Football Friends Magazine

ootball F Friends F ISSUE 1 • OCTOBER 2010

EVERYONE IS SHOUTING ABOUT IT!

THE

H S I L G EN

L L A B FOOT

BEING A FOOTBALL FAN JUST GOT A LITTLE BETTER...

You don’t get anything for free, apparently. Those of us who have been lectured by any stereotypical British pessimist will have had that phrase thrown at them.

Surely therefore the notion of an interesting, humorous and vibrant magazine about the nation’s favourite sport, absolutely free of charge, is one that can be dismissed as quickly as the idea of ‘Bramble for England’? I mean, what could this magazine possibly offer…

What if this magazine had the potential to become the hub of British fan culture? What if this magazine offered a light-hearted and insightful look at football, written for the fans, by the fans; each month offering different styles of article catering for every possible taste? What if these articles weren’t written in the press box, but on the terraces; written amongst the Bovril, the beer, and all that joyous banter?

Don’t think this hypothetical magazine has compromised on quality though. This publication has scoured the country for undiscovered talent,

people whose ability to construct perceptive and thought-provoking pieces is surpassed only by their passion for the beautiful game.

And just imagine if this magazine had an online facility, a website offering all this footballing wisdom and intuition at the click of a button.

Hypothetical this magazine is not. Welcome to Football Friends ladies and gentlemen, the new, exciting and somewhat revolutionary addition to the football media market.

Once a month we’ll cram this magazine with enough footballing literature to tide you over to the next. Whether you like it funny or serious, positive or negative, about issues here or abroad; Football Friends has got it covered. And it won’t cost you a penny.

You don’t get anything for free? What about ‘the best things in life are free’? If you’re a football fan, that phrase just got a little bit truer.

www.footballfriends.org.uk ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 3

GLOBAL FOOTBALL

D

iego Forlan was crowned the best player at this summer’s World Cup, an accolade largely attributed to his ability to control the much maligned Jabulani ball.

While all the world’s greatest footballing technicians sent long range shots flying into the upper reaches of crowds across South Africa, it seemed only two men had a grasp on the Jabulani and could manipulate this apparently perfect ball making it go anywhere they wanted it to. Diego Forlan was one. Keisuke Honda, of Japan, was the other.

Technical proficiency amongst Japanese players is not unique to the man named Honda though. Arsene Wenger deemed Junichi Inamoto good enough for his ultraintricate collection of footballers at Arsenal; Hidetoshi Nakata was one of the world’s best at the turn of this century and Celtic fans generally agree they haven’t seen a better free kick taker at their club than Shunsuke Nakamura. It is this technique that

characterises the culture of football across Japan, with local coach Naoto Muramatsu titling his book on football in his home country ‘Japanese Have the Technique but Don’t Play Soccer Well’.

Technique isn’t the only good thing about Japan’s football though, with a genuine passion for the global game encouraging it’s kids to take to the streets armed with nothing, but a ball. The 2002 World Cup which it co-hosted with South Korea provided evidence of this, with a massive level of enthusiasm engulfing their entire nation and surprising the rest of the world, who remained ignorantly convinced football lagged behind other traditional Far Eastern pastimes in Japanese pop-culture. This just isn’t the case though; in fact one of the country’s most popular comic books follows the adventures of a promising football player named Ohzora Tsubasa. Considering Japan’s long affiliation with all things geeky, for a football comic to be amongst the country’s most popular is no small feat.

FOOTBALL FRIENDS AROUND THE WORLD:

JAPAN

4 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

It is not all sunshine and rainbows though.

While consumption of football’s premier competitions such as the Premier League remains insatiable, domestic coverage of the game is actually dwindling. Seeking to take advantage of the ‘post-2002-boom’ the country’s top domestic competition, the J-League, sold the broadcast rights to satellite television, citing our own Premier League as an inspiration. It was hoped this move would encourage more sponsorship, more money and with this more investment into football.

This hasn’t happened though. It seems football’s stronghold in Japanese culture wasn’t yet strong enough to demand of footy fans payment to watch the best matches from around Japan. Unwilling to subscribe to satellite TV just to watch football, casual and young fans, arguably the core of Japan’s footballing society, have drifted elsewhere, with baseball in particular drawing on the thousands of fans losing interest in football.

Coaching also remains a big talking point,

with many suggesting that the development of young footballers in particular has not advanced for twenty years. While their player’s technical prowess can be honed on the streets, things such as tactical discipline and defensive play are usually underdeveloped when compared to their footballing neighbours. The coaching is basic, it is not testing and it is not helping these super-talented players become the potential superstars they could be.

A mixed bag then, it seems. An obsession with Europe’s top football remains undeterred, and Keisuke Honda has inherited the now well established role of Japanese footballing magician. Domestically though the country’s football has come to a crossroads, with a better national league and improved coaching needed to take Japanese football to the next level.

Failure to act now could leave all the good work of the 2002 World Cup wasted. Jon Vale

Junichi Inamoto

Honda scores against Cameroon in South Africa and celebrates (above)

Hidetoshi Nakata

Shunsuke Nakamura

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 5

DIVING CAMPAIGN

6 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

‘It’s a man’s game.’ Those four words have summed up the game of football amongst British supporters for generations, with our bulldog spirit lusting after a crunching tackle or forceful header with greater passion than any display of sublime skill or technique. It is in this country where the image of Terry Butcher’s bloodstained shirt is revered as much as Paul Gascoigne’s awesome strike against Scotland at Euro 96. This country is where Chris Morgan has earned cult hero status, where Des Walker has amassed 59 England caps, and where Lee Cattermole commands a transfer fee of £6 million for his ability to ‘put his foot in’.

Times are changing though. The Nineties saw a cultural shift in the English game, with an influx of continental wisdom transforming the likes of Tony Adams from chain-smoking brute to ball-playing centre half. The benefits were huge, with an improved diet and greater composure on the ball making our game a lot easier on the eye. However, with the good unfortunately came the bad. Sulking superstars, a lack of effort and of course, the dreaded diving have all spread across our game and contaminated many a young football fan’s brain, who now seem keener on winning penalties than tackles whilst playing for their Sunday morning teams.

It’s just not the British way, is it? Honesty, determination and fair play are all we ask of our players. Even if they lose, playing with passion, desire and, above all else, honesty is enough for players to earn the respect of the majority of England’s football fans.

However, the money in football nowadays, coupled with the massive media scrutiny, has made the stakes astronomically high, higher than ever before. So high in fact that even the most honest of footballers will likely consider taking a tumble in the

box just to earn their team a chance at a precious three points.

This willingness to compromise on fair play is a continuing trend of English players losing touch with the English-style game. As a more continental influence spreads across the country’s pitches, so our boys are being seduced by the ‘win at all costs’ mentality that fuels our European and South American counterparts, with a footballing choice between right and wrong often decided by a the promise of a fat pay-cheque rather than any moral dilemma.

A look back to this summer’s World Cup though will provide testament to the fact that this doesn’t work for us.

