There was a time when the FA Cup held a special magic for everyone who hoped for a Goliath slaying. Nowadays, even Harry Redknapp, manager of Spurs who has a long tradition of FA Cup success, feels that a top 4 finish in the Premier League would be a greater achievement.

Redknapp at least showed the FA Cup some respect by fielding a reasonably strong team. He was forced to leave out Lennon and Assou-Ekotto through injury but the Posh team must have been disappointed to see 11 internationals in lilywhite.

However, it was one budding international at the other end who was the story of the first half. Joe Lewis, the Peterborough keeper had been an England U-21 regular and was included in an England senior team some time ago, was the standout player. He somehow managed to get a finger on Kranjcar’s piledriver to turn it onto the crossbar. This was after Defoe had smashed his point blank effort straight onto the crossbar with Lewis well-beaten.

The breakthrough finally came and it was that man of the moment, Nico Kranjcar who curled a delicious shot around the outstretched arms of Lewis. Nico made the game safe for Spurs when he got on the end of an inviting cross from the impressive Gareth Bale. Defoe and Keane finished off a comfortable afternoon for Spurs with two more goals.

So it was an easy win against admittedly very weak opposition. However, questions about this Spurs team still remain. In the absence of Lennon’s searing pace, and with Modric still struggling to regain his pre-injury form, the team was forced to rely on Kranjcar for creativity. Bale and Hutton did well offensively as full-backs but their suspect defensive abilities were never stretched by Posh’s non-existent wingers.

But it is another win, another clean sheet. Next, Liverpool at Anfield in a six-pointer in the race for a top 4 place.

Contributed by Shane Neubronner

Singapore, December 10, 2009 – Former Tottenham Hotspur captain and England international Gary Mabbutt will lead a team of Spurs’ coaches to Singapore for the International Player Development Course, in partnership with the Football Association of Singapore. The course is scheduled to take place from 11-20 December.

The International Player Development Course, open to children between the ages of 6 and 16, will begin on 14 December with three-hour long sessions held in the afternoon from 3-6pm at The Cage.

Spurs have given five places at the International Player Development Course to the FAS, who in turn will select players from the national youth setup to attend.

Tottenham Hotspur, being a London-based Premier League football club, is aware that the inaugural Youth Olympics Games (YOG) will be held in Singapore in August 2010, and that Singapore’s Under-15 football team will be representing Asia in the football competition for the YOG.

In the true spirit of the Olympic Games, with London being the host city for the Summer Olympic Games in 2012, Tottenham Hotspur has offered its assistance to the FAS for the Singapore YOG football team.

Mabbutt, along with his team of experienced Premier League coaches will work with the Singapore YOG football team over three special training sessions during the period. The first training session will be led by Gary Mabbutt, and the next two sessions will be helmed by Chris Ramsey, who is Assistant Head of Player Development at the Tottenham Hotspur Football Academy.

To facilitate a sharing of best practices, experience, capacity building and transfer of knowledge, FAS and various schools coaches have been invited to attend the sessions. This deep level of engagement and commitment between the Tottenham Hotspur coaches and the FAS is unprecedented, and marks the beginning of a longer term partnership between the two entities.

Additionally, Mabbutt will also speak at a forum for 30 select FAS coaches on motivational methods and man management.

Secretary General of FAS Winston Lee said: “Spurs are a club steeped in tradition. They have a footballing philosophy in developing youth players which is in sync with our latest youth football development programme which is based on the best practices of the leading football nations in the world. The YOG players and the NFA coaches are looking forward to the sessions with the Spurs’ coaches and we hope to establish a long term relationship with them.”

There will also be a free one day session for 20 underprivileged youth from the Muhammadiyah Children’s Home and two sessions for amateur adults or weekend warriors.

About Gary Mabbutt, MBE
A model professional in the modern era, Gary Mabbutt played over 600 games for Spurs in 16 years before retiring at the end of the 1997-98 season. Numbers alone don’t tell the whole story though. Mabbutt battled throughout his career against the effects of diabetes and managed to overcome a serious facial injury in 1994 and a broken leg that ruled him out of the 1996-97 season.

Signed for £105,000 from Bristol Rovers in August 1982, Mabbutt soon tasted glory in the 1984 UEFA Cup triumph before forming one of the best central defensive partnerships seen at White Heart Lane with Richard Gough in the 1986-87 season, which saw the club finish third in the league, reach the semi-finals of the League Cup and, narrowly lost out to Coventry City in the 1987 FA Cup Final.

