Reuters Soccer Blog

Soccer Break Monday – Goalline technology…again

It is never over until the fat lady sings or should that be until Alex Ferguson stops talking about refereeing decisions?

The Premier League title race is reaching boiling point and Ferguson is hot under the collar that his team did not get a penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.

Is it all just mind games, ?

It could be, after all, only three points now separate United and Chelsea ahead of next week’s showdown between the top two at Old Trafford.

Ferguson’s sense of injustice was no doubt heightened by Chelsea’s win over Tottenham Hotspur that managed to re-ignite the debate over the need for goalline technology and highlight Heurelho Gomes’ flaws as a keeper in the space of a couple of seconds.

You have to give credit to Redknapp for not foaming at the mouth and frothing his indignation like many managers would have done in his place.

Redknapp did prove, however, the need for someone to sit down and explain to all Premier League managers the difference between flying to the moon and goalline technology as there was once again widespread disbelief that one has been accomplished without the other.

Inter 4-3 Spurs. The loopiest game I’ve ever seen

I’ve seen quite a lot of soccer in my time but never have I attended a match as crazy as Inter Milan v Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League on Wednesday.

For those who missed it, here’s a very quick rundown of the main incidents.

1. Spurs fans were so happy to be playing at the holders in the famous San Siro on their Champions League debut. They made more noise on the Milan metro going to the game than any other set of fans I can recall.

2. Javier Zanetti, 37, scored his first goal since Feb. 2008 to put Inter 1-0 up inside two minutes. He was stunned to score and forgot how to celebrate.

3. Spurs keeper Heurelho Gomes conceded a penalty and was sent off on eight minutes but either refused to go off or didn’t understand. The referee had to show him a second red card after chatting with his goalline assistant. Guess that doesn’t mean he gets banned twice…

4. Inter went 3-0 up in 14 minutes and 4-0 up in 35 minutes with Tottenham’s defence woeful and Samuel Eto’o moving onto six Champions League goals for three matches this term and a whopping 14 in 12 games in all competitions. Wow.

5. Inter’s Dejan Stankovic suffered a calf injury and was so angry he threw his boot towards his own fans.

A read of the FA Cup rules unlikely to put off Redknapp

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp’s frank admission that he will send a “mish-mash” side to face Manchester United in Saturday’s FA Cup tie adds to concerns that the competition has lost its elite status.

Speaking after sneaking through their League Cup semi-final second leg 6-4 on aggregate against Championship (second division) Burnley on Wednesday, Redknapp moaned:

“We’ve got some tough games, we’ve a game at Man United that really is so secondary to me now. We’re in a relegation battle and I can’t risk Jamie O’Hara, Jonathan Woodgate and Michael Dawson at Old Trafford.

“If Alex (Ferguson) is listening, I’m really going to send a real mish-mash team up there. I hope it doesn’t upset the fans, but we played extra-time and we’re out on our feet a little bit.

“The lads who didn’t play tonight will play and I’m going to rest the key players who played tonight because I can’t afford to lose any more to injuries.”

However, a delve into the FA Cup rules shows that maybe Redknapp was a bit hasty in confessing his master plan as Rule 15a of the FA Cup states:

English managers on the rise in Premier League

The Premier League will always have its army of foreign players, some of whom are no better than English teenagers who make way for them, but the number of home-grown managers is at least growing.

Ex-Arsenal and England defender Tony Adams became the 10th English manager in the 20-team Premier League on Tuesday when he took over at Portsmouth, following Englishman Harry Redknapp’s move to Tottenham Hotspur days before. (more…)

So what now for Tottenham?

A seismic weekend at Tottenham resulted in the ruthless cull of Juande Ramos and his coaching team and the sacking of director of football Damien Comolli.

Harry Redknapp was then hired as the club’s new manager just hours before the north London club claimed a first league victory of the season against Bolton.

However, their league position is still precarious (they are bottom, a point worse off than Newcastle) and there are many Spurs fans who are uncomfortable with the appointment

Not just because Redknapp has strong connections with West Ham United, but because his main attribute appears to be guiding average sides away from relegation.

Apart from last year’s FA Cup victory with Portsmouth, the 61-year-old Redknapp’s CV highlights are none too impressive.

Sure, he saved Portsmouth from relegation a few years ago and will probably have enough tricks up his sleeve to get Tottenham into mid-table by the end of the season.