The Premier League is the most competitive in the world. Spain has two

Spain. And unfortunately, Spain are much better at being Spain than we are. We are England. So why don’t we play like them?

The time has come to remember who we are and what we stand for. While we at Football Friends can’t inject this passion directly into our players (although we’d bloody well like to) we can at least get back to a key cornerstone of the British game: honesty. Starting with diving.

While the F.A continues to display a lax attitude to the whole problem, this magazine will not. Yes, your nippy little winger going over in the box may earn your team a penalty, it may allow you to pick up a much valued away win and it may make your drive home down the M1 that much easier. But it’s cheating and the English don’t cheat. So don’t condone it.

Reject those players whose balance regularly fails them.

Exclude those players who wave their arms around in frenetic fashion seeking a foul. And reserve your most vile of hatred for that most disgusting of breed; the ‘face-grabber’. A mere brush of the palm across a player’s face does not warrant a period of ten minutes on the ground claiming you are blind. Let the next player to do this be told so, in no uncertain terms.

We at Football Friends will do all we can to rid the game of its divers. We will draw attention to and widely condemn any guilty players; we will name, shame and hopefully embarrass even the most famous of footballer. But it is with you, the reader, to take up the mantle, to embrace the campaign and chastise the players that are ruining the spirit of the English game with their constant melodramatics. For too long we have stood back and let the precious commodity of English football slip away from us. Together, we can get it back.

Jon Vale

"The Premier League is the most competitive in the world." outstanding teams and very little else; Germany is improving but has very few real world class players, whereas Italian football at present is a shambles. Here, every game faced by those in our top division is a hard one. But why is the Premier League so competitive? Simple: because it is English. It retains that fierce tribal quality, where the underdog has its day, where fighting spirit can conquer all and nobody ever, ever gives up.

It is in this blood-and-thunder domain that English players flourish, yet put them together on the international stage and suddenly we look like a bunch of little boys lost.

That is because we’re trying to be something we’re not. We lose the things that make us great; we lose the intensity, pace and tempo associated with English league football, instead looking to replicate the slow, methodical build up adopted by the likes of

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 7

sean mathias

football friends blog Sean Mathias is a world-weary cynic with a healthy disrespect for all in authority and an eye for the unusual. If you can stomach his schoolboy humour and sledgehammer wit, you are to be honest, in the minority. Subtlety and intelligence are in short supply in the ramblings of this madman, but his blog should at least provoke, if not amuse you. If you are easily offended go elsewhere or preferably start watching tennis – football just isn’t for you. http://ffmagazine1.wordpress.com/ “Apparently, David James and Lady Gaga have been getting on famously. Until Saturday night, when she took one look at his hair and said she would not go anywhere with him looking as ridiculous as that.”

Sean’s view on David James new haircut

“Zola finally leaves West Ham after what seems an eternity. There is no truth in the rumour that as he walked out of the gates for the last time he was whisting that old Michael Jackson favourite ‘ I’m forever blowing Bubbles’. His likely replacement is Avram Grant and he should certainly liven up the place. He is the only man I know, that makes Gordon Brown look like a slaphappy funster.” Sean on Zola’s departure

“Andres Iniesta guaranteed that justice was seen to be done as he crashed home the winner with just four minutes of extra time remaining in the World Cup final. The Dutch had come with a clear two point game plan - 1) ‘Give it some clog’ and 2) ‘Give it to Robben’. Alonso can certainly testify to the success of the first element as he inspects the stud marks in his chest in the bathroom mirror this morning. And the second part was exploited at every opportunity until the wrinkly-faced, balding, cry-baby faded spectacularly in the second half.” Sean on the World Cup Final

“Moving the other way Yossi Benayoun, the Israeli international, is the new signing for the Double winners. The lightweight attacking midfielder is moving to the capital for an undisclosed fee, so presumably he prefers the Chelsea bench to the Anfield dug-out. On the plus side, I guess there is less chance of being burgled while watching at the Bridge. As a bonus he may be able to flog his security system (three half-starved Dobermans, I believe) to Joe if he takes the decision to move to the land of the funloving scouse scallies.” Sean on Benayoun’s move to Chelsea

“Admittedly, Robert Green made a mistake of horrendous proportions, but it is good to see one massive British spill that the Americans can appreciate.” Sean remarks on Robert Green’s howler

8 Football friends Issue 1

“What a week for Roy Hodgson! Apparently he was the grateful recipient of an impromptu round of applause at the post-match press conference from cynical, world-weary journos. Well deserved, after Fulham’s historic victory in the Europa League semi-final on Thursday. But, will they be cheering quite as loudly if, as widely touted, he becomes the next England manager? I think not. Nice guy and astute tactician that he undoubtedly is, he is no Jose Mourinho. Quote-worthy he is not. The man is a charisma-free zone and while it might be unfair to call him an Olympic-class bore, he is not far from the Commonwealth gold. Hardly blessed with good looks either, he has a face that even Iain Dowie’s mother (with her experience) would struggle to love. I fully expect any honeymoon period with the tabloid hacks to be briefer than a Berbatov sprint.”

Sean commenting on Roy Hodgson leading Fulham to victory in the UEFA Cup Semi Final

Planet Soccer Live is an exciting, fun and safe virtual world for kids. Players can create their very own soccer star and interact in the game with 50 different levels and challenges to play. See how many player badges you can collect from Rookie to International Player status!

Players can also socialize, interact, go shopping, collect trading cards, custom design their own pad, personalize their own character and play a variety of single player and multi player games. Playing games earns you Soccer Dollars which enable you to go shopping for soccer kits, haircuts, furniture for your 'pad', boots, emoticons and chat phrases, soccer balls and many other accessories. Players can safely chat with other players in the game live!

Planet Soccer Live is free for everyone to play, premium membership is also available for as little as £3.50 per month. Premium members get access to all the exclusive areas and games, designer accessories & furniture for their character and pad, personalise their shirt with their own number or initials and collect more exciting soccer trading cards. * Exclusive member only areas - Have access to more exciting areas

GLOBAL FANS

FROM AROUND THE WORLD

ope, despair, excitement, frustration, jubilation, anguish… these are only a sample of the emotions shared by the hundreds of millions of football fans around the globe each season. At times supporting your team can feel like a weekly masochistic ritual, but all it takes is one breathtaking shot, one goal-saving tackle, one precious win, to make it all worthwhile.

The relationship between a fan and their team is largely irrational. We revel in our passionate, unconditional commitment, worshipping a team of pampered players, while haemorrhaging hundreds to thousands of pounds each season to follow them wind, rain or shine.

And why do we do it? Well of course there is the love of the sport, but there is also the power and basic human need, for identity.

Just look at this summer’s World Cup in South Africa. Although the tournament will long be remembered for the impotence of many of the world’s elite players and the Jabulani crisis, it will also be remembered for the fans. All 32 countries played their part in the ultimate display of football fandom, littering the month-long event with shows of national pride and identity.

