“I would like to tell the fans that in every run, every tackle, I’ve always given everything. I’ve always given 100% for this club. My heart will always be with Madrid. Real Madrid is my life and my home.” - Raúl González

Angels seldom fall on Earth. But when they do, they make a lasting impression, touching every heart to have known them. Madrid had it’s own angel.

He fell on the third planet on the 27th of June in 1977, and they chose to call him Raúl. Where did he fall? In San Cristóbal de los Ángeles. Aah, angels.

San Cristóbal de los Ángeles was the seat of deep-rooted passion for Atletico Madrid and Raúl, while growing up, was a staunch Atletico supporter. Yes, you read that correct. His neighbourhood team coach still remembers the legend as a small Spanish kid, who was never exceptional, but ‘just worked and worked and worked’. Raúl realised the dreams of his father when he entered Atletico’s youth set-up as a 13-year-old and after winning the national championship with them, his journey at Atletico would come to a premature end. With the club and its ankles deep in financial crisis and led by the volatile Jesus Gil, the youth set-up was disbanded and it did not require ‘the neighbours’ to think twice about grabbing Raúl as he came. His neighbourhood coach jokes, calling him a traitor for doing so, but no, no one can hate an Angel. It didn’t take Raúl long to settle into the whites of Madrid. With a goal to game ratio of around 2.25 with the Cadete team, Raúl endured an extremely swift promotion up the hierarchy and just 10 odd games after joining Madrid C, he’d been called upto the first team by Jorge Valdano. The Argentine still recalls the conversation he had with the 17-year-old before the match v Zaragoza, where he handed Raúl his debut.

“I went upto him and said, I’m thinking of playing you tomorrow, but I’m afraid you’re going to be a bit nervous. And he said to me, ‘Well, if you want to win, play me. If you don’t want to win, put someone else in the team’. He had such extraordinary self-belief. ” – Jorge Valdano

Just the next week, he scored his debut goal on his home debut in a tense Madrid derby, against the club he’d once pledged his allegiance to. Raúl later said he’s never celebrated any goal like he celebrated that one. The angel was starting to shine.
Once Raúl had established himself in the team, the goals just kept flowing in. He scored 10 in his first season and doubled it next season, with 26. The season after, the Angel scored 21 in the league to bring back the La Liga title to the Bernabeu. When 1997 brought Morientes, Raúl had found one of his greatest friends and strike partners, even if Raúl tended to play a bit deeper.

1997-1998 also brought what Madridistas had only witnessed in black and white – European success. Long gone were the days when Alfredo di Stefano and his Real ruled the roost in Europe and if one person could be this generation’s di Stefano and inspire the Blancos to success, it should be the man with Blanco in his name. They had the chance to write history and that’s exactly what they did.

Two seasons later, Real were back in the final and against one of their fellow Spanish sides – Valencia. Going in with swagger and a distinct winning mentality, the side from Madrid emerged victorious again, with goals from their three best players on the night and over the season – Morientes, McManaman.. and Raúl. The next season, Raúl took home the Pichichi trophy, firing home 24 goals, a feat he reflected in 2000-01. Two Champions Leagues in three seasons and this crop of Real Madrid players were touted as one of the teams of the century, and Raúl, like di Stefano in his time, was icon of all that the grand old club ever stood for.
But then, things would change. A new president in Perez meant a new era at the Santiago Bernabeu – the Galactico era. As Steve McManaman said, the arrival of a few big-money big-name players sort of unsettled a team which had seen a large amount of success in recent seasons. The dressing room felt a little more uncomfortable with the term Galactico thrown around, the players didn’t all feel equal and it was a case of “them and us”, namely the Galacticos and the pre-Galactico players. So among the craze for stars or more aptly, ‘brands’ from all over the world, where would Raúl be left?

“Raúl is one of the best of Europe. He is Real Madrid’s spirit. He is like Matthäus for us: indispensable, and with a bad haircut” – Franz Beckenbauer

Answer: Right in the thick of it all. He was someone who opposed the very notion of Galactico but he was their leader. Real Madrid even with their plethora of talent, looked to Raúl to lead them. Even among the stars, it was the angel that stood for the roots of the club – their history, their philosophy and their way. He was born in Madrid, he was one of the family and he was the glue that kept the egos of the big-money stars down and together.

And once Fernando Hierro parted ways with the club, there was only one player that was ever going to inherit the armband. There was only one player who could take the responsibility of leading this mammoth of a club. In his truest sense, Raúl was always much more than that to Real. He was always a proxy president, a proxy director – someone who’s been the epicentre of all Real Madrid’s achievements while he was there.

In 2002, Raúl and the new Galactico team won the Champions League again, and even though the Spaniard netted the crucial opener vs Bayern, his performance in that match will always be overshadowed by Zinedine Zidane‘s sole moment of pure footballing masterclass.

“I think he is the greatest player to have ever played the game. He walks on the turf and astounds. It is utterly amazing.” – Luis Figo

The titles and personal plaudits kept rolling in for Raúl but in 2009 came the moment he and Madrid fans alike waited for, the day he broke Alfredo di Stefano’s 4 decade-long record of goals for the club, when he scored a magnificent volley against Sporting de Gijon.

However, all fairytales have to end and this one, sadly, does not differ. Raúl’s last touch of the ball in a Real shirt was his 323rd goal for the club – against Zaragoza, the club against which he’d made his debut. His love affair with Madrid had completed its journey and returned to its origin. A day, etched onto Madridistas’ memories like diamond on rock, was when the time had finally come for Raúl to say his goodbyes – temporary, of course – to the club he had loved for 15 years. To the people who had loved him for 15 years.

Raúl would join Schalke and within two seasons in Germany, achieve a legendary, cult-hero status with the people there; Schalke even did what Real did not, retiring the #7 shirt for a short period of time. I had earlier mentioned that it was impossible to hate an angel. But this one was a level higher, it was impossible not to love. Raúl now plays for Qatari outfit, Al Sadd and led them to the domestic title last season.

With la Seleccion, Raúl never achieved heights he deserved. For years before Euro 2008 and the talent boom, Raúl was the only man that defended the country’s pride and worked in times which seemed unfruitful. Even described as a ‘blood donor’ for working through blood, sweat and tears for the team’s sake, his missing out of Euro 2008 wrenches my heart into tight knots every single time. Every one who professes to be a Spain fan due to their recent successes has to look a bit further back and they will only see the endless hard work of one man. The Captain that Spain needed, but didn’t deserve.

“When he plays, in his mind there is only the goal; it’s the football essence. Every time he does something, you stand up over your seat” – Thierry Henry

Some years ago, the first time I met my Spanish friend, the die-hard Madridista Lorenzo Peral, he informed me that he was beyond a Madridista – he was a Raúlista. It isn’t very often you hear about people dedicating themselves to a player, I mean with all due respect, there aren’t any Messiacs or Ronaldatics. The way the Angel endeared himself to the Madrid faithful – so much so that the fact that he was an Atletico supporter initally went completely unnoticed – is beyond imagination. All Madridistas undoubtedly, are Raúlistas but Raúlistas? They exist all over the world of football. There is one attribute every single coach to have worked with the Angel gives to him – from his childhood mentor, Renato de la Coa to his Real mentor, Jorge Valdano and right til Manuel Pellegrini and Felix Magath. Raúl doesn’t have exceptional ability and neither does he have explosive pace or superhuman strength. For Raúl, it was all en su cabeza – in his head. For him to have made it to the very top and stayed there for so many years, it has but, taken copious amounts of hardwork and intelligence, not to mention self-belief and confidence. To ask, scratch that, MAKE a capacity Catalan crowd shut up like he did, it’s no human feat. He has symbolised everything di Stefano did, expressed everything he did in today’s time and yet, Raúl is entirely different to the Real Madrid Godfather. Raúl is a firm believer that everything you earn – including your name – must come from a basement of sweating out for the cause and be a fruit of hardwork, hardwork and hardwork, and this is why he had a major problem with the Galactico project. And for all he was, he was a cool, composed leader – never been red-carded in a 17-year long career.

But, Raúl will always be one of the greatest Real Madrid players. Cristianos may come and Ronaldos may go but there will only be one Raúl Gonzalez Blanco. There simply is no one in the current scene that can match the magnitude of labor he endured for the club. He may not be there now, but he knows and we knows that on his bare chest, there will be a crest emblazoned for eternity.

He’s a reference for every player to follow, an example.

He’s a gentleman of football, a winner.

He’s a fighter, he never, ever, gives up.

Angels seldom fall on Earth, but when they do, it’s hard to forget them. Raúl González Blanco is el Ángel de Madrid and he will never be forgotten.

Record goalscorer Frank Lampard of Chelsea poses for an adidas photo at Stamford Bridge on May 16, 2013 in London, England. (Getty Images)

“To accomplish great things we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.” quipped the French poet, Anatole France, with immaculate accuracy of life and its ways.

Frank Lampard was pursued by all of Aston Villa, Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur and of course… Chelsea. He was enticed by the promise Leeds offered, and the charisma of the then manager, David O’Leary. Leeds had never finished outside the top 5 under O’Leary. But somehow, Leeds did not feel right. He was destined for elsewhere.

It was love at first sight for Claudio Ranieri. Could this chubby boy be the final jigsaw to the Chelsea puzzle?

When Frank James Lampard Jr. first tread onto the grass of Stamford Bridge, and felt the Blue shirt kissing his skin, he had a dream. A dream to escape his father’s shadows and carve a niche for himself, both in the history of football and Chelsea. A dream to prove himself at this club, to whom he had pledged his future, in blue on paper, in blue for life.

The media mocked him, calling him the worst buy of the window and 11 million for some chunky West Ham kid was a sheer waste of money. It was once said, “I can’t honestly understand why Chelsea bought him. What has Lampard actually achieved in the Premiership?” They would soon come to eat their words. It was not about what he had achieved, it was what he was about to achieve.

Looking back now, at each of the 203 goals, Lampard has left me in a conundrum to pick only a few to immortalise as his most ‘iconic’. There are goals which left me crying, laughing and gaping, wide-mouthed at the sheer talent of this player. After much headache and poring over endless videos, in no particular order, here are my most iconic Lampard goals in a Chelsea shirt:

Vs. Lazio, H (2-1), 2003/04 season
This was really a sign of things to come. Eidur Gudjohnsen pulled back a perfect ball to the incoming English midfielder, who had timed his run precisely and struck the ball from the edge of the D, wheeling away in celebration as it nearly tore apart the top corner of the goal.

Vs. Bayern Munich, H (4-2), 2004/05 season
Possibly Lampard’s most iconic strike, the no. 8 had drifted into the box and expertly beyond the defenders to latch onto Claude Makelele’s lobbed pass. He chested it down, before doing an almost complete swivel and burying the ball into the bottom corner, with a sweetly-struck half volley on his weaker foot.

Vs. Fulham, A (1-4) 2004/05 season
A free-kick quite some distance away from the goal and three Chelsea players behind it. Gudjohnsen toe-pokes it to Damien Duff who sets it up for Lampard to unleash an absolute cracker. It bullets into the net, curving in then out, much too fast for the goalkeeper to even dive. All he could do was stop and stare. Definitely worthy of a place on this list, as it further reiterates Lampard’s prowess as a long-distance shooter.

Vs. Bolton, A (0-2), 2004/05 season
The two goals that made every Chelsea fan’s day, month, year, century. The first goal was a testament to his physical strength, brushing off Vincent Candela before rounding the fullback and striking the ball into the back of the net. Lampard would complete his performance with another expertly-taken goal, going on a solo run after being put through by Makelele, feinting past Jussi Jaaskelainen and firing home the ball, giving the Blues their first taste of League glory in half a decade.

Vs. Everton, A (1-1), 2005-06 season and A (2-3), 2006-07 season
Again, Lampard showed just how much of a beast he is, striking the ball from a long way out, on two separate occasions. Almost similar goals, from similar spots, the first one was him improvising on a misplaced pass to put it well past the keeper. The second had Salomon Kalou feed him the ball from the left while he took one touch and sent it blasting home.   

Vs. Hull City, A (0-3),  2008-09 season
They say chips or lobs are the hardest part of going for goal because controlling the power, elevation and trajectory of the ball requires years of blood, sweat and tears on the training ground. Against Hull, Lampard produced the most audacious chip, noticing Boaz Myhill just merely off his line but still managing to lob the ball from the edge of the box and over Myhill’s head. Genius, pure genius.

Vs. Everton, Wembley (2-1), 2008-09 season
Going behind within seconds of kick-off was never a good start to Chelsea’s bid in the FA Cup final, but after Didier Drogba equalised, it fell to Lampard to seal the match in Chelsea’s favour. A delightful shot from outside the D with his weaker foot went past a helpless Tim Howard and etched Chelsea’s name on yet another FA Cup title.

Vs. Stoke City, H (7-0), 2009-10 season
In what was a 7-0 mauling of Stoke, the 5^th goal was set up by young Sam Hutchinson who whipped in a teasing cross from the right and was volleyed by the outside of Lampard’s boot, and with that deft touch, the ball floated past Asmir Begovic and into the net. The control exhibited by Lampard and the decision to go for finesse rather than blasting it away showed his range of skill.

 Vs. Tottenham Hotspur, Wembley (5-0), 2011-12 season
It was his first goal from outside the box in absolute ages and what a goal it was. A 35-yard free-kick which beat ex-Blue Carlo Cudicini’s reach and into the far corner was Chelsea’s 4^th in an emphatic 5-1 mauling of Tottenham. It sealed Spurs’ fate as the Blues went marching on to the FA Cup final which they would eventually win, courtesy of a Drogba goal from a Lampard assist.

Vs. Newcastle, A (3-2), 2012-13 season
Chesting down a beautiful lofted pass from Ashley Cole, Frank literally dusted off his Newcastle marker and struck it as sweet as honey into the back of the net, the power and placement of his shot no match for the diving figure of Tim Krul. It ended in a Chelsea loss but the goal was Lampard’s 10^th of the season, making him the first player to score at least 10 goals in 10 consecutive Premier League seasons, beating the previous record of 9…which was also held by Lampard himself.

Vs. Liverpool, H (3-2 aet), 2007-08 season
This goal was not an exceptional, flashy one. But for me, it ranks above any other. Days before the match, Lampard’s mother had passed away, called upon to embrace nature. One needs to only read a small excerpt from Lampard’s autobiography to understand the significance she held in his life. He had always attributed his development as a footballer to his father, and as a man, to his mother. The loss of his best supporter and worst critic could have led Lampard into an abyss of nothing but melancholy. He could have asked the club to excuse him from a few weeks of duty and surrounded himself with solitude. But that is not Frank Lampard. Frank Lampard is a warrior. Frank Lampard will sail tempestuous seas and climb rock-strewn mountains, because that is who he is. Extra time, penalty awarded. Michael Ballack takes the ball, only to be talked out of it by an emotional Frank Lampard. It was the same routine. Places the ball on the spot, takes his run up. Bang, goal. His hands instinctively point to the heavens above his head, breaking into inconsolable sobs as he does. But he’d done his job as a Chelsea player on the night; he’d sent them to their maiden Champions League final.

