₦airaland Forum

@mk,
If Xtino dives eboue does whatMUki ,if Ronny dives he can even claim he is trying to avoid injury. A diving defender is an indefensible cheat. Remove the log in your eye. . . . .

@all,
Listen to what that Belgian thug has said.That is what Ronny has to face every match . At least we now know what defenders set out to do to the guy from cashley cole to whoever.And yet the guy goes on game after game excelling.Give this guy a break. If you don't you will simply kill yourself hating.

I have always felt Ronaldo was too gingerly until this season when his game has matured. Like Drogba his game has improved drastically . Did he dive  before now.YES.And coming from a RED that is as honest as you can get. But this season has been different.Any references to diving is a hangover from previous seasons definitely not this season. Just like Drogba , it would not be fair to say he dives at least based on this season's performance.

I hope UEFA takes the keepers comments seriously.It's not good for football. Just like we lost Marco van Basten to some madman's wickedness we can ill afford to lose a potential legend to premeditated killer tackles.We celebrate Bright OMOKARO today as 10-10 because Akeem Medane the guy whose career he ended in 1988 is not a Nigerian . I do not particularly like Thierry Henry but let's just imagine that his career ended in 1998 or Zidane's in 99. You don't have to like Ronny but fairplay really has no team.

For those who insist Ronaldo dives . Just ponder. When a player comes to the game with the mindset of this thug what really are your chances?And this guy only said it publicly. What of those who don't even say it but nevertheless intend to .


Even the greatest haters in the world must pity Ronaldo now.

Watch Uruguay/Brazil (1970 world Cup semis).After Pele was butchered out of the 62 and 66 World Cup by Portugal and Co. he wisened up and did some unsportsmanly stuff.He got lucky and got decisions in his favour one of which actually led to a goal for Brazil which changed the game and they won 4-2. Was it ok. Maybe not. But maybe Pele would not have been Pele if he did not do some of those things post 66 to save his career,his legs and his football.

Please leave this boy alone.

If you don't you will go paranoid . 




WAN UNITED

Define "True football fan" for me please.

@wormedup/all,

Please find exerpts from an earlier post from another thread.It's my definition.Sorry it's a bit long.
I think it might be useful

Truth is people will support clubs for different reasons and you can't deny that they have less passion simply because they started supporting yesterday or 10 years ago.I agree however that time may be an indicator of how true that passion is.
I have this theory which generally describes the categories of football supporters.It's my view you may have yours

1.The Fan:Likes football generally and  tends to lean toward a particular team or teams because of their football,players,manager,success,etc.While someone can be a fan of football for life most club fans usually support for 1-5 years.The fan is also more likely to shift allegiance to other teams when the going gets tough.If you ask me many Chelsea fans today were probably supporting either Man U or Arsenal prior to that( or at least definitely not Chelsea).Else where were they then.

2.The Supporter:Loves football. Significantly leans towards a particular team or teams beacuse of passion built over time usually longer than the fan.This passion comes from their past successes,their football,players,etc.The difference between a supporter and a fan really is in the number of years which would give room for ups and downs(to mellow the successes),or exits(if specific players or managers was the reason for the initial support)Many Arsenal supporters got on board because of Kanu but some still remained even after he left(they have moved from being fans to supporters)
Many Man U fans came on board during the glory years of the 90s .The fans have left to other clubs(names witheld)while the supporters remain.

3.The Loyalists:In love with football,their football.They know of only one team and they will die for their team.A lot of Man U and Arsenal guys claim to be this but you may never truly know until your team has a perenial drought of trophies,begin to play very badly or maybe even move to a lower division.People who support the Nottingham Forests ,West Hams etc of this world may fall into this category.You can only be a loyalist after so many years of support usually not less than 20 for one particular team.It has nothing to do with whether you support a club that has not won a trophy(so a Bolton supporter of 5 years cannot claim to be a loyalist ) I have a friend here in Nigeria who has supported West Ham for 20 years and still does(they've only won 1 trophy in that period,been to lower rungs and back a few times)I knew of the Haywoods and Gabbidons well before they got to the prem through him. It's just love for a team which only time can build.

