The first mention that I have come across about a suggested expansion of the European Championship from the present sixteen teams to possibly twenty-four.
Firstly l have always felt that it is easy for a midfilder to play well above 30 than a striker and l personally feel that , if jose comes up with another idea as coaches constantly do we will see the best of ballack and l have seen in their last games that they now twnd to want to suit his style a bit, and soon , he will be ####ing goals, as for sheva, the guy is class put it in one way or the other,l do not think he can reach the usual 30+ goal return but at least 20, they will start ####ing goals.the list of best clubs is funny, l do not know how arsenal is up there, because this is truely not our finest hour, talking of the gunners l feel we miss rosicky and we have seen the impact that he has made in a few games l think you will agree with me bobby.My question bobby is that do you think henrry is finished, because he is not playing like he used to, what is your verdict on henry, is he going down?Do buffon and henry recieve anything, for being runners up to the Ballon D'Or -
or they are just named, and what is your take on who deserves the award
Last edited by henry14 on November 27th at 11:26 AM.
I think the biggest game for Arsenal will be the game against Porto because failure to make the second round of the cl will really be a big blow to the club especially financially,because of the new stadium arsenal needs every extra penny they can get. At least Man U look like they have a chance of winning the title, although it would also be a huge blow for Man U and it would leave Ferguson on a thin line especially if he can't win the title. Chelsea got a good result, because getting a draw at Old T. for any team is a big thing. As for whether Henry is past his best I personally can't judge that he is because he is playing on a different position in lone striker. I have never thought we see the best of Henry when he is alone striker, even last year when we made it to the cl final. He has to work too hard in bringing the rest of the team into the game and kind of loses his touch infront of goal. Thats why I think Wenger should try the 4-4-2 for once atleast to see how it goes with Helb,Cesc,G. Silva and Rosisky in mid and play Van P. up front with Henry. But I will agree Henry has lost a step in his pace, the good thing is Arsenal look like they can adjust and play without him since the offence seems to be running through Cesc.
Rosicky adds a really nice flair to Arsenal, a kind of audacity and impatience that they sometimes need. For all their technical attributes Cesc and Hleb don't launch 30 yard missiles like Rosicky and turn a game upside down.
If Henry is losing half a step then that makes him what.. just as fast as every other player in the EPL? Except maybe Rommedahl. It'd be nice to see a 100m dash of all the prem's players to check their times.
I always find it interesting when a ranking comes out on the European Clubs. Villareal and Zaragoza get into the top 20 (or something close). Those two teams are awesome to watch! Finally, Someone giving Wigan some love. They have been overshadowed I think by the success of Reading and the fall from grace by Liverpool and Arsenal but they are a tough team. Heskey is an amazing player with a rocket of a leg. I don't know how long his contract is but he may not be playing at the JJB for long or they will have to shell out some serious cash for his services. Bobby--are you surprised by Wigan. Would you buy Heskey?(provided he comes back from his calf injury)
Last edited by neophyte on November 27th at 1:04 PM.
RE Alan Hansen's article. This all seems to be 100% agreement with what you, I and others said yesterday.
The ManU Chelsea game was THE stage to show the talent skill and speed from all (not a group Euro qualifier). I watched both Ballack and Shevenko look up at the stands as they came on the pitch on Sunday. If they couldn't be up for the game in that electric atmosphere then there's not much hope for them for the remainder of the season.
I don't think Mourinho does have much breathing space. Carrying two lame ducks could cause them to slip up against mid table teams who have a hot day or a bit of luck. He should act now. He can even hide the public face of it with a few convenient training injuries if necessary.
BTW, I sure would like to see Essien playing right back again ... Wow! (and yes it was him that forced the corner, from which Chelsea scored).
Last edited by LosAngelesChelseaFan on November 27th at 1:45 PM.
Re: Increasing European Championship to 24 teams from current 16. I'd have to say I'd prefer the current format of 16 teams to remain for Euro. I lived in Europe during the 2004 championship and had a pretty close look at almost every game. The beauty of the 16 team format is that there isn't really any "easy" group and fewer weaker sides making the overall quality of football better. It also makes it easier to qualify and diminishes the competitiveness of the qualifying rounds, which have some excellent matchups themselves. However, this all being said, Europe has gotten larger (more countries) over the years so perhaps it makes sense to add more teams even if I do prefer keeping the 16 team format.
Someone alert foxsports, Emile Heskey seems to have hacked Neophyte's account and started posting as him...
