Disaster on a nuclear scale…

implosionCall in the emergency services. Arsenal need saving. Their season has been as disastrous as a nuclear explosion. They went up in smoke against Manchester United last night. The Champions League was the trophy they really wanted. Didn’t look that way on the pitch. It was men versus school boys in both legs against United. Ronaldo, Rooney and co. tore the Arsenal children apart. Arsenal fans are hurting across the universe this morning. 

They lost another crucial semi-final to another top four Premier League team. The gulf between the Gunners, Manchester United and Chelsea is even more evident now. They just can’t compete at the highest level with the squad they have. The board should give Donald Trump or Alan Sugar a call so they can line-up these so-called stars for some firing! 

What would you do with Arsenal if you were manager? Who would you go after in the transfer market? Does Wenger have the power to entice big names to the Emirates after another trophyless season.

Out of the Champions League, out of the F.A. Cup and out of the Premier League. What a disaster…

Ba Ba Barcelona…

Spain Soccer La LigaFor Real Madrid, Saturday’s game against Barcelona was more El Miserablo than El Clasico. For a brief second, it looked like both teams could score lots of goals. But in the end, it was the Catalan Kings that had their happy fans singing well into Sunday morning.

Let’s not beat around the corner flag here people..Barcelona gave their rivals an absolute beating. Raul and co. are probably still applying ailment to help ease the pain after the many lashings they received. Barcelona were sensational. Henry’s performance was vintage Arsenal and Messi was sublime and brilliant as usual. But Xavi and Iniesta tore the Real Madrid midfield apart and proved once again why they are two of the best players in the world. They carved- up Diarra, Gago and Robben like a Christmas turkey and slice by slice we devoured their perfect display of beautiful football. I was stuffed at full-time but could have had plenty more if they were willing to serve it up. Wow.

Next is the Champions League semi-final agains Chelsea. Should the Blues be afraid of getting a football whipping on Wednesday? Will their physical strength see them through to the final in Rome? Will Barcelona choke? Can anyone beat them? Soak it up footie fans. This is the beautiful game at it’s beautiful best and we’ll all be watching.

Legend Peter Schmeichel…

schPeter Schmeichel was a goalkeeping gladiator. He was formidable. He was a giant. He was almost impossible to score against. Opponents feared him. United fans loved him. They knew if they had the great Dane in goal, they could beat anyone. As quickly as he would make a save, he would distribute the ball to a hungry Manchester United player and make a goal.

Schmeichel was more than just a goalkeeper. He was a player, captain and manager out on the field. He would bark and yell directions at anyone who would listen. He didn’t care if it was Bruce, Pallister, Beckham, Giggs, Keane, or Cantona. He was a born winner and understood what it took to achieve greatness. He was willing to put himself on the line with opponents and team mates. He was fearless.

Some critics have said he made some of his saves look a little more theatrical than they actually were. Isn’t that a little harsh considering Schmeichel won countless Premier League titles and the Champions League in a treble winning season with Man Utd? Oh and he also won the European Championship with Denmark in 1992. I don’t think Utd or Danish fans cared about his theatrical style. If anything, it added to his performances. He made the goalkeeping position exciting again. He was everything Bruce Grobbelaar wanted to be.

He was a huge part of Manchester United’s success in the 1990’s. He is without question a Premier League Legend. Does he deserve to be regarded as the best? Is there anyone better than him?

And the PFA award goes to…

giggsyRyan Giggs was named the PFA’s Player of the Year today. It’s the icing on the 20 year career cake for Giggsy. He’s twice been named as the Young Player of the Year, but he never won the big one. A lot of people in the media think he didn’t deserve to win as he only started 12 games for Manchester United in the Premier League this season. Most people think it should have gone to his United team mate Nemanja Vidic and that this was a heart string vote by his fellow professionals. One thing you can’t deny is his contribution to football and Manchester United. But that’s not what this award is about is it?

