Chelsea and Liverpool won their respective derbies comfortably on Sunday. While Chelsea beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates, Liverpool scrap a 2-0 win at Everton.

Sunday was always going to be ‘Judgment Day’ for the the sides from London and Liverpool. And both games witnessed equal amounts of action and drama.

Arsenal were always facing an uphill task against Chelsea as they lost out on van Persie, Clichy, Diaby and Gibbs through injury. Chelsea meanwhile welcomed Lampard back to their squad. Ancelotti’s men knew a victory would see them eleven points ahead of their city rivals.

After a mostly dogged first half where neither team created any meaningful chances Chelsea took the lead through Drogba on 41 minutes. Things got worse for Arsenal just before the break as a defensive mixup saw Vermaelen divert the ball into his own net.

The Gunners thought they had scored after 48 minutes but the goal was ruled out for a foul on Cech. However after that they failed to create any real chances. Drogba added further agony four minutes from time with a brilliant freekick.

After the game Arsene Wenger admitted that the loss was a ‘big blow’ to the team but refused to count them out of the title race. Arsenal now sit in fourth place on 25 points with Chelsea leading the table with 36.

Merseyside Derby

Earlier in the day the Merseyside derby saw Liverpool take on Everton at Goodison Park. Rafa Benitez’s men still showed signs of nervousness in a highly sketchy performance.

The Reds went ahead in the 12th minute after a Mascherano shot took a major deflection off Joseph Yobo. Everton however came back strongly after conceding early and created a host of chances.

Jo twice had the ball in the net but his efforts were ruled out for offside. Reina also saved Liverpool on a couple of occasions before Kuyt scored in 80th minute following a defensive mistake by Yobo.

The loss piled even more pressure on David Moyes and  his side as they lie only three points above the relegation zone. Liverpool on the other hand are now back in the top five two points behind fourth placed Arsenal.

United Dominate Portsmouth But City Continue Their Winless Streak

There was plenty of action in the seven games which were played on Saturday as well. Manchester United hammered Portsmouth 4-1 away thanks to a Wayne Rooney hat-trick. United’s fourth was scored by Ryan Giggs which was the Welshman’s 100th career goal for the Red Devils.

Rooney gave them the lead from the penalty spot in the 25th minute but just seven minutes later Portsmouth levelled through a penalty of their own. It was all square at half-time but that didn’t last long as three minutes after the restart Rooney scored his second.

Rooney stroked home another penalty and completed his hat-trick on 54 minutes. Giggs got his well deserved goal three minutes from time to complete a dominant performance by United.

United’s local rivals City had yet another torrid outing though as they drew their seventh game in a row. Shaun Wright Phillips gave them the lead in the 45th minute but Chris Bullard equalised from the penalty spot with eight minutes left.

This draw against Hull meant that the Sky Blues have not won in the league since late September. A draw next week will see them set a Premier League record and add further fuel to talks of Mark Hughes departure.

Round-Up

In other games from across the league last week’s heroes Tottenham were denied a victory by a rigid Aston Villa defence. The Lily Whites fell behind after just ten minutes to a Gabriel Agbonlahor strike. But Mark Dawson rescued a point for his team on 77 minutes. Tottenham desperately tried to get the winner but were expertly kept at bay by Villa.

Tottenham’s victims from last week, Wigan, restored some pride with a 1-0 win over Sunderland at home. West Ham had yet another entertaining encounter as they won 5-3 against Burnley. The Hammers went five goals ahead only to be pegged back later.

Fulham ended their game against Bolton with a goal apiece and Blackburn and Stoke played out a goalless draw. Birmingham City continued to impress as they made it five games unbeaten with a 1-0 win over Wolves.

That was the weekend that was.

1. Chelsea showed Arsenal what it takes to be champions elect yesterday with a lesson in how to blend skill with power. Up until the first goal Arsenal were in control without really doing anything, though Chelsea could have had a penalty for Sagna’s foul on Anelka. Then out of nothing Cole wasn’t closed down and a great cross came over for Drogba to finish clinically. The defending wasn’t the best. Sagna could have made a better attempt to prevent the cross from Cole and one of the centre backs could have cleared it but it was a great ball in.

A couple of minutes later an almost identical goal was scored. Cole again had time and space to put in a great ball from the left but this time it went in off Vermaelen who was expecting Gallas to clear it. Two quick goals before half time, game over. The second half was notable for Arshavin’s disallowed goal, Drogba’s free kick to wrap up the victory and nothing more.

The game showed exactly how far Arsenal have to go if they are to match Chelsea. Ancelotti’s team had height and strength all over the pitch as well as skill, overpowering Arsenal everywhere. Wenger was missing Van Persie, Bendtner and Diaby who all would have played in this game and perhaps made a difference. However you’d imagine that even with them on the pitch Chelsea would find have found a way to win.

For some reason there was a constant stream of hopeful crosses and medium length passes to the forward line of Arshavin, Nasri and Eduardo, who every time were beaten in the air by Terry & co. It changed a little in the second half but there were mainly lots of runs up blind alleys. Eduardo in particular looked well off the pace and badly needs a meaningful goal while Arshavin continued his peripheral form of this season. Walcott was poor when he came on and there are no true wingers at the clubs, instead lots of inside forward types.

I find it so hard to decide who I dislike more in this picture.

As for Drogba, Arsenal must be sick of him. Two great goals and an all action performance in tandem with Anelka. He now has 10 goals in 11 games vs Arsenal and has been directly the match winner six times.  I think Almunia should have done better with the third goal; his positioning was wrong (why move behind the wall?) and thus the ball was already in the net before he even reached with his dive.

Wenger can say the disallowed goal was pivotal but I disagree. As in the game against Man Utd, having all the possession is pointless if you can’t do anything with it. The reason why Chelsea and Man Utd have been the two top teams for the past few years is that they can soak up pressure and still win. Arsenal have yet to discover that method.

What you see and what you get.

2. Everton lost again and although there’s no shame in being beaten by Liverpool (actually…) you sense that perhaps Moyes has taken them as far as he can. That’s not to say he isn’t right for the job and the Scot has done wonders with the budget and constraints he has but maybe something needs freshening up.

Everton won’t reach the heights of the past few seasons and the constant long-term injuries to key players means a likely finish outside the top eight this year. With the Kirkby stadium plans rejected and no buyers for the club, the future looks a little uncertain at Goodison.

3. Is the clock ticking for Mark Hughes? Seven straight draws now. Funny how you can say they’re unbeaten in ten or without a win in seven. Hughes will no doubt slant to the former but I suspect the owners will be looking at the latter. Of the seven games (Villa A, Wigan A, Fulham H, Birmingham A, Burnley H, Liverpool A, Hull H), only Villa and Liverpool are truly tough games if you have real aspirations to be in the top four, and despite everything said otherwise that is the target. Somehow I don’t think Hughes will get a second attempt if he doesn’t achieve it this season in what is such an open year.

4. Hats off to Jimmy Bullard for the celebration of the season. In case you haven’t seen it, he gathered his teammates in a circle and mock scolded a la Tango Man last season. Ironically enough it was at the City of Manchester Stadium again. His return has been the main reason behind Hull’s resurgence and they may yet find themselves in a position like last where they weren’t very good but three teams were worse. He has brought a sense of fun back to the KC Stadium and fair play to Phil Brown for being able to see the funny side of Bullard’s celebration.

Genius.

5. One of those teams will be Wolves unless Mick McCarthy goes. It took a while but it’s now clear that either the players or the manager aren’t cut out for this level. Time for either to prove that’s not true.

6. Birmingham have been doing well of late. They have been hard to break down since the start of the season but Alex McLeish has realised that by adding an extra striker and playing 4-4-2 he is far more likely to rack up the points that will lead Birmingham to safety this season.

T.

Inilah hasil liga Inggris untuk pertandingan pekan ke 14 atau tanggal 29 november 2009.

29 november

jam 00:30 wib

ASTON VILLA vs TOTTENHAM HOTSPURT
1-1

jam 19:00 wib

WOLVERHAMPTON vs BIRMINGHAM CITY
0-1

jam 20:30 wib

EVERTON vs LIVERPOOL
0-2

jam 11:00 wib

ARSENAL vs CHELSEA
0-3

gol pada laga ini terjadi pada
menit ke :

>41 oleh DIDIER DROGBA (chelsea)
0-1

>45 oleh T.VERMAELEN (chelsea)
0-2

>86 oleh DIDIER DROGBA (chelsea)
0-3

The FA cup has already seen many upsets this season, with several non-league sides in the hat hoping for Premier League opposition. Heres what happened.

