Here's the groups, thoughts and predictions later.
GROUP A
Bayern Munich
Juventus
Bordeaux
Maccabi Haifa
GROUP B
Manchester United
CSKA Moscow
Besiktas
Wolfsburg
GROUP C
AC Milan
Real Madrid
Marseille
FC Zurich
GROUP D
Chelsea
Porto
Atletico
APOEL
GROUP E
Liverpool
Lyon
Fiorentina
Debrecen
GROUP F
Barcelona
Inter
Dynamo Kyiv
Rubin Kazan
GROUP G
Sevilla
Rangers
Stuttgart
Unirea Urziceni
GROUP H
Arsenal
AZ Alkmaar
Olympiacos
Standard Liege
Thursday 27 August 2009
Champions League Playoffs
A quick word on the Champions League qualifiers today before the big draw.
May as well get this bit over with, as a Celtic fan my hopes of us qualifying weren't exactly sky high, If we could get a goal in the first 20-25 minutes we might have had a chance for at least penalties, and after losing 2 very soft goals at Celtic Park, I was hoping maybe a little bit of luck may go our way, when Eduardo failed to score with an open goal in front of him, my hopes grew a little maybe we have a chance.
How wrong I was, Eduardo played a nice 1-2 got in the box, Boruc ran out realised he wouldn't get the ball, tried to pull out, and Eduardo went down as if there had been full contact, brushed himself off, and placed the penalty past Boruc, I was outraged, it was never a penalty, no contact was made, it was a blatant dive, and an act of cheating.
Why do players of that quality, in a team with World Class players, they don't need to cheat, playing high quality football, they would have probably won in the end, so why cheat, the 3 to 5 thousand Celtic fans who had made the journey down to the Emirates must have felt sick, any chance of progressing taken away by a cheat, I used to have alot of respect for Eduardo from his International record to his horrific leg break against Birmingham, now all that's gone.
Yes Arsenal did win the game 3-1 in the end 5-1 over both games, however everything after Eduardo's dive is irrelevant, hearts were crushed spirits broken.
All the calls for Eduardo to be banned seem a little over the top, however maybe there needs to be a change, an extra 30 secs for the ref to look at the incident would it still have been a penalty, it wouldn't slow the game down at all, in this HD age, con artists are still given an advantage in ways how to con the referee.
Everyone knows the gulf between the EPL and SPL is huge, noone would argue that, the transfer fee's for Arshavin and Vermaelen would be Celtic's transfer budget for 6 or 7 years, the SPL teams are restricted to buying players from their own league or unknown players and trying to sell them off for a profit, however he are expected to reach the last 16 of the Champions League group stage.
If a team like Everton or Aston Villa reached the Champions League I don't think the same pressures would be put on them, although they have alot more resources available to them.
In UEFA's coefficients system Scotland are placed behind Russia but ahead of countries like Ukraine, Turkey and Greece, these countries can all attract players of a high quality, Djibril Cisse, Elano, Kader Keita these players would never come to the SPL in a million years.
So this shows the SPL punches way above it's weight, so in this sense I am proud of Celtic's performance against Arsenal, and being a Celtic fan it's hard to say but I wish Rangers all the best in carrying on the countries participation.
Also going through to the group stage with Arsenal are: Olympiacos, APOEL FC, VfB Stuttgart, Fiorentina, Atletico Madrid, Debreceni, Lyon, Maccabi Haifa and FC Zurich, well done to all of them.
APOEL and Debreceni were the upsets of the round, Copenhagen and Levski Sofia losing out.
Atletico looked very impressive in the 5-2 win over Panathinaikos, the highly rated Sergio Aguero looking very dangerous.
Lyon seemed to use the Play-off games against Anderlecht to find their form, struggling in the league until their 5-1 victory in the first leg, and then finished it off win a 3-1 win, fans will be saying Karim who?
Monday 24 August 2009
Weekend Thoughts - 22nd August
EPL
So Man Utd were in a crisis, 30 minutes in Wigan seemed to stop that talk, Berbatov seems to have remembered that he is quite fast when he tries, Nice finish from Owen could be the kick start he needs, and Rooney is just getting better and better, This could be his world class season, the leader of United.
Mark Hughes needs to get his City boys on the training field putting the ball into net, or remove the force field from the Eastlands goals, so much good football, lovely link ups , but no end product, eventually someone is gonna get turned over. Lescott will join in a matter of days, I wonder who gets dropped Bridge or Dunne?
So far this season everyones spoke about Arsenal, Man U and Liverpool, Chelsea however are quitely doing their thing, maximum points, 7 goals, my dark horses for the league.
SERIE A
Inter everyones favourite got a bit of a wake up call, Kutozov's 75th minute equaliser meant Bari left the San Siro with an unexpected point, neighbours Milan travelled to Siena and came away with all 3 points in what could have been a banana skin.
Inter have a new central defensive pairing and a new strikeforce, and this could take time to gel, can Eto'o and Milito co-exist and score as many goals as their used to, Mourinho said he needed an attacking midfielder, but so far noone has come in, and Deco is getting a game for Chelsea, can Inter lift the title again without this piece of the jigsaw, and despite the numerous departures, Milan still have a steady ship and a strong spine, all eyes will be on the Brazilianas Leonardo, Ronaldinho and Pato.
My Serie A knowledge is limited just now with a lack of Uk coverage in the past few years however I hope this will increase this season, so bear with me, Good wins for Genoa and Palermo teams I have been told to look out for.
BUNDESLIGA
Starting to get annoyed with ESPN's coverage, great opening weekend, 2 live games, then nothing, too many leagues not enough channels.
I worry for Louis van Gaal and Bayern, 2 points from 9, a defeat against Mainz, the new signings haven't shown their worth, are the Bavarian fans getting a glimpse of life without Ribery, it doesn't look a good one. How long will the Bayern hierarchy put up with such mediocre results, If Bayern aren't top 3 by Christmas van Gaal will be shown the door.
Leverkusen went top of the league with a 5-0 victory of Freiburg, 2 goal from new boy Derdiyok, signed from FC Basel, he impressed me at Euro 2008, I hope to see more of him if Levekusen ever get on TV over here, also top of the league are Schalke and Hamburg who on Sunday defeated Wolfsburg 4-2 in the Wolves backyard, Unbeaten at home since the 2007/08 season the Wolves may have thought the game was theirs after coming back from 2-0 to 2-2, Hamburg had different ideas, Mladen Petric and Romeo Castelen scoring the goals to led Hamburg to the 4-2 victory, When Martin Jol left to manage Ajax I thought that Hamburg would struggle to recreate the form of last season, Ivica Olic leaving solidified my thinking, however so far they are doing very well, 7 points from 9, and a 5-1 victory in the Europa League see Bruno Labbadia's men riding high in the Bundesliga.
LIGUE 1
It's nice to see Lyon getting back onto form, a fantastic 5-1 victory over Anderlecht and now a 3-0 win away at Auxerre, Puel has been going between a 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 formation, personally I think the 4-3-3 works better, the 3 in midfield gives Makoun more freedom, and Toulalan can sit in, and either Pjanic or Ederson can play more advanced, with the 4-4-2 with the players they have a gap would appear between the midfield and forward line. The 4-3-3 can also turn into a 4-5-1 when defending, Bastos is good at covering back on the left, If Lyon can maintain their run it'll be hard to bet against them.
Champions Bordeaux maintained their 100% record a 4-0 win over Nice. Yoann Gourcuff scoring 2 goals makes his €15 million look like a bargin. The "New Zidane" tags that are flying about are looking more and more justified, A very graceful player, can pass score, beat people off the dribble, the scary thing is, he is only going to get better.
Still no UK coverage of Ligue 1, I'm limited to live feeds with poor quality, highlights packages and the odd downloaded game if I can find time during the week to watch it, hopefullt someone will buy the rights so I can see some live Ligue 1 action.
SPL
Another weekend over in Scotland, Celtic warmed up for their 2nd leg against Arsenal with a 5-2 victory over St. Johnstone, not sure what to take from this, good to score 5 goals before a match when you need to score, but losing 2 goals against a newly promoted side before going to one of the most attacking teams in Europe is not ideal, Shaun Maloney has started this season fantastically looking very sharpe, he scored 2 goals and also set up Fortune's first, Mowbary seems to have given Shaun the freedom to hang on the left and cause Havoc, a Scotland recall should be coming soon.
Rangers ended the weekend somehow managing to collect all 3 points from their trip to Tynecastle, Hearts took the lead after Kevin Thomson got sent off for a harsh challenge, a yellow would have been more fitting for the crime, especially so early in the match, new Hearts striker David Witteveen scoring after a nice 1-2 with Nade but McGregor should have kept it out.
Rangers were terrible in the first half, Miller up on his own and with only 10 men they couldn't make more than 3 passes together, Hearts hussled very well and done a great job and deserved the 1-0 lead, It was a different Rangers team in the 2nd half, moving Steven Naismith upfront, and a compact 3 man midfield, they looked a much better side, and they deserved to equalise, Lee McCulloch flicking a header past Balogh. Hearts did not deserve though to get nothing from the game. Naismith was recklessly brought down by Bouzid, and Kris Boyd who had just come on, with his first touch guarenteed Rangers all 3 points.
Hibs had the early game live on ESPN and after going behind to a great solo goal by Falkirks Ryan Flynn on loan from Liverpool. The commentators had been criticising Sol Bamba for the player self linking himself with a move to Liverpool, who else was going to pop up with header to bring Hibs Level, I like Bamba, he reminds me of a young Bobo Balde who graced Celtic's defense for a few years, Big strong lad, great in the air, a bit quick to jump in, and very tempremental, but he does have ability, if John Hughes can nurture this, he could be a force to be reckoned with.
Hibs played a strong 3 man attack, big man Colin Nish, the quick and skillful Derek Riordan and new signing from Sunderland Anthony Stokes, Stokes played under Hughes at Falkirk and was the SPL top scorer that season, Riordan trying to resurrect his career after the top wasted years at Celtic, and it was Derek that scored the two winning goals, popping up to flick a free kick past Olenjik and then with 10 minutes to go, curled a wonderful free kick past the helpless keeper, a great comeback and win for the Hibees.
With those 3 upfront as long as they all play to their potential I think Hibs will challenge for a Europa league place, Stokes has now had a few years in the Premiership this will have made his a better player from his Falkirk days, Nish and Riordan are also capable of scoring 10+ goals a season with the same from Stokes, the sun could be shining on Leith this year.
GOOD WEEK
So Man Utd were in a crisis, 30 minutes in Wigan seemed to stop that talk, Berbatov seems to have remembered that he is quite fast when he tries, Nice finish from Owen could be the kick start he needs, and Rooney is just getting better and better, This could be his world class season, the leader of United.Mark Hughes needs to get his City boys on the training field putting the ball into net, or remove the force field from the Eastlands goals, so much good football, lovely link ups , but no end product, eventually someone is gonna get turned over. Lescott will join in a matter of days, I wonder who gets dropped Bridge or Dunne?
So far this season everyones spoke about Arsenal, Man U and Liverpool, Chelsea however are quitely doing their thing, maximum points, 7 goals, my dark horses for the league.
