I was taken to task on another blog this week for asserting that democracy and secularism must be hard won from the inside out and that a western policy of regime change will only hamper the spread of representative government through the remaining parts of the world.
These recent events prove that secular government can win popular support in the middle east and that representative government can grow and flourish without direct US interference. The fact that much of this upheaval is predicated on military support is troublesome but the jury is still out on that one.
How does one now pick between a smirk on the face of Alex Ferguson or Silvio Berlusconi tomorrow night? I’d rather see the smirk on Silvio’s face & get the ’05 rematch.
I figured this must be some sort of Turkey-Greece game. Seriously, who cares about British league soccer?
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Good thing I brought that body armor.
My favourite image was Rafa sitting cross-legged (well, the fat man’s version of it) on the grass during penalties. I could predict the rest, but not that.
Chris: Didn’t you once cite the Wages of Wins claim that football/soccer has the highest competitive balance of all major professional sports? But hasn’t that been undermined in recent years by the fact that the same four biggest-spending teams are always atop the English Premiership? (In North American sports, for whatever reason, money doesn’t buy championships.) And isn’t part of what makes Chelsea evil that they’re the biggest spenders of all? (That’s certainly why I was hoping for Liverpool.)
Metaphysically speaking, football does not offer a level playing field. Pure Good can’t win on penalties, only in proper play, since penalties are, in their essence, a bit shite. Evil, however, will triumph where and whenever it can.
The Pessimists’ Football Creed.
Chelsea did indeed have surprisingly little to show for their billions. Mourinho made his dice-rolls, bringing on Robben and Wright-Phillips, very late indeed. I mean, they only had to score one goal and the tie was theirs, right? Can we finally identify a definite tactical failure from Mr Sneer? I guess The Boss isn’t going to be very happy. Or, he’ll be as unhappy as you can be whilst bathing in a tub of chilled power and influence, cruising past in a boat longer than my street…
My brother-in-law may not be allowed to go this time: he ended up staying in Bulgaria.
(Of course, the eagerly-sought logistical nightmare of an ‘all-English’ final would be watched by two sets of American owners. And on that subject, can’t they just pay off the Athenians and hold it at Wembley?)
Funny, but not as funny as Leeds getting relegated.
Anyway what’s the Champions’ League worth? Oxford are in the play-offs for the first time ever. In a grotesque act of hubris I have already booked my plane ticket back to London for the final.
Chris: Didn’t you once cite the Wages of Wins claim that football/soccer has the highest competitive balance of all major professional sports? But hasn’t that been undermined in recent years by the fact that the same four biggest-spending teams are always atop the English Premiership?
but you should be comparing the UK to maybe California, which only has about half a dozen NFL teams at all. The comparison for any US sports league ought to be the UEFA Champions’ League itself, in which there is a lot more variation.
OK, so it’s a replay of the 2005 final. Somehow I don’t think Gattuso will allow it to repeat itself – damn, he was good tonight. Perhaps he was a bit too fired up. He looked as he would collect a pound of flesh from the nearest ManUtd player after ManUtd’s refusal to hand over the ball to Milan after the injury-induced throw-in, and the subsequent lame attempt to attack from ManUtd. No wonder Ancellotti felt that he had to substitute him.
It was looking like a bad night for MU with Ronaldo trying a very ostentatious backheel in the first couple of minutes — in a downpour. It went to a Milan player.
United is a very different team away. It’s amazing. At Old Trafford they’re not only unbeatable, they’re imaginative, fast, tight-knit, focused and deadly effective. Away they become just an ordinary team albeit with a couple of undeniable stars in it (Rooney, Ronaldo), whose sparks, however, appear infrequently and largely in unconnected isolation.
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Pushing my prediction luck, I predict Liverpool will take it again. It’s a bit against logic, but so was the last time.
I think Milan could (and should) slaughter them. A Liverpool win would be like the Greek Euro win, a victory for unimaginative grinders, and a loss for football.
