Fulham manager Martin Jol has revealed that he declined to tell new signing Bryan Ruiz that he was ineligible to play in Europe this season, as he felt it could hurt the London side’s chances of landing the attacker.

The Costa Rican joined the Craven Cottage outfit from Dutch side Twente in the recently closed transfer window, and ironically Fulham have been drawn in the same group as Ruiz’s former employers, with the teams going face-to-face on Thursday night.

The £10.6 million signing will not feature however, as he is ineligible; Ruiz featured in Twente’s Champions League qualifier against Benfica, and will now have to watch the game from the sidelines.

The former Tottenham and Ajax coach admits that he may have kept the knowledge of Ruiz missing out under his hat.

“If he’d known before it maybe could have been a problem. I don’t agree with this rule. I’d like all my players to be available. Maybe if they were playing in the same competition it would be OK , but this is a different competition,” he told The Daily Mail.

Ruiz will now need to make do with English domestic football, and made a slow debut against Blackburn last weekend.

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Niall Quinn has backed Sunderland boss Steve Bruce to turn the club’s poor start to the campaign around, and has promised to give the manager time to salvage The Black Cats’ season.

The Irishman has stepped down as the Wearside outfit’s chairman to take on a new role as head of international development, and has been replaced by former owner Ellis Short.

The changing of roles will not threaten Bruce’s job however, quite the opposite.

“Steve is not isolated by this – it’s the exact opposite,” the former striker told The Daily Mail.

“It’s time for him to build a closer relationship with Ellis.

“Steve will get time for this team to gel. There’s another window looming. Unless the situation becomes apocalyptic, and it’s no good worrying about that, Steve will get time.

“For the overall good of the club this is right. I am happy, absolutely. Ellis is happy – he is speaking to the manager today. You’ll find the manager will be happy tonight.

“Ellis will be a great chairman. The beauty of Ellis is that he has a presence. He has authority, he demands serious attention. After three years, he also understands football’s snakes and ladders nature, that it’s not about under-reaction or over-reaction.

“This can be the making of Steve Bruce.  Steve has been in a jumpy world at clubs before, where he read things in the media, but with Ellis he won’t. Ellis is straightforward, a real man, no whispering.

“He’s not an operator. An operator runs with the hares and hunts with the hounds and to an extent I had to do that.

“Ellis is way above that. Don’t expect him to be a media darling. He doesn’t worry what’s said. And he doesn’t need to go out and sell himself because every Sunderland  fan knows what he’s done in the last three years,” Quinn concluded.

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The Stadium of Light side have only won one of their first seven games, and travel to take on Arsenal at the Emirates after the international break.

By Gareth McKnight

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Liverpool defender Daniel Agger has criticised his side’s performance in the 0-0 draw with Swansea at the weekend, and admits his side need to improve if they are to challenge for Champions League qualification.

A toothless showing resulted in stalemate against the newly promoted Welsh team on Saturday, in what has been an inconsistent campaign thus-far for Kenny Dalglish’s men.

The Denmark international feels that the Anfield outfit lacked direction, and need to get better.

“Sometimes we looked like headless chickens running around after the ball,” Agger told The Guardian.

“It is far from good enough. Everyone was angry and disappointed – some more than others – but that is the way it is.

“If we play like this, we won’t do it [qualify for the Champions League].

“We have got to move up a level or two. I won’t say it is not possible, because it is, but it is up to the players. We are the only ones who can make a difference. We definitely have to do a lot better,” the Scandinavian admitted.

Liverpool travel to take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge next Sunday, in what should be a real test to the Merseysiders’ top four aspirations.

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By Gareth McKnight

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Stephane Sessegnon scoring with a minute remaining as Sunderland twice came from behind to claim a well earned point in a 2-2 at home to Aston Villa.

