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the Manchester derby- will the title be decided in April?

February 4, 2012 By

on the 28th of April English football will stand still to witness what will be the most important football match Europe has seen this season. both Manchester sides, the infamous Red Devils in Manchester United and the Noisy Neighbours in Manchester City will meet at the Etihad stadium to determine effectively who will be crowned Premier League champions. the importance of this game is, ironically for a writer, almost too much to be put into words. the build up to this game will be immense. the pressure on the respective fans, players, and the managers will be unrelenting. the pundits in Gary Neville and Mike Summerbee will be hounded to appear on every football programme going from Sky Sports to Match Of The Day. this will be the most important derby since the ’73/74 season when City relegated the mighty Manchester United with a solitary goal scored by Dennis Law- the City player signed from Manchester United. the tension even now in February is palpable.

Although there are still two months away from Kick-Off, Manchester is alive with whispers of potential line-ups, injuries, formations, and the subsequent effect defeat for either side will have in their season and title aspirations. This match will be broadcast legally and illegally all over the world to every footballing community. For one day, 90mins, the whole footballing world will be united- and divided- by the events unfolding in the City of Manchester stadium. The current two dominant teams in English football will perform a showcase of talent, passion, desire and raw emotion in the hope of clinching the most valuable three points in almost the entire world’s footballing leagues. Some of the world’s biggest footballing names will be taking to the pitch in front of a sell out crowd, and a television audience of tens of millions. Wayne Rooney, Sergio Aguero, Nani, David Silva, De Gea, and Mario Balotelli will have every pass, flick, run, tackle, and save watched, re-played, analysed, scrutinized and most likely criticised by the pundits and commentators privileged enough to cover such an illustrious event live and first hand. Of course the focus on the lead up to the match will be on the managers.

Alex Ferguson, the Manchester United manager who has achieved not only legendary status amongst the footballing community regardless of personal team loyalty but an almost God-like status amongst the Red Devil faithful. An entire generation of footballing supporter has grown up with the name Alex Ferguson thrust into their faces wherever they go, and he holds the respect of everybody who has the clarity of mind to see what this man has achieved. Roberto Mancini on the other hand, though far from achieving the God-like status amongst the Blues faithful has achieved cult status nevertheless for bringing champions league football back to Eastland’s and having their team flying high at the pinnacle of European football’s best and most exciting league. All eyes will be watching for any signs of disharmony within the City camp or any signs of the pressure starting to get to the players so often criticised for failing to gel as a team, reach their potential and folding when they need to stand strong.

Ferguson has recently come under some pretty heavy fire recently for his clear failure to replace players lost by United in the summer- notably a centre midfielder and playmaker. It is obvious United’s squad is far too stretched and the players are failing to live up to the standards expected of them by the fans and their gaffer. However, it is important to note their exceptional team spirit and their togetherness as a squad that has seem them scrape results from matches they should have lost by all rights. This is what United do best and is the main reason why they are still in this title race and the reason no right minded football fan has written them off yet.

