Finally the Copa Del Rey springs to life with teams from first division losing more than expected. Real Madrid joined the latest list of casualities with a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Real Union. FC Barcelona struggled to a 1-0 victory against Benidorm; Villareal were thrashed handsomely by Poli Ejido and Sevilla lose to Ponferradina; what more you can ask to make the first leg interesting. Most of these teams have fielded their second string teams; but their second string side would be too powerful for these minows. Just before the start of this season's Copa Del Rey, there were questions about the format. And when you consider an already over crowded football fixture, it was natural to have a cry for abandoning this from the big club fans. But the early results have thrown out that request and brought back the excitement back to the Copa Del Rey. Now Madrid and Sevilla has to win at home to progress; whereas Villareal have to play out of their skin to do the same.
What makes the Copa Del Rey and the FA cup so interesting is the fact that it gives the smaller clubs a equal footing. Especially in the FA cup format gives more chance for smaller clubs against bigger counter-parts. If Copa Del Rey format was similiar to the FA cup format; Madrid, Villareal and Sevilla would have already knocked-out. For the smaller clubs every match is like a title match, they have nothing to lose but a world to win. Every match is their new shot at glory. But what is applaing towards Copa Del Rey is the apparent lack of interest shown by Spanish Federation. How can you otherwise explain the fact that one of Poli Ejido's biggest victories went unwatched by the majority of soccer fans. The TV coverage for Copa Del Rey is appaling; it is more surprising when taken into consideration the fact that Spanish minnows always have performed better than their English counterparts.
2 out of 2 - not a great start
It was a 452-1 bet for the Arsenal v Spurs match to finish 4-4, apparently a lucky punter put £10 on it! Stoke beat Sunderland 1-0 with a spirited performance but Chelsea and Vila did win but tips wise I need to go back to the drawing board - ah well we shall see what the weekend may bring...
Head of the Olympics Jacques Rogge has stated that London's new 2012 stadium doesn't need to have an athletics track and therefore could be used in the future for other forms of recreation. The IOC boss said: "If the best solution is to transform the track into something else then we would be in favour of that."
Tottenham's Daniel Levy said that he did consider this as a potential option for Spurs and West Ham United have been rumoured to be interested in the proposition.
Hull 0 Chelsea 3
Hull City's outstanding winning streak was brought to an end last night by an outstanding Chelsea team. The first goal you have to check out - Frank Lampard has been displaying world beating midfield skills recently and this delicate chip was another example of why he is one of the easiest choices for Capello to make in the England set up. Anelka added a second which made Hull crumble against the Premiership high flyers and Malouda scored to truly finish off the Premiership new boys. On reflection Phil Brown will take this as education for his team that have so far over delivered - 7-8 more wins and they will have secured premiership safety which is amazing with the resources this club have.
North London derby game of the season
Arsenal 4 Tottenham H 4
An 8 goal thriller at the Emirates stadium was the game of the night of the midweek fixtures. A potential goal of the season from David Bentley opened up the game and forced even more pressure on the Spurs defence as a result. From a football spectator's point of view this was a classic but defensive/goalkeeping coaches would have been cringing. Both Almunia and Gomes made terrible errors as well as Clichy and Hutton - but this contributed hugely to the entertainment factor. On this evidence, Arsenal have the same beautiful game that we know of but are defensively too naive to win the Premiership as things stand. Tottenham Hotspur need strengthening but Harry Redknapp has galvanised his squad giving the players more spirit and confidence. All four goalscorers for Spurs were English (Bentley, Huddlestone, Bent and Lennon) which is also an encouraging positive point for the international scene.
An 8 goal thriller at the Emirates stadium was the game of the night of the midweek fixtures. A potential goal of the season from David Bentley opened up the game and forced even more pressure on the Spurs defence as a result. From a football spectator's point of view this was a classic but defensive/goalkeeping coaches would have been cringing. Both Almunia and Gomes made terrible errors as well as Clichy and Hutton - but this contributed hugely to the entertainment factor. On this evidence, Arsenal have the same beautiful game that we know of but are defensively too naive to win the Premiership as things stand. Tottenham Hotspur need strengthening but Harry Redknapp has galvanised his squad giving the players more spirit and confidence. All four goalscorers for Spurs were English (Bentley, Huddlestone, Bent and Lennon) which is also an encouraging positive point for the international scene.
