One of Hargreaves best moments in the 2007/08 season - his match winning free-kick against Arsenal at Old Trafford

As the lead name in the world of PR, Max Clifford can smell a public relations gaffe from a distance. Manchester City’s Owen Hargreaves might be hoping that he’d had his presence around him before he went public to criticise his former team’s medical handling of him. Does Hargreaves’ medical analysis stack up?

A look back at the facts of Hargreaves’ injury history might vindicate United’s medical staff and prove his comments ill-advised.

In 2006, whilst playing for Bayern Munich, Hargreaves suffered a broken leg which saw him make a quicker than expected recovery, just in time to return for his club’s knockout battle against Real Madrid that season.

He then joined United for £17m in 2007, where he made 34 appearances in a league and European cup double success for his side. He showed exactly why he was much coveted by Ferguson as the midfield destroyer needed to succeed in Europe. There is no doubt that he played a major role in that season’s triumphs.

In a game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge the following season began Hargreaves’ injury nightmare, where soon he travelled to the US to meet renowned surgeon Richard Steadman, hoping after succeeding in healing Alan Shearer and Ruud van Nistelrooy, Steadman would help him make a return to his club’s starting line up.

In an interview with the Daily Mail in 2009, Hargreaves revealed the surgeon’s morale sapping assessment of the former’s tendon: “Getting the diagnosis from Dr Steadman was a dark day. When I got to the clinic he said, “I’ve rarely seen a tendon look like that in my 35 years of working”.

In that interview, Steadman confirmed to him that his speedy recovery from his broken leg had been a reason why he had continued to suffer pain in his tendons.

A brief appearance for United at Sunderland at the end of the 2010 season was a false hope as he spent more time on the sidelines, misery capitulated by a four minute spell in a home game against Wolves. Hargreaves in the recent interview, admitted he wasn’t ready and hinted he was pressured into the game.

Thinking logically, it may be slightly truthful that United, keen to see him back in the side after a frustrating time out for both Hargreaves and his manager, might have pushed him ahead to play. But the point remains, a footballer is the only person – despite all the medical assistance – of knowing whether his body can sustain a 90 minute match. The Canadian born player should have asserted his view that he may not be ready.

Complaining of the injections he was advised to have by United’s medical staff, the latter can only work to what they feel is best, being educated in that profession. To some extent, any players follow the advice of the professionals. But as Steadman rightly noted, the broken leg suffered in 2006, the refusal to stop playing to allow himself a full recovery, damaging the tendons further by playing in his first full season at United should be the main reasons at the forefront of Hargreaves’ mind when looking back at this time out.

On the face of it, it is only correct for heartfelt sympathy – from all football supporters – for Hargraves, who has endured a horrendous spell on the sidelines since 2008. This has only allowed the former Bayern Munich midfielder only 12 minutes on the pitch in two years, a stat which must have been heavily in Sir Alex Ferguson’s mind when the Scot allowed Hargreaves to leave on a free transfer this summer.

With managers in the league not keen to gamble on his fitness, Hargreaves’ next move was limited – with all due respect – to mid-table mediocrity before United’s city rivals, sensing a chance to bring in an experienced European campaigner, stepped in to give him an unexpected lifeline to play at the top level.

Unlike Tevez’s transfer to City, which was filled with continual rants against his perceived treatment by United and the manager, Hargreaves’ move was received with a quiet acceptance and relief by United supporters that the 30-year-old will be able to get minutes on the pitch, albeit it with their local rivals.

He made a first start of his new club in the Carling Cup against Birmingham City at the Etihad Stadium, with a bonus of getting on the scoresheet with a brilliant right foot strike from the edge of the box that flew into the net. A vindication for Hargreaves that all the rehabilitation had finally paid off with playing football again.

A few days later, the euphoria of taking part again had been overshadowed by various quotes attributed to Hargreaves where he described himself as a “guinea pig” at the beck and call of United’s medical advice.

As expected, United – via their manager and a press statement on Friday – responded with full confidence in their medical team, but Hargreaves comments has not only stoked the flames further in a United-City clash but penetrated some ill feeling in United fans’ heart towards Hargreaves.

Whether his comments were designed to curry support from his new fans or if it was a genuine opinion to release frustration over his time on the sidelines, it is clear that Hargreaves would have been better remaining silent than speaking on the past.

