Managers always seem to have a lot to say about the fixture list, particularly managers of the top four clubs. Generally speaking, these clubs are competing for the title, progressing in the latter stages of the cups, and the poor scheduling of the fixture list is something which adds great stress to the managers. Too many games to play in not enough time.
The latest manager (although I do use that term loosely when referring to this man) to complain about the fixture lists is Avram Grant. Chelsea were set to play Wigan at home on Monday, April 14th, then travel to Goodison Park five days later on Saturday, April 19th. However, for the purpose of televising the game, the Everton match has been brought forward to Thursday, April 17th, just three days after Chelsea play Wigan.
“I don’t understand why we need to play on a Thursday,” said Grant. “It’s unfair. When we come to the end of the season we need an equal situation for all teams and now they have an advantage on us. We need to fight in any way that we can to make it a fair decision.”
Whilst I would not be happy to see United play league games on a Monday and a Thursday of the same week, I would be rather pleased to find out that this fixture change would give us a lengthier rest before what could become the defining game of our season.
Before Chelsea vs United at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea will have more days to rest than United. The week leading up to this clash is when the European Cup semi-finals are scheduled to take place, meaning Chelsea could have as many as 6 days rest between their Champions League game and facing United, whilst we could have as little as 3 days rest.
United’s fixtures between now and the end of the season:
Roma vs United 01-04-2008
5 days
Boro vs United 06-04-2008
3 days
United vs Roma 09-04-2008
4 days
Man Utd vs Arsenal 13-04-2008
6 days
Blackburn vs Man Utd 19-04-2008
European Cup semi in finals 22/23-04-2008 (3/4 days)
7 days
Chelsea vs Man Utd 26-04-2008
7 days
Man Utd vs West Ham 03-05-2008
8 days
Wigan vs Man Utd 11-05-2008
Fenerbahce vs Chelsea 02-04-2008
3 days
Man City vs Chelsea 05-04-2008
4 days
Chelsea vs Fenerbahce 09-04-2008
5 days
Chelsea vs Wigan 14-04-2008
3 days
Everton vs Chelsea 17-04-2008
European Cup semi-final 22/23-04-2008 (5/6 days)
9 days
Chelsea vs Man Utd 26-04-2008
7 days
Newcastle vs Chelsea 03-05-2008
8 days
Chelsea vs Bolton 11-05-2008
Whilst I don’t condone the Premier League’s decision to play games on Thursdays (although you might remember United and Chelsea fought out a 2-2 draw on a Friday a few years ago), I feel we’re all in a compromised position. We sold our soul to Sky and now we have little room to complain. The revenue Sky Sports dishes out every season keeps clubs functioning, and whilst this does not apply to Roman FC, it certainly applied to Chelsea of old, who were struggling to keep their heads above water despite the millions of quid they were handed from Sky Sports every year. Of course, this is not something Grunt will know much about, but Chelsea’s financial situation was rather dire before Abramovich bought the club, seriously contemplating bankruptcy, and if not for the television revenue, would have certainly been bankrupt.
I’m not entirely sure what my preference over our fixtures and Chelsea’s fixtures would be though. Whilst I understand Grant’s complaint, I’m not entirely sure I can agree United are now put in an advantageous position. Chelsea vs United is a six pointer, a game that, as things stand, could put Chelsea just 2 points behind us in the league if they win. To be handed what could be up to a 3 day extra break over United could be crucial, particularly when taking the Champions League semis in to consideration. Chelsea are likely to see off Fenerbahce, meaning they will face either Arsenal or Liverpool in the semi-final. Liverpool are somewhat of a bogie team for Chelsea in this competition, so after a draining European game, the blues will be well appreciative of extra rest. United will be likely to face Barcelona if we make it to the semi-finals, but could have as little as 3 days between playing the European giants and travelling to Stamford Bridge.
This season has every potential to go down to the wire, which is frustrating and puzzling when comparing the difference in quality of football between us and Chelsea, and all it could take is one match not going to plan for the title race to be blown wide open. Maybe there is more value to Grant’s complaint than he’s been given credit for, but not in the sense that he intended it.
