Tuesday 2 An exciting night for several teenagers at Highbury, where 16-year-old Francesc Fabregas is among the scorers in Arsenal reserves’ 5-1 Carling Cup thrashing of Wolves. Two James Beattie goals, one a last-minute penalty, settle the first Hampshire derby for eight years. Joe Cole is banned for two games for his spat when West Ham played at Bolton last April. Ken Bates is steaming: “Those responsible for keeping him waiting seven months should have their wages withdrawn for three months, or be sacked.”
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Stories
David Beckham wasn’t England’s only footballing export this summer. Neville Hadsley looks at why Jay Bothroyd has attracted both scorn at Coventry and a transfer to Perugia
When Jay Bothroyd left Coventry City for Serie A side Perugia, he was, perhaps understandably, magnanimous. “I will miss Coventry,” he wrote on his personal website. “I hope the club get promoted this season because the Coventry fans really deserve Premiership football. The support at the club both home and away is fantastic.”
Alex Wolstenholme wonders if the introduction of age restrictions could reinvigorate the reserves in England as they have done north of the border
Watching the reserves is a journey into a world both instantly recognisable and yet strangely unfamiliar. The setting, the kits and often the players are the same, but there’s something missing that can be found at almost every other level of the game where a league title is played for. The fortunes of the stiffs are never a major cause of concern for fans. That part of the programme where one of the club’s ex-pros (and now second-team boss) gives his match report from the latest reserve game has never been required reading.
Saturday 3 Man Utd don’t manage a shot on target at home to Everton but still win with a deflected goal. Robbie Fowler’s revival continues with two in a 3-0 win over West Ham to take Liverpool up to third behind Arsenal, who win 1-0 at Coventry. Derby’s surprise 1-0 win over Sunderland takes them four points clear of the relegation zone, though they have three players booked in five minutes for disputing offside calls. Man City’s improved form continues with a 1-1 draw at the Riverside, though Joe Royle is furious that a Danny Tiatto goal is disallowed for offside: “The TV replay should embarrass the ref for the rest of his career.” Spurs’ goalless draw with Charlton is their fourth in a row: “We’ll just have to keep grinding our results until we get our strikers fit,” says George Graham with something approaching relish. In the First, Sheff Wed get another turn at the bottom after losing to Watford. “We have it all to do,” predicts Paul Jewell. Joe Kinnear moves one place up the Second Division table by becoming an “adviser” to second-bottom Luton.
Neville Hadsley gets beneath the mask of Coventry City chairman and Gordon Strachan advocate Bryan Richardson
Distinguishing features Lived-in face that does not appear have deprived itself of too much.