- Arsene Wenger whining about Mick McCarthy, and the fixture list. Arsene-when you were successful in the past, the only reason I had to dislike you immensly was (a) your Germanic bearing; and (b) the fact that you refused to wear corrective lenses despite having such poor eyesight. Now, when you can't win a so much as a weekend in Doochary, you resort to bitching and moaning at very little thing. Get over yourself and spend some money.
- The shitstorm in Kerry. They've given us John O'Donoghue, Jackie Healy-Rae, Tadhg Kennelly and The Bull McCabe. And now this. What next? 'Hitler conceived in Kerry- seed of evil planted in the Kingdom'.
- Gombeenism and stupidity in Carlow/Kildare. Thankfully, people got off their soap box and harangued representatives until the decision was reversed.
- The truck driver who pulled onto the M50, and, despite the fact that there was no traffic in front of him, attempted to pull into the middle lane in front of me. I, of course, held my ground and continued on my way. After I had passed him, he pulled in behind me and proceeded to flash his lights. I, as is my want, rolled down my window and gave him the V. You sir, Mr. Esso Tanker Driver, are a ****. You heard me.
- Christmas. That is all.
Thursday 17 December 2009
Many things annoyed me today
And here are just a sample
Monday 14 December 2009
It's been a while
Staind-It's Been A While
Yessir, keeping this yoke up-to-date is tough going. Well, not really. If I spend less time reading what other people think and committed more of my own musings to the blogsphere, there would be more frequent updates.
How and ever......
Chelsea certainly have hit a rough patch. No win in 4 games (1 loss, 1 loss on penalty kicks, 2 draws), a lot of questions about their defence and goalkeeper, and the loss of Michael Essien for 4 weeks or longer have certainly made me less sure of things than I was up to a month ago. They got a huge break at the weekend, when, having failed to put away Everton when leading on 2 separate occasions, Sir Alex Ferguson went conservative at home to Villa and Chelsea actually gained a point in the Premier League race. To be fair, the latest setback to Everton had a element of fluke about it-the 1st and 3rd goals were certainly fortunate, and even the 2nd goal was a bit odd-how often would you expect to find Ricardo Carvalho lying prostate on the 6 yard line? In truth, other than the defeat to Man City, none of these results have made much of a difference-I'm not sorry to see them out of the Carling Cup, and the draw against Apoel Nicosia didn't deny them the top spot in their Champions League Group. So, I hope that this is the rocky patch that any team tends to encounter in the course of the season. Still, I would have been happier if it happened in January, when there would be good reasons to expect a dip in form.
One encouraging point in this average run of form is the potential I have seen in Gael Kakuta-he may have been worth the hassle after all. He certainly can pick a pass, and always looks like he can make something happen. Still a bit raw for sure, but a potentially dynamic and creative force at the apex of Carlo's diamond in the near future. With Mikel and Essien absent in January, we might get to see more of him, and the 'big' summer signing Yuri Zhirkov (who has featured in recent games), potentially in a FA Cup tie. I will be watching with interest.
Liverpool appear to be in bad shape-even with Torres and Gerrard back in the starting XI, they could not hold a half-time lead to Arsenal at the weekend and now find themselves 5 points off the final Champions League Qualifying spot (with no prospect of entering as winners this year....). Rafa Benitez certainly appears in no hurry to unleash Alberto Aquilani, but when you have Lucas Leiva, why would you? It's hard to believe that Liverpool will miss out on 4th spot (heck, I even fancied them for 3rd before Sunday), but then you see that Man City can't defend (it's amazing they have only lost once but have drawn over 50% of their games) and Spurs are, well Spurs. Villa look just ok-they were fortunate enough to beat Chelsea (well, maybe not, just about anyone can score from a dead ball situation against Chelsea this season), and have had some odd results (home loss to Wigan, away defeats to Blackburn and West Ham), and like Man City, draw too many games. For now, they are the front runners for 4th, but there is a long way to go.
World Cup 2010 draw took place (with only 32 teams included), and yes, we have some interesting groups. The 2 current African powerhouses, Ivory Coast and Ghana, have good chances to take out waning (Portugal) and rising (Serbia) European powers, and make their mark against former winners (Brazil and Germany). England will have nothing to fear in their group, but isn't that when it all starts to go wrong? In defeating Russia, Slovenia should give them something to think about, and the USA will certainly give it a go. Their nightmare scenario? An unlikely series of results leading to a 2nd round clash against Germany. Spain have what appears to be a straightforward enough 1st round, but after that, may find Portugal and Italy on their path to the semi-final. Ireland or no Ireland, I'm looking forward to it-with many half-days planned.
Yessir, keeping this yoke up-to-date is tough going. Well, not really. If I spend less time reading what other people think and committed more of my own musings to the blogsphere, there would be more frequent updates.
How and ever......
Chelsea certainly have hit a rough patch. No win in 4 games (1 loss, 1 loss on penalty kicks, 2 draws), a lot of questions about their defence and goalkeeper, and the loss of Michael Essien for 4 weeks or longer have certainly made me less sure of things than I was up to a month ago. They got a huge break at the weekend, when, having failed to put away Everton when leading on 2 separate occasions, Sir Alex Ferguson went conservative at home to Villa and Chelsea actually gained a point in the Premier League race. To be fair, the latest setback to Everton had a element of fluke about it-the 1st and 3rd goals were certainly fortunate, and even the 2nd goal was a bit odd-how often would you expect to find Ricardo Carvalho lying prostate on the 6 yard line? In truth, other than the defeat to Man City, none of these results have made much of a difference-I'm not sorry to see them out of the Carling Cup, and the draw against Apoel Nicosia didn't deny them the top spot in their Champions League Group. So, I hope that this is the rocky patch that any team tends to encounter in the course of the season. Still, I would have been happier if it happened in January, when there would be good reasons to expect a dip in form.
One encouraging point in this average run of form is the potential I have seen in Gael Kakuta-he may have been worth the hassle after all. He certainly can pick a pass, and always looks like he can make something happen. Still a bit raw for sure, but a potentially dynamic and creative force at the apex of Carlo's diamond in the near future. With Mikel and Essien absent in January, we might get to see more of him, and the 'big' summer signing Yuri Zhirkov (who has featured in recent games), potentially in a FA Cup tie. I will be watching with interest.
Liverpool appear to be in bad shape-even with Torres and Gerrard back in the starting XI, they could not hold a half-time lead to Arsenal at the weekend and now find themselves 5 points off the final Champions League Qualifying spot (with no prospect of entering as winners this year....). Rafa Benitez certainly appears in no hurry to unleash Alberto Aquilani, but when you have Lucas Leiva, why would you? It's hard to believe that Liverpool will miss out on 4th spot (heck, I even fancied them for 3rd before Sunday), but then you see that Man City can't defend (it's amazing they have only lost once but have drawn over 50% of their games) and Spurs are, well Spurs. Villa look just ok-they were fortunate enough to beat Chelsea (well, maybe not, just about anyone can score from a dead ball situation against Chelsea this season), and have had some odd results (home loss to Wigan, away defeats to Blackburn and West Ham), and like Man City, draw too many games. For now, they are the front runners for 4th, but there is a long way to go.
World Cup 2010 draw took place (with only 32 teams included), and yes, we have some interesting groups. The 2 current African powerhouses, Ivory Coast and Ghana, have good chances to take out waning (Portugal) and rising (Serbia) European powers, and make their mark against former winners (Brazil and Germany). England will have nothing to fear in their group, but isn't that when it all starts to go wrong? In defeating Russia, Slovenia should give them something to think about, and the USA will certainly give it a go. Their nightmare scenario? An unlikely series of results leading to a 2nd round clash against Germany. Spain have what appears to be a straightforward enough 1st round, but after that, may find Portugal and Italy on their path to the semi-final. Ireland or no Ireland, I'm looking forward to it-with many half-days planned.
Saturday 14 November 2009
Bonjourrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr you cheese eating surrender monkeys!
From the Simpsons-Willie teaches French
Les Bleus visit a damp and windswept Croke Park this evening for the 1st leg of what looks to be the pick of the UEFA WC2010 play-off ties. Ireland of course finished as runners up to Italy ion Group 10, whereas the French were squeezed out of an automatic qualifying spot by Serbia-their 3-1 defeat to Austria in the opening game proving costly. Along the way, they could only manage a 1-0 win in the Faroes (managed by the never bitter Brian Kerr), but did actually manage to defeat Serbia at home and get a draw in the return leg. All of this on the back of a disastrous Euro 2008, where they didn't win a game (alebit they found themselves in a fairly tough group). They arrive in Dublin with a host of injuries (Ribery and Diaby absent, questions over Toulalan and Henry), questions surrounding their coach, and the prospect of playing in front of vocal Irish support, both at Croke Park, and indeed in Paris.
Even with their injuries, France still should enough talent to take care of Ireland. Their midfield looks like being a bit of an unknown quantity, but their attacking full backs and pace upfront suggests that can cause Ireland plenty of problems (I'm looking at you Sean St Leger and Kevin Kilbane!) The reality, for me, is that France will have to play poorly and Ireland will have to play as well as they can to win through. The prevailing opinions in the 'meeja' here in Ireland is that Ireland have a good chance of going through because:
(a) France have such a hated coach;
(b) if they were any good they would have qualified automatically;
(c) Ireland are so strong at set pieces; and
(d) we 'nearly' beat the World Cup Champions.
We shall see. My prediction? France by the odd goal-no penalties required.
Les Bleus visit a damp and windswept Croke Park this evening for the 1st leg of what looks to be the pick of the UEFA WC2010 play-off ties. Ireland of course finished as runners up to Italy ion Group 10, whereas the French were squeezed out of an automatic qualifying spot by Serbia-their 3-1 defeat to Austria in the opening game proving costly. Along the way, they could only manage a 1-0 win in the Faroes (managed by the never bitter Brian Kerr), but did actually manage to defeat Serbia at home and get a draw in the return leg. All of this on the back of a disastrous Euro 2008, where they didn't win a game (alebit they found themselves in a fairly tough group). They arrive in Dublin with a host of injuries (Ribery and Diaby absent, questions over Toulalan and Henry), questions surrounding their coach, and the prospect of playing in front of vocal Irish support, both at Croke Park, and indeed in Paris.
Even with their injuries, France still should enough talent to take care of Ireland. Their midfield looks like being a bit of an unknown quantity, but their attacking full backs and pace upfront suggests that can cause Ireland plenty of problems (I'm looking at you Sean St Leger and Kevin Kilbane!) The reality, for me, is that France will have to play poorly and Ireland will have to play as well as they can to win through. The prevailing opinions in the 'meeja' here in Ireland is that Ireland have a good chance of going through because:
(a) France have such a hated coach;
(b) if they were any good they would have qualified automatically;
(c) Ireland are so strong at set pieces; and
(d) we 'nearly' beat the World Cup Champions.
