What Wanderers fans think of Alan Green

Here are some of the comments printed in the Bolton Evening News on Thursday, January 5:

Liverpool play the longest ball!

ALAN Green never played at any great level and is only trying to fill a radio show.

As for Bolton "just knock long ball", the Sky Sports Stats people OPTA say that the team with the highest percentage of long balls in 2005 were . . . Liverpool!

Roy Ganley

e-mail

Whites play within rules

IN response to the comments made by both managers and Alan (Red coloured specs) Green.

Why do Rafa Benitez and Green bleat about the way Bolton play?

We play within the rules and if we stray from the laws of the game, we are punished.

I have yet to witness a career-threatening challenge by any of the current Bolton squad, yet we have suffered at least three in recent weeks.

All of which have gone unpunished.

El-Hadji Diouf is singled out by the opposition, yet all Green and Benitez can do is moan about him diving when most (and, I agree, not all) of the time he is being pushed, tripped or jumped on.

Patrick Collingborn

Caldbeck Drive

Farnworth

Bias was out of order

ON returning home from Monday's match, I had the misfortune to tune in to Radio Five Live and hear Alan Green's tirade against the Wanderers.

He described the team as "ugly" and one that he wouldn't pay to watch.

What Mr Green needs to realise is that one of a broadcaster's duties is to try to provide an objective and unbiased service to the listener rather than warped opinions which do no credit to his profession .

Perhaps he was trying to deflect attention away from the Gerrard and Sissoko incidents or cover his own embarrassment at Benitez's predictable whingeing comments against opponents.

Whatever his motives were, all he has achieved, in most supporters' eyes, is to show an unjustified bias in favour of his favourite team, and it is clear that he is out of his depth as an impartial sports reporter.

He needs to take time out to re-train and, in departing from the scene, he would do well to advise some of his fellow Radio Five commentators that it is their professional responsibility to describe the action on the field, and refrain from boring us with a continuous barrage of irrelevant drivel about big money teams and the prima donnas of the game.

David Wilson

Hoylake Close

Leigh

Green was sickening

I LISTENED to the match on Radio Five Live, and got absolutely sick of Alan Green slagging Bolton's football as "ugly", and other derogatory comments.

This theme carried on as he hosted the phone-in after the match from the Reebok.

Green's assessment was contradictory to comments made after the highlights were shown on Match of the Day later.

Alan Hansen said that he and Gary Lineker has watched the whole of the game earlier in the studio, and said they both agreed it was one of the best games they had seen this season - plenty of blood and thunder mixed in with the excitement, to use Hansen's words.

Anybody who knows anything about football knows that teams who cannot compete with the "big guns" in the transfer market have to play to their strengths, a point reiterated by Alan Hansen in his summing up.

I wouldn't be surprised if Big Sam didn't ban Alan Green from any future commentary taking place at the Reebok - in fact if he'd tuned in after the match I doubt if Green would have got out alive.

Mr C Blain

Allan Street

Tyldesley

Long ball Liverpool

From a statistical perspective, Liverpool played 42 long balls (passes over 30 yards) against Bolton's 26. Long Ball Liverpool?

Right from the kick off the ball was passed long towards Peter Crouch.

If Liverpool were trying to play football, why didn't they? They knew what to expect before the game and couldn't execute their gameplan.

We are not perfect, and we don't play perfect football. We do employ gamesmanship, like all other sides, as far as the referee allows.

When we were regularly getting relegated and promoted, opposing managers used to praise our style of play, after beating us. Now that we are competitive and get results, opposing managers don't like it.

Mark Catterall

e-mail

Rafa should stop bleating

RAFA Benitez should learn a little about humility. He reacted in a similar fashion after this fixture last season.

Like Arsene Wenger, it is a pity that such an obviously talented manager should taint his reputation with repeated and unfounded bleating whenever a team has the audacity to actually play a physical game against his team.

As for Alan Green, the man is paid to provoke a response from the British public, so that his radio phone-in is more entertaining.

His opinion means nothing, no matter how ridiculous it is.

Mick Green

Horwich

Hansen's right

I PREFER the comments of Alan Hansen, who often praises Bolton on Match of the Day.

Most football people respect Bolton. Others don't like it that little old Bolton dares to compete at this level.

Wigan, who are the new Bolton, will be turned on next as long as they don't dare to beat the top six.

Norman Maginn

Winterfield Drive

Bolton