Nail Biting Blues!
Filed under: Blues News, General Football, Kev's Ramblings, Matches
We have another article from Sporting Intelligence. Originally posted here.
Read below:
Wenger an Easy Rider as Blues take Cup break from Premier League dramas
By Brian Sears 5 March 2010
If we define a nail-biting game as one in which the result could be changed with the last kick of the match, then they’re becoming rarer in the Premier League. Never before this season has the percentage of nail-biters been as low as this campaign.
In the first season of the Premier League, as many as 67.3 per cent of top-flight league games were nail biters, with just one goal at most separating the teams at the final whistle.
That rose to 68.2 per cent in 1993-94 and has settled at pretty much the mid-60s in percentage terms in every season since, with lows of 61.6 per cent in 2005-06 then 61.3 per cent on 2007-08. This season? Just 59 per cent of games have been nail-biters.
Arsenal are the least nail-biting team; just nine of their 28 games (or 32 per cent) would have seen a different result with a last-kick goal. Burnley have seen fewer nail-biters than most clubs (48 per cent), but whereas Arsenal’s games are not nail-biters because they normally win so easily, Burnley’s aren’t nail-biters because they lose so heavily.
That’s why today’s match between Arsenal and Burnley at The Emirates is as unlikely to be a nail-biter as any game we’ve seen so far this season, statistically speaking. Arsene Wenger should be one easy rider this afternoon, watching his men speed past the clarets from Lancashire.
At the other end of the nail-biting spectrum, Birmingham really know how to put their fans through the mill: 24 of their 27 league games this season have been nail-biters, or 89 per cent, a whopping percentage that makes them by far the most nerve-racking side to follow.
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Thankfully their fans get a break from the league nerves this weekend as Birmingham play at Portsmouth in the FA Cup (see ‘Omens’ below). The pair last met in the FA Cup in 1977, and Brum won, 1-0. Personally, we’ll be keeping a close eye on Reading v Aston Villa on Sunday. If Villa win, as they did the last time these sides met in the Cup, then it’s ‘Hurt Locker’ for Best Picture at the Oscars, we say.
A Bridge Too Far?
After yesterdays announcement by Wayne Bridge, there has been a lot of press discussion about the situation. I thought I would blog my opinion on it.
Now this IS an emotive subject, and I am aware that people reading this may have experienced similar situations – so I hope that I can deal with this sensitively.
Ok, let’s say you discover that your work mate does what John Terry did with the lady of your life? What would you do?
I suspect there would be a variety of responses from violence to walking away from the people in question. To get a perspective on this, I think it is important to understand the feelings that you may go through. We all know that we were are emotionally involved with people, and that is challenged, it can affect all aspects in your life.
If it happened to you at work, could you continue to work with them?
It happened at a place I worked at and it was awful, the atmosphere was really affected. In the end all three people had to leave.
Ok having used that as a reference, a few comments on the situation in hand.
Some people are accusing Wayne Bridge of letting his country down leading up to the world cup – but sorry I don’t agree with that. (See opening paragraphs!) I actually think Bridge didn’t have any choice at all. He would have been living with Terry for several weeks in a close environment and I can’t believe, (having served in the forces), that words wouldn’t have been said and that would have upset the team spirit.
Wayne’s decision IMO is his attempt to try and bring some stability to the side, however it isn’t going to happen while Terry is still there. Let’s remember it is Terry’s actions that have caused this, not Wayne Bridge’s actions.
Terry should have stepped down, I don’t care if he is a quality defender or not – there are consequences to actions, something that footballers often want to avoid or think they are above.
So Wayne has my support for his decision, and I actually think that he has handled himself with dignity through this. Unfortunately I doubt this is the last of things, I am certain there are members of the England squad who won’t appreciate Terry still being in the squad, especially if they consider that it could of been their wife or girlfriend he had been with.
I know people will agree with me and there will be people who disagree with me, but this is my opinion of the situation as it stands right now.
Kev
Portsmouth’s Administration – Postponement Or Salvation?
There has been a lot of talk about Portsmouth FC’s precarious situation. A link was posted on SHA to an article which I thought was one of the best I have read on the situation. I approached the author Ian – and he has kindly given me permission to re-produce the article here. It was originally posted on TwoHundredPercent with the original article here.
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The mask now seems likely to slip. After seventeen years of wearing a mask of opulence and limitless wealth, the Premier League self-made reputation as The Richest League In The World will face its most severe test yet, as Portsmouth face the inevitable and collapse into administration. Their only reasonable prospect of avoiding administration would be to find new owners by the end of the week, which is an admission in itself that the club has simply been unable to find the new investors that had been talked about as being the next people to try and sort the carnage at Fratton Park out.
It has been a desperate couple of weeks for Portsmouth, starting with an attempt to persuade the Premier League to bend FIFA transfer window rules in order to allow them to sell players. There is no reason they can’t sell players outside of the transfer window – this is a common misunderstanding about the transfer window – but Portsmouth had requested that the Premier League allow players signed by clubs during the transfer window to play before the end of this season. Such an arrangement would obviously make said players more attractive to clubs looking to buy. However, even though they received positive signs from FIFA on the matter, the Premier League turned the request down, stating that it this would “not be an appropriate course of action at this time”.
