with Rev Walker Back to the grind
AFTER another accursed international week that inflicted upon us three matches, it’s back to what really matters, league football. We’d better make the most of it because there’s another break incoming next month.
Damn Yankees
Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool, Spurs, Everton, Chelsea; these are the six clubs who have yet to suffer relegation since the advent of the Premier League so I would suggest that the churn rate since 1992 is pretty healthy but, hold your horses. As is well known the government is applying pressure on the PL to bail out the EFL but despite their best efforts the PL has yet to find a way to fund the 72 EFL clubs in a manner that suits the PL “stakeholders”.
Step forward Liverpool and Manchester United who, after a leak from the Telegraph, published plans to restructure the English game and effectively unify the two organisations once again.
The authors of the plan claimed that they had the backing of the rest of the so called big six – Arsenal, Manchester City, Spurs, and Chelsea – and there was an implied threat that if the plan wasn’t adopted for 2022-23 season then the six would be off to faff around in the much vaunted European Super League that we know is wanted by the big clubs in Italy, France, and Spain.
But there were two rather large flies in the ointment: first off the leagues would have to be restructured to bring the Premier League down from 20 to 18 clubs and so on down the line; and secondly the big six along with apparently Everton, Southampton, and West Ham would rule the roost while the rest of the PL clubs would be expected to meekly fall into line, and that was never going to happen. Yes, the EFL was going to get a huge wodge of money thrown their way, as was the FA, but the price would be no more League Cup, no more Community Shield and, in the author’s own words, more lucrative pre-season friendlies and more room in the calendar for the expected expansion of the Champions League in 2022. As of the time of writing the proposal has been kyboshed but it will definitely come back in another form and it should be noted that the two clubs responsible for this abomination, Liverpool and United, are owned by Americans who would like nothing better than to see the Premier League take on the no-relegation, closed-shop model, employed by all major sports in the United States. Of one thing I am certain: go down that road and the most popular league in the world is finished. I mean who would pay to watch a league which can only provide certainties?
Going backwards
Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Danny Ings, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount, Phil Foden, Mason Greenwood, Jack Grealish, James Maddison, Dele; these are the forward players Gareth Southgate has the good fortune to have at his disposal so why on earth is he setting up the England team with seven defensive players in the run up to next year’s Euro’s, and how is such a defensive set-up expected to transition the ball to his very gifted attackers?
This week’s games
Premier League today 2:30; Everton vs Liverpool. 5pm; Chelsea vs Southampton, Leicester vs Villa, Newcastle vs United, Sheffield United vs Fulham, West Brom vs Burnley. 7:30; Citeh vs Arsenal. Tomorrow 4pm; Palace vs Brighton. 6:30; Spurs vs West Ham. Monday 10pm; Leeds vs Wolves. Champions League Tuesday 10pm; Chelsea vs Seville, Paris St Germain vs United. Wednesday 10pm; Citeh vs Porto, Ajax vs Liverpool. Europa League Thursday 7:55; Rapid Vienna vs Arsenal, Standard Liege vs Rangers. 10pm; Celtic vs AC Milan, Leicester vs Zorya Luhansk, Spurs vs Lask. Scotland today 2:30; Celtic vs Rangers. Big weekend ahead featuring two local derbies plus Mikel Arteta versus his mentor Pep Guardiola, and the highly attractive prospect of a cracker at Elland Road as Leeds take on Portugal AKA Wolves. As if that’s not enough we have the first old firm derby of the season assuming that is that Celtic haven’t been sent into Covid 19 isolation. Everton vs Liverpool; for the first time in many a year Everton will feel that they have a great chance to get one over on their cross park rivals, a very good transfer window allied to Carlo Ancelotti’s nous has seen them start superbly and they should be confident of getting a result against the Champions who of late do not look like their dominant selves. Spurs vs West Ham; neither club will have welcomed the international break as both had found some form, this fixture is always keenly contested by a West Ham side that is always trying to put one over their north London betters. Spurs West Ham games have a rich tradition of last minute winners and this may follow that pattern. Citeh vs Arsenal; Citeh still don’t look the full shilling especially at the back while the Nomads have been scrapping their way to results mainly thanks to getting the “rub of the green” from officials, this could go either way especially if the rumoured injury to Kevin De Bruyne turns out to be true. Old Firm; Rangers will really fancy their chances at Parkhead especially if Celtic continue to rack up Covid cases within their squad. All of these games have the potential to be crackers it’s just a pity that they’ll be played in empty stadiums. Thanks Boris and Nicola.
And finally
Last week I asked what Fred Perry was the first tennis player to accomplish; and the answer is that he was the first to achieve a career Grand Slam of all four major championships.
The Stockport local’s first major was the 1933 US Open, next up came the 1934 Australian Open, followed by Wimbledon in the same year and finally in 1935 the French Open.
He went on to take four more as an amateur: Wimbledon 1935-1936, and the US Open in 1934 and 1936, making him clearly the UK’s greatest ever tennis player (I loved his polo shirts). This week: Fred Perry had another string to his sporting bow, what?
Really finally
Karşıyaka lost another longterm resident last Sunday when Dafydd Jones passed away after a long illness.
Ardent Taff Dafydd was a highly educated ex-headmaster and Welsh speaker who, with his then partner Teresa (also an exheadteacher) moved here on New Year’s Eve, 1998. Once here the couple became involved in local higher education.
Dafydd’s voice was often described as “Richard Burton-like” to which I can personally attest and this cultured man reveled in this and also his love of Welsh rugby and Manchester United (nobody’s perfect).
Commiserations go to his wife of 18 years Teresa, daughter Sian, and stepson Byron and the rest of the wider family. RIP.