₦airaland Forum

This is my thread! Time for some European football away from the dreary drudge of the EPL.

I see that Frederick Piquionne has signed for Lyon. Has anyone seen if Renato Augusto has made his debut for Leverkusen yet?

Phock SkySports  . . . . if not for live Premier League, I would never renew my subscription with those bitches . . . . they've got me trapped . . . . seriously though, Sky Sports tries to appeal to as wide an audience base as possible and that leads to a dumbing down of content. . . they provide no historical or worldwide context, just myopic Anglocentric views. . . I find myself watching SportsXchange on channel 456 more often these day because that channel is more for the niche football fan. . . . they cover everything from European to South American and even African Champions League.

Hannibal:
@ Ibime,

You are making a huge mistake of comparing football journalists to soccer pundits. . . . . . .

Andy Gray is not a journalist. . . . He analyses and he is by far the best TV analyst in the UK.
If u don't believe me. . . . . watch THE LAST WORD every sunday @ SSN and watch Andy Gray dissect the English Football like a surgeon.
You want to compare him to the slow talker and fat, heavy bearded twit called Martin Samuel??
I watch THE SUPPLEMENT every sunday on SSN where all these sports journalists come together and discuss. . . .Martin Samuel spews crap.

As far as I am concerned, Sky Sports is tabloid TV. The only shows on Sky Sports which bring anything refreshing are La Liga and FIFA Futbol Mundial. . . . .Andy Gray is the no 1 tabloid TV analyst. . . . he brings no insight into the game that we do not already know and he is completely found wanting on European matters. . . . but then again, tabloid TV and tabloid newspapers seem to be Rupert Murdoch's business model. . . . and besides, Andy Gray is pro Man Utd so I expect you to like him. . . . if you want to see something refreshing, check out the guy that does Eurosports football coverage. . . . he makes Andy Gray sound like a schoolboy. . . . I noticed that ex-footballers do not make very good analysts (just like they do not make very good managers). . . and Sky Sports is full of ex-footballers who are rubbish tacticians. . . Paul Merson, for Christs sake!. . . . all Andy Gray has is charisma. . . . maybe Martin Samuel lacks this, but in print, his views come across clearer than spring water.


Neil Custis? Stop reading The Sun man!

Hannibal:
Martin Samuel is a resident Arrow . . . . . Who reckons with the fat bastard?
You have pundits like Andy Gray, Martin Tyler, Patrick Barclay . . . even Neil Curtis is a better football analyst.

I can see your tabloid calibre. . . . Andy Gray is the worst analyst on TV after Alan Shearer and Ian Wright. . . . . a real baller knows that Martin Samuel is the best and most decorated football journalist. . . . seven times sports writer of the year, including the last three years. . . . . . Martin Tyler is a bitch. . . .you can forget most of those BBC journalists, there is no talent there whatsoever. . . . if you are a real baller, the only journalists worth mentioning are Martin Samuel, Gabriel Marcotti, Guillem Balague, Andy Holt, Mihir Bose and Tim Vickery.

And Ibime 

doyin13:
But I think it points to the abundant quality
of Gerrard that despite his so called indiscipline
the coaches are compelled to find a position for him.
Not that I particularly agree with Benitez or Capello.

If England play 4-3-3, with 3 central midfielders, I will take Gerrard over Lampard anyday - but only because the attacking midfielder in a 5 man midfield does not need discipline. But England only play 4-4-2 because they have no point striker and because they have a very good 2nd striker in Wayne Rooney. Gerrard and Rooney are not compatible. Even Capello recognises this and said they have to humble themselves and play together. Lamps is not compatible with Rooney either.

Like I said, Rooney already has that position so there is no need for Lamps or Gerrard. But if you ask me who to pick in a 4-4-2, Lampard beats Gerrard anyday. Gerrard is a playground footballer. Season before last, I coached an Under 13 team and I had a player like him, always vacating his position. That is a manager's worst frustration. I put that nigga on the bench for the whole season.

The Times writer Martin Samuel is the 7 times winner of the Sports writer of the year ward and is hands down the best football journalist in Britain. I remember the articlt he wrote about Gerrard but I cannot find it - so I culled this from one of his other articles:


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/martin_samuel/article4029404.ece



The battle is now between Barry, Lampard and Hargreaves for two places. Gerrard is not one of Capello’s central midfield players. He must be getting used to this by now.

As it is for country, so it is for club. Rafael Benítez, his manager at Liverpool, does not see Gerrard as a central player, either. Given that it is his favourite position, and the one in which he thinks he is best, he would be forgiven if occasionally he looks at the way Lampard and Michael Ballack have thrived together for Chelsea this season and wonders what might have been. Gerrard had the chance to play for Chelsea after the Champions League win in 2005 and turned them down, and José Mourinho insists he would have played him straight down the middle, with a holding player, and Lampard to his left.

