₦airaland Forum

The conversion of polytechnics into universities is one un-informed decision that was taken without due consultation or due process and as such can't stand the test of time.

So i advice u 2 go ahead and continue with ur programme now u have the opportunity.

u can read more from here if ur not convinced. : http://allafrica.com/stories.

i miss all active nairalanders,especially ma[b] chelsea fans[/b],, saying UP BLUES 2 them all.

chelsea vs FC porto,[/b]at [b]stamford bridge , ,chelsea away 1-1,at home nko?,,think abt it very well,lets wait n c on tuesday 6,march.but all i know is that im always a WINNER.

YES OH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,NOTHING DE HAPPEN MA PEOPLE,NA 2 CLUBS WE GET CHELSEA N OTHERS. CHELSEA 4 LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,ALWAYS A WINNER, 3 MORE CUPS 2 WIN,TRUE BLUES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cash v Kids, red corner and blue, Jose against Arséne. Easter is coming up. Might be time to send a card.

Jose leaves kids' stuff to Wenger
Ahead of the first all London Carling Cup final, managers Wenger and Mourinho renew their feud over 'cash versus kids' Jonathan Northcroft
You know, I’m a person,” said Jose Mourinho, “who likes a difference of opinion.” If that is the case, Arséne Wenger must be the Special One’s special friend. If the pair were plummeting from a cliff, you could imagine them engaging in a mid-air dispute over who was going to hit the ground first.

Mourinho, spirits lifted yesterday by the news that injured skipper John Terry would be fit to play in Cardiff, is not alone among top managers in almost needing conflict as psychological fuel. Despite purporting to live by Jock Stein’s old maxim “don’t go looking for trouble, trouble will always find you”, Sir Alex Ferguson has spent years creating quarrels with opponents, the authorities and the press as a means of motivating himself and his team. Even placid old Rafael Benitez displayed a hitherto hidden talent for rancour when he belittled Everton as a “small club” after the recent Mersey derby: as a result Liverpool’s toiling performance was forgotten and Benitez’s players retained the self-belief that saw them prosper in Barcelona. One of the pleasures for any journalist engaging Wenger is the feeling that you can ask anything; he seems to enjoy being challenged to shoot back with the right riposte to the toughest question.

As for Mourinho: “I think I’m easy to work with because I’m objective,” said the Chelsea manager. “I accept that people don’t always think the same as me but I like to communicate. I’ve had a lot to forgive people for, in my life and at Chelsea. And I’ve had to apologise to a lot of people.”

One of those was Wenger. In 2005, Mourinho said sorry via a Christmas card for having branded his rival “a Viewer”. He was incensed when Wenger refused to acknowledge receipt of the peace offering and made theatre of declining to shake Wenger’s hand at the next Chelsea versus Arsenal game, which Chelsea won 2-0. The ill-feeling between the managers has simmered. The Carling Cup final lead-in has seen them trading barbs as to what makes a great manager. Mourinho seemed to suggest that Wenger could not be termed such because he has not been a European champion. Wenger replied haughtily that plenty of coaches who have won the Champions League will not be remembered as great figures. Mourinho concurred - but made it clear he feels his own place in the pantheon was way beyond debate.

He also seemed to row back on his earlier jibe, saying that Wenger, after all, was “great”, but as the word tumbled out, something about the inflection made it sound that in this one-off context it was a throwaway epithet. In football, results tend to have the final word, and the only time Wenger flinched during the hour he spent giving his cup final press briefing was when reminded that, unlike Benitez and Ferguson (and for that matter Martin Jol) he has not yet defeated Mourinho head-to-head. He went 17 games unbeaten against Chelsea when Gianluca Vialli and Claudio Ranieri were the managers, but has failed to win in five attempts since Mourinho took charge.

It is the last cup final in Cardiff, and while travel links to the Millennium stadium have often been lamented, nobody has ever complained about the pitch. Yet for today’s game, Chelsea and Arsenal are presented as lining up on an uneven playing field. “Is it cash against kids?” Wenger was asked, to his delight. With Arsenal playing the majority of the pups whose exuberant talents have swept them to the final, Chelsea are in an invidious position, with their multi-million-pound, full-strength team. It irritates Mourinho.

Someone suggested that by fielding his collection of reserve and academy footballers Wenger was ensuring that there was no way he could be perceived as losing. “I agree,” said Mourinho with narrowed eyes.