City on the other hand have players to spare. Carlos Tevez- a player who could probably walk into almost any team in Europe, does not even train with the team anymore. Yet still city have the depth in squad to act like they never needed him in the first place. quality all over the pitch and with a bench strong enough to be challenging for the title by it’s self leave City with an abundance of attacking, midfield, and defensive options. And that is the defining criteria for any team with title hopes- options. United have been found wanting in many areas all over the pith, up front they have the unique once-in-a-generation player that is Wayne Rooney, the swagger of Hernandez and the arrogance of Berbatov and that forgotten man Michael Owen. Down the wings they have world class talent in Nani, Young, and the impressive Valencia. Their defensive line is a brilliant mixture of promising youth like Phil Jones, and veterans in Patrice Evra and one of the best centre-halves in the game- Vidic. However their glaring weaknesses are in the middle of the park and in goal. Having to recall the retired Paul Scholes back into the first team highlights just how stretched the squad is in department. Giggs and Scholes will not last forever yet the reluctance to splash out on decent replacements hints at cash restrictions. Anderson, though an obvious talent, does not have the ability of either the aforementioned players. Fletcher, a linchpin in the middle of the park, is now side-lined for the foreseeable future with a serious bowel condition and Carrick, again although an average United player, does not offer any of the stands out quality Scholes did. there is also the question of the two youngsters Ravel Morrison and Paul Pogba, highly talked about and regarded as the latest hot prospects to come out of United’s youth academy, do not seem to be able to break into the first team in positions where their talents would be put to good use, raising the question as to whether all the hype surrounding them is justified. granted the young star Tom Cleverly, the potential solution to the problem, is soon to be returning. but whether we hill be match fit for the 28th April is any bodies guess. in goal, De Gea has shown time and again why he is not ready for the premier league and although talented, would benefit going out on loan to another premier league club where he could make his mistakes and learn his lesson without costing United points. Lindergaard is also a player high in most people’s estimations though he is like so many of United big players, Ferdinand, Vidic, Young, Cleverley, and Fletcher, currently injured. however even when they where fit many where labelling them the most underwhelming United side in years.

City however have been stealing all the headlines with their runaway performances on the pitch and eccentric antics by a certain Italian forward player off the pitch, critics up and down the country have been backing this City team to clinch the title for the first time since the 1967-68 season. there is no doubt they have the quality to win the title, and even the quality to be serious challengers in Europe. Aguero and Balotelli are without question, world class forwards. the silky skills of David Silva and the powerhouse midfielder Yaya Toure dominate the midfield. in defence is the premier leagues best right back and frustratingly overlooked by Capello for the national team, Micah Richards. the centre half combination of Lescott and Kompany leaves England goalkeeper Joe Hart with very little to do in most matches.

i also disagree with questioning the team’s mentality, too often they get criticised for an apparent habit of cracking under pressure and i feel this is unjust criticism. they are still building as a team and although winning titles is now habit for United; this is uncharted territory for this young, talented City team. the much documented saga of Carlos Teves has given rise to the accusations of them being a team of pampered over sized ego’s. though in reality is has only been Teves who has had the audacity to think he is bigger than the club. Balotelli is the most controversial player in England (Joey Barton aside) with reports of extreme goodwill off the pitch to then alleged stamping on opposition players faces in the middle of matches. this has led to a marmite style team- you either love them or you hate them.

so come the 27th the entire country will be holdings it’s breath and eagerly anticipating and debating the next days events. the rest of the footballing calendar may almost be forgotten in the hysteria surrounding Manchester in two months time. the unstoppable force meets the immovable object. at the lunch time kick-off the two will collide in front of a partisan crown driven by passion, pride, love for their team and sheer loathing for their near neighbours. and from previous meetings, it is safe to say you can expect fireworks.

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Is David Beckham good enough to play for the GB Olympics football team?

