Steve Kean's latest own-goal should be final straw for him at Blackburn

Steve Kean admitted he forfeited yesterday's Carling Cup tie at Cardiff

It is common for managers to treat the Carling Cup as a distraction and name weakened sides in the competition.

But it is simply unacceptable for them to forfeit matches, as Steve Kean has admitted his Blackburn side did against Cardiff City last night.

Rovers, currently bottom of the Premier League, do have a crucial run of league fixtures coming up, including games against relegation rivals Swansea, Sunderland, West Brom and Bolton, but Kean needs every win he can get.

Fans have turned on him massively over recent months and a serious tilt at winning the Carling Cup could have helped turn some dissenters around.

Kean even said in the lead-up to the Cardiff match he was going all out to win the Carling Cup, so has again been proven to be a liar who fans simply cannot trust.

The Scot, in effectively throwing the quarter-final tie, showed complete disrespect to all those Blackburn fans who spent their hard-earned money to travel to Wales.

They should all be given a refund as they travelled there with their manager stating the Carling Cup was being taken very seriously.

If Blackburn had a proper board in place, full of people who have been in football for some time and understand the game, Kean would have been gone long ago.

His position has been untenable for months and he will never turn those fans around now.

Kean has no credibility whatsoever, after lavish claims Rovers would soon be in the Champions League and stating there is no chance of them going down this season, and his constant positivity has now turned into a farce.

Blackburn fans have made their feelings towards Kean clear

You get the sense that even if they are thrashed at home to Swansea on Saturday Kean will still say his side were unlucky and there are no problems. He would probably try to bombard fans with irrelevant statistics to suggest everything in the garden is rosy.

How are players supposed to be motivated by that?

There are clear issues at Blackburn, and Kean doesn't seem to have the ability to address them.

He needs to slate his team when they need slating and treat the fans with more respect.

Kean has cheated those supporters by forfeiting the Cardiff match and with it the chance of cup glory.

When are Blackburn going to have a better chance of getting to a semi-final, and possibly a Wembley final?

The league has to be prioritised, with the financial rewards of staying in the Premier League more important than ever, but Kean has turned into an even bigger joke with his "forfeit" comments.

The next few league fixtures are crucial to Blackburn's chances of staying up this season, so Kean should be sacked now before he inflicts any more damage on the club.

With him in charge, the winnable run of games are likely to provide few points and leave Rovers in an even worse position. He should have been sacked in the summer, but this is Venky's last chance for redemption.

Venky's have turned Blackburn into a laughing stock

If they sack Kean now, Blackburn might have a chance of staying up.

They would need to convince an established manager to work for them then - which may be a thankless task - but that is their only hope of salvaging this campaign.

Kean's public statements are getting more ridiculous by the week - he even said earlier this season that points and league positions are "just one way of measuring progress" - and he needs to be put out of his misery now.

If he is to make it as a successful manager, he needs to start at the bottom and work his way up.

If Blackburn sack him, he may get a job in League One or League Two and the chance to build a reputation away from the high-pressure cauldron of the Premier League.

Kean has just been laughably "rewarded" for his work at Ewood Park with a new contract, but he must go now.

His latest insult to fans should be the final straw.

Gary Speed: RIP

Wales manager Gary Speed committed suicide yesterday at the age of 42

The sad, sad passing of Gary Speed yesterday put everything into perspective.

He was one of my football heroes as a kid.

My earliest memories of the game are of going to see Sir Bobby Robson's swashbuckling Newcastle side at St James' Park, a team Speed was an integral part of.

His late bursts into the box from midfield to score crucial headed goals were his trademark, while the way he carried himself on and off the pitch was the perfect example for any impressionable youngster.

Speed's death is an extraordinary blow for football; he was one of the game's good guys and the perfect professional.

However, this is not just a footballing tragedy. It's a human tragedy.

Speed leaves behind a wife and two children, whose distress at his suicide is unimaginable. Everybody's thoughts must be with them during this dreadful time.

It is rumoured Speed suffered with depression and if that is true it is a further indication the illness is still a taboo issue in football and one which must be addressed.

On Saturday, Stan Collymore was mocked on Twitter for explaining his battle with depression and "suicidal thoughts".

Most people simply don't understand depression.

Former England cricketer Marcus Trescothick had a high-profile battle with depression

No-one can truly understand it unless they have suffered from it. It is an illness, not a character flaw, as Marcus Trescothick's compelling autobiography explains.

But whether Speed suffered from depression or not, the game has lost one of its great men.

He was one of those unique individuals nobody seemed to have a bad word to say about. He just got on with his job and was seen as a "normal" guy.

That's what makes his death that much harder to take.

The news of his passing was a real bolt out of the blue. It was the most devastating of news and one which will hit the football community hard.

Speed was doing a magnificent job as Wales manager and seemed to have a long and successful managerial career in front of him.

The likes of Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale were flourishing under him and he seemed destined to manage at the top.

There was no public indication of what was to come from Speed, something perhaps typical of the man.

He never seemed to moan or complain. He just got on with it. Perhaps that cost him in the end.

He appeared the day before his death on the BBC's Football Focus, and seemed to be himself: a warm, intelligent man with a bright future ahead of him.

Speed on his final public appearance, on BBC's Football Focus, on Saturday

It just goes to show you can never be sure of what is going through a person's mind and the battles they are facing.

Speed would have been a great manager, but he was a fantastic player.

He served all his clubs with great distinction and just seemed to go on forever, while he was certainly one of the best players of the Premier League era.

Speed is loved at Newcastle for his spell under Sir Bobby Robson

Speed broke all manner of appearance records and rarely missed games through injury, while he was one of the few players opposition fans would not have a go at.

