Crunch Time in the BPL

Columnist Randy only gets going when the going gets tough:

With three weeks remaining, its crunch time in the BPL. With the Manchester derby coming Monday, the race for the Premiership, Champions and Europa League spots and relegation avoidance is full on. Every point is critical and no team can afford to drop any more, so we should expect some exciting football this weekend.

Clash for the Silverware

Manchester United had a great chance to put City away with a win against Everton at Old Trafford. Offensively the Red Devils had an excellent game, netting four goals. Unfortunately their defense was exposed again. Rafael of the Wonder Twins made an excellent spectator on two costly Everton goals, the last putting Everton level at four. Now only three points clear instead of five, the Monday clash with City is for all intents and purposes a winner take all championship game. The one thing in United’s favor going forward is they have an easier final two games, with fixtures against Swansea and Sunderland, both of whom have nothing to play for. City, meanwhile, have tough matches against Newcastle, who is trying to hold on the final Champions league spot, and QPR -- who are fighting, almost literally, to stave off relegation.

League Battles

With the top two spots locked up by United and City, the fight is on for the remaining two Champions League spots. Problem is, it seems like no one besides Newcastle wants them. Arsenal, after getting beaten by Wigan last week, came back with a very poor performance against Chelsea’s backups. The Gunners are only three points clear of Newcastle, who have a game in hand. Arsenal also gave away needless points with their bruising loss to QPR, a game they should have won.  Arsenal needs to solidify their defense and regain their form and close out the season strong, with Newcastle only three behind and Tottenham six behind. Losing Mikel Arteta and the injury to Theo Walcott will not help.

With three straight loses, the Tottenham Coldspurs are fading and barely hanging on the Europa League spot. They are still within striking distance of a weakened Arsenal with a game in hand. With games against relegation-fighting Bolton and Blackburn this week,  Spurs need to quickly regain their form if they wish to catch Newcastle or Arsenal. They also must be wary of a strong-closing Chelsea.

Coming Up Trumps: Round 34 in the BPL

o Paul Lambert may be having a Manger Of the Season type year, but his Norwich City troops displayed a tactical naïveté when they came out playing way too open a game in their Saturday contest against Manchester City. It was just what the doctor ordered for the Sky Blues, as evidenced by Kun Aguero even managing to find the net --  for the very first time on the road this season outside of Manchester or London.

o Chant of the Week (sung by City fans -- note the irony): "He wants to go home, He wants to go home, Carlos Tevez, He wants to go home." And with his hat trick on England's east coast, the Argentine sausage-like wantaway is our Player of the Week.

o It's all coming up trumps for Andy Carroll as the season begins to wind down. Two late winners inside of a week's time.... I wonder if he'll choose to go out to and celebrate with Roger Johnson and Anderson, or just spend a quiet night taking in a Boyzone concert with the King.  My guess is that wherever he goes, Carroll won't be celebrating with a Kaliber.

o Gylfi Sigurdsson has turned into a helluva mid-season loan for Swansea City. Just when I had begun to write-off the Swans as undergoing a late-season wobble, up stepped the Icelandic midfielder to grab a goal and an assist to help steady the ship. I don't know what the terms of Sigurdsson's loan deal are, but I would suggest in the strongest terms possible that Swansea lock him up for next season -- although my sense is that a few other teams may also be interested in doing the same.

o Wolves and what appeared to be their seven traveling fans -- wait, does it really matter how I finish that sentence...?  Think about it -- seven people traveled from Wolverhampton to see Wolves take on Sunderland. That's preposterous, as were the three virtually empty sections of seats behind the Visitors' goal at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.