Vs. Barcelona, A (2-2), 2006-07 season
They say always reserve the best for last and I have no qualms regarding that. After initially mis-controlling the pass laid onto him, the midfielder recollected the ball which was about to run out for a goal kick. Not seeing any other Blue shirt in the box arriving as of yet, Lampard attempted the impossible and succeeded. From a near-zero angle, right from the byline, Lampard lobbed the ball over Victor Valdes’ head and into the goal. An impossible goal which would rarely then be replicated by anyone, some say he had a bit of luck involved there. I beg to differ. This is a player who’s been quoted by his teammates as someone who has practiced scoring from every angle possible on the pitch.  He’s someone who stays back for half an hour after everyone’s left to work on his game. Luck? Maybe a tad. Fruit of hard labour? Definitely.

With the contract extension signed and done, Lampard is only an achievable 10 goals away from the legendary Thierry Henry in the all time Premier League top scorers’ list.  What Frank Lampard has is an exceptional eye for goal, with a record most strikers would absolutely die to have. As an analyst once pointed out, we may be looking at a unique specimen here – one we have never ever seen before – a deep lying poacher. His perfect timing of runs in addition to his transcendent right foot and self-made stamina makes him a one-of-a-kind player. He’s won everything he would want to at Chelsea and finished second in the 2005 Ballon d’Or only to Ronaldinho and with every passing game, he seems to set one record or the other. But in my eyes, he remains the player whose on field presence I fell in love with as a child, years back – the one who might not boss the whole game but can produce the solitary instant of thaumaturgy which eventually decides the match. We may now have the services of some of the best young attacking midfielders, but no other player so far has acquired the timing to which Lampard can make his daunting runs. It almost seems as if Lampard has extrasensory perception – an exclusive clairvoyance – that he knows if he’s in that position on the pitch, everything he touches will become gold; or should I say GOAL(d).

12 years ago, when Frank Lampard first tread onto the grasses of Stamford Bridge and felt the Blue shirt kissing his skin for the first time, he had a dream.
12 years in the making, he acted, he planned, he believed.
12 years on, his dream has assumed life.

Frank Lampard.

There will never be another.

A picture that was released by Manchester United’s official Facebook page shortly after Sir Alex announced his retirement.

“Nobody said it was easy; no one ever said it would be this hard”

Those words are lyrics to a song by Coldplay called the ‘The Scientist’ and are an understatement of how Manchester United fans must feel now.

Personally, as a Chelsea fan, it has become part of practice to embrace the fact that your manager might not be there when you wake up the next morning. I will never deny that I have always envied United and Arsenal because of how they were so managerially stable. I had hoped and wished time and time again that somehow someday, we’ll have our answer to Sir Alex Ferguson. I hoped it’d be Jose Mourinho, and right up to Roberto di Matteo, I kept hoping.

I used to genuinely think death was the only way to do Sir Alex and United apart.

I longed for a manager like him at Chelsea, someone who’s going to be there every season and has a solid long-term plan in mind. For 9 years of my life, Sir Alex has been one of the people that I severely despised for all the times he defeated and derailed my dear Chelsea with his tactical brilliance and the mental wars he’d wage. But denying a man like him respect is something football fans can never ever do. It’s just not humanly possible to not respect a man who’s devoted his life to a club for a quarter of a century and won so many titles and established such a sound team, with the right mix of money and youth.

A small, almost infinitesimal, part of me died today upon hearing that announcement. It is bound to be awkward next season, when we visit Old Trafford and the old Scottish man with his bulbous red nose and rectangular glasses, chewing away at his gum, won’t be there.

It’s won’t be just Manchester United, but the entire footballing world that will miss Sir Alex. Those witty press cons, annoying wins at Stamford Bridge and the fact that he always strolled out to rapturous applause at Old Trafford.

You’ve left behind, a legacy, Sir, that won’t be forgotten for a long long time to come.

Thank you, Sir Alex. Football owes you.

And perhaps, in this one scenario, we actually hope there is “Fergie Time” left.

Diego Lopez:

He could really do little about Welbeck’s close-range header, but barring that, it was a calm and composed performance from the former Sevilla man, who was quick to sprint off his line to deny Welbeck his second after a sublime pass from Robin van Persie. A solid goalkeeping display, but Lopez was upstaged by his opposite number. Score: 6.5/10

Alvaro Arbeloa:

Seemed to have a lot to do, with the quick interchange of possession between Welbeck, Kagawa and van Persie, but not many threats came down his flank. Anonymous in attack, but generally up to the job when called upon defensively. Score: 6/10

Sergio Ramos:

Should have done better and made it more difficult for Welbeck to head in the opener, but the English striker’s explosive ability caught him off guard. Generally did well to deviate the United attackers from the goal and pushed them out into wider or less-threatening positions, even if the United attack was not at their best. Commanded the defence well and joined the attack occasionally. Score: 7/10

Raphael Varane:

Fast establishing himself as one of the most talented and defensively adept youngsters on the European scene. Another class performance from the Frenchman, playing with the composure and confidence you’d see from an established European player. Varane looks to have stolen Pepe’s position for good now.  The only blemish on his performance would be the loose last-man tackle on Evra which on another day could have possibly warranted a punishment. Score: 7/10

Fabio Coentrao:

Arguably Madrid’s best defender on the night. Could have and should have scored twice, save de Gea’s adroit athleticism. A force to be reckoned with down the left, as he foraged down the flank on many a run, providing ample support to his teammates up front while also effectively ruling out the ‘freckled’ and ‘demonic’ Wayne Rooney, forcing the ex-Evertonian to track back much further than moving up the pitch. Score: 7.5/10

Sami Khedira:

A useful physical presence in the middle of the park, diligently keeping and distributing possession. Nothing extraordinary on the night for the German though, who tested de Gea once with a half volley from 20-yards out. Often played back-up to the much more active of the two holding players, Alonso. Score: 6/10

Xabi Alonso:

The busier and more active of the middle two. Could not get too many passes to split the United defence as the Manchester club sat back to defend, but adapted his game to the situation very quickly, linking up well with Ozil after the tactical change by Mourinho. Pulled the strings on the four in front of him, with quite a few overhead balls that seemed to travel the diagonal of the park and neat passing. Saved Madrid’s blushes and possibly, their European campaign by clearing van Persie’s effort off the line in the dying moments of the game. Score: 7.5/10

Angel di Maria:

Madrid’s star angel of the night skies. Ran rings around Rafael and seemed the Blanco most involved in the game. Sprinted down his flank with the ball glued to his feet, and even cut into the centre a few times effectively. Provided a great cross from which Cristiano Ronaldo equalled proceedings with that thumping header. Replaced by Modric with 15 minutes remaining. Score: 8/10

Mesut Ozil:

Architect prime of Madrid this season thus far. Seemed below his best on the night, wavering in and out of the game, but was the fulcrum of Real’s attacks, creating quite a few chances though his teammates failed to capitalise. Marked well by the United midfield as a whole. Score: 7/10

Cristiano Ronaldo:

This fixture had only one man’s name written all over it before the night itself. Cristiano Ronaldo, CR7, ‘The Prodigal Son’. The performance was below-par by Cristiano’s own unbelievably high standards. Was man-marked wonderfully well by the combined effort of Patrice Evra and Shinji Kagawa in the opening exchanges, but the Portuguese got one over them when, akin to a predator swooping down on its prey, he leapt up on his jet pack-powered feet and sent a thumping header past a hapless de Gea to equalise for Madrid. Provided the aerial threat in Mourinho’s equation to get the better of United but faded slightly as the game wore on. Score: 7/10

Karim Benzema:

Two acronyms for his performance. MIA and AWOL. Seemed to shy away from the ball, lost possession when he did have the ball and simply could not appear on pitch, let alone impose himself. An erroneous game for the Frenchman, and was replaced by Gonzalo Higuain late on, who himself did not better Benzema’s performance. Score: 5/10

Substitutes:

Gonzalo Higuain: Came on for Benzema and was not an improvement on the French striker. Looked subdued, off colour and simply not involved. Score: 5/10

Luka Modric: Replaced Angel di Maria to provide a defensive dimension on the wings to prevent a late United comeback, and almost found Cristiano with a low cross in the last few minutes. Score: 5.5/10

Pepe: Varane has officially snatched Pepe’s centre-back position, but the Portuguese was introduced late in the game in place of Alonso to just shore up the defence. N/A

David de Gea:

Star Superstar SUPERNOVA of the match. A few days back and the media all over England were giving the young Spaniard so much stick, he could build a fully-functioning stick-mansion. Almost everything was against him last night, the media, the home crowd, expectations, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s rocket right-boot. de Gea rose to the occasion in mercurial fashion. Denying Coentrao once with his fingertips and again with his feet, de Gea produced a series of world-class saves, dotted throughout the course of the game. Without the Spaniard, it might well have finished a more emphatic scoreline in favour of the home team. Simply magnificent. Score: 9.5/10

Rafael da Silva: 

Struggled early on in the match. He rushed in tackles, and was often caught dawdling out of position in the opening stages and eventually booked, as di Maria ran rings around Rafa. Settled himself as the game wore on but never quite looked himself. Score: 6/10

Rio Ferdinand:

Tasked with handling Benzema, Ferdinand had little to do as such. The French striker seemed off colour, but Rio did well enough to ensure still that no ball would reach Benzema. Lunged out to curb Cristiano’s shot as he latched onto a low cross into the six-yard box. Errors here and there and lacking on pace, but overall, a decent performance from the big defender. Score: 7/10

Jonny Evans:

Busy throughout the match, as he had to help Evra due to the abundance of Madrid attacks flowing in from that flank. Was caught out of position once and almost resulted in Ronaldo claiming his second headed goal of the day, but recovered just in time to put off the Portuguese. A solid performance peppered by the occasional slip-up and a lot of concentration. Score: 7.5/10

Patrice Evra:

Was cooped down at his own end by the plethora of Madrid attacks coming down his flank, and could provide minimal assistance up front. Required Kagawa and Evans to assist him in fending off di Maria and Ozil. Does not deserve the blame for Ronaldo’s goal, as a small man himself, he should not have been left to fight his man alone at the back post, especially when the man he’s marking is Cristiano Ronaldo. An ordinary performance from the Frenchman. Score: 6.5/10

Danny Welbeck:

Initially started on the wing, but eventually drifted into any available space behind van Persie, linking up well with the Dutchman. Did well to fend off Sergio Ramos to flick on his goal past Lopez and give United the much coveted away goal, but was met by an advancing Diego Lopez when he tried to meet a smooth van Persie through-ball. Impressive from the United academy product, contesting well with Coentrao and putting his explosive speed to good use. Looked the most keen of the United attacking force. Score: 8/10

Michael Carrick: 

Yet another great performance from Mr. Underrated. Was the backbone of the United team last night and screened the defence well with Jones, stealing the ball off of the opponent and distributing neatly. An 87% passing rate completed his night, though a few of his attempted balls forward did not come off as he’d expected. Score: 7/10

Phil Jones:

Shielded the back four very well, and was played to snuff out as much as possible of Ronaldo’s impact. Lost concentration here and there in the first half but shadowed the ‘prodigal son’ to near-perfection in the second after a small tactical change by Fergie. Proved his mettle as a starter for United. Confident display overall. Score: 8/10

Shinji Kagawa:

The Japanese showed promising signs, with some sublime touches and neat, direct passing, in addition to his link ups. But he found life hard with the physicality of Madrid’s midfield and defence. Cameo-d in and out of the game but must improve much to attain the level he once had at Dortmund. Score: 5.5/10

Wayne Rooney:

Forced to track back by the runs of Coentrao, and as defensive duties where thrust upon him, he diminished in influence. Tried to play a few long balls to van Persie, who seemed isolated up top, but could not exhibit his attacking prowess as much as he’d wanted to. Uncharacteristic performance from Rooney. Score: 5/10

Robin van Persie:

Seemed quite alone up top, as Madrid burdened his team with defensive concerns. Held the ball well when he got it, and showed some incisive passing, almost setting up Welbeck. Really should have scored at the death to give United that comfortable advantage going back home. Poor connection from 10 yards out, providing ample time for Xabi Alonso to clear the effort off the line. An average performance with a few promises here and there. Score: 6.5/10

Substitutes:

Ryan Giggs: Came on to a wonderful reception by both sets of fans alike to replace Kagawa, and sat a bit deeper than the Japanese did. Had a chance late on in the Madrid penalty box but took too long to make a decision. Score: 6/10

Antonio Valencia: Added a new dimension to United’s attack down the right, replacing Welbeck. Could not make a big impact on the proceedings. Score: 6/10

Anderson: Replaced Rooney a few minutes before full-time and had little time to impact the game. N/A

Part 1 of this mouth-watering match-up has produced heroes and zeroes in its own right. With a 1-1 scoreline and an away goal, will it be advantage United at the Theatre of Dreams? Or will Mourinho’s Madrid marksmen make it past the challenge posed by the Devils?

Wait and watch, ladies and gentlemen.

We all have heroes. People that we admire, people that we envy, people we long to be ourselves. People who we look up to and recognize the magnitude of their simplest of actions as something that we would probably never be able to do. A hero is Alessandro del Piero.

13th May 2012. Away at Atalanta. Juventus’ final league game of 2011-12. Del Piero’s final Serie A appearance for Juventus. The stage was set for the not-so-big man. 27 minutes in, the Italian picks up the ball at the edge of the penalty box. He took a touch and then swung that transcendent right foot, ever so perfectly, oozing perfection, and placed the ball with finesse past the hapless goalkeeper. He wheeled off towards the Juventus faithful. Tongue hanging, an almost maniacal glint in his eyes – his vintage celebration… his last in those black and white drapes. 

‘Il Pinturicchio’ they call him. ‘The most complete trequartista’ they call him. But the man had humble beginnings. Son of an electrician, del Piero was born and brought up in Conegliano, Italy – where the fire that would develop into a blazing inferno was ignited. He played frequently with friends and his brother in his backyard though his mother used to insist that he play only goal-keeper to avoid any injury.

His mother’s efforts would go in vain though. On the advice of his brother Stefano, Ale switched the gloves for striking boots and soon, at the tender age of 13, he was snapped up by Padova. He would only last 16-odd games with the Serie B club and in the summer of 1993, something came calling at his door. Something that would change his life forever and in turn, he too would reciprocate the favour. Something that came hailing from Turin and went by the name of Juventus. And there began the love affair.

There really is nothing else to call the relationship del Piero and Juventus had except true love. Love at first sight? Perhaps so. Love that would brave the tempestuous seas. Dare I say, the love del Piero held for Juve could probably have been right off of a Shakespeare or John Milton script.

Mr. Juventus, so rightly called, made his debut only the following season, against Foggia. In his second game, he scored his first goal, coming on as a young substitute. Impressive? On his full debut for Juventus against Parma, an 18-year-old Alessandro del Piero scored a hat-trick. In his first season, Juventus won their first Scudetto in 8 years, though del Piero was limited to substitute appearances. The following season, ‘Il Pinturricho’ established himself as the main man at Turin. As Marcelo Lippi took over, the then-youngster cemented his place in the front three, playing along with the experienced Luca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravanielli. It was this trident attack that would win Juventus the Champions League in 1996, with a certain Antonio Conte playing behind them.

