A little over three months until the World Cup gets underway and you would be forgiven for thinking England’s preparations are in meltdown.  This is exactly the sort of build up to a tournament that Fabio Capello had designs on stamping out when he commenced his tenure as England manager.  Ironically, England’s strictest manager for years now finds himself facing a daily debacle in the weeks preceding the competition, as his stars fight tabloid rumours, injury and poor form.
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The criticism that has been made of Wayne Bridge’s decision to turn his back on his country has been both appalling and ill-conceived. He has been put in a position that is, thankfully, very unfamiliar to most and it is not for anyone else to judge Bridge as a ‘wimp’ or a ‘traitor’.
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What a week for Clarke Carlisle, the Burnley centre back widely acknowledged as football’s ‘brainiest player’. After a clear demonstration of his intellectual prowess on Channel 4, he offered us a clear demonstration of his ineptitudes as a Premier League centre back on Saturday.
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Manchester City’s resounding success at Stamford Bridge on Saturday was made possible by the fragility of Chelsea’s backline. The loss of Petr Cech in last Wednesday’s defeat to Internazionale could well prove to be the pivotal moment in this season’s Premier League title race as it is abundantly clear that Chelsea do not have sufficient cover for their Czech number one. It is also clear that Hilario does not have sufficient cover in front of him to protect him from acute humiliation.
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Nemanja Vidic appears to have drawn the wrath of Sir Alex Ferguson following his withdrawal from Manchester United’s squad to play AC Milan last night, despite having been involved in full training for ten days prior to the fixture, with a summer exit from Old Trafford seemingly on the cards. However, he will not be the first to have departed in somewhat accrimonious circumstances.
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Things were all going so smoothly. England’s World Cup preparations appeared to be firmly on course thanks largely to Fabio Capello’s meticulous preparation. However, they now risk being derailed by the revelations concerning the team’s captain. Capello is due back in England today to deliver his verdict on John Terry’s captaincy, a decision which could set the tone for the national side’s World Cup campaign in South Africa.
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The long lost magic of the Carling Cup was restored last week in spectacular fashion as round two of the Manchester derby came to a pulsating conclusion.  For years, the top Premiership teams have been fielding second string, and youth team sides in the competition.  Initially this was derided by the media as a blatant disrespect for this trophy, but since the teams in question carried on regardless, it soon became an accepted part of the modern game.
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