Tottenham Vs Peterborough

Brentford Vs Doncaster Rovers

Middlesborough Vs Manchester City

Stoke City Vs York City

Notts County Vs Forest Green

Huddersfield Town Vs West Brom

Sheffield United Vs Queens Park Rangers

Milton Keynes Vs Burnley

Chelsea Vs Watford

Nottingham Forest Vs Birmingham City

Preston North End Vs Colchester United

West Ham Utd Vs Arsenal

Aston Villa Vs Blackburn

Portsmouth Vs Coventry City

Sunderland Vs Oxford Utd/Barrow

Wigan Vs Hull

Everton Vs Carlisle Utd

Sheffield Wednesday Vs Crystal Palace

Tranmere/Aldershot Vs Wolves

Blackpool Vs Ipswich Town

Fulham Vs Swindon Town

Stockport/Torquay Vs Brighton

Scunthorpe Vs Barnsley

Southampton Vs Rotherham/Luton

Bristol City Vs Cardiff

Reading Vs Liverpool

Staines/Millwall Vs Derby

Plymouth Vs Newcastle

Leicester Vs Swansea

Bolton Vs Lincoln

Accrington/Barnet Vs Gillingham

Manchester Utd Vs Kettering/Leeds

Gameweek 14 reaches us as we start the middle third of the season. Week 13 saw few surprises though we did get the highest ever individual score. I made the error of having Fabregas as captain which I didn’t especially feel comfortable with but didn’t have many other options with Lampard and Drogba out injured, and Rooney out of form.

I did have David Dunn but didn’t fancy him due to two away games. In the event he proved me wrong. I regret not bringing in Bullard or Dempsey as I was looking at both pre-deadline. Sometimes it’s better to take the four point hit for the rewards it can bring. Don’t even get me started on having Thomas Sorensen’s 14 points left on the bench…

Gameweek 13 Top Gun (aka Tom Cruise Approves):

When I was looking back over the top scores from last week, I had a moment of panic when I thought there was a three-way 18 point tie for 1^st and I’d have to find another Top Gun character to join Maverick and Goose.

Then I remembered that someone called Jermain Defoe scored five goals against Wigan. Yes, the pint-sized striker scored a full handful of goals and picked up three bonus points. It might just be me but it almost feels like 25 points isn’t enough reward for such a feat. I guess that’s what happens with just four points for a striker’s goal. I’m sure the people who had him as captain weren’t complaining – 50 points was only two off my whole total for the week. Anyway, it’s the highest score ever from one game, even Ronaldo never got that.

As mentioned previously, following Defoe you had Dempsey Hunt and Lennon all with 18 points. The former two took advantage of playing twice while Lennon was the provider of three Defoe goals as well as getting one for himself in that 9-1 victory. A mention too for Michael Essien who scored 16 via two goals and his third man of the match award of the season.

Maverick should really be using all five hand digits to approve of Defoe's performance.

Three Captain Choices:

1. Adebayor/Man City – Every run has to come to an end and I think Man City might finally stop their run of six consecutive draws and beat Hull at home. Hull have picked up since Bullard’s return with two wins and a draw but they’re still leaky at the back while Adebayor scored his first goal in two months against Liverpool. He tends to feast on weaker defences, get bonus points when City play well and thus is a good shout for captain this weekend.

2. Drogba/Chelsea – The best defence faces the best attack this weekend as Chelsea face Arsenal at the Emirates on Sunday. Normally I wouldn’t suggest picking someone from this fixture but Drogba loves playing Arsenal and has terrorised them down the years. What scares me even more is that due to Gallas being doubtful, there’s a tiny, tiny chance we might see Big Phil Senderos make an appearance. I’m shuddering at the thought, Drogba owns him.

3. Rooney/Man Utd – Portsmouth at Fratton Park. Slightly trickier now that Pompey have Avram Grant newly installed but Rooney and Man Utd should still have more than enough to beat Portsmouth.

Gets a Captain's tick.

Three suggested transfers in:

1. Evra/Man Utd - The French left back has been putting together a good season and in his last few games has picked up and assist and three bonus points. Man Utd should be good for a clean sheet against Portsmouth and after that Man Utd face West Ham, Villa, Wolves and Fulham which should provide a few more opportunities.

2. Johnson or Dann/Birmingham - I’m sure many of you already Joe Hart in your team but why not add Roger Johnson or Scott Dann to your side too? The two centre backs were a newly formed partnership at the start of the season having both been signed from Championship clubs but have adapted to the Premier League well. Johnson is the pricier of the two and more likely to get bonus points but Dann is just £3.9m leaving you plenty of case for elsewhere.

3. Hunt/Hull - Some people’s form rating is skewed by one massive week whereas others are a bit more consistent. If Bullard is out of your price range then Stephen Hunt is a good option having scored five points or more in four of the last five gameweeks.

Might be worth a pick.

Three to avoid:

1. Everton players - They were woeful against Hull and have generally struggled this season. There have been bright spots like Baines and Saha but they have a tough three games (Liverpool, Spurs, Chelsea) coming up and then no fixture in week 17. Avoid for now.

2. Gibbs/Arsenal – Just as soon as he was becoming a cheap option while Clichy was out, he breaks a metatarsal and is now out for three months.

3. Owen/Man Utd - Just 24 points so far. The goal against Man City is literally the single good thing he’s done this season. Diouf, N’Gog and Ghilas all have more points. Having said that, what better opponent than Portsmouth to prove me wrong.

Are you taking the mick?

T.

Jadwal liga Inggris untuk pertandingan tanggal 28 dan 29 november 2009. Ini dia jadwalnya.

28 november

jam 22:00 wib

BLACKBURN R. vs STOKE CITY

FULHAM vs BOLTON WANDERERN

MANCHESTER CITY vs HULL CITY

PORTSMOUNT vs MANCHESTER UTD

WEST HAM UNITED
vs BURNLEY

WIGAN ATHLETIC vs SUNDERLAND

29 november

jam 00:30 wib

ASTON VILLA vs TOTTENHAM HOTSPURT

jam 19:00 wib

WOLVERHAMPTON vs BIRMINGHAM CITY

jam 20:30 wib

ARSENAL vs CHELSEA

big match THE GUNNER vs THE BLUES ! Mana yang kamu unggulkan?

Every Wednesday, from today until the end of time, my close friend and bitter foe Mad Adam is going to stop by and attempt to clarify his delusions of grandeur, dominance, and defeatism. He’s very complex. And, as you’ll soon find out, most of what he has to say comes out of his ass, but man, is he angry! And I’m not talking the kind of angry that can be aptly expressed with all caps and exclamation marks, or even simple declarations of anger… you’ll have to use your imagination a little. Picture the bright red face. Picture the popping veins. Picture the holes in the wall, the shattered remotes, the hospitalized “friends”. Now, multiply it by 386. That gets you halfway there. But here, we’ll let him explain it…

Hello everyone.  Allow me to introduce myself.  My name is Mad Adam.  That’s right, not Mad Hatter (Les Miles), Mad Max (Mel Gibson) or Mad Men (those booze swilling cats at Sterling Cooper).  No, just Mad Adam.

Why Mad Adam?  First, I have an anger control problem. This is particularly true when it comes to my sports teams.  I get mad when they let me down.  I get mad when they get screwed over.  I sometimes get mad even when things are going well. What can I say….I’m Mad Adam.  As a bonus, my name is a palindrome.  Don’t know that is? Look it up loser.  And while you are at it, send some hate mail to your language teachers who obviously let you down.

Now that I have revealed that much of my anger is centered on my favorite teams, I better let you in on who those teams are.  Warning, I grew up as a military brat, so I never stayed in a place long enough to pick a team based on geography.  So, I have a pretty disparate set of favorite teams (with the exception of my college team which is clearly a result of the totally awesome education I received at the undergraduate and law schools of the institution listed below).  So, in no particular order, here are the teams that matter most to me: New York Jets (last Super Bowl….1969, the roots of my anger begin to surface); Los Angeles Dodgers; Los Angeles Lakers; Manchester City Citizens (EPL soccer you morons); and of course, my beloved OU Sooners.  Looking for a hockey team?  Go (ice) fish.  Not a fun game to watch on TV.

My proclivity for temper tantrums does not end with my favorite teams.  I also get mad about betting on sports (i.e. placing bad bets, not the act of betting on sports which I am very much in favor of), bad calls, terrible commentators, incomprehensible TV twists, bad uniforms, those who don’t appreciate good music, politics, stupid fans, silly traditions, inane rules….you get the idea.  I am Mad Adam.

The gracious, yet logic deficient Ed Honcho, has asked that I occasionally drop by this site and let all of you know what I am currently mad about.  I appreciate the forum and the opportunity to vent.  I would be remiss if I did not kick things off with a mailbag devoted to my legions of fans and their questions.  So, without further ado, away we go…..

