Dumbstruck

Aston Villa 0 - 1 Arsenal (HT)

I have no words.

Aston Villa 2 -2 Arsenal (FT)

I have no words.

The Scapegoat

Referees. They seem to be getting the spotlight ever so often these days. More so in the EPL because of the pace of the game.

A wrong decision here and there leaves a team a goal behind, or down to ten men. One team is definitely affected by a ref's decision or lack thereof. And it's always the team affected who seem to carry on the needless banter on the pitch and continue it once they are off it.

Many people don't seem to understand that all these decisions are instantaneous. Also, the referee gives the decision based on what he sees and not what has actually happened. I mean, he doesn't have the luxury of "technology". He sees it once and makes a decision.

Martin Tyler got it spot on at the weekend. "It's a game played by HUMANS and refereed by a HUMAN". Why don't people seem to get that in their heads?

From my experience, this is the reason. We want a scapegoat. We want to blame someone else for our "misfortune" whenever possible. I mean, you can miss 10 chances in a game but no one will be talking about those missed chances if a "big decision" doesn't go their way. All the talk will be about the "decision". Correct me if I'm wrong but that's the way it goes. For eg, take the Liverpool-Stoke game earlier in the season. Gerrard scored what seemed to be a very legitimate goal in the 2nd minute but was ruled out. And they failed to break down Stoke for the remaining 88 min. And guess what the newspapers said the next day.

"Referee denies Liverpool top spot".

What a load of trash. They had 90 min to break down Stoke and they couldn't. Simple as that.

Please feel free to add more examples.

I have one more question. When a decision seems to go in your favor, how come you don't breathe a word about it? Laryngitis?

The Dummy

What is his role? Is he just a stop-gap or is he one for the future? Even if he's one for the future, will he actually be the "manager"?

Such are the questions asked when a new manager joins a high profile club. Instead of the team and the future of the team, its the "Who's in charge" which takes the priority. Just look at Real Madrid, Newcastle and Chelsea and you'll wonder why you bothered to come up with these questions.

When Ramos was appointed the "boss" of Real Madrid a week before the "El Classico", my mouth was open. When I found out that he's on a 6 month contract, I went into a coma. For a club like Real Madrid to have a stability like that is something astounding. And it all started when Del Bosque(the boss) and Hierro(the captain) were sacked on the same day-the day after they won the La Liga. Even the "Great Don Fab" was sacked after they won the La Liga simply because they did not play football which was easy on the eye.

Mourinho, in my opinion was one of the most "no nonsense" managers the EPL has ever had. Unfortunately, he proved to be a nuisance for Roman. Roman wanted someone to be his dummy. Enter Avram Grant. But everyone knew he was just a stop-gap and by the time the season ended, Roman was hit by the credit crunch and he knew he could not get a dummy.

These managers didn't even get their way in the players they wanted or did not want(depends on how you see it). Mourinho did not want Shevchenko, Grant did not want Anelka, but there they were; simply because Roman wanted them. Raul, a couple of years back, could not buy a goal. But Calderon didn't even consider the option of selling him because he was the image of the club. Keegan and Curbishley quit because they didn't have their say in the transfer window. Players came in and went out according the chairman's choice. Why wasn't the chairman coaching the players and teaching them how to play?

Everyone knows this is going to be the situation of every manager in these sort of clubs. The question is why would these managers go to such clubs in the first place? I'm not blaming Mourinho, Keegan and Curbishley. They simply didn't know what they were getting into. But what about Fabio, Carlos Queiroz, Grant, Scolari and Ramos? Is it because they think they can change something which their predecessors couldn't? Or is it just to have a "Managed [Enter Club] for [Enter duration] " on their CV?

R.I.P 4-4-2

A few years ago, if you even dare to suggest anything other than a 4-4-2 to a manager of a top club, he would look at you as if you are from Mars. Teams used to stick to 4-4-2 so much so that the game was crying out for a change.

And change it did. Nowadays, the top sides rarely play a 4-4-2 during the course of the game and almost definitely not from the start. And even if the sides do play a 4-4-2, you have players like Rooney, Kuyt, Henry, Ronaldo etc who can play anywhere in the final third. This is particularly necessary against a mid-table team(if you can call a team that) since they can mark the life out of you sometimes. You need players like the above mentioned to move around and create space for others. I was watching the Barca-Valencia game the other night and I was shocked to see Hleb in a central striker position sometimes.

Barca, Real, Liverpool, United, Chelsea, Roma, Valencia are some of the top sides who rarely stick to a 4-4-2 formation in recent times. Even England has changed its formation from a traditional 4-4-2(which never seemed to work). Not that I call England a top side in terms of results.

There are downsides to not playing a 4-4-2 too. Players like Robbie Keane, Henry, Tevez etc may miss out because of the change in formation. Even Michael Owen was dropped from the England squad because, apparently, all he did was score goals.

Effective or Football

In recent times, when a team comes to either Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge or The Emirates, they try to play football with a mind-set that there is no use putting 9 men behind the ball. What this has done is, to make United, Chelsea and Arsenal into fantastic counter-attacking teams. So much so that, they've started to rely on counter-attacking football to score goals.

This was very evident during the United-Sunderland game, where Sunderland parked their bus for 90 minutes and United could not get the breakthrough. Then comes the 91st minute, where a corner for Sunderland turns into an United goal. Off the counter-attack of course. The question is, should Sunderland have allowed United to counter?

