Arspective: Why Arsenal will beat Barcelona

Biggest game of the season for us. It is an absolutely mouth-watering contest. Compared to the last time,

1) We have a better goal keeper. Yes, Almunia almost single-handedly kept us in the first half with some amazing saves. But goal keeping is not only about shot-stopping. It is about being able to collect balls of corners and free-kicks, about distribution, about leadership, about communicating with your defenders. For all the criticism the Spaniard receives, I do believe Almunia is a good shot-stopper. But, Wojicech ticks more boxes than the Spaniard when it comes to all the aspects of goalkeeping I just mentioned.

2) Better central defenders. Last time we had to play Sol Campbell and Sylvestre over the course of the two games. Gallas got injured in the first game. And then Song had to drop back, which in turn disturbed our midfield, since we had to get Denilson in there.

3) Better mid field.
Like I said, we will have Song in the midfield.

Fabregas missed the second leg last time and hopefully he will be there for us over both legs.
If Nasri plays (latest news, that he has been passed fit), then again we will have hugely improved Nasri in the midfield compared to the last season.
This time we will have the quick-feet'ed wonder boy, Wilshere compared to the sometimes-laboring Abou Diaby. The Frenchman, no doubt, is a talented player. But the English prodigy is that- a prodigy.

4) A much improve Theo Walcott. He always had the pace. He setup that Adebayor goal in the champions league 2 years back against Liverpoool. He tormented Barcelona last year.But he was not a great finisher. He has added that aspect of the game, and the English winger looks a more complete player now.

5) Van Persie for Bendtner. The Big Dane has his critics. But he is not as bad as he looks sometimes. But Rockin' Robin is again a class above rest, never mind the Nick.

Overall, we are more mature, a more solid looking unit. I know its a cliche for those who listen to Arsene's press conferences, but I think that is true. We will have Arshavin, Diaby, Rosicky, Squilacci, Denilson, Nick and Chamakh on the bench.

Last time was a 2-2 draw. With all the improvements, mathematically, it should be a 3-1 to Arsenal!!

So there you go.........

Come on Arsenal!!

Henry on his way to Barcelona

Giri's wish of Henry failing the medical test failed when Henry cleared the medical test and was unveiled at Nou Camp after signing a 4 year deal with Barcelona. Arsenal Football confirmed the signing. Arsenal has thanked Henry for his massive contribution to the club development. The club said:

During his time at Arsenal, Thierry became the Club’s all-time leading goalscorer with 226 goals from his 370 appearances. He was also an integral part of the 2003/04 ‘unbeaten’ League season, won the Premiership twice, the FA Cup twice, the Premiership ‘Golden Boot’ four times, was voted the PFA Player of the Year twice and won the FWA Player of the Year on three occasions.

Everyone at Arsenal wish Thierry the best of luck for the future.

Good luck from our side also :( we will miss you in arsenal matches.

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Henry moves to Barca ?

Its Cadena Ser radio, the station that broke the news of David Beckham and Zinedine Zidane's moves to Real Madrid again. This time it has stated that Barcelona will pay €24million (£16million) for the Arsenal forward- Thierry Henry. It also says that according to Barca officials Henry will be with Barca till 2011.

A spokesman from Barcelona told Sky Sports that the deal has not yet been finalised and talks are on between Arsene Wenger and officials from Barca.

So, if it turns out to be true, aahh new team, new teammates, new place, and yea new jersey as well :P

By the way which one looks better on him ?? :P















And yes one more thing before I go, AC Milan too admitted that they once bid for Henry but were rejected by the player himself.

Image Source : ProSport.ca, Arsenal.com

Hand Of Fraud...err...Hand of GOD !!

Not long ago Barcelona's Lionel Messi scored a solo goal picking the ball up from inside his own half on the right flank in a King’s Cup tie against Getafe, he dribbled past two defenders, swerved past two more and rounded the goal keeper to score from a very tight angle. It was said to be exact replica of the goal scored by another great footballer former Argentinian striker Diego Maradona.



And yet again on Saturday Messi scored the famous (or infamous ?) HAND OF GOD goal against Espanyol which incidentally was also a replica of Maradona's 'Hand of GOD' goal against England in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.



Here is another close look



Cunning effort isn't it ?

But according to Messi, “We can talk a lot about that goal but these things happen in football. It only won us a point. There’s no point comparing me to Diego because he was unique. I’m not trying to score the same goals as him, they are simply things that happen during a match.”
Two great footballers, playing for the same country, first the solo wonder and then the HAND OF GOD replica. I wonder whats next :)

Spanish Primera

It can't get better then this in Spanish Primera. Those with weak hearts should stop watching, even I can't watch because of almost nil coverage of Spanish lega and when star sports shows, its too late to watch. But what a season we are witnessing this year, top four teams in 4 point difference with Barca and Real Madrid at same point but Real ahead of barca on head to head count. With just three more days left Day 36 on 27th May, Day 37 on june 10 and Day 38 on june 17 to decide the winner of this season, nobody is sure who is going to win the cup. So much is at stake for all the teams this season except Sevilla who has something to cheer about after winning the UEFA Cup.

