Little Under the Weather. Little Busy.

It's a little busy at work today, and I am aparently still recovering from being massively ill over the weekend, so there won't be much bloggin'. I wanted to post something worth coming to the page for and then I remembered this weekends match US v. Hondours (under23). The highlight of the match was not the late winner by the US, but a female "streaker". I went to youtube.com to find this and found something even better. Thanks Ladies.




So she's not left out, here's the one from the weekend.

Streaks, Brackets, and Blues. Oh, My!

Streaks continue, brackets were built, and a lot of people had the blues after this weekend. Wanna find out who? Well, just keep reading.

The Houston Rockets winning streak continued, as they moved to 22 straight wins, topping the Los Angles Lakers 104-92 at home. The Rockets have the second longest winning streak in NBA history, behind the ’71-’72 Lakers, like the irony? It’s funny the difference in peoples attitude between; a honest team that’s not full of smug jerks going on a record winning streak, and some jackasses from Boston running around smirking about how good they are, with that Brian Billick smirk of his. Like you couldn’t tell who I was talking about yet. Tiger is still on a roll, after dropping a beauty of a 25-foot birdie on Sunday, winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational by one stroke over Bart Bryant. Again, let's note, you can be winner and people like you, just don’t be smug about it! I think we know who I’m talking too.

The NCAA Tournament is pretty much set, with the exception of the one “Opening Round” match between Coppin State and Mount St. Mary’s in Dayton, Ohio. Doesn’t matter who wins, they face number one ranked Universtiy of North Carolina: Chapel Hill. So make your picks and place your bets, its time for March Madness! Unless your are my stubborn friend who will only do brackets on Yahoo, in that case you’ll be left out of the fun.

For those not interested in football (European), you may now stop reading. A lot of people had a case of the blues in football this weekend, and we’ll start it off in the Premier Legue. Sunderland was certainly having the blues, as they crept closer to the relegation zone, thanks to John Terry and the Chelsea Blues. Terry had his first goal since the opening day of last season. His header puts the Blues within three points of league leaders Manchester United. Speaking of the title race, last weeks league leaders Arsenal might have a case of the blues, after drawing to Middlesbrough 1-1. The blue side of Meryseyside must have a case of the blues, after loosing to Fulham 1-0, who sit in second to last place in the Premier League. Good news for Fulham is that might just be the life line to a way out of the relegation. Good news for Liverpool is the Reds now claim sole possession of fourth place, and Champions League football next year.


Boxer Rickey Hatton supports the Blues of Manchester.


In Spain, Barcelona will have a case of the blues, after drawing to Almeria 1-1, on a weekend that saw Real Madrid loose to Deportivo La Coruna 1-0. Barca could have pulled within five points of the league leaders, now they are an optimistic three games out, with the season quickly coming to a close.

Bracketology

With the teams set on the road to Moscow in the Champions League, Wh00t Liverpool. It poses an interesting question, “Is it time to finally start caring about the UEFA Cup?”. The UEFA Cup, for anyone who might not know, is the little brother of the Champions League. The UEFA Cup consists of people knocked out of the group stage of the Champions League, and pretty much anyone else who finished a respectable position in their domestic league. At the beginning of the competition there are just to many teams to care, I can only assume that even the teams themselves feel this way. And if you don’t have a team in the competition, the next couple of rounds can seem a bit boring with so many teams involved. But after tomorrow, the quarterfinals will be set, and many of the crap clubs in Europe will have been weeded out, making the UEFA Cup worth watching. It also helps to make a friendly wager about the out come of the competition.




March Madness is right around the corner, which means its time for some bracketology. There are four easy ways to pick your brackets:

Be Informed.
Some people have been watching NCAA Division I intently all year, and know how teams have preformed. These people will make their decisions based on, “how tough _____ conference has been”, and “what teams have had better quality wins over tougher teams”. You’ll have to know what teams have been playing well, who’s injured, who’s been playing “tough” teams and who’s been playing easy teams. Hint: The ACC is a tough conference, and the Big 12 is over rated.

