Life's not so bad in the Drog house! Chelesa go 5 points clear at the top.

Can anyone catch them? John Terry says that ''this is the stuff champions are made of''. Looking good and left Arsenal singing the blues.Sir Alex could nick a few points in the absence of the likes of Didier Drogba,Kalou, Michael Essien and John Obi Mikel to the African Nations Cup bearing that Drogba has scored over a third of Chelsea's goals in the league this campaign.

Arsenal boys were out classed by Chelsea's men and it seems Alan Hansen's famous statement...''you don't win anything with kids'' does apply in this case. The Gunners 11 points off the pace after getting what can only be described as a hammering from the Blues. It seems Robin Van Persie's absence has left a massive Arse-hole! And after pilling the plaudits on Thomas Vermaelen he only goes and scores an own goal against arch rivals Chelsea!

Liverpool bounce back into life in the Merseyside derby to beat a depleted Everton team who look far from their best. Whilst the reds missed Torres it wasn't half as much as the Toffees missed the likes of Arteta, Jagielka and Osman. If Moyes doesn't reassemble his injury ridden team quickly it's more mid-table floundering for them.

Seven draws in row for Hughes...is his job safe? Having spent so much money i'm sure the Middle East owners will want silverware to show for the Welshmans expensively assembled team. Man City face Arsenal on Wednesday in the quarter finals of the Carling Cup live on Sky Sports, both teams desperate to prove they can win something this season.

Meanwhile Real Madrid another team who splashed the cash in the cash in the summer

and displayed a strike force that cost £135 million in Ronaldo and Kaka... and still lost lost. Defeat to Barca in the battle of the Spanish giants proves once again that you can't buy trophies!

Wolves didn't managed to hunt down 3 points against local rivals Birmingham City. Are they now a dead cert for the drop? The relegation dog fight is definitely on for Mick McCarthy's side, just 3 points from a possible 24. Meanwhile Lee Bowyer is looking back to his best, astonishingly Birmingham sitting safely in 11th.

Andy Murray is single, interesting: Murray & Everton a mint made in heaven!

Liverpool not in the last 16 of the Champions League, yet the last 16 is exactly where they might finish in the Premier League this year!

Like all clubs Liverpool were hoping to break some records this season and they might have already done that. If you’re thinking they might break the record for most injuries in a season, that’s not it. Instead, this could be the earliest ever finish to a season.

No doubt when the draw was made for the group stages in the Champions League, fans, players and managers alike saw it as a given that they would be in the knockout stages. Being blunt the group consisted of the third best team in France, the fourth best team in Italy, and the European giants Debrecen! As a result the reds miss out on a possible £30 million pounds, I can’t help that think that would buy them a world class striker that they so desperately need in Fernando Torres absence.

After being ripped off £4.20 for a coffee in central London the other day I had a miniature rant to myself about the lack of value for money these days, which many of you would agree with. There is in fact value out there if you can shrewdly operate. Take a leaf out of Thierry Henry’s handbook. Apparently the France striker negotiated a deal where the players earned bonuses up to £400,000 for reaching next year’s World Cup. A guy who certainly knows how to handle his finances!

Watching Arsenal in action last night cemented my thoughts that along with Brede Hangeland at Fulham, Thomas Vermaelen is an outstanding centre half. At only 6ft many top teams didn’t want to touch him but what an asset he has proved to be for the Gunners. Just 24 years old and potentially one of the most solid defenders in the world and he even bags a fair few goals.

John Terry will be making his 300^th appearance as Chelsea captain and his team sit proudly at the top of the league and their group in the Champions League having already qualified. But all eyes will again be on 18 year old Gael Kakuta who could make his European debut. Maybe finally the footballing world might start talking about the talent the youngster possesses rather that his controversial transfer. No doubt this player is one to keep your beady blues on.

