Chelsea start selling Robinho shirts before Calderon blocks the move

Comment & analysis round-up

Quote of the day: “If Arsène said he needed £30 million for a striker, he would get it, no problem at all, it is not our decision who he spends money on and nor will it ever be. We totally back Arsène.. I hear all the time that we have no money, but I just wish someone would take the time to look at our accounts. This is a proper business which produces its own cash and lives or dies by its performances… This constant suggestion that the stadium is bleeding us dry is crap.” - Arsenal’s second largest shareholder, Danny Fiszman.

Runner-up: “I’m even less optimistic today than I was last week, so we will carry on, I don’t know if it’s over. I’ve no idea what has gone on. It’s very hard to get communication from some people in life. We just have to get on with it.” - Sir Alex Ferguson on the Berbatov deal.

Today’s overview: Chelsea have egg on their faces this morning after advertising on their website Chelsea shirts with Robinho’s name on the back. Jason Burt and Pete Jenson report in the Independent on Real Madrid’s “brinkmanship” and Martin Lipton (Daily Mirror) brings the news that Real Madrid have blocked Robinho’s move to Chelsea.

Martin Samuel (The Times) writes of the quotes from Danny Fiszman regarding Arsene Wenger’s transfer kitty. “For Arsenal supporters, there was good news and bad news from the Champions League draw yesterday. The good news is that, according to Danny Fiszman, the director and a significant shareholder, if Arsene Wenger walked into his office this morning and requested £30 million for a striker, the funds would be made available in an instant. The bad news? He has not, and Fiszman does not think he will, either.”

With time running out on the summer transfer window, there are a few transfer stories doing the rounds. The Daily Mail claim that Spurs and Everton are interested in Henrik Larsson. Simon Bird (Daily Mirror) suggests that Everton are looking to hijack Aston Villa’s move for James Milner. And David Hytner (Guardian) reports that “Tottenham Hotspur are considering a move for Miguel Veloso.”

The Champions League draw also takes up a lot of attention this morning. Sam Wallace writes: “The ‘big four’ were once again given the kind of group games that should see them all safely through to the business end of the competition.” Andy Townsend (Daily Mail) asks “where is the threat to stop another English invasion of the Champions League Final?”

But Kevin McCarra (Guardian) is not quite so confident, “It is rash to believe that English clubs now have an ineffable superiority. There may not have been a final without a Premier League member taking part since 2004, but Liverpool and Arsenal supporters would not claim, at this moment, that their teams are without flaw.”

Daniel Taylor (Guardian) and Oliver Kay (The Times) look ahead to the European Super Cup final tonight although much of the focus is on Owen Hargreaves who will play but has withdrawn from the England squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

According to Matt Lawton in the Daily Mail “Fabio Capello was left fuming on Thursday night after Rafa Benitez and Sir Alex Ferguson took steps which could seriously undermine England’s chances of qualifying for the next World Cup.” And, in an article titled “Fab, they are screwing you,” Shaun Custis in The Sun writes “England boss Fabio Capello is reeling after two stunning blows from Rafa Benitez and Alex Ferguson.

Harry Redknapp also reveals in The Sun that he has “sorted things out with Capello.” “When you hear that a powerful Italian man with big connections has come looking for you, it can be a bit unnerving… The first thing he said to me when we met after we lost 1-0 to United was: ‘Harry, if you can play Sylvain Distin at left back then I can play Steven Gerrard on the left wing.’ I replied: ‘I think you’re right mate.’ From then on it was a great opportunity to talk about a few things and get a few things straight.” (This exchange must be taken with a pinch of salt as Capello has consistently said he didn’t play Gerrard on the left against the Czech Republic.)

Other articles of interest include Tony Cascarino’s analysis of why Robbie Keane hasn’t settled at Liverpool yet, Rob Smyth (Guardian) on the modern “Proper Fan” who has “lost all sense of perspective” in regard to Alan Curbishley’s current predicament at West Ham. And following Oliver Kay’s stinging criticsm of Serie A earlier this week, Gabriele Marcotti (The Times) compares the Premier League with the Italian top division.

Jason Burt and Pete Jenson report in the Independent on Real Madrid’s “brinkmanship” over Robinho. “Chelsea, having yesterday advertised replica Robinho shirts for sale on the club’s website, hours after their chief executive, Peter Kenyon, had dinner with the Brazilian and his agent in full public view, had to endure another game of late brinkmanship involving Real Madrid. The Spanish club’s sporting director, Pedrag Mijatovic, was interviewed on the television channel Antena 3 and said: ‘Robinho still has two years left on his contract. That being the case, he is our player for the next two seasons so you can draw your own conclusions from that.’ That followed the failure to sign Santi Carzola, who had been lined up as Robinho’s replacement, after Madrid met the buy-out clause in his contract, but who has now surprisingly agreed a new deal at Villarreal. Madrid also failed in their attempts to sign David Villa from Valencia although it was the deal to sign Santi Carzola which would trigger Robinho’s release. ”

Martin Lipton (Daily Mirror) brings the news that Real Madrid have blocked Robinho’s move to Chelsea. “Chelsea’s £31million capture of Robinho was in doubt last night after Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon blocked the deal. The Blues were confident of landing the Brazil winger after weeks of negotiations and a flight to the Spanish capital by chief executive Peter Kenyon on Wednesday night. Chelsea’s website was offering shirts with Robinho’s name and number to be confirmed, but that was pulled last night as the chance of the deal collapsing emerged. Chelsea are understood to have completed an outline agreement to sign the 24-year-old in discussions with Real sporting director Predrag Mijatovic. But Calderon has yet to give the final approval and appears to have had second thoughts about the sale.”

Martin Samuel (The Times) writes of the quotes from Danny Fiszman regarding Arsene Wenger’s transfer kitty. “For Arsenal supporters, there was good news and bad news from the Champions League draw yesterday. The good news is that, according to Danny Fiszman, the director and a significant shareholder, if Arsène Wenger walked into his office this morning and requested £30 million for a striker, the funds would be made available in an instant. The bad news? He has not, and Fiszman does not think he will, either.”

The Daily Mail claim that Spurs and Everton are interested in Henrik Larsson. “Henrik Larsson is being linked with a move to Everton or Tottenham after a series of bitter rows with Helsingborg chairman Sten-Inge Fredin.”

Simon Bird (Daily Mirror) suggests that Everton are looking to hijack Aston Villa’s move for James Milner. “David Moyes made a £10million bid to land Newcastle winger James Milner last night, as an auction kicked off with Aston Villa. The Everton boss is attempting to hijack Martin O’Neill’s swoop for the England Under-21 star. Villa yesterday met Newcastle’s £10m asking price and are confident of getting their man.”

David Hytner (Guardian) reports that “Tottenham Hotspur are considering a move for Miguel Veloso, the highly rated Sporting Lisbon defensive midfielder, before the closure of the transfer window on Monday night.”

The lead story in The Guardian today reports on Michel Platini’s quotes warning Roma fans that if there is violence surrounding their game against Chelsea the Champions League final will be moved from the Stadio Olympico. Platini: “If we have any more violence we could withdraw the Champions League final from Rome. It’s not an ultimatum, just a message that we are keeping an eye on it.”

Sam Wallace casts his eye over the draw in the Independent. “For Fernando Torres it promises to be emotional. For Celtic it is a chance, once again, to tweak the tail of Manchester United, the champions of Europe. For the rest of us the Champions League group stages draw looks set nicely for the English contingent as the ‘big four’ were once again given the kind of group games that should see them all safely through to the business end of the competition. All the Premier League sides avoided the group of death, Group H, where Real Madrid, Juventus, Zenit St Petersburg and – with rather less of a reputation – Bate Borislov of Belarus were drawn against each other. Instead, English interest will be focused on Torres, who returns on 22 October to Atletico Madrid, the club who developed him from the age of 11, for the first time since he joined Liverpool for £20.5m last summer.”

Andy Townsend (Daily Mail) predicts how the English teams will fare in the Champions League. “Four Barclays Premier League powerhouses, but where is the threat to stop another English invasion of the Champions League Final? Barcelona are the natural challengers with a new coach in Pep Guardiola and a different way of playing, Jose Mourinho will love keeping Roman Abramovich waiting for another year and beware Bayern Munich under Jurgen Klinsmann. He means business on their return to the competition. The hardest draw is Real Madrid’s group, where UEFA Cup holders and Russian champions Zenit will pose a serious problem to the established powers. One of Madrid or Juventus might struggle to find a way through.”

