Play-Off Not Necessary To Add Excitement to Fourth Place Chase

If you are first, you are first. If you are second, you are nothing. The current Liverpool regime may not quite share Bill Shankly’s belief as they reside in sixth place in the Barclays Premier League, desperately attempting to claw their way up to fourth. Rafa Benitez has guaranteed that the denouement of this drama will indeed see the Reds finish inside the top four, thus collecting the final lucrative Champions League spot. However, they face stiff competition. Tottenham Hotspur currently hold the greatly coveted position, with Manchester City level on points with the North Londoners in fifth. Aston Villa emphatically defeated their Claret and Blue brothers on Sunday when Burnley visited Villa Park, whilst Everton’s comfortable victory over Manchester United led to suggestions that they could sneak in and steal fourth. With three different teams (and, vitally, Liverpool were not among the trio) occupying the illustrious rank within the space of four and a half hours yesterday, when better to remark that the Premier League is too predictable and announce plans to introduce a play-off tournament to determine the recipient of the final Champions League place?

It would appear admirable if motives were disregarded. If the Premier League presented these plans to make an honest attempt to level the playing field and stop further monopolisation by Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United, it may be worth considering. Sadly, yet unsurprisingly, that is not the case. A series of play-off matches featuring the four teams finishing between fourth and seventh would entail five extra spectacles for Sky to hyperbolise, as well as allowing them to attach a brand name to the event, not dissimilar to their recent decision to ridiculously christen Wayne Rooney The Last of the Street Footballers. The Premier League, run by Richard Scudamore, is driven by money and, just like the ludicrous suggestion of a thirty-ninth game, their intentions are arguably far from the issues of morality that some naively believe.

It was cited as a reason for the possible addition of a play-off system, and the Premier League’s intense desire to remain ahead of their Spanish counterparts is extremely puzzling. As home to the European Champions and a host of big name players, La Liga could already be seen as superior, despite Sky’s constant smothering of viewers with the words Best League in the World to describe England’s top division. For excitement, the Bundesliga is hard to beat, and other European leagues are often ignorantly overlooked. Yet such comparisons are needless: all of these competitions are different. To translate into Scudamore’s language, La Liga is a supplementary good to the Premier League. The English game is quicker than what is seen in Spain and, contrary to the beliefs of some, this country’s football has retained a gritty British element to it, accompanied by the traditional never-say-die attitude. La Liga relies on its slight technical advantage and, although much slower, more goals are usually witnessed in Spain. Moreover, in the majority of cases, Spanish people will prefer Spanish football and English fans will have brand loyalty and stick to their own version of the game. The Premier League’s constant wish to stay one step ahead of their rivals is extraneous: English football will not become less popular just because Osasuna grabbed a Champions League place in Spain four seasons back. It is also worth noting that whenever an apparent improvement to our game is uncovered by the Premier League, it will not only have supporters but detractors who, although opposing the idea, find it necessary to provide alternatives. In this case, the most popular idea appears to involve the FA Cup winners being involved in the chase for Champions League football, despite the fact that the FA Cup winner usually qualifies for the competition anyway. Notwithstanding any credentials an individual notion may entertain, the need for change cannot be too pressing if other schemes are only concocted when a certain idea is dispensed – talk of a play-off featuring the FA Cup winner and the team who finishes fourth were scarcely heard before the Premier League’s latest proposal. A similar issue could occur if the play-off system was indeed integrated into Premier League statute: relegation-threatened clubs may, entirely reasonably, ask for the installation of a similar arrangement at the bottom.

The current five-way tussle for fourth is the tightest we have seen in years. Usually the position is filled by the member of the elite who has failed the most in a particular season’s title race. However, this campaign is different. Many tipped the wealth of Manchester City to address the monotony, but Tottenham and Aston Villa are still in the hunt, while David Moyes’ Everton look capable of maintaining their current form. This exciting challenge signals a clear and fair battle – the play-offs do not need to be introduced to give others a chance of Champions League football. If the play-off system was in place now and Tottenham managed to inhabit fourth place right up until the final two games of the season, we may see damaging results. Harry Redknapp, safe in the knowledge that his side could not drop below seventh, may choose to rest key personnel to keep them fresh for the upcoming duels with fellow challengers. This, along with going against the very nature of football, would also influence proceedings elsewhere – Tottenham could essentially relegate another club by saving the legs of important players ahead of the mini-tournament.

