Football for Sale: Are British Clubs Losing Their Sense of Identity?

News has been released recently hat big spending Manchester City have been given permission by a local council to sell the naming rights of their City of Manchester Stadium to any and all welcome bidders. City chief executive Gary Cook hopes that a long contract will bring in up to

Ten Premier League Players Who Are Simply Not Good Enough for Their Clubs

16 comments by Christian Bailey on March 21st, 2011

Ten players who must have dirt on their respective managers!

Premier League Tickets Available from Tixdaq.com

MLS wrap: Fortunes differ for new clubs on debut

The Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers made contrasting starts to life in the MLS as the league swung into full gear on Saturday.

The Los Angeles Galaxy’s 1-0 win over Seattle opened the campaign on Wednesday, but all eyes were on Saturday’s packed schedule as Vancouver and Portland made their MLS debuts.

A crowd of 22,592 crammed into Vancouver’s Empire Field to see the Whitecaps face Toronto FC in the competition’s first-ever all-Canadian encounter, and the home fans did not leave disappointed when their side ran out 4-2 winners.

French striker Eric Hassli scored the Whitecaps’ first MLS goal, getting on the end of a cross from Swiss midfielder Davide Chiumiento to stroke past Toronto goalkeeper Stefan Frei in the 15th minute.

The lead lasted just five minutes before veteran Canada midfielder Dwayne De Rosario capped a Toronto counter-attack with a composed finish, but Vancouver took a 2-1 advantage into the half-time break when midfielder Terry Dunfield struck in the 26th minute.

Atiba Harris made it 3-2 in the 63rd minute before designated player Hassli scored his brace to all-but wrap the game up, with Brazilian striker Maicon Santos scoring a consolation goal for Toronto, who are coached by former Ajax star Aron Winter.

It was no fairytale start for the Portland Timbers, however, who faced the heady prospect of travelling to reigning title-holders Colorado Rapids in their debut.

First-half strikes from midfielder Jeff Larentowicz, Jamaica forward Omar Cummings and former Celtic schemer Jamie Smith had Colorado well in control for much of the game, with target man Kenny Cooper claiming a late strike for the Timbers to ensure they did not go home completely empty handed.

Real Salt Lake showed why they conceded just 20 goals last season – breaking an MLS record in the process – in their 1-0 edging of San Jose.

San Jose had eight shots on target compared to the visitors’ two, but could not find a way past Nick Rimando in the Real goal.

Salt Lake captain Kyle Beckerman got the only goal of the game with his right-foot drive from outside the area on 64 minutes, with his side able to survive some unsure handling by Rimando as the rain tumbled down in the second half to claim all three points.

It was hard not to miss the irony in Omar Bravo’s two-goal debut in Sporting Kansas City’s 3-2 win over Chivas USA at the Home Depot Centre in California.

After fellow debutant CJ Sapong scored for Sporting in the first minute, Mexican international striker Bravo struck either side of half-time and was a nuisance to the Chivas defence for much of the match.

Midfielder Ben Zemanski added to veteran defender Jimmy Conrad’s goal in the 81st minute to ensure a nervy finish to the encounter. But the real story was Bravo’s double on debut against the sister club of Chivas Guadalaraja – the Mexican side where he made his name, scoring over 100 goals.

In his first competitive match in more than a year, Charlie Davies’ second-half brace spurred DC United to a 3-1 win over Columbus Crew at home.

Davies had been a passenger in a fatal car accident in October 2009 while on international duty with the US, and has joined United on-loan from French Ligue 1 club Sochaux as he bids to return to full fitness.

Thierry Henry’s missed penalty mattered little as 18-year-old striker Juan Agudelo celebrated his call-up to the US team with the New York Red Bulls’ winner in their 1-0 triumph over Seattle, while the Philadelphia Union claimed the same result at Houston Dynamo.

Dallas and Chicago shared the points in a 1-1 stalemate at the former’s Pizza Hut Park, with Brek Shea dismissed for the home side in the 55th minute for bringing down Uruguayan striker Gaston Puerari as the last man.

Sun 20 March, 2011

MLS wrap: Fortunes differ for new clubs on debut

The Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers made contrasting starts to life in the MLS as the league swung into full gear on Saturday.

The Los Angeles Galaxy’s 1-0 win over Seattle opened the campaign on Wednesday, but all eyes were on Saturday’s packed schedule as Vancouver and Portland made their MLS debuts.

A crowd of 22,592 crammed into Vancouver’s Empire Field to see the Whitecaps face Toronto FC in the competition’s first-ever all-Canadian encounter, and the home fans did not leave disappointed when their side ran out 4-2 winners.

