July 11, 2022
The brief from today:
Rooney lands in DC
Following up on a story from yesterday, it seems that the denials from Wayne Rooney’s camp about no decisions being made regarding his next coaching job were tactical, and he has in fact made his choice. It appears that the rumors were on to something, and the Englishman has in fact opted to return to the side he once played for: DC United. The club fired previous coach, Hernan Losada, in April, and interim coach, Chad Ashton, held the position since then until the club found their long term replacement. Rooney will now aim to further his still fledgling managerial career outside of Europe, but considering the position DC United find themselves in—second to last in the Eastern Conference—another challenging situation awaits him after his recent Derby County experience. Of course the move is still pending some formalities such as: signing of contracts and approval of a work permit, but it’s just a matter of time before the official announcement.
Wilshere gets a new role
Recently retired Jack Wilshere is going straight back to work in a different capacity. Arsenal announced today that their former player will now be the Under-18 coach at the club. There was a vacancy left after previous manager, Dan Micciche, moved on, and Wilshere’s former teammate, Per Mertesacker, who now manages the club’s academy, appointed the ex-Arsenal midfielder as the replacement. While Wilshere felt he still had more to give as a player if not for his injury issues, he will now try to impart his knowledge and experience on the up and coming prospects in Arsenal’s youth setup.
Former Arsenal teammates, Wilshere (C) and Mertesacker (R), now work together at the club’s academy
Amateur French side get punished
During a match last month between amateur French sides, ASA Montereau and US Palaiseau, there were racist insults heard from the Montereau supporters during the penalty shootout. Palaiseau’s goalkeeper, Ivorian Amone Glossoa, was the target of the abuse calling him a “monkey” and telling him to “go back to his cage”. Glossoa and his team captain went to complain to the referee, but the match official had already heard the insults and halted the match telling the teams to head to the locker room. After 20 minutes, the teams were consulted whether they were able to continue, and in the end the match was abandoned. Now the Disciplinary Committee of the Paris League has issued their judgement on the disgraceful incident. The punishment on Montereau for their fans’ behavior is a two year ban from the Coupe de France, the next two home matches being played at another location, and a €200 fine. Credit to the authorities for taking action, and it would be nice to see such continuity when it isn’t just amateur sides involved.