101 Great Goals

We have moved!

2006-12-01T08:04:00.000Z

Now NetResult goes after the streaming sites

2006-11-30T13:05:00.000Z

The BBC has a report on the "crackdown" on "illegal live coverage of football and other events over the internet."

This time the BBC article focuses on peer-to-peer applications which provide live coverage of Premier League matches as well as the current Ashes (cricket) series.

Our good friends Tim Cooper and NetResult make an appearance, Cooper says it is an "ongoing challenge... We're gradually working the numbers down and down, so unfortunately it's a bit of a lengthy process... We're fighting a continual battle because people will always try and jump on and off certain services and new technology is always evolving."

(With all the money within football, the question has to be asked why this "evolving technology" is not being exploited by the football authorities for the good of the game?)

The article does contain some good news for football fans who reside in the UK, stating that "from next season, Sky and Setanta Sports - who have won the rights to show Premiership matches on TV in the UK until 2010 - will also be able to broadcast them legally on the internet."

The mainstream media have consistently failed to question why the Premier League has not set up their own website to provide football fans with live feed and highlights of games.

Surely the popularity of the live streaming sites has proven to the Premier League and UEFA what a great product they have on their hands.

So far the Premier League and UEFA have hidden behind NetResult and have not publicly addressed the issue of live streaming on the internet, is it too much to expect the football authorities to provide loyal fans with a viable service so that everyone can enjoy the beautiful game?

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Update

Our friends at EPL Talk have an interesting post about the Guardian blog which has published an article about some of the best sporting moments and included several links to YouTube.

As the Gaffer points out: "the question for the Premier League and NetResult is whether they have a double standard. Do they purposefully threaten bloggers but not apply the same policies to large media organizations such as The Guardian?"

Perhaps the Premier League might take the advice of "Jarrett" in the comments section of EPL:

"The sure fire way to 'control' video highlights on the web would be for the EPL to put free video highlights on their own site. They could make money from advertisements on the site so it would be win-win for them.

... If the highlights were up on the EPL's site, they wouldn't have to pay some other company to act as their net cop."

Goal of the Month - November

2006-11-30T10:20:00.000Z

Watch the best goals from the last month here

Arsenal lose again. Next game Spurs

2006-11-30T07:39:00.000Z

Fulham 2 - Arsenal 1 Prior to this game Wenger said "The period that comes up now for us is the moment of truth... It's the most important time for us. Don't hide. In front of the obstacle you must jump. I feel they are ready to jump, they have a fantastic leap."

Manchester United 3 - Everton 0 United stay top with goals from Ronaldo, Evra and O'Shea

Bolton 0 - Chelsea 1 Ballack with "yet another set-piece goal for Chelsea"

Liverpool 0 - Portsmouth 0 Pompey frustrate Liverpool

Aston Villa 1 - Manchester City 3 City pick up their first away win of the season

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Derby 2 - Ipswich 1 (Championship, Nov. 29, 2006)

Stoke 3 - Cardiff 0 (Championship, Nov. 28, 2006) Three goals in five minutes for Stoke. They have won eight of their last eleven games

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UEFA Cup

Livorno 1 - Maccabi Haifa 1 (Group A) After absorbing a barrage of attacks, a last minute goal from Colautti rescues point for the Israelis

Partizan Belgrade 1 - Auxerre 4 (Group A)

Besiktas 2 - Club Brugge 1 (Group B)

AZ Alkmaar 2 - Liberec 2 (Group C) Jenner scores a lovely 89th minute leveller

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Asian Games

Thailand 1 - Palestine 0

Japan 3 - Pakistan 2 Keisuke Honda’s delightfully curled freekick after two minutes set up victory for the Asian Games 2002 runners-up

Coppa Italia

2006-11-29T21:01:00.000Z

Brescia 1 – AC Milan 2 (3-6 agg) (Coppa Italia, Nov. 28, 2006) "I didn't score for 844 minutes, too much for a striker" - Ricardo Oliveira, who netted Milan's first

Roma 2 – Triestina 0 (4-1 agg) (Coppa Italia, Nov. 29, 2006) Roma beat second-division Triestina with goals from Virga and Montella

Inter 4 – Messina 0 (5-0 agg) (Coppa Italia, Nov. 29, 2006) Inter cruise into quarters with central defender Burdisso being the unlikely hero with two goals

Is David James Clark Kent?

2006-11-29T15:02:00.000Z

David James sported a new haircut on Sunday at St. James Park.

Match of the Day 2 has had some fun comparing him to Superman. The clip can be seen here.

The full range of James' crazy barnets can be seen here.

If Carlsberg made football kit websites...

2006-11-29T11:21:00.000Z

The website "Historical Football Kits" is quite genius.

In their own words: "This site will be the most comprehensive archive of the kits worn by Football League clubs available."

The site includes home kits for every club that has competed in the Football League.

The home page says that there are "no plans to add change ('away') kits to this site." So there are no brown Coventry City shirts or salmon (pink) Everton shirts. Perhaps in time, as this site becomes more popular, this will change.

"We've had eight or nine major decisions go against us this season, so I hope our goal was 20 yards offside" - Neil Warnock

2006-11-29T08:32:00.000Z

Watford 0 - Sheffield United 1 Webber's offside goal gives Blades victory against his former club

Colchester 5 - Hull 1 (Championship, Nov. 28, 2006) Chris Iwelumo scores four, as Phil Parkinson is humbled on his return to Layer Road

Sheffield Wednesday 3 - West Brom 1 (Championship, Nov. 28, 2006)

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Here are all the goals from this weekend's action from the Bundesliga, Superliga, and Serie A.

Here are five of the best European goals from last weekend's action.

We can see you sneaking out

2006-11-28T13:15:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Some of you may have experienced this. Some of you may be perpetrators of this. And it grates me something rotten.

You're at the game with a mate. Your team is losing and the clock is winding down. Its freezing cold, driving rain, and you're cursing the decision not to have worn your warm coat. You've been there for 83 minutes watching this tripe. And then you're mate turns to you and says, "Let's go". (There wouldn’t be an issue except that you're mate is holding the car keys.)

As a footballer supporter live at a game, there is no more a satisfying feeling that when your team experiences the comeback.

Comebacks produce the classic matches. Examples include Rivaldo's last minute hat-trick against Valencia to grasp forth place and a Champions League place for Barca, Liverpool's miraculous victory over Milan, and Manchester United's 93rd minute daddy of all modern comebacks against Bayern Munich.

Yet despite this phenomenon's common reoccurrence, which happens every week around the world, some people frustratingly don't get it. Or at the very least, they cannot bring themselves to believe that it may happen to them.

If you are at the theatre you don't leave five minutes before the end of the play. Ditto if you're at the movies. And these are events where there isn't the slightest possibility that the horror show which is slowly unfolding will improve.

So what motivates people who spend money to watch a football match, who claim to be football fans, who claim to support a team, to walk out before the game is over.

And what is the justification for this behaviour - "I wanna beat the traffic".

"Eating well, getting plenty of sleep and having sex - these are all important things" - Fabio Cannavaro

2006-11-28T05:27:00.001Z

Fulham 0 – Reading 1 (Premiership, Nov. 25, 2006)

Bradford 0 – Bournemouth 0 (Championship, Nov. 25, 2006)

Oxford 2 – Tamworth 1 (Conference, Nov. 25, 2006) Oxford retain top spot with a two point lead over Dagenham & Redbridge

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Brazilian goalkeeping legend Rogerio Ceni scored another free kick this weekend in Sao Paulo's 2-0 win over Cruzeiro

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Some stunning goals were scored in Europe this weekend including this goal by Serge Gakpe in the 1-1 draw between Lille and Monaco

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Galatasaray 3 - Sivasspor 1 (Turkish Super Lig, Nov. 25, 2006)

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Lazio 3 - Ascoli 1 (Serie A, Nov. 26, 2006) Lazio play some lovely football to move up to seventh in the league standings

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Goals from the Australian A Leage games including Melbourne Victory 0 - Newcastle Jets 1 and Perth Glory 4 - New Zealand Knights 1 can be seen here

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Fabio Cannavaro became the first defender to win the Ballon d'Or since Matthias Sammer ten years ago. At a press conference he said "It has a double importance because it's given to the greatest players and as a defender it's rare to have this honour." A compilation on the Italian can be seen here. (Cannavaro receiving the award can be seen here.)

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According to Jose Mourinho, United wasted a "big, big chance" on Sunday, and the team with the problems is United. Not according to Fleet Street today. They choose to focus on Chelsea's failing stars - Shevchenko, Ballack and Ashley Cole.

49 unbeaten seems a long time ago

2006-11-27T10:25:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Football has the habit of mocking those who claim to be prophets of the game. Who can forget the moment when Brian Moore asked Kevin Keegan live on air if David Batty would score in the 1998 World Cup penalty shoot-out against Argentina. Keegan said confidently that Batty would, whereupon poor Batty failed, and England were eliminated.

Several weeks back Arsenal demolished Reading at the Madejski Stadium, and the plaudits where hanging from the rafters. "They were fabulous. In Henry and Fabregas I think they have the top two players, possibly, in European football, playing right at the top of their game. They were a pain in the arse all night. Their football is more fluid, I would say, than Chelsea's or Manchester United's. It’s pleasing on the eye and they have a sharp point in Henry, and then you wrap their quality around him. It’s inspirational, I must admit. Big, big respect to the way they played against us." That was Steve Coppell’s assessment.

A month on and everything seems different. Since that result the Gunners have drawn with Everton (home), CSKA Moscow (home) and Newcastle (home) and lost to West Ham (away) and Bolton (away). In total they have drawn four matches at home , and lost three matches away already this campaign.

It would be very easy to hyperbolize that the end is nigh. However, having learnt from the mistakes of others, I appreciate that only a quarter of the season has passed and Arsenal maintain sixth place in the table, they are on the verge of progression to the next stage in the Champions League and they are still have both domestic cup competitions to pursue.

But in the season which has seen the transition from Highbury to the Emirates, Arsenal's fortunes have not been smooth sailing. They trail Chelsea by 10 points and United by 13 in the Premiership. They have stuttered to qualify in the Champions League from a poor group. And with Liverpool in the Carling Cup, continuation in the competition is by no means assured.

A few seasons back, the sports pages were full of stories of Ferguson vs Wenger. Nowadays the brawl is between Ferguson and Mourinho. A few seasons back we were all talking about Arsenal’s historic 49 match unbeaten run. Nowadays it comes as no really shock to hear that Arsenal have lost again at the Reebok stadium.

The quality of today's Arsenal squad is of lesser quality than past seasons. Fabregas and Silva are not yet Vieira and Petit. In the past week, Eboue has allowed both Dyer and Anelka too much space, which in both instances was punished. And despite it still being early days of their Arsenal careers, neither Rosicky, Baptista or Adebayor have had the early impact which Wenger would have desired.

Following the victory against Hamburg, Wenger commented that a pleasing aspect of the performance was that "It will convince my players not to make an obsession of conceding the first goal and think, 'Here we go again'".

Looks like he spoke too soon.

"There was the major football star who was a drug dealer a few years ago" - Max Clifford

2006-11-27T05:27:00.000Z

Colchester 3 – Southend 0 (Championship, Nov. 25, 2006) Southend are five points adrift at the foot of the table

Derby 1 – Leicester 0 (Championship, Nov. 25, 2006) Win puts Derby fouth in the table

Swansea 0 – Bristol City 0 (League One, Nov. 26, 2006)

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Holland

PSV 5 – Utrecht 0 (Eredivisie, Nov. 25, 2006) PSV cruise to victory, scoring several great goals in the process

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"Showboat" from this weeks Soccer am can be seen here

Every touch by Christiano Ronaldo against Chelsea can be seen here

Carvalho rescues a point

2006-11-26T17:10:00.001Z

Manchester United 1 - Chelsea 1 Rooney disappeared in the second half and United fail to hold onto the lead

Tottenham 3 - Wigan 1 Berbatov gets the pick of the goals

Newcastle 1 - Portsmouth 0 Sibierski proves his worth with another winner

Scotland

Hibernian 2 - Celtic 2 (SPL, Nov. 26, 2006) The league leaders come from behind in the "game of the season so far"

Italy

Palermo 1 - Inter Milan 2 (Serie A, Nov. 26, 2006)

Sampdoria 2 - Roma 4 (Serie A, Nov. 26, 2006) (The stunning second from Totti can be seen here)

Catania 2 - Parma 0 (Serie A, Nov. 26, 2006)

Reggina 2 - Livorno 2 (Serie A, Nov. 26, 2006)

Spain

Valencia 0 - Real Madrid 1 (La Liga, Nov. 26, 2006) Raul with the solitary strike

Football's first and only super-agent

2006-11-26T11:15:00.000Z

The Observer today has "the first major interview" with "super-agent" Pini Zahavi.

According to Jamie Jackson, Zahavi "is estimated to have earned as much as £5m from the £111m" that Chelsea spent in the summer of 2003.

Zahavi, who has been one of the chief beneficiaries of the Abramovich revolution rhetorically asks "What was Chelsea before Roman came? It was two days before going bankrupt. The situation was a disaster. The chief executive at the time [Trevor Birch] came and he really begged. 'Help me,' he said. 'We cannot pay the salaries.' Now, Chelsea are one of the best teams in the world. And that's because of Roman Abramovich's money."

Jackson concludes: "Anything seems possible in the world of Pini Zahavi, and his influence seems to have no limits."

The Observer Sport Monthly congratulate themselves on "the first major interview" with Zahavi, but in an interview beefed up with opinions ranging from Jimmy Hill to Gordon Taylor, they have failed to question the ethics of this "super-agent". Sadly the interview reads like a PR piece for the agent, when surely more could have been done to question why one man (not a player or manager) has made so much money from the beautiful game.

Has Gerrard returned to form now he is back in the centre?

2006-11-26T07:00:00.000Z

Liverpool 1 - Manchester City 0 "He is now playing well, happier when he scores goals and happier with his performances generally" - Rafa Benitez on Gerrard. Hear Rafa and Gerrard here

Bolton 3 - Arsenal 1 "In every game it is the same - we have fantastic potential but we do not get what we should. That is down to experience and a learning process" - Arsene Wenger. Look out for Anelka's stunner

Aston Villa 1 - Middlesborough 1 Both sides score controversial goals

Charlton 1 - Everton 1 Andy Reid equalizer only

West Ham 1 - Sheffield United 0

Spain

Barcelona 4 - Villarreal 0 (La Liga, Nov. 25, 2006) Could Chelsea ever do this? Barca provide entertainment, style and class in this victory which will be talked about for some time. See Ronaldinho's overhead volley here

Atletico Madrid 1 - Real Sociedad 1

Italy

AC Milan 1 - Messina 0 (Serie A, Nov. 25, 2006) Maldini with the winner

Pescara 0 - Napoli 1 (Serie B, Nov. 25, 2006)

Juventus 4 - Lecce 1 (Serie B, Nov. 25, 2006)

France

Troyes 1 - Marseille 1

Lille 1 - Monaco 1 (Gakpe goal only)

Germany

Hamburg 1 - Bayern Munich 2 (2 links - Bayern goals only) Bayern play some great stuff to comeback from behind

Fantasy Football Tip of the week

2006-11-24T12:18:00.000Z

Big game this week with the United States of Manchester hosting Chelsea.

I spoke to Giggs this week and he's pretty adamant that he's going to have the game of his life, score two and set up Rooney for the third. I'm sceptical i'll admit but thats my tip - take it or leave it.

Enjoy!

Carlos

Miscellaneous

2006-11-24T02:29:00.000Z

"2 Good 2 Bad" from Match of the Day 2 can be seen here.

