Mohammed Al Fayed takes the FA and Premier League to task

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Both the Premier league and the Football Association are pondering their next moves after Mohamed Al Fayed, the chairman of Fulham, launched a scathing attack on both bodies. The Egyptian businessman is demanding a review of the refereeing practice as well as the decision making process. He has written to the Premier League and the FA on behalf of all the football clubs and is seeking quick and decisive action.

Mr Al Fayed spoke out after Fulham suffered their recent 0-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester United, the game where Danny Murphy was knocked over a minute before the end but Michael Oliver, the 27 year old referee, waved away the claims for a penalty.

Al Fayed has become increasingly frustrated by the recent errors and inconsistencies that have occurred, as well as the whole way in which matches are officiated, as he believes that the decisions made on the pitch are all too readily accepted by the governing bodies of football.

In his statement, Al Fayed says the FA’s main problem in addressing the situation that currently exists is that it has too much power and there is no where else where decision makers, such as referees, escape all responsibility from having to admit blatant errors but the protesters are fined and charged with serious misconduct.

He added that the losses that clubs are suffering from such careless decisions are having a huge impact on them, and the consequences can be calamitous. He also feels that referees are far too easily influenced by the more powerful clubs and the individual, high powered owners, which calls into question both the integrity of the officials as well as the governing body that they report to.

Al Fayed is also urging the bodies to embrace video technology as he believes that in this aspect, English football is lagging behind the rest of the world

The Magpies are flying high in the Premier League

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Newcastle United are currently sharing equal points with Chelsea in the Premier League and together both teams are sitting in fifth place. Alan Pardew is hoping that the success of the team is going to mean they take another big step in European football in the near future.

The next match the team are going to be playing is on Saturday, when they face Wigan, a team who are already dangerously close to relegation. Newcastle recently beat Liverpool and if they win a point when they play Swansea, they are going to be able to overtake Liverpool in the league.

If the team manage to stay in fifth place or above then they are going to be guaranteed entry into the Europa League. This is something that Pardew has said he would be delighted to see.

Chelsea are managing to retain their position in the FA Cup as well as the Champions League although it is expected that their fixtures list, which is very intensive, is going to have a detrimental effect on their ability to play.

Pardew has commented, “I think we are going to be facing some very challenging matches in the future. Many of these are going to be at away venues where the team don’t tend to perform as well. We definitely have some difficult games ahead but I’m confident that if the team continue to play as they are then they will be able to get into the Europa league.”

It has been five seasons since Newcastle last played in the Europa League and it is something that fans of the football club are already dreaming of. Pardew continued, “Despite my hopes I know it is very important that we focus on the next game and not get lost in the potential future of the club. Fans can dream, but we focus on the next game.”

Premiership’s manliest footballer is Wayne Rooney

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It’s now official, England and Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has edged out his teammate Ryan Giggs to take the coveted title of the manliest footballer in the Premier league, with Ashley Cole being named as the least manly in the public vote Leading UK grooming brand The Bluebeards Revenge organised the survey, which saw 26 year old Rooney pick up 20% of the public’s votes.

Ryan Giggs was placed second with 18% of the vote, and Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard and Chelsea and England player Frank Lampard tied for third place with 10%. Other players who made the manly top ten included Joey Barton, Nemanja Vidic and John Terry.

Nick Gibbens, spokesperson for The Bluebeards Revenge, said: “When he’s on the pitch, Wayne is certainly what you would describe as a ‘real man’ and is a deserving winner of the title ‘Premiership’s manliest footballer’.

“He wears his heart on his sleeve, never pulls out of a tackle and always puts his body on the line for his team, qualities that make a man a ‘real man’. Wayne also has the recent addition of a full head of hair, and I’m guessing this could have secured him a few extra votes.”

Chelsea and England left back Ashley Cole was voted least manly Premiership footballer, picking up nearly a quarter (24%) of the public vote.

Spanish forward Fernando Torres, a teammate of Cole at Chelsea, came second in the least “manly” category on 21%. Peter Crouch was third on 14%, former Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri took fourth spot with 11% and Manchester United winger Nani finished fifth on 5%.

The Bluebeards Revenge, dubbed the “world’s manliest grooming brand”, also asked participants who they thought was the manliest Premiership team and the league’s manliest manager.

Stoke City, famous for their physical and no-nonsense approach, topped this list on 23%, with Manchester United second on 16% and Liverpool third on 15%.

Arsenal, renowned for their pretty passing game, were judged to be the ‘least manly’ Premiership side, closely followed by their North London rivals Tottenham.

Chelsea’s rugged boss Andre Billas-Boas took the accolade for manliest Premiership manager, with a whopping 49% of the vote, followed by Martin Jol (7%) in second and Roberto Mancini (6%) in third.

Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger scooped the honour for the least manly Premiership manager.

The Bluebeards Revenge, a shaving range that can actually reduce stubble by up to 40% over a 60-day period, surveyed 1,835 people via email in December 2011.

Please see attached spreadsheet for full survey results.

 

Chris Coleman wants Welsh job

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Chris Coleman wants Welsh job Chris Coleman, the former manager of Fulham, will this week be meeting with the Welsh FA to discuss the managers vacancy for the national team. The FA is stepping up its recruitment drive to fill the gap left after Gary Speed took his own life last November, and Coleman has recently emerged as the clear front runner for the job.

Coleman, who played centre half for Wales, has been managing the Greek team Larissa, and he revealed that he will be speaking with the governing body in the next week, but he says that if he is appointed, he sees it as inappropriate to be on the bench for Speeds memorial game against Costa Rice on February 29th, but he would be present elsewhere I the stadium.

He said that personally, he didn’t think it was right for him to take part in the game, and that it was a tribute to Gary, and for the people who already worked at the club, so he would be watching from a distance. He told sky sports that he would be meeting the Welsh FA this week to discuss matters, and that it was a very sensitive situation, and if he was offered the job and accepted it ,he would have very mixed emotions.

Coleman also added that the circumstances were very difficult as well as sensitive. If it was meant to be, and the job was given to him, then it would be a pinnacle for him, as being the manager of your national team was the pinnacle for any manager. Although he wasn’t there yet, the talks would be taking place and it meant an awful lot to him.

Coleman was a close friend of Speed, so his mixed emotions are completely understandable. He has said that he feels guilty about taking part on talks with a view to replacing his friend at the helm, but on the other hand he would be the happiest man in the world if the talks went his way and he was appointed as the Welsh manager.

 

Overseas TV cash for Premier League clubs

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Overseas TV cash for Premier League clubs The amount of overseas TV rights money that different clubs receive from the Premier League is based on three things:  the team’s performance, the number of times their matches are aired live on domestic television, and equal shares of TV income.  Top teams get more TV money, but this season all the clubs will be getting more than ever before, on average £5m more than last season.

The least successful club will be guaranteed at least £37m, while the best one will get almost twice that, or £57m.  Even so, the distribution of money is much more equitable than in any of the other major European leagues.  In Spain’s La Liga, for example, top clubs earn 19 times more than the smallest clubs, payouts being negotiated on a club-by-club basis.

The Premier League’s payout of approximately £1.2 billion over the next three seasons amounts to about ten times more than German clubs receive, five times more than Italy’s and three times more than clubs in La Liga.

Right now the FA Board is working on its budget for international development, and reports are that they may cut off funds to the poorest African clubs because they feel FIFA is not being recognized as it should for its support of football in general.  The Africans seem to feel it’s because no one voted for England in the bidding for the 2018 World Cup.