Tag Archives: Chelsea

WHERE IS FOOTBALL GOING?

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There was time when shear brilliance of Pele, Maradona, Best, Beckenbauer, Maldini, Zidane used to overshadow their darker side. Which was actually needed to bring football at a stage where it is now or it can be said their class and talent brought football to the world map. No I am not trying to say that there was no match fixing, racism or other pull back factors at that time but what I am trying to say it was not spread to such an extent that football was going down the drain. Recent incidents in football world have actually made me feel ‘Where exactly is football going?’

RACISM:

Hey!! No offence. So we good here?

On 15th October 2011 during a match the biggies of English Premier League Manchester United and Liverpool collided at Anfield. It was a high intensity match for obvious reasons but what stood out of the match wasn’t the spirit of football but an altercation between Luis Suárez and Patrice Evra. Why? The reason was simple after the match Suárez was accused of racially abusing Evra. And what was needed was actually done with FA opening up an inquiry into the incident which resulted in Suárez being found guilty and was handed an eight-match ban and a £40,000 fine. The £40,000 wasn’t much of a blow for a professional footballer but an eight-match ban was a big blow to King Kenny’s plan. But on top of all this it was a big blow to the beautiful game. Worst part is all Suárez had to say about all this is ‘in his home country the word that he used is not considered racially abusive’. For God sake Luis why is it so difficult for you to understand when on the field it’s not about country or which world you live in its about just one thing i.e. to simply play the beautiful game.

Yes, I am talking to you mate.

On 2 November 2011, Terry was placed under police investigation following an allegation of racist abuse made at Anton Ferdinand during a match versus Queens Park Rangers. Video footage circulated on the internet led to accusations that Terry called Ferdinand a “fucking black cunt”. The investigation is done by Metropolitan Police. For those who don’t know Terry is present Chelsea captain and Terry & Anton both are English. Why I wrote the last line is simple why a player would put his respect and captaincy on line just for a momentary pleasure of disrespecting the opposition or why would two fellow countrymen want to racially abuse each other. Things are really messy in football these days, its saddening& shocking to see the state of football in the world.

Repercussions:

We have no idea what we doing here. We are just holding the banner.

  1. Sepp says it so: Blatter after the Suarez-Evra racism row comes up with a comment that all race rows can be solved by a hand shake. I would like to ask Blatter if someone racially abuses your child will you go and shake hand with that guy and forget everything. Mr. FIFA President, world is fine with one Pope John Paul II you don’t need to act like one.
  2. T-shirt support: After the FA announced the suspension on Suárez the Liverpool squad decided to warm up before a match against Wigan wearing a t-shirt depicting an image of Suarez with his name in the front and No 7 on the back. Surely it was a good move to show the unity in the club and support for the to-be banned striker but what were they actually trying to prove. Were they trying to convey that using the word Negro should be allowed on the field or were they trying to advertise a new range of Suarez t-shirts?
  3. Bullet for my valentine: Before the FA cup tie between QPR and Chelsea, Anton Ferdinand received an envelope in the post with a bullet in it. If the players are in destruction mode on the field the fans are not far different off the field. There is no doubt that an avid fan should stand by his club for as long as possible but that doesn’t give the fan a right to disrespect the opposition club or their players.

Result:

Before the FA Cup tie between QPR-Chelsea & Liverpool-Manchester United, there were bets being made if Evra would shake hands with the ‘Kop’ or will Anton shake hand with Terry. So FA trying not to create any ruckus before the match declares there shall be no handshakes between the teams. But by doing so FA just took away the essence of football which for such a long time has brought the world together on that 105x75yard green patch.

 

TWISTED POLICIES:

No I am not going to talk about why Rooney was given only a three match ban after assaulting a Montenegro player while Suarez got a mammoth eight match ban. Reason being very simple, it is not only difficult but also pointless to compare two different cases and Racism should always be a bigger offence than an assault.

You guys are loosing so you are not allowed to touch the ball.