Check out this exchange between Ronaldo and a Celtic fan during this weeks Champions League game.

An advert for Vodafone, featuring "special agents" Rino Gattuso and Francesco Totti can be seen here. According to the phone giants, "the ads imitate the atmosphere and situations to be found in American action movies and show Francesco and Rino in the role of two Vodafone Special Agents whose goal is to improve people's lives."

Good night for the Brits

2006-11-23T23:31:00.001Z

Bayer Leverkusen 0 – Tottenham 1 (Extended highlights here) Berbatov scores against his former club. Spurs progress to next phase

Newcastle 2 – Celta Vigo 1 "Considering we were a goal behind to a team that's just beaten Real Madrid and Deportivo last week, to come back and win the game just shows you the character and skill in the side" - Glenn Roeder

Auxerre 2 - Rangers 2 Rangers twice come from behind to draw in France

Parma 2 - SC Heerenveen 1 The Dutch side take the lead through Pranjic, Igor Budan's double settled the contest (The 26-year-old Croatian has been linked with a move to Milan in the upcoming transfer window)

Fenerbache 3 - Palermo 0 Goals from Appiah, Lugano & Tuncay

PSG 2 – Hapoel Tel Aviv 4 Fantastic night for the Israelis, and they humble a former European giant

Odense 1 – Lens 1 (Jemaa's 88th minute leveller for Lens)

Basel 2 - Nancy 2

Maccabi Haifa 1 - Partizan Belgrade 0

The Ashes Football connection

2006-11-23T17:17:00.000Z

The BBC reports that "Gary Pratt, who achieved cult hero status in 2005 by running out the Aussie captain (Ricky Ponting) at Trent Bridge, was fast asleep at his home in Durham as England got their Ashes campaign off to an inauspicious start.

The 24-year-old was exhausted after playing for Crook Town FC against Seaham Red Star in Thursday evening's Arngrove Northern League Division Two game.

Pratt has turned to football to keep in shape after he was released by county side Durham in August."

Some other football blogs have rubbished cricket in recent days highlighting their own ignorance when it comes to the strong connections between the two sports.

For example, England cricket legend Ian Botham could have become a professional footballer and did actually play for Scunthorpe United in 11 league games. Denis Compton (above) played for both Arsenal and England on the football field, and spent 22 years with Middlesex County Cricket Club, amassing 78 Test caps in the process.

Viv Richards is perhaps the only man to represent his country in both soccer and cricket World Cup competitions, playing for Antigua in qualification. In a bizarre twist of fate Richards was once dismissed by former Coventry City goalkeeper Steve Ogrizovic when Ogrizovic (of Shropshire) played for the Minor Counties against the touring Windies.

There are numerous fans around the world who follow both sports and clearly the two games can have a positive influence on one another. The celebrated Barmy Army shows footballs current influence on cricket whilst undoubtedly some footballers (e.g. Anton Ferdinand & Craig Bellamy) could learn social behaviour skills from their cricket counterparts.

The "Ronaldinho pass"?

2006-11-23T13:32:00.000Z

On June 19, 1974, Holland played Sweden at the World Cup in Germany. The match finished 0-0, but a flash of skill from Johan Cruyff will be remembered for as long as people are still playing the beautiful game.

Wikipedia, the online internet encyclopaedia, provides the following description of what is now known as the "Cruyff turn": "To do this move, Cruyff would look to pass or cross the ball. However, instead of kicking it, he would drag the ball behind his planted foot with the inside of his other foot and dribble away."

The Cruyff turn can be seen here.

A modern day great has also invented a move similar to the above mentioned turn. Ronaldinho's "no look pass" can be seen here, here & here.

This is a supreme skill. If you aren't so convinced then next time you play the game try and attempt the "no look pass". See if you can stay on your feet, let alone complete an accurate pass to a team-mate.

This move has been immortalised as Ronaldinho's signature move in the most recently available Pro Evolution Soccer 6. (To activate the skill press L1 three times whilst Ronaldinho has the ball.)

In recognition of his creativity and inventive ability, this move should receive the appropriate recognition and be named after the great Brazilian. And there should be a better name than the current "no look pass".

Can Werder Bremen knock Barca out?

2006-11-22T22:27:00.000Z

Werder Bremen 1 - Chelsea 0 (Group A) Mertesacker with the only goal, Chelsea reach the knockout phase

Levski Sofia 0 - Barcelona 2 (Group A) Goals from Giuly and Iniesta set up a fascinating clash at the Nou Camp on December 5. Great skill from Ronaldinho can be seen here and here

Spartak Moscow 2 - Bayern Munich 2 (Group B) Pizarro scores two, the second is a really sweet strike

Inter Milan 1 - Sporting Lisbon 0 (Group B) Another great strike from Hernan Crespo

Liverpool 2 - PSV 0 (Group C) Liverpool guarantee top-spot, interviews with Benitez & Gerrard can be seen here

Bordeaux 3 - Galatasaray 1 (Group C) Bordeaux secure a place in the UEFA Cup

Shakhtar Donetsk 1 - Roma 0 (Group D) Roma need a draw in final group game to qualify

Valencia 2 - Olympiakos 0 (Group D) Valencia are through as group winners

Two names to remember: Ray Jones & Danny Haynes

2006-11-22T14:55:00.000Z

(Apologies that we could only get these Championship goals today - our commitment to the lower leagues is still as strong as ever.)

Ray Jones interview including his goal from Cardiff 0 - QPR 1 (Championship, Nov.17, 2006)

Coventry 3 - Sheffield Wednesday 1 (Championship, Nov. 18, 2006)

Ipswich 3 - Norwich City 1 (Championship, Nov. 19, 2006) Haynes comes off the bench and scores two in fifteen minutes to win the derby

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Aldershot Town 2 - Chelmsford City 0 (FA Cup first round replay, Nov. 21, 2006) "Over 2,700 fans snub Man. United & Celtic for some real football"

Should video technology be introduced?

2006-11-22T12:54:00.000Z

(Written by Manuel Francisco dos Santos)

As recent as the past few weeks we have witnessed incidents which demonstrate that the game is too quick and too fast for the on-field officials and they are in need of assistance.

The game is rendered a farce when the whistleblower is the only person who is of the opinion, for example, that a goal isn't a goal – as was the fate suffered by Pedro Mendes, which would have seen his goal tally double for Spurs.

Failure to call blatent handballs isn't much better either.

In every single game there are going to be contentious decisions and many of those will have an outcome on the result of the game, or even the tournament, as was the case for South Korea at the 2002 World Cup (which they co-hosted).

The bigger the occasion the more chance a decision will become part of football folklore. 40 years after the fact, people are still debating if Geoff Hurst's shot crossed the line.

With so much hinging on matches not the least of which are people's livelihoods, it is owed that the right decision is reached and if that means going to video replay or introducing more on-field officials so be it. They have three in basketball which covers a far smaller area.

Referees aren't able to keep up with the pace of the game but before anything can be done to solve the problem, this had to be acknowledged. Think we are now there.

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(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Yesterday, Sepp Blatter announced FIFA's plan to use the aid of video technology "at the 2007 World Club Championship and offer its use at other FIFA competitions too".

Some people out there may be celebrating this decision as a victory for pragmatism. Their argument runs that if we have the technology which can settle whether, for example, the ball crossed the line then we should use it. Certainty in such decisions is a positive development for the game. Further, this will reduce the burden on referees – for whom any help would be beneficial – as such match deciding decisions would be taken out of their hands and thus removing the present human error which often occurs.

Yet if video technology becomes mainstream, it would signal a dark day for football.

A prime reason why football is the greatest game in the world is because it is one of the few worldwide games which has the exact same rules at the amateur sport level which is then played at the professional level. The rule of offside is applied in its equal measure whether the player in question is a kid representing their school or Sunday league club, or whether the game being played is the Champions League Final.

This "level playing field" is a central tenant of what makes the beautiful game so beautiful. Its provides for equal opportunity for all. So let's keep things pure.

Gordon Strachan: "I can't believe it, I will have to double check in the morning just to make sure"

2006-11-21T20:41:00.000Z

Real Madrid 2 - Lyon 2 (Group E) Lyon guarantee themselves top spot in Group E after an epic battle with Real Madrid

Steaua Bucuresti 1 - Dynamo Kiev 1 (Group E) Steaua take third place and the UEFA Cup spot

Celtic 1 - Manchester United 0 (Longer highlights here) (Group F) Celtic qualify for the knockout phase of the Champions League for the first time ever following a wonderful free-kick from Nakamura and a late penalty save by Boruc

Benfica 3 - FC Copenhagen 1 (Extended highlights here) (Group F) Following up from last season's competition, this win set up another head to head battle between United and Benfica to determine who goes through

Arsenal 3 - Hamburg 1 (Group G) Van Der Vaart's stunning strike gave Hamburg the lead, but goals from Van Persie, Eboue and Baptista mean the Gunners need a point in Porto to guarantee qualification. An interview with Arsene Wenger can be seen here.

CSKA Moscow 0 - Porto 2 (Group G) Porto go to the top of the group on 10 points

AEK Athens 1 - AC Milan 0 (Group H) Having already got themselves into the next phase, Milan gave the Greeks something to smile about

Lille 2 - Anderlecht 2 (Group H) Lille's hopes of qualification suffer a blow as Mpenza bags a brace

When's its broke, fix it

2006-11-21T14:28:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Today’s British newspapers whetted our appetite before tonight’s clash between Scotland’s runaway leaders – Celtic, and the present leaders of the Premiership - Manchester United, by providing us with the thoughts of Gordon Strachan on the comparison of the two clubs.

Strachan commented: "I know the league in Scotland isn't the Premiership, but the gap isn't what most of you think. I think sometimes you pat yourselves on the back too much. I've seen some dire matches in the Premiership, as you do in every league. And I do think we would compete in the top half of the Premiership all right."

The purpose of the Champions League is to have a competition whereby the domestic champions of Europe all meet to determine who are the best of the best. This is meant to be the definitive yardstick to judge how good a club is. Strachan, however, preferred to analyze the quality of his side by hypothesizing how successful Celtic would be if they played their domestic football in the Premiership. Despite Celtic's recent 3-2 defeat to United, they presently occupy second place in their group and there is much to be optimistic about in terms of progression in the Champions League.

Yet he does not use the barometer of the Champions League to assess the competitiveness of his side. Why not?

Gabriele Marcotti yesterday wrote a critique of the problems facing Europe’s premier club competition. He observed that "in the past 15 years, only two clubs from outside Europe’s five biggest leagues have reached the final, Porto and Ajax… If anything, the gap has grown this year. Europe’s "Big Five" — Germany, France, England, Italy and Spain — are likely to supply 13 of the 16 clubs who will qualify from the Champions League group stage…[The Champions League] has effectively become a closed shop, limited to clubs from five nations".

The conclusion is that the Champions League offers little long term hope of success for Celtic. Strachan knows that Celtic will not win the competition. So he chose to back up his beliefs that Celtic can challenge United by contrasting with his opponents in the hypothetical only. Facts would have been his undoing.

This conclusion comes to the detriment of the Champions League. Today, as Marcotti noted, "European Cup winners, such as Ajax and Benfica, are drifting towards obscurity… [and] teams such as AS Roma, Valencia or Arsenal — with no European Cups between them — are considered bigger and more attractive". The reason for this is that the weekly competition faced by Celtic, Ajax or Benfica fails to challenge these teams into improvement, and so they stagnate. Such stagnation is then only recognized when these teams appear on the European stage.

So where do we go from here?

Marcotti proffered the solution of regional leagues. The Atlantic League, for example, would comprise "the best clubs in the Netherlands, Belgium, Scotland and Portugal. These clubs would break away from their domestic leagues and play each other instead" whilst still remaining involved in the Champions League. The rationale is that "the standard of competition for clubs within the Atlantic League would rise, making the teams better and helping them to attract better players, leading to a virtuous cycle that would further improve the quality of the league."

There are many questions which Marcotti fails to present answers for. How would entrance to the Champions League work in conjunction with these regional leagues? Who would decide which teams are the "best clubs" in each domestic league – and how? And what would happen to the clubs who were not selected?

Finding solutions to these issues is not simple. However, when teams like Celtic cannot progress as a result of the domestic leagues they find themselves in, something proactive must be done. The objective of breaking the stranglehold of the Big Five on the European game needs to be fulfilled for the greater good of the game.

One stop shop

2006-11-21T10:16:00.000Z

Here are all the goals from this weekend's action from the Premiership, Bundesliga, Superliga, Eredivisie, Serie A, and Ligue 1.

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Wigan 0 – Aston Villa 0 (Premiership, Nov. 19, 2006)

Name the five current players who have played every Premiership season?

2006-11-21T08:24:00.000Z

Spain

Levante 0 – Atletico Madrid 3 (La Liga, Nov. 19, 2006)

Zaragoza 3 – Gimnastic 0 (La Liga, Nov. 19, 2006)

Espanyol 3 - Atletic Bilbao 2 (La Liga, Nov. 19, 2006) Tamudo with a brace

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Italy

Livorno 3 - Parma 0 (Serie A, Nov. 19, 2006) Calamitous defending from Parma

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Turkey

Fenerbache 0 - Besiktas 0 (Super Lig, Nov. 19, 2006) Fenerbache are four points clear at the top

Antalyaspor 0 - Galatasaray 1 (Super Lig, Nov. 18, 2006)

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Last weekend served up a helping of spectacular goals. See a complilation here.

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A Football Focus interview with Ryan Giggs, from this weekend, can be seen here. The answer to the question in the title of this post is contained in this video.

***

The BBC Panormama documentary "Undercover: Football's dirty secrets" can now be seen in three parts here, here & here. This documentary was first shown on the BBC in September, following the accusations against Sam Allardyce and his son Craig, "Big Sam" has not appeared on "Match of the Day".

Real Madrid: Past, present and future

2006-11-20T16:28:00.000Z

There have been numerous tributes paid to Ferenc Puskas in recent days. Gary Lineker writing in the Sunday Telegraph had high praise for the "Galloping Major" (a reference to the fact that he was an army officer playing for an army team):

"In those days, long before Sky and saturation coverage of football, all we saw of Puskas and all those other top players were the same few clips of him playing for Madrid and Hungary. And the fact that these few clips were sufficient to confirm his as one of the all-time greats shows what a remarkable player he was."

The Observer published some excerpts from "Puskas on Puskas".

Puskas described the importance of the "drag back" for the third goal against England in 1954: "I think my favourite goal of all time was that third one - the 'drag back'. I don't really know where that goal came from. The drag back was something I used to do as a kid, but it wasn't something I'd ever practised. It was instinctive. My football wasn't full of fancy tricks. I liked simple things on the pitch, simple solutions, quick easy movements. Everyone loved the goal - it's probably the one I am best remembered for - but the truth is I had to get out of the way quick, otherwise Billy Wright would have really clobbered me."

The goal can be seen here. Highlights from the match can be seen here.

The "magical Magyar" had this to say about the famous 1960 European Cup Final: "There were 135,000 fans in Hampden Park that evening and it was one of those blissful times when the whole team seemed to play brilliantly and we almost achieved some kind of footballing perfection... What can I say? It was a privilege to be there."

Shortly before his death Puskas commented: "I will write of my life as a footballer as if it were a love story... For who shall say that it is not?"

***

Hugo Sanchez was named Mexico's new national coach on Thursday. Sanchez was a prolific marksman for Real Madrid from 1985 to 1992.

His trademark was to perform a celebratory somersault after each goal he scored, honouring his sister, who was a gymnast and participated in the Montreal Olympics.

This goal by Sanchez was perhaps the defining strike of his career, and well worth a watch.

***

Real Madrid have announced a world record seven-year television deal worth $1.5 billion.

"The contract will run from 2008 to 2015, but Ramon Calderon, president of the nine-time European champion, declined to reveal which company had bought the broadcast rights, saying details would be revealed later this week."

(Note to the English Premier League: Internet viewing has not affected this "world record" deal.)

***

According to the Spanish sports daily Marca, Fabio Cannavaro will receive the Ballon d'Or, France Football magazine's prestigious award in Paris on Nov. 27. The Italian newspapers Gazzetta dello Sport and Corriere della Sera also claimed the Italian defender will win the award in Paris.

Cannavaro recently told France Football that he "would give two Ballon d'Or prizes, One to me and one to Buffon. There is a great respect and friendship between Gigi and I."

Cannavaro would be the fourth Italian to win the award after Gianni Rivera (1969), Paolo Rossi (1982) and Roberto Baggio (1993).

***

Real Madrid have announced transfer deals for some of the rising stars in South America: Marcelo, 18, from Brazilian club Fluminense along with two rising Argentine stars: River Plate striker Gonzalo Higuain, 18, and Boca Juniors midfielder Fernando Gago, 20.

Marcelo, a left wing back has already been likened to Roberto Carlos, this assist suggests the comparisons may be accurate.

Gonzalo Higuain was born in France whilst his father, a professional Argentinean player, Jorge Higuain, was playing in the French first division. Gonzalo left the country at the age of 10 months and although he does not speak French, he does hold a French passport. He has rejected calls from both the Argentine under 20's and the French national team claiming he still hasn't decided which country to play for. (There seems to be some doubt as to whether this deal has gone through, with River Plate claiming today that Real will have to offer more money.)

A compilation on Gonzalo Higuain can be seen here. A video of Fernando Gago, "the new Redondo" can be seen here.

Following these three signings Calderon told the Spanish radio station Onda Madrid, "With all the new signings, we will have a very competitive team... Next year out of a squad of 22 we will have 14 players under 25."

It would seem the "Galactico" era is all but over, once "El Becks" leaves and Madrid win a trophy, the era will be consigned to football history.

Forest have a six point lead at the top of League One

2006-11-20T08:09:00.000Z

Rotherham 1 – Nottingham Forest 1 (League One, Nov. 18, 2006) "It's the first time that we have been behind away from home, it's a different problem but we found a solution" - Colin Calderwood

Oldham 2 – Bradford 0 (League One, Nov. 18, 2006) Chris Porter scores twice in three minutes to extend in-form Oldham's run to one defeat in 12 games

Hull 0 – Stoke 2 (Championship, Nov. 18, 2006) Stoke are the surprise package of the Championship who look like promotion candidates

Leeds 0 – Southampton 3 (Championship, Nov. 18, 2006) Rasiak at the double

Luton 0 – Derby 2 (Championship, Nov. 18, 2006)

***

Hearts 0 - Rangers 1 (Scottish Premier League, Nov. 19, 2006) Novo goal reduces pressure on Le Guen, whilst Hearts revolt against absent owner Romanov

***

Torino 1 - Sampdoria 0 (Serie A, Nov. 19, 2006)

Albinoleffe 1 - Juventus 1 (Serie B, Nov. 18, 2006) Juve come from behind after Buffon is sent off

***

Sevilla 3 - Valencia 0 (La Liga, Nov. 18, 2006)

Real Valladolid 1 - Tenerife 0 (Segunda Division, Nov. 18, 2006)

***

One of the goals of the weekend was scored by Salcido for PSV in their 4-0 win over Excelsior

Every touch by Christiano Ronaldo against Sheffield United can be seen here. Was his miss as bad as Ronnie Rosenthal's in 1992 against Villa?

A trailer for next weeks Manchester United - Chelsea clash can be seen here.

A goal of the season contender from Tugay

2006-11-19T18:16:00.000Z

England

Blackburn 1 - Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Premiership, Nov. 19, 2006) (2 links)

Reading 2 - Chartlon 0 (2 links) (Premiership, Nov. 18, 2006) Chartlon look doomed

Ports mouth 3 - Watford 1 (3 links) (Premiership, Nov. 18, 2006) DeMerit goes from hero to zero

***

Spain

Mallorca 1 - Barcelona 4 (La Liga, Nov.18, 2006) Gudjohnsen with a brace

***

Italy

Roma 7 - Cantania 0 (Serie A, Nov. 19, 2006) Goals for Panucci (2), Perrotta (2), Mancini, Montella & Totti

Inter 1 - Reggina 0 (Serie A, Nov. 19, 2006) Crespo scores with an unstoppable strike to move Inter three points clear

***

France

Sedan 0 - Lyon 1 (Ligue 1, Nov. 18, 2006)

PSG 0 - Bordeuax 2 (Ligue 1, Nov. 18, 2006) (2 links)

"We lost the game because of two great finishes from the king" - Neil Warnock

2006-11-19T08:15:00.000Z

England

Arsenal 1 - Newcastle 1 (Extended highlights here) Perfect free kick from Henry salvages point for Gunners

Sheffield United 1 - Manchester United 2 (Extended highlights here) Rooney double keeps United three points clear of Chelsea, who face each other next Sunday. But how did Ronaldo miss?

Chelsea 1 - West Ham 0

Middlesborough 0 - Liverpool 0 (2 links) Liverpool can't win away from home, but at least they managed to get a point

Manchester City 3 - Fulham 1 Corradi finally introduces himself to the Premiership

Everton 1 - Bolton 0 Arteta scores a cracker

***

Scotland

Celtic 3 - Inverness Caledonian Thistle 0 (SPL, Nov. 18, 2006) Celtic move 18 points ahead of Rangers

***

Italy

Empoli 0 - AC Milan 0 (Serie A, Nov.18, 2006) Milan continue to struggle

Napoli 1 - Bologna 0 (Serie B, Nov.18, 2006)

***

Germany

Bayern Munich 2 - Stuttgart 1 (Bundesliga, Nov.18, 2006)

***

Spain

Real Madrid 3 - Racing Santander 1 (La Liga, Nov.18, 2006)

The "Galloping Major"

2006-11-17T08:34:00.000Z

Hungary and Real Madrid legend Ferenc Puskas has died at the age of 79.

Probably the high point of his career was the 1960 European Cup final in front of 135,000 at Hampden Park. Real Madrid defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3. Di Stefano scored a hat-trick, Puskas went one better with four. A video from that match can be seen here.

A lengthy compilation of a "magical Magyar" can be seen here.

Fantasy Football Tip of the Week

2006-11-17T08:26:00.000Z

Aston Villa have a very easy run of games coming up - so take Mellberg if you're after a defender, Barry if you didn't heed my advice and already have him and I'd take Agbonlahor over Angel.

Aslo note that if you're playing on the Premierleague.com you can buy the impressive Ashley Young for a snip at 6.6. He's down as a midfielder but playing as a striker which also helps.

If you haven't already, you can still join the 101 Great Goals league on the above website using the code 430570-152679.

Enjoy another fine weekend of (fantasy) football!

Carlos

Aragones insists his side is showing signs of improvement...

2006-11-17T08:11:00.000Z

Spain 0 - Romania 1 (Friendly, Nov. 15, 2006)

Morocco 6 - Gabon 0 (Friendly, Nov. 15, 2006)

Switzerland 1 - Brazil 2 (Friendly, Nov. 15, 2006)

Australia 1 - Ghana 1 (Friendly, Nov. 14, 2006)

Georgia 2 - Uruguay 0 (Friendly, Nov. 15, 2006)

***

Every touch by Christiano Ronaldo against the "Borats" can be seen here.

Win anything with kids? – fat chance!

2006-11-16T15:11:00.000Z

(Written by Jair Ventura Filho)

Many will remember Alan Hansen's comment on the opening weekend of the 1995/96 season when Manchester United lost at Villa Park, "you never win anything with kids". It is a quote of which he is constantly reminded, as that United team (which included Gary Neville, Phil Neville, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt - all of whom were 20 or under) went on that season to win the League, as well as defeating Hansen's old club Liverpool in the FA Cup final.

Yet, when looking at the British game it is noticeable how Hansen's words may not have been too far off the mark. Granted, it turned out that his conclusion was wrong in the case of United, and it is true that several current Premiership stars have broken through before they've reached 20. But how many of the so-called Premiership wonder-kids of the last ten years fulfilled their potential and became legends of the game?

The answer is not many. With the exception of those Manchester United players above (and it is arguable that although G Nev is a solid full back, he will not be remembered as more than that, while his brother Phil and Nicky Butt have seen their careers peter out as they approached their "prime" years), the media hype that surrounds these young stars often serves to place these players under so much pressure to succeed, that they fail to realise the potential everyone had hoped they possessed.

Let's look at the winners of the PFA young player award since 1996:

1996: Robbie Fowler (Liverpool) – recently struggled to even make it onto the pitch
1997: David Beckham (Manchester United) – a football legend (like it or not)
1998: Michael Owen (Liverpool) – struggled since his hamstring problems kicked-in
1999: Nicolas Anelka (Arsenal) – consistently failed to live up to expectations
2000: Harry Kewell (Leeds United) – "sick-note" and big time loser
2001: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) – on way to being a legend of the game
2002: Craig Bellamy (Newcastle United) – not bad, but no world beater
2003: Jermaine Jenas (Newcastle United) – still not produced consistently for Spurs
2004: Scott Parker (Chelsea) – plays for Newcastle, so nuff said
2005: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) – jury still out
2006: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

Of the above mentioned, only Steven Gerrard has gone onto win the PFA player of the year award 2006. Not even two time young PFA winner Ryan Giggs ('93 and '94) has won the award. Some may claim that stagnation of our youth is due to the influx of foreigners in our game. However, 6 of the last 10 winners of the PFA award have been British so that argument falls down.

Micah Richards is presently the new young saviour of England, replacing the old-timers after they have proved themselves lacking at International football. Richards is a player with less than 40 senior appearances for his club, and who broke into the full England side by bypassing the under-21 setup. He is the 37th player to represent his country before turning 20 – a seemingly great achievement. But when one looks at the other 36 on the list, a clear pattern emerges which may also explain why England continue to disappoint in the face of huge media and public expectation (for a full list, click here).

15 of these players appeared before 1904, so let’s discount them. That leaves 22 players. 10 players of the group of 22 established themselves in football folklore, and remain modern day icons. This group includes players such as Tommy Lawton, Stanley Matthews, Cliff Bastin, Duncan Edwards, Jimmy Greaves and John Barnes. Importantly none of these players won a World Cup (Greaves doesn't count), or were part of the great England side of 1970.

The remaining 12 players in this group comprise players who made their debut since 1996. Yet only 4 of these 12 players lined up for England last night. And only 1 is considered a real star, and he has only just turned 21 with a long career ahead of him.

The conclusion staring us smack in the face is potential is rarely converted into long-lasting quality. So why does the England manager continue to choose young inexperienced and largely unproven players, when the history books show that this doesn't work?

The 1966 and 1970 sides were teams of experienced players who knew how to deal with what was in front of them. Additionally, they also benefited from playing in an age where every word and every mistake didn't count, and would not be reported ad infinitem.

The situation today though is far different. The media latch onto every young star as soon as they can. They cause the public to believe that these youngsters can bring glory and win trophies. It is the media that creates an environment where young players move to big clubs to be nothing more than bench warmers. And it is the media who are the first to turn on a player who fails to perform, even though they are in their early 20's and yet to reach their prime.

Italy won the World Cup with a squad whose youngest player was De Rossi at 23. Finalists France had Ribery, at 23, as their whippersnapper. Brazil in 2002 won it with Kaka (20) and Ronaldinho (22) hardly featuring, with opposing finalists Germany having two players aged 22.

England had 6 players under the age of 23 in the last World Cup. And we all saw how that ended up.

Hansen was right. McClaren should take note.

"What a great way to showcase the talent of our athletes"

2006-11-16T14:50:00.000Z

The American National Hockey League has announced a "strategic content and advertising partnership" with YouTube. "The agreement will enable users to access video highlights of NHL regular season games, which will be available within 24 hours of the original broadcast, in addition to other on and off ice footage."

Doug Perlman, NHL Executive Vice President commented that "The partnership will enable the NHL to expose YouTube's vast audience to all of the excitement and drama of the new NHL... What a great way to showcase the talent of our athletes."

By utilizing YouTube's "Claim Your Content" program, the Hockey League will also have the option to remove content from YouTube or allow it to remain online and share the revenue from the advertising placed adjacent to the content.

The NHL will have its own brand channel on YouTube at www.youtube.com/NHL (this is not up and running yet) and this deal comes hot on the heels of a recent agreement that the NHL agreed with Google Video.

Owen Gibson in the Guardian today describes broadband internet connection as "the next launch platform" for football. Gibson notes that highlights of the upcoming Ashes (cricket series) will be online within minutes of the final ball of the day.

The article quotes Alexandre Fourtoy, chief executive of UEFA Media technologies who warns that "Today's football fan wants to share, show and create. If you can't go against it, get what you can from it."

The article also says that "Broadcasters will still pay huge sums for top-class rights... because live sport remains one of the few things capable of delivering mass audiences in a fragmenting media world."

As some of you may have noticed, the videos we link to on this site are pulled down usually within two to three days of us linking to them. We are almost certain that this website is being specifically targeted since there are numerous videos of last weekends Premier League goals on YouTube but only the videos we linked to have been taken down.

It is quite clear from the example set by the NHL that the Premier League and other football governing bodies should embrace this new media outlet. The Premier League is taking the videos down but not providing fans with an alternative website to see the goals. How long till the Premier League realizes both the power of its own product and the possibilities provided by "the next quantum leap in armchair viewing"?

International Night

2006-11-15T21:56:00.000Z

Macedonia 0 - Russia 2 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group E)

Israel 3 - Croatia 4 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group E) Da Silva hat-trick downs the Israelis, as Croatia go top of the group

Belgium 0 - Poland 1 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group A) Matusiak with the winner

Portugal 3 - Kazakhstan 0 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group A) Brilliant Ronaldo places the ball in the corner

Cyprus 1 - Germany 1 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group D) Germany miss the chance to go two points clear

Republic of Ireland 5 - San Marino 0 (Euro 2008 Qualifier, Group D) Steve Staunton records his first competitive victory, as Robbie Keane helps himself to a hat-trick

Holland 1 - England 1 (Friendly) Rooney scores his first goal for England in more than a year

France 1 - Greece 0 (Friendly) Thierry Henry with a match-winning header

Italy 1 - Turkey 1 (Friendly) Zizou must have enjoyed the Turkish equalizer

Sweden 0 - Ivory Coast 1 (Friendly) Drobga can't stop scoring

Serbia 1 - Norway 1 (Friendly) (Vidic goal only)

"A new breed of player"

2006-11-15T14:08:00.000Z

Tonight Micah Richards will make his debut for England. Even though he hasn't played more than 30 times for Manchester City, it is quite clear that Richards is a class player who could play for England for years to come.

When announcing the inclusion of Richards in the England squad Steve McClaren described the full-back as "a new breed of player… strong, quick and athletic and very good at defending."

It is as if there are no other full-backs in world football who are strong quick and athletic. Has the current England manager not been watching Cafu and Roberto Carlos play for Brazil for over ten years?

Many of the English newspapers have seized on these quotes by McClaren, only Richard Williams in the Guardian suggests that this "new breed" of full back has actually been around for quite a while. Williams cites Emmanuel Eboue as "an outstanding example of the new breed." But then tells us that "The true ancestor of Eboue and Richards is perhaps Hans-Peter Briegel, the phenomenal Kaiserslautern full-back who sprang to international attention with Germany in the 1980 European championships."

There are numerous examples of full-backs in the mould of Micah Richards. In fact the idea that a full-back could be strong going forward as well as defending was pioneered by the Italian full-back Giacinto Facchetti in the 1960's.

Yesterday John Terry said he was "baffled" as to why England's players are less talented than their hype would have them believe. The British press takes any comment from an England manager, however ridiculous, and proceeds to build players up for days on end in the lead-up to international matches.

To describe an uncapped player as "a new breed" is both factually incorrect and places way too much pressure on the young player, the team and then subsequently the manager.

Surely more emphasis should be placed on the fact that Richards is a graduate of Simon Clifford's Brazilian-influenced soccer school, so unlike virtually every other England international his technique and skill levels shouldn't let him down on the world stage.

(On the subject of England full-backs click here to see the damage recently done to Ashley Cole's "palace". Thanks Mediawatch.)

Koumas at the double

2006-11-15T07:20:00.000Z

Wales 4 - Lichtenstein 0

Holland U21 0 - England U21 1 "A calamity of errors"

Republic of Ireland B 0 - Scotland B 0 "A very lackluster encounter"

Ceefax

2006-11-15T06:59:00.000Z

Before the rise and rise of the world wide web, many football fans, especially in the UK, used to follow their teams progress on Ceefax.

To relive the "good old days" check out this rather smart website.

"One night in May" seems like a long time ago

2006-11-14T17:50:00.000Z

Two of the biggest clubs in Europe chose this weekend to confirm that they could be approaching troubled times.

Milan recorded their third home defeat in a row, the first time this has happened in 40 years. Liverpool, after their 3-0 defeat to Arsenal, have now set the record for their worst away start in England's top division in 52 years.

James Richardson writes in the Guardian that "twenty points from first place, nine from the Champions League positions: domestically, this Milan team is finished."

Undoubtedly, the loss of Shevchenko and eight Serie A points before the season even started has proved difficult to overcome. Carlo Ancelotti is surely on borrowed time, aside from Kaka it is hard to think of any match-winners at the Rossoneri.

Above all, most of the team that started the game against Roma are old. This is amply demonstrated by the back five that started Sundays game (Dida, Maldini, Nesta, Simic & Brocchi) who are all over 30. The two defenders on the bench, who did not play were Cafu (36) and Costacurta (40).

Amazingly the current problems at Anfield have led to criticism of both Rafa Benitez and Steven Gerrard. Matt Dickinson writes in today’s Times about the "maddening mystery of Benitez’s true personality." Dickinson points out that the Spaniard has "never spent more than three years in any job." Surely Livepool will do anything to keep Benitez, probably their best manager since Kenny Dalglish.

Much of the criticism aimed at Benitez has come from his decision to play Stevie G on the right-hand side of midfield. Alan Hansen wrote in yesterdays Telegraph that "Gerrard has to play through the middle." Most analysts seem to forget that he played most of last season on the right and scored 23 goals.

Hansen sums up the real problem, that Liverpool have relied on Gerrard for way to long: "I have said before that Liverpool cannot keep placing their faith in a single player like Gerrard, especially when he has not been performing to the very high standards he set in Benitez's first two seasons at Anfield. By no means is Gerrard playing badly, but you cannot expect him to keep performing at the levels he has been doing because every player, no matter how good, sees his form dip."

For the neutrals one has to hope that these two massive clubs can turn their current fortunes around simply because they produced the greatest European final in modern times only a year and a half ago.

(A documentary on the 2005 Champions League final, "One Night in May," can be seen here, here and here.)

"I think parting company with someone after 12 games is very early and is not what support is about" - Simon Jordan on Charlton firing Iain Dowie

2006-11-14T05:38:00.000Z

Spain

Valencia 1 – Athletic Bilbao 1 (La Liga, Nov. 11th, 2006)

Atletico Madrid 3 – Villarreal 1 (La Liga, Nov. 11th, 2006)

Real Betis 2 – Levante 1 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Gimnastic 0 – Deportivo La Coruna 0 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Real Sociedad 1 – Espanyol 1 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Racing Santander 0 – Sevilla 0 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Getafe 1– Mallorca 0 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Celta Vigo 1– Recreativo Huelva 2 (La Liga, Nov. 12th, 2006) Sinama-Pongolle gets first goal for Recreativo

***

France

Lyon 2 – Valenciennes 1 (Ligue 1, Nov. 10th, 2006) Lyon get back to winning ways and remain top of the table

Lille 1 – Marseille 1 (Ligue 1, Nov. 12th, 2006) Wonderful strike from Bodmer

***

Italy

Sampdoria 3 – Cheivo 0 (Serie A, Nov. 12th, 2006) Quagliarella scores two fantastic goals and confirms that he is a striker to watch this season

Lazio 5 – Udinese 0 (Serie A, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Sienna 0 – Reggina 1 (Serie A, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Catania 3 – Livorno 2 (Serie A, Nov. 12th, 2006)

Bari 0 – Napoli 1 (Serie B, Nov. 13th, 2006) Both teams still habour thoughts of promotion, with Napoli lying in fourth and Bari sitting in eighth

***

Holland

Ajax 0 – PSV Eindhoven 1 (Eredivisie, Nov. 12th, 2006) (Extended highlights here) PSV take a one point lead at the top of the table by defeating second placed Ajax

***

"Showboat" from this weeks Soccer am can be seen here.

Watch El-Hadj Diouf grabbing Paddy Kenny's "tackle" here.

Staying hard

2006-11-13T09:33:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Modern society has given birth to the metro-sexual, the Smart Car and the low fat Frappuccino. The hard edges of the 70s, 80s and early 90s have now been smoothed away to provide a more gentle feel for the moisturized hands of today’s society.

However there was a time when the amount of weight a man could bench-press was more important than which footballer is the best dressed.

In two articles attached, the past and present aspects of football’s tougher side are analyzed.

John Nicholson recalls some of the best hard-men to have played the game, including Ron "Chopper" Harris, Graeme Souness, and Roy Keane.

Nicholas reminisces that "the best hard men were not simply psychotic nutters who went around stamping on people, although they were that as well, no, the most effective hard men were physically strong, excellent ball winners, and good passers. Their job was to break up play, and protect the flair players from being kicked to death by the opposing centre-half".

In the second article Danny Baker focuses on the hard-men currently in management, and questions "now that Premiership managers are starting to square up to one another, who is the hardest? Who, in a Marquess of Queensberry face-off, is the daddy?."

"She should not be here. I know that sounds sexist, but I am sexist. If you start bringing in women you have big problems" - Mike Newell

2006-11-13T06:35:00.000Z

Championship round-up

Luton 2 - QPR 3 Every game QPR have played this season has featured at least two goals. Following the game Luton manager Mike Newell criticised assistant referee Amy Rayner and said women should not be allowed to officiate. "She should not be here. I know that sounds sexist, but I am sexist. If you start bringing in women you have big problems. This is not park football, so what are women doing here? It's tokenism for the politically correct idiots."

Birmingham 2 - Barnsley 0 Five straight wins for the Blues

Coventry 1 - Derby 2 "Jon Stead rediscovering his goal touch"

Leeds 3 - Colchester 0 Two for Robbie Blake

Crystal Palace 0 - Stoke 1 Fourth straight defeat for the Eagles

Hull 2 - Wolves 0 "The Tigers do have teeth after all"

Leicester 2 - Plymouth 2

Sunderland 1 - Southampton 1 Last minute equalizer from Gareth Bale, remember the name

West Brom 0 - Norwich 1 Earnshaw against his former club

The FA Cup starts here - Round 1

2006-11-13T06:33:00.000Z

Chesterfield 0 - Basingstoke 1 Victors over Manchester City and West Ham embaressed in the cup shock of the day

Wycombe 3 - Oxford 1

Rushden & Diamonds 3 - Yeovil 1

Torquay 2 - Leatherhead 1

Nottingham Forest 5 - Yeading 0 Commons scores two beauties as part of his hattrick

Lewes 1 - Darlington 4 Martin Smith scores absolute cracker

Brighton & Hove Albion 8 - Northwich 0 Brighton record first FA Cup win in five years

***

The ugly side of the FA Cup

Coin throwing is on the rise, as an official at the Newport - Swansea FA Cup match gets knocked out for five minutes

And more worrying was the seemingly blatent punch in the face by Barrow defender James Cotterill on Bristol Rovers striker Sean Rigg, who is now considering pressing charges

"We had a good run of 10 games, eight wins, two draws, and then you get this" - Martin Jol

2006-11-13T06:18:00.000Z

England

Read ing 3 - Tott enham 1 (4 links) Reading end Spurs' ten match unbeaten run

Round up of all the action from Saturday in the Premiership including Charlton's inability to defend route one goals, and Sheffield United's comeback from two nil down

***

Spain

Barcelona 3 - Zaragoza 1 Ronaldinho shows off his set play ability

Osasuna 1 - Real Madrid 4 (Extended highlights here) Ruud gets four

Goals from Sunday

2006-11-12T16:54:00.000Z

Arsenal 3 - Liverpool 0 (Extended highlights here) Arsenal come back to form against unimpressive Liverpool

Middlesborough 1 - West Ham 0 (Premiership, Nov. 11, 2006) Super sub Maccarone does it again. Alan Pardew gives his thoughts here

St Mirren 1 - Celtic 3 (SPL, Nov. 12, 2006) Gravesen helps himself to a hat-trick

Palermo 3 - Torino 0 (Serie A, Nov. 12, 2006) Palermo guarantee themselves at least a share of the Serie A lead for one more week

Parma 1 - Inter 2 (Serie A, Nov. 12, 2006)

***

Every touch by Christian Ronaldo against Blackburn can be seen here.

The Drogs is on fire

2006-11-12T08:47:00.000Z

Chelsea 4 - Watford 0

Blackburn 0 - Manchester United 1

Everton 0 - Aston Villa 1 First Villa goal for Chris Sutton

Two for Totti in the San Siro

2006-11-12T06:12:00.000Z

Milan 1 - Roma 2 (2 links) (Serie A, Nov. 11, 2006)

Juventus 2 - Pescara 0 (Serie B, Nov. 11, 2006)

Atletico Madrid 3 - Villareal 1 (La Liga, Nov. 11, 2006)

Le Mans 1 - Paris St. Germain 1 (Ligue 1, Nov. 11, 2006) PSG are now 12th, 18 points behind Lyon

Estudiantes 3 - River Plate 1 (Arpetura, Nov. 11, 2006)

Rangers 2 - Dunfermline 0 (Premier League, Nov. 11, 2006)

Bayer Leverkusen 2 - Bayern Munich 3 (Bundesliga , Nov. 11, 2006) Goals in the 83rd and 86th minutes sees points go to Munich

Schalke 4 - Mainz 0 (Bundesliga , Nov. 11, 2006)

Brondby 3 - Silkeborg 1 (SAS Ligaen, Nov. 11, 2006) Talked about as the new Harry Kewell, Ozzie starlet David Williams scored and set up a goal on his first start this season for seventh place Brondby

Madrid hit five

2006-11-10T13:00:00.000Z

Real Madrid 5 - Ecija 1 (Copa Del Rey, Nov. 9, 2006) Beckham, Ronaldo & Ruud Van Nistelrooy all on the scoresheet. Real advance to the last sixteen. Watch Ruud hit his head on the dugout here. Funny

Fantasy Tip of the Week

2006-11-10T08:19:00.000Z

First I must apologise to my avid fan(s) for not posting a tip last week. There was an issue with the Brazilian national team that I had to sort out (and I was late on Thursday crank calling Cafu).

So this week we talk about injuries - the blight of every manger - real or fantasy.
I want to point you to this website which lists all the injuries of every premiership club. It tells me that my stalwart fantasy player Gareth Barry is injured, and also that it's probably time to take out Marlon King because he's not back until June 07.

This weeks fixtures are tough, Chelsea will probably win at home to Watford and ManYoo will probably win away at Blackburn, but aside from those the games are pretty tough to call. If you look at the injury list website above, you'll see that Portsmouth have only two injuries and both of them to defenders. With every midfielder and forward fit and available I think they'll bounce back from their defeat last week and win comfortably. They didn't have a cup game this week and they're not 4th in the table because they're easy to beat. Kanu could have a day like this or a day like this - so he's not the ideal fantasy player. Pick a defender or David James if you want safe points, pompey just don't seem to concede easily - but my tip for the week is Mendes. He scored a couple of weeks ago, his form has been solid all season and I'd back him to get one on Saturday. On the other hand he might slip on the soap in the shower, break his toe and ruin another great fantasy tip of the week.

Carlos

The best of the rest

2006-11-09T21:45:00.000Z

Scotland

Rangers 0 - St. Johnstone 2 (CIS Cup, Nov. 8th 2006) St. Johnstone record famous victory against a pathetic Rangers, with huge pressure mounting on Le Guen

Celtic 1 - Falkirk 1 (aet: Falkirk win 5-4 on pens) (CIS Cup, Nov. 7th 2006)

***

Italy

Milan 4 - Brescia 2 (Coppa Italia, Nov. 8th 2006) Highly dubious goal to Milan gives them the platform to come back from two down. Great strike from Brocchi

Messina 0 - Inter 1 (Coppa Italia, Nov. 9th 2006) Lovely free kick from Cruz

Triestina 1 - Roma 2 (Coppa Italia, Nov. 8th 2006)

***

Spain

Barcelona 4 - Badalona 0 (Copa del Rey, Nov. 8th 2006)

Sevilla 3 - Segoviana 0 (Copa del Rey, Nov. 8th 2006)

Racing Santander 1 - Deportivo La Coruna 0 (aet: Deportivo win 3-0 on pens) (Copa del Rey, Nov. 8th 2006)

Mallorca 2 - Athletic Bilbao 1 (Copa del Rey, Nov. 8th 2006)

Zaragoza 2 - Hercules 0 (Copa del Rey, Nov. 8th 2006)

Rogerio Ceni: A living legend

2006-11-09T16:53:00.000Z

During last weeks UEFA Cup games, Marco Amelia, the Livorno goalkeeper, scored against Partizan Belgrade. In our UEFA Cup roundup we mentioned other famous goalies that have scored - including Jimmy Glass, Peter Schmiechel and Jose Luis Chilavert.

A comment on this post informed us of another free-scoring goalkeeper - Rogerio Ceni - officially recognised by FIFA as the goalkeeper to have scored the most goals in the history of the game.

A lengthy compilation of the Brazilian who plays his club football for Sao Paulo can be seen here.

In August of this year Ceni scored the 63rd and 64th goals of his career, surpassing the record of Chilavert, in a match that sums up this modern goalkeeping legend. During this match against Cruzeiro he saved a penalty that would have sent Cruzeiro into a 3-0 lead and then proceeded to score a free-kick and a penalty, levelling the match at 2-2.

His first goal in this match, a superb curling free-kick can be seen here.

Ceni has won 16 caps for the Brazilian national team and played ten minutes of the second-half in Brazil's third group game at the recent World Cup. If the 33-year old is still playing by the next World Cup, perhaps he can immortalize himself in football history by being the first goalkeeper to score in the tournament.

Our children aren’t our future

2006-11-09T16:52:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

Following United’s exit from the Carling Cup at the hands of Southend, many having been attempting to understand where it all when wrong.

The Daily Mail used the headline scare tactics to claim "Brown warns United's youngsters" (when in fact all the baked-bean said was "The Carling Cup was an opportunity for the younger lads to carry on in the team and get more games... But they can only look back on it now, because we have been knocked out"). Daniel Taylor, writing on the Guardian blog, was more direct in outing his culprits, citing Brown, O'Shea, Richardson and Fletcher as the B-list who have failed to realize their potential.

In response however, United seem to be heading down the Chelsea route of dealing with issues – namely if you can’t produce them, buy them.

Carling Cup

2006-11-09T07:14:00.000Z

Birmingham 0 - Liverpool 1 Liverpool's first domestic success on the road this season, Bellamy wastes good work by "Speedy" Gonzalez

Chelsea 4 - Aston Villa 0 Blues breeze into last 8 but Villa lose Barry and Laursen in the process

Everton 0 - Arsenal 1 Graham Poll once again takes centre stage. And watch out for Nuno Valente's impression of Jason Cundy

Tottenham 3 - Port Vale 1 (aet) Huddlestone gets his first goals for Spurs, who need extra time to overcome a spirited Vale

***

Copa Del Rey

Gimnastic 1 - Valladolid 3

"A cause célèbre"

2006-11-08T16:48:00.000Z

Kevin Eason ("The Insider") writes in the Times today: "Thousands of illicit video clips of Barclays Premiership matches have been pulled from websites as internet police crack down on fans breaking broadcasting rights agreements. But copyright lawyers are finding that as soon as they trace one illegal website, another pops up."

Even though Youtube is "co-operating with the authorities... the site was still filled yesterday with dozens of football clips recorded directly from television."

Eason then goes on to cite this website and our old friends: "NetResult, a key agency tracing illegal web video, is facing some spirited resistance from 101greatgoals.blogspot.com, a website that was posting links to sites showing Premiership clips. It has become a cause célèbre among bloggers, who have accused the Premiership and the broadcasters of being heavy-handed."

The Times then quote Christopher Stokes, NetResult's chief executive, who claims rights holders could lose substantial amounts of money - a myth that was earlier cited in the same newspaper last Friday.

If anything these videos could bring substantial amounts of money into the coffers of the Premier League. Numerous fans come to this site to see goals since they are sadly unable to see them elsewhere and the rise of video on the internet has exposed yet more people to the beautiful game.

As "The Insider" notes at the end of the article, "Many wonder whether sport will have to follow the route of the music industry and, if they can't beat 'em, join 'em. Once record companies realised they couldn't stop illegal music downloads, they opened their own sites and the Football Association and other sporting bodies may be faced with the same option, offering clips for cash over the internet."

For now our clips from last weekend's Premier League games are still up, games like Spurs-Chelsea can only be a great advertisement for the English league. We can all but hope that if the Premier League do start a football clips site that they offer it to fans all over the world and don't just view it as a money making scheme but rather as an opportunity to give something back to fans whose only chance to stay close to the game is via the world wide web.

"Never let the truth get in the way of a good story"

2006-11-08T16:04:00.000Z

As Chelsea continue to complain about their treatment at White Hart Lane last Sunday some internet forums have been busy; rumours about John Terry's sending off have been spread far and wide...

For more see here.

In Terry's defence, he played in the all-conquering Senrab schoolboy team with Ledley King as well as Jermain Defoe, Bobby Zamora and Jlloyd Samuel. But, there has been a curious silence from the mainstream media about this alleged incident involving the England captain.

United dumped out the Carling Cup

2006-11-08T08:20:00.000Z

Southend 1 - Manchester United 0 A stunning 30-yard strike from Freddy Eastwood seals a great night for The Shrimpers

Watford 2 - Newcastle 2 (aet: Newcastle win 5-4 on pens) Will this be the turning point in the Toon's season? Probably not if they continue to be unable to defend set plays

Notts County 0 - Wycombe 1 "With respect to Crystal Palace, Middlesbrough and Southampton, we had far more trouble containing a Wycombe side that I regard as the best in League Two" - Notts manager, Steve Thompson

Chesterfield 3 - Charlton 3 (aet: Charlton win 4-3 on pens) The Addicks sneak through after pulsating cup tie

***

Analysis of Pardew vs Wenger confrontation continues to receive media coverage. Is there a trend that Arsenal are bad losers?

The battle of Beckham

2006-11-07T13:47:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

The transfer window may be seven weeks away, but it is already apparent that the transfer of David Beckham will dominate the back pages.

Despite Beckham’s insistence only six days ago that "I am not going anywhere in January. I want to stay [at Real Madrid] because I believe we can win something this season.", it seems inevitable that come the new year Mr. Posh Spice will be plying his trade for another employer.

The latest club to have admitted an interest in signing Beckham are the Major League Soccer outfit, the Los Angeles Galaxy, who have as their club President a certain Alexei Lalas – one of the few men walking the planet who can claim to have sported a unique image not inspired by El Becks himself.

The Guardian points out that there are commercial factors involved, which add creditability to the likelihood of the transfer going through. Firstly, Beckham already has a football academy in Los Angeles, and secondly, the Galaxy are owned by AEG, the sports group with close business ties to Beckham's company, Footwork Production.

However, despite these underlying commercial interests, the major question mark against this proposed transfer is the standard and stature of football that the MLS offers. In no other country in the world is the male football league secondary to the female football league. And for a player who has only been attached to Manchester United and Real Madrid, moving to the Galaxy would signal a major drop in the quality of football which Beckham has been accustomed to.

At the outset of the American league back in the 1970s, a host of the greatest footballing legends, including Pele, George Best, Johan Cruyff, and Franz Beckenbauer, all went to play in America. Yet despite this influx of superstars, the game failed to catch on, and by 1984 the dream was all but over. So why would Beckham set himself up for the same fall?

Today however offers a different opportunity. By way of an example I offer the following truism. At my work (yes – I do have a job) I sit with a twenty something American female. When I ask her who are “Bestie” or “The Kaiser” she looks at me dumbfounded. However, when I ask who Beckham is, she starts discussing how good looking he is and talking about how he could do better than Posh.

It is this global appeal which Beckham possesses which makes the move to America so important. Unlike the players of yesteryear, he is able to affect people in a way that is unparalleled by any other footballer, and he has the ability to inspire the soccer-mums of America to take their kids to live MLS games.

A friend of mine once discussed his theory that he felt it was an inevitability that America would one day win the World Cup. The premise for his belief stemmed from the acknowledgement that in most other global sports the American sportsmen are at the top of the tree, and so it was only a matter of time before they produced a squad of footballers capable of being the best. However, what is needed for this theory to take shape is a catalyst.

Step forward David.

Whilst the women’s game is mainstream in America, Beckham’s arrival would see the men’s game dragged into the spotlight by the weight of media attention he would undoubtedly bring with him. This would hopefully have a knock-on affect on the kids of America, and point them in the right direction in becoming one of the top footballing nations. This makes the move good for the Americans.

And despite the quality of the MLS being below the standards of football enjoyed by Beckham to date, the intensity and pressures and weight of expectation that would accompany him in America would serve as a major challenge to overcome in his twilight years in the game. This makes the move good for Becks.

"That's got to hurt worse than getting a birthday telegram from Zinedine Zidane"

2006-11-07T08:20:00.000Z

Family Guy, an American animated comedy known for its brief, frequently nonsensical cutaways and flashbacks to various points in history, has given its take on the Zinedine Zidane head-butt in the 2006 World Cup Final. See the clip here.

The Times reports that "a teenager has become one of the youngest footballers to be banned from matches after he head-butted a referee during a game." He is now being sent on a referee training course in a bid to control his temper.

"I was worried it could be one of those nights, but the goal was out of the top drawer." - Stoke manager, Tony Pulis

2006-11-07T05:41:00.001Z

England

Stoke 1 – Coventry 0 (Championship, Nov. 6th 2006) Andy Griffin's sensational strike gives points to Stoke

Analysis of Pardew vs Wenger given by Lee Dixon and Ian Wright, and analysis of Spurs win over Chelsea here.

Oxford 2 – Aldershot 0 (Nationwide Conference, Nov. 5th 2006) Andy Burgess scored twice as Oxford extended their unbeaten run to 18 league games

Italy

Atalanta 2 – AC Milan 0 (Serie A, Nov. 5th 2006) Milan are left in 16th position

Napoli 1 – Juventus 1 (Serie B, Nov. 6th 2006) Battle of the former giants ends in stalemate

France

Rennes 1 – Lyon 0 (Ligue 1, Nov. 5th 2006) Great game from France with Lyon suffering their first defeat of the season as Juninho sees red

Marseille 0 - Lorient 1 (Ligue 1, Nov. 4th 2006) Marseille drop down to sixth

Argentina

Racing Club 1 - Rosario Central 1 (Apertura, Nov. 4th 2006)

Arsenal S. 1 - Boca Juniors 2 (Apertura, Nov. 5th 2006) Boca Juniors snatched sole possession of first place in Argentina's first-division standings on Sunday with weeks remaining until the Apertura champion is crowned

River Plate 5 - San Lorenzo 0 (Apertura, Nov. 5th 2006) Two goals apiece for Victor Zapata and Ernesto Farias powered River's victory, and Ariel Ortega also hit one in the goalfest. The defeat added to a miserable week for San Lorenzo, knocked out in the quarterfinals of the Copa Sudamericana

"Shepherd Out"

2006-11-06T17:19:00.000Z

Newcastle United are in trouble – big trouble. Currently they sit second-bottom in the Premier League. They possess only one fit striker (Giuseppe Rossi), a manager who resided over a relegation of a far better team than he currently manages, and lest we forget Titus Bramble.

Alan Hansen in the Daily Telegraph warns that "the rules of engagement are crystal-clear and the simple fact is that no club are too big to be relegated and, at the moment, Newcastle are in a sorry state of affairs… They have had a horrific start to the season, they are conceding more than they are scoring and only goal difference is keeping them off the foot of the Premiership table."

Hansen (as usual) primarily cites defensive inadequacies, "The last defender of any merit who they had was Jonathan Woodgate – and they sold him."

But one of the main factors in their defeat to Sheffield United this weekend was tiredness - it was their second game in 48 hours. Hansen continues, "Having played in Palermo in the Uefa Cup on Thursday night, they could have moved the game back to Sunday, but they decided to take the television money, despite the fact that Sheffield United hadn't played for a week. In my opinion, if it was a choice between three points and the TV money, the points are 100 times more important, but that was Newcastle's decision."

On Match of the Day, Alan Shearer blamed the clubs current woes on a lack of forwards, as "the problem before was Newcastle were conceding at the back, but they were still scoring upfront, but now they haven't got anybody to score goals, so they're gonna have to buy in the transfer window."

(For the Match of the Day analysis, including a brilliant line from Hansen: "they haven't been the same since Les Ferdinand left," click here.)

Following Saturdays game the Newcastle fans held a protest outside the main entrance of St. James' Park calling for Shepherd and the board to be sacked. In this case the fans are spot on. Whilst Hansen and Shearer look to the pitch for explanations it seems quite clear who is at fault for the demise of a club that ten years ago were a whisker away from winning the league.

Football365 point out that "According to at least one Sunday broadsheet, it was the Toon chairman himself who ruled that an extra £250,000 from Sky to cover Saturday's night shambles was of greater import than an extra day's rest for the first-team squad after Thursday's UEFA Cup tie in Italy."

"... The priorities motivating Shepherd's decision to accept Sky's cash are as questionable as the business transaction in 1998 which saw Shepherd Offshore plc sell a warehouse to Freddie's brother, Bruce, for £175,000. Newcastle United plc then completed a 17-year deal with Bruce Shepherd for the warehouse to store the club's merchandise at a cost of £2.5m.

How Toon could do with that sum now. For one thing, Shepherd has believed to have a clause in his contract stipulating that he will receive two years' pay if dismissed. Or, in other words, around £2m. And as Shepherd implicitly confirmed last month when he revealed that the club had recorded pre-tax losses of £12m, that's money Newcastle simply don't possess."

Freddy Shepherd sacked the last good manager Newcastle had (in Bobby Robson), and famously labelled Alan Shearer, probably the clubs greatest ever player, "the Mary Poppins of football."

In 2004 he told a football forum that large and successful clubs should not be concerned about those struggling at the lower end of the industry. Shepherd said "When we have got 52,000 fans at each home game, the last thing we are worried about is clubs in the third division," and added, "There is no sympathy here".

It is almost certain that Glenn Roeder will be sacked within weeks and this season could quite easily end in relegation for the Toon. But the fans are right, the only way out of this mess is for Shepherd to leave, sadly he is defiant and will not quit the club. He revealed that he plans to meet with Glenn Roeder and the Newcastle players to discuss the club's form: "I think it's time the players are reminded just who they are playing for."

What are the odds on Watford to knock Newcastle out the Carling Cup tomorrow night?

***

Many thanks to the Jerusalem Post for their kind mention of this website. "Viva the Internet revolution!"

European Roundup

2006-11-06T05:41:00.001Z

Spain

Real Madrid 1 – Celta Vigo 2 "We had seven or eight chances to score ourselves but we gifted them two clear-cut opportunities and they made us pay" - Fabio Capello, who lost his first ever home game as manager of Madrid in his two spells at the club

Sevilla 1 – Osasuna 0 Sevilla move to the top of the table

Espanyol 1 – Valencia 1

Villarreal 3 – Real Betis 2 Forlan and Cygan help Villarreal to victory

***

Italy

Inter 2 – Ascoli 0 (Extended highlights here)

Palermo 2 – Sampdoria 0 Men in pink stay joint top with Inter, and keep a clean sheet after leaking fifteen goals in their previous nine games

Livorno 1 – Udinese 0

Roma 3 - Fiorentina 1 (Only Roma goals) De Rossi scores a cracker

Are Arsenal out the title race?

2006-11-05T18:27:00.000Z

West Ham 1 - Arsenal 0 (Extended highlights here) "Upton Park explodes with joy." Wenger v Pardew can be seen here

Tottenham 2 - Chelsea 1 (2 links) (Extended highlights here) First league win for Spurs over Chelsea since 1990. Makalele scores a sublime goal followed by Dawson's first goal for Spurs, Lennon then sticks Cole on his bum...

Aston Villa 2 - Blackburn 0 (2 links)

***

Scottish

Dundee United 2 – Rangers 1 Rangers trail Celtic by a whopping fifteen points

***

Match of the Day's goal of the month competition for October can be seen here.

