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[Mama Smurf]

Do you have a source or something for that, because as far as I know that's not even possible. I can't see PSV agreeing with something as radical as that, Alex is our topdefender. There have even been talks about PSV buying the transferrights from Chelsea.

Well I don't know if PSV get the chance to agree or disagree in this situation. I don't know the details of the loan, I suppose there might be a contract saying Chelsea can't take him back partway through a year. Normal loans you can, but Chelsea don't act like normal clubs.

Besides, can he even get a work permit yet?

I dunno, I didn't realise it was an issue. Outside of the EU (I think this is right) players need to be from a country ranked in the top 70 in the world and have played 75% of their countries competitive games (world cup/wcq) when available to be picked in the last 2 years. I don't believe Alex has done the latter (god knows why, given the Brazilian "defence" at the world cup), but that's not the end of it.

He'd certainly be turned down initially, but you can then appeal. They'd have to then convince a panel that he's "of the highest calibre and able to contribute significantly to the development of the game at the top level in UK." And I reckon you could successfuly argue that, pointing to PSV's record while he's been there, particularly in Europe, and also that he might not be in the Brazil team much, but they're such a good footballing nation that it's extremely difficult to break in, it's no knock at his quality that he hasn't played enough for Brazil, just a reflection of their outstanding quality as a nation it's not like he can't get into the Colombian side etc.

Oh, and Dutch media have reported that the Ball to Blackburn deal fell through, but I guess you know that.

Not much bothered, we kept Neill. It was probably over the moment we asked Liverpool for cash and Warnock for Neill (so Benitez says), we were either going to keep Neill and have no real need for a left back or we'd get Warnock. Either way, no room for Ball.

 

[marmaraS]

Arsenal are reported to have signed Brazilian teenager Denilson, although there has been no confirmation from The Emirates Stadium.

The Premier League have announced that the 18-year-old has signed for The Gunners, subject to receiving international clearance.

If the deal is ratified, Denilson will be joining from Sao Paulo and he is a highly-rated defensive midfielder.

Denilson would link up with compatriots Gilberto Silva and Julio Baptista in North London and could eventually cost Arsenal £4 million.

Meanwhile, Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has revealed he is thankful that the Ashley Cole transfer saga is finally over.

Cole concluded his protracted move to Premiership champions Chelsea on Thursday in a deal which saw William Gallas head in the opposite direction.

Wenger said: "It was a big day yesterday and obviously it dragged on for a long time.

"It's good to have everybody focused on the main target which is to play good football and respond to the ambitions of Arsenal Football Club.

"The positive thing is that it is finally over.

"It was the wish of Ashley Cole to go to Chelsea and the wish of William Gallas to come to us, so I'm relieved it has happened."

 

[Mama Smurf]

Well, I hope he's better than that other Denilson. You got the Fran Merida guy from Barca this summer too, another young star. Probably won't see him till next season at the earliest though, he's not long 16.

I apparently completely missed the fact that Baptista and Reyes permanently swapped, rather than just for initial loans. Seems like a good all round deal for everyone involved. I'm sure Reyes will sparkle in La Liga like he never could in the Premiership. Be interesting to see where Wenger plays Baptista.

 

[psycho_snake]

This is from The Mirror so....yeah....but apparently Mourinho and Kenyon had a big bust up over Gallas's sale (and Huth's, a bit). They even say Mourinho's future is in doubt...I assume they mean at Chelsea and not that Abramovich is going to have him whacked.

I doubt anything will happen anytime soon, but I wouldn't be too surprised if Chelsea have a new manager this time next year. I don't think winning the league would be enough (they're not even certain to manage that), they need to see more progress. Especially given the money spent on big name players this year. Maybe he'll be ok if they can win the FA Cup at last along with the league, but Europe seems like the real key. It's kind of harsh on Mourinho to say they've underperformed under him, they did get to the semi-finals two years ago and both times have been knocked out by the eventual winners, for a normal club that would be fine. Chelsea have higher expectations though. Unfortunately for Mourinho, they have such a hard group they may not even get out of it this year and even if they do they could well end up in second palce again and have to face someone like AC Milan.

