ENGLISH FOOTBALL PRESS
English Football Press on the England Team
by Doug Martin
The England Football team & The Press/Media:
The biggest problem for England is the press. A small handful of journalists who make out that they represent the country’s football supporters with their appalling and bias reporting. They expect England to win every game 5-0 and play like the Brazil of 1970. Despite what they might tell you England have never been a world force (apart from 1966). We do not have the track record of Brazil, Germany, Argentina or even France. The pressure put upon the players is just stupid. It doesn’t help anybody bar their ego’s (and they are big).
An example would be how they treated Bobby Robson who is now recognised as being the best manager we have had since Alf Ramsey. Before the 1990 World Cup he and his England team were hounded in the press despite the fact they had qualified from a very difficult group. Only when they got to the semi final against West Germany did they back off. After England had come so close to getting to the final did the consequences of the press’s behaviour come home to roost. Before the world cup had started the FA had announced that it would not be renewing Bobby Robson’s contract which was due to run out in 1991. This was the FA reacting to the anti Robson feeling in the papers and not results. Robson duly signed a contract with PSV in Holland to start the following season. After we had had our best world cup since 1966 the FA approached Robson and asked him to stay. He declined because he was a man of his word and would not break his contract with PSV despite the fact that he wanted to stay as England manager.
The press who had created this situation promptly said that Robson had walked out on England and deserted them. Robson sued the relevant papers and won. This was hardly reported by the press. I don’t need to say or comment or their behaviour as it is there for all to see.
Well done lads. Nice one.
They hounded Glen Hoddle out but never said a word against Terry Venables in comparison even though his background is and was very dodgy. When Sven Goran Eriksson was appointed manager and to celebrate they took their behaviour to a new level.
From the start they did not like Sven because he was not English and wouldn’t help them with their jobs by meeting them and telling tales on the players for their papers. He believed in being loyal to his players. Decent reasons methinks. From this time on they took every opportunity they could to complain about his playing style, his tactics and more importantly his personal life.
Things came to head just before the last world cup when the “Screws of the world” decided to try and set up Sven by using their infamous sheikh to set him up with hypothetical questions and then printing them as facts. They claimed to have taped the whole conversation (Isn’t that illegal) but when Sven’s lawyers asked for a copy of the tape they refused. Wonder why???
All of the above actions by the media have not helped one bit and with The TV Stations always reporting the papers viewpoint we have a very dangerous situation of their being little impartial reporting or viewpoint on the above.
Will things change?
I don’t think so. They will get worse unless England win the world cup. Oh well more chance of that methinks.
Douglas Martin
March 2009
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