Belgianification continues

Another day and a few more Belgians arrive – at this rate I’m going to be complaining to my MP – these bloody football tourists , they come over here taking our jobs, using our football pitches- probably taking a few of our women too . Just in the last 2 days weve had , Patrick Van Houdt, Guy Kiala and now weve signed Yoni Buyens .
The club proudly announced on the official website that a fee had been agreed for Igor Vitokele who is a Belgian Angolan ( whose Dad , I am guessing was quite keen on the Russian backed side in the Angolan civil war) . To announce things before the player has actually signed is a departure from previous practise and doesn’t seem sensible. Last year would have seen us announce a whole host of deals on that basis , Connor Wickham , Jonny Williams, Max Gradel for starters and Chris O Grady this year.
From his profile and the video evidence he is small and slight – which to my mind – is not what is required in the Championship. Look at Burnley and Leicester last year , you need power and strength up front .
One thing I don’t understand is why the club are not using Katrien or even the Board to make optimistic and bullish statements about investment in the pitch and stadium. It is certainly good news and supporters want to hear about investment on and off the pitch and it doesn’t seem like the current management team really understand the concept of marketing/bigging up the product. Peter Varney would have been constantly flagging up these good things.
Anyway I’m hopeful that Monday’s press conference will be an upbeat affair with many more Belgians arriving in a minibus or clinging to the underside of a Eurostar .
Tintin , snowy and the Thompson twins are on their way next .

Reza v The Super Eagles

It was no competition really , I went to see The Eagles at the O2. We had seats which were quite close to the stage , but also next to the gangway near the top of the block.
It was like watching a concert in a train station . I wanted to watch and listen to a succession of great hits from the Eagles. What I actually saw during the concert was a constant stream of mostly fat, middle aged men ( and women) going to the toilet and/or returning with 4 new pints of lager- and I’m not talking about the Eagles themselves.
You would think that people would be able to organise themselves to a) arrive on time b) go to the toilet before the concert starts c) wait until the interval to get a drink and /or go to the toilet again d) buy the video or watch it on TV rather than hold up a silly smartphone to video the concert e) only stand up and dance in your seat if everyone else is doing it. f) don’t have a lengthy conversation with your partner in the seat behind me while Timothy Schmidt is singing a ballad.
I know its not the theatre , but it is similar in that it is a performance which people pay a lot of money to watch – none of the above are allowed at the theatre so why at a Pop concert ( Festivals are obviously different) ?

As for Reza , I recorded that and watched it – lets face it he’s never going to be what you might call prolific is he ?

D Day

I don’t know what it is about getting old , its probably a loss of testosterone but I’ve started crying when I see emotional events on TV – the recent D Day landings 70th anniversary coverage had me in floods of tears as I watched the veterans walking the streets in France.
Anyway, the ITV coverage was also notable for the piece they did on the ‘oldest surviving brothers from D Day’ who served on HMS Frobisher together , John & Ernest Dale, who were 94 and 90 respectively. The News Shopper ran this piece yesterday.
http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/11266126.Orpington_veteran_and_brother_thought_to_be_oldest_surviving_D_Day_siblings_to_have_fought_together/

At the end of the ITV interview , the interviewer turned to camera and said I wouldn’t normally do this , but John & Ernest were such lovely guys, so I don’t mind that they asked me to tell you all that they are both lifelong Charlton Athletic supporters . – that just started me off again – boo hooing

Hopefully the club have already picked up on this , but if they haven’t I can’t think of 2 better people to get out onto our new pitch in August and enjoy a huge ovation of gratitude from their home crowd , while I break out my tissues again .