Boys to Men

Yesterday it has officially happened. The Arsenal so called boys are now men. Arsenal yesterday took apart Chelsea for the first time in a very long time. Full Time score, Arsenal 3 Chelsea 1

Being an Arsenal fan I have been through a lot since starting to support them. Mind you I have not been an Arsenal fan for a long time. It's been around 6 or 7 years and considering I've supported Ahly all my life and AC Milan since the early 90's it is brand new. I have yet to see them lift a trophy as a full fledged supporter and a club member. The closest I've come was the League Cup final when our reserve team lost to Chelsea's full team 2-1 (can't recall the year) and the Champions League final against Barca. Year after year I saw us fail to reach our true potential. Year after year I saw critics pounce on the Wenger and Arsenal philosophy. We need to buy ready made stars, nurturing youth is not working, we need to spend big in the market. Wenger had said no to all of this and yesterday at last he had something to smile about.

It was not just the fact that we beat Chelsea that was pleasing, it was the way we did it. Yes Chelsea are not on form but on any given day a team that has the likes of Cech, Terry, Essein, (Lampard) and Drogba is a force to be reckoned with. Wenger was gutsy to decided to shuffle things around. Tactically we did not change how we line up but the players involved were put there for Chelsea. Wenger played it right. Obviously Cesc and Fabianski back to the starting line up was a no brainer. In my opinion if Cesc is fit he should not leave the pitch. He is this kind of player, he can conjure up something out of nothing. His presence lifts the people around him. He is still lacking form, too many miss passes by his standards but then all of a sudden the killer pass or killer run and no one remembers his short comings. Yesterday he scored a goal and made one, what else could you ask for?

Playing Walcott was a surprise for me. He was not getting enough minutes and was not on that great of a run, form wise. It seems that Arsene has had enough with Arshavin, frankly I'm starting to get annoyed too. He is not putting in enough effort and seems uninterested at parts. He is a world class player talent wise but world class players show up every game, not every other game or when they feel like it! Theo was there for a reason. To keep Ashley Cole lodged back and to frighten the some what slow Chelsea center backs. In the first half he was not great but he did keep Cole at bay. Ashley never ventured forward. The second half he got room to run behind Cole and the Chelsea defense thanks to some excellent midfield pressure (our midfield was fantastic but I'll come to that later) and he ripped them apart. First laying off unselfishly a tap in for Fabregas and then finishing off brilliantly after being put through by the Fabregas via a killer through ball.

The real surprise from me was the central defense paring of Djourou and Koscielny. I think Djourou should be a starter, hes been fantastic and gives much needed height to our defense. I'm not sure if there was something wrong with Squillaci but Wenger saw that Djourou must be better equipped to deal with physical presence of Drogba. He was right and Djourou was very solid in containing the Drogs. Koscielny was there probably to add some pace to the core because frankly I'm still not convinced by him, although I think he was very good in the last two games vs top opposition. It is against the Stokes and the Birminghams that he is still prone to errors but in his defense he is still adjusting to the league.

The center midfield paring of Song and Wilshere were phenomenal and they were one of the main reasons we won that game. For once we bossed around the midfield. They dominated Essein, Mikel and Lampard who on paper should eat them alive. Wilshere who is still a boy was a titan and Song did his new job (scored a goal) and kept true to his main role as a destroyer. They out played, out passed, out ran, out muscled and out scored Chelsea!

Overall Arsenal was better. We dictated the pace of the game and were more aggressive. Also and more importantly we won most of the duels and 2 of these lead to goals. Van Persie gives something different to the team than Chamakh. He has a softer touch so easily maintains the rhythm and seems to know the other player more. He also adds a fear factor when in the team. Chamakh has been excellent and is a truly wonderful signing but on his day I would pick RVP over him. However Chamakh will get there and having a bench that includes him, Arshavin, Diaby, Bendtner and Rosicky shows us that for once we have a very strong overall squad. There is also Vermaelen still missing due to injury and if he plays with Djourou I think we will leak less goals. I am ecstatic however not to be seeing Almunia and frankly I wish I never have to see him again. I have to mention Nasri, although he was not a goal scorer he has been our player of the season thus far and possibly the best player in the league. It is good for him to be able to share the weight of the team with Theo, Cesc and RVP. Sagna too has been excellent but for me our weakest link has to be Clichy. He is not as good going forward and defensively he seems to be playing football for the first time. He has no sense of danger and that is a huge problem for a defender, the goal Clark scored for Villa will always be proof of that.

This win however will mean nothing if we go and lose to Wigan on Wednesday. We need to be consistent and although I'm pessimistic about actually winning the league I am hopeful. I think we should win the league cup at least this season to get the "not winning trophies monkey" off our backs and off the back of the players.