Dhoni's captaincy is safe after his World Cup heroics but he must face the challenge of evolution head on

As he makes the final preparations for tomorrow’s third one-day international against England, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be hoping that his side can restore some pride to what has been a damp squib of a tour compared to the bright rays of excitement that the cricketing world was expecting. A post-mortem should begin with questions asked of his board.

Enough has been written, listened and discussed about India’s abysmal performances since arriving in England a few months ago, after dispatching another South Asian team, Sri Lanka, England stormed to a series whitewash in the Test format before breaking into a 2-0 lead in the 50-over format, an area of their game which is supposed to be the weakest.

One has to sympathise with India, who’ve been left debilitated by injuries to key players – Zaheer Khan the most crucial – but the blame lies just as much on the cricketing bureaucrats in India as it does on captain Dhoni’s head.

On April 2^nd, the Mumbai skyline was littered with loud and visually exuberant fire works as India celebrated winning their second World Cup in their history and their poster-boy turned captain Dhoni was the centre of attention, and rightly so. Having been installed captain in 2007 and guided India to becoming world champions in the 20/20 format in the same year, the pinnacle of his captaincy had seen him bring unashamed joy for his fellow Indians by bringing the World Cup back to the sub-continent.

Celebrations for an Indian victory that had previously eluded them for 28 years only lasted ONE week as the majority of the Indian World Cup winning squad were disembarking to different parts of the country to represent their franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

For what seemed an eternity, the Indian players had to quickly re-adjust their minds to playing 20/20 cricket without an opportunity to really come to terms with what they had achieved.

Dhoni, seemed unaware of what his cricketing brain was going through, evident by guiding his Chennai Super Kings to a second successive victory, a sign perhaps that the victory in Mumbai only energised the 30-year-old to gain more medals for his trophy cabinet.

Cricketers, – of all countries – unlike football players, are not in control of their own destiny. They can’t pick and choose which teams to represent whenever they fancy or just because another club offers a bigger pay packet. Mainly because they are representing their countries in this instance but also because central contracts dictate their schedule. The greed of the Indian cricket board to maximise the incoming cash flow through the cricket following of its one billion population has lead to the huge commercialisation of the 20/20 format which was once, a laidback and enjoyable system for players to play in.

At the conclusion of the recent IPL, talk was already brewing in the media of saturation but it remains doubtful whether the board of India will listen to any thought of a break or a reduction in the IPL schedule.

Whether the realisation of losing their Test number one ranking and the growing list of injuries to key players will make the Indian board assess the schedule, and follow England’s example – rotation of star players.

Kevin Pietersen, who racked up 533 runs in the successful Test series, was given a rest from the subsequent one-day internationals. Due to injuries, India don’t have that luxury but had they not had the IPL, would the likes of Khan broken down?

India arrived in England with only one tour game arranged – which was disrupted by the weather – and former captain Saurav Ganguly noted the lack of preparation as a reason for their poor performance.

The lack of game time a possible reason why their main bowler Khan was injured in the first Test and ruled out for the remainder of the tour, whilst his team-mates suffered the saddening fate of injuries ending their tours aswell.

India – their board, cricketers and coaching staff will hope they will be able to restore some pride tomorrow and finish the tour on an uplifting note.

If not, many observers hope that this will kick start a revolution within the upper echelons of Indian management to look critically within themselves, with the end result that their players will be the ones to benefit.

Zidane, as usual, has refrained from the public limelight since retirement and worked behind the scenes at Madrid

Next week, Zinedane Zidane will leave the ‘special advisor’ comfy seat he has been ensconced in since Florentino Perez returned to Real Madrid in 2009, and become the club’s new director of football, in what could be the starting platform for a harmonious season for the club.

Now the 39-year-old Zidane assumes the position with which he is unsure of what it entails.

Speaking on the job, he said: “We are going to start working in the role as director of football to the first team. (Coach Jose) Mourinho has been fundamental in this, but so has the president as well. Everyone has been asking me the same question, but I will be there from next Monday, until the end of the season.”

Not one to enjoy the attention, this job will suit Zizou perfectly as it will allow him to assist Mourinho behind the scenes with player acquisitions (he’s already made a start on that by persuading Lens youngster Raphael Varane to turn down other clubs to join Madrid), team preparation, scouting and other responsibilities.

