Archive for August, 2009

What does Flamengo do? They play a great first half and then revert to their crappy ways and gave up two-second half goals to Cruzeiro at home and lose 2-1. Everton’s dribble drive up the left flank set up Flamengo’s first goal. Everton fired a perfect centering pass into the box. Emerson out leaped the Cruzeiro defender and ripped home the header in the 32^nd minute to give Flamengo a 1-0 lead. 

My spirits were high. I thought, “Oh, yes, we are going to win.” Not so, fast bucko. Diego Renan slipped through the Flamengo “Oh Lay’ defense and ripped a winner past Flamengo’s dumb founded keeper Bruno to knot this baby up at one all after fifty two minutes.

“Okay, we still have a chance,” I said to my wife. Then the Sybil Flamengo ways raised its ugly head. A great drive into the box Kleber forced the Bruno to challenge him. Bruno tackled the ball away from Kleber The rebound came flying out and Fabricio knocked home winner from 25 yards out past a lazy Bruno in the 70^th minute to make 2-1 Cruzeiro.  Bruno should have stopped the shot. He didn’t. The ball slid right past the half assed attempt by Bruno to stop the shot.

This is another stupid loss for my team Flamengo. They are worse than the Philadelphia Eagles. Flamengo finds new ways to break your heart. They build you up with a nice lead and then “Boom” the bottom falls out and Flamengo losses.

Flamengo can’t continue to play this way. For if they do they may wind up at the butt end of the table and have, their ticket punched for second division play. The loss to Cruzeiro drops Flamengo to twelfth spot in the table. Flamengo has 27 points. Cruzeiro is now in thirtieth place with 24 points.

Flamengo has now lost two straight matches. They have been outscored six to two. The “Oh Lay” “D” is not working and neither is the offense. Flamengo is a world of hurt.

Goias had a chance to move into first place but heave hoe zone Nautico pulled the 2-0 upset.

Atletico-MG and Avai tied two all.

Palmeiras is in first place with 37 points. Sao Paulo is second with 36 points. Goias is third with 35 points and Internacional is fourth with 33 points.

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The growing pains at Manchester United are going to be felt for a while. The Red Devils lost 1-0 to newly promoted Burnley last night.

Burnley’s Robbie Blake perfectly placed volley just inside the right post beat Red Devils keeper Ben Foster in the 19^th minute to make 1-0.

Michael Carrick missed a sure PK in the 44^th minute. Burnley keeper Brian Jenson stopped Carrick’s shot dead in its tracks.

Man U applied lots of pressure but Zippo-nada.

This was Burnley’s first EPL win since 1975-76 and their first win over Manchester United since 1968.

This was a huge upset. Will this loss stop Man U for going for a four peat? No. If you remember last year Man U dropped an early season match as well too and the Red Devils went on to win the title. This is not time to push the panic button.

Liverpool got back on the right track with a 4-0 thrashing of Stoke. Rafael Benitez made two changes. These changes paid off handsomely. Benitez inserted Daniel Ayala and Yossi Benayoun into the lineup. This gave the Reds the spark they needed. This move resulted in quick score. Fernando Torres ripped a winner in the 4^th minute to make 1-0 Liverpool.

Glen Johnson, Dirk Kuyt, and David Ngog each notched goals for the Reds too.

Tottenham blasted Hull City 5-1. Birmingham defeated Portsmouth 1-0.

Gomer Pyle would always shout out “ Surprise, surprise,” when he saw Sergeant Carter. Tottenham sits atop the EPL with six points. Chelsea is in second place with six points.  Manchester United in is tenth place.

At season end, I don’t think Tottenham will be in first place. This is going to be a fun EPL season to watch and write about.  

Keith Jackson’s famous saying  “Whoa Nelly,” best descibes the upsets that have taken place so far.

My father used to tell me you better hang on to your hat. It’s going to be a rough one.  

Brasileiro Campeonato has three matches that were played on Wednesday night that may determine who will wind up as champion. Sao Paulo takes on Fluminense, Palmeiras battles Coritiba, and Internacional entertains Corinthians. Palmeiras has a slim two point lead over Internacional and a four-point lead over Sao Paulo.

Sao Paulo has now won seven straight matches with 1-0 won over Coritiba Wednesday night. Richarlyson’s power strike in the 23^rd minute was all that Sao Paulo needed. Rogerio Ceni returned in goal for Sao Paulo and he played a great match. This is his first appearance since he broke his ankle in March of this year.