Connor Wickham had earlier scored his first goal for the Black Cats after Stiliyan Petrov had given the visitors the lead before Richard Dunne looked to have snatched victory heading in with five minutes remaining. However it was Sessegnon who had the last laugh scoring for the second consecutive match to secure a share of the spoils. It was a fair result in the end with both sides dominating in spells with Sunderland seeing the best of an entertaining first half. Steve Bruce’s side were searching for back-to-back wins for the first time this season after beating Bolton 2-0 last week. The Wearsiders will have been wary though of Villa who were out for blood after losing at home to Midlands rivals West Brom last week and their intent was clear to see. Alex McLeish has made his side hard to beat and will have been banking on the goals of former Black Cat Darren Bent to shoot down his former side. The England striker received a hostile reception on his first return to Stadium of Light and saw his every touched booed by the red and white support.

He should have opened the scoring on 16 minutes after Gabriel Agbonlahor found him at the back post only for Kieron Richardson to put him off. Sunderland had started well with Sebastian Larsson forcing Shay Given into two saves in the opening six minutes but their dominance came to nothing as Petrov broke the deadlock on 16 minutes. The Bulgarian was given time and space to pull the trigger seeing his 20-yard strike fly past Simon Mignolet after neat build up involving Agbonlahor and Alan Hutton. Sunderland stepped up their game after that and 18-year-old Wickham threatened for the first time in the 27th minute seeing his header from a Larsson corner cleared off the line by Steven Warnock. The former Ipswich hit man wasn’t to be denied though and he opened his account in red and white latching onto a Sessegnon through ball holding off a legion of Villa defenders before firing across Given and into the bottom corner.

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The second half saw Bruce lose keeper Mignolet after being caught in the face by Emile Heskey with Kieron Westwood making his Premier League debut. He made himself immensely popular in 73rd minute denying Bent from putting Villa back in front. He was beaten five minutes from time though as Dunne headed home Petrovs free kick and with time running nerves began to jangle in the stands. They were settled though as Sessegnon rose highest in the Villa penalty area to head home Larsson’s wonderful free kick delivery to rescue a vital point for the Black Cats.

This weekend’s Premier League games,

Saw the return to form of some household names,

Rooney and Nani destroy big Mick’s men,

Not as much success as Little Mix then,

Away from X Factor and back to the action,

O’Neill’s return brought quite the reaction,

One goal down with minutes to spare,

Two quick strikes lay Rovers troubles bare,

Suarez scores to end his drought,

Villa win away to leave Coyle in doubt,

Four goal Norwich get past the Toon,

Their survival chances are still in tune,

Swansea’s hero is Michel Vorm,

Wigan meanwhile find some form,

A flash of brilliance from Robin van Persie,

The deadly Dutchman shows no mercy,

Spurs whinge and moan about Chris Foy,

Stoke on the other hand full of joy,

So for this weekend, just one game left,

Will Mancini leave Chelsea bereft?

Goal of the Weekend

It was appropriate on the weekend Arsenal celebrated their 125th anniversary, Robin van Persie scored such a special goal. Alex Song chipped the ball towards the Dutch forward who let the ball fly across his body before volleying accurately into the corner. The technique displayed by van Persie was effortless and his goal saw the Gunners move into the top four for the first time this season. As long as he keeps fit, it might not be the last time either.

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Team of the Weekend

Manchester United may have suffered a crushing defeat to Basle on Wednesday night but they did what sides of Alex Ferguson tend to do which is bounce back in a strong manner. Wolves may not be the strongest outfit in the Premier League but United turned in a convincing performance nevertheless. What’s more, it was crucial Wayne Rooney was back on the score sheet having gone without a goal in the Premier League since the 18th September.

Player of the Weekend

Whilst there has been plenty of attacking flair this season, you have to appreciate the players who prevent it from time to time. Michel Vorm certainly comes under this category. Swansea City supporters will testify what a terrific signing he’s been for them in their inaugural Premier League season.

On Saturday, he made a string of terrific saves against Fulham which culminated in his second penalty save of the season as Vorm denied Clint Dempsey from the spot. He built a reputation in Holland on his ability at denying players from 12 yards and the man known as “the Penalty Killer” has a growing reputation as a top stopper in England.