Fast and Furious: Round 33 in the BPL

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The games are coming fast and furious now, no rest for the weary, even of the fantasy football variety. I had to wake up at midnight on Easter Sunday evening to change my fantasy squad, as I'd forgotten to do so earlier in the day.  Nevertheless, the show must go on:

o As it did for Newcastle United, although their snoozer of a game versus Bolton never really sprang to life until Player of the Week Hatem Ben Arfa slalomed through the Trotters on his way to a fabulous second half goal. Many of the players on the pitch for Bolton looked as if they had to wake up at midnight Sunday night, as well -- and never went back to sleep.  


o Papiss Cisse may be lighting up hearts and minds in Toonside, but his arrival seems to have coincided with Demba Ba's fall from form. Could it just be a coincidence?  Or more likely, is the first-to-arrive Senegalese striker beginning to get a bit frustrated at his lack of playing time and opportunities -- as he looked when he was substituted after an hour on Monday.  The situation bears watching, because Ba may be eligible to go elsewhere next season....

o All this talk about how Chelsea has turned its season around strikes me as far fetched. Finishing fourth in the League and winning the FA Cup -- which the Blues seem to have a lock on, of late -- will hardly qualify as a major success. That is, unless you believe I've written them off too early against Barcelona....

o Liverpool's situation becomes more comedic by the day. The fact that the dismissal of their first string goalkeeper was followed in the very next game by  walking papers being issued to their second string goalkeeper (and very nearly their third, as well) is topped only by an even more statistically improbable feat: Andy Carroll scoring a late, game-winning goal. I mean, what are the odds?!

o Manchester City's game versus West Bromwich Albion could be the first time I've ever seen a in-depth highlights package of a Premier League game that didn't include any evidence of one the teams possesing the ball outside of their defensive end.  As Ricky Ricardo would have said, Baggies Manager Uncle Woy has "some 'splaining to do" for the lineup he trotted out like lambs to the slaughter -- omitting his two leading strikers for the trip to Manchester.

Le Deluge: Manchester United 5 - Wolverhampton Wanderers 0

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"Après Moi, le deluge." -- Louis XV

Sir Alex opts for an attacking lineup at Molineux, sending out a front line of Wayne Rooney and Chicharito, joined in action by an out-of-position Danny Welbeck and a just-returning-from-injury Antonio Valencia to slay Wolves.  It's a key game for the Red Devils, who will seek to inflict a psychological blow on trailing Manchester City, putting them four points down the table before they even take the pitch for their mid-week clash with Chelsea.

Welbeck and Valencia are joined by the calming presence of Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes in midfield, while the first choice partnership of Rio Ferdinand and Jonny Evans anchor a defense that also consists of Captain Patrice Evra, Rafael and David De Gea. To the Midlands we go for the latest installment of our season-long soap opera:

It's a muddled opening, with both sides seeking to gain the upper hand in the contest's early going. By the time five minutes have passed, United begin to control the game's tempo, Carrick and Scholes conducting the orchestra, and it appears only a slower-than-expected pitch is keeping the Red's passing game from clicking into fruition.  Rafael just misses picking out Chicharito for a certain score, and Wolves can consider themselves warned for the first time on the afternoon.

Michael Carrick fails to trouble Wayne Hennessy as United push attacking numbers forward, lured by the opportunity to attack the League's worst home defense.  Wolves display resiliency in shrugging off their close calls, as Stephen Fletcher almost opens the scoring with an unexpected twist to the plot; his glancing header off of Matt Jarvis' dangerous cross, however, is just wide of target. 

The shocker ultimately comes at the other end, however, and it's not the fact a goal is scored, but who scores it: Jonny Evans is ebullient, as an unmarked Carrick nods a Rooney corner into the box, where the Northern Irishman has an unmarked knee-high finish to put the visitors up 1-nil.

Ronald Zubar is fortunate to escape a red card for a reckless challenge on Rooney, as United look for a stranglehold on the proceedings; instead, he's shown rather leniently shown a yellow. At the other end, Rafael is found guilty of blocking as United give away a free kick, but Fletcher blasts it well high of goal and the danger is averted.

United are unable to get out of second gear, and seem to lack the sparkle of the opening 20 minutes. But when Zubar commits a second late and hard tackle, Wolves can have no complaint as he's shown the door for his second yellow card of the afternoon, and United have been gifted a true opportunity.  When Antonio Valencia fast breaks his way in on goal after a poor Matt Jarvis corner at the other end,  the Ecuadorian needs no additional help, and the opportunity has been grasped, along with a goal that makes the score on the day 2-0.