Championship round-up

2006-11-05T15:39:00.000Z

Colchester United 3 - Cardiff City 1 Colchester topple the league leaders

Barnsley 3 - Leeds 2 A stunning late strike from Brian Howard secured Barnsley's first win in seven games as they came from behind to beat Yorkshire rivals Leeds

Burnley 1 - Ipswich 0

Derby 2 - West Brom 1 A stunner from Oakley

Norwich 1 - Sunderland 0 "Even the linesman loved the celebration"

Plymouth 0 - Birmingham 1 Fourth straight win for the Brummies

Preston 3 - Luton 0

QPR 4 - Crystal Palace 2 Gino Padula - sorry we took so long. Jimmy Smith: a new hero down the Bush

Sheffield Wednesday 2 - Leicester 1 Tudgay demolishes Leicester

Southampton 0 - Hull 0

Wolves 3 - Southend 1 Wolves were three-up in 23 minutes, Southend's next game is against Manchester United in the Carling Cup

"I hope the offender is identified. It was a coward who threw the coin. Send him to prison or somewhere away from football" - Chris Coleman

2006-11-04T17:03:00.000Z

Premiership

Fulham 1 – Everton 0 (Extended highlights here) Jensen's deflected looping shot secures vital points for Fulham. "Andy [Johnson] nicked the ball away from the defender who went to ground without making contact with the ball." - David Moyes

Manchester United 3– Portsmouth 0 (Extended highlights here) "I have to be honest and say there is a confidence about the place that suggests we are now in a position to pull out all the stops and go for it." - Sir Alex Ferguson

Liverpool 2 – Reading 0 (Extended highlights here) "We know we have lost four on the trot in the league, but I do not think of runs like that. When we started the season we did well but that was probably a coincidence of the fixtures. Now we have lost these last four. That too is a coincidence of the fixtures. We have had Arsenal, Chelsea and now Liverpool in that sequence" - Steve Coppell

Newcastle 0 - Sheffield United 1 (Extended highlights here) First away goal and first away-win for the Blades. "It was the poorest performance since I've been back involved with the first team. We can't have any more like that" - Glenn Roeder, who now is favourite in the sack-race

Bolton 0 - Wigan 1 McCulloch's goal gave Wigan their third consecutive win. "Nic [Anelka] has not produced the sort of quality we know he has in abundance." - Sam Allardyce

Chartlon 1 - Manchester City 0 Despite win, Chartlon still prop up the table

Watford 2 - Middlesbrough 0 (2 links) "We've lost here, we've lost at Reading and Sheffield United so people will question our character and our attitude. What I am questioning is our quality." - Gareth Southgate with words of inspiration

***

Scottish

Celtic 2 – Hearts 1 (2 links) Hearts goalkeeper knocks the ball into his own net giving last gasp winner for Celtic

***

La Liga

Deportivo La Coruna 1 - Barcelona 1

Levante 2 - Real Sociedad 0

Real Mallorca 0 - Atletico Madrid 0 Atletico have not scored a goal in four games

Sporting Gijon 5 - Cadiz 4 (Segunda Division) Cadiz let slip a two goal lead

UEFA Cup

2006-11-03T12:14:00.000Z

Palermo 0 - Newcastle 1 "I'll never forget this game for the rest of my life... It's an unbelievable debut for me and to keep a clean sheet as well... As you can hear, my voice has gone, I've been shouting so much. We had a walk this morning and the manager asked me how I felt. I said 'OK' and he told me that I was starting. I couldn't quite believe it." - Newcastle debutant goalkeeper, Tim Krul

Tottenham 3 - Brugge 1 "Playing like this Tottenham look a very very good side"

Black burn 3 - Basle 0 (3 links) "It was a good performance and to lose 3-0 is not fair" - Basle coach, Christian Gross

Partizan Belgrade 1 - Livorno 1 Goalkeeper Marco Amelia scores for Livorno to earn them their first points in the group. Other famous scoring keepers include Jimmy Glass, Peter Schmeichel, and José Luis Chilavert

Rangers 2 - Maccabi Haifa 0 Despite the win, Rangers face UEFA
disciplinary action after one fan, draped in a Palestinian flag and wearing a Pope John Paul II T-shirt, ran the length of the pitch and handcuffed himself to a goalpost

Nancy 2 - Wisla Krakow 1 A brace for Berenguer

Zalte-Waregem 3 - Sparta Prague 1

Celta Vigo 1 - Eintracht Frankfurt 1 Germans down to ten for last thirty, hold on for a point

Lens 3 - Osanuna 1 Dindane's solo goal sets up win for the French

Ajax 3 - Austria Vienna 0 (3 links)

Heerenveen 0 - Odense 2

Hapoel Tel Aviv 2 - Rapid Bucharest 2

***

Liverpool reserves 2 - Wigan reserves 0 Liverpool record first victory of the reserve season

***

Bayern Munich threatens to sue YouTube.com.

The Times also has an article on the Premier League and YouTube:

"From next season, online rights for Premiership footage will be transferred to NTL, the cable group, which flagged the right to show 'near live' coverage as a cornerstone of its internet strategy."

No word on whether those living outside the UK will get to see this footage.

"However, the League admits that the plethora of illicit footage online, ranging from brief clips to live streaming of Saturday fixtures, risks compromising its entire portfolio of TV rights packages, worth some £1.8 billion from 2007 to 2010."

Really?!

"That rule is pathetic, absurd and ruins games"

2006-11-02T16:34:00.000Z

The official World Cup 2006 website has this to say about "celebrating (a goal) in style," "A football match provokes a wide range of emotions, none more exciting than when a goal is scored. And when a goal changes the course of a match, wins a title and gives joy to thousands of supporters, the scorer can hardly be expected to hide his emotions."

It is fair to say that virtually every football fan in the world would agree with this statement. However, in recent weeks FIFA's own rules seem to suggest that the scorer should hide his emotions.

In last weekends Milan derby Marco Materazzi was sent off after receiving a second booking for taking off his shirt to celebrate his goal. Following the game Inter manager Roberto Mancini said "I'm not having a go at the referee who applied a rule of the game but that rule is pathetic, absurd and ruins games. Materazzi did nothing wrong."

Also last weekend, Ross Wallace the scorer of Sunderland's last minute winner at Hull was also sent off for removing his shirt after he scored a goal which FIFA could easily describe as giving "joy to thousands of supporters." Following the game, Sunderland manager Roy Keane said about Wallace "I can give him the benefit of the doubt for the second booking..."

FIFA Circular 579 informs us that a "celebration must not be excessive." So a player can be cautioned if "in the opinion of the referee, he makes gestures which are provocative, derisory or inflammatory; he climbs on to a perimeter fence to celebrate a goal being scored, he removes his shirt over his head or covers his head with his shirt."

One of the first players to be booked from this law was Arjen Robben last season following his goal against Sunderland, he was booked for jumping on to the hoardings at the Stadium of Light and subsequently sent-off. Following this game John Terry commented "As long as you're not going in causing murders with the fans, there is no harm at all."

In recent weeks a number of players have been booked for celebrating goals which have held great importance to each individual player. Both Michael Ballack and Andriy Schevchenko were booked against Portsmouth two weeks ago for celebrating with the fans. This was the first time either player had scored at Stamford Bridge.

Mido took his shirt off following his goal against West Ham and was booked on the same weekend; this was Mido's first goal since he returned to Spurs. Last night Gilardino was booked for jumping on the hoardings when he scored the fourth Milan goal, incidentally this was his first Champions League goal.

There are a number of problems with the rule. For example, presumably a player can "remove his shirt over his head" if he hasn't scored. Say, if Fabregas or Rosicky had pulled their shirt over their head last night to hide their shame after missing glorious chances, would they have been booked?

The rule also leaves much to the discretion of the individual referee, and accordingly inconsistencies occur due to different referees outlook on the game. So whilst Robben got booked last season for jumping over the hoardings at Sunderland, Robin Van Persie did the same thing this season following his wonder goal at Charlton and did not get booked.

Perhaps the saddest aspect of this rule is what the fans of the future will now miss out on. Farbizio Ravanelli would get booked every time he scored a goal, Bernie Slaven would not be able to jump on to the fences and celebrate with the fans and Roger Milla would presumably be unable to perform his "provocative" dances. Not to mention spontaneous celebrations such as Robbie Fowler "sniffing the line," and Ryan Giggs would be unable to bear his chest to the world like he did after scoring one of the all time great FA cup goals.

In women's football probably the most famous celebration was by American Brandi Chastian after she had converted the winning penalty in the 1999 Women's World Cup. This image was immortalized on the covers of Time, Newsweek, People and Sports Illustrated (above). If this were to happen now she would get booked.

I looked into this rule and its ramifications after watching the highlights of last weekends Milan derby. It is quite clear from the numerous message forums online that virtually every fan thinks this rule is absurd. In the latest edition of Four Four Two, Danny Webber, the Sheffield United forward, wrote: "It's ridiculous that you can't enjoy that moment and I think they need to change the rules - they're daft."

Both fans, players and managers all agree this is a ludicrous rule, and it makes life harder for referees. When will the men in suits (who presumably have never scored a goal themselves) change this law for the benefit of us all?

Lets all laugh at Rio

2006-11-02T14:29:00.000Z

Rio thinks he is a big of a prankster, but the joke is most firmly on him.

Pick n' Mix

2006-11-02T14:15:00.000Z

Leicester 2 – Stoke 1 (Championship, Oct. 31st, 2006) Leicester unbeaten in eight games, and Hume has five goals in the last four appearances

Atletico Paranaense 6 - CR Vasco da Gama 4 (Brazil - Campeonato Brasileiro, Nov. 1st, 2006) They love to score, hate to defend

Toluca (Mexico) 2 - San Lorenzo (Argentina) 0 (Quarterfinal Copa Sudamericana, Nov. 1st, 2006) This game comes from the South American version of the Uefa Cup showcases more bad defending, including two red cards

"For me it was the best Champions League game we have played since I have been here" - Wenger

2006-11-02T06:05:00.000Z

AC Milan 4 – Anderlecht 1 (Extended highlights here) Brazilian playmaker Kaka gets a hat-trick, he also scored a superb long-range goal when Milan beat Anderlecht 1-0 in Belgium two weeks ago. Carlo Ancelotti: "He's exceptional. He can do absolutely anything, for me, he's the best player in the world at the moment. I don't think anyone could complain if he won the Golden Ball"

FC Copenhagen 1 – Manchester United 0 (Extended highlights here) "It's special - and not just because I'm a Liverpool fan" - Copenhagen coach, Stale Solbakken

Arsenal 0 – CSKA Moscow 0 (Extended highlights here) The Gunners had twenty four attempts on goal, and missed them all

Lyon 1 – Dynamo Kyiv 0 Lyon are still yet to concede a goal in the competition

Real Madrid 1 – Steaua Bucharest 0 (Extended highlights here) Real win thanks to a freak own-goal by Banel Nicolita

AEK Athens 1 – Lille 0 (Extended highlights here) History is made as the Greeks record first ever victory in the Champions League

Benfica 3 – Celtic 0 (Extended highlights here) "I wasn't surprised. Celtic are a great team but we were superior and it was a more just result than the first game (in Glasgow) - that wasn't fair." - Benfica manager, Fernando Santos

Hamburg 1 – Porto 3 (Extended highlights here) González scores a stunning volley

"In the Russian schoolyard the big argument is over who plays in goal"

2006-11-01T16:04:00.000Z

The Guardian, in its feature on CSKA Moscow goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev, has some fascinating insights on "Why all Russians want to be goalkeepers":

"When British children play football, most of them want to be the centre-forward, scoring the goals and grabbing the glory. In the Russian schoolyard, though, the big argument is over who plays in goal. Even four decades after he inspired the USSR to the World Cup semi-final in 1966, Lev Yashin, the only goalkeeper to have been named European Footballer of the Year, regularly tops polls as Russia's greatest-ever sportsman.

Yashin is like the Dalai Lama - every generation has its own incarnation..."

Amazing to think that Yashin still has such a hold over the Russian game, Jonathan Wilson suggests it may be because of the nicknames Russian goalkeepers receive. Yashin was called the "Black Panther" whilst his predecessor in the Dinamo Moscow team was Alexei "Tiger" Khomich, "you see the difference? British keepers are nicknamed mundane things like 'the Cat' or 'Safe Hands'; Russians get to be sleek, feline and dangerous..."

Even before Yashin, Russia had a fascination for goalkeepers as a symbol of the importance of the mother-land:

"The Russian love affair with the goalkeeper probably began in 1936 with the film Vratar (Keeper), Semyon Timoshenko's hugely popular comedy-musical adaptation of Leo Kassil's novel, Vratar Respubliki. Its hero, Anton Kandidov, played by the Russian matinee idol Grigori Pluzhnik, worked stacking watermelons onto a cart, and became so adept at catching those that fell that he was noticed by a scout and called up to play in goal for an unnamed Russian team. The climax of the film came when, having made a series of fine saves against a touring Basque side, he ran the length of the field to score a last-minute winner. Just in case anybody hadn't worked out the political message, the most famous song of the film contained the lines, 'Hey, keeper, prepare for the fight/ You are a sentry in the goal/ Imagine there is a border behind you.'"

A video of Lev Yashin (also known as "The Black Spider") can be seen here.

***

Staying on the Russian theme, the BBC reports that Spartak Moscow players had to abandon their team bus and take public transport before last nights game with Inter Milan due to traffic jams in Moscow.

"After the match Spartak's coach Vladimir Fedotov thanked metro staff on Russian television for letting the team travel for free. 'One of the reasons why we started badly in the first half was that Moscow today was gridlocked. On the way to the stadium one of the Spartak fans told us that there was a traffic jam in the stadium area with people waiting hours to move. So we rushed about 2km to the nearest metro station... Thanks to the metro workers who allowed us to get in quickly - and for free - we were able to get to the stadium in time for the kick-off."

***

Martin Samuel has an excellent analysis in the Times today on the predicament David Beckham now finds himself in. Samuel suggests he follows in the footsteps of Glenn Hoddle:

"Late in his career, Glenn Hoddle, his schoolboy hero, converted to sweeper and enjoyed great success with Swindon Town, where his class and reading of the game outweighed any defensive shortcomings. It was a first step into management and five years later he had the England job.

Beckham has always been a thinking footballer. It is possible, if he tires of the ceremonial life in Madrid and sees the United States as just another arm of the celebrity trail that has left his career in its present dead end, that he could be reinvented, as Hoddle was. Yet Hoddle showed great humility in dropping down a division to move to the next stage of his career. Nor did he have a team of advisers warning him what would happen to 'The Brand' if he pitched up at unfashionable Swindon."

Following his early years of brilliance at Manchester United and initially as England captain, David Beckham was taken over by "The Brand" and people started to question whether Becks was actually any good since his on-field performances could never match the hype.

Now, as Samuel points out, "El Becks" will make his next career move on the back of other people's advice which is probably why he will end up in the United States.

***

Every touch by Lionel Messi, in last night's game against Chelsea, can be seen here.

A nice video on Kaka, taken from the Champions League Show, can be seen here.

Miscellaneous goals

2006-11-01T10:30:00.000Z

Championship

Norwich 1 – Colchester 1

Southend 2 – Hull 3 Ian Ashbee thinks he is Jackie Chan as he puts his studs in the back of Matt Harold, but Hull still manage to get the win

Australian

New Zealand Knights 0 – Melbourne Victory 4 (A-League. Oct 27, 2006) (4 links) Australia's A-League only has eight teams. The standings after round 10 see the Melbourne Victory topping the table by a massive eleven points from second place Queensland Roar. The New Zealand Knights are bottom of the table with a measly four points on the board

"Rijkaard is a very lucky guy, a very lucky manager. I would like to have his luck with decisions." - Jose Mourinho

2006-11-01T05:49:00.000Z

Barcelona 2 – Chelsea 2 (Extended highlights here) Gudjohnsen goal against his former club so close to giving Barca an important victory

Liverpool 3 – Bordeaux 0 (Extended highlights here) "Maybe now we can see the best of Steven, he will be calmer now he has scored," Benitez said. Liverpool qualify for the knockout stages, as Liverpool keep the same line-up for the first time in 100 games

PSV 2 – Galatasaray 0 (Extended highlights here) Great individual goal by Kone

Levski Sofia 0 – Werder Bremen 3 (Extended highlights here) "Three goals in four mad minutes." Levski's 18-year-old keeper Nikolay Mihaylov has a mare

Bayern Munich 0 – Sporting Lisbon 0

Roma 1 – Olympiacos 1 (Extended highlights here) Totti missed a penalty but his close control means he scored the goal of the day

Valcenia 2 – Shakhtar Donetsk 2 (Extended highlights here) The Ukrainians produce their best performance of the competition so far, but Ayala salvages the point with his low header

Spartak Moscow 0 – Inter Milan 1 If Zlatan comes from snowy Sweden, why is he wearing tights in Russia?

