Category Archives: Football
There’s only one Theo Walcott!
When substitute Theo Walcott came on to the pitch against Sweden on the hour mark last night, England were trailing 2-1 and staring defeat in the face – again!
England, who had been leading through Andy Carroll’s bullet header going into the break, conceded twice during a wretched 10-minute period after half-time to leave them deep in trouble. But new manager Roy Hodgson’s decision to replace James Milner with Arsenal attacker Walcott had an almost instant reward.
Within four minutes Walcott collected a cleared corner on the edge of the box and equalised with a 20-yard shot that deceived Swedish goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson and was a sight to behold – surely a contender for goal of the tournament?
14 minutes later, the England winger burst into the penalty box, went past two Swedish defenders and crossed for Danny Welbeck to flick in the winner – job done!
It was a game-changing contribution from the 23-year-old, who was making his first appearance in a major tournament and scored his first England goal for nearly four years.
Oh yes, and did I mention the fact that he plays for Arsenal?
Here’s what was said by the players and pundits:
“I wouldn’t say I was the game changer. It’s always nice to come off the bench and show what you can do. I’ve been disappointed that I haven’t played.” – Theo Walcott
“I’m happy with the finish and to get three points but it was disappointing to let in two goals. We came back, we stuck together and the team spirit showed.” – Danny Welbeck
“Great game, wonderful result and that customary gut-wrenching feeling of watching England. Nothing quite like it.” – BBC Match of the Day presenter and former England striker Gary Lineker on Twitter
“I think Ashley Young is gonna have to make way for Wayne Rooney.” – Former England striker Ian Wright on Twitter
Conspiracy Theory #2795
So England were only able to manage a 1-1 draw against France in their first game of Euro2012 last night. As always, there has been plenty said in the press about the lack of a win against a French side that, despite being the favourites, had a pretty poor back line that should perhaps have been exploited?
I am of the opinion, however, that more sinister forces are at work! Last night, for the first time in 16 years, the England Supporters Band were unable to play after their instruments were confiscated at the stadium in Ukraine!
However, while the irritation of hearing The Great Escape theme tune repeatedly grated with many listeners, it was last night found to drown out the various mindless chants that Roy Hodgson’s barmy army indulge in and therefore is clearly the lesser of two evils.
It is not known whether the band will be allowed to play in England’s next game on Friday against Sweden in Kiev. If they can’t play however, and if the rumours are to believed and Hodgson is planning to start Jordan Henderson, England supporters will be rendered speechless for the entire ninety minutes so that TV audiences can watch the game in muted disbelief.
Basking in reflected glory?
The internet has responded in fine form to the Chelsea skipper, John Terry, donning his full kit to receive the Champions League trophy last night. If you’ve been on planet Mars for the past few weeks you will not know that Terry was suspended from taking part in this crucial fixture due to an extremely stupid tackle in the semi against Barcelona that saw him receiving a sending off. However, last night, when Chelsea were the ultimate victors on penalties, Terry changed out of his suit and into his kit to go and receive his winner’s medal and lift the trophy.
My 3 favourite tweets are:
During the match – a spectator
After the match – taking part in the celebrations
And am I the only person who sees his inclusion in the squad for the Euros and Rio’s absence as sending out the wrong message???
Only thing missing was a helicopter!
This time last year I was writing about Helicopter Sunday when the SPL title race was left to the final day of the season and the cup was taken to the winning ground by helicopter – on that occasion it was Rangers … what a difference a year makes!
Today, however, the sheer distance between the 2 teams in contention for the Barclays Premiership was too great for even a helicopter to be able to reach the winning ground in time so apparently there were duplicate trophies at both Sunderland and Manchester City’s grounds to be awarded to the victor of today’s nail-biting decider … and what a close one it was too!! I was unable to watch the game live but had both Twitter and Sky Sports on my phone and practically kicked every last ball myself it was so tense!
With the Man Utd game finishing a matter of 3 minutes before the Man City game, they and their supporters could have been forgiven for thinking they’d done enough with a 0-1 win, but City were able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with two injury time goals, the winner on the 94th minute from Sergio (Kun) Aguero. Happy days! Having not won the title since 1968, this is an historic moment for the blue half of Manchester and I am delighted for them.