Birmingham should have paid Wigan to take Heskey, not Dave Whelan throw 5 million pounds at them. There was probably a ton of better buys out there. Hell, Man city only paid 1 mil for Corradi.
That article about the millions generated by the Champions League brought me to one simple question:
How much does qualifying for the UEFA cup get anyone? (if anything) Obviously the knockout rounds are the more lucrative ones, but is the reward anywhere near as lucrative as the champs. league?
1. With Canada hosting the FIFA World Under 20 soccer championships next year in Canada, what do you think will the CSA define as an acceptional perfomance for the Canadian Squad? Personally, if I were the CSA anything less then a quarter-final spot will not do, considering Canada is host country and that Canada needs a good performance in preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympic Qualifying and 2010 World Cup Qualifying beggining in 2008.
2. Who do you think will be Canada's next coach of the Men's National team? and what type of qualities should the next coach of the national team should have?
3. Who do you think is the most overated and underated goalkeeper currently playing at a club level right now?
Last edited by realmadridcffan on November 27th at 6:55 PM.
16? 24? why not all 52 in the final? Yes there are 52, not including the Vatican, Gibraltar and Monaco. Personally, I like the idea of eight teams with at least 7 of the teams seeded and no qualifying and last place being decided by penaly shoot out. Hey why not dispense with the football all together and go straight to the penalty shoot out for the whole final competition! Better still, I like the idea of zero teams in Euro 2008, so TV time is freed up for more games like last night's US v Canada ladies gold cup that delayed FWSR for an hour and a half. There were more people playing than in the stands! (Sorry, I lost the plot for a moment.) So anyway, why are Israel, Iceland and Malta in Europe while Lebanon, the UK Women's team and the Islas Malvinas not?
The situation is hopeless, but not serious!
Last edited by LosAngelesChelseaFan on November 27th at 4:22 PM.
Your gold cup rant is hilarious. I DVR'd the F.S.W.Report last night and when I went to play it back it was one hour of women's soccer..
.. BUT.. since it WAS extra time, i fast forwarded until something exciting happened.. maybe a penalty shootout.. maybe..OH NO! AND THERE IT WAS! In the FINAL POSSIBLE SECOND of EXTRA TIME! A DUBIOUS PENALTY!!
Bobby I don't know if you saw that one but I'd love to know what you thought of your female countrymen getting booted out of the cup by a last gasp penalty.
Last edited by davard on November 27th at 4:42 PM.
Thanks. Maybe I should email it to Nicolas Anelka to cheer him up a little. "Mr Sulk" couldn't even manage a smile after two great goals v Arsenal. What is his idea o####ood time - an evening out with Steve Coppell? His team-mates are seen here trying to force a smile on his face.
Last edited by LosAngelesChelseaFan on November 27th at 5:19 PM.
I think you'll find le Sulk was just being a nice boy, not celebrating and all. Bit like JFH after he scored for Boro against Chelski, y'know. Honestly, if he would have paraded around the reebok after scoring, it would break me little heart. Long lost son comes back and haunts his father...the #### :)
Oh, and Cannavaro getting Baloon D'Or is a joke. We all know Fat Fwank should have gotten it...not.
Bobby, for #3 I meant "Who do you think is the most overated and underated goalkkeeper playing currently in Europe (club level). I hope that clarifies question number 3.
What are your thoughts on Cannavaro winning European footballer of the year. In my opinion he had a great world cup, but I don't remember him being particularly spectacular during the regular season. I think this is just a make up on FIFA's behalf for screwing him over on the Golden Ball from the world cup. In terms of World or European footballer of the year I think there's a very short list....Henry, Ronaldinho, Kaka and Eto'o there are others you can make a legitimate argument for, but none definitively better than these 4. what do you think??
On another note did you watch the Barcelona game? Ronaldinho's goal one of the greatest i've ever seen, but I found Ray Hudson's commentary absolutely hilarious. I thought I was watching an episode of FSC's FanZone and the Villareal fan didn't show up.
Bobby l have seen linesmen come into the field to allign proper positions of free kick and corners l have one thing that makes me wonder, why do they not stop the ball from going far from where the throw in is taken .do you know why?what do you make of the sun's claims about sheva .the other thing cygan could do nothinhg about the last goal because the only person who knew what was going to happen was ronnie himself, but non the less a great goal
AlexMorph- You think there were better buys out there than me, errr than Emile Heskey? Who? Sheva? Anelka? Who! Who is better than me...I mean Emile Heskey? I have better numbers than Sheva and Anelka and I...I mean Emile Heskey is a nicer guy!
