English teams given good chance

On the face of it, the draw for the quarter and semi-finals of the Champions League has been kind for the English sides.

There will definitely be one English side in the semis, with Chelsea facing Manchester United in a repeat of the 2008 final.

Images of John Terry's penalty miss and Didier Drogba's red card in Moscow are sure to be trotted out in the lead-up to the match, but both sides are markedly different to how they were then.

Chelsea now 'boast' £50m man Fernando Torres, and while he hasn't scored for them yet, he is sure to cause United no end of problems.

Nemanja Vidic has been sent off four times in his United career. Three times against Liverpool and one time against Chelsea, with Fernando Torres in the opposing side each time.

Torres' presence worries Vidic and this is a problem Sir Alex Ferguson must address before the tie. Vidic should not be intimidated by Torres as he is a world-class defender in his own right.

As for United, they are surely a weaker side than they were in Moscow.

They can no longer call on the talents of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, and must be worried by their apparent lack of quality.

They have great talents, like Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Nani, but Chelsea should fancy their chances as United have been quite one-dimensional this season.

As for the other English tie, Tottenham should be delighted with their pairing with Real Madrid.

They go into the game with nothing to lose, they have been written off by everyone and can get on with their business in a quiet fashion.

But they do have a realistic chance.

Real Madrid are nowhere near the side Barcelona are, and if Spurs can keep the score down in the first leg in Spain, they will have a great chance in the return leg at White Hart Lane.

The Spurs fans will create an amazing atmosphere, an atmosphere which intimidated European champions Inter Milan earlier this season.

If Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart are fully fit and in top form, they could beat anyone.

This will be their acid test, and if they can do to Jose Mourinho's side what they did to Inter and AC Milan, they will be seen as a giant of European football.

If they do overcome Real, they are likely to face Barcelona in the semi-finals.

That will be a different challenge altogether, and they would need Barca to be well below-par if they were to beat them.

But Real is the first challenge and the only thing they should be concentrating on.

The return leg at White Hart Lane will be a spine-tingling event and the Spurs players will relish the challenge.

Harry Redknapp deserves this moment for all the hard work he has put in over the years, from the job he did at Bournemouth to his salvation job at Portsmouth.

Spurs have come a long way since Redknapp took charge, and this is their moment. They have had great occasions already this season, but this will be the icing on the cake.

Barca should beat Shakhtar in their quarter-final, although that is not a certainty given the Ukrainian side's imperious home form.

A Tottenham-Shakhtar semi-final would be some story and would take a great effort by both clubs, but nothing is impossible.

Defending champions Inter face Schalke in the other tie, with the winner drawn to face the winner of the Chelsea-Man Utd tie in the semis.

That presents a great chance for an English side to reach the final as Schalke are struggling in the Bundesliga and Inter are not the side they were under Jose Mourinho.

The competition needs an English side in the final, and this draw gives the sides left, particularly Chelsea and United, a great chance of making it to Wembley.

Minority ruin great night of darts

Adrian Lewis knew he was going to be in for a tough ride when he was drawn to play Scotsman Gary Anderson in Glasgow in the Premier League of darts.

But he would have had no idea just how tough a ride it would be.

Not content with putting him off by booing as he threw, they threw a pint of beer over him and even launched coins at him while he was throwing.

PDC crowds are, generally, fantastic. They get behind their man and get involved in the game, unlike the stale affair that is the BDO.

Booing isn't great for the game, but it does help provide a good atmosphere, keeps the crowd in the game and is acceptable at certain times.

Some players, like Paul Nicholson and Mervyn King, do themselves no favours with their actions on stage, off-stage comments and general reactions towards the crowd.

But in this case, Lewis had done nothing wrong other than beat Anderson in the World Championship final.

If he had merely been booed, that would have been expected and brushed under the carpet.

But the object throwing, particularly coins, was just unacceptable.

It could have more than just hurt Lewis, it could have killed him.

He would have had no idea it was coming, there was just no need to do it.

Of course, some had had a lot to drink and probably didn't even think before throwing the coins.

But action should be taken against anyone who did it. There are cameras galore at darts venues, surely they will be able to find the culprits.

The majority of the crowd were fantastic. However, the actions of a few brainless idiots have ruined the occasion for the genuine fans there to enjoy the darts and cheer their man on.

The actions of the minority actually affected Anderson more than Lewis.

He was disgusted by it and seemed to concede a few legs because of it. He showed great sportsmanship and should be applauded for how he handled the situation.

It would have been easy for him to play up to the crowd or even ignore it, but he showed his sympathy towards Lewis and has surely gained more fans, both north and south of the border.