He was the sort of player - and person - you were proud was representing your club.

Inevitably, he never gave anything less than 100% on the pitch and was a role model to any aspiring youngster.

The whole of football was left dumbfounded by his death.

Shay Given, Speed's teammate at Newcastle, wept before Aston Villa's game at Swansea while Craig Bellamy, another former Magpies colleague, withdrew from Liverpool's clash with Manchester City after hearing of the passing of his mentor and friend.

Given was visibly moved by his friend's death

Everyone was affected by his death, even those who didn't know him.

I didn't know him personally, but was left deeply saddened by the news. A tragedy like this puts the game of football into perspective.

I struggled to concentrate on anything else yesterday as I just couldn't get to grips with the fact he was dead. The fact he hanged himself makes it even more difficult to bear.

Depression is a destructive illness. It doesn't matter how much money you earn or how good your job is - it can hit anybody.

Football should learn its lessons from Speed's death. Depression - regardless of whether it was that which tipped him over the edge - needs to be addressed and players who suffer from it need to be supported through the tough times.

Having such a high-profile job is fantastic to most but extremely difficult for others and for every big-mouthed egotistical player out there, there will be a Gary Speed, suffering in silence.

One of the game's true good guys has gone. Dead at 42, no age at all.

A great player and potentially even greater manager has been taken from us, but much more tragically, from his wife and kids.

Rest in peace Gary Speed. Gone but not forgotten.

Is Andre Villas-Boas' job really already on the line at Chelsea?

Andre Villas-Boas seems under pressure just five months into his Chelsea reign

Another day, another defeat for Chelsea.

The 'crisis' which has engulfed Andre Villas-Boas' team in the last few weeks has now extended to the Champions League, and after last night's defeat at Bayer Leverkusen, they now face the possibility of crashing out in the group stages.

However, those calling for Villas-Boas' head already are premature to say the least.

Five Champions League group fixtures and 12 Premier League games hardly constitute a barometer of his managerial talents.

Football management is becoming an increasingly cut-throat business, with bosses given far too little time to prove themselves, and it is important we do not judge Villas-Boas just yet.

He is trying to implement a new, free-flowing style at Chelsea and that in itself is admirable.

His tactics have not paid off yet, with the high defensive line he is employing clearly not suited to John Terry and David Luiz looking a liability at the back.

Chelsea are trying to press and pass like Barcelona, but naturally they cannot make a transition of that magnitude overnight.

They are trying to attack with short passes through the middle of the pitch, meaning Didier Drogba is struggling to make the impact he would like up front.

Villas-Boas needs time and for the sake of all young managers out there looking to play the game in a positive way, he should be given it.

Roman Abramovich is infamous for his harsh treatment of managers but he needs to stick with one for the long haul now and that man must be Villas-Boas.

Is time already running out for 'AVB' under Abramovich?

Another change of manager would only unsettle the squad even more and a quick fix like Guus Hiddink would only prove to be a stop-gap reprieve.

Villas-Boas may have been naive with some of his tactical choices this season, but he is clearly a coach with immense talent.

You only need to look at the CVs of the managers who have taken him under their wing in the past - Sir Bobby Robson and Jose Mourinho - to see how highly he is rated.

His record for his two previous clubs is also fantastic.

He rescued Portuguese side Academica from relegation peril in 2009/10 and won an incredible treble with Porto a year later.

True, Porto are always expected to be successful in Portugal, but the way Villas-Boas led them unbeaten throughout the league campaign, coupled with the way they swept to Europa League glory, sets him apart.

He clearly has something about him and that is why it is far too early for Abramovich to discard him.

It is not just Abramovich who needs to be fully behind Villas-Boas, though.

The sense of togetherness that characterised Chelsea throughout the Jose Mourinho, Guus Hiddink and Carlo Ancelotti eras appears to have diminished somewhat.

Are the infamous egos of the Chelsea dressing room still too influential? Are they fully behind Villas-Boas?

Are the likes of John Terry and Frank Lampard fully behind their manager?

Every player has a duty to give the man a chance and a significant amount of time to make his methods work.

It is incredible Villas-Boas finds himself in such an important managerial position at the age of 34 but his age should be no issue. He has worked his way to the top since Sir Bobby Robson spotted his coaching talent at the age of 16, while he impressed Abramovich so much he paid £13.3million to take him from Porto in the summer.

That was just five months ago, so it would be foolhardy to pay a similar amount - or even more - to get rid of him now. If he was good enough then, he is good enough now.

Villas-Boas may have been a tad naive though to suggest Abramovich wouldn't sack him because of the money he spent on him, with the Russian's track record with managers hardly showing him to be a loyal employer.

Four defeats in seven matches is clearly not good enough for a club of Chelsea's stature but another managerial change is not the answer.

'AVB' could do without the spectre of Hiddink looming in the background and Abramovich needs to address that situation, declare Hiddink is not under consideration and that Villas-Boas is still the man for the job.

Abramovich never makes public statements but now would be a good time to start, to prove he is still in it for the long-term and is not making managerial appointments on a whim.

It hasn't all been bad under Villas-Boas, anyway.

A little over a month ago, his side were being lauded for their attacking style after romping to victories over Swansea, Bolton and Genk.

Juan Mata has slotted into the side seamlessly while Daniel Sturridge has shown tremendous improvement under Villas-Boas.

Fernando Torres has shown glimpses of his old self although the manager may need to stick with him for a number of consecutive games to see the best of him.

Villas-Boas hasn't been helped by the John Terry racism saga.

Villas-Boas has backed Terry unequivocally throughout the racism allegations

Terry has been off the pace on the pitch but the allegations against him by Anton Ferdinand are more pressing.

