Gabby Cries Off To Spain

Gabriel Heinze has cried off to Spain after Manchester United sold him to Real Madrid 24 hours after a tribunal ruled in favour of United, blocking his move to Liverpool. He joins Real for around 8 million pounds, and becomes the 3rd United player to be sold to Real in the last 4 seasons, following David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Heinze joined United from PSG 3 seasons ago and quickly became a fan favourite after a very promising debut season in England where he proved to be the best left back in the league. However he suffered cruciate ligament damage the following season and on his return a year later found his place taken by Patrice Evra. With Heinze looking for more first team action rumours began to fly around about moves to Juventus, Real Madrid and Barcelona, while United fans hoped the popular Argentine would fight for his place and stay with the new English champions.

Then the story toured sour for all United supporters. Rumours of Liverpool's interest had been laughed off, there was no way a United player of any quality would be sold to their biggest rivals. Then Heinze said he wanted to go to Liverpool and had an agreement with United that he could go if a price was met, which Liverpool were more than willing to meet. United stood firm, maintaining that the agreement did not include any of their main rivals, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool, and that there was no way they would let Heinze move to Anfield. Heinze and his representatives stood firm, having been assured by Liverpool that United couldn't block his move and the matter went to a Premier League tribunal. The tribunal ruled in United's favour and Heinze, having made his position at United untenable, had no choice but to leave at the earliest opportunity, and Real moved in at the right time.

Through the entire matter Heinze has acted with no real understanding of being at United, or even in English football. When people go to United they are immediately immersed in the history of the club, the Busby Babes, the Munich air crash, Bobby Charlton, Matt Busby, Sir Alex, they get to know what being at United means. Even players who have had fall outs with the manager and been forced out, Yorke and Beckham recently, never have a bad word to say about the club or the fans. Diego Forlan, who endured a goal free period at United, still talks fondly of his time at Old Trafford. They all understood it. Heinze clearly has not. He has been adamant that United allow him to go to Liverpool and has shown disdain for the club and fans who have treated him with nothing but respect and adoration. When Gabby was out for a year with his injury United stood by him, even allowing him to go to Spain to get the treatment and recuperation he wanted. And this is how he paid that loyalty back.

One does have to wonder about his motives though. It's not as if he is joining a better team. Liverpool, although with Torres they will improve, have not been close to wining the league for 17 years now. They are a good cup side, but not a consistent enough team to compete for the league title. So Heinze would be taking a backward step. He would be guaranteed a start, but he would be guaranteed that at a number of other clubs who were after him, Real, Lyon and Juventus amongst them. It had to either be about money or Liverpool have elicit photographs of him he doesn't want coming out! For whatever reason the stance Heinze took does not make sense.

More evidence of the underhand nature of Heinze and his representatives came out at the tribunal hearing. Phil Alexander, the chief executive at Crystal Palace, told the hearing how Palace had been approached by Heinze's representatives about a scheme they came up with to get around United's block on the Liverpool move. The proposal would have seen Palace buying Heinze from United, for the agreed upon fee, and Palace then selling him on to Liverpool. A scheme like that would not have been possible without Liverpool's knowledge and as innocent as they proclaim to be in this whole nasty mess clearly they must have got, or been willing to, their hands dirty.

At the end of the day Heinze has failed in his bid to engineer a move to Anfield and Real have benefited by getting a replacement for the departed Roborto Carlos. They have acquired for themselves a very good player, one of the best in his position in the world, but one of very dubious character and morals.

Proteas Stroll to 5 Wicket Victory Over Zimbabwe

South Africa laboured to a 5 wicket victory over Zimbabwe in the first of three ODI matches being used as a warm up to next T20 World Cup.

Although South African never looked like doing anything but winning this match, the manner in which they did told of a side that hadn't played much cricket in months. The bowling was solid, the fielding very good, and the batting did the job required, but it all lacked inspiration. Although many will argue that the laboured performance was worrying, it was actually exactly what these matches in Zimbabwe were pencilled in for - to rid the team of any cob webs, allowing them to be ready for the T20 show piece.