H

10 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

The African fans, bursting with joy at hosting the tournament, created a carnival backdrop to the football on show with vivid colours and the vuvuzela, the arch-nemesis of television broadcasters everywhere, dominating the atmosphere in and around the South African stadia throughout.

Fans from South America created a similar impression with their frenzied love of the game. Martin Demichelis, the much-maligned Argentine defender, suggested that if he played as ineptly against Germany as John Terry had previously, then he would not be allowed to return to his homeland. This might seem farfetched, but not if you are one of the 100,000 fervent members of Iglesia Maradoniana, the Church of Maradona.

While fans from the Far East, Japan and South Korea rekindled their love affair with the World Cup (established as hosts in 2002), as their teams progressed to the knock-out stages. There was also the surreal sight of the choreographed North Korean cheering, as the Communist nation competed for the

first time since 1966.

Europe was well represented too; none more so than by the fans of the two finalists, Holland and Spain. The Oranje Army were the best supported country in South Africa, clad head-to-toe in orange, mini-skirts and all (unfortunately for Robbie Earle).

The iconic Spanish cry of “goooooooaaaaal” was a regular sound too as they lifted the trophy for the first time and was very well received in Madrid where a million fans welcomed the team home.

The ultras appeared strongly in Italy from the late 1960s, though the first group, ‘Fedelissimi Granata’, was formed in Turin in 1951. The size and supporting

style varies from group to group, but there are four key principles to being an ultra – never stop singing and chanting, attend as many matches as possible home and away, never sit down and show loyalty to the part of the stadium that your group stands. It is considered a tradition, and subsequently ultras groups are against modern football, “No Al Calcio Moderno”, and abhor the increasing commercialisation of football.

Another stereotype that surrounds the ultras is hooliganism, particularly as the ultras purport a gang-like mentality. Though many ultras only aim to intimidate with their elaborate displays, banners and flares, fights between rival fans are common. Violence has also broken out before European matches too, the most high-profile between Roma fans and English fans from Middlesbrough and Manchester United in recent years. The Italian government has taken steps to stamp out hooliganism by introducing laws against it in April 2007, after the death of a policeman in Sicily in February of that year. Although this did little to prevent the shooting of Gabriele Sandri, a Lazio fan, at a petrol station that November, as police tried to interrupt a riot between fans of his side and Juventus.

Hooliganism is now a comparatively minor

problem in this country, but eradicating the ‘English Disease’ has created other problems.

English football has lost touch with its roots – the working class fan.

Just imagine this…

The smell of frying onions consuming your nostrils as you pass through a creaking turnstile, into an historic stadium rich with character and central to much of the local community. Many of whom are here, loyal, dedicated fans, proud of their team, keeping warm with cups of tea and Bovril, their witticisms comical and intelligent, watching two honest teams fight for the win - a quintessentially English football experience, but completely alien to the game today, unless you visit your local non-league side.

The globalisation of English football has made this so. The rise of the all-seater stadium and better policing, which followed the Hillsborough disaster, made football more marketable. This combined with the coverage offered by Sky Sports, means that the Premier League’s global expansion has grown exponentially ever since.

Now every match, transfer, injury and scandal (professional or personal) is scrutinised globally. The top paid players, such as Carlos Tevez and Frank Lampard,

earn £13-14 million a year,and its biggest club, Manchester United, raked in £278.5 million during the 2008-09 campaign. The Premier League has become a micro-climate, a world within a world generating billions of pounds each year, pricing out the average working class fan and making it hard for them to identify with it.

The average cost of going to watch a Premier League match last season was a shade over £35 and the most expensive ticket was £94 at Arsenal. Compare that to the rest of Europe and you can watch Bayern Munich and Inter Milan for as little as 15 to 22 euros and the cheapest Barcelona ticket is just 84 euros.

Roy Keane’s ‘Prawn Sandwich Brigade’ and the plastic fans have replaced many of the loyal fans and Premier League attendances fell by an average of 4% last season. Those fans priced out have two choices now if they want to keep up with their team; become an armchair fan, or watch football at the pub, an arena that still has a working class identity, with cheaper booze, a nicer atmosphere and real fans.

Just as the England team have lost their identity, English fans are losing theirs, and as Rooney, Gerrard, Ferdinand & co need to rediscover theirs now, so do we. James Riley

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 11

MATCHDAY EXPERIENCE

THE MATCHDAY 17:35 Leave work – Depending upon your job a relief from the unrelenting stress and pressure of the working day or a blessed break from the mundanity and stultifying boredom of the tasks set before you.

18:20

Arrive at pub close enough to the ground to be lively, but far enough away to be able to get served within an acceptable timescale, if there is anyone on the premises capable of changing a barrel, that is.

19:00 Having squeezed in a swift 3 rounds leave the pub and walk excitedly and optimistically to the ground with mates all unswervingly convinced (on the surface at least) of the inevitability of a handsome win this evening.

19:10 Nearing the ground and you wonder if the massed ranks of boys in blue and their mounted colleagues could not between them perhaps raise a smile, given the overtime they are earning and the complete lack of effort they are having to expend.

19:15

Outside the ground and resist the temptation to shout “How much?” at the programme sellers. This is especially true at away games where you are offered a couple of pages of inaccurate, outdated drivel about

your team and a lot of back-slapping, selfcongratulatory nonsense about the club you are visiting in which you have little interest to be honest.

19:20 Arrival at the ground and faced with the age-old dilemma of whether to eat outside or inside. The choice is clear, the burgers and onions smell wonderful in the cold night air, but neither the sellers nor their equipment look less than grubby and it is doubtful they are E-coli free. Alternatively, the stadium caterers will be reliably both disappointing and expensive, but given that work is on the agenda for the morning, generally a safer bet.

there is always something magical that you can take away from the occasion. Be it a sublime piece of skill, a ridiculous gaff, a memorable chant or even conversation. You settle in your seat and look around at the usual suspects in your vicinity.

THESE FALL INTO 5 BASIC TYPES… 1) The Martyr. This guy is doing everyone a favour by being there and reminds you constantly of the journey he has made to be here and how many years he has been watching this side. He enjoys complaining to such a degree that he seems almost to enjoy it when they are losing and is miserable when things are going well.

19:30 Inside the ground and having selected the official caterers, the wait is as usual not worth it, soggy chips and a lukewarm cardboard burger are served up with barely a smile. It is so expensive that you are reluctant to complain for fear that Gordon Ramsay will emerge from the kitchen in his checked trousers shouting obscenities at you for requesting ketchup.

2) The One-player Ranter. The object of his ire is to blame for everything, regardless of position. Depending on his victim of the day, the 5-0 defeat is the fault of the left winger because of his profligate nature or the 4-0 victory brings critical mutterings about the goalkeeper’s distribution.