The 50 year old Napoli Manager was sent off in his side’s 2-0 victory against Villarreal in December 2011 for protesting against Spanish side’s time wasting by pushing the ‘Yellow Submarine’ striker Nilmar. So UEFA announced that the Partenopei boss has been handed a two match sideline ban which means he shall be a mere audience in the stands when his side faces Chelsea in this year’s UCL Round of 16. My case is not why he was banned but why are the rules and policies of our football governing bodies so twisted. I say that when Ronaldo during one of the El Clasico’s last year shoved Guardiola away when the Catalan Boss took the ball in his hand and then just flicked it away from Cristiano. So my question is why the Portuguese striker was not banned for that incident. Not that I wanted him to be banned but the issue which hits me is why there is such differences between different governing bodies rules and regulations. FIFA, FA, UEFA, RFEF all have different sets of rules and regulation which is creating an imbalance between different leagues. Only thing common among them is fight against Racism, why is there only one common platform among them?

No I am not talking to you.

MATCH FIXING:

Match fixing is something I have heard from my parents and the way it is growing I guess I would also be telling my children one day. Match fixing is like a virus we know is eating up different sports in the world from Cricket to Football to Hockey to Basketball but the governing bodies are not able to completely eradicate it from the face of the earth. And it is also a known fact wherever the amount of money is less match-fixing will grow be it from a player’ side or a coach’ side or from a referee’ side. Which shows money is slowly steadily but surely over shadowing the love for the sport.

Recent Virus Attacks:

Don't do what Doni did.

  1. 2011 Italian Football scandal: The 2011 Italian football scandal emerged on 1 June 2011 after a number of football-related figures were arrested, or made under official scrutiny, by Italian police for alleged match fixing. The list included well-known figures like former Italian international footballer Giuseppe Signori, as well as former Serie A players Mauro Bressan, Stefano Bettarini and Atalanta veteran striker Cristiano Doni. Almost 15 Italian clubs were handed fines, points deduction and some were also expelled from their league. Whereas 18 professional and former players were banned for 1-5 years from football activities.
  2. 2011 Turkish sports corruption scandal: This virus has almost destroyed the football and basketball leagues in Turkey with almost 52 bureaucrats, players and managers facing bans and suspensions from Professional Football Disciplinary Board.

Were there cheats hiding behind Fenerbahce's happiness?

Worst part is it is already 2012 and the scandals are still running, illegal betting is still on and players are still showing signs of being match fixers.

 

OTHER HURDLES:

  1. Diving of footballers to earn cards, fouls or may be the game too.
  2. No doubt referees are also human and they do make mistakes but till when the human errors would keep affecting the results of a match.
  3. War of words between the managers for example Guardiola-Mourinho the most famous ones.
  4. Loyalty towards the club from the players which made them the stars they are now. I don’t see another Maldini, Giggs, Scholes, Raul, Totti, Gerrard or even another Sir Ferguson in the near future.

My reason for writing this was not to disrespect any club or player or show my hatred towards them but every word I have written or researched hurts me with the question ‘Where is Football going?’. Will it be running on pure talent and class of players along with the genius tactics of managers or would money be the only fuel which shall run the beautiful game in the future or lie, cheat & steal would be the pillar on which football shall grow in the future. I feel many of the issues would be solved if the club, players, fans and media realises there can be no club, player, fan or a manager bigger than football.

Dont forget to comment and let me know your views.

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A DIFFERENT ANGLE 3: EPL GAMEWEEK 5

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Rangers Hunt The Wolves: Wolverhampton 0-3 QPR

For me this match was more of a fight between two clubs who are worthy enough to create any sought of upset in the EPL. Wolves have done it in the past season and with the kind of squad the Hoops have build during the transfer window they are very much the Upset-iers of this season. Wolves were playing at home to get over the 0-2 loss last weekend whereas the Rangers were on a high after a well deserved draw against their captain’s former club Newcastle United. And that is how both the clubs played the game and hence the Air Asia fliers came out as deserving winners at the Molineux. Goals included a scrappy but an ice breaking goal by Barton, a long range screamer by Faurlin and late night show by DJ Campbell. But for me the man to watch out is the man involved in all of the three goals former Chelsea and Man City man Shawn Wright-Phillips. And as for Wolves McCarthy needs to go back to the drawing board as the Wanderers don’t want to wander in the relegation lanes again.

