AT THE OTHER END OF THE FOOTBALL FOOD CHAIN …
The day after Bury FC were kicked out of the football league does not seem like a good time to turn our attention to the woes of Paris Saint-Germain and Neymar but, then again, sometimes PSG and Neymar, like an undigestible kebab, just have to be brought up. As the old saying goes, laughter is the best medicine and, failing that, barfing’s worth a go.
The latest rumblings from Qatar’s proxy in France is they are close to reaching a deal with Barcelona for the return of Neymar to the Camp Nou, ending a hellish two-year stay in Paris during which the Brazilian suffered several injuries and struggled to recover from the five painful times that a teammate didn’t pass to him because someone else was in a better position. It has ben a challenging experience in Ligue 1 for Neymar and, in fairness, he never once fell asleep against the likes of Dijon and Troyes and he will go back to Barcelona as a stronger and wiser player or, at least, at a time when Lionel Messi is in decline.
If, that is, a deal gets done. The word seeping out of French media organs is that PSG and Barcelona have reached agreement on a deal consisting of a fee of around £130m in addition to two players, Ivan Rakitic and Ousmane Dembélé. PSG had not been keen on a cash-plus-players arrangement earlier in the summer, partly because recent fiascos led them to taking a solemn vow only to hire players who were absolutely, 100% desperate to play for them. “All I can say is we don’t want stars in the bad sense of the term,” hissed Nasser Al-Khelaïfi in June, adding: “We’ve had enough of that. I want players who are ready to uphold the honour of the jersey … from now on the priority is total commitment to our project.”
Powerful words, eh? In light of them and given the resolve for which PSG have become synonymous, the Fiver was not one bit surprised to hear reports that the club is now trying to convince Dembélé to agree to make a deal happen just a week after the player’s Mr 15% showed just how enthused he is about the prospect of signing for PSG by declaring: “I wish to clarify Ousmane Dembélé’s situation once and for all. He does not envisage leaving Barcelona even for a moment. That has been the stance for months and nothing is likely to change that.” Good ol’ PSG, what could possibly go right for them?
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Join Paul Doyle for hot Carling Cup second round clockwatch action from 7.45pm BST.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’m not surprised. Absolutely not. I think he came, he tried, he did his best and, yeah, he had patience. You need a lot of patience and it has finished, the patience. I mean, my deal is until 31 December. What happens afterwards I don’t know. I’m in a different position than Wazza. Wazza is much younger than me. I am old but still dominating, still making the difference” – the ever-modest Zlatan Ibrahimovic manages to squeeze a little dig in when discussing Wayne Rooney’s impending return to England from the MLS.
RECOMMENDED LOOKING
Bury fans react to the devastating news on Tuesday evening.
FIVER LETTERS
“Sad days indeed for Dean Saunders. However, down here on the south coast we remember happier times for Dean, especially the occasion when ‘Little Dean’ made a surprise appearance” – Tony Crawford.
“Mo Salah and David Luiz as the Dog and Duck [yesterday’s Fiver letters]. Is there a pub named the Cat and Mouse? Or, based on that stunning turn and acceleration move, should we find one called the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote. Beep-beep!” –Mike Wilner.
In regards to bywords for quintessential pub football teams [yesterday’s Fiver letters], perhaps the name of a local (in Brisvegas) is more apt: The Elephant and Wheelbarrow” – Alan Baxter.
Send your letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. And you can always tweet The Fiver via @guardian_sport. Today’s winner of our prizeless letter o’the day is … Alan Baxter.
BITS AND BOBS
Bury have been expelled from the English Football League after 125 years of continued membership. Meanwhile, Bolton have been given 14 days to complete a sale of the club or be expelled from the EFL.
Alexis Sánchez (and his two dogs) have arrived in Milan for his loan move to Inter, who do not have an option to buy, but will cough up £175,000 of the Chilean’s £390,000 weekly salary.
A coalition of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham supporter groups have come up with a six-point plan for Uefa including allocating 80% of tickets for finals to supporters, to sell tickets at affordable prices and to choose a host city “that ensures no discrimination or denial of right of entry is applied to any player or supporter travelling to the final”.
Fizzy Cup round up, featuring embarrassing exits for Norwich City and Crystal Palace.
Daniel Levy and Christian Eriksen’s Mr 15% aren’t getting on. Wah!
Dean Saunders has been jailed for 10 weeks after pleading guilty to failing to comply with a roadside breath test.
Remember that bit/bob in yesterday’s Fiver about Red Star fans parking a decommissioned, Soviet-made, T-55 Yugoslav army tank outside the stadium before their Champions League qualifier. Well Red Star qualified for the group stage, and the players used the tank for a ride home.
STILL WANT MORE?
David Conn, who grew up five miles from Gigg Lane and went to school in Bury, has laid out all the grim details of how Bury FC got to this point.
Paul Wilson’s column on the future of European football starts with a nice Fergie quote, which is a good a reason as any to click here.
This week’s Knowledge asks: what is the most unusual non-football event staged at a football stadium? Answers include Transformers, ballet and Neighbours …
Borja Bastón: Swansea’s record £15.5m signing went 1,022 days without a goal for the club but now can’t stop scoring. Ben Fisher has more.
Oh, and if it’s your thing … you can follow Big Website on Big Social FaceSpace. And INSTACHAT, TOO!
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