Gerard Pique and THAT hair-do

This is an old pic of Pique, I had to post it because his hair looks Ridonk! We still love him though http://i01.bdbphotos.com/7L/63/0001355763-36870L.jpg

They mocked Higuain when he first joined Real - Casillas

http://www.tribalfootball.com/casillas-they-mocked-higuain-when-he-first-joined-real-madrid-447131
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Real Madrid have nothing to be jealous of at Barcelona- Marcelo

http://www.goal.com/en/news/12/spain/2009/11/15/1626526/real-madrid-have-nothing-to-envy-at-barcelona-full-back "Real MAdrid have nothing to envy at Barcelona" are the scathing words issued by RM fullback Marcelo. He believes that the Trichampions are not in any way better than Real Madrid. He believes that the addition of the stars to the club as well as the new manager will help the club prise the title away from the Catalan Giants. 29 November is the date the two will meet.
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Testing Mobile Blogging

Just to test if my posts are coming through
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Champions League Preview!

Wednesday, 04 November 2009

Arsenal v AZ Alkmaar

Dynamo Kiev v Inter Milan

Fiorentina v Debrecen

Lyon v Liverpool

Rubin Kazan v Barcelona

Sevilla v VfB Stuttgart

Standard Liege v Olympiakos

Unirea Urziceni v Rangers

It’s the big one for Liverpool. Tonight’s match will pretty much tell us how the rest of the season will pan out. The Reds are well and truly out of the Premier League, Carling Cup ambitions are over (it didn’t seem like there were any ambitions for that in the first place)and the Champions league may be the only way to salvage a trophy this season. Is Rafa trying to repeat what he managed in his first season with the Reds? Two weeks ago, Lyon came back in the dying moments of the game to break Kopite hearts, will Liverpool be able to go to Lyon tonight and inflict similar damage? I am still finding it difficult to accept the situation at Liverpool. ..

Torres was pulled off early in the weekend’s slump to Fulham; he was taken off to be rested for this match. He is likely to start despite reports that he’s suffering from Hernia (???). Almost all of Liverpool’s entire first team are carrying injuries: Gerrard is unfortunately, still recovering from that groin injury, so he’s definitely not going to play. Riera, Kelly, Aurelio, Johnson and Skrtel are all harbouring injuries; and there are doubts over Agger and Ngog’s fitness. Aquilani was struck with a virus, but seems to have recovered in time. Hopefully he will start today.

The ideal situation for Liverpool would be a win, and for Debrecen to beat Fiorentina... very tough indeed for either to happen! Lyon heads the group with full marks (9points), Fiorentina on 6, and ‘Pool on 3 points. Debrecen is pointless. If Liverpool lose tonight and Fiorentina win, a miracle will be needed for Liverpool to qualify for the next round. YNWA


Meanwhile Barca takes on surprise package Rubin. The Catalan giants travelled to Russia a couple days ago, to be met with icy weather which forced their training to be called off, as well as their usual “tour” of the city. How are they to play a 90 minute match when they couldn’t manage a training session? This is going to be a true test of Barca’s will. Having dropped points over the weekend to Osasuna (remember Pique’s own goal?), and they lost their last CL match to Rubin at Camp Nou, I imagine Pep would put together his strongest side for this one. A 19 man squad made the trip to Russia, Milito and Chygrynsky were not included. “Chysy”, because he’s cup tied; and Milito is still recovering from that injury (it feels like it’s been forever!). Dani Alves should make a return to the team sheet, but it’s still not certain whether Henry will start. Rumours having been floating around that Pep and Titi don’t see eye to eye. If this is true, could this mean it’s his last season with the Blaugrana?? Word has it that Rubin is in top form (I cannot confirm this, I do not watch Russian football, duh!) and they are out to do a double over Barca. They also have the advantage of being acclimatized to the blistering cold. I think this is going to be a tough one for Barca, hopefully they can come away with the win, if not, they could find themselves in hot water, trying to get out of what’s turning out to be a tough group F. As it stands, Rubin, Dynamo Kiev and Barca are all tied on 4 points whilst Inter are bottom with 3. If Barca were to lose tonight, and the other match produces a result, Barca will drop to 3rd/4th place, placing extra pressure on them for the next 2 ties. Hopefully, this won’t happen! Visca Catalunya!

Champions League Results: Matchday4 - Tuesday

AC Milan 1-1 Real Madrid
Apoel Nicosia 0-1 FC Porto
Atletico Madrid 2-2 Chelsea
Bayern Munich 0-2 Bordeaux
Besiktas 0-3 Wolfsburg
Maccabi Haifa 0-1 Juventus
Man Utd 3-3 CSKA Moscow
Marseille 6-1 FC Zurich


Although I was fixated on the Milan-Madrid tie, I did flip over to the other matches to see what was going down. I was shocked to see that Man U had come back from 1-3 down to equalize. So they’re practically through. I did manage to catch CSKA’s first goal, and it was sublime! It kinda of reminded me of Roberto Carlos’ “impossible goal” (see my post: http://wp.me/pGB6F-2F ). I suppose it’s exactly that which separates the mediocre teams from the big boys. One team can’t hold onto a 2 goal cushion, while the other can recover from being two goals down.


Atletico Madrid managed to salvage a point. Aguero came on in the second half despite carrying an injury, and the game livened up. Braces from him and Drogba saw the scoreline finishing 2-2. I feel, despite Atlectico’s poor run of form, they would’ve backed themselves to come away with 3 points. Nevertheless, a draw against Chelsea is always a good result.


