Gill in town

David Gill appeared in front of parliamentary select committee for culture, media and sport yesterday and showed he hasn't lost his touch. He told the committee that United would not talk to MUST or IMUSA whilst the aim of thoses groups was a change of ownership and that United had 330 million fans worldwide, the latter statement part of the usual bullshit.It would seem he was speaking for more than Manchester United when he argued that the FA should adopt major reform. The only obstacle being that it's the premier league blocking any meaningful reform.
Gill also defended supposedly rewarding bad behaviour by rewarding Rooney with a new improved contract. You have still got to wonder whether the Glazer's were making sure they didn't lose him on the cheap. Though what his market value would be after this pretty dismal season, you can only guess at, £50 million as was suggested at the time would seem ludicrous.
Andersred didn't take long to query Gill's adding up after he had told the committee that the net spend on transfers unders the Glazer's has been greater than in the five or six years before that. A period that saw us buy Rio, Rooney for not inconsiderable amounts of money, it seems unlikely without even checking it.

Nani will face a spell on the sidelines after being on the receiving end of Carragher's boot last Sunday with some reports saying a month and the Mail saying the next three games. I suppose we are lucky that we have Park and Valencia coming back. We have just got to hope they are reasonably fit, though it seems to be asking a bit much to expect Valencia to immerdiately reacptute of last season after such a horrendous injury. I think those expecting him to start putting them on a plate for Rooney again, as he did last season may be disappointed.
What we won't replace with those two those is the goals that have been coming from the boot of Nani over the past season. He wasn't at his best during the last two games though, blunder against the dippers aside, when we wanted him to step up to the plate, he didn't or couldn't. One mitigating factor i will give him is that he didn't get half as much support from O'Shea as he does from Rafael. Who knows if he had stayed on the pitch on Sunday, maybe he would have had some joy in the second half.

Ex United right back Paul Parker dissects Sunday's disaster and applauds the mickeys for wanting it more and is yet another pundit to take at our deterioration in the centre of the park. Alarmingly he thinks that teams may have woken up to the fact that if they have a go at us they will have some joy. At least we will hopefully have one of Rio or Vidic available for the remainder of the current season. Smalling has done well and wasn't to blame for Sunday's debacle and as long as we have those three available at centre half we shouldn't be found as wanting at the back as we were on Sunday.
Ian Wright warns the knockers that it is far too soon for United to be written off but does argue that Vidic will be vital to the future of our campaign as he is the man that has kept us together. That's fair shout, though going in the final stretch of the seasons, you need all departments of your squad firing. As at Blackburn at the tail end of last season it's no good being able to keep the oppostion out if you can't put them away at the other end. Anything could happen on this run in yet, those not ruling out Chelsea and City aren't mad. 

If United are to strenghten the midfield in the summer, which i'm not at all sure will happen, unless Scholes retires, it doesn't look like Jordan Henderson will be one of the players that will be on the shipping list as the Mail report that he is more than happy to stay with his home town team.
That would be the best move for his own career, whilst he stays at Sunderland he will play every game. Better to stay and wait a couple of years until he is more of the finished article before he considers a move to one of the top five or six. That is assuming that he makes the progress that most pundits assume he will.

The Evening news claim that Fergie won't receive any action against him for last weeks media gag. Though other papers write that the BBC will put a complaint in, is an interview with Phelan that vital too them. To be serious though, it's pretty small time and doesn't really reflect well on the club. Though i have always thought it's ridiculous that a manager is asked to comment after the game before he has had time to calm down from the heat of the moment.

Martin Keown thinks Wenger must pick his strongest team on Saturday to get the fans back on side after admitting what a remarkably one sided affair last nights defeat from Barca was.

I stayed up to watch the highlights of the world cup clash between New Zealand and Pakistan last night. I'm still not sure whether most of the credit goes to an amazing batting performance from Ross Taylor and New Zealand or to wonder just how inept the bowling was as the Pakistani attack fell apart in those last ten overs. It was great viewing either way.

