La réalité la plus proche nous donne à percevoir une réalité moins perceptible

Voilà deux évènements , situés à bien des distances l’un de l’autre. Les deux  concernent des personnalités connues. Sont-elles connues des deux mondes à la fois, je n’en sais rien, il faudrait faire des… sondages, (ça manque les sondages, c’est vrai ), non! il faudrait une vraie étude mais là n’est pas le sujet. Ces deux personnalités ont été sous les feux de la rampe dernièrement et pour des raisons différentes, semble-t-il.

L’une vient d’être lauréate du prix Goncourt 2009 pour son roman ‘Les trois femmes puissantes” et elle n’a pas délivré que des mots tendres envers le pouvoir français. A la suite de quoi, Eric Raoult a souhaité qu’un droit !! ou un devoir!! de réserve soit obligatoire pour les écrivains. Un réquisitoire ministériel battu en brèche par les mots de l’écrivaine et par le silence du pouvoir. Une publicité presque gratuite. Mais le problème demeure : seuls les régimes totalitaires ont eu leur littérature officielle ! Et la fonction de l’art n’est pas d’obéir mais de montrer ce qui est à voir.

Quel rapport avec Thierry Henry alors?  Il n’y a pas de sport officiel !

Les deux activités, si j’ose ce terme pour les deux, est de jouer avec les pieds.

Pour les ancêtres des écrivains qui ne comptaient que par pieds dans leurs poèmes, ils prenaient et prennent encore bien à contrepied le lecteur pour mieux lui faire découvrir les arrières de situations, pensez à Ionesco de qui on a écrit que sa littérature était absurde ; mais non, elle ne l’était pas, elle mettait en exergue les questions fondamentales.

Et Thierry Henry a bien pour mission de marquer ou de faire marquer des buts en prenant bien souvent les autres joueurs à contrepied ; j’allais écrire à contretemps. Eh oui, ça va presque de pair, c’est comme une partition de musique, le fameux silence, mal placé ou bien c’est selon, ce silence qui change tout, qui modifie le rythme, qui déplace son monde  sur le mauvais pied.

Cependant pour le match, France- Eire, on attendait le contrepied, et puis voilà que la caméra nous montre un contretemps ; même le contretemps s’est fait voir : un vrai cloche pied, c’est parti tout de travers !  On attendait le pied et voilà que la main s’est engouffrée sur le chemin de l’habileté, une main pas volontaire, non, une main si adroite qu’elle s’est laissée glisser, collée au corps, de la tête au pied comme un vers, un “ver” !! allant au fruit de la réussite tant attendue du pays France. Et voilà qu’il court, les pieds allant au-devant de la gloire, cependant que les mains défilent en boucles sur les écrans comme des vers sortant de la pelouse pour une pêche à venir. Il avait fait bonne pêche à la main mais la faute commençait inéluctablement à tarauder la tête. C’était plus qu’un contretemps, la musique ne collait plus. Une faute admise en défi de toute règle, même de jouer des pieds.

Si les écrivains ne jouent plus sur les pieds, ils gardent cette capacité à exprimer même à la main le fond de leurs pensées  comme un devoir,  là où un footballeur devient  autorisé par dérogation  à la règle à jouer de la main  pour qu’un pays prenne son pied.

Certains auraient dit qu’un pied de trop rendait bancale le vers mais une main-mise sur un résultat gratte comme un ver dans le fruit. Adieu la règle, bonjour l’obéissance .aveugle …Mais on ne prend pas toujours son pied!!! Heureusement ! Certains savent garder la tête pour maintenir les pieds sur terre !

“Il calcio risveglia le peggiori passioni” [Jorge Luis Borges]

E’ sorprendente che finora il calcio abbia provocato solo una guerra, quella del 1969 tra Honduras e El Salvador (ndr: la cosiddetta “Guerra del Calcio”, breve conflitto armato scoppiato il 14 luglio 1969 e terminato 6 giorni dopo, a seguito della partita per la qualificazione ai Mondiali di Mexico ‘70 tra le due nazionali, per saperne di piu’ clicca qui). L’orgoglio nazionalistico si infiamma in tempo di Mondiali di calcio, in modo effimero ma pericoloso, e i risultati aggiungono al fuoco la benzina dell’umiliazione o dell’ingiustizia, reale o immaginaria che sia. Com’e’ successo la settimana scorsa all’ego russo, fragile e aggressivo. Umiliato da uno dei suoi piu’ piccoli ex satelliti dell’era sovietica. La Slovenia, un paese con 2 milioni di persone, si e’ classificata al Mondiale del 2010 a scapito della Russia, che ha 142 milioni di abitanti.