Lewis showed great composure to finish off the match, when his temptation must have been to walk off the stage and concede the match.

Scottish darts fans, even Scottish sporting fans in general, are fantastic for getting behind their men.

The scenes during Anderson's walk-on were fantastic, with the crowd creating a cacophony of noise which would leave anyone in awe.

They can help inspire players, as they did for Raymond van Barneveld in his match.

He is loved in Scotland, and received an amazing reception as he took to the stage.

There was a tear in his eye and he is clearly humbled by the support he gets. His match showed how great the fans can be, as they pushed both players on to superb performances.

But they musn't let this spill over into violence.

Make all the noise you want, but don't put people at risk. They are only doing their jobs.

As for the other games, it was good to see Simon Whitlock in form, although it still wasn't enough to stop Phil Taylor.

He seems to be back on top form, although his doubles need improving, and has silenced the doubters.

Barney was fantastic against Webster, and it looks like he is starting to get back near his best. Darts needs a firing Raymond van Barneveld.

James Wade battled the crowd to defeat Terry Jenkins, and the performances of Wade and Lewis shows how players should react when the crowd gets on their backs.

By and large, it was a great night of darts ruined by a handful of people.

They should hang their heads in shame.

Dramatic win keeps England in touch

As World Cup campaigns go, this one from England is going to take some beating.

If you don't have a heart condition already, you will have by the time you've watched an England game.

All their games at this World Cup have gone down to the wire, and while England haven't produced much quality, they must be respected for the way they battle back from the brink.

The side has serious flaws, from the middle order to the whole bowling department, but must now be seen as the wildcard in this tournament as they have shown themselves capable of beating anyone.

There hasn't been one game where the batting and bowling have worked well in tandem, but if both units can click, they could go all the way.

That seems ridiculous considering all games have been littered with errors, but their performances are so hard to predict that you can't rule it out.

They defeated the West Indies despite some terrible batting, bad running between the wickets and early wayward bowling, mirroring their display against South Africa earlier in the competition.

They are missing the likes of Kevin Pietersen, Stuart Broad and Ajmal Shahzad, but are still capable on their day.

Despite the big-hitting of Chris Gayle and Andre Russell, they stuck in there and got their reward in the end.

Their tactics of bowling back of a length to Gayle allowed him to free his arms and swing his bat, and although England got away with their errors this time and against South Africa, they are unlikely to get away with it another time.

They look a tired unit, but need to rally and put the wrongs of this campaign right in their quarter-final game.

Of course, if West Indies and Bangladesh win their final group games England will still go out, but that is unlikely and England should see this as redemption. Potentially three games away from a historic World Cup triumph, that should be enough motivation to put their tiredness to one side.

The selectors made a bold move picking James Tredwell and Luke Wright ahead of Michael Yardy and James Anderson, but it paid off in the end.

Wright saved England with the bat, playing a considered innings and pushing England towards a competitive total.

Tredwell's four-wicket performance, including the prized scalps of Gayle and Russell, dragged England back into the game and it is his selection the England management should take great pride in.

Bob Willis, sat in the Sky studio, looked perplexed at England's team selection prior to the match.

"Luke Wright has been more like Lord Lucan on this tour," he declared, in reference to the British peer who disappeared in 1974.

David Gower stated the England selectors had "taken leave of their senses", but the selections of Wright and Tredwell must now be looked back on as major successes. They are shoe-ins for any quarter-final England play.

Ravi Bopara also performed admirably with the ball, taking wickets at crucial times.

Graeme Swann was excellent as always, including taking the crucial wicket of dangerman Kieron Pollard, as the bowling attack came together to ensure as much pressure as possible was put on the Windies.

Chris Tremlett struggled, though, but this was largely due to the conditions which were not suitable for a bowler with his height and action.

In truth, the game against the Windies did nothing but magnify the problems both teams possess.

Both have quality, but both are erratic and capable of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Both sides' running between the wickets was suicidal, culminating in West Indies' final wicket (above) when they attempted a run which was never there.

Both sides collapsed from commanding positions, with England knowing they should have pushed 300 and the Windies left scratching their heads as to how they didn't win the game.

But for all the faults of the teams, they are lighting up this World Cup.

Each one of England's games has resulted in a thrilling finale, while the Windies bring flair and enthusiasm which cannot be matched by any of their counterparts.

Their national anthem sums them up. Such an upbeat melody, one which shows what they are all about.

Group B is the place to be.