19:37 That wonderful moment when you get the first glimpse of the pitch and the green hue (particularly at a night match) that you never see replicated on any other occasion in life. The anticipation as you wait for the whistle is palpable. A dull game on the TV brings unconfined moaning, but even in a dull live 0-0

3) The Smart Alec. Makes prepared quips and throws in statistics at the most inappropriate time. Is never wrong and will argue any point however trivial until his opponent gives in through lack of knowledge, but more often out of sheer boredom. Often wears a sheepskin as his hero is Motty.

ARRIVAL AT THE GROUND AND FACED WITH THE AGE-OLD DILEMMA OF WHETHER TO EAT OUTSIDE OR INSIDE. THE CHOICE IS CLEAR, THE BURGERS AND ONIONS SMELL WONDERFUL IN THE COLD NIGHT AIR, BUT NEITHER THE SELLERS NOR THEIR EQUIPMENT LOOK LESS THAN GRUBBY AND IT IS DOUBTFUL THEY ARE E-COLI FREE. 12 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

Y EXPERIENCE 4) The Constant Critic. Harps on about the old days, when things were better. Will never give anyone the benefit of the doubt, when injured or appearing less than fully fit. Slates the atmosphere and the lack of passion of the fans and compares with previous decades. He always knows the referee’s stats inside out and condemns his every decision with “Everyone knows he always does that”.

5) The Eternal Optimist. The most annoying companion of all, as nothing fazes him. An early opposition goal means we have “plenty of time to recover” or an equaliser before the break means the manager will “have a chance to get after them” during the interval. On the contrary an early concession in the second half is the “kick up the backside we need”. This is unbearable, a goal for the other lot is a goal against us, there is no upside.

20:35 – Half time arrives and heralds a dash down to the bar for a quick drink. As usual, upon arrival the bar staff are strangely unprepared, it is almost as if they did not expect a rush during the break.

20:48 – Get a drink at last, a tepid lager with a head of which Shrek would be proud is served at the instant that you hear the cheers as the teams emerge from the tunnel.

20:50 - After slurping down the foul brew, you make tracks feeling rather nauseous back

to the stand. The game has restarted and fellow supporters in your row look at you like you have farted at the opera as you return to your seat, feeling thoroughly ashamed for your tardiness despite the fact you are blameless.

20:52 Another poor soul returns from the bar and you tut loudly before reluctantly moving your legs out of the way, feeling secretly delighted that you were not the only one to disturb everyone after the resumption of the action.

21:40 The final whistle blows and the slow exit from the ground begins. You shuffle along slower than a pensioner in need of a hip replacement and if you have the misfortune to have a female in your group you wait 45 minutes for her to emerge from the Ladies.

22:35 Eventually on the tube platform you watch with amusement as the bemused innocents already in the carriage look with horror at the hordes preparing to board. The train would be considered full at rush hour, but somehow fifty football fans squeeze aboard.

23:15 Home at last and a text arrives from best mate who is still an hour from his bed.

‘GOIN NXT SAT?’ and you, of course reply ‘YEP DEFO’.

Sean Mathias

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 13

DEBATE

SHOULD FOOTBALL FANS BOO THEIR OWN TEAM? Football has long been like a pantomime. When the despised neighbours from down the road come to town they become the villains of the Saturday afternoon show.

The home fans boo, berate and bully the opposing players in the most ferocious fashion possible.

But nowadays it is not just the villains of the pantomime who are booed, in recent years the show has taken a twist and on an ever increasing basis, the idolised heroes of the theatre are subject to torments too.

Home fans turning on their own players is a relatively new phenomenon in the long history of the game. It was once reserved for the utterly abject, abysmal or atrocious performances, but today it doesn’t take a lot for the jeering to begin.

Players no longer have to be on the losing side to become susceptible to a vicious chorus of boos. A draw at home or even misdemeanours in the players’ personal lives can leave them at the mercy of the fans. And it is not just a problem at domestic level; just ask John Terry and Ashley Cole. Both have been subject to abusive taunts from England fans on several occasions.

So do fans have the right to boo their own team or should they defy their own sense of disappointment and worship their

14 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

Gods no matter what?

Many fans argue that the extortionate cost of a day out at the football, which for many can be a day’s wages or more, entitles them to vent their fury if the players don’t show enough of the traits like hard-work and commitment that us Brits seem to love.

Aidan Barnard, an Arsenal season ticket holder and member of the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust, said: “Top players earn crazy amounts of money, money which one way or another comes from the fans. If the players don’t perform to the best of their capabilities, it is our duty as their employers to tell them so.”

But what excuse do fans of lower league clubs have, where tickets cost less and the players earn less.

Mr Barnard says that at lower levels, booing is often the only way that fans can make their voice heard: “Fans are never involved in the big decisions that clubs make. Venting our fury from the stands is often the only way we

can make our feelings known.”

However, there are many who detest the idea of booing those that they are supposed to be supporting. Surely the purpose of supporters is in the job title, to support. If the home fans start turning on their team it makes the task for the opposition that much easier. Confidence drains out of the players and they become edgy and nervous, making critical mistakes that much more likely.

Manchester United season ticket holder John Harrison is strongly opposed to booing the club he supports: “Every team has an offday, they might miss a hatful of chances, have major refereeing decisions go against them or just perform plain awfully. Either way football fans need to recognise that their team can’t win every game.

“From time to time we all feel a little under the weather or have personal issues to contend with. The last thing you need at times like that is someone on your back criticising your every move.”

And why does this type of barracking only take place in football; you wouldn’t boo Lewis Hamilton if he failed to win a Grand Prix.

It’s because football is a passionate game and displaying emotion is an integral part of it. But while the odd boo here and there could give your team a much needed kick up the backside, an echoing chorus of fearsome boos can only ever have destructive consequences. Tommy Curran

BETTING

AN ALTERNATIVE BETTING TIP TO DELUDED FAITH! England are about to kick off their World Cup campaign against the Yanks, I’m settling down to watch the game with a few mates, the question is raised “So who’s everyone’s money on for the World Cup?” and the triumphant chorus of “Engerlaaand” echoes round. One of the lads proudly announces ‘I’ve got us at 8-1.

What a price!’

I pay homage to my friend on being the David Dickinson of Bargain Betting Hunts, but what I’m really thinking is 8-1??? Are you mad??? 20-1 and maybe he’s onto a ‘Bobby Dazzler’ of a bet, but not 8’s.

So why is 8-1 so bad? England were one of 8 seeded teams in South Africa, drawn in a group consisting of baseball players, skiers and camel riders, with a squad boasting some of the best players on the planet. Emphatic qualification for the finals bears testimony to this, as did our ranking of 8th from the cannot be wrong officials at FIFA. 8-1 seems fair?

Taking those St George tinted glasses off for a minute, 31 other teams stood in our way, many with fantastic recent international pedigree, whilst we boast one World Cup title won at home 44 years ago, bolstered by a ludicrous weight of expectation and a penchant for shooting ourselves in the footballs!

