29 April 2013

Incredibale

I remember the first time I watched Bale play. It was a pre-season match some time ago in 2007 against a random team I'd never heard of. That was the year he signed the Spurs, still a teenager at 17. I didn't think much of him, apart from the fact he looked pretty quick in that position. After that, my attention towards Bale was scarce to say the least, certainly not like Giovani Dos Santos, a young player I would always be eager to see (never did happen for him, did it?)
Bale in 2009/10. The oddest No.3 there ever was.

About half way through the legendary 2009/10 season, BAE got injured and  was replaced by this young player I had heard so little of in the two years since his arrival. Bale became a player to watch, bombing up the left flank on a regular basis, making things happen, even scoring goals. From then on, a Tottenham team was incomplete without the name 'Bale' on it.

His Champions League exploits in 2010/11 made Bale a player to watch in England, including the unbelievable hat-trick at the San Siro and the reverse fixture at the Lane, memories that all Spurs fans cherish. He won PFA Player of the Year that season and signed a new contract with us, ensuring there would be more of these memories to come. And boy did they come.

Over the past two seasons, Bale has shown us how versatile he is, how much of a threat he can be in the middle, on the wings, on the counter attack or even on free kicks. There were times last season where the team didn't quite look right, probably due to some spontaneous tactics by former manager Harry Redknapp. He was still without doubt the star of our team, even with bad egg Luka Modric wanted by Real Madrid.

Nothing like mugging off the Champions of Europe.
This season under Villas-Boas, however, Bale has excelled, becoming the third highest goalscorer in the league and more than just a defensive nightmare. I can't understate how influential AVB has been to Bale's form this season. When he moved into the middle, he wasn't just told to free roam around the midfield like last season, but has been played in a specific role behind the striker. He is no longer leaving large gaps on that left wing, now replaced by technical and supplying midfielders.

There is no player in the world that gives me more excitement when I see them play than Bale. When he has the ball, an air of expectation and excitement rises in the hearts of every yid. The best of players, the most memorable, the most legendary, do not need to be studied, analysed or backed up by stats: you watch them and you know they're good. Only a handful of players have that kind of quality.

I want Bale to stay at Tottenham, not just to benefit the club, but to benefit the league. Why should a player feel the need to move abroad to fulfill his ambitions? Bale can become a Premier League legend, as well as a Tottenham one, if he sticks around. I have said many times that I want him to stay at Spurs so he can become a legend like Hoddle, Greaves, Villa, Ardiles, King...

Wherever his future may life, I am confident Gareth Bale will continue to show the footballing world what a young lad from Cardiff can do.

 

21 April 2013

BRING ON THE ACID

I said yesterday how Spurs needed the confidence of LSD users to get passed City today. Whether or not AVB slipped a few blots of acid in their water-bottles at half time is debatable, but all I know for sure is that that confidence and ability were in abundance today.

What a win. I mean what - a - win. When that final whistle blew, I was in a state of shock. What the fuck did I just see? We beat one of the best teams in England IN APRIL. How anti-Spurs, I thought.

The first half was very naff, I'm not gonna lie. We started alright but the goal completely knocked the shit out of us; nobody could believe it. It was a really well worked goal, very little blame attached on the players, but it's still disappointing to concede so early on. Lesbian vampire killer and ex-gooner Samir Nasri should've got his second after some nifty passing. We didn't really pick up our passing after that apart from a few chances  here and there.

What was that? Come on Spurs. This is our season here.

60 minutes in and we really weren't going anywhere. I said that City have one of the best back fours in the Prem. I thought a draw would do, if I'm honest, but it wouldn't come naturally, maybe a fluke goal or a free kick.

Great moment in our season. Cherish it.
Then AVB brought on Holtby, Huddlestone and Defoe, and I was delightfully proven wrong.

The passing improved. We kept possession really well. Players made runs. Chances were coming. Bale gets the ball in the box in acres of space, crosses it with the outside of his foot straight into Deuce's path. He's a big game player, Dempsey, and definitely knows how to score.

Moments later, Holtby picks up the ball on the half way line, dribbles it a bit and puts in a gorgeous through ball into Defoe. Puts it on his right. Buries it. That's the Defoe I loved at the start of the season.

City's heads start to drop and somehow Big Tom 'bursts' into their half, takes his time and delivers a pass that splits up the City defense. Bale, of course, finishes his dinner. He may have the energy of a diabetic American, but there's very few better passers than him.

We've won this match and we've won it well.

