Capello wins friend

Capello desperate to stay according to the Telegraph.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7862308/World-Cup-2010-Fabio-Capello-desperate-to-stay-on-to-avenge-Englands-failure.html

Are the Dutch up to their usual tricks at a big tournament. It came out before world cup started that Van Perise and Sneijder don't talk to each other.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/van-marwijk-clears-the-air-after-spat-with-van-persie-2013825.html

Ronaldo not a happy man as Spain knock Portugal out of world cup.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/ronaldo-flounces-away-after-villas-latest-strike-sends-portuguese-out-2014092.html

Markets dip on fears of world wide double dip recession.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/7862380/Warning-signals-of-a-double-dip-recession-flash-brightly-across-the-world.html

Larry Elliot forsees a return to the era of the boys from the black stuff
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/29/budget-deficit-unemployment-larry-elliott

Whilst Sean O'Grady wonders how long the country can avoid a crash in the housing market when the double dip recession happens.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/how-long-can-the-housing-market-avoid-a-crash-2014108.html

A leaked teasury report suggests they expect 1.3 million jobs to go after the emergency budget measures.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jun/29/budget-job-losses-unemployment-austerity

Stravinsky

Keano doesn't mince his words

I thought he had promised to stop talking to the press about anything he is asked, he obviously just can't help himself. That said, it's hard to argue with any of what he actually said. It was classic Keane as he went through the team dismissing them as players, even the untouchables.
http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2890/world-cup-2010/2010/06/28/1999703/manchester-united-legend-roy-keane-gives-scathing-player-by
There is an argument that if you haven't won the world cup you can't call yourself a real great. I can't really go along with that in this day and age, when it's the champions league where it's really at. It would also mean you would be dismissing Di Stefano, Puskas, Cruyff and Best from amongst thw world greats of the past. I don't think that can be right, i have just read Harry Gregg and he listed Di Stefano and Best amongst the best eleven players he either played with or against. Almost all players of the 50's and 60's name Di Stefano as the best player they ever saw. Cruyff was undoubtedly the best player in the world during the early 70's.

Ossie Ardiles thinks Englands problems run deep arguing amongst other things that Lampard and Gerrard are not technical players able to run things. Well at last someone has spoken that glaring truth. Of course we did have one and he retires at the end of next season.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7859572/World-Cup-2010-Blame-Premier-League-for-Englands-lack-of-style-says-Osvaldo-Ardiles.html

Paul Mason, Newsnights economics correspondent, describes the English football team as the Lehman brothers of football. I don't buy into that totally but it's ten a times more interesting and constructive column than what i have read from most British football writers.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/paulmason/2010/06/england_the_lehman_brothers_of.html
He's a United fan by the way

United are being linked to a host of players playing in the world cup by the press and by the sounds of it by the players agents. I don't think we will see any action, if we see any action at all that is, until the Vidic issue resloves itself. The ideal situation for us would be for him to sign a new contract and knuckle down and concentrate. But if he is hell bent on a move it would be better to let him go, i suppose. That would leave us an experienced centre half short though and i'm not sure who is out there we could go out and buy even if we had the money.
One thing that has stood out at this world cup has been the amount of the so called major countries with less than water tight defences. Of all countries it has been Brazil, surprisingly enough, that have looked the best equipped to keep teams out during this world cup so far. But even though they probably do have as good a back four as there is in the competition, there tactics are pretty negative. They play with a back four protected by two midfield holding players who hardly go over the half way line. If you really watch most of the goals Brazil have scored have been on the break.
It will be interesting to watch the quarter final against Holland, who have been pretty unadventurous themselves. I expect Holland to sit back and to just try and keep possession and hope Van Persie, Robben or Sneijder can come up with something special. They will try and make sure Brazil don't catch them on the counter attack. Which whilst it might be interesting could also make it not the spectacle people would hope for when they think of a game between these two countries.

Polly Toynbee aks whether Cable will allow Murdoch to buy up the rest of BSkyB
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/29/vince-cable-foxification-murdoch-sky
If he does, the lib dems will have lost my vote come the next election, whatever else happens during the coalitions lifespan.

The world's central bankers, yes that lot that were asleep during the run up to the credit crunch, warn thatBritain might not cope with another Bank emergency. When are the world's democratically elected politicians going to smash the power of the markets and return it where it belongs, the elected representatives of the people.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/britain-might-not-cope-with-another-bank-emergency-2013049.html

Steve Richards argues that electorate did not vote at the last election for the vast cuts that were promised in the emegency budgets.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/steve-richards/steve-richards-the-biggest-deficit-is-democratic-2013109.html

Music
Bass Clef - May the bridges i burn light the way: A pretty good piece of electronica of varying styles.

Broken bells - Broken bells: I like this collaboration album between danger mouse and Shins man James Mercer. At times it threatens to be really good but doesn't quite manage to get there. Some cracking tunes on it though.

Foals - Total life forever: I thought this was a slight improvement on their debut album although a lot of reviewers didn't share that view. To me the songs came to the fore more on this album. They are group to follow anyway.

Lonelady - Nerve up: For all Manchester's recent music history it hasn't really thrown up many top female artists. Maybe Julie Campbell's is going to change that with this impressive debut album. I have seen her compared to PJ Harvey and that seems as good a comparison as any. There aren't really any stand out tracks which you hope she might develop over future albums but she definitely has her own sound, and good it is too.

MGMT - Congratulations: The follow up the very successful debut oracular spectacular. But they have left the radio friendly stuff behind for a more musically adventuous record. I have read it called psychadelic and there are definitely elements of that on it. I love the tack Brian Eno.

Paul Weller - Wake up the nation: Another very good Paul Weller album. Not as good as his last, 22 dreams, but that was a storming record. I love the adveture he has shown on these two albums.

The courteeners - Falcon: I've got to admit i hadn't really listened to the latest Manchester big thing before, but had been put off by some of the hype. How wrong i was if their second album is anything to go by. It's a pretty good indie album with plenty of memorable tunes and not quite as meat and two veg, music wise, i had thought it would be.