Q: Did you see the Patriots throw a deep pass with only 30 seconds to go this past weekend when they were up 31 – 14 on the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets? How did that make you feel? Cuz, I will tell you how it made me feel.  It made me feel like punching Tom Brady in his pretty face and defecating on Bill Belichik’s car.

- Francis Anastasio, Elizabeth, New Jersey

A: Francis, or can I call you Frank? No? OK. Francis, you could not be more right (except the part about shitting on his car, which is a tad bit weird). Not since Michael Bay decided to have “ghetto” robots in the newest Transformers movie have I seen such a brash and uncalled for decision.

What is he hoping to accomplish?  By kicking the Jets when they are down, does he hope to draw attention away from the most colossal coaching mistake in his career from the week prior against the Colts? By allowing a long pass to Randy Moss did he hope to show that Moss does in fact own Darrelle Revis? (if so, too bad, because Moss turned in a pedestrian 5 catches for 34 yards against my boy Revis).

Or is this just one more bully move by a guy that thinks he is God, but is in fact still the same a-hole that could not turn around the Browns and WHO WALKED OUT ON THE JETS IN 1999 A DAY AFTER TAKING THE HEAD COACHING JOB? What a loser. I HATE that guy. And, I really hate those spy-gate cheating, pretty boy Pats(ies).

Q: How are you feeling about the Lakers so far?

- Bonita Benson, Culver City, California

A: In a word….AWESOME.  So far, Khlomar has not been a distraction.  The return of Gasol has transformed the team.  Ron Artest is playing within the system and has not punched Nicholson in the face on his way down the court yet. And Kobe? Well, he is busy doing work.

Since the Lakers’ Western Conference coronation is all but assured, let’s turn to the more important issue.  Will those turd burgers from Boston make an appearance and get the whupping they deserved two years ago? As of this writing they are 10-4, and look pretty good (for a team in puke green adorned with a picture of a leprechaun sporting a vest, hat and bow-tie covered in freaking shamrocks).  I don’t want another beat-down on Orlando.  I want Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and “look at me I am yelling a lot, I must be really intense” Kevin Garnett to face the music like they did in 1985 and 1987 when Magic and crew beat Bird and his brigade of losers (like Kevin “the Armpits” McHale and Robert “Reefer” Parrish). SCREW THE CELTICS!

Q: When are you going to talk about the Sooners? Texas Tech destroyed Stoops and company and the crowd turned the House of Pain “Jump Around” into an anti-Sooner anthem.  And, don’t forget Capel’s b-ball team that got rocked by the VCU Rams, his former team.  Seriously, did you jump off a cliff this weekend?

- Rusty Jackson, Texhoma, Texas

A: I am typing out this response from the rather large ravine that I did indeed toss myself into after the collective DUMP THAT OU TOOK ON ME THIS WEEKEND.  This is the kind of showing that makes you want to give up sports.

That raises the issue.  Is it possible to really give up on your favorite team?  I say no.  The first time I ever tried to do it was when I was 8 years old and the Dodgers were on a serious losing streak. I declared that I was no longer a fan of Dodger blue and tried to become a Cincinnati Reds fan.  However, each morning when I would look through the box scores in the local paper I found my gaze straying from the Reds to find out what the Dodgers had done the night before. The reason?  If you are a true fan, you can NEVER give up on your team.  Even when they TEAR OUT YOUR HEART, LIKE OU DID TO ME THIS WEEKEND.

Did I kinda avoid answering your questions Rusty? You bet. Stay tuned, though, because if those goat loving, tobacco chewing troglodytes from Stillwater win Bedlam this weekend, then I may have to dedicate an entire column to how FREAKING BAD THIS OU FOOTBALL SEASON HAS REALLY BEEN.

Q: So, how about Les Miles and his clock management skills?

- Earl Papadeaux, Natchez, Louisiana

A: Oh, how I detest Les Miles.  What an overrated, egotistical, arrogant insipid little man crowned with an ill-fitting hat. How many times must he do something like this before Tiger Nation rises up and says enough is enough.  The LSU school newspaper, “The Daily Reveille” is calling for the firing of offensive coordinator Gary Crowton over this debacle.

First, “The Daily Reveille,” really? I had to look up “reveille” to even know what the students there are referencing.  It is a bugle call associated with the military.  So, the newspaper is a daily bugle call.   Whatever.

Second, firing the offensive coordinator is completely missing the point.  Did anyone see Les Miles’ patented “deer in headlights” look as the precious seconds ticked away in the game against Ole Miss? He was befuddled, bamboozled and flummoxed all at the same time. This man could not coach his way out of a paper bag when decisions that are tougher than what to eat after the game are on the line.  Speaking of food…

Q: Don’t you think that Mark Mangino is just mean, mean, mean!

- Dolores Bitterbottom, Mulberry, Kansas

A: Look, I have had my share of crude talking insensitive coaches.  Heck, it is really part of the job description as far as I can tell.  Reminds me of a funny story.  Ed Honcho and I used to have a baseball coach that referred to him as “Colonel Sanders” because he was too “chicken” to get down on the ball when fielding grounders in practice.  That was funny. What Mangino (allegedly) has been doing?  Not cool.

When a college student confides in a coach about his alcoholic father, that should remain between him and the coach. Same thing with a player that tells coach about his brother getting shot in the neighborhood he grew up in .  To use that information against the players is the sign of a man that has lost touch with reality.  He is not breaking players down and then building them up.  He is just breaking them.

While we are on the subject, I am wondering if any Jayhawk ever gave it back to the coach? In case they have not, and current Jayhawks are looking for some ideas, here is my humble proposal for a dialogue with Mangino:

Mangino – “Hey, stop loafing WR!  You keep that up and you will wind up on welfare and turning tricks in an alley for crack cocaine like that story about your mom you shared with me in a closed door meeting the other day.”

WR – “Hey Coach.  Here’s a thought.  Maybe you should drop your daily caloric intake by, I don’t know, maybe 40,000 calories.  Seriously, do you really need that entire rack of ribs to go with your 22 ounce steak, double cheese-burger and fried okra covered in brown gravy?  I’m just looking out for you.  Well, I am also looking out for the players that keep getting hit by one of your 17 chins when you move suddenly on the sideline.”

Q: How about Jimmy Clausen getting cold-cocked by an angry Irish fan at local bar?

- Gaye Barr, Elkhart, Indiana

A: This had to be the first time anything associated with the Irish was on target this whole season.  My only question is why not track down and punch Charlie Weis?  The guy is pushing 3 bills and his knees are shot.  There is no way he could get away quickly enough to avoid a total pummeling. (please note that Mad Adam, while prone to fits of anger, does not condone nor promote violence against athletes and/or coaches….you know, unless they really deserve it).

Q: As an unabashed fan of front-running, big money teams like the Lakers and Sooners, is it any surprise that you’ve recently declared yourself a Manchester City fan? And even though you’ll do your best to spin the answer, it’s mostly rhetorical, as the indisputable answer is “no.”

- Ed Honcho, Sunbathing on the French Riviera

A: Nice try Ed.  You are clearly trying to bait me into a fit of rage.  However, unlike Tila Tequila, I am not that easy.  You see, what you are failing to tell our readers is that it is “undisputable” that I became a fan of the Blues prior to September 2008 when Man City was purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group, making it the wealthiest club in the world.

Which means that I became a fan of Man City, a team that has not won silverware since 1976, before this fortuitous twist transformed them into the Champions League chasing team they are today.  So, SUCK IT ED.  Seriously.

Q: Is it true that you’ve been in the same fantasy football league for almost 20 years and never won?

- Bjorn Bjornssen, Hammerfest, Norway

A: Bjorn, now I am starting to get pissed.  Your “source” is mistaken.  Allow me to provide you a history lesson. Yes, I have been in the same fantasy football league since 1988.  In fact, Ed Honcho, myself and friends may have indeed invented fantasy football.

No, it is NOT true that I have failed to ever be crowned champion.  My team has a long and storied history.  I consistently make the playoffs, and I have been in not one, not two, but THREE championship games.  Several years ago Ed Honcho and I squared off in the championship game.  The game ended in a tie according to an on-line fantasy sports site that will not be named.  Incredibly, after nearly two decades of fantasy sports our collective group had never devised a tie-breaker scenario.  So, we declared a tie and the championship was split between Mad Adam and Ed Honcho.