It was noticable last night that Milan didn’t let up after half-time, they never sat on their lead and invited United on to them. I don’t think they’ll give Liverpool a chance.
A Liverpool win would be like the Greek Euro win, a victory for unimaginative grinders, and a loss for football.
I see what you mean. Yet. In 2005, Milan’s first half was nothing short of brilliant. A victory for football, you might even say. But Liverpool’s “grinding” comeback and bloody-minded determination was what really made that match into one of a few select all-time classics.
Also, I really think it’s unfair to Liverpool to compare them to the Greeks of 2004. Players like Zenden, Riise, Gerrard or Kuyt will look good on any team. And in the defense line, Daniel Agger in the second Chelsea game just may have accomplished a decisive breakthrough into the ranks of the Greats. It will be interesting to see how he’ll do against Kaka.
Zenden would look good on any team? He certainly wouldn’t get in the squad at Man United, and Chelsea’s decision to discard him has never looked like a bad one…Maybe you had in mind a team of best-coiffed players, avec Mr Ginola et al?
Kuyt? You’ve got to be kidding. He’s a hard worker with no pace, no touch, and no shot. He only plays because Liverpool have no strikers worth the name. Gerrard would get into most squads, maybe Agger or Carragher. Riise only into squads outside the top four.
Kaka and Seedorf will be playing against Mascherano, not Agger or Carragher. (and credit to Mascherano, he had a decent game on Tuesday)
stostosto – Zenden would look good in any team? Are you pissed? Liverpool have far too many bog-standard players – Pennent, Bellamy, Gonzalez, Fowler et al.
Like Man Ure found out – you can get so far in the Prem while carrying rubbish like O’Shea, Fletcher, Richardson, Brown and Ferdinand, but you’ll get found out in Europe.
Well fwiw, Fowler is not a “bog standard player”, he’s a brilliant player (see 1995-6 season) who is way way past his best after injuries and poor career choices.
Interesting that Carragher is getting a mention as “world class”. Carragher was an average squad player for years at Liverpool, often played at right- or left- back, sometimes in midfield. A succession of players was bought to replace him at full-back, but somehow he outlasted them all. Then he broke his leg at Blackburn and was out for ages. I, along with just about everyone else, thought it was curtains for his Liverpool career. But he focused, got himself together and somehow turned himself into one of the best defenders in the league. Which goes to show, I think, that attitude and commitment go a long way to making a player “world class” (as opposed to some mysterious intrinsic quality).
Anyway, to borrow a cliche, Milan might well beat Liverpool on paper, but the game will be played on the pitch.
Milan owes a debt of gratitude to Italy’s oh so accommodating legal system as if they hadn’t been granted their appeal of their initial banning from European competition from the match-fixing scandal that put Juventus in Serie B.
Zenden’s best moment was a brilliant goal in the third place game of the 1998 WC. He was a bust at Barça.
diddy: Carra has near “legend” status among Liverpool fans, but no where else. I wear 23 not because of Beckham.
ray: Perhaps other than balls played to Couch (and Couch has deft foot skills), I don’t think Liverpool plays more hoof ball than anyone else. Case in point would be Agger’s goal. For most other teams and occasions, that free kick would have been sent high into the goal area in hope of a header attempt at the goal, hence it would be quite unusual for an air ball team to have done otherwise. Furthermore, air ball teams normally do not have majority possession time like Liverpool did against Chelsea.
Re: 36
Sadly no, I’m not the same Chris Armstrong who played for Millwall. I’m pleased to say that he’s older than me. But surely playing for Spurs and Bolton was my namesake’s major claim to fame, not Millwall?
{ 44 comments }
Steve 05.01.07 at 9:42 pm
Good for 22 minutes, ugly for the other 98.
Thomas 05.01.07 at 9:45 pm
The protests this week in Turkey warm my heart.
I was taken to task on another blog this week for asserting that democracy and secularism must be hard won from the inside out and that a western policy of regime change will only hamper the spread of representative government through the remaining parts of the world.
