So it's been a while but I wanted to check in with two things:
1. ARE YOU APPLYING TO MA PROGRAMS?!!? YOU BETTER BE OR YOU'LL MISS THE DEADLINES?!!?!?
2. You are a football genius. Ok, so the season isn't half done, but already you are looking like the football oracle demi-god you know you are.
Chelsea are absolutely rampant, and humiliated Arsenal last weekend. Simply in a different class. Messi just won the Ballon d'Or, you freaking called that. Drogba is unstoppable, Torres is out/playing on the worst best team in football. Otherwise, it's tought to shake out the rest of the table, but it's clear Portsmouth are on the rocks, and Hull are looking better and better. Burnley look quite good, actually.
Hmm. You are the man, what can I say?
Monday, November 30, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Favorite moment of the season so far
Please tell me you saw this!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/27/real-madrid-alcorcon-copa-del-rey
Despite Man U losing to Burnley and Liverpool's horrible CL games, this has been my favorite moment of the season by far. Real Madrid losing 4-0!!!!! to a second division squad. And I am quite sure it wasn't even second division like Championship, but if you read it is the Regional Second Division B, group II. Which would be akin to Accrington Stanley betting Chelsea 4-0 in the the FA cup. Still a second round to go, where probably RM will pound in 6 goals or so and stay in the the cup, but this still made my football week. Not to mention that it wasn't even a youth team playing for Real, they didn't even have ONE youth team player. AND the other team had a few more chances they could have scored, apparently Dudek was the best player in the Real goal. I could make that team win this game, so how Pellegrini messed that up I don't know. More than likely it was the players, though. Without Ronaldo Real are mediocre despite having a crazy amount of other stars. With him they play a whole other level. I can't stand his arrogance but the lad is amazing. Man U have been winning, but not with a lot of style and I still think in the long run Chelsea will win the title. Especially if Joe Cole stays fit as he gives them that creative edge they are lacking. And last but not least the Liverpool, Man U match. I kind of wanted both teams to lose the game honestly, but of course a not fully fit Torres scores against a not fully fit Ferdinand. The Ngog goal was a bit of icing on the cake, but lets be honest, with Torres and Gerrard Liverpool could compete for the title. But both have injury problems and their respective national teams are too dependent on them as well so they keep getting injured. And the squad is incomparably thin relative to any of the top 6 squads I would say. Aston Villa, Everton and Fulham don't have a great deal of depth, but even Man City and Tottenham have better subs than Liverpool. Only great purchase of his entire Liverpool time for Benitez is Torres. Sorry, the rest just don't cut it. Alonso had one great season, but if you remember the year before he was trying to sell him as he had two years of mediocrity. If it wasn't for the purchase of Torres (and Istanbul of course) Benitez would be hailed as a decent but overrated coach. Which he is, sorry. Tactically very astute, but horrible at seeing potential talent and buying players that actually raise the level of the team. Fans can blame the American owners all they want, but Benitez has spent a great deal of money with only Torres to really show for it.