As the likes of Pippo Inzaghi and a certain Zinedine Zidane arrived, ‘Delpi’ changed his game such that he would partner Zidane while Inzaghi played upfront. They reached the 1997 Champions League final but del Piero’s goal was simply a consolation; del Piero finished the season as top scorer in Europe. Juventus and Ale had much to cheer for on the domestic front though; Juventus won the Scudetto, del Piero scored a personal best 21 goals and they’d won the Supercoppa Italiana. del Piero would never again taste victory in the Champions League, finishing a runner up again in 1998 and 2003.

If 1998 was heartbreak in terms of coming so close but not getting there, 1999 was a personal and physically traumatizing year for ADP. A knee injury meant that he was ruled out for nearly the whole season. But the fans had already seen this 24-year-old as a cult hero. No, he was THEIR cult hero. Inter fans called Ronaldo ‘Il Fenomeno’? Juventus fans christened Ale with an epithet of his own, ‘Il Fenomeno Vero’ – The REAL Phenomenon. His bond with the fans only strengthened with time.

Soon, del Piero linked up to perfection with striker David Trezeguet and Zidane-replacement Pavel Nedved; the three eventually led la Vecchia Signora to another Scudetto in 2002. The triumvirate could not win Europe’s biggest prize together though, failing after coming close in 2003. In 2004, Marcelo Lippi was appointed Italy’s head coach after a brilliant spell with Juventus; his replacement, Fabio Capello, was nowhere near convinced with del Piero and instead preferred the newest import from Ajax – a particular Zlatan Ibrahimovic – to the Italian. Although del Piero was back to his best in 2005-06, scoring 20 goals, he had always had a troubled relationship with Capello. The manager preferred to use him as a super-sub while the man himself wanted to start every match for his beloved Juve.

However, controversy struck. The Calciopoli allegations emerged and the Bianconieri’s 27th and 28th league titles had been stripped away from them; they were relegated to Serie B. This was the crucible for the love del Piero held for his Vecchia Signora; the ultimate test. Cannavaro, Zambrotta, Thuram, Vieira and Ibrahimovic all left the club for greener pastures, all abandoning the club when it needed them most. Would del Piero do the same? Of course not.

Del Piero also requested the club to let him captain them to promotion back into the Serie A and in what fashion. Ale finished as top scorer in the Serie B, with 20 goals, while the Old Lady won promotion as champions – even though they were handed a 9-point penalty as a result of the calciopoli.

The 2007-08 season proved that, even at 33 going on 34, Alessandro del Piero was a man to be reckoned with. He notched up 20 goals in the league – becoming only the second ever Italian to win two Capocannoniere awards in two different leagues in two consecutive seasons! From 2009 onwards, del Piero has smashed records into smithereens week in week out. He became Juventus’ top Serie A appearance maker, their all-time top scorer, breaking Boniperti’s record of having most Serie A goals for Juventus and in appearances for the club. If there was one man who could bear the weight of all these records at Juventus, it had to be Mr Juventus only.

In the summer of 2011-12, as his former teammate Antonio Conte took over the reins, the club announced that that would be del Piero’s last season with the Bianconieri. The adieu was emotional. del Piero scored a magnificent goal in his final Serie A appearance for the Old Lady and would finish the Coppa Italia final going off to a standing ovation by every soul present at the stadium. The club wanted to retire his no. 10 shirt, out of respect and commendation for the 19 years of incredibly loyal service he had given them. But he disagreed and felt his number should not be withdrawn from use.

He’d write an open letter to the Juventus fans, stating that,

Del Piero scored 5 goals in his final season – the same tally as his first season for Juventus. They had come a complete circle.

Alessandro del Piero is one of the most complete players in European history – you’d have to wait a few hundred years before you see a player as versatile, as skilled and as dedicated as the Italian. He could provide the creativity quotient, make the mouth-gaping assists, score the eye-enlarging goals, and just draw your awe and respect for the way he literally played his heart out on field for Juventus.

They say Juventus is La Fidanzata d’Italia, which roughly translates to the girlfriend of Italy. If you want to call Alessandro del Piero ‘Italy’, I guess.

Devotion is a scarce proclivity to come across in today’s world. I doubt there will never be another man who loved the Old Lady as much – a man who rejoiced every time he pulled on the Black and White armour, with every moment spent fighting and vanquishing all his troubles just to play and strive for the crest that lies oh-so-close to his heart on his shirt – no, on his skin.

Superlatives are no longer valid for him. A hero is Alessandro del Piero.

Mr Irreplaceable.

575 appearances. 190 goals. 121 assists. 12 major trophies. 3-time Chelsea Player Of The Year. It’s very hard to look past one man in the last decade or so at Chelsea. One man who has and is still vital to the Chelsea cause.

Frank Lampard, it was reported by certain newspapers (read tabloids), had been asked to leave the club in January. Though this is a could most probably be a highly false report, with Roman Abramovich around, there is always a possibility for such decisions. The English midfielder is just past his prime and his legs are slowing down. He isn’t as injury-free as before and not as mobile either, but Frank James Lampard Jr, is indispensable if Chelsea want to have consistent success in the immediate and long-term future.

There is one recurring theme, on a player level, in football. As a player grows older, his on-field importance decreases but only to increase, exponentially, his off-field importance. At 34, Lampard is still not “well” past his prime, he has much to offer not only on pitch but more so, off it. In the post-match interview with Lampard and Luiz, when asked about his free-kick, Luiz said that it was the man next to him who had taught him how to take it. He said Lampard would spend quite some time after training teaching him and he himself would stay back to perfect his technique.

It is exactly that for which Lampard is essential now. Just take a look at United. With all due respect to them, they have players who are 38, 39 still starting matches, with no problem over contract issues or playing time. United stuck with Neville, Giggs and Scholes in the squad even when youngsters like Cleverley and Rafael were emerging. Over the period of two years or so, they eased these youngsters into the starting XI frame, while still holding onto their veterans. The aforementioned players have aided these youngsters by a big measure, passing on their experience and knowledge to them, while constantly motivating them and keeping them going. That is why now, – hate them or not – United have a fairly capable yet young squad. Lampard is, to put it simply, one of the nicest guys at Chelsea. He would be as interested in a youngster’s development as he is in his.

Moreover, come the crunch matches, we will need Lampard’s composure and experience on field. Yes, we may be able to manage a few games but long-term success becomes a light further and further away in the darkness. We saw it last season with United, again. They had to call back Paul Scholes from retirement because the young players were crumbling under the pressure of having to put on their best, week in week out. We saw it this season in Chelsea; injuries to Terry and Lampard coincided with a slump and loss of form, eventually ending in Robbie’s sacking and Champions League elimination. You think, maybe with Terry and Lampard, that game at Juventus might’ve been a whole different story.

If Lampard’s lessons to Luiz resulted in that beauty of a free-kick, just imagine the wonders we’d see if say, Lampard is made to mentor Kevin de Bruyne or Josh McEachran in addition to the likes of Juan Mata, Oscar and Luiz. We’d have another Lampard or two, handpicked and guided by the man himself. And maybe, when he finally decides to hang up his boots, he could be given a coaching role at the club, still as much a part of Chelsea as ever.

I am being frank here (pun intended), he is not at his best. Yes, he is growing old, he is slower, he is losing the ball sometimes. But with Frank Lampard, whatever you don’t have, you will always have his commitment and sincerity on field. What many don’t notice is that Lampard has gone through a big transformation in the space of a season or two. In 2010-11, Lampard was still our chief playmaker, our ring-master. But with the arrival of Juan Mata and later, Eden Hazard and Oscar, he isn’t so anymore. One and a half seasons ago, Lampard was a wonderful attacking player who certainly was not the best defender. In the space of a season or so, he has moulded himself and changed his game in such a way that he can still do what he does best for the team – our top scorer for last season – and shift the paradigm on a previously missing part of his game – defending. Remarkable, considering his age and the lack of playing time he’s experienced.

All in all, Frank Lampard is Frank Lampard – indispensable. His impact and mentoring of the youth would mean a set future for us and if he can still put in performances like he did vs Villa and score belters like that, then, there is so much more left of Frank Lampard for the world to see.

We don’t call him Super Frank, for no reason.

John Terry found not guilty by Court of Westminster, but found guilty by FA, Rio-Ashley tweet saga

The Westminster Magistrates Court announced John Terry as not guilty of racial abuse after QPR’s Anton Ferdinand had alleged that Terry had racially abused him in the match between QPR and Chelsea at Loftus Road. This saga had seen John Terry stripped of England captaincy and Fabio Capello sacked for backing Terry. A few months later, the FA ran its own investigation, and found Terry guilty, banning him for 4 matches. It also saw a bust-up between Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole, who was a witness, after Rio tweeted, calling Cole ‘choc ice’, a colloquial abusive term used to describe a black man who behaves like a white man. Later, in response to the FA alleging that Cole’s testimony was false, the England and Chelsea #3 tweeted, calling the FA a ‘bunch of t**ts’. All in all, a few months to forget for the FA.

Robin van Persie makes controversial move to United

After his best-ever season in an Arsenal shirt in 8 years, Robin van Persie announced that he would not be staying with the Gunners for the forthcoming season. The names immediately put up were United and last year’s winners City, Scudetto winners Juventus and a distant possibility of Chelsea. RvP, on advice from friend and former Dutch teammate Edwin van der Sar (and the little boy inside of him), made the move to the Red Devils, drawing the angst and incurring the wrath of Arsenal fans; though van Persie denied that there were any hard feelings. With last season’s two top scorers in Rooney and van Persie, United seemed like an invincible force now.

Justice For The 96, Hillsborough incident report released

The official report of the tragic 1989 Hillsborough incident by the Hillsborough Independent Panel was released, revealing many previously untold truths about the deaths of the 96, including one of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard’s cousin. This version of the happenings on that fateful day was more accurate, with documents and testimonies being made available to the HIP, which had not been available to Lord Taylor, who drew up the initial report in 1990. The report revealed that around 165 statements from the police were doctored and altered. The report also claimed that around 41 of the 96 could have been saved if they’d received immediate medical attention. It was a breakthrough, as the families of the victims finally got the truth they deserved, though it was little consolation for their huge losses. The support from fellow football clubs, including arch-rivals Everton and Man United for Liverpool was a commendable act of humanity.

Chelsea 2 Man United 3, Refereeing decisions gone AWOL

In a game that would easily contend for the most controversial match of the year, United took the lead as the Blues put up a XI with neither Frank Lampard (injury) nor John Terry (suspension) for the first time in nearly a decade, after van Persie’s shot deflected off David Luiz and past Cech. The Dutchman soon made it 2-0 as he fired Valencia’s driven cross into the net. Juan Mata pulled one back on the stroke of half time from a free kick on the edge of the area. The 2nd half, if it was a film, was scripted by a washed up melodramatic-turned horror storywriter. Ramires equalised for the Blues, but soon after that Branislav Ivanovic was sent off for a last-man lunge on Ashley Young and just minutes later, Fernando Torres given the red after a second yellow for simulation, though replays showed that he had clearly been caught by Jonny Evans.  Javier Hernandez came on and scored what appeared to be an offside winner, though it was given. The controversy did not end there, with allegations from John Obi Mikel and Ramires that already-disdained ref Mark Clattenburg had used racial abuses against the Nigerian and a few other Chelsea players. This claim was investigated by the FA and Clattenburg was announced innocent, with John Obi Mikel getting himself a suspension.

Celtic produce magical night in Europe; beat Barcelona 

The Scottish team, who were initally unsure of a last 16 place, beat the former European champions 2-1 at Celtic Park. Victor Wanyama scored in the first half and Tony Watt doubled the lead in the 83rd minute. Although Lionel Messi pulled one back for the Catalans, the Hoops held on to complete one of the most famous victories in their club’s history and to send Rod Stewart bursting into tears.

Ibrahimovic Scores a Stunner

Zlatan Ibrahimovic produced a wonder goal as Sweden thrashed England 4-2, with Zlatan himself scoring all 4. The last goal was a delight for the eyes. Joe Hart headed clear from the edge of his area but the ball fell neatly to Ibra, who unnervingly struck one of the best bicycle kicks we’ll ever see, from 30 yards out with unerring accuracy as it went over the City goalkeeper and into the net. A resounding reply to the critics who believe that Zlatan cannot perform on the big stage.

Roman wields the axe again; di Matteo sacked, Benitez appointed

Roman Abramovich showed again why he is the most ruthless owner in club football – even the Champions League and FA Cup from nowhere doesn’t satisfy him, as he proved by sacking double-winning manager and club legend Robbie di Matteo on the back of a 0-3 drubbing away at Juventus in the Champions League. He also proved that he doesn’t give a single darn what the fans think, appointing the very-much-loved-at-Stamford-Bridge Rafa Benitez as the new ‘interim’ Chelsea coach, though any coach at Chelsea would be interim. His tenure so far has not even seen a fraction of the turnaround in the team as it did under di Matteo. Wonder how long he’s going to last.

A Tale Of Two Derbies

9th December saw two red-hot derbies being played a few million miles apart from each other. The first, the Kolkata derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan was literally red-hot. After Odafa was red-carded within two minutes and later he reappeared on the scene to argue with the referee over Nirmal Chhetri’s red too. The tension moved to the stands who started hurling bottles and stones, one of which hit Syed Rahim Nabi on the face, fracturing him and he was stretchered off. Mohun Bagan refused to come out and play the second half, bringing a premature end to the Derby for the first time ever. A few million miles away, similar scenes erupted at the Etihad Stadium, though this match lasted 90 minutes. Rooney would score twice in the first half to send United on its way to 3 points though after the break Yaya Toure and Pablo Zabalete pulled the goals back for City. It was an all ex-Arsenal goal that would decide the  tie though, with van Persie’s free kick taking a big deflection off Samir Nasri’s outstretched leg and sailing past Joe Hart. Rio Ferdinand, being the nice guy he’s always been celebrated in front of the City fans, enraging one supporter who threw a 2 p coin at the United centreback, hitting his eye brow, narrowly missing his eye and splattering his face with blood.

Messi breaks Gerd Mueller’s Record

Lionel Messi etched him name onto the history books with a never-fading permanent marker after scoring a whopping 90 goals and counting in the calendar year of 2012, beating Gerd Mueller’s previous record of 84. It has still not been confirmed by FIFA on whether this is the highest number of goals in a calendar year after the Zambian FA came out saying Godfrey Chitalu once scored 102 goals in a calendar year, following which Flamengo claimed that Zico had scored 90+ goals in a calendar year too. This remains clear though: Lionel Messi is one hell of a talented footballer!

