March 20, 201115 yr Almost all football leagues are really uneven. Here in the US, the sports leagues are all regulated more (with salary caps, player drafts, etc.), so each team has a much better chance of getting good with a few years of good management. That isn't the case with football leagues, where one team with a lot of money can sign 11 of the top 30 players in the world without much trouble. The draft system is amazing. It's very nice to see a team that is bad in a certain year become a good team and get to the Super Bowl in two or three years (that doesn't apply to the Lions, though :lol:). Now, back to the real football. The Brazilian football is fairly even (I mean, when the refs don't screw it up :rolleyes:). The contenders change year after year. Fluminense almost got relegated in 2009, won the League in 2010 and are currently struggling to get past the group stage of Libertadores. Grêmio (our local rivals) got relegated in 1991. They were back to the premiership in 1993 and won the Libertadores Cup in 1995.
March 20, 201115 yr Thanks Palermo:D, it's crucial Inter win this afternoon, the gap can go down to 2 points at the top of Serie A and will make the Derby even more intense.
March 20, 201115 yr The draft system is amazing. It's very nice to see a team that is bad in a certain year become a good team and get to the Super Bowl in two or three years (that doesn't apply to the Lions, though :lol:). The draft system is good only when it's the biggest league in a particular sport. For example, the MLB, the NFL, and the NBA are all the biggest leagues in their own respective sports, so nearly all of the best players enter the drafts for those leagues. This wouldn't work in football, however, where there are a handful of really good, high paying leagues (La Liga, Premier League, Seria A, Bundesliga). The abundance of good leagues in football makes it difficult to regulate, and therefore some teams are successful year after year, while others consistently struggle to win a third of their games every season.
March 20, 201115 yr While it can be argued that the Premiership teams in the Europa League have failed, I don't care, the Premiership as a whole has shitloads more talent overall. There are countless examples of players who have failed to make any impact in the Premier League and go to Spain and suddenly become a valued star, for me the quality hasn't weakened at all, it's just that every game is so incredibly tight that the most miniscule mistakes are punished by Premier League teams. You watch Spanish, Italian, especially French football, the organisation and ability isn't on the same level. I find this concept that teams who dominate a league somehow mean the league as a whole is of a better class, does that not show that the league generally is of a worse class? Mindfuck logic there, surely at the top level of such a massive sport you would expect teams in the top level to be able to compete with eachother generally, if one team has the ability to walk to a league title then sure the rest clearly aren't up to a world class level and therefore the league isn't as class generally. "BUT BARKA SCORED A THOUSAND POINTS THIS YEAR SPANISH FOOTIE IS ACE" And I think me, you and Mark can agree, that for 2 teams to win the league that convincingly yet not win the Champions League both years, is utterly abysmal. :dozey: [/sensationalistic] Teams which win the Champions League aren't always the best side in Europe. I think Arsenal could and should have won the Champions League in 2004 but for a late late Wayne Bridge winner at Highbury in the quarter finals. Arsenal would probably have gone on and won against Monaco in the semis and Porto in the final. As for Chelsea the next year - no doubt they were man for man the best club side in Europe but fate didn't fall for them against Liverpool in the semis. Likewise, they'd have gone on and beat Milan in the final I feel. And in response to Tnspieler - I don't think the PL has more depth than La Liga. I would have more confidence in a mid table team from Spain beating a mid table side from England. Take 8th place Everton against 8th place Atletico Madrid? I would say Atletico with confidence.
March 20, 201115 yr Both Barca & Madrid spend millions upon millions on getting players in, hence why they are in debt by quite a bit of money. Not as bad as Man Utd whose debt got forced onto them when Mr Glazier purchased the club.
