On that note, it’s time to wrap things up. I’m sure you’ll agree this has been one of the great Friday blogs, a Pulitzer contender if ever there was one. Thanks for your company and emails, and don’t forget to join Scott Murray in a couple of hours for minute-by-minute coverage of England v Australia. Mind you, Gardeners’ World is on at 8. Here’s more on the news that Beth Mead is on course to return to the Arsenal squad against Aston Villa on Sunday. Here’s today’s Football Daily. I wouldn’t bother with the main bit. Northern Ireland play San Marino tomorrow afternoon, and their manager Martin O’Neill has been talking about the exciting teenage striker Callum Marshall. I don’t want to put any added pressure on a young lad who is 18. He’s shown a huge amount of promise. We probably skew that because of the moment in Copenhagen [when he had a superb late equaliser ruled out after an interminable VAR check] but that was only a moment. I can’t think back to when we’ve had a young striker - they generally come in later... A young striker coming in always excites people. Like every country, you want somebody at the top end of the pitch who can be a natural goalscorer, and without putting any burden on Callum, he has the potential and has shown the potential certainly since we’ve had him in. We’ve seen that he has the attributes. But he’s only starting on his journey in the game. The signs are very positive and if he has the opportunity to play from the start or play some part of the game, I know he’ll approach it in the right way. “The logical extension of an ‘umpire’s call’ approach to offsides is that we have to accept some things that were marginally onside, get given off,” says Nicholas Ridgman . “This would seem to be counter to the old principle of benefit of doubt going to the attacker, which seemed a sound one. I suspect you’d then find assistant referees erring on the side of calling things on. “Surely once to get to this point of ridiculous minutiae, it makes more sense to take a step back and scrap the whole thing altogether? We also haven’t covered VAR’s greatest crime - taking away the ability to celebrate a crucial goal with carefree abandon (surely the greatest feeling in football?), for fear that it will be struck off.” Yes, I always think of David Marshall against Serbia in 2020. What should have been the most euphoric 10 seconds of his career were spent fretting about admin. That was the moment it hit home that VAR was fast-tracked by people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing. “Beth Mead ready to come back?” says Charles Antaki. “Fantastic news for an underwhelming-looking Arsenal squad, out of the Champions League already and with one point from six in the WSL. Credit to the newer signings, but none have sparkled; the women’s team fans are generally forbearing, but the club’s accountants probably aren’t, and if the team is to keep filling the Emirates they’re going to have to get their star players back and start winning again. Mead very soon, Miedema a bit less soon, and Williamson a jog or two more round the training cones, but, yes, things are looking up.” “If there was no VAR, what happens in the next international qualifier, where, like Henry in France v Ireland, someone catches the ball, TWICE, and then practically throws it in the net in the dying seconds?” writes Dom in Florence. “Even a VAR team of a hat, Bobby Davro and the M4 motorway would have given that correctly. “So, if we ditch VAR, what happens when an entire nation don’t go to a World Cup because of blatant cheating that can be seen by millions, and from space, (but not apparently, by the ref, assistant ref and goal line assistant “In the end, yes it has huge problems, but then I wasn’t keen on watching games of 90 minutes of players cheating, diving, and generally pretending they’d been bludgeoned unconscious by 18th-century footpads, just to get a throw in near the halfway line either. “To paraphrase, VAR is the worst way to avoid all this, except for all the others. What to do?” I agree that you can’t get rid of it because everyone will be even less tolerant of incorrect decisions (objective or subjective) than they were before it was introduced. I would add the equivalent of “umpire’s call” in cricket for offsides and tighten the threshold for overturning a decision. That’s the key part, I think. I’d also try to change the review process so that it’s roughly 50:50 whether the referee will overturn a decision when he/she is sent to the monitor. On this day in 1993, France have one foot in USA 94. And it all goes wrong, big-time. Here’s a reminder of tonight’s Euro qualifiers, all 7.45pm BST kick-offs unless stated. Group B Republic of Ireland v Greece Netherlands v France Group F Estonia v Azerbaijan (5pm) Austria v Belgium Group J Liechtenstein v Bosnia and Herzegovina Portugal v Slovakia Iceland v Luxembourg Player welfare latest This is an interesting story from PA about the increasingly tumefied football calendar. A group chaired by Premier League chief executive Richard Masters says it will not agree to Fifa plans for an expanded World Cup and a new Club World Cup until it is given a meaningful say in calendar changes. The World