₦airaland Forum

DJ Tval...first groove of the season loading....

Oboy see as them save Alonso penrity there

I heard Lord Bendtner scored in the dying embers to take it to Penas

standd:
@Topic..I just feel that if all else fail, publishing the name and pictures of a sexual offender will go a long way in stopping others from committing the same offence.
What do you think?

@Bolded is not true, Nigeria can be fixed if we really want her to be fixed cos the change we want, starts with me and you.

Naming and Shaming does not work. We've seen all the articles posted online with names and photos of the pedos and rapists. What has happened to them afterwards? Do you even remember the names of the perps or the victims? I certainly don't.

The ideal thing to have is a sex offenders list...but even that wouldn't work in Nigeria for obvious reasons.

The only thing to do is to protect yourself.

Look at it this way, I live in a country where fences are ornamental rather than functional, and windows don't have bars on them. The average person here does not need a 6 foot fence with barbed wire to protect him from burglars and the police are well equipped to rapidly respond to any calls for help. Consequently it is illegal to use deadly force to defend yourself in your own house

Now in contrast, I was born in a country where the fences are very much functional and all the windows and doors have bars on them. The average person needs a 10 foot wall topped with barbed wire, spikes and broken bottles, in addition to burglary proofed iron bars on windows and doors, and their gates are padlocked. The police system does not work, and you are encouraged to defend yourself if and when you can.

That is the key thing here: Self-Defence.

Now one _idiot quoted me to ask who would defend a 10 year old girl. 10 year old girls get molested even in advanced countries. If I have to explain that my post on self-defence also extends to guardians defending their wards, I might as well just give up on having an intelligent conversation.

Finally, Standd Nigeria is broken, no two ways about it. Idealism is misplaced when talking about the utter clusterfuck that is that country. Nigerians must be pragmatic realists on all occasions. There is really nothing else to aspire to.

On Chancel Mbemba - Newcastle's latest signing.
This one is quite long

Everyone has a birthday. A joyful day for receiving presents from family and friends, for blowing out candles on a cake as you celebrate your arrival on this earth.

Some people even have two, such as Britain's Queen Elizabeth II -- one to mark the date of her birth, and one to celebrate the anniversary of her coronation.

But soccer player Chancel Mbemba Mangulu can top that. He appears to have four "birthdays" -- and it has caused him a lot of problems. So much so that football's world governing body FIFA has now started an investigation.

"We are currently analysing all the documents at our disposal and investigations against the relevant entities are on-going," FIFA told CNN on Thursday. "In view of this, we cannot comment any further."

Mbemba was part of the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) squad for the Africa Cup of Nations -- considered one of the toughest tournaments in world soccer -- but, before that, confusion over his date of birth almost put an end to his dreams of a career with a top European club.

Mbemba was registered by his two first Congolese clubs as being born in 1988, according to documents obtained by CNN. Yet for a Cup of Nations qualifier in June 2011, his year of birth was listed as November 30, 1991.

Meanwhile, the birth date recorded by his Belgian club Anderlecht is August 8, 1994.

Just to complicate matters, Mbemba himself, thinks he was born in 1990.

Father Time

The movement of African players to Europe is long established. As many as 137 European clubs from 26 different UEFA member associations have released players for the Cup of Nations. Out of the 368 footballers competing in the tournament, over 50% play in European leagues.

European clubs generally regard African players as athletically and technically gifted. Arguably just as importantly they are relatively cheap to buy, with the added potential that clubs can make a large profit if they are sold in the future.

For the players, the idea of becoming of a professional footballer in Europe holds the promise of a better life for themselves abroad and their families back home.

But the issue of age is no trivial matter in football's high-stakes world.

Key tournaments involving national teams, such as the Olympics and the Under-20 and Under-17 World Cups, have age limits for participating players. An over-age player brings the advantage of having increased physical development as well as more tactical training and experience at a high level on the pitch.

