The Silly Saber Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Since I've chatted to a couple of folks around here now who I've discovered are football fans, I felt the need to post about a couple of the best matches in football in recent months (in my humble opinion). Being the football-mad person that I am, I placed a small wager out of my growing sports account on Barcelona over Real Madrid, and for Chelsea (who I support) over Arsenal. I'll freely admit I was cagey about both matches, but was really confident Chelsea could beat Arsenal, given their two primary strikers were sidelined, as was one of their key defenders... and by contrast, Chelski is in fine form, with Drogba playing better than ever. I didn't expect a 3-0 thrashing however... did anyone see that coming? Even more of a surprise though was El Clasico. I sat watching it this morning with my head in my hands as Ronaldo performed impressive attack after attack, which were amazingly blocked by the ultra talented Puyol. I was cheering when Ibrahimovic scored for Barca, and then horrified minutes later when Busquets got a red card. Did anyone else think that red card was ridiculous? Now.. I agree with carding for a handball when it's a goal scoring opportunity, etc. But carding a guy when it was clearly an accident and in Barca's own half seems silly. For the next 20 minutes, I literally cringed with every Real Madrid attack, which seemed endless... and couldn't believe it when Barca hung on for the win. Did anyone else watch El Clasico in particular? Thoughts? I have to say, for the second week in a row I've had an awesome round of tips. Tipped on 15 matches across 4 leagues (EPL, Serie A, Bundesliga and La Liga) and got all 15 right. This is the first sports thread I've seen... but given I'm a n00b, I sincerely hope this is okay (looked in the rules thread and couldn't see any issue with it). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ztalker Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Didn't pay that much attention to it...can only follow Spanish football on pay-tv here. I have an insane hatred for Real Madrid though. They live of their bakrupt because someone rich (who isn't actually going to pay for the debts) is saying he possible might. So they can keep spending. Here in Holland, clubs with a negative belance lose their license (1 club was nearly kicked out), a thing that should be done in all Uefa (fifa) countries. But alas, as long as people like Berlusconi and Perez keep doing their dirty work football will stay a source of frustration for me. Luckily, the team that doesn't buy like they're a millionair kid in a candy shop has won. Bah...shouldn't rant about this...but I think Real is the summary of everything that's wrong in football. Arrogance (Ramos wanting to earn MORE because a veteran player, Raul, does so. Ramos is 22 and has only proven he has long hair), insane payment and the combination of the two: Arrogant players who went there for the money. And a background with foul-play (Spanish dictator's favorite club). If they'd give me a choice to earn $100.000 a week in Barcelona or $200.000 in Madrid, I'd chose Barcelona. Because $100.000 is still more then you're capable of spending. Imo, teams like Real, Manchester City and to some extend Chelsea (although Abramovic isn't pumping in money anymore) ruin football. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan7 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 For the next 20 minutes, I literally cringed with every Real Madrid attack, which seemed endless... and couldn't believe it when Barca hung on for the win. Did we watch the same game? Barca didn't to me hang on Messi and Iniesta spent the 30 mins after Busquets got sent off taking the mick out of Real Madrid, indeed I thought Barca looked better when they went down to 10 men and should have scored 2 more goals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silly Saber Posted December 1, 2009 Author Share Posted December 1, 2009 Imo, teams like Real, Manchester City and to some extend Chelsea (although Abramovic isn't pumping in money anymore) ruin football. Totally agree on Real and Man City. I actually find it hilarious that Real Madrid have spent millions on millions for their squad, and yet still cannot beat Barca. The Barca squad is pure quality, and are my second favourite team in Europe (behind Chelsea). The difference for me with Chelsea (yes... I'm a horrid one-eyed supporter) is that Abramovich did put squillions into the club at the beginning like Perez and Sheikh Mansour's consortium, but not only is he strongly passionate about the club, seeing it far more as a football club than just a business venture, but has done a bit through his wealth in spreading money to other clubs (he practically saved West Ham from administration with the Glen Johnson/Joe Cole transfer a while back). Abramovich's wealth has turned Chelsea around from a middling club, to one of the greats in Europe, there's no doubt of that, but he's poured a lot of his personal wealth into the club, making considerable losses, to make Chelsea a household brand and promote football in general. I admit I'm biased