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      in Soccer

      Tuchel naive at best, stupid at worst, for staying loyal to Chelsea as he’s sacked two weeks after contract talks

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      THOMAS TUCHEL was talking new contracts with Chelsea just two weeks ago.Now he is looking for a new job.
      Tuchel was sacked on Wednesday following defeat to Dinamo ZagrebCredit: Getty
      Back then he confirmed SunSport’s exclusive story that the club wanted him to commit to a new deal with a few simple words, then moved on to stress that the most important thing was the team.
      When rudderless Manchester United made it plain they quite fancied Tuchel as their next manager towards the end of last season, the German was outspoken in his commitment to his employers.
      He would not jump ship and was happy to stay loyal to the club that gave him a chance to manage in the Premier League and raise his profile beyond all previous measure.
      On reflection, the uber-intellectual coach dubbed ‘The Professor’ looks naive at best, stupid at worst.
      READ MORE ON CHELSEA
      That is because his sacking confirms there is no place for sentiment at Stamford Bridge and that loyalty will ultimately do for you.
      Tuchel was not expecting to get the chop so few hours after his team’s collapse in Croatia.
      He acknowledged relations with chairman Todd Boehly had been on the slide for some time.
      But he did not realise that an opening group game 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb was the moment his boss had been waiting for.
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      And he took the punch right between the eyes at the training ground just before 10am having only got back to England at around 4am.
      He admitted to not seeing Tuesday’s hopeless performance from his players coming.
      He should have seen what was coming next though.
      All summer, there has been a steadily brewing discord between Tuchel and the new board of directors he reported to — but in particular Boehly.
      The German is likely to be replaced by Brighton’s Graham PotterCredit: Alamy
      Disagreement over Boehly’s desire to sign Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United went Tuchel’s way and the plan was dropped.
      That disagreement highlights the different philosophies of the two men about players.
      Boehly clearly fancies razzmatazz and showbiz signings when it comes to players.
      He loved being pictured with new arrivals and hanging around and shooting the breeze with them at the training ground.
      Tuchel disagreed with Boehly’s desire to sign RonaldoCredit: Alamy
      Tuchel’s preference was for a new centre-half.
      He got two in the end but despite a world record investment of £259.1million in the summer, Chelsea’s head coach was still not happy.
      To the extent that after the recent embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Southampton, a message was sent to a Chelsea director containing extremely colourful language about the state of the squad.
      The dithering over a deal for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was another bone of contention.
      There is a feeling Tuchel had a blind spot for AubameyangCredit: Rex
      At 33, Chelsea did not fancy handing out a three-year deal to a player many see as way past his prime. Understandably so.
      There is a feeling that Tuchel has a blind spot for Aubameyang. That he is starstruck by the wayward striker’s glittering personality.
      And that, having managed him seven years ago, he could bring back the 25-year-old Aubameyang.
      Chelsea struck a compromise with Aubameyang.
      The striker signed on a two-year deal with an option for a thirdCredit: Getty
      A two-year contract with the option of a third to keep him on his toes.
      He only made his Blues debut on Tuesday — seven games into the season and almost two months since striker Romelu Lukaku went back to Inter Milan.
      Managerial sackings at Chelsea are as much a part of daily life as groin strains.
      The joke is that the club uses non-drying paint to mark out the coach’s car park space at the training ground.
      Chelsea are expected to appoint a manager who’ll be in charge for the long-term futureCredit: EPA
      In Tuchel’s case the story is a fascinating one given the way the geeky-looking, 6ft 5in beanpole, managed to grow even more in stature while steering his club through the worst moments in their 117-year history.
      When Russia invaded Ukraine in February, Chelsea were unwillingly dragged into a war through Roman Abramovich’s links to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
      Government sanctions, a stranglehold on finances, an emergency takeover ordered by No 10. The very existence of one of our top clubs called into question.
      While the hierarchy took the chance to cower in a bunker and hide from the public, Tuchel took on the role of leading statesman.
      Boehly and Co spent upwards of £250m in the transfer windowCredit: Getty
      Cannot afford a plane to fly to Lille? “I’ll drive the bus,” he said.
      He was also honest in admitting most rival clubs would be delighted to see his team failing.
      There followed a series of Churchillian addresses during the height of the crisis and during which he landed the one trophy that had up to then eluded Chelsea — the Club World Cup.
      This followed victory in the European Super Cup, a few months after winning the Champions League.
      Tuchel leaves Chelsea with three trophies under his beltCredit: Getty
      There is no doubt that Chelsea have fallen away in recent times and the team was an utter shambles against Zagreb.
      Master tactician Tuchel was unable to plot a course past a side with one twelfth the budget of his.
      Formations changed, baffling substitutions made, sulky fringe players dragged off the bench to try to save his neck and it failed.
      Boehly and his cohort from US investors Clearlake Capital promised many things when their £4.25bn takeover was announced on May 22.
      The German guided Chelsea to their second-ever Champions LeagueCredit: Getty
      They were careful not to pledge public loyalty to the head coach.
      Even so, you might have expected there to a bit of credit in the bank from the way Tuchel kept the ship afloat during stormy waters.
      Had he signed that new two-year deal, Tuchel would have collected a substantial pay rise.
      He will now walk away with a pay-off worth nearly £13m.
      Read More on The Sun
      Either way, he will not go short and the odds are that he will be back in management again soon.
      And even the Professor may have learned a lesson about public loyalty. More