The Portuguese boss did not handle the situation well when he underestimated the seriousness of it, while the whole saga is likely to have dented morale within the squad.

Whether that is a factor in Chelsea's extremely poor defensive record is unclear - perhaps that is as much down to the high defensive line and lack of discipline.

It is clear Villas-Boas needs faith and time to turn it around and mould Chelsea into the side he wants them to be, but a defeat to Valencia in their final Champions League group game could prove fatal to him.

That would knock Chelsea out and we all now how obsessed Abramovich is with that competition.

It would be just like the Russian to wield the axe if Villas-Boas was to fail in the Champions League but that would be foolish and not in his long-term interests.

Chelsea will turn this around.

Dropping David Luiz for Alex would be a start, while Villas-Boas would be well advised to ditch the high defensive line, at least until he has defenders who feel comfortable with it.

He will also need to show better adaptability and prove he is willing to change his tactics to suit the teams his side are playing.

But will he be given the time by Abramovich to turn things around? Patience is certainly not a quality normally associated with the Russian.

If Chelsea go crashing out of the Champions League in two weeks' time, Villas-Boas may become the latest boss to leave through the Stamford Bridge revolving door.

Flawless Taylor sweeps Anderson aside for yet another triumph

This is the fourth time in five years Phil Taylor has won the Grand Slam

The sight of Phil Taylor celebrating another trophy win on the big stage is a familiar one.

But even by his standards, his emphatic 16-4 win against Gary Anderson in the Grand Slam of Darts final was extraordinary.

Once Taylor was ahead, there was never any chance of the Scot Anderson launching a comeback as the 15-time world champion simply never let him.

There is not much more Anderson could have done, although his checkout percentage was almost half that of Taylor's and that was a crucial factor.

But overall, Taylor simply outplayed Anderson and would have beaten anyone on this form.

Whenever he was given the chance to break Anderson's heart and hit a crucial checkout, he took it.

That is Taylor all over. He demoralises his opponents and makes even world-class talents like Anderson look ordinary.

He was on target to break the world record average for a major final before struggling on his doubles in the final leg, but his end average of 109.04 is almost untouchable. To beat him, someone would have had to have played the match of their life.

This victory would have been very sweet for Taylor after he was written off earlier in the year.

After defeats to Mark Webster in the World Championship quarter-final, Adrian Lewis in the Premier League semi-final and Paul Nicholson in the UK Open, many declared Taylor was finished and would start slipping down the rankings. More fool them.

Taylor is undoubtedly the best darts player of all time

He has hit back by winning the World Matchplay, European Championship, World Grand Prix, Championship League Darts and now the Grand Slam, while he will start as the odds-on favourite at next month's World Championship.

At 51, he should now be on the decline but he is showing no signs of that and if anything he is getting even better.

The competition has certainly improved but so has Taylor and there is no end in sight for his dominance.

The Grand Slam was not all about Taylor, though.

After struggling since winning the Premier League in May, Anderson will be delighted to have reached the final in Wolverhampton and should now have the confidence to launch a real challenge for the World Championships at Alexandra Palace, where he finished runner-up last year.

His 180 scoring alone is enough to worry any player - even Taylor - and if he can get more consistency on his doubles, there's no reason he can't challenge Taylor if he is slightly off his best.

The Grand Slam in general is proving more popular every year and that is in large part down to the BDO players who compete.

This is the only major tournament the PDC and BDO players can compete against each other, and is therefore unique because of that.

Last year, Scott Waites of the BDO won the tournament and this year the likes of Dean Winstanley, Ted Hankey and Martin Phillips all impressed.

It is great to see all the world's best players - excluding Martin Adams - competing in the same tournament but the fact the last remaining four players were from the PDC shows that is the corporation still very much in the ascendancy.

Hankey provided much of the highlights of the tournament, with his antics on stage making him the ideal PDC player.

Hankey beat Raymond van Barneveld and Ian White in the group stage

It would be great to see him move across and test himself against the best week in, week out, and hopefully that is a move which will take place in the near future.

The fans at Wolverhampton have always given him a tough time but, to the amazement of all, warmed to him this year.

They recognise he is box office and exactly the type of character the game needs, although it did seem a tad strange when they were singing his name and booing his opponent rather than the other way round.

His match against Michael van Gerwen in the second round was fantastic.

Hankey tried every trick in the book to put the 22-year-old starlet off his game but it seemed as though the Dutchman was going to win at 7-5 up.

Hankey tried slowing him down and even almost fell over in the early exchanges, but van Gerwen seemed unperturbed until the final few legs.

Two-time BDO champion Hankey came back to win a nail-biter 10-9 to a raucous atmosphere which surely must have whetted his appetite for a permanent PDC switch.

As for van Gerwen, this was a very positive tournament for him after superb group stage wins against Scott Waites and Tony O'Shea, and it appears he is finally beginning to live up to his huge potential.

Hankey eventually lost a superb quarter-final against Mark Walsh 16-14 after almost launching an incredible comeback.

He was 15-9 down in a race to 16 match, and missed three darts at a double to force a dramatic final leg decider.

It was good to see Walsh in the semi-finals though as his talent deserves more performances like this in major tournaments, and he was unlucky to eventually lose out to Anderson.

Paul Nicholson again had a good tournament although he will have been disappointed by his 16-7 quarter-final loss to arch-rival Taylor.

Nicholson is fast becoming one of the most feared players in darts

He eased through the group stage before edging past Steve Beaton, but was no match for Taylor in this form.

Nicholson is improving with every tournament he plays though and if he continues in this vein of form he may well live up to his own billing as a future world champion.