because I follow the club, but I find it hard to fault a guy who is using his own personal wealth to not only push the club he owns & loves to greater heights (since you see him at every match and he gets VERY emotional when goals are scored, etc), but also does a hell of a lot in pumping money into the football academy in Russia, to promote football there, building pitches for the youth to play in, organising sports programs, etc. In direct contrast to that, you have Real Madrid and dodgy finances, and Sheikh Mansour who is supposed to have a deep love of male-dominated sports, but doesn't care a whit about Man City, other than making them a solid business investment. He's only been to 1 single game after owning them for a year.... Did we watch the same game? Barca didn't to me hang on Messi and Iniesta spent the 30 mins after Busquets got sent off taking the mick out of Real Madrid, indeed I thought Barca looked better when they went down to 10 men and should have scored 2 more goals I agree that Barca actually outplayed Real Madrid for the most part when they went down to 10 men. But since I put down a multi-bet across 8 different matches.. and 6 of the previous 8 came through for me (was just waiting on this one and AC Milan over Catania... now that was a close call)... it felt extremely painful to see Real Madrid get around 6 or so corners following a series of assaults after the red card was issued on Busquets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordOfTheFish Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I don't keep up with Spanish Football much, only the EPL. Unfortunately once again I'm watching my boys ( Man U) lag behind Chelsea. This is exactly how things were last year 'till Man U just began winning and winning leading to another well deserved EPL title. I will say though I absolutely cannot stand Chelsea. I find them to be well overrated, especially Drogba. And Ballack... well you know how he can get probably. Any how did anyone see the Tottenham vs. Wigan game the other day in which Defoe scored 5 of the 9 goals scored that night for the Spurs? What an amazing game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silly Saber Posted December 1, 2009 Author Share Posted December 1, 2009 This is exactly how things were last year 'till Man U just began winning and winning leading to another well deserved EPL title. The Red Devils totally deserved to win the EPL last year. Hands-down, best squad last season.. this season, Chelsea are the stronger currently in my opinion. I will say though I absolutely cannot stand Chelsea. I find them to be well overrated, especially Drogba. And Ballack... well you know how he can get probably. See, I think Drogba's attitude majorly sucked last season (and prior ones). He's had a kick in the pants, and changed his ways for the most part. I rate him as a phenomenal striker when he's in form, one of the best in the EPL in my opinion. Even as a Chelsea supporter, I do cringe when he throws himself down on the pitch, but he does that rarely this season... maybe someone has finally told him to quit it. There are few other strikers presently in the EPL who can hold a candle to Drogba, Torres, Defoe and Rooney being the only three that instantly spring to mind, of course. As much as I rate him, he's not one of my favourite Chelsea player (Essien, Lampard, Terry, and Joe Cole fit that bill), but he's got Chelsea over the line a number of times recently and won matches for us. Once upon a time, I liked Ballack and considered him a fine midfielder. He's still decent at times, but he's seen better days. His attitude is a bit meh, and I'd be happy enough to see him go. Can't really disagree with you on him. But then, every squad has their players that folks don't like. Ronaldo was awesome for Man Utd, but I hated him utterly. Did a dummy spit when things didn't go his way. Just like I don't like Jonny Evans, dirty player in my opinion. Equally on the Chelsea side, Bosingwa is a good player, but hardly an angel. (See, I'm not completely one-eyed... just 99% one-eyed!) Any how did anyone see the Tottenham vs. Wigan game the other day in which Defoe scored 5 of the 9 goals scored that night for the Spurs? What an amazing game. Yep. Great match. Wigan were completely and utterly terrible. They are hard to predict on a match by match basis. One week they play really well and the next well... 9-1. I don't know what Martinez needs to do.. but he has to do something. Probably the only coach more flustered than him right now is Hughes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordOfTheFish Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 See, I think Drogba's attitude majorly sucked last season (and prior ones). He's had a kick in the pants, and changed his ways for the most part. I rate him as a phenomenal striker when he's in form, one of the best in the EPL in my opinion. Even as a Chelsea supporter, I do cringe when he throws himself down on the pitch, but he does that rarely this season... maybe someone has finally told him to quit it. There are few other strikers presently in the EPL who can hold a candle to Drogba, Torres, Defoe and Rooney being the only three that instantly spring to mind, of course. As much as I rate him, he's not one of my favourite Chelsea player (Essien, Lampard, Terry, and Joe Cole fit that bill), but he's got Chelsea over the line a number of times recently and won matches for us. Yes, I agree, Rooney does get a little hot headed. I think that could be partially because he is young. I do like Berbatov a lot however, I think he is real clean and mature player. And don't forget Michael Owen, I enjoy watching him quite a lot too. And on the Chealsea squad I actually like seeing Anelka play, and Lampard ( not Terry as much). Originally Posted by The Silly Saber Once upon a time, I liked Ballack and considered him a fine midfielder. He's still decent at times, but he's seen better days. His attitude is a bit meh, and I'd be happy enough to see him go. Can't really disagree with you on him. But then, every squad has their players that folks don't like. Ronaldo was awesome for Man Utd, but I hated him utterly. Did a dummy spit when things didn't go his way. Just like I don't like Jonny Evans, dirty player in my opinion. Equally on the Chelsea side, Bosingwa is a good player, but hardly an angel. (See, I'm not completely one-eyed... just 99% one-eyed!) Yep, I agree again. Evans and Ballack are both along the same lines. Ronaldo was a bit of a baby in my opinion. All the times he was fouled were completely his fault. It's his fancy feet, defs. take a stab and he gets tripped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ztalker Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 @ Silly Saber: You're right about Chelsea. Although they're doing better on their own now, there still a distinct smell of Russian Oil dollars there. But still, players like Lampard and Terry have been there for ages. Like the stadium too. Been there once. Anyways, Messi won the Golden Ball, Ronaldo became second. Never in the history of the golden ball has there been such a great difference in points given between the nr 1. and nr 2. Justice serves this arrogant playboy niceley It's just...why move from United to Real. It's certainly not a sportive improvement. It's only for the money. Everyone knows this. In the time of Beckham it was outrageous too. But at that time, players like Hierro and Redondo (my fav. player of all time) were still there and they were like Chelsea is now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordOfTheFish Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 In my opinion Ronaldo is a better player than Messi, despite his arrogance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan7 Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 In my opinion Ronaldo is a better player than Messi, despite his arrogance. How? The Ballon D'or result was the biggest in history, I'm pretty sure all those Football writers can't be wrong Ronaldo may have more aspects to his game, however Messi is a better dribbler, more consistant, Messi plays for the team, Ronaldo plays for himself - and Messi doesn't have a track record of going missing in big games... Which is why all in all I think Messi is the better player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordOfTheFish Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 Maybe. Personally I like neither of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silly Saber Posted December 2, 2009 Author Share Posted December 2, 2009 Ronaldo may have more aspects to his game, however Messi is a better dribbler, more consistant, Messi plays for the team, Ronaldo plays for himself - and Messi doesn't have a track record of going missing in big games... Which is why all in all I think Messi is the better player. Totally agree. Messi is brilliant when in form (which is most of the time). For anyone who's watched a decent number of La Liga matches w/ Barca, Messi has proven time and again that he's worthy of the Ballon D'or. Ronaldo is a quality striker, no doubt about it. Like jonathon7 said though, he absolutely only cares about himself. Just watching him playing against Barca, he rarely passes the ball but tries to initiate every attack all on his own. The fact that he succeeds half the time is testament to his quality... but also to his supreme arrogance. @LordoftheFish: I think like Drogba, Rooney has changed his ways a fair bit too. Whilst Drogba has only really started to change this season, Rooney in my eyes is a pretty different player from 2 seasons ago. He still occasionally flares up, but is a quick energetic and normally positive player. I really like him now and rate him highly. I do like Berby as well, fantastic mover of the ball, pretty graceful when it comes down to it. Berby and Anelka actually play a really similar game. I could talk football all day long.... never thought I'd find a forum where I could talk Star Wars AND football.... online heaven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miltiades Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 I was rooting for Madrid, but the last few years, they're not really fun to watch anymore. I was hoping, with their new players, they could show a little more, but alas, we haven't seen much