No team has qualified yet, with all teams (barring England, who have played all six games) having one game left to seal their place in the quarter-finals.

Each game will have real significance, and it is a real contrast to the drab affair that is Group A.

Canada, Zimbabwe and Kenya have shown no worth to the competition, and have been completely upstaged by Ireland and even the Netherlands from Group B.

Those two are out, but have both had great moments and can be proud of their display.

They both thoroughly deserve a place in the next World Cup in 2015.

Whoever else misses out from Group B is going to be a great miss for the competition.

South Africa and India will surely qualify, they are possibly the best two teams in the tournament, although this will be tested when they come up against the likes of Australia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and New Zealand.

England would be a great loss to the competition due to their thrilling matches and nerve-shredding moments.

The West Indies, as previously stated, bring great flair and character and it would be great to see them in the quarters.

Kemar Roach and Darren Bravo are great talents and the side have the same unpredictable factor as England and, coupled with the big-hitting of Gayle, Pollard and Darren Sammy, they have an outside chance of going all the way.

But then, Bangladesh surely deserve a place too. It would be a tremendous shame for them to exit the tournament when their endeavour and passion has lit up the tournament. Their crowds have been magnificent and it would be a great occasion if they could play a home quarter-final.

Whatever happens, it is going to be a thrilling finale to Group B.

It looks like a straight shoot-out between the Windies and Bangladesh - who can beat the major nation? - and it promises to go right down to the wire.

England could tell them a thing or two about that.

Chicharito can do more than Solskjaer

Following Javier Hernandez's brace against Marseille, he has been compared in many quarters to Manchester United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The similarities are obvious. Both small men who have a natural ability to score goals, but Solskjaer gained a reputation as a 'supersub', someone United could call on when in trouble.

In some ways, the same is true of Chicharito.

The way he plays, he will always be trouble for tiring defenders and so is an obvious choice as an impact sub. He is also quicker than Solskjaer was which worries any defender.

But his best performances come when he starts.

He caused no end of problems for Marseille with his excellent off-the-ball running, and showed he has the ability to lead the United line for years to come.

His movement is excellent; defenders have no clue where he is going next and this opens up space for United going forward.

Solskjaer had a great career at Old Trafford, but his reputation as being a supersub stopped him from developing into a true Premier League legend, regularly topping the goalscoring charts.

Sir Alex Ferguson must ensure Hernandez doesn't fall into the same trap.

He has muscled his way ahead of Dimitar Berbatov in the pecking order for the big games despite the Bulgarian topping the scoring charts. This is largely due to his work-rate and, above all, his talent.

He has started to develop a real relationship with Wayne Rooney, who seems to be reveling playing alongside the Mexican.

Hernandez is a penalty box predator, which gives Rooney the chance to drop deep and dictate play.

While this may not influence Rooney's goalscoring stats positively, it is a role he clearly enjoys as he is at the heart of everything United do.

If Rooney is unhappy with this role, then he may have to leave in the summer as Hernandez is United's future.

In the modern game, a team cannot have two penalty box assassins and therefore Rooney must content himself with his deeper role while the Little Pea is in the team.

The partnership is the main reason United find themselves in the last eight of the Champions League, as without the goals they created they were staring at defeat, with Marseille impressing throughout without having a cutting edge up front.

Hernandez also showed great physicality during the game, showing defenders he can't simply be knocked off the ball and he is not intimidated by rough-hand tactics.

Gabriel Heinze tried every trick in the book to put Hernandez off his game, but the little man kept bouncing back up and terrorising the defence.

United are still a tad mechanical but they have the steel needed to go far, certainly to the final of the Champions League.

They should have a chance against anyone, but as with the other sides left in the competition, will be praying for a last eight tie with Shakhtar Donetsk or Schalke.

That would give them a great chance to reach the last four and after that, who knows?

I think they will make the semi-finals and then possibly get knocked out, but the competition is so tight that if the main five teams barring Barcelona - United, Chelsea, Tottenham, Inter and Real Madrid - avoid Barca, they will see themselves as having a great chance to go all the way.

If Hernandez keeps on scoring, United have as good a chance as anyone.

Solskjaer will always be remembered there for his excellent supersub displays and his winning goal in the 1999 Champions League final, but United may well have someone even better in their ranks now.

Play his cards right and Hernandez could become a club legend like Ole.

Terry reinstatement a no-brainer

There has been a lot of furore over Fabio Capello's decision to seemingly hand the England captaincy back to John Terry.

But for me, he should never have lost it in the first place.

Whatever he did or didn't do with Wayne Bridge's ex-partner is irrelevant in the wider scheme of things.

