Lord, can we wrap Hleb's vocal cords around his neck? For someone who disdained London's decibel levels, Hleb is creating his own noise pollution. He better worry about himself. If he performs like he did at Arsenal, Pep Guardiola might ship him out faster than he could say surplus.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Hleb can't stop talking even from Barca
Video: High drama in African Champion's league
Al-Hilal of Sudan snatched a 3-2 win over Enyimba of Nigeria this weekend in a dramatic start to the group phase of the 2008 African Champions League.The winner in the 3 -2 game came in the dying minutes of the game.Details ...
Readmore »»
Video: Pre season friendly -Arsenal down Barnet
Barnet had led at half time through Kenny Gillet's surprise free kick goal but the Gunners hit back with goals from Simpson and Barazite.
Readmore »»
Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory: Why Scolari goes ga ga
Quick which one? Or both?
As per Chelsea, two days ago it was Robinho that was supposed to alight on Stamford Bridge on a bid of £40m. Today it is Kaka for double the price. How about importing the whole Brazilian and Portugese team and rendering the Premiership moot? Having Big Phil makes these pipe dreams possible.
But first. What happened to the cost cutting Roman Abramovich? The one that was feted for his 2007 freebies, Claudio Pizzarro, Steve Sidwell and Tal Ben Haim and like the Grinch, stole Mourinho's X'mas. When that happened there was a glimmer that maybe Chelsea wasn't into buying a title. Well, this year Mr Moneybags reverted to type and has already blown 50m on Anelka, Jose Bosingwa, Deco, Branislav Ivanovic, and Franco Di Santo. With Scolari as the gaffer, Abramovich has re-discovered his giddy schoolgirl days which went missing in the monochromatic Avram Grant era which got him bupkis. In this courtship dance with Scolari everything feels pretty, oh so pretty!
Big Phil Scolari knows that there is a downside to doing business with owners like Abramovich where every investment has a depreciative value. This is his moment to be shrill and demanding because he must have observed Rainieri and especially Mourinho wane in power as the years went by. He benefits from a straight line between a deep pocketed owner and a manager at the present moment with his transfer demands.
Jose Bosingwa and Deco's arrival have enhanced Scolari's status and further emboldened him. Public calls to bring on caliber players like Kaka and Robinho puts the onus on the Chelsea owner because a season from now Scolari might have difficulties buying a ball of string.
Arsenal's 50 best players reveals more about the unsettled club
Arsenal just came out with a list of best 50 players in club history voted by fans.
Thierry "Titi' Henry , presently employed by Barca, is the best player followed by two retirees, Dennis Bergkamp and Tony Adams.
In the top 50 list there is not one single current Arsenal player. The list is an unsettling patchwork of ex- Arsenal players who are presently playing for other clubs and a horde of retired players whose names crop up in soccer history forums. In the ex-Arsenal category, apart from Henry, there is Freddie Ljungberg, Sol Campbell, Kanu, Patrick Vieira, Nicolas Anelka, Sylvain Wiltord, and Ashley Cole. Their exposure add up to 55 years which is more than the present squad's entire club career.
As with any list of such a sort, we can debate who deserved to be included or excluded but given that such lists usually favour more contemporary players this speaks more to the signifying trends of transience, youth, and lack of silverware at Arsenal. Most impact players are spending less time preferring to move on as their value goes up. Or as signalled clearly by the gaffer, this revolving door policy is being encouraged to enhance the club's reputation as one of the finest incubator of youthful talent purely for monetary gain. It has also been a number of years since any meaningful silverware was won which usually provides a ready springboard to a top 50 list. Fabregas may be on the cusp of the finest Arsenal players list but if the club had won the Premiership or CL, he would have undoubtedly been there a few seasons ahead of schedule.
Contrast this with Man Utd's list of top 50 out in 2006 which includes six presently serving players. Ryan Giggs, Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, and Gary Neville. 62 years of experience between these six players and a number of trophies to show for.
Liverpool's 100 players that shook the Kop lists Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, John Arne Riise, Sami Hyppia, Steve Finnan, and Xabi Alonso in the first 50 who presently perform first squad duty. All these players were mainstays in Liverpool's successful 2005 CL appearance. Chelsea does not have a top 50 list but if one came out tomorrow John Terry, Didier Drogba, Petr Cech, Ricardo Carvalho, Frank Lampard, Claude Makelele, Joe Cole, and Michael Essien would deservedly find a place. These players are proven impact players in Chelsea's recent successes in the Premiership as well as its first CL final appearance.
Readmore »»Gilberto departs: So long, and thanks for all the fish
A reflective moment for all Gunner fans as Gilberto, our stout hearted defensive specialist departs for Panathinaikos. He spend many seasons shielding Arsenal from quick counterattacking teams while providing invaluable goals through set pieces.
His calm leadership during Thierry Henry's injury absence in the early half of 2007 steadied the ship and his ten goals scored through a bunch of penalties and headers kept Arsenal ticking. Many remember this as his finest season which came on the heels of very strong rumours that he was to leave for Juventus that winter.
Just when it appeared that Gilberto was on track to finish his career in Arsenal a few crucial developments took place at the beginning of the 2007-2008 season. Wenger brought in William Gallas and made him captain and Mathieu Flamini's form landed him the starting spot behind Fabregas. Gilberto was relegated to the bench.
He was not happy about these developments but rather than whining about it and demanding a transfer he decided to fight for his spot. Even as his minutes dwindled and his frustration mounted he still gave his best as a substitute. As Arsenal's chances nosedived in the 2008 half, Gilberto came up with some strong starting performances in April. In retrospect, Gallas captaincy was undermined by his petulant outbursts and combativeness on the field. It was not a wise choice by Wenger.
With Flamini leaving for Milan, it would appear that Gilberto's services would be required to fill the gap. Wenger also indicated that he would be loth to see Gilberto go. However Wenger in a tactical move is developing new transfer Aaron Ramsey into a defensive specialist playing behind Fabregas which would mean reduced minutes for Gilberto once again.
Gilberto will be remembered for a number of highlights in his Arsenal career including scoring the fastest goal in UEFA history against PSV Eindhoven and the first ever goal for the club in their new home, the Emirates Stadium.
From a larger perspective, Gilberto's departure means that Arsenal and the Premiership lose one of the few players who were not defined by their mercenary interests or jarring histrionics but by unselfish devotion to club. A fine player and an equally fine human being. Gilberto was also deeply involved in fighting for the homeless. We shall miss him. Best of luck, Berto.
Chris Harris, reporter for Arsenal.com pays tribute >>
Readmore »»Moving wall problem solved by the Argentines
Great free kicks huh? All the because the wall stayed put.Not possible if the wall had crept closer before the ball was kicked and the ref didn't object.
A solution to this moving wall problem been found in Argentina.
Referees will pace the regulatory 9.15 metres between the ball and the nearest defender and then spray a vanishing white line on the pitch to mark the correct position of the wall.Any bit of the wall crossing the line before the shot will be penalised.
The vanishing line then vanishes from the pitch within a minute.More here..
The japanese are having a great laugh at all this.They already figured out how to put the defenders on a line.Take a look at their technique here...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