He played the game with elegance, control and adroitly came out of tight areas that no-one expected him to. Those qualities will be ideal for his new position. But also, by working with Mourinho, he can help the former Chelsea coach to avoid any incoming heat from the ever demanding Perez, if things aren’t going according to plan. With Zidane working with him and advising Perez, he will be able to convince the president that with Mourinho, it will be worthwhile to stick by him through rough periods to come out the other end with success.

Since retiring from football in 2006 after he left a stamp on Italian Marco Materazzi’s chest in the World Cup final, Zidane, in line with his reserved personality, went into the quieter areas of the world to take time out and rest up.

When the man who took him from Juventus to Real Madrid for £45m to break the world transfer record in 2001, returned to the club he had so intensely supported and followed, he brought back his favourite star with him to help him in player purchases and other areas where his advice would be beneficial.

Given the role of ‘special advisor’, as usual Zidane stayed out of the limelight but the arrival of a manager who has a proven track record in delivering success, has coaxed the ever so reserved Zizou into the public limelight.

Jose Mourinho, who arrived at the Bernabeu in 2010 after guiding Inter Milan to their first Champions League victory since 1965, was given an opportunity to try and break the dominance of their arch-rivals Barcelona.

After a promising but unspectacular start, the brakes were being slowly applied – not by Mourinho but by the then sporting director and close friend of Perez, Argentinian Jorge Valdano.

With striker Gonzalo Higuain ruled out through injury, Mourinho demanded a striker to cover the loss. Valdano, was not overly keen to back the Portuguese’s nomination of former Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who had produced the goods on a consistent basis during his time there. After a period of rumours confirming the breakdown in the relationship, Valdano relented and swooped to sign Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor on loan till the end of the season.

That signing proved to be a success as the Togo international brushed aside any pitch rust and scored goals that vindicated Valdano’s decision and convinced Mourinho of his quality.

With tensions rising, Perez acted with rare ruthlessness with a close confidant and in May 2011, he axed Valdano. This was seen by many pundits as the ultimate backing for Mourinho and a victory for the Special One that could cement his place as Madrid boss for a few years yet.

But Perez’s decision was not made on his own but a quiet, subtle word from Zidane who must have made him realise that Mourinho was an asset more worthy of keeping than Valdano, who had consistently clashed with the coach.

Having worked close quarters together, there was a strengthening of the friendship between Zidane and Mourinho which made the former’s job more important when it came to advising Perez.

Zidane had never talked about becoming a coach or manager as everyone expected him to continue working in the game in a more behind the scenes role.

This is an ideal opportunity for him to continue impacting on the game and more importantly, to try and help Madrid break the Barcelona hegemony on the domestic and European arena.

Villas-Boas has achieved success in a short space of time at Porto

Roman Abromovich moved quickly on the last day of the Premier League 2010/11 season to axe his coach Carlo Ancelotti within minutes after the final whistle. His search for a replacement has fluctuated up and down but it appears that search is over as he looks to appoint a 33-year-old as his new manager.

Andre Villas-Boas, who guided Porto to a treble (Portuguese league and domestic cup double and the Europa League) last season is the youthful coach who is being seen by the Stamford Bridge club to re-energise a squad that is showing serious signs of degradation.

But the manner in which Chelsea’s search for a new coach has developed omits an underlying feeling that the potential acquisition of Villas-Boas is a panic move having been rebuffed in their hunt for others.

Porto state that the compensation clause in Villas-Boas’ contract – £12m – has yet to be reached by any club and the fact that Chelsea are happy to pay such a huge amount for a manager who has yet to achieve success for a sustained period of time, suggests that panic mode has set in at Stamford Bridge.

We are now nearing towards the end of June with the first team squad firmly enjoying their summer break. Chelsea, in quite unusual scenes, are standing on the sidelines watching the transfer market unfold in front of them without having done any purchasing.

The first team squad usually meet up in July to begin the hectic and commercially driven pre-season, and Chelsea have realised that they have no time to waste to get a new man in, who can then analyse the squad and recommend reinforcements. And also to allow those players out of favour, to leave the club.

If Villas-Boas was highly regarded by Chelsea bosses and they were supremely confident he was the man to take them forward, why not go for him from the very start? Rather than engaging in the quiet flirting with Dutchman Guus Hiddink and other coaches?

The only concern is that if and when the new manager is installed (it could be by the end of this week when an announcement is made), will it give him the time he needs to chop and change the squad and try to gel it together during the pre-season stage?

