Magic of the FA Cup

The 'magic' of the FA Cup returned last weekend for some lower league teams, although one tie isn't over yet..

Non-league Luton achieved a marvellous 1-0 victory away to Norwich, with chairman Nick Owen on a cruise in the Caribbean or something, and were rewarded with a home tie against Milwall. A great achievement it must be said because it is rare clubs of Luton's level make it past Round 3, but it can be done - just look at Crawley Town a couple of years ago, Havant and Waterlooville..

Milwall themselves beat Premier League strugglers Aston Villa 2-1, courtesy of a late winner. The loss puts more pressure on Paul Lambert, who will want to forget last week as quickly as possible having also gone out of the League Cup to Bradford (see last week's post).. He played almost his strongest team as well, and for the first 20 minutes, Villa looked to be in control, but Milwall got back into it and in the end, I think they deserved a victory.. On the bright side for Villa, they can concentrate on Premier League survival now, and with the transfer window all but over, they will have to do it as they are.

Brighton, Macclesfield and Aldershot's runs were all halted on Saturday, but all three pushed their opponents to the limit. Brighton TWICE came back against Arsenal before they were ultimately defeated 3-2.. Like Villa, they can now concentrate on the league, and promotion to the Premier League is looking possible for Gus Poyet's men, via the Play-Offs..

Macclesfield narrowly lost 1-0 at home to Wigan, after they knocked Championship flyers Cardiff out in the last round.. An early penalty was enough for Roberto Martinez's men, so if anything it was almost unlucky for Macclesfield, although had they achieved a draw, I'm not convinced they could have won at The DW.

Aldershot had possibly the closest run tie.. They scored an equaliser at Middlesborough in the 89th minute, and looked to have secured a replay, but Lukas Jutkiewicz's 96th minute winner was too much for the League 2 side..

Sunday was the 'upset' day though if ever there was one. The action started in London, where Brentford TWICE went ahead against Champions of Europe Chelsea, but an equaliser from Fernando Torres (yes, that is correct) 10 minutes from time will see the League 1 club visit Stamford Bridge in a replay.

Meanwhile, a drive up to Elland Road provided yet more drama as the Championship side achieved a 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur, although when Spurs got one back in the 58th minute there must have been some worry among the Leeds supporters. Nonetheless, their team held on to set up a tie with England Champions Manchester City.

The biggest shock came across the Pennines in a town called Oldham, where the League 1 strugglers held on to beat FA Cup royalty Liverpool 3-2. I watched the end of the game, and I did wonder 'how have they managed that', but the fact is, they did. Joe Allen's volley in the 80th minute set up a nerve-wracking finale, and when Steven Gerrard's shot rattled off the bar, Oldham must have known it was their day.. They now face that other Liverpudlian team, Everton.

Oh, and Blackburn beat Derby 3-0.

In other news, Manchester United signed Wilfried Zaha for a fee reported to be around £10million, with £5million worth of added fees, after the young England star passed a medical.. I hope Ryan Giggs wasn't around to see his T-Shirt with Imogen Thomas on the front!

Wesley Sneidjer stunned the world of football by choosing Turkish side Galatasaray over a whole host of Premier League suitors, and his arrival was followed by that of a certain Didier Drogba.. They better win the Champions League next year!

The biggest news though, that broke just before I started writing, is that (awful accent on) 'Super-Mario' (accent over) Balotelli is moving to AC Milan from Manchester City in a deal worth a reported £20million.. Was that picture of somebody weeing on his camoflage car the final straw? Anyway, it is a distraction that I'm sure Roberto Mancini will be glad to be rid of, so he can now concentrate on winning the League with those other 24 players at City. AC - good luck.

All I have to say for now, depending on what happens on Deadline Day, I may or may not do a January special, just keep your eyes posted..

Ciao.

Drama. Or Football?

Where to begin this week? As the title suggests, this week was pretty incredible for football on the pitch, and on the side..

Bradford, from League 2, showed Aston Villa (and the football world really) that there is as much magic in the League Cup as the FA Cup - they managed to beat them over 2 legs in the semi-final to reach the promised land: a final at Wembley. 

For the Bradford fans it is a fantastic day out, and for the players it is a potentially once-in-a-lifetime experience to savour and enjoy in what has been a fantastic acheivement for the club.

For Villa fans though, it raises serious question marks over either the efforts of their squad, or the ideas of Paul Lambert.. They are struggling in the league, and this was a really good chance for Lambert to show Villa that they are going places, but they scuffed it. 

I watched the match and in the first half, Villa were cruising as expected (I think the possession was something silly like 72-28), but they weren't clinical enough, and that gave Bradford confidence that they could actually go through, which is exactly what they did.

People are saying that Villa need to buy some more experienced players to support the youngsters Lambert fields, but if you look at their squad, players like Charles N'Zogbia, Stephen Ireland, Ron Vlaar, Richard Dunne, Gabby Agbonlahor and Fabian Delph, they have played at a high level for a long while. Goodness knows what is going on with Darren Bent..

Bradford's opponents in the final, Swansea, also came through a 'shock' elimination as they beat Chelsea 2-0 on aggregate, having actually scored both goals in the first leg at Stamford Bridge. It was a game that Swansea were happy to sit back and defend in, but it was effective as it kept Chelsea at bay and they failed to get a goal.

The 'drama' of the game came in the 77th minute when Eden Hazard appeared to 'kick' one of the ball boys in an attempt to get the ball back and speed the game up with Chelsea chasing an equaliser.. At first I, like many, was convinced he'd actually kicked him in the ribs for no reason, but then I saw how the ball boy wouldn't give the ball back, and fell on top of it, so if anything credit to Hazard for not kicking him harder, in the face, or doing worse.

The saga got better as people sought out this 'poor boy's' Twitter account, only to find out a) he planned to cheat and time waste, and publicly announced it on the social media site, and b) he's an underage drinker at 17: hardly a boy. But if you do read this Charlie Morgan, Tom Daly would give you 10/10 for diving, and Hollywood 10/10 for acting..

Nonetheless, all credit to Swansea for progressing to the final, comiserations to Chelsea.. Some are surprised Rafa is still in a job!

I know these events are quite late this week, I do concede I've been too busy in my own fairytale on FIFA, with Accrington Stanley defeating Preston, West Brom, Southampton, Arsenal then Newcastle in the final of the League Cup, so Bradford: it is possible!

And I thought January was for transferring players...

Another manager. Gone.

Well done Southampton for sacking the manager who got you back-to-back promotions, and has lost just one of the last seven in the Premier League, including coming from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Stamford Bridge. Real stupid decision there.. To add to it, I think as well as your fans turning against you, a lot of the country will now look down on you and despise you.

Of course we wish Mauricio Pochettino all the best, because there isn't anything he's done wrong, it's down to the Board, but it will be hard for him to win the respect of the fans and the players; just look at Rafa Benitez at Chelsea...

Another managerial shift was at Blackburn, where Henning Berg lasted 57 days, before being sacked and replaced by who Michael Appleton, who was appointed at Blackpool just 65 days ago after Ian Holloway left for Crystal Palace.. I think it was wrong of Blackburn to tempt him away from Blackpool, and even more wrong for Appleton ot take the job, but hey-ho.. (That good enough Dan?)

Anyway, rant over! FA Cup replays are over, and no shocks or surprises unfortunately.. Bournemouth were defeated by Wigan, and Fulham left it late to overcome Blackpool, but that is all forgotten now as clubs look ahead to the next round...

Oh, and happy 150th to the FA.

Football aside, there were 2 other sports that made big headlines this week (yes, I do navigate away from the football page occasionally!).

Lance Armstrong, stripped of his 7 Tour de France titles and Olympic medals, admitted on the Oprah Winfrey show that he used prohibited performance-enhancing drugs in all of his TdF victories, and apologised. Many people have come out and attacked him, branding him all sorts from "a cheat and a liar" to "disgusting" to "****ing ******". 

Whilst I don't condone what he has done, if those sweet, innocent people are telling me they have never cheated to try and win, then they are lying because it is human nature to do that, and that - to me - is disgusting.

As a result of this, members of the IOC have reportedly discussed eliminating Cycling events from the Olympics. I don't think they will, and I hope they don't because there is very little need or reason to.. But does anybody else think that it's strange, they're going to eliminate the sport that Team GB could potentially dominate in Rio? Quite convenient..

The other 'big' sport this week has been Golf. After signing a bumper deal with Nike, Rory McIlroy got off to a poor start this year; he failed to make the cut in Abu Dhabi with his new Nike-endorsed clubs, and his driving in particular was off. On the second day he even resorted to using his OLD putter and still couldn't improve.. Perhaps he is a little rusty after spending the winter swanning around with Caroline Wozniacki? I doubt the 'new clubs are useless' argument will last long!

I'm a little pressed for time this week, hence the short entry, but I'll improve for next week!

Happy reading people. =)

FA Cup 3rd Round

"One of the most magical weekends in English football" - It can only be the FA Cup third round.

There's always upsets, memories, controversies and 'part-time support' for the lower league clubs that survive the odds, anyone remember Crawley Town making it to Old Trafford after beating Newcastle? Or Havant and Waterlooville earning themselves a replay at Anfield against Liverpool?

Well it almost happened for The Reds again this year as they played Mansfield Town of the Conference National. If the referee had spotted Luis Suarez's handball in the build-up to Liverpool's second goal, the match theoretically would have finished 1-1, and Mansfield would have had the honour of visiting Anfield. Anyway, I have received enough abuse regarding the situation, so I shall leave that one there. Liverpool face League 2's Oldham Athletic.

The 'part-time supporters' will no doubt be following Luton Town and Macclesfield Town, after they both knocked out Championship opposition, despite being non-league.

Luton sealed a late win over struggling Wolverhampton Wanderers - who sacked manager Stale Solbakken after the game - and now face a trip to Norwich, while Macclesfield produced a fantastic late display to beat Championship leaders Cardiff, and will face either Wigan Athletic or Bournemouth.

Another giant killing as such was Brighton's victory over Newcastle United. The Seagulls aren't doing too bad in the Championship, just three points off the play-offs, so some people aren't keen on calling it a giant killing. Nevertheless, it was a good win for Gus Poyet's men, and they earned a home tie against either Swansea or Arsenal. 

Aldershot Town face a trip to Middlesborough after a 3-1 victory over Rotherham United, but for Southend or Brentford, the winner will have a home tie against European Champions Chelsea to look forward to.

Unfortunately for Hastings United, Middlesborough was a step too far, and they valiantly lost 4-1. Which leads me onto the other element of the FA Cup, the days out for the fans. This is more so for lower league teams, such as Hastings, going to bigger clubs, however if your team reach the final (as Stoke did in 2011), there is nothing better than the excitement of going to Wembley - even at 16!

As I mentioned in my last installment, the January transfer window is upon us.

Liverpool, as we all thought, signed a striker in Chelsea's Daniel Sturridge. He scored his first goal in the FA Cup match against Mansfield, and looks like he will thrive in Brendan Rodgers' flowing system.

Another club in need of a striker was Chelsea, and they too acted qucikly by snapping up Demba Ba from Newcastle for £7.5million. He too made an immediate impact by scoring a brace in The Blues' 5-1 victory at Southampton, and Fernando Torres' face - back on the bench - made the picture of the weekend as he sat almost sulking.

Man City are looking at a £45million move for Napoli's Edison Cavanni, prompting suggestions that Mario Balotelli IS on his way out, and his bust up with Mancini hasn't helped anything, so I wouldn't be surprised if that goes through.

That's all for now, New Year Resolution going well so far..

Ciao!

January

Happy New Year!

Not managed to write for a while, been a busy Christmas period in Football so I've been keeping up with my Manchester United correspondence for Quays News, feel free to search it!

United will be happy to be going into the New Year seven points clear at the top of the Prem, and rivals City, yet they will not have forgotten yet how easily they threw away an eight point lead at the end of last season to concede the title.

The defence looks to have tightened up a little, despite leaking three goals to Newcastle at home, but two clean sheets in a row against West Brom and Wigan will be more reassuring for Fergie.

At this time of year, football entusiasts don't celebreate 12:00 with 'Happy New Year', instead the resounding 'Happy Transfer Window opening' can be heard, with fans hoping for their clubs to sign players to plug any gaps, to help avoid relegation, or to kick on a push for the title or a place in Europe.

For other clubs, they will be hoping to hang on to some of their best players, like Everton or Stoke.. But here's a quick guide to what clubs need to do what..

Arsenal - Need a 'keeper, perhaps a CB.. Perhaps they could even sell both Chamakh and Gervinho, and bring in a more consistant forward.

Aston Villa - More experienced players. Lambert is building a very young squad, and the Villa fans can see what it is he is trying to do. In Andy Weimann, he has a potentially very good striker, and Benteke isn't bad either, but his commitment to Villa is questionable. However to survive, I feel that they need an experienced CM and/or CB or two to help develop the youngsters, and keep the Villains in the Prem.