Gli egiziani invece sentono di aver subito un’ingiustizia con la fine del sogno dei Mondiali dopo la sconfitta contro l’Algeria. Non si sa bene perche’ ma in Egitto si sono convinti che c’e’ stata qualche scorrettezza. L’ambasciata algerina al Cairo e’ stata assaltata, i due paese hanno ritirato i loro ambasciatori e il presidente egiziano ha dichiarato che “bisogna colpire in testa chi ci insulta”.

Trapattoni, CT dell'Eire

Irlanda e Francia invece sono state molto amiche, unite dalla religione cattolica e dal comune disprezzo per la perfida Albione. Oggi non piu’. Ecco i fatti: gli Irlandesi di Trapattoni hanno giocato meglio e meritavano di vincere. Ma nell’istante decisivo della partita il capitano francese, Thierry Henry, ha confuso il calcio con la pallacanestro. Ha toccato due volte il pallone con la mano e l’ha passato a Gallas, che ha segnato il gol piu’ facile della sua vita. La Francia ha pareggiato e si e’ classificata per i Mondiali eliminando l’Irlanda. La Fifa ha fatto orecchie da mercante, respingendo la richiesta irlandese di ripetere la partita, percio’ l’unica possibilita’ di vendetta dipende paradossalmente dal fatto che Henry non e’ un farabutto ma una brava persona. Henry ha ammesso pubblicamente la sua “vergogna” e sara’ condannato a un rimorso per la gioia di partecipare ai Mondiali in Sudafrica non cancellera’ mai. Ma c’e’ qualcos’altro di cui dovrebbe rammaricarsi. Il poveretto forse non non se n’e’ reso conto, ma quella sera di fronte all’Irlanda ha perso un’opportunita’ di gloria eterna. Se Henry avesse detto subito all’arbitro “era fallo di mano, annulli il gol”, sarebbe passato alla storia non solo come un grande giocatore, ma come uno sportivo immortale.

[articolo di John Carlin, per El Pais -Spagna]

Not in period style peak level but Becks is still the king of his money

With 32.4 million euros, midfielder played for AC Milan are the type of loan from LA Galaxy, David Beckham became the best money player in the village football world. The top 10 on the list, Milan also has two other capital contribution in the name Kaka and Ronaldinho.

No flowers were beautiful boys proud as Beckham, but the soul of Barcelona, Lionel Messi is also equally good money after collecting 28.6 million euros on to win second place in the top 10 money on airport Viking grass. “Footballer of the world” Cristiano Ronaldo won the third position with 19.6 million euros.

List of France Football, the British totally proud when they can contribute to three players: Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and John Terry. Premier League proper is fertile land in the contribution to the fourth name in the top 10.

Top 10 best money player in the world.

1. David Beckham (Milan): 32.4 million euros

2. Lionel Messi (Barcelona): 28.6 million euros

3. Ronaldinho (Milan): 19.6 million euros

4. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United): 18.3 million euros

5. Thierry Henry (Barcelona): 17 million euros

6. Kaka (Milan): 15.1 million euros

7. Zlatan Ibrahimović (Inter): 14 million euros

8. Wayne Rooney (Manchester United): 13.5 million euros

9. Frank Lampard (Chelsea): 13 million euros

10. John Terry (Chelsea): 11.7 million euros

By France Football

Where else do you start?

All we’ve heard this week is about that bloody handball, how hard done by Ireland are and that Henry is the anti-christ. Anyone else bored?

Sure, it was handball and yes it was ridiculous that they got away with it, but demanding a replay? Don’t be absurd. For starters, that’s a dangerous avenue of thinking that could open up so many doors that FIFA and the FA wouldn’t want to deal with. It’s similar to that Eduardo incident against Celtic, are we going to have replays for every game decided by a contentious goal? Forget a 39th game, we’d be playing a 75th before Christmas.

Then you get those saying that Henry should be banned for the entirety of the World Cup. Further hysterical lunacy. For starters, if he’d been caught then it would have been a yellow card at most – probably not even that. It wouldn’t even be worthy of a single game’s ban, let alone an entire tournament.

It has confused me how all the vitriol has been aimed at Henry rather than the incompetent buffoon linesman however. As difficult as it may be for me to defend a Frenchman, Henry made a reflex movement and benefited from it. The linesmen and referees are there to ensure this doesn’t happen and they failed in their duty. I’m aware it’s a hard job, but it was hardly a conspicuous action and the linesman on the far side had a grand view of the whole thing. He’s the scapegoat if you insist in having one.