Submission:
We all support clubs for different reasons and join the bandwagon at different times.No one can/should be crucified for joining late or at a more auspicious time.Many current MU supporters joined during the glory years of the 90s,many more joined Arsenal with Kanu.Some have left many more have stayed.Some of the new Chelsea 'faithfuls' will go but others will stay.
This argument was on when people started supporting Ass'nall in Nigeria .Now it appears they are more in number than other club supporters in Nigeria(don't have any figures just what I notice in Sports bars).

We will know true supporters when trophies come fewer and far between.

For now let the adrenaline flow(it won't be for too long)


WAN UNITED

10 favourites:

1.The Undertaker
2.Triple H
3.Diesel
4.Brett (the Hitman) Hart
5.The Ultimate Warrior
6.(Stone Cold) Steve Austin
7.Shawn Michaels
8.Jesse (the Body) Ventura
9.Hulk Hogan
10.Rick Flair(Nature Boy)



Favourite all time Nigerian wrestlers:

1.Ajanlekoko the Giant
2.Ajani the wicked boy 
3.Amalinze the Cat
4.Ajanaku
5.Super Dele Agility 
6.Abinibi is Ability
7.Kill and Go
8.Leo the Lion
9.Dogo 'n Karfi
10. Captain Killer

Beware of the Banana peel!


WAN UNITED

@all,

6 years ago we were paying 144,000 to purchase a PTO line.Nitel line was 200,000 minus cable,Pager was 12,500.
5 years ago we bought MTN lines for N20,000
4 years ago there was no WAP,Flash calls,airtime vouchers,etc.
3 years ago we did not have per second billing
2 years ago. . . . . . . .

What's my point?

You do not attain perfection from the start.HiTv will not necessarily match DSTV content for content from day one.Neither did Glo if we remember the teething interconnect problems Glo had with the existing networks then.Today the story is different.Arguably Glo service is comparatively top class.And thankfully Glo is Nigerian.

The good thing is that now there is SOME form of competition for DSTV.Ultimately(and that is the key word)ultimately,it WILL be good for the CONSUMER.That is my only concern .Once it is good for the consumer everyone will be happy.

Unfortunately, monopoly has a way of making anybody look bad and no matter how hard people try to defend DSTV majority will ALWAYS feel they could have gotten a better deal from them .That is the plain truth.

I will NOT feel bad about HiTV even with the shortcomings mentioned by those that have tried it now.Whatever they have now CANNOT be the FINAL package so any feelings of total disappointment now might be a bit premature.They will receive feedback from consumers and hopefully because it is no longer a monopoly their response rate will be quicker.

In any case it has taken DSTV all of 20 something years starting out I think as BOP TV with an 8 channel decoder(only 5 or 6 channels were regular then) at the start to get to this fantastic level of reaching out to Africa with such variety. Who says with encouragement HiTV cannot attain the same or even greater heights in remarkably less time.

If we must claim the self inflicted mantra of giant of Africa we need to encourage ours to succeed. I do not wish DSTV dead in Nigeria . Nigerian lives run(and benefit from) the business here. I only want solid competition so I get good value for my money.

I am however happy that the competition is from a Nigerian company.

We must learn to give ours even more  tolerance than we give others. This happens everywhere else.


WAN UNITED
WAN TV

@Seun,
Really that remains to be seen.


WAN UNITED

@PDF,
thanks for the yeoman's job.


WAN UNITED

Great posts all round.Just a few comments though.

1.Monopoly has never been good for the consumer.The consumer is the only reason anyone is in business.In a monopoly it is not quite so .The consumer deserves, nay, insists on having a choice. In a monopoly he cannot but ultimately he will get his choice someday,somehow.

2.I do not support the transfer of monopoly.If monopoly is simply transferred to Hitv we may still be in the same boat.

