kandg

This debate is one of overall managerial ability, not just results. We have taken into account man-management skills, motivational skills and overall respect from the players.

We haven’t included either Antonio Conte or Arséne Wenger in this article as they are unlikely to be at their current clubs next season so, to an extent, their abilities are irrelevant

Today we look at the Liverpool and Manchester City managers with the other two discussed tomorrow. So, first in alphabetical order is; Read the rest of this entry »

var

We are approaching the time of the season when there isn’t much of it left! The Premier League title is done and dusted as are, apart from one possible turnaround, the three places behind the champions.

There is still a scramble at the bottom end but it looks pretty bleak for the stripy clubs. West Bromwich Albion are virtually gone, with Stoke City and Southampton favourites to join them in the Championship. Just above them, Swansea City remain, probably, the only non-stripy club who may be relegated whilst the list is completed by Huddersfield Town. The rest should be safe. Read the rest of this entry »

cl

With Liverpool favourites to progress to the Champion’s League final how likely is it that they will win the trophy in May? One thing is for sure, they will have to defend better against Real Madrid than they did against Roma in the semi-final.

Two seasons ago Manchester City reached the same stage and were defeated by Real Madrid although only by a scoreline of 1-0 over the two legs. What must have been more annoying to Manuel Pellegrini at the time was that City should have won both legs of that tie.

Real Madrid got through to the final without ever having to do anything out of the ordinary and without even playing well. The fault all lay with City who just didn’t appear to turn up either in Madrid or in Manchester. Read the rest of this entry »

mf

What is the hold-up regarding a new contract for Marouane Fellaini? Either he wants to stay with United or he doesn’t, it’s very simple.

He is not a world class player and so any pay rise he gets on his previous deal is a bonus and he should be grabbing it with both hands.

The fact that the negotiations have become so protracted appears to be because Fellaini now considers himself a better player than he actually is.

Yes, he is a Belgian international, but they are just as good when he is not playing. Yes, he can be an asset in certain games for United but they are, generally, a better team when he is not playing. Read the rest of this entry »

aw

Arséne Wenger’s farewell to Old Trafford as Arsenal manager would have been an emotional one. Mixed emotions, that is, as he will no longer have to watch his side suffer any more of the humiliations handed out over the years which included a 6-1 and an 8-2 defeat.

He will also not be celebrating winning his first game there as he did in 1998 when Marc Overmars scored the winner or clinching the title there as he did in 2002 when Sylvain Wiltord scored the only goal and his team went on to win the double.

There was “Pizzagate” in 2004 when Cesc Fabregas, apparently, threw a pizza in the tunnel after the game. There is no proof he actually threw it at Sir Alex Ferguson but that is precisely who it hit! Read the rest of this entry »

bg

This weekend sees games for the top six spread across three days. Only Liverpool and Chelsea played their games on Saturday with the former at home to Stoke City in the early game and the latter away to Swansea City in the late game.

A win for Liverpool would guarantee that they finish in the top four and mean another season of Champion’s League football at Anfield.

As it turned out a poor performance in drawing 0-0 with the relegation favourites was ample evidence as to why Roma will still think they have a chance of progresing to the final in Europe! Read the rest of this entry »

3500

Arsenal, yet again, stand on the brink of exiting a European competition. They need to beat Atlético Madrid in Spain, (or draw by a score of 2-2 or greater), to progress to the final of the Europa League.

For a club which likes to think of itself as one of Europe’s biggest, their record in the European trophy department is absolutely pathetic. In all of Arséne Wenger’s 22 years at the club they have made it to the final of the Champion’s League ONCE, in 2006 when they were beaten by Barcelona.

In 2009 they got to the final of the UEFA Cup but were beaten by Galatasaray. Read the rest of this entry »

bg

If there is any truth whatsoever in the rumour that Real Madrid are interested in signing three Manchester City players then they must have a few bob in the bank. Apparently, they want Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sané.

Now we don’t profess to be experts in these matters but, it would seem to us, that receiving a large amount of cash for Raheem Sterling is a decent proposition. There is no doubt that playing under Pep Guardiola has improved him but he is nowhere near being world-class and shouldn’t really be selected ahead of Bernardo Silva. Read the rest of this entry »

fac

The FA is, once again, trying to redeem itself over the pathetic way it managed to massively overpay for the “new” Wembley.

As usual, the way it chooses to redeem itself involves ripping off supporters, this time those of Chelsea and Manchester United who are, totally unfairly, expected to pay back some of the lost revenue.

They have increased ticket prices at Wembley by up to 35% from the semi-finals. Why? Other than blatant profiteering, (which we thought was illegal), there is no other excuse for it. Read the rest of this entry »

wp

Ups and downs…..

So the season is almost over and here’s what we already know. Manchester City are Premier League champions and Carabao Cup winners. Wolves will be playing in the top division next season. Either Chelsea or Manchester United will win the FA Cup and Liverpool still have a chance of winning the Champion’s League.

Barring a miracle, West Bromwich Albion will be in the Championship at the start of next season, where they will probably be joined by Stoke City and Southampton.

West Brom made the mistake of appointing a manager, in Alan Pardew, with no pedigree as far as avoiding relegation is concerned and will pay the price. Stoke City and Southampton both left it too late and their new managers with too much to do in order to save them. The holes had already been dug far too deep. Read the rest of this entry »