These recent events prove that secular government can win popular support in the middle east and that representative government can grow and flourish without direct US interference. The fact that much of this upheaval is predicated on military support is troublesome but the jury is still out on that one.
P O'Neill 05.01.07 at 10:05 pm
How does one now pick between a smirk on the face of Alex Ferguson or Silvio Berlusconi tomorrow night? I’d rather see the smirk on Silvio’s face & get the ’05 rematch.
SCM 05.01.07 at 10:17 pm
thomas — this is not a matter of religion or secularism. It’s far more important than that.
Tom Scudder 05.01.07 at 10:21 pm
Ugh. Could you at least link to whatever meaningless sports event you’re talking about?
P O'Neill 05.01.07 at 10:23 pm
4-1 shurely?
[corrected! How did I get that wrong? cb]
Shelby 05.01.07 at 10:41 pm
I figured this must be some sort of Turkey-Greece game. Seriously, who cares about British league soccer?
*
*
*
*
Good thing I brought that body armor.
Jacob Christensen 05.01.07 at 10:43 pm
And what a day that was for us Danes: Daniel Agger scored Liverpool’s goal.
Earlier in the day, the Danish international Ice Hockey team won 4-3 over Ukraine and is now qualified for next year’s World Championship.
Next step in our plan: Total world domination.
reuben 05.01.07 at 10:50 pm
My favourite image was Rafa sitting cross-legged (well, the fat man’s version of it) on the grass during penalties. I could predict the rest, but not that.
Neil 05.01.07 at 11:30 pm
Seriously, who cares about British league soccer?
Lots of people. But CB is not talking about British league soccer. “Istanbul” and “Athens” might just have given a hint.
tom hurka 05.02.07 at 12:19 am
Chris: Didn’t you once cite the Wages of Wins claim that football/soccer has the highest competitive balance of all major professional sports? But hasn’t that been undermined in recent years by the fact that the same four biggest-spending teams are always atop the English Premiership? (In North American sports, for whatever reason, money doesn’t buy championships.) And isn’t part of what makes Chelsea evil that they’re the biggest spenders of all? (That’s certainly why I was hoping for Liverpool.)
a diddy 05.02.07 at 1:12 am
Shelby, you must have been born stupid.
snuh 05.02.07 at 4:01 am
In North American sports, for whatever reason, money doesn’t buy championships.
and that reason is: salary caps.
Leinad 05.02.07 at 6:21 am
nell: whoooooooooosh!
Ray 05.02.07 at 7:10 am
Good beat Evil last night, but in three weeks time Boring and Untalented is going to be swept aside by Panache.
stostosto 05.02.07 at 7:14 am
Ha!
thomas #2 had me re-reading the post — and I can see how he got the wrong idea.
Anyways: Good on Liverpool. Chelsea had too little to show for all their billions.
And I too am looking forward to a rerun of Istanbul ’05. I think Milan are going to do the ugly thing to Man. U.
astrongmaybe 05.02.07 at 7:50 am
Metaphysically speaking, football does not offer a level playing field. Pure Good can’t win on penalties, only in proper play, since penalties are, in their essence, a bit shite. Evil, however, will triumph where and whenever it can.
The Pessimists’ Football Creed.
chris armstrong 05.02.07 at 8:46 am
Chelsea did indeed have surprisingly little to show for their billions. Mourinho made his dice-rolls, bringing on Robben and Wright-Phillips, very late indeed. I mean, they only had to score one goal and the tie was theirs, right? Can we finally identify a definite tactical failure from Mr Sneer? I guess The Boss isn’t going to be very happy. Or, he’ll be as unhappy as you can be whilst bathing in a tub of chilled power and influence, cruising past in a boat longer than my street…
nick s 05.02.07 at 1:10 pm
My brother-in-law may not be allowed to go this time: he ended up staying in Bulgaria.
