BBC Radio Five Live’s Danny Baker once described Chelsea FC as the ‘ever exploding clown car of football.’ Times have of course changed in West London. Chelsea win trophies, lots of them and regularly, leaving any messing around by ‘them upstairs’ largely forgiven by fans and media alike.
I love football. I’ve been a fan of the beautiful game for as long as I can remember and no matter what happens I will love it for the rest of my life. The reason I mention this now is because I don’t wish for the following to come across as a criticism of the game we all adore. But, like anything, football is not perfect. There are some things that we can’t really change, things that we just have to live with. But other sports have demonstrated that there are certain aspects of our game that can always be improved. Here are a few...
To paraphrase dear old Oscar Wilde, to lose one major Scottish club from the Premier League is unfortunate. However, to lose two would be careless.
Every Premier League fan (minus Spurs fans, of course) should be hoping Gareth Bale moves to Real Madrid this summer and here’s why. Many of us felt that the inevitable empty feeling that they suffer come the end of the season would be around for a while. Even those who where pretending to themselves that England ‘might do alright’ at the Under-21 Championships quickly sobered up from such obscene thoughts. So, as a nation of football lovers asks themselves what’s next, I hear most people begging to not have to endure another empty summer. And they might just get their wish if Gareth Bale moves to Real Madrid.
With Monaco’s firm reputation as a tax-haven and refuge for the super-rich, one could be forgiven for spending a few euros in this part of the world. This summer, however, Dmitry Rybolovlev has completely re-written the rulebook on how to live lavishly on the Riviera. Monaco fans next season will find themselves spoiled for stars with the advent of some of the world’s biggest players after a remarkable spending spree from their beloved Russian owner.