Now things get interesting.  Approximately 6 months later, one of our friends and fellow fantasy owner, we will call him “ass-wipe,” decided to peruse the web-site because he had nothing better to do.  He was surprised to see that the CRAPPY, STUPID AND PROFESSIONALLY NEGLIGENT web-site that shall not be named had changed the score for Jeff Garcia (my starting QB at the time) by one measly STUPID point.  Ass-wipe decides to share this information with the league.  The result? Years of bickering and a COMPLETELY FALSE AND WHOLLY UNSUBSTANTIATED CLAIM of an undisputed and sole championship by Ed.

Many of you may ask, and rightly so, how in the world can you change the score of a fantasy sports championship MONTHS after the fact?  Isn’t that like tuning in for the Super Bowl and watching the Pats lose to the Giants, only to find out the following summer that the NFL had changed its mind and declared that the David Tyree “helmet catch” was an incompletion and the Pats actually won?  Good point.  And Bjorn, you no fantasy knowledge having dude from Hammerfest, did you stop to ask what would have happened if we applied the tie-breaking rules we have today?  No? Well, let me tell you what would have happened. I WOULD HAVE WON.  And, what would have happened if we played the next week (since we tabulated the points just to see)?….wait for it….that’s right….. I WOULD HAVE WON.

Dammit.  Now my blood pressure is though the roof.  Bjorn, I am sure you can see from the foregoing synopsis that in fact I DID WIN A FREAKING CHAMPIONSHIP.  And, if you don’t agree with me then you CAN JUST ENJOY YOUR CITY WHICH REEKS OF REINDEER MANURE.  That’s right, I said it.

Q: Why so angry? Childhood trauma? Life stacked against you? What?

- Adolfo Ocampo, Ushuaia, Argentina

A: As I am sure you can see from the questions posed by some ingrates above, as well as the other stupid topics that got me riled up, there are plenty of reasons I am angry.  SO, STICK YOUR POP PSYCHOLOGY UP YOUR ASS ADOLFO.  I will be sure to call if I ever need your attention.  Don’t hold your breath in the meantime.

Thank you loyal readers.  Until next time, keep watching sports and DON’T PISS ME OFF!!!

Liverpool er i krise. Fullstendig krise. Klubben som fulgte Man Utd til døra i kampen om Premier League i fjor. Så var klubben dumme nok til å selge en av de beste midtbanespillerne i ligaen, Alonso, og dermed er krisen et faktum. Liverpool FC er en legendarisk klubb med et middelmådig mannskap. I hvertfall hvis klubben har som mål å vinne trofeer. Det er kun Torres, Gerrard og Pepe Reina som holder høy internasjonal klasse.

Som City-supporter fryder jeg meg når andre klubber gjør det dårlig, ikke fordi jeg håper at den konkrete klubben skal gjøre det dårlig, men fordi det blir bedre plass til de fremadstårmende blaa fra Manchester. Men vi City-supportere er vant til det meste, og klager mer enn vi har godt av. Derfor er det litt forfriskende å se at Benitez ikke umiddelbart få¨r sparken. Men at det satses på kontiunitet. Det er viktig i enhver klubb.

Men det er flere av kjøpene og salgene til Benitez som har vært så dårlige, at man kan begynne å lure. Robbie Keane, Degen, Han grekern, Alonso +++ Hadde jeg vært LFC-fan, så ville jeg byttet ut hele ledelsen i klubben, fra de sjarmerende eierne til manager.

London is widely known for its history and culture but the city is equally popular for its sports. The Premier League boasts of having as many as five clubs from London. And Tottenham’s crushing victory at the weekend just reinforced that the city’s footballing pedigree.

The results of the weekend meant that currently there are three London based clubs in the Top Four of the league. Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham all hail from the city so famous for its half caste weather that it even inspired a poem about the same.

In Arsenal and Chelsea, London has two teams which are regular contenders for the title. Between them the two sides have won the league 16 times and are the only teams beside Manchester United to win the league in the last 15 years.

Tottenham are also no push overs and despite not having quite the level of success as the other two in recent times; they can boast of an impressive history. This means that the city has at least three highly competitive clubs which is an unprecedented  number.

History of Football & London

Many may be unaware but football and London have a long history together dating back to almost 1175. William FitzStephen describes ball games played by kids in schools in his description of London written sometime between 1174 to 1183.

Even after the game was outlawed in the Kingdom because of its previously violent nature many in the city continued playing it.One of the first forms of organised football was also held here by Richard Mulcaster, the famous English educator, with referees and rules.

The FA, the oldest footballing body, was also born in London in 18 63 and thus the city is the birthplace of modern day football clubs. Things however weren’t all that rosy as many of the original members broke away from the FA and founded the Rugby Football Union.

Of all the London teams, Fulham is the oldest having been established all the way back in 1879. Tottenham followed in 1882 before Arsenal was set up in 1886. Chelsea were born in the 20th century in 1905.

Other Great Footballing Cities

The truth is that London has only shot to prominence because of Chelsea’s Ambrahimovic takeover. Before that London was no match to the footballing mecca that is Milan.

The fashion capital of the world takes an equal amount of pride in its two great footballing teams viz. AC Milan and Inter Milan. These two sides are two of the most successful clubs on the globe.

Both have won the Italian league 17 times. AC Milan are also the European kings having won the prestigious trophy seven times second only to Real Madrid. Inter have picked up the trophy twice.

The other great city to boast of equally grand clubs is Rome – home to AS Roma and Lazio. Both the Italian capital sides have enjoyed varying degrees of success over the years but have huge reputations.

Interestingly both Milan & Inter and Roma & Lazio share their stadia. Whilst the Milan clubs ply their trade at the San Siro, the Romans play at the Stadio Olimpico, venue of last year’s Champions League final.

Manchester – A New Rival

Manchester United may be ‘Enemy#1′ for all English clubs. But with the exception of the Red Devils the city’s other team, Manchester City, have been relatively unsuccessful. In fact the famous Man Utd chant goes “There’s only one Manchester”.

However all that may be set to change in the coming few years. Thanks to the Dubai takeover of the club, City boast of a budget which is unmatched in English football. Though recent results may indicate that the club is still far from the ‘Top Four’ but if their buying pattern continues they are sure to be there sooner rather than later.

However as things stand if not the world, London is most certainly the best footballing city in the country. And with the mouth-watering Arsenal -Chelsea game coming up this weekend. Things are just getting better.

1. Amazing to think that you can score five goals in a game and there can still be a debate over whether you were man of the match. Aaron Lennon’s performance against Wigan ensured that Defoe didn’t come away with all the plaudits, his sparkling play from the right playing a big part in at least half the goals.

Defoe meanwhile became just the third player to score five in a game in the Premier League era and notched the second fastest hat trick after Robbie Fowler’s four and a half minute wonder against Arsenal many years ago. I’ve mentioned in recent weeks that he needed to watch his temper and just concentrate on his football, and with performances like that there’s no chance of him not going to South Africa. Lennon too did his case no harm, and on current form is far and away the best option when it comes to tricky small winger.

Spurs’ goal difference enjoyed a big boost in terms of chasing Arsenal, while they are beginning to take advantage of Man City, Liverpool and Aston Villa’s inconsistency to open a little gap over those three. They face one of their rivals next week in Aston Villa but should have nothing to fear the way they are playing.

As for Wigan the best you can say is that it’s just one game. These sorts of results can have a lasting effect, especially if you go behind in a game. It will be up to Roberto Martinez to ensure it remains a one off.

High five, we're going to South Africa!

2. Would Phil Brown be fearing for his job if Jimmy Bullard hadn’t got injured in his first game after signing? His performances in the last couple of games suggest that may have been the case. A win over Stoke and a fightback from two goals down to draw against West Ham possibly indicates an improvement in fortune for the men at the KC. Even Tango Man himself seems to be less in the spotlight than usual.

Bullard may have dodgy knees but he has an enthusiasm for the game that few players can match and his energy and creative play have got Hull scoring some goals again. They have a tough run coming up with three well organised teams in Everton, Man City and Aston Villa. Ok maybe not Man City but still! I’m pretty sure Geovanni isn’t injured and he appears to have lost his place to Bullard but I would be interested to see them both in the same team. Part of Hull’s success last year was to be brave, so maybe playing both together would have the same effect this year.

3. Before Arsenal get completely written off for losing against Sunderland (who have drawn with Man Utd and beaten Liverpool), let’s not forget that the key game is next week against Chelsea. Defeat would leave an 11 point gap; a win would leave it at just five with a game in hand. This defeat does render next weekend rather important if a title challenged is to be maintained. The lack of focal point without van Persie (and Bendtner) was a concern but it was in midfield where Sunderland won, with Cana stopping Fabregas and his teammates from creating many chances.