Not that Henry’s helped the situation at all. He’s acting all high and mighty for having the good grace to admit the handball (about as useful as Drogba admitting he dives) and saying that he’d accept the replay if it was ordered, despite being entirely aware it was never ever going to reach fruition and knowing full well that he’d have no choice but to play if it did.

The bottom line is that this is football and the least deserving usually benefit at the most inopportune time. By all accounts, most of Ireland was decked out in Argentina shirts following the infamous ‘Hand of God’, so sympathy is a little short in my heart bhoys.

Scharner: Dodgy hair, dodgy goal

Continuing the Microsoft Paint Stories Of The Week series (soon to be re-named ‘Baron-Watch’), this week we once again catch up with Baron Silas Greenback (aka Avram Grant), and it certainly appears that he’s been keeping himself busy of late.

Not only has the amphibious super-villain been officially appointed as Portsmouth manager (as predicted here on Eddie’s Football Blog), but there have also been one or two unexplained events in the past week, both of which I am fairly certain he had something to do with.

Now, as we all know from ‘Danger Mouse’ (the reality TV series in which Greenback featured heavily during the 1980s) The Baron has a history of going to great lengths to create the perfect ‘Kansas City Shuffle’ – a moment in which he makes us all look one way (via a distraction), whilst he sneakily steps in to take over the world. I have highlighted examples of this before…

Stealing all of the world’s sign-posts. Sending tins of exploding custard to every household on the planet. Turning elephants into sugar cubes. Stuff like that. Ideas that could only conceivably be contrived by an evil toad.

Naturally therefore, when I stumbled across an article this afternoon citing ‘mysterious toilet blockages’ on an entire fleet of Cathay Pacific aeroplanes, my suspicions were raised. Perhaps the plan this time is to drain all of the world’s oceans? Think about it… the entire population of earth, all wildly flushing their porcelain thrones at once. The water usage would go off the chart.

Well, it’s either that, or he’s plotting a world-wide shortage of drain unblocking products. Just think of a world without drain unblocking products. All hell would break loose. Indian restaurants would fight and squabble over the remaining supplies and, worse of all, we’d all have to start using bidets due to the constant fear of clogging our own crappers. Yes, that’s right, we’d basically all become French.

I can see the fear on your face now. He must be stopped.

Talking of the French, and insanely long introductions out of the way, this leads me nicely on to the second of the unexplained phenomena that has occurred more than once in the past week. Namely, the act of scoring a goal in professional football, having blatantly committed a handball prior to putting the ball in the onion bag.

Both Thierry Henry (the goal that broke Irish hearts. Well, unless you’re Roy Keane), and Paul Scharner (the ‘1′ in Wigan’s 9-1 walloping at Tottenham) have scored goals of this ilk in the past week. Both have got away with it. My question is how?

Suspecting Greenback, I headed to his lair at Portsmouth’s Blue Reef aquarium earlier this week. Passing myself off as ‘Mr Grant’s Wart Removal Technician’ I gained entry, and this is what I discovered…

I think I know what’s been going on now.

Greenback has known all season that, at some point, he was going to be asked to replace Paul Hart as manager. It’s one of the worst kept secrets of all time. Right up there with Tom Cruise’s homosexuality. However, with this knowledge came responsibility. When he became manager, he was going to have to improve Pompey’s form.

Henry: Giving Greenback's invention the high-five

Knowing that his squad wasn’t anywhere near good enough to stay up on their own, and given that he is an super-villain with a lair, an evil crow assistant, and more than a few masterplans up his sleeve, Greenback got to work on a couple of ideas he’d had to improve his team’s performance. The first of these was injecting a ‘Striker’s Serum’ into Aruna Dindane, in the hope that the Ivorian would end up scoring a bucket load of goals. As you’ll remember, it started with a hat-trick, and ended with a threesome. It turned out that the ‘Scoring Serum’ wasn’t specific to football, and the Baron was forced to abandon Dindane’s regular injections after the goals dried up.

Now though, it looks as though Greenback has a new concept to use. A footballing aid called ‘The Invisible Handball’. Basically it is a specially designed synthetic forearm and hand combination that, when attached to a footballer, is completely invisible to the referee and his assistants. It means that a footballer can control, dribble, and even score a goal with their hand, and the officials will not see any offence.

