Inside the spanking new Chinese-built Tamale Sports stadium stood rows of empty seats. Outside, hundreds of fans who wanted to buy tickets but could not find any for sale.

Already hit by power cuts, blatant overpricing by hotel owners and communications glitches (see Mark Gleeson’s piece earlier this week), the African Nations Cup was struck by a ticketing fiasco for the opening matches played in the northern centre of Tamale.

The double bill, which featured Senegal-Tunisia and South Africa-Angola, was played out in a stadium little more than half full, despite this being almost certainly the biggest international event to be staged in the town. Local sources blamed tournament organisers in Accra for not sending the tickets north to Tamale in time.

Now the tournament is having to deal with more trouble, after Benin’s German coach Reinhard Fabisch said he had been asked to fix the result of his side’s opening Group B match, which they lost 1-0 to Mali.

Fabisch said he turned the man away — “I told him if he didn’t clear out immediately I’d call the police,” the coach said to German media — and the Confederation of African Football said on Friday it had launched an investigation into the matter.

It’s a shame about the off-field problems because the football so far has been great, with a series of upsets, spectacular goals and lots of late drama. Long may that continue, at least.

Brian Homewood is covering the African Nations Cup for Reuters. Check out our main soccer site for full coverage.

PHOTO: Issam Jomaa of Tunisia celebrates his goal against Senegal during their African Nations Cup Group A soccer match in Tamale January 23, 2008. REUTERS/Finbarr O’Reilly

SLIDESHOW: See here for the best photos from the tournament.

You don’t have to be Real Madrid to make soccer history.

In their own way (the wrong one), Metz are well-placed to break plenty of records. They could, in fact, end the season as the worst team in French soccer league history.

The easterners are stuck at the bottom of the Ligue 1 table with eight points from 22 matches and just one victory. Let’s take a closer look at their dreadful performances and see just how many lines in the record books they could earn.

For the lowest number of points, the French record is held by Racing Lens with 17 in the 1988-89 season (three wins, eight draws, 27 defeats). Not good, but Metz could do worse.

For the lowest number of wins, the record is shared by Reims (1978-79), Lens again (88-89) and Nimes (92-93) with three. Metz can beat that too.

The record for the lowest number of goals was set by Stade Francais, a Paris club now famous for rugby, with 18 (66-67). Metz, who have scored 11 so far, can beat that too, but must go from bad to really bad if they’re going to manage it.

They are more records at stake for Metz but let’s not be too cruel for a club who lifted the French Cup twice and boasted such great players as Robert Pires and Franck Ribery.

Unless you live there, you’ve probably never heard of most the players on their current squad, which partly explains why they could break all those records…

Ronald Koeman has ordered the building of a brick wall at Valencia’s training base in Paterna in an attempt to keep our prying eyes and prevent the players from getting distracted, but the Dutchman will need to do a lot more than a bit of handy work if he is to bring about peace and tranquillity at the Primera Liga club.

Koeman has raised eyebrows (to say the least) with his get-tough approach since taking charge at the Mestalla, in particular with his decision to purge three of the club’s most experienced players in the shape of David Albelda, Santiago Canizares and Miguel Angel Angulo.

The storm might have blown over if results had improved, but they haven’t. Instead the team have gone out of the Champions League, won just one of their last nine league matches and now lie just five points above the relegation zone.

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, The Offside have even raised the dreaded ‘R’ word.

“I have absolutely NO faith in management, coaching, the players or the president to save us right now,” writes Cesar. We HAVE to start playing better … and fast. Like … NOW. Or this could be one of the worst seasons in Valencia history, when we predicted it could be one of the best.

At the same time, matters off the pitch have been getting out of hand.

The club’s most expensive close season new recruit, Manuel Fernandes got involved in a nightclub scuffle and has been shunted off to Everton. His replacement Ever Banega hit the headlines for his appearance in an Internet sex chatroom video, while the outcast Albelda has launched legal action against the club.

Valencia has never been an easy club to work at — just ask Rafa Benitez. Even he left under a bit of a cloud despite having led the club to two league titles and victory in the UEFA Cup after he got fed up with the behind-the-scenes wrangling.

Antonio Lopez and Claudio Ranieri both exited by the back door after failing to meet the expectations of the notoriously hard-to-please fans, while Quique Sanchez Flores was involved in a high-profile power struggle with sporting director Amedeo Carboni in his first season in charge.

When Sanchez Flores was sacked in October with the team in fourth place in the league and still in Europe, he appeared relieved rather than upset. “I may have lost my job but I feel that I have recovered my life,” he said.

So the question is, have Valencia basically become unmanageable? To put it another way, is there any solution to the current crisis? And is Koeman the man for the job?

PHOTO: Koeman watches his Valencia players during a practice session at Stamford Bridge in London, December 10, 2007. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

There had been a lot of talk about Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Cameroon as the favourites for the African Nations Cup but Egypt, the defending champions, were under the radar until their 4-2 thrashing of Cameroon yesterday in Kumasi.

