₦airaland Forum

Nateevs, I need the link for the match please.

I think Yar'Adua had set the budget for 2009 using £67/barrell as a benchmark, so this is bad news.

4 Play:
Emmanuel Eboue is my pick . An exemplary leader on and off the field.

lol. . . . stop trying to sabotage the Arses. . . . everyday would be fight if Eboue was captain.

I do not see any captain material at Arsenal.

William Gallas has been stripped of Arsenal's Captaincy.

My friend just heard it on the radio and called to tell me.

His days at Arsenal are obviously numbered.

Who do you think is qualified to lead Arsenal now?

Bamowolo, you sure say you no gay? I have long suspected you.  Too liberal for my liking. 

bawomolo:
unmarried couples have been stopped from adopting kids in arizona and florida. this was obviously targeting gay couples.  you now see why civil unions aren't the same as marriage?

Why should gays be allowed to adopt?


Look, gays can have whatever rights they want, but marriage and adoption is a no go as far as I am concerned. That infringes on my definition of "marriage" and "family" and I am intolerant of any redefining of those two institutions.

tkb417:
our goalkeeper plays in the 9th div
what happened to the goal keepers of enyimba, gabros, sharks, Gateway n co?

It is too late to process non-European visas. Only European visas can be processed within the one week time frame they have before the match. I don't know why they didn't call Carl Ikeme of Wolves. He is better than all the keepers we have at the moment.

What is the point in dragging the players all the way to Colombia for a midweek friendly?

Even Brazil and Argentina do not play friendlies in South America anymore.

It is too tedious and affects players and clubs, no wonder so many SE players pulled out.

The fact is that Anelka's movement, pace and intelligence have been good for us in the small games. His movement is unparalleled by any striker in Europe except for maybe Ezequiel Lavezzi. Also, his movement is completely unslefish. He moves to create space for others, not even himself at times. He is the ultimate team player and as Wormy said, you do not necessarily need to perform in the big games to win the league. The reason he does not perform in the big games is simply because (a.) Space is tight and he is not physical enough, unlike Drogba (b.) He is timid.

Somze, you cannot judge Anelka on last season when he was playing left wing and right wing. He must be judged on this season alone and as far as I am concerned, he has done very well.

As for Drogba, we will need his physical presence in the big games because space is tight and you need to revert to strong-arm tactics. However, I do not see a place for Drogba in the small games. He lacks the movement, intelligence and first touch to blend with the new system. We will not score as many goals as a team with Drogba spearheading the attack. My Saturdays have been stress-free recently. By half time, we are usually winning by 3 goals, unlike the HBP I used to have last season, right until the very last minute of the game. I would like to keep it that way please - and Anelka's intelligence, first touch and movement are one of the major reasons. Drogba cannot link up! The ball breaks down at his feet all the time. We are no longer playing long-ball football, therefore his relevance to the team is declining. We have to stay ahead of the curve and stop harking back to yesterdays heroes.

The fact is that Drogba does not fit into a passing style of football. Simple!

lysaa:
yeah right! A goal is a goal, whatever mahn. . This is goodnews.

He is being sarcastic.

Anelkaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Anelkaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Hehehehehe. . . . . . what a goal from Bosingwa. My fantasy league points are going through the roof.

Where the hell is Joe Cole? Kalou is pissing me off.

Is Cech injured?

Midfield is too porous. Too much end to end. Deco is just a passenger in there. Everytime they break, he offers no resistance.

Not looking good. We need to hurry up and score otherwise pressure increases.

