Tag: Sky

This is the weekend when the nation usually stops to watch some of the finest, most frantic and fraught matches on the English football calendar.

The play-offs rarely disappoint, and so – in their absence – Sky Sports has been speaking to many of those who helped make past games so memorable.

• Play-off finals greatest games: 15-11

Here you can enjoy our countdown from 10 to six, featuring two last-minute winners, a teenage penalty-scoring hero, and another Wembley screamer.

Let’s begin…

10 – Bolton 4-3 Reading – Division One play-off final, 1995 – “You get nothing for finishing second”

Reading hold the unfortunate record of being the only team to finish second in England’s second tier and not get promoted. With the Premier League – then the Premiership – reducing from 22 teams to 20, only Middlesbrough gained automatic promotion in 1995.

That forced Reading into the play-offs and two goals in the first 12 minutes from Lee Nogan and Adrian Williams had them dreaming of back-to-back promotions and their first-ever season in the top flight. But when your luck is out, it is really out.

The Royals should have been home and dry when Stuart Lovell stepped up to take a penalty 10 minutes before half-time, but he missed and Bolton rallied.

Owen Coyle and substitute Fabian de Freitas forced extra-time and momentum proved key, as goals from Mixu Paatelainen and a second from De Freitas turned the game on its head.

Reading’s player-manager Jimmy Quinn did his best to lead by example and pulled a goal back late on, but the damage was done. It really was not Reading’s year!

9 – Rotherham 2-2 Leyton Orient – League One play-off final, 2014 – “I was hoping his trousers would drop below his kneecaps as he ran down the touchline”

This game had it all: A second-half comeback, a 30-yard Alex Revell lob against his former team, penalties and almost a flash of Steve Evans’ underpants.

So comfortable were Leyton Orient with their 2-0 half-time lead thanks to goals from Moses Odubajo and Dean Cox, that Evans said some O’s players “thought they were already in the Championship, the way they were behaving”.

Evans fired his players up and within 10 minutes of the second half, Revell poked home to pull one back. If that was scrappy, his equaliser five minutes later certainly was not.

That sent Evans sprinting down the touchline, with his belt just about preventing an embarrassing Wembley wardrobe malfunction.

“I was so hoping his trousers would drop below his kneecaps, but he just managed to drag them up in time as he ran down the touchline,” then Orient boss Russell Slade said.

Embarrassment spared, Evans and his team regained their composure to win the resulting penalty shoot-out and earn Rotherham a second successive promotion.

8 – Charlton 2-1 Sunderland – League One play-off final, 2019 – “These Charlton players write their legend!”

Two play-off titans who are no strangers to each other. Twenty-one years on from their notorious 1998 meeting, they met again at Wembley, desperate for an exit from a league arguably too small for them. It was a gruelling season in England’s third-tier though, with Luton and Barnsley going up automatically.

Sunderland had been vying for automatic promotion all term following heavy investment, while Charlton won seven of their remaining eight regular-season games, setting the stage for a mouthwatering battle between the two former Premier League clubs.

The Black Cats faced their second trip to London in a matter of weeks following their agonising defeat to Portsmouth in the EFL Trophy final, played in front of a record crowd of 85,021. Anyone who has seen Sunderland Till I Die on Netflix knows exactly what happened next…

“These Charlton players write their legend!” screamed Gary Weaver from the commentary box, as Patrick Bauer won the game in the 94th minute. Two famous finals, two famous wins for the south London club.

“We just kept pushing and pushing and thankfully got that goal,” boss Lee Bowyer said. “My emotions got the better of me, but the fourth official told me there was only six seconds left and I knew they wouldn’t score in that time – so we could relax!”

7 – Crystal Palace 1-0 Sheffield United – Division One play-off final, 1997 – “David Hopkin looking to curl one… Absolutely amazing!”

With half a minute to go, it was more relief than joy for Crystal Palace when captain David Hopkin sealed a 1-0 victory to beat Sheffield United and win promotion to the Premier League. “I was relieved that it wasn’t going to extra time!” the Scotsman admitted.

“I remember the ball being cleared to the edge of the box, and running towards the ball and hitting it early. It was a fantastic finish on a fantastic day, on the back of a very successful season we were having.”

Hopkin had enjoyed a stand-out campaign in south London, also scoring a key goal in the semi-final second-leg defeat to Wolves, which helped them progress to Wembley. “I spoke to somebody at Palace, and they said ‘You have to remember you got two Player of the Year awards, you scored in the semi-final and then the final… and then you left!'”

