In the real world, if you buy something, you expect it to work. And if you spend a lot of money on it, you expect it to work very well, for as long as you'll need it to (maybe even forever). So it's easy to think that paying millions of dollars for a player should yield instant results. But it's the rare occasion when this actually comes to pass.

John Nyen sees parallels

The two managers sit across from each other, both hooked up to the machine. The humming and whirring increases as they are instructed by the lab technician in the white coat.

"Think of your ideal, of what you want your team to become.

The Oxlade/Arshavin substitution IMO was based on logic and not emotion/sentiment/psychology; it was based on ideal conditions and not real world conditions. IMO Arsene is very theoretical/logical in his decision making. Oxlade was one of Arsenal best players on the day but it was his debut. Wing play is extremely hard work at the top [.

It's a real world intrusion into what is just a game and well worth remembering that life especially of someone so young is what truly matters. Read the story here.

Review: Why Football Manager 2012 Will Rock Your World - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

The first impression you get while playing Football Manager 2012 is how it's improved as an imitation of the real thing a genuine simulation of what it means to be a football manager, inasmuch as you can simulate the experience digitally.

Football Manager: Advanced Stats, Live Odds and Scouting+ - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

Football Manager will be released on 21 October 20112 here's a look at how Miles Jacobson and co. can make the game even better for the millions of football fans who religiously play the game every year.

It has taken him 238 games but Robin van Persie has finally become part of the Arsenal 100 club, the question is will he reach 150 goals at the Emirates?

The Dutchman's contract in North London is due to expire in the summer of 2013 and he is refusing to rush into penning an improved deal at the club.

Speculation. Those in the media world live off it. We in the real world feed off it. Why wouldn't we? It, of course, makes for good reading, good watching good whatever.

The rags' latest helping of speculation comes courtesy not of Fernando Torres weird, I know but of Frank Lampard. Super Frank is steaming mad they tell us.

Why Torres is the real loser in football's game of truth and dare

In the real world, unemployment is beginning to bite. Winter fuel bills are a looming nightmare. A visit to the supermarket puts life's luxuries like a ticket for a football match beyond reach. You don't need an ­economics degree to ­understand why Chelsea supporters are planning to boycott the Champions League tie against Genk.

I'm hoping that this can be a regular series where we can have some discussions about how the game is played, especially the tactical/strategic side of things. In the future I'll be taking a look at the tactics of upcoming opponents, tactical implications of Sounders transfer and roster moves, and any related topics you guys want to hear about.

Jan Versleijan and Han Berger have been slated by many over the last few weeks for their team performances at the various World Cups.
Versleijan as manager of the teams, