http://www.theoffside.com League Football, Soccer News and Views from Around the World Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:55:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/photo-tell-us-how-you-really-feel.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/photo-tell-us-how-you-really-feel.html#comments Fri, 16 Dec 2011 15:22:24 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/photo-tell-us-how-you-really-feel.html Celtic fans send UEFA some Christmas wishes during the EL fixture with Udinese. The club just might get coal in their stocking. And an invoice. ]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/photo-tell-us-how-you-really-feel.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/club-world-cup/david-villa-broken-champeen.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/club-world-cup/david-villa-broken-champeen.html#comments Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:01:21 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/club-world-cup/david-villa-broken-champeen.html Warning: not for the squeamish. Mr. Illa Illa Illa, Villa Maravilla went and broke his leg in the Club World Cup semis, which should go a long way in making the competition’s injury lists look like those of international friendlies in the near future – lots of muscle pulls and 24 hour illnesses. You can clearly [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/club-world-cup/david-villa-broken-champeen.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/world-football/photo-taking-the-club-world-cup-seriously.html http://www.theoffside.com/world-football/photo-taking-the-club-world-cup-seriously.html#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:35:23 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/world-football/photo-taking-the-club-world-cup-seriously.html Dani Alves may not qualify. Meanwhile, Andres Iniesta’s ghostly spirit rides the Tokyo underground. The man couldn’t tan on Mercury – he’d probably do really well as an actor in the Asian horror movie scene. ]]> http://www.theoffside.com/world-football/photo-taking-the-club-world-cup-seriously.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/getting-a-boot-in.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/getting-a-boot-in.html#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:46:01 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/getting-a-boot-in.html Soft penalties are an epidemic. Stephane Mbia’s challenge/rearranging of Sebastian Kehl’s face is not a soft penalty. This is earning every single bit of the penalty and then some, with Kehl being subbed off. (He’s fine, though probably not remembering much of pi.) Fair warning: not for the exceedingly squeamish. [101gg] ]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/getting-a-boot-in.html/feed 1 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/patrice-evra-europa-league-ambassador.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/patrice-evra-europa-league-ambassador.html#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:04:07 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/patrice-evra-europa-league-ambassador.html This probably isn’t what UEFA had in mind when they revolutionized the UEFA Cup into the Europa League, hoping to give it a greater sense of legitimacy. Patrice Evra feels dissimilarly. “I’ll be honest with you, the way I fell now it is Champions League or nothing but when we start playing in the Europa League [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/patrice-evra-europa-league-ambassador.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/dinamo-versus-lyon-versus-the-gambling-authorities.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/dinamo-versus-lyon-versus-the-gambling-authorities.html#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:51:55 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/dinamo-versus-lyon-versus-the-gambling-authorities.html It’s not entirely shocking that a team with a -13 goal difference over 5 games and which was down to ten men before the half hour was bludgeoned like a horror movie victim. However, the exceptional swing in goal differential was exactly that which was needed to move Lyon above Ajax and into the Champions [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/dinamo-versus-lyon-versus-the-gambling-authorities.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/the-city-of-manchester-now-sans-champions-league-football.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/the-city-of-manchester-now-sans-champions-league-football.html#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:41:49 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/the-city-of-manchester-now-sans-champions-league-football.html This is extraordinary. Just extraordinary. It’s entirely possible that, with a group comprised of Bayern, Napoli and Villarreal, Manchester City’s first foray wouldn’t go brilliantly. And it didn’t, dropping down to the 3rd spot below the Germans and Italians. (Villarreal finishing with a big fat goose egg.) But Manchester United too? In that group? Utterly inconceivable. [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/the-city-of-manchester-now-sans-champions-league-football.html/feed 5 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/mario-gomez-v-morgan-de-sanctis-the-finale.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/mario-gomez-v-morgan-de-sanctis-the-finale.html#comments Wed, 02 Nov 2011 23:00:07 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/mario-gomez-v-morgan-de-sanctis-the-finale.html Mario Gomez scored three goals by the half, bringing his Champions League tally to 5 goal in 4 games, to go along with its Bundesliga counterpart of 12 in 10. In a few words, he’s untouchable right now. And yet, the most memorable will be the one he didn’t score in the final seconds of [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/mario-gomez-v-morgan-de-sanctis-the-finale.html/feed 2 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/quote-of-the-week-perspective.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/quote-of-the-week-perspective.html#comments Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:28:03 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/quote-of-the-week-perspective.html UEFA’s weekly wrap is always excellent, but this quote from Otelul Galati president Marius Stan is both funny and eye-popping. Because be honest – you didn’t know who they were until the Champions League draw. “They are celebrating 25 years with Sir Alex Ferguson on the bench and we are celebrating 25 weeks since we have [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/champions-league/quote-of-the-week-perspective.html/feed 0 http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/the-israeli-sir-alex.html http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/the-israeli-sir-alex.html#comments Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:59:12 +0000 chris http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/the-israeli-sir-alex.html Many of us have likely come to a place of a complete lack of surprise at anything which may occur on a football pitch. File “kicks boot at linesman” under this notion. But Yoaz Ziv theen attempts to explain to the referee that…yes he did kick the boot at the referee? Is he simply recreating the [...]]]> http://www.theoffside.com/tournaments/uefa-cup/the-israeli-sir-alex.html/feed 0