“Maybe I learned more from him than he did off me”.
This was Pep Guardiola’s recent assessment of Mikel Arteta’s three years spent at the Etihad as his assistant, and if such a comment feels generous to the point of being charitable, it’s also closer to the truth than many would believe.
Brought in to develop his coaching chops under Manchester City’s chief-architect, Arteta’s influence swiftly grew to the extent where his opinion was actively sought and listened to by Guardiola, a shift in their dynamic that came across strongly in the Amazon behind-the-scenes documentary focusing on the club’s 2017/18 campaign.
Indeed, so valued a presence did Arteta become in Manchester that in his final season he was handed sole charge of the team for a Champions League clash, with the Catalan sitting out a one-match touchline ban.
Still, for all that the former Arsenal and Everton midfielder propagated his own ideas with the Blues, this remained a pupil/mentor relationship, a privileged apprenticeship served under the very best. Everyone knew that.
When you face the challenge with belief and courage, anything is possible. COYG Proud of everyone! pic.twitter.com/QPOZCj18di
Which is why when Arteta returned to the Emirates, to take on the big job there and to become the main man, a nickname accompanied him to the capital, one that diminished him from the off. Mikel Arteta was cast by early critics as ‘Pep Lite’.
Was this moniker fair?
Certainly, the football he oversaw in North London was of a similar brand to the one that gobbled up silverware at his previous employer, a successful mandate that once again sees City this season short-priced in the Premier League betting.
Unquestionably, the two coaches were on the same page about a great many things, their philosophies aligned.
Yet, there was – and is – significant differences in Arsenal’s methodology to City’s approach, with a high press that is more selective so as to retain structure and not be countered. Arteta also affords his players far more scope for individual actions outside of his blueprint.
In truth, such was the mess he inherited at the Emirates that it took quite a while for these difference to come to the fore and initially at least, amidst the struggle and dropped points, only a strict adherence to a passing game was apparent. Arsenal for eighteen months or more, were essentially City Lite.
Fast forward to now however, and much has changed and fundamentally so. Backed up by some shrewd purchases in the transfer market, Arteta-ball is flourishing, flying even, with the Gunners proudly residing at the league’s summit, a title bid in their nostrils.
Indeed, not since the days of Henry, Vieira and the exquisitely-gifted Dennis Bergkamp have Gooners been blessed with a team of style and substance, one that is equally as capable of bewitching minnows or rolling up their sleeves against quality fare.
In the space of a week prior to a World Cup hiatus, a side bolstered by a terrific centre-back pairing of Gabriel and Saliba, firmed up in midfield by Thomas Partey, and sprinkled with Brazilian flair up front, thrashed Nottingham Forest 5-0, then ground out a 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.
Any side post-Wenger could have posted one of these results, but both? Never.
It is a broad and complete remit that is a reflection on the model put in place by Arteta, a man who learned from the best, then added his own ideas for good measure.
Most weeks now Arsenal are fancied in our Premier League predictions and that’s because at the helm is an alite coach with a singular vision. He is, by every metric, the real deal.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
Stephen Tudor is a freelance football writer and sports enthusiast who only knows slightly less about the beautiful game than you do.
A contributor to FourFourTwo and Forbes, he is a Manchester City fan who was taken to Maine Road as a child because his grandad predicted they would one day be good.
England cruised to a 3-0 win over Senegal on Sunday night thanks to goals from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka.
This is the first time ever the Three Lions have won a knockout match at three consecutive major tournaments, and sets up a mouth-watering quarter-final with France on Saturday.
The first half-an-hour had a chance or two for Senegal with England struggling to pick out their attacking players between the lines.
The last-16 stage is set and England face Senegal on Sunday night for a place in the quarter-finals.
Here, @SteTudor123 discusses why Phil Foden is so important and why Gareth Southgate cannot afford to keep him on the bench.https://t.co/0RsGSJZec9
Harry Maguire and John Stones spent a lot of time knocking the ball to one another. A slick move down the left brought the first goal out of the blue, however, which was soon followed by a clinical strike from Harry Kane to effectively wrap up the victory before the interval.
Phil Foden created the third for Saka, who lifted the ball past Edouard Mendy from close range, and England barely had to break sweat in the final 33 minutes of normal time to guarantee they would return to Al Bayt Stadium in six days’ time.
Gareth Southgate’s England continue to make history – here are five things we learned from their comprehensive win over the Lions of Teranga.
Jude Bellingham is Already Elite
Jude Bellingham has starred for Borussia Dortmund, delivering match-defining performances in the Champions League and impressing in the Bundesliga.
The platform of a World Cup, starting in the engine room at 19 years old, is a different tier altogether.
Against Senegal, Bellingham was a non-factor early on, but that changed emphatically with his driving run for the first goal and pinpoint pass to put it on a plate for Jordan Henderson.
The second was all Bellingham as he won the ball on the edge of the England box, powered up the middle of the pitch, retaining possession and sliding the ball to Phil Foden, who played in Harry Kane.
Few players perform like this at a World Cup before their 20th birthday. Even fewer do so playing in central midfield.
Bellingham doesn’t just do a bit of everything, he does it all at an incredibly high level, combining a complete set of physical attributes with technical brilliance and a calmness with and without possession.
The one assist, three dribbles and four tackles do not tell the story of Bellingham’s performance on Sunday. Teenage prodigies have been overhyped in England in the past, but Bellingham is a different case.
He isn’t good for a teenager – he is already among the best in the world at his position, and could be the best midfielder on the planet within a couple of years.
England’s Squad Depth is Exceptional
Much is made of squad depth when discussing World Cup betting prior to a tournament. The impact of players outside the top 15 or so has generally been limited for the top teams.
Different options in attack has always been beneficial (providing they are all of around the same quality), however, and the extra substitutes allowed in Qatar make a deep bench more valuable.
It is easy to look on with envy at the France or Brazil squads. England, though, have a squad as good as any in this winter’s World Cup, and they have reaped the rewards with Gareth Southgate tweaking his XI since the 6-2 hammering of Iran.