In 2010 self destruct pre-season began early, it wasn’t vuvuzela horns that were being blown in anticipation of the World Cup, just that of John ‘lock up your WAGS’ Terry and so began our demise…

Whilst Kit Kat tell us our best chance of victory is to eat some chocolate wafers and cross our fingers so we don’t Terry it up, we pile into the prices offered by the bookies on our boys lifting the trophy.

You try and be pragmatic and back the Germans, but there’s always that schmaltzy (not a German midfielder) yearning to bet on England. You don‘t really want to cheer on the Sausage munchers and before you know it your waste deep in the bookies honey trap.

The lure of the football betting utopia of an England win and the spoils of being rewarded for your unbridled faith are too strong.

Remember though, English bookmakers are not England fans.

The only thing they stand to gain from another star being added to the England shirt would be the publicity and

this £20 lay strategy on England in the 10 international football tournaments I’ve been legally able to bet on, I’d be £200 to the good. Backing England each time and I’d be £200 in the red.

In truth, this is only a strategy for Andy Murray and other Jocks, profiteering from your own teams failings is tantamount to treason.

But it’s not just England where this rule applies, this is just where it manifests itself most blatantly. The key is to look beyond the obvious and what the bookie wants you to bet on.

The BinGoal!father

comfort that the damage limitation of having offered a short price on England had paid off.

The only laying of the England team should be on the betting exchanges. Users of Betfair and similar exchange bookmakers will be familiar with the term to ‘lay’, which is when you offer the odds on a team and take the hit when they win. In other words you’re betting on something not happening, acting the bookmaker.

If you’re detached enough to take the view England weren’t going to win the World Cup and offered 8-1 to a fellow punter you would have to risk £160 to win £20.

Big risk, small gain, but maybe that risk isn’t so great. Had I applied

To get weekly betting tips and insight go to www.bingoal-online.com ‘bet of the week’

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 15

THE PREMIER LEAGUE

THE PREMIE echnology in the game needs to be brought in as an overall package of measures and not in a piecemeal, random way.

Emphasis should be placed on dealing with dissent, simulation and making the job of the referee and his assistants easier.

Dissent in the Premier League could be virtually eliminated overnight with the introduction of miked up referees. Foulmouthed rants and incessant whining will cease as the players will be only too aware that their lucrative sponsorship deals will be lost if they project the wrong image. This has certainly been the experience in the NBA in the US. It is inevitable that if you are aware that your every word is being transmitted then you are more likely to be respectful in what you say than otherwise.

Simulation is a huge problem in the game and is something that should be addressed as a matter of urgency. It is very difficult for referees to judge this (without the help of TV replays) in the context of a fast team sport with physical contact, but that is no reason to

T

throw our hands in the air and give up. Diving should be subject to retrospective action and the Premier League should be in the vanguard on this. A few incidents a week can be looked at by a body, similar to the dubious goals panel, who can sit in retrospective judgement. In cases that are flagrant cheating with no room for doubt, the book should be thrown at the miscreants. A standard 4 match ban should ensure that a star striker is not tempted to throw himself at a leg in the area in a tight game in the title run in. Also if players are officially branded a cheat then it is not hard to imagine the potential damage to their image rights income flow.

The introduction of goal-line technology is a no-brainer after Bloemfontein and should be introduced in the very near future, whether the preferred option is a chip in the ball, cameras with instantly reviewed video replay or a full Hawkeye setup is for FIFA to discuss for 3 years over expensive dinners, but the Premier League should be willing to help with the trials. Extending technology beyond this would lead to the action being fragmented,

‘YAYA TOURE IS REPORTEDLY BEING PAID AN ASTONISHING £220,000 A WEEK. THIS IS AN INDICATION OF THE NAKED AMBITION OF THE NEW OWNERSHIP.’

16 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

thus unnecessarily interrupting the flow of the beautiful game and strong voices within FIFA will resist this strongly. FIFA have announced the optional introduction of two goalline officials, surely a retrograde step, but indicative of the current thinking to kick the issue of video evidence into the long grass.

UEFA have announced that a 5th and 6th official will be used in their competitions this season. A major problem with technology, FIFA constantly tell us, is that football is a simple game and should be the same at all levels, so those playing on Hackney Marshes play the same game as the top stars. It seems to have escaped their notice that despite the respect campaign it is almost impossible to find three officials, yet alone five, at the amateur level. The professional refereeing pool will be severely stretched if this is instigated in the Premier and Football Leagues and it surely would make sense to use older more experienced refs as the goalline judges by raising the retirement age for these largely immobile officials. This solution simply will not stand any serious scrutiny. Let

ER LEAGUE the Way Forward? us hope that the progressive thinkers hold sway in the discussions that will ensue in the coming months.

It is hard to imagine that in the next two decades we will not be watching football on a hand-held device of sorts. The mobile phone football-watching revolution has largely been a damp squib because of the limitation of screen size, but with the advances in screen technology and the development of the iPad this could be a significant part of the football viewing experience in the future. Also 3-D advances will enhance the experience and be used, unquestionably, to extract more revenue from football fans. These revenues will continue to be largely spent on player’s wages as it is hard to see a salary cap that would have to be a European, if not worldwide, initiative and therefore incredibly difficult to negotiate, enforce and police.

Certainly this is a task beyond the current UEFA hierarchy.

Re-introducing safe standing areas will be a huge step forward and should not be beyond the wit of stadium designers and safety experts in the 21st Century. It has been successfully introduced in the Bundesliga and should also be here at the earliest opportunity.

This would improve the atmosphere at grounds enormously and add to the experience for all fans, seated or standing.

Manchester City will become a big player in the Premier League during the next decade and beyond if their initial forays into the transfer market are anything to go by. The most startling example being new £24 million

signing Yaya Toure. He is reportedly being paid an astonishing £220,000 a week. This is an indication of the naked ambition of the new ownership, as it must be said, frankly, that Yaya is not the finest player on the planet. He is a defensive midfielder and was unable to hold down a place at Barcelona, where Busquets was preferred, but City have splashed the cash to the tune of a total package price of £79 million including transfer fee, bonuses and wages. City will raise the financial bar to such an extent that Chelsea and particularly debt-ridden United will have to find a way to respond or perish. Liverpool face a couple of seasons that are critical to their survival as a big-four team, as they need to get back on the Champions League rails quickly or resign themselves to mid-table mediocrity for a generation or as a worst case

scenario complete financial melt-down.

The introduction of the 6-5 rule to increase the home-grown player ratio has been touted

by FIFA and the potential effects on the English game much discussed. However it is illegal in the EU and as such is very unlikely to be enforceable. The problem that stops young players from developing in England is not the availability of mediocre talent from overseas, but the restrictive price of young talent in this country. Why would any manager who valued his job, buy a promising youngster from Millwall, when a proven international performer was available at Porto for the same price? Lower league clubs need to sell talent on to survive and are prone to overcharge their Premier League rivals, but the top-flight clubs are perceived as at fault. It is not as cut and dried as that. If there was a cap on the amount you could ask for young players, would that be the solution? It may well be, but the likes of Crewe would very probably go to the wall and no-one wants that.