Another key talking point recently has been Wayne Rooney’s form, a topic that is seldom discussed without at least a mention of the possibility that the forward could face burnout before the World Cup. Players like Rooney and Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard are too essential to their club sides to even warrant a thought about resting them, and it would not do England any good to have their star players involved in up to three additional high-tempo matches weeks before a major tournament kicks off. The horrific state of Portsmouth is something else in the news; the financial mismanagement on the South Coast is something that must never be repeated, but the temptation of Champions League football may persuade clubs like Fulham to live the dream. The implosion of another Premier League club is worrying and, in the way Leeds United overspent in an attempt to reach the Champions League, if seventh place ensured a chance of rubbing shoulders with Barcelona and AC Milan, it is something that we may see increasingly more of, despite Portsmouth’s example. On top of this, Michel Platini has recently reformed the format of the Champions League, with tougher opponents in qualifying matches being promised to fourth place finishers. Should a team such as Birmingham City take England’s final qualifying place, it is likely that they will face a stern test in a match against an accomplished European side who will probably have won their domestic league. The introduction of a play-off system, therefore, does not ensure a fresh Champions League group stage entrant.

It is plausible that Liverpool will miss out on the top four this season and, if they do, it will be extremely difficult for them to get back in. Manchester City’s bottomless finances means they will only improve, while Villa and Tottenham’s success shows the gap between the big boys and the rest is narrowing, not widening. Television contracts detail that new laws that alter the structure of the league cannot be implemented until the current deal expires in three years’ time. For the reasons stated above, coupled with Manchester United and Liverpool’s crippling debt and the inevitability of Sir Alex Ferguson’s imminent retirement, a different top four may be establishing themselves at this point, only for the new hierarchy to be demolished as the league is inexplicably shaken up. The Race for Fourth has been thrilling thus far, and looks set to continue in this way. However, do we really wish to be commenting on The Race for Seventh? Seventh place, after all, is just above mid-table and, although success can only be judged in terms of relativity, the fact that six teams have finished above you shows that you are still some way off league domination. This is to take nothing away from Fulham’s seventh place finish last year, but the fact that Roy Hodgson’s men finished nineteen points behind Arsenal in fourth illustrates the gulf in class. Plus, sport is all about aiming as high as possible – teams should be encouraged to follow Villa and Tottenham’s lead, and not just settle for seventh.

You cannot help but wonder what Shankly would have made of it all. After all, if his philosophy is to be observed and finishing second equates to nothing, scraping into the Champions League is nothing to be satisfied with. Rafa Benitez may take a different view.

Let’s Not Let Personality Get In The Way of Recognition

Such is the nature of the Premier League, fourteenth place would appear to be a relatively comfortable one. It is the position currently occupied by Hull City who, after collecting four points out of a possible six against Chelsea and Manchester City, hope to push on and move further up the table. If only it was that simple. Hull have three consecutive away games coming up and when they do return to the KC Stadium, Arsenal will be the visitors. Nevertheless, there is a sense of optimism: Hull may only be three points above the dreaded drop zone, but this is more than expected. Pundits far and wide tipped City for relegation this season, believing they would replicate the latter half of last season’s form.