Chelsea lose Club World Cup Final to Corinthians

Chelsea lost the final of the Club World Cup 0-1 to Brazilian side Corinthians after being touted as the favourites to become World Champions. The English side seemed jaded in the first 45 and conceded on the 69th minute, following which they had quite a few shots on goal themselves, the most blatant falling to Fernando Torres who could not convert. Manchester United remain the only English club to have been World Champions as Chelsea players were left in tears and ruing missed chances.

All in all, it’s been an almost perfect footballing year of 2012 with ups and downs – records broken, underdogs winning, racism re-emerging, justice being served and of course some beautiful football being played. After the footballing miracles we’ve witnessed this year, I think it’d be safe to say if the world does end on the 21st, that we shall all die fully satisfied football fans. Here’s to a magnificent 2012 gone by and an even better 2013 in the horizon!

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/12/21/football-in-2012-a-review-of-the-year-gone-by-part-ii/feed/ 0 05131 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/12/20/football-in-2012-a-review-of-the-year-gone-by-part-i/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/12/20/football-in-2012-a-review-of-the-year-gone-by-part-i/#comments Thu, 20 Dec 2012 08:27:18 +0000 Priya Ramesh http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=1087251 2012 has been perhaps one of the most eventful and exhilarating footballing years of recent times: City’s last day win, Spain’s record 2nd consecutive European Cup, Muamba’s near-death experience. If you’ve been hibernating through the year, you’ve come to the right place. So here we go, SportsKeeda’s top headlines of 2012!

The return of the King.

Fairytale Return for the King

January saw the return of club legend Thierry Henry to the Emirates Stadium, as he spent the American off-season, training with his former club, later signing on loan for 2 months. He scored two goals, the winner against Leeds in the FA Cup 3rd Round and a stoppage time vintage Henry winner against Sunderland in his last game on loan.

Zambia win AFCON

Zambia emerged winners in the African Cup Of Nations, playing the final against hot favourites Cote d’Ivoire, winning on penalties a dramatic 8-7, after the match ended goalless after extra time. They dedicated their win to the victims of the 1993 Zambian national football team air disaster.

Liverpool break trophy drought

Liverpool won a major trophy for the first time in nearly 6 years, the last being their FA  Cup triumph in 2006. They beat Cardiff 3-2 on penalties after the match ended 2-2 after extra time. Stewart Downing was named the official Man Of The Match.

A second chance at life for Fabrice Muamba.

Fabrice Muamba’s near-death experience

The FA Cup quarter-final between Spurs and Bolton ended prematurely on a horrifying note as Bolton midfielder Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest in the middle of the match. After receiving lengthy on-field treatment from both club doctors as well as a fan who happened to be a cardiologist, Muamba was taken to the London Chest Hospital. It caused a big stir among the football community, with a lot of debates re-ignited about players’ safety. He recovered fully in May, going on to attend Bolton’s home game vs Spurs and the FA Cup Final.

Chelsea defy odds to beat Barcelona, Pep to takes sabbatical

The Blues had won the home tie 1-0, thanks to a quick counter after Lionel Messi was dispossessed by Frank Lampard. The second leg couldn’t have started in a worse way for Chelsea – an injury to Cahill, followed by an equaliser by Busquets, after which came the straight red shown to Terry and then the Chelsea heart breaker, Iniesta putting the Catalans ahead. All seemed improbable but on the brink of half-time, Ramires gave the Chelsea fans hope after scoring a wonder goal. The 2nd half saw Messi miss a penalty and then Torres score a goal good enough for Gary Neville to go orgasmic. Following this defeat, Pep Guardiola announced that he will hand over the reins to Tito Vilanova while he takes an indefinite sabbatical from football itself.

City complete ‘Derby Double’

Three weeks after trailing their neighbours by 8 points at the top, Vincent Kompany’s header on the stroke of halftime won City the game and arguably the title itself, as they went ahead on goal difference, although United still had a fair shot at the title if City slipped up. This match, though it wasn’t the most exciting, set the ball rolling for the most exhilarating finales to a Premier League season.

Atletico Madrid win Europa League

Atletico Madrid emerged champions of Europe’s 2nd most prestigious competition after beating Bilbao 3-0 in an all-Spanish final. Radamel Falcao scored a double and became the first to score in 2 Europa finals with 2 different teams. He picked up his second winners’ medal and Top Scorer accolade in just 357 days.

Juventus win Serie A after 9 years

The Bianconieri picked up their 30th scudetto, going the whole season unbeaten, becoming the first team to emerge victorious after not having been defeated at all during the season. Also in attendance was the re-emergence of Andrea Pirlo, who had been blacked out at Milan, topping the assists table with 13 while also notching up 3 goals. It was quite a wonderful sight to see the Old Lady with her head held high, as Del Piero held aloft the scudetto, just 5 seasons after their relegation to Serie B.

Who scripted that?

 ‘AgueroOoOoOoOoOoOo!’

The most exhilarating, adrenaline-overflowing, blood-pressure-rise inciting season had the most fitting finale ever, living up to its billing of the best Premier League season ever. The last matchday saw United and City tied on top, City leading on goal difference. Neither could slip up, though their victory was in the hands of the other. United finished the job handed to them, beating Sunderland comfortably as attention turned to the Etihad. The Premier League would go down to the last few seconds. QPR had taken the lead, 1-2, and in stoppage time, goals from Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero(oOoOoOoOoOoO) meant that City would fend off their Red rivals to win their first domestic championship after 44 years. It left everyone catching their breath after perhaps the greatest season of English domestic football ever.

Real Madrid emerge Champions of Spain

Los Blancos won a their 32nd La Liga title, fending off fierce rivals Barcelona, and extending their record of La Liga titles. Mourinho’s team did it in style too, beating a whole load of records, with 100 points in one season, a goal difference of +89, 121 goals scored and 32 overall wins. This was the first time Barcelona, under Guardiola had failed to win  the La Liga and Pep decided it was time to take a holiday.

Champions of Europe.

Chelsea beat Bayern in their own backyard

Chelsea emerged Champions of Europe, just months after they were facing elimination at the hands of Napoli. In a brilliant turnaround of fortunes, the English team conceded on 83 minutes to Thomas Mueller’s header, though Didier Drogba equalised with a thumping header of his own 5 minutes later. It would go to a shootout after ex-Blue Arjen Robben missed a penalty in extra time. A German missed a penalty (cue shocked face), Didier Drogba buried his and an English team had just beaten a German team, ON PENALTIES. (cue extremely shocked face). A big debate would follow on whether Chelsea’s use of ultra-defensive tactics to win was justified or not, but all the Blues cared about was that they’d won the Big-Ears after years of heartbreak, becoming the first London team to do so and Di Matteo, becoming the first interim manager to win it.

 Euro 2012 kicks off, England lose on penalties AGAIN, Pirlo dazzles 

As the club football season came to a close, Euro 2012 began, with club mates going against each other for their countries. The shock of the group stages was the elimination of the Netherlands, who with Europe’s two domestic top scorers were hot favourites for the title. England faced Italy in the quarterfinals in what was a game dominated well and truly by the Italians. It went to penalties, as it always does with England, and the English could simply not master the technique and ability to keep a cool head and score from 12 yards. The Italians won 4-2, with Pirlo mentally crushing Joe Hart with a beautiful Panenka penalty, setting up the stage for Alessandro Diamanti to slot home and send Italy to the semis.

The Eden Hazard Saga

Eden Hazard was the epicentre of a transfer earthquake that unfolded. Initial reports claimed that Arsene Wenger had already struck up a deal for him, while a few weeks later it was ‘confirmed’ he will be heading to one of the Manchester clubs, reports then alleged Chelsea had become the sudden favourites after their Champions League victory, especially with ex-Blue Joe Cole also at Lille during that time. All we can do is pity the guy, blamed for being arrogant when all the stories were coined by the media. Hazard made history with the very announcement of his next club; he became the first ever footballer to announce which club he’d be heading to, through social-networking site Twitter. He did end up going to Chelsea, for 32 million pounds, becoming their 2nd most expensive buy. (We all know who the first is.)

No surprises here, Spain all the way.

Spain win the Euro again, Torres wins Golden Boot

This team was made to break records. They shred the Italian defence – not something you hear everyday – with Silva and Alba putting the Spaniards ahead in the first 45, while Torres and Juan Mata finished the job at the end of the 2nd. By doing so, Spain became the first team to win two consecutive Euros and three consecutive international tournaments, and it was also the greatest winning margin ever in the history of the Euros. Fernando Torres won the Golden Boot, though he was tied on 3 goals with 6 other players, but he had one assist to his name too, the final goal in the finals. Mario Gomez also had 3 goals and a goal but he’d played 281 minutes, compared to Torres’ 189 minutes on pitch.

Playing for the crest on the front..

In Spain, there’s a popular saying that goes, “Quien mucho abarca poco aprieta”, which roughly translates to “He who takes too much upon himself can’t do justice to all his duties”

I bet Xavi Hernandez would beg to differ.

Taking up the role of chief orchestrator, set-piece specialist, shield in front of the rearguard and captain occassionally, Xavi is one of the few who’ve almost never failed to perform on the big stage consistently. Standing at a mere 5’7″, Xavi’s dominance on the pitch contradicts his size – he imposes himself on every single move of the match, each pass, each attack, and each fallback.

Xavi and his idol and future manager, Pep Guardiola. The two have undergone intensive comparison for their style and infuence

In the wake of the millenium, as one Catalan legend was nearing the end of his glorious career, a to-be legend was just entering the frame, still wet behind the ears. In the 1998-99 season, Spain woke up to the first signs of the legend under progress, as Louis van Gaal eased the youngster into the first team, after bouts of featuring for both the reserves and the senior team. 26 appearances and a La Liga trophy later, Xavi Hernandez had made a firm impression on all those who tuned in to Spanish football, and his ‘La Liga Breakthrough Player Of The Year’ award was to be a sign of things to come.

An injury to Pep Guardiola – Xavi’s idol and future manager – in the following season meant that the 19-year old was handed the reins as the first-choice playmaker. As expected, Xavi – whose immaculate passing and ingenious vision had already raised the bar for him – was expected to fill the not-so-small boots left by Guardiola. With comparisons between the two seeming never-ending, suddenly the 19-year old had bucketloads of expectations to fulfill – expectations that were coming in from all corners. Xavi has even admitted himself that he struggled to get rid of the comparisons, even long into his playing days.

“People initially drew constant comparisons between me and Guardiola – I struggled to shake that off. To be valued and respected for the way I play was a real battle, especially when Van Gaal used us in the same position and compared us at press conferences. It was hard having to compete against my idol.”

As life would have it, his very idol would be his true mentor, even after hanging up his boots – this time as a manager. It was Pep who helped Xavi blossom to his peak, to not only fill his own boots but to even go beyond them and create a niche of his own, overtaking the very person he’d dreamed of playing with. Xavi was no longer the ‘new Guardiola’; Guardiola was the ‘old Xavi’.

In the early 2000s, when the Catalan club was going through bankruptcy, rose Xavi the leader. One of the first names on the teamsheet, Xavi was used in a more defensive, pivot-like role, whose main objective was to break down the opposition’s attack. But Xavi has never been one to be content with one duty. Over two seasons, Xavi made 20 assists and scored 7 goals, establishing himself firmly at the club.

Fast forward a few years and there was a whole new star-studded era at Camp Nou, with the likes of Ronaldinho and Deco in midfield. But Xavi? The glam factor was high at Barcelona, but among them was a humble man that Barcelona could just not do without. As the titles came and the individual honours rolled in high in number, the ‘stars’ faltered, but the humble man kept doing what he did best. The humble man fought on; he was never comfortable in the glamour section, and never wanted to venture there either. A man never spotted at late-night clubs or high-end parties, Xavi is the quintessence of keeping your head down and working.

2008 arrived, and the world was finally beginning to notice Xavi. Instrumental in Spain’s Euro triumph – their first trophy in more than 60 years – and voted Best Player Of The Tournament (quite rightly), people were finally starting to appreciate the importance of Xavi in rotating the cogs that made the team work. Providing the assist for Fernando Torres‘ decisive goal in the finals, the Catalan quite literally ran rings around the Germans. Xavi was vital to Barcelona’s treble in the 2008-09 season, making the tackles, sending the through balls and pulling the strings that made Barcelona click. 29 assists later, Xavi was finally getting the share of limelight he’d always deserved.

And then there was the infamous ‘The World’s Best Players… and Xavi’ caption that one popular newspaper gave after the Catalan midfielder was one of five nominees for the FIFA World Player Of The Year. Disrespectful? Definitely. Did it affect Xavi? Not one bit.

2009 came, and he was back to what he does best, giving his blood and sweat for Barcelona. Xavi was in many ways Pep Guardiola’s translator to the team. What the coach wanted, Xavi delivered and moreover, made his teammates deliver. The sheer intelligence of this man was perhaps the most vital reason behind Barcelona’s supposed invincibility.

In the following years, trophies seemed to stick to Barcelona like iron to a magnet, and Xavi rarely missed a match. The Catalans were a goal-scoring machine and though most of their goals were scored by Messi, the main force behind these goals were Xavi, who was involved at some point in the movement leading to every single one of those goals.

The 2010 World Cup was one in which we saw Xavi replicate his club form for Spain, and it was not hard to see why his presence in the Barcelona midfield has culminated in so many trophies. A 90% pass completion rate over the course of the tournament, 80.2 km covered, and most importantly, the World Cup won.

The Passfather

A journalist had this to say about Xavi following a series of masterclass performances: “Quite simply the best midfielder of modern era. World class for several years now, it is the past three seasons in particular where the 30-year-old has been untouchable. Xavi’s passing is up there with Platini, he creates countless goals with genius through balls while virtually never relinquishing possession.”

The summer of 2011 saw the return of Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona and the uprising of Thiago Alcantara. They said Xavi’s time was over, that he’d soon be dropped to the bench while the youngsters took hold of the side’s central midfield. What did happen? Xavi just grew in stature, and as the youngsters failed to perform on occassion, one man was always there to save the day. One man always put in the perfect shift. December of 2011, at the Club World Cup, we saw Xavi – all 31 years of him – provide a magical assist for Lionel Messi. He controlled the ball with his ankle, after which he sent a perfectly weighted ball to Lionel Messi, who duly scored.

The following summer, Xavi again led Spain to another Euro victory, and now the senior most player in a highly talented midfield, his experience on the field proved invaluable. Providing two assists in the final against Italy, he proved to us that he has perhaps been one of the most consistent players ever, playing an identical through ball for Torres to score. Deja vu, much?

He isn’t the biggest of players. He isn’t the fastest. He isn’t the most skilled in terms of flashy feints or snazzy turns. But what he doesn’t have, he makes up for with his unbelievable passing range and impeccable vision, not to mention a high stamina and the highest work rate. Watching him send in a long ball that cuts through the opponent’s defence like a well-sharpened machete is simply orgasmic. For all his talents, he doesn’t even need to run on field, such is the confidence he himself holds in his ball control. He can walk past players – the ball remains glued to the feet in such fashion.