His image as the 'bad boy of darts' is slowly turning around as he is largely letting his darts do the talking after some trash talk against Taylor earlier in the year.

He infamously said he was sick of Taylor "spitting his dummy out" and vowed to "put him to bed", and while he has calmed down slightly he remains box office and one of the players fans always want to see in action.

World champion Adrian Lewis has slightly stuttered since his stunning World Championship triumph last year but he was back to his best in Wolverhampton.

He was no match for Taylor, who beat him 16-9 in the semi-final, but produced some fantastic performances throughout the tournament to make him a major contender for the World Championship.

Finally, it was great to see some of darts' younger players competing on the big stage.

19-year-old James Hubbard - who looks more like a boy band member than a darts player - impressed in his three group stage games and looks like a star of the future.

Hubbard took a leg off Taylor in their group stage encounter

van Gerwen and Aaron Monk also did themselves no harm and it appears these three will be fighting it out with Taylor, Lewis, Anderson et al in the near future.

For now though, the man they all must try to catch is Taylor.

He will be more determined than ever to pick up an incredible 16th world title next month, and on this form, it is hard to see anyone stopping him.

Taylor is simply a phenomenon and judging by his displays in Wolverhampton, he is nowhere near finished yet.

City-Newcastle trouble shows football slipping back into old habits

The trouble at the Etihad Stadium was like a throwback to a bygone era

In the 1970s and early 80s, hooliganism was rife in English football.

Much has been done to rectify the problem and fan behaviour has improved dramatically since then, but it appears some moronic fans are seeping back into the game.

For many, alcohol is a crucial ingredient for enjoying themselves at a football match, but some are now entering stadiums so intoxicated they lose all sense of reason.

Not much has been reported about the trouble at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday during the clash between Manchester City and Newcastle, but what happened there was an early warning for the authorities that a new wave of hooliganism may be on the horizon.

This was my first Newcastle away trip of the season, and the atmosphere in the away end was understandably positive given the club's fantastic start to the season.

However, that atmosphere quickly turned poisonous as the game progressed - with both sets of supporters at fault - before it reached a tipping point not long after City's third goal.

Banter had been flying between the two sets of supporters throughout, with references to City buying the league and fans jumping on the bandwagon, as well as City fans accusing a portly Newcastle fan of 'eating all their chips' after the PA announcer declared chips were unavailable in the ground. All quite good-humoured, you might think.

But then, with around 15 minutes remaining, the main action of note was happening off the pitch.

One idiotic Newcastle fan towards the back of the away section launched a firework - though how he got it into the ground is anyone's guess given everyone was searched before being allowed in - into the City section, reportedly injuring two home fans.

It could have been much worse - after all, it could have exploded in a child's face - and there is simply no need for it.

Police managed to keep the rival fans apart

The firework landed next to two small children and a man picked it up to prevent it going off near them, only for it to explode in his hand and leave him with burns which needed hospital treatment.

There was the loudest of bangs, with everyone in the ground seemingly startled and momentarily thinking a bomb had gone off, and the confusion that followed only made the situation worse.

The City fans knew what had happened and started launching coins, lighters and bottles into the away end. The Newcastle contingent - most of whom presumed it was a City fan who had set off the firework - retaliated with their own barrage of coins, bottles and seats.

Police and stewards had to battle to keep the supporters apart, with both sets raging and believing the other was at fault, before the trouble abated soon after.

Of course, this was nothing compared to the olden days, where this was arguably a weekly occurrence and a storm in a teacup in comparison, but it wasn't right. It shouldn't have happened and instances like this should have been long since consigned to the history books.

Young supporters on both sides of the police/stewards border were clearly frightened and intimidated by what was going on, with incidents like this no longer common.

Of course, all clubs have their minute percentage of moronic fans who go to games simply to cause trouble and rile the opposition, but it is important not to tarnish all supporters with the same brush.

Most Newcastle and City supporters would have been outraged at the actions of some of their fellow fans; most would never have dreamt of doing something similar.

If it wasn't for one moron setting off the firework, the whole chain of events would never have took place and so hopefully this will prove to be an isolated incident which is not repeated in future.

Newcastle's friendly at Darlington descended into farce after crowd violence

However, the number of idiotic fans appears to be growing, with incidents in Newcastle's friendly at Darlington, chants in the North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal and more abusive chants in the Leeds-Manchester United clash emphasising this.

Reportedly, two City fans needed hospital treatment, one of which for burns on his arm as a result of the firework going off, while one City fan whose father had been hit on the eye with a coin took to a forum to admit he hit a Newcastle fan after the game after he cornered him at a train station.

Behaviour like this is simply unacceptable and is a further reminder to football that it risks slipping back into old habits.

High-profile racism incidents have not helped, with casual racism on the terraces increasing by the game, while crowd trouble now appears to again be on the up.

The trouble at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday may not have been the worst football has ever seen, but it should act as a reminder to all those who think the game has moved on from the 70s and 80s that work still needs to be done to eradicate idiots from the game.

Why prehistoric Blatter must not be allowed to drag football's name any further into the gutter

Out-of-date Blatter should be kicked out of football now

Rio Ferdinand took to Twitter to say he was "astonished" at Sepp Blatter's comments yesterday on racism.

He shouldn't be. This is Sepp Blatter. This is what he does.

Blatter is a clown and it is a joke he is the most powerful man in world football.

He has already proved himself to be sexist, out of date, homophobic, possibly corrupt and now ignorant to racism.

What more does he have to do to lose his job?

His comments yesterday, that racism should be settled by a handshake and there is no racism in football, proved how out of touch he is.

