Midweek

In light of the penalty row in the United Fulham game, I found that this fun fact found on Gary Nev’s twitter would be well worth the repeat. 

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G.Neville ‏Penalties for since 03/04: Arsenal 49, Chelsea 46, Liverpool 44, City 39 and United 38.” Interesting Stat!!

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Amidst all the whining we get from supporters of other big teams, it turns out we are awarded the least penalty calls! How about that ya clowns? Maybe everyone else needs to take a cold, hard look at how their team performed before blaming referees for United’s trophy cabinet?

Speaking of penalties however, the one un-called in our favor at Old Trafford was indeed a bad call. Fulham deserved a penalty. Soft? More than a baby’s bottom. But definite contact by Carrick. As someone said, these calls tend to even themselves out over the course of the season. Sometimes you get calls, sometimes you don’t, but at the end of the day, all teams get the same amount of calls. That’s why as far as the league games are concerned, its moot point to argue against penalty calls anymore. At some point, you know you are gonna get one in your favor. 

Milan – Barcelona. What a game. It is surprising how scoreless draws can be more exciting than high scoring games. As soon as I saw that Seedorf and Nesta were playing, I knew Milan were on to something. Despite’s Italy’s decline in league quality, one thing that will always stay with them is being the pioneers of a catenaccio. From defenders like Nesta, to a rigid defensive structure will full concentration for 90 minutes, the Milan defense held like Helm’s deep against the Uruk-Hai. The usually unspectacular Luca Antonini did his job wonderfully time and time and again, as well as Bonera who I thought was harshly done by in last week’s derby d’italia. The greatest praise however, must go to Alessandro Nesta, who is someone that clearly shows that age and form have temporary effects, but class is indeed forever. He was stunning, and just a sheer joy to watch. I feel like I was in a daze. I can’t remember how many rewinds I did. There are some parts in this world, where artistry in defense still exists. Pristine tackles, precisely-timed, strong, and decisive. It was like watching a well-drilled orchestra. His awareness of where to position himself, to close which players off to their weaker sides, the countless interceptions that drove Xavi and Iniesta’s passing completion down…and most importantly, his 100% shackling of Messi. This feat is remarkable given the Messiah’s recent rampaging form, and it still gives me hope that even the likes of Messi can be rendered useless by a quality defender. It just goes how much more defense is than speed and muscle. As for the penalty discussions, yes, Barca should have been awarded a penalty. How the last linesman chose not to call that one was beyond comprehension. Then again, a lot of decisions in that match were beyond comprehension. I think all in all, bad decisions flew in both directions. And I’m not sure if one side can complain more than the other. I’d like to write a letter to Ibrahimovic and Robinho. “Please do not miss any 1 on 1 chances against the goalkeeper in Barcelona.” How many do they need? Honestly? If you are going to paint yourselves as the best in the world, then maybe a first step to actually proving that is to sink a shot that resembles a training ground drill. Honestly. Milan could have won 3-1. Robinho who decided to sky a shot 2 yards from the goal, unmarked. Zlatan who had a one on one against Valdes, at which he decided inexplicably to go near post with his weaker foot. And then finally Urby Emanuelson, who having been put clean through against Valdes, decided to trap it so that the ball would fly out to the right. Complete idiots. 

Benfica – Chelsea. THE EPL LIVES! I have one wish to Sir Alex. Don’t buy Gaitan. We don’t need Gaitan. We have so many wingers that we are having to stick the older ones in center midfield. So don’t buy some Portuguese winger that was owned by Ashley Cole. Let’s just look to Young, Nani, and Valencia, and use Larnell and Lingard when backup is needed. For the longest time, I have maintained my belief that Evra is the best left back in the world. Defensively, he was on par with Ashley Cole. Offensively, he was better. This season, the ratio has skewed a little bit. He has suffered on the defensive end, while his offensive abilities have maintained their potency. Now, it just may be that Ashley Cole is the better left back as his defensive abilities are as strong as ever. it’s clear to me that going forward, Patrice Evra is still the best fullback in the world, but at the end of the day, fullbacks were made to defend. He has a lot of work to do to get himself back on that pedestal over Ashley Cole. What a good rivalry that is. Tangent aside, credit to Di Matteo to pulling out an away win. Like everyone else, I was also baffled by the team selection. I didn’t know that Paulo Ferreira was alive. But there he was, standing next to the ghost of Salomon Kalou. The game wasn’t the smoothest as far as Chelsea going forward, but Benfica struggled more. They couldn’t get their front three to work, while Torres made himself livelier than in any other game this season. It makes me wonder what would have happened if he had stayed on against City. What a great, unselfish assist to Kalou, and what a willingness he showed to help his team when he celebrated so emphatically after Kalou scored. Well played Torres. On all fronts. 

This weekend will be yet another great one. With Peter Crouch’s spectacular volley last week, we have been put in a better position against City. And this week, hopefully Sunderland can use some of that belief they have against a team they have already beaten. City’s lack of width is really a good platform that the likes of Mclean and Larssen can use. While Kompany is missing, they really need to throw every inch of Bentdner’s height against that City backline. Newcastle and Liverpool will fight for that 6th spot, while Tottenham needs to gain ground against Arsenal by deciding who plays the best football in the Premiership against Swansea City. 

 

 

 

 

 

Uncensored

This article is directly copied and pasted from the The Sun. The link is: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/4201639/Frank-Lampard-talks-to-SunSport-about-his-relationship-with-Chelseas-ex-boss-Andre-Villas-Boas.html. It is wrritten by Shaun Custis and contains interview content from one Frank Lampard.

I’m going to try something new whereby I read an article and I write what is going through my head as I read it. I have a sworn mission to try to maintain objectivity to any event in soccer, whether it pertains to one of my teams or not. I figured: how else is anyone going to truly respect what I say?

