Borussia Dortmund's German International defender Christoph Metzelder is all set to join Real Madrid when the transfer window opens. Dortmund coach has publicly said that he is looking for a replacement....
From what i have seen of Metzelder in the World Cup, he definitely looks like a good Center Back.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Two Finals to go....
Santiago Bernabeu has a capacity of 80,000 and 83,000 fans jammed in to watch Real Madrid play Deportivo. Sergio Ramos put Madrid in front and Madrid went into the break up 1-0. The whole problem that i have seen in the past few games for Madrid is that they go patches in the game without scoring. Especially when you are up 1-0 at home it is always important to kill off the game with the second goal. As an evident risk against the run of play Deportivo equalised through Capdevilla. Madrid pushed forward and in the next move or so Raul headed them into a lead. Again it was Beckham the creator. Deportivo has done the mistake of not closing down on Beckham and letting him cross in a lot of balls into their quarter. I agree with Capello this seems to be the best Beckham has played in 2 years. No wonder he has been picked back into the England team. Madrid did finish off the game through Van the Man who scored his 22nd in the league. His control and finishing in the front of goal is amazing. Great work from Raul inside the Deportivo box finally ended up with Ruud having the ball at his feet with a simple tap in. The game got a bit scrappy with some tackles flying in. First it was Roberto Carlos who was fouled in the Madrid quarter and for a period of time it looked as though he would not be able to continue because of a broken elbow. Again Carlos the recipient of a tough foul and i have almost never seen this guy lose his cool and he did by holding on to the shirt of a Deportivo player and waving his finger. A flying Carlos was brought down again by Coloccini. Again a raised boot against him almost got to a brawl and Capello replaced him right away with Cicinho. In the end 72 Points it is.
Barcelona faced Getafe the same team who humiliated them couple of weeks back by eliminating them from the Spanish cup with a resounding 4-0 thrashing... But things did not start out well as Barca scored quickly through some excellent unselfish play from Eto for an easy finish for Ronaldinho. But things got ugly when Ronaldinho was showed a straight Red for reacting to a tackle or rather numerous tackles. To be fair to Ronaldinho people were just hacking him down. With 10 men and an entire second half to play Barca came out angered by the incident and controlled the game and had numerous chances to score. But the game finally ended with a 1-0 scoreline. They end up at 72 points as well.
Valencia meanwhile lost the chance to keep the pressure on the top by squandering a lead to Villareal at the Mestia and that left all focus on the Sevilla game.
I should say i am impressed with this team for not giving up at any point and their tireless effort in all competitions. Some of their players such as Adriano, Dani Alves and Kanoute come in every day and play their hearts out. They played Zaragosa who have a strong attacking side to their game, but Sevilla controlled the game and ran out easy winners in the end 3-1 was the score. With their Brazilian striker Fabiano in some splendid form. The Zaragosa goal was a freakish goal when a corner flew straight into Sevilla Goal. Sevilla are still in the hunt with just 2 games left and 2 points adrift the leaders.
Who will have the last laugh. If Madrid celebrate their league success 2 weeks from now then i am planning to get a Tattoo on my arm, that is how excited i am.....
Barcelona faced Getafe the same team who humiliated them couple of weeks back by eliminating them from the Spanish cup with a resounding 4-0 thrashing... But things did not start out well as Barca scored quickly through some excellent unselfish play from Eto for an easy finish for Ronaldinho. But things got ugly when Ronaldinho was showed a straight Red for reacting to a tackle or rather numerous tackles. To be fair to Ronaldinho people were just hacking him down. With 10 men and an entire second half to play Barca came out angered by the incident and controlled the game and had numerous chances to score. But the game finally ended with a 1-0 scoreline. They end up at 72 points as well.
Valencia meanwhile lost the chance to keep the pressure on the top by squandering a lead to Villareal at the Mestia and that left all focus on the Sevilla game.
I should say i am impressed with this team for not giving up at any point and their tireless effort in all competitions. Some of their players such as Adriano, Dani Alves and Kanoute come in every day and play their hearts out. They played Zaragosa who have a strong attacking side to their game, but Sevilla controlled the game and ran out easy winners in the end 3-1 was the score. With their Brazilian striker Fabiano in some splendid form. The Zaragosa goal was a freakish goal when a corner flew straight into Sevilla Goal. Sevilla are still in the hunt with just 2 games left and 2 points adrift the leaders.
Who will have the last laugh. If Madrid celebrate their league success 2 weeks from now then i am planning to get a Tattoo on my arm, that is how excited i am.....
Thursday, May 24, 2007
UEFA Champions League Final
So its all over the 2003 repeat of the Final between AC Milan and Liverpool ended with some justice and revenge if you want to call it that way.. as Milan won this encounter.
As the game suggested from the beginning Milan was in no mood to let what happened last time these two teams played to happen again. Milan were 3-0 up in 2003 when 15 mins of flurry from Liverpool brought the game back in their plate and eventually won on penalties....
Milan stuck to their usual formation with Kaka supporting Inzaghi the lone striker. Gattuso and Ambrosini and Pirlo to grind in the midfield with Seedorf in a floating role. 37 year old Milan captain Maldini played the entire game and why cant he. With Nesta partnering you in defence even i would look like a hero.