Mr. Consistent has 708 appearances for Barcelona B and Barcelona combined, and 117 for Spain, with over 180 career assists and 93 career goals. Xavi is the Spanish player to have won the most number of trophies, ahead of the likes of Iker Casillas and Carles Puyol. He still remains an untouchable, un-sackable cog in the Barcelona midfield with 7 assists to his name already this season. A Barcelona Greatest XI without Xavi would just be wrong. Apparently, the first instruction a manager gives his team when they’re playing Barcelona is to lock and limit Xavi’s movement, and not Messi’s. Because when you close up Xavi, Messi’s – why, everyone else’s – movement automatically follows suit.

Ball Control Level – Xavi.

But Xavi doesn’t reserve all plaudits for himself: “Without the players making good moves for me, without the control of the ball I’ve been taught throughout my career then my passes would be nothing.”

Xavi is one player who has never seen the smoke of controversy, never seen at clubs, never seen in a fight on field. His calm head and air of composure is perhaps one of the reasons behind his success. A Barcelona player for 21 years now, Xavi’s possession of the ‘Barca DNA’ is another reason why his status at Camp Nou goes beyond legendary, as Pep Guardiola pointed out:

“Xavi is a player who has the Barcelona DNA: someone who has the taste for good football, someone who is humble and someone who has loyalty to this club; from the first moment I saw him play, I knew he would become the brain behind Barcelona for many years to come. He plays very well, much better then I ever played, even when I was at my best.”

“You must become more than just a man in the mind of your opponent,” said R’as Al Ghul in the first instalment of the Batman trilogy. And Xavi, I have to say, is perhaps the perfect embodiment of someone who has achieved that. Despite a measly height of 170 cm, Xavi makes up for it with his Colossus-like presence on field.

Xavi Hernandez is definitely more than a man in the minds of anyone who faces him on field, he is the ‘Puppet Master’.

Xavi Hernandez is the engine, brakes and steering wheel – all in one.

Xavi Hernandez is the Master Orchestrator.

In the aftermath of the controversial Chelsea-United match, which saw referee Mark Clattenburg dish out two red cards to two Chelsea players, one in especially acrimonious fashion, and a supposedly offside goal (which turned out to be the winner), there has been a fiery outburst by many Chelsea fans and even some Arsenal and Liverpool fans against Manchester United supposedly ‘buying’ referees and the FA being controlled by United. There have been memes, trolls and rages aplenty against the Manchester club, with the common ones involving Sir Alex Ferguson (apparently FA = Ferguson Association) and Howard Webb, and recent victims being Mark Halsey and Mark Clattenburg.

As far as Barcelona goes, there is always that one match that stands out for me. The 2008-09 Champions League clash at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea, which it is sufficient to say, was a refereeing disaster for Tom Henning Ovrebo. Both sides had clear-cut decisions being ruled out, but Chelsea fans felt more unfairly treated as the tie eventually saw Barcelona go through to the final – which they won – courtesy an Andres Iniesta away goal, which cancelled out Essien’s wonderful strike.

This, and many, many incidents after that too, have seen the Catalan team being victimised by a lot of fans. They deem it ‘funny’, creating trolls and adding captions that indicate that UEFA is biased to Barcelona – resulting in a new term, ‘Uefalona’ being coined. There are images of Barcelona players who were just talking to referees, but the heroes of the Internet turn them into Barcelona players ‘ordering’ the number of cards and penalties they want against the opposition, much like a customer placing an order to the waiter. Oh, so hilarious.

Firstly, as a football fan, I was appalled. It’s nice to have some banter here and there but at the virulent rate at which this seems to be growing, it’s quite unhealthy for football and the camaraderie between fans of different clubs. We have Arsenal and Liverpool and various other fans on one side, who accuse United of ‘buying referees’ and Barcelona of buying UEFA. On the other side, we have United and Barcelona, who feel victimised and accuse the others of blindly charging them of doing such things when they cannot match their level of football. And in the centre of everything, we have Chelsea, who have had intense rivalry against both these teams in recent history, thanks in no part to refereeing decisions. I do not mean to generalize the clubs’ fans, but on social networks, this is how the story goes most of the time.

I am a Chelsea fan, yes. But I am a football fan before that. If the opposition plays better football, I’m usually the first to applaud them, and though I will be disappointed with my team’s performance, I don’t usually detrude the other team. Against Manchester United recently, I was horrified at some decisions, yes, because it was a vital match; during the match itself, as for any Chelsea match, I wear blue-tinted glasses while watching.

That however, does not go beyond the match, after which the blue-tinted glasses are put back neatly into their case. As I analysed Chelsea’s below-par day out, I realised that though Hernandez’s (offside?) winner was decisive, and maybe Torres’ sending off was questionable, as there might have been contact, the match only had one real turning point – Ivanovic’s red card. After sitting bleary-eyed in the wee hours after the match, replaying Youtube videos of the crucial incidents, I was sure that Ivanovic’s red card was indeed the right decision. He did hinder Ashley Young‘s path to the goal and it was a goal-scoring chance. Having sent off James Milner for a similar tackle, Clattenburg would be questioned for consistency if he didn’t brandish the red card to the mighty Serbian, who had possibly been Chelsea’s most solid defender up to that point.

The loss of any defender hinders the team’s progress. An unsettled defence is any striker’s dream and Ferguson, being the mastermind he is, made the decision I myself was dreading – bringing on a poacher like Javier Hernandez, who would’ve been rubbing his hands like a little kid at the possible prospects. Though Torres’ sending off crippled Chelsea’s chances of winning the tie, maybe with Ivanovic still at the back, they could’ve got a point and kept their unbeaten streak alive.

Away from that and to the point, I’d like to ask every single one of you out there who has ever accused any team of buying and bribing referees or certain organisations: do YOU have any evidence? Do you have a video of Sandro Rosell sneaking in a stash of notes into Michel Platini’s hands? Do you have a telephonic conversation between Sir Alex and Howard Webb, where the Scotsman demands of the latter that certain decisions go their way in a match? No? Too bad then, but it seems your accusations are just completely, totally, unequivocally baseless and false.

Just because certain decisions went their way in some key matches in the past, does not mean these teams buy the referees. On their part, I’ve always felt sorry for United and Barcelona. There is absolutely nothing they can do if a decision of a red card or a penalty goes against them. Sometimes, there are players like Miroslav Klose, who tells the ref that he did handle the ball when the decision goes  in his favour, or Robbie Fowler, who refused the penalty awarded when it seemed like David Seaman had brought him down. But it is human nature and instinct to not argue with the referee’s decision if it is in your favour and more so, it is quite close for you to decide yourself. After all, referees are trained for this and it’s best to let them do their job.

If the referee awards certain decisions against your team in favour of United, Barcelona or any other team for that matter, why do you go out all guns blazing on the team? There’s not much they can do about the referee’s decision, can they? They are only looking to win the match or gain maximum points out of the situation. Some mistakes are just bound to happen, you cannot avoid them. Referees are human after all, and do make mistakes. They are trained not to, but sometimes, there are somethings that you don’t see coming, there are some things that just happen. Referees do not have a 360 degree view, they do not have laser eyes to detect offside players or if the ball crossed the line or not, they don’t even have the luxury of reviewing the incident on the field of play. Mistakes are bound to happen, and it is time we incorporated some technology into a game that is the most followed source of entertainment around the globe.

Howard Webb, Mark Clattenburg and Phil Dowd are all great referees and they’ve refereed hundreds of games in their career fairly and justly. They’ve made fair decisions in tough situations, and made some very good decisions about the ball crossing the line or not. But I guess that is the thing about being a referee. When you’re good, no one remembers; when you’re bad, no one forgets.

I’m not preaching here. I’m just saying, spare a thought for the others before unleashing your wrath on them. Football associations are as transparent as possible and referees are humans like us. No one is perfect. Most of the jokes about referees and bribing are not funny; sometimes they’re just pathetic. Football is our sport. In the end, we’re all football fans before we’re ‘devils’ or ‘reds’ or ‘gunners’ or ‘blues’. Let’s not let this destroy the camaraderie. Refereeing fiascos? Let them pass; believe in your team.

Long live football!

LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 05: Florent Malouda of Chelsea is tackled by Antonio Valencia of Manchester United during the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on February 5, 2012 in London, England.

Two teams that have dominated their domestic league over the last decade or so. Two teams that almost never fail to produce controversy when they go head-to-head. Two teams which have in some aspects been the complete opposite of the other. Two teams containing players that hold personal vendettas against each other.

Sounds like the ‘El Clasico’ between Madrid and Barcelona, doesn’t it?

Well, actually I was referring to Chelsea-United matches in the recent past. Now, go back and look at the description again, it DOES seem to apply for this London vs Manchester fixture, doesn’t it?

Most of the past Premier League victories have seen a three points gained from these fixtures, with the exception maybe being last year when Chelsea looked jaded in the League and Manchester City emerged as a real domestic power. The most clear cut case of this fixture deciding the victor of the Premier League would probably be during the 2009/10 season. When the Blues took on the Devils in April 2010, both were neck-to-neck at the top of the table, with United ahead by just two points.

A win for the Devils would see them go five points ahead but a win for Chelsea would mean they would jump ahead of United and further intensify the business end of the Premier League. Chelsea emerged victorious, with goals from Joe Cole and (an offside) Didier Drogba. Both teams won the rest of their matches and Chelsea won the title by a margin of one point – the closest margin before last year’s goal-difference margin for City.

Rewind back a few years, to the 2005-06 season, when both the sides took to the field at Stamford Bridge in April again. If Chelsea were to pick up three points, they would successfully retain their Premier League title in their centenary year.

And they did, with goals courtesy of Gallas, Ricardo Carvalho and Joe Cole, winning 3-0 and sealing the Barclays Premier League – the last Jose Mourinho would win before being sacked in 2007.

This fixture holds a lot more significance than it’s usually made out to be, especially when it arrives at the start of the season. Although, the April fixture has usually decided the outcome of the Premier League, this start-of-season classic does hold significance, and more often than not, the first such fixture sets the tone for the rest.

Most notably, in 2007/08, when United got three points at the Theatre of Dreams and raced into a comfortable lead. Chelsea won the return fixture but United went on to win the title by two points, which might not have been possible if they had slipped up at the beginning. Last year, though it did not affect the title much, the fixture at Old Trafford which United won 3-1 and is remembered more for that infamous Torres miss than for the rest of the game, was the start of the form slump that eventually saw Andre Villas Boas get sacked.

Lucky us, for we have two of such matches in the space of four days. <Rubs hands greedily>

First comes the league match-up, on Sunday. Right games into the season, this fixture is another ‘Super Sunday’ match and serves as a crucible for both sides in terms of their title ambitions this time round. Mentally, Sir Alex will look to exploit the inexperience of Roberto Di Matteo at this level, though it might be hard to cut through the composure and calmness of the Italian. As far as team news goes, Chelsea are, of course, without John Terry through suspension and Frank Lampard through injury, so the Blues would be expected to field the same team as they did against Spurs. For United, Kagawa, Phil Jones, Lindegaard and Smalling are out through injury, but the two up front in Rooney and Van Persie will be looking to give the Chelsea defence a headache. On the other hand, Sir Alex will be splitting hairs about containing the creative triumvirate of Oscar, Hazard and Mata. Hazard and Mata have contributed to 68.4% of Chelsea’s goals this term and Juan Mata of course is a man on fire with six assists and six goals in his last six matches.

All in all, both of these immensely talented sides will take to field, vying for those three points as Chelsea look to extend their lead and United look to close the gap. Let’s hope for a match of the highest level.

Come Sunday, may the best team win!

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/10/27/chelsea-vs-man-utd-the-el-clasico-of-england/feed/ 0 07734 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/27/the-final-reply-from-the-fa/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/09/27/the-final-reply-from-the-fa/#comments Wed, 26 Sep 2012 18:50:35 +0000 Priya Ramesh http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=771803

Dear Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea,

Greetings! You may have heard of us, we are the FA, who in case you are not aware, are responsible for the actions of every single one of you. The recent flux of letters travelling between Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium and recently Stamford Bridge has, let’s say, not gone unnoticed by us.

We knew United’s letter had been raillery. If I were to ask Piers Morgan, he would tell us that United already have the alliance of ‘Arsenal’, after acquiring the player-who-shall-not-be-named-and-yet-is-referred-to-immensely-in-the-letters ‘s services this summer. You see, as a result of your actions, the FA has been reduced to even mentioning Morgan in a letter. Nonetheless, we found the open letter sort of entertaining, a small escape from the legal proceedings. However, Arsenal took it as hypocritical, again highlighting the fact that United have the cheek to request an alliance after luring away your club captain and player of the last season. The letter even received some stick from loyalist Mancunians, who believed that they didn’t need the alliance of a ‘trophyless-for-years-now team’.

The fire had not just been lit, but the coals had been stoked.

To summarise the subsequent actions, the first letter gained response soon, from the targeted audience, as Arsenal hit back, rejecting the request once and for all. The points mentioned in the letter had hit out hard at the Devils, in a critical tone and surely harsher than the initial letter from United. It was met by a flux of letters criticising each other and even contradicting their previous letters, reminiscent of two middle-aged men hammering away at one another in a stuffy bar in downtown London. We waited, blindly hoping that you would make up and stop this increasingly immature altercation.

The intervention of Chelsea, though was highly uncalled for, to put it simply. We directly address you, Chelsea Football Club, when we say that you crossed the line – by surely more than a distance which would spark up the goalline tech debate – in your letter addressing United and Arsenal. As a founding member of the Premier League, a previous winner and current league leader, it would suffice to say that we were highly disappointed with the content and tone of your letter.  As the Champions League holder, you would be expected to resolve this matter maturely and responsibly. You called yourself a ‘big boy’, made several baseless accusations (as Arsenal and United had also directed at each other) and ended off with an air of pompousness.

Manchester United, we respect you as one of the clubs with the richest histories in England and we would like you to make your mind up about whether the first letter was a practical joke or not. If it was, we’d like you to reflect upon whether such a letter was required in the circumstances. The Premier League is no laughing business and you, as a veteran of all 20 years, would know that. If it was not a joke, we’d like you to ponder over why you need such an alliance when both teams are performing exceptionally well. Moreover, if it truly was not a joke, why were you quick to defend it in your answer to Arsenal’s reply?

Arsenal, you are truly respected by us as well, and we have to be frank in saying you were a bit harsh in your replies to United and did not have to resort to criticising them to the extent you did.

And Chelsea, we have only one thing to say to you. Don’t poke your nose into other’s matters, no one is a ‘big boy’ in the Premier League.

To all clubs out there, stay well out of matters that do not regard you and be your own critic before offering your invaluable feedback about others; even Premier League clubs need to have certain codes of conduct.

Yours sincerely,

The Football Association

Disclaimer – This piece is a work of fiction, and should not be regarded as real.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are club legends at Liverpool and Chelsea respectively. Both are, in some ways, mystifyingly similar; both renowned for long-range shooting, high assists tallies, high goalscoring midfielders, like to go on late runs and are both set-piece experts. The duo have been the driving force behind their clubs and are looked up to as role-models and inspiring leaders.

Neither of the two are self-centred and hold no rivalry against each other. Yet, how is it possible that two of the best central midfielders England has produced, can not play alongside each other?