Even more so now, with Bridge well down the pecking order of left-backs and not wishing to be considered for England squads.

The removal of Terry as captain did more harm than good to England's World Cup campaign.

Everyone can see he is a born leader and any side with him in it would be better for him captaining it.

As for Rio Ferdinand, what a waste of time giving him the captaincy was.

How many games has he played since becoming captain? Four. That is simply not enough, and in truth Ferdinand is probably not even among England's top two centre backs now.

Terry and Michael Dawson should be first-choices, with Gary Cahill as an able deputy and Ferdinand there for any emergencies.

He is injury-prone, very rarely available for England squads and is not getting any younger.

To keep him in the role would be damaging for the team, having to make do with stand-in skippers every time they come together.

Even Manchester United gave his captaincy to Nemanja Vidic, due largely to Ferdinand's injury struggles.

The England captain simply has to be the captain of his club and also be available for the majority of squads.

If Capello wanted to remove Ferdinand from the role, of course he could have appointed Steven Gerrard.

But for me, to appoint Gerrard captain would also do a lot of harm, particularly to Frank Lampard. I just don't think you can appoint Gerrard without Lampard.

So who else, Wayne Rooney? Still too hot-headed for the role and hardly Mr Popular in the public himself.

So Terry is the only choice.

Even when he was not officially captain, it always seemed he was. He has natural instincts for leading his team and other players in the squad surely look up to his competitiveness, bravery and devotion to his country.

The situation in England's friendly with Denmark was simply embarrassing.

The armband was passed from pillar to post during the game as subs were made, with Gareth Barry and Ashley Cole both having it during the second half. They aren't even in their clubs' top two choices as captain, never mind their country.

Capello doesn't understand why the captaincy is such a big deal in England and another option would be to give the armband permanently to Cole, surely a first-choice for years to come.

But that too would draw criticism, with Cole holding possibly an even worse public reputation than Terry.

Terry should be captain until at least after EURO 2012, possibly even World Cup 2014, and then the role should be passed on eventually to Jack Wilshere.

He will be 22 in 2014, and not even near the prime of his career. He may not be ready for the role at that age but is surely an England captain of the future.

He seems to be a leader and, similarly to Terry, sets an example with his bravery, doggedness and never-say-die attitude.

He should be a fixture in the side for the next decade, possibly even decade and a half, and should be groomed for the role now.

A lot have said Capello has placed a 'ticking time-bomb' under the England squad with his reinstatement of Terry, but I completely disagree with that.

Terry should have the players' backing because, whatever they think of him off the field, you can't argue with his commitment on it.

Capello has been criticised for this decision but the only thing he should be criticised for on this is his decision to strip Terry of the captaincy in the first place.

It derailed England's World Cup campaign and now Capello has risked public humiliation by reversing his decision.

But this shows bravery and that he is willing to do whatever it takes to get his England team back on track.

At least he is not just counting down the days until the end of his contract.

Boothroyd sacking another blow to young bosses

Just 10 months ago, Adrian Boothroyd strode through the doors at the Ricoh Arena with ambitions to take Coventry City to the Premier League.

Everyone knew there was not an overnight solution to Coventry's troubles, it would take a lot of time and effort to get them into the promised land.

Yet he now finds himself out of a job, with Coventry sitting 19th in the Championship, seven points clear of the bottom three.

Welcome to the cut-throat nature of the Championship or, more accurately, the cut-throat nature of football nowadays.

Ten months is not enough time to turn a club around.

Yes, Boothroyd has overseen a period of just one win in 16 league games, but he has proved in the past he has more than enough ability to turn situations like this around.

Take his spell in charge at Watford.

He guided them to safety in his first half-season, and in his first full season took them to the play-offs and, after victory over Leeds at Cardiff, into the Premier League.

Yes, their spell in the Premier League may have only lasted one season, but it was an improbable one season where Watford fans got the chance to see some of the best players in the world at Vicarage Road.

He also did a decent job at Colchester, who looked well set for a promotion challenge this season before Boothroyd's departure.

If Coventry's issue with Boothroyd is his style of play, they shouldn't have appointed him in the first place.

When you appoint a manager like him, Sam Allardyce or Tony Pulis, you know what you are getting.

Strong, robust teams who will pump the ball forward whenever possible, with a tall powerful striker to aim for.

And it all started so well for Boothroyd at Coventry.

Not so long ago they were in play-off contention, but everyone knew their side was not good enough to compete at that level and so it came as no surprise when they slipped down the table.

