January 2010
86 posts
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Best of... January's last weekend
1. Manchester United made a huge statement of intent to hold on to their Premier League title with a 3-1 thrashing of Arsenal. It was a terrible afternoon for Arsene Wenger’s squad as Wayne Rooney, Nani, and Park Ji-Sung rose a class above the North Londoners on the day. It should be noted that Wayne Rooney has now scored 100 goals in the Premier League. Facing Chelsea and then Liverpool...
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Roberto Mancini is part manager, part...
Well the effort is there, but these lads cannot really pull off a scarf like Mr. Mancini. Nevertheless, the Italian maestro was happy to take a photo for these cheeky fans just before the start of the Carling Cup semifinal against United. We’ve got a video of the incident (captured by Soccer AM), which is just below. (found via Off the Post)
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Skillful Sunday!
Some wonderful swag-filled skills to start off your Sunday!
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The epitome of immorality: Togo is fined $50,000...
Talk about kicking someone while they’re already down.
Togo have been charged $50,000 and banned from participating in the next two African Cup of Nations by the Confederation of African football (CAF) less than a month after their withdrawal from this year’s tournament due to an Angolan terrorist attack on the team bus.
Issa Hayatou, the president of Caf, said that the reason for...
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Linking Up: Arsenal hoping to snatch Israeli...
Nike’s “Lace Up, Save Lives” Viral Video [via Fútbolita]
Will Arsenal be able to snatch up Barcelona’s “La Masia” product Gai Assulin? {Never Captain Nicky Butt]
An interesting bet before the Arsenal - United clash, Rooney to be booked for diving 28/1 [Football Corner]
Did Fabio Capello prank call Micahel Owen? If he did that would be amazing....
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Catalunya experiencing "the Iniesta generation" of...
Andrés, you’re officially the new boom king.
Legendary commentator Ray Hudson once said, “there’ll be some loving tonight in the beds of Madrid!” after Real defeated Mallorca to win La Liga in 2007. Reports are now coming out of Catalunya that Iniesta’s wondergoal to send Barcelona to the Champions League final has “prompted a surge in births in the Catalan capital...
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ESPN's "Not Top 10" list is filled with mistakes,...
ESPN, you have lost your right to make fun of the mistakes of others. We all know Francisco Toldo isn’t as good as Julio Cesar, but how can you go and make a “Not Top 10” list that doesn’t even count down from ten (10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, 4, 2, 1) correctly? That’s just shameful.
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A Football Report is proud to introduce...
Written by Andy, whose footballing expertise lies in the Premier League, as well as in European and South American football. Andy is your average bloke; he has three loves: university, the pub, and most importantly football.
Let me just say a couple of words before I start talking about the beautiful game, I hope to live up to your expectations and I’m extremely happy to be writing for...
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Friday Flashback: Steve MacKenzie & Ricardo Villa,...
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Oh BBC, you and your colourful commentary....
“Birmingham stood still and as scared as a class of first formers at Hogwarts school looking into the face of Lord Voldemort himself.” [skip to 4:30]
Wow. Like someone said in an earlier post, I cannot believe taxes are paid for that sort of football commentary. Also, can you really compare Franky with he-who-must-not-be-named? I reckon if you asked every player in the Premier...
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Thoughtful Thursday: Is Liverpool's weakness its...
Portsmouth, Reading, Stoke City, and now Wolverhampton Wanderers. As Liverpool fans are asking the football gods what they have done to deserve this, they should really be looking towards the club’s leader, Rafa Benitez, for answers.
Now I am not a football xenophobe, far from it. I think the Italian and Portuguese influences on the Premier League’s style of play has only improved...
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A former Benfica legend has downed a few too many...
Former Benfica striker and Sweden international Mats Magnusson, who retired in 1994, came back on the field to show his footballing prowess in the “Match Against Poverty”, organized by Zidane and Ronaldo. I thought at first that Magnusson was some random guy who won some sort of contest to get five minutes on the field, but the fact that he used to be a world renowned striker...
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Harry Redknapp has a proper go at an idiotic...
This is just astoundingly inept. Doesn’t everyone just want to go on holiday to Leeds? It’s such a beautiful town. Well done with the response Harry. But honestly, what manager doesn’t want to win every game he is involved in?
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Best of... Wednesday, January 27th, 2010.
1. Who said the Carling Cup is meaningless? In a Manchester Derby for the ages, United got themselves through to the Carling Cup final and evaded extra-time thanks to Wayne Rooney’s injury-time header. While City went to Old Trafford after their 2-1 victory in the first leg of the semi-final, United prevailed by the score of 3-1. Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick seemed to have sent the...
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Wednesday's Words of the Messiah
Hey guys, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. Actually, Pep’s been making me think. I hoped it wouldn’t happen, but apparently Cristiano sent an email to the Pepmeister that said it was linking to a Rick Astley music video, but it actually brought him here. That’s right. Pep knows about all about the happenings of the Messiah. But before my fellow bromistas start...
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An Update: Give a warm welcome to the newest...
Two Things:
1. We are proud to introduce our newest contributor Andy, a university student (as well as a football academic) to the AFR team. Andy, who goes to school in London will be writing a weekly column for us that will be known as “The Virtuoso’s View” and will be posted on Fridays.
Andy is your average bloke. He has three loves: university, the pub, and most importantly...
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Linking Up: Zidane the philanthropist, Arsenal are...
Zidane, Kaka, Henry, Ronaldo, and co. put on a show in a match to benefit Haiti, which ended as a 3-3 draw. [The Spoiler]
Midweek Premier League predictions courtesy of our friends over at Never Captain Nicky Butt.
Robbie Savage gets a proper beating by his fellow teammates [Off the Post]
Top 10 of the Week- Footballers Crashing Their Expensive Cars. [In the Stands]
Arsenal Ready to...
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Assists of the Week
This week’s class acts are:
Alberto Zapater - Genoa. Iago Aspas - Celta Vigo. James Milner - Aston Villa. Hugo Rodallega - Wigan. Kwadwo Asamoah - Ghana. James McFadden - Birmingham. Vahid Hashemian - Bochum. Jesus Navas - Sevilla. Stephen Ireland - Manchester City. Martin Petrov - Manchester City.
Too much quality on show for me to choose a favourite. I truly enjoyed James...
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The United States' star striker Charlie Davies...
You might ask, “Wait, the same Charlie Davies that experienced this car accident only four months ago?” Yes, yes indeed.
The accident right before the United States’ final World Cup qualifier in October left Davies with numerous injuries that had an estimated year of recovery time, and then a few more months of rehabilitation. But guess what? Charlie Davies is not only out of...
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AFR Answers: Who should Chelsea, Arsenal, and...
Average Bloke asked, “Out of interest, looking at the top four and only those challenging for the title, who would you recommend each club to sign, but limited to one player for each of the clubs?”
Answer: The top four has really become an elite three this season (sorry Liverpool, don’t kill the messenger). The race for fourth is completely up in the air, although Liverpool...
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Malicious Monday: A Classic Two-Footed Tackle from...
Well forwards aren’t known for their tackling, but Thierry Henry doesn’t care. He’ll get the ball or break your ankles!
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Match Centre: Inter Milan 2-0 AC Milan
Full-Time
What a match! Jose Mourinho’s Nerazzuri now have one hand clenched on the Scudetto. Inter came out the stronger side, earning a early goal from the boot of Diego Milito. Minutes later, Wesley Sneijder was sent off for sarcastically aplauding the referee. With a man advantage, AC Milan were able to fashion a few chances. The game shifted again on sixty-five minutes when Goran...
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5 Random Happenings in Football on a Sunday...
1. “Top of the Premier League” Arsenal were knocked out of the FA Cup 3-1 by Stoke at the Britannia. Arsene Wenger left most of his normal starters on the bench, and as a result the Potters punished. Manchester City also progressed in the FA Cup by downing Scunthorpe 4-2, with Robinho capping the win off with the final goal.
2. Speaking of City, I don’t think its supporters...
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BBC, since when is scoring to make it 2-2...
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Barcelona and Real Madrid are united in commitment...