Liverpool though may have valid reasoning to have 2 defensive midfielders in the form of Mascherano and Alonso, their lack of ability to score or even play in the final quarter in the Milan side was the difference between the two teams in the end...
Liverpool controlled the game for the entire first half and an unfortunate deflected goal changed the tide of the game. Milan left it late but did get the second goal, the second for Inzaghi from a delightful through ball from Kaka. Inzaghi at the dusk of his career is still showing the signs of how good a finisher he is. But i should say the number of times he gets himself into an offside position is frustrating.
Liverpool left it late to bring in Crouch and Kewell and i still have not been able ti figure out the reason why. Kyut is not a good lone striker and Zenden was struggling with an ankle injury.
But though we can find all these points what Benitez for sure also would have seen, the difference was for Liverpool their Captain Fantastic was no where to be found. If you look at the collective skill and the problems that Milan have gone through this year it is something of a heroic deed!!!
As the game suggested from the beginning Milan was in no mood to let what happened last time these two teams played to happen again. Milan were 3-0 up in 2003 when 15 mins of flurry from Liverpool brought the game back in their plate and eventually won on penalties....
Milan stuck to their usual formation with Kaka supporting Inzaghi the lone striker. Gattuso and Ambrosini and Pirlo to grind in the midfield with Seedorf in a floating role. 37 year old Milan captain Maldini played the entire game and why cant he. With Nesta partnering you in defence even i would look like a hero.
Liverpool though may have valid reasoning to have 2 defensive midfielders in the form of Mascherano and Alonso, their lack of ability to score or even play in the final quarter in the Milan side was the difference between the two teams in the end...
Liverpool controlled the game for the entire first half and an unfortunate deflected goal changed the tide of the game. Milan left it late but did get the second goal, the second for Inzaghi from a delightful through ball from Kaka. Inzaghi at the dusk of his career is still showing the signs of how good a finisher he is. But i should say the number of times he gets himself into an offside position is frustrating.
Liverpool left it late to bring in Crouch and Kewell and i still have not been able ti figure out the reason why. Kyut is not a good lone striker and Zenden was struggling with an ankle injury.
But though we can find all these points what Benitez for sure also would have seen, the difference was for Liverpool their Captain Fantastic was no where to be found. If you look at the collective skill and the problems that Milan have gone through this year it is something of a heroic deed!!!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
It is a nail biting finish
FA cup final in England and cracking games in Spain were all on this weekend. I got up in the morning on Saturday to see the FA cup final and there it was-$24.95 to see the game and i said to hell with FA cup final. Chelsea has at least something to smile about this season and Man U could not do the double....
In Spain it was an amazing weekend. Sevilla even after their success mid week in UEFA Cup, turned in with a good performance to earn 3 points, and with Valencia also earning three points it was so really important for Barca and Real Madrid to win and to keep the battle going with these few games left.
Real Madrid had a big psychological block to beat Recreativo who beat them 3-0 at the Bernabeu, but there were no signs of it as Madrid came out looking to score with Beckham crossing in to Robinho who just had to direct a header for a 10th minute lead. They went into half time 1-0. Recreativo seems to have their attacking organized as they came all cylinders blazing ans was causing constant trouble to the Madrid Center backs especially to Cannavaro who needed constant help from Torres and Ramos to save face. Against the run of play Robinho was brought down by the Keeper and Van the Man finished off the penalty to cap his 30th goal in all competitions and 22nd in the league. Just as i was thinking what is going on not able to understand the Spanish commentary on GOL TV which i recently added at 87 mins Recreativo had equalized 2-2. Meanwhile Capello had added Guti for Robinho and added Higuain for Raul. In a counter Higuain made the run towards Recreativo goal with Beckham and Gago in company and seemingly no where to go against 4 defenders Gago found Roberto Carlos who came screaming in 80 meters to score the third goal in the 92 minute and earn the crucial 3 points. Where there was some consolation in how Madrid fought but the way they let the 2-0 advantage slip was criminal. Diarra was poor in the game, though he recovered balls well, his passing was less than impressive.
Then i was immediately hooked on to see how Barca are going to do. For 40 mins Athletico held fort and also tested the old defence of Barca. But then everything crumbled. When you have Eto and Messi in attack and Ronaldinho, Deco to support them it was due to happen. The goals that Barca scored though had questions on Athletico's keeper was like training session goals. The build ups and the one-two between the players were all made so easy for them. Messi scored two, Ronaldinho scored, Eto, Zambrotta and Iniesta the substitute capped off a 6-0 destruction of Athletico.
With 3 games left no one can slip up. Its almost like knockout, the first team who loses falls out of running for the title.....
Who is your money on now???
In Spain it was an amazing weekend. Sevilla even after their success mid week in UEFA Cup, turned in with a good performance to earn 3 points, and with Valencia also earning three points it was so really important for Barca and Real Madrid to win and to keep the battle going with these few games left.