Leagues Forum, of which the Premier League is one of 44 members, has accused Fifa of acting with a lack of transparency over the changes it has made to the international calendar. The WLF board, chaired by Masters, held a “comprehensive discussion” about calendar congestion and player workload issues caused by Fifa’s recent decisions, prior to its annual meeting in Warsaw. “Board members reiterated their concerns about the lack of transparent governance at international level on matters that have an impact on the national competitions that provide the foundations for the game,” the WLF statement said. “The WLF will continue to seek a meaningful role in the FIFA decision-making process for the international match calendar before any calendar changes are agreed.” It is unclear precisely how the WLF could look to challenge the changes, which have the backing of the European Club Association as part of its new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with FIFA. However, PA understands frustration is growing among the leagues at Fifa’s role - whether it sees itself as a competitor to the leagues, or their governing body. Rulings are expected before the end of the year from the European Court of Justice - including in the long-running Super League case - which are expected to address Fifa’s dual role as competition organiser and regulator. There are particular concerns at the WLF over how the new-look Club World Cup - due to be played every four years starting in the summer of 2025 - will affect preparations for those domestic competitions due to start in August, and the general impact of more international competitions on the primacy and prominence of domestic leagues. Should Saudi Arabia succeed in winning the race to host the 2034 World Cup, that would also require leagues operating the August to May format to implement a mid-season break, as was the case last season due to the 2022 finals in Qatar. Italy latest The manager Luciano Spalletti has been talking about the decision to let Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo to leave the training camp after they found out they were being investigated by prosecutors. Italy have a European Championship qualifier against Malta in Bari tomorrow night. It’s not nice to say who decided [to let them leave], it’s enough to say that it’s the correct decision. We can’t bring two guys who have been shocked like that to play a game. Now let’s think about playing, we lose two champions but we remain a very strong team. It was a difficult night, when you have to get results there is always anxiety, but this was a different night, with a lot of bitterness over what happened. The whole squad is close to Tonali and Zaniolo, we’re very sorry for them. We will continue to be close to them even afterwards. For now, they have the spotlight on them. We must try to help them defend themselves, but it’s also right that justice takes its course and if irregularities have occurred, then it will be right to pay. Mead could make Arsenal return Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall has confirmed that Beth Mead, who has been out for 11 months with an ACL injury, could return to the squad for the WSL match agianst Aston Villa on Sunday. “We have one more training session to go,” said Eidevall. “If she gets through that, she should be 100 per cent ready for squad selection. “She has a lovely energy, she plays the game with both her right and left foot with really good attacking qualities too. We all know that Beth Mead is a quality football player, so of course we are really looking forward to having her back on the pitch again.” Netherlands forward Vivianne Miedema could also return soon after suffering a similar injury. “Viv has returned to team training, which is really nice, so obviously the next thing from team training is to start playing in games, if that’s friendly games or internal games behind closed doors and so on. “That’s the next step, and from there on obviously you’re not miles away from being able to be selected to be in the squad, so she’s definitely getting close.” Cheers John, hello again. Let’s start with a piece by Aaron Bower on Bradford City, who are looking for a new manager after sacking Mark Hughes last week. Craig Ward gets in touch, making more sensible points. “Is it not the case, though, that it isn’t VAR that’s the problem? The problem is (in most cases) that VAR allows us to see where rules are inadequate or plain wrong and the correct response would be to use it as a basis for improving the rules.” Too much sense for the Friday banter blog there…anyway, the floor is Rob Smyth’s once more… More Danny Röhl, and chest-beating stuff, too. I think I’m very well prepared. I have a clear identity in my mind. I have a clear philosophy and this is the reason why I’m here now. Now we have to create something. We have to create an identity, what we want to play, how we want to play. This is very important for me. We will do our job and I’m convinced we have a massive fanbase behind us and with our style of football in the future we can create so much energy. We want the opponents to come here and feel: ‘Oh! Wednesday are back! If you’re reading that as an Owls supporter and are not inspired then we can’t help you… David Wall gets in touch, and makes a salient point or two: “As the controversial (i.e. wrong) VAR decisions start to pile up it seems that more and more people are saying that the whole thing should just be binned and we should go back to having a referee and assistants running the lines again. That’s almost always caveated with a ‘I know it won’t happen...’ “But are we giving up too easily? There are plenty of refereeing initiatives that have been ditched after high-profile introductions. Does anyone remember that referees were going to march the wall back 10 yards for encroachment at free-kicks, for example? ”Of course not, it got quietly ditched not long after being introduced. I suppose the difficulty with VAR would be that it’s not easy to ditch it quietly, but all they need to do is not have it at the next international tournament and then leagues will start to follow suit when it’s gone out of fashion.” Yes, abandoning VAR now would be populism in action. #cans #dans. Having made his dream move back to his boyhood club, Dan Burn has fully grasped the nettle of being a Newcastle player. From Newcastle’s official website: Burn: “It means everything to me to play for this club and to sign a new contract. I said when I signed that I didn’t want this to be just a ‘stop-gap’ signing to keep us up - I wanted to be here for a long time. So personally it feels even more of an achievement signing this one than it was actually signing here in the first place. I’m delighted and looking forward to the next couple of seasons.” Eddie Howe, said: “Dan is a leader on and off the pitch so we are delighted he has extended his stay with us. He is a key part of our squad and has played a huge role in our progress since his arrival. He knows exactly what it means to represent this great club and is hungry to succeed, and that can only help the team and the club going forward.” Some Danny Röhl quotes, as he is unveiled as new Sheffield Wednesday manager. It’s been a long process these last seven days but I have had a good conversation with the chairman, very open-minded for everything and I am looking forward to being part of this traditional club. I was in the stadium and the first impression was amazing. I am looking forward to having the first match inside. It feels I am ready for this. I know it’s a big challenge now to make the step forward as a manager but I have prepared the last 10 years for this first step. It feels amazing to have that first step here at Sheffield Wednesday. I have seen some videos about the fans and the crowd and in the last days I have got a lot of messages via Instagram and Facebook and it showed me a lot about how passionate the fans are here. It’s crazy to be here now and be part of this. Shaun Tooze, who seems a level-headed type, on that McTom disallowed goal. “I was late to the action with the Scotland game but having just seen the highlights, that goal is one where it’s all about where your allegiances are - it’s that simple I think. “If you were rooting for Scotland (I was) the ball flies in, the keeper is getting nowhere near it, and the lack of reaction from the Spanish lads says it all - nothing wrong with it. But if that exact goal was against Scotland, you see the guy under the line of the ball, touching the keeper, and with a toe offside. I’d have preferred the goal to have stood but I can understand why it didn’t even if it was ridiculously harsh.” Jacob Steinberg speaks to Ayal Young, shot in his right cheek and back when his kibbutz was attacked. Young, a lifelong Tottenham supporter, is struggling to understand English football’s response to the attacks by Hamas. The Football Association has resisted calls to light the Wembley arch in the colours of the Israeli flag or the Jewish prayer shawl. The Premier League waited until Thursday to make a statement on the attacks. It has been accused of failing to issue an unequivocal condemnation of Hamas. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign has welcomed the FA’s decision “and its resistance to pressure from the government and other political leaders”. Andrew Drinkwater gets in touch. Thank you, Andrew: “It’s a really big night for Luxembourg - a win in Iceland, and Portugal maintaining their perfect record at home to Slovakia, would turn Monday’s game at home to the Slovaks into a de facto playoff for automatic qualification. Last month’s international break was up and down to say the least - the 3-1 home win over Iceland followed by a record-equalling 9-0 defeat in Portugal - but this team are legitimate contenders. “Aside from the two tonkings from Portugal that got a lot of coverage, the Roude Léiwen have 10 points from their other 4 games, including a win in Bosnia and a draw in Slovakia. The whole story is a vindication of the investment in the system here in Lux (including a beautiful new national stadium), but also of the Nations League - the opportunity to play competitive games against similarly ranked teams has built some momentum and confidence that (hopefully) hasn’t been beaten out of them by that tonking in Portugal. Worth keeping an eye on their score tonight.” Confirmed: Danny