In any event (be it a foul, or call, or controversial event), much like everyone else, I have an immediate judgment, and I will maintain that judgment. Thankfully, through keeping an open mind I think I’ve managed to be fair in those judgments. But every once in a while, like Nero in the Matrix (I’m kidding, its more often than that), a subjective, unfair judgment from my gut will kick in. When this happens, immediately afterwards, I will give it some thought, and think about what is/or should be, the objective, fair judgment on the situation. As a very simplified scenario, lets say a player goes down during a game. There are times, where without looking at a better replay or giving it the proper due diligence that I should, just by human nature, I have a preconceived notion of whether the player was either probably fouled or probably dived, thought its never definitive in one direction or the other. I just have an inkling based on my past viewership of the player. I don’t reveal that inkling so to speak, and often choose to stay quiet until I see a replay, but it is there. It exists. But this reaction is forgotten immediately in my mind because then the customary due diligence will be made right after  (rewinding for a replay, in this example) and I will have automatically made a more informed decision within seconds. I feel the need to bring up those forgotten, gut reactions, so I can actually identify where my biases lie. I need to do this because if I really want to be truly objective, I need to confront those.

Games are fleeting, and foul calls go by in seconds. So the easier place to analyze these “x-files” is when I read soccer news. What I’m going to start to do is – whenever I read an article or an interview where there is opportunity for lots of thoughts, I will simply put my reaction down. Whatever it is. Good judgement, fair judgment, bad judgment. It is very likely that I’ll embarrass myself at some point because at some point I’ll reveal some raw reaction of gut bias to the world without putting them through the complete filter of my judgement. But that is the whole point! As someone who publishes his thoughts and professes to have a respectable amount of knowledge about soccer, achievement of my goal of objectivity (if it is even possible, that is) surely cannot come without some embarrassment or humiliation. Even if it one can never be 100% objective about soccer, I’m willing to undergo the trials and tribulations that come with the attempt!

So this is the first article. Lets give this a go. And if can maintain this exercise regularly, then I’ll need to come up with a catchy name as well. Custis and Lampard are in Gray, I’m in Blue.

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Lampard said: “The boss was an intelligent fella and very across everything. In his short time at Chelsea, he attempted to do everything right. He was there from seven in the morning until seven at night and maybe through the night. Rumors of Villas Boas’s stress levels and obsessiveness were true…poor guy…

“He was looking to the future and his plan was long-term. But somewhere in the middle of that, the present didn’t go so well — and that’s where the problems came. Surely you are referring to cutting the old boys too quicky…

“It became the thing that Chelsea needed a revolution and to move out the older players. To be fair to AVB, that was part of the remit and I get that we need to move on and change. So you do know that at some point, you Mourinho boys have to go? And that maybe its you guys not moving out after your peaks that is perhaps preventing the development of another successful Chelsea era of the early 2000s? It surprises me that you actually realize that. 

“But you can’t lose sight of the present, as a team like Chelsea, with the quality we have, can’t be fifth in the league. We should be pushing higher and there’s a lot of strength in our squad which you can hold up against any in the Premier League. So in many sentences, you are saying at some point, the old boys will leave, but it won’t be for a while. I feel bad for people like Villas Boas who felt the transition point was sooner-the-better (which I agreed with) but couldn’t prove his point. I guess its means credit to you old boys after proving yourselves right with that Napoli game. Maybe Villas Boas and I were wrong and you guys were right. I still want to think that it was bad management that made Villas Boas discredit himself. I still want to think, maybe had he done a better job with the young Chelsea squads, you guys would still be sulking on the bench.    

“You can’t force change. It has to be a more careful process. You guys walked the walk. The Chelsea old boys win. For now at least. 

“If young players are coming through, who deserve to be in the team, I have no problem with that and would stand aside. But they have to earn their place and show they deserve to be in. I feel that that’s your way of saying there is still no one better at your positions than you guys at Chelsea football club. Regardless, yes, that much has proven to be true. 

“I know I can’t play every game. But I look at Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs and see no reason why I can’t play on as long as them.” Do not even dare sully their names by comparing your unworthy self to them you fat, repugnant twat. Mere mortals are not allowed to utter the names of Gods. Keep your envy within. Matter of fact, in this case, even envy should be forbidden. 

Lampard publicly admitted his relationship with AVB was ‘not ideal’ and there was a frank exchange of views when he was dropped for the first leg of the last 16 Champions League clash in Naples.

He added: “It wasn’t just me left out but Ashley Cole as well. That is the sort of game where you want your experienced players in. The manager and I had a conversation, though I wasn’t disrespectful. I just told him I thought I should be playing. Definitely fair. I sympathize. At any other club other than Manchester United, this is a very appropriate player-to-coach, employee-to-boss conversation.

“I wouldn’t be me and I wouldn’t have got this far in football if I had said ‘OK, no problem, I’ll sit on the bench, have a jolly time and pick up my wages. Word.

“I told him what I felt and he had no problem with me saying it. I did say our relationship wasn’t ideal and it’s true it wasn’t fantastic.

“I’ve had closer relationships with other managers. But what I was also trying to get across is that’s not important. What is important is the group.

“I wasn’t making a stand. The fact we might not have seen eye to eye was irrelevant to me.” I think that’s a little tunnel-visioned in a way, if that’s even the right term. Frank, you do sulk when you are unhappy. You know this. Everyone knows this. So even if it were irrelevant to you, if other players saw you and the manager not seeing eye-to-eye, does that come truly come across as a unified dressing room? It is possible that unbeknownst to you, your clear “un-ideal” relationship with the boss was affecting younger players in a negative way? 

Despite their differences, Lampard revealed: “I didn’t see the manager after he left but I sent him a message wishing him all the best and, yes, he did send me one back. He didn’t blank me.

“He thanked me for being a top professional, which I appreciated. A lot of people think the players didn’t play for him or respond. We did but it just didn’t work out and the team didn’t play well enough.” AVB is clearly a good coach, given his accomplishments at such a young age. But maybe he wasn’t a great one. Because a great one would have been able to produce results while handling the senior players appropriately. AVB’s issue was never that he was cutting senior players, some Chelsea fans still embrace that notion. His issue was that the results never came. This reaffirms for me more and more that whoever takes over Sir Alex’s throne definitely needs top experience at a top club, and with top players and huge egos. Managing clubs like United or Chelsea requires more than eye for talent and tactical nous. 

Since Di Matteo has taken over, Chelsea have won three out of three and will be expected to make it four with a home FA Cup quarter-final against Leicester today.