Actually, they can perfectly fit in together. And would have formed a formidable partnership in the middle, to say the least, for the Three Lions. Rather than the players not cooperating, it was down to the managers. Sven Goran Eriksson, though voicing his opinion about the duo, could not fit them into a 4-5-1 during his time. It was a time when both midfielders were at the peak of their careers and raring to attack. Eriksson implemented a formation where Hargreaves sat in front of the defence, allowing both Stevie Gerrard and Frank to maraud down the field and prove their attacking prowess. Boosted by the confidence instilled in them by Eriksson, both spent a lot of their time attacking at will. There were times when Gerrard and Lampard were so far up in attack that a pacy counter by the opposition would leave a gaping hole in the centre of the park with their rearguard exposed.

‘They can both do it [play holding midfielder] but it is a question in their heads. Do they like to do it? Are they prepared to do it? We have never talked about it,’ said Sven Goran Eriksson

You should have talked about it with them, Sven.

The fact that Gerrard and Lampard were strikingly similar in their mentality was something that baffled managers. They were younger but both were equally mature and held responsibilities. After the failure of the 4-5-1, when made to play in the 4-4-2, neither of the two wanted to venture upfield for the fact that they were aware of the liabilities from their experience in playing the 4-5-1. Hence, neither went forward to do what they were best at and sat behind, moving the ball around the middle. Instead of sitting down for talks with Gerrard and Lampard, Eriksson wore out the FA’s patience with his constant formation changes and failure to reach the Euro 2008 Finals.

At the World Cup in 2010, Fabio Capello did play both Lampard and Gerrard in the same team, though they were not playing beside each other in the centre. Lampard was paired with Barry in the middle while Gerrard was made to operate on the flank. But Barry and Lampard never really formed an understanding and Gerrard playing in the flanks instead of down the centre, making those killer tackles seemed like a waste of resources. Back to the drawing board, but the clock was already ticking for Capello.

Enter Hodgson. He’s sort of revolutionized and galvanized an under-performing and under-achieving England side and injected a fresh shot of much-needed youth and energy into the team. Against Moldova, he played Gerrard and Lampard in the centre. Both had changed and gone through much since the last time they were paired in the middle. Their legs were wearing out and they saw themselves fighting for, previously assured, starting places.  Lampard had been used in the holding role for most of the previous season by Chelsea and Gerrard, having previously played there, also knew what the role demanded out of him.

Against Moldova, it was nice to see one of the most talked-about-but-never-happened partnerships bear fruit. Gerrard and Lampard were both comfortable on the ball and seemed, I dare say, to be enjoying playing alongside each other. Lampard took the penalty that gave England an early lead and Gerrard played a vital role in the build up to Lampard’s 2nd goal. Lampard seemed happy to lay off the ball into Gerrard’s path for a set piece on the edge of the box – a position from which he could have taken a fair shot – while Gerrard was satisfied to hand over the captain’s armband to the Chelsea midfielder after being withdrawn for Michael Carrick.

CHISINAU, MOLDOVA – SEPTEMBER 07: Frank Lampard celebrates scoring to make it 2-0 with Steven Gerrard during the FIFA 2014 World Cup qualifier match between Moldova and England at Zimbru Stadium on September 7, 2012 in Chisinau, Moldova. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

It does delight a football fan to see the two Premier League legends play together, but Gerrard is 32 and Lampard, 34. Isn’t it a bit too late, now that Roy seems to have the key to the mystery? The emergence of youngsters like Tom Cleverley, Jack Wilshere and so on might mean that Lampard may be resigned to a place on the bench for England; Gerrard – as captain – still remains indispensable asset to the England side as, with all due respect, he still has at least 2 years of more football left in him than Lampard. However, Lampard’s days aren’t all behind him. His recent form at Chelsea has proved that he can continuously prove his critics wrong. And as for Gerrard, his old, yet strong legs can still create a beautifully weighted pass for the front-man, or pray, even Lampard to finish off in one of his trademark runs. These two are still very much essential in the squad, if England are to ensure that the baton is passed onto the youngsters in time for Rio; they will be vital in sharing valuable experiences and guiding the ones still wet behind the ears.

Gerrard and Lampard may not make it to Rio 2014; but in the buildup, let’s just sit back and feast our eyes on a partnership that finally seems to be blossoming.

David William Moyes. Proud Scotsman, Everton manager and a financial mastermind.

If any of you happen to be investors or in the financial field or just some random teenager, finding it hard to manage your spending when on minimal allowance, feel free to take inspiration from this man. We’ve seen it almost every single transfer window in recent history, where David Moyes is given the least budget possible by his bosses and yet manages to sign a few gems of players.

The third longest-serving manager after Sir Alex and Monsieur Arsene, Moyes arrived at Goodison in 2002, when the club were treading in nowhere-land after the board had just sacked Walter Smith after putting up with his measly bottom-half finishes for three consecutive seasons. Enter Moyes. He transforms Everton into a regular top-eight club, putting up a small bid for the Champions League spot (and getting it in 2005), and going on scintillating runs in the other domestic competitions too (2009 FA Cup = mindblown!).

For me personally, Everton have got to be one of the most underrated teams of all time, managed rightly by one of the most underrated managers! Every time Chelsea visit Goodison Park, my pulse rate is just a bit more higher than any other Premier League club; I just cross my fingers for that much more longer than usual. Moyes has created a fortress at the Goodison and rightly so. His philosophy has always been to ensure that his team don’t concede much, which is why many of the times you see Everton play, you can always notice that even if they don’t win much on their bad days, they always somehow squeeze out a draw. On their good days, it is a whole different ball game, though.

Those of you who profess to be Wayne Rooney fanatics, you better give Moyes his due credit. Moyes facilitated Rooney signing his first ever professional contract for the Toffees. It was under his management that the teenage Rooney broke in magnificent fashion into the first team, eventually scoring the goal that broke Arsenal‘s 30 match unbeaten run and stripping to unveil that he was, ahem, ‘once a blue, always a blue’ . Moyes eventually lost his young star to Manchester United, but it didn’t deter him from continuing his Everton mission.

In the summer of 2004, Moyes used the money profited by the club from the Rooney deal to bring in what fans consider his most prolific signing – the pocket-dynamo, Aussie Grit, Tim Cahill. 68 goals and 38 assists in 250-odd appearances and especially a few notable ones in Merseyside derbies and Cahill became a cult hero and club legend. All this, at only 1.5 million pounds. Quite a bargain. But then again, this IS Moyes, we’re talking about.

Moyes has a certain panache for bargains, and more often that not, they turn out to be extremely successful. Call it luck, if you want, but I’d prefer to call it Moyes’ golden touch. Let’s take Maruoane Fellaini, he was bought for 15 million pounds, only. Yet in the recently concluded transfer window, some of the top clubs in England including Manchester United and Chelsea were reported to be chasing the Belgian to acquire his signature and services for fees of around 25-30 million. 4 years with Moyes and Fellaini’s value doubles. Still think it’s luck? Mikel Arteta was bought for a mere 2 million from Real Sociedad. A few years on and with a touch of Moyes magic, Arsenal buy him on a ‘bargain’ deadline day deal for 10 million.

Let’s take a more famous recent chase for an Everton player; Manchester United, ready to splash any amount of cash for leftback Leighton Baines. The Red Devils were ready to offer 20 million and even stretched it to 25 million at a certain point of time – just to get the Englishman in a red shirt next season. His price when Moyes acquired him? 5 million. Jagielka is yet another benefactor of the ‘Moyes effect’. He was bought for 4 million and just a few seasons back, Arsenal were desperate to sign him for 15 million.

Moyes also has a knack of picking up players who seem to be left out or out of contention for regular starting places at top clubs. He picked up club captain Phil Neville and goalkeeper Tim Howard, both from Manchester United for 3.5 and 3 million respectively. He re-signed Steven Pienaar after it was evident that he was not conducive to White Hart Lane. Johnny Heitinga was not getting starts at Atletico and Moyes immediately snapped up the Dutchman for 6.4 million. All of these 4 are now mainstays in the Everton XI. Master-strokes? Most surely.

A watchful and shrewd investor, Moyes also knows exactly what type of talent to invest in. A great supporter of the Everton youth system, his stint has seen the emergence of bright talents such as the recently departed Jack Rodwell, striker Victor Anichebe and Ross Barkley to name a few. His most recent master-stroke signing would happen to be Croatian Nikica Jelavic. The former Rangers man signed in the January 2011 window for 5 million only, and yet, already has 12 goals to his name in only 19 appearances for the Toffees.

David Moyes really is a ‘perfect’ manager if there ever was one. Despite having to work with one of the tightest budgets in the Premier League, where you have clubs bankrolled by billionaires, he’s just put his head down, gotten to the job and done built a magnificent and capable team. Everything, without complaining one tad. He’s got extraordinary talent at keeping the squad together – never do you hear of an Everton player speaking against his gaffer. Moyes’ Everton have been exceptional so far, that it is hard not to imagine how good they really would be if Moyes just had some more money to work with. The prospect, almost seems scary for non-Everton fans.

For such an exceptional manager, he’s never really had his fair share of the spotlight, to be honest. Given Everton’s rich history, maybe they should be aiming bigger and reaching higher. Maybe they’re undermining themselves. Maybe, that’s all they can do on the constrained budget they’ve been offered. But under Moyes, you can be assured that even if they aren’t always challenging for trophies, they will always give you one hell of a tough fight. And though his managerial CV lacks a major trophy with Everton – which I hope is not too far away – Moyes deserves all the credit he gets and more for the splendiferous work he’s done so far at Goodison Park.

Here’s to one of the greatest managers to have graced the Premier League.. David William Moyes!

A year on from when Andre Villas Boas’ honeymoon period at Chelsea was coming to a close. A year on from when Andre Villas Boas progressed from ‘Prodigy’ and ‘Mourinho v2.0′ to a person who is widely credited as putting Chelsea on self-destruct mode. A year on from all that chaos he conjured at Chelsea, he has returned in the white of North London and the inevitable question returns too – has Andre Villas Boas learnt his lesson?

Spurs and Daniel Levy thought so, taking a gamble on last year’s bid for ‘Most Epic Fail Signing’ and ‘Most Hated Manager of the Year’ to lead them through a season where they should’ve and would’ve been playing Champions League football, only for karma to bite ‘AvB’ on the butt and for Chelsea to ‘kick’ Spurs out of Europe by magically rising from the ashes and the abyss at where the Portuguese left them. The Chelsea manager seat has to be one of the hottest ones around and managing a team full of big-personality players as old as you, would have been an extremely daunting task for Andre Villas Boas. And he did make mistakes. They say you are to learn from your mistakes, and after roughly 8-9 months of high-pressure life in the Premier League, surely AvB would’ve picked up a few lessons?

It seems he has not.

After his torrid time at Chelsea where he had numerous issues with many players and of course, issues among the players themselves, the first lesson AvB should’ve picked up is that maintaining a healthy and friendly atmosphere in the dressing room is inevitable when it comes to the Premier League. Competing in the world’s most-followed league means that there are sure to be one or two volatile egos peeking out of a corner here and there, ready to explode at any given moment. It is also important to create a sense of camaraderie among the players – a sense of team spirit and understanding. In the last two games, it was practically protruding out of the TV and poking you on the face that there was no single sliver of understanding between the Spurs players. And not all of them were extremely impressive individually either. Hmph. Maybe it was due to the flurry of deadline buys. Maybe they had no ‘time’. Maybe, it’s AvB. His lack of control over his dressing room was evident at Chelsea and it may just be deja vu at Spurs.

Secondly, he has forgotten that in order to get a world-class team, you must always work from the back. As the saying goes, ‘Strikers win games; Defenders win championships”. AvB has not realised that unless you have an extremely efficient midfield and forward line like Barcelona or an extremely dependable defence and a world-class goalkeeper, you should probably refrain from using the high line in the Premier League. It was quite evident in his first few games at Chelsea (vs West Brom and vs Norwich) that the high line tends to tarnish your defensive reputation. Chelsea were known to be one of the most resolute defences in the league. Even when they finished runners up to United the previous season, they had a stellar defensive record. Under AvB and his fluid highline ideologies, they started leaking goals like a haemophilic person bleeding. Against Norwich, they lacked fluidity, understanding and looked nothing like the exciting Spurs of last season that (almost) made it to the Champions League.

Under Harry, Spurs looked like a team possessed. They had the speed demon twins of Bale and Lennon rampaging down their flanks, Luka Modric bossing over the midfield and van der Vaart being his usual clinical self in front of goal. This season, they have lost van der Vaart and Modric and failed to really replace them with people of equal stature. Holding onto Bale would’ve been considered an achievement by itself, but by the look of the starvation of balls both he and Lennon are undergoing on the wings, it may be for nothing. AvB has always been a stubborn man and he’s been exceptionally such about playing Defoe upfront. When Bale and Lennon whip in those dangerous crosses (when they get the ball, which happens to be seldom), they want to look for a daunting physique, of perhaps an Emmanuel Adebayor or a Peter Crouch. However, all they get in reality is the ‘petite’ 5’7″ of Jermain Defoe, a player whose form is, ahem, inconsistent.

Andre Villas Boas was given a chance and couldn’t prove his original billing of ‘Special One v2.0′ at Stamford Bridge. And so far, he does not seem to be doing it at White Hart Lane either. So, unless AvB finds a Bodhi tree at the Lane and receives sudden enlightenment from the magical footballing powers above, the future seems quite bleak for Andre Villas Boas and his Spurs side..

An average Oxford dictionary would define the word ‘fan’ as ‘a person who has a strong interest in or admiration for a particular sport, art form, or famous person’. And it would be hard not to agree with this definition, to be frank. Any sport or for that matter, anything we do in the world in itself today, is born out of some desire to have people who develop a curiosity and perhaps appreciation for it. Maybe even inspire people. Once you gather attention and high regard for your work, you start to spend more time on it, striving to make it better and further supplying your new ‘fans’ with the kind of work that would further impress them.

Now, back to the topic. Let me ask you, how many of you watch the I-League? Or follow the Indian Hockey Team? Or regularly look out for updates of Sushil Kumar and MC Mary Kom and endless other boxers and wrestlers’ competitive fixture?

I-League football seems of ‘lesser’ quality to us, because we’ve just been gaping our mouths at the Champions League and shrugging off the Indian clubs. Could we do some more than that? I-League matches are reasonably priced for practically anyone to step in and enjoy the football. Seeing empty stands makes my heart convulse – Indian clubs’ football is pretty enjoyable once you start watching it extensively. We may not have the Adidas and Nike sponsored jerseys and studs of the European Leagues, only Nivia and Star Impact. We may not have strikers who look alluring (girls, this goes to you) and change their hairstyle at halftime. But people, this is our league. The Indian League. For those who have watched it, I plead you continue watching, because believe me, this sport in India has miles to go and the stars in its eyes. And to those who haven’t watched it yet, go watch one Kolkata derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan. That, my friends, is perhaps the greatest ever advertisement for the I-League.

