Stuart Attwell – Worst Referee Ever?

Once again, the ‘whistle-happy’ referee responsible for the infamous ‘ghost goal’ in a ‘Npower Championship’ game between Watford and Reading, has put in another poor performance.  Managers, players and football fans alike have all spoken out against him, yet this incompetent referee is continually appointed for Premier League games, despite his reputation for making poor decisions.  His decisions in the match today between Arsenal and Wolves were a disgrace to the Premier League, with good decisions coming few and far between.  But how surprised can we be? It has been suggested that Stuart Attwell continues to be given the benefit of the doubt due to his young age, but how long can this go on before football fans are granted their wish and Attwell is not allowed to officiate Premier League games until he gains some experience?

Last season, a disastrous performance from Mr Attwell in a game at Anfield between Liverpool and Sunderland led to him being suspended from refereeing the following weeks games.  Striker Danny Welbeck, who was on loan at the club at the time, suffered a malicious elbow from Steven Gerrard, which under normal circumstances would have led to a straight red card.  However Stuart Attwell only issued a yellow.  This incident came shortly after a very controversial goal from Dirk Kuyt.  These were just a few of a number of high-profile mistakes which led to this suspension for the 28-year-old referee.

Todays game at the Emirates Stadium saw Arsenal face a Wolves side sitting in 17th in the table.  A very controversial decision led to Nenad Milijas being given a straight red card.  Wolves manager Mick McCarthy expressed his shock at this absurd decision by saying ‘I can’t for the life of me see why he has been sent off,’.  This however was not the only poor decision of this match.  Stuart Attwell dismissed a strong penalty appeal after the ball struck Christophe Berra’s arm and then booked Arsenal’s Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen for dissent.  moments later, he then stopped play for what he considered as ‘handball’ by the Arsenal defender, much to the dismay of the majority of the Emirates Stadium.  The young English referee booked an outstanding Wayne Hennessey for time-wasting in injury time, when the Welsh keeper wasted roughly 50 seconds before taking a goal-kick.  However none of this extra time was added on and an end to an engrossing match was called prematurely.

So once again, Stuart Attwell has put in a poor performance and once again he will be criticised by managers and fans.  A pattern seems to be emerging here, one that can only be stopped by an intervention from a higher authority.  The best method of dealing with this problem would appear to be letting him referee games in a lower league until this incompetent referee gains some experience and is better able to deal with facing difficult decisions.  Maybe then he would be ready for the Premier League and would stop this pattern occurring.  Mick McCarthy has now joined a long list of managers, including Owen Coyle, Harry Redknapp, David Moyes and many more managers who have complained about the inexperienced referee’s decisions.  All we can do is hope that this time, somebody will realise that Attwell’s performances are not up to Premier League standard and that this is a problem which must be resolved.

Jamie Cope

As a snooker player coming through the junior ranks, Jamie Cope managed to win just under 50 tournaments before turning professional in 2001.  In 2005, he completed the world’s first verified 155 break, in a practice frame aged just 20 years old.  He then went on to get into the finals of the snooker ‘Grand Prix’ and the ‘China Open’, finishing as runner-up in both tournaments.  His fast and aggressive play round the table has led to him being given the nickname ”Shotgun” but since his last final, almost four years has passed and he is yet to break into the top 10 in the ‘World snooker players’ rankings’. 

Despite all of this, Jamie Cope managed to break into the top 16 rankings earlier this year when he was briefly ranked as the 13th best player in the world but has since fallen out of the top 16, meaning that he will have to play through qualification rounds to get into the upcoming masters tournament.  Questions will inevitably rise as to whether Jamie Cope does still have the potential to compete amongst the higher ranks.  By his age, Stephen Hendry had already won 4 World Championships and 5 Masters titles and Steve Davis had 2 World Championships to his name.

However, Jamie Cope has truly shown what he is capable of through maximum breaks.  He has managed to complete 3 maximum breaks, all in very impressive times due to his speed around the table.  He became the 3rd person to achieve a maximum break in the Grand Prix in Aberdeen and has since gone on to achieve maximum breaks against Neil Robertson, the 2010 World Champion and against two-time World Champion, Mark Williams.  The latter was completed in an exceptional time of around 8 and a half minutes.

