Saturday, June 09, 2007

Sid Lowe on Van Nistelrooy

I have to admit, I've always found Sid Lowe's aticles a touch lightweight. This one here is a case in point. Anyone watching Real this season will have been struck by the fact that while R V Nistelrooy is having an excellent season, the team is decidedly lacklustre without Beckham providing an impetus. Lowe can churn out all the stats he wants, but it's Beckham's impetus that's brought Real to the brink of the title, because it's effected the whole team. They're probably fuck it up tonight, rendering the argument irrelevant: Beckham will be sent off and RVN will miss a PK.

Forget Beckham, Ruud is the Real deal

Friday, June 08, 2007

Switched at birth?


Diminutive Prem pest Craig Bellamy & diminutive NHL pest Theo Fleury

USA 1 - 0 Guatemala


The Deuce Strikes to give U.S. victory in Gold Cup...yeah dogg!

Next match for the USA is Saturday at 5 pm EDT versus Trinidad -- live on Fox Soccer Channel.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=437370&cc=5901

Jen Chang's Take:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=2897307&name=chang_jen

Graham Lister: Arsenal At A Critical Crossroads

For those on the outside it is difficult to sort the fact from the fiction at the moment, but you would have to be comatose to assume that all is well at the Emirates Stadium.
http://goal.com/en-US/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=323346

The Mill



Friday's Rumours

Beckham’s three Rs: rejection, redemption, but mainly results

Simon Barnes on the lessons learnt from the return of Beckham

Owen's simple tap-in opens up a whole new ball game

Richard Williams on Michael Owen. Has the Boy Wonder still got it?

Euro signings


Ribery off to Bayern for £17m
Klose confirms switch to Bayern Munich
Buffon pledges future to Juve
Barca's Abidal bid rejected
Clubs primed for Giuly chase

Spain: La Liga Climax

Real Sweat Over Becks Blow
Guillem Balague's Preview

Boardroom changes

Sugar sale boosts his Spurs profit to £39m
Shepherd backs Ashley

Switched at birth?



Beckham basks in a moment of vindication
Reservations? Lalas promises to make the booking himself

Signings


Reina signs new five-year contract
Parker makes up with Curbishley
Newcastle seal Viduka and now look to Ben Haim
Alonso extends Liverpool contract

Robben in talks with Real


If there is a familiar ring to the story, that is because we have been here before, says Sid Lowe.

Keane adjusting to life as Sunderland manager


Keano is back in the big time

Under Löw, Germany could hit the heights again



Raphael Honigstein on Germany's Wiedergeburt

Thursday, June 07, 2007

The Man in Action


The next time that Pele says something stupid like, "I expect England to do very well in this tournament" and you find yourself scratching your head, take a moment to remember why people listen in the first place. Especially amazing is the section in the middle which is a highlight reel of him suffering brutal fouls.

The Mill


Thursday's Rumours
http://football.guardian.co.uk/rumourmill/index/0,,2097586,00.html

Transfer Round-up

Real Madrid in talks with Robben:
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2097564,00.html

CONCACAF Gold Cup

De Guzman double helps Canada edge Costa Rica
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=437136&cc=5901

USA vs. Guatemala: Preview
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=436850&root=us&cc=5901

England, France, Italy win in Euro 2008 qualifying

http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news;_ylt=AmWjIA4aFrYWG8Cu6d7ZnEAmw7YF?slug=ap-eurordp&prov=ap&type=lgns

Beckham drives England back to winning ways

Estonia 0 - 3 England
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2097226,00.html

Player Ratings
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2097207,00.html

Richard Williams: David Beckham's presence in the autumn is mandatory if England are to reach Euro 2008.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/06/07/old_master_shows_right_stuff_t_1.html

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Reality bites for big-talking Galaxy

Los Angeles's hideous start to the season is threatening to ruin David Beckham's first year in America before he even arrives.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/06/05/reality_bites_for_bigtalking_g.html

Bayern Munich Seal Ribery Deal

25 Million Euros for the Marseille Winger!
http://goal.com/en-US/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=321515

Mexico and U.S. likely to clash in Gold Cup final

Another brilliant headline from the clowns at U.S. Soccernet. Anyway, here's the article. Ives Galarcep breaks down the upcoming Gold Cup. The U.S. kicks things off tomorrow night at The Home Depot Center vs. Guatemala. It'll be live on Fox Soccer Channel at 9 pm EDT. -Sanford
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=436444&root=us&cc=5901

Barton agrees five-year Newcastle deal

This is a brilliant move -- he'll be a perfect fit. Newcastle United: The Place Where Players Go To Die. Any hope he has of playing for England is down the tubes. Look for a hammy injury in week three. Or a five-month ban for attacking the "Who Ate All the Pies?" Newcastle fan...-Sanford
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=436589&cc=5901

Madrid stand on the brink of revival

It has been an impressive rise for a club who have not looked like challenging for the La Liga title all year. But Real Madrid are now in pole position to claim their 30th League championship.
Tied on points, but ahead on a better head-to-head record, Madrid go into the game knowing that a win away against Zaragoza, coupled with a Barcelona defeat to UEFA Cup finalists Espanyol, will secure them the title.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=436827&root=europe&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab3pos1&cc=5901

Mercurial Johnson back to his explosive best

Do fortunes swing so wildly for anyone else as they do for mercurial Eddie Johnson? The arc of his career is already a fascinating study in extremes.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=436433&root=mls&cc=5901

The Mill


Wednesday's rumours

Martin Samuel on ticketing fiascos

Uefa solely to blame? Let those without tickets cast the first stone

Croatia Vs Russia





Croatia bank on home comforts but fear Russia

Estonia Vs England






It's difficult to gauge how soon my fingers will get itchy for the remote control tonight. Tim Walker Texas Ranger is on at 7 and Ghostbusters 2 at 7.30, so I'm thinking it'll be under 10 minutes.

