There Is Only One Sinnacle

One of my first articles for this site was giving career advice to Steve McLaren. Someone must of read it because McLaren did just want I suggested in getting out of England to coach in Holland. Now that my massive ego has been boosted I figured Avram Grant can now use some of my advice.

Grant biggest hurdle at Chelsea was that he was never going to remove Jose Mourinho from the hearts and minds of Chelsea fans. Avram Grant played the Richard Nixon role at Chelsea to Mourinho’s charismatic John F Kennedy. Nothing that Grant could ever do at Chelsea would truly win over the fans like the special one was able to do. Even if Grant was able to win the Champions League the next day you know Mourinho was going to hold a press conference saying he only won it with his players and that if he was left alone the result would of been the same. A John Terry slip and penalty miss later there was no need for that Mourinho press conference as Grant finds himself out of a job.

Avram Grant career progression is unique. He skipped a few steps along the way in getting the Chelsea job. Grant went from coaching Israel to being part or the back room staff at Portsmouth and Chelsea then inserted into the top job in one of the biggest clubs in the world. That will affect him when coaching vacancies open up. Despite an impressive season at Chelsea the previous track record isn’t there which will scare some top teams off hiring Grant.

Don’t worry, I have the course of action you should take. You always seemed stressed at Chelsea, can I call you Avram now? Doesn’t matter I’m going to anyway. Ok, Avram back to you being stressed. It’s like you knew that every dropped point was going to result in the media starting up the rumors of your impending demise. Well we know how that ended up.

Enjoy your life Avram and forget about Football for a year. Take a cruise, get some sun just do something and enjoy a year away from the game. Sure you didn’t win anything but you have every reason to be proud of your coaching reign at Chelsea. You pushed Manchester United until the final day of the season in the EPL and lost on what really amounts to a coin flip in the Champions League final. Add to that you handled yourself with class on the way out. The way you supported John Terry after his miss was something to be respected. Here you are hugging Terry and praising him in the post match press conference knowing that his miss cost you the Chelsea job. John Terry will still be pulling down 300k a week at Chelsea next season and you are jobless. Sometimes life just isn’t fair.

The best thing that can happen to you is if Luiz Felipe Scolari doesn’t succeed at Chelsea. Your record at Chelsea will look pretty good if Scolari isn’t able to match what you were able to do last year. Never mind that Scolari got the full summer transfer window to play with in order to mold his team something that you weren’t able to take advantage of. Having Chelsea stumble will be the best thing that could happen to you. Revisionist history will now look kindly about you and your time at Chelsea. That will lead to the offers flying in come next year when the coaching carousel starts up again.

So in closing enjoy your year on the sidelines Avram and see you this time next year hopefully coaching a club that will give you a fair shake.

On the heels of an Euro 2008 performance that left a bitter taste in the mouths of some Portuguese fans (i.e me). The Portuguese FA have began the process of wiping away the final months of the Scolari era with the appointment of former Manchester United assistant Carlos Queiroz.

To look forward one must look back to see what went wrong under Scolari leading up to Euro 2008. When Big Phil took a swing at Serbia’s Ivica Dragutinovic the Portuguese media who by that point have already tired of Scolari act took dead aim at the man and his tactics. After a lackluster performance in qualifying where Portugal finished second to Poland and with losses to Italy and Greece leading up to Euro 2008 something just wasn’t right with the National Team. There was the Ronaldo saga, Deco leaving Barcelona and finally what Portuguese fans consider the death nail for Portugal Euro 2008 chances Scolari in mid tournament being announced as head coach of Chelsea. To many people being pulled in too many directions meant Portugal was destined for an early exit.

In comes Carlos Queiroz, the man who help development Portugal’s original golden generation. Queiroz returns looking to win silverware and give real meaning to Portugal much talked about generation of talented football players.

There was only one man who could fill the shoes left by Scolari departure and that was Queiroz. As Manchester United number two Queiroz played a large part in guiding United to it’s success over the last two seasons. Add to that his keen eye for talent, bringing in players such as Ronaldo, Nani, and Anderson into the fold not to mention spotting Pepe way before Real Madrid paid 30 million euro’s for his services.

Being the number two at United is a job of higher profile than many European head coaching jobs. With Sir Alex Ferguson letting Queiroz take control of practices plus letting him speak to the media Ferguson was comfortable doing what many other head coaches wouldn’t be and that is referring to his assistant coach for key advice and letting him take the credit for his work. No doubt that Queiroz was happy at being United’s number two but there was one job that he couldn’t pass up and as luck would have it that job came calling.

The fact remains that Carlos Queiroz wasn’t going to get the head job at United anytime soon and if Sir Alex Ferguson ever was replaced there are no guarantee’s that Queiroz would even be his replacement. He has done everything you could do at United and while most challenges wouldn’t hold the same weight as life in Manchester offered. Queiroz returning to right the wrongs of his first time in charge where he couldn’t lead Portugal to both Euro 92 and World Cup 1994 gave Queiroz a challenge he simply couldn’t pass up.

As with most teams who replace a coach the best course of action is the replace him with the polar opposite of the previous coach. While Scolari is fiery and his expression on the touchline is often viewed for the masses to see, Queiroz is calm on the touchline and focused on what the right tactic is needed for success. Scolari seemed to try and will his teams to win. Either by sheer determination or often referencing quotes from the bible.

It doesn’t hurt mind you that Queiroz is considered a father figure by key player Cristiano Ronaldo. With Ronaldo firmly on board everyone else will be fall in line with the new ideas, new tactics and all around new way of doing things that Queiroz will bring.

Portugal needed a man to change the mood of this national team. Queiroz brings with him the dawn of a new era in Portuguese football. An era that Portuguese fans hope will bring sort after success in the next four years.

Before Al Gore invented the Internet writers set out to pen the next great American novel. In this new technological age that has been replaced with so called writers like myself trying to pen a great article.

I’ve been dreading writing this article due to the feeling of not being able to do it justice. Soccer at its highest form is not just a beautiful game but an expression of all that is still good about sport. No other sport can provoke the same emotion that soccer can.

This is not to take away anything from the major North American sports. The Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup last night. That must be a great feeling for Detroit fans but it’s still local. The Red Wings capturing the Cup is not embraced by North America. On the International scene Canadians are passionate about Hockey and rightful so but Canadians expect to win at major events. Hockey is Canada’s sport and their sport alone. Canada are only playing in a pool where 5-6 other teams have even an outside chance of winning. Those are Russia, Sweden, Finland, Czech Republic and the U.S. All those countries you could make a case for that hockey is not the number one sport.

