Fixtures

Next season's fixtures came out a couple of days ago. Not a lot to comment on really - at home for the first and last game of the season which is nice, and against a newly-promoted team to start with. Norwich on the last day so hopefully they shouldn't have anything to play for by then. There don't seem to be many real tricky patches - we seem to alternate between the matches that could go either way, and ones that we should win. In January and February we play Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea in the space of 6 matches, but play QPR, Fulham and Southampton in between≥ The home derby is on 8th December, while we're at Old Trafford with 4 games to go, in what looks like it could well be another title decider.

England 1-0 Ukraine

Another match, another assist for Gerrard. No question who England's player of the tournament is - he's been consistently excellent with his delivery, disciplined in his positioning and has even managed to tone down the 'Hollywood ball' he's been so derided for in the past. With Lampard also having taken a more withdrawn role for Chelsea this season, perhaps this could have been the tournament when they finally learnt to play together - a bit of maturity perhaps is what they needed!

Not that this was the best performance of the tournament, at times it looked like England under Capello - disjointed and turgid, rather than the neat and efficient team they've been so far. The chief culprit had to be Rooney, who had missed two headers even before his simple chance from Young's cross. One of them just brushed the top of his lovely new hair, and I bet Carroll was looking at it thinking he'd have buried it. Rooney gave the ball away, ran off without the ball, passed it to the Ukrainians; it shows how finely tuned the players are, and how high a level international football actually is, if a player of his undoubted technique and experience takes that long to adjust to a game.

I'm loth to give him any credit for the goal - to be fair, he was in the right position, but the real work clearly came from Stevie G, and a couple of slightly fortuitous touches from various defenders. We'd weathered the storm a little in the first half, but I'm inclined to agree with Hodgson in that none of the shots were really too threatening, most of them coming from outside the box and not ever being in danger of hitting the target. It was noticeable that the team is well-drilled, and they kept their shape all match, clearly a major factor in the defensive solidity. Although the possession stats weren't great, it can be just as pleasurable watching a well-organised defence as watching a good attacking side, and there was always someone blocking the shots - Lescott, Terry, Parker's face.

The main talking point for some though is the shot that crossed the line. Who knows if Ukraine would have managed to get another goal? They never really threatened, Hart's save aside, and I think it was a good save from Hart, it's just that Terry is forever running through treacle. Is it retribution for Lampard's at the World Cup? The cliche goes that decisions work out over time, but I actually think that this was a much tougher call - yes, the 5th official is only there to check that the ball goes over the line, but it was only fractionally over for a very brief period of time, much less clear than Lampard's and the post was in the way. Even if the goal had been allowed to stand, assuming Ukraine didn't score again, England would still have topped the group, so I think we can take heart from a very successful and satisfying group stage.

Just the small matter of Italy, then Germany in the semis and Spain in the final then. No worries. Come on England!

Sweden 2-3 England

After the dramatic, exhilarating storms in Donetsk, the England match was pretty exciting as well. I mentioned last time that I'm actually enjoying watching England at the moment, and this was no different, even when we went behind - there wasn't any of the drab, flat, walking pace football we have been used to under the past few managers, and while it's not the most talented squad and the players are prone to making mistakes there is always optimism, even when we go behind.

Sweden are no great shakes, but in Ibrahimovic they have the most talented, player of the two squads (and certainly the one who's had the most money spent on him). Winning the league 9 years in a row with 5 different teams is just a preposterous record and although he can be temperamental he is class - we've got no one to match him individually even including Rooney. However, we were good value for the win, starting brightly and deservedly going ahead through a great header from Carroll.

I'm not his biggest fan, but the power he put into it was evident from the way he lashed his body around on the follow-through. It was reminiscent of the first half of the season before last when he was getting on the end of Barton's free kicks at Newcastle - this time it was another Huyton native, Gerrard, who put in a ball that was practically identical to the one against France. He's a great player to have in the side, knows how to deliver on the big occasion and obviously a great crosser of the ball.

Some pretty ropey defending allowed Sweden to go in front with two horrible goals from set pieces. Unfortunately Milner - who started well and put in a few decent crosses in the first half - was tired by this point and committed a slightly desperate foul for the first free kick. I refuse to blame Hart though - he managed to save Mellberg's first shot before it ricocheted off Johnson and in. Perhaps he could have done more for the second, maybe taking control and punching it out, but he was hung out to dry by the defence, and he was damned if he did and damned if he didn't.

Clearly the introduction of Walcott changed things, and with that and the selection of Carroll you have to say Hodgson's decision-making was faultless. Although Walcott's goal was dodgy keeping (he was pretty bad when he played for us! Actually all three keepers from that season -Schmeichel, Isaksson, Hart - are at this tournament), Welbeck's came from a fantastic run from Theo and was a lovely finish. Maybe I can just about enjoy watching Welbeck play for England.

