but that will not bother Fabio Capello.

People will point out that the teams in England’s group are weak, but as I stated in a recent blog, this was the only qualifying group to features three teams ranked in the world’s top twenty at the start of play.

England’s goal difference of plus twenty six is astonishing in any one’s book.

I heard some critics saying Croatia were a poor side, but only 14 months ago, people were building this team up as potential European Champions.

Last night, England played in a ‘very English way’ obviously just to annoy Slaven Bilic, who seems to think he is a bit more special than he is.

The former West Ham defender is quite popular with the press, but I personally still remember his outrageous play acting to get Laurent Blanc sent off in the 1998 World Cup semi final. I still find it difficult to warm to him.

The old chestnut of Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard not being able to play together was well and truly put to bed last night.

Special credit should go the Chelsea midfield star. He has adjusted his attacking instinct to become more of a defensive midfielder who occasionally motors into the opposition box.

The system is working, because Gerrard can drift and link up with Rooney. The scouse pair are England’s two most gifted players. It makes sense that they should be utilised in more free roles.

Much has been said about England’s right side, but it was outstanding last night.

Glen Johnson has been in for some unfair criticism in recent weeks, but Capello obviously trusts him. He was terrific last night and defended well too.

Johnson's wide play for Lampard’s second goal shows just what the Liverpool man can offer.

Emile Heskey’s contribution to the team needs to be analysed objectively. He is not in the team for his goals.

It is frustrating when he misses easy chances, but England have won eight out of eight
qualifiers with the Aston Villa man leading the line in six of those wins.

The 31 year old is there to drag defenders away and create space for Gerrard, Rooney and Lampard. I am sick and tired of people saying Crouch or Defoe should play. Remember that Wayne Rooney has been the top scorer in qualifying, so Heskey seems to be the perfect foil.

If it is not fixed it should be broken.

The stand out performer on the night was Aaron Lennon. But he is one of the few players in the team who not assured of their starting place.

The winger has been playing very well for Tottenham in the early stages of the season, and last night he showed how much he has improved.

His crossing and his running off the ball were terrific. And if this season’s evidence is anything to go by, his finishing has improved too.

The former Leeds player will be 23 come South Africa and is a real threat, but England have an embarrassment of riches on the right side of midfield.

Other options include Sean Wright-Phillips, David Beckham, of course, and the very similar Theo Walcott.

I believe that Walcott or Lennon will start the opening game in South Africa. It just depends on who is in the best form at that time. There is not a lot to choose between them.


I was listening to BBC Five Live on Monday night, and Ian McGarra of the Sun said he believed England have six world class players.

Robbie Savage, a proud Welshman said ‘Who are they then?’ McGarra replied by listing Ashley Cole, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney. Savage reluctantly agreed.

I agree too. If you picked a world squad of 23 comprising of three goalkeepers, eight defenders, eight midfielders and four strikers, then I certainly think five of those players would get in. Rio Ferdinand may be the exception as he seems to be becoming very injury prone.

The Italian coach certainly has a very talented pool of players. It’s just important that key players stay fit.

Before the 2002 World Cup, both Beckham and Gerrard got injured.

During Euro 2004, Rooney limped off in the quarter finals after being the player of the tournament.

In 2006, the Manchester United star was injured before the tournament and was not fit, while Michael Owen hobbled out in the group stages.

If all the key players do stay fit, then I believe England have a great chance.

Roll on South Africa…

VIDEO EVIDENCE IS NEEDED TO SAVE OUR BEAUTIFUL GAME

The time has come for use of television replays on ambiguous decisions.

Recent events have made this scenario a must, otherwise the game will become more and more farcical, not to mention un-watchable.

All of the old concerns about video evidence can be discussed until we are blue in the face. But nobody can tell me it will destroy football more than it has been already.

So what are the arguments against video evidence?

The most frequent argument used is that it will slow down the game. This is nonsense.

Video replays can be shown twice at two different angles to determine the right decision. This process should take been 30 and 45 seconds.

This is much quicker than the time it takes for a player to get up after play acting or how long it takes for a referee to usher away angry players. Even goalkeepers sometimes take up to 45 seconds to take a goal kick.

The other argument the old fashioned fan will put across, is that bad decisions are what the game is all about. Without them, what would we discuss down the pub?

Well, down the Rose and Lion, we can discuss how video evidence has improved the game, and how many matches a player should be banned for, for diving.

Diving has been a major topic discussion in recent weeks. The main headlines have concerned Eduardo’s antics against Celtic.

Firstly, lets get this straight. It was a dive and the Brazilian born Croat deserves to be banned. But he is not the first to do this. What about Carlos Tevez versus Tottenham at Old Trafford last season.

The Argentine forward went down in the area but was clearly not touched. This crucial decision cost Howard Webb his reputation, but was Tevez reprimanded? No.

It’s good that the Arsenal striker has been punished, but if we had had video evidence at the game it would have been quicker to make a correct decision than it took the Celtic players to complain about the decision. Eduardo would have been sent off and presented with a two or three game ban immediately.


Instead we had endless discussion and the usual bureaucracy trail coming out of UEFA, while they were trying to decide the best course of action.


I have my own solutions to diving.

Video evidence should be used on every penalty decision if the referee is in any doubt. Ninety per cent of the time, players spend 20 seconds appealing anyway. But there should only be one replay in my view, as not to waste too much time.

If it’s a clear penalty, then an easy decision can be made.

If the referee thinks the player was barely touched but fell over, the referee should book the player for diving.

If the player fell over and was not touched at all, that should be a straight red card for simulation and a three match ban. No questions asked, it is usually always clear.

There are other ways of stamping diving out of the game.

I was listening to a phone in on Talk sport radio on Tuesday and a caller made an excellent suggestion.

The fan, an Arsenal fan ironically, said that the other team should be awarded a penalty if a player dives in the opposition area and is not touched. This is an excellent suggestion, but again only after use of one video replay.

These ideas may come across as radical, but there are too many rash decisions given these days.

I remember when I first began to like football in the late 1980s. A penalty was an exciting event as they were given so rarely.

Now, due to players fundamentally cheating, but also changes in the rules, three or four seem to be given every weekend. Many of the spot kick’s given are not clear cut.

Two recent events have also made me believe video replays are the future of the game.

The first is the Freddie Sears’ goal for Crystal Palace against Bristol City that was not seen by the officials (although this rarely happens in football). The second, was an incident which happened in the Bolton v Liverpool match on Saturday which reinforced the use of video evidence.

Fernando Torres cut into the Bolton penalty area and was cleanly tackled by Zat Knight, the Bolton centre back. The Spaniard went down under the challenge, but did not look for a penalty and did not dive.

Both Knight and Gary Cahill preceded to shout aggressively at Torres accusing him of cheating. This would not have happened if the recent media frenzy on diving had not occurred.

If players are now going to accuse players of diving when they haven’t, we have moved full circle and they too deserved to be punished.


If video evidence is used, decisions on diving and any other debatable action in the game can be dealt with more quickly and efficiently

Of course there are grey areas. Referees are given less responsibility, but it also makes their job easier. To some extent, it also adds to the drama of the game, like it does in Rugby.

I do believe the evidence should only be used when a decision is within the penalty area and not outside. This would, of course, mean that Emmanuel Eboue’s disgraceful dive at Old Trafford last weekend would not be punished. But it can be punished at a later date.

The important factor is that if the offence is outside the area it leads to a goal far less frequently.


Nothing is perfect in football and that’s why we love it.

However, without video replays, many of us are in danger of falling out of love with the game completely.