Aah, our dear wrestlers, boxers and shooters. Those revered national heroes that seldom don’t come back with medals. Those hardworking souls whose existence we only remember once every 4 years and that too, only those who are ‘lucky’ enough to make it to the finals stages. Does anyone follow the championships that Vijender or Sushil participate in, in the void between the instalments of the Olympics? Or the records that our shooters Gagan Narang and Bindra set? If our nation’s so called sports fans been a bit aware and done some homework, they would’ve been less surprised that Vijay Kumar turned up a medallist – after all, he is the Arms Specialist of one of the most efficient armies in the world.

The Indian Hockey Team, to be honest, is in a mess like never before. And what did we do? Just sit at our plush sofas, sipping at hot coffee and shaking our heads, tut-tutting at the state of our ex-National Sport.

What can we do? “Arrey yaar, yeh India hai. Yah aisa hi hota hai aur aisa hi hota rahega”, will be the astounding reply. But, are you even trying? Imagine, in a few years, when the population watching I-League football rises exponentially, when seats at every match are sold out months beforehand, coveting for autographs of stars like Nabi, Nirmal Chhetri, Gurpreet; discarding our ‘Rooney’ and ‘Messi’ jerseys for one of ‘Jeje’ or ‘Martins’ or ‘Odafa’, preferring to watch the pre-match with Bhaichung Bhutia and Novy Kapadia instead of Paul Parker and Steve Dawson. Seems something to look forward to right? We can achieve this, only if every one of us pledges to be a fan of our own nation’s sports first.

All I want to say is, “Yeh desh badlega. Hum badlenge”

Being a Batman comic fanatic since my early childhood and an undying craze for the caped crusader recently spurred on by the absolutely mind-blowing The Dark Knight Rises, I thought, what if  football clubs were in Gotham? Wait, but Gotham doesn’t have so many big characters, does it? Sure it does. Actually it has too many of these characters. Villains. Gotham is an impossibly unnerving urban Utopia, the dark mirror of any glistening metropolis; hence requiring Batman to patrol its dark and vile streets at  night, mediating the Darwinian chaos.

So here I am, comparing those Gothamites who Batman vowed to punish, with football clubs. Why always the good guys? Try not to get confused as you read through, because in Gotham, it seems – with the exception of the dashing Dark Knight – the more evil you are, the stronger you get.

Scarecrow/ Dr Jonathan Crane – Arsenal

The Scarecrow was a well-educated man – a doctor – who developed a liking to scaring people to death in his high school days. He started working at Arkham Asylum, where he experimented on the insane to develop a ‘fear gas’. The fear gas is the Scarecrow’s primary and most effective weapon. Perhaps his only actual weapon. It brings out a person’s deepest, darkest fears but he himself – due to his mask – does  not get affected. Back to Arsenal who, perhaps, don’t ‘scare’ people to death, but their brand of elegant and fast flowing football can easily kill opposition defenders. They started working more on the Arsenal Academy, experimenting with new tactics, and techniques on young players, who could, and have gone on to play for the club, with the club’s philosophy in their blood. Their most effective ‘weapon’ is this possession game with speedy counters. When this type of game is played against them, their mask of Vermaelen and Koscielny repel it, but once the mask is gone – or injured – well, then, as the Scarecrow would know, their strategies could be used against them..

Zsasz – Liverpool

A relatively unheard of villain for most, because Zsasz is a comic-only character. He is, or rather was, a serial killer, killing in multiple numbers, and carving tally marks on his own body for each kill he made. Zsasz was an unpredictable bad guy; no one knew when he’d strike next, disproving the whole theory of serial killers having a pattern. He was also, once, the antagonist who ruled the roost – the guy who used to spur on the Dark Knight to come after him each night. But owing to the excessive use of the word ‘was’ in this paragraph, you must have realised that Zsasz is just another fragment of Gotham’s infamous history. Liverpool was once the best club in Europe, winning in multiple numbers, and carving a niche for themselves wherever they went. Liverpool is, now, quite an unpredictable team. Due to their recent mishaps, you cannot count them as contenders every single season but you can never really count them out either – due to their vast, expansive history. They were, of course, the rulers of Europe, once.

Two-Face – Chelsea

Harvey Dent’s childhood consisted of hardship. Two Face is a representation of where your emotions can take you if you don’t take control them. After Maroni threw acid at his face, scarring him partially, Dent escaped from the hospital, and descended into madness. He became obsessed with duality and opposites, and developed a second persona, the villainous Two-Face, to compliment the ‘Apollo’ Dent. As Two-Face, his trademark was crimes involving the number two. His obsession even shows in his clothes, which are usually composed of two halves made out of very different materials. At all times, he carries a double-sided coin with one side scarred, which he constantly flips to make any choices. Two-Face flips the coin at critical junctures; however, it is revealed that both sides of the coins contain the same image, and, as Dent says, ‘he makes his own luck’. Chelsea were a club in hardship, in Division Two, in their earlier seasons. After Roman (almost an anagram of ‘Maroni’) threw his money at them, they escaped from the depths of anonymity, and rose to ‘madness’. They became obsessed with buying and more buying, and the club developed two main personas – the manager (variable) and Roman (constant).  The Roman half of Chelsea has bankrolled many a player into the club while the ‘good’ manager side has tried its best to control the beastly side, and take control. As in Dent’s case, the good side has, well, failed time and again. They do however, like Dent, make their own luck. And use it well, unlike Dent.

Bane – Real Madrid

Bane, a single-minded, powerful foe weighing over 300 pounds, is most villains combined into one, and the one who broke the Bat. After wearing him out by freeing all of his twisted psychopathic enemies from the dark Arkham Asylum, Bane stalked Batman, ultimately fighting a man at the end of his rope. Cracking Bruce Wayne’s back, Bane then took control of Gotham City. Last season’s Real Madrid had a single-minded superhuman military strategist in the (in)famous Jose Mourinho – who could be a distant relative of Bane. They didn’t ‘weigh’ 300 pounds but were certainly a team worth 300 pounds – most of it in their forwardline and midfield. Real Madrid are the team that broke the Bar(celona). After freeing their psychopathic revenge-filled enemy Chelsea, Real Madrid cracked Bar(ca)’s back, taking control of Spain.

Ras Al Ghul – Man Utd

Ra’s Al Ghul is cold, calculating efficiency defined. He achieved immortality by consuming the Alchemy of his Lazarus Pit. He has terrorized generations with his apocalyptic plans, but his actions are actually guided by good intentions. He believes he can rid the world of evil by destroying every single thing on it. Man Utd. have been at the top level of football for as long as some of us can remember. Fighting time and again for the crown, living for generations due to the Alex-emy of their Fergie Pit, Man Utd – the Red Devils – make plans years in advance; their advanced youth system caters to this. Youth players who came out around 20 years ago are still tearing the world apart. Their plans include mega-deaths of top notch football clubs. They have felled tens of thousands of clubs in pursuit of their wants.

The Joker – Barcelona

A psychopath who loves killing because he finds it funny, the Joker was someone with a sadistic sense of humor, and could inflict wrath in the purest – as he demonstrated with Harvey Dent. The Clown Prince Of Crime, the Joker represented mindless anarchy, and yet orchestrated his plans to perfection, with the ever-present smile on his face. The Joker has cheated death numerous times, even in seemingly inescapable situations. Though he has been seen caught in explosions, been shot repeatedly, dropped from heights, electrocuted, etc., the Joker always manages to return fully alive, and unscathed, to wreak havoc again. Barcelona are a team that love killing off other teams because they find it joyful. The Crown Princes of Catalonia, they represent mindless football, playing with their heart. And of course, succeeding in their schemes with a sly smile. They have *ahem* cheated defeat many times. We, of course, believe them to be the Super Saiyans of footballs, a form of ultra-sensory talent. They can be a harmless side one day, and bring Armageddon to you the next, of course, going by what they need to happen. In simple words, annihilation with apple sauce on top.

There it is, Gotham’s goriest and football’s finest.

So now, why so serious? We really should stop this fighting, otherwise we’ll miss the fireworks!

It should have never gone to the Westminster Magistrates Court. The wrong two people went to court for the duration of the last 7 days. If it had to be anyone, it should have been the poor soul at Crown Prosecution Services who, after poring over a grainy, low-quality excerpt from TV footage, came to the decision that this tirade of foul-mouthed logger-headed abuses had to be pulled into a legal court. Sigh.

It was an ignominious travesty. A sordid encounter of a few hundred pages, up to the brim of disdraceful language and identical accounts from 20-odd players. It was a disgrace and frankly, a sticky wicket for both Anton Ferdinand and John Terry as well as English football – pray, football on the whole. But none more than CPS, actually; nasty own goal by the goalkeeper for CPS.

Unlike the Suarez-Evra issue, where the FA had a perfectly smooth prosecution and dished out worthy punishment to the party charged, CPS decided to wash the issue off the FA’s hands, taking it into their own,  by citing that they had ‘reliable evidence’ worthy of a high-profile case in a public court. Wow! Definitely, they’d have had some unseen footage from a TV camera which was not telecasted. Maybe a close-up video of the whole incident! Or an audio file revealing the exact exchanges! Anything other than those YouTube videos we’d all seen and heard, right?

But no, they produced the same video from the same video-sharing website. The same video which had receive an umpteen number of views on YouTube. The video which gave them NEWT video information – Nothing Extraodinary With This. The video, of low quality, caught on a camera which was more than a few metres away was never going to be especially defining in this case. It simply was not conclusive.

One of the few things Terry used in his defence was that he was simply ‘repeating’ what Ferdinand had allegedly said and that the remark was ‘sarcastic’. Sources close the ex-England captain originally claimed that  he called Ferdinand a ‘blind c***’, not black. In court however, Terry argued the words ‘f****** black c***’ were used in sarcasm or a spirit of irony, but used nonetheless. The true irony, the true joke, in this case of course, is that the word that was deemed abusive enough to warrant a high-profile legal hearing was not required to be censored. As the Tweeters and Facebookers would say, “LOL”.

Asterisks were the single most dominant punctuation in the report, as anyone who had even glanced through them, like me, would’ve noticed. But the onus of the case in its entirety actually rested on one single punctuation mark. The debate for most of the the week’s court sessions had been about whether Terry said, ‘F*** off, f*** off . . . f****** black c*** . . . f****** k*******’ as Ferdinand had claimed or if he said, ‘F*** off, f*** off . . . f****** black c***?  F****** k*******’. Similar to ‘Let’s eat, Grandma!’ and ‘Let’s eat Grandma!’, this controversy has just been broken down to another example of how punctuation can make or break lives. Without that small little squiggle and a dot, Terry is found guilty, tarnishes what’s left of his image and is irreversibly branded a racist. With it, his defence lawyers could voice his reputation was intact. As far as alibis are concerned, it does not seem substantial. But, finally and decisively, they could not prove he said otherwise and the court was back to square one.

‘Weighing all the evidence together, I think it is highly unlikely that Mr Ferdinand accused Mr Terry on the pitch of calling him a black c***. However, I accept that it is possible that Mr Terry believed at the time, and believes now, that such an accusation was made. ‘It is a crucial fact that nobody has given evidence they heard what Mr Terry said or more  importantly how he said it.’ said the Chief Magistrate who overlooked the happenings.

This was exactly where we were 9 to 10 odd months ago. Where the FA were. From where the FA could have gone on to produce some kind of valid judgement. The CPS inevitably and invariably failed the big question and ruined their reputation in the process by inviting trouble – inviting a case which the FA is quite capable of handling.

If Anton Ferdinand did not originally hear any racist remark being shouted at him, then Terry’s repetition claim goes out the window, unless he heard it from a ghost. And how did Terry’s ‘blind’ go to ‘black’ in his alibi? We’re still trudging in the damp, never ending darkness, CPS.

Official sporting organisations have their code of conduct by which players belonging to their federation are dished out the right punishment. The first priority to investigate the case must have been given to the FA. And surely, a magistrate court has better things to do than hear two ‘gentlemen’ dish out allegations at one another of, what was it? Oh, shagging a teammate’s missus and bad breath, with a tinge of a racial slur. The court proceedings, for those who read them, seemed hilarious and reminiscent of a circus, actually.

Anton Ferdinand’s own team branded him as too ‘unsophisticated’ to have started the tirade, while John Terry sent the courtroom into peals of laughter after saying ‘Please’ 4 times, when the cross-examiner asked him to repeat if he’s been sent off four times, please. Add to the mix, the personal duel between the pro-Arsenal prosecutor and Ashley Cole. Not to forget the amusing, dimwitted double-meaning Rio Ferdinand tweets and voila, you have the recipe for a courtroom drama/comedy serial to be telecasted on BBC1 at 5-30 Friday evening.

All we can do now, I guess, is sit back and sigh. Unless you’re Fabio Capello whereby you’d sit back, sigh, shake your head and mutter Italian.

]]> http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/14/highly-reliable-evidence-and-british-justice/feed/ 0 027241 http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/08/in-arsene-they-do-not-trust-at-their-own-peril/ http://www.sportskeeda.com/2012/07/08/in-arsene-they-do-not-trust-at-their-own-peril/#comments Sun, 08 Jul 2012 08:01:40 +0000 Priya Ramesh http://www.sportskeeda.com/?p=445702  “Play for the name on the front of the shirt, and they’ll remember the name on the back.”  said Tony Adams.

Gone are the days when players actually did that. As football fans, we’ve had our fair share of egos bursting out, players putting on pounds – to their head – and of course, the ones who toy with the club and the fans’ emotions. But of course, players denying their manager’s claims and as people today would say, “trolling” the manager, seems to have become the latest trend. And none more obvious than in the case of Arsene Wenger.

Monsieur Wenger, frankly, is no stranger to the recent RvP saga; he’s been through it throughout his time at Arsenal.

On April 6th 2007, he said, “It’s not an issue because I had a chat with Thierry Henry. He is clear he wants to stay, I am clear I want him to stay. It’s not an issue at all. That is a story that has been created by somebody, not by our club and not by Henry because we are both on the same wavelength.”

And then, a month and a half later, Henry joins Barcelona and says that he always wanted to join the club and that it is an honour to do so.

In 2011, Wenger told in a press-con that he is ‘absolutely positive’ that neither Fabregas nor Nasri would leave the Emirates. Both of them ended up doing so.

And more recently, Wenger said that Arsenal’s hopes next season would depend on van Persie and he knew that the Dutchman’s heart is at the Emirates and he would never want to leave.

A mere 2 weeks and a dismal Euro 2012 later, van Persie has given an ‘update’ to the fans saying he would not be extending his contract. He might as well have said he wanted to drop a bombshell.

Quite obviously, each time the then-captain (Vieira, Henry, Fabregas, RvP) leaves or announces his leaving, a lot of personalities all around the club and the management get hurt, least to say the manager who backs them throughout their ups, downs, failures and injuries. The bare fact, the stark reality of it all is that there is a basic fundamental difference between what the fans want and what the management requires itself to do.

Arsenal seem to be a club wavering in the space between two different worlds – the “kingmakers” and the “kings”.

