The most hated man in football

Nope. For me, Sepp Blatter doesn't even come close in competition to the man I am about to put under the spotlight...

La Liga fans hate him, Serie A fans despise him, even supporters from his own club eventually turned after growing tired of his involvement in incidents spanning across the past few seasons. Although this is all based on my personal opinion, I don't believe any player in the Premier League is in the same bracket as this man. Last seasons Champions League tie between Barcelona and Real Madrid stands as a perfect illustration of the average English football fans perception of the Spanish game- the brilliance of Lionel Messi in the first leg countered by the theatrics and bad-blood that came in the second. Without sounding too much like Henry Winter, the same goes for La Liga, where fluent passing moves and showings from some of the worlds greatest are marred by shameful actions from the likes of my subject at hand. Forget Robbie Savage, Joey Barton and Gary Neville and all the other players you hate to love or love to hate. In fact, when you think about the players generally considered to be disliked, you'd often have them in your side, playing with passion and kissing your teams badge in the blink of an eye.. Not in this case, however. I'm talking about David Navarro.

Navarro- Valencia's bully

The reason why Navarro is so despised even in his native Spain is not only because of the incidents that make the news, but his way of playing the game. Virtually every run-out for the defender sees a dive, a shirt-tug, or another similar showing of unsportsmanlike conduct which he seems to thrive off. Now, we all know the odd bruiser you come up against on a Sunday morning playing at the heart of the defence. He's 15 stone, 6ft 4" and, discounting his dead-end job, this is all he's got- 90 minutes of playing school bully for Pondweed Town. He's in your ear all game, leaves stud marks on your boots, but if he ever actually got signed up and played professionally, there is no doubt he'd cut out all of this and knuckle down. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Navarro. In the context of a match, its never a two-foot-lunge or a blatant raised arm (although we'll get to that soon enough), it's always something more sly. It almost seems like he practices certain routines before matches to prevent getting caught, and this is one of the reasons why hatred for him is on such a high level; he rarely gets punished for half of the stuff he commits. When he does, however, boy does he come off worse.

Inter Milan v Valencia- 'that' punch

For football fans around the world, I'm sure case study one will be familiar. After four seasons with Valencia's B team and a further five appearing sporadically for the full side, it seemed appropriate that he first made a name for himself courtesy of an incident after the whistle. March 6th 2007, and its ended Valencia 0-0 Inter Milan with tensions at breaking point as the home side have just qualified for the quarter-finals of the Champions League on away goals after a 1-1 draw at the San Siro. A pushing match breaks out between Inter defender Nicolas Burdisso and Valencia captain Carlos Marchena, with more of the Spaniards teammates piling in. It seemed most of Burdisso's colleagues were down the other end complaining to the referee after two penalty appeals were waved away during the game, meaning the Argentine and Ivan Cordoba are left to fend for themselves. Suddenly, a crowd of suits and coats come rushing over to diffuse the situation- holding back both Cordoba and his raging defensive partner in an attempt to prevent any retaliation. Then, wearing a grey coat after spending the entire game on the bench, Navarro runs up to a defenceless Burdisso- a player he had no interaction with during the match- and lands a full-bodied punch onto his nose, breaking it in the process (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RmC651Ub5M). The Inter players then give chase; Julio Cruz, Cordoba and Douglas Maicon all attempting to trip the sprinting culprit, but to no avail as Navarro makes a clean getaway into his teams dressing room to complete the cowardly act.

The phrase 'cheap shot' wouldn't do it justice. As a viewer, it's one of those moments that makes you wish you were in that changing room when he clocked in, smirk and all. Unsurprisingly, Navarro didn't get away with it, and was subsequently charged by UEFA with 'gross unsporting conduct', the six-month ban from all matches that followed bringing an end to his 2006-07 season. After being fined for failing to control their players in the game, his already cash-strapped club weren't happy- the incident ruining what was supposed to be a night to celebrate, immediately turfing him out to Real Mallorca for the 2007-08 season. Aware that he needed to win back a bit of support, barring the odd scuffle, Navarro generally avoided trouble during his first season at the Balearic Islands side, which wasn't hard after only playing 18 games. With his own club still holding a grudge, he returned to Mallorca on another year-long-loan for the 2008-09 season where he featured prominently. He performed and behaved so well in fact that after two years Valencia were willing to give him another chance. His second stint turned out to be even more eventful than the first.

