As I write this, AS Roma posted a thrilling 3-2 win against Napoli in Coppa Italia, while Real Madrid stormed to a 3-0 decision over Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey. Both of these cup competitions are struggling to win over the support of the fans these days, but by the looks of the players and their emotions, all is just fine—clearly it means a lot.
I’m glad I’m watching these matches, after all it’s been a relatively quiet week football wise thus far, not that it hasn’t had its moments…
The strange case of the Swans and Laudrup
Michael Laudrup had his bluff called, and received his walking papers at Swansea City. Exactly what has happened behind the scenes over the last few months may not be known until Jonjo Shelvey releases his autobiography, but as sad as it is to see a good young manager leave the Premier League, it’s not as if it comes as huge surprise.
It seemed that whenever a job at a bigger club became available the Dane’s name was mentioned. Right or wrong, Laudrup appears to be a modern manager, a man who has his career plan well on track and is on the lookout for better opportunities. Sadly, Swansea have a knack of finding these guys, with the likes of Roberto Martinez, Paolo Sousa, Brendan Rodgers and now Laudrup all moving on rather than achieving immortality at the Liberty. It must be said it’s worked so far, mind you.
Interim manager Gary Monk will be out to prove he should be the man, and as a former Swansea captain he is an exception, a man that appears to really love this club. Therefore it’s unlikely he’ll be able to seduce chairman Huw Jenkins by season’s end, who is likely already surveying some up-and-comer in a flash suit.
What’s going on at Craven Cottage?
Fulham are awful. Didn’t think I’d be saying that last August, as I figured there was a good chance I’d be saying they weren’t very good. Watching the Cottagers drift around the pitch against Sheffield United in the FA Cup on Tuesday was truly a soul sapping exercise, a dreadful game only brought to life by a last ditch Blades winner. Bye bye Fulham.
It must be said that when the charismatic and completely insane Mohammed Al Fayed owned the team, they were a fun little addition to the Premier League. In fact there were times when this was actually a decent side. Now sadly, they look set for the drop.
Fulham is a team built on players who will look back on their careers with pride, really good careers, with some great moments. Sadly the nostalgia will be felt rather soon. These are players past their best: Brede Hangeland, Darren Bent, Scott Parker. Scott Parker! Even Scott Parker looks old! We can’t even marvel at the industriousness of Dimitar Berbatov anymore! That was a joke by the way. The arrivals of Lewis Holtby and Kostas Mitroglou look promising, and perhaps the wonderful parity in the bottom half of the table will be see Fulham safe this season, but either way there needs to be summer of upheaval at Craven Cottage.
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More Mourinho mind games
Surely even Jose Mourinho must have felt a little embarrassed when making his "little horse drinking milk" reference following Chelsea’s brilliant win over Manchester City on Monday.
Of course this is the same man who used eggs and omelettes when trying to search for a metaphor to explain his club in his previous stint. This one though? Really? Of course he doesn’t believe it—I don’t think anyone does—but it must be said that perhaps Chelsea isn’t quite as polished as either City or Arsenal. Imagine this side with a truly world class striker? Frightening.
Becks won’t fail in Miami
Wednesday was a great day for all those David Beckham haters out there. H&M’s poster boy announced he’ll be bringing a Major League Soccer team to Miami once all the logistics and finances are sorted out of course.
The experts tell me Miami is not a great sports town, with even the Heat having difficulty filling their barn. The haters are salivating at the prospect of a Beckham Epic Fail here. I’d suggest although it might be his biggest challenge to date, there is no way this marketing mega-group and MLS would allow this to fail.
James Sharman hosts Soccer Central, weeknights on Sportsnet World and Sportsnet ONE at 7pm ET. Follow him on Twitter.