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Jose Mourinho Insults Ronaldo’s Education And Upbringing. Classy.

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has been called a plenty of of nasty names by Premiership supporters for his seemingly childish and petulant behaviour at times, but he’s gone the extra mile this time as his row with Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo continues for some reason,

“It’s a game where a kid had some statements not very…not showing maturity and respect, maybe difficult childhood, no education, maybe the consequence of that,” he said in the Daily Mail.

“Sir Alex felt he had to protect this boy. But normal things…I have no problems with him (Ferguson). I have no problem with the boy.”

We’re all for poking a bit of fun, but Mourinho is just being a prat now. He used to throw a sly dig here and there and make everyone chuckle a bit. But to start bringing up Ronaldo’s background and education as the basis of a comeback is ridiculous, especially as the winger’s comments were hardly outrageous.

Jose may feel that Ronaldo is a young boy without maturity and respect, but by attempting to take this public feud to more personal levels - Mourinho is only one or two pubes ahead.

Whelan: West Ham Ruling Sets Dangerous Precedent

With West Ham escaping a points deduction following the Tevezcherano transfer charges, Wigan chairman Dave Whelan is less than pleased,

“The Premier League have now established that no one can ever be docked points unless a club goes into receivership and then it’s an automatic ten-point deduction,” Whelan told the Times.

“The rules are the rules and if this breach doesn’t merit the docking of points, then let’s make it clear - nothing does.

“That’s fine by me. Let everyone be treated the same, I say. A precedent has been set.”

As bitter a “fine by me” as you’ll ever find. Conspiracy theorists will argue that West Ham, as a club from a major market (London) and with greater financial clout for the near future, are far more valuable to the Premiership than a club like Wigan. A points deduction would have cost the Hammers their status in the top flight, so they got away with an incredibly expensive slap on the wrist.

But Whelan’s right about precedent and, while we doubt that smaller clubs will risk violating transfer rules just because West Ham appear to have got off lightly, clubs who can happily eat a humongous fine like Chelsea - already in the news previously for dodgy transfer conduct - may see it as another loophole ripe for leaping through.

Voronin Continues Fine Line Of Average Liverpool Bargains

Peter hopes that Liverpool and Rafa Benitez do follow some of Chelsea’s lead.

For every Xabi Alonso, Dirk Kuyt or Luis Garcia that Rafa Benitez has brought to Liverpool there seems to be a Josemi, Antonio Nunez or Boudewijn Zenden.

Admittedly, managers have differing success in the transfer market and it’s always more dangerous bringing players from abroad who are not acclimatised to the pace of the Premiership so it’s expected that there’ll be an element of hit and miss. But come on Rafa, sort it out. Now it appears that Zenden’s time at Liverpool is coming to an end, another player of his “caliber” is coming to fill his boots. Benitez does like a bargain, and Voronin is coming on a free, much like Zenden 2 seasons ago but I really don’t see where he will play, if he plays at all that is.

With Liverpool’s new, sizable, transfer kitty on the way I’m sure we’ll invest in a striker of the quality of a David Villa or Fernando Torres which will leave Crouch , Kuyt and Bellamy to complete the 4 striker quota that all big teams have. So where does that leave Voronin? I’ve seen the guy play and to be frank he’s distinctly average, as is his goalscoring record.

Do we really have to fill our squad with average players just because they’re free?

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Tottenham Finally Claim Premiership Silverware

At long last, a Premiership trophy to call their own.

Tottenham, who may have missed out on Barclays Player of the Season, Manager of the Season, Golden Boot and Golden Gloves, have seen Grounds Manager Darren Baldwin awarded Groundsman of the Year,

Darren added: “There are secrets, which I won’t give away, but the biggest thing is always the professionalism of the team. I’ve been on the judging panel for the FA for the non-league equivalent of the Groundsman of the Year awards and it’s been beneficial for me to see what goes on across the country and even pick up some tips. So being able to bring all that together and for us to finally win this award is terrific.”