It was a display of good attacking football at the San Siro. I feel Madrid created the better chances and Milan initially gave them too much room, which is what I felt, led to the goal. Referees seem to be making the headlines as much as players lately and German ref Felix Brych made a few controversial decisions. First the awarded a penalty to Milan for a handball that Pepe really couldn’t do anything about. Then a couple minutes later, he disallowed Pato’s goal, for reasons I’m not entirely sure about. Milan took longer to settle into the game and Madrid were playing with purpose, going forward, while Milan tried to counter. Whilst Dida looked shaky yet again (sigh), he did pull off a save from Raul’s strike in the dying moments of the match, so all is forgiven. But the Milan backline, once they found their rhythm, really were outstanding. Madrid were attacking from all angles and they did well to not concede more than the one. Pato, the “baby-face assassin” put on a good show, but he goes too easily to ground, maybe he’s not physical enough? (Come on he’s only 20!) He did however manage to get Arbeloa and Pepe booked, so job well done! But Milan’s true star was Ronaldinho (well, for me at least)! Ahh, hopefully the comeback to his best is on! He had a couple of good tricks up his sleeve today, and put away the penalty with ease. He was however limited by Ramos, another solid performance by the Spaniard. Other Madrid players that shone were Marcelo, who complemented the attack; and Diarra! The disappointments were former Liverpool boys Alonso (I barely saw him the 90mins) and Arbeloa who struggled to deal with Pato.


Tomorrow’s the crucial Lyon-Liverpool and Rubin-Barcelona ties. Thankfully they’re at different times, so I’ll be able to watch both.

Weekend Football Roundup: Premier League, La Liga, Serie A

Weekend Round-Up

Premier League Results:

Arsenal 3-0 Tottenham

Bolton 0-5 Chelsea

Burnley 2-0 Hull

Everton 1-1 Aston Villa

Man. United 2-0 Blackburn

Portsmouth 4-0 Wigan

Stoke 2-2 Wolves

Sunderland 2-2 West Ham

Birm’ham 0-0 Man. City

Arsenal’s north London supremacy was instilled in their emphatic win over rivals Tottenham. It was a thrilling match and Arsenal put on their usual display of beautiful possession football. Tottenham too, did well to close down in the midfield. With half time approaching, it took Robin van Persie’s excellent read on Sagna’s cross in the 42nd minute to break the deadlock. And seconds later, from the kick-off, Cesc Fabregas run from the half-way line through the somewhat stunned Spurs defence. “Fab” easily put it past Spurs keeper Gomes to make it 2-0 after 45 mins. In the second half, Sagna set up Van Persie again, 15 minutes into the second half. It was a day of poor defending on Tottenham’s part; and excellent play from Arsenal...you can deduce who the better side was.

Chelsea saw off Bolton 0-4, again. It really could’ve been more, had they not been wasteful with some of their chances. But nobody can complain about a 4 goal win. Chelsea’s dominance in the English game was maintained with goals from Lampard, Deco and Drogba and an own-goal from Knight.

The partnership of Berbatov and Rooney finally paid dividends in the second half of their match. United looked shaky throughout. They were without Vidic and Ferdinand, and relied on Wes Brown and Jonny Evans to hold fort at the back. However Berbatov and Rooney got the job done, but it was by no means a good display of football, United were made to work for their 3 points.

Birmingham held Man City to their 4th league draw in a row on Sunday. The Eastlands club may have more stars in their line-up, but if anything, Birm’ham outplayed the Manchester Club. Keeper Shay Given saved McFadden’s penalty in the second half to ensure that Man City didn’t drop three full points. City didn’t do much upfront, but their defence was put to test. The match ended goalless, the Citizens would know they were lucky to escape a loss.

For my thoughts on the Fulham-Liverpool fiasco, see my earlier post.

La Liga Results:

Real Madrid 2-0 Getafe

Xerez 0-2 Sevilla

Osasuna 1-1 Barcelona

Athletic Bilbao 1-0 Atletico Madrid

Villareal 5-0 Teberife

Espanyol 1-1 Real Valladolid

Real Mallorca 1-0 Racing Santander

Real Zaragoza 2-1 Almeria

Malaga 0–1 Valencia

Deportivo La Coruna 1-1 Sporting Gijon

Real Madrid recovered from the early loss of Raul Albiol (who was shown red for bringing down Soldado just outside the box) to secure a win over Getafe. A brace from Argentine Gonzalo Higuain was enough to give Los Galacticos the 3 points. They were without Cristiano Ronaldo again. Under fire coach Pellegrini will breathe a sigh of relief and look to the much anticipated clash with Milan midweek.

Los Che edged out bottom of the league Malaga thanks to a sole goal from Navarro. Malaga however can take comfort from the fact that they pushed Valencia and were in no way walked all over. Valencia sits in 4th position and has closed the gap between themselves and leaders Barca down to 5 points.

Elsewhere in La Liga, Sevilla maintained their 3rd position with superb strikes from Negredo and Luis Fabiano against Xerez. And Atletico Madrid has dropped more points and has slumped to 18th position. Javi Martinez’s header in the first half was enough for Bilbao, leaving Atletico in the relegation zone.

For the Osasuna-Barcelona match review, see my earlier post.

Serie A Results:

Juventus 2-3 Napoli

Milan 2-0 Parma

Fiorentina 3-1 Catania

Sampdoria 0-0 Bari

Cagliari 3-0 Atalanta

Livorno 0-2 Inter Milan

Chievo 1-1 Udinese

Roma 2-1 Bologna

Siena 1-1 Lazio

Palermo 0-0 Genoa

Inter won their away tie against Livorno, in what turned out to be an important weekend in Serie A. With Juventus losing to Napoli, the gap between the two stretch to 7 points. Goals from Maicon and Diego Milito secured Mourinho’s side the win. Milan also secured a crucial win against Parma, and is now back in the big time as they sit in 4th.

