Cunny

I'd take a point there!

Terry scores for classless blues**** 4-1

How has Robbie played?

Arteta scores pen for bitter blues****

some line up that

Egypt 2 Senegal 1 5 minutes left

I wanted Nigeria to beat Ivory Coast just because Drogba was playing for Ivory Coast.

absolutely absurd!!! http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/t...ian/4690068.stm Rix not picking team, say players Hearts head coach Graham Rix is no longer selecting the side, according to several of the first team squad. BBC Scotland has learned that Hearts players want a meeting with Vladimir Romanov, after Rix revealed the club owner is picking the team. One player told BBC Scotland that Rix had said: "Romanov is pulling the strings, picking the team including the substitutes and has total control." Another player claims Rix told him: "Mr Romanov is picking the team." Meanwhile, the agent for Andy Webster has told BBC Scotland that he has ended negotiations over a new contract for the Scotland defender. Webster has been dropped to the bench for Tuesday's visit to Dundee United and is not happy with the way team matters are being run. Charlie Duddy said: "Negotiations over a new contract for Andy have been brought to an end permanently. We will not be re opening them." Webster 17 months to run on his current deal. "I am picking the team," said former Portsmouth manager Rix, when he was unveiled at Tynecastle on 8 November. But it appears he has surrendered control of the 35-man first-team pool. Rix was brought in to replace George Burley, who left the club amid reports of meddling from Romanov. The Lithuanian banker has been responsible for several of the many new faces that have arrived at Hearts since he arrived in Edinburgh just over a year ago. And, if he has been picking the team, he has been doing a pretty good job. Hearts sit second in the SPL table, eight points behind leaders Celtic, and Tynecastle is full to capacity for almost every home game. They are also firm favourites to win the Scottish Cup, having reached the last eight, while Celtic and Rangers have fallen by the wayside. But supporters may be anxious to hear of unrest among players and the coaching staff.