Big shout out to the genius, the tactician, the pro that is Andre Villas Boas. He doesn't stop thinking, that bloke, and pondered his Plan B from the minute City scored. He's got sheer balls of steel, and the ability to change the game from his technical area. I'm so happy he's our manager.

Winning this game is vital to our season. Chelsea dropping points again gives us a lifeline that we were
desperate for. This result, I hope, gives the players the belief and the confidence to win our next 5 games, including Chelsea away, who must be a little more frightened at this Spurs team.

I wish I was there, living in that moment. One of the best matches of the season.

It's a celebration

20 April 2013

Sex, Drugs and Tottenham Hotspur

We've had ten days to mull over many things about our season: collapse, disappointment, passion, success, failure, and all the implications they bring. I've been wondering and pondering this pretty much all season, even when we were seven points clear. 

Do you remember that? Do you remember how much joy and confidence we had? Players, good all season, became stars. Other players, normally absent, stepped up, and boy did they step up. And Bale, our talisman, was failing on all cylinders. We looked like we wouldn't lose another game all season. It was like sex in football boots.

Seven weeks later. Defeats at Fulham and Liverpool. Four points out of twelve. Out of Europe. Fans nationwide call this the 'Tottenham collapse' but I just call this an unfortunate turn of luck (if you believe such thing exists). It all levels itself out in the end, even for a club like ours where nothing ever happens the easy way. We've had strokes of luck this season; a couple of one-nillers here and there kept our form going. We seem deprived of such moments now, but like Dan Louw says after every Away Days, 'it's all swings and roundabouts'.

More on the game tomorrow. We have key players back, players we don't seem to function well without. Whether or not they'll be match fit is a different matter, but half fit or full fit, Bale and Lennon can rip teams apart, even Man City. 

Whatever happens, yids: stay away from Beachy Head
City, despite their somewhat disappointing season, have a strong team and are in a strong position. Their defensive four is one of the best in the league (Zabaleta, Kompany, Nastasic, Clichy). World class midfielders in Silva and Yes Yes Conservative (not Milner though, never Milner). And Aguero, Tevez and Dzeko as their strikers are enough to make you where adult diapers either in excitement or fear.

This is the most important match of the season. Note: I will probably repeat this phrase frequently till the end of the season. But it is though. This match could completely change the momentum of our season. A win would give the squad a confidence boost like an LSD trip. Suddenly, they'll think they can fly off Beachy Head and get to White Castle. If we could beat City, we could beat anyone...
Don't end up like poor Chris Whelpdale with your ballsack split
in two

ON THE OTHER HAND, a loss would damage our squad like a scrotal tearing. Nothing will be in our hands for the rest of the season. 

It's never as simple as that, I know, but it sounds like the right plotline in this bipolar soap opera of a season. It's all down to the team though. They'll need hallucinogenics to get through this.

12 April 2013

An Echo of Glory

I could preach to you about backing the team (again). I could tell you that the only way to succeed is if we believe we can as fans. I could tell you that the people that slag off players are twats etc. etc.

Truth is, it's not worth it.

You see, we will always have yids that like to abuse certain players. A lot of the time, they are just scapegoating them to ease their frustration. But most of the time, they are just being cunts.

Last night, I think I may have experienced every emotion a fan can have. Joy. Elation. Hope. Shock. Frustration. Dispair. But as ever, it all ends the same way: sadness.

Basel away, lads. Who would've thought it would turn out this way? 

He felt it more than any of us
Whatever I think, it's the players, though, that are much more important than anything we say.

They didn't just put in 100%. They put in that and more, more than any fan expected of them. The manager too. AVB wanted it more than anyone did; he believed in this competition. Just the image of him praising the players for their efforts with a tear in his eye brings tears to mine. Sad? Pathetic? Perhaps, but that's football.

Basel won't go on to win it, as much as I want them to for their equally impressive performance. It'll be the only club left who couldn't give a fuck what happened. A club that cares more about league positions than silverware. A club that- oh you know the rest. 

It makes me think though. The passion shown by players that many fans have discarded, deemed unfit and unworthy. Walker, Hudllestone, Sigurdsson, Dempsey! The promise of Carroll and Holtby. The leadership of Dawson, our rock in the team. It gives me hope. 

After Dempsey's equalizer, we all though we could do it.
Hope for what? Champions League? Yeah sure, why not? It is, as of recently, our main objective. But, guys, remember our ultimate objective, one that has been engraved into our history:

'The game is about glory. It is about doing things in style and with a flourish, about going out and beating the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom.'

