Disqus - Latest Comments for lsmetana

Re: Does Anybody Remember Leeds United And Sheffield Wednesday?

lsmetana — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 10:54:36 -0000

FourFourTwo ran a great article on the Maxwell-Oxford saga

Re: Top 10 Worst Clubs In The History Of The Champions League

lsmetana — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 16:10:12 -0000

Norbert,

You are absolutely correct. I've corrected The Gaffer's article. Thanks for pointing this out!

Re: Selling Robbie Keane Could Be a Huge Mistake for Liverpool

lsmetana — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 10:16:27 -0000

Benayoun is a very viable option to play on the right wing. Moving Kuyt to the middle if Torres is to get injured.....well, I'd take him there over playing him on the right. He's a helluva worker and would create some space for Gerrard playing in behind him. I still wonder how Kuyt scored so many goals in Holland....are the nets bigger?? :) Just joking!

Re: Snow Wreaks Havoc on Transfer Deadline, and FA Cup

lsmetana — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 10:13:05 -0000

Good to see that Riley has admitted he made the wrong call. It was worth a yellow perhaps, certainly not a red. Bosingwa should have seen a red for his unsporting boot (not hard but still stupid) on Benayoun. I still wonder when Liverpool are going to start Benayoun consistently, he's been very good for them in recent appearances.

I liked Poll's article on Riley. It's interesting that he thinks the quality of officiating has dipped.

Re: The Damned United Movie Trailer

lsmetana — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 11:32:31 -0000

Looking forward to this coming to North America....though I suspect we might only get it on DVD :)

Re: How Manchester United Are Outliers

lsmetana — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:09:49 -0000

For me, it's all in the way you choose to spin these sorts of things. Just because someone gets an advantage early on does not mean they will become successful. There are plenty of players with buckets of talent that never amount to anything because they try to get by on simple physical talents and never develop the mental fortitude to become a top player.

Re: Why Stoke City Should Play There Own Game

lsmetana — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 15:22:44 -0000

I agree with Matthew. There is not just one type of approach to the game of football. If you can win by playing solid defensive football and score from set-pieces and counter-attacks then so be it. There have been some crunching tackles from Stoke players but it happens in matches with other teams as well. I'd hate to see tackling be lost in the game, I think I'd stop watching if there were no good crunching tackles from time to time. I'm not talking about intent to injure but tackles like these:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lm45jyf9gpk

Re: Thank You!

lsmetana — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 17:54:16 -0000

If you head over to majorleaguesoccertalk.com (a sister site to this one), you'll find some talk on Miami FCB.

Re: Manchester City Raise Kaka Bid To £243 Million

lsmetana — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 14:42:41 -0000

City are also apparently chasing Nigel de Jong which could address their holding midfield situation and allow Kompany to move to centre-back if they go with only one holding midfielder and play a lone striker supported by four offensive-minded mids/wingers. I think Richards has often tried to let his athleticism compensate for a lack of good positioning when playing as a central defender. This has also affected Dunne's play this season. Richards would then be battling with Bridge or Zableta for a fullback role.

Re: Manchester City Raise Kaka Bid To £243 Million

lsmetana — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 10:41:31 -0000

I think Kaka is a wonderful player but I keep thinking what other cast of talent you could you get for the £108 m ? And once you pay so much for a single player, how do you ever get a reasonable price for a player again?

Re: Are Manchester United’s Second-Tier Players the Key to Their Success?

lsmetana — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:13:30 -0000

I've been saying for the last few years to anyone that would listen that O'Shea is a valuable and underrated member of the Manchester United team simply because he plays wherever asked and gives a credible effort. He doesn't complain about not starting, though he could probably be a regular starter for one of the teams in the mid-lower part of the table. You can't underestimate how much a good sub is worth to your squad. Especially a time like now when United have some significant injuries at the back.

Re: Kaka to Manchester City Heats Up

lsmetana — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:40:29 -0000

Two quick comments:

1) About the racists - stupidity has no age restrictions
2) I don't think Tevez will be staying at United

Re: Chelsea Pathetic at the Post as Manchester United Blitz Chelsea

Matt — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:46:22 -0000

One replay I saw did show it. I think I saw it on Sky Sports News while interviewing Ryan Giggs. With the respect campaign Rooney should of been booked. No question about that. At least he has toned it down some over the years with United.

Re: Chelsea Pathetic at the Post as Manchester United Blitz Chelsea

lsmetana — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:09:43 -0000

The TV replays I saw did not show Rooney playing the ball to Giggs. That would certainly explain his anger though it does not excuse his repeated dissent towards the officials during the match.

Re: What Would Martin O’Neill Do?

lsmetana — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 10:56:27 -0000

I think one thing that you did not touch on that has been fairly key is that O'Neill (despite having the cash to do so) has kept his squad numbers fairly low. This keeps fewer unhappy players in the ranks and the player's understanding of one another on the field is generally going to be better.