Real Madrid had a big psychological block to beat Recreativo who beat them 3-0 at the Bernabeu, but there were no signs of it as Madrid came out looking to score with Beckham crossing in to Robinho who just had to direct a header for a 10th minute lead. They went into half time 1-0. Recreativo seems to have their attacking organized as they came all cylinders blazing ans was causing constant trouble to the Madrid Center backs especially to Cannavaro who needed constant help from Torres and Ramos to save face. Against the run of play Robinho was brought down by the Keeper and Van the Man finished off the penalty to cap his 30th goal in all competitions and 22nd in the league. Just as i was thinking what is going on not able to understand the Spanish commentary on GOL TV which i recently added at 87 mins Recreativo had equalized 2-2. Meanwhile Capello had added Guti for Robinho and added Higuain for Raul. In a counter Higuain made the run towards Recreativo goal with Beckham and Gago in company and seemingly no where to go against 4 defenders Gago found Roberto Carlos who came screaming in 80 meters to score the third goal in the 92 minute and earn the crucial 3 points. Where there was some consolation in how Madrid fought but the way they let the 2-0 advantage slip was criminal. Diarra was poor in the game, though he recovered balls well, his passing was less than impressive.
Then i was immediately hooked on to see how Barca are going to do. For 40 mins Athletico held fort and also tested the old defence of Barca. But then everything crumbled. When you have Eto and Messi in attack and Ronaldinho, Deco to support them it was due to happen. The goals that Barca scored though had questions on Athletico's keeper was like training session goals. The build ups and the one-two between the players were all made so easy for them. Messi scored two, Ronaldinho scored, Eto, Zambrotta and Iniesta the substitute capped off a 6-0 destruction of Athletico.
With 3 games left no one can slip up. Its almost like knockout, the first team who loses falls out of running for the title.....
Who is your money on now???
Friday, May 18, 2007
The New Names this year!!
Football is a game where you have new names, new players and new starts born every year and the players who re invent themselves. Who do you think was the find of this year?
In order to bring my co authors into writing something here, i have been forced to start such topics.
In England there were some new names. From a few games i have seen i have been impressed with these players:
C.Roanldo (Man Utd)- Maybe the best player around
D.Berbatov (Tot)
C.Tevez (West Ham)
Emmanuel Pogatetz (Middlesbrough)
Jonathan Woodgate ("")
Michael Dawson (Tottenham)
D.Bent (Charlton)
N.Hunt (Portsmouth)
Spain:
Dani Alves (Sevilla)
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
F.Kanoute (Sevilla)
W.Pandiani (Espanyol)
V.Nistelrooy (Real Madrid) with over 21 goals should also be there.
I know i may have missed out many more and also players from Italy....
In order to bring my co authors into writing something here, i have been forced to start such topics.
In England there were some new names. From a few games i have seen i have been impressed with these players:
C.Roanldo (Man Utd)- Maybe the best player around
D.Berbatov (Tot)
C.Tevez (West Ham)
Emmanuel Pogatetz (Middlesbrough)
Jonathan Woodgate ("")
Michael Dawson (Tottenham)
D.Bent (Charlton)
N.Hunt (Portsmouth)
Spain:
Dani Alves (Sevilla)
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
F.Kanoute (Sevilla)
W.Pandiani (Espanyol)
V.Nistelrooy (Real Madrid) with over 21 goals should also be there.
I know i may have missed out many more and also players from Italy....
Carlos Tevez to Madrid?
Carlos Tevez is definitely moving on and his target is joining a European Giant. Reports in Spain are suggesting talks of Real already having talks with the company that owns him.
Is Madrid a good choice for him???
Is Madrid a good choice for him???
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Best league in Europe
My thoughts on the best league in Europe. Well it is a difficult choice though it seems easy because the fans of each league thinks they are the best in Europe. Shortlisting 4 of the better leagues:
English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, Italian Seri A, German Bundesliga...
I had mentioned in one of my previous blogs about the quality of teams from top to bottom. This is something which was the bottom line in my judgement.
Italian Seri A is out of running as it was a one horse race with just Inter basically running out champions with no competition. Though there were some good performances from Roma, and AC Milan who were docked points to qualify for Champions League next season and also reaching the final this season does not in my book qualify Seri A as up there. Also the whole negativity of teams playing still is a major factor.
German Bundesliga this year saw some major shift in power from the munichs and leverkusens to Werder Bremen. But Bundesliga unfortunately does not possess the depth in quality teams and players.
It is a close call between the Premiership & La Liga. I should say in a few years this has been a very competitive Premiership with battles at the top between Man U and Chelsea and in the middle for the UEFA Cup qualification and then the relegation battle in the bottom. But unfortunately there is no apparent challengers for the top 4 positions. Arsenal & Liverpool after playing some depressing football have still managed to finish 3 & 4. The difference in points is testimonial to the disparity between even the top 4. There is a difference of more than 15 points between Chelsea and Arsenal.
And this leaves me to pick La Liga as the most competitive league. Barcelona were not let off the hook as run away league leaders as in the past two years. Though they topped the league for the most part they were closely followed by Real Madrid, Sevilla and Valencia. The fact that teams have competed hard is evident from the points table. After 35 rounds of football still the top 4 are in 60s in points. Madrid now leading through better head to head record. Sevilla who won the UEFA cup yesterday and is playing the final of the Spanish cup next week still following them 2 points adrift and Valencia though have had a mediocre season is up there as well. Special mention to teams like Barcelona who with Eto injured for the most part of the season have battled as compared to Arsenal without Henry. Real Madrid with the most away wins in their history in some 70 years or so have brought the aspect of defense back. Sevilla for a team active in all the competitions playing in have not faltered in the league as well. This is for the toppers. Now for the teams in the middle who qualify for UEFA Cup, you can see the result from the final which was an all Spanish affair.