Danny Welbeck scores a third only two minutes later, tucking Valencia's cross into the back of the net, and goal difference now becomes a crucial target for the Reds -- a big day could be in store.  Valencia is absolutely on fire this afternoon, terrorizing Wolves without answer on the right hand touch line, and when the two teams go into the break the only question that needs to be answered for the rest of the afternoon surrounds the size of the Reds' final margin.

Observations from BPL Round 28

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Columnist Randy is back with some random musings from the latest round of fixtures:

Tottenham to be renamed ColdSpurs

Tottenham again lost to a club they should have defeated, in a 1-nil loss at Everton. This marked the first time Spurs have lost three consecutive Premier League games under Harry Redknapp. Over this losing streak, Gareth Bale has all but disappeared and has looked uncomfortable on the right side. Spurs have taken a meager seven of the last possible 21 points, while Arsenal has taken 16 to climb to within one point of third in the table.  Spurs' upcoming games, while mostly winnable, are against teams that are tough to play and could easily see Arsenal pass them by.

Chelsea has petitioned the FA to play only against 10 man squads

Chelsea got their first post-AVB win in the League against Stoke this weekend. While playing fairly poorly, they were able to hang on to beat a 10-man Stoke team after an incredibly stupid red card by Stoke’s Ricardo Fuller. Winning 1-nil against 10 men for 75 minutes is not very confidence inspiring for the future.  Chelsea have taken only nine out of the last 21 possible points while dropping to 5^th in the table, and are only five points clear of Newcastle for the Europa League spot. Unless they turn things around they could be on the outside looking in very soon.

Man United in the driver's seat

While United has had a pretty dismal record in European play, they have taken care of business in the BPL when they've needed to. With this weekend's win against West Brom, coupled with Man City’s loss to Swansea, the Red Devils are back on top of the table, one point clear of City. With players starting to return from injury (Valencia, Cleverly, etc.) look for United to keep the lead heading into their April 30^th clash with City at The Etihad. That fixture will most likely decide the Premiership.

What We Learned This Past Weekend in the BPL

Columnist Randy Lecturing on the BPL to a Class of Highly Interested Students
photo by Shaylor	via PhotoRee

Columnist Randy appears to like the beer he's receiving:

With my first payment from Farlie on Footie in hand (Dogfish Head 90 Minute Imperial IPA), I decided to chronicle a few interesting things we learned in the BPL this week.

1.  Landon Who?

While the American press heaps loads of praise on Landon Donovan, the best American in the BPL, by far, is Clint Dempsey. Dempsey, Fulham’s all-time leading scorer, this weekend became the first American to register a Premier League hat trick with his stellar performance against Newcastle (he also had a hat trick in his last outing against Charlton in the FA Cup). Dempsey is in the League's top five goal scorers this season, and is now the top goal-scoring midfielder (he was previously tied with Farlie on Footie favorite Frank Lampard).  Dempsey’s all around play has greatly improved this year and hopefully will translate into transfer interest from one of the League's top teams so he can get a chance to play in the Champions League next year. Now, let's just hope USA Soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann uses Dempsey to his full potential leading up the 2014 World Cup.

2. Wolves are absolute rubbish

Coming off an embarrassing mid-week loss to Championship side Birmingham City, Wolves followed up with a home defeat to Aston Villa. To add insult to injury, former Wolves' star Robbie Keane scored the leveling and winning goals, the last on a beautiful strike from 20 yards that went in off the underside of the crossbar. Wolves haven’t kept a clean sheet at home in 10 games this season, and are winless in their last eight fixtures. The only thing keeping them off the bottom of the table is a more inept Wigan squad, but at this point they seem destined for relegation. The only question that seems remaining is when manager Mick McCarthy will get the sack.

Back in the Groove: Manchester United 4 - Wolves 1

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Staring the Europa League squarely in the face, and with Captain Nemanja Vidic lost for the rest of the season, Manchester United hosted Wolves yesterday at Old Trafford, seeking the succor of home cooking to get their season back on track.  The campaign, which began so promisingly back in the glory days of August and September, has this week threatened to dissolve into a series of tough questions and pointed fingers, the result of the team's poor recent run of form.  Herewith, our correspondent's report:

It's an open game right from the sound of the referee's whistle, with Wolves taking a shot within the game's first 30 seconds. Not to be outdone, Nani shows his guile in teeing up an opportunity at the other end of the pitch just three minutes later, sending a perfectly weighted through ball across the face of goal, but there's no one for United at the other end for the tap in.

