Hi

Been doing a little bit of surfing and found the following article about the proposed rule change which FIFA President Sepp Blatter is putting on the table for debate.  The author mentions the big stumbling block and the reason this rule will probably never come to fruition, European Law and Human Rights, it infringes them! 

The FA in England are, of course, doing their usual "Yes Man" routine by backing Blatter’s proposal even though they know the chances of it ever working are about as much as them becoming an effective governing body.  Yes, that would be Zero then!  I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact they want the World Cup to return to England?  "Oh, yes Mr. Blatter.  Oh, you look lovely today, Mr. Blatter.  Three bags full Mr. Blatter."  Do I sound a little scathing of the FA?  Yes?  Good!

Anyway, here’s the little article I read.  See, what you think of Blatter’s proposed new rule.

Blatter’s 6+5 Rule
By Syddel Worrell

I just want to know if anyone has heard of Fifa President, Sepp Blatter’s 6+5 rule. The rule which is scheduled to be implemented by 2012, restricts the number of foreign players in a starting lineup to 5. Blatter is pushing this rule because he believes it will restore national identity to European Leagues who he believes is stifling young talent within their own countries by buying so many foreign players. He also believes the rule will help to get other leagues especially in Africa and South America back on track as these leagues are declining due to the best players from these countries playing in Europe. Although the rule has faced stiff opposition as it violates European law on the freedom of workers, the president has received the backing of FIFA’s delegates with 155 supporting, just 5 against and 40 abstaining from the issue.

Personally I like the free movement of players and I don’t really want to see things changed but the 6+5 rule is quite interesting as it will seek to loosen the grip that particularly 5 countries within Europe has on the world’s best players. With the implementation of this rule it will be very interesting to see if other clubs other than in Spain, Italy, England, France and Germany can rise among Europe’s elite.

The league which I believe will be hit hardest by this rule is the English Premier League where of the 471 first-team players 60% or 280 players are not eligible to play for England. With that said many EPL fans probably don’t fancy this rule but only time will tell if it will be implemented.

Syddel Worrell

http://alleagues.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Syddel_Worrell
http://EzineArticles.com/?Blatters-6+5-Rule&id=1216814

So the summer managerial merry-go-round has really started to hot up in the last couple of days.

Sven got kicked out of Manchester City somewhat harshly if you ask me.  He did the double over Man Utd.  When was the last time City did that?  Ok, the second half of the season didn’t quite match the great start they had but come on, let’s be fair, I thought he did a good job for City and could of only improved next season.  Have you heard where Sven is probably going next?  Wait for it….. the head coach of Mexico!  Andalé, andalé Sven!

Of course, we already knew about Avram Grant being dumped by Chelsea and all the speculation started about who was going to replace him.  Would it be Mancini who had also been sacked by Inter Milan after completing his third successive league title.  And I thought Sven’s dismissal was harsh!

Then other names like Mark Hughes, Carlo Ancelotti, Frank Rijkaard, Gus Hiddink etc etc started to appear.  Then, one by one, all the names, apart from two, dropped by the wayside.  The two favourites appeared to be Ancelotti of AC Milan and Mark Hughes of Blackburn Rovers.

Reports came out of Stamford Bridge that there was a difference of opinion as to who was the ideal candidate.  It appeared that Roman Adramovich, the clib’s owner, preferred the experience of Ancelotti and inparticular his Champions League experience.  However, those within the board room wanted Mark Hughes to return to his former club, where he played between 1995 - 98 and won the FA Cup with the Blues.  In deed, he was quite a favourite at the Bridge.

Who would triumph?  Well, it looked as though Ancelotti was on his way to south west London.  I even saw a headline on SkySports.com that said it was basically a "done deal".  Looks like they were a little over eager and jumped the gun somewhat as now they are reporting that Ancelotti wants to stay at Milan!  And the BBC are reporting Ancelotti is out of the Chelsea running.  In fact he is now quoted as saying,

"I’m staying at AC Milan for sure, and for many seasons to come."