England show true level

Well the totally predictable happened, England finally played a half decent side, and the defence was shown up for what it is, completely out of it's depth at this level. To be fair to them, Capello's refusal to change formation in order to give them more protection, didn't help their cause, but still they were always going to be found out. If anything they were even worse than i'd expected them to be, fucking hell, how bad would it have been, if they had faced Brazil, Spain or Argentina.
I know it won't happen because of their financial situation, but the FA should be sacking Capello, not allowing him to resign, which seems to what most experts think will now happen. As i have said in previous blogs he never had the squad to seriously compete with the Spain's and Brazil's. But i have to say, I never imagined before the tournament such a dismal performance against the Germans. But after watching the first three dismal displays, i can't say yesterday's performance came as that much of a shock.
Surely a managers job is to get the best out of the players you have got, and Capello has conspicuosly failed in that objective. His obsession with 4-4-2 has been embarrassing, with such a wobbly defence, he had to find a way to get some protection in front of them. The one system that afforded them the least protection and gave the opposition control of midfield allowing them the chance to get at our defence was 4-4-2. How he could keep on persevering with that system, shocking performance after shocking performance is beyond me, but what is not beyond me, was that was not the mark of a top modern manager. Capello has got almost everything wrong in this tournament as far as i can see. From players picked to the formation chosen and finally the ineptness of the substitutions, can anybody really argue that was any better than Sven, i can't.
But at the end of the day, a good manager could have only masked the fact that for all the newspaper and TV hype our best 24 players are nowhere near as good they like to think they are. As i have argued previously that squad was very light on real talent. And what good players he had, he has not played in the positions where they do their best work for their clubs. Add to that a Rooney whom i am sure we will find out in the next few weeks was never really 100% fit and England never had a chance.
Paul Scholes at 35 is head and shoulders above of every single one of the midfielders picked in that squad. The most damning indictment of English football over the last decade is the comparatively small amount of caps he received and the fact he retired so early. And i still think, that was as much about having to play out of position, to satisfy the newspaper and TV hype to pair two of the " golden generation " together as much as to Scholes desire to not being away from the family for long periods. It needed a real football man in charge to realise that England should have built their team around the most technically gifted player they have. But what England had was the ever eager to please Eriksson and he always pandered to the press. The press got their much more marketable dream team, the golden generation, English football is all about hype, and the ginger prince never did that.
The problem for the FA is where do they go now. If i was in charge i would scrap the policy of going for foreign managers, have Sven or Capeelo been any better than El Tel or Bobby Robson. The next step would be to give the next man the brief that as important as qualifying for the next tournaments is that the need to identify and bring through young English talent is of equal importance. There should be an acceptance that we have no chance of winning the European championship in 2012 and that to qualify and blood youngsters picked out as the future is the way to go.
And i know all that is absolute pie in the sky, because to admit all that would be to admit to too many failiures of the men in charge now. There is too much money, too many ego's and too much hype for such an honest brutal assessment to prevail.

Full credit to Germany they totally deserved their win and played some excellent football. How much it tells us about their chances to go all the way is hard to say as England's performance was so laughable. Still you can only beat what is put in front of you and they certainly did that. Ozil and Schweinsteiger have been two of the better players in the tournament. Ozil has come out of nowhere to me and looks a serious player but Schwinsteiger has impressed me with the national team and with Bayern Munich in last seasons champions league. In the past i have always thought he was over rated but he seems to be developing into the player the Germans had hoped he would become.

Jason Burt in the Telegraph writes that Capello has been aware of the lack ot talent and worrying lack of technique prevalent amongst English players since his first England training session.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7857949/England-v-Germany-after-failure-of-golden-generation-it-is-time-to-give-youth-a-chance.html
The paragraph about Rooney makes for interesting reading, and i have a feeling it is a 100% correct. If so, it's hard to blame him, he has trained and played with them all so i think he would be a pretty good judge. I'm not sure how Burt tries to compare Lampard and Cole to Giggs and Scholes, they are not even close to the two lads of the class of 92. Gerrard is a player and from the way they lin up it's pretty obvious that he does rate him.
As for the future and going for youth, after that it is surely the only way to go. It wouldn't be under Capello though, if i were in charge.

David Pleat finishes his tactical assessment of the game with the lines "England offered nothing against this imaginative and lively Germany side. They leave South Africa in a destroyed state."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/27/england-germany-world-cup

Alan rips into the " abysmal " defensive display and argues players Capello and his defensive coaches must share the blame for such a shambolic display.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7858010/England-v-Germany-Englands-defence-was-worse-than-abysmal-says-Alan-Hansen.html

Andy Cole lays it on the line, our good players aren't as good as everyone says and the rest are just average. There isn't a sentence in that i could quibble with.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/andy-cole-our-great-players-are-simply-not-as-good-as-they-and-we-thought-2012158.html

Michael Owen said as soon as he saw the team and formation he knew England were going to lose and worries where the next generation of England footballers are going to come from.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7858085/England-v-Germany-as-soon-as-I-saw-our-tactics-I-knew-wed-lose-says-Michael-Owen.html

El Tel does his populist bit in the Sun laying into Capello's tactics. I agree with him over the tactics but he is letting the players off far too lightly inthat piece. He must still think he's a contender.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/worldcup2010/3032214/Fabios-had-it-wrong-for-ages.html

The FA are coming in for some stick this morning, unsurprisingly. Having just finsished David Conn's 1997 tome, The football business, if anybody expects anything even remotely constructive from them, they are living in cloud cuckoo land. I always knew they were incompetent, but the picture of incompetence drawn in that book took even me aback.


Paul Mason on the big " ifs" of the budget.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/paulmason/

Joseph Stiglitz is another economist distinctly unimpressed with the coalition budget.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/osbornes-first-budget-its-wrong-wrong-wrong-2011501.html

Andrew Rawnsley' column on the pain of being seen as a tory poodle.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/27/andrew-rawnsley-lib-dems-coalition-anxiety

The Chinese economy is not all plain sailing as US-Sino tensions mount again.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/26/china-economy

Stephen King asks : to stimulate or not to stimulate.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/stephen-king-to-stimulate-or-not-to-stimulate-that-is-the-question-2012250.html

Larry Elliot reports that the chance to change the waythe global economy works has been missed.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/28/g20-summit-economics-global-imbalances

More reasons McCrystal had to go as the Indy unearth a confidential briefing from McCrystal showing a far from healthy state of affairs in the campain against the taliban.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/the-last-post-mcchrystals-bleak-outlook-2011730.html

Terry Jones with a funny but deadly serious column on the lack of cuts in the defence budget.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/26/defence-spending-cuts

The Doors

Knockout stages

Today is the first day of the knockout stages of the world cup and where we see what the fancied teams are really made of, it should be interesting. Roy Hodgson fancies Brazil to recapture the trophy they last won in 1994. He likes the look of the Argentinians going forward but is worried about them at the back.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/brazil/7852478/Roy-Hodgson-Dungas-blend-gives-Brazil-the-edge-as-Europeans-and-Africans-struggle.html

Marina Hyde on our one sided rivalry with the German football team.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/24/england-germany-rivalry-world-cup-2010

Cannavaro laments Italy's lack of top class talent.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2010/8762335.stm

Oliver Kahn wonders where all the English goalkeeping talent went.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/kahn-critical-of-english-keepers-2010553.html

Laurie Penney of the new statesman attacks the hypocrisy of labours opposition to the budget.
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/laurie-penny/2010/06/welfare-state-labour-8217

Philip Stephens of the FT is the latest to question the description of the budget as "progressive".
http://blogs.ft.com/westminster/2010/06/progressive-vince-and-nick-should-have-a-word-with-david-w/

