How Long Until We Forgive Thierry Henry?
By: Daryl |
24 comments
Latest development in the already long running Thierry Henry handball incident (or "la main de dieu" as it's being called by some) is that Henry himself thinks a replay is a good idea:
"The fairest solution would be to replay the game but it is not in my control," said the Barcelona striker.
"Naturally I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish who definitely deserve to be in South Africa," Henry added.
"I have said at the time and I will say again that 'yes' I handled the ball. I am not a cheat and never have been. It was an instinctive reaction to a ball that was coming extremely fast in a crowded penalty area."
Very nice of Titi, although very convenient that he's saying this after FIFA ruled out any possibility of a replay:
"The result of the match cannot be changed and the match cannot be replayed," FIFA said in a statement. "As is clearly mentioned in the Laws of the Game, during matches, decisions are taken by the referee and these decisions are final."
But a good public relations move from Henry anyway. Yes, calling for a replay he knows to be impossible is a little transparent, but at least he's owned up to handballing (if not premeditatedly cheating) and shown some remorse.
Category: World Cup 2010
Just How Corrupt is European Football?
By: Daryl | 2 Comments
It’s difficult to answer that question with any precision. But seems the answer is “a lot more corrupt than we realized”. Because German prosecutors think it’s corrupt enough that 200 games of European football need to be investigating. Including 12 in the Europa League and at least three in the Champions League. Yes, that Champions League. The one with the fancy music.
On Thursday police carried out about 50 raids in Germany, the UK, Switzerland and Austria, making 17 arrests and seizing cash and property.
Fifteen of those arrested were in Germany and the other two in Switzerland.
Matches under investigation were played in Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Croatia, Slovenia, Turkey, Hungary, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Austria.
Officials said the games included the 40 which Uefa revealed in September were under investigation.
Prosecutors believe a 200-strong criminal gang has bribed players, coaches, referees and officials to fix games and then made money by betting on the results.
The investigation is being carried out by German authorities and supported by Uefa, the European football body.
Category: World Football10 Reasons Why Everyone – Even Euro-Snobs – Should Watch MLS Cup 2009
By: Daryl | 10 Comments
I asked for a Beckham vs Blanco, LA Galaxy vs Chicago Fire MLS Cup 2009. But my request was denied when Real Salt Lake beat Fire on spot kicks in the Eastern Conference Final.
Still, as MLS-based attention grabbing events go, an LA Galaxy vs Real Salt Lake MLS Cup 2009 is up there. I’ll definitely be watching. Below are 10 reasons why you should too.
Category: MLSThe 32 Teams of the 2010 World Cup
By: chris | 38 comments
Qualification is officially over. Playoffs won, tears shed, hearts broken and dreams renewed, it's all over. After Uruguay withstood the Costa Rican pressure late in the evening, the final 32 teams were written into stone - though not without a fair bit of controversy.
The following are those 32 teams who will take part in South Africa 2010. And perhaps what's a bit special is the 32 include every single World Cup winner in history, precisely due to the Uruguayan stand.
Category: World FootballDaily Dose: November 19th, 2009.
By: chris | 2 Comments
The Germans become comic book heroes before our very eyes.
- Looking back at Russian disappointment. (Russian Football Now)
- Hands were flying in Brazil yesterday too. (See The Cup)
- The US World Cup uniform leaks. (Football Fashion)
- The pitch invader from Sweden-Denmark gets a huge fine. (BBC)
- Take the stadium aerial challenge and waste loads of time at work. (Avoiding The Drop)
- Hertha Berlin with a plummet seeming an anvil from the sky. (Deutsche Welle)
- And finally, the two sides of The Hand of Henry:
(France WCB)
(Ireland WCB)
Category: Daily DoseIreland Demands Replay With Honest-To-Goodness Precedent
By: chris | 65 comments
The furor over last night's game will not settle down anytime soon. Not tomorrow, not next week, not even before the traveling circus takes to South Africa next summer. Not unless something is done to eradicate the impact of The Hand of Henry on the outcome of the game.
The Irish FA, of course you'd hear from them, have come up with a simple solution: replay the game. But perhaps more important than any march on the Swiss headquarters, they have that all important word known as a precedent.
