Have We Got A Plan B?

The SPL kicked-off last week, who said football wasn't a summer sport, because the SPL believed that by starting the 2011-12 season in July it would give the clubs competing in Europe a better chance of qualifying for the latter rounds. Well it's not looking like the brightest move a committee has ever made. Attendances at the opening games were down on the opening weekend of last season, with the exception of Rangers whose home crowd was actually up by 5,000 but then do the good folk of Govan actually go anywhere for their summer hols?

The idea of improving Scotland's record in Europe doesn't seem to be going to plan either. Dundee United were knocked out of the Europa League at its qualifying stage by those giants of European football: Slask Wroclaw, fancy being knocked out of Europe on 21st July, I haven't even had my holidays yet! Rangers played their opening SPL match against Hearts as if their, well hearts, weren't in it and scrpaed a 1-1 draw and then warmed to the idea of an early start by losing at home to Malmo in the Champions League qualifying round and Hearts at least managed a 1-1 draw in the Europa League away to the mighty Paks (no me neither, but they are from Hungary apparently).  

What's even more bizarre about the early start to the season is that Celtic played on the opening weekend but didn't play yesterday because they were/are taking part in a tournament in Dublin and next weekend Rangers don't play in the league because they are playing Chelsea in a pre-season friendly at Ibrox. Away from the Scottish football scene a couple of footie related stories caught my eye this week.

 First up a tale of Portsmouth, the club that is never more than two matches from administration, but which somehow managed to find enough money down the back of the sofa to afford a trip to the States. Anyway whilst Pompey were waiting to leave North Carolina their plane was hit by a catering truck which meant they couldn't return to the home of the British Navy at the advertised time. The knock on effect of this was that their opponents for last nights friendly at Fratton Park, Real Betis, were faced with a dilemma either spend the afternoon shopping at Gunwharf Quays and a visit to HMS Victory or play Havant and Waterlooville instead. They wisely chose the later and won 7-0.  Around 800 spectators handed over between £5 and £10 to watch a performance that was described as "electric," by the Havant & Waterlooville chairman.

The other story that caught my eye for all the wrong reasons was the latest round of "he's got more money than me," the weekly saga of overpaid Manchester City players who have no real sense of their value or anybody else's for that matter. Nigel De Jong, Xabi Alonso's best mate, is not happy at the prospect of earning only £80,000 a week for the next four years, his unhappiness has spread to Vincent Kompany who is also not happy about only earning £80,000 a week for the next four years and poor Micah Richards is crying into his cornflakes as we speak, horrified at the through of having to manage on a mere £50,000 a week. Yes I know the average retirement age of professional footballers is only 28 and yes it's a relatively short career blah, blah, blah, but how shameless are these guys? The reason for their lack of gratitude is the arrival of the club's new number 16 - Sergio Aguero - for a fee just north of £35 million. "Kun" will be earning around £110,000 a week for the next five years and no doubt if he scores enough goals to help the "project" finally win a piece of silverware that demands more physical exertion than beating Stoke City he will be worth every penny.