I don't like defeat. Defeat shows weakness, an inability to compete with a greater opponent. On that basis though, I don't think we were defeated, merely lost the tie. We were strong and firm when we easily could've rolled over and conceded. We caused them problems, creating just as many chances as they did for 120 minutes. 

Nevertheless, we're out. Gone till next year. The positive is, we were not outclassed.

Last 6 games. The final hurdle. City will be tough. The other games with be just as difficult  Whatever happens, promise me this guys:

Be proud of our players.

To finish this post off nicely, some words from the great Bill Nicholson, without whom, Tottenham Hotspur wouldn't be.

'It is better to fail aiming high than to succeed aiming low. And we of Spurs have set our sights very high, so high in fact that even failure will have in it an echo of glory.' 

It all ends in tears. But aren't you proud of them?

11 April 2013

Friedel or Lloris?

One of AVB's selection issues that has garnered a lot of issues this season is Friedel or Lloris. In one corner, we have the 41-year-old veteran keeper, one of the most consistent in the league, who has saved us on multiple occasions this season and last. In the other corner, we have a young, energetic keeper, experienced in all levels of football, with a massive reputation worldwide and our star signing of the summer.

At the start of the season, the favoured keeper was Brad, who started 10 of our first 11 league games. Despite the loud criticism of the decision by football fans, Friedel didn't actually do anything wrong. However, since then, he has not started in 20 of the last 21 games in the league, replaced by Lloris. The media seemed to have chosen to criticize AVB for that selection, zooming in on Hugo Lloris's minor mistakes. Despite this, AVB didn't break and intends to start Lloris in every league game till the end of the season, leaving Friedel benched.

Lloris one-bangs Michu. Fucking brilliant.
Lloris had started the Europa League games, a seemingly odd decision for many as a signing of his magnitude should have been showed off. The Lazio away game was Hugo's big highlight: a world class display of keeping. I'm adamant no keeper in the world could've kept us in that game. Stunning. That performance contributed to his replacement of Friedel in the first team, as no manager could deny its quality. Lloris has made mistakes, sure. Recently, against Everton, he should've caught the ball off the corner, seeing as it was quite close to his line. But he has also kept us in many games, winning matches for us, as world class keeper ought to. He is a gem in our team.

Friedel starts the Europa League matches now. It seems any appearance of Brad in the team angers the Spurs faithful, some saying it contradicts AVB's value of the competition. Friedel is slow going out of the ball and is always tentative about going off his line. He relies on a deeper defensive line than Lloris due to his lack of speed. His distribution is occasionally off.

Friedel saves. He never gives less than 100%
But apart from that, I can't see nothing wrong with him. He has shown many times this season he still has the reflexes, so rare for a man of his age. He is a leader in the team, a mentor to many players. I feel that AVB keeps him in the team so the players don't lose that figure of experience, always needed in tough situations. It is probably why he insists on starting Gallas, although that decision does not please me so much.

It could also be a lesson learnt by AVB in his Chelsea tenure. The leaders of that team turned on him and was one of the factors that lead to his humiliating sacking. He fears that similar actions against the veterans of the team would lead to the same at Tottenham. I personally feel that the players or fans wouldn't give a flying fuck if Gallas never played again, but that might just be me.

Either way, Friedel is here to stay. He will start cup matches. He will be our second choice. Not many teams could boast about having two keepers of the quality we have in our squad. AVB backed his decision from Day 1, never tracking back. Now we, as fans, are expected to do the same.
The best keeper combination in the league.

8 April 2013

The Government's response to safe standing

I posted a blog entry, showing the contents of an email I sent to Damian Green MP regarding safe standing at football grounds. Today, I got a reply from the man personally. Below is the contents of that reply.

So the attitude towards safe standing appears to still be rejection from the government. What we all know, though, is that the Bundesliga have a lot of standing terraces, and Mr Green mentions this in his reply.

I'd like to think there will be some discussion about this as standing terraces is VERY IMPORTANT to the game and its history. Probably will take a lot to convince them though. 

I sent another email to Tottenham's MP David Lammy, so hopefully I'll get a reply from him as well.

7 April 2013

Safe Standing at White Hart Lane

Here is a copy of the email I sent to my MP Damien Green, requesting a change of law over standing terraces at football ground. A change in legislation is the ONLY WAY we can get Safe Standing at the Lane, or any other ground, so I urge you to send an email to your MP of a similar kind.

'Dear Mr. Green, 

I am writing to propose to you an idea that many people have discussed in my social groups, involving seating at football grounds.