Obama and congress have begun to tame Wall street, but wonder what on earth the European's, including the British government despite Cameron's protestation's, are doing.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/fresh-from-taming-wall-street-obama-takes-on-the-world-2010992.html

Peter Galbraith questions US strategy in Afghanistan.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/24/stanley-mcchrystal-afghanistan-rolling-stone

A guardian interview with the great Larry David.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/jun/26/larry-david-interview

Rodriguez

Scholes to play one last season

Scholes to make this his last season, sad news, i will savour every game he turns out in. He and Giggs are players we have no replacements for and Scholes is the one we will have to try and replace somehow.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/manutd/7852236/Paul-Scholes-prepares-for-coaching-career-ahead-of-final-Premier-League-season.html

Andy Cole thinks Capello is still wasting Gerrard by playing him on the left for England. He also warns England fans the keep the performance in perspective, fat chance there, i fear.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/andy-cole-gerrard-is-still-wasted-on-the-left-ndash-especially-with-rooney-struggling-2008549.html

Richard Williams writes that Souness has a theory of playing at altitude, that could be a reason for Rooney's performances. I suppose it could be contributing to his lacklustre displays, but i'd put my money on a dodgy ankle.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/24/altitude-wayne-rooney-england-world-cup

The MLS league is one of the reasons for US improvement in this world cup writes Jed Dawson. They are a reasonably good side, a bit light on flair but big on attitude. Landon Donovan is a pretty good player, goog technique and a very good football brain
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/24/world-cup-2010-mls-usa

Lippi accepts the blame for Azzuri exit.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/24/world-cup-2010-marcello-lippi-italy-responsibility

David Blanchflower's New Statesman column argues that the budget signals the certainty of a double dip recession.
http://www.newstatesman.com/economy/2010/06/public-sector-budget-obr

Keynes biographer, Robert Skidelsk asks what the great est economist of the 20th century would think of George Osborne's emergency budget.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/by-george-he-hasnt-got-it-what-would-jm-keynes-think-of-george-osbornes-budget-2009728.html

Ed Miliband asks how Keynes, beveridge and Lloyd George would react to this budget, As Hughes fires warning shot to coalition.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jun/24/budget-cuts-lib-dems-warning

Mercury Rev

Rooney fit for Germany

I suppose that depends on your definition of fit. He is obviously nowhere near 100% fit, it's been crystal clear watching his performances so far. As someone who is far more concernced about Manchester United this doesn't make me a happy bunny. Anybody other than Rooney and i have a feeling they wouldn't have been allowed to go to the world cup. After the travails of Rooney in the last world cup, i suppose Fergie may have felt he had to allow him to go to keep him happy. And the last thing a cash strapped Ferguson needs is aun happy Rooney. How much of a price are we going to pay for that next season though, when he comes back and probably heads straight for an operating theatre.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7850454/World-Cup-2010-Englands-Wayne-Rooney-expected-to-be-fit-for-Germany-contest.html

Richard Williams with a far more considered take on yesterday's contest than we saw from the BBC's analysts, who were a total embarrassment, i thought. You would have thought that they had been involved in a really hard game against tough opposition and had looked like potential winners. What i saw was a side that still didn't look like a team that would be able to retain possession against any of the better teams in the competition. And after the yanks deserved injury time winner, that is who they will be facing from here on in. I can't see Mexico beating Argentina, even though Argentina's defence surely means however beautifully they play the game, they can't win the tournament. So if they manage to beat the impressive Germans it will be Diego's Argentina next.
As poorly as Rooney has played so far, understandable as that is, given that he is nowhere near fit, when he went off after aggrevating his ankle, we saw what an England team without Rooney would look like. It wasn't very reassuring if you thought England had a chance to bring the world cup back. They looked even worse than United did at the end of the season without him. As soon as he went off, England's game went to pieces, there was no movement up front, they were toothless, devoid of idea's and the ball just kept coming straight back.
Although i have wanted to see Joe Cole get into the starting line up, that was only on the proviso that the line up was 4-3-3. There is no way i would start him on the left in a orthodox 4-4-2, in fact, his cameo performance yesterday gave Capello a pretty good defence for having not picked him so far this summer.
To beat the Germans on Sunday they will have to move up another notch. Are the Germans as good a team as they have been cracked up to be so far, though. I don't know to be honest, they have played some great football, far better to watch than England, but just like England the opposition hasn't been the greatest. I would suspect for the neutrals who belive in the beautiful game a German victory would be the desired outcome.

Macheda's agent has told Sky sports that he will not be going out on loan next season.
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_6224885,00.html

Solskjaer won't coach the reserves for ever, but he is happy to bide his time under Ferguson at United. He is ambitious, what's wrong with that. Let's hope he can fulfill those ambitions at United.
http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/premier-league/2010/06/23/1991656/manchester-united-reserve-manager-ole-gunnar-solskjaer-eyes

United's French academy hope Paul Pogba has been described as a leader of men by his old clubs academy director Frederic Lipka. He has looked a useful prospect when i have seen him play for the youngsters. My only reservation has been whether his well developed physique has helped him stand out.
http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/premier-league/2010/06/23/1989994/a-leader-of-men-meet-manchester-uniteds-new-signing-paul

It looks like the redevelopment of old trafford, Lancashire cricket ground, will be given the green light to go full steam ahead after the government decided not to review the scheme.
http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1263352_government_approves_32m_old_trafford_redevelopment

The respected independent institute for fiscal studies has declared the budget as "not progressive". I didn't expect it to be from everything that had been leaking out. If we do pay for this with a double dip recession the lib dems will be decimated at the next election and will deserve everything it gets. The question for me is, would it have been worse if the tories had won the elction and this had been a truly tory budget, or is the lib dem leadership that right wing that they are happy to put their name to this package. From what we have seen and hear it appears to be the latter.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/budget-is-not-progressive-declares-ifs-2008893.html

Whatever the answer to that is, i can't believe they are happy with the news that the banks seem likely to escape unscathed. The only justification for that could be that they are keeping their powder dry. The trouble with that is, if we do regress back into recessionary conditions, the banks will be untouchable again, especially with the tories in charge of the coalition.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/banks-set-to-gain-from-osbornes-tax-regime-2008692.html

The new statesman is unimpressed by the lib dems progressive credentials as part of the coalition.
http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2010/06/budget-party-clegg-liberal


Simon Jenkins on Thatcherism's great gamble.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/22/george-osborne-emergency-budget-gamble

Obama and Europe, especially Merkel at odds over cuts that will damage economic recovery. Who would have thought just three years ago that US would be carrying the mantle of a centre left progressive economic course against a European a conservative Luddite strategy.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/merkel-rejects-obama-warnings-that-cuts-will-damage-global-recovery-2008751.html

As Obama accepts Afghan war leader McCrystal's resignation, where does his Afghan strategy lie now.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/23/barack-obama-stanley-mcchrystal-afghanistan

Morphine

No to Joe Cole

Daniel Taylor says his sources at United have no interest at all in Joe Cole. I can unnderstand that whilst he was a good player he has never really fulfilled his potential and his injury record over the last couple of seasons has been lousy. It doesn't alter the fact that we need new blood in midfield.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/22/manchester-united-not-interested-joe-cole

Meanwhile Owen Hargreaves has paid a visit to US to meet the surgeon who operated on his knees. This must be a make or breal season or even pre season for him, if we don't see him regularly, i can't see how he will have a future at the club.
http://www.tribalfootball.com/man-utd-midfielder-hargreaves-makes-new-visit-dr-steadman-922741

Fergie has been disappointed with the quality shown so far in the world cup and worried about Rooney, with whom he has been in contact. The level of entertainment of the games went up, once for the first round of games was completed. But the actual quality has been up and down, Argentina have been brilliant going forward but their defence is not great. Look at last night, Samaras who is a pretty average footballer caused them all sorts of problems playing up front on his own. What will happen when the play a half decent forward line. Brazil have played well in patches as have Spain, but their performances against North Korea and Switzerland respectively showed neither are right at the top oftheir game.
Once we reach the knockout stages we will see who really has it in them to go all the way to lift the trophies.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/21/world-cup-2010-wayne-rooney-alex-ferguson

Jim White gets to one of the cruxes of England's problems, they just aren't good enough. You only had to look at the squad finally picked to know the only way England could win this was if Spain, Brazil and maybe Argentina played below themselves and England's so so players played above themselves for a month. And they had all the luck going.
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/football/jim-white/article/20672/

Evra says he will reveal all on the French world cup debacle after yesterday's fitting ending with a 2-1 defeat by South Africa and man sent off. Domenech even humliated himself after the final whistle. Of course that will probably be Evra's last world cup, so i expect him to savage Domenech.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/7848108/World-Cup-2010-Patrice-Evra-blasts-Raymond-Domenech-as-France-depart-South-Africa.html

The Lib dems are growing uneasy at the direction the coalition is heading in. This was from James Graham before the emergency budget.
http://www.theliberati.net/quaequamblog/2010/06/20/intergenerational-equity-and-the-perils-of-groupthink/#comments

Richard Grayson warns concessions are a fig leaf
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/jun/22/budget-2010-liberal-democrats-richard-grayson

Tracey Corrigan worries whether Europe will scupper the Budgets recovery plan.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/tracycorrigan/7848560/Budget-2010-Europe-may-scupper-this-recovery-plan.html

Neil Young

It's all gone Pete Tong

United youth puts the spotlight on Danny Drinkwater's loan spell at Huddersfield town. I saw him or once or twice on sky and i thought considering his age and size he did quite well. He is obviously nowhere near our first team yet, but then neither was Cleverley after his first loan spell at Leicester and i'm expecting him to be in the first team squad next year so Drinkwater still has time.
http://manunitedyouth.wordpress.com/2010/06/18/a-look-at-the-loanees-danny-drinkwater/#more-3342

England are on the brink of world cup disaster after an even worse performance last night, against Algeria, than they gave against USA in the opener. What kills me, i have to say, is that everybody is so shocked. Look at that team, is that really something to shock and awe opponents.As i have said before you can go through that team and squad and pick gaping big holes in it at will.
He has taken three goalkeepers, two of whom are definitely not real international class and have both prone to the unforced errors at club level in Green's case and at all levels in James case. The one keeper with no real big howlers in his career so far, short admittedly, and the keeper in form is the one goalkeeper that he hasn't played so far. It would seem the maxim if your good enough, your old enough doesn't seem to apply in Capello's universe.
The back four is nowhere near strong enough, and the fact it would have been better with injury prone Rio in it tells me just how poor his understudies are. Terry has carried on his indifferent Chelsea form into this competition and wasn't much better than Carragher last night. It's a good job Abramovitch is loaded, because if the Glazer's had beeen persuaded to give him a new contract worth £15ok a week and one year later saw his form deteriorate to this level somebody would be getting the sack. Ashley Cole is the only quality defender that England now possess. In four years from the last world cup when England had as good a defence as there was in the tournament that some decline.
Midfield has become the age old problem of how to fit Gerrard and Lampard in the same team. If Capello was worth the millions he is being paid he surely would have worked that out in the qualifiers. As we have seen, and under different managers it is not playing them together in central midfield and it's not playing Gerrard on the left. Has Capello really showed any better tactical nous than the ridiculed Sven or even Steve McLaren, not so far. It is obvious that the only way to fit them both into the same side is to play 4-3-3 with a holding man behind them. I'm not saying that will suddenly release them both and England will go to demolish all before them because it patently will not. What this world cup has confirmed to me is that England have 4 quality players in that squad and that is it.
Rooney up front doesn't look fit to me, his body language as well as display was something i have never seen in the red of United, that's for sure. He looked like he was protecting his ankle during that last 15 minutes. If i am right, i hope Slovenia put England out of their misery next week, so we can get Rooney right for next season. The last thing we need next season is to lose Rooney for a lengthy period of time because he has aggrevated that ankle injury for the lost cause that is England's world cup hopes. Fergie must be looking on anxiously, as if we lose him for the opening of the season our title hopes could evaporate in the first couple of months of next season. We're not going to be splashing out any money this summer and we all know it.
Add Gerrard, Lampard and Asley Cole to the list of top players and then look at the rest of that squad. Heskey that can't get into the Villa first team. And being kept out by John Carew, a decent player but himself hardly a player to strike fear into the oppostion. Defoe a decent premier league striker but not international quality and not a team player to boot. Then Crouch, who though i don't rate, has been unlucky not to start this wrold cup. Not that i would start with him in my wildest dreams, but if Capello is going toplay 4-4-2, Crouch has got more going for him than Heskey, an ability to put the ball in the net amongst others.
As for midfield the fact that the return of Gareth Barry was being welcomed back as if that would put every thing right says it all. He is a decent premier league player who will do a job, nothing more, nothing less. He is not Claude Makelele or Owen Hargreaves even. If Carrick had put in a half reasonable season at United i don't see how Capello could have left him out with his ability to play it short or long and protect the back four. But he was so poor, attrocious even in the last months of the season, that he was very lucky to even have been on the plane. What does that say for English strength in depth in the middle of the park.
As for the wide men, yet another headache i'm afraid. Just as the Lampard-Gerrard engima gets passed down from England manager to England manager, so does our lack of a class left winger or even left sided midfilder. Yet again i will have to question Capello's judgement. I think he was right to not take Walcott, he didn't play well for Arsenal and didn't deserve to go. But there is no way Shaun Wright Phillips should be there either, he is just not international standard at all, in fact he was just embarrassing when he came on against USA. Along with Carrick, he was a very lucky man to have been picked. What makes that worse though was that City do have a wide man who could have done a decent job, Adam Johnson did enough in the short time he was at City last season to have shown he could have done a job for England. He is not world beater, he puts a decent cross, a pretty essential skill to have in a wide man you would think. And moreover unlike Wright-Phillips he doesn't give the ball away for fun. Who knows, even though he seems to prefer to play on the right nowadays, maybe he could have done a job on that problem left hand side. And that leaves Lennon, he has potential as he has shown when giving Evra a couple of chasings for Spurs, but his final ball has always been too hit and miss. I would persist with him in this world cup and beyond because there is nothing better, but unless he gets more consistency to his final ball he will never fulfill his potential.
My simple way of juding a team is how many players would i like to see in the red of United. And when i look at England, i don't see many. Scholes would walk into that side, and i have to say that if all those years ago Giggs had decided to go for England instead of Wales so would he. And i mean the starting eleven, not just the squad, that is a daming indictment.

