MOURINHO & van GAAL - BIRDS OF A FEATHER.

A couple of weeks ago, the self-appointed 'Special One' was sacked by Chelsea. Jose Mourinho, a man whose opinion of himself knows no bounds, proved pathetically unable to cope with a few defeats and re-energise a team which had been hugely successful only a few short months ago. While his team of overpaid prima donnas failed to live up to their earlier standards, Mourinho thrashed around, blaming everyone except himself - the team doctor, the referees, the media and the players. Nowhere was there the slightest indication that Mourinho, himself, may have shouldered at least some of the responsibility for his team's decline.

In the end, it was all more that Chelsea's owner, Roman Abramovich, could take and he wielded the axe. In truth, no one should have been particularly surprised at Mourinho's failure as his managerial career has not been quite the success he has made it out to be. In 15 years, he's had 7 jobs, his longest spell in charge at any one club being little more than 3 years. Since leaving Porto in 2004, he has relied on the effective patronage of wealthy clubs - Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid - and it may well be argued that his successes have been due as much to the willingness of such clubs to bring in expensive 'superstars' as to any innate ability of Mourinho as a manger. Quite clearly, he has now shown that he is incapable of managing in a more testing environment and was quite unable to galvanise his Chelsea players.

Astonishingly, Mourinho's blatant short-comings may well be ignored by the management of another major club, Manchester United. Eighteen months ago, the 'Red Devils' appointed another arrogant and highly opinionated foreigner as their new manager. Louis van Gaal arrived at Old Trafford lauded as a great manager and just the man to restore United's fortunes. Eighteen months on, van Gaal is also on the point of exiting from his job, another expensive mistake. Whatever tactical ability he may possess, van Gaal has, just like Mourinho, proved incapable of motivating his players and now seems to have lost their confidence altogether; like Mourinho, van Gaal has entered into 'spats' with the media though he's been less willing to criticise his players than was the 'Special One'.

Now, with van Gaal's job hanging by a thread and Mourinho 'available', the talk is that the Portuguese is in the frame to take over from the Dutchman at Old Trafford. Why would any one wish to replace one failed 'man manager' with another ? In common with most modern football managers, at least in the upper echelons of the game, both Mourinho and van Gaal have moved jobs frequently, ensuring that they never became associated with persistent failure and always left successful clubs before the inevitable decline set in. Neither has been called upon to manage a club with problems for any length of time.

Neither of these arrogant men has really demonstrated any great managerial ability, other than Mourinho's success, years ago, at Porto, and van Gaal's at Ajax, in the 1990s; since these episodes, both men have lived on their reputations and the wealth of super-rich clubs. Real managers are those who build teams without vast resources and extract the maximum, and more, from 'ordinary' players. Claudio Ranieri at Leicester, Quique Sanchez Flores at Watford; Tony Pulis wherever he goes, Mark Hughes - these are fine managers. Give me any one of them ahead of any number of Mourinhos and van Gaals.

FIFA WORLD CUP TURMOIL.

So Sepp Blatter has gone, or has he ?

Following the revelations of scandal at FIFA, it's President, Sepp Blatter, finally announced that he'd step down from his post as soon as a new President could be elected. However, he will remain in office until that time and will continue to oversee FIFA's activities and, no doubt, continue to obstruct investigations.

While this has to be good news of a sort, Blatter also made clear that organising a special conference to elect a new boss will take some time, many months in fact. It's perfectly possible that Blatter will still be in office as we approach Easter next year and, if he is, who is to say that he won't find some new way to hang on to power ? There are stories which suggest that he is now being investigated by the FBI and others, but nothing concrete has yet been revealed.

Information given to the investigating authorities has certainly indicated that FIFA has been corrupt for many years and, almost certainly, throughout Blatter's reign. It seems probable that the award of the 2010 tournament to South Africa was tainted and there remain strong suspicions that the 2018 award to Russia and 2022 award to Qatar are also debatable. One FIFA official has now said that either or both of these future tournaments could be cancelled and re-awarded if wrong-doing is proven.