The Italian Joke

2006-10-31T16:20:00.000Z

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

If you do the crime you pay the time. Unless you are Italian that is. This is the sorry conclusion drawn from the most recent chapter in the Italian match fixing scandal.

A quick recap of the history. Juventus, together with AC Milan, Fiorentina, Lazio and Reggina were found guilty of rigging league matches by pre-selecting biased referees and linesmen to officiate over certain games. The result of the scandal, following the appeal, saw the most severe punishment dealt to Juve, who were stripped of their champions honours, relegated to Serie B and forced to start the season on minus seventeen points. The other clubs involved retained their standing in Serie A but also received points deductions.

Now however, the severity of the punishments handed out have been reduced once again seeing Juve's point reduction amended to minus nine, Lazio are now minus three from being minus eleven, and Fiorentina's deficit has been cut from nineteen to minus fifteen points.

Italian football has a long history of corruption. But rather than showing a desire to clean up its act, the authorities have undermined their own authority by backtracking on their initial findings.

Importantly, it is not suggested that the weight of evidence of wrongdoing against the clubs was misjudged. So why has the sentence been reduced? Is it for good behaviour?

The natural conclusion is that the corrupt aspects of Italian bureaucracy are once again prevalent. This conclusion is supported by the Italian public, of whom 60% believe that this decision reflects another typical Italian mess up, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Gabriel Marcotti summed up the feelings of the people as follows. "What is different now, however, is the belief that, once the appeals process has been exhausted, sentences are final, which is a basic concept in any society governed by a rule of law. What this case shows is that, if you do not like your punishment, you can always turn to someone else."

Anger towards the decision has also been vented by Zdenek Zeman. "The extra points handed to Juve prove that things will never change", said the current coach of Leece, who now chase Juventus in Serie B by two points following the decision.

And the mud slinging does not stop there.

Since the trial, further controversy has emerged in the direction of the chief benefactor from the scandal - Inter Milan. Inter were made the de facto champions of the 2005/06 Scudetto, despite only finishing the season in third place. Further, they have profited from the exodus of stars from Juve, acquiring the services of both Patrick Vieira and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. And presently Inter are sitting two points clear at the top of Serie A, looking to secure back-to-back championships.

The recent controversy surrounds the company who caught the infamous Moggi phone taps - Telecom Italia. Telecom Italia have since been taken over by Guido Rossi. Rossi is the president of Inter's main sponsor Pirelli and a well known life-long Inter fan. Which leads us to question whether the Inter management were responsible for making the whole scandal public.

Ironically, Rossi was also put in charge of Italy's Football Federation in May to restore confidence in the country's tainted soccer reputation after the federation's chairman and vice-chairman resigned in the midst of the match fixing scandal.

The hole seems to just get deeper and deeper.

The FA Cup starts here

2006-10-31T06:41:00.000Z

Daghenam & Redbridge 0 - Oxford United 1 (FA Cup, Oct. 28, 2006) A tale of two penalties

***

Manchester City 1 - Middlesborough 0 (Premiership, Oct. 30, 2006) Pressure eases on Pearce, but mounts on Southgate

***

Ipswich 5 - Luton 0 (Championship, Oct. 28, 2006) Lee hat-trick seals great performance by the tractor boys

***

Match of the Day analysis from the Bolton - Man Utd game can be seen here. If you would like to see everything Ronaldo did during the same game, see here.

***

Premiership Goal of the Week - Pedro Mendes or RVP? And how did Lampard get on here???

Looking at the wider European picture, here are 10 of the best goals from around Europe in recent days

Sepp Blatter is an idiot

2006-10-30T15:37:00.000Z

In a recent Australian television interview, Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, "apologized" to Australian fans for their last minute defeat to Italy at the World Cup.

"The Socceroos should have gone into the quarter-finals in place of Italy... you go into extra time and you are 11 against 10. But that is presumptuous."

Amazingly, this statement (which contradicts itself) has been picked up by many fans of the "Sheilaroos," who are now claiming that Australia would have won the World Cup if it wasn't for refereeing errors.

(Why does no one ever blame Lucas Neill for the Australian exit at the World Cup, why did he go to ground so early?)

Now FIFA have had to issue a statement clarifying Blatter's comments, "The Italian team proved that, despite serious pressures at home, they stuck together as a team and delivered exceptional football... The Italian team proved that superior skills, team work and individual determination are the ingredients that lead to World Cup glory... With my statement I simply wanted to pay credit to the Socceroos as well because they played a great match and their lack of experience did not permit them to go to extra time."

At the World Cup itself Blatter criticized Valentin Ivanov, the referee of the Portugal-Holland match, saying "I think there could have been a yellow card for the referee."

A week later Blatter said he regretted his words and promised to officially apologize to Ivanov.

Blatter has been dogged by allegations of corruption and sexism whilst he has been FIFA president; currently he epitomizes everything that is bad about the modern game.

***

Following the Carling Cup games last week, Paul Merson, on a Sky phone-in, claimed that Manchester United should be worried about their young players who are not as good as the youth players at Arsenal. The program received an exceptional amount of feedback leaving Merson struggling for words.

Ironically, Merson in a recent interview with Four Four Two (not online) commented that "I'll hopefully be doing a lot more TV work – I love it. It’s better than having 3,000 fans behind you calling you a w****r, like you do as a manager".

***

Former France great Youri Djorkaeff has retired, he said the World Cup in 1998 win was his biggest achievement, "There was something magical about the team."

Probably the best goal he scored in his career can be seen here.

Finally the Hammers don't blow

2006-10-30T09:26:00.000Z

West Ham 2 - Blackburn 1 West Ham record only their second victory of the campaign. "It has been a long wait. We did get very, very nervous but it's a great win for this club and the fans and players deserve it," said Pardew

Is there a tighter league than the Championship?

2006-10-30T06:30:00.000Z

Leeds 2 - Southend 0 Leeds finally have something to smile about (only Blake goal)

Cardiff 2 - Derby 2 Cardiff remain top, but held to a point by Barnes' last minute volley

Burnley 3 - Preston 2 Preston are second

Birmingham 2 - WBA 0 McSheffrey scores great double

Colchester 2 - Southampton 0

Hull 0 - Sunderland 1 Walace scores, celebrates, and gets sent off in the last minute of the game

QPR 1 - Leicester 1

Stoke 5 - Norwich 0 Stoke (with Hendrie) keep rising, Canaries (without Worthington) keep falling

Barnsley 0 - Coventry 1 Wayne Andrews scores on debut

Crystal Palace 0 - Plymouth 1 Third home defeat on the bounce for Palace

Wolves 2 - Sheffield Wednesday 2

Rotherham 5 - Crewe 1 (League One)

The Scottish league is all but over...

2006-10-30T06:27:00.000Z

Scotland

Kilmarnock 1 - Celtic 2 Celtic ten points clear of Hearts and twelve points clear of Rangers

Spain

Celta Vigo 1 - Sevilla 2 Sevilla now a point behind Barca

Atletico Madrid 0 - Real Zaragoza 1 Oscar gets the winner with two minutes to go

Osasuna 1 - Athletic Bilbao 1

Real Betis 0 - Mallorca 1

Getafe 2 - Deportivo La Coruna 0

Real Sociedad 0 - Villareal 1 Villareal's resurgence continues

Levante 0 - Espanyol 0 Espanyol yet to score an away league goal this season

Italy

Fiorentina 2 - Palermo 3 A stunning finish to this game as Palermo continue their great start to the season

France

Nice 2 - Marseille 1 This match was suspended in the fourth minute when a fireman was seriously injured after picking up a firework thrown by the Marseille fans. The fireman lost two fingers and Nice police are studying video evidence to try and identify the culprits. Play restarted after a five minute delay

Lyon 1 - Nancy 0 Lyon have a massive eleven point lead at the top of Ligue 1

America

New England Revolution 2 - Chicago Fire 1 (Second-leg, New England win 4-2 on pens) The Washington Post sums up the game: Goalkeeper Matt Reis made two saves in a penalty-kick shootout as the New England Revolution defeated the Chicago Fire in Foxborough, Mass., last night, winning 4-2 in the tiebreaker after rallying to claim a 2-1 victory in the second leg of the two-game, aggregate-goals MLS playoff series.

The victory allowed New England, the second seed in the Eastern Conference, to clinch a spot in next week's conference final. The Revolution will play D.C. United or the New York Red Bulls;

FC Dallas 2 - Colorado Rapids 3 (Second-leg, Rapids win 5-4 on pens) Rapids advance to the Western Conference final, Colorado will play the winner of the other semifinal between Chivas USA and Houston

***

One of the goals of the weekend was scored by Adil Ramzi for Roda JC in a 2-1 defeat to Feyenoord

Rooooooooooooney

2006-10-29T09:04:00.000Z

Bolton 0 - Manchester Utd 4 For all of you who doubted Rooney

Sheffield Utd 0 - Chelsea 2 Webber's poor penalty lets average Chelsea off the hook

Arsenal 1 - Everton 1 Wonderful Van Persie leveler only gets the Gunners a point

Liverpool 3 - Aston Villa 1 Liverpool strikers on top form

Fulham 0 - Wigan 1

Ports mouth 3 - Reading 1 (3 links - only Portsmouth goals)

Juve celebrate their additional eight points with yet another victory

2006-10-29T09:00:00.000Z

Italian

AC Milan 3 - Inter Milan 4 (Serie A. Oct 28, 2006) Milan derby provides a fantastic advert for Serie A. Stankovic got the pick of the goals. (Extended highlights can be seen here)

Udinese 0 - Roma 1 (Serie A. Oct 28, 2006)

Juventus 1 - Frosinone 0 (Serie B. Oct 28, 2006) Juventus now on 13 points in Serie B, five fewer than leader Genoa. "It means a lot - for my ties to this club, these fans and this city" said Del Piero on scoring his 200th goal for Juve

Albinoleffe 1 - Napoli 0 (Serie B. Oct 28, 2006)

Bundesliga

Bayern Munich 2 - Eintracht Frankfurt 0 Bayern go double Dutch

Superliga

Porto 3 - Benfica 2 Porto are two points clear at the top

Spanish

Gimnastic 1 – Real Madrid 3 Roberto Carlos actually scores a free kick, whilst Robinho finishes clinically after good team build up

Barcelona 3 – Recreativo Huelva 0 Ronaldinho brace keeps Barca two points clear over Real

Racing Santander 1 – Valencia 0 Route one goal keeps Valencia holding third spot in the table

Belguim

Round up of the goals from round 10 of the Jupiter League. Action includes the joint leaders Anderlecht 2 - 0 Lierse, highlights from AA Gent 3 - 3 FC Brussels, and goals from Germinal Beerschot 1 - 1 Charleroi (including a blatent stamping incident)

Fantasy Tip of the Week

2006-10-27T11:29:00.000+01:00

I'll understand if you don't trust me given that last week I told you that Berbatov would be a Tottenham hero but instead, come kickoff, he was at home being nursed back to health by four nubile Bulgarian nurses.

But believe me when I tell you that it's time for Worst Ham to win.

Since the arrival of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano there is no word in English to describe West Ham's form, but here in Brazil we call it pilha da merda.

But the good news for the Hammers and their fans is that Blackburn lost twice in four days and have been doing things like missing two penalties in one game.

But with Alan Pardew searching for ideas, West Ham are going to need a hero to step up to the mark and lift the team and I think it's going to be Marlon Harewood.

Enjoy another fine weekend of football.
Car los

Joe Cole returns

2006-10-27T08:25:00.000+01:00

Blackburn 0 - Chelsea 2 (Carling cup, Oct. 25, 2006)(2 links)

MK Dons 0 - Tottenham 5 (Carling cup, Oct. 25, 2006) Defoe bites back with a brace

Sheffield United 2 - Birmingham 4 (Carling cup, Oct. 24, 2006) The Blades are embaressed by woeful defending

Round up of Carling Cup goals, including Charlton 1 - Bolton 1

Bayern Munich 1 - Kaiserslautern 0 (DFB Pokal, Oct. 25, 2006)

Osnabruck 2 - Borussia Monchengladbach 1 (DFB Pokal, Oct. 25, 2006)

***

Pro Evolution Soccer 6 is released today, to see how the game has evolved click here.

"Have you ever seen football played like this"

2006-10-26T16:37:00.000+01:00

Arsenal 7 – Everton 0 (English Premier League, May 11, 2006)

Probably the best team-performance in the top division of the English league since Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 9-0 in 1989.

Dennis Bergkamp was the star of the show with what the BBC described as a "virtuoso performance". This remains a record win under Arsene Wenger and came in the year that Everton qualified for the Champions League.

During the game the Clock End chanted "Have you ever seen football played like this" and "you might as well go home." The Guardian report claimed that "Everton were lucky to lose by seven."

For a fixture that traditionally is not one of the most important on the English calendar this game has served up some classic goals. Wayne Rooney announced his entry into world football by scoring his first goal in 2002.

In 1998, the Premiership was wrapped up by a great goal by Tony Adams, set-up by a chipped through-ball from Steve Bould. (Martin Tyler commented that this goal "sums up the football philosophy of Arsene Wenger.") Perhaps the best goal scored in this fixture was by Ian Wright in 1993, who turned Matt Jackson and then scored the perfect lob past Neville Southall.

Going into this game, Everton will be buoyed by the fact that they are currently in sixth place; this time last year they were bottom. Arsenal appear to be coming into form and at times were breathtaking against Reading last week.

Arsene Wenger appears, yet again, to have played the transfer market with some skill. It is unbelievable to think that Arsenal also received some money as part of the Gallas/Cole swap-deal. Cole has been a shadow of his former self at Chelsea and Gallas has added strength to what was the probably the weakest part of the Arsenal team.

Difficult to see Everton getting anything from this one...

(For those that are interested, there is also a video of Arsenal - Everton from 1937, including some great commentary: "How would you like that for eight pounds a week?!")

"Make something even more compelling for consumers"

2006-10-26T15:34:00.000+01:00

This blog continues to be linked to by other websites following the two emails we received from lawyers representing the English Premier League, a selection of them can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

"Adam Bowie" (the final link) makes an interesting point about what the Premier League could do: "Does the FA sue YouTube? Or do they strike some deal with Google to allow goals to be played and get a stake in Google as a consequence like the record companies? I suspect that neither will be the case.

Of course, if they were really smart, they'd look at the example of Major League Baseball. The World Series is underway at the moment, and they let you watch a 'fastcast' which is a short, neatly produced free video package. The highlights of last night's game - in which the Detroit Tigers tied the series up at 1-1 against the St Louis Cardinals - are already online. But if you want, there's a competitively priced package of full game streams available to buy. Sadly, while there is video on thefa.com, there's no Premier League action, relatively little England footage, and even the U21 stuff is out of date (no Germany v England from the other week - just the first leg).

Surely the best way of combatting pirates and video sites is to make something even more compelling available for consumers?"

As many of you may have noticed, some of the games we link to have been removed by Youtube. For example the Man Utd - Liverpool game from the weekend that we originally linked to was removed, yet on Youtube there are still a number of videos up of the same game.

Whilst we appreciate the individual attention being paid to us by the Premier League we would urge them and their lawyers to spend the fans money on greater issues affecting the game.

***

Many thanks to Claudia for emailing us this cracking goal from the Belgian league last year.

