Ethan Hoijord

Phil Denton, interview.

I spoke to Phil Denton, the co-writer of the recently published book ‘100 days’ alongside Micky Mellon. He’s a high school headteacher and the lessons from the people that he spoke to across an interesting two year timespan has certainly helped him improve in his role, he believes that the book will help you in any other life circumstance as well whether that be running an office or a family. We also discussed Tranmere’s promotion chances and Keith Hill’s reign so far.

To start the conversation off, can you tell me a little bit about the experiences that you’ve had with Tranmere? How long have you supported the club?

I started supporting them when I was 8 years old, about 32 years ago, my dad would take me. 

I went to Anfield first, my first Tranmere game was a Friday night under the lights and it was a 1-1 draw. It was a different experience to the one that I had at Anfield, I was next to the pitch and could see the players close up, I loved it. 

All of my family are from Birkenhead, that’s another reason that I opted to support them initially. 

What was the writing process of ‘100 days’ like and how did you get to work alongside Micky Mellon?

Well, I met Micky in the hotel I was staying at when I went to Tranmere’s first game back in League Two. Stevenage away. 

Coincidentally, it was the hotel that the team was staying in also. I went down to the Gym in the morning and Micky came in, we had a great conversation about a range of topics. What it’s like to be a school headteacher, which I am, and what it’s like to be a football manager. We noticed that there were a few similarities and it went from there. He said that we should meet up, to talk about the possibility of writing a book which he had an idea for, we discussed leadership types etc and I was excited to work on the book with him. 

The idea he had was about the first 100 days, so we thought about what themes etc you need to get right etc. 

Micky worked with his contacts, as he knows plenty of football managers such as Sean Dyche from when he used to play for Burnley. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Pep Guardiola, Joe Royle, Mauricio Pochettino when Spurs came to Prenton Park for an Fa Cup tie. 

Then, we spoke to other leaders such as school headteachers so, yeah, it sprung from there really.

How long did it take you to write the book and how did you speak to the football managers that you did? I’ve seen pictures of you and Micky with Sean Dyche and Ole etc.

Micky played with Mick Phelan, we got the chance to speak to Ole via him and that is what they spoke about when Manchester United came to Prenton Park for an FA Cup tie last year. Micky played with Sean Dyche, at Burnley. We also spoke to Shelly Curr, a former Scotland manager. 

It took two years in total, to write the book.

Time well spent?

Yeah, it was brilliant. 

It helped me an awful lot with my role as a headteacher. 

The whole book, really, is how I run my school in St Bede’s in Ormskirk and compared that to managing a football club. 

So, yeah, I enjoyed it. It was interesting.

If you could name a football manager/coach that gave you the best information/insight/help, who would that be and why? Apart from Micky Mellon. Who did you most enjoy talking to?

That’s a tough one! 

They were all equally as good, each one talked about a different subject matter in great detail. 

Sam Allardyce’s insight and information about analytical work was fascinating! Ole Gunnar Solskjaer spoke a lot about being an authentic leader, leading and coaching through excellence. Sean Dyche was really all about different attitudes. Joe Royle, recruitment. Shelly Curr provided a fascinating insight into the different processes that she used at Arsenal and Scotland. David Moyes as well, how he managed to come in and achieve quick wins at West Ham was fascinating too. 

So, really, I got everything from someone and it could all be applied to the job I do. 

If you added all that together, you’d probably have the best person in the world wouldn’t ya! The best leader.

Yeah, you probably would. (laughs) 

I think one of the key things was that they were all themselves, they were all great believers in that they’d have to be themselves and not copy someone else. 

Authenticity?

Yeah, definitely.

The book covers a range of subjects, although it’s mainly about football management. Or is it?

It’s about leadership really, it can be applied to everyday life. You won’t see things about tactics in there, it’s about how football managers survive under pressure and have to get the best out of others. It gives you inspiration and you can apply what you read to everyday life, whether you’re running a family or an office. 

The two best lessons that you’ve learnt that have helped you the most, throughout speaking to others for this book?

Yeah, that’s a good question. 

It’d be authenticity, trust yourself and be yourself, whilst also listening to the others around you. The other one would be, touching on from the listening aspect, is to get good people around you who will help, support and be brutally honest with you in all circumstances. 

If someone is hearing about the book for the first time through our conversation, where can they buy it?

Amazon, Waterstones, WH Smiths .. all the big ones really! It’s everywhere! (laughs) Hopefully, when everything is back to some sort of normality, you’ll be able to see it on the shelves.

Touching on Tranmere, what’s your current thoughts on our promotion chances and Keith Hill?

Hill’s a great manager. I think he’s had a bit of a tough time but his playing style is positive. Everyone’s trying to create and score goals. Any time that they have lost their top goalscorer would struggle, but if we’re in the same position that we are now when Vaughan comes back I think we have a great chance of getting automatic. So, yeah, I think Hill’s doing a great job.

• All money generated from the book goes to the Len Johnrose Trust which raises funds and awareness of MND, motor neurone disease, whilst giving a better life to Len Johnrose himself who was diagnosed with the illness four years ago.

‘The first 100 days’ is available to purchase now, pretty much everywhere! For the price of £10.

Phill Moss interview – 3MIAB.

The new edition of Tranmere Rovers fanzine 3MIAB has recently been published, to mark Tranmere’s achievements of getting to the Papa John’s Trophy Final. The last edition was published in 1991, thus I spoke to author Phill Moss to understand why he thought now was the right time to put pen to paper again before speaking to him about a range of other Rovers related topics.

To start the conversation off, can you tell me a little bit about yourself and the other writers of the fanzine. You’re obviously a Tranmere fan but what were your first experiences with the club and when did you first want to start to write about them?

I started off, religiously, following Rovers when I joined the glory bandwagon in 1989/90 and that was the first proper full season I went to Prenton Park. 

We obviously had some fantastic players, who got us to the Leyland DAF Final but unfortunately we lost to Notts County in the Play Off final. That was the start of a magical journey, looking back as we had to do considering it was thirty years since we played in the Trophy final. Looking back, we were spoiled rotten in the terms of our squad quality and the style of football that we played. 

I don’t want to see that we’ll never see that again as I hope we do but they were the glory days. 

At the time, there was a fanzine called Friday Night Fever which was written by Nigel Adderly. When that disappeared, myself and a group of friends decided that we should try and fill the gap and that’s how it started really. 

3MIAB came out in the March of 1991, we debuted against Shrewsbury away .. a game that we won 1-0!

Why did you want to go into the process of writing another one, thirty years on from the previous and was it an enjoyable process?

I guess that being in Lockdown helped. 

It was the morning after we had beaten Oxford United and I had this crazy idea to write another edition. 

