Taylor Swift

Yes, yes.

Chelsea will get what they get deserve. That was awesome football.

Biggest win by Barca at Real is 5-0. They can top that tonight.

Awesome save by Casillas.

Eventually, Barca always settles in the opposition's half. It's incredible how they dictate every single match they play.

This fixture is always awesome, year in, year out. Just awesome.

Same Barca team as the one that played against Chelsea. There's no way they get shut out for the second match in a row. Metzelder playing? Wow. Flashback from 2002, that is. Real have a slow defense, so I see Barca winning 3-2.

So he should be, we should go 4-3-3 I agree. I'm glad Shearer's dropped him for this game because we can't go there with a 4-3-3. If we get a point, it'll be fucking massive and Shearer will be planning to get that point. But, with regards to the rest of our matches, we have to go for 3 and as useless as he is in any other formation, Owen's shown that in a 4-3-3 with him dropping deep (which he didn't do in the last match for some reason) is a formation in which he is effective in.

Looks like Shearer's been reading this forum. No Shola, no Owen, no Nolan. Wow. A manager with sense.

Only one important match today and it's at the Bernabeu.

I also don't think a big club will sign him, even though he'll probably get them 15 goals a season, because clubs can't afford to carry players like him anymore. Liverpool could because his pace meant he could create a few chances on his own, but now that he's slow and has to be fed everything, he's not getting into a big team unless he takes a massive pay cut. Look at the strikers that good teams have: Berbatov, Rooney, Torres, van Persie, Drogba, even guys like Yakubu and Carew. All of them offer something more to the team, and this is now something that Owen lacks because his pace has gone. Shearer compensated the loss of pace by becoming a more physical player and bullying center backs, but what can Owen do? In this respect, I feel sorry for him because his pace was a real factor in why he was so good for so long, so it must be hard for him to even consider changing his style of play.

Where do people get this idea that he's a top class finisher? He's an instinctive finisher, which is why many of the goals in his career are the 'I'm going to put my foot out there and let's see what happens'. He's got great movement in the penalty area and his anticipation of the game is still up there, but that means that his finishes are of the instinctive variety, rather than the pure finishing ability that you'd associate with someone like Shearer or Van Nistelrooy. When those guys had a chance, you knew they would score. I have never had that feeling with Owen. I have had the feeling that Owen will score in a match because he gets himself so many chances by supreme movement and outfoxing defenders, but I don't have the feeling on any given chance that it's guaranteed that Owen finishes this off. I know it's shit logic to base my argument on my own feelings, but his performances and especially the chances he misses support my claim. The biggest difference between this season and every other for him is that he's getting fewer chances because of the team he's playing in. All of our strikers are, but he's suffering the most because instead of getting 3 or 4 chances per game in which he'll finish 1 because he gets into a rhythm, he's now getting 1 or 2 over several games and because there's no rhythm/feel to his finishing, he's finishing none.

And in every game he doesn't score, he'll do absolutely f*** all. No club with aspirations for the CL will also sign him because he's too limited now. Sorry, but he's done. Based on............................. This is the type of player that Owen's always been. Only before, he had a ton of chances per game because his pace created those opportunities for him. Now? He's slow, weak and doesn't give a shit. Hence the indifferent performances and the zero chances for him. Every other striker in our team causes trouble for the opposition except Owen. When Viduka is positioned just outside the penalty area with his back to goal, I'm screaming for someone to pass the ball in because I know he'll control it and stuff will happen because he can create it. When we counter-attack, I'm always hoping someone will play a ball into space for Martins because I know he's going to get there before almost anyone in the Premiership. When Carroll's on, I'm hoping that our shit crosses end up in his vicinity because he's determined to get a good head on any ball that's launched towards him. With Owen? What does he offer to the team? No pace, no passion, no leadership (can't believe he's still captain), limited involvement and now he's lost the ability to finish. Excuses were always made for him whenever he came from an injury - 'oh, he needs to get his fitness and sharpness back' - but it's been nearly 2 months since he recovered from his last injury and he's shown nothing that suggests he deserves a place in the team and that we should hope one of the few chances that we inevitably create per game is his to finish.

The fact that he doesn't touch the ball is no one's fault but his own. For some reason, Martins seems to touch the ball. Viduka touches the ball. Carroll is involved. Hmm, I wonder why Owen's the only one of our strikers who never seems to be involved in the general play.

And in every game he doesn't score, he'll do absolutely fuck all. No club with aspirations for the CL will also sign him because he's too limited now. Sorry, but he's done.

Interesting tidbit that I found The owner of the New England Patriots (NFL), a team who's won the title of being the best in the sport 3 times in the past 9 years, is obviously someone who knows how to run a sports franchise. I know that football is different but the concept of running a club on a financially-stable footing is not mutually exclusive to the concept of a successful football club.

What a hit.

Fabregas has been shite.

There was no way Tevez was going to cut back onto his left foot so why did Gibbs give him so much room to cut to his right? Same with Rooney on the other side - you know he's not going to dribble to the byline and cross it so why not show him that way instead of making it easy for him to cut back to his right and cross it?

Arsenal getting back into it.

Because without doing that, they'll just nip in front and steal the ball, that's why.

I've chosen Manchester United in the streak, man. Good stuff. I hope this is an inadvertent, and not a purpose, jinx.

'Theatre of dreams'... who makes up this shit and why has it stuck?

Fabregas is the key. He's struggled against Anderson in the past so he must be more involved today.

What shiteness! So what if a shitty little group stage was added to the European Cup? The big teams always make it through anyway and then it's just exactly like what the European Cup was.