That England should be awarded the World Cup finals in the near future is beyond doubt and the boost to this nation and our league incalculable, but if they fail in their bid for 2018, it is hard to see any chance before 2030 with the likelihood that Africa and South America will take their turns in the natural scheme of things. Indeed it could be a longer wait as the influence of the American dollar and the marketing potential of the States make another ‘World Cup of Soccer’ a distinct possibility. To describe the 2018 English bid as shambolic would be flattering and the bid team in Moscow are handily placed coming into the final straight, we can only hope that the ‘Beckham factor’ kicks in. Sean Mathias

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 17

GLOBAL FOOTBALL

THE DOG AND

DUCK GOES

GLOBAL very true football person, be it player, coach or just general observer, has an affiliation with some sort of stereotypical Sunday morning team. You know the one; they’ve all got an ‘experienced’ (old) centre half, a winger who’s had trials with Crewe Alexandra and a Mr. Versatile figure whose best position appears to be linesman as that’s generally what takes his time up on those freezing January mornings. While these qualities exemplify our English version of the amateur game, what goes on in the various far-flung corners of the world? The recent World Cup has further reaffirmed the notion of football as the global game and if you scour the globe you can find countless traits, quirks and traditions of local football that vary from country to country; some good, some bad, and some downright ugly.

In France, Italy and Holland the amateur game is a cornerstone of their national sport. France have their own Amateur Football Association; Italy’s southern regions in particular place a huge emphasis on the amateur game and Holland actually host a competition to recognise their country’s ‘National Amateur Champions’. It’s a similar case in Germany, who are slowly regaining their status as an international footballing superpower due to massive investment in the grassroots of the game.

E

18 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

Six million people, seven per cent of the population in fact, are active in one of their 27,000-plus registered football clubs. The Bundesliga is the best attended league in the world and fresh off the back of the 2006 World Cup, the Women’s World Cup will also be coming to Germany in 2011. Right now German football is in the ascendency, with their swashbuckling performances at the recent World Cup attributed to ’ten years of grassroots development’ by highly-fashionable national team coach Joachim Löew.

Spain, Germany’s conquerors in South Africa, don’t appear to have as healthy an amateur game though. The emphasis instead is on youth development and the professional game, with the amateur leagues regularly topped by reserve sides of big professional clubs. The National Governing body has no real interest in the non-paid ranks, instead leaving it up to their various regional denominations to organise competitions for those Spaniards without the effortless talent of Andres Iniesta.

Argentina has a matching attitude to that of their Latin counterparts, with their Football Association distancing themselves from the amateur game and delegating responsibility to six regional governing bodies instead. Again much like Spain, the coaching of young players is deemed paramount in the grassroots of the game, with youths at the country’s top academies encouraged to play in all positions across the field (apparently Javier Zanetti was a cracking centre forward) and to try different codes of the game such as futsal and beach football.

These two games are also hugely important in Brazil, who boast a whopping 10,000 professional players worldwide, more than any other nation. It’s a safe bet that each

of these professionals has played futsal at some stage, a small-sided game played with a smaller, heavier ball that forces players to pass the ball on the floor; the notion of ‘pump it forward’ is certainly not the order of the day when it comes to this highly-technical game.

Despite the undoubted ability possessed

by Brazilians at all levels of the game, the Brazilian love-affair with football almost dictates that their amateur game will never be as good as it could be. It is not uncommon for prospective players released by academies to leave the country and seek footballing employment thousands of miles away, rather than find a job domestically and play the game just for fun. Still, those that stay behind have access to plenty of football, with Brazilians of all ages happy to engage in a kick-about on fields, streets, roads, beaches or wherever. So long as there’s a ball, a Brazilian will play.

What of the so-called emerging nations though? How are the non-professional players from soccer’s less established nations doing compared to their seemingly moreexperienced counterparts? In the case of the USA, the answer is rather well. ‘Soccer’, as the Americans have annoyingly labelled it, is the most popular sport by far amongst its youngsters, and has been for some thirty years now because of its ability to engage children of all ages and sizes. Its appeal

stretches to girls also, with forty per cent of America’s soccer players being female.

When they get older there are still huge opportunities available, with America’s famed college sport system now fully extended to the traditionally un-American sport of football. Kids from all over the world, a lot of them from English shores, are taking the opportunity to study at American universities alongside an intensive soccer training programme, often earning scholarships based solely on their ability to deliver a good freekick. With crowds of thousands turning up to watch games, and a very realistic chance of being drafted to a top MLS club at the end of your three years of study, the American adventure is one of the most thrilling for any amateur footballer.

However, post-graduation there is still much work to be done. America still prefers the likes of basketball and baseball to football, with amateur club football in the country still unable to break into the mainstream. With a greater emphasis now placed on growing the sport rather than regulating it, along with the continued success of youth and college soccer, participation in America’s adult amateur football may one day match that of its youngsters.

Australia is another country where other sports are stifling football’s growth. In a place where the term ‘soccer’ is the dominant tag,

sports such as Aussie Rules and both codes of Rugby dominate the sports news bulletins rather than any kind of soccer news. While organisation of local amateur leagues is good, go to any park and you’re much more likely to find kids throwing an oval shaped ball around rather than pinging fifty yard passes to one another.

The African continent is suffering the inverse of these problems. Whilst football is the dominant sport, a void of organisation and leadership amongst its football federations means a lack of direction in both amateur and professional football.

Although things have improved since the 70s and 80s, with most African countries now offering recognised coaching qualifications, still African football relies on the influence of academies set up by big European clubs to develop the best African youths. While a huge enthusiasm remains for the game across the continent, galvanised further by the staging of the World Cup in South Africa, it seems amateur football in Africa is where the organisation and facilities remain at their most amateurish.

The African continent may soon be overtaken by Asia in terms of its football development, with a thriving amateur scene the catalyst for the start of a footballing

revolution. Coverage of the Premier League has boomed all across Asia, attracting literally millions of loyal fans who are now taking to the streets in the hope of emulating the heroes they see on TV every week. Unlike Africa, Asia’s organisation is exceptional, witnessed at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and Korea, and this thorough preparation is successfully transferring to the amateur ranks.

Another factor in Asia’s favour is the lack of migration amongst its top players. Whereas African players are whisked to the riches of Europe as soon as they hit their teens, a huge majority of Asia’s superstars remain in their home country, maintaining a high standard of domestic football which in turn filters down to the amateur levels. This talent is starting to be recognised, with Manchester United recently launching a massive search across India to find a gifted youngster to join their academy. Don’t be surprised if a number of other clubs follow their lead. Jon Vale

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 19

CHELSEA

20 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

A

s a fan of the club since 1970 and a season ticket holder in the dark days during the 80s and 90s, it is particularly galling to be shouted at when colouredup in the street or in a pub, “Where were you when you were s**t?” It is tempting to retort “Stood in the West Side of the Shed, dripping wet, watching us lose”, but this would be lost on such dullards. However, when Chelsea fans travel away and are taunted in this fashion even the most oneeyed Blues supporters can acknowledge the point being made.

