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Filed under: Aston Villa

Gerard Houllier's imminent return to English football to escape the fall-out from France's World Cup implosion has divided opinion among the rank and file Aston Villa fans.

Some would have preferred him to remain in his post as technical director for the French, others maintain he still carries sufficient kudos in the Premier League to be considered a worthy successor to Martin O'Neill.

Houllier is poised to move to Villa as a like-for-like replacement for O'Neill and not as director of football after convincing owner Randy Lerner that, despite heart surgery six years ago, he is ready to step back into the unforgiving pressure cooker of life at the sharp end of English football.

He does not want to be hiding behind a desk at Villa's Bodymoor Heath training ground, away from the spotlight of the Villa Park dug-out.

Houllier's desire to take full responsibility for the team and his distrust of the two-tier management structure favoured on the continent underlines his commitment and is to be applauded.

He will give Villa the benefit of his knowledge of the English game game and of European football in general, having spent time as manager of Lyon until 2007 following his departure from Anfield.

There is a suggestion that is not all he will be bringing with him. Phil Thompson, one of the Saturday afternoon professional ranters on Sky TV, may be leaving his pundit's seat for the one next to Houllier on the Premier League touchlines.

 

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Filed under: Everton, Manchester United

Everton supporters hardly need any extra ammunition to aim at Wayne Rooney when he returns to Goodison Park on Saturday. But the Manchester United striker has certainly provided them with it after the latest allegations about his private life.

Everton supporters' love for their homegrown striker once ran so deep that he has been an inevitable target for them following his move to Manchester United.

Rooney's first return to Goodison, United's 2-0 FA Cup win in February 2005, six months after he had left for Manchester United, coincided with 'The Battle of Everton Valley', which was described as the worst football violence ever seen on Merseyside.

The previous revelations about Rooney, which came just before he made the switch to United, were a key element in the abuse he received from his former fans, who were so disenchanted by his departure.

Yet, while Rooney was jeered throughout United's 3-1 defeat at Goodison in February, there has been a definite shift in the way he has been treated by Blues' supporters, with the vast majority feeling they have moved on and the wounds had healed.

But that, of course, was until the fresh claims surfaced about Rooney's private life over the weekend.

Some Evertonians will not be remotely interested in the stories, but many more will see them as something to relish, perhaps highlight in a banner and and definitely make them the subject of songs.

 

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Filed under: Jets, NFL Rumors, NFL Training Camp

Darrelle Revis has finally received the new contract he was seeking from the Jets, and is expected to suit up in Week 1 when New York hosts Baltimore on Monday night.

FanHouse's Dan Graziano reported, citing a source familiar with Revis' contract negotiations, that the two sides were "almost there" and expected to have a deal in place before the regular season began.

Jay Glazer of FOX Sports and the New York Daily News' Manish Mehta both reported Sunday night that Revis' deal would be for seven years. Mehta added via a source that the contract could be voided after four years for a total of $46 million, with $32 million guaranteed.

Revis had been seeking a contract in excess of the $15.1 million per year that Oakland's Nnamdi Asomugha currently earns as the NFL's highest-paid defensive back.

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Filed under: Arsenal, Tottenham, England

Thank heavens for Arsenal cast-offs, Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp must have thought as Michael Dawson left Wembley on crutches on Friday night.

All right, perhaps not exactly, but Redknapp's relief was obvious when he underlined the importance of William Gallas's signing now that Dawson is out for up to two months.

Dawson suffered a sprained knee during England's 4-0 European Championship qualifying win over Bulgaria and, on watching the defender being carried off on a stretcher, the initial fear for Redknapp was that he would be out for all of what is a history-making season for Spurs.

Redknapp said: "To be honest, watching it live, I thought it could have been worse than it's turned out. It could have been his cruciate ligament and that would have been the end of the season for him."

But over the weekend the Tottenham manager received the good new that Dawson had merely sprained rather than ruptured a knee ligament - and was comforted by the thought Gallas is waiting in the wings.

If it wasn't for his signing of the Frenchman released by Arsenal last season, Redknapp's central defensive choices would be severely limited, in a period of the season where Spurs will embark on their first Champions League group stage, face north London rivals Arsenal in the Carling Cup - as well as the demands of the Premier League.

 

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