We all agree, United are better than England
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/wayne-rooney/7840004/Wayne-Rooneys-unreliable-England-team-mates-bring-out-the-worst-in-striker.html

Rooney blasts England's fans, good on you lad. As United's messageboards have been saying we will have another world cup scapegoat playing for us. United against the world.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/rooney-nice-to-hear-your-fans-booing-2004847.html

Andy cole asks Capello to earn the millions he is being paid, because he hasn't so far. He doesn't have a world cup winning squad in my opinion, but he has a decent enough squad to have got out of this group easier than this. That's if they do get out of the group, and i certainly wouldn't be putting any money on that. I can see Slovenia's front men causing England's shaky back four big problems in that last game that Slovenia need a result out of, just as much as England do.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/andy-cole-i-understand-rooneyrsquos-anger-itrsquos-time-for-the-manager-to-earn-his-millions-2004589.html

Alan Smith thinks Capello has problems to address.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7839513/England-v-Algeria-Fabio-Capello-has-many-problems-to-address-but-at-least-not-in-goal.html

David Pleat bemoans the lack of balance that meant Ashley Cole couldn't get forward.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7839513/England-v-Algeria-Fabio-Capello-has-many-problems-to-address-but-at-least-not-in-goal.html

Tom Hyde in the Telegraph on the highs and comedy lows of Raymond Domenech. I think i would attribute that single high of reaching the world cup final in 2006 to Zidane who seemed to take over the coaching and tactics of the team on the pitch. Their performances since seem to back that up.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/france/7837299/Raymond-Domenech-profile-France-coach-another-sort-of-human-comedy.html

Robert Skidelsky asks who governs, financial markets or democratically elected goverments. We all know that after the hope that the one good thing that may come out of the credit crunch, the taming of the markets, it's the markets that are the masters again.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6c3604b8-798c-11df-85be-00144feabdc0.html

Will Hutton on dispatches earlier in the week attacking the banks conduct.


Frank Furedi stands up for permissiveness with an article that sounds almost as much a definition of social liberalism. If anything he is not strident enough in supporting permissivness for my tastes.
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/9006/

Gary Gibbon of channel 4 on more lib dem uneasiness.
http://blogs.channel4.com/snowblog/2010/06/17/spending-cuts-what-will-lib-dems-tell-their-constituents/
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2010/06/party-members-lib-coalition

And John Harris carries on in the same vein
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/17/liberal-democrats-prepare-for-bumpy-ride

An interesting review of Paul Addison's new book by Vernon Bogdanor
http://www.newstatesman.com/books/2010/06/british-britain-revolutions


John Cale with Paris 1919

Nobby Stiles suffers very minor stroke, nothing threatning according to the sporting life.
http://www.sportinglife.com/football/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/10/06/18/SOCCER_Stiles.html

The dispute with French club Le Harve over youth player Paul Pogba has been settled. I have seen him play for the academy and he does show signs that he could well have been worth the trouble. Time will tell.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/18/le-havre-paul-pogba-manchester-united

James Lawton wants Capello to replace Green with Hart. I go along with that, but the rumours are he will replace Green with James. Yes calamity james.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/james-lawton-a-decision-that-could-make-capello-even-if-it-does-break-green-2003469.html

Domenech continues with his disastrous stewardship of the French national team with another dismal display but this time they get the result such an abject performance deserved. Our new signing Hernandez scored the opener after coming on as sub. Once again he wasn't given enough time on the pitch to seriously judge him as a player though. He took the goal beautifully though.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/news/7830657/France-0-Mexico-2-match-report.html

Sneiijder states the obvious truth that journalists will never touch, the champions league if far superior to the world cup.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/18/world-cup-2010-wesley-sneijder

Andreas Whittam Smith argues for breaking up the banks.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/andreas-whittam-smith/andreas-whittam-smith-the-dealing-room-had-it-coming-2003414.html

Jeremy Warner comments on the demise of the FSA and the banks attempted rewriting of history.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jeremywarner/100006312/brown-luvvie-says-fsa-was-a-dud-all-along/

Lib dems struggling to keep their independence in coalition wries Michael White.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/17/liberal-democrats-backbenches

Tony Hayward, BP boss infuriates congressional committee
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/bp-boss-plumbs-depths-of-contrition-but-his-critics-are-unimpressed-2003671.html

Republican shoots himself in the foot at BP hearings and is forced to back track by his party. Relief for Obama and the democrats.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/richard-adams-blog/2010/jun/17/joe-barton-bp-apology-oil-spill-republican

Cat Power on later

Andy Mitten on United's battle to keep the fans onside. I have renewed, i don't feel great about having done so as i respect and think the non renewers are doing the right thing. But it's a drug i'm afraid, and i always knew i was going to renew at the last minute. To be honest, i was nearer to jacking it in just after they had completed the takeover in 2005.
I still think that the gimps will sell, it seems to me both sides are waiting for the next set of quarterly results. The red knights have obviously got a price in mind that they think is realistic and that eventually the gimps will have to lower their valuation as their financial situation worsens. Is that wishful thinking on my part, i suppose we will see.
For all the great work that MUST and all the rest of the anti Glazer forces have put in, at the end of the day it will have been the credit crunch that will have forced them to sell. It's a sad indictment of the English game that it took the worst financial crisis since the wall street crash to force them out if i am right.
http://menmedia.co.uk/sport/football/manchester_united/s/1243148_andy_mitten_reds_face_battle_for_fans

Rooney calls for a winter break, he won't get one and rightly so. Better to get rid of international football.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7833414/World-Cup-2010-Wayne-Rooneys-plea-for-winter-break-likely-to-fall-on-deaf-ears.html

Yet again United open the season with a visit from a promoted side, this time Newcastle.
http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/sport/football/manchester_united/s/1245285_20102011_fixtures_manchester_united

It hasn't took Tosic long to vent his spleen at Ferguson and United. He's got a point, for whatever reason he was never really given a chance at United. It is hard to understand buying someone for £7 million and then never giving him a chance.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1287305/Manchester-United-reject-Zoran-Tosic-slams-Sir-Alex-Ferguson-securing-CSKA-Moscow.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

United youth continues his look at United's youngsters loaned out last season with a review of Ben Amos and his time in Norway.
http://manunitedyouth.wordpress.com/2010/06/15/a-look-at-the-loanees-ben-amos/#more-3332
I have to admit when i have seen him in the reserves he hasn't looke anywhere near first team level. Which would make his supposed elevation to third choice first team worrying in more ways than one.

