Premiership Season 2004-2005 and General Soccer

[innersmile]

Hey all,
As you probably know by now, I am a fan of soccer. I mostly follow English football but I enjoy Italian, Spanish and Dutch as well. What most of you should know is that Saturday is the start of the new season, and therefore this thread was born. I also hope to share my knowledge of the game and the gripping culture that surrounds the fanatical support that football has become so infamouse for.

I will do my best to post weekly to fill you in on all the action, drama, and goals from the season and I invite you to share your opinions, pet hates, woes, and tears freely. Here's a little backroung news to get the juices flowing...

Liverpool (LFC):
LFC have finally appointed a new manager to clean up the mess that a long past his sell by date Houllier left on the club. After a terribly sub par campaign the Reds will be looking to mount a serious challange for the premiership this year. The newly appointed coach from Valencia, Rafa Benithez looks to be just the man to turn Liverpool around. I watched Liverpool play Valencia twice while Rafa was incharge of Valencia and Gerrard Houllier was at LFC. Both times, Valencia won the game easily. To say Liverpool were outclasses was an understatement. They looked like school boys playing against pros.

Rafa's appointment at the helm has seen some much needed changes take place. The entire coaching staff has been replaced and there are going to be some big changes in the squad. Already, players like El Hadji Diouff (I don't think a more useless player has ever worn a Liverpool shirt and doubt one ever will) have been told to find a new club but, I wouldn't take him for free. England International Danny Murphy has completed his £2.5 million move to Londoners Charlton after being told by Rafa that he will not feature regularly in the team's plans in future.

Bruno Cheyrou has already been loaned out to a French Club after 2 dissappointing years at Anfield (Liverpool's stadium) and there are sure to be a few more pieces of dead wood to be cut lose soon.

Hesky has also parted company with the Reds after a somewhat uneventful spell at Anfield. I have always been a fan of the big centre forward and I blame Houllier for his downfall. Now with up-coming Birmingham city I wish Hesky the best of luck for his new campaign. I never doubted his talent for a second and I predict him returing to his former best that we saw while he was at Liester.

So far, Liverpool have only signed 2 players, Josemi (forget where he came from, but a Spanish club for sure) a gifted full back and... Djibiril Cisse, a French monster of a striker who finished last season as the French Leagues top scorer with 26 goals to his name. He has been waiting to come to Liverpool and snubbed a host of top sides to finally make his dream of playing for Liverpool a reality. In 4 games he has already scored more goals the Diouf did in his entire time at Anfield. Expect big things.

Michael Owen's future is still in doubt as he has yet to sign a new contract with the club. The are rumours floating round that Real Madrid want him, but that has been said every year now for ages. Barcelona will also be interested if Owen decides that his future lies elsewhere. Personally, I think Rafa should sell Owen and cash in on him now. He has only a year left on his contract and when it expires he becomes a free agent. Liverpool will not want to lose a player of his calibre for nothing like they did in '99 with Steve McManamon. Anyway, with Cisse and Baros (Euro's top goal scorer) and bright young talent Sinema Pongolle, Liverpool are not desparate for strikers.

Arsenal:
Last season's unbeaten winners of the league will be everyone's team to beat this time round. With the smallest squad of players used in the entire campaign last year, Arsenal have got what it takes to be kings again this season. The side oozes with talent, both expeienced (Bergkamp, Viera, Cambell) and fresh (Reyes, Pennant) that has the ability to tear open even the most stubborn defence.

All eyes will be on Thiery Henry as he looks to defend his golden boot (top scorer) from last season. After a dissappointing exit from Euro 2004 he will be looking for revenge.

Speculation continues to circulate about the future of Gunner's skipper Patrick Viera. Real Madrid are looking to make him their next Galacticos as they continue to buy the best player in the world in a position they don't already have him in. Viera has been the driving force behind Arsenal and when he was out, he was missed. Arsenal will be hardpressed should Viera decide to join Real as there are few people who could tie his boots, let alone fill them.