In professional leagues, as a player ages, Father Time becomes the enemy. A player who is older is perceived as closer to being past his prime -- and clubs tend to be less willing to invest in him by offering them a lucrative contract.

Bureaucratic nightmare

Born in the Congolese capital of Kinshasha, Mbemba had more reasons than most to try and play in Europe.

Despite the nation's wealth in natural resources, the country's citizens are among the poorest in the world, and it has seen more than its fair share of violence over the decades. Civil wars -- most recently in the 1990s through 2003 -- have left millions dead across the country and displaced entire generations.

"I want to go there," Mbemba kept repeating as he dreamed of following in the footsteps in one of Kinshasa's most famous sons -- former Real Madrid, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Claude Makelele. "Our family was very, very poor," he added in an April interview.

Recent attempts to contact Mbemba to shed light on his unusual story have gone unanswered.

While Mbemba's dream has become something of a bureaucratic nightmare, his story also highlights the continuing issue of age fabrication in football.

In 2009, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was embarrassed in the run-up to the Under-17 World Cup in Nigeria when FIFA introduced MRI scans to ensure teams were not fielding overage players.

Wary of the tests, Africa's competitors ran their own tests to discover a handful of The Gambia's African championship-winning side were overage, while Nigeria was forced to drop over a dozen players from its proposed squad.

Age fabrication allows nations to field stronger teams in youth tournaments. The age of player is also important for the buying and selling club as it has implications for their salary and future sell-on value.

"Most of the age cheating is intentional and aimed at securing victories in international youth competitions, or overseas contracts, especially in Europe," African historian Peter Alegi, author of "African Soccerscapes: How a Continent Changed the World's Game," told CNN.

"Almost everyone up and down the commodity chain is involved -- from coaches and recruiters to family and the players themselves."

A technically gifted defender, Mbemba played for three clubs in the Congo beginning in 2006,with his birth date registered at E.S. La Grace and Mputu as August 8, 1988 -- according to copies of official Congolese player photocards given to CNN -- before he joined MK Étanchéité.

The documents showing Mbemba's various ages were provided by the Brazilian agent Paulo Teixeira, who says he was called in by E.S. La Grace to obtain money they claimed was owed to them by Anderlecht for training the player in his formative years.

In attempting to verify these documents -- from FIFA, the various federations and clubs involved -- only the world governing body and the Belgian FA responded directly to CNN's request to confirm their authenticity, while a professional Belgian referee confirmed that the Anderlecht team sheet was the type of paperwork used in Belgian football.

"It goes by itself that it is impossible for the Belgian FA to control manually whether every player taking part in a game organized by our federation is also a member of our federation," said the Belgian FA in a statement.

"Weekly, the Belgian FA organizes more than 10,000 games all over the country (300,000 every year) and so far, most of the official match sheets are not digitalized.

Mbemba's talent ensured he quickly came to the attention of the Congo national coaches, though, with his birth date listed as 1988, Mbemba would have been ineligible for the 2012 Olympic Games if the DRC squad were to make it through the qualifying rounds.

That, according to an official of Congo's football federation, prompted authorities to turn the clock forward.

"We needed him, so we registered him as being born in 1991," explained the staff member of the Fédération Congolaise de Football-Association -- FECOFA -- who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject.

However the testimony of another Congolese player, Mike Cestor, who plays for fifth-tier English club Woking, suggests that the Mbemba case is not a one-off.

"I was selected for an Olympic Games qualifying match with Congo's under-23 team against Morocco," said Cestor.

"But it was a complete mess -- the organization, training and the trip itself. We were three new players who played in Europe.

"The FECOFA told us: 'We'll make a passeport provisoire,' " added Cestor, referring to the official document which is issued by a country's football association on behalf of the players and is submitted to match officials for a game.

"Every player had a passeport provisoire -- it was shocking, though, mine never arrived," said the Woking player, whose dream is still to play for the Congo national team despite the organization of the FECOFA..

"Before the game, one lady from Morocco was checking the passports. She was angry and she screamed in French: 'It's a disgrace! I never saw that in all my life!'