March 20, 201115 yr Referee! Fulham football fans want planned statue of pop star Michael Jackson to be red carded By Daily Mail Reporter Last updated at 6:10 PM on 18th March 2011 Comments (11) Add to My Stories Fulham football fans are crying foul over plans to unveil a statue of pop star Michael Jackson at their beloved club's Craven Cottage ground. Colourful club owner Mohamed Fayed has said the 6ft-statue of his 'close friend' will be unveiled next month. But while the decision has the backing of team manager Mark Hughes, many fans of the Premier League club are concerned they will become a 'laughing stock'. Bad decision: After injecting millions of pounds into the club, Mohamed Fayed has been popular with Fulham supporters. But his latest plan is being ridiculed Close links? Not known for his love of sport, Michael Jackson did once visit Fulham's ground - back in 1999 The statue reportedly features the 'king of pop'- who died in 2009 - wearing what looks like underpants over his trousers, striking one of his 'iconic poses'. Mr Fayed originally planned to place the statue at Harrods, but the Egyptian tycoon sold the store for £1.5billion last year. According to the Evening Standard, Jackson will join Fulham Fifties footballing legend Johnny Haynes as the only two club 'figures' immortalised at the stadium. Jackson's only known involvement with the club was in 1999 when Fayed invited him to watch the Second Division victory over Wigan, Hundreds of fans have already signed a petition protesting against the statue and a demonstration is planned on the day of its unveiling on April 3, when Fulham take on Blackpool. Fans complained that Mr Fayed was using Craven Cottage as a 'dumping ground for his weird statue', would make Fulham a 'laughing stock' and asked if the ground should be renamed Madame Tussauds. Supporter Chris Blackhurst summed up the feeling of many in an Evening Standard commentary. 'Let's face it, we're only getting him because Fayed no longer owns Harrods and the new mob did not want to know,' Mr Blackhurst wrote. 'According to Fayed, "Michael Jackson was truly a legend". He was that alright. But not as a footballer. And not for Fulham.' Mr Fayed has insisted that the statue, which has been placed on the Thames side of the ground between the Riverside and Hammersmith stands, was an appropriate tribute to the singer. 'He was my friend, a man with whom I shared many happy memories and who died a tragic and untimely death,' he said. 'I hope that many fans of his will visit the statue at the Cottage from far and wide.'
March 21, 201115 yr Damm gutted about today, we need to be better than this... still though I think we done enough now to finish at least 4th !
March 21, 201115 yr Damm gutted about today, we need to be better than this... still though I think we done enough now to finish at least 4th ! Once again City showed they are nothing without Tevez. And who on earth is that donkey they had up front? What an uncoordinated lunk!:rolleyes:
March 21, 201115 yr That was a good win for Liverpool today. Defensively sound with Reina making one easy save in the dying minutes. We got a penalty which wasn't a penalty but hey swings and roundabouts considering the referee in last years fixture allowed a beach ball to be part of the play which Sunderland scored off. But Sunderland deserved that win and like today the best team won. Oh and a lovely goal by Suarez!
March 21, 201115 yr Once again City showed they are nothing without Tevez. And who on earth is that donkey they had up front? What an uncoordinated lunk!:rolleyes: You get the impression Man City are fast turning into a team of individuals. Alan Green said on Radio 5 Live that even when Man City players score they don't look that happy. There's too many egos in that club. Great players but massive ego overload.
March 21, 201115 yr Once again City showed they are nothing without Tevez. And who on earth is that donkey they had up front? What an uncoordinated lunk!:rolleyes: Yea true... Dzejo. first ever time I seen him play for city, I was not impressed.
March 21, 201115 yr That was a good win for Liverpool today. Defensively sound with Reina making one easy save in the dying minutes. We got a penalty which wasn't a penalty but hey swings and roundabouts considering the referee in last years fixture allowed a beach ball to be part of the play which Sunderland scored off. But Sunderland deserved that win and like today the best team won. Oh and a lovely goal by Suarez! Definitely. Sunderland only managed one shot on target, anyway, in the 86th minute, so they can't have any complaints. Yea true... Dzejo. first ever time I seen him play for city, I was not impressed. How much did he cost?:stunned:
March 21, 201115 yr Definitely. Sunderland only managed one shot on target, anyway, in the 86th minute, so they can't have any complaints. How much did he cost?:stunned: something like 33 million euros
March 21, 201115 yr something like 33 million euros :shocked2::stunned::shocked2: That must be the biggest overspend on a player ever!:dozey: I thought Andy Carroll had cost way too much, but at least he looks like he's going to do the business!