I wouldnt be surprised if this will be Mourinho's last season as chelsea manager. This isnt the first time that he has not been happy with things that have happened there. After he won the league last season he said that he was considering leaving, but them kenyon siad that mourinho wasnt being serious. Its also known that shevchenko and maybe ballack were not his ideal targets, but they came to the club because mourinho wanted them. He has also got a lot of pressure, he is expected to win the CL after the big name signings and all the money that has been injected into the squad. If he doesnt win it then his future at chelsea could be over.

 

[Falch]

Well I don't know if PSV get the chance to agree or disagree in this situation. I don't know the details of the loan, I suppose there might be a contract saying Chelsea can't take him back partway through a year. Normal loans you can, but Chelsea don't act like normal clubs.

I don't know if there's anyone who knows the exact details of the loan.:lol Anyway, It's hard for me to believe PSV wouldn't have some sort of failsafe in case Chelsea would suddenly want Alex. Also, Alex did sign on for the whole season, so if Chelsea would want to get him in January, they'd probably have to pay a certain amount of money to PSV as a compensation.

I dunno, I didn't realise it was an issue. Outside of the EU (I think this is right) players need to be from a country ranked in the top 70 in the world and have played 75% of their countries competitive games (world cup/wcq) when available to be picked in the last 2 years. I don't believe Alex has done the latter (god knows why, given the Brazilian "defence" at the world cup), but that's not the end of it.

He'd certainly be turned down initially, but you can then appeal. They'd have to then convince a panel that he's "of the highest calibre and able to contribute significantly to the development of the game at the top level in UK." And I reckon you could successfuly argue that, pointing to PSV's record while he's been there, particularly in Europe, and also that he might not be in the Brazil team much, but they're such a good footballing nation that it's extremely difficult to break in, it's no knock at his quality that he hasn't played enough for Brazil, just a reflection of their outstanding quality as a nation it's not like he can't get into the Colombian side etc.

Yeah, I've heard about that, although there are no such rules for non-EU players here in Holland. Anyway, Salomon Kalou is a good example of not be eligible at first, but still permitted because of his execeptional talent.

Not much bothered, we kept Neill. It was probably over the moment we asked Liverpool for cash and Warnock for Neill (so Benitez says), we were either going to keep Neill and have no real need for a left back or we'd get Warnock. Either way, no room for Ball.

Oh, didn't know you kept Neill. Oh well he'll probably leave next year then, seeing as I can't imagine him getting much to play much matches now that we've bought Salcido.

This will probably be our team from now on:

----------------Gomes---------------
Kromkamp--Addo*--Alex---Salcido
----------------Simons--------------
Mendez***----------------Cocu----
Farfan---------------------Kone----
-----------Kluivert***--------------

*I'm not to fond of Addo. He's a nice back-up player, and never complains, but he's not very reliable in defense (actually played at the WC as a defending midfielder for Ghana). Personally, I'm hoping Koeman gives Da Costa a chance. 20 year old, apparently a real talent, signed him from AS Nancy.
** Since we almost always play 4-3-3 and Cocu and Simons are practically garanteed to play, all our midfielders have to fight for one remaining place: Mendez ( on loan, Ecuadorian international, excelled at the WC), Culina (played a good WC for Australia), Vayrynen (a loandeal with Celta fell through at the last minute yesterday) and our youngsters Afellay and Aisatti. So basically we've got 5 midfielder for 1 spots...someone's gonna get pissed off.
*** Kluivert's not matchfit yet, could take a couple of weeks, so perhaps we'll play 4-4-2 until then. I'm also happy Tardelli has come to replace Beasley.

 

[Mama Smurf]

I wouldn't be surpised to see Rijkaard managing Chelsea someday. It's incredibly rare for managers to, like Ferguson, manage one club, especially a top club, over a 20 year period. It's even harder somewhere like Spain where basically two clubs have almost always dominated, and if you're club isn't on top, you're out. I certainly can't imagine them sticking with a guy until he gets it right again, as United have with Ferguson.

Anyway, my point is Rijkaard is likely to go sooner or later. And he's already managed his country, where is there to go? I'd suggest either Chelsea or Milan. The latter because, well, they're a big club and he played for them. And at Chelsea he'd obviously have all the resources he wanted, he could create a team even beyond Barcelona's dreams with his style of play. Seems to me, in the current footballing climate at least, any other teams would just be a step down (unless he feels like managing other international teams).

