Goodbye to the Special One

I was at the train station this morning when I saw the bews ticker from skynews flash up on the cafe stop tv that Jose Mourinho had parted with Chelsea Mutally.....I mean....the best managerial record in the history of Chelsea has a slightly shaky start to a season that promises to be more competitive than ever and he is let go! I'm sure the teams in the second tier are rubbing their hands with glee....finally Man City, Everton, Newcastle, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Portsmouth have the best chance yet to catch up on that fourth place. I can't see Chelsea being as dominant without his personality......he was nearly bigger than the club. But as we can see, no one is bigger than Abramovich.....

Another weekend of Also rans

This weekend of sport, certainly eclipsed last week in terms of positive results for the teams I support. Yet, it was slightly tinged with a sense of unfairness. Just as Monaghan felt hard done by with regards to the referee performance last week, Liverpool ended up being dissapointed by Rob Styles, Chelsea 'who don't dive' got a lucky resuly when we controlled the game.

I felt we should have won what was essentially a home game. Away Chelski will be a different opposition and I was a bit wary of our continual long ball game.

Players like Babel, Pennant and particularly Torres will benefit more from a ball into the channels, and Kuyt works very hard but needs the ball in front of him to show what he can do, the odd snap shot is not going to build his confidence. There wasn't enough ball drilled accross the Chelsea box, we saw from last week that Kuyt got a goal from nothing when he played it into the no-mans land between back four and goalkeeper. Crouch suits the longer game and indeed should have played if they were the tactics we wanted to employ, but since we didn't play him, I don't get it.

Man Utd are a great template for playing in the low cross, they always get the second ball when the keeper nervously paws the ball out or there is panic with the central defenders.
Babel showed in a few moments of excellence what it can do to a team of any calibre.

Please Liverpool sort this out...and we will be getting a season to remember.

Sign of getting old

I was playing football on Wednesday night with Ronan and some of the guys from his work. Just an hour long game of 5-a-side and for the first time ever in my life I was completely out of breath and energy after about the first 20 mins. It has been a year since I had last played football but at the same time normally I have more energy and its normally after not pacing myself that the first 20 mins give me gip....but hey.....this time there I was back in goal for about 15 mins of the game...completely wrecked. And here I am 2 days later walking around like I have a broken leg or something.....completely suffering for it....the lactic acid is killing me. I'm going to keep this up for however long I can get a game because I can't leave it a year again....if I do I'll be close to death....

Day of Reflection

Awoken with a hangover that could have felled a huge donkey, I embarked on a day of quiet reflection on a night that should have seen Liverpool 6 times champions of europe. But, for a second season in a row the English team returned home empty handed from the final....maybe this time we deserved it more, we had no luck.

Anyway, back to work today still a little bit shellshocked..(more from alchol than the result)...to find that my friendly workmates have plastered everything on my desk in AC Milan momentos.....ohh how they find so much glee in my misfortune.

Lets hope we can rebuild and wipe that smile off their faces for next season.

Whet the appitite for next Wednesday

New Steven Gerrard Top 10 - The funniest bloopers are right here

Big Sam has a big job

Newcastle are perrenial under-achievers and yet it seems to be the place many well regarded managers go to loose their reputations. Many have gone before to the sword there Bobby Robson, Kevin Keegan, Rudd Ghullit, Graeme Souness just to name a few, some of those had actually won league titles with less fashionable clubs before taking up the reigns, something Big Sam has never actually done.

So, will Sam bring them to the brink like Keegan and Robson or will his career be left in tatters like Souness and Ghullit.....only time will tell.....one thing is for sure it will prove to be a bigger job than sustaining the limp appitites of the Bolton faithful.

But then, all he needs to do is buy himself a decent defence and keep Freddie Shepard happy by winning the Carling cup or whatever its called these days.

Athens

Been completely slack on this lark this week without at least commenting a little about another great night for us Liverpool Supporters.....had the nails ravaged as I watched the game just trundle on.....I couldn't believe the off-side decision on Durk Kuyt.....and how good Zenden dispatched that penalty and finally how good Reina was on the day....

The next day was frivilous as I hoped for a Milan opponent just because I think that United would have beaten us in the last minute and I couldn't have taken that.

Chelsea Machine?

Watching all the Saturday Football show pundits going on and on about how much a machine that Chelsea are...in fact Steve Claridge having an argument with Peter Beagrie about how he felt that Chelsea would scare Man Utd into making a mistake by being so ruthless.... and then we see Man U slip up and what do Chelsea go and do? They draw with a poor Newcastle team. Maybe the Scum deserve to win this year, everything seems to be going right for them.

Hopefully we can teach Chelsea a lesson on Wednesday...do the scum a favour!

