Day 410. WorldCup2018
Two days ago I watched the fantastic documentary, "The Workers Cup".
Today I had the pleasure of watching the world premiere of another
truly, thought provoking, deep emotion generating documentary, "State of
Exception." Director Jason O'Hara followed the struggles, and battles,
of a group of indigenous people in Rio ("urban Indians") and favela
residents against the threat of eviction from their land and homes to
make way for the World Cup in 2014 and the 2016 Olympics.
Without
doubt, when this documentary comes your way, it is a must see. While we
may have seen news reports at the time of the heavy hand of the
authorities in Rio, and the mass protests, watching this today took it
to a whole new powerful, emotional level. The sense of injustice
suffered by these innocent people in the name of sport, supposedly, was
intense. The "Urban Indians" fought for a dilapidated building to be an
indigenous museum but which happened to be too close to the $500m
renovated Maracana stadium. And the residents of numerous favelas
fought, literally, with armed police to not lose the houses which many
of them had built with their own hands.Seeing the individuals, rather
than just the masses reported on the news, made me, the viewer, feel
very connected to their suffering.
As with "The Workers Cup"
there was also a subtle sense of irony. Maybe this was a more personal
reaction this time, based on years of reading about the importance of
football in Brazilian culture. Once the World Cup started, young kids
ran around the favelas in their Brazil shirts and streets were decorated
with flags and banners. And many of those kids definitely dream of
being the next Neymar and playing for Brazil in the Maracana. But this
does in no way diminish or take away from the very important message of
resistance. Some of the people interviewed mentioned that they had
nothing against the World Cup and the Olympics, but just what was
happening to them. This was later countered, maybe unintentionally by
the Director, by the Mayor of Rio saying that everybody loved the World
Cup and Olympics in Brazil because everything was being done in a good,
or correct, way.
Most people's anger was directed at Fifa. It was
easy to assume that their may have been a feeling of the police and
army acting on behalf of Fifa, not the Brazilian government. People
asked for Fifa where their money was to pay for their bus fare, or
houses, or education. After the screening, Jason O'Hara was asked if he
went to Fifa for a response, for the other side of the argument. What
good would it have done to have had a PR person from Fifa go on about
their view, he asked. This film was about these individuals. There has
been enough time spent on Fifa having their say, he said, and they have
enough money to make their own film. (Cheers and applause from the
audience).
It is a wonderful part of the Toronto Hot Docs
Festival having the directors present to take questions after their
films. Mr. O'Hara's passion for what he had witnessed in putting this
together came across very vividly and was an impressive extension to the
film we had just watched.
One viewer asked Mr. O'Hara if he
thought the silence in the movie theatre was symbolic of the depression
most people felt after what they had seen. The reply was powerful and
impressive. Please don't be depressed, Mr. O'Hara pleaded. Feel
empowered, like i did, by the strength of the these people in their
resistance. Take to the streets for what you believe in, to shape the
world in the way you think it should be shaped, he concluded to loud
applause.
Adam Sobel, after the screening of his film, "The
Workers Cup" appealed to the audience to seek the answer to the question
of our feelings about the World Cup, when considering the plight of the
migrant workers. I thought that again today. I am huge fan of the World
Cup but can I be a supporter of Fifa's flagship tournament at this
cost? Or can the message of resistance, and demand for change, bring
about a different way of World Cup's being organised? They don't have to
be resisted to the point of being done away with, but there should a
global demand for a different way, one that comes along with respect and
more consideration for the host country and it's residents.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHMpSXXVbr8
Sunday 30 April 2017
Saturday 29 April 2017
Brian Moore: it's there!
Day 411. WorldCup2018
I'm doing this early today because later might come by too late..
I need a distraction from the continuous reports of the political madness going on in Malta. There's enough intrigue and mystery to make an award winning movie about it. Or a movie, at least. Award winning will depend on how it's made. See, there I go already, getting very distracted. This is working. But the movie, or no movie, is not the point. There is so much going on that it's beyond an easily dismissed joke about stereotypical politicians. Panama Papers has become "Prime Minister, his wife, his accountant, his chief of staff, a minister, a few Azeri's, a couple of Iranians" papers. Roberto Calvi, God's Banker, would probably be watching this in incredulous awe if he hadn't met such an unfortunate, mysterious death.
So again, I turn to football and my own very simple investigation. Last night I ended with doubts about "Big League Soccer" and "The Big Match". I'm relived that my memory wasn't playing tricks on me as I confirmed today that Big League Soccer was what was shown outside of England. As I looked it up I went on a bit of a Brian Moore memory trail, watching tributes to him after his passing and some of his best commentary moments.
My search was thrown off track a little by Brian Moore, the English rugby player, which led me to the great, late New Zealand player Jonah Lomu and famous performances of the All Blacks' Haka. I really have not had this much time on my hands for a long time.
I resisted posting a video of the French team's response to the Haka at the 2007 and 2011 Rugby World Cup and kept with my football theme. I have probably linked this previously, sometime over the last 600 days or so, or in my 2014 countdown, But, regardless, here it is again for two reasons. With Brian Moore on my mind, I probably watched this match (I almost definitely did) on Italian TV so didn't hear Brian Moore's description of this magical moment. You may be a Liverpool fan but how can you not appreciate a player's, a team's, incredible joy at scoring the title winning goal in the last minute of the final match of the season.
And what was Michael Thomas trying to do in his celebration. A somersault? A handstand? I'm sure he didn't really care, or know. I cannot imagine the utterly amazing feeling after scoring that goal. But every time I watch it, it amuses me.
Here is Michael Thomas' goal for Arsenal against Liverpool when Arsenal had to win by two goals to win the league from Liverpool, at Anfield. Now there's a Hollywood movie script.
"It's up for grabs now!"
It's there!
I'm doing this early today because later might come by too late..
I need a distraction from the continuous reports of the political madness going on in Malta. There's enough intrigue and mystery to make an award winning movie about it. Or a movie, at least. Award winning will depend on how it's made. See, there I go already, getting very distracted. This is working. But the movie, or no movie, is not the point. There is so much going on that it's beyond an easily dismissed joke about stereotypical politicians. Panama Papers has become "Prime Minister, his wife, his accountant, his chief of staff, a minister, a few Azeri's, a couple of Iranians" papers. Roberto Calvi, God's Banker, would probably be watching this in incredulous awe if he hadn't met such an unfortunate, mysterious death.
So again, I turn to football and my own very simple investigation. Last night I ended with doubts about "Big League Soccer" and "The Big Match". I'm relived that my memory wasn't playing tricks on me as I confirmed today that Big League Soccer was what was shown outside of England. As I looked it up I went on a bit of a Brian Moore memory trail, watching tributes to him after his passing and some of his best commentary moments.
My search was thrown off track a little by Brian Moore, the English rugby player, which led me to the great, late New Zealand player Jonah Lomu and famous performances of the All Blacks' Haka. I really have not had this much time on my hands for a long time.
I resisted posting a video of the French team's response to the Haka at the 2007 and 2011 Rugby World Cup and kept with my football theme. I have probably linked this previously, sometime over the last 600 days or so, or in my 2014 countdown, But, regardless, here it is again for two reasons. With Brian Moore on my mind, I probably watched this match (I almost definitely did) on Italian TV so didn't hear Brian Moore's description of this magical moment. You may be a Liverpool fan but how can you not appreciate a player's, a team's, incredible joy at scoring the title winning goal in the last minute of the final match of the season.
And what was Michael Thomas trying to do in his celebration. A somersault? A handstand? I'm sure he didn't really care, or know. I cannot imagine the utterly amazing feeling after scoring that goal. But every time I watch it, it amuses me.
Here is Michael Thomas' goal for Arsenal against Liverpool when Arsenal had to win by two goals to win the league from Liverpool, at Anfield. Now there's a Hollywood movie script.
"It's up for grabs now!"
It's there!
Friday 28 April 2017
Biran Moore reads viewers' letters
Day -412. WorldCup2018
I had a memory today of watching Big League Soccer with my Dad many years ago, when the one hour (or was it less?) of highlights on a Tuesday evening with Brian Moore was the only English football we got on TV. Sometimes we were told by the lady who came on to tell us what was coming on next that "Big League Soccer didn't arrive this week", and instead we got highlights of a German Bundesliga match, which always seemed to be high-scoring and even now, in my memory of his voice, I could not figure out what kind of accent the English-speaking commentator had. Was he English? Was he German, but spoke perfect English?
Big League Soccer, if I remember correctly, featured extended highlights of one match, all the goals from all the other matches, and finished with shorter highlights from another one. When the goals round-up was on, the commentators always seemed to same thing when somebody scored: it's there! And that was my Dad's joke for a while. He would say "it's there!" whenever somebody came close to scoring and he maybe thought I wasn't watching. And, of course, I thought I was very funny every time.
I couldn't find an "it's there" moment but I did find footage of Brian Moore doing something that seems so romantically quaint now: him reading viewer's letters. Can you imagine all those people watching Big League Soccer and then pulling out their writing paper to write to Brian Moore? I'm sure I composed many letters in my head to him. What I found the most amusing is how he reads out every writer's complete address and he is sure to correct himself if he gets a street name or house number wrong. Oh those innocent days! Which, at that time of football hooliganism, Olympic boycotts, Falkland Wars we didn't think was all sweet and rosy.
(When I look it up, I get The Big Match. Somebody help me, was it not Big League Soccer that we watched with Brian Moore? Different name in England, maybe?)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YnlLWwemYYA
I had a memory today of watching Big League Soccer with my Dad many years ago, when the one hour (or was it less?) of highlights on a Tuesday evening with Brian Moore was the only English football we got on TV. Sometimes we were told by the lady who came on to tell us what was coming on next that "Big League Soccer didn't arrive this week", and instead we got highlights of a German Bundesliga match, which always seemed to be high-scoring and even now, in my memory of his voice, I could not figure out what kind of accent the English-speaking commentator had. Was he English? Was he German, but spoke perfect English?
Big League Soccer, if I remember correctly, featured extended highlights of one match, all the goals from all the other matches, and finished with shorter highlights from another one. When the goals round-up was on, the commentators always seemed to same thing when somebody scored: it's there! And that was my Dad's joke for a while. He would say "it's there!" whenever somebody came close to scoring and he maybe thought I wasn't watching. And, of course, I thought I was very funny every time.
I couldn't find an "it's there" moment but I did find footage of Brian Moore doing something that seems so romantically quaint now: him reading viewer's letters. Can you imagine all those people watching Big League Soccer and then pulling out their writing paper to write to Brian Moore? I'm sure I composed many letters in my head to him. What I found the most amusing is how he reads out every writer's complete address and he is sure to correct himself if he gets a street name or house number wrong. Oh those innocent days! Which, at that time of football hooliganism, Olympic boycotts, Falkland Wars we didn't think was all sweet and rosy.
(When I look it up, I get The Big Match. Somebody help me, was it not Big League Soccer that we watched with Brian Moore? Different name in England, maybe?)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YnlLWwemYYA
Thursday 27 April 2017
The Workers Cup
Day -413 #WorldCup2018
I'm home late after going to watch the Canadian premiere of "The Workers Cup", a documentary about the migrant workers building the stadiums and other infrastructure for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. It was sad, it was miserable, it was funny and it showcased a lot of interesting characters from Ghana, Kenya, Nepal, Bangladesh, India who found enjoyment and a bit of bittersweet happiness in football, not the Fifa World Cup but their own little workers' cup. Go find it and watch it.
At the end of the screening I asked the director, Adam Sobel, what he would say to a football fan, what his feelings about the World Cup are, having experienced the workers' misery. His answer was very thoughtful and interesting. He said he wanted the audience to have their own reaction, to answer the question in any way they might want, because it is a question that will linger. We as consumers should decide who or what we want to give our custom to. How do we want to consume Qatar 2022 after seeing this?
He also spoke about how the workers in his film see it: "They love the World Cup. They are building it off their backs, but they would be devastated if they lost it. That is the irony."