On Chelsea's part, they're not going to bring just anyone in. I'd suggest there are only a small number of names out there they'd look at...Rijkaard of course, Capello, Wenger, Ancelotti and Lippi come to mind.

Mourinho on his part will certainly end up managing Portugal someday, maybe even right after Chelsea if the job is available.

I'm just rambling away here. Look forward to lots more of this now the transfer window is closed.

 

[psycho_snake]

Rijkaard has still got a couple of years ahead of him unless a big opportunity somewherw else pops up. I think he will still be at barca even if he comes empty handed at the end of the season, but if that happens the season after next then he will probably be on his way out. It depends what jobs are available to him at the time, but I think milan is a very big possability because he is a legend over there. he could manage chelsea, but Im not so sure it'll ever happen.

Depending on when Mourinho does leave, capello could be the next chelsea manager. he has alwasy said that he would like to manage in england and although he's alwasy indicated that United would be his preferred destination, i dont think he would turn down the chance to manage chelsea.

Mama do you really think wenger would manage chelsea? It doesnt seem possible to me. he's been at aarsenal for so long now, its not easy for him to go to one of arsenals biggest rivals, especially after what he has accomplished with arsenal. Its not just difficult for him, but the fans would hate to see it too.

 

[Mama Smurf]

No, I just think Chelsea would want him. I think he'll manage Arsenal till he retires.

 

[Osorio]

More MLS news:

http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_4273347

Real Salt Lake owner Dave Checketts announced that Real Madrid will help build an elite soccer academy in Salt Lake City that will train up to 200 soccer players ages 12-18. The academy also will include an academic school and, eventually, dorms. Real Salt Lake will retain the rights to sign the players. Madrid will help with coaching and will recruit players to train there. The famed team also will cover half the estimated $25 million cost.

Also, Real Madrid is going to Salt Lake City once every 2 years for the next 10 years. Plus, Real Salt Lake gets to train in Madrid every February. Hopefully more of these academies open in America.

 

[Ryck]

More MLS news:

http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_4273347



Also, Real Madrid is going to Salt Lake City once every 2 years for the next 10 years. Plus, Real Salt Lake gets to train in Madrid every February. Hopefully more of these academies open in America.

That's awesome... New expansion teams plus more and more exposure each year are all good things. Hopefully one day San Diego will get a team. ( we we're totally screwed out of Chivas Usa)

 

[Luna104]

nm

 

[Mama Smurf]

Doesn't a player have to be younger than 24 for that? Alex is 24.

Not that I'm aware of. The official explanation doesn't mention it anyway:

http://www.workingintheuk.gov.uk/wo...sports_and_entertainers/football_players.html

 

[Shinobi]

Heh man...this whole MSI deal looks shady as **** the more I read about it. Someone's gonna have to do an independant audit on them sooner or later.

 

[Mama Smurf]

Looking forward to the game tonight, I reckon we'll win 5-0. That's the score Scotland are beating the Faroe Islands by at half time right now, but don't take that to mean we should beat Andorra by even more, it's something of a freak result (not that it is a result yet). The FI aren't that bad normally, they only conceded an average of 2.7 goals per game in a WCQ group of France, Switzerland, Ireland, Israel and Cyprus.

I mention those two games together as in both instances the crowds at the stadiums will be bigger than the away team's entire population. Just puts things in perspective.

 

[Osorio]

I can't believe they put England vs. Andorra on pay-per-view. Oh well, I guess Bulgaria vs. Romania will do. =/

 

[Wes]

Crouch is so awesome :lol

When Owen came back, could he take back his place?

 

[Timbuktu]

Looking forward to the game tonight, I reckon we'll win 5-0.

Wow

 

[navanman]

Ireland 0 Germany 0 at HT. Good game so far.

Unbelievable save from Shay Given in goal to save from Klose.

 

[Frenck]

Ireland is damn lucky that the referee didn't give the penalty kick.

 

[Yazan]

Heheh

21' [0 - 1] T. Danilevicius
30' [1 - 1] F. Inzaghi


But who cares, PIPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

 

[Mama Smurf]

Wow

Yeah I'm pretty great.