Most of all I am happy for Arsene Wenger. He has had to put up with criticism from every one and to defend his players and the club philosophy day in and day out. I'm looking forward to playing Evra the clown at the Emirates and watch Theo rip him to shreds like he did Cole

Come on Arsenal!

For Love of the Game

This is a truly inspiring story by BBC's resident blogger Tim Vickery. He is an expert on South American Football.

This takes place in the Peruvian League. It is a must read piece about the true sole of football.

Winning is not Everything

Arsenal's Christmas Card...Very Funny!

To all Gooners or non Gooners

The Arsenal X-Mas Greeting!

Check it out LOL


Here

Ibrahimovic's Greatest Goal

To all Milan fans out there..This is probably Ibra's best ever goal and one of the best I have ever seen. I couldn't keep up with him the first time round

Forza Milan and Enjoy

Awesome Goal...FUT!

Ok nothing to do with real football.

I decided to share one of the greatest goals I've ever scored in FIFA 11

I was playing Fifa Ultimate team and scored this magical goal against Human opposition with Gignac!

Click Here

The Biggest miss in the history of football!

When I saw this last Wednesday I could not believe my eyes and frankly had a lot of trouble keeping a straight face. It was Qatar vs Uzbekistan in the Asian games!

Full Time score?

Qatar 0 Uzbekistan 1

The Culprit: 18 year old Fahd Khlafan

Qatar got knocked out of the Asian Games!

The Hand of God!

No it's not the Maradona goal vs England in 1986. It's worse (well not really). It's the Michael Eneramo goal against Ahly in the first minute of the second leg of the African Champions League Semi- Final. It was a blatant hand ball. The referee Mr. Lamptey had to be blind to have missed it.

Don't believe me check it out....

There is no doubt in my mind that the referee was one of the worst I have ever seen in a football game. He allowed a clear hand ball to stand, gave too few yellow cards to Esperance (Taragy) players compared to Ahly and allowed the game to be played with just 1 ball. Ahly players were scrambling for the ball all the time, but the there were no extra balls and the ball boys never tried to get the balls back onto the pitch. Taragy players continued to fall to ground in every occasion and to top it off the referee gave 3 minutes of added time in the first half and 5 in the second. The referee lost control of the game after allowing the hand ball to stand. Let's be clear though, at the end of the day we lost the game and the referee did not make us lose it....

Yes the referee had a role but lets take a look how the players applied themselves in the game. A team with Ahly's experience should not lose control like they did after conceding just one goal very early on. The players went mad with rage and frankly almost every single foul the referee called against Ahly was correct and every single yellow card was deserved and don't pretend you are blind...Barakat had to go. The red card was a must, raising your hand against your opponent and smacking him on the face (I don't care if it is a touch or a punch..this is not MMA!!!) is a sending off offense. Yes the Esperance player made a meal out of it, but a lot of players do that. The mad men of Ahly were undone by their own in ability to control themselves. Control and discipline stems from the coach first and the players second.

Never have I seen an Ahly team lack that much of sportsmanship , rude, aggressive and frankly not for the first time. It happened in the league and against the Algerian team. Sadly they reminded me of Zamalek...enough said! It is not the first time we have played against a team and a referee. This is common in Africa so lets not be naive about it and pretend that we are heroes and that the referee robbed us of our dream. Have Egypt and Ahly fans lost their memories? Do none of you remember that Ahly scored a hand ball goal in Cairo? Take a look at how the Tunisian team carried themselves after the goal. They aggressively voiced their concern about the goal, however no one was red carded and they continued to play their brand of football even after conceding a second goal, until they managed a priceless away goal! This is how Ahly should have responded, sadly Badry had turned us into grunts! I recall us playing in the African Cup with Manuel Jose against Enyemba in Nigeria. The referee and linesman failed to flag the forward of the Nigerian team, although he was 5 yards offside throughout the game. My friends and I even called him " Mr. Offsido". How did we respond? we played ball and beat them 1-0. Do you remember losing the Champions league in Cairo 1-3 against Etoile de Sahel (El Negm al Sa7elly). We had 2 legitimate claims of penalties denied and Emad El Nahass was red carded. Did we turn violent? Lose our cool? Attack other players and the referee? No we took it like men and played football.....Barakat would not have dared attempt such a prank then and he should be ashamed of himself! As for Hossam Ashour it seems he has lost his mind and is lucky he was not red carded, twice or possibly arrested for assault:P