Lampard said: “I’ve heard the argument we shouldn’t have been playing that badly. But there has to be a catalyst to a change in form and it has come with Robbie in charge.

“It happens a lot when a team changes the manager. You saw it at Liverpool when Roy Hodgson left and Kenny Dalglish came in.

“It might not be working for whatever reason and it might be no one’s fault but as soon as a new man takes over, the crowd is lifted and results change.” The new manager effect really is a curious effective one. It’s funny how Sparky never has that effect on any of his clubs. Poor QPR. 

Abramovich blamed the players for getting AVB the sack and Lampard accepts the Russian billionaire had the right to say what he felt. But the writing was on the wall for the young boss once Abramovich started making regular trips to the training ground.

Lamps admitted: “Anyone at any club will tell you that when the owner turns up you jump a bit. I’ve never heard of it. Matter of fact, I’m pretty certain that the Glazers don’t know who Giggs is.  

“Roman hadn’t been to the training ground in quite a while and the Press made a lot of it, which was understandable in the circumstances. Yuuuup.

“He obviously wasn’t happy with us and I agree with that.

“He’s right to say ‘I’m the owner and I expect a level of play higher than we’re getting’. No one can argue with that, nor would they. You need that pressure at a top club.” It’s his money, his club, his choice. All true. But maybe Roman should have met AVB and Di Matteo alone. Just by showing himself, it undermines the players. And you yourself say that his presence signaled a cause for worry on the players. Even the most hands-on Bill Kenwright just meets with Moyes alone after bad results. Never show yourself on the training pitch!

But what about the accusation it is actually the players who run the show and that skipper John Terry confirmed it by barking orders from the dugout during extra time in the win over Napoli?

Lampard insisted: “It’s really out of order the criticism John has had for shouting the team on. Perhaps if JT was simply yelling LETS GO…but it wasn’t that was it Frank? He was pointing out positions, telling people where to go. That’s beyond a captain-esque rally cry, that’s a tactical shout. I don’t think the criticism is out of order. Even I cringed when I saw that scene. And everybody else for that matter.

“He couldn’t stay on because of injury but wanted to keep involved.

“He was trying to do something in a really critical situation and I don’t think it’s undermining anyone. As a fan, I’d want to see that. I would too like to see a passionate captain on the sidelines. Gary Nev spurred players on after he left the pitch, but I never once saw him do what JT did during Napoli. There is a clear difference.

“Everybody is bringing up this thing about player power and how we think we are the managers. But if John sees something as a captain and a senior player, why shouldn’t he say something? Because by doing that it shows that he doesn’t think Di Matteo is saying sufficiently what needs to be said. The underlying assumption for a person watching that is a lack of trust. The action itself screams a lack of respect. The sequence as a whole is called undermining. Consider this, Fatty. A professor is lecturing. The PA jumps in mid-lecture and says “actually i should also add…” What would you call that? How would you feel about that as a student watching?  

“We do have a strong dressing room. Yet it’s being made out we take liberties which we shouldn’t — and that’s not true. You may say that, but having seen the number of top coaches come and go…I can’t believe you. And JT proved my reaffirmed our beliefs at Stamford Bridge. 

“This is a group of players which wants to win and knows what it takes to win. We try to portray that on the training ground, on the pitch and in the dressing room “There are strong personalities. But I hate it when people go on about big egos. If you’re a big player you should be a strong personality. I don’t agree with the label ego when it comes to the Chelsea old boys. None of you are what I would call egotistical. But I do think the strong personality you speak of has proven negative effects when it comes to the authority of the man in charge. And that’s not right. Call it what you will, egotistic personality, strong personality, supersonic personality, whatever, but it’s gotta be fixed. 

“When someone asks me, as a senior player at 33, what my opinion is I would be letting myself down if I didn’t say what I think.” And if you were at United, as a senior player, in your late thirties, saying what you think and not letting yourself down, you end up like Roy Keane. Transferred to Celtic within hours. I don’t know what to say though I do agree with you in principle.  

SunSport columnist Roy Keane claimed last Sunday there was a falseness in how Chelsea try to show they are all together when they are not.

Lamps hit back: “I’ve loads of respect for Roy but he’s wrong. That spirit has always been one of the things which is special about Chelsea. Fair, you have a right to say that. Keano is often hot-headed and doesn’t think about what he’s saying. You want Ego? Keane here now. 

“When something gets on Roy’s nerves, he has a rant about it. But I like that. It shows he’s passionate about the game, just as he was when he was a player.” You just don’t want to piss off Roy Keane. Don’t blame you one bit. 

Keane questioned whether the Chelsea team would be mucking around and playfully flicking each other’s ears after the Napoli match, because he expected them to go out.

Lampard noted: “We were doing a lot more than just flicking each other’s ears after such an amazing night. Sounds kinky Frank. 

“When our backs were against the wall, we responded. I don’t think there’s anything false about that.” That’s the great thing about winning. People can hurl anything at you, and you can just hurl the result back at them to win the argument. Credit for the amazing night at Napoli. Well done. 

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That was fun! I’ll read it in a couple of hours.

 

Champions League Quarter Final Draw

Picture Source: goal.com. 

What do you do when you sleep late because of work and realize you only need to stay up another hour to watch the Champions League draw? You stay up on watch the Champions League draw.

APOEL vs Real Madrid

Marseille vs Bayern Munich

Benfica vs Chelsea

AC Milan VS Barcelona

If Madrid were to meet Barca, it would only be in the finals.

And, Chelsea does not have a chance to meet Real in that same vein.

Obviously the bookies will now think of an El Clasico final. Yowza.

Call me crazy, but I think there is a chance, not a large one, but still a chance that Barcelona will not make it the final. AC Milan was not kind to them in the group stages, and if they meet Chelsea in the semi’s, the motivation from the bad blood might turn the tie in Chelsea’ favor. On the other side of the draw, I can’t see past Madrid making it to the final considering how ruthless they have been, but then again, Bayern’s attackers make them a very inconsistent side. Meaning that on the day, Bayern can either be terrible, or awesome.

 

Chelsea: Our Beacon of Hope

One of Stamford Bridge’s greatest nights – a Champions League classic

I found myself in one of those rare positions these days where I cheered hard and loud for Chelsea Football Club. There is only two situations wherein I will somehow end up cheering for a rival English Club.