The progress has been steady. Only one win in seven at the beginning of the campaign indicated that perhaps the pundits would be right. A 4-0 home defeat to Everton, albeit in the Carling Cup, sparked persistent chants of ‘Browny sort it out’; this was the first time the fans began to turn. A 6-1 loss at Liverpool ensued, and newspaper reports suggested chairman Paul Duffen had awarded Brown six weeks to save his job. However, it was Duffen whose position ceased first as Adam Pearson returned to the club, intent, if the rumours are to be believed, on making a change in the managerial department. A desperately unlucky defeat to Burnley followed, and the pressure on Brown intensified. When Stoke City took a 1-0 lead at the KC Stadium, he looked doomed. However, Hull managed to turn the game around and record a 2-1 win, a result which was followed with a 3-3 draw with West Ham and a 3-2 victory over Everton. The calls for Brown’s head subsided and, despite it being their first win in twelve, the recent 2-1 defeat of Manchester City has provided hope that Hull City can again survive in the Premier League. The club, who were on the brink of non-league football in 1999, has risen so inexplicably and if either Duffen or Pearson had chosen to extirpate themselves of Brown’s services, they would be showing a deep lack of gratitude. It is vital for clubs to sustain a sense of perspective: without Phil Brown, Hull City would probably still be languishing in the lower reaches of the Championship.

You can only get so far when discussing Brown’s managerial ability before it is impossible to proceed without referring to that infamous half-time team talk in a game against Manchester City. What was unusual about the event was the fact that it took place on the playing surface. In a sport which is dominated by money and the media, the dressing room remains the only place yet to sell its soul to baiting television channels: with cameras positioned all over stadiums for live matches, this enclosure remains sacred ground. It is a place where Sir Alex Ferguson’s hairdryer is plugged in and turned up high, whilst stories of Roy Keane karate kicking a tactics table are unsurprising, especially considering the venue where the alleged event transpired. Thus, the dressing room is supposed to be the one place where the manager and his team can be alone – away from the opposition, away from predatory journalists and away from the supporters. By breaking this convention with a public admonishment, Phil Brown made a mistake. His players, despite being 4-0 down, had performed heroically in the majority of the opening eighteen games of the season and did not deserve to be undermined or belittled by their boss. Hitherto, Brown has stubbornly defended his actions, pointing to the fact that, with the game ending 5-1, his team had drawn the second half. Brown conveniently ignored the fact that Manchester City had started to relax, secure in the knowledge that it would take a massive effort from Hull to overturn their four goal lead. Critics blamed Brown’s half-time decision for his side’s subsequent collapse, when they only won one of their remaining nineteen matches and plummeted down the league. Notwithstanding the information above, no such facts will be recorded in the history books. In the 2008/09 Premier League season, Hull City finished in seventeenth place and avoided relegation. This is all that matters and the fact that it was in their debut Premier League season, ten seasons after propping up the Football League, makes it even more of a marvellous achievement.

A goal celebration, choreographed by the Hull players, was performed in November after Jimmy Bullard’s equalising goal at Eastlands. Bullard, assuming the role of Phil Brown, wagged his finger at the bewildered players circled around him, emulating Brown’s ‘spirit-destroying’ antics. If the players had indeed lost faith in their manager during those fifteen minutes, it would be preposterous for them to poke fun at the event less than a year after it took place. The fantastic display showed the unity between Brown and his playing staff, whilst it also dispelled the popular belief that Brown damaged the vital relationship between a manager and his players on that Boxing Day afternoon.

Had Hull’s season of two clear halves been reversed, Brown would be hailed as a genius. If the Tigers had picked up just eight points from their opening twenty matches, but had stayed up after accumulating twenty-seven points from their remaining games, there would be no talk of ‘six weeks to save his job’. Similarly, if Hull had managed to develop some level of consistency and generated their thirty-five points at a steady rate throughout, Brown and his side would have received far more plaudits than they did. Instead, Hull’s limp over the finish line overshadowed the magnificent early season form, which included brilliant away wins at Arsenal and Tottenham. Hull were considered to be fortunate – some went as far to say that they only survived because of Newcastle United’s incompetence. Surely, this ridiculous notion applies every season then? Perhaps the ‘great escapes’ from Fulham, Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion were not so; instead of dispersing credit to these sides, it would be more accurate for us to define their survival by studying the mistakes made by Reading, Birmingham City and Norwich City. Hull City remained in the league because they collected more points than three other teams. For this, coupled with the fact that they were many bookmakers’ favourites for the drop, they deserve praise.