Messi- 'roughed up' by Navarro

In just his first month back, Navarro had a run in the first team, which is another problem fans from other clubs seem to have with him; when his aggression is channeled, he isn't a bad footballer. Unfortunately, the honeymoon period lasted a mere two months, with Navarro making the headlines yet again with an incident during a match with Barcelona in mid-October. Just 12 seconds into the game, eagle-eyed viewers saw the Spaniard walking over to man-of-the-moment Messi, appearing to have accidentally trodden on his studs before apologising and running away. After the match, what shots from other angles revealed saw Navarro receive a barrage of criticism from journalists, managers and players alike. Spotting his target, the defender did a quick check for potential witnesses before aiming a stamp on the ankle of Messi's right-foot. Admirably, the Argentine simply looked down, checked for damage, dished out a glare and carried on with his evening (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW0Jc9M_YpQ). Now, if your that much of lowlife that you'd even consider doing something like this, if there's one player that you might want to avoid, its the worlds most loved; mainly because your not likely to have anyone in your corner. More seriously, many players have been ruled out for seasons with injuries to the fibula from tackles, with a well timed stamp having the potential to deliver the same impact. In the new year, he was at it again, but this time no one stayed quiet.

Freeze frame- the moment of impact

Minutes into the second-half of a match against Athletic Blibao and Navarro goes up for a header with Fernando Llorente. Both players jump, but with the Valencia's new club captain set to win the challenge, an arm is raised and quickly pulled back by Navarro which leaves both himself and the Bilbao front-man on the ground. Groups of the crowd near the incident are raging, with ones from the other side of the stadium as confused as referee, Cesar Muniz Fernandez, who also had a bad view of the incident. "Can't you see he's in pain?" the referee asked an infuriated Bilbao midfield, who had the view which TV replays were about to display. The footage was shocking: Navarro appearing to deliver a blow to his opponent's head, splitting it open, without receiving any more than a nudge himself on his way to appearing motionless on the floor. It took a fair amount of time for Navarro to respond, during which his eyes rolled back into his head before he was stretchered off for further examination, only to suddenly get up and run back onto the pitch minutes later. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGOLCRC6y74). With the viewers at home now aware of the whole incident, Navarro's quick recovery made things even worse, with the attack seeming premeditated. This then set the tone for a bad-tempered affair in which Valencia came out 2-1 winners, but yet again, the result was to take a side-spot in the aftermath.

Llorente- outed Navarro in the aftermath 

Further light was shone on Navarro's actions when more replays revealed that the Spaniard had dished out yet another unseen elbow in the game, this time to the face of Javi Martinez, causing a bloody nose. Understandably, brooding centre-forward Llorente pulled no punches in the post-match press conference. When asked about the incident that many in the press box hadn't seen, Llorente claimed that Navarro delivered "the performance of his life" and that he "deserved an Oscar" for his antics that aimed to shield the severity of his actions. Another teammate with a clear view, Mikel San Jose also joined in: "David Navarro's attitude is really disgusting. Football is a contact sport and you can give your opponent a blow with an elbow but if that happens you have to own up to it and not throw yourself onto the ground." However, Llorente was to have the last word on the matter: "It's incredible that he should come out smelling of roses. He's got no other game but hitting people." Although Navarro had escaped any kind of punishment for the stamp on Messi, this wasn't to be the case this time. Videos of the defenders past demeanor's appeared on youtube, and overnight, the story went national.

The aftermath saw Valencia hitting the self-destruct button on a number of occasions. Sporting director Braulio Vazquez expressed his disappointment that Bilbao had come across in the manner they did after the game, which few agreed with. Instead of apologising for his actions, in an ambitious attempt to protest his innocence, Navarro claimed that he experienced whiplash and felt dizzy, going onto state that he didn't mean to hurt anyone. No one believed that. Pictures appearing in Valencia newspaper Super Deporte showed his 'bruised' legs, accompanied by an interview with Navarro in which the defender claimed his defenders were kicked during the game. No one cared. Los Che winger Joaquin also failed to his improve his clubs image, claiming that his teammate "hadn't killed anyone," which was supposedly meant to make everything alright. Whether or not Bilbao had been heavy handed was irrelevant, the incident was treated on its own, and it wasn't long until the Spaniard was forced out of the league he had spent his whole career playing in.