Sports on the North American landscape is regionalized. Few events on this side of the pond quip an entire nation and bring it together. When Team U.S.A plays basketball they are expected to win so that emotion when they do win just isn’t the same. Winning the World Cup or the European Championship is an honour and books your ticket into history. Do many basketball fans remember who won the 1984 Olympics. Most soccer fans could tell you who won the 1986 World Cup as an example.

Sometimes I like to step outside of myself and wonder why does this sport take such a hold of me. Part of me does realize it’s just a game but those thoughts are quickly replaced. In this age where money rules all, the European Championship and World Cup are still relatively pure. Players don’t play for money. Cristiano Ronaldo may not always play for Manchester United but he will always play for Portugal. These players give up a majority of their off season to play for their country. They don’t do it for money, they do it for the same reasons we as fans cheer for them. To lift a country up to greater heights, to witness history, to capture a moment in time when the country that is close to ones heart makes the improbable, probable.

I will never forget Portugal coming behind down 2 goals to beat England back in Euro 2000. That was the exact moment I didn’t feel second class cheering for Portugal, silly as that may seem and believe me I do step outside of myself to wonder why do these events take hold of me like they do. Thanks to Kevin Keegan’s coaching I felt like on any given day Portugal could beat any team in the world.

On the flip side I could never forget Greece beating Portugal 1-0 in the finals of Euro 2004. Briefly I watched as Greece lifted the trophy, part happy for them since they were deserving champions but mostly crushed in the fact that I may never see the day where Portugal stands on top of the football world, even for a moment in time. Jealously did set in, nothing will ever take away that win from the Greek supporters.

Heading into the semi finals of the 2006 World Cup all I could think about is the fact that it’s been 40 years since Portugal were on this stage. It could easily be another 40 years before this happens again I kept thinking. Nothing is for granted in soccer. You have to earn everything you get or else someone else will take it away. It was a long ten years from 1986 to 1996 that I had to go through without seeing Portugal in a major competition. Those days could easily return at some point in the future so heading into Euro 2008 I cherish every moment. Watching the players come out together, hearing the national anthem, the kick off, the crowd cheering and most of all watching time stand still when your team have a prime scoring chance. Usually it would end with Pauleta missing but the moment your eyes are locked on the screen watching the ball cross the goal line then everything soon sets in again. The announcer screaming goal, the crowd going nuts, the players displaying the same sense of emotion that a fan is experiencing in their living room celebrating that goal with their team mates.

Nothing beats it, that dream, the same dream that has been with you since childhood of watching the country which is close to ones heart representing itself in a simple game played on a grass field. Even if you are lucky enough to see your country win a major event such as the Euro’s or the World Cup, you want to experience it again. On the flip if you haven’t there is nothing more one would want to witness then to see that childhood dream become reality.

Part of me is excited with the upcoming European Championship. Part of me knows that within the next three weeks one of those days will be a hard one to get through. Euro 2008 will have 16 countries trying to do the same thing, 15 of them will be going home empty handed. There’s a good chance that the country I’ll cheer for will be one of them. As the Garth Brooks song goes.

Yes, life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I’d of had to miss the dance.

Just replace the dance with Euro 2008. You see when you get right down to it, the passion and the pain are really one just one in the same.

First off I want to apologize for any non Canadians who happen to read this. You may get it, you may not.

So here I am doing what I do best and that is killing time when I check out the tsn website (Canadian version of ESPN) and read a TSN preview for the upcoming European Championships. Link will be provided below.

Click here if you wish to have your intelligence insulted

Before I start, Something thing that bugs me about most main stream media and their coverage of soccer is the fact most of the people who cover it wouldn’t follow soccer if they weren’t getting paid to do so. Alf De Blasis and Morris Dalla Costa have covered the sport for aslong as I can remember. De Blasis I’m a fan of, Dalla Costa not so much but I respect his opinions. You can atleast tell he loves the game. Both as you can tell are Italian but really aside from those two you’d think soccer coverage in Canada would have a more European influence. Heaven forbid I see a Polish/Portuguese/Spanish/Serbian etc represented in the media talking soccer.

Look at Toronto FC for example. None of the beat reporters covering them are European however many of the fans in the stands are. Now before I am ragged on for a bias the point that I’m trying to make is this. The people in the media should atleast speak to the people who follow the game. What bugs me about media coverage is that the people who cover Toronto FC are not soccer fans. The second a reporters job for Hockey or Baseball open up every one who currently reports on Toronto FC would apply. If soccer is truly about passion, the reporters who don’t have that same passion can never speak to their readership who do. It’s just a flawed system.

Basically what I’m trying to say is most media coverage of soccer in this country sucks. Now I’m not all negative as mentioned I do like Alf De Blasis from TLN. Vic Rauter on TSN does a great job handling traffic during the warm up shows. Dick Howard who must be moth balled somewhere when Euro and the World Cup aren’t on does bring knowledge when the two competitions are on-going. Former Ipswich goalie Craig Forrest does an excellent job over at Sportsnet. Heaven forbid he says anything good about Portugal but we all can’t be perfect in what we do. To finish the I’m-not-really-a-bitter-prick list the guys from Fox Soccer Report also do a pretty good job covering the game on a nightly basis.

Ok, guess I’m not finished, whatever happen to Graham Legget anyway? Why did TSN force him out? Waking up in the morning to watch week old division 1 games while Legget updated the current weeks scores at halftime ruled for some odd reason. Bring World of Soccer back TSN, except make the games live of course.

Oh yes back to my point, three out of the four people in this article mentioned that Portugal has the most to prove? Prove what and to who exactly? Atleast heading into this Euro 2008 I don’t have to deal with the Portuguese national team chokes reasoning. Making the semi finals or better 3 out of the last 4 major tournaments speaks for itself. What other country with a population of 10 million can claim that any point?

The kicker were these comments.

DE BLASIS His comment will be in Italics

I think the team with the most to prove is Portugal. Here is a very talented side that couldn’t quite win it all at home the last time around (I don’t recall Italy winning the World Cup in 1990 nor would I call that Italian team a disappointment. Same can be said for Portugal in Euro 2004)

and came very close at the 2006 World Cup but lacked the discipline and determination to go all the way. (Another point I don’t agree with, they lacked discipline in the Holland game but they won that game. They were very disciplined in the England game, No Portuguese player stepped on John Terry groin nor did they fold during the penalty kicks. Portugal lost to a better team in France, determination had nothing to do with it. There is no shame losing to a French side that also beat Brazil 1-0 the round before)

They have arguably the world’s best player in Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of his game and need to take advantage of his unique skills.