Crouch is so awesome :lol

When Owen came back, could he take back his place?

The problem is, Rooney and Crouch both like to drop off the attack and play back towards the midfield. Which is fine, so long as there's another striker beyond them. When the two play together, as they did against Sweden, it just doesn't work as it leaves no one up front. And Rooney gets picked ahead of Crouch, so he could be dropped even if his form says he should be in the team.

Of course, if Crouch can learn to stay up there, that's a different matter. And someone else could take Owen's place, perhaps Ashton. Maybe even Walcott, by the time we get to Euro 2008 he could well be a fixture in the Arsenal team, it's still two seasons off.

 

[Ghost]

Crouch gets his goals against the lesser opposition, i cant argue with that, i still think Ashton will be a better option against the best teams though. Yes i know i am biased.

I just dont think Crouch is very good at what he's picked for...but he's definitely proving himself a great finisher.

Ashton & Tevez should be a good example of how Ashton & Rooney would work [/brag]

 

[Mama Smurf]

I just don't want us to finally solve the Lampard/Gerrard dilemma and immediately replace it with our front men. It has to be for the good of the team, not the good of individual players.

I'm already getting a bit tired of hearing the praise for McClaren, inevitably alongside a dig at Erikson. I just wish someone would mention that Erikson's opening game was a 3-0 defeat of Spain, a far better result than anything from McClaren so far. That was followed up by 4 straight victories including a 4-0 defeat of Mexico, then after a blip against Holland he came back with a 5-1 victory over Germany.

The pundits need to calm down. We can be happy with what's happened so far, but there's no reason yet to think he's England's saviour. Even if we beat Macedonia it won't mean that, I'd expect us to win, though I know it's tricky and I reckon we'll only win by 1....maybe 2. We have Macedonia again after that, so that's not much help, but it's the next 3 games where we'll really see what he's made of. Croatia, Holland, Israel, all away. A difficult run of fixtures, if we can come out of that heads held high then maybe we can start to get excited.

 

[Shinobi]

The Sven bashing got tired before he left the job, but the last couple months it's simply gotten ridiculous. You'd think England had won 7 previous World Cups before he took over the reigns and "only" brought them into three quarter finals (once against the '02 champs, twice on penalties...which several other England squads had done beforehand). I reckon much of this crap is just pent up resentment over Sven being a foreigner...just sad. Could've sworn that was the reason Hargreaves got hated on for similiar reasons.

 

[Blablurn]

GREECE WON!

 

[Dr Zhivago]

I reckon much of this crap is just pent up resentment over Sven being a foreigner

Certainly the tabloids never seemed to get over this, but I think the main problem was Eriksson ultimately made England into a boring team to watch.

 

[Mama Smurf]

Sven did stick with Hargreaves when everyone (including me) said it was ridiculous to do so. He showed us with that one.

It was even mentioned in fact during the BBC commentary on the Andorra game. John Motson said it and Mark Lawrenson goes "well....yeah...but I think he rather stumbled onto him". I hardly see how. That doesn't even make any sense, just give him the damn credit on that one.

 

[marmaraS]

Going to the Brazil v Argentina game today! should be a great game, i'll take some pictures too

 

[hadareud]

Sven did stick with Hargreaves when everyone (including me) said it was ridiculous to do so. He showed us with that one.

It was even mentioned in fact during the BBC commentary on the Andorra game. John Motson said it and Mark Lawrenson goes "well....yeah...but I think he rather stumbled onto him". I hardly see how. That doesn't even make any sense, just give him the damn credit on that one.

very true. Then again, Mark Lawrenson is the biggest wanker in english football commentary. I hate that guy.

Going to the Brazil v Argentina game today! should be a great game, i'll take some pictures too

excellent, have fun.

Are you going to the Middlesbrough game next week too?

 

[marmaraS]

nope :-( i had tickets but i had to give them back as im going to Hong Kong to see my dad, this will probably be my last visit to the emirates this season as im moving down to Brighton for University but i might be able to come back and watch a couple of games

 

[Ghost]

very true. Then again, Mark Lawrenson is the biggest wanker in english football commentary. I hate that guy.