Even with Raheem Sterling travelling back to England, Southgate is blessed with a raft of attacking talents to slot alongside Harry Kane.
Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Mason Mount, Phil Foden and Sterling have now all started. Jack Grealish and Callum Wilson are great players to be able to call upon off the bench.
In midfield, Southgate has been able to call upon the experience of Jordan Henderson alongside Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is out of favour and Reece James wasn’t fit enough to make the squad, but Southgate still had Kieran Trippier to deputise while Kyle Walker returned to fitness.
Team news is in - can England finish the job and book a place in the last-16 against Senegal?
Read up on England's biggest World Cup wins (including the 6-2 victory over Iran) ahead of #ENGWAL.https://t.co/FHNjupHiDz
Despite failing to score in the group stage, Harry Kane was always a good option to find the net in live betting on Sunday.
Kane’s playmaking has been more valuable to England than his goal scoring, evidenced by his two assists and no shots against Iran.
The Tottenham striker had four shots over the final two group matches, though, and fired off three in the win over Senegal.
Only Leroy Sane and Antoine Griezmann have more expected goals assisted at this World Cup than Kane.
After his Golden Boot-winning haul in Russia, failing to score in three matches saw some questions asked of Kane, but his performances were great even before he fired past Edouard Mendy at about 7:47 on Sunday evening.
Southgate Knows What He’s Doing
This has been evident for a long time, but that hasn’t stopped the doubters resurfacing every time England have a moderately underwhelming result or performance.
Southgate has won six knockout matches at major tournaments, which is the same total achieved from 1968 to 2016.
Prior to the Southgate era, England lost to Iceland at the Euros and failed to make it out of a weak group at the 2014 World Cup. In the last two World Cups, England have scored as many goals as they did in the previous five combined.
Southgate has reduced the weight of the England shirt, which was a burden for so many for so long. He has backed his players on and off the field, and can even explain why there’s a rivalry between England and Wales.
There will always be loud critics of Southgate. It is the nature of managing a sports team, and particularly so when trying to guide a national team through the perils of tournament football.
Whatever his nonbelievers may spout, Southgate is England’s greatest manager since Alf Ramsey. He is yet to lose a knockout match in 90 minutes, and has absolutely nothing to prove regardless of what happens against France.
Gareth Southgate has come under scrutiny over the past six months but is he still the right man for the England job?
France are the reigning world champions and are led by the consensus best player in the world in Kylian Mbappe.
Les Bleus have also not kept a clean sheet in their last five matches, and are without Karim Benzema, Christopher Nkunku, N’Golo Kante, Paul Pogba and Lucas Hernandez.
This is the most difficult knockout match of Southgate’s England tenure, but it is also distinctly winnable. It is an even contest on talent alone.
England come into this match unbeaten in the tournament, and on a run of three straight clean sheets. France fell to Switzerland in last summer’s Euros, plus have lost four and drawn two of their last 10 in all competitions.
England are narrow underdogs, as their 11/10 odds to qualify indicate, but this is about as even as a knockout tie can be.
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
The group stage of the 2022 World Cup has been wrapped up, so it’s a good time to acknowledge the players who really impressed in the first round of this controversial tournament.
Big teams fell and some nations made history. Many are hoping this is the start of a glorious few weeks in Qatar. For others, simply winning a match or reaching the round of 16 is a success.
Which players made the difference for their country? Here’s our XI of the World Cup group stage.
Goalkeeper: Wojciech Szczęsny
Poland had been saved by Wojciech Szczęsny a few times even before he denied Lionel Messi from the spot on Wednesday. As it turned out, conceding a third against Argentina would have sent Poland home.
Szczęsny finished the group stage with a post-shot expected goals minus goals allowed figure of +3.6, which is double that of second place. The former Arsenal goalkeeper hasn’t even matched that number in a full season since his +4.1 in 2019-20.
Right-back: Josip Juranovic
Part of a Croatia defence which kept two clean sheets in a challenging group, Josip Juranovic has earned 19 of his 24 caps for the Vatreni since the start of last year.
The runners-up in Russia were not box office from a live betting perspective, but they got the job done and have a favourable tie in the round of 16.
Credited with an assist in the 4-1 drubbing of Canada, Juranovic was a solid performer throughout the first phase of the competition. He averaged two tackles and interceptions per match, plus 1.7 clearances and a block.
Centre-back: Harry Souttar
With 6.7 clearances, 1.3 blocks and 3.7 aerial duels won per match, Harry Souttar’s statistical case matches the eye test.
Souttar entered this tournament with just 90 minutes of football under his belt since injuring his ACL in 2021, but showed no signs of rust as the leader of Australia’s back line.
Souttar exhibited his passing range when given the opportunity, too. Able to start attacks and willing to put his body on the line, it is no surprise Souttar has already been linked with a move to the Premier League.
Centre-back: Harry Maguire
Out of form and favour at Manchester United, Harry Maguire’s position in the England XI was a subject of debate in the lead up to this tournament.
Gareth Southgate, though, has been unwavering in his support of Maguire, and that faith has been repaid.
Maguire has been a consistent and often vital performer for England under Southgate’s stewardship. He appears to have again hit his best form at the right time, with a particularly impressive showing in the tactical battle against the USA.
Left-back: Jordi Alba
Spain’s World Cup betting results faded through the group stage, ending with a defeat to Japan.
Their four points from two matches were partly down to the play of veteran left-back Jordi Alba – the 33-year-old had assists in the win over Costa Rica and draw with Germany.
Alba is not quite as rapid as he was in his pomp. The pace is still great, though, and he was active out of possession with 2.7 tackles and interceptions accompanying his 1.3 key passes per match.
Central Midfielder: Tyler Adams
Operating at the base of the United States midfield, Tyler Adams is the heartbeat of Gregg Berhalter’s side.
He registered 13 tackles and interceptions in three matches, along with five clearances, while averaging 61.3 passes on just under 90% pass completion.
The Stars and Stripes conceded just one goal in three matches. Adams’ presence in midfield was a huge part of their defensive effort – they probably don’t reach the round of 16 without him.