Victory is everything for McClaren's England
Estonia's English inspiration warns of trouble in Tallinn
Alan Smith: Lampard is not the weakest link

Forlan Vs Senna


On a slow news day, finally something interesting...
Villarreal's Forlan and Senna come to blows

Transfers, real and possible

Fenerbahce seal Carlos deal
Villa make £7m Reo-Coker offer
Ranieri in Lamps approach
Shinawatra closes in on City

Berbatov reveals all!


Mother’s pride after Dimitar decides to spearhead campaign

Mourinho reveals all!


Matt Hughes talks to José in Accra:
Roman can keep his money!

Ferguson reveals all!


Who would have guessed it? He likes cooking, US history, the flicks and wouldn't been seen dead without his ipod:
Ferguson provides food for thought

Platini backs down and lifts smear on Liverpool

Uefa staged an embarrassing climbdown in its row with Liverpool last night...

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Arsenal Confirm White Kit


Per usual, thanks go to Arseblog for this bit of information and photograph.














I suppose it could be worse but I gotta say that I'm not a big fan. It looks to have a quality on par with my five-year-old nephew's kit. At least they made the socks long enough for Thierry to continue to sport his over-the-knee look. -Sanford


I think it's pretty nice. Certainly better than the past away kits below. - Alec

It's the Honigsteins 2007!

Raphael Honigstein's inaugural end-of-season gongs honour the good, the bad and the downright bizarre from the past year in Germany.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/06/05/its_the_honigsteins_2007.html

Jonathan Stevenson: It's just not like watching Brazil

I have a question for Dunga: Will the real Brazil please stand up?

At Wembley on Friday, in front of nearly 90,000 expectant fans and a global audience, the most famous football nation on earth gave yet another performance which belies their status as the guardians of the beautiful game.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/6714615.stm

Tim Vickery in South America

Why Fifa's ban against playing football at altitude looks likely to fall flat:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/6717971.stm

Morientes interview


Fernando adding to his experiences

The Mill


Tuesday's Rumours

Thierry Henry

Two things are guaranteed during the English sporting summer: It wont rain until the cricket starts and there'll be a drawn out, boring as crap, will-he-stay-or-will-he-go? saga involving an insecure melodramatic Arsenal player. England play the West Indies on Thursday with rain in the air and sure enough...

Milan put Henry on their wish list
Rosicky: We must keep Henry

Estonia Vs England

Dire straits call for Dyer solution time is right for McClaren to be bold
Venables proves England prone to the usual self-delusion

UEFA Vs Liverpool



How fucking dumb is UEFA? Regardless of the actions of any team's fans, good or bad, implying there's some type of league of evil soccer fans with one team at its head is not exactly what you want from a governing body. Doing so tends to lead to shit like this:

Gerrard defends Liverpool fans
Gaillard is a clown, rails Hicks

Check out Gabriele Marcotti's excellent article for a bit of perspective...

Law-abiding fans paying the price for Anfield’s huge ticketless army

Claudio sees sense


City eye up Ramos as Juve get Ranieri

Cummings and goings

Boro fans are disappointed, Latics fans are distraught, Daniel's bank manager is over the moon, Frank is learning German and Joey Barton is still a wanker:
Viduka plans for Newcastle switch
Wigan sign Bramble and Sibierski
Alves bidding begins
Bayern close in on Ribery
Hammers to join Barton chase

Monday, June 04, 2007

Liverpool Fans Stole From Children, Claims UEFA

Liverpool reacted with anger last night after a senior Uefa official accused the Merseyside club's fans of having stolen from fellow supporters and "out of the hands of children".
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2094668,00.html

South Africa 2010: Ready or Not

Xan Rice tours the country of his childhood to find out if the dream of bringing the tournament to Africa may yet become a nightmare:
http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2091484,00.html

Croatia's big-game poacher strikes again


Jonathan Wilson: Goalscorers may be a dying breed but Eduardo da Silva's killer instinct has driven Slaven Bilic's side within striking distance of Euro 2008.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/06/04/croatias_biggame_poacher_strik.html

The Mill


Monday's Rumours:
http://football.guardian.co.uk/rumourmill/index/0,,2095003,00.html

Danes not feeling great after fan intervention

One of the most dramatic football matches in Scandinavian history ended in chaos, tainting the pristine reputation of Denmark's fans in the process.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/06/04/danes_not_feeling_great_after.html

Euro 2008 Qualifying

Round-Up:
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=435877&cc=5901

Scandinavian press in uproar after pitch invasion:
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=436071&cc=5901

Poulsen contrite after Sweden mayhem:
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=436086&cc=5901


The most excitement had to have been in Copenhagen where Denmark came back from three goals down only for a Christian Paulsen punch-fest to gift Sweden a penalty in the final minutes. It was never taken, however, as a Danish fan tried to attack the ref and the match was abandoned...


China fails to test the U.S.

USA 4 - 1 China
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=436053&root=us&cc=5901

Youth Serves United States:
http://goal.com/en-US/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=318911

Diego spoils Beckham's fairytale return

England 1 - 1 Brazil

MAN OF THE MATCH: David Beckham. You can't keep a good man down and Beckham was all over the pitch, causing the Brazilian defence constant woe. His trademark free-kicks were full of quality and he has surely earned himself a place in the Euro 2008 squad (qualification allowing) with this performance. Spare a thought for Steven Gerrard though, who was the actual MOTM and had to drag Frank Lampard around the pitch until the 88th minute saw the Chelsea man was replaced.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=435746&root=england&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab2pos2&cc=5901