Mr. Sobel has lived in Qatar for five years. He mentioned legacies that all World Cups or Olympics leave behind. He believes there is a chance that this World Cup could influence change to labour conditions in Qatar, across other Gulf Nations, and all across the world where this kind of slave labour exists.
I'm home late after going to watch the Canadian premiere of "The Workers Cup", a documentary about the migrant workers building the stadiums and other infrastructure for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. It was sad, it was miserable, it was funny and it showcased a lot of interesting characters from Ghana, Kenya, Nepal, Bangladesh, India who found enjoyment and a bit of bittersweet happiness in football, not the Fifa World Cup but their own little workers' cup. Go find it and watch it.
At the end of the screening I asked the director, Adam Sobel, what he would say to a football fan, what his feelings about the World Cup are, having experienced the workers' misery. His answer was very thoughtful and interesting. He said he wanted the audience to have their own reaction, to answer the question in any way they might want, because it is a question that will linger. We as consumers should decide who or what we want to give our custom to. How do we want to consume Qatar 2022 after seeing this?
He also spoke about how the workers in his film see it: "They love the World Cup. They are building it off their backs, but they would be devastated if they lost it. That is the irony."
Mr. Sobel has lived in Qatar for five years. He mentioned legacies that all World Cups or Olympics leave behind. He believes there is a chance that this World Cup could influence change to labour conditions in Qatar, across other Gulf Nations, and all across the world where this kind of slave labour exists.
Wednesday 26 April 2017
The race for the....top 4....
Day -414 #WorldCup2018
Big Thursday night in Manchester tomorrow for the United v City derby. They're playing for the riches of the Champions League next season. Gone are the days when league champions was the thing, above everything else. Now the fans have been fed the Top 4 propaganda for so long that it seems to be the thing, with the league an after-thought after being knocked out of the Champions League. And nobody wants to qualify for the Europa League
Big Thursday night in Manchester tomorrow for the United v City derby. They're playing for the riches of the Champions League next season. Gone are the days when league champions was the thing, above everything else. Now the fans have been fed the Top 4 propaganda for so long that it seems to be the thing, with the league an after-thought after being knocked out of the Champions League. And nobody wants to qualify for the Europa League
Tuesday 25 April 2017
Mariachi! In Barnet.
Day -415 WorldCup2018
I love this story of Grimsby fans and their inflatables. It's the silly, happy side of football. Football is a nice distraction from everyday annoyances and stress, and these kind of stories are good distractions from the sometimes overly commercial world of Premier League or Champions League football.
Two years ago a Grimsby fan was arrested at an away match at Forest Green Rovers for refusing to hand over an inflatable beach ball that he took into the stadium. His fellow supporters were upset at his treatment by the stewards inside the stadium. In solidarity with him they decided to take as many inflatables to their next away match at Barnet. And at that match a fan was arrested and found guilty of assaulting a steward with an inflatable shark. He maintains the fans were jumping around, celebrating when he was taken out of the stands by the police.
This weekend Grimsby are playing away to Barnet and to mark the fixture fans were planning to take inflatables with them again, to carry on the tradition of the amount of fun they bring to away matches. But Barnet have let them know that inflatables are banned, wary of their being a repeat of what happened in 2015.
So what could they bring instead of the inflatables to create a fun atmosphere at an end of season League Two match with no significance for either mid-table team? They started a crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money to hire a Mariachi band. A Mariachi band at a fourth division football match in North London. Fantastic. As of this evening they were £257 over their £1000 target. I'll be looking forward to footage of that match.
I love this story of Grimsby fans and their inflatables. It's the silly, happy side of football. Football is a nice distraction from everyday annoyances and stress, and these kind of stories are good distractions from the sometimes overly commercial world of Premier League or Champions League football.
Two years ago a Grimsby fan was arrested at an away match at Forest Green Rovers for refusing to hand over an inflatable beach ball that he took into the stadium. His fellow supporters were upset at his treatment by the stewards inside the stadium. In solidarity with him they decided to take as many inflatables to their next away match at Barnet. And at that match a fan was arrested and found guilty of assaulting a steward with an inflatable shark. He maintains the fans were jumping around, celebrating when he was taken out of the stands by the police.
This weekend Grimsby are playing away to Barnet and to mark the fixture fans were planning to take inflatables with them again, to carry on the tradition of the amount of fun they bring to away matches. But Barnet have let them know that inflatables are banned, wary of their being a repeat of what happened in 2015.
So what could they bring instead of the inflatables to create a fun atmosphere at an end of season League Two match with no significance for either mid-table team? They started a crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money to hire a Mariachi band. A Mariachi band at a fourth division football match in North London. Fantastic. As of this evening they were £257 over their £1000 target. I'll be looking forward to footage of that match.
Monday 24 April 2017
Newcastle going where I wish Villa were going
Day -416 WorldCup2018
Newcastle won today and will be back in the Premier League next season after just one season out. I think Newcastle get relegated at regular intervals on purpose, just to get there huge fan base excited about winning something, promotion, every few years. Ok, ok that was low. I'm just jealous.
One of the Aston Villa fan pages on facebook asked the questions today, "Villa fans are you happy today?" Happy? Happy? Are you kidding? Happy because Villa scrappily won 1-0 against a terrible team battling relegation? So what that it was Birmingham. It was probably the most meaningless Second City derby ever, for Villa. The only significance could have been that it was good to push Birmingham closer to relegation.
Even though I have many opinions and I voice them in many places on the Internet, I have only commented once on an Aston Villa facebook page and it was probably something silly. Today I couldn't resist. "No (not happy). Brighton were promoted and Newcastle are playing tonight to get a step closer to promotion. And Villa are stuck in the Championship for another season." I know there are more important things in the world, I really do, but football and Aston Villa give me pleasure, and I am happier when they are playing Chelsea and Tottenham and dreaming of a European spot than when they are playing Burton and Rotherham.
I hope that this time next year I will be looking forward to a World Cup and what players Aston Villa might spot and possibly buy for their new season in the Premier League. Two seasons in the Championship and it gets very dangerous, very easy to get stuck there year after year, or even worse.
Newcastle won today and will be back in the Premier League next season after just one season out. I think Newcastle get relegated at regular intervals on purpose, just to get there huge fan base excited about winning something, promotion, every few years. Ok, ok that was low. I'm just jealous.
One of the Aston Villa fan pages on facebook asked the questions today, "Villa fans are you happy today?" Happy? Happy? Are you kidding? Happy because Villa scrappily won 1-0 against a terrible team battling relegation? So what that it was Birmingham. It was probably the most meaningless Second City derby ever, for Villa. The only significance could have been that it was good to push Birmingham closer to relegation.
Even though I have many opinions and I voice them in many places on the Internet, I have only commented once on an Aston Villa facebook page and it was probably something silly. Today I couldn't resist. "No (not happy). Brighton were promoted and Newcastle are playing tonight to get a step closer to promotion. And Villa are stuck in the Championship for another season." I know there are more important things in the world, I really do, but football and Aston Villa give me pleasure, and I am happier when they are playing Chelsea and Tottenham and dreaming of a European spot than when they are playing Burton and Rotherham.
I hope that this time next year I will be looking forward to a World Cup and what players Aston Villa might spot and possibly buy for their new season in the Premier League. Two seasons in the Championship and it gets very dangerous, very easy to get stuck there year after year, or even worse.
Sunday 23 April 2017
Not like the old days, for me or Leyton Orient
Day -417 WorldCup2018
You know it's been a crazy odd day when you get to sit down in the evening to watch the Toronto Maple Leafs try and prolong their season and you realise that you don't even know who won the FA Cup semi final today, and if Liverpool and Manchester United won their league matches. Well, it doesn't constitute a crazy day for you, just me.
And just earlier today I was thinking to when I first came to Canada and the struggle to find out European football results. It was not on TV much, there was very little Internet (and I didn't really have either) and I wasn't interested in buying Canadian newspapers. What did I want with Canadian news? So I would either go into the newspaper shop and discreetly open the sports page, or I would call the talking yellow pages. No, not the talking yellow pages. What was it called? There was a number to call for sports, another one for the news, the weather, to listen to recorded updates. The sports dude was a happy guy with a Caribbean accent. Unfortunately, sometimes he must have been too busy with his other job as the updates were not updated for a few days.
By the time English football started I was already exhausted from arguing about Maltese politics in the early morning. My post about the subject generated more interest than my indirect reference to football and politics in Azerbaijan, Panama and Malta yesterday. Later in the morning I was off to see art in Buffalo. Refusing as I do to pay for Internet on the other side of the border I was completely in the dark. All I knew before I set off on the road was that Aston Villa had beaten Birmingham 1-0, in the derby that I couldn't care much about. Villa are strolling and daydreaming their way to the end of the season, but still Harry Redknapp's new team couldn't get the result they needed to move away from the relegation zone.
With my head still reeling from the day it struck me with almost a sense of embarrassment that I dint know what happened today. It was time for a quick check. Man United beat Burnley, Liverpool lost again to a bottom half team, this time Crystal Palace, Arsenal beat Man City after extra time in the FA Cup and Messi scored a last second winner against Real Madrid. What a day.
And in Greece, Olympiakos celebrated winning the league except, hold on, they might not have actually won it. They are six points ahead of PAOK with one game to go but Olympiakos may get a six point deduction for the fans' behaviour in their recent defeat to AEK Athens in the Greek Cup. Imagine they do lose the six points. This could get worse.
Finally, I wanted to mention Leyton Orient yesterday but got distracted by fantasies of a three team tournament between Malta, Panama and Azerbaijan. Leyton Orient were relegated out of the league after 112 years. They were never hugely spectacular or significant in my lifetime but they were always a fixture in my head with their unique sounding name. Three years ago they were within a penalty shoot out of winning promotion to the Championship. Today they are looking at re-building as a semi-professional non-league team. Like many other teams in English football they are victims of selfish, greedy owners who didn't care much about the the tradition of the club, or the football side of it. The club is severely in debt and may not even exist next year. It's sad for the supporters who invest so much emotional energy in the team, and money, and they get rewarded with owners who don't give a toss about them. At least it's more straightforward to get back into the league these days, with promotion between the Conference and League 2. Gone are the days of teams being elected into the league, by the league.
Tomorrow Newcastle play Preston looking to not get sucked into an end of season slump of massive proportions. They were looking like dead certainties for promotion. Now they are nervously looking over the shoulder at Reading and Huddersfield. And I will know the result before the day ends.
You know it's been a crazy odd day when you get to sit down in the evening to watch the Toronto Maple Leafs try and prolong their season and you realise that you don't even know who won the FA Cup semi final today, and if Liverpool and Manchester United won their league matches. Well, it doesn't constitute a crazy day for you, just me.
And just earlier today I was thinking to when I first came to Canada and the struggle to find out European football results. It was not on TV much, there was very little Internet (and I didn't really have either) and I wasn't interested in buying Canadian newspapers. What did I want with Canadian news? So I would either go into the newspaper shop and discreetly open the sports page, or I would call the talking yellow pages. No, not the talking yellow pages. What was it called? There was a number to call for sports, another one for the news, the weather, to listen to recorded updates. The sports dude was a happy guy with a Caribbean accent. Unfortunately, sometimes he must have been too busy with his other job as the updates were not updated for a few days.
By the time English football started I was already exhausted from arguing about Maltese politics in the early morning. My post about the subject generated more interest than my indirect reference to football and politics in Azerbaijan, Panama and Malta yesterday. Later in the morning I was off to see art in Buffalo. Refusing as I do to pay for Internet on the other side of the border I was completely in the dark. All I knew before I set off on the road was that Aston Villa had beaten Birmingham 1-0, in the derby that I couldn't care much about. Villa are strolling and daydreaming their way to the end of the season, but still Harry Redknapp's new team couldn't get the result they needed to move away from the relegation zone.
With my head still reeling from the day it struck me with almost a sense of embarrassment that I dint know what happened today. It was time for a quick check. Man United beat Burnley, Liverpool lost again to a bottom half team, this time Crystal Palace, Arsenal beat Man City after extra time in the FA Cup and Messi scored a last second winner against Real Madrid. What a day.
