Football belongs to me

So the fiasco of that European Super league is over, for now. It was a hideous concept dreamt up by the billionaire owners of a dozen or so of the top teams in Europe or those faced with the biggest debts. Let’s face it these guys, be they Middle Eastern potentates, Asian oligarchs or American tycoons, made an investment in football – the world’s greatest sport – not because they had a love for the game but because at some point they wanted to make a serious return. And the American bunch convinced their counterparts to adopt the franchise example of American football; a closed group of teams protected from the threat of automatic relegation and promotion, able to soak their fans and maximise/share the incredible broadcast revenues whilst imposing a salary cap on the talent. Let’s face it, if you could afford to be in the club it must have looked liked a recipe for unbridled success with the share prices soaring  along with the profits. 5 years of this model and the debts would be paid off and the asset put up for sale to the next batch of uber-entrepreneurs for huge profits. Bastards.

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Message to oneself

There have been lots of tv ads which have capitalised on the covid crisis to position companies as the most caring of brands. You’ve seen them – that Co-op one with Marcus Rashford aimed at driving donations to food redistribution charity FareShare is a classic. It’s not his woodenness that jars so much as the creative thinking behind the need to create empathy with the viewer. The charitable purpose is absolutely fantastic but that over-familiarity bit where the bloke goes ‘You’re on mute Rashy’ makes me squirm. Check it out…

Football lesson 1: never change the manager and chief executive at the same time

Big sigh…. A little while ago I wrote about my frustration at the sight of my club movingly glacially slowly in the transfer market. It was all a far cry from the old days when crafty Sir Alex and street smart chief executive David Gill got United’s transfer business done early and attracted some of the greatest players to Old Trafford. Well it’s a new regime at Man United these days as we all know and whilst everyone would  appreciate that David Moyes and new CE Edward Woodward are on a learning curve in their new roles, no-one could have foreseen how United’s transfer activity would descend into farce on deadline day. We even had to endure the sight of Man Utd being outspent and being seen as a more attractive option than….. Arsenal!!  Thank God SAF signed RVP last year. This time we’d have struggled to attract Nicklas Bendtner away. Sigh.

What a way to go!

Well that was one helluva week-end of celebrations eh? Firstly the Cup Final was brilliant, a real old fashioned David v Goliath tussle and outcome. Mighty moneybags Man Citteh humbled by homespun little Wigan. And the Latics deserved it. And did you know this is the first time in the history of the Cup that the last 3 winning managers’ have had the same Christian name? But don’t you imagine that the fat burghers of the FA might have imagined that the name would be something like Wilfred or Bernard, rather than Roberto, when they created the competition 150 years ago? Cosi divertente.

Anyway on to the main celebrations and Old Trafford was a sea of sentimentality as they honoured the achievements of Sralex, said goodbye to the little genius Paul Scholes (and unwittingly probably the same thing to wayward genius Wayne Rooney), celebrated the winning of the Premiership trophy for the 20th time and they also won a game too with a cracking match-winning volley from goal shy Rio Ferdinand. Blimey, if you were ever going to attend a match at Old Trafford this season, that was it. I also rather like the shot of Sralex above. I see this and can imagine him singing…

‘I left my heart down Salford Quays, oh,

near Cheetham Hill, it calls to me.

To be where Metrolink cars climb halfway to the stars

Rooney’s mood may chill the air, I don’t care….

my love’s elsewhere, in Sandown Park noo.

Ah they don’t write them like that anymore. And once the applause died down SAF gave a speech was pure Fergie when he kind of summed up the essence of Manchester United as he addressed the players;

‘You know how good you are. You know the jersey you are wearing. You know what it means to be here. Don’t let yourself down’

Enough said. They should hang those words on the home dressing-room wall.

If a man could design his own send off that was probably it. Marvellous. Not many achieve anything like that in football (though rather neatly his successor, David Moyes, did get a little close at Everton on Sunday too) as today’s sacking of Citteh manager Mancini amplifies. I’ve always rather liked old Roberto but delivering City’s first trophy successes and title in over 40 years (albeit with the help of £1Bn investment in players etc) didn’t matter in the end. SAH had triumphed again; his final act silencing that particular noisy neighbour. He’s going to be missed when he’s gone – I mean SAF of course!

pp

ps And as a little welcome to Old Trafford present for David Moyes, there’s a gift-wrapped Wilfried Zaha who put in a 5 star performance with two goals to take Crystal Palace into the play-off final last night. Mouth watering. I bet Moyes can’t wait to get started.

missing…

Well hi there folks. We’re over here in Italy. C was here over last week-end and flew back Monday which makes me blue but R keeps me full of spirits. We’re working like bloody Trojans here as we try to get our place ready for letting it out this summer for the first time. Huge amounts of interest on the web-site –  if anybody’s interested please contact http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/italy/IT4089.htm to learn more and hopefully be inspired to come out here. Hey, we need to be in London for the next couple of months at least so why not take advantage of our lovely home?

football; time for a fresh perspective?

Well the new season’s started and it’s a long time since I did a footie posting. Prompted by Charlie Cranium’s recent comments I thought I should offer up some thoughts on the season ahead which you’re all welcome to challenge. Let me know what you think.

so more not less, wes eh?

I’m just listening to the Man U v Fulham match on the radio. Man U 2-0 up and seemingly coasting to victory. Two goals from Ronanldo who’s added, what, 12 goals in 11 games now? And they said he’d never repeat last year’s scoring achievements. At this rate and in this form he could well exceed them. He’s that special. Anyway my mind was wandering a bit and I was thinking of this football snippet I saw over the weekend. It was a little piece which reported that Man U’s Wes Brown had rejected a new offer from the club of £50k per week on a 4 year deal.