Champions League - Gameday 4

It's another exciting Champions League gameday, lads. Join me for all the action from the CL as well as a full program of Coca Cola matches that see my Leeds boys taking on promotion hopefuls Preston NE. Let the Wise resurgence continue!

Happy Halloween!!

I think I sent you this link last year but make sure you take a look again.
I have a buddy of mine that does a pumpkin project every year.
Here is the website for this year's master piece. You can also see his previous works.
Make sure you give him an email to let him know you saw it.
In two days, he has had over 1800 visitors and about fifty emails from many countries.
Spread it around.

Here is the Website

Dave

Footie Riddle of the Week

With the Champions League coming up again this week, here's a topical trivia question:

"The current top three goalscorers in this year's Champions League competition all play for British sides. Name the players and their clubs, please."

Good luck, lads.

Good Old Harry

No doubt you've seen this one before. If you haven't you're in for a treat. The question I have seeing this again is was it ever revealed who hit that ball? Given it's waywardness, you'd guess it was Frankie Lampard, but I don't think he was a reserve at the time.

Another Big Saturday

My Rec soccer is cancelled today so I am here all morning until I get disabled.
Hope to have some company

SWAP SHOP

Wish I could see this. Great memories

Pearce Wants a "Sack Window"

Manchester City manager Stuart "Psycho" Pearce has put forward a novel idea today. He's calling for a "sack window" similar to the "transfer window" in which clubs could only get rid of their managers during, say, August or January. Pearce may have ulterior motives here, given that Citeh are currently languishing in the bottom half of the Premiership, and Ian Dowie and Alan Pardew may also want sign onto the Pearce Coalition. But what do you reckon - a genius move or psycho idea?

Read more at:

http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8652_1637281,00.html

No Sven at West Ham

Sir Trev can breath a little easier this morning with the news from Sven's agent that he will be announcing his new job soon but it will not be at Upton Park.

Read the full story at Soccernet.com:

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=387752&cc=5901

Mourinho: "I Respect the Carling Cup"

Jose is at it again today, in full Rumsfield "State of Denial" mode insisting that he loves the traditions of English football including the Carling Cup.

This from Football 365: "The Premiership champions may rest some senior players for the third-round tie at Blackburn but they will not field a team of reserves as Arsenal did at West Brom on Tuesday night.

Mourinho said: 'The Carling Cup is important. It's not the Premiership or the Champions League or the FA Cup but it's a cup and a competition we respect.'"

What does that mean - he rates the Carling Cup higher than the Auto Windscreens? He's having a laugh. We'll see if he's good to his word when the team sheet is announced this afternoon.

Carling Cup, Third Round!

It's Carling Cup time again, lads, and the big boys enter the competition today, slumming with the minnows such as Leeds. Speaking of Leeds, our battle with Southend will be Dennis Wise's first game as Leeds manager. Needless to say I'm quaking in my boots over this one. It's really our last realistic chance at some honors this year given that the big clubs cynically stick their third string side out for these matches. I'll be following the matches until my class time at 4 p.m. Join me, won't you?

A Second Trivia Question of the Week

A two parter:
Who wore the #1 jersey for Argentina in the 1978 World Cup Finals?
And WHY?

A Wise Decision?

According to Bob's open letter to Captain Birdsey, he doesn't agree with this decision.
Could it be a brilliant move or will he be gone by the end of the season?
He seems a little fickle. He fell out with board at Millwall, left Sotton's coaching staff and now has stiffed Swindon.
Get your mapquest ready for a Wednesday night trip to Yeovil Town next season?

Amusement While Waiting For The Footie To Start Again

Check this out. Excellent use of Scorpions LP covers, but really now, they couldn't find a use for that "Animal Magnetism" cover. Was it too easy or something?

Footie Trivia Question of the Week

Sticking with the historical theme: "This is likely to be Liverpool's last year at Anfield. Why is the famous stand at Anfield called 'The Kop.'" (Hint: it's a war reference).

Good luck, lads.

Super Sunday!

There are some super match-ups today in the Premiership. ManYoo have already polished off Liverpool and returned to the top of the Prem. and I'm settling in to enjoy the tasty morsel of Arsenal vs. Reading. Enjoy it with me, won't you?

An Open Letter to Captain Birdseye

Dear Chairman Bates:

Enough is enough! When you took over the board at LUFC you told us to be patient and, for two years, we have been nothing but patient. You told us that we were in a rebuilding phase and to trust Kevin Blackwell – and then you sacked him. You told us that we could no longer merely accept that we were a big club, that we had to earn that position, and we accepted that. But enough is enough. Five years ago we watched in amazement as our club made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League. Five years later we’re second bottom of the Coke and being mullered regularly by the likes of Leicester, Stoke and Luton. Enough is enough. You owe those, like me, who have followed Leeds United for thirty years and more the obligation of telling us exactly what is going on in your head. What is the board’s plan for rescuing this season? Not another week should go by without an announcement by you and the board of a concrete plan for changing the course of the season. That should include an immediate move to appoint a new manager. And that manager should not be Dennis Wise. Enough is enough!

LUFC forever,

gatorbob

Conclusive Proof of a Superior Culture

Just look at this website. Click!

You can reference any pub, bar, or off-licence in London serving great beer by tube station, rail-link, name seach, you-name-it-sonny!

I wish there was something decent like this for Washington or NYC.

Another Tiswas Day

Here we go again. Not a brilliant slate of games in the Prem but the Coke should be exciting. I will be here listening to Talksport and watching Everton/Sheff Utd game. Hope to have some company

Football 365 Forums

Has anyone else ever followed one of the Football 365 Forums? This one was particularly silly. Click!

Wait 'till you get to the "pride" pix.

Billy Bragg's Top Ten

The Guardian newspaper today published an excellent list of books about being British compiled by singer, songwriter and all round good guy Billy Bragg. I'll second Billy's recommendations of the Orwell, Hill, Thompson and particularly the Jon Savage book on punk. Check it out at:

http://books.guardian.co.uk/top10s/top10/0,,1925237,00.html

Champions' League - Gameday 3

Yes, chaps, it's that time again when the big clubs in Europe strut their funky stuff to the delight of their supporters and the gangsters from Setanta. There's a full schedule today and tomorrow starting with Arsenal kicking off in a few minutes in Moscow against CSKA and ending tomorrow with the marquee match-up of Chelski vs. Barca, which I assume will be carried by ESPN 2 if they have any nous about these things at all.

Oh, and by the way there's a full schedule of Coke matches today, so I'll have the cheerful proposition of following my Leeds boys as they struggle to let in fewer than four goals today against Leicester at Elland Road. (sigh)

The Cech Incident

Unintentional or intentional - you make the call. To my mind, there was no malice - just a freak accident, but the latest news about Cech (apparently he suffered an "indentation in the skull," which can't be good) is that it was a "life-threatening" injury. Blimey.

Trivia Time!!!

What player scored the first goal of the 1974 World Cup Finals and the last goal in the 1982 World Cup Finals?
Good luck fellas

TISWAS DAY

I won't be around for most of the day but I am here for UNITED!!!
Losing at half, now winning against Wigan.
Come on, hold on for the last ten minutes.
Best of luck to the rest of you

Robbo's Blunder

If you can bear to watch it, here's the own goal clanger from yesterday Croatia debacle. I would say enjoy, but....

Lamps and Roon - World Players of the Year!

Less than 24 hours after they took part in one of the most disastrous displays that England has put up in recent memory, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney have been placed on a shortlist for FIFA World Player of the Year! What a clanger! Here's the full list:

FIFA World Player of the Year shortlist: Adriano (Inter Milan, Brazil), Michael Ballack (Chelsea, Germany), Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus, Italy), Fabio Cannavaro (Real Madrid, Italy), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United, Portugal), Petr Cech (Chelsea, Czech Republic), Deco (Barcelona, Portugal), Didier Drogba (Chelsea, Ivory Coast), Michael Essien (Chelsea, Ghana), Samuel Eto'o (Barcelona, Cameroon), Luis Figo (Inter Milan, Portugal), Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan, Italy), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool, England), Thierry Henry (Arsenal, France), Kaka (AC Milan, Brazil), Miroslav Klose (Werder Bremen, Germany), Philippe Lahm (Bayern Munich, Germany), Frank Lampard (Chelsea, England), Jens Lehmann (Arsenal, Germany), Alessandro Nesta (AC Milan, Italy), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan, Italy), Franck Ribery (Marseille, France), Juan Roman Riquelme (Villarreal, Argentina), Ronaldinho (Barcelona, Brazil), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United, England), Tomas Rosicky (Arsenal, Czech Republic), Andriy Shevchenko (Chelsea, Ukraine), Lilian Thuram (Barcelona, France), Patrick Vieira (Inter Milan, France), Zinedine Zidane (retired, France).

