gazza ladra

Don't like that Olympiakos have-- for UEFA purposes, at least-- changed the official Latin-alphabet spelling of their name to "Olympiacos".

It's all conjecture and innuendo, but it sure as hell rings true. No reason to defame Nigeria or any other country though. I think Mexico have been caught on a few occasions lying about the age of players. The last bit about FIFA using magnetic resonance imaging is interesting. Very welcome.

Christain Poulsen. You wouldn't even be going to the World Cup if it wasn't for him. Yes, you got results against Sweden and Portugal, but you certainly did not impress.

I hope to god this is a windup.

Because Hughton has sat Butt. And Smith. And the team continues to be successful. No, it hasn't been pretty. But he's produced results. Bolton are playing better football since Coyle arrived, but the results haven't been there. Given the players available -- the lack of pace and creativity in the midfield, Hughton has produced a team that is top of the league ahead of clubs (WBA and Swansea) that play "better" football, that pass the ball...

It could be done, but incredibly complex, you have to factor in cost of living, strength of league and currency exchange fluxations. Everyone thinks Salary caps are pretty simple, just put a figure, say 25 million a year, but you have to also factor in bonuses and loyality fees. Injuries may also come into play. The NFL's player cap is incredibly complex and you would need a even more complex system to fairly implement throughout multiple leagues. agreed. though i think a system where clubs can only borrow to a certain percentage of turnover would come in first (which is along the lines of what platini wants to bring in). nominated squads of limited size would be a fantastic start. I don't really like the turnover idea though because there will still be a big financial disparity between clubs e.g. Man Utds turnover dwarfs Spurs so they are allowed more money to build a squad. Spurs meanwhile, dwarf Wigans turnover and will again have way more to spend on wages & transfers. it would be a starting point as the big clubs have too much power right now. if a salary cap were brought in it wouldn't bother the majority of clubs as they'd never afford it anyhow. agreed. though i think a system where clubs can only borrow to a certain percentage of turnover would come in first (which is along the lines of what platini wants to bring in). nominated squads of limited size would be a fantastic start. I don't really like the turnover idea though because there will still be a big financial disparity between clubs e.g. Man Utds turnover dwarfs Spurs so they are allowed more money to build a squad. Spurs meanwhile, dwarf Wigans turnover and will again have way more to spend on wages & transfers. it would be a starting point as the big clubs have too much power right now. if a salary cap were brought in it wouldn't bother the majority of clubs as they'd never afford it anyhow. Right. What UEFA can do right now is change the way television money is distributed. This is something they can do right now with going to court or challenging existing labour laws. Do that and you've greatly minimized the disparity between the big four (or big two or three or whatever) and restored competition to the leagues. Moreover, by removing potential of big Champions League cash windfall, UEFA will remove the financial incentive for paying over the odds for players. The market itself will control the player salaries.

Sorry, but the "American model" is not the way to go. The only thing-- the only thing-- that I would take from US sports is the way that television money is distributed between the clubs in the NFL. That's it. If you take the Champions League money and distribute it equally between the clubs in the participating leagues, you've solved a big chunk of the problem right off the bat (to use an American phrase).

According to my Danish mate, they seem to play the 4-3-3 formation with two wingers supplying Bendtner upfront, hes not good enough to start ahead of Bendtner and as we know is crap on the wings. They'd do well to switch to 4-4-2 or do whatever they need to do to get Rommendahl off the pitch. More useless than a headless chicken.

Poor decision. Manager needs the flexibility to pick the best side for the club's overall campaign. They will pick need to pick weakened sides from time to time because of the number of fixtures clubs are playing. Clubs do it all the time in the league and FA cups.

Looks like Turin might learn something from the movement in the United States to build sport-specific stadia. In the fifites, sixties, and seventies municipalities built a lot of these huge concrete monstrosities that were supposed to host baseball, American football, soccer, concerts, and whatever else and they were uniformly unsuitable for anything. Beginning in the 90s, I think, the baseball clubs began building baseball-specific ballparks-- Baltimore was the first, I think-- that were designed to highlight the game itself and these were very successful. Here in the Bay Area, the San Francisco Giants built a baseball-specific park to replace the notorious Candlestick Park-- remote, cavernous, cold and dilapidated, and their attendence shot up from an average of 20,000 a game to 40,000 a game --- even though the capacity of the new stadium was smaller.