Miss/Save of the Weekend

This one depends on your point of view but the outcome seemed certain when the ball fell to Kieran Richardson a matter of yards away from goal. Not many would have counted on Paul Robinson though pulling off a spectacular stop. In the context of the game, it didn’t end up mattering as Robinson could do nothing about Sunderland’s two spectacular strikes gave him no chance. Nevertheless, was it a terrible miss or a great save? Hmm…

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After months of debate about the idiotic Argentinian, January is here and Carlos Tevez can be sold by Manchester City. The daily discussion of where is he, what’s he doing and where will he go should finally come to an end by shipping him off to the next unfortunate owners.

Watching him strolling through airports and relaxing in his homeland for the past two months while still collecting his reported £250,000 wages has made me and many other football fans sick. Even Neil Warnock became popular for a moment when he said ““the sooner he leaves the country, the better. Within a few months he’ll be kissing another badge.” Couldn’t put it better myself.

He has been in England six seasons (if you bother to count this one) and when he has decided to play he is one of the best players that the Premier League has had the pleasure to witness. When he is in the right mood he will chase down defenders, run for the whole 90 minutes and probably get a goal or two. But the problem has been that he is very reluctant to put in a shift.

West Ham fans are the only people that may still like Tevez and that speaks volumes. If he hadn’t scored the goal to keep them in the top-flight they would probably hate him as well. After all, he jumped ship as soon as he could and just by being at Upton Park he almost got them relegated.

Since leaving the Hammers he has played for both sides of Manchester and the only thing that United and City fans can both agree on is their hatred of the 27-year-old. Despite cheering with delight in 2009 when they were able to swipe him from under the noses of their big red rivals, allowing them to create the infamous ‘Welcome to Manchester’ billboard, fans of the Citizens now realise that their showpiece signing was nothing more than a money-grabber, prepared to sell himself to the highest bidder. During his time in the North West he will have collected millions in wages but he gets bored very easily and goes off in search of his next bumper pay day.

AC Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf has already shrugged off speculation that Tevez could join the Rossoneri because of this. He said: “Looking back at his career, his agents and every move he has ever made, I think Tevez will go where they can promise him the most money.

“Milan would be the first time in his life that he has chosen a club for his career rather than the money. We’ll see what happens.”

Loyalty, like most other English words, is not in his vocabulary and that might explain why his career lacks of it. He hasn’t spent more than three seasons at any club since he turned professional and that doesn’t look like changing. On the pitch he will put in a big performance and will appear to be playing for the club but in reality he owns one of football’s biggest egos and expects to be the most important person in the team. He is not prepared to be part of the squad and sit on the bench. Following the sensational arrival of Sergio Aguero for this season there was no space for another Argentinian in the starting XI and because of Tevez’s previous attempts to leave there was no chance of him being first choice. When he was given his chance he wasted it, like his awful penalty against Wigan in September. It was no surprise that he was left on the bench but his own sense of self-importance blurred the fact that he was underperforming and so it led to the defining moment of his career, the Madness in Munich.

That one night showed off his character more than anything else. Rather than keeping his feelings under wraps and discussing them with his boss in private he preferred to make a public statement of his thoughts. He tried to stir up trouble for Roberto Mancini, to knock him out of his stride and get him sacked but it backfired spectacularly with the club and fans backing their manager. At the same time he caused issues for his team-mates who were forced into a corner over which side of the line they came down on. Under particular pressure was Pablo Zabaleta who had played his part in keeping El Apache at the club a year ago. The defender was one of the few who could talk to Tevez because of the striker’s unwillingness to learn English and was sat next to him on the bench that night. Obviously he followed everybody else and backed the manager but his friend’s petulance could have sent tremors through Eastlands.

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All of these are magnificent reasons to say bye but the icing on the cake will be that Tevez’s departure should also mean the league is rid of one of football’s most hated people ever, Kia Joorabchian. The Iranian-born businessman is not registered as a football agent but has managed to worm his way into the game through suspect ‘third-party’ ownership deals and has been ‘advisor’ to his prized asset for a number of years. This deal caused controversy when he joined West Ham in 2006 and since then he’s been spotted infesting Manchester City’s boardroom and was linked to Chelsea’s Ramires before he came to Stamford Bridge. Getting him out of the country and away from football would be the biggest bonus of the transfer window.

