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Football: Maradona shrugs off Butcher snub and vilifies English achievements of 1966

Diego Maradona took a World Cup semi-final place from England in 1986 and today he took the urine. Argentina's new head coach told a captive audience in Glasgow that it was hypocritical of the English to vilify him for the Hand of God when Sir Alf Ramsey's side had bent the rules to win their own World Cup at Wembley two decades before. A warm reception is anticipated for the 48-year-old when he steps into international management against Scotland tomorrow night .Maradona's accusation was delivered with mirth rather than menace as he held his first besieged official press conference since being unveiled as the surprise successor to Alfio Basile earlier this month. His first game brings him into confrontation with Terry Butcher, the Scotland assistant manager who was part of the England team beaten by Maradona's duplicity and brilliance in Mexico 22 years ago and who this week expressed a lingering wish to punch the former Argentina captain for that infamous first goal."I don't know why Butcher is taking this attitude," said Maradona, rolling his eyes and feigning hurt when informed by a translator that George Burley's number two will not be shaking his hand at Hampden Park. "I am fine with people who are fine with me and I don't understand why Butcher takes this attitude. Let Butcher get on with his life and I will get on with mine. If he doesn't shake my hand I will still be alive the next morning. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it."A female journalist then asked whether he would not feel resentment at being cheated out of a World Cup quarter-final. Maradona paused, then smiled, then drew a parallel between the Hand of God and Geoff Hurst's second goal against West Germany in the 1966 World Cup Final. "I say to the young lady, England won a World Cup with a goal that never crossed the line. It was plain to everyone who saw it that it never went in, so I don't think it's fair that everyone should judge me when stuff like that went on." Warming to his theme, Maradona held his hands a foot apart and added: "It was this much before the line. They just never used to have action replays in those days." Cue raucous laughter from the Scottish and Argentinean contingent inside the Radisson Hotel.England-baiting aside, there was a seriousness to Maradona's address befitting a man with his troubled history and a manager who, prior to taking on the role of leading one of international football's superpowers, had overseen just 23 games from the sidelines as coach of Deportivo Mandiyu and Racing Club in the mid-1990s. The legendary player dismissed the suggestion he has plenty to prove as coach of an Argentina side that has won only one of its last eight matches and lost its last World Cup qualifying game to Chile."I don't feel under pressure at all," said Maradona, who will work alongside his World Cup winning coach, Carlos Bilardo, in the national set-up. "If I hadn't accepted the offer I would have been a coward and I didn't want to shy away from the challenge. We have a long hard road ahead of us, it is not going to be easy, but the Argentinean national team needed someone to guide and help them and now we are on a mission together. Hopefully we will have a collective experience on the road to South Africa."Inexperience is not the only charge levelled against Maradona since his appointment, with his temperament also on trial in the international spotlight. As a player he blamed a failed drugs test at the 1994 World Cup on a FIFA-led conspiracy to hound him from the game while his cheerleading displays at the 2006 World Cup in Germany are clearly ill-suited to the technical area."I am the manager of Argentina now and I'm not going to get involved in anything like that," he said of football's politics. "As for the touchline, it depends on how the team are playing. If they are making me feel safe and sound then I'll be fine. If they are making me nervy then maybe I will behave like you saw in Germany."Maradona scored his first international goal against Scotland at Hampden Park in 1979 and flirted with the possibility of one day managing in Britain. He also refuted the theory that great players do not make great coaches. "Cruyff showed in his time with Barcelona, with what he achieved there, that that can be the case," he reasoned.It was when asked to describe his own personal journey, one that has entailed cocaine addiction and a fight for his life in a Cuban clinic offered by Fidel Castro, that Maradona gave the shortest reply of all. "I get up every morning, simple as that," he said. "I get up every morning."When stars take chargeFranz Beckenbauer West GermanyTransferred his leadership qualities from pitch to dugout, winning the World Cup as the captain in 1974 and as the manager in 1990, still the only man to do soMarco van Basten Holland Began his managerial career in the national job in 2004 and made a name for discarding big guns, dropping Ruud van Nistelrooy en route to defeat to Portugal in the 2006 World Cup second roundMichel Platini France Appointed as the national coach in 1988 a year after his retirement but failed to reach the 1990 World Cup. Stepped down after early exit at Euro 92Gheorghe Hagi RomaniaThe Maradona of the Carpathians bombed as the national coach and was sacked after six maverick monthsDiego MaradonaArgentinaScotlandguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Hamilton to race Hoy at Wembley

Triple Olympic cycling gold medallist Chris Hoy is to compete in a special man versus machine race against Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton at Wembley.

England coach Fabio Capello wants fewer concerts at Wembley to protect pitch

Wembley could host fewer concerts and special events after senior figures in the England setup voiced their concerns over the state of the pitch.