Situation 1: It is a European competition, and United is not participating.

Situation 2: When during our regular league or a tournament, Chelsea winning their fixture leads United to having a more favorable result.

Today was situation 1.

Despite the decade of domination that we have had on the Champions League, this season has been the anomaly for the EPL. Like two power-drunk, complacent idiots, the two Manchester clubs embarrassed the league with their group stage exit. United is the biggest embarrassment because we had the easier group compared to City. But sometimes, that’s the harsh price to pay for complacency and a high concentration of young players on the pitch.

So I cheered hard for Arsenal last week. Praise their brave souls for crushing the Italian Champions and losing by a solitary home goal. Anyone who watched both games saw that over 180 minutes, Arsenal was the better team. It wasn’t that RVP should have shot that lost attempt instead of chipping it, but rather that Arsenal’s defense should have stopped slipping comically at San Siro.

And today Chelsea. I was particularly more motivated to cheer for Chelsea, more so than Arsenal because of Napoli’s stature. Admittedly, its a point of pride. Since last year, I’ve maintained that the EPL deserves a fifth Champions League slot. Four automatic qualifiers and one playoff spot. Its simple. We have top, Europe-grade teams like United, City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham. Our youngest and least experienced Champions League grade team knocked out the former European champions. To have these 6 quality teams battle it out for 3 automatic qualifiers and 1 playoff spot? Call it bias, call it whatever, but for me personally, these 6 teams are too big in talent and stature to be cut down to 4 teams. Fortunately for me, UEFA recognizes the EPL’s superiority through their coefficient placing, and that gap continues to widen between us and La Liga. So I have reason to believe that this fifth playoff spot will be ours soon enough. In any case, the tangent stems from my point that I cheered particularly hard for Chelsea because they played Napoli. To have Serie A’s third placed team from last season beat Chelsea would have gone against my campaign in a big way. Thankfully, Chelsea put in their proven old guard, and the fixture went as it should have in the first leg. Despite Chelsea, playing in the shambles that they are in, against a high flying, injury less Napoli, the fixture proved that Serie A’s third best had no business progressing beyond this round.

Looking to their future, Chelsea continues to be a difficult problem to solve. They can’t play consistently well without their old guard. But with them, there is no progress. On one hand, its a tremendous credit to Chelsea’s old guard. On the other hand, it was again cause for worry for a time when they will no longer be with the team. Didier Drogba was unbelievably infuriating in his bullshit antics tonight. The diving, the whining, the play-acting, the fully Drogba bag of tricks. But he was also the magnificent target man that he can be and without a doubt the best I have seen him this season. Terry, despite literally just coming back from injury, basically told skinny Cavani to scamper off home. Lavezzi who tormented Ivanovic in the first leg, couldn’t get half a yard on Ashley Cole. Lampard played relatively poorly against Napoli’s midfield, but he still managed to deliver one and hit the equalizing penalty. As tonight would once again, they are all fantastic players. If they weren’t they wouldn’t have won titles over United. It’s really that simple. So who can solve the Chelsea problem? Who is the man can oversee the shift of generations?

EDIT: I nearly forgot, in over time, Di Matteo wonders how to reshuffle the defense. John Terry explains something to him, proceeds to step ahead of him in the technical area, and yells at the players himself on how to move around, while a confused Di Matteo watches on with his arms folded. Sign of things to come? Is Di Matteo the real authority in Chelsea’s dressing room? How long until we see John Terry wearing the overcoat and scarf?

Shout out to Merseyside for a highly entertaining derby! Reason no. 940194921 why the EPL rules. Go to another country and find a regular league fixture between the 7th and 9th place team with a better crowd, atmosphere, footballing quality, hype, and tv coverage. Oh, and Good luck.

Everton started brightly enough, but I think it was a case of mismatched talent. People argue that had Leon Osman, Drenthe, and Jelavic been on the pitch, it would have been a much different story. Maybe, maybe not. I don’t think Osman as a big upgrade over Rodwell, Drenthe gave away the ball that led to Liverpool’s third goal, and Jelavic has a long way yet to go to prove that he deserves a spot over Victor Anichebe. A single, early career goal doesn’t justify a starting spot. Ji Dong Won scored a skillful winner against City, and last I spotted him, he was concentrating so deeply at toasting the bench at Sunderland. I think Everton played a strong squad given the inclusions of Hibbert and Jags, two experienced veterans that I rate. Further, they clearly showed an intent to attack, given that their usual one top switched to a two. I think the above two reasons alone prove the Moyes wanted something out of this game. The very fact that people are saying that he didn’t just proves ignorance of the lay fan. Moyes has never been a cup whore, never will be one, and has been very single-minded at improving Everton’s league position for the last ten years. And I have ten years of viewership to prove that.

Unfortunately, Skrtel was doing as well has he has all season, and Carragher was shockingly back to his old ability. Everyone will ooze and gush over the hat-trick hero, but I think there were other people on the pitch that deserve an Ostradamus-style shout out. Sure, Gerrard was fantastic in his finishing, but as he has admitted, both of his second and third goals were created by Suarez. Suarez deserves at least equal praise for his trickery and hard work to lay the ball of for Gerrard…twice I might add, and a third was possible had Andy Carroll had shot with his dominant right. Of all the games that Suarez has played, this may be the one where he showcased his best qualities, and avoided his worst. There were STILL two incidents, the more notable one being the utterly infuriating, expletive worthy dive for the free kick around at the 78th, but lets face it – just the two isn’t bad considering the man in question. So a huge amount of credit to him for not only playing for the team, but cutting down the usual antics noticeably as well. His doing that was a large part of the reason why the derby stayed an open, entertaining game, rather than a choppy mess filled with incidents that fans would have to argue about for days. Even from a selfish perspective, he did himself a giant favor. He played relatively cleanly, and he got much praise from fans around the league for that performance. Everyone noticed. United messageboards, Arsenal’s messageboards, Chelsea’s, Newcastle’s…who else did I read that day. The game proved that he doesn’t need to be a garbage human being in order to play really well. So why be a garbage human being?? Anyhow, had he played not-so-clean, his 2 assists would have been overshadowed by the media’s penchant to publicize the ugly side of footballers than the good ones. If anything, this game should prove to him that may be its worth it to cut the ugly side of his game down, and just focus on doing what he’s good at. Perhaps there may be one day when Luis Suarez becomes a player that is wholly a hard working, tricky forward, rather than 1/4 good forward, and 3/4 garbage human scum. That’s the day I look forward to, and the day premiership defenders fear.

