Boot-Licking ‘N’ All

Another tempestuous week in England has seen Carlos Tevez label Gary Neville "a boot-licker," Owen Coyle accuse William Gallas of "assault" and Steve Bruce brand Liverpool "disrespectful."

Tevez's unique form of playground name calling came after Gary Neville reportedly said he was not worth the US$41 million Manchester City paid for him after he left United last summer. Tevez gestured at Neville - suggesting the latter talks too much - during the Carling Cup semi-final between the two sides, and Neville responded by raising his middle finger.

Tevez in a later interview said he felt that Neville, who he also called "an idiot" was trying to "suck up" to manager Sir Alex Ferguson by suggesting he was right to offload the Argentinean.

Bolton manager Coyle was disgusted by William Gallas' lunge on Mark Davies which contributed to Arsenal's equalizer in their 4-2 win on Wednesday. Coyle has since admitted he may have gone a little far. One can hardly excuse him for being a bit on edge after the final whistle. He had just watched his team surrender a 2-0 lead to lose 4-2 and go down to their second defeat to the Gunners in four days.

Sunderland manager Bruce has also been having a moan. He is frustrated that Liverpool have allegedly gone behind the club's back to sign Kenwyne Jones on loan until the end of the season. It wouldn't surprise me if the Reds have made overtures as they have very little money. Loans and free transfers are going to be at the top of their agenda as they try to rescue a season that is fast resembling a messy road accident.

The pressures of Premier League life have caused its various protagonists to say crazy things in the past.

In this case, it seems that Coyle and Bruce's reposts have been motivated by perceived injustices on and off the pitch. But lurking behind this aggression, I suspect, is an anxiety about their respective clubs' statuses as both are badly struggling at present.

As for Tevez, didn't his double strike in the 2-1 win against United speak for itself? We all know Neville is a company man, overly defensive of his club, and a staunch Ferguson supporter. But he is also one of the longest serving Premier League players and there will be an element in the game that will have little respect for a player like Tevez - who has comprehensively failed to master the English language - slating a member of the establishment on an Argentinean radio programme.

Photo © Getty Images