American lawyer and politician Frederick L. Collins one said: “There are two types of people. Those who come into a room and say ‘Well, here I am!’ And those who say ‘Ah, there you are‘”. There is no doubting that Phil Brown belongs to the former. Regardless, in an era where press conferences are often dull and soporific affairs, it is refreshing to watch Brown, a manager who does not solely use interviews to exhibit his assemblage of footballing clichés. His personality does irritate some: as one broadcaster remarked last term, the fifty year old does not need to be asked by the fans to ‘give us a wave’, as he tends to come out of the tunnel already waving. However, he proves that characters do still exist in the game. A lot of people are too quick to dismiss Brown as a foolish, media-savvy attention seeker, and people appear to enjoy ridiculing him much more than other managers, namely for his earpiece and the application of chemicals to produce a perma-tanned face. His hearty rendition of The Beach Boys’ Sloop John B after Hull’s survival was chastised by many onlookers and deemed to be embarrassing and pathetic. It is a sad situation when a manager is viewed in this way after celebrating success with his own fans; would we really rather have twenty mechanical robots as Premier League managers who, instead of rejoicing after such an accomplishment, merely walk down the tunnel and talk to Geoff Shreeves about the lads ‘working their socks off’? More importantly, such criticisms of Brown overshadow his ability to manage a football club – something hehas been very successful at doing at Hull. Leading the club to the Premiership was one thing, but keeping them there erodes the doubt. Phil Brown has done a terrific job.

These three upcoming matches against Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United and Everton are vitally important for the Tigers. If they can continue their reputable recent form, they may be able to further pull away from eighteenth place. Alternatively, the three games could prove disastrous and Hull could be in a far worse position than fourteenth. Their fans, who are now well used to topsy-turvy seasons, might even have mentally prepared themselves for disappointment. One thing’s for sure though. Even if Hull City find themselves trailing by a four goal deficit after forty-five minutes tonight, Phil Brown will conduct his team talk in the sanctuary of Ewood Park’s away dressing room. Harsh words may be distributed, foul language may be exchanged and tea cups may be thrown, but it will all take place inside those four walls. Who knows, they might even win the second half.

Bigger Issues than England’s Captaincy

You would be forgiven for missing it. Avram Grant’s frightening revelation that Portsmouth Football Club are ‘living hour to hour’ was somewhat thrust aside to create space for stories about John Terry scoring away from home. The tabloids continued to sink their righteous teeth into Terry on the front page, while the back detailed his winning goal at Turf Moor as Chelsea defeated Burnley to increase their lead at the top of the Premiership. Grant’s admission came at the end of a week in which Crystal Palace slumped into administration and Cardiff City fans besought chairman Peter Risdale to resign, as their £2.7 million tax bill shows no sign of abating.

It just goes to show exactly how warped our perception on football has become in this Premier League era. Admittedly, the Portsmouth soap opera has been ongoing for months and, because it is fresh, Terry’s story will afford more detail. This, however, does not detract from the miserable situation that Pompey find themselves in. The identity of their owner is not known, they are £60 million in debt, and they appear to be close to administration where they would incur the ten point penalty attached. The fact that relegation is the least of Portsmouth’s worries exhibits their horrendous plight. The temporary closure of their official website last week was shocking – small businesses are able to run sites with no such problems; for a Premier League football club’s to become unavailable after failing to pay the operator smacks of desperation. The future of the club largely depends on their legal battle with HM Revenue & Customs that will commence a week today.

Despite a fantastic 3-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers gifting Crystal Palace a televised home tie against Aston Villa in the fifth round of the FA Cup, £1.5 million is still required to see the club through until the end of the season. Barring a run right through to the final, this money can only be raised from investment or new owners, something that the Eagles have been crying out for after Simon Jordan announced his intentions to sell the club nineteen months ago. Hitherto, interest has been low and although administration may hurry along potential buyers, there is no guarantee the Eagles will resolve their off-field problems any time soon. Their Championship rivals, Cardiff City, may be enjoying success on the pitch, but they have been forced to sell two parcels of land around its new stadium to generate capital to stave off the taxman.