The other player that deserves praise is the other forward. Andy Carroll. Or as I repeat the nickname that one Gazetto (italian print) announcer gave him, Andee Carollo. Yeah, so he didn’t score. And yes, he should have finished Suarez’ layoff in the early second half. But apart from that, he showed composure, technique, and shockingly, passing ability. I didn’t think Andy Carroll could play a deeper role than Suarez. Maybe its time for Dalglish to reconsider their configurations? Maybe its time for the trickier Suarez to full time advanced forward, and Andy Carroll to play a deep, target man role. Certainly unconventional to have a deep target man role, at least not since Shearer, but Liverpool needs a unique system considering their collection of players.

The third and final praise that I will dish out to Liverpool tonight goes to Liverpool’s fullbacks. Both were dominating their side of the defensive end, and both got forward well. What more credit is there to give to fullbacks? They did their job, and they excelled at their extracurricular activities. Glen Johnson would do well do improve his defensive game considering Martin Kelly’s shackling of Steven Pienaar.

That’s enough Scum praise for the day. But having rivals are only heated and exciting if they remain rivals. It’s not in my interest for our greatest rival of the past 20 years to fall below 7th. And it certainly doesn’t help my pro-EPL Champions League argument either.

I will leave this post with a couple twitter posts I found that made me warm and fuzzy inside. I’m so happy to know that I’m definitely not alone in supporting our last remaining beacon of hope, Chelsea Football Club, in Champions League this season. I’m so happy to see that others are willing to cheer on Chelsea for the good of our league, the finest in the world. Without further ado, these are the comments, with my comments italicized!

Joseph Barton ‏ @Joey7Barton

Fancied Chelsea tonight, had a massive task and pulled it off. Fair play RDM. Napoli did themselves proud mind.

Joey Barton, apparently bet on Chelsea for the game and won a bunch of dough. 

Jack Wilshere ‏ @JackWilshere

Great result for Chelsea, flying the English flag high in this years champions league! Shame we couldn’t join them, was so close!

Credit to someone who can enthusiastically cheer on rival team players after his own exit. Class.

Piers Morgan ‏ @piersmorgan

Actually want #Chelsea to win. Quite extraordinary, disturbing emotion.

Described my mood exactly. 

Benik Afobe ‏ @Afobe

How I’d love a Fernando Torres winner in extra time! Can El Nino step up to the plate and produce?! #StageIsSet

Young forward who watched Torres during his formative footballing years. Respect of other players, whether it be player or supporter, transcends the boundaries of clubs. 

Jack Wilshere ‏ @JackWilshere

Just jumped up when Lamps scored! I want chelsea through….English and proud! Come on you blues!

Chelsea’s most ardent twitter fan. I jumped too Jack. We both did the very thing that the Fatty’s weight doesn’t allow him to do. 

Wayne Rooney ‏ @WayneRooney

Hope torres scores winner here. Great game.

A long-standing, great rival forward. For a man he has competed against, argued against, nearly fought against, for the better half of a decade, for both club and country, Wayne shows his support in the Spaniard’s time of need. Class.  

 

Ahead of Merseyside

Ahhhh Merseyside. So many scousers in one place. Blegh, makes me shudder just to picture it.

Club	Pld	Pts
Man Utd	28	67
Man City	28	66
Tottenham	28	53
Arsenal	28	52
Chelsea	28	49
Newcastle	28	44
Liverpool	27	39
Sunderland	28	37
Everton	27	37
Fulham	28	36
Swansea	28	36
Norwich	28	36
Stoke	28	36
West Brom	28	35
Aston Villa	28	33
Blackburn	28	25
Bolton	28	23
QPR	28	22
Wolves	28	22
Wigan	28	21

In any case, this Merseyside Derby is actually significant. Liverpool stands at 7th with 27 games, and Everton stands at 9th with the same count. The two teams are only 2 points apart.So that’s what the table looks like ahead of today’s match. Notice the league leaders. Notice how right the table looks now. It finally looks like how everyone thought it should look like. Like balance has been returned to the world, a grave injustice has been corrected, and the proper order is restored to mankind.

Before I go on, I have to reiterate my continued admiration for the genius that is David Moyes. The guy spends an average of 3-5 million a year and puts the team in the top 8 every season. If you think about all the other teams, newly promoted, or mid-table, (who spend the same or more) but end up back in relegation zone, it really demonstrates his value as a manager. First off, he is loyal. Despite being at a club where he gets pennies for transfer budgets, he sticks at it, works hard at it, and never complains. That is something that I value very highly. There are plenty of managers who would have left after a few seasons in that situation. I know that he has good tactical instincts from watching him the minute he came into the league. He has a good range of formations, makes timely substitutions that actually make sense, and also ensures that the workrate is high across the pitch. On his human side, by all player accounts, he is firm but fair. I admired how he dealt with the Rooney libel suit. Wayne was a idiot for writing that garbage and Moyes handled the situation perfectly by going through legal channels to clear his name. He just went about his business, didn’t talk much to the press, and it ended up with Wayne apologizing. Wayne was of course already with us at the time, and I remember feeling embarrassed about the situation, and even apologetic to David Moyes during that lawsuit. On top of all this, his eye for spotting talent at a bargain is top drawer. I think some weeks ago I wrote about how I marveled at his recent signings of Velios and Stracqualursi – rare cases where I literally had no idea of their existence prior to their transfer to Everton. If only Moyes had more european experience and management experience with difficult personalities, I’d have him succeed Sir Alex. Unfortunately, I think the limits of Everton’s well-documented financial troubles will always stop him from venturing into Champions League. I’m not entirely sure why Bill Kenwright has trouble finding investors, considering that the club has a solid supporter base and puts out a competitive team every season.