As you may be aware, one of the knee-jerk reactions to the tragic Hillsborough disaster in 1989 was the implication of all-seater stadia, focusing on Premier League stadia. Even though standing areas was only one of a number of factors that resulted in the disaster, laws were passed to make standing terraces almost illegal.

As a football fan, I have watched, as have many, the demise of our sport to what us fans call 'Modern Football'. This is a combination of many factors, including the Sky Sports takeover of the premier league, the inflation of ticket prices, brand clubs, Multi-millionaire takeovers and the transition of football as a spectator sport, like Tennis or Rugby. I do not like what Modern Football has done to fans, prejudging them as vicious and cult, when the majority of us only wish to express passion for our teams.

In Europe, there are terraces known as 'Safe Standing' areas, which have been proven to be beneficial for fans, manageable and efficient. A survey conducted by The Fighting Cock Podcast, popular among Spurs fans, which questioned over 2000 fans about Tottenham Hotspur, receiving very positive reactions to the proposal of safe standing at White Hart Lane, our football ground. The club responded to the survey saying that they couldn't implement safe-standing due to 'prevailing legislation', however they did say that if the 'legislation was repealed or amended', they would consider trials at White Hart Lane. 

As a well respected Member of Parliament, I urge to propose the idea of repealing or amending legislation on standing terraces at football grounds. Other clubs like West Ham, Aston Villa and Arsenal have all stated they would be positive to safe standing at football grounds, as they too wish to benefit fans and their clubs. 

The majority of fans are no longer violent and partisan towards rivals as they used to be many years ago. My Dad told me the reason he became disillusioned by visiting White Hart Lane. He told me how Millwall fans used to chuck bricks over the metal fence dividing the home fans and the away fans. One of his friends was seriously injured by these assaults. A small minority of fans wish to tarnish the reputation of football fans, resulting in the prejudice towards us.

All I want to do is improve the experiences of English fans supporting Premier League clubs. I see images and videos of European games, where the fans do not stop singing for all the 90 minutes, and the unity and passion expressed at games are like no other. Modern Football has seen the decline of these experiences in Britain. However, with a change in legislation, you can bring Premier League football back to its former glory and respect.  

Please consider my request in your busy schedule. I would be very grateful.

Yours sincerely,
Jonathan Walczak. 

(Link to The Fighting Cock Safe Standing Survey: http://www.thefightingcock.co.uk/2013/03/safe-standing-survey-results/ )'

6 April 2013

Reviewing our fans

So I went to White Hart Lane on Thursday to watch our match against Basel. It was the first time I've been to the Lane in quite some time. I enjoyed the day very much, great day, even if the result wasn't ideal.

I had high hopes for the Basel match and, as a result, I massively underestimated their team, thinking we'd get a strong result. Streller, Stocker, Salah and Serey Die were amazing for Basel; they played out of their skins. It was a surprise, but it shouldn't have been looking at their season. Looking at our performance, I thought we were lucky to get the draw. We were poor to say the least.

But this isn't a match review. This is a fan review

The Basel fans were in the stadium at 7pm and were going at it from then on. Singing, jumping, lighting flares, waving flags. Meanwhile, there were about a classroom of Yids in the stadium. Of course, we couldn't respond being so few, so I studied their antics for an hour.

The players names were read out. They not only cheered at the player's name; they repeated it, screamed it aloud. Meanwhile, the Spurs faithful lightly cheered at our players' names. Worrying reports say that fans actually booed Adebayor and Gallas when the teams were read out. Now I personally didn't hear anything malicious, but I could certainly imagine a few disgruntled fans booing the ex-gooners.

Siggo smashes in the equalizer, benefiting from a cheeky deflection
At times, we were loud. Waves of 'yid army' and 'come on you spurs' were heard, along with a few faint-hearted renditions of 'Oh when the Spurs', not strong though to make an impact. Jan Vertonghen's song and Lewis Holtby's song were heard in the first half. We stopped singing when Basel applied themselves. The Basel fans didn't stop. Not from the moment they entered the ground. That's the difference for me.

I talked before the match about our old anthem 'Can't smile without you' and questioned its absence from WHL in recent years. Th
e answer I got was that we replaced it with 'Oh when the Spurs', which not every Spurs fans sung too loudly. I question you now. Why don't we have an anthem? Before the match, I imagine players walking out to CSWY on the loudspeakers, with fans singing with them. The speakers would stop near the end, leaving us singing loud and proud. Can't this happen? I know 'Bubbles' is a stupid excuse for a song, but when they sing it, I always feel a little awe at their singing, only because I want that at the Lane. It's a small piece of identity, if nothing else.