The prototype was tested by Greenback’s father (Earl Greenback) during the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, on a certain young Argentinean by the name of Diego Maradona. It worked brilliantly during a match against England, but after Maradona refused to remove his new hand because he saw it as a good way to get cocaine past customs officials, Earl Greenback abandoned the experiment. Now, in the knowledge that he’ll be taking over such a poorly equipped Premier League team, Greenback Junior has resurrected it.

The product was tested last week on France Captain (and shaving enthusiast) Thierry Henry, and Wigan utility man (and Austrian style icon) Paul Scharner. On both occasions (as mentioned above) the protagonists used their new hand to score via an unfathomably dodgy handball. This obviously means that ‘The Invisible Handball’ passed its test with flying colours. There is, however, no word on either player having become a coke-mule for an underground gang of Colombians since their match. I’ll keep you posted though.

As ever, Baron Greenback looks on from his office as his evil crow henchman prepares to remove the hand from Scharner, in order to get it attached to Ivorian science experiment Dindane, and ready for this weekend’s visit of Manchester United. So, if you see a dodgy handball from young Aruna this Saturday, you’ll now know why the referee allowed play to continue.

It also seems that MI5 are also suspicious of Greenback’s activities (perhaps they read the blocked plane toilets atricle too), as they sent one of their agents into his lair on the day I was conducting my investigation. However, after failing to desguise himself, and following a cliché-filled chat in the Baron’s office, the vodka martini drinking agent ‘fell’ through a trap-door (that just happened to randomly open below his feet) and into a pool of sharks with freekin’ lazerrrs attached to them. He never stood a chance.

So, whether you’re worried about Portsmouth’s new ability to score goals, the possibility that you might have to cleanse your nether regions like a Frenchman in the near future, or just the concerned about the prospect of reading yet another article dedicated to a cartoon character lookalike, it is clear that this man must be stopped.

Where the hell is Danger Mouse when you need him, eh? Let’s hope that he has suffered the same fate as this little chap…

Or simply a case of multiple personality disorder?

I can’t be sure.

Marco Tardelli assolve Thierry Henry e si scaglia contro Raymond Domenech. Il vice di Giovanni Trapattoni sulla panchina dell’Irlanda dice la sua, in un’intervista con l’emittente radiofonica RMC, sull’episodio che ha deciso la sfida-spareggio per la qualificazione ai Mondiali 2010 giocato contro la Francia a Parigi.

La nazionale transalpina si è qualificata grazie a un gol di  Gallas, ma l’azione era viziata da un evidente fallo di mano di Henry non sanzionato dall’arbitro. “Non sono arrabbiato”, dice Tardelli  riferendosi ad Henry. “E’ un fatto che può capitare a qualsiasi  giocatore, soprattutto in un match così importante per la qualificazione ai Mondiali. Non posso giudicarlo”, prosegue Tardelli.  “Henry non è un imbroglione, il suo è stato un gesto istintivo. E’ un grande campione e una brava persona”, sottolinea Tardelli.

Il suo tono cambia quando si parla del ct della Francia: “Sono furioso con Raymond Domenech. Quando lo incontrai con l’Under 21 disse che gli italiani comprarono gli arbitri. E ora ha detto: quando arrivi all’università non conta come hai preso il diploma. Ancora  oggi non riesco a digerire le sue parole. Penso che Domenech non sia all’altezza dei grandi allenatori francesi”, conclude Tardelli.

Irlanda, como muchos de ustedes saben, quedo fuera del Mundial debido a una obvia mano de parte de Thierry Henry. Similar, aunque exponencialmente disminuido, Jaime Lozano fue suspendido después del clavado- digno de Paola Espinoza- frente al Puebla, en el partido extremo de 4-4 contra el Puebla.
Respecto al caso Henry, demasiado se ha dicho. Mi percepción del asunto es un poco extremista. Aún así la discuión sigue en pie.

En la misma tónica, México fue puesto (por algunas razones conocidas y desconocidas) en el teórico cuarto bombo del virtual sorteo de la Copa del Mundo por el Diario Marca. Esto, puramente ficticio claro, refleja lo que Ciro Procuna mencionó el otro día en ESPN Radio Fórmula. Los malos resultados, más o menos dijo, (sic) y la poca continuidad reflejan el estado en los rankings y en los sembrados. Al final México será puesto en lugar semi-incómodo; no por su estilo de juego sino por las relaciones de Jesus Martínez con Blatter.