French striker Eric Hassli scored the Whitecaps’ first MLS goal, getting on the end of a cross from Swiss midfielder Davide Chiumiento to stroke past Toronto goalkeeper Stefan Frei in the 15th minute.

The lead lasted just five minutes before veteran Canada midfielder Dwayne De Rosario capped a Toronto counter-attack with a composed finish, but Vancouver took a 2-1 advantage into the half-time break when midfielder Terry Dunfield struck in the 26th minute.

Atiba Harris made it 3-2 in the 63rd minute before designated player Hassli scored his brace to all-but wrap the game up, with Brazilian striker Maicon Santos scoring a consolation goal for Toronto, who are coached by former Ajax star Aron Winter.

It was no fairytale start for the Portland Timbers, however, who faced the heady prospect of travelling to reigning title-holders Colorado Rapids in their debut.

First-half strikes from midfielder Jeff Larentowicz, Jamaica forward Omar Cummings and former Celtic schemer Jamie Smith had Colorado well in control for much of the game, with target man Kenny Cooper claiming a late strike for the Timbers to ensure they did not go home completely empty handed.

Real Salt Lake showed why they conceded just 20 goals last season – breaking an MLS record in the process – in their 1-0 edging of San Jose.

San Jose had eight shots on target compared to the visitors’ two, but could not find a way past Nick Rimando in the Real goal.

Salt Lake captain Kyle Beckerman got the only goal of the game with his right-foot drive from outside the area on 64 minutes, with his side able to survive some unsure handling by Rimando as the rain tumbled down in the second half to claim all three points.

It was hard not to miss the irony in Omar Bravo’s two-goal debut in Sporting Kansas City’s 3-2 win over Chivas USA at the Home Depot Centre in California.

After fellow debutant CJ Sapong scored for Sporting in the first minute, Mexican international striker Bravo struck either side of half-time and was a nuisance to the Chivas defence for much of the match.

Midfielder Ben Zemanski added to veteran defender Jimmy Conrad’s goal in the 81st minute to ensure a nervy finish to the encounter. But the real story was Bravo’s double on debut against the sister club of Chivas Guadalaraja – the Mexican side where he made his name, scoring over 100 goals.

In his first competitive match in more than a year, Charlie Davies’ second-half brace spurred DC United to a 3-1 win over Columbus Crew at home.

Davies had been a passenger in a fatal car accident in October 2009 while on international duty with the US, and has joined United on-loan from French Ligue 1 club Sochaux as he bids to return to full fitness.

Thierry Henry’s missed penalty mattered little as 18-year-old striker Juan Agudelo celebrated his call-up to the US team with the New York Red Bulls’ winner in their 1-0 triumph over Seattle, while the Philadelphia Union claimed the same result at Houston Dynamo.

Dallas and Chicago shared the points in a 1-1 stalemate at the former’s Pizza Hut Park, with Brek Shea dismissed for the home side in the 55th minute for bringing down Uruguayan striker Gaston Puerari as the last man.

Sun 20 March, 2011

Manchester City Manager Unsurprised Big Clubs Get Special Treatment

3 comments by Jack Atchinson on March 2nd, 2011

Eastlands boss thought Wayne Rooney should have been suspended but thinks it is normal for the top teams to get preferential treatment.

Watch Man City v Aston Villa live streaming with GetSport.TV

SPL clubs agree to reform

All 12 Scottish Premier League clubs have reached an agreement to cut the sides in next year’s top-flight to 10.

In a meeting at Hampden Park, it was agreed by the clubs that a 10-team top division would be better than the current format.

The clubs came to an agreement that would see the second tier involve 12 clubs and the SPL will now speak to the Scottish Football Association and Scottish Football League about the idea.

“The Scottish Premier League clubs today reaffirmed their commitment to the work of the Strategic Review Group to develop a structure for the whole of Scottish football,” an SPL statement read.

“Broad support was given to progressing a 10 team Premiership and a 12 team Championship at the top of a pyramid for Scottish football as the preferred option.”

“The SPL clubs have asked the executive team to further develop aspects of these proposals and to update the Strategic Review Group’s report.”

“The SPL will now consult with the Scottish FA and the Scottish Football League and its clubs before a final decision by the SPL clubs.”

The 10-team format was preferred to a 14-team top-tier that had also been mooted and it is believed that other Scottish football clubs will vote on the proposal in the next few months.

“All 12 clubs have agreed to the statement today so hopefully this gives us a mandate to move forward,” SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster said.