3.Consumers always feel aggrieved when firms appear not to hear them.Competition makes all deaf firms hear.
Example:

a)MTN said per second billing will not be possible until 2007. Thanks to competition we have been on per second billing for 3 years now.It does not necessarily make it cheaper,but hey that is WHAT THE CONSUMER WANTS.

b)People queued ,begged and died to get NITEL lines before now.Today?It's the other way round.Why?Competition.

c)Still on telecoms:Before Glo came on board how many promos was MTN/ECONET doing in spite of the huge returns they were making.Today a month will not pass without some promo or the other.The so called premium brands have given way to the realities of the huge Bottom of the Pyramid market

Submission:

1.By omission or commission DSTV has alienated itself from the generality of consumers . Between MTN and ECONET MTN was seen as arrogant then even though both were foreign.NEPA though a local brand is seen as incompetent and arrogant .So it's not just about being foreign.

2.DSTV had a chance to pre-empt this move. Just like MTN who did not believe(rather dumbly )that some things were possible and waited for Glo to have 1st mover advantage,DSTV could have pre-empted these moves . I can assure you that their prices would drop next year and they will still not be operating at a loss. Cost of decoder acquisition should have been dropped massively so those with decoders would have increased substantially.Then you can entice with lower tariffs.

3.It is early days yet to say whether Hitv will succeed or not. You know what?It is possible that the subscription costs may not drop substantially in the immediate.(It happened with GSM)But drop it will.And we will be spoilt for choice.And we will no longer be given DRY bouquets.Nor will we EVER feel again that we do not have a choice. The greatest feeling of any consumer is the fact THAT HE/SHE HAS A CHOICE.

4.That choice will drive both Hitv and Dstv and any others to perform.Unfortunately I have to use MTN as an example again because circumstances appear so similar.I stopped using MTN 2 years ago because a customer service staff was inexplicably rude to me(despite virtually tolerating them for 4 years) and I did not get the kind of treatment a consumer expects to get when such faux pas occur.

Why could I do that .I had a choice.Today I want to think MTN is getting better for it though I still do not use them.

Now I can do the same to any cable TV operator that makes me unhappy. For that singular reason I am happy.



WAN UNITED

Fake prophets and prophetesses abound.

One fake prophet RAZED down a room containing his followers with fire.

Today he is on death row partly for his fake prophecies

Any other fake prophets/prophetesses should beware they are not razed away.There is enough time to repent.

Keep scoring,
Keep winning.


WAN UNITED

@JK,
I agree even tournament champions need some luck, Nigeria in Tunisia 94,Brazil in World Cup 94(against Italy),Italy last year(against Australia)etc.Only thing is guys are beginning to have very weak hearts now.Peeps just want us to win comfortably like when the season started.

Anyhow,I hope we have done enough to win the league.

As for the treble?we are still in it right?

WAN UNITED

@donzman,

Agreed,there's some pride at stake.

However ,I prefer to lose to rivals and still be crowned champions than vice versa.

As champions you become the strongest side in the league after  38 games irrespective of who you win or lose to.

My point is the meeting at Stamfordbridge may not necessarily be significant even if we lose.I have not said we will.I look forward to hearing the Lip's stories on that day,when we win.

But first Lille.


Keep scoring,keep winning

WAN UNITED

@bolaoni,

No doubt some fatigue has started setting in.It's not just about winning but winning comfortably.When you win comfortably you face the next game with even more confidence.Even if you lose it's only a blip.However , I feel happy winning less comfortably with 6 points in the bag(Fulham,Pool) than losing 6 points strongly.Plain common sense.

@REDS,
It looks as if we have reached a peak and I hope we have done enough in the last 29 games to win the league.That has been my only interest this season and anything else will only be a bonus.With 9 games to go and 5 home games things don't look so bad.

Mourinho had blabbed his trap about the Liverpool match and now it's gone and we are still very much ahead .Now he's talking about refs.I hope he just shuts up.Even if we lose at Stamford bridge that in itself will not change anything.We have our destiny right where everyone else wants it, in our hands!

