Stories | When Saturday Comes

Honour crimes

After losing Fernando Torres to Chelsea, Liverpool supporter Rob Hughes explains why player disloyalty is not a new phenomenom

The media circus that trailed Fernando Torres’s move to Chelsea once again raised what is fast becoming a dominant issue in today’s game: club loyalty. Liverpool fans’ dismay was complete when, at his first press conference at Stamford Bridge, their departed idol coolly batted away accusations of traitordom and justified his switch of allegiance by declaring that “romance in football has gone”. Yes, he said, he’d had three good seasons at Liverpool but he wanted to play for a team who actually won things. What’s more, he was never a Reds fan (though, in his defence, he was candid enough to admit he’s no Chelsea nut either). Club loyalty counted for nothing when it came to winning trophies.

Thursday, April 21st, 2011 - Book reviews

Flood risks

David Lee explains why some organisations are looking into the possibility of screening live football over the internet for fans

Watching football online used to be a mostly jerky affair relying on an illegal link-up to a foreign TV channel showing a Premier League match. Most “free” links would lead the poor unsuspecting fan to a site offering ball action of a distinctly different sort, while unleashing viruses and other computer-based nasties on the way. If you did somehow manage to wade through the filth and find a working stream, it wouldn’t be long until hundreds more joined you and, in the rush, slowed everything down to a halt. You’d give up and listen to Radio 5 Live. Or maybe go back to watching Ceefax refresh itself.

Thursday, April 21st, 2011 - The Archive

Thanks for nothing

Matt Ramsay examines the pros and cons of the Premier League’s proposed Elite Player Performance Plan

A bid to improve the compensation rights of non-League clubs when their young players are snapped up by Football League teams was featured in WSC 279 (May 2010). The issue of fairly reimbursing smaller clubs is set to become a major topic in the coming months, if current proposals to change England’s academy system come into being.

Thursday, April 21st, 2011 - Book reviews

The last broadcast

Steve Menary describes the row ensuing between British and French broadcasters over Manchester United’s Champions League tie against Marseille

Anyone hoping to listen to the second leg of Manchester United’s Champions League tie with Olympique de Marseille on French radio is in for a disappointment. In a dispute that perhaps says a lot about the Premier League’s unwritten policy of never knowingly being undersold, French radio broadcasters plan to boycott the March 15 game at Old Trafford  en masse.

Thursday, April 21st, 2011 - The Archive

Sweet Carroll nine

Cameron Carter describes the month’s football coverage, including Lineker crying wolf, a terrible pun and Arsenal v Barcelona

Mel Brooks does a turn about an old man at a Jewish wedding launching into Strangers in the Night but starting too high, so that his voice breaks into a whispered scream trying to hit the high note in the chorus. Gary Lineker got himself into a similar predicament on February 5 as a result of his repeated use of hyperbole when introducing Match of the Day.

Thursday, April 21st, 2011 - The Archive