Sir Alex Ferguson, at Manchester United, is also a fan. He regards Gerrard as England’s finest midfield player, but concedes that the loyal Liverpudlian in him would never entertain a move to Old Trafford. It is unfortunate, then, that in Capello the player has an echo of Benítez, two managers who believe that the heart of midfield needs an individual with discipline as well as creative wit, and that, while Gerrard possesses the latter quality in spades, he shows about as much willingness to respond to instruction as an eight-year-old armed with chocolate and fizzy drinks during the last school playtime before the summer holidays.

Capello tried. In his first plan for England, he sought to operate with two holding central midfield players and knew that he was limiting one of his best talents if he gave Gerrard that role. So, with Rooney as the lone striker, he inserted Gerrard behind, in the middle of an advanced forward three, which he saw as similar to the way Benítez used him in Europe. That did not work.

The greatest criticism of Gerrard is that he is a playground footballer, that he follows the ball, seeks the action, that he cannot stay uninvolved. This tendency to desert his post is the reason Benítez, and Capello, will not use him as half of a midfield two, because if that player is caught out of position, the opposition are straight into the back four with sight of goal.

Yet, equally, Gerrard proved problematic in the second striker role. The key to using Rooney on his own was to get players up with him in quick support and once Gerrard wandered into another area, this could not happen. Time and again in the match with France, when Capello looked to Gerrard to be first on the scene backing up the striker, there was a void. Rooney became increasingly isolated and ineffectual.

After losing in Paris, Capello vowed that Rooney’s best position was second striker, and Gerrard’s was yet to be found. The return of David Beckham has created a log jam on the right, which leaves one position: left midfield. Barring injury, Gerrard must now get used to it. There really is no other place to go.

nateevs:
Technically Lamps is better than Gerrard but according to you, you still can't play Lamps on the right of midfield, as a DM or even 2nd striker. . . and he is supposed to be better technically than Gerrard. .
Makalele is a super technically gifted player but to think of playing him as a 2nd striker is suicidal. .
Bottom line. . Technical nous has nothing to do with number of positions playable. . . maybe you meant to say adaptability.



If gerrard complains that he does not like a position does not mean he did not play it well. Hargreaves played on the right for ManU in one single game is not enough to justify that he won't complain if played there consistently. .

Gerrard has more pace than Lamps. Therefore, if I am going to play someone on the wing, it will be Gerrard. His best season at Liverpool was 05/06 where he scored 23 goals from the right wing. But take away the 7 goals he scored against TNS of Wales in CL pre-qualification and Lamps still outscored him that season. He is not better than Lamps at CM over the last 5 years. The stats reflect that. Lamps has more goals, more assists and covers more ground. Lamps is better in tight spaces, more intelligent and has better positioning. Therefore Gerrard has to find another position because CM is already taken. If he doesn't like it, he should take a seat on the bench.

Like I said, I would play Barry and Hargreaves instead. Both Lamps and Gerrard are eating Rooney's space. Neither of them are deserving of an England place.

nateevs:
Lamps has 62 appearances and 14 goals for england . .
Gerrard 68 apps and 13 goals. .

Even though Lamps joined the team before Gerrard, gerrard matches his goals record, though in more apps.
I do not see how the stats back that Lamps is a better england player than Gerrard.

Wrong! Gerrard has been a regular since 2000. Remember the 5-1 against Germany? Lamps only established himself in 2003. Lamps was England top scorer and player of the year in 2004 and 2005. Gerrard only scores against Andorra and the like.

Gerrard's goal stats is a fallacy. Check it and you will see goals against Andorra, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago. 6 or 7 of his goals came from those games alone. Check Lamps record and you will see goals in competitive matches at the Euro's or WC qualification. Gerrard has played 8 years for England and has nothing to show but excuses. If it was Super Eagles, Nigeria fans would have burnt his house down by now.

Gerrard is simply a media hype. Even before WC 2006, the press were pressing for him to take that CM position although Lamps was joint top scorer in Euro 2004 and top scorer in qualification for 2006. That pressure got to Lamps and he has not been the same since. Would you be able to play 100% when fans are booing you every game? These fans perceptions about football are built from tabloid journalism. That is why I always encourage people to stop reading The Sun and read The Times instead. The Sun is anti-Lamps whilst The Times is anti-Gerrard and pro-Lamps.

nateevs:
Is gerrard that bad?. . . Gerrard to me has always been a better player for england than Lamps has. . gerrard only always has a bad game when played alongside lamps. . . plus try playing Lamps as a winger and see what will come off it.

somze:
Very inaccurate.