In addition to this, a set play was once again Arsenal’s outdoing at the back with Darren Bent reacting quickest after the initial ball had not been dealt with (déjà vu anyone?) While such defensive frailties are a long-term malaise, Arsene Wenger must ensure that his patched up squad is mentally right for the Chelsea game. Win it and two easier home games against Bolton and Stoke follow and momentum can be formed. Lose it and another frustrating season could be on the cards.

Pin the placenta on the van Persie.

4. They were impressive but it was only Wolves at home. Chelsea’s next two tests are the altogether tougher visits to the Emirates and Eastlands. Let’s see how the keenly the absences of Lampard and Drogba are felt then.

5. Liverpool and Man City played out a draw which leaves neither going anywhere fast. Man City have now drawn six on the spin which has stagnated them after a promising start. Just one win in eight games fro Mark Hughes’ side. A Hull side winless away from the KC provides the best possible opportunity to end that run next weekend.

Liverpool have one win in six but their habit of winning games they don’t lose (Saturday was just their second draw) means they’re still in a good position. The pretenders to the top four ideally want a gap going into the spring as if Gerrard and Torres are fit for the run in, I know who I’d back to get the last Champions League spot.

6. David Dunn is scored his fourth goal in six games and is playing the best football of his career. Someone left a comment asking what chance an England call for the Blackburn man. While I think he’s bit of a luxury and probably not quite international quality, there’s no doubting there are few more in form midfielders playing at the moment.

Quite good these days.

T.

There were more surprises in the Premier League this weekend as Steve Bruce’s Balloon Boys caused their second upset of the campaign when they beat Arsenal at the Stadium of Light.

The 1-0 victory came courtesy of a Darren Bent strike in the 71st minute and once again exposed the Gunners’ lack of continuity. Their North London rivals Tottenham though set a bunch of records on their way to a 9-1, yes you read that right, 9-1 scoreline. Spurs seemed to be playing a third division side from Norway as Jermaine Defoe scored five times in a complete annihilation of Wigan. This result sees them go level on points with Arsenal in third spot with 25 points behind just on goal difference.

Meanwhile Chelsea and Manchester United continued to show why everyone insists on calling the league a two horse race with comprehensive wins over Wolves and Everton respectively. . Chelsea who started without Drogba, Ballack, Lampard and Bosingwa had little difficulty on their way to a 4-0 victory. Essien’s brace for the Blues was sandwiched in between a fabulous Malouda and a Joe Cole strike, the latter scoring for the first time in over a year in the Premier League.

Manchester United were also equally adept in their 3-0 win against Everton. Ferguson watched from the stands whilst serving his first of a two-game ban. Goals from Darren Fletcher, Michael Carrick and Valencia helped the champions coast to victory. They will now hope that Arsenal can do them a favour and help them cut the five point gap when they take on Chelsea next Sunday.

Liverpool made it one win in ten as they failed to pick up the three points this time in their clash with Manchester City at Anfield. The Reds took the lead through Martin Skrtel who probably thought it was wrong for a Slovakian defender to score and duly lost Emanuele Adebayor and then Stephen Ireland as the Citizens took the lead.

But their lead lasted for all of 57 seconds as Yossi Benayoun equalized for the Merseysiders. Rafa’s boys tried all they possibly could in the final ten minutes but were once again unable to get the decisive goal.

Liverpool are now languishing in seventh place thirteen points behind Chelsea and City who have now drawn six games in a row just a point above in sixth.

In other action from around the league, Hull City played out a very entertaining 3-3 draw against West Ham. Aston Villa were held 1-1 at Burnley. Blackburn made it two wins in a row with a 2-0 victory at relegation embattled Bolton.

Portsmouth further confirmed their entry into next year’s Championship with a 1-0 defeat to Stoke and Birmingham City made it four games unbeaten as they won 1-0 through a Lee Bowyer strike against Fulham.

Liverpool will face the rich Man City at Anfield tonight. Liverpool expect Gerrard, Johnson and Agger to be fit for today’s game. Aquiliani and Torres will be sitting out on the bench-Ngog might replace Torres. Liverpool wont have to worry because Robinho, Bellamy, Barry and Petrov wont be playing. Tevez, Santa Cruz and Wright Phillips might feature. Mark Hughes is looking for a win after 3 straight draws. Benitez is looking for a win after 2 straight losses. The top is Liverpool formation an the bottom is the Man City formation. This is the stats for the game tonight:

MIlan – Gennaro Gattuso ramai diberitakan tak bahagia lagi di AC Milan dan berniat pindah ke Manchester City. Tapi kabar yang disebarkan media Inggris itu cuma isapan jempol karena ‘Si Badak’ membantah bakal ke Inggris.

Adalah kedatangan Leonardo sebagai pelatih yang sempat disebut jadi awal keinginan Gattuso untuk hengkang dari San Siro. Isu pun kemudian berkembang dengan mangaitkan City sebagai pelabuhan terbaru sang gelandang berjuluk “Badak” itu pada bursa transfer musim dingin mendatang.

Namun seluruh kabar tersebut disanggah oleh agen Gattuso, Andrea D’Amico. Meski sempat diduga punya hubungan yang tak harmonis dengan sang pelatih saat dia dikartu merah dalam laga Derby Della Madoninna lalu, gelandang 31 tahun itu dipastikan tak akan pergi meninggalkan Rossoneri.

“Tidak benar kalau ada hubungan dengan Manchester City. Saya sama sekali tak melakukan kontak dengan City saat ini,” ungkap Andrea D’Amico dalam wawancaranya dengan Sky.

Gattuso yang sudah 10 tahun membela Milan dan bermain di lebih dari 300 pertandingan memang sempat menyatakan keinginan untuk mencicipi kompetisi Liga Inggris. Tapi mantan pemain Glasgow Rangers tersebut tak pernah menyebut pasti kapan dia akan mewujudkan keinginan terpendamnya itu.

“Gennaro baru pulih dari cedera dan dia baik-baik saja di Milan,” pungkas D’Amico mengomentari kelanjutan nasib pilar Diavolo Rosso di lapangan tengah itu.
( din / nar )

Sumber : DetikSport

Found this list online, here, and thought it was interesting. Good for Spurs and Villa fans at least.

The list is correct as of 17/11/09.

Top 20 Teams For Producing England Internationals (all time):

1. Aston Villa – 68
2. Tottenham – 62
3. Everton – 59
4. Liverpool – 58
5. Man United – 57
6. Arsenal – 54
7. Blackburn – 48
8= Man City, West Brom – 42
10= Chelsea, Sheff Wed – 41
12. Nottingham Forest – 37
13. Derby – 36
14= Sheffield United, West Ham – 35
16= Newcastle, Wolves 33
18. Leeds – 30
19. Middlesbrough – 29
20= Bolton / Southampton – 26

There’s no Arsenal news today. So this will be a very very short one and it’s only a hint of Arsenal related stuff. A toast for my shortest ever posting.

First, Yaya Toure’s agent wins my Hero Of The Day award for his wonderful response to Man City’s pursue of the unsettled Barcelona midfielder. Dmitri Seluk said this.

If he leaves Barca, he will not go to Manchester City where, according to his brother Kolo, he would be welcomed with open arms. He would sign for a more important club.

You can have all the money in the world but some players you just can’t buy. Dmitri and to a certain extent Yaya still retains some of the decency compared to many who do not blink when silly money is thrown at them. He went further to say that those more important clubs includes 8 and if Arsenal is one of them, I would welcome back another Toure in the club.

At the other end of the spectrum. Bruno Satin who represents David Ngog had this to say.

He wouldn’t try and con the ref. Maybe he fell down because he was worried about being injured. Sometimes there are challenges that can assassinate you. A defender could get five matches for throwing his shirt and the player who broke the leg of Eduardo only had a three-game suspension

Now, I don’t know about you but the many angles of replays that I’ve seen, it was never a penalty. No touch no tackle no foul. The plea of self-defense is absurd. He could easily have kept going without falling down and I’m pretty that even if he was tackled, the impact would have been minimal that no injury would occur. Rest assured Bruno, Carsley isin’t going to kill your pot of gold.

That’s it for today folks. It’s been a pleasure bringing to you the life of football agents.

You may ask yourself, does this blog have BIG FOUR bias? Is it wrong to wait until Tuesday to do the round-up just because it was Liverpool playing on Monday night? To be honest, I thought I’d wait because there was obviously going to be a talking point from last night’s game at Anfield, and it seems I was proved right!

Just as Ngog was starting to repair his reputation, by actually scoring a couple of goals, he goes and does a thing like that. I haven’t actually seen the game yet, but from what I see and hear, it was an unashamed bit of cheating. After the Eduardo precedent, it will be interesting to see whether the FA take any action on this now. However, I think that the ridiculous ‘referee took action at the time’ rule will come into play again. I know the FA don’t want to undermine the referee – but they bloody should be undermined if they make a mistake! We all get hung out to dry at our jobs if we do something wrong, so why shouldn’t they? Instead, they’ll settle for not giving an account of themselves during their time as referees, and then sell their ‘expertise’ to whichever newspaper comes calling first when they retire.