Awarded the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) and winner of 16 full England caps, Mabbutt’s proudest moment came when he lifted The FA Cup at Wembley in 1991.

Story by Colin Tung

Saturday, 5 December, 2009 – The 32 countries participating in next June’s FIFA World Cup were drawn into eight groups in Cape Town, South Africa.

Hosts South Africa were automatically drawn into Group A and they will meet Mexico in the opening game of the 2010 World Cup. Two-time winners Uruguay and 1998 champions France make up the rest of Group A.

In Group B, a banned Maradona would have been pleased to see his Argentina squad get drawn with Nigeria, South Korea and Greece.

In Group C, the United States, after being drawn with England, must be dreaming of repeating their 1950 “Miracle on Grass” feat that saw them, with semi-professional players, deliver a shocking defeat to what was then considered a mighty England team at the World Cup.

Football, or “soccer” as they call it there, may be professional now in the United States but defeating an England team tipped to win the World Cup may be as big a miracle as the one in 1950 or more recently, when they beat Spain at the Confederations Cup. Algeria and Slovenia complete the group.

Germany face some stiff competition in Group D with Australia, Serbia and Ghana also in the group.

In Group E, the Netherlands face Denmark, Japan and Cameroon.

Group F will see World Cup debutantes Slovakia going up against Paraguay, Italy and New Zealand. The Kiwis are making only their second appearance at football’s showcase event.

In Group G, football fans will be getting arguably the “Group of Death”. The Latin flair of five-time champions Brazil and the Cristiano Ronaldo-led Portugal go up against Didier Drogba’s Ivory Coast and obscure North Korea.

Lastly, in Group H, European champions Spain have been drawn in a relatively easy group with Switzerland, Honduras and Chile.

World Cup Groups

Group A
South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France

Group B
Argentina
Nigeria
South Korea
Greece

Group C
England
United States
Algeria
South Korea

Group D
Germany
Australia
Serbia
Ghana

Group E
Netherlands
Japan
Denmark
Cameroon

Group F
Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia

Group G
Brazil
North Korea
Ivory Coast
Portugal

Group H
Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile

How many more matches must be sacrificed on the altar of the ‘spirit of the game?’ FIFA’s anachronistic logic in refusing the introduction of video replay technology or even sanctioning extra touchline officials in the name of preserving the ‘flow’ of the game is dangerously close to making football a global farce of a game.

Theirry Henry’s blatant evasion of the truth in claiming an accidental handball (video footage clearly shows that his second handball was the result of a deliberate flick onto the outside of his right foot) only shows up the old adage of ‘do what you want, but don’t get caught’.

With the increasing tempo at which club and international matches are played, the men in black are increasingly called upon to make snap judgments at breakneck speed, and often, with disastrous results.

Referees are only human, and like their playing counterparts on the field, wholly susceptible to howlers (Darren Bent’s “My-missus-could-have-scored-that” effort over the bar notwithstanding). FIFA had better step up to the plate, swallow their pride and help the referees, lest fans worldwide be condemned to watching and sweating on the results of match on the throw of the dice.

France qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa on the back of a controversial William Gallas goal in extra time.

Thierry Henry deliberately handled the ball twice in the 103rd minute before prodding it to a waiting Gallas in the six-yard box. Gallas headed it past a stranded Shay Given to give the French an undeserved 2-1 aggregate victory after they had beaten the Ireland 1-0 in Dublin.

In another game surrounded by controversy, Algeria beat Egypt 1-0 in a one-game playoff in Sudan. The playoff was required after Egypt had beaten Algeria 2-0 in Cairo to finish equal with Algeria on points, goals and goal difference. The game in Cairo was marred by crowd violence, with three Algerian players injured when Egyptian fans stoned their team bus.

Portugal made it to the World Cup without Cristiano Ronaldo when they beat Bosnia 1-0 away to wrap up the two-legged playoff 2-0 on aggregate.

Slovenia returned to the World Cup for the second time since their independence in 1992 when they upset Russia 1-0 at home to go through on the away-goal rule after the tie finished 2-2 on aggregate. Russia paid the price for letting Slovenia score a late goal in their 2-1 victory in Moscow.

Greece will also take a second trip to the World Cup finals when they shocked Ukraine 1-0 away. The Greeks were held to a 0-0 draw at home in the first leg.

Major League Soccer’s (MLS) commissioner Don Garber’s proposal of a salary cap across European leagues seems fine on paper. By instituting a hard- and percentage-based cap on the total amount of wages paid by a club, the financial hegemony of a few super-clubs would be theoretically exchanged for a more equal playing field where every club is able to field teams of roughly equivalent talent.