What arguably? Who is this argument coming from? Even the most hard headed Arsenal and Liverpool fan at this point would have to say as of this date Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player in the world.

Kaka received universal and deserved praise in winning the FIFA world player of the year last year. Not only did Ronaldo match Kaka this year winning the Champions League, he also won the EPL title with United that Kaka didn’t do last year for A.C Milan in Serie A and he scored nearly double the goals Kaka did. Why was Kaka hands down considered the best player in the world the second he lead A.C Milan to Champions League victory but the moment Ronaldo not only matches that but surpasses it do questions still arise?

But they run the risk of falling off the rails the same way the previous generation of Portuguese teams did back in the early 90’s.

This I can agree with.

Cathal Kelly His comment also in Italics

The player with the most to prove is Cristiano Ronaldo. If he really is the best player on earth, now’s the moment to show it. By extension, the Portuguese are under enormous pressure to go one stage further than they managed four years ago and win this thing.

Again prove what? Portugal is not a football factory, it’s not Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Italy and even England that have populations of 50 million and above. If one great player retires or is injured they is always a younger generation ready to take its place. Portugal doesn’t have that luxury. Yes, they are a great team filled with great players currently but guess what so are Spain, Italy, France, and Germany. The margin of victory is so small at the highest level. On the International level the player I’d most compare Ronaldo with is Johan Cruyff. He never won anything for Holland but he is admired for what he did with the national team and again deservedly so. Why the media has this need to bring players up and then tear them down is beyond me. In the ultimate team game it is a lot to ask that one players legacy be defined in winning a World Cup or European Championship.

That same chip must by lying across the shoulders of the Germans, who haven’t won a major tournament since ‘96. That’s the Deutsch equivalent of a century and a half.

This part I can also agree with. Germany does face pressure heading into Euro 2008.

Jamie BellHis comment also in Italics

After reaching the finals at EURO 2004 and the Semis at the World Cup in 2006 I believe that Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal have the most to prove.

Portugal employs one of the top managers in the World in “Big Phil” Scolari and a good mixture of youth and experience. They also have Ronaldo who established himself as perhaps the best player in the World this past season, but the knock against him is that he doesn’t always show up in the biggest games. Although still young, the time is now for Ronaldo to put his name up there with other all-time greats by having a big tournament and leading the Portguese to at least the Final once more.

Oh my god how do some people get a job in media. This site is what it is. Quite frankly I say that cause I don’t know what it is. I have no clue if this site is any good or not. I do realize there is a lot of things I need to get better at. One of the reasons this site was started is because I saw these people who talk about soccer and I kept thinking to myself “Hey I can do better then that” or “WTF I know more about soccer then that guy” It was either repeating that to myself for the rest of my life or doing something about it.

Ronaldo is 23, the time isn’t now for anything. Most players don’t enter their prime until 25-26 and I still can’t believe the whole big game theory is still mentioned. He could retire now and his resume would match up against many of the games greats. Due to my lack of Spelling and Grammar I won’t comment further that he also misspelled “Portguese”.

After a season where he was largely underused at Liverpool I also expect Ryan Babel to announce his presence on the international scene for the Dutch and Andrei Arshavin to follow up a strong performance in the UEFA cup with one for Russia.

It will be pretty hard for Arshavin to match his UEFA Cup performance when he is suspended for the first two Euro 2008 games. By the 3rd game it may not matter anymore for Russia.

The only way in my mind that Portugal would be a disappointment in Euro 2008 if they don’t advance out of the group stage.

Come the knockout stage if Portugal losses to either Croatia or Germany there is simply no shame in that. Maybe I just find it weird that for the first time in my lifetime the eyes of the soccer media are taking dead aim at Portugal. Despite that I refuse to believe that this team is a failure and by extension Ronaldo is a failure if they don’t win Euro 2008.

Alright I got that off my chest. For the time being I feel better.

This is the time of year where you’ll see the best of lists from the various European leagues. They are only so many times I can see Cristiano Ronaldo and Fernando Torres in the same Starting 11 in year end reviews. Since I like to think that this site brings something fresh and interesting to the table I decided I’d do a Starting Eleven list excludes teams from the top four in English football. So with that he we go.

Goalie

David James - Portsmouth

No shock here as David James has gone from Calamity James back to England number one since joining Portsmouth back in 2006. For Portsmouth, James has lead Pompey away from regulation battles to the brink of Europe.

Right Back

Vedran Corluka - Manchester City

One of Sven’s video buys adjusted to life quite seamlessly in the EPL. While Manchester City had trouble scoring goals they have no troubles keeping them out thanks to a back line featuring Corluka, Micah Richards and Richard Dunne.

Left Back

Phil Neville Everton

Always good to have a veteran back there. Neville has helped Everton achieve there highest point total in the Premier League era. While they is nothing flashy about Neville’s play, he rarely makes a mistake back there either.

Centre Back

Micah Richards - Manchester City

There are about a half dozen or so centre backs that could be considered for this spot. Part of me placed Richards on this list due to his upside. Then again on talent alone Richards would also be a lock for this list. City were two different teams this year. When he was partnered up with Richard Dunne Manchester City were able to hold 1-0 leads often. With Richards hurt, City found themselves down 1-0 often.

Centre Back

Christopher Samba - Blackburn

I’m hard pressed to think of a player more physically imposing in the EPL then Samba. At 6 foot 5 he is a mountain of man who is agile and quick. While under the radar Samba played in a key role in Blackburn top half finish this season. Another one of Mark Hughes excellent buys in the transfer market.

Right Midfielder

David Bentley - Blackburn

While the backbone of Blackburn is based on grit Bentley adds that little piece of quality that separates Blackburn from a team in the bottom half. The Blackburn attack is run through Bentley who keenly finds the likes of Roque Santa Cruz and Benni McCarthy on a regular basis.

Left Midfielder

Ashley Young - Aston Villa

Many questioned the 9 million pound price tag but few can question the quality that Ashley Young processes. Deadly from set pieces. Fast as lightning on the wing who can play a perfect cross to the likes of Carew and Agbonlahor to head home.

Centre Midfielder

Gareth Barry - Aston Villa

In what looks to be Barry’s last season on this list thanks to interest from Liverpool, Barry had his finest season for Villa providing the transition from defence to offence. If the Villa captain does move on he’ll leave on a high note leading Aston Villa to the brink of Europe through the Intertoto Cup.