Are we going to lose points?Probably.Will it be enough for anyone to catch up?Not sure.

We need 21 points or less to win the league.

We sure can.

Keep scoring,keep winning


WAN UNITED!

@cabali,
true talk.

@loyika houdini,
great to hear from you at last.
Needed to know you are ok.



WAN UNITED

Both teams had a Cache 22 situation on their hands.

Chelsea wins,hey they were playing small boys.
Chelsea loses,they lost to small boys.

Arsenal loses with small boys,they should have played big boys
Arsenal loses with big boys,they should have kept faith with the small boys

It's really a no-win situation.But hey,the following people either started or came in early in the second half:
Kolosky,Fabregas,Baptista,Adebayor,Hleb,Eboue,Senderos.When scores was 1-1 all of these guys were on the pitch.Nuff said.

Debosky,I disagree with you on Adebayor.He fully deserved his red.He joined the melee and punched 3 times with his left hand,watch it again.I guess the reds had to stop at some point that's why probably fab,lamps and eboue escaped it.


WAN UNITED

@debosky,
good to hear from you ,finally.


WAN UNITED

@MK,
Now I know why you did not bet.
Sorry o,though your boys tap small,as usual.

@sirwebs,
dispassionate and fortright.well done.


WAN UNITED

*Come ,where is debosky and loyika. Failure na orphan o.Even Bros Kit just do cameo appearance with presidential post for another thread.MK you try small sha.I remember the excitement(and orgasmsic posts) of January 22nd .All quiet on the gooners front eh?
No hard feelings guys ,would have loved to hear more from you that's all

@PDF thanks a lot.

JK 47 where are you?

Apart from the ugly scenes toward the end of the match this was a worthy final.Arsenal played good football,made good use of space ,sweet passes ,etc.Arsenal should be proud of players like Fabregas,Viera Diaby and Denilson.They are youngsters only in age cos they play ahead of their years.Again when it really mattered the Goons lost their nerve.

At the end of the day though experience won the game.Chelsea deserved their victory because they slowly clawed their way back into the game .In the second half they were more threatening and hit the bar twice.More importantly they took their chances.Chelsea won even if Arsenal did not deserve to lose.

Offside goal?Forget it . It was marginal and I am sure many gunners came to that conclusion after 3-4 replays.Gooners demean the efforts of those boys by claiming ref's decision cost them the game.

Talking about great coaches will Prof or SAF or even David Moyes have fielded(or started) Terry today.Did you watch the first half.That guy was not fit.Mourinho will kill that guy.Quote me.

Congrats to Chelsea on this (only?)silverware .
Goons?sorry1 gone 3 to go.


WAN UNITED

CARLING CUP FINAL

Can one game define a season.Usually not but if there's one it is todays.

On stage today will be 2 combatants whose enmity has grown considerably in the last 3 seasons for reasons not too hard to imagine.Their prize the Carling Cup ,the least prestigious of the 4 trophies available to top flight teams in England.The passion ,expectations and hopes behind this match only show how serious both sides take todays match.It seems a do or die affair and the outcome may define the season for both teams ,just maybe.

Chelsea has had the first real challenge on their premiership credentials over the last 3 years.The amazing consistency of the last 2 years has been matched (if not surpassed)by a resurgent and very entertaining Man U.Chelsea has not looked totally convincing this season and would love to keep this in the bag before launching assault on others.If they win the league chase could become even more fierce and  interesting.Other competitions too.Same could apply if they lose

But what if they lose,the jury comes out and hey who knows what the effect will be.Chelsea beaten by youngsters(?) Arse? gets pound of flesh.Who is really better?The Lip or The Nose.Can they rise above that?

Ass'nall has had a most unusual of league seasons ,a carryover from an equally tentative run last season which saw them somehow qualify for Europe in arguably controversial circumstances.Ass'nall have never won this trophy and would be happy(ecstatic?)to win what probably represents its best chance of silverware this season.Finally getting one over Chelsea will be something to gloat over for a while.Alnd not to forget the famed  youth development policy of Wenger which will have been deemed successful.More importantly Ass'nall gets renewed vigour to pursue what is left of their season.And who knows what could happen then.