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      in Soccer

      We’re in the fourth season of VAR and it’s getting even WORSE… let’s just scrap it altogether

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      APPARENTLY, Premier League chiefs launched an “emergency review” of the two VAR howlers which robbed West Ham and Newcastle of points this weekend.How thrilling and fast-moving of them. Let’s regard them as the fourth emergency service and give them a little clap on our doorsteps every Thursday night, eh?
      West Ham were controversially denied an equaliser against Chelsea at the weekendCredit: Getty
      If they want a meaningful review, then here’s an effective conclusion — scrap VAR altogether. Abolish the whole rotten shooting match.
      This is the one solution everyone in football seems too terrified of suggesting.
      While this week’s victims — Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, along with Hammers manager David Moyes and skipper Declan Rice —  complained long and hard about the embarrassing shambles of it all, they stopped short of calling for VAR to be binned off.
      Everybody keeps parroting the lie that “VAR is not the problem, it’s the individuals operating it”.
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      Because it’s easier to trot out lines like that than to actually think about things.
      As we enter the fourth season of VAR in the English top flight, with decision-making in Stockley Park getting even worse, that mantra is patently nonsense.
      The majority of decisions on fouls are subjective, so there can never be anything remotely like absolute justice.
      Slow-motion replays often make incidents look more incriminating, meaning VAR often makes things worse.
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      And don’t even get started on the definition of “clear and obvious error”.
      There is a conspiracy of silence on the idea of revoking VAR.
       TV companies love it because it makes football all about their product, rather than the live spectacle for match-going fans.
      Most football writers never pay to watch matches and don’t understand the widespread loathing of VAR among fans who do.
      Referees will never call for abolition because VAR means jobs for the old boys. Those who retire from on-field reffing, such as Mike Dean and Lee Mason, can carry on earning in Stockley Park.
       It was the experienced Mason who told rookie top-flight ref Michael Salisbury to overrule his correct decision to award an own goal against Tyrick Mitchell at St James’ Park, even though the Crystal Palace defender committed a foul himself.
      The decision by VAR Jarred Gillett to advise Andy Madley to disallow Maxwel Cornet’s West Ham “equaliser” at Chelsea was even worse.
      We were assured VAR would significantly reduce cheating. Yet Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy got away with feigning injury because of VAR, when Cornet “scored”.
      Madley had got it right the old way. So had Salisbury.
      It’s not about the personnel, it’s about VAR itself.
      Our refs are good, bad and indifferent and they have good, bad and indifferent days. But we’re not going to dig up a couple of dozen better officials to make VAR tickety-boo.
      And it’s not just in England where VAR is denounced as a shambles — Lazio’s former Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri was raging about it after Saturday’s defeat by Napoli.
      The West Ham and Newcastle flashpoints weren’t the Premier League’s only weekend VAR controversies either.
      For sheer joylessness, the denial of Alexis Mac Allister’s wonder strike for Brighton against Leicester, because of a toenail offside in the build-up, took some beating.
      But apparently, footballers scoring long-range screamers is a menace which needs stamping out.
      Funnily enough, I thought Mason — on a double shift this weekend — was right to rule out Gabriel Martinelli’s “opener” for Arsenal at Manchester United because Martin Odegaard won possession by barging over Christian Eriksen.
      But that’s not the point. I could have accepted that goal standing for or against my own team.
      There always were incorrect decisions but we’d yell about them briefly, then get on with watching a fast-moving, spontaneous game.
      Now we can’t even celebrate goals properly, knowing Mason and friends will be forensically searching for a reason to rule it out. 
      Odegaard’s “foul” on Eriksen lead to an Arsenal goal being ruled out against Man UtdCredit: Rex
      Nobody suggests scrapping VAR, because being labelled a technophobic philistine is apparently some great stigma, as if you can’t have progressive views on life while hating what VAR has done.
      This country is going to the dogs. There’s an energy crisis, inflation is rampant, and a woman whose head appears to be stuffed with polystyrene will enter 10 Downing Street today.
      Football is supposed to be an escape from all this.
      Most people who pay to watch it just want to enjoy themselves. When they’ve calmed down, a quiet majority don’t even believe it’s all that serious.
      But instead, technology in decision-making is becoming even more extensive.
      So-called “robot linesmen” are arriving in the Champions League and the World Cup to make toenail offsides even more commonplace.
      When their wiring malfunctions, presumably Fifa and Uefa can also stage some emergency reviews.
      Because that’s what they reckon football is all about — middle-aged men in blazers taking themselves too seriously.

      CHEST SO SILLY
      ON the subject of VAR, Richarlison was booked for taking his shirt off after scoring for Spurs against Fulham — only for it to be ruled out for offside.
      Yet if you’re rewriting history and the goal didn’t count, surely the semi-nakedness didn’t count either and his yellow should be rescinded?