Nateevs, where you watching it? That link is wack.

nateevs:
Our losses do not pull enough stats to conclude our midfield is brittle. . OK Mikel is not a Maka! but we do not miss him . . . There's nothing wrong! Look at the premiership, we've conceeded only 4 goals. . . while we've scored 29

Liverpool . . . scored 19 conceeded 8
Arsenal . . . . .scored 25 conceeded 13
ManU . . . . . . scored 20 conceeded 10

This does not tell the full story. . . . . we concede less in general because we dominate the possession. However, against the bigger teams, we cannot dominate possession. . . . . hence, it is important to have a solid midfield. . . . . I don't know about you but IMO Man Utd and Liverpool tore through our central midfield at will. . . . . the first 25 minutes against Man Utd, they picked holes through our midfield. . . . . Liverpool did the same in the first few minutes and the whole second half. . . . infact, Alonso's goal was in part because Deco failed to track him. . . . . this would not have happened if Essien was playing instead of Deco. . . . .however, on the whole, I am more than pleased with our progress so far. I do not compromise on good football, that was why I disliked Mourinho. . . . . but at the same time, I am practical. . . . . I do not see us doing anything significant in Champions League. . . . . we have become a flat-track bully, easily bullying small teams into submission but succumbing to bigger teams who do not allow us to have possession. . . . .hence, we need a more physical presence in midfield for the big games. . . . .I still don't know of any big team with the ability to stop Essien when he makes his runs. . . . . infact, I believe we would have won the Champions League against Man Utd easily if Essien had played in midfield and Ivanovic had played right back.

Another thing that Somze is forgetting is that if Mourinho had the same injuries as we have now, he would have been throwing tantrums. . . . can you imagine a Mourinho team without Essien, Drogba, Ballack and Carvalho?. . . . . hehehehehehehe. . . . . Mourinho would go nuts! We would lose more than a few points. . . . kudos to Scolari for inventing a system that relies less on individuals and more on a style of football. . . . . thats why people like Belleti can fit seamlessly into the team and play fabulously. . . . this would never happen under Mourinho. . . . infact, without the physicality of Drogba and Essien in particular, Mourinho's football ethos completely falls apart. . . . . I have never known another manager who relies so absolutely on certain key players being fit for his system to work. . . . one or two bad injuries and the season implodes.

lol

The outpouring of relief and mockery at every single Chelsea loss shows that our rivals are really scared of what we might do. . . . Nateevs, I dey with you. . . . . however, I share A-40's belief that EPL is our only shot this season. . . . . .our midfield is too brittle to avoid slip ups in the Cup games . . . . .again, we can go back to the Deco debate as to why our midfield is now brittle. . . however, Deco gives us an advantage in the EPL, but not in the big games. . . . . plus, our wingers are so weak that the burden of creativity lies with the midfield, causing them to relax their defensive responsibilities. . . .the squad has been underinvested in for the last two seasons. . . . the strain of the quality of the squad was already showing under Mourinho as Malouda and Kalou can never replace Robben and Duff. . . . We are also missing Makelele. . .I told you that Mikel plays well but defensively he is no match, even for a 35 year-old Maka. . . . . no yawa, our last hope is EPL and we will win it. . . . so let us save the laughs for last.

Somze You will never be satisfied until we bring JM back. You never come to enjoy when we win, you only come to complain when we lose. This is the problem with many JM-era fans. Soon enough, you may stop supporting Chelsea altogether. Are you satisfied with InterMilan's performances this season?

this Guy:
okoronkwo is shyte, the ball is always sticking to his leg

Hehehehe. . . . . that is a sign of quality!. . . . no one in SE apart from Kanu has the close touch control of the ball that he has. . . .

this Guy:
who is Ibrahim?

As in Rabiu. . . . lets see how he develops from now till 2010. . . .

Must get rid of creaking legs. . . . . that includes Yakubu, Kanu, Utaka. . . . . and even Yobo is starting to look that way recently. . . . . Obodo also looks tired for Udinese recently, whether that is age or injury, I don't know. . . .


My preferred line-up:



Ejide


Odiah Shittu Adeleye Taiwo


Kaita/Ajilore Mikel


Okoronkwo/ Ibrahim


Uche Obasi

Odemwingie



Reasons:

Ejide is not only decent at shotstopping, the advantage I give him over the others is that he is good at claiming crosses.
I took Yobo out cos I think he may be getting old.
Kaita is an animal so I put him in. Defensively sound and extremely fit.
Okoronkwo has potential to be a great Kanu type of creative player. Playing right-wing didn't do him justice in the Olympics.
Finally, there is great movement and interchangeability between Uche, Obasi and Odemwingie. Anichebe or Martins could come on if we need more of a physical presence.