Manchester United:
Sir Alex and his boys will be looking to improve on last season's third place finish. Ruud van Nistleroy is still the main man. With Alan Smith and Louise Saha both there to patner the prolific Dutchman, United are sure to terrorize most defences throughout the year.

Solskjaer is already out for the entire season after persisstent knee trouble and it will be interesting to see how United fair without thier super-sub who has a nack for scoring goals when most needed.

Chelsea:
Russian Billionaire Roman Abromavitch continues to spend money at an alarming rate on both players and coaches. Claudio Ranieri who finished 2nd last year and reached the semi's of the champ's league- which was Chelsea's best ever season got fired for his achievments. Out Ranieri, in Jose Mhoriniho, ex Porto coach who took the Portugese side to Champs league glory last year as well as dominating the domestic league. With seemingly unlimited money for players, Mohriniho has purchased many talents, of which I can only remember a few off the top of my head.

Drogba- French striker who finished 2nd top scorer in the French League has arrived at Stamford Bridge (Chelsea's stadium) and is looking to repay his whopping £17 million move back in goals. Kezeman, formerly of PSV Einhoven fame (or Feynoord, sorry, this is off the top of my head) has also joined the Russian Revolution. The Serbia-Montenegro Intrenational finished top scorer in Holland last year and is surely someone to watch closely. Chelski have also added electric Dutch winger Robben to their payroll, and after his impact on Euro 04, he is certain to cause many nightmares for all full backs.

Those are the big 4. Teams to watch next season that could provide many upsets are Charlton, Middlesbourgh, Aston Villa and Birmingham. These teams have constantly improved each season and have steadily built up a squad of formidible players. They will all be looking to secure a top 6 finish which sees them in line for the Lucrative European competitions.

Sorry to say but Newcastle united have 1 more season to win anything. When Alan Shearer retiers at the end of this season; and what a tragedy for football fans everywhere, Newcastle will be lost. Sir Bobby is also in his final season in charge. Ex Barcelona star Patrick Kluivert has moved to St Jameses Park (Newcastles stadium) but he is not in the same league as Shearer, few are. Newcastle fans, loyal as they are must know the start of a decline when they see one...

Teams that have no chance:
Alas, as I see it, these are the possible relegation canidates:

Manchest City- Kevin Keegan's amazingly inconsistent team were 1st at one point in last season but finished just 2 posiitons clear of the drop zone. With no new faces arriving, gloom and doom look certain

Spurs- They had an awful season last year and I think it will just get worse. New coach Jaques Santini (ex france coach) is a goat. Yes, he won the world cup and Euro with France but just look at the sqad he had to work with. Anyway, Frances recent excapades on the big stage showed his true mediocrity.

Everton- HA, you toffees! Rooney is good but he cannout save you. Alas, with a paper thin squad at his disposal, Mr David Moyes looks set for another tough season. Rooney will be gone next season because his ambitions will never be fulfilled at Everton. Merseyside (Area where both Liverpool and Everton hail from) is only big enough for one top club and LFC have proven who that is time and time again.

As always, the new commers to the league who were promoted for winning the lower leagues are always possible cannon fodder. I can't really say who'll stay but it doesn't look too good.

I was going to start with Spanish and Italian as well but I don't have the time. I'll do it soon but not in as much detail. I hope you guys enjoy what promises to be another breath taking season of the Barclay Card English Premiership...

You're posts are welcome and encouraged. Long live the beautiful game...

[HG]

i love soccer. i play in high school.


There is a captains practice today too. YAY

[max]

Wow you really know your English premiership league stuff don't you?
I'm not that interested in soccer myself but will watch the occasionnal PSG (Paris' team) or Arsenal (because they have some top french players in there) game. I do watch France play though when they do..

[max]

I learned today that Zinedine Zidane (undoubtedly one of the most telented midfielders of this day) will not be playing in the french national team anymore.

[innersmile]

Unfortunately, Drogba is not french but rather is an Ivory Coast citizen. Otherwise, he probably would've played for France at Euro instead of David Trezeguet (and would've produced more).

Doblin, there's nothing unfortunate about it. You are 100% correct both in Drogba's nationality and in saying if he had played for France he would have done more than Trez. Personally I think Trez is a fairly average striker and Santini would have done better with Cisse but, as usual the national coaches prefer the tried, tested and safe formula.