We shall see. My prediction? France by the odd goal-no penalties required.
Sunday 8 November 2009
A small victory
As goes the Faith No More song, this was my take on Chelsea's win over Man Utd. on Sunday. All that matters is that Chelsea got 3 points? Not so fast....
Man Utd sure frustrated Chelsea on Sunday-5 across the middle generally has that effect on Chelsea-even at Stamford Bridge. It should have been obvious what tactics Man Utd were going to employ-so I would question why Deco started the game-and was left on for so long when he was virtually anonymous throughout-and so there may have been a case for starting (gulp) Mikel in the middle to try and match up physically with Fletcher and Anderson. What was also obvious was that the diamond formation favoured by Ancelotti is not going to find it easy to break down teams that arrive at Stamford Bridge with a 'what we have we hold' mentality (anyone else remember Chelsea's difficulties in beating Hull City in the opening game of the season?). And I am still bemused by the amount of time Nicolas Anelka spends outside the box and in deep positions. He is a talented footballer for sure, but is at his most dangerous when in the box-the fact that his either encouraged to drop back or else feels the need to do so does not sit well with me.
With Deco ineffectual, where was the creative supply going to come from within the Chelsea midfield? Joe Cole might have been introduced sooner, but in my view, what is really requiored to break teams down is more width. An orthodox 4-4-2 would be nice-maybe not when playing Man Utd lining up as they did, but certainly against lesser teams. Joe Cole on the right and Malouda or indeed Zhirkov on the left with some combination of Essien/Lampard/Ballack/Mikel in the middle please!
The way the game played out on Sunday will put some spring in Man Utd's step. Their sense of injustice at the manner of the defeat as well as the fact that their second string centre back pairing managed to render both Drogba and Anelka relatively ineffective will serve as tremendous motivators for the next few games (home to Everton, away to Portsmouth and West Ham and home to Villa) which should see them get back on track pretty quickly. There was plenty of bad blood stirred up during the Stamford Bridge game-the April clash at Old Trafford should be interesting for that reason alone, but it also comes at a point in the season where it could have a significant bearing on the destination of this year's Premier League title.
Chelsea now face Wolves at Stamford Bridge-a game which will hopefully see them regain their recent scoring form-and then travel to Arsenal, where I hope to see a better Chelsea performance than the Man Utd game, and indeed a better game. Nothing about Sunday's game really would entice you to watch Premier League football. The news that Jose Bosingwa faces 3 months on the sidelines and the ongoing concern around Ashley Cole's fitness won't help Chelsea-aside from their defensive abilities both full backs play a key attacking role in the diamond formation favoured by Ancelotti. Chelsea have adequate, if not ideal, cover for the right, the left is more of a concern, unless Zhirkov manages to return from his latest injury setback.
- Chelsea were the home team and were at virtually full strength
- Man Utd on the other hand were the away team and were short both first choice centre backs and Dimitar Berbatov (whether he would have started or not is a moot point)
- Chelsea had scored 20 goals in their 5 games leading up to the clash with Man Utd.
- Man Utd have won the last two Premier League titles and this was a chance for Chelsea to make a statement that they are the are ready to reclaim the title
Man Utd sure frustrated Chelsea on Sunday-5 across the middle generally has that effect on Chelsea-even at Stamford Bridge. It should have been obvious what tactics Man Utd were going to employ-so I would question why Deco started the game-and was left on for so long when he was virtually anonymous throughout-and so there may have been a case for starting (gulp) Mikel in the middle to try and match up physically with Fletcher and Anderson. What was also obvious was that the diamond formation favoured by Ancelotti is not going to find it easy to break down teams that arrive at Stamford Bridge with a 'what we have we hold' mentality (anyone else remember Chelsea's difficulties in beating Hull City in the opening game of the season?). And I am still bemused by the amount of time Nicolas Anelka spends outside the box and in deep positions. He is a talented footballer for sure, but is at his most dangerous when in the box-the fact that his either encouraged to drop back or else feels the need to do so does not sit well with me.
With Deco ineffectual, where was the creative supply going to come from within the Chelsea midfield? Joe Cole might have been introduced sooner, but in my view, what is really requiored to break teams down is more width. An orthodox 4-4-2 would be nice-maybe not when playing Man Utd lining up as they did, but certainly against lesser teams. Joe Cole on the right and Malouda or indeed Zhirkov on the left with some combination of Essien/Lampard/Ballack/Mikel in the middle please!
The way the game played out on Sunday will put some spring in Man Utd's step. Their sense of injustice at the manner of the defeat as well as the fact that their second string centre back pairing managed to render both Drogba and Anelka relatively ineffective will serve as tremendous motivators for the next few games (home to Everton, away to Portsmouth and West Ham and home to Villa) which should see them get back on track pretty quickly. There was plenty of bad blood stirred up during the Stamford Bridge game-the April clash at Old Trafford should be interesting for that reason alone, but it also comes at a point in the season where it could have a significant bearing on the destination of this year's Premier League title.
Chelsea now face Wolves at Stamford Bridge-a game which will hopefully see them regain their recent scoring form-and then travel to Arsenal, where I hope to see a better Chelsea performance than the Man Utd game, and indeed a better game. Nothing about Sunday's game really would entice you to watch Premier League football. The news that Jose Bosingwa faces 3 months on the sidelines and the ongoing concern around Ashley Cole's fitness won't help Chelsea-aside from their defensive abilities both full backs play a key attacking role in the diamond formation favoured by Ancelotti. Chelsea have adequate, if not ideal, cover for the right, the left is more of a concern, unless Zhirkov manages to return from his latest injury setback.
Thursday 29 October 2009
Right back where we started
Chelsea beat Liverpool
Man Utd beat Arsenal
Liverpool beat Man Utd
Chelsea have lost 2 games already
Man Utd have lost 2 games already
Arsenal have lost 2 games already
Liverpool have lost 3 games already
Just who is the best team in the current edition of the Premier League?
Although Chelsea sit at the top of the table, Arsenal could move ahead of them on goal difference if they win their game in hand, and, were the better team for long stretches of their visit to Old Trafford. But, they shipped 4 goals to Man City and just blew a 2 goal lead at West Ham. Man Utd have been beaten by Burnley, needed an injury time equaliser to get a draw at home to Sunderland and beat Man City in similar fashion. Chelsea looked disinterested when losing 3-1 at Wigan and defensively naive when losing to Aston Villa. Liverpool have lost to Sunderland.
So, we might just be looking at one of the more competitive Premier League season in some time now. Note that 'competitive' does not imply that we are going to see a lot of quality-look at last Sunday's clash of Liverpool and Man Utd-the standard of play-flashes of brilliance from Fernando Torres and the odd cameo from Yossi Benayoun aside-was poor. Liverpool won despite the fact that they had surely the worst Brazilian ever to kick a ball in the middle of the field, and were helped by a largely anonymous display from Man Utd's midfield and an ineffectual display from their front 2. It's worth noting however that Man Utd still looked like a more natural attacking force when they got forward in the 1st half, and Liverpool's first instinct appeared to play the ball sqaure or backwards. How they miss the drive of Steven Gerrard.
Sure Man Utd might have benefited from the industry and strength of Darren Flethcher, and maybe even the likes of Park and Andersen would have made an impact, but Carrick and Valencia are first choice and hardly looked the part on Sunday. Fernando Torres seems to be Nemanja Vidic's kryptonite. It is debatable as to whether Liverpool really played well enough to win the game, but equally, it is a stetch to say that Man Utd deserved anything other than a defeat. Makes sense? Good.
November could make the picture a little clearer with Chelsea playing host to Man Utd and facing Arsenal at The Emirates. Clashes between the 'Big 4' don't always tend to matter greatly in determining the Premier League winner, but in a year where parity appears to have returned, points taken from your closest challengers could be more important than in recent years.
Man Utd beat Arsenal
Liverpool beat Man Utd
Chelsea have lost 2 games already
Man Utd have lost 2 games already
Arsenal have lost 2 games already
Liverpool have lost 3 games already
Just who is the best team in the current edition of the Premier League?
Although Chelsea sit at the top of the table, Arsenal could move ahead of them on goal difference if they win their game in hand, and, were the better team for long stretches of their visit to Old Trafford. But, they shipped 4 goals to Man City and just blew a 2 goal lead at West Ham. Man Utd have been beaten by Burnley, needed an injury time equaliser to get a draw at home to Sunderland and beat Man City in similar fashion. Chelsea looked disinterested when losing 3-1 at Wigan and defensively naive when losing to Aston Villa. Liverpool have lost to Sunderland.
So, we might just be looking at one of the more competitive Premier League season in some time now. Note that 'competitive' does not imply that we are going to see a lot of quality-look at last Sunday's clash of Liverpool and Man Utd-the standard of play-flashes of brilliance from Fernando Torres and the odd cameo from Yossi Benayoun aside-was poor. Liverpool won despite the fact that they had surely the worst Brazilian ever to kick a ball in the middle of the field, and were helped by a largely anonymous display from Man Utd's midfield and an ineffectual display from their front 2. It's worth noting however that Man Utd still looked like a more natural attacking force when they got forward in the 1st half, and Liverpool's first instinct appeared to play the ball sqaure or backwards. How they miss the drive of Steven Gerrard.
Sure Man Utd might have benefited from the industry and strength of Darren Flethcher, and maybe even the likes of Park and Andersen would have made an impact, but Carrick and Valencia are first choice and hardly looked the part on Sunday. Fernando Torres seems to be Nemanja Vidic's kryptonite. It is debatable as to whether Liverpool really played well enough to win the game, but equally, it is a stetch to say that Man Utd deserved anything other than a defeat. Makes sense? Good.
November could make the picture a little clearer with Chelsea playing host to Man Utd and facing Arsenal at The Emirates. Clashes between the 'Big 4' don't always tend to matter greatly in determining the Premier League winner, but in a year where parity appears to have returned, points taken from your closest challengers could be more important than in recent years.
Wednesday 14 October 2009
I think I smell a rat......
Hmmm. The svelte Eamon Dunphy must be around. It was a bit much to listen to Eamo ranting and raving after Ireland had secured a place in the World Cup play-offs by virtue of a 2-2 draw with Italy (World Champions Italy as King George kept reminding us over the course of the evening)-we have had worse results recently, but Stephen Hunt couldn't avoid coming down to Eamo's level to hit back at Dunphy's 'shameful' comments. Dunphy came out and apologised (fair play to him for that I guess), but it wasn't as if he was goaded into making the comments in the first place, so you would wonder what he was smoking when he lashed out last Saturday. At least Trap didn't seem to let it bother him, but no surprise there I guess.