English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, Italian Seri A, German Bundesliga...
I had mentioned in one of my previous blogs about the quality of teams from top to bottom. This is something which was the bottom line in my judgement.
Italian Seri A is out of running as it was a one horse race with just Inter basically running out champions with no competition. Though there were some good performances from Roma, and AC Milan who were docked points to qualify for Champions League next season and also reaching the final this season does not in my book qualify Seri A as up there. Also the whole negativity of teams playing still is a major factor.
German Bundesliga this year saw some major shift in power from the munichs and leverkusens to Werder Bremen. But Bundesliga unfortunately does not possess the depth in quality teams and players.
It is a close call between the Premiership & La Liga. I should say in a few years this has been a very competitive Premiership with battles at the top between Man U and Chelsea and in the middle for the UEFA Cup qualification and then the relegation battle in the bottom. But unfortunately there is no apparent challengers for the top 4 positions. Arsenal & Liverpool after playing some depressing football have still managed to finish 3 & 4. The difference in points is testimonial to the disparity between even the top 4. There is a difference of more than 15 points between Chelsea and Arsenal.
And this leaves me to pick La Liga as the most competitive league. Barcelona were not let off the hook as run away league leaders as in the past two years. Though they topped the league for the most part they were closely followed by Real Madrid, Sevilla and Valencia. The fact that teams have competed hard is evident from the points table. After 35 rounds of football still the top 4 are in 60s in points. Madrid now leading through better head to head record. Sevilla who won the UEFA cup yesterday and is playing the final of the Spanish cup next week still following them 2 points adrift and Valencia though have had a mediocre season is up there as well. Special mention to teams like Barcelona who with Eto injured for the most part of the season have battled as compared to Arsenal without Henry. Real Madrid with the most away wins in their history in some 70 years or so have brought the aspect of defense back. Sevilla for a team active in all the competitions playing in have not faltered in the league as well. This is for the toppers. Now for the teams in the middle who qualify for UEFA Cup, you can see the result from the final which was an all Spanish affair.
UEFA Cup Final
It was an all Spanish affair with Sevilla against Espanyol in the final of the UEFA Cup. It always so happens that when a team is chasing a record they would end up achieving it. Sevilla did it in Penalty shootouts, though a lottery as per me they deserved to win with the attractive game they played.
Sevilla are the only second club after Real Madrid in 1985/86 to win back to back UEFA cups. They are still in the hunt in the Spanish league, Kings cup making them the only team that is still playing for three trophies. Another piece of history in the making.
The game was 1-1 in normal time. An excellent goal from Adriano with the namesake of the Brazilian forward scoring a real beauty. A long throw from keeper Palop after collecting a corner, found Adriano, his pace and persistence got him one-one with the keeper and he made no mistake with his weaker right foot.
Brazil for some reason come up with a lot of players who are supposed to be defenders but are so attack minded and slack in defending. Sevilla has Adriano who was a LB when he played in Brazil and is now a Left Attacking Midfielder. Dani Alves who some believe is the best RB in the world is very similar to Cicinho in Real Madrid where both these players are so focused on attacking.
Moises from Espanyol made two stupid tackles and found himself out of the game. Espanyol had this at a wrong time as they were picking up the game. In extra time Kanoute scored-it had to be him and out of no where Espanyol equalized through their Brazilian fire power Juantos.
In the penalty shoot out tired legs or nerves made Andres Palop the keeper of Sevilla a hero as he just let one in and saved 3.
Sevilla made the most of out of maybe the last UEFA Cup that they would be playing at least for the next year as they are sure to qualify for Champions league. Transition from the UEFA Cup to the Champions League shows that as a club they have moved to the next level in quality. They have created/grown some talent in Sevilla and have made 50M in sale of these. Baptista, Sergio Ramos and Reyes all of whom are in some way or the other related to Real Madrid and except for Ramos have failed to make an impression there. So in short Real Madrid can be said to have done a great favor to Sevilla by making them an economically stable club and in turn making them successful!!!
Sevilla are the only second club after Real Madrid in 1985/86 to win back to back UEFA cups. They are still in the hunt in the Spanish league, Kings cup making them the only team that is still playing for three trophies. Another piece of history in the making.
The game was 1-1 in normal time. An excellent goal from Adriano with the namesake of the Brazilian forward scoring a real beauty. A long throw from keeper Palop after collecting a corner, found Adriano, his pace and persistence got him one-one with the keeper and he made no mistake with his weaker right foot.
Brazil for some reason come up with a lot of players who are supposed to be defenders but are so attack minded and slack in defending. Sevilla has Adriano who was a LB when he played in Brazil and is now a Left Attacking Midfielder. Dani Alves who some believe is the best RB in the world is very similar to Cicinho in Real Madrid where both these players are so focused on attacking.
Moises from Espanyol made two stupid tackles and found himself out of the game. Espanyol had this at a wrong time as they were picking up the game. In extra time Kanoute scored-it had to be him and out of no where Espanyol equalized through their Brazilian fire power Juantos.
In the penalty shoot out tired legs or nerves made Andres Palop the keeper of Sevilla a hero as he just let one in and saved 3.