We witenessed the performance of the tournament so far, not just my thoughts, Lawrenson's as well from ex red Diego Forlan who especially in the first times was playing South Africa on his own. I have got to say i have always liked him as a footballer, it's just a pity he was at United at the same time as Van Nistelroy who at the time was the best centre forward in the world. If Suarez is worth £ 30 million, what is Forlan worth because he is a far far superior footballer.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/south-africa-facing-early-exit-after-forlan-double-2002715.html

We were treated to the first big shock of the world cup as Switzerland beat many people's favourites Spain. They were my favourites, both from an aesthetic view and for being the team in form. It's hard to be as optimistic after that performance. It wasn't just that Switzerland managed to almost completely blunt their attacking prowess, but how susceptible they looked to the counter attack. I was expecting Spain to dominate the last 15 minutes as they sought an equaliser but Switzerland just as likely to get a second as the minutes raced away.
I wasn't as impressed with Brazil as some have been. They may have got better as the game went on, but i think we have to factor the opponents into the equation there. With no training facilities because they couldn't afford it, North Korea were never going to be able to live with them for 90 minutes. Brazil weren't much better than England in the first half. I will reserve judgement on the Brazilians until after they have played Chile.
All in all it's been a strange and mostly very dull start to the world cup. Once again i can't help comparing it to the champions league where in recent years we have started to get a reasonable amount of goals and generally when we don't we still get a match of high intensity. Maybe it's the away goals rule that makes such a difference or the fact the world cup is played at the end of a long hard season.

Larry Elliot reviews Osborne's proposed regualtion reform of the city.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/16/george-osborne-city-regulation-larry-elliott

Spain the new Greece writes Sean O'Grady
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/sean-ogrady-if-greece-was-northern-rock-spain-is-lehman-brothers-2002675.html

Craig Murray gets a piece printed in the Torygraph of all places. The great game returned to these countries with the fall of the iron curtain, but unlike Eastern Europe it hsn't been for the better.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/kyrgyzstan/7834619/Kyrgyzstan-Death-dictators-and-the-Soviet-legacy.html

Uzbeks use the genocide word to describe the violence.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/16/kyrgyzstan-killings-attempted-genocide-uzbeks

Adrian Hamilton bemoans Cameron's words and waffle over Afghanistan.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/adrian-hamilton/adrian-hamilton-words-and-waffle-over-afghanistan-2002392.html

Paul Steiger the antithesis of Rupert Murdoch
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/paul-steiger--setting-the-truth-free-2002548.html

Roy Hattersley reviews Alistair Campbell's diaries in the new statesman. As much as i haven't much time for Campbell it sounds like it is probably on the must read books of the Blair years.
http://www.newstatesman.com/books/2010/06/alastair-campbell-labour-blair

This sounds like a Machiavelian move as the Chinese sign multi billion contracts with the Greek government. Divide and rule, if the worst comes to the worst and the future becomes protectionist and trade wars are what we have to look forward to, Europe won't be in a very strong position if this is anything to go by.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/15/greece-china-contracts-signed

Pink Floyd with one of their best tracks

Manchester day

United youth looks at Tom Cleverley's very successful season at Watford, i'm hoping for big things from him in a red shirt next season. To go with his talent i'm looking forward to seeing a youngster come through the ranks with a winning attitude which is what he has shown at Vicarage road. The Watford fans really did think he was the bees knees.
http://manunitedyouth.wordpress.com/2010/06/14/a-look-at-the-loanees-tom-cleverley/#more-3308

Peter beardsley thinks Franz Beckenbauer was to quick to judge England, but was probably right to say the national team is suffering for having too many foreigners playing in the premier league.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/beckenbauer-is-too-quick-to-judge-says-beardsley-2001110.html

Ossie Ardilles revisits the Gerrard-Lampard central midfield conundrum. I'm not sure about bringing Carrick in though, we all know his form at United this last season was poor going on terrible towards the end of the season He is right that it Carrcik and Lampard doesn't work though and his remedy sounds fine to me, but i don't see Capello listening.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7830205/Ossie-Ardiles-Frank-Lampard-Steven-Gerrard-axis-could-be-Englands-undoing.html

Following Lowry, another of Manchester's icons gets his own cultural venue dedicated to keeping his memory alive, the international Anthony Burgess foundation on Cambridge street opens tomorrow. Will you get served by men in bowler hats though.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/anthony-burgess-more-than-ultraviolence-2000463.html

As Manchester day approaches, Manchester confidential lists reasons to be proud of our fair city. And it is a list to be proud of though i'm not sure it's the snazziest name for the event.
http://www.manchesterconfidential.co.uk/News/General/Manchester-Day-Manchester-Achievement_11386.asp

News international try to but complete control of BSkyB, will the tories return to power help the bid along.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/murdoch-prepares-to-tighten-his-grip-2001539.html

Robert Peston thinks BSkyB want the deal to gothrough, what will the lib dems Vince Cable do now. Easy try and stop it. The very least is to refer it to the regulators. If he hasn't the balls to do that, it will be hard for me to vote for them in the next election.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2010/06/murdochs_londonbased_global_ne.html

Saville exonerates the 13 civillians killed on bloody sunday and pins the blame on the British military.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/saville-pins-the-blame-for-bloody-sunday-on-british-soldiers-2001669.html

Roy Foster thinks the Saville inquiry will be vital to reconcilliation.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/15/saville-inquiry-marks-milestone-to-peace

Laika

United youngsters

The United youth website starts a series looking at last seasons loaness starting with Matty James who went to Preston with Welbeck, Sounds promising. Our policy in loaning young players out seems to be evolving, i'm not quite sure in what way, but there seems to be more pattern about it.
http://manunitedyouth.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/a-look-at-the-loanees-matt-james/#more-3300

