Everyone makes mistakes

By Simon Wright (Personal Piece)

THE gun goes off twice to indicate a false start and shock sweeps through the world.  The commentators scream in disbelief, millions of television viewers around the globe are left stunned into silence and over 60,000 spectators in the Daegu stadium in South Korea can’t quite believe what they have just seen.  The unflappable, likeable, cool Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt has just false started by miles.  The men’s 100m, expected to be a case of how fast Bolt will run has just been blown wide open.  Under the new, tight IAAF regulations, Bolt is disqualified.  He rips his Jamaican shirt off his torso, probably thinking why did I do that?  This incident alone yesterday just shows the point that everyone makes mistakes.

     Some people in life will claim that they’ve done nothing wrong, have no regrets in life and think they are absolutely perfect.  Hello, wake up and smell the coffee!!  Everyone has made an error of judgement before, no matter how big or small it is.  It’s life, ‘Pobody’s Nerfect!’

    

Mistakes can vary in sizes and form.  Here is a list of several potential examples;

• Someone making a bad career choice.  For example, thinking you can be a top chef and wreck Jamie Olivier’s career, only to realise that you can’t even cook microwave pizza and would never succeed in running a top London restaurant.  Oops!
• A drunken one-night stand, which many have probably done over the years.  Yes, it probably feels great when you have consumed gallons of tasty alcohol, but the next morning, it is bound to be a massive regret.  Plus, if you are in a secure relationship, the consequences are likely to be far more severe.  What were you thinking!
• Deciding to install a popular computer programme to continue competing with the technological times.  Hours later, your laptop simply won’t load up and nothing is backed up either.  Oh why oh why did I do that, I’m an idiot!
• As a football manager, making a bold tactical gamble to win a game, which you end up losing.  Don’t rub your hair furiously like Arsene Wenger!  Be a man and own up to your mistakes via the press.  Real-life or on Football Manager.  Yes, I totally lost the plot there!
• Getting home from the supermarket, unpack your shopping and think, oh nuts, I forgot to buy the crucial ingredient for dinner tonight.  With no money left, that chicken curry isn’t going to taste right now.  Don’t bother with Come Dine with me then, unless you want to be embarrassed.
• Getting out of your car, and putting the wrong type of petrol in!  Ah damn it; I knew it should have been unleaded fuel, not stupid diesel!  Oh no, that Mercedes car is going to pay for my clumsiness. 

Okay, it’s time to open up my closet of some of the daft errors/mistakes I’ve made down the years.  Those who know me must think I’m just an accident waiting to happen.

• Live streaming on illegal websites.  I know it’s dodgy, but when you begin, you think; ‘Ah, no problem, life’s all good.’  Then, when you check your latest anti-virus scan (like I did in April this year) and locate 272 potential deadly viruses, you realise, I made things far too critical.  I’ve learnt my lesson from that, but unfortunately – my current laptop probably will never recover from its previous healthy state.
• Aged 11 on my first foreign holiday in Lanzarote.  It’s December 30 and I see a Virtual Striker football machine.  Time to see if I can play for Brazil haha!  I start walking towards the games room, without realising there are a pair of glass doors in the way.  Ouch! That hurt and it did!  I tried brandy to cure the pain moments later.  Well, it eased the pain but then, I threw up at breakfast the next morning.  One alcoholic drink I must stay away from in future.
• I got mediocre AS level results, and saw the opportunity to go on a BTEC National Diploma Media Production course at Milton Keynes College.  Rather than go for it, I dither about it and by the time I want to go there, all places on the year’s course has gone.  I had to stick it out for another year at Radcliffe Secondary School, in the sixth form!  Wasn’t my smartest move, but luckily, it all turned out good and if I had gone a year earlier, I won’t have met my amazing friends on my journalism course at the University of Northampton.  Remember to put your career choices first before friend preference everybody!
• Saying things in the heat of the moment, when you think; ‘I’m right and you’re wrong, shut the #### up, I’m talking sense!’  Moments later, you think; ‘Why did I say that?’ and are forced to make a grovelling apology to the friend/colleague you just insulted.  It has happened to me time and again and is probably the one mistake I constantly make.  Fortunately, after another unsavoury incident earlier this year, I have managed to control this issue far greater.

     Of course, when you make a mistake, you must learn from the error of your ways and not do it again.    Like I said, no-one is perfect, we’ve all slipped up and we just have to accept the mistakes we’ve made and learn from them.  If you do, we become better people.  As we’ve seen from Usain Bolt in the last 24 hours and my own collection, hold your hands up and come back stronger.  It makes you stronger people.

20 years of the FA Premier League - Part 3

2002/03

HAVING ended the previous season empty-handed, Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United were determined for revenge in 2002/03 and they hunted Arsenal down successfully to regain the Premiership title.  It was their eighth success in 11 years.  Despite having broken the British transfer record to sign Rio Ferdinand from Leeds United for £30million; old frailties seemed to be around Ferguson’s team early in the season.  Bolton beat them at Old Trafford for the second successive season, with Leeds and Manchester City (in the last Manchester derby at Maine Road) also inflicting early season defeats.  Meanwhile, Arsenal and Liverpool both started the season in sensational fashion.  Liverpool went 12 games unbeaten at the start of the season, but then endured a miserable run in wintertime.  Gerard Houiller’s side went 11 games without a win, dropped to 7^th and saw their title challenge melt away.  However, Arsenal continued to fly, with Thierry Henry, Sylvain Wiltord and Robert Pires all in great form.  On March 2, they beat Charlton Athletic at Highbury 2-0 to extend their points advantage over Manchester United to eight points.  Gradually, United took bites out of the deficit, until they overhauled them before a Highbury face-off in mid-April.  Ruud Van Nistlerooy swung the Premiership pendulum United’s way with an early goal, but two Henry strikes in the opening moments of the second half turned the game around.  A free header from Ryan Giggs drew the sides level, before Sol Campbell was sent off controversially for an accidental elbow into the face of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.  The game finished 2-2, and injuries and suspensions took their toll on Wenger’s side.  Ten days later, they threw away a 2-0 lead to draw at Bolton and a week later, it was all over.  Marc Viduka’s 87^th minute winner was not only enough for Leeds to win 3-2 at Highbury and ensure Premiership football at Elland Road for another season, but give the title to one of their bitter rivals.  Newcastle United launched a brief title assault, with Sir Bobby Robson’s exciting young side finishing a creditable third.  Chelsea took the final Champions League spot on offer, as Claudio Ranieri penniless side won the £25million showdown with Liverpool on the final day of the season.  Little did we know of the drama and the new investment to enter West London that summer!  The stress of management was also shown as Glenn Roeder collapsed and was taken to hospital after West Ham beat Middlesbrough 1-0 on April 21.  Trevor Brooking took over the reins, but he couldn’t save his beloved club from shock relegation on the final day of the season.

