Antonio Valencia – BRITISH SOCCER {DIVA}

The Nightmare Before Christmas…

Tis’ the season to be jolly. Or is it?

If you are a Manchester United fan, it feels more like the nightmare before Christmas than a holly, jolly holiday.

When it comes to English football, Manchester United have long been the epicenter of success over the last 20 years. And like Margaret Thatcher many moons ago, United have ruled with an iron fist for so long, it’s almost strange to think how life would be if their prolific reign came to a dramatic end.

Success in sports is cyclical and following Manchester United’s shocking exit from the Champions League at the hands of Swiss side FC Basel, coupled with the 6-1 thrashing at Old Trafford courtesy of “noisy neighbours” Manchester City, you could argue the football tide is turning. Is this going to be a season where United win nothing?

When the season started, nobody expected Manchester United to fail so miserably in the Champions League. They had one of the easiest groups of any big team in Europe and their failure to qualify for the last 16 was as shocking as seeing Mike Tyson hit the canvas in Tokyo back in February of 1990. Tyson was so good, you never thought he could lose. And Manchester United have been so good for so long, a defeat to FC Basel wasn’t something the fans or media were expecting.

Mentally, I don’t believe they have yet recovered from that horrific 6-1 loss to their biggest rivals. There is no doubt Sir Alex Ferguson is one of the best managers ever. He will go down in history as a managerial pioneer of the modern game. From tactics, to mind games and handling the media, he has provided a master class for all to enjoy. But, his overall demeanour of late has not been the same and I truly believe the epic loss to Manchester City felt like a death to him and he might well still be in his grieving period.

To hear Sir Alex Ferguson apologise to fans following their loss to Crystal Palace at home in the Carling Cup was shocking. Yes they fielded a weaker team, but they still had the likes of Park Ji-Sung, Antonio Valencia, Darron Gibson and five other international players on the pitch. Regardless who plays, United look a shadow of the team we’ve seen in recent years. And let’s be honest, some of Sir Alex Ferguson’s recent team selections, especially in the Champions League have been questionable.

Granted it takes United a while to heat up their season and they are where they usually would be around this time of year. The difference however is that they are playing so much worse than they normally would at this stage. There is very little creativity in midfield and their inability to replace Paul Scholes following his retirement is clearly evident on the pitch. Yes Tom Cleverley is a wonderful young player, but how did he become so integral to their midfield after only just starting in the first team this season? Hernandez hasn’t yet captured the dizzy heights he reached last season and Rooney’s incredible start has come to a grinding halt.

Even with Nemanja Vidic in defense and the emergence of hugely talented players like Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, United still appear extremely vulnerable at the back. Rio Ferdinand is an aging defender who has lost his pace and the overall inconsistency of not playing the same group of players together more often has definitely hurt them. They also have issues with David de Gea in goal. He cost a lot of money when he came from Atletico Madrid and he continues to make expensive mistakes that should not come with an almost 19 million pound price tag.

You can never write off Manchester United, but it’s hard not to flirt with the idea this season. They are just not good enough and their history and pedigree shouldn’t be a reason to diffuse the critics opinions about the current state of the club. There’s no doubt one should beware of the wounded animal, but right now, Manchester United can barely compete with Newcastle, let alone Barcelona, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich.

The mighty have definitely fallen and we have yet to see Sir Alex Ferguson overcome too much adversity in his illustrious career with the greatest of the Manchester clubs. He’s rattled by City and for the first time in a long time, his magic wand has eluded him in European competition too.

It probably won’t be too long before Manchester United are back to their usual best. But for now, it’s the turn of their fans to suffer in a football nightmare and just before Christmas too…

Heaven, I’m in heaven…

gods-sunshine Finally, the agonizing wait is over. The greatest show on earth is back. The passion, the agony and the ecstasy of the Premier League is already in full swing. I loved every single second of opening weekend. How was it for you?

Manchester United put in a reliable performance, Chelsea were predictable, Liverpool looked unsavoury and Arsenal were sublime. Of the other teams challenging to break into the top 4…Tottenham looked impressive, Manchester City dazzled for about 10 minutes and Aston Villa were woeful. Now seeing as this is only week one, we won’t get too carried away with what we’ve seen thus far. Remember how we all thought Deco would be another Zola after Chelsea’s first game last season? Well I’m sure we don’t want to make mistakes like that again as we kick-off the 2009/10 campaign. But as fans, we can’t help ourselves in saying what we see, even if it is just week one!

