Real Madrid is the world’s richest football club, for the fifth year running. The rich are indeed getting richer. Despite the global economic recession, Madrid became the first team in any sport to report revenue of euro400 million (around R4 billion). Guess the euro 250 million-odd they loaned to buy Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso, amongst [...]
Continue reading...26. February 2010
Until now, all the talk has centred around the battle between Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa. But with back-to-back wins against the Premier League leaders Chelsea and Manchester United, Everton have popped up in eighth place. It sounds a long way from the top, but they sit just eight points away from fourth. The [...]
Continue reading...19. February 2010
Writing this from Barcelona, Spain means I’ve had the chance to experience the Spanish coastal city for most of this week. FC Barcelona were playing Atletico Madrid on Sunday evening, and besides pretty much nothing being open, everywhere you looked people were wearing replica kit, “FC Botiga” scarves and the like. The people of Barcelona love walking. [...]
Continue reading...5. February 2010
Why does the Confederation of African Football (CAF) have to try copy everything done elsewhere in the world? Sure, the African Cup of Nations is not the only copy - all continents have a bi-annual championship. But the CAF Champions League? Do you even know it exists? Do you know who won the competition last year? (it [...]
Continue reading...29. January 2010
Perhaps Liverpool’s owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks have a point in their belief that players bought in the January transfer window are habitually overpriced. Despite the constraints rumoured to be placed on Rafa Benitez where he is restricted to only making loan signings, the club’s official position is that it would rather save the income [...]
Continue reading...22. January 2010
Spare a thought for Hammers supporters, who’ve had to endure a tough few months. Thanks to the catastrophic collapse of Iceland’s banking sector, Björgólfur Guðmundsson - the “billionaire” (on paper at least) owner of West Ham found he actually had very little money left, as creditors seized the club’s holding company (and those banks he owned).
Continue reading...15. January 2010
Its not often I agree with Sir Alex Ferguson. Especially his opinions regarding referees and injury time, which have become a regular feature of the League this year. But, at last SAF has spoken some sense. He has called for the Premier League to introduce a “winter” break. The idea is compelling. Pause the season for a [...]
Continue reading...8. January 2010
It was pure magic. Relived after a decade of pretty much nothing but disappointment. This column was set to take a step back and look at the shape of the English Premier League after reaching the halfway mark during the last week. But there I was. Sitting in a Rosebank “sports pub” that insists on playing adult [...]
Continue reading...18. December 2009
So, who will be relegated from the English Premier League? The picture is now a lot clearer as we edge to roughly halfway through the season. A total of 38 games to play, and most teams are one or two matches shy of the halfway point. Everyone is gunning to finish in the top 17. The [...]
Continue reading...11. December 2009
For the past four or five seasons, we’ve spoken about the “Big Four”. Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool - in whatever order - had dominated the Premier League. And, despite Liverpool’s disastrous start to the season, indications are that by the business end of the League in March, normal service will resume. There are a number [...]
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5. March 2010
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