If and when Villas-Boas is installed, it will allow the club to continue on their managerial structure with reports emanating that Hiddink will return to the club as a director of football.

Villas-Boas was touted as the first name to be on Abramovich’s list post-Ancelotti but the Portuguese quickly maintained that he wanted to stay at Porto and the club itself confirmed that it wasn’t going to let their highly-rated coach leave after a hugely successful season.

Attentions then turned to Turkey’s national coach Hiddink, who, on the request of Abramovich, became Chelsea’s coach in 2009 temporarily after the sacking of Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari.

It seemed a perfect fit and quotes attributed to Hiddink suggested that with a little bit of temptation, he could forego one of his strongest principles (seeing out his contracts) and ask to leave his post to become Chelsea’s manager and thus save Abramovich again.

But the complex contractual negotiations with the Turkish FA have meant Chelsea’s hierarchy have had to re-think their plan and hence have decided to stump the money needed to get Villas-Boas from Porto.

The whole chain of events in replacing Ancelotti only confirms that Abramovich didn’t have anyone specific in mind to replace the out-going Italian and in a congested managerial market, he has struggled to find a person who ticks the boxes of his very short footballing list: to win the Champions League.

That is one thing that Villas-Boas has yet to achieve, further from that, he is yet to coach in the Champions League and would have done so for the first time with Porto next season. But it now seems he’ll be doing so with new employers and bigger expectations on his shoulders.

The impending appointment of Villas-Boas is a move away from Abramovich’s “get the man whose won the Champions League” mindset and suggests that he could give Villas-Boas the time he needs to bring continued success. But more importantly, to give the owner, his trophy of the Champions League in the Chelsea trophy cabinet.

After being alerted to the horrendous reporting by the Daily Mail on the Muslim Public Affairs Committee Forum through this blog: http://hotterthanapileofcurry.wordpress.com, I decided to take a brief look at the reportage of other press outlets and see if they had taken a different approach to the story or whether it was the same.

LINKS: First DM article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1392454/Muslim-girl-Katya-Koren-19-st…

Second DM article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1393154/Katya-Koren-Was-Muslim-beauty…

Daily Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/8548022/Muslim-teena…

Daily Mirror – http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/05/31/teenager-stoned-to-death-…

Daily Express – http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/250012/Stoned-to-death-for-entering-beaut…

Daily Star – http://www.dailystar.co.uk/posts/view/193735

Jones, 19, is widely regarded as a future England defender after capturing the attention of 5 clubs with his performances in a depleted Blackburn side

Managers all over the country will be embarking on a major clear out of their changing room personnel, getting rid of the dead wood and bringing in newer, fresher replacements. After the record breaking January transfer window, the summer market could be the busiest ever.

The last campaign of the Premier League proved to be one of the tightest ones ever, with the battle for success and failure at both ends of the table proving riveting. The title race was decided with a game to go, whilst the relegations of Blackpool and Birmingham were confirmed on a sunshine strewn final day.

Battling for the riches of the Champions League saw three teams (Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester City) go head to head in a triple threat clash which saw the quality of City comfortably make Europe’s elite table.

Overall, the competitiveness of the Premier League became more compressed with smaller teams getting points from the big ones and even the mid-table positions became hotly contested.

Whilst many players enjoy their summer holidays, they can sit by the pool in the knowledge that their club will be making some moves in the transfer window.

The previous summer transfer windows have seen sporadic deals with one major signing overshadowing the rest. This summer’s transfer window could be one of the busiest – but not the most expensive.

Already so far, Sunderland’s Jordan Henderson and Blackburn Rovers’ Phil Jones are both undergoing medicals at Liverpool and Manchester United respectively, with a combined fee reported to be in the region of £37m.

It is safe to say that these two deals involving young, highly talented but raw players will spark this summer’s wheeling and dealing within English clubs.

The top four of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City are all expected to spend to cover players retiring, individuals who need to be moved on, players that need to be brought in to add experience to the squad and marquee signings to make their name known competing in the Champions League.

But drift further down and you can expect transfer activity from Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham, who after failing to grab fourth place for a second successive year, have already signed keeper Brad Friedel and are actively chasing a continuous goal scoring machine after a season in which their strikers failed to produce the goods on a regular basis.

Liverpool have already signalled their intentions to refurbish a squad which needs much more quality and could herald a new era under their iconic former player and current manager, Kenny Dalglish. The conclusion of Henderson’s transfer is an indication that youth will be the theme for their business and maybe a realisation that it is all about value for money and future investment.