An inept batting performance by the Zimbabwe top and middle order saw them at 72-7 and in danger of losing the match before lunch. But a spirited lower orde fightback by Chigumbura and Brent helped them past 200, and a degree of respectability. The innings began with some impressive stroke play by Sibanda, but like the rest of the top order he got out just when he started to look like he would give the South Africans something to think about. He edged a ball from Pollock to Smith, who took a brilliant catch low to his right. After that the wickets fell regularly, with an alarming 5 run outs, much to do with the Zimbabwean indecision as with the South African fielding. Taibu, on his return to Zimbabwean cricket, offered a brief glimmer of hope, but that was snuffed out as he fell for 22 to the impressive Morne Morkel, making his South African ODI debut. It was left to Chigumbura and Brent to rescue the Zimbabwe innings, and each batted carefully at first and then opened up a bit, both reaching half centuries, Brent being undefeated as the innings closed on 206. Chigumbura, who batted well in the Afro Asia series, has shown enough to suggest that he needs to move up the order if Zimbabwe are to be competitive in the future. He is able to grind out runs as well as find the boundary, and it is with him that the Zimbabwe future lies.

For South Africa, Pollock was his steady self, and nothing less can be expected of the old pro, finishing with 1/25 in 8 overs. However it was the bowling of debutant Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander, playing his third ODI, that will have pleased the selectors the most. Morkel, bowling at first change, has the type of controlled aggression that usually comes with experience. He is able to bowl quick while remaining economical at the same time. A weapon that will surely be utilised much more in the future. Giving South Africa a strike bowler who does not leak runs. Philander, who impressed in his first two games against Ireland and India in May, and who was named player of the tournament at the emerging players tournament in Australia recently, topping both the batting and bowling tables, continued to suggest he may be a leading player for South Africa in the present and not just the future. He picked up 2 early wickets in his spell, and was bowling when Zimbabwe slipped from 67-2 to 72-7. His economical bowling saw his figures after his first spell read 2/4 from 6 overs. He returned to bowl at the death where he conceded 11 runs in 2 overs.

On the batting side, there were half centuries from Smith, debutant Bodi, and de Villiers, who slipped down the order to four. Smith rarely looked comfortable, seeming to be under the weather, yet still managed to score his 50 off just 57 balls. Bodi, although far from the fluid, boundary hitting, batsman of domestic cricket, played some elegant flicks and lofted shots, and will be pleased with his debut performance. De Villiers looked the most comfortable at the crease and until he ran himself out never looked in any trouble against the Zimbabwean attack. It was left to Pollock and Philander to see South Africa home, winning with 2 boundaries in succession from Philander with 22 balls and 5 wickets to spare.

Although the performances of Morkel, Philander, Bodi and de Villiers will have pleased the South Africans, there is much they need to do to improve, to reach the higher standard that they aim for, and build momentum to next months tournament. They have two more matches this weekend to iron out any kinks and to give time out in the middle to their squad. For Zimbabwe, they'll just be hoping to remain competitive.

Spurs to Sack Jol

It appears Martin Jol's days at Spurs are numbered. A lot of money spent in the off season, two losses to open the season, an influx of betting on him being the first manager to lose his job this season, and photo's of Spurs directors meeting other managers all seem to point to Jol being jobless in the not to distant future.

It seems the real reason for the imminent sacking of Jol would be a strained relationship between the manager and sporting director Damien Comolli, who has, in chairman Daniel Levy, a close ally. With Comolli being almost fire proof it seems the axe will fall on Jol's head.

Spurs are believed to have drawn up a short list of potential new managers, a list that includes Mark Hughes, Harry Redknapp, Italian World Cup Winning manager Marcelo Lippi, and Sevilla's Juande Ramos. Romas is believed to be at the top of the wish list and it is he who was photographed with John Alexander, Spurs club secretary, at a Spanish hotel last week. Both parties have denied any sinister reasons for the meeting and maintain it was just coincidence.

Ramos is believed to want more power and respect at Sevilla and could be tempted to join Spurs, given that he will surely be allowed some money to spend, and he has always suggested that he would love to manage in England. However have guided Sevilla to the UEFA Cup, the Spanish Kings Cup, 3rd place in La Liga and with it Sevilla's first appearance in the Champions League, and recently a very convincing victory over Real Madrid in the two legged Spanish Super Cup, he could be tempted to stay and make history with Sevilla. The imminent sale of Dani Alves could bring in the money he craves for a new forward to partner Freddie Kanoute. Another good season as Sevilla would give him bargaining powers over his next contract, the present one running out at the end of the season, or put him in a position to move to a bigger club than Spurs, Barcelona, Madrid, Milan or Chelsea could prove tempting.