Big question marks will remain over how much Jamie Cope is capable of achieving until he shows his ability in a major tournament.  Many fans feel that he came very close to doing this at the 2011 Masters when he lost to Ding Junhui in the semi-finals after some very impressive performances against 2005 World Champion, Shaun Murphy and Mark King.  If he manages to qualify, the 2012 Masters in January could be the perfect opportunity for Cope to prove that he has the ability to regain his top-16 ranking and to go on to win major tournaments for many years to come.

Tevez’s Temper Tantrums Cause Frustrated Fans

Carlos Tevez’s behaviour was completely and utterly unacceptable.  Whether or not what was said was in fact lost in translation, a player should not and cannot place a manager under increased pressure when his team are already facing a two goal deficit.  These actions are not fair on Roberto Mancini as he is now faced with the extremely challenging task of resolving an abstruse problem which will of course be at the front of his mind at present.  It is likely that these actions are as a result of Tevez’s ineptitude to settle in Manchester and his desire to move elsewhere which he previously expressed prior to the summer transfer window.

There is absolutely no possible argument for the Argentinean striker deserving his reported salary of £286,000 per week. This sort of behaviour is absolutely ridiculous and in any other job this would lead to a sacking.  However due to the amount of money that is invested in him, this is not possible.  Tevez has no other choice but to leave the club now as the Manchester City fans have lost all faith in the striker and will happily do so with a return to South America as his preferred destination.  But this is not possible until the January transfer window and until then, Tevez should be made to train with the reserve squad.

Paul Scholes’s actions many years ago were similar to those of Carlos Tevez.  Scholes refused to play in a team of weakened players against Arsenal and was subsequently fined one weeks wages and continued with his successful career at the club.  This result is almost certainly not going to happen for Carlos Tevez as there does not appear to be a good reason as to why he didn’t play.  The fans want him sacked and Tevez want to leave so this whole saga can therefore only be due to one thing: money.  It is definitely not something Manchester City are short of at the present time and they will therefore not struggle to find a good enough replacement for Carlos Tevez.  They may not even have to with Edin Dzeko’s return to form and the summer purchase of Sergio Aguero.  This spending power helps to give an indication of how little the problem of Tevez’s temper tantrum will be for the club in the long term.

Old Habits Die Hard For Wenger

The eagerly anticipated summer transfer window is upon us and Arsenal fans have previously been promised a ‘busy summer in the transfer market’ by the club’s chief executive Ivan Gazidis.  However this is not necessarily something for Arsenal fans to be excited about as the very same promise was made exactly this time last year by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. So far, the only summer signings for Arsenal have been youngster Karl Jenkinson from Charlton Athletic and Jon Toral is set to join from Barcelona’s youth system.  But Arsenal’s big stars have had enough of Wenger’s tactics and Fabregas, Nasri and Clichy are all set to leave the club. 

Arsene Wenger will hold crisis talks with Samir Nasri about his future when he returns to London.  With both Manchester clubs interested and Nasri yet to sign a new contract, things are not looking good if Fabregas completes his £37 million move to Barcelona.  Fabregas moving to Barcelona has been accepted by many Arsenal fans as an inevitability for the past two seasons and that the longer Arsenal could hold onto him, the better.  A large amount of Arsenal fans also declared that they would be happy for Fabregas to follow his ambitions at the Nou Camp, but only if Samir Nasri remained at the club.  This is no doubt due to his spectacular 2010-11 campaign which saw him score 10 goals in 30 league games whilst filling in the position of an absent Fabregas.

Another question that will arise is whether Kieran Gibbs is ready to fill the gaping hole which will be left in Arsenal’s defence if Gael Clichy moves to Manchester City.  Clichy only has one year left to run on his contract and many Arsenal fans will be sad to see him leave.  Arsene Wenger has told the press that ”We have started talks with Gael and want him to stay”.  With Arsenal’s defence already in need of strengthening, losing a player with the quality of Clichy could prove to be a disaster.  It would appear that if Fabregas leaves, then Robin van Persie will be promoted to captain but he is yet another player who has told the press that if Wenger does not replace the quality of the players that Arsenal lose this summer, then he will head for the door too.