Well at least he seems to have made his mind up. 

Now what all this has done, is that it means both the top candidates for the job 24 hours ago are now no longer in the frame.  Because not only has Ancelotti professed his love for Milan, Mark Hughes has decided to go to Manchester City on a 3 year deal!  Now, may be this is just me, but is that a little strange?  And I wonder how popular Hughes will now be on the Stretford End? 

He should still be, and forever remain, a hero to all United fans quite frankly.  "Sparky" as he was known, was a great player.  Amazing strength and power, a true competitor. 

Hughes has done a great job at Blackburn and I hope Rovers got a good deal of compensation from Man City for taking their boss!  But Hughes at Man City is going to take a bit of getting used to, and for him as wellI would think!  I for one, can’t wait for the Manchester derby next season.  It will be extremely interesting to see (and hear) what happens.

Mark Hughes the new Man City Manager looking somewhat serious.  Perhaps he’s already thinking of next season’s visit to Old Trafford!

But there is a huge void now at Ewood Park following Hughes departure.  So who is going to end up there? 

Well, one thing for sure is that it won’t be a guy called Jose!  Yes, Mourihno is back in gainful employment and this time he’ll be up against Ancelotti in Italy’s Serie A as the new boss and replacement for Roberto Mancini at Inter Milan.  His appointment has hardly come as a surprise, has it!  It must have been the worst kept secret in football all season.

Jose is back!  Have you missed him?  He looks like he’s about to slip that Inter shirt on.  Wonder if he thinks he can get a game?

I’m glad to say, that Mourinho was back into the swing of things straight off at Inter with his first press conference as Inter boss.  Apparently he is no longer "The Special One".  But is he a very good manager!  Shy as always.

Italian football has suddenly become a far more interesting place to be and I can’t help wondering if the arrival of Jose has in some way helped Ancelotti to make his mind up to stay and be his neighbour.  Of course, that’s just me thinking out loud, but you never know!

Can’t wait for the new season in England and Italy!

The Soccer Blogger

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Today, 6th February, is the 50th anniversary of the Munich disaster that killed 23 people including 8 of the then Manchester United team, known as the “Busby Babes”.

Survivors of that Munich air crash are to fall silent at a memorial service timed to coincide with the moment of the accident, at 3.04pm.

Sir Bobby Charlton will be one of the survivors at the ceremony at Manchester United’s Old Trafford ground.

There will also be a ceremony at the crash site and a minute’s silence at Wembley before England’s evening friendly against Switzerland.

England’s Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand says he hopes the supporters will remain silent in tribute to the people who died.

“I’m sure the fans will respect it - it’s a poignant moment and we’ve got fantastic fans in this country,” said Ferdinand.

“It’s not just about Manchester United, it’s about English football too.”

As well as the ceremony at Old Trafford, at which Charlton will be joined by Albert Scanlon, Harry Gregg, Bill Foulkes and Kenny Morgans, there will be another ceremony in Munich.

At 1330 GMT, an English-speaking Catholic priest will conduct a religious ceremony at the crash site in Trudering.

The names of the dead will be read out, along with the lyrics to The Flowers of Manchester, a song penned after the disaster as a tribute to the dead.

On a day of commemoration at Old Trafford, the centrepiece will be the unveiling of a free, permanent exhibition of the Busby Babes in the South Stand tunnel - to be renamed Munich Tunnel.

On Sunday, there will be another minute’s silence prior to Manchester United’s home Premier League game against Manchester City.

Former City goalkeeper Frank Swift - then working as a journalist - also died in the crash and United chief executive David Gill says he is confident the City fans will fall silent in tribute.

“We’ve been working closely with City and discussed it with them. Frank Swift was one of their greatest goalkeepers and we’ve talked to them about the plans for the day,” said Gill.

“We’re working to ensure they remember that it wasn’t just Manchester United, it was the city of Manchester that was affected and it was the world of football that was affected.

“We hope and believe that the minute’s silence will be observed appropriately.”