Eamo is right enough in one respect-it is 'shameful' that Andy Reid can't get in the Ireland squad, but at this stage, it's time to build a bridge. Ireland are where we expected/hoped to be at the start of this qualifying campaign, and for that, the current manager and squad should be congratulated. But, it doesn't take from that we led twice against Italy and failed to win. Indeed, the truth of it was that Italy looked like they score whenever they wanted or needed to do so-the point gained in Dublin was enough for them to win the group and qualify automatically. We also failed to beat Bulgaria, despite having led both home and away (and Bulgaria looked very average on both occasions) and Montenegro on 2 occasions (albeit the Croke Park game was a dead rubber). So Ireland were unbeaten, but their 4 wins during the campaign were single goal victories over Cyprus and Georgia (more than other Ireland managers could manage, which is a sign of progress I suppose). That doesn't look likely to get us through a play-off when our potential opponents will be one from France, Portugal, Russia or Greece.
Of that lot, it's hard to know who we should be hoping to draw next Monday. On paper, Greece appear to be the weakest of the 4, Russia the least desirable place to go at this time of the year, while Portugal and France have the star names and big reputations, but appear to lack form. Some of the match-ups are pretty daunting-Ronaldo v Kilbane; Arshavin v. St Leger; Ribery v. O'Shea; anyone in Greece v. the Irish midfield.
Whoever Ireland end up playing, not everyone will be welcome at the game. The FAI were offering an incentive to buy tickets for last night's game against Montenegro-post your ticket stub to them and you would have first preference for buying tickets to the play-off game in Croke Park. A few (un)lucky fans may not be there-because of displaying this banner-the FAI took umbrage to the banner, confiscated it and the fan's ticket stub, and asked the Gardai to get involved. It turns out that the guys got there tickets back, but only after the FAI had scanned/photographed them. What next? RTE actually showed footage of the banner at the end-will they be stripped of their rights to broadcast future Ireland games? Godwin's Law decrees I should say nothing further about the FAI.
Eamo is right enough in one respect-it is 'shameful' that Andy Reid can't get in the Ireland squad, but at this stage, it's time to build a bridge. Ireland are where we expected/hoped to be at the start of this qualifying campaign, and for that, the current manager and squad should be congratulated. But, it doesn't take from that we led twice against Italy and failed to win. Indeed, the truth of it was that Italy looked like they score whenever they wanted or needed to do so-the point gained in Dublin was enough for them to win the group and qualify automatically. We also failed to beat Bulgaria, despite having led both home and away (and Bulgaria looked very average on both occasions) and Montenegro on 2 occasions (albeit the Croke Park game was a dead rubber). So Ireland were unbeaten, but their 4 wins during the campaign were single goal victories over Cyprus and Georgia (more than other Ireland managers could manage, which is a sign of progress I suppose). That doesn't look likely to get us through a play-off when our potential opponents will be one from France, Portugal, Russia or Greece.
Of that lot, it's hard to know who we should be hoping to draw next Monday. On paper, Greece appear to be the weakest of the 4, Russia the least desirable place to go at this time of the year, while Portugal and France have the star names and big reputations, but appear to lack form. Some of the match-ups are pretty daunting-Ronaldo v Kilbane; Arshavin v. St Leger; Ribery v. O'Shea; anyone in Greece v. the Irish midfield.
Whoever Ireland end up playing, not everyone will be welcome at the game. The FAI were offering an incentive to buy tickets for last night's game against Montenegro-post your ticket stub to them and you would have first preference for buying tickets to the play-off game in Croke Park. A few (un)lucky fans may not be there-because of displaying this banner-the FAI took umbrage to the banner, confiscated it and the fan's ticket stub, and asked the Gardai to get involved. It turns out that the guys got there tickets back, but only after the FAI had scanned/photographed them. What next? RTE actually showed footage of the banner at the end-will they be stripped of their rights to broadcast future Ireland games? Godwin's Law decrees I should say nothing further about the FAI.
Friday 9 October 2009
A Machiavellian Outcome?
The Greek playwright Sophocles wrote in Electra (c 409 B.C.), "The end excuses any evil". I've never read it, I probably never will. Heck, I've never even seen the film Elektra.
No, this blog has not 'got culture' all of a sudden. The above represents Geovanni Trappatoni's modus operandi it would seem, based on what we saw in the 2-1 victory in Cyprus where the performance wasn't really much better than that which saw us beaten 3-0 by Australia-the main differences being the result (better) and the quality of the opposition (worse), and indeed what we have seen from the septuagenarian Italian's Ireland XI's to date. Indeed, it was not surprising to stumble across this piece, which may give some insight into his seemingly ultra-conservative nature.
Ireland will take the field on Saturday without one of the most in-form Irish midfield players in the Premier League at the moment, one who actually wants to play for his country. Andy Reid's absence has become more baffling as his fitness and form has improved considerably since the last round of games, and it beggared belief when Martin Rowlands (who I have to admit I have not seen play, but given that he is now 30 years of age and has never played Premier League football, I have to believe is not a better player than Andy Reid) was called up as cover for the injured Damien Duff during the week. Ireland just don't have the luxury of leaving out players like Andy Reid-he's no world beater, and may not neatly fit in the manager's preferred system, but he has the ability to create-something that is severely lacking among the rest of the fit midfielders in the squad.
Il Trap appears to have brought some defensive stability to the Irish team, and you cannot argue that results have not improved, but I get the impression that this team is not set up to win the games that will really matter-if Italy come to the Northside to play, we will not be able to stand toe to toe with them. Ireland have trundled along with the attitude that its is the result rather than the performance that matters (or the end justifies the means), which is well and good, but sooner or later, mediocre performances catch up with you. I am waiting for a last minute sucker punch to do for us at some stage in this campaign-the knock out may not come on Saturday, but given the recently announced seeding system, I fear it will come via the play-offs.
In other news, Steve Staunton appears to have found his level-amazing that he managed Ireland before he was given the job at the team lying at the foot of League 2.
No, this blog has not 'got culture' all of a sudden. The above represents Geovanni Trappatoni's modus operandi it would seem, based on what we saw in the 2-1 victory in Cyprus where the performance wasn't really much better than that which saw us beaten 3-0 by Australia-the main differences being the result (better) and the quality of the opposition (worse), and indeed what we have seen from the septuagenarian Italian's Ireland XI's to date. Indeed, it was not surprising to stumble across this piece, which may give some insight into his seemingly ultra-conservative nature.
Ireland will take the field on Saturday without one of the most in-form Irish midfield players in the Premier League at the moment, one who actually wants to play for his country. Andy Reid's absence has become more baffling as his fitness and form has improved considerably since the last round of games, and it beggared belief when Martin Rowlands (who I have to admit I have not seen play, but given that he is now 30 years of age and has never played Premier League football, I have to believe is not a better player than Andy Reid) was called up as cover for the injured Damien Duff during the week. Ireland just don't have the luxury of leaving out players like Andy Reid-he's no world beater, and may not neatly fit in the manager's preferred system, but he has the ability to create-something that is severely lacking among the rest of the fit midfielders in the squad.
Il Trap appears to have brought some defensive stability to the Irish team, and you cannot argue that results have not improved, but I get the impression that this team is not set up to win the games that will really matter-if Italy come to the Northside to play, we will not be able to stand toe to toe with them. Ireland have trundled along with the attitude that its is the result rather than the performance that matters (or the end justifies the means), which is well and good, but sooner or later, mediocre performances catch up with you. I am waiting for a last minute sucker punch to do for us at some stage in this campaign-the knock out may not come on Saturday, but given the recently announced seeding system, I fear it will come via the play-offs.
In other news, Steve Staunton appears to have found his level-amazing that he managed Ireland before he was given the job at the team lying at the foot of League 2.
Thursday 17 September 2009
In other news (September)
- College Football and NFL seasons kicked off-this means that primetime gambling is here again, and I won't be tempted so much by football and other random bets (over the course of the summer it's been rugby, tennis, golf and who knows what else).
- I spent 4 amazing days in Cleveland. What did I do? Went to watch sports. Friday night-Progressive Field, where we watched 7 or so innings of a meaningless game between the bad Indians and the equally bad Royals. Still, hard to beat watching live sports with your friends on a beautiful Friday evening while drinking overpriced light beer. Saturday was the real deal-I was at the Horseshoe in Columbus, Ohio along with over 106,000 other people (Vince Vaughan and Will Farrell among them) to watch Ohio State slug it out with USC. The atmosphere, pagentry and noise was simply amazing. It was a pity that the home team lost late in the game, but it couldn't take away from a great experience. On Sunday, opening day at Cleveland Browns Stadium, and my first taste of tailgating. What a great idea-pubs before games are fun, but this is even better. Shame the Browns couldn't keep the party going on the field, but I did see Adrian Peterson score 3 touchdowns and LeBron James was not more than 100 feet away from where I sat. A great trip.
- An American Football player at Oregon University was suspended by his own college for the rest of the year (after their first game) for throwing one punch at an opponent who was taunting him after a Boise State beat Oregon last week. LeGarrette (yes, Garret just wasn't enough apparently) Blount was Oregon's star player and a potential NFL star. I can't believe that his actions warranted such a discretionary suspension and that his coach was so tearful about the whole thing. Add to this the fact that many analysts/writers are now discounting his chances of being drafted by a NFL team, and I just can't help but wonder if the sometime shambolic disciplinary procedures we have in GAA and rugby are better than US style sports discipline.
- I really felt for Tipperary after their All-Ireland final defeat to Kilkenny. Tipp had managed to turn a 2 point half-time deficit into a 3 point lead over The Cats with around 10 minutes to go. And then, a moment of madness (Benny Dunne's wild strike on Tommy Walsh-how ironic that Walsh would find himself on the end of a foul blow), and a moment of incompetence (referee Diarmuid Kirwan's decision to award a penalty to Kilkenny) ultimately turned the tie back in Kilkenny's favour. Not since Limerick's stunning collapse against Offaly in 1994 can I remember a hurling final where a team do deserving of victory were denied the Liam McCarthy Cup. However, it has to be said that Kilkenny are indeed a great team and they have rarely relied in fortune to win them games. They had the rub of the green on Sunday for sure, but great teams always stick around, and their never say die attitude along with some outstanding saves from PJ Ryan kept them in it to win it.
- Chelsea score a late, late winner at Stoke, while Man City win a heated game against Arsenal. Man Utd put Spurs in their place. This weekend Man Utd play Man City at Old Trafford, while Spurs travel to Stamford Bridge. A big weekend then, with both local pride and Premier League momentum at stake.
- The Champions League kicked off-with all 4 English teams winning, but only Arsenal providing any drama after coming from 2 goals down after 5 minutes to snatch a win at Liege.
Thursday 3 September 2009
A golden age of....shite
They say, 'there's no such thing as bad publicity', and. and an ad works if it gets people talking about it, good or bad. As Mr Burns said, 'I disagree'. There's a plethora of awful stuff out there are the moment, such as:
Glade-"I want to do a poo..."
