Hi All,
Our latest podcast is online now.
We discuss:
Fixtures & Results - Premiership & Champions League
Pub Talk: Sven & the old ladies, Luque, Toshack, Gerrard, Bribery, Gregory, Barton, Wise, Carrick & Ronaldo
Featured section - We hate Jamie Redknapp. Some Youtube links:
Swears on TV http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0NVQy8T86qE
His love for Cristiano http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=C30BCFX39Y4
Keys & Redknapp http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=e3hLU5POvxE
Get in http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=lxZVs_2gGPQ
Jay Z fans? http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=UgfFGw7btiw
But we don't hate his wife, Louise. Oh no.
AOB - we finish the show with some listener comments and thank you for your advertising support
We hope you enjoy the show.
Download it: http://media.libsyn.com/media/okeydokefootball/odf04Oct07.mp3
Subscribe: http://feeds.feedburner.com/OkeyDokeFootball
Cheers,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Showing posts with label champions league. Show all posts
Showing posts with label champions league. Show all posts
Friday, 5 October 2007
Thursday, 4 October 2007
Here's Sissoko, Oh No, Now Marseille Have It....
These Champions League reflections are much easier than predictions, so with ease of mind, I'll get started.
Liverpool - Benitez is assuming the look of a desperate man (and no, I'm not talking about his 'goatee deflecting attention away from fatness' look) and he has started blaming his players outright. The players he bought.
Liverpool - Benitez is assuming the look of a desperate man (and no, I'm not talking about his 'goatee deflecting attention away from fatness' look) and he has started blaming his players outright. The players he bought.
"Everything was wrong" he blubbed, "it is the whole team who played badly". The team you picked, Rafa.
"Today the team was not good enough". "We were not controlling the middle".
It is hard to control the middle when you have the position-insensitive Gerrard buzzing around the place, and Momo Sissoko, the professional footballer for whom the old quote applies - he can control it further than I can kick it. His misery of attempting to control a football was shown last season against Man Utd, when he attempted to solo the ball, but instead kicked it 20 yards up in the sky. Last night he gave another reminder of his ineptiude.
So, tough times for the 'Pool, but they plays Spurs at home next, which should be the perfect chance to get their season back on track, and take the heat off Rafa. And if they can't, what fresh excuse will he dream up?
Man Utd - another lack lustre (like an empty can of pear halves) performance, but another 1-0 win. Roma had good chances to at least draw the game. Nani showed glimpses of his talent in his best game so far, but his play-acting and poor decisions are reminiscent of the old, bad Ronaldo. Anderson's cameo was lively enough, but he looks a bit lightweight yet. United have Wigan at home to continue their run of wins but the absence of Fletcher, Carrick & Hargreaves will probably mean the horror of O'Shea in midfield.
Arsenal - another game, another win, how long will it be before everyone is tipping them for trophies? Doubts remain, but they are cruising so far.
Chelsea - is the old spirit back? No, it's Carvalho. A fantastic player who made vital interceptions and organised the back line well. That John Terry fella looks like a good player with him in tow. Terry and Ferdinand must get together and pray that their co-defenders never get injured again. Sheva must wish he invested in an English teacher rather than make the move to London to learn the language. Nobody missed his witless presence last night.
Celtic - they are short on quality but they held their own against a Milan team who didn't look too bothered about the whole thing until they fell behind. Gave away a ludicrous penalty but fought back well and received their just rewards. They are handicapped by having an extremely annoying, jumped up runt of a manager and idiot supporters who think it's a good thing to run onto the pitch and caress Dida's breast.
Rangers - I thought they'd head to France and get a draw but they surpassed themselves against Lyon. Poor oul Alain Perrin must be feeling the heat over this one. 6 points from 6 for Rangers mean even a spectacular collapse should see them into the UEFA Cup.
So, it's all action this season, it's UEFA Cup time tonight but that won't get interesting until next March, join us from tomorrow morning for the podcast, where, among other things, we hate Jamie Redknapp. Like shooting fish in a barrel.
