Even at third-round tie between Birmingham and Blackburn few wanted to watch, it was still possible to find a little joyMost match days, you can barely squeeze into the bar of the Royal George Hotel at the north-eastern corner of St Andrew’s. An hour before Birmingham play Blackburn, however, there are still plenty of chairs and tables available. A short distance away, in front of the Tilton Road Stand, a lone steward stands solemn guard in front of a bank of silent turnstiles. The magic of the FA Cup is still very much in evidence, it seems – but these days it tends to be more of a vanishing act.It’s a similar story inside the stadium, where only one of...
The forward known as ‘Chelé’ by fans is attracting Premier League interest after developing at non-league IlkestonThe immediate threat to Sheffield United’s promotion push is a familiar one. It was November 2014 when Nigel Clough rang Kevin Wilson, the former Chelsea striker, about taking a talented Ilkeston teenager on trial at Bramall Lane. The player was Kieran Wallace, who has since reunited with Clough at Burton Albion, but another name on the lips of scouts up and down the country inevitably cropped up during that same conversation: Che Adams.Within 24 hours the 18-year‑old striker had left Ilkeston to sign for United for £135,000. But on Wednesday evening at St Andrew’s, Adams will line up for Birmingham City, looking to derail...
Birmingham’s owners brought the points deduction on themselves with some preposterous decisions. But why do these things keep happening to Harry?Harry Redknapp used to tell a story, going back to his days as the manager of West Ham, that probably sums up why so many people within the industry, even those who are fond of his ways, usually take the policy that he can be pretty brazen sometimes when it comes to blurring the lines between the truth and, well, the other bits.It goes back to the days when Slaven Bilic was a player at the club and had a buyout clause in his contract that allowed him to leave for £2.5m. Bilic had become disillusioned playing for a struggling...
The assault on Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish reflects the airborne plague spread via Twitter and other areas of society“He might be a fan, he might be a nutter, but he’s on my turf and I’m gonna chop the mother down” – the words of Keith Richards, who famously raised his Fender Telecaster and used it as a club to repel a stage-invading fan as the Rolling Stones played Satisfaction at the Hampton Coliseum in 1981. Related: Birmingham City fan who assaulted Jack Grealish is jailed for 14 weeks Related: Emery calls for calm at Arsenal and 'respect' after fan shoves Smalling Aston Villa v Preston, 2 Oct 2018 Related: Liverpool goalkeeper Shamal George hurt in alleged racially motivated attack Continue reading...
Nketiah shows rich promise, Chelsea may rue Fàbregas’s exit, things about to hot up for Solskjær and what next for Carroll? Related: FA Cup third round serves up shocks as Barnet, Oldham and Newport shine Related: The Dozen: the weekend’s best FA Cup photos Continue reading...