I still have all of the copies and everything. I fished them out and had a little look at what I had been writing about last time. 

The writing process took up some time and gave the writers a chance to talk about what they had been up to in the past 20/30 years. I’ve met some fantastic people through Tranmere, especially when you go to away games. 

So, I guess we wanted to write another edition to see what the reaction was like whilst jogging the memory .. who knows in terms of the future! 

What was it like to actually put pen to paper, to publish your work and distribute the pieces? How long did it all take?

When we used to write them we used to do it between 2 weeks – 6 months, that was our schedule and we’d identify the home games from the fixture list that we’d want to launch each edition at. 

In those days, printing was completely different to it is now! It was basically just photocopied at the print shop, it certainly wasn’t in full colour throughout those days but this one, yeah, it germinated very quickly. 

It had to be digital. I wanted to get it out before the final so there wasn’t a lot of time available and I had a little debate of whether it was worth writing it or not. 

I had some ideas and people that I could contact, it was looking like an 80 page fanzine! However, I had plenty of time on my hands and although there were some nights where I’d be staying up to 2am etc to try and get stuff done. 

Not only was I writing it, I was typesetting it. I was having to put it into the right format, whilst proofreading it at the same time. It took a lot of effort but I found it really enjoyable. 

I’d get the same buzz as thirty years ago when there was a knock on the door, I’d open it and it was the printers. You’d feel proud and think .. hey, I’ve actually created this! 

I just wanted to see what reaction it was going to get. The feedback has been quite interesting, some people have praised plenty of different articles. The one that I particularly like the most, no one has mentioned it yet! 

Do you think that you are going to publish another edition?

I don’t know. 

The difficulty is that I moved away from the Wirral 20 odd years ago, when I first moved down to the South East I kept my Season Ticket for the Town Paddock and I’d travel back quite often. However, work became too demanding and then the cost of travel etc increased. The other people that have contributed to this issue, whom I know, don’t live on the Wirral so it’s quite a weird disconnect. 

Also, I suppose because of the lockdown it was quite easy to do this one as I’ve been able to watch more Tranmere games on iFollow this season than I have probably watched in the last 5-10 years. 

From that point of view, I got to know the squad of players better than others but not to the extent that I knew them in the 1990s. 

I used to go to the reserve games at PP on the Wednesday afternoons then go into the Clipper for a couple of pints with them afterwards, that was what we used to do. Obviously, that doesn’t happen anymore. So whether we write another or not, I don’t know, it’s a lot of work to put in. 

In terms of distribution, I thought that more people would have opted for the digital copy than the printed version but that hasn’t been the case which is nice to see. 

The guy in my local post office, we’re now good friends and we’ve said we will go for a beer when possible as we see each other that much!

If next season, when everyone goes back to the game and the tent’s open, I’ll reevaluate whether it is worthwhile and I’ll come up and sell the fanzines in the tent. I’ll have to wait and see. 

However, I am thinking of an end of season issue. 

I’ve read and thoroughly enjoyed the latest edition of 3MIAB. However, if people are finding out about the fanzine through our conversation how can they get themselves a copy?

I’m still taking orders, there’s a few copies of the printed version left but when they’ve gone they’ve gone. However, the digital version will remain available. If people go to my very oddly named website, ‘…’ they’ll be able to fill in the order form before getting a confirmation email and we’ll sort out the payment on the next section. Paypal, bank transfer etc and then I’ll stick it in the post. 

Talking about Tranmere now.  What’s your current take on Keith Hill and our chance of promotion?

I wrote, previously, on Twitter that if we played every game like we did against Sunderland in the Final that we’d win the league. 

Everyone knows that we’re missing Vaughan, but I don’t think that Hill has recruited and put the right people on the pitch to cover his loss. Nugent isn’t the answer, unfortunately. He’s had chances to score, like the header which he should have had on the weekend but he hasn’t taken them and then they were up the other end unmarked and got the equaliser. 

You look at the momentum that Bolton has, they have the sort of form that you need this time of year. We don’t have it at the moment and there are certain players who I’m not sure why they aren’t playing. Danny Lloyd .. Corey Blackett-Taylor, we can’t score at the moment so where are there chances? They don’t seem to get them and I’m not too sure what Lloyd has done wrong. He comes on late on and is expected to get the winner. 

We’re solid at the back, although Davies’ injury isn’t helpful. It’s just up top that we’ve got to get it right now with some massive games coming up across the Easter weekend. 

If we keep on getting 4points out of an available 6 then we should get automatic. Our current form isn’t doing us any favours. 

On Friday we need to give chances to players who haven’t been granted them and we need to do something which we normally don’t, turn up on television and win. 

Thinking of the periods between the final edition, 1991 and the latest one. Who do you think is the best manager that we had? In my eyes, I’d go for Mellon due to the sense of unity and the promotions.

You’ve got to give kudos to John Aldridge, it can’t have been easy for him to take over from Johnny King. To go from player to player/manager is tough and he got us to our one and only major cup final, we were unlucky that day to not beat Leicester City. The following seasons, we had them ridiculous games against Everton and Southampton in the FA Cup but he walked just before the Easter weekend and that was probably so he didn’t have relegation on his CV.

Yeah, I’d go for Mellon. He came into a club that had been run to the ground and what he did to get us to three play off finals and for the way he galvanised the team and helped the fans fall back in love with what they were seeing. The whole atmosphere of the club changed so I’d go for him. 

The final question, I’m talking to Phil Denton later about his recently published book ‘100 days’. As an author yourself, is his work something that you will be looking forward to reading?

I’ll definitely get hold of it. 

Phil has very graciously got my fanzine and said some very nice things about it. I love the parallels of ‘100 days’ between politics and football management as I believe that’s really interesting, the first few months can make a change into what you’re doing in a position of power. 

So, it’s an interesting topic and context to explore and I’ll look forward to reading it. 

Thank you very much for your time Phil, 

No worries Ethan, my pleasure!

‘Meeting the opposition’ – Cheltenham Town F.C

Ahead of the televised League Two fixture on Good Friday between Cheltenham Town and Tranmere Rovers, I discussed all of the Robins on and off field subject matters with supporter @chxrlie67 who also gave his pre-match thoughts.

How long have you been a Cheltenham Town supporter and when/how did you first come across the club? 

I’ve been a fan for as long as I can remember (14/15 years), they’re my local club and my dad used to go all the time so I was always going to go along to games with him and just been going ever since.

Highest and lowest points across that time?

Lowest point was definitely relegation into the national league, awful season with some dreadful players and overall, just a very low point for the club, could add playoff defeat to that when we played Crewe. The highest points for me would have to be trips to stadiums like White Hart Lane and the Boleyn alongside the national league winning season where we had one of my favourite teams I’ve seen us have and won the league with 100+ points.

