daniel robert chapman wrote:AC Milan 3 - 0 Trafford Reds

Hey, I like football again!

I can't find an online copy, but in response to this news I heard Joey Barton's agent, Willie McKay, say, "I hate violence, and so does Joey". Riiiiight. If I supported City, I'd have everything crossed that they start next season with Sam Allardyce in charge. Something about Stuart 'Psycho' Pearce just doesn't seem to work, and it's been thrown into even sharper contrast by the success of Roy 'Psycho' Keane. Every interview in recent weeks with Sunderland players has chased the 'Bet you're scared of Roy, ain't ya? Is he scary? Is he?' line, and they've all responded that he isn't scary at all - he's calming. He observes training from a hillock from afar. He seems to share Allardyce's knack of convincing average players that they are brilliant, and I just don't see Stuart Pearce being convincing in that way. And let's face it, he's got a hell of a lot of average players that need convincing.

I think what's more galling is that a lot of players who are better than average, or have potential to be, just seem to be stagnating and underperforming. Pearce doesn't seem to be able to execute his ideas. For example, he stuck by Sibierski, playing him week in week out, when to loads of City fans he looked clueless and out of position. Pearce finally relents, Sibbo goes to Newcastle, and initially at least, starts scoring. So whatever he saw in him, he just wasn't able to bring out. Similarly the whole Barton thing - after his earlier outrages, when he did the whole Sporting Chance rehab thing, all the pundits said that Pearce was the ideal manager for a "troubled" (i.e. cuntish) player like Barton, but clearly that hasn't worked. It's a shame, cos Barton was improving on the pitch, but so was his primadonna-ish "me me me" complex. It's weird, there are few other industries where you could beat the shit out of a colleague, and simply move to another employer.


In other news - What a surprise! United's defeat was someone else's fault. It's tough being MUFC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 618279.stm

taggart wrote:Nonetheless we will be there at City on Saturday.

Mighty big of you, Sir Alex.

Dudley wrote:In other news - What a surprise! United's defeat was someone else's fault. It's tough being MUFC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 618279.stm

taggart wrote:Nonetheless we will be there at City on Saturday.

Mighty big of you, Sir Alex.

Yeah, this is next-level whinging. Moaning about a game they have to play in the future? For fuck's sake! I like the criticism about the Premiership 'wanting to protect the integrity of their competition'. Yeah, what bastards.

night_tools wrote:Yo sleepkid!

hope things are ok with you.
You back from Japan now?

Yes. Am back, and things are better. Thanks for asking. Good to hear from you. . . and who knows, West Ham just might stay up. (Unless Whelan gets his way and they bring a lawsuit against the FA and force them to deduct points from West Ham... but really... Wigan wouldn't want that now would they? *cough*)

In other news - What a surprise! United's defeat was someone else's fault. It's tough being MUFC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 618279.stm

taggart wrote:Nonetheless we will be there at City on Saturday.

Mighty big of you, Sir Alex.

For fuck's sake, it's only City they're playing. I mean. . . haven't scored at home since. . . . when was it exactly?

Blue Mooonooon... you saw me standing alone.... la da di da da da da. . . . without a goal of my own....

Or something like that. Now. Having said that, I'm hoping for City to paste another black eye onto United. Extra salt in the wounds! Keep it coming.

HOUSTON_M wrote:

Joey Barton is a fucking cunt.

But he is a decent player.


AC Milan 3 Man Utd 2

"Reality is Kaka; hype is Ronaldo"

Quote from Eamon Dunphy (on RTE's coverage of the match).

He's an average player at most. Good passer of the ball at times. Annoying face.

Kaka is brilliant, as is Ronaldo, different players, both could be better I think.

3 - 2?

On another note, I do tire with peoples attitudes towards big teams with a lot of money.

3-2 was my mistake. It was an unintentional transposition of the scoreline from the first leg with the the home and away places reversed. I am not a Manchester United supporter and it represents no subconscious wish fulfilment on my part.

Kaka performed in this semi-final tie; Ronaldo did not. Both players have exciting attributes. Kaka doesn't go in for tricks, he uses well-timed acceleration, stunning economy of touch and clinical finishing. He knows what he has and uses it without recourse to showing off.

Joey Barton is a competent midfielder with a good work rate. He might become a better player if he joins a club with more ambition.

HOUSTON_M wrote:Joey Barton is a competent midfielder with a good work rate. He might become a better player if he joins a club with more ambition.

And, you know, sorts his fucking life out:



*and no worries on the 3-2 thing, of course!

HOUSTON_M wrote:3-2 was my mistake. It was an unintentional transposition of the scoreline from the first leg with the the home and away places reversed. I am not a Manchester United supporter and it represents no subconscious wish fulfilment on my part.