Arsenal's New Captain?

However, all hope is not lost for Arsenal fans with Gervinho set to join Arsenal on a four-year-deal from LOSC Lille.  Gervinho  snubbed a move to Tottenham in order to pursue a move to Arsenal; something that will already make him popular with Arsenal fans.  There are also lots of rumours that Ricardo Alvarez of Velez in Argentina is set to secure a move to Arsenal.  Further transfer activity is expected by all Arsenal fans as if these are the only transfers, then Arsenal will not be challenging for the title next season, but merely a place in the Champion’s League. 

One to Watch – Marco Reus

Marco Reus has been an outstanding player for Borussia Monchengladbach this season and has rarely dissapointed out on the wing.  The German under-21 international has been crucial in his club’s successful fight to avoid relegation from the Bundesliga.  Many German clubs are already showing an interest in Reus with Borrusia Dortmund and Bayern Munich both keen on signing the 21-year-old, no doubt due to his superb form this season which has seen him score 10 goals in 32 league matches from the wing.  He has also contributed, not just to scoring goals but has claimed 9 assissts on top of this.  However, a move away from his financially struggling team could be on the cards with rumours that Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal are all keeping an eye on the young star who has a buyout fee of £15 million in his contract.

Marco Reus had expressed his desire to stay at the club ahead of their relegation play off against Bochum, regardless of the result of that match.  He told German sports weekly ‘Sports Bild’ that ”I will stay in Gladbach in any case” and dismissed rumours of a transfer to Bayern Munich.  Reus has recently been given his second call up to the German national team but looks set to make his first appearence for them as he was forced to withdraw from Germany’s friendly with Malta last year.  He has been selected ahead of Bayern Leverkusen player Michael Ballack and will team up with hot prospect Mario Goetze who is reported to be a summer target for Arsenal.  Germany will play away to Austria on the 3rd of June and then away to Azerbaijan on the 7th.  Many clubs will be eager to see how Marco Reus will perform at the top level and if he plays like he has for Gladbach this season, then interest may intensify.

Could Judd Trump Be Snooker’s Saviour?

Judd Trump’s relaxed, attacking style as well as his youth and stupendous potting skills is ‘exactly what the sport needs’ according to Snooker’s promoter, Barry Hearn.  Things have not looked great for snooker in recent months with John Higgins acquitted from match fixing allegations by the ‘News of the World’ and in January, the highly prestigious Masters event produced a final of Ding Junhui playing Marco Fu.  Things were getting worse for snooker as fan favourite Ronnie O’Sullivan pulled out of the Berlin masters at the last-minute.  Barry Hearn told the press that ”If I had to write down a description of what I need, I’d write down a description of Judd Trump”. 

Judd Trump after his defeat to John Higgins

Barry Hearn is not the only snooker legend to be singing Trump’s praises.  Former World Championship winner Dennis Taylor described Trump as ”Without a doubt the greatest potter I have ever seen”. Yet Judd Trump is not the first person to be labelled as ”The saviour of snooker”.  It was speculated that Chinese player Ding Junhui could help to revitalise the sport for a long time since he turned professional in 2003.  Jamie Cope was also hailed as a potential saviour for the sport after his aggressive and exciting play around the table, ultimately leading o him being named ‘Shotgun’.  Although both have broken into the top 20 snooker rankings, at 4 and 15 respectively, neither has been able to excite a crowd in the manner that Judd Trump did at the Crucible theatre in Sheffield in his final match against John Higgins.

Click on the picture to see some of the best shots from Trump at the World Championship

Judd Trump told the sport’s website that he wasn’t ”too downbeat” after losing to John Higgins and has vowed to return and win the World Championship in the future.  John Higgins has said that there is a good chance of Trump being victorious at the Crucible in the future.  Stephen Hendry   Trump as ”the new Jimmy White” because of his fearless play around the table.  Hendry has won more crucible titles than anybody else and contemplated retiring from snooker recently before deciding to carry on and try to replicate his performances when he was Trump’s age.  But in the present, snooker is in need of a player who can draw in crowds and entertain; Judd Trump appears to be exactly what snooker is looking for.