It’s that time of year when Christmas starts to get a mention. It’s funny though because in every family I know it's the mother that makes all the decisions on present buying, all the wrapping and writing of festive cards. So surely if we are going to delude children with myths about Santa Claus then at least there should be an element of truth, that it is probably Mother Christmas who does the dirty work and Father Christmas who gets all the lime light and plaudits! Behind every successful man is a woman!

Darren Bent is the only man to score against all of the ‘big 4’ this season and has a strike rate to be admired with 9 goals in 13 games, it sees Sunderland up to eighth in the table. Despite this, my thoughts don’t change one bit, the former Spurs striker won’t be heading to South Africa with the rest of the squad.

What was interesting though is that Arsenal looked fragile and really lacked the free flowing passing that we are used to seeing. Arsenal, unbeaten in their previous 13 games, failed to score for the first time in 20 matches this season. Could the absence of the injured Robin Van Persie be as catastrophic as the loss of Xavi Alonso to Liverpool?

Football in Scotland is in a period of uncertainty and rarely do we look there for footballing talent, but one man hasn’t let this inhibit his own performance. That man is the ‘Flying Scotsman’ Darren Fletcher whos majestic volley set Manchester United on the path to a comfortable victory against Everton yesterday. Undoubtedly the Scotland captain is vital to United’s success this season and a name that I would imagine goes down first on Sir Alex Fergusons team list. The more I see the 25 year old the more he proves that his presence is pivotal to Manchester United’s performance. Michael Owen started, didn’t bag a goal but looked great if he isn’t given a seat on the plane to South Africa, surely Rio can squeeze him in his holdall. England need him and learning from Sven's errors should take 5 strikers.

Against the odds, Hull managed to drag a point from their game with West Ham and once again they have the cheeky Jimmy Bullard to thank for this. His ability to lift the players with a never say die attitude is worth its weight in gold. No doubt Phil Brown is smiling like the Cheshire cat that got the cream this morning as he gets out of jail again!

Chelsea continue to look sensational despite missing several key players. What pleases me most is that Joe Cole is back to business carving up teams ready to play a key role next summer. Gael Kakuta made his debut and he didn’t disappoint, for the controversy that surrounds him, I hope for Chelseas sake he is the prodigy they are hoping for! Overall in the words of their manager Mick McCarthy Wolves got “mulllerd”, indeed they did, churned like an out of date yogurt!

Anfield yesterday provided the worst half of Premier League football I have seen so far this season and both Liverpool and Manchester City failed to convince they will finish in the top 4. Steven Gerrard the Whiston Wizard predictably was on form, but even he couldn’t add light to the dreary display. Not sure they can bounce back from recent results, not even a placenta could heal their wounds!

On the continent Thierry Henry no doubt feeling distant and removed certainly put the ‘lona’ in Barcelona as came on against Athletic Bilbao last night. Boos from the crowd suggested the effects of his actions are widespread and it will be a long time before he can say adios to the incident! In the same game the 19 year old striker Bojan incredibly made his 100th performance, I’d love to see this kid in the Premier League he scored over 1000 goals for Barca’s youth team!

A hands on approach for France sees them qualify for the World Cup Finals. I just wonder if their Captain Thierry Henry can handle the media pressure as well as the ball!

Occasionally we all need a helping hand and France had exactly that when Henry controlled the ball with his hand, then delivered the cross that William Gallas headed in for the extra time clincher.

The goal had devastating consequences for the Republic of Ireland who are now denied their rightful place in South Africa next summer. A huge shame considering for the most part they out classed the French in most areas of the park but failed to put away their chances.

There is in fact, no question that the former Arsenal striker handled the ball, not once but twice. Now he could have said it was a split second decision and that any footballer would do the same under the circumstances, but the French forward has denied that it was deliberate.

Whilst this is the Republic of Ireland who have exited the World Cup, I’ve no doubt it sits almost as heavy in the hearts of every England fan who experienced the same pain when Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ infamously put England out of Mexico 86.

What would be ironic (or a kick in the couilles if you are Irish) is if the hands that got France through to the Finals are the same hands that lift the World Cup, those of France captain Thierry Henry.