Agree with this. We're a few stops away from the pen being taken from the centre spot with the player dribbling up for a shot on goal. That s*** can f*** off. That's the shoot-out process that some high schools use in Texas for tied games. Ball is placed 35 yards from goal (easy with the grid iron stadiums we play in) and the attacker has 5 seconds to get the shot away. I was 10 minutes from going to a shootout last night (as the center ref) and luckily one team got a coupld of quick goals. Didn't want to go through the mechanics of timing the 5 secs and the drama of the shootout.....inevitably there are keeper/shooter collisions resulting in possible PK and ejections. However, all that said.....for the last-man foul, a red card and this style shot would see to deal with the infringement and replace the scoring opportunity. I thought they used a system in MLS or at least America but didn't want to say it in case I was wrong since I don't really watch them leagues. Where do the other players stand, sidelines? They used it in the NASL and the first few years of the MLS, but no more. Rules were brought more or less in line with FIFA.

Had friends in Turin that were absolutely contempuous of Juve. Swore up and and down that Torino was the only club for the people of the city. Juve fans, according to them, all lived elsewhere.

£ Hardly, the playoffs have been around long before money was so prevalent in the game. Real reason is to preserve interest in the league for a longer period of time - withthe playoffs most teams in the top 10 have something to play for right up until then end of the season. To perserve interest.... so that people continue to attend the games and watch the broadcasts righth through to the end. It's plainly about money.

£

The draft system is an absolute joke. If you are drafted by a club that you do not wish to play for then you are screwed--basically. You have no options but to take the contract or take a job in another profession. In the past, when there were competing leagues (NFL-AFL, or NFL-USFL; NBA-ABA), the players had options and could play one league off the other. Alternately, athletes that play in sports that have leagues overseas might choose to leave the North America. But with the exception of football (soccer), the pay overseas doesn't come close to the potential money to be made in North America. Sports teams in the United States are legalized monopolies-- they are excepted from anti-trust legislation by law. Most athletes don't mind because 1) they don't have any options, 2) don't know any better, and 3) the money is too good to pass up.

Aren't the name rights owned by some random rich guy? Also, can't see Red Bull allowing that after all the money they have thrown into the team and stadium. They'd probably end up with something ridiculous like Red Bull New York Cosmos. But yeah, they even play(ed) at the same stadium (shitty place for football, truth be said). Ownership of the Cosmos name is a major issue of the film. The name was owned by the last GM of the Cosmos-- a Chinaglia crony. But I think he's sold it since the film was released. So, yeah. Some random rich guy owns the name now and is looking for ways to cash in on it. I'd rather that the New York MLS franchise (Metrostars/Red Bulls) did not get their hands on the Cosmos name. If the MLS heads had any brains, they would get two clubs in New York City--- just as they have two in in Los Angeles.

Had the same thought.

Another step on the slippery slope towards an American-style playoffs system. There was a time-- as recently as my youth-- when how a team performed over the long haul of a season was what really counted. To win the pennant was an achievement. Only the team that won the league advanced to the playoffs. Then they introduced divisions (first two, then three or four) and playoffs and "wildcard" teams, which hadn't even managed to win their divisions, and all manner of bullshit until the season itself didn't really matter anymore. It's all about jockeying for position in the playoffs--- when the the real competions starts. These changes merely debased the baseball season; for other sports it was much, much worse. Hell, half the clubs in the basketball, hockey, and soccer leagues make the playoffs. Some achievement. Barring a promotion- relegation system, there has to be something in place to keep half the fans interested througout the campaign. So the champion crowned at the end of the season is the winner of a short tournament. It's all good for television revenue though... and, afterall, isn't that what it's all about? We Americans love it; it gives us the opportunity to gather around the water coolers and discuss our favorite commercials. Welcome to the future, suckers!

Fine. Take the Cup. Just fade down the stretch in the league. Do you think our league form or injury situation would have been any different had we knocked out WBA? Well, I certainly don't think our league form or injury situation was likely to improve if we were still in the Cup. If WBA have a good run great. If they win the thing.... well, good for them. Rather WBA took it than say Chelsea.

Fine. Take the Cup. Just fade down the stretch in the league.

I think the thinking was that Barton would return and having Barton back would be the same as signing two new players--- or something to that effect.

Is that good? Rather have WBA saddled with a futile FA Cup campaign a bit longer.

That's because Chinaglia was/ is an absolute penis. From what I've read, he's lucky not to be in prison now for fronting a mob attempt to buy Lazio. Still, the moment in the film where we've just heard everyone under the sun talk about him being a prick and he says "I don't give a shit" is priceless. That's him all over.

Yes, Bocanegra is a lock. And Beasely is pretty far off the chart now.