Back to the derby. For both teams, it is a crucial fixture. Everton could potentially jump into Europe contention with a win, while Liverpool needs a win right now to keep their Champions League hopes alive. The Merseyside Derby has always been a fixture key to morale. Liverpool’s morale is at an all-season low, while Everton has been winning left and right for the past month. This could either dent Everton, or boost Liverpool. Dalglish certainly seems to be banking on it and he continues to stress the significance of this fixture to the media. Daglish is a cautious man when it comes to saying anything definitive to the media, so the fact that he is talking about shows that he is willing to take the risk of placing pressure on his players in order to influence a positive result. As the table indicates, 13 points separates Liverpool and Arsenal, with Liverpool having a game in hand. If they cut it down to ten, its game on again. Arsenal has a tough run in with City still left in their fixtures, Chelsea will be inconsistent to the end, and Newcastle isn’t really producing their early season form anymore. Having said this, if the gap is still 13 after this game, its probably is safe to say that Champions League is gone for Liverpool.

I remember a time when not much was made of the Merseyside Derby. This was when I first started watching, and it was one of the tamest derbies that I saw. I specifically remember Everton that year because that’s when we gave away ak14. In any case, I would later be informed that this was because even within families in Merseyside, some can be Everton fans and some can be Liverpool fans. Essentially, friends and families sit it different sections. Furthermore, when I started watching, Everton was the Wigan of today. They were terrible and constant relegation candidates. I think its always harder to fuel a derby match when one team is significantly better than the other in league position. The only instance in England that I’m aware of that has kept the fire going even despite a vast difference in league position is West Ham Mill Wall. Over the years, the Derby did continually get more more intense with Everton climbling up the table under Moyes, and games in the 06′ and 09′ stretch becoming more booking heavy. And today, we have a derby where that really is no love lost between the two sides, with the two sets of supporters clearly divided for at least 90 minutes.

It should be a good game at Anfield, and I think a difficult one for Liverpool. The blue half of Merseyside is currently fearless, so I expect them to really have a go. Having said that, Anfield is Anfield, so anything can happen. I expect Steven Gerrard to return to the starting lineup, and I expect to see Andy Carroll. For the visitors, I expect Jelavic to retain his starting spot, but also Steven Pienaar to return to that left wing role. If that happen, Martin Kelly will have a good test. The return of Jags is not the best news for Liverpool, but I think they can trouble him enough with Suarez. Kenny knows that his one is a must-win, so I’m keen to see a more open game on both sides.

 

Squeaky Bum Time!

There isn’t an emoticon that is large enough to correctly portray the proportions of the smile on my face this morning. But I think this Mongolian girl does a pretty good job.

Ostradamus strikes again. This may be one of my finest result predictions. But even I didn’t expect the Swans City game to play out as well it did. Swansea outplayed City from start to finish. City couldn’t get into it at all. I thought the Swans would scrape it late, which they did, but I thought they would have to defend for their lives at least half of the game. Instead, City defended more. This is both amazing and a little scary. We have never been able to outclass City that way this season, but Swansea did it with class, minimal fouling, and the best officiating I’ve seen this season. Of course, Sinclair missed his penalty. As I’ve said, he’s best leading up to the box, and for me, unconvincing once inside it. The penalty was timid at best. Swansea made many, many opportunities, and yet the finishing touch eluded them. Story of their season. Once it led to the 75th minute, I almost wanted them not to score, knowing that the “scraping” had to be done late, therefore as to deny City as much time as possible to wake up and equalize. Things obviously could not have gone any better as they scored in the 83rd, and City just didn’t have enough time to get it in there. What’s funny was the female referee ruled Micah’s header offside in the 90th, and it was a fantastic decision. The same ref that Andy Gray got fired over. I wonder what he thought as he saw here make that astute decision. Perhaps some women do know about football eh, Andy?

I was thus very pleased 1) It was an exciting, pretty game to watch. 2) Because City lost. 3) I predicted correctly.

Then, our game. Finally, we are playing better from kickoff. In an odd shift, we started three forwards in Rooney, Hernandez and Welbeck. Initially, I went…whaaaat….but then Sir Alex’s infinite wisdom put me in my place. The three players played incredibly well together. Going forward, it just might be our best options to play a diamond up top with Rooney as the center forward behind the other two. The man of the match for me was Johnny Evans who outshone Rio Ferdinand for perhaps the first time in his career. The game was a comfortable victory, with not much to comment on. We went about our business, and they came up short on the balance of the game. The more notable point in this game was Scholes’s substitution in the 70th with Paul Pogba. Pogba has been reported all week as having signed for Juventus, but I have kept checking and checking incessantly for an official announcement on United’s website. The thing about contract news is that its never true until the club says it is. I’m not sure whether this means that Pogba is staying, but it was highly encouraging to see him come in a generational shift substitution with the aging Scholes. He came on, played flawlessly, and returned to the lockers without a fuss. Sir Alex comments that he’s still in limbo, and even went as far as to state that he is a first-team player. This seems to me like it was a move to convince the Pogba that he will get playing time if he stays. The kid should have known that a long time ago, considering that he was on the field with Jones, Cleverley, Evans, and Welbeck…but whatever. I hope this 20 minute taste of first team football will secure a possible United great. It may possibly be one of our most important substitutions in years to come.

Soooooo City. It is officially squeaky bum time. Can you handle it?

I still think the title will be decided on D-day, but its the EPL. Anything can happen between now and then.

 

Saturday

It sucks that I can’t go through the same volume of games as I was going through in the fall of 2011. Of course, this has been the case for some time as audit busy season brings on busy weekends until the end of April. In any case, I watched two games today, one of which was slow and rigid (take a wild guess?), whereas the other one was good pace.

Liverpool Sunderland. That makes three straight league defeats for the scousers. Europe slowly slips through their grasp as Arsenal finds their typical third half of the season wind, and with Chelsea picking up the points after a shocking change in management.

