No place like home?

It's ironic that at a time when the 'grow your own' movement has never been more popular (at least amongst gardeners), the Premier League have decided to impose strict new rules on its clubs to ensure they, too, use home-grown produce. Sorry - 'talent'.

All very noble too, except when you look into the make-up of most Premier League clubs, you'll find they're already largely abiding by the rules anyway.

According to Premier League chief Richard Scudamore, all clubs from the 2010-11 season onwards should have at least eight 'home-grown' players in a squad of 25. And by 'home-grown', that means a player who, between the ages of 16 and 21, have been registered for at least three years with an English or Welsh club.

A big shift in the way Premier League teams will line up? Not necessarily. Here's how the Arsenal team would look using players that already fall into line with the new rules.

Many familiar names are present, so much so that you'd be hard pushed to notice any major difference with the teams Arsenal put out at present anyway.

So is this the latest example of the powers-that-be tinkering unnecessarily with the beautiful game, or is it the work of a bunch of visionaries?

Your thoughts, as ever, are most welcome...

The Sound Of Football Podcast 6

The latest edition of The Sound Of Football Podcast is now available.

This week, the chaps revel in the glory of England's qualification for the 2010 World Cup, discuss the rightness of UEFA's decision to overturn Eduardo's ban and ponder the absurdity of Emmanuel Adebayor's relationship with his old Arsenal chums.

You can download or listen to the podcast via the SoundCloud widget below. Alternatively, you can subscribe via the your reader of choice or via iTunes.
Sound Of Football Episode 6 by soundoffootball

Midweek TV Preview: 14 - 17 September 2009

(All times - UK)

Monday 14th September

19:45 MK Dons v Norwich City, League One Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports HD1
Another mammoth Midweek TV Preview begins with an England v Scotland clash - in managerial terms, at least. Paul Ince's MK Dons and Paul Lambert's Norwich are enjoying similar form at the moment, but Norwich need the points more after a poor start. Who can we blame for that, eh Mr. Lambert?

19:45 Falkirk v Aberdeen, Scottish Premier League, ESPN/ESPN HD
Falkirk's win over Aberdeen back in January was their first against the Dons for 14 years. With three straight defeats so far this season, the next run could be just beginning for Falkirk.

Tuesday 15th September

19:45 Juventus v Bordeaux, UEFA Champions League Group A, Sky Sports Red Button
And so another Champions League group stage gets underway and here's a cracker to begin with. Both teams currently sit at the top of their respective domestic leagues but Bordeaux look a bit 'hit-and-miss' thus far, so we'll go for Juve to win this one.

19:45 Maccabi Haifa v Bayern Munich, UEFA Champions League Group A, Sky Sports Red Button
After an unsteady start, Bayern finally look to have got their act together in the Bundesliga, scoring eight goals in their last two games. Haifa, meanwhile, are the only team in the Israeli team to win all their first three games so far this season. Sadly it won't convince us of something other than a win for Van Gaal and Co.

19:45 Besiktas v Manchester Utd, UEFA Champions League Group B, Sky Sports 2/Sky Sports HD2
The last time Besiktas played an English side in the Champions League, they lost 8-0 to Liverpool. The way Besiktas are playing these days, Man U might come close to matching it.

19:45 Wolfsburg v CSKA Moscow, UEFA Champions League Group B, Sky Sports Red Button
Well this is all a bit unexpected. Reigning Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg currently lie 10th in the table and suffered a third straight defeat at the weekend against Leverkusen. CSKA, meanwhile, are on course for another Champions League place next year, thus making this a fascinating meeting of two well-matched sides.

19:45 FC Zurich v Real Madrid, UEFA Champions League Group C, Sky Sports Red Button
You won't need Derren Brown to predict the outcome of this one. If you're feeling particularly dim, however, you can catch him on Twitter at @derrenbrown.

19:45 Marseille v AC Milan, UEFA Champions League Group C, Sky Sports Red Button
Ah, memories of the 1993 Final abound, but these two teams are very different from the ones that ruled the continent 16 years ago. Leonardo has had a fairly torrid start to his managerial run at Milan while Deschamps hasn't quite won everyone over at Marseille either, so expect an intriguing encounter at the Stade Velodrome tonight.