Central Midfielder: Jude Bellingham
Starting off with the first goal in England’s 6-2 win over Iran, Jude Bellingham followed up his guided header with a complete midfield performance.
Doing a bit of everything at a high level in the opening match, Bellingham proved why he is arguably the most sought after player in world football.
The USA did well to nullify the former Birmingham midfielder, but he was again influential in a more advanced position in England’s 3-0 win against Wales and will have a huge role to play if the Three Lions are to match or better their semi-final showing in Russia.
Attacking Midfielder: Mohammed Kudus
Mohammed Kudus fired off eight shots in three group stage starts, scoring twice in Ghana’s win over South Korea. Only Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies averaged more dribbles per match than Kudus (3.3).
Utilised in different roles throughout the group stage, and popping up all over the pitch, Kudus was Ghana’s biggest threat throughout the tournament.
It wasn’t to be for the Black Stars in an ultra-dramatic Group H, but Kudus’ stock continues to rise.
Forward: Cody Gakpo
Cody Gakpo entered the World Cup under considerable pressure after persistent links with a big-money move to Manchester United. He lived up to his ascending reputation, scoring three of the Netherlands’ five goals in Group A.
After a double-double in the Eredivisie last season, Gakpo has continued that scorching form for PSV Eindhoven, scoring nine and assisting 12 before the season was halted for the World Cup.
Louis van Gaal will hope the 23-year-old can keep performing at this level deep into the competition.
Forward: Ritsu Dōan
It takes something special for a player with just one start to make the Team of the Group Stage.
Ritsu Dōan, though, was a difference maker for Japan as the Samurai Blue remarkably topped their group ahead of Spain and Germany.
Dōan scored the first goal for Japan in their wins over La Roja and Die Mannschaft, completely transforming their’s attack on both occasions. Few players can rival Dōan’s impact on the group stage, even if he clocked just 131 minutes.
Forward: Kylian Mbappe
Scorer of three goals in the first two matches, Kylian Mbappe was at his scintillating best, and will be featuring in the nightmares of Danish and Australian defenders for months to come.
France are missing several key players, but they have a significant chance at defending their crown as long as Mbappe is fit. He has been the best player in Qatar through the first phase of the tournament.
Sam is a sports tipster, specialising in the Premier League and Champions League.
He covers most sports, including cricket and Formula One. Sam particularly enjoys those on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean – notably MLB and NBA.
Watching, writing and talking about sports betting takes up most of his time, whether that is for a day out at T20 Finals Day or a long night of basketball.
Having been writing for several years, Sam has been working with 888Sport since 2016, contributing multiple articles per week to the blog.
Where: Pershall Park, Chester Road, Eccleshall, Staffordshire ST21 6NE
Competition: The Isuzu FA Vase Second Round Proper
Attendance: 128
As I have mentioned in these Groundhopper blogs before, The Isuzu FA Vase is definitely my favourite competition on the whole football spectrum.
Quite simply, every team that enters the Vase has a chance of winning it and there is that huge carrot of battling through to play at Wembley Stadium on Non-League Finals Day.
So ahead of the Second Round Proper, I had a really good look at the fixtures to pick out my match of choice. Those ties that appeal to me most are when two teams from different leagues face each other.
Consequently I opted to watch Eccleshall who were mid-table in the North West Counties League First Division South (Non-League Step 6) against United Counties League Premier Division South promotion contenders Coventry Sphinx (Step 5).
I always like visiting NWCL clubs because they are part of an extremely competitive league stretching from Staffordshire right up to Cumbria and everyone involved is very friendly.
Therefore with all these ingredients percolating in my mind, I set off in eager anticipation on a 300 miles round trip via the M1 and M6 motorways to Eccleshall.
It is a small village containing 650 residents which is located seven miles north-west of county town Stafford.
The football club have been NWCL members for 18 years now. Originally founded in 1971, they previously played in the Midland League and the Staffordshire Senior League.
Ground Description
This is located down a narrow country lane. I admired a distinctive home-made feel of the venue where Eccleshall have obviously added facilities when they have needed to in order to meet strict NWCL ground grading requirements.
It features a sturdy covered terrace on the halfway line plus two other covered areas that combine both seats and standing. There are separate pay huts for spectators at either end of the pitch.
The all-time record attendance at Pershall Park was 475 versus a Stoke City X1 in the Staffordshire Senior Cup back on 16th October 2019.
It is interesting to note that Eccleshall offer their supporters free return minibus transport from the local Old Smithy Pub car park (one and a half miles away) before and after games.
The aforementioned minibus is nicely decked out with a giant club badge.
Programme Details
A digital online edition consisting of 34 pages incorporating excellent use of colour and statistics.
I am an old school traditionalist so I am getting this printed out professionally as I personally need to have a physical programme from each club I visit for my extensive collection of football memorabilia...
Eccleshall manager Liam Kelly set the scene in his editorial column entitled “THE DUG OUT VIEW” by writing: "Good afternoon and welcome to what is a massive game in the history of this football club.
"Our first appearance in the second round of The FA Vase for thirty years with the chance to progress to the third round for the first time.
"I’m incredibly proud of the players for getting to this stage of the competition but we genuinely believe we can progress even further. We are under no illusions about how difficult this home tie will be.
"Coventry Sphinx are flying in the step above, second in their league. We have done our homework as well as a really good training session on Thursday, so we feel we are strongly prepared for the task ahead."
The Match
I enjoyed a tight and scoreless first half where ‘Eccy’ might well have taken the lead.
Up until that point, you wouldn’t have believed the hosts were one level below their opponents in the national Non-League Pyramid.
But it was Coventry Sphinx who proceeded to take control after half-time. In the 49th minute, a flighted free-kick led to James Bryson nodding home their opener.
Twelve minutes later, Jordan Hayward made it 2-0 with a thumping header into the roof of the net. And in the final minute, Hayward added his second and the game’s best goal courtesy of a buccaneering 30 yard dribble followed by an emphatic finish.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to @TonyIncenzo*
In the early throes of every major tournament there is without fail a player overlooked by an England manager who the public and press clamour to be included.