The Kingmaker Universe consists of clubs like Udinese, Lille, Porto and Valencia. Clubs which have been resigned to losing their best players to bigger clubs, thus “creating” the king. These clubs sell players time and time again and yet, find a new pool of talent to keep them competitive at the top level in their leagues and even in Europe. Porto have received over 200 million over the past decade or so in transfer fees only. Arsenal more or less have been doing the same.  After losing their captain and a key player last season, it would suffice to say they came back as spirited as ever, even though it spurred Wenger to sign a record five signings in five hours. Count on us, it IS a miracle. They finished third in what was a two-horse race for the majority of the season and that too after their worst start to a campaign.

The “problem” arises here. Arsenal have become accustomed to producing wonderful youth talents and promoting them, expecting nothing but loyalty in return. However, the players beg to differ and Arsenal, after seeing this time and time again have, I guess, become accustomed to it. The management and board knows that at Arsenal, there really is only one man you can trust and the man goes by the name of Arsene Wenger. They know that even if the worst happens in the transfer window, Wenger will always lead them on to a respectable finish at the top of the table while simultaneously playing a brand of free-flowing, elegant and fast football.

The fans, on the other hand, want silverware and badly. In a time where even Liverpool have broken their drought, Chelsea have won more Champions League trophies than them, and Man City are fast adding to their collection, Arsenal fans have every right to want silverware. But they have to understand that the club is doing its best to win. It’s not easy coming back after losing your best player(s). But what annoys the fans is that it’s not just one summer – it happens nearly every summer. For all the nonsense people throw about Arsenal not spending enough on players, Arsenal spent £90million on players and wages last season. Coming from a Chelsea fan, spending £200 million every season is not using the bank, it is abusing the bank. Every single penny Arsenal put into their youth academies – not only in England, but all around the world, in the US, Singapore, etc, is reaping huge benefits. If only these players remain loyal, Arsenal would not need to spend big money at all; their youth system would have it all.

Without beating around the bush, Arsene Wenger himself says it, “Imagine the worst situation – we lose Fabregas and Nasri – you cannot convince people you are ambitious after that. You talk about Fabregas leaving, Nasri leaving. If you give that message out, you cannot pretend you are a big club, because a big club, first of all, holds onto its big players and gives a message out to all the other big clubs that they just cannot come in and take away from you. We worked very hard with these players for years to develop them, and now it’s a time for us to keep them together.”

The irony in this situation is quite funny to say the least. Podolski and Giroud arrive at the club to win trophies. The same reason for which the likes of Samir Nasri and Fabregas left and the same reason for which Robin van Persie seems to be leaving.

Vieira left, they got over him, up came Fabregas. Henry left, they got over him, up rose Adebayor. Reyes left, they got over him, up came Walcott. Gallas left, they got over him, up rose Koscielny. Adebayor left, up came Robin van Persie. Fabregas left, they got over him, up comes Jack Wilshere. Nasri left, they got over him, up came Oxlade-Chamberlain. And the cycle will go on. The fact will remain. If Robin van Persie leaves, they WILL get over him and a new player WILL rise. That simply is Arsene Wenger’s Army. That, simply is, Arsenal Football Club.

ALBACETE, SPAIN: Atletico Madrid’s Fernando Torres celebrates his goal during a league match.

Fernando Torres. 19 years of age and captain of a top team in Spain. Brought up in the Atletico youth system, Torres had been a stand-out player ever since his youth – winning the best player for his category in Europe when he was 15 and scoring his first goal for the club when he was 17, just a week after making his debut. 2003 was his year and 19 was his lucky number. Not only was it his age, it was also the number of goals he’d scored in La Liga – finishing joint-third in the top scorer’s list and only 5 goals behind the eventual Pichichi winner Ronaldo. He’d also led his team out to the final of the UEFA Intertoto Cup – his first taste of European football.

Then came the 2006 World Cup. One of the youngest in the squad that left for Germany, Torres had the likes of Raul and David Villa to compete with for a starting place and yet, managed to get quite some playing time. And then came the transfer rumours. After announcing himself on the big stage, Torres caught the eye of quite a lot of top European clubs. From Juventus to Manchester United to Barcelona – every club was linked with him at least once. He publicly rejected Chelsea‘s bid to sign him and insisted upon staying at Atleti and he did, scoring 14 goals the next season. And this time, came an offer he couldn’t reject – one from Liverpool.

19 August 2007. The transfer had been completed and his debut was over. Now was the time for the match he’d been waiting for – his Anfield debut. He’d asked around the players to know how it feels when you walk onto the sacred soil and hear the Kop sing your name but he knew that his experience would definitely be different. He rejoiced at scoring on his debut – that too against former champions Chelsea. He knew he’d started off on the right note.

Torres soon became a favourite, not only at Anfield, but with the whole of England. The England cognoscenti considered him the perfect centre forward – tall, lean, strong in the air, lethal finishing and fast with deadly positioning. The Kop could not believe they had bought him for only 25 mn + Luis Garcia! He adapted to the roughness and physical demands of the Premier League like a fish to water. WIth Gerrard providing plenty of balls for him to convert, it seemed like a dream. He scored a whopping 24 goals in the Premier League – eclipsing van Nistelrooy’s record of 24 for a foreign player’s debut season and finished joint second in the race for the Golden Boot. In 2008, Chelsea again tried to buy him – for a whopping 50 million pounds but however he again rejected them, saying it would be many more years before he left Anfield.

As Xavi passed the ball to him, he knew that it was now or never; this was his chance – his country’s chance – and he could not spurn it. He dribbled the ball a few paces, faked a defender and then it was just him and the goalkeeper. He took one look at the incoming figure of  Jens Lehmann and shot the ball. His heart was beating uncontrollably fast as he prayed for it to cross the line. And as it did, he wheeled off into a celebration. He had just handed his team their first major trophy in 44 years. 

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – JUNE 29: Fernando Torres (R) of Spain celebrates the opening goal with Andres Iniesta of Spain during the UEFA EURO 2008 Final

The Euro 2008 saw the emergence of one of the best striking pairs Spain has seen – David Villa and Fernando Torres. David Villa shone for most of the tournament, ending up the top scorer but had to miss the final through an injury. It was time for Torres to shine. He did so, scoring the only goal of the final and bagging the Man Of The Match Award. He had won his first ever title.

The next season was business as usual for Torres – just another never-ending flow of goals, just another couple of match-winning performances, just another place in the PFA Team Of The Year and finishing 3rd in the Ballon D’Or. He was one of the fastest ever to reach 50 goals for a club – doing it in just 84 appearances. The 2009-10 season was a great season for him, but not Liverpool. Though he missed half of the season due to knee surgery, he finished with 22 goals from 32 appearances. His name was the most popular one on replica shirts all around the world.

As he strode on to the field, he knew something was missing. It didn’t feel like before. His knee operation had been successful but he was playing way before he could be considered fully fit. His knee was still giving him problems now and then during practice and matches. As he saw his number being put up for substitution, his heart sank and he realised he’d lost his magic touch, he’d lost his form. He couldn’t take it.

After the knee surgery in 2010, he never looked as sharp as he was before. Forcing himself to go on the plane to South Africa, Torres hoped his time in the Rainbow Nation would be as fruitful as his stay in Austria and Switzerland. However, new coach Vicente Del Bosque preferred starting with one striker and the one striker was David Villa. He did get starts against Honduras and Chile but his performances were below-par and was resigned to the bench. He came on as a substitute in the 105th minute in the final to see Andres Iniesta score the goal that mattered and hand Spain their first ever World Cup.

But all was not well for him at Liverpool..

It wan’t working for him. Nor was it for Liverpool. His form had deteriorated and Liverpool were hanging around mid-table, a great way off of Chelsea and Manchester United. He used to think Anfield was the place he’d retire at, but now he wasn’t sure. Rafa Benitez, who’d been a father-figure to him had left, and the new manager Roy Hodgson was on the brink of getting sacked. His life got stagnated and he began to look for alternatives..

The 2010 season had not gone the way Torres wanted it to. Liverpool were falling further down the table and his form wasn’t looking the best. He decided it was time for a change. Fortunately for him, in January, Chelsea came at the right time with a bid of 40 mn. Rejected by Liverpool, he handed in an official transfer request the next day and Liverpool had to let him depart for West London for 50 million pounds – the highest transfer fee in English football. The day he landed in London, there was a massive outburst by the fans in Liverpool where shirts carrying his name were burnt and he was labelled ‘Judas’. His tryst with destiny – his first match for Chelsea was against Liverpool and he went on to lose. He went for one, two, three, four, so many games without scoring he could’ve lost count. But his haters didn’t. He went 903 minutes without a goal until he finally broke his drought by scoring against West Ham on Easter Day. Many still mocked him, quipping that Easter truly was a day of miracles as Torres had scored. As he finished the season in 2nd place with Chelsea, he was still the subject of endless jokes.

‘He’s now a blue, he was a red, Torres! Torres!
He left the Kop to join the shed Torres! Torres!
He used to go out on the rob, but now he’s got a proper job
Fernando Torres, Chelsea’s no.9!’, sang the fans, pushing him on.

But he’d begun to think his time at the top was over – that he was, as the papers were saying, a ‘waste of money’ and ‘the worst striker in the Premier League’. He found sanctuary in his family but was insecure, threatened. He was afraid to go outside for a walk, to shop for groceries, to take his children to school. He didn’t know when and where he’d be mocked or worse, pitied upon next. The newspapers blamed him for the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti. They mocked him saying a defender bought in the same January window had more goals than him. They said he was finished. Whatever he said was exaggerated and proliferated by the media to portray him as a villain and a Judas to the world.  The summer of 2011 was indeed a very long one for him.

THAT miss..

Torres did not know what to expect from the 2011-12 season. A new manager in Andre Villas Boas and his Spanish teammate Juan Mata arrived in London. Pre-season was a good one for Torres, he scored a few, assisted a few and things were looking bright. The season started and he was turning in good performances that lacked only the goals and finishing. He scored his first goal of the season against Manchester United right after halftime to bring Chelsea back in the game. However, he is more remembered for his infamous miss, after he had wrong-footed David De Gea but missed a wide open goal. However, Chelsea fans believed he had got his form back and he scored against Swansea in the following match too. However, things went dark later in the game, as he received a red card – the first of his career – and the momentum was gone. He scored his first Champions League goals for Chelsea in a 5-0 thrashing of Genk in October, but the momentum had not returned yet as he was just showing glimpses of his form. Drogba was more preferred and Torres found it  increasingly frustrated again. His confidence drained, his form deteriorated, he was bearing the brunt of many trolls and jokes and his club was in a very bad position in the Premier League. The whole team had lost confidence and their faith was shaken. Andre Villas Boas was sacked and Roberto di Matteo was made interim manager. And the effect he had on Torres and the rest, is history.

It Was Written In The Stars…

He knew that Robbie trusted him. That the fans trusted him. He knew that he must put them in front of his own interests and give his best every game, regardless of the mocking by the rival fans, regardless of whether he scored or not. He knew that he was entitled to repay the faith the club had shown in him. He started staying back after practice, he worked out more to build his strength to suit Chelsea’s style of play. He was not the tall lean boy who’d arrived from Spain; he’d become a strong, well-built man. Every time he walked onto pitch, he’d look over to the Shed End, where a banner holding his name – Torres – was hung. And then he felt the fire – the blue fire – raging in his belly.

Di Matteo showed his confidence in both Drogba and Torres by starting them alternatively. Torres scored twice and assisted twice in the FA Cup Quarterfinal against Leicester before scoring a goal against Aston Villa in a 4-2 win. Torres had his swagger back and was back to his job of terrorising defences again. In the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final, Torres came on as a substitute to go on a scintillating run all the way from the halfway line to score past a helpless Victor Valdes and take his team through to the finals. He also scored his first ever Chelsea hattick in a 6-1 demolition of QPR.

Though he didn’t play a big part in the semifinals or the finals of the FA Cup, his contribution by means of assists and goals was well observed by the Chelsea loyal and this win was especially sweet for him, since it was against his old club, Liverpool and gave him a chance at proving his critics wrong. He even had the courtesy of going over and consoling his old teammates, Steven Gerrard and Pepe Reina.

In the finals, he was brought on right after the Bayern Munich goal and played a huge role in the equaliser, winning the corner from which Drogba eventually scored. Though he was not one of the 5 penalty takers, he made no effort in hiding his jubilance at winning the trophy he’d always dreamed of as a small boy.

His dream was fulfilled..

Holding the big trophy with the big ears, sitting on the crossbar with the Spain flag draped around his shoulders and punching his fist in the air, he knew then that he had made the right decision. Liverpool had offered him more individual honours but Chelsea had given him his coveted major club titles. He heard the fans go ‘He scores when he wants, he scores when he wants, Fernando Torres scores when he wants!’ and a warm feeling overcame him. He knew he had repayed their faith in him as much as he could. They were happy and he was too. 

Then came the Euros. The emergence of Alvaro Negredo and Fernando Llorente as well as Santi Cazorla meant that Fernando Torres was fighting for a place in the squad going to Poland and Ukraine. However, the exclusion of David Villa owing to the injury meant that the only real experienced striker Spain had were Torres and there he was on the plane, with his #9 jersey.

However, being in the squad did not mean he would start and he felt quite naturally upset after del Bosque went for a midfielder to start upfront instead of him. He did come on and he was wasteful in chances that could’ve won his team the game. The insecurity seemed to be back and critics consigned him to being ‘over’. However, he slapped them on their mouths with a scintillating brace against the Republic of Ireland. Cesc Fabregas was still preferred over him, though he and the whole world knew that, with a real #9 striker, Spain could do wonders again. But he believed, and humbly said that if his country requires him to be on the bench in order for it to win, he would gladly do so. The finals came and Fabregas was made to start.

With Spain 2-0 up, enter Torres. After being put through on a defence-splitting pass, Torres coolly slotted past Gigi Buffon to make it 3. And then, just a minute after Chelsea teammate Juan Mata came on, Torres unselfishly passed Mata the ball when he himself was in a goalscoring position and Mata converted to make it 4-0. Torres had just won the Golden Boot, scoring 3 and assisting 1 in just189 minutes on the pitch, meaning he was involved in a goal every 47 minutes he played. He also became the first player ever to score in two different European Championship finals and etched his name firmly into the history books.

‘There was something in the air that night 

The stars were bright, Fernando 

They were shining there for you and me 

For liberty, Fernando’

Torres with everything he values most!

As he held his Golden Boot award and the Euro 2012 trophy, he closed his eyes as images of the past year scanned through his head: his hardships at Chelsea, the glaring miss vs Man United, his first red card, the boos and taunts from fans, the manager getting sacked, scoring against Barcelona, scoring his first Chelsea hattrick and holding aloft the Champions League trophy – and this. He knew the year had been tough and he had a lot of things going against him. But he knew that he had persevered, he deserved what he had got and that if he could get through last season, he could get through any other season. As he pulled his children and wife close to him, he knew that he’ll always have his family and as he looked at Juan, he knew that everyone associated with Chelsea will be there for him. It had been a tough road here  so far, but he knows that he will never walk alone..

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