First Person View - POV-FS Second Annual 'On the Road' Football Tour

    Regular readers may have noticed a severe drop off in posts over the recent weeks. Holidays and end of season lull aside, a good portion of my attention has been focused on the organization of another whirlwind town of the British Isles.

    Departing this evening bound for Manchester, the second annual tour will commence on Saturday and wrap up a week later with six matches spread over the seven days.

    Up first is a return to Old Trafford for United vs. West Brom followed by a day trip to Liverpool and Goodison Park for Everton vs. Chelsea, all before the new year is rung.

    Then off to the City of Manchester Stadium for City vs. Stoke on the first before travelling up north to the wiles of Scotland – Glasgow’s Celtic Park for Celtic vs. Motherwell and Heart’s Tynecastle for the Edinburgh derby vs. Hibs - Hibernian.

    The tour will conclude with a return south to Leeds United’s Elland Road for their FA Cup tie against Birmingham City.

    I had hoped to take in a final FA Cup tie on Sunday, but Mansfield Town’s home draw against Liverpool sold out quickly.

    With the occasional off-day I hope to tour a stadium or two and take some time to check out the National Football Museum.

    I’m not sure whether I will be able to provide live coverage of the trip - as I did last year - given the rigourous scheduling and the paucity – and expense - of internet service, but I shall do my best.

    Either way, expect a full recap of the tour upon my return home and normal service at POV-FS will resume with the build to the new MLS season and the completion of several thoughts from last season.

Happy New Year to all, thanks for visiting, all the best,

    James

Thoughts? - Are the big European clubs already feeling the pinch of financial fair play?

    A quick rundown of the early tables in the big leagues around Europe makes for a startling read.

Retrospecticus – Volume I

     Every so often a piece written long ago becomes pertinent once more. This retrospective will highlight some of the entries those that may have been missed, as well as some favourites.

Manchester City’s Transfer Policy

With the silly season about to kick off a quick look back at the recent transfer dealings of Manchester City paints a cunning, yet devious strategy. Dating back to the summer window in 2008, City has embarked on a system of targeted purchases designed to fulfill two purposes. Firstly, to amass a group of talent, with enough quality and experience to allow them to push into the upper echelons of the English Premier League, while simultaneously weakening their immediate rivals.

Concussions in MLS

     A good result for Chivas USA on Sunday night was made even better by the return of defender Michael Lahoud, who overcame post concussion issues to assist his team in earning that jaw dropping 2-3 victory in New York against the Red Bulls. Concussions have become a serious issue in the sporting world in the past few years, the NHL and NFL are taking extreme measures, such as protective legislation and increased medical oversight to ensure the safety of their players.

    At the moment, there are 6 MLS players out of action for concussions and post-concussion symptoms: Jimmy Conrad (Chivas USA), Devon McTavish (D.C. United), Calen Carr (Houston Dynamo), Thorne Holder (Philadelphia Union) Patrick Nyarko and Michael Videira (both Chicago Fire). Jimmy Conrad, perhaps the highest profile players currently out, definitely the most entertaining and garrulous of the bunch, recently discussed his situation on his podcast. Making light of the situation as he usually does, Jimmy expressed the confusion and concerns associated with the condition, his desire to get out on the field, the indeterminate nature of the injury and the ramifications of collective damage suffered for one’s post professional career. 

Sir, Yes, Sir - The Chain of Command Dilemma

     The question of whether football would benefit from the use of video technology is a long and much debated discussion, which will sadly be decided at another time. The latest round of controversies has seen the inclusion of an extra set of officials, deployed at each end of the pitch, near the byline, to add an additional set of eyes to any disputed goal mouth actions. While these extra referees have been in place for over a year now, in European ties, there is yet to have been any such official who has had any positive influence on the decisions made in a match, the same mistakes are being made, the same actions are being missed. To analyze the root of the problem examine the referee lineup for the Europa League match between FC Twente and Zenit St. Petersberg on March 10th

Beautiful Losers

     Arsenal’s loss to Birmingham City in the Carling Cup final was their third straight defeat in a finals appearance since they won the FA Cup in 2005.  This inability to clear the final hurdle has combined with a marked drop off in league performance which has seen 8 straight seasons of finishing either first or second in the Premier League with 5 seasons of third and fourth placed finishes.  Of course there are extenuating circumstances to this apparent decline, namely the rise of Abramovich’s Chelsea, as well as the relocation to and subsequent debt incurred as a result of their new Emirates Stadium; however one must question whether Wenger’s principles of fiscal responsibility, youth promotion, and hypnotic passing have superseded the desire to win.  Has the feeling of moral superiority and aesthetic beauty embodied by Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal become the new trophy?