Thanks for letting me know, good to know you're reading.
________________________________________________________

Ok, seriously I am a bit shaken up about something. I read this morning the Owen has GONE to Madrid, done deal, almost. There was always speculation and I said that he should go but I never thought he would. Liverpool will be fine though and this may open the door for Saviola (ex Barca) or another talent who will take the Anfield faithful's breath away. Always sad to lose a 'local' boy though and Owen was 1 in a million. I wish him every success at Madrid (I like Madrid but, when they play against Liverpool, I cheer for one team only) and may he soar to 20 goals a season once more in the Spanish Capital.

I can't wait for tomorrow; seriously, I don't think I'll sleep tonight. I may be taking a break from shredding but I'll keep this thread alive as best I can.

YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE!!

[innersmile]

Alright, the new season is finally underway. An eventful weekend but not many surprises.

Liverpool vs. T.Spurs

Liverpool travelled to London to face Spurs in their opening clash of the season. Liverpool played well, solid in the midfield and defence. Cisse opened the scoring after 38 mins with a crafty touch from the 6 yards box.
The second half saw the Spurs revival and they put pressure on LFC and eventually were rewarded with a fine goal from talented youngster Defoe. The score ended up 1-1.

Rafa will be slightly disappointed with the result especially after bringing off Cisse to defend the 1 goal advantage. This negative move gave Spurs the chance to continue the pressure and they were finally awarded. Promising from both sides especially Spurs who, with their new coach and 9 new signings are looking to regain that European spot.

Everton vs Arsenal
As I said, Arsenal would clean them up, 4-1 and that's exactly the score the game ended on. With goals from Reyes, Ljungberg, Pires and Bergkamp, Arsenal are dangerous as ever. The Gunners were handed a boost when Viera decided to stay in London instead of going to Madrid.

Everton are in trouble as speculation about teen sensation Rooney continues to grow about his future. Leave Wayne, there's nothing you can do...

Chelsea vs Man U
Morinhiou started his season off with a narrow 1-0 victory over United. Eider Gudjonson, one of the longest serving Chelsea strikers opened the scoring after 15 minutes.

A seriously depleted Man U held on well but with several key players missing that goal never looked like it was coming. Chelsea will be happy with thier start to what promises to be an exciting season for the Stamford Bridge faithful.

Other results
Bolton vs Charlton 4 - 1
Go Bolton. I really like Sam Allardyce and enjoy watching Bolton play. They are my 2nd fav. Premiership team
Middlebourgh vs New Castle United 2 - 2
A splendid North East Derby with goals from Bellamy and Shearer for the Magpies. Ex Chelsea striker opened his Tside accunt as well as he drew Middles level at 2 all.
Aston Villa vs Southampton
Villa, strong favs for Europe this year were convincing 2-0 winners over a wavering S.Hampton side.

A great opening weekend; my only gripe was that Liverpool didn't win. Looking forward to next weekend already...

[innersmile]

Mon 22 August 2004

The second week of the season came to a close yesterday with Arsenal's brilliant 5-3 victory over Middlesbourgh at Highburry. The Gunners have now equalled Notingham Forrest's unbeaten record in the top flight and they are showing no signs of letting up.

I missed the game due to other commitments but from what I heard, I missed one of the best. Arsenal were 3-1 down at one point when they turned up the heat. Goals from all over the pitch including 2 from Henry saw off a bewildered MB who thought they had ended the Gunner's streak.

Liverpool 2 vs. Man City 1
Rafa's Anfield Debut had a somewhat quiet start with nothing for the highlights package until 30 mins into the game when the pace picked up. Both teams were pretty aimless but at the end of half time, Man city went ahead after a goal keeping error from Dudek. Anelka's persistant run paid off after Dudeky spiled the ball, there was nobody to stop him.

LFC went into half time a goal down and in truth, it didnt look good. From the start of the second half, Liverpool looked a different team. Flowing movement, accurate passing and lively pace eventually brought the Reds a goal. It was Milan Baros who delivered bringing the game level at 1-1.

