The Wait for the Euros

I can see no one else has bothered to write up anything on the Champions League final. I will take this as evidence that no one was too impressed. I definitely wasn't.

I was really indifferent to both teams, but by the end of the game I did want Chelsea to win. Mostly for historical purposes. It's nice to have a new team lift the trophy and show that it is possible for new teams to enter the competition an win. Albeit, with billions and billions of dollars of investment. It would have also saved Avram Grant's career. Grant was fired earlier today having failed to win anything this year after taking over from Jose Murinho. This is harsh in my opinion as he did take the Premiership race right to the very end and made it to the champions league final for the first time in the club's history. And in all honestly, Chelsea were playing quality football.

I really dislike Cristiano Ronaldo; but I can't deny his ability. I am enjoying the public bid for C. Ronaldo by Real Madrid for a ridiculous 100 million pounds. United fans thought he was so loyal. Funny how things change when a vast sum of money is thrown at you. United fans shouldn't be upset, it should have been expected. They are a victim of their own success with regards to finding talent and helping them develop. In the end, Ferguson completed the 'double' and all is well in England. Except of course of having to miss out on Euro 2008.

The countdown is on for the kickoff in Austria-Switzerland. Looking at some of the favorites I still say Italy has a lot of potential to make a serious dent in the tournament. If of course they make it out of the 'Group of Death'. I am confident they will. I do not feel France will. The loss of Zidane is was huge for soccer as a whole. But for France, let's just say, it's crippling. I am expecting for Portugal to flop out due to not having England to beat up on this time around. Spain could win it all, or they could under-perform (as per usual). Germany looks solid again following suit for the World Cup.

As for underdogs, I won't say. I'm never good at those. I do hope there are some surprises this year. Maybe Romania will do some shocking. Either way, I will be watching a lot of soccer this coming June and that makes me smile.

Here's a video to remember to Euro 2004.

Chelsea edge Man Utd to make for a photo finish in the EPL

I know what you're going to say. Man Utd has the goal differential in their favor.
Still, Chelsea is in a good spot to sneak the Championship away from right under Man Utd's noses.
If both teams win their remaining games, Man Utd will have the advantage. But that still means they each must win their remaining games. With Man Utd lining up Barcelona in their sites and Chelsea preparing for what will likely be a grueling game with Liverpool, the job of winning these remaining games can be daunting. Will one of these teams slip?

Aside from the exciting match, two important points stood out. Firstly, who is this Nani guy, and why does he get so much playing time? And the second, how professional can a team really be when two of their stars begin arguing like teenagers on who will take a free kick.

First, Nani. Highly overrated. Fancy skill, but no real creativity and really only creates space for himself. With a bench that is as stacked as Man Utd it's hard to understand why he gets so much playing time. Many will argue that Sir Alex Ferguson is trying to mold Nani in the same way as he did Ronaldo. It was two seasons ago that I used the same criticism for C. Ronaldo. Yet, C. Ronaldo has developed into a potent player, arguably the best in Europe to many people. Does Ferguson think he can turn both these young Portugese stars into World Class players? I admire his tenacity but he should continue to work with Owen Hargreaves who has been showing much more potential and consistency than Nani.

Now to the spat between Drogba and Ballack. Who was supposed to take that free kick? Has Avram Grant not sat down with his players and went over important things like set pieces? I know when there are multiple dead ball experts, especially those that have different techniques or are opposite footed, the position of the dead ball will help determine who will step up. But if there is any doubt, there has to be someone who holds the trump card. And this should be taken care of on the training ground. Furthermore, where was John Terry, this great leader the English keep advocating? From what I saw, it was Ricardo Carvalho trying to talk some sense into the two and Micheal Essien just put his shirt over his head so he didn't have to watch the embarrassing display of unprofessionalism. The scene did dampen the game for me personally. In the end, Drogba took the free kick and got on target. Which he needed to do, or else things between Ballack and himself could have heated up even more. In the end, it was Ballack who converted the dubious handball penalty kick.I don't really blame the players on this. And I do believe Avram Grant has done a good job this season, but dead ball responsibilities is definitely something that needs to be established on the training ground. The damage in the relationship between Ballack and Drogba may be minimal. As how mad can you really be when you have won a game of such high importance. I think this will be an important learning experience for Avram Grant. He better make sure things are in order and running smoothly if he hopes satisfy his ambitious owner.

The two goal lead...

After the passed week of Champions League clashes, the Roma v. Manchester United match was heartbreaking to watch as an AS Roma supporter. Roma were at home at the Olimpico where they had beaten Manchester United 2-1 the previous year. Francesco Totti was the most notable absentee, alongside Simone Perrota for the Roman side, while Manchester United fielded the usual suspects. The most notable absentee for United, was Ryan Giggs who had his spot replaced by Park Ji-Sung. Not exactly a damaging change to a side that is the most in-form team in Europe at the moment. Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney led the attack while Mirko Vucinic was charged with the same duties on the other end.

While I do not what to analyze the strength of the two teams by going through player by player; it was evident that neither side were prepared to lose. However, Manchester United did win by 2 two goals to nil. Most pro-English soccer supporters will say it could have been 3 or even possibly 4 nothing for United. But those same people usually turn a blind eye to Christiano Pannucci's open net sinner when the score was one nothing. Again, I don't want to complain and by labeled a sore loser, so the only chances that count are the ones that have to be picked out from the back of the net.

So it was 2-0. It was entertaining. The stronger team walked away up 2 away goals and having conceeded none going into the second leg. It doesn't look good for Roma to say the least. Considering the goals against between the two clubs over the past three years, most people would say it is over. Which brings me to my point; the second Manchester United goal. It was a sloppy and careless goal conceeded by Roma. One that you cannot concede when in the Champions League against a team like Manchester United. That goal gave full control to Manchester United who were under pressure from wave after wave of slick passing by Roma. But of course, slick passes are only the first phase of scoring. Max Tonetto came close and Mancini forced a terrffic save from Edwin Van der sar. The offence had recovered from the early Ronaldo header and looked at the cusp of scoring the equalizer, or being caught on the counter attack. The latter happened. And the second goal completely deflated Roma and the game was no longer worth watching. It was evident that Roma would not score. You could see it in their faces. You could even see it in Luciano Spalletti's eyes (Roma's coach); even though he is a statue.


The difference in quality between United and Roma was in the chances. You cannot beat a top-side like United when you miss open nets. And you definitely won't go anywhere if your defenders and goalkeeper are making a meal out of simple crossed ball. I was more convinced by this 2-0 win by United than I was by the 7-1 win that took place almost a year ago.