His brain said 'cross it' but his body said 'dive'. Cristiano Ronaldo got himself into a bit of a tangle as he attempted to put the ball into the box during Real Madrid's Champions League clash with CSKA Moscow last night. Via 101GG

I don't want to talk about the game, as the result turned the whole event into a disaster. Dropping three points for the second time in 10 days in the run-in is really poor form for a team hoping to consolidate a Champions League place. Losing Mikel Arteta to an injury that might keep him out of the team for the rest of the season is a double disaster.

Elite coaching is an art.

This is my response to reader John, who left an excellent set of comments. The last of which I'll address here.

Specifically:

I'd love to see you talk about specific tactics, Gary. I have no doubt that you are very a bright guy, but I wish you'd share your knowledge with us.

Firstly I have no time for anyone who is so fickle as to suddenly turn on our manager after a short series of poor results, get a grip on reality and try to be objective, I know it's hard sometimes but engage your brain before letting loose with any bitter resentful bile. Secondly well played Swansea, they played some excellent football and their style deserves praise.

U.S. soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann: 'You can't stop soccer in the U.S.'

Writer for The Arizona Republic picks the brain of Jurgen Klinsmann. Many very thoughtful questions asked and answers that show the direction Klinsmann wants to take.

You'll like this. The difference between success and failure in football can be minute you need every edge you can get. And when you think about it, so much of football is in the mind. We talk about teams playing with confidence: that's a mental state. We talk about players looking nervous, or not knowing what they're supposed to be doing, or playing tentatively, or showing complacency.

Yesterday I discussed some of the basic roster rules in MLS and how it ties in with the salary cap. Hopefully the swelling in your brain has reduced sufficiently to allow you to move forward with your lessons as I attempt to help you further understand (to the best of our ability), the league's various roster mechanisms.

Combustible words from Mario Balotelli's agent Mino Raiola after his client was banned for four games for his stamp on the head of Scott Parker at the weekend.

Raiola was just getting warmed up when he said that he will take his client away from the Premier League if referees do not do a better job of protecting Balotelli:

"I don't want to say that they are always against him, but when English players are involved nothing happens," Balotelli's agent Mino Raiola said in an interview with Italian radio station Radio Radio on Tuesday.

A bit of what's going on in Butt's Brain this midweek as we take in European and FA Cup matches with the Premier League on a short break... Arsenal's season hangs in the balance after 4-0 loss to AC Milan ... Continue reading →

One of the most liked players in baseball history died on Thursday. In the days since that horrible news, people from around the world have told how much they appreciated Gary Carter. The Hall of Fame catcher is probably best known for leading the 1986 New York Mets to a World Series championship.

We can heap encomiums on encomiums on Messi for his amazing gifts on and off the ball but he also happens to have the sharpest footballing brain in the world.

A stubborn Atletico Madrid team that refused to be broken were undone by the quick witted maestro who launched his curling and deadly accurate free kick from wide on the left against the hapless Thibaut Courtois before Atletico's players could get their feet set.

"No Andrea, I can't see your brain from here. Or any aliens."

Sam is on Twitter. There aren't any aliens in his ears, either. [read more]

Next opponent: Zangief "This is shit ... AND I ATE IT!!!!!!" -- Gordon Ramsay Somehow my brother has gotten me to start watching "Kitchen Nightmares" on BBC America. I'm not proud of it, yet it's dumb, don't think, entertainment that doesn't tax the brain at odd hours of the night. Sort of like the Premier League the last couple weeks, except in the early morning and midday.

The horrific scenes at White Hart Lane on Saturday inevitably led to media outlets drawing comparisons between Fabrice Muamba's cardiac arrest and previous incidents of a similar nature. This was done with varying degrees of taste. Of course, Marc Vivien Foe was sadly among most people's immediate thoughts.

Butt's Brain on a Tuesday... Twitter is a powerful tool as a breaking news platform. You can follow us @NickyButt but first read this great article on Muamba & Twitter [EPL Talk] Fabrice Muamba is improving, but his long term prognosis ... Continue reading →

Knock knock, Pep.

Who's there? Zlatan.

Zlatan who? I am Zlatan. And your chin looks like a Greek person's elbow.

How do you like that Pep? I don't mean my joke about your elbow chin -- that's genius, so of course you don't like it -- I mean the fact that I held your band of hormone-infused munchkins scoreless for the first time in their last 30 Champions League matches.