Centre Midfielder

Jimmy Bullard - Fulham

Anyone who comes back from an 18 month injury I respect. Bullard not only came back from that injury but also lead Fulham out of the drop zone. Two memorable free kicks come to mind, both late in games. The first against Aston Villa to win the game and the second late against Blackburn to grab a point.

Forward

Yakubu - Everton

Yakubu has done what last years expensive signing Andrew Johnson could not do that is score consistently. While I can’t fault Middlesbrough for cashing in on that 11 million pound transfer fee I can’t fault Everton for that decision either. Yakubu knows how to find the back of the net. When you are able to do that coaches often turn a blind eye to the fact that Yakubu doesn’t really work on other parts of the game.

Forward

Roque Santa Cruz - Blackburn

A team like Blackburn can’t make many mistakes in the transfer market luckily for Blackburn fans Mark Hughes found himself another quality player in picking up Roque Santa Cruz from Germen Champions Bayern Munich. Finishing 4th in EPL scoring with 19 goals can’t be over looked. Santa Cruz can score with either foot and has no problem finishing with his head either. Just a complete striker.

On The Bench

Goalie - Craig Gordon - Sunderland

Roy Keane’s first big money signing has to go down as a success with Gordon helping Sunderland avoid the drop.

Defender - Joleon Lescott - Everton

Can play in the middle or the right side. Quite useful off set plays with his 8 goals this season. Well deserving of his England call up this season.

Midfielder - Mikel Arteta - Everton

Arteta has top four talent. He is always a handful for full backs to deal with coming down the wing.

Midfielder - Martin Petrov - Manchester City

Petrov was one of the few City players that you’d think can create a moment of brilliance everytime he touched the ball this season.

Forward - Robbie Keane - Tottenham

I asked Dimitar Berbatov to be on this team first but his agent kept complaining about not playing Champions League Football so I went with Robbie Keane instead.

Below in bold are the predictions I made at the start of the season at another web site. Followed up by my comments regarding where these teams finished in the standings.

Derby County - Predicated finish 20th - Finished 20th

Robert Earnshaw - In this new age of football 5’8 strikers are generally not in vogue however he’ll be asked to supply most of the goals since MLS striker Eddie Johnson turned down a transfer to Derby.

Got that one right at least. Derby were just a whipping boy for the rest of the EPL the entire season and will go down as the worse team in the Premier League era.

High Point : Only losing 1-0 to Manchester United. Derby County fans also deserve a round of applause. While their team was awful all season long 30,000 turned up to Pride Park and enjoyed their brief moment in the Premier League.

Low Point : Everything else.

Wigan - Predicated finish 19th - Finished 14th

Jason Koumas will have to step his game up a notch to justify his hefty price tag. Also look for midfielder Antonio Valencia to provide a spark for Wigan this season.

Chris Hutchings tried his best to get Wigan regulated but he was relieved of his duties. I always liked the world relieved of his duties. Much nicer then to say Hutchings was fired. Steve Bruce came in from the sinking ship that was Birmingham and lead Wigan to safety with a game to spare.

High Point : Antonio Valencia two goal performance on the road against Aston Villa which ensured Wigan another season in the top flight. Emile Heskey last minute goal against Chelsea. Chris Kirkland performance in goal all season long.

Low Point : Chris Hutchings last game in charge going down to a 2-0 defeat against Chelsea where Wigan looked disinterested and clueless.

Fulham Predicated finish 18th - Finished 17th

David Healy is going to get a long look to see if he can repeat the scoring form that has him leading all of Europe in scoring during the Euro 2008 qualifying. Also look out for the American trio of Carlos Bocanegra, Brian McBride, and Clint Dempsey.

How Fulham avoided the drop is beyond me. What isn’t beyond me was the fact that Lawrie Sanchez was sacked mid way through the season. Most of his off season signing didn’t click. Looking at you David Healy and Fulham couldn’t hold a lead with spells doom in the EPL. Somehow, someway Roy Hodgson kept this team up which is a credit to him and his team who never gave up when it would of been easy to.

High Point : Danny Murphy goal versus Portsmouth that ensured Fulham stayed up. Fulham coming back from two goals down to beat Manchester City 3-2 thanks to a Diomansy Kamara last minute goal. Kamara last minute over head kick against Tottenham to grab a point also deserves mention.

Low Point : Fulham 2-0 defeat to Liverpool’s B team which many felt would of been the final nail in Fulham’s coffin.

Birmingham - Predicted finish 17th - Finished 18th

Garry O’Connor – A lot will be riding on his 6’1 frame, he’ll need to start strong in order for Birmingham to believe they have what it takes to stay in the EPL

Steve Bruce jumped ship at mid season and really who can blame him. With ownership issues regarding Carson Yeung failed take over bid for Birmingham wasn’t the ideal situation for a team that is fighting to avoid the drop. Alex Mcleish took over and while results were good at the start they simply either ran out of stream or ran out of confidence at the end of the season.

High Point : Sebastian Larsson stunning last minute goal to beat Tottenham. McFadden penalty to earn a point against Arsenal.

Low Point : Aston Villa 5 - Birmingham 1, losing like that so late in the season in such a big game was a bad sign for Birmingham fans. Losing 2-0 to Fulham which ensured that Birmingham EPL faith was no longer in they hands.

Middlesbrough - Predicated finish 16th - Finished 13th

Stewart Downing – The young English international is one of the few bright spots on this team. With his pace running up and down the left flank he should cause trouble for right backs all year long.

The future may be bright for Middlesbrough going into next season. They have young players such as Stewart Downing and David Wheater who are on the brink of England call ups. Coupled with Gary O’Neil and Adam Johnson to go along with the scoring of Afonso Alves, Middlesbrough looks to be a team with a decent core going into next year. Boro got some good results against the big four but need to put away teams at the bottom of the table if they are to take the next step.

High Points : Middlesbrough’s performance in drawing Manchester United and Liverpool as well taking 4 out of 6 points from Arsenal.

Low Points : Losing to Cardiff in the FA Cup quarter finals.

Sunderland - Predicted Finish 15th - Finished 15th

Craig Gordon – By far the most money they have ever spent on a player as the young Scottish goalie will have to ward off some of the world’s best strikers during his first year in the net for Sunderland.

Way to make me look smart Roy Keane. All things considered this season will go down as a success for Sunderland. Craig Gordon was money well spent and Sunderland survived with games to spare.

High Point : Sunderland’s home form all season long.

Low Point : Sunderland’s road form all season long.

Bolton - Predicted Finish 14th - Finished 16th

Kevin Nolan - the captain will look to anchor this midfield. Nothing flashy however Nolan gets the job done for Bolton and has really came into his own during the last 12 months, On a side note Portuguese biases alert I wish Sammy Lee takes away the mothballs that are on Ricardo Vaz Te. The kid played great during the pre season and giving enough minutes could score double digits for this team.