Random fact about the club?

We conceded the world’s longest goal in a competitive match (Tom King’s goal kick for Newport) went 96.01m.

What were your expectations going into the season and what are they now that the campaign’s coming to an end?

I would have said with the squad we have and how some of the other squads are looking probably top 3 with playoffs at a minimum. I would say we’re still on track for it and have done well not to fall off it this season, like teams like Colchester have done.

Michael Duff is manager of the Robins and has been since 2018. Thoughts on him?

He’s a really good manager, for me probably the best in the league. Transformed us around from guaranteed relegation three seasons ago to challenging for automatics. The team plays some good football and has a good recruitment team with him. I can see him managing much higher than this level in the future.

Who are Cheltenham Town’s owners and what are your thoughts on them?

Andy Wilcox is the current owner and has done well with us so far. Been in for around 3 years as chairman, in his first 4 games as chairman he sacked Gary Johnson and then appointed Michael Duff so it shows that he wants success and has definitely backed Duff for it with some of the players we’ve managed to sign.

Your danger men?

I would definitely say Sam Smith, was with you earlier in the season but came in and been very good. Can hold the ball up, pass well and rarely loses it, massive step up to what we had before he was here and hopefully, he can continue his form into Friday’s game.

The last time the two clubs came head-to-head was September last year, Duff’s men ran out 3-0 winners. Thoughts on that game?

Definitely up there with one of our best performances of the season. Just after losing to Morecambe, I wasn’t sure what to expect but after playing like that gave everyone a bit more confidence and in the end was a very convincing away performance.

How do you see the game panning out? (Score prediction etc)

It’ll be an interesting game, we usually respond well after defeats so hopefully we can continue that. It’ll definitely be a tough game but I think we can just about edge it 1-0 and I’ll go Sam Smith to score against his former club.

What starting eleven do you think Duff will select?

I can’t see it being very different to the side that played against Morecambe thus it’ll be something similar to this.

Griffiths – Blair – Long – Tozer – Freestone – Hussey – Wright – Thomas – Sercombe – May – Smith.

Thoughts on Tranmere? The club in general and why you think they’ll pose a greater 

threat this time round than last time (If you do).

They’re a big club for this level and seemed to be unlucky to be relegated from league one last year. Usually, good games when we play so I can see it being another good game. Definitely will be more of a threat than the side that played us earlier in the season, I’m sure.

Thoughts on Cheltenham’s winter transfer business?

It was very hit and miss. We made three signings overall which all came late in the window after missing out on several targets. Callum Wright and Sam Smith have both been very good additions adding something we very much needed but the signing of Indiana Vassilev from Villa has failed to contribute much to us throughout his time being here. We seem to still be lacking a goal scorer and an experienced midfielder, I’d give it a 6/10 rating.

Jonny Smith is a man that has played for both clubs, a Tranmere loanee throughout the 2018/19 campaign and helped fire the Whites to promotion. He was also a loanee at Cheltenham Town, although he played a significant amount less for the Robins. The 23-year-old is now at Burton Albion. What are your thoughts on him as a player and how far do you think he can go?

I can’t say that I’m a massive fan and I’m not sure he is a massive fan of us either. When he scored against us at Prenton Park, he came over and shushed the away fans which was a bit strange considering he didn’t score but no doubt he’s a decent player who did well with Oldham especially so reckon he is probably at his level now in league one.

Reading academy graduate Sam Smith struggled during his time at Tranmere. However, he has found his feet and his goalscoring boots whilst playing for the Robins and may pose the Rovers defence a question or two on Good Friday.

The WSL will be broadcasted by Sky Sports from 2021 to 2024, hopefully this is a catalyst for future improvement and change.

Recently, Sky Sports have announced that they will broadcast the WSL (Women’s Super League) from the 2021/22 season. ‘Sky sports will show at least 35 WSL games exclusively live; covering the next three seasons from September 2021 and the league will be added to Sky Sports’ flagship offerings’. In the present moment, this particular league can be accessed by viewers on The FA Player, BT Sport and the BBC Red Button. Thus, with the addition of Sky Sports more interest will be placed on the women’s game and this is very beneficial in making the game increase in its diversity. This deal has cost £7-8m, money well spent in my eyes.

What is the WSL?

The WSL (Women’s super league) is the highest football league of the women’s game. It was established in 2010, by the FA and currently holds 12 teams. It took time for this division to grow, after taking over from the Women’s Premier League National Division, as there were initially only eight teams involved with no relegation/promotion system put in place. Also, there was a difference in when the fixtures ran in comparison to the men’s game. The WSL initially only operated through March until October, completely discarding the winter football season. This changed, to suit what was traditional prior to 2011, and the league was played through September until May from 2017-18. A promotion and relegation system is now in play and the level of quality seen has improved also, with Arsenal and Chelsea being awarded with 3 titles each thus far. 

The best WSL grounds:

As the quality and playing systems have improved, so has the facilities and talent on show. All talent is aided by top coaches and managers, which certainly leaves something to look out for if you’re planning on watching a WSL game. 

The biggest ground used for this division is Reading’s as the women’s team play at Reading’s stadium, the Madjeski which holds 24,161. Another professional stadium is used as Villa play at Walsall’s Bescot Stadium, holding 11,000. There are plenty of other men’s grounds which are put to use however the majority are non-league, such as Arsenal’s as Boreham Wood’s ground is used. With the growth of the women’s game, the WSL being broadcasted by Sky Sports etc, hopefully the game generates more supporters and people who are interested in the future the attendances will grow etc. 

The best WSL managers:

Recently, AFC Wimbledon sacked their manager. There were growing rumours that Chelsea’s Emma Hayes would take over at Kingsmeadow, people said that this would be great as she would become the first female gaffer in the men’s game. Others criticised, saying that she wouldn’t be able to hold the players interest. I disagree with this as she has played a great part in the WSL Club with 3 titles to their name. However, we will never know the true outcome as she shut all rumours down stating that her team had world class talent who she loved coaching and wanted to stay in the role. 

Other WSL managers include Brighton’s Hope Powell, who managed the England women’s team for 15 years between 1998 and 2013, and Manchester United’s Casey Stoney.

The best WSL players:

There will be great talent on display on Sky Sports and other broadcasting services. However, one player that I’ll be intrigued and excited with seeing is Arsenal’s forward Vivianne Miedema who signed for the Gunners from Bayern Munich in 2017. She’s 24 and has scored 56 goals in 61 games in her time in North London so far. It isn’t just up top that there is quality in the women’s game, though, Manchester City’s goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck was the best performing shot stopper across 2020 with the use of Quantitative data analysis. Arsenal’s Manuela Zinsberger follows her in second, with a ‘Carteret rating’ of 215.4. England captain Steph Houghton also competes in the WSL, for Manchester City.

