"We can still win the title" - Who's Benitez kidding?

Just. No.

I’m a true optimist right, but I’m afraid on this occasion even Rafa’s got the better of me. Despite Liverpool’s dire start to the season, somehow, from somewhere, Mr. Benitez has conjured up the enthusiasm and confidence to say Liverpool can still win the Premier League. Is he mad?

It is early days, but not so early as predict the outcome of the rest of the season. This week is a crucial one for Benitez, probably for his career at Anfield. A Champions League tie on Tuesday is followed on Sunday by the visit of Manchester United and all their beachballs. Should Liverpool fail to secure points in both those matches, the door will swing wide open for Benitez to make his exit.

This time last season Liverpool were in a similar predicament. Benitez as well. A Champions League win, also against French opposition in the form of Marseille, kept Benitez his job in effect, after reports suggested he was on the way out. If ever there was a time for an encore, it’s now.

Those of you who read the papers will have probably picked up on the criticism of Benitez for not praising his players enough. Now I never read the articles about this, but I was told that he’s never praised Jamie Carragher or Steven Gerrard for a good performance? Surely that can’t be true. Is he losing the dressing room now as well?

He’s desperate to stay at Liverpool, that’s for sure, and who can blame him? He’s fallen in love with the club and it’s fans, and having spent 5 years there, it’s always going to be a hard thing to leave. He delivered a 5th Champions League trophy in his first full year in charge, as well as bringing Fernando Torres to the club, a signing that pretty much made him a legend. But all that seems long forgotten.

The recent past and the present is what Liverpool fans, and more importanly messrs. Hicks and Gillet are looking at right now. He’s not delivering the goods, and it’s time something was done about it. I’m sad to say that I want Benitez to leave. In my eyes he’s a legend, and a top Football Manager. Winning the European Cup was a big thing for me, and all other Liverpool fans. But I’m afraid now we want the Premier League. And I don’t believe Benitez is the man to deliver that particular trophy.

He’s too cautious as a Manager, in England anyway. The style of play that is needed in the PL is an attacking one. Take United and Arsenal for example. Free-flowing, passing Football, and plenty of goals. Liverpool, seldom set the League alite with a 5-0, 6-0 display, and far too often settle for 0-0 draws at Stamford Bridge. Not good enough.

Possible candidates for the hotseat?

Jose Mourinho has to be favourite for me. He’s always stated a desire to get back into managing in England, and despite not being on most Reds’ fan’s christmas card list, he’ll win silverware.

Jurgen Klinsmann was very close to taking over 12 months ago before that Marseille win, and who know, his name may pop up again.

Martin O’Neill? Claudio Ranieri? Who do you think?

Benitez keen to bring Heskey back

"I don't know what I'm doing wearing this shirt either, Stevie"

This doesn’t please me.

Apparently Benitez is keen on finishing 8th place as well. At least that’s what will happen if he continues to concentrate his interest on donkeys. Take note Lucas Leiva.

Emile Heskey is good for one thing, and one thing only. He’s a big guy, a strong guy. Therefore, long, aerial balls could potentially be very beneficial. Heskey’s strength allows him to win a lot of aerial battles, which ultimately makes him a useful target man.

He’d be an even better target man if he didn’t fall over every 20 seconds. The guy is huge. Man up.

He’s complimented Wayne Rooney in attack reasonably well for England of late, but for a striker, he has a woeful goalscoring record, target man or not target man. 7 goals in 57 England games? Please. Surely there’s someone better. Oh yes, there is: Jermain Defoe.

If you compare Heskey to other target men around the World, you’ll notice that he’s simply not as good.

Luca Toni – Italy – 16 goals, 47 games.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – Sweden – 22 goals, 59 games.
Dimitar Berbatov – Bulgaria – 43 goals, 72 games.

You do the Math.

It is suggested that Rafa is interested in bringing Heskey back to Anfield for a second spell after finally recognising the need for a second striker to play alongside Fernando Torres. Back in the year 2000, Heskey moved from Leicester City to Liverpool for an astonishing £11m fee, and spent 4 unproductive years at the club. Now, nearly 10 years on, take £9.5m off that price and you’ve got what Heskey will supposedly re-join the Reds for.

Emile himself has stated that he’d consider a move back to Merseyside, and it’s hard to believe he’d turn it down should an offer come in. In the meantime, Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill has told Heskey to stop worrying about his England place for next year’s World Cup, and to start focussing on securing Villa a decent finish in the Premier League.