Remember-it's wrong to beat kids that ain't yours.
Volvic-"The Volvic Challenge"
What to say about this one. Words fail me. I don't want to post anything that may incriminate me at a later date.
Spar-"The S Factor"
The one on the radio is possibly worse. I like Spar, but not any more. Londis or Centra it is. The genius behind this masterpiece is Oliver Callan, aka 'Nob Nation'. How apt.
Guinness-"To Arthur"
Cop on. You can't get drunk enough on Guinness to engender the kind of bonhomie that ad implies.
Vodafone-"Mission Red"
Listen Vodafone (Chris), your mission is to stop dropping my calls while in am on the M50. Never mind this crap.
Vodafone-GAA/Sean Boylan
Such trite BS.
123.ie-"Ivan Answer"
Again, their radio ads are probably worse, but this is guaranteed to be muted. Just was well it's animation based-you wouldn't want to put a human face to this sort of evil.
There are many, many more (any ad on Comedy Central, any ad for ringtones, any ad for laser hair removal or laser eye surgery, pretty much any ad on the radio), but I can't find the videos so I won't bother linking to them. For now, I leave you with this gem from Bill Hicks:
Anybody in advertising or marketing should just kill themselves. Seriously
Glade-"I want to do a poo..."
Remember-it's wrong to beat kids that ain't yours.
Volvic-"The Volvic Challenge"
What to say about this one. Words fail me. I don't want to post anything that may incriminate me at a later date.
Spar-"The S Factor"
The one on the radio is possibly worse. I like Spar, but not any more. Londis or Centra it is. The genius behind this masterpiece is Oliver Callan, aka 'Nob Nation'. How apt.
Guinness-"To Arthur"
Cop on. You can't get drunk enough on Guinness to engender the kind of bonhomie that ad implies.
Vodafone-"Mission Red"
Listen Vodafone (Chris), your mission is to stop dropping my calls while in am on the M50. Never mind this crap.
Vodafone-GAA/Sean Boylan
Such trite BS.
123.ie-"Ivan Answer"
Again, their radio ads are probably worse, but this is guaranteed to be muted. Just was well it's animation based-you wouldn't want to put a human face to this sort of evil.
There are many, many more (any ad on Comedy Central, any ad for ringtones, any ad for laser hair removal or laser eye surgery, pretty much any ad on the radio), but I can't find the videos so I won't bother linking to them. For now, I leave you with this gem from Bill Hicks:
Anybody in advertising or marketing should just kill themselves. Seriously
Wednesday 2 September 2009
Trap laughs long and hard at his own joke
4 weeks ago the good people of Limerick (for the price of €55 per ticket) were treated to Ireland being humiliated by Australia (the title refers to Trapattoni's demeanour after they scored their 3rd goal). Normally we might not be surprised to see our Antipodean cousins giving the Boys in Green a good beating at Thomand Park, but in soccer? Surely not. Alas, it doesn't say much for Ireland that we were well and truly beaten, indeed you could say outclassed, by an Australian team that didn't feature too many household names. Still, I was impressed with them-unlike Ireland, they looked like an international football team, as opposed to a mid-table Premier League team.
In Ireland's case, the whole doesn't seem to be greater than the sum of the parts any longer-we go as Shay Given, Richard Dunne and Robbie Keane, and, to a lesser extent, Kevin Doyle, go. The odd burst from Duff, McGeady or Hunt can produce a goal, but the lack of consistent end product from all 3 wide men means that you can't really say for sure what you are going to get from each one on any given night. And while both Dunne and Given are generally excellent, Keane does disappear on too many occasions.
And the rest? How John O'Shea was deemed a better player to keep at Man Utd than Gerard Pique (among others) is a mystery to me. Whoever partners Dunne at centre-back (whether it is St Ledger or McShane/O'Shea) is not up to the task. Kevin Kilbane has been a great servant to Ireland (I think I've even seen him singing the anthem), but to ask him to play left back on a regular basis is not fair to him, or Ireland's chances. A fair percentage of our goals conceded seem to stem from Kilbane's lack of ability to close people down and his lack defensive positioning awareness.
It is the Irish midfield that garners the most discussion, both in terms of who plays (Glenn Whelan) and who doesn't (Stephen Ireland). We have no-one selected at the moment who is capable of holding possession, or indeed acting as a link man between defence and attack. It is hard to say what Glenn Whelan brings to the party-a live body maybe, but not much else. I've seen Andrews play ok for Blackburn, but he's not good enough for this level, well not without someone of a higher standard alongside him. Darron Gibson hasn't looked great either-you would think Man Utd rate him highly enough or they would have let him go, but it's hard to see how much he will develop in their reserves or Carling Cup team.
Trappatoni seems to have brought a bit of order to the team-we no longer look like the shambles we did under Steve Staunton, but we don't look like we're developing much. We are at are worst when leading-our inability to hold the ball and our instinct to drop deep leaves us open to late equalisers or winners-the worrying thing is that this is a trend that was evident under Brian Kerr and has not looked like being reversed under successive managers.
Bulgaria will probably still be alive after this weekend given that they play Montenegro at home, but I expect Ireland to be one step closer to securing 2nd place in the group-if that is not motivation enough, then our 5-2 hammering in Cyprus under Steve Staunton and the fact that the Cypriots are without 2 of their better players through suspension should serve to focus the minds of the Boys in Green on coming away with a win. A win would go a long way to put us in a play off, and looking at some of the other possible 2nd place teams (Switzerland, Northern Ireland, Macedonia....), Ireland should still fancy their chances of making their first finals since 2002. Trap would surely be entitled to the last laugh if that turns out to be the case.
In Ireland's case, the whole doesn't seem to be greater than the sum of the parts any longer-we go as Shay Given, Richard Dunne and Robbie Keane, and, to a lesser extent, Kevin Doyle, go. The odd burst from Duff, McGeady or Hunt can produce a goal, but the lack of consistent end product from all 3 wide men means that you can't really say for sure what you are going to get from each one on any given night. And while both Dunne and Given are generally excellent, Keane does disappear on too many occasions.
And the rest? How John O'Shea was deemed a better player to keep at Man Utd than Gerard Pique (among others) is a mystery to me. Whoever partners Dunne at centre-back (whether it is St Ledger or McShane/O'Shea) is not up to the task. Kevin Kilbane has been a great servant to Ireland (I think I've even seen him singing the anthem), but to ask him to play left back on a regular basis is not fair to him, or Ireland's chances. A fair percentage of our goals conceded seem to stem from Kilbane's lack of ability to close people down and his lack defensive positioning awareness.
It is the Irish midfield that garners the most discussion, both in terms of who plays (Glenn Whelan) and who doesn't (Stephen Ireland). We have no-one selected at the moment who is capable of holding possession, or indeed acting as a link man between defence and attack. It is hard to say what Glenn Whelan brings to the party-a live body maybe, but not much else. I've seen Andrews play ok for Blackburn, but he's not good enough for this level, well not without someone of a higher standard alongside him. Darron Gibson hasn't looked great either-you would think Man Utd rate him highly enough or they would have let him go, but it's hard to see how much he will develop in their reserves or Carling Cup team.
Trappatoni seems to have brought a bit of order to the team-we no longer look like the shambles we did under Steve Staunton, but we don't look like we're developing much. We are at are worst when leading-our inability to hold the ball and our instinct to drop deep leaves us open to late equalisers or winners-the worrying thing is that this is a trend that was evident under Brian Kerr and has not looked like being reversed under successive managers.
Bulgaria will probably still be alive after this weekend given that they play Montenegro at home, but I expect Ireland to be one step closer to securing 2nd place in the group-if that is not motivation enough, then our 5-2 hammering in Cyprus under Steve Staunton and the fact that the Cypriots are without 2 of their better players through suspension should serve to focus the minds of the Boys in Green on coming away with a win. A win would go a long way to put us in a play off, and looking at some of the other possible 2nd place teams (Switzerland, Northern Ireland, Macedonia....), Ireland should still fancy their chances of making their first finals since 2002. Trap would surely be entitled to the last laugh if that turns out to be the case.
Tuesday 1 September 2009
Arrivederci August
And so we have had our first 'grand slam' clash of the season, with Arsenal making the trip to Old Trafford for an odd Saturday evening kick-off time (I haven't looked into the reasons-anyone care to enlighten me?). The result wasn't exactly a surprise to me as I failed to see how Arsenal could have improved so much since last year having lost 2 starters and added only Thomas Vermaelen (who wasn't really tested enough on Saturday for me to have anything other than a pretty neutral view of him to date), but, it has to be said, they can feel slightly unfortunate to have come away with nothing after taking the lead and generally playing the better football. Still, after Rooney's penalty (I agreed with the award, just as I disagreed with the ref's failure to award anything for Fletcher's 'challenge' on Arshavin), I didn't see Arsenal coming back to win. Nicklas Bendtner did not impress me when coming on as a sub, and I still don't rate Clichy and Song. His poorly direct header for the winning own goal aside, Abou Diaby looks like a player. But I cannot help think Arsenal would be a better team if they had kept Mathieu Flamini, or indeed moved Kolo Toure into midfield (as has been suggested to me by my brother), as they still lack 'bite'. Their heads shouldn't drop too much after this defeat, but they cannot afford too many 'moral' victories if they are to challenge for the title. By the way, RVP doesn't strike me as someone who can lead the line, especially away from home on his own. Adebayor has scored 3 in 3 games for Man City, 2 on the road. Just saying.
Liverpool had a decidedly mixed week-losing 3-1 at home to a Villa team that hasn't impressed in a long time, and then coming from behind to snatch a 3-2 victory away at Bolton. A 3rd loss at this early stage would surely have ended any hopes Liverpool have of winning their first Premiership title and indeed ending Man Utd's charge at their league title record. Nonetheless, the signs are not good-a thin squad, with no notable reinforcements arriving since the arrival of the still injured Aquilani; Andriy Voronin as your primary striking option from the bench; and other than the goalscoring exploits of Glen Johnson, not much sign of form from the remainder of the starting XI, with Gerrard and Torres strangely subduded in the initial stages of the season.
All of the above is of course encouraging for Chelsea, who still haven't beaten anyone of substance, but look like they are improving with each game. The news that Joe Cole has returned to training is certainly welcome, but the return to form of Deco is also encouraging. Chelsea play Spurs on September 20th, and although an away trip to Stoke in the interim shouldn't be taken lightly, this will be their first true test under Ancellotti, and a good opportunity to establish their dominance over their London rivals. So far so good then, but a long way to go.
In other news,
Did Eduardo dive? Probably. Did he deserve a ban? Yes, but only if the same punishment is applied in all such cases. A bit of consistency would be nice to see from UEFA in this regard.