The Mail reports that Tosic will snub Cologne for CSKA Moscow for £8 million. I don't know how United will have pulled off the trick of selling him for as much as we bought him for after his time at United. I know he seems to have reasonably well in Germany, but didn't think he had done that well. It looks like we will be a Serb free club next season, if the noises about Vidic turn out to have substance. Just as we don't seem to buy Dutch players any more will that be the end of our Serb buying experience.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1286575/Manchester-United-winger-Zoran-Tosic-set-snub-Cologne-8m-CSKA-Moscow.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Alan Shearer another pundit none too happy with Capello's tactics and especially his use of England's star man Rooney.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/worldcup2010/3012362/Who-put-out-Roo-fire.html#ixzz0qpWaG4hf

After Beckenbauer claiming English football has reressed to the old kick and rush Henry Winter compares the German approach to our approach to the beautiful game.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/7827602/World-Cup-2010-Germanys-culture-club-highlights-flaws-in-English-game.html

Darling is partially vindicated after the new office for budget responsibility ( so much for slashing quangos ) agrees with him that public sector borrowing is not as bad as estimated.
http://www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/6078978/the-debate-opens-as-darling-is-vindicated-and-condemned.thtml

Steve Richards argues the deficit slashers are plain wrong, and the only two economists in the cabint, the two lib dems, Cable and Huhne know it. How long are they going to keep quiet.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/steve-richards/steve-richards-the-deficit-slashers-are-plain-wrong-2000594.html

Bagehot's column in the economist argues there are too many pundits rushing to blame Obama's supposed anti-British sentiments on his decision to get populist over BP
http://www.economist.com/blogs/bagehot/2010/06/bp_and_obama
Whilst Daniel Korski of the Spectator thinks BP's days of being called BP will be over once the crisis finishes.
http://www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/6074873/the-end-of-bp.thtml

I couldn't agree more with Mary Riddell who argues Afghansitan is a conflict we can't afford and can't win.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/7827584/Afghanistan-Britain-is-stuck-with-a-war-it-cant-afford-and-cant-win.html


Dungen live

Nani mystery

There seem to be all kinds of rumours and weird goings on surrounding Nani's withdrawl from the Portugal squad. First there were rumours that he had failed a drugs test, that have been strenuosly denied and now Nani says he will be fit to play in a week, strange.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/portugal/7826070/World-Cup-2010-Portugal-deny-Nani-rift-rumours-ahead-of-Ivory-Coast-clash.html

Last night produced the first match that was an actual pleasure to watch instead of a chore to be endured as the Germans surprised with an oustanding performance of real attacking quality. The lack of quality in the Aussie side has to be remembered before anybody goes overboard on the Germans chances, but at least they tried and managed to play the game the right way. Mesunt Ozil gave the performance of the tournament so far.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/news/7814638/Germany-4-Australia-0-match-report.html

It looks like Ledley King's world cup is over as the injury picked up on Saturday turns out to be worse than thought. It's not going very well, so far.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/capellos-gamble-on-king-backfires-1999661.html

Alan Hansen is worried about England's defence.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7824852/World-Cup-2010-Fabio-Capello-must-find-a-solution-to-Englands-lack-of-defensive-pace.html

James Lawton points out that tournament winners often don't start out in a blaze of glory, after England's less than convincing start. That has sometimes been the case, but not always. One thing that generally isn't rectified though is an obvious defensive weakness that has no obvious remedy as long as the coach won't entertain changing tactics.
I think i have come to the conclusion that England's problems at the back are so bad that they would be better playing with two holding players in midfield if they are to have any chance in this tournament. That would make them very negative and i wouldn't want any team that plays like that to win the tournament, but it's the only chance they have as far as i can see.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/james-lawton-history-insists-winners-do-not-appear-in-blaze-of-early-glory-1999665.html


Larry Elliot bemoans the return of the deficit hawks wonders what influence Cable and Huhne actually put into the coalition government. None by the looks of it.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jun/14/lunatics-economy-cuts-frankin-roosevelt

Stephen King wonders whether we have reached the limits of Keynesian fiscal policies as foreign investors refuse to fund the debt.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/stephen-king/stephen-king-the-moment-of-truth-will-be-the-day-the-us-opts-to-default-by-stealth-1999792.html

BP under pressure from Obama and Congress
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/white-house-turns-up-heat-on-bp-with-flurry-of-new-demands-1999651.html

Ex soviet central Asia explodes again.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/14/kyrgyzstan-death-toll-ethnic-slaughter

Mock rock from the New York dolls

Defensive worries for England

Well i had said that i thought the first game against the US would show us how England would fare in the tounament. It certainly gave us more than a clue or two. I've written that the reason i couldn't see England getting to the final was because the defence wasn't good enough. And i saw more than enough from last night's game to think that i was spot on there. Of course the US goal came from a dreadful mistake from the goalie, not a defensive blunder, but there were enough worrying signs that better teams than the yanks will severley punish England's defensive deficencies.
In my first choice England side i had picked Hart because he has been the best goalie this season and more importantly in his short career so far, he has shown no tendency to gift the opposition soft goals, enough said. Last night's mistake has been described by Bob Wilson as a schoolboy howler and i can't think of a better way to describe it. It wasn't as if you could say you couldn't see it coming as just like David James he has been known to make the odd holwer. Add to that he has never played on the really big stage playing Hart was no more risky a choice because of his age and lack of experience than the two supposedly in front of him.
I wasn't impressed with anything last night and thought Capello had as big a shocker as any of the players on the pitch. The choice of goalie has to go down as bad mistake, the inclusion of Milner on the left and then his substitution was a big blunder and the tactics and shape of the team was all wrong.
I don't know what the truth of the Milner substitution is, whether it was due to the illness or the early yellow card, but it lessened his options to change personnel and tactics in the latter stages of the game when England finally got a semblence of a grip on the game. Bringing on Shaun Wright Phillips to replace him was truly unbelievable and the performance he gave confirmed my view that there was no luckier player to have made the final twenty two, he was truly abysmal. Of course picking King at centre half confounded that mistake when he had to go off at half time. Even though i think Ferdinand is becoming a shadow of the player he was, the lack of cover for him shows what problems England now have at the back. Carragher looked like a sending off waiting to happen in the second half and i really can't see how they can continue with him on Friday.
As predicted the shape of the team meant that England's most dangerous players couldn't get into or affect the game as England would have wished. It's not just than Gerrard and Lampard can't play together, the way football has evolved since the last world cup, most top teams and both of those player play a 4-3-3 with one or even two holding players. When you look at England's squad, it's dodgy defence and where its best attacking players play, that is the only chance of England getting anywhere in this world cup.
Commentators were effusive in their praise of Heskey's performance last night and i won't sit here and write that he had a bad game. But his inclusion in a 4-4-2 had the knock on effect of almost entirely making Rooney a peripheral figure on the pitch, and just as bad encouraged the usual English disease of htiing the aimless long ball from the back, hence people watching asking whether Lampard was on the pitch.
It's a good job it's such a easy group because i could see England being on their way home before the knockout stages if they had been handed a tougher draw.
One last thing, for all the praise of Capello since he took over, now we have entered the serious stuff after the cakewalk of the knockout stages, i haven't been impressed by what i have seen so far. Last night was so bad it was almost Sven like.