Which team’s fixture days would you prefer?
Man Utd News 24/7
not sure who’s fixture i would prefer.. however i am sure I would not want to be Chelsea heading into the home stretch with Grant at the helm. Embarrassing
“The latest manager (although I do use that term loosely when referring to this man)”
Similarly, jsos said “i am sure I would not want to be Chelsea heading into the home stretch with Grant at the helm. Embarrassing”
I am not quite sure I understand. Other than the fact that he is the manager of Chelsea, what have you got against Grant? I am not solely accusing you, it is a common trait of the media, who seem desperate for the man to fail- hence why a Carling Cup Final defeat was labelled as an utter crisis, whereas noone takes any notice of the fact that Chelsea, who looked down and out when Grant took over, are now second, with a much easier run-in than us.
Why are you adverse to calling him a manager, Scott? I normally agree with everything you say, for me, you are the voice of rationality, but this seems unfair. Is it because you find the man boring? I’d assume not- in that case you would have to hate, say, Paul Scholes, or other less charismatic figures. Is it his nationality? I don’t think so, you don’t seem to be the prejudiced type. Is it his managerial ability? Considering his afore mentioned transformation of Chelsea, I’d assume not. The only thing Mourinho had over him was that he got the team motivated for the big games, which Grant has not been able to do as yet. But, again, that seems to be changing- they did just beat Arsenal, after all.
Please do enlighten me, this is not intended to be an attack, because I do not personally feel affection for the guy, being a passionate United supporter who lives in London and so has to deal with Chelsea fans daily.
Similarly, jsos, I very much doubt Chelsea are embarrassed. Certainly the supporters I know aren’t. They’re just delighted to be in this position, having been so far down the table when Grant took over, and going through periods (eg January) when so many of their players were injured / absent through the ACN.
Scott: On further reading I realise you may have said that particular quote in reference to Abramovich being in charge. This demeans but doesn’t destroy the overall point I was trying to make, as, if I recollect correctly, you have criticised Grant quite severely in the past without justification.
Sam – I don’t hate Grant, not by any means. I have nothing personal against him. It’s quite the opposite I suppose. I’m delighted he’s manager of Chelsea.
I, like many Chelsea fans, believe the guy is an incompetent moron, who has no place being in charge of such a high profile club. “You don’t know what you’re doing” the Shed End at Stamford Bridge sing to Grant. John Terry gives the team talks ffs! lol.
On a more practical level though, Avram Grant does not have his coaching badges.
Firstly, agree with the above comments. Grant is doing a blooming good job at Chelsea in the league this year. they ARE uniteds closest challengers and would be even closer if it hadn’t of been for Mourinhos disastrous start to the season, and they are doing much better than the so-called great managers Wenger and Benitez!!!
As to what he’s saying – i think he’s got a point to complain that Sky have changed the fixtures around and only given his team a 3 day break. it’s ridiculous! But then again it happens to all the top 4. KIts the price we pay for being popular, and for still being in the CL. So no, i don’t think Utd have an unfair advantage over Chelsea. these things even themselves out!
I prefer Chelsea’s title run in if I’m honest. We have to play Chelsea and Arsenal and of the top four Chelsea have to play United.
So if the games between the top four are all draws, the remaing games mean we’ll be playing 3 away and 1 at home and Chelsea 2 a piece.
In Europe Chelsea have to go to Turkey but Fenerbache are hardly AS Roma.
Despite this, I do really believe we are playing the best football, offensive and defensive so I fancy us to take at least 2 points off Chelsea and even a win at home against Arsenal.. though it will be a lot tougher than the FA Cup game!
Scott- I am glad to see what I always expected, that you do have a rational argument. I accept the coaching badge point completely. The Terry point too.
As for the Chelsea fans, many of those who sing these songs should not be quoted to back up an argument- they are also the people who sing anti-semitic chants to him. Also, the most vocal instance of “You don’t know what you’re doing” came against Arsenal, when he took of Ballack and someone else for Belleti and Anelka, who were both crucial in their comeback.