SERIE A
Inter everyones favourite got a bit of a wake up call, Kutozov's 75th minute equaliser meant Bari left the San Siro with an unexpected point, neighbours Milan travelled to Siena and came away with all 3 points in what could have been a banana skin.
Inter have a new central defensive pairing and a new strikeforce, and this could take time to gel, can Eto'o and Milito co-exist and score as many goals as their used to, Mourinho said he needed an attacking midfielder, but so far noone has come in, and Deco is getting a game for Chelsea, can Inter lift the title again without this piece of the jigsaw, and despite the numerous departures, Milan still have a steady ship and a strong spine, all eyes will be on the Brazilianas Leonardo, Ronaldinho and Pato.
My Serie A knowledge is limited just now with a lack of Uk coverage in the past few years however I hope this will increase this season, so bear with me, Good wins for Genoa and Palermo teams I have been told to look out for.
BUNDESLIGA
Starting to get annoyed with ESPN's coverage, great opening weekend, 2 live games, then nothing, too many leagues not enough channels.
I worry for Louis van Gaal and Bayern, 2 points from 9, a defeat against Mainz, the new signings haven't shown their worth, are the Bavarian fans getting a glimpse of life without Ribery, it doesn't look a good one. How long will the Bayern hierarchy put up with such mediocre results, If Bayern aren't top 3 by Christmas van Gaal will be shown the door.Leverkusen went top of the league with a 5-0 victory of Freiburg, 2 goal from new boy Derdiyok, signed from FC Basel, he impressed me at Euro 2008, I hope to see more of him if Levekusen ever get on TV over here, also top of the league are Schalke and Hamburg who on Sunday defeated Wolfsburg 4-2 in the Wolves backyard, Unbeaten at home since the 2007/08 season the Wolves may have thought the game was theirs after coming back from 2-0 to 2-2, Hamburg had different ideas, Mladen Petric and Romeo Castelen scoring the goals to led Hamburg to the 4-2 victory, When Martin Jol left to manage Ajax I thought that Hamburg would struggle to recreate the form of last season, Ivica Olic leaving solidified my thinking, however so far they are doing very well, 7 points from 9, and a 5-1 victory in the Europa League see Bruno Labbadia's men riding high in the Bundesliga.
LIGUE 1
It's nice to see Lyon getting back onto form, a fantastic 5-1 victory over Anderlecht and now a 3-0 win away at Auxerre, Puel has been going between a 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 formation, personally I think the 4-3-3 works better, the 3 in midfield gives Makoun more freedom, and Toulalan can sit in, and either Pjanic or Ederson can play more advanced, with the 4-4-2 with the players they have a gap would appear between the midfield and forward line. The 4-3-3 can also turn into a 4-5-1 when defending, Bastos is good at covering back on the left, If Lyon can maintain their run it'll be hard to bet against them.
Champions Bordeaux maintained their 100% record a 4-0 win over Nice. Yoann Gourcuff scoring 2 goals makes his €15 million look like a bargin. The "New Zidane" tags that are flying about are looking more and more justified, A very graceful player, can pass score, beat people off the dribble, the scary thing is, he is only going to get better.
Still no UK coverage of Ligue 1, I'm limited to live feeds with poor quality, highlights packages and the odd downloaded game if I can find time during the week to watch it, hopefullt someone will buy the rights so I can see some live Ligue 1 action.
SPL
Another weekend over in Scotland, Celtic warmed up for their 2nd leg against Arsenal with a 5-2 victory over St. Johnstone, not sure what to take from this, good to score 5 goals before a match when you need to score, but losing 2 goals against a newly promoted side before going to one of the most attacking teams in Europe is not ideal, Shaun Maloney has started this season fantastically looking very sharpe, he scored 2 goals and also set up Fortune's first, Mowbary seems to have given Shaun the freedom to hang on the left and cause Havoc, a Scotland recall should be coming soon.Rangers ended the weekend somehow managing to collect all 3 points from their trip to Tynecastle, Hearts took the lead after Kevin Thomson got sent off for a harsh challenge, a yellow would have been more fitting for the crime, especially so early in the match, new Hearts striker David Witteveen scoring after a nice 1-2 with Nade but McGregor should have kept it out.
Rangers were terrible in the first half, Miller up on his own and with only 10 men they couldn't make more than 3 passes together, Hearts hussled very well and done a great job and deserved the 1-0 lead, It was a different Rangers team in the 2nd half, moving Steven Naismith upfront, and a compact 3 man midfield, they looked a much better side, and they deserved to equalise, Lee McCulloch flicking a header past Balogh. Hearts did not deserve though to get nothing from the game. Naismith was recklessly brought down by Bouzid, and Kris Boyd who had just come on, with his first touch guarenteed Rangers all 3 points.
Hibs had the early game live on ESPN and after going behind to a great solo goal by Falkirks Ryan Flynn on loan from Liverpool. The commentators had been criticising Sol Bamba for the player self linking himself with a move to Liverpool, who else was going to pop up with header to bring Hibs Level, I like Bamba, he reminds me of a young Bobo Balde who graced Celtic's defense for a few years, Big strong lad, great in the air, a bit quick to jump in, and very tempremental, but he does have ability, if John Hughes can nurture this, he could be a force to be reckoned with.
Hibs played a strong 3 man attack, big man Colin Nish, the quick and skillful Derek Riordan and new signing from Sunderland Anthony Stokes, Stokes played under Hughes at Falkirk and was the SPL top scorer that season, Riordan trying to resurrect his career after the top wasted years at Celtic, and it was Derek that scored the two winning goals, popping up to flick a free kick past Olenjik and then with 10 minutes to go, curled a wonderful free kick past the helpless keeper, a great comeback and win for the Hibees.
With those 3 upfront as long as they all play to their potential I think Hibs will challenge for a Europa league place, Stokes has now had a few years in the Premiership this will have made his a better player from his Falkirk days, Nish and Riordan are also capable of scoring 10+ goals a season with the same from Stokes, the sun could be shining on Leith this year.
GOOD WEEK
- Marc-Antoine Fortune - opened his account for Celtic with 2 goals
- Jozy Altidore - Exciting debut for Hull setting up the winning goal
- Ronaldinho - sets up both goals in Milan's win
- Feyenoord - Top of the league with a 4-0 win over Roda
- Burnley - Proving the Man U victory was not a fluke 1-0 win over Everton
BAD WEEK
- Jose Mourinho - Only managing a draw in first home game against Bari
- Everton - Lescott about to leave and another defeat in the league
- Wolfsburg - Losing their unbeaten home record
- Hearts - 2 games 0 points bad start the Lazslo's men
- Alain Perrin - Bottom of Ligue 1, no points, pressure is on.
Sunday 23 August 2009
Siena v AC Milan - 22nd August
SIENA: Curci - Rossettini, Ficagna, Brandao, Del Grosso - Vergassola, Codrea, Fini - Jarolim - Ghezzal, Maccarone
MILAN: Storari - Zambrotta, Nesta, Thiago Silva, Jankulovski - Gattuso, Pirlo, Flamini - Ronaldinho - Pato, Borriello
First day of the Serie A season and my first Serie A game in quite a while, since Channel 5 stopped their coverage, no other English channel had picked up the coverage, the problem is the general fan in the UK still has this negative view on Italian football, defensive football, no goals, and is still considered boring, The problem stems from the teams they get to see, always Inter, Milan or Juve and Roma if they are playing English teams in the Champions League, I remember saying how good Roma were and they played great football, then they went to Old Trafford and got destroyed, not good for my defense of the league, Serie A however has many good teams outside the big names, Genoa, Palermo, Napoli and Sampdoria to name a few.
So last night I sat down to watch Siena v Milan, looking through the Siena squad only a couple of names were recognisable, Romanian midfielder Codrea, Czech midfielder Jarolim and ex-Middlesbrough forward Massimo Maccarone, so alot of new players to see and enjoy.
With Milan it haas been a stormy summer, Ancelotti gone, Maldini retired, and Kaka moving to Madrid, and the players coming in have not satified the Rossoneri faithful, In defence, Gooch Onyewu the big American centre half has been brought in, although he had a bad time at Newcastle on loan, he is a player that i've always like when he's played for the USA, so I think he could settle in well. Klass Jan Huntelaar was not the striker Milan fans wanted, can he settle in Italy, although people say he wasn't as good for Real but 8 goals in 20 games with an injury is a good record for me.
Both new players didn't start new coach Leonardo went for Borriello and Pato upfront with Ronaldinho behind them, could Ronnie blossom again without Kaka.
Milan struck first, Ronaldinho slipped the ball into Pato's path and without breaking stride he placed it past Curci, lovely ball for Ronnie, and throughout the whole game he was behind most of Milan's best moves, If he can stay fit, and hungry, I can see him having a good season, maybe just in time for South Africa.
The Milan goal seemed to wake up Siena, with Maccarone making some strong runs down the left channel and Fini trying to pick a pass, it paid off, the ball was played into Jarolim, he turned and hit a low shot, Storari could only parry it, and Ghezzal pounced to scoop the ball into the net taking Siena into the break level.
Leonardo's half time team talk worked wonders, and a lovely move set up the 2nd goal, Borriello won the ball in the air, Pato brought it down, played the ball to Ronaldinho, his lovely pass inside to Flamini was then played across the box to Pato and the magical Brazilian made no mistake applying the finish the move deserved.
Flamini getting a starting spot, shows Leonardo's intentions, alot of people think Ancelotti under used the Frenchman, I for one agree with that and was really glad to see him in the starting lineup and also be involved in the move for the 2nd goal, and he had a really good game.
After the 2nd goal the game got a little scrappy, Siena brought on young striker Paolucci and he failed to make an impact, but from what I'm told he is one to watch out for.
Overall a good match, Siena will be hoping to survive another season after letting alot of their big players go, Milan will want to challenge for the Scudetto, but I think this will be a step to far for this new Milan side, this was big win for Milan though, with the Derby next week, without this win, they could have been possibly 6 points behind Inter after only 2 weeks, now they have the chance to get an early lead.
SIENA 1
Ghezzal 34
MILAN 2
Pato 29,48
Match Rating - 7/10
M.O.M - Ronaldinho - Milan
MILAN: Storari - Zambrotta, Nesta, Thiago Silva, Jankulovski - Gattuso, Pirlo, Flamini - Ronaldinho - Pato, Borriello
First day of the Serie A season and my first Serie A game in quite a while, since Channel 5 stopped their coverage, no other English channel had picked up the coverage, the problem is the general fan in the UK still has this negative view on Italian football, defensive football, no goals, and is still considered boring, The problem stems from the teams they get to see, always Inter, Milan or Juve and Roma if they are playing English teams in the Champions League, I remember saying how good Roma were and they played great football, then they went to Old Trafford and got destroyed, not good for my defense of the league, Serie A however has many good teams outside the big names, Genoa, Palermo, Napoli and Sampdoria to name a few.