He arrived at Leeds, who paid £3.25m for his services. But his heart still belonged to Palace, and just four years after leaving, Hopkin returned to Selhurst Park for a second stint. “It’s a fantastic club and I have fantastic memories,” he added. “It’s a club that will be with me and my family for the rest of my days.”

6 – Birmingham 1-1 Norwich – Division One play-off final, 2002 – “Steve Bruce had us replicating the walk to the spot!”

Darren Carter promoted Birmingham to the Premier League with his match-winning penalty against Norwich in 2002, writing himself into Blues folklore. The Solihull man always had his heart set on taking a spot-kick thanks to boss Steve Bruce and his meticulous planning.

After downing Millwall over two semi-final legs, fifth-placed Birmingham set up a Millennium Stadium final with sixth-placed Norwich, which went down to the wire in front of 71,597 fans. Luckily, Bruce had put extra emphasis on penalty taking in his pre-match preparations.

Reflecting on the win, and asked if he wanted to take part in the shootout, Carter said: “Yes – I always get asked that question and people are always astonished by my answer. We practiced them all the way up to the final, Steve Bruce had us replicating the walk from the halfway line.

“He wanted us in a routine. We were taking penalties after every training session and I always felt supremely confident. I had no nerves, even when we got to the shooutout. To this day, I have Birmingham fans coming up to me and asking if they can buy me a coffee or a drink, it’s the same for my dad!

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Mauricio Pochettino sat down with Sky Sports News’ Paul Gilmour to reveal his plans for his next job in management.

Pochettino is the number one choice for Newcastle’s prospective new owners to be the next manager at St James’ Park and they are willing to pay him £19m a year to take charge of the club.

The former Tottenham manager, out of work since last November, is keen on a return to the Premier League.

In a wide-ranging interview, the Pochettino discusses:

• Being open to managing a club outside the top six
• His friendship with Jose Mourinho
• Why the Premier League must finish the season
• Getting to know Sir Alex Ferguson

You have been out of football since November. What have you been getting up to?

“When I left Tottenham, the first thing I did was travel to Argentina. I spent 10 days there seeing my parents and family, who I haven’t seen for five years. Then I watched a little bit of football in Argentina….. [Diego] Maradona, [Gabriel] Batistuta. It was an amazing time.

“Then I went to Qatar to watch the World Club Cup, and then back here. It went by too quickly. We went into lockdown in early March. The time ran very fast for us.”

Is the gardening leave period at Tottenham now over? If so, are you ready to return?

“I was ready before now. The most important thing in football is to move on quick, to adapt to the new reality. Of course it is painful when you leave a club after five and a half years, working so hard to develop and achieve objectives. But that is football. It goes by very quick. You need to move on. But we feel very well, that we have recovered from the not so good days. We are full of energy in our bodies, in our minds, to try and provide a new project with all our knowledge and show our passion in football.”

How soon will it be before we see you back in a dugout?

“I don’t know. In football, every minute counts. The most important thing is we are ready. We are open to listen and see what happens.”

How is coronavirus impacting on potential job offers?

“It’s difficult to know – there is a big question mark over how it is going to impact football. Of course, everyone can see how it is going to impact the economy, which massively affects the clubs. That is going to affect people involved in football – as little as possible I hope. The companies that provide football entertainment, they are suffering. Our responsibility is to understand the situation and show solidarity. In the end, we all participate in this business.

“I was listening to the chairman of the Bundesliga, he said that football was going to help the people to move on and distract them from this terrible virus. It has started to change the mentality in everyone, including mine. I was very scared at the beginning because the most important thing is your health and to protect our players, their families and all of the staff. That is why we have started to respectfully move on. I am very positive about finishing the Premier League and other leagues like La Liga and Serie A. We need to finish. That is going to benefit not only the clubs but also players and society, to begin to introduce ourselves into this new normality.”

Would you like your next job to be in the Premier League?

“I love England. My idea is to keep living in London but at the same time I am open to different countries, to listen and see what happens.”

It was your progression with Tottenham that saw you linked with Manchester United in recent years, and the potential Newcastle owners being interested at the moment. What factors are important to you for your next job?

“I need to behave in the way that I did on my first day as a coach. There are two things that are most important – one is the people, the fans that are behind every club. That is the structure that keeps alive all the companies that provide the entertainment that is football. The other is the ideas of the clubs. Every single club and company have different cultures, different philosophies, different ways of working. They all have different plans for success. To be successful at one club you need to win the Champions League or Premier League, but for others it is to finish in the top four or six.