And in Greece, Olympiakos celebrated winning the league except, hold on, they might not have actually won it. They are six points ahead of PAOK with one game to go but Olympiakos may get a six point deduction for the fans' behaviour in their recent defeat to AEK Athens in the Greek Cup. Imagine they do lose the six points. This could get worse.
Finally, I wanted to mention Leyton Orient yesterday but got distracted by fantasies of a three team tournament between Malta, Panama and Azerbaijan. Leyton Orient were relegated out of the league after 112 years. They were never hugely spectacular or significant in my lifetime but they were always a fixture in my head with their unique sounding name. Three years ago they were within a penalty shoot out of winning promotion to the Championship. Today they are looking at re-building as a semi-professional non-league team. Like many other teams in English football they are victims of selfish, greedy owners who didn't care much about the the tradition of the club, or the football side of it. The club is severely in debt and may not even exist next year. It's sad for the supporters who invest so much emotional energy in the team, and money, and they get rewarded with owners who don't give a toss about them. At least it's more straightforward to get back into the league these days, with promotion between the Conference and League 2. Gone are the days of teams being elected into the league, by the league.
Tomorrow Newcastle play Preston looking to not get sucked into an end of season slump of massive proportions. They were looking like dead certainties for promotion. Now they are nervously looking over the shoulder at Reading and Huddersfield. And I will know the result before the day ends.
Saturday 22 April 2017
Malta versus (or with?) Azerbaijan and Panama
Day 418 WorldCup2018
Malta used to host a three or four team football tournament every February, and later every two years. In the early years club teams were invited and the first two winners were Kaiserslautern and Stuttgart. The third edition was won by the East German Olympic team. I'm not sure what the German connection was. There were Scandinavian years with Norway, Iceland, Finland and Denmark. And then it seemed to go predominantly Eastern European: Slovenia, Moldova, Belarus, Georgia were repeat visitors with even Russia playing once.
In 2000, the Malta FA must have been spoilt for choice, or had no idea who to invite. So they opened the Fifa book of football playing countries, started with the A's and got three acceptances from Albania, Andorra and Azerbaijan. I remember the 3-0 win against Azerbaijan. It was a rarity to witness such a comprehensive Maltese win.
The last tournament was played in 2008. It would be nice to see it happen again, but with Fifa's strict international calendar it is pretty much impossible. It would also be a little disconcerting to many a Maltese person if the MFA did indeed find a way to start it again and asked Azerbaijan to make a return, and also invited Panama. And if the Maltese Prime Minister suddenly took a huge interest in the Maltese national team rather than his ridiculous support of Milan, then the tournament would be on the front, not back, pages of the newspapers.
Malta used to host a three or four team football tournament every February, and later every two years. In the early years club teams were invited and the first two winners were Kaiserslautern and Stuttgart. The third edition was won by the East German Olympic team. I'm not sure what the German connection was. There were Scandinavian years with Norway, Iceland, Finland and Denmark. And then it seemed to go predominantly Eastern European: Slovenia, Moldova, Belarus, Georgia were repeat visitors with even Russia playing once.
In 2000, the Malta FA must have been spoilt for choice, or had no idea who to invite. So they opened the Fifa book of football playing countries, started with the A's and got three acceptances from Albania, Andorra and Azerbaijan. I remember the 3-0 win against Azerbaijan. It was a rarity to witness such a comprehensive Maltese win.
The last tournament was played in 2008. It would be nice to see it happen again, but with Fifa's strict international calendar it is pretty much impossible. It would also be a little disconcerting to many a Maltese person if the MFA did indeed find a way to start it again and asked Azerbaijan to make a return, and also invited Panama. And if the Maltese Prime Minister suddenly took a huge interest in the Maltese national team rather than his ridiculous support of Milan, then the tournament would be on the front, not back, pages of the newspapers.
Friday 21 April 2017
Schweinstieger meets MLS refs
Day -419 WorldCup2018
Bastian Schweinstieger was in Toronto tonight playing for Chicago against Toronto FC. He didn't leave happy. TFC won 3-1 and at the end of the match was involved in a very long, intense discussion with the referee. My feeling was that he was giving the ref a quick explanation of some of the rules of football. I try to defend the MLS but there are some refereeing decisions which are absolutely ludicrous. It was telling that Toronto's manager, Greg Vanney, was having an equally involved discussion with the assistant referees. It's unusual for a winning manager to be so angry.
I was back and forth between the football and the Maple Leafs, playing game number 5 of playoff series against Washington. It went to overtime, again, and my superstition was proved right, unfortunately. This time, I watched it and the Leafs lost. It's a good thing, maybe. I'll say again; that game is so frantic.
Bastian Schweinstieger was in Toronto tonight playing for Chicago against Toronto FC. He didn't leave happy. TFC won 3-1 and at the end of the match was involved in a very long, intense discussion with the referee. My feeling was that he was giving the ref a quick explanation of some of the rules of football. I try to defend the MLS but there are some refereeing decisions which are absolutely ludicrous. It was telling that Toronto's manager, Greg Vanney, was having an equally involved discussion with the assistant referees. It's unusual for a winning manager to be so angry.
I was back and forth between the football and the Maple Leafs, playing game number 5 of playoff series against Washington. It went to overtime, again, and my superstition was proved right, unfortunately. This time, I watched it and the Leafs lost. It's a good thing, maybe. I'll say again; that game is so frantic.
Thursday 20 April 2017
Boring United? Does it matter?
Day -420 WorldCup2018
Sorry everybody. Day -420 got away from me. Boring United made it to the Europa League semifinals. Does style matter, or just results?
Sorry everybody. Day -420 got away from me. Boring United made it to the Europa League semifinals. Does style matter, or just results?
Wednesday 19 April 2017
Champions League permutations and negative mass liquid
Day -421 WorldCup2018
Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Monaco. The Champions League semifinalists. I'm going through all the combinations of my head to figure out what final has the best ring to it.
Juventus-Monaco. They've both been so impressive this year and will make a pleasant change.
Monaco-Real Madrid. The 11 time champions against the kids. Tasty.
Real Madrid-Juventus. The two grand old teams. A classic. But boring? Who else thinks Real are not that much fun to watch?
Monaco-Atletico Madrid. Sounds odd. Atletico would probably go all out to destroy any hint of flash from Monaco.
Juventus-Atletico Madrid. Feisty. I like the thought of this one. I see a good old fashioned physical, cynical battle.
Atletico-Real. Please, no. Been there, seen that. Not again.
In completely different news, but in keeping with my marking of significant events over these 1000 days, physicists at Washington State University announced that they have created a "negative mass" liquid that defies Newton's Second Law of Motion. When the liquid is pushed it moves towards the pusher, rather than in the direction of the push. The physicists "cooled rubidium atoms to just above the temperature of absolute zero (close to -273C), creating what's known as a Bose-Einstein condensate." (BBC News)
And in other news physicists at Washington State University tried to figure out why Carlo Ancelotti was so upset about two of Real Madrid's goals yesterday. They are looking for volunteer students to from a group that can explain the offside rule. The students will have a year long mandate.
Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Monaco. The Champions League semifinalists. I'm going through all the combinations of my head to figure out what final has the best ring to it.
Juventus-Monaco. They've both been so impressive this year and will make a pleasant change.
Monaco-Real Madrid. The 11 time champions against the kids. Tasty.
Real Madrid-Juventus. The two grand old teams. A classic. But boring? Who else thinks Real are not that much fun to watch?
Monaco-Atletico Madrid. Sounds odd. Atletico would probably go all out to destroy any hint of flash from Monaco.
Juventus-Atletico Madrid. Feisty. I like the thought of this one. I see a good old fashioned physical, cynical battle.
Atletico-Real. Please, no. Been there, seen that. Not again.
In completely different news, but in keeping with my marking of significant events over these 1000 days, physicists at Washington State University announced that they have created a "negative mass" liquid that defies Newton's Second Law of Motion. When the liquid is pushed it moves towards the pusher, rather than in the direction of the push. The physicists "cooled rubidium atoms to just above the temperature of absolute zero (close to -273C), creating what's known as a Bose-Einstein condensate." (BBC News)
And in other news physicists at Washington State University tried to figure out why Carlo Ancelotti was so upset about two of Real Madrid's goals yesterday. They are looking for volunteer students to from a group that can explain the offside rule. The students will have a year long mandate.
Tuesday 18 April 2017
God 1 Villa 0
Day -422 WorldCup2018
I did not get round yesterday to wrapping up (probably) my Aston Villa story for the season.
Dr. Tony, Villa's owner, sent someone to negotiate with the Aston church of St. Peter and St. Paul before Easter. Dr. Tony's team would have offered St. Peter and Paul's team to not have a match at Villa Park on Good Friday in return for what? Whatever it was that was said must have not been received very well further up the chain. The saints may have discussed it, and, possibly puzzled and confused, took it to the big boss for clarification and direction. He (with the capital H) must have snorted his disapproval and laughed at Dr. Tony's offer.
In the meantime, Dr. Tony's guys probably went back to him feeling pretty good about themselves, unawares that they were being laughed at. By Monday afternoon, Dr. Tony would have been shaking his head. He went to the church looking for a miracle. They came back to him with two consecutive 3-1 defeats. A coincidence? Maybe not.
The number three is not taken lightly in the bible. From biblestudy.org:
"It pictures completeness, though to a lesser degree than 7."
"......it is the first of four spiritually perfect numerals...."
"There are 27 books in the New Testament, which is 3x3x3, or completeness to the third power."
"Jesus prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane before His arrest. He was placed on the cross at the 3rd hour of the day (9 a.m.) and died at the 9th hour (3 p.m.). There were 3 hours of darkness that covered the land while Jesus was suffering on the cross from the 6th hour to the 9th hour. "
And, of course, Jesus rose on the third day. And these defeats happened over the Easter weekend. I tell you, God is pretty sarcastic. Take that, Dr. Tony. You've been outdone. You had to cheek to ask us for a promotion miracle in return for one peaceful Good Friday, after many years of drunk fans traipsing through our services on their way to Villa Park. And you thought the 1-3, twice, was down to bad defending. Maybe next year we'll be nicer.
I did not get round yesterday to wrapping up (probably) my Aston Villa story for the season.
Dr. Tony, Villa's owner, sent someone to negotiate with the Aston church of St. Peter and St. Paul before Easter. Dr. Tony's team would have offered St. Peter and Paul's team to not have a match at Villa Park on Good Friday in return for what? Whatever it was that was said must have not been received very well further up the chain. The saints may have discussed it, and, possibly puzzled and confused, took it to the big boss for clarification and direction. He (with the capital H) must have snorted his disapproval and laughed at Dr. Tony's offer.
In the meantime, Dr. Tony's guys probably went back to him feeling pretty good about themselves, unawares that they were being laughed at. By Monday afternoon, Dr. Tony would have been shaking his head. He went to the church looking for a miracle. They came back to him with two consecutive 3-1 defeats. A coincidence? Maybe not.
The number three is not taken lightly in the bible. From biblestudy.org:
"It pictures completeness, though to a lesser degree than 7."
"......it is the first of four spiritually perfect numerals...."
"There are 27 books in the New Testament, which is 3x3x3, or completeness to the third power."
"Jesus prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane before His arrest. He was placed on the cross at the 3rd hour of the day (9 a.m.) and died at the 9th hour (3 p.m.). There were 3 hours of darkness that covered the land while Jesus was suffering on the cross from the 6th hour to the 9th hour. "
And, of course, Jesus rose on the third day. And these defeats happened over the Easter weekend. I tell you, God is pretty sarcastic. Take that, Dr. Tony. You've been outdone. You had to cheek to ask us for a promotion miracle in return for one peaceful Good Friday, after many years of drunk fans traipsing through our services on their way to Villa Park. And you thought the 1-3, twice, was down to bad defending. Maybe next year we'll be nicer.