Most of the truly great managers not only won the greatest trophies but did so using players they reared themselves, an achievement Mourinho’s CV cannot detail. Wenger’s record in nurturing footballers appeared unimpeachable - until set before the sophistic Portuguese. With chutzpah of which only he is capable, Mourinho suggested that he might know better than Wenger when it comes to developing footballers, calling on the example of Lassana Diarra, the young French midfielder who has started Chelsea’s past seven matches, mostly at right-back. “I don’t think young players have more chance at Arsenal,” said Mourinho. “I want you to tell me what a player prefers. Is it to have some chances to play now and again, like they do at Arsenal? Or is it to be like Diarra, who was waiting and then when he went to the team, he went to stay? Because Diarra in this moment is not playing Carling Cup matches, he is playing Champions League matches, eh? So what is the best process?”

Mourinho cheerfully ignored the fact under Wenger, Cesc Fabregas has played 27 Champions League matches by the age of 19. There was also disingenuousness in his assertion that at Porto “my challenge was no money, and Portuguese players - build a team”.

Mourinho’s effect on his previous club, who had slumped to their lowest ever league position before he made them European champions, was extraordinary, but it was not a transformation effected through discovering obscure youths. Stalwarts Ricardo Carvalho, Deco Costinha and Maniche, were already there and in or approaching their mid-twenties. Paulo Fer-reira was a Mourinho find, but the right-back was 23 when he was signed from Vitoria Setu-bal. It is fair to argue, however, that youth development is simply not something he has been asked to address. His career has been too stellar. His 32 months at Chelsea are the longest he has spent as manager anywhere and his brief has always been first-team success. Would he like the chance to build a young team? “I would love to do that,” he said. “Chelsea is a different challenge. It was a club without a big history and it is very important if a club wants to come up and become important in the world to win big titles.”

His influence over youth matters is “in no way” like Wenger’s. Here was a double barb. Talent recruitment is down to Chelsea’s chief scout and director of youth development, Frank Arnesen, Mourinho’s rival in the politicking that takes place at Roman Abramovich’s court. Before Terry announced yesterday that he would be fit to play, despite aggravating an ankle injury against Porto in midweek, Mourinho had been faced with having to field Michael Essien at centre-back. His only other alternative was to use striker Didier Drogba in that role.

Was there no player from the club’s reserve or youth ranks who could come in? “No. Not one. No chance. Not yet,” said Mourinho. How long would it take Chelsea to establish the same kind of production line of talent as Arsenal? “Frank can give you a better answer because he is in charge of that aspect,” Mourinho said. “As the first-team man I am waiting for the work they do in the youth department. I am waiting for the final product to be delivered to me.”

Diarra was signed in July 2005, before Arnesen took up his post. That Mourinho picked this player as his example of Chelsea’s future, not the recent recruit Jon Obi Mikel, must have been coincidence.

Wenger, meanwhile, argued that if a rich owner offered him £100m to spend on players, “I’d say to the guy, ‘Keep your £100m. You must understand that my team is the work of five years and now to destroy what we have by buying big names would be crazy’.”

Cash v Kids, red corner and blue, Jose against Arséne. Easter is coming up. Might be time to send a card.

chelsea 4 life

Chelsea takes Carling Cup
February 25, 2007

Drogba headed in the winning goal at Millennium Stadium in the 84th
minute from a cross from Arjen Robben.
CARDIFF, Wales (AP) -- Chelsea won the Carling Cup final with a 2-1 victory over Arsenal on Sunday, getting two goals from Didier Drogba and overcoming a frightening head injury to captain John Terry.

Terry was taken off the field on a stretcher after Arsenal defender Abou Diaby kicked him in the head in the 58th minute.

Drogba headed in the winning goal at Millennium Stadium in the 84th minute from a cross from Arjen Robben. He also scored in the 20th, eight minutes after Theo Walcott had give the Gunners a 1-0 lead with his first goal for Arsenal.

"In the second half , we dominated the game and at the end of the day we deserved the victory," Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said. "They played very good. They have a great coach, great players. But football is about winning and the cup goes to us."

An injury-time brawl left Arsenal with nine men and Chelsea with 10. John Obi Mikel, who replaced Terry, was sent off along with Arsenal defender Kolo Toure. Emmanuel Adebayor was then also sent off before play restarted.

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard and Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas were given yellow cards.

"The pity was what happened in the final minutes," Mourinho said. "I don't know what happened but it was not nice."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said he regretted the brawl.

"We lost our nerve and that is part of the learning process. That is not what we want," Wenger said. "A few players were involved but I am not sure if the referee picked the right ones out. I feel he did not have the best of games, especially with Chelsea's first goal."