Kevin McCarra (Guardian) gives his verdict on the draw. “It is rash to believe that English clubs now have an ineffable superiority. There may not have been a final without a Premier League member taking part since 2004, but Liverpool and Arsenal supporters would not claim, at this moment, that their teams are without flaw.” In the same paper David Pleat gives a guide to the groups involving English teams.

Alan Smith (Daily Telegraph) also gives his analysis on the Champions League draw. “Arsenal could not have asked for two more treacherous trips for their first two away games. For a start, Chelsea can testify to the dangers of visiting Fenerbahce’s screaming cauldron, while any journey to Kiev, whether it’s freezing or not, proves troublesome. Factor in the practised threat of FC Porto and this is clearly a challenge allowing few mistakes. Even so, it’s one that Arsene Wenger’s players should navigate succesfully.”

Daniel Taylor (Guardian) looks ahead to the European Super Cup final tonight. “The last time Manchester United were in Europe they came back with the Champions League trophy and on one of the supporters’ flights home a clutch of Sir Alex Ferguson’s grandchildren, aged nine and below, drew a round of applause for regaling the entire plane with a high-pitched song about the way John Terry had ’slipped on his bum’. One hundred days after that epic night in Moscow it is fair to say that Ferguson and his players will be viewing tonight’s European Super Cup final against Zenit St Petersburg in a very different light.”

Oliver Kay (The Times) also looks ahead to the Monte Carlo showdown. “The Super Cup is regarded as a mere trinket by some, but Ferguson, who still regrets fielding a weakened team against Lazio nine years ago, says that United will take it seriously, just as they did the Community Shield, in which they beat Portsmouth this month. He has talked up the importance of winning the Super Cup - and indeed the Club World Championship, which will take them to Tokyo in December - and stated that the objective, apart from giving much-needed match practice to Gary Neville, Owen Hargreaves and Nani, is to return to Manchester this evening with another trophy.”

According to Matt Lawton in the Daily Mail “Fabio Capello was left fuming on Thursday night after Rafa Benitez and Sir Alex Ferguson took steps which could seriously undermine England’s chances of qualifying for the next World Cup. Already angry that he had not been told by Liverpool that Steven Gerrard was about to undergo a groin operation, the England manager then heard Ferguson reveal that Owen Hargreaves would take part in tonight’s European Super Cup Final for Manchester United - but would not be fit for England’s crucial tie in Croatia next month.”

In an article titled “Fab, they are screwing you,” Shaun Custis in The Sun writes “England boss Fabio Capello is reeling after two stunning blows from Rafa Benitez and Alex Ferguson. Liverpool chief Benitez insisted Kop captain Steven Gerrard has to have a groin operation immediately — ruling him out of next month’s World Cup qualifiers with Andorra and Croatia. And Fergie claimed Owen Hargreaves is not fit enough for England duty either — even though he is in Manchester United’s squad for tonight’s European Super Cup clash with Zenit St Petersburg.”

Harry Redknapp also reveals in The Sun that he has “sorted things out with Capello.” “When you hear that a powerful Italian man with big connections has come looking for you, it can be a bit unnerving. But thankfully it was England manager Fabio Capello at Fratton Park to watch my Portsmouth play Manchester United on Monday. It has been well documented that he wasn’t happy with some of the comments in my Sun column but I was delighted to sort it out with him and we had a good chat… The first thing he said to me when we met after we lost 1-0 to United was: ‘Harry, if you can play Sylvain Distin at left back then I can play Steven Gerrard on the left wing.’ I replied: ‘I think you’re right mate.’ From then on it was a great opportunity to talk about a few things and get a few things straight.”

Also, in the Daily Mail, Jamie Redknapp supports Steven Gerrard in putting club before country. “England have more than enough quality players to emerge unscathed. Let’s not start looking for excuses already.”