Refereeing mistakes and bad tempers aside, did we deserve to win? In my opinion we did not! We had 90minutes to score a goal that would have been enough to push us through but we failed to create anything. Yes going down to 10 men made it difficult but we were playing an average team in my opinion who did not even press on for a second goal against a broken and impotent Ahly team. We managed 2 shots for the whole of the 90minutes. 2 shots can you believe it? One of which was a free kick!!! We managed just 2 crosses from open play, yet we blame the referee for the loss. How the mighty have fallen. How do you expect the team to win with a coach that will not address his short comings? Hossam El Badry had the audacity to comment that the result of the game was predetermined. Couldn't el Taragy say the same thing regarding the Cairo game? Instead of focusing on creating chances and playing football he focused his energy on anger towards the referee. Our only game plan was long balls from the keeper towards Geddo, who is not a target man by trade (although I think he applied himself brilliantly and was our best player on the pitch) and one legged Moody Fadl who is a target man by trade but has the strength of an 80 year old grandmother. When we needed a goal we got on a defensive midfielder in Shehab, I was expecting Shawky frankly LOL! Why not an attacking player like Shoukry? I used to think Badry is useless but frankly I think he is more out of his depth than anything else. The pressure that comes with managing a club with the pedigree of Ahly is too much for him (Zamalek might suite him:P). We need someone else.

Finally were was Abou Trieka in all of this? He was no were to be seen. He was not involved in any argument or in the game itself. He looks to me like a man disheartened by how his club is applying itself! Allah yemaseek bel khier ya Manuel ya Jose (May good things come to you Jose) and R.I.P nady el 2khla2 wa 2al mabde2 (R.I.P Club of virtues of sound manners)

The most Ridiculous Dive Ever

This is insane can't believe it's been given

Thanks to my dear friend Dr. Firas for sharing this

The Price We must Pay!

Yesterday Egypt was shocked by a 1-0 defeat to Niger in Niamey and now lay bottom of Group G with 1 point from 2 games in CAN 2012 qualifiers. Myself and a few others I have talked with were not!

It is common knowledge for anyone who knows me or has ever read this blog that I am no fan of Hassan Shehata, Egypt's coach. However, his technical inadequacy aside, he has done an unbelievable job by leading Egypt to winning 3 consecutive Nations Cups. A feat unlikely to be rivaled for sometime to come. His major let down was his inability to take us to the World Cup in virtually the easiest Group around, but for some stroke of luck he was made a hero due circumstances surrounding the match with Algeria.

Love him or hate him, it's time for Shehata to go and for Egypt to move on. Not because of his inability to change games but because he has nothing to offer the team anymore. Yes I will always stick by the notion that he was never a coach or a tactician, only a motivator who happened to be lucky enough to lead the greatest ever footballing generation in Egypt. He did win stuff but what is happening now? Where did it all go wrong?

For me it seems he has become too arrogant for his own good. This was pointed out to me by a friend of my father's after the Sierra Leone game. He was spot on. In football as a coach it's OK to be arrogant. Look at Jose Mourinho, one of the most talented and successful coaches in a generation. He is so full of himself, you either love him or hate him, nothing in between. Manuel Jose arguably Ahly's greatest coach was arrogant too. Just ask any Zamalek fan or other Egyptian coaches! The difference between these men and Shehata is that for starters they had ability and more importantly never lost touch with the real reason they win....their players!

A coach is nothing without his players and the greatest managers like Sir Alex Ferguson are the ones who can get the best out of their players and keep them motivated so they can produce what they requires from them!

Shehata lost the plot. He was arrogant enough to think that by fielding a weakened inexperienced Egypt side against Sierra Leone he would still win. He was full of himself that he did not even care to study up on the strengths of the opposition. It seemed in Cairo we were playing a team from mars that we had no idea about. He also decided to change the formation that has brought him and Egypt huge success, 3-5-2 for some sort of a 4-4-2 with two very slow central defenders and ultimately paid the price. His arrogance did not stop here. After his medical staff deemed Amr Zaki and Shikabala unfit and they were dropped form the Egypt squad for a friendly. Hassan Shehata was incensed that 2 days later they were playing for their club Zamalek in the league, so he decided to drop them for the Leone game. His staff deemed them unfit yet he was mad at them?

Against Niger he continued his new trend. He again was clueless about the opposition and again decided to go for some sort of a 4-4-2 that was unsuccessful before! Captain Hassan seems to forget that football is not chess and it is not how you place players on the field that decides if you are attacking or defending, it's what you say to the players and the roles they are given that decides that. A 4-5-1 formation on paper looks very defensive but can be enthralling if turned to a 4-3-3 going forward. A formation is nothing but a number.

His selections were a bit weird with Abdel Fadil as right back for example. Sherif is a fantastic player but he has very limited international experience. With Abdel Shafy the left back it was the same way. A great player with limited experience. He continued not to select Egypt's greatest central midfielder Hossam Ashour because I think he deems him bad luck. (The only game he played under Shehata Egypt lost 4-1 or 4-0 in friendly vs Sudan). Regardless he lost the game and failed to control or influence the match form the touch line.

People automatically blame the players and the fact we need to inject new life into the squad and so on. This may be true and I agree the players have to share a part of the blame. Shehata tried to inject younger blood into the squad but possibly too soon. I do have another theory why the old guard is not performing well enough.

