European Soccer Part XIII

[Jimjamesak]

Originally posted by jmh
Wow, surprised I didn't hear about this until just now. Not exactly EUROPEAN soccer, but I imagine folks will be interested to hear...

Maradona taken off respirator (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=298072&cc=5901)

The Hand of God apparently has some severe heart and lung problems. :(
and cocaine and drinking and eating problems. But in all seriousness this is good to hear, as much as I hate him for diving and cheapness, he was a great player, that other goal against England in 86 was amazing.

[MavrckMngr]

Rhett (and anyone else interested), go to http://www.uit.no/mancity/ for MCIVTA subscription info. It also has all the back issues archived somewhere. Happy reading!

I'm not going to say very much about the Leicester match as it's probably best for my mental health that way, but I do have to say this: Hey, Kev, PUT MACKEN IN, G'****IT!!!!

Ahh, I feel better already. :) Come on, you Blues!

[MavrckMngr]

Originally posted by FerrisLives
Norwich will be one of the most fiscally conservative clubs in the Premiership in a while. West Brom was also quite cautious last year. A lot of teams have learned their lessons from Bradford, Coventry, Derby County who all came close to financial catastrophy after spending a fortune in the Premiership and getting relegated a few years later.

The Rams have a somewhat new ground, though, don't they?

[3W]

Originally posted by MavrckMngr
The Rams have a somewhat new ground, though, don't they?

Early nineties. Strangely enough, the place they used to play was called "The Baseball Ground".

[MavrckMngr]

Originally posted by Wildcat Willy Wannabe
Early nineties. Strangely enough, the place they used to play was called "The Baseball Ground".

Could be worse. Wimbledon's new digs in Milton Keynes is called the National Hockey Center, from what I once read in I think it was FourFourTwo. Pretty sure the article said the ground wasn't a big concrete slab and smelled of urine, however.

[3W]

The Baggies are going back up, after a lunchtime draw between Sunderland and Wigan. Congrats to WBA for sticking it out.

[ColbyWMHB]

Liverpool takes a big leap forward in capturing the 4-spot by knocking off Man U at Old Trafford 1-0.

Leicester almost seals its fate as well, getting only 1 point at home against Man City. 2 likely down...who will be the 3rd?

Nice article regarding promotion / relegation of the English leagues / divisions going into today from the BBC here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/3615939.stm

[FerrisLives]

I think Leicester have been promoted and relegated more than any team in England. They should be experts at the process by now.

[3W]

Chelsea down 2-1 to Newcastle after 65 minutes, setting up a potential chance for Arsenal to claim the title at White Hart Lane in a delicious bit of irony.

[Bob Gray]

Arsenal now up 2-0 early in the 2nd half and they really don't seem to have gone into their higher gears yet. With Chelski losing at Newcastle, the Gunners should wrap up the title in the next 45 minutes. Arsenal easily could have had a couple more goals, as Spurs' defense looks very leaky. Go Gunners!

Jon, where are your Arsenal chants? :D

[Bob Gray]

Well, that was one of the most farcical endings to a match I have ever seen. First, awarding 3 minutes of extra time when there were no injuries or other stoppages in the 2nd half made me pinch myself for a moment to remind myself that ManU wasn't playing. Then Robbie Keane cynically blocks Lehmann and undercuts him in the box as a corner kick comes in, then shoves Lehmann over, and they both get yellows, while Halsey bizarrely awards Keane a penalty. Mark Halsey has shafted Arsenal a number of times, but this is one of the worst. Arsenal should have won, but they get the draw and they are the champions. Too bad the ref had to make such a meal out of the end of the game and deny the Gunners the double pleasure of winning the title by winning at White Hart Lane. Since it wasn't an Arsenal player interfering and then shoving the opposing goalie over, I'm sure the FA will turn a blind eye.

Realistically Arsenal should have had 5-6 goals. I don't think I've seen a game where Arsenal had a player in on goal alone so many times, only to miss it time and again. And Kellar made some nice saves behind what was a very porous Scum defense. Really a weird end of the game, but in the end Arsenal got what they needed and the title will be remembered long after the Halsey sham will be largely forgotten.

[Jon]

Originally posted by Bob Gray
Arsenal now up 2-0 early in the 2nd half and they really don't seem to have gone into their higher gears yet. With Chelski losing at Newcastle, the Gunners should wrap up the title in the next 45 minutes. Arsenal easily could have had a couple more goals, as Spurs' defense looks very leaky. Go Gunners!

Jon, where are your Arsenal chants? :D

There's only one Arsen Wenger... :) (whose name I completely mispelled)

[Don King]

CHAMPIONS AGAIN! :D

It's been a disappointing season, from the Treble standpoint... but I can't deny that a league title is some kind of consolation. :)

[Bob Gray]

Originally posted by Jon
There's only one Arsen Wenger... :) (whose name I completely mispelled)
Actually you're very close, missing only an "e" on the end of his first name!

And of course he shouldn't be confused with the Gray Gunners' GM, Warsene Enger! :D

As for the season, if Arsenal can avoid losing the last four matches, to go the entire season without a loss, I think that achievement will make this season fully worthwhile, as that's something nobody else has ever done in the modern era. If they lose a game, it'll be a very good, but hardly memorable season.

And it should be a very interesting offseason all the way around in the EPL. As much as I think Arsenal have had an incredible EPL season and have been the class of the league, I think that ManU and Chelski are closer than the standings would indicate and I think it'll be a real dogfight again next year. Between these three teams, I think it'll really come down again next year to who gets some breaks, avoids injuries, and makes a good move or two for the right players. Chelski will be really interesting to see what they do for their coach and if they decided to buy another starting squad's worth of players as they did last summer.

[Nathan]

United was simply terrible this season. It was a year in which you literally never knew what to expect from one week to the next. Ugh. Awful. Hopefully SAF jumps off a cliff.

[Bob Gray]

Originally posted by Nathan
United was simply terrible this season. It was a year in which you literally never knew what to expect from one week to the next. Ugh. Awful. Hopefully SAF jumps off a cliff.
If I were a ManU fan, the thing that would make me optimistic is that even with all the problems and injuries this season, you're not that far off the pace. Actually where ManU and Chelski are would be good enough to be leading the EPL in some seasons, just not this particular one.

[Don King]

Very true, Bob. Considering that ManU has pretty much screwed up at every turn since Christmas... and STILL might finish second, that's a little scary for the rest of us.

Heard today that Arsenal has signed that guy from Ajax (Van Persie?) Anybody know if there's any truth to that?

[Bob Gray]

I've seen rumors about the Gunners signing Van Persie recently, but nothing definitive. What is your source? Some of the English papers are notoriously inaccurate, and I don't see anything on soccernet or bbc about it happening. It'd be a little bit of an odd time to announce such a signing, the same day the title is clinched. I've heard the guy is a great talent, but can be a bit of a headcase.

[Hobart Higgins]

Ronaldo says he will follow Beckham wherever he goes in the future.

Just another groupie. :)

[Don King]

Originally posted by Bob Gray
I've seen rumors about the Gunners signing Van Persie recently, but nothing definitive. What is your source? Some of the English papers are notoriously inaccurate, and I don't see anything on soccernet or bbc about it happening. It'd be a little bit of an odd time to announce such a signing, the same day the title is clinched. I've heard the guy is a great talent, but can be a bit of a headcase.

Somebody on the Arsenal listserv, which of course means nothing. :) But a guy can hope, can't he?

And if he's a little flaky, he'll fit in pretty good, won't he?:p