But Blatter is still there, pulling the strings. By the time he is finally shown the door, he may well have been able to delay actions sufficiently at least to prevent any change in the 2018 tournament; as for 2022 in Qatar, that one may well be dead in the water, though only time will tell. Waiting in the wings is the English FA, champing at the bit and desperate to bring the tournament to the UK. Where will it all end ?

BLATTER STILL AT THE HELM

So the representatives of football associations from Africa, Asia and various other parts of the 'third world' have decided to re-elect the totally discredited Sepp Blatter as President of FIFA. Most of the civilised world voted against him but were outnumbered by those who have benefited most from Blatter's largesse over the years.

That so many nations felt it was acceptable to simply ignore the corruption which Blatter has so signally failed to deal with over the last 17 years is terrifying. That Blatter, rather than accept his organisation's shortcomings, has accused the United States authorities and UEFA of being the real 'bad boys', is shocking. According to him, the FBI and UEFA are simply carrying out their own hate campaigns and vendettas against him and FIFA, for reasons of their own.

Blatter is a disgrace. FIFA is utterly corrupt. The only way for the civilised world to react to Blatter's re-election is to withdraw from FIFA and its events and set out on a new path. Sadly, this seems unlikely as there are too many vested interests and too many people who might stand to lose lucrative roles if FIFA collapses. However, the major sponsors on whom FIFA relies may provide the ultimate catalyst that brings about change, as their commercial interests come under threat.

We can only watch, wait and hope.

R.I.P. FIFA

At long last someone has actually done something about the appalling corruption in FIFA, the ruling body for worldwide football.

That the 'someone' has been the authorities in the United States might seem a bit strange, but apparently it's all about bribes which involved amounts in US dollars, making the corruption actionable under US law. The arrests of 7 senior FIFA officials and indictment of 14 in total demonstrates just how widespread the corruption has been, certainly in recent years and probably for decades. Investigations into the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 world cup competitions are also continuing, suggesting the possibility that either or both of these tournaments may be moved from their current hosts, Qatar and Russia.

Somehow, Sepp Blatter, the long time President of FIFA, has avoided, so far at least, being either arrested or indicted. However, that he has been in charge of this rotten organisation for 17 years suggests that he either knew about the corrupt practices of his colleagues but did nothing, or that, if he didn't know, he is incompetent. Either way he must now resign rather than insist on carrying on in his attempt to win a fifth term as President in an election to be held on Friday 29th May. Numerous voices are being raised against him and sponsors are voicing their concerns, and FIFA, itself, is now tottering on the brink of the abyss.

The awarding of the 2018 world cup to Russia and the 2022 tournament to Qatar must be reviewed, though by whom is another matter, and it is time for UEFA to stop shilly-shallying. Whatever Blatter does, FIFA is, surely, now a dead duck. It is so discredited that its position at the head of world football must end.

RIP KEVIN PIETERSEN

Kevin Pietersen has spent years promoting the Pietersen brand and it's finally caught up with him.

After a bit of argy-bargy, he's finally been told that he's not going to be a part of the England cricket team's plans for the foreseeable future; given that he's now 34, that suggests he won't be wearing an England shirt again. A number of pundits and fans have complained that the cricketing hierarchy has unfairly shut Pietersen out; they say that he's the best batsman we've got and that his past indiscretions should be forgiven. Pietersen, of course, has done his bit in making a huge score against the poorest side in the Championship and on the best batting surface in the country, and this has been used as further evidence that he MUST be recalled to the national side.

What all of the pro-Pietersen lobby seem to be willing to ignore is that he was a horribly disruptive influence when he was in the team. As captain, he was a disaster and he was excluded from the side after a series of high-profile actions, all of which served to undermine his team mates, captain and management. He followed up his exclusion by penning a book which included huge criticism of those who had been his close associates, and yet he now wants to come back as if nothing had happened. That the new Director of Cricket for England, Andrew Strauss, has referred to a lack of trust between the ECB and Pietersen is hardly surprising, given the history.