Admittedly, Spurs to have a wonderful playing surface. Now, all they need to do is sort out the football that happens on it, they might win a trophy for that as well some day.

Joey Barton Has No Right To Criticise Manchester City

From The Terraces publishes UNEDITED submissions we receive from you, the readers. It’s your chance to show us how this football blogging is done right, or to embarrass yourself and your ancestors.Simply write to: editor[at]caughtoffside[dot]com.

This time, COS reader Ankur reckons Joey Barton has a lot to prove before running his mouth.

So Manchester City midfielder Joey Barton thinks he has the right to start lambasting the team for its poor performances and the manager for making poor signings.

Yet this is the man who has committed so many past transgressions that his list of previous offences is almost as long as the rap sheet of an LA drugs dealer. Let’s consider some of his finest moments. At the club’s Christmas party in 2004 he poked a lit cigar in youth player Jamie Tandy’s eye. For that incident he was fined six weeks wages, two of which were suspended. After that incident Barton said, “I feel embarrassed about what I did and deeply regret it.” In July 2005 he was sent home from a pre-season tour of Thailand after being involved in a fight with a young Everton fan in Bangkok. He was also involved in an altercation with Richard Dunne after Dunne had tried to step in as a peacemaker. Having struck the fan, Barton resorted to his thuggish instincts by biting Dunne in the hand. Dunne was so annoyed that he kicked a door off its hinges causing him to miss the start of the season. For his latest escapade Barton was fined another eight weeks wages, which included the two weeks wages carried over from the suspended fine after the cigar incident only seven months previously. In less than one year Barton had managed to rack up 12 weeks worth of fines, costing himself over £180,000. After the hotel incident he once again apologised saying, “I understand the distress I have caused to everybody concerned and want to apologise for my actions.”

Even after this incident City decided to stick by their man, probably because they couldn’t afford to let him leave on a free. You would have thought that Barton would do everything possible to endear himself to the club and the fans and repay them for the faith they had shown him. No, not Barton!

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West Ham Get To Relegate Themselves.

Rejoice, West Ham supporters, as He has finally smiled upon you.

Concluding an investigation into the incredibly dodgy and illegal transfers of Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tevez, West Ham were fined 5.5 million by a Premier League investigative panel but spared any points deducation - meaning they can relegate themselves from the Premiership fair and square.

The problem was the whole “West Ham don’t own the players” business, and the fact that the club did not disclose full information of the transfer to the league. Once alerted to the possibility of misconduct a mere few days ago, it lead to a quick and decisive investigation from the powers that be.

Wait… that’s not right.

Didn’t everyone suspect this virtually as soon as the deal was announced at the start of the season? Didn’t red flags go up when the club announced to the world that they would not be disclosing the details of the transfer? Weren’t there endless articles spouting theories and raising suspicions of misconduct?

Can’t have been. Because that would mean that the people at the league are complete numptey’s who, for some inexplicable reason almost certainly tied to their own personal gain, waited until the end of the season to charge West Ham.

Dida Put Up For Sale. Oh How Original!

The concept of putting players up for sale on eBay is hardly a new concept, dating back at least as far as Cristiano Ronaldo back at Germany 06, but ESPN’s Soccernet.com has a story on the bloody frontpage entitled “Angry Milan Fan Puts Dida Up For Sale“.

This has usually been the realm of bloggers and message boards, but for Soccernet to through it up is only going to spawn more imitations. Which is terrible, because this eBaying a player still isn’t funny.

Latest Transfer Rumours: Robben, Petrov, Nugent, Arteta, Woodgate, Davis, Craig Gordon

The world of Premiership transfer gossip is full of nonsense, but some nonsense is more interesting that the other nonsense. Speculation is rife in the likes of the Mirror, Daily Mail, Times, Sun and… err… Tribal Football all do their best to predict and/or completely make up the future.

Here’s our opinion on the Premiership transfer rumours we’ve read in the papers and around the net… and if you have any thoughts, pop em in the comments.