Iniesta Gets into FIFA List
FIFA yesterday announced the list of probables for this year's 'World Player of The Year'. The good thing for all Soccer and Barca fans is that - Iniesta has made it into the list. The other FC Barcelona players who made into the list are Xavi Hernandez, Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto. Surprisingly Puyol goes missing from the list. The full is is - Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo), Sergio Agüero (Argentina), Andrei Arshavin (Russia), Michael Ballack (Germany), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Iker Casillas (Spain), Deco (Portugal), Didier Drogba (Côte d'Ivoire), Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon), Cesc Fabregas (Spain), Steven Gerrard (England), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden), Andrés Iniesta (Spain), Kaká (Brazil), Frank Lampard (England), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Franck Ribéry (France), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), John Terry (England), Fernando Torres (Spain), Ruud van Nistelrooy (Netherlands), David Villa (Spain) and Xavi (Spain).I have to admit that it is a great pleasure to see two top class Goal Keepers making into the list. Ex-Barcelona player Deco also have made into the list only on the basis of a good Euro 2008 display. Andrei Arshavin who has been linked to FC Barcelona during the summer and Cesc Fabregas who has been rumoured to re-join Barca at the earliest also make into the list. The presence of Kaka who missed the majority of last season and Deco who had a pathetic season with FC Barcelona would raise some eyebrows. Otherwise the list looks more perfect than Ballon D'or list. The main contenders for the title this season would be Christiano Ronaldo and Iker Casillas. FIFA always give preference to the player's achievement with the country especially in a tournament year is no secret. This could tilt the poll in favour of Casillas. Xavi who had an excellent Euro 2008 is also a main contender; but a lack of success with FC Barcelona could harm his chances when compared to Iker or Christiano.
Video Manchester United 2 -0 West Ham highlights
Paolo Maldini looking forward to teaming up with Beckham
AC Milan veteran Paolo Maldini backs Beckham's imminent loan move to the Italian club as not just a means of keeping fit but that he is still hungry for success at the very highest level. Despite the deal being not completely signed and sealed it looks on the cards that he will be joining Kaka, Ronaldinho and other big footballing stars.
"Beckham is coming here to train, to remain in good form and to still be an important part of his national team," Maldini said.
"Milan has no reservations signing veteran players and has always taken into account the image and communication factors.
"As long as you have image and technical values together, all is well."
NEW Football Betting Tips
I would hate anyone to lump on seriously with any Football Tip I give. Why? Because I have the kiss of death when it come to gambling on anything. However I want to try out a theory which is if I give football tips but don't gamble on them, does my record improve? It may become obvious therfore that I am superstitious when it comes to this stuff but anyway here goes.
On Wednesday there is a full premiership programme (shown below) and I would go for Arsenal to beat Spurs at the Emirates, Aston Villa to beat Blackburn at Villa Park, Chelsea to beat Hull and Sunderland to beat Stoke. Lets see now how good my predictions are....
| Wednesday 29th October 2008 | |||
| Arsenal | vs. | Tottenham | 20:00 |
| Aston Villa | vs. | Blackburn | 19:45 |
| Bolton | vs. | Everton | 20:00 |
| Fulham | vs. | Wigan | 19:45 |
| Hull | vs. | Chelsea | 19:45 |
| Liverpool | vs. | Portsmouth | 20:00 |
| Man Utd | vs. | West Ham | 20:00 |
| Middlesbrough | vs. | Man City | 20:00 |
| Stoke | vs. | Sunderland | 19:45 |
Harry Redknapp replaces European style management team at Spurs
Well, as a loyal Spurs fan I must admit that I am completely speechless afer this weekend's developments. The madness started with Daniel Levy sacking Juande Ramos, Gus Powet and Damien Comolli being sacked late last night (26th October 2008) after a series of tragic results underpinned from some tragic player acquisition at the Lane. I awoke to a text message at 8.15am from an old friend who is a Bradford City fan telling me that Harry Redknapp was our new manager. With a mixture of shear disbelief and excitement I scrambled for the trusty Sky Digital remote control to go on to SSN. Then the news unfolded. After taking 2 points from a potential 24, this premiership campaign had gone terribly. The disharmony from Ramos and Camolli was so blatant; here was a Spanish coach who wanted to demand his player choices stuck but then had more than a thorn in his side with Levy having a bias towards the Sporting Director's views.