Just got back from holiday in Mozambique seeing my brother and his wife. Good times. Now headed back to Darfur today. Another kidnapping last week, so I have my work cut out for me. Hope you are doing well and studies are going well too.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/27/real-madrid-alcorcon-copa-del-rey
Despite Man U losing to Burnley and Liverpool's horrible CL games, this has been my favorite moment of the season by far. Real Madrid losing 4-0!!!!! to a second division squad. And I am quite sure it wasn't even second division like Championship, but if you read it is the Regional Second Division B, group II. Which would be akin to Accrington Stanley betting Chelsea 4-0 in the the FA cup. Still a second round to go, where probably RM will pound in 6 goals or so and stay in the the cup, but this still made my football week. Not to mention that it wasn't even a youth team playing for Real, they didn't even have ONE youth team player. AND the other team had a few more chances they could have scored, apparently Dudek was the best player in the Real goal. I could make that team win this game, so how Pellegrini messed that up I don't know. More than likely it was the players, though. Without Ronaldo Real are mediocre despite having a crazy amount of other stars. With him they play a whole other level. I can't stand his arrogance but the lad is amazing. Man U have been winning, but not with a lot of style and I still think in the long run Chelsea will win the title. Especially if Joe Cole stays fit as he gives them that creative edge they are lacking. And last but not least the Liverpool, Man U match. I kind of wanted both teams to lose the game honestly, but of course a not fully fit Torres scores against a not fully fit Ferdinand. The Ngog goal was a bit of icing on the cake, but lets be honest, with Torres and Gerrard Liverpool could compete for the title. But both have injury problems and their respective national teams are too dependent on them as well so they keep getting injured. And the squad is incomparably thin relative to any of the top 6 squads I would say. Aston Villa, Everton and Fulham don't have a great deal of depth, but even Man City and Tottenham have better subs than Liverpool. Only great purchase of his entire Liverpool time for Benitez is Torres. Sorry, the rest just don't cut it. Alonso had one great season, but if you remember the year before he was trying to sell him as he had two years of mediocrity. If it wasn't for the purchase of Torres (and Istanbul of course) Benitez would be hailed as a decent but overrated coach. Which he is, sorry. Tactically very astute, but horrible at seeing potential talent and buying players that actually raise the level of the team. Fans can blame the American owners all they want, but Benitez has spent a great deal of money with only Torres to really show for it.
Just got back from holiday in Mozambique seeing my brother and his wife. Good times. Now headed back to Darfur today. Another kidnapping last week, so I have my work cut out for me. Hope you are doing well and studies are going well too.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Chelsea v. Blackburn October 25
Wow, Mike.
Chelsea look incredible. I wanted to see them play and though Blackburn aren't exactly a challenging fixture, per se, they are firing on all cylinders and look extremely dangerous. Cech seems a huge liability at the back still, but other than that, they look very very good.
Joe Cole is such an instrumental part of this team. I always forget how creative, quick and dangerous he is as a player. Chelsea simply can't play dully when he' son the pitch.
Hm.
Tomorrow should be very interesting Liverpool, Man U. I'm wishing with all my heart liverpool pick this game to show up.
Chelsea look incredible. I wanted to see them play and though Blackburn aren't exactly a challenging fixture, per se, they are firing on all cylinders and look extremely dangerous. Cech seems a huge liability at the back still, but other than that, they look very very good.
Joe Cole is such an instrumental part of this team. I always forget how creative, quick and dangerous he is as a player. Chelsea simply can't play dully when he' son the pitch.
Hm.
Tomorrow should be very interesting Liverpool, Man U. I'm wishing with all my heart liverpool pick this game to show up.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Humph.
It pains me to write this.
Right now it looks like Mike Arensen is a genius.
Liverpool are in the midst of a spectacular collapse, and Chelsea just routed Atheletico Madrid.
While Chelsea have not looked wonderful in the EPL, they certainly are nowhere near the shambles that Liverpool are becoming.
Mike you suck/are a genius.
Jon
Right now it looks like Mike Arensen is a genius.
Liverpool are in the midst of a spectacular collapse, and Chelsea just routed Atheletico Madrid.
While Chelsea have not looked wonderful in the EPL, they certainly are nowhere near the shambles that Liverpool are becoming.
Mike you suck/are a genius.
Jon
Monday, October 5, 2009
Pride comes before a .....
So I must make this short as I have far too much work. I do keep checking on this page occasionally, so even if has been a slight monologue, I still read it. :) Lots of extra fighting here recently, so I have been a bit distracted with work. But let me just say that although Arsenal looked magical (so I have read) they still look bad at the back and I think won't be able to finish first. And I loved your gloating over Chelsea falling apart. Kind of jumped on the bandwagon there, didn't you Jon? ONE loss for Chelsea, Ancelloti is the new Scolari. Of course that is until they play Liverpool. Chelsea had a blip, and that is all it was. They will continue to grind out amazing results and slowly walk away with the premiership.
