Good Luck England

Tags

England, Euro 2012, Football, Roy Hodgson

The England football team kicks off its Euro 2012 campaign against France tomorrow, and I’d like to wish Roy Hodgson and the boys good luck in the campaign.

We’re not expecting great achievements from this team as it’s one of the weakest group of players England has ever taken to a major tournament, but it’s a team game and if the team functions properly there’s no reason why we can’t do well. As long as the players give 100%, then I’m happy. We can’t ask for more.

Good luck England.

Are Foreign Owners Destroying English Football?

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Abramovich, Chelsea, Fernandes, Football, QPR

It’s been announced today that Chelsea have sacked their umpteenth manager in a few short years, and the forums and Twitter have been running hot with the question of foreign owners in English football.

The Chelsea owner, Roman Abramovich appears to be a hothead when it comes to hiring and firing. He’s spent around a billion pounds on his toy, and today sees Chelsea hit crisis point. As a QPR fan, I’m more than happy to see our deadly rivals in a bit of bother.

We’ve seen the huge cash injection at Manchester City cause imbalance in our top division, and we’ve seen the Glazers turn Manchester United from an extremely profitable club into one carrying hundreds of millions of pounds worth of debt. But are all foreign owners bad?

At QPR, we have Tony Fernandes, boss of Air Asia and a Malaysian. At first I had doubts about him coming to the club, mainly because I knew nothing about him, but what a revelation he’s been. The previous owners at QPR were foreign, and we got into a right mess. You can see the goings on in a BBC 2 documentary tonight called ‘The Four Year Plan’.

Tony has given QPR fans a blueprint for the future. He’s not interested in throwing money at the club in the vain hope that we can become an overnight success. He’s seeing the club as an investment, and as such, he’s developing the infrastructure. He’s already got plans in place for a youth academy, a new training facility, and a new stadium. The guy knows what he’s doing and the fans trust him. Yesterday at the home game against Everton, he went on a pub crawl with the fans and then spent the first half in the stands with them. This is no ordinary chairman. He cares about the fans and cares about what they think. He’s a very open chairman and interacts with his customers, the fans, even on Twitter.

So while many may think foreign owners can be a detriment to our game, have a look at the fantastic work being done by Tony Fernandes at QPR. You might think differently.

Goodbye Cardiff Swansea and Glamorgan

Tags

Cricket, Football

When the people of Wales voted for devolution, they also voted to take control over culture and sport. This was their democratic right which they exercised.

If the people of Wales want to take control over sports, they also need to take responsibility. This responsibility should also include their sports clubs. How can they want to take ownership of sports yet be happy about their clubs playing in domestic competitions in England?

There is a lot of hypocrisy emanating from Wales. They want their clubs to play in English competitions, but won’t abide by the same rules. Take for example, the 2008 FA cup final. A Cardiff player had been banned by the English FA for the final, yet the case was appealed to the Welsh FA and the ban was rescinded. Then we have the case of Glamorgan County Cricket Club receiving grants from the Welsh Assembly for ground improvements. This allows extra money to be used in the bidding process for international cricket and why England games are staged in Wales. How about the issue of the Welsh FA refusing to participate in Team GB for the London 2012 Olympics?

As the people of Wales voted for devolved powers on the issue of sport, I fully support the removal of Welsh sports clubs from English competitions, in line with the voting intentions. In fact, I believe that a campaign should be formed to remove Welsh sports clubs from English competitions. UEFA should be strongly petitioned to force Welsh football clubs to play in the Welsh league, and I believe people like UEFA President Michel Platini would look favourably at this suggestion.

Personally, I think getting the likes of Cardiff, Swansea and Wrexham to play in their own national league would enhance the status of Welsh football, while creating more spaces for English clubs in English leagues.

New England Manager

Tags

England, Football

Now that Fabio Capello has resigned, the English FA begin the hunt for a new manager. Apparently, they’re after an Englishman this time, but when you scan the Premier League clubs, the list is sparse. Roy Hodgson, Alan Pardew, the red hot favourite, Harry Redknapp, and not a lot else.

English football clubs used to produce good managers but that’s gone by the wayside in the era of the Premier League. The real worry is if Redknapp turns the job down, we will surely end up with another foreign manager. If it’s a foreigner, I’d be happy with Mourinho or Wenger, but I’d prefer an English boss if possible.

Then again, the FA seems to have a record of picking a lot of wrong uns. The best English manager, Brian Clough, never got the job when we were crying out for him. The FA seems to place a lot of emphasis on people who can talk the talk and aren’t bothered if they can walk the walk. Well sod that. I want a manager who can actually win something.

Will be interesting to see who we get.

Fernandes Takes Over At QPR

Tags

Football, QPR

I’m one happy bunny today because QPR has got a new chairman, Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes. He bought a 66% stake from F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone to become majority shareholder at the West London club.

I’m also happy to see Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal retain his 34% share in the club and the return of his son-in-law, Amit Bhatia, as vice-chairman. I know a lot of people complain about foreigners owning English clubs, but Amit was born in London, and Tony has strong links to England. I can see better times ahead for the Superhoops!

The English FA Clowns

Tags

British Olympic Association, English FA, FIFA, Football, London 2012 Olympics

It comes as no surprise to see the clowns at the English FA rooting for a Team GB at the London 2012 Olympics. It further comes as no surprise they’re involved in a shoddy deal with the British Olympic Association to field a Team GB at the Olympics.

The football associations of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are objecting to the idea of a Team GB because of fears it may compromise their independence. They believe that FIFA may force the four home nations to permanently combine and form a single football association. Some FIFA members question, why, when Britain is a unified state, it has four representative football associations. Quite rightly, thee football associations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland oppose anything to do with a single British team.

However, where is the complaint from the English FA? Why is it that the other home nations can see the potential risk but the English FA can’t? I for one, am extremely concerned at the lack of awareness shown by the English FA. Perhaps its real agenda is to work towards a unified FA for the British state. If that’s their plan, they haven’t reckoned with the backlash from the fans of all four countries. I mean, who would be interested in a Great Britain football team on a permanent basis? I wouldn’t, and I don’t suppose for one minute will many of my compatriots or indeed fans from the other home nations. I would envisage a combined team playing in front of a half-empty Wembley, and sponsors in short supply.

The English FA should be on its guard over this matter, but then, its never been an organisation possessed of common sense.