United players will wear a 1950s-style kit, free from sponsorship and numbered one to 11. City are also planning to wear a special strip.

The Soccer Blogger

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Hi

I’ve was doing a bit of newspaper / internet reading this morning and found the following article written by current Portsmouth goalie David James. James has been around in professional football for an amazing 17 years and, despite earning a reputation as “Calamity James” mainly during his stay at Liverpool (a little unjustly in my opinion), he has been the most consistent goalie in English football for quite some time.

Here he talks about something that has unfortunately almost been lost from today’s modern game (sorry business!). Loyalty! It’s a truly sad reflection on not only today’s game but society in general, that people are more motivated by money and material goods than such things as loyalty. Footballers and managers of the past would, I’m sure, find it very difficult to comprehend the modern game and imparticlarly the money the game generates and what the so called top players receive on a weekly basis.

Anyway, here’s what David James has to say about loyalty mainly due to the recent decision taken by his Portsmouth Manager, Harry Redknapp, in declining the approach from Newcastle. A decision, which had it been yes, would have earned him even more money I’m sure! Thank goodness someone still believes loyalty, happiness and quality of life are more important than material gain.

Such stories deserve to be aired as much as possible!

The Soccer Blogger

Harry and the transfer that never was

By David James:

In an industry where loyalty is an alien concept, Harry Redknapp’s decision to stay at Portsmouth is all the more impressive.

Talk about edgy transfer windows. Strewth. After 17 years in professional football, you think you’ve experienced all the nerves that accompany the comings and goings of the game. I’ve played under 15 different club managers and every club I’ve played for - bar Aston Villa - has seen one or more changes in management. Yet when it looked like Harry Redknapp was leaving Portsmouth on Friday, even I was shocked.

Usually managers leave because they are doing a bad job. But at Portsmouth everything has been going well. Harry always seemed genuinely happy to be here, there was no hint of him wanting to be elsewhere. On Friday Joe Jordan took training and by the time we’d got back Harry had left the training ground. Missing. It was a strange one and instinct told me he wouldn’t be coming back. Harry’s never been one to just disappear. At Manchester City I was used to Stuart Pearce doing that, always off scouting somewhere, but Harry’s different. He’s a real training-ground manager: you always know you can find him.

In a situation like that a club is full of whispers. We’d had two days off in the week because of the Sunday game, and so there were texts and phone calls. The night that Sam Allardyce was sacked I had a call asking if I’d heard the rumours about Harry.

Any manager leaving is a big deal, but for it to happen in the January window creates extra tension. There was a cloud of uncertainty about the place, the usual worries about who would stay and who would go. Would the new manager bring in new players? How many existing players would be sold? Would Harry take half the team with him? For footballers, January is always a month of bedlam, with Sky running the screen printer as the transfer news floods in. But on Friday, suddenly, the biggest transfer issue facing us seemed to be who would take over at Portsmouth.

That’s when you hear the same old names - aka successful failures - being lined up. Your heart sinks. You can’t help thinking if they’re that good, why aren’t they currently employed? Speculation runs riot: it’s human nature, of course, and it makes people edgy. The thing that concerned all of us was why Harry would leave something so successful of his own creation. He made the environment down here that we all like; we couldn’t get our heads round the thought that it might suddenly be taken away from us.

Can you afford to get emotional in football? You’re watching television, waiting to hear, and it’s a strange time. I’d say that after all my years in the game you get hardened to things. But even I felt the buzz when Harry turned up to take training yesterday morning. I saw him as I arrived at the training ground and it was as if nothing had ever happened, business as usual. But with an extra smile.

The media say Harry thought about it overnight. I can imagine him agonising over that. In the space of a few hours you’ve got to ask a million and one questions, discuss things with your loved ones and come to a decision. There have been clubs I didn’t want to leave - Watford, West Ham. But you have to get on with it: football’s a very transient existence and the longer you’re in the game the more you get used to moving about. I could understand why Harry considered the offer. With all due respect to Portsmouth, Newcastle are unlike any other club that he has managed. I know when I left Liverpool at 30, many questions were running through my head. My biggest fear was retiring without having achieved what I wanted for myself. As a manager you want to be up there with the big boys - a future that we hope to have at Portsmouth.