Not knowing if Giggs would return for more football next season, the PFA seem to have pulled an Academy Award type move by rewarding the great Welshman in a season that was definitely influential, but not necessarily his best. It’s a bit like the year when Paul Newman won Best Actor for the Colour Of Money. He’d been nominated so many times before for great movies and he’d never won. But in 1996, the Academy were bitten by the nostalgia bug and before anyone could say “and the award goes to…”, the statuette was already on proud display in Paul Newman’s downstairs bathroom.

Is Ryan Giggs the Paul Newman of football? Do you thinks Giggs deserved it this year? Was he named PFA Player of the Year because of his legend? It’s undeniable he’s one of the best talents the Premier League has seen. But should this have been Steven Gerrard’s year?

Where’s the love for Lampard..?

389016-50474lampard_large-797999There’s no question Frank Lampard is a world-class footballer. So why doesn’t he get the love he deserves for his achievements? Sure he’s struggled for England over the last few years, but what English footballer hasn’t struggled playing for their country? If Lampard played for Manchester United or Liverpool or was an Italian, French or Brazilian national, would he not be in the running for player of the year every year?

Five Manchester United players (yes that’s five) and one Liverpool player have been nominated for PFA Player of the Year. Edwin van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic all deserve their nominations for the team’s defensive record. And Ryan Giggs has been an inspiration for the team showing composure and leadership. Has he played enough games though? Cristiano Ronaldo has come into form late in the season, but I’m not sure he deserves to be in the running for #1 again. Steven Gerrard is the only non-United player and he has certainly lifted Liverpool’s spirits this season has they pursue the Holy Grail…the Premier League title.

But what about Lampard? I think he’s beome a far more important player to Chelsea than John Terry. And after Deco was wheeled in during the summer, there was so much speculation about Lampard’s future. He always knew where he wanted to play and he signed a new contract, proving once again his love and passion to play for Chelsea (and the money was great)! He’s worth every penny because he is the man that makes the Blues tick. He scores around 20 goals every season and he works hard around the park for his team. Chelsea can afford to lose Ballack, Cole or Mikel, but when they lose Lampard, they lose a piece of their identify and drive.

Over the last year or so, Lampard has also shown that in adversity, he has the mental strength to fight on and prove he’s one of the best. As well as Chelsea’s woes this season, he’s had a very difficult time personally as he continues to deal with the death of his mother and the break-up of his relationship to long-term partner Elen Rives. But his will to win, coupled with his leadership and style of play has helped drag the millionaire maestros to an F.A. Cup final and a Champions League semi-final. And all that in a so-called poor season for Chelsea. I think it’s high-time someone showed him the love…

How many fingers am I holding up…?

picimg_premier_league_arshavin_11c2What a night at Anfield! Liverpool 4 – 4 Arsenal. It was breathtaking to watch. We saw beautiful football and ugly mistakes too. The star of the show was undoubtedly Andrei Arshavin. The wee Russian is going to be a superstar at Arsenal. If all goes well for him at the club, he could become a legend.

Scoring 4 goals against Liverpool is ridiculous. And they weren’t just average goals. Shifting left, moving right, Arshavin was like a Ninja as he darted through the Liverpool midfield and defense all night long. He had them all quaking in their personally designed football boots! 

If you are an opponent, you need antibiotics to help you get over the sick talent he displays over 90 minutes. He leaves competitors with aches and pains as he runs them ragged during a game. They sweat and call for their mummy’s when they are in pain late at night. Arsene Wenger on the other hand can sleep like an angel knowing he spent well in the January transfer window. If only you had played him in the F.A. Cup Semi-Final against Chelski…

Red card…

baldrefwithredcardArsene Wenger gets a red card for not playing Nasri and Arshavin in the F.A. Cup Semi-Final against Chelsea. Even though the Gunners started the first 20 minutes well, the manager’s team selection caught up with him eventually.

There was no creativity. There was no danger. There was no width. There was no Arsenal. Fabregas went missing and Walcott just couldn’t make things happen for the team. Diaby and Song are not the answer in midfield. Arshavin and Nasri could have dictated that game given the chance but Wenger chose to be negative when he loves playing positive football. Instead it was Chelsea playing the delicious football.