Liverpool had a decidedly mixed week-losing 3-1 at home to a Villa team that hasn't impressed in a long time, and then coming from behind to snatch a 3-2 victory away at Bolton. A 3rd loss at this early stage would surely have ended any hopes Liverpool have of winning their first Premiership title and indeed ending Man Utd's charge at their league title record. Nonetheless, the signs are not good-a thin squad, with no notable reinforcements arriving since the arrival of the still injured Aquilani; Andriy Voronin as your primary striking option from the bench; and other than the goalscoring exploits of Glen Johnson, not much sign of form from the remainder of the starting XI, with Gerrard and Torres strangely subduded in the initial stages of the season.
All of the above is of course encouraging for Chelsea, who still haven't beaten anyone of substance, but look like they are improving with each game. The news that Joe Cole has returned to training is certainly welcome, but the return to form of Deco is also encouraging. Chelsea play Spurs on September 20th, and although an away trip to Stoke in the interim shouldn't be taken lightly, this will be their first true test under Ancellotti, and a good opportunity to establish their dominance over their London rivals. So far so good then, but a long way to go.
In other news,
- Spurs kept up their unbeaten run with a late, late winner at home to Birmingham. A bitter-sweet victory, given the unfortunate injury suffered by the talented Luka Modric (which has triggered an interesting conspiracy allegation in the Balkans)
- Everton got off the mark with a late, late penalty needed to secure a win over Wigan (who have regressed since their opening day win at Villa)
- Portsmouth remain pointless, but a confirmation in the change in ownership has spurred a flurry of signings, which may help Paul Hart in getting things back on track. I watched their game with Man City on Saturday, while they were unfortunate not to get a point, it appeared to me that they have too many players that are not of Premier League standard in the starting XI. The loss of Niko Krancjar on deadline day (more below) doesn't help their case.
- Man City are still unbeaten and have equalled their away win total from all of least season.
- Niko Kranjcar to Spurs. In the Man City/Portsmouth game at the weekend, I thought he was the best player on the pitch (granted Robinho was on the bench), and this is an excellent signing for Spurs, especially given the injury to Modric. I have to admit, Harry has built an impressive squad.
- Richard Dunne to Villa. Was just confirmed today, a good move for both parties-City now have strength in depth at that position (Toure, Lescott, Onuoha, Richards) and Villa need a quality replacement for Martin Laursen.
- Johnny Heitinga to Everton. Any body with a pulse is an improvement on Tony Hibbert. The blue half of Merseyside doth rejoice!
- Carlos Edwards and Grant Leadbitter to Ipswich. I get the impression Roy Keane will not be long in East Anglia.
Did Eduardo dive? Probably. Did he deserve a ban? Yes, but only if the same punishment is applied in all such cases. A bit of consistency would be nice to see from UEFA in this regard.
Friday 21 August 2009
Bottom of the 9th for the 2009 Red Sox
So after being swept in NYC over 3 weeks ago, the Red Sox take on the Yankees again this weekend, this time in the friendly confines of Fenway Park. The Sox currently sit 6.5 games behind the Yankees in the AL East, and even though there are 39 games left in the regular season after this weekend, a similar outcome as the NYC series would surely the Red Sox too much to do to catch the Yankees. There's still the Wild Card (or best runner-up to us here in Europe) to play for of course (the Red Sox lead the Texas Rangers by 1 game and Tampa Bay by 4), but anything less than 2 wins this weekend will not auger well for the stretch run and beyond, nor will it do much to sate a less than happy fan base.
The last Yankees series was pretty horrible for Boston. John Smoltz was battered in the opener (the Red Sox actually led on several occasion and Joba Chamberlain looked less than convincing) and was subsequently released, they lost in the 15th inning on Friday (when Junichi Tazawa made his first MLB appearance and gave up the game winning home run to Alex Rodriguez), and, despite his best start of the season at the time, Clay Buchholz ran into CC Sabathia in Ace form on Saturday. Worst of all, the Red Sox scored exactly 8 runs all weekend, 6 of them on the Thursday. It has largely been anaemic offence that has seen the Sox lose touch in the AL and find themselves in a dogfight for the Wild Card. Starting pitching, Brad Penny aside, has generally been good, and the bullpen, while not as stellar as it was earlier in the season, has not been costing them games. Even Penny gives them a chance to win, as good as most 5th starters, but the run support has frequently not been what it needs to be to compensate for his 5.22 Earned Run Average, which has not been helped by his 0-3 record and 7.54 ERA in his past 4 starts.
In short, the difference between the teams is this-the Yankees spent big over the winter and those signings (Sabathia, Teixeira, Burnett) are now proving their worth, while the Red Sox went cheap and low-risk (Smoltz, Baldelli, Green), and rarely has the adage 'you get what you pay for' been so apt. Add to this the fact that Yankees veterans are having good/great seasons (e.g. Johnny Damon and Derk Jeter), while Sox sluggers Ortiz, Drew and Lowell have been infective and/or injured for too many stretches this year.
The positives? Victor Martinez (hopefully he becomes the full-time catcher, but the Sox still seem to want Varitek doing the catching most nights), Clay Buchholz (he pitched well enough to win against NY and Detroit recently but came up against Sabathia and Verlander in great form plus he got no run support, however he got a win over Roy Halladay last night), signs of life from Ortiz in the Blue Jays series, and, the fact that there are still 42 games to go.
In the end, this series will not determine sucess or failure for either team this year-anything less than a trip to the play offs, and possibly a World Series, will be deemed less than satisfactory. Still, I'll be watching, and hoping for a Sox win!
The last Yankees series was pretty horrible for Boston. John Smoltz was battered in the opener (the Red Sox actually led on several occasion and Joba Chamberlain looked less than convincing) and was subsequently released, they lost in the 15th inning on Friday (when Junichi Tazawa made his first MLB appearance and gave up the game winning home run to Alex Rodriguez), and, despite his best start of the season at the time, Clay Buchholz ran into CC Sabathia in Ace form on Saturday. Worst of all, the Red Sox scored exactly 8 runs all weekend, 6 of them on the Thursday. It has largely been anaemic offence that has seen the Sox lose touch in the AL and find themselves in a dogfight for the Wild Card. Starting pitching, Brad Penny aside, has generally been good, and the bullpen, while not as stellar as it was earlier in the season, has not been costing them games. Even Penny gives them a chance to win, as good as most 5th starters, but the run support has frequently not been what it needs to be to compensate for his 5.22 Earned Run Average, which has not been helped by his 0-3 record and 7.54 ERA in his past 4 starts.
In short, the difference between the teams is this-the Yankees spent big over the winter and those signings (Sabathia, Teixeira, Burnett) are now proving their worth, while the Red Sox went cheap and low-risk (Smoltz, Baldelli, Green), and rarely has the adage 'you get what you pay for' been so apt. Add to this the fact that Yankees veterans are having good/great seasons (e.g. Johnny Damon and Derk Jeter), while Sox sluggers Ortiz, Drew and Lowell have been infective and/or injured for too many stretches this year.
The positives? Victor Martinez (hopefully he becomes the full-time catcher, but the Sox still seem to want Varitek doing the catching most nights), Clay Buchholz (he pitched well enough to win against NY and Detroit recently but came up against Sabathia and Verlander in great form plus he got no run support, however he got a win over Roy Halladay last night), signs of life from Ortiz in the Blue Jays series, and, the fact that there are still 42 games to go.
In the end, this series will not determine sucess or failure for either team this year-anything less than a trip to the play offs, and possibly a World Series, will be deemed less than satisfactory. Still, I'll be watching, and hoping for a Sox win!
Wednesday 19 August 2009
Not much to go on, but enough to write about
And so Ronaldo's absence hits home earlier in the season than Sir Alex might have imagined. Tonight's game at Turf Moor was the sort of game that Ronaldo would have found some way to salvage-if not through the penalty missed my Michael Carrick, then maybe through a more convincing header that that attempted by Berbatov late in the 2nd half. It's only been 2 games, but Man Utd have only managed 1 goal in total in their games against Birmigham and Burnley, and haven't exactly looked like they were worthy of much more. While the return of Ferdinand and Vidic will undoubtedly make them a better team, it won't necessarily open the floodgates at the other end of them team. Some stats to ponder-Wayne Rooney has never scored more than 16 goals in a season, Bernatov's record in the Premier League is about 1 in 3, and Michael Owen has not scored a goal since January.
The most impressive team so far (based on 2 games Arsenal fans!) is surely Spurs-a deserved home win against some people's favourite's Liverpool and a 5-1 thrashing of Hull at the KC, along with impressive starts by Bassong, Palacios and Defoe suggests Harry Redknapp may have a team to be reckoned with-and a more impressive squad than nearly any other team I can think of in the Premier League-with nearly 2 quality players to cover every position.
Liverpool made an inauspicious start-losing at Spurs with a sub-par performance from Torres and a general lack of quality in their midfield. Alberto Aquilani better get fit quick, and better be worth the £20m spent to bring him to Anfield. Still, Liverpool got back on track tonight, with a 4-0 win at home to Stoke, and a goal from Glen Johnson-which will surely please Liverpool fans greatly-given that many (like me) do not believe he was bought for his defensive qualities. Stories of Rafa being left with £1.5m to spend and subsequently storming out of the club have been doing the rounds today-tonight's win was extremely timely.
Signs for Portsmouth appear ominous-no end to the ownership saga in sight, and with the transfer deadline fast approaching, they could find themselves in dire straits by the time they can strengthen their squad. Narrow and perhaps unfortunate losses at home to Fulham and away to Birmingham also wouldn't fill me with confidence about their prospects, especially when looking at the results to date of the 3 promoted teams, who may be able to put up more of a fight than I first imagined.
If Arsenal produce many more performances like last Sunday's 6-1 thrashing of Everton, then I guess I will have to revise my opinion of them (as will many other 'experts'). When things click for this team, they are capable of great things. I'll wait a few more games before I see if they have improved on last season. For Everton, things are bad. Shipping 6 goals on opening day in front of your home fans is a sign that things can only get better, right? Maybe not. In what is turning into an increasingly ugly saga, wantaway Jolean Lescott was left out of their squad for a Europa League game-with David Moyes leaving us in doubt as to why. Surley Everton should just take the money offered by Man City and spend a (relatively) small portion of it on a Steven Taylor, Matthew Upson, Michael Turner, or, perhaps even extract old Goodison favourite Richard Dunne from City in a cash plus player deal. Lescott is good, but Everton have 2 pretty good centre halves as it stands (when Jagielka returns from injury), and there is a danger that this episode could continue to destabilise a club that will be under a lot of pressure from others for their top 6 place (a feat they have managed in 4 of the last 5 years).
And so to Chelsea. Things did not look great for much of the afternoon against Hull-and indeed look worse when compared to Tottenham's result against the same team, but, winning doesn't have to be pretty I guess. Still, the lack of fluidity and dynamism that has dogged Chelsea for the past few seasons was very much evident against Hull. However, things improved markedly aginst Sunderland, even Steve Bruce was quick to give Chelsea plaudits for an impressive display. Time will tell if Carlo's diamond is a real gem, and also whether Deco's sparkling display was nothing more than a flash in the pan.
