Tag Archives: Carling cup

Pressure off Avram Grant temporarily as West Ham thrash Man Utd for Carling Cup semi final place

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While Manchester United fans may argue that Sir Alex Ferguson deliberately picked a weakened team to take on West Ham in the Carling Cup quarter final game at Upton Park last night, we all know that Ferguson put out a team that he thought were capable of getting a result against the Hammers, something they failed to even come close to.

There will be those too who dismiss the Carling Cup as a Mickey Mouse trophy, but memories are sometimes short when it suits in football, especially given the significance of being the only trophy in the cabinet from last season at Old Trafford.

No, there is nothing anyone can say that will change my view that United went into last night’s game expecting to win and we should take our hats off to West Ham who simply wanted it more than their illustrious opponents, on the night.

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FA Vow To Probe ‘Dark’ Violence After Birmingham Derby

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Judging by the considerable hike in both steward and police presence at St. Andrews (over 500 West Midlands officers were drafted in for the occasion), it’s pretty clear that the relevant authorities were envisaging a bit of a feisty affair between second city rivals Birmingham and Aston Villa in the Carling Cup last night – although the ugly tension that swarmed after the final whistle could, in these supposedly enlightened times, hardly have been preempted.

During the game itself, the two sets of opposing supporters provided a magnificent bristling maelstrom of noise that seemed to marry perfectly with the exciting, fractious football on display.

However, the friction brimmed over as the game culminated when, having seen their side run out as dramatically late 2-1 winners, thousands of Birmingham fans stormed across the length of the pitch to goad the Villa fans who were located in the Gil Merrick Stand at the opposite end of the stadium.

A hail of saliva and make-shift missiles ensued, with a gaudy red flare sent spiralling from the pitch into the Villa section of the crowd and back over the police cordon again before plastic seats, uprooted from the terraces, were hurled back and forth between the two sets of irate supporters.

The fact that Sky Sports were forced to show the violence in replay after breaking for commercials after the game indicates the relative brevity of the trouble in the ground, but reports quickly filtered through of similar incidents taking place in the area surrounding the stadium – with five arrests made in conjunction with a fracas in a local pub, amongst various other acts of petty vandalism.

In the aftermath, West Midlands Police confirmed that 14 people (including four police officers) had been admitted to hospital for treatment to minor injuries, whilst two police dogs had also been injured after being struck by a couple of wayward missiles.

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Wenger laments “unlimited funds” of rivals

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Arsene Wenger believes that inexperience is no excuse for his youthful Arsenal side as the French tactician looks to secure his first trophy in five years.

The Gunners have not tasted domestic success since lifting the FA Cup in 2005 after  a penalty shootout victory over Manchester United. Analysing the reasons behind the drought Wenger highlighted a number of factors including the monetary restraints placed on him by the move from Highbury and the financial muscle accumulated by the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City.

Speaking in the aftermath of Arsenal’s 4-1 Carling Cup victory Tottenham Hotspur, the French tactician told esteemed French publication L’Equipe that he was still proud of the club’s recent achievements.

“People are always saying that we haven’t won anything for five years. This is true, but we have always remained at the highest level, even during difficult periods in the club’s life.

“Arsenal built a new stadium and we have to pay for that, while also building a new team which had reached the end of a cycle.

“What would you say to Manchester City if they did not win any trophies this season after investing £200million?

“To me, the main reason why we have not won anything in five years is the fact we play in the best league in the world against club that have unlimited funds.

“Of course I want to win trophies. Our hopes for the season are always the same – we are fighting for the Premier League title and want to win the Champions League.

“The plan is to continue our improvement with the strength of our team and their youth.

“My players don’t have the excuse of inexperience any more. They are eager for titles. I believe they are capable, but they have to show it.”

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Why the Carling Cup should be an Under-21 Competition

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The first batch of third round Carling Cup ties take place on Tuesday and once again football fans will prepare themselves for wholesale changes and big names being taken out of the firing line (without any off field antics to prompt their exclusion).

The former Milk, Coca Cola and Worthington Cup has taken on many guises over the years while its popularity and importance has slowly diminished. There once was a time when smaller teams saw it as an opportunity to grab some silverware like Oxford in 1986, and Middlesbrough and Leicester in more recent times. Now sides not even challenging for the title, or overburdened with regular football, give much regard to the competition, a scenario firmly emphasised by Chris Hughton’s decision to make 11 changes to his Newcastle side for their second round clash with Accrington Stanley. Tongue not in cheek, supporters of the North West minnows had their opportunity to heartily yell the immortal “who are ya?” at the majority of the Magpies starters.

So what can be done to restore some pride to this ailing beast of a competition? How can the Football League stir up interest once more? Slashing ticket prices does not seem to have worked; perhaps a free hot dog for each spectator would do the trick, although it seems unlikely.

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Tevez says what everybody had always thought

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Carlos_TevezManchester City’s Carlos Tevez has branded Manchester United’s Gary Neville a “boot-licker” and a “moron” in explaining his goal celebration in Tuesday’s Carling Cup semi-final Former Manchester United striker Tevez gestured and cupped his ears towards the United bench after scoring twice in Manchester City’s 2-1 derby win.

“My celebration was directed at Gary Neville,” Tevez told ESPN Argentina.”He acted like a complete boot-licker when he said I wasn’t worth £25m, just to suck up to the manager,” he added.

Before the first-leg tie at Eastlands, Neville said that manager Alex Ferguson had been right to let Tevez leave in the summer, rather than signing him on a permanent deal after his two-year loan spell ended.And during United’s defeat cameras appeared to catch Neville making an obscene gesture when Tevez scored.

“I don’t know what the hell that moron is talking about me for,” said Tevez.

Dont hear too many people arguing that one…

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