HARRY KANE and Eric Dier will not be the only Englishmen gunning for Arsenal on Wednesday.
Anthony Barry, who started his coaching career at Wigan, is Bayern Munich’s assistant manager and one of the most sought-after coaches in Europe.
The ex-Accrington, Yeovil and Fleetwood midfielder was brought to Germany from Chelsea by Bayern chief Thomas Tuchel, with the pair having worked together at Stamford Bridge
And if Bayern score from a corner or a free-kick against Mikel Arteta’s side, that will be down to Barry who is in charge of the team’s set-pieces.
Barry will leave the German club with Tuchel at the end of the season and the offers have already come in.
He has just turned down a second approach from Ireland to replace boss Stephen Kenny, who was sacked in November.
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But Barry, who combined his role at Chelsea as a part-time coach for the Irish, will be assisting Roberto Martinez with Portugal at Euro 2024.
Barry, who also worked for Martinez with Belgium at the 2022 World Cup, wants to be a manager in his own right so is waiting for the right offer for next season.
However, he is not the only Englishman currently coaching in the Bundesliga.
Craig Fleming, assistant coach at Southampton for four years under Ralph Hasenhuttl, has linked up with the Austrian to become Wolfsburg’s No 2.
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Ticket disparity
LIVERPOOL have been given just 750 tickets for Thursday’s Europa League tie with Atalanta.
To enter the ballot, Reds fans had to have bought tickets for 22 of the previous 24 European away games over the last five seasons.
That is some loyalty, whatever team you support.
Meanwhile, Arsenal will have just under 3,800 supporters against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday — and they have all paid a relatively affordable £42.80 a ticket.
To watch the first leg at the Emirates, supporters had to fork out between £70 and £103.
If you needed proof of the disparity between English and German ticket prices, here it is.
Broadcaster outsmarted
A WELL-KNOWN broadcaster did not see the funny side after a telling off in the posh seats at Chelsea.
In an exclusive area behind the home dugout at Stamford Bridge, he caused a bit of a stir by shouting at the home bench during a game.
The television and radio presenter was told to calm down by security and during the heated exchange, he trotted out the infamous line: “Do you know who I am?”
The unimpressed official pretended to switch on his lapel microphone and shouted: “Can I have the welfare department? There is a Chelsea fan who doesn’t know who he is.”
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Flying high
TOTTENHAM fans were left frustrated by the cost of the £150 train to get to Newcastle for Saturday’s Premier League game.
So a few Hertfordshire-based supporters found it cheaper to get a bus to Stansted Airport and take a Ryanair flight to Edinburgh (£70 return) before getting a train from Scotland to Newcastle (£40 return).
This one will have stung Kane the most… what’s the German for schadenfreude?, says Dave Kidd
By Dave Kidd
OF all the trophies Harry Kane has missed out on, this one will have stung the most.
This was supposed to have been a dead cert. This was nailed-on.
Bayern Munich had won 11 successive Bundesliga titles, so when the England captain signed for the great Bavarian powerhouse last summer, we all said: “Well, at least he’ll finally win something.”
Yet on Sunday evening, there were Bayer Leverkusen — known in Germany as ‘Neverkusen’ because they hadn’t previously won the league thanks to several late implosions — cavorting around, 16 points clear, unbeaten in all competitions and confirmed as champions with five games to spare.
And so the greatest trophy curse in footballing history continues.
And this one really is freakish because Leverkusen’s story is almost as extraordinary as Leicester City’s miracle title in 2015-16 — the season when Kane won his first Premier League Golden Boot and Tottenham ended up ‘third in a two-horse race’ behind Arsenal.
Kane is always the runner-up, always the nearly man, always the fall guy, too often a figure of fun for those taking pleasure in the misfortune of others.
Does anyone know the German word for schadenfreude…?
Click here to read Dave Kidd’s column in full.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