      CENTRE STAGE
      I AM loving the return to fashion of authentic centre-forwards in the Premier League — see Erling Haaland, Darwin Nunez and especially Wolves’ bid to sign free-agent Diego Costa.
      Two of the best in breed are Brentford’s Ivan Toney and Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitrovic, who were both on Newcastle’s books, a club that worships its No 9s.
      Toon have just shelled out £60million on Alexander Isak, who also looks very promising — but they could have saved that Saudi cash by keeping either Toney or Mitrovic.
      It would, though, be sacrilegious to point out the manager who let both strikers go — and presumably didn’t rate either of them.
      The infallible Rafa Benitez.

      ONLINE GOONS
      ARSENAL fans love an online conspiracy theory — and before Sunday’s trip to Manchester United they were ranting and raving about referee Paul Tierney and VAR Lee Mason both hailing from Greater Manchester.
      When VAR disallowed Gabriel Martinelli’s early ‘goal’, the protests became even more shrill.
      Supporters of southern clubs taunt United fans that they all come from Surrey. But when refs are from Manchester, they’re assumed to be boyhood Stretford Enders.
      Many of our referees are incompetent — but they are not corrupt.

      GUNNER LOVE IT
      AFTER two seasons away, Spurs fans are salivating for tomorrow night’s Champions League opener against Marseille.
      And not least because the visitors include former Arsenal players Alexis Sanchez, Matteo Guendouzi and Sead Kolasinac as well as Nuno Tavares, on loan from the Gunners.
      It is not far short of the first North London derby in Champions League history.
      So even Gooners can enjoy some Wednesday night European football for the first time in five years.

      WHEN managers start talking with jarring honesty about their own clubs, it’s usually a sign that the end is nigh.
      It just happened with Bournemouth’s promotion-winning manager Scott Parker and, sadly, it’s now happening with FA Cup-winning Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers too.
      Read More on The Sun
      ON Saturday at Lord’s, something called Trent Rockets defeated something else called Manchester Originals in the final of a short game of cricket called The Hundred.
      And nobody really cared as the teams are completely made up and neither the players nor fans had any true allegiance to either. More

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      in Motorsport

      Lewis Hamilton’s radio rant shows he still ‘effin cares – nobody can criticise him for X-rated exchange

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      LEWIS HAMILTON’S radio rant at the Dutch Grand Prix was perfectly OK —  and rules out suggestions the Brit is not bothered now he’s not winning.In some circles Hamilton has been heavily criticised for the X-rated exchange.
      Lewis Hamilton was furious with his team’s tactics at the Dutch Grand PrixCredit: PA
      He came fourth in Zandvoort and is still waiting for a first win of the seasonCredit: Getty
      Former world champion Jacques Villeneuve said he “was aggressive, almost insulting”.
      He added that “after everything the team has meant to him, you should not speak to them like that”.
      Hamilton later apologised for the language but not the sentiment, and rightly so.
      It is fantastic that even after 303 races in 15½ years in F1 he still has that passion to win.
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      After such a dreadful year for his Mercedes team, he now finally has a reason to believe that he will eventually break his duck for the season.
      And when that win comes I fully expect another expletive-laden radio message.
      However, the title race is over.
      Max Verstappen’s tenth win this year means he has an incredible 109-point lead in the championship.
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      And it would take something incredible for the Dutchman not to retain his world title.
      It could even be sealed as early as Singapore, some six races before the end of the campaign.

      HERTA’S NEW F1 TAUR
      AMERICAN driver Colton Herta is expected to be confirmed as a driver for the AlphaTauri team next season — paving the way for Pierre Gasly to join Alpine.
      It is the latest driver merry-go-round as teams scramble to fill seats for the 2023 season.
      Herta, 22, currently races in IndyCar but has attracted the interest of McLaren, who offered him a test in Portugal.
      However, it is Red Bull who look likeliest to sign him and park him at their sister team.
      Herta would become the first American to race in F1 since Alex Rossi in 2015.
      Meanwhile, Alpine could face an asking price if they want to sign Gasly.
      He has only just signed a deal with Red Bull but would be allowed to leave. It is whether Red Bull will waive the fee.
      His arrival could also upset Esteban Ocon, who has been urging them to sign Mick Schumacher as his team-mate instead.

      SAUDI BIKES PLAN
      MOTOGP announced plans to follow Formula One and Formula E by racing in Saudi Arabia.
      An agreement has been reached between Dorna, the promoters, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
      There is yet to be a date set for a race as there is no approved circuit but it could form part of the new F1 track being built in Qiddiya, on the outskirts of the capital city, Riyadh.
      Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta explained the deal was driven as it was becoming a key market in the Middle East.
      He said: “The region is a key market for motorsport and the demand in the Kingdom for events of this kind is growing with research showing that 80 per cent of Saudi fans want to see more in their country.
      “In the past few years, Saudi Arabia has shown its ability to stage major global motorsports events to the highest standards.”

      MO SO KEEN
      I GET the impression new FIA chief Mohammed bin Sulayem is enjoying his new job — he’s everywhere!
      On the grid before races, shaking hands with drivers and putting himself pride of place on the podium.
      At the Dutch GP, he was in his usual blue suit  and stopped to put on his oversized sunglasses. He was very much part of the show.