McCarty – “I didn’t see it coming. If I had, I would have done something about it.”

Warnock – “It was probably as complete a performance as you are going to get away from home.”

 

And The Swans Mesmerise At The Liberty Stadium:

It took them 374 minutes after coming into top flight English football to score their first goal and who better to do that than their very own talisman Sinclair. After a disappointing 0-1 loss at home last weekend against Arsenal everyone thinking it to be a one sided affair with Shane Long or Odemwingie creating havoc. But for everyone to know Swansea city played as if they have been in the EPL forever and it is said when you play as a unit results follow you and that’s what happened. OH yeah before I forget Swansea thrashed West Bromwich Albion 3-0 at the Liberty. This match did leave a dent on the management at Chelsea and forcing them to think why did they ever let Sinclair leave who provided an assist and also scored one.

Hodgson – “”I thought we played poorly and Swansea played very well and when you get that combination it is going to be difficult to get a result.”

 

Toffees Too Bitter For Lactics: Everton 3-1 Wigan

As one of my friend said it on twitter said last season Everton at this time were hovering in the relegation zone with off the team in the hospital so they should be happy with their present situation. For me Moyes is one of the most interesting mangers in England and can be world-class if Everton ever in their club lifetime are able to gather enough transfer kitty for Moyes to dig into. Surprisingly Wigan started on a positive note with Di Santo scoring from a deflection after he was given ample of space to roam around the box. But it was then time for Captain Jageilka to lead from the front when he equalised with a diving header after the ball was saved by Al-Habsi from Cahill’s towering header and then Phil had some amazing celebration style. Substitute Vellios and Drenthe scored late to secure Everton’s first home victory of the season.

Moyes – “All I was thinking about today was the three points. I think we deserved it but we can play better.”

Martinez – “You cannot be a soft touch at places like Goodison Park but if you are going to lose, this is the way to do it.”

 

Sweet Taste Of First Win: Bolton 1-2 Norwich City

This completed a treble as all the three newcomers to secure victories in one weekend. This was also Norwich first victory in the top flight in 2011-12 season since 1994 against Crystal Palace. Both the Canaries goals were bit scrappy which could have been saved if Bolton had not been clumsy in their defense but a goal is a goal till it gets you a win. Then came the moment just before the half time when Croatian striker Klasnic was needlessly sent off as Howard Webb saw a nod of head by Klasnic to be a head butt which actually made things worse for Bolton. Petrov did pull one back in the second half from the spot after Norwich made another record by giving a penalty in all of their first five matches. As it is said all is well that ends well, this should give some peace to Lambert but at the same time give Owen Coyle another sleepless night.

Coyle – “We’re all designated markers and we haven’t done well enough in that department.”

Lambert – “They seem to bounce back whether they draw or get beaten, and that is testament to the way they played today.”

 

Two words Cabaye & Given: Aston Villa 1-1 Newcastle United

Both Villains and Magpies were unbeaten in EPL till now which is a great feat to achieve so both the teams were not only playing for victory but to continue their unbeaten run. Villa broke the deadlock first with CB Coloccini not able to be physical enough against Agbanlohar who jumped to the opportunity to slot the ball between the legs of Krul into the net. That also marked the end of playing time for Villa because remaining first half and second half was all about Newcastle who gave no chance for Villa to make any moves. Which also resulted in Best scoring his third goal of the season, after that only two things happened Cabaye keep shooting at Villa goal and Given kept on coming up with extremely good saves to keep the Lions in the game. One of the most entertaining games not many goals but courage and competition on display. Pardew should be happy with this 1 away point but you can stop yourself from thinking Newcastle were good enough to get all three points only if it wasn’t Given between the posts.

McLeish – “We started in a blistering way. Then we had a couple of problems with [Stiliyan] Petrov and [Stephen] Warnock and we lost a bit of momentum with these injuries.”

Pardew – “We conceded a soft goal by our standards, but overall we defended well again today. Our performance was controlled and exuberant. We looked a good team today.”