Craig Murray doesn't accept the official explanation of the SAS Libyan cock up expedition and offers a theory that he thinks is at least more believable. I don't really believe that, it presupposes that they had enough intelligence in the country to even know about the arms dump, which on all the available evidence doesn't seem likely. I agree with him though, they were not there to make contact with the rebels. Whatever they were there for, it was to do with the interests of the British government as opposed to the interests of the British or indeed Libyan people.

David Prosser writes that wherever you look you see evidence of bankers fighting back and that Bob Diamond meant exactly what he said when he told MP's that the time for remorse was over. Larry Elliott explains what a brave chancellor would do, whether Osborne is brave or not, he is there to do the bidding of the tories paymasters, so not much chance he will follow that advise. There will be a decision for Clegg and Cable then, as if they are to disolve the coalition government before the five years are out, an argument over a refusal to accept the Vickers commission on banking, if it is too radical for the tories to stomach would be the most electorally advantagous for the party.
But Jeremy Warner wonders whether we are putting the cart before the horse. He thinks it would be fine to dismantle the banking sector and thoroughly reform as long as it's co-ordinated with the rest of the developed world. If it is done alone, he thinks we will just be throwing one of our only world leading industries away to be picked up by one of our competitors. The argument against that is surely that at least then British tax payers wouldn't have to pick up the bill for the next banking bail out that would be seemingly unavoidable without fundamental reform.
David Blanchflower gives Iain Duncan Smith a lesson on unemployment and how it actually works. He points out that of those half a million vacancies in the economy at the moment how many are the 2,500,000 actually trained, qualified or experienced enough to fill.

US financial manager and investment author Bill Gross explains why the richest should be paying more in tax and doing their bit to help bring down US debt.

Ambrose Pritchard-Evans reports on the delicate balance of the oil markets and the danger to global recovery of getting output boosted at the wrong time.

Ariel Pink - Haunted graffiti ( Before today): An excellent piece of US indie with influences from the 80's 60's and all over the shop. At the poppier edge of the indie spectrum, though it does rock at times.

 Avi Buffalo - Avi Buffalo: More US indie pop and also from California. It's a decent album with a Byrdsian infleunce at times, never a bad thing. It's a decent album, though not quite good as Ariel Pink.
Best coast - Best coast: Another piece of US indie, this time a pretty good debut album from the female fronted outfit, again it's on the poppier edge of indie, but there are some strong tunes on it.

First aid kit -  The big, the black and blue: Supposedly Scandanavia's answer to the Fleet foxes, they are not quite that good but it's a very good album. Most reviews questioned the strenght of the songwriting, but i thought that was sound enough. As all recognised the vocals are excellent.
Magnetic man - Magnetic man: The dubstep supergroup, this is a bit too commercial for me, it has some decent moments, but i can't see myself coming back to this too much. It just sounds a bit too twee for me at times, the vocals mainly.
No Age -Everything in between: Us indie duo, heard that one before, but it's a fair album. More on  the heavier punkier side of the indie spectrum, it's not earth shattering but enjoyable all the same.