CHAMPIONS: Manchester United, 2^nd: Arsenal 3^rd: Newcastle United, 4^th: Chelsea 5^th: Liverpool, 6^th: Blackburn Rovers, 7^th: Everton, 8^th; Southampton, 9^th: Manchester City, 10^th: Tottenham

RELEGATED: West Ham United, West Brom, Sunderland

BIGGEST WIN: West Brom 0-6 Liverpool (26 April 2003)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Manchester United 5-3 Newcastle United (23 November 2002), Newcastle United 2-6 Manchester United (12 April 2003), West Ham United 3-4 Leeds United (10 November 2002)

SCORERS: Van Nistlerooy (Manchester United) 25, Henry (Arsenal) 24, Beattie (Southampton) 23, Viduka (Leeds) 20, Owen (Liverpool) 19, Shearer (Newcastle) 17, Scholes (Manchester United) 14, Pires (Arsenal) 14, Anelka (Manchester City) 14, Zola (Chelsea) 14, Keane (Leeds & Tottenham) 14, Kewell (Leeds) 14, Sheringham (Tottenham) 12, Hasselbaink (Chelsea) 11, Radzinski (Everton) 11

2003/04

ONE team dominated the 2003/04 season and totally rewrote the football history books.  On Saturday May 15 2004, Arsenal beat Leicester City 2-1 to complete a truly remarkable feat.  Not since Preston North End in 1888 had this happened.  A team had gone unbeaten for an entire league season.  The Gunners record was; P38, W26, D12, L0.  Arsene Wenger had completed total football perfection.  The turning point of their season was an early showdown with Manchester United at Old Trafford.  The match was disappointing, finishing 0-0.  However, it exploded into life in the closing stages.  Already angered by Patrick Vieira’s dismissal, Arsenal were even more incensed when Diego Forlan went down in stoppage time under a Martin Keown challenge.  Ruud Van Nistlerooy, involved in the Vieira scuffle, hit the crossbar from the penalty, and then, all hell broke loose.  Eight players were charged, with six Gunners players getting up to 18 games in total of suspensions.  After that, Arsenal let their football do the talking, rather than the aggression they showed on that awful day.  Whilst the Gunners were achieving record after record, Chelsea began spending money almost as lavishly at Harrods.  Roman Abramovich bought the club from Ken Bates in June and gave the club fortunes to spend in the transfer market.  In came the likes of Wayne Bridge, Claude Makelele, Damien Duff, Glen Johnson and Adrian Mutu and in also came a new force in the Premiership reckoning.  Chelsea topped the table on merit at the end of November and finished second, their best finish in the league since winning in 1955.  Claudio Ranieri’s reward was the sack.  Manchester United finished a distant third in the table, hobbled by Rio Ferdinand’s eight month suspension he received before Christmas for missing a drugs test.  Amongst their shock defeats was a 1-0 loss away to newly promoted Wolves in January.  Both Liverpool and Newcastle United had very inconsistent seasons, although they just about managed to scrap it out for the final Champions League spot.  A run of four wins in a row towards the season’s end meant Liverpool finished in the coveted fourth position, but Gerard Houiller lost his job after an abject campaign which saw his side finish a mammoth 30 points behind the champions.  Many other established clubs had dismal seasons too.  Tottenham sacked Glenn Hoddle in September, were in the bottom three at the turn of the year and only finished 14^th, whilst Blackburn Rovers, Manchester City and Everton finished in the bottom six after dreadful seasons.  Worse befall Leeds United however.  Champions League semi-finalists three years earlier, Leeds were relegated as their financial mess imploded with more star players being sold and total disarray in the boardroom.  Leicester City and Wolves went straight back down too, but Portsmouth finished a very creditable 13^th in their first season back in the top flight.

CHAMPIONS: Arsenal, 2^nd: Chelsea 3^rd: Manchester United, 4^th: Liverpool 5^th: Newcastle United, 6^th: Aston Villa, 7^th: Charlton Athletic, 8^th; Bolton Wanderers, 9^th: Fulham, 10^th: Birmingham City

RELEGATED: Leicester City, Leeds United, Wolves

BIGGEST WIN: Portsmouth 6-1 Leeds United (8 November 2003)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Manchester City 6-2 Bolton Wanderers (18 October 2003), Tottenham Hotspur 4-4 Leicester City (22 February 2004), Middlesbrough 5-3 Birmingham City (21 March 2004)

SCORERS: Henry (Arsenal) 30, Shearer (Newcastle) 22, Saha (Fulham & Manchester United) 20, Van Nistlerooy (Manchester United) 20, Forssell (Birmingham) 17, Owen (Liverpool) 16, Angel (Aston Villa) 16, Yakubu (Portsmouth) 16, Anelka (Manchester City) 16, Pires (Arsenal) 14, Beattie (Southampton) 14, Keane (Tottenham) 14, Hasselbaink (Chelsea) 12, Ferdinand (Leicester) 12

2004/05

JOSE Mourinho was welcomed into the Premiership and his mission was simple; to deliver Chelsea their first championship in 50 years.  Along the way, he not only mastered the English game, but revolutionised Chelsea’s fortunes.  On Saturday April 30, the inspirational Frank Lampard scored twice to seal a 2-0 win at Bolton and complete Chelsea’s dream.  They became Premiership champions for the first time.  Not only that, but they rewrote the Premiership history books.  Mourinho’s men only conceded 18 goals all season, whilst new goalkeeper Petr Cech broke the record for the number of minutes he kept goal without conceding.  The Blues managed 95 points, won 27 games, which was the most ever in a 38-game season and lost only once (1-0 at Manchester City on October 16).  Blue really was the colour in 2004/05.  Established contenders Arsenal and Manchester United were forced to play second fiddle.  The Red Devils did manage to end Arsenal’s incredible unbeaten run at 49 games, after another bruising encounter between the two teams at Old Trafford ended 2-0 in United’s favour on October 24.  However, it was Arsenal who had the last laugh and finished second, ensuring automatic qualification for the Champions League.  Having sold star striker Wayne Rooney to Manchester United and been relegation favourites in pre-season, Everton defied all the critics to finish an outstanding fourth in the league, despite a humiliating 7-0 defeat at Arsenal towards the season’s end.  It meant that Everton beat Liverpool in the league table for the first time since 1987, although Rafa Benitez did mastermind an incredible Champions League triumph in his first season at the club.  A new manager became the new fashion this season too with Paul Sturrock (Southampton), Sir Bobby Robson (Newcastle), Gary Megson (West Brom) and Jacques Santini (Tottenham) among those to lose their jobs in the first three months of the season.  Graeme Souness was given the task of managing Newcastle, but he couldn’t stop an amazing incident in April, when two of his midfielders, Kieron Dyer and Lee Bowyer started fighting during a match at home to Aston Villa.  Both were sent off and banned and 14^th place was the final outcome.  At the bottom of the table, Norwich City, Southampton, Crystal Palace and West Brom got locked in an intense dogfight all season.  On ‘Survival Sunday,’ Norwich had their fate in their own hands, but lost 6-0 at Fulham and went straight back down.  Harry Redknapp failed to mastermind Southampton’s sorry season and their 27 year stay in the top flight was ended by a 1-2 loss at home to Manchester United.  West Brom beat Portsmouth 2-0 and a late Charlton equaliser from Jonathan Fortune at home to Crystal Palace was enough for the Baggies to stay up.  In doing so, West Brom became the first team ever to stay up in the Premiership, having been bottom of the table on Christmas Day.