After a decade of trying to force a square peg into a round hole with the Director of football two-tiered management structure, Daniel Levy has hit rock bottom and ate Humble pie at the lowest ebb of Tottenham Hotspur's Premiership history. Ramos was the man that Levy and Camolli both gambled on with great confidence, prizing him away from Spanish side Seville after Martin Jol's results took a downwards turn. With relegation staring Gus Poyet and Jaunde Ramos right between the eyes, something had to give.
"The results are what counts in football and we all know how this world works," Ramos said. "Now we just have to see if this decision is the best one for the team to recover and have a good season." "I could have come here maybe 18 months ago, in all honesty," said Redknapp. "I nearly came here, it was a long story but things happened. "I nearly went to Newcastle and people said I didn't want to take on the challenge of a big club. I felt that once this happened (with Spurs again), I would have regretted it for the rest of my life.
Harry Redknapp joins Tottenham Hotspur from a very successful second spell in management at Portsmouth. After winning the FA Cup and getting Pompey into Europe, Redknapp hinted that the £5 millon that Levy offered was too tempting a payment for Portsmouth to take. However, emotionally this move to Spurs had been on his mind in previous years and his willingness to succeed came from connections with the club on many levels.
FC Barcelona Player rating against Almeria 25/10/08
Valdes - 7 - Had nothing much to do for most part of the match. In the 28th and last minute of thematch he pulled off two good save to keep a deserving clean sheet.
Alves - 8 - He himself have said that it took some time for him to settle in the team. Today's performance was a testimony to the fact that he has already settled in the team. Did well as usual while going forward; in contrast to other matches did equally well while defending. Capped a great performance with a goal.
Marquez - 7 - Like Valdes had nothing much to do. Failed to deal with a ball in the 28th minute, luckily for him Valdes saved him. Apart from that blemish controlled the defnse well.
Puyol - 7.5 - Like his conter-part had nothing to do. Occasionally went forward and now there is a confidence in him while going forward. Marshalled his boys well.
Abidal - 8 - Terrific match for this french national. Two match before he looked like a disaster in waiting; but now he is showing the glimpses of why he was so highly rated and brought by Rijkaard. Wone almost all his challenges and was great to see him covering his centre-backs with ease.
Xavi - 8 - General of midfield. This has become a habit for him to churn out great performance. Unselfishly squared the ball to eto for the third goal.
Toure - 8.5 - Great game for this Ivory Coast palyer. Is returning to his last season form. Created the first goal with a great pass. Won almost all the challenges. He is indeed the assurance Messi, Iniesta and co requires while going forward.
Iniesta - 9 - What a match for this gentleman. When it looked like he is well settled in the front left role he churns out another terrific performance in middle. Guardiola would be worried now to decide where to use him. Was involved in all the FC Barcelona move. Which fool prepared the Ballon D'Or nomination list?
Messi - 8 - Great match again for this Argentinian wonder kid. He may not have been at his best today, but a half good Messi is enough to create two goals.
Eto - 8.5 - Almost all his goals were easy tappin after others have done the hard work. But to his credit he cooly converted all of them. Great presence infornt of the goal.
Henry - 7 - Wasn't that great. But showed that he can complement his other team mates. Even if Iniesta drops to midfield I have genuine doubt whether he will keep the postion especiall with Hleb trying so hard.
Substitutes:
Hleb, Bojan and Sanchez - 6.5 - The game has cooled off befor they came. only Hleb did make some small impact.
Man of the Match - Andres Iniesta
Alves - 8 - He himself have said that it took some time for him to settle in the team. Today's performance was a testimony to the fact that he has already settled in the team. Did well as usual while going forward; in contrast to other matches did equally well while defending. Capped a great performance with a goal.
Marquez - 7 - Like Valdes had nothing much to do. Failed to deal with a ball in the 28th minute, luckily for him Valdes saved him. Apart from that blemish controlled the defnse well.