This led to a wag on social media recently highlighting that it’s an amazing coincidence that England’s best player is always the one sitting on the bench.
At the Euros in 2021 it was Jack Grealish and typically it is a talent of his ilk, his individuality making him a fan favourite, but who is somewhat distrusted by a national boss with the hopes of a nation on his shoulders.
On this occasion, in Qatar ’22, it is Phil Foden who has become the latest cause célèbre, the 22-year-old making a late cameo in England’s opening-day thrashing of Iran but then dropped entirely for their disappointing draw with USMNT.
🎙 "Phil Foden is a generational talent"
Gareth Southgate's decision not bring on Phil Foden has drawn criticism, Gary Neville believes the midfielder should have featured in England's 0-0 draw with the USA 👇 pic.twitter.com/BvC1PaJmrd
Brought in as a starter against Wales, the two-time PFA Young Player of the Year put in a goal-scoring, energetic display but the suspicion is that Gareth Southgate’s preferred options across the tournament will remain Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount, both hardly pulling up trees for Chelsea this term.
Only there is a crucial difference here between Foden’s omissions and spurned players who went before him. Coincidence or not, the Manchester City star literally and actually is England’s best player, and by some distance too.
Indeed, he is a generational talent that any other country in the world would build their teams around. You name them and this statement applies. France. Brazil. Spain. Argentina.
Furthermore, this is not a maverick-type we’re talking about, capable of magic and ineffectiveness in equal measure. See Jack Grealish.
Foden is reliably and consistently impactful, hard-working, forever looking to make something happen and possessing the rare traits to influence and dictate games.
Is any of this really a surprise given his ridiculous ceiling of ability, a complete package of speed, touch, vision, and skill that has been schooled to near-perfection by Pep Guardiola since he was a boy.
Unquestionably then, Foden is the most technically gifted of all of Southgate’s young stars, which makes his bit-part role in Qatar feel like such a waste. A substantial, potentially costly, and utterly exasperating waste.
It is an exasperation only heightened when his club form is factored in, with City once again short-priced in the Premier League odds to win the title this term.
At the age of 22, the brilliant midfielder has already won four league crowns, not to mention four League Cups, and has lit up a Champions League final.
Amidst one of the greatest club sides of any era, he is a pivotal and valued component, a superstar no less.
Add in that he is already a World Cup winner with England, lifting the Under 17s trophy in 2017 - grabbing the player of the tournament merit in the process - and that he has 64 direct goal involvements in the top flight and Champions League at an age when most players are just breaking through, and its clear that Philip Walter Foden is a level above the norm, a phenomenon in waiting.
As Premier League predictions go, it’s a shoo-in to announce that he’s set to become a stonewall legend for his club. He could be for England too. In the name of St George, play him Southgate.
Stephen Tudor is a freelance football writer and sports enthusiast who only knows slightly less about the beautiful game than you do.
A contributor to FourFourTwo and Forbes, he is a Manchester City fan who was taken to Maine Road as a child because his grandad predicted they would one day be good.
Wow! Constitution Hill’s performance in the Fighting Fifth was all you could wish for – everything about it was just so easy. Tactically, to go on with him was the right thing to do.
There was a lack of pace and if Not So Sleepy was in front, he’s not the one you’d want to follow as we’ve seen before.
For Constitution Hill to go out and do that with so little experience, and like an old pro, was a great sign. He’s got so much potential – the sky really is the limit with him.
I’ve had a chat with all the connections since and they were all understandably thrilled. He quickened away from Epatante who we know is such a good mare and has all the form lines from the Champion Hurdle.
She won it in 2020, was nine and a half lengths behind Honeysuckle in third in 2021 and then a three and a half length second this year. To beat her by 12 lengths was a brilliant performance and you couldn’t find any faults in what he did.
Last Weekend Review
I thought it was a really good display by Le Milos in the Coral Gold Cup for the Skelton team who are on a fantastic run. I thought he was holding Remastered the whole way to the line, despite the loose horse.
Remastered got to within half a length but he couldn’t get any closer. Le Milos could be one for the Welsh National as he likes soft ground and ultimately, Aintree could definitely be on the cards.
What a battle it was between two old warriors in the Long Distance Hurdle on Friday. Champ set a nice pace and Jonjo gave him a lovely ride.
He just managed to cling on and it was a great performance, but I thought Paisley Park ran an absolute cracker on his first start back.
He sometimes needs a run and they have may have had him well tuned for this, but if he was to improve again, you can’t rule him out in all the big staying races.
It will be interesting to see if they take each other on in Ascot in a couple of weeks. The staying hurdle division looks very strong and competitive this year, though.
Nicky [Henderson] had a great time of it and I thought both Jet Powered and Luccia were very good in Newbury. They travelled with a lot of class, quickened nicely and went to the line like quality horses.
They will both improve for the experience and they are ones to watch over the next few months.
Monty’s Pass – What A Legend
It was really sad to hear that Monty’s Pass died last week just a few weeks away from his 30th birthday.
We’d only been down to see him in September to film a piece which we were going to release in April ahead of the 20-year anniversary of his Grand National win, but it is now a tribute and can be seen below.
He had a wonderful retirement and was so well looked after by all the Mangan family. He gave me one of my most memorable moments in the saddle in 2003.
I was only 23 and every Jump jockey’s dream is to win the Grand National. He just did it so easily that day. I never rode a cleverer horse over fences – he was dynamite around there and that’s what set him apart.
Like Red Rum and Tiger Roll, you just have to be a brilliant jumper, and he was.
Sandown, Saturday
The Tingle Creek Chase (2:55) is a brilliant race. Like the Champion Chase, it’s the ultimate test of the two-mile chaser.
The fences come to you at speed, there’s no time to adjust, and you need to have the pace to be able to travel and jump, but also the stamina to get up the hill.
The second of Moscow Flyer’s wins in 2004 was one of the best races I was ever involved in, and definitely the best match-up.
Azertyuiop and Well Chief, like Moscow, were brilliant horses and it was just an unbelievable race. There was no let-up in the pace and nowhere to hide. Moscow was brilliant that day and it’s a race I will never forget.