The attacks continue as Michael Carrick misses a spectacular diving header, connecting on the end of a luscious Antonio Valencia cross, but sending the ball just over the bar. United are dominating the early going, taking advantage of Wolves' lack of pace on the wings.

Wayne Rooney in particular is operating in acres of space early in the contest, and today could be the perfect opportunity for the Englishman to get his season back on track. Wolves' 'keeper Wayne Hennessy bails his team out, likely not for the first time today, after Carrick intercepts the ball in an advanced position and slots the ball through to Rooney, but the Hennessy is up  to the task to deny United's main man.  His luck doesn't last for long, though, as it's only a minute later that Nani drags the ball along the top of the box before beating him and finally giving the home fans something to cheer about. It's 1-nil inside of 20 minutes, with Nani scoring for the first time since September.

Split Weekend

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The staff at farlieonfootie really like these split EPL weekends: this one, for example, featured five games on Saturday and four on Sunday -- including the big one showcasing two teams from Manchester. What could be better? 

I understand the Sunday games are partly the by-product of European mid-week contests (forcing Tottenham to play way too many Sundays this season), but I also just like spacing out all the contests over two days, allowing one to soak all the football in and savor each game, rather than be forced to drink through a firehose and switch between one of five or more BPL 3pm kickoffs (10am EST), while knowing the outcome of the other matches before you have had an opportunity to see any of them unfold.  I like balance in the schedule, just like balance in our lives: it just makes everything work better.

Plus the European contests make it like having your cake (Saturday and Sunday football) and eating it, too (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday football).  A game almost every day of the week.  Again, I ask you: what could possibly be better?

o After witnessing the sad but laughable beavhiors committed by Wolves' fans this weekend after they fell behind Swansea City 2-nil before the halftime break, farlieonfootie has several suggested mottos for the team's marketing department to trot out to the various Wolves' booster clubs before their next home outing against Wigan in two weeks' time:

Wolves' Tiny Tots Club : Molineux: Where even the small children are encouraged to swear at you and call for your head. 

Chattering Away

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EPL Week Three Thoughts and Notes: 


o ESPN2 goal count, after the dreadful Wolves - Villa game Saturday morning in the States: 270-plus minutes of action so far this season, with one goal scored by the offense -- and that a garbage goal in stoppage time. I can't wait to see which game they have in store for us next week....


o Although Norwich looked every bit like a Championship side against Chelsea in the first 15 minutes of Saturday's action, by the 20 minute mark it was the Canaries who were beginning to ask the questions.  Jose Bosingwa was the only player in blue looking the least bit lively on the attack, as Chelsea appeared slow and either uninterested in or incapable of moving forward in a quick and coordinated manner.  Didier Drogba and Fat Frank Lampard's most notable first half plays involved free kicks that contributed to the growing mass of "space junk" orbiting the earth.

o On the other side of the ball, Chelsea's back line looked 'fragile' to say the least. Slow and creaky, Chelsea were exposed by a Canaries team that I had dismissed as none-too-speedy.  And if the media have been hard on young David De Gea, the response to Hilario's performance in between the sticks should be some serious howls of derision.  

You've Come a Long Way, Baby!

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A few things I noticed on an EPL Super Sunday that would have been better off billing itself as "Sleepy Sunday":


o Two years ago Norwich City was playing the likes of Colchester United in the First Division, and yesterday they were unlucky not to take all three points from Stoke City in the big leagues.  You've come a long way, baby.

o Wow!  Someone spent some money on the Molineux in the off season. Last year the turf looked like a goat patch, and this season it looks like the Emirates. Kudos to the shepherds... err, I mean groundskeepers.

o Matt Jarvis doesn't look like a prototypical EPL winger. He's kind of short and stubby, actually. He does wear his socks up over his knees, though, almost as if he's Spanish, and he repeatedly gets the job done: a goal and an assist to show for his efforts yesterday. What in the world was I thinking when I transfered him out of my Fantasy team.....?.