If Jol does go, and no clear explanations of why come out, it could be seen that the Spurs boards' eyes are too big for their plates. Terry Venables guided Spurs to third place in 1990. Since then, in the Premiership years Spurs have failed to finish above 7th, until Martin Jol took charge. Under Jol they have finished 5th in both his seasons, narrowly, and unluckily, missing out on 4th place, and Champions League football. Jol has also brought some of the best young talent to White Hart Lane, and bought British too. He is the core of a very good team, one that is perhaps a defender or two shy of breaking into the top four. Like Sir Alex needed when he came to Manchester United, Jol needs time, time to get his players playing together, time to allow them to grow and fill their undoubted potential, time to achieve the miracle of breaking into the monopolised top four.

Spurs it seems see things differently. Jol will have until the international break at the beginning of September before he starts looking for a new job. And the new Spurs managers first game in charge? Arsenal.

City Flying High

After 3 rounds of the new Premiership season a team from Manchester sits top of the table. That Manchester is represented at the top of the table is not unusual, that the team wears sky blue and not red, and plays at Eastlands and not Old Trafford is.

After Sundays 1-0 derby victory over United, City's third straight win at the City of Manchester stadium over their more illustrious city rivals, has left Sven Goran Eriksons Manchester City top of the table with 3 straight wins and no goals conceded. So City's Thai money infused revolution has taken off from the start, after many had predicted that they would need time to get so many expensive new players to gel, yet after this start, and particularly Sundays win, has left all in the blue half of Manchester fearing no one.

In truth Sundays win had more to do with United's impotence in front of goal then City's new brand of football, but on derby day no one will care how they won. Bianchi, Geovanni, Bojinov, Elano, Corluka, Gelson Fernandes, Garrido and Petrov have all come in with the new owners money, but it was two survivors of the old City, the City that couldn't score at home last season, captain Richard Dunne and centre back partner Micah Richards, that won the Manchester derby for City.

The two at the back were immense all match, stopping every United attack, wave after wave, and protecting young Kasper Schmeicle in goal. The young keeper, son of United legend Peter, produced some fine saves, but looked nervous coming for crosses and trying to impose himself in the box. Dunne and Richards produced the type of performance that will give City fans optimism for the future of their club, that once the honeymoon is over, once City are no longer a surprise package with their newly bought team, once the new foreigners legs tire from the frenetic pace of the English game, they will still be able to grind out results. Micah Richards is perhaps the best defender at 19 the England have seen in a long time, better then John Terry was at 19, and if City can hold on to him, which perhaps may be easier considering the current investment, they may have the best defender in the Europe in the future. As brilliant as the two at the back were, and Richards, still on 19, showed strength and timing that no one of his age should possess, the truth is that in order for the defence or keeper to shine so brightly in a game the other team must be on top for long periods of the game. So it was on Sunday, when United, just as they did in their opening game against Reading, and on Wednesday against Portsmouth, dominated the game from start to finish, and couldn't win.

United put their championship win last season down to their great start to the season, staying out on top for the entire season, while Chelsea faltered in December, and so will be worried about taking only 2 points from the available 9, their worst start to a Premiership season. While United will take heart from the fact that their 2 previous bad starts, in 1992 and 1998, ended with the league title in '92, the inaugural Premier League season, and the treble in '99. United have always been a team that starts slowly and takes control after January. However times are different now in that they may find themselves to far behind Chelsea, and unable to catch them. What United can perhaps look to, after the initial 3 games anyway, is that this season may be one of the most competitive in a long time. Liverpool have improved their squad, Arsenals young team have a years more experience then they did last year, Spurs have spent a lot to catch the top four, and the likes of Newcastle, West Ham, Aston Villa, Blackburn and City, all look capable of taking points from the top teams. Even the weaker teams in Fulham, Sunderland and Birmingham have spent a lot of money to try and ensure Premiership survival. Reading and Wigan, the two teams I picked to go down this season, along with Derby, who look way out of their depth and should go straight back down, have looked good in games to suggest that they will make a battle of it. So while Sir Alex stated that the 90 point mark is what should be aimed at to win the title, in truth the competitiveness of this season may bring that mark down a lot lower. That's the sort of straw United will be clutching to. They've made things hard for themselves, but interesting for everyone else.