There has been plenty of speculation this week about who will run, but the later you get into the winter the better the chance of the moisture being retained in the ground. I’d be very hopeful that they will all stand their ground.
SHISHKIN is the standout for me. Greaneteen is a very good horse but considering all he’s achieved he’s still 5lbs lower. He was beaten 10 lengths by him in Kempton last Christmas and Shishkin then went on to beat Energumene in Ascot.
He’s picked up the mantle from Altior who picked it up from Sprinter Sacre. Look, he’s 11 from 13 and Greaneteen is 10 from 20, that’s a big difference.
The vibes have been good at Seven Barrows and for me, the only way Shishkin doesn’t win is if he stays at home.
Gentleman De Mee could be the dark one in the field. He was disappointing in Naas on his reappearance where he unseated at the last when beaten. He was very impressive against Edwardstone in Aintree and could bounce back.
Edwardstone had a great novice season and you can forgive him the Aintree defeat. Shishkin is the standout, but I’d say it’s more competitive for the placings than the market suggests.
JONBON looked very good in Warwick and he should take all the beating in the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase (1:45). It’s a real jumping test there and he came through with flying colours. He was very good over the last two.
He’d want similar ground to Shishkin and won’t be risked on anything other than ground with some ease in it. Boothill is progressive and looks the best of the rest.
I would side with DEISE ABA in the London National (3:30). He was only just touched off by Le Milos here in February and he has plenty of good form at Sandown.
Aintree, Saturday
With 23 runners, this is a proper Becher Chase (2:05) where I think GESSKILLE has lots going for him. He was closing with every stride behind Al Dancer in the Grand Sefton last month, only to be beaten a nose.
He had some decent form in France, the step up in trip should suit and he has the course experience. I wouldn’t be worried about his age. He’s had plenty of runs for a six-year-old and Cyfor Malta won the Topham round here as a five-year-old.
Another interesting one is Captain Kangaroo. He won the Cork National the last day and although his form before that wouldn’t excite you, Willie [Mullins] looks to be bringing him here to get a taste of Aintree before potentially coming back for the big one in April.
You can’t really rule out any of the six in the Many Clouds Chase (1:30). You’d expect Ahoy Senor to improve from his Wetherby run, but he would need to. He is the obvious one, as he was very good over course and distance in April, but he’s skinny enough.
Chantry House has been a bit disappointing but the vibes at Seven Barrows seem pretty strong. Even though he won last season, he made heavy weather of it, but I would give him a chance.
Dashel Drasher won over hurdles here on his reappearance, beating Langer Dan and he’s not out of it, while Sam Brown was third in the Charlie Hall.
I was impressed with NOBLE YEATS in Wexford last time when he got back to winning ways. He’s the Grand National winner and has good recent form, so I’ll go with him for a bit of value.
I also gave a strong mention to WALKING ON AIR last week, but he was withdrawn at Newbury because of the ground. He takes his chance in the two and a half mile handicap hurdle that closes the card (3:15) and I think he’ll be hard to beat.
Fairyhouse, Saturday
There will be lots of eyes on Fairyhouse at 1:52 when FACILE VEGA makes his debut over hurdles.
Beautifully bred, he was hugely impressive last season and has by far and away the strongest form of any bumper horse coming into novice hurdles.
It will be interesting to see how he takes to them, but you’d have to say at this stage that he would hold the key to any of the two or two and a half mile hurdles this season.
Fairyhouse, Sunday
After Constitution Hill last weekend, it’s now over to HONEYSUCKLE in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle (2:30). She is looking to extend her unbeaten run of 16 from 16, which is just an incredible feat.
Very few horses go unbeaten for as long as her and she’s a brilliant mare. A bit like Moscow Flyer, she only does enough, but she’s won two Champions Hurdles and if she wins this, it will be a record fourth Hatton’s Grace.
She made hard work of winning it two years ago, beating Ronald Pump half a length, but she may have been a little undercooked that day.
There were no such issues last year when she romped home and with all the hype around Constitution Hill, I’m sure Henry [de Bromhead] will have her on her A-game.
I do think KLASSICAL DREAM represents the biggest challenge she’s had to date in this race. He’s a very good horse, he’s a former Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winner and goes well fresh. He looks the each-way value with eight runners.
The Drinmore (1:55) looks competitive. Three Stripe Life was impressive in Naas on his first start over fences and Banbridge is definitely on the way up, but for me the value is MIGHTY POTTER.
He beat Three Stripe Life in a novice hurdle last season and he jumped really well in Down Royal. He’s a big, immature horse who is learning all the time and for me he’s the one with the most potential.
CHAMP KIELY will be very hard to beat in the Royal Bond (1:25). He bolted up in Galway in the summer and then came out and beat Brazil comfortably in Tipperary.
Brazil has since beaten Fil Dor, so that’s strong form. Irish Point impressed me in Cork last time in a maiden hurdle. It wasn’t what he beat but the way he beat them.
Huntingdon, Sunday
The Peterborough Chase (2:55) is a bit like the Many Clouds Chase in Aintree on Saturday – very competitive with not an awful lot between them.
There’s a good standard set by First Flow and Mister Fisher, the last two winners of the race, but if you’re looking for young potential, you’d have to side with PIC D’ORHY.
He won the Pendil last Christmas and reappeared with a comfortable win in Newton Abbott. He should still have some improvement to come.
With 43 winners at the Cheltenham Festival, Barry Geraghty is the second most successful jockey in the meeting’s illustrious history.
Career highlights include five Queen Mother Champion Chase victories, two Cheltenham Gold Cup triumphs and victory aboard Monty’s Pass in the 2003 Grand National.
Barry has partnered with 888sport for the 2021/22 jumps season, providing his expert insight and horse racing analysis on the biggest races of the week.
Come back every Friday to find out the latest instalment of Barry Geraghty tips for upcoming fixtures across the United Kingdom & Ireland.
IN this World Cup nostalgia blog, I reflect on how a football trip to the mystery land of Albania brought the worst night of my life.
Let me take you back to May 1993 when I was a reporter for the Capital Gold radio station in London. I set off for Albania’s largest city Tirana forewarned of extremely primitive conditions.
