WHAT’S HOT NOTWHAT’S

HOT

DARREN WASSALL

DERBY owner Mel Morris appears to be one of those chairmen who would rather be on the pitch than in the boardroom. So Wassell (right) telling him that he can’t enter the dressing-room without a direct invitation is probably the smartest move the new manager ever made. For now.

ARSENE WENGER

DEFENDER Mathieu Debuchy can’t understand why the Arsenal manager (right) wouldn’t allow him to join Manchester United on loan in the January window. Better to flip the question on to its head. Why on earth would he?

DYLAN HARTLEY

HE may not be England’s best hooker but if he is the best choice as captain then Hartley (right) should always be Eddie Jones’ first pick. A rugby union side without a capable mind to steer them about the pitch is like a ship without a sail. For evidence just google: ‘England, Wales, World Cup’.

BLACKBURN ROVERS

THE Championship club need the money from tomorrow’s FA Cup tie with West Ham but Paul Lambert and his team are on TV and Ewood Park needs to look good, too. So with the 7,000 Hammers fans, who will travel having paid just £20 each for a match ticket, it means everyone’s a winner, off the pitch at least.

NOT

ED WOODWARD

THE Manchester United chief executive (right) has attempted to explain his club’s poor recent record in the transfer market by saying that they are shopping ‘in a slightly different market’ to smaller Premier League clubs. Yes, the market where there are no decent players, clearly.

DELE ALLI

THE Spurs midfielder has been one of the best things about this year’s Barclays Premier League and we hope he plays a starring role in Euro 2016 for England this summer. But if the 19-year-old (right) pulls any stunts like the flick of a boot at an opponent he tried in Florence on Thursday night he will be watching most of it from the stands.

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD SERIES

ENGLISH rugby league is so desperate to prove it can compete with its Australian rivals that it has allowed the traditional World Club Challenge between the respective champions to become a threegame series featuring six teams. Sadly, a great tradition is now in danger of becoming a gimmick.

SNOOKER

CHAIRMAN Barry Hearn said last year that his sport doesn’t rely on Ronnie O’Sullivan (right) for box office but now he admits that it pretty much does. The fact that we have spent this week discussing a ball a player chose NOT to pot rather proves the latter point.