Sevilla made the most of out of maybe the last UEFA Cup that they would be playing at least for the next year as they are sure to qualify for Champions league. Transition from the UEFA Cup to the Champions League shows that as a club they have moved to the next level in quality. They have created/grown some talent in Sevilla and have made 50M in sale of these. Baptista, Sergio Ramos and Reyes all of whom are in some way or the other related to Real Madrid and except for Ramos have failed to make an impression there. So in short Real Madrid can be said to have done a great favor to Sevilla by making them an economically stable club and in turn making them successful!!!
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Its all over Man U are the Chamipons!!!
Man U hosted West Ham on Sunday with probably the tropy ceremony in mind. They had rested the key Ronaldo to the bench and though he was brought in at a later stage, it was Tevez again and the way he has been paying it had to be him. It ended a dull 0-1 to West Ham maybe not the ideal end to a fantastic campaign for Man U. But for West Ham the 3 points were a pleasant welcome.
Chelsea could muster only a draw against Everton their 5 th consequitive non victory in the league, so much for ending with a flourish. FA cup final this week--all to play for.
So Arsenal & Liverpool have also qualified automatically to play for Champions League football again next season.
Tot, Everton and Bolton will represent the Premiership in the UEFA Cup.
Chelsea could muster only a draw against Everton their 5 th consequitive non victory in the league, so much for ending with a flourish. FA cup final this week--all to play for.
So Arsenal & Liverpool have also qualified automatically to play for Champions League football again next season.
Tot, Everton and Bolton will represent the Premiership in the UEFA Cup.
Cracking Weekend in Spain
I should say this has been a cracking year in Spain, and last weekend was testimonial to the same. Saturday saw Real Madrid hosting Espanyol at home and though Espanyol manager mentioned that he would be fielding a weaker sider as they are playing the UEFA cup final mid week. It just was Walter Pandiani's night for 45 minutes. Fabio Cannavaro was presented with the Player of the year award in from of 78,000 screaming Madrid fans, but it was not a night Cannavaro or the Madrid defence would even want to talk about. Pandiani scored his first in the 15th minute and by half time had already completed a hat-trick. The goals he scored reminded me of the ones that Lionel Messi scored when Madrid played a cracking 3-3 at the Nou Camp. He drifted wide utilizing space left by both the Wing backs. In between Van the Man scored another to his tally of 20+ goals this season to head into the dressing room at 1-3 at half time.
Fabio Capello as i have always said is a smart man, he removed Torres and got Helguera in. Helguera switched places with Sergio Ramos. Roberto Carlos though defensively still out of sorts proved why he is the best attacking Left back in the world. When he setup Van Nistelrooy with a glancing header the LB was inside the Espanyol Penalty box. Espanyol did their homework on Guti and his role for Madrid. they stifled him with 2 players marking him, so Capello took him out and replaced him with Reyes. And Reyes obliged scoring one and setting up another the match killing 89th minute goal that Higuan scored. It was Raul to make it 2-3, then Reyes to make it 3-3 and then when everybody was thinking of settling for a draw up comes Higuain with a wondefully earned goal. This guy is a youngster with promise. The Bernabeu fans who were silent at halftime and maybe a section Booing them, it was time to party knowing that it was a critical 3 points.
Sevilla won and still following Madrid & Barca close on the heals. To make it a better weekend Barca could only muster up a Draw at home against Betis.
With four games left, no one can afford to slip....
Fabio Capello as i have always said is a smart man, he removed Torres and got Helguera in. Helguera switched places with Sergio Ramos. Roberto Carlos though defensively still out of sorts proved why he is the best attacking Left back in the world. When he setup Van Nistelrooy with a glancing header the LB was inside the Espanyol Penalty box. Espanyol did their homework on Guti and his role for Madrid. they stifled him with 2 players marking him, so Capello took him out and replaced him with Reyes. And Reyes obliged scoring one and setting up another the match killing 89th minute goal that Higuan scored. It was Raul to make it 2-3, then Reyes to make it 3-3 and then when everybody was thinking of settling for a draw up comes Higuain with a wondefully earned goal. This guy is a youngster with promise. The Bernabeu fans who were silent at halftime and maybe a section Booing them, it was time to party knowing that it was a critical 3 points.
Sevilla won and still following Madrid & Barca close on the heals. To make it a better weekend Barca could only muster up a Draw at home against Betis.
With four games left, no one can afford to slip....
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Race is over in England but Spain...
This week it got interesting in England and in Spain. Chelsea needed to win to maintain the title race in the Premiership, but they faltered at Arsenal. Considering they played 60 minutes or so with 10 men they were better on the pitch than Arsenal. Chelsea was direct and they knew they wanted to get goals to win. Arsenal on the other hand was playing as if it was a scrimmage and in most case were over doing it with too much of passing even in front of goal when certain players had a clear shot at goal. Stand out player was Essien, now i am able to figure out why Chelsea paid so much of money to sign him. He is a mid fielder and for one minute did not look out of position as a Center Back and he scored the goal which for at least 15-20 mins gave Chelsea the hope. I could not figure out what Jose was trying to tell the crowd. Someone has to tell him that the alphabet "t" and "s" are not the same.