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Tuesday, 2 October 2007
Paul Robinson & The Rocket
Who's that idiot with a desperate look on his face? Why, it's every opposition's favourite goalkeeper, Paul Robinson. The latest in a list of calamities occurred last night as he dropped a cross, allowing Villa to score. A freekick later exposed his inadequacies further, poor positioning of the wall and himself gave away another soft goal. This man has done more than anyone else to try to lose Jol his job this season and how is he rewarded? Constant selection and the England No. 1 jersey. Tottenham have been a disaster at the back this season, making a mockery of rubbish predictions of 4th place (i.e. mine) but with Lardy Robbo in goal crumbling to pieces at the sight of a cross into the box it is hard to see it getting much better in the short term. Jol should be smart & ruthless and bring Cerny into the team but doesn't it strike you as strange that Robinson has been the most vocal backer of Jol? I wonder why that is....
The Champions League is on tonight and the most interesting encounter is Man Utd vs Roma. Roma have conceded plenty of goals lately (not least a 4-1 loss at home to Inter) but should be a bit more savvy this time round. United's lineup will again be interesting, a miserly defense and flukey 1-0 wins are OK in the opening weeks of the League but I get the feeling that they need to improve quickly to stay in the title race. The loss of form of some players is alarming from United's perspective - Rooney, Tevez, Scholes & Giggs have been poor by their standards, while Ronaldo is in the 'could do better' bracket. They are relying on their defence heavily, and with Hargreaves scheduled to play tonight, I can't see much luck for Roma, and sooner or later, United will click past 2nd gear - unfortunately for neutrals, probably not tonight.
Arsenal are off to Bucharest to play Hagi's former charges in what should be a leisurely stroll while Lyon take on Rangers in a much more interesting match. Rangers got off to a flyer by beating Stuttgart while Lyon took a 3-0 pasting away to Barca. Lyon have had a poor start to the season, not helped by injuries in goal and defence (or by the fact that Alain Perrin, former Pompey 'supremo' is the man in charge). Walter Smith has turned around Rangers and I'm taking a punt on a draw here, with the wonderfully named Jean-Claude ('The Rocket') Darcheville to be fit and throw his considerable weight around.
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Wednesday, 2 May 2007
Mourinho Vs Benitez
Well, thank God that's all over.
I never want to see 2 teams managed by Mourinho and Benitez ever again play each other. Of course, we all knew in advance it was going to be like this, and yet subjected ourselves to the misery.
Jose, apart from boring the life out of us, got his tactics wrong last night. The long diagonal balls to Drogba, bypassing midfield, didn't work at all, with Carragher and Agger looking comfortable. But, crucially, there was no change for the entire game.
It was typical Mourinho - that one of the most highly sought after young attacking players in the world, Mikel, has been turned into a defensive midfielder. That Chelsea didn't try to finish the job in the first leg.
That his purchases - Kalou, Mikel, Wright-Phillips are not good enough. That his team cannot create opportunities from good play and skill (Lampard in particular being terrible). For the amount of money spent, it is a very poor return.
On the other side we have Liverpool - Benitez has his own problems, despite his team coping effectively last night. The Pool had the better chances and, arguably, deserved to go through. Some of his decisions were amazing though - keeping (even starting) Zenden on was a bad enough decision to be sacked on the spot. Overall, they made up for their lack of quality with energy and enthusiasm and will be tough opposition in the final.
Who will they meet there? We shall see tonight, I think United can get a draw, hell maybe even win it! Optimism worked for JJ last night, so I'll do the same, and hopefully I won't regret it!
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
I never want to see 2 teams managed by Mourinho and Benitez ever again play each other. Of course, we all knew in advance it was going to be like this, and yet subjected ourselves to the misery.
Jose, apart from boring the life out of us, got his tactics wrong last night. The long diagonal balls to Drogba, bypassing midfield, didn't work at all, with Carragher and Agger looking comfortable. But, crucially, there was no change for the entire game.