New kit (?)

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1581115_peek-a-blue-manchester-citys-secret-new-home-kit-revealed-after-it-goes-on-display-in-australian-shop

http://www.footballkitnews.com/5258/leaked-new-manchester-city-kits-2012-2013-umbro-man-city-jerseys-12-13-home-maroon-away/

I'm sure most fans have seen it by now, but I have to say I quite like it - since Umbro started making our shirt again I've liked all of the home kits and most of the away ones. I like how they understand the importance of the heritage, with them having produced versions of all of our classic away kits - red and black, the League Cup 'sash', and now (apparently) a pretty snazzy maroon away.

I'm a bit sad therefore that we have abandoned Umbro and are going with Nike from the season after next. I think it's important to have some sort of link with local businesses - before our deal with Kappa we had the longest-running kit deal in English history, Umbro having made our kit for over 80 years. Nike are a bit too much like global business sharks for my liking, even if Umbro is a bit stiggy.

It also shows that you can have the slickest commercial team in the league, but you can still come unstuck if there's an eagle-eyed Oldham fan around!

England 1-1 France

So, City draw one all in Donetsk. Very encouraging for England in my opinion - all the talk has been about them being well organised and (ahem) 'difficult to beat', and they did look very solid, but I also found them much less anaemic and stolid in possession than they have been in recent years. Thankfully, most of the players from the laughably nicknamed 'Golden Generation' are injured or retired or not selected, and the remaining members are the best of the group - Gerrard and Cole have always been class, and Terry, while I am not his biggest fan, did well tonight, dealing with pretty much everything that came his way in a mostly very impressive defensive line.

I like how the team contains young, hungry players who are willing to run for the side and have a positive attitude when something doesn't work properly, getting back in position and making amends rather than standing and remonstrating (a la Cristiano Ronaldo). Club rivalries aside, I would even put Danny Welbeck in that category - both he and the Ox looked bright at times, causing France problems with their running and skill. That said, and much as it pains me to say it, I do think we need Rooney back - at times we were lacking ideas going forward and his invention and power were missed a bit. We've got the most difficult match out of the way and earned a good point with the most enjoyable England performance for years.

Delighted that Lescott scored for us, he has popped up with a few crucial goals this season and he is always a threat from set pieces. I've always been a massive Gerrard fan and it was great to see one of my favourite payers provide the asset for a City player (the free kick was won by a City player against a United player as well which was nice to see). I also liked his smiling reaction to the goal, it's important to see the game played with the right attitude. I disagreed with the criticism of Hart for the goal though, it came through a crowd of bodies and Hart was right to say that the defence should have closed him down sooner. It was very interesting to hear Nasri suggest in the post-match interview that he tricked Hart by shooting near post rather than far post, knowing Hart would expect him to go for the latter - of course the players see each other in training every day and it;s amazing that he has the presence of mind to remember that in the heat of the moment. Hart did seem to take half a step to his left as well. Of course, he might just be saying that to make himself look clever (Nasri's a bit of a spoilt brat at times - was less impressed with his celebration).


So overall I'm cautiously optimistic about England, certainly that the matches won't be as eye-gougingly horrendous as the games at the last World Cup, and possibly that we might have a sneaky run if Rooney's in form and we get a bit of luck. It's going to be tricky match next of course (Spain or Italy or possibly Croatia) but you've got to play everyone at some point. Come on England!

I'm writing this just after Shevchenko has scored Ukaine's second, what a fairytale! Brings a tear to the eye. Ukraine have had a lot of stick this tournament, with people saying they are the weakest team to ever attend a tournament, as well as the problems with racism, but this was a moment to help you forget about the negatives and just enjoy the drama and joy that football creates. There will be some happy kids in Kiev tonight.

A bit late but...

http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-best-commentary-to-sergio-agueros-title-winner-for-manchester-city-v-qpr/

Ferdinand and Terry

All eyes have been on the fans in Ukraine and Poland, with the shameful and barbaric racism directed towards players and fans rightly condemned all over the football world. I am always trying to explain to non-football fans that football is a force for good, that brings people together and exposes the population to new cultures, and while there have been disgraceful incidents in the past in this country they remain in the past, and football was actually instrumental in helping the general public in Britain understand and appreciate the pleasures of a multicultural society.

It is with a sinking feeling, then, that I read the claims that England have left a player out of the squad because of his race, or rather, the fact that his brother was involved in a race row. I can't believe that this is the case, but I do find it very difficult to support a team with John Terry in it. The two high-profile incidents of on-pitch racism have of course blighted this season, and I fear perspective was lost in favour of club tribalism - Dalglish's t-shirt, Suarez refusing to shake hands, Liverpool fans booing Evra for the dreadful crime of being racially abused!

