Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce launched a withering attack on Giovanni Trapattoni today, dismissing the Italian’s assessment of Steven Reid’s injury problems as ill-informed and untrue. The big man with the short fuse has clearly been seething following comments made by the Republic of Ireland boss regarding Reid and took time out from preparing to face Chelsea to give vent to his spleen.
Trapattoni had outlined concerns over Reid’s fitness in the wake of the recent Montenegro qualifier, expressing his belief that knee injuries are notoriously difficult to overcome.
What some might have seen as fair comment has not gone down well in the Rovers camp, with Allardyce declaring himself “disgusted” while branding Trapattoni a “disgrace”.
The former Bolton and Newcastle manager, who was linked with the vacant Ireland job at the start of last year before Trapattoni took up the reins, even demanded that the FAI reprimand their manager.
“It’s disgraceful, completely out of order,” Allardyce fumed. “He’s not talking correctly in terms of Steven’s injury. What he is saying is completely untrue and something he should apologise for.
“He has undermined us as a football club, undermined Steven as a player and he has really been very, very naughty in what he has said. He should make a public apology and hopefully that will be the end of it.”
Trapattoni could be forgiven if he is somewhat bemused at the force of Allardyce’s broadside. While he did say Reid would struggle to be the same player again, there was a feeling that his words had been taken out of context, lost in translation as it were.
Trapattoni is clearly concerned over Reid’s fitness – the midfielder has played just two Carling Cup games since recovering from knee surgery but could yet feature in next month’s play-offs - but there appeared to be no intent to cast aspersions over his long-term future.
Assistant manager Liam Brady subsequently attempted to set the record straight, explaining that Trapattoni was “talking about knee injuries in a very general way”.
Not that Brady’s intervention cut any ice with Allardyce.
“There’s no player more honest than Steven and to be dealt that sort of a blow at this stage, when he’s not feeling the best, trying to come back from a big injury and picking up another little niggle, is very, very disrespectful to say the least. It’s disgusting,” he added.
“Perhaps I haven’t got the same dignity as Steven. Perhaps I just speak it as I see it. Perhaps he’s more sensible than me. But I’m not happy with what Trapattoni said, I’m disgusted with it.
“I think his association should bring him to task. I think we as a football club should bring him to task and make him justify what he has said, but the thing is he can’t.”
Reid, who took a full part in training this week having overcome an Achilles problem, travelled to London with the rest of the Blackburn squad today and remains hopeful of playing some part in the play-offs against France.