Man City could find no answer and eventually, after a David James error, Gerrard slammed the winner into an open goal to send the Kop faithful into celebration!

It has been a long time since I watched LFC come from a goal down to win a game. I have nothing but high hopes for the season ahead. New full back Josemi looked dangerous and solid until he had to come off with a back injury. Rafa then brought on Diao into the centre of defence which proved a good move. Diao, while he is versatile is not the most creative of players and the backline suits him. He's a big boy, good in the air, and can tackle well. Kewell is slowly getting his form back. He will want to improve his dribbling skills though. Finnan played on the right of midfield. He is without a doubt the weakest player in the side. When Garcia (ex-Barcelona) and Alonso (ex- R. Sociodad) make their debuts next weekend against Bolton you can expext a dangerous liverpool side.

More to follow...

[innersmile]

part 2, the rest of the games

Birmingham 0 vs. Chelsea 1

Another unconvincing performance form money out the !@$ Chelski. Drogba and Kezeman were barely in the game at all and when the 24mill £ man Drogba finally got sight of an open goal he missed. Badly. With all the money spent you'd expect the 1 goal to be good but it was a lucky deflection that took Cole's shot passed the keeper. With 2 wins frm 2 games things look good on paper. On the field, it's looking dismal.

Man U 2 vs. Norwich 1

Premiership newcommers did well to get a goal at Old Trafford but there was never a question of who would win the match. Alan Smith's superd strike saw sealed the game.

Newcastle 0 vs. Spurs 1

A good win for Spurs. The Magpies will be bitter after a dull game. Spurs are looking stronger than last season by miles.

Other results:

Southhampton 3 Blackburn Rovers 2
Fullham 2 Bolton 0
Crystal Palace 1 Everton 3
Charlton 2 Portsmouth 1 (unlucky, error by keeper Shaka Hislop who was outstanding the entire game)

peace

[innersmile]

Ok, just a quick sum up of the mid week action:

Liverpool are through to the group stages in the Champ's league (thank you soccer gods) albiet by the skin of thier asses. Somehow they managed to lose at Anfield to Gratz 1-0. Luckily they won the first game 2-0 so they went ahead on goal difference. A little too close for comfort.

Man Utd are also through, thanks to Alan Smith.

Mid week Premiership games:

Arsenal are gaining serious momentum and nobady is looking good enough to stop them. Another 3-0 thrashing, this time the opposition was Blackburn Rovers. They are just too good right now. Goals come naturally for them, from everywhere on the pitch. I think we could see Arsenal finish with +100 points this season, simply fantastic. The best team to watch by miles. Wenger truely has created the best team in Europe. Gunners will soon lift the Champ's league trophy, along with every other one up for grabs.

This season I predict an Arsenal vs. Bacelona final in the Champ's league. Drool.. You heard it here first.

Other results:

Charlton 3 Aston Villa 0 - Villa, wake up now!
Fulham 0 Middlesbrough 2- Good result for T siders
Newcastle 2 - Norwich 2 - Fantastic stuff from Norwich who came from 2 goals down to get a well earned point. Newcastle fans are getting restless
Southhampton 1 Bolton 2- Props to Bolton, I dig the team but, I hope Liverpool drill them on Sunday. Southampton need something...
WestBrom 1 Spurs 1- not bad
Chelsea 2 - Crystal Palace 0- For the amount they spend they should be more fun to watch. Drogba opened his account along with Benfica ace Tago who scored on his debut.
Birmingham 1 Man City 0 Hesky opened his account for the Blues of Birmingham; long may he thump home golas. I really hope he reaches 15 goals plus this season. I've always thought he was class.