Chelsea - With Daniel Sturridge on his way to Liverpool, Chelsea definitely need a striker or two. It would be a mistake to bring Romleu Lukaku back to the club in January because he is doing well at West Brom. Something else they need to do urgently is offer Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole new contracts because they are both fantastic players. I can only guess something has gone on behind the scenes..

Everton - They might need a CB or a full back, but their priorities are to keep hold of Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines.

Fulham - Martin Jol's side lack consistency, their home form keeps them up, but on the road they struggle. A good win a West Brom was down to spirit, but the Cottagers need just a bit more quality at the back, and flair in midfield because as Dimitar Berbatov said, feed him the ball and he will score.

Liverpool - Striker. End of.

Man City - I agree with people who say they need to sell Mario Balotelli, he's not done enough for how much they paid for him.. Until he grows up, they wont get anything out of him. I think they need to inspire Aguero, Dzeko and Tevez into firing more regularly instead of spending on new players.

Man United - A better goalkeeper really, De Gea hasn't performed, and rumours are that Real Madrid are interested in him.. I think Fergie will wait until the summer to do his defensive transfers, unless a particular deal comes up that he can't refuse or improve.

Newcastle - The Magpies have been unlucky this season. They did the right thing in not buying a load of new players, and putting faith in the squad that did so well last year. But it has backfired as that squad has let them down in quality, but also through injury, which is unfortunate.
They need to keep hold of Demba Ba, but that looks unlikely, as Chelsea have already pounced to sign him.

Norwich - Chris Hughton has turned the team round from the team who started the season, and they are playing really well at the moment. Russell Martin has played really well recently, so Hughton will need to keep hold of him, but in terms of signings, maybe a more creative CM is needed to hold up play and distribute the ball forward, but otherwise they will be ok.

QPR - Where to start? The squad has some players who should be Premier League quality, but unfortunately they can't play together, and I'm not sure even Harry Redknapp can keep them up. They need at least a striker, a winger, a CM, a new defence..

Reading - Like Villa, they could do with some more experienced Premier League players to keep them up. They haven't been too bad, and put in some good performances, but need some more consistent results and goals.

Southampton - They've finally found some consistency, and their home form is good. I think they could do with a tighter defence, and perhaps another striker to score the goals.

Stoke - My team, always perfect? Not quite.. I think Pulis could do with bringing in a full back; as much as I love Wilko, he's not consistent enough sometimes, and Shotton isn't Prem quality.. I'd like to see a more consistent striker too, Darren Bent would be ideal if Villa want him sold. My biggest hope though is that Shawcross, Huth or Begovic aren't sold!

Sunderland - Martin O'Neill has changed Sunderland's fortunes around, and they are doing alright. They need a striker to get some more goals in the net, and perhaps a CB because they need to tighten up their defence.

Swansea - Michel Laudrup has made The Swans his own team, despite many who thought he'd carry on Brendan Rodgers'.. Miguel Michu has been the signing of the season for me, at just £2.2million, so the Swans need to keep him among their ranks. I think a co-striker for him is what they need, especially since they struggled a bit without him!

Spurs - Not sure what they need.. The defence could do with a bit of consistency, and I think a striker to induce some competition in Defoe and Adebayor.

West Brom - They've got some great creative players in the middle, and like with many, they need more consistency.. James Morison has stopped performing, and the strikers are at times struggling to hit the target, so perhaps a more consistent striker, which is hard to find these days!

West Ham - They need a winger and a striker. Andy Carroll, surprise surprise, hasn't performed, Carlton Cole isn't doing too well, so they just need someone to pop in the goals, and create a bit more.

Wigan - I think they need a striker, but not much else because I expect them to kick on as they usually do.

So there's my thoughts, I think it's still too early to say who's going down, but QPR are in serious trouble..

The first major sports trophy, yes Darts is a sport, was won by none other than Phil 'The Power' Taylor, his SIXTEENTH world title, in an incredible final with Dutch star Michael van Gerwen.

He lost the first two sets, came back to 2-2, lost the next two (4-2), then won five in a row to win 7-4.

The incredible thing about darts, other than the atmosphere and the fans, is the way the momentum can change so quickly, and the mental strength needed is incredible - definitely worthy of being called a sport!

Finally, New Year's Resolution #1 - Blog more regularly!

Speak to you soon!