I have to say that in my twenty odd years as a football fan I’ve never enjoyed a season as little as I’ve enjoyed this one.
I fully blame it on the Portuguese league, which is, to put it bluntly, a shower of shite at the best of times.
There’s so little flair, so few clinical passes, so few great goals, and most noticeably so little pace.
After a couple of weeks off everyone’s seventh favourite competition is back.
Back like a bitter local rival with vengeance on its mind, back like a journeyman striker putting in a final stint before hanging up his boots, or back like the rear part of your body with a spine running down the middle of it? You decide.
This past weekend certainly had a lot of storylines across the major European leagues, and so I thought it would be most appropriate to give a general review of how things are panning out for some of our continental neighbours. In Germany and France there has been no absolutely dominant force, meaning that the excitement has built as their domestic leagues are taken to the wire.
Netherlands
Firstly a look at Steve McClaren and his team FC Twente for the final time this season. After what has been a very positive and successful first year in the Netherlands. Unfortunately for McClaren his first season in the Eredivisie came agonisingly short of a fully triumphant riposte to his critics. On Sunday night FC Twente eventually lost the KNVB Beker (Dutch Cup) 5-4 on penalties, after a 2-2 draw with Heerenveen.
Porto finally wrapped up their fourth consecutive league title last Sunday with a 1-0 win over Nacional.
Sporting meanwhile scored in the 90th minute against Vitoria Setúbal to seal second place and Champions League qualification.
Who’d want to be a referee? It’s like being a policeman, only worse. You spend your time telling people what to do, yet no one respects or likes you. It’s conferred authority on the scale of the school prefect or shop-steward. The actions of a former victim clutching at the straws of power.
Last week the world bore witness to a bout of utterly feckless decision making by a certain Norwegian official. But, alas, Tom Henning Obrevo, fear not; you are in esteemed company within our own fair shores. Let us take a look at the Premier League’s worst referees.