Unlike Liverpool, the ocean is filled with neverending delight and joy. Liverpool may be exploring the metaphorical depths with a consistent run of horrible performances, capped by today's farce in the Northeast, but the sea contains quite literal depths that frequently amaze and rarely disappoint.

Alright, week four was yet another edition of "you don't know jack".

My rankings saw a good amount of movement this week too. The tier system may not be loved by all but it makes my brain hurt less in writing these up each week. LA dropped out of the top tier for me and are in real danger of dropping even further down.

Morning all, today starts with a mild *boilk* but it's not my fault. It's all the fault of The Man from East Lower who has left his comfortable surrounds and is in Dublin instead and insisted that I drink beer with him.

"No," I said, "I am an abstemious man who rarely partakes of the demon drink, especially around this most holy of times.

It wasn't pretty football in the West but it was a belter of a game. Perth v Wellington. And arguably two of my least favourite football teams are playing much better football than years gone by.
But it's not Swansea is it.
Great to see my most hated Coach ex-Ger Iain Ferguson using brain and craft to play full-back Scott Neville in a switch for my man of the match Billy Mehmet.

A bit of what's going on in Butt's Brain as the midweek games and race for a Top 4 position play out... Derry, Ivanovic, and Balotelli cases show the FA is not on the ball [Guardian] Clint Dempsey just can't ... Continue reading →

It's only the Paraguayan third division, but any sort of professional football will be good for the man with a bullet in his brain.

Salvador Cabanas, shot in the head in a Mexico City bar just over two years ago, recently played a friendly with his former club side, Club America. Getting back to competitive football required two notches, so he saddled up with his hometown club, 12 de Octubre of Itaugua.

I don't want to talk about the game, as the result turned the whole event into a disaster. Dropping three points for the second time in 10 days in the run-in is really poor form for a team hoping to consolidate a Champions League place. Losing Mikel Arteta to an injury that might keep him out of the team for the rest of the season is a double disaster.

Having already secured their well-deserved return to the Premier League, Reading can now start preparing for the challenge to stay in the top flight for many seasons to come.
The current crop of players at the Madejski Stadium have enjoyed a remarkable spell of form over the last few months and secured their return to the top tier of English football on Tuesday night, thanks to a 1-0 victory over Nottingham Forest.

I gave up giving a few rat's giblets about footballing awards a very long time ago. There is so much bias and stupidity at work that there is absolutely no point getting worked up over who wins the FIFA/UEFA/PFA or anyone else's award. There is a massive bias towards strikers, there is a massive bias towards certain clubs and countries, also a lot of people who vote have about as many brain

A bit of what's going on in Butt's Brain on a Monday afternoon: Manchester Derby / Title Decider / Massive / Massive / Massive in just a few hours [ESPN] Roy Hodgson, not Harry Redknapp, closing in on England job ... Continue reading →

Junior Seau's girlfriend made a frantic all to 911 when she discovered Seau dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Wednesday.

"Oh my God, I need an ambulance," the girlfriend of the former USC and NFL linebacker said as she cried. "Oh my God.... My boyfriend shot himself." A nearly nine-minute conversation with the emergency dispatcher took place, and audio of the call was released by Oceanside officials on Friday.

I don't think the point is getting across.

As it relates to a post, let me just say that it's ok if a reader "doesn't get it". People can't be convinced or changed with a solitary article not at their core anyways.

Every time I write one of these, my brain screams:

• "Oh, but what about this?

I've Been Supporting Arsenal for 27 Years, and ...

by Gord

1 Introduction

I'm sorry, I am getting tired of crap comments. What got me into this state was someone who wrote in (who I am calling Super-brain) and who said (on the night the 2012 season ended) something to the effect [.

A bit of what's going on in Butt's Brain as we are still catching our breath from the last day of the Premier League season: The oldest looking 28 year old in history, Arjen Robben, will be the key man ... Continue reading →

OTP gives you the lowdown on all the Euro 2012 teams. 10 word description: Tournament specialists make familiar trip to Poland with exciting generation. Coach: Joachim Low Jogi stepped out of Jurgen Klinsmann's shadow in 2006 and has left most people in no doubt that he was always the footballing brain behind the operation.

A bit of what's going on in Butt's Brain as we prepare to roll out our Euro 2012 fantasy previews imminently... But first, some news: Liverpool choose Swansea's Rodgers, not Wigan's Martinez [SB Nation] Frank Lampard suffers England Euro 2012 ... Continue reading →