From all the controversy and the 5.5 Million fine on West Ham, Tevez Tornado hit the Premiership on Saturday. For once the Argentine showed his class. Berbatov still shines he scored one glorious goal with his deceiving strength and pace and setup one late in the game for England international and substitute Defoe.
It was a depressing game that Man U played with few and limited chances except for a dirty stamping incident on Ronaldo. Man U are champions!!!
The championhip had a cindrella story and that is of ex Man U player and now coach of Sunderland Roy Keane. When he took the coaching role at Sunderland they were at "0" points and at the bottom of the league. Now 46 rounds later they have won the championship and are promoted to the Premier League. Amazing in short....
Italy: Nothing dramatic happening with the title already decided it was Kaka's missed penalty and chances that English commentators finally got something to blabber about.
Spain:
Barca eased past Real Sociedad the match to look out for was between second placed Sevilla and third placed Madrid in the capital. Clearly things were not going good in the first half for Madrid down 1-0, but Capello made some drastic changes, replacing Raul by Guti was the best because Guti who usually is an under rated player as he plays some really horrible games. But Sunday was Guti night, as he set up all the three goals. "Van the Man" was brilliant with his finishing and is now the leading scorer in Spain. There were two red cards in the game and tempers flared. Robinho-how stupid can you get to take off your shirt knowing you are already on a Yellow Card. There are such a lot of ways to celebrate a goal that will not earn you a booking. (polishing the boot FIFA 07 style which he followed up with).
Capello had Sergio Ramos and Cicinho on the pitch and the former was brilliant against his former club. 5 Finals to go.....
From all the controversy and the 5.5 Million fine on West Ham, Tevez Tornado hit the Premiership on Saturday. For once the Argentine showed his class. Berbatov still shines he scored one glorious goal with his deceiving strength and pace and setup one late in the game for England international and substitute Defoe.
It was a depressing game that Man U played with few and limited chances except for a dirty stamping incident on Ronaldo. Man U are champions!!!
The championhip had a cindrella story and that is of ex Man U player and now coach of Sunderland Roy Keane. When he took the coaching role at Sunderland they were at "0" points and at the bottom of the league. Now 46 rounds later they have won the championship and are promoted to the Premier League. Amazing in short....
Italy: Nothing dramatic happening with the title already decided it was Kaka's missed penalty and chances that English commentators finally got something to blabber about.
Spain:
Barca eased past Real Sociedad the match to look out for was between second placed Sevilla and third placed Madrid in the capital. Clearly things were not going good in the first half for Madrid down 1-0, but Capello made some drastic changes, replacing Raul by Guti was the best because Guti who usually is an under rated player as he plays some really horrible games. But Sunday was Guti night, as he set up all the three goals. "Van the Man" was brilliant with his finishing and is now the leading scorer in Spain. There were two red cards in the game and tempers flared. Robinho-how stupid can you get to take off your shirt knowing you are already on a Yellow Card. There are such a lot of ways to celebrate a goal that will not earn you a booking. (polishing the boot FIFA 07 style which he followed up with).
Capello had Sergio Ramos and Cicinho on the pitch and the former was brilliant against his former club. 5 Finals to go.....
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Spanish La Liga- All to Play for--- 6 Finals to go....
Usually it is Italian Seri A that always boils down to the last few weeks of play with the top teams all having the same share of bite at the title. This year Inter finished it off with all the problems that Italian Football faced.
It is a different story in Spain for once the Barcelona domination we have seen in the past 2 seasons seem to have faded. With Samuel Eto's injury and lack of new competent signings Barcelona have definitely faded. It is evident from the El Classico's this season, the first one going 2-0 to Madrid and 3-3 at Camp Nou. I saw both the games and where Barca required a special magic from Messi to draw the second game, their defence looked all over the place. Thuram looks less than convincing.
"Love him Hate him" Capello the man under the microscope to be different from Managers in the past 4 years in charge of the Capital city team. Vicente Del Bosque left in 2003 the last season Madrid won the Spanish title or rather won any silverware surprising.... but we have had numerous managers at the European Power House... Carlos Qiueroz, Luxemburgo, the Madrid B team Manager, and now Capello. With the season poised very delicately with 6 games left we already have talks of Real looking for a new manager... few names as usual Jose Mourinho among all. Madrid may have all the money in the world and unlike Chelsea they seem to be investing it properly but someone seriously here have to let the board know that it takes more than one season for any Manager to prove and create a winning team. Madrid are usually not a team to fight under pressure they are a free flowing team, if as an opposition you are able to suffocate then there is a chance to win. But it has changed this season as Capello brought with him the likes of Emerson and Diarra to grind in Midfield. I cant remember a Madrid team playing with two defensive mid fielders.
As in every year Madrid is a team which makes big news with their signings. Cannavaro one of their high profile signings said in an interview " I was confused and tired with all the travel, the interviews and the awards" He has definitely not been his usual best but has been good. Emerson- the crowd has been too tough on him. He is not the same classy player as he used to be.
Diarra- Maybe a player on whom Madrid over paid to protect their pride
Higuain- I liked this guy considering the fact that he is young and he is not getting a full kick
Van Nistelrooy- He is definitely one of the best strikers playing currently already fighting for the Pichichi.
Marcelo- the Brazilian answer to Roberto Carlos has been on and off with injuries.
Gago- Considered to be as a part of the Madrid team building..