19:45 Atletico Madrid v APOEL Nicosia, UEFA Champions League Group D, Sky Sports Red Button
The Cypriots make their debut in the group stage this season and with Atletico making such a poor start to the La Liga season, they might just stand a chance of picking up a point. No more than that, though.

19:45 Chelsea v Porto, UEFA Champions League Group D, Sky Sports Xtra/Sky Sports HD3
A mouth-watering tie between two teams in tip-top form. Man U snuffed out Porto's run last year at the quarter-final stage, while Chelsea had that sombre, quiet affair against Barcelona in the semis. Our 'Must Watch Match' for Tuesday.

Wednesday 16th September

19:45 Liverpool v Debreceni, UEFA Champions League Group E, ITV1/ITV HD
A proud day for Debreceni as they become the first Hungarian side to reach the Champions League group stage. A baptism of fire beckons as they travel to last season's quarter-finalists.

19:45 Lyon v Fiorentina, UEFA Champions League Group E, Sky Sports Red Button
An exact re-run of the opening Group F fixture from last year. Lyon came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 on that occasion, Piquionne and Benzema equalising the brace from Gilardino. Two more teams that should provide a fabulous hour-and-a-half of great football.

19:45 Dynamo Kiev v Rubin Kazan, UEFA Champions League Group F, Sky Sports Red Button
This could be Shevchenko's first run out in the Champions League for Kiev in ten years. The Ukrainians were never quite as successful after the former Chelsea man left, so there'll be some crossed fingers tonight when the Russian debutants pay them a visit.

19:45 Inter Milan v Barcelona, UEFA Champions League Group F, Sky Sports Red Button
No excuses for missing this one. Top billing is assured as Mourinho's men host the European champions, and of course the big talking point will be the appearance of Eto'o and Ibrahimovic playing for the wrong teams. Inter's home form against Spanish teams is exemplary, so Guardiola has a lot to do if he's to get so much as a point out of this fixture.

19:45 Sevilla v Unirea Urziceni, UEFA Champions League Group G, Sky Sports Red Button
Urziceni are from Romania and are another bunch of new boys who, presumably, will suffer considerable mental scarring from playing one of the top Spanish teams in their first game. The bookies have them down at 17/1 to win, and we think that's being quite generous under the circumsances.

19:45 Stuttgart v Rangers, UEFA Champions League Group G, Sky Sports Xtra/Sky Sports HD3
These two teams keep bumping into each other in the Champions League. In 2007/08, Rangers finished third in their group, one place above Stuttgart, while in 2003/04 Rangers propped up the group table as Stuttgart went on to be beaten by Chelsea in the first knockout round. Stuttgart's current form is something of a worry as they haven't won a match in any competition for almost a month, and that was against Timisoara in the previous round of the Champions League. An ideal opportunity for high-flying Rangers to catch them cold, then.

19:45 Olympiakos v AZ Alkmaar, UEFA Champions League Group H, Sky Sports Red Button
After Louis Van Gaal's departure in the summer, it's Ronald Koeman that has the honour of leading AZ out for their group stage debut against old hands Olympiakos. As any Ipswich Town supporter will tell you, AZ did once reach the UEFA Cup Final in 1981, but that's been about all to speak of as far as honours are concerned. Against an Olympiakos team that are tough to beat at home, this may not yet be the start of a new era for the Dutch side.

19:45 Standard Liege v Arsenal, UEFA Champions League Group H, Sky Sports 2/Sky Sports HD2
The Gunners whipped Standard Liege 7-0 back in 1993 on their way to winning the Cup Winners' Cup, but we won't expect such shameless ruthlessness this time. According to Alan Hansen, Arsenal have the worst defence of any of England's top four teams and if he says that's so, it must be true.

Thursday 17th September

18:00 Hapoel Tel-Aviv v Celtic, UEFA Europa League Group C, ESPN
Celtic's stuttering form of late might offer Hapoel a chink of light in this one, especially as they've only had one defeat in their last ten games. There's also the small matter of Celtic's single win in their last 24 away games in Europe too. Could be a frustrating night for the Bhoys.