I said earlier that the players mainly won games for Shehata. The players were mainly from Ahly. OK Zamalek fans will automatically start arguing about this, but come on lets be realistic. In 2006 the squad had 7 out of 11 starters from Ahly. Hadary, Gomaa, Barakat, Abdel Wahab (R.I.P) Shawky, Abu Trieka and Meteb. In 2008 and 2010 it was a similar story. The Ahly players were living a golden age under Manuel Jose. Say what you like but Jose's influence on our victory's is not to be denied! He had instilled a winning mentality in his teams that was transferred with them when they played for their country. Even Zamalek, although not winning anything had decent coaches.

Take a look at things now. Look at both Ahly and Zamalek. They are playing extremely poorly. The main reason for Egypt's drop in form...."Al Hossamayen" or the Hossam's. Hossam El Badry and Hossam Hassan more so Badry. They have turned their teams into regular Joe teams. They are no longer the giants they once were. The Ahly players seem to play without purpose and when Moudy Fadl leads the line of Ahly and Egypt you know something is wrong. Both Ahly and Zamalek players are low on confidence and form

The end result in my opinion is that it seems extremely unlikely we are to qualify for the 2012 Africa Nations Cup and due to the new qualification system for 2013 we might find it very difficult to reach it either. On the up side if Shehata doesn't know when to quit like the likes of Algeria's Sadaan did and all respectable coaches do, Franz Beckenbauer left Germany after successive World Cup finals, the second of which he won.(but then again would you quit if you were making L.E 200,000, 30,000USD per month?). The Egyptian Federation should act and let him go and start right away looking for a well known foreign coach with a free hand to lead us to Brazil 2014. Shehata has done well for Egypt but it's time to move on, after all maybe this is a blessing in disguise and we can finally see Egypt in a World Cup!

The Hardest Man in Football?

Just finished reading this article by Early Doors on Eurosport about Roberto Mancini, excellent stuff...

Give it a look here

The punch line...."And with that Mancini got up, smashed a chair over a journalist's head and stormed out of the room."

LOL

Random News

I've been away for the last month or so mainly due to Ramadan. Frankly it's difficult enough to work let alone blog as well. Hopefully now I can be more active.

I thought I'd start off with some random local and international news.

Apparently Roma's former first choice keeper Doni was the one to recommend the man who replaced him, current number one Julio Sergio, to the club. Doni is now the third choice keeper. I guess that's why they say silence is golden.

Zamalek technical director or whatever the translation of "Modeer Kora" is, Ibrahim Hassan has discovered the reason for his teams poor run of results. Black Magic. No it's not a typo, he believes a scratch in the wall of the clubs changing room revealed incantations of some sort. Yeah that makes perfect sense. The outrageous answer would be that his brother, Egyptian Legend Hossam Hassan, the manager of Zamalek sucks.

On the other hand Hossam Hassan blamed the referee and his players. He also proceeded to blame Israel, Global Warming and the Panda:P

Yesterday's Champions League game between Real Madrid and Ajax was entertaining enough with Madrid grabbing a deserved 2-0 win thanks to Higauin. What was shocking however was the status of the pitch. For those of you who don't know Real Madrid had recently captured the groundsman of Arsenal for a substantial fee. He is hailed to be one of the best around. I guess there might be a job opening at Madrid if the pitch continues to look like that. Check out Paul Burgess's story here

Egypt's Assistant coach Shawky Ghareeb admitted that there were selection mistakes following Egypt's humiliating draw with Sierra Leone in Cairo. Finally, I thought. An Egyptian owning up to his mistakes... he then followed by blaming the players lack of fitness. There you go that's better.

It was never really Shawky or Hassan Shehata's fault it was the player fitness. At the end of the season it's exhaustion, away from home it's the referee or the pitch and when all else fails blame Algeria.

Speaking of Algeria. Rabeh Sadaan resigned as coach of Algeria following a similar humiliating draw vs Tanzania at home. The man who beat Hassan Shehata to send his country to the World Cup admitted he had nothing more to offer and resigned. I bet I'd die before I see a government employee of any kind resign let alone Egypt's national coach. Then again why would he. He is getting paid more than 100 Thousand Egyptians pounds a month and does not even care enough to attend league games. He actually watches them on the tele!

How do I know? He said so. A couple of months back the National team staff refrained from adding new players to a player gathering because a lot of the games were not aired on TV....duh!

According to a friend of mine the mystery regarding AC Milan's spending spree is out in the open. Berlusconi after selling the Van Gogh "Poppy Flower" painting reportedly worth 55 million dollars (Stolen from Egypt last month) can now afford to buy players for Milan again. God Bless you Minister Farouk Hosny and your broken 50 dollar security cameras. Forza Milan!

Finally I would like to congratulate Zamalek fans on the upcoming return of Mortada

Mansour. God Bless him.

Cesc to Stay at Arsenal

Eat this Barca!

