Brazil and Japan's recent international friendly was less about football and more about a chance to promote a well-known sports brand, says Sam Wallace

The ‘summer tour’ is normally associated with a gentle amble through the locals’ defence in a country otherwise too hot to play football. West Bromwich Albion once made it to China, only for Bryan Robson to muse that he’d rather they’d gone somewhere warmer. More recently Manchester United visited post-apartheid South Africa, where Ryan Giggs identified the clement weather as the highlight rather than the fact that he was met (and recognized) by Nelson Mandela.

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Gary Oliver analyses the impact of any premature elimination from European football for Rangers

Following Rangers’ trouncing in Gothenburg, acting skipper Jonas Thern complained that he had suffered cramp through having to cover for colleagues who had gone AWOL. But it was not only certain players whose whereabouts were unknown: Walter Smith vanished until the following week, it later emerging that he had been in hospital for a minor operation. Numbed by watching his latest batch of expensive imports capitulate in almost unimaginable fashion, Smith would have had little need for an anaesthetic.

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Tottenham fans once adored Teddy Sheringham, but Adam Powley reflects upon the awful reception he got when he returned to White Hart Lane with Manchester United

“Tormentors”, “enemies” and, according to Radio 5 Live’s Peter Drury, “mindless supporters”. Just a few of the accusations levelled at Spurs fans by the media following Teddy Sheringham’s acrimonious return to White Hart Lane. Over reams of newsprint and hours of broadcasting time devoted to reporting Tottenham’s first home defeat of the season, radio, TV, press and even players predictably focussed on the treatment that the fans meted out to Sheringham. And once again, they got it wrong.

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Unconvincing and offensive portrayals of football fans

There was no escaping football this summer. If you live anywhere near a major town you will have seen the huge billboards featuring text taken from the new Sky advertisement for its coverage of the 1997-98 season. “Football is our life,” says one, above a picture of two fans, one celebrating, the other with head in hands. “Football is our religion,” says another, over a picture of fans sitting on a fence overlooking a ground. The TV commercial from which the posters are derived only lasts a minute or so but it’s one of the most disturbing things ever seen on satellite television, weirder even than the 24 hour shopping channel or episodes of Scooby Doo dubbed into German.

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Tuesday 1 Chris Waddle has been offered a coaching role at Sheffield Utd but hints that he'd prefer a proper manager's job. He's not stuck for choice: today's new vacancy is at Southend where Ronnie Whelan has just resigned, saying, "Some fans at the end of last season made it clear I wasn't welcome." Blackpool's Gary Megson is the surprise choice as new Stockport manager, while Celtic seem to be having a chat with Portugal national team boss Artur Jorge, he of the thicket moustache and facility in a dozen languages. (Or is that Graeme Souness? No, as you were.) The Rep of Ireland teenies go out of the World Youth Cup at the semi-final stage, beaten 1-0 by Argentina.

Wednesday 3 Celtic's new coach is Dutchman Wim Jansen, once of Feyenoord, and lately out of work after leaving his last job in Japan. "It is a big challenge," he says. "Celtic were involved in the greatest day of my career, the 1970 European Cup final against Feyenoord." Not the greatest day for Celtic fans, of course, but at least they used to get past the early rounds in Europe then. Fabrizio Ravanelli faces a fine of a week's wages (that's £42,000, in case you want to start a whip round) from Middlesbrough for not turning up to pre-season training. He may yet move to Liverpool, where he would join Paul Ince who is about to sign up for £4.5 million. Another man in demand, Chris Waddle, has talks with Hull City about becoming their player-manager, but is said to favour a move to Burnley. Looks like Juninho is heading for Atletico Madrid for £12.5 million after Spurs' interest cools. Assuming, of course, that they ever were interested and not just trying to buy a bit of positive publicity after the bad press over the Sheringham transfer.

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