It was typical Mourinho - that one of the most highly sought after young attacking players in the world, Mikel, has been turned into a defensive midfielder. That Chelsea didn't try to finish the job in the first leg.
That his purchases - Kalou, Mikel, Wright-Phillips are not good enough. That his team cannot create opportunities from good play and skill (Lampard in particular being terrible). For the amount of money spent, it is a very poor return.
On the other side we have Liverpool - Benitez has his own problems, despite his team coping effectively last night. The Pool had the better chances and, arguably, deserved to go through. Some of his decisions were amazing though - keeping (even starting) Zenden on was a bad enough decision to be sacked on the spot. Overall, they made up for their lack of quality with energy and enthusiasm and will be tough opposition in the final.
Who will they meet there? We shall see tonight, I think United can get a draw, hell maybe even win it! Optimism worked for JJ last night, so I'll do the same, and hopefully I won't regret it!
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Friday, 27 April 2007
ODF 27 Apr 07
Howdy folks,
The weekly Okey Doke Foootball podcast is available online, please join us as we curse and drink our way through the show. Download it here http://libsyn.com/media/okeydokefootball/odf27Apr07.mp3
As promised on the show, here are 2 YouTube links:
Chelsea TV - the players discuss who is the best looking. Ashley Cole nominates himself. Twice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1NLIAJGLkk
And Shane-o Mac challenges Jose at a recent WWE event in London
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rdsFqGjbJo
Thank for listening to the show,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com/
The weekly Okey Doke Foootball podcast is available online, please join us as we curse and drink our way through the show. Download it here http://libsyn.com/media/okeydokefootball/odf27Apr07.mp3
As promised on the show, here are 2 YouTube links:
Chelsea TV - the players discuss who is the best looking. Ashley Cole nominates himself. Twice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1NLIAJGLkk
And Shane-o Mac challenges Jose at a recent WWE event in London
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rdsFqGjbJo
Thank for listening to the show,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com/
Thursday, 26 April 2007
What we learned last night
Hi there,
Mark here.
What last night reinforced, looking back at the season as a whole...
Mark here.
What last night reinforced, looking back at the season as a whole...
- Kuyt is not a top class striker, despite being hard working
- Bellamy offers little to the team
- Zenden is a disgrace to left wingers everywhere
- Alonso, whilst still quality, is having a poor season
- Gerrard is frequently ineffective, but mostly saves his reputation with goals and energy
- Agger has a lot to learn at centre back
- Benitez sometimes makes very strange decisions
- Shevchenko is the worst big money signing ever in England - makes Veron look class
- Chelsea's season may have been better with J Cole fit.
- Drogba is the best striker in the world but a pathetic diver and feigns injury
- Reina is a good shot stopper but a liability coming for the ball
- Ferreira is getting worse by the month
- Mourinho is a spiteful, disrespectful, horrible liar but a great tactician and motivator
I was going to review last nights match in full but let me just sum it up in a few words, so I don't have to relive that game:
Liverpool were poor, though Chelsea gave them little space. Chelsea should have won 2 or 3 nil, but Reina made some fine saves. Man of the match: Drogba
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a lighter note, myself and JJ are doing our weekly podcast tonight, available to download tomorrow at 10am GMT.
We discuss:
Premiership and Champions League Results. Upcoming fixtures. The state of the major European leagues. Pub Talk featuring the issues of the week: Gallas, Mourinho, Sibierski and loads more.
Subcribe to the RSS here http://feeds.feedburner.com/OkeyDokeFootball
Cheers,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com/
Wednesday, 25 April 2007
Football at its highest level
Hi Folks,
Mark here.
(
Last night we had the pleasure of watching two of the best teams in the world go head to head in an enthralling game of football, one of the best of the season so far. (View the goals here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1t1x5_man-utd-vs-ac-milan-goals)
United started well, getting a lucky early goal from Ronaldo, via Dida's best Jerzy Dudek impression, but they were worth their lead afterwards - Fletcher strong in tackle, Carrick distributed excellently and Ronaldo causing all sorts of problems to Jankoulovski and Seedorf.
Kaka, however, took over the game in a masterclass of midfield play - his first goal a brilliantly timed burst of pace past Heinze with a cool finish past the static van der Sar. His second was more down to some comedy defending from Heinze and the leaping Evra, but it was coolly dispatched to the corner.
United were staring elimination in the face and Ronaldo wilted under the pressure, absolved only by Milan doubling and trebling up on him. Maldini went off at half time, depriving the back line of a wealth of experience. Ex-Parma man Bonera didn't impress as his replacement. Likewise, when Gattuso was forced off with an injury, it deprived the Milan midfield of his excellent running and tracking down - the sub, Broochi, was anonymous. Kaka had a couple of goods chances to score early in the second half before Rooney, previously having done little bar argue with the referee, scoring from close range after a wonderful move and delicately scooped chip from Scholes. Suddenly, the nervousness went from United's play, Giggs and Scholes came into the game more, without Gattuso, Milan were being streched all over the place. A number of good free kick positions were wasted by Giggs and Ronaldo as Milan lost all attacking threat. (The horrendous Gilardino deserves sacking for his performance last night.)
It looked to be heading for a draw, until, just after 90 mins, Giggs won the ball in his own half and 8 seconds later, Rooney took advantage of bad positioning by Dida to lash one in from 20 yards. United breathed a sigh of relief, and take a lead to Milan, confident in their ability to score (and concede) goals.
The second leg is next Wednesday, and it is clear what United need to do - attack.
Man of the match: Kaka
Special award - worst performace in the competition so far: Gilardino
Player ratings:
van der Sar: 6 - might have done better for the 1st goal
O'Shea: 7 - surprised everyone by winning a crisp tackle in the first half
Brown: 6 - unconfident but it wasn't hard to keep Gilardino quiet
Heinze: 5 - at fault for 2 goals, his mark increased by one for the vast improvement in the 2nd half
Evra: 5 - intelligent going forward but a moment of madness with Heinze let Kaka score. Needless yellow card sees him suspended.
Ronaldo: 7 - a threat in the first half, but went missing as the Milan defense learned how to contain him
Carrick: 7 - another solid performance, played deeper last night than he usually does in the league, but excellent on the ball
Fletcher: 7 - Fergie seems to have found a role for the former waster - all action midfielder! Unlucky not to score.
Giggs: 8 - wonderful break for the winning goal, and set up Ronaldo for the first. Occasional missed pass.
Scholes: 7 - Got a grip when Gattuso went off, his passing wayward beforehand. Wonderful setup of Rooney's 1st.
Rooney: 8 - Not really in the game but when it mattered he scored the vital goals with confidence.
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Mark here.
(
Last night we had the pleasure of watching two of the best teams in the world go head to head in an enthralling game of football, one of the best of the season so far. (View the goals here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1t1x5_man-utd-vs-ac-milan-goals)
United started well, getting a lucky early goal from Ronaldo, via Dida's best Jerzy Dudek impression, but they were worth their lead afterwards - Fletcher strong in tackle, Carrick distributed excellently and Ronaldo causing all sorts of problems to Jankoulovski and Seedorf.
Kaka, however, took over the game in a masterclass of midfield play - his first goal a brilliantly timed burst of pace past Heinze with a cool finish past the static van der Sar. His second was more down to some comedy defending from Heinze and the leaping Evra, but it was coolly dispatched to the corner.
United were staring elimination in the face and Ronaldo wilted under the pressure, absolved only by Milan doubling and trebling up on him. Maldini went off at half time, depriving the back line of a wealth of experience. Ex-Parma man Bonera didn't impress as his replacement. Likewise, when Gattuso was forced off with an injury, it deprived the Milan midfield of his excellent running and tracking down - the sub, Broochi, was anonymous. Kaka had a couple of goods chances to score early in the second half before Rooney, previously having done little bar argue with the referee, scoring from close range after a wonderful move and delicately scooped chip from Scholes. Suddenly, the nervousness went from United's play, Giggs and Scholes came into the game more, without Gattuso, Milan were being streched all over the place. A number of good free kick positions were wasted by Giggs and Ronaldo as Milan lost all attacking threat. (The horrendous Gilardino deserves sacking for his performance last night.)
It looked to be heading for a draw, until, just after 90 mins, Giggs won the ball in his own half and 8 seconds later, Rooney took advantage of bad positioning by Dida to lash one in from 20 yards. United breathed a sigh of relief, and take a lead to Milan, confident in their ability to score (and concede) goals.
The second leg is next Wednesday, and it is clear what United need to do - attack.
Man of the match: Kaka
Special award - worst performace in the competition so far: Gilardino
Player ratings:
van der Sar: 6 - might have done better for the 1st goal
O'Shea: 7 - surprised everyone by winning a crisp tackle in the first half
Brown: 6 - unconfident but it wasn't hard to keep Gilardino quiet
Heinze: 5 - at fault for 2 goals, his mark increased by one for the vast improvement in the 2nd half
Evra: 5 - intelligent going forward but a moment of madness with Heinze let Kaka score. Needless yellow card sees him suspended.
Ronaldo: 7 - a threat in the first half, but went missing as the Milan defense learned how to contain him
Carrick: 7 - another solid performance, played deeper last night than he usually does in the league, but excellent on the ball
Fletcher: 7 - Fergie seems to have found a role for the former waster - all action midfielder! Unlucky not to score.
Giggs: 8 - wonderful break for the winning goal, and set up Ronaldo for the first. Occasional missed pass.
Scholes: 7 - Got a grip when Gattuso went off, his passing wayward beforehand. Wonderful setup of Rooney's 1st.
Rooney: 8 - Not really in the game but when it mattered he scored the vital goals with confidence.
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Monday, 23 April 2007
Deja Vu all over again
Howdy folks,
Mark here.
Well, as Yogi bear said, it's like deja vu all over again. I wrote last week about injuries so I won't be boring you with more lists, but the absense of Ferdinand could be a boon for United, what with his 'libero' impression on Saturday - winning the ball at the halfway line, advancing deftly forward, spotting the easy pass to the wing - hang on, try to beat the defender, oops, lose possession, wander around looking dazed for a while and then trundle back to defend whilst Boro contrive to feck up a great opportunity for a counter attack.
United were uninspiring on Saturday, with only 3 half chances in the second half (2 from Rooney, 1 from Carrick) to try snatch an undeserved winner. Boro should have a penalty when the always poor O'Shea got none of the ball in the box. Jose may moan (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1sbwi_jose-mourinho-is-feeling-the-heat ) but the referee was a long way back, and he immediately looked to his assistant for help, who said 'No'. However, United probably would have won that penalty had the roles been reversed.
Chelsea passed on a golden opportunity to close to 1 point, playing poorly (and Newcastle playing well) to allow United off the hook.
At the other end of the table:
P GD Pt
15 Fulham 35 -19 36
16 Wigan 35 -19 35
17 Sheff Utd 35 -20 35
18 Charlton 35 -21 33
19 West Ham 35 -30 32
Watford were relegated (thank God, I can't stand Aidy's positivity), West Ham have dragged themselves back in somehow, Charlton and Sheff Utd played a cagey draw (great goal from Stead though), Wigan lost and Fulham got their first point under Sanchez. Fulham play Arsenal next, Liverpool and Boro so I predict they will be looking at a last day match to try to escape. Wigan are certainly bad enough to go down, Sheffield Utd have hit a bit of form at the right time, Charlton and the Hammers have had decent runs.
I'd like to see Fulham and Wigan go down as they have swiftly become pointless (poor attendance, bad players, etc.) in the overall League sense, but I won't lose sleep over it.
I'll be back tomorrow with a preview of United vs Milan, see you then
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Mark here.
Well, as Yogi bear said, it's like deja vu all over again. I wrote last week about injuries so I won't be boring you with more lists, but the absense of Ferdinand could be a boon for United, what with his 'libero' impression on Saturday - winning the ball at the halfway line, advancing deftly forward, spotting the easy pass to the wing - hang on, try to beat the defender, oops, lose possession, wander around looking dazed for a while and then trundle back to defend whilst Boro contrive to feck up a great opportunity for a counter attack.
United were uninspiring on Saturday, with only 3 half chances in the second half (2 from Rooney, 1 from Carrick) to try snatch an undeserved winner. Boro should have a penalty when the always poor O'Shea got none of the ball in the box. Jose may moan (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1sbwi_jose-mourinho-is-feeling-the-heat ) but the referee was a long way back, and he immediately looked to his assistant for help, who said 'No'. However, United probably would have won that penalty had the roles been reversed.
Chelsea passed on a golden opportunity to close to 1 point, playing poorly (and Newcastle playing well) to allow United off the hook.
At the other end of the table:
P GD Pt
15 Fulham 35 -19 36
16 Wigan 35 -19 35
17 Sheff Utd 35 -20 35
18 Charlton 35 -21 33
19 West Ham 35 -30 32
Watford were relegated (thank God, I can't stand Aidy's positivity), West Ham have dragged themselves back in somehow, Charlton and Sheff Utd played a cagey draw (great goal from Stead though), Wigan lost and Fulham got their first point under Sanchez. Fulham play Arsenal next, Liverpool and Boro so I predict they will be looking at a last day match to try to escape. Wigan are certainly bad enough to go down, Sheffield Utd have hit a bit of form at the right time, Charlton and the Hammers have had decent runs.
I'd like to see Fulham and Wigan go down as they have swiftly become pointless (poor attendance, bad players, etc.) in the overall League sense, but I won't lose sleep over it.
I'll be back tomorrow with a preview of United vs Milan, see you then
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Friday, 20 April 2007
ODF Podcast 20 Apr
Howdy folks,
Mark here.
Our weekly podcast has just been made available for download :(http://libsyn.com/media/okeydokefootball/odf20Apr07.mp3 )
We discuss:
Premiership and FA Cup Results.
Upcoming fixtures.
We hate Gerard Houllier.
Pub Talk featuring the issues of the week:
Euro 2012, Keane, David Dein, Ferdinand, Baptista, Lampard and FIFA rankings and loads more
We apologise for a couple of lame jokes, not least the Rocky 6 one.
Hope you enjoy the show, and myself or JJ will be back later with a blog,
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com/
Mark here.
Our weekly podcast has just been made available for download :(http://libsyn.com/media/okeydokefootball/odf20Apr07.mp3 )
We discuss:
Premiership and FA Cup Results.
Upcoming fixtures.
We hate Gerard Houllier.
Pub Talk featuring the issues of the week:
Euro 2012, Keane, David Dein, Ferdinand, Baptista, Lampard and FIFA rankings and loads more
We apologise for a couple of lame jokes, not least the Rocky 6 one.
Hope you enjoy the show, and myself or JJ will be back later with a blog,
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com/
Thursday, 12 April 2007
Bayern vs Milan
Hiya Lads,
Mark here.
I sat through the tedium of last nights match between Bayern and AC Milan. Bayern were very average (although that is a tautology!), the old master, Filipo 'Offside' Inzaghi finishing well from a Seedorf flick on to prove there is life left in this Milan team. Seedorf himself, a suprisingly young 31, did well to open the scoring, shooting low past Krazy Kahn. Bayern resorted to long balls in the second half to try to force something, and viewers were left with the distinct inpression of a team with no ideas or creativity. It is clear they need an injection of new players. As for Milan, you could say the same thing, however United should be wary of the class midfield of Milan - Kaka is probably the best creative midfielder in the world, Seedorf has great experience behind him, even if his best days are over, Gattuso is a living legend, a tough all- action man, and Pirlo sets things up in the 'Carrick' role (as it shall henceforth be known. By me.)
At the back, Nesta was great last night, as he has been for a number of years.
I don't think Milan will beat United, but even if they do, Liverpool or Chelsea will surely beat them in the final, the 38 year old Maldini and the lack of quality strikers will prove to be Milan's downfall.
Liverpool played out their perfunctionary win over PSV last night, which tells us nothing about how they will do in the competition. However, the elimation of Barca will provide them with great belief but they must learn to hold possesion of the ball (c.f. Momo Sissoko). The Pool look fresh now, and have no other league or cup commitments, whereas Chelsea will be stretched with their thinner squad and fixture pileups, and further hampered by the aparent hoodoo Benitez has over Chelsea in cups...
So, the Champions League is shaping up beautifully now, I can't wait
Join us from 10pm GMT tonight for the podcast,
Cheers,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Mark here.
I sat through the tedium of last nights match between Bayern and AC Milan. Bayern were very average (although that is a tautology!), the old master, Filipo 'Offside' Inzaghi finishing well from a Seedorf flick on to prove there is life left in this Milan team. Seedorf himself, a suprisingly young 31, did well to open the scoring, shooting low past Krazy Kahn. Bayern resorted to long balls in the second half to try to force something, and viewers were left with the distinct inpression of a team with no ideas or creativity. It is clear they need an injection of new players. As for Milan, you could say the same thing, however United should be wary of the class midfield of Milan - Kaka is probably the best creative midfielder in the world, Seedorf has great experience behind him, even if his best days are over, Gattuso is a living legend, a tough all- action man, and Pirlo sets things up in the 'Carrick' role (as it shall henceforth be known. By me.)
At the back, Nesta was great last night, as he has been for a number of years.
I don't think Milan will beat United, but even if they do, Liverpool or Chelsea will surely beat them in the final, the 38 year old Maldini and the lack of quality strikers will prove to be Milan's downfall.
Liverpool played out their perfunctionary win over PSV last night, which tells us nothing about how they will do in the competition. However, the elimation of Barca will provide them with great belief but they must learn to hold possesion of the ball (c.f. Momo Sissoko). The Pool look fresh now, and have no other league or cup commitments, whereas Chelsea will be stretched with their thinner squad and fixture pileups, and further hampered by the aparent hoodoo Benitez has over Chelsea in cups...
So, the Champions League is shaping up beautifully now, I can't wait
Join us from 10pm GMT tonight for the podcast,
Cheers,
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Tuesday, 10 April 2007
Squeaky Bum Time
Howdy folks,
Mark here.
Well, what a weekend of football!
Charlton out of the bottom 3 for the first time in months, Sheffield United are in real trouble and Wigan and Fulham are looking over their shoulders with real concern. Remarkably, West Ham have won 3 in a row and now have a real chance of survival
At the other end of the table, Arsenal are now in a struggle for fourth place with Bolton, and perhaps Everton. A very poor end to the season for Arsene and big pressure for next season already.
Man Utd had a disastrous loss to Portmouth, and if they are to win the title, they'll have to do it the hard way. Van Der Sar is turning into David James, and Ferdinand badly needs a real defender along side him i.e. Vidic to cover for his mistakes. United's match at Chelsea, which had the look of a dead rubber about it, will almost certainly be the most important match of the league season. United's next two league games are at home to Sheffield United and Middlesbrough, while Chelsea have 2 tricky away fixtures to the Hammers and Newcastle. There'll be a twist or turn yet.
To the Champions league tonight, there is no much more to say than we've covered already on the blog and the podcast, but I'm going to revise one of my predictions... Roma:
Man Utd Roma - Roma to go through
Valencia Chelsea - I'd like to do a Lawrenson and hedge my bets here, but I'll plump for Valencia
Bayern Milan - Bayern
Liverpool PSV - This match is over
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Mark here.
Well, what a weekend of football!
Charlton out of the bottom 3 for the first time in months, Sheffield United are in real trouble and Wigan and Fulham are looking over their shoulders with real concern. Remarkably, West Ham have won 3 in a row and now have a real chance of survival
At the other end of the table, Arsenal are now in a struggle for fourth place with Bolton, and perhaps Everton. A very poor end to the season for Arsene and big pressure for next season already.
Man Utd had a disastrous loss to Portmouth, and if they are to win the title, they'll have to do it the hard way. Van Der Sar is turning into David James, and Ferdinand badly needs a real defender along side him i.e. Vidic to cover for his mistakes. United's match at Chelsea, which had the look of a dead rubber about it, will almost certainly be the most important match of the league season. United's next two league games are at home to Sheffield United and Middlesbrough, while Chelsea have 2 tricky away fixtures to the Hammers and Newcastle. There'll be a twist or turn yet.
To the Champions league tonight, there is no much more to say than we've covered already on the blog and the podcast, but I'm going to revise one of my predictions... Roma:
Man Utd Roma - Roma to go through
Valencia Chelsea - I'd like to do a Lawrenson and hedge my bets here, but I'll plump for Valencia
Bayern Milan - Bayern
Liverpool PSV - This match is over
Mark,
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Tuesday, 3 April 2007
CL Preview
Howdy folks,
Mark here.
I think I'll fall into a coma if I even consider the PSV-Liverpool match tonight, so straight onto
Milan V Bayern.
Bayern are missing Old Man Kahn and van Bommel, so the edge may be with Milan tonight. However, I fancy Bayern over the 2 legs, as Gilardino/Inzaghi won't score many goals, based on form this season. The difference tonight could (again) be Kaka and the distribution of Pirlo.
Bayern have Makaay in fine form, Podolski is good but out of form since the World Cup. They haven't much creativity in midfield - Salihamidžić was finished a few years ago, Schweini is inconsistant, and the others are choppers.
Overall, I feel a bit of a slugfest tonight, with Milan scraping it 1-0, and I fancy Bayern to win the 2nd leg through brute force. Kaka is the key, expect Hargreaves to be all over him like a cheap suit.
Probable teams
Milan:
Dida; Massimo Oddo, Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini, Marek Jankulovski; Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Massimo Ambrosini; Kaká, Clarence Seedorf; Alberto Gilardino.
Bayern:
Michael Rensing; Willy Sagnol, Daniel Van Buyten, Lucio, Phillipp Lahm; Hasan Salihamidžić, Andreas Ottl, Owen Hargreaves, Bastian Schweinsteiger; Roy Makaay, Lukas Podolski.
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
Mark here.
I think I'll fall into a coma if I even consider the PSV-Liverpool match tonight, so straight onto
Milan V Bayern.
Bayern are missing Old Man Kahn and van Bommel, so the edge may be with Milan tonight. However, I fancy Bayern over the 2 legs, as Gilardino/Inzaghi won't score many goals, based on form this season. The difference tonight could (again) be Kaka and the distribution of Pirlo.
Bayern have Makaay in fine form, Podolski is good but out of form since the World Cup. They haven't much creativity in midfield - Salihamidžić was finished a few years ago, Schweini is inconsistant, and the others are choppers.
Overall, I feel a bit of a slugfest tonight, with Milan scraping it 1-0, and I fancy Bayern to win the 2nd leg through brute force. Kaka is the key, expect Hargreaves to be all over him like a cheap suit.
Probable teams
Milan:
Dida; Massimo Oddo, Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini, Marek Jankulovski; Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Massimo Ambrosini; Kaká, Clarence Seedorf; Alberto Gilardino.
Bayern:
Michael Rensing; Willy Sagnol, Daniel Van Buyten, Lucio, Phillipp Lahm; Hasan Salihamidžić, Andreas Ottl, Owen Hargreaves, Bastian Schweinsteiger; Roy Makaay, Lukas Podolski.
Mark
http://www.okeydokefootball.com
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