Barcelona as a whole have really rubbed me the wrong way during all of this! The players calling out Fabregas to go home and asking Arsenal to let him get his dream move. Then the administration publicly saying that they want him. At the same time they are cheap enough to offer less than 40 million Euros although they forked up something similar fro a 28/29 year old David Villa.

I'm glad this ordeal is over for now and if they want Arsenal's captain they might as well pay up for one of the best midfielders in the world. And yes he's only 23!

Hats Off to Mr. Wenger for coming out on top in this ordeal and I'm sure his closely knit relationship with Cesc was key in convincing the Spaniard to stay

Cesc Said this earlier:

"Firstly, I would like to apologise to all the Arsenal fans for not speaking sooner about my future but I have not known what I was going to do until this moment"

"I cannot deny that joining a club like Barcelona was not an attractive move for me.

"This was the club where I learnt my football, it is my home town where my friends and family are and a club where I have always dreamed of playing.

"There are not many players in the world who would not want to play for Barcelona.

"I have had many conversations with Arsene Wenger both in person and over the phone over the last few months and although the content of those conversations will remain private, the conclusion is that Barcelona have had two formal offers rejected by Arsenal."

"I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out on to the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about. I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me."

"I am a professional and I fully understand that it is Arsenal's prerogative not to sell me," he added.

"I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal."

Come on Arsenal

Probably the Worst TV Interview Ever

Thiery Henry is getting interviewed in a New York morning show after joining the MLS's New York Red Bulls

Hats off to Henry for Keeping his cool with these clowns interviewing him!

Deutschland Uber Alles and the rest

I would be lying if I said I wasn't loving this World Cup. Not only have most of the teams I dislike or don't fancy been knocked out, my top favorite teams have made it to the semi finals in Germany and Holland (or Netherlands). Also seeing Germany pre-tournament I had said to a number of people that they play an exciting brand of football, imagine my pleasure to see them deliver the best brand of International football seen in a world cup for years! Without a doubt Germany have been the team of the tournament thus far.

They started out very strong against Australia but for some insane reason people decided to start doubting them after the loss to Serbia. They played the same brand of exciting football with 10 men for almost one hour against a solid Serbian team. It is during this game that it showed how tough they were. They created 2 clear goalscoring opportunity, hit the cross bar and missed a penalty. It remained to bee seen if they could bounce back from the disappointment and they did against strong Ghana. A lot of people are attributing their emphatic wins to the poor form of the opposition. England might have been off form and Argentina tactically naive but no one puts 4 past Argentina and England in recent history.

Joachim Loew dissects the opposition style of play and figures out their weaknesses and then rips them to shreds. His players understand what is required from them and deliver it gladly. They play for their coach and for each other. Players like Klose and Podolski have repaid their coach for having faith in them although they have had their worst ever footballing seasons. Klose is one goal away from tying Ronaldo as the greatest goal scorer in the history of the World Cup with 14 goals (he is now level with Gerd Muller). The whole team is enjoying their football and having fun playing. It was obvious England were not. Schwinestieger has stepped up into the role of Ballack brilliantly, he is truly one of the players of the tournament with his dribbling, passing and both attacking and defensive capabilities. The young-lings Khidera, Ozil and Muller have been a breath of fresh air with their direct running and skill. Add a solid defensive unit and you have a got a world class team. Germany is to international football what Barcelona is to club football.

Guess what? Germany are going to be basically playing Barcelona in the Semi Finals. Spain are a great team and Muller will be deeply missed against them. They have a very good coach and technically gifted players. However for some reason they had not kicked into gear yet. They have played good opposition but no great teams, and have struggled. If not for the fantastic David Villa they would not be in the semi finals, ohh and Oscar Cardozo too:P. On the other hand if and when they click they are virtually unstoppable and it remains to be seen if the collective of Germany can exploit the slow rhythm of Spain and their shaky defense.

It has become obvious in this World Cup that you can't possibly go far without having an excellent coach behind the team. Argentina had sadly a clueless Maradona solely dependent on Messi. If Messi creates, Argentina wins but if he is closed down like against Germany, nothing. It is OK to depend on your superstars to unlock games but you should have a system they can work if things don't go according to plan. Maradona played a 4-4-2 diamond of some sort with only Mascherano to provide cover for the back 4, who for most of the game would stand at the back. Diego didn't fear the Germans and he was brutalized. How can Mascherano have a chance against Khedira, Schwinestieger, Ozil, Podloski and Muller? His problems were compounded by a very slow defensive line and Heinze was played off the park by Muller who was quicker and more intelligent. You would have to feel for the Argentine back 4 , constantly put in 5 against 4 and 5 against 5 situations!