So last night I sat down to watch Siena v Milan, looking through the Siena squad only a couple of names were recognisable, Romanian midfielder Codrea, Czech midfielder Jarolim and ex-Middlesbrough forward Massimo Maccarone, so alot of new players to see and enjoy.
With Milan it haas been a stormy summer, Ancelotti gone, Maldini retired, and Kaka moving to Madrid, and the players coming in have not satified the Rossoneri faithful, In defence, Gooch Onyewu the big American centre half has been brought in, although he had a bad time at Newcastle on loan, he is a player that i've always like when he's played for the USA, so I think he could settle in well. Klass Jan Huntelaar was not the striker Milan fans wanted, can he settle in Italy, although people say he wasn't as good for Real but 8 goals in 20 games with an injury is a good record for me.
Both new players didn't start new coach Leonardo went for Borriello and Pato upfront with Ronaldinho behind them, could Ronnie blossom again without Kaka.
Milan struck first, Ronaldinho slipped the ball into Pato's path and without breaking stride he placed it past Curci, lovely ball for Ronnie, and throughout the whole game he was behind most of Milan's best moves, If he can stay fit, and hungry, I can see him having a good season, maybe just in time for South Africa.
The Milan goal seemed to wake up Siena, with Maccarone making some strong runs down the left channel and Fini trying to pick a pass, it paid off, the ball was played into Jarolim, he turned and hit a low shot, Storari could only parry it, and Ghezzal pounced to scoop the ball into the net taking Siena into the break level.
Leonardo's half time team talk worked wonders, and a lovely move set up the 2nd goal, Borriello won the ball in the air, Pato brought it down, played the ball to Ronaldinho, his lovely pass inside to Flamini was then played across the box to Pato and the magical Brazilian made no mistake applying the finish the move deserved.
Flamini getting a starting spot, shows Leonardo's intentions, alot of people think Ancelotti under used the Frenchman, I for one agree with that and was really glad to see him in the starting lineup and also be involved in the move for the 2nd goal, and he had a really good game.
After the 2nd goal the game got a little scrappy, Siena brought on young striker Paolucci and he failed to make an impact, but from what I'm told he is one to watch out for.
Overall a good match, Siena will be hoping to survive another season after letting alot of their big players go, Milan will want to challenge for the Scudetto, but I think this will be a step to far for this new Milan side, this was big win for Milan though, with the Derby next week, without this win, they could have been possibly 6 points behind Inter after only 2 weeks, now they have the chance to get an early lead.
SIENA 1
Ghezzal 34
MILAN 2
Pato 29,48
Match Rating - 7/10
M.O.M - Ronaldinho - Milan
Saturday 22 August 2009
Dundee United v Hearts - 17th August
DUNDEE UTD: Weaver - Kovacevic, Dods, Webster, Dixon - Gomis, Buaben, Robertson, Swanson - Goodwillie, Cadamarteri
HEARTS: Kello - Jonsson, Bouzid, Kucharski, Goncalves - Suso, Palazuelos, Stewart, Obua - Witteveen - Nade
Finally managed to watch this game from Monday night, avoided the score all week so was looking forward to it, 2 of the best teams outside the old firm, big game for both teams to start of their season with. Hearts will be looking again to secure at least a 3rd place finish or if possible challenge the top two, United will have thoughts of the same but 3rd place would be an excellent season.
Dundee United started very brightly and after 2 minutes they had a penalty, the very impressive Danny Swanson skipped inside the box Eggert Jonsson stuck out his leg and Swanson went down, the Ref had no choice but to point to the spot, Penalties are a big enough pressure, but Cadamarteri stepped upfront infront of his home fans on his debut, and fired the ball just past Kello, the keeper was unlucky got a fingertip to it, but it was not enough, a fantastic start for the home team 1-0 up after 2 minutes.
United were the much better team in the first half, midfielder Gomis is a very talented player, he started on the right but is given the right to move around the field, and he linked up very well with Prince Buaben, and Swanson, with performances like this it won't be long till Gomis is playing at a higher level, he's fast, strong, good passer.
Hearts came back into the game towards the end of the first half, due to the play of David Obua, the tall lanky Ugandan, looks awkward when running but when he gets on the ball, he has a good touch, speed to go past men, and playing on the left, the ball played across is a good outlet that he can win comfortably in the air, he also has good set piece delivery, and he created a great chance on the half hour, swinging in the free kick, into that area between keeper and defenders that always causes trouble but noone could get on the end of it.
The end of the first half saw bookings for Stewart, Obua and Kovacevic for United, and 5 minutes into the 2nd half, Stewart made a rash challenge on Robertson and the referee had no choice to send Stewart off, Hearts not only down to 10 men but also losing their captain.
The second half couldn't live up to the first and the game was over with 6 minutes to go, Buaben played the ball to Gomis and he played a lovely pass through to Cadamarteri and he was onside with only the keeper to beat, stayed calm and passed the ball past the keeper and it curled into the net, and the United fans could celebrate the 3 points.
Really enjoyable game, United impressed alot, I've already mentioned Gomis, in defence young Paul Dixon looked a good left back, not scared to get forward, got in good positions, be it in defence or attack, the big Duo of Dods and Webster will be a solid pairing, not many teams will trouble them in the air, Webster an international defender good for youngsters like Garry Kenneth to learn from, Kovacevic at right back has always played well when I've seen him, 6 foot 4 is huge for a fullback, and he is also fast, good on the ball, a good defender to have.
Robertson had a solid game in the middle next to the all energy Prince Buaben, it was Danny Swanson that caught the eye the most, playing because Craig Conway wasn't fully fit, but on this showing he'll deserve a starting place, pace, trickery, wants to take players on and get in the box, can also put in a cross, he's one I'll be looking out for.
Youngster David Goodwillie was partnered with Ex-Everton and England U21 Danny Cadamarteri, if you've never heard his name, Danny burst through the Everton ranks before anyone knew who Wayne Rooney was, had skill and pace, and was destined to be the next big thing, In the 96/97 season he scored 4 goals in 3 months, one of them against Liverpool, then in 2001 there was a Court case where he was found guilty of assault.
From then till now he has played for Bradford City twice, Leeds United, Sheffield United, Grays Athletic, Leicester City, Doncaster Rovers and Huddersfield Town, spanning 8 years, in this time he only scored 11 goals, all the promise seemed gone, the move to United could be his last chance, but also a fresh start, and 2 goals in your debut can only help kick start his season, he looked really sharp, seems to be in shape, had his pace back, also for a small guy he won alot of headers, ran the channels well, I can't see why he can't have a really good season.
Hearts had a poor game by their standards, Witteveen and Nade couldn't combine upfront, there was too big a gap between the forwards and the midfield, even more so after Stewarts Red card, A player I was watching for the first time was Suso, the former Tenerife winger was making his debut, you could see he has talent, pace, some trickery and obviously confidence, the phrase I used to describe him to my girlfriend was "Like Cristiano Ronaldo without the ability" a tendency to go down, waving for yellow cards, trying to take too much on, probably too make faith in his own ability, I hope that he settles down cause I think he could be talented, just not with his attitude.
Overall a good game to watch, I hope to see both teams again this season, United looking much the better team, but there's a long way to go.
DUNDEE UNITED 2
Cadamarteri 4, 85
HEARTS 0
Match Rating 7/10
M.O.M - Danny Swanson - Dundee United
HEARTS: Kello - Jonsson, Bouzid, Kucharski, Goncalves - Suso, Palazuelos, Stewart, Obua - Witteveen - Nade
Finally managed to watch this game from Monday night, avoided the score all week so was looking forward to it, 2 of the best teams outside the old firm, big game for both teams to start of their season with. Hearts will be looking again to secure at least a 3rd place finish or if possible challenge the top two, United will have thoughts of the same but 3rd place would be an excellent season.
Dundee United started very brightly and after 2 minutes they had a penalty, the very impressive Danny Swanson skipped inside the box Eggert Jonsson stuck out his leg and Swanson went down, the Ref had no choice but to point to the spot, Penalties are a big enough pressure, but Cadamarteri stepped upfront infront of his home fans on his debut, and fired the ball just past Kello, the keeper was unlucky got a fingertip to it, but it was not enough, a fantastic start for the home team 1-0 up after 2 minutes.
United were the much better team in the first half, midfielder Gomis is a very talented player, he started on the right but is given the right to move around the field, and he linked up very well with Prince Buaben, and Swanson, with performances like this it won't be long till Gomis is playing at a higher level, he's fast, strong, good passer.
Hearts came back into the game towards the end of the first half, due to the play of David Obua, the tall lanky Ugandan, looks awkward when running but when he gets on the ball, he has a good touch, speed to go past men, and playing on the left, the ball played across is a good outlet that he can win comfortably in the air, he also has good set piece delivery, and he created a great chance on the half hour, swinging in the free kick, into that area between keeper and defenders that always causes trouble but noone could get on the end of it.
The end of the first half saw bookings for Stewart, Obua and Kovacevic for United, and 5 minutes into the 2nd half, Stewart made a rash challenge on Robertson and the referee had no choice to send Stewart off, Hearts not only down to 10 men but also losing their captain.
The second half couldn't live up to the first and the game was over with 6 minutes to go, Buaben played the ball to Gomis and he played a lovely pass through to Cadamarteri and he was onside with only the keeper to beat, stayed calm and passed the ball past the keeper and it curled into the net, and the United fans could celebrate the 3 points.
Really enjoyable game, United impressed alot, I've already mentioned Gomis, in defence young Paul Dixon looked a good left back, not scared to get forward, got in good positions, be it in defence or attack, the big Duo of Dods and Webster will be a solid pairing, not many teams will trouble them in the air, Webster an international defender good for youngsters like Garry Kenneth to learn from, Kovacevic at right back has always played well when I've seen him, 6 foot 4 is huge for a fullback, and he is also fast, good on the ball, a good defender to have.
Robertson had a solid game in the middle next to the all energy Prince Buaben, it was Danny Swanson that caught the eye the most, playing because Craig Conway wasn't fully fit, but on this showing he'll deserve a starting place, pace, trickery, wants to take players on and get in the box, can also put in a cross, he's one I'll be looking out for.
Youngster David Goodwillie was partnered with Ex-Everton and England U21 Danny Cadamarteri, if you've never heard his name, Danny burst through the Everton ranks before anyone knew who Wayne Rooney was, had skill and pace, and was destined to be the next big thing, In the 96/97 season he scored 4 goals in 3 months, one of them against Liverpool, then in 2001 there was a Court case where he was found guilty of assault.
From then till now he has played for Bradford City twice, Leeds United, Sheffield United, Grays Athletic, Leicester City, Doncaster Rovers and Huddersfield Town, spanning 8 years, in this time he only scored 11 goals, all the promise seemed gone, the move to United could be his last chance, but also a fresh start, and 2 goals in your debut can only help kick start his season, he looked really sharp, seems to be in shape, had his pace back, also for a small guy he won alot of headers, ran the channels well, I can't see why he can't have a really good season.