Lawros up there but Alan 'Guess what i support liverpool' Green is by far the biggest wanker.

 

[Shinobi]

Certainly the tabloids never seemed to get over this, but I think the main problem was Eriksson ultimately made England into a boring team to watch.

England wasn't exactly Brazil during the 80's either, yet Bobby Robson gets treated like a prince (let's hope he recovers quickly BTW).

Sven did stick with Hargreaves when everyone (including me) said it was ridiculous to do so. He showed us with that one.

It was even mentioned in fact during the BBC commentary on the Andorra game. John Motson said it and Mark Lawrenson goes "well....yeah...but I think he rather stumbled onto him". I hardly see how. That doesn't even make any sense, just give him the damn credit on that one.

That's the sort of nonsense I mean...acting like the only good things he did was through dumb luck is just ridiculous. Almost makes me wish this squad didn't qualify for Euro '08...might be the only way Sven gets any credit. :lol

Meanwhile Gallas has accussed Mourhino of being fickle with his players, and wishes Ashley Cole the best of luck in dealing with him. Heh, December 10 can't come soon enough...

 

[Mama Smurf]

There's some talk of having some of the lower teams pre-qualify rather than going straight into qualification groups in Europe. I believe they do it elsewhere in the world, so it's a very real possibility.

Having watched the Andorra game I'm all for it. It was just so pointless, for both sides. We had just under 80% of the possession. We had 20 shots, they had none. For a good part of the game our backline was 20 yards into their half. They had 11 men in their own half of their own half...and they were still useless.

I don't really see how we learned anything from that game. I don't think Andorra did either. How demoralizing must games be for them? Defeat after defeat, knowing they have absolutely no hope of qualifying anyway.

We all know the fixture lists are getting bloated, particularly for the top sides who take most of their players from teams playing in Europe (as in the UEFA Cup/CL). We don't need fixtures like these added to it.

Glen Hoddle (I don't mind Mark Lawrenson generally myself...but god Hoddle annoys me) reckons it's a bad idea, because how can sides progress if they're not playing the best sides? He says Turkey and Greece used to be whipping boys, look at them now.

First of all, if they're good enough to get through pre-qualifying, they will get to play the best sides. If they're not good enough to get through, they need to stay playing teams a bit better than them in pre-qualifying until they can make it through. Not play teams chasms apart like England where they can't even touch the ball!

Secondly, Turkey has a population of 60 million. Greece has a population of 10 million. It's reasonable to expect that even if they were really bad once, if football takes off they could get decent. Andorra has a population of 70,000! They could be the most passionate football country in the world, but they are never going to have a big enough pool to pick from to do a Greece or Turkey.

Finally, if they somehow could turn it around despite everything against them and are no longer one of the bottom sides in Europe...they won't have to pre-qualify anymore! It's not like it'd be set teams who had to do it, it'd be those at the bottom of the FIFA rankings. From what Hoddle says you'd think if we'd introduced qualifying 30 years ago then Turkey and Greece would still have to do it, which is patently ridiculous.

The way I see it is to take the bottom 8 sides in Europe based on the FIFA rankings. Currently that's Luxembourg, San Marino, the Faroe Islands, Kazakhstan, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Malta and Azerbaijan. Either draw it randomly or make the 1st team play the 8th or whatever, and make them play off against each other. That'll leave four sides, who can be drawn again and have a play off leaving two sides who can go into actual qualifying.

Now, not only does that remove 6 teams from qualifying, it also gives the teams who are pre-qualifying something to fight for. No more constant demoralizing defeats, here they actually have a chance. These teams would hardly ever be drawn against each other in normal qualifying as they're all in the same seeding pot to go to the bottom of different groups, consequently they're not able to face teams of their own level. Now their prize is qualifying, like bigger teams' prize is the actual final tournament. And sure, they're probably still going to be the whipping boys of the qualifying, but at least they get to face big teams and can say "we might be getting destroyed, but we're still better than those teams we knocked out". And who knows, playing teams where they actually have the ball some of the time might let them improve gradually over time until they can at least say there's 10 teams worst than them in Europe. And the likes of Kazakhstan have populations big enough to go beyond that someday, maybe even make it to an actual tournament.