Certainly we were all so quick to judge, me included, especially when I saw the replay several times in slow motion. I can not condone it and never will, but we have all been party to similar behaviour at some stage in our life, and by that I mean cheated on some level.

I am now going to confess mine to date:-

In my early years I was the banker several times in Monopoly and used my financial control to borrow a few secret extra hundreds to buy Park Lane. I copied Cathryn Duxbury’s maths equations homework one Thursday morning because i had been to watch Oldham Athletic the night before and not had time. And my worse to date whilst travelling with my friend William Luxemburg, we used to enter ‘Killer’ pool competitions and he would always go before me so he could pot his and leave me set up with easy shots to sink mine, we stormed it and won hauls of prizes including free bungee jumps, meals, accommodation and most importantly free bar tabs!

It’s funny how I manage to justify mine by saying they were harmless and no big deal but someone lost out every time I cheated in some way.

What would be interesting to know is if Thierry Henry woke up this morning with a bit of Va Va Voom knowing his team would figure in South Africa or if he looked in the mirror to shave with his last Gillette razor and simply said “Mon Dieu”

Seems that oil weren’t the only reserves in Quatar over the weekend as slick Brazil helped discover England’s non-essentials.

One-nil to Brazil, a score line that entirely flattered England.

Many were viewing this game as a major opportunity for those on the edge to stake their claim in Fabio Capello’s final 23. But for the majority rather than demonstrate they were good enough they simply confirmed they weren’t.

With the obvious exceptions of Wayne Rooney, Gareth Barry, James Milner and Aaron Lennon who are pretty much definites, it seemed that the only ones to really benefit from this fixture were the ones who didn’t take part.

Furthermore, for the likes of cusp players such as Matthew Upson, Joleon Lescott , Wayne Bridge and Jemaine Jenas this game might just have pushed them over the edge and out of Cappello’s thoughts.

David Beckham couldn’t demonstrate his worth in this friendly due to his LA Galaxy commitments, but he didn’t need to because Shawn Wright-Phillips practically stepped aside with his poor display on the right. The Manchester City player might as well hand deliver his England jersey to Beckham’s door with some flowers and a plane ticket to Cape Town.

For Darren Bent, whilst his form of late domestically has taken an upturn, this was another failed audition at International level and another player who the England manager probably struck off his list. Again this questions whether the door maybe slightly ajar for the return of Michael Owen to the nest.

The goalkeeping situation at present is simply baffling. The nations current first choice goalkeeper is third in line at his club and is unlikely to be in favour in the near future after a series of high profile errors. What is apparent after defeat to Brazil and some questionable positioning is the immediate need for Ben Foster to gain paramount first-team football. Regardless, he will probably still be heading to South Africa.

England lost the game and put on a poor display but this was not a wasted trip, far from it. This was in fact an essential advancement in Capello’s sifting process as he attempts to remove the unwanted articles from the desired.

Whilst Rooney described it as ‘disappointing’, realistically what would be more disappointing is if the less apt perimeter players slipped through the net and feature in England’s squad next summer. The weakened line up and subsequent lack lustre display served great purpose in taking steps towards the final cut.

Realistically less than a handful of the team that made the trip to Doha will feature significantly in South Africa 2010. The ones that do will be heavily supported by a stronger network of genuine first team players around them, so at present there is no need to be alarmed.

Saying that, what is worrying is the sheer number of injuries and a desperate need for the likes of David James, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Owen Hargreaves and Jemaine Defoe to be fully fit. Although even if that is the case by next summer, i’m unsure of England’s ability to match both technically and physically the likes of Brazil and Spain, but I would love to be wrong.

12/11/09

Another International week, another step closer to South Africa 2010 World Cup, which by the way I am hoping to go to and will be crossing more than my fingers in pursuit of it. England will play Brazil in a friendly in Qatar on 14 November and again Michael Owen, 29, has been overlooked and omitted from the squad putting his World Cup hopes in jeopardy. England Manager Fabio Capello recently called the Manchester United striker his “tormentor’’ because of the endless talk of Owen’s involvement in SA or the lack of it.

