Houghton is a well liked manager that had control of the St. James’ dressing room. He guided the Geordies back to the Premiership after only one season in the Championship. He’s been instrumental in guiding young Andy Carroll to becoming quite a formidable young striker against some of the best defenders in Europe. But, in all honesty he was never going to be a successful Premiership manager at Newcastle.

It has nothing to do with skill, leadership or ability. He has those by the bucketload. What kept Hughton from being successful was simply Mike Ashley.

With all due respect to the Geordie faithful, Ashley is a Championship owner. Newcastle is a Premier League club. Ever since he took over the Tynesiders they have struggled. He hasn’t wanted to spend money, instead opting for the cheapest route possible turn after turn. He openly tried to sell the club two years ago to a very interested buyer and botched it with his adolescent behavior.

When the club was relegated many of the players opted to stick with the club and bring it back to the top flight. Their reward…an owner who looks for any reason to withhold money from them, including bonuses. It’s difficult to keep up player morale when the front office is doing its best to submarine your efforts. Chris Hughton was doing a fairly good job and HIS reward…sacked.

Mike Ashley is doing his best to guide Newcastle United back to the Championship. I hope for their sake a new owner comes along and rescues them from this man. The club and supporters deserve better than that.

I’m not saying that because England didn’t get the ’18 Cup. I’ve voiced my opinion on that already. And given the current state of the Portuguese economy I can see why they didn’t vote to give it to the Spain/Portugal bid (Although I was hoping that they would get it). But, their own report raised some significant questions about the Russian bid as far as facilities, transportation and logistics are concerned. Well I can see why they didn’t worry about those things, it’s not like they’re important to hosting a World Cup or anything. The Russian deputy prime minister Igor Shuvalov says they will make history and one way or another I wouldn’t doubt it.

Then there’s the ’22 WC. In the vernacular of today’s text happy youth…WTF! I can see them beating Japan and South Korea. No offense but they hosted recently and it’s too soon. Beating Australia was a bit surprising to me though. The Aussies did a fantastic job with the Olympics and would have been great hosts. The big shock to me was the fact that the small nation was able to beat the United States to the punch. The U.S. did a good job of hosting the Cup at a time when they didn’t even have a domestic league to speak of. The vast distances between venues couldn’t be an issue (Dasvidaniya mean anything to anyone?). And they couldn’t be concerned about the heat (it’s 54 degrees Celsius  in Qatar! 130 for the Fahrenheit crowd).

Russia and Qatar have something that the other bids all lack right now. Money. And whether it’s being delivered in a briefcase or through back door deals in contracts, money makes FIFA happy.

I for one was quite shocked by yesterday’s 5-0 drubbing by Barcelona over their Real Madrid house guests, definitely not hospitable. Though if these two sides played in The Hague I doubt they would show any hospitality to each other.

This match was one-sided from the beginning and went a long way to show that you can spend all the Euros you like, but that doesn’t guarantee you’ll have a squad that are world beaters. Madrid’s team sheet reads like a Hollywood nightclub guest list with a wage bill that could honestly bail out Ireland’s economy as easily as the EU can. But, for all of their success they still look like a bunch of individuals running around looking for personal glory. Jose Mourinho has had experience in guiding a group of high-profile players to the pinnacle before, but this group is bigger than anything he has had to deal with before.

Barcelona’s epitaph has been chiseled since the beginning of the young season for some reason. I think some of the Spanish media have bought into the Real hype and have been polishing the crown since the season kicked off. But the Catalan club showed their foes from the capital that they still have something that Real Madrid doesn’t, teamwork. The way Barcelona controlled the ball was mesmerizing. They seemed to know exactly where each other would be and it showed in the gross disparity in time of possession. They looked for most of the match like they would score at will, and for a couple of periods of time they did.

There was the usual passion you would expect in El Clasico, with tempers flaring on both sides. I did enjoy the handbags flying for the innocuous push of Pep Guardiola by Ronaldo that brought Valdes charging all the way from his goal box and earned them both a yellow card. Ladies, please! As if Guardiola needed his keeper to defend his honour.

This was billed as the battle of Messi and Ronaldo, but it failed to live up to the hype as neither of these explosive players were able to find the net. Although the Argentine was by far the superior of the two. Kudos to David Villa though who scored twice for the club he dreamed of playing for in the game he dreamed of playing in.

