Moyes and Pulis: Lower leagues to the top

Premier League new boy Tony Pulis has said Everton need more cash if they are to break into the top-four. Hmm...I'll forgive him because he's new, but not only is he stating the obvious, he is stating what now appears to be the extremely unlikely!

Everton owner Bill Kenwright has already told fans the club needs a billionaire owner to progress but, in reality, they look further from breaking into the top-four than they have for some time. The dominance of the top-four, combined with the massive investment at Manchester City, appears to have caused a lot of damage to Everton's chances of moving on up.

But back to Tony Pulis. The Stoke boss will be hoping his team can beat Everton on Sunday (Sep 14), but ahead of the game he has spoken about the amount of money involved in the modern game - and took a swipe at Man City new boy Robinho, by suggesting the player didn't know anything about his new club before his move from Real Madrid.

Pulis was quoted by SkySports.com as saying: "It is no secret that money talks in football - we have seen it recently at Manchester City with the signing of Robinho. Did Robinho know about Manchester City? I'm not sure Robinho did know much about Manchester City but the money was there and as we all know that money attracts players.

"David (Moyes) has done a fantastic job at Everton, last year they finished fifth and now he is looking at it to see if he can take them into the top four again. But to break into the top four you need more resources, and that's not having a go at (chairman) Bill Kenwright or anyone at Everton Football Club. David Moyes is being really, really ambitious from a personal point of view to take them on to that next step again, and there is nothing wrong with that at all."

Of course, those who read SkySports.com and think the Premier League is the only league worth bothering about in England may not be aware of the fact Moyes and Pulis have had success in the lower leagues, with Moyes once managing Preston North End and Pulis managing a variety of clubs including Gillingham.

Now their work with those two teams, even if Pulis did Gillingham under somewhat acrimonious circumstances, make the current cash injection and death of top-flight football all the more disgusting. Pulis and Moyes have both managed at the sharp-end of the game - how many other Premier League managers can claim such experience?

And how many will be able to in the future? Mega-money owners seemingly prefer to employ "top-name" former players than proven managers, so the rest have to work their way up through the leagues. If Stoke weren't promoted from the Championship, it's unlikely Pulis would ever have managed in the Premier League.

It's just another example of how the top-flight cartel is getting harder and harder to break.

Wenger ponders mega-money injection

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has made some good points - and some not so good points - in his latest rant about how the English game is changing, though it's hard to take the views of a man who apparently has issues utilising English players too seriously.

For while Wenger has slammed clubs where the manager has little say in what players are signed (such as Newcastle, apparently), the Gunners boss still takes the fact there is so much money in the game in a "positive way".

The somewhat dry Frenchman also seemed to take a swipe at Manchester City's signing of Robinho. He told The Sun: "What is worrying is that a player signs somewhere and then the next day he does not even know where he has signed. You cannot say that is a good trend.

“Football is not a supermarket. There is money in the game and I take it in a positive way. But the football bodies have to make sure money is ruled properly and used well for the ethic of the game.

"On the Continent, at least you are informed on what kind of players you buy. It looks like some are not even informed any more. It looks to be going a very worrying way. People who come from another country, they import the way people manage in their country. In England you had a tradition that was never questioned."

Another interesting comment Wenger made was in relation to the comments coming out of Man City about what players they are intending to buy, and for how much money, when the transfer window re-opens in January. Now, while I personally think the "tapping-up" rule is ridiculous it is there and some of the things coming from the Middle Eastern billionaires may go too far.

Not that it really matters in the grand scheme of things and, as mentioned, it's hard to have sympathy for a man who doesn't seem to care for English footballers. The only good thing that may come out of that is by cutting down the chances of British players in the top-flight, the ones in the lower leagues will probably survive the implosion when the Premier League dies.

Zola at West Ham: Will it work?

I have to start by stressing I really hope Gianfranco Zola performs wonders at West Ham and has a long spell as manager of the Upton Park club. But...I have serious misgivings about whether he should have taken the job.

