The saga over whether Ashley Cole was ‘tapped up’ by Chelsea is set to pose quite a few problems for the FA.
On the one hand if it is true that Chelsea made an illegal approach for the defender then it is only fair they should be punished for breaking strict FA rules.
But on the other hand, if the FA fine Chelsea it would be little more than a joke for a club which effectively has a licence to print its own money thanks to sugar daddy Roman Abramovich.
Yet nobody wants to see Chelsea deducted points for this misdemeanor. Firstly it would make the entire Premiership race a farce if Mourinho’s boys were to miss out on the title because of a points deduction. Secondly, it would give them a sort of martyr status that they most definitely don’t deserve if it turns out to be true they made an illegal approach for Cole.
As I said, a tricky one to handle for the FA, who have now asked both Arsenal and Chelsea to submit their versions of the story before holding a hearing later this month.
If found guilty, Chelsea do need punishing and severely if they are to realise they can’t belittle the very foundations of the modern game. Just don’t ask me how to do it without deducting points...
A final word on this subject for today: if the scandal surrounding Sven last summer became known as Svengate, shouldn’t this one be known as Colgate? Just a thought.
Worth watching
In contrast to recent matches, tonight’s friendly between England and Holland might just be worth watching.
There may be no points at stake and the result may matter little in the greater scheme of things, but with crucial qualifiers coming up for both sides, this could be a game where the two sides actually compete.
With a little luck Sven may take the opportunity to give a few of the fringe members of his team a run out – a midfield including Stuart Downing, Sean Wright Philips and Joe Cole would be nice to see in action – alongside some of the established players.
And with the new restriction on the number of substitutions in place, the second half will not just be the poor joke than so many recent friendlies have become.
Sven has his increasingly customary defensive crisis to overcome with Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell left out due to injury and John Terry, Matthew Upson, Wayne Bridge and Ledly King all withdrawing in the last few days.
That paves the way for the unlikely pairing of Jamie Carragher and Wes Brown at the heart of defence which may not be anything like a first choice partnership but could provide welcome food for thought if it goes well.
Interestingly, Holland will be ditching their traditional orange kits for tonight’s match, wearing a black and white strip in a show of support for Thierry Henry’s anti-racism initiative ‘Stand Up, Speak Up’.
Rumours that Spain will adopting an all-white strip for their match with San Marino are apparently unfounded.
Bogey teams
Throughout history every club has had a bogey team – one they just can’t seem to get good results against not matter how hard they try.
In Chelsea’s case it would appear that team is Manchester City who followed up being the only team to beat them so far this season by holding them to a draw at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
To be honest the 0-0 draw was a fair result. Chelsea did look the more dangerous but you got the distinct impression that no matter how long the game went on they wouldn’t manage to score past David James.
The former England number one was in inspired form even though he managed his customary fumbles in the earlier part of the game. And his stop from Lampard in the dying seconds was a serious contender for save of the season.
Despite this setback Chelsea are still odds-on favourites to win the title with a healthy nine point advantage.
“Before the match we needed nine wins and a draw. Now we just need nine wins,” was the philosophical view of manager Jose Mourinho.
And provided they don’t come up against goalkeepers in James’ form every week, they should be able to get them.
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