The Bulgarian striker will never be accused of being too fiery or passionate for his own good. I can see how someone could accuse him of being disinterested in his demeanor. Just watch him play folks. He won’t do the multiple step-overs a la Cristiano Ronaldo, but you don’t need him to do that. His fourth goal against the Rovers was a thing of beauty. He chased down a ball that was going out deep in the Manchester United half and got it to Evra, played some quality one-two football then found Nani deep in the Blackburn half. If you watched the match you saw him follow the play all the way through to receive the cross from the Portuguese winger and slot home the goal. It’s easy to dismiss the effort until you rewind and watch just the work put in by one player at both ends of the pitch.

This win was not just a one man show, don’t get me wrong, Park Ji-Sung doubled the score when he received a well timed Wayne Rooney through ball and chipped it over a sprawling Paul Robinson in the 23rd minute. Nani showed how he has matured when he passed up a bad opportunity that he would have lashed out at a year or so ago and cut back to curl in a fantastic goal with his left in the 48th.

Rooney failed to add to the celebration by scoring, but his presence was definitely felt on the pitch as he did some of the little things that Berbatov is known for. He’ll find that scoring touch given the time and when he does the rest of the Premiership will be in for it. Manchester United 7-1 Blackburn Rovers.

That said, I have to say that I’m not impressed with the champions of the United States nor am I a fan of the Major League Soccer playoff system. From the outset of the match the Rapids showed absolutely no technique in moving the ball. Their only game plan seemed to be to pound the ball as high and far as possible. A strategy that might have worked I suppose if the midfielders had given any support to the two forwards. But whenever Conor Casey or Omar Cummings received the ball there was no where for them to go with it.

The midfielders did an excellent job in defending from the centre circle back even if their passing was absolutely dire. Rarely do you see a “championship quality” player repeatedly pass the ball to an area where no one is there to receive it. No one!

While I watched the entire match, I had a hard time stifling my aggravation with the Colorado squad as passes that were well reachable were watched as they rolled past and onto the toe of a Dallas player.

Colorado had a decent shout for a penalty as Casey was dragged down in the box, kicked between the shoulder blades and tripped all by the same player. Apparently lashing out and kicking a player in the MLS is NOT a red card offense. Make a note.

FC Dallas took a well deserved lead through their talisman David Ferreira. The Colombian striker latched on to a beautiful cross by Marvin Chavez, just before the Rapids keeper could reach it and popped it into the back of the net. Casey knotted the score in the second half when he stuck out a foot from his backside and poked home a rebound. A fairly stale extra time was changed completely when George John unfortunately redirected Macoumba Kandji’s shot into his own net to give the Rapids the crown.

The Colorado keeper, Matt Pickens, made a couple of outstanding saves at the end and was saved at the death by great coverage by Drew Moor. That alone was worthy of winning the cup, but honestly this was far from a worthy championship match.

MLS Commissioner Don Garber announced plans to shake up the playoffs for those who care to read: http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/playoffs-expand-10-teams-more-changes-ahead

But, I didn’t see anything in there that would make them better. The playoffs are already watered down. does it really make sense to add more teams or more rounds?

Chelsea received some good news from their Brazilian central defender Alex when he announced that he was going to postpone much-needed knee surgery. But, while the Chelsea attack had numerous opportunities to score, it was Lee Bowyer’s fantastic strike that was the difference in this one. He timed his 17th minute run perfectly into the gap normally filled by John Terry and deftly slotted it home. 

After the humiliation of last week’s loss at home to Sunderland, this defeat has to have the Blues supporters nervously watching the injury board for some help to come soon. Birmingham City 1-0 Chelsea.

The match at Old Trafford had all the earmarkings of another draw. Wigan again showed the shortcomings of the United defense as they counter attacked effectively in the first half. But for a little luck the Latics could have had a 2-0 lead through Charles N’Zogbia and Hugo Rodallega. The Red Devils got a couple of fortunate bounces to keep the sheet clean and were rewarded when Patrice Evra headed home Park Ji Sung’s cross just before the half time whistle. Wigan keeper Ali Al Habsi started to come out for the ball but second guessed himself and it cost him.

Red cards for Antolin Alcaraz and Hugo Rodallega within a couple of minutes of each other took the sting out of a game Wigan side. Javier Hernandez drove home a diving header to double the margin with a shade less than a quarter of an hour remaining and United were cruising.

Wayne Rooney returned early in the second half to a fairly positive reaction by the Manchester United faithful and should have scored late. Manchester United 2-0 Wigan Athletic.

If you only watched the first half of the London derby, the final score would have come as quite a shock. Arsenal had an opportunity to take the Premier League lead and, after Samir Nasri and Marouane Chamakh each scored early, they had to have gone into the dressing room quite confident. Nasri’s goal was both exciting and comical as Gomes’ indecisiveness got him caught in no man’s land and the Frenchman slipped past him and rolled the ball in from a very sharp angle. Chamakh doubled the score mid way through the opening half by turning an  Andrey Arshavin cross home.