      PORSCHE BLOWOUT
      HAS Red Bull’s proposed tie-up with Porsche hit the skids?
      Reports in Germany say the F1 team have grown frustrated by the VW-owned company’s demands.
      And speculation is rife their current engine supplier, Honda, could perform a U-turn given the team’s success and stay in F1.
      Read More on The Sun
      WE have all got used to working with Zoom and even I can figure out how to add a blurry background.
      So it is a bit baffling why Nico Rosberg joined Sky’s F1 coverage from his bedroom, with the headboard and pillows in the background. More

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      in Soccer

      Harry Redknapp: I loved the summer sales but Andres D’Alessandro and Noe Pamarot were my real transfer steals

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      REMEMBER being told the transfer window would be quiet this summer because so many clubs were still hard-up after the pandemic?Well they must have found a lot of loose change down the back of the sofa, seeing the Premier League alone had spent over £1.5 BILLION come Thursday’s deadline.
      Erling Haaland has scored 10 goals in six Premier League gamesCredit: PA
      Noe Pamarot was superb after signing for PortsmouthCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
      Andres D’Alessandro turned out to be a cracking signingCredit: Getty
      Some of those are already nailed on to be a big success, and Erling Haaland looks the best business anyone has done – or will do for a long time.
      We already knew he was something special. But two hat-tricks and nine goals already? That’s just ridiculous.
      Gabriel Jesus has had a flying start at Arsenal, I love Marc Cucurella, the left back Chelsea have signed, and Wesley Fofana is a great centre back – even if he has come at a price.
      But as a manager, you can’t beat getting someone for peanuts and them turning out to be a real diamond.
      Read More In Football
      Especially when they weren’t really on your radar to start with.
      I was lucky enough to find a few like that over the years, but the one who really stands out was a guy I took to Portsmouth on loan after being told we had no chance.
      I’d first come across Andres D’Alessandro five years earlier, when I was at West Ham and went to watch Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand for England Under 20s against Argentina.
      They had this little No10 who was the best player on the pitch.
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      Frank told me he was scared to go near him because he got nutmegged every time he got close.
      At the time Joe Cole was just coming through, who was the best schoolboy I’d ever seen, and the chairman wouldn’t spend £3million or £4million on another kid, so nothing happened.
      But in 2006 I bumped into an agent called Barry McIntosh, who looked after the lad, and asked about a loan, because he’d gone to Wolfsburg for big money and we couldn’t afford him.
      Barry laughed it off… but a few weeks later rang and said it could happen.
      So we got him in on January 31, and what a move that was.
      When D’Alessandro turned up it was pouring down and Fratton Park was ankle deep in mud.
      He was only a skinny lad, scrawny little legs, and we were playing Bolton the following day.
      I told the staff I was putting him straight in and they thought I was mad.
      He had a blinder, got a standing ovation and kept us up that season.
      Mind you, there were a couple of others who were brilliant for us as well.
      One of whom I never even considered.
      I was going to sign Pedro Mendes and Sean Davis from Spurs, and Daniel Levy threw in Noe Pamarot as well.
      It was like buy two get one free… all for £7 million.
      We were right in trouble when those lot arrived, and we ended up surviving.
      It’s great when you take a gamble and it pays off…but it’s not always the way.
      It still makes me cringe to think of the time I wanted to sign Peter Odemwingie for QPR and West Brom were playing hard ball.
      The deadline was only a few hours away, and we still hadn’t discussed terms, so I told him to come down to London in case we got something sorted quickly.
      I thought he’d check into a hotel near the ground…I certainly didn’t expect him to park up round the corner, with TV cameras all over the place.
      That was that as far as it went in terms of signing him. I’ve seen him a few times since and he’s a lovely lad…it just wasn’t the wisest place he’s ever parked the car!

      IT’S JUST A START, ART
      THERE’S no doubt Arsenal have got off to a great start, and they look best placed to make the most of it if Chelsea keep dropping silly points.
      But I won’t be jumping on the bandwagon with those who are already saying they’re certs for a top four finish. Not just yet, anyway.
      Yes, they’ve done well so far, but only against sides you’d fancy them to roll over. And only by the skin of their teeth in some cases.
      Let’s see how Arsenal cope when they have a real test, and there’s no doubt today’s game at Manchester United is a huge one.
      Pass that one with flying colours, and a few more besides, and it’ll be time to get excited. Until then, just keep those corks in the bottle, eh.

      RICH’S RIGHT UP FOR IT
      WHEN Spurs signed Richarlison I was worried what his attitude would be like if he wasn’t in the team.
      And with Harry Kane and Son Heung-min around, he wasn’t going to be.
      But at the moment he’s been a bundle of energy coming off the bench, and that keepy-up business at Nottingham Forest is just his way.
      Read More on The Sun
      A couple of Forest lads had already tried to boot him before he started taking the mick, and that was his way of saying “sod ‘em!”
      Although if he’d tried that against Stuart Pearce, they’d have been picking him up from the back of the stand.
      Richarlison came under fire for his showboating against Nottingham ForestCredit: Alamy More