Go With What You Know.
Some people do quite well when picking brackets by just going with information that they know like; where they went to school, what teams are local, where their friends went to school, and where national landmarks are. This option usually suits uninformed women better than men, but has produced some successful results.

Mascot Theory 101.
Some people resort to letting the mascots duke it out, literally. When facing tough picks, some people will resort to making their decision based on which mascot would win if the two mascots were fighting. This technique is very risky and could backfire very easily, it is not a recommended way to make your picks.

Rankings.
Many people don’t like to bother with guesswork, when there is money involved. In that case just use the bracket rankings. Those teams were ranked that way for a reason, that’s why they call it an upset, when a lower team beats a higher ranked team, because its unexpected. Your “safest” bet is always picking according to ranking, the odds are always in your favor when you go by rank.

Don't Quit Your Day Job

Only one thing matters today:
Liverpool v. Inter Milan.

It’s a Champions League Tuesday, the last of the round of 16. The Reds will make the trip from England to Italy to face Serie A leaders Inter Milan at the San Siro. The match was delayed a week, because of Premiership side Arsenal’s trip to the San Siro last week. Italian police were concerned they couldn’t handle two matches in two days. Italy has become one of the more violence prone countries in football, though after the weekend it looks like Columbia might be giving them a run for the money.

Liverpool will be boosted with the return of Javier Mascherano in Italy, after he took a knock during their 4-0 thumping of West Ham last week. It would be easy to assume that Liverpool will go through with a two goal lead on the aggregate, however, anything can happen in football. Inter Milan is a very strong side at home and will look to over turn the two point deficit. Inter will be without Marco Materazzi who received a red card last time to two sides met at Anfield. If Liverpool can get even one away goal it will pretty much mean they will go through to the next round but that won’t be an easy task.

One other factor at play here will be the future of the club, as things on the pitch and in the office have been anything but stable this year for the Reds. The American owners, who took over the club last year, have been a poison amongst supporters, management, and players. If Liverpool does not continue to succeed in the Champions League, the only competition they are still contending in, it could mean the end of coach Rafael Benitez. It is no secret that the American owners have not been supportive of the Spaniard, and have admitted to talking Jürgen Klinsmann about the position. It seems the two Americans, herefore refered to as “the Two Idiots”, were not happy with the slow start to the season. “The Two Idiots” seem to believe fool heartedly that their success with baseball and hockey in America is the perfect recipe for success in European football. I wonder if they even realized there was more than one competition in European footballing before they bought the club?

Minnows

“Que Sera, Sera, Whatever will be, will be, we’re going to Wembley, Wembley, Que Sera Sera.” This weekend there were four teams singing this chant, but they weren’t the ones that people had expected. This years FA Cup maybe remembered as the “cup of giant-killers”, as the FA Cup proves once again why its so magical. There are probably two simple factors that make the FA Cup so special. The first is its age, the FA Cup is the oldest cup competition in the world, dating back to 1871. The second factor, that makes the FA Cup so "magical", is that it allows teams from both “top flight” clubs and lower non league teams as well.

This year the FA Cup accepted a record 731 teams into the competition, they are now down to four who will play in the semi-finals, at the new Wembley Stadium. In the last 15 years, the dominance of the “big four” has meant that only one team that was not in the “big four” has lifted the FA Cup. That team was Everton back in 1995. Through out its rich history many teams have lifted the Cup, and this year could be one of those wonderful cup stories, in which a “lower” league team could raise the FA Cup. Fun facts: Only one of the four teams left have won the FA Cup more than once, West Bromwich Albion (5); None of the teams left have lost in a FA Cup final since the last time they appeared in the final; Non of the teams left have one the FA Cup since 1968, and three have not since 1939. This is the magic of the FA Cup, the chance for lower league and non-league teams to no only face, but over come top league teams.

This year’s semifinalists are: Barnsley, Cardiff City, West Bromwich Albion, and Portsmouth. Though they haven’t won the FA Cup since 1912, Barnsley have to be slight favorites having beaten both Liverpool, sigh, and Chelsea, yea. Barnsley will face Cardiff City, who have not lifted the FA Cup since 1927. Portsmouth would have to be the other favorite, as they are a Premier League side, they defeated Manchester United for their place in the semifinals. Pompey will face West Bromwich who last lifted the FA Cup in 1968.