http://www.footballtransfers.net/youth/100risingstars.html highlighted some interesting ones World Soccer's 100 Rising Stars 2000/01 No. Name Club Nationality 1. Yakubu Abubakari Ajax Amsterdam (Ned) Ghana 2. Ishmael Addo Hearts Of Oak (Gha) Ghana 3. Rabiu Afolabi Napoli (Ita) Nigeria 4. Julius Aghahowa Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukr) Nigeria 5. Pablo Aimar River Plate (Arg) Argentina 6. Mohamed Al-Shlhoob Al-Hilal (SAr) Saudia Arabia 7. Mohammed Aliyu AC Milan (Ita) Nigeria 8. Matthew Amoah Vitesse Arnhem (Ned) Ghana 9. Nicolas Anelka Paris-SG (Fra) France 10. Juan Arango Monterrey (Mex) Venezuela 11. Gerald Asamoah Schalke 04 (Ger) Ghana/Germany 12. Emile Baron Lillestrom (Nor) South Africa 13. DaMarcus Beasley Chicago Fire (USA) USA 14. Igor Biscan Liverpool (Eng) Croatia 15. Wilfred Bouma PSV (Ned) Holland 16. Wes Brown Manchester United (Eng) England 17. Moises Candelario Emelec (Ecu) Ecuador 18. John Carew Valencia (Spa) Norway 19. Fabian Carini Danubio (Uru) Uruguay 20. Iker Casillas Real Madrid (Spa) Spain 21. Antonio Cassano Bari (Ita) Italy 22. Cristian Chivu Ajax Amsterdam (Ned) Romania 23. Lambros Choutos Olympiacos (Gre) Greece 24. Philippe Christanval Monaco (Fra) France 25. Joe Cole West Ham United (Eng) England 26. Bobby Convey D.C. United (USA) USA 27. Walter Corazo Emelec (Ecu) Ecuador 28. Paulo Da Silva Lanus (Arg) Paraguay 29. Stephane Dalmat Paris-SG (Fra) France 30. Sebastian Deisler Hertha Berlin (Ger) Germany 31. Boubacar Diarra SC Freiburg (Ger) Mali 32. Aruna Dindane Anderlecht (Bel) Ivory Coast 33. Landon Donavan Bayer Leverkusen (Ger) USA 34. Kieron Dyer Newcastle United (Eng) England 35. Edu Celta Vigo (Spa) Brazil 36. Emre Belezoglu Galatasaray (Tur) Turkey 37. Samuel Eto'o Mallorca (Spa) Cameroon 38. Fabio Aurelio Valencia (Spa) Spain 39. Francisco Farinos Inter Milan (Ita) Spain 40. Pascal Feindouno Bordeaux (Fra) Guinea 41. Barry Ferguson Rangers (Sco) Scotland 42. Gabri Barcelona (Spa) Spain 43. Ronald Garcia Bolivar (Bol) Bolivia 44. Steven Gerrard Liverpool (Eng) England 45. Helton Vasco da Gama (Bra) Brazil 46. Ahmed Salah Hosny VfB Stuttgart (Ger) Egypt 47. Pius Ikedia Ajax Amsterdam (Ned) Nigeria 48. Junichi Inamoto Gamba Osaka (Jap) Japan 49. Isaac Primeiro Agosto (Ang) Angola 50. Juan Flamengo (Bra) Brazil 51. Carlos Idriss Kameni Le Havre (Fra) Cameroon 52. Robbie Keane Leeds United (Eng) Ireland 53. Harry Kewell Leeds United (Eng) Austraillia 54. Mateja Kezman PSV (Ned) Yugoslavia 55. Mickael Landreau Nantes (Fra) France 56. Peter Luccin Paris-SG (Fra) France 57. Luis Filepe Sporting Braga (Por) Portugal 58. Claudio Maldonado Sao Paulo (Bra) Chile 59. Rafael Marquez Monaco (Fra) France 60. Matuzalem Napoli (Ita) Brazil 61. Phillipe Mexes Auxerre (Fra) France 62. Aaron Mokoena Ajax Amsterdam (Ned) South Africa 63. Ahonnier Montano Parma (Ita) Columbia 64. Tresso Moreno Metz (Fra) Colombia 65. Emile Mpenza Schalke 04 (Ger) Belgium 66. Adrian Mutu Verona (Ita) Romania 67. Szilard Nemeth ASK Inter (Slvk) Slovakia 68. Andres Olivera Sevilla (Spa) Uruguay 69. Micheal Owen Liverpool (Eng) England 70. Christos Patasatzoglou Olympiacos (Gre) Greece 71. Andrea Pirlo Inter Milan (Ita) Italy 72. Claudio Pizarro SV Werder Bremen (Ger) Peru 73. David Pizzaro Udinese (Ita) Chile 74. Stipe Pletikosa Hajduk Split (Cro) Croatia 75. Prince Daye Bastia (Fra) Liberia 76. Luis Gatty Ribeiro Bolivar (Bol) Bolivia 77. John Arne Rise Monaco (Fra) Norway 78. Juan Roman Riquelme Boca Juniors (Arg) Argentina 79. Leandro Romagnoli San Lorenzo (Arg) Argentina 80. Ronaldinho Gremio (Bra) Brazil 81. Tomas Rosicky Borussia Dortmund (Ger) Czech Republic 82. Walter Samuel AS Roma (Ita) Argentina 83. Roque Santa Cruz Bayern Munchen (Ger) Germany 84. Javier Saviola River Plate (Arg) Argentina 85. Simao Barcelona (Spa) Portugal 86. Gonzalo Sorondo Defensor Sporting (Uru) Uruguay 87. David Suazo Cagliari (Ita) Honduras 88. Jean-Micheal Tchouga FC Basel (Swi) Cameroon 89. Rodrigo Tello Sporting (Por) Chile 90. Christian Timm 1.FC Koln (Ger) Germany 91. Razundrea Tjikuzu SV Werder Bremen (Ger) Nambia 92. Svetoslav Todorov Litex Lovetch (Bul) Bulgaria 93. Joselito Vava Bolivia Bolivia 94. Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink FC Twente (Ned) Holland 95. Nicola Ventola Atalanta (Ita) Italy 96. Tobias Willi SC Freiburg (Ger) Germany 97. Xavi Barcelona (Spa) Spain 98. Ngidid Yemweni Daring Club Motema Pembe (DR Congo) DR Congo 99. Jonathan Zebina AS Roma (Ita) France 100. Emmanuel Zulu Zanaco (Zam) Zambia

http://www.footballtransfers.net/youth/bestyoungeng.html There is some s**** in this list and is an indication of how difficult it is to judge how good young players are going to be. Although Cadamarteri was always gash. Top 20 Best Young English Based Players 1998/99 No. Player's Name Pos. Nat. D.O.B. Club Value 01 Michael Owen ST Eng 14/12/1979 Liverpool £25m 02 Rio Ferdinand CD Eng 07/11/1978 West Ham United £8m 03 Kieron Dyer MF Eng 29/12/1978 Ipswich Town £8m 04 Damian Duff LW Ire 02/03/1979 Blackburn Rovers £5m 05 Harry Kewell LW Aus 22/09/1978 Leeds United £4m 06 Robbie Keane ST Ire 08/07/1980 Wolverhampton Wanderers £5m 07 Kevin Davies ST Eng 26/03/1977 Blackburn Rovers £7.25m 08 Emile Heskey ST Eng 11/01/1978 Leicester City £9m 09 Michael Ball LB Eng 02/10/1979 Everton £1m 10 Richard Wright GK Eng 05/11/1977 Ipswich Town £3m 11 Lee Hendrie FW Eng 18/05/1977 Aston Villa £2m 12 Craig Bellamy ST Wal 13/07/1979 Norwich City £5m 13 Jamie Carragher DF Eng 28/01/1978 Liverpool £1m 14 Steve Simonsen GK Eng 03/04/1979 Everton £3.3m 15 Espen Baardsen GK Nor 07/12/1977 Tottenham Hotspur £1m 16 Ian Harte LWB Ire 31/07/1977 Leeds United £2m 17 Danny Cadarmatari ST Eng 12/10/1979 Everton £800k 18 Jody Morris CM Eng 22/12/1978 Chelsea £750k 19 Paul Dalglish ST Sco 18/02/1977 Newcastle United £500k 20 Stephen Clemence LM Eng 31/03/1978 Tottenham Hotspur £500k