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      in Soccer

      If Potter had quotability of Mourinho or playing career of Gerrard or Lampard we’d be calling him a genius

      by

      WIN at Fulham on Tuesday night and Brighton and Hove Albion will lead England’s top-flight for the first time in their history.This, after making a £70million profit in the transfer window and having already won at Manchester United and West Ham, as part of a club-record nine-match unbeaten top-flight run.
      Brighton are unbeaten from their opening four Premier League games this seasonCredit: PA
      Graham Potter celebrates with match-winner Pascal Gross after his winner against LeedsCredit: PA
      The Seagulls have the best defensive record in the country and conceded fewer goals than either United or Arsenal last term, as they secured a best-ever finish of ninth.
      If manager Graham Potter possessed the self-assurance and quotability of Jose Mourinho and Brian Clough — or playing career of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard — he would be widely declared as a genius.
      But if Brighton do beat Fulham, there is no chance of Potter declaring: ‘I think I’m a special one and although I wouldn’t say I was the best manager in the business, I’m in the top one’.
      Especially as the 47-year-old has a masters degree in emotional intelligence. Which neither Mourinho nor Clough could have bragged about.
      READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
      Football doesn’t easily recognise a quiet genius like Potter — a jobbing left-back at a series of Midlands clubs in the 1980s, who proved himself as a water-into-wine merchant by leading obscure Ostersunds from the Swedish fourth tier into the Europa League.
      Brighton have improved in all three of Potter’s previous seasons and have won at Anfield, Old Trafford, Tottenham and the Emirates (twice).

      This summer they trousered £100m for Marc Cucurella, Yves Bissouma and Neal Maupay, yet there are no signs of standards dropping.
      When the world wakes up to Potter’s qualities, the question is whether this deeply modest man — who claimed in a recent SunSport interview he walks around Brighton and Hove in disguise — would be interested in moving on?
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      There is a distinct possibility that England will be looking for a new manager come January.
      While Gareth Southgate is under contract with the FA until the 2024 Euros, he is likely to walk if England bomb at the World Cup and, equally, in the less-likely eventuality  they win the tournament.
      The FA will want another English boss and have few other options. Gerrard and Lampard are hardly covering themselves in glory at Aston Villa or Everton.
      Potter is not a product of the FA system, having clambered up the hard way through an Open University degree and those Swedish lower leagues.
      Yet through his close working relationship with Dan Ashworth — formerly of Brighton and English football’s governing body — he would receive a glowing reference from a much-trusted figure in FA circles.
      Ashworth, recently poached by Newcastle, is another key figure in Brighton’s rise.
      Under his watch, Brighton recruited brilliantly, including Bissouma, Cucerella, Leandro Trossard, Moises Caicedo and Pascal Gross — an unsung 31-year-old German midfielder whose goals have defeated Manchester United and Leeds this season.
      But master Potter moulded these little-known imports, along with Danny Welbeck and Adam Lallana — two born-again relics from Roy Hodgson’s England era — and created the benchmark for any English club without  stupid money to water-cannon around.
      Brighton will go top of the table if they bear Fulham on Tuesday night at Craven CottageCredit: PA
      Yet should England come calling, would Potter even fancy one of the most demanding and high-profile roles in national life?
      Some who have dealt with him are highly sceptical.
      When he was strongly linked with the Tottenham job last year, as Spurs went on that bizarre three-month search only to end up with Nuno Espirito Santo, Potter was not believed to be keen.
      Now, with Gerrard’s job under threat at ambitious Villa, Brighton’s Solihull-born boss is being talked up as a candidate to take over at a club where he watched the 1982 European Cup winners as a kid.
      Although Potter did start his playing career at Birmingham City and is non-commital when asked about his boyhood allegiances.
      That, in itself, is typical of this radar-resistant, damned-elusive, limelight-dodger, who likes us to think of him ambling around Brighton’s Laines in a Groucho mask.
      He may well be top of the richest league on Earth on Tuesday night, yet we hardly feel as if we know him.
      And you’d imagine that is just how Potter likes it.

      ELL FOR PARKER
      IF getting sploshed 9-0 at Anfield wasn’t bad enough for Scott Parker, then the identity of two of Liverpool’s goalscorers — Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho — would have rubbed salt into the Bournemouth manager’s wounds.
      Parker had given both Liverpool whizkids their Premier League debuts while managing Fulham.
      The Cherries chief — also wanted by the fashion police — was then treated to a consoling arm around the shoulder from Jurgen Klopp while the match was still in progress.
      That gesture was described as ‘classy’ by Match of the Day pundit Jermaine Jenas but ‘horribly patronising’ by most others — Parker, presumably, included.
      Scott Parker’s Bournemouth were hit for nine by Liverpool at Anfield on SaturdayCredit: AFP
      ALWAYS HIM
      AT the age of 32, Mario Balotelli shows little sign of mellowing in Turkish football.
      This weekend, our hero mouthed off at his manager Vincenzo Montella, who had to be dragged away from his fellow former Italian international striker, for fear that he might chin Balotelli.
      And this after the final whistle of a victory for their team, Adana Demirspor.
      Why always him? And why, after 18 goals in 31 matches last season, is he just about the only player in Europe Nottingham Forest haven’t tried to sign this summer?
      Lord knows this crisis-ridden nation could do with some Balotelli-shaped gaiety.
      Mario Balotelli was involved in an explosive bust-up with his Adana Demirspor boss Vincenzo MontellaCredit: Getty
      POORLY HANDLED
      A COUPLE of seasons back, Premier League players were continually  punished simply for having arms.
      There was a succession of penalties awarded and goals disallowed for balls accidentally striking upper limbs.
      And that seemed extreme.
      This weekend, Manchester United’s Scott McTominay literally juggled the ball in his own area without conceding a penalty against Southampton.
      And Forest’s Steve Cook tipped a ball over his own bar with an outstretched arm without getting a red. Which also seems extreme.
      So refs, any chance of a bit of common sense?
      You know, like there used to be.
      Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay somehow didn’t give a penalty away for this handball against SouthamptonCredit: Enterprise
      NOTHING BUT FLUFF
      WATCHING the latest Amazon Prime ‘All Or Nothing’ on Arsenal provides fascinating glimpses — not least the fact Mikel Arteta’s David Brent motivational talks seem to work.
      But let’s not confuse it for real journalism.
      Like where Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is interviewed before last September’s North London derby and declares how much he appreciates the fixture’s meaning.
      And no one says, ‘Hang on son, how come you didn’t turn up on time  the previous one?’.