”The Goals Will Come For Wilshere” – Arsene Wenger

Jack Wilshere has been a revelation for Arsenal in a season which has seen him break into the Arsenal first team, earn his first cap for his country and recieved praise from many people including Fabio Capello and Paul Merson who have both stated that he is the future of England with Capello going on further to say the ”Wilshere will one day captain England”.  Although Wilshere has claimed 9 assissts in 44 games and claiming PFA young player of the year, Wilshere has been frustrated in front of goal and only has 2 to his name this season.  Arsene Wenger has reiterated that he is not concerned by this stat and has said:

“At the moment I believe he will soon score, he looks very close. He has a hesitation sometimes to finish himself and chooses at the moment to give the ball, but I think when he will be a bit more confident he will score goals. He has not scored often but Cesc was for a while like that.”

Jack Wilshere scoring against Shaktar Donetsk in the Champions League

This is not a common abscence from Wilshere’s game however.  In the Arsenal U18 team he was regularly bagging hat-tricks and comparisons between Messi and Wilshere were drawn.  Wilshere has formed an exellent understanding with Alex Song at the heart of Arsenal’s midfield; when one goes into attack, the other stays back and covers the back four.  An excellent example of this was against Birmingham in the league when Wilshere showed superb skill in setting up Marouane Chamakh for the winning goal.

Click on the picture to see a video of Wilshere's excellent display against Birmingham

Wilshere has had some glorious opportunities to add to his goal tally, most prominent in the minds of the Arsenal fans will be the miss against Blackburn when he skewed his shot past the post from only a few yards out.  There was another excellent chance against Manchester United in the team’s recent league meeting after a Walcott shot was sliced away by Nemanja Vidic, falling at the feet of Wilshere but he dragged his shot wide.  Throughought the season Wilshere has displayed his skill in attack and as Wenger and so many others have said, the goals will come for Wilshere.

The Grand National: The Dark Side of Horse Racing

The Grand National Handicap Steeplechase is a world-famous horse-race which takes place every year at Aintree and is described by many fans as the world’s greatest steeple-chase.  The first official Grand National took place in 1839 but the competition was under the name ‘The Grand Liverpool Steeplechase’ until 1947 when it was changed to ‘The Grand National Handicap Steeplechase’ which is still the name today.  However there have been many protests leading up to the 2011 Grand National as protestors all over the country have demonstrated outside the betting shops as part of ‘Animal Aid’s Horse Racing Awareness Week’.  They want to put a stop to the races at the 2nd most dangerous race course behind Cheltenham in the U.K.  The Aintree course has killed 31 horses in the last 10 years and the only reason that this race is allowed to continue is because it is funded by the betting industry with vast amounts of money.

Click on the picture for video footage

The BBC is often criticised for its ‘cover-ups’ of the deaths of the horses that take part in the Grand National and came under its heaviest criticism in 2010 after 4 horses were killed in the race but all of which were overlooked and hidden away from the public eye.  Stopping the Grand National proves to be an almost impossible task as the support for the competition is so immense.  Every year, it is attended by royalty, celebrities and leading politicians from all parties as well as making a fortune through betting offices which ultimately fund this cruel sport.  The Aintree course is hazardous with turns so sharp that it hides the horse from view of this immediate turn.  It is not just the course itself which is a hazard, but the number of horses that take part and screaming from the crowd usually adds to the number of fatalities on the 856 yard, 30 jump course.  ‘When people are betting on this race, they are funding a lethal, ruthless and uncaring industry.’ – Animal Aid Director Andrew Tyler.

Becher's Brook- The most famous and formidable obstacle

Billboards have been put up in Liverpool by protestors which label the Grand National as a ‘National Disgrace’.  These billboards encourage the public not to vote on the Grand National as all that they are doing is funding this cruel sport.  Animal Aid director Andrew Tyler has said ‘For too long the Jockey Club has wrung its hands and professed amazement that horses are killed by racing. But the fatalities are as predictable as they are shocking. It is time for the government to rein in this exploitative industry.’