I thought it would give this write up an extra edge if I spoke to two women who are invested in the sport, whether that be the women’s game or not. It just adds to the meaning that football is a game for everyone. 

Those interviews can be found by clicking the links below.

Cleopatra Nketiah interview.

Trisha Marie interview.

Thank you very much for reading,

Whether you look forward to watching more of the WSL or not I hope this article and the interviews attached have made you more informed about the women’s game,

Ethan Hoijord.

Trisha Marie.

I spoke to long-serving Tranmere Rovers supporter, Trisha Marie about the women’s game and all subject matters that relate to it. She has been a fan for many years and loves all aspects of the game, whether that be watching her beloved Rovers or engaging with others about what’s happening at the club. Trisha isn’t interested in the women’s game though, which shows that it has a lot to do to change the opinions of others.

You’re a Tranmere fan but how did you first get into football and have you ever played for a team (at any level) before?

I got into football because my dad was a big Tranmere fan and started taking me with my brothers and sisters and I when we were young. I don’t really remember the first games I went to but I must have enjoyed it because I kept going back! I’ve never played football myself.

Do you think that women love the sport to the same level that men do? You see that there is sometimes a narrative that it is only loved by females when there is a big game on.

Women definitely love football just as much as men. I am mad about Tranmere and anyone who knows me well knows that! There are always going to be some girls who just jump on the bandwagon when there are big games, like Liverpool in the champions league for example. But for lower league teams like Tranmere, I think it’s obvious that the female fans are just as passionate about their team as the men are.

What do you make of the women’s game in England, if you watch the WSL then what do you think of that?

I personally don’t watch women’s football. I don’t know why, but it just doesn’t interest me for some reason, just being honest! I’m supportive of women playing football and I’m glad they do, just not something I personally watch.

Do you think that the women’s game can improve massively in the near future? How do you think this can be done and to what extent do you think that things will improve?

It’s difficult for me to answer this to be honest, as mentioned above that I don’t watch women’s football. I do think it can definitely improve, however personally I don’t believe it will ever reach the same levels as the men’s game.

What is it like to be a female football fan? 

I love it! I still find that when I chat to people they are surprised to hear that I’m a massive football fan. But they soon realise when I don’t stop talking about Tranmere haha. However, there are still some men who obviously don’t respect female fans and try to put them down for their opinions. I’ve experienced it quite a lot when I post on supporters pages etc, but I’ve learnt to just block those types of fans! The majority of people are really friendly and interested to hear different points of view.

Do you think that the men’s game should do more to improve subject matters of the women’s game?

I think it’s important that the men’s game does try and support the women’s game as best it can. It’s important that women who play football feel valued and that issues are addressed, just as they would be in the men’s game. However I do believe there will always be barriers to this, as the women’s game is not as popular as the men’s and is unlikely to ever be so.

Cleopatra Nketiah, a woman with a major footballing role within her nation.

I had a long discussion with Cleopatra Nketiah about the women’s game and her role within it. She is the owner of Ghanaian football club Ridge City F.C as well as being a board member of the Ghana Premier League. Thus, Cleopatra is a woman that is interested with all aspects and what the game can bring to people’s lives.

What’s your role in the Women’s Premier League in Ghana and what is your role at Ridge City F.C?

I am a committee (board) member of the Ghana Football Association’s (GFA) Women’s Premier League Committee. We manage the women’s premier league in Ghana. I am also a committee member of the Greater Accra Regional Football Association’s (GARFA) Women’s Division One League Committee. I also sit as the secretary of that committee. This committee is responsible for managing the women’s division one league in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana.

I am also a co-founder and CEO of Ridge City Football Club Women.

Finally, I am a lawyer.

Can you tell me about Ridge City? Where do they play, what level do they play at, what role do they play in the community, how many trophies etc have they won and is there a men’s and women’s team?

Ridge City FC Women (RCFCW) is a women’s football club in Accra, Ghana. We play in the Division One League. RCFCW was founded in 2018 unfortunately due to a major football scandal (concerning the then GFA President at the time), around the same time the club was found, the playing of football leagues in Ghana was halted. It didn’t resume until November 2019. Our Division One League was due to start March 2020 when the pandemic hit and the football season was suspended. Unfortunately, up til now, the Women’s’ Division One League has still not resumed and therefore RCFCW is coming on 3 years of not playing any official matches since it was founded. We have however participated in numerous tournaments as well as friendlies and so far everything has been great.

We are the only women’s football club located in the community we play in (East Legon) and because of this, we have garnered the support of the locals in that community. We have also been able to recruit quite a number of women and girls in that area who did not know women’s football had a league and clubs they could play for.

What is the women’s game like in Ghana? Are more people attracted to the men’s game and are the English leagues watched with interest?

The women’s game is nothing new in Ghana. A lot of women and girls participate in it and enjoy watching it. It’s played all the way from kindergarten level to university level. Ghana has always encouraged the women’s game although not many women have had the chance to participate in football. There is a lot of stereotype about women who play football and this

discourages interested women and girls from participating. Some of these stereotypes include being labeled a tom boy, being called a lesbian (which is illegal in Ghana and therefore no one wants to be “accused” of that), being seen as illiterate because the perception is that literate people have better things to do than sports, and so on. Other factors that discourage women from playing football include there not being a clear career path for women in football and also the fact that over 90% of women who play their football in Ghana do not expect nor do they receive a salary. Unfortunately, there are a lot of drawbacks to the women’s game and a lot more can be done about it.

Men’s football is in a better position and is loved by a much wider population of Ghanaians although not everyone in the country is a big fan. The only time however that you’ll find at least 80% of the population enjoying the game Is when the national team is playing in the World Cup. On the club level, many people love the game however it has been tainted by a lot of factors such as how un-family friendly the stadiums are, and about how football seems to be dominated by a group of people who through corruption have been able to corner the market of buying and selling players amongst other things. Because of this, it’s much easier for most Ghanaians to prefer watching the English league and I can say that for every fan who is interested in watching a local league match, you will find 20 more who would prefer to watch the English premier league. The English Premier League as in other parts of the world is way popular than men’s football in Ghana and the Ghana game has a lot to catch up on.

Will you be keeping a careful interested eye on England’s women’s game if you haven’t been doing so already?

I have always been interested in the English women’s games. In fact when I used to live in London, I attended quite a number of games for Chelsea FC Women. Over the last year, that team has dominated women’s football and went over one calendar year without losing a match. It was amazing to watch as the new FA Player app has made it so much easier to follow their games and many others’ as well. At RCFCW, we encourage our players to watch and follow the careers of those playing in the UK and Europe as they have been through similar situations as the players at RCFCW have and have come out on top. One thing we hope to do is follow in their footsteps to aid us to build our game in Ghana.