Tevez’s continued dissent has meant that Man City’s mega-rich owners would rather see the Argentina international playing golf somewhere in Buenos Aires than at the training ground but this feeling is spreading across the rest of the game. Earlier in the season he was linked with a move to Corinthians but they pulled out after balking at his £40 million price tag and since his inexplicable actions both Milan clubs, Paris Saint Germain and Tottenham have been rumoured to be interested. City only want to sell the Argentine but so far they have received three loan bids, one from AC Milan, one from West Ham and another from Irish second division side Limavady. These bids are not what the club would have expected and are definitely not what they want but potential suitors are nervous about splashing out on such a temperamental player. If Fernando Torres is worth £50 million then it is not an overinflated fee but nobody will want to spend so much money on a player who may not fit into the team, will probably cause problems in the not too distant future and will need to be the most important person there.

The whole Carlos Tevez saga needs to come to an end this month because we are all growing thin of it. I don’t want to see another image of him playing golf and I don’t want any more speculation about which club he will turn up at. Mancini said he wants it sorted in the next ten days and I hope that happens so we can all get back to our lives without him.

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Are you sick of hearing about Carlos Tevez or do you want him at your club? Comment below or follow me on Twitter @jrobbins1991.

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The variation in chants and heckles from Premier League grounds ranges from, as any fan knows, the mildly amusing to the hugely embarrassing; and as David James recently claimed that players are a lot more affected than many fans know we have to ask ourselves: have we let the level of abuse get out of hand? When people talk about the violence in football in the seventies and eighties they talk about it as though contemporary football is perfect. In twenty years time we may look back at today’s football and feel equally ashamed at some of the lesser derivatives of the sport. By that I mean the abuse from the fans, the chanting, the racism and the homophobia that still rears its ugly head.

Writing for The Guardian, David James said:

“People may be surprised to hear just how much the crowd affect players. From the reprehensible, such as the alleged racist abuse Tom Adeyemi suffered during the recent FA Cup tie at Anfield, to the bog standard, “you’re rubbish”, it has been a topic of conversation among players at every club I have played for.”

You only need look at Thierry Henry’s reaction after the Swansea game yesterday, when the Arsenal team were getting some stick from a section of the Arsenal fans, to see evidence of what James says. For a player who has had such a varied career and has survived incidents such as the handball against Ireland you would imagine that he would now be immune to such comments, apparently not though. Arsenal’s record goal scorer appeared incensed at the abuse from his own support; whilst that abuse was arguably warranted due to the lackadaisical performance Henry’s reaction does raise the other issue with negative chanting, which is that under no circumstances is it constructive.

There was an interesting interview by BBC Sport with Emmanuel Adebayor whilst he was at Real Madrid last year in which he talked about his time on the wrong side of chants from both Tottenham and Arsenal fans. His approach was philosophical in that he claimed to understand that, no matter how tailored the abuse seemed, it was never personal. With regards to the abuse he had received from Spurs fans in the Champions League quarter-final whilst playing for the Spanish giants he said:

“I was supposed to sign for Tottenham but everything went and Madrid came in. It is bad because people have to realise that we are footballers. Today we play for this club, tomorrow we may end up playing for them. So what about if I’m wearing Tottenham’s shirt tomorrow? As their player, are they going to encourage me or are they still going to sing that song?”

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Arguably the only way for a player that has received as much ill-treatment as Adebayor has over the years to avoid a grave sense of disillusionment with football is to brush off incidents with opposing fans, but does that excuse it? Do we want footballers to be in a position where they have to convince themselves that fans don’t really believe what they sing? Fans argue that being thick skinned is just part of the job for footballers who are paid so highly, and effectively paid by the fans, but does that mean that being vocally offensive towards players you dislike is part of the ‘job’ of being a fan? To complain about poor performances or Judas-like actions from players is one thing but genuine abuse inspired by a misplaced sense of hatred is another. Just because fans pay for their tickets it doesn’t give them a carte blanche. If you disliked the food at a restaurant you might complain but you wouldn’t take out that dissatisfaction by telling you waiter or waitress that you had doubts as to the sexual health of their mother. It sounds ridiculous but that is the kind of ‘jibe’ that players like Adebayor and Sol Campbell have had to deal with.