Another team I left for dead after letting 10 men Arsenal win 3-2 after going down 2-0. Still not sold on Gary Megson but he guide them to safety after a slow start to the season under old boss Sammy Lee. Bolton will need to replace the goal scoring that was lost when Nicolas Anelka moved on to Chelsea in order to avoid a battle at the bottom next season.

High Point : Beating Sunderland 2-0 ensuring another EPL season before the last week of the season.

Low Point : Giving up that 2-0 lead to Arsenal and losing 3-2

Reading - Predicted 13th - Finished 18th

Nicky Shorey – From playing in the English Championship (2nd division) to getting a call up to the England team all within a year was an impressive feat for Shorey last year. With his contract soon running out Shorey is looking to parlay another good year into a big pay pal ala former teammate Steve Sidwell who managed to get a $100000 a week contract from Chelseain the off season.

I figured some sort of drop was in order for Reading after they shocked many people finishing 8th in their first season. I didn’t envision this team going down. The same Reading team that played with a lot of heart and intelligence last year played anything but this year.

High Point : Reading’s 3-1 win vs Liverpool

Low Point : Losing 7 games in a row. Given up 6 goals to Tottenham and 7 against Portsmouth which saw them go down thanks to goal difference.

Portsmouth - Predicted finish 12th - Finished 8th

Pedro Mendes – Mendes is one of the most under rated players in the EPL. Can score big goals and plays a great defensive midfield. If he can avoid any cheap shots this season look for Pedro to have another successful season.

Ok, so I was wrong about Mendes being a key player. Still feel he is an under rated player. David Nugent was considered a bust by October but Sulley Muntari was a solid pick up by Harry Redknapp. I did saw Portsmouth has an outside chance of Europe and could be proven correct if Portsmouth get the job done in the FA Cup Finals.

High Points : Hopefully still yet to come for Pompey fans. The FA Cup final. Beating Manchester United along the way to the finals. David James play in goal all season.

Low Points : None, I can’t fault them for losing 4-1 to Liverpool. Portsmouth has been a class team the entire season.

Blackburn - Predicated Finish 11th - Finished 7th

Benni McCarthy – The former Champions league winner with Porto wasted little time adjusting to English football last season. He’ll need to repeat his 19 goal season of last year if Blackburn is to build upon the success on last year.

Yes I regret calling Rogue Santa Cruz a Bayern Munich bust since he has to be considered the signing of the season. Mark Hughes does a great job with this team but in order for Blackburn to stay in the top half Hughes must convince David Bentley to stay on.

High Points : Santa Cruz lethal form in front of goal. Jason Roberts last minute goal on the road against Bolton.

Low Points : Losing to Coventry at home 4-1 in the FA Cup. Also missing out on UEFA Cup play losing to Greek side Larissa.

Aston Villa - Predicted Finish 10th - Finished 6th

Ashley Young – After spending most of the summer on the bench for the England U21 team the former Watford starlet will look to use that as motivation since he is blessed with blazing speed and a good scoring touch.

Hindsight is always 20-20 but I should of given Villa more respect going into the year. Ashley Young take the next step and has to be considered one of the best wingers in England. Villa’s back line stayed compact all season long thanks to Martin Laursen and Olof Mellberg staying on the field. Losing Melberg to Juventus will hurt going to next season, losing captain Gareth Barry to a top four club would hurt even more.

High points : Watching Ashley Young take set pieces. Aston Villa late penalty in a 4-4 thriller against Chelsea.

Low Points : Tottenham come back from 4-1 down to draw 4-4. Losing to Wigan 2-0 at home which saw they hopes of an automatic UEFA Cup place dashed.

Manchester City - Predicted Finish 9th - Finished 9th

Micah Richards – Richards should be wearing the England national team shirt for along time as this young player will continue his rise and should lead a solid back four that was one of the few holdovers from last year.

Manchester City couldn’t keep up the quick start to the season which saw City at the top of the table for a period of time. They may of done Sven-Goran Eriksson which is a shame and should cause some City players to leave right with him.

High Points : Beating Manchester United not once but twice this season.

Low Points : Having to watch Rolando Bianchi and Darius Vassell play up front. If Sven does get the sack that would be a low point as well. City were taking the first step in building something. Getting rid of Sven just means starting all over again.

Everton - Predicted Finish 8th - Finished 5th

Tim Cahill – There is a big change from when he is in the lineup as suppose to how Everton play when he is injured. If Tim can stay injury free the entire season it could go along way in Everton’s hope of making it back to Europe. Side note he also has one of my favorite goal scoring celebrations.

Everton have to be thrilled with their season. 65 points and going to Europe once again. Faded somewhat towards the end of the season but were giving Liverpool all they can handle most of the way. While Tim Cahill struggled to stay on the field the likes of Joleon Lescott, Mikel Arteta and Yakubu up front lead Everton to finish in 5th, other words known as the best of the rest.

High Points : Everton 7 - 1 win vs Sunderland. Yakubu’s hat trick against Fulham

Low Points : Losing on Penalty kicks to Fiorentina in the UEFA Cup. Losing to Oldham in the FA Cup. Liverpool’s 2-1 win on a late Kuyt penalty.

West Ham - Predicted Finish 7th - Finished 10th

Dean Ashton – Bad luck fell upon Ashton last season where he got a call up to the England team only to break a leg and miss the entire 2006-07 season. He’ll be counted on to replace the void left with Tevez going to Manchester United.

All things considered West Ham can’t consider this season a disappointment. For one thing they didn’t have to worry about going down the final day of the season plus the entire team was hurt for most of the season. Pretty hard to obtain a good form when you are hard pressed to play the same 11 players week in and week out.

High Points : Mark Noble last minute penalty win vs Liverpool. Coming back from 1-0 to beat Manchester United 2-1.

Low Points : Three straight 4-0 losses to Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham.

Newcastle - Predicted Finish 6th - Finished 12th

Michael Owen – Nobody can argue the fact that when he is fit Owen is a world class striker so while I have my doubts on him holding up for an entire season his fitness will go along way in Newcastle’s hope for Europe.

I did save myself in saying that this pick wouldn’t shock me if I was wrong. Sam Allardyce was behind the 8 ball from the start. He wasn’t the fans choice nor the owners choice which usually spells a quick exit and that is what happen. The beloved Kevin Keegan steps in and after finding it a tough go of it during his first two months in charge Newcastle found their form thanks to Michael Owen.