Next year will mark 10 years at the helm for Everton manager David Moyes, who will look back at his tenure with pride that firstly he has lasted at the club whilst other managerial friends have been given their marching orders. He’ll look back with a tinge of disappointment that he hasn’t been able to push Everton even forward with the backing of a deep transfer kitty. It will be another summer of low key deals which he will hope will bring some unknown gems that he can mould into future stars, that can cure Everton’s syndrome of failure to produce at the start of the campaign.

Two teams under new management – Fulham and Aston Villa – will have to find their feet into the club first before divulging into the market and buy players. Luckily, Dutchman Martin Jol has coached in the league before and understands the types of players who succeed at this level. With a host of managers ruling themselves out or been ruled out by the owner, Aston Villa need a quick appointment to handle the loss of Friedel and the impending departure of inspirational winger Ashley Young.

Sunderland and Newcastle are two teams from the North East who have been involved in some of the major transfers since the start of the year. Both managers (Steve Bruce and Alan Pardew) will be hoping to spend the incoming financial rewards from selling – albeit reluctantly – the players who’ve helped stabilise their position in the table. The Mackems have already started to spend the money from Henderson by enquiring about three fringe players from Manchester United. Pardew, having rued the sale of striker Andy Carroll hastily in January, will hope to receive the funds and utilise it effectively.

To be able to survive consistently in the upper half of the lower table requires a lot of tactical nous and consistency. Stoke boss Tony Pulis and Bolton manager Owen Coyle will look to build on their achievements last season by reinforcing their squads. The challenge will be is how their replace their successful on-loan players such as Chelsea’s Daniel Sturridge, who returned to north London recently after a fruitful spell at the Reebok stadium.

To those who finished the season breathing a huge sigh of relief after surviving relegation, the likes of Blackburn, Wolves, West Brom and Wigan will look to ensure a relaxed end to next season. All managers besides Rovers’ Steve Kean have the experience to identify players who can come in and do a reliable job. Kean, with the backing of the Venky group will require assistance on bringing in his targets and not the ones who the owners aspire for.

The newly promoted clubs of Norwich, QPR and Swansea face a tough challenge to improve the squad that won them promotion but also bringing in Premier League players who can help them survive. It could be the ultimate challenge for Paul Lambert, Neil Warnock and Brendan Rodgers to use their managerial skills to guide their teams to gaining points for survival rather than relying on their purchases to save them.

All the summer activity will only heighten expectation for next season, nudging up excitement when the season nears and new players are ready to don their new strips for the clubs.

I predict that it will be a busy transfer window as every club will do business. However, unless Manchester City decide to gatecrash a relatively busy window with a blockbuster signing, it won’t be the most expensive. Clubs have learned that the best players to be found are those with a cheap price tag around their necks, rather than forking out huge sums for a player who may end up suffering under the weight of the price on his shoulders.

All of this activity could result in managers contributing to one of the more exciting and closest Premier League seasons.

When Sir Alex Ferguson puts the finishing touches to his battleplan in facing the might of Barcelona on Saturday, the scent of failure from the Rome 2009 final won’t be far away from his thoughts. A disappointing night it was for England’s Michael Carrick, who will have a chance to show that his recent upturn in form will be able to produce one final match defining performance.

Two years ago, Manchester United’s early moments of attacking optimism in the game were deflated instantly by a free flowing goal orchestrated by Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta, with striker Samuel Eto’o supplying the finish.

The ease with which the goal was scored seemed to trigger a mental collapse collectively in the team, as from then on, Barcelona showed their footballing skills with great beauty. Their holy midfield trinity – Iniesta, Xavi and Sergio Busquets -completely dominated their United counterparts, and their instrumental star Lionel Messi capped off a brilliant night with a rare header past the outstretched goalkeeper Edwin Van Der Sar.

As Barcelona celebrated their second European crown in four years, United were quietly exiting the stadium feeling the wounds of a 2-0 loss. The post-mortem began quickly by the various media pundits and former players. Cristiano Ronaldo suggested the tactics were wrong, his manager intimated in later months that maybe the preparation was not as smooth as it should have been.

But that night, United’s failure to impose themselves in the midfield area played right into Barcelona’s hands who took full advantage.