18:00 CSKA Sofia v Fulham, UEFA Europa League Group E, ITV4
Roy Hodgson's side look like they mean business in this, their first ever European campaign. A great 2-1 win over Everton on Sunday will be ideal preparation as they face the team currently top of the Bulgarian First Division and in red-hot form.

20:05 Fenerbahce v FC Twente, UEFA Europa League Group H, ESPN
Nothing to chose between these two teams who are currently playing at the top of their game. Steve McLaren will be hoping to re-enact Middlesbrough's UEFA Cup heroics of 2005/06, but he can't have hoped for a trickier opener than this one.

20:05 Everton v AEK Athens, UEFA Europa League Group I, Five
Something of a concern for David Moyes will be the way his team let a 1-0 lead turn into a 2-1 defeat at Fulham, but Everton look like a team dead set on doing well in Europe this season and we're hoping for another rousing performance tonight.

20:05 Athletic Bilbao v Austria Wien, UEFA Europa League Group L, ITV4
'Group L'? This Europa League is fast turning into the kind of Subbuteo tournament I used to organise as a kid. Anyway, this might be a candidate for 'Match You Won't Be Watching Tonight', but it shouldn't be. Bilbao have bagged a maximum six points so far in La Liga (albeit against beatable opposition) so catch them at their prime while they're playing an Austria Vienna side that won't be troubling the statisticians in this campaign.

Such a carry on, Emmanuel

What to make of Emmanuel Adebayor? From hero to villain and back again twice, the Manchester City striker is deceptively difficult to get any kind of handle on.

The scorer of 62 goals in 114 appearances for Arsenal, Adebayor left the Emirates Stadium for Eastlands in the summer as one of Man City's many high-profile signings. He also left under rather a cloud, some fans saying he was lazy while others cast him as a temperamental and disruptive influence on the team.

Whatever he was (or is), Adebayor's switch to join Mark Hughes' team has reinvigorated his career, and indeed Manchester City's fortunes. In his first four games this season, the Togolese forward has bagged three goals, but just as neutral football fans everywhere were starting to re-evaluate his exciting play and goalscoring genius, Adebayor went and shot himself in the foot.

Yesterday's match between Arsenal and Manchester City saw Adebayor pick up his fourth goal of the season, but it was his post-goal celebration that made all the headlines. A 90-yard run back upfield to where the Arsenal supporters were situated, followed by a slide on his knees in front of them was at best inflammatory and at worst downright irresponsible. Only a matter of weeks after the hooliganism outside Upton Park, Adebayor couldn't have chosen a worse time to incite the fans that once revered him but now hate him over and above anyone wearing a Tottenham Hotspur shirt.



Somewhat unsurprisingly, referee Mark Clattenburg awarded Adebayor a yellow card with the potential for a further lengthy ban by the FA to come. Adebayor claims he got caught up in the emotion of the moment and has since apologised for his overexuberant celebration, but the damage has already been done, one feels.

Yet was this a chance to metaphorically stick two fingers up to the Arsenal fans that Adebayor found too irresistible to miss? Is it justifiable to suggest that the extreme opinions of a minority of Arsenal fans has polluted the minds of many others? Certainly the verbal treatment Adebayor received yesterday was far from pleasant and one could understand his eagerness to lash out at those who have been detrimental to his name. That said of course, there are ways and means to do so and running the entire length of the pitch to parade gleefully in front of them isn't one of them.

Elsewhere in the match, Adebayor caused further controversy with his rash reaction to a 50-50 challenge with Robin Van Persie that left the Dutch international bleeding from a cut near to his left eye. Van Persie's crude challenge won him the ball but Adebayor flicked his boot out at Van Persie in an act of petulance that will give the FA more evidence with which to suspend or fine him.

Even here, one has to note that Adebayor was himself challenged strongly only moments earlier by Van Persie and no doubt felt inclined to exact some revenge on his challenger, but that's all by the by. The 2008 African Player of the Year has much to learn about controlling his emotions and doesn't react well to the many trials and tribulations of the modern game, but unless he addresses those issues, we and Manchester City are likely to see a lot less of him in the future. The FA will soon see to that.