Liverpool 3-1 Manchester United

More away day blues, this one hurt a whole lot more than Tuesday though. For the thrird year in a row we went to Anfield and weren't up for the battle. At times we played ok but we never really got on top of them during the whole match. Of course you can't forget we were without both Vidic and Rio and i'm afraid it showed.
All three goals came from poor defensive play. Suarez made a great run but he was allowed to turn too easily in the box to start his run which led to our defenders being scared to touch him. The less said about the second goal the better and Van Der Sar didn't cover himself in glory for the third. As other have said Kuyt will never score an easier hatrick.
I have to admit i was happy enough when i saw the team and happy enough for us to be going into the game in a 4-4-2 formation. But Fergie got it badly wrong and i will have to hold my hands up and admit that we cannot get away with 4-4-2 away from home anymore. We have too many players not up for the fight at the moment. In games like these you have too earn the right to play your football by winning the physical battle and currently we never look capable of that. I always want to see Giggs and Scholes when we hit the big games, but yesterday was just too fast for them. We can't keep relying on them and more games like yesterday where Scholes is given no protection and he might not be signing a new contract for next season.
Liverpool managed to play better football than i expected them too but they didn't do anything special. Our demise was down to poor defending, catstophic mistakes and the inability to compete physically. When Keane left the club we all wondered who Fergie would get to replace his leadership qualities, but Fergie got round that by changing our system so we didn't need a Keane or a Robson in the middle of the park. How we could do with someone like that in the middle of the park now though. Carragher's foul on Nani yesterday was a disgrace and should have been a straight red, but his reaction, running to the referee and then collpasing on the crowd crying, was just plain embarrassing. Oh for the days when Robson and Whiteside used to win the physical battle against the dippers and then go on to win the game. You just couldn't imagine either of those two crying.
We could still end up with the title, look at Arsenal on Saturday, they didn't really start playing until the last quarter of an hour and though they did have some great chances and had decisions go against them Sunderland managed to create two great chances. I was going to say that the game at the Emirates is going to be big, but to be honest every game away from Old trafford is going to be a test for us.
Am i confident, not really, but i'm clinging to the hope that it's those perennial bottlers Arsenal chasing us and not Chelsea.

Fergie gave no press interviews after the game and the BBC didn't even get to talk to Phelan, probably just as well after the Carragher incident. Gill was incensed enoguh about the Nani tackle to have a go at the referees chief Mike Riley at half time. James Lawton writes of United's midfield reeking of decline and the scandal of Carragher's tackle on Nani. It's reeked of decline all season, the wonder is that no one has able to take advantage of it yet.

Daniel Taylor with his five things we learned colum has a dig at Nani and carrick and sees a bright future for Suarez. We'll have to see with Suarez, i didn't rate him in the world cup, Forlan was head and shoulders above him as a footballer. I suppose Rooney's arrival was part of the reason Forlan left, i know who i would sooner have in my team at the moment.
As for carrick he puts his finger on why he hasn't got the fans on his side, his lack of self belief and yet again yesterday his wobbly confidence in the big matches.
Greg Stobart writes that yesterdays abysmal showing shows the urgent need for midfield reconstruction, and claims that Fergie privately agrees that the squad is on its last legs. Mark Ogden compares the state of the current United squad with the demise of the Liverpool trophy machine 20 years ago, ouch. I can't argue with that too much, except to say we do have Welbeck and Cleverley to come back and we do have some talented youngsters in the youth team. But he is right to state that we can't go on relying on Scholes and Giggs and to question what Gibson and Bebe are doing in our squad.

There was lots of talk of a record breaking 19 titles and knocking Liverpool of their perch in the press on Friday and Saturday. Daniel Taylor wrote that for United fans and Liverpool alike 19 is the magic number. Whilst Mark Ogden wrote that if Dalglish happens to be in charge of the mickeys when the 19th title is delivered Fergie's smile would be as wide as the mouth of the Mersey.
It's still on of course but what delight they will take in yesterday's result, especially if our title charge had been derailed.

Kevin McCarra thought that United's rare defeat at Stamford bridge highlighted Ferguson's excellent use of the resources available to him and wonders what he could do with the warchest available to Mancini and Ancelotti. The point is he doesn't need that kind of money he just needs to be able to spend what he would normally be allowed to spend without the Glazer's in charge and the need to pay off the Glazer's debt that he is so comfortable with.
I'm not sure how comfortable he would be if City suddenly got shut of the ultra negative Mancini  and got a decent manager in and bought the couple of players in that would change City from a club challenging for a top four to challenging for the title as a club that has spent as much as they have should be.
He would find out the fans patience levels, i'm fairly sure of that. We have Welbeck and Cleverley to come back in the summer, but an experienced top quality creative midfielder would still not go amiss. And if Scholes did call it a day in the summer, it would become crucial for us to still be competing for
titles and future champions league titles.
So yes there can be no arguments that he has done a magnificent job in marshalling his resources, but how much of the job has the continuation of the careers of Giggs and Scholes to do with that. Because it can't have been in his long term plans for those two to still be playing and to still being so influential to our hoped for success. You can't help feeling he has got more than a little lucky with those two. Imagine our midfield without those two and the money it would have cost and may still cost to replace them. We have very exciting youngsters coming through, but we have no certainty that they will replace those two.