      WAY TOO GOOD
      ERLING HAALAND is the Premier League’s leading scorer so far this season and Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard has been the outstanding individual talent in the top-flight.
      Which makes you wonder how bad the other nine players in Norway’s starting XI must be for their nation to have not even reached the play-offs for this year’s World Cup.
      Norweigan pair Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard have starred in the Premier League so far this seasonCredit: Getty
      ROOT CAUSE
      THAT bit when Joe Root was clearly struggling as England skipper and people kept insisting that Ben Stokes, as an all-rounder, would struggle to cope with the demands of captaincy.
      Well after Stokes scored a century, took key wickets in both South African innings and led England fearlessly to an innings victory in the Second Test, what was that other bit all about? More

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      Ben Hunt: McLaren’s costly Oscar Piastri battle as they wait on verdict despite already paying Ricciardo £10m to leave

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      MCLAREN will discover this week whether they can sign Oscar Piastri from Alpine as Daniel Ricciardo’s replacement.And if they can’t, it could hit them in the pocket.
      Daniel Ricciardo has been dropped by McLaren for the 2023 seasonCredit: Rex
      Oscar Piastri is in the middle of a contract dispute with AlpineCredit: Reuters
      McLaren have already paid off Australian Ricciardo, 33, to cancel his contract — thought to be half of the £20million he was due to earn next season.
      Staggeringly, there were no exit clauses from McLaren, which is most unlike Formula One deals.

      These are usually littered with performance-related triggers to allow teams or drivers to seek new contracts elsewhere if either are not delivering.
      That alone has sparked some serious questions for the team’s management.
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      But they could now face even more scrutiny.
      Having jettisoned Ricciardo for below-par performances — despite being the only man to win a race for McLaren since Jenson Button’s 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix triumph — they have pinned their hopes on signing Piastri, a 21-year-old Alpine reserve driver.
      And that in itself is a gamble.
      Sure, he has an excellent record in the lower formula and won the F 3 and F 2 titles — but he remains unknown in F 1.
      However, for all McLaren’s ruthlessness in axeing Ricciardo they have stopped short of confirming Piastri.
      Why? Because the matter needs to be resolved by the FIA’s Contract Recognition Board.
      They met yesterday and their verdict is expected over the next few days, with both McLaren and Alpine confident of winning.
      The CRB usually operates in the background and rarely gets headlines. But of the two most famous cases it has presided over, the driver’s original team have won.
      David Coulthard tried to leave Williams for McLaren in 1995 and Jenson Button tried to join Williams from BAR in 2005.
      Both British drivers failed in their attempts to break free from their existing contracts.
      Should the CRB again side with the driver’s original team — in this case Alpine — then the matter is still not resolved.
      The fallout has been bitter, with Piastri told to ‘work from home’ while the contractual matter is resolved.
      While the Alpine team would love to have him in the car to replace Fernando Alonso next season, the situation has now become too toxic.
      It means the likeliest outcome is Piastri WILL end up driving for McLaren, providing the Woking-based team stump up for his services, allowing Alpine to name their price.
      And that is not great business by McLaren, whose finances are already strained.
      Ricciardo performed his infamous shoey during his last race winCredit: The Mega Agency
      AUDI REVVED UP
      IT WAS great to finally see the not-so-secret news confirming that Audi are coming to Formula One.
      They have provisionally struck a deal to provide Sauber with engines for 2026, but expect that soon to be confirmed as a fully-fledged Audi team.
      Audi were stunned at just how widespread the news travelled and how quickly.
      They now have to get up to speed building that engine division and if they are serious, they should break the bank to sign British engineer Andy Cowell.
      He was the man who headed up Mercedes’ engine operation that powered them to 12 titles in six years — the constructors’ and drivers’ championship.
      Cowell left Mercedes in 2020 to seek a new challenge and Audi sounds like the perfect opportunity for him.
      Audi showed off a concept design of their 2026 F1 carCredit: AP
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      FAMILY CAR FOR ALONSO
      I UNDERSTAND Alpine will push ahead with plans to launch a commemorative special edition of their road car, designed in honour of Fernando Alonso.
      Yes, even though the Spaniard assured Alpine he was staying with the team, only to do a U-turn and sign a contract with rivals Aston Martin. 
      Insiders inform me the car will be built, as Alonso is considered part of the Renault family after winning two world titles with them.
      Read More on The Sun
      MAX PLAYS A BLINDER
      WHAT are the chances?
      Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was forced to pit during Sunday’s Belgian GP after a visor tear-off got stuck in his brake cooling duct, causing it to overheat.
      The pitstop cost him valuable time but, even worse, it turns out the rogue piece of plastic was discarded by none other than his title rival, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. More