"She knew it was false but she couldn't do anything. Of course the dates of birth were untrue.

"The FECOFA and the staff write what they want, especially for the local players. It was comical. The FECOFA is the major source of the problems in Congolese football. Its organization is awful."

Asked why Mbemba had been allowed to play for the Congo with various different ages, FECOFA president Constant Omari declined to address the question.

"I'm a president of a federation. I don't know what presidents in the UK say, but here we do not comment on players' age," Omari told CNN. "I have strictly nothing to add."

He hung up before any other questions could be asked.

Meanwhile, Mbemba's prospects of securing that move to Europe gathered pace after he was spotted by Fabio Baglio, who also represents one of the DRC's leading players Dieumerci Mbokani -- also of Anderlechet -- and recently voted Belgium's player of the year.

It was thanks to Baglio's contacts that Mbemba was granted a trial by Anderlecht in June 2011.

Granted a residence permit the following month, Mbemba played in official games for Anderlecht, but one key piece of information had changed.

Mbemba was now six years younger with a new date of birth -- August 8, 1994. How -- and by whom -- that date was arrived at isn't entirely clear.

Mbemba himself has continued to say in interviews that he was actually born in 1990. Regardless, with the new club and his new birth date, the paperwork trail began to catch up with him.

One of Mbemba's former club presidents, Bernard Yuka of E.S. La Grace, decided it was time to claim a training compensation fee from Anderlecht -- given that the Congo team had helped train him and was, therefore, entitled to development costs associated with nurturing him as a player.

Yuka mandated the Brazilian agent Paulo Teixeira, who has experience of working with small African and South American clubs to obtain player development payments, to help E.S. La Grace obtain the money from FIFA, which adjudicates such cases.

During a conversation between Teixeira and Yuka -- the Brazilian has provided CNN with a transcript of that exchange -- the E.S. La Grace president allegedly told the agent that FECOFA president Omari wanted the training compensation case dropped.

Last year Teixeira submitted the transcript to FIFA as part of a dispute case he was involved in with AC Milan and Anderlecht. And on Thursday, the world governing body confirmed it was now investigating the issues surrounding the Mbemba case.

Teixeira told Yuka he was happy to drop the mandate, but that the paperwork from Mbemba's spells at E.S La Grace and Mputu was not going to go away.

"I knew the club had rights on the matter, so I pursued them," said Yuka earlier this week, who also verified to CNN the conversation he had with Omari in April. Omari refused to discuss the issue when he was contacted by CNN.

At the start of 2012, Mbemba's case developed a Kafkaesque twist.

Despite the fact that he had made his debut for Anderlecht's Under-19 team in September 2011, playing against Club Brugge, it emerged that the Belgian Football Association had never registered the defender.

As a result, Mbemba was technically ineligible -- according to source with direct knowledge of the situation -- to play either in that match or in two others when he turned out for the Belgian powerhouse.

"At this moment the Belgian FA is working on the complete digitalization of its official match sheets which will be completed by July 1, 2013," said the Belgian FA. "From then on, situations like this should no longer be possible."

To further complicate matters, FIFA became involved in March 2012 -- because if Mbemba in fact had been born in August 1994, he was technically a minor under the governing body's Transfer Matching System rules.

"Please understand that the date of birth of any player noted in the Transfer Matching System (TMS) is confidential to parties involved in the transfer of that particular player," FIFA said in a statement to CNN. "Therefore, we are unable to provide it to you.

"Generally speaking, we have to highlight that a falsified passport is a legal offense which has to be followed by legal authorities. TMS is a tool which provides all parties that are involved in a transfer with all the details they need to know about the player, and helps to bring transparency into a transfer."

With confusion growing around Mbemba's status, Anderlecht sent him back to Kinshasa.

"Taking into account the opacity of the case and the legal consequences that may arise, Anderlecht has decided not to offer an employment contract to Mbemba," said the club's general manager Herman van Holsbeeck in a letter to FIFA, which was part of the documentation given to CNN.