What, then, will administration mean for Portsmouth? Well, most importantly it freezes all of their debts, meaning that no further legal recovery action can be taken against them. Friday’s court case will not be heard, as HMRC can no longer petition the winding up of the company. The club will be deducted nine points by the Premier League, which will reduce their points haul for the season to a feeble seven, and will almost certainly condemn to relegation at the end of the season. The administrator (who, it has already been confirmed, will be paid for by Balran Chainrai himself) will then be faced with the job of selling assets, trying to keep the company alive as a going concern and trying to find a new buyer for it.
The major problems – and, considering that this is Portsmouth that we are talking about here, these things have to be viewed as relative – for the club will start if they are relegated from the Premier League and they do not agree a CVA as a route out of administration. If Portsmouth were to be relegated, they would be subject to the Football League’s rules on such matter, and clubs such as Rotherham United and Luton Town, for example, will be more than happy to confirm that they can be draconian, should they choose to be. All previous cases of clubs that have exited administration without having a CVA in place have resulted in further deductions for the start of the following season of between fifteen and twenty points. Anyone seeking confirmation of the Football League’s view need look no further than this quote from its chairman, Lord Mawhinney, from just a couple of weeks ago:
People try to find excuses about why clubs have had to go into administration. One of the sadnesses is that there is never enough recognition of the small businesses, the taxpayer, and worthy groups like St John Ambulance who are left owed money after doing business in good faith.
Why, though, would Portsmouth find it difficult to agree a CVA, though? There are two obvious answers to this: FA rules and HMRC intransigence. The FA insists that all football debts are settled in full, and Portsmouth still owe at least £10m for Sulley Muntari. HMRC are said be owed in the region of £12m. HMRC will not – we already know this much – vote in favour of a CVA. Unless they can find the money to settle these debts in full, a CVA to cover their other creditors seems highly unlikely to be approved. Portsmouth, it would seem, will be starting life back in the Football League with quite a fight on their hands in order to avoid a second successive relegation.
The club is believed to have three groups interested in buying the club, but all eyes over the last few weeks had been on the New Zealander Victor Cattermole. Cattermole, however, required thirty days to carry out due diligence before purchasing the club (unsurprising, considering the state that it is believed to be in) and confirmed that he would not be purchasing the club prior to the court hearing on Friday. It is possible that Portsmouth may dodge a bullet, however, if Cattermole decides that his loyalties lie elsewhere. His company, Endeavor Plan, specialises in what it describes as “network marketing”, which seems to be virtually indistinguishable from pyramid selling. In 2003, the company drew the attention of the New Zealand Securities Commission (which oversees the regulation of investment in New Zealand), who had this to say about Endeavour Plan:
The Securities Commission has banned advertising for an investment scheme which appears on the web site www.endeavorplan.com. This web site appears to be administered by a company in the West Indies called Endeavor Portfolio Corporation Limited. The web site also states that its founder is Mr. Victor Cattermole. We understand that Mr. Cattermole is a New Zealander and resides in Wellington.
The scheme invites the public to contribute funds by way of credit card. It is said that these funds are then invested in a British Virgin Islands fund called CSA Absolute Return Fund Limited. This is done through a Hong Kong company. The scheme offers commissions to investors who introduce other investors.
The Commission banned advertising for the scheme because it does not comply with the law. To be offered in New Zealand the scheme must have a registered prospectus and an investment statement. These documents are not available.
The Commission warns people about committing any money to the scheme. The Commission warns people generally about investment schemes that they find on the Internet. Investments promoted on the Internet must still comply with New Zealand law.
The authorities will have to wait to decide whether he is a “Fit & Proper Person” for the time being, though, unless new owners can be found by Thursday afternoon. If they can’t, and Chainrai doesn’t put the money in to stave off the bid, then all eyes will focus on Andrew Andronikou of the accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, who has reportedly already been approached by the club to act in the case of administration being required. What is important to bear in mind is that Andronikou has no responsibility to act in the best interests of Portsmouth FC. His job is to secure the best deal for the club’s creditors while keeping the business alive as a going concern. He will sell what he has to sell. It starts to feel as if the Pompey Trust – which already has 1,000 members – formed just in time.
The richest football league in the world, the one that boasts the biggest global pull of all, sees its first club head towards insolvency without having left it first. Supporters may well pause and think, “there but for the grace of God go I”, but the belief that it will always happen to someone else is not a healthy one. Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday, Queens Park Rangers, the list goes on – once well established football clubs reduced to shadows of their former selves by a lack of managerial wherewithal. Portsmouth will likely slip quietly off the Premier League radar at the end of the season, but it feels as if there problems will only start with the end of this season. Meaningful change in the way that clubs run themselves, however, seems as far away as ever.