Former Chelsea star Zola has never managed a football club before - he was previously assistant manager of the Italy Under-21s - so to take a job as big as the one at West Ham has to be seen as a risk. "As big as the one at West Ham?" I heard you snigger! Yes, West Ham, a London club who have been in the Premier League for some time, have to be considered a big club in terms of a first job in management.

Zola himself said he couldn't turn the job down, and who can blame him? If a burger-flipper at McDonald's was offered to become a board member at Burger King, they wouldn't turn it down. While Zola's new job isn't quite such a huge leap, it is certainly a leap of sorts.

The former Italian international's aim appears to be to play attractive and attacking football. Hopefully that works, but recent history has shown teams concentrating on attacking and, in particular, attractive football are rarely the ones at the very top of the table (okay, Arsenal may be an exception, but they had the players for it).

Zola said: "It's my philosophy is to play offensive football if I can as I have always done that so we will try to play this style of football. What we do here is to make it enjoyable for the players and for the club,"

So can West Ham turn back the clock to the days when they "Won the World Cup," as their fans like to claim? Has anything really changed since Alan Curbishley and the club parted company last week? To be honest, no; the only real change is one for the worse.

The appointment of Zola may bring some cheer to the Upton Park faithful, and they are guaranteed some media coverage for a while, but that doesn't win leagues. In my book at least (a book I'll never write!), Alan Curbishely offered the Hammers a far better chance of success than a person whose managerial virginity remains intact.

And the men in suits upstairs are still the same people as last week...

Extra police drafted in at Newcastle

Newcastle fans are nothing if not passionate and, following Kevin Keegan's resignation, there appear to be fears that passion could turn into something more sinister on Saturday (Sep 13).

Extra police have been drafted in following reports there will be five demonstrations throughout the city before, during and after the Toon take on Hull City. Hopefully the protests will be incident free and the fans get their points across - they have every right to publicly ask questions of owner Mike Ashley and if more supporters were actually prepared to make a fuss, English top-flight football would not be in the mess it currently is.

A boycott of official club merchandise has already begun, and I honestly hope it is successful. Even ignoring the specific problems at Newcastle right now, clubs across the country have been taking fans for a financial ride for far too long. I would urge any fan of a top-flight club who is reading this to take a look at their club's online shop and try and justify every item stocked.

Many will have different views on what criteria would be used to "justify" the merchandise. For me, I try to keep the fact that football was meant to be a working-class game where the fans could cheer the lads on at the back of my mind when I look through the shops. Imagining how the early football fans would react to some of the items on offer is usually a good way to start.

Football moving away from its working class roots has arguably been the main factor in the death of the top flight game. The players generally have a working-class background but the reliance of the clubs on other socioeconomic groups (I think that's the PC term these days) has increased over the years. How they can expect hard-working fans on low incomes to afford two or three club kits for each of their children each year is beyond me.

(And yes, I know nobody is forcing the parents to buy the kits, but they are advertised in such a way - namely by being on television and in front of the crowds at every match - that parents will be under pressure to buy the replica strips).

Now, with the sort of investment Manchester City have just had, it's clear the game is as far away from its origins as it possibly can be. Is it even the same game it was in the 19th century? In the 1960? Heck, even the 1980s?

I honestly don't think it is. The version of football we have forced upon us by the top-flight clubs is all about big-money. It's not about sportsmanship or camaraderie, and hasn't been for some time.

Everton's £15million man was not first choice!

Headlines sometimes jump out of the page (well, screen usually these days) and leave the reader thinking "What?" Of course, that's exactly the intention, as the reader will usually want to read the article to find out whether their feeling of disbelief was justified.

I had such an experience a few minutes ago, when a headline popped up from Setanta Sports - "Moyes: £15m man was a Plan B". Now, why should I really be surprised about Everton signing a £15million back-up? Probably because I didn't realise the madness had quite reached the non-top four (plus Man City) sides in the Premier League to this extent.