Fulham 3-1 Liverpool: The Situation at Liverpool

Fulham 3-1 Liverpool

Painful, utterly painful. As I watched my beloved Reds fall to pieces yesterday, I wondered what we are doing wrong.

Given the clubs financial problems, I don’t expect Liverpool to pull a Real Madrid, but I honestly do believe we have class players. Why, then, can’t they get it right? I recently read an article about how Rafa has a gentleman’s agreement with Real Madrid to move to Los Blancos. It went on to speculate that he cannot leave Liverpool as he is under a contract, so he is trying to get fired! I personally don’t believe these claims, and due to our bad spate of results, speculation is bound to do their rounds. But I feel a club of Liverpools stature need proper financial backing. It feels like the American owners Gilette and Hicks, are barely managing to keep the club from drowning. How are we to compete with the crème de la crème of Europe without funds? I like to believe that money doesn’t talk in today’s game, but it sure as hell couldn’t do any harm having an extra buck or two!

The injury problems keep many a Red fan up at night. Not only does Torres’ fitness seem to worry us every couple of months, but we’re buying players so that they can sit on the recovery table for 6 weeks before fit... Let’s hope Mr. Aquilani is worth the wait. Our problems really began before the season kicked off. Our players seem to take blows one after the other.

We were without Gerrard, Johnson, Reira, Aurelio, Skrtel, Agger and Aquilani for yesterday’s match. Yes that’s seven, SEVEN of our first team not even named in the squad! I agree that we didn’t have a full strength squad to face Fulham, but nobody was expecting this result.

Next thing is... What was Rafa Benitez thinking when he made those substitutions??? Let me run you through it...

Okay, so he took off Torres and he explained his decision. His logic was that Torres needs to be protected. He’s not 100% fit, he’s still carrying that groin injury. We face Lyon in a must win match midweek. He needs to be rested. Fine! But to take off your star man when your team is stuck in a 1-1 deadlock, and when no one else is looking like scoring? More so, once Torres was subbed, Fulham’s confidence seemed to grow, which ultimately led to their second goal. Ryan Babel gets brought on. Without being disrespectful to Babel, he is not nearly half the player that Torres is... Maybe we can look past the Torres sub, after all, we do need him for Lyon.

Next, when we were 2-1 down, Yossi Benayoun, who was the most creative player on the field gets withdrawn, and Ayala comes on. Why withdraw your best chance when he’s fully fit for someone who’s never really proved himself in the Red shirt?

Then, when your team is down to 9men with the captain is sent off; Dirk Kuyt, who was the most experienced player in the pitch at that point gets subbed for newbie Ecclesten. This seemed to give Fulham an extra surge of confidence and exploited their 2 man advantage and went on to score the third.

Very, very poor decisions Mr. Benitez!

I feel all of the above mentioned factors are contributing to Liverpool’s fall from grace. I just hope we can pick up the pieces. A niggling thought that still bugs me every time I watch Liverpool, is that big gaping hole in our midfield! We really do miss Xabi; there is no replacement for him. Watching him play for Real Madrid is really tough. Madrid has also had a bit of a hard time recently, but Xabi has been phenomenal! This was supposed to be our year, instead, yet I wonder if we’ll be competing in the Champions League next season...

Let me know how you feel about the situation at Liverpool.

YNWA

Barcelona Drop another 2 points..

OSASUNA 1-1 BARCELONA

Barcelona dropped points yesterday. They paid the ultimate price for missed opportunities, when Gerard Pique scored a last minute own goal. After their 6-1 thumping of Zaragoza, it was a disappointing night, Barca didn’t look like the team they did a couple months back. I also feel that the team selection contributed to the result. Why was Toure not started? Maybe Pep felt that a few players should be rested before their trip to Russia midweek? Also, the starting of Sergio Busquets and the exclusion of the inform Pedro just baffled me. Not to mention that a fit-again Henry was left on the bench. But the team looked tired and they didn’t play with the fluidity that they usually do. Messi had a couple of good shots that were missed. The most frustrating came in the second half when they were trying to build on their 1-0 lead, and instead of passing to a free Ibra, he decided to try chip it over the keeper. A waste of a chance in my opinion. However, his bad day=most players good day. He still managed to pull out a few good dribbles and helped set up the goal (Keita’s not Piques:-P). I think he needs a rest. Barca still lead La Liga but are only 1 point ahead of bitter rivals Real Madrid, who won against Getafe yeaterday.

My Barca Ratings:

Valdes 7: He wasn’t really challenged much. But the few saves he had to make were class.

Puyol 8: A solid performance from the captain. Held the defence together and assisted Keita’s goal.

Pique 6: I felt he had a quiet show...till he stuck out his foot and the ball went into his own goal.

Chygrynsky 4: still hasn’t done much to prove that he’s worth his money. Got booked and was subbed for Marquez.

Abidal 7: Had a shaky first half, but settled in after a while. Was creative down the left and had a couple of good passes.

Busquets 5: Wasn’t really in the game. A couple of poor tackles here and there.

Keita 8: Superb! His goal gave Barca the lead. He controlled to ball well and didn’t lose a lot of possession. Was really the star of the midfield.

Xavi 6: the conductor of the Barcelona was unusually off form. He managed a few good balls but was relatively hushed.