Do you think that the women’s game will improve in the next few years? How and to what extent?

I think women’s football will massively improve. Firstly, FIFA is creating more chances for women to be involved in football not only on the playing level but also on the management and officiating level. Secondly, we have broadcasters such as Sky and BT agreeing to broadcast women’s football to the masses and to make it easily accessible which encourages the public to watch and fall in love with it. We also have apps such as the FA Player which allows you to stream for free, women’s football anywhere you are in the world. We also have the men’s teams supporting their women’s teams where clubs such as Chelsea, Spurs, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid allow the women to use their stadium and before the pandemic, allowing women to see record breaking attendance during those games.

We will soon be getting to the point where it will be difficult to talk about men’s clubs without mentioning the women’s clubs and the successes that the women’s clubs bring to the men’s name. I am hoping it gets to the extent that we will move from the current situation whereby the highest paid female football earns $400,000 a year, an amount which Messi and the likes make in a week. I am hoping it improves and I’m sure it will improve to the point where having women fight to participate in the game is not the exception but the norm.

Does Ghana have a women’s national team? Who are the best Ghana women footballers?

We have national teams on the U15 and U17 level as well as the senior side, Black Queens. There a lot of women’s footballers in Ghana unfortunately, due to the lack of publicity and visibility the women’s game receives, only a few of the players are known and are therefore classified as the best women footballers but in actual fact, I could say I have seen much more amazing talent that need help to be unearthed. Currently however, the best women’s footballer in Ghana would be Elizabeth Addo who plays her football in the USA and is currently the captain of the national team, Black Queens. Another player who is also exceptional is Milot Pokua who plays for Hassacas Ladies, a women’s premier league club in Ghana.

What more do you think can be done in England to improve the women’s game? Do you think more will/should be interested in the near future?

The broadcasting of women’s matches by easily and widely accessible stations such as Sky and BT Sports is the first step. The production of more competitions for the women to participate in too helps. Like the men, maybe the women can also participate in pre-season games where they travel around the country at least or the world, to gain the exposure they need. It would be great if the English women’s team reached out to other foreign teams/clubs to join forces to promote football. People may not support their local women’s teams or clubs until they see how it has improved the lives of other women internationally. In helping foreign clubs to be recognized, it also helps with their visibility, and they will in turn have foreign and international supporters.

The support and encouragement of girls in football must also be vastly improved. IF a career path can be created for girls in football and that path actually works and is sustainable, a lot more girls would be interested and a lot more parents would encourage their girls to play.

Apart from the playing of football, it’s also very important to educate and empower women to participate in football on all levels. Marketing, Coaching, Physio, Administration, Business end. There are so many ways women could participate in football. It is important to get women in places where decision making on women’s football is being taken because who else to better fight for and know what the women’s game needs if not a woman.

Ridge City Football Club.

The England squad I’d take to the Euros:

The Euros are coming quickly for Gareth Southgate and his men, which means that he’s got a hard but vital task of selecting the 23 that he’d like to see on his ‘plane’ alongside himself travelling to the competition. The current pool of players available is packed full of star quality, with a shared ambition of taking the Three Lions one step further than they managed in the 2018 World Cup held in Russia. Failure? It isn’t an option now, it’s time for everyone to think of the best of outcomes, the final is being held at Wembley Stadium. 55 years ago, we all know what happened, let’s make it happen again.

Goalkeepers – Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Burnley), Dean Henderson (Manchester United).

You take three goalkeepers to the Euros and my three would be Manchester United’s Dean Henderson, Everton’s Jordan Pickford and Burnley’s Nick Pope. I know that West Brom’s Sam Johnstone has been selected ahead of Jordan Pickford in the recent squad, which beat San Marino on Thursday night 5-0. However, that was due to injury and I believe that it is common knowledge that although Johnstone is a good keeper .. Pickford is better and deserves to be selected. I just hope that his injury doesn’t last too long, it is an abdominal muscle injury. Jordan has been chosen as England’s starting keeper for some time now thus I believe Southgate knows the quality the 27-year-old has as well. Pope and Henderson are the obvious choices, if Pickford wasn’t, they have both excelled throughout the course of this campaign and their efforts can only be rewarded by a place ‘on the plane’ .. regardless of the games being at Wembley.

Right backs – Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Aaron WanBissaka (Manchester United), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool).

England are blessed at right back. Genuinely, I think you make a team out of the players we have in this position. WanBissaka at centre half, Aarons or Trent as wing backs, Kyle Walker as another centre half and I still haven’t mentioned Reece James yet. I’d choose three players from this position in my final 23, the same amount that I selected of goalkeepers. I’d go with: Manchester United’s Aaron Wan Bissaka, his defensive ability is second to none and I think that we could do with something like that if we come up against stronger opposition, Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold as although he has been left out of the recent squad due to a blip in form it’s common knowledge that on his day he’s one of the best in world football. The final place? Manchester City’s Kyle Walker, he can operate at centre half as well as doing a great job at full back, his experience will be valuable as well as he’s on course to add another Premier League title to his name.

It’d be a shame for players like Reece James to miss out, but does he get in over the players that I’ve selected? I’m not too sure. Southgate will have a selection headache for this area.

Centre backs – Harry Maguire (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Conor Coady (Wolves), Micheal Keane (Everton).

Due to having Kyle Walker selected, I would only take four centre halves and look to add further numbers to positions going forwards. Personally, I’d take: Harry Maguire, John Stones, Connor Coady and Micheal Keane to the Euros. Maguire, a great leader for Manchester United who are currently second place in the Premier League table and he’s a fox in the box, John Stones is in the form of his life alongside Ruben Dias for Pep’s men, Connor Coady has to be chosen for his defensive and leadership qualities he places on show every game, you could see the way he lead the Three Lions back line across the course of the victory against San Marino. He has a voice, a powerful voice, which he isn’t afraid to put to good use. Micheal Keane is my fourth, he’s been in great form for Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton this campaign. Tyrone Mings would probably feel bereft if he isn’t selected, I just can’t see a place for him.

Left backs – Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea).

Luke Shaw and Ben Chilwell. The easiest decisions yet. Both full-backs have been on top form this season for Manchester United and Chelsea respectively, it’s only a question of who Southgate prefers from then on. Personally, I’d choose Luke Shaw in the starting eleven.

Creative midfield – Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Phil Foden (Manchester City).