Monday 17 April 2017
Brighton and Hove Albion and Coronation Street
Day -423 WorldCup2018
Brighton and Hove Albion will be in the Premier League next season, officially clinching promotion today. They were last in the old First Division in 1983 when I remember them in a very exciting FA Cup final against Manchester United. It ended 2-2 and I thought Brighton were pretty good. Only after a few days of hearing the words "relegated", "relegation" and "second division" did I understand what had happened to them. I was young and still had my head filled with visions of Aston Villa winning the European Cup and Brazil at 1982 World Cup. Teams being so bad as to be relegated was a new thing for me. And if they were that bad how come they were in a final? Man. United won the replay 4-0 and by then I was an expert: "No surprise. Brighton were relegated," I knowingly proclaimed to anybody talking about it.
This is great news for Brighton. There's a nice feel about them being in the Premier League. I tried to suppress my cynicism but I wondered how long it would be before the good work Chris Hughton did over the last two years will be forgotten when they are struggling next season. I hope he survives longer than he did with Newcastle. After convincingly leading them back into the Premier League in 2009, he was sacked the following season with the team in 12th place in the Premier League.
And as we warm up for the end of season fun in May, two more teams wrapped up promotion today. Portsmouth and Plymouth are moving up to League One. It was a good day for the south coast of England.
And now for my embarrassing story of the day. You may not take me seriously as a sports fan after this. But it was hockey, not football, I shout in my defence. We were joining in the excitement around Toronto by watching the Toronto Maple Leafs on TV playing game 3 of their playoff series against Washington. The Leafs came back from 3-1 down to send the third game in a row into overtime. Oh, how exciting. But still so frantic. And sudden death. It's too hard to take sometimes. So what to do in that 20 minute break? Have a drink, pace the house to release tension, watch the experts talk about who has the best chance to win? Good ideas. Or catch up on the day's episode of Coronation Street on the PVR. We have to fit it in somewhere every night, ok. So why not use this time? If we fast forward through the ads it's on for 23 minutes. I could take the risk that nothing will happen. Yes, yes. I hear you. How could I? Well, something did indeed happen. As soon as the first note of the closing music of Coronation Street started I switched it back. And the hockey wasn't on. Not live anyway. It was highlights of something that had just happened. And from the voices excitedly describing what happened, and the fact that what they were leading up to was happening in front of the Washington net, we quickly surmised that the Leafs had scored. And there it was. The second game in a row one by a Leafs sudden death goal. And the second one in a row that we had missed because we stopped watching. Two days ago it had nothing to do with British soap operas detailing in a very realistic manner the weddings, affairs and murders that all happen on one street in a suburb of Manchester. But what it did say to me and my sports superstition is that if the next game goes to overtime I need to find something else to do.
Brighton and Hove Albion will be in the Premier League next season, officially clinching promotion today. They were last in the old First Division in 1983 when I remember them in a very exciting FA Cup final against Manchester United. It ended 2-2 and I thought Brighton were pretty good. Only after a few days of hearing the words "relegated", "relegation" and "second division" did I understand what had happened to them. I was young and still had my head filled with visions of Aston Villa winning the European Cup and Brazil at 1982 World Cup. Teams being so bad as to be relegated was a new thing for me. And if they were that bad how come they were in a final? Man. United won the replay 4-0 and by then I was an expert: "No surprise. Brighton were relegated," I knowingly proclaimed to anybody talking about it.
This is great news for Brighton. There's a nice feel about them being in the Premier League. I tried to suppress my cynicism but I wondered how long it would be before the good work Chris Hughton did over the last two years will be forgotten when they are struggling next season. I hope he survives longer than he did with Newcastle. After convincingly leading them back into the Premier League in 2009, he was sacked the following season with the team in 12th place in the Premier League.
And as we warm up for the end of season fun in May, two more teams wrapped up promotion today. Portsmouth and Plymouth are moving up to League One. It was a good day for the south coast of England.
And now for my embarrassing story of the day. You may not take me seriously as a sports fan after this. But it was hockey, not football, I shout in my defence. We were joining in the excitement around Toronto by watching the Toronto Maple Leafs on TV playing game 3 of their playoff series against Washington. The Leafs came back from 3-1 down to send the third game in a row into overtime. Oh, how exciting. But still so frantic. And sudden death. It's too hard to take sometimes. So what to do in that 20 minute break? Have a drink, pace the house to release tension, watch the experts talk about who has the best chance to win? Good ideas. Or catch up on the day's episode of Coronation Street on the PVR. We have to fit it in somewhere every night, ok. So why not use this time? If we fast forward through the ads it's on for 23 minutes. I could take the risk that nothing will happen. Yes, yes. I hear you. How could I? Well, something did indeed happen. As soon as the first note of the closing music of Coronation Street started I switched it back. And the hockey wasn't on. Not live anyway. It was highlights of something that had just happened. And from the voices excitedly describing what happened, and the fact that what they were leading up to was happening in front of the Washington net, we quickly surmised that the Leafs had scored. And there it was. The second game in a row one by a Leafs sudden death goal. And the second one in a row that we had missed because we stopped watching. Two days ago it had nothing to do with British soap operas detailing in a very realistic manner the weddings, affairs and murders that all happen on one street in a suburb of Manchester. But what it did say to me and my sports superstition is that if the next game goes to overtime I need to find something else to do.
Sunday 16 April 2017
Post-season....
Day -424 WorldCup2018
Chelsea are doing a good job of keeping up the possibility of an exciting May in the Premier League for Tottenham and neutral fans. But as Spurs continue to look like not only will they never lose but like they are winning for fun, and Chelsea not only seem like all of a sudden they could lose every week and are actually losing, I wonder again about the excitement value of a league versus a play-off system.
I am surrounded by play-offs now with two Toronto teams, hockey and basketball, competing in the post-season. Post-season. Look at me, sounding like a real local. Post-season is a funny term though, isn't it, because doesn't it mean that the season has ended? Whatever it may be called it means a lot of nail-biting games which all count. Nobody can play for a draw. Every game needs a winner. And then they do it again two days later until one of them wins four times. Of course the intensity of playing so many times in a short period doesn't work for football, but even the two home and away matches in the MLS makes me wonder if it's a more exciting end to the season than one team meandering to the title in May.
Yesterday we watched the Toronto Maple Leafs win in the second period of sudden death overtime. There's another joy of the playoffs. You've watched three twenty minute periods of non-stop action and there's still no winner. So they start another twenty minute period, and then another one until somebody scores. I struggle with how frantic hockey is and the constant change of possession of the puck. Hold on to it, I keep wanting to yell at the TV. But the intensity can be mesmerizing.
Fifa have already tweaked the 2026 World Cup and guaranteed themselves more revenue. But, as opposed as I used to be to any gimmicky rule changes, I wouldn't mind something different in the future to not have to endure any more turgid Costa Rica-Greece 0-0 draws. Play 10 minutes of extra time, five a side? Or just very simply bring back the silver and golden goals. The 2026 World Cup is going to be in North America. It has to be exciting and appealing to the locals
Chelsea are doing a good job of keeping up the possibility of an exciting May in the Premier League for Tottenham and neutral fans. But as Spurs continue to look like not only will they never lose but like they are winning for fun, and Chelsea not only seem like all of a sudden they could lose every week and are actually losing, I wonder again about the excitement value of a league versus a play-off system.
I am surrounded by play-offs now with two Toronto teams, hockey and basketball, competing in the post-season. Post-season. Look at me, sounding like a real local. Post-season is a funny term though, isn't it, because doesn't it mean that the season has ended? Whatever it may be called it means a lot of nail-biting games which all count. Nobody can play for a draw. Every game needs a winner. And then they do it again two days later until one of them wins four times. Of course the intensity of playing so many times in a short period doesn't work for football, but even the two home and away matches in the MLS makes me wonder if it's a more exciting end to the season than one team meandering to the title in May.
Yesterday we watched the Toronto Maple Leafs win in the second period of sudden death overtime. There's another joy of the playoffs. You've watched three twenty minute periods of non-stop action and there's still no winner. So they start another twenty minute period, and then another one until somebody scores. I struggle with how frantic hockey is and the constant change of possession of the puck. Hold on to it, I keep wanting to yell at the TV. But the intensity can be mesmerizing.
Fifa have already tweaked the 2026 World Cup and guaranteed themselves more revenue. But, as opposed as I used to be to any gimmicky rule changes, I wouldn't mind something different in the future to not have to endure any more turgid Costa Rica-Greece 0-0 draws. Play 10 minutes of extra time, five a side? Or just very simply bring back the silver and golden goals. The 2026 World Cup is going to be in North America. It has to be exciting and appealing to the locals
Saturday 15 April 2017
Janssen! Janssen!
Day -425 WorldCup2018
Did you see it? At White Hart Lane today? Live or on TV? Yes, Vincent Janssen smiled and 40,000 people plus smiled with him. The man scored a goal. One goal. Finally. Spurs were already 3-0 up and any competitiveness had long before disappeared from this match. But the smile. Myself and the 40,000, probably, didn't think it was possible.
When Janssen was standing on the sideline waiting to come on he had the expression on his face which seems to be the norm for him: fear (that he's not going to score again), disappointment (with the premonition that he's going to, yes, disappoint again), foreboding (definition from Cambridge Dictionary: "a feeling that something very bad is going to happen soon", like another terrible miss) and I even think, boredom. He never looks excited to play, never seems to be having any fun.
Tottenham seem to have a problem with spending a lot of money of centre forwards, strikers, number 9's, goalscorers who seem to forget how to do exactly that when they move to Spurs. And they don't just fail. They fail spectacularly. Remember these superstars: Rebrov, Postiga, Bent, Zamora, Dumitrescu and of course Soldado? They were good, just not at Spurs. Then there was the player who was supposed to become a superstar because Martin Jol, the manager at the time, said he would: Grzegorz Rasiak. Who? I only came across his name by accident
But well done, Vincent. Let's hope it's just that you took slow starting to a whole new level. Eight months. We look forward to many more smiles.
Oh, and before I go, for those of you who don't see any results below the Premier League, or Serie A, or La Liga, the good people of the congregation of the St. Peter and St Paul parish church in Aston must not have a good line to God as Aston Villa lost today (see yesterday). There was no return favour. Or they prayed for a Reading win as a punishment for all the years that football took precedence over Good Friday. Either way they'll be stuck with miserable supporters of a second tier team walking past their church for at least one more year.
Did you see it? At White Hart Lane today? Live or on TV? Yes, Vincent Janssen smiled and 40,000 people plus smiled with him. The man scored a goal. One goal. Finally. Spurs were already 3-0 up and any competitiveness had long before disappeared from this match. But the smile. Myself and the 40,000, probably, didn't think it was possible.
When Janssen was standing on the sideline waiting to come on he had the expression on his face which seems to be the norm for him: fear (that he's not going to score again), disappointment (with the premonition that he's going to, yes, disappoint again), foreboding (definition from Cambridge Dictionary: "a feeling that something very bad is going to happen soon", like another terrible miss) and I even think, boredom. He never looks excited to play, never seems to be having any fun.
Tottenham seem to have a problem with spending a lot of money of centre forwards, strikers, number 9's, goalscorers who seem to forget how to do exactly that when they move to Spurs. And they don't just fail. They fail spectacularly. Remember these superstars: Rebrov, Postiga, Bent, Zamora, Dumitrescu and of course Soldado? They were good, just not at Spurs. Then there was the player who was supposed to become a superstar because Martin Jol, the manager at the time, said he would: Grzegorz Rasiak. Who? I only came across his name by accident
But well done, Vincent. Let's hope it's just that you took slow starting to a whole new level. Eight months. We look forward to many more smiles.
Oh, and before I go, for those of you who don't see any results below the Premier League, or Serie A, or La Liga, the good people of the congregation of the St. Peter and St Paul parish church in Aston must not have a good line to God as Aston Villa lost today (see yesterday). There was no return favour. Or they prayed for a Reading win as a punishment for all the years that football took precedence over Good Friday. Either way they'll be stuck with miserable supporters of a second tier team walking past their church for at least one more year.