Watching the comings and goings of the transfer window my partner, Amanda, said: ‘There’s not much loyalty in football is there?’ On Friday at the training ground I discussed it with the physios and masseurs over lunch. We decided that loyalty and football weren’t true partners - sometimes even the fans aren’t loyal. Villa’s supporters didn’t much like Savo Milosevic; they gave him a hard time, he returned the compliment by spitting at them, and he lasted about five seconds.

But people surprise you, and having thought it over, Harry obviously decided that he couldn’t leave. A massive opportunity was presented to him, but he decided to stay. It’s not often that you witness that kind of loyalty or feeling. The last example I remember was when Roy Evans left Liverpool - he was bawling his eyes out. I was the last person he saw as he left the training ground and the tears were streaming. I felt that way when I left Watford. My heart sank when they told me I was on the transfer list. Word got out and all of a sudden there were agents left, right and centre wanting to get involved with me. Chelsea were interested, and I had a meeting with Villa’s Ron Atkinson in a motorway service station. It was all very surreal for a 21-year-old.

Now that Harry’s back, we’ve got peace of mind. We’ll be glad to have him in charge against Sunderland this afternoon. After an emotional reunion, we’ll all soon be back to griping about the same old things. As Harry likes to say, business as usual.

· David James has donated his fee for this column to charity

The article and the comments left by readers can be read here:

David James Article

Manchester Utd maintained teir pressure on the current Premiership leaders Arsenal with a last gasp penalty to beat Everton at Old Trafford by 2 goals to 1.

But their manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, believes that neither Utd nor Arsenal can afford to underestimate the threat posed by both Chelsea and Liverpool in what still promises to be the most open championship race in years.

Man Utd still trail Arsenal by a single point, followed by Chelsea and Liverpool. However, this season’s suprise package Man City currently separate those two. But it would appear that Ferguson does bot consider City to be a long term threat like Liverpool and Chelsea and that the title will go to one of the “Big Four”, especially if neither of the top two drops any points pver the festive season.

Utd nearly did that yesterday at home to Everton. It took an 88th minute penalty by Ronaldo to end Everton’s 13 match unbeaten run. But as the season nears the half way stage, Ferguson believes his team are in a strong position even though he is very serious about the threat posed by the other big 3.

After yesterday’s game Ferguson said, “You can’t say it’s a two horse race now. As far as I’m concerned the battle of the big four is still on. There’s a slight gap opening up with ourselves and Arsenal nosing in front of Chelsea and Liverpool. But you can’t start calling a two horse race. It’s far too early.

“This season the big games between the leadings clubs are going to have a crucial bearing on the championship, but there can be no easing up. December is a very important month and if we get through the Christmas period, when we have two very difficult way games at Sunderland and West Ham and then Birmingham, and we are still with Arsenal, then we will have a good chance.”

United and Chelsea are likely to be without their normal first choice keepers for the forthcoming matches. Van der Sar missed yerterday’s victory against Everton with a groin strain. It is likely to keep him out for about 3 matches. Meanwhile Cech suffered a blow to his side during the victory at Ewood Park and will be sent for a scan today, Christmas Eve.

It must be said that Arsenal and Utd are not showing any signs losing momentum at the moment and the chasing pack might start finding keeping up a little arduous in the coming weeks and months. Joe Cole, who scored the winner at Ewood said, “We didn’t play well, but what a result. I don’t think that many teams are going to come here and get many points. we know the task ahead. we don’t look at the results, we just want to keep on winning.”

The Christmas and New Year period is going to be very interesting and at the end of it the race for the Championship might be looking a lot clearer.

A very Merry Christmas to everyone from the Soccer Blogger and everyone at The Soccer Blog!

The Soccer Blog