I don’t really want be the first person to cast a stone into the tranquil waters of the Solent where The Saints seem to be making plain sailing of The Championship this season but…
Was Nigel Atkins wearing a patch over his right eye down at Bristol City on Saturday?  From the moment Frazer Richardson skinned the City left back early in the first half, it was obvious that Southampton should be able to exploit the right flank.  Perhaps Nigel didn’t see this, or maybe he just doesn’t have the bottle to do a …

With the world of football still reeling from the weekend’s events, the attention of fans around the country shifts momentarily, if not fully, to the Carling Cup. A competition that in previous seasons has played second fiddle to various other cups dotted around the football calendar is now at the quarter final stage. Only this year, despite the inclusion of championship clubs Crystal Palace and Cardiff, the line up is perhaps the strongest in years. If all goes as it should do on paper alone, we will be left with …

A game rendered as meaningless as it was dull due to surrounding circumstances, Swansea City vs Aston Villa almost never went ahead at all. Still raw from the news of Gary Speed’s passing, the atmosphere of the game was tinged with grief and shock. A perfectly fitting if not perfectly orchestrated minute’s “silence” was observed before a game that only housed 6 attempts on target from either team.
Swansea looked the more solid outfit and were far more comfortable on the ball throughout; however it was the visitors that looked more …

The breaking news was both shocking and heart wrenching; as I write this I still feel partly numb as my sympathy lies with his young family.
Gary Speed was an original Premier League stalwart, notching up 535 Premiership appearances and scoring 81 goals in sixteen different seasons in the revamped top flight.
During his peak, which many would say he enjoyed in the black and white of Newcastle, he was one of the most recognisable faces in the game-at the time I first started to watch football. As a result of being …

After a difficult week for English clubs in the competition they once dominated, many eyebrows have been raised. With only Arsenal through to the further echelons of the Champion’s league with only one match left, and the other three clubs in no certain position by any stretch of the imagination, many are questioning the strength of the English game in comparison to their European rivals. But as I see it, there is no need to worry.
 In both the years of 2008 and 2009, English football had 3 teams in the …

It’s been three years since the FA first launched its RESPECT campaign; a drive to eliminate the abuse referees receive from players, managers and supporters. Yet there seems to be one group of people that get away with verbally slaughtering match officials every week. The sports commentators.
Game after game worth of commentary is broadcast on our televisions, through our radios and now via the internet every week. Not many of these will go without comments made about decisions made by the match officials. The FA RESPECT campaign has an agreement …

Arsene Wenger – Arsenal Manager since 1996

I did it My Way

As an Arsenal faithful for the past ten to eleven years, I can speak for Gooners, that their relationship with Wenger can be best described as “Patchy”..
Firstly, there is no doubt that Arsene Wenger has transformed Arsenal: the Football Club, and no matter, what he is an inseparable part of the legacy of the club. The high of his career is definitely the “Invincible” season, where Arsenal dominated the League and created history.

however recent past is more frustrating, 6 years …

In June 2003 Roman Abramovich rocked English football buy purchasing Chelsea FC – as a hobby, rather than a business investment. Over the past eight years he has invested millions of pounds in players, coaches, administrational staff and facilities; including a swanky new training complex in Cobham. However, if you look at the current state of Chelsea, I think it’s fair to say that they’re not going to compete for the title this season – and, unless major strategic changes take place, will struggle to do so in the near …

Fresh from their surprise 1-0 victory over the world champions, England take on Sweden tonight in what could prove to be a sterner test than they had on Saturday. There was little expectation on England to beat the Spanish, which allowed them to play a compact and defensive game, even though they were the home side. Tonight’s game is completely different, smarting from a victory over the world champions, expectations will be as high as ever, with public demand calling for a more expansive and attacking game.
 Sweden are a good footballing team …

The European Championships 2004. Ah, what a tournament. The Greeks told every single one of us that fairy tales can come true. They defeated France and Portugal along the route to triumph and won a major International tournament for the very first time as rank outsiders.
Unfortunately, what came with their ascent were the usual accusations of ‘ugly successes.’ They were criticised for playing a defensive game, for lacking ambition on one of the grandest stages of them all, even being accused of not deserving the title of European Championship winners, …