Aldo de Nigris, hermano del recién fallecido Antonio, anotó un gol importantísimo en el partido contra las odiadas Águilas el sábado pasado. Como si el mejor guión de la televisora regente lo hubiera planeado, el hermano anotó el gol del triunfo parcial, soltando lágrimas en mas de uno, tanto en el estadio como en los televidentes observando. El momento fue un tanto conmovedor. El problema, creo, es en la manipulación de la información respecto a la muerte del ‘Tano.’
El pobre de su hermano, Poncho, tuvo que sufrir con la censura al hablar del asqueroso “Pacto de Caballeros” y la repercusión que éste tuvo en la carrera del difunto. Bien por Poncho al hablar de esa manera.
Enfrentémoslo: Antonio De Nigris nunca fue un futbolista brillante ni deslumbrante, en cambio su actitud (algo que en los jugadores de ahora es tan extrañado) era lo que lo distinguía de los demás. Aqui en Desviaciones nos unimos al pésame de la familia y de la comunidad futbolísitca tras el trágico accidente, sobre todo con su hermano que tuvo los pantalones para alzar la voz.

Y bueno, que Dios te entrene sería simplemente ‘divino.’
El frenesí por el clásico empezó hoy. El Madrid ganó 1-0 al Zurich en el Bernabeu asi como el Barsa hizo lo mismo contra el Inter, 2-0. El ánimo se caldea de maneras insospechadas, como bien apunta Phil Ball. Y cuando Joppie habla, todos callamos. El domingo también toma lugar el partido entre el Arsenal y los Rusos, digo, ehm Chelsea. En nuestro sitio en inglés les tendremos informados de ambos partidos.

Mañana celebraremos el segundo cumpleaños de nuestro querido sitio hermano en inglés, Deviations. Dos años se dice poco, pero la travesía es larga y lo acompañaremos hasta el fin. Si hay un problema con ese sitio, que espero no se traspase a éste, es el de la actualización. En serio hago todo lo que puedo, pero a veces simplemete no se puede. Anyway felicitaciones!

Pronto, cuando pase el final de semestre, les traeré una lista de los mejores discos de este año, según su servidor. No caeré en sentimentalismos baratos ni en elecciones payoleras, ya saben que aqui hay puro rigor crítico sin pretensiones. Mientras, The Antlers me siguen sorprendiendo. Después de su meteórico ascenso a la fama con su primer álbum extenso Hospice los muchachos de Brooklyn siguen impresionando a la escena “independiente.” A mi en lo particular me fascinaron. Es un sonido refinado y muy especial. La historia de Peter Silberman es sorprendente al grado de que su música recrea la depresión y horror causado por la muerte.

The Antlers – Shiva from LaundroMatinee on Vimeo.

The handball that lead to the match-winning goal

I’ve been meaning to comment on this for the last week. For those that missed it, last week Ireland and France played for the final European spot in the World Cup finals. The game was decided by a blatant handball by French star Thierry Henry (two, in fact, in addition to the fact he was offside) in extra time which led to a French goal. Video is here.

This is exactly what is wrong with soccer (or, depending where you live, football). Referee’s make mistakes in every sport, but in soccer the low-scoring means these mistakes are too-often decisive. No matter how beautiful the sport may be, a 1-0 or 2-1 result as a result of blown call by a referee is an unsatisfying result for everyone. (On a related note, this is also why soccer is so easy for corrupt ref’s to fix – UEFA is currently investigating 200 possibly fixed matches in Europe).

The whole incident reminded me of the heart-breaking way Australia was eliminated from the last World Cup, an obvious dive for which Italy was awarded a penalty with less than a minute to go in extra time, giving them the win in the group of 16 match:

Here’s a nice re-enactment.

“Required” veut dire “exigé”…

Donc, si vous le pouvez, on exige de vous que vous citiez 3 marques qui sponsorisent Thierry Henry

France’s Thierry Henry wasn’t the only one to come off badly in the World Cup 2010 qualifiers, writes Fingertips Sport correspondent Ian Shine

Last week’s World Cup play-offs provided one moment of controversy in the shape of Thierry Henry’s hand.

But we already know that footballers cheat, so why was this incident particularly horrific? Because of the cost that Ireland paid – a place in the World Cup and many millions of euros? Or because it was Henry, the man we all thought was a model professional, who so blatantly cheated.

Henry’s refusal to confess to the referee immediately after the incident saw him throw away the chance “to right a wrong. To be a man,” according to Richard Williams in the Guardian. For many the Frenchman’s reputation has now been tarnished forever, with the delight and pleasure that he brought to so many through his dazzling displays during eight years at Arsenal now rendered null and void in the face of his barefaced dishonesty.