Dunga was better than Maradona but seemed to focus more on the defensive aspect. Going forward Brazil looked dangerous but what was their undoing was their extreme lack of discipline. I was shocked to see the whole team start arguing about every ball against Holland. They should have had 2 red cards but got one. Melo must be insane! Dunga surprised me a bit when he was changing players not for tactical reasons but for fear of them being sent off . Is the Brazilian team that indisciplined that Bastos had to be subbed for a player with half his ability? I have never seen a team that wore the yellow and blue crack after conceding an equalizer. You would usually see them punish opposition for such a transgression, not Dunga's boys. They jut faded away. When Brazil needed to attack they had no options on the bench and Dunga reaped what he had sowed. Instead of having Ronaldinho and Pato on his bench, both great talents and game changers he had Nilmar and Grafite, the rest were Central and Defensive Midfielders?

Holland for me have been outstanding. They are solid at the back, although Brazil ran rampant against them in the first half, and have a lot of creativity going forward. They get the job done with out much hassle and seem to be picking up steam and confidence game after game. With the return of Robben to support the magical Sneijder and Van Persie starting to find his touch I don't think Uruguay will be able to beat them especially with no Suarez.

Oscar Tabarez has done an excellent job with Uruguay. The team runs their hearts out and look very dangerous going forward. Yes they were lucky to reach the semis but overall they have been very good and treat each game differently. The Ex-Milan coach has created history for his country by forging a solid back 4 with excellent wing backs a hard working midfield and an attacking extravaganza upfront lead by the majestic Diego Forlan, one of the players of the tournament for sure. As for Suarez I think he has done what anyone else would have done in his position when he handled the ball and the one match ban is fair enough for the incident in my opinion. He should learn to shut up though.

Ghana might feel a bit hard done by but they have made Africa proud. Milovan Rajevac ever since his run in the Nations Cup has brought discipline to a talented squad. They are no longer going gun hoe in attack and leaving all kinds of spaces at the back. They were one unit. Gyan missed a crucial penalty but like a friend of mine mentioned he looks to be the new Drogba at just 24. With luck Rajevac could and should have been in the semi-finals.

I'm hoping for a Germany/Netherlands final but after seeing Ghana vs Uruguay and Spain vs Paraguay anything is possible and only in football can you see games turn like that. This is what makes football the greatest sport in the world.

The Germans if they win the World Cup will be regarded as one of the best sides to ever lift the trophy. If they lose it they will be one of the greatest sides not to win like Hungary in 1954 lead by Puskas, Portugal in 1966 lead by Eusebio, Holland in 1974 lead by Cruyjff and Brazil of 1982 lead by Socrates!

Goal Line Technology

Yesterday we were treated to two cracking Round of 16 games. Germany destroyed a poor English side 4-1 and Argentina won 3-1 against a very good Mexico side to set up a mouth watering quarter final clash. The level of football aside the games were marred by two horrendous refereeing errors.

In the Germany game Lampard scored a clear goal off the upright and in that both the referee and linesman failed to see that would have tied the game. Goals make a difference in games although I still think Germany would have eventually won considering the level of play on show. The linesman was actually correctly positioned online with the German defense but he failed to see it, mind you it only takes one second to miss it hitting the ground. The main referee had a very good game overall but missed it as well, both of them should have seen it. Hats of to Neuer though for picking up the ball and proceeding with play as if nothing happened. If only Mohamday could have done the same vs Brazil in the Confederations Cup instead of play acting!

In the Argentina game Tevez scored a clear offside after a Messi pass that put Argentina 1-0 ahead with Mexico having it all to do. I have no excuse for this linesman and he is solely to blame for the error. There was commotion after the goal and conversations between the linesman and the fourth official but the goal stood.

Cries of Goal line technology echoed after the games and the need to use instant replays for incidents like this and so on. FIFA will probably not pay much attention to these out cries and I kind of agree with them. Am I mad? maybe, but lets explore this a bit further.

Using technology and replays for all aspects of the game is inapplicable in my opinion. Imagine having to stop play and contest offsides and fouls not to mention throw ins, corner, handballs and goals. This would ruin the game completely. Yes some would argue that it could be regulated with a limited number of complaints and time outs but this would just turn football into basketball or American football. Stopping the game disrupts the rhythm of play and we have seen coaches using substitutions and players faking injury when their team is on the back foot to waste time and disrupt the other teams play. Imagine playing Algeria and not only are their players faking injury, their coach is calling time outs and seeing replays on the monitors. This wont be the same game we have all come to love. Technology everywhere is out of the question in my opinion. Why not just goal line technology then?