Friday 14 April 2017
April, be gone
Day -426 WorldCup2018.
April is not my favourite month. It used to be when the third term of school would start, the third term that seemed to last forever and was like the wall in my head that was preventing summer from starting. And that wall couldn't be climbed over until end of year exams were tackled, always a time of great stress. Of course, if I started studying for them in April then June would have been a lot easier. But then, as now, April was too much of a nothing month to do anything of significance. The weather can't decide what it wants to do. It's even more true now where I go from days of "oh, summer's here" to "good thing I didn't take the winter tires off yet". We want to be done with winter but it keeps being thrown at us. And there's nothing to look forward to. Nothing happens in April. The world is getting ready for May.
Champions League final, FA Cup Final, final day of the league season, French Open tennis. And there is sun everywhere and fans are in t-shirts and tennis spectators, and cricket players, are wearing big sun hats. And supporters are crying all over the place; tears of joy for a last minute winner to secure a league win, and desperate tears for a last minute winner that was meaningless in the end and relegation is confirmed. There are permutations to be worked out, combinations of results needed, the what if's, so much to keep your mind distracted from final exams.
But in defence of April it does give us a little taste of the joys of May. There are Champions League quarterfinals and FA Cup semifinals which are very often better than the finals. And the lists of "who could get promoted or relegated this weekend" start. In England Sheffield United already had their day. Promotion out of League One was secured while mathematics confirmed Rotherham's misery as they return to where Sheffield United are coming from. And today Coventry City dropped into League Two, into the lowest division for the first time since 1959.
In 1987 Coventry beat Tottenham 3-2 in a very memorable FA Cup Final, with one of the memories the Keith Houchen flying header for Coventry to make it 2-2. In the weeks after the final I remember reading about Coventry's long term plan to become a force in English football, how this win was to be the catapult for further success. Sure, they hung around the old First Division and Premier League for a while but they never came close to doing a Leicester. Talk of future greatness based on a couple of good results reminds me of Rory McIlroy. After he won 4 majors he was talked about as being better than Tiger Woods and likely to dominate gold for longer than Tiger did. Since his last major win in 2014 he's been in the news more for letting down Caroline Wozniacki almost at the altar, and for not letting down Donald Trump when the President asked Mcllroy to accompany him on a round of golf.
At least last season when Leicester did the unimaginable nobody had the bad foresight to say they would be the new masters of English football. This season has gone about according to predictions. Except for the Champions League. They're still playing in April and only have a 1-0 deficit against Atletico Madrid to overcome to reach the semifinals. But it's not like they're going to win the whole thing, is it? Were we not saying that at the beginning of last April and the Premier League.
Aston Villa will have nothing to look forward to in May, other then that the season will be over and they can look forward to the next. All the other teams in the Championship played today and Sheffield Wednesday and Fulham both won, meaning they are even further ahead in the battle for sixth place and the last play-off spot. And why did Villa not play today? Because I support a lovely club that cares about its community. The club agreed to not play today to not be disruptive to the Good Friday services at the Aston Parish Church. The church has had to deal the traffic of thousands of fans in the past making it difficult for worshippers to get to the church. Villa will play Reading tomorrow and because of this generous switch will only have 48 hours rest before playing away to Fulham on Monday. And there's the sign that they have definitely given up on promotion.
April is not my favourite month. It used to be when the third term of school would start, the third term that seemed to last forever and was like the wall in my head that was preventing summer from starting. And that wall couldn't be climbed over until end of year exams were tackled, always a time of great stress. Of course, if I started studying for them in April then June would have been a lot easier. But then, as now, April was too much of a nothing month to do anything of significance. The weather can't decide what it wants to do. It's even more true now where I go from days of "oh, summer's here" to "good thing I didn't take the winter tires off yet". We want to be done with winter but it keeps being thrown at us. And there's nothing to look forward to. Nothing happens in April. The world is getting ready for May.
Champions League final, FA Cup Final, final day of the league season, French Open tennis. And there is sun everywhere and fans are in t-shirts and tennis spectators, and cricket players, are wearing big sun hats. And supporters are crying all over the place; tears of joy for a last minute winner to secure a league win, and desperate tears for a last minute winner that was meaningless in the end and relegation is confirmed. There are permutations to be worked out, combinations of results needed, the what if's, so much to keep your mind distracted from final exams.
But in defence of April it does give us a little taste of the joys of May. There are Champions League quarterfinals and FA Cup semifinals which are very often better than the finals. And the lists of "who could get promoted or relegated this weekend" start. In England Sheffield United already had their day. Promotion out of League One was secured while mathematics confirmed Rotherham's misery as they return to where Sheffield United are coming from. And today Coventry City dropped into League Two, into the lowest division for the first time since 1959.
In 1987 Coventry beat Tottenham 3-2 in a very memorable FA Cup Final, with one of the memories the Keith Houchen flying header for Coventry to make it 2-2. In the weeks after the final I remember reading about Coventry's long term plan to become a force in English football, how this win was to be the catapult for further success. Sure, they hung around the old First Division and Premier League for a while but they never came close to doing a Leicester. Talk of future greatness based on a couple of good results reminds me of Rory McIlroy. After he won 4 majors he was talked about as being better than Tiger Woods and likely to dominate gold for longer than Tiger did. Since his last major win in 2014 he's been in the news more for letting down Caroline Wozniacki almost at the altar, and for not letting down Donald Trump when the President asked Mcllroy to accompany him on a round of golf.
At least last season when Leicester did the unimaginable nobody had the bad foresight to say they would be the new masters of English football. This season has gone about according to predictions. Except for the Champions League. They're still playing in April and only have a 1-0 deficit against Atletico Madrid to overcome to reach the semifinals. But it's not like they're going to win the whole thing, is it? Were we not saying that at the beginning of last April and the Premier League.
Aston Villa will have nothing to look forward to in May, other then that the season will be over and they can look forward to the next. All the other teams in the Championship played today and Sheffield Wednesday and Fulham both won, meaning they are even further ahead in the battle for sixth place and the last play-off spot. And why did Villa not play today? Because I support a lovely club that cares about its community. The club agreed to not play today to not be disruptive to the Good Friday services at the Aston Parish Church. The church has had to deal the traffic of thousands of fans in the past making it difficult for worshippers to get to the church. Villa will play Reading tomorrow and because of this generous switch will only have 48 hours rest before playing away to Fulham on Monday. And there's the sign that they have definitely given up on promotion.
Thursday 13 April 2017
Wednesday 12 April 2017
Ranierie and his Portuguese lineage
Day -428 WorldCup2018
I could tell you what a great day of Champions League football it was today. But I can't, because I didn't see any of it. After today my money (what money?.....oh yes, my fake money) is on a Monaco-Leicester final. And then Claudio Ranieri can get his revenge over Monaco for beating his Chelsea in the semifinals in 2004. Oh no, sorry. Ranieri, he's gone. But he could sit back and watch that final and think: I built both of these teams. And they both sacked me.
Ranieri was sacked by Chelsea in 2004 after he led them to second place in the Premier League. He was replaced by a young Portuguese coach, Jose Mourinho, who had just won the Champions League with Porto. In 2014, after leading Monaco from the second division to second place in Ligue 1 in France, he was sacked and replaced by a young successful Portuguese manager, Leonardo Jardim.
Thinking that he needed to try doing things in reverse, Ranieri accepted to replace a not so young, successful Portuguese manager, Fernando Santos, as manager of Greece. It was a disaster. The Faroe Islands even beat Greece, in Greece.
His success with Leicester is, of course, legendary. For one season, at least. And just while he was probably beginning to wonder where the next hot shot Portuguese manager was going to come from he was sacked and replaced by a 53 year old Englishman who's only previous success was an assistant to Ranieri.
So if it is the "final that nobody would have imagined 3 years ago" who will invite Mr. Ranieri as their guest, Leicester or Monaco?
I could tell you what a great day of Champions League football it was today. But I can't, because I didn't see any of it. After today my money (what money?.....oh yes, my fake money) is on a Monaco-Leicester final. And then Claudio Ranieri can get his revenge over Monaco for beating his Chelsea in the semifinals in 2004. Oh no, sorry. Ranieri, he's gone. But he could sit back and watch that final and think: I built both of these teams. And they both sacked me.
Ranieri was sacked by Chelsea in 2004 after he led them to second place in the Premier League. He was replaced by a young Portuguese coach, Jose Mourinho, who had just won the Champions League with Porto. In 2014, after leading Monaco from the second division to second place in Ligue 1 in France, he was sacked and replaced by a young successful Portuguese manager, Leonardo Jardim.
Thinking that he needed to try doing things in reverse, Ranieri accepted to replace a not so young, successful Portuguese manager, Fernando Santos, as manager of Greece. It was a disaster. The Faroe Islands even beat Greece, in Greece.
His success with Leicester is, of course, legendary. For one season, at least. And just while he was probably beginning to wonder where the next hot shot Portuguese manager was going to come from he was sacked and replaced by a 53 year old Englishman who's only previous success was an assistant to Ranieri.
So if it is the "final that nobody would have imagined 3 years ago" who will invite Mr. Ranieri as their guest, Leicester or Monaco?
Tuesday 11 April 2017
Bomb in Dortmund
Day -429 #WorldCup2018
Crazy day with the postponement of the Borussia Dortmund-Monaco Champions League quarterfinal because of the bombs set off close to the Dortmund team bus. Who did it? Why? Thankfully only one player was injured.
And as very often happens, rival football fans unite when football itself is under attack.
Crazy day with the postponement of the Borussia Dortmund-Monaco Champions League quarterfinal because of the bombs set off close to the Dortmund team bus. Who did it? Why? Thankfully only one player was injured.
And as very often happens, rival football fans unite when football itself is under attack.
Monday 10 April 2017
USA/Canada/Mexico 2026
Day -430 WorldCup2018
My day would have been a lot better if I could have sat back and watched Crystal Palace beat Arsenal. Why, you wonder? Was it important? Am I fan? No and no. It just would have been fun. But then pretty much everyday I wish I could make a living out of watching football.
Tottenham fans were happy today because Arsenal's defeat means they now have a 14 point lead over their North London neighbours. Listening to some Spurs' fans banter it seems they are more interested in finishing above Arsenal than catching Chelsea. It makes sense, I guess, when your team has been second best in North London forever. But it seems as senseless as some Aston Villa fans being happy that Villa will finish above Birmingham this season. Really? Wouldn't promotion have been a better achievement?
USA, Canada and Mexico officially announced their joint bid for the 2026 World Cup today. Of course, I hope it happens, especially if I'm still living here. But there are a few whys I wonder about. The US have the stadiums, a lot of them and the 1994 World Cup was the best attended ever. Why do they need Mexico and Canada to make their bid stronger? Mexico have already hosted 2 World Cups. Why should they be considered for another one before, say, Australia? Funny thing about Australia. Because Qatar are hosting in 2022, according to Fifa's rotational policy an Asian country cannot host in 2026. This is when Australia probably wish they weren't Asian, in football geography.
More questions. If Fifa really want take football to new countries, why didn’t Mexico consider hosting with other Central American countries? Wouldn't that have been a popular choice? Not enough opportunity for revenue generating in those countries, maybe.
Why are Canada jumping onto the back of this bid? No, sorry that's not a serious question (chuckle). There is no other way Canada would get to host otherwise. They are probably the happiest of the three countries.
Will the Mexican and American football federations decorate the wall on their border to make it not look so awful for all the World Cup visitors. Or will the Americans just do it without asking and make the Mexicans pay for it?
My day would have been a lot better if I could have sat back and watched Crystal Palace beat Arsenal. Why, you wonder? Was it important? Am I fan? No and no. It just would have been fun. But then pretty much everyday I wish I could make a living out of watching football.
Tottenham fans were happy today because Arsenal's defeat means they now have a 14 point lead over their North London neighbours. Listening to some Spurs' fans banter it seems they are more interested in finishing above Arsenal than catching Chelsea. It makes sense, I guess, when your team has been second best in North London forever. But it seems as senseless as some Aston Villa fans being happy that Villa will finish above Birmingham this season. Really? Wouldn't promotion have been a better achievement?