A better question would be, should all teams coming to the above mentioned grounds follow Sunderland's example?

As a United, Arsenal and Chelsea fan, I wouldnt like it. As any other team's fan, I would love it.

As a football fan, I would just switch off the TV.

Scream!!!!

When Andy Gray said the following quote during the Liverpool-Marseille match last week, I decided to blog about it.

"Of all the TOP sides, I've not seen anyone shout so many instructions to the players during a football match".

Yep he was talking about Rafa Benitez. And till the time Mr.Gray pointed it out, I didnt realise he was actually right. Benitez does seem to scream an awful lot of stuff to the players. And I think he uses the little black book(the one used by managers to make notes during a match) more than any other manager in the EPL.

On the contrary, someone like Sir Alex Ferguson just lets his players do the talking for most of the time. And it helps as a player if your boss has some confidence in you and you dont have someone breathing down your neck all the time. Dont get me wrong, Alex has a fuse and he knows how to blow it.

Analysing the quote, it either means that Rafa's team is not prepared(I dont believe it) or Rafa demands perfection. You can demand perfection during a keep ball session or during a training ground match. But to demand perfection and to actually shout his heart out during the course of a football match is something else. If I was playing, after a while, I would stop listening. Might lead to a substitution though. Robbie Keane? Listening?

By the way, I would give anything to see Rafa's black book.

"Men"agers?

Chelsea didnt lose a game at home during Mourino's reign. All of Mourinho's defeats have come away from home. In stark constrast, Scolari has struggled at home and yet managed to blow their opponents in away games.

Has the time come when you have one manager for home games and another for away games?(Like twin captaincy in cricket). Will be quite a sight I tell ya.

Leave those kids alone...

Every once in a while, you read about this kid being the next Zidane and another kid being the next Ronaldo. After a few months, you hear some other kid being called the next Zidane. I dont know who this is an insult to. Zidane or the poor kids.

Lets get this straight. There is only one Zinedine Zidane. Just as there is only one Ronaldo. Are you doing justice to Zidane's career by calling some 13 yr old kid your successor? No offense to the kid, but look at what Zidane's achieved. And look at what the kid's achieved.

Can you imagine the hype a 13 yr old gets when he is publicly announced as the "next Zinedine Zidane"? How many next Zinedine Zidanes have actually gone on to become a Zinedine Zidane?

Being called the next Zidane, is it a boon or a pain? Its left for you to debate.

Moreover, I thought Zidane's kid was the next Zidane.

Arsene "When"grrr

I bet thats the question on every Arsenal fan's mind. When!!! When is Arsenal going to win something next? The better question would be "Why". Why is Arsenal not able to win anything. They play beautiful football. They have fantastic youngsters coming through.

But......

Beautiful football doesnt guarentee silverware. Kids are highly unlikely to win you silverware. Gone are the days of Henry, Vieira, Bergkamp, Keown, Adams, Parlour etc etc. Phew, quite a team that one. They always had someone who could put their foot in when need be. They also had a blend of experience mixed with the kids.

In my opinion, a team with the stature of Arsenal should consist of 7-8 experienced players with 3-4 kids thrown in. Quite the opposite of what it currently is.

Talking about the kids, one has to be in awe seeing the number of kids coming through the ranks at Arsenal. But I wonder how many of them have noticed that, most of these players peak when they are kids itself and are then shipped out. Once they move on, they are hardly the shadow of the player they once promised to become. David Bentley and Jermaine Pennant to name a few. How many kids from the Arsenal team have gone on to play for Arsenal after they become "experienced"? Something to ponder about, Mr. Wenger?

Coming to the lack of experience, many of you might have noticed that, Wenger, more often than not buys a player whose age is <= 20. Why is Wenger hesitant to buy experienced players? He always says "The future's looking good". When is he going to concentrate on "Now"? He has to realise thinking about the next game is of no use if you lose the ongoing one.

I have a "When" of my own. When is Wenger going to realise he should be coaching the youth team instead of the first team.
Oh wait...He already is...

Friendlies or Spoilers?

Benitez has been screaming his heart out for quite some time and I think its time the FA gave it a serious thought. Yes, I'm talking about ridiculous international friendlies right in the middle of the season for no reason other than upsetting the managers (Money apart of course). And the effect was there for all to see this past weekend.

When was the last time the top four of La Liga fail to win and the top five of the BPL fail to even score a goal let alone win. All in the same weekend mind you. And all after a bizarre round up of international fixtures last midweek.

This is inevitable.

Most of the footballers have to travel halfway across the world to play in an absolutely baffling friendly and make their way back in a span of 3 days. Now I dont blame them. I would give anything to represent my country. But the after effects are inevitable. They are undoubtedly tired and jaded and most of them hardly turn up for their respective clubs (not literally) the following weekend.

The managers are obviously not pleased about this and they have to make changes and give their players a rest. But this means the team put out may not be the best team and the quality of the game is going to be below par.

Forget the footballers, the managers and even the clubs for a minute. I am talking as a football fan. We deserve some good football during a weekend. Hell, some of us manage to pass the week by the thought of the upcoming football weekend. But would you rather spend your hard-earned money on KFC Chicken(:P) or watch your team give a sluggish performance. If any of you had seen the Middlesbrough-Bolton game this weekend, you will know where I'm coming from. Half the stadium was empty. I was wondering why the other half turned up.

FA....WAKE UP...