FOR THOSE WHOSE 2ND TEAM IS ENGLAND

All the tedium of international week.

From the Evening News:

Peter Taylor is hoping to have United youngster Kieran Richardson available when the England Under-21s play-off for a place in the UEFA Championship.

“We would still love Kieran Richardson and Darren Bent back, they are very important players. The stronger we can be the better, and Sven knows it's nice for us to reach the finals so I've no doubt he will help with Kieran and Darren if he can.

"If they are very much in his plans for the seniors then I totally understand that."


James Lawton in the Independent:

”The unavoidable truth is that the dropping of Ferdinand was what the Americans call a "no brainer", and this status could only have been confirmed by reports that the player has been less than a monument to zeal in training over the last few days.

“Earlier in the week he had been droning on about always setting himself the highest standards, but, like everyone else, occasionally slipping a notch or two, which wasn't a calamity, just something to be rectified, presumably somewhere between the lunch counter at Harvey Nichols and some late-night, fancy watering hole.

”When the censure of the Ice Man this week at last fell upon a member of the exclusive section of the England club, it was appropriate that the victim should be Ferdinand and not just because he has been playing recently for both England and Manchester United with something not much short of suicidal nonchalance. It is also true that no one, albeit indirectly, had been quite such a factor in the sense that the coach had surrendered all effective control of the team.”