I stand by my original point- Chelsea, despite many more problems this season than us- have made up significant ground since Grant took over. He may not be inspirational, but his tactical nouse seems to be spot on.
So what if Scott does hate Grant, and consider him to be an embarrassment as a manager, THAT IS HIS OPINION – SAM – and it is just as valid as yours. Message boards are for people to share their opinions, and we are not all going to agree with each other. If your a Chelsea fan and don’t like it Sam, then you have an option of not coming onto United forums. I would stay away from Chelsea ones if I couldn’t accept their viewpoints, even though I may disagree with them.
Anyway, Chelsea have got an easy run in, 4 home games and 2 away from home. I would say they have better odds than United who have 4 away games and two home games left. Also the teams Chelsea are facing, apart from United should be easy home wins. I think Grant is just making excuses in case Chelsea lose. Come on you REDS.
Have to agree with Scott on this one, its not about having anything against Grant personally but he hardly fits the criteria for a top four manager does he? Nepotism rather than merit saw him take over from Mourinho and from the minute he dribbled his way, open-mouthed and clueless, through the first press conference, it was blatantly obvious our days of shining the silver were over. Sam, you say ‘the only thing Jose had over him was that he got the team motivated for the big games’ as if its a trivial difference when actually these big games can make the difference between success and failure – and its these big games that’ve highlighted his failings as a manager. He clearly lacks the necessary skills to motivate and as for tactical awareness, woefully inept just doesn’t quite sum it up.
Yes we’re 2nd right now but I’d have to say the gap in points flatters us. I mean, have you seen some of the football we’ve played lately?? lol. Saying ‘they did just beat Arsenal’ won’t get anyone who saw our ‘performance’ against Boro particularly excited.
In short, the man is a charlatan and you’re right in a way, we’re not necessarily embarrassed – we’re mortified.
D, you make some good points, though how has he managed to transform your league season if he’s “clueless” and “tactically inept”
Craig, I think you’re being slightly unfair to me. If I quote something I said earlier to Scott, “Please do enlighten me, this is not intended to be an attack, because I do not personally feel affection for the guy, being a passionate United supporter who lives in London and so has to deal with Chelsea fans daily.” I believe this answers both points you raise. I merely wanted to know Scott’s rationale, I wanted to know his opinion, as I felt he had made harsh comments without justification. I think Scott understood what I was getting at, as he didn’t respond in the way you just have done, but instead by tackling the issues I raised, and giving his opinion. Once he gave it, I conceded some ground, but still argued one point. I let him have his opinion, but gave my, contradictory one. That is how a debate works.
Going back to your other point about me being a Chelsea fan, I’m offended you don’t recognise me as your partner in crime in our argument against Grognard on the red rants forum a few days ago! I’m United through and through- it doesn’t mean I can’t defend a member of the opposition if I feel they’ve been harshly done by.
Sam – agree with D. Chelsea are doing well in spite of Grant, not a credit to him. His influence on the pitch can bee seen in poor substitutions which highlight the fact the he is clearly out of his depth. It is an embarrassment that a top flight team like Chelsea could end up being managed by someone who is so ill-qualified.
A credit to the blues for bouncing back after Mourinho, but I think to credit that resilience and following success to Grant is a novice mistake.
Summed up nicely jsos.
Sam, did I miss something? How exactly has he transformed our league season? We were hardly fighting relegation when he took over and from the position we were in my mother could get us 2nd in the table with that squad – we’d probably play better football as well tbh.
Back to the question…
What intrigues me is that Avram was a lot quieter when Tottenham had to play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge 48 Hours after a European game in January… there was nowt said about fairness then. So why now?
Chelsea-following mates of mine reckon one of the main problems with Grant is his tactical nievety – most of his substitutions are baffling (taking Joe Cole off against Tottenham is the most recent one that springs to mind), and that his record in big matches is woeful.