(Of course, the eagerly-sought logistical nightmare of an ‘all-English’ final would be watched by two sets of American owners. And on that subject, can’t they just pay off the Athenians and hold it at Wembley?)
dearieme 05.02.07 at 1:52 pm
Further evidence for my wife’s contention that one shouldn’t bother watching the football, just watch the penalties.
Randy Paul 05.02.07 at 2:34 pm
Leinad,
Was that whoosh the sound of it going over his head or through one ear and out the other?
P. O’Neill,
Talk about Hobson’s choice. I would ultimately rather see Berlusconi get his comeuppance, but I want Liverpool to win regardless.
ejh 05.02.07 at 5:43 pm
Funny, but not as funny as Leeds getting relegated.
Anyway what’s the Champions’ League worth? Oxford are in the play-offs for the first time ever. In a grotesque act of hubris I have already booked my plane ticket back to London for the final.
dsquared 05.02.07 at 10:45 pm
Chris: Didn’t you once cite the Wages of Wins claim that football/soccer has the highest competitive balance of all major professional sports? But hasn’t that been undermined in recent years by the fact that the same four biggest-spending teams are always atop the English Premiership?
but you should be comparing the UK to maybe California, which only has about half a dozen NFL teams at all. The comparison for any US sports league ought to be the UEFA Champions’ League itself, in which there is a lot more variation.
Dan Karreman 05.02.07 at 11:39 pm
OK, so it’s a replay of the 2005 final. Somehow I don’t think Gattuso will allow it to repeat itself – damn, he was good tonight. Perhaps he was a bit too fired up. He looked as he would collect a pound of flesh from the nearest ManUtd player after ManUtd’s refusal to hand over the ball to Milan after the injury-induced throw-in, and the subsequent lame attempt to attack from ManUtd. No wonder Ancellotti felt that he had to substitute him.
Randy Paul 05.03.07 at 12:58 am
I’d love to see Gattuso in England and I’m sorry I didn’t get to see much of him when he played for Rangers.
IIRC, his nickname is The Snarling Hound.
P O'Neill 05.03.07 at 2:55 am
It was looking like a bad night for MU with Ronaldo trying a very ostentatious backheel in the first couple of minutes — in a downpour. It went to a Milan player.
blackterror 05.03.07 at 3:25 am
Snuh,
Salary caps explains the Yankees’ present difficulties and the Mets perenial difficulites?
stostosto 05.03.07 at 6:58 am
United is a very different team away. It’s amazing. At Old Trafford they’re not only unbeatable, they’re imaginative, fast, tight-knit, focused and deadly effective. Away they become just an ordinary team albeit with a couple of undeniable stars in it (Rooney, Ronaldo), whose sparks, however, appear infrequently and largely in unconnected isolation.
—
Pushing my prediction luck, I predict Liverpool will take it again. It’s a bit against logic, but so was the last time.
Ray 05.03.07 at 7:23 am
I think Milan could (and should) slaughter them. A Liverpool win would be like the Greek Euro win, a victory for unimaginative grinders, and a loss for football.
It was noticable last night that Milan didn’t let up after half-time, they never sat on their lead and invited United on to them. I don’t think they’ll give Liverpool a chance.
stostosto 05.03.07 at 9:17 am
A Liverpool win would be like the Greek Euro win, a victory for unimaginative grinders, and a loss for football.
I see what you mean. Yet. In 2005, Milan’s first half was nothing short of brilliant. A victory for football, you might even say. But Liverpool’s “grinding” comeback and bloody-minded determination was what really made that match into one of a few select all-time classics.
Also, I really think it’s unfair to Liverpool to compare them to the Greeks of 2004. Players like Zenden, Riise, Gerrard or Kuyt will look good on any team. And in the defense line, Daniel Agger in the second Chelsea game just may have accomplished a decisive breakthrough into the ranks of the Greats. It will be interesting to see how he’ll do against Kaka.
chris armstrong 05.03.07 at 9:50 am
Zenden would look good on any team? He certainly wouldn’t get in the squad at Man United, and Chelsea’s decision to discard him has never looked like a bad one…Maybe you had in mind a team of best-coiffed players, avec Mr Ginola et al?