But, if the Spurs have taught us anything this season, it’s that when you have Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart on the pitch you’re never really out of the game. The two combined for the first goal as the Dutchman flicked the ball through two defenders to set up Bale for number one. A hand ball in the box gave van der Vaart a chance to even the score from the penalty spot. Younes Kaboul finished an epic comeback when he headed home a van der Vaart cross late in the match to break the Gunner’s hearts. Arsenal 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur.

This is turning into an interesting season. Just when you are ready to hand the title to Chelsea, everything gets turned upside down. That’s what makes the Premiership so much fun!

According to the BBC website:

“Fifa executive committee members Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii have been banned from voting in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosting ballot. Adamu was banned from football activity for three years and Temarii for one year over claims they asked for money in exchange for World Cup votes. The 2018 Spain-Portugal and 2022 Qatar bids were cleared of collusion. The ballot will proceed on 2 December with 22 voters – instead of 24 – and nine candidates across the two votes. Following an investigation by Fifa’s ethics committee, Adamu – who has pleaded his innocence throughout – was fined 10,000 Swiss francs ($10,200; £6,300) and Temarii 5,000 francs, while four other Fifa officials, all former executive committee members, were suspended. Ismael Bhamjee of Botswana was handed a four-year ban, Amadou Diakite of Mali and Ahongalu Fusimalohi of Tonga three-year punishments and Tunisia’s Slim Aloulou a two-year suspension. All four were fined 10,000 Swiss francs.”

It seems like these culprits got off light when you consider the damage they have done to FIFA and its Fair Play campaign. Not that anyone who has watched the governing body for the world’s biggest sport could truly be surprised at the allegations. But shouldn’t FIFA have banned these committee members for life? They breeched the trust placed in them by the associations and football fans around the world with their greed.

My feeling is that those who passed judgment didn’t want to be too harsh lest they have their own shadowy dealings come to light. The scapegoats would have taken the short bans and nominal fines as long as there was something in it for them, you can count on it.

England 2018 bid chief executive Andy Anson has labeled the BBC unpatriotic for going ahead with their broadcast of a documentary of the investigation of committee corruption. Yes Mr. Anson, let’s look past the blatant ethics violations by “honorable” members of the committee. That’s not important at all. And while we’re at it, let’s ignore what the banks and hedge funds are doing, too. It’s not like the economy is going to collapse or anything.

Karim Benzema drove the first dagger in after just 16 minutes. Now he is a world class striker so maybe keeping a closer eye on him might be in order.

With all of the possession the French enjoyed in the first half England were lucky to go into the dressing room down 1-0. However, it only took 10 minutes for Bacary Sagna to beat Kieran Gibbs and send in a perfect cross for Mathieu Valbuena to turn into the net.

The English squad were on their back foot throughout most of the match, pumping the ball forward for Andy Carroll to go it alone. The lad is strong and talented, but so are the French defenders. The addition of Adam Johnson for Gareth Barry gave them a fighting chance as THAT City midfielder actually understands ATTACKING from the position.

Peter Crouch saved the day for the Three Lions with an 86th minute strike to pull one back. But, England never stood a chance from the first whistle, and I lay that completely at the feet of Fabio Capello. Why are we playing without any tactics or confidence? This has been a growing problem.

The FA needs to take control of the situation and look into why we have become so negative. If they need to sack the manager then do it. England have become a laughing stock on the world stage and I for one am sick of it!

Given their home result against Sunderland without their defensive talismans, Chelsea could have some difficulty in the upcoming weeks. The defensive group on Sunday just couldn’t get it done.

December sees the Blues facing Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal. Definitely not a good time to lose these two.

Chris Smalling has come along nicely for Manchester United this season. Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs have both put in some good performances for Arsenal and the Under-21 squad for a couple of years and are ready to step up to the big boys. Andy Carroll might miss out due to a groin issue. A shame since he has played well for Newcastle United this season.

But will Capello give any of them a run out at Wembley? He’s had a history of naming fresh faces then letting them languish on the bench. Stephen Warnock and Michael Dawson traveled to South Africa to help with a “defensive crisis” but never got a sniff of playing time. And Stewart Downing should just tell Don Fabio thanks but no thanks as he just can’t get any playing time no matter how dismal the team is playing.

It’s time for Capello to do what he keeps telling us he is going to do. Play some new players. The “Golden Generation” was a failure, it’s time to put together a team of England players not a group of players who happen to be English.