According to David Moyes, a manager I have a lot of time for, Marouane Fellaini may well have been a last-minute signing after Everton missed out on a number of other targets. Or, at least, he appears to me saying that.

Moyes told Everton's official website: "People will say that Fellaini was a last minute thing and he wasn't on the radar and a lot of that is correct. We were after other people; Mbia, we were after two or three people who we couldn't get. But we weren't sitting about doing nothing. We were looking to see who our next targets were.

"We haven't got a lot of stature in the team. So, our criteria was that we had to get someone who was bigger than what we had. We have a lot of smaller people in the team, Artetas, Osmans, Pienaars, so there were lots of good midfielders about but they didn't meet the criteria.

"Fellaini was one who we knew could do that and we have watched him. His games against Liverpool were very good and that probably tipped us over. We realised then that instead of having the potential, he was there."

So, assuming Moyes is being genuine in that Everton had watched Fellaini, it seems the player's performances against Liverpool tipped the balance. Amusing in terms of rilvarly, but Lierpool really were below par against Standard Liege.

And while £15million may not be much money for the top-four (it won't be once Liverpool are bought out by DIC, which I'm convinced will happen within months), it is a lot of cash for Everton. So was it a signing based on ability and a genuine belief the player would improve the squad, or to placate fans? That's one question destined to remain unanswered.

Milan claim no Chelsea Kaka deal

European football at the highest level seems to have more shady deals, winks and nudges than Gordon Brown and Tony Blair in a fancy restaurant - but the outcome seems to be the same!

In the world of modern football, which is more sport than sports entertainment, many fans enjoy the rumour and intrigue almost as much as what actually happens on the pitch. One rumour still floating about following the close of the summer transfer window is that AC Milan were going to sell Kaka to Chelsea as soon as Andriy Shevchenko returned from Stamford Bridge.

The link between politics and football gets even more entwined in Italy, of course, and particularly with AC Milan. Their president, Silvio Berlusconi, is currently the Prime Minister of Italy. How foreign politicians can manage to balance both is a question I have never found an answer to.

But back to Kaka. Berlusconi has denied any deal was arrange with Chelsea - and, as he's a top politician, we have to take his words at face-value, don't we...?

Berlusconi told Antenna 3: "I have absolutely not promised Kaka to Chelsea. Andriy is a big player and I'm convinced our supporters will be happy to have him again with us."

Coach Carlo Aneclotti also stressed Kaka is a key player. Which obviously goes without saying, but in this crazy media circus has to be said otherwise some hack will make something out of nothing being said.

And then we'll have a Kim Jong-il situation in European football...though that may be taking the politicisation of football theory too far!

Didi Hamann hails foreign investment

Man City midfielder Dietmar Hamann thinks the club's takeover by rich foreign investors is the future of European football. Perhaps if he was a 16-year-old kid starting out and not a 35-year-old veteran, he would think differently!

The former German international, who scored the last goal at the old (read "real") Wembley, told a German website he expects English clubs to dominate the Champions League for the foreseeable future, and warned his countrymen that the gulf between the German league and those in England, Spain and Italy will continue to widen.

Hamman told Sport1: "That (foreign investment) is the model for the future. The fans here are overjoyed, it can only be a good thing for the players and the club. But if things continue, the gap between Germany and England, Spain and Italy will only grow wider. English teams have dominated the Champions League in recent years and will probably continue to do so,"

As an amusing aside, Man City are thought to be weighing-up massive January bids for both Germany international strikers - Mario Gomez and Lukas Podolski. Rumours on deadline day suggested they made an outrageous offer for Gomez just before the window shut, only to be rebuffed.

One interesting note in all of this is that the German league system has dropped behind the "Big Three" by quite some margin in recent years, meaning the chances of there ever being a "Big Four" system again are very slim. The only real question is which league will drop next - Spain or Italy?