The experience of Ryan Giggs, the youthful exuberance of the Brazilian Anderson and the staleness provided by Carrick was the downfall for United. The latter player, who signed from Tottenham in 2006 for £18m, failed to impose himself on the game and was drowned out by the eloquence of Xavi and Iniesta’s play.

Carrick is a player who tends to play a quieter role on the pitch, coming deep to sit in front of the back four and link the play from defence to midfield. This allows him to use his excellent long range passing techniques, which in the quarter and semi final stages, were instrumental in getting his side to the final at Wembley.

At the start of the season, far from being a pivotal player in the side, Carrick was thought to be on the way out from Old Trafford after a disappointing campaign to date. But after penning a new three-year deal in March 2011, it seems to have re-invigorated a man who seemed unable to do anything right on a field before that.

But once the season proceedings edged to the business end of the season, where the non stop train in playing regular important games begins, Carrick has turned up to devastating effect.

The first performance which showed his true class was the first leg of the Champions League quarter final against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, where he supplied the ball to Giggs, who in turn fed Wayne Rooney to score and win the match.

He effortlessly glided across the pitch to quietly do his job without attracting the attention that Giggs and Rooney got for their roles in the goal.

In the semi final first leg against Schalke, he again produced another virtuoso display, pinging the ball around the park to help his side gain a tie ending advantage.

Admittedly, there was his error in the FA Cup semi final against Manchester City when he lost possession to allow Yaya Toure to sneak in and consequently score the winning goal but that can’t take away from Carrick’s recent resurgence.

But coming up against Barcelona for a second time will allow Carrick to bury the memories of Rome 2009 and finish off what has been a brilliant second half to the season for him.

Due to the way Barcelona have this well-drilled, almost army like routine of chasing after opponents as a team to retrieve the ball, it will be interesting to see how Carrick can nullify this form of attack against him and play his natural game. But if his midfield colleagues are able to relieve the load then it could give the former Tottenham man, the time and space required to influence the game.

It was a big task for Carrick to step into the shoes (and jersey) of the man he replaced, Roy Keane, but spells of inconsistency haven’t helped his cause. But if he can implement some of that Keane assertiveness which was so influential in making the Irishman one of the more formidable central midfielders of his time, then Carrick could go a long way in helping Man United lift their fourth European title.

As a defensive or deep lying midfielder, Carrick’s qualities are not as easy to see such as the ones engrained in the playing model of his soon to be ex-Manchester Ud colleague, Owen Hargreaves. The latter midfielder, who is set to leave United after an injury hit spell at Old Trafford, is visibly influencing games by clamping down on opposition players with such effectiveness that it must dawn on Ferguson how much he could do with him on Saturday.

The lack of a Hargreaves type player puts more emphasis on Carrick to deliver in a more subtle approach, working without gaining huge attention and helping his colleagues up field to score the goals that will help decide the match.

No one needs to tell Ferguson where he went wrong in Rome, but if he is to win on Saturday, it will require a tremendous, hardworking team effort to not only contain Barcelona but to attack them also. And one with which Carrick has the opportunity to banish the thoughts of 2009 and redeem himself.

Sheffield Star

An article I wrote about which gave advice to those graduates entering the world of work at the most difficult of times: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/students/it_is_all_about_getting_experience_1_284174

Author and journalist Ziauddin Sardar wrote a book titled ‘Balti Britain’ which was a semi-autobiographical look at his life and defining the identity of British Asians living in the UK: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/students/balti_britain_by_ziauddin_sardar_book_review_1_281644

Sheffield Hallam University, after years of maintaining their historical buildings, decided on a major renovation of their Collegiate Campus that included a modernised gym: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/students/get_fitter_faster_as_gym_revamped_1_241386

Working in the field of PR sounds glamourous, if you follow the lifestyle of Max Clifford but on a less public scale, the job entails alot of hardwork: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/students/fancy_a_job_in_pr_1_275640

The Government at the time in 2009 – keen to help graduates in their searches for work – announced a three month internship for students: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/students/government_help_to_graduates_1_279293

In 2009, I was asked to write for the Daily Mirror’s blog section for Manchester United: http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/premier-league-fans/man-utd/

The departure of Wilkins (right) was a big setback for Ancelotti

One of the main accusations levelled at all the riches Chelsea have had since Roman Abramovich’s takeover has been that despite all the money, you can’t buy history. However it appears by the short life cycle a manager at Chelsea has, they are becoming into the English equivalent of Spanish giants Real Madrid.