The most impressive team so far (based on 2 games Arsenal fans!) is surely Spurs-a deserved home win against some people's favourite's Liverpool and a 5-1 thrashing of Hull at the KC, along with impressive starts by Bassong, Palacios and Defoe suggests Harry Redknapp may have a team to be reckoned with-and a more impressive squad than nearly any other team I can think of in the Premier League-with nearly 2 quality players to cover every position.
Liverpool made an inauspicious start-losing at Spurs with a sub-par performance from Torres and a general lack of quality in their midfield. Alberto Aquilani better get fit quick, and better be worth the £20m spent to bring him to Anfield. Still, Liverpool got back on track tonight, with a 4-0 win at home to Stoke, and a goal from Glen Johnson-which will surely please Liverpool fans greatly-given that many (like me) do not believe he was bought for his defensive qualities. Stories of Rafa being left with £1.5m to spend and subsequently storming out of the club have been doing the rounds today-tonight's win was extremely timely.
Signs for Portsmouth appear ominous-no end to the ownership saga in sight, and with the transfer deadline fast approaching, they could find themselves in dire straits by the time they can strengthen their squad. Narrow and perhaps unfortunate losses at home to Fulham and away to Birmingham also wouldn't fill me with confidence about their prospects, especially when looking at the results to date of the 3 promoted teams, who may be able to put up more of a fight than I first imagined.
If Arsenal produce many more performances like last Sunday's 6-1 thrashing of Everton, then I guess I will have to revise my opinion of them (as will many other 'experts'). When things click for this team, they are capable of great things. I'll wait a few more games before I see if they have improved on last season. For Everton, things are bad. Shipping 6 goals on opening day in front of your home fans is a sign that things can only get better, right? Maybe not. In what is turning into an increasingly ugly saga, wantaway Jolean Lescott was left out of their squad for a Europa League game-with David Moyes leaving us in doubt as to why. Surley Everton should just take the money offered by Man City and spend a (relatively) small portion of it on a Steven Taylor, Matthew Upson, Michael Turner, or, perhaps even extract old Goodison favourite Richard Dunne from City in a cash plus player deal. Lescott is good, but Everton have 2 pretty good centre halves as it stands (when Jagielka returns from injury), and there is a danger that this episode could continue to destabilise a club that will be under a lot of pressure from others for their top 6 place (a feat they have managed in 4 of the last 5 years).
And so to Chelsea. Things did not look great for much of the afternoon against Hull-and indeed look worse when compared to Tottenham's result against the same team, but, winning doesn't have to be pretty I guess. Still, the lack of fluidity and dynamism that has dogged Chelsea for the past few seasons was very much evident against Hull. However, things improved markedly aginst Sunderland, even Steve Bruce was quick to give Chelsea plaudits for an impressive display. Time will tell if Carlo's diamond is a real gem, and also whether Deco's sparkling display was nothing more than a flash in the pan.
Thursday 13 August 2009
Premier League Preview 2009/10
Well here we go again, another season of the 'World's Best League'. That claim is even more tenuous this season, given Barcelona's mastery in the Champions League last year, and the rebirth of the Galactico era in Madrid. Of course, the departure of the 'World's Best Player' to Madrid should dampen the enthusiasm of Anglo-Saxon commentators in assigning such a lofty title to the English Premier League.
10 or 15 years ago, the offseason promised plenty of new signings from overseas, some famous, some less so, but there was generally an air of expectation/excitement (on my part) when the Premier League kicked off. This year, through a combination of credit crunch and maybe a degree of saturation (this is an interesting article on the BEEB on player nationalities) of foreign players, there have been less notable signings from overseas than in previous years. Thomas Vermaelen, Alberto Aquilani, Yuri Zhirkov are probably the biggest sigings this summer, but don't really compare with the Dennis Bergkamps, Gianfranco Zolas, Fernando Torres' or indeed Elanos of bygone and recent years. Still, other than the rumours surrounding David Villa and Franck Ribery, there wasn't much else happening this summer. We can only hope that among the likes of Christian Benitez and Nikola Kalinic we will find some unexpected entertainment.
Manchester City were probably the biggest movers and shakers this summer-but all their major signings were from English based players. Arsenal seemed more than happy to take their generous offers for Kolo Toure (who I think could discover his form again) and Emmanuel Adebayor (who reminds me a lot of Didier Drogba-for all the right and wrong reasons); Villa were likely to lose Gareth Barry anyway (and Rafa just couldn't hide his annoyance at being outbid by the Shiekh); and it's hard to know how Fergie really feels at losing Carlos Tevez to his crosstown 'rivals', but he has put up a good front at making us feel like he could care less. How Mark Hughes melds all of these talented but moody individuals into a team remains to be seen-remember-as well as Tevez and Adebayor, he also has Craig Bellamy and Robinho on his books. The addition of Jolean Lescott or another top defender will strengthen his hand, but to me City remain a team that lack a clear leader. Still, it will be an interesting season at the City of Manchester, although it is their away form (2 wins on the road last season) that could determine their bid for Champions League football.
Arsenal almost look like they have given up. Selling Adebayor and Toure to City made them a pretty penny, but strengthen a team that will surely be one of their main rivals for a Champions League spot. I know nothing of Thomas Vermaelen, but judging by the fee, he will surely be decent-Arsenal aren't renowned for splashing out on defenders. The failure to add a bit of steel in midfield (rumours of a move to bring Patrick Vieira back aside) will surely count against them. As will relying on their collection of talented forwards to remain fit and score the goals that their attractive football often fails to provide. Adebayor scored 24 goals in 2008, but only 10 in the last campaign, so he may not be missed as much as one would imagine. I see Arsenal holding on to 4th place, a full season of Andrei Arshavin promises much, but they still lack some of the key ingredients for further Premiership success.
Liverpool have been picked by quite a few pundits to finally win the Premier League this year, whereas the bookies have them as 3rd favourites. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. I just don't see how swapping Alberto Aquilani (who seems to have a poor injury history) for Xabi Alonso improves their team, and I certainly don't rate Glen Johnson as a defender. So, it really comes down to Steven Gerrard and Fernando Alonso continually providing the goals and all round excellence that took Liverpool to 2nd last season. While I have no doubt that both players will be as good as they were last season, and perhaps better than last season in Torres' case, I feel that there is not enough quality in the squad to sustain a title challenge over the full season.
Like Liverpool, Manchester United don't seem to have the pieces to improve on last season. Indeed, the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez is likely to significantly weaken their hand-I don't feel that Antonio Valencia and Micheal Owen will be as good as the departed, but maybe they just need to be good enough to get United over the line again. If they don't score as many goals, it may not matter, given the excellence of their defence last season, and you can be sure that Wayne Rooney will relish the chance to play a more pivital role than was the case when Ronaldo and Tevez had to be accommodated.
Chelsea are favourites with the bookmakers-as much due to the fact that Mancheseter United have lost players and Liverpool don't seem to have improved their squad. After just watching them eke out a 2-1 win over Hull City at home, I don't see much change in their style of play from last season. I guess I still fancy them overall-but they can't afford games like today-where they created 30 chances but could only take 2 of them. They have a decent squad, but players like Terry, Lampard and Essien are key-and at least one of Drogba and Anelka must hit form in patches for them to be more successful than last year. Injuries to key men cost them last year, this year the African Cup of Nations could derail their challenge, when Essien, Drogba and Kalou will definitely be absent, and there is a strong chance Mikel could be on duty in Angola as well. Chelsea can probably live without Mikel and Kalou, but it will be very difficult to compensate for the absence of Essien and Drogba. I've written more about Chelsea's prospects here.
So, Chelsea 1st, Liverpool 2nd, Man Utd 3rd is my top 3, with Arsenal retaining 4th place.
As to the rest, the 3 promoted teams, plus Portsmouth and Hull, will struggle and 3 from these 5 will go down. It will be interesting to see how last year's overachievers (Stoke and Fulham) do this year, as will watching the development of Gianfarnco Zola as a manager at West Ham United. Outside of that, there's not much to say about the other Premier League teams for now. Let's hope that the next 40 or so weekends give me plenty to write about.
10 or 15 years ago, the offseason promised plenty of new signings from overseas, some famous, some less so, but there was generally an air of expectation/excitement (on my part) when the Premier League kicked off. This year, through a combination of credit crunch and maybe a degree of saturation (this is an interesting article on the BEEB on player nationalities) of foreign players, there have been less notable signings from overseas than in previous years. Thomas Vermaelen, Alberto Aquilani, Yuri Zhirkov are probably the biggest sigings this summer, but don't really compare with the Dennis Bergkamps, Gianfranco Zolas, Fernando Torres' or indeed Elanos of bygone and recent years. Still, other than the rumours surrounding David Villa and Franck Ribery, there wasn't much else happening this summer. We can only hope that among the likes of Christian Benitez and Nikola Kalinic we will find some unexpected entertainment.
Manchester City were probably the biggest movers and shakers this summer-but all their major signings were from English based players. Arsenal seemed more than happy to take their generous offers for Kolo Toure (who I think could discover his form again) and Emmanuel Adebayor (who reminds me a lot of Didier Drogba-for all the right and wrong reasons); Villa were likely to lose Gareth Barry anyway (and Rafa just couldn't hide his annoyance at being outbid by the Shiekh); and it's hard to know how Fergie really feels at losing Carlos Tevez to his crosstown 'rivals', but he has put up a good front at making us feel like he could care less. How Mark Hughes melds all of these talented but moody individuals into a team remains to be seen-remember-as well as Tevez and Adebayor, he also has Craig Bellamy and Robinho on his books. The addition of Jolean Lescott or another top defender will strengthen his hand, but to me City remain a team that lack a clear leader. Still, it will be an interesting season at the City of Manchester, although it is their away form (2 wins on the road last season) that could determine their bid for Champions League football.
Arsenal almost look like they have given up. Selling Adebayor and Toure to City made them a pretty penny, but strengthen a team that will surely be one of their main rivals for a Champions League spot. I know nothing of Thomas Vermaelen, but judging by the fee, he will surely be decent-Arsenal aren't renowned for splashing out on defenders. The failure to add a bit of steel in midfield (rumours of a move to bring Patrick Vieira back aside) will surely count against them. As will relying on their collection of talented forwards to remain fit and score the goals that their attractive football often fails to provide. Adebayor scored 24 goals in 2008, but only 10 in the last campaign, so he may not be missed as much as one would imagine. I see Arsenal holding on to 4th place, a full season of Andrei Arshavin promises much, but they still lack some of the key ingredients for further Premiership success.