When asked to provide clarity about the irregularities in Mbemba's case, Anderlecht requested time to prepare a response, before communication and media manager David Steegen announced that the club would have no comment on the subject. The agent Baglio and Entacheite president Max' Moxey also also declined to return CNN's calls to shed light on the Mbemba affair,

Mbemba's return to Africa was tough for him to take.

"I was born in 1990," said the defender. While in an interview with the Sharkfoot website in April 2012, Mbemba said: "I don't understand. Fabio Baglio told me that I had to go to Africa to come back to Anderlecht later. In May, Entacheite president Max' (Mokey) told me I will go back.

"Anderlecht's managing director told me I will sign a professional contract in August. The chairman of La Grace will sign a document to confirm my date of birth as 1994 and I can come back."

In June 2012, Mbemba's prospects brightened when the Congo national team's French coach Claude Leroy picked him to play against the Seychelles in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

Soon afterwards a Kinshasa court ruled that Mbemba was, in fact, born on August 8, 1994 and he was given the perfect present when he was handed a three-year deal with Anderlecht.

The icing on the cake for the now 18-year-old Mbemba came when he was called up for the DRC's Africa Cup of Nations squad for the 2013 event in South Africa, though he was not used in any of the matches with Leroy's team knocked out of the competition after drawing all three of their games.

How Mbemba's career pans out remains to be seen. Whatever happens, he is likely to be remembered as the player who had four birthdays

This one is quite interesting.

Anyway here are my thoughts on the issue.

1. Harsh penalties are not a deterrent. A would be rapist will not baulk at the thought of doing time or even killed as a consequence for his\her perverse quest for gratification.

2. Educating people about r ape is pointless. Most men and women are fully aware of what the crime is. I doubt that anyone in the world is under the illusion that non-consensual sexual relations are morally and/or legally right.

3. Most victims do not report sexual attacks. Here in the UK there have been recent incidents when former victims are coming forward to report attacks from 20-30 years ago, often after their attackers have long passed away. RAINN (an anti_rape charity in America claim that about 68% of all sexual attacks go unreported)

4. Sexual offenders lists will not work in Nigeria for obvious reason: Lack of infrastructure, power, and the effectiveness of bribery

5. Law enforcement is non-existent. In 2012 I was introduced to a guy at Evans square Ebutte-Metta, who was just fresh out of jail. He was a convicted murder. According to government records, he is awaiting execution at KiriKiri prison....Instead he's a big time dope mover on Lagos Island.


To this end, I believe it is the Onus of every man and woman in Nigeria to protect himself/herself from rape, cos no-one else will do it for you. The government lacks the ability and/or political goodwill to implement any useful reforms.

Nigeria is also a country where criminals are most likely to get away with the crime. It's not gong to get better any time soon.

Nigeria is too broken to fix...and you realistically cannot hope to curb sexual offences in Nigeria. The best you can do is to try and protect yourself.

Man City losing 4-0 to Stuggart

Please bring this form on the 16th of August

What a very dull boy this OP is...

chamotex:
Nihilist
Lalaboiy
Raumdeuter
OAM4J
Ibime
Coogar
A-40
U1
Kashmo

Guys please drop an email address to send details.
Including myself...that makes 10.
Any other person that wants to join will have a week to do so.

Jackbauersballs@gmail.com

How long before Arturo collects his own igbati?

[img]http://i./X6WAXoXQ6U3S0.gif[/img]

A40:
This guy must believe he is a Rockstar. Haha typical Cholo behavior

Bwahahaha he resemble them well. Awon essay

nateevs:
All said I don't believe the striking department is in state of disaster. For the EPL, certainly not. For Europe, different matter entirely. And for reasons that extend beyond any striker issues.

airmark:
The intensity of the epl may not be favourable to costa. He is already showing in pre-season matches that he may not start the league well as he did last season. Falcao, I think will need a miracle to return to that form he used to be in, at athletico madrid. Loic Remy's consistency is a concern. I look beyond epl, UCL is something we should shoot at. Antonio candreva is ok to replace cuadrado, baba rahman and stones are needed at the defence, at least to give it a depth. If we say our top strikers are in top condition now to contend with the likes of Bayern, real, barca in the ucl, we are being economical with the truth.