Liverpool are looking like they miss Alonso more than ever, so if Aquilani can't produce, this year could put a lot of pressure on Benitez. They are still too dependent on Torres. Who can be brilliant, but if you look at the games Liverpool have lost (more than all of last year already) they are all games where he didn't show up and got into physical showdowns with defenders... and lost. If he doesn't play well, the whole team plays poorly. If he is injured, Liverpool will be happy to finish in a Champions League place, especially seeing Man City turning into an actual team.
I still don't think Man City will go the distance, don't forget Eriksson's first year in charge had them fighting for the league at Christmas only to finish outside of a European spot by the end. It won't go that poorly, I still think they will be fighting for the fourth spot near the end of the season, but will fall just short.
Man U are still annoying as ever. The English media, like always, constantly debate Rooney's genius. I just don't understand how anyone can argue that Rooney is better than Torres or Drogba (on the Guardian or BBC I believe). They aren't even in the same league. Rooney tries harder perhaps, but I could try far harder than Rooney, I still can't be compared to Berbatov, the laziest striker in years who has oodles of natural talent. Get over it, Rooney is not nearly as good as the best players in the world. He will never be compared to players like Ronaldo, Messi, Kaka, Villa, Torres, Drogba, etc. by anyone outside of England. The whole "he would never leave Man U" talk is just as much due to the fact that the other big teams in the world wouldn't try and buy him, unless it was for commercial reasons. And since he looks like Shrek rather than a model like Beckham or Ronaldo, it won't be done.
So much more to say, but no time to say it today. But hopefully this will bring a response from you so I can get your opinion on the games and players. Hope your studies are doing well!
Liverpool are looking like they miss Alonso more than ever, so if Aquilani can't produce, this year could put a lot of pressure on Benitez. They are still too dependent on Torres. Who can be brilliant, but if you look at the games Liverpool have lost (more than all of last year already) they are all games where he didn't show up and got into physical showdowns with defenders... and lost. If he doesn't play well, the whole team plays poorly. If he is injured, Liverpool will be happy to finish in a Champions League place, especially seeing Man City turning into an actual team.
I still don't think Man City will go the distance, don't forget Eriksson's first year in charge had them fighting for the league at Christmas only to finish outside of a European spot by the end. It won't go that poorly, I still think they will be fighting for the fourth spot near the end of the season, but will fall just short.
Man U are still annoying as ever. The English media, like always, constantly debate Rooney's genius. I just don't understand how anyone can argue that Rooney is better than Torres or Drogba (on the Guardian or BBC I believe). They aren't even in the same league. Rooney tries harder perhaps, but I could try far harder than Rooney, I still can't be compared to Berbatov, the laziest striker in years who has oodles of natural talent. Get over it, Rooney is not nearly as good as the best players in the world. He will never be compared to players like Ronaldo, Messi, Kaka, Villa, Torres, Drogba, etc. by anyone outside of England. The whole "he would never leave Man U" talk is just as much due to the fact that the other big teams in the world wouldn't try and buy him, unless it was for commercial reasons. And since he looks like Shrek rather than a model like Beckham or Ronaldo, it won't be done.
So much more to say, but no time to say it today. But hopefully this will bring a response from you so I can get your opinion on the games and players. Hope your studies are doing well!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Jon Gets to Gloat
It's possible this is turning into a monologue rather than a debate, but I must take a moment to point to how strong my predictions look at this moment in the season.
Chelsea, after a strong start (per usual) utterly push the self destruct button and allow Wigan their first big-Four defeat ever. Ever. Is Ancelotti pulling a Scolari (starts out strong, peters out dramatically mid season, is replaced by a lackey who pulls together a boring but successful end to the season with a nice little third/fourth place finish, as predicted by yours truly)?
Torres takes top spot as leading scorer in the prem (who said that might happen? hmmmm...) and is discussed in many circles as "the greatest striker in the world at the moment". Barring a massive injury , I think my golden boot prediction is not absurd by any stretch.
Now, I'll admit Arsenal don't look well on paper, but if you watch them play it's another story. They have same problems as usual, but their foundational play is much, much stronger than last year, and if they can avoid gorgeous own goals and absurd penalties they will be rampant.