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We Are The Champions

CaughtOffside has just been announced as the winner of the Sports Blog category in the Ask.com & Metro UK Best Of British Blogs 2007 . There’s also an article in the Metro paper itself this morning.

So while it’s always nice to get recognised for our hard work we wanted to take a moment to thank you, the readers, whose comments are often more entertaining or insightful than the article or news we’re reporting.

The thoughtful discussions, passionate arguments and bollocks-rattling tirades of abuse that you direct at us, and each other, really makes this place what it is.

Mourinho Calls Ronaldo A Liar

With all this tension and bickering between Chelsea and Liverpool, we were pleased to see some Manchester United lads step in and throw a few punches themselves.

Portuguese trio Jose Mourinho, Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Queiroz all appeared on Portuguese TV at various times in the past couple days leading to the following bit of banter,

Mourinho kicked it off by telling everyone that referees deliberately give crucial penalty decisions in favour of Manchester United in their matches but also those of their rivals, despite the fact that every club in the league could make a similar claim.

Cristiano Ronaldo responded,

“I really don’t want to be dragged into Mourinho’s complaints over referees - everybody knows how he is. He always has to say something because he can’t admit his failures.”

A verbal broken bottle to the bollocks, to which Jose was never going to back down from,

“Ronaldo is a great player, perhaps the best in the world. But he needs to be mature enough to accept you cannot argue against facts. And if you lie then you may never reach the level which he aspires to as a footballer.”

Carlos Queiroz wasn’t about to be left out,

“Mourinho has his own style, he always tries to divert everyone’s attention to the points which are convenient for him.

“These are his tactics and that’s the way he is. However we [at United] are different because when we can’t win we at least have the humility to recognise the other’s merits and we learn from our opponents’ strengths.”

We still haven’t gotten used to the idea of Manchester United as the “good guys” in the Premier League, but Jose’s inability to take things in stride continues to swing the popular vote that way. It may take the pressure of his players, but it’s still a bit sad.

Newcastle Ready To Compete For Premiership Title Next Season?

No, it’s not opposite day (although, that would mean it is…ERGH!), but the words of Newcastle striker, Nigeria international and apparent wide-eyed optimist Obafemi Martins,

“Where can Newcastle aim to be next season?” the 22-year-old said in The Sun. “Fight for the league title, play for a UEFA Champions League place and also target the FA and Carling Cups.

“We have the players, manager and fans to make it happen and I really think we can do it. Losing Owen and Shola was a terrible setback.

“But their return couldn’t come at a better time. I think we’ll form a great team.

“Shola was doing well before he went for surgery. I was getting used to playing with him but he will bring a lot to the squad.”

He added: “More interesting for me is the return of Michael Owen. I really would love to play alongside him as soon as possible.”

Newcastle have a squad that, when healthy, is certainly ready to join Tottenham, Everton and Bolton in fighting for UEFA places every season with the odd push for 4th. But to hope to compete for the Premiership title is a admirably ambitious, but quite far beyond reality without some serious investment. The health of Dyer, Duff and Owen will be key (and extremely doubtful) but there’s still plenty of holes to be filled even then.

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Read more Everton news on the Everton section.

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In Case You Missed It…

While caught up in the various Premiership goings-on, we often fail to take the time to reflect on the season so far. The great football, the heartbreaking losses and - in our case - the spectacular arguments and discussions.

So if you’re new to the site or just missed a few days, here are a few of the best pieces from this season. To get more random selections from our best (most commented) pieces simply check out “Other Popular Articles” that appear at the end of each piece, refreshing the page gives you a selection of five more golden oldies:

Why do we have to support England?

Steve: Newcastle supporters are self-righteous attention seekers

Didier Drogba, Best Striker In The World?

Greatest Premiership Manager: Ferguson Or Wenger?

A Call To Arms For Arsenal Fans

Go Support Your Own Club, Please.

Liverpool Lacked Edge, Desire And Bite. Awful, Basically.