Sir Alex Ferguson used the forward 7 minutes from time after falling behind to Chelsea at the Bridge last weekend, this in itself shows Sir Alex’s faith in Owen’s ability to change the score line which is exactly what he did against Manchester City earlier in the season. Owen stats are banded about all the time in the media and it is true the numbers do speak for themselves, we cannot argue with 89 caps (77starts) 40 goals, a proven track record since 1996 in a senior international jersey.

The most important statistic that has gone unnoticed so far, is that in the last 9 seasons, practically a decade that is, Owen has scored more goals in the last half of the season from January to May than the first. If that pattern continues this season then rather than be niggled and tormented by his decisions, the 63 year old Italian will feel tortured knowing that not taking Owen is too big a risk.

Let’s move away from quantitative analysis and rationally consider that in the instance England are in desperately in need of a goal in a crucial game with 20 minutes remaining, who would you want to see come off the bench? Who is a natural goal poacher, who is effortlessly in the right place at the right time, who has the ability to lose their defender and nick a last minute match winner, who is proven on an international level? Why did the most successful manager in the Premier League want Mr Owen in his squad at Manchester United this season. Let’s forget club allegiance for now and think about England, assuming Rooney is a definite starter regardless of formation, which striker would you really want in that squad to fulfil the role of coming off the bench to score a vital goal when it counts. Would this really be taking a chance on the unknown or would this be introducing a tried and tested match winner at international level?

Will Michael Owen go to the World Cup...we shall see?

Apart from England and the obvious threats that Spain and Brazil pose, there have be recent mumblings in media circles about The Ivory Coast as potential winners and 33/1 when i last checked. Undoubtedly, we can’t ignore a team that includes Didier Drogba, Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboue and they didn’t lose a single match in qualifying.

Consider this though; perhaps we should keep one sneaky eye on dark horse debutants in the competition Serbia. They have two of the Premier Leagues top defenders in Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea) and Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), a wealth of talent in midfield with the 22 year old pacey left winger Zoran Tosic (Manchester United) and Serbia’s answer to Peter Crouch Valencia’s 6 ft 8 giant Nikola Zigic. Fairly prolific I’m sure you will agree and currently sitting at around 50/1 to win, maybe worth an each way bet?

11/11/09

Birmingham midfielder Lee Carsley has described the penalty won by Liverpool in the 2-2 draw at Anfield as an "embarrassing case of cheating".

Blues manager Alex McLeish also accused the French striker of diving.

Whilst it happens and has done for years, did referee Peter Walton get that one right?

Even Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez conceded he had his own doubts as to whether the incident merited a penalty but in defence of Liverpool he insisted that a draw was the very least his side had deserved.

So should the rules be changed to clean up football and stop divers? This would mean retrospective action after the game, watching the incident back and deciding whether the decision taken at the time was the correct one or not.

Sounds great doesn’t it, almost idealist. Imagine if we had the opportunity to do that in life and apply it retrospectively to all decisions and actions we had made that we later decide were ‘wrong decisions’.

When trekking in Vietnam in the foot hills of Mt. Fansipan in Sa Pa 5 years ago (sounds like a ‘Friends’ episode) I decided that considering I had been away from home for 4 months now that I was a shrewd budgeting hardened traveller. So whilst other fellow trekkers opted for a local English speaking guide and specialist equipment to show them through the difficult terrain and foreign lands around us. I thought this was a great opportunity to save a massive £4.50 and guide myself!