Iniesta 7: Combined well with Abidal down the left. A relatively good performance. Was subbed for Pedro.

Messi: 7 not at his usual best. But gets a 7 nonetheless for creating chances and being a nuisance to the Osasuna defence.

Ibrahimovic: 6 I feel had he received better service he could’ve done better. He almost made a break-away from the midline only to be fouled by Flano.

Substitutes:

Marquez 4: Poor. Not what he used to be.

Pedro: Don’t think he touched the ball. Was brought on as a time wasting tactic. But a couple seconds later... oh well!

EPL Previews and Weekend Fixtures

31 October 2009

Arsenal v Tottenham

Bolton v Chelsea

Burnley v Hull

Everton v Aston Villa

Fulham v Liverpool

Man Utd v Blackburn

Portsmouth v Wigan

Stoke v Wolverhampton

Sunderland v West Ham

 

01 November 2009

Birmingham v Man City

 

 

The London derby is the one that everyone's been talking about. Third and Fourth Place clash this weekend. Arsenal have been in superb form. They play exciting football, and having just knocked Liverpool out of the League Cup, their confidence is growing. After lasts weeks fiasco against the Hammers of having let a 2 goal lead slip to a draw, Arsenal will not want to drop furthur points. Tottenham don't have the best record against their London rivals, they haven't beaten Arsenal in the League in 10 years! Given that this match is at the Emirates, I'd have to go with Arsenal for the win. Arsenal: Almunia is set to return after in favour keeper Fabianski sustained an injury midweek. Rosicky, Walcott and Denilson are all still recovering.  Tottenaham: Lennon is out injured and so is Giovani dos Santos, so Bently is likely to be given a start. Woodgate is still doubtful for the match, but if fit will surely be started. Defoe is out still serving his 3 match ban for his red against Portsmouth.

 

Chelsea and Bolton met midweek in the Carling Cup, Bolton were swept aside 4-0. Chelsea's good form have been supplemented by good fortune, Joe Cole is off the recovery table and John Terry, Frank Lampard, Petr Cech, Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho and Ashley Cole; who were all rested midweek, will be recalled.

 

Manchester United host Blackburn Rovers. News is that Ferdinand, Giggs and Vidic are all injured. While Fletcher and Park are still sidelined. With Gary Neville suspended for three games, the Rovers will do well to exploit a weakend United defence.

 

Liverpool's battle with injuries continue. Captain Steven Gerrard will not feature against Fulham as he has still not recovered from groin injury. Glen Johnson may have to also sit this one out as he has had a minor calf injury. Mascherano is back after serving his one game ban against Arsenal (for the double yelllow he picked up against United). While Aquilani is likely to be a sub, hopefully he'll get game. He looked pretty promising in his 15 minutes against Arsenal. Torres is also doubtful for the match and is likely to be benched. Liverpool will look to build on their win over United last weekend, after what one can only describe as an abysmal start to the season. They are 6 points adrift of leaders Chelsea, Rafa's Reds cannot afford anymore slip ups.YNWA

FIFA World Player of the Year 2009 nominees announced!

FIFA today released their shortlist for the FIFA World Footballer of the Year 2009. The List is as follows for men:

Michael Ballack (Germany)

Gianluigi Buffon (Italy)
Iker Casillas (Spain)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
Diego (Brazil)
Didier Drogba (Côte d'Ivoire)
Michael Essien (Ghana)

Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon)

Steven Gerrard (England)
Thierry Henry (France)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden)
Andrés Iniesta (Spain)
Kaká (Brazil)
Frank Lampard (England)
Luis Fabiano (Brazil)
Lionel Messi (Argentina)
Carles Puyol (Spain)

Franck Ribéry (France)

Wayne Rooney (England)
John Terry (England)
Fernando Torres (Spain)
David Villa (Spain)
Xavi (Spain).

FIFA Womens's award nominees are:

Nadine Angerer (Germany), Sonia Bompastor (France), Cristiane (Brazil), Inka Grings (Germany), Mana Iwabuchi (Japan), Simone Laudehr (Germany), Marta (Brazil), Birgit Prinz (Germany), Kelly Smith (England) and Abby Wambach (USA).

Last years top 5 (L-R): Xavi, Torres, Ronaldo, Messi, Kaka

La Liga Fixtures : Week 9

La Liga is now in week 9. After the midweek break for Copa del Rey, many teams will be looking forward to getting back to work in the League.

31 October 2009

Real Madrid - Getafe

Xerez - Sevilla

Osasuna - Barcelona

Athletic Bilbao - Atletico Madrid

01 November 2009

Mallorca - Racing

Villarreal - Tenerife

Espanyol - Valladolid

Zaragoza - Almeria

Malaga - Valencia

Deportivo - Sporting de Gijon

Pep Guardiola's men wil look to continue their domination at the top of the Primera Division. After what looked like their reserve side comfortbly overcame Cultural mid week in the Copa del Rey, the team immediately got back to work. Word has it that after returning from Leon on Thirsday morning, Guardiola had his squad taken to their training ground staright from the airport! Good news is that Henry is nearing fitness and may be included in the squad for this weekend. I am looking forward to his return, he hasn't scored for Barca since March. Hopefully he will  return to his best!

Real Madrid's woes continue. CR9 is not likely to be fit for this weekend. After thier midweek humilation against the third tier side Alcorcon, fingers have been pointed to coach Manuel Pellegrini. Many say that if he can't pull Madrid out of this, his job is up for grabs. The truth is that the Real Madrid team are in fact, not a team. They rely on CR9 too much and don't gell very well. However, this weekend's home match against Getafe is their's for the taking.