My main concern from this world cup is to get Wayne Rooney through this competition in one piece back ready for the new season. I would like him to have a good world cup to confirm his place as one of the best players inthe world, but my main concern is always United. After watching last night, if England don't change tactics he isn't going to get the chance to show the world much as he isn't going to see much of the ball.

Two of the better reviews of England's disappointing opening game against the USA. First Kevin McCarra aks if we are going to see the same old England. On that performance the answer would seem to be yes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/13/world-cup-2010-fabio-capello-england

And James Lawton argues that if last night is anything to go by, England are asking too much of Rooney.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/james-lawton-england-ask-too-much-from-rooney-bursts-of-brilliance-1999228.html

Will Hutton uses his Observer column to describe how the banks have won the post credit crunch debate and the dangers that presents. There will be a dispatches version on channel 4, that is the biggest indictment of the last government.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/13/will-hutton-banks-crash-refuse-reform

James Graham is worried about the coalitions economic poilicies and the lib dems part in them.
http://socialliberal.net/2010/06/10/will-we-get-fairer-taxes-under-the-coalition/

Frank Black with Los Angeles from his first solo album that i love

Rooney to step up?

Alan Smith asks Rooney to step up to the plate. I can't really agree with that, though i understand where he is coming from. Two of the greatest players to ever wear the red of United, Best and Giggs, both never played in the world cup, though obviously would have loved to. It doesn't alter the fact both are known worldwide. And everybody in football knows the top prize or hardest to win in this day and age is the champions league.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup-2010/teams/england/7822632/Alan-Smith-Wayne-Rooney-must-use-World-Cup-to-join-the-games-all-time-greats.html

Today's game aginst the yanks will be an interesting barometer to the chances of the England team to do well. USA are obviously not a great team but they are no mugs and will be well organised, their one dangerous player will be Donovan who makes great runs and has a good football brain.
My world cup tipping got off to a dismal start as South Africa got a point from their first game and with both games being drawn they still have an opportunity to go through to the next stage. It was a decent game though nowhere near as good as the ITV panel tried to present it as. The worrying thing from a United point of view was the refusal to bring on Hernandez on until very late. As usual with Mexico they were technically good and looked a nice football team until they get to the opposition penalty area. When they get there they look powder puff and yet Hernandez doesn't get a look in until the dying stages of the game. The type of striker we needed to buy should have been walking into that team.
As for the other game, dire doesn't do it justice. Uruguay weren't as good as i thought they might be ( which makes you wonder how Argentina will go on ) and France were fucking awful. I though Forlan was the best player on the pitch but he had no support at all. Suarez didn't do anything that suggested he was worth £10 million, never mind £30 million. I don't know whether that's good news or bad news for Ajax. How Domenech is still manager of his country i do not know, he doesn't seem to have a clue. Tactically he is cautious and shows no invention and i have never seen the French teams under him look like they are playing for him for one minute. I had though that France might struggle to get through the group but after watching the first two games i now think they will sneak through. It would be a truly dismal performance if they don't, that's for sure.

Steve Richards thinks the coalition will last.
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/steve-richards/steve-richards-power-alone-is-enough-to-keep-them-united-1998345.html

Ed Milband argues for more debate after the demise of new labour. Interesting stuff, some good and some bad. Nothing to tempt any liberals to the labour banner though.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/labour/7822880/New-Labour-was-stifling-debate-says-Ed-Miliband.html

Darling defends his reputation. He wasn't a great chancellor but he sure as hell wasn't the worst. Given the circumstances he played his hand as well as he could. To be classed as good or great you have to leave reforms that last and stand the test of time. Given the mess he was handed by Brown and the circumstances of his tenure that was never really on the cards for him.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/jun/11/alistair-darling-david-cameron-apology

Interesting article about Johnny Vegas helping write and star in a BBC radio play about his hero comdeian Les Dawson. I loved him myself, and i have to say since he died and we have found out more about him my admiration has grown.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/vegas-hopes-to-hit-right-notes-as-he-prepares-to-play-his-comedy-hero-1998316.html

Some fusion with the Mahavishnu orchestra, i sound like Howard from the mighty boosh

Vidic Offski?

I had a feeling it was only a matter of time before this popped up in the press again. It looks like he will go, if he really does want out, which seems to be the case, then Fergie will probably want rid. We really need an experienced replacement when you look at the Ferdinand's injury recored over the last two seasons. It's a pity that Cathcart didn't kick on as Evans did at Sunderland, at youth level he looked just as good a player to me.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/10/nemanja-vidic-leaving-manchester-united

The papers have started to speculate on who United may buy as a replacement. The question is, will we buy a replacement or will the Glazer's pocket the money. The supposed promotion of Amos to third choice goalie, doesn't exactly inspire confidence in me that they will use any Vidic money on a replacement. I don't think Amos ordinarily would have been promoted to the third goalie yet.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1285686/Manchester-United-consider-Simon-Kjaer-replacement-Nemanja-Vidic.html

As the world cup starts today, my predictions are Spain or Brazil to win, Spain are the better team but can they break their duck in this competition, that's a lot of pressure. I can't see England getting past the semi finals if they get that far. I'm sorry to say despite the hype i have just been watching i will be amazed if South Africa get out of their group, they may even struggle to get a point.


Former aide to Afghan president Karzai thinks that he has lost faith in western solutions to the insurgency and is now looking to Pakistan. That's a recipe for intrigue and muddle.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/09/afghanistan-taliban-us-hamid-karzai

Carig Murray has this documentary from Michael Andersen that thinks Obama's Afghan policy is worse than Bush's.
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2010/06/obamas_central.html#comments

Paul Krugman hopes that the US is taking steps to insulate itself from Europe's fiscal austerity mania. My guess would be not.
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/09/the-global-transmission-of-european-austerity/

Jeff Rndall lays into Gordon Brown's economic record. As much as i don't have much time for him it's hard to argue with most of that. Although i'm not sure that immigration can be blamed for the debt. And would he advocate more rights for agency workers
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/jeffrandall/7819327/Gordon-Browns-henchmen-are-rewriting-history-as-we-sink-into-the-red.html

Neal Lawson with a good column setting out his version of the future for a revitalised future for the labour party. It's one i agree with and it would almost certainly be a party i and alot of other liberals could vote for. But can i see them following this route, nope.
http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2010/06/pluralist-party-labour

This would explain the Guardian media group's new found enthusiasm for Channel M.
http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2010/06/09/good-news-at-last-for-local-newspapers-but-too-late/

An interesting article from spiked on climate change. For all the documentaries and stuff i have read that sounds like a decent appraisal of where we are.
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/debates/copenhagen_article/8979

Classic americana from the Band