Oh to be Frank Lampard in the post-WC fallout. He's no legend, but seems like the guy can do no right nowadays. The way the game announcers and viewers belittled his awesome goal at Camp Nou was disgusting. They said it was unintentional and/or deflected and it was neither. C'mon leave the guy alone.
In other news, have a bunch of football headlines on my Google homepage, and this morning one of them read "Craig Bellamy slapped by a teenager at a night club." What a way to start your day. Also, as we know, Cannavaro won the Golden Ball, and I saw that Monica Bellucci presented it. If I was him I would ask if I could give the Ball up to Gigi and keep her!
And finally, some questions for ya Bobby. The hot topic right now is Man Utd's depth up front. Personally I think it's pretty urgent in the midfield too. Fletcher/O'Shea are great cover guys but they don't have much else. Where do they need support more and can they possibly reinforce both areas in January? Also, I'm a huge fan of some of the crowd chants in the prem. BBC has a few great ones in their Quotes of the Week this week. Exactly how are they conceived? Are they made up on the spot? Do you recall any that you'd say are the funniest?
Last edited by USAenglandfan on November 28th at 7:03 AM.
Hey Bobby, sorry to flood the board but I do have one more thought for you. There was recently a high-profile college football (american) game here (I think it involved Missouri), and in the dying minutes there was an iffy penalty call which allowed the trailing side to score a touchdown and win. The officials issued a statement recently saying, and I quote, "We blew it." Perhaps it is because video technology has all but eliminated incorrect calls in the sport, but American football refs seem to be respected more and much more in the periphery of the sport (where refs should be) than world football. Granted, the stop-and-go nature of American football lends itself much better to video technology, but when the mistakes are made, this type of statement issued by the officials at this college game is absolutely unheard of in world football. Do you think under-fire referees like Poll would do well to get off their high horse and own up to their mistakes or would it just damage their authority and future job prospects?
Just how much longer do we have to suffer Sepp Blatter for? Can he run again for the presidency, and if so is there a realistic challenger to replace him (perhaps a donkey or Kermit the Frog?). Why is it that contenders for these big positions can never have a moderate stance on things. Platini, Johansson, and Blatter all make stupid comments.
Plus, is there any chance that Beckenbauer might throw in his lot in the near future?
Alright, as football fans we have to admit that hair styling in our sport is a bit suspect......from the faux hawk and braids of Beckham the golden mop of valderrama the jerry curl of Ronaldinho.... on and on but what the heck was up with David James against Newcastle. I have no words! I will say however that if it looks like it took longer to do your hair than it took you to warm up before a match there is a problem a la Fernando Torres, Ronaldo and countless others. Lets give the gel a rest boys because when my sister sits down to watch a match with me and tells me "you should do your hair like that" there is a problem!
Last edited by bigdavedisaster on November 28th at 1:27 PM.
USAEnglandfan: I don't know many of the songs/chants they use in the crowds, but one of them has stuck in my brain for some reason. This is sung to the tune of 'Seasons in the Sun':
We've got joy we've got fun
We've got Jari Litmanen
He's got style he's got flair
Got a mullet, we don't care
The way it praises and yet mocks him in the same breath is just brilliant! I would love to hear some more of these...
Bobby l think we all know the sky sports ratings , do you know which player had the highest average in premiership history for an entire season and by which value?and the shocking thing what is zizoe doing for the three nominees for the world player of the year?and did not henry have 3 goals for the tournament just like ronaldo and crespo.the guys fro fifa are huge clowns , they want to cap zizoe's carrer with a player of the year award
Last edited by henry14 on November 29th at 5:31 AM.
Unbelievable. Henry misses the shortlist for FIFA world player of the year. This organization never ceases to make my jaw drop. Moronism in its very purest form. #### up job, you halfwits, now you can give it to him some other year as a consolation, and hopefully when he doesn't deserve it as much as some other guy.
Maybe if Henry sits on his #### for the entire season in 2-3 years time he'll get it, a la Ronaldo getting third.
Tbh, I don't really care anymore. Ever since Nedved didn't get 1st place, I felt this gong has completely devalued itself. Those who know a thing or two about football will know how amazing Henry is. He didn't get it i 2004, when he was unplayable, he was a class above the rest. I don't think Eto'o will ever win either, Cameroon isn't as fashionable as Brazil or Italy. The fact that Lump-o-lard got 2n last year is a joke in itself.
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