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      Harry Redknapp: Even Pep Guardiola would struggle with Man Utd shambles… but I can still see them beating Liverpool

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      WHEN you hit rock bottom at least you can’t go any lower — so there’s a rare spot of good news for Manchester United at least.Let’s face it, it’s been in short supply… bottom of the table, not a point on the board and the whole club in need of a complete overhaul.
      Erik ten Hag has suffered a nightmare start at Man UtdCredit: Reuters
      Ten Hag has seen his side lose to Brighton and get smashed by BrentfordCredit: Reuters
      So surely you’d have to be mad to suggest there couldn’t be a better time to play their massive rivals Liverpool, the team who put NINE past them last season.
      Well, I’ve been called plenty worse over the years and no doubt will be again now.
      Because not only do I see it as the perfect game for United but I really can’t see them getting beaten.
      Everyone seems to think it is a case of how many. They’re talking of a three, four or five-goal win for Liverpool. You’ll struggle to find anyone tipping anything but an away victory.

      But, for me, that puts United in a no-lose situation — and I certainly don’t think they will lose at Old Trafford tomorrow night.
      First and foremost, while they have been shocking in their two games, Liverpool haven’t set the world on fire either.
      Fulham were good value for a point and the Reds only started playing against Crystal Palace — and got a draw — when they went down to ten men.
      Look, if United were playing a Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest, Southampton or whoever tomorrow, the pressure would be unbelievable. That really would be a hiding to nothing.
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      But against Liverpool the place will be bouncing, the fans will be right up for it and these players won’t want to be ridiculed again with the whole world watching.
      It comes down to picking the right team… and for Erik ten Hag that means swallowing a bit of pride.
      I know he wants to play great football but it’s not all about tactics and systems and fancy plans. Sometimes it’s as basic as simply running about.
      When I went back to Portsmouth in 2005, I took over a bad side which was in real trouble and had only won twice by December.
      I looked at the stats and we were getting outrun every week.
      United are in a no-lose situation — and I certainly don’t think they will lose at Old Trafford tomorrow night.Harry Redknapp
      While plenty of teams were better than us, there was no excuse for that.
      So each Monday I’d have the board out, highlighting how much ground they’d covered individually and as a unit.
      Suddenly there was no hiding place for them — and you know what? The running stats went through the roof, we were the ones outrunning opponents and the results were incredible.
      We stayed up that season because of hard work — and that’s what can get United something against Liverpool.
      They have to roll up their sleeves, get in their faces, chase the ball, crowd them out, don’t give them space, steam into tackles and bully them.
      They have to run like they’ve never run before — certainly not this season — and have no excuses come the final whistle.
      Ten Hag has to pick 11 players who are ready to give everything. And if they do, Old Trafford will be on fire.
      Harry Redknapp says even Pep Guardiola would struggle with this Man Utd squadCredit: Reuters
      Redknapp still thinks United will get a result against Liverpool on MondayCredit: Getty
      Before anyone thinks otherwise, I’m not suggesting that getting a result against the old enemy would cure everything. There is way, way too much work to be done for that.
      How many of this lot would have got in the team ten or 12 years ago? They’re seven or eight players short and it is going to take years to fix.
      The manager is getting stick — and I do think he made a rick in signing a 5ft 9in centre-back in Lisandro Martinez — but it goes way deeper than that.
      Put Pep Guardiola in charge of that lot and he’d have no chance without a load of reinforcements. United are so far off the top, it’s scary.
      Whoever is in charge of recruitment at Old Trafford needs to have a look at themselves, because it’s been non-existent.
      United spent heavily but then started looking at Marko Arnautovic. My God! I had to check he was still playing.
      Mind you, making mistakes — like at Brentford — doesn’t help. A manager may want to play from the back but if the opposition presses, you have to rely on common sense at times.
      Read More on The Sun
      United lack someone to run the game, be a leader, make them play… and they’ve been very easy to play against.
      There’s no better place or time to change that than against Liverpool at Old Trafford and they have to be fired up to fight for their lives. And you know what? I think they will. More

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      in Soccer

      Phil Thomas: Erik ten Months? Erik ten Weeks? Looking at the shambles at Man Utd, you couldn’t blame Ten Hag for walking