With my actual team, Arsenal, finishing the season in 3rd place, we are assured another exciting season of Champions League football to keep us all on the edge of our seats next year and I leave you with this final thought …
Arsenal are the best team in London. United aren’t even the best team in Manchester – BOOM!!!
#Fergietime (cont’d)
Following on from my last post, it seems that ‘Fergie Time’ has made it into the Urban Dictionary with the following description:
‘Fergie Time”: Any amount of time, in any football (soccer) match, which has been added on, in addition to the added time (injury time) that had already been prescribed at the end of the 90 minutes. Any amount of time that a match is played after the said amount of added time, is referred to as ‘Fergie Time’. (Added time of 3 minutes has been announced, play carries on after 93 minutes, player scores on 95 minutes).
I was also interested to see another entry in this section – ‘Fergie Watch’ which is a timepiece that runs contrary to the laws of physics. If your football team is winning after 90 minutes your watch actually runs faster than the referee’s. The other team’s coach has a watch that runs slower and the referee runs like the clappers whether you’re winning or losing. This is Fergie’s Watch.
They’ve both played a blinder!
The 2011/2012 football season is drawing to a close and with one game left, things couldn’t get any closer for the 2 Manchester sides with City having the advantage only on goal difference with one game each left to play!
Those games will be Manchester City at home to QPR and Manchester United away to Sunderland, both on Sunday 13th May.
So here is where the points are at the moment:
If I were a betting person, my money would be on City. Their last game is at home which obviously gives them an edge but I would never underestimate the red side of the city who seem to have the devil’s own luck in these circumstances!
Who could forget the 1999 Champions League final against Bayern Munich where they scored 2 last minute goals in injury time to win the game 2-1, after having trailed for most of the match?
Events such as these have led to the new phrase being coined of #fergietime but, despite #fergietime during the last encounter between these 2 great sides last week, Manchester City came out the victors and I for one am hoping that this is an omen for the final trophy of the season!
Pass the doughnuts!
I’ve often wondered if sporting activity is really good for you. In the light of some of the recent events in the world of the elite sportsman, I’m starting to think I might actually have something!
The dramatic pictures of Fabrice Muamba, the Bolton Wanderers footballer, suffering a heart attack at the age of 23 on the pitch at White Hart Lane during the FA Cup quarter final against Spurs, were shocking to say the least, but happily, despite being technically dead for 78 minutes, he appears to be making a miraculous recovery and we can only hope that he continues to progress well.
The Motherwell FC player, Phil O’Donnell was not as fortunate. He died following a cardiac arrest during a game against Dundee on 29th December 2007. He was 35 years old, married and had 4 young children.
So it was yet another shock to read in the news today of the death of Norway’s world swimming champion, Alexander Dale Oen, at the age of 26. Again, he had suffered a cardiac arrest. He was found collapsed in a shower yesterday evening after a training session in Arizona. Having won silver at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Norway’s first Olympic swimming medal, he was considered a strong hope for this summer’s London Games.
My thoughts and good wishes are with all the families, to lose a loved one at any age is difficult but particularly harrowing if they are in their prime with everything to live for.
Gooner Power!
It has been a difficult season for anyone supporting Arsenal and today’s derby match against Tottenham was a test of nerves for all of us. In the end however Tottenham threw away a two goal lead to concede five at Arsenal for the first time since 1934.
We scored an incredible 5 goals in 27 minutes either side of half-time to win the game 5-2 and are back up in 4th place in the Premier League Table. Yes, our defense was awful but we were on fire when on attack and 2 goals in as many minutes did an amazing job of easing tension in the crowd at the Emirates.
With Arsenal fans ironically chanting”Harry for England”, Rosicky almost made it six after a one-two with Theo Walcott, whose own 2 stunning goals in this game silenced his critics in the stadium – for now at least!
To complete Spurs’s misery, Scott Parker was sent off after his receiving his second yellow card for a foul on Vermaelen. A day to forget for Redknapp – but one that might be of some significance for Wenger and Arsenal.
We all love an eccentric …
… but we especially love a well-known face who is eccentric – and they don’t come much weirder than Man City’s Mario Balotelli!
Phwoarrrr!!!!