Terry was attempting to head a corner from Robben when Diaby went for the ball with his foot. Terry then fell to the ground and appeared to be unconscious. Players from both teams immediately called for medical assistance from the benches.

The Chelsea defender was put on a stretcher with an oxygen mask placed over his mouth and a brace around his head. Play was halted for six minutes before Terry was carried off the field and the game resumed.

"Today is strange," Drogba said. "We won and we're happy because we've got the cup but we are also scared because we don't know what to expect when we saw JT on the floor. I think more about JT than the cup."

Walcott gave Arsenal the lead after exchanging passes with Diaby and sending a rising shot into the far corner. Drogba levelled when he took a pass from Michael Ballack and beat Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia.

Arsenal played its youthful second team -- with Henry, Jens Lehmann, Gilberto and Tomas Rosicky not even in the squad.

"They played a very good game," Mourinho said. "They beat Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham with this team."

Chelsea, however, fielded the same lineup that started the 1-1 Champions League draw at FC Porto on Wednesday.

In the Premier League, Tottenham beat fifth-place Bolton 4-1 at White Hart Lane, with Robbie Keane scoring twice before being sent off in the 36th for handling a header from Ivan Campo on the line.

Jermaine Jenas and Aaron Lennon also scored for Spurs, and Gary Speed's penalty gave Bolton its goal in the 37th.

Shabani Nonda scored twice in the first 20 minutes and Stephen Warnock added a third as Blackburn outplayed Portsmouth 3-0.

Wigan improved its chances of avoiding relegation by edging Newcastle 1-0.

Matt Taylor scored the only goal at the JJB stadium in the 40th minute. Twelve minutes earlier, Wigan goalkeeper John Filan had saved a penalty from Nolberto Solano.



Arsenal enjoyed most of the possession in the first half of the Carling Cup final, and Julio Baptista had a shot palmed away by Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech before Walcott scored.

Last year, the 17-year-old Walcott was named in England's World Cup squad without ever playing a game for the Gunners. His selection was widely criticized and he didn't make an appearance in Germany. He has since been demoted to England's under-21 squad.

"It will help Theo Walcott that he scored a goal like that," Wenger said.

In the second half, Mourinho replaced defensive midfielder Claude Makelele with Robben.

Chelsea improved, but Arsenal still had the better early second-half chances, with Baptista forcing Cech to save a shot and Fabregas sending a diagonal shot wide.

Chelsea played well after Terry's injury, with Lassana Diarra setting up Drogba with a shot that was saved by Almunia in the 67th. Soon after, Diaby, who had been visibly upset after his challenge on Terry, was replaced by Alexander Hleb.

Lampard sent a powerful shot off the Arsenal crossbar in the 74th, and Andriy Shevchenko hit the corner of the post and crossbar in the 88th.

Wenger is still waiting for his first win over Mourinho. Arsenal has now lost four and drawn three since the Portuguese coach took over at Chelsea in 2004.

Wenger stuck with the squad he's used throughout the Carling Cup. The 29-year-old Almunia was the most experienced player in the starting lineup -- the average age of the other 10 was only 20.

The Carling Cup was the first trophy won by Jose Mourinho as Chelsea manager, in 2005. The Blues are also in contention for three more this season.

Drogba Double Claims Carling Cup for Chelsea
Soccer: Carling Cup final: Didier Drogba settled a magnificent, madcap match match with two deadly strikes. If coming of age means learning that life can be cruel, then Arsene Wenger's young Gunners grew up today, losing a thrilling Carling Cup final that they had done so much to beautify. They had pinned Chelsea back from the very first minute but in the end conceded two goals and had two men sent off as Jose Mourinho's men killed off their challenge clinically.

It would be unfair to say Didier Drogba's two expertly-taken goals were undeserved, but it is a fact that they both came after several sequences of wonderful Arsenal play.

The first 20 minutes were all about Arsenal, whose precision, skill and movement made the reigning English champions look pedestrian. Abou Diaby and Cesc Fabregas were orchestrating matters in the middle, Julio Baptista and Jeremie Aliadiere were slippery and snappy up front and, on the right, Theo Walcott was having perhaps his best game for Arsenal, allying clever, direct passing and running to his natural pace.

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech had already turned away powerful Fabregas and Baptista shots when, in the 11th minute, he had to pick the ball out of his net. Walcott collected a sloppy clearance 35 yards from goal, fed Diaby at the edge of the area and dashed into the box for the return ball, which Diaby duly delivered. As Cech raced off his line, the 17-year-old kept his composure to slot it past him into the corner.