[innersmile]

Alright! The final Champion's League qualifiers are over and the draw for the first group stage is done. The top teams in Europe will compete for the most coveted prize in Club football in the following groups:

Group A:
Deportivo La Coruna
Liverpool
Monaco
Olympiakos

Group B:
Real Madrid
Roma
Bayer Leverkusen
Dynamo Kiev

Group C:
Bayern Munich
Juventus
Ajax
Maccabi Tel-Aviv

Group D:
Manchester United
Lyon
Sparta Prague
Fenerbahce

Group E:
Arsenal
Panathinaikos
PSV Eindhoven
Rosenborg

Group F:
Barcelona
Milan
Celtic
Shakhtar Donetsk

Group G:
Valencia
Internazionale
Anderlecht
Werder Bremen

Group H:
Porto
Chelsea
Paris Saint Germain
CSKA Moscow

A
Liverpool's group is not easy. Depor are more than capable of hammering anyone, just ask Milan after last campaign's 4-0 drumming at the Riazor. Monaco are no fools either, they dumped Madrid out of last year's competition and have a plethora of young, fresh talent that can play with the best of them. Don't see much chance for Olympiakos.

B
R.Madrid will be favourites in the group but they have tough opposition. Roma on their day can produce fantastic football and Leverkusen have been solid for years. Dynamo Kiev should not be written off until they are beaten. Always a challenging away fixture for any team, Kiev will be looking to cause an upset in the early group stage.

C
Tough group to call. Juventus should come out on top with Ajax in second. A disappointing Munich team will be looking to offer more of a threat this time round as they have it all to play for. Maccabi Tel Aviv, while it's good to see an Israeli team in the group stage I don't think they will go much further. Their young team will be looking to put in fine performances and draw attention from the bigger boys.

D
Man U join Lyon, Sparta Pr and Turkish side Fenerbahce make up group D. Man U should have little trouble but Prague can upset anyone on their day. Im going for Man U and Lyon to advance though.

E
Arsenal will be favourites in this group as well as the competition even though European glory has eluded them so far. PSV should join them in the next group stage provided they hold up against Rosenborg and Pana. Hopefully the Gunners wil carry their current form into this competition.

F
Unlucky draw for Celtic here because I've always liked them. Barcelona are the team to watch this year. After a busy spell in the transfere market they have brought some classy talent to Camp Nou. Guily (ex-Monaco), Larrson (Celtic Legend, 237 goals in 309 starts, he's great), Deco (ex-Porto) and Eto (ex- Altelico I think but I forget) have all joined Frank Rykaards' Catalan revolution. Milan are always favourites and this year is no different. Barca and the Itallian super club should progress to the next stage.

G
Claudio Ranieri's Valencia will be keen to improve on last year's campaign. Valencia are a great club and I hope they will not miss Rafa Benithez too much (welcome to Anfield senior). Inter Milan, provided they don't completely blow it have a good chance with Valencia, the only team on paper in the group could beat them. Inter have issues though, sorry lads, you'll always be second best.

H
Jose Morinio will face his former club Porto in the group stage. Chelsea are favourites but the team is young and with so many fresh, expensive players it remains to be seen if they can gel together. Defending champs Porto have lost a few of their stars to the likes of Chelski and Barca so it remains to be seen if they still have what it takes.

This weekend is also the start of the Spanish league. Watch this space.

"You'll never walk alone!"

[innersmile]

Good morning sports fans,
And welcome to another round up of the weekend's top football action, brought to you in association with Modified.ca and (insert random beer brand here).

Lets kick off with the Premiership:

Bolton 1 Liverpool 0
The Rafalution tasted defeat in the Premier league for the first time this season. A good, open game of football in all but Liverpool will be dissappointed with the result. Debutant (LFC) Luis Garcia had his equalising goal disallowed for offsides but that was a poor decision by the linesman. It was clearly a goal and even the most hardened Bolton fans will admit to the fact. Cisse also missed a clear chance on goal after tearing away from his 2 markers.

Promising from Liverpool though, Alonso and Garcia look to have what it takes to add attacking threat in the Anfield Midfield. Bolton are now 3rd in the league. Things are looking good for the trotters.

Norwich 1 Guess who 4 (Arsenal of course)
Another dazzling performace; the Gunners have scored something like 17 goals in 4 games. Fantastic. Pires, Henry, Reyes and Bergkamp all found the net and will again. Bravo!

Spurs 1 Birmingham 0
Good win for Spurs who seem to be doing it right at present.

