Curbs closes in on Hammer's Helm

Talk about striking whilst the "iron's" hot! Merely days after the sacking of Alan Pardew at Upton Park, comes the announcement that West Ham have opened talks with former Charlton boss Alan Curbishley.

After allegedley turning down the job, back in 2001, it seems Curbishley will get a second bite of the East London cherry, as new West Ham chairman Eggert Magnusson moved quickly into what has been reported as 'positive negotiations'.

It is rumoured that Curbs could even be unveiled as the new Iron's boss in as soon as 48 hours time! This surely would be too soon a time scale to replace a man that most Hammer's fans idolised and worshiped as they sung proudly "Alan Pardew's claret and blue Army!"

And right the fans were to sing too, celebrating the valiant conquests of last year in reaching a top 10 premiership finish and being part of one of the most memorable F.A. Cup finals of all time, despite losing on penalties. However this year has seen Pardew's men floundering at the bottom of the Premiership table, with just 4 wins from 17 games.

The look on Magnusson's face, hiding within his jacket as Bolton's Nicolas Anelka hammered in their fourth goal on Saturday was a picture that told a thousand stories. He clearly had seen enough, almost to the point where he looked as if he wanted to be sick. After backing Pardew from day one, Magnusson thought with his wallet and not his heart, seeing a change as the best thing for his 'investment'. Will this be an ever increasing trend with the rise of the foreign investor? Only time will tell.

Some will argue that the arrival of Argentine duo Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano amid the storm over the Joorabchian takevover was the beginning of the end for Pardew. However, such arguments merely paper over the cracks of a team that is simply under performing.

After all, Tevez has only made 7 Premiership starts and Mascherano only 3. Along with Shevchenko, they add to the ever growing list of big name foreign imports that are struggling to find their feet in the Premiership. True, their arrival may have lowered team morale and self belief amongst players, yet less strikingly it is both injuries and loss of form that has been the real downfall at Upton Park.

Early injuries to the likes of Gabbidon, Ferdinand, , Bowyer and most importantly, Dean Ashton have all disrupted the free flowing football that we saw from the Hammers last season. Combine this with a simultaneous loss of form by certain players, notably the likes of Nigel Reo-Coker and Paul Konchesky and you begin to get down to the root of the problem Curbishley may have to face.

More to the point, is Curbishley really the right man for the job? Forums and messageboards across the web have been flooded with Hammers fans expressing their delight at their proposed replacement, yet even Curbs himself warned that fans should not take his appointmet for granted; "I'm flattered by the response from fans who believe I should be the next boss but two and two do not always make four."

Such wise words will serve warning for any fans who think that good times are simply right around the corner. For sure, Curbs may just be the perfect man to get West Ham and their Argentine superstars back firing on all cylinders. But first, they must negotiate the tough task of a home tie against Premiership leaders Manchester United on Sunday. What a baptism of fire that may turn out to be!

All hail Great Britons – Champions League Review

As the dust settled on the Champions League qualifying stage last week, it seemed British football had the world at it’s feet. For the first time in history, all British teams have managed to qualify for the knockout last 16 stage – an achievement that of course is fantastic for British football.

On Wednesday night, Arsenal and Manchester United joined Celtic, Liverpool and Chelsea in the last 16 to complete a clean sweep for the British sides. Furthermore the three Premiership representatives all finished top of their respective groups, ensuring, in theory at least, a more favourable draw in the knockout stages.

The Champions League is regarded as the pinnacle of continental club football, and is a competition that in recent years has eluded Britain, with only Manchester United and Liverpool being crowned champions in the last 20 years.

I along with many other fans feel that with British teams making up more than a quarter of the teams left in the competition, the time has come for Britain to succeed once more.

Chelsea, although playing catch up domestically, have looked dominant in Europe topping Group A. Two baron years of the European success which Abramovich so passionately craves has laid claim to the fact that this competition is Mourinho’s main focus.

This determination can be seen through Chelsea taking four points of the possible six from the two games against reigning champions Barcelona. With the multi-million pound squad at Jose’s disposal, including the summer additions of Ballack and the under-performing Shevchenko, 2007 could Stamford Bridge welcoming home Europe’ most illustrious prize.

Manchester United have flown out the block, topping the Premier League, and winning the first three of their Group F games comfortably. United managed to put to bed last year’s Lisbon demons with a comfortable 3-1 win in their final game, and finally booked their place in the last 16 as group winners.