March 21, 201115 yr Yea true... Dzejo. first ever time I seen him play for city, I was not impressed. I watch your club more than you.
March 21, 201115 yr Both Dzeko and Ballotelli will play brilliant given half a chance, but (Regardless of what's being said about quality dipping) it's one of the tightest leagues in the world and always has been, half chances don't come without a lot of grit and determination. Dzeko possibly has that, but we'll see if he's so eager once he's settled, and Ballotelli could score 10 and still look like he just wants out of that stadium. The only consistent performers have been Silva and Teves, both of which have been brilliant this season, Adam Johnson had a hell of a start but even he seems frustrated (Along with Milner and Barry, at the start of the season Mark Hughes had a strong feeling they would be the young optimists of the team that would carry them through the tough games- its just not happening).
March 21, 201115 yr Mario could be Mancini´s downfall, and some of the city fans All seemed OK, before we played him and changed our formation to 442 from 451 Fans were screaming for a more open game from city after we played Birmingham 0-0 at home, eventually he made the changes some of us were screaming for then ,we started to concede many more goals.
March 22, 201115 yr Blackpool councillor who called fans of town's football team 'donkey botherers' urged to resign By Daily Mail Reporter Last updated at 9:46 AM on 22nd March 2011 Comments (0) Add to My Stories Councillor Simon Blackburn made the remark while watching Premier League rivals Blackpool FC and Blackburn Rovers on Saturday A Labour politician was urged to resign today after branding his own constituents 'donkey botherers' on Facebook. Councillor Simon Blackburn made the light-hearted remark while watching Premier League rivals Blackpool FC and Blackburn Rovers battle out a keenly-contested Lancashire derby on Saturday. The 37-year-old politician, though leader of the Labour group on Blackpool Council, is a life-long fan of rivals and near-neighbours Rovers. The councillor made the remark via his phone and posted it on his Facebook page, as his side went two nil down. The comment, read: 'Oh my actual God...the donkey-botherers are 2-0 up thanks to two of the worst refereeing decisions ever!' He is understood to have believed it would only be seen by friends. But in fact his privacy settings meant it could be seen by anyone - and it was soon picked up on by Blackpool fans. The gaffe has been seized upon by rival Tories who have called for him to resign, one source claiming it is a clear reference to: 'Having sex with ruddy donkeys!' Peter Callow, leader of the Tory-run council said: 'What an unbelievably stupid, ridiculous, crass thing to say. 'He's just committed political suicide. 'He has stabbed the people of Blackpool in the back and he needs to resign immediately.' Blackpool fans before the 2-2 draw with Blackburn Rovers on Saturday. The chairman of Blackpool FC Supporters Association has said the councillor's comment was not appropriate Mr Blackburn, who is up for election in May, is now regretting making the remark. 'I was alarmed to discover that what I had intended to be private comments, made in a very light-hearted way to a friend, have been made public,' he said. 'I am hugely proud of Blackpool FC and their supporters, both of whom are a huge asset to the town and I apologise for any offence caused. 'I hope and trust that there will be many more enjoyable meetings between Blackpool and Blackburn in the top flight and I'm horrified that my remarks may have caused offence.' Glenn Bowley, chairman of Blackpool FC Supporters Association added: 'It's not really an appropriate comment to make and it could put himself in a position where he is going to have a very difficult May, on election day on the 5th and on the 22nd, when his team might get relegated.' Saturday's match ended 2-2.
March 23, 201115 yr In late July, we'll play the Audi Cup, with Barcelona, Bayern Munchen and Milan. Nice, innit? :smug:
March 23, 201115 yr I am really gutted Danni Alvezs has signed a new contact with barcelona... I so wanted him at City If we qualify for the champions leauge there is gonna be the big two in Spain quaking still, we may be going for a manager now, as I think the owners want a trophy as well as qualifying for the champions leauge. I dont think they will take another Derby defeat. Jose is not happy at Madrid, he hates the press here.. and has many conflicts with the hierachy of Beurnaba... if we get him we are gurranteed sucess, and we will get christain just to wind up our poor neighbours..
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