Whilst the consensus amongst most time served reds and press alike is that this has been the most workmanlike and least impressive United midfield we have seen in years, Fergie has been in the process of getting said midfield to resign on longe term contracts. After Anderson signed around christmas, a move that still loses me, he has now got Carrick and Fletcher to sign new extended contracts. For all those reds expecting the reds to finally splash some cash under our detested owners, methinks there is a clue to this summer's spending plans there.
I know Carrick is not every reds cup of tea, he isn't exactly mine, but he does do a job for the team that no other midfielder at the club does for the team. His defensive work may not be as eyecatching as others around Europe but he does a job for the team. My only problem is that he is nowhere near as effective in a 4-4-2 without a Scholes besides him.
As for Fletcher, he tailed off alarmingly during the latter part of last season, which i put down to having to play too many games. But after a full summer off, unlike most of our others who went to South Africa, he has not shown a glimpse of a return off the form that saw us miss him so badly in Rome against Barca. I have always been a fan of his, but i have to admit that his form this season doesn't really warrant a contract extension at this point in his career. Unless Fergie knows better, which of course he may well do, i would have been waiting to put a string of consistent performances in before entertaining a contract extension.

One good piece of news from the weekend was the return to action of Danny Welbek for Sunderland at the Emirates. He looked good and that would have been a superb goal but for an outstanding save from the home teams keeper. I'm absolutely certain that lack of injuries permitting, he will get more than his fair share of games in a red shirt next season.

I missed the beginning of Eric's interview on football focus but heard the two shopkeeper's responses to it, and people wonder why we loved Eric. I shall be catching up with it no doubt. I'm never sure how much of what he says he actually means but the man is never dull, not a comment ever heard labelled at Alan Shearer.

After Robert Fisk's latest colum piece in the Indy where he predicted that the end game to the Arab revolt would take place in Saudi Arabia, he reports the Saudi military mobilising to quell the under reported tensions within the country. A world, and the west in particular, holds it's breath. What would western governments anguished response be, if the Saudi's did enter Bahrain to put their revolt down. It would be hard for the US and less importantly the UK's politicians to defend, and we know that they will try to defend any Saudi crackdown.

David Cameron got a pretty damning press last week with his flip flops over the western response to events in Libya. It was pretty ludicrous and you wonder who was giving him this advise. They seemed to have forgot that George W. and his neo con chums don't frequent the white house any more. Saner poeple preside over US foreign policy nowadays.
Matthew Norman reminds David Cameron of the reality of this countries place in the world in his usual humorous way, but i wonder argue with any of his analysis for a second. It's hard to see any politician levelling with the British public about our reduced standing in the world with the Mail's and the Murdoch's of this world holding so much sway over them. It would take the real form of proportional representation to be adopted in Britain for that to happen.
As for the neocons, they have had their time and the politician who doesn't see that will eventually be yesterday's men.

Paul Goodman is the latest tory to warn David Cameron of the importance and danger that the referendum on the Alterntaive vote poses for his leadership of the conservative party. And in what was a terrible week for both sides of the coalition government John Curtice writes whilst the Lib dems disastrous result in the Barnsley by-election has took all the headlines, the tories drop in the share of the vote should be equally worrying for the a Cameroons.
For Clegg events seem to go from bad to worse, he was utterly unconvincing trying to explain away the Lib dem share of the vote in Barnsley and his party must know it. Those May local council elections are going to be a blood bath for them in the north of the country, and if he loses the AV referendum it is surely just when he is deposed and then how long it is before the coalition is disolved and we fight a new election. I suppose the doomsday scenario is then that the tories win an absolute majority, the way the tories have upset middle England as well as the parts of the country they just don't care about, i just can't see that happening.
Andrew Rawnsley still believes the lib dems can come through this if they hold their nerve.They will struggle to ever regain the progressive vote they once possessed back if they stick with this coalition to the end.