David James talked about a match against West Ham whilst playing for Aston Villa, he said:

“Around that time I had been in a car accident where the other driver had died. The West Ham fans called me a ‘murderer’. It was the most sickening thing to listen to. Standing in goal that day I literally felt physically disgusted. To make banter out of such a thing deeply inappropriate for everyone involved, not least the family of the deceased. Ordinarily I would ignore any kind of taunts but in that instance I had to let my disapproval be known.”

Clearly the vast majority does not exhibit this kind of behaviour, but that does not mean that the ‘innocent’ fans do not have a role to play in combating the ‘guilty’ sections of fans. Fans chant what they think is socially acceptable. The problem is that in football grounds it appears that almost anything is socially acceptable. Fans will not stop singing those kinds of, frankly sick, chants just by it being condemned in the media. It needs to be the fan base as a whole that stamps that behaviour out. We cannot expect the authorities to be able to identify that kind of behaviour in such large crowds, nor can we expect silent and passive disapproval to stop this culture. Confronting wildly offensive, idiotic and bigoted fans might not seem an attractive prospect but you can bet that the biggest dissuading factor for such fans would be humiliation in front of their peers. If a fan starts singing a song that is then condemned by all those around them, they’ll think twice before doing it again. This behaviour cannot be stopped overnight, but fans can start preventing it today.

For more news and views follow me on Twitter @H_Mackay

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Eleven years ago this week,  February 20th 2001 to be precise,struggling first division Tranmere played host to Premier League outfit Southampton in the fifth round of the FA cup.

This game turned out to be one of the most memorable FA cup games in years gone by.

Already renowned giant killers Rovers were searching for more cup shocks. The previous year saw the super whites make the League Cup final, then know as the Worthington Cup final losing 2-1 to Leicester City in a closely-fought final.

For myself, the day was very memorable. Living in Coventry, we had to travel up on the day of the game. I remember my dad dragging me out of school early. Lads in my class were telling me how we were to get battered; a rise smile hit my face as I left school.

We had already played Southampton at the Dell and clung onto a 0-0 draw and the buzz leading up to the game was brilliant.

The first half was one for Rovers players and fans to forget. By half time, Rovers were three nil down and didn’t look half the team they had shown in the previous rounds. I remember aged seven asking my dad to go home half time. He replied “Just enjoy watching a Premier League team.” Goals from Hassan Kachloul, Jo Tessem and Dean Richards gave manager John Aldridge enough fire to fuel a team talk at half time.

The second half was one that Rovers fans will never, ever forget. Three quick goals from Paul Rideout brought the game back level at 3-3 and a fourth was added by Stuart Barlow. In that second half, the Rovers players showed tremendous courage and determination.

All night the Rovers fans created an atmosphere which was absolutely amazing and when the fourth and winning goal hit the back of the net, the KOP erupted. The scenes of jubilance were seen all over the ground, while the top-flight Southampton players and fans looked completely shell-shocked.

I will never forget John Aldridge’s celebration as he ran out of his technical area to punch the air in celebration. In contrast, Glenn Hoddle’s face looked like something out of a horror movie. He could not believe his team had let a three goal lead slip.

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As the final whistle went, Prenton Park went into pandemonium again with fans piling onto the pitch. Rovers fans had witnessed probably the most finest comeback this country had ever seen and although we were to crash out of the cup in the quarter final against Liverpool, it was certainly a moment never to forget for Tranmere supporters.

By Tranmere blogger James Formstone

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Kenny Dalglish has stressed that his Liverpool players must try to be remembered for a strong Wembley performance when they take on Cardiff in the Carling Cup final on Sunday.

The Reds are heavily fancied, but the Anfield club’s boss has urged his men to follow in the footsteps of generations past who were successful when it mattered most.

“Wembley was a place we visited pretty regularly and everybody at the football club is trying to get back a bit closer to those days,” he confessed to Mirror Football.