“In the end, when we are waiting for a new offer, and we are capable of providing what a club expects from us, we are going to be very happy. Then the important thing is like what happened at Tottenham, that we create a unique philosophy together.

Daniel took the decision to part ways and find a different management, we can only be respectful. It did not change our perception or relationship.

Pochettino on Daniel Levy

“When you sign a contract, when you already have an offer from some club and are so happy, the people that offer the new contract – chairman, sporting director – they are your best friend. You are in love. But you know, we feel very proud because after five and a half years, I keep the same relationship with Daniel and all the people that were involved. Okay, we all feel disappointed that it finished like this, but that is football. We will always have a great relationship and be friends forever. The decision to sack me, to leave the club, it is not going to change the memories that we made together. This period was incredible – I was so happy to have the opportunity to share with it everyone working at the club.”

It sounds like you left on good terms. You said recently you’d go back at some point. Is that quite unusual in football – to leave a club but still have that feeling? Have you spoken to Daniel Levy since November?

“I spoke with him last Saturday but during the last six months we have always exchanged messages. He was very painful the day he took the decision, we were too, but like I told him from day one because maybe we will repeat the same conversion with the new people if any offer arrives. I need to behave in the same way when you sign me, when you show all your love, that maybe the day you believe we need to split. If in this five and a half years, the relationship was always building in respect and loyalty, that is football. Daniel took the decision to part ways and find a different management, we can only be respectful. It did not change our perception or relationship. We had some amazing memories. I am a person who holds onto my good memories and put the bad ones in the bin.”

Jose Mourinho said you would be welcome back any time. What have you said to him?

He is a good friend. We will keep a good relationship in the future.

Pochettino on Jose Mourinho

“We talked. He is a very good friend. He was always nice with me when I started my career with Espanyol and he was with Real Madrid. You always remember this type of act. I respect him like a professional, he is one of the greatest coaches in the world. And of course, now I wish him all the best. We will keep a good relationship in the future.”

Going back to the next job, at Tottenham you formed a reputation for playing an entertaining brand of football, but always on a budget. Is a job with more investment and money for transfers something that appeals to you?

“I don’t think too much about that. For me it is about the human capital, that you need to stick with us. After that all is possible, you can deal with everything. If we are going to talk about budgets or money, football is not about that. Of course it helps but when you start to work towards your objectives, you need to be clever in the way that you are going to sign this. If you want to win the Champions League and Premier League or be competitive, you need to be creative, clever and assign a philosophy that is different to others.”

Would you ever consider a job at a Premier League club outside the top six?

“The problem is which club are top six? It always changes. Today Tottenham and Arsenal are not in the top six. You need to respect all the clubs. They are all working so hard, investing and spending money. They all assign a new strategy each season to reach the top four, top six or top eight. You cannot underestimate any person, any institute or any club. That is why the Premier League is one of the toughest – all the clubs have the capacity to find a way to be competitive.”

What was it like being linked with Manchester United throughout your time at Tottenham and receiving praise from Sir Alex Ferguson?

“They are two different things. The rumours are there but we don’t listen too much. We try to be natural when living in this business. Of course when some coach is doing well, you take the headlines and people start to link you with different jobs. That is not interesting, it’s not important. The other thing is talking about a person like Sir Alex Ferguson, who I always admired from a distance. When you get to know him you admire him more and realise why he was very successfully. Not only in winning trophies but also in the way he managed people. That is the key point for him. What I want to say, he is a person who knows the human side is so important. For his strategy, to create an organisation so capable of winning trophies and being so successful.”

What were the North London derbies like, coming up against the likes of Arsene Wenger and Unai Emery? Was it strange that both you and Emery left around the same time?

“They were always special. I am a passionate person, my coaching staff are the same. We always lived the derby in a very passionate way. We enjoyed playing against Arsenal a lot. I have a lot of respect for Arsene Wenger. When we arrived at Tottenham six years ago the perception, feeling and input we received from our fans was, ‘please beat West Ham and not only beat Arsenal, but after 23 years we need to finish above them, and please reduce the gap to the top four because our dream is to play Champions League’.

“When you look back, maybe it’s not going to be a trophy, but to change this perception and reality was so tough. When we achieved that it was a big step in the mentality of the people at the club. Then after three or four years of playing Champions League regularly and being above Arsenal, the reality was there. We needed time to win titles and our aim was always the Premier League or Champions League. That didn’t happen but there was a lot of things that we feel very proud about. Maybe we were very close to winning a title.”

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