Ryan punches some children in the face after seeing Liverpool’s performance in the 1-0 Champions League loss to Chelsea.

For us to compete with, and beat the likes of Chelsea and Barcelona we need our entire side to be acting as a unit. We need our one or two world class players to be on top of their game, and for our decent players to be opertaing above their usual level. We got f**k all of that tonight.

When we beat Barcelona in the Nou Camp, it’s down to the fact that we operated as a cohesive unit from the first minute to last. Not mind-boggling tactics, or inspired changes, just rudimentary on-pitch mechanics. It was effective in it’s simplicity. What now seems to be the only problem with it though, is that it endowed our bunch of players with that ugly air of superiority that quite a few of them carried off at Stamford Bridge last night.

Beating Barcelona is as much a mental thing as anything else. Was there a greater epitomy to our obduracy in the Nou Camp than Sissoko shrugging off Deco with the ‘F**k You’ stamp etched all over it? Nope, it embodied our determination that night. Did we thus continue with that trend of rattling the multi-millionaire opposition last night? Nope. We were much too bloody casual for that.

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Premiership Learning From The American Way. And It Might Help.

Lucas looks at what positives the Premiership can take from American sport, in addition to taking American dollars.

One of the biggest problems facing the Premier League, obviously, is the ever-widening financial gap between the “big clubs” and the “small clubs.” With no structure to stop the free-spending of a team like Chelsea, a team like Charlton, say, in a similar location geographically but miles away economically winds up being left alone at the bottom of the table while the big kids run away and hide in the Champions League. The idea, then, is to stop this from happening. And maybe the best way to do it, sadly, is to follow some parts of the American model.

In American sports, parity reigns. In Major League Baseball, the Detroit Tigers, three years removed from finishing with the second worst record in league history, finished as title runners-up, beating the New York Yankees and their $200 million payroll along the way. In the National Football League, the league runner-up has built a tradition of not making the playoffs in the next season, and in the National Basketball Association the New York Knicks, who have spent more money than anyone in basketball, ever, are a league laughingstock.

Contrast this with the Premier League, with four winners since its inception, where a lasagna fiasco denied Tottenham a possible breaking of the stronghold at the top four, and where a club with one of Europe’s best overall records (Liverpool) hasn’t been able to win a f**king thing domestically in nineteen years.

You cannot say that it is alright for the status quo to remain- you can not say that the league is alright, because to me it looks about ten years from falling completely down the abyss. How long can the fans of the “other” sixteen teams take season after season of mediocrity, knowing that any glimmer of real success, from an Everton in 2005 or maybe a Bolton this season, will be inevitably crushed by teams with more spending power than they could ever possibly accrue?

And so, this leads me, admittedly long-windedly, to my point. To survive as anything more than a spectacle, the Premiership needs to take on pieces of the American model. I don’t want franchises, I don’t want teams moving around, and of course I don’t want a ridiculous closed-system league. I’m thinking more along the lines of a basic salary cap (or maybe some limits on player salaries), and some restrictions to create a bit of spending parity.

Not total, thus incredibly boring, parity but something a lot better than what we have now. Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool will still be the most competitively appealing teams to play for, but at least money will be a smaller part of the equation.

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Liverpool vs Chelsea: Game Over If Reds Score First

Ryan looks at the crucial factor for Liverpool in today’s Champions League match against Chelsea.

Our success this year and in ‘05 in Europe’s premier competition can be traced back to one vital feature in our approach to games; We bust our balls to score first.

Rafa loves to be in control. He sets the team out to grab the bull by the horns, score first, and from then on in he fancies his chances of being able to set us up with the main aim of frustrating and stalling. Get the first goal, and we rarely lose.

It’s a tactic that he adopts whether we’re playing home or away, one that is often deployed in the strangest of places, and one that’s brought unremitting success. He uses any factor he can rely on; differing set-up’s, bizarre team-choices (Le Tallec against Juve anyone?), and to a massive extent - the power the Anfield crowd hold in unnerving the opposition.

Let’s look at the evidence:

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