But what if they lose?Well for one there will be the (tenuous)excuse that the campaign was prosecuted by youngsters and they have achieved so much.However, when that excuse wears out will they be able to pick up the pieces and relaunch attacks on the FA Cup and UCL which represent somewhat more realistic (even if very optimistic) chances of silverware. Last year Ass'nall lost the Champions League final in their first ever final appearnce.Will it be DEJAVU?

WHATEVER HAPPENS WE WILL LOOK BACK AT TODAY AND FEEL THAT THIS MATCH MAY HAVE DEFINED THE SEASON FOR EITHER SIDE.

May the better side win.

WAN UNITED

**Heard some new books/films may be launched today.Watch out!!!

Ronaldo may not become the highest goalscorer but surely he will surely give all hitmen a run for their money.16 goals in 26 is fantastic and better than the 1 in 2 for strikers.With 10 games to go he may just cross the 20 goal mark which  is double the average for a high  scoring midfielder.

This guy's FANTASTIC.

WAN UNITED

@all,
this was a very nerve wracking game.Tension all the way.

Guys, Fulham deserved SOMETHING  out of the game. They looked sharp for most parts of the game.They started strongly ,had great chances and for extended periods of the game dominated the midfield.Michael  Brown was fantastic for them .Simon Davies was superb,Diop was hard in midfield.Voltz was uncompromising(almost)at right back,Razinski and McBride were always threatening .Fulham played like a team without fear,with a plan and with tons of enthusiasm.There were incidents but maybe things evened out over the 90 minutes.They fought and deserved something.They were worthy adversaries.

We struggled for extended periods of the game.Rooney's touches let him down many times (though he was involved in the first goal),Henrik was not fully in the game(though he tried),Ronaldo was almost marked out in midfield(almost),Evra was not his usual self,we were tentative in the first quarter of the game and did not look our threatening self in their  final 3rd.Giggs was fantastic throughout,Scholes had to drop too deep to pick up balls,Van the man kept us in the game with at least 3 world class saves.Our goal attempts though many did not always look threatening, hey it was a battle.And we looked a bit tired.But good we came through.We played well but surely our expectations are much higher.

EVEN WHEN YOU DON"T PLAY AT YOUR BEST YOU MUST BE ABLE TO DIG IN A RESULT.THAT IS THE STUFF CHAMPS ARE MADE OF.

That we have done today to full effect.

*Ronaldo is world class.He took on volz and then brown(probably the best Fulham player today)in a 40 yard run so late in the game!Where did he get the strength?!.Great stuff.We are lucky to have people who can change the course of a game with simple individual brilliance.We should be proud.

This is a sample of what we will face with each game.No point will be collected on a platter.We have done our bit now and pushed the pressure back on the chasing pack.9 points ahead.Sometime later we may look at today's game(like the MU/Newcastle game in 96) as the turning point in the title race,just maybe.

Meanwhile cheers as we inch closer and closer.10 games to go .We need 8 wins or less


Keep scoring,
Keep winning,


WAN UNITED

Sheath please.

WAN UNITED

Hmmmmmn
No comment.

has any team in england eva won back to back besides CHELSEA

@star01,
back to back what?


WAN UNITED

E be like say you no get the money sef.
Where is razor?


WAN UNITED

i remember jackal posted something back then saying .
we'll see threads like gilberto has a new girlfriend.wenger getting married and so on . i guess his words are slowly coming true

@mukina,
best way to stop such threads is just to ignore.


WAN UNITED

With the $ sign in my pupils all I can see is Arsenal winnnig by 5 goals or how many do you want.In fact Lehman will score from a goalkick.Serious.
Up Goners Dollars

WAN UNITED DOLLAR

Ok now

Goners DOLLARS FOR LIFE

WAN UNITED

ONE DOLLAR

@debo,
you see?



WAN UNITED