Los Che have finally gotten their start-stop kick off to the season under way. After drawing to Barca they swept aside Almeria. They seem to have finally gained some momentum in their quest for a European Spot. They were delivered a blow after recieving news that star man David Villa will be banned for 2 of their EUROPA Cup matches. Also constant interest and speculation about their players futures seem to dominate the headlines. Hopefullt they can put all this aside and continue to challenge Madrid and Barca.

TOP GOAL SCORERS

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barca)        7

David Villa (Valencia)               7

Pandiani (Osasuna)                   6

Lionel Messi (Barca)                 6

C. Ronaldo (Real Mardid)         5

Player Watch: Karim Benzema

Name: Karim Benzema

D.O.B: 19 December 1987

Position: Striker

Honours:

2004: UEFA European U-17 Football Championship (France U-17)

04/05; 05/06; 06/07; 07/08 – Ligue 1 (with Lyon)

2006 & 2007: Trophèe des Champions (with Lyon)

2007: Peace Cup (with Lyon)

2008: Coup de France (with Lyon)

2007-2008: Ligue 1 Top Scorer

2007-2008: Ligue 1 Player of the year

2007-2008: Ligue 1 Team of the Year

January 2008: UNFP Player of the month

2008: Bravo Award

Benzema recently became one of the Galacticos, after Real Madrid signed him from Lyon over the summer for €35 million. The Frenchman is tipped to become one of Real Madrid’s brightest stars. He will however, have to fight for the spotlight, as fellow Galacticos Kakà and Ronaldo are quite well known themselves;-)

Born and raised in Lyon, Benzema was part of the Olympique Lyonnais Academy. During his academy days, he was sought after far and wide by many a club. He eventually made his first team debut for Lyon in 2005 and signed his first professional contract with the club. In 2007 Benzema was given the no. 10 shirt and responsibility of lone striker.

Benzema played in all of the French youth team, from the U-16 category onwards. He was part of theU-17 squad that won the European Football Championship for that age group. In March 2007, Benzema made his international debut for France. He was eligible to play for Algeria, the country of his parents, but chose the French national team.

With four Ligue 1 titles under his belt, Benzema looked for a new challenge. Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal were options, all willing to part with their cash for the services of this youngster. However, one team was in the heart of Benzema, it was always his desire to one day don the white of Real Madrid. He signed for Los Blancos in the summer of 2009. He scored in his debut match against Shamrock Rovers in the pre-season. Not likely to scoop the award this year, but he confesses that one of his ambitions is to someday win the Ballon d’Or like fellow countrymen Zinedine Zidane and Raymond Kopa.

Player Watch: Andrey Arshavin

Name: Andrei Sergeyevich Arshavin

D.O.B: 29 May 1981

Nationality: Russian

Club: Arsenal

Position: Midfielder

Honours:

2006 – Russian Footballer of the Year

2007 – Top Assist in the Russian Premier League

2007/2008 – UEFA Cup Top Assist

2008 – Included in the EURO 2008 Team of the Tournament

April 2009 – Premier league Player of the month

March & April 2009 – Arsenal Player of the month

Arshavin began playing football at the tender age of 7, when he was enrolled in the academy of FC Zenit St. Petersburg. He made his way through the youth ranks and debuted for the first team in 2000. In 2007 he helped Zenit St. Petersburg lift the Russian Premier League trophy. He also led the club to EUFA Cup and EUFA Supercup glory. In early 2008 interest from several European giants started to grow. Zenit turned down offers from FC Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspurs and Newcatle United. In January 2009, Zenit, in the last minute of the transfer deadline, finally accepted an offer from Arsenal.

He made his debut for his new club against Sunderland on the 21/02/09 and hasn’t looked back since then. Who can forget the 4 goals he scored at Anfield last season in the 4-4 draw?

For the Russian National Team, he debuted in May 2002 and was named captain in June 2009. He featured in the EUFA EURO 2008, which saw the Russian National Team steamroll into the Semis, only to be knocked out by Spain. He was named in the Team of the Tournament.

Arshavin’s versatile nature comes in handy for both Russia and Arsenal, due to his ability to play in several positions. He can play down the centre, as an assistant striker or as a winger.

This is Arshavin’s second nomination for the Ballon d’Or, having been nominated last year.

Ballon D'Or Nominees

A couple weeks ago, Ballon d’Or nominees were announced. 30 European based players have been short-listed for this prestigious award. The nominees are:

Andrey Arshavin (Arsenal)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Diego (Juventus)
Didier Drogba (Chelsea)
Edin Dzeko (Wolfsburg)
Samuel Eto’o (Inter Milan)
Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)
Fernando Torres (Liverpool)
Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid)
Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
Ryan Giggs (Manchester United)
Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux)
Thierry Henry (Barcelona)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona)
Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)
Julio Cesar (Inter Milan)
Kaka (Real Madrid)
Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
Maicon (Inter Milan)
Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Luis Fabiano (Seville)
Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)
Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
John Terry (Chelsea)
Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United)
David Villa (Valencia)
Xavi (Barcelona)
Yaya Toure (Barcelona)

La Liga, Spain’s Primera Division has the most nominees with 12 players based in Spain nominated. The next is the Premier League with 10 nominees and only 4 coming from Serie A. The winner is voted by France Football Magazine and will be announced of the 1st December 2009.


Over the next few weeks I will be profiling several of the nominees. Watch this Space...

