TOP 100 SOCCER SITES
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| Middlesbrough striker crisis undermines FA Cup hopes against Manchester City Gordon Strachan's chances of bringing Man City counterpart Roberto Mancini down to earth undermined by lack of strikers. telegraph.co.uk |
Lionel Messi-less Barcelona drop first points in Nou Camp draw Barcelona dropped home points for the first time in Primera Division this season after Villarreal draw. telegraph.co.uk |
SPL survival vital for Kilmarnock Kilmarnock's difficult financial position means that relegation could come at a high priceThere is a certain frisson to Jimmy Calderwood's appointment as the Kilmarnock manager. One of his former clubs, after all, represent a lesson in just what could happen – on the field at least – if Scotland's oldest professional outfit were to lose their top league status.Calderwood's arrival in Ayrshire will be treated with the quiet approval which is the custom in these parts. Yet the departure of Jim Jefferies after eight years as the manager has suddenly put into sharp focus what troubles Kilmarnock have away from, rather than on, the field. Relegation would ensure a critical situation has the potential to become fatal; sitting a mere two points and one place off the bottom of the league, that fate cannot be ruled out.It can be reasonably argued that Dunfermline Athletic and Kilmarnock are clubs of an equal standing within Scottish football. Calderwood did a fine job when in charge of Dunfermline, guiding them to the upper echelons of the SPL and the latter stages of cup competitions before leaving for Aberdeen amid the typical animosity which fills the veins of football fans when a manager departs for a rival club.Now, Dunfermline are apparently stuck in a First Division rut, playing in front of dwindling crowds – little more than 1,800 trickled into East End Park last Saturday – with the SPL a mere pipe-dream. Unlike Kilmarnock, though, their very future does not appear on the line.While Jefferies's departure highlighted it, Kilmarnock have been widely regarded as something of a shambles for a while. They owe £9m to bankers from a long-term loan and overdraft facility; no business analyst could see the club trading out of that situation in the next 50 years. The position with the bank, indeed, would be worse had it not been for positive player sales such as the £2m departure of Steven Naismith to Rangers.It would be unfair to single out Kilmarnock as an SPL club with specific debt difficulties solely on account of their bank borrowings. However, steps taken by the chairman, Michael Johnston, in the latter stages of Jefferies's reign hardly appeared to sit squarely with what should happen at a professional club. Kilmarnock no longer have a club doctor, nor a video analyst. Gary Locke, a first-team coach, had a contract offer withdrawn last summer and was not even re-employed when Jefferies and his assistant, Billy Brown, offered to subsidise his wages.Other tales of how Johnston has bizarrely sought to cut even apparently minuscule costs routinely do the rounds within Scottish football circles. Those who are lucky enough to win even minor prizes in Kilmarnock's club lottery receive cheques with a polite notice alongside, suggesting it is cashed in quickly.Johnston is the sole member of Kilmarnock's board, a matter he puts down to not wanting to inflict potential liability for debts upon others. The solicitor, who by his own admission does not have the personal wealth even to partly fund the football club, instead operates a management committee.Outright change at the top, however, is necessary for Kilmarnock to thrive, if not quite ever to the extent they did in the 1960s. Some £4.5m was spent by the club on a hotel at Rugby Park with the aim of providing an alternative income stream in difficult football financial times – given the downsizing which has taken place in the last two years, the project may only now be useful for a capital injection and short-term solace if sold to a private hotelier.Johnston remains adamant Kilmarnock's wage budget compares favourably with those around them in the SPL. Which, if true, isn't saying much given the relatively paltry wages now on offer north of the border; the annual exodus to the Championship tells you all you need to know about that.The chairman also, somewhat dubiously, claims the demise of Setanta and its agreement to televise Scotland's top flight has played a large part in matters at Kilmarnock. Unless Johnston had somehow budgeted for a new and improved Setanta television contract which not only never came into force, but wasn't even scheduled to for another year at the time of its collapse, there is little evidence to show why Kilmarnock should feel the pinch of that affair more than any other club outside of the Old Firm.Speculation regarding fresh investment in the club refuses to go away, offering some respite to a supporter base which has patently become worn down by recent events. Johnston argues negative publicity regarding his running of Kilmarnock contributes to that sense. Before Jefferies's exit, the captain, Kevin Kyle, claimed in a tabloid interview that the chairman had asked him for a private chat regarding the former manager's tactical approach; hardly the sort of stuff of a happy camp.The chairman now has a crucial five-month spell as not only Calderwood looks to preserve Kilmarnock's status but Johnston himself attempts to source the investment which is needed to lift an off-field gloom which has descended over Rugby Park. That the new manager has only signed a deal until the end of this season supplies all the evidence anyone would need about the aims and objectives within this relationship.Scottish Premier LeagueKilmarnockEwan Murrayguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Birmingham close in on Villa's Gardner • Clubs close to agreeing £3.5m deal, says Peter Pannu• England Under-21 international has fallen down pecking orderBirmingham City are close to completing a deal for Aston Villa's midfielder Craig Gardner, according to the club's vice-chairman, Peter Pannu. The clubs are understood to be on the verge of agreeing a £3.5m fee for the England Under-21 international.Villa rejected an initial bid for Gardner and any add-ons relating to the deal have still to be thrashed out. But Pannu is optimistic Gardner will follow the defender Liam Ridgewell in moving from Villa to Birmingham.Pannu said: "Our offer for Craig Gardner is still on the table and we are pretty close to a deal."Gardner has come through the academy ranks at Villa but recognises the need to play first-team football at this stage of his career. He has slipped further down the Villa pecking order this season after the arrival of Fabian Delph from Leeds United and also has James Milner, Stewart Downing, Ashley Young, Nigel Reo-Coker, Steve Sidwell and Stiliyan Petrov ahead of him.Gardner could become the Birmingham manager Alex McLeish's second January signing after the Sporting Gijón playmaker MÃchel. McLeish also wants to sign a striker with Liverpool's Ryan Babel still on his radar although attempts to sign Sunderland's Kenwyne Jones have come to nothing.The Blues striker Marcus Bent has returned to the club after a two-and-a-half-month loan spell at Middlesbrough.Bent will now provide back-up for Cameron Jerome, Christian BenÃtez and the veteran Kevin Phillips.Birmingham CityAston VillaTransfer windowPremier Leagueguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
West Ham courting van Nistelrooy: reports West Ham has offered a weekly salary of £100,000 ($169,845 Cdn.) in the hope of enticing a star player to help it avoid relegation from the Premier League. cbc.ca |