In the light of these kind of incidents, most players are usually frozen out, transfer-listed or released from their clubs. But, to a debt-ridden Valencia in the 2009, it must have been so refreshing to have a forgotten player return and slot straight into the starting line-up, knowing that money hasn't been spent to make it happen. Valencia officials and fans must have been aware of the stamp on Messi, yet they needed their club captain to still be playing. Unfortunately for Navarro, the Bilbao match at the end of February saw him on borrowed time. Deciding that their reputation had taken enough of a battering, just three months later, Navarro's contract was cancelled by 'mutual consent'. Now ready to start his first season in the Swiss league playing for minnows Neuchatel Xamaz after joining on a free transfer, Navarro has one last chance to clear up his image. But at 31-years-old, is there any point? Is he even the type? Probably not, so expect a few more headlines in the future.

Make or break- Liverpool under Comolli

Pre-season- it always ends somewhere in the middle of August at 3pm for most clubs, but when it actually starts is up for question...

This is meant to be the period of rest and reflection, but instead, you just feel like there's something missing. Thankfully, this feeling comes and goes over the weekend, the void filled by the round-the-clock action of the transfer window. Since fees have risen, player power has increased, and, more importantly, with FIFA's new Financial Fair Play rulings set to come into effect, the window has become a worthy substitute for matches. The ruling is huge news for the market; prohibiting clubs from operating with money they haven't got. As a result, Premier League teams looking to strengthen were expected to be going for broke this summer on youth prospects. Well, that's what was meant to happen, and still could, but it seems only one club has truly seized upon this opportunity. Ladies and Gentleman, introducing the team that just keeps giving. Liverpool Football Club.          

Dalglish: pro-active in the window

Pessimists and Mancunians seem to have struck up a sturdy friendship this summer, with both parties writing off a title challenge from the red half of Merseyside before the seasons even started. Why? Jealousy, perhaps. Fear is another possible factor. But again, why? When looking at the key differences between the clubs at the top of the pile and the ones down at the bottom, it often comes down to the quality of players. After being allowed to spend over £100m on his squad over the last one-and-a-half transfer windows, few would argue that Kenny Dalglish hasn't been given at least some of the tools to succeed. Following January deals for front-men Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll, this summer saw more arrivals in the form of Jordan Henderson from Sunderland, the inevitable capture of Charlie Adam from Blackpool, as well their newest recruit, Stewart Downing, from Aston Villa. Accounting for the money spent, the caliber of the signings and the key positions that they fill, this is it. This is Kenny getting what he needs to compete with the best.

Of course, there's pressure to deliver from all angles. Not only from the board, but the players themselves have probably been promised a little more than a top six finish. But as far as the new signings are concerned, Dalglish talking up their chances of a title assault in the near future could work their favour; they may all believe it could happen this season. Baring that in mind, there's every possibility they could be the dark horses for the 2011/12 Premier League crown, and for the money spent, you'd have thought so too. Still, whether they sink or swim, the upcoming season will provide the neutrals with numerous talking points, as this summer already has. With every signing, every press conference and every pre-season performance from one of the class of last year, there's a talking point. This week, there was just the one: the signing of Downing for £20m.

Although the price-tag of Dalglish's latest addition to the Reds midfield has already raised a few eyebrows, the more important issue at hand is the signing of Downing adhering to Liverpool's new-found transfer policy. I'm sure many have already picked up on the strategy employed by the club in the last couple of windows: the purchasing of leading British individuals from smaller English clubs. Different? In some respects, yes. Original? Not so much. In fact, the system has worked on a number of occasions for clubs all the way down the league pyramid. One of the firm believers in this strategy is even a key member of Liverpool's board. Enter Damien Comolli.

Clichy: found by Comolli

Deciding to bring an end to his playing career in 1992 following a release from Monaco's youth squad, Comolli continued his relationship with the club in a coaching capacity, leading the French clubs U16 side to a state championship during his three-year-stay. After gaining a degree from the Nice school of law (the school in the city, not just a nice school) and obtaining his French coaching license, it wasn't long until then newly appointed Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger appointed him European scout in 1996. Bringing to light the talents of Gael Clichy, Kolo Toure and countless other future first-teamers during his time at Highbury, he left to seek pastures new in 2004. Following yet another successful stint in the French league during the 2004-2005 season, this time as Technical Director at AS Saint-Ettiene, Tottenham Hotspur came calling. The scout with a reputation for success was made Director of Football, and this was where it all gets interesting.