Liverpool has been well-organized in their games all the season, but the problem with a rigid system (one which players are separated distinctly into their separate roles, and instructed to roam) is that the transition from the middle third to the second third is slower. In a more fluid system, as popularized by the Dutch, overlapping and roaming in all positions is encouraged to the extent that everyone returns to their assigned defensive markers once possession changes hands. A rigid system is actually very difficult to play because once the game starts, and players make runs this way or that, they will inevitably end up in different parts of the pitch than their intended position. It is only experienced and disciplined teams that can reorganize efficiently. A prominent example is the current Barcelona of our time. They play a rigid 4-1-2-3. Busquets/Keita is restricted to a 20 yard radius in the middle of the pitch, while Xavi and Iniesta will generally stay outside the box unless the numbers in a given attack permit or necessitate otherwise. All the while. Before Pep changed Messi to a false 9, he would cut into the right, and immediately report back down the flank. In a rigid 4-2-3-1, such as Liverpool’s, what happens is their frontman will hold the attack options. By design, he is expected to slow it down for other decisive players to make darting runs into the box or down the side. Dalglish’s design is a good one considering the selection of players at his disposal, but I think they fall dreadfully short in making the right movement in attack while keeping the shape of the formation. Unfortunately for Liverpool, they do not do that crucial second part I mentioned. If Suarez is able to get the ball up front, Kuyt will veer to the right as he has done in his whole career. Understandable, considering he is most comfortable running that way, and because of his dominant right foot. Henderson, an inexperienced right wide will then veer into the middle to avoid the clutter and because he knows his comfort level will increase centrally. Dalglish has presumably put Kuyt behind Suarez so that Suarez can trap the ball, and hopefully put a good ball through to the onrushing Kuyt. Then ideally, Henderson will hold his position and make the field wilder, while Bellamy will look to act as an inside forward who will cut in and hit the curlers. If that is the textbook, then what happened this morning was the exact opposite. In all the directionless mayhem, Suarez was once again forced to either take it into the box alone, or pass it deeper down to Adam, who due to Kuyt’s disappearance + Henderson’s inability to find space ahead of Turner + Bellamy being tracked well by the likes of Phil Bardsley, would simply attempt to dribble or side foot the ball to Enrique. What then happened was Adam would lose the ball whilst dribbling, or if it reached Enrique, Enrique would then cross it blindly (without an intended target, hoping to get someone) into the box. Even with Enrique’s crosses, a box bereft of Andy Carroll made for a toothless Liverpool.

Playing in this manner against Sunderland is not acceptable for a club of Liverpool’s size, particularly considering the absence of their iconic frontman Stephane Sessegon. The goal conceded was a combination of a fantastic shot by Frazier Campbell and just straight bad luck to Pepe Reina. I don’t think Liverpool fans can be too upset at their backline about a shot that was taken from 30 yards out, hitting the woodwork, and rebounded. 

To me, Liverpool’s scoring problem is thus more due to lack of clinical movement. They either need to figure that out, or they need to think about making their play more open. Perhaps risking a more open defense for a faster offensive transition. 

I won’t go too much into the Everton Tottenham game, but I will say that all this hoodoo about Tottenham;s recent results being caused by Redknapp’s distracted state is garbage. Harry Redknapp is an experienced, professional manager that isn’t going to bring his career speculation into the locker room. Tottenham has lost against Arsenal, United and now Everton. In typical Tottenham fashion, they outplayed Arsenal in the first half of their game, they outplayed United the entire game, while perhaps Everton was more even. They outplayed United our entire game even without Scott Parker, Van Der Vaart, and Gareth Bale, who is their core. If anything, they’ve simply been unlucky in their past three games, and nothing more should be made of it, because any fingers pointed at the link between Harry and the England job is simply garbage. 

Tomorrow marks a potentially important game to United. I’ve thought this entire week that Swansea has has a good chance against City. With news of Kompany’s injury on Thursday, I firmly believe Swansea will win it tomorrow. The only problem with Swansea is that they look beautiful up to the crucial part of scoring goals. I’ve never considered Scott Sinclair a good finisher or penalty taker, while Dyer is at his best in assisting. Graham is a respectable forward, but I prefer the likes of Leroy Lita to hit the goals. Before Kompany was injured, I would have said…well, Kompany may be able to marshall City’s defense to keep a cleansheet. But with the error-prone Savic coming instead, I really do think Swansea has a very good chance of scraping a win. It’s really not my hopeful thinking is a United supporter, but Swansea;s football at home has been fantastic all season, and they don’t have fear. These are the two biggest things to fear when it comes to a bigger club playing a smaller club. Unfortunately for us, West Brom is also a tricky customer considering their recent exploits, but us being at home just might get it done. In either case, I’m really hoping, and somewhat expecting tomorrow to be a pivotal day. 

LETS GO SWANS

 

Five-A-Side

In my daily youtube perousing, I came across FA TV’s five a side for various players. Of course, I immediately felt the natural urge for an excel binge. And I compiled a little five-a-side of my own, made of players who I thought would excel most on a small pitch, in close quarters.

Shockingly, it seems like the most picked player of the bunch, is none other than our own Rio Ferdinand. He failed to feature in my side unfortunately.

 

PMS: Pre-Match Stress

I can’t sleep. Good ol’ PMS. 

I did the run around the block with my daily rotation and found a couple interesting couples. Inevitably, some self-serving articles, but some interesting ones too. 

Gary Nev, much like Sir Alex, has written a piece about how today can be the most important day in the title race. it’s hard for me to see past the City game in having that importance, considering that that particular match is basically six pointer in either side’s favor, if there is to be a clear winner. But I see their point. I’m copying the following picture from the Daily Mail website, from Gary’s exact article posted on their online newspaper:

link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2109766/Gary-Neville-Win-Tottenham-Manchester-United-know-title-grasp.html

The above chart clearly shows that our fixtures after Tottenham are easier than that of City. I don’t know if the reds and ambers indicated on City’s side are entirely accurate, considering how well City is playing, but it is true that they play more top six sides. Us on the other hand, Tottenham and City are the only top six. What Sir Alex and Gary are indicating is that if we beat Tottenham tomorrow, we will have a pivotal boost in confidence. They will get a buzz, an excitement knowing that the finish line is much closer after a team like Tottenham is done and over with. In that sense, I also do sense the urgency and significance in tomorrow’s game.