Palmeiras lost to Coritiba 1-0 on a last minute PK by Marcelinho Paraiba. This is a huge loss for Palmeiras. Corinthians upset Internacional 2-1. Jorge Enrique’s laser in the 88^th minute sealed the deal for Corinthians.

Sao Paulo’s win coupled with Internacional’s and Palmeiras loss changed the complexion of the Campeonato.

Palmeiras is in first place with 37 points. Sao Paulo moves up to second place with 36 points. Internacional drops to fourth place with 33 points.

Goias has 35 points but they take on Nautico later on tonight. If Goias wins, they move into the top spot.

Tonight my psychotic Flamengo side takes on Cruzeiro.

Oh, the fun is just beginning in the Campeonato.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

Arsenal took care of business at Celtic Park with a 2-0 win over Celtic. All The Gunners have to do is take care of business at Emirates and Arsenal is on to the Champions League Group Stage.

I knew that Celtic would put up a gallant fight however the outcome a Gunners win was already etched in stone. It was deja vue all over again. Arsenal dismantled Celtic 3-0 in the Emirates Cup Final about two weeks ago.

Arsenal started out the match with lots of pressure. The Gunners had two near goals before Gallas butt knocked home a great free kick by Fabregas just before halftime to give the Gunners a 1-0 lead.

A brilliant dribble drive by Arsenal’s Abou Diaby down the left the flank set up the next goal.  Diaby’s flicked centering pass into the box was a beautifully placed ball intended for teammate Gael Clichy however Celtic defender Gary Caldwell stepped in front of the pass and knocked it into his own goal.

That was the old ball game.

Lets shift gears to one of my favorite subjects Brasil futebol. Sao Paulo is on a tear as of  late. Sao Paulinos are on a six-match win streak. They haven’t lost or tied since a 2-2 draw with Internacional on July 22. Sao Paulo is fourth in the table with 33 points. They trail leader Palmeiras by four points. Both teams have a hot date on August 30. This could decide who sits atop the table.

Sao Paulo needs to hold serve against Fluminense and Atletico-MG and hope that Palmeiras losses one or both of their next two matches before the showdown on August 30. Palmeiras has Coritiba and Internacional.

I can’t wait for this show down at the OK Corral. Now throw into the mix Palmeiras headman Muricy was fired by Sao Paulo in July. Oh Baby let’s watch these fireworks explode.

My team Flamengo is on the verge of going backwards.  Flamengo is in tenth place with 27 points. In their last four matches, Flamengo has one win, two losses, and two draws. This stinks. Sybil raises her ugly head yet again and we are left guessing which team will show up each an every match. Flamengo has Cruzeiro this Thursday night at home in Maracanã. Lets hope the good team shows up instead of the stupid team. This is a must win for us. Cruzeiro is in fourteenth spot with 21 points.

If not the boo birds will be out in full force.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

Lets survey the carnage from over the weekend. First up is Liverpool. The Reds stunk out the joint against Tottenham. A 2-1 loss doesn’t make a season but it can go a long way to determine how well a team will do.

Liverpool wasn’t ready for the season to start. You could see it in their preseason matches the Reds half assed it. They were too busy reading their press clippings on the EPL crown they were supposed to win this season. Not so fast bucko the season has to be played first. Liverpool discovered this sad but true fact.

All the media experts and pundits have decreed that Manchester United is done. They will not win nor contend for a record fourth EPL crown. Not so fast guys, we are only one week into the season so lets wait until we are halfway through the season before we sign their death warrant.

Man U is a very quick team. The Red Devils have more team speed this year. Team speed is something that you cannot coach. They are quicker without Cristiano Ronaldo in the lineup. The goals will come. Cristiano can score in the regular season but when it comes to nut cutting time, he is gone.

Arsenal put on some offensive display against Everton. The Gunners murdered Everton 6-1. Five out of the six goals came from the defenders and midfielders. Arsenal lacks a striker. I still think this will come back and haunt them.

Chelsea escaped by the hair of their chinny chin chin with 2-1 win over Hull City. This is not a good sign for the Blues. Sure, Drogba is back but Chelsea can’t keep counting on last minute heroics to save the day. I am not sure if it is the coaching or the player attitudes. My guess it’s the players. Let’s see how this all plays out when we get close to December.