 

Misery Continues: Blackburn 4-3 Arsenal

Yes you read it right at Ewood Park that’s what the score was at the end of 90 minutes so all the last weekend victory happiness over the Stokes turned into blissful woes for the Gooners. But this time the responsible factor for the downfall was not the strikers not the keeper not the midfielders clear and simple not up to the mark defense. When you give a lot of space to a striker, when you let go of your lead twice in the match and if that’s not it you score 5 goals in the match but sadly two in your own goal that’s the recipe for disaster. For me Yakubu had also gone to UAE like many have done this transfer season but he comes from nowhere to score a brace which completed the downfall for Gunners. As I have said before and I say it again Blackburn were not that good but Arsenal were just horrible. Kean has sent a thank you card to Song and Koscielny for letting him keep his job for another week.

Kean – “I think we have got character in the side and have been unfortunate in the last few games.”

Wenger – “We had so many chances in the game and we scored two own goals so it is unbelievable to understand.”

 

Clash Of The Titans: Manchester United 3-1 Chelsea

This was the most anticipated matchup of Matchday 5 in the EPL and why shouldn’t it be when it involves The Red Devils and The Blues. It was also the clash of one of EPL’s oldest manager Sir Ferguson and the new boy coach of Chelsea Villas-Boas so in some way it was clash of old school coaching and modern day coaching tactics. But it was the old school thinking which overpowered all of Chelsea’s tactics with goals coming from Smalling, Nani & Rooney for the Devils and Fernando ‘El Nino’ Torres for the AVB Boyz. Few things I realised after the end of 90 minutes at Old Trafford were:

  1. Anything bad is happening to the Blues blame it on El Nino fin he missed a sitter in the second half but what about Ramires weak open goal shot in the first half and even if I forget that Torres had one of his most promising performance in a long time.
  2. Nani has actually opened his wings since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo and there is no stopping him, what a run to split Chelsea’s defense then perfectly finished with a screamer of a goal.
  3. Don’t you dare think keeping Rooney off the scoring sheet, surely a man on a mission.

Overall a very exciting encounter, with both team having ample of chances it had everything. Missed penalty, exciting plays, stunning goals, blooper of the weekend and yes finally welcome to AVB hope now you know what your mission is. For God sake guys get over ‘This is what 50million buys’ headlines.

Ferguson – “In the second half we should have finished them off but they kept at us. It was a fantastic football match.”

AVB – “It was a strange game, it was very competitive and the scoreline does not show the difference between the teams.”

 

This Was Bruce’s Sweet Victory: Sunderland 4-0 Stoke City

Sunderland bought almost 9-10 players during this past transfer window and they start their season with four losses in a row which led to Steve Bruce being surrounded by mass hysteria or in simple words a storm of allegations. But with this romping of Stoke City, Bruce has been given a sigh of relief and a new hope to the Black Cats faithful that things aren’t that bad. Goals included Bramble’s goal from set piece, a Jonathan Woodgate own goal (that adds to the misery of a player who could have been the greatest), Gardner’s deflection goal and a well taken free-kick by Larsson. In short Sunderland finally have their first victory in their kitty. Whereas Stoke were at their usual physical best but sometime you feel Pulis plays with the very same tactics every time which makes it easier for opponents in understanding the Potters game.

Bruce – “The job is never easy up here but this will help the mass hysteria calm down.”

Pulis – “We had chances blocked or cleared off the line but it was Sunderland’s day.”

 

At Last One Half Of Manchester Is Forced To Take A Breather: Fulham 2-2 Manchester City

The new look Citizens had scored 15 goals in the first four matches before coming to Craven Cottage to face Fulham who were in the relegation zone with 2 home draws and 2 away losses. So knowing this it seemed like it was going to be another easy outing for Mancini’s men and it seemed hugely possible with Aguero continuing his amazing start to life in EPL by scoring his seventh and eighth goal of the campaign & by doing so City had a two goals lead. But Fulham had other plans when they pulled back the two goals deficit in the second half with strikes from Bobby Zamora and Liverpool legend Danny Murphy. The way Fulham played in the second half it was like their first-half lethargy had vanished thanks to I guess words of Martin Jol and this also ends Blue Manchester’s perfect start to the season.