Not only do the Big Four hoard the best and the brightest for success on and off the field, but there is also speculation that such behaviour is also directed at denying smaller clubs the services of these talented players, ensuring that the dominance of the elite remains relatively unchallenged by, say, the likes of Stoke and Hull.

In addition, a salary cap would also combat the problem of clubs racking up an ever-increasing debt as they sacrifice long-term stability to gamble on the success of the here and the now. Estimates now put the amount of debt the majority of EPL clubs hold as a percentage of their revenue at well over 70%, which is considered the maximum healthy level of debt a club should sustain.

Case in point: Chelsea F.C., or more commonly known by their moniker of ‘Chelski’. Despite official claims to the contrary, Roman Abramovich’s rubles, in the form of an interest-free loan, are now the only lifeline sustaining a club where their total debt exceeds gross revenue in a year. Were the Russian to pull the plug, Chelsea would implode like a house of cards based on their extravagant spending in wages alone.

With all the apparent benefits of a salary cap, why haven’t the Football Association (FA) implemented it yet? Bureaucratic red-tape notwithstanding, there are a few considerations that need to be addressed.

A salary cap will need to stipulate not only a ceiling, both at club and player levels, but will also need to lay out a floor cap. This will act to head off a possible situation where clubs still vie for the best players in their first XI and fill the rest of the squad with players plundered from the youth academy, so to speak. A floor cap will discourage the financial polarising of players within a club, thus ensuring a more even distribution of talent with a team.

The EPL and the rest of Britannia still insist on paying wages in pounds sterling, in contrast to the rest of Europe’s leagues where the Euro is the norm. Taking into account currency conversion rates and different taxation policies as well (the top income bracket in England pay 50% of their income in taxes, compared with 40% for those in Spain), the FA must ensure that the EPL’s ability to attract players of calibre is not hamstrung with a salary cap. The idea is not to shut out footballing’s elite, but rather to ensure they don’t all move to a few clubs.

Which brings me to my next point, namely, the free movement of footballers across Europe’s leagues. A unilateral establishment of a salary cap by the FA would simply result in a large exodus of footballers moving across the English Channel to other uncapped leagues in the European Union. Either the salary cap must cover the major leagues in Europe, or the EPL’s own cap must be necessarily generous to avoid such a scenario, which would result in little if any impact at all.

Finally, if the salary cap were violated in any way, any resulting punishment cannot simply be deemed as a slap on the wrist. History shows the FA being obviously reluctant to impose any significant penalties for any infractions by Premier League clubs, as the FA fears harming the goose that lays the golden eggs. Fines and points deductions for infringements must be clearly spelt out.

With all of the above considerations before a salary cap could be deemed effective, it is thus clear why the EPL will not see such a move in the near future.

Message brought to you by adidas

Singapore, Sunday, November 1, 2009 – Today, adidas launched an island-wide search for one lucky Singaporean between the age of 10 and 14 years, to walk the field at a UEFA Champions League game as an Official Ball Carrier. The contest is part of a global initiative to give youths access to the international football arena, getting them close to their football heroes to incite their passion for the game. In South East Asia, adidas will seek out an official UEFA Champions League ball carrier in Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, with one winner to be chosen per country.

Imagine walking onto a field amidst a stadium pregnant with chanting football fans and feeling the rush of being part of such a colossal event – The official ball carrier selected in Singapore will hold the honour of ceremoniously taking the match ball to the referee before the game kicks off between APOEL FC Vs Atlético Madrid.

Carefully selected as the one and only ball carrier on the pitch, the winner will be flown to Europe for the UEFA Champions League game in Cyprus on 25th November ’09. Aside from a special stadium tour prior to the game, he or she will also get the chance to meet world-renowned players and of course, watch the UEFA Champions League game LIVE.

“When you’re young and you love football, there is nothing more exciting than watching a game come to life with football heroes playing right before your eyes,” says Marcus Chew, Senior Brand Manager, adidas South East Asia. “We are hoping that such experiences will inspire kids to keep their sports dreams alive and fuel their passion for sport.”

Contest Details

Open to hopefuls between the ages of 10 and 14 years, the contest will take place at adidas’ flagship Sport Performance Concept Store at Vivo City on:
• Saturday, 7th November ’09 (between 12pm – 4pm) and
• Sunday, 8st November ’09 (between 10am – 4pm).