Category: World FootballXI Things We Learned From The World Cup Qualifying Playoffs
By: chris | 10 comments
The games didn't really have everything, did they? The results did - some upsets, some heroics, a few of the expected teams going in - but outside of the one game which forced a playoff (Egypt 2 - Algeria 0), some of these games were completely zapped of the necessary drama.
(Not, of course, that one played in the Stade de France.)
And sometimes, that's how you know the World Cup is on the fore. Staunch defense, gritty performances and the triumph of will over superiority. The World Cup Qualifying has definitively been left in the dust, but we did learn a thing or two...
Category: World FootballThe Hand of Henry: What They Said.
By: chris | 26 comments
Without getting into a great deal of opinion, or any at all for that matter - there's surely plenty of that floating about - it would probably be prudent to look into the words on each side of the divide from those who were there, at the game and directly impacted. (What with it being one of the most controversial games in World Cup Qualifying history and all.) Guys like that Henry character who's found his name splattered all over the news for all the wrong reasons for the first time, at least it would seem, in his illustrious career. And that Trapattoni guy, who wasn't making friends at FIFA before the incident.
Category: World Football
Match preview: VfB Stuttgart v Hertha Berlin
After what seemed another ridiculously long international break we're back once again, and facing an opponent that can hopefully kickstart the club with a positive domestic result. For all the troubles Stuttgart have had this year thus far Hertha have fallen even further (4th place last year, dead last
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
WPS may be a bit sleepy but the world of women's footy soldiers on
Not exactly sleepy. WPS is hiring which is pretty impressive considering THIS ECONOMY. FIFA recently did a women's football roundup which is worth a read. In short... * Brazil's Santos FC - featuring Marta and Cristiane - won the inaugural Copa Libertadores 9-0 over Paraguay's Universidad Autonoma. * FFC Frankfurt aren't
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Mauro Biello: 1993-2009
Friends, Mauro Biello has officially called it quits. After 19 seasons of professional footy in Montreal, the Montreal Impact captain has decided to retire and take up a position as head coach Marc Dos Santos' assistant. 429 Games played, 90 goals, 73 assists, good for 253 points...and only one ejection. Other
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Looking for a miracle
Wolves go to Stamford Bridge on Saturday at 3:00 for an unenviable first game after dropping into the relegation zone. In this two horse race Wolves are priced at 18/1 for success which gives a scary impression of the task in hand. Chelsea conceded a goal at home in their first
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
One More Video to Cheer You Me Up
Okay, so we may have recovered from the Sounders loss. (Or not.) But after my beloved Equipe de France qualified for World Cup 2010 only due to a handball goal, I am hugely depressed and in need of a bit of cheering myself. Wednesday's goal made me think
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Miss UEFA Shows Mercy (or does she?)
It was to be the blackest of Fridays. Dinamo appealed against UEFA's decision to have the Timişoara points stripped off, only for UEFA to counter the appeal and ask for a even more rigorous punishment to be sentenced to the Zagreb team. Having already seen UEFA show it's fangs to
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
The International Break is Over, Parma come to the Franchi
Well, jet lag, returning to work and an oncoming cold aside, it is damn good to be back. Especially with a tasty Serie A matchup to look forward to tomorrow. I'm planning to do a post about playing a little calcio on the beach in Essaouria on the
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Napoli vs. Lazio: Finally, A Home Game
After two consecutive road games and an international break, Napoli will return to the San Paolo for the first time in quite a while. The opponents are a Lazio team currently in 16th place in the table. Napoli has good news on the injury front, as the only
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Bolton v Blackburn, Yet Another Lancs Derby
So how are you all after the international break? Miss watching our team lose and play horribly? Yeah me too. Luckily however this weekend we're playing some neighbors who are in much the same habit, managed by dear old Big Sam (maybe that was too many adjectives for one guy?).
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Your Weekend Preview
Haven't done a weekend preview in a while, and I thought that it was time to get back into the mix and have a look at what games are going down over the weekend. At least one big game as Liverpool take on Manchester City, in a game that could
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Manchester United vs Everton Match Preview
Alright well I promised it so here it is: Manchester United vs Everton preview (fancy pictures included): This match marks the return of the EPL after one hell of an international break. We saw Russia fail to qualify for the World Cup in 2010, and Ireland being cheated defeated out of
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
The withdean is without fear for Grayson.