Now it’s not like I advertised my tour but mentioned to a few travelling buddies that I would be heading out unguided in the true spirit of what travelling is all about. Chancing the unknown, going where no man had gone before and so I rallied my troops at 0700 hours...all 3 of us and we set off collectively saving a whopping £13.50! If we wanted to cover lots of ground and see as much as possible we adopted a mantra for the journey ‘Travel Light’. This was ground breaking exciting stuff, in high spirits we picked up the pace and passed the first tour group sniggering at how sucked into tourism they were, how small minded and reliant they were on their local rip-off tour guide. Inexperienced tourist bafoons I thought, they wouldn’t know what travelling was all about if it marched all over their face! We are real, true to the cause and Capt Cook would be proud of us! So with the potential to take up a seat at the helm of the Ramblers Association, onwards we marched.

It was all so obvious and easy, there might as well have been arrows on the ground pointing the way to go simply following the paths, barely trekking i thought smugly, merely a relaxing strole.

Now we set off at around 7.30am, getting close to 11am one of our party was nearly out of water in the sweltering 32 degree heat, but he reassured us he had brought plenty of money to stock up on the way, although I’m not sure where as there were no shops to be seen in this isolated wilderness on the boarders of Laos and China! Anyway, as a team (‘team Nam’ in my head) we rallied round and pooled our resources in true SAS fashion, even though I had rationed my water to myself and had nearly a full bottle, regardless we split the remaining water evenly amongst the group...how very survival of us.

The scenery was breath taking, hills, mountains, tribal villages, rivers and rice terraces, ridiculously picturesque!

As the water depleted quickly, so did the easy to follow paths, the pleasantly flat terrain got steeper, the open landscape closed in and after a few twists and turns we were faced with nothing but multi-directional tracks in huge undergrowth. At this point we would consult our map or look at our compass, perhaps consult our tour guide...but they did not fit in with our cheap skate budgeting or ‘travel light’ mantra, in other words the map was still at the hostel and no one under the age of 50 really owns a compass.

To add to our mounting problems one of our party now had blisters through wearing some dodgy looking trendy indie trainers and no socks, I reminded him ‘it hurts to be this cool’ as he had told me on several occasions whilst sipping beer a few evenings previous. We shall see how cool he looks limping around in his now knackered muddy footwear. Positive thinking prevailed and onwards we went in unison as ‘Team Nam’.

Carried away hap-hazardly meandering without a care we passed many tour groups and shortly after 3pm (i did have a watch) i didn’t have the foggiest clue where we were, which direction we were heading in or how far we were from the hostel. Soon true to our mantra, we were travelling light, unfortunately it was light on water! No problem I took control of the water situation, opting to carry it and ration it appropriately, as a leader should.

Pretty lost in the under growth, miles from civilisation but not beaten, at last a bamboo house appeared! Simple, get a few directions and we’d be back on track in no time. It was most unlikely any of us knew the native tongue, so armed with our best international sign language we approached the entrance. Never in my life have I felt more in danger than in the next few moments when 7 savage killer puppies bolted at us from around the back of the hut snapping viciously at our ankles. We all legged it as fast as possible, I dropped the water, indie shoes screamed as his footwear ripped into his blisters and the water guzzler jolted as cramp set in his lower limbs! We re-group, injured, beaten by puppies only to notice a small girl about 7 years old harvesting rice. We approached her, used our sign language that we had in reserve to beg for help to get home and after looking at us bewildered in perfect English she replied, “if you want me to take you back to the town it will cost you!” Alas, the water guzzler coughed up the cash then the 3 of us, indie trainers, the water guzzler and myself Miss money saving expert, all dehydrated, tired and cramping up with every step followed a 7 year old girl back to the town!!!

Life is full of lessons, so what did I learn... Not all ideas are good ideas, never travel light if it means going without essentials, sometimes the cheaper option is a false economy, local knowledge is paramount and never be afraid to ask for help!

Looking back would I have changed my decision about going unguided in a foreign land with no resources, yes absolutely!

The moral of the story is this: if we get a chance to put right what is wrong, maybe we should!

So i will ask again: For the good of the game should the rules be altered to retrospectively take action about wrong decisions...it’s probably worth looking into!