Middlesbrough 2 Crystal Palace 1
Jimmy Floyde continues to prove his quality with another goal to separate the 2 sides.

Everton 2 Westbrom 1
Another Everton win. With a shakey defence one wonders when the cracks will begin to show.

Aston Villa 4 Newcastle 2
Fantastic result for Villa who appear to be on the up and up. Newcastle are enjoying a horrific start to thier season and find themselves in the bottom half of the league.

Man City 4 Charlton 0
Great result for City, Anelka finding the back of the net twice. This is the second 4 goal drumming Charlton have had already this season.

Chelsea 2 Southhamptom 1
Beatie gave South' the lead. Beatie scored an own goal. Lampard converts penalty and Hampton lose. Another safe win from Chelsea under no nonsense boss Mohirnio.

Blackburn Rovers 1 Man U 1
Blackburn were ahead most of the game but never-say-die United are never beaten Alan Smith drew the game level on 90 mins.

LA LIGA (SPANISH)

Mallorca 0 Real Madrid 1
An unconvincing first win for Real. Owen made his debut and looked alive and sharp but in truth, the rest of Madrid still seemed to be on holiday. If it were not for Casillas (Madrid keeper) Madrid would have lost the game.

Espanyol 1 Deportivo 1

Racing Santander 0 Barcelona 2
Seriously, watch out for this team! Goals from Deco and Eto'o, both making their debut, saw the Catalan Revolution start right where they left off last season.

That's all we have time for now folks, but be sure to keep in tune for all the latest news and action in the soccer world.

[innersmile]

31 August 2004

...That was the weather brought to you by ADIDAS, Laver division. And now for the soccer round up:

Before going on to the results yesterday we have big news involving some of your favourite clubs. Newcastle manager Sir Bobby Robson was relieved of his duties yesterday morning following the Geordie's 4-2 defeat at Villa Park. Newcastle have made a poor start to the campaign and with public spats between the manager and certain (over rated) players like Keiron Dyer the board felt it was time to move on.

Care-taker player manager Alan Shearer will be in charge for a while but, as we saw with Ruud Gullit at Chelsea, the player manager thing has not really worked so far. It remains to be seen if Shearer can pull it off.

Also, Wayne Rooney of Everton will probably finalise his move to Old Trafford (Man Utd) today (£25 million). Rooney has not handeled affairs very well and wanted Everton to guarantee him European football, which, as good as the boy is, is preposterous. He is still only 18, and he could have done it in a more respectable fashion. Needless to say, the Toffee faithful are furious with the lad and he has been told not to come to the game on Saturday. If his move is not completed today, he may find himself without a club until January as he is almost no longer welcome at Everton.

The results from yesterday:

Everton 0 Man U 0
Man U were unlucky hitting the bar 3 times.

Portsmouth 4 Fullham 3
WHAT A GAME!!! On paper one wouldn't expect much from the 2 sides but often we forget that these teams may not be the Arsenals or Madrids of the world but they are still made up of the best footballers the world has to offer, as 'unknown' as they are.

Pompy went 3 nil up after 35 minutes with some stunning attacking football but Boa Morte's beautiful cross found Andy Coles (2nd all time top scorer in the premiership, right under Alan Shearer) big bald head to breath a glimmer of hope back into a bewildered Fullham side.

A stunning Hatrick from Yakubu was enough to ensure that Pompy walked away with the 3 points. Both teams will be asking questions of their defence though. Far from convincing displays from both sides, at the back. Up front, well, nobody was short changed on goals, shots on target and fluid movement.

Join us again for the latest footballing action.

[innersmile]

No games for 2 weeks because of stupid international fixtures. Seriously... why even bother? Just when the season was gaining momentum.

Watch this space.

[innersmile]

Just a tiny little update to keep the juices flowing... and to keep the thread on the first page.

As you know, Newcastle United sacked Sir Bobby just 4 weeks into the new season. Well, we finally know who the replacement is; Mr Graham Souness, formally with Blackburn Rovers.