Hearts had a poor game by their standards, Witteveen and Nade couldn't combine upfront, there was too big a gap between the forwards and the midfield, even more so after Stewarts Red card, A player I was watching for the first time was Suso, the former Tenerife winger was making his debut, you could see he has talent, pace, some trickery and obviously confidence, the phrase I used to describe him to my girlfriend was "Like Cristiano Ronaldo without the ability" a tendency to go down, waving for yellow cards, trying to take too much on, probably too make faith in his own ability, I hope that he settles down cause I think he could be talented, just not with his attitude.
Overall a good game to watch, I hope to see both teams again this season, United looking much the better team, but there's a long way to go.
DUNDEE UNITED 2
Cadamarteri 4, 85
HEARTS 0
Match Rating 7/10
M.O.M - Danny Swanson - Dundee United
Friday 21 August 2009
PSV Eindhoven v Ajax
PSV Eindhoven 4 Ajax 3
PSV: Isaksson - Salcido, Manolev, Pieters, Ooijer - Simons, Afellay, Bakkal - Lazovic, Dzsudzsak, Toivonen
Ajax: Stekelenburg - Atouba, Wielaert, Van der Wiel, Alderweireld - Enoh, Vertonghen, De Zeeuw - Emanuelson, Suarez, Rommedahl
This was the first Eredivisie game I have seen this season, the the first time I have watched Ajax or PSV for quite a while, so I'm not gonna come on and say what I think of the teams chances, as it would be without proof.
If you haven't seen this game, go watch it, what a fantastic game of football, Luis Suarez opened the scoring after Isaksson's big mistake after only 2 minutes, Isaksson failed to control a Salcido backpass and Suarez pounced to steal the ball and score from a tight finish.
Dzsudzsak scored an absolute screamer of a Free Kick on 37 minutes, and Roberto Carlos-esque thunder bolt into the top corner.
I've seen Dzsudzsak a few times and he has always impressed me, great old fashioned winger, taking people on, the ability to cross, and from this game looks like he is a danger from a set piece, as his 2nd goal and PSV's 3rd was a free kick from outside, curled into the back post, showing his ability to strike the ball, definitley a player to watch out for.
The game was back and forward apart from the 7 goals there was alot of chances, 8 yellow cards, and fantastic goals again from Suarez chipping over Isaksson, Urby Emanuelson's left foot strike left Isaksson with no chance, Bakkal also got 2 for PSV a nice finish from inside the box, and on the 74th minute he popped up to score what was to be the winner.
Both team impressed me alot, I was surprised to see Suarez play the CF role and Emanuelson the left winger, last time I saw them play Suarez was the winger and Urdy was the left back, both impressed in their new roles, I liked the look of Emanuelson going forward, and Suarez was such a danger up in the middle.
Toivonen is a player I want to see more of, he has taken Lazovic's place as the main man in PSV's attack, I had seen his free kick against England at the Under 21 Championship, so was looking forward to seeing him play for his club, unfortunately he didn't play well, was quiet, so I will have to watch again to see him, Affellay is a player I have championed in the past, and he was busy and tricky as always.
I probably picked the best game to reintroduce myself to the Eredivisie, and it will make me watch some more.
Hope anyone that reads this will find a way to watch the match, I'll post some highlights though.
Match Rating - 9/10
M.O.M - Balazs Dzsudzsak - PSV
PSV: Isaksson - Salcido, Manolev, Pieters, Ooijer - Simons, Afellay, Bakkal - Lazovic, Dzsudzsak, Toivonen
Ajax: Stekelenburg - Atouba, Wielaert, Van der Wiel, Alderweireld - Enoh, Vertonghen, De Zeeuw - Emanuelson, Suarez, Rommedahl
This was the first Eredivisie game I have seen this season, the the first time I have watched Ajax or PSV for quite a while, so I'm not gonna come on and say what I think of the teams chances, as it would be without proof.
If you haven't seen this game, go watch it, what a fantastic game of football, Luis Suarez opened the scoring after Isaksson's big mistake after only 2 minutes, Isaksson failed to control a Salcido backpass and Suarez pounced to steal the ball and score from a tight finish.
Dzsudzsak scored an absolute screamer of a Free Kick on 37 minutes, and Roberto Carlos-esque thunder bolt into the top corner.
I've seen Dzsudzsak a few times and he has always impressed me, great old fashioned winger, taking people on, the ability to cross, and from this game looks like he is a danger from a set piece, as his 2nd goal and PSV's 3rd was a free kick from outside, curled into the back post, showing his ability to strike the ball, definitley a player to watch out for.The game was back and forward apart from the 7 goals there was alot of chances, 8 yellow cards, and fantastic goals again from Suarez chipping over Isaksson, Urby Emanuelson's left foot strike left Isaksson with no chance, Bakkal also got 2 for PSV a nice finish from inside the box, and on the 74th minute he popped up to score what was to be the winner.
Both team impressed me alot, I was surprised to see Suarez play the CF role and Emanuelson the left winger, last time I saw them play Suarez was the winger and Urdy was the left back, both impressed in their new roles, I liked the look of Emanuelson going forward, and Suarez was such a danger up in the middle.
Toivonen is a player I want to see more of, he has taken Lazovic's place as the main man in PSV's attack, I had seen his free kick against England at the Under 21 Championship, so was looking forward to seeing him play for his club, unfortunately he didn't play well, was quiet, so I will have to watch again to see him, Affellay is a player I have championed in the past, and he was busy and tricky as always.
I probably picked the best game to reintroduce myself to the Eredivisie, and it will make me watch some more.
Hope anyone that reads this will find a way to watch the match, I'll post some highlights though.
Match Rating - 9/10
M.O.M - Balazs Dzsudzsak - PSV
Wednesday 19 August 2009
Celtic v Arsenal
Celtic 0 Arsenal 2
Celtic: Boruc - Hinkel, Loovens, Caldwell, Fox - McGeady, Donati, N.Guemo, Brown, Maloney - Samaras
Arsenal: Almunia - Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Clichy - Song, Denilson, Fabergas - Bendtner, Arshavin, van Persie
The so called Battle of Britiain saw Runners up of Scotland against 4th best place English side for a place in the Champions League, Arsenal the massive favourites to progress and be the first English team since Nottingham Forest in 1983 to win at Celtic Park.
Being a Celtic fan myself, You obviously have 2 thoughts, one from your head and one from your heart.
My head was saying we will struggle to win this tie, we need to keep a clean sheet and either nick a goal at Celtic Park or the Emirates, the more open the game is the less chance we have of going through.
My heart was saying "Come on, get fired into these English(European) pansies and we can go through.
Luckily it's my head thats writing this review rather than my heart.
At first I was disappointed by Mowbrays selection, going 4-5-1 at home is not what the fans want, but I could see his thinking, Arsenal going with Fabergas, Song and Denilson there is no way you can go 4-4-2 against a team like this, you'd never have the ball, Samaras is a good player to play up on his own, pace, power, height.
In my mind this also plays into Arsenals hands, you are letting them dictate the play, you need to take the game to them, and you can't do this with 1 upfront.
For the first 42minutes Celtic had matched Arsenal for every move, althought we hadn't troubled Almunia apart from Arshavin's offside goal, we were comfortable, then Gary Caldwell gave away a free kick about 25 yards out, Fabergas hits it, it comes off Gallas's arse and Celtic are 1-0 down.
The team was deflated, nothing that Tony said at half time could pick them up, you could see from the start the team made for the second 45, the were down, sloppy passes, concentration going, it could have been 3-0 by the hour mark, we slowly came back into it, Fortune and McDonald making a little difference, but just the gulf in class shown through, we didn't have another gear to go to.
Gary Caldwell's own goal summed the night up, 2-0 down, but not a direct shot went past Boruc, I am proud of my team, and look forward to the Europa cup, even though there is a 2nd leg to come, we will end up getting beat 4-0 on aggregate probably.
Arsenal played ok on the night, the front 3 were very quiet, Fabergas didn't have the game the Sky commentators made it out he had, Song, Denilson and Vermaelen were awesome, never missed a beat.
For Celtic, Landry N'Guemo looked very solid, got in the way of alot of passes and broke the play up well.
Overall it was a poor game by Arsenal's standards, just Celtic didn't have the quality to take any advantage.
MATCH VERDICT - 6/10
M.O.M - Thomas Vermaelen - Arsenal
Celtic: Boruc - Hinkel, Loovens, Caldwell, Fox - McGeady, Donati, N.Guemo, Brown, Maloney - Samaras
Arsenal: Almunia - Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Clichy - Song, Denilson, Fabergas - Bendtner, Arshavin, van Persie
The so called Battle of Britiain saw Runners up of Scotland against 4th best place English side for a place in the Champions League, Arsenal the massive favourites to progress and be the first English team since Nottingham Forest in 1983 to win at Celtic Park.
Being a Celtic fan myself, You obviously have 2 thoughts, one from your head and one from your heart.
My head was saying we will struggle to win this tie, we need to keep a clean sheet and either nick a goal at Celtic Park or the Emirates, the more open the game is the less chance we have of going through.
My heart was saying "Come on, get fired into these English(European) pansies and we can go through.
Luckily it's my head thats writing this review rather than my heart.
At first I was disappointed by Mowbrays selection, going 4-5-1 at home is not what the fans want, but I could see his thinking, Arsenal going with Fabergas, Song and Denilson there is no way you can go 4-4-2 against a team like this, you'd never have the ball, Samaras is a good player to play up on his own, pace, power, height.
In my mind this also plays into Arsenals hands, you are letting them dictate the play, you need to take the game to them, and you can't do this with 1 upfront.
For the first 42minutes Celtic had matched Arsenal for every move, althought we hadn't troubled Almunia apart from Arshavin's offside goal, we were comfortable, then Gary Caldwell gave away a free kick about 25 yards out, Fabergas hits it, it comes off Gallas's arse and Celtic are 1-0 down.
The team was deflated, nothing that Tony said at half time could pick them up, you could see from the start the team made for the second 45, the were down, sloppy passes, concentration going, it could have been 3-0 by the hour mark, we slowly came back into it, Fortune and McDonald making a little difference, but just the gulf in class shown through, we didn't have another gear to go to.
Gary Caldwell's own goal summed the night up, 2-0 down, but not a direct shot went past Boruc, I am proud of my team, and look forward to the Europa cup, even though there is a 2nd leg to come, we will end up getting beat 4-0 on aggregate probably.
Arsenal played ok on the night, the front 3 were very quiet, Fabergas didn't have the game the Sky commentators made it out he had, Song, Denilson and Vermaelen were awesome, never missed a beat.
For Celtic, Landry N'Guemo looked very solid, got in the way of alot of passes and broke the play up well.
Overall it was a poor game by Arsenal's standards, just Celtic didn't have the quality to take any advantage.
MATCH VERDICT - 6/10
M.O.M - Thomas Vermaelen - Arsenal
Sunday 16 August 2009
Saturday Round Up 15/08
Usually I plan like last weekend to do a round-up after the Sunday game, however I'm off to London in the morning to watch GB play Basketball at the o2.
So decided to write one now, and do a Sunday round-up on Monday night or Tuesday.