“This football club wants to be challenging more often than it has been in the past. We want to be closer that we have been recently, when we have not been a contender for many of the competitions, certainly the domestic ones.

“I don’t really have too many memories of Wembley. I just cannae remember! I don’t have any real definitive memory other than the ‘89 Cup Final because of what it meant to so many other people in the city.

“But the thing is, even though it’s stating the obvious, the best result of any final is obviously when you win it. That’s what we want to do now – everybody wants to make it more successful and making being contenders for trophies more permanent than what it has been,” he concluded.

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By Gareth McKnight

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Scouting in football can be a risky business, and Mick McCarthy’s TV appearance at the weekend reminded me of this. During Sunday’s edition of Goals on Sunday, the former gaffer explained how his scouts at the club had spent time looking at young Irish winger James McClean – who has become a vital part of Sunderland’s team in recent months. However, after considering the options available, McCarthy and his team opted to sign the much-senior Stephen Hunt instead – a decision which has since been questioned by fans.

But let’s be honest, scouting isn’t all that easy. We’ve all sat on Football Manager at some point screaming at the screen after shelling out tens of millions on a player dubbed a ‘wonderkid’ or ‘the next Ryan Giggs’ – only for them to turn into the next Tomasz Frankowski instead. There are tens of thousands of players in the world, and you’re obviously going to miss the odd one.

We know this all too well at Wolves, having opted out of signing a number of talents over the years. The names that immediately come to mind are Maris Verpakovskis (Latvian international striker, went on to play in the Champions League) and goalkeeper Antti Niemi (became an established Premier League player). Alongside the decision not to sign new players, there are also the ones we let go – Elliott Bennett and Keith Andrews just to name a couple.

But my point is this. I argue that the scouting system at Molineux has to be one of the best in the country, based on the financial and staffing constraints at the club. We of course don’t have the financial power of Manchester City, or indeed the global knowledge of Arsenal, but we have managed to pick up some fantastic talent to help build a Premier League team. Notably, much of this is down to Mick and his backroom staff.

Let’s look at the evidence. The first one that spring to mind is Michael Kightly, who was picked up for next-to-nothing from the wilderness of non-league. And the reason we were able to beat the competition (including Manchester United) to his signature was our scouts spotted him first. We all know the player Kightly went on to be and, if it had not been for injuries, would have been pushing for an England call.

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Speaking of internationals, Matt Jarvis is another one picked up through the scouting system. Picked up for a relatively cheap price from Gillingham, Jarvis has gone on to become a real fan’s favourite at Molineux and break into the England squad. With the situation the club is in, Jarvis could well be on his way in the summer as bigger clubs circle like vultures. But, if he does go, the club should make a today profit on what they paid several years ago.

Stephen Ward was another bargain basement buy. Fully versatile, playing in pretty much every position for the club, Ward must be regarded as one of the scouting team’s best ever finds. Plucked from the Irish leagues as a striker, Ward is now an establish Premier League full-back and and Irish international. Yes he has struggled for form this season, but nobody can deny his contribution over the last few years.

Karl Henry is another one who joined on the cheap, having been spotted at Stoke by the scouting team. Again, he not only went on to establish himself as a first-team player, but also became the club’s captain – lifting the Championship trophy back in 2009. Kevin Foley also proved a useful signing, with his performances in the promotion year earning him the player of the season award at Molineux.

I could go on. George Elokobi, David Jones, Andy Keogh – while not proving as successful as others, still contributed to the club’s rise in recent years and all cost under £1m each.

And yes, I’ll be the first to admit we have had some howlers in the last few seasons as well. The giant Austrian Stefan Maierhofer turned out to be just an expensive bean pole, while Neill Collins never really established himself as a solid defender. But we’re all allowed the odd mistake aren’t we?

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Competing for players in the tough market place that is the transfer market must be a nightmare for managers. Hunting out the bargains is becoming increasingly difficult nowadays as the bigger clubs expand their networks all over the world. However I remain optimistic about our own network and the talent it is clearly capable of discovering. We may not be the fine art dealers of the footballing world, but there sure is a David Dickinson-feel about the club – and not just for the golden colour.

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