Where is our apology?
I'm playing catch-up what with being 'off-line' for the vast majority of yesterday due to travel commitments. Sounds like I missed out on a fair bit. I'm hearing rumours that Chirpy attempted to foam pie Harry Redknapp in the face but Joe Jordan intervened. That pesky attention seeking chicken.
Terry
Elsewhere, Sky Sports published an article covering an interview with John Terry. Then issued an apology and altered the article in a couple of places. I've had a look at their website. If I've got the wrong end of the stick, then beat me with it. I've seen the video footage of John Terry being interviewed (which is what the written article was based on). Terry (around a minute or so into it) uses the word 'disrespectful' whilst referring to the Spurs and Luka Modric situation. It's muddled, I'd admit that. But my gut reaction is that he's simply citing the fact that talking about Modric is probably not the best thing to be doing in any grand old way because it will start to touch upon the art of tapping up. So he throws in the word disrespectful to appease us and protect himself. Which is fine. It's understandable.
Sky, oh so giddy Sky, run the written text version (along with video) to the tune of 'Terry - Modric 'disrespectful'. Pretty much sums up their tabloid bloodline. They've taken nothing and made something out of it. The tone of the entire interview did not have an agenda to it from Terry's perspective (can't believe I'm painting him as an innocent party in all this). The only apparent agenda(s) was to try and get Terry to talk up Luka (in a Chelsea shirt) and to thus gain the most sensationalist headline out of it. Terry does call Modric 'world class'. But that's ignored (surely better to have run with that if Sky are so desperate for the player to join the West London club?)
Don't know how long it took, but the title was later altered to 'Terry - Modric is world class' (there we go, second time lucky). So what we have here is simply a case of Sky running an out of context headline for what Terry said. He cited 'disrespectful' - Sky run with it. They change it. Then they apologise. But then what they do next is laughable - they remove the disrespectful comment from the written text article altogether. Too much to get their heads around I guess. Perhaps struggling to work out the ambiguity of the quote.
Far far easier to ignore it altogether than perhaps appreciate that Terry didn't want to be too forward in his appraisal of Luka's talent. I actually still don't get quite grasp the point of the original headline as it's hardly the type of headline that follows on from previous pro-Chelsea ones. The 'world class' amendment is more in tune with their Luka to Chelsea push.
I'm still patiently waiting for Sky to issue an apology relating to the Modric transfer request that apparently was never (according to Spurs) handed in.
One critisism of John Terry re: Luka?
"He's very agile, very quick and a great finisher like we've seen over many years."
You what?
Souleymane Coulibaly
Looks a talent. 16 years of age. Superb vision and touch. An eye for goal. Suggestions from some that he's on a promise for first team football (hence why he signed for us). Back on planet earth, it's obvious the kid has the moves but he's just that. A kid. We've been here before. Many many times. We never actually sign teenagers good enough to be blooded into the rough and tumble of the Premier League without disappearing in the youth sides and loaned out to Championship clubs first. I'm hoping he is different (much like I thought Bostock would be different). I'm also hoping we take our time to work on his raw ability and develop him with the onus on Souleymane being a valid project for first team football in the next year or two. It's about time we signed someone of this ilk and followed it through to fruition and witness an impact at an early age rather than a full début at 25 then a transfer to Ipswich.
Scored on his 'Spurs' début. Read more here.
Pirates
The second game in SA and the second pre-season game I've not watched. As previously preached, all I care about is the team getting fit, getting back into a rhythm and avoiding injury. Would be nice to read about us performing with spark, style and swagger. We either always look disjointed or amazing. Never in-between. We all now that 'amazing' usually equates to world class underachieving when the season proper starts.
Don't think Modric should have been handed the captains armband. Are we trying to get him 'on side'? There's no reason to be doing this just to send out a message to anyone watching, because as chairman has stated a couple of times - it's a closed matter. Luka is hardly captain material. Even in a pre-season friendly wearing the armband should be an honour rather than part of a reconditioning process.
Nice free-kick from Rafa. More of this in the Prem please.