PREMIERSHIP
After the 3 o'clock games I watched Arsenal's game at Everton at Wow what a great start to the season, all the criticism Wenger has received, myself being one of the doubters, only 1 player in, Toure/Adebayor out, I liked Wengers lineup, playing Fabergas with Song and Denilson in the middle, what you lose out by not having a solid DM, you make up in numbers, not sure Bendtner works as a winger, Rosicky, Walcott or Nasri will surely play there more often, Arsenal played some fantastic football this evening, Denilson goal was a cracker, Vermaelen introduced himself in the best way with a fantastic header.
Arshavin had a really good game, he is going to be a revelation in the EPL this season, such a fantastic footballing brain, combining well with van Persie and Eduardo upfront he's going to be Arsenal's main man I think.
It's not often that Everton get beat 6-1, and with games like these I always wonder, are Arsenal playing that well, are Everton playing terrible, or is it a mixture of the two, today, I think it was a mixture, Everton played some good football at times, just Arsenal were clinical and the Toffee's defending was awful at times.
A player that impressed me at the end of this season was Wigan's Hugo Rodallega, and I've been looking forward to see how he gets on this season, and today he launched a statement of intent, a wonder strike at Villa Park, he let the ball bounce and from the corner of the box lashed a wonderful shot over Brad Freidel, video coming if I can find it.
Also a great start for Mark Hughes and Man City, my one thought on this, What happens when everyone is fit and wants to play, I can see alot of unrest, apparently Richard Dunne was the Captain and played great, so where would Lescott go?
COCA-COLA CHAMPIONSHIP
One story from the Championship today, Freddie Sears on loan at Crystal Palace from West Ham, though he had scored his first goal for Palace slotting the ball past Bristol City's keeper, the ball hit the corner of the net, bounced back out and the referee waved the players to play on, NO GOAL, Palace boss Neil Warnock, went absolutely crazy.
Surely this is a call for either a video ref, videos in the goal or even a referee behind the net, Bristol City went on to win 1-0, I find it disgraceful that in 2009 cameras everywhere, things like this can still happen, and you can guarantee the English FA will do nothing.
LIGUE 1
Exciting 2nd week in France, a caught a stream near the end of the Sochaux v Bordeaux match ,just in time to see Charlie Davies score his debut goal for Sochaux this brought FCSM back into the match at 2-1, and after Chamakh scored his 2nd, Davies scored near the end, Great way to announce yourself to you new fans, although they didn't win, I'm sure the Sochaux fans will be excited by Davies goals, I know I am. Chamakh's double could also be his last goals in a Bordeaux shirt, I hope he doesn't go to Arsenal, I think he would fail as they have too many forwards already, a move to West Ham would work wonders I think, replace forgotten target man Dean Ashton, Marouane is one of the best headers of a ball in football just now and would do well in the EPL.
Lyon have struggled again, a 1-0 win against Valenciennes, How long does Puel have with performances like these, Gomis goal will have cheered the Lyon fans up both new strikers have scored, this was a massive goal for Gomis as he struggled last season, if he had went a few games without a goal it could have been a similar season, I hope this kicks off his scoring this season.
Hansds up how many people had Nancy top of Ligue 1 after 2 games, a great 4-0 win against Monaco, look forward to seeing the highlights.
SPL
Big wins for Celtic and Rangers today, Aiden McGeady scoring twice again Aberdeen, showing what he can do given more freedom by Tony Mowbary, this is going to be Aiden's big season, and if he performs well, possibly could be his last in the SPL, the Premiership will be calling.
Rangers got a scare at Ibrox, after going 1 up, Falkirk equalised, however Rangers went on to win 4-1 a good start for them at home, Kenny Miller got 2 goals, he needs a big scoring season, 10 in 30 games last season, not fantastic for an Old Firm striker.
St. Johnstone kicked off their SPL season with a point at home to Motherwell, this gets them off the board, and something to improve on, the big win of the day was for Kilmarnock a 3-0 win at home to Hamilton, this is the kind of result they needed to kick start the season, but the complete opposite effect on Hamilton.
GOOD DAY
So decided to write one now, and do a Sunday round-up on Monday night or Tuesday.
PREMIERSHIP
After the 3 o'clock games I watched Arsenal's game at Everton at Wow what a great start to the season, all the criticism Wenger has received, myself being one of the doubters, only 1 player in, Toure/Adebayor out, I liked Wengers lineup, playing Fabergas with Song and Denilson in the middle, what you lose out by not having a solid DM, you make up in numbers, not sure Bendtner works as a winger, Rosicky, Walcott or Nasri will surely play there more often, Arsenal played some fantastic football this evening, Denilson goal was a cracker, Vermaelen introduced himself in the best way with a fantastic header.
Arshavin had a really good game, he is going to be a revelation in the EPL this season, such a fantastic footballing brain, combining well with van Persie and Eduardo upfront he's going to be Arsenal's main man I think.
It's not often that Everton get beat 6-1, and with games like these I always wonder, are Arsenal playing that well, are Everton playing terrible, or is it a mixture of the two, today, I think it was a mixture, Everton played some good football at times, just Arsenal were clinical and the Toffee's defending was awful at times.
A player that impressed me at the end of this season was Wigan's Hugo Rodallega, and I've been looking forward to see how he gets on this season, and today he launched a statement of intent, a wonder strike at Villa Park, he let the ball bounce and from the corner of the box lashed a wonderful shot over Brad Freidel, video coming if I can find it.Also a great start for Mark Hughes and Man City, my one thought on this, What happens when everyone is fit and wants to play, I can see alot of unrest, apparently Richard Dunne was the Captain and played great, so where would Lescott go?
COCA-COLA CHAMPIONSHIP
One story from the Championship today, Freddie Sears on loan at Crystal Palace from West Ham, though he had scored his first goal for Palace slotting the ball past Bristol City's keeper, the ball hit the corner of the net, bounced back out and the referee waved the players to play on, NO GOAL, Palace boss Neil Warnock, went absolutely crazy.
Surely this is a call for either a video ref, videos in the goal or even a referee behind the net, Bristol City went on to win 1-0, I find it disgraceful that in 2009 cameras everywhere, things like this can still happen, and you can guarantee the English FA will do nothing.
LIGUE 1
Exciting 2nd week in France, a caught a stream near the end of the Sochaux v Bordeaux match ,just in time to see Charlie Davies score his debut goal for Sochaux this brought FCSM back into the match at 2-1, and after Chamakh scored his 2nd, Davies scored near the end, Great way to announce yourself to you new fans, although they didn't win, I'm sure the Sochaux fans will be excited by Davies goals, I know I am. Chamakh's double could also be his last goals in a Bordeaux shirt, I hope he doesn't go to Arsenal, I think he would fail as they have too many forwards already, a move to West Ham would work wonders I think, replace forgotten target man Dean Ashton, Marouane is one of the best headers of a ball in football just now and would do well in the EPL.
Lyon have struggled again, a 1-0 win against Valenciennes, How long does Puel have with performances like these, Gomis goal will have cheered the Lyon fans up both new strikers have scored, this was a massive goal for Gomis as he struggled last season, if he had went a few games without a goal it could have been a similar season, I hope this kicks off his scoring this season.Hansds up how many people had Nancy top of Ligue 1 after 2 games, a great 4-0 win against Monaco, look forward to seeing the highlights.
SPL
Big wins for Celtic and Rangers today, Aiden McGeady scoring twice again Aberdeen, showing what he can do given more freedom by Tony Mowbary, this is going to be Aiden's big season, and if he performs well, possibly could be his last in the SPL, the Premiership will be calling.Rangers got a scare at Ibrox, after going 1 up, Falkirk equalised, however Rangers went on to win 4-1 a good start for them at home, Kenny Miller got 2 goals, he needs a big scoring season, 10 in 30 games last season, not fantastic for an Old Firm striker.
St. Johnstone kicked off their SPL season with a point at home to Motherwell, this gets them off the board, and something to improve on, the big win of the day was for Kilmarnock a 3-0 win at home to Hamilton, this is the kind of result they needed to kick start the season, but the complete opposite effect on Hamilton.
GOOD DAY
- Arsenal - The criticism stops here
- Paul Alo'o Efoulou - 2 goals on his debut for Nancy
- Obafemi Martins - debut goal for Wolfsburg
- Ronald Koeman - after last weeks defeat AZ come back to win 6-0
- RC Lens - Win first home game back in Ligue 1
- People with Joelyn Lescott in your Fantasy Football Team
- Stuart Duff - Taken off after 38 minutes for Aberdeen after McGeady scores 2
- Neil Warnock - Losing 1-0 after your team scores a legitimate goal not allowed
- St-Etienne - 2 defeats in a row, not a lot of positives
- Aston Villa - after defeat to Wigan does the top 4 talk stop
Saturday 15 August 2009
SPL Preview - Part 3
MOTHERWELL
If I was a Rangers fan the one thing that would worry me is that Rangers have let 15 players go and no one has come in, Barry Ferguson is the only player from the starting line-up that's gone, it's more the fact that no one has come in.
With no coverage at all of the Scottish First Division on TV, I've not seen this St.Johnston team play at all, looking at their squad they have veteran keeper Alain Main in goal, ex Gretna defender Danny Grainger, surprisingly ex Chelsea midfielder Jody Morris, trying to score the goals will be Gretna legend Kenny Deuchar and ex-Dundee Utd/Falkirk striker Collin Samuel.
Jim Gannon has a big challenge in front of him, The Irishmen takes over the Steelmen, previously the manager of Stockport County, has to overcome the loss of David Clarkson, Cillian Sheridan, Stephen Hughes, Bob Malcolm, and Grame Smith, those are big holes to fill.
In comes 3 players from the lower league in England, Stephen Jennings, Chris Humphrey and Giles Coke, I have never seen these guys play, so how much they will improve the team remains to be seen.
Captain Stephen Craigan remains, as does John Sutton and Jim O'Brien, 3 talented players, I get the feeling Motherwell will battle for mid-table and finish in the bottom 6, I think they are too good for relegation, however I thought this about Inverness last year.
RANGERS
If I was a Rangers fan the one thing that would worry me is that Rangers have let 15 players go and no one has come in, Barry Ferguson is the only player from the starting line-up that's gone, it's more the fact that no one has come in.The players will be buoyed on by being the Champions, and the players they have at the club are still very talented, Weir and Bougherra are the best Central Defender partnership in the SPL, Kris Boyd will always score goals, and with Pedro Mendes and Steven Davis in midfield, Rangers will be right there at the title challenge.
If Celtic can play more attacking football than last season, I think Ranges will come close but finish 2nd.
ST JOHNSTONE
With no coverage at all of the Scottish First Division on TV, I've not seen this St.Johnston team play at all, looking at their squad they have veteran keeper Alain Main in goal, ex Gretna defender Danny Grainger, surprisingly ex Chelsea midfielder Jody Morris, trying to score the goals will be Gretna legend Kenny Deuchar and ex-Dundee Utd/Falkirk striker Collin Samuel.From history all signs say St Johnstone will struggle to stay up, however I think if they can score goals they can battle for a place in the league next season.