'Everyone talks about the romance of the cup. Year in, year out it is always the same teams that seem to be playing but this time around it's probably the year of the underdog, Cardiff boss Dave Jones.

Oops! I Got Distracted.

Instead of writing my own blog, I got distracted reading someone elses:

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/

El Nino

After all the Champions League excitement, and complete exhaustion from being busy, today’s bloggin’ is going to be short. Real Madrid were dumped out of the Champions League yesterday by Roma. This is the fourth time Real have failed to make it out of the round of 16, in as many years. Chelsea dominated Olympiakos to move on, and Shalke 04 won on penalty kicks to drop FC Porto out of the competition. Finally, Liverpool spanked West Ham United 4-0, as Fernando Torres had another hat-trick. The best part is my friend who is a West Ham supporter, and always gives me a hard time when the Reds don’t win, went to Anfield to see the match. Yes, he traveled all the way to England to see my team beat his, I don’t know about him but I’m happy.



This Torres guy is starting to grow on me.

2nd Leg Champions League Wednesday!

First of all, let’s just get this out of the way, I love Champions League. Secondly, did you know that Brett Favre wasn’t the only person to retire from the NFL in the last 24hrs? After 13 years in the NFL, Warren Sapp is also calling it quits. Somehow, I don’t think Raiders fans will be as upset as Packers fans have been. Enough of that stuff, though the final score ended 2-0, it is hardly a reflection of how great yesterdays second leg match up between Arsenal and AC Milan was. The match seemed destined for extra time at the San Siro, until the deadlock was broken by one Cesc Fabregas. In his home country Spain, Barcelona defeated Celtic 1-0 at the Nou Camp, unfortunately for Barca the win was overshadowed by injury to Lionel Messi. Back in England, Manchester United defeated Lyon 1-0, to secure their place in the next round. Finally, back in Spain Volkan Demirel was Fenerbahce's hero. They defeated last years UEFA CUP winners Sevilla, in a penalty shoot-out, I called that one. What excitement does today have in store for us? I don’t know, but I can’t wait to find out.

FC Porto v Schalke 04
German side Schalke travel to Portugal to face Porto at the Estádio do Dragão. Schalke have a one point lead on the aggregate, as they look to advance to the next round. Porto leads their domestic league in commanding fashion, and are rallied by the return of winger Ricardo Quaresma, 'This game is massive for us and all the Portuguese people, who surely will want to see a Portuguese side fighting in the Champions League. Schalke has struggled domestically this season and sits sixth in the Bundesliga.

Real Madrid v Roma
Roma will make the trip west, to Spain, to face Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. Roma leads 2-1 on the aggregate, however, holding their lead at the Bernabeu will be difficult. Having tasted success in almost the rest of Europe, Fabio Cannavaro has yet to lift the European Cup, ‘I have Ligas, Scudettos, cups ... but I lack the Champions League.' The bad news for Real is Sergio Ramos is suspended, and Dutchmen Wesley Sneijder and Ruud van Nistelrooy are questionable. Roma have been in good form of late domestically, having cut Serie A leaders Internazionale’s lead to just six points.

Chelsea v Olympiacos
Greek champions Olympiacos travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, as both teams are even after their first leg. The bottom line: Olympiacos will need a miracle to win, as Chelsea have been left with a poor taste in their mouths after their loss in the Carling Cup final. Chelsea is also out of the domestic title race, which will only fuel their fire more.

2nd Leg Champions League Tuesday!

A Couple of quick notes before I burst with Champions League excitement. After 17 years in the NFL, Brett Favre has retired, at the age of 38. He retires with 5,377 career completions in 8,758 attempts for 61,655 yards, 442 touchdowns and 288 interceptions. Last year he passed Dan Marino’s touchdown record. Take a rest Brett, you deserve it. Also, the Capitals trounced the Boston Bruins 10-2, Alexander Ovechkin, reached 50 goals for the second time in his career. Ok, enough of that stuff… It’s 2nd Leg Champions League Tuesday! Wh00t!