Jol – “It was a fantastic achievement to come back against them. I am not sure if they will give away leads like this in the future.”

Mancini – “This could be a lesson for us. Because when you dominate a game like we did today, and you score only two goals, it’s a problem.”

 

Spurs Shined Like Never Before: Tottenham 4-0 Liverpool

I would like to start this review by saying I don’t know what Redknapp say to the squad but the way Spurs played the whole 90 minutes that’s what you get to see when a team is enjoying playing the world’s most beautiful game. This match ended with only 20 players on the field thanks to bad temperament play by Liverpool players. I don’t actually agree to all the red cards given by Lee Probert but all these cards were due to the frustration building in the Kops sole reason being ‘magical plays of White Hart Laners’. Modric 20-yards strike was just mesmerizing who says it would take him time to settle and that is what you get when you keep a player in place of increasing your balance by 40M. Adebayor played as a perfect loan signing scoring just perfect brace and Defoe adding one. Dalglish has a lot of thinking to do specially with Skirtel & Adams suspended and Agger injured whereas Mr. Redknapp can have a good sleep if his team keeps playing the same way throughout the season. I forgot to add Van der Vaart was not even playing, imagine this Spur’s side with VDV returning to full fitness.

Redknapp – “I thought we played some fantastic football. We absolutely dominated.”

Dalglish – “We can look at ourselves and the start we had in the game because that dictated what was going to happen to us.”

CHECKING OUT THE SELF DESTRUCT BUTTONS OF THE BIGGEST CLUBS OF LA LIGA & EPL

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La Liga

Real Madrid

Neymar is coming or may be Neymar is not coming these were the only rumours Blancos were linked to during the just concluded transfer window. And I guess this had to happen as it’s not a secret that Bernabeu needed a third striker and it’s also a known fact Mourinho believes in depth for all position and attacking option is the only position where Madrid might lack. Madrid had Adebayor last season when Higuain got injured where as Adebayor would be playing at White Hart Lane this season. Other option that Madrid seemed to have chosen is to give its Castillas a chance to play in first team which would now give young strikers like Mateos and Joselu an opportunity to gain invaluable experience and for me this is a very positive step taken by Real Madrid. But keeping in mind both Mateos and Joselu both are youngsters with bright future but a bag full of inexperience on their back so it would be interesting to see how JMo handles the young guns hope they grow as Raul did and not how Portillo did. I know many Madridista must be pulling their hair seeing how former La Fabrica products Soldado and Negredo are performing in full throttle for Valencia and Sevilla while Madrid is still lacking a 3rd striker but we got to understand we had our chances to keep both the strikers but we lacked the ability to trust our youth. All this seems to be changing with Mourinho giving ample amount of time to the youth teamers to gain the well needed experience and at the end I do feel the return of real Galactico policy.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD PLEASE KEEP BENZEMA AND HIGUAIN FIT THROUGHOUT THE SEASON THANK YOU.

 

Barcelona

By the end of last season we saw Busquets, Mascherano, Fontas and even ever injured Gabi Milito coming on as centre-backs and Pique being the only genuine and regular Centre-back to be fit in the side. And if I would have been in the managerial board of Barcelona my biggest target would have been to buy a good CB and not to satisfy my ego to bring back La Masia great Fabregas back to Nou Camp. And unfortunately the words of a writer is confined to either an A4 size sheet or a 17” laptop screen so the biggies that Barcelona actually bought are Alexis Sanchez and Cesc Fabregas why because they have BarcaDNA. It’s astonishing to actually know that the defending La Liga and Champions League champions have the smallest squad in whole of Europe. No doubt Rosell is one of the best businessman I would ever see in my life, come on guys you got to agree who gets a player of Fabregas’s calibre and age for a mere 29 million but I am sorry to say Mr. Rosell this small squad strength might take away the La Liga and UCL title away from you.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD PLEASE LISTEN TO MADRID LATER WE NEED IT MORE KEEP ALL OUR PLAYERS FIT CANT AFFORD INJURY.