The insignificance of Scottish Football

So, who will win the SPL this year? Celtic or Rangers?

It’s this question that underlines the insignificance of the other teams in Scottish Football, and again raises the point that perhaps the two Glaswegian giants should be allowed to play in the Premier League.

Having watched last weekend’s Derby match, it’s plain to see that the standard of Scottish Football is very poor compared to the Premier League, often dubbed as the best League on the planet. Yet the hype surrounding the Scottish game seems unusually over-the-top.

It was an exciting game, but not for Footballing reasons. Both sides struggled to string more than 5 or 6 passes together, challenges were flying in left, right, and centre, and aerial balls were the flavour of the tie. Very little flowing Football was played.

On commentary it was said that the Celtic – Rangers Derby is bigger than most other Derby’s around the World, yet I’m struggling to put my finger on why that is. Glasgow is certainly a City divided into Green and Blue, so the supporters play a major role in bigging up the clash. But does that make a Football match a classic? Its supporters?

A few years ago it was said that Celtic and Rangers should be allowed to make the switch to play in the Premier League, allowing the other sides in the SPL the chance to compete for the title, for the first time in as long as I can remember. With the gulf in class between the Glasgow Clubs and the rest of the SPL sides, not only does it bring into question the standard of the teams down the bottom of the table, but it gives us reason to doubt their involvement in the League altogether. I mean, what are they competing for?

It’s very likely that 3rd position is held by Hearts come the end of the season, which means they qualify for the newly-named Europa League. This leaves 9 other teams effectively battling it out to survive the drop. If we took Celtic and Rangers out of the SPL, it would open up competition for the likes of Motherwell, Kilmarnock, etc. to actually aim for some silverware. There’d be some motivation.

Not only is the SPL a seemingly pointless inevitability, but the two Scottish Cups are too. While Celtic have been on the receiving end of a few shocks in recent times, most notably to Inverness Caledonian Thistle, having one of Celtic or Rangers in the Final is seldom a rarity. Compare the CIS Insurance Cup to the FA Cup and there’s nowhere near as much romance, as many shock results, or as many classic moments, simply because the standard of the teams in the lower divisions is so bad that they don’t have a hope of challenging the bigger teams.

Last year it wasn’t much of a surprise to see East Stirling, of the Scottish 3rd Division, being beaten 7/8/9-0 every week. In fact it actually became a regularity by the end of the season. I guess the reason for the poor standard of Scottish Football is lack of interest, or at least not as much interest, as in other Leagues. It doesn’t get as much publicity around the World, certainly not as much as the Premier League, therefore less money is pumped into the game.

But I believe if you took The Bhoys and The Gers out of Scottish Football, it would give much more opportunities to the lesser sides to cause a few upsets and put themselves on the Footballing map. As for two Scottish sides playing in England, I don’t think anyone would have a problem with that so long as they’re being beaten, which I think would probably happen.

There have been a few occasions whereby English and Scottish sides have clashed in the Champions League, but that’s a different situation to playing in the PL every weekend against Man Utd, Chelsea, Liverpool, etc. It’d be a tough change.

Independent Schools Football - There's more to it than you think

Charlie Pilkington for Shrewsbury v Lancing

You may be forgiven for thinking Independent School's Sport is centred around Rugby and Cricket, therefore not realising that Football is in fact bigger than the two in most cases. Independent Schools, such as the one I attend (Shrewsbury School), are renowned for their big playing grounds, excellent facilities and top-class coaching, thus giving pupils every possible chance to maximise their potential.

Four weeks into the new term and the Football season is already shaping up to be a classic for Schools all over the country. My objective here is to raise a bit of awareness of the Independent Schools game, as well as teach you a few things you may not know.

History
In 1868 Shrewsbury School was named as one of the nine 'great' schools of England, along with Charterhouse, Eton, Harrow, Merchant Taylors', Rugby, St Paul's, Westminster, and Winchester. It also holds the original copy of the rules of Football within it's Library.

In the year 2000, under the guidance of then-coach Mark Dickson, Shrewsbury won the Independent Schools Football Association Cup, also known as the ISFA, or 'Boodles', something that disappointingly hasn't been achieved since. This year, Shrewsbury are determined for victory.

ISFA 2009-10
Two rounds in to this year's competition and things have gone very well for Shrewsbury School. Under new coach, ex-pro Steve Biggins, we have a fresh new outlook with a view to winning trophies in the short-term.