Premier League: Chelsea ponder £500m Battersea move

Chelsea are considering advanced plans for a new stadium next to Battersea Power Station, three miles from their current home at Stamford Bridge. The proposed new ground would hold between 65,000 and 75,000 fans and would have a retractable roof. It has been designed by HOK Sports, the company that built Wembley Stadium, the Emirates and the north stand at the Bridge.The plans have been presented to club executives by architects from the company's Putney base and a representative from HOK's New York office. One HOK employee said: 'The presentation was very impressive and was common knowledge around the place. Everyone was talking about it and the pictures of the new stadium were stuck up on the walls at the Putney office.'The new site is across the Thames in south London and it would take an hour to walk there from Stamford Bridge. It is also in a different borough, Wandsworth, to the stadium that has been the club's home since their formation in 1905 - facts likely to cause controversy among fans. The proposed development is expected to cost up to £500m and would, a source confirmed, be funded in part by the development of Stamford Bridge into luxury apartments. This mirrors the model Arsenal followed when moving from Highbury to the Emirates in 2006. Penthouses at the redeveloped site went on sale for £1m and the cheapest apartment currently available costs £375,000. About 90 per cent of the original build has now been sold, giving Arsenal a profit of more than £100m. While Highbury is one of the more expensive areas of the capital in which to buy property, it is dwarfed by the value of land at Stamford Bridge's west London location in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. While Arsenal were restricted to 711 apartments at Highbury, as the old stadium was a listed building, Stamford Bridge has no such limitations. With its far greater area, including the club's Chelsea Village complex and extensive parking, at least 1,000 properties could be built. Despite the credit crisis, which is affecting the price of property, Chelsea would expect high interest in what is an exclusive area of prime real estate, allowing them to profit from the move. Arsenal's decision to leave Highbury has placed them among the biggest earners in world football. The club's matchday revenue is about £3m for every home game. Chelsea's problem might be filling the new stadium. They have had to cut ticket prices for Champions League group matches this season after not selling out all games last year and on occasion have bought adverts in newspapers to try to sell tickets for some Premier League games.A club spokesperson last night told Observer Sport that no decision had been reached. 'Chelsea have been linked with countless sites away from Stamford Bridge, but the club is still evaluating options to develop the club's current stadium. Only when those options have been exhausted will we consider moving.'To move, Chelsea would need the nod from Chelsea Pitch Owners, a non-profit organisation formed in 1997 to prevent Stamford Bridge being sold again to property developers. They own the naming rights to the club - so could force Chelsea to change their name if the club left the ground without their backing.Premier LeagueChelseaguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Rovers Face Tough Scunthorpe Trip in JPT Semi

Tranmere were dealt something of a blow this morning with the news that they have been drawn away at League One leaders Scunthorpe United in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy area semi-final as they bid to try and reach the new Wembley for the first time..

Ronnie Pre Match "We Want To Win This Competition"

Ronnie Moore's pre-match comments ahead of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy match at home to Morecambe on Tuesday night as Rovers look to take another step closer to Wembley Stadium by progessing to the area semi-final if they win the match at Prenton Park tomorrow night.

Serie A: Revealed: how Fabio Capello made sure David Beckham got AC Milan move

Fabio Capello is more determined than ever to extend David Beckham's international career. The England manager not only urged the LA Galaxy midfielder to go out on loan during the winter but used all his influence to persuade Milan that they should sign him from the American club, whose season ends this weekend. Capello was adamant that the 33-year-old, whose loan spell is likely to start in January, still had a genuine contribution to make.He and Franco Baldini, the England general manager, put their case to the chief executive of the Serie A club, Adriano Galliani. Capello, given his distinguished place in Milan's history, can exert great influence. He was keen to ensure that Galliani was not simply attracted to Beckham because of his value in marketing terms.Capello was adamant that the former England captain, despite being a veteran, could still make a sustained impact on the field for Milan. The manager is convinced that Beckham, for an athlete of his age, retains a good level of fitness. There may, of course, be mockery of that assertion, particularly since Capello himself seems to allow the player only appearances bordering on the subliminal in their brevity.Beckham's last three outings for England have entailed a total of 17 minutes on the pitch. Nonetheless there was warm appreciation from the Wembley crowd for his impact against Kazakhstan. It has been Capello's priority to utilise Theo Walcott's pace on the right while also furthering the teenager's education but he has been adamant, too, about Beckham's relevance. The midfielder, for his part, accepts that he may never again start a competitive match for his country. The player last did that in June 2007, before Capello's appointment, when England ran up a 3-0 away win over Estonia in the Euro 2008 qualifiers.Beckham's mounting total of caps is a provocation to some. He is one short of equalling Bobby Moore's England record, for an outfield player, of 108 appearances. The odds must still be against Beckham surpassing Peter Shilton's tally of 125 caps but critics complain that he has been honoured excessively already.The issue is a matter of indifference to Capello. When picking his first squad, for the friendly with Switzerland in February, the manager had no use for Beckham, despite the fact that he was on a tantalising total of 99 appearances. To his mind, the player could not be in shape since the MLS clubs were still in their pre-season phase. Capello's concern over this issue has been marked as he looks ahead to the friendly with Spain next February.Beckham trained with Arsenal at the start of this year but that sort of arrangement is not good enough for the England manager. The player was informed that he could not be considered for the squad to face Spain unless he was engaged in competitive football at the time. Beckham has a struggle ahead of him. The Milan Lab is famed for getting the most out of elderly footballers but he will still have to prove he should be in the starting line-up. While the Milan coach, Carlo Ancelotti, believed it would be worthwhile to bring in Beckham, the player will have to show he has something to offer. Capello has presented Beckham with a challenge as much as an opportunity.Serie AMilanDavid BeckhamFabio Capelloguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Oasis to play Wembley - but Noel vows never to return to 'weird' Glastonbury

ROCK band Oasis are to return to Wembley Stadium after being the last British band to headline the venue before the old building was knocked down.

Oasis: 'Wembley will be great'

Noel Gallagher gives his views on their forthcoming super gigs, the Pope and rehearsing for the BBC Electric Proms.