Pietersen is continuing to make loud noises about his disappointment but appears unwilling, or unable, to appreciate that his omission from the national side is down to his own actions. Sadly, he is one of those people who sees only what he wants to and is not prepared do what is necessary to put things right. R.I.P. 

TUILAGI SPOTLIGHTS SPORTING MORALITY.

Manu Tuilagi has suffered the consequences of his shocking behaviour and not only been heavily fined but will also be excluded from England's squad for the Rugby World Cup. It seems that Rugby Union has a moral code which expects its representatives to conduct themselves well, whether on or off of the pitch.

The sanctions faced by Tuilagi, and his acceptance of them, are in stark contrast to the way in which footballers are excused from almost all misconduct. Vicious assaults on or off of the pitch, drink-driving, even rape, are all seen as offences which are excusable and should be ignored. Why is this ? Is it just the money talking or is it that football club owners, managers and supporters really do have little or no morality when it comes to their teams ?

Sadly, the answer is probably rather frightening.

ENGLAND CRASH TO WEST INDIES.

Yet another hopeless performance by an England team.

Alastair Cook, fine batsman though he has been, has proved to be no good as a captain. Jonathan Trott, a man with a history of breaking under pressure, has been brought back as an opening batsman, probably the most pressured position in the order, and has failed. Moeen Ali, an excellent middle order batsman, has been expected to also be the team's principal spin bowler, which he is not up to. Jos Buttler, an exciting one day batsman, is simply not good enough as a Test Match wicket-keeper. All-in-all, this England team has too many players who shouldn't be there.

That said, English cricket as a whole is in a mess. Infighting at the top and regular changes in the domestic calendar don't help. Concentrating on one-day games and 20-20 knock-abouts to the detriment of the longer format of the County Championship has ensured that we produce few players competent to play Test Match cricket. Indeed, most of our Test Match players rarely, if ever, appear in the County Championship and a handful of appearances in shorter games is the most that the supporters of County sides can hope for.

Of course, the shorter format competitions bring in much needed money but they have also destroyed our traditional county cricket, which was the breeding ground for the Test Match team. Now, we have hordes of players who may be brilliant at 20-20 but are temperamentally unsuited to 5-day cricket; we also select captains on the basis of their performance as batsmen, something that is fine in schoolboy cricket but a recipe for disaster once the schoolboys have grown up.

Until someone gets a grip on all of this, England will continue to struggle in the international sphere of Test Match cricket. So-called 'experts' and 'pundits' will voice their opinions, always fro the viewpoint of insiders; the likes of Ian Botham, Mike Atherton, David Gower and co., are all part of the cricketing establishment and far too close to the people involved to do more than keep repeating the same tired clichés.

This is not something that is specific to cricket. England's football, tennis, golf, athletics and much more all suffer from the same disease. Until we change our whole sporting culture, we will continue to fail at these, and many other, sports.

RUSSIAN ATHLETES IN DOPING SHOCK HORROR.

Today's news has a couple of stories which are hard to believe,

Apparently, Lamine Diack, who is head of the IAAF, is 'shocked' by suggestions that the performance of many Russian athletes is being enhanced by the use of drugs. This over paid goon says, in time honoured fashion, that his organisation will clean it up. Where have I heard that before ?

Athletes have been using drugs for decades. Every now and then, this abuse hits the headlines and there are promises that it will be stamped out. Phooey. The world of major international sport is so lucrative and riddled with corruption that no one will ever do anything meaningful to change things. The leaders of organisations such as the IAAF, the IOC and FIFA have a vested interest in ignoring the abuses and even in sweeping them under the carpet.