Apologies, I should have explained better that my post was framed within a domestic context. Like you say, the strikers we've got are good enough for a domestic challenge, but certainly not in Europe.

But I don't believe we should be looking at winning in Europe anyway, at least in the short term. At this point in time, I believe it is more important to prioritise league success, and focus more on building a dynasty. If it was up to me, I would ensure the team crashes out at group stage sef. It's not like our team is good enough to challenge consistently with Real, Barca and Bayern anyway.

AirborneLacer:
This piece is penned with two hopes;

1. To stimulate spirited discussion among the members of the Chelsea family
2. In the hope that some person(s) in the corridors of power for Chelsea FC perchance stumble upon it, reads it and that it gives food for serious thought and hopefully beyond that action.

It's quite a long piece, I pray I don't get banned

That is a very thoughtful piece which raises some salient points HOWEVER....

Lukaku was the designated understudy to Costa. It was only after Lukaku decided to pursue his dream elsewhere that Remy was signed, so in a way Lukaku forced Jose's hand.

This means that Remy's signing wasn't as thoughtless as your article implied it to be. It's very difficult to find a quality striker who's happy to sit on the bench, and as Ibime once pointed out, Remy was a man with a slandered reputation and a point to prove.

Overall, I think management is fully aware of the situation. Costa and Remy are good enough to prosecute the season, and Falcao is a fantastic no-strings attached option to have as a 3rd striker(Falcao!! )

Jose has clearly got an eye on youth, and his loan of Bamford to Palace will give him the necessary experience he needs to maybe become the Number 2 man next season, and I must say the boy is looking sharp. Congratulations on your hattrick today Bimffo!

Jose is also looking to integrate Traore as the 4th striker, so there are options. Fact of the matter is that when Costa is carefully managed, he is deadly effective, and there aren't too many strikers that could bench Costa currently available in Europe. Lacazette certainly won't.

So in conclusion, I disagree with your article insistence that a Franchise striker can not be injury prone - Just look at Aguero, RVP (2011-2013), and Robben.

Just give them the Ledley King treatment, and wrap them in cotton wool after each game before carefully storing in the cupboard, and they'll be fine

Blind is actually a very good defender.

His positioning, interception and tackling are top notch. His vision, ball control and passing abilities are superb.

Granted he's not very tall for a CB, but Cannavaro was a full 2 inches shorter and is widely regarded as one of the greatest CBs of the modern era.

I believe that LVG intends to utilise him as a ball playing centre back that could step into midfield when his team has possesion, and this could work very well.

The major downside to this plan is Blind's lack of 'substance'. Just imagine Lukaku, Benteke or Bony catching him one on one. Or Costa..that one na die.

dopeJemi:
No, it's a disgrace for the Epl champions to lose to PSG

Don't get it twisted

Oh ok

Thanks for untwisting that for me.

I also heard that Manyoo are losing their best player from last season, in addition to Angel Di Maria.

I also heard that you are not signing any new centerbacks.

But your colleague told us Jose was in danger of losing his job as a result of not signing new players.

Does LVG not like his job?

I heard Manyoo lost to PSG last night.

I thought it was 'disgraceful' to lose to PSG these days?

mikeywise:
We will soon have a ten page argument for this statement

Not really

Sergio is a fantastic positional defender, and incredible presser, who knows how to use his long legs and gangly body to tackle in a way that usually makes it unnecessary for him to foul his opponent, or even go to ground to win a ball back.

He's very clever in the way he pressures his opponent into making a bad pass instead of attempting a tackle. He has a very high football IQ and so offers several tactical options to a savvy coach, but if you ask him to be a physical force, in terms of speed, and switching transition from defence to attack, then he could struggle.