High Points : The return of Kevin Keegan. Newcastle opening day beating of Bolton 3-1. Beating arch rivals Sunderland 2-0 at home.

Low Points : Losing to Portsmouth 4-1 when the game was over in the first 15 minutes. Losing 6-0 and 5-1 to Manchester United. Losing to Derby will also be the answer to a trivia question in a couple of years time.

Arsenal - Predicted Finish 5th - Finished 3rd

Cesc Fabregas while Robin van Persie, Eduardo da Silva and Theo Walcott will be counted upon to score goals all eyes are on Fabregas since he is truly a world class talent who as mentioned may be pushed to the forefront too soon.

So I got cute and tried to predicted a top four team dropping out of the top four. Going a 3rd year without a trophy can’t make Arsenal fans happy but still an improved season over 2006-2007. Arsenal need to stop blaming luck for they misfortunes and start having more focus late in games. The Gunners could of easily been Champions if it wasn’t for a last minute penalty call in the Birmingham game coupled with losing 1-0 leads to both Chelsea and Manchester United. Blaming the ref’s will only get you so far.

High Points : Their entire 2007 form. Arsenal 1-0 win vs Chelsea.

Low Points : Their entire 2008 form. Eduardo horrible injury.

Chelsea - Predicted Finish 4th - Finished 2nd

John Terry - He is the heart and soul of this team and there is no better centre back pairing of him and Ricardo Carvalho. If he isn’t playing Chelsea becomes a completely different team. If Terry is back there Chelsea can win the EPL and Champions League if he misses any prolonged period of time those hopes would be dashed.

Oh how I miss Jose Mourinho. Predicted Chelsea in 4th strictly due to the front that the knives were out for Mourinho back which did occur but I didn’t account for Chelsea having the mental strength to block the off field distractions. Chelsea gave Manchester United a fight until the bitter end and may still have the last laugh when the top meet in the Champions League.

High Points : Chelsea 2-1 win against Manchester United which drew them level on points.

Low Points Chelsea 2-0 loss to Manchester United in Avram Grant’s first game in charge. Things were looking blank at that moment of time.

Tottenham - Predicted Finished 3rd - Finished 11th

Dimitar Berbatov – Tottenham managed to keep him for another season. Proved to be worth every penny of the money paid to get him last year should repeat that form with the same about of playing time this year.

Yes I should hang my head in shame over this pick. Gareth Bale was injured most of the season but he is one for the future. A productive summer signing Younes Kaboul and Kevin-Prince Boateng did not make. Their back four leaked goals all season long. Martin Jol was always on borrowed time when rumors started to spread about Tottenham interest in current coach Juande Ramos who despite winning the Carling cup wasn’t much better then the man he replaced.

High Point : Winning the Carling Cup over Chelsea

Low Point : Matin Jol final game vs Getafe in the UEFA Cup when Tottenham hung him out to dry. The entire crowd knew he was sacked before Jol officially found out. Losing to Sunderland on the opening game of the season wasn’t the greatest way to kick the season off either.

Liverpool - Predicted Finish 2nd - Finished 4th

Steven Gerrard – He should be a lot happy playing in the middle of the midfield instead of the right which he featured in quite a lot last season. Despite all the new signings Liverpool will go as far as Gerrard can take them.

Eight more points then last year but still never a threat for a title run by the start of the new year. Fernando Torres proven himself to be the real deal winning over the Anfield faithful was brilliant goal scoring displays. If it wasn’t for a certain Manchester United player Torres could of easily been considered the best player in the England this season. The downfall of Liverpool was trying to get cute juggling line ups week to week at the start of the season.

High Points : Beating Besiktas 9-0 in the Champions League. Fernando Torress run of form the entire season. Rafa goatee.

Low Point : To many draws at the start of the season to the likes of Birmingham. Losing at home 1-0 to Manchester United was also a killer.

Manchester United - Predicted Finish 1st - Finished 1st

Cristiano Ronaldo – As mentioned anyone else on this United team can be replaced without much of a drop off expect him. He’ll need to lead the offensive attack and continue to grow as a player with Manchester United is to repeat the glorious year of 1999.

Will at least give myself some credit for picking the Champions. Yes I know I didn’t exactly go out on a limb there but look what that got me, picking Arsenal 5th and Tottenham 3rd. You would of been hard pressed to expect Ronaldo to not only repeat his form from last year but to better it. As he has been doing for most of his time in United, Ronaldo has proven the doubters wrong in helping United win their second straight EPL title. Sir Alex Ferguson impressive 10th title. Credit should also be given to the United back four. Wes Brown stepped up for an injured Gary Neville. Patrice Evra switching from attack to defense almost to perfection. With Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidić providing the back bone of this United side.

High Points : Beating Liverpool 1-0 on the read. Ronaldo’s first career hat trick was Newcastle. Carlos Tevez timely goals all season long. Owen Hargreaves free kick goal vs Arsenal.

Low Points : Losing to Chelsea 2-1. Giving up a 1-0 lead to West Ham. Losing both games against cross town rivals Manchester City.

The main plot of this weekend’s game between Benfica and Vitoria Setubal will be if Benfica can vault themselves into the 3rd and final Champions League spot on the final day of the season. The sub plot that I’m most interested in, is the fact that Sunday May 11th makes the last game in Rui Costa’s distinguish career.

The eyes of the Football world first noticed Costa when he lead Portugal to their second straight Fifa under 20 World Cup. Both by scoring in the semi finals against Australia in a 1-0 victory and again in the Finals when Rui Costa calmly slotted home the deciding penalty kick against Brazil.

Rui Costa at age 19 playing against Arsenal at Highbury.

From there it was off to the team he cheered for as a boy Benfica, where in a short amount of time he led the As Águias (The Eagles in Portuguese) to the Portuguese Cup and in his final year with the club 1993-1994 led Benfica to the league title.

By that time teams from across Europe were eying a key member of Portugal’s new golden generation and a move to a bigger stage was in the cards.

As is the case with many a player, Benfica decided to cash in on Costa accepting a 6 million euros offer by Fiorentina in 1994. With his new team trophies were scarce but respect was not. Costa combine with Gabriel Batistuta played an attacking style that was rare in the normally controlled defensive pace of Serie A. With Rui Costa as the play maker and Battistuta as the finisher Fiorentina were a dangerous team in the 90’s.

Costa and Batistuta at their best.