So I brought my own mini-survival kit: bottled drinking water, biscuits, chocolate and plenty of toilet roll. Enough to last for the two days in Albania while I covered a World Cup Qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland.
But nothing could have prepared me for the bizarre spectacle that unfolded. It was so far-fetched that you wouldn’t get any odds for a similar sequence of events on sports betting.
Firstly, my plane landing was awfully scary. The single runway at Tirana Airport consisted of hundreds of deep potholes and it was strewn with rubbish including old bed frames, pots and pans plus many other abandoned items. So the plane was bouncing all over the place when we touched down.
Then inside the rudimentary arrivals building, an Irish journalist was told in no uncertain terms that he would have to shave his beard off in the toilets otherwise he wouldn’t be allowed into the country. Apparently, facial hair was illegal in Albania back then.
The taxi ride to my hotel was also a terrifying adventure. There were no road markings anywhere in Albania and seemingly no equivalent of the Highway Code. So vehicles were driving anywhere they wanted – swerving to the left and the right of the street to narrowly avoid other cars.
Anyway, I made it to the Hotel Tirana in one piece and initial impressions were favourable. Smartly dressed businessmen exchanged snappy handshakes in the modern foyer, the restaurant was spotless and the Irish national team were staying there in the lap of luxury. It seemed too good to be true.
Loving the tweets from those who are visiting all the venues in Qatar including the great @talkSPORTDrive . It was a lot more difficult at the 1994 World Cup in USA but I managed to see a match at all nine cities in a hectic 13 days. Read about it herehttps://t.co/DaJc7H0Jr1
— Tony Incenzo - my 50th football season (@TonyIncenzo) November 27, 2022
But my dramas began at the front desk.
“Mr Incenzo?” said the receptionist. “Oh yes, I’m terribly sorry sir but this hotel is full. So we have booked you in at another hotel just down the road.”
They arranged a courtesy taxi to take me to the other building (which will remain nameless). It looked derelict from the outside with all the windows boarded up using assorted pieces of wood and cardboard.
Nevertheless, I checked in and was told that my room was on the fifth floor.
Unfortunately, the elevator was out of action. So I had to hump my suitcase and hand luggage up five flights of stairs in 85 degrees of evening humidity.
I arrived at my room breathless and exhausted. The first thing I noticed was that the shower was permanently switched on and was flooding on to the floor. I spent half an hour trying to rectify the glitch but to no avail.
Things got worse. The taps on the sink wouldn’t work, the main light was out of action, the toilet wouldn’t flush and a starlight window wouldn’t close – allowing an exotic variety of winged insects easy access to my bedroom.
“Well, this is Albania,” I said to myself, trying to make the best of a bad lot.
So I paddled through the murky water on the floor, brushed my teeth with my bottled water and got undressed for bed.
“At least I’m only here for two nights,” I thought, trying to savour the cultural experience.
But as I walked back across the room, I was greeted by a terrifying sight…a twelve inch long, black furry rat was sitting on its haunches beside my bed, staring me straight in the eye.
INCENZO THE ALBANIAN RAT - the Irish fans after I had a rat in my hotel room when watching Ireland play in Albania pic.twitter.com/wiR5lDcBfb
— Tony Incenzo - my 50th football season (@TonyIncenzo) January 19, 2017
I felt my stomach wrench upwards and I let out a reflex cry of alarm. This startled the rat and it began to scurry around the room in concentric circles. I scurried out the door.
Down in the foyer, I complained to the hotel manager about my uninvited room guest. But to no avail.
“That’s very nice for you sir,” he grinned smugly. “Rats are really friendly. I wish I had one down here to keep me company.”
I urged him to take me seriously and demanded to be switched to another room.
“That’s not possible,” he smirked. “The hotel is full.”
I told him I would call the police but he chuckled again because the telephones were out of order. I insisted that I would find the police station but he just kept laughing in my face.
Infuriated, I stormed out on to the street and luckily spotted a passing police van. I called for help and it screeched to a halt. Unfortunately the driver couldn’t speak a word of English.
He decided to take me to the local cop shop, where I was I was surrounded by inquisitive Albanian police. It was past midnight and I was at the end of my tether. I sat there for two hours before they could find anyone who could speak English.
Finally, I managed to make myself understood. The officer in charge subsequently sent me back to my hotel accompanied by a van load of hefty riot police who yielded sturdy truncheons and lethal pistols.
I arrived back in the foyer elated with my impressive entourage. And the hotel manager changed his tune dramatically.
— Tony Incenzo - my 50th football season (@TonyIncenzo) November 28, 2022
His flippant fit of chuckles gave way to a patronising flood of apologies. But there was still nothing he could do – the hotel was full and the rat was not his problem.
The policemen talked amongst themselves before pointing to the stairs. They gestured to me that they were prepared to kill the rat.
So it was up to the fifth floor again. I was accompanied by this meaty posse of musclemen, who limbered up by practising Kung Fu and Karate kicks as we turned the corners on the stairs.
When we reached my room, everything was quiet. The policemen seemed to fill the space with their stature and presence.
And there was no sign of the rat. Had I imagined it? Had I caused all that fuss for nothing?
The largest policeman – who was nearly seven feet tall – lifted up the bed with one hand. Without warning, the rat came charging out and started to dance around the room.
Like a scene from the Keystone Kops, the policemen lunged forward en masse with their truncheons. But the rodent managed to escape through a huge hole in the skirting board.
An amazing scenario followed. The coppers turned and proceeded to demolish the wardrobe with a series of frenetic Karate kicks. Then they rammed this timber into the skirting board to block the cavity.
Triumphantly, they turned to me like actors taking their curtain call. The predicament had been resolved but I was so wound up that I didn’t get any sleep that night.
For the record, Ireland beat Albania 2-1 which backed up odds offered on football betting.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
"A big shock". This is how people close to Juventus describe the situation after the decision announced on Monday night: the whole board has resigned, a really strong decision which includes the Chairman Andrea Agnelli whose family have owned the club for almost 100 years, as well as Vice President Pavel Nedved.