FC Barcelona showed their willingness to help those in need with a donation of €250,000 to the aid relief programme in Haiti. Real Madrid plans to provide funds to rebuild a school that was destroyed in the earthquake in Haiti.
Barcelona’s Initiative:
Barça hope to help in two directions by giving economic support and finance to Doctors Without Borders to ensure there is health care and...
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Start your Saturday off with Style!
Torresinho brings us three minutes of showboating, blissful skills, and a fresh stack of swag. Masterpieces are too difficult to compare for me, but do you have a favourite skill from this compilation?
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Look-a-likes: Arsene Wenger and Michael Cera
Both are awkward. Both never lose character. Both are hilarious in their own right. And how about that forced smile? Yeah, if someone told me that this was Arsene Wenger 40 years ago, then I would probably believe them. Here’s to Arsene (and Michael)’s fountain of youth! (found via oceanarium)
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Friday Flashback: El Dia de Gary Lineker,...
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Linking Up: Robinho can't take a hint, the world's...
TwoGoodTwoBad teasing us with all the best of last week’s Premier League.
Happy 35th Birthday Mr. Butt! [Never Captain Nicky Butt]
Welcome the “Half Decent Football Magazine”, When Saturday Comes, to our footy firm! We linked to a video courtesy of WSC of the last time Aston Villa made it to the League Cup final… in 1994!
Also get a pint for Football Filter, as...
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Thoughtful Thursday: Would you want Zidane as your...
“Right now, I am learning and Florentino has given me great freedom to learn all the aspects of Madrid. My dream, some day, is to be manager of the club.” - Zinedine Zidane.
Zizou, now working as an advisor to Real president Florentino Perez, admitted in an interview he has enjoyed life back at the Bernabeu since re-joining the club seven months ago.
We all have dreams, and...
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Best of... Wednesday, January 20th, 2010.
Top 5 things that happened in the world of football today:
1. Arsene Wenger’s squad is now sitting atop the Premier League table on goal differential as Arsenal fought back from 2-0 down to defeat Owen Coyle’s Bolton 4-2 at the Emirates. Wenger said: “Chelsea have a game in hand, but it is good. We had two difficult games against Bolton with a new manager, two cup games...
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Assists of the Week! The best assist comes from...
It’s a select few, but the class acts of the week are listed below:
Michael Ballack - Chelsea. Xavi - Barcelona. Eric Abidal - Barcelona. Brynjar Gunnarsson - Reading. Pedro Munitis - Racing Santander.
For me, Brynjar Gunnarsson’s crafty assist stands alone as the best. Which was your favourite?
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Wednesday's Words of the Messiah
What up bromistas? I’m trying to keep a low profile after cutting and slicing up defenders last Saturday. Ever since I’ve joined Barca, your boy has given the world 99 problems. But, as you know, I don’t stop there. I had to add two more problems to Sevilla’s agenda. That’s right. 100 and 101. I need to be real, I’ve been getting a lot of praise for being the...
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Support the Haitian Relief Effort in the Snazziest...
Pick up the new t-shirt for “Les Grenadiers” (the Haitian national team) over at Who Are Ya Designs while at the same time donating to the relief effort in Haiti. 100% OF ALL PROCEEDS from the sale of this design will be donated to UNICEF to continue the work they are doing for the millions of children and families struggling to survive in the aftermath of the January 12th...
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Tevez brace gives City the advantage as they head...
Wait, who was Mark Hughes? Now he’s just another former Manchester United player as Roberto Mancini completely won over the City faithful by commanding an inspired performance from Sky Blues.
Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney were by far the two best players on the pitch, as the former strike pair seemed at times in a class of their own.
Manchester United took the lead in 17th minute as...
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Linking Up: Can Kenwyne help Liverpool win?...
Cristiano tries to intimidate Bilbao fans to make up for the fact that his side is losing. Classy.
Our insightful new partner, Caught Offside, has a tip that Tottenham will sign a certain Dutch striker who plays for Real Madrid shortly. Welcome Caught Offside to the firm!
Who says cheaters never prosper? FIFA let Thierry Henry off easy. What else did you expect? [Caught Offside]
Is...
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AFR Answers: "What is the best footy commercial...