Applications are by walk-in-audition only and on a first-come-first-serve basis, with a maximum of 120 slots available over the two audition days.

“Being appointed as an official UEFA Champions League Ball Carrier is a great privilege, one which I could only have dreamed of as a young enthusiast,” says former national captain and professional soccer player, Aide Iskandar. “We are looking for someone worthy of this title and privilege, to represent Singapore as a key match element on the world football stage in Cyprus.”

Added fellow football coach and contest judge Richard Bok: “We’ll be looking for someone with creative ball skills – someone with the ability to command a presence through his or her ball control and composure, whilst putting up a show within the 3 minutes allotted.”

Based on the walk-in auditions captured by a videographer, the judges will narrow the selection down to the Top 5, who will each walk away with a $100 adidas cash voucher. These 5 finalists’ videos will then be posted on Facebook (www.facebook.com/adidasfootballSEAsia), where their videos will be subject to an online vote via the ‘like’ function. Based on these votes and the judges’ final decision, a final winner will then be selected who will represent Singapore as the Official UEFA Champions League Ball Carrier in Cyprus.

Aside from the trip to the UEFA Champions League game (includes airfare and accommodation in Cyprus) and the honour of the ball carrier’s duties, the winner will also take home $430 worth of football products. (Please refer to contest terms & conditions.)

Terms & Conditions – Every Team Needs A Ball Carrier
• Participants must be between the ages of 10 to 14 years old (1995-1999)
• Judging criteria is based on football freestyle creativity skills, within a 3 minute timeframe. Participants will be judged based on one chance only.
• Queue numbers will be assigned and must be adhered to, or participants may be disqualified.
• Selection will be narrowed down to the ‘Top 5’ and one selected ‘Winner’, who will all be selected by adidas personnel, along with football experts (as stated above).
• The judges’ decision is final and no exceptions will be made.
• Participants will be flown to Cyprus with a parent or guardian (must be above the age of 21 years). Both must have a minimum of 6 months validity on their passports.
• In order to attend the APOEL FC Vs Club Altetico de Madrid game in Cyprus on 25th November ’09, both participant and guardian must be able to travel from 24th – 26th November ’09.
• In the event that the selected winner is unable to attend the match on the above dates, the prize will automatically be awarded to the next better participant.
• adidas reserves the right to make all final decisions, and to make changes to or withdraw the promotion without prior notice

Real Madrid were whipped 4-0 by a village side with a name that sounds like the team is in the business of corn harvesting.

A Segunda Division B club, Alcorcon led the Spanish giants 3-0 at half-time in their round of 32 first leg Spanish King’s Cup tie.

“There’s no reason or explanation for how the team performed. We hope our fans can forgive us,” said Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini.

Real have lost three of their last five games, winning only one.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka both did not play and Real are due to play Getafe next in the Primera Liga. A game against AC Milan follows in the UEFA Champions League.

Real spent £226.5m over the summer on new players.

Some say the beach ball should be credited for the goal against Liverpool but I say it took some skill for Darren Bent to hit that beach ball and fool Pepe Reina.

You got to wonder though why Pepe Reina didn’t keep his eye on the ball but hey, it’s not easy being a top class goalie these days. Check out the other howlers by some other goalies in these YouTube clips among other weird goals.

Sunderland vs Liverpool, 2009
The balloon scores.

Tottenham Hotspur v Watford, 2007
Goalkeeper Paul Robinson scores.

Birmingham City v Aston Villa, 2003
The Villa goalie messes up a throw in.

Indonesia v Thailand, Tiger Cup, 1998
The third goal by Indonesia (in white) was a deliberate own goal.

Manchester City vs Sheffield United, FA Cup 2008
Another balloon gets in the way.

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City, 1990
Use your head.

Coventry City vs Newcastle United, 1997
Goalie falls asleep.

Barcelona crashed 1-2 at home to Rubin Kazan of Russia for their first defeat in the UEFA Champions League since December 2008.

This was also Barcelona’s first defeat since the start of the current season. Despite dominating play, they could not convert their chances and are now in a tight group where they are now level on four points with Rubin and Dynamo Kiev. Inter Milan are just a point behind.

What makes it even harder for Barcelona is that they now have to travel to Ukraine and Russia for two of their remaining three group games.

Rubin scored within two minutes of the kick off through a long-range Alexander Ryazantsev effort but Barcelona equalised when Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored just after half-time.

Rubin then scored against the run of play in the 73rd minute through Gokdeniz Karadeniz.