Many see Ferguson’s men as one of the favourites for this year’s competition, and with whiz kids Ronaldo and Rooney setting the football world alight, this could be the year that United’s young, maturing team comes of age, and go some way to living up to the success of 1999.

SPL leaders Celtic made history in making the last 16, with second place in Group F. Strachan’s men will be amongst the least favourites to progress further in the competition, yet it will be interesting to see some of Europe’s elite try and battle it out at the fortress that has become Park Head.

Arsenal and Liverpool have both floundered in the Premier League, displaying lacklustre form both home and away. However in Europe, both clubs have managed to top their respective groups, possibly a result of their poor domestic form.

Last year’s finalists Arsenal have a much depleted team from that which took them to the final in Paris last season. Their final ‘game’ against Porto was possibly the dullest moment of the season so far. Many questioned a possible carve-up between the two teams, and despite strong denials from Wenger, the 0-0 suspiciously saw both teams qualify from Group G. However, in Captain Thierry Henry, they have a player that should inspire the young talents of Fabregas and Van Persie to unleash the ‘total football’ of last season’s campaign and with the luck of the draw, Arsenal may find themselves there or there abouts come May.

Liverpool seek to emulate 2005’s heroics, and again succeed in the competition against the odds. The five time champions will still be one of the most feared teams in the competition, and the Merseyside outfit outlined their intent through qualifying as Group C winners with one game to spare. Captain marvel Steven Gerrard will need to discover more of the hunger and fight shown on nights such as the one in Istanbul, if Liverpool are to progress further in the competition. One thing for certain is that if Liverpool are firing on all cylinders, nobody will relish the opportunity to face Benitez’s side.

The draw for the first knockout round is due to be made on Friday 15th December at 12.00pm. Once the draw has been made, I am sure we will have a much clearer idea on the chances of Britain’s Elite, and whether we will really see a British team lifting the trophy in Athens next summer.

Ronaldo 'Dive' - Did he or didn't he?

Before saturday, it could be argued that Ronaldo was starting to cement his position as 'Player of the Year', with a series of outstanding displays. How he managed this, amid the onslaught from the away fan boo boys remians a mystery to most. However, his role in Man Utd's opening goal at the weekend has left some feeling a little sour.

How fitting that the great number 7 shirt of Manchester United, once worn by the masterful yet controversial Eric Cantona, can now be seen on the back of another fiery foreign wizard. And like his french counterpart, the portuguese winker has an art for putting on a show, whether it be for the right or wrong reasons.

For every piece of genious Cristiano Ronaldo dazzles fans with, whether it be dummies, stepovers,flicks or tricks, he seems to consistently produce controversial moments such as this.

Click on the image to watch and decide for yourself. Personally, I think he went for the foul, but when Schwarzer pulled out of the challenge, Ronaldo's speed and momentum left him flat on his face. There was no appeal for a penalty from Ronaldo, yet it seems this incident may put a blip, on his otherwise perfect start to the season.

Blatter wants summer league games

Good old Sepp Blatter. Month after month you can rely on this man to scrape around that balding head of his to find a new way upon which he can leave his mark on the game. Just weeks after announcing the admittedly much needed introduction of goal-line technology at next year’s World Club Championships, he is quoted in a German magazine expressing his desire for summer leagues. Now call me old fashioned, but this I believe is quite ridiculous.

Blatter has proposed changing the fixture schedule of European leagues so that domestic seasons run through the summer months, claiming: "This would leave enough time for players to recover and there could be blocks of three weeks of national teams' qualifying games in winter." Meaning that instead of the season running September to May, the campaign would run from late February to November.

Summer is a time for breaks, barbeques, beaches and bikinis. BLATTER and his meddling preferences should stay well away! Besides, summer is just too hot for football. If you disagree, look no further than England’s lacklustre performances at this summer’s World Cup.

Whilst on the subject of World Cup, there is also the slight problem of when this, the biggest and most prestigious of all football competitions would be held, never mind the rescheduling of all cup competitions. The F.A. and English fans would surely not allow its hallowed F.A. Cup to be chopped and changed just as the Fifa fat cats see fit. Would they?

C’mon Sepp. I think even you have got to admit that this is just one stupid and random idea too far. I can’t help wondering if these schemes are thought up through boredom, or if he genuinely feels he is improving the sport. Whatever the reason, the joke that is Fifa president Sepp Blatter has to be stopped, for the good of the game.