Day 35 was the highest scoring day in this season will all the teams scoring goals like the teams hit sixes in WI world cup. Barcelona trounced Atletico Madrid in a tennis like score 6-0.

Espanyol	1-5	Getafe
Atlético	0-6	Barcelona
Betis	1-1	Nàstic
Sociedad	3-1	Celta
Levante	1-4	Osasuna
Villarreal	2-1	Racing
Mallorca	0-1	Valencia
Zaragoza	4-3	Athletic
Deportivo	1-2	Sevilla
Recreativo	2-3	R Madrid
Day 35 - May 20

Team	GP	W	D	L	Pts	GF	GA	GD
Barcelona	35	20	9	6	69	70	30	40
Real Madrid	35	21	6	8	69	58	36	22
Sevilla	35	20	7	8	67	61	33	28
Valencia	35	20	5	10	65	50	32	18

Meanwhile I have installed FiFa07 on my lapy and have started the Spanish Primera season and will take Barcelona to the Cup victory before 17th June :)

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EPL Fans Must Read
Time.com-England's Goal Rush

Istanbul to Athens!!

While the never-ending cricket season continues, the football season is coming to an end. Manchester United have regained the coveted Premier League. The FA cup final promises to be a cracker. While United will be looking to add insult to injury on Chelsea, Maurinho will be looking for his first FA cup win in probably his last attempt as rumors say that the Porugese is on his way out of Stamford Bridge.





Meanwhile in Spain its getting too close,

CLUBS P W D L F A GD PTS
Barcelona 33 19 8 6 63 29 34 65
Real Madrid 33 19 6 8 51 31 20 63
Sevilla 33 18 7 8 57 31 26 61
Valencia 33 18 5 10 47 32 15 59

The Catalans' superior goal difference means that, they can afford to drop a couple of points and yet retain the La Liga title.

But I have not yet talked about the big one. (Ab ek phata hua, Dk se bhi zyada) All galis, roads, flights, trains lead to Athens (Desi- remember last year's bet on Liverpool/Lyon. Probably you should have betted on them this year) But, to me Milan are the favorites. No, not the revenge factor.



I just feel they are a much better side. Gattuso and Pirlo will do Gerrard what they did to United's Ronaldo. The back four looks solid despite the average age touching the 33-34 mark. Inzaghi and Gilardino are taking the chances when they come in spite of being not-so spectacular. I think till now, the players I have mentioned, Liverpool have an answer. If you have Pirlo we have Gerrard, if you have Gattuso we have Alonso, if you have Maldini we have Risse, if you have Inzaghi we have Crouch. But I think you might have guessed by now, Liverpool wont have answer to the question if you have KAKA!!






Its the old hindi cricket commentator's comment 'Inki jitni tareef ki jaye utna hi cum hoga'!! I know, there will be some Liverpool fans who wont agree to what I am saying. But, I think we should wait for the 23 night now before further discussions. Anyway, while its hard for the two teams to provide us the same drama which they did two years back, even if its 10% as exciting, it should be fun. It does promise to be an absolute cracker.

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World after UEFA Matchday 7 - II

Day - 2

A day of spreading immense respect, of gamesmanship talks, of sharing honours, a day of 3 draws and 1 win.

Lyon, ah my favourites, played a respectful draw against host Roma. Roma had problems, extended ones, when they go to France, along with their passports they will be carrying a lot of yellow cards, 8 in all shown to Italians in this match, while the frenchmen got 3. Tough task for Roma to book a birth in the quarters, lets see, all eyes on Totti!

And now THE match of this weekend, lived up all the hype and the defenders face an early exit, Riise and Bellamy (hey, were these the boys last weekend, ahh..shh) shot two painful bullets after Deco gave Barca a great start by putting one behind the net early on. Now, with a lose at home they travel to England, trouble trouble and more trouble, Barca, missing you badly! (Barca 1-2 Liverpool)

Jose's boys must have been looking for a victory, but a decent 1-1 draw gives them relief and atleast no gittery scares, what they need to do is get their act together in next match and move to the next stage, the team that's dying to be European champion, for once, for god's sake, once! (Porto 1-1 Chelsea)

And, the current Italian Champions take on a good Spanish side in Italy, and ends up accepting two away goals from them. A 2-2 draw, which sees Valencia almost through to the quarterfinals, unless Inter comes up with something amazing at Valencia home and Viera's injury adds to the wounds. Crespo, boy, come up with a beauty. (Inter 2-2 Valencia)

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Is this the beginning of the End??