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      IF Manchester United could rattle up wins the way their new manager is collecting nicknames, they’d be back on top before they knew it.One game in and he was Erik ten Months. Seven days and another defeat later, he’d become Erik ten Weeks.
      Erik ten Hag could be in and out of Man Utd if their form struggles go onCredit: PA
      So presumably if their hated rivals Liverpool leave them pointless after tomorrow’s Old Trafford meeting, he’ll be Erik ten Days.
      For some — and it should be stressed it’s only a small minority — conclusions have already been drawn.
      Namely that Ten Hag was the wrong choice all along. That United, whatever he’d done at Ajax, would simply be too big for him.
      All absolute b******s, of course. For all the deadwood conning a living at Old Trafford right now, and there’s plenty of it, the manager ain’t part of it.
      READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS
      But, you know what? Those who have decided the Dutchman’s stay will be very short-term might actually have a point. Only not the way they think.
      Perhaps they’re viewing it from the wrong angle.
      Perhaps they should look at it from Ten Hag’s side.
      And perhaps he will soon be the one wondering ‘what’s the point in being here?’ The one thinking ‘this really isn’t what I was sold or told’.
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      When Ten Hag arrived, it was with a reputation as one of Europe’s most innovative and sought-after young managers.
      A perfectionist; a builder of dynasties; a man whose footballing ethos was the perfect match for a place which demanded not only success but that it came in style.
      Shirkers would be shunted. It was his way or the highway. In short, the perfect choice to plan the Red revolution.
      No figures were mentioned publicly but obviously he’d have been promised money to do it. He’d have been assured those above would back him to the hilt.
      Only the reality hasn’t quite been like that. Hasn’t been anything like that, really. The fact United have become a transfer-window comedy show is proof.
      Yes, they gave him the dough for Lisandro Martinez, who has got off to the sort of start which makes even Garry Birtles’ all those years ago look jet-propelled.
      But that aside, the pursuit of Frenkie de Jong was embarrassing. If, indeed, he was genuinely top of Ten Hag’s wanted list… not the foregone conclusion you may think, by the way.
      Then, when United finally accept he isn’t coming, Casemiro suddenly emerges as the holding midfielder to solve the crisis. And a deal is done in the blink of an eye.
      Brilliant business or Real Madrid’s men in suits realising they’ve won the lottery yet again? And United have once more paid for the ticket.
      The joke in Madrid is they don’t put the bins out at the Bernabeu but wait for someone at Old Trafford to collect them. While paying through the nose to do so.
      Last year it was Raphael Varane. Before him Angel di Maria. Now it’s a 30-year-old Brazilian who Real were so keen to keep that Carlo Ancelotti announced he was off before the deal was done.
      Was he a name Ten Hag had  presented to Richard Arnold, John Murtough and the rest of the transfer “gurus” as a must-have?
      Or was he presented the other way as a fait accompli? A ‘here’s what we’ve bought you Erik’ signing? There are certainly murmurs suggesting so.
      Ten Hag may have been told he’d be masterminding a bright new dawn but he’s walked into mayhem. A club that can’t deliver on its promises.
      There is little sympathy around for the manager. There rarely is. But we’ll certainly never know how good he is working with this failing squad.
      So who could blame Ten Hag  if he started thinking of how to save his own skin, before his own reputation goes the same way as so many United players’.
      Because once that takes a hammering, it’s a hell of a long road back. Just ask David Moyes, the man who took over Sir Alex Ferguson’s sliding squad.
      Can Ten Hag afford similar damage to his own standing? Does he really want to take that risk? It’s one thing cocking it up yourself but others doing it for you is totally  different.
      Dragging United back to the top was never going to be easy. But  trying to do so with one hand tied behind your back turns a difficult job into an impossible one.
      Clearly there’s no way Ten Hag will say ‘screw this for a game of soldiers’ just yet… but, unless things change, it might not be as far away as you’d think.

      PLAYERS PLEASE, SAYS SKY
      Graeme Souness left a few at Sky with red faces last weekCredit: Sky Sports
      THERE are red faces aplenty at Sky right now — and it’s nothing to do with Graeme Souness.
      A directive has gone out warning commentators and pundits they must now refer to the star performer as the player of the match.
      In these days of everyone being offended by everything — Souness discovered how ridiculous that’s got last   week — it’s all very righteous, of course.
      But it would have made more sense if the broadcaster had made that decision BEFORE they’d already commissioned a load of trophies with man of the match on them!
      The ludicrous over- reaction to Souey’s “it’s a man’s game” comment raised an interesting double standards argument, too, even within the organisation.
      Like why the Women’s Super League isn’t just the Super League. And the same for the Women’s World Cup. There does seem to be a very flexible approach to many things.
      And for two months anyone connected with golf was being asked for their thoughts on the LIV “mercenaries” taking the Saudi riyal.
      Yet it all went quiet when a host of big shots headed to Jeddah for a PPV boxing match.

      COP THAT, RONALDO
      CONGRATULATIONS to Merseyside Police for their relentless pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo.
      He’s been issued with a caution after admitting knocking a phone from the hand of a young autistic Everton fan after Manchester United lost in April.
      If only they had as much success finding anyone who invaded the Goodison pitch after the Crystal Palace game the following month.
      Or the Liverpool fans who smashed up the Manchester City coach before their Champions League fixture at Anfield before that.
      Mind you, it’s not as though they had TV  pictures and photos plastered all over social media to help them is it? Oh, wait…
      Read More on The Sun
       SPURS scramble a point at Chelsea and it’s apparently all down to the never-say-die attitude instilled by Antonio Conte.
      That wouldn’t have happened in the past, we were told.
      I must have imagined that three-goal fightback against Ajax to reach the Champions League final. I’m sure Mauricio Pochettino didn’t. More