England are blessed with creative talent, it’s crazy how many good players Southgate has to select going forwards. Grealish and Maddison are two; Mount, Bellingham, Ward-Prowse, Foden .. the list is endless. However, I’d take Grealish and Foden to this pristine competition. Jack Grealish, Aston Villa, has created more chances than anyone in the Premier League this campaign and that is no mean feat considering he’s currently ruled out with injury. Phil Foden, the young starlet from Manchester City, has to be the other for his pace, ball control and end product. When you watch him, you’re thinking ‘how can anyone get near him?’ no one ever does! He’s been drawing up comparisons to Gazza for this already, not too bad!

Defensive midfield – Declan Rice (West Ham United), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds United).

First and foremost, I have no idea how Eric Dier was put into the initial 2022 World Cup Qualifiers squad. His name shouldn’t be near the England team due to his poor performances for Spurs as of late. However, he has provided the country with some great moments. The winning penalty against Colombia, the mighty tackle on Sergio Ramos and the great free kick against Russia. Unfortunately though, it’s time to think of the future and pick the best players in the here and now. Dier isn’t one of them. For me, that has to be Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips. Rice has been immense this season for David Moyes’ Hammers and he should be a regular name in the England eleven, the recently turned 22-year-old holds many interest from all the greatest football clubs in world football but he’s becoming a legend at the London Stadium. Who knows what his future holds? Phillips is the other defensive midfielder that I’d take, he’s quality and his teammates and supporters at Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United know it.

Central midfield – Jordan Henderson (Liverpool).

I’d only take one central midfielder as Rice and Phillips can fill the void here if he gets injured at any point. For this position, I’d love to take Jordan Henderson to the Euros. The commander is currently ruled out with an injury but he has had a great few years as he has led Liverpool to world glory, winning the Club World Cup as well as the Champions League. Holding the Premier League title aloft at an empty Anfield last campaign is another proud and memorable moment in his career, I can’t see a reason why to not pick him if he’s available even if Jurgen Klopp disagrees. 

Right winger – Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Mason Mount (Chelsea).

Up front, I’d take Borussia Dortmund starlet Jadon Sancho and Chelsea’s Mason Mount. Sancho has quickly become one of, if not, the best right wingers in world football as he plays alongside the majestic Haaland who turns his every touch into gold. I can’t see a reason why Southgate would disagree with my selection, Sanch will be in the final 23 for the Euros this summer. Another player who I have also been really impressed with is Mason Mount, at first people were skeptical and he was being named ‘Lampard’s son’ as the young manager had started him in his Derby and Chelsea teams. However, it’s now clear to see why he was starting him. The chances the young creative attacker creates are second to none, his pace is sublime and his height contributes to all this as well as he can use his low centre of gravity to maneuver around back lines easily and very effectively. You’ve just got to praise Southgate and the coaches that have turned him into the player he is today, for seeing the quality he had in him even when others were complaining. A little bit like the way Harry Redknapp stuck up for a young Frank Lampard at the Hammers, ‘he’ll go far that boy’ .. he sure did.

Striker – Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton).

Due to the limited numbers, if you could take an unlimited amount .. how great would that be? I’ll choose two strikers who I’d like to see being selected in the final 23, the squad for the Euros. I won’t go for a striker with a low centre of gravity, I’ll let Rashford and Sterling prove themselves in that role if needs be. I’d choose Harry Kane, Tottenham’s top goalscorer, as well as Domic Calvert-Lewin, Micheal Keane’s younger team mate and glorious finisher. I’d start Kane, his leadership qualities and ability to bring other players into play are second to none amongst his other attributes. DCL is a great player to have on the bench, he can tire defences and finish endless amounts of chances when the ball’s in his path.

Left winger – Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City).

Marcus Rashford has to be chosen, he’s been immense off the pitch the past year for the nation itself as he has taken to helping disadvantaged children and people in general out. He’s brought to light the food poverty that families are in and has taken to the government to state his concerns, his book about the work that he’s done plus much more will be published before the first game of the Euros and it’ll be one to look out for. His form for Manchester United isn’t too special but he’s getting the numbers to put him into the mix and I think it’d be a shame to leave him out after all that he’s done for others. I’d take two left wingers though, I’m unsure between Bukayo Saka of Arsenal and Raheem Sterling of Manchester City. Due to his valuable experience and his ability to play in more areas than one I’ll choose Sterling but it’s probably time for him to start showing why he’s worthy of selection. A great run of form in Pep’s final games of the campaign is what is needed for him, another Premier League winners medal will be around his neck come May.

My starting eleven:

Jordan Pickford.

Kyle Walker.

John Stones.

Harry Maguire.

Luke Shaw.

Jordan Henderson.

Declan Rice. 

Jack Grealish.

Jadon Sancho.

Harry Kane.

Marcus Rashford.

Everyone above is selected, who sees their name placed on my standby list though?

You can place six players on a standby list. Say if one of the 23 gets injured, you can dip into the options that you have here. It’s six players that are selected, who would make my 24th-29th places? 

Goalkeeper? Sam Johnstone, West Brom.

Defence? Tyrone Mings is a solid centre half and so is Ben Godfrey, I’d take them both. Godfrey can feature as left back, adding to the versatility of these options.

Midfield? James WardProwse, Southampton, has shown his quality this campaign and that has been rewarded with a place in the squad for the first set of World Cup qualifiers. I’d take him alongside another, let’s have Jesse Lingard as the other.

Forward? It’s important that we have a smaller striker than Kane and DCL as their both tall and sometimes small contribute very well with large. So, I’d take Danny Ings from Southampton. He’s recently been linked with replacing Sergio Aguero at Manchester City, the talent’s there and so are the goals.

Thank you very much for reading,

It’d be interesting to hear your thoughts and who you’s like to see being selected,

Stay safe,

Ethan Hoijord.

‘Meeting the opposition’ – Mansfield Town F.C

Ahead of Tranmere’s League Two encounter with Mansfield Town this weekend, I spoke to one of their supporters and journalists in Adrian Kita. He informed me about all things Stags, on and off the pitch as well as giving me his pre-match thoughts.

How long have you been a Mansfield Town supporter and how/when did you first come across the club?

I have been a Mansfield fan since the age of 10 and started going to matches when we were still in the National League battling for promotion. It is my local club so I came across it when I got free tickets from my school and fell in love with the club ever since.

Highest and lowest points across that time?

Highest point has to be getting promoted out of the Conference in 2013 and Matt Green scoring in added time against Hereford in the second to last game to ensure we won the league. Low point has to be the inability of going up to League One as we need one point from a couple of games at the end of the season and we did not manage that and ended up getting beat in the Play-Off Semi-Final by Newport County on penalties.

Random fact about the club?

We won the Freight Rover Trophy in 1987. I believe this trophy is now the EFL Trophy in modern-day terms.

What were your expectations going into the season and what are they now that the campaign’s coming to an end?

My expectations were low and wanted the Stags to survive in the league which they are managing and the expectation is the same now to survive in the league and build for next season.