ST.MIRREN
The Buddies are my pick to surprise the league this season, coming into the team are Lee Mair from Aberdeen, Michael Higdon from Falkirk, Paul Gallacher from Dunfermline, the only person leaving the team is veteran striker Jim Hamilton.
Gus McPherson has done a fantastic job with this team and I think this season they could challenge to move into the top 6, although if they finished 7th or 8th it would be a success.
There we go, the season is underway now at Pittodrie, Celtic v Aberdeen , I hope this preview helped you learn a little about the league and I hope to increase this knowledge.
Friday 14 August 2009
SPL Preview - Part 2
I will finish this today, trying to update it at work
HAMILTON ACADEMICAL
They did so well last season to finish 9th, a similar season would be an even bigger success, gone are James McCarthy and Brian Easton, and a few unknowns have come in.
Billy Reid is a manager I really like, has done so well with limited resources, keeping Thomas Cerny is a big keep, really good keeper, could easily play in the Championship for some top teams.
Richard Offiong is another players that has always impressed when i've seen him play, and if he can add to the 6 goals he scored last season Hamilton will have a chance to stay up.
HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN
3rd place will be a must for the Edinburg club, it's nice to see some stability with Csaba Lazlo staying at the club after a great first season, he definitley was a breathe of fresh air.
David Witteveen has come in, he scored quite a few goals in Austria, and needs to hit the ground runing, gone is Christoph Berra to Wolves he'll be a big loss, however good news is that Andrew Driver, Michael Stewart, and Calum Elliot are all still at Tynecastle and should provide a solid base for this season.
HIBERNIAN
It's gonna be a tough year for the Hibees, more outs than Ins, gone are Steven Fletcher, Rob Jones, Alan O'Brien, Fabio Yantorno to name a few.
New manager John Hughes faces a tough season ahead, a top half finish will be the target, I'm not sure they will achieve this, they will finish mid-table, Derek Riordan and Colin Nish will still score goals, not sure Jonathan Johansson can reproduce the form from his Rangers days.
If Hughes can get the most out of the players he has, Hibs will still be a tough team to beat, the passing game he played with Falkirk was good to watch, and with better players to impliment his style I could be successful, I just don't think they have to the players to replace Fletcher and Jones.
KILMARNOCK
Killie have the players to challenge the top 6, however their financial position could hinder their chances, Danny Invincibile and Kevin Kyle upfront will cause any team problems, Mehdi Taouil and David Fernandez at times can add flair, and Frazer Wright and Simon Ford can be solid defenders, will 1 of them have to be sold to keep the team going, if so, the squad is very thin, I think they will roughly finish 8th or 9th, if players have to go Jim Jeffries will be involved in a Relegation battle.
HAMILTON ACADEMICAL
They did so well last season to finish 9th, a similar season would be an even bigger success, gone are James McCarthy and Brian Easton, and a few unknowns have come in.Billy Reid is a manager I really like, has done so well with limited resources, keeping Thomas Cerny is a big keep, really good keeper, could easily play in the Championship for some top teams.
Richard Offiong is another players that has always impressed when i've seen him play, and if he can add to the 6 goals he scored last season Hamilton will have a chance to stay up.
HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN
3rd place will be a must for the Edinburg club, it's nice to see some stability with Csaba Lazlo staying at the club after a great first season, he definitley was a breathe of fresh air.
David Witteveen has come in, he scored quite a few goals in Austria, and needs to hit the ground runing, gone is Christoph Berra to Wolves he'll be a big loss, however good news is that Andrew Driver, Michael Stewart, and Calum Elliot are all still at Tynecastle and should provide a solid base for this season.
HIBERNIAN
It's gonna be a tough year for the Hibees, more outs than Ins, gone are Steven Fletcher, Rob Jones, Alan O'Brien, Fabio Yantorno to name a few.New manager John Hughes faces a tough season ahead, a top half finish will be the target, I'm not sure they will achieve this, they will finish mid-table, Derek Riordan and Colin Nish will still score goals, not sure Jonathan Johansson can reproduce the form from his Rangers days.
If Hughes can get the most out of the players he has, Hibs will still be a tough team to beat, the passing game he played with Falkirk was good to watch, and with better players to impliment his style I could be successful, I just don't think they have to the players to replace Fletcher and Jones.
KILMARNOCK
Killie have the players to challenge the top 6, however their financial position could hinder their chances, Danny Invincibile and Kevin Kyle upfront will cause any team problems, Mehdi Taouil and David Fernandez at times can add flair, and Frazer Wright and Simon Ford can be solid defenders, will 1 of them have to be sold to keep the team going, if so, the squad is very thin, I think they will roughly finish 8th or 9th, if players have to go Jim Jeffries will be involved in a Relegation battle.
Wednesday 12 August 2009
SPL Preview
3 days till the big kick off in Scotland, and although it may be put in the shadow for the Rich cousin next door, being Scottish of course my eyes will be fixed on the events North of the English border.
I'll go through each team giving my opinion
ABERDEEN
Although they finished 4th last season , I think only a miracle will see the same this season, gone are Jamie Smith, Scott Severin and Lee Mair, in comes ex-Swindow defender Jered Ifil.
Smith and Severin were 2 massive players in the Aberdeen midfield and I can't see who's going to replace them, I can't see where the goals are going to come from, and after the embarrassing defeat to Sigma Olomouc 5-1 at Pittodrie finished the tie before it start, I can see a very long season for new manager Mark McGhee.
CELTIC
Confidence is high at Parkhead, Tony Mowbray has come in, and they are playing some good football, I think he has made some very clever signings, Marco-Antoine Fortune looks the target man that Vennegoor never was, Landry N'Guemo has looked very good in pre-season, I hope Celtic preagreed a fee for after the loan-deal cause he market value will increase alot this year, a terrific showing in Moscow has got all the Celtic fans smiling.
Danny Fox the left back from Coventry has put Lee Naylor on the bench already, showing confidence and class after only 1 competitive start.
As always the title challenge will be a 2 horse race, and Celtic's horse is looking in very good shape.
DUNDEE UNITED
Craig Levein has done a fantastic job at Tannadice, I remember not too long ago The Arabs were a very poor team, struggling in the bottom half, now they are one of the strongest outside the Old Firm, and they have again added to a talented team.
Already having the likes of Lee Wilkie, Craig Conway, Francisco Sandaza and Prince Buaben these are all players that have impressed me every time I've watched United play, and Levein has added ex-Hearts/Rangers defender Andy Webster he has 22 Scotland caps aswell, instantly adds quality to the team, journeyman Danny Cadamateri has joined I actually think he will do pretty well in the SPL if he can get match fit, unknowns Damian Casalinuovo and Dusan Pernis will have to let time tell on them, I can see a 3rd place finish for United this season, they deserve a Europa place for all the good work the club has done.
FALKIRK
10th place last year, not a great year but not being relegated is a bonus.
Big man Michael Higdon has left for St-Mirren, some new faces have come in, however I think the plus point that new manager Eddie May should concentrate on is players like Darren Barr, Marc Twaddle and Scott Arfield are still at the club and they need to add to these players.
Under John Hughes I always though Falkirk played some nice attacking football with emphasis on passing.
Anything better than 10th will be a result, however it may be a struggle.
More to follow.........
I'll go through each team giving my opinion
ABERDEEN
Although they finished 4th last season , I think only a miracle will see the same this season, gone are Jamie Smith, Scott Severin and Lee Mair, in comes ex-Swindow defender Jered Ifil.
Smith and Severin were 2 massive players in the Aberdeen midfield and I can't see who's going to replace them, I can't see where the goals are going to come from, and after the embarrassing defeat to Sigma Olomouc 5-1 at Pittodrie finished the tie before it start, I can see a very long season for new manager Mark McGhee.
CELTIC
Confidence is high at Parkhead, Tony Mowbray has come in, and they are playing some good football, I think he has made some very clever signings, Marco-Antoine Fortune looks the target man that Vennegoor never was, Landry N'Guemo has looked very good in pre-season, I hope Celtic preagreed a fee for after the loan-deal cause he market value will increase alot this year, a terrific showing in Moscow has got all the Celtic fans smiling.
Danny Fox the left back from Coventry has put Lee Naylor on the bench already, showing confidence and class after only 1 competitive start.
As always the title challenge will be a 2 horse race, and Celtic's horse is looking in very good shape.
DUNDEE UNITED
Craig Levein has done a fantastic job at Tannadice, I remember not too long ago The Arabs were a very poor team, struggling in the bottom half, now they are one of the strongest outside the Old Firm, and they have again added to a talented team.
Already having the likes of Lee Wilkie, Craig Conway, Francisco Sandaza and Prince Buaben these are all players that have impressed me every time I've watched United play, and Levein has added ex-Hearts/Rangers defender Andy Webster he has 22 Scotland caps aswell, instantly adds quality to the team, journeyman Danny Cadamateri has joined I actually think he will do pretty well in the SPL if he can get match fit, unknowns Damian Casalinuovo and Dusan Pernis will have to let time tell on them, I can see a 3rd place finish for United this season, they deserve a Europa place for all the good work the club has done.
FALKIRK
10th place last year, not a great year but not being relegated is a bonus.
Big man Michael Higdon has left for St-Mirren, some new faces have come in, however I think the plus point that new manager Eddie May should concentrate on is players like Darren Barr, Marc Twaddle and Scott Arfield are still at the club and they need to add to these players.
Under John Hughes I always though Falkirk played some nice attacking football with emphasis on passing.
Anything better than 10th will be a result, however it may be a struggle.
More to follow.........
Sunday 9 August 2009
Weekend Round Up - 9th August
Before I begin I just wanted to say RIP Dani Jarque the Espanyol captain and central defender died of a Heart Attack on Saturday/Sunday morning, Dani was 27 years old, thoughts are with his family and his Espanyol teammates.It's been a very busy footballing week, kicking off Friday night in Germany and England and concluding on Sunday night in France, with action from China, Holland, and elsewhere all over Europe.
Here in the UK there has been alot of change to the TV rights, the BBC will be showing 10 live games from the Coca-Cola Championship along with the highlights after the normal Match of the Day program, and now ESPN has started taking the mantal from the now defunct Setanta UK channels.
ESPN will show football from the Barclays Premiership, SPL, RPL, German Bundesliga, Dutch Eredivisie and the MLS.
On Friday night I managed to catch the 2nd half of the Middlesbrough v Sheffield United match, Boro playing their first game in England 2nd tier since their relegation, and the Blades who got so close to the Premiership losing the playoff final to Burnley, my girlfriend is a Sheff Utd fan so they are always a team that I watch, it was a decent game from what I saw, not much between the team, no clear cut chances, and an inevitable 0-0 draw it finished.
Both teams will be in the running for either promotion or the playoff places, both teams posses the skills each other need, Boro lack the physical presence in midfield and upfront that Sheffield have with Montgomery and Henderson, and Boro have the skill and passing ability from Yeates, Williams and Adam Johnson that Sheffield really lack, Boro it seems are more financially capable of filling those gaps.
Elsewhere in the Championship, Cardiff started off well with a 4-0 win over Scunthorpe, the newly promoted side doing down to another promotion candidate, fairing better in their first game was Leicester City beating last years new side Swansea 2-1 at the Walkers Stadium, the other big story came late Saturday night.