 

[Mama Smurf]

More details have emerged regarding the Wets Ham/Argentinian thing. You can read about this a bit online, but I actually have The Sunday Times here so I can give you all the points. For those outside the UK, this isn't a tabloid, they probably really know what they're talking about and not just making stuff up.

- West Ham paid nothing for the two players

- They'll only pay half their wages, about £1.5m for Tevez, £1m for Mascherano

- Despite what they might publicly claim about choosing West Ham for various reasons, this exact deal was offered to Portsmouth first who turned it down because of the contract demands (this is in line with the rumour I heard the night before the West Ham deal that they may go to Portsmouth on loan)

- Renato Duprat, and advisor to MSI (who own the players) said West Ham's role is as a "surrogate mother" until bigger clubs can be found

- It's MSI's right to sell them where they want to

- Contract clause where both players can leave to another cluv next summer, West Ham get no money from the deal

- If available (fit and not suspended), West Ham have to play the two players

- West Ham can buy them at the end of the season...if they stump up £60m. It doesn't say if the players can be signed by West Ham in that way seperately or if it would have to be both. That's just not going the appen unless there really is a takeover, and even then it'll have to be a rich one. A source says their price is more than the value of the club at the moment

- It was claimed that West Ham beat off Europe's top clubs to secure the deal, but that isn't the case. They wanted to outright sell them inititally, hoping the WC would bring people in. They wanted too much though, Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal, Sevilla and Roma were all offered the players, all of them baulked at the asking price. Then they offered them to Portsmouth in the same deal as West Ham, as I mentioned. Then West Ham got them

- Corinthian's president Alberto Dualib says "Do you know why they are at West Ham? Because they were the only club that would take them." We have to look at the source of course, he's not exactly going to be happy at two of his players quitting his club. Still, you can be bitter and right at the same time

The deal finally seems to make sense. It's very much like a loan, only with certain demands. I can certainly see why Portsmouth wouldn't go for it, particularly having to play them regardless of form or adaptation to the Premiership, but I can also see it as a good thing for West Ham. So they almost certainly won't have these players next year, they can still take advantage of them this year. If they could get into the CL or just up to 5th, that's going to attract more and better players. They might even be able to win a cup, they have three competitions to go for.

 

[psycho_snake]

David Gill claims that United rejected mascherano. he said that they had been watching him for a long time and they were offered mascherano at the start of the transfer window for a big price, so that didnt appeal to us, but then he was offered at the end of the transfer window for a loan deal. Now we dont know the details but a loan deal sounds decent. We would have had another option in midfield and it wouldnt cost much.

Im glad we never bought him on a permanent basis because he would probably have cost a lot of money and I dont think he's as good as people make him sound. At the worlod cup he seemed quite invisble. We dont desperately need a player like him, it would be noice to have a defensive/ holding player, but there isnt any need to make any panic buys because we couldnt get our other transfer targets. Our squad is good enough and whilst a little more depth might come useful, we are still a very good side.

David Gill also said that they are going to open talks with wayne rooney about a contract extension. He has still got another 4 years left on his contract, but he has said that he would discuss a contract for life.

 

[Roders5]

Just want to say how disappointed I was with my own country northern ireland's result yesterday (beat 3-0 by iceland). I'm not expecting to qualify or anything but after some great results recently (especially beating england) they really played terrible. I'll have to rely on the other british clubs for more success.

 

[psycho_snake]

I'm happy that England won by such a big score and its good to see that defoe got on the scoresheet. So far things couldnt be any better, but too much enthusiasm will be a bad thing. We have played two easy teams and we are expected to beat those teams by 3 or 4 goals. Mclaren deserves credit, he is using the players better than sven used them and he seems to understand that he has to do what is best for the team. Its good to see that mclaren is meeting expectations, but so far he hasnt been challenged. When England play a difficult team then we can talk about just how good he is.

 

[paul777]

3-0

 

[marmaraS]

ahh what a game!!! just got back! amazing atmosphere i'll put up some pics in a min,

The stadium was abour 80% Brazillian and Kaka's goal was just superb! great day

 

[Shinobi]

Yeah, that game was just phenominal...Argentina didn't really deserve to lose by such a large margin, but Brazil were full credit for their three goals. Good to see the Beast putting on a few moves as well in his new home.