Nigel Clough was appointed manager last season, thoughts on him?

I think Nigel Clough is a fantastic manager and a great addition to the club. He’s worked more or less at every level so I am happy that he has been appointed the manager and hopefully can finally take us up to League One.

Who are Mansfield Town’s owners and what are your thoughts on them?

The Radfords own the club and they are an amazing family that put the fans and the community at the epicentre of the club. They have put in a lot of hard work to try and lift the club out of this division and so far it hasn’t happened but I hope it will in the near future.

Your danger men?

George Lapslie when fit is a fantastic midfielder always working hard and helping the side no matter what but with his injury, it will likely be the front two of Jordan Bowery and Jamie Reid. They have finally started to put chances away and if they can do that more frequently and consistently they can become a real threat.

The last time both clubs met was in September, for a league fixture. It resulted in a goalless draw. Thoughts on that game?

It was a bore draw, nothing really happened and it was probably a fair result.

How do you see the game panning out? (Score prediction).

Tranmere have been on the charge up the league and we usually do well against the top sides so I’ll do with a 1-1 draw as I don’t see the sides split by much.

What starting eleven do you think Clough will select?

Stone; Benning (LB), Rawson, Perch, Gordon (RB); Three midfielders Maris, McLaughlin and Quinn; CAM Law; Reid and Bowery upfront.

Thoughts on Tranmere? The club in general.

Tranmere have always bounced back and forth between League One and League Two. They have heavily invested in their players with ex-Premier League experience in Jay Spearing, James Vaughan and David Nugent but they are doing well and pushing for promotion once more.

Thoughts on Mansfield’s winter transfer business? 

You can’t really do much business in January as we saw with the Stags. The signing of Stephen Quinn has been fantastic as he brings a lot of experience to the midfield, Oliver Sarkic has been injured so I think he’s a bad bit of business, Jamie Pardington in a young goalkeeper and he has essentially been brought in as added cover, Jake Wright is another experienced head but we’ve not seen much of him, Keaton Ward another youngster for the midfield which is here for yet again added competition and finally the permanent signing of George Lapslie has been brilliant as he is a fantastic midfielder but his recent injury has hampered his game time a little.

Andy Cook played a great part in Tranmere’s National League successes between 2016-2018, he shared a brilliant strike partnership with James Norwood. He’s now a Stag, thoughts on him?

I think on his day he can be a threat with his fantastic hold-up play alongside his height and build which help him a lot. I would definitely say he did not suit our style of play and that’s why he has been loaned out twice in the space of a year to Tranmere and now to Bradford. 

Andy Cook played a great part in Tranmere’s National League successes, sharing a beautiful strike partnership with James Norwood. He’s now a Stag, ‘on his day, he can be a threat’ says Mansfield Town supporter Adrian Kita. 

Thank you very much for reading,

Stay safe,

Ethan Hoijord 

Colchester United F.C – Opinions on a predicted starting eleven, from a fan.

Shamal George 

Signed in the summer on a free from Liverpool. Started the season as backup keeper but due to injuries to the experienced Dean Gerken he has stepped in and impressed and looks like he could be number one for the rest of this season at least. His distribution is excellent but like most keepers at this level, has a mistake in him. He has saved us many times, both from embarrassment in games we have lost and from dropping points in the (very few) games we have won or drawn recently.

Miles Welch-Hayes

Signed on a free from Macclesfield a year ago, Miles Welch-Hayes has been a solid replacement for Ryan Jackson who left for Gillingham last summer. He’s much better defensively than going forward, which means when the U’s have switched to a 3 at the back then teenager Junior Tchamadeu has been played instead. 

Tom Eastman

Recently reaching 400 appearances for Colchester United, Tom Eastman is surely now considered a legend for the club and by the end of this season should enter the top 10 appearances of all time for the club. He’s been a consistently good performer, even in several difficult seasons for the club over the last decade. As long as he isn’t injured, he is probably the first name on the team sheet. Known for his accurate long diagonal passes up the field and dominant in the air. 

Tommy Smith

Probably considered an underwhelming summer signing from Ipswich, the experienced New Zealand international had tough shoes to fill for departing club captain Luke Prosser. Likely to continue to start games however, simply because there is only one other senior centre back at the club – Omar Sowunmi – who has also failed to impress since signing two years ago. Decent in the air, but is probably beaten too easily 1v1 at times and if the opponent has pace then there’s only one winner in the race.

Ryan Clampin

One of the fan favourites and many academy products in the squad, Ryan has finally got a decent run in the team following the departure of Cohen Bramall to Lincoln City in January. He has proven to be good both defensively and going forward and the fans are very happy to see him get in the team consistently after being second choice for a few years now. Can put in a good cross too, which might be used more than usual in this game with winger Callum Harriott out on international duty right now.

Harry Pell

The club captain and very passionate. Disliked by many opposition fans, but he’s one of those you love to have in your team and something that we have missed in the past and don’t have much of in our youthful squad. His performances have arguably declined alongside the team over the last 8 months, but he is the kind of player we desperately need in the difficult situation we find ourselves in. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if Ben Stevenson or Noah Chilvers started in his place, who are much more creative and attack minded, but it’s difficult to see Wayne Brown drop the captain and someone who is very committed.

Brendan Sarpong-Wiredu

Brendan Sarpong-Wiredu has been fantastic since he returned permanently from Charlton in January. Able to play at right back, defensive midfield or even on the wing, he looks really committed and has been man of the match in several games recently – a photo taken after the Harrogate defeat a couple of weeks ago showed him looking absolutely devastated on the pitch all by himself minutes after the final whistle sums the team up right now, but also his character and that the fans believe he is one of the players that genuinely care about where we are. The only problem is Charlton reportedly have a buy back clause!

Paris Cowan-Hall

Since arriving from Wycombe a couple of years ago, winger Paris Cowan-Hall has really struggled with injuries. He was also on the verge of leaving in January but the move broke down and pretty much everyone did not expect to see him in a ColU shirt again. But he’s recently got a chance in the team under new interim head coach Wayne Brown and has done pretty well. Even at 30 years old, he still has a good amount of pace and despite looking promising, he will probably leave in the summer due to his age. It’s tough to go into detail about someone who has played just 15 times in the league in 2 years – and 3 of those appearances have come in the last 4 games.

Jevani Brown

A big money signing from Cambridge in the summer of 2019 to replace Sammie Szmodics. His first 12 months were quite a disaster, falling out with people, being loaned out and looking like he might move on quickly. But this season he has looked much better. Started out of position at striker and was labelled the best finisher at the club by former head coach Steve Ball, but has been played in his natural attacking midfield role under Wayne Brown recently in various formations. He had a sensational November picking up Player Of The Month for League Two but hasn’t reached those levels since. Will probably start at attacking midfield in the club’s favourite 4-2-3-1, but could be up front instead in a 4-4-2 or could play either roles in a 5-3-2.