I’ll just mention the main points to come out over the weekend – I’m not going to bother to do a game-by-game review this time round, as by Tuesday you’ve probably heard it/read it a hundred times over by now anyway.

So, I’ll start with Phil Brown’s redemption at the KC on Sunday. Post-match, I received a personal request to include a story on how Phil Brown is the best manager in the Premier League.

But he isn’t. So I won’t.

All I will say, is that if he is half as good as he thinks he is, then they should beat Stoke at home anyway. But he’s not.

This may buy him more time in charge at Hull, but I still think his days are numbered. The only good thing he has going for him is that he is a ‘character’. I think when people say this, what they actually mean is ‘dickhead’.

If you haven’t already, check out J’s blog below about Man City. I said on Friday that if they didn’t stick a few past Burnley, then I would worry about the pretenders to the 4th spot. Turns out, I was lying. I was pleased to see them look hopelessly inadequate against a generally well organised Burnley. This was a mess of a game, and it proves that Man City just aren’t a proper team yet. I honestly think that Spurs or Villa have a better chance of finishing in the top 4 than the Egos of Eastlands. I also happen to agree with Alan Hansen’s chastising of Wayne Bridge- he has picked up hardly any points for me on my fantasy football. He seems to be slowly but surely making sure he has a nice holiday this summer: somewhere other than South Africa.

I find the referee debate surrounding the game at Stamford Bridge slightly tedious, so I won’t bother going over it all. This proved everything I said previously about “when Chelsea play badly they lose,” completely wrong! Man Utd were the better team, and they were right to be aggrieved about the goal. But you know what? Tough. They’ve had enough of their fair share of luck over the years, and do they really expect any sympathy from the rest of us? Everyone gets bad decisions – Gomes probably should have been sent off for Spurs against Sunderland – but you have to live with it. Shouldn’t Ferguson realise that his rants are futile by now? He knows it’ll come back around, it always does. It’s footballing karma.

Arsenal again looked worryingly good at Molineux. It’s too early to make predictions about this Arsenal team. A Fabregas injury/suspension would most probably coincide with a dip in form, and there are still some weak links. Right now, they’re probably the 2nd best team in the league, but I don’t think that’s where they’ll end up at the end of the season.

By the way, the bloke from Football365 who took on Lawro at his own game lost 6-2. I told you – don’t mess with him. He’ll take you down.

As a sidenote, I went to An Evening with Jimmy Greaves last night. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but it turns out Jimmy basically does a stand-up routine loosely tied in with his life and footballing career. He was hilarious – genuinely witty, modest and interesting. It’s just a pity that the crowd were largely typical of the venue (the Huntingdon Hall at Worcester) – middle-class know-it-alls. I think if more football fans had known about it, they would have really enjoyed the show.

So anyway, we now welcome (?) the International break amid the news that Beckham cannot now beat Shilton’s cap record, as there aren’t enough games in between now and the end of the World Cup. I can’t believe these doubters – are they actually assuming Becks is going to retire? I can’t see any reason why he can’t captain (yes, captain) us to victory in 2012 before taking over from Capello and becoming a player/manager in Brazil in 2014. Do you?

A quick one today as I’m writing this at work as I don’t yet have internet access in my new flat (posts maybe a bit sporadic for the next week or two).

1. It’s interesting to see Arsenal’s attack being lauded after 36 goals in just 11 games but it’s premature to think they’ll definitely break 100 goals. All their home games bar Spurs have been against sides in the bottom eight while it was the first time since the 6-1 against Everton on the opening day that they’d scored more than two away.

That said, they have been pretty awesome and you can only beat what’s put in front of you. The 4-3-3 formation suits Fabregas down to a tee and he already has nearly as many assists as last year as well as the small matter of nine goals in all competitions. Sunderland away is next but the real test comes in three weeks when Chelsea come to the Emirates. The best attack vs the best defence; something will have to give.

2. Surely if you’re 2-0 down in a game you’ll take a draw at the end of it. I jest slightly but Man City once again showed defensive frailty against Burnley and the current back four does not seem up to scratch if City are to be pushing for a Champions League spot. They may have only lost once but drawing all the time is not a recipe for success (just ask Liverpool last season). In the last five drawn games they could have instead won two and lost three but still been better off. Needing time to gel isn’t a good excuse.

3. It’s still only a matter of time before the Tango Man gets the chop at Hull. Jimmy Bullard was inspirational in his home debut (ten months after signing) but Stoke were doing fine until Faye got himself sent off. As luck would have it Hull have two more home games coming up against West Ham and Everton and I’d hazard a guess that if he loses both he’ll be out of a job.

Phil Brown

4. Man Utd were probably marginally the better team but Chelsea still found a way to win the game. That’s usually the mark of champions elect. A five point gap is not insurmountable at this stage of the season but if you take the big four clashes as the main opportunity to make up ground/build a lead, then Man Utd’s habit of losing them (just two wins from nine this season and last) makes life all the more difficult for themselves in terms of catching up.

5. I imagine missing a penalty wasn’t in Darren Bent’s list of ways to show Harry Redknapp the error of this ways.

6. Is the Premier League turning into a three-way race for the title and a four-way race for 4th place? Of Aston Villa, Liverpool, Tottenham and Man City the latter have the biggest squads but the former two have more experience of being involved in such a race. Villa were very good against a terrible Bolton team and might be better placed this season when they’re having to chase a 4th spot rather than lead from the front and collapse like last year. 

T.

Another bad week for Mystic Jarv last weekend, here are this weekends predictions

Saturday

Aston Villa V Bolton Wanderers

Since beating Chelsea 3 weeks ago Villa haven’t won a game in the league and only won in the League cup on penalties, Their form is something Villa will want to rectify quickly if they serious want to challenge for Europe this season.

After 2 4-0 thumpings at the hand of Chelsea in their last 2 games Gary Megson will be glad to see the back of them for now at least however a trip to Villa park is not any easy away game either.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 to Villa
Aston Villa V Bolton Wanderers match discussion

Blackburn Rovers V Portsmouth

Pompey’s results have picked up a little to match their playing form and this is a massive game for them, both clubs find themselves in the bottom three and Blackburn are struggling more than i thought they would this season. They should now be over the Swine flu that hit the club and need to bounce back.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-0 to Blackburn …..just, however i could see it going the other way too
Blackburn Rovers V Portsmouth match discussion

Manchester City V Burnley

Burnley simply are not very good away from home and i can’t see them getting anything here. City are currently in the top 4 which is where they want to be and will really want to be there over the international break. There really should only be one winner in this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 to City
Manchester City V Burnley match discussion

Tottenham Hotspur V Sunderland

Like Villa, Sunderland have not won since their big victory on the 17th October and will want to get back on track as soon as possible, Lee Cattermole is injured and he ha been their driving force in the middle of the park and without him i believe they will struggle without him.

Spurs have had mixed fortunes from their recent matches and won’t be please by the 3-0 beating at the hands of their neighbours, if Spurs truly have designs on a Champions League place they have to win this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 to Spurs
Tottenham Hotspur V Sunderland match discussion

Wolverhampton Wanderers V Arsenal – 17:30

Wolves have picked up a point in each of their last 3 games, asll 3 of which i predicted them to lose, should they get something from this game they will really surprise me.

Arsenal will be pleased with the win last week against Spurs and Wenger must be delighted with their form, they’re scoring goals for fun. There is discussions about take overs going on at the moment but i don’t think it will put the team off their stride and i expect them to move into 2nd by Saturday night.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-3 to Arsenal
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal match discussion

Sunday

Hull City V Stoke City

Well phil brown is still in charge but you have to ask how much longer, the statement from the new chairman was hardly resounding and should 3 points not be forthcoming against Stoke i believe he will be gone by the time they play West Ham,  Should Brown be sacked it gives the club a couple of weeks while the internationals are on to find a New boss. The question is, is there anyone better out there that will want to goto Hull?

Stoke Captain Abdoulaye Faye says they can qualify for Europe this season, big brave words given the competition this season, if they are to then they have to win this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 0-1 to Stoke
Hull City V Stoke City match discussion

West Ham United v Everton

It was a bitter-sweet midweek for West ham, beating Villa was a top result but losing Carlton Cole was a blow to them, before that game they were struggling for form. Everton were struggling even more and are having a terrible season by their recent standards and failed to pick up a win in the whole of October.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-1 Draw
West Ham United V Everton match discussion

Wigan Athletic V Fulham

12th V 11th in the league, I didn’t see the game against Roma but i undertstand Fulham were unlucky to be down to 9 men. Still at the end of the day the Premier league is their bread and butter and this game is more important in the long term, beating Liverpool was a fantastic result for them and they will want to follow it up against Wigan.