England vs. Croatia Live!

I'm on pins and needles today with a couple of hours left until the 1 p.m. kickoff for England in Zagreb. Not the easiest place to go and England are not exactly in the best of form. I read the other day that Rooney hasn't scored in a competitive international for England since Euro 2004! Well, we're going to need some goals from somebody today. A win would put us back in pole position in the group, with only a few other tricky matches to play in the set. Tune in with me at 1 to find out how the lads acquit themselves, won't you?

Footie Trivia Question of the Week

It's trivia time again, lads. A toughie this week:

"Which four professional footie teams are the furthest north, south, east and west in Great Britain?"

Good luck, lads!

Names on Shirts?

An interesting point was made by a Scottish fan on the 606 call-in show yesterday that goes some way toward explaining the contrasting results for Scotland and England yesterday. He pointed out that Scotland have gone to a system of not listing the names of players on the backs of shirts - just #s 1-11. He reckons that this has instilled a team spirit that was on display against France. Meanwhile the focus on star names - as diaplayed in gold on the backs of England shirts - has bred a certain entitlement and laziness among the squad. Why not revert back to the traditional #1-11 system without names and then whoever is wearing #1 is, well, England's #1. Any comments, gents?

England vs. Macedonia Live!

Here we go! Here we go! Here we go! Macca's England team are going for the hat-trick of victories today in Euro 2008 qualifying. It could be an experimental line-up today, with Lennon and Hargreaves not available. So tune in with me and cheer on the Three Lions today, won't you?

England vs. Germany U-21s Live!

As usual FSC is treating us to the likes of Serbia vs. Belgium tomorrow, but they have seen fit to broadcast the England U-21s match against Germany today at 3 p.m. live. This will give us a chance to see the likes of Nigel Rio-Coker and Theo Walcott, who may well break into the squad in the next few years. Tune in with me to see how Peter Taylor's boys do today against the Old Enemy.

A NEW FORMATION?

I have heard that England may be changing it up for the Macedonia match.
There is talk of a 3-5-2 formation to run out on the pitch at Old Trafford.
What are you thoughts?
Why stick with a five man midfield? Neville, Rio and Terry in the back?
Lamps, Stevie G., Carrick, Wright-Phillips and either Downing or Richardson on the left.
Roon and Crouchie up front?
What do you think?
Is this going to be the line up?
Your thoughts Gentlemen.

He's baaaack!

No years wandering in the desert for Mr. Dein, No sir! Fresh from his climb down over the Beveren scandal, he's only resurficed as the leader of the G14 group of clubs. This is not good news. I can attest that this guy works feverishly towards what he wants, Wenger and Ashburton Grove just two steps in his Gooner masterplan, and this is step closer to a full-on super league that can only spell disaster for the Premiership and curtains for the lower leagues.

Newsflash! Ronaldo Alienates Scholes and Rio

Ah, it's all unraveling nicely now.

Zokora: 9.8 from the East German Judge!

If you haven't seen the Didier Zokora dive in Sunday's Spurs-Pompey match, it is worth a look at this clip because it's rather special. I can't think why the ref was conned as he - and the linesman were right there with a clear view of the whole sorry incident. Also check the nativist comment from Glenn Hoddle in the studio. Dear oh dear.

Footie Trivia Question of the Week

Looking forward to the Euro 2008 qualifiers at the weekend, here's a fairly easy one for you - which is the only team to have won the European Championship twice under one present incarnation and once under its current one. Name the years too, lads.

Good luck!

The New Joga Bonito Ad?

Hey, remember when Eric Cantona unearthed that great footage of Ronaldinho as a kid just ripping it up? I think he's found tape of a young Skippiano Ronaldo here. No, thankyouverymuch. Uh-huh.

Crouching Robin, Flying Van Persie

Wallop!

What's His Name?

Alright, enough already. One of you linguists out there settle this once and for all. What the hell is this bloke's name anyway? I know it's Dirk and that means that however you pronounce it, his name's gonna sound like a Dutch porn actor but is it:

a) Koit

b) Kite

c) Kowt

d) None of the above

e) All of the above