We were drawn against KES Witley in the 1st round, which meant an 8-hour round trip down to Surrey. It was a potentially tricky encounter which we made fairly light work of in the end.

We were awarded a rather dubious penalty after just 4 minutes, which striker Roy Chatterjee slotted away. Roy now has a record of 10 goals in 8 games this season, a tally any striker would be proud of at any level. It wasn't until the second half that we finished off KES though, with 2 goals from winger Pat White, and another from Chatterjee. There could, and probably should have been more goals for us in the second half, particularly if a 35-yard thunderbolt from your's truly hadn't hit the crossbar.

In the second round we were drawn with a home tie against Brighton-based side Lancing. A 10-hour round trip down south would not have gone down too well with the boys, so we were definitely grateful with the home tie.

Shrewsbury dominated throughout the match, and Lancing were eventually flattered by the 2-0 scoreline. Chatterjee and White were again amongst the goals, but an all-round solid performance sees us through to tonight's third round draw.

The thrill of the big stage
All schoolboys aspire to play Football, Cricket, Rugby on the big stage, and the ISFA gives us exactly that opportunity. This year the final of the competition will be staged at Stadium MK, home of MK Dons. It's this prize that adds something special and gives an extra motivation to boys all over the country. It's not everyday you get the chance to participate in such a competition with the knowledge that you have the opportunity to play infront of a few hundred, possibly a thousand people, at the end of it.

2008-09 ISFA Cup Final

It's not only the final that draws people to watch either. At Shrewsbury we are lucky to have a lot of boys and girls that come to watch our matches, sometimes over 100. Matchday programmes are produced, our names are read out over a tanoy system, and chants ring out from the fans. It's a proper atmosphere at a proper Football match.

Shrewsbury's pitch has recently been described as being better than Aston Villa's. The headgroudsman used to be involved with the preparation of Wolverhampton Wanderer's pitch before taking up the mantel at Shrewsbury. The matchday atmoshphere, big crowds, a wonderful pitch, and a great team spirit is making this season very special indeed, and hopefully come next year, Shrewsbury will be appearing in the final of the ISFA.

I'll be sure to keep you updated with our progress throughout the season.

http://www.isfa.org.uk/boys/news.php?go=newslist&cat=Home%20Page/Latest%20News

Team profile
1. George Barker - George has made an excellent start to the new season, looking extremely solid. A much improved player who will be very grateful for having an excellent defence infront of him.

2. Ben Williams - Shrewsbury's head of school has made the break into the First team this season after excelling for the Second XI both last season, and at the start of this. Able to operate anywhere across the backline, Ben provides very useful backup.

3. Alex Blofield - Alex is an experienced Shrewsbury 1st XI Centre-half, who was a regular in the side last season. A tall, elegant player, who is fantastic in the air and isn't shy of a tackle.

4. Will Taylor - Will is another who played a number of games for the 1st XI last season, although not as regularly as Alex. He's able to play at right-back or centre-half, and possess great pace and tackling ability. His height adds to the physical presence across the back.

5. Charlie Pilkington - Charlie has had a fantastic start to the season, excelling on the pre-season tour to Spain, before putting in some excellent performances back home. He's good on the ball, has an admirable work-rate, and has quickly become a fan's favourite. Long may his form continue.

6. George Curtis - I'll try not to say too much about myself. I make up a 5-man midfield, playing the advanced role alongside captain Robbie Williams. Passing is my strong point, and due to my height, I'm also good in the air. Just the one goal so far this term, but I'll be hoping to add to my collection shortly.

7. Ed White - Right-winger extraodinaire, Ed has a wicked right foot on him. Our equivalent to David Beckham, crossing and set-pieces are very much Ed's strong point. His long-range passing is probably the best in the team, and his work-rate leaves very little to be desired. A regular in the side last year as well.

8. David Lloyd - Plays along side Alex Blofield at the back, and allows very little to pass through him. Certainly loves a tackle and doesn't back out of any battle. As committed as they come, sometimes a bit too much, he would say himself. Being one of the quickest in the side means very few goals will be scored past him this season, that's for sure.

9. Roy Chatterjee - New to school this year after being awarded a Sports scholarship, Roy's goalscoring ability is second-to-none. Give him half a yard in the box and he will punish you. He has the pace to match any centre-half on the school circuit and is a prize assett for us this season.