Manchester City footballer Mario Balotelli shocked students and teachers when he wandered into a local school during lunchtime recently to ask if he could use the toilets. Roaring up to the school in his luxury white Bentley at 1.30pm one Thursday, blues star Balotelli parked his distinctive vehicle and strolled into the canteen at Xaverian College in Manchester. The loopy Italian then asked to be pointed to the bathrooms before embarking on an impromptu meet-and-greet.
Accompanied by three friends, Balotelli cruised into the staffroom to speak to surprised teachers, before bowling around the campus as the student supporters of Manchester City cheered. After 20 minutes, Balotelli climbed back into his Bentley and drove off, leaving stunned students in his wake.
This is not the first time that Mario Balotelli has entertained us with his capricious capers.
When the footballer crashed his Audi R8 in 2010, a police pat down uncovered £5,000 in cash in his back pocket. Asked why he had so much money on him, he simply replied “because I am rich”.
Balotelli and his brother were arrested for driving into an all-female prison in Italy. After questioning by police, they said they had simply gone in because they were “curious”.
The Italian also walked into a pub over Christmas 2010 and put £1,000 behind the bar for local drinkers before spending the night on soft drinks. Later, during Midnight Mass at St John’s Church, Chorlton he stuffed £200 into the collection box.
It didn’t take much searching to find this hilarious video – Love him or hate him, he could never be accused of being boring!!!
Beckham for PM?
Another exciting week in the world of football!
On Monday night, the return of the King – Thierry Henry!
For those who thought it was a joke that Arsenal were turning to Henry, well, the old ones are the best. So much for the legacy being tarnished. So much for him losing his touch in the MLS. It had to be Henry scoring here, recording his 227th goal for Arsenal. The script was written, the stage was set. It just needed Henry to rise from the bench, replacing the disappointing Marouane Chamakh, whose shocking form was another reason why Arsenal need the man on loan from New York Red Bulls. No wonder Arsène Wenger wants to extend the loan to the maximum eight weeks.
For those lovers of symmetry, Arsenal’s No 12 struck his 12th goal in 12 appearances against Leeds 12 minutes from time. At the final whistle, as a fourth-round tie against Aston Villa was secured, Henry almost did not want to leave his field of dreams. The Leeds centre-half, Tom Lees, requested his shirt, but Henry was not in the mood for giving away such precious souvenirs. This was one for the private collection.
Then on Tuesday we hear the news that Jason Euell is returning to Wimbledon on a loan deal from Charlton Athletic.
Jason might not stir the imagination like Thierry Henry but the veteran forward can expect an enthusiastic welcome on his competitive return to Wimbledon 11 years after he left south-west London.
So what about the latest headlines where it has been claimed that Eric Cantona is in the running for the French presidency? Even as the news was announced, igniting hope in his fans and a host of bad jokes, it felt like a dream. In the end, it was a sort of mirage.
Cantona had written a letter in the French newspaper Libération which seemed to state his intention to gather 500 signatures, the symbolic number needed to launch a campaign for the presidency. He described himself as “very much aware of our times” which he argued offer “limited opportunities” to the young and generate “violent” and “systematic” injustices. It sounded like the perfect platform from which a man most famous for a swift piece of retributive justice – that kung-fu kick – could launch an equally fiery and passionate campaign to unseat the current French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
It prompted much excitement and some excellent comments on Twitter, including many along the lines best expressed by the BBC presenter, Jeremy Vine, who tweeted: “Cantona wants to be the next president of France. Oh yeah, and Thierry Henry is going to play for Arsenal again and score the winner on his debut.”
But then the excitement crumbled just as rapidly as the current Manchester United frontline in the second half against City last Sunday. Cantona had played a blinder, sold a dummy, feinted in front of goal: pick the bad football pun of your choice. The paper’s deputy editor explained that the letter was not a presidential bid as such, but rather a call to get 500 mayors to sign a petition about the French housing crisis for the charitable Abbé Pierre Foundation.
Despite being voted as Manchester United fans “Player of the Century” last year, this is surely a stunt too far. Whatever will we see next? Beckham for Prime Minister or maybe even Sir Alex as Scotland’s next First Minister? Stranger things have happened I suppose.
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