A statement on the official Juventus website noted that “given the centrality and the relevance of the pending legal and technical/accounting matters, considered in the best interest of the Company that Juventus, so often the headline club in Serie A predictions, provided itself with a new Board of Directors to address these matters".
The decision came after problems with what happened in May and June 2020, when 23 members of the first team squad signed agreements to reduce their salaries in order to help the club through an extremely difficult period; how they managed that situation and the taxes situation around that move are two points still not clear, this is why the Juventus board was not able to approve the balance and so the whole board decided to resign.
The first move Juventus will do is to name Maurizio Scanavino as the club’s new CEO. A 49-year-old who is the current general director of the Gedi Group which controls Italian papers La Repubblica and La Stampa, he has previously worked for FIAT, Alfa Romeo and Lancia.
But what happens now? First of all, it's important to clarify that there will be no managerial change.
Juventus owners have decided to keep going with Massimiliano Allegri as head coach, despite rumours on Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel; the reason is technical, as Allegri changed the situation in the last 40 days after a terrible beginning of the season, but also financial as his salary (bit less than €9m per year) is too big in this moment for Juventus to sack him and appoint a new top coach.
Allegri is staying and he's not gonna be not just the manager but a big reference for the sporting area, as the Italian coach will decide on new signings strategy, players to be sold, contract extensions and future plans to help Juventus in this difficult moment. "He's staying and he's gonna be a key figure for us", club owner John Elkann has also confirmed.
There are no big changes planned on the team roster too; for sure, after signing Cristiano Ronaldo in July 2018 and changing the whole project, Juventus are in a difficult financial situation and so they need to go back to some kind of sustainable project.
John Elkann officially confirms that Massimiliano Allegri will not be leave the club as he’s “key part of Juventus project and we trust him to win again”, statement explains. 🚨⚪️⚫️ #Juve
Following Agnelli, Nedved and club’s board decision to resign, Allegri will stay. pic.twitter.com/IfWe0vI6Qn
But there's no plan to sell big stars in January just as a consequence of the board's decision to resign, rumours on Dusan Vlahovic set to leave the club are not confirmed at all.
Juventus will try to get rid of some players who are no longer considered important by Massimiliano Allegri and the sporting area of the club; but there's no big change planned or top player for sale in January.
The priority will be to trust and push the project they're building on young players, including the Italian talents Fabio Miretti, Nicolò Fagioli and Nicolò Rovella who will be part of Juventus future; but also to extend the contract of Samuel Iling Junior, English talent who's in advanced talks to sign a new deal.
The future will be different but it doesn't mean that Juventus will sell all their stars or start a real revolution already in January. The key point will be summer 2023, when they will be able to re-start the project and also change the salary situation.
In the meantime, the investigation will continue and the whole club's situation will be clarified.
Fabrizio Romano is an Italian sports journalist. He was born in 1993, he lives in Milan and has over 30 million followers in total on the major social networks.
He collaborates with 888sport, CBS Sports, Sky Sport, The Guardian and has been a transfer market expert since 2011. He will take care of a column dedicated to some "Behind the Scenes" of transfers.
AN epic trip to Moscow to watch a World Cup qualifying match between USSR and Republic of Ireland ended with me frantically flushing wads of money down the toilet!
The game took place on Wednesday 16th October 1985 at Central Lenin Stadium. This featured the biggest crowd I have been part of at football – a massive 103,000.
It was also the coldest weather I have ever experienced in my life as temperatures dropped to -10°C that evening. For the record, USSR won 2-0 which backed up odds offered on football betting.
Anyway I travelled with 50 other fans on a five day excursion organised by the newly founded Republic of Ireland Soccer Supporters Club (London branch).
I should point out that this was before the ‘Perestroika’ and ‘Glasnost’ reforms so Moscow was very primitive indeed with the KGB security agency ruling everything.
On arrival at the airport in Moscow, I was asked to fill out a form making a declaration on how much cash I was bringing into their country.
A gruff KGB man told me in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to exceed this sum of money when I eventually left to return home.
On to our hotel and it was weird that the elevator didn’t stop at one particular floor. Rumours were circulating that the KGB were based at that level and they were spying on all the guests!
Incidentally, there was absolutely no chance of having a lie-in during the mornings. At 7am each day, very noisy Russian folk music was piped into our hotel rooms to make sure that everyone got up and reported downstairs for breakfast!
I was staggered that there were barely any shops in Moscow. Someone would just turn up on the side of the street with a box of oranges, for example, and a mile long queue would form of people who wanted to buy them.
Then someone else would arrive on the other side of the road with a box of freshly baked bread causing another massive queue of expectant shoppers.
In addition, there were no pubs or clubs. In fact, no night life whatsoever to the complete dismay of us London-Irish visitors.
You couldn’t even step on to the road unless you went to an official crossing intersection.
There were KGB policemen situated at sentry points halfway up lamp posts every 50 yards or so and they would blow their whistles very loudly if you attempted to cross the street at an unauthorised point.
What was strange though was that these policemen blatantly turned a blind eye to black market spivs who were freely operating in broad daylight.
I was walking towards Red Square with a friend – let’s call him Liam - when we were approached by one of these dodgy looking geezers.
“Hey, do you want a chewing gum?” he said in decent English.
“No thanks,” I replied as I attempted to give him a wide berth.
But Liam quickly informed me that chewing gum was a cherished luxury in Moscow so the gentleman in question was trying to amicably make our acquaintance in order to broker a deal.
It turned out he had pressing needs for westernised clothes which were not widely available to Russian people.
The spiv continued: “I buy your trainers. I buy your jeans. I buy your shirts. I give you best price.”
So Liam returned to the hotel room and tipped out everything from his suitcase. He then went back to meet the spiv and sold all the clothes for 100,000 roubles which was worth more than £1,000 sterling.
Liam was delighted with this transaction. But I said to him: “What are you going to do with that money? You can’t convert it into pounds when we are returning to London.”
“Oh I didn’t think of that,” he said. “OK, well we can blow it all while we are in Moscow. We’ll have a great time!”
