Springsteen saves Glastonbury

The best Glastonbury ever? I think maybe Michael Eavis should hand over the reins to his daughter now rather than in a few years if he truly believes that. No way was it the best ever - in fact, it was probably one of the worst. Turgid acts galore and no spark of invention with mediocrity ruling the day.

Thank God then for the Boss. Yes, Brucey babe came, he saw and he conquered. His set was an oasis in the desert of crap that covered the three days (and I don't mean the mud). His set steamrolled over the drab, dull and mind-achingly boring and overrrated acts that had gone (Lily Allen etc) and those still to come (yes, we are looking at you, Blur). I thought one of the most telling comments of the whole weekend came when Lily Allen was asked what she thought of Bruce. She replied: 'Old'. It did not reflect well - if the boot were on the other foot, she would have been well pissed off if a group of people had been asked what they thought of Lily Allen, I bet. Especially as the most likely one-worder would surely be: 'Privileged'. Yep, singing songs of dismay, regret and hardship when you are born with a silver spoon in your mouth; a junior member of a showbiz dynasty. Also I thought Damon Albarn was arrogant and too full of himself - as if he were a genuine rock icon rather than just a shadow of Liam Gallagher. And weren't Blur always that really? A shadowplay of Oasis, in reality not fit to lick the Mancunians' boots?


The Boss made a connection with the crowd and gave what was arguably HIS best performance ever. My favourite band ever is The Clash and Springsteen almost brought a tear to my eyes - he was a double for the late great Joe Strummer - and the set was spot on, with a mix of the classics (Thunder Run, The River etc) and the hits (Glory Days, Dancing In The Heart) and the oddities (including the haunting Outlaw Pete).

I note that a lot of people have been knocking the BBC for sending 427 operatives to the festival. Well, the end result was worth it - excellent coverage throughout. If they are going to blow our money, better on the biggest festival in the world - and something that matters..ie music - than the likes of Ascot or some remote outreach programmes. The one area I would quibble with is the Beeb's too easy backing down over the demands of the bands - ie not showing all Bruce's set because he wanted to save some surprises for the Hyde Park gig the following night and the same with Blur and the other highlight of the festival, Dizzee Rascal.

Madrid - not the real deal, Kaka

Why would Kaka want to join Real Madrid instead of Chelsea?

Okay, I know that in the old world order Real meant something - but they are nobodies nowadays, as exemplified by their 5-0 thrashing by Liverpool in the CL and their 2-6 home loss to Barca in La Liga.

In comparison, Chelsea are now a world superpower - in the same frame as Man Utd, Barca, Liverpool and Inter Milan.

Real are about the level of Fulham, aren't they? No, maybe that is being cruel to the Cottagers...more like say Wigan or West Ham.

And even if they buy Kaka, they won't win the league or the CL - he is no Maradona a la Naples, is he...

Ancelotti - the right man for the Bridge?

"Carlo was the outstanding candidate for the job. He has proved over a long period his ability to build teams that challenged for, and have been successful in, major domestic and European competitions.

"He also had a highly successful playing career in those competitions and therefore brings unparalleled all round experience to the job," the statement added.

SO TRUMPETS the official Chelse FC website this morning - but are they, and Roman Abramovich, right? Or is it another desperate fumbling about in the dark by a board that has not exactly covered itself in glory since the departure of the Special One?

Avram Grant - not good enough - Luiz Felipe Scolari - not backed financially or emotionally - Guus Hiddink - excellent but short termist.

And so to Pilsbury Dough man Ancelotti. I am not confident he is the right man. He has not even won the Italian league title since 2004 - FIVE YEARS - and if he was that good Milan would have hardly let him go, would they? After all, he admitted he would have stayed if they asked him...

He does not speak good English and his last Milan side was like the Real Madrid of the Galacticos era - good on paper, but ageing and fragile on the field. Also, judging by his comments in his autobiog he seems to believe that his mission at Chelsea is to instil 'personality' into the team. How is that going to go down with some of the strongest personalities in the game - Terry, Lampard, Ballack and Drogba among them.

No, surely it would have been more sensible to have allowed Hiddink to stay on in his temporary role - managing both Chelsea and Russia - until the 2010 World Cup finals are over? Then he could have become permanent Chelsea boss. Now, the club risk losing him for ever - hey, he might even end up at Man Utd or Arsenal when his Russian sojourn finall ends!

Utd - no midfield, no big ears

It must rank as one of the most unusual substitutions ever by Sir Alex Ferguson.

To take off a midfielder for a forward, when his team were struggling most to stay in the game...in midfield.

I applauded the decision to bring on Carlos Tevez as Man United struggled to keep up with Barca in tonight's Champions League final - but at the expense of Anderson?

Surely, if Anderson had to come off at half time, and, true. he did have a bit of a stinker, the ready-made replacement would have been Paul Scholes?

As it was, it meant United had to try to cope with Iniesta, Xabi and Bussets with just one recognised midfielder...Michael Carrick. Sure, Giggsy was still out there, but he was playing somewhere between the front and the midfield.

It was a gamble and it didn't work. United as we know them simply did not turn up - too many of the big names froze or did not get into the game. It was as if they were flatlining - even Fergie and Mike Phelan were slumped on the bench whenever I looked, rather than getting to the touchline and urging their men on.