AC Milan v Arsenal
London club Arsenal travel to Italy to face last years champions AC Milan, at the San Siro. All week the talk from Arsenal has been, “they aren’t afraid”. It reminds me of the first Star Wars movie, when Luke Skywalk says something similar, to which Jedi Master Yoda replies, “You should be”. Yoda is right. Arsenal should be very afraid of AC Milan on any European night; at home, with FIFA’s Footballer of the Year in their line up, and without a goal scored yet in the first leg. But, what do I know? Arsenal will be boosted by the return of Robin van Persie, having lost Eduardo to a horrific leg injury at Birmingham.

Manchester United v Lyon
French side Lyon will travel to England to face Manchester United at home at Old Trafford. Most will be placing their bets on United tonight, and rightfully so. The only way Lyon will get a win at Old Trafford is if the Red Devils have over looked the team leading Ligue 1.

Sevilla FC v Fenerbahce
Fenerbahce will travel to Spain to face Sevilla at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. Many will be surprised when I say this, especially after Sevilla lifted the UEFA Cup the last two years. However, I would expect Sevilla to crumble against the Turkish Champions. Sevilla has not been the same team since manager Juande Ramos left, to coach Tottenham, earlier this year. Sevilla has buckled under pressure quite often this season, to be honest, I was surprised they made it this far. Fenerbahce is also up on the aggregate 3-2, after winning in Turkey.

Barcelona v Celtic
Scottish club Celtic will travel to Spain to face Barcelona at the Nou Camp. Most people would favor Barca for this one, and I will too. Not just because, they have one of the most impressive rosters in European football. But also because, they saw their domestic championship hopes take a hit over the weekend, at the hands of Atlético Madrid. Barca will not want to see their Champions Legaue hopes dashed at home in the Nou Camp.

Warning: Meltdown

Sometimes in sports things go wrong, and when they go wrong, boy do they go wrong. There are times when the laws of physics seem to turn against a team. Bolton keeper Jussi Jasskelainen will curse the laws of physics for the next week, that’s for sure. Guess what? Its time for:

Super Happy Ultra Mega Weekend Review

This weekends review is dedicated to meltdowns. Speaking of meltdowns, the Maryland Terrapins had a complete meltdown Sunday night against the Clemson Tigers. The Terps blew a 20 point lead, to lose in the last seconds of the game 73-70. The loss left the Comcast Center stunned, as James Mays led the Tigers scoring with 20 points. This solidifies Clemson in third in the ACC, and dumps Maryland down to fifth with one game left in the conference, against last place Virginia. ‘Fro-watch is just embarrassed and has nothing to report.

America might have been the site of one meltdown, but Europe was the sight of multiple meltdowns, starting in England. Saturday’s match up between Arsenal and Aston Villa was already set to be a big match up. Villa continues to press towards European football, and Arsenal are struggling to remain at the top of the league. Aresnal’s “meltdown” came in the 27th minute, as Philippe Senderos accidentally sent the ball into his own net, gifting Villa the lead. Only Nicklas Bendtner’s last minute goal saved a point for Arsenal, who now find Manchester United on their heals just one point behind.

Elsewhere in England, Bolton keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen might not have had a complete “meltdown” durring Sunday's early kick-off, but he might have had a meltdown after the match. Jaaskelainen, somehow, accidentally tipped Steven Gerrard’s ball, which was headed out of bounds by a good three feet, into his own goal with his head. You’d have to see it to believe it. Bolton as a team continued to meltdown as the Reds won 3-1.

I don’t’ know if I jinxed La Liga this weekend or not. Barcelona had a complete meltdown, after blowing a 1 point lead to loose to Atlético Madrid 4-2. Ronaldinho’s over head goal, in the 30th minute, opened the scoring in the match and Barca looked sure to ease past Atlético. However, two goals in six minutes saw Atlético up at the half. It would be all down hill from there, for Barca who now find themselves six points behind Real Madrid, who won 3-2 against Recreativo Huelva.

A Ffriendly Reminder: Tomorrow is a Champions League Tuesday!!!! Wh00t!