Um... what were they thinking? Souness did nothing amazing at Blackburn nor did he strengthem Liverpool's cause while he was on mersy side. This is the beginning of the end for the Geordies. Next year Shearer will retire... Relegation canidates for 2007 /08.

Games resume as normal this weekend, yay!

[innersmile]

Monday 13 September 2004

Premiership action returned to normal again after the international break. Here's what went down:

Premiership

Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 0
A good result for both teams. Villa are better than they have been in years, Chelsea will not be dissappointed with a point.

Liverpool 3 West Brom 0
A fine and expected win for the Anfield faithful. Gerrard, Finnan and Garcia all found the net in a convincing performance. Should set the mood for this week's champion's league game...

Bolton 2 Man Utd 2
Bolton continue their amazing start to the campaign and looked to have all 3 points in the bag. Lucky Man U as always pulled one back in the dying moments. Sir Alex has had a rocky start this year but with many seniour players side lined with injuries, the best is yet to come.

Middlesbourgh 2 Birmingham 1
A Mark Viduka double on both sides of half time got MB the 3 points. Heskey scored again for the Blues of Birmingham.

Newcastle 3 Blackburn 0
First win of the season for the magpies. Ex manager of Blackburn, Souness is now in charge at St James' Park.

Man City 0 Everton 1
Keegan is feeling the pressure. A promising start from Everton.

Fullham 0 Arsenal 3
Couldn't see this one coming. NOT. Someone please stop them!!!!

Spurs 0 Norwich 0
Spurs were brought down to earth after their flying start. Norwich will leave feeling confident that they can compete on this level having still not won a game after finishing 1st in the Championship (div. 1).

Arsenal 15
Chelsea 13
Bolton Wanderers 10
Middlesbrough 10
Everton 10
Tottenham Hotspur 9
Aston Villa 8
Liverpool 7
Portsmouth 7
Manchester United 6
Charlton Athletic 6
Newcastle United 5
Manchester City 4
Birmingham City 4
Fulham 4
Southampton 3
Norwich City 3
West Bromwich Albion 3
Blackburn Rovers 2
Crystal Palace 1

That is the log for now. It pains me to see Everton and Spurs above Liverpool but it's early days yet.

Spain
Ok, with just too much going on in football right now, it's almost impossible for me to report on everything, sorry guys (unless you find a way of sponsoring me so I can post about every league, every game for my full time job; I'd love nothing more). I'll just give you the big resluts from the weekend.

Barcelona 2 Sevlla 0
Guiley (ex Monaco) Larsson (ex- Celtic God) both found the net. 100% record so far...

Deportiva 1 Ossasuna 3
Shock of shocks! Esp since depor scored first.

Real Madrid 1 Numancia 0
Beckham saved the day in what should have been a slaughter. Not good enough form Madrid.

Athletic Bilboa 2 Valencia 2
Val. Came from 2 goals down to earn a well deserved point.

Italy
Seria A is finally underway...

AC Milan 2 Livorno 2
Whoa! Well done to new commers Livorno.

Brescia 0 Juve 3
Good start

Chievo Verona 2 Inter 2
Same old for Inter...

Champion's League
Finally, the greatest club competition in the world is preparing to start. The first group stages kick off later this week. My mouth, she waters...

I'll do what I can to post as frequently as time allows. I also promise to be a little more objective and fair in future (Santini did not deserve my pre season bashing, sorry boss).

Take care all, please post any thoughts or comments, just to let me know you're reading. A lot of love goes into this (and work time ) and I hope you enjoy. Pick a team, fly the flag and sing when you're winning.

peace,

[innersmile]

Champion's League

Here are the results from last night's group stages:

Arsenal 1 PSV Eindhoven 0
Arsenal's most difficult game yet. PSV were the better side in the 2nd half and were unlucky not to come away with a point. Arsenal looked a little nervous but at least their first win is behind them. An own goal after some Henry magic was all that separated the 2 sides.

Celtic 1 Barcalona 3
Yup, it's all going according to plan for the Catalan giants. Celtic dumped Barca out of last year's UEFA cup comp but Barca are too strong now and eventually won easily. Larson came on as a sub fired the final goal home against his former side. A tough group for Celtic, they'll do well to advance but I don't see it right now.