February 2, 2012 By

There is no doubt in any England supporters mind that David Beckham is one of the best players to pull on the sacred three lion’s shirt. There is no doubt that in his prime he was one of the best wingers to grace the Premiership. There is no doubt that David Beckham will always be spoken about in the same breath as Bobby Moore, who’s record of 108 caps was beaten by Beckham’s 115, Paul Gasgoine, and Gary linecker.  But there is a huge doubt as to whether Mr. Beckham will be able to perform to the standard expected of him at the 2012 Olympics. With Wales and Scotland not qualifying for Euro 2012 there is a great variety of players the GB manager, Stuart Pearce, can choose to blood at the Olympics. Many of whom are younger, fitter, faster, stronger, and simply, better than David Beckham. Stuart Pearce, who was coach of theEnglandu-21 team, was, in my opinion, always the best candidate to succeed Fabio Capello at the helm of theEngland national team. He has now been appointed this political minefield of a task, and now is the time for him to prove that he can take Capello’s place by making the momentous decision to leave Beckham in LA. Don’t get me wrong, I am a huge fan or Mr. Beckham and I have no doubt that ten years ago he would have walked into any team he wanted to, but now I am of the opinion that at almost 37 and with 115 caps to his name, Beckham has provided more than enough service to his country. I do however feel he has a long and potentially very successful future behind the scenes for the England national team or with team GB’s football team at the Olympics. For example, at the 2010 world cup he was taken as a coach and reportedly spent endless time attempting to teach Theo Walcott how to cross (these attempts have since been proved pointless.) as an ambassador for the England set up he certainly had more credibility than prince William did. Beckham in a world wide franchise, a household name from the terraces ofEnglandto the Favela’s ofRio de Janeiro, and soon the ghettos of LA where he is now plying his trade. His name does wonders for the profits of any football team he plays for, but one could speculate whether his consideration for the GB team is based on the benefit of the “brand Beckham” which would have fantastic financial boosts for the Olympic merchandise and attendances- who wouldn’t want one of England’s biggest name’s on the back of their GB football shirt, and more to the point who wouldn’t want to see the legend himself in the flesh? Christ, I’m talking myself into buying a ticket! But is it worth giving David Beckham an active role in the team at the expense of a younger player who needs crucial playing time to develop? There are numerous players who could arguably do just as good, if not a better job, than Beckham- Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for example, should Capello judge him to be too young to go with the England squad to the Euro’s, could make his name and kick start his career at the Olympics. Already considered one of the hottest British talents around and a future shining star in English football, this would be Oxlade-Chamberlain’s perfect chance to develop himself and his natural raw talent. Scotland’s Robert Snodgrass and even Wales’ Gareth Bale are other possibilities- although granted Bale is a natural left-winger he has the ability to play on the right with equally devastating affect. There are also the England right wingers who may not go to the Euro’s- Aaron Lennon for example, Adam Johnson, and the list goes on. The tactical variety Pearce has to choose from is amazing, Lennon on the right and Bale on the left for example, as they are regularly deployed for Tottenham, switching wings and causing opposition players nightmares. There is one last argument in Beckham’s favour- his set-piece speciality. During the late 90′s and early 00′s he made his name by “Bending it like Beckham” effortlessly curling the ball over the wall, and floating it teasingly past the goalkeeper’s diving hand. He also has endless experience to bring to the squad. An aura of calm, steady leadership and a vast source of footballing knowledge the other younger players could only hope to achieve at the end of their careers. But would he be a liability on the pitch? There are also rumours that the evergreen Ryan Giggs is also eyeing a berth in the team GB squad, and although he could probably handle the full 90 minutes with players 20 years his junior as he does every week in the premier league, I again disagree that he should be playing for team GB. I believe it is time for them both to pass the torch on at national level at least. However, the lure of England’s biggest name, and Manchester United’s biggest star playing together once again could be too much to refuse. This is why, in my honest opinion, Beckham should take a coaching role as he did at the world cup in 2010, whether it be with the England squad or assisting Stuart Pearce developing younger talent at the Olympics. As this competition, in my opinion, is what it should really be about. Using it as a golden opportunity to develop the younger generation, and not a chance to give “Goldenballs” his last fanfare.

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Watch Cowboys vs. Broncos Game Live Online Preview – NFL Preseason

August 12, 2011 By

Are you a fan of the Dallas Cowboys or Denver Broncos? NFL football is back after the lockout and the pre-season schedule starts tonight! Usually pre-season games aren’t that exciting, but this game will help answer questions about the Broncos starting QB this year. We hope you enjoy this live preview of this football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos!

Although Tony Romo probably will not play for more than a couple snaps of this game, Dallas Cowboys fans are excited to see him back healthy after missing more than half the season last year. Miles Austin and Dez Bryant give Romo two quality receiving options and the Dallas offense should be explosive this season.

Cowboys fans are also looking forward to watching Rob Ryan’s new defensive schemes. Ryan was brought in to improve the Dallas defense which ranked near the bottom of the league in many categories last season. Most of the starting defensive players will sit out the majority (or all) of this game, but there is some pressure on Ryan to prove he can help fix the team’s problems on defense.