USA, Canada and Mexico officially announced their joint bid for the 2026 World Cup today. Of course, I hope it happens, especially if I'm still living here. But there are a few whys I wonder about. The US have the stadiums, a lot of them and the 1994 World Cup was the best attended ever. Why do they need Mexico and Canada to make their bid stronger? Mexico have already hosted 2 World Cups. Why should they be considered for another one before, say, Australia? Funny thing about Australia. Because Qatar are hosting in 2022, according to Fifa's rotational policy an Asian country cannot host in 2026. This is when Australia probably wish they weren't Asian, in football geography.
More questions. If Fifa really want take football to new countries, why didn’t Mexico consider hosting with other Central American countries? Wouldn't that have been a popular choice? Not enough opportunity for revenue generating in those countries, maybe.
Why are Canada jumping onto the back of this bid? No, sorry that's not a serious question (chuckle). There is no other way Canada would get to host otherwise. They are probably the happiest of the three countries.
Will the Mexican and American football federations decorate the wall on their border to make it not look so awful for all the World Cup visitors. Or will the Americans just do it without asking and make the Mexicans pay for it?
Sunday 9 April 2017
Sergio! The golf guy....
Day -431. WorldCup2018
Sometimes I have to go to another sport to get the thrill of an exciting battle to the end, one winner takes it all. Today it was golf. The final round of The Masters was enthralling, in a way that a football match usually cannot be. Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose were engaged in a contest of incredible skill that pushed each other to play some pretty incredible shots, and ultimately it became a matter of who slipped up first. Rose caved, Garcia won. And golf fans all over the world rejoiced for the man who "deserved it".
It was a little more exciting than Sunderland v Man United, which was more of a continuation of Sunderland's procession to relegation. But if I sound like I am confessing to finding more enjoyment outside of football, no. Just occasionally there is the need to cross over to something else. It's good for the brain.
Sometimes I have to go to another sport to get the thrill of an exciting battle to the end, one winner takes it all. Today it was golf. The final round of The Masters was enthralling, in a way that a football match usually cannot be. Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose were engaged in a contest of incredible skill that pushed each other to play some pretty incredible shots, and ultimately it became a matter of who slipped up first. Rose caved, Garcia won. And golf fans all over the world rejoiced for the man who "deserved it".
It was a little more exciting than Sunderland v Man United, which was more of a continuation of Sunderland's procession to relegation. But if I sound like I am confessing to finding more enjoyment outside of football, no. Just occasionally there is the need to cross over to something else. It's good for the brain.
Saturday 8 April 2017
Oh MLS refs! Oh Son! Oh Janssen!
Day -432 WorldCup2018
I had a thought earlier today that I was going to write about. Then something else happened, and something else. And more. And here I am now watching Toronto FC and I could write a chapter of a book. I'll go backwards.
Toronto are playing one of MLS's new teams this season, Atlanta United. Kenwyne Jones has just come on for Atlanta. You may, like me, remember him as a player who flopped around with Sunderland, Stoke and Cardiff. He always seemed to be throwing himself around in the opposition penalty area without too much success. His long dreadlocks made him very noticeable but I cannot ever noticing him for a moment of skill. And here he is, coming on as a late substitute for Atlanta, alongside Tyron Mears who played in England with a bunch of clubs including West Ham and Bolton. And their manager? Gerardo Martino, former manager of Paraguay and, up until last August, Argentina. A celebrity coach in the MLS. And he's got his team playing with a lot of South American flair. They're fun to watch and they've been scoring a lot. But I wonder what Martino thinks about the MLS, and especially the referees.
I'm a defender of the MLS, which can be such an easy target for ridicule. "Football in America? Bah! They don't know what they're doing." But you've got to watch it every week to know it's come a long way and I, the Euro snob, enjoy it. However, today I had to cringe a couple of times and expect the worst reaction possible.
In the second half, TFC defender Zavaleta's head had a collision with the elbow of Atlanta's Asad. As Zavaleta rolled around on the ground, the ref had a word with Asad and seemed to indicate that he was getting away with a warning and a "move along." Then it got MLS embarrassing/weird. It looked like it was all over except for Zavaleta receiving some treatment. But as we watched the replay on TV, it looked like it was a combination of Zavaleta trying to obstruct Asad and Asad trying to get his arm out from behind Zavaleta. Whether it was a foul or deserving of a card was not yet the weird bit. It became obvious from the crowd's increased jeering and booing that they had also seen the replay on the big screens in the stadium. When it came back to the live action, players were arguing and coaches were gesticulating. All of a sudden the ref decided he had to consult his assistant on the line (can't I just say the linesman?) and the 4th official. But he had done nothing in the thirty seconds immediately after the incident. He had made his decision and video replays don't exist in MLS yet. But the home crowd was incensed by what they saw and rather than ignore it, the ref decided to re-examine his decision. It was an unofficial video review. And it came as no surprise when Asad was shown the red card. Incredible. Martino almost lost it, repeatedly pointing a finger and yelling at the linesman? The 4th official? Greg Vanney, the TFC manager? Martino's assistant did lose it and was sent off. And he marched down the tunnel, yapping away, probably saying something in Spanish to the effect of what a joke league this is, with amateur referees.
I'd already had my doubts about the ref in the first half when another incident made me think I'd have to write about it, while still defending the MLS. It seems trivial compared to the red card. Armando Cooper, TFC's midfielder tussled with an opponent and as they both fell to the ground the ref awarded a free kick, on the halfway line, to Atlanta. The Atlanta player (sorry, no name) tried to get up quickly and take the free kick. However, Cooper was still pretty much attached to him and his kick hit Cooper. The Atlanta players, and probably the TFC ones too, expected the ref to blow his whistle, tell Cooper to move back the regulation distance and have the free kick re-taken. He could have even shown Cooper a yellow card for not allowing the free-kick to be taken. But no. As the ball rebounded off Cooper and pretty much gave him possession, and as the Atlanta player stared at the ref awaiting the whistle, the ref shrugged his shoulders ("what was wrong with that?") and allowed Cooper to release Giovinco for a very good goal scoring opportunity. The ref's reaction was priceless: the shrug of the shoulders and the "so what" attitude. Oh, if Toronto had scored! Martino's assistant probably wouldn't even have been on the bench to be sent off in the second half.
Aside from all the fun with the officiating, it was n exciting, end to end match. And despite the dubious officiating, it was a good advert for the MLS and the quality that exists. It finished 2-2 and there were lots of opportunities for it to be higher scoring than that.
Giovinco scored his first goal of the season, and it was a beauty of a move and goal. Altidore flicked the ball on perfectly for Giovinco, but other than that Altidore looked like the Altidore of Sunderland when he couldn't score a goal if he was standing on the goal line in front of an open goal. A bit like Vincent Janssen. But more of that to come.
Time to insert a random bit of news: on Monday the football associations of Canada, Mexico and the USA will officially announce a joint bid for the 2020 World Cup. The thinkers at Fifa are already trying to figure how their formula for qualifying spots and the six team play-off is going to work with three countries co-hosting.
Much earlier in this day of football I made the effort to watch Tottenham-Watford online. Spurs were enjoying themselves and Son Heung-min scored a couple of pretty tasty goals. After the second one he celebrated in front of a camera, holding up all his fingers indicating, presumably, that he had scored 10 goals this season. When he was interviewed after the match he was asked about how happy he is that he's reached double digits for the season.
"I'm ecstatic, really, really happy. In a way I'm lucky that Harry Kane has been out injured and I've had the opportunity to play more and show what a good player I am. It's a fantastic feeling to be scoring and I'm looking forward to scoring many, many more for Spurs and for South Korea at next year's World Cup. Yes! What a feeling! And did you see how good my goals were. Ok, for the first one the Watford defence let me set myself and pick my target but it was still a damn good shot. And the second one? That was not easy, it took some real skill," is what Son didn't say. This is what Son sort of said:
"Yes, it was nice to score. But the three points are what matters. And I thank my team mates. We are all working hard and blah, blah, blah....." (has the golf started yet?)
Son, really? You were over the moon happy on the pitch after your goals. The huge, open mouth smile, the little jig with Dele Alli. Why can't you just say that you're so happy for yourself? Why all the media training, polite crap? Speak your mind, Son. Be happy in your happiness.
Son could have also said:
"Well, you know it was even more special when you think we were a player short the whole match. And I wish the police or stewards had noticed earlier that there was a fan on the pitch wearing a Spurs shirt. His name must have been Janssen because he had had it printed on the back of his shirt. How nobody couldn't have noticed sooner that he wasn't a a real footballer is beyond me. Remember when that Fred character scored for Brazil in the World Cup when the ball hit him when he happened to be standing a foot in front of the goal. All of us in the Korean team thought, "even Fred couldn't miss that." This guy with Janssen on his shirt was really bad. He couldn't even score when the ball hit him on his leg and he was standing a foot in front of an open goal. Thankfully, the gaffer finally noticed and rather than make a big security deal about it, he just pretended he was a Spurs player and pretended to have him substituted."
And I think that was that for today. Oh, one more. Aston Villa didn't win today. They drew 1-1, only the second goal conceded in forever. But, more importantly, with the way other results went I think I can stop dreaming the dream that I wasn't really dreaming. And for the first time in my life as a Villa fan I will be watching them for two consecutive seasons outside of the top division.
I had a thought earlier today that I was going to write about. Then something else happened, and something else. And more. And here I am now watching Toronto FC and I could write a chapter of a book. I'll go backwards.
Toronto are playing one of MLS's new teams this season, Atlanta United. Kenwyne Jones has just come on for Atlanta. You may, like me, remember him as a player who flopped around with Sunderland, Stoke and Cardiff. He always seemed to be throwing himself around in the opposition penalty area without too much success. His long dreadlocks made him very noticeable but I cannot ever noticing him for a moment of skill. And here he is, coming on as a late substitute for Atlanta, alongside Tyron Mears who played in England with a bunch of clubs including West Ham and Bolton. And their manager? Gerardo Martino, former manager of Paraguay and, up until last August, Argentina. A celebrity coach in the MLS. And he's got his team playing with a lot of South American flair. They're fun to watch and they've been scoring a lot. But I wonder what Martino thinks about the MLS, and especially the referees.
I'm a defender of the MLS, which can be such an easy target for ridicule. "Football in America? Bah! They don't know what they're doing." But you've got to watch it every week to know it's come a long way and I, the Euro snob, enjoy it. However, today I had to cringe a couple of times and expect the worst reaction possible.
In the second half, TFC defender Zavaleta's head had a collision with the elbow of Atlanta's Asad. As Zavaleta rolled around on the ground, the ref had a word with Asad and seemed to indicate that he was getting away with a warning and a "move along." Then it got MLS embarrassing/weird. It looked like it was all over except for Zavaleta receiving some treatment. But as we watched the replay on TV, it looked like it was a combination of Zavaleta trying to obstruct Asad and Asad trying to get his arm out from behind Zavaleta. Whether it was a foul or deserving of a card was not yet the weird bit. It became obvious from the crowd's increased jeering and booing that they had also seen the replay on the big screens in the stadium. When it came back to the live action, players were arguing and coaches were gesticulating. All of a sudden the ref decided he had to consult his assistant on the line (can't I just say the linesman?) and the 4th official. But he had done nothing in the thirty seconds immediately after the incident. He had made his decision and video replays don't exist in MLS yet. But the home crowd was incensed by what they saw and rather than ignore it, the ref decided to re-examine his decision. It was an unofficial video review. And it came as no surprise when Asad was shown the red card. Incredible. Martino almost lost it, repeatedly pointing a finger and yelling at the linesman? The 4th official? Greg Vanney, the TFC manager? Martino's assistant did lose it and was sent off. And he marched down the tunnel, yapping away, probably saying something in Spanish to the effect of what a joke league this is, with amateur referees.
