29 April 2007
Bolton Coach Allardyce Resigns
"After nearly eight privileged years with Bolton Wanderers Football Club, I would like to announce that, after careful consideration and dialogue with my close family and senior officials within the football club, I will be resigning as manager of the club with immediate effect. It was mutually decided that I step down now rather than at the end of the season, to give my successor the ideal opportunity to experience the preparation and build-up of matchday in readiness of next season. The decision to leave the football club, which has been my spiritual home for over 18 years, as both player and manager, is one of the hardest decisions I have had to make in my life. However, after guiding the team into a position where the club is on the verge of qualification for European football for the second time in three years, which has been the accumulation of almost seven years of strategic building and hard work across all areas of the football club, I feel it is the right moment to step down from my duties and welcome a new exciting era for the club under different leadership." - Sam Allardyce
Bolton chairman Phil Gartside paid tribute to Allardyce for putting Bolton on the map :
"I would like to thank Sam for his enormous contribution to Bolton Wanderers, both as a player but more importantly as a manager. Since joining the club as manager in October 1999, he has helped lead a fantastic transformation of this famous Lancashire club and has helped design and build an infrastructure that will enable the club to continue the progress that we have undoubtedly made in his period of office."
Peruzzi Retires
37 year old Lazio and former Juventus and Italy goalkeeper Angelo Peruzzi has announced his retirement from football after keeping a clean sheet in the Roma derby :
"That's enough. I had already made up my mind in January. I don't even think I will play another game this season. I've had three injections in my finger for a fracture and I can't carry on."
Henry Ridicules Spurs
"What makes me laugh is the way Tottenham always celebrate whenever they get a draw against us (they scored a late equaliser at White Heart lane to draw 2-2 earlier in the month). I would like to remind them that once again they have not made the Champions League. So I was amazed to see their reaction at the full-time whistle. I had to look twice at the score on the TV because I thought they had won it the way they were celebrating. When I celebrated my equaliser against them at home last season I did so because the goal had a meaning. It turned out to be an important goal in the race for fourth place. I wasn't going to celebrate just because we drew against Tottenham. It was the same when we won the league there in 2004. They equalised to make it 2-2 that day and when I saw Taricco celebrate so much that he injured himself, I said to him 'you do realise we only needed a point and now we are celebrating the title on your ground." - Thierry Henry
25 April 2007
Alan Ball Passes Away
World Cup winning midfielder Alan Ball has died of a heart attack at the age of 61. At the age of 21 Ball was on the stars of England's 1966 World Cup winning team. He won 72 caps for England and played for Blackpool, Everton and Arsenal before less successful spells as a manager at Southampton and Manchester City.
Roma & Manchester United Fined
UEFA have fined Roma €47,000 and Manchester United €21,300 over crowd violence during their Champions League tie in Roma on the 4th of April.
Greece Banned From Athens
European Champions Greece must play their next two home Euro 2008 qualifiers 250km away from Athens following crowd disturbances at the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium. Greece supporters threw fireworks and missiles onto the pitch and held aloft racist banners as their team suffered a 1-4 thrashing by Turkey last month. The Greek FA have also been fined €61,000.
23 April 2007
Mourinho Claims Refs Favour United
"The circumstances are difficult for us with the new football rules that we have to face. It is not possible to have a penalty against Manchester United and it is not possible to have a penalty in favour of Chelsea.We should have had a penalty, involving Stephen Carr. It was a clear penalty (for handball). I have the right to speak. I think nobody can punish me because I speak the truth and I am not saying the referees are not honest but it was a penalty (against Man United for a foul by O'Shea on Middlesbrough Lee Dong-Gook) and today it was a penalty. If somebody wants to punish me for that it means the end of democracy and we go back to old times." - Jose Mourinho
Inter Hail Legitimate Scudetto
"I don't think there will be any intercepted phone calls over this Scudetto (referring to the Calciopoli scandal). Everything is in order. This is a valid title, above all from a moral point of view. " - Roberto Mancini
"It's the second title that we have won without stealing." - Inter President Massimo Moratti
22 April 2007
James Breaks Clean-sheets Record
Dubbed 'Calamity James' due to his habit of making blunders while on England duty, David James has set a new record for the number of clean-sheets held by a goalkeeper, breaking David Seaman's record of 141 clean-sheets in Portmouth's 0-0 draw with Aston Villa on Saturday :
"I'm very proud. It was a tough game and it's nice to keep a clean-sheet at my old club. I'm pleased to get it out of the way because it's been a constant question but I had to shave in between even though I said I wouldn't."
20 April 2007
Ronaldo and Zidane to Star in Anti-Poverty Advert
Brazil and Milan striker Ronaldo and retired France legend Zinedine Zidane will star in an anti-poverty television advert for the UN made by award winning filmmaker Wim Wenders.
19 April 2007
Calciopoli - Italian Referees and Linesman Suspended
The AIA (Italian Referees Association) have suspended referees Paolo Bertini, Stefano Cassara, Antonio Dattilo, Marco Gabriele, Gianluca Paparesta, Tiziano Pieri and Salvatore Racalbuto and linesmen Marcello Ambrosino and Duccio Baglioni after they were implicated in the Calciopoli scandal by Naples prosecutors, who closed their investigation last week.
10 April 2007
Fulham Sack Coleman
Fulham have sacked coach Chris Coleman following their 1-3 home loss to Manchester City, their fifth defeat in their last eight games. A statement on the club's website read :
"Chris Coleman has provided a fantastic service during his 10 years at the club and it is disappointing that the club has no alternative but to part company. As a team and organisation, Fulham Football Club has goals to attain and success to achieve and by no means can this be compromised."
3 April 2007
Italy Pass Anti Hooligan Legislation
A series of measures which were agreed to and put into practice shortly following the death of Policeman Filippo Raciti at the Catania riots on the 2nd of February have been approved by the Italian Senate by a majority of 244 to 1. Under Italian legislation decrees must pass into law within 60 days in order to become permanent. The measures are as follows :
A ban on the block sale of tickets to away fans
Fans with banning orders will now face three to five year stadium bans
Under-18s will also face bans
Fans with stadium bans must participate in "socially useful" work during match time
Police can make violence related arrests without a warrant upto 48 hours after a crime has been committed
A ban on any financial or working relationship between clubs and fan associations
A new watchdog to monitor declarations by anyone involved in the game
The privatisation of Italy's council owned stadiums
Implementation of the 2005 Pisanu Law which called for numbered seating, electronic turnstiles, CCTV inside and outside the stadium, transparent barriers separating different sectors of the stadium and separating home and away fans, a dedicated area for the police to oversee security and a first-aid point for every 10,000 fans.
Stadiums with capacities under 10,000 were exempt from the Pisanu law but that is no longer the case.
Another measure to combat declining attendances is clubs must now are give out free tickets to under 14s.