For now at least the blue half of Manchester can enjoy sitting on top the table, ahead of Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, and most importantly Manchester United. Come the end of the season, they may not be quite so lucky.

Transfer Gossip

NEWS OF THE WORLD:

Newcastle will offer Emre to Barcelona in a bid to win the race to land Deco.

Spurs have launched a £10.5million move for Juan Roman Riquelme.

Birmingham are chasing Wolves duo Seyi Olofinjana and Darren Potter.

Porto have placed a £12million price tag on Aston Villa target Jose Bosingwa.

Sevilla boss Juande Ramos is the man Spurs want to replace Martin Jol.

Lyon have made an £8million bid for Gabriel Heinze are are set to offer the same amount for Nicolas Anelka.

Sol Campbell has raised fresh doubts over his Portsmouth future by revealing he has had offers to leave.

Former Everton midfielder Thomas Gravesen is now a target for Middlesbrough and Bolton.

Watford are going back in for Collins John.

West Brom defender Curtis Davies has been warned he could be frozen out if he fails to land a move before the transfer window closes.

Sunderland have failed with a £2.5million bid to take Julio Arca back to the Stadium Of Light.

Derby will swoop for QPR forward Dexter Blackstock if they fail to land Kenwyne Jones.

Under-fire George Burley wants to take Danny Mills to Southampton.

Martin Allen could quit Leicester after a bust-up with chairman Milan Mandaric.

DAILY STAR SUNDAY:

Gabriel Heinze has turned down three moves abroad as Manchester United desperately battle to avoid selling him to Liverpool.

Sevilla coach Juande Ramos is the man Spurs will turn to if they run out of patience with Martin Jol.

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has ended his interest in Curtis Davies after being told he will cost a staggering £15million.

Newcastle will finally clinch the £2million signing of Bolton's Abdoulaye Faye on Monday.

Manchester City could spring another transfer surprise by landing Real Madrid's Spain international Guti.

Aston Villa are monitoring Glen Johnson's future at Chelsea.

Inter Milan are checking out Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner.

Spurs boss Martin Jol is tracking Benfica teenager Fabio Coentrao.

Watford and Lecester are fighting it out for Crystal Palace striker Shefki Kuqi.

SUNDAY MIRROR

Tottenham directors have been accused of staging a secret meeting with Sevilla coach Juande Ramos.

Sven Goran Eriksson is ready to take his summer spending through the £40million barrier with a £5million move for Real Madrid's Guti.

Nicolas Anelka has put plans to quit Bolton on hold after rejecting moves to West Ham and Portsmouth.

Sunderand are being linked with a £10.8million move for Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini.

Portsmouth could end their search for a new striker by landing CSKA Moscow's Vagner Love.

Leicester are poised to sign Marco Ferreria from Benfica on loan.

Everton will revive their interest in Matt Taylor after Portsmouth dropped their asking price to £5.5million.

SUNDAY EXPRESS:

Guti could be one of three new Manchester City signings next week.

Gabriel Heinze is refusing to leave Manchester United for anywhere other than Liverpool.

Matt Taylor is poised to join boyhood heroes Tottenham this week for £5million.

Chelsea's bid to sign Daniel Alves remains alive.

MAIL ON SUNDAY:

Tottenham could turn to Jurgen Klinsmann unless Martin Jol turns their season around.

Boucher in Trouble Over Kallis Omission Remarks

Mark Boucher, the South African wicket keeper, is set to appear before a disciplinary board after recent remarks he made in a newspaper article regarding the exclusion of Jaques Kallis from the T20 squad. Upon his exclusion Kallis resigned as vice captain and questioned his future in the national team.

Bouchers remarks in the Business Day allude to non cricketing reasons behind Kallis omission from the squad.

"

It is either those who have an issue with him, and have a chip on their shoulders, or those who have ulterior motives."

"He's the best allrounder we've ever had and he's saved more [limited overs] games than anyone realises - and he is a far better one-day player than he is given credit for."

Boucher will appear at a hearing on Friday.