It makes perfect sense to apply that and make it part of the game, so why is FIFA refusing to do that? There is no reason for the football governing body not to want to make matches more fair. They do make a fair argument though. One of the greatest pleasures of football was the ability of all countries and leagues regardless of their level or wealth to practice the game in the same way. How expensive would goal line technology be? How can you force it on all countries? Games would be played differently in richer countries and would cause a void in a sport that unites the globe. Making some countries apply it and others not would not be fair would it? Imagine Egypt playing against Zimbabwe in Cairo having implemented goal line technology and Zimbabwe score a goal missed by the referee but thanks to goal line technology is allowed, fair enough you say...maybe. In the second leg we go to Harary were there is no goal line technology and Egypt have a clear goal disallowed because the referee didn't see it, would it be fair then? People might argue that that's football and it could have been a penalty and referees make mistakes anyways. That is correct, but isn't this the case anyways now? Why are refereeing mistakes acceptable in some circumstances and not others. An incorrect corner could result in a goal, same impact, no?

The fact of the matter is refereeing mistakes are part of the beautiful game. How many hours have we spent debating offsides, goals and penalties among one another? We enjoy doing it too. It's harsh when it happens to our teams and even worse in a World Cup (I feel in a whole club football season decisions for and against teams even themselves out) but it is part of the game.

FIFA have not stood idol. The UEFA experiment in applying a fourth and fifth on field referees in the EUROPA Cup has proved fruitful. Maybe employing these two referees for the sole purpose of the goal line would be a good idea and would minimize such situations. Make no mistake though, they are only human and errors will continue to occur. Frankly I would rather live with those mistakes than have football turn into American football. As for England, 1966 anyone?

I am enjoying the World Cup!!!

It's been rubbing me the wrong way that everyone is complaining about the level of football this World Cup. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but for gods sake, everyone and anyone is saying that. People who have never seen a full game are complaining, girls are complaining and yes Egyptians are complaining.

Why the hell are we unappreciative of the the level of play in the tournament? We have the pleasure of watching one of the worst leagues in the world day in and day out. Yup you guessed it, the appalling Egyptian Premier League. It is a league with empty stadiums, poor pitches, idiotic commentators (the legendary Bakr excluded), prehistoric cameras, bad players, clueless referees and elementary tactical displays. So please give the top stars of the world a break god damn it.

My theory is that Egyptians have become insanely jealous for failing to qualify to the world cup for the gazzillionTH time. Live with it people and instead of portraying your anger towards teams that have actually made it, I suggest sending thank you letters to captain Shehata for ruining the world cup for all you haters instead of blaming the Algerian fans and the Sudanese government!

I, on the other hand will continue to enjoy the world cup because frankly it's a lot of fun and who doesn't enjoy an underdog victory. Some people fail to recognize that a great defensive game with a solid counter attack is just as enjoyable as all out attack. The Swiss display against Spain was a joy to behold in my opinion. Didn't people congratulate Mourinho on playing an uglier game against Barca? I agree that there could be some more goals but lets just remember that this is not the Spanish league, where a team can concede close to 100 goals and still remain in top flight football:P

To be fair to there has been a few boring games, France/Uruguay comes to mind. However we have seen some crackers especially in the second round of games. Argentina/Nigeria, Korea/Greece, Argentina/Korea, Greece/Nigeria, Germany/Australia, Germany/Serbia, Denmark/Cameroon, Brazil/NKorea, Brazil/Ivory Coast, Spain/Switzerland, Uruguay/South Africa, Italy/New Zealand to name a few.

There has also been a lot of talk about the world cup ball, Jabulani. Although I'm not really sure why there has to be changes to the ball every cup, a new design would suffice, I do not think it has such an effect. The Bundelsiga and MLS have been using it and Egypt won the CAN 2010 in Angola with the same ball, and we did not hear any complaints then, why now? Even if the ball has been causing problems, which one of us doesn't enjoy the occasional goal keeper cock up? Green or Hadary anyone?

One last thing, to all those haters out there. If your team isn't winning it doesn't mean that the world cup is poor. It just means that your team sucks!!!!

P.S: Wimbledon is about to start, go watch it and stop wining

Best of Europe

Well the the World Cup is about to start and before we all get carried away with the biggest sporting event on the planet I thought I would conclude the European Season. Football in Europe this year was amazing with Inter snatching a historic treble, as a result I thought I'd compile some sort of awards for the best we've seen this European season.

Best Teams:

1- Inter Milan: The obvious choice this season. They have played efficient football and managed a brilliant treble. Winning the Serie A, Coppa Italia and the Champions League. Although they have been a dominant force in Italy for the last 5 years or so, they struggled a bit this season and managed to close on the final day. Their main focus was the Champions League which had eluded them close to half a century. They managed a convincing win against Bayern in the final and were the best team in tournament beating Chelsea, Barca and Bayern to claim it!

2- Bayern Munchen: Missed out on a historic treble this season when they lost the champions league final. Bayern Managed to turn their season around after a slow start, more precisely after thrashing a sorry Juventus side in Turin to qualify to the knock out stage of the Champions League when they seemed dead and buried. They clinched a local double and are by far the best team in Germany and one of the best in Europe at the moment.