Newcastle travelled to fellow relegated side West Brom for the Saturday night match on the BBC, I managed to see about an hour of this while getting ready to go out.
First half Newcastle had the majority of the ball but just couldn't do much with it, everytime Newcastle would mount an attack it would break down and West Brom would counter attack with a bit more danger and cause Newcastle some trouble mostly down the right with Chris Brunt and Gianni Zuiverloon, Newcastle's front pair of Ameobi and Carroll didn't work for me, Carroll doesn't seem to want to get in the box as a predator striker would, he's really good in the air, I think he might lack the killer instinct, Jonas Gutierrez played well down the left but seems to have the inability to find a pass into the box, and newly choosen Captain Alan Smith for me, is just not a central midfielder, if the rumours are true and David O'Leary takes over as Newcastle boss, maybe he can move Smithy back to being a forward again and he could provide the goals that fire Newcastle back to the Premiership cause right now the team just doesn't look good enough.
Also on Saturday the Italian Supercup was played, but to promote the Serie A more globally it was played in the Birds Nest Stadium in Beijing, Inter Milan took on Lazio, Mourinho versus Ballardini, This was a decent match, started off pretty slowly but got interesting before the end, The Nerazzuri were showing off new signings Samuel Eto'o, Lucio and Diego Milito, The Biancocelesti had former Inter striker Julio Cruz on the bench, before Lazio opened the scoring Dejan Stankovic had the best chances for Inter twice shooting wide, and it was against the run of play Lazio went 1-0 up, after a scamble the ball was played back into the box, took a deflection off an Inter defender and midfielder Matuzalem ran in hit a shot which was saved by Cesar but deflected again off Matuzalem into the goal, Matuzalem had said this was his most important match, so he would have been happy making it 1-0, soon it was 2-0 Rocchi found his way between 2 Inter defenders and lifted the ball over Cesar's head a fantastic finish.
Samuel Eto'o scored a fantastic volley to bring Inter back into it, and on the 81st minute they thought they were level Milito putting the ball into the net, but he was deemed correctly to be offside. Even though Inter were the better team it was the men from Rome that lifted the Super Coppa.
Whether Jose has anyone else in mind will have to wait and see, David Silva from Valencia is still available, Van der Vaart and Sniejder from Real also could be good signings.
Ligue 1 in France kicked off this weekend with 8 games on Saturday and 2 on Sunday, biggest news from Saturday was Lyon failing to beat Le Mans, needing a debut goal from Lisandro Lopez to save a point for OL, fellow favourites Marseille had less trouble a 2-1 win over Grenoble, Rennes had an impressive 3-0 win over Boulonge, it was the Sunday games I was more interested in.
Lille kicked off their season in poor fashion, playing host to Lorient, the Lille fans turned up to see Les Dogues start the season better than last year, hopefully with a win, I was able to watch this game on the internet through a feed from Foot+ I always find it hard to fully concentrate when watching online as the screen is small and picture never fantastic, but it's better than not seeing, since no UK channel has snapped up the Ligue 1 coverage, back to the match and despite Lille haveing 59% of the ball in the first half and winning 7 corners they went into the dressing room 1-0 behind, Monterrubio's free kick was swung in and Kevin Gameiro flicked the header past Butelle's near post, I think that was their 2nd shot on target, the 2nd half wasn't much better a mistake from Rami left the ball at Monterrubio's left foot and he squared it to Vahirua and he placed the ball past Butelle for Lorient's second.
Lille managed to pull one back, of all people it was Olivier Monterrubio that scored, putting the ball into his own net following a cross from the left. Lille then through everything at the Lorient defence and even the introduction of De Melo and Aubameyang wasn't enough to win a point, and again Lille start the campaign at home with a defreat over what should have been a weaker team.
Sunday night saw Bordeaux take on Ligue 1 returnees RC Lens, I have not watched his game yet, hoping to get to watch it tomorrow or Tuesday so I'm avoiding the score.
There are some Internationals this week, hopefully combined with some replays on ESPN of Bundesliga and Eredivisie games, not been able to watch any Dutch football yet, but should have time this week.
Last point today is on the Champions League draw, Celtic having to play Arsenal to win a place in the group stages, to the outside world and the Arsenal fans at work, I'm going all guns blazing for a Celtic win, but in my head, I do think we will go out, I don't think it'll be a whitewash, it will be a close result but Arsenal have more quality than we do, but if we adopt the styles that Bolton have always used so well in pressing Arsenal and not letting them settle, we may have a chance.
In a new feature every week will end with a Good Week/Bad Week section, bascially a summary of players/teams that have had a good or bad week.
GOOD WEEK
- Notts County - Sven insprired 5-0 win
- Carlo Ancelotti - First Game First Trophy
- Lazio - Win the Super Coppa
- Wolfsburg - answer sceptics with win on Day 1
- Luis Suarez - Hat-trick in Ajax win v RKC Waalwijk
BAD WEEK
- Espanyol - RIP Dani Jarque
- Nani - Scores the opener then gets injured.
- Claude Puel - Question marks after Lyon's start.
- Celtic - Arsenal stand in the way of the Champions League.
- Norwich City - 4-0 down after 22mins, lose 7-1
Wolfsburg v Stuttgart - Bundesliga
Wolfsburg 2 Stuttgart 0
TEAMS
VfL WOLFSBURG: Benaglio - Riether, Madlung, Barzagli, Schafer - Josue, Ziani, Misimovic, Gentner - Dzeko, Grafite
VfB STUTTGART: Lehmann - Magnin, Delpierre, Tasci, Trasch - Hitzlsperger, Khedira, Hleb, Gebhart - Pogrebnyak, Cacau
The question had been asked whether the "Wolves" could repeat last seasons heroics and again lift the Bundesliga title, and they could have asked for a better start, goals from Misimovic and Grafite were enough to see off a Hleb led Stuttgart side.
Misimovic's goal was a thing of beauty, Genter played the ball square, Misimovic turned his body and curled the ball expertly into the left corner, Grafite finished the game off in the 82nd minute, a powerful run from the right and was calm and cool and placed the ball low past Lehmann.
I didn't watch many Bundesliga games at all last season so I had missed Wolfsburgs great football that won them the title, so I was excited to see this match, Dzeko the striker alot of teams have been linked with this summer had a quiet game, but you could see he has quality, it was Misimovic that impressed the most, great on the ball, always looking for options, took the goal really well and done his best to bring Dzeko and Grafite into the match.
Schafer the left back also impressed sometimes looking like a wing back, good left foot, decent defender aswell.
Stuttgart disappointed me, expected more from them, Hleb lasted an hour which is understandable as his preseason training was due for a late August start with Barcelona, Pogrebnyak the summer signing from Zenit, looked decent, linked up well with Cacau a few times, I think he will be a good replacement for Mario Gomez, and Stuttgart should finish top 5.
Good performance from Wolfsburg, good start against a big team, the team is settled not alot of changes to the 1st team but some added depth to the squad.
Match Rating 7/10
M.O.M - Zvjezdan Misimovic (Wolfsburg)
CSKA Moscow v Spartak Moscow - RPL
During this season I am going to try and Review most of the games I watched and possibly any comments or thoughts on highlights that catch my eye.
On Tuesday new channel ESPN showed CSKA Moscow v Spartak Moscow from the Russian Premier League, the game was played on the 26th of July, I didn't know the score so I recorded the game and watched it on Wednesday.
So here's the first of many reviews, I'm not gonna bore people with lots of words about ever incident, so gonna give my thoughts, any players that stood out and anything else that comes to mind.
CSKA MOSCOW 1 SPARTAK MOSCOW 2
TEAMS
CSKA: Akinfeev, V.Berezutski, Ignashevich, Odiah, Semberas, Shennikov, Aldonin, Dzagoev, Krasic, Mamaev, Vagner Love
SPARTAK: Dzhanaev, Jiranek, Makeev, Stranzl, Alex, Boyarintsev, Bystrov, Carioca, Kovalchuk, Parshivlyuk, Wellinton
This was my first RPL game in over a year, and I haven't seen Spartak play since Celtic put them out the Champions League qualifier, so I was looking forward to this and it didn't disappoint, the game finished 2-1, 2 red cards, numerous incidents, a nice reintroduction to Russian football.
Devid Semberas opened the scoring for CSKA with a lovely strike the ball rebounded out to him at the edge of the box and his sweet strike was too good for young Spartak keeper Dzhanaev.
CSKA could only keep the lead for 10 minutes, Spartak got a Free Kick on the edge of the box and Brazilian Alex curled the ball beautifully over the wall and it hit the post then off Akinfeev and into the net, it was a fantastic free kick, and Alex impressed me throughout the match, not a player I had seen or heard of before but he definitley caught my eye a few times, good on the ball, skillful, good passing, someone I will be looking out for in the future, it was also Alex who scored Spartak's 2nd, scoring from the penalty spot with 25 minutes to go.
Both team ended with 10 men, Spartak had Kovalchuk sent off for 2 yellow cards, he battled hard in midfield but just one too many bad challenges, in the 90th minute Vagner Love was chasing back as the last man, and brought down the Spartak forward can't remember who it was, and the referee had no choice but to send him off.
The win put Spartak 1 point off Rubin Kazan at the top of the league.
Krasic impressed me for CSKA, looked a decent player, he played mostly down the right, decent pace, intelligent player, I had heard good things so was good to see him play.Apart from Alex in Spartak's team, Bystrov looked good, a very pacy winger, maybe the final ball let him down, but he caused loads of problems for CSKA's defence.
I hope to watch more Russian games this year, so I'll get a better idea of who the players are, It's difficult watching the games as the have the names on the shirts in Russian so if you don't know who's who it's confusing.
My knowledge will grow though.
Match Rating 7.5/10
Man of the Match - Alex (Spartak)
On Tuesday new channel ESPN showed CSKA Moscow v Spartak Moscow from the Russian Premier League, the game was played on the 26th of July, I didn't know the score so I recorded the game and watched it on Wednesday.
So here's the first of many reviews, I'm not gonna bore people with lots of words about ever incident, so gonna give my thoughts, any players that stood out and anything else that comes to mind.
CSKA MOSCOW 1 SPARTAK MOSCOW 2
TEAMS
CSKA: Akinfeev, V.Berezutski, Ignashevich, Odiah, Semberas, Shennikov, Aldonin, Dzagoev, Krasic, Mamaev, Vagner Love
SPARTAK: Dzhanaev, Jiranek, Makeev, Stranzl, Alex, Boyarintsev, Bystrov, Carioca, Kovalchuk, Parshivlyuk, Wellinton
This was my first RPL game in over a year, and I haven't seen Spartak play since Celtic put them out the Champions League qualifier, so I was looking forward to this and it didn't disappoint, the game finished 2-1, 2 red cards, numerous incidents, a nice reintroduction to Russian football.
Devid Semberas opened the scoring for CSKA with a lovely strike the ball rebounded out to him at the edge of the box and his sweet strike was too good for young Spartak keeper Dzhanaev.