Although horses do enjoy running, a study from the ‘University of Sydney’ has shown that whipping the horses does not make them go any faster after first-of-its-kind research was done. The horses that compete in the Grand National are beaten 15 or 20 times over the gruelling 494 yard run-in.  This cruel sport must be put to an end and the only way that can happen is if the public stop funding the betting industries with such large amounts of money every year as ultimately, this is the only reason that this ‘National disgrace’ is allowed to continue.

PFA Player of the Year Nominees

Charlie Adam – Blackpool

Hardly anybody had heard of Charlie Adam a year ago and he rose to fame in January when he was a transfer target for Aston Villa, Liverpool and Spurs.  Blackpool manager, Ian Holloway, dismissed Aston Villa’s £ 3.5 millio n bid and stated ‘I w ant him to go to a strong club with a strong manager who will love him and where he will be able to win things’.  Charlie Adam has played a vital part in Blackpool’s relegation struggle this season making 28 appearances and scoring 9 goals and claiming 7 assists so far for a team which he captains.  Blackpool are demanding a minimum of £14 million for Charlie Adam who has put in so many excellent performances this season , resulting in him being nominated for this award.

Click on the picture to see Charlie Adam's season highlights

Gareth Bale – Tottenham Hotspur

This season has proved to be a revelation for Gareth Bale as he has transformed himself from a domestic joke (playing a record 24 Premier League games without being on the winning side)  to a player who has taken the breath away from fans all across Europe.  The incredible performance against Italian champions Internazionale, in which he scored a superb hat-trick, was repeated a fortnight later.  Gareth Bale has equally impressed domestically this season scoring a remarkable volley against Stoke and scoring a goal against Arsenal which sparked a comeback which will live long in the memory of all Spurs fans.  Bale has played 25 games in this breakthrough season scoring 7 goals and claiming 1 assist so far.

Click on the picture to see Gareth Bale’s season highlights

Samir Nasri – Arsenal

A major concern for Arsene Wenger at the start of the season was who to use in the central role if Cesc Fabregas does move to Barcelona in a move which has looked eminent for a long time.  However, this is not such a serious problem now as Wenger and Arsenal can both see that the potential that Samir Nasri has is starting to be fulfilled.  An integral part of Arsenal’s creativity in the absence of Cesc Fabregas and showing that he was equally able to take his skills out to the wings with the same amounts of success when Fabregas was present in the Arsenal starting 11.  Nasri has played 24 games so far scoring 9 goals and claiming one assist in a season which has seen him second only to van Persie in terms of goals for Arsenal.

Click the picture to see Nasri’s season highlights

Scott Parker – West Ham

Parker’s fine form this season has finally been rewarded by Fabio Capello as Parker’s England career finally has lift-off, 8 years after making his debut for his country.  Parker has enjoyed a superb season and has been as influential on the field for West Ham as when he is in the dressing-room.  Parker gave an inspirational half-time team talk when West Ham were 3-0 down to relegation rivals West Brom in a game which saw West Ham recover from this 3-0 deficit to draw 3-3.  This team talk prompted teammate Carlton Cole to say ‘We were diabolical but Scott was inspirational’.  Scott Parker has played 29 league games so far scoring 5 goals and providing 3 assists in a season which is undoubtedly the best of the 30-year-old’s 14-year and 5-club career.

Click on the picture to see Scott Parker’s season highlights

Carlos Tevez – Manchester City

If the voting for this award had taken place earlier in the season, then Carlos Tevez would have been the most likely to win. However, Tevez scored only his first goal in the last 8 games with a penalty against Sunderland last weekend.  This season, like last, has seen so many exceptional performances from the Argentinian striker who has obtained a reputation for being a prolific scorer.  This reputation is not without sufficient justification as Tevez has scored 19 league goals in 27 league starts so far with a further 6 assists.  On top of this, 6 of the 19 goals have been match winners for Manchester City which goes to show just how valuable he is to his club.