We talk about my favorite league Brasileiro Campeonato on Wednesday.

www.palau.org

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Something happened on the way to Liverpool being ordained as the new EPL champion Tottenham. The Hotspurs pulled the plug on the Reds start of the season. A simple 2-1 loss put a small nail in the plan of Rafael Benitez to over take Man U and win the EPL.

This is not the start the Reds had in mind. 

The Hotspurs outplayed Liverpool. The Reds seemed just a hair off.  I could have predicted this result. Liverpool wasn’t ready for the start of the season. They played half assed through the preseason.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto powerful 25 yard strike beat Pepe Reina in the 44^th minute to make 1-0 Tottenham.

Steven Gerrard got the equalizer in the 56^th minute on PK to tie this baby up at one all.

Three minutes later Sebastian Bassong headed home the winner off a well-placed free kick into the box to give Tottenham the lead 2-1. I guess the eight million bucks spent for Bassong was well worth it.  So far it is.

Let the crying begin in Liverpool.

Manchester United began defense of their EPL crown with a hard fought 1-0 win over Birmingham. Wayne Rooney rose up in the air and head tapped home a great cross by Nani in the 34^th minute. That was all the Red Devils needed.

The experts are all on the same page stating the obvious. Man U will be lost without the world’s best player Cristiano Ronaldo. This is going to piss many of you so called pundits and experts off but Ronaldo is good but for all the tea in China, he is not the best player in the world. Cristiano Ronaldo is a good regular season player but when the chips are down. When you need him to score or perform at the next level Cristiano Ronaldo is nowhere to be found. All one has to do is look at the 2008 FIFA World Club Championship, the 2009 Champions League Final, and the World Cup, and the European 2008 Championships. I will take Messi, Kaka, and Daniel Alvez de Silva over Cristiano Ronaldo any day of the week. I rest my case.
Cristiano Ronaldo is no Pele or the scoring machine the original Ronaldo. At least the fat old man Ronaldo still shows up in big games and score when the game is on the line. This is more than I can say for the pretender Cristiano Ronaldo.

Flamengo did the unthinkable they stunk the joint out against Gremio. Flamengo put up a valiant half assed effort however they lost 4-1. This was a horrible futebol display. Gremio scored the first goal in the 14^th minute. Edixon Perea flicked home the header off a great free kick for 1-0 Gremio lead.

Flamengo responded with a great give and go between Adriano and Everton. Everton slid the ball past the helpless Gremio keeper Victor to make one all.

Then all hell broke loose for Flamengo.

Flamengo had some great scoring changes but they miss fired on all of them. It was a sad display. Gremio keeper Victor was the difference. He made some unreal saves. A couple of them were point blank shots by Adriano, Emerson, and Everton.

Rever’s sweet goal made Bruno look silly in the 56^th minute. Rever drove the left flank. He beat the defense and Bruno challenged him. Rever twisted the ball past the diving Bruno. The ball curled just inside the right post to make 2-1 Gremio.

Flamengo continued the offensive pressure. Nothing worked. Then! Bam right out of nowhere the match changed. Flamengo was called for two penalties inside the box. Both of these calls were horrible. The ref stunk. There were not PK’s. Jonas nailed both PK’s in the 81^st and 87^th minute.

This loss may have killed Flamengo’s chances of making the top five.

Good old Sybil raises her ugly head. This team is truly psychotic.

So it was another one of those exciting Sundays watching my beloved Flamengo break my heart. I can’t wait until the NFL starts on September 10^th. I will have two teams to break my heart. You see the life of a Flamengo and Eagles fan is very hard. Oh, I can’t wait. Sunday nights will no longer be boring. Oh happy days.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

Vroom we are off to the races. The EPL started yesterday. Arsenal and Chelsea are out of the gate quickly with a pair of impressive wins. Yes, Chelsea fell behind early 1-0 against Hull City but the Blues came back to win 2-1. Drogba scored both goals for Chelsea.  Drogba’s last goal was a tight angled shot that found the back of the net in the 90^th minute to give the Blues the three points.

I have been telling the Arsenal bloggers all summer long  the Gunners need strikers. Arsenal still does. This match is an example of what I am talking about.