Oliver Kay (The Times) reports that “The troubled regime of Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr at Liverpool suffered another severe blow last night when it emerged that they are preparing to postpone construction of the club’s new stadium because of difficulties raising the funds in an unforgiving financial market. Hicks and Gillett had hoped that the building of a 60,000-capacity stadium on the site at Stanley Park, barely a quarter of a mile from the club’s Anfield home, would start within weeks, dispelling some of the concerns about their ability to drive Liverpool forward. But their apparent failure to do so casts further doubt about their credibility as owners, increasing the pressure on them to sell to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai.”

Tony Cascarino (The Times) analyses why Robbie Keane hasn’t settled at Liverpool yet. “It’s not surprising Keane seems confused and ineffective with the way Liverpool are set up tactically at the moment. He‘s not quite wide enough to be playing down the wing, but he’s not in the centre, either. Robbie’s space is squeezed because Yossi Benayoun and Dirk Kuyt, in theory the wide men, don’t have much pace so keep cutting inside into his zone. And it’s not like Liverpool’s full backs are providing the width instead. They are sitting deep, as if they’re trying to emulate David Beckham’s performances. So Keane doesn’t have the support he enjoyed at White Hart Lane from attack-minded defenders such as Pascal Chimbonda or Gareth Bale. Liverpool are lacking options and ideas. Then there’s his strike partner, Fernando Torres, the main man. It was a question often asked when Torres was with Atletico Madrid: is he a partnership player or does he prefer to operate alone up front?”

Rob Smyth (Guardian) writes of the modern “Proper Fan” who have “lost all sense of perspective” in regard to Alan Curbishley’s current predicament at West Ham. “He may not give you the fantasy but he will supply a comfort, and the little things that you only appreciate in hindsight: security, beating Manchester United three times in a row, beating Liverpool. West Ham fans should be careful what they wish for: the last time they went chasing the fantasy, after a series of perfectly adequate mid-table finishes around the turn of the century, they played a part in the removal of the incumbent Harry Redknapp and got a new manager, Glenn Roeder.”

Jason Burt (Independent) reports that Slaven Billic is interested in the Hammers job. “Alan Curbishley is under increasing pressure at West Ham United, with the Croatia coach, Slaven Bilic, understood to be interested in succeeding him at Upton Park should he be sacked. No final decision has been taken on whether to dispense with Curbishley, and he may yet salvage his career with a string of positive results, but there is a growing sense of frustration over what is perceived to be his negative attitude, given the apparent strength of his squad. Part of the reason for the growing scrutiny over Curbishley is a lack of knowledge of the foreign transfer market. He has himself admitted to a weakness in this area in the past, which helps to explain why West Ham have employed the Italian Gianluca Nani as the club’s technical director.”

Following Oliver Kay’s stinging criticism of Serie A earlier this week, Gabriele Marcotti (The Times) compares the Premier League with Serie A. “It’s an indisputable fact that the Premier League has more money than Serie A. It’s an indisputable fact that the Premier League performed better than Serie A last season in the Champions’ League. It’s equally indisputable that Italy are the world champions, that England did not qualify for the Euros and that Italy, over the last decade, has performed better at youth level than England. Oh, and it’s equally indisputable that the Premier League is better run than Serie A. Beyond that, the rest is opinion: who’s better than who, who’s on the decline, who’s on the rise. Let’s not get worked up over this. Let’s enjoy football for what it is, let’s leave the flag-waving and jingoism to our politicians. Let’s appreciate great players and not be blinded by stupid stereotypes. Let’s approach games with an open mind and try to judge without prejudice. To paraphrase Rodney King: ‘Can we all just get along?’”

Shaka Hislop has his weekly MLS article in The Guardian, he features John Carver, the “flourishing” manager of Toronto FC. “Toronto head coach John Carver hailed the second proudest result of his entire career after seeing his depleted charges defeat Colorado 1-0, thanks to a fantastic Chad Barrett free kick, his first goal for the club. I watched this game and Carver’s happiness was obvious - his post-match interview was moving to say the least. Let me say I am slightly biased. I’ve known JC since the early 90s, when during my time as a player for Newcastle United he was the academy coach, doing a wonderful job under very difficult circumstances. Until researching this piece I did not realize the parallels between JC, his coaching career and the events at Los Angeles.”