Puyol - 7.5 - Like his conter-part had nothing to do. Occasionally went forward and now there is a confidence in him while going forward. Marshalled his boys well.
Abidal - 8 - Terrific match for this french national. Two match before he looked like a disaster in waiting; but now he is showing the glimpses of why he was so highly rated and brought by Rijkaard. Wone almost all his challenges and was great to see him covering his centre-backs with ease.
Xavi - 8 - General of midfield. This has become a habit for him to churn out great performance. Unselfishly squared the ball to eto for the third goal.
Toure - 8.5 - Great game for this Ivory Coast palyer. Is returning to his last season form. Created the first goal with a great pass. Won almost all the challenges. He is indeed the assurance Messi, Iniesta and co requires while going forward.
Iniesta - 9 - What a match for this gentleman. When it looked like he is well settled in the front left role he churns out another terrific performance in middle. Guardiola would be worried now to decide where to use him. Was involved in all the FC Barcelona move. Which fool prepared the Ballon D'Or nomination list?
Messi - 8 - Great match again for this Argentinian wonder kid. He may not have been at his best today, but a half good Messi is enough to create two goals.
Eto - 8.5 - Almost all his goals were easy tappin after others have done the hard work. But to his credit he cooly converted all of them. Great presence infornt of the goal.
Henry - 7 - Wasn't that great. But showed that he can complement his other team mates. Even if Iniesta drops to midfield I have genuine doubt whether he will keep the postion especiall with Hleb trying so hard.
Substitutes:
Hleb, Bojan and Sanchez - 6.5 - The game has cooled off befor they came. only Hleb did make some small impact.
Man of the Match - Andres Iniesta
Five Star Barca; FC Barcelona-5, Almeria-0
FC Barcelona continued their winning streak to nine matches in all competitions and Valdes extended the clean sheet record for the third match in a row. Almeria would have been thankful to FC Barcelona players to take the foot off the pedal in the second half, otherwise it would have been resulted in their worst defeat in the league. Ironically their worst defeat came against the same opponenents. FC Barcelona scored five goals past the Almerian defense within 36 minutes of the game and that would have send shrivers through Europe. FC Barcelona would be the first team in everyones mind now to avoid in the knowckout stage of Champions League. The Almerian defense didn't do any big mistake; but FC barcelona boys tore them apart in one of the most enjoyed first half of this season. Guardiola decided to drop Iniesta to midfield and that mean the trio of Messi, Eto and Henry formed the forwards. Iniesta joined hands with Xavi and Toure in the midfield. Alves, Abidal, Puyol and Marquez formed the defense ahead of Valdes. This is an indication of the best FC Barcelona line-up for the rest of season.The game started in frantic pace. Almeria's Crosat headed wide in the 2nd minute to set up the pace of the game. In the 4th minute Xavi's shot was saved by Goal keeper Alves. But from the resulting corner Eto put Barca one up. Messi too k the corner which indeed was a poor one and ended with Toure outside the box. Toure produced a master ball towards spotting an excellent run from Iniesta, frantic defending saw the ball been headed but staright to the path of Eto who finished it with ease. In the 10th minute Alves who was working tirelessly send a cross from the left wing to find Henry, but defense cleared in time. Then in the 13th minute Henry got into the scoresheet with a wonderful assist from Messi. Messi played a great ball to Iniesta whose run took him into a very tight angle; Iniesta played the ball back to the centre but towards defense; but they cleared it on to the path of Messi who crossed it to Henry who was at the far post and had the simplest of tapping to do. In the 16th minute Messi sets up on his trade mark run dribbling past defenders but his shot went wide of far post. In the 18th minute Barca was almost caught out when Alves has to clear out the danger with a header. In the 19th minute it was Eto's shot to test the Goal keeper again but he shot at straight at Alves after the defense cleared the ball staright to him. Then in the 21st minute FC barcelona made the scoreline 3-0 with Eto's second goal of the night. Iniestafound Xavi's run with a great through pass; Xavi unselfishly squares it to Eto who had another simple tapping. In the 24th minute Eto compleetd his hat-trick with another simple tapping after Messi had done all the hard work. Messi dribbled in to the box from the left and used the dfenders body well to get past him; he the squared the ball to Eto who finished off with a good back heel. In the 28th minute Victor Valdes pulled of a great save to deny Crosat. In the 30th minute Negredo was send off after a rash challenge on Marquez. Down to ten men it was always tough for Almeria to defend and Alves made it more pathetic with a goal scored of the free kick in the 37th minute from 30 yards out.
