A Champion is a Champion

I still love him!

You are my Solskjaer
My Ollie Solskjaer
You make me happy
When skies are grey

You're never boring
You just keep scoring
Please don't take my Solskjaer away


Well done Ollie

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/15515446.stm

The Bests and Worsts of Halloween Candy

Happy Halloween, kids! One of my favorite podcasts - The Sporkful - recently challenged its listeners to pick their favorite and least favorite Halloween candy items, so I thought I'd take the time and space to do the same. Feel free to use both American and British favorites, as I have. Here is my list:

Best:
1. Maynards Wine Gums
2. Heath bars
3. Rowntrees Fruit Pastilles
4. Reese's peanut butter cups
5. Haribo gold packet gummi bears

Worsts:
1. Any candy corn variety
2. Any NECCO product (e.g., wafers, dots)
3. Nerds
4. Skittles
5. Any healthy non-candy item (e.g., apples, raisins)

I'll look forward to your choices here - have fun tonight!

Good v. Evil!

It's an appropriate match for a Sunday morning. You don't need to hop along to your favorite house of worship today. The true morality tale is here and it's live. Evil Cardiff come into the sacred house that Revie built - Elland Road. Such a momentous fixture, it alone has moved the clocks back so we're only four hours behind Britain this morning - join me from 9:15am EST.

A really Early EPL Saturday

Good morning . Time to wake up bright and early fro some early footie. We start with a 7 AM kickoff at Goodison Park as Man United attempt to put that disgraceful derby day defeat behind them. Arsenal vs Chelsea kicks off 45 minutes later on the deuce, so pick the match you want to watch. Just to add spice to this match, Roon returns to the scene of his early playing days.

Up Early for the Footie Again

This early kick-off nonsense is really putting a crimp in my beauty sleep. United kick off at Goodison Park this morning at what seems like the middle of the night. At this rate, we'll be kicking off the day before yesterday. Cor! Anyway, I'm a bit grouchy but I'm hear with my coffee and bagel and will need some goals straight away to improve my mood.

Premiership Plus Predictions Game - Week 9

Ding dong! It was quite a Premiership cycle this time around with plenty of goals and red cards. Before we head into another cracking weekend with some big games in store, here are the current standings:

1. West Ham Rising – 30 points
2. United We Stand – 18 pts
3. AZ Kicker – 16 pts
- Simon Burke – 16 pts
- Someone Said – 16 pts
6. Gooner71 – 15 pts
7. Matthew – 14 pts
8. Thomas – 12 pts
- Yellows – 12 pts
10. Blue Devil – 7 pts
11. Man Utd Rules – 5 pts

Midweek Footie Madness!

Aye up, lads! The Whites finally have a chance to make up their game in hand tonight against Birmingham City. Oh - and there are some Carling Cup 4th Round matches as well. Ho hum. Join me if you're skiving this afternoon. Come on!

For fans of comedy sendings off

Balo - Be Safe on Bonfire Night, Kids!

You can't make this up, lads! Mad props to Someone Said for finding this. Yes, Super Mario - fresh from his bathroom antics - has been signed up as a spokesman for fireworks safety ahead of Guy Fawkes Bonfire Night next month. "Why always me?" Because you're so bloody entertaining, Mario.

More info here: http://deadspin.com/5852847/mario-balotelli-spokesman-for-firework-safety

MANCHESTER DERBY DAY...plus a few other matches!

Hark Now Hear
United Sing
The City Run Away
And we will rule forever more
Because of DERBY DAY!!!

All together now... HARK NOW HEAR, UNITED SING, THE CITY RUN AWAY, AND WE WILL RULE FOREVER MORE BECAUSE OF DERBY DAY!

I guess we can also follow
Arsenal v Stoke...I was right Bob
Blackburn v Spurs
Fulham v Everton
QPR v Chelsea

Join me boys

UWS

Up Early for the Leeds Boys!