Taking into account the reasoning by the selectors, at least in public anyway, for Kallis omission, that they want him rested for the long, tough, season ahead, it is worth considering a few points. Firstly Pakistan, India and New Zealand have not included their best Test batsmen either. Dravid, Tendulkar, Ganguly, Mohammed Yusuf and Stephen Fleming have all been left out of their squads and been given an extended break in order to get more from them in Test and ODI cricket in the coming season. There is also a case for Flemings exclusion on the basis that it allows a more comfortable transition of the captaincy to Vettori. Yet none of these other players have put up a fuss (Pakistans Abul Razzaq criticized his omission but it appears that he is being dropped and not rested.) If Kallis is being rested due to the heavy workload he carries within the test and ODI teams, then why aren't Pollock and Ntini being afforded the same break? Clearly Kallis wanted to be involved so its not a case of a player opting out or being happy with a few more weeks of golf. If the argument was that Kallis is not suited to T20 cricket then what of Ntini? He doesn't offer anything with that bat and has bowled 30 balls in international T20 games and gone for 65 runs without taking a wicket. A record that suggests that he shouldn't be in the squad. Ntini has carried the Test and ODI attack for a couple of seasons now and perhaps his lack of form at the World Cup was because of to much cricket. Perhaps he to should have been rested. While it may be seen to most as a childish reaction by Kallis, and perhaps it is, it's still not a bad thing to have a player so upset about being left out, even when assured he isn't be dropped. A player who has scored over 8000 Test runs, over 9000 ODI runs and has taken over 200 wickets in Test and ODI cricket who has nothing to prove to anyone yet still gets this upset about not being selected for the least serious, least important form of the game? Surely that cant be the worst thing.

By all accounts Kallis lead the team in Ireland admirably, especially with his dealing with the young players, Philander, Duminy and Tshabalala, both on and off the field, so there is a strong desire to retain him as vice captain. Lets hope that happens.

Kallis Quits as Vice Captain

Following his omission from the South African T20 squad Jacues Kallis has stepped down as vice captain of the ODI and Test teams, raising doubts about his future.

Kallis, one of the finest all rounders in history, expressed his disappointment at being left out of the T20 squad when issuing his vice captaincy resignation.

"I have resigned as vice-captain and I'm considering my options with regard to the rest of my career," Kallis said. "I have been thinking long and hard over the weekend and there is still a lot of emotion involved because I am extremely disappointed. I was very excited about the tournament and hoping to make a huge contribution.

"I feel I have a lot of good cricket left and my best years might even be ahead of me. Ideally I would like to play many more years for my country but this weekend caused me to question my future for the first time."

The timing of this suggests that Kallis made the decision based on emotion rather then thought, and it is hoped that he changes his mind, particularly by CSA chief executive Gerald Majola.

While there is no doubting his class and ability there has long been debate amongst South African fans about Kallis position in the ODI team, when some regarding his run scoring on the slow side. However, with cricket in general moving towards a more aggressive approach to batting, Kallis has upped his strike rate considerably over the last season or so, and has maintained his position as the linchpin in the Proteas batting line up.

While Kallis has shown a more aggressive streak in ODI's he still tends to take a few over to play himself in before cutting loose. With this in mind, and the fact that you have less time to play yourself in in T20 cricket, the feeling is that Kallis best role would be opening the innings. Here he could take an over or two to gain a feel for the pitch and bowling, before opening up. However with Graeme Smith, Loots Bosman, AB de Villiers and Gulam Bodi already competing for the two openers births (one really with Smith guaranteed one of the positions) the likelihood of this happening were slim. While Kallis has played 6 T20 games, both internationally and domestically, the likes of Bosman and Bodi have played over 20, giving them far more experience and expertise in this form of the game.

New chairman of selectors, Joubert Strydom, has put forward the taxing schedule over the next 18 months as the reason for Kallis being rested, and not dropped. Over this period South Africa travel to Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, England and Australia, and with this in mind the selectors felt it prudent to give Kallis a longer rest so as to come back refreshed and able to better handle the rigours of being am all rounder and the batting back bone of the team.

Kallis decision, though brash and immature (in terms of timing and not his person) clearly outlines the disappointment he feels at missing out on this inaugural tournament, being hosted by his country. While this can be understood and sympathised with, the rest that he will gain will benefit the test and ODI team, and Kallis himself, bringing a rested, focused and driven Kallis to the field for a tough season ahead. One that ends with a series against Australia. Kallis omission may be the best thing for his game, and the hopes of South Africa's team in the long run.