yet. And I've been a fan of Chelsea since I became interested in football, during the Zola-Flo era. The 0-3 was awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabish Bini Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 That Manchester derby recently was one of the best matches, despite the last goal being bull**** in the 6th min of stoppage time. However, Chelsea is my team and im stoked that they're dominating this year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan7 Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Maybe. Personally I like neither of them. How can you not like Messi? Totally agree. Messi is brilliant when in form (which is most of the time). For anyone who's watched a decent number of La Liga matches w/ Barca, Messi has proven time and again that he's worthy of the Ballon D'or. QFT I was rooting for Madrid, but the last few years, they're not really fun to watch anymore. I was hoping, with their new players, they could show a little more, but alas, we haven't seen much yet. And I've been a fan of Chelsea since I became interested in football, during the Zola-Flo era. The 0-3 was awesome. I no longer like you However, Chelsea is my team and im stoked that they're dominating this year Until you met the mighty Rovers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabish Bini Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Until you met the mighty Rovers Yes, "mighty" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mur'phon Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Not terribly interested in football, but since there are several Chelsea fans here... Look up the only time they faced a tiny Norwegian team called TIL (away, the home match they won brutally). The team is usually in the middle of the terrible norwegian league, and even falls out ocasionally. Now, this is not just an embarasing match for Chelseal, it's a damn funny one too, especially once it starts to snow... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silly Saber Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 Not terribly interested in football, but since there are several Chelsea fans here... Look up the only time they faced a tiny Norwegian team called TIL (away, the home match they won brutally). The team is usually in the middle of the terrible norwegian league, and even falls out ocasionally. Now, this is not just an embarasing match for Chelseal, it's a damn funny one too, especially once it starts to snow... Heh, that's one from the archives. Late 90s, I believe... well before Chelsea were the powerhouse team that they've been in the last few years. Granted they were still in the top flight of English football... but I've seen youtube videos of that match before... and you honestly could hardly call it football. There was a blizzard during the match and the players could barely be identified from one another... or even see clearly what was going on for parts of the match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mur'phon Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Problem with that argument is that Chelsea played better once the blizzard came. Before the blizzard, they where still the worse team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silly Saber Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 Problem with that argument is that Chelsea played better once the blizzard came. Before the blizzard' date=' they where still the worse team.[/quote'] Actually Chelsea didn't play better as soon as the blizzard came. They scored two very lucky goals right at the death, which even Gullit said they were lucky about. The Chelsea of that era and the Chelsea of today are two very different teams. There's still comparable results in this day and age, albeit without some of the comedic value shown in the Chelsea v Tromso match. One of the more recent ones was the 05/06 Champions League with Artmedia v Celtic. No-one had ever heard of Artmedia before (outside of Slovakia) and Celtic were treating the match as a bit of a joke beforehand... until they got beaten 5-0 by Artmedia. Or on a lesser level, USA beating Spain only this year in the Confederate Cup. Who saw that one coming.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mur'phon Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 It's the comedy that counts (like the snowball), if I just wanted to show how superior teams can struggle against terrible ones, I'd just point to Brazils victories over Norway. Oh wait... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabish Bini Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 It's the comedy that counts (like the snowball), if I just wanted to show how superior teams can struggle against terrible ones, I'd just point to Brazils victories over Norway. Oh wait... BAM! Take that Brazil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fredi Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 I'm happy that the Barca won the clasico, it's been my favorite team since a little kid. Barcelona now has the best team in the world. Go Barca! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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