We've an extra early start to proceedings this morning with the Mighty Whites traveling to wee Posh for a Championship firecracker. I'll have an extra pot of strong coffee on for this one, so join me around 7am for the kick-off. Come on, you Leeds boys!

A Video Gamer Tribute to Ivanhoe

The Premiership Team of the Season...So Far?

Football 365 today listed their "Team of the Season So Far," which is less an accurate representation of the football that we've experienced in the past two months than it is an interesting talking point for a Thursday with only (yawn) the Europa League group matches on tap. Here it is:

1. Goalkeeper - Wojciech Szczesny (Arsenal)
2. Right Back - Chris Smalling (ManYoo)
3. Center Back - Fabricio Coloccini (Newcastle)
4. Center Half - Vincent Kompany (Man Citeh)
5. Left Back - Jose Enrique (Liverpool)
6. Central Midfield - Ramires (Chelski)
7. Central Midfield - Cheick Tiote (Newcastle)
8. Playmaker - David Silva (Man Citeh)
9. Playmaker - Juan Mata (Chelski)
10. Striker - Wayne Rooney (ManYoo)
11. Striker - Sergio Aguero (Man Citeh)

Subs: Krul, Evans, Cabaye, Suarez, Young, Van Persie, Parker.

Your thoughts, gents?

Champions League Gameday 3!

Way hay - the Champions League is back this week! First up today are the two Manc teams with Citeh hosting Villareal and United on a wild road trip to Romania to visit Galati. There is also a full schedule of Championship matches today, including Leeds at home to Coventry. Three points, please lads. Unfortunately, as it's a Tuesday, I'll be missing most of it, but I'll look forward to reading your thoughts here.

The Trip

I had the chance to catch "The Trip" on Netflix over the weekend. It features British comedic actors Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon on a road trip through the north of England sampling the wares of swanky restaurants and riffing with each other. Despite this simple premise, it had me laughing out loud for an hour and a half. Plus, the DVD features over an hour of material that was cut out of the US release because it features the two impersonating figures such as Les Dawson, Ronnie Corbett and Basil Brush who are unfamiliar to audiences this side of the pond. Stick it on your queue today. Enjoy!

Premiership Plus Predictions Game - Week 8

It was a good week for West Ham Rising, with Citeh claiming the top again, which means not so good for the rest of us. The two top goalscorers - Rooney and Aguero - were out of commission this weekend, so Roon is still the Golden Boot boy. Here are the current standings:

West Ham Rising – 26 points
Simon Burke – 17 pts
United We Stand – 8 pts
Yellows – 14 pts
Gooner71 – 13 pts
AZ Kicker – 13 pts
Thomas – 11 pts
Matthew – 11 pts
Blue Devil – 6 pts
Someone Said – 17 pts
Man Utd Rules – 0 pts (sorry, mate!)

The Premiership is Back!

It's King Kenny v. Sir Fergie, it's live from Anfield, and it's one of the highlights of the Premiership season. And that's just the start of a weekend that promises terrific footer. I'm up early with coffee and bagel at the ready - join me for all the fun, eh?

Donny v. Leeds Live!

It's the fourth Yorkshire Derby of the season and the second time we've faced Donny away. I'll be sliding into my office after a long, tedious meeting this afternoon. Join me as I hope for a good start to what promises to be a cracking footie weekend.

The Luck of The Irish

After years of playoff failure, the Irish are seeded in the playoffs. The draw for the playoffs is tomorrow and the seeded teams are Ireland , Croatia, Portugal, and The Czech Republic. The unseeded teams are Estonia, Bosnia, Turkey, and Montenegro. Based on this information, Ireland would want to play Estonia and avoid Turkey.
Even though not all sixteen teams have been determined , The four pots are all but determined for this summer's Euros
POT 1- Ukraine,Poland , Spain, Holland
POT 2 - Germany,Italy, England, Russia
Pot 3- Greece, Sweden,Denmark,????