For the Broncos, this game is all about the quarterbacks. Tim Tebow was thought to have the inside track on the starting job during the offseason, but he has struggled in camp and at this point Kyle Orton looks like he will become the starter in Denver. If Tebow wants to try and gain the #1 job back, he will need to be impressive in this game. If he plays poorly, Orton may cement himself as the Broncos signal caller for the start of the 2011-2012 season.

The Cowboys and Broncos are both excited about the beginning of the preseason schedule. This should be an exciting game if for no other reason than it will help determine the Broncos starting quarterback for the regular season. If you are a fan of either team (or if you just want to watch some football for the first time in many months) you need to watch this preseason matchup online live!

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Live – Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals Game Preview – Watch Online

July 24, 2011 By

The St. Louis Cardinals go on the road to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates in a battle between two of the top teams in the NL Central Division. Charlie Morton gets the start for the Pirates – he has a 8-5 record this season with an ERA of 3.62 while the Cardinals will counter with Kyle Lohse who currently has a 8-7 record with a 3.45 ERA.

The Pirates have surprised many by staying in contention in the division and playing above .500 baseball. The team is led by some surprising starting pitching and emerging star centerfielder Andrew McCutchen. If third base prospect Pedro Alvarez  is recalled from the minors and hits well in the middle of the lineup, the Pirates are definitely playoff contenders.

St. Louis has stayed in contention despite losing Adam Wainwright for the season and seeing Albert Pujols’ production decline somewhat. Lance Berkman has been a very pleasant surprise and Matt Holliday is also hitting the ball well. Looking at the starting lineups for today’s game, it appears Holliday will be getting an off day today, although he should be available to pinch hit. The Cardinals need Colby Rasmus, who is currently mired in a slump, to start heating up. He will play CF today and is batting fifth.

Pittsburgh Pirates Starting Lineup:
C. d’Arnaud
M. Diaz
N. Walker
A. McCutchen
L. Overbay
G. Jones
R. Cedeno
E. Fryer
C. Morton p 		St. Louis Cardinals Starting Lineup:
R. Theriot
J. Jay
A. Pujols
L. Berkman
C. Rasmus
S. Schumaker
G. Laird
D. Descalso
K. Lohse p

Pittsburgh Pirates Team Leaders:
AVG Andrew McCutchen .280
HR Andrew McCutchen 14
RBI Neil Walker 62
R Andrew McCutchen 55
SB Andrew McCutchen 15
W Kevin Correia 11
SV Joel Hanrahan 28
IP Paul Maholm 132.2
ERA Jeff Karstens 2.28 		St. Louis Cardinals Team Leaders:
AVG Matt Holliday .311
HR Lance Berkman 27
RBI Lance Berkman 69
R Albert Pujols 61
SB Tyler Greene 8
W Jaime García 10
SV Fernando Salas 18
IP Chris Carpenter 144.2
ERA Jaime García 3.01

 

The first pitch for this game is scheduled for 1:35pm Eastern. Don’t miss an inning of this baseball game!

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Blue Jays interested in Bell, Adams from Padres

July 21, 2011 By

The Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly interested in acquiring a relief pitcher from the San Diego Padres and like most other teams, it appears that closer Heath Bell and set up man Mike Adams are their primary targets. Bell is scheduled to become a free agent after this season while Adams has 1 year left on his contract.

Most baseball analysts expect Bell to be traded before the end of the month. He has posted 27 saves so far this season in 29 opportunities and has an ERA of 2.52. However, he has only 28 strikeouts in 39 innings this season (compared to 86 strikeouts in 70 innings last year) which has some teams worried about his performance. Just about every contending team in baseball probably has some interest in acquiring Bell, but the price will probably be too steep for most clubs to seriously consider acquiring the veteran reliever.

Adams is an interesting case and probably a more realistic target for the Blue Jays. His ERA is just 1.23 this season and 1.69 over the past 4 seasons. He consistently holds opponents to a batting average under .200, hardly walks any batters and averages one strikeout per inning. Mike Adams is clearly a good enough pitcher to become a closer and the Blue Jays have blown more saves than any other team in baseball. With a reasonable contract and potentially a lower price than Heath Bell, the Blue Jays are seriously considering making a run to acquire Adams in order to improve their bullpen this season and moving forward.