For those of us of a certain vintage, (fans who think of Pat Nevin as a mercurial winger, the personification of the luxury player and not a balding, so-so pundit on Channel 5), these insults are clearly ridiculous, but the new Chelsea fans have to take it on the chin. Given the years of heartbreak and disappointment we have endured, we old boys feel we have made an emotional investment in the club and we are due a return which we feel we deserve to some extent.

One of the advantages of the recent successes of the club is that the fan-base has grown and it would be churlish to complain about that. Since that magical, glorious day in May 1997 when ‘Steady’ Eddie Newton wrapped up the facile 2-0 Cup Final win against relegated Boro, the goalposts have moved and the Abramovich millions since 2003, have made an enormous difference to the quality of the players on show at the Bridge. However, gloryhunters who don’t sing and sit on their hands waiting to be entertained, have arrived in their droves and the days when Stamford Bridge was considered an intimidating away trip are sadly long gone. Many longstanding fans have been squeezed out financially as the club has moved on and to some extent left the passion behind with them.

Not all of the newbies are gloryhunters and for any southern lad becoming aware of football for the first time around the age of 6 or 7 it has been a good call during the last 10 years to opt for the Blues, as I did in 1970. But don’t get me started on people who change their allegiance, this is NEVER, EVER acceptable, in any event.

Partners may come and go, even parents eventually die, but the

one rock-solid relationship most of us have is with the football club that took our heart in our early years.

There is a type of new Chelsea fan that I have an illdisguised contempt for. The most frustrating thing is when they take for granted a trophy a year and some even arrogantly dismiss the ‘Double’ achieved last year as they bemoan the fact that we did not win the Champions League.

Back in the dark debt-ridden days when the club were on the brink of extinction and the old 3rd Division, I would have crawled to Wembley on broken glass for even a sniff of a Cup win, yet alone the elusive Double. A bit of humility would not go amiss and they need to learn that nothing is to be taken for

granted in football, but has to be earned season by season, game by game.

So if you are a fan of another club, you can rest assured that if you resent the arrogant, swaggering, Johnny-comelately Chelsea fans so prevalent today, us old Chelsea fans find them far, far more irritating. Indeed, if the Blues have a fallow period in the future (which we surely will), the only advantage will be that we will gladly wave them goodbye, as they depart to pastures new changing their replica shirts as they go. Sean Matthias

w e i v a . . .

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 21

Got something on your mind that you want to share with the nation? Well here is your opportunity to have your say, send in your pictures, jokes, banter, chants, rants, what ever you want it’s your page!

Visit www.footballfriends.org.uk now for details

e the Premiership is Paul The finest player ever to grac mistakes during our tless coun e mad ello Cap Scholes. none more so than his but n, paig cam dreadful World Cup the World Cup party to n atio invit decision to delegate the admitted if Fabio elf hims to his right hand man. Scholsey may have been tempted he call, us ario prec that e had mad to join our motley crew out in South Africa. At the age of 35 the ginger-headed maestro still produces displays that Lampard & Co can only dream about and I can only hope that there is enough in the old tank er for the United legend to solid on for a couple more seasons.

Recent displays suggest two more campaigns may not be beyond him. Paul Scholes in one word - genius.

Christopher Peters, Manchester United Fan.

After the England team failed on the world’s biggest stage (again), our national game has reached a state of panic.

Apparently our players are all crap, our youth systems abysmal and our coaches incompetent. Good Lord, we are overdramatic…

Football here in England is still very healthy. Despite likes disappointing in South Africa there can be no denying the t amongs are Cole Ashley and Rooney Wayne , Gerrard of Steven the world’s elite. For the first time in a while two of our biggest clubs, Liverpool and Tottenham, will be led by English managers.

Our under-17s are European champions, beating the mighty Spain, with our other youth sides all enjoying good performances in their respective tournaments.

The World Cup could very realistically be coming here in eight years time as well, imagine how good that’ll be.

Our amateur game is the best organised and most popular in the world, plus our exposure to the beautiful game on television, radio and in print is seriously quality sports media coverage.

I’m not saying everything is perfect. It’s not, and it probably never will be. But remember, it could be a lot worse. At least we’re not France…

Jon Vale, England Fan

22 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

I’m a passionate football fan who loves everything football related. It all started back on the 3rd May 1986 when I went to my first Watford game; we drew 1-1 with Manchester United and then a few months later I saw us beat United 1-0. I’ve had a season ticket on and off since the late eighties, even though my dad and granddad had hoped I’d be a Chelsea fan like them, but I was hooked on the Horns. Over the years there’s been a mix of highs and lows, it’s never dull being a Watford fan!

More recently I’ve taken on a second love, whilst I couldn’t support another English team I fell in love with Lazio when I lived in Italy. Another team which has provided me with a multitude of emotions - Highs have included seeing the squad qualify for the Champions League and winning the Coppa Italia. On the way to the final I was in Stadio Olympic o to witness Lazio smash Milan 4-0 in the semi-final.

Scott Balaam, Watford Fan

Better to have played in the Premier League than to have never played there at all…

Hull City’s relegation from the Premiership was a bitter pill to swallow, all the ‘what ifs’ every fan experiences week in, week out are magnified when you’re down.

Whilst lamenting the failings of our 2009/10 campaign I recounted a Palace fan carping on to me rather too proudly “I hated it when Palace were in the Premier League, we got beat every week, it was bloody expensive, half the fans were just there to see the big teams and I couldn’t wait to get back down to the Championship - in short it was rubbish”.

Now that’s a well-worn observation made by many who’ve suffered playing in the top flight, but such pessimism never fails to stagger me.

For all the hammerings, rumour mongering, scandals, for all the egotistical cringe-worthy moments our then manager Phil Brown put us through, for all the dodgy signings on more money a week than we could raise a transfer fee for 10 years ago, it was mind blowing.

Every game a cup final, playing the likes of Wigan suddenly had a certain mystique, an allure never experienced in previous meetings with the Latics. Seeing your team on MOTD every week became the norm.

Pre-season tours to China, signing your first Brazilian everyday kind of events, cup runs (we actually had a cup run), cherished moments putting one over on the football royalty of England, holidaying in Hong Kong and being confronted with 100’s of bars showing our game LIVE on TV. Drawing 0-0 at the Lane last season when keeping a clean sheet took on a fantasy like state (well it does with Paul McShane in defence!) and seeing Geovanni’s goal at the Emirates re-run all over the world, it was brilliant, if not a little surreal at times.

As the saying goes ‘better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all’ and it sums up relegation from the Premiership. The NPower Championship is not without it’s glamour and energy… but the optimist in me can’t wait to get back to the Premiership.

Ally Townend, Hull Fan

INTERVIEW

ONE TO WATCH

LLOYD FOOT

It is widely regarded as one of the country’s top breeding grounds for young English talent – and it seems that the Southampton Academy has done it again.

