Danny Sturridge not named in full England squad shocker, Danny Ward is temporarily out of here and Phil Gartside gives us the numbers.
Right, let’s get it on.
I’m sitting here waiting for Mrs X’s Next delivery. This stops me from doing other things, like sitting here doing nothing. Still, keeps you on your toes, eh?
Let’s all stand up and applaud the three Bolton players who have got themselves into the England U-21 squad. Daniel Sturridge, Fabrice Muamba and Mark Davies have all been called up by Psycho for the games against Denmark and Iceland.
Danny and ‘Not So’ Fab have been pretty much regulars for the U-21 side for the past couple of years, but for Mark Davies this is the first time that has had gained any kind of international recognition since the William Gallas assault of last January forced him out of the England U-21 squad a month later. It is testament to him that, even though St Owen persists in selecting the under performing Muamba, he has still got Pearce’s attention.
Bolton’s other Danny, Danny Ward, has gone off on loan to Huddersfield Town for the rest of the season. There were rumours that he would return to Coventry City, to play alongside convicted sex felon Marlon King, but the sacking of Aidy Boothroyd would have put paid to that and a move to a club flying high in League One is probably the better move. Danny did well last season at Swindon and playing in a winning team will do him good, as it did when Swindon went to the play-off final last year.
At the beginning of the season I was expecting him to be breaking into the first team, and told Four Four Two as much in their pre season preview (back copies still available). However, trying to break into a forward line that had SuperKev, Klasnic, Elmander and then Sturridge in front of him, coupled with two separate injuries that have restricted him this season, have left Danny at about the same position that he was at this time last year.
Of the deal, the manager said:
‘It is a good opportunity for Danny to go and play first team football. Huddersfield are well placed in the league table and their manager Lee Clark has got them playing some good football.‘
Lee Clark is considered to be a good, up and coming manager and, if we are to look to the day that St Owen decides his future lies away from T’Reebok, Clark would be one of those that I would prefer to replace him. His team performed admirably at Arsenal in the cup and were minutes away from taking them back to the Galpharm. However, the day that Coyle leaves is, obviously, a long way away.
Of that day, Big Phil told Tweedle and Tweedle on Talk Sport yesterday that it would have to be a special job for the manager to leave Bolton and that it would be very difficult for him and his family to leave the area. He also, half jokingly you’d expect, said that there aren’t that many bigger jobs at the moment.
Some Arsenal fans are starting to mention Coyle as a replacement for Wenger. Irony sometimes springs up and hits you in the face where you least expect it. Then again, there would be some form of symmetry if that ever took place, seeing as how Wenger replaced a former Bolton manager at Highbury.
The FA have announced that they will make a decision on the date for the semi final once Citeh have been knocked out played Dynamo Kiev. I’d still expect us to be the Saturday game, not least because I can only make the Sunday game and that’d be just bloody typical. In the same interview, the chairman said that he’d be looking at 35,000 tickets for the game, and as one of the FA’s top knobs, you’d have thought he’d have an ear or two to the ground. ITV and ESPN are probably still smacking each other around like two ten pound whores looking for a trick down the back streets of Moss Side to see who gets the other game.
I’d prefer to be on ESPN, if only to avoid seeing Adrian Chiles gurn himself into a frenzy over Andy Townsend’s tactical nous, before trying to look Gareth Southgate in the face rather than look at another one of his 1960’s pimp daddy shirts.
Plus, ESPN are more likely to have Big Sam.
Right, I’m off to see if I can find a Bolton youth team player who does more than wake, train, play on his X-Box, bang out some toons and then go back to sleep again.
It may be a long search.
Until tomorrow, da big dog is outta here.