Ade makes it 2-1. Very athletic finish.
I'd say the last 20 minutes, our reaction as fans was poor. Instead of trying to spur the team on (ha, pun), we just sat and stared at Basel pressing our team further and further into our own half. It was upsetting. With just a bit of spectator-input, the team could've had a few more chances.

It wasn't great as a fan watching us fall silent in shock, angry at a mis-touch or whatever trivial indiscretion occurred. I even heard a few dickheads on TalkSport criticize AVB's decisions! He's been excellent all season round, and should have earned more respect.

We have a responsible as fans, to stand up and support our team through thick and thin, through success and failure. Because if we do not support our team through hard times, nobody will.

5 April 2013

World War III anyone?

Whether or not the statements and talks coming out of North Korea are legit or just plain bullshit, it's safe to say that tensions are rising globally, especially between the Koreans and America. America, known for their gun-hoe attitude to negative situations, will not hesitate to attack a clear and obvious threat. Therefore, I start to worry that in the near future, we may be facing another war, and this one may be bigger than anything our generation has experienced.

So, if you didn't know, 'North Korea Army statement to state news agency says it has approval for military strikes on US, including using nuclear weapons'. Last week, they stated they were 'officially in a state of war' with South Korea. America have vowed to defend South Korea in this little tiff, so there's your war. It seems that whenever America have a problem, we have to support them, so you'll find Brits in Korea not before long. How many? Who knows...

Worst case scenario is another 'World War', and I say 'World War' very lightly because we've been close to another one since the Cold War. The War on Terror even seemed likely to be a global thing. Luckily it didn't. Either way, if these talks of nuclear weaponry have got any basis, then we're gonna have a war.

Talking of wars, I've been studying WWI and things like conscription and new age soldiers and weaponry. I've been imagining what WWIII might be like for me. 'David Cameron issues new military laws declaring all men between the ages of 18-30 will have to carry out military service'. Soon I'd find myself queuing up outside the town centre. Then they'll dress me up in uniform...

Or will I? Maybe I'd be a conscientious objector and refuse to go to the town centre. They'd eventually track me down, of course, and I'd have to hide... or defend myself... Imagine that! Me attacking a member of authority! Nah, I'd probably concede.

Perhaps I'd join the army but try and get a desk job or perhaps just something that doesn't put me in immediate danger. They'd chuck the dim and dumb straight on the front (no offence if you're in that category, but you won't exactly give you top jobs). But intelligent people were given guns and told to fight... you'd have to prove yourself as a soldier or have a good lot of money to get anywhere...

What would I be like as a soldier? Calm? Tactical? Brave? Or would I run away from the battlefield? Would I watch my mates get killed to protect my own skin? Would I be useless with a gun, lethargic, wasteful? Truth is I don't know and most of the Koreans wouldn't either, which puts us all on a level playing field.

If there were an attack on the US, the reaction would be huge, like 9/11 but much much bigger. Every other worry you ever had would be replaced by nukes and guns and uniform. It's worrying.

Although it probably won't happen, the mind does wonder, and mine does often. Maybe it'll be a relief. Wouldn't have to fuck around with A-levels for a while.

3 April 2013

Basel: The Journey Continues

At the start of the season, I had the attitude to the Europa League that everyone shared: it's a distraction from our league objective. More games to play. More chance of injury. Travelling. It didn't seem worthwhile. Well, it certainly didn't seem worthwhile when Redknapp was playing second teams in the group stages.

Thankfully, AVB does not share my former attitude. He values the competition for what it really is: a European competition. A good run would boost morale and a trophy would leave the fans elated. He won the competition with Porto, along with the unbeaten league title. Therefore, he has approached the competition with the  respect it deserves but not always gains.

Attitude

Whether or not the players value the competition is a different kettle of fish. We have not one away in the competition this year, with draws against Panathinaikos, Maribor, Lazio and Lyon and a horrific 4-1 loss against Inter Milan at the San Siro. Thankfully, that has been our only loss in Europe this season.

What is clear, though, is that it's time for the players to step up their attitude. All 7 of the other teams have to have been good to get to this position, and we are fully aware of the likes of Lazio and Chelsea. We have been VERY LUCKY to even get this far, despite the quality in our squad. Late goals have got us past Lyon and Inter. Late goals will not be good enough again.