Each summer rumors would persist concerning Rui Costa moving to one of the world’s elite clubs and every fall for seven years Rui Costa would start the season for Fiorentina. Only after Fiorentina sunk into bankruptcy did Costa decide to leave as A.C Milan made him their most expensive transfer up until that point. Even when things were going downhill with Fiorentina, selling their best players like Gabriel Batistuta the year before. Costa stayed loyal to Fiorentina until the bitter end and only left for A.C Milan with a heavy heart.

The quote below is taken from an Interview done in 2003

“I wanted to stay at Fiorentina. When I heard that they were going to have to sell some players, I was sure that I would never be one of them. When I found out that even I was up for sale, I felt really down - I even cried. I felt I had been lied to. Perhaps they were just embarrassed about telling me.”

Starting in the 2001 season Rui Costa was now supplying Andriy Shevchenko the type of service Gabriel Batistuta enjoyed for six seasons. Not coincidentally Shevchenko had some of their finest seasons with Rui Costa leading the attack. A year after Costa’s arrival A.C Milan did the double winning the Coppa Italia and the Champions League. They followed up on that success by winning Serie A the follow season. (2003-2004)

Loyalty and respect are phrases often mentioned in Football but rarely follow up on. It’s rare to mention a football players name and have the reaction just about be universal praise no matter what club or country one roots for. Be it the undeniable affection Costa has always felt towards his boyhood club Benfica, signing with them in order to finish his career where it started. Fiorentina fans also have a special place in their heart for Costa has they respected him playing there through thick and thin. Many other players would of asked to be transferred long before. A.C Milan fans are thankful for helping place their team back on top of Serie A, leading them to European success and while at the height of his game bowing gracefully to Kaka as he took over the role Costa filled so well. Not many people would of handled that situation with class, passing on the torch to a player with such undeniable talent like Kaka. With the latter paying complaint to Costa when he returned to the San Siro as Benfica faced A.C Milan in the Champions League.

While the golden generation didn’t product any golden moments for Portugal it is safe to say that many fans of the Selecção das Quinas tip their cap to the man who controlled Portugal midfield for a decade. From the highs, with his last minute wonder goal vs Sweden or his thunder bolt in extra time against England which even caused a reaction out of the normally stone faced Sven-Goran Eriksson. To the low’s, his red card against Germany in an important 1998 World Cup qualifier and his penalty miss in that very same England game at Euro 2004.

Portugal vs England in Euro 2000

Rui Costa Goal in Euro 2004. No clue what the language is but Sven’s face is priceless at the end.

I’m going to wrap this up on a personal level. It’s weird seeing the players you grew up with getting old and leaving the game. Selfishly part of me thinks that the last of my youth goes away with each great player from that era who decide to call time on their career. That is why it annoys me when people blindly knock a player because they don’t like the fact he plays on a certain team. Players like Ronaldo, Messi, Kaka should be praised for what they bring to the current game. Those players are bringing the game to new heights thanks to resting on the shoulders of Zidane, Pavel Nedved, and Costa who paved the way before them.

All the best in your new role.

After the recent decision by Manchester City’s owner Thaksin Shinawatra to fire Sven-Goran Eriksson, the issue of foreign ownership in the English Premier League is again at the fore front of recent events.

Some buy an EPL club and treat it like a toy much like Thaksin Shinawatra or Roman Abramovich of Chelsea. Each willingly to lavish massive amounts of their personal fortune into the club which creates an imbalance with the EPL threatening to become a league of have and have nots. The question also lingers about what will happen to the future of these clubs if owners such as Shinawatra and Abramovich get bored of football and decide not to funnel anymore money into the club? While that isn’t likely to happen anytime soon any accountant can tell you that each club would be swimming in red ink if it wasn’t bank rolled currently by the personal fortunes of each owner.

At the other end of the spectrum we have the Glazer family who own Manchester United and to go along with Tom Hicks and George Gillett the bosom buddies who own Liverpool. Neither of those parties knew a thing about Football before buying into each team. To them it’s a business investment, while it’s fine to make money, football fans right or wrong the game isn’t about making money, it’s about passion and devotion. Football fans want to read about their teams in Football magazines not Business weekly. To add insult to injury neither ownership group put up a dime of their own money to buy each club. Technically Manchester United and Liverpool are owned by the banks. Both purchases were financed leaving each club with a huge debt as the money was given to each ownership group to purchase these teams against future club revenues.

It’s easy to see why foreign ownership would be interested in purchasing an EPL team. First there is the matter of the television contract. With 3.3 billion dollars (In U.S funds) coming into the league in domestic TV rights through 2010 to go along with another $1.2 billion from overseas it’s easy to see why ownership groups are lining up left and right for a slice of that pie.

Another Advantage to owning a football club. Liverpool was sold for £218.9m ($430 million US) while it would cause riots on the streets of Liverpool the football players themselves are assets. If ownership is suffering from a lack of funds, Steven Gerrard can be sold for $50 million. That just does not happen in other sports. The Yankees can’t sell Derek Jeter for example.

Fans across the Atlantic are quick to blame Foreign ownership for any perceived ills but the above shows why someone would want to own an EPL team. The question I ask myself is why aren’t more British based groups stepping up and buying these clubs. Mike Ashley’s purchase of Newcastle is the only recent purchase of an EPL club by an English owner. Even clubs such as Derby County and Queen’s Park Rangers are being snapped up by Foreign owners. There has to be someone with deep pockets in England willing to purchase a Football team or the rise of members purchasing these teams much like the Spanish model of Real Madrid or Barcelona.

The previous owners of Aston Villa, Chelsea, Derby, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, and West Ham were all willing to cash out at a huge profit. Where does that leave their fan base at the end? Shouldn’t more focus be given to finding local ownership groups or on the flip side shouldn’t more local groups be willingly to step up and buy some of these clubs that are on the market. Again I’m all for someone making a profit but this article isn’t about that. While their have been good Foreign ownership groups, namely Randy Lerner but that is due to him spending time in England and loving the game which fans can respect. Most of the new ownership groups simply do not share that passion that Mr Lerner does.

Leading up to Euro 2008 the Portuguese press has been enamored with questioning every move that Luiz Felipe Scolari has made leading up to the tournament. Who will play up front? Is the one striker system outdated? Is Ricardo still fit to be the number one goalie? All these lingering questions have demonstrated a shift in opinion towards the Brazilian boss.

On the road to Euro 2004 the Portuguese faithful were thrilled to have Scolari at the helm. An entire nation wanted to erase the memory of the disastrous 2002 World Cup disappointment. With Euro 2004 being the first major football tournament hosted in Portugal it was of the utmost importance to ensure that recent history did not repeat itself. With Scolari leading Portugal to their first ever major tournament final that it did not. Due to the success two years previous, in 2006 a quiet confidence started to set in among the Portuguese football fans. Many of the international media predictions had Portugal succumbing to defeat against either Holland or Argentina in the second round. The Portugese press however stood behind Scolari, championing the team he selected not to mention the man himself.

