As we get ready to bid farewell to 2016, it seems appropriate to sit back with a glass of festive cheer and think about the last twelve months. Forget for a moment about Brexit and Trump, and focus on the beautiful game, because as we all know football is far more important in the grand scheme of things anyhow.
Who will consider 2016 to have been a success, and who will be glad to see the back of it?
The green and white tickertape that lay strewn across the Hampden Park turf in the aftermath of Celtic’s League Cup celebrations at the weekend may not have been removed yet, but already most Scottish football fans and scribes are speculating. Speculating about whether the undeniable domestic dominance of Brendan Rodgers’ side will almost certainly result in them landing the treble, and indeed going unbeaten for the entire campaign.
In sport the definition of success varies greatly. If you listen to nonsense spouted by celebrity narcissist Piers Morgan, it's all about winning and nothing else matters, but in reality the world isn't so black and white. Success has to be quantified and context has to be taken into consideration. The same goes for football. This is why clubs promoted to the Premier League often define success as finishing at least 17th in the final standings. They may not be winning a trophy, but they have still won by meeting their own realistic expectations.
Unsurprisingly expectation is a common topic of sports conversation. And sometimes an unofficial consensus forms between critics, fans and ex-pros that a sports person has failed to 'meet their potential'. Classic examples focus on individual sports, such as the best golfer/tennis player to never win a major, but it can easily be applied to sports teams too, like the biggest football club to never win the Champions League etc. So I got to thinking, which top footballers have won no major silverware?
I've considered writing about my own football complaints for some time, but then my 'glass half-full' attitude has always talked me out of it. Well not any more. There's no point in ignoring what is wrong, we should moan about it, otherwise how is anything ever supposed to improve? I expect that this article will contain many of your own issues with football, so let's take the opportunity to vent in a cathartic manner, and then maybe we can help to save football from itself!
Robbie Fowler’s name is as synonymous with bricks and mortar as it is with the City of Liverpool and the Lord above – a.k.a. God. It’s estimated former striker owns around 100 properties between the Oldham and Liverpool area and despite a playing career characterised by steady decline from the age of 20, his buy-to-let empire ensures he remains near the top of football’s rich lists.