The Archive

Had the English press not gone over the top, the Turkish media might have made less of the half-time row and still be criticising their own, reports  Anthony Lake from Ankara

We did not get the feared trouble among the fans, but the players decided to make up for it. The arguments and accusations have raged ever since in the media in Turkey as well as in Britain. In­itially, the Turkish press was gracious in “defeat” and indulged in a bout of soul-searching about why Turkey can’t beat England, but then, as the stakes got higher, things took a different turn, as the vilification of Alpay in England reached ridiculous and potentially dangerous levels.

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At the end of this season, the Spanish midfielder will no longer bask in the affections of Scunthorpe's support on a weekly basis.  Steve Askew pays tribute to an unusual import

When Scunthorpe United’s Alex Calvo-García an­nounced his intention to retire and return to Spain during a local radio interview in August, I stuck my head out of the window to listen for gasps of dis­belief echoing through the steel town’s streets.

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Football has long had a drugs problem but is far from alone in this and should learn from other sports, believes Harry Pearson

As I write the raging debate is whether Rio Ferdinand had his mobile turned off or just on silent during his infamous afternoon shopping trip. It seems to me that if you replace the word “mobile” with “brain” then you are getting nearer the measure of the thing. In truth, given his absent-mind­ed performances of late the fact the Manchester United defender should forget a pressing appointment with a flask is not so surprising, nor in a sense was the reaction it provoked – though Gary Neville and co’s adolescent posturing response did achieve what had previously seemed impossible, unit­ing the nation be­hind the Football Association.

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Wednesday 1 “If you defend badly you deserve everything that happens to you,” growls Sir Alex as Man Utd concede two goals in three minutes in a 2-1 defeat at Stuttgart. After Chelsea’s 2-0 home defeat to Besiktas Claudio Ranieri defends his decision to make five changes from last weekend’s team: “It is easy to second-guess after the match but I did what I thought was right.” Rangers concede a late equaliser to draw 1-1 at Panathinaikos.

Thursday 2 “We like to think we are a caring and consulting club,” says Leeds chairman Prof John McKenzie, who decides not to sack Peter Reid after consulting with fan groups and shareholders. An Arsenal tenancy at Wembley could still happen after the board admit at their AGM to being £200 million short of the money needed for the new stadium at Ashburton Grove.

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The high number of drug-test failures in Italy compared to England is mainly the result of the seriousness with which the issue is treated there, believes  Gabriele Marcotti

The funny thing about nandrolone is that it has been around for a long time. A team-mate on my university rugby team took it for three years. No, he wasn’t a drugs cheat: as a child, he was frail and underdeveloped, so his doctor put him on a nandrolone course. Whether or not he knew (or cared) at the time that it could reduce his libido, increase his risk of developing tumours and potentially lead to “testicular atrophy” is unclear. Either way, in the 1980s, before serious drug-testing, its use was widespread in a variety of sports, including football. Its benefits – increased concentration, increased aggression, increased lean muscle mass – were seen by some as worth the risk of a couple of shrunken balls.

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