Liverpool have been picked by quite a few pundits to finally win the Premier League this year, whereas the bookies have them as 3rd favourites. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. I just don't see how swapping Alberto Aquilani (who seems to have a poor injury history) for Xabi Alonso improves their team, and I certainly don't rate Glen Johnson as a defender. So, it really comes down to Steven Gerrard and Fernando Alonso continually providing the goals and all round excellence that took Liverpool to 2nd last season. While I have no doubt that both players will be as good as they were last season, and perhaps better than last season in Torres' case, I feel that there is not enough quality in the squad to sustain a title challenge over the full season.
Like Liverpool, Manchester United don't seem to have the pieces to improve on last season. Indeed, the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez is likely to significantly weaken their hand-I don't feel that Antonio Valencia and Micheal Owen will be as good as the departed, but maybe they just need to be good enough to get United over the line again. If they don't score as many goals, it may not matter, given the excellence of their defence last season, and you can be sure that Wayne Rooney will relish the chance to play a more pivital role than was the case when Ronaldo and Tevez had to be accommodated.
Chelsea are favourites with the bookmakers-as much due to the fact that Mancheseter United have lost players and Liverpool don't seem to have improved their squad. After just watching them eke out a 2-1 win over Hull City at home, I don't see much change in their style of play from last season. I guess I still fancy them overall-but they can't afford games like today-where they created 30 chances but could only take 2 of them. They have a decent squad, but players like Terry, Lampard and Essien are key-and at least one of Drogba and Anelka must hit form in patches for them to be more successful than last year. Injuries to key men cost them last year, this year the African Cup of Nations could derail their challenge, when Essien, Drogba and Kalou will definitely be absent, and there is a strong chance Mikel could be on duty in Angola as well. Chelsea can probably live without Mikel and Kalou, but it will be very difficult to compensate for the absence of Essien and Drogba. I've written more about Chelsea's prospects here.
So, Chelsea 1st, Liverpool 2nd, Man Utd 3rd is my top 3, with Arsenal retaining 4th place.
As to the rest, the 3 promoted teams, plus Portsmouth and Hull, will struggle and 3 from these 5 will go down. It will be interesting to see how last year's overachievers (Stoke and Fulham) do this year, as will watching the development of Gianfarnco Zola as a manager at West Ham United. Outside of that, there's not much to say about the other Premier League teams for now. Let's hope that the next 40 or so weekends give me plenty to write about.
Forward thinking-Premier League Team of the season 2009/10
Goalkeeper Shay Given (Man City) I fancy Shay to get plenty of chances to showcase his talents for Man City-outside the Top 4, Tim Howard could be the best of the rest.
Right Back Bacary Sagna (Arsenal). If it wasn't for injury last year, he was probably the best right back in the premiership. One of Wegner's better 'unknowns'.
Left Back Ashley Cole (Chelsea) I fancy Cashley to finally start to fully deliver for Chelsea-there were signs of this last year, but Evra's form was too good to ignore.
Centre Back Nemanja Vidic (Man Utd). A shaky end to the season nothwithstanding, there are few better.
Centre Back Jolean Lescott (Everton) He might not be on Merseyside when the season starts, and if he does end up at the City of Manchester Stadium, all bets are off.
Midfield Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) Now that the court case has been settled, and as Liverpool have done little or nothing in the transfer market this summer, expect Gerrard to have to contribute handsomely again this season.
Midfield Michael Essien (Chelsea) Were it not for so much time lost to injury, and the sentimental nonsense that saw Ryan Giggs make the team last year, then Essien should have been named to this team-he will be key to Chelsea's title challenge on 2009/10.
Midfield Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal) Another who lost too much time last year, but on his day, he is probably the most complete player in the Premiership.
Forward Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal) Only a cameo at the end of last season, but there's no doubting his talent.
Forward Fernando Torres (Liverpool) Assuming he stays free from injury, I think it's safe to give Fernando the number 9 shirt.
Forward Michael Owen (Man Utd) Not since Ruud van Nistlerooy left have Man Utd had such an out-and-out goalscorer. Someone will have to fill the void left by Ronaldo in the goalscoring stakes, Owne should get plenty of chances to do just that.
Player of the Year Fernando Torres
Young Player of the Year Stephen Ireland (Man City)-who will be 23 (and thus qualify as 'young player' for 2009/10).
I'll revisit this topic again in April and see how wrong I turn out to be in practice.
Right Back Bacary Sagna (Arsenal). If it wasn't for injury last year, he was probably the best right back in the premiership. One of Wegner's better 'unknowns'.
Left Back Ashley Cole (Chelsea) I fancy Cashley to finally start to fully deliver for Chelsea-there were signs of this last year, but Evra's form was too good to ignore.
Centre Back Nemanja Vidic (Man Utd). A shaky end to the season nothwithstanding, there are few better.
Centre Back Jolean Lescott (Everton) He might not be on Merseyside when the season starts, and if he does end up at the City of Manchester Stadium, all bets are off.
Midfield Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) Now that the court case has been settled, and as Liverpool have done little or nothing in the transfer market this summer, expect Gerrard to have to contribute handsomely again this season.
Midfield Michael Essien (Chelsea) Were it not for so much time lost to injury, and the sentimental nonsense that saw Ryan Giggs make the team last year, then Essien should have been named to this team-he will be key to Chelsea's title challenge on 2009/10.
Midfield Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal) Another who lost too much time last year, but on his day, he is probably the most complete player in the Premiership.
Forward Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal) Only a cameo at the end of last season, but there's no doubting his talent.
Forward Fernando Torres (Liverpool) Assuming he stays free from injury, I think it's safe to give Fernando the number 9 shirt.
Forward Michael Owen (Man Utd) Not since Ruud van Nistlerooy left have Man Utd had such an out-and-out goalscorer. Someone will have to fill the void left by Ronaldo in the goalscoring stakes, Owne should get plenty of chances to do just that.
Player of the Year Fernando Torres
Young Player of the Year Stephen Ireland (Man City)-who will be 23 (and thus qualify as 'young player' for 2009/10).
I'll revisit this topic again in April and see how wrong I turn out to be in practice.
Tuesday 11 August 2009
Benvenuto, Carlo
It's hard to believe that Chelsea allowed Guus Hiddink to walk at the end of last season. The guy steadied what could have been a sinking ship at Stamford Bridge, was hugely popular with the fans, and was getting much more out of hitherto underachieving expensive players (e.g. Malouda) than either Mr. Grant or Mr. Scolari. A pretty tough act to follow-even if his only silverware was the quickly depreciating reward of the FA Cup. But, Carlo Ancelotti would appear to fit the bill-massive international reputation, appears popular with his players, and a dry wit that has thus far gone down well with the British media.
But, I have the say that I am not convinced (ok, Chelsea haven't kicked a ball on a competitive or friendly match under his management) by the droll Italian. In 7 seasons at AC Milan, he won 1 Serie A title (Juventus were stripped of their titles 04/05 and 05/06, Milan were runners-up in both seasons), and his overall win percentage was just under 57% (compared to Jose's Chelsea record of 70%, Avram Grant's record of just under 67%, and Guus' record of 71%)-a statistic that looks suspiciously like Uzbek based Mr Scolari's record in his (brief) tenure at the Bridge. In addition, he failed to win anything in his 2 seasons at Juventus, finishing league runner-up twice (something Chelsea have become used to in the past few seasons) Now, this is a bit of an 'American' approach to assessing performance, but it's not a bad starting point.
What I didn't mention above of course is that Carlo has won 2 Champions League titles, and arguably should have won a third in his time with Milan (even Liverpool fans would agree?)-and it's pretty obvious what is Chelsea's primary ambition these days. So it certainly looks like it's his European pedigree is what has attracted him to whoever it is calls the shots on these matters on the Fulham Road.
The pre-season was successful (in the sense that Chelsea were unbeaten and players didn't suffer any serious injuries), but didn't answer many questions.
For example, will Chelsea play more adventurous/attacking football? Having only seen Sunday's Community Shield, I didn't notice any great difference in Chelsea's approach, and I don't recall any of Ancelotti's previous teams playing especially 'sexy' football. Note that I don't particularly long for more advanture and attacking just for the sake of more entertainment-but I do believe it is necessary to take the next step in Europe (a Champions League victory), and to wrest control of the Premiership from Manchester United. Plus, you have to admit that Chelsea have been far more successful in some of the battles with Liverpool when 'going for it' from the word go as opposed to adopting a policy of conservatism and containment. Still, it is too early to say what the weekly approach will be, and I am happy enough to reserve judgement on that score for now. The results will, hopefully, speak for themselves.
Will Ancelotti be able to motivate malcontents (Drogba), underachievers (Anelka) and underperformers (Ballack, Mikel, Malouda...) to greater heights than Scolari or even Avram Grant managed. That seemed to be Hiddink's key strength-he had the same players as those available to his short-tenured predecessors, but seemed to get more out of them. Malouda especially appeared revitalised, and his form in the 2nd half of the season was outstanding (there was a story about how issues with his wisdom teeth may have affected him earlier in the season), and, to be honest, I wonder about the decision to sign Zhirkov in light of Malouda's recent excellence, but than who knows who made that call.
Is Ancelotti happy with the players he has, or does he need his 'own man', specifically, Andrea Pirlo? The continuing rumnours about Pirlo appear to have died down after Pirlo's comments last weekend. I'm not too upset by this-I have great time for Pirlo as a player, but don't see his style translating well to the demands of the Premiership. This report worried me somewhat, if Carlo cannot accomodate Essien, prefarably in a central role, then I fear I will have little time for the guy. The fact that his role appears to be on the right side of a midfield diamond doesn't impress me-witness the one-sided attacking approach employed against Man Utd on Sunday-surely Carlo should be looking for a more orthodox right-sided player if he is to deploy the diamond on a regular basis? I haven't really seen anyone mentioned in transfer gossip who fits the bill. Breaking news-Roma have apparently turned down a bid from Chelsea for Daniele De Rossi-now that's a midfield player I would like to see Chelsea sign. You would also like to think that Joe Cole could feature in a right midfield role at some stage this season as well.
And so, as Chelsea prepare to kick-off against Hull at lunchtime on Saturday, as gentle an introduction as you can get to the Premier League as a new manager I guess, there is much to look forward to for Chelsea fans this season, not least the prospect of a double Champions League winner taking the reins at Stamford Bridge. Let's Chelsea can add to his trophy tally.
But, I have the say that I am not convinced (ok, Chelsea haven't kicked a ball on a competitive or friendly match under his management) by the droll Italian. In 7 seasons at AC Milan, he won 1 Serie A title (Juventus were stripped of their titles 04/05 and 05/06, Milan were runners-up in both seasons), and his overall win percentage was just under 57% (compared to Jose's Chelsea record of 70%, Avram Grant's record of just under 67%, and Guus' record of 71%)-a statistic that looks suspiciously like Uzbek based Mr Scolari's record in his (brief) tenure at the Bridge. In addition, he failed to win anything in his 2 seasons at Juventus, finishing league runner-up twice (something Chelsea have become used to in the past few seasons) Now, this is a bit of an 'American' approach to assessing performance, but it's not a bad starting point.