 

English Premier League

Arsenal

Problems, failure, disappointment and wrong paths have been the only words that has been linked to the wonderful Gunners since the ending phase of last season when from being at the top of EPL they ended the season at 4th position and all this within 3 weekends. Then they lost Nasri and Fabregas in the transfer window and hence midfield looked like unfertilized land and if this wasn’t enough they were ravaged and thrown aside by Manchester United at Old Trafford when they lost 8-2 to the Devils. And all the fingers in the world were pointing at the Magician Arsene Wenger where the Gooners were still chanting the words “In Arsene We Trust”. Then came the last 48 hours of transfer window when Wenger decided to ignore his NO BUYING policy to bring 5 world class players to the Emirates Stadium. Which included Brazilian LB Andre Santos, German CB Mertesacker, Korean Captain Park Chu-Young, new Spanish No.8 Arteta and Israeil international Benayoun. But I don’t think the problems have ended for Arsenal now is the time for Wenger to weave his magic again and bring the best 11 on the field & silence the club that Arsenal is a Football Club and not a Football University. For me the biggest weapon Arsenal has is to utilize the unmovable support of the Gooners which was evident even after the 8-2 loss when the fans stayed back for more than 20 minutes to make their support for the Gunners heard by the whole world.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD IN ARSENE WE TRUST NOW CAN YOU PLEASE ASK AW TO RETURN THE FAVOR .

Manchester United

Yes the Red Devils are officially the biggest club in England after they won their 19th EPL title last season, yes they reached the UCL finals last season, yes they have one of the most balances squad in Europe, yes they have one of the best managers in the world Sir Alex Ferguson and hell yes they defeated one of their biggest rivals 8-2. So you guys must be thinking where is the problem, I’ll tell you where it is when you have so much positivity around you it’s really difficult to keep yourself on ground which is the first step for any downfall. Manchester united have to realise EPL is no more a four horse race it’s more of a 6-7 horse race specially with the emergence of their city rivals Manchester City if they even leave one stone unturned this season they should kiss good bye to their title. One thing which keeps troubling me which is surely not a problem of near future but I am sure something Red Devils must be worried about is what after Ferguson will they ever be able to find a perfect replacement for the Scot who knows the club inside out and who literally built the club from ashes. Yeah last point is just a food for thought.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD PLEASE KEEP S GROUNDED EVEN IF SCORE 10 THE NEXT TIME AND THANK YOU FOR TEACHING ROONEY THE TRICKS OF FK.

 

Chelsea

When you run against time you tend to falter but those who absorb the pressure rise with flying colours. This is something Chelsea needs to learn this, because when you have an owner who is insanely restless like Abramovich wholiterally thrives or breathes on silverwares can surely put a lot of pressure. Chelsea’s previous manage Ancelotti was asked to leave the club at the end of last season which was a shocker especially after he won three silverware in his two year stint at Stamford Bridge. This shows time is always against all Chelsea manager and hence that is the first thing Villas Boas has to learn to cater for, the Blues have some class players have a lot of money and they are a formidable side in England  but nothing would be worth it if AVB doesn’t learnt to keep Roman silent and peaceful.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD PLEASE ADD THE WORD PATIENCE IN ABRAMOVICH’S DICTIONARY.

 

Liverpool

They have money, they have a Kopite Legend as their coach and on top of it all they have captain charismatic Stevie G, it seems like a perfect combination of success but when you are in a slump you need more than all this. Liverpool after a long time won’t be tasting any Champions League this season which is a big blow in itself but this is just a small part of a big task in hand for King Kenny. The lack of confidence and belief are their biggest enemies, Dalglish has to bring Liverpool back as a unit. The unit which used to be full of confidence and so full of belief that a first half 3 goal deficit against Milan in 2005 UCL final was a beatable task for them. More than Manchester United’s EPL win and their 6th place finish, something that must have pinched The Kop more is that they are no more the best club in England with Red Devils EPL tally reaching 19. So for me Anfield’s biggest enemy is their own achievements of the past which had made them a force to reckon on the European stage.

PRAYING FOR: DEAR GOD PLEASE TAKE US OUT OF THE SLUMPS ITS DARK THIS SIDE.