Look at all these Arse and Manure fans ejaculating just because we put in a half hearted effort and lost on penalties. We are leaving the milk cup to the Danny Wellbecks and Kieran Gibbs of this world jare, we have bigger fish to fry.

tocdee:
@ IbimeIf you continue telling yourself that Lampard is better than Gerrard, you stand the risk of actually believing it!
 
You see?

Why should I convince myself that Lamps is better when all the stats say he is? On the other hand, if you keep believing the hype, you will actually believe that Gerrard is better. I prefer my football played a certain way, and that is methodical and on the ground. Gerrard does not fit into that mould. My favourite player is Iniesta. Soon some Liverpool fan will come and tell me that Gerrard is better than Iniesta. All sentimentality and last minute glory goals aside, I prefer to stick to the statistics and the facts. The fact is that Lamps is Mr consistent. Over a league season, I know who I prefer in my corner - the one who scores more goals, makes more assists, covers more distance and has better passing accuracy. Full stop.

Olaolufred:
Ibime, If in Nigeria everybody prefers okocha in the Midfield than Oruma.
Is it because One has more Nigeria blood than the other? NOOOOOOOOOOO.
People sees before making judgement.
So, no ammount of your defence will make the Britons and even me to see white and be calling it black.

They are both britons. why was Gerrard not treated as the prophet? Please, you can't be in P/H and know
more than Lampard's people. They have judged right by giving preference to whom it is due.

If Oruma(Lamps) is not having it good wt his people, May be there is a better Okocha(Gerrard) around.

When u get to animal's kingdom, never think monkey will be King.

The only difference between this asinine comparison and reality is that Oruma did not take Okocha's position for five straight years. And by the way, I am not in the land of NEPA.


[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3067265#msg3067265 date=1226339348]Mikel Obi with his sideways and backwards passing?? U are very funny,[/quote]We call Mikels style of football "give I give". It is the way Naija teams have played for a long time. The intention is to dominate possession and suffocate the opposition midfield, forcing them into mistakes and frustration and lulling them into a false sense of safety before hitting them with a sharp attack. Fashi!

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3067265#msg3067265 date=1226339348]Players like Gerrard make things happen. . . . .He won't be contented passing backwards and the more u put passes forward, the higher the risk of interception by the opposing teams.[/quote]If so, he should have more assists than Lamps shebi?

Lampard: 156 career goals

Gerrard: 100 career goals

Lampard has the second highest ever number of assists in the Premierleague in 04/05 with 18 assists, two behind Henry's record of 20 assists in 02/03

Stats always show Lamps leading on pass accuracy, no of passes, distance covered, assists, goals, you name it.

Enough said!

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3067107#msg3067107 date=1226337089]Mourinho had Lampard when he wanted Gerrard by hook or crook. . . . .Had Gerrard agreed on a Chelsea move, Lampard woulda retired since. [/quote]Abramovic wanted Gerrard, not Mourinho. All Mourinho said is "if him come, him come. I will have to work him."

Seriously though, Gerrard is way overrated whilst Lamps is very underrated. The same year Gerrard won the CL, Lamps came second in World Player of the year. Fans of Bayern Munich and such can testify to the destruction that Lampard wrought throughout the CL that year. His award was in recognition of the fact that he had a very good Champions League, even better than Gerrard who won it. This year, he was voted European midfielder of the year. Yet, the English hate him with a passion because they are misguided into a belief that he is holding Gerrard back from fulfilling his 'potential' in England's central midfield.  .  A prophet is not honoured in his own country. They did the same to Glen Hoddle. They tend to persecute players because of media bias. For years, they also booed Owen Hargreaves.

Because of idiots like Gerrard, qualified players like Scholes had to retire from England team after being pushed out to the left wing.   