o And speaking of Fantasy Football mistakes, why in the world did I bury Richie De Laet on my bench?  The once and future Man United man -- on loan to Norwich City this season -- had a nice glancing header to give his side a deserved first half lead. He almost grabbed another four points for the shutout, as well, before a late late Kenwyne Jones stoppage time header denied him a fantasy four and his real life team two very costly points. Some amount of blame has to be laid at the feet of referee Neil Swarbrick, who blew the major call in the game and forced the home side to play a majority of the second half with only ten men.

Mistakes Were Made

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In which I own up to the times when my prediction radar was slightly off:

Despite nailing the fact that Wigan would just edge out Brum in the relegation battle all the way back in mid-January, in the very same column I didn't quite manage to see how the bottom of the table would play out.  Witness this gem:

"West Ham will not be relegated.   Maybe they deserve to be, and maybe it’s just my latent sympathy for Avram Grant and our farlieonfootie columnist Ian, but I don’t think the Hammers are going down."

Umm, the worst team in the League usually gets relegated, and Hammers happened to be bottom of the table.  Guess you can't win them all.  Grade: F

Or  how about this terrific piece of football insight, from the very same column:

"...[D]espite my genuine affection for Mick McCarthy, I don’t see Wolves staying up..." 

Wrong again!  Mick's boys managed to get hot at the right time and prove me wrong.  But surely, you note, that's only two things from that fateful column you got wrong.  You didn't miss another, did you?

Warning: Rough Seas Ahead

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The title chase tightened immeasurably this weekend, with the two leaders surrendering massive points, and the chasing pack gaining ground.  Whether we'll look back at this weekend at the "Week that Was," or whether it's a momentary blip in the smooth sailing of United's and Arsenal's seasons will play out over the next several weeks.  Herewith, some thoughts on a portion of the weekend's activities:

• Someone forgot to tell Wolves they were supposed to lie down and be relegated. Showcasing a fighting spirit they seem capable of locating only when they play a top side, Mick McCarthy's boys outclassed a Tottenham side that had one eye cast nervously toward their European mid-weeker against Milan, and Wolves were unfortunate to gain only a 3-3 draw on Sunday afternoon.

• Controversial officiating reared its ugly head again, as Mark Halsey continued the run of clueless refereeing decisions blighting the EPL this month. He somehow saw fit to keep Alan Hutton on the pitch, despite the Spurs' defender being the last man between Nenad Milijas and goal when he pulled the Wolves' man down. Compounding his error, in the second half Halsey disallowed a late Ryan Stearman equalizer, claiming interference on the Wolves' man despite video replay indicating there was little wrong with Stearman's leaping challenge for the ball.

Nine Lives

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farlieonfootie visited The Emirates this past weekend to check out Arsenal's title credentials.  Verdict?  Not overly impressed.

Arsenal and Wolves are greeted by a volley of hailstones to open their match at the Emirates Saturday afternoon. Arsenal begin the match as the stronger of the two sides, but have relatively little to show for their efforts by the ten minute mark.  Wolves' main hope today may be that the hail damages the pitch, pocking it up so that it more closely resembles the cow patch they're used to at the Molineux.

Despite the unfamiliarly immaculate pitch, Wolves do show at least a bit of ambition in the early going. Although the men in gold have only scored ten times on the road all season, it's not immediately obvious by watching the game's opening fifteen minutes. What is obvious, though, is that Wolves' defense is not very good, and Robin Van Persie is in fine form as he sneaks a ball past Hennessy for a quick 1-nil lead. Andre Arshavin misses doubling the lead less than five minutes later when the Wolves' keeper badly misjudges a cross, surprising the Russian with his miss, and providing an open invitation to shoot.

Wolves display their typical tough tackling as the game settles down, but once again appear overly reliant on the set play for scoring opportunities.  When Walcott, Fabregas, and Fabregas again are denied in quick succession near the half hour mark, the alarm bells in the Wolverhampton back line are ringing at full volume, and a second goal has surely got to be on the way. Wolves are being bombarded by the Arsenal assault, and when Van Persie's shot is deflected on the stroke of half time, they're lucky to escape to the locker room down by only one goal.