With the Padres falling out of contention in the National League West, expect them to move at least a couple relief pitchers before the trade deadline on July 31st. At least one of Bell and Adams will be moved and if the Blue Jays get their way, one of these two excellent relievers will fly north of the border to finish the season in Toronto.

Watch Baseball Online

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Love Gator Nation? Then You’ll Love this Florida Gators Blog

July 6, 2011 By

Are you a die-hard Florida Gator fan? If so, you probably gobble up information you find online that has anything to do with Gator sports. There’s a new Florida Gators blog on the web that you will most certainly want to visit as it’s a great way to keep yourself updated regarding Gator football, basketball, baseball and other sports coming out of the University of Florida in beautiful Gainesville.

The blog is located at InAllKindsOfWeather.com. The website very appropriately advertises itself as “College Sports with a Gator Twist”. As you most likely know, the 2011Gator football season is just two months away from kick-off so there’s sure to be a whole lot to discuss in the Florida Gators forum that’s featured on the site. Soon the web will be abuzz with news out of Gainesville regarding the upcoming fall season as sports writers from around the US begin to eyeball this year’s team. So now’s a great time to get acquainted with this Gator nation site and blog.

As you know, Florida appointed defensive coordinator from Texas, Will Muschamp as head coach in December of last year. And, you probably are aware that at the beginning of 2011, Muschamp hired the famed Charlie Weis, former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator as the new Gator offensive coordinator so there’s a lot of coaching talk going on at the Florida gators blog over at InAllKindsOfWeather.

Considering that the site is rather new, it is constantly being developed. As things progress you should know that the site will be filled with a all types of great stuff including a fully featured community where you will be able to share your opinions, photos and even your own blog entries with other Gator fans.

As of July 5th, the Florida Gators blog features an exclusive interview with Colin Thompson, future Gator football tight end who will be going into his senior year of high school at Archbishop Wood this fall. You can find out why Thompson chose to become a Gator and read about what he thinks of Weis – his future ‘boss’. There’s so much great college sports info available that it’s impossible to list it all here, but if you are looking for a place to go that offers some of the best information regarding college sports, you definitely need to become familiar with InAllKindsOfWeather. In fact, you’ll want to bookmark this gem of a site because you will have privy to some great articles. For instance, have you heard that Terrell Pryor made a public apology to his former coach Jim Tressel for all he did which cost him his job? You can get the lowdown at the site as well as tons of other very interesting reading.

There isn’t a better Florida Gators blog out there Gator fans, so visit the site and bookmark it because it’s the real deal and THE place to find out anything and everything you could ever want to know about the University of Florida Gators. Go Gators!

 

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David Haye On The Big Fight

July 2, 2011 By

It’s almost here. Boxing fans all over the world have been eagerly awaiting the huge fight between Haye and Klitschko, and betting has already begun. Whilst the majority of the country will be backing Haye all the way, there are still a few who will not, and who can blame them when the odds are on for Klitschko to emerge triumphant. However, Haye has expressed his eagerness to get in a few good punches, and it is very likely that he will do just that. However, whether or not he will end up out cold is another question all together.
There are a few good reasons why it is likely that Klitschko will be the victor. First of all, we have to consider the fact that he is a lot heavier than Haye, making him a natural heavy weight. He is also a considerable amount taller than Haye as well. Those facts aside, you also have to remember that Klitschko will be fighting in his homeland which has advantages of its own as you can imagine, because the majority of fans will be from the same place.
Haye has predicted that the fight is going to be bigger than the one that we saw between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. Whilst this may be hard to believe for some, the media interest so far has already matched that of the previous fight. Lennox Lewis has already shown his support by backing Haye, which may give him a bit of a confidence boost. However, we will not know the results until Saturday, so stay tuned!