Speaking of which, how'd you like to get choked by these guns...

 

[Mama Smurf]

I thought it was kind of average, guess I just wasn't much interested in it. Or perhaps I remember Brazil sides of the past and Argentina at the WC and this didn't compare, I'm not sure. I just know I looked at the clock at one point thinking there must be about 20 minutes left and found it was only 10 minutes into the second half.

If you can have an average game with a goal like Kaka's anyway.

 

[Shinobi]

Euro plans in doubt for star Prem duo

Arsenal and Manchester United may face new Champions League opponents after UEFA admitted their Portuguese opponents could be thrown out.
The Premiership pair were drawn against Porto and Benfica, respictively, in the group stages but if the Portuguese football association are punished for a breach of FIFA rules, they will face new opposition.

Football's world governing body are deciding whether to impose sanctions on Portugal's club and national teams after top-flight side Gil Vicente appealed to a civil court over their relegation, which was imposed for fielding an ineligible player.

Direct judicial or political interference in the running of football is forbidden under FIFA statute and punishments include expelling national teams and clubs from all football.

UEFA director of communications William Gaillard told the News of the World: "The ultimate sanction is that the Portuguese national team and all Portuguese clubs are banned from all competitions by FIFA. Clearly, that would impact on UEFA's competitions, including the Champions League."

FIFA will announce their decision to the Portuguese FA on September 11, two days before United and Arsenal's Champions League campaigns get under way.

http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,1765_1469678,00.html

Can't say I'd be sad. :lol

 

[Ghost]

Kia whatshisname has denied that Pardew has to play Tevez & Mascherano, must admit id be supprised if that was the case given that if we get through the Palermo game we will be playing a LOT of matches.

Wasnt impressed by Mascherano yesterday, but then he was up against Brazil, Im sure he's good enough stick Mullins on the bench. His game seemed very similar, simple passing, always making himself available just infront of the back 4, hopefully he's better going backwards against non-brazilian opposition.

Tevez looked lively, he's sure to push us down the fair play league ( :'( ), but he's sure to be a hit if he puts that much effort in for us. He looks like he has the flair we lack upfront, we are all strength and pace right now. I think he'll work well with a proper foil like Ashton, not sure how he'll do with the rest of our Strikers, Harewood & Cole especially seem like they are more 'front to goal' strikers (even though they are big), Zamora likes to work around infront of goal but hes just not that good at it. Theres always Teddy i guess.


On the whole 1 season sell situation, im not too bothered, If they have to fetch the 30 million MSI are after they are gonna have to be bloody amazing, which can only mean good things in terms of our performance this season. And if we do well enough for them to be considered worth that much money then we should be able to attract a similar level of talent next summer.

And if they dont fetch 30 million this season i imagine we'll keep them for another year (unless its a complete disaster).

I dont really see the down side of us being a feeder club for players we havent invested time or money in, players the fans arent even attached to. As long as they perform im happy.

Actually, considering Pardews actual target last week was DAMIEN JOHNSON from birmingham, and instead he got Tevez & Mascherano for probably, factoring in wages, still less money than he would of paid...im more than happy, im over the moon.

 

[Mama Smurf]

Ok, seriously, did Baptista actually sign for Arsenal or is it a loan?

Here's news from the official Arsenal website from the deadline day:

http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?...a+moves+to+Arsenal+as+Reyes+joins+Real+Madrid

Brazilian international Julio Baptista has joined Arsenal from La Liga side Real Madrid for an undisclosed fee

There's not going to be an undisclosed fee for a loan. Or any fee.

Again, official site:

http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?...e:+Baptista+-+Why+I+want+to+win+trophies+here

Julio Baptista has an extra special desire to win a trophy in his first season at Arsenal.

The Brazilian, signed from Real Madrid on Thursday night

His first season suggests more. You don't say signed when he's been loaned.

But I keep seeing places saying he's on loan! Just today, from the BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/a/arsenal/5313502.stm

Brazil international Julio Baptista has revealed he would happily stay at Arsenal beyond his season-long loan.

"I'm very confident I can be a big addition for Arsenal. I'm very humbled Arsene Wenger is so interested in me and I'd be very happy to stay here."

