SchalkeUK

One thing missing! I have travelled far and wide, but never got to your part of the world so perhaps not as lucky as some! Perhaps......

I spent some time in Radio in the 50s and 60s and then became a teacher in UK but in the 80s and later went to Lille, Waregem and Gelsenkirchen on occasional weeks/month as a cover English teacher. Still go sometimes to meet up with old friends and have organised the local exchange group for years until we all got too old, but my first 1949 visit to Castrop got me with young mates who were all young 'Knappen' it just went from there really! Oh - and I work on the principal that you're never too old for anything!!!

Just a lucky guy who has had a long life being in the right places at the right time!

When he came from Switzerland to Gelsenkirchen I was occasionally still going to Bergefeld for a few weeks each year and with former students (Manu, Benny and Joel - Mesut had already gone to Bremen, but his dad, Mustafa, was always around) we used to get together after training. Magrat's operation ruined the side and it broke up and when Ivan went off to Seville we kept in touch and sometimes called in when we were in other parts of Southern Spain on holiday - particularly to see how Dinain - his Bar which future wife Raquel looked after - was doing. Great place for Tapas! When little Althea was born in 2013 he sent me a nice pic of the three of them and I still carry it in my wallet to this day - great guy - super family man (now with two little girls) and needless to say - a superb footy man. Sometimes the strangest things happen and you get to meet young guys who remain friends for a long time!

Thanks Stan for your suggestions, but York is only 20 miles away and we spent some time in Seville with Ivan and Raquel after he left 04 and opened his Tapas bar there. Both have been great for us in the past, but madame wants somewhere new which is why it's going to be somewhat difficult. Very, very grateful for your kind consideration!

Now for some serious thoughts! March is my Golden Wedding and I am trying to think of somewhere a little special and different - not too costly, but not cheap - to save having a party at home and get away for a nice quiet time somewhere nice and warm. Some of you must have mums and adds who did something special and memorable. Any ideas will be seriously considered. I Know there is a game at the Veltins, and Man City also are engaged over that weekend, but no footy for a week - please!

Siempre toco 'Eres Tu' para mis jóvenes estudiantes, ya que la canción es genial, pero lo más importante, la violencia de Amaya es perfecta para poder entender la letra. Aparte de eso, ella también es bastante hermosa ..... Lo siento si mi español no es bueno. Enseño alemán y francés, ¡pero lo he intentado!

Happy to leave you two to enjoy this one!! - meantime Thomas how do you feel about your city hosting the games next time?

Some say life is Orange - at the moment it is beginning to shine with a royal blue tint!

Franz and Alec - amongst others! My young friend 'smudge' Smith - ex Leeds/Manchester/England - had a problem with class and concentration and took ages to get any qualifications and packed in his time at Loughborough due to that - and as yet has not really used them - for some it works, for others it causes more than a little headache!

Valid comment and good points - however, the problem which seems to be with us at the moment should not be a topic for discussion because someone 'leaked' the situation before it could be solved. If you apply for a job which requires you to undergo some formalities or further training, it is not posted in the local press unless someone has an axe to grind or wants to make a few Euros on the side. People like JK and Tedesco deserve the respect they don't always get until they fail miserably and then they would expect some comments, but a piece of paper which needs to be completed is not a reason for disrespecting anyone unless there are deeper reasons for its omission. Our scum press in the UK is very good at that and I would hope that some of the German guys can rise above this sort of nonsense. This is not the first time such a situation has arisen and, if memory serves me correctly, a period of time (quietly behind the scenes) was given to a well-known coach/manager to get it sorted. As for illegal deeds - they would have been blasted all over the papers if they existed without any checks needing to be made!

There is one basic difference between Alex and Manuel which can never be ignored - Manuel's whole being up to leaving 04 was steeped in Gelsenkirchen, the town, school and club and the departure was almost heartbreaking - Alex is a Paderborn boy who finally arrived as a young man in the Veltins and has very little history to be sad about losing. There are many similarities in their game - my belief is that Alex - like lots of other young hopefuls - spent hours watching Peter Manuel grow up with 04 and then Bayern and the National Team. He has been honest and another good positive role model for young keepers and we all wish him well, but if - unlike Manuel - his heart is not in the Arena he must decide where his future lies himself!

Those who sit behind a desk and have difficulty in recognising a football from a rugby ball need to pull their heads in sometimes. So what if the difference between a coach and a manager and a director is a piece of paper - usually out-of-date which will never, ever diminish the contribution men like JK have made to the sport. If they concentrated a little on the back-room corruption and the terrace racism which exists they would be doing a greater service to the game rather than trying to disrespect former great and respected players as they try to pass on their knowledge and experience to the kids. By all means run regular checks on those tasked with looking after the kids, but come on! - JK? There are many senior players I would love to see stay in the game in key roles - Philip Lahm as such an example, but silly stuff like this will only lose them and diminish their influence which would be almost criminal. When JK is questioned and young guys like Tedesco are let loose without any consideration of their ability to hold such positions then something is very wrong! The English FA can be a real mess at times - let's hope the BL does not follow that route!

Saturday 18th January, 2020 Huddersfield vs Brentford 1-3 Real Madrid vs Sevilla 2-0 KV Oostende vs Waasland-Beveren, 19.00 1-0 AZ Alkmaar vs Willem II, 19.45 3-1 Sunday 19th January, 2020 Western Sydney Wanderers vs Perth Glory, 07.30 1-2 Nottm Forest vs Luton, 12.00 2-1 Real Betis vs Real Sociedad, 13.00 1-3 Bologna vs Hellas Verona, 14.00 2-2 ADO Den Haag vs RKC Waalwijk, 15.45 1-0 Anderlecht vs Club Brugge, 17.00 1-3

Sorry Rando, but Yes Yes Yes - had a odd few minutes with Johnny at the end of last season and he really is happy with us! He is first choice on the selection list and wants to keep that up and get into the Southgate setup properly - not sure if that would continue if he was back in the pool. Whatever happens, he is a real talent and deserves to succeed!