Kaka performed in this semi-final tie; Ronaldo did not. Both players have exciting attributes. Kaka doesn't go in for tricks, he uses well-timed acceleration, stunning economy of touch and clinical finishing. He knows what he has and uses it without recourse to showing off.

Joey Barton is a competent midfielder with a good work rate. He might become a better player if he joins a club with more ambition.

Yeah, Kaka definitly did perform, I love his style-but he is an attacker, he does what he needs to do, Rondalo works the wings and is great at attacking from his own half. Since he joined Manchester United his end product has improved 100 fold. He used to be a show boating cock, now he's deadly when ruuning at players and away from, he's strong in the air, plays strong shots and places good balls in. I don't think Ronaldo is just showing off anymore- any defender will tell you it's not easy having him coming at you, step overs 10 times a second, limbs flying around quick as hell. He's still a prick and a lot of it is for the cameras probably.

Just because he had a bad match doesn't mean he's shit or all hype or whatever, I'm pretty sure if you watch Kaka every week you'll see him fail too, I'm sure he's had some awful games.

I disagree with you about Barton but hopefully you're right, he could help England out of the quagmire.

HOUSTON_M wrote: He might become a better player if he joins a club with more ambition.

Doesn't this really mean

He might become a better player if he joins a club with more money.

Obviously, this is partly me as a City fan being snarky, but you can't fault City for ambition. Having the skills and resources to achieve those ambitions, busted, bang to rights, but don't fault the ambition. I think most clubs that "lack ambition" in the current era do so because you can't really compete with the top four sides at the moment without a huge injection of capital. Every side in the country wants to win and wants to be the best. A club can't make a plutocrat buy them, and I think it's sad that this is a prerequisite to even be a contender. Nothing kills ambition as quickly as knowing that you can't win.

sphincter wrote: On another note, I do tire with peoples attitudes towards big teams with a lot of money.

Fine. Sorry for complaining (something that the managers of big teams with a lot of money seem to do ceaselessly). What do you suggest? We shut up and cheer on the big money sides because they are playing beautiful football? Bollocks to that. Football's always been partisan, it's about your club, not cheering on both sides and "football being the winner". Hearing people complain may be tiring for you, but not as tiring as hearing players and managers from the top four sides complain about how life is so hard for them is for the rest of us. So i suggest a truce - a moratorium on complaining - get them to shut up and get on with it and the rest of us'll fall into step sharpish.

Dudley wrote:

HOUSTON_M wrote: He might become a better player if he joins a club with more ambition.

Doesn't this really mean

He might become a better player if he joins a club with more money.

Obviously, this is partly me as a City fan being snarky, but you can't fault City for ambition. Having the skills and resources to achieve those ambitions, busted, bang to rights, but don't fault the ambition. I think most clubs that "lack ambition" in the current era do so because you can't really compete with the top four sides at the moment without a huge injection of capital. Every side in the country wants to win and wants to be the best. A club can't make a plutocrat buy them, and I think it's sad that this is a prerequisite to even be a contender. Nothing kills ambition as quickly as knowing that you can't win.

sphincter wrote: On another note, I do tire with peoples attitudes towards big teams with a lot of money.

Fine. Sorry for complaining (something that the managers of big teams with a lot of money seem to do ceaselessly). What do you suggest? We shut up and cheer on the big money sides because they are playing beautiful football? Bollocks to that. Football's always been partisan, it's about your club, not cheering on both sides and "football being the winner". Hearing people complain may be tiring for you, but not as tiring as hearing players and managers from the top four sides complain about how life is so hard for them is for the rest of us. So i suggest a truce - a moratorium on complaining - get them to shut up and get on with it and the rest of us'll fall into step sharpish.

You act like teams with less money don't complain and don't do things wrong. So it's- 'oh, you have money, you're not allowed to complain, and if you do anything wrong we'll nail you to the eternal cross'.

'Someone rich chose to invest money into your team instead of mine, now we'll relentlessly watch you and judge your every move, but if it happens to my team, something outside of most peoples control (managers, players, fans) then I'm not sure I'll say much but I'll know this, they may never complain again and if they get anything wrong, if an individual from my team complains about something shitty, then I'll hold it against them and the team forever.'

I'm not sticking up for wrong doings, I agree-it's annoying when the big boys come on and complain about team selection when their Z-team is worth ten times the amount of the opposition A team, but it's not like teams with less money don't complain about shit all sometimes too, and don't do fucked up things either, everyone is guilty. I'm not sure anyone out there is perfect. I just think having money is something shit to hold against these teams, cause it'll probably end up being your team next and it's obviously not just the complaining because you'd end up just blanket hating everyone.

Obviously do whatever you want though, just my thoughts on the matter. I still think rivalry is golden and obviously people with the same outlook as you make football culture the addictive love that it is and I par-take in it, but I don't know...as I said, I just tire of that.

sphincter wrote:you'd end up just blanket hating everyone.

Yes?