But looking beyond this one flashpoint the four play-offs provided significant evidence of how not just Henry’s fortunes but those of some of Europe’s biggest teams and figures have taken a turn for the worse.

France were reduced to an extra-time handball in order to qualify, nine years after dominating the football world by doing the World Cup 1998 and Euro 2000 double.

Portugal, once the scourge of England and feared by many, were reduced to scraping through their group and a narrow play-off win over Bosnia-Hercegovina.

Carlos Quieroz will probably be shown the door after what in all likelihood will be a poor World Cup campaign. To be fair, he doesn’t really have the players to succeed, but his managerial shortcomings don’t help either.

The team he fielded against Bosnia was sturdy enough at the back, with Porto’s Bruno Alves and Real Madrid’s Pepe alongside Chelsea’s Ricardo Carvalho, but lacked even a sniff of the talent going forward that Portuguese sides were blessed with in the days of their so-called Golden Generation.

Back then Figo, Rui Costa and Pauleta ripped sides apart, but now there’s only Porto hardman Raul Meireles, Manchester United outcast Nani, Brazilian-born forward Liedson and Atletico Madrid midget Simao Sabrosa.

Yes, they have Cristiano Ronaldo to come back, but he can’t carry a side that are so bereft of sizzle in every other department.

Russia and Guus Hiddink both failed to make it past Slovenia. It is the first time Hiddink has failed to get a team to a major tournament, and it’s a shame that the truly brilliant Andrei Arshavin won’t be gracing the field in South Africa.

His presence lit up Euro 2008 as Russia swashbuckled their way to the semi-finals, beating Holland 3-1 in a quarter final that provided arguably one of the greatest performances of recent times.

Finally, Greece, who sort of made everyone think they were great by winning Euro 2004 after a string of 1-0 wins, executed the same boring-but-effective game plan to come through 1-0 winners against Ukraine.

Their dirty tactics and tight 4-5-1 formation stifled a below par Ukraine and frankly the prospect of them in the World Cup is not going to excite anyone.

Although Ukraine are inconsistent and underperformed in the 2006 World Cup, they have some fantastic players, including Bayern Munich’s Anatoliy Tymoschuk, who can set a game on fire.

Greece on the other hand have a team of firemen and a lumbering firetruck of a coach in Otto Rehhagel, all of whom are prepared to extinguish any sparks of excitement in a game by closing down a team and swinging for their ankles.

The once mighty have fallen, but not far enough to keep most of them out of the World Cup. Still, the group stages will probably prove one hurdle too many for France and Portugal, although I have a sneaking suspicion that Greece might slog their way a little bit further.

For all the latest news and views on sport check out Fingertips.net

being a Capetonian, i am supposed to be very excited about the impending world cup in our land, now under 200 days away.

but i have had my misgivings about fifa for some time now, in the way they deal with the whole world cup. it has become quite clear that this is not about the friendly competitiveness of soccer played by the best nations of the current year, but it is rather a cash-cow for fifa’s coffers.

examples:
1. Why would McDonalds have to be the official food sponsor (and only food allowed near a stadium) in Germany – when Germany has some of the best & easiest foods around (such as their well known sausages – perfect for a game like this!)

2. Why does FIFA get tell us who can and can’t trade within 1km of the stadium, and who can and cannot brand their souvenirs with “2010″?

3. Why does FIFA dictate ridiculous rates for hotels, making them stupidly low for the local hoteliers in a boom season, yet selling them at madly inflated prices to the public? I’m glad so many SA hotels and accommodation establishments told MATCH (FIFA’s accommodation arm) to go look elsewhere.

and now the Ireland – France game has just proven this cash-cow fixation:
it is clear, without any doubt whatsoever, that France’s Thierry Henry used his hands on the ball. ANYONE knows that that is not allowed.
He admitted it was wrong.
He suggested a replay.
Ireland suggested a replay.
France suggested a replay.
everyone suggested a reply.

FIFA said, “non”.

Why? presumably because France being in the game will ensure more spectators at the tournament in SA than if Ireland were travelling south. And more spectators = more money. plain and simple.

But now, if France were to actually win the tournament, it may well be considered a fraud by the world, because they shouldn’t have actually been there. by their own admission.

FIFA has fucked up, and like Mugabe, they are too embarassed to say, “pardon”, “sorry” and stick to the actual old ideals of this game – friendly competition between soccer-loving nations – and may the team that plays the best this year win.

very very sad.