Wigan got thumped at Portsmouth last week and have had a few mixed results since beating Chelsea, they have conceeded lots of goals too and will need to tighten up for this game.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-1 Win for Wigan

Chelsea V Manchester United

This game as a United fan worries me, United’s defence has been quite porous of late and Chelsea have been scoring lots of goals and playing great football but it’s never quite that simple is it. I believe United will be really up for this game and could just nick a win but to do that they need to cut out the defensive and keeping errors that plagued the game against CSKA on Tuesday. The normally steady Van der sar will definitely want the first and third goal back and a keeper of his stature shouldn’t have been beaten so easily.

United need to keep Drogba and Anelka quiet if they do that they have a chance, Chelsea have to nullify United’s Wingers which could be key to the game

Mystic Jarv predicts a 1-2 for United (might be being an optimistic United fan here)
Chelsea V Manchester United match discussion

Monday

Liverpool V Birmingham City

Under normal circumstances in other seasons this would be such an obvious prediction but Liverpool are struggling and with Gerrard and Torres both doubtful and both possibly needing surgery on injuries 2009/2010 could be shaping up to be Liverpool’s worst season for many a year.

A draw against City and a victory against Sunderland are 2 results that surprised me a little , I tink they will lose this game but if they can frustrate Liverpool ealry on they might, just might get something.

Mystic Jarv predicts a 2-0 win for Liverpool
Liverpool V Birmingham City match discussion

Other Stuff

Although i Know nothing about boxing Mystic Jarv predicts a win for Haye against Valuev, like i said i know nothing so don’t put your house on it

Written by Jarv

It’s been a busy few weeks, with at least 9 new Interns starting their Internships at Laing O’Rourke and Ellis Williams Architects, the news that Man City have joined the other Manchester employers offering Manchester Internships with a great media Internship, and a VIP visit in October from none other than Sir Alex Ferguson! Depending on whether or not you’re a Red or a Blue (or indeed even a football fan at all!), Fergie’s visit will be met with varying levels of enthusiasm, but like him or not you can’t deny it was a pretty good start to the Internships for several Laing O’Rourke Interns when he came to the Manchester Central extension project. Autumn Interns Adam Smith, Abdi Ahmed (both big Utd fans) and Niall Lewis (a City fan, but he secretly loved it!) joined 2008 Intern Jack Burnett and Laing O’Rourke Mentor Dirk Pittaway for the special press call, and also met Schools Minister Ed Balls and Iain Wright (not Ian Wright, which would’ve been bloody great!), the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Children, Schools and Families. They were in Manchester to launch the government’s new careers initiaitive, aiming to promote careers advice to young people from primary school age and had heard about Manchester Internships and wanted to find out more … seal of approval indeed! They brought with them a whole host of TV crews and journalists to interview and photograph our Interns. I’ve posted some images below … and you can check out some of the footage on ITN, Channel M and the DCSF website.

We’re also really pleased to announce that MCFC have joined Manchester Internships! MCFC are renowned in Manchester for having a genuine and committed approach to developing young people, and we’re really pleased to have them on board. They’re already offering a media project, which is great news for young Manchester creatives, and have plenty more in the pipeline.
And MCFC will be joining all the other Internships hosts, senior Councillors from the city of Manchester and a whole heap of committed people who make Manchester Internships possible at our BIG Celebration in early December – when we will be celebrating the dedication and hard work of every 2009 Intern. There’s been so many great Interns this year it’s a good job we’ve hired the Great Hall – a suitably grand venue, I’m sure you’ll agree!

That was the weekend that was…

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1. Robbie Keane will feel like the biggest mug after his supposedly superior Spurs squad got turned over with ease by the Gunners. Old twitchy eyes may have seen the result coming, as he went in to the game without arguably his best two players in Luka Modric and Jermaine Defoe. Nevertheless, Arsenal have their own injury concerns but showed the gulf in class. Early on it seemed that Spurs were getting all the luck, as David Bentley unbelievably managed to avoid even a booking for a rash and dangerous challenge on Vermaelen. They even managed to hold their own in midfield against Arsenal’s fluid 4-3-3. However, Arsenal were knocking on the proverbial door and only a super save from Gomes, aka rubber arms, kept it 0-0. Song made an awesome challenge at the other end to deny the bullshitter himself, Robbie Keane.

Wenger happy, Wenger dance

The game was effectively over the space of two minutes (42nd and 43rd) as Van Persie profited from some lazy defending to volley Arsenal into the lead. Then straight from kick off Spurs inexplicably gave away the ball and Cesc Fabregas went on a great run which ended in a sublime finish past Gomes. A comical third was put away by van Persie, as Arsenal profited from confusion over a foul on Diaby and a blunder by Gomes.

Such was Arsenal’s dominance that Eduardo even managed to waste two chances you would normally put money on him taking. It was a good overall team performance from Wenger’s men, with the two centre halves looking comfortable, penetration from the full backs and clinical finishing. the only disappointment was Arshavin’s limp display.

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2. Liverpool failed to follow-up their redemptive display against United. Fulham outplayed them and exposed Liverpool’s growing defensive weakness. everyone is focused, perhaps rightly so, on the injuries suffered by Gerrard and Torres. However, it is their fragility at the back which should be their main concern. Carragher was finally punished with the red he should have got against United and all-in-all, Benitez has simply failed to maintain an organised defence. Where he has allowed the likes of Johnson, Insua and Degen to provide an attacking threat, the lack of shape has been exposed. Bobby ‘I love to miss sitters’ Zamora even managed to profit, which has made me think. What is worse, conceding a goal to a beach ball or to Bobby Zamora? I think it has to be the latter.

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3. Top class Chelsea destroyed Bolton. OK, the Blues’ Carling Cup team had already disposed them in mid-week and it was 0-0 on Saturday until JLloyd Samuel deservedly got sent off. But Chelsea showed some classy football, with Drogba, Anelka, Lampard and Deco clicking in a way that reminded me of Arsenal when they had the Vieira, Pires, Henry and Bergkamp combo.  The pick of the bunch was the fourth, well taken goal  by Drogba. Phenomenal build up. Deco’s was quite special as well. If Ancelotti can sort out the Blues’ defensive frailties away from home, they should power their way to the title.

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4. Have Pompey finally turned round their season? Well, a convincing 4-0 victory against an in-form Wigan side was a good place to start. It is obvious that Pompey will ship a lot of goals but the ability to score them, especially at home, will ultimately keep you up. In Aruna Dindane and Piquionne, Paul Hart has genuine pace and quality in front of goal. Question remains whether they are consistent enough.

My name is Aruna, I am here to save Pompey with my golden boot.

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5. Man City drew for the third game in succession at Birmingham. Both sides had decent chances but it was Shay Given’s penalty save from James McFadden that ensured City got a point. Whilst it is impressive that Mark Hughes has only suffered that sole defeat at Old Trafford, it is the draws that can cost you (ask Wenger about his team two seasons ago). Lucky that he has a banker at home against Burnley next Saturday.

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6. Little Gorgon-Zola mustn’t have been able to believe his luck, as his lads raced into an impressive 2-0 lead at the Stadium of Light through Franco and Carlton Cole. Although fatty Reid pulled one back with a top-notch free kick, it still looked good for the Hammers as Kenwyne Jones was sent off for pushing over Herita Illunga. In a complete reversal of their heroics against Arsenal, West Ham surrendered two points when Darren Bent set up Kieran Richardson for the equaliser. All in all a point at Sunderland is a good result considering the form of Bruce’s team. However, Zola’s nice guy managerial style simply doesn’t seem to achieve the right results.

You may be wondering why Manchester United weren’t covered in this week’s Six Pointer. Well it was such a routine Old Trafford win that it wasn’t worth mentioning other than Berbatov had one of his best games yet for United.

Until next week!

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P.

Under serious pressure

1 – Another false dawn for Liverpool after a shambolic defeat at Craven Cottage. Two red cards, 3 goals conceded, Torres a major doubt for Wednesday’s crunch game at Lyon and Gerrard definitely out. How much worse can things get for Rafa Benitez? His power base within the club is secure after he saw off Rick Parry and negotiated a huge contract with the American owners last season. But Benitez knows the sack won’t be as distant as it appears now if a majority of Liverpool fans decide enough is enough. When that line is crossed Rafa will most definitely start to hear the Fat Lady clearing her throat.