Arsenal continued playing at the same rarefied height as Chelsea simply looked dizzy. But then, in the 20th minute, Chelsea suddenly drew level. Drogba peeled away from his markers in the centre and found space on the right - but had seemingly strayed slightly offside when Michael Ballack aimed a dainty chip over the top to him. The flag stayed down, however, and the Ivorian took one touch to tee himself before firing expertly past Manuel Almunia.

Chelsea gradually began to assert themselves more, though stars such as Shevchenko and Frank Lampard still looked ponderous against their far more zippy opponents. Fabregas, Baptista and Aliadiere all brought smart stops from Cech, and at the break Mourinho apparently decided that the best way to keep Arsenal at bay would be to force them onto the back front, so he threw on Arjen Robben in palce of Cluade Makalele. The Dutchman's impact was almost immediate, as he slalomed past three defenders in the 48th minute and narrowly failed to find Shevchenko with a clever through-ball.

There was a lull in the play in the 55th minute, when Terry attempted to head goalward from a corner but was caught, accidentally, in the Diaby's boot. The England captain was knocked out cold and, after several minut4s' treatment, was stretchered off and taken to hospital. Happily, reports said he regained consciousness before entering the ambulances.

When play resumed, it did so at the same cracking pace as before. Chelsea had lost the forward momentum of Essien, who retreated to defence in place of Terry as John Obi Mikel came on in the middle, but Robben was linking up well with Drogba and making sure Arsenal couldn't commit themselves totally to attack.

Though Arsenal were enjoying the majority of possession, it was Chelsea who were proving more penetrative. Lampard almost came out of the shadows in spectacular fashion in the 77th minute, crashing a 25-yard drive off the crossbar.

Seven minutes later, Chelsea took the lead. Essien pounced on a loose ball in the middle and instantly fizzed it wide on the right to Robben, who took one touch, looked up and arrowed a wicked cross towards Drogba in the box. The Ivorian masterfully directed his header into the far corner.

Arsenal's attacking grew more desperate, and with regular first-teamers Emmanuel Adebayor, Emmanuel Eboue and Aleksander Hleb having come on, they were still pressurizing the Chelsea box. But Chelsea almost snatched a third with another simple, devastatingly incisive counter-attack. Dorgba flicked on a long Cech kick, Shevchenko controlled it, held off the defender and walloped the ball past Almunia. It cannoned back off the bar and the game was still alive.

As the match ticked into the first of 11 minutes injury time, the final ingredient of a classic cup tie was introduced: controversial red cards. Mikel started it by tugging Kolo Toure's shirt, the Ivorian reacted by pushing the Nigerian in the chest - and then the other 20 players joined the melee. Amid the pandemonium, Wayne Bridge was sent sprawling to the ground, and both managers and several officials had to separate jostling footballers. It took several minutes to restore order, and when the smoke had cleared the referee sent off Mikel, Toure and, after a tip-off from his assistant, Adebayor too.

Play resumed long enough for Arsenal to launch a few 'Hail Mary' passes into Chelsea's box, but Carvalho and Cech dealt with everything they could hurl, and when the final whistle eventually sounded, Arsenal were all punched out. Chelsea, meanwhile, could begin clinching the first trophy of what may yet be a historic quadruple-winning season.

ja baby,y r u always a looser?wit ur so-called YOUNG STARS,shame on u.anyway u can make it next season wen u learn more experience 4rm me(chelsea).i told u-am always a WINNER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

carling cup -06/07, has gone,FA cup,UEFA champions league,Premiership belong 2 me.who?chelsea of course!!!!!!!!

mr creamdream,as u can see d reverse is d case.SORRY! chelsea2-arsenal1,i knew;it was a mistake but u can correct urself now.chelsea 4 ever

Thubs Up,Chelsea 4 Ever

PLS, OW DO I APPLY?SEND D INFOMATION 2 MA ADDRESSES;bolakanmee@yahoo.com,bolakanmee@hotmail.com

wormy GUNNERS 4 LIFE,we shall see on that day, FINAL.

Akola u re right,the boys re young stars whenever they win but small boys when they loose.

Lampard316 thumbs Up, chelsea are meant to be winners not loosers,lets wait and see

chelsea vs arsenal-Carling Cup Final,am a chelsea fan and am winning,true blues,

To be sincere,Islamically an unmarried person is not elligible 2 any 4m of sex talkless of using condoms.

Mine is Madam Dearest from OGD(Tade Ogidan)

probing baba iyabo,i dont think its necessary.leave am he ll soon be leaving but lets tell him not 2 use EFCC as instrument again