Click on the picture to see Carlos Tevez's season highlights

Rafael Van der Vaart – Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham fans will consider £8 million a bargain buy for a player who has put in performances the likes of which Rafael Van der Vaart has put in this season.  The Dutchman showed versatility as he immediately settled into Tottenham playing just behind a lone striker.  An excellent understanding with Peter Crouch has been established through this formation and Van der Vaart regularly profits from Crouch’s hold-up style of play.  For a foreign player playing his first season in English football, 10 league goals of 21 league games so far is an excellent record and something that Van der Vaart can look to build on next season.

Click on the picture to see Rafael Van der Vaart's season highlights

Nemanja Vidic – Manchester United

Centre-backs are often the least appreciated of all the footballers but Nemanja Vidic is indispensable to Manchester United.  Everything he lacks in terms of creativity, he makes up for through his outstanding defensive work, both in the air and on the ground.  Nemanja Vidic has held the Manchester United defence together in a season which has seen Rio Ferdinand hampered by injury.  Vidic has played 29 league games so far this season scoring 4 goals.

Click on the picture to see a Nemanja Vidic compilation

Racist Problems in Russian Football

Russia has recently been awarded the right to host the 2018 World Cup after a very successful World Cup bid.  Russia promised to clear up the ongoing problem of racism in the Russian Premier League.  Many of the fans of Zenit St Petersburg say that they ‘do not want black players’ in their team.  But it is not just Zenit fans who feel this way; it is all the Russian Premier League clubs.  It seems that campaigns to prevent these racist comments and chants, which forced Peter Odemwingie to leave Lokamotiv Moscow, are not enough.  But what can be done?  Is it plausible to start fining clubs large amounts of money or even deduct points if racist chants continue in the Russian Premier League?

Russian Football Union director general Alexei Sorokin

The Russian Premier League is becoming known for making players of African origin to feel uncomfortable.  However, the chief of Russia’s 2018 world cup bid has defended this racism by saying that ‘racism in Russian football is no worse than anywhere else’.  Lokamotiv Moscow displayed a racist banner towards Peter Odemwingie after his sale to West Brom which said ‘ Thanks West Brom’ and had a picture of a banana.  Yet the Russian Football Union’s director general did not fine Lokamotiv after he deemed the banner ‘not racist’.  Fans of Zenit St Petersburg recently waved bananas at legendary Brazilian full-back Roberto Carlos who now plays for Anzhi Makhachkala.  Roberto Carlos has demanded action but said that ‘he is too old to let idiotic fans affect his game’.

Racist Banner dislpayed by Lokamotiv Moscow fans following the departure of Peter Odemwingie

The first actions are starting to be taken by the Russian Football Union.  Just before their successful World Cup bid, the Russian Football Union set up a 7-point memorandum for the purpose of fighting racism.  This memorandum contains anti-racist guidelines and establishing a website called racism offside but this has not yet been set up.  Zenit St Petersburg have been threatened with having to play games behind closed doors if they are unable to control the actions of their fans.  Zenit fans have made it public knowledge that they do not want to see the club sign a player of African origin and on top of this, they are the only side in the Russian Premier League not to do so.

It would appear that the Russian authorities are starting to try to try to eliminate this racist reputation but also that the fans are not so willing.  Zenit were fined £38,000 by Uefa after black players playing for French outfit Marseille were subjected to vile ‘monkey chanting’ by fans.  Vlastimil Petrela, the manager of Zenit in 2004, claimed that he was not allowed to offer a contract to a black player.  He said ‘I wanted to hire a black player but I could not.  Whenever I raised the issue, the answer was always “Zenit is not interested”‘.  With World Cup 2018 on the horizon, the fans of these Russian football clubs must start to take action and help to eliminate racism.  This racism that plagues the Russian Premier League, forcing players such as Peter Odemwingie to leave their club, must be stopped now.  Racism is never acceptable and Russia must live up to their promise of delivering a World Cup in 2018 which is completely free of these racist comments and actions towards players.