Cristiano Ronaldo: last years winner

Carling Cup: Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool

Another disappointing night for Liverpool. Just when we thought they had finally found their rhythm this season, they were dealt a heavy reality check. The Arsenal “Young Guns” put on a spectacular show of football. One can only imagine the bright future that lies ahead for this club.




The match was fast paced and exciting. A good show of football all round. Rafa Benitez fielded what looked like his reserve side. Babel has still not found form. I could count the few times he didn’t loose the ball on one hand. Besides missing an open shot on goal, the most he did for the match was win a corner or two. He made a mess of most of his balls, leaving his teammates to clear up after him. Skrtel was impressive in defence as well as Kyrgiakos. It baffles me as to why Benitez didn’t start Yossi for this match. Maybe he took it too lightly. Seeing as though the chances of winning any silverware this season seem slim, one would think the Carling Cup could be a good opportunity to lift a trophy. Aquilani made his Liverpool debut. I was thoroughly impressed with what I saw. The Italian showed excellent vision and ball control. I have high hopes for him and what he can bring to Liverpool. Some of the other Liverpool youngsters made their mark. Degen in particular got stuck in there and won balls. While Jay Spearing did a good job tackling and clearing the ball. There was a few shady decisions from the ref. One, a handball appeal which i felt should’ve been given to Liverpool. However, that said, I feel Liverpool were outplayed by Arsenal. The Gunners played beautiful possession football, and i feel theý along with Chelsea are the English teams to watch this season. The moment of the match was Insua’s equalizer. What a beauty. A goal Steven Gerrard would be proud of. Its Arsenal into the quarter-finals after a well deserved win.



Goals: Fran Merida (Arsenal) , Insua ( Liverpool) & Bendtner (Arsenal)

Fran Merida celebrates his goal

Let's Talk Tactics: Formations

4-4-2

4 defenders, 4 midfielders, 2 strikers

The 4-4-2 is probably the most popularly used formation by managers today. Sir Alex Ferguson utilized this formation in his treble winning Manchester United side. The weakness of this formation is the big gaps left between the defensive line and midfield; and the midfield and strikers. Also 2 strikers against 4 midfielders don’t really stand a chance. Hence, this formation relies heavily on the strength of the midfield. The central (or holding) midfielders will be required to deliver accurate passes to the strikers as well as lend support to the full-backs. With the midfield generally taking a more offensive stance, the team is usually left vulnerable in the counter attack. It is therefore regarded better to attack wide. Left and Right midfielders (or wingers) move down the flank and supplement the teams strike force and stretching the oppositions defence, opening up gaps for the strikers whilst doing so.

This formation is very adaptable and gives the team plenty of goal scoring options. The weakness is that it’s highly predicable. However, if a team has a well-built midfield, this formation can be utilized and tailor made to fit the team’s needs from a strong offense to a tough-to-crack defence.

Carling Cup Preview: Arsenal v Liverpool

Carling Cup action today sees two of the "Big Four" locking horns. Arsenal had to settle for only one point on the weekend after the Hammers came back in the last 15 min to score 2 goals to stun the Gunners. Liverpool on the other hand defeated the bitter rivals Manchester United quite comfortably 2-0. Both Wenger and Benitez are likely to give a couple of the youngsters a chance.

Arsenal

Midfielder Samir Nasri and Polish goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski are both back from injury and could start. Wenger is touted to start Philippe Senderos and Mikael Silvestre in defence. And Bendtner and Eduardo are likely to head the strike. Not likely to feature (due to injury) are: Tomas Rosicky, Denilson, Theo Walcott, Johan Djourou, Armand Traore

Liverpool

Mascherano is out after receiving a red card over the weekend against United. Torres is still not 100% fit so he is likely to be benched, and Spanish teammate Reira is still struggling with hamstring injury. Captain Gerrard is also still out and will not feature. Good news: Alberto Aquilani is tipped to make his debut after spending 6weeks recovering from a knee operation. In defense, Andrea Dossena and Sotirios Kyrgiakos are both available again.

GOALS!!

THIS IS ANFIELD!

lets not forget last season...

COME ON REDS!! MAKE US PROUD!!

Saturday Football Round-Up

Birmingham 2-1 Sunderland

Burnley 1-3 Wigan

Hull 0-0 Portsmouth

Tottenham 0-1 Stoke

Wolverhampton 1-1 Aston Villa 

Chelsea 5-0 Blackburn Rovers

Chelsea shot to the top of the Barclay's Premier League with a 5-0 thumping of Blackburn. Eyes will be on the Liverpool-United clash tomorrow, a win for United will see Chelsea drop to second. But for now, Ancelotti will be happy with the Blues display, after being shaken a bit with those loses to Villa and Wigan.

Spurs will be disappointed with their loss at home to Stoke. Whelan scored with 14 minutes left on the clock, the one goal enough to seal the deal. Spurs had more oppertunities in the game and could've topped the log if they managed the 3 points.

With United, Arsenal and City all with matches tomorrow, the EPL hasn't looked this tight in years. With Arsenal and City both having a potential 6 points, no team is guarenteed a "top 4"spot.

Atletico Madrid 1-1 Mallorca

Sporting de Gijon 0-0 Real Madrid

Sevilla - Espanyol

Atletico Madrid managed a draw under new boss Quique Flores. Diego Forlan's penalty in the 2nd half gave them the lead, but defiant Mallorca, down to 9 men scored in the 90th via Valero. Mallorca deserved the point, while its back to the drawing board for Los Colchoneros, who can't seem to get it right, even though they have a superb team on paper.