Arsenal demolished Everton 6-1. Holy cow where was the offensive display last year. One match does not a season make but this is a great start. Before one could blink, Arsenal was up 4-0. The race was on. In rapid succession Denilson 24^th minute, Thomas Vermaelen 37^th minute, William Gallas in 41^st minute, and Fabregas in 48^th minute it was 4-0. Can you say “ Stick a fork in Everton, they’re done.”

I can hear those Gunners fans screaming, “Wenger’s crazy adding Denilson and Vermaelen”. Not so fast guys, so far this is a good start. Yeah, I know it’s the first match of the season. Let’s wait and see what happens. So far, the new cats have scored three out of the six goals.  Five out of the six goals came from either defenders or midfielders. What happened to the strikers? This is my simple observation.

Later today, Man U and Liverpool take to the pitch.

Palmeiras and Botafogo waged a battle royal. Botafogo found the back of the net first. Andre Lima ripped the twines in the 23^rd minute to give Botafogo a 1-0 lead. Palmeiras found the equalizer in the 32^nd minute. Off a well-placed free kick, Danilo used his noodle to knock the ball home to tie this baby up at one all.

Botafogo keeper Flavio made a huge mistake when he decided to leave his mark to get the ball. Flavio missed and that gave Danilo the space he needed to find the back of the net. If Flavio stayed on his line, he might have had a chance to stop the header.

Both teams  had great scoring opportunities but they couldn’t convert them into goals 

Palmeiras and Botafogo tied at one all.

This was a wasted opportunity for Palmeiras. You can’t drop points like this.

Avai defeated Nautico 2-1 and Internacional beat Santo Andrea 2-0.

Later today, Flamengo takes on Gremio. Flamengo needs to win this baby. My team cannot afford to stink the joint with either a tie of a loss. A road win might give Flamengo a good chance to finish in the top five of the table.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

Fall is my favorite time of the year. Can you say are you ready for some football? Yes folks both football and futebol season here. I love it. The Brasil Campeonato is in full swing. The EPL season kicks off later today. And of course, The NFL season will start on September 10^th. Oh yes, it is a glorious time of the year.

Sunday nights will no longer be boring as all hell. Yes, Sunday Night Football proceeded by futebol Brasil and NFL football. My wife and I will have a fully loaded Sunday. Church, followed by futebol, football, and more football. My wife will kill me but that’s me. Wall to wall futebol and football 24-7 on Saturday and Sunday and I am set for life. My wife is huge football fan too.

This should be a wild and exciting EPL season.  Manchester United lost two of their big guns. Liverpool lost a few players too. Chelsea is stronger. Arsenal added some new players in their midfield and defense.  Manchester City added lots of new talent. I think Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Arsenal will be at the top of the table at seasons end.

Let the games begin.

Palmeiras is in first place in the Brasil Campeonato. We are about halfway through the season. Sao Paulo is on a hot streak. Sao Paulinos have won four in a row. They are streaking up the table and don’t be surprised if Sao Paulo makes it a four peat.

A very reliable source, my Brasilian, and Flamenguista brother in law Leleque told me that Flamengo sent out their “B” team against Fluminense in the Copa Sudamericana.  Flamengo doesn’t really care about the Copa. Flamengo is concentrating on the Campeonato. We will see. I think Flamengo needs to practice and to work all their offensive and defensive deficiencies. For starters, Flamengo has trouble finding the back of the net. They can’t stop anyone either. Flamengo plays the famous “Oh Lay” defense. But, hey what do I know I’m just a dumb blogger.

I don’t care how many ways you cut it to Sunday the Argentina government is taking over futebol. Grondona and his cohorts can scream all day long this is a good idea but when the government takes over you lose your freedom. They will make the choices for you.

The people lose. You lose.

Sure, this looks like a good idea on the surface. The debits will be gone but the problem still remains. Out of control spending by Boca, River Plate, San Lorenzo, Independiente and the other top twenty clubs will not stop once the government foots the bill. 

I know the argument. These clowns brought it on themselves so let the government run it.  The government will do a better job. This my friend is called fascism. Once you loose freedom you never get it back. 

Pick up any ECON 101 textbook and please read it. Or better yet take a look at the Bible.  Grondona should pick up an Argentina history book and read it too.

Enough said. Let the party begin. It is football time.

www.palau.org

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I still don’t believe the BS that is coming out of Argentina. The government is going to take over the TV broadcast rights of AFA. Argentina President Christina Fernandez will make the final decision on this landmark take over and highjacking of a private companies legally signed contract to broadcast AFA futebol matches on TV. The AFA signed a contract giving the TV Rights Group the broadcast rights for 65 million pesos. The contract was supposed to expire 2014.