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/r...ent/4685580.stm Liverpool have one of the meanest rearguards in the Premiership, but their defending has again come under scrutiny following the 2-0 defeat by Chelsea on Sunday. The reason is that for set-pieces, Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez favours defending zones rather than marking players. That is despite Chelsea's William Gallas and Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand both taking advantage of the system and scoring against the Reds. Former FA technical director Howard Wilkinson and ex-Liverpool defender Alan Hansen explain why they agree with Benitez's methods. What is zonal defending? "In zonal defending, you don't mark a man, you mark an area," said Hansen, winner of seven league championships. As you can see in the diagram above, Liverpool set up their defence for a corner with four players across the six yard box and a further four ahead of them. Between them, they are given an area to cover and should the ball reach them, it is up to the defender to clear the danger. Hansen added: "The three most important areas are your man on the near post, a man in the middle of the six-yard box and a man between those two." Why defend in zones rather than man-to-man? Although it tends to be more popular in European football than in Britain, Hansen is a fan of the system but admits it is down to the players involved. He said: "We always used zonal marking when I won championships with Liverpool. "It was all about winning the first ball and if not, you've got to clean up the second ball. "The other thing of course was having a goalkeeper (Bruce Grobbelaar) who we knew was going to come for crosses." Wilkinson has used the zonal system for more than 30 years in football and implemented it in many of the England teams when he was technical director at the FA. He said: "Zonal defending is based on the principle that when free-kicks are taken in the attacking third in wide positions or from corners, there is a dangerous space which can be identified. "Within this area roughly three out of 100 goals are scored from the first touch. Want to be a football coach? "The system attempts to concentrate the best headers of the ball in that space. Your other players are in positions to defend the second ball. "With man-to-man marking, attackers can drag defenders all over the place by taking them away from the danger area. "It is a collective responsibility whereas man-for-man marking is based on personal responsibility." The case study "The problem with zonal marking is that because of the movement of the opposition, you're going to have men that are unmarked," said Hansen. "When you start off you need to decide who picks up whom and who then lets the other men go. In the game on Sunday, Riise made the fatal mistake of following the ball." Wilkinson adds: "It's a common fault with players defending balls delivered from wide. They get attracted to a ball that they can do nothing about. "If you can't get there, get yourself between the posts and defend the goal in case there's a second ball to deal with." Arguments against The most common opposition to the system is that zones don't score, players do, so mark the player. But Wilkinson explains there is a further layer to the argument. He said: "Players score from dangerous zones. What do goalkeepers do on corners anyhow? "They zone mark because until the ball is kicked they don't know where the ball will go. "They don't concern themselves with players, they concern themselves with the ball because it's the ball that scores." And he dismisses the notion that defenders have to compete with attackers who have a run on them. "Attackers get a run on you whether you are zone defending or man-for-man marking," Wilkinson said More on football formations "They always calls the shots. You start from a standing position but once the ball is in flight, you've got the distance the ball travels to get yourself moving. "Lots of teams in the Premiership now mark zones on the wide free-kick, because if you try and mark runners you end up running into each other and you can't jump anyway. "You've got to remember that the higher up you go, the greater the quality of the delivery. "That's one thing you can't do anything about, you have to assume that the people who are taking it can hit the button." Teaching the system Liverpool's defending as a team has been widely praised this season with the team matching a club record for consecutive clean sheets in the league. Wilkinson says: "Benitez's record, before he came to Liverpool and since he arrived, says that undoubtedly in achieving some things he's a master. "I'd be careful about arguing with him on defending because his record isn't bad, particularly in Europe. "It is a difficult thing to coach. It's more complex than man-to-man but it is more effective. "But it's only more effective if it's covered comprehensively and players understand not only their roles but the roles of others."

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just got mine over t'internet

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Luke Moore has 4 goals in 2 games for Villa. Milan has to ask himself why is he at a piss poor second rate outfit like villa. Why weren't Europe's best in for him last season?

this will be 5 goals this season Baros? Our forwards are crap but Baros is not the answer

no Xavi, Ronaldinho and Eto'o

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bugger!!! watching this on Sky, which I thought was live - it is still 0-0!!!