2 – I’m beginning to seriously dislike Harry Redknapp. When he was at West Ham and Pompey he always seemed alright and managed to produce some very decent sides. Since he’s gone to Spurs though ‘Arry has taken on a whole new persona and seems to be fighting a running battle against the world. Every question posed is met by a sneering and dismissive response and he views every opposing side as flawed when compared to his charges. All he’s achieving by acting this way though is creating new enemies and feeding ammunition to those already opposed to him. And after Spurs got tanked by their North London rivals Arsenal at the weekend, exposing them for how good they really are, you’d think Redknapp could do with all the friends he can get.

3 – Football is a funny old game sometimes. Throughout Portsmouth’s early season struggles one of the most glaring deficiencies in Paul Hart’s side was the lack of quality up front. Nowhere was this more evident than in the form of Ivory Coast striker Aruna Dindane who looked like he was about as likely to score a Premier League goal as the Man on the Moon. His open goal miss from six yards v Spurs was the most notable example of his lack of precision. Then low and behold Wigan journey south with defenders Bramble, Boyce and Melchiot all having nightmares and Dindane leaves the pitch with the match ball after scoring a hat-trick. Remarkable stuff and if he keeps scoring Pompey might have a sniff at staying up.

4 – Man United have 25 points from their first 11 games and they’ve yet to come anywhere near to hitting top form. Their eight wins have come with a minimum of hassle, save for Arsenal beating themselves at Old Trafford and Michael Owen snatching a late win in the Derby. Defeats to Burnley and Liverpool were quickly rebounded from with three points and a draw with Sunderland was achieved via an injury time own goal. All in all it’s been far from a vintage few months for Sir Alex Ferguson’s men but still they look the team to beat domestically. Chelsea sit atop the table at present but once Drogba, Essien, Mikel and Kalou depart in January for the African Cup of Nations the Blues will be dramatically weakened. History shows as winter leads into spring the Red Devils kick into gear. For now just staying in touch is all that’s seemingly required for the Champions.

His side need to improve

5 – After a very bright start to the season the Man City juggernaut has shuddered to something of a halt. Their last four league games have all ended in draws. If it were not for the excellence in goals of Shay Given, who saved a 2nd-half penalty from James McFadden, Birmingham would have defeated Mark Hughes’s side yesterday. There’s plenty of time to get the show back on the road of course, and there’s always the January transfer window if new players are needed, but City need to resume winning sooner rather than later. It’s either that or Hughes will find that his Arab bosses expect more than draws at St Andrews from a squad that cost a large chunk of petrodollars to assemble.

6 – In Spain Real Madrid closed the gap on Barcelona to a point after the Catalans conceded a last-minute own goal to draw with Osasuna. The in form Seydou Keita put Pep Guardiola’s side in front but Gerard Pique slipped up in stoppage time and Barca journeyed home with only a point. At the Bernabeu Gonzalo Higuain notched a double to ease the pressure on coach Manuel Pelligrini who heard multiple calls for his head after indifferent form in the past few weeks. Sevilla are still in touch after a 2-0 win over Xerez and the revival at Villareal gathered pace as the Yellow Submarine dispatched Tenerife five nil. After an awful start to the campaign Ernesto Valverde’s side are returning to form which is hardly surprising considering this is a squad containing the likes of Joan Capdevilla, Marcos Senna, Robert Pires and Giuseppe Rossi.

7 – Too good domestically, not good enough in the Champions League is an apt summation of Internazionale’s season to date. We’re only at the start of November and already Jose Mourinho’s men are seven points clear of Juventus. A strike force of Samuel Eto’o and Diego Milito has been as lethal on the pitch as it looked on paper and players like Stankovic, Sneijder and Maicon have come to the fore in Serie A. In Europe though it has been a different story as three successive draws against Barca, Rubin Kazan and Dynamo Kiev have left the Nerazzurri bottom of Group F. There’s no need for alarm just yet as the other three teams only have a point extra each but a loss in Ukraine could signal a looming disaster. Across town the resurgence of AC Milan continued as Marco Borriello scored twice at the San Siro to secure Leonardo’s troops another three points against Parma. They’re now up to fourth, a place and two points behind Sampdoria and a point ahead of Fiorentina.

They are becoming accustomed to winning at Manchester City and Mark Hughes’s players now have the scent of silverware in their nostrils after breezing into the Carling Cup quarter-finals at the expense of Scunthorpe United.

Recent League Cup defeats at the hands of Doncaster, Chesterfield and Brighton only serve to emphasise the trouble Manchester City have had with cup football. Yet Scunthorpe were brushed aside as five different goalscorers: Stephen Ireland, Roque Santa Cruz, Joleon Lescott, Carlos Tevez and Michael Johnson confirmed City’s progression to the last eight.

City might not have contested a semi-final for 28 years, but no matter who they land in the draw for the next round, the winning mentality instilled by Hughes ensures that they will expect to progress.

Having delivered the cross from which Mark Robins scored the goal that ’saved Alex Ferguson’s job’ during a 1-0 Manchester United victory at Nottingham Forest almost 20 years ago, City manager Mark Hughes knows from experience the value of putting that first piece of silverware in the trophy cabinet.

Ferguson, thanks to the efforts of Robins, Hughes and co. went on to win the 1990 FA Cup for United after that narrow third round victory at the City Ground. Neither he nor United have ever looked back and, irritating as it doubtless will be to City followers, emulating that United success is precisely what Hughes is determined to do at Eastlands this season.

His first trophy as a manager and City’s first of any kind since they last lifted the League Cup in 1976. The sooner it arrives, the better.

City haven’t even played in a semi-final since 1981, so they have plenty of ground to make up, but they made the perfect start by taking the lead after just three minutes.

It was a goal of Premier League quality and Scunthorpe, lying 16th in the Championship, were cut in half by Shaun Wright-Phillips’s pass to Ireland who, from the edge of the penalty area, guided a right-foot shot beyond the grasp of goalkeeper Joe Murphy.

Scunthorpe regrouped, however, and they busily harried City out of their stride before Jonathan Forte deservedly equalised for Nigel Adkins’s team on 26 minutes.

Having dispossessed Nigel de Jong, Paul Hayes laid the ball off to Forte, who in turn released Marcus Williams on the left.

The left-back was then afforded time and space to cross to Forte, who ghosted in behind Joleon Lescott to score from three yards.

Moments later, Forte almost created a second goal for Hayes with a cross that resulted in a header from the midfielder which was well saved by Shay Given.

The new City are supposed to be over the frailties of their trophyless predecessors, but old habits clearly die hard.

It wasn’t until Santa Cruz restored City’s lead on 38 minutes with a header from Pablo Zabaleta’s cross that the home side looked comfortable once again.

The £17m forward has already added a new dimension to City’s forward line since overcoming a long-term knee injury last month. His presence and awareness mark him out as a key cog in Hughes’s plans.

Considering that Scunthorpe’s highest earner picks up a reported £3,000-a-week, a fraction of the salaries bankrolled by Sheikh Mansour at City, they certainly made their opponents earn their astronomical wage packets.

But the superior fitness and quality of Hughes’s players inevitability came to the fore in the second-half and slick passing between Ireland and Carlos Tevez led to Cliff Byrne producing a crucial block to deny the Argentine on 52 minutes.

Tevez, seemingly relishing life in the blue half of Manchester following his summer move from Old Trafford, crossed for Ireland moment later, only for David Mirfin to head clear just as the City midfielder was primed to bundle the ball into the empty net.

Scunthorpe’s resistance broke with the corner that followed, however. Wright-Phillips’s delivery picked out Lescott on the penalty spot and the England defender powerfully headed in his second goal in two games.

Two goals clear, Hughes took the opportunity to freshen his squad by introducing youngsters Vladimir Weiss and Michael Johnson and Slovakian winger Weiss produced the cross for Tevez to score City’s fourth goal, a close range tap-in on 70 minutes. Johnson then made his contribution with a deflected left-foot shot from 25 yards that made it 5-1 seven minutes later.

Match details

Manchester City (4-4-2): Given; Zabaleta, Kompany, Lescott, Sylvinho, Wright-Phillips, De Jong, Barry, Ireland; Tevez, Santa Cruz.
Subs: Taylor (g), Richards, Bridge, Johnson, Benjani, Bellamy, Weiss.
Scunthorpe United (4-1-4-1): Murphy; Byrne, Mirfin, Jones (Canavan h-t), Williams; J Wright; Hayes, O’Connor; McCann, Woolford; Forte.
Subs: Lillis (g) A Wright, Togwell, Sparrow, Hooper, Spence. Goals:
Booked: Sent Off:
Referee: M. Oliver (Northumberland)

Source : http://www.telegraph.co.uk/