What I didn't mention above of course is that Carlo has won 2 Champions League titles, and arguably should have won a third in his time with Milan (even Liverpool fans would agree?)-and it's pretty obvious what is Chelsea's primary ambition these days. So it certainly looks like it's his European pedigree is what has attracted him to whoever it is calls the shots on these matters on the Fulham Road.
The pre-season was successful (in the sense that Chelsea were unbeaten and players didn't suffer any serious injuries), but didn't answer many questions.
For example, will Chelsea play more adventurous/attacking football? Having only seen Sunday's Community Shield, I didn't notice any great difference in Chelsea's approach, and I don't recall any of Ancelotti's previous teams playing especially 'sexy' football. Note that I don't particularly long for more advanture and attacking just for the sake of more entertainment-but I do believe it is necessary to take the next step in Europe (a Champions League victory), and to wrest control of the Premiership from Manchester United. Plus, you have to admit that Chelsea have been far more successful in some of the battles with Liverpool when 'going for it' from the word go as opposed to adopting a policy of conservatism and containment. Still, it is too early to say what the weekly approach will be, and I am happy enough to reserve judgement on that score for now. The results will, hopefully, speak for themselves.
Will Ancelotti be able to motivate malcontents (Drogba), underachievers (Anelka) and underperformers (Ballack, Mikel, Malouda...) to greater heights than Scolari or even Avram Grant managed. That seemed to be Hiddink's key strength-he had the same players as those available to his short-tenured predecessors, but seemed to get more out of them. Malouda especially appeared revitalised, and his form in the 2nd half of the season was outstanding (there was a story about how issues with his wisdom teeth may have affected him earlier in the season), and, to be honest, I wonder about the decision to sign Zhirkov in light of Malouda's recent excellence, but than who knows who made that call.
Is Ancelotti happy with the players he has, or does he need his 'own man', specifically, Andrea Pirlo? The continuing rumnours about Pirlo appear to have died down after Pirlo's comments last weekend. I'm not too upset by this-I have great time for Pirlo as a player, but don't see his style translating well to the demands of the Premiership. This report worried me somewhat, if Carlo cannot accomodate Essien, prefarably in a central role, then I fear I will have little time for the guy. The fact that his role appears to be on the right side of a midfield diamond doesn't impress me-witness the one-sided attacking approach employed against Man Utd on Sunday-surely Carlo should be looking for a more orthodox right-sided player if he is to deploy the diamond on a regular basis? I haven't really seen anyone mentioned in transfer gossip who fits the bill. Breaking news-Roma have apparently turned down a bid from Chelsea for Daniele De Rossi-now that's a midfield player I would like to see Chelsea sign. You would also like to think that Joe Cole could feature in a right midfield role at some stage this season as well.
And so, as Chelsea prepare to kick-off against Hull at lunchtime on Saturday, as gentle an introduction as you can get to the Premier League as a new manager I guess, there is much to look forward to for Chelsea fans this season, not least the prospect of a double Champions League winner taking the reins at Stamford Bridge. Let's Chelsea can add to his trophy tally.
Sound & Vision (warning-may contain traces of sarcasm)
'Lawro' gives his Premier League verdicts (in video!) here. Some wonderful insights-as always.
Arsenal
Arsenal miss the likes of.........even Ray Parlour
Really? The Romford Pele? I note that all the players that Lawro mentioned were English.
Birmingham
I know nothing about Benitez. Isn't that your job? You're nearly worse than John Giles in that respect.
Chelsea
2 players short And who might they be? Any idea what position you see them playing?
Fulham
Andy Johnson will score goals again. 7 goals in 31 appearances last year. Prolific.
Sunderland
On Darren Bent: The more you play him, the more goals he'll score. Sounds reasonable.
Wolves
Promoted teams-it's all about winning games. Indeed.
Arsenal
Arsenal miss the likes of.........even Ray Parlour
Really? The Romford Pele? I note that all the players that Lawro mentioned were English.
Birmingham
I know nothing about Benitez. Isn't that your job? You're nearly worse than John Giles in that respect.
Chelsea
2 players short And who might they be? Any idea what position you see them playing?
Fulham
Andy Johnson will score goals again. 7 goals in 31 appearances last year. Prolific.
Sunderland
On Darren Bent: The more you play him, the more goals he'll score. Sounds reasonable.
Wolves
Promoted teams-it's all about winning games. Indeed.
Thursday 6 August 2009
A Tale of Two Cities
Tonight in New York, the Boston Red Sox meet the New York Yankees in the ninth game of eighteen scheduled for this season. As it stands, Boston leads the season series 8-0, yet find themselves two and a half games behind New York in the American League East standings. This series of games may or may not have much bearing on the rest of the season, but it comes at an interesting time.
The biggest news of recent weeks was the disclosure (in the New York Times) that beloved Boston slugger David 'Big Papi' Ortiz tested positive for PEDs back in 2003 (of course former Sox hero Manny Ramirez was also on the infamous list, but that didn't really tell us anything we didn't already know). The Yankee faithful haven't really had 'good' reason to boo Boston players since Pedro 'Daddy' Martinez left town, but you can be sure that Papi will be made feel welcome in the Bronx tonight. Not that it should affect his 'form' much-Ortiz started the season horribly, finally started to hit, but has not looked too good since the revelations about 2003 surfaced (his home run in Baltimore as the story was breaking aside). Somewhat overshadowed by all of this has been the acquisition of Victor Martinez from Cleveland at the July 31 trade deadline. He's made a nice start to his Boston career-and his presence in the line-up for this series is vital, given the form of Ortiz, and the fact that the (slumping) Jason Bay will be absent for at least 2 of the games.
Aside from the patchy hitting, the state of Boston's pitching is also cause for concern at the moment. At the start of the season, the Red Sox thought they had 6 good starters-they now have around two-and-a-half. Recent efforts to acquire the likes of Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay and Felix Hernandez suggest that the Sox brains trust is worried-all of these guys are staff aces, not number 4/5 guys to fill out your rotation-perhaps they are writing off Dicey-K's season (and Sox career?), or know more about Tim Wakefield's health than the media. The Red Sox bullpen looked lights out, but now Justin Masterson is gone (and he had struggled mightily against lefties), there have been some meltdowns (a recent 10 run lead given back to the Orioles; Daniel Bard's wild inning in Tampa), and, even though his record doesn't show it, Jonathan Papelbon is often making the 9th inning mighty interesting.
Meanwhile, the Yankees pitching, Sergio Mitre aside (who misses his turn in this series) has looked pretty good. AJ Burnett was shelled last time out in Chicago, but has been excellent at Yankee Stadium. His Friday night duel with former Marlins team-mate Beckett is the match up of the series. The Yankees will hope to get strong outings from all their starters-their bullpen is still not great (until you get to their closer, who has had his issues with Boston in recent times), and, and the money invested in Burnett and CC Sabathia was undoubtedly offered with games against the Red Sox in mind. Add the pitching performance to a line-up that is begun to hit form, and things are certainly looking up for the men in pinstripes. While they don't need to win this series, you get the feeling that they expect to-if they don't start winning against the Red Sox sooner or later, you wouldn't feel too comfortable about their odds of doing so in a play-off series!
My call-bad and all as things are, the Sox should be able to split this 4 game series-assuming they are able to give Beckett and Lester enough run support (and assuming said pitchers are at the top of their game, which has been the case for Beckett lately, Lester, not so much). Anything they get from Smoltz and Buchholz is a bonus to be honest-the most I could ask to these guys is that they both make it through 6+ innings and save the bullpen. The long ball could be key-the new Yankee Stadium has given up more home runs than any other park this season (161 so far)-tonight would be a good night for Boston bats to come alive.
The biggest news of recent weeks was the disclosure (in the New York Times) that beloved Boston slugger David 'Big Papi' Ortiz tested positive for PEDs back in 2003 (of course former Sox hero Manny Ramirez was also on the infamous list, but that didn't really tell us anything we didn't already know). The Yankee faithful haven't really had 'good' reason to boo Boston players since Pedro 'Daddy' Martinez left town, but you can be sure that Papi will be made feel welcome in the Bronx tonight. Not that it should affect his 'form' much-Ortiz started the season horribly, finally started to hit, but has not looked too good since the revelations about 2003 surfaced (his home run in Baltimore as the story was breaking aside). Somewhat overshadowed by all of this has been the acquisition of Victor Martinez from Cleveland at the July 31 trade deadline. He's made a nice start to his Boston career-and his presence in the line-up for this series is vital, given the form of Ortiz, and the fact that the (slumping) Jason Bay will be absent for at least 2 of the games.
Aside from the patchy hitting, the state of Boston's pitching is also cause for concern at the moment. At the start of the season, the Red Sox thought they had 6 good starters-they now have around two-and-a-half. Recent efforts to acquire the likes of Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay and Felix Hernandez suggest that the Sox brains trust is worried-all of these guys are staff aces, not number 4/5 guys to fill out your rotation-perhaps they are writing off Dicey-K's season (and Sox career?), or know more about Tim Wakefield's health than the media. The Red Sox bullpen looked lights out, but now Justin Masterson is gone (and he had struggled mightily against lefties), there have been some meltdowns (a recent 10 run lead given back to the Orioles; Daniel Bard's wild inning in Tampa), and, even though his record doesn't show it, Jonathan Papelbon is often making the 9th inning mighty interesting.
Meanwhile, the Yankees pitching, Sergio Mitre aside (who misses his turn in this series) has looked pretty good. AJ Burnett was shelled last time out in Chicago, but has been excellent at Yankee Stadium. His Friday night duel with former Marlins team-mate Beckett is the match up of the series. The Yankees will hope to get strong outings from all their starters-their bullpen is still not great (until you get to their closer, who has had his issues with Boston in recent times), and, and the money invested in Burnett and CC Sabathia was undoubtedly offered with games against the Red Sox in mind. Add the pitching performance to a line-up that is begun to hit form, and things are certainly looking up for the men in pinstripes. While they don't need to win this series, you get the feeling that they expect to-if they don't start winning against the Red Sox sooner or later, you wouldn't feel too comfortable about their odds of doing so in a play-off series!
My call-bad and all as things are, the Sox should be able to split this 4 game series-assuming they are able to give Beckett and Lester enough run support (and assuming said pitchers are at the top of their game, which has been the case for Beckett lately, Lester, not so much). Anything they get from Smoltz and Buchholz is a bonus to be honest-the most I could ask to these guys is that they both make it through 6+ innings and save the bullpen. The long ball could be key-the new Yankee Stadium has given up more home runs than any other park this season (161 so far)-tonight would be a good night for Boston bats to come alive.
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