Bloody United

Typical that Man United would beat Roma 7-1 when I thought they were in trouble.....hard to shake of this hatred of that football club... 'I would love it if we beat them' in the Champions League final, but then I would rather not meet them at any stage of this competition because my nerves certainly wouldn't hold up when the possibility of a John "smiling bastard" O'shea could score in the last minute again....

Just a one nil at home

Just a one nil at home for Liverpool today against Man City, as usual it seems we made them look good, but still scraped a home win.....having the problems away from home only in the premiership despite us looking great in the Champions League.....such a strange season....

Went into Belfast and the continental market, it was great....I got a bag of german sausages and salami....for £10....there was loads of stuff in there....If you are in the city centre go and check it out. Its great altogether.

Michael Stone was on the rampage yesterday, his mullet gone now but he's still a dangerous character with a gun and knife....attempting to take stormont by force. The main talk at the moment is that the DUP staged the affair to avoid having to make a nomination for first minister.....and the pantomine of Northern Irish politics rolls on.

A few days later

Sorry to harp on, but Got back on Sunday and found that the NTL box was still not working, had to ring them last night and now today they are sending over a technician. Isn't that typical, new cable set up and within 24 hours there was a problem....So, i suppose i should be typing this in a blog as inevitably, it will likely break down again.

On another note, had to watch a pitiful Liverpool at the weekend....I have never seen them be so over-run by the Arsenal in a game....its not yet getting better...its hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so we can maybe put this season down to solidifying our team and allowing a few new players to bed in before a heavier assault next season. Losing so many away games is a complete disaster....and fans are showing their dissoultion for the first time since Houllier.

Sven

He did well out of his stay in England, plenty of women, plenty of money without appearing to do very much. As a non-english supporter I have been delighted with is reign and hope very much that Steve Mc Claren continues in the same vein. Also, pretty happy about the bust up between Rooney and Ronaldo......be good to see Man Utd lose Ronaldo....

Crouch breaks his Duck

In the pub yesterday to see the longest player in Liverpool history score a goal of crazy flukiness and celebrate like it had won a world cup final, only to have it snatched away moments later. Though he still stepped up and fired home another to end a long run of games without a goal.

We salute you mr crouch! Keep up the glory and let Liverpool crush the 12 point gap and restore ourselves in greatness again.

Well done Tyrone

Finally, after months of trying and 10 matches later Brian Dooher picked up Sam....I had to congratulate them after such a good game.

And Down minors are looking good as well....hope this bodes well for the future.

Norn Iron 1 v 0 Mainland

Norn Iron beat the mainland yesterday evening to great celebration as the Norn Irish people danced in streets like they all had babies.

Cigars were smoked and dogs were merry as they cheered on David Healy from Killylea's winning goal and beat the mighty overpaid empirical white shirted wannabes. Horray they shouted! Everyone was happy and slept like cows.

CHAMPIONS OF EUROPE

We congrugated like verbs at the back of the Empirical arena In fairest Belfast, full on faith, drunk on song, perched like eagles waiting for the carrion to fall.........the match kicked off as titan clashed against titan....the red flashes tore against white and we had expectations. Only to be dashed by an early ariel attack as the winged Mercurial figure of Maldini rose high above the clouds to crash home a puncturing goal past our statuesque defence. We looked inwards to our soul and searched yet nothing flickered, the crowd dyed down as we watched in disrepute at the hapless passing of our nervy warriors, looking shorter than their stature......Gerard swamped in midfield, his starter motor flooded as he looked on to see Milan suck up our resolve and spit back at us with two goals in the first section.......Bambi flapped, carragher was pulled up from anchor and drifted with his fellow tug boat out in the oceans of turkish waters......Baros couldn't get anything to stick and the Mightly Australian terrorist tried to sabotage our hopes.....Smicer stepped on to no applause as we knew he was too fizzle out with a bang........

The half time bell clanged 3 times and many of us turned and returned to the warmth of our caves far from the berrating scorched remarks from those ready to pounce.......some of us prayed and found faith from the past........remember Newcastle, remember Arsenal, remember PSV...............never forget our heros......Porcelain fans fell by the wayside.....suclking inwards and thinking of strengthening their allegiences to london......we watched you walk away!.....