In this modern age of football where coaches are mere mercenaries switching jobs like Guus Hiddink, Scolari is a refreshing change. He didn’t leave in quest for a bigger pay day. He could of coached England with millions more in his bank account but stayed faithful to a country that he can’t even call his own. How many other coaches at the end of their contract would turn down such a high profile job out of commitment to his current team. He felt that he wouldn’t coach the Portuguese team effectively knowing that he would have a new job at the end of the tournament? Scolari may of ended up coaching against the English team that he’d be leaving for. In that situation how could a coach look his players in the eye and tell them to beat a team that in a matter of weeks he’d be coaching for?

That faith is now not being repaid back to Scolari which is disconcerting to the Portugese football faithful. The fans are now longing for the days where we, as Ruud Gullit termed it, “played sexy football.” The 90’s was a decade of unfulfilled promise in Portuguese football. Portugal was going into the decade with so much promise coming off the heels of back to back youth world cups championships lead by the likes of Luis Figo and Rui Costa. When it was time to break into the world’s stage at the senior level Portugal came up just short repeatedly with only a second round defeat in Euro 1996 to show for an entire decade. It’s one thing to create jaw dropping moments in a game against Luxembourg. But when pushed to the next level where teams have to grind out a result against the Italy’s or Germany’s of the world, Portugal fell short. That changed in Euro 2004 when Scolari’s men edge out Spain in a hard fought 1-0 victory and advancing to the final eight. Previous Portuguese teams would of wilted under that pressure.

Fast forward to the recent Euro 2008 qualifying. Portugal never got going in the qualifying campaign with a defeat against Poland and a draw versus Finland at the start. After playing in the biggest game of their lives a couple of months earlier in the World Cup Semi Finals versus France, a let down is bound to happen when playing on the road against Finland and Poland with all due respect to those teams. In the middle of qualifying Scolari got suspending for throwing a punch to Serbia’s Ivica Dragutinovic. To couple that effect, teams now gear up for Portugal since beating a World Cup semi finalist is an impressive feat to accomplish. Portugal no longer sneaks up on teams, they are now considered part of the football elite due in no small part to Scolari’s accomplishments.

Sometimes we the fans of the Portugal National Team take for granted the success of the last four years. A period that has seen Portugal grow in stature in the eyes of the football public. Scolari has had to deal with criticism over Portugal’s lack luster Euro 2008 qualifying campaign that saw them finish second behind Poland and only barely able to clinch their spot on the last day in a 0-0 tie against Finland.

While it made for a nervous 90 minutes the end result would have been the same be it a 5-0 win or 0-0 draw. Scolari crafted a smart game plan utilizing his remaining roster to maximum effect. With first choice defenders Ricardo Carvalho and Jorge Andrade injured, Scolari gave Pepe his first start for the national team pairing him up with former Porto team mate Bruno Alves to go along with another Porto defender in Jose Bosingwa. Having three players in the back four that are used to playing together was key in holding a Finland team in check. The fact that it was not an epic performance hasn’t pleased many in the press who still dream of the days where Portugal would win with style, but never after the opening round. It may be the end of an era for Scolari after Euro 2008, but to paraphrase the Joni Mitchell song, some people don’t know what they’ve got ’til its gone.

Had a case of writers block the last week which resulted in no articles being posted. Actually I have a couple of good ideas for articles but those ideas are best suited towards the end of the football season.

The last week running this site was pretty routine with me checking out the latest EPL gossip from England and the latest European news when it hit me, the mainstream media has lost touch on how to speak directly to its readers. Most of the news that is published is not news but merely hearsay, yes it fuels the fire and in around about way causes sites like mine to exist but any real football fan after awhile can spot what is fact and what is fiction.

Look at the Ronaldinho to Manchester City rumors that leak out every couple of days. Any press outlet in their right mind can tell you that Ronaldinho will never go to Manchester City. Since it makes a good headline it is then fed to the public like it’s a transfer that is about to happen.

The media has stopped talking to its readers like they have any sense of intelligence, this is true not only in Football coverage but even in North American based media where only bits and pieces of information are feed to its viewers usually missing out on the big picture.

This is why newspaper are slowly becoming a dying form of media which is being replacing with online media such as this website. Before anyone thinks my ego is talking here, I don’t expect this site to be much more than what it is currently and while my opinion is biased if I was on the outside looking into this website I would find it useful is gaining football information. I like its direction, I don’t wish to talk down to anyone viewing my site I wish to talk to the reader and hopefully have that person can relate and or respect anything that is said on this web site.

Mainstream media stop serving that purpose along time ago. It’s purpose is to place a catchy headline to attach as many viewers/readers to what is being said regardless of the facts. A recent example is the rumored purchases of an English Premier League club by Richard Peddie that was report on this website a couple of days ago and made its way across the pond soon after. Anyone in North America knows that Richard Peddie couldn’t rub two nickels together. It would be like saying Peter Kenyon is buying the New York Yankees. Richard Peddie is a front man with connections to people who have money. He, himself doesn’t have the financial backing to pull such a deal off. Instead of questioning the legitimacy of the story or at least mention that such a deal would not occur anytime soon, the story was run like Richard Peddie was about to wrap it up like its a done deal.

There will come a time when people see that mainstream media outlets no longer talk to them and instead create or embellish stories. While that is nothing new, the fact people have a choice is. Twenty years ago if one couldn’t stomach reading the newspaper or listening to television pundits they had no other means to seek out information they can relate to. This site is far from perfect but if anyone takes away anything from this site it is to spot articles based on facts and on the flip side spot articles based on conjuncture. Sure Manchester City would love to have Ronaldinho but so would a hundred other teams. Looking closer into the story, what does Manchester City have to offer Ronaldinho? Champions League play….no, UEFA Cup play……doubtful, a realistic opportunity to win titles……with all due respect no as well. Money….yes but Ronaldinho is already one of the world’s richest athletes. I sincerely doubt that his desire to not play in Barcelona anymore in fueled by money. Given all that why would Ronaldinho make that move? It would be like trading in a Porsche for a Nissan It is just not realistic which few if any media outlets make note of since it takes away from the sensationalist story that grabbed your attention in the first place.

That is all, thank you for your time. Any comments, concerns or opinions can be typed in the comments box or you can e-mail dmmd98@sinnacle.com