In saying what he did he almost condoned racism, opening the doors for racist thugs across the world to spout bile and intimidate players and supporters with racist slurs.

As the head of FIFA, Blatter should be leading the charge to kick racism out of football but he has risked setting the game back 30 years with his ridiculous comments.

Racism is seeping back into football at an alarming rate now.

Luis Suarez has been charged with racially abusing Patrice Evra and John Terry has been accused of a similar slur against Anton Ferdinand.

Suarez has been charged with racially abusing Evra

It's not just these incidents which have highlighted it, it has been the reaction to them too.

Stan Collymore has been racially abused on Twitter for daring to condemn racism, just one of a number of examples of this.

And the response of the Wembley crowd to Terry this week showed views towards racism are too soft.

In 2010, Terry was roundly booed in a friendly against Egypt after reports he cheated on his wife with Wayne Bridge's partner, an accusation never proved.

Now, with an unproved racism allegation hanging over his head, it appears fans aren't too bothered.

He was booed against Sweden on Tuesday, but not roundly.

Too many don't seem to care about racism and worrying trends are beginning to emerge.

Of course, the Terry allegations have not been proved and he is innocent until proven guilty, but exactly the same was the case in 2010 with the cheat accusations.

Now which is worse, racism or infidelity?

Of course, both are wrong, but the worrying thing is people seem prepared to turn a blind eye to racism.

If Terry is found guilty of racism, he should be stripped of the England and Chelsea captaincies and face a long ban

Suarez has been charged with racism and he claims the term he used to deride Evra with has different connotations in Uruguay, but if he is guilty of using it he cannot be allowed to worm his way out of it. He has no excuses.

It is rumoured he will receive a six-match ban if his appeal fails, but that seems hopelessly inadequate.

A precedent needs to be set to stamp out racism once and for all. He should be banned for at least as long as Rio Ferdinand was for missing a drugs test, eight months.

There have been too many other racial incidents recently, too.

Sammy Ameobi and Fraizer Campbell have both been abused via Twitter, Chelsea fans chanted a disgusting song about Anton Ferdinand at Genk and another Chelsea fan allegedly shouted a racist term at Daniel Sturridge in Genk.

It seems we became complacent about racism in football and thought the problem had gone, but now it appears it was merely on the back-burner.

What is clear is that English football is still ravaged by racism and the FA should show no sympathy for anyone found guilty of it.

We thought we were leading the charge against it and condemned other European countries, like Spain, Bulgaria and Russia, after some of their fans were found guilty of it.

The problem may be worse in some places, like Bulgaria - where England players were racially abused - but there are no real deterrents in place.

Countries are made to pay a pittance of a fine and are given a slap on the wrist, leaving the racists free to do the same thing again in future.

This was the racist reaction of Russian fans after Peter Odemwingie left Lokomotiv Moscow for West Brom

Russia are the hosts of the 2018 World Cup yet it is common there for black players to have bananas hurled at them.

Mario Balotelli is often abused in Italy for the colour of his skin.

In Spain, monkey chants were heard directed towards Emmanuel Adebayor at the Nou Camp last season, while accusations of Sergio Busquets racially abusing Marcelo overshadowed the match.

There was clear TV evidence Busquets labelled Marcelo a "monkey", yet UEFA didn't ban him due to a "lack of evidence".

Football is turning a blind eye to racism and this is the result.

And now, with the head of the game proving himself to be no better, the floodgates could be about to open. In fact, they already have.

Blatter must resign now. He won't, of course, but he should.

His position ought to be untenable. He should be disowned by all member associations. Sadly, the more likely outcome is an all too familiar one. People will turn a blind eye to it.

But to say racism should be settled by a handshake should be the final straw.

Blatter has risked undermining all the work groups like Kick It Out have done to eradicate racism and he has alienated yet another group in society. In fact, this should have alienated all of society.

His bungling attempts to cover up his comments on the FIFA website and Twitter have only served to expose what he is even more: an arrogant, out of touch bigot who deserves no place in football.

Until serious punishments are handed out to those found guilty of racism, the problem will never go away.

And until idiots like Blatter are erased from the game, situations like this will keep cropping up.

Racism needs to be kicked out. So does Blatter.

Why Barcelona bullies must not win their latest battle

Barcelona president Sandro Rosell wants a 16-team Premier League

The current Barcelona side is widely recognised as one of the best teams of all-time.

But for all the class they show on the pitch, some of their actions off it leave a lot to be desired.

The signing of Cesc Fabregas was just one example of this, as Barca players lined up on the club's official website for the best part of three years saying how much they wanted the Spaniard in their team.

Club directors and president Sandro Rosell publicly mocked Arsenal's valuation of the player before eventually securing the signing in the summer.

Just today he turned his nose up at Tottenham's valuation of Gareth Bale, ignoring the fact that a player is worth as much as his club decides.

Now Rosell has took it upon himself to demand the Premier League is cut to 16 teams and suggest Champions League fixtures should be played on weekends.

If teams, leagues and indeed UEFA refuse to cave in, Barcelona and other top European clubs could form a breakaway European league, according to Rosell.

This is just the latest arrogant, bully-boy tactics used by Barcelona, who seem to think because they have the best team they have the right to change the face of football and do what they like.

Hopefully, UEFA will stand tall on this and refuse to budge, as one team cannot be allowed to effectively run the game.

The Champions League is a worldwide phenomenon but doesn't need changing

In the same sense as one player is not bigger than a club, one club is not bigger than an association. Barcelona must not be allowed to have their own way.

The Champions League is a fantastic competition with worldwide appeal, but switching games to weekends would be ridiculous and risk upsetting the traditions of the game.