Click on the thumbnails to see full size (Bấm vào hình nhỏ để xem hình lớn):

El 9-1 del Tottenham al Wigan ya forma parte de las grandes goleadas de la historia de la Premier League. Hoy recordamos otras.

Manchester United 9 – Ipswich Town 0

Marzo 1995

Andy Cole se convirtió en el gran protagonista de la mayor goleada de la historia de la Premier League. El delantero anotó cinco goles en un encuentro en el que también vieron puerta Mark Hughes, en dos ocasiones, Paul Ince y Roy Keane. Los ‘Red Devils’ acabaron la temporada en segunda posición, por detrás del Blackburn Rovers, y el Ipswich cerró la tabla.

Newcastle 8 – Sheffield Wednesday 0

Septiembre 1999

Alan Shearer no quiso ser menos que Andy Cole y también marcó cinco goles (dos de penalty) en el roto de las ‘Hurracas’ al Sheffield Wednesday. Un avance de lo que sería la temporada para los ‘Blades’, que perdieron la categoría, mientras que los de Bobby Robson cerraron la campaña en la zona media. Aaron Hughes, Kieron Dyer y Gary Speed también participaron activamente de la goleada.

Nottingham Forest 1 – Manchester United 8

Febrero 1999

El United ha protagonizado el mayor triunfo de la historia de la Premier en casa y a domicilio. Los de Alex Ferguson pasaron por encima del Nottingham Forest en el mismísimo City Ground con un Ole Gunnar Solskjaer que marcó cuatro goles saliendo desde el banquillo en sustitución de Dwight Yorke en el minuto 72’. ‘El Asesino Con Cara de Niño’ anotó sus tantos en poco más de diez minutos. Para los ‘Red Devils’ también mojaron por partida doble el de Trinidad y Tobago y Andy Cole.

Arsenal 7 – Everton 0

Mayo 2005

En una memorable noche de Dennis Bergkamp, los ‘Gunners’ pasaron por encima del Everton en el viejo Highbury. El holandés marcó el sexto en una oda al fútbol colectivo en la que participaron Robin Van Persie (8’), Robert Pires (12’ y 50’), Patrick Vieira (37’), Edu (70’) y Mathieu Flamini (85’).

Blackburn Rovers 7 – Nottingham Forest 0

Noviembre 1995

El campeón de 1995 finalizó la temporada en la séptima plaza pero regaló a sus aficionados otra goleada histórica de la mano de Alan Shearer, que enchufó un hat-trick. Lars Bohinen (2), Mike Newell y Graeme Le Saux también superaron la meta del ‘Forest’.

Manchester United 7 – Barnsley 0

Octubre 1997

Otro recital de fútbol de los ‘Red Devils’ con hat-trick de Andy Cole y goles de Ryan Giggs (2), Paul Scholes y Karel Poborsky. El United cerró la temporada a un punto del Arsenal y los ‘Tykes’ en segunda.

Arsenal 7 – Middlesbrough 0

Enero 2006

Si un año antes fue Bergkamp, ante el ‘Boro’ el protagonista de la goleada del Arsenal fue Thierry Henry. El galo marcó tres tantos en una fiesta que también tuvo como invitados a Philippe Senderos, Robert Pires, Gilberto Silva y Aleksandr Hleb.

C’est l’évènement de la semaine dernière … Impossible d’y échapper … Ce jeu très simple est vraiment original par son contenu décalé …

Vive les mains ! Vive la France !

In football, the saying, to the winner go the spoils couldn’t be more true. The minute a footballer scores a few goals, he is immediately put in the same league as the greats of the game. And God forbid, if he makes a mistake in the heat of the moment, all his past greatness is forgotten and he is immediately an overrated talentless footballer. The headlines in the past week have been dominated by two individual footballers, Thierry Henry and Jermaine Defoe. Thierry Henry had his moment and could have become a hero cherished by millions (minus the French) for eternity or he could have fallen from grace for millions. Unfortunately for Henry, in the heat of the moment he didn’t think selfishly enough and now he is being termed a cheat, a liar, a shame, a no-gooder, an unethical person and a villain of the worst kind, an overrated footballer who was never really good enough. It seems everyone is trying hard to forget the magic of Arsenal’s all-time leading goal scorer with 226 goals in all competitions, the two time winner of PFA Players’ Player of the Year and three time winner of the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year - Theirry Henry. Ironic, how almost all football journalists now seem to want to remember Henry only by the recent mistake that he made.