CHAMPIONS: Chelsea, 2^nd: Arsenal 3^rd: Manchester United, 4^th: Everton 5^th: Liverpool, 6^th: Bolton Wanderers, 7^th: Middlesbrough, 8^th; Manchester City, 9^th: Tottenham, 10^th: Aston Villa

RELEGATED: Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Southampton

BIGGEST WIN: Arsenal 7-0 Everton (11 May 2005)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Tottenham Hotspur 4-5 Arsenal (13 November 2004), Arsenal 5-3 Middlesbrough (22 August 2004), Tottenham Hotspur 5-2 Everton (1 January 2005)

SCORERS: Henry (Arsenal) 25, Johnson (Crystal Palace) 21, Pires (Arsenal) 14, Lampard (Chelsea) 13, Hasselbaink (Middlesbrough) 13, Defoe (Tottenham) 13, Yakubu (Portsmouth) 13, Gudjohnsen (Chelsea) 12, Cole (Fulham) 12, Crouch (Southampton) 12, Rooney (Manchester United) 11, Cahill (Everton) 11, Fowler (Manchester City) 11, Keane (Tottenham) 11, Earnshaw (West Brom) 11

2005/06

FOR the second successive season, Chelsea totally dominated the Premiership, winning the league by eight points from nearest rivals, Manchester United.  At times, Chelsea had leads in the table as big as 15 points.  They were top of the league from the third week onwards, kept clean sheets in their first six Premiership games and never looked threatened.  They won the league in crowning style, on the penultimate weekend of the season.  Goals from William Gallas, Joe Cole and Ricardo Carvalho spearheaded Chelsea to a 3-0 win over Manchester United, which highlighted the gulfing class between the two sides.  Liverpool had a much better domestic campaign this time around, winning ten games in a row between October and December and achieving a similar run from March to May.  The Anfield club also gave Robbie Fowler an emotional return in January, when he signed from Manchester City.  Four goals in the season run-in earnt him an extra season on Merseyside.  Whilst Fowler continued, Alan Shearer retired at the end of the season.  Sadly, injury forced the decision prematurely three weeks earlier than anticipated, but his final involvement was scoring a penalty at the Stadium of Light against Tyneside rivals Sunderland.  Whilst Newcastle finished seventh in the table, Sunderland had a horrific campaign.  They wound up with 13 points, which for two seasons, was the worst total ever in Premiership history.  The Black Cats only managed three wins all season and sacked Mick McCarthy in March.  After walking out on Portsmouth a year earlier to manage bitter South Coast rivals Southampton, Harry Redknapp returned to Fratton Park, and ‘Harry Houdini’ inspired the club to an incredible run of form that kept them in the Premiership.  They were eight points adrift of safety in March, but two Pedro Mendes strikes against Manchester City were the catalyst for the dramatic upturn in fortunes.  Portsmouth’s revival meant Birmingham City were relegated, just two years after finishing in the top half of the league and West Brom also couldn’t hold onto their Premier League status.  After 93 years at Highbury, time ran out on the glorious stadium as Arsenal got prepared for life at their new home.  Plus, the new 60,000 capacity Emirates Stadium could welcome Champions League football after a dramatic final day.  For much of the season, a disastrous away record meant Arsenal trailed the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and newcomers Wigan Athletic in the table.  They went into the final day a single point behind Tottenham and fell 1-2 behind at home to Wigan on Highbury’s final day.  However, the King of Highbury, Thierry Henry, said farewell in the grand manner.  He scored a hat-trick to complete a 4-2 victory.  Dodgy food chef or not, Tottenham folded at Upton Park, losing 2-1 at West Ham, which meant they were pipped to the final Champions League spot right at the end of the campaign.   

CHAMPIONS: Chelsea, 2^nd: Manchester United 3^rd: Liverpool, 4^th: Arsenal 5^th: Tottenham, 6^th: Blackburn Rovers, 7^th: Newcastle United, 8^th; Bolton Wanderers, 9^th: West Ham United, 10^th: Wigan

RELEGATED: West Brom, Birmingham City, Sunderland

BIGGEST WIN: Arsenal 7-0 Middlesbrough (14 January 2006)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Blackburn Rovers 4-3 Manchester United (2 February 2006), Charlton Athletic 2-5 Manchester City (4 December 2005), Fulham 6-1 West Brom (12 February 2006)

SCORERS: Henry (Arsenal) 27, Van Nistlerooy (Manchester United) 21, Bent (Charlton) 18, Lampard (Chelsea) 16, Rooney (Manchester United) 16, Keane (Tottenham) 16, Harewood (West Ham) 14, Bellamy (Blackburn) 13, Yakubu (Middlesbrough) 13, Drogba (Chelsea) 12, Camara (Wigan) 12, Mido (Tottenham) 11, John (Fulham) 11, Gerrard (Liverpool) 10, Shearer (Newcastle) 10

2006/07

CHELSEA’s two year domination of the Premiership crown ended in 2006/07, as Manchester United became champions once again.  United secured the league title at the beginning of May, with a 1-0 win at Eastlands against goal shy Manchester City.  24 hours later, Khalid Boulahrouz was sent off and Chelsea failed to beat Arsenal at the Emirates, drawing 1-1.  This meant that Jose Mourinho’s team had to gracefully give up the title.  Manchester United were inspired by Cristiano Ronaldo, who finally began to show some consistent form at club level, which would make him one of the world’s best footballers in years to come.  Late winners away from home at Fulham and Liverpool on two successive Saturdays in springtime turned out to be very decisive for Sir Alex Ferguson’s team, despite a late slip-up against Portsmouth and a frustrating home draw with Middlesbrough.  Chelsea ended up drawing their last five matches, and tensions clearly were beginning to rise between owner and manager.  Jose Mourinho didn’t seem impressed with Roman Abramovich’s interference in purchasing both Michael Ballack and Andrei Shevchenko.  Neither player made a significant impact at Stamford Bridge.  Key injuries to the likes of John Terry and Petr Cech also had their effects on Chelsea’s season.  Liverpool edged out Arsenal by a single point, but both clubs had inconsistent campaigns.  There seemed to be positive news from Anfield in February, when George Gillett and Tom Hicks completed a deal to buy the club.  Sadly, the promises made by the pair of success and a new stadium were broken and dark days in the long-term faced the Anfield side.  The other big story of the season was West Ham’s controversial signings of Argentine pair Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano.  The club had broken Premier League third-party ownership regulations and the clubs fighting around them such as Sheffield United and Wigan Athletic were incensed when the Premier League decided on giving the Hammers a fine rather than a points deduction.  Alan Pardew was sacked in December by the new owners and Mascherano moved away from the controversy to sign for Liverpool.  However, Tevez scored a flurry of late season goals, which ultimately kept the Hammers, now managed by Alan Curbishley, up.  The great escape was completed by a last day victory at Old Trafford, with Tevez scoring the deciding goal again.  Wigan beat Sheffield United 2-1 at Bramwall Lane, which meant their Premiership adventure cruelly ended after one season back in the top flight.  Not only that, the deciding goal came from a David Unsworth penalty.  Unsworth had started the season as a Sheffield United player!  A similar fate of one season in the top flight befell Watford, whilst Charlton Athletic paid the price for sacking two managers and also were relegated. 

