Most disgruntled fans of the season? We’ll go with Daz and Dave who vented to the Blackpool Gazette after they had treated themselves to a £130 (€149) “Executive Pitch View Room” at Blackpool’s Bloomfield Road so they could watch one of their games in luxury.
But? On their arrival, a note was waiting for them informing them that they had to close the curtains in the room “an hour prior to kick off, until full-time”. Yes, you read that right.
“It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Daz fumed. But it’s not the club’s fault – Britain’s Sporting Events Act prohibits the drinking of alcohol in view of the pitch at football games, so working on the assumption that their guests will have a jar or three, Blackpool have to order the curtains closed.
Still, as Daz noted, the room is cheaper on a non-match day “so they’re putting a premium on the room during a match which you’re not actually allowed to watch”.
Mind you, with Blackpool hovering just above the relegation zone in League One, it calls to mind that (alleged) Bill Shankly quote: “If Everton were playing down the bottom of my garden, I’d draw the curtains”.
Quote
As a famous demander of thorough preparation, Roy Keane surely wouldn’t sound off publicly about things he doesn’t know much about, would he? Photograph: Visionhaus/Getty Images
“I don’t play golf, but it looks easy. You just get it in the hole and everybody applauds. It’s like when you’d get a tap-in at Yeovil.” Roy Keane to a wholly unconvinced Ian Wright.
By the Numbers: 6
That’s how many managers Chelsea have had since 2020 (Frank Lampard, Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Mauricio Pochettino, Enzo Maresca and whoever the newbie is). The word might be “unstable”.
Word of Mouth
“I don’t want anyone breaking their legs, but I also look at the dynamics of how people behave and think that what goes around comes around.” Former Crystal Palace chairman and current talkSPORT presenter Simon Jordan with, well, a classy take on Alexander Isak’s broken leg.
“There are moments I shout at him and there are moments I want to kiss him, so I have that ambivalent feeling with him.” Pep Guardiola on his love-hate relationship with Rayan Cherki.
“The club is rotten from the bottom up at the minute. It’s been a shit-show.” Nicky Butt somewhat suggesting that Manchester United have issues.
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND – JANUARY 03: Celtic manager Wilfried Nancy reacts during the Premier League match between Celtic and Rangers at Celtic Park on January 03, 2026 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
“It’s totally normal that you guys kill me. But judge me in a few weeks or months. I want to create a legacy here. I am going to die for this club, for sure.” And this was before Wilfried Nancy’s Celtic died a death against Rangers, making it six defeats in his first eight games. Martin O’Neill is sitting by his phone (again).
Slack Panthers
True, it’s a touch early to decide on the sporting awards for 2026, but surely there will be no greater meltdown than the one produced by the government of Gabon after the national team’s less than successful African Cup of Nations campaign?
Lest you missed it, following defeats to Cameroon, Mozambique and Ivory Coast, the government suspended the team, who are nicknamed the Panthers, sacked the manager and all his staff and removed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Bruno Ecuele Manga from the squad.
Gabon’s André Poko and Jonathan Do Marcolino could be set for a long period of international inactivity after their country’s government suspended the national team. Photograph: Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images
It’d be a bit like Micheál Martin suspending the Irish team after they lost in Armenia, sacking Heimir Hallgrímsson and ordering the dumping of Troy Parrot and Nathan Collins.
Sports minister Simplice-Désiré Mamboula described the performances as “disgraceful” and “diametrically opposed to the values of ethics and exemplarity advocated by the Fifth Republic”, while president Brice Oligui Nguema said they had “weakened part of our national identity”. Lads? It’s only a game.
Birmingham’s travel blues
Birmingham City are one of those teams who are outstanding at home and rubbish away, so a while back the club’s performance psychologist came up with a plan to solve their troubles on the road. They take “photographs and signage with them that they use to adorn away dressingrooms”, according to the Sun, to make it feel like they’re playing at St Andrew’s. Is it working? Well, they lost six and drew one of their last seven away games. So, in a word, no.