Sevilla who are one team playing for 4 trophies. They have already won the Spanish super Cup. Second in the league, playing the final of the Uefa Cup and also alive in the Kings Cup. Freddie Kanoute the leading scorer and some Brazilian magic in the form of Daniel Alaves is what has been standing out.
Espanyol standing 12th in the Spanish league is playing the final against Sevilla in the Uefa cup final.
Valencia have been less than impressive this year though they are still there closely following the top 3.
It is a different story in Spain for once the Barcelona domination we have seen in the past 2 seasons seem to have faded. With Samuel Eto's injury and lack of new competent signings Barcelona have definitely faded. It is evident from the El Classico's this season, the first one going 2-0 to Madrid and 3-3 at Camp Nou. I saw both the games and where Barca required a special magic from Messi to draw the second game, their defence looked all over the place. Thuram looks less than convincing.
"Love him Hate him" Capello the man under the microscope to be different from Managers in the past 4 years in charge of the Capital city team. Vicente Del Bosque left in 2003 the last season Madrid won the Spanish title or rather won any silverware surprising.... but we have had numerous managers at the European Power House... Carlos Qiueroz, Luxemburgo, the Madrid B team Manager, and now Capello. With the season poised very delicately with 6 games left we already have talks of Real looking for a new manager... few names as usual Jose Mourinho among all. Madrid may have all the money in the world and unlike Chelsea they seem to be investing it properly but someone seriously here have to let the board know that it takes more than one season for any Manager to prove and create a winning team. Madrid are usually not a team to fight under pressure they are a free flowing team, if as an opposition you are able to suffocate then there is a chance to win. But it has changed this season as Capello brought with him the likes of Emerson and Diarra to grind in Midfield. I cant remember a Madrid team playing with two defensive mid fielders.
As in every year Madrid is a team which makes big news with their signings. Cannavaro one of their high profile signings said in an interview " I was confused and tired with all the travel, the interviews and the awards" He has definitely not been his usual best but has been good. Emerson- the crowd has been too tough on him. He is not the same classy player as he used to be.
Diarra- Maybe a player on whom Madrid over paid to protect their pride
Higuain- I liked this guy considering the fact that he is young and he is not getting a full kick
Van Nistelrooy- He is definitely one of the best strikers playing currently already fighting for the Pichichi.
Marcelo- the Brazilian answer to Roberto Carlos has been on and off with injuries.
Gago- Considered to be as a part of the Madrid team building..
Sevilla who are one team playing for 4 trophies. They have already won the Spanish super Cup. Second in the league, playing the final of the Uefa Cup and also alive in the Kings Cup. Freddie Kanoute the leading scorer and some Brazilian magic in the form of Daniel Alaves is what has been standing out.
Espanyol standing 12th in the Spanish league is playing the final against Sevilla in the Uefa cup final.
Valencia have been less than impressive this year though they are still there closely following the top 3.
Premiership
The reason why i am not a big fan of the Premiership is the competitiveness beyond the first 4 teams of the 20. It has repeated again as usual this year with just Man U and Chelsea making any serious run for the title. When you look at 1st Man U-85 pts, 2nd Chelsea-80 Pts and 3rd Liverpool 67 points summarizes it all.
Teams:
Manchester united has made watching them play a delight. I am reminded a lot of Brazil in 2002 WC when i see them play.Barring some glaring mistakes by Rio/Van Der Saar combo it has been a pretty solid season. C.Ronaldo definitely a stand out player. Though he still has the problem of dribbling too much and show casing too much of his skills maybe Alex Ferguson has taken up a new approach this season and that is " If you dont want to pass, then why dont you try to score"
It has defenitely worked!!.
Chelsea have been unlucky with injuries to be fair. First it was the unfortunate accident to Cech and then the defenders. Always a next time.
Liverpool as usual always looking at Captain fantastic for any sort of inspiration...
Arsenal has been less than impressive but i should say with Henry almost out for the entire season they have done a pretty good job. Baptista on Loan has only shown glimpses on and off and again he plays as a second striker and his natural position is that of an AM. Adebayor has been a find definitely.
The middle of the league has seen some teams really show their class. Reading, Bolton, Portsmouth have been really good. Bolton unfortunately have been now left without a manager for the rest of the season. I heard an interesting comment abt Sam that he has been successful in bringing out the best in some of the players who were considered to be past their best. I can name four right away- Ivan Campo, Jay Jay Okocha, Anelka and maybe Hierro for one season.
I saw a few games that Portsmouth played and i should say they are pretty good and they could very well end up qualifying for Europe.
Reading-I am impressed with Stephen Hunt i dont know from where they got this guy.
Newcastle-Time for them to find a new manager and start playing for their name.
Middlesbrough in 14th place i am a little surprised... they have played some good games. Their match against Man U was a cracker and i was really impressed with their defensive duo of Woodgate and Pogatetz. For an uncalled blatant penalty Middlesbrough would have embarrassed Man U's fire power.
A player i saw in a few games and who has in my opinion has had such a phenomenal season is Berbatov. Keane is the one who has also benefited from their strike partnership. except for an impression that Berbatov sets of a lazy elegance he is definitely going to be snatched by one of the big 4. Berbatov and Dawson have been the best players for Tot.