Last nights footie

2006-10-26T08:00:00.000+01:00

Carling Cup

Crewe 1 - Man Utd 2

Liverpool 4 - Reading 3

Newcastle 3 - Portsmouth 0 Watch Nobby slide, as Rossi scores first for Magpies

Serie A

Inter Milan 4 - Livorno 1 Inter go top

Chievo 0 - AC Milan 1 A lovely strike from Jankulovski, Milan now on seven points after starting the season with an eight-point penalty

Sampdoria 2 - Lazio 0 Quagliarella cant stop scoring, as Lazio get two players sent off

Roma 2 - Ascoli 2 (only Totti goal)

Copa Del Rey (Spain)

Ecija 1 – Real Madrid 1 Third division Spanish minnows hold mighty Real

Round up of Spanish cup goals - watch out for Gabilondo’s mazy run and chip for Mallorca in 1-1 draw with Athletic Bilbao; and Nihat’s stunning free-kick in Villarreal’s 2-0 win over Castellon

Athletic Bilbao 1 – Mallorca 1

Castellon 0 – Villarreal 2

Xerez 0 – Getafe 2

Deportivo La Coruna 1 – Racing Santander 0

Portuense 1 – Valencia 2 Valencia survive scare, as Portuense’s keeper makes a howler of a clearance

Malaga 4 – Real Sociedad 1

Valladolid 1 – Gimnastic 0 Great free-kick from Anton

Hercules1 – Zaragoza 1

Missing: Last seen near a football pitch

2006-10-25T16:55:00.000+01:00

(Written by Arthur Antunes Coimbra)

I'm a big Shaun Wright-Phillips (SWP) fan. Most of all, because his dad is Ian Wright. Wrighty burst onto the scene in the 1990 FA Cup Final, and went on to become a legendary striker for Arsenal. Charismatic. Skilful. Prolific.

SWP suggested that he had inherited some of his old man's ability, when he burst into the starting eleven at Manchester City and quickly become the central focus of their attacking ambitions. SWP showed off his amazing pace, close control and incredible finishing abilities. And recognition for his qualities was duly rewarded. Firstly, on his inclusion in the England squad (where he scored on his debut against Ukraine), and then by his staggering twenty one million pound move to the top dog, Chelsea.

Yet unfortunately that brings us to the end of the fairytale. Ever since SWP joined Chelsea he has fallen into the background by being only a part-time footballer. Due to the fact that his appearances for Chelsea were so limited in the season past, SWP missed out on selection for the England 2006 World Cup campaign.

Chelsea's midfield is crying out for width. And yet, even with Joe Cole and Arjen Robben having been injured for the majority of the season so far, SWP still can't buy minutes on the pitch.

Someone should tell Shaun that he has been away so long, there is already a new SWP. And his name is Aaron Lennon.

Waddle: "United and Arsenal are the only teams that I'd pay money to watch"

2006-10-25T16:30:00.000+01:00

Chris Waddle has attacked the current entertainment levels in the Premiership:

"Manchester United and Arsenal are the only teams that I'd pay money to watch... It costs a fortune to go and watch Premiership football and fans want to be entertained. Most of them are not getting that... The Premiership is not the best league in the world. The Spanish league is the best in Europe by far."

Difficult to disagree with this assessment, especially when one recalls how an old fashioned right-winger like Waddle used to play.

Carling cup goals

2006-10-25T07:30:00.000+01:00

WBA 0 - Arsenal 2 Aliadiere with a brace

Chesterfield 2 - West Ham 1 The curse of Tevez & Mascareno continues. Some great quotes in the Times:

"You know when you have too much of something and it takes the enjoyment off it? Well, that's what it's getting to be like laughing at West Ham."
Football365.com

"Alan Pardew is a football genius. Praise be on high for this man! The only manager that can bring in two World Cup stars and make his team worse."
On-the-terraces.com

Majority of the action from round 4 of the League Cup

Pink is no longer sissy

2006-10-25T06:36:00.000+01:00

AC Milan 0 – Palermo 2 (Serie A, Oct. 22, 2006) Fantastic Palermo produce the result of the weekend with first away win in their history at the San Siro (Guardian) (Telegraph)

Gremio 1 – Sao Paulo 1 (Campeonato Brasileiro, Oct. 22, 2006) Sao Paulo have a seven point lead at the top over rivals Internacional with only eight games remaining

Santos 2 – Figueirense 1 (Campeonato Brasileiro, Oct. 21, 2006) Santas remain hot on the heels of Sao Paulo, sitting third and eight points behind

Southend 1 – Ipswich 3 (Championship, Oct. 22, 2006) Legwinski scores volley in Ipswich’s biggest ever win at Southend

Leyton Orient 2 – Cheltenham 0 (Championship, Oct. 21, 2006) Former "next big thing" Matt Lockwood scores from the spot

Atletico Madrid 0 – Levante 1 (Copa Del Rey, Oct. 24, 2006)

***

Alan Hansen waxes lyrical over the Utd triumvirate Giggs, Neville and Scholes

***

All the weekend goals from Spain

10 of the best goals from around Europe in recent days

"Indispensable, and with a bad haircut"

2006-10-24T18:21:00.000+01:00

(Written by Romario de Souza Faria)

When Luis Aragones revealed his 23 man squad for Spain in a news conference on September 29th, one name was missing. Raul, the former Spanish captain, was dropped for the first time in 10 years for reasons other than injury. While many were shocked, it seemed like a necessary move for the beleaguered coach of Spain. Aragones had already benched his former captain during the World Cup, where Spain yet again failed to deliver on their incredible potential, but this was an even more drastic step. The Raul who scored 44 goals in 102 games for Spain and 181 goals in 461 games for Real Madrid was struggling yet again to regain even a fraction of the form that made him one of the most feared strikers in Europe.

It seemed like Spain's golden boy would become the scapegoat for a humiliating 3-2 defeat to the minnows of Northern Ireland. Raul, as usual, reacted with typical grace to the news, "The national team is more important than any individual interests. I will be supporting the team with all my heart from my home. I will always be the national team's number one fan." The results, however, for player and national team have been completely the opposite.

In their first game without Raul, Spain failed to score and were beaten convincingly by Sweden. The 2-0 defeat left the reeling Spaniards in 5th place in Group F of the Euro 2008 qualifiers. The 2-1 win a few days later against an under-strength Argentina was needless to say, unconvincing.

Raul's reaction, on the other hand, has been recreating the form that drove Sir Alex Ferguson to say that Raul was "the best player in the world."

He scored his first goals for Real Madrid since 2005 when he scored a brace in the club's 4-1 victory over Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League two weeks ago. He followed that with the only goal in the 1-1 tie with cross-town rivals, Athletico Madrid and continued his rich vein of form with the 2nd goal in the 4-1 win over Steau Bucahresti in the Champions League.

On the weekend, Raul showed that he's finally back with a superbly taken header in the 3rd minute against Barcelona. The statement Real Madrid made in their 2-0 win over heated rivals Barcelona was that they, like their captain, are a force to be reckoned with. With a deadly partnership developing with Dutchman Ruud Van Nistlerooy, Raul may finally be putting the demons of the last two years to rest.

They say form is temporary but class is permanent. Raul, after two years of below par performances which brought fierce criticism throughout Spain, seems to have proven the adage right. His current record of 5 goals in 5 games has reinvigorated his Real Madrid team, who are now finally clicking under new coach Fabio Capello.

For a team starved of any trophies over the past couple of years, Capello needed the team's icon and captain to be fit, hungry & productive in order for Madrid to challenge.

Aragones' shocking move seems to have motivated Raul, who up until the move had gone goalless in 5 games. Perhaps Aragones, who left the door open for a possible recall of the star by saying "Raul will be in the national team... because he's a man who knows how to earn it," would be wise to make use of Spain’s "other" in-form striker (Valencia's David Villa has 9 goals in 12 games).

The player Franz Beckenbauer dubbed as "one of the best of Europe. He is Real Madrid's spirit. He is like Matthaus for us: indispensable, and with a bad haircut" could potentially be the spark plug Spain needs to regain their form and make a push at qualifying for Euro 2008.

Miscellaneous goals, penalty saves & "bites"

2006-10-24T07:25:00.000+01:00

British Roundup

Blackburn 0 - Bolton 1 Jussi Jaaskelainen saves two penalties, following in the footsteps of Brad Friedel who saved two against Sheffield United only weeks ago. Manchester United's Gary Bailey saved three penalties against Ipswich Town at Portman Road in 1980.

The "bite" by Jermain Defoe on Javier Maschareno can be seen here.

Sheffield Wednesday 3 – QPR 2 Rangers claw their way back via Blackstock, only to give the Owls the points from the spot

Cambridge 0 – Oxford 3 Oxford stay top of the Conference

Celtic 2 – Motherwell 1

Italian goals

Udinese 0 – Inter 0 Draw enough to keep Inter two points clear

Atalanta 3 – Sampdoria 2 Two nil up (Quagliarella with great goals), three two down

Livorno 0 – Siena 0 Teams six and seven in the league cancel each other out

French goals

Marseille 1 – Lyon 4 (Only 2 Juninho goals)

Argentinian goals

River Plate 2 - Rosario Central 0

The Premier League scores an own goal

2006-10-23T19:34:00.000+01:00

Following the two threatening emails from the Premier League this past Friday; this website continues to be linked to by many other blogs and news websites.

A selection of them can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

As "Gawker" points out (in the final link above), "Now, as much as we understand the copyright issues at work, we depend on YouTube for our soccer fix and we wonder if the Prem is not shooting itself in the foot by resisting a potentially effective word-of-mouth marketing tool."

When the going gets tough...

2006-10-23T19:20:00.000+01:00

(Written by Manuel Francisco dos Santos)

One of the irrefutable laws of football (and you could apply it to any other
team sport) is that when the going gets tough the manager gets going.

Not the players, not the chairman, not the medical staff and not the kit man
but the manager. It may seem a bit unfair to assign all the blame on him but that's just the way it is.

This is also the opposite of everyday life where the underlings are usually the first ones to go. Imagine underperforming at work and as a result your boss gets fired – how brilliant would that be!

While the manager may not take the field and kick a ball he is responsible for motivating the players sufficiently. Even if it's the players that are hampered by injuries or beset by off-field dramas it is easier to sack the manager then the players.

Have to feel for Argentine legend, Ossie Ardiles, who was just sacked from Betar Jerusalem, only five games into the season. Ardiles' appointment was made with much fanfare while his departure saw him whisked through the back door. The new guy in charge is the fifth manager Betar has had in just over a year.

As for the first manager to go in the Premier League this season, most money should be on Charlton's Iain Dowie, closely followed by West Ham's Alan Pardew and third favorite must be Glenn Roeder.

The ironic thing about sacked managers is that after the media spend weeks or even months baying for blood and asking for the guy's head on a platter, they sign him up asking for special comments during a broadcast, a column in the paper or to be a talking head in the studio.

If the guy isn't good enough to manage a team, why do I want to listen or read to what he has to say? If he has such great insight and analysis into the game why couldn't he have applied this while in control?

(The picture above is from a great website which has many of the old Panini stickers, click here for more.)

Real sparkle in El Clasico

2006-10-23T06:42:00.000+01:00

Real Madrid 2 - Barcelona 0 (La Liga, Oct. 22, 2006) Emerson, Guti and Cannavaro at the top of their games as Real topple Barca in classic performance

Valencia 1 - Osasuna 0 (La Liga, Oct. 22, 2006) Villa is the in-form striker in Europe

Espanyol 2 - Racing Santander 2 (La Liga, Oct. 22, 2006) Less ballet and more defending would be an idea

Athletic Bilbao 0 - Celta Vigo 1 (La Liga, Oct. 22, 2006)

Recreativo Huelva 1 - Getafe 2 (La Liga, Oct. 22, 2006) Great win for Spanish minnows

Feyenoord 0 - Ajax 4 (Eredivisie, Oct. 22, 2006) The Amsterdam boys win the big one in Holland

Roma 1 - Chievo 1 (Serie A, Oct. 22, 2006)

Watch it while you can

2006-10-23T06:35:00.000+01:00

Chelsea 2 – Portsmouth 1 Sheva answers the critics, as Chelsea stay top

Wigan 4 - Man City 0 Lovely goals from Heskey and Valencia

Everton 2 - Sheffield Utd 0 Everton play some lovely team football

Aston Villa 1 - Fulham 1 Villa remain the only unbeaten team in the Premier League

Charlton 0 - Watford 0 Stalemate does nothing to help two teams at the foot of the table

Manchester United 2 - Liverpool 0 Rio scores a cracker leaving Utd joint top

Reading 0 - Arsenal 4 Arsenal return to their best form in demolition of Reading

Tottenham 1 - West Ham 0 Excellent Mido strike condemns Hammers to another defeat without getting on the scoresheet. And is Defoe the new Mike Tyson?

Middlesbrough 1 - Newcastle 0

Petr Cech loves 101 Great Goals

2006-10-22T09:58:00.000+01:00

The Sun reported on Friday that the injured Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech watched the Champions League game against Barcelona on his laptop in hospital.

"Martina, wife of the injured goalkeeper, said: 'He has been watching the Champions League. He saw it on a laptop, the picture was not ideal, but he saw the goal and the performance of Hilario and was very happy. He enjoyed it. It was strange, because he watched the game he was supposed to play in.'"

How ironic that one of the top goalkeepers in the League uses his laptop to watch goals, just like the fans. Will the Premier League send the Czech no.1 threatening emails now?

***

Other websites and news organizations have picked up on the threatening emails sent by the Premier League, they can be read here, here, here and here.

***

I was interviewed this morning by the EPL talk podcast. It can be downloaded here. The interview starts at about the 35th minute. There is also an interview with Alan Mullery on the same podcast.

European round-up

2006-10-21T23:15:00.000+01:00

Triestina 0 - Juventus 1 (Serie B, Oct. 21, 2006) Sixth straight win for Juve in Serie B

Napoli 1 - Crotone 0 (Serie B, Oct. 21, 2006)

Real Zaragoza 2 - Real Betis 1 (La Liga, Oct. 21, 2006) A double for Milito

Werder Bremen 3 - Bayern Munich 1 (Bundesliga, Oct. 21, 2006) Diego scores a cracker

Villarreal 1 - Levante 1 (La Liga, Oct. 21, 2006)

Real Zaragoza 2 - Real Betis 1 (La Liga, Oct. 21, 2006) Poor defending costs Betis despite Robert's neat finish

Deportivo La Coruna 1 - Atletico Madrid 0 (La Liga, Oct. 21, 2006) Depor took advantage of the dead ball, Atletico didn't

"The goals will go on"

2006-10-21T17:20:00.000+01:00

The attack by the FA Premier League on this website has been picked up by the BBC.

As the BBC points out, "Links from 101greatgoals to YouTube were thought to have been disabled by YouTube itself but other links to Premiership goals stayed in place."

Many of the links on this website are now, in the words of our old friend Tim Cooper, "dead". However, there are still numerous goals from the Premier League on Youtube and if you look below, the UEFA cup goals are still in working order.

Tucked away at the end of the article it notes, "But from next season Match Of The Day and MOTD2 will be streamed on broadband as simulcasts with the TV programmes for UK users - meaning all the Premiership goals will be available online for the first time in the UK."

Perhaps the Premier League and the BBC might consider making this available for those living outside the UK. The feedback received by this site in the last few days has shown that there are numerous people living outside the UK who are starved of watching the game they love.

***

Many other blogs have picked up on this story, they can be read here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

***

We have continued to receive many supportive emails, here is an example of one of them:

Subject: Football
From: Adrian Edwards
Email:
Date: October 21, 2006

Hi,

I have just seen your site on English Television, I have had a look & all videos/goals have been removed from your site/youtube.

Once again the general public cannot see great goals, unless you pay money. Football was entertainment but is now a money making machine to their rich owners. They don't care that most people cannot afford to pay high prices each week, to see their teams. They only care about how much money they can make from you each week and sites like yours stop that happening.

All the best.