West Brom Miss Out At Spurs
Tottenham Hotspur beat strugglers after falling behind.
Wenger defends Drogba.
- Premiership strugglers West Bromwich Albion miss out on vital points after looking good for a win for much of their visit to Tottenham Hotspur. The Baggies had taken the lead after 21 minutes through Curtis Davies as the Champions League hopefuls struggled to get in to their stride.
Spurs levelled on 68 minutes through Robbie Keane and it was the Irishman who hit the winner with a last-minute penalty. Albion keeper Tomasz Kuszczak had annoyed the White Hart Lane crowd for much of the evening with his time-wasting tactics then earned the displeasure of the WBA fans as, after his clearance was blocked, he hauled down to Jermain Defoe to concede the crucial kick.
Exasperated Albion boss Bryan Robson says: “Even when they equalised we were the better team but we shot ourselves in the foot. We do it every week it seems, what can I say?”
- Chelsea’s Didier Drogba receives backing from an unlikely source in the wake of his diving admission.
Speaking at a press conference before tomorrow’s Champions League clash with Juventus, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says: “Drogba is a bit under the spotlight at the moment for obvious reasons, but overall I like his attitude, basically. He is not an unfair player, basically. He makes sometimes more of it, like many strikers do as well, but sometimes he is maybe pushed or pulled when nobody sees it - defenders cheat on the strikers as well you know.”
That’s alright then.
- It’ll be of little consolation to them, but it isn’t only the England supporters who are complaining about the allocation of World Cup tickets. Holland fans have been allocated only eight percent of tickets from those available for their matches, and they aren’t happy.
A lottery, organised by the Orange Supporters’ Club and KNVB (the Dutch Football Association), distributed 18,000 tickets although around 180,000 fans had hoped to travel to Germany. OSC chairman Lloyd Vandenberg tells the Dutch news agency ANP: “It’s outrageous that FIFA has not given more tickets.”
Tickets are available on the black market but at a vastly inflated cost: “That’s the result when FIFA releases so few tickets. Someone with a fat wallet might be willing to pay those prices, but the real soccer fan won’t even stand a chance.”
- Swansea City or Carlisle United will miss out on £50,000 in prize money as the winners of this Sunday’s LDV Vans Trophy Final.
LDV was sold off after going into administration last year, and the new owners have refused to honour the cash prize. A Football League spokesman says the issue is ‘under review’ but no decision is likely before the Final at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium. The competition will now be known as the Football League Trophy.