Why Ranieri Wants to Return to the Premier League

Ranieri wants Chelsea miracle at City - World Soccer - Yahoo! Sports:

"'Why England again? Because at this time, English football is a fascinating window that hypnotises you,' he said.

'Some of the richest men in the world would do ridiculous things in order to buy an English club because the Premier League has become a luxury stage.

'Here (in England), there are so many champions, seven or eight teams at the top level just as Italy had some time ago.

'Unfortunately for us, Italian football, we are poorer, despite Milan's extraordinary victory in the Champions League.

'To return to England means to be at the centre of something important.'"

The referees allow a lot

No more English lessons as Tevez considers his future - World Soccer - Yahoo! Sports:

"In my opinion, it's the most difficult competition in the world. That maybe why so few people make it over here.

'Every Saturday you get kicked and you end up going home with marks all over your body. They hit you hard, they hit you everywhere -- Premiership defenders are very strong individuals.

'And the referees allow a lot. They don't interrupt the game as much as they do elsewhere. "

Rick Parry on Mourinho

BBC SPORT Football My Club Liverpool Reds chief mocks beaten Chelsea:

Gravy time for Liverpool's chief executive. Liverpool try to spend their money wisely all the while having to listen to Mourinho bait everyone and anyone in England.

"'I don't care what he says, I don't listen...I guess when you've invested £500m it's a fantastic season to win the League Cup. He's welcome to his opinions, we care about Liverpool.' "

Fair enough to Rick Parry I say. I was a fan of Mourinho's when he came in. And I've been told he's a great coach but he hasn't delivered the Champions League. He should be fired now I say.

Ironically though, Mourinho's won the Premiership twice in row. Something Liverpool want to start doing again (and for which they'll need to spend money inorder to buy depth) :

"For us, the big prize is the Premier League, we've made no secret of that. (says Parry)...Every one of us wants to be a Premier League contender. We're not quite there, but we'll do everything in our power to make sure we get there."

Morality in the Premiership

UEFA president Lennart Johanssen, in the middle of reviewing Chelsea and Barcelona's behaviour during Tuesday's Champions League match, has come out and called Chelsea morally wrong in trying to buy championships with primarily foreign players.

"I have to wait until the laws exist and try to come back to the original situation where everybody was happy when we had a balance between home-produced and imported players...And more and more clubs and coaches are doing the same...Is it morally wrong what Chelsea are doing? For me, it is." ( BBC )

It is an interesting problem. Sure, we're tired of Chelsea's maverick behaviour. But on the other hand I am with Arsene Wenger who stands to have his capable hands tied if rule changes ever come through. Here is what he thinks about possible quotas being introduced into the Premiership:

"Football bodies have to care about the level of the game - that does not mean protecting mediocrity...Elite sport is first about quality. I wouldn't like to say I paid £2m for a player as he has the right passport." ( BBC )

Wenger has served as a brilliant example of how to develop young players (wherever they come from). In terms of Johannsen's claim that "everybody was happy", I don't know about that. I don't think England was producing any more or any better domestic players before the Premiership was created and foreign managers and players arrived in droves. If anything, I think that the average English national team player has more skill, more confidence and ambition than ever before. And I think comes from playing in the superior Premiership, under great (often foreign managers) and against great (often foreign players)...