The decision for the clubs to agree on a 10-team Scottish Premier League is somewhat surprising, given the fact that a recent Supporters Direct poll showed 90 percent of respondents did not want a top division with only 10 teams.

Mon 17 January, 2011

SPL clubs agree to reform

All 12 Scottish Premier League clubs have reached an agreement to cut the sides in next year’s top-flight to 10.

In a meeting at Hampden Park, it was agreed by the clubs that a 10-team top division would be better than the current format.

The clubs came to an agreement that would see the second tier involve 12 clubs and the SPL will now speak to the Scottish Football Association and Scottish Football League about the idea.

“The Scottish Premier League clubs today reaffirmed their commitment to the work of the Strategic Review Group to develop a structure for the whole of Scottish football,” an SPL statement read.

“Broad support was given to progressing a 10 team Premiership and a 12 team Championship at the top of a pyramid for Scottish football as the preferred option.”

“The SPL clubs have asked the executive team to further develop aspects of these proposals and to update the Strategic Review Group’s report.”

“The SPL will now consult with the Scottish FA and the Scottish Football League and its clubs before a final decision by the SPL clubs.”

The 10-team format was preferred to a 14-team top-tier that had also been mooted and it is believed that other Scottish football clubs will vote on the proposal in the next few months.

“All 12 clubs have agreed to the statement today so hopefully this gives us a mandate to move forward,” SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster said.

The decision for the clubs to agree on a 10-team Scottish Premier League is somewhat surprising, given the fact that a recent Supporters Direct poll showed 90 percent of respondents did not want a top division with only 10 teams.

Mon 17 January, 2011

Clubs gear up for Campeonato Paulista

The 2011 Brazilian Campeonato Paulista kicks off on January 15 with no shortage of teams in contention for the Sao Paulo state championship title.

Santos, Sao Paulo, Corinthians and Palmeiras are among the favourites but all four have had to deal with big-name departures in the off-season.

Title holders Santos again look strong and will be hoping to reproduce the same attacking football that plundered a staggering 72 goals last time around.

Dorival Junior has left as coach of the club after he fell out with the board over talented youngster Neymar.

His replacement, Adilson Batista, still has Neymar in his squad but will have to do without Robinho, who left for AC Milan in the off-season.

Alan Patrick, Ze Eduardo, Paulo Henrique Lima and the returning Elano – who is back at his former club after five years in Europe – are tipped to impress.

Sao Paulo made it all the way to the semi-finals in 2010 before going out to the eventual champions, and they will be looking to break a six-year drought in the tournament.

PC Carpegiani is the man in charge at Sao Paulo and the experienced coach is slowly rebuilding his squad, with youngsters such as Casemiro, Lucas Gaucho and Lucas Moura expected to play a prominent role in the campaign.

Corinthians finished fifth last season and failed to make the play-offs, but with 26 titles to their name are the most successful club in the tournament.

Tite is the man at the helm this season and has one of the best squads in the competition, with veterans Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos at his disposal as well as the likes of Dentinho, Jorge Henrique, Jucilei and Bruno Cesar.

But they will have to make do without influential midfielder Elias, who has left for Atletico Madrid.

Palmeiras – the 2008 champions – had a disappointing campaign in 2010, finishing in 11th place, with the arrival of former Chelsea and Brazil coach Luis Felipe Scolari in June doing little to improve their fortunes.

So far, the club has failed to bring in a single player and have stated that they may have to rely on their youngsters.

In the first phase, all 20 clubs will play each other once with the top eight teams then contesting a seeded play-off series for the title, while the bottom four sides drop into Serie A2.

Tue 11 January, 2011

Clubs gear up for Campeonato Paulista

The 2011 Brazilian Campeonato Paulista kicks off on January 15 with no shortage of teams in contention for the Sao Paulo state championship title.

Santos, Sao Paulo, Corinthians and Palmeiras are among the favourites but all four have had to deal with big-name departures in the off-season.

Title holders Santos again look strong and will be hoping to reproduce the same attacking football that plundered a staggering 72 goals last time around.

Dorival Junior has left as coach of the club after he fell out with the board over talented youngster Neymar.

His replacement, Adilson Batista, still has Neymar in his squad but will have to do without Robinho, who left for AC Milan in the off-season.

Alan Patrick, Ze Eduardo, Paulo Henrique Lima and the returning Elano – who is back at his former club after five years in Europe – are tipped to impress.

Sao Paulo made it all the way to the semi-finals in 2010 before going out to the eventual champions, and they will be looking to break a six-year drought in the tournament.

