Oh, Fernando!

photo by fhisa	via PhotoRee

 

 

Ed's had it up to HERE with 'nando:

 

On Tuesday's Champion's League came against Juventus, Chelsea decided to leave Fernando on the bench even after they went down by two at the 65th minute. I can't say I"m surprised.

I remember when Fernando Torres was a dominant player -- someone that I made sure I watched. The Gerrard to Torres connection was lethal for Liverpool and put them near the top of the League. It's frankly shocking how mediocre he's become.

And mediocre is the right word. He went from the top in the League to someone who would have a hard time starting for anyone on the top of the table. Seriously, Michu or Fernando? How about Fletcher or Fernando?

Watching Fernando is a bit painful right now. Upon getting the ball, he usually clumsily tries to beat someone with the ball, only to find himself on his back and without the ball, complaining to the ref about some fictional foul. He's also good at the aimless pass, or the Gareth Barry Square Pass. Finally, he can't seem to race past anyone any more, with or without the ball. In short, Fernando would be on the bench if he had been purchased for only £10MM instead of the outrageous £50MM that was paid.

What's particularly shocking is that Chelsea began the season with Fernando as their only option up top other than, I suppose, Daniel Sturridge. To be honest, Sturridge is a better player right now, and I'm not sure why he doesn't find more time up top. That said, Didier Drogba literally carried this team to the finals of the Champions League last year -- he was their best player. Yet they decided inexplicably to drop him. Now he's in oblivion, at least in terms of soccer publicity, and Chelsea is still without a striker.

Legendary

photo by My Alternative Photos	via PhotoRee

Tuesday night was a fitting tribute to a legendary servant of the club. Huffing and puffing his way up and down the pitch, Gary Neville -- RedNev, to his legion of fans -- said goodbye to the 42,000 faithful at Old Trafford in an exhibition game played at a leisurely pace against Juventus of Italy. Fittingly, the former England right back was joined on the night by several other "kids" who created Fergie's Golden Generation of players: Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, who seem to be getting younger with each passing year, and David Beckham and Nicky Butt from Manchester United days gone by.


United "lost" the game 2-1, but the final scoreline mattered less than the heart and spirit shown by both sides on the pitch.  Herewith, some further thoughts while watching the game, along with some implications for Saturday's Champions League final:

• What in the world are Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs doing on the pitch five days before the European championship??  I'm sure the Neville Testimonial was scheduled weeks ago, but did the Reds' front office have such little faith in the club's chances of making the final that they scheduled this game for the same week?  I can't imagine an NFL team preparing for the Super Bowl by giving a exhibition runout to two starters and some important bench players (Scholes, and possibly O'Shea, Anderson and Rafael) the week of the final.

Flippin' Channels

photo by David Reber's Hammer Photography	via PhotoRee

• Juve played Inter yesterday. Another game played in a blanket of fog in Italy. Am I missing something or does every third game in Italy consist of a fog shrouded stadium from which the fans can barely see the product on the pitch? Very atmospheric, but maybe not so good for business in the long run. 
• By the way, who's the guy who does the commentary for Fox Soccer Channel's broadcasts of the Serie A? He makes me want to slit my wrists. He's monotone even when he gets excited, and his accent mixes Irish and Italian, creating a bizzare linguistic experience. He's worth listening to, though, if you ever find yourself overly excited -- he's guaranteed to bring you back down to earth.
  
• Real Madrid with ten men -- due to Iker Casillas' early and deserved red card -- are still better than most teams with eleven on the pitch. Real put Espanyol to the sword yesterday after being shorthanded, and could easily have score four or more golazos with slightly better finishing. Never mind, though, the result was still good enough for Mou's men to pick up two points on the Blaugrana, leaving them five points adrift of the leaders after this weekend.