So here’s what I saw and we’ll start with last season’s top 4…if Arsenal can sustain that type of play throughout the season then they have the ability to carve-up any team in the Premier League and I’m even going to say they looked as good as Barcelona when they are at their best. Vermaelen looks like a great signing and Gallas seemed to play exceptionally comfortably with him. Fabregas and Denilson were on fire and Bendtner shined playing on the right for the Gunners. We know Everton aren’t that crap. But are Arsenal really that good?

Hull were very unlucky. Chelsea got very lucky. 6 minutes of injury time. Really referee? Despite that, you can’t deny Drogba his free-kick winner in the dying minutes. Drogba was Chelsea’s best player. It’s as though he’s playing to redeem himself from the disgusting outburst he had during last year’s Champions League semi-final. If he’s going to play like this all season, he could be the key to the Blues success. Can Drogba deliver this year? For Hull, it could be another struggle. I can see why Michael Turner is attracting the likes of Liverpool. He was a rock for Hull and by far their best player. Does anyone else ever mistake him for Michael Dawson though? Can you say twins?

Manchester United already missed Ronaldo in their first game of the season. Who wouldn’t? He’s one of the world’s best players. Sir Alex Ferguson has said it’s going to be tough without him. And it might well be for United as they defend their title. New signing Antonio Valencia had a solid home debut and Berbatov’s touch at time was exquisite. However, the main man for United this year will be Rooney. They need him to stay fit. Without him, they will struggle. Rooney could have an award winning type of season. The shackles are off. Watch him fly. Can Rooney be a sensation? Do you see United winning 4 in a row?

Not to hit the panic button just yet, but Liverpool didn’t look good at all. There was no invention in their play and it felt as though Alonso was missing from that midfield. Torres and Gerrard were rusty and Benitez should have played Benayoun from the beginning. Babel just can’t cut it and he gave another poor performance. Glen Johnson had a great debut for the reds and was the reason they won that penalty. Benitez might need to buy a couple more players before the transfer window ends. And he needs Aquilano to get fit as soon as possible. Can Liverpool mount a challenge this season?

Now to the top 4 wannabees…Tottenham rolled over Liverpool and looked more like title contenders in this first game. From defense to attack, they dominated and made Liverpool look like a very average Premier League team. Modric, Huddlestone and King controlled the game. Defoe looks ready to rumble. Ekotto is establishing himself as an elite player and Lennon could still use some refnining. Is it me or does Huddlestone remind you of Hoddle? And if it wasn’t for his bum knees, could Ledley King oust Terry or Ferdinand from the England squad?

Manchester City, the new billionaire boys club of the Premier League got off to a great start. Don’t let the score fool you though. Blackburn put up a good fight and could have taken a point from the game. There’s no question Adebayor was flying from the word go, but for me it was the likes of Gareth Barry and Shaun Wright-Phillips that were at the heart of everything good for City. Mark Hughes still has a lot of work to do. They still look suspicious in defense and once again, Robinho had another average game. You can’t help but wonder how this team will react in a moment of adversity. I can see them tearing each other apart. Can you?

Notable mention of course goes to Wigan for a superb start beating Villa. Note to all Wigan fans…just remember how good a start Hull City made last season! And this is just week one. See…I told you it was too hard to keep the ole’ gob shut. Heaven, we’re in heaven…

He’s a blue devil now…

Join_us_280x390_845842a Here it is. The picture Manchester United fans didn’t want to see. Former United heroes Mark Hughes and Carlos Tevez proudly show-off the blue shirt of Manchester City to celebrate Tevez joining the team. If I were a United fan I’d be gutted. It would feel like someone just stabbed me in the heart. Of all the teams in all the land, did Tevez have to join City! What a dagger!

Carlos Tevez will be a superstar at Manchester City. He will be the main man. He will get everything he wanted at United and more. And Tevez wants to prove Sir Alex Ferguson wrong. Signing for City is a calculated move. It’s also a move about money of course, but why not twist the knife while you’re trying to make your point. Will Sir Alex regret this one?

United have now lost two world class players in Ronaldo and Tevez. They have signed Michael Owen from Newcastle, Antonio Valencia from Wigan and Gabrielle Obertan, a relative unknown from Bordeaux. Now these are not the superstar names United fans were expecting to see swing through the Theater of Dreams doors this summer. But if Sir Alex pulls this off, it will be the shrewdest bit of business he’s done in a while. The man has done it before with his 1990’s so-called team of kids (Giggs, Neville, Beckham) and he can certainly do it again.

So be patient United fans. Let the new season start before you start throwing the same daggers Tevez did.