Anyway, hope you are alive, watching the scores and are just quiet because you are so sheepish about your terrible predictive abilities.
Much love,
Jon
Chelsea, after a strong start (per usual) utterly push the self destruct button and allow Wigan their first big-Four defeat ever. Ever. Is Ancelotti pulling a Scolari (starts out strong, peters out dramatically mid season, is replaced by a lackey who pulls together a boring but successful end to the season with a nice little third/fourth place finish, as predicted by yours truly)?
Torres takes top spot as leading scorer in the prem (who said that might happen? hmmmm...) and is discussed in many circles as "the greatest striker in the world at the moment". Barring a massive injury , I think my golden boot prediction is not absurd by any stretch.
Now, I'll admit Arsenal don't look well on paper, but if you watch them play it's another story. They have same problems as usual, but their foundational play is much, much stronger than last year, and if they can avoid gorgeous own goals and absurd penalties they will be rampant.
Anyway, hope you are alive, watching the scores and are just quiet because you are so sheepish about your terrible predictive abilities.
Much love,
Jon
Monday, September 7, 2009
Chelsea Ban and Etc.
Good to have you back, Mike. I hear that Phil Greene may also be checking on this blog, so we'd welcome his presence in the dialogue once he signs an agreement that Arsenal are the greatest team in English football and Tottenham are merely nouveau riche who spend oodles of money every year and underachieve like the best of them. Their resurgence under 'Arry is just a blip on the radar.
Anyway, it is stunning about Chelsea and I really really hope it goes through. As you predicted in your comment below, Man U are now being investigated for like crimes and I would be absolutely thrilled if that happened to them as well.
Well, the game against Slovenia was quite something. It was absolutely Hilarious to read a massive article in Guardian detailing John Terry's strong feelings about diving and about how English players honesty cost them games because, dagnabit, they just refused to dive under any circumstances. 50 minutes later Rooney perpetrates the most outrageous, egregious dive I have seen in international competition; and I'm not exagerating. As they line up to watch the penalty Rooney and the boys are having a big laugh about how they got away with it.
Typical English football hypocrisy. When it's Croatians (like Eduardo who was a large part of humiliation a little while ago (4-1 tee hee hee)) they go crazy about diving, talk about long term bans, etc., but when their own low talent hack goes over it's all about how there may have been some contact, no wait it was actually Rooney who kicked the other guy, and then oh yeah the other guy actually got injured on the play, and um, yeah, after further review Rooney could have gotten a yellow card for EITHER the foul on the defender OR for diving in the box; but instead he gets a penalty in his favor. Nice....
England are quite deluded actually about their football. Massive recrimination when they don't play well, massive elation to the point of disconnection from reality when they beat Slovenia in a friendly; their players can do no wrong.
Aargh!
Anyway, it is stunning about Chelsea and I really really hope it goes through. As you predicted in your comment below, Man U are now being investigated for like crimes and I would be absolutely thrilled if that happened to them as well.
Well, the game against Slovenia was quite something. It was absolutely Hilarious to read a massive article in Guardian detailing John Terry's strong feelings about diving and about how English players honesty cost them games because, dagnabit, they just refused to dive under any circumstances. 50 minutes later Rooney perpetrates the most outrageous, egregious dive I have seen in international competition; and I'm not exagerating. As they line up to watch the penalty Rooney and the boys are having a big laugh about how they got away with it.
Typical English football hypocrisy. When it's Croatians (like Eduardo who was a large part of humiliation a little while ago (4-1 tee hee hee)) they go crazy about diving, talk about long term bans, etc., but when their own low talent hack goes over it's all about how there may have been some contact, no wait it was actually Rooney who kicked the other guy, and then oh yeah the other guy actually got injured on the play, and um, yeah, after further review Rooney could have gotten a yellow card for EITHER the foul on the defender OR for diving in the box; but instead he gets a penalty in his favor. Nice....
England are quite deluded actually about their football. Massive recrimination when they don't play well, massive elation to the point of disconnection from reality when they beat Slovenia in a friendly; their players can do no wrong.
Aargh!
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