I'd already had my doubts about the ref in the first half when another incident made me think I'd have to write about it, while still defending the MLS. It seems trivial compared to the red card. Armando Cooper, TFC's midfielder tussled with an opponent and as they both fell to the ground the ref awarded a free kick, on the halfway line, to Atlanta. The Atlanta player (sorry, no name) tried to get up quickly and take the free kick. However, Cooper was still pretty much attached to him and his kick hit Cooper. The Atlanta players, and probably the TFC ones too, expected the ref to blow his whistle, tell Cooper to move back the regulation distance and have the free kick re-taken. He could have even shown Cooper a yellow card for not allowing the free-kick to be taken. But no. As the ball rebounded off Cooper and pretty much gave him possession, and as the Atlanta player stared at the ref awaiting the whistle, the ref shrugged his shoulders ("what was wrong with that?") and allowed Cooper to release Giovinco for a very good goal scoring opportunity. The ref's reaction was priceless: the shrug of the shoulders and the "so what" attitude. Oh, if Toronto had scored! Martino's assistant probably wouldn't even have been on the bench to be sent off in the second half.
Aside from all the fun with the officiating, it was n exciting, end to end match. And despite the dubious officiating, it was a good advert for the MLS and the quality that exists. It finished 2-2 and there were lots of opportunities for it to be higher scoring than that.
Giovinco scored his first goal of the season, and it was a beauty of a move and goal. Altidore flicked the ball on perfectly for Giovinco, but other than that Altidore looked like the Altidore of Sunderland when he couldn't score a goal if he was standing on the goal line in front of an open goal. A bit like Vincent Janssen. But more of that to come.
Time to insert a random bit of news: on Monday the football associations of Canada, Mexico and the USA will officially announce a joint bid for the 2020 World Cup. The thinkers at Fifa are already trying to figure how their formula for qualifying spots and the six team play-off is going to work with three countries co-hosting.
Much earlier in this day of football I made the effort to watch Tottenham-Watford online. Spurs were enjoying themselves and Son Heung-min scored a couple of pretty tasty goals. After the second one he celebrated in front of a camera, holding up all his fingers indicating, presumably, that he had scored 10 goals this season. When he was interviewed after the match he was asked about how happy he is that he's reached double digits for the season.
"I'm ecstatic, really, really happy. In a way I'm lucky that Harry Kane has been out injured and I've had the opportunity to play more and show what a good player I am. It's a fantastic feeling to be scoring and I'm looking forward to scoring many, many more for Spurs and for South Korea at next year's World Cup. Yes! What a feeling! And did you see how good my goals were. Ok, for the first one the Watford defence let me set myself and pick my target but it was still a damn good shot. And the second one? That was not easy, it took some real skill," is what Son didn't say. This is what Son sort of said:
"Yes, it was nice to score. But the three points are what matters. And I thank my team mates. We are all working hard and blah, blah, blah....." (has the golf started yet?)
Son, really? You were over the moon happy on the pitch after your goals. The huge, open mouth smile, the little jig with Dele Alli. Why can't you just say that you're so happy for yourself? Why all the media training, polite crap? Speak your mind, Son. Be happy in your happiness.
Son could have also said:
"Well, you know it was even more special when you think we were a player short the whole match. And I wish the police or stewards had noticed earlier that there was a fan on the pitch wearing a Spurs shirt. His name must have been Janssen because he had had it printed on the back of his shirt. How nobody couldn't have noticed sooner that he wasn't a a real footballer is beyond me. Remember when that Fred character scored for Brazil in the World Cup when the ball hit him when he happened to be standing a foot in front of the goal. All of us in the Korean team thought, "even Fred couldn't miss that." This guy with Janssen on his shirt was really bad. He couldn't even score when the ball hit him on his leg and he was standing a foot in front of an open goal. Thankfully, the gaffer finally noticed and rather than make a big security deal about it, he just pretended he was a Spurs player and pretended to have him substituted."
And I think that was that for today. Oh, one more. Aston Villa didn't win today. They drew 1-1, only the second goal conceded in forever. But, more importantly, with the way other results went I think I can stop dreaming the dream that I wasn't really dreaming. And for the first time in my life as a Villa fan I will be watching them for two consecutive seasons outside of the top division.
Friday 7 April 2017
Football Friday, golf Saturday
Day -433. WorldCup2018
Random thoughts on a random day in April.
I was about to say it was a random non-football Friday. Or at least a no major league football Friday. But I had to scratch hose thoughts because it's not just the Danish SAS-Ligaen that plays on Friday nowadays. (I hope my Danish readers are not offended by my insinuation that the Danish league is not a major European league. I hope I have Danish readers.) There was a match today in the top division in Germany, France, Portugal, Holland, Turkey and Spain. And it's not just Europe; I see results from Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Paraguay, Japan and more. Weekend football starts on a Friday. And, of course, even the MLS have joined the trend. LA Galaxy and Montreal play later in what I'm sure has been billed as Super Soccer Friday in LA.
In England there was the one regular match from the Championship. Brighton and Hove Albion beat QPR to move very close to reaching the Premier League for the first time in their history. Brighton and Hove Albion. You just have to say the whole name, don't you? I couldn't even be bothered with writing out QPR.
As I heard another ad for what's coming up on today's evening news I thought, again, how odd it is that we are told what is coming up in the news. Maybe it's just on Canadian TV. With the constant battle between news channels, on TV and online, for who can get the news out first, this is like a step further: "we will tell you now what is going to happen and how we are going to report on it." I know, I know. That's not what is is. But it makes for a good thought. And as I sat at a red light listening to the ad on the car radio, I thought how can I make a joke on these lines for football. Couldn't think of one but I did think that with staged news, reality shows that I don't believe are at all real, I'm happy that I follow something that is completely real and a true result is reached on the pitch. No acting here. No pre-determined results. All real. Right?
I don't have much football to watch tomorrow on my Saturday morning of watching football. Golf, The Masters, takes precedence across four of my regular football screening channels. I'm ok with golf and I'll watch the majors, on the last day. But can't we just squeeze in a little football before the 13 hour coverage starts? All I will get is Stoke v Liverpool. I may even switch over to the golf. (I hope my readers who are Stoke fans are not offended by my insinuation that watching Stoke is not worth my time as a football fan. I hope I have some, one, reader who may be a Stoke fan.)
Aston Villa are going to beat Burton Albion tomorrow and the ridiculous toying with my emotions and raising false hopes that I refuse to believe (while at the same time believing it is actually possible) will continue for another week.
Happy football, golf, hockey, tennis, baseball weekend.
Random thoughts on a random day in April.
I was about to say it was a random non-football Friday. Or at least a no major league football Friday. But I had to scratch hose thoughts because it's not just the Danish SAS-Ligaen that plays on Friday nowadays. (I hope my Danish readers are not offended by my insinuation that the Danish league is not a major European league. I hope I have Danish readers.) There was a match today in the top division in Germany, France, Portugal, Holland, Turkey and Spain. And it's not just Europe; I see results from Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Paraguay, Japan and more. Weekend football starts on a Friday. And, of course, even the MLS have joined the trend. LA Galaxy and Montreal play later in what I'm sure has been billed as Super Soccer Friday in LA.
In England there was the one regular match from the Championship. Brighton and Hove Albion beat QPR to move very close to reaching the Premier League for the first time in their history. Brighton and Hove Albion. You just have to say the whole name, don't you? I couldn't even be bothered with writing out QPR.
As I heard another ad for what's coming up on today's evening news I thought, again, how odd it is that we are told what is coming up in the news. Maybe it's just on Canadian TV. With the constant battle between news channels, on TV and online, for who can get the news out first, this is like a step further: "we will tell you now what is going to happen and how we are going to report on it." I know, I know. That's not what is is. But it makes for a good thought. And as I sat at a red light listening to the ad on the car radio, I thought how can I make a joke on these lines for football. Couldn't think of one but I did think that with staged news, reality shows that I don't believe are at all real, I'm happy that I follow something that is completely real and a true result is reached on the pitch. No acting here. No pre-determined results. All real. Right?
I don't have much football to watch tomorrow on my Saturday morning of watching football. Golf, The Masters, takes precedence across four of my regular football screening channels. I'm ok with golf and I'll watch the majors, on the last day. But can't we just squeeze in a little football before the 13 hour coverage starts? All I will get is Stoke v Liverpool. I may even switch over to the golf. (I hope my readers who are Stoke fans are not offended by my insinuation that watching Stoke is not worth my time as a football fan. I hope I have some, one, reader who may be a Stoke fan.)
Aston Villa are going to beat Burton Albion tomorrow and the ridiculous toying with my emotions and raising false hopes that I refuse to believe (while at the same time believing it is actually possible) will continue for another week.
Happy football, golf, hockey, tennis, baseball weekend.
Thursday 6 April 2017
Football over wars
Day -434. WorldCup2018
To carry on with yesterday's theme, today was the day that the Americans fired over 50 missiles into Syria, apparently targeting the Syrian air base from where the recent chemical attack was launched.
In 1982 I was enthralled by the World Cup and the tension between the English and Argentinian fans because of the Falklands War wasn't something that really made sense to me in the way that it should have. It was just two sets of supporters who didn't like each other. Brazil were playing in the World Cup and even though I saw the news about the war, how could it really be more important than the World Cup to a 9 year old.
In April 1986 America launched air strikes against Libya. It was close to home and got even closer when Libya fired a missile towards the American base on the island of Lampedusa. As terrible as it seemed I looked forward to the World Cup in Mexico a couple of months later.
And today? For completely different reasons, and different emotions, I want Saturday to come and football to be back on tv. Because I don't care? No. Because I don't want to face up to this becoming anything bigger and football is an easy, thoughtless distraction. In 1982 and 1986 I didn't really get it. And do I now? It still doesn't make any sense. People are dying everyday and the politicians meet and talk about it. And then somebody else fires some more bombs. I may not completely get it, but it does hit me more than it did when I was 9.
I don't ignore. I don't downplay the seriousness of what is going on. But football is simpler.
To carry on with yesterday's theme, today was the day that the Americans fired over 50 missiles into Syria, apparently targeting the Syrian air base from where the recent chemical attack was launched.
In 1982 I was enthralled by the World Cup and the tension between the English and Argentinian fans because of the Falklands War wasn't something that really made sense to me in the way that it should have. It was just two sets of supporters who didn't like each other. Brazil were playing in the World Cup and even though I saw the news about the war, how could it really be more important than the World Cup to a 9 year old.
In April 1986 America launched air strikes against Libya. It was close to home and got even closer when Libya fired a missile towards the American base on the island of Lampedusa. As terrible as it seemed I looked forward to the World Cup in Mexico a couple of months later.
And today? For completely different reasons, and different emotions, I want Saturday to come and football to be back on tv. Because I don't care? No. Because I don't want to face up to this becoming anything bigger and football is an easy, thoughtless distraction. In 1982 and 1986 I didn't really get it. And do I now? It still doesn't make any sense. People are dying everyday and the politicians meet and talk about it. And then somebody else fires some more bombs. I may not completely get it, but it does hit me more than it did when I was 9.
I don't ignore. I don't downplay the seriousness of what is going on. But football is simpler.
Wednesday 5 April 2017
Sad news, bad news, football news and lucky news
Day -435 WorldCup2018
A record of what was going in the football world, and beyond, over the 1000 days. That was one of my reasons for doing this. So what's important that's going on today that I will look back at when Russia 2018 starts and think: oh no; wow, really; that was surprising; I cant believe that happened.
The Colombian government ordered an inquiry into the devastating, desperately sad landslide that killed at least 290 people in the town of Mocoa. Over 300 people are still missing.
A record of what was going in the football world, and beyond, over the 1000 days. That was one of my reasons for doing this. So what's important that's going on today that I will look back at when Russia 2018 starts and think: oh no; wow, really; that was surprising; I cant believe that happened.
The Colombian government ordered an inquiry into the devastating, desperately sad landslide that killed at least 290 people in the town of Mocoa. Over 300 people are still missing.
Russian police arrested six people in St. Petersburg suspected or being
IS recruiters. This comes after the bombing of a subway train in St.
