'G'Owen

It looks almost certain that Michael Owen's international career is all but over. Atleast as long as Fabio Capello is the boss.

Fabio's explanation that he's picking players "in form" is weak. There are many players in his 8 matches in charge so far who have not been "in form" at that moment. Even when John Terry wasn't "in form" at times, he was "the captain". And you may say that Rio Ferdinand is not "in form" at the moment (considering the latest results). And he's in the squad. Even though he's injured. What about Emile Heskey? Is he "in form"? I beg to differ. He's in as much form as Gabrian Agbanlahor is at the moment. Just to cite a few examples.

Also, Fabio's explanation(sometime back) that his international players should play for big clubs is nauseating. Look at the number of non "big club" players he's picked in the current squad.
Agreed, Owen was not fit for most of the games, but even when he was, he was overlooked. And even when he was in the squad, he was given a run-out for 45 minutes and that too in a formation which doesn't suit him.

Agreed, players cannot rest on their past reputations. But reputations and past exploits should count for something.

PS : This comes out of frustration from a Owen fan.

To be or not to be...

When Mcartney was sent off for Sunderland for having a slight tug on Sean Wright Philips' shirt, everyone said, "What was that for?"

Such is the change in the English game that the challenges considered to be fouls a decade ago are no longer so. There is pushing and shoving(i.e.wrestling) in the penalty area every time a corner or a free kick comes in. And yet, the referee chooses to do nothing about it most of the times. When he does say "Hey, Enough is enough. It's time to give a foul.", everyone says, "Thats harsh. You see that kind of challenge every week."

The mentality and mindset of the English game has changed over the years which just adds to the fascinating zeal for the viewers.

Inconsistency from the referee though lives for us to debate another day.

Best Midfielder?

On Sunday night, Steve Mcmahon proclaimed Steven Gerrard as the best midfielder in the world.

I disagree.

If you recall, Zidane called him one of the best "players" in the world.

To be called the best midfielder in the world, you need to play in midfield. And Gerrard has not done that in a long time now. For both club and country.

Zidane was, is and always will be the best midfielder in the world. With Kaka coming a close second.

Here's my top 5 of the best midfielders in the world to have grazed the grass for the past decade.

5. Gerrard (when he was playing in midfield)
4. Roy Keane
3. Xavi
2. Kaka
1. Zidane

WOW!!

Andy Gray summed up Liverpool's performance against Manchester United in a single word.

"WOW!!"

I agree. Liverpool were magnificent. Twice in a week. How often has that happened?

After the midweek performance against Real Madrid, everybody asked (obviously), now why can't they do that in the league? And when they did do so in the league, everyone asked (obviously), now why can't they do that to your so-called lesser teams?

Well, instead of pondering over all these questions, I decided to just enjoy the occassion for a change. And you should too.

PS : A special mention to Alan Wiley. Magnificent display.

Tech"no"logy

Considering the number of wrong decisions these days, lots of people want technology to be implemented in the game. It would ensure fewer debates, fairer decisions and lesser confrontations.

For eg, every time Liverpool face Chelsea, especially in Europe, people inevitably talk about the "ghost goal". The reverse also happens where for eg, the ball appeared to have crossed Buffon's goal-line and a goal was not given (Juventus vs Chelsea). In all these cases, everyone's crying out for technology.

But personally, I don't like the idea of technology to be introduced in the game. It will inevitably slow the pace of the game considering the number of stoppages. Also, it takes that element of luck out of the game. Call me old-fashioned but "luck" is a very important factor in any sport and it has already been taken out of many sports (Cricket, Tennis to name a few).

Besides, if there were no dodgy moments like the "ghost goal" happening every now and again, what is there for us to talk about?

Take a dive son

Gerry Armstrong's quote "The fact that he's rolled so much tells me he's ok." says it all. What's more to say?

How it all went wrong for Liverpool

Well, the usual questions would be "What went wrong" and "Where it went wrong. Since I got bored of that, I decided to analyse how it went wrong.

To be fair to the American owners, it started long before they got there. The very first time Benitez walked into the club after "walking out" of Valencia should've got everyone thinking. Then, the sale of a certain Michael Owen. Now, I know Benitez is not solely responsible for that considering Owen wanted to leave but Benitez hardly did anything to persuade him to stay. Look at Sir Alex and Ronaldo for eg. Benitez could've done better there.

But for me, the real trouble started when Liverpool won the Champions League in 2005(and continued when they won the FA Cup next season). Lets be fair. No one expected them to win the UCL(luck perhaps?). They were not good enough in the league to qualify for next season's Champions League through their league position also. They only got in after the "special" dispensation by UEFA. I guess things would've been a lot different had the dispensation not been "special".

It's there for all to see that the Champions League has been Beniitez's saving grace from day 1(or rather year 1). 3 semifinal appearances, 1 final and 1 winner's medal is there for all to envy. But, the fact that he couldn't transform that into a Premier League's medal remains. The reason is simple. He employs almost the same tactics in both competitions. And that involves "NOT" to get beat. While it works like a charm in the Champions League, it only makes for too many draws in the Premier League as is evident in the last 4 or 5 seasons.

People may rant about Benitez's tactical genius in bringing on Hamann for the second half in the UCL final 2005. But what was it that made him not to make that decision after 20-25 min of the 1st half. The answer is simple. His negativity. Just for comparison, a Jose Mourinho would've made a substitution or two if he thought things are not going to plan. And he would do it in the 15th minute of a game. That's the difference.

Then along comes this season. I am not getting into the Keane-Barry saga as I've discussed it before. What I'm looking at here, is the attitude of the players and the manager himself. And I'm not talking about the second half comebacks. Players like Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher have come out and said that "We want to win the title, and if not, then we want to be atleast competing for the title come April or May." For me, that just says it all. The ambition is there for all to see. Do you see any Arsenal, United or Chelsea player say "We want to be there and thereabouts come the end of the season"? No. They simply say they are going for the title. That's the mentality that Benitez has instilled in the players in my opinion.

Let's just say the Gods have been shining on Liverpool during their frequent comebacks this season. Had it not been for that, I guess Benitez would've been long gone and we wouldn't be talking about a 5th or 6th contract offer.

Players and managers, past and current, have been ranting at the American owners to get the new contract done with. If it was me, I would say goodbye to Benitez before he said goodbye to me. He did it at Valencia. What makes you think he can't do it again? And if and when that happens, Liverpool will be back to rebuilding just like Valencia was when he left.

Sir Alex can quit now and whoever comes in will have a fantastic squad to work with without having to overhaul. Can we say the same for Benitez? I don't think so.