To this end, I really couldn’t give a monkeys about Chelsea – I would wager that United will be at least five points clear come the Chelsea game… current form suggests that… and this will, of course mean that we could win it there… Bring it on.
Sam – Oops, sorry mate. I didn’t realise you were our Sam, from Red Rants. Reading your post, it seemed like you were a Chelsea fan, remonstrating with Scott about his opinions. It did seem to me that we had a disenchanted Chelsea fan on a United forum. Guess I am so used to all the gooners and scousers who come on this forum to tear apart our opinions. I think somebody said recently is this forum now called the Republic of Man-goonia – lol. So I thought a Chelsea fan was just getting in on the act. That’ll teach me won’t it Sam.
I don’t like Grant actually, just can’t take to him, nothing more than that. But I don’t think Chelsea are hard done by, in fact I would love the FA to let Chelsea delay their matches by as long as they like, cos that would be to our advantage – haha!. Apologies once again Sam.
No worries, Craig.
Jsos, D; only time will tell, and I would love it if Chelsea were to sink to a new low under Grant, so proving me wrong. All I mean to say is that as things stand, whether we credit it to Grant or not (I did, maybe I was naive) Chelsea’s league form is better off (maybe ‘transformed’ is too exaggerated) than it was before. Whilst I may have been naive to credit that to Grant, I think others are, by the same token, too quick to slag him off, based on similar evidence of less than a season. I don’t fully accept the point on his awful substitutions, and would refer once again to the Arsenal match. However I recognise that I don’t watch Chelsea as much as people such as Whiteside10′s “Chelsea-following mates”, so they are in a better position to make a balanced evaluation than me. I just feel like everyone is incredibly quick to blame the guy when anything goes wrong for Chelsea, but never willing to recognise his merit if anything goes right, instead putting it down to the “quality of the players”.
I do agree with Sam. Couple of months ago it was all but a two hourse race between us and Arse, but look at our position now. Well I believe we all underestimated Chelski and we still do. Arse game is a good example of how that stupid looking man made a big difference. All his talk about chelski being a new team and playing attacking footgall is nonsense, but they do win.
Did anyone defending Grant watch Chelsea’s win against Boro? They were fucking dreadful.
I definitely think Chelsea are a team to look out for, and had said even when Arsenal were 2nd in the league that Chelsea were going to be the ones pushing us. They have quality players and they have enough fighting spirit to pull themselves along.
But is that credit to Grant? If Chelsea win nothing this season, after making a Cup final and losing to Barnsley in the FA Cup, will your opinions on Grant change then?
What I said in this article is no disrespect to Chelsea, but to Grant. Sooner or later I believe he will be totally exposed as the no mark I think he is.
lets leave the grant bashing utnill the end of the season if we win the pl id be happy if we win the cl id be delighted
but if we win nothing and grant wins something then well all look v foolish
I have to admit as a blue we are a little unsure asto how well Chelsea will finish, we are stuttering and it’s probably still post Jose blues.
United have played scintillating football this season and you would expect them to coast home from here, but where there is life there is hope. Arsenal could take a point a point up north,
but United unlikely to lose to both London clubs.
Goal difference is another point to United, therefore Chelsea need to win every game and wait for United to falter. IT’S ALOT TO HOPE FOR.. In truth most Chelsea fans are delighted we are where we are this season and it has made the title more exciting
Well, that’s a very funny and odd picture!
Well me and me chelski mate were having this discussion abt this before …
This was his view ‘U throw in the best chelsea 11 with just a pre match talk , they will perform’
Chelsea players are all on the peak of experiences . They know what to do and how to do . As far as i can see Grant as done nothing so far . Even a kiddo would have replaced it to 4-4-2 against arsenal .
If u had seen Carling Cup finals extra time , i never saw Grant giving one piece of instruction !
His record is also pathetic against the Top teams considering the squad he has .
Defeats against Tottenham Utd Arsenal Draw against Everton Pool Villa (2 Times) etc.
The players are very good playing at their peak , thats how they are challenging us so well ….