The Pharaohs have emerged as one of the tournament’s heavyweights — as Soccerphile notes, they’re clearly not going to give up their title without a fight — while Cameroon have lost a lot of credit.

It could have been worse for the Indomitable Lions, who were simply nowhere to be seen in the first half. It took 45 minutes for coach Otto Pfister to reshuffle his midfield and by then it was too late. Leaving the influential Achille Emana on the bench was a huge and costly mistake.

Cameroon were totally outplayed in midfield, leaving Hosni Abd Rabou free to roam untroubled. Mohamed Zidan also outshone Samuel Eto’o, with the Barcelona striker cut off from his usual ball providers.

OK, Eto’o had the personal satisfaction of scoring twice and now is one goal shy of Laurent Pokou’s Nations Cup record of 14. But who will care if Cameroon don’t make it to the knockout stage?

Luckily for them, their next games are against Zambia and Sudan, both comfortable looking assignments. But what do you think? Can Cameroon still make it through to the next phase? Or will they remain shell-shocked by Egypt’s brilliant display. Let us know in the comments below.

Julien Pretot is covering the African Nations Cup for Reuters. Check out our main soccer site for full coverage.

PHOTO: Samuel Eto’o attempts to control the ball during the match against Egypt, Kumasi, January 22, 2008. REUTERS/Bruno Domingos

SLIDESHOW: Click here for the pick of pics from the tournament so far.

“It’s obvious we could do with a player like Cristiano Ronaldo but he’s at a big club in Manchester United. I see it as an impossible signing. It’s the same with Cesc Fabregas. We aren’t the only team that would like to have a player like Cesc, but he belongs to a big club in Arsenal and it is almost impossible to sign him.”

With those comments to Radio Marca, Real Madrid sporting director Pedja Mijatovic has officially drawn a line under the ‘galactico’ era.

When Florentino Perez  was running the show, Real used to operate under the assumption that no player was out of their reach. “Whoever Florentino wants, Florentino gets,” was a common phrase in the admiring Madrid sports press at the time, as Luis Figo was followed in by Zinedine Zidane (for another world record fee), Ronaldo, David Beckham and (to slightly less fanfare) Michael Owen and Robinho.

Even after Perez left, Marca and As would fill page after page during every transfer window confidently predicting that Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo would come, and that waffle continued even after Ronaldo signed a new deal with United last year.

Mijatovic’s comments today seem to accept that Real either cannot or will not continue poaching the world’s top players, regardless of cost.

Fans should welcome the change in philosophy. This team has a modest look about it on paper, yet they have a better chance of winning the European Cup than they have done in years. As far as the league goes, it should be a doddle. As noted at La Liga Loca, they’ve won away to Athletic Bilbao, Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal this season, which is true championship form.

Of course, it’s possible Mijatovic is being disingenuous and we’ll see Kaka, Cesc and Ronaldo playing together in white next season after a $250 million raid. I can’t help feeling that’d be a shame. Turns out modesty and hard work sit pretty well on Real.

PHOTO: Mijatovic gestures during a news conference at Real’s Bernabeu stadium, June 28, 2007. REUTERS/Sergio Perez

Normally fans are upset when their side sells an international to another top European club, but not in the case of France’s Jean-Alain Boumsong.

Media reports say the Juventus defender is poised to join Lyon and a lot of fans of the Italian giants could not be happier.

Newcastle United supporters may well gasp in horror as they remember Boumsong’s time on Tyneside, when he teamed up with Titus Bramble to form a central defensive partnership referred to by fans and media as the “Chuckle Brothers” (the uninitiated should follow the link).

One of the pair was almost guaranteed to produce a howler each week.

Boumsong has been just as error-prone at Juventus and even struggled in Serie B last season. Back in Serie A, Juve have a defensive injury crisis but that still hasn’t tempted Claudio Ranieri to give Boumsong more than a cursory run-out.

Newcastle fans never took Sam Allardyce to their hearts in his brief spell in charge but one thing they thanked him for was letting Bramble go to Wigan Athletic.

New Wigan boss Steve Bruce gave a wry assertion of Bramble after his mishit backpass led to Everton’s first goal in a 2-1 win on Sunday. “Unfortunately for Titus he’s been punished again,” he said.

Mark Meadows, Milan

PHOTO: Thierry Henry bamboozles Boumsong and Bramble when the Frenchman was still at Arsenal, Jan 2005, REUTERS/Mike Finn-Kelcey

The transfer window had seemed quiet but in fact the amount spent by English Premier League clubs so far in January is a record.

Nicolas Anelka’s 15 million pound move to Chelsea from Bolton Wanderers was the headline grabber while several other smaller deals have swelled the figures.

Here Alistair Sharp takes a look at the numbers and asks whether such spending is sustainable. 

Has it gone too far or is this just the reality of the modern game? See what it’s done to Lazio here.

The surly, menacing image that Germany’s grumpy goalkeeper Jens Lehmann has carefully cultivated over the years, to intimidate on-charging strikers and pen-wielding journalists, has gone out the window with a surprising confession this weekend.

Lehmann has candidly admitted his wife Conny wears the pants at home.
 