Arshavin would have relished the stage of Wembley. He has been a sensation since arriving at Arsenal. He has truly lived up to the value of his transfer. If only he could play in the Champions League…Nasri has started to show his ability in midfield and he’s grown in confidence over the last few months. They are both such talents with the ability to change the game and Mr.Wenger had them sitting on the bench.

It’s a straight red I’m afraid sir…

Come on England, Come on England…

_41379954_threelionsbadge2201Start looking into deals for South Africa kids. England made it 5 out of 5 wins in the World Cup Qualifiers by beating the Ukraine 2-1 at Wembley. Skipper John Terry scored a late winner to help guide the team one step closer to South Africa. Could this be the time? Could this be our fate? Capello has got England playing like champs. We’ve looked special throughout the group stages and even when we’ve been less than special, we’ve won! Sven and McLaren found it hard to win when we played like a pub team. Good job they’re not in charge anymore!

The Italian maestro is conducting his orchestra beautifully. The English players trust him. They want to succeed. He can give them success and they are willing to do it his way to fulfill their boyhood dreams. Who would you take on the non-commercial flight out to South Africa. Who deserves a shot at kissing the World Cup? Pack ’em or Leave ’em? It’s never too early to start the fantasy…

Who said timeshares were a thing of the past..?

42-15534303Grab your passports and shades. The timeshare is back people. I mean if fashion and style guru David Beckham
is doing it, surely it’s cool right? Um…actually, unless it’s a
Marriott type of deal, you really don’t want to be in the timeshare
business at all.

Think about it though. Wouldn’t it be great if we could all do that with our jobs? How do you guys think that conversation would go exactly…”Er hello boss. Listen I know I signed a contract to head-up your marketing department for a couple of years, but this other company that thinks I’m hot shit too would also like to employ me and I think it would help my career if I worked for you both. I won’t be long…just 6 months and then I’ll be back here knocking it out of the park again. Sound good? Hello..hello…hello..”

Well unless you are David Beckham, the likely hood of that little fantasy playing out is well below zero! I guess the only thing we have to be thankful for is that this back-and-forth is over…for now. Do we really think Becks will be back in Los Angeles in June to play for the Galaxy? Something tells me the only way we’ll see his behind this summer is if he’s vacationing and watching the Lakers go far into the NBA play-offs.

Legend Alan Shearer…

shearerHe played for Southampton, Blackburn and Newcastle. He was captain of the England football team. He scored goals…lots of goals. He was built like a Hummer. So strong, physically and mentally. The chants were simple. The name was clear. Shearer, Shearer, Shearer. 

Alan Shearer will go down as one of the greatest English strikers to have played the beautiful game. When he made a choice to leave Southampton, he decided to join Jack Walker’s revolution at Blackburn Rovers and at the time, he cost a record-breaking 3.3 million pounds. Loose change in the transfer market these days! Surprisingly, Shearer won the title with Blackburn in the 1994-95 season. He never won it again.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson tried to buy Alan Shearer twice. Once from Southampton and then from Blackburn. Instead of joining the Red Devils after a successful Euro 96 campaign with England, Shearer followed his heart and chose to join his boyhood club, Newcastle United. He wanted to go and play football for his hero Kevin Keegan. Perhaps he should have followed his head instead of his heart. Shearer won nothing at Newcastle. The 1996-97 season was particularly a harsh one for him. With the team 11 points clear over their rivals Manchester United, they imploded and lost the title. Shearer was also a losing finalist in the F.A. Cup…twice. In 1998, Arsenal destroyed his dream and in 1999, Manchester United dealt Shearer another dagger to the heart.

Regardless of the few medals he won, Shearer was a world class striker. He has scored more goals than any other player in the Premier League. He was a predator in front of that goal. Thank goodness for his title at Blackburn. Otherwise, Shearer could have been one of the greatest strikers to have played the game and won nothing. Where do you rank him?