In the second half FC Barcelona took the pedal completely off the foot but made sure that they dominated the possesion. In the 50th minute Henry made space for himself with a great touch from a Abidal pass but shot high. He did all the tough work there with simple ease. Guardiola tried to bring back the pace with bringing Hleb in for toure, Bojan in for Henry and Victor Sanchez in for Alves. But nothing seemed to have worked and the players seemed to have cooled off. In the 86th minute Eto was denied by the Goal Keeper from a great cross from Puyol. In the 90th minute Valdes had to make a goo save from mane's effort to make sure that he retains the clean sheet. Whatever FC barcelona played like champions in the first half and you cannot blame them for taking the foot off the pedal in the second half. Henry would have been one person who would have been greatly impressed by Iniesta's performance in the middle. Toure was majestic throughout the match, so did Abidal.
Video: Barcelona vs Almeria 5 - 0 highlights
5′ [1 - 0] S. Eto’o
13′ [2 - 0] T. Henry
21′ [3 - 0] S. Eto’o
24′ [4 - 0] S. Eto’o
37′ [5 - 0] D. Alves
13′ [2 - 0] T. Henry
21′ [3 - 0] S. Eto’o
24′ [4 - 0] S. Eto’o
37′ [5 - 0] D. Alves
Sunderland v Newcastle United result 25th October 2008
Sunderland 2 Newcastle United 1 Attendance 47,936
This midday Premiership fixture was a mouth watering North East derby and lived up to the expectation with both teams showing lots of commitment in the tackle and desire to win. Cisse scored first in the 20th minute stabbing home a Melbranque cross. Shola Amoebi then made it even only ten minutes later with a well worked move finished off with a firm header from the Nigerian.
But it was in the second half that Kieran Richardson made the Stadium of Light erupt with a thunderbolt free kick hitting the top corner of the net. This was a wonderful goal showing superb techinque to bend and swerve the ball at high speed - Shay Given had no chance.
Newcastle's performance was stronger and are showing more signs of improvement currently from Spurs but Joe Kinnear will feel the pain of losing a local derby whilst being in the bottom 3.
This midday Premiership fixture was a mouth watering North East derby and lived up to the expectation with both teams showing lots of commitment in the tackle and desire to win. Cisse scored first in the 20th minute stabbing home a Melbranque cross. Shola Amoebi then made it even only ten minutes later with a well worked move finished off with a firm header from the Nigerian.
But it was in the second half that Kieran Richardson made the Stadium of Light erupt with a thunderbolt free kick hitting the top corner of the net. This was a wonderful goal showing superb techinque to bend and swerve the ball at high speed - Shay Given had no chance.
Newcastle's performance was stronger and are showing more signs of improvement currently from Spurs but Joe Kinnear will feel the pain of losing a local derby whilst being in the bottom 3.
Everton v Manchester United result 25th October 2008
Everton 1 Manchester United 1 Attendance 36,069
Darren Fletcher opened the scoring 22 minutes in at Goodison Park from a Ryan Giggs assist. Man Utd then dominated the possession with slicking passing and movement. In the second half Everton were subjected to more pressure from the Red Devils but then in the 63rd minute Everton turned the game on its head with a counter attacking football spell beginning with great passing move involving a Phil Neville cross which Fellaini headed home to make it 1-1. Quickly after this Yakubu then hit the post from a narrow angle at close range. Anderson came on for Park in an attempt to take some pressure off of the Manchester United defence. Everton played with style and aggression in attack with Yakubu putting heavy pressure on Ferdinand and Vidic. The game evened out and although Fergie will see this match as two points lost in the premiership battle, Man Utd could have easily dropped all three.