When Arsenal’s reserve keeper was asked why he unexpectedly backed out of a move to Borussia Dortmund recently, Lehmann said he really, really wanted to go.

“My wife Conny said ‘Last summer I wanted to move back to Germany and you didn’t want to. Now you’re the only one (in the family) who wants to go back and you’d just leave me here in London with the children’,” Lehmann told Bild am Sonntag.

“So I couldn’t do it.”

His hopes of remaining Germany’s first choice for Euro 2008 are now in the balance as he continues to warm Arsenal’s bench. Do you know of any other players browbeaten by the women in their life? 

Erik Kirschbaum, Berlin

PHOTO: Arsenal’s reserve keeper Jens Lehmann warms up at a Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur in London, Dec 22 REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

* This post was edited at 1525 GMT to add extra detail

During a lively debate last week on whether Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player in the world, one of our contributors, WSAS, raised the sort of question that’s hard to resist: “This is the BEST ManU team since….?”  

The treble winning team of 1999? The double winning side of 1994? 1968’s European champions? The Busby Babes, hit by tragedy 50 years ago next month.

Before we go on, let’s get one thing clear. For the moment, when we talk about the current United team, it’s all about potential rather than actual achievement. With just one league title in the trophy room, this crop have yet to amass the silverware to make a case for greatness. 

But could this United team, one day, eclipse the achievements of all the others? Vidic, Evra, Ronaldo, Anderson, Rooney and Tevez are all under 26 with the latter, thrillingly attacking foursome comfortably so.

Add the assumed progress of Nani and there aren’t too many gaps to be filled. Man for man, they look better than ’99. Peter Schmeichel and Roy Keane would walk into any United side but Ronny Johnsen and Jaap Stam? Would Andy Cole or Dwight Yorke trouble Rooney, Tevez or Ronaldo for a place up front?  

The same could be argued against ‘94 and, perhaps less clearly, ’68 with the individual brilliance that marked both those sides - Eric Cantona and Ryan Giggs, George Best and Bobby Charlton - matched today by Ronaldo and Rooney (a 200 million pound partnership according to Red Rants).  

But great teams are measured by success as well as style. Back-to-back championships would be a start but hardly a unique achievement - the club have already managed the feat four times since 1993. The real test is in Europe and one bad performance, one bit of brilliance by a Raul or a Kaka, could see them come up short again (remember 2000 and 2007). 

I can’t help feeling, though, that a European Cup win is just a matter of time for this team, perhaps even in Moscow in May. But what do you think about this United side? Are there weaknesses that will consign them to more disappointment, in Europe if not at home? Or do they truly have what it takes to become the best United team ever?

Padraic Halpin, London

PHOTO: Manchester United’sTevez celebrates after scoring during the 6-0 Premier league win over Newcastle United, Jan. 12 REUTERS/Phil Noble

The African Nations Cup is growing too big for its own good, if the chaos surrounding the organisation in Ghana at the start of this year’s event is anything to go by.

With a larger cast of internationally recognisable stars and the teams improving in quality, the Nations Cup is now much more than just Africa’s premier sporting event; it commands considerable interest worldwide.

The supporting cast around the event gets larger with each passing edition — the officials, the supporters, the journalists, the agents and those with commercial interest in Africa’s top event.

The title sponsors alone had 1,700 guests for the opening match, several hundred flown in from other African countries. The media numbers have now passed the 1,000 accreditation mark and the phalanx of agents and business people now dealing in the African game seemingly doubles with every tournament.

Throw into that mix the fact that Ghana’s proximity to many of the participating nations means there are considerable number of fans on hand too. The Ivory Coast, Benin, Nigeria, Mali, even Senegal have large bands of travelling support.

Ghana is bursting at the seams, its infrastructure barely able to handle the tournament.

Hotels are at premium and some proprietors are unashamedly profiteering, with rooms being offered for as much as US$300 per night. Telecommunications are heaving under the strain and the pure size of the Nations Cup circus looks close to impossible for the local organisers to manage.

Many teams have had to endure arduous journeys to their end destination and then arrived at hotels that are sub-standard. Defending champions Egypt went through a series of comically incompetent blunders before arriving in Kumasi. They took a single look at their hotel and promptly set about finding better accommodation.

Ghana has built four impressive stadiums for the event but tournaments require much more. Take this from Ghana coach Claude Le Roy, who slammed the state of the pitch after his side’s 2-1 win over Guinea on Sunday:

“The first thing is not the quality of the armchair in the VIP room but it is the quality of the pitch and in more than 20 years in Africa, it’s the worst pitch I’ve ever seen in my career,” he said of the field at the Ohene Djan stadium.

If one of Africa’s larger economies is battling so, how will Angola, still ravaged after decades of civil war, cope in 2010 when they host the event for the first time?

Mark Gleeson is covering the African Nations Cup in Ghana for Reuters. See our main soccer site for full coverage.

PHOTO: A Ghana supporter in a mask is seen before the opening match against Guinea in the African Nations Cup in Accra, January 20, 2008. REUTERS/Bruno Domingos