CHAMPIONS: Manchester United, 2^nd: Chelsea 3^rd: Liverpool, 4^th: Arsenal 5^th: Tottenham, 6^th: Everton, 7^th: Bolton Wanderers, 8^th; Reading, 9^th: Portsmouth, 10^th: Blackburn Rovers

RELEGATED: Sheffield United, Charlton Athletic, Watford

BIGGEST WIN: Reading 6-0 West Ham United (1 January 2007)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Arsenal 6-2 Blackburn Rovers (23 December 2006), West Ham United 3-4 Tottenham Hotspur (4 March 2007), Blackburn Rovers 4-2 Manchester City (17 September 2006)

SCORERS: Drogba (Chelsea) 20, McCarthy (Blackburn) 18, Ronaldo (Manchester United) 17, Rooney (Manchester United) 14, Viduka (Middlesbrough) 14, Doyle (Reading) 13, Bent (Charlton) 13, Kuyt (Liverpool) 12, Berbatov (Tottenham) 12, Yakubu (Middlesbrough) 12, Lampard (Chelsea) 11, Van Persie (Arsenal) 11, Anelka (Bolton) 11, Zamora (West Ham) 11, Johnson (Everton) 11

20 years of the FA Premier League - Part 2

1997/98

ARSENE Wenger’s first full season in English football ended with a fantastic league and cup double.  His acquisitions of pacy winger Marc Overmars and the dynamic Emmanuel Petit, combined with the brilliance of Dennis Bergkamp were the main reasons why Arsenal managed to break Manchester United’s stranglehold on the Premiership.  In fact, it looked like Manchester United could only throw the title away when Phil Neville struck his first senior goal to beat Chelsea 1-0 on February 28 at Stamford Bridge.  Some bookmakers began paying out after that result, but Arsenal had other ideas.  They overhauled the 11-point deficit, with the big breaker being Overmars sole goal to see off United at Old Trafford on March 14.  As Liverpool and Newcastle nicked draws at Old Trafford over the Easter period, Arsenal continued to fly, steamrolling both Blackburn Rovers and Wimbledon with consummate ease.  On May 3, another awesome display was enough.  The Gunners thrashed Everton at Highbury 4-0 to seal the title, with the icing on the cake coming from a magnificent Tony Adams volley in stoppage time.  The formidable backline and football flair meant that the ‘1-0 to the Arsenal’ chant was consigned to the history books.  Wenger leading them to their first championship in eight years and becoming the first foreign manager to achieve his dream of managing a Premiership side to title glory.  At times, Blackburn showed some of their old spark, beating Sheffield Wednesday 7-2 and Aston Villa 4-0 early in the season.  Chris Sutton ended the season as joint top scorer with 18 goals, but Roy Hodgson’s side faded badly in the finishing straight to sixth place.  Chelsea sensationally sacked Ruud Gullit in February whilst in second position, claiming they couldn’t meet the Dutchman’s demands over a new contract.  Gianluca Vialli was thrown into the job and although he guided the Blues to success in the League Cup and Cup Winners Cup, their league season capitulated, only losing one less game than relegated Bolton Wanderers.  Michael Owen joined Sutton and Coventry’s Dion Dublin at the top of the scorer’s charts and was a shining figure in another inconsistent season for Liverpool.  They finished 12 points behind the champions and it led to some major changes in the Anfield management for the following season.  Merseyside neighbours Everton had a nightmare campaign and going into the final games, were in the bottom three.  A nervy 1-1 draw at home to Coventry City was good enough for a last ditch survival, as Bolton lost 2-0 at Chelsea.  For the first and only time in Premiership history, all three promoted clubs (Bolton, Barnsley and Crystal Palace) went straight back down to Division One. 

CHAMPIONS: Arsenal, 2^nd: Manchester United, 3^rd: Liverpool, 4^th: Chelsea, 5^th: Leeds United, 6^th: Blackburn Rovers, 7^th: Aston Villa, 8^th; West Ham United, 9^th: Derby County, 10^th: Leicester City

RELEGATED: Bolton Wanderers, Barnsley, Crystal Palace

BIGGEST WIN: Manchester United 7-0 Barnsley (25 October 1997)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Blackburn Rovers 7-2 Sheffield Wednesday (25 August 1997), Wimbledon 2-6 Tottenham Hotspur (2 May 1998), Blackburn Rovers 5-3 Leicester City (28 February 1998)

TOP SCORERS: Owen (Liverpool) 18, Sutton (Blackburn) 18, Dublin (Coventry City) 18, Bergkamp (Arsenal) 16, Hasselbaink (Leeds) 16, Gallacher (Blackburn) 16, Cole (Manchester United) 15, Hartson (West Ham) 15, Huckerby (Coventry City) 14, Wanchope (Derby) 13, Overmars (Arsenal) 12