He is quite slow, and has the turning radius of a trailer, and is not dominant in the air.

Queue Mr Matic, for the sheer physicality he brings to the middle of the park. His no-nonsense tackling, jumping, and all round physical play, coupled with his above-average technical skills, means that he can be used as an iron fist in a velvet glove in the centre of the park.

Can we even count how many times we've seen Matic steal the ball from his opponent and initiate a counter straight away? Or how many times he's driven the ball forward with purpose from deep, taking on several men before offloading to a team mate in space.

Matic might not be as techincally gifted as Busquets, or as positionally sound, but he does more of everything to a fantastic standard.

It's like comparing a beautiful Rangerover evoque to a G-Wagon. Beauty or the Beast.

I like the Beast.

I would take Matic over Busquets anyday though

This Dayo and Pantaki can be so funny sha.

See all the historical essays they are quoting just to try and prove Hitler was not a fan of Bayern.

Next time anybody says Chelsea parks the bus, I may have to post excerpts from an interview with my mechanic explaining why it is impossible to park a bus on the pitch during a football match

Wind your necks in Lads.

A40:
We can do $20 a piece. Exchange rate dey binu for here and i don use all my money buy Bayern gear

20$ is like 16 pounds. Add small make e reach 20 pounds.

Chamotex please note that lalaboiy is also interested.

Raumdeuter Coogar Ibime OAM4J

chamotex:
Who's interested to put some money on it for fun.
£10/20. If we can get between 10-15 people, we can set it up.
Serious folks only!

Mate I've been wanting to do this for time now.

A40 Ibime Raumdeuter Coogar

Who else go dey interested in this movement?

Tval:
So you all are supporting Mourinho for that comment

Of course.

What an epic comeback.

What's your opinion on it?

Amateur. He should have followed up with several litres of water. instead he went to sit under a fan

I hope Costa is not a Brazilian Sturridge?

Well that was a stunning lack of professionalism on the OAPs part.

Stick to facts only.

nateevs:
It's Jose's clever man management skills biko. Succinctly stated by Ibime with that beautiful piece. If Jose managed a rival team, he will tell the world Hazard is about as good as Walcott. But as the Chelsea Manager, Jose's using the platform to remind Hazard he can be anything he wants to be.

Absolutely...It's like when Steven Gerrard said in an interview that Joe Cole was as good as Messi on the ball

PabloAfricanus:
Dont credit yaself with posting references that only busted ya points.
Or rather dont praise yaself for posting historical accounts that hold no meaning to the discussion.
You quoted Jaja's 'trading' practices completely out of context...and attempted to cook up a mishmash of
unrelated facts to justify your argument...that a man nay a king who actually stood up to the greedy British is simply great
and not a hero.
Because according to you...he was a 'cut throat' bad business man...who should have allowed other profit
seeking business men to erode the margins on his commodities...
Cos apparently he did not bend over and hand over the control of his trading routes to the kind British...
He also did not allow hinterland traders direct access to the markets he controlled...
He also did not allow the wise British traders set the prices instead of him Jaja...
Even more importantly he completely monopolized the trade in a kingdom he founded and ruled...instead of
allowing other traders compete openly with him, crash his commodity prices, or sell at prices they choose to whomever...
The sheer naiveté of ya reasoning apparently eludes you...


Smh...insults wont win you any points in any discussion kiddo.
Show some civility atleast...
You could actually have proved you are the superior man by not resorting to insults.
But what do you know? Just a kiddo right?

like your friends, you seem to be going off a tangent.

I said Jaja was a great businessman, and not a Hero.

The whole crux of my argument is is that everything Jaja did was to protect his own business interests.

Your entire long winded post up there does not discount that argument.

Unless, to you protecting your market share counts as a heroic act.