But as already mentioned, there were no shops, no pubs and no nightclubs. And because all our meals were included in the hotel package, Liam simply couldn’t spend any of his newfound wealth – not even on sports betting.
Moving forward to the day we were flying home and I waited patiently with Liam at Moscow’s airport security.
All of a sudden, a man in front of us was physically dragged out of the queue by several KGB heavies. We watched him getting bundled into a side room amidst a great deal of screaming and shouting.
A Russian guy standing behind us explained: “Oh the KGB have discovered that he has more money on him than he did when he first arrived in Moscow. Around 50,000 roubles I think. He must have sold stuff on the black market. They’ll surely send him to a Siberian prison camp for this.”
I turned to Liam and whispered very quietly: “That bloke is getting beaten up for 50,000 roubles. You have twice that much in your pocket. We need to get rid of it!”
Therefore we rushed into the gents’ toilets and occupied a cubicle each. We then began hysterically flushing the bank notes down the toilet pans. But the flush system didn’t work very well and it was taking a long time to achieve our mission.
It got to the point where we were going to miss the flight so drastic action was needed! I grabbed the remaining pile of money and handed it to a dishevelled woman who was cleaning the toilet floors.
Her face immediately lit up and she threw her mop in the air before dancing a jig of delight!
Back in the passport queue, I told the aforementioned Russian chap what we had done in total blind panic.
He said: “Do you realise, you have made that woman very, very rich? She can now go to St Saint Petersburg and buy a huge palace to live a life of luxury for the rest of her days.”
Liam and I boarded the plane and departed for London without saying another word.
---------
Another friend of mine called Patrick Redmond also has vivid recollections of that trip to Moscow….
My main memory of the Soviet Union in 1985 was how little of the local currency you could spend. I changed up a fiver and managed to buy some stamps for postcards and pay for a tube ride. But most of my roubles were left untouched.
The hotel we stayed in was the Belgrad to the south-west of the city. It had been built for the 1980 Olympics and had a first floor that was out of bounds.
The hotel made no effort to hide the fact that you couldn’t access this level. For instance, the first floor button on the lift had been removed. I assumed this was where the KGB monitored us.
On the night we arrived it became apparent our hotel had no beer. “Nyet” said the surly bartender. Pubs on streets were non-existent.
And you could not buy anything in shops either. You poked your head in the door of what appeared to be a shop but there were no products on sale. Then there was the odd spiv trying to buy your jeans.
During the day of the match, I remember pavements being completely littered with banana skins. Bananas had arrived for sale in Moscow and the evidence of their popularity was on every street.
Overall I found that rouble notes were only useful as toilet paper and very little else.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to @TonyIncenzo*
The King George VI Chase is widely considered as the second most important staying chase of the season after the Gold Cup and it is a race that has been won by some legendary horses down the years.
Kauto Star won the race five times, people’s favourite Orchid three times and other top class winners like Best Mate, Kicking King and Long Run also grace its roll of honour.
The Grade One race is run over a trip of three miles at Kempton Park on Boxing Day and is the highlight of Christmas for many racing fans.
As well as being a huge contest in its own right, the King George VI Chase is also a key trial for the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Let’s take a look at some of the main contenders for the 2022 renewal:
Bravemansgame
Bravemansgame was an impressive winner of the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby and understandably was inserted as the clear favourite in the antepost betting for the King George.
At the time of writing he is a 5/4 shot with us here at 888sport and a nice price for those of you betting on horse races online.
Ridden by Harry Cobden, the Paul Nicholls-trained star December beat Eldorado Allen by three and a half lengths, with Sam Brown back in third.
Nicholls believes the Boxing Day feature is made for him and that is high praise from the 13-time champion trainer.
Paul Nicholls says that Hitman is now a serious rival to stablemate Bravemansgame after he won the Graduation Chase at Haydock Park in decisive fashion, and he’s probably not that far off the mark with that statement.
Second on his seasonal reappearance in the Old Roan Chase at Aintree, the six-year-old booked his ticket to Kempton with a sound thrashing of his three rivals.
Jockey Harry Cobden now faces the dilemma of which Nicholls runner to side with on the day...
Galopin Des Champs was the winner of three of his four novice chases last season before falling at the final fence in the Grade 1 Turners Novices’ Chase at the Cheltenham Festival when 12 lengths clear of Bob Olinger.
He is undoubtedly a superb horse and is generally the favourite on most betting books for the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March. You can check out his current Cheltenham betting odds here.
GALOPIN DES CHAMPS is back with a monstrous performance at @Fairyhouse! 🤩 @WillieMullinsNH's superstar makes amends for his final-fence fall at the Cheltenham Festival with this impressive victory in the G1 BoyleSports Gold Cup Novice Chase under @PTownend 🙌 pic.twitter.com/n2OjfuF23Q
According to his trainer Henry de Bromhead, Envoi Allen will be much better suited to the demands of the King George VI Chase than stablemate Minella Indo, who sank without a trace in last year’s renewal.
Following his victory in the Champion Chase at Down Royal at the start of November, the Cheveley Park-owned gelding has been a fairly static 5/1 shot with us in the antepost betting market for the Christmas feature.
Tornado Flyer, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by his nephew Danny Mullins, pulled off a huge upset at 28-1 to win the King George last year but could they really do the same again 12 months later?
His recent second in the Grade 2 Clonmel Oil Chase says the nine-year-old is still a force to be reckoned with and should be ruled out at your peril.
Steven is a sports and horse racing enthusiast and is a member of the Horseracing Writers and Photographers Association (HWPA) in the United Kingdom.
He is a regular visitor to Paris Longchamp for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and a lifelong fan of the Aintree Grand National, a subject he writes about 52 weeks of the year. Last year he reached the impressive milestone of attending the last 30 renewals of the Grand National.
Steven graduated from the University Of Lancaster in 1996 with a B.A (Hons) in Urban Policy & Race Relations (major) with Contemporary Religions & Belief Systems (minor) and still wonders if any of these help him find the winners?
He writes for a number of websites and online publications and you can sometimes hear him at the weekend discussing racing on a number of local radio stations.