1998/99

THIS will be the season that will always be remembered for Manchester United’s historic treble.  In the Premiership, they were taken to the wire by Arsenal and were also pushed most of the way by the multi-millionaires from Chelsea.  It was gripping stuff on the last day, as Arsenal relied on a positive result from Old Trafford, which involved their deadly North London rivals, Tottenham.  For a while, it seemed positive for the defending champions, especially after Les Ferdinand put Tottenham in the lead midway through the first half.  However, his goal was cancelled out by David Beckham, before Andy Cole lobbed Ian Walker and finally silenced those critics who had portrayed him as the enemy for all those missed chances at West Ham on the final day of the 94/95 season.  Kanu’s winner at home to Aston Villa was not enough for Arsenal, with Arsene Wenger’s side falling one point short and ending gallant runners-up.  The deciding result was Arsenal conceding a late winner five days earlier to Leeds United and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink at Elland Road.  If they’d held on for a draw in that game, it would have been back-to-back titles for the North Londoners.  After last season’s disappointment, Alex Ferguson had spent big in the summer, acquiring Jaap Stam and Dwight Yorke.  With Yorke and Cole in perfect harmony upfront and scoring goals almost at freewill, the Red Devils remained unbeaten in the league after a 2-3 reverse at home to Middlesbrough before Christmas.  Chelsea came close, but fell away in the final hurdle.  The death knell for Gianluca Vialli’s team was a match against Leicester City in mid-April, where his side threw away a 2-0 lead and were eventually pegged back by a brilliant curling effort from Steve Guppy in stoppage time.  For a while, it looked like Aston Villa could maintain a sustained challenge under John Gregory.  Top at Christmas, things looked good, despite Stan Collymore being sidelined by stress!  However, they collapsed in the second half of the year, ending sixth and failing to even qualify for Europe.  They were pipped in the table by an ever improving Leeds United and West Ham United.  During the season, Leeds managed to win seven matches in a row in the top flight, equalling a record set by Don Revie’s great side of the 1970s.  It was a great effort from David O’Leary in his first season in charge, after George Graham moved to Tottenham in October, where he guided them to Worthington Cup glory, but little else.  There was a changing of the guard at Liverpool, as Gerard Houillier was appointed joint manager with Roy Evans in the summer.  It had ‘disaster’ written all over it and Evans quit in November.  Seventh place was their worst finish in five years, but Michael Owen was joint top scorer again.  It was worse for Blackburn Rovers, who slipped out of the FA Premier League.  Jack Walker could only watch on, as his beloved club were relegated along with Charlton Athletic and Nottingham Forest, just four years after being champions. 

CHAMPIONS: Manchester United, 2^nd: Arsenal, 3^rd: Chelsea, 4^th: Leeds United, 5^th: West Ham United, 6^th: Aston Villa, 7^th: Liverpool, 8^th; Derby County, 9^th: Middlesbrough, 10^th: Leicester City

RELEGATED: Charlton Athletic, Blackburn Rovers, Nottingham Forest

BIGGEST WIN: Nottingham Forest 1-8 Manchester United (6 February 1999)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Nottingham Forest 1-8 Manchester United (6 February 1999), Liverpool 7-1 Southampton (16 January 1999), Leicester City 2-6 Manchester United (16 January 1999)

SCORERS: Yorke (Manchester United) 18, Hasselbaink (Leeds) 18, Owen (Liverpool) 18, Cole (Manchester United) 17, Anelka (Arsenal) 17, Ricard (Middlesbrough) 15, Joachim (Aston Villa) 14, Fowler (Liverpool) 14, Shearer (Newcastle) 14, Dublin (Coventry & Aston Villa) 14, Zola (Chelsea) 13

1999/00

MANCHESTER United’s grip on the Premiership title continued in season 1999/2000 – coasting to the title, a mammoth 18 points clear of their nearest challengers.  Although Real Madrid were too strong in their Champions League defence and there was an embarrassing early exit from the FIFA World Club Championship in Brazil, Sir Alex Ferguson’s side swept all amongst them in this campaign, as their strength in depth showed throughout.  The champions only lost three games all season; one of those was a 5-0 battering at Stamford Bridge by Chelsea.  Chelsea, who had ran the established challengers close the previous campaign never recovered from a 2-3 defeat at the hands of Arsenal in October, when Kanu scored an incredible 17 minute hat-trick.  Fifth place was a poor finish and put Gianluca Vialli under pressure, although an FA Cup final victory at Wembley (a trophy Manchester United forfeited to play, due to their Brazil commitments) softened the blow.  If there was one team that pushed Manchester United the hardest, it was David O’Leary’s young guns, Leeds United.  Leeds topped the table at Christmas and gave Ferguson’s team some early season headaches, before a crucial defeat to United at home in February.  Tragedy would later befall the club in April, when two Leeds supporters were stabbed to death in Istanbul before their UEFA Cup semi-final with Galatasaray.  After the grief and shock, Leeds got over the finishing line and claimed the final Champions League place, ahead of Liverpool, who made a right old mess of their final matches and ended fourth, when second was theirs for the taking.  Once again, Arsenal finished runners-up, but lacked the consistency to mount any serious threat to their great rivals.  Daft away defeats to the likes of West Ham, Tottenham and Bradford exposed the Gunners frailties.  12 wins at home made Highfield Road a very formidable ground for Coventry City.  This meant that despite not winning a single match away from home all season, relegation never looked a significant problem for the Sky Blues.  It did for Newcastle early on, as Ruud Gullit was dismissed after losing out in a battle for supremacy with skipper Alan Shearer.  Bobby Robson returned home, reignited Shearer’s goalscoring form and guided them to comfortable mid-table security.  Among their highlights was an 8-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday on Robson’s home debut, with Shearer scoring five times.  At the bottom of the table, Watford went straight back down, although they did record memorable wins over Liverpool and Chelsea in the early weeks of the season.  Sheffield Wednesday sacked Danny Wilson in March and caretaker boss Peter Shreeves couldn’t keep them afloat.  The final relegation spot went down to the final day of the season.  David Wetherall’s fantastic header was enough for Bradford City to beat Liverpool 1-0 and keep them up.  Wimbledon lost 2-0 to Southampton.  They went down, ending their 14-year stay in the top flight, promoting unbridled joy at Valley Parade.

CHAMPIONS: Manchester United, 2^nd: Arsenal, 3^rd: Leeds United, 4^th: Liverpool 5^th: Chelsea, 6^th: Aston Villa, 7^th: Sunderland, 8^th; Leicester City, 9^th: West Ham United, 10^th: Tottenham

RELEGATED: Wimbledon, Sheffield Wednesday, Watford

BIGGEST WIN: Newcastle United 8-0 Sheffield Wednesday (19 September 1999)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: West Ham United 5-4 Bradford City (12 February 2000), Tottenham Hotspur 7-2 Southampton (11 March 2000), Bradford City 4-4 Derby County (19 April 2000)

SCORERS: Phillips (Sunderland) 30, Shearer (Newcastle) 23, Yorke (Manchester United) 20, Cole (Manchester United) 19, Bridges (Leeds) 19, Henry (Arsenal) 17, Di Canio (West Ham) 16, Armstrong (Tottenham) 14, Quinn (Sunderland) 14, Iversen (Tottenham) 14, Pahars (Southampton) 13

