UEFA

Football’s bosses must be questioned and not blindly followed

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RECENTLY, the distinguished journalist and Saints fan, Sir David Frost, passed away after leaving Southampton on a cruise ship.

His was a career notable for many things, but without doubt, the standout moment has to be his handling of Richard Nixon, in the former US President’s first major interviews in the years following the Watergate scandal.

On the obvious level it was a landmark moment for Frost’s dogged determination, which resulted in Nixon apologising for his actions to the American public.

On a wider basis, the Frost/Nixon interviews are credited with playing a vital role in ending the idea of reverence to our ‘betters’. The notion that politicians and those in power should be shown an unquestioning level of respect had been blown away.

However, those in power can still struggle with the idea of being questioned or challenged and football is no exception.

Currently, a couple of debates have raised their heads casting huge doubts over the decision making abilities of the people in charge of various facets of the world’s most popular sport.

Firstly, talk is growing over moving the 2022 World Cup, which is due to be held in Qatar.

In the desert. In summer. It doesn’t take a genius to spot there may be a few problems with the original plan.

Yet, that’s where it’s due to be – although the man who trumpeted the decision to award the tournament to Qatar, Sepp Blatter, has conceded that the idea may not be the greatest in the history of world football.

FIFA is a closed shop, and does not take kindly to scrutiny.

Indeed, the Sunday Times‘ temerity to present evidence of corruption within the governing body is often held up as one of the reasons England was overlooked for the 2018 World Cup.

Qatar was a bad idea from the word go. You know that, I know that and now the decision makers are admitting it.

The idea of being reverent to people who make such decisions in light of masses of evidence highlighting the fact is preposterous.

The same is currently happening in England, with regards to the national side and the Premier League. As I said last week, the England national side is no longer the top of the English game.

The Premier League, a marvel of marketing, is the pinnacle.

Yet the behemoth it has become is being questioned – is it really changing the game for the better?

Or is it just exacerbating the gulf between haves-and-have-nots in the Football League with overinflated parachute payments and stifling the production of indigenous talent with huge transfer fees for foreign stars? The new FA chairman, Greg Dyke, certainly thinks so.

However, it’s worth pointing out that Mr Dyke is one of the people who first floated the idea of a break-away top flight. He has since cited ‘unintended consequences’, but they are consequences that many ordinary folk brought up donkeys’ years ago.

The Premier League has now extended an olive branch as it tries to improve its image – the cynical may suggest it’s bad for marketability if the league is the fall guy for international failure.

Going to Qatar is not in the interests of the average football fan. Giving relegated teams ten times the cash their league rivals get is not in the interest of fair competition.

Just because someone is in a position of power, does not mean they know best or are acting in the best interests of all concerned. Ego and money are far stronger drivers than development and fairness.

No-one knows what the outcome will be when it comes to the Qatari World Cup or how the domestic game will adapt to improve talent from these islands – but changes won’t happen if football fans just accept the decisions of those in charge without at least asking questions.

Sir David Frost showed the power of asking few questions. The average football fan may not get a one-on-one with Sepp Blatter, but doesn’t mean they can’t have an impact in this day and age.

Euro 2012 – a few musings

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Expectations in football are seldom managed well and rapidly swing from one extreme to another.

The giddiness of hope can cause expectations to soar wildly before a ball has even been kicked, while a single mediocre performance can plunge supporters into despair, as they anticipate disappointment and heartache.

At International level, that gets amplified by an incredible amount – not least as more casual fans come out and get carried away with the belief that Andy Carroll is indeed the man to strike fear into the hearts of Europe’s top defenders.

Euro 2012 is slightly odd however – England’s chances are being played down. That is not something I have ever seen in my 20 odd years or so of following football. But weirdly, the very fact the England team are not expected to do well is seeing expectations rise. It’s as if thinking the team is poor actually makes them brilliant, in a kind of bizarre reverse psychology.

That said, it would be foolish to write England off completely before the tournament has even started. In the form of Greece in 2004 and Denmark 1992, the European Championships has shown us that with a bit of momentum, anything can happen.

Injuries are causing a massive problem for Roy Hodgson, but I think with the players at his disposable, he is a better choice than Redknapp and his previous successes have come from teams you would otherwise think ordinary.

However, France seem to have recovered after the debacle of 2010, whereas Sweden at least seem the equals of England. Ukraine are a bit of a wild card – unfancied, but as hosts you never know. Who can forget Korea in 2002? If England make it out of the group, I fancy it to be on a skin-of-the-teeth basis, especially with talisman Rooney unavailable until the final group game against Ukraine. A likely meeting with Spain however would suggest the adventure would end there.

Despite the earlier quip, Carroll and Young will need to be at their best to see England in a position to progress when Rooney returns. The Liverpool man could provide so much – if he can recapture the form from Newcastle whilst Young will need the midfield to provide the ball quickly to his feet for maximum effect. Man United can do it, but the England midfield doesn’t look quite as accomplished.

Meanwhile, in group C, the Irish are even more unfancied than the English. Over 45,000 are expected to flock to Poznan – yours truly included. Mercurial talent is at a premium in Trapattoni’s squad but the work rate is phenomenal. A sequence of 14 games undefeated is something to be very proud of, but Spain et al present a very different test.

You would have to imagine Ireland will lose to Spain in Gdansk – most teams would. But against Croatia and Italy, things are a lot more open. Getting out of the group may prove slightly beyond us but the Greece and Denmark analogy surely applies more to Ireland than England. The Italians look ripe for the taking – they are in disarray with injuries and the match fixing scandal and in three games, Trapattoni’s Ireland have yet to lose to the Azzuri. However, they were written off in Germany in 2006 and ended up being champions.

Croatia are technically superior to the Republic, but the rigid 4-4-2 system employed by Trapattoni has only faltered once – against Russia in Dublin.

Ireland’s chances rest with hitting teams on the break after being able to soak up huge amounts of pressure. Duff and McGeady need to break fast and get the ball forward to the likes of Keane, Doyle and Long to get on the end of. In fact, it’s not a dissimilar approach to the one used by Gordon Strachan during his time at St. Mary’s. The inclusion of James McClean could be the trump card – he’s had a great few months at Sunderland and few in Europe will know much about him.

What price Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan being Euro 2012 winners, I wonder? (80-1, if you’re interested).

Trap’s travelling army keep saying that after 10 years away from the top table we’re just glad to be back. Inwardly though, you can guarantee we’re all dreaming of getting to the knock-outs, at which point anything could happen. Hopefully it’s not completely based in fantasy.

The tournament as a whole though would seem to belong to Germany, Spain or Holland. Three titles in a row may be a bit much for the Spanish, not least because of the domestic season they have had. They certainly have the most talented squad but going all the way might just be a bit too far for tired legs.

The young Germans thrilled in South Africa and are probably the popular choice to win with many tipping them. With many of their squad plying their trade at Bayern Munich, they will be eager to win something this season, having missed out in both the Bundesliga and Champions League.

Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie’s form over the year means the Dutch have to be fancied. Don’t be surprised to see them exact revenge for the World Cup loss two years ago.

So, if I have to make a prediction, I’m going for Germany to win it, a rejuvenated Fernando Torres to be top scorer.

Now I’ve done that, whatever you do, don’t put money on either of those suggestions. Trust me.