Sporting Gijon held real Madrid to a goalless draw. Madrid had the better of the chances, but all failed to materialse. They were without Ronaldo, Benzema, Higuain and van Nistelrooy. Raul was used as a lone striker, and it was perhaps their lack of depth that saw them sacrifice 2 points. Madrid and Barcelona are now both on 19 points, but Barca still has to face Zaragoza at home tomorrow.

Sampdoria 4-1 Bologna

Inter Milan 2-1 Catania

Sampdoria topped  Serie A briefly after a convincing win over Bologna. The Visitors got off to a better start, applying pressure with an early shot on goal and a corner. The home team's backline looked shakey,  however, once Sampdoria started controlling the ball more, they settled in and it was all one way.
Inter reclaimed their top spot a few hours later with a convincing win over Catania



 

THE BIG ONE

Vs

Football fans the world over will be glued to their screens at 14h00 GMT on Sunday the 25th October.

War-Cries will sound the walls of Anfield.

Its the Big One

Liverpool have been far from impressive this season, both domestically and in Europe. If they loose this one, it would be their worst start to a season in 56 years. If they win, they close the gap between United down to 4 points.

United will arrive in Liverpool on the wave of a 11 match winning streak. They are undefeated in Europe, and currently lead the EPL. However Liverpool at home is always a daunting task, and Benitez's Reds will fight fot these three points as though they're playing a final. Its now or never or never for Liverpool. Title hopes are dwindling and if they loose this one, the gap between them and the top will stretch to 10 points.

Liverpool defeated United last season in both legs. The Reds will try draw inspiration from that. Alot has been said about Michael Owens return to Anfield in a United shirt. There is no doubt that he will be met with hostility, however he performs on the occasion. As a Liverpool fan, I cannot forget the contributions Owen made to the team. He almost sigle handedly won the FA Cup in 2001.

Team News:

Liverpool:  Gerrard and Torres are still doubts for the match. Dossena, Aquilani, Kyrygiakos, Kelly and Reira are all injured.

Good news is Johnson is looking likely to make a comeback.

United:  Park is out with knee injury and Roooney and Fletcher are still doubtful. If Rooney is not fit to play, Owen will Surely start. giggs and Evra make a return.

FIXTURES

Saturday, 24 October 2009

Birmingham v Sunderland

Burnley v Wigan

Chelsea v Blackburn

Hull v Portsmouth

Tottenham v Stoke

Wolverhampton v Aston Villa

Sunday, 25 October 2009

Bolton v Everton

Liverpool v Man Utd

Man City v Fulham

West Ham v Arsenal

 

Saturday, 24 October 2009

Atletico Madrid v Mallorca

Sevilla v Espanyol

Sporting Gijon v Real Madrid

Sunday, 25 October 2009

Almeria v Valencia

Barcelona v Real Zaragoza

Getafe v Athletic Bilbao

Racing Santander v Osasuna

Tenerife v Xerez

Valladolid v Deportivo La Coruna

Villarreal v Malaga

Saturday, 24 October 2009

Inter Milan v Catania

Sampdoria v Bologna

Sunday, 25 October 2009

Atalanta v Parma

Bari v Lazio

Cagliari v Genoa

Chievo v AC Milan

Fiorentina v Napoli

Inter Milan v Catania

Palermo v Udinese

Roma v Livorno

Sampdoria v Bologna

Siena v Juventus

Champions League Round-Up

Real Madrid  2-3 Milan

FC Zurich 0-1 Marseille

Porto 2-1 APOEL

Chelsea  4-0 Atletico Madrid

Debrecen 3-4 Fiorentina

Liverpool  1-2 Lyon

Inter Milan 2-2 Dynamo

Barcelona 1-2 Rubin

Alkmaar  1-1 Arsenal

Olympiacos -2-1 Standard

Rangers 1-4  Unirea Urziceni

VfB Stuttgart 1-3 Sevilla

Surprising! Matchday 3 has been really nail-biting..

Manchester United and Chelsea contined their winning streaks, Alkmaar stole a point from Arsenal and Real Madrid and Liverpool were humbled at home. The biggest upset was probably the fall of the Mighty Barca and Nou Camp. In what was a far from convinving display, the Blaugrana were swept aside by the Russians. Their team looked fatugued from the international break. After their draw to Valencia at Mestalla over last weekend, Pep Guardiola's men no longer look invincible. Group F sees Barca, Dynamo and Rubin all on 4 points and Inter at the bottom with 3 (after drawing to Dynamo). Who would've thought?

Liverpool's woes have increased, after loosing to Lyon, they will struggle to get out og the group. Sitting in 3rd in Group E, with their next two matches away, Benitez's men will need a miracle or two..

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PREVIEW!

 20 October 2009

Liverpool - Lyon

Debrecen - Fiorentina

Barcelona - Rubin

Inter - Dynamo Kyiv

Rangers - Unirea Urziceni

Stuttgart - Sevilla

Olympiacos - Standard

AZ - Arsenal

Liverpool need a win after their previous defeat to Fiorentina. They currently sit in 3rd position in their group.  Also, dropping 3 points this last weekend against Sunderland would surely have dented the priemership chances. Benitez would be desperate to raise the morale of the team. Steven Gerrard is set to make a return to the team, while Liverpool will be without Torres, who is still recovering from an adductor injury that he picked up while on duty. It is going to be a tough one for 'Pool, but with the home advantage€, hopefully they can come away with the much needed 3 points

Inter host Dynamo Kiev after having picked up only 2 points in the champions league campaign thusfar. Eto'o is expexted to start after missing Saturday's match, however, Milito and Motta look doubtful. Although Dynamo have been in impressive form in the Ukrainian League, I feel Inter at the San Siro will be too much of a challenge for them.