2000/01

ONCE again, Manchester United’s supreme class shone through, as they took their third successive Premiership title.  Their final margin of victory by ten points over Arsenal flattered the Gunners, as Sir Alex Ferguson side were miles ahead of the competition again.  This was no more evident when they played Arsenal on 25 February.  They were 5-1 up inside half an hour, eventually winning 6-1.  The crushing result took them 16 points clear of Arsene Wenger’s side.  They secured the title on Easter Saturday, with a 4-2 victory over Coventry City in a lunchtime kick-off.  Hours later, any mathematical hope Arsenal had of launching a sensational comeback were ended in a shock 3-0 loss at home to Middlesbrough, not helped by two own goals in the match.  It was a great season for Liverpool, who began to blossom under Gerard Houiller’s stewardship.  They won an incredible treble of cup competitions (UEFA Cup, Worthington Cup and FA Cup).  Not only that, but an impressive 4-0 demolition of Charlton Athletic on the final day of the season ensured Champions League qualification for the first time since the Heysel stadium disaster of 1985; a fitting reward for the club.  The season will also be remembered for a fantastic league double over the league champions Manchester United for the first time in 11 years.  Chelsea won the Charity Shield, but made a depressingly slow start to the season and dispensed with the services of Gianluca Vialli at the beginning of September.  The relatively unheard Claudio Ranieri came into the hotseat.  Ranieri got the tag of ‘The Tinkerman,’ but he managed to bring the team upto sixth position in the final standings, with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink returning to the Premiership after an unhappy season in Spain, and ending as the league’s top scorer.  Manager of the season however was George Burley.  The Scotsman, on a limited budget took his Ipswich Town side to a hugely impressive fifth position in their first season back in the top flight.  Marcus Stewart scored 19 league goals as the Tractor Boys came within a whisker of Champions League qualification.  Another side that impressed were Sunderland, with Peter Reid’s side holding down a genuine second position in January, before coming seventh for the second successive season.  Southampton bid an emotional farewell to The Dell at the end of the season after 103 years.  Despite manager Glenn Hoddle walking out on them for the Tottenham job in March, the Saints finished life at the old ground on a high, with Matt Le Tissier scoring an 89^th minute winner on the final day against Arsenal.  Another Premiership stalwart lost their status, as Coventry City finally got consigned to relegation after 34 years in the top flight.  They went down after a 3-2 defeat at Aston Villa in May with Manchester City and Bradford City also going down.

CHAMPIONS: Manchester United, 2^nd: Arsenal, 3^rd: Liverpool, 4^th: Leeds United 5^th: Ipswich Town, 6^th: Chelsea, 7^th: Sunderland, 8^th; Aston Villa, 9^th: Charlton Athletic, 10^th: Southampton

RELEGATED: Manchester City, Coventry City, Bradford City

BIGGEST WIN: Manchester United 6-0 Bradford City (5 September 2000)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Arsenal 5-3 Charlton Athletic (26 August 2000), Chelsea 6-1 Coventry City (22 October 2000), Leeds United 4-3 Liverpool (4 November 2000)

SCORERS: Hasselbaink (Chelsea) 23, Stewart (Ipswich) 19, Henry (Arsenal) 17, Viduka (Leeds) 17, Owen (Liverpool) 16, Sheringham (Manchester United) 15, Heskey (Liverpool) 14, Phillips (Sunderland) 14, Boksic (Middlesbrough) 12, Smith (Leeds) 11, Poyet (Chelsea) 11

2001/02

AFTER eight loyal seasons, brewery giant Carling was replaced as title sponsors by Barclaycard.  With the change came a gripping scrap for the title between Manchester United, Newcastle United, Leeds United, Liverpool and Arsenal.  Leeds and Newcastle set the pace in the early weeks, with Manchester United struggling to integrate Juan Sebastian Veron and Ruud van Nistlerooy into their squad.  They did produce an epic comeback, from 3-0 down at half-time in September to Tottenham, storming back to win 5-3 but after a 0-1 reverse at home to West Ham in December, Sir Alex Ferguson’s team were 9^th in the table, 11 points off the pace.  Cue a historic scoring run from Van Nistlerooy, with the Dutchman becoming the first player to score in eight successive Premiership matches, as the champions charged to the top of the table.  However, Arsenal looked in even better form, staying unbeaten away from home all season and scoring in every single FA Barclaycard Premiership game.  The crunch match came on May 8, where Sylvain Wiltord’s second half winner sealed Arsenal’s second Premiership title at Old Trafford.  To take the championship away in the backyard of their main rivals just made the success all the sweeter for Arsene Wenger.  On top of that, they achieved the league and cup double and Thierry Henry edged out Van Nistlerooy and Alan Shearer to win the Golden Boot for the first time.  Worse was to come for Manchester United, as they finished out of the top two for the first time in Premiership history.  Liverpool’s 5-0 final day victory over Ipswich Town sealed runners-up spot for the Reds, despite losing manager Gerard Houillier to a serious heart scare at half-time of a match with Leeds United on October 13.  Phil Thompson did a brilliant job in caretaker charge, including inspiring the men from Merseyside to another league double over Manchester United.  Liverpool’s final day victory also meant Ipswich had to deal with relegation, just a season after finishing fifth and earning UEFA Cup qualification.  It was a terrible year for the East Midlands, with both Derby County and Leicester City changing managers as many times as hot dinners and both ended up being relegated.  This meant that for the first time in Premiership history, the three promoted clubs all managed to stay up.  Fulham were welcomed into the Barclaycard Premiership family and comfortably stayed up, as did Bolton Wanderers.  Bolton even topped the table after three matches, which included a shock win against Liverpool.  After two seasons away, Blackburn returned too and finished a creditable tenth.  Graeme Souness bought Andy Cole from Manchester United at Christmas, inspired his team to a 7-1 demolition of West Ham along the way and also earnt European football, via their triumph in the Worthington Cup final. 

CHAMPIONS: Arsenal, 2^nd: Liverpool 3^rd: Manchester United, 4^th: Newcastle United 5^th: Leeds United, 6^th: Chelsea, 7^th: West Ham United, 8^th; Aston Villa, 9^th: Tottenham, 10^th: Blackburn Rovers

RELEGATED: Ipswich Town, Derby County, Leicester City

BIGGEST WIN: Blackburn Rovers 7-1 West Ham United (14 October 2001)

HIGHEST SCORING GAMES: Tottenham Hotspur 3-5 Manchester United (29 September 2001), Charlton Athletic 4-4 West Ham United (19 November 2001), West Ham United 3-5 Manchester United (17 March 2002)

SCORERS: Henry (Arsenal) 24, Van Nistlerooy (Manchester United) 23, Shearer (Newcastle) 23, Hasselbaink (Chelsea) 23, Owen (Liverpool) 19, Solskjaer (Manchester United) 17, Fowler (Liverpool & Leeds) 15, Gudjohnsen (Chelsea) 14, Pahars (Southampton) 14, Cole (Manchester United & Blackburn) 13, Ljungberg (Arsenal) 12, Ricketts (Bolton) 12, Angel (Aston Villa) 12 

FA Barclays Premiership Report (18th - 19th September)

The Barclays Premiership’s latest round of action served up another stroll for the champions, another failed test by the North London perennial underachievers and a surprising hat-trick from a misfiring striker who once did cost £30million!