Röhl is Sheffield Wednesday"s new manager Sheffield Wednesday are delighted to announce the appointment of Danny Röhl as our new manager. The renowned German coach takes over as Owls boss with immediate effect, with an impressive career in his locker to date. The 34-year-old has held assistant manager positions with European giants Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Southampton and the German national team. Röhl’s glittering coaching career now leads to his first managerial role in S6. Welcome to Wednesday, Danny! Röhl worked under Ralph Hasenhüttl at European giants Southampton… Talking of Golden Boys, how about our Next Gen series, the Premier League series, featurring a Giggs, a Warhurst and a Josh King? Right, let’s keep the old pot boiling with some red-hot soccer chat. On that note, I’m going to hand back to John Brewin for a bit. See you later. On this day in 1984, Remi Moses scores a beauty as Manchester United hammer West Ham 5-1. And on the same day, Arsenal stay top of the league despite a terrific own-goal from Viv Anderson. He made amends with a belter at the right end. “Jamal Musiala and Jude Bellingham are both 20 and have both played three seasons with 90+ appearances in the Bundesliga,” says Hugh Molloy. “In that time Musiala won 3 league titles, the DFB cup, FIFA World Cup cup, UEFA Super Cup and 2 DFB Super Cups compared to Bellingham’s 1 DFB Cup. He also scored 23 goals compared to Bellingham’s 12 in that time frame and both played the same 90ish matches. “I do believe Bellingham deserves the Golden Boy 2023 award but to call Musiala an also ran is an odd one.” It was, how to put this delicately, a joke. (I think I cocked it up anyway as apparently there are 25 people on the shortlist, not 20. Either way there are some serious players on there: Musiala, Bellingham, Florian Wirtz, Evan Ferguson, Benjamin Sesko, Warren Zaire-Emery, etc.) “Sorry I can’t help with content today,” writes Joe Pearson. “I have no opinion on international friendlies generally, except to consider them typically a waste of time. And I can’t vote for your squad, since I don’t do TwiXter. But I can tell you that there are thunderstorms in southwest Florida right now, where I am currently relaxing for a bit.” But apart from that. A-ha, something good to read at lunchtime. Paul Elliott talks to Paul MacInnes about Charlton, diversity and clumping Diego Maradona. Rugby news Yep, we’re desperate. And still… “The thing is, I still don’t think Hendry is doing any of 1-3 on that Ifab list,” says James Humphries. “Others may disagree - though they’d be wrong - but it’s a judgement call, innit? All var has done is introduce someone else’s judgement to muddy the waters. Get it in the bin. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe I see a cloud needs yelling at.” I think he was guilty of the third one, but you can definitely argue it both ways. The inconsistent plotting of the “clear and obvious” threshold is a pain in the fundament. “If we’re looking for talking points to keep things ticking over…” says Matt Dony. “Yes, Eriksson’s England were handbrake-friendly, but there’s a lot of revisionism over the stars of that team. People seem quick to dismiss them and belittle their abilities. Beckham and Owen were both admittedly limited, but what they did, they did as well as (or better than) anyone else in world football. Young Rooney was an absolute phenomenon. 2004 is one of the biggest Missed Chances I can think of. “Lampard, Gerrard and Scholes were three of the finest midfielders England have ever produced. Between Campbell, Ferdinand and Terry, you have probably the ideal centre half. Ashley Cole was possibly the best left back in the world. You can go on. As a Welsh Liverpool fan, I pretty intensely dislike almost all of the above players. But the idea that they weren’t brilliant is ridiculous. The Golden Generation tag may have done them no favours, but it wasn’t inaccurate.” Isn’t it just that they were rarely brilliant for England? Few people of sound mind dispute how good they all were for their clubs. It also annoys me a bit that a number of them have thrown Sven under the bus in the last few years. I know he had his limitations – at the time I thought England should have replaced him with Sam Allardyce after Euro 2004 – but it’s a clear story of collective responsibility. He didn’t blooter penalties hither and thither. Still talking about it “Firstly, it’s over and we should move on,” writes Gavin. “Ok. I had. But because you brought it up (I know, you’ve been bored) ... Isn’t ‘the important thing’ that refereeing is consistent, coherent and transparent? Using your logic, if the ref had tossed a coin to make his decision, and got it ‘right’, that would be the important thing. Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day. Is that enough?” I didn’t use the phrase “the important thing”, did I? That’s a slightly different point. Broadly I agree with you – VAR has done irreparable damage to football, and even scrapping it won’t change the culture of entitlement, righteous anger and nervousness it has created – but there’s no panacea. That’s why it should have been trialled at lower levels for at least a decade, so that Ifab could get a comprehensive d understanding of all the problems it would create and then decide whether that was a worthwhile trade. Postecoglu wins Manager of the Month again Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou is September’s Manager of the Month, as he was in August. For once he’s not copying Pep, mate: he’s the first man to win the award in his first two months in England. A Spursman has also picked up Player of the Month. This time it’s Son Heung-min rather than James Maddison. (Since you asked, the winners in Pep Guardiola’s first two months in England were, and you’ll like this, Mike Phelan and Jurgen Klopp. That’s despite City being top of the league with six wins out of six at the end of September.) We’re still going on about Scott McTominay’s goal “I’m not sure it is the right call: Hendry’s not obstructing the keeper and he’s not blocking his eyeline,” says James Humphries. “In any case, the laws are also pretty clear that you’re not allowed to shoulder people in the mush; if that’d happened on a rugby pitch, nobody would have been surprised to see the Spanish player walk (direct contact with the head, and no attempt to wrap, even!). Two wrongs etc, but it sticks in the craw when it seems that only one side can do wrong.” As ever, the wording is unhelpfully ambiguous. This is what it says on the Ifab website. A player in an offside position at the moment the ball is played or touched by a team-mate is only penalised on becoming involved in active play by: interfering with play by playing or touching a ball passed or touched by a team-mate or interfering with an opponent by: 1. preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent’s line of vision or 2. challenging an opponent for the ball or clearly attempting to play a ball which is close when this action impacts on an opponent or 3. making an obvious action which clearly impacts on the ability of an opponent to play the ball Fifa announced Golden Boy shortlist It’s Jude Bellingham plus 19 others for basically. But those also-rans are all extremely good at association football, so let’s put some respect on their names. I’m so bored that I’m tempted to put up the team news for Latvia Under-21 v Republic of Ireland Under-21, which kicks off at 1pm. Ireland do have some very exciting players coming through: Andrew Moran and Joe Hodge start today, and James Abankwah of Udinese/Charlton is on the bench. It sounds like Mason Melia could be the best of the lot, though he’s still playing for the under-17s. He scored a hat-trick against Armenia in the week. Rugby department I’m not a rugby fan and even I’m excited about this weekend, so goodness know how hardcore fans/anyone born in Ireland must feel. Here’s a bit of very good news for the hosts France ahead of their match against the holders South Africa. Cricket department In other news, a World Cup that is crying out for a close game may have to wait at least another 24 hours. “Just in the interests of keeping the blog moving - and not because I’m still absolutely fizzing about it or anything - a further thought on last night’s terrible no-good call on the McSauce goal,” says James Humphries. “If it was given for offside, shouldn’t the ref have given an indirect free kick? Looked to me a hell of a lot like he gave a direct free kick for an imaginary foul (overlooking Dykes being wrestled to the ground, obviously) and the dithering about ‘oh actually it was for offside’ is post facto arse-covering. “Bloody awful call, and that’s on a night of awful calls (shoulder charge to McGinn’s head? No foul. Patterson puts his hand on a Spanish player’s shoulder? Booking). Spain were better, aye; but it’s not the loss, it’s the injustice that burns.” I see we’re still going on about it. I didn’t see the game live, but – and I hate myself for saying this – was it not ultimately the correct decision in accordance with the laws? I know they made a total Horlicks of the process, but am I missing something re: the actual decision? On the plus side, at least VAR has added clarity and reduced controversy, just like it said in the brochure. At the risk of going on about it, here’s Scotland manager Steve Clarke saying there’s no point going on about Scott McTominay’s disallowed goal. Sheffield Wednesday Here’s a bit more from PA on the imminent appointment of Danny Rohl. Sheffield Wednesday will unveil former Bayern Munich assistant coach Danny Rohl as their new manager on Friday afternoon, the PA news agency understands. The Owls, bottom of the Championship, sacked Spaniard Xisco Munoz last week and Rohl will take on his first role as head coach. Rohl, 34, has previously worked as assistant to Ralph Hasenhuttl at RB Leipzig and Southampton, and worked under Hansi Flick at Bayern and with the German national team. He will become the Owls’ 11th permanent manager in the last 12 years. Wednesday were held to a 0-0 home draw against Huddersfield last week and remain winless after 11 matches. “Riley McGree is the best Aussie in England,” says Michael Raw. “Tearing up the championship with Middlesbrough. Shame he’s injured.” I hope Jordy Bos gets some minutes. He looked terrific in the friendly against Australia a few months ago.