PC Carpegiani is the man in charge at Sao Paulo and the experienced coach is slowly rebuilding his squad, with youngsters such as Casemiro, Lucas Gaucho and Lucas Moura expected to play a prominent role in the campaign.

Corinthians finished fifth last season and failed to make the play-offs, but with 26 titles to their name are the most successful club in the tournament.

Tite is the man at the helm this season and has one of the best squads in the competition, with veterans Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos at his disposal as well as the likes of Dentinho, Jorge Henrique, Jucilei and Bruno Cesar.

But they will have to make do without influential midfielder Elias, who has left for Atletico Madrid.

Palmeiras – the 2008 champions – had a disappointing campaign in 2010, finishing in 11th place, with the arrival of former Chelsea and Brazil coach Luis Felipe Scolari in June doing little to improve their fortunes.

So far, the club has failed to bring in a single player and have stated that they may have to rely on their youngsters.

In the first phase, all 20 clubs will play each other once with the top eight teams then contesting a seeded play-off series for the title, while the bottom four sides drop into Serie A2.

Tue 11 January, 2011

Chelsea, Liverpool, West Ham United and Blackburn Rovers: Clubs In Crisis

1 comment by Tom Tolladay on January 8th, 2011

The new year has arrived. A time to set goals and challenges for the year ahead? Or….. a time for change?

Bet on Premier League football with Sportingbet.com and get a free bet worth up to

Arsenal to Allow Manuel Almunia to Make £3m Exit as La Liga Clubs Prepare Bids

2 comments by The Newshound on January 2nd, 2011

Time is up for clanger prone Emirates keeper.

Bet on Arsenal with Sportingbet.com and get a free bet worth up to

Italian clubs chasing Man Utd striker

Several Italian clubs are interested in signing Manchester United striker Federico Macheda, according to the player’s agent.

Macheda will be allowed to leave United on loan in the January transfer window.

“I can say that Inter, Juventus, Fiorentina and Lazio are all clubs that potentially could take the player,

Clubs might complain, but Player Power will stay until they make a stand

By: Rob | August 27th, 2010

So the big two news stories of the day are that Javier Mascherano has managed to wrangle his move to Barcelona after a protracted period of complaining, and Emmanuel Adebayour has told Manchester City he’ll be off if he isn’t given some first team football. Player power, then is back on the agenda.

Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has hit out at the fact that he has been coerced into selling Mascherano, due to a combination of heel-dragging and the club not really having enough money.

The simple truth is this though, until clubs start taking a hard line on players, players are going to have all the power. Take a look at the way Arsenal are holding all the cards in the Cesc Fabregas saga. Cesc would clearly like to go, Barca would clearly like him, but Arsenal have signed him to a big contract, and don’t need the money enough to need to sell him. Fabregas knows if kicked and screamed, Wenger could just not sell him anyway, and then not even pick him in the first team to show him what’s what.

Players know that clubs would be unhappy at having a player on their kind of wages, unhappy and benched (see also William Gallas supposed threats to Chelsea to “play badly” if they didn’t sell him to Arsenal), but if clubs want the power back, they should take a harder line.

Manchester City, naturally have a pretty lax attitude to all this. When Shaun Wright-Phillips demanded more money, they gave it to him. What they should have said was “we’re already paying you way beyond your ability, try finding that wage packet anywhere else”, and he would have course have had to back down.

In the case of Mascherano, Liverpool have called him Selfish, but a) why are they surprised, and b) can you really blame him for wanting to play for the most impressive side of the last few years?

In the case of Adebayour, he just wants to be out on the pitch, although he must have known signing for Man City he was hardly guaranteed a starting place forever. City should stand up and sell him, but of course they won’t.

Its time clubs started standing up for themselves. They created this monster, by chucking untold sums of players in the desperate pursuit of success. They could kill the monster, by just selling off players, or benching them for awhile until they lost the sulks. They’d feel better afterwards, I’m sure.

Category: EPL Ramblings Tags: Adebayour, Arsenal, Barcelona, Chelsea, club power, EPL Ramblings, Liverpool, Man City, Man United, Mascherano, Player Power, Roy Hodgson
« Fantasy Football Update: Week II | Home | Subscribe 

The Offside RSS Feeds

PrintShare.wp-notable img {border: none;margin-left:5px;}  Comments   |  Add your comment Julius. | August 27th, 2010 at 12:38 pm

Oh yeah the poor clubs… getting bullied from their players like this. What a shame.