A new name is emerging from the League One club’s prestigious academy and hopes are high on the South Coast that Lloyd Foot will emulate the success of previous graduates who include Matt Le Tissier, Alan Shearer, Wayne Bridge, Gareth Bale and perhaps most famously in recent years, Theo Walcott.

Despite interest from Premier League giants Liverpool, Foot and his family decided that Southampton, their local professional club, was the best place for him to grow and develop his obvious talent. Having been spotted playing for hometown club Alton Town in the Tyro League, Foot impressed the Saints’ coaching staff during a 12 week trial and was subsequently invited to join their academy, becoming a first year scholar at the start of the 2009/10 season.

Standing at a strapping 6ft 2in, the 17 year-old brings a dynamic and domineering presence to the centre of defence that has

become such a sought after commodity in modern football.

His powerful physique may suggest that he is of the old-fashioned centre-back mould – strong in the air, ruthless in the tackle – and admittedly, these are key elements of his game. However, Foot prides himself on his ability to play with the ball on the floor, transforming defence into attack with midfield splitting runs.

“I’d like to think I play a bit like Sergio Ramos,” he says. “I also admire Lucio and Southampton’s Jose Fonte for their ballplaying skills.”

An obvious leader, he captained the academy side for much of his first year as a scholar, Foot is also a player who thrives under pressure, an example of which came in a league encounter with Aston Villa last season when the defender slotted a penalty to win the game.

“I don’t usually take them,” he explains, “but our usual penalty taker had gone off injured so I told everyone that I’d take it, seeing as no one else stepped up.

“Good job I scored it!” he jokes.

the 17 year-old brings a dynamic and domineering presence to the centre of defence that has become such a sought after commodity in modern football.

Off the pitch, Foot displays the maturity and confidence needed to make it in the professional game. He is driven to succeed by a strong support team, led by his father Neil, and has a burning ambition to make it to the top.

He is also buoyed by the resurgence of his club since the introduction of new owners in the summer of 2009.

“Its going to be a really, really exciting season for everyone,” he said.

“The first team have got a very good squad now and at my level we have a new under-21 set up which will take us around Europe and around the world playing against a variety of top teams.

“It’s really exciting. There’s a great buzz around the place.”

With the Saints earmarked by every bookie in the country as the outright favourites for the League One title, Foot has made a personal mission statement to push on this year in order to be involved with the senior squad sooner rather than later.

When asked where he sees himself in five years time, he is very quick to answer.

“The Premier League,” he states, defiantly.

“I’ve decided this pre-season that that’s where I want to be. I’ll do everything I can to get there.”

If his rise continues at the rate it is going, there will be no stopping him. Alex Smith • Thank you to www.sjdent.com Sports Memorabilia

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 23

PUB QUIZ

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE A GOOD...

PUB QUIZ

GET ON! U O Y W O H E AND SE W O L E B S N IO QUEST AVERAGE QUESTIONS ANSWER THE 3 POINTS

EASY QUESTIONS 1 POINT Which Country won the first Football World Cup in 1930?

Which Scottish club are known as The Bhoys?

Who came 3rd in the 2010 World Cup playoff?

24 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

Which Country won the first Woman’s Football World Cup in 1991?

Which Geordie played for England and managed the Republic of Ireland?

What name is shared by Scunthorpe, Southend and Rotherham?

how did you score? see www.footballfriends.org.uk/pub-quiz for answers

0-5 Points = awful

6-12 Points = average is nothing to be proud of

13-29 Points = your getting there

30+ Points = legend

BONUS ROUND EXTREMELY DIFFICULT

DIFFICULT QUESTIONS 5 POINTS Which player scored in all six of Brazil’s matches during the 1970 World Cup? Who joined Liverpool from Celtic in 1977 for £400,000?

Which former English Premier League team was once known as “The Biscuit Men”?

5 POINTS

Who won the FIFA World Player of the year award in 1995?

Who did José Mourinho first manage?

In 1995 who did David Beckham spend 5 games on loan to?

IMPOSSIBLE QUESTION 6 POINTS Which Non League club did Chris Smalling play for before his arrival at Fulham?

ISSUE 1 FOOTBALL FRIENDS 25

NEW GEAR

The best of Germany, Holland and Italy

You ain’t seen me, right?

Makes being a hoodie look fashionable!

Following the team in red…

FIX UP AND LOOK SHARP

Mainline Menswear in association with Football Friends brings you the latest designer brands, news and reviews from the world of fashion and clothes. Perfect advice and help for the die-hard football fan that likes to be a trend setter…not a follower!

26 FOOTBALL FRIENDS ISSUE 1

Footballers from around the world like to look their best when they step out on to the pitch in front of you and their adoring fans, so why shouldn’t you and your mates look good watching them from the stands, terracing or even from behind the barriers that separates you from the players you look upon to improve or continue the fortunes of the club or nation you support?

For years professional footballers have taken their fashion and grooming seriously and with more money in the game now than ever before, footballers have taken the ‘male grooming’ to the extreme. Chest waxes, manicures and spray tans are all the rage at the moment in the over exuberant lifestyle of a top footballer – so why shouldn’t you get in on the act? We’re not saying you should go take a loan out, style your hair, wax your chest and legs and drop a small fortune on designer clothing, but fashion at football is to some people as important as the final result on the pitch.

Let us start off with a little history lesson… fashion at football began in the mid 50s with teddy boys, 60s with mods and skinheads and then came the 70s, when designer labels were seen as the alternative to fashions of the time, as this attracted less attention from the Police. This decade gave birth to the football casuals and began the designer clothing

association with football that is still strong today. A lot was made of the football casuals of the 70s and 80s, with designer clothing seen as your intent to be a part of a firm, nowadays it is simply a case of wanting to look and feel good at the football ground of your choice.

The usual suspects on show today at grounds around the UK are Lyle and Scott, Lacoste, Luke 1977, Adidas Originals, G Star, Cruyff Classics, Original Penguin, Ralph Lauren and Stone Island, all of which (and more) can be found at Mainline Menswear.

Each top designer brand is fully in tune with the trends and fashions of most walks of life so you really can’t go wrong when selecting some new or favourite clobber for the coming season, just make sure you take into account the British winter! Both Manchester and Liverpool are among the top visitors to Mainline Menswear, such is the importance to look good in the north west. Give yourself and your friends something to do in-between games and visit the top designer menswear website to checkout the top brands and ranges on offer and keep an eye out for the next fantastic issue of Football Friends magazine for some new fashion advice, news and reviews. www.mainlinemenswear.co.uk

‘If It’s Football, It’s Vital’

www.vitalfootball.co.uk

Join 1.7 million fans in the largest independent interaction football network around.

Vital offers, forums, polls and debate with over 5000 fan generated articles and thousands of fan comments a month, all the football information and banter you could ever ask for all in one place!

Remember, ‘If It’s Football, It’s Vital’

www.vitalfootball.co.uk