Club owners and presidents have attempted to erode this far too often in recent months, with suggestions of summer leagues, no relegations, renaming of stadiums and so on, so a line has to be drawn now.

Rosell's standpoint is yet another example of the rich attempting to get richer and leaving the poorer clubs behind, but a move like this could kill clubs.

What would happen to the Football League if the Premier League was reduced to 16 teams?

With four less teams in the top flight, would the Championship's size have to be increased? Would teams have to play 50 league games a season? Or would four clubs have to drop out of the league to make way for those falling from the top flight, risking financial ruin and creating a domino effect down the pyramid?

The Premier League is great as it is now, with 20 teams. Reducing that by four would devalue the competition and make it much less exciting.

The 38 league games a season model works here and does not need changing, so associations and clubs must not roll over and allow Barcelona to tickle their bellies.

UEFA president Michel Platini is sure to have been unimpressed by Rosell's comments

We all know the faults with UEFA and FIFA but most fans would rather have them governing the game than a selection of top clubs looking after their own interests.

The European Club Association have made a number of threats in recent years and hold far too much influence.

About the only decent suggestion Rosell, the ECA's vice-president, made at a conference in Doha was to cut the number of international friendlies.

England's double-header against Spain and Sweden this week may have produced two wins, but one game would have been more than enough.

International friendlies will have to stay in some form as tactics and individuals need to be experimented with, but there is no need to have two of them in a week in the middle of the season.

The interest simply isn't there, from players, clubs or fans.

The attendance for yesterday's game at Wembley against Sweden - under 50,000 - proved that.

So reducing the number of international friendlies is not a bad idea.

But Barcelona's idea to cut league sizes, play Champions League games on Saturdays and generally increase their own wealth smacks of greed, arrogance and self-preservation.

Off the pitch, Barcelona are just as ugly as they are beautiful on it.

Why England may be missing a trick with Rooney exclusion against Spain

Wayne Rooney has not been selected for Saturday's friendly with Spain

When Wayne Rooney's act of stupidity in Montenegro led to a three-game ban, critics were lining up to say he should not be in contention for the friendlies leading up to Euro 2012.

Rooney has been left out of Saturday's glamour friendly against Spain but surely Fabio Capello is missing the point by excluding him from this game.

If England are to have any chance of winning Euro 2012 - and they should be contenders considering what they are paying Capello - then it is highly likely they will have to beat Spain along the way.

And if they are to beat Spain, clearly Rooney has to play and has to be on the top of his game.

Saturday's friendly should be an opportunity for Capello to play his strongest side, the team he would play if England faced Spain in the knockout stages next year.

Rooney would clearly be a member of that side - the most important member - and therefore should have been selected by Capello this weekend.

Of course, the Italian must look at other players and other strike partnerships, as England will have to do without Rooney for the group stages in Poland and Ukraine, but there will be plenty of opportunities to do that in the coming months.

Besides, there shouldn't be much he doesn't already know about the likes of Darren Bent, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Welbeck and Jermain Defoe anyway.

Will Capello really learn much from the new strike partnerships?

If he really needed to look at potential partnerships, Tuesday's friendly against Sweden may have been a better time to experiment. It is also likely there will be plenty more friendlies between now and next summer.

England mustn't be embarrassed by Spain at Wembley but, equally, they mustn't be overawed.

The result is not the be all and end all - it is a friendly, let's remember - but it is crucial the younger players blooded into the team are not humiliated. They need confidence if they are to thrive.

Rooney's presence may have just given everyone that extra confidence.

He is England's best player and without him, they have no talisman. They have pretty much nobody to truly frighten Spain.

This game should have been treated as more than a friendly. It should have been treated as essentially a test match to see if England do have any chance of triumphing next summer.

The players need to get used to playing together and naturally that includes playing with Rooney in the side.

Another thing to consider is that Rooney has rarely played against the best opposition for England. Not when he has been fully fit and firing, anyway.

Rooney cut a frustrated figure at the 2010 World Cup

In 2004, he impressed but was forced off with injury early in the quarter-final with Portugal. In 2006, he was again limited by injury and his red card against Portugal cost him the chance of proving himself. In 2010, issues outside of football clearly took their toll on him and he wasn't exactly helped against Germany by his team-mates.

He has played consistently in qualifying, of course, but not against the kind of opposition England will need to beat if they are to win a major tournament.

Saturday's Spain game would have given him the chance to do that.

It may only be classed as a friendly but it could have been much more important than that to Rooney.

His team-mates must also get used to playing quality opposition like Spain and they must work on how to get the best out of Rooney in those games.

The chance to devise a plan for a possible clash with Spain next summer has now been compromised by Rooney's exclusion.

Capello needs to try new partnerships but should have waited until after the game against arguably the best national side in the world.

The real regrets about this decision may come next summer.

Time to start taking Pardew's Newcastle seriously

Alan Pardew has led Newcastle to third place after 10 games

Looking at the Premier League table is like a dream for Newcastle fans at the moment.

To sit in third place and still unbeaten, just one point behind Manchester United, after 10 games is an unbelievable achievement and Alan Pardew and his players deserve tremendous credit.

A win tomorrow lunchtime at home against Everton would push the Magpies to the dizzy heights of second - for a few hours at least - and already onto 25 points.

If anybody had suggested that in July or early-August, they'd have been carted off to a lunatic asylum.

With Joey Barton Tweeting his way to an acrimonious departure, no replacement in sight for Andy Carroll and the loss of key players Jose Enrique and Kevin Nolan (among other issues), things looked bleak.

It was bottom three fans were worrying about back then, yet now it is top three which is on people's minds.