This season has been one of uncertainty for Man United. Unconvincing, mediocre performances. Countless injuries. Complacency. Goalkeeper mistakes. Lack of creativity. What started as a promising season turned into a devastation of the back four, calamity between the sticks, and boring midfield play. Yet, we stand second, and only two points down. Even last weekend against Norwich, we were a terrible team. At this point, many can argue that judging by the level of performances, it would be just for City to win the title. I sympathize to a certain extent, but I’d argue that our ability to have stayed this close to City’s coat tails with all our problems deserves some credit as well. 

So, considering our numerous issues, some our fault, some not, tomorrow very well may be the last chance to turn things around, and for the team to get that crucial gut feeling of “you know, we may actually be able to win this thing.” We always get that feeling between March and May, which fans will know as Sir Alex’s infamous “squeaky bum time.” It is the name of this part of the season where United hear the alarm clock, pick up all the points, and overtake whoever were the leaders.

Players like Rooney, Evra, Giggs, Park, Scholes and Ferdinand, already believe that United will win the title again. Those players have been saying we will win the title for the past couple months, much to the laughter of many non-United fans. And that’s why they share more than 30 EPL medals between them. On the other hand, inexperienced first-teamers like Young, Jones, Welbeck, Evans, Rafa, Fabio, and De Gea don’t yet believe in this same, blind belief that United are going to be Champions. The club, and its supporters, have this blind belief that we are meant to be, should be, and must be Champions. Many call it the arrogance of Man United, we call it the United mentality. And that’s precisely the feeling they can get tomorrow if they beat the last standing big six team in the league before City. 

I am so relieved that Scott Parker will not play. The man is a monster against people like Carrick, and we don’t need a rabid dog on Carrick’s back tomorrow. He’s the type to drive his team on in the face of adversity, and I certainly don’t need that against my team tomorrow. Sir Alex’s sneaky plan has allowed Rooney to be fresh for tomorrow, so that will be a boost for us. All in all, if we can get our act together, the odds are in our favor. Tottenham’s home advantage is largely nullified due to our positive record at the Lane, while their drive to bounce back against that defeat against Arsenal might hurt us. I just pray to the heavens that Nani eats his cheerios tomorrow. 

The second article I was appreciative of one that contained soundbites from Mr. Jermain Defoe. I always like it when players tell stories about happenings in the locker room or player commons, because that’s the crucial side of football reality that we don’t get to see or hear. Yes, this is self-serving, but humor me. According to this goal.com article (http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/premier-league/2012/03/04/2944919/defoe-believes-being-crazy-is-important-for-manchester), he stated: “I remember when I first got into the England squad, just being around the Man United boys was unbelievable. Even if they lost games in training they were still ­talking about it in the evening at dinner. They’ve just got that winning­ ­mentality.” That quote from an opposition player shows what the United mentality is about. Attack, Attack, Attack. Be relentless, never die. Down a man? Attack some more. Last year, this unyielding mentality lead us to being destroyed against City. Against Chelsea, it turned 0 in to 1, and at Norwich, it turned 1 point into 3. I was just got that warm, fuzzy feeling to hear that opposition players recognize this quality in simple conversations. It made me proud. Thanks Ger-Ma-Yin. Oo-Rah United.

On a non-United note, the EPL again continued its trend of great entertainment this morning. With his last-minute, though somewhat offside, one-touch, brilliant volley against Liverpool, Van Persie is now running away with the scoring charts. It used to be close with Rooney, but now 7 goals stand between them. It is a genuine concern about whether Van Persie will stay or not for Arsenal, because it is crystal clear that he remains the last source of attraction for world-class footballers to join the club. Once he goes, how eager will Eden Hazard and Lukas Podolski be to join the Gunners? It’s a valid question. I have never criticized Wenger’s fiscal policy. I agree with the underlying principle, as an accountant witnessing the current economic climate in the United States. However, there are times where while the financial risk of a player is very large, the payoff can be proportionately rewarding. For instance, Wenger passed on Cristiano because we offered 200K more than Arsenal did. Vintage Wenger – it was too much money for an unproven 18 year old at the time. During his stay, Ronaldo won us 3 titles, a European Cup, an FA cup, 2 league cups, and club world cup. And in his departure, we made 80 million euro. Wenger might need to think – who came out the more financially profitable there? Sometimes, I think Wenger is too short-term minded with his purse. And that is why I suggest that giving Van Persie a gold-studded contract may be one occasion where the loosening of purse strings is warranted. It’s understandable not to pay a 40 million premium for a 20 million player. Fair enough. But given Van Persie’s importance to the club, from football, reputation, and marketing standpoints, a blank check pay raise might be worth the short-term cash commitment. 

Liverpool football club is worse at closing games than I am at closing women. For all his brilliance today, Luis Suarez could only find the post, and for all of Kuyt’s pedigree and experience, he couldn’t finish a penalty, both on the attempt and on the rebound. On the defensive end of things, it looks like Jamie Carragher’s illustrious career in Liverpool’s back line may be reaching a twilight. He epitomized the uncompromising english defender, but it seems that the tactical nous and heightened anticipation that is typically gained by aging defenders is not something that has been passed unto him. Perhaps its time that Kenny Dalglish take a more adventurous approach with new singing Coates standing in for the likes of Agger. I also think its time that given Liverpool’s evident scoring impotence, it might be a refreshing change to try the likes of Suso and Amoo, who were impressive in the reserves league, and in the youth cup last year. I’ve wanted to see how they would do in Liverpool’s first team, and at the very least, it is certain that they would add a sense of flair. Sir Alex has a three-prong purpose for his penchant to try academy players. a) it gives us new possibilities, and new energy b) it gives the seniors a kick up the bum. they get back on their toes, looking at the young bucks. c) like all new and unknown quantities, it gives the team a different dimension, and affects the team’s game play in a way that the opposition has not scouted or planned for. It works for us year after year, but it is also true that not all clubs can or even should take the same risks that we do. It has generally worked for us for 25 years, but this year, it lost us 2 domestic cups and the champions league. All it is, is something to think about. 

I started this post on the age of EPL times three years from now. It’s hard to finish because while I know the general age of players of all the top six squads, for the sake of accuracy, I have to check their individual bios. It will come sooner or later.