Barcelona were good, but United did not give us a normal United showing. It is hard to take defeat when there is no battling and no determination or grit to turn things around. From the pitch to the bench, Utd seemed floored after the 10th minute goal by Eto, who I believe is not the player he was.

I heard that both Ferdinand AND Vidic (Utd had apparently tried to keep it quiet about the Serbian because there were already doubts over Rio) were not fully fit - and it showed.

The defeat also showed two other things - Berbatov is not worth £30million (he blew over a header he should have scored) and Utd need to invest in two quality midfielders as a matter of urgency. One enforcer and another creative player. Yes, I know they have Owen Hargreaves coming back and Darren Fletcher to return from suspension, but it makes sense to strengthen an area where they are clearly not full of alternatives.

Berbatov needs to be told he has to set Old Trafford alight next season - or he is out, £30m flop or not. No doubt Spurs would be buy him back for half that money, they do have a habit of bringing back strikers who left them in the lurch (cue Keane and Defoe).

But Utd lost in Rome because they had no midfield to claw them back into the game. Barca - for all their arrogance - were worthy winners of old Big Ears (the nickname for the CL trophy). But I still don't like the way they set themselves up as the perfect team - and I am sure that if the real United had shown up, they wouldn't have had it so easy.

Next post will be on Darren Fletcher...how the boy who suffered more abuse and insults at United than anyone in recent memory became the man the club now can't do without. Amazing turnaround - football, eh, bloody hell...

The arrogance of Barcelona

You know, I used to love Barcelona. They were my fave team from abroad and it helped that I also loved the city and the unique character of the locals. But this year the football club has done itself no favours in terms of its frequent bleatings, declarations that it is the best in the world and that any rivals are limited and pedestrian in comparison to their great selves.
Okay, the football they have served up in La Liga has been breathtaking at times - but so what? Real Madrid ended up second in that league - and they were battered 5-0 by Liverpool, which gives you some idea of the oppposition they have been facing week in, week out.
But the regular pronouncements coming from the Camp Nou leave a bitter taste.
Particularly the stuff about Chelsea being crap and defensive.
Truth of it is this...the great Barcelona should not even be in the Champions League Final. Yep, it should be Chelsea - who outwitted them and outplayed them, and who are only at home in West London right now because of the incompetence of a referee not fit to legislate on Hackney Marshes.
I think, like all bullies and big heads, Barca will get their comeuppance tonight against Man Utd in Rome.
1-1 or 2-2 after 90 mins, Ronaldo or Rooney to grab the winner in extra time.
Only then will they be in a position to learn something they haven't got...humility.
It's time for the club who think they are the most perfect in the world - and who you sense feel they are entitled to win just by turning up - are brought down to their true size...against the real biggest club in the world.
Come on United!

Big weekend at the bottom...Moyes and Strachan

Massive weekend at the bottom of the table - in my eyes it is either Newcastle (cue headlines Newcy down) or Hull who will join Boro and West Brom in the Championship. Newcastle have the better goal difference (six better) so you would think that if they could get a draw at Aston Villa they will stay up. After all, you would assume that Man Utd would win at Hull.

But it's not that clear cut, is it? Newcastle are a very poor team. I am not sure about Shearer as a manager - he may be all bluster and no tactical nous - but he was hardly handed a dream team when he took over the job, was he? Certainly, even if they stay up they will struggle again with the poor selection of players on their books. Are they good enough to get a draw at Villa? On a normal day, no, but with passions running high and Villa's players already on the beaches of Miami in their heads, yes.

So that puts it all down to Man Utd really. If the Purple One plays a team of boys, they could still win, but could just as easily lose or draw. A real tough one - maybe Phil Brown can sort his own head out and get his players to fight to the death in front of their home crowd. He seems to think he is the new Jose Mourinho but he reminds me more of the old Villa boss John Gregory (remember him!!) - all poses and pouts for the cameras.

So what do we reckon, then? Two draws...and Shearer to return to the TV couch.

Which could bring Gordon Strachan in at St James and David Moyes to Celtic...or maybe it will be a Moyes/Strachan swap between Celtic and Everton?

We shall see...

Benitez, Ferguson, Hodgson and Wenger

Old Rafa is a grumpy bugger and a bad loser for not having the civility to congratulate Alex Ferguson for another Premier League title win. It's do or bust for Benitez next season - he has to win the league or the Kop may find it hard to take his whingeing, excuses, poor transfer buys (Mascherano and Torres honourable exceptions) and blaming others (like Ferguson) for his self-inflicted problems.

In comparison, look at the job done by Roy Hodgson at Fulham on a shoestring. A great season and only second to Ferguson in the Manager of the Year stakes. If Capello walks out after next year's World Cup amicable, wise old Roy will be a fine candidate to step in as England boss for a year or two.

Meanwhile, Arsenal fans will have only themselves to blame if Arsene Wenger walks away to manage Madrid. Who could blame him after all the abuse and criticism he has had to swallow as he builds another fine Arsenal side? The old saying is you only really miss someone and realise their worth when they are gone - how true that would be at the Emirates...