The stock answer many have to Newcastle's incredible start is their 'easy' set of fixtures.

These are people who do not take into account Pardew's team can only play who is put in front of them.

And they certainly under-estimate some of the opposition the Magpies have faced.

The 1-0 victory at local rivals Sunderland gave Newcastle the confidence to build on

A home game against Arsenal followed by an away game to bitter rivals Sunderland looked a nightmare start yet they came out of those with four points.

True, there have been some relatively simple wins since then.

Fulham and Blackburn didn't put up too much of a fight at St James' Park while the reputation of Wigan precedes them, but there have been difficult games sandwiched in.

Newcastle are the only team in recent weeks to shackle Tottenham, who look a good bet to finish in a Champions League place this season.

They deserved their 2-2 draw for their spirit and determination, as well as a sprinkling of talent and technique, and could even have won the game in the frantic closing stages.

Shola Ameobi's magnificent equaliser against Spurs kept Newcastle's unbeaten run alive

They have also come away deservingly victorious from notoriously difficult Stoke, survived a late onslaught - somehow - to win at Wolves, took on QPR at Loftus Road with the stadium buzzing from the recent new investment and came away with a point, went to Aston Villa and deserved to win yet could only draw and had a very spirited run in the Carling Cup.

Newcastle have deserved everything they have got so far this season and have overcome their fair share of difficult moments.

They have also played over half the sides in the Premier League and not been outplayed once, which is surely an indicator they are a very good side who deserve to be where they are.

Last season, these were the exact types of games they weren't winning, the games which ultimately cost the club a top-10 finish.

In fact, let's compare the results from the corresponding fixtures last season (excluding the draw at QPR as they were still a Championship club last term):

ARSENAL home          Last season: 4-4.   This season: 0-0.  Points won/lost: 0.
SUNDERLAND away   Last season: 1-1.    This season: 1-0.  Points won/lost: +2.
FULHAM home           Last season: 0-0.    This season: 2-1.  Points won/lost: +2.
ASTON VILLA away   Last season: 0-1.    This season: 1-1.   Points won/lost: +1.
BLACKBURN home     Last season: 1-2.    This season: 3-1.   Points won/lost: +3.
WOLVES away          Last season: 1-1.   This season: 2-1.    Points won/lost: +2.
TOTTENHAM home     Last season: 1-1.   This season: 2-2.    Points won/lost: 0.
WIGAN home             Last season: 2-2.   This season: 1-0.    Points won/lost: +2.
STOKE away              Last season: 0-4.   This season: 3-1.    Points won/lost: +3.

So that's a staggering 15 points gained on the same fixtures last season.

The team has improved markedly and are now winning the games they should be winning.

The difference is best shown by the performances at Stoke both last season and this.

Last season, they were weak and overawed by Stoke's direct style, and rolled over to a 4-0 defeat.

Newcastle were outplayed at Stoke last season

This season, there is little chance of them rolling over. Pardew has seen to that.

They more than matched Stoke in every department and thoroughly deserved their 3-1 win.

There have been a lot of changes in personnel since last season and it seems the whole mindset of the club has changed with it.

Pardew has instilled a new belief, togetherness and solidity and the fans have bought into the hard-working side.

There is much more of a passing style now, with Yohan Cabaye adding a touch of class in midfield.

Against Stoke, the whole team played well. Nobody else will go to the Britannia Stadium this season and beat the Potters so conclusively.

Demba Ba grabbed the headlines - and rightly so - for his well-taken hat-trick and he already looks an excellent signing with eight strikes in the Premier League.

Ba has had an excellent start to his Newcastle career

Fans didn't see him as a replacement for Andy Carroll when he joined on a free transfer in the summer, but he looks like one of the best free transfers of recent times.

He is outperforming Carroll in the Premier League and looks a decent bet to get at least 20 goals this season.

Jonas Gutierrez is on his best run of form in a Newcastle shirt, with his defensive work in particular excellent.

Gabriel Obertan has taken some stick from fans since joining from Manchester United in the summer but was very good against Stoke as he used his pace to his advantage and produced an excellent assist for the opening goal.

Cabaye looks an excellent player who will dictate the play from the centre and is not afraid to get stuck in, as well as midfield partner Cheik Tiote who was a fantastic bargain signing last season. It was testament to the performance of Danny Guthrie on Monday that Tiote was not really missed despite being unavailable for the game at the Britannia Stadium through injury.

Leon Best works hard up front as well but the defence have more than played their part too, holding the best defensive record in the Premier League.

Captain Fabricio Coloccini and Steven Taylor have formed an excellent partnership and rarely look like making mistakes.

Danny Simpson has been steady at right-back while Ryan Taylor has adapted to his new position at left-back unbelievably well.

Newcastle are so solid defensively: they work together as a group, cover for each other and always seem to be in the right positions.

They have also got a superb young goalkeeper behind them, Tim Krul, who has always been on hand to pull off brilliant saves on the occasions the defence has been breached.

Coloccini, Krul and Taylor have been integral to Newcastle's start

On the sidelines, there are a number of excellent players, with Hatem Ben Arfa, Davide Santon and Sylvain Marveaux among the best of them.

Those three would walk into most Premier League sides so it is testament to those in possession of the jersey for keeping them on the touchline.

Nevertheless, it leaves Pardew with some excellent options on the bench, although he would like to add at least a centre-back and striker to his ranks in January.

Pardew has his team working selflessly for each other and the results have naturally brought a great confidence among players and fans.

Enormous credit must go to him for gelling this team together, players all with a point to prove, and picking up the ashes from the disastrous pre-season campaign.

No-one is getting carried away though, least of all the supporters.