Hopefully neither will try and compete with the transfer fees and wages - if they do, they run the risk of falling into the same abyss as the English system. Those in control in Italy and Spain would be far wiser to accept English domination for a few years in exchange for being well placed to return to the fore when the Premier League blows up.

Brazil and Man City: The Odd Couple!

I have nothing against Manchester City and Robinho - they just happened to be the first club to be taken over by men with infinite money and their first purchase.

But, even though I am fully aware of the massive pot of gold (or platinum...or oil?!?) now available to the once poor relations of Manchester, I still think I am dreaming when I read reports about a Brazil national team that includes a City player.

The British media must be loving it. A player, based in England, at the peak of their career and playing for Brazil. Given the temperamental nature of South American football, the press must be hoping Robinho acts as a conduit for some juicy stories.

It will get worse in January, of that there is little doubt. Even though many clubs won't want to sell half-way through a season - and surely players will want to finish their Champions League campaigns - Man City will be waving around enough cash to make Fort Knox jealous.

Perhaps there could even be some good in the terminal decline of top-flight football. If the British media decide to start covering foreign leagues and international games more often, fans growing up will realise that the English game is not the be all and end all, and was in fact surpassed decades ago.

Or is that too much to ask...?

Man Utd and Chelsea eye another foreign kid

Football clubs get blamed for the amount of foreign players in the game. While the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United do cast their nets wide, European Union freedom of employment laws also increase the problem.

Putting politics to one side, though, Man Utd and Chelsea are at it again. This time they are reportedly fighting over a 16-year-old defender from Denmark. Brondy's Nicolai Boilesen has been handed a trial at Old Trafford, but Chelsea are thought to be monitoring the situation closely.

Boilesen told Ekstra Bladet: "It will be fantastic to come to United because they are my favourite club. I am very proud that two such big clubs are watching me. Whether it (his future) is in Denmark or abroad, only time will tell. For now, I am just coming to England to train with United and Chelsea."

What is disturbing is not that this is another foreign player coming to the English game - heck, the odds are he will amount to nothing and we'll never hear about him again - it's his age and the implications training foreign players has on our domestic kids.

The newspaper are always carrying articles about increasingly younger kids being signed by top English clubs, at an age when they should be more worried about passing their 11-plus (oops, showing my age). If a kid isn't in a decent academy by about 13, they have little chance of "making it".

Add the acquisition of foreign kids to the mix, given there are a limited number of places in the top academies, and things look even less promising. How are domestic kids even meant to get to the top in the version of football we now have to endure? And when did it all go wrong?

England skipper raises white flag to Croatia

Finally, after years of trying to pretend competition with the game's big boys was possible, and England captain has come out and admitted the national side are barely a second-rate team.

John Terry, who has somehow been reappointed as captain by boss Fabio Capello, has claimed a draw against Croatia tomorrow (Wed, Sep 10) would be a good result. Given little (in terms of population, not ability or spirit) Croatia are favourites to win the group, at least the Chelsea defender is being honest.

Terry was quoted by FIFA.com as saying: "The campaign will not be judged on one match but if we win the game we can take control. he memories of last time, home and away, will be enough to get the lads fighting - it's a fresh start for everyone - a new campaign with everybody fighting for a place under the new manager.

"If we can win, then great. But if we draw it is a very good result too. They haven't lost here for a while and that is something we're aware of."

Just to highlight the difference between the resources available to both countries, may I point out the population of Croatia is about 4.5million, compared to England's 50.8million and to compare the domestic leagues would, quite frankly, be ridiculous.

But if John Terry is prepared to raise the white flag before kicking a ball in anger against Croatia, then so be it. Unless he is following a much-used English tactic of making the opposition seem far better than they are so getting anything can be celebrated with gusto in the jingoistic media.

Even as an Englishman, I hope Croatia win - and win well. Their players deserve it, their FA deserves it and their fans arguably deserve it more, so all the best to them.