You must have taken that from popular media . . .

If Lampard had his way, the story may have been - Lampard is better without Gerrard.

Both Players have their strengths and weaknesses but for England . . . statistics show clearly that Lampard has the better pedigree.

I would drop both of them for England. Barry and Hargreaves can control the midfield a lot better. Both of them are eating up Rooney's space anyway. Rooney is more than enough to link the frontman and the midfield.

Technically though, Lamps is a lot better than Gerrard. Gerrard is nothing but a great white hype. No manager trusts him to play central midfield. If you play him at DM, he will complain, at right wing, he will complain, left wing, he will complain. In 2006, he was played as 2nd striker and he still complained - although I consider that to be his natural position. even at central midfield for England, he is a mess. He cannot play CM in a 4-4-2, only in a 4-5-1. If he was technically gifted, he should be able to play these positions. Check out Rakitic, Fabregas, Iniesta and Nico kranjcar when they are asked to play these positions. That is the difference. Check out Hargreaves at right wing against Chelsea in CL final. Top ballers don't make excuses.

^^^ lol. Even better then.

Yeah, I remember Belletti's wondergoal.

doyin13:
I guess any opinion will be subjective. . . .

I do agree Gerrard is a bit too Cotton Eye Joe in his manner of play, but at least he can still rely
on his athleticism to stay in a game where he is faced with players technically better.

No such recourse for Lampard.

Athleticism without brains means nothing. . . . Gerrard is too often out of position. . . . infact, check the pro-zone stats and you will see that Lamps is fitter than Gerrard and covers more ground than him.

Well, we cannot be displeased with 3 points at the JJB. Last season, we lost the league there by dropping 2 points. We are still the only team yet to concede a goal in the Premier League.

However, I doubt if this formation is the best for playing away from home. Playing away, you have to use the counterattack and we may be better off playing 4-3-3. Anyway, Scolari has said he will use 3 or 4 formations so lets see. . . . .

All I know is that if we play this system against Utd, they will take advantage of the space behind our full backs to hurt us.

doyin13:
I think this game might also highlight why a Gerrard Lampard
partnership isn't the greatest. Lampard isn't really the best
at those intricate one-two's that are required when faced with
a congested midfield.

I think what you mean to say is Gerrard isn't really the best at those intricate one-two's that are required when faced with
a congested midfield.

We have seen Lamps do the intricate stuff for Chelsea e.g last week. Not as good as Fabregas et al but he is competent at it. On the other hand, Gerrard is totally incompetent at the intricate stuff. I have never seen him play in tight areas for Liverpool. He is only good at driving forward an taking long shots. He is very unintelligent and tactically indisciplined, that is why no manager trusts him to play central midfield, from Benitez to McLaren to Capello. All we have had over 8 years of his England career is excuse after excuse about not being played in position. When he got his chance, Luka Modric completely played him off the park. Ditto what happened in Russia. At least Lampard did it for England for 3 years in 03/04/05. All we have from Gerrard is excuses over the last 8 years.


Watch this:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYHggzKlAi4

Malouda for Ballack should be the next move.

Hahahaha. . . . I said it! Kalou is coming on for Cole.

Is Kalou on the bench? Joey should come off. This is not his game.

It doesn't matter if Obama hires Rambo as his running mate. The inherent racists will never vote for him anyway. This 'lack of security experience' is just a ruse anyway. . . . . the average American knows nothing about foreign policy or cares little about foreign countries. . . . so this excuse is just rubbish as far as I am concerned. . . . . . no one has attacked American soil since the 1940's so I don't know why they are worried about sevurity issues. . . . even if Paris Hilton was president, America would have no true security concerns cos no country would dare attack them.

doyin13:
Anelka and Joe Cole should look to go wide a bit dragging some defenders
with them to allow Lampard, Deco and Ballack space to bomb forward.

Very correct! Anelka and Joey are not playing to instruction. The system depends on them pulling wide. Then again, Ballack does not look like he has the legs to bomb forward in this game. He has hardly trained all week.

Amr Zaki is not a bad player at all.

Ballack is not fully fit.

Let us see if LFS has the power of motivation to turn this game around at half-time cos Im not impressed with what I'm seeing.

Which kind injury Mikel get? Not serious I hope.

Na - Ballack is anonymous. Essien cannot control possession like Mikel. We need Mikel in this game. Wigan is no walkover from what I have seen so far.

You can watch the game here. . . .

http://www.justin.tv/iraqgoals

Goal!

Wonderful freekick by Deco.

Damn! Dyabman must be scoring a lot of points with his fantasy team.