Deckmix asked: What’s the best footy commercial?
I have narrowed down to three football commercials that I consider to be the best. One is the funniest, one is the most well-done, and one is the most epic.
1. Funniest (courtesy of Lucozade). Carlsberg’s “Ireland Win The World Cup” ad is an honourable runner-up.
2. Most well-done (Nike’s ‘Take it to...
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So this is what Fernando Torres has been working...
Wayne Rooney shows his class while looking psychotic. As per usual. And Fernando Torres is now a computer programmer. Probably a better profession for him because of his brittle nature.
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Malicious Monday: Someone thought he could get...
Sometimes retaliation goes a little bit overboard, but that boy is well stuck-in.
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Nominate AFR for the 2009 Soccerlens Awards!
It’s the last day to vote, so email awards@soccerlens.com. If you could nominate us for ‘Best Writer’, ‘Best Community’, ‘Funniest Site’, and ‘Best Videos’ that would be just delightful!
We are looking to get ourselves as many nominations as possible in the Soccerlens Awards, its the first time we’ve had this opportunity and we are excited....
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Match Centre: Bolton 0 - 2 Arsenal
Full Time: Bolton 0 - 2 Arsenal
Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas: “It’s always a difficult place to go, we know what we’ll get at Bolton, but we coped with it well and we’re proud of that. When I was younger the chances were not going in, but now they are and I hope it continues until the end of the season. I feel stronger and that helps. It’s important to win on...
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Shenanigans Sunday: Genius! Blows the mind...
Impressive I guess. I feel like it should have turned into someone on the Ivory Coast though since it was an Elephant to begin with. Didier Drogba would have been cool, but the best player ever will do.
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Best of... Saturday, January 16th, 2010
Top 5 things that happened in the world of football today:
1. Chelsea scored seven goals for the first time in 50 years, demoralizing Steve Bruce’s Sunderland 7-2 at Stamford Bridge. Ashley Cole scored the Premier League’s 18,000th goal, which was a quality strike.
2. After humanizing Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona by knocking them out of the Copa Del Rey, Sevilla were demolished...
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Puma with its Africa unity kit. How can you not...
The decision-making process behind the design is just a tad epic. Well in, Africa.
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AFR Answers: "With Drogba, Essien, and Kalou at...
Brutalbrodeo asked, “While Drogba, Essien, and Kalou are away, do you think this is the best chance anyone has of catching Chelsea?” Really good question, brutalbrodeo.
Short answer: It is the best chance for Arsenal and Manchester United to capitalize, but as we saw today with Chelsea on 7th heaven, it is still not much of a chance. Chelsea are not like most sides, the club’s...
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Haitian-American Jozy Altidore urges you to...
Obviously we all know how tremendously terrible this tragedy has been for Haiti, but United States international and Hull City striker Jozy Altidore reminds us that we can really make a difference in this situation.
How easy is it to make a difference in Haiti you ask? 100 times easier than Arsenal’s squad trying to say that they pledge to make a difference. But honestly, a few...
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Is your club helping you out during the recession?...
Clint Dempsey and his in-form Fulham side want to save you money. Deuce asks smirkingly, “Where else can you see me at a discount?” While Manchester City is planning on making its season ticket holders pay 50% more next campaign, the Fulham v. Burnley game at Craven Cottage will be 50% off, but only with a voucher. All you need to do is download and print out the voucher, then fill...
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One Last Hurrah: Coming back to make the club...
While I personally have no idea how Sol Campbell can help the Gunners on the pitch for the rest of the season, hopefully he will be received warmly by the Arsenal faithful.
The Daily Mail has an excellent article focusing on those who came back to their true clubs, and enjoyed a final spell of tremendous success. From SWP to Juergen Klinsmann to Ian Rush, sometimes a second chance is an...
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Friday Flashback: Liverpool 0-2 Arsenal (1989)
League Decider. Arsenal needed to win two-nil at Anfield to win the league on goal differential. What a match!
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The secret to Mancini's Man City inspiration? It's...
Manchester City are jumping on the Italian fashionista bandwagon. At the Manchester City shop online you can now look like a true European elitist for only £8. [Get one here if you want to be a plonker]