Posted from Greece

Sairax | August 27th, 2010 at 12:51 pm

I’m not sure that this is talking about clubs getting bullied. Players have a certain expectation to respect their contract, I’m not sure why that’s considered hodling a player hostage. I agree that players have a right to move on, but surely there are better ways to handle a potential move. I think if a player only had a year left it would be much easier for a club to sell, but these examples given are players with pretty big contracts, hence the issues that arise. Players shouldn’t be forced to stay at a club if they are very unhappy with their situation, but I think that clubs deserve some more respect than this. They are paying that player’s wages after all.

Posted from United States

Leave a ReplyIf you have not commented here before, please take a moment to peruse our
Commenting Guidelines. Connect with your Facebook Account

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website

Follow Us

           

Where's the Revolution? Joe Hart: He's Really Quite Good Exclusive interview with Raphael Honigstein! more news...
Search The Offside

 




Related Links

Categories

10 Things We Learned5 Reasons WhyBig FourBloggersCarling CupClubsConfession BoxEngland National TeamEPL LegendsEPL NewsEPL RamblingsFA CupFantasy Premier LeagueFixtures and ResultsFlashbackHeroes and VilliansLiveblogManagerial Merry-Go-RoundPhoto of the DayPlayer AwardsPremier LeaguePromotionRelegationRewind: Weekly RoundupSecond ThoughtsTeam of the WeekTransfers and SpeculationUncategorized


Send Your Tips!

Found a great story, photo or video that's perfect for The Offside?
Email epl[at]theoffside[dot]com

LATEST COMMENTS

Sairax: I'm not sure that this is talking about clubs getting bullied. Players have a certain expectation to ... [read more]
Julius.: Oh yeah the poor clubs... getting bullied from their players like this. What a shame. Fantasy Football Update: Week II
gucci bags: nice City smash Liverpool or Its Too Early To Tell Anything
Drew: I always like to write down the prem table after the first week of fixtures and compare it to the la ... [read more] Fantasy Football Update: Week II
kabir: bring it on lassana diarra fc... Fantasy Football Update: Week II
Ethan Dean-Richards: I hate fantasy football. MY CAPTAIN Rooney, was injured. WHY DO THESE THINGS KEEP HAPPENING TO ME??? ... [read more] Your Rough Guide To The New Premier League Season
newgoing: Welcome to ---------------- http://www.newgoing.comWe are specialized in offering all kinds of top ... [read more] Flashback: Blackburn's Champions League misadventure
newgoing: Welcome to ---------------- http://www.newgoing.comWe are specialized in offering all kinds of top ... [read more] One of these will likely be the next Villa boss. But Which?
Hayle: nice blog :) have you seen this FKN funny video of an hilarious justin bieber fan getting angry? htt ... [read more] Aquilani and other greats who struggled in the Prem
Mens Sportswear: I was watching a highlights video of Veron's time in England a while ago and from that you would thi ... [read more]
Archives

Select Archive Month August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008

 About The Offside | Advertise on The Offside | Privacy Policy


Top Content: Football Match Tickets | Football Kits for Sale | English Premier League | Italian Serie A | Spanish La Liga | German Bundesliga | French Ligue 1 | Major League Soccer

Related information: Betting on Football | Travel to a Football Match | The DA - Football Humor | International Flights | Cheap Hotels Worldwide

© BootsnAll Travel Network - All rights reserved
EuropeEngland: PremiershipEngland: ChampionshipEngland: League One England: League Two FranceGermanyGreeceHollandItalyPolandPortugalRussiaScotlandSpainTurkeyAfricaEgyptTunisiaAustraliaSouth AmericaArgentinaBrazilColombia North AmericaMexicoMLSNPSLUSLWomen's SoccerCup CompetitionsChampions LeagueEuropa LeagueCopa LibertadoresCopa SudamericanaPlayersJozy AltidoreAlberto AquilaniDavid BeckhamGianluigi BuffonAntonio CassanoAlessandro Del PieroDaniele De RossiCesc FabregasSteven GerrardPippo InzaghiKakaLionel MessiMidoCristiano RonaldoRonaldinhoFrancesco TottiSoccer Betting  |  World Cup 2010
Plan Your Soccer Travels  |  Soccer TicketsClose X  Home    World    Europe     English Premier League   StoreTravelScores England: PremiershipEngland: ChampionshipEngland: League OneEngland: League TwoEngland: ConferenceFranceGermanyGreeceHollandItaly PolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaScotlandSpainTurkeyUkraineChampions League  |  Europa LeagueClose X