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David Haye v Wladimir Klitschko

July 2, 2011 By

It’s the countdown to the big fight, and there are only 2 days to go. Who are you backing? David Haye, or Wladimir Klitschko? Well, boxing champion Lennox Lewis knows exactly who he is backing to take the glory, and it is, of course, fellow Brit, David Haye. It seems as though a lot of people like Haye’s chances, and with the backing that he has got from the rest of the United Kingdom, it seems very likely that he will win the fight and take the title.
Unfortunately, the Ukrainian boxing supremo is actually favourite to win Saturday’s showdown, according to the odds that have been given by bookies up and down the country. According to Lewis, there are a couple of things that could affect the way this fight turns out. First of all, the Ukrainian, Klitschko, will be fighting on home turf, which some may not see as an advantage, but he will more than likely have plenty more fans there backing him due to the fact that Haye’s fan base is predominantly British. However, this should not affect the way he performs too much.
Another thing that could make a bit of a difference is the fact that Klitschko is a natural heavy weight. He is a considerable amount bigger and heavier than Haye, which of course, could definitely make a difference. Although this is true, Haye has expressed great enthusiasm when it comes to throwing punches in the direction of Klitschko. Hopefully, his enthusiasm and raw talent will be enough to get him through the entire fight. If you are backing David Haye then be sure to tune into the match, which you can see on July 2nd.
 

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Detroit Red Wings flex muscles

May 11, 2011 By

Well folks, today we have seen one heckuva hockey. The Detroit Red Wings were originally down three games to nothing against the San Jose Sharks, and they had fought back to make the series 3 to 2. Tonight the rubber match, game six of the series in Detroit was really, really fired up. They took it to San Jose very early and did not let up, sending over 40 shots at the goaltender for San Jose.

Detroit is the 8th team in NHL history to force a game seven after going down three games to nothing in a playoff series. Detroit fans rejoiced as the Red Wings kept pushing and Pushing and eventually won the hockey game. Mike Babcock said lots of his guys had risen to the occasion tonight, and that is the reason why they had won.

So many opportunities for San Jose to win this game really early, but after that they just did not show up. They let show after shot go in on their goaltender, and if it wasn’t for Niemi then of course the Detroit Red Wings would have won this in a landslide. Detroit now heads back to San Jose for game 7 of this series, and we will see if they can take the real rubber match and make it 4 in a row.

If you recall round one, Chicago came all the way back to Vancouver but they could finish it off. I wonder if Detroit will have more closing game than their Midwest counterparts?

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Miami Heat brush aside Boston Celtics

May 11, 2011 By

Boston Celtics faced the Miami Heat in game 4 of the NBA conference finals. Boston Celtics trailed Miami two games to one heading into tonight’s action. Boston looking to tie up the series while at home in the rowdy and hostile environment of Boston Gardens. without a shadow of the doubt, the Boston Celtics of 2011 or one of the toughest teams to ever be on the basketball court. But Miami Heat is no slouch, with Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, and Chris bosh leading the way as one of the most powerful trios ever in the NBA.

Late in the game, the Boston Celtics had a real big chance at coming back. With  30 seconds left in the game they had a field goal opportunity. with series pretty much on the line, it was indeed most boards of the series. Unfortunately, the Boston Celtics fans shot did not sink, and the opportunity was lost. Miami finished up and won, and now are leading series 3 to 1.  for the Celtics to come back now, the only quite the miracle. And can Paul Pierce pull it off? Can Rondo help out? The Celtics really do need the luck of the Irish to come back in this one.

My honest opinion is that Lebron James and Dwayne Wade are too powerful for the Celtics in this series. I don’t think that Lebron has even showed his best in this year’s playoffs yet, so it’ll be interesting to see if he has finishing game, in game five in Miami. If the Miami Heat do win, they’ll be that much closer to the coveted championship ring that Lebron James needs to be considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

If you are a Miami Heat  fan, you must be excited. The Celtics looked like they were the best competition and the biggest threat for the Heat, and now they are all but out.

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