Certainly sounds like he's talking about a loan.

http://www.tribalfootball.com/article.php?id=10297

"Arsenal is a traditional and well-run club. They reached the Champions League final and I hope, with my help, they can do it again this season. I'm happy to sign a four-year contract.

"But after the one-year loan, it's up to Arsenal if they want to keep me. Hopefully, they will.

"I am very humbled Arsene Wenger was so interested in me. I'll be very happy to stay as long as the club wants me."

So he's on a loan with an option to buy? What's this about a fee and why do they keep saying he's signed then?

What the hell's going on?

 

[MrPing1000]

loan with an option to buy, the price of which we do not know. Like Kuszczak i guess.

 

[Mama Smurf]

Well I don't like this new "We've signed him!...well, it's a loan, but we could sign him" thing. Blackburn have the option to sign Nonda at the end of his loan, so, crazily, we called it a loan with the option to buy.

Would the Tevez/Mascherano thing be a signing with the option to sign? Man, football just gets more stoopid.

 

[Ghost]

Would the Tevez/Mascherano thing be a signing with the option to sign? Man, football just gets more stoopid.

Its more like a leasing a Car, keep it for a year then buy it or the dealer sells it on.


Except the car will actually go up in value, and it might prefer if someone who intends to do lots of driving around europe buys it.

 

[hadareud]

Gallas 'issued own-goal threat'

is it true? is it not?

All I can say is that Chelsea are a despisable club. Why the **** would they wait to release an official statement until the player leaves the club? Why not say it before, or would that bring the price down? It's easy to sling dirt at someone once he's not there anymore. The way these people treat individuals (remember Mutu?) is incredible. These people are not really worth getting angry about, but I can't help myself. ****ing assholes.

It's a bit ironic that Cole joined them, leaving a club "that hung him out to dry". I hope nothing goes wrong for him there (I'm being honest, I am not bearing a grudge.

Spoiler

That bastard

), because he will have to change his perception of what it's like if someone hangs you out to dry.

Ah well, **** them.

 

[Ghost]

Gallas 'issued own-goal threat'

is it true? is it not?

All I can say is that Chelsea are a despisable club. Why the **** would they wait to release an official statement until the player leaves the club? Why not say it before, or would that bring the price down? It's easy to sling dirt at someone once he's not there anymore. The way these people treat individuals (remember Mutu?) is incredible. These people are not really worth getting angry about, but I can't help myself. ****ing assholes.

It's a bit ironic that Cole joined them, leaving a club "that hung him out to dry". I hope nothing goes wrong for him there (I'm being honest, I am not bearing a grudge.

Spoiler

That bastard

), because he will have to change his perception of what it's like if someone hangs you out to dry.

Ah well, **** them.

hahah you think Chelsea are dirty..wait for Ashley Coles autobiography.

 

[Mama Smurf]

All I can say is that Chelsea are a despisable club. Why the **** would they wait to release an official statement until the player leaves the club? Why not say it before, or would that bring the price down?

Well, I don't see why it'd be any better to say it while he's there. As for that bringing the price down, you could just as easily say they helped Gallas find a new club by not saying it, as managers wouldn't see him as a twat, which I'm sure they would if this news is true and had come out before a move.

It's easy to sling dirt at someone once he's not there anymore. The way these people treat individuals (remember Mutu?) is incredible. These people are not really worth getting angry about, but I can't help myself. ****ing assholes.

Let's be fair here, Gallas got his own way. Chelsea didn't want to lose him, he wanted to leave, he won. If this news is true, he got it (at least partially) through some rather twat-ish ways. Already I imagine it's hard for Chelsea to keep silent over this. They probably should, but man it would grate knowing the guy who said he'd score own goals if you played him got everything he wanted. But then, just to make things worst, Gallas fires parting shots at Chelsea, particularly Mourinho. It'd be hard not to want to put the truth (well...what they say is the truth) out there after that.

My personal feeling is no one is really in the right here. Everyone should shut up and these things should be dealt with internally. Chelsea should shut up, Gallas should shut up, hard as that may be for both of them. They didn't though, so I don't think the timing of when they said things much matters (if anything I see it as slightly in favour of Chelsea), and if everything is true then it's as much bad from gallas as Chelsea.