Going Down

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Now that the season’s finish line is beginning to hazily appear, as if a mirage still several miles off, it’s time for a semi-famous prediction about how it’s all going to end.  Not for the guys at the top of the table – far too much import in that, and a massive game in hand tomorrow night at Bloomfield Road, which could see United clinging narrowly to a two point lead over the Gunners, or vaulting out to a five point advantage over their nearest rivals.  No, I’m talking about the race for the bottom, for relegation.   It’s just about as interesting, and much more competitive than the race for the title, with arguably as many as ten teams involved.

Let’s start the predictions off with some fireworks: West Ham will not be relegated.   Maybe they deserve to be, and maybe it’s just my latent sympathy for Avram Grant and our farlieonfootie columnist Ian, but I don’t think the Hammers are going down.  And let’s face it: how bold would I really be if I picked the Hammers to fall into the Championship?  If leadership is about having vision, this prediction could look spectacularly good or bad in four month’s time.  In any event, I see the Hammers rallying behind Frederique Piquiounne, Jonathan Spector, and – you guessed it—Scotty Parker to cling, just barely, to their status as a Premier League Club.  This weekend’s draw at Goodison Park was a nice result on the road for West Ham, and their form over their last six matches is actually twelfth best in the league.  Not tops certainly, but not relegation-bound, either.

Carbonated Footie

Some of farlieonfootie's newest fans, from the World Beer Fest
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In addition to the usual football column, today's version of the blog will include several observations from a recent trip to the World Beer Fest in Columbia, South Carolina. After all, what could be better than a weekend full of footie, unless it's a weekend full of footie and beer? Now how the World Beer Fest happened to choose Columbia, South Carolina as its winter home I'll never know, but I'm guessing the event was rather optimistically named....

First off, regarding the football I saw: Liverpool looked better on Saturday than they have in many weeks, although I wouldn't be getting too carried away about the rest of the season if I were a fan of the reds (which I am decidedly not). True, Torres appears to be finally waking up from his somnambulistic state, hitting the back of the net twice yesterday, but even I could have scored the two goals he did -- and I'm not very good. For his second goal, which capped a 3-nil win over a downtrodden Wolves side, the goalkeeper wasn't even in front of the net, leaving Torres nothing to do but spank the ball home from three feet away.  And true, also, that Raul Meireles is finally showing a bit of the form expected when the Scousers bought him this summer from Porto [Ed. Note: Have any Liverpool supporters thanked Uncle Roy for signing Meireles, or is it not appropriate to show even the smallest sign of gratitude to their former boss man?].  But let's be completely honest here: that was Wolves the reds beat, a side currently sitting one spot north of the southernmost spot in the league, and Wolverhampton turned in an absolute stinker yesterday afternoon after several strong recent performances. So let's not get too hot and bothered over King Kenny's triumphant return. The team he inherited will not be relegated, but they're right where they belong: this Liverpool team is a mid-table club.

Reflections on a Weekend Full of Football

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Some scattered thoughts from a scatter brain, after a weekend full of games, derbies and otherwise: 

Manchester City - Wolves: City finally figured out how to turn on the offense this weekend. Having scored only 11 goals at Eastlands so far the entire season, the addition of the big Serbian Edin Dzeko inspired City to put four past Mick McCarthy's Wolves on Saturday. The only problem with the game plan was that Roberto Mancini was speaking to his offense when he talked about playing "wide open football," not to his defense. 

The City players certainly appeared confused, as they gave up three goals to Wolves, and could easily have left their home ground with a single point, if not for a timely intervention of Vincent Kompany and another by the woodwork.  Having been criticized before for a lack of offensive effort, it will be interesting to see of Mancini can get his team playing on both sides of the ball in the same game.

A Stroll in the Park

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Where else can we begin but with pre-game news that Owen Hargreaves, United's lost boy, is gaining his first Premier League start in over two years today. Seen only once in a United kit (and that only fleetingly) since September 2008, Hargreaves was formerly one of the world's most skilled holding midfielders, but has faced a series of knee operations and extended rehabilitation that have made him the forgotten man of this Red Devils squad. It's a somewhat shocking announcement that he'll start today, and like United fans worldwide, I'm holding my breath today to see how Hargreaves looks on the pitch.


