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August 2011
The Archives
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08.31.11Fascism, bust-ups and moments of genius – all in a day’s work for Paolo Di CanioLast May, former Italian footballer Paolo Di Canio was appointed as manager of Swindon Town. Never one to be out of the headlines for long, just last night he was scrapping with one of his own players. To be fair, I wouldn't mess with Di Canio, I don't know what this player is thinking. Watch it below. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/dLv4onfFks4" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /] Yet despite his close friendship with Lazio's violent ultra supporters and his fascist beliefs (Paolo has a tattoo in tribute to Il Duce himself), Di Canio has been quite the character on the pitch as well as off it. ...
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08.26.11Shamrock Rovers: from relegation to jubilationFootball el Mundo congratulates Shamrock Rovers today. What a complete u-turn for the now Tallaght-based club. Five years ago the club were near extinction - now they're rubbing shoulders with the big boys. Rovers are set to become the first Irish club to make the group stages of a major European competition. And in their group are Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur, Russian side Rubin Kazan and PAOK. Considering just a few seasons ago Rovers were relegated, homeless and in financial troubles - now they have their own stadium, Irish league champions and will be set make some a nice bit of ...
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08.22.11Arsenal’s season-defining weekTalk about a crucial week for Arsène Wenger - the next two games could prove to be massive for the Arsenal boss. The London side travel to northern Italy where they face Udinese for a place in the Champions League group stage. They go into the tie with only a 1-0 lead. If the Gunners were to crash out of the competition it could cost the London club up to £25 million in lost revenue. Ouch. But as well as that, Arsenal also travel to Old Trafford for a league game on Sunday next. Defeat against Man United could put Wenger's ...
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08.21.11Juventus’ big invite for their black & white English brothersIt was probably just a normal day at the office when Notts County owner and chairman Ray Trew's phone rang and on the other end was Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli. An ordinary day turned into an extraordinary day when the Italian giants offered the League One side to be their first opponent in their new 41,000 seater stadium. "Given the historical relationship between our two clubs and the sheer prestige of the occasion, we were prepared to move heaven and earth to make this happen" Trew said. Historical relationship? Between Juve and Notts County? Actually yes - Juventus' world famous black ...
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08.19.11Has José Mourinho taken it a little too far this time?Eye-gouging on the touchline. Well, it's certainly a new approach to get under someone's skin from The Special One as his Real Madrid side travelled to Barcelona's Camp Nou during the week for the 2nd leg of the Spanish Super Cup. Following Marcelo's two-legged tackle on Barça's Cesc Fabregas, chaos ensued at the sideline. Red cards were being thrown around to Marcelo, Mesut Ozil and David Villa. Then Mourinho very calmly walks up behind Pep Guardiola's number two Tito Vilanova and very bizarelly sticks his finger in the Barça assistant's eye. Vilanova retaliated by pushing The Special One who in turn ...
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08.17.11Robbie Keane’s American dreamThe Los Angeles Galaxy, as many of us know, have this week acquired the services of our own Robbie Keane. The 31-year Tallaght man chose to play his football in the Californian sunshine for the next two seasons. Yet some people think that it may not be the right move for Ireland's captain. But playing in the MLS isn't exactly like playing in La Liga, I know. Will Keano's football be affected by a move to this league? I don't believe so. He'll give it his all and I fully believe he'll be a big hit in the Home Depot Center. ...
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08.12.11‘El Loco’ and other crazy ‘keepersSome goalkeepers, such as Schmeichel, Casillas, Kahn etc., are sheer athletes, full of confidence and agility that makes it glorious to watch them between the posts. Others are, to be putting it mildly, plain nuts. Here's my top 5 loco 'keepers. 5. Jens Lehmann. Certainly one of the more colourful characters in the English Premier League in recent years. He was good though - Arsenal managed to get the German international out of retirment last March, when they were having something of a crisis with a lack of fit goalkeepers. He's still crazy though to say the least. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/Se2h0GCMozA" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" ...
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08.10.11Birthday candles for KeanoNot Robbie - but Roy. He'll be blowing out forty candles today. And Football El Mundo wishes the Corkman a happy birthday. As intense a manager as he was a player, he was one of the greatest players to put on a green jersey and gave it his all during his entire 67 caps - not to mention how brilliant he was in the Premier League season after season. Enjoy your day, Keano. Happy 40th. But I strongly doubt Alf-Inge Håland will be sending any birthday cards today. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/Gq8vvOf2KNw" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]
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08.09.11PSG – the Man City of FranceIn recent years, French football has been dominated by Marseille, Bordeaux and Lyon. That could all change this season. Ligue 1's big underachievers Paris Saint-Germain could be the ones to watch as they have Qatari millions backing them this season. On 30 June last, Qatar Investment Authority, established by the heir to the Qatari throne, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani bought a 70% stake in the Parisian club. Almost immediately former Inter and AC Milan boss Leonardo was installed as general manager. The start of things to come. Immediate signings such as the gifted Jeremy Menez from Roma, Mohamed Sissoko ...
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08.05.11You Tube gold: A fail, a miss & some chickenThree things I saw this week on the web that I just had to include on this blog. The first was a howler from Japanese goalkeeper Yuzō Tashiro that would make even Robert Green cringe. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/366yhUSQsIs" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /] The second was German international Kevin Kuranyi playing for Dynamo Moscow the Russian Premier League and a miss that would make even Ronnie Rosenthal cringe. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZXs8hXHglkQ" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /] Finally, here's an advert for Venky's chicken with Blackburn Rovers that could make even Carlton Palmer cringe. But to be fair, it does look delicious. [kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/IYwf2SBWa5o" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /] See any football-related hilarity on You ...
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