If the millions of amateur lip readers are correct and Terry did indeed manage to cram racism, sexism and profanity into one neat two-word phrase then I'm amazed that he has been selected. Not only because there are black players in the England squad, but more to the point because racism is not acceptable whatever the ethnicity of the people involved. Likewise, if Ferdinand has not been selected in an attempt to avoid possible clashes between the two, meaning England have given support to the player who racially abused another and in doing so refused support to the victim and his family then we should all be ashamed that this has been allowed to happen.

I'm not sure it has though - I agree with Hodgson that Ferdinand should have been left at home 'for football reasons'. Although he has definitely been an outstanding player - anyone who's read my Vincent Kompany adulation knows my weakness for a ball-playing centre-half - he is now too old, and his back wouldn't be up to it. I'm also not sure if his fabled 'influence' would be all that valuable - he is the epitome of the arrogant, 'Golden Generation', Manchester United-inspired expectation of success that has typified England at the last few tournaments.

For footballing reasons, and plenty of other reasons, I wouldn't have taken Terry either. He got schooled at Liverpool, embarrassed himself against Barcelona and again in the Champions League final, and is just as injury-prone as Ferdinand. Lescott and Jags will do me at the back, although it is a shame Cahill got injured. I think Hodgson's main mistake has not been leaving out Ferdinand, but in taking Terry. If he'd left him out as well he could have avoided the unsavoury furore, not left himself open to claims of racism enabler, and the team would have been better as well.

Cardiff

I know there are plenty of other issues to discuss at the moment but I wanted to quickly say something about the situation at Cardiff. It has been announced that Cardiff will be changing their shirt colour from blue to red, at the behest of their multimillionaire Malaysian backers. The expectation will now be that the club gain promotion to the Prem, with success to follow for the 'project'. This has led to much hand-wringing and suggestions that it is the latest example of a club being willing to sell their soul for money.

Now, apart from the fact that City have shown that the amount being suggested (I've seen around £100m) would be nowhere near enough to get you to the top of the division, I'm not so sure that this is quite such a clear example of modern clubs' greed as it might appear. In the 60s, Don Revie changed the colour of the Leeds strip to a Real Madrid-aping all white in an attempt to inspire his players to hit new heights. Admittedly, this was not because a rich man from distant shores ordered it, but ultimately the aim was the same: success. I wonder how we would have felt about sky blue if Allison had decided to introduce red and white stripes as the home shirt instead of away.

As a City fan I understand the connotations of changing from blue to red (I'm sure I'm not alone in refusing to have red clothes in my wardrobe), and of course the Cardiff fans are going to have to endure some less than friendly chants and comments in the press about the change. Perhaps the emotions aren't quite the same - red is the Welsh colours after all, and perhaps white would be more abhorrent to Cardiff fans, being the colour of Swansea and England - but this is still a massive change and one many fans would feel an instinctive aversion to.

Will it be worth it though? What sort of prize justifies a change of this magnitude? If one of the terms of the takeover by ADU had involved changing our shirts to white, would City fans have accepted it? I'm tempted to say no - I love the colour of our shirts (although is that because of the associations with the club? These traditions have to start somewhere!), and when we play on a sunny day, with the shirts against the blue sky, it's beautiful. Also, imagine the comments from the United fans and elsewhere - it would be unbearable.

I don't think the two situations are comparable though. Without wishing to be patronising to Cardiff, we were already an established Premier League team (albeit mid-table. Alright, lower mid table), whereas Cardiff haven't played in the top division for decades. Generally, I think that the worst possible game to lose is the playoff final - whilst the losers in the FA Cup, Champions League, World Cup etc. miss the chance to get their names on a trophy, the tangible effects for the future are less severe, whereas missing out on promotion means another season of worse players, worse opposition, dwindling gates, etc., etc.

Similarly, if Cardiff can get themselves into the Prem (and I'm sure Swansea's success makes this even more of a desire) then I think many fans would be delighted, and they'd get used to the shirt colour. After all, why do we watch football? It's entertainment - yes, there is an important sense of belonging and wanting to support your local side or your family team, and of course the pride and satisfaction is increased when your club does well. But if those fans are able to go to the classic grounds of English football, as well as the homes of the new powerhouses, and watch the best players in the country, won't they be happy?

I'm sure there will be a pang of regret for the shirt colour, but then what is a football club? It can't be the players, the manager or even the board - they change very regularly. The colours of the shirt and the badge are important, but not essential - they change quite often, and although traditionalists prefer the old ones (the round City badge!), the club is still the same. So it must be the fans, which is why MK Dons will never be Wimbledon, whereas a red Cardiff will still be Cardiff.