Sunday 19^th September: Manchester United 3-2 Liverpool

A sensational hat-trick from Bulgarian misfit Dimitar Berbatov earnt Manchester United a priceless and deserved victory over Liverpool at Old Trafford.  United dominated the game for large periods, yet were grateful for Berbatov’s contribution, after they had once again, thrown away a two-goal advantage.  Berbatov’s first goal came four minutes from the interval, marching infront of a sleeping Fernando Torres to power the Red Devils infront.  His second goal was pure genius.  Under pressure from Martin Skrtel and with his back to goal, the Bulgarian produced a dynamic scissor kick, which left Pepe Reina stranded, via the underside of his crossbar.  Liverpool’s captain Steven Gerrard dragged his side back into the contest, with two goals in six minutes.  First, via the penalty spot, after the lacklustre Torres was tripped by Jonny Evans.  His second was a brilliant placed free-kick, taking full advantage of Darren Fletcher leaving a wide gap in the United goal.  A totally undeserving point for Liverpool was snatched away when Berbatov beat Jamie Carragher to John O’Shea cross and headed a dramatic winner past the despairing Reina.  The right result for sure, but Sir Alex Ferguson will still be annoyed that his side keep throwing away big leads so far this season.

Saturday 18^th September: Sunderland 1-1 Arsenal

Some dodgy refereeing cost Arsenal two valuable points at the Stadium of Light, though once again, Arsene Wenger’s side lost a great opportunity to put further pressure on Chelsea.  A fluke opener from Cesc Fabregas had the Gunners infront, when he charged down a dithering clearance from the sloppy Anton Ferdinand.  Alex Song was harshly dismissed early in the second half for two debatable yellow cards, but Arsenal had chance after chance to put the home side away.  Fabregas limped off with a hamstring injury, and then Tomas Rosicky whacked a penalty on the hour mark onto the crossbar and over.  With almost the last kick, substitute Asamoah Gyan caused chaos in the Arsenal defence and as they failed to deal with a dangerous ball into the box, Darren Bent pounced to earn an excellent point for Steve Bruce’s side.  Sarcastic comments towards fourth official Martin Atkinson earnt Wenger a one-match touchline ban and £8,000 fine.  All in all, this was a very costly evening on Wearside for the North Londoners.

Sunday 19^th September: Chelsea 4-0 Blackpool

Blackpool’s tremendous start to Premiership life took a hit, as they were no match for Carlo Ancelotti’s champions, who enjoyed another Sunday afternoon stroll at Stamford Bridge.  Once Salomon Kalou had Chelsea infront after only 90 seconds, the result was never in doubt.  In fact, all the goals came in the first half, with Didier Drogba and two more goals from the impressive Florent Malouda wrapping up proceedings.  The second half was simply a training exercise.

 

Saturday 18^th September: Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Wolves

Despite bossing proceedings at White Hart Lane, Spurs left it very late to beat a brave and well-organised Wolves outfit.  When Steven Fletcher tapped in from close range on the stroke of half-time, it looked like Tottenham’s inconsistent start to the domestic campaign looked set to continue.  However, inspired by new signing Rafael van der Vaart, they scored three goals in the last fifteen minutes.  Van der Vaart’s drew the home side level from the penalty spot, before subs Roman Pavyluchenko and right-back Alan Hutton, via a freaky clearance put the seal on the match in the last five minutes.  The result moves Harry Redknapp’s team into the Premiership top five.

Saturday 18^th September: West Brom 3-1 Birmingham City

An impressive second half display from the Baggies saw West Brom inflict a surprising first defeat on Birmingham City this season in this local grudge match.  The visitors were in complete control in the first half, and led through Cameron Jerome’s close range finish.  However, some inspired words from Roberto di Matteo in the changing room, coupled with elementary errors in the Birmingham backline drove on the fightback for the Albion.  The comeback began through an own goal by defender Scott Dann, who deflected in Jerome Thomas’s driven cross.  Nigerian Peter Odemwingie then pounced on a rare error from Ben Foster to give West Brom the lead and as they continued to pour forward, Jonas Olsson completed the scoring, heading in Chris Brunt’s corner.

Saturday 18^th September: Everton 0-1 Newcastle United

Everton are still looking for their first win of the season, after they played poorly and lost to a well-organised Newcastle outfit.  A brilliant strike from the temperamental Hatem Ben Afra in the first half was the difference between the teams on Merseyside.

Sunday 19^th September: Wigan Athletic 0-2 Manchester City

At a rain-soaked DW Stadium, Wigan produced another top-class defensive performance which would be better suited to a primary school pitch.  Unsurprisingly then, Manchester City left with all three points, with a comfortable, if not spectacular performance.  Carlos Tevez and Yaya Toure were the scorers who accepted the charity offered to him.  This was an important result for Roberto Mancini, as he looks to turn his superstars into a well-drilled outfit.

Saturday 18^th September: Aston Villa 1-1 Bolton Wanderers

Kevin McDonald’s final game in caretaker charge of Aston Villa saw his side pick up a point at home to an ever-improving Bolton.  With new manager Gerard Houillier and assistant Gary McAllister watching on in the stand, McDonald wanted to sign off on a high and it looked like that would happen, when Ashley Young curled in a brilliant free-kick.  Young’s celebration, which saw all of his team-mates run straight to the temporary gaffer, shows how much unity they still have, despite a testing start.  Kevin Davies scored his 100^th career goal just before half-time to earn a share of the spoils.

Saturday 18^th September: Stoke City 1-1 West Ham United

Despite missing the presence of Avram Grant, who was observing the Jewish holy day Yom Kippur, West Ham earnt their first point of a trying season, with a battling draw at Stoke City.  Scott Parker capitalised on some iffy defending from the home side to put the Hammers infront.  Stoke levelled in the second half, when Robert Green’s World Cup hangover continued, missing a Matthew Etherington cross, that allowed Kenwyne Jones to head home into an unguarded net.  Despite Robert Huth and Ricardo Fuller hitting the woodwork, the Hammers deserved their draw.

Saturday 18^th September: Blackburn Rovers 1-1 Fulham

A return to Ewood Park for Mark Hughes saw the honours shared between Blackburn and Fulham.  Christopher Samba headed Blackburn into the lead, but only after El-Hadji Diouf deliberately fouled Mark Schwarzer in the build-up, leaving Hughes incensed.  The Cottagers edged the second half and deserved their point, coming through a Clint Dempsey header.

UEFA Champions League 1st Leg Review - Still All In The Balance

Europe’s premier club competition returned over the past fortnight and the eight ties remain all firmly open in the balance.  No clear-cut winners and for the remaining triumvirate of English sides left in the UEFA Champions League, it was a mixed bag.

