SSN Headquarters Closed

There's a bad bug going around. Hopefully we can open tomorrow.

Moral Compass, The Mill, Scribes

It's not been the best of times for football on the social front of late. David Conn is wondering if the moral compass is gone. Lord Ouseley sure thinks it has. Terry, Suárez, Bassong, Evra. Ugh. Paul Hayward is convinced that football is now a toxic sport that is spinning out of control because it's not just racism. It's violence and anti-semitism, too. Social media is a problem as well. These pictures provide a nice summation of the madness. Perhaps "cultural lessons" will help. Hmmm. No.

Sorry to begin with such a downer but it's unavoidable. That said, let's move on. Fulham and Newcastle played last night at Craven Cottage. It was a win for the home side. Here's a report. Ben Arfa's goal was sublime for the losing side, by the way. Tonight is Sunderland vs. Reading. We really don't think a preview for that clash is necessary...


Also on the cards tonight -- The Capitol One Cup! Yes, everyone's favorite competition returns with a quarter-final match between Bradford City and Arsenal at Bradford's Coral Windows Stadium. Here's your preview.

The other quarter-final is Norwich vs. Villa. No preview for you!


Did you know that the Club World Cup is going on over in Japan? It's a worthless competition. Hiroshima vs. Auckland? No, thanks. Chelsea is over there, though, so the Japanese are pretty excited. We suppose it's good for them to be able to see Torres and crew in the flesh. Thanks to Tim Vickery, we now know why the tournament sucks. The fault lies with Santos FC, apparently.

It is Tuesday, after all, so that means we get to check in with our favorite correspondents around the globe. We already heard from Vickery (Brazil) so let's jump over to Honigstein (Germany). Raphael is wondering what is eating Schalke. They are in crisis mode, apparently. Have a look.

From Germany let's head down to see what Bandini (Italy) is getting into. Antonio Conte's four-month ban ended and he returned to guide Juventus to victory against Palermo. Have a look.

From Italy let's go see what Ball and Lowe (Spain) have on offer. Phil wants to talk Messi. Have a look. Sid wants to talk Messi. Have a look.

You want a dive? Here's a dive courtesy of Juve's Leonardo Bonucci. Impressive stuff, really.

Let's end with The Mill. Nani to Arsenal? Here's your Plus One.

Onward!!

-SSN

Manchester Derby Fallout And Other Stuff

Bloody Hell. Literally. Some clown in the stands at the Etihad hit Rio with a coin. It marred what was otherwise a great Manchester Derby. United won in the end when RVP's free-kick bounced off old pal Nasri's leg and eluded Joe Hart. Some other clown invaded the pitch to confront Ferdinand but thankfully Hart intervened. Can we not just have a great match and leave it at that? The idiot who came on the pitch now says he's sorry. It would appear to us that he simply does not want to get banned. Should have thought of that before you left your seat, pal. Moron. Are nets the solution?

Richard Jolly was there. As was Daniel Taylor. You want Talking Points? Here are FIVE. And we cannot forget Henry Winter. We were not there, but we watched, of course. Why did Mancini start Balotelli? Tevez on the bench? Foolish. For the Reds, Rooney was masterful.

Here's a great rant. Paddy Crerand completely loses it.

Right. What else happened over the course of the weekend? Well, Everton beat Tottenham in a thriller, Torres scored twice to lead Chelsea over Sunderland, Santi took a dive to help Arsenal win, and Liverpool (Joe Cole scored!) beat West Ham. Here's a little review from Sunday, and here's one from Saturday.

Can't leave England (or Wales) without another dose of racism.

Spain. Messi. Yes, he broke the record. He's scored a lot of goals this year. Real Madrid. Ozil's free-kick enabled them to avoid defeat at Valladolid. Falcao. He scored five goals against Deportivo La Coruna. Dude is good. Guillem Balague has a nice little article about the weekend in Spain.

Italy. Inter beat Napoli apparently because Napoli couldn't finish. More tomorrow. Juventus won too, by the way.

Shit, back to England. There's Monday Night Football. Fulham host Newcastle. It's on ESPN2 at 3pm EST.

The Mill. Demba Ba. Where's he going? Here's your Plus One.

Can we finish in Germany? Thanks. Uli Hesse is over there and he discusses the solidarity that exists between German supporters with his usual skillful eye.

Onward!!

-SSN