Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Lionel Messi for Barcelona (v Manchester Utd), 27 May 2009

End of Season Loose Ends Rambling, Innit

1. Champions League

Were Manchester United beaten by a much better team on the night? Undoubtedly. Are Barcelona the best club side in the world, ever? No. The reality is somewhere in between - United could have defended better but Barcelona fully deserved their win, and are, I think, a popular winner of the tournament. I was also particularly encouraged by the magnanimity shown by Sir Alex after the match - not always apparent in the past.

2. Carlo Ancelotti

And Chelsea were oaning about their pragmatic, organised football under Mourinho. Chelsea fans - be prepared for your team to be extremely effective but you be bored shitless for his tenure.

3. Liverpool

That their chance to win the league gone. do you think?

4. Newcastle Utd

Dear oh dear. What a mess, there. At least 45 minutes against Aston Villa where they didn't seem to give a flying toss whether they were relagted or not rather sums it up for me. Bixzarrely, they were probably a better side than Hull but the Tigers victory at St James' ultimately decisive, I suppose.

Owen? sigh. What's going to happen there? Celtic? A decent job for a mid-table Premiership side? Abroad to salvage his career? Who knows?

Clearout, sign good Championship players and they'll make the play-offs next season. No demise of Leeds-esque proportions for the Magpies, methinks.

5. Transfers

It's started already, hasn't it? I used to love the good old days when you got home and realised your team had signed a great player and it came like a bolt out of the blue. Now, Sky Skorts News and the Sun fill their content with endless transfer speculation until you're so desperate to make it all stop that by the time Frank Ribery signs for your club you'll be so pissed off with the whole endeavour that you won't care two hoots.

Predictions results imminent, and I am thinking of posting a weekly quiz of some sort. Woot. Hold the front page....

1 comment:

Paul said...

Funny thing is, a few years ago if you'd told me Newcastle would be in the same division as Forest, Leicester and Derby, a division above Leeds and Charlton, and not in the same league as Wigan, Hull and Burnley, I'd have thought it meant we'd be doing ok.

Our big problem is the fact that while Fat Mike has the club on the market, we continue to lose ground on all the others around us.