10. Robbie Williams (captain) - Robbie is a fantastic player to have in your side. Having previously been on Wolves' books, Robbie brings skill and elegance to the midfield as well as a wonderful striking ability. 30-yard screamers aren't a rarity with Robbie, and nor is beating players with ease. Captain of the side, he gains great respect from the boys.

11. Tom Elcock - A little dynamo in the midfield, Tom works his socks off every game. An excellent tackler, which enables him to break up the play and therefore feed Robbie and myself to press forward. He's just returned from injury, so will be hoping to regain full match fitness soon and get his place back in the starting XI.

12. Tom Elliot - Holding midfielder Elliot does a solid job infront of the back four. Gives the team good balance, and allows the likes of Robbie and myself to push forward and create chances.

15. Pat White - Twin brother of Ed, Pat plays on the left wing and creates chances all day. Fantastic with the ball at his feet, he beats players with ease and has a superb left foot. His right isn't bad either. Plenty of goals will be scored by him this season.

17. Christian Barrow - Shrewsbury's answer to Jose Bosingwa, Christian's committment cannot be faulted. Another one who loves a tackle, and another guy who has the pace to burst on to the byline and get crosses in.

Alex Blofield, David Lloyd, Ed White, Pat White, and Robbie Williams were all selected to play for the ISFA National side this season.

Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool: Cautious Reds found wanting

Liverpool’s bid for a first Premier League title took what will probably be a fatal blow today at the hands of an impressive Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Second half goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda secured another 3 points for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, which moves them to the top of the table, 2 points clear of Manchester United.

From the outset it was clear of Liverpool’s gameplan. As is the norm with Liverpool when they travel to Stamford Bridge, they set up with a defensive outlook with the aim to contain Chelsea and look to hit them on the counter-attack. Only one goal at Stamford Bridge in the PL under Rafael Benitez suggests that that tactic probably needs a rethink.

Fernando Torres had the chance of the half for the visitors. A floated cross from the right by Dirk Kuyt was met by the Spaniard, only for his tame header to be held with comfort by Chelsea’s stand-in ‘keeper Hilario. Liverpool would go on to rue that miss, as 15 minutes into the second half Anelka struck to send the Blues fans into raptures. Javier Mascherano was guilty of losing the ball inside the Chelsea half, leaving Liverpool exposed at the back. Didier Drogba was put through by Michael Essien, before crossing for Anelka to cleverly guide home at the far post.

Things got no better for Liverpool who never looked that threatening until Florent Malouda slotted home a second for the home side in the 90th minute. Yossi Benayoun had a golden opportunity just seconds after to scrape a goal back for Liverpool, but his shot shaved the outside of Hilario’s far post.

After this defeat, it seems Liverpool’s title hopes are over. They’ll have to settle now for battling out for 4th spot along with Manchester City, Aston Villa, and the likes. As for Chelsea, moving above United in the table will give them great confidence and motivation heading into the next round of PL matches.

Chelsea v Liverpool: Battle of the Number 8's

Fans of Chelsea and Liverpool would have been scowering through the 2009/2010 fixtures list in mid-July, with the aim of pinpointing arguably their biggest games of the season. This contest certainly falls into that category.

In years gone by, matches between Chelsea and Liverpool have been displays of technical class, wonderful ability, and plenty of goals. One gets the feeling that this tussle will fail to disappoint.

There’s a lot at stake for both sides on Sunday. Chelsea lost their first League game of the season last weekend at the hands of a plucky Wigan, whilst Liverpool travelled to Italy in mid-week only to be outplayed by a very impressive Fiorentina side. Remarkably, that defeat at the DW Stadium prompted some people to start casting doubts over the future of Carlo Ancelotti. Now we know that in this day and age managers seldom get the rub of the green when results aren’t going their way, and usually it’s 10/15 matches into a season when they get the boot, but talk of Ancelotti going after just one defeat this season is completely ludicrous.

Many have touted the Italian as being the ‘next Scolari’, but so far there’s very little evidence of that. Yes, Chelsea lost to Wigan, and yes they can’t afford to be losing those kind of matches on a regular basis, but it’s just one blip out of 38 Premier League matches. I’m sure they’ll bounce back sooner or later.