United begin the game in a 4-4-1-1 formation today, opting for Chicharito up front by himself, with Obertan tucking in just behind. Berbatov is left off even the bench today, apparently under the weather. Sickness has ravaged the United roster for today's game, with several Red Devils, including the famed Gaffer himself, feeling the effects. 


Five minutes in, and the news is not good.  It's a hushed Old Trafford crowd that witnesses yet another setback for Hargreaves, as he limps off the field with what looks like a pulled left hamstring, unable to continue.  It's a sad and especially early ending to the much anticipated outing, and Fergie's bold roll of the dice has turned up snake eyes.  

Scatter Brain

Scattered thoughts from a scattered brain, after another day full of football:

Jermaine Beckford: What a Difference a Year Makes. Last year this guy was a hero, scoring a late winner for Leeds to knock Manchester United out of the FA Cup.  This year he's coming on for Everton as an 83rd minute sub and having zero effect on today's game against Spurs. To be fair, both events happened in the same calendar year, but in different seasons. You understand what I'm trying to say, right?

Assou-Ekotto is One of Spurs' Weakest Links. The North London side is dotted with superstars -- Van der Vaart, Modric, Bale, etc. -- but as the old saying goes, you're only as good as your weakest link.  Unfortunately for Spurs, that's a link that looks like it will repeatedly be broken.

Rafael Van der Vaart Scored the Easiest Goal in the History of the Prem Today. The guy is absolutely deadly from 4 inches out. To be fair, he's absolutely deadly from just about anywhere on the pitch these days,  but not many players would have missed the opportunity Van der Vaart cashed in this afternoon.

Put me in, Coach! Oh Wait, I am the Coach.  Mick McCarthy, wearing cleats in the coaching box, looked as if we was ready to go out and play Chelsea himself today. Given the players he has at his disposal, that might not be so poor an option. 


Jersey Shore.  Carlo Ancelloti, on the other hand, looked as if he was dressed to attend a "family" dinner with his fellow Dons (and I'm not talking about those of the MK variety).  Just sayin'.


Truth be Told, Wolves Made a Good Accounting of Themselves Today. Unlike a lot of teams that head into Stamford Bridge like lambs being led to the slaughter, Wolverhampton weren't just content to sit back and wait for Chelsea to score their inevitable goal(s) at home. Wolves, in fact, actually had the audacity to attack Chelsea in front of their own fans. Just who did they think they were?

Double Take?

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Separated at Birth?  I'd forgotten this, but Jose Bosingwa looks remarkably like Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. Anyone else find themselves wondering why Bosingwa's first Chelsea appearance in almost year comes the day after the Yankees lose in the American League Championship Series....?  Coincidence or not...?

Sales of Chewing Gum Must be on the Rise in England if the per capita consumption of EPL managers is any indication. I spotted Carlo Ancellotti chomping away today in lieu of his normal cigarette habit.

Kalou's New Look

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Muscle Man.  Does anyone else think that Solomon Kalou may have stolen Didier Drogba's steroids, er I mean vitamins?  The guy used to be one of those scrawny types that got sand kicked in his face in the Charles Atlas ads, but lately he looks like Sammy Sosa in his prime. Either that, or he's started wearing much tighter jerseys. Kalou can't stop scoring, either, and his picture used to be right next to the definition of the word "useless" in the Chelsea media guide. I wonder if there's any connection.....


Game Day Beer Review: Brouwerij Bosteels Tripel Karmeliet (8.40% ABV).  Poured a hazy golden color, with a thick head of pure white that gradually dissipated, leaving behind only minimal lacing.  Highly carbonated in a refreshing way.  Typical belgian yeastiness up front mixed with a small hint of hops on the finish, this beer manages to be both sweet and spicy at the same time.  Very drinkable despite the high alcohol level: A-   


The beer may be sweet and spicy, but Im not; I'm farlieonfootie for October 24.