PabloAfricanus:
Well...the counter argument has been well articulated by Phut and the rest...so nothing for me to add really.
If you care to learn...go through their replies to your numerous off mark points...you might just get the drift.
But for the records here's my take...Jaja was one unique African monarch who stood up to the shenanigans of the British invaders.
He caught up quick on the need to modernize the locals and was quite visionary in his policies.
Trade back then was far different from what we have now...guess you would not know how the British operated
among the lands they invaded/colonized.
Jaja protected his interests...and those of his kingdom...against far superior British business men masquerading as agents of
the British crown. He finally paid the ultimate prize...rather than risk Opobo being razed.
That a lot of posters agree makes him a hero.
Ofcourse you are free to disagree...but do so intelligently.

You sound really angry at something tho
Hope you are not one of those guys who go provoking a fight and then complain bitterly when they get bloodied up.
Keep ya insults to yaself kiddo...and address me civilly if you must.

Loool

"Address me civily if you must"

The sheer cheek of that statement.

I'm minding my own business, when some dude quotes me to tell me I argue like a child, and then accuses me of being another random poster.

Dude then instructs me to be 'civil to him'

.

I cant even be arsed to discuss anything with you.
During my discussions with your friends, I was the only one who bothered to post historical accounts, and reference articles by learned academics.

But I'm the one who argued like a child. Lol

Mate go and treat your bipolar disorder.

I'm done.

PabloAfricanus:
Insultive are we? I think you can do better than that...
Your reasons for labelling Jaja as a 'great' man and not a 'hero'...were just naive and childish to say the least.
You did not raise any valid point...and I called you out on that.
Your style of writing def matches the dude I mentioned...to a large degree IMO...ofcourse you can disagree.
Just pointing out to you to critically evaluate ya arguments b4 posting them...

Does not really matter...you know...just another online banter.
Having said that...quit with the insults kiddo...alright?
You never know whom you might be talking to.

Don't know you. Don't care.

If you have something to say about Jaja, then the stage is yours.

If you have specific points to make, then feel free.

But if you say my opinion is naive and childish without having the temerity to articulate a counter argument, then I don't have time to engage in such 'online banter'

And I definitely don't have the time to massage your overly fertile imagination. If you must see the ghosts of other posters, negro go see them in someone else's post.

Come correct or fvck off. It really is that simple.

PabloAfricanus:
Hey kiddo, quit with the insults okay?
Been following the discussion and ya points were clearly off the mark by like a 1000 miles.
And you definitely sound like the dude I mentioned.
Now be at peace.

Well, a sensible fellow would have expressed his objections to my points instead of :

1. Accusing me of being another poster
2. Asking me to get my facts right, without posting any sensible submission.

PabloAfricanus must be Latin for Idi0t.

I advise that you stay off my mention in the absence of a decent submission, and go and treat your bipolar disorder or something

PabloAfricanus:
Shymm3x you again? Arguing like a kid all over the place
Dude...piece of advice to ya...brush up on your critical thinking skills and STOP thinking with ya emotions.
Get ya facts right, if you dont have them...just keep quiet.

Are you insane?

afrodoc2:
What do you think of Witsel or a Bender twin to replace Mikel?
What happened to Josh Mcceachran, i was so sure that boy would make it.

Mceachcran has moved to Brentford.

I don't know much about that Witsel to make an informed decision, but his ex chic is phwoarrrrrr

On Signing Cuadrado

Ask John Terry what makes Jose Mourinho so special and the word that usually comes up is 'detail'. So when the Chelsea boss explains what made him sign Radamel Falcao after an unimpressive season at Manchester United, it's natural to assume there has been an in-depth process behind the decision.

"I watched our game against Manchester United a few times," said Mourinho. "I spoke with John and (Gary) Cahill a lot about him and we think the bright movement is there, the movement to get freedom in the box to score goals is there. Our players had difficulty to control him and we feel the potential is there."

Mourinho was referring to the Premier League game between Chelsea and United in April. The only goal of the game was scored by Eden Hazard after Falcao was robbed of possession by Terry - "It all came from that," said Gary Neville on co-commentary for Sky Sports - but Cahill recalls a tough test. "I just remember he was non-stop," said the Chelsea defender.