International sport is a disgusting cesspit of corruption, run from above by elites who make vast fortunes for themselves while giving not a dickie bird for the sports they are supposed to be representing. It's well past time that the IAAF, IOC, FIFA and all the rest were shut down and we got back to the days when sports was a pastime rather than a money making venture. Some hope. 

SIX NATIONS OPENER IS A CRACKER !

What a great performance by England !

For a Six Nations starter, Wales v England at the Millennium Stadium was always a huge match but it turned out to be a real thriller and a surprisingly good game. The early exchanges were dominated by the Welsh and they quickly built a 10-0 lead, with England being almost overwhelmed. To their credit, England didn't panic and gradually clawed their way back into the match. At half-time, the Welsh still had a big advantage at 16-8 but England were much more in the game. The second half was 'all change'.

From the kick-off, England dominated to such an extent that Wales rarely threatened anything of note. England pulled the score back to 16-15 and then went ahead with a penalty; another penalty put England 5 points ahead and that was the final nail in the Welsh coffin. Two 'almost' tries for England demonstrated their total second-half dominance and, in the end, it was a terrific and well deserved win for the visitors.

What makes this result even more significant is that England had a huge number of absentees through injury; with a fully fit squad, it starts to look as though this could be a really good team with a genuine shot at winning the World Cup later in the year. Bring it on !!

CHED EVANS - RIP ?

Ched Evans. an overpaid footballer, was sent to prison for rape. His sentence was, apparently, 5 years, and he has, as is the custom, been released after serving just half of his sentence behind bars; the rest is 'on licence', meaning that he can now live at home but has to report regularly to the authorities and behave himself on pain of being returned to prison.

There has been much said about him since his early release, probably much more than was ever said before he committed the offence for which he was imprisoned. Most of this commentary has been negative and one can hardly blame the commentators. The problem is that Mr Evans wants to resume his career as a footballer.

If he had been a carpenter or plumber, no one would have heard anything about all of this; he'd have done his time and come out, picked up some work and that would have been the end of it. Unfortunately, he's not a carpenter or plumber, he's a footballer. In the distorted world in which we now live, footballers are, somehow, at the top of the tree when it comes to 'celebrity'. Even though the vast majority of the population could happily walk passed him in the street without having any idea as to his identity, he is that worst of all possible human creatures - a 'celebrity'.

Because of his status, Evans' career is also an issue. Footballers tend to be role models for children and, as such, their conduct is under scrutiny. While on-field thuggery is accepted as being 'par-for-the-course', rape is, no doubt surprisingly to some, considered a little too much to stomach. For others, he's served his sentence and should now be allowed to resume his career. I feel that the truth is somewhere in between.

The fact is that Evans has not yet served his sentence. His release 'on licence' was after serving just half of the 5 years imposed on him. To my mind, he still had 2½ years to go and for him to be welcomed back into the celebrity world of football before that time is up is entirely wrong. Once the full 5 years have passed, again to my mind, he should then be available for clubs to think about signing him up.

Right now, it's reported that Oldham Athletic, a League One club (which equates to old style third division) are reported to be on the point of signing Evans up. 'Why ?' is a question that occurs immediately, but the answer is probably pretty simple. Evans is desperate to get back in to the only job he can do and it wouldn't surprise me if he was offering his services for free. Oldham could undoubtedly do with a player of Evans' abilities, so ........................ .

This is not an easy situation but it seems to me that it can be simply resolved. Evans still has a significant portion of his sentence to serve and, until that time is up, he should not be allowed anywhere near a football pitch. His 'celebrity' status dictates this and it has nothing do with silly legal arguments about such things as 'restraint of trade'.. Once the full 5 years are up, he should be free to work as a footballer anywhere he likes or, at least, anywhere that will have him.

Evans was convicted of doing something very bad and to expect to simply forget it and go back to a privileged lifestyle is wrong. He has to be made to understand this and to accept it. So do the clubs who still want to ignore basic morality in pursuit of footballing glory.