Terry’s supposed cheating with Vanessa Perroncel is one thing, but when transfer rumours specifying Arsenal’s interest in Montenegrin teenagers takes priority over serious issues involving lower league clubs, you realise how valued football outside the Premier League really is. Sky TV’s ignorance towards pre-Premier League football is extremely frustrating and does little to refute claims that football is not what it once was. In an era where it is increasingly rare for youngsters to support their local team and the Premier League is given such nicknames as ‘the promised land’, Sky’s promotion of the division as the only one that matters (unless they hold the broadcasting rights to a Championship game, which Newcastle will undoubtedly be involved in) does little to promote awareness for smaller clubs. A brief chat about Bill Shankly on a December edition of the needlessly named Super Sunday was a rare recognition that the game did exist before 1992. The ‘Head to Head’ feature, which is shown prior to a game, only includes previous Premier League meetings between the two sides involved, an act which further adds to the irritation. Brian Clough’s statement that Sky’s money was attracting interest in the game from people ‘who wouldn’t know Stanley Matthews from Bernard Matthews’ may be exaggerated, but it is true that some of the game’s followers no longer have any knowledge or interest in football’s history.

There is no doubting that an affair between the England captain and a fellow team mate’s ex partner warrants considerable media coverage a day after it becomes public knowledge, but tedium develops as the story monotonously rumbles on day-to-day. More and more moral commentators are discovered to transfer their thoughts via the centre pages of The Sun: it is a story that even the least of football fans have an opinion on. Although an interest in sport is not required to know that Terry’s latest misdemeanour is appalling even by his lofty standards, calls for Fabio Capello to axe him as England captain are not quite formed of sufficient substance when those making them could not tell you the twenty-nine year old’s position on the football pitch. While Terry’s betrayal of former best friend Wayne Bridge may well cost him the captaincy, it is unlikely to cost him his place in the England team. The importance of the role of captain that this country strongly believes in is not mirrored by Capello’s native Italy, who, having won the World Cup four times, must be doing something right. If Terry is indeed stripped of the armband, his leadership qualities will still be emitted in South Africa – a piece of material allotted to Terry’s bicep does not alter his character. Thus, all the talk of captaincy is irrelevant: Brazil would still have won the 1970 World Cup if Carlos Alberto had handed the captaincy to any of his colleagues.

The greed that envelops John Terry has been showcased through a selection of offences. His decision to park his car in a space allocated for those with disabilities was, at the very least, foolish, while his advertisers’ attempt to squeeze money out of his position as leader of the national team did little to endear himself to England fans. After accepting £10,000 to show undercover reporters around Chelsea’s training ground, Terry’s excuse that the money was destined for charity was feeble. He could so easily have rejected the offer and made a donation to a worthy cause: £10,000 is not a figure that takes Terry a long time to accumulate. Also, the sum is just twenty times less than the £200,000 debt that bankrupted non-league King’s Lynn recently. It was the failure to pay a £77,000 tax bill that ended their existence, one hundred and thirty years after the formation of the Norfolk-based club. It takes Terry just three and a half days to earn that amount and, although it would be ludicrous to condemn him for not bailing them out, it reveals the obscene gulf that has developed in football – King’s Lynn’s demise has slipped under the radar as the Premiership gobbles up as many column inches as it can. Terry’s affair will continue to dominate in the coming days and weeks, regardless of the severity of issues at crumbling football institutions that have belonged to the game for over a hundred years, before even Terry’s grandparents were born.

Gallant and loyal supporters of Portsmouth will continue to meet and discuss solutions to their problems, Cardiff City fans will press on with their campaign to stave off a winding-up order and Crystal Palace followers will not allow administration to dampen their spirits. Stockport County have been in the hands of administrators since last April and even the mighty Manchester United have been troubled by debts in excess of £700 million. The future is looking bleak, with many experts believing it will not be long before a professional club ceases to exist. Fans’ greatest fear could be realised, and it is possible that a club in England’s top four divisions will be forced to resurrect at the bottom of the pile with ‘AFC’ at the start of their name. The fact that this could happen to a Premier League club who, as recently as 2008, won the FA Cup makes it all the more depressing. Portsmouth’s fate could be decided for them very soon. Don’t hold the back page.