They are revelling in their side's success, of course, but are realistic enough to understand this run will come to an end eventually.

They know qualifying for the Champions League remains a mammoth task, perhaps even mission impossible, but are just enjoying seeing their team play with such consistency.

Pardew couldn't have wished for a better start to the season

A top-10 finish remains the ultimate goal with fans beginning to dream of Europe, but not the Champions League. Not just yet anyway.

Much bigger tests are yet to come, with successive fixtures against both Manchester clubs and Chelsea on the horizon, and those games will prove exactly where Newcastle are at.

This is not just about an 'easy start' now, though - it is much more complete and impressive than that.

The comprehensive performance at Stoke, coupled with their excellent form all season, means they need to be respected and taken seriously now.

Newcastle are a very strong unit, do not look like conceding goals and have plenty of players, in the team and on the bench, who can really hurt sides at both ends of the pitch.

Of course, their unbeaten run could come to a halt against Everton tomorrow but whatever the score, this has been an excellent start.

Champions League football is still a very long way away yet though, with Pardew, the players and the fans all knowing that.

However, they deserve praise for their start and should be respected by everyone as they have proved so far this season that nothing is impossible. Nobody saw this coming.

Why Mohammad Amir's talent must not go unfulfilled

Mohammad Amir was on the verge of greatness before his no-ball shame

Mohammad Amir was on course to become one of the best Test bowlers of all-time when he deliberately sent down two no-balls at Lord's last August.

He is now facing a six-month prison sentence after admitting charges of conspiracy to cheat.

Amir has also got four years remaining on his five-year ban from playing cricket, a ban he deserved for his part in the spot-fixing scandal.

However, it would be a sporting tragedy if his talent went unfulfilled.

He was just 18 at the time of the shameful day at Lord's and was the youngest Test bowler to reach 50 wickets. He was the real deal.

There is a real lack of quality fast bowlers in world cricket now, but Amir was potentially world-class. In fact, he probably already was world-class aged just 18.

A fantastic left-arm seamer, he could swing it both ways, had express pace, accuracy and was a very handy batsman to boot.

Despite all his talent though, there is one thing he can never escape: he cheated.

Whether he was pressured into it by older team-mates and influential agents is irrelevant. He cheated.

Amir clearly overstepped the mark for both no-balls, which prompted immediate suspicion

However, everyone has a right to rebuild their reputation after serving their punishment, and the ICC has a duty to cricket fans to help Amir learn the error of his ways.

Six months in a Young Offenders Institution and five years out of the game he loves should be enough, but he should also be re-educated to ensure if he does make a cricketing comeback, he doesn't fall into the same traps.

Perhaps he was a naive teenager and pressured into it. We will probably never know.

Regardless though, his talent must not be wasted.

Seen as the natural heir to his hero Wasim Akram, he was well on course to become one of the world's greats.

Can he fulfill his talent after his five-year ban? Will Pakistan's selectors ever dare to pick him again? Will future team-mates ever be able to trust him?

These are questions which will be asked of Amir in around four years time when his cricket ban has been served.

It will be extremely difficult for him to find a club willing to take him on, never mind convince his national team he is deserving of another chance, but once he serves his crime, he should be allowed a route back into the game.

Amir, pictured above the day the allegations were first made

Amir comes from a very poor background. Perhaps he saw the money on offer from bowling two no-balls and thought, "I can give my family a better life."

Perhaps his claims he was bullied or threatened into it are true.

Perhaps he thought, as a naive 18-year-old, that simply bowling two no-balls was no big deal.

Amir is not innocent in all of this. He still shouldn't have done it and still deserves his punishment, but should be given another chance.

Fans will always doubt him if he takes to a cricket field again, but cricket lovers will also get the chance to see one of the best talents in the game fulfilling his potential.

It would be tragic if his career ends here.

Amir was also the only one of the three players charged with the crime to show any sort of remorse in court.

He was the only one to admit his part in the scandal, the only one to offer a full and frank apology full of emotion. All the other two, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, could do was try to shift all the blame onto the teenager.

Butt and Asif were experienced members of the Pakistan side

Amir should have known better but Butt and Asif, as well as agent Mazhar Majeed, appear to have been the real driving forces behind the whole operation.

Majeed admitted his charges and it goes without saying he should have no involvement in any form of cricket in future.

As for Butt and Asif, they deserve everything they get.

Butt was jailed for two-and-a-half years and Asif for one year, and that was the least they deserved.

They are both banned from cricket for the same period as Amir, but if either of them were to play cricket again that would be plain wrong.

Butt was the captain. He had a responsibility to protect young players like Amir from being poisoned yet led him and encouraged him to cheat.

Asif was the senior bowler, who should never have allowed himself to be caught up in it all.

Age can be no excuse for them. They were experienced members of the side and should have known much, much better.

Neither showed a grain of remorse in court and for this they must never be allowed to play cricket again.

Butt, in particular, has no place in cricket's future.

Captain Butt was clearly a huge influence on teenager Amir

He was the instigator, the captain, the poisonous presence which claimed the scalp of Amir and protested his innocence in the face of damning evidence to the bitter end.

Amir is by no means innocent but look at the examples which were being set in the dressing room.

He was an impressionable 18-year-old, living the dream and convinced to risk his career for cash.

Will he ever pull on the green jersey of Pakistan again? It appears highly unlikely.

He will only be 23 when his cricket ban is served, and so has time on his side, but there will always be a question mark over his head.

However, he must be given a chance to play cricket again and earn his place on the international stage again. A chance to rebuild his reputation and fulfill his potential.

One of the brightest young lights in cricket must not be allowed to drift out of the game. For that would be the biggest tragedy of this whole ordeal.