Premiership leaders Chelsea came up against an old friend in the San Siro.  After all the mind games and the frenzied build-up, Jose Mourinho got one over Carlo Ancelotti, as Inter Milan take a 2-1 lead back to Stamford Bridge for the rerun in three weeks time.  Crucially, Salomon Kalou’s away goal gives the Londoners a major say in the second leg.  It was a night of misfortune for Chelsea in Milan, with the damaging loss to goalkeeper Petr Cech a possible severe implication for the rest of their European and domestic campaign.  Cech went down unchallenged midway through the second half, with the initial diagnosis a possible cruciate ligament injury.  Though, not in the best form of his career, his impact among the Chelsea backline will be severely missed if the extent of the injury is confirmed as feared.  Kalou may have scored, but was also denied a certain penalty when shoved over by experienced Argentine Walter Samuel when clear in on goal.  Despite the setback of losing, Chelsea will still fancy their chances at the Bridge, but may need more than one goal to see off the ‘Special One.’

A week earlier, Manchester United had a fantastic result in the San Siro themselves, overcoming AC Milan 3-2, even if their performance wasn’t the best.  Wayne Rooney is in the form of his career, with two more crucial headers giving Sir Alex Ferguson’s side a massive advantage to take back to Old Trafford.  At times, Milan outfoxed United, with their clever movements, but their frontline, particularly Pato were extremely wasteful infront of goal.  Both Ronaldinho and an emotional David Beckham (for obvious reasons) played their part and rolled back the years with some of their silky touches.  However, like many in the side, their legs ran out of gas and United took full advantage of their fatigue in the second half.  It will be incredibly tough for Leonardo’s Serie A oldies to turn around this deficit at the Theatre of Dreams.

For Arsenal, it was a very frustrating and flapping night in Portugal.  Schoolboy defending and horrific goalkeeping led to their downfall in the Dragao, as FC Porto take a 2-1 advantage back to the Emirates.  Granted, Arsenal played well and shouldn’t have much trouble in the return, against the 2004 winners, but what can’t be hidden was Lukasz Fabianksi’s sloppy handling, which led to both goals.  The second Porto goal was nothing sort of a sketch more likely to be seen on the Armstrong & Miller show.  Although the referee didn’t cover himself in glory, by blocking Sol Campbell during the indirect free-kick process, Arsenal’s lethargic attitude to get back, coupled with Fabianski’s inability to read the UEFA Basic Football Rules Handbook meant Porto were always going to be onto a winner.  Arsene Wenger may have tried to find excuses as usual, in his post-match interview, but the infallibilities cannot be disguised in this situation.

Elsewhere in Europe, favourites and holders Barcelona’s erratic form in this season’s competition continued.  They were lucky to escape from VFB Stuttgart with a 1-1 draw.  Bitter rivals Real Madrid did even worse.  Even Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo had off-nights in their 1-0 loss at their bogey side Lyon, beaten by a wonderful solo effort from Jean Makoun.  Bayern Munich needed a shambolic linesman decision to beat Fiorentina 2-1 in Germany, deciding that Miroslav Klose was onside, when he was standing at least five yards offside.  Finally, keep an eye out on Bordeaux, who recorded an impressive 1-0 success in Greece against Olympiakos.  After almost surreal progress from a tough-looking group, including Bayern and Juventus, no-one will want to meet Laurent Blanc’s inform side in the latter stages, providing they finish off the job in France in the second leg.

It is all open and nothing is assured, the road to Madrid has firmly begun but in this season’s UEFA Champions League, anything is possible, anything.   

Arsenal - Are They The Most Frustrating Side In The Premiership?

This blog was first published on February 8th at http://happydude88.livejournal.com/

 

It’s an interesting question which Arsenal fans probably have difficulty answering themselves, but I would have to say ‘yes,’ if I was asked this.

The Gunners have gone five seasons without silverware, since the 2005 FA Cup Final and yesterday’s 2-0 Premiership loss at title rivals and bitter adversaries, Chelsea have left Arsene Wenger’s men nine points off the top and with little hope of winning the major domestic prize. Three weeks ago, Arsenal topped the table, but why have they fallen off the pace so soon afterwards.

The simplest answer is the style of football that the North London side play. Although it is electrifying, stunning to watch, almost undoubtedly the best in the league, this style does not win you trophies. Holland’s total football approach in Euro 2008 deserved more than a quarter-final berth, but when up against it, they couldn’t produce the goods and Arsenal is the domestic example of the Dutch.

Fluent going forward is a joy to watch, but it’s no good smashing teams like Blackburn, Bolton and Hull to the cleaners, if you can’t grind out results against the ultimate title rivals. Arsenal’s record against the leading lights this season is appalling. Two defeats against Chelsea, two losses against Manchester United, a 4-2 reverse at Manchester City and dropped points at home to Everton. All very costly results and apart from a gritty second half display at Anfield, which saw them overcome an inconsistent Liverpool pre-xmas, the results against the current top six have been terrible. It seems like they can only play one style of football, so when they meet Chelsea and Manchester United, those teams will cut Arsenal to the sword with devilish counter-attacking, which Arsenal can’t do.

The lack of firepower in these games also can’t be overlooked. The devastating injury to Robin Van Persie on international duty in the autumn has been a massive loss to the striker frontline. Nikolas Bendtner has also had his injury issues this season and Eduardo does not look the same player he was before his horror leg-breaking injury at Birmingham two years ago. It leaves Wenger with limited options up top and it was very surprising he didn’t bring someone in during the recent January transfer window – even if they were cup-tied from participation in the Champions League.

What was even more curious is Wenger’s decision yesterday to play Theo Walcott, who looks a pale shadow of the star who stunned Croatia with a sublime hat-trick in Zagreb 18 months ago. Walcott has had a catalyst of injuries since then, and every time I’ve seen him, he looks like he is getting worse, not better. He is still very young, but naivety has surely cost him the chance of going to South Africa this summer. A loan move might be best to restart his career. Arsenal’s goalkeeper, Manuel Almunia continued to look unsteady and insecure yesterday. The Spaniard is by far, the worst goalkeeper in the Premiership, and that’s something that needs to be re-addressed as soon as possible. Even if this means, giving Almunia a break to regain his shattered confidence. The form of Belgian Thomas Vermaelen and Cesc Fabregas have been key to Arsenal’s global brand of attractive football, but more underachieving begs the question to whether Fabregas would stay at the Emirates much longer. He is the new golden boy of Spanish football and Barcelona + Real Madrid would surely be interested in his services should Arsenal fail to deliver the success he desperately craves.

Finally, why did Wenger put out an under-strength side in the FA Cup tie at Stoke two weeks ago? The FA Cup was a great chance to win silverware, with Manchester United and Liverpool already eliminated. Instead, he gambled on a young side that flopped under Stoke’s physical prowess and the demanding fixture schedule of tough games. One point from three matches and a steadily improving Liverpool to come on Wednesday suggest this gamble has backfired badly.

Wednesday night is now a crunch game for Arsenal at home to Liverpool, as is the Champions League test against FC Porto in ten days time. Arsene Wenger is under no danger regarding his job, but things need to change and a reduction in excuses is required for this side of young starlets to end up with any silverware at all. Arsenal FC is a frustrating side to watch, because you don’t what you are going to get. The question is, can they change to win trophies?