All or Nothing

Football documentaries galore into production we go, Manchester City looking to make a second instalment and now Arsenal under the headline ‘All or Nothing’, courtesy of Netflix, net busting documentaries? Questionable. So do supporters like the fly on the wall concept, to listen into team talks which encapsule passion, anger, Churchillian type speak, to rally the troops, or to rant. It became evident that Mikel Arteta likes to manage with a concealed iron glove surrounded by ten assistants at the last count, run for cover, any room for Arteta?

The early doors documentary highlighted the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who seemed to be having a settled presence within the group and was performing on the pitch, but Arteta was logging down Aubameyang’s previous indiscretions, to suggest it was Arteta who was seeking to bring closure on the Talisman’s Arsenal career, Arteta was not prepared to put an arm around the shoulder to give slack, to massage the player’s ego. Players with sublime talent can become a problem if the manager does not back the player, that’s where good man management comes into place. It has to be of a high priority that the team’s shining light is given everything in order for the player to perform, problems evolved into the second half of the season, Arteta anticipated this but did not act, to portray the macho image was of more relevance for Arteta which resulted in Aubameyang’s exit, a big loss to the club and the supporters.

Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale looked to play a prominent role alongside one’s attention seeking father. After defeating Tottenham Hotspur 3 to 1, Ramsdale’s return to the dressing room was nonplussing, Ramsdale slumped into his chair, head in hands, in despair, had they lost, was the match result wrong? To suggest Ramsdale was playing to the cameras, we conceded a late goal, I wanted to keep a clean sheet, pathetic, it’s the end result that matters. The viewers were also subjected to Ramsdale’s father entering into some kind of deranged emotional show pony while wearing some kind of tea cosy on one’s head while slurping beers with an uncouth manner, look at me my son plays for Arsenal syndrome, reach for the sick bag. The climate was further sullied with the Arteta quote “I spoke to Aaron’s father, I knew he was the one.” The player of course, confused, take three. It can be said that Arteta has improved Arsenal, of the opinion the jury is still out, it’s all or nothing for Mikel Arteta.

Salary Capping

If fair play regulation can be operative to regulate club’s spending marked against club’s incoming revenue then to suggest salary capping at the Premiership clubs to control the out of control players wages. Clubs like Newcastle gripe on about their financial spending restrictions, but not the wages on offer, don’t want to disturb the players, they hold the powder keg and the control, the clubs need to take the control away from the players, the maximum wage ceiling was abolished in 1961, it can be reinstalled.

The financial wreckage to highlight Barcelona and Real Madrid with clubs secretly bailed out by the government to a degree. Excessive wages and contracts have placed Barcelona into a black hole, financial wrecking balls run rife at the Premiership and are disguised by the billions incoming to the Prem. At the Barce the club’s continued success came under the Lionel Messi flag who produced the goods on the pitch but was Messi holding the club to continued rising wage demands, Messi a parasite, a self-styled heist merchant, can that be said? If you link the present Barce kingpin Frenkie de Jong who is holding the club to a seventeen million pounds ransom before the Dutchman is prepared to leave the club, a catalogue of crazy contracts given to greedy players. Football’s financial mosquito scratch will continue, can it be squatted, crunch!

Exit Sven

The former claimer to fame, the former girlfriend of Sven-Goran Eriksson, Nancy Dell’Olio has returned on a celebrity cook programme, but can she cook, so were those slap up meals waiting for Sven after a long day in the field, not just a slap on Sven’s cheque book looking to cook the Swede’s finances, exit Sven.

The Lufthansa Downfall

The bright lights of West London, shrouded between the dimly lit restaurants of Kings Road, perhaps cuddled up cosy to one’s new edition on the block as Thomas the Tank Engine (Thomas Tuchel) became tangled up with some floozy floss, the ending of Tommy’s eighteen year marriage and the managership of the Chelsea Chelsea.

To manage the team would have become a problem, Tuchel’s characteristic’s change, sketchy decision making, loss of control, chinks in the armour would have leaked it’s way to the players who in turn would look to gain authority in the dressing room, the clicks to take hold, to take the pressure off themselves. Once the manager loses his grip, the exit door illuminates, Thomas Tuchel, tick that box, Chelsea, Chelsea.

Spaced Out

The man with a vision, Chelsea new owner American Todd Boehly suggested that the Premiership’s bottom four Premiership clubs at the season’s end should play in a mini tournament to decide the relegation spots and for a one off match to take place each season between the Northern and Southern teams of the Premiership, mix and match, kindergarten woollies, go and frazzle one’s head elsewhere.

Todd’s planned vision was for the pyramid clubs to feed off the series of matches proceeds, potato mashy that idea. On the first count, the threatened relegation clubs would never adhere to that directive, alongside the Northern Southern clubs never hitting the blades of grass on that proposal. Straight relegation spots will remain in the Premiership, to retain the brutal side. To example mode further, for the Manchester and Merseyside club players to play in the same team format would be an affront to their rivalry, in comparison, the international teams engender a different landscape, a different scope. All American concepts offered by Todd who needs to land his spaceship on the English football pastures for a five year umbrella watch and then Boehly’s hypothesis posturing might have value. The add-on, Boehly’s interference with the departed Thomas Tuchel’s management contributed to the German’s exit, players feed off hierarchy failures to support management, to suggest that Thomas did not meet Boehly’s visionary powers, that’s another vision gone wrong, as for planet Kryton?

Got your Number (shirt sales)

Todd Boehly’s endeavours to align English football with the American round ball activity needs to feel the need to task force into the major soccer league’s shirt sales and failure on recognition, shows the comparison to the Premiership’s world class players. The former Leicester city player, now Charlotte FC’s Christian Fuchs coming in second on most shirts sold in the MLS, to put it mildly or perhaps not, to place the Fuchs alongside oh f—k could rhyme to symbolise desperados shirt buying footballs end of gravy train non entities naming rights, now that’s the Yankee Doodle Dandies, do that dance.

Top of the selling shirt is Gareth Bale on reputation alone, Gareth who spends more time bunkering the golf shot than lording it on a football pitch. For the record, Chelsea are placed number 5 on the global sales list, some work to do Todd. The signing of Ronaldo will seal the deal on shirt sales, don’t forget, number 7, Ronaldo.