CSKA could only keep the lead for 10 minutes, Spartak got a Free Kick on the edge of the box and Brazilian Alex curled the ball beautifully over the wall and it hit the post then off Akinfeev and into the net, it was a fantastic free kick, and Alex impressed me throughout the match, not a player I had seen or heard of before but he definitley caught my eye a few times, good on the ball, skillful, good passing, someone I will be looking out for in the future, it was also Alex who scored Spartak's 2nd, scoring from the penalty spot with 25 minutes to go.
Both team ended with 10 men, Spartak had Kovalchuk sent off for 2 yellow cards, he battled hard in midfield but just one too many bad challenges, in the 90th minute Vagner Love was chasing back as the last man, and brought down the Spartak forward can't remember who it was, and the referee had no choice but to send him off.
The win put Spartak 1 point off Rubin Kazan at the top of the league.
Krasic impressed me for CSKA, looked a decent player, he played mostly down the right, decent pace, intelligent player, I had heard good things so was good to see him play.Apart from Alex in Spartak's team, Bystrov looked good, a very pacy winger, maybe the final ball let him down, but he caused loads of problems for CSKA's defence.
I hope to watch more Russian games this year, so I'll get a better idea of who the players are, It's difficult watching the games as the have the names on the shirts in Russian so if you don't know who's who it's confusing.
My knowledge will grow though.
Match Rating 7.5/10
Man of the Match - Alex (Spartak)
Monday 3 August 2009
4 to Watch - Ligue 1
With the new season only 5 days away, I've picked out 4 players that I think will do really well this season in Ligue 1, you may have heard of them you may have not, but I hope by week 38 they will be all better known either worldwide or in Ligue 1.
Charlies Davies
SOCHAUX #9
Last month Charlie made his move to Ligue 1, arriving in Sochaux via Hammarby in Sweden, now if you had asked me 2 months ago who Charlie Davies was, I would have no idea, now he is a player I know quite well.
Charlie first came to my attention while playing Pro Evo. My made up Master League team Benidormida had a game against Hammarby, Myself and Sean (SJ_???? from Evo-Web) had been updating players and changing their names from CAPS to Lower Case when the stast had been done to keep an tab on whats been done, So while playing Hammarby, a Player made a run it was Charlie, I thought to myself, that's not a very Swedish name.
It was then during the recent Confederations Cup that I got my first glimpse of his play, I think it was the Game against Italy, I was watching the highlights in work, and we saw the USA #9 miss a header, we didn't recongnise him, so off to Wikipedia we went searching for the USA squad, and there he was #9 Charlies Davies, ah so that's him, I was intreged with this American playing his football in Sweden, so when he got a start against Egypt when the USA pulled off the miracle of qualifying I was impressed, Pace, Power, good dribbling, and eye for goal, definitely a player with potential, he then played for 69 minutes against Spain in the shock 2-1 result, the qualities I had noticed in the previous match where still there, and although he didn't score he worked hard for his team, and was a big part of the result.
The Final against Brazil was probably his best performance, making lots of runs down the channels and linking well with Landon Donovan, it was that link up play that set up USA's 2nd goal, Donovan broke away, played the ball wide to Charlie, his pace made it possible to reach the ball and play a lovely first time ball back to Donovan and he supplied the finish, fantastic break away goal, and good set up from Davies.
At this time I was getting into using the website Twitter and alot of the USA squad were on there, so I began following Charlies, and he comes across as a nice guy, straight after the Confed Cup, USA played in the Gold Cup and Charlie hit the 4th goal in the win over Honduaras, i nice finish from a 1 on 1 situation.
After this game the rumours of the Sochaux move started gathering pace, Charlie didn't play in anymore Confed cup games, and there was various tweets to Charlie's account from fellow USA players saying well done and good luck, then Sochaux officially announced the move, and I think although it's a bold move from FCSM to replace goal scorer Mevlut Erding with a realitively unknown player, I think they may have unearthed a Gem, since preseason has begun Charlies actually replied to me on twitter when I asked him how training was going, He replied saying it was good, all the players were nice, but he needs to learn French fast.
I can't wait to see him in the Yellow of Sochaux hopefully doing what I've seen of him in various Youtube videos and in the Stars and Stripes.
Yohan Cabaye
LILLE #7
Ever since my love affair with Lille began, Cabaye has been a player I have enjoyed watching, my first season watching Lille, the midfield trio was Makoun, Dumont and Bodmer, and Cabaye still found a way to break into the lineup, so much that Dumont was dropped and Tafforeau became the captain, now Bodmer and Makoun are at Lyon, and Cabaye is one of the main men in Lille's midfield, add to him Florent Balmont and Rio Mavuba, it's one of the best midfields in Ligue 1 in my opinion.
Cabaye suited Claude Puels style of a high tempo pressing midifield and he works hard, defends when he's needed and attacks when the opputunity arises, since Rudi Garcia has taken over instead of 5 across the middle it's now a more compact trio, Cabaye still impresses, add to this good passing range, an eye for goal, great heart, and can also bend in a Free Kick or two.
I think this season could be one of him best to date, now at 23 having played over 100 games for Lillois, it's time Cabaye took control of his team, a potential captain with Tafforeau now gone too, I couldn't think of a better player to lead the team out.
Arsene Wenger has glanced his eye over Yohan a few times, but this season I think he won't be the only one.
Mevlut Erding
PSG #11
This summer Mevlut got his big break, moving to the Capital to the cauldron that is the Parc des Princes.Guillaume Hoarau coped really well last year, being Pauleta's replacement and the spearhead of the PSG attack, now he has a partner in the Turkish international, scoring 11 goals in each of his last 2 seasons for Sochaux he has made himself known to the footballing world, I've always like his finishing, looks a composed player, good pace, skillful, looks to me like he will fit in very well in Paris, and with Sessegnon and Giuly supply the amunation, the PSG fans could be in for a treat.
Gregory Sertic
Bordeaux #22
Gregory has only played 6 games for the Bordeaux first team but what an impact he has made. PLaying 69 minutes in his debut against Rennes he scored in his next match against Sochaux, playing from central midfield Gregory has an eye for goal he scored 7 goals last season in the CFA reserve league, and has also led to his call up to the French u21 team, with Bordeaux lack of big signings so far, I expect Gregory to play a bigger part in the team and his stock will surely rise in Ligue 1.
If you wanna comment at the bottom with your own suggestions of players, or any thoughts on these players, please feel free.
Charlies Davies
SOCHAUX #9
Last month Charlie made his move to Ligue 1, arriving in Sochaux via Hammarby in Sweden, now if you had asked me 2 months ago who Charlie Davies was, I would have no idea, now he is a player I know quite well.
Charlie first came to my attention while playing Pro Evo. My made up Master League team Benidormida had a game against Hammarby, Myself and Sean (SJ_???? from Evo-Web) had been updating players and changing their names from CAPS to Lower Case when the stast had been done to keep an tab on whats been done, So while playing Hammarby, a Player made a run it was Charlie, I thought to myself, that's not a very Swedish name.
It was then during the recent Confederations Cup that I got my first glimpse of his play, I think it was the Game against Italy, I was watching the highlights in work, and we saw the USA #9 miss a header, we didn't recongnise him, so off to Wikipedia we went searching for the USA squad, and there he was #9 Charlies Davies, ah so that's him, I was intreged with this American playing his football in Sweden, so when he got a start against Egypt when the USA pulled off the miracle of qualifying I was impressed, Pace, Power, good dribbling, and eye for goal, definitely a player with potential, he then played for 69 minutes against Spain in the shock 2-1 result, the qualities I had noticed in the previous match where still there, and although he didn't score he worked hard for his team, and was a big part of the result.
The Final against Brazil was probably his best performance, making lots of runs down the channels and linking well with Landon Donovan, it was that link up play that set up USA's 2nd goal, Donovan broke away, played the ball wide to Charlie, his pace made it possible to reach the ball and play a lovely first time ball back to Donovan and he supplied the finish, fantastic break away goal, and good set up from Davies.
At this time I was getting into using the website Twitter and alot of the USA squad were on there, so I began following Charlies, and he comes across as a nice guy, straight after the Confed Cup, USA played in the Gold Cup and Charlie hit the 4th goal in the win over Honduaras, i nice finish from a 1 on 1 situation.
After this game the rumours of the Sochaux move started gathering pace, Charlie didn't play in anymore Confed cup games, and there was various tweets to Charlie's account from fellow USA players saying well done and good luck, then Sochaux officially announced the move, and I think although it's a bold move from FCSM to replace goal scorer Mevlut Erding with a realitively unknown player, I think they may have unearthed a Gem, since preseason has begun Charlies actually replied to me on twitter when I asked him how training was going, He replied saying it was good, all the players were nice, but he needs to learn French fast.
I can't wait to see him in the Yellow of Sochaux hopefully doing what I've seen of him in various Youtube videos and in the Stars and Stripes.
Yohan Cabaye
LILLE #7
Ever since my love affair with Lille began, Cabaye has been a player I have enjoyed watching, my first season watching Lille, the midfield trio was Makoun, Dumont and Bodmer, and Cabaye still found a way to break into the lineup, so much that Dumont was dropped and Tafforeau became the captain, now Bodmer and Makoun are at Lyon, and Cabaye is one of the main men in Lille's midfield, add to him Florent Balmont and Rio Mavuba, it's one of the best midfields in Ligue 1 in my opinion.
Cabaye suited Claude Puels style of a high tempo pressing midifield and he works hard, defends when he's needed and attacks when the opputunity arises, since Rudi Garcia has taken over instead of 5 across the middle it's now a more compact trio, Cabaye still impresses, add to this good passing range, an eye for goal, great heart, and can also bend in a Free Kick or two.
I think this season could be one of him best to date, now at 23 having played over 100 games for Lillois, it's time Cabaye took control of his team, a potential captain with Tafforeau now gone too, I couldn't think of a better player to lead the team out.
Arsene Wenger has glanced his eye over Yohan a few times, but this season I think he won't be the only one.
Mevlut Erding
PSG #11
This summer Mevlut got his big break, moving to the Capital to the cauldron that is the Parc des Princes.Guillaume Hoarau coped really well last year, being Pauleta's replacement and the spearhead of the PSG attack, now he has a partner in the Turkish international, scoring 11 goals in each of his last 2 seasons for Sochaux he has made himself known to the footballing world, I've always like his finishing, looks a composed player, good pace, skillful, looks to me like he will fit in very well in Paris, and with Sessegnon and Giuly supply the amunation, the PSG fans could be in for a treat.
Gregory Sertic
Bordeaux #22
Gregory has only played 6 games for the Bordeaux first team but what an impact he has made. PLaying 69 minutes in his debut against Rennes he scored in his next match against Sochaux, playing from central midfield Gregory has an eye for goal he scored 7 goals last season in the CFA reserve league, and has also led to his call up to the French u21 team, with Bordeaux lack of big signings so far, I expect Gregory to play a bigger part in the team and his stock will surely rise in Ligue 1.
If you wanna comment at the bottom with your own suggestions of players, or any thoughts on these players, please feel free.
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