Yesterday’s sacking of Italian Carlo Ancelotti an hour after seeing his side lose their last game of the season 1-0 to Everton, was not only ruthless but an indication of the way Abramovich feels having failed to assert themselves domestically and once again, not winning the Champions League.

It means Abramovich is looking for his seventh manager in eight years and starting to bear a similar resemblance to Real Madrid’s list of short managerial reigns.

Claudio Ranieri, Jose Mourinho, Avram Grant, Luiz Felipe Scolari, Guus Hiddink and Ancelotti have all come and gone as Chelsea managers.

In Perez’s two reigns as president, the most shocking sacking came when he disposed of Vicente Del Bosque in 2003 after he had won the La Liga title. A year before, he had guided Madrid to their ninth European crown.

After taking over the helm in 2009, he appointed Chilean Manuel Pellegrini only to sack him a year later and appoint Abramovich’s first appointment – Mourinho – to try and restore Madrid’s stature in Spain and Europe.

The contrast between Chelsea’s Russian owner and the President of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, could not be any more starkly different. Whilst Abramovich has gained wealth due to successful dealings in the rich world of oil, Perez mixed in business with a short attempt at politics.

Perez supported Real Madrid and followed them in their successful period in the 1960s. Abramovich was not known for his enthusiasm for football until watching Real Madrid beat Manchester United in a Champions League knockout game at Old Trafford in 2003. It was subsequently after this match – where the Brazilian Ronaldo scored a mesmerising hat-trick – that he began to look into purchasing a club in England.

And one clear similarity is the clear desire to be recognised on the European stage. The pinnacle of football in Europe is to win the UEFA Champions League. Winning that trophy is a key to opening the door to football’s memory bank. Perez has already done that by spending millions to help Real Madrid win the Champions League in 2002. Abramovich has followed his formula but not had the results although Chelsea were one successful spot kick away from winning in Moscow against Manchester United in 2008.

Perez has had to endure a frustrating second term as president of his club, watching on as arch rivals Barcelona dominated domestically, showing the team spirit and harmonious camaraderie that Madrid lacked. The second wave of Galactico signings such as the world record deal for Cristiano Ronaldo, Brazilian Kaka and Karim Benzema have all over-shadowed a disappointing spell for the club. Winning the Copa Del Rey this season by beating Barcelona is not seen as a major achievement for the club.

What is important for any football club to achieve success that has a strong financial background, is when a well-rated manager has been appointed, to give that coach the time he needs to implement his ideas and progression for the club. But the unrealistic and strangling demands made by the owners does nothing in achieving their goals, in fact it does the complete opposite.

The money spent by the clubs only heightens expectations and the signing of Fernando Torres from Liverpool was meant to re-invigorate Chelsea’s season but it put undue pressure for Ancelotti to find a system to accommodate their star signing. But any manager would have found it difficult to place Torres into a team mid-way through the season. That’s why Torres will come good next year as during a pre-season, the next Chelsea coach will have time to devise a formation that gets the best out of the Spanish forward.

But it seems these little football nuggets of understanding the game and its approaches seem completely incomprehensible to owners. They seem unable to grasp that thinking logically in football and providing stability can go a long way to achieving the success they crave.

Despite dismissing Ancelotti, Chelsea can’t hide the fact that their squad needs some serious refurbishment. The irony is that the Italian was keen to oversee a transition in the squad age, mixing experience with the energy of youth. By signing Brazilians Ramires and David Luiz, he hoped this summer to take the squad forward.

Having signed a three year deal when taking over at Stamford Bridge in 2009, the likeable Ancelotti had made history at the club by winning the Double in his first season in charge. He also adhered himself to the fans and Abramovich by playing the style of football that the owner wished his first appointment, Jose Mourinho, had done more regularly in his time managing the club. But failures in Europe in the last two campaigns – losing to eventual winners Inter Milan and this year to Manchester United – has seen a burgeoning fall in his popularity with the man who owns the club.

It has been clear for a while now that Abramovich was planning to get rid of Ancelotti and the latter has remained dignified in his approach to work, well knowing that the axe was soon to fall.

The setting of an away dressing room was the place for Ancelotti to be sent packing but Chelsea must bring in a manager who can be given time to bring continued success. Or end up on the road of instability by not giving managers the time needed.