Cristiano Ronaldo – GAME OF THE PEOPLE

TALK has resurfaced about the possibility of the Premier League, among other leagues, playing games in the United States in the future. FIFA and Relevant Sports have reached a settlement over the latter’s claim that the governing body was “closing the doors of the United States to international soccer”. This rekindles the idea of leagues such as La Liga and the Premier exporting their matches to the US. The benefits of taking the Premier to America is really only beneficial for US broadcasters and sponsors and has very limited upside for the clubs. It also distorts the structure of the Premier, indeed any league, which is based on teams playing each other home and away. Effectively, the Premier would be prostituting itself to a country that has a set of sports that reject the idea of meritocracy. With so many US owners in English football, the culture of the game is clearly under threat.

Former Tottenham Hotspur and Republic of Ireland full back Joe Kinnear has died aged 77. Kinnear, who was a member of the Tottenham side that won the FA Cup in 1967, the Football League Cup in 1971 and 1973 and the first UEFA Cup in 1972, had been suffering from dementia. A very decent player, he was discovered at St. Albans City and spent a decade at White Hart Lane, leaving in 1975 for Brighton. He later enjoyed a very eclectic managerial career that included Nepal, India and Wimbledon, as well as a stint at Newcastle. He was capped 26 times by Ireland.

Veteran Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off in the Saudi Super Cup semi-final as his side, Al-Nassr were beaten 2-1 by Al-Hilal. Ronaldo, who turned 39 in February, was dismissed after swinging his elbow twice into the chest of Ali Al Bulayhi. After receiving the red card, Ronaldo appeared to raise his fist at the referee and then, as he walked off, sarcastically applauded the decision. CR7 will end the season without a trophy as Al-Nassr are out of the running for the big prizes and way off the leaders in the Saudi Pro League.

Fulham made a pre-tax loss of £ 26.1 million in 2022-23 despite revenues rising by 110%. Income totalled £ 182.3 million, with all streams rising. The club’s broadcasting and central rewards amounting to £ 144.4 million, matchday rising to £ 15.2 million and commercial up from £ 13.9 million to £ 22.6 million. Fulham’s wage bill increased by almost 50% to £ 139.1 million, representing 76.2% of income. In 2021-22, wages were £ 90.4 million, which consumed 126.3% of earnings. Fulham are very dependent on their owner, Shahid Khan, who has invested £ 660 million in the club. Fulham spent a further £ 32.6 million on the new Riverside Stand at Craven Cottage in 2022-23.

SIX Premierships are involved in the last eight of the FA Cup following the midweek action in the fifth round. Four of the big six – Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool are in the quarter-finals, with Wolves and Newcastle the other top flight sides. Chelsea, who beat Leeds United 3-2, will face Championship promotion chasers Leicester City, while Wolves have a midlands derby against Coventry City. There are two big all-Premier ties in Manchester United versus Liverpool and Manchester City versus Newcastle United. City won 6-2 at Luton in the fifth round, with Erling Haaland netting five times.

Cristiano Ronaldo has upset the Saudi Arabia Football Federation by gesturing at fans of Al-Shabab, who had taunted CR7 with chants of “Messi, Messi”. Ronaldo was fined a laughable £ 6,500 and banned for one game. For a 39 year-old multi-millionaire veteran, the punishment will make little difference on the sensitive superstar.

Aberdeen are in relegation trouble in the Scottish Premiership after losing at home to fellow strugglers St. Johnstone at Pittodrie. Neil Warnock, who recently took over at Aberdeen has seen his team gain two points from five games.“I can understand the fans and I feel sorry for them. They deserve better,” he said after the game. Aberdeen’s followers are very frustrated by the team and its tactics, pointing to the long-ball game adopted by Warnock, the woeful defence and spineless midfield. Aberdeen are currently ninth in the Premiership but they are in the last eight of the Scottish Cup. They play Kilmarnock on March 9 with a semi-final place at stake.

Italian champions Napoli sprung back to life with a 6-1 win at Sassuolo in Reggio Emilia. New boss Francesco Calzona was purring as his team regained the sort of form that won the scudetto in 2022-23. Victor Osimhen netted a hat-trick and Kvicha Kvaratskhelia scored twice. Calzona commented: “Osimhen is getting back to his best. The Africa Cup of Nations was incredibly draining both mentally and physically. Kvara is also finding his old sparkle.” The headlines seemed to agree, “the end of the tunnel”, said one Italian daily.

Rochdale may be reprieved from liquidation by an American investor. The club revealed it needs £ 2 million of fresh investment in order to keep going, but the response has been encouraging. But there are still hurdles, notably the shareholder structure – on March 7 there is a vote to determine if 90% of the shares can be sold in one deal. There are concerns that the club could disappear by the end of the season, so a swift takeover is needed to keep the wolf from the door. It should be noted that administrators are far from optimistic about what can be done as the obvious cuts have been made. Chairman Simon Gauge commented: “Supporters just want to turn up and watch the match and keep plugging along and thinking everything’s alright, but it isn’t. We’re not without hope, there is hope of investment but these things need to happen – if they don’t happen, the stark reality is we won’t survive.”