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3067107#msg3067107 date=1226337089]Put Gerrard in Lampard's place in Chelsea and they would be unbeatable. . . .[/quote]Gerrard would not fit in with Chelsea's passing game. He cannot keep up with Mikel and Deco's passing unlike Lampard. He will be out of his depth, just like Abidal is out of his depth when Barcelona start to pass the ball.

Hehehehe, this Jakumo, you too funny.

Don't mind Kobojunkie, she thinks every one is living in partizan land. If she cannot see that Sarah Palin is one of the major reasons McCain lost the election, then she must be blind. That, and McCains sudden strop during the bailout fiasco.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066948#msg3066948 date=1226335296]England were outclassed against Croatia because many players were out. . . .[/quote]England lost against Russia and Croatia because they were dominated in midfield and lost possession too easily.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066948#msg3066948 date=1226335296]The spirit Gerrard showed against AC Milan in Istanbul can never be replicated by a player like Lampard. John Terry, Yes but Lampard, NEVER.[/quote]What nonsense! Didi Hamman pulled Liverpool back into the game. Gerrard scored a goal just like Smicer and the other guy (I forget). English media made it into a Roy-of-the-Rovers story. Lampard would never need to show such spirit because Chelsea will dominate the midfield such that they lead from the front, not have to come back from 3-0 down. Last time I checked, Lamps also pulled his team back into a CL final.

Gerrard is still living off CL '05 and FA Cup '06.

FYI, Lamps would never had needed last gasp goals against West Ham. He would have played them off the park, giving Chelsea a 3-0 win minimum.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066948#msg3066948 date=1226335296](1.) Most of Lampard's goals for club are deflected shots and taking penalties. . . . .What else can he do?

(2.) Aerially, he is useless. Lampard cannot dribble but he is a good passer of the ball but isn't Gerrard better in this department too.

(3.) Gerrard has rocket shots, can dribble and will outrun Lampard. . . . . .he is also an utility player unlike Lampard,[/quote](1.) Gerrard also takes penalties. Lamps scores no more than 3 or 4 penalties a season. If Lamps goals are deflected shots, then I would advise him to play the lottery because he must be a very lucky mothaphocka.

(2.) Since when do we judge midfielders by aerial prowess. Zola is also useless aerially, so what. This is English criteria for judging footballers. In Naija, we play monkey post with the ball on the ground, not in the air. And by the way, Lamps has already scored two headers this season. Lamps is way better at passing than Gerrard. You know this yourself, unless you are talking about long balls, which doesn't count to any seasoned football fan.

(3.)  If Gerrard can dribble, then I must be a monk. Gerrard makes surging runs, he cannot dribble. Fabregas and Iniesta can dribble, not Gerrard.

Mark off the whole list, when it comes to the fundamentals of midfield play, Lamps is better than Gerrard. The 4 most important parts of midfield play are ball retention, passing, positioning and pressing. Assists, goals, off the ball, workrate. . . . . you name it. . . . Lamps is above Gerrard by any statistical or observatory measure.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066948#msg3066948 date=1226335296]Superior positioning and he was rendered useless by Scholes/Carrick in Moscow??[/quote]If anything, it was Chelsea's midfield that kept them in the game. Scholes dominated the first 30 minutes, after that, Lamps and Ballack ran the show. Chelsea's only hope was to squeeze the possession in the centre of midfield as Man Utd were much superior on the wings and Lampard and Ballack certainly dominated that central midfield throughout the 2nd half and extra time. They had no options to pass to on the wings because Joe Cole was too preoccupied with doubling up on Ronaldo. Infact, they did a perfect job in midfield. Gerrard can only hope to keep the ball as well as they did in that CL final. He does not have the skill to.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066749#msg3066749 date=1226332800]Gerrard is made to play elsewhere to ACCOMODATE Lampard!!![/quote]There is no such thing as accomodation. Gerrard has been playing other positions to accomodate himself because he cannot steal that position from Lamps. He has tried for the last 5 years with no success. Lamps is mono-positional, but he is the best player in that position. The whole country has been anti-Lampard for the last 2 years. It would be a popular decision for any manager to drop Lamps and play Gerrard in his "favourite" position. When Lamps was injured last year, Gerrard had a chance to claim that position but was outclassed by the likes of Semshov and Kovac etc. This supposition that you play Gerrard in his favourite position and everything will be alright is false. The problem with England is exactly players like Gerrard who lose possession too easily in compact midfields. You will never see Gerrard shine when the midfield is condensed. He only shines when he has space to make his surging runs. The long-ball game is exactly Englands problem and Gerrard is one of the major culprits.