Video: Bayern Munich 4 - 2 Wolfsburg highlights
0-1 Grafite (büntető)
0-2 Dzeko
1-2 Ribery
2-2 Bommel
3-2 Borowski
4-2 Schweinsteiger
0-2 Dzeko
1-2 Ribery
2-2 Bommel
3-2 Borowski
4-2 Schweinsteiger
Pep Delays Naming Of Squad Against Almeria
Pep Guardiola has refused to name the final squad against Almeria till the time of match. So there will be real excitement this time about who is going to miss from the squad. The guaranteed absentees are Keita, Pedro, Milito and Gudjonsen, who all are out injured. Whatever Barca fans would be expecting their team to extend their winning streak to nine match in all competitions. Last season FC Barcelona saw off the Almeria challenge with goals from Messi and Henry. Almeria has been the surprise package of last season, and they are making sure that they are not called a one season wonder. It is essential for FC Barcelona to hit top form before they take on Sevilla, Valencia, Real Madrid and Villarreal one after other.We can expect Eto and Iniesta to make a come back to the side after being rested in the match against Basel. Eto, Iniesta and Messi should form the attacking trio. Xavi should lead the midfield along with Toure. The third person in that midfield will be tricky; Almeria will be definitely tougher than Basel and you need a atatck minded player there. Either Iniesta can drop to the middle or Victor Sanchez has to take the responsibility. I am not in favour of putting Busquests and Toure in the midfield together. The back four should see Abidal returning along with Pique to form the defense with Puyol and Alves. Anyway Victor Valdes is the only certainity under Guardiola. FC Barcelona fans might be expecting a goal rout from their players. I have a feeling that they may not be dissappointed.
Iain Dowie sacked at QPR
Chairman Flavio Briatore has sacked Iain Dowie after only 15 games from his managerial role at Queen's Park Rangers. With 8 wins, 3 draws and 4 wins this year. This is the second time that Dowie seems to have been prematurely sacked after 12 games. There have been rumours that Briatore has been trying to tinker with the QPR team selection and there have been board friction with the sporting director Gianni Paladini and vice chairman Amit Bhatia.
Terry Venables, Darren Ferguson, Roberto Mancini and Alan Curbishley have all been linked with the positon.
Video: Everton vs Manchester United live stream & highlights
Saturday 12.00
Live Stream:
Not 100% guaranteed
Live Stream:
Not 100% guaranteed
Video: Heracles 3-1 Den Haag
24/10/2008
13' 1-0 Ramos Da Silva Everton [Heracles]
39' 2-0 Ramos Da Silva Everton [Heracles]
13' 1-0 Ramos Da Silva Everton [Heracles]
39' 2-0 Ramos Da Silva Everton [Heracles]
Premiership preview 24th October 2008
The big game of the weekend is on Sunday 26th October as Liverpool travel to Stamford Bridge taking on in-form Chelsea. Despite missing Torres through a hamstring injury, Liverpool have displayed good team cohesion and depth in squad this season. Benitez seems to have got the core to his team right and must have more focus on the leagure than ever before. In their victory against Manchester United in September they proved that they can now be competitive with the big boys without Gerrard and Torres. Catch this big game on Sky Sports 1. That said, the one team no-one wants to face currently is Scholari's men...
Manchester United are away at Everton and will be hoping that Wayne Rooney's explosive, prolific form continues. The England striker is chasing his 100th League goal of his career - he only needs one more!
Down at the bottom, Juande Ramos faces the Trotters at White Hart Lane. Bolton will be looking to capitalise on Tottenham Hotspur's low confidence and lack of discipline which has been illustrated by 2 red cards in the last games - as well as unforced errors leading to losses.
Tottenham 2 Udinese 0
Tottenham Hotspur's dreadful start to the season worsened with a 2-0 away loss to Udinese. Udinese's first goal was an unforced error from goalkeeper Gomes who failed to deal with a run of the mill back pass and brought down italian striker Fabio Quagliarella for a penalty kick. Di Natale converted the spot kick in the 24th minute. Spurs looked good in the first half but struggled to capitalise from their possession. Luka Modric had a good game but during the second half was let down by team mate Jamie O'Hara who received 2 yellow cards in a minute to be sent off. However after this, a Darren Bent assertively headed a superb cross from Giovani goalwards which was superbly saved from closs range. In the 87th minute Udinese add to Spurs woes by making it 2-0 with a cool finish from substitute Simone Pepe.
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