Petersburg two days ago that killed 14 people. Russian investigators
haven't said yet whether there is any evidence that the attack was the
work of IS. The only suspect is a Russian man, born in Kyrgyzstan.
Today is the day after a horrible chemical weapons attack on rebel held town in Syria. The Syrian army and government said it was nothing to with them. Same from their allies, the Russians. The UN held an emergency meeting today to discuss it. While everybody argues, people die. And on it goes.....6, 7 years. And the Syrian government is happy that it's football team is still in the running to qualify for the World Cup.
President Trump said his views on President Assad have changed. Finally, will something happen.
President Trump today removed his controversial strategist, Steve Bannon, from the US National Security Council.
Pepsi withdrew an advert less than 24 hours after it was first aired after protests about it's content and message. The ad was said, by critics, to have trivialised street protests in America, protests against the excessive use of police against African Americans. i did not see the ad and I also know nothing about its' main character, reality TV start Kendall Jenner. I know about as much about Kendall Jenner as reality TV fans know about Gary Shaw.
A Canadian couple won money on the lottery for the third time. This was their biggest win, $8m. The man had one a share of $128,000 with four of his friends in 1989 and the couple won $100, 000 in 2010. Who says some people don't just have all the luck?
Aston Villa didn't win today, because they didn't play.
Tottenham looked to have practically handed the Premier League title to Chelsea when they were 1-0 down to Swansea in the 88th minute. By the 94th minute Spurs were up 3-1.
Jose Mourinho said (yesterday) that Manchester United's defender, Luke Shaw, who was supposed to become England's number one left back, played against Everton with his (Shaw's) body and Mourinho's brain. Mourinho maintained that he was on the touchline telling what Shaw to do constantly. This public shaming, we would like to believe, is Mourinho's form of a good kicking up the backside that he says Shaw needs.
Where will Shaw be in 435 days: in Russia or in Kansas, in between matches for Sporting Kansas City?
Today is the day after a horrible chemical weapons attack on rebel held town in Syria. The Syrian army and government said it was nothing to with them. Same from their allies, the Russians. The UN held an emergency meeting today to discuss it. While everybody argues, people die. And on it goes.....6, 7 years. And the Syrian government is happy that it's football team is still in the running to qualify for the World Cup.
President Trump said his views on President Assad have changed. Finally, will something happen.
President Trump today removed his controversial strategist, Steve Bannon, from the US National Security Council.
Pepsi withdrew an advert less than 24 hours after it was first aired after protests about it's content and message. The ad was said, by critics, to have trivialised street protests in America, protests against the excessive use of police against African Americans. i did not see the ad and I also know nothing about its' main character, reality TV start Kendall Jenner. I know about as much about Kendall Jenner as reality TV fans know about Gary Shaw.
A Canadian couple won money on the lottery for the third time. This was their biggest win, $8m. The man had one a share of $128,000 with four of his friends in 1989 and the couple won $100, 000 in 2010. Who says some people don't just have all the luck?
Aston Villa didn't win today, because they didn't play.
Tottenham looked to have practically handed the Premier League title to Chelsea when they were 1-0 down to Swansea in the 88th minute. By the 94th minute Spurs were up 3-1.
Jose Mourinho said (yesterday) that Manchester United's defender, Luke Shaw, who was supposed to become England's number one left back, played against Everton with his (Shaw's) body and Mourinho's brain. Mourinho maintained that he was on the touchline telling what Shaw to do constantly. This public shaming, we would like to believe, is Mourinho's form of a good kicking up the backside that he says Shaw needs.
Where will Shaw be in 435 days: in Russia or in Kansas, in between matches for Sporting Kansas City?
Tuesday 4 April 2017
Aston Villa: they can't, can they?
Day -436. WorldCup2018
I'm going to keep this up because it keeps getting more ridiculous: Aston Villa won again today, that's seven out of the last eight, only one goal conceded and that was in the 1-0 defeat. It's ridiculous because I said after win number one that it didn't matter, and after two and three. Then they lost and it really didn't matter. The season was over. A win at this point of the season meant nothing, I kept saying it. But today they stand nine points out of the playoffs with six matches to go. It is near impossible, but possible.
Where will they be in 436 days, when the World Cup starts? Will the players be in their off-season, celebrating another year in the Premier League after winning promotion in May 2017? Will they be looking forward to life in the Premier League after winning promotion in May 2018, having done what most of their fans expect now: this strong end to the season is too late but it means they will be firing on all cylinders come next season.
Or will it be what I have always feared? These results mean absolutely nothing, not for this season when they realistically have nothing to play for and not as any sort of indication that they will be a sure bet for promotion next year.
We can all dream but this sequence of results is ridiculous.
I'm going to keep this up because it keeps getting more ridiculous: Aston Villa won again today, that's seven out of the last eight, only one goal conceded and that was in the 1-0 defeat. It's ridiculous because I said after win number one that it didn't matter, and after two and three. Then they lost and it really didn't matter. The season was over. A win at this point of the season meant nothing, I kept saying it. But today they stand nine points out of the playoffs with six matches to go. It is near impossible, but possible.
Where will they be in 436 days, when the World Cup starts? Will the players be in their off-season, celebrating another year in the Premier League after winning promotion in May 2017? Will they be looking forward to life in the Premier League after winning promotion in May 2018, having done what most of their fans expect now: this strong end to the season is too late but it means they will be firing on all cylinders come next season.
Or will it be what I have always feared? These results mean absolutely nothing, not for this season when they realistically have nothing to play for and not as any sort of indication that they will be a sure bet for promotion next year.
We can all dream but this sequence of results is ridiculous.
Monday 3 April 2017
A break
Day -437. WorldCup2018
Want more football? Course you do. The English Premier League is so obliging. It makes up for the useless friendlies and un-competitive European qualifiers last week, with a full program of matches over the next couple of days. Monday was rest day. Back at it tomorrow.
Want more football? Course you do. The English Premier League is so obliging. It makes up for the useless friendlies and un-competitive European qualifiers last week, with a full program of matches over the next couple of days. Monday was rest day. Back at it tomorrow.
Sunday 2 April 2017
Super Sunday in Malta
Day -438. WorldCup2018
Stop reading now if Maltese football is not your cup of tea. But if small league football is, then carry on.
The Malta FA's PR department went into overdrive this week with its promotion of Super Sunday. The top two teams in the league, Balzan and Hibernians, played each other today followed by the derby between Valletta and Floriana. The difference between these back to back matches in Malta as opposed to a super Sunday in, for example, England is that these matches are taking place in the same stadium. If you, like I did in the past, enjoy sitting outside on a warm Sunday afternoon to watch live football for four hours, it really is a pretty super Sunday. This thought just struck me: how did I sit there for four hours with no phone, no social media to post silly observations on and have inane conversations with somebody across the world? I did. And I never got bored.
Back to the MFA's Super Sunday. It would be easy to laugh at it, at it's attempt to make an event out of something that few people care about. It almost smacks of desperation: please come watch, the football is not that bad and the stories of match-fixing are just stories, they are not true. The MFA even put on a big show with press conferences involving the four teams in the days leading up to today. I have an issue with useless press conferences. They are reported on every Friday in England, prior to the weekend's football and the informations coming out of the players and managers is absolute tripe.
So I could easily have ridiculed the MFA. But I say good for them, and good for the PR and communications departments. It's because most Maltese people don't care about local football because they think it's terrible, and that corruption is rife that the MFA are making an effort. They could just let it go on as it is, but they are trying. Now, it will take a bit more than some "Super Sundays" to quash people's negative perception of Maltese football but it is a start.
I read the newspaper reports of yesterday's Premier League matches in Malta and the attendances were listed as being around 250. Two hundred and fifty people going to watch a top division match. That's about the sum of each player's family going to watch, plus the team groupies (the guys who are always hanging around the training pitch and the team's Clubhouse bar), plus a handful more people like me who prefer live action to that on TV. Today's attendance was listed as 4,500. Hardly Super worthy, but there's a few more thousand people on top of the ones I mentioned above.
And in case you care, Hibernians beat Malta's Leicester, Balzan, and Floriana scored a last minute equaliser to leave the Hibs five points clear at the top. The MFA will be hoping that Hibs slip up soon. Otherwise it's going to a very empty stadium come the last couple of weeks of the season. Competition brings crowds, especially in a small league like Malta's.
Stop reading now if Maltese football is not your cup of tea. But if small league football is, then carry on.
The Malta FA's PR department went into overdrive this week with its promotion of Super Sunday. The top two teams in the league, Balzan and Hibernians, played each other today followed by the derby between Valletta and Floriana. The difference between these back to back matches in Malta as opposed to a super Sunday in, for example, England is that these matches are taking place in the same stadium. If you, like I did in the past, enjoy sitting outside on a warm Sunday afternoon to watch live football for four hours, it really is a pretty super Sunday. This thought just struck me: how did I sit there for four hours with no phone, no social media to post silly observations on and have inane conversations with somebody across the world? I did. And I never got bored.
Back to the MFA's Super Sunday. It would be easy to laugh at it, at it's attempt to make an event out of something that few people care about. It almost smacks of desperation: please come watch, the football is not that bad and the stories of match-fixing are just stories, they are not true. The MFA even put on a big show with press conferences involving the four teams in the days leading up to today. I have an issue with useless press conferences. They are reported on every Friday in England, prior to the weekend's football and the informations coming out of the players and managers is absolute tripe.
So I could easily have ridiculed the MFA. But I say good for them, and good for the PR and communications departments. It's because most Maltese people don't care about local football because they think it's terrible, and that corruption is rife that the MFA are making an effort. They could just let it go on as it is, but they are trying. Now, it will take a bit more than some "Super Sundays" to quash people's negative perception of Maltese football but it is a start.
I read the newspaper reports of yesterday's Premier League matches in Malta and the attendances were listed as being around 250. Two hundred and fifty people going to watch a top division match. That's about the sum of each player's family going to watch, plus the team groupies (the guys who are always hanging around the training pitch and the team's Clubhouse bar), plus a handful more people like me who prefer live action to that on TV. Today's attendance was listed as 4,500. Hardly Super worthy, but there's a few more thousand people on top of the ones I mentioned above.
And in case you care, Hibernians beat Malta's Leicester, Balzan, and Floriana scored a last minute equaliser to leave the Hibs five points clear at the top. The MFA will be hoping that Hibs slip up soon. Otherwise it's going to a very empty stadium come the last couple of weeks of the season. Competition brings crowds, especially in a small league like Malta's.
Saturday 1 April 2017
Aston Villa: soon to be World Champions
Day -339 WorldCup2018
Aston Villa won, and didn't concede a goal, again today. That's six wins in the last seven matches, with only one goal conceded in the only defeat. That's World Cup winning form. Derek Henkle, the AFP video journalist, might be dispatched to Birmingham soon to look into this funny sounding soccer team who are winning as many matches as Brazil these days. "Do this 'Villa' team have a player like Pele?"
Speaking of World Cup winning teams, Bastian Schweinstieger had a pretty good start with his new team, the future World Champions, the Chicago Fire. He scored 17 minutes into his debut, almost scored a beautiful, first time volley second and played the full 90 minutes in the 2-2 draw. Mr. Henkle might be preparing for how he's going to shoot the parade in downtown Chicago with the World Cup trophy.
The joke may be getting old, but I just can't let it go.
Aston Villa won, and didn't concede a goal, again today. That's six wins in the last seven matches, with only one goal conceded in the only defeat. That's World Cup winning form. Derek Henkle, the AFP video journalist, might be dispatched to Birmingham soon to look into this funny sounding soccer team who are winning as many matches as Brazil these days. "Do this 'Villa' team have a player like Pele?"
Speaking of World Cup winning teams, Bastian Schweinstieger had a pretty good start with his new team, the future World Champions, the Chicago Fire. He scored 17 minutes into his debut, almost scored a beautiful, first time volley second and played the full 90 minutes in the 2-2 draw. Mr. Henkle might be preparing for how he's going to shoot the parade in downtown Chicago with the World Cup trophy.
The joke may be getting old, but I just can't let it go.
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