Ray 05.03.07 at 10:11 am
Kuyt? You’ve got to be kidding. He’s a hard worker with no pace, no touch, and no shot. He only plays because Liverpool have no strikers worth the name. Gerrard would get into most squads, maybe Agger or Carragher. Riise only into squads outside the top four.
Kaka and Seedorf will be playing against Mascherano, not Agger or Carragher. (and credit to Mascherano, he had a decent game on Tuesday)
Thom 05.03.07 at 10:18 am
stostosto – Zenden would look good in any team? Are you pissed? Liverpool have far too many bog-standard players – Pennent, Bellamy, Gonzalez, Fowler et al.
Like Man Ure found out – you can get so far in the Prem while carrying rubbish like O’Shea, Fletcher, Richardson, Brown and Ferdinand, but you’ll get found out in Europe.
stostosto 05.03.07 at 12:01 pm
I stand by what I said. You mark my words, and get back to me on the 23rd!
a diddy 05.03.07 at 12:24 pm
Liverpool has three world class players who could get first team play on any team in the world: Gerrard, Reina, Carragher.
ejh 05.03.07 at 12:39 pm
I don’t suppose the Chris Armstong posting on here is the old Millwall player…
Another Damned Medie 05.03.07 at 12:45 pm
“When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high …”
Chris Bertram 05.03.07 at 1:18 pm
Well fwiw, Fowler is not a “bog standard player”, he’s a brilliant player (see 1995-6 season) who is way way past his best after injuries and poor career choices.
Interesting that Carragher is getting a mention as “world class”. Carragher was an average squad player for years at Liverpool, often played at right- or left- back, sometimes in midfield. A succession of players was bought to replace him at full-back, but somehow he outlasted them all. Then he broke his leg at Blackburn and was out for ages. I, along with just about everyone else, thought it was curtains for his Liverpool career. But he focused, got himself together and somehow turned himself into one of the best defenders in the league. Which goes to show, I think, that attitude and commitment go a long way to making a player “world class” (as opposed to some mysterious intrinsic quality).
Anyway, to borrow a cliche, Milan might well beat Liverpool on paper, but the game will be played on the pitch.
Randy Paul 05.03.07 at 1:42 pm
Milan owes a debt of gratitude to Italy’s oh so accommodating legal system as if they hadn’t been granted their appeal of their initial banning from European competition from the match-fixing scandal that put Juventus in Serie B.
Zenden’s best moment was a brilliant goal in the third place game of the 1998 WC. He was a bust at Barça.
Ray 05.03.07 at 2:31 pm
“Milan might well beat Liverpool on paper, but the game will be played on the pitch.”
Actually, if Liverpool have their way, the game will probably be played in the air.
eviled 05.03.07 at 5:25 pm
diddy: Carra has near “legend” status among Liverpool fans, but no where else. I wear 23 not because of Beckham.
ray: Perhaps other than balls played to Couch (and Couch has deft foot skills), I don’t think Liverpool plays more hoof ball than anyone else. Case in point would be Agger’s goal. For most other teams and occasions, that free kick would have been sent high into the goal area in hope of a header attempt at the goal, hence it would be quite unusual for an air ball team to have done otherwise. Furthermore, air ball teams normally do not have majority possession time like Liverpool did against Chelsea.
eviled 05.03.07 at 5:45 pm
s/Couch/Crouch/g
Ray 05.04.07 at 6:58 am
Agger’s goal was a classic dummy al right, but for a lot of that match both Liverpool and Chelsea were sending long balls up to Crouch and Drogba.
chris armstrong 05.04.07 at 9:12 am
Re: 36
Sadly no, I’m not the same Chris Armstrong who played for Millwall. I’m pleased to say that he’s older than me. But surely playing for Spurs and Bolton was my namesake’s major claim to fame, not Millwall?
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