Grondona and his cronies broke the contract with TV Rights Group on Tuesday.

This is crazy. It is pure insanity.

The drunken crazy spending Boca Juniors, River Plate, San Lorenzo, Independiente, and the other out of line clubs look to government to fix their problem. The clowns who run these teams are 182 million dollars in debit. They haven’t paid their players. They haven’t paid taxes. These teams are still spending millions of dollars they don’t have to buy players they won’t pay.

Guess who gets screw? The people. Yo, Grondona, who do think is going to foot the bill to bail you and your buds silly butts out of debit.  The people. The people pay taxes. The only way government can raise money is through taxes. This fact can be found in any Econ 101 textbook. I suggest you pick one up and read it.

The real funny part of this whole deal is that the government has limited resources to broadcast the matches. The government will only be able to show some of the matches. Now here is the real kicker. The government will have to sell the rights back to these private companies so that all the matches can be seen on TV. What the hell lets pay twice for the same goods and services.

So, in reality the people get screwed twice.

Grondona, you should take your head out of the dark spot of your body and see what you and cronies are doing to ruin Argentina Futebol. You should use your head for something besides a hat rack. This is just a thought that’s all.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

Flamengo and Fluminense battled to a zero –zero tie at Maracana last night in the first stage of Copa Sudamericana. Flamengo controlled the action for 80% of the match yet they could not find the back of the net. Fluminense is near the bottom of the table. Fluminense stinks this year however Flamengo could not put them away. It was bad on the offensive end for Flamengo. The passes were off.  The offensive build up was fine for Flamengo. The problem occurred with the final pass or shot. The timing was off by a huge hair.  Emerson, Marques, and Everton Silva had a very hard time finishing off great scoring opportunities. The shot would either hit the keeper in the hand or the leg. When that happened Emerson and Marques couldn’t get to the rebound in time to strike home the winner.

The ball many times skimmed right past the open goalmouth. This is where the problem lies for my beloved Flamengo. Emerson, Marquez, and company left way too many scoring opportunities on the pitch. Against clubs like Palmeiras, Sao Paulo, and Goias, this will come back and bite Flamengo in the butt.  

This was a hard match to watch.

Emerson and company had at least ten very good scoring opportunities. Each time Flamengo came up empty. It was pathetic. If brains were dynamite Flamengo couldn’t even, blow its nose. They couldn’t fight their way out of wet paper bag with an outboard motor.

If Flamengo continues to play this way, it will be a very long season.

Flamengo is in eighth place in the table. Fluminense is in 19^th place.

I tell you what Flamengo is totally psychotic. They do a great imitation of Sybil. I have never seen a team have thirty-five different personalities. You never know which one will show up.

Next up for Sybil Flamengo is Gremio. Gremio is in ninth place. Gremio has 25 points. This is a must win situation for Flamengo.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp

I can’t believe the BS that is coming out of Argentina. This is pure garbage. The Argentina Futebol Association is blaming all its problems on the media. The clown Julio Grondona basically said that the TV rights group is only paying them a fraction of what they should be paying them. He compared the TV rights groups to wife beaters. They beat us and then they pay us only 200 pesos for the beatings. Dude that’s an insult to women.

Who negotiated the deal?  Grondona and his stupid cronies did. Grondona is the idiot that signed it so stop blaming the media for your stupid ineptitude. You clowns brought this on upon yourselves.

I have a novel idea play your players. Stop spending money you don’t have like a bunch of drunken sailors. Dork, you, and your buds are the problem.  

The government can’t fix your crazy spending ways.

Where do you think the government gets the money? From the people that’s who. It is called taxes. This is basic Econ 101. Maybe you need a little refresher course.

The government will resell the TV package back to the people. This means the people have to pay twice for the same service. Way to screw that people who jam the stands each Sunday afternoon to watch futebol.

The season will start on August 21.

Will the players get paid?

One final thought stop blaming others for your problems. Hold up a mirror in front of your face and look at the problem.

I like watching Argentina futebol on TV.

Now I don’t think I will.

Grondona you are a disgusting person. 

I am glad I am not you.

www.palau.org

http://www2.hillsong.com/tv/home.asp