Wigan are pressing the game since the goal. Essien isn't playing that DM position too well. Ballack should be on the bench, Essien in Ballacks position and Mikel in DM.

Essien replaces Mikel. No other changes from the Portsmouth game. Wigan are playing 4-4-2.

Your perverted mind is quite easy to see.

This Thor, you better watch your mouth o!

If na trouble you come find for here, you better take ya 33 year old ass somewhere else.

Wimbledon ke?

CONFIRMED: Shevchenko has joined Milan on loan with an option to buy. They pay all his wages.

Just heard it on the radio.

Well, according to The Times, BBC, all major news agencie, Paim has signed.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/chelsea/7559701.stm


[center]Real change Robinho transfer tack [/center]


Real Madrid have changed their stance over Robinho's possible transfer and told him they will not keep him against his will if he wants to join Chelsea.

"Real Madrid would never want to retain a player against his wishes," the club said in a statement on their website.

"As a result we have no alternative but to accept his unilateral decision to rescind his contract."

It is unclear if Real will now agree a fee with Chelsea, or if Robinho will have to buy out his £120m contract.

In Spain all professional players have a "buy-out clause" written into their contracts and can move without their club's agreement, though in practice the player's new club pays that sum.

"Real Madrid have become aware of the declarations by the player and deeply regret their content," Real's statement added.

Earlier on Friday Robinho told Spanish news agency EFE that he wanted to leave Madrid to join Chelsea.

"I want to leave. I've told the president, the directors and the coach. I want to play in the Premier League," said the Brazilian international.

"Chelsea have a great squad, a great team and their offer is good for me and for the team."

Robinho, who can play in a wide attacking position or through the middle, is keen to move to Chelsea to join fellow Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge.

Scolari himself is optimistic that a deal can be done for the player.

"Real Madrid have the player and set the price," said Scolari on Friday. "He is a very good player, a fantastic player who all the coaches in the world like and would want him in their squad." I hope the Real Madrid directors reach an agreement with Chelsea to resolve my situation as quickly as possible

Earlier in the summer Real were prepared to use Robinho as a makeweight in their pursuit of Portugal winger Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United and refused to release the Brazilian for the Olympics.

Robinho added: "I'm telling the truth. I want to leave and I have got the character to tell the press that I'm not aiming to stay at Real.

"It isn't because of money, it is simply because I want to leave. My personal aim is to be the best player in the world and that isn't going to be possible at Real Madrid.

"I've played three seasons at Real Madrid and have given everything.

"I think my period at Real Madrid has come to an end. I hope the directors reach an agreement with Chelsea to resolve my situation as quickly as possible."

The Blues have already had a £19.7m bid rejected for Robinho, though Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon has insisted he is hopeful of concluding the transfer.

Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster had previously claimed that Robinho will not be sold at any price, while Calderon told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Definitely, he is going to stay with us. The coach has said he wants him in our team. "We don't see any possibility of Robinho leaving Real Madrid."

Robinho's agent Wagner Ribeiro has accused Madrid of a "failure to value him as he deserves" and that he was unhappy at being included by Madrid as a potential makeweight in any Ronaldo deal.

tpia:
I don't know too many black people who hate blacks with more intensity than kobojunkie.

I attribute his attitude to some serious trauma and possibly low levels of IQ.

His moments of clarity are few and far between.

Kobojunkie is a woman.


After all my lectures on this Niger Delta thing, I cannot believe that people are still here dragging this thing. Well, everyone is entitled to their opinion. Like the poster said, the Land Use Act needs to be reviewed. That is the first step toward solving this problem. After that, we talk about the constitution.

Until then, we Ijaws will let our guns talk for us since so many Nigerians are too stupid to understand the situation. If they don't like it, they can let their guns talk back for them. Let us see if these people are ready to die for this entity called Nigeria. And let us see who will suffer most.

nateevs:
@Ibime,

To be fair, I'D rather we put SWP on the road than Malouda. .
Why not SWP?. .
Is it because he is english?

You are right. I prefer Malouda to SWP.

Better yet, lets put them both out to pasture.

If we assume that Scolari is going to continue this narrow-in-midfield 4-4-2 formation, we have 6 central midfielders for 4 positions. You can include Joe Cole and Ivanovic in that to make it 8 midfield players.

We only ever play 2 strikers, one of which is a recognised striker (Analka, Drogba, Di Santo) and the other who is a wing-forward (Robinho, Joe Cole, Kalou). That is 6 players for two positions - although Joe Cole can also be classed with the midfield. So I don't think we need 4 wing-forwards. 3 is enough. Plus we have Scott Sinclair and Fabio Paim if our squad ever gets that stretched.