As is true of life, when a hero falls, a replacement is quickly sought. Jermaine Defoe’s 5 goals in the second half of the, 9-1 thriller between Tottenham Hotspur and Wigan Athletic couldn’t have come at a better time. Defoe’s horrible stamp on Aaron Mokoena in his return match against his old employers at Portsmouth which earned him a three match ban has been long forgotten and he is enjoying his sudden rise from a villain who manager Harry Rednapp had been absolutely livid with for the misdemeanor to a hero who manager Harry Rednapp is now busy hailing as the “best finisher” in the English game. His captain for the day, Jonathan Woodgate was even more generous with his praise saying, “I think he’s the sharpest striker not only in the Premier League but probably in the world. He’s that sharp he simply doesn’t miss, in training or in matches.”

The winner takes it all and I can’t begin to imagine what praise would have been directed the strikers way had he got a Premier League record sixth goal of the afternoon. On the other hand, Wigan Athletic players who suffered their worst result  in club’s 31-year league history, making them the first English Premier League team to concede nine goals in a single match since Ipswich Town in 1995 have decided to refund the money to supporters who travelled to White Hart Lane on Sunday (November 22) to watch their team get so completely thrashed in the humiliating 9-1 loss. Jermaine Defoe’s 5 goals were added to by goals from Peter Crouch, Aaron Lennon, Niko Kranjcar and a  painful Chris Kirkland own goal.

Wigan Athletic Captain Mario Melchiot said the players had “badly let down” their travelling supporter and will therefore provide a full refund of the match ticket price. ”This is a gesture we have to make and pay them back for their tremendous loyalty,” the Latics captain added.

Also, possibly related to the shameful result, Wigan Athletic today postponed the planned official opening of their new club store in the town. A spokesperson said: “The club apologises for any inconvenience caused to its supporters but stresses that the event will go ahead in the very near future, as soon as a new date can be arranged.” In the beautiful game, the winner is entitled to it all and then some, while the loser waits for his time to shine, good thing that it doesn’t take much to be a winner, a couple of goals can get you there.

By Cara Sulieman

A SCOTTISH teacher has said that school kids should be encouraged to use Wikipedia for school research, despite doubts over the accuracy of the information on the site.

Ollie Bray, deputy head teacher at Musselburgh Grammar, said that pupils should use it to learn how to evaluate the credibility of information.

But the online encyclopaedia has a reputation for being unreliable as anyone can edit the information it carries, and parent groups say it makes their kids “lazy”.

There have been a number of high profile mistakes on the site – just last week Thierry Henry’s entry had to be locked as angry users vandalised his profile after his handball during the France Ireland football game.

Discussion

But Ollie insists Wikipedia is a valuable teaching tool – and reckons it is better to teach pupils how to use it properly rather than ban it.

He said: “We, as teachers, should be looking at these disclaimers and working with young people to discuss why articles are disputed or contradict themselves.

“If we start with the belief that everything is subject to opinion, then we can work on how to validate it.”

He suggests teachers and pupils study the “discussion”, “source” and “history” tabs on the website.

The discussion tab will show the youngsters how much debate goes into reaching a compromise when changing disputed facts.

Better access

And he thinks that these skills should be taught alongside internet safety and responsible use, as biased information could also be seen as “inappropriate content”.

He said: “There is extreme content on the internet, but kids only find it because they go looking for it.”

And the teacher – who is currently working for Learning and Teaching Scotland as a national adviser for emerging technologies – also wants kids to have better access to sites such as YouTube, which is banned in some schools and allowed in others.

He said: “Why is it fair that children in East Lothian can get access to hundreds of hours on Channel 4, National Geographic or the Scottish Parliament, when other schools and teachers have not got access to these resources?

“It means that children don’t get to benefit from it, or the teacher or head has to spend time procuring resources which are available for free.”

IT savvy

But the internet site has been blamed for making Scottish schoolchildren lazy, with parents worried that their kids are relying on someone else to do all the hard work for them.

Eleanor Coner from the Scottish Parent Teacher Council said: “Children are very IT-savvy, but they are rubbish at researching.

“The sad fact is most children these days use libraries for computers, not the books. We accept that as a sign of the times, but schools must teach pupils not to believe everything they read.

“It’s dangerous when the internet is littered with opinion and inaccurate information which could be taken as fact.”

Although Wikipedia is edited by its users, the site monitors the changes and responds to inaccuracies when it can.

A disclaimer on the site says: “While Wikipedia articles generally attain a good standard after editing, it is important to note that fledgling, or less well monitored, articles may be susceptible to vandalism and insertion of false information.”

See more of our pictures at our Flickr site and videos at our dedicated channel,  Deadline TV.