Courtney Senior

Courtney can be a very frustrating player at times for the fans, but can also have his moments of brilliance. I always find that he is much more highly rated by opposition fans rather than our own! He started his ColU career brilliantly and was a consistent starter then over the last two years has slowly declined, but has shown signs of promise again coming off the bench. Probably only guaranteed to start because of Kwame Poku and Callum Harriott being away on international duty. If we can get him back to his best, he can be unstoppable, but that hasn’t happened for some time now and if he doesn’t improve I can see him being released in the summer. 

Frank Nouble

Finally Frank Nouble, one of the big fan favourites and was a huge re-signing for us on deadline day on loan from Plymouth. It served as a real inspiring moment for the fans and the club during a terrible run of form and after being told we would probably bring in no more players a week before. Many will look at his record and say he isn’t a particularly great goalscorer, but in his previous spell between 2018 and last summer he was always used as a winger and like Harry Pell he has a great character and plenty of experience which you could say is lacking in our squad. He was released last summer alongside a number of others because of the effects of the pandemic, but I think everyone is hoping we can get him back permanently this summer. A lot will of course depend on what league we are in and if the money will be there.

Thank you very much for reading,

Stay safe,

Ethan Hoijord 

Last week in British football.

A new feature that I have taken to doing is telling you, the readers, about the greatest stories across British football in the past week. There have been numerous Premier League fixtures, the FA Cup quarters, a round of European football and there have also been numerous draws and international squad selections.

At the start of the week, on Monday, Liverpool travelled to Molineux for a Premier League encounter under the lights. The Reds won 1-0, with thanks to a Diogo Jota goal that Rui Patrictio would’ve kicked himself for not getting to. The Portugese forward joined Jurgen Klopp’s side at the tail end of the Summer transfer window, showing the level of talent that he had immediately. However, he has only just come back from injury so scoring against his former club will do wonders for him for several reasons. What probably scarred this game though is when Conor Coady smashed into the Wolves keeper, leading to him being concussed and needing immediate attention. The game was stopped for around ten minutes but manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, said that he seemed okay in the dressing room after the full time whistle .. he was up, talking.

A round of Champions League and Europa league fixtures came in midweek. Manchester City and Real Madrid both progressed into the UCL Quarters on Tuesday night, with a win at the Etihad against Borussia Monchengladbach and a win at the Santiago Bernabeu against Atalanta respectively. They were the 5th and 6th team going into the final 8, the first four had done what they had to do the previous week (Liverpool, PSG, Dortmund and Porto). 

Chelsea and Bayern Munich were the final two to progress into the UCL Quarters, on Wednesday night, beating Atletico Madrid and Lazio respectively. Thomas Tuchel has seemed to do wonders with his team, Chelsea, since taking over from Roman Abromovich. There were questions about whether it was right or not to replace Frank Lampard on the touchlines but he has pushed any criticism aside as the Blues now look like a team capable of beating any level of quality. Robert Lewandowski, as always and former Stoke forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting were the two goalscorers for Die Rotten at the Allianz. 

Four Brittish sides had Europa League fixtures to play on Thursday night, Arsenal and Manchester United progressed into the Quarters with a 1-0 defeat at home to Olympiacos and a 1-0 victory over AC Milan on Italian soil. Mikel Arteta’s men had won 3-1 away the previous week thus they were through even if they had performed woefully this time round. Paul Pogba scored the goal for Ole’s men, replacing Marcus Rashford at half time. However, Spurs and Rangers failed to progress. Elsewhere, Spurs had travelled to Zagreb in the hope of progressing following a 2-0 win in the first round and Rangers were pitting their wits against Slavia Prague at Ibrox. Amazingly, Spurs had managed to fail in their task of progression as Zagreb beat them 3-0 with the game going to extra time. A few days previous, their manager had been imprisoned for fraud thus inevitably there were jokes placed on social media that the wrong manager had been found guilty of that. On a more serious matter though, Prague’s win in Glasgow was scarred by one of their players being racist to midfielder Glen Kamara and this sparked fury as everyone who has heard this news agree that something has to be done about this. A minority of Prague fans also racially abused Glen on social media, he soon put out a devastating statement on his account which put his emotions and feelings of anger towards those who run social media companies on display. 

On Friday night, Marcelo Bielsa’s men beat Scott Parker’s survival chasers 2-1 at Craven Cottage. Fulham had to win to place the pressure onto the teams around them, Newcastle United in particular. However, Steve Bruce certainly didn’t help himself on the weekend. This was a good game in the Capital, the funniest moment though? When Luke Ayling’s goal was ruled out for offside after he had celebrated like a rockstar, taking his long hair out of a bow and using his hands and arms like he was playing a guitar. 

On Saturday, Southampton and Manchester City both progressed into the FA Cup semis with wins over Bournemouth and Everton respectively on the road. Pep’s men have looked relentless all season and they took that to Goodison Park where they scored two late on to keep the hosts away from a trophy for 26 years and counting. Southampton beat Championship promotion chasers Bournemouth 3-0 at the Vitality stadium. In the Premier League, further doubts and aggression was placed onto Mike Ashley (The Toon owner) and Steve Bruce (Newcastle manager) after Newcastle were beaten 3-0 by Brighton. It doesn’t look pretty up North, it hasn’t for quite some time now and you do have to feel for the supporters. Fulham, on the other hand, have a real chance of staying up if they can string a few good results together. 

The final day of the week, Sunday, saw Chelsea and Leicester City progress into the FA Cup Semis with wins against Sheffield United at the Bridge and Manchester United at the King Power.  Ole and his team will be kicking themselves as this was a real chance of progressing, it now leaves the door for a trophy only open to the Europa League. In the Premier League, West Ham played Arsenal and were 3-0 up at half time. Mikel Arteta must have sparked a flame at half time as the Gunners were on top throughout the second half and got the three goals back for the game to finish in a draw. Jesse Lingard was on the scoresheet again, he’s been on fire since signing for the Hammers in January. Spurs put all emotions aside to beat Villa 2-0 in Birmingham, Jose Mourinho (manager) said that this performance was ‘sad’ in his post match meeting with the press. Should it take a 3-0 defeat in Zagreb to spark this level of fight and talent to be put on show? The Portugese gaffer doesn’t think so. In Glasgow, Scotland the Old Firm Derby at Celtic Park finished 1-1.

My moment of the week – 

Tottenham’s defeat against Dinamo Zagreb, that will take quite some time for people to forget about. 

Thank you for reading,

Stay safe,

Ethan Hoijord