The PL Issue Wolves a Suspended Fine
I see the Wolverhampton Wanderers have been hit with a suspended £25,000 fine for fielding a weakened side against Manchester United. Now while at the time I thought Mick McCarthy was mad to do that, Wolves had just had a good result against Spurs, and they just MIGHT have got something against United – the thing is what is going on here? So why would they fine Wolves? What are the rules?
The Premier League rules relating to this subject are:
E 20 In every League Match each participating Club shall field a full strength team.
B 13 In all matters and transactions relating to the League each Club shall behave towards each other Club and the League with the utmost good faith.
It seems cut and dried then, Wolves deserve their fine – let’s move on, however it isn’t that simple.
The top four have played weakened sides in a variety of games to protect themselves for the likes of the Champions League. Any fines dished out? No. Why? Well because of the talent that they have at the clubs. With the greatest respect to Wolves, or in fact virtually any other side in the Premier League outside of the top four or five – it would be obvious that they have fielded a reserve side. It would be less so for the other sides, and therefore they won’t ever get fined for this.
This isn’t a knock at the top four, it should be up to clubs if they want to play their reserves for whatever reason, I think they should be entitled to.
With hindsight, McCarthy should have left three or four of his first team in to make it look less obvious! 
Mind you, Wolves did beat Burnley the following game, and if those three points mean that they stay up – then a £25,000 suspended sentence will be worth it!
Kev
Mr. Wayne Rooney
Here is Dale’s latest article.
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Growing up in the mean streets of Croxteth, is it no surprise that Wayne Rooney has always had a sharp edge to his character. As a youngster is was football that dragged him away from the avenues of crime and mischief and provided him with a passion. A true passion that now, 76,000 people can bear witness to on a Saturday afternoon. Like many young lads before him, Rooney aspired to “make it”. Growing up watching the big, bustling and sometimes belligerent Duncan Ferguson, he found a childhood hero to aspire to be. Joining his boyhood club Everton at the age of ten, Rooney started to turn heads in Liverpool and many branded him as the “next big thing”. Then, a goal that would propel the prospect to unprecedented heights. Reigning champions Arsenal were the visitors at Goodison and on the back of a 30 match unbeaten run. A hard fought 1-1 draw beckoned as the clock ticked onto the 90th minute. Then off the bench stepped up 16 year old Wayne Rooney. A spectacular 30 yard strike cannoning off the underside of the bar made Rooney the youngest goal scorer in Premier league history and ending the gunner’s fantastic run.
Two years later, Rooney’s performances caught the eye of Sir Alex Ferguson and after seeing off Newcastle in a bidding war for the young starlet, the Evertonian was to join Manchester United for £25.6 million pounds. Rooney marked his debut against Fenerbahce with a hat-trick in a 6-2 win against in the champion’s league. He went on to bag 11 goals in his opening season and received the PFA Young Player of the Year Award for 04/05. However Rooney’s aggressive nature also provided some of the more forgettable instances during his career. Sarcastically clapping the referee for booking him earned him a sending off coupled with another dismissal for an alleged elbow on now Real Madrid defender Pepe during the Amsterdam tournament of 2006. That same year many national newspapers blamed Rooney for England’s departure from the 2006 world cup, after stamping on Ricardo Carvalho in the quarter-final tie earning a red card from referee.
However it was the arrival of Christiano Ronaldo that somewhat overshadowed Rooney’s performances and although the Englishman was still a prized asset to United, it was Ronaldo that began to run the show. His 12 goals during the 07/08 season was by no means an underachievement but the 31 goals and string of world class performances by Ronaldo issued a new star of the Stretford End.
Ronaldo parted company with United, opting for Real Madrid as his preferred destination for the fee of £80 million. This sparked doubts in many critics’ columns as to who would fill a void of goals and assists that Ronaldo previously acclaimed. Many believed United would falter without the Portuguese superstar but there was no need for Alex Ferguson to spend some of the money made available on a striker. As the remedy was right under their noses, like a big ginger chunk of vapour rub, in Wayne Rooney. Rooney currently occupies a more central role at United in every sense of the word. Playing down the spine of the team, the United striker has evolved into one of the most accomplished, classy and gifted players to grace English football. His grit and determination to get the ball from the opposition has made him a fans favourite and coupled with his improved goal scoring record, Rooney has become the ultimate player.
England travel to South Africa this summer in their quest for World Cup Glory. Spearheading their attack is non-other than the new and improved Wayne Rooney. Undoubtedly a more mature, professional and prolific player that previously put on the three lions shirt in a major competition. If the form of this transformed and rejuvenated striker continues, England may just have a chance of doing the unthinkable. Rooney brings something to a team that no other player can. Not only has he immense talent, quality and skill but he has the bite, the determination and the grit that sets him apart. He can produce moments of quality but unlike his Bulgarian team mate Berbatov he will work tirelessly for the team. As an Englishman, I hope and pray that Wayne Rooney can transfer his performances for his club onto an international scale and fire England to world cup glory in South Africa this summer.
Ladies and Gentlemen I give you, Mr. Wayne Rooney.
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