Home Fortress

The late away goal at Inter. I hope to God we don't need this again
Our home performances, however, have been very positive. With 4 wins out of 5 at home, we should be very happy with that side of the competition, notably thrashing Inter at the Lane last month (that was probably one of our best performances all season). On paper, therefore, we should look at Basel and think we should try to settle the tie in one leg, not two.

That's never the case though.

All we needed is one away goal at the San Siro to finish Inter off. It took a fortunate Ade tap-in in extra time to win us the tie. In contrast to the game a week before, that was the worst performance of the season.

Basel, NOT BASLE


Marco Streller, carrying the team.
Basel sit on top of the Swiss league table, only losing 3 games all season and none at home. Their top scorer in the Europa League has been their prolific captain 31-year-old Marco Streller, who averages almost a goal every two games for Basel. They have only lost one in their last six.

However, I don't like saying it but someone has to: they are only Basel. I'm sorry. I had to say it. Apart from Alexander Frei and Streller, there are no stand out names on team list. Even Frei is on his way out of football, after saying he'll leave Basel at the end of the season.

What should be noted is that they did knock out Man United last year in the group stages of the Champions League, with strong performances in the competition last year. However, that was with their star talisman Xherdan Shaqiri, who is now making his trade at Bayern Munich.

After knocking out big-money Zenit in the last 16, I think they are feeling as fortunate as us to be in this position.

The Journey Continues

The Europa League has turned out to be an important competition and  an outlet for us this season, a break from the stress of the Premier League. At Spurs, we have a little motto, words spoken by Danny Blanchflower years ago: the game is about glory. And guys, what is more glorious than European silverware?

The journey continues. I'll be at the Lane on Thursday and whether you are there with me or watching the tele, I am sure you'll be cheering us on. COYS!

2 April 2013

What's worse, the fascist or the frenzy? My thoughts on Paolo Di Canio

Fascism is the far-right ideology that promotes totalitarianism, military states, ethnic superiority, imperialism and rejects democracy, liberalism, communism and socialism. Fascism is linked to the brutal regimes of Hitler and Mussolini, responsible for the deaths of millions.

Paolo Di Canio is a fascist and proud of it.

I don't pretend to admit that I did not know or care of Di Canio's political views before he was appointed Sunderland's n
ew manager, after the sacking of Martin O'Neill. However, it didn't take long after his appointment before the social networks informed me of his preferences.

As the story goes, Di Canio said both in an interview several years ago and in his autobiography that he was a fascist, stating his political views over immigration and culture. Some of his views I can easily predict are secretly shared by thousands in the UK, from the BNP radicals, to the beer-chugging working class blaming immigrants for his lack of employment.

A Swindon Favourite, donning the club scarf.
To be honest, I don't care a great deal about Di Canio, or his fascist views. He probably doesn't make a habit of segregation or racial abuse like some people in the footballing world (*cough* Terry *cough* Suarez) and he probably doesn't impose them on anyone else - at most, it was a passing comment.

What does bother me, though, is the media frenzy surrounding a) his appointment and b) his political views. He has not hidden his views, or disguised it through actions; he made it long ago on paper. Why is it then that on every sports/news channel people are discussing it? Ian Holloway has said enough contentious things in his career to make an entertaining montage, yet nobody was too bothered about him!

Instead, the media has cocked-up by completely ignoring the main issue: the appointment. Sunderland have a tough last 7 fixtures, including Chelsea, Everton, fellow strugglers Villa and Spurs. In response, they sack the perhaps overrated but decent manager O'Neill and have appointed... well, a cartoon. At least, that's what I thought he was when he managed Swindon. Fighting with players. Making stupid comments. Odd interviews. Even my Dad adds him to his odd bloke list (includes Redknapp, Frankie Boyle and Jimmy Savile).

I found it incredibly annoying, too, that the media zoomed in on his appointment of an all-Italian backroom staff, as some kind of racially-motivated decision. Next time a manager appoints an all-English backroom staff, I wonder if they'll say it's because he hates foreigners.

Di Canio won't succeed at Sunderland, unless you call keeping a mid-table team from being relegated and achievement. He will probably have this fascism tag circulating and speculating his every news article throughout his tenure.

That point, of course, is dependent on his Premier League status, you know, because this shit only matters if it's in the Premier League -_-

Welcome

Hello and welcome to the blog. I'll be talking anything from Spurs, current affairs, random debates and whatever else may grab my attention. Like, comment and share to your heart's content.

Remember: these are my views and opinions and they will probably offend, abuse, contest and contradict.

From your old pal Jonny.

#COYS