Not to mention that Gerrard has Sokugo's disease and is prone to vacate his position whenever he feels like. This is why every England and Liverpool manager arranges his team to account for Gerrard's wandering. They always look for a free role for him. Even when he plays on the left, you find that Capello allows him to wander in and details Barry to keep an eye on the left. When he played right midfield and had his most successfull season for Liverpool with 23 goals (seven against TNS, 10 in CL qualifiers), Sissoko was detailed to plug the gaps on the right whenever he went wandering. Now, he has a virtual free role playing behind Torres. He is not a disciplined CM.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066749#msg3066749 date=1226332800]Lampard is ordinary. . . .no visible skills other than poking shots and hoping for deflection.[/quote]Same nonsense populist line. Most of Lampard's goals come from his brilliant off-the-ball running which is unmatched anywhere in Europe. And it is not off the ball running, as in vacating his position like Gerrard. He runs methodically, keeping up with his teammates.

[quote author=~Sauron~ link=topic=193153.msg3066680#msg3066680 date=1226332338]Are u aware Frank copped his first cap for England in 1999 while Gerrard earned his in 2000?? [/quote]Lampard won his first cap in 1999, but he hardly ever played till 2003. He had a handful of appearances, mostly off the substitues bench. Telling me that Lamps was there before Gerrard is like telling me that Matthew upson was there before Terry. It doesn't make sense. Upson made his debut before Terry but Terry has been playing for England since 03/04.

dayokanu:
Gerrard vs Lampard bring all the characteristics and lets compare who is the better player.

Passes, Dribbles, Shot accuracy, Goals scored etc

We can tick off the list and you will see that apart from pace, longe range shot and slide tackle, Gerrard has nothing over Lamps. Even the slide tackling is only because he is caught out of position too often. Lamps tends to nick balls off the feet of opponents instead of slide tackling. this is down to his superior positioning.

When you consider the core things that make a CM such as passing, positioning, assists, work rate, goals scored, off the ball, intelligence, pressing as part of a team, Lamps trumps Gerrard.

All you can say about Gerrard is that he is more eyecatching. MOTD tends to edit their videos to highlight everything he does. I have watched matches on SKY SPORTS live where Gerrard is anonymous. . . . yet when it comes to the highlights reels on MOTD, all they show is edited versions of Gerrard making slide tackles, running with the ball etc. Every good thing Gerrard does is highlighted. Every bad thing is dismissed. I still remember the game against France in Euro 2004 when he gave a short back pass to David James and James had to concede a penalty. Can you believe they blamed David James instead of Gerrard? It is a cardinal sin to criticise Gerrard in English press. Any journalist that does it could risk losing his job. . This kind of mass hysteria is laughable. Who can blame the english though? They always need a hero. Whether it is Gazza or Bobby Robson, they look for a hero in certain players, making them out to be ten times better than they actually are.


The youtube link below just shows the misleading power of the media when it comes to Gerrard:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=pYHggzKlAi4

nateevs:
Anelka gets 2 on the day. . . 10 goals in the premiership. . . 16 goals in all competitions . . .

And the Anelka debate continues. . . . .

You mean 10 in 12 league games and 11 in 15 games overall. Not bad, but don't overstate it. Only at Chelsea can we complain about a striker with such a record. This is because of his many misses. He reminds me of Andy Cole.

I like the way Anelka creates space for his teammates. He really stretches the defence, from left to right.

nateevs:
Malouda always make bad choices. .

I was saying the same watching the match yesterday. The guy always passes the ball into tight spaces where two defenders always intercept the ball. It is like he is scared of being in possession. The guy really pissed me off yesterday.