3- Fulham: Yes Fulham, the small London club captured the hearts of neutrals all over the world with their impressive run in the Europa Cup. Virtually an unknown quantity in European football, their most delusional fan could not have predicted they make it to the final. They beat cup holders Shakhtar, heavy weights Juventus in an unforgeable encounter and Bundesliga holders Wolfsburg. Their league standing suffered as a result of their impressive run but they still managed to hold on to their Premier League status. Sadly the fairly tail could not be completed as they lost the Europa Cup final 1-2 to Atletico Madrid after extra time.

Player of The Season:

You are probably thinking, Messi, Rooney or Ronaldo....although there is no question about their talents, they are not my picks.

1- Diego Milito: The Argentine striker has finally received his overdue credit. He has been one of Europe's most prolific strikers for sometime now, ever since arriving at Zaragoza from Racing Club. His first chance at a top team, the world has taken notice at last. He was instrumental in Jose Morinho's side. He scored 30 goals in all competitions and was always ever present in the big occasions. With a great eye for goal and a magnificent finish he has scored in every important game this season. The winner on the final day of Serie A against Siena, The winner in the Coppa Italia final against Roma and his brilliant brace against Bayern in the Champions League final. A truly magical season for him and hopefully more to come in the world cup.

2- Arjen Robben: The Dutch winger was deemed surplus to requirements at the Bernabeau having had a reputation of being injury prone and lacking natural fitness. I think Real Madrid should be banging their heads now. Robben reached his true potential this season and has become the world class player he was always meant to be. Bayern helped him stay fit and he repaid them and all football fans the world over with some cracking goals. The goals against Man United and Fiorentina were phenomenal. He helped Bayern to a local double and just missed on the Champions League. Watch out for Holland at the World Cup.

3- Didier Drogba: Struggled last season with injuries under Scolari but has returned to his form this season under Carlo Ancelotti. For me he is the best striker in the world. His combination of brute strength and sublime technical ability is unmatched. He won the Premier League's Top Scorer with 29 goals, edging out Wayne Rooney. He flourished in the new Chelsea system and played well with Anelka, although some people doubted they can play together for some reason? He helped Chelsea to their first ever league and cup double in England. Now if only Ericsson can get the best out of him for Cote D'Ivoire.

Honorable Mention: Wesley Sneijder had an excellent season too and was key in the Treble winning Inter side. Wenger said it best that next season he should go outside Real Madrid and see which players they decide to let go so he can buy them!

Manager of the Season:

There were so many candidates to choose from, so I'm just going to mention them all!

1- Jose Mourinho: Without a doubt, the special one was indeed the best manager in the world this season, leading Inter to an unmatched treble. He destroyed a great Chelsea team at Stamford Bridge and contained a breath taking Barca side at the Nou Camp with 10 men. His post match antics are a bit annoying to the neutral and his opponents a like, he is however, a brilliant tactician that gets the best out of his players. Although he has failed to win the hearts of the Italian Media and the public, his interviews for me were always a joy, just ask the English. Possibly the only man with enough character to deal with Perez and get Madrid back to their winning ways.

- Carlo Ancelotti: Tipped to fail because of his laid back personality, proved how good of a coach he is, given enough resources and support. Leading Chelsea to their first ever double. His team scored an all time record of 103 goals. Apparently pulled off the "very difficult" Anelka/Drogba combo with great ease:P. Berlusconi can you hear me?

- Harry Redknapp: Tottenham and not Man City finished 4th in the Premiere League and reached the Champions League. He was always looked at as a great wheeler and dealer in the transfer market, nothing more. He has proved to be a very good coach especially when it seemed impossible he could make it to 4th spot while having, Arsenal, Chelsea, United and City to play in the final 4 games. Spurs only lost to United and look forward to an exciting season.

- Roy Hodgson: Fulham played a European Cup final, need I say more?

- Louis Van Gaal: Won the Bundesliga and German Cup and lost the Champions League final against a great Inter side.

- Luigi Del Neri: Sampdoria are in the Champions League next season thanks to this man. He has turned them into a force to be reckoned with in Italy. He beat Milan and Roma in the closing stages of Serie A to end their title hopes. He will be coaching Juventus next season.

Honorable Mention: Claudio Ranieri restored Roma to it's winning ways.

Flops of the Season:

1- Real Madrid: A very easy choice given that they spent the budget of a small country on players and finished the season with...yup you guessed it, NOTHING!

2- Juventus: They finished seventh this season and will play in the Europa Cup qualifications believe it or not. Destroyed by Bayern in Turin, out classed by Fulham at Craven Cottage. They just seemed like a team with out purpose. It shows you how much the meddling of owners affects a club. How the mighty have fallen.

3- Liverpool: Tipped to go one better than last season and finally win the Premier League. They finished 7th and will play again in the Europa Cup next season. Poor decisions in the transfer market, injuries to key players and Rafa Benitez contributed to their downfall.

BRING ON THE WORLD CUP!