| Drogba sinks Arsenal again Didier Drogba continued his amazing scoring streak against Arsenal as Chelsea grabbed a 2-0 victory that took them four points clear atop the Barclays Premier League. foxsports.com.au |
Spectre of Dalglish lurks over Anfield Defeat against Everton on 17 October could see the manager replaced by an Anfield club legendIt is Saturday, 16 October, and the eve of the first Merseyside derby of the season. There is a collective hangover in the red half of the city in response to the Royal Bank of Scotland ending the toxic reign of Tom Hicks and George Gillett the previous day and Roy Hodgson is invited to meet Liverpool's ambitious and solvent new owners. This is all fantasy. He is asked why he should continue as manager if his side lose at Goodison Park. This is not fantasy. This is the question legitimately being asked by Liverpool supporters right now.The Kop's call for Kenny Dalglish towards the end of Sunday's home defeat by Blackpool represented a seismic moment in Liverpool's history. A support that prides itself on patience and loyalty humiliated its manager after 14 matches in charge. This is a position treated with reverence at Anfield and has prompted outright revolt only once – against Graeme Souness – since Bill Shankly "made the people happy". There is no connection with Hodgson, and Hodgson has offered nothing to warrant the affections of Anfield. Quite the reverse in fact, and the tide may feel irreversible if Liverpool endure further misery at Everton.Anfield was braced for its primal scream on Sunday. Three debt-laden years under Hicks and Gillett have created a trickle-down effect and protests are no longer confined to the streets outside the stadium or to US businessmen. That is not simply due to a series of pitiful performances, many Hodgson has defended, but because the 63-year-old is emblematic of the club's decline and has hardened suspicions that he was appointed by the managing director, Christian Purslow, for reasons of compliability. Or to "steady the ship", as the club's chairman Martin Broughton put it.Liverpool spent £9m to change their manager this summer (agreeing a £6m pay-off with Rafael BenÃtez and paying £3m compensation to Fulham for Hodgson), a hefty sum for any club. For £9m you would expect improvement in the manager's chair but Purslow replaced a European Cup and La Liga winner with a man whose CV is more impressive for the destinations travelled than trophies lifted.Whatever one thought of BenÃtez, and it is a personal view that he was moved to ease the torturous sale process, it is hard to disagree with his recent assessment of the Anfield hierarchy. "The last year at Liverpool I had directors who knew nothing about football and you couldn't talk about football with them," he said.At his unveiling on 1 July, Hodgson was asked if he had accepted an impossible job. He rejected the notion in an accomplished, refreshingly honest press conference that did not set the tone for subsequent performances. Eleven years after his last caretaker stint at Internazionale, and nine since his last trophy, a Danish league and cup double with Copenhagen, it was certainly true that he had been presented with a glorious managerial opportunity. And equally true that it is being squandered.Negative tactics home and away, new signings looking out of their depth or played out of position (£5m Christian Poulsen and £11.7m Raul Meireles respectively) and poor individual contributions from the likes of Fernando Torres and Glen Johnson have not given the impression of a steady pair of hands. There have also been several PR errors of astonishing naivety. Dismissing the Spirit of Shankly and those whose love for Liverpool is now an exercise in protest and business studies as "a group of people" was one way of alienating the hardcore. Not a wise move when the majority of Liverpool supporters were ambivalent towards his appointment to begin with, and many view his reign as a short-term assignment en route to the England job in 2012.Veiled criticism of Torres's form before the Blackpool game may have been justified, but it will not help his rapport with an increasingly disillusioned striker. Refusing to take his friend Sir Alex Ferguson to task on his Torres claim after the loss at Old Trafford, and giving the impression that what is good enough for Fulham should suffice at Liverpool, have also been noted.In the background looms Dalglish, a club legend who was asked to consider the candidates to replace BenÃtez this summer, did so, and promptly submitted his own application. Purslow and Broughton rejected the chance to restore cohesion between the dugout and the stands. The Kop's call on Sunday can be viewed as condemnation both of Hodgson's team and of the events surrounding his appointment. Dalglish is affordable and available, two qualities that surely deserve greater consideration by a board seeking to install new owners and who will not want the cost or embarrassment of another change. There is a Newcastle and Kevin Keegan messianic aspect to a Dalglish return at Anfield, who made it known during recent promotion for his latest autobiography that he "feels I've got a debt to repay".Deep-rooted problems mean there is no easy way back for Liverpool, whoever is in charge. But for Hodgson to keep the spectre of Dalglish at bay and to deliver a convincing case for his employment under a new regime, he needs to deliver at Goodison in 13 days' time.LiverpoolRoy HodgsonKenny DalglishAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
FIFA Suspends Senior Officials Over Bribery Probe FIFA provisionally suspended two executive committee members and four lower-ranked officials on Wednesday in a World Cup vote-selling scandal. feeds.nytimes.com |
Win! Win! Win! Take a photo that answers this question and you could win two VIP tickets to England v France, a new England home shirt and a digital cameraTo celebrate the launch of the England football team's latest home kit, which is available to buy from 12 October, Umbro is holding a competition for all budding amateur photographers.All you need to do is take a photo that answers this question: What is beautiful about England today? It could be anything from a simple nature scene to the crowd at a football match. Then go to Umbro's Facebook page to upload your photo and enter the competition. The winning entry will receive two VIP tickets to see the new kit being worn by the England team in their match against France at Wembley on 17 November. On the day of the match the winners will receive meals, drinks, transfers to Wembley and a night's accommodation. The top prize also includes a new England home shirt and a digital camera worth £500, while the winning entry will be shown on the big screen at half-time. Five runners-up will receive the new shirt. Umbro's new England kit was created in collaboration with graphic designer Peter Saville. From his early designs, including album sleeves for New Order and Joy Division at Factory Records, through to his collaborations with fashion clients such as Christian Dior, Saville's work continues to influence and inspire.The New Fabric of England is Saville's personal vision of modern England. The clean white shirt with the multicoloured St George's cross motif on the shoulder reflects the multicultural diversity of the England team and its supporters. As Saville puts it: "Football is a language everyone can relate to and the new England home kit provides the perfect canvas to reflect what England looks like today." (Click here to watch a video interview with the man himself).Inspired by the idea behind this cultural fabric, Umbro decided to reveal the new kit on a special England team line-up made up of some of the best young footballing talent in the country. Alongside established names including Wayne Rooney and Joe Hart, the image also includes players such as Jade Bailey, one of the best prospects in the England women's team, and Eric Dier, an English teenager playing in Portugal.So get thinking about what modern, beautiful England looks like to you. The competition will be judged by the Guardian and Observer's head of photography, Roger Tooth, with the most original and creative entries to be showcased on guardian.co.uk. Visit facebook.com/umbro to enter.Closing date for entries is 29 October 2010.guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Panathinaikos v Rubin Kazan: live Follow live commentary of the Champions League Group D match between Panathinaikos and Rubin Kazan at the Athens Olympic Stadium on Wednesday Oct 20 2010, kick-off 19.45 BST. telegraph.co.uk |