Deborah Orr agrees with Mervyn King that the banks are to blame for the current economic mess. The Telegraph interview with Mervyn King the governor of the bank of England reminded everybody who was to blame for the mess that economy is in. I would love to know reason behind the interview and the timing of it. Robert Peston argues that entente may be impossible between governors and banks, the real reason behind the interview no doubt.
The confessions of a non baby boomer from Keynsian Liberal, the kind of Liberal i would align myself with, and unfortunately the kind of Lib dem keeping their heads down  at the moment. A fascinating chart which shows the lie behind the claim that our debt is at a historic lie and shows why the coalition's economic policy is pure ideology.
Bernie Maddof, the financiers fall guy wonders why no one else is facing a spell behind bars.

Another article about the Killing and BBC4 and European thrillers which also namechecks that great 80's German drama Heimat. Now i would love BBC4 to repeat that, the first series in particular was outstanding.

Peter Wilby predicts that the skilled middle class will be the next victims of neo liberal economic ideology as a decline in middle class pay, job opportunities and job satisfaction has only just begun. I can see him being proven right. I still can't see how the events of 2008 could have led to the formation of the most neo liberal government we have possibly ever seen. I'm certain it will be the last, is the only silver lining on the political horizon. But who will lead us to the post Thatcherite world, that i cannot see.
Martin Kettle predicts that the party who will find the next big question will go on to win the next election, i get where he is coming from and agree partly, but i don not think the debate over the cuts will have been settled by the next election, especially as i don't think it is going to be in 2015.

Jeremy warner talks of the government bending the rules for Rupert Murdoch and predicts that the tories will regret giving the Aussie such a free hand with our media. Predictably News corporations media rivals have cried foul and have announced they are pondering their next move. The move got a mixed reception from media analysts. Polly Toynbee tells the lib dems there is still a way they can win this, but knows that it won't come from Vince Cable.

Chelsea 2-1 Manchester United

Well i feared the worst before this stretch of games but after the Wigan game i had regained some of my inate enthusiasm. And when i watched the first half display at Stamford bridge i half allowed myself to get a little bit giddy, only to be brought back to reality back the disappointing second half performance.
I'm not sure about the team selection, leaing Berbatov out of the team and including Hernandez, Chicarito is going to be a top player, but he has a long way to go yet and Berba's abilty to hold the ball up, early in the game and later on in the game would have been more then useful.
It was a surprise that we started with a 4-4-2 and no doubt those who say the days where you can't get away with a 4-4-2  will have a field day. But the first half did show that maybe it's still alive and for the first 45 minutes it seemed we were in total control of the day.
It looks as if Saturday was a dry run for last night as Fergie played an unchanged team for the first time in almost three years with Fletcher once again on the right hand side. Fletcher is no right winger but it worked well enough in the first half. My only complaint about the first half performance was the quality of the ball into the box.
But as soon as the rent boys equalised the game took on a quite different hue. As good as we looked in the first half, we only ever looked like scoring against the balance of play in the second half. We just don't have the players who can dominate a game for ninety minutes, against the top teams by the looks of it.
The hardest part of last night to take was knowing that they are not the side they were and that they would have been there for the taking if we had been good enough. But there is the rub, we aren't and we weren't. We definitely don't get decisions down there either, how Luiz wasn't sent off, for his foul on Rooney that should have seen him collect a second yellow i don't know. There was a bit of debate over the penalty, but if you stick your leg out, you are running the risk of giving a penalty away. Other than that Smalling once again had a fair game. As for Vidic's sending off, i hoped we had seen the last of that kind of thing. Here's hoping that Ferdinand is fit for Sunday. If that game wasn't big enough, after last night it just got a whole lot harder because they would love nothing more than sinking those 19th title hopes below the water line.
Before this stretch of games i would have glady took a win and two draws, after last night we have now got to be looking for two wins. We all know this is one of the poorrest United sides for a good few years, here's hoping that the 19th title is the trophy that makes it way back to the Old trafford trophy cabinet as we all remember the anniversary of that team who haven't won anything for 35 years.