Barcelona are expected to win their fixture at the Nou Camp. They currently top their group after defeating  Dynamo Kiev 2-0 in their last game. Lionel Messi and Pedro were the goal scorers that night. Messi has come under alot of fire recently for performing below average for Los Albicelestes. And in Barcelona's goaless draw against Valencia, he was also targeted by the Spanish press as underperfroming. Henry is out after suffering a thigh injury while on international duty with France.

Arsenal have won both of their opening matches and lead their group. Az have only lost one match at home in European tournaments, they will be relying on home support to give them a boost, after managing just one point in from their 2 opening matches.

21 October 2009

 Bordeaux v Bayern Munich

CSKA Moscow v Man Utd

Chelsea v Atletico Madrid

FC Porto v Apoel Nicosia

FC Zurich v Marseille

Juventus v Maccabi Haifa

Real Madrid v AC Milan

Wolfsburg v Besiktas

Weekend Fixtures!

03/10/2009 (Saturday)

Bolton v Tottenham

Burnley v Birmingham

Hull v Wigan

Man Utd v Sunderland

Wolverhampton v Portsmouth

04/10/2009 (Sunday)

Arsenal v Blackburn

Chelsea v Liverpool

Everton v Stoke

West Ham v Fulham

The talking point this weekend will surely be Chelsea vs Liverpool. Chelsea lost to Wigan last weekend for the first time this season. While Liverpool is still licking their wounds after their 2-0 Champions League defeat to Fiorentina. Whoever wins this match will most likely be 2nd place in the Premier League. Chelsea's excellent start this season will make them the favourites for this one, but Rafa's Reds willl fight tooth and nail to not drop anymore points.

Team News

• 
  
  Liverpool:               Mascherano looks to make a return after being sidelined with a hamstring problem. Dossena is out with an injury. Agger could make a return.
  
  
  

• 
  
  Manchester United:  Michael Owen will probably be sidelined after a heafty knock against Wolfsburg  on Wednesday. Berbatov will probably make the starting XI
  
  
  
• 
  
  Chelsea : Henrique Hilario will be in goal after Cech was redcarded last weekend. Drogba, Deco and Cole are all available.
  
  
  

03/10/2009

Tenerife v Deportivo

Barcelona v Almeria

Atletico Madrid v Zaragoza

04/10/2009

Sporting de Gijon v Mallorca

Getafe v Osasuna

Villarreal v Espanyol

Xerez v Malaga

Valladolid v Athletic Bilbao 

Racing v Valencia

Sevilla v Real Madrid

Team News:

• Real Madrid : Cristiano Ronaldo still seems to be a doubt for the match. Gago has also been sidelined for 3 weeks with injury. Arbeloa, Metzelder and Diarra are all fit to return.
• Barcelona : Bojan returns after recovering from a muscle tear. Chygrynsky, Henry and Milito are still nursing their injuries and will probably not feature.
  

Champions league round-up: Mathday 2

Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Arsenal 2-0 Olympiakos
AZ 1-1 Standard Liege
Barcelona 2-0 Dynamo Kiev
Debrecen 0-4 Lyon
Fiorentina 2-0 Liverpool
Rangers 1-4 Sevilla
Rubin Kazan 1-1 Inter Milan
Unirea Urziceni 1-1 VfB Stuttgart



Wednesday, 30 September 2009
AC Milan 0-1 FC Zurich
Apoel Nicosia 0-1 Chelsea
Bayern Munich 0-0 Juventus
Bordeaux 1-0 Maccabi Haifa
CSKA Moscow 2-1 Besiktas
FC Porto 2-0 Atletico Madrid
Man Utd 2-1 Wolfsburg
Real Madrid 3-0 Marseille


Barcelona 2-0 Dynamo Kiev



Fioentina 2-0 Liverpool


Real Madrid 3-0 Marseille

Manchester United 2-1 Wolfsburg

Messi's renews his contract with Barca...

Messi signed a new deal with FC Barcelona that will keep him at the Camp Nou till 2016!
He is now the best ever paid player in Barcelona's history. His buy-out clause is set at around 225 million pounds, he is estimated to earn 180 000 pounds a week! Barca was eager to renew his contract after much interest shown in him from the likes of Man City, Inter Milan, and even bitter rivals Real Madrid. Barca renewed the contracts of midfielder Xavi and goalkeeper Valdes this summer, and is set to hold talks with Iniesta soon. The future is looking good for the Blaugrana!

Weekend Fixtures!

Saturday, 19 September 2009

Arsenal v Wigan

Aston Villa v Portsmouth

Bolton v Stoke

Burnley v Sunderland

Hull v Birmingham

West Ham v Liverpool

Sunday, 20 September 2009

Chelsea v Tottenham

Everton v Blackburn

Man Utd v Man City

Wolverhampton v Fulham

LA LIGA:

Saturday 19 September 2009

Mallorca v Tenerife

Deportivo - Espanyol

Osasuna - Sevilla

Barcelona - Atletico Madrid

Sunday 20 September 2009

Zaragoza - Valladolid

Malaga - Racing

Athletic Bilbao - Villarreal

Almeria - Getafe

Real Madrid - Xerez

Valencia - Sporting de Gijon

SERIE A:

Saturday, 19 September 2009

Napoli - Udinese

Juventus - Livorno

Sunday, 20 September 2009

Chievo - Genoa

Parma - Palermo

Bari - Atalanta

Cagliari - Inter Milan

Sampdoria - Siena

Milan - Bologna

Catania - Lazio

Roma - Fiorentina