Chelsea have a tactical system that works...they were going along just fine when they were playing 5 in midfield (two pushed up high to support the striker) and Anelka was leading the line. Drogba returning has thrown a bit of a spanner in the works. You might say nice problem to have but I'm not so sure.

I noticed that Manchester United was not on the list. Is this because you feel that United could not be run any better than they currently are?

While I think he has done a very good job in the market, O'Neill has had some transfers that have not worked out -- Marlon Harewood and Wayne Routledge come to mind. One transfer that often gets overlooked is the purchase of Nigel Reo-Coker. While some might say the £8.5m they paid is a bit much, he is quite a versatile player and can cover 3 positions (RB, RM, CM). A good utility player that has probably saved them even more in transfers if they had to have separate players for all those areas. He has also worn the captain's armband on at least one occasion that I know of, so O'Neill must have a fair amount of regard for him.

Re: Chelsea Pathetic at the Post as Manchester United Blitz Chelsea

lsmetana — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 10:37:51 -0000

I think Chelsea's problems began when they brought Anelka on and changed their shape. The first half was much better for them when they had their 5 man midfield. Once they tried to open up, United were able to counter-attack at will. Neither Lampard or Ballack really had much presence in the game I thought. Chelsea had some good spells of possession but as The Gaffer mentioned, were not very imposing going forward.

Just in case it comes up, I believe the problem with United's disallowed goal (just before Vidic scored) was that Giggs never placed the ball inside the corner arc. Watch the replay again closely. The corner kick must start from inside the arc. Further to that, once the player taking the corner kick moves the ball from inside the arc, the FA rule book’s procedure states that “the kicker must not play the ball again until it has touched another
player.”

Re: Preview: Middesbrough v Sunderland

lsmetana — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:40:45 -0000

A big question mark will be who will start on the right side of midfield with Aliadière injured. They might also have to tinker in the middle of the park as Gary O'Neil has a hamstring problem but might recover by gametime.

Re: Carlos Tevez and West Ham United Seem Linked Forever, Ronaldo Car Crash and More

lsmetana — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 10:43:04 -0000

Two things:
1) Hull are scooping up Boa Morte from West Ham
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/tra...

2) I'd say the De Laet signing is a deal for the future as he's only 20. Even if he never cracks the first team, he'll be sold on for a profit after coming through the United academy. You're right that they likely did get a good look at him via their relationship with Royal Antwerp

Re: Manchester United’s Pride Park Night, The Busy Day in Newcastle and Other Various Musings

lsmetana — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 10:57:16 -0000

About the Man City comment -- hard to say whats going on there. It's like when people talk about a manager having "lost the room". It's idle speculation most of the time.

Re Defoe: I think it's one of the more interesting stories to come out. It sure beats the Player x is moving to Team Y gaga that is so pervasive during this time. Tere is a previous case involving his move to Pompey from Spurs as well. He is alleged to have been illegally represented in that transfer by Mitchell Thomas, the former Tottenham player, who is an unlicensed agent. Personally, I think the player should be responsible for who they choose as an advisor, if he wants his mom there then so be it. Just because an agent is licensed doesnt mean they will act in your best interests, they'll just be looking for their cut of the deal. Not always the case I'm sure but it does seem to be more of the 'norm' than not.

Re Denilson: Bolton have nothing to lose by offering him a trial. If they think he can fill a spot on the roster then they'll have picked up a player on the cheap. If it doesn't work out then no money lost. Seems like a decent approach to me.

Re: Arshavin Moves Closer to Arsenal and is the Sell Off Beginning at West Ham United

lsmetana — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 10:27:46 -0000

Well...I still don't understand it but looks like I was completely off-base about Etherington. He is poised for a move to Stoke. It has to be a money-driven move for both West Ham and Etherington. It doesn't make sense from any other standpoint.

Re: Americans Abroad Player of the Year

lsmetana — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 18:46:02 -0000

Bradley has not had quite the same success at Borussia Mönchengladbach -- any guesses why?

Re: Arshavin Moves Closer to Arsenal and is the Sell Off Beginning at West Ham United

lsmetana — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 10:23:29 -0000

I think the impending sale of West Ham makes them an easy target for rumours. I don't think you'll see Davenport or Etherington move but one of the higher salaried players like Bellamy might move just to get the wages under control. What is the story going around...that they are spending a million pounds per month on salary?

Re: Five Facts to Explain Fulham’s Premier League Resurgence

lsmetana — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:09:44 -0000

Nice post. For their sake, I hope Fulham can hang on to Bullard and Hangeland through this season.

Re: Carlos Tevez Uncertainty and is Stewart Downing This Winter’s Berbatov?

lsmetana — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:34:44 -0000

I don't think Downing has been Boro's best player this season.I think Tuncay's the key man on the squad at the moment.

Re: Tottenham Sign Defoe But Is It The Wrong Move?

lsmetana — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:49:12 -0000

I acknowledged that Campbell was an on-loan player in the article. I'll see you at specsavers.