I see a definite reason why Teams from the Premiership fare better in the Chamions league as compared to the premiership teams in the Champions Cup. My thoughts in a seperate post.
Teams:
Manchester united has made watching them play a delight. I am reminded a lot of Brazil in 2002 WC when i see them play.Barring some glaring mistakes by Rio/Van Der Saar combo it has been a pretty solid season. C.Ronaldo definitely a stand out player. Though he still has the problem of dribbling too much and show casing too much of his skills maybe Alex Ferguson has taken up a new approach this season and that is " If you dont want to pass, then why dont you try to score"
It has defenitely worked!!.
Chelsea have been unlucky with injuries to be fair. First it was the unfortunate accident to Cech and then the defenders. Always a next time.
Liverpool as usual always looking at Captain fantastic for any sort of inspiration...
Arsenal has been less than impressive but i should say with Henry almost out for the entire season they have done a pretty good job. Baptista on Loan has only shown glimpses on and off and again he plays as a second striker and his natural position is that of an AM. Adebayor has been a find definitely.
The middle of the league has seen some teams really show their class. Reading, Bolton, Portsmouth have been really good. Bolton unfortunately have been now left without a manager for the rest of the season. I heard an interesting comment abt Sam that he has been successful in bringing out the best in some of the players who were considered to be past their best. I can name four right away- Ivan Campo, Jay Jay Okocha, Anelka and maybe Hierro for one season.
I saw a few games that Portsmouth played and i should say they are pretty good and they could very well end up qualifying for Europe.
Reading-I am impressed with Stephen Hunt i dont know from where they got this guy.
Newcastle-Time for them to find a new manager and start playing for their name.
Middlesbrough in 14th place i am a little surprised... they have played some good games. Their match against Man U was a cracker and i was really impressed with their defensive duo of Woodgate and Pogatetz. For an uncalled blatant penalty Middlesbrough would have embarrassed Man U's fire power.
A player i saw in a few games and who has in my opinion has had such a phenomenal season is Berbatov. Keane is the one who has also benefited from their strike partnership. except for an impression that Berbatov sets of a lazy elegance he is definitely going to be snatched by one of the big 4. Berbatov and Dawson have been the best players for Tot.
I see a definite reason why Teams from the Premiership fare better in the Chamions league as compared to the premiership teams in the Champions Cup. My thoughts in a seperate post.
Champions League
With just the final remaining and which is a repeat of the 2004 Final, it has in my opinion a year with a very un predicatable final match.
I have always done the mistake of writing off Liverpool year after year and even in 2004 but for some reason a team that struggles to qualify for Champions League every year, does good when they paly in it. One reason maybe that English teams are not well known for travelling and Liverpool maybe an exception.
Milan on the other hand shows what grinding and playing hard can get you. They showed fatigue in the second half in Old Trafford understandably so with the old legs that they have compared to Man U. Kaka has been amazing and one thing that struck me in the game at Old trafford was that he looks pretty slow but he was definitely faster than the young defenders at Man U. Nesta is someone Milan cannot let go off. The game in Old trafford he kept Rooney quiet for 92 minutes and the battle with even Christiano Ronaldo was good to see. A commentator from Sky Sports was saying "Maldini started playing football before both Rooney and Ronaldo were even born"
Now to the teams who unfortunately lost out in the semifinals. I am honestly disappointed with the Chelsea V Liverpool tie, i expected it to be a dull affair but not as much as what it turned out to be. The second leg especially was so crappy that it never had a feel of a Semi final. Both of them never showed any urge to win. And i hate it when matches are decided by penalty shoot outs. Its a lottery!!
I feel sad for Chelsea as they might very much end up with no silverware ie: if Man U ends up winning the double and though i have never been a big fan of Man U, i want them to win the league. They are a team who has performed amazingly well above par this season and mostly to do with C.Ronaldo's performance. For an AM/Winger to score more than 20 goals a season is phenomenal.
I have always done the mistake of writing off Liverpool year after year and even in 2004 but for some reason a team that struggles to qualify for Champions League every year, does good when they paly in it. One reason maybe that English teams are not well known for travelling and Liverpool maybe an exception.
Milan on the other hand shows what grinding and playing hard can get you. They showed fatigue in the second half in Old Trafford understandably so with the old legs that they have compared to Man U. Kaka has been amazing and one thing that struck me in the game at Old trafford was that he looks pretty slow but he was definitely faster than the young defenders at Man U. Nesta is someone Milan cannot let go off. The game in Old trafford he kept Rooney quiet for 92 minutes and the battle with even Christiano Ronaldo was good to see. A commentator from Sky Sports was saying "Maldini started playing football before both Rooney and Ronaldo were even born"
Now to the teams who unfortunately lost out in the semifinals. I am honestly disappointed with the Chelsea V Liverpool tie, i expected it to be a dull affair but not as much as what it turned out to be. The second leg especially was so crappy that it never had a feel of a Semi final. Both of them never showed any urge to win. And i hate it when matches are decided by penalty shoot outs. Its a lottery!!
I feel sad for Chelsea as they might very much end up with no silverware ie: if Man U ends up winning the double and though i have never been a big fan of Man U, i want them to win the league. They are a team who has performed amazingly well above par this season and mostly to do with C.Ronaldo's performance. For an AM/Winger to score more than 20 goals a season is phenomenal.
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