As for Liverpool, Rafael Benitez is a manager under far more pressure than his Chelsea counterpart. A poor start to the season in all competitions has already dispelled some fans’ hopes of winning the League, or Champions League come next summer. The depth of the squad at Anfield, as well as the quality of players has constantly come under scrutiny, and there is no doubt that Sunday will be the Reds’ biggest test yet. Should they come through that with 3 points I’m sure all those doubts will disappear, for a day or two at least. However, should Liverpool fail to bag at least 1 point, more question marks, and more pressure will build on the Spaniard.

The key battles haven’t really changed from previous clashes. The main talking point will be the two no.8’s in the middle of the park. Messrs Lampard and Gerrard. Many say they can’t play together, but the spotlight will now be on the two battling against each other as they sought to regain some Premier League momentum for their teams.

Lampard is renowned for his ability to find space and pop up in the box unmarked, therefore scoring his fair share of goals. I would hope Javier Mascherano would be given the job of marking Lamps out the game, and therefore dispelling Chelsea’s main midfield threat. Gerrard on the other hand loves running with the ball, making those darting runs forward, and of course supplying Torres with pinpoint precision. Goals from Gerrard are guaranteed throughout a season, and he very often pops up at vital times. Michael Essien will probably be given the job of keeping Stevie quiet. A difficult task nonetheless.

The Torres – Terry contest also throws up some interesting talking points too. Torres has been in great form in the early season, and been rewarded with the Player of the Month for September. John Terry, England captain and one of the World’s best centre-halfs, will have his work cut out, but he’ll more than be up to the prospect of keeping Torres quiet.

Finally, Didier Drogba and the whole of the Liverpool backline will be a very interesting watch. Drogba’s physical, bullying presence will keep Jamie Carragher and the likes on their toes, and with Drogba’s reputation for going down a little too easily, they’ll have to be careful not to concede any silly free-kicks close to goal. Especially with the likes of Lampard and Ballack, two first-class free-kick specialists, amongst the Chelsea ranks.

Whenever Liverpool travel to Stamford Bridge Rafael Benitez always seems keen on employing a cautious, counter-attacking setup. This time however, having already conceded too many points for my liking this season, a more aggressive, ‘in-your-face’ approach would be very refreshing to see. Yes, we may concede a goal or two, but with Torres, Gerrard, Benayoun, and Kuyt all finding the net with consummate ease at the moment, the likelihood is we’d score a few too.

Chelsea play attacking Football wherever they go. They have great ability in the final third, as well as a solid defensive unit that deals with the counter-attacking threat. Where they are perhaps vulnerable is with a big striker up against Terry and Carvalho, something Liverpool don’t really possess although Torres does put himself about a bit, and down the wings. Bosingwa and Cole’s defensive ability leaves something to be desired.

For me, the team that wins will be the team that gambles the most. Risks will have to be taken, but calculated risks. Sitting back and waiting to counter is a dangerous tactic and probably one that should be abandoned for this match. Aggressive, attacking, inventive play will be the winner on Sunday.

A fascinating contest lies ahead then. I’d be very interested to hear some predictions from readers – Preferably in Liverpool’s favour.

My Prediction: 2-3

Xavi: Fabregas has Barca DNA

Really Xav, really? If we're being hyper-critical of this statement we'd say it's not physically possible. But I'm sure Cesc appreciates it.

So, Xavi and Cesc - Spanish National teammates, former Barcelona teammates (although they never played together), and general good mates. The little Barca maestro has expressed his desire to play alongside Fabregas on a day-to-day basis at Camp Nou, a statement that risks infuritating Arsenal who have never previously taken kindly to 'tapping-up', and false rumours. But who does?

"I'd like to play with him", Xavi told Spanish newspaper El Mundo Deportivo. "I've always said that in the National team I link up with Cesc very well, despite the fact that many say we can't play together". Oh the famous 'they can't play together'. Gerrard & Lamps. Proven. Ballack & Lamps. Dubious. Xavi and Cesc? Surely not.

Xavi went on to say, "we demonstrated in the final of the European Championship that isn't true. I especially hope that Cesc comes. He is a football player with Barca DNA and he is showing at Arsenal that he is on another level".

I'm not sure Mr. Wenger will be too happy with Xavi's comments, but Footballers will do anything these days to get to play with their mates.

So, if Fab does leave the Gooners, where would it leave them? Have they got sufficient backup? Would they need to purchase more than one player to replace him? Would it be a mistake to rejoin Barca? These are all questions that probably will be answered one day, although I can't see Cesc leaving just yet. For the Premier League, I sincerely hope not.