Warnock fuming after penalty rethink by ref
NEIL WARNOCK was furious after Andre Ayew’s 97th-minute penalty defeated his Middlesbrough side.
The game was 1-1 after Sam Morsy had scored a stoppagetime leveller for
Boro when Swansea substitute Jake
Bidwell went down under a challenge from George Saville.
Referee Gavin Ward gave a corner, then had a rethink and pointed to the spot.
And Boro boss
Swansea 2 M’brough 1
Warnock blasted: “Swansea must be laughing their heads off at the minute but what goes around comes around.
“I’m sure we’ll see Swansea next year.
“They can’t keep having that much luck with penalties.’’
The impressive Ayew had given Swansea the lead with a superb volleyed finish in the 40th minute.
DAVID MOYES would love to see Gareth Southgate taking the Mick with England. Firstly, because it would mean Michail Antonio had scored a hatful of goals forwest Ham in the run-in.
And secondly, because it would keep the forward out of the clutches of Jamaica and mean he wouldn’t have to travel thousands of miles for every Reggae Boyz get-together.
Thewest Ham star is one of 15 Uk-based players on
Jamaica’s radar ahead of next year’sworld Cup in Qatar.
He turned down the chance to represent Jamaica in 2016 and was called up to two
England squads under Sam Allardyce and Southgate.
But crucially, he didn’t make his debut and that has left the door open for Antonio, 30, to be approached by the Jamaican FA.
Hammers boss Moyes said: “If he could score a bundle of goals he would come into consideration.
“But when you start with Harry Kane and then you have Dominic Calvert-lewin and others, then England have a lot of strikers who are scoring goals in the Premier League.
“If I’m looking at it from a distance, Gareth has tended to choose some of the more youthful players over some more senior.
“But if Mick scores a bundle for us and helps us in the run-in, then I’m still hopeful it might happen.
“In no way am I saying him choosing Jamaica would be a bad choice.
“But, slightly for selfish reasons, if he was selected for England it would mean he has less travelling than if he does choose to go to Jamaica.
“At the moment I just want him to keep playing well for us, and the big thing will be for him to keep fit and in a good physical condition.we all know that when you get a bit older, if you have not been selected for your country you might want the opportunity to play international football elsewhere.
“If that happened, I would be wishing him my best and saying, ‘Go on and do what you think is right for you’. But at the same time, if he was having to go and play for Jamaica it would have an effect on travel.”
Meanwhile, Moyes admits he is growing frustrated withvar after seeing Fulham have a goal ruled out in Thursday’s defeat by Tottenham.
He added: “We were always talking about referees’ decisions but even more so because we’re not liking the technology coming in.
“If it helped them to have the technology we’d all support that.
“But we can’t take away the spirit and the emotion from the supporters because it is spreading to the managers, players and coaches.”
MASON MOUNT can become a Chelsea legend under Thomas Tuchel’s guidance, says Joe Cole. Midfielder Mount, 22, scored the winner against Liverpool on Thursday as the
Blues’ unbeaten run under German chief Tuchel continued.
But it was Frank Lampard who initially blooded Mount, having signed him on loan in July 2018 during his tenure as Derby boss.
And following his switch to the Stamford Bridge hotseat 12 months later, Lampard gave Mount a chance to prove himself in the Premier League.
However, former Chelsea star Cole reckons Mount can find another level with Tuchel pulling the strings.
“Tuchel is a top manager for a reason and he’s quickly realised that Mount has been the top performer at Chelsea,” Cole said. “It’s easy to walk tall with your chest out and get on the ball if things are going well.
“When Frank was having a difficult time, he was the one player in that squad that stood up and drove the team forward.
“That’s why in Frank’s last few days he made him captain.
Players can see that quality and he wasn’t hiding.
“He’ll be one of the top players in Chelsea’s history if he keeps improving and stays injury-free – I think he’s that good.”
A priority for Tuchel is also to get striker Timo Werner firing on all cylinders.
The £47.5million summer signing has managed just five Premier League goals this season but Cole reckons the German will come good.
“When you’re bringing in players for big money you have to give them time,” he added. “I don’t think it’s a physical thing for him – it’s decision-making.
“Chelsea can’t push him aside. He needs to be coached but he’s got all the raw materials.” ■ Cole was speaking to bein SPORTS, the global sports broadcaster
Eager Keane’s thrill of chase
MICHAEL KEANE has revealed he’s thriving under Carlo Ancelotti and
“in a good place”.
The Everton and England defender suffered mental health issues last year after injury and a dip in form saw him in tears as he hit “rock bottom”.
But Keane, 28, is flying almost a year later and enjoying the stability under Italian Ancelotti that Everton desperately needed.
He said: “I feel really good and feel I’ve done well pretty much all season. “I think I’ve been consistent and
I’m in a good place. Just being part of a team doing well and chasing something is exciting.
“The manager has instilled a lot of confidence in me. But the main thing is that I am really enjoying my football and long may that continue.”
MARO ITOJE has been given the green light to keep on pushing the boundaries despite the penalty blitz that cost England against Wales last weekend. Itoje was fortunate to escape a yellow card for persistent offending after coughing up five penalties to take his total for the Six Nations to an eye-watering 10 – four more than any other player.
But Saracens and England team-mate Jamie George has warned that taking away Itoje’s edge will make him half the player.
“He’s one of the most confrontational players I have ever played with – it’s his game, and that makes him one of the best players in the world,” said George.
“On a different day, those borderline penalties might not have been given and Maro might have got Man of the Match and we’d be singing his praises. It’s a fine line.
“My message to Maro – not that he needs it – is that he should obviously learn his lessons but that can’t take away from the intensity and the way he plays the game.”
England, as a collective, top the tournament penalty count alongside Italy as they prepare to face France at Twickenham on Saturday.
The sweet spot between sluggish and over-hyped has proved elusive for Eddie Jones’s indisciplined side.
“It’s not people going out there out of control – well, maybe it is,” said George. “I almost think it is like an air of desperation. Sometimes you’re not able to put your footprint personally into a game so you go chasing it in other ways.that’s my thought process anyway.
“I can’t really describe it other than just a general sense of confusion in that I thought we actually played some brilliant