PSG 0 Chelsea 3
An easy win for Chelsea. Terry opened the scoring and Drogba got 2 either side of half time. Chelsea's defence is immaculate with conceding only 1 goal this season (5/6 games). Off to a solid start.

Panathinaikos 2 Rosenborg 1
Good win for the Greeks

Shakhtar Donetsk 0 Milan 1
A tough away game for Milan. Seedorfs long range effort was enough to secure the 3 points. Milan are still a bit rusty but will improve, because they only have played 2 games so far this season while Shakhtar's season is well underway.

Inter Milan 2 Werder Bremen
Good start to Inter's campaign. Adriano's brace ensured all 3 points. Better from inter.

Valencia 2 Anderlecht 0
Vincete and Baraja both opening their CL account. An easy win for the Che.

Porto 0 CSKA Moscow 0
Defending champ's Porto look like they could struggle this year with so many seniour players moving on to greener pastures. CSKA held them to a goalless draw and with the away fixture in Russia, it's not looking too sunny for Porto...

More action follows tonight when Liverpool host Monaco in the remaining group fixtures. Enjoy...

[Jeremy]

woo - go Liverpool! My great great grandparents on my mothers side are from their I think

[innersmile]

Ok, some quick results from the weekends fixtures

English Premiership

Arsenal 2 Bolton 2
GO BOLTON!!!! The first team to get a point off Arsenal in the league this season. Arsenal were not their glorious best in the Champ's League either. Could this be the end of the fairy tail?

Chelsea 0 Spurs 0
Good result for Spurs who held Chelsea quite comfortably. Great performance form Drogba who looks like he'll soon pay off his huge fee in great goals to come.

Everton 1 Middlesbourgh 0
Good result for the Toffees. There's life after Rooney after all...

Southampton 1 Newcastle 2
2nd win in a row for Graham Souness. The Geordies got their first away win in almost a year!

Birmingham 1 Charlton 1
West Brom 1 Fullham 1
Norwich 0 Aston Villa 0 - Norwich growing in confidence. They may have what it takes to stay up.
Crystal Palace 1 Man City 2 - I hope they win at least 1 game this season. Just not good enough for the premiership are Crystal Palace.
Blackburn 1 Portsmouth 0

Tonight is the clash of the titans when Liverpool travel to Old Trafford to face their rivals Man Utd. What a great birthday present from the soccer gods!

Walk on; Walk on
With hope in your heart
...and You'll NEVER WALK ALLLOOOOOOOONE!!!!

Spain

Espanyol 1 Real Madrid 0
Dear oh dear, how the mighty have fallen. Early days yet but not anywhere near acceptable for the Madrid faithful. Coach Camacho has already offered to resign.

Valencia 3 Real Sociodad 1
Good soccer form one of the worlds most solid clubs.

Athletic Bilboa 1 Deportivo2
Better from Depor

Athletico Madrid 1 Barcalona 1
Good game, 2 very strong teams.

Lil Italy
Very quick...

AC Milan won
Juventus won
Roma lost
Inter Drew

[innersmile]

SUCK!

Ok, not only did Liverpool lose last night but it was one of those all too familiar lacklusture performances that we saw under Houllier.

Kewell and Finnan (the 2 right / left midfielders) were completely useless the entire 90 minutes. Finnan may have touched the ball twice and Harry Kewell is a shadow of his former self lately. Their lack of service saw Cisse doing very little for the first half of the game. By far the weakest links in the Liverpool side and it is a concern for Liverpool coach Rafa Benithez.

Steven Gerrard went off after about 30 mins with an injury that'll keep him out for 6-8 weeks. Not what Liverpool needed.

2 goals from set peices for Sylvestre were enough to give United a deserved win. I must say that they played better than they have all season.

There's always the return fixture at Anfield.

[innersmile]

Some sad news this time...

Legendary footballer and probably the best manager ever Brian Clough passed away peacefuly on Monday age 69.

Follow the link to find out more, he really was one of the all time greats...

http://skysports.planetfootball.com/lis ... _Home_Page