"He was always pulling you left to right, coming short and running in behind. Even when he wasn't getting a lot of the ball, off the ball I was having to do a lot of running, chasing him and he was moving me around every two minutes. He made that game tough and there was a lot of movement people didn't see because the ball was elsewhere. I had to always be on my toes."

But was this performance that Mourinho studied so closely and quizzed his players about really indicative of Falcao's performances or was it an outlier? Sir Alex Ferguson admitted that he was "always wary of buying players on the back of good tournament performances" after getting caught out on several occasions, but this was just onegame.

The statistical evidence suggests that Falcao's efforts against Chelsea were atypical. The Colombian made 60 high-intensity sprints at Stamford Bridge - corroborating Cahill's assessment - which was more than any of his team-mates. But it was also more than in any of his other 25 Premier League appearances last season.

Would Mourinho have felt the same way had he watched the replays of Falcao's performance against Yeovil so intently? And even if the Chelsea game is accepted as the benchmark, how much might Cahill's view of Falcao's threat have been influenced by his previous difficulties against the striker?

After all, Chelsea were on the receiving end of one of Falcao's finest displays - his Super Cup hat-trick against the then Champions League holders, completed inside 45 minutes in Monaco in September 2012. It was a performance that Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone referred to as "indescribable" and Cahill certainly had no answer.

The so-called 'availability heuristic' holds that the more available a piece of information is to the memory, the more likely it is to influence your decision, even when the information is irrelevant. It's not a new phenomenon but it could have coloured Cahill's experience, just as it affected Neville when up against iconic Brazilian forward Romario.

Neville has described Romario as "the toughest striker I've ever played against" and his view of the player stemmed back to when United were "torn to shreds" by him in his Barcelona days. Neville also recalled being unnerved by the sight of Romario joking on the halfway line with Ronaldo during a 1997 international in which he scored the only goal of the game.

By the time of the World Club Cup in 2000, Romario was at Vasco da Gama, about to turn 34 and ostensibly past his best. It didn't stop him scoring twice against United and Neville - "both defensive horrors and both down to me" - in what Paul Scholes called 'Fiasco da Gama'. So was Cahill, like Neville, playing the memory of the man instead of the ball?

These memories are not always a bad thing, of course. Neville also recalls feverishly texting his brother after witnessing the vast potential of Sporting's Cristiano Ronaldo in a friendly in Lisbon. "United would never have signed a player because of 90 minutes in a pre-season friendly," said Neville. "But they would probably have concluded it a bit quickly after that."

History is littered with such examples and you don't have to look beyond the current crop of Premier League strikers to find them. Emmanuel Adebayor scored eight goals in nine north London derbies for Arsenal before joining Tottenham. And is it a coincidence that Christian Benteke has scored more goals against Liverpool than any other Premier League club?

If that feels like a reactive approach to recruitment, that doesn't mean it doesn't go on. One of the principles of the Moneyball approach to finding value is that "what he did last was not necessarily what he would do next" but anecdotal evidence continues to be a factor in which players clubs opt to sign.

The situation was flagged up by Rob Mackenzie, now head of player identification at Tottenham, on Twitter last season. 'Despite advances in technology, data management and enhanced availability of stats,' wrote Mackenzie, 'many signings seem to occur as a result of same key reasons.' He outlined them as follows:

* He used to be a good player and that is what I remember about him. 'If' we can get him to that level again, he will be really good for us.

* Somebody knows him personally and he is a good lad and he wants to join the club.

* He has played well for an acquaintance of the manager who has recommended him.

* He shares the same agent as the key decision maker at the club.

* He has played well previously against the team who he has just signed for.

Chelsea supporters might wonder just how many of those boxes the acquisition of Falcao could tick. It doesn't mean that he will not flourish in Chelsea blue. But it does call into question the rationale behind the signing. After all, aside from everything else, why buy a player who plays well against you when you are now the one team he cannot play against?