Many describe it as one of the worst, if not the worst place to visit as a fan and one of the worst stadiums to play in. Up until two seasons ago, the near 600 mile trip was never a happy one for anyone concerned at Leeds United. And the one thing
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Sunderland-Arsenal Preview
Sunderland Position: 8th, 5-2-5 (17 points, +1 goal differential) Recent Form: DWLDL Home Form: 4-1-1 Last Meeting: Arsenal 0-Sunderland 0 (2/21/09) Back in action at the Stadium of Light tomorrow, for what I expect to be a very tricky match. Seriously--this match scares the hell out of me. For one thing, it's a road
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Barcelona @ Athletic Bilbao Preview: Cooking Lions With Chef Guardiola
Well, we’re stuck in it now, aren’t we? With the quickest of glances at the upcoming schedule, you’d reckon that Pep, Tito and Co. will have to sharpen their knives and put on their cowboy boots for what’s about to happen. You see, they don’t just hand out stadium nicknames
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
A League Round 15 Preview
The internationals are over and a new round of the A League is here! Adelaide United v Gold Coast United, Friday, 8pm Gold Coast have managed to claw back some respectability with their win over Sydney before the break, but Adelaide away will be a tough game. Adelaide have looked ok, but
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
My First Assignment - A Raid on the RAF.
Firstly I have offered Joel Kiki a contract in line with your wishes. Can't have enough cover in a team as flimsy as mine. v So, after your (Dhaw's) useful advice, I feel I'm finally ready to face my first challenge, a 418km away trip to Rodez Aveyron Football, or
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Decemberfest
Can anyone else remember the longest 90:00+ minutes of their lives? I know I can, it was this past Saturday when Nacional played Pereira in the last game of the Clausura 2009. The game itself ended in a 0-0 draw, but we depended on another result, thats right, If "Millonarios"
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...Can you fell it?
Sometimes I have the feeling that I am not making my point here. Of course; English is not my mother language and despite having studied it for years I know I’ll never be as good as you guys are, even if I study English for the rest of my life.
Nov 20, 2009 | Read this article...
Help Wanted
No, I am not quitting. However, the next few weeks will be a bit busy (exams and such) and I don't want my posts to tank simply because I'm concentrated on other stuff. So I thought, if any of you readers want a crack at blogging for a few weeks
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...
Julio vs Baptista
26th August, 2009 One day to go. Everything is gearing up for the big day tomorrow when we open our season away to Cagliari. It appears the all-knowing bookies have made us favourites. So the onus is right away on us. Thought of a couple of good one-liners for the post-match
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...
Video of el Banderazo
Just imagine what game day will be like. This is just fans coming out to support the team in the traditional Banderazo that happens a few days before every clásico. Only this time, more than 25,000 fans showed up. That beat the old record by about 7,000. There were so many
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...(Now) I Know What You Did (Since) Last Summer, Part III
Finishing up our "what did we miss out on?" series today: FELIPE MELO Arsenal were probably linked with Felipe Melo this summer more than any other player. The biggest difference between Arsenal's 2007-2008 season and our 2008-2009 season, which saw the club take a large step backwards, was the absence of
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...Round 12 Highlights: The Round Of Upsets's As The Kiwi's Rise To Belt Gold Coast
Firstly sorry that this is 3 weeks late, I was caught up in exams. Newcastle Jets Vs. Central Coast Mariners Struggling Newcastle were expected to be beaten to a pulp by there fierce rivals Central Coast in the F3 derby, the Mariner's however went missing. Within 15 minutes the Jets were 2-0
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...
A Preview, Other News And A Kick In The Nuts
Thought I'd start this post by re-living Carlos Hernandez's miss kick. His foot missed the ball and hit John Hutchinson right in his fatherhood during Melbourne's encounter with the Mariner's last round. The recent news in the build up to our clash with the Roar at Suncorp on Saturday includes: Injury replacment
Nov 19, 2009 | Read this article...Email tips[at]theoffside[dot]com
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