If Croatia win their playoff matches then they will be in POT 3. If they fail to qualify , then Portugal would be in Pot 3 instead of Pot 4. If both Croatia and Portugal fail to qualify then France would complet Pot 3. The remainder of the teams will be in Pot 4.

Your thoughts gentlemen?

Footie Riddler of the Week

Now that the Euro qualifiers are done and dusted, it's Footie Riddler time again:

"Sol Campbell holds the England record for most consecutive major tournament appearances. How many tournaments did he appear in? And what were they?"

Good luck, chaps!

US v. Ecuador Live!

The footie action keeps rolling tonight as the US meets Ecuador in a stiffer test than Saturday's match with Honduras. The action starts on ESPN2 at 7pm tonight. I'm going to race home from work to catch. Do join me, eh?

The Final Countdown!

It's the last day of qualifiers and, while, many of the group winners have been sorted, there are several key matches to follow this afternoon. I'll be teaching, so I'll only be able to pop in now and again during breaks in my classes, but I'll look forward to reading your comments throughout the afternoon.

U.S. v. Honduras Live!

Hopefully Timmy Howard will have more on tonight than he did for this recent "Spot the Ball" photoshoot for ESPN magazine, as the U.S. take on CONCACAF rivals Honduras tonight in a friendly match in Miami. It's on FSC from 6pm onward. Drop on by for some more footie chatter tonight, won't you?

Come on, the Jocks!

I missed out on all of the Euro 2012 action yesterday, so I'm jonesing for a bit of the footer today. Fortunately, the powers that be have saved one match for the weekend - and it's a crucial one. Scotland take on tiny Liechtenstein in a must-win match that could see them jump back up into second place temporarily. Join me from 2:30 EST onward for all the LOB chatter.

Come on, England!

Unfortunately, I'll be out of commission today as England enter Montenegro in a quest for that last point that will mean topping the group and qualifying automatically for next summer's Euro 2012 festivities in Poland and Ukraine. I thought I'd post this thread to get the conversation started. Come on, England!

Footie Riddler of the Week

It's international week again, so I thought I'd hit all of you with an England-related riddler.

"We all remember that it was Germany's Dieti Hamann who scored the last ever international goal at the old Wembley Stadium before it was remodeled; but who scored the last England goal at the old Wembley?"

Good luck, lads!

Rick Keeps Rolling!

It's a slow week at the LOB with the internationals approaching, so I thought that I would share this gem with all of you. Enjoy!

Don Fabio Drops the Hammer!

There's a lot of Fleet Street buzz this morning about Fabio Capello's squad for Friday's crucial Euro 2012 qualifier in Montenegro - especially the absence of Rio Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard. I think it makes sense if the players aren't fit enough to play a role. I also expect the remaining members of the "Golden Generation" to retire en masse after next summer's tournament. Here's the squad:

Scott Carson (Bursaspor), Joe Hart (Man City), David Stockdale (Ipswich); Leighton Baines (Everton), Gary Cahill (Bolton), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Phil Jones (Man Utd), Micah Richards (Man City), John Terry (captain, Chelsea), Kyle Walker (Tottenham); Gareth Barry (Man City), Stewart Downing (Liverpool), Adam Johnson (Man City), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), James Milner (Man City), Scott Parker (Tottenham), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Ashley Young (Man Utd); Darren Bent (Aston Villa), Andy Carroll (Liverpool), Wayne Rooney (Man Utd), Danny Welbeck (Man Utd), Bobby Zamora (Fulham)

So what's your starting XI from that lot?

The Derby Weekend!

Baseball? Playoffs? Who cares? Welcome to a fabulous weekend of the most storied derby matches in English football. It all starts early this morning with the Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park and ends tomorrow afternoon with the North London Derby at Shite Fart Lane. Join me for all the usual LOB fun and games, won't you?