Top Stories

Mid-Day Ticker: Portsmouth in trouble, FIFA wants more handshakes and more

Portsmouth (Getty Images)

All is far from well at Fratton Park.

League championship side Portsmouth has reportedly asked players and employees to hold off on collecting their salaries, after the club's administrator warned that it could run out of money within two months.

The club entered administration for the second time since 2010 last week, and the club's administrator, Trevor Birch, believes the tactic is necessary for the team to remain in business.

"To put it bluntly, Portsmouth Football Club has a Premier League cost base but only Championship income," Birch told reporters. "This is not a sustainable situation and one that needs to be addressed urgently if the club is to continue to exist.

"There is a serious risk that the club could run out of cash within the next couple of months. Portsmouth's survival depends on us being able to find a buyer for the club before the money runs out."

Here are a few more stories from around the soccer world:

FIFA WANTS POSTGAME HANDSHAKES

Instead of getting rid of the pregame handshake routine, FIFA is reportedly headed to the complete opposite end of the spectrum: It wants more.

In light of the handshake fiasco before the Manchester United-Liverpool match in which Luis Suarez refused to shake Patrice Evra's hand, FIFA has taken it upon itself to examine ways to improve the image of the game and emphasize sportsmanship.

As a result, a FIFA committee led by former German great Franz Beckenbauer has expressed its wish for postgame handshakes in the center circle following every match.

ROONEY RULED OUT FOR SECOND LEG VS. AJAX

Wayne Rooney will miss Manchester United's Europa League Round of 32 second leg match against Ajax after being ruled out with a throat infection.

The English side holds a commanding 2-0 edge heading back to the return leg Old Trafford. Rooney reportedly picked up the infection after last week's first leg in Amsterdam. He is being rested with the hope that he'll be fit for Sunday's league match against Norwich City.

MORRISON FINED BY FA FOR TWEET

Ravel Morrison's controversial tweet has cost him £7,000.

The former Manchester United youth product and current 19-year-old West Ham midfielder used a homophobic slur toward another user via his own personal social networking page and is paying the price for it.

He was charged by the FA for using abusive language in regard to another's sexual orientation and admitted to it, thus prompting the fine and a warning from the FA.

———————–

What do you think of the situation at Portsmouth? What's your take on FIFA's handshake stance? Think Manchester United will be fine against Ajax without Rooney? What do you think of the punishment levied on Morrison? 

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. We don’t need more stinking hand shakes. Force everyone to shake hands and you will lose the awesome scenes of voluntary hand shakes and jersey swaps we often get now. And those are heart felt.

    Reply
  2. I’m all in, if this means Sepp Blatter, Jack Warner, and Mohamed bin Hammam have to shake hands next time one of them gets a hearing on something.

    Think of the drama– will bin Hammam snub Blatter? Will Jack Warner try to slip Blatter a bribe during the handshake like he’s tipping a valet?

    Reply
  3. They do them in basketball, line up and shake everyone’s hand…the crazy thing is that they have force it. Not sure why the rest of the world has these problems. Get over the conflict like a man would, not like a boy would.

    Reply
  4. And the fine for a missed hanshake will be…………

    An insane Kabuki dance that only the mentally ill an WWF followers will believe.

    Reply
  5. I think it’s a great idea to have handshakes. Being graceful in victory or defeat is a great trait to show young fans, and it’s pretty rare now. Plus, while there would be chaos for the first few months, I’m sure a few gigantic fines would keep players in line.

    Reply
  6. There should be no sympathy for Portsmouth. They spent 1m quid on Liam Lawrence this summer when most other teams in the championship spent little to nothing. The blame here in my opinion lies with the club and the FA, how was this guy proved to be fit and proper after the last saga. Quite frankly its ridiculous and they deserve to be relegated for this and any other penalty they’ll get.

    Reply
  7. With having seen the interaction between Evra and Suarez before the game, I can only imagine what the interaction would have looked like if they are to shake hands AFTER the match. Those would have been some fireworks worth watching.

    Reply
  8. Can’t really blame Redknapp. He left 4 years ago.
    “Portsmouth Football Club has a Premier League cost base but only Championship income”. I think this is laughable. Most teams that are relegated have a massive fire sale, realizing they will not have the revenue streams that were available in the Premier league. You either sell, loan or don’t sign players to new contracts and sign more affordable players.

    Reply
  9. Maybe after the games they could sit around a campfire in the center circle, make S’mores, and sing Kumbaya as well?

    Afterwards they need to have the players’ parents form a tunnel to run through.

    And don’t forget the orange slices!

    Reply
  10. Can the parents of the players make a tunnel for them to run under after the game as well?

    In all seriousness, i think post-game handshakes shouldn’t be forced. I think it will cause more chaos and confrontation between players who had intense moments during the game or between players who flat out don’t like each other.

    Reply

Leave a Comment