The Sky Blues are now looking for their tenth manager in ten years. Good luck to Boothroyd's successor.

They will probably appoint someone with a similar ability to Boothroyd, possibly even a worse manager, like Gordon Strachan, Paulo Sousa or Alan Irvine.

Strachan left Coventry under a cloud and could see a return as an ideal way to right the wrongs of the past and rebuild his battered reputation after his much-maligned failure at Middlesbrough.

But none of these managerial suggestions have a promotion to the Premier League on their managerial CV. Boothroyd needed time and has been badly let down by his bosses.

Chairmen should stick by new managers when they go through a tough period, not stab them in the back the moment the going gets tough.

Coventry were set for a mid-table finish, with potential to push on next year, but now any stability has been thrown out the window and the whole club is left in limbo again.

With the spate of sackings in English football showing no signs of relenting, it begs the question: who would want to be a manager nowadays?

Managers get no time at all to put their stamp on clubs, with ex-pros now surely questioning whether they want to enter the mad world of football management.

Not so long ago Boothroyd was touted as a potential England manager of the future, now he has joined a host of talented managers on the footballing scrapheap.

City fans have expressed their anger at his sacking on social networking sites in the knowledge that replacing Boothroyd is likely to do more harm than good.

There should be something put into manager's contracts saying they must stay for at least two years (if the contract runs that long).

Only then will clubs in the Football League get some stability.

If Boothroyd was the right man 10 months ago, he is still the right man now.

Coventry are going nowhere and the board have brought it on themselves.

Sachin deserves World Cup triumph

Like a fine wine, Sachin Tendulkar gets better with age.

His majestic 111 against South Africa on Saturday offered just a snapshot of his brilliance.

His century was his 99th, yes 99th, hundred in international cricket alone.

His nickname is the Little Master and never has a nickname been more fitting.

He doesn't look at all initimdating, standing at 5ft 5ins.

But when he picks up his bat and takes guard, he makes even the tallest and fastest of bowlers quiver.

He can do anything with a bat in his hand. From his trademark beauties down the ground for four to magnificent pull strokes into the crowd, there seems nothing he can't do.

He is the only man ever to score 200 in a one-day international, the leading run scorer in both test and ODI cricket, has the most centuries in test and ODIs, is the reigning cricketer of the year and, despite being almost 38, he is just getting better and better.

He was brilliant in last year's Indian Premier League, the number one Twenty20 tournament in the world, to show he is very much a modern player.

He has two centuries in this World Cup alone and is the leading century maker and run scorer in World Cup cricket.

He has been at the top of the game for over 20 years and not one bowler has worked him out. You can't work him out.

Every hundred he makes right now seems to break multiple records and there seems no end in sight.

And he does all this with the eyes of India on him everywhere he goes.

Imagine David Beckham's popularity and interest in him in England and multiply that by 1000, and you still probably aren't anywhere near understanding Sachin's popularity in India.

With that brings enormous pressures, with the whole country expecting him to deliver every time he enters the field of play.

But he deals with that, no pun intended, masterly.

Despite his records and supreme talent, he is still extremely humble.

So humble that he finds the whole world rooting for him when he goes out to bat.

He is also an accomplished bowler and sets a great example in the field, there really is no end to his talents.

He deserves a World Cup triumph on his CV. This may well be his last chance, and who would bet against him guiding India to victory at his home stadium in Mumbai in April?

But he can't do it all on his own.

India's batting line-up is exceptional, with the likes of Virender Sehwag and MS Dhoni truly world class to go alongside Tendulkar.

However, their collapse against South Africa showed they have their frailties.

Dhoni at times is too humble, he should have gone in ahead of Yusuf Pathan against the South Africans - he is one of the best finishers of the modern day game.

As for the bowling, it seems very weak.

Zaheer Khan is not getting any younger and the rest are struggling for wickets, there seems no safe score for India any more.

They have now failed to close out games against both England and South Africa, they will have to improve if they are to have any chance of winning the tournament.

South Africa, despite their defeat against England, are the team who have most impressed me most so far.

Their brilliant comeback win against India showed their quality lies in the all-round team, not just their batsmen.

Dale Steyn is the premier paceman in the tournament and is greatly supported by Morne Morkel, Jacques Kallis and the spinners: Botha, Tahir, Peterson and du Plessis.

Their batting line up is also the envy of their counterparts, with AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla in the form of their lives.

The likes of Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis also add extra weight to their batting and it will take a great performance to stop the South Africans in this tournament, with their batting display against England surely a one-off.

Perhaps Sachin is the only man who could do it.