In a market without inflation for English players, the strategy at first was clear: buy British from clubs willing to sell for the right price. Looking back, it seemed to have worked. Future members of Spurs' 2010-2011 Champions League squad, Micheal Dawson, Jermaine Jenas, Alan Hutton, Jermaine Defoe and Gareth Bale were all players signed by Comolli for modest figures, while the sale of Micheal Carrick to Manchester United generated £15m profit for the club. As always, there were a few that didn't quite make the grade, however, Spurs and Comolli only managed to make minor losses on those that failed to make an impression. The signings of Darren Bent for £16m and David Bentley for £15m stand out as poor deals, but, as an example, Calum Davenport, who only made 15 appearances for Spurs during his three-year-stay at the club, was actually sold for just under £2m more than the amount he was bought for. Similar to the purchase of Luis Suarez, top European players like Luka Modric and Dimitar Berbatov were also brought in to provide balance whilst Comolli was at Tottenham, and should the likes of Bale and Modric either continue to realise their potential or be sold on for £30m+, Liverpool fans have every right to be optimistic about how things could pan out under Comolli.

In a job described as 'having everything to do with the football side of running the club', Comolli has gradually become a valuable asset. Working with a manager seemingly revitalized by modern football, the role of the Frenchman upon arrival in November 2010 was limited a under then boss, Roy Hodgson. Coinciding with the departure of Hodgson and investment from new owners, Fenway Sports Group, Comolli has played a big part in the rebuilding process at Liverpool. Dalglish picks the squad and oversees training, Comolli deals with transfers and oversees scouting, as well as public relations. Although its common for members of the board from a football club to leave the manager to do the talking, Comolli is ever-present in the media. He always talks highly of their transfer policy, goals and long-term plans. Why? Probably because they're part of his model- the one that worked so well at Spurs. As mentioned before, Comolli has a proven track record with signing players, but the risk element is much higher this time around.

Adam: a 'Comolli signing'

Lingering in mid-table following Hodgson's departure at the start of the 2011 January transfer window, the demands of Comolli's job expanded. There wouldn't be time to find the next Clichy or Thierry Henry in the depths of the French academies; they needed players to step right into the side to provide solutions. Everyone knows what happened next: Andy Carroll and Suarez arrived for £22.8m and £35m respectively, with Fernando Torres' departure completing the make-over up-front. The Reds continued to stick to the plan with the arrivals of Henderson and Downing for £20m each, in between the transfer of Adam from Blackpool. Overall, at £7m, the deal for the Tangerine's former captain seems like the only one reminiscent of a Comolli signing at Spurs, only because it carries less risk. So, if the price hike for 'home-grown' players is so apparent, why buy British in the first place?

A debate further stirred by the national teams failings at recent major tournaments, British football isn't currently in a great place. Our home nations are constantly being showed up by the competition in various tournaments, with the FA's plans to 'revamp' English football scheduled to take effect way past the likes of Downing's playing career. With no clear asking price, its natural for fans to wonder how much rumoured targets Juan Mata and Ezequiel Lavezzi would have cost should Liverpool have declared an interest and pursued. Although generally pleased with their summer signings, the same group of supporters will be thinking just what other players could have been bought for the £47m it costed to bring in Henderson, Downing and Adam. Is it a coincidence that all three of Liverpool's top summer targets were British? Not at all; it must have been part of the plan. Sure, there's the 25-man-squad-rule to think about, but with the likes of Jamie Carragher, Glen Johnson and Steven Gerrard already making the starting line-up, Liverpool stood to already meet the quota. On the other hand, when you forget about nationalities, Adam, Downing and Henderson all had great 2010/11 Premier League seasons. Maybe its just another attempt to speed up the process- buying players already capable of performing in the league. Either way, results in the next few seasons will be the only way to determine whether it worked.

Make no mistake about it, Liverpool have gone all in for their talent, but if there's one man that can pull this off, its Comolli. He seems confident without seeming deluded, bold without being too expectant; he's Liverpool's youthful board member that they've been looking for. As many are predicting, however, Henderson and Downing could both very easily turn into Bentley and Bent, but that's the fun part, you just never know. Should all not go to plan.. well, its best not to think about it.