Fergie was unhappy with the refereeing of Martin Atkinson last night criticising him for the soft penalty and for not sending Chelsea centre back David Luiz off. It's a blow to hear that Ferdinand probably won't play.

It wasn't the best way for Ryan Giggs to celebrate the week when he reached his twentieth year of playing for Manchester United. But what an achievement for a magnificent player. I'd like to see him back in the starting line up on Sunday.

Robert Fisk has a feeling the end game for the upheaval hitting the Arab world will play itself out in Saudi Arabia. It sounds as if he fears the worst.

The Economist's Bagehot column notices Cameron's attempt to show the Arab world that Britain is prepared to disagree with US foreign policy. Will it last? Charlemagne argues that out of self respect and self interest, Europe must do more to help the Arab world.
Frasier Nelson argues that corporatism is not enough to make an adequate foreign policy. 
Max hastings puts the case for non intervention in Libya. I don't support intervention, but support the rebels obviously. But western intervention is a total no no.

Neil Midgely writes that Chris Patten can be a success if he can streamline the BBC's output, i think he is right, BBC drama is definitely nowhere near as good as it used to be or as it should be. But where to axe, it's probably easier said than done, look at BBC radio 6, that was a bad start. Nick Cohen writes about Danish series The killing, another fan, but goes on to write of the future strength of the BBC when it opens the archives to a digital audience. I must admit i'm really looking forward to that. I just hope the countries broadband packages keep up with the change in viewing habits.

The financial times reported that Rupert Murdoch was close to victory in his attempt to convince ofcom and the office of fair trading that it's attempt to take full control of BSkyB will not harm media diversity. If this report in today's Telegraph is correct, i can't believe that it will not be challenged if the government gives it the nod. How many times has he made arrangements with Goverments, in this country alone, only to completely disregard them in time.
Will Hutton argues that if Murdoch wins it just goes to show what a feeble nation that we are. It's also not what i voted Lib dem to see, if this goes through, they could well have lost my vote at the next election.

John Harris argues, as others have, that the coalition has no mandate for a lot of the most controvertial of its policies. It would be a good argument for the no to AV campaign if it wasn't the tories behind the majority of these policies such as the reorganisation of the NHS. They would be kicking up one hell of a fuss if they were in opposition and this were happening.
Olly Grender replies in the new statesman by asking for a definition of mandate, fair point.

Ed Miliband shows signs of radicalism coming out in favour of a living wage, promising. This used to be a Lib Dem policy back in the days when it thought of itself as a party of the left, will the left of the party support this.
Polly Toynbee is the latest pundit to hark back to the days of the SDP and look at its influence on modern day politics and argues that Labour could learn some lessons about the core values it needs to anchor it in its post new labour days.

Stephen King warns of the dangers in the price of oil and warns it is coming at the worst possible time. Whilst Larry Elliott argues that if Primark is struggling policymakers should take heed as things must be bad. Robert Peston reports on an under reported speech from Lord Turner which suggests radical financial reform is still on the cards for the British banking sector, hopefully he's right.
Jeremy Warner argues that whilst the US will never be the pre eminent power it has been over the last couple of decades it is too early to write it off completely. There is something in that, anything could still happen in China, with it's lack of democracy and worrying hints of inflation.

Oscar winner Colin Firth interviewed in the new statesman name checks one of my favourite films, Come and see.