Is this the beginning of the End??
That’s was the lingering thought in my mind when they lost to Valencia over weekend , but suddenly after watching them against Liverpool it seems like a reality waiting to just explode.
Sometimes I wonder, who is success biggest competitor, is it fear of failure or something like that, but watching the events unfold at Barcelona I have to the conclude that its success itself which is its biggest competitor. Can you imagine a team which is Spanish Champ plus European Champion and most important of all the world best Football Team, even Jose Mourinho admits that, fighting like that. Something, somewhere is seriously wrong. I don’t know who is at the wrong side nor I am interested in knowing , I don’t care what is happening between Eto and Rjikard , what matters to me is football and at present I don’t think they are playing that good football.
Coming to last Night match Liverpool once again showed why they are considered so esteemed in Europe, they never play spectacular football just keeps the basic right, absorbs pressure and hit other teams on the break. The turning point of the match was undoubtedly the blunder by Valdes, the header by Bellamy was nothing but easy catch, but he made total mess of that. That was the moment which turned the match upside down; it not only gave Liverpool confidence but also completely broke the Barca’s confidence. Second half was no contest, completely dominated by Liverpool.Barca seems like a demoralized side.
Coming to individual performance Momo Sisoko was outstanding running everywhere, Gerrard as usual consistent, Bellamy with his pace always created problems for barca defense, but that golf swing which he did after scoring that goal, will be the one most remembered. Otherwise it was clinical performance by Rafa’s sides.
Barcelona nothing much to write about, deco was brilliant, ronaldinho and saviola good whenever they got the ball. The problem for me was the supply from Mid field which wasn’t up to the mark. Defense has never been Barcelona strength, but if goalkeeper is also in a state of nervous disorder, then it can be a big problem.So is it all over for the reigning champs, not for me …ya its difficult to defeat Liverpool in Anfield, but Barcelona in form can score in any stadium around the world. But the question is of the psychological state they are in, they are looking vulnerable and that is the problem. Eto, in probability will be back for the second leg, is he that crucial link they are missing so badly . Only time will answer that question , but till then we all pray that sanity prevails in Nou Camp because we don’t want the end to happen so soon,as End usually is ugly and Barca plays this Beautifull game real beautifully.

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UEFA Champion's League Schedule

Analysis, Criticism, Predictions, Teams, Coaches, Practices, Transfers, Rivalries, Away Goals, Fans, Articles and another hundred kinds of blah blah, the game is back and those 90 minutes which matter the most. So all those critics, experts Shhhhhhhh, sit back, grab your beer cans and watch the action. And ask your secretaries to schedule your meetings accordingly!

Matches on 20 Feb and 7 March

Celtic - Milan

PSV - Arsenal

Lille - Man. United

Real Madrid - Bayern

---------------------------

Matches on 21 Feb and 6 Mar

Roma - Lyon

Barcelona - Liverpool

Porto - Chelsea

Internazionale - Valencia

Who's getting your support?

Barca: Whats Goin' on???

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o has hit back at claims made by coach, Frank Rijkaard, that he refused to play for the club at weekend.

"It was a bad thing to come out and say in a press conference that I did not want to play," said Eto'o.

Eto'o bursted out when Rijkaard accused him of refusing to come in as a substitute for the last 5 minutes of their game against Racing Santander on Sunday (Barcelona won 2-0).

"Eto'o warmed up but afterwards told Eusebio (Barcelona assistant coach) that he did not want to come on," Rijkaard said.

But Eto'o had a different version of the story. He said that he refused to play because he did not have time to warm up properly.

Eto'o who was out of action for four months due to his injured right knee also lashed out at teammate Ronaldinho for saying he should be more of a team player.

"If a team-mate says that you must think of the team, it´s up to him to think of the team. Personally I always think first about the group and then money. That is what hurt me most," he said.

Eto'o has also claimed that there are serious problems between two groups of players at the reigning European champions.

"There are two groups at Barcelona, one of the president and the other linked to another person.", he said. (I wonder who is this another person).

But even after such outburst against the coach and teammate, Barcelona has decided not to punish Eto'o and claim that the issue has been resolved. (Ah ! all is well that ends well).

And about the feud between him and teammate Ronaldinho, according to a report by BBC Sport "During a training session there appeared to be no hard feelings between Eto'o and Ronaldinho as the two players were photographed hugging."

Now that's what I call Happy Ending !! :)

Ronaldinho - The Genius !!

It was Barcelona in its last group stage match in the Champions League against Werder Bremen here on Tuesday, a must win situation for them...

• Results :
• Barcelona 2, Werder Bremen 0.

It was in the 13th minute when Barcelona won a free kick and the ball was in the nets in 12:37 minutes since the start of the game..

Yes, it was Ronaldinho who converted the free kick into a goal but it was not an ordinary kick.

I was pretty impressed with Ronaldinho's display of mind and talent which help Barcelona open its account so early in the game.

The free kick was just on the edge of the penalty area and all Ronaldinho had to do was to beat the 7 man wall and the goalkeeper. I have seen many free kicks not only by Ronaldinho but by other players going into the nets but this one was special beacuase I saw it for the first time (or maybe someone tried this for the first time).


Ronaldinho (like other players and viewers) expected the wall to jump to block his shot, so instead of taking a usual aerial free kick he glided the ball from under the wall and scored.




It was awesome.The wall got up Ronaldinho went down and the ball was in the net.

In a match when Barcelona was in a must win situation, the amount of pressure was tremendous and this kind of free kick really gave another example of Ronaldinho's genius.