We ready the troops.....we Bring in the German......to steady the ship.......Hamann shrinks the sea....he brings our fleet together....cementing them into a strong team...one

The cauldron fired up again and the huge banners cried out 'you have nothing to lose but dignity'....fight like lions.....minutes can change......We clutched at straws, we battled......alonso tried to orchestrate an out of tune baros...silenced by the twin pillars of love and hate......Then Gerard found his voice shrill and clear.....he grew mammoth wings, he hung in the air and nodded an arrow home....into the apple......we grew on hope.....Garcia delivered the ball to the milanese on the circle and told them to try and stop us.....we looked in their eyes....we saw fear in the eyes of these rich italians unfamiliar with red storms enveloping them in passion..........Smicer often a baying donkey....cut in slicing a hole in gattuso and pirlio................aiming a silver bullet that proved too hot for Dida to hold.....we believed.....we believed WE BELIEVED....be AFRAID......Again we told the Milanese this wasn't their year.....second in the Scuddeto.....second for life......we took the life of your victors.....we squeezed their life away and watched Capello lose his ticket for the greatest opera in the world too early.........and Gerard bursted like a flame into the Box......they couldn't touch him......they had to fell him.....and he fell TIMBER TIMBER.....the crowd saw him pull down cities and crumble monoliths as he fell........we bayed for claret......we shouted for justice....but money talks and Alonso stepped up like a man of stone......a hot potato in Didas hands and it lived in the minds of people as it rustled in the net.................YESSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
This is our year........The Popes Death, A Royal Wedding.....all the Favourites losing against us......you may have have laughed..........

The Gates closed......our Tug ships became huge Oil tankers and we saw the white feather come on with a tremendous roar........CISSE must......Pergatory awaited.......we limbo danced our way through 22 mins to see the greatest double save in the history of the earth.....stand back Banks.....stand aside Seaman.....we have a new Polish Pope...............Dudek......now a cardinal must stand before the votes

Vote one......he moves like a caterpillar and the brazillian author writes on the sky........
Hamannn our rock steps forward and leaves no doubt
Vote two.......does the funky chicken and we watch him push a spagetti western into bolagnese
Riise tired, exhausted after a lifetime of a season buckles....but we hold him up...we will hold them out
Vote three....tries to look Kaka in the eye....but the Brazillian is Brazillian after all and turns the screw
Smicer makes us doubters cry into our past and rewrite his histories
Vote four....The eastern block meets the Iron Curtain and the curtain frays.......

THE NOSE OF FORTUNE SAVES OUR SOUL AND WE KEEP THE TROPHY........WETHER TO LAUGH OR CRY....WHETHER TO LIVE OR DIE....WE KNOW NOT......ALL WE KNOW IS WE ARE HAPPIER THAN JOY.......WE CAN HOPE AGAIN

LIVERPOOL CHAMPIONS OF EUROPE 2005

Ireland V Israel

Was watching a few matches today with the biggest hangover I have ever had in life.....Ireland V Israel.....sadly they didn't get the win letting Israel come back to draw with them and England hammering Northern Ireland 4-nil.....

The Pain of being a pool fan Part II

Liverpool did well last night, in fact I would even go so far to say that it was an excellent performance from the boys in red....they peppered Leverkausen's goal mouth for the whole of the first half, scored 3 goals, could have had more and surprise, surprise.....Igor Biscan actually had a good game...in fact he was probably man of the match!.....

BUT

There's always a 'BUT'.....Jersey Dudek just had to drop the ball at the feet of an on-rushing striker in the last 3 minutes....couldn't have just kept a clean sheet and made it an 'easy' (if it ever could be when liverpool play) second leg.....no....we had to give them an away goal which cut the ammount of goals required by the Germans in half....instead of needing 4 goals they just need 2 and they are well capable. Remember this is the team who beat Real Madrids gallacticos, Kiev and Roma by 3 goals.....all at home.....they know its possible especially if Dudek is dropping the ball as often as he is! FOOLs! I will be sitting fingers crossed in two weeks that we do it....if we do I'll be as happy as a pig in poop....but not until we get a result....i can't be cocky....i can't.....i've seen these things backfire before!.....come on the pool!

UEFA Cup

Channel Five or Five as it is now known showed a double header of UEFA cup football tonight and I would have rathered gouged out my eyes with a spoon than watch them…..the UEFA cup is a pile of shite….unless of course Liverpool are in it…..which is when it becomes supremely important….even more important than worrying about eating a hot quiche too quickly so it burns the inside of your throat…..do not try at home….is very uncomfortable and it makes the rest of the day a bastard as you attempt to enjoy other food and drink……

Championship Manager

I am now officially addicted to the XBox version of Chamionship Manager. I have played two seasons of the game and spent all day yesterday on my day off playing it non-stop. I woke at 11:30am, had a shower, something to eat and sat down to play the game, my housemate came in at 2pm and had some lunch, said i'd not be playing it later. But low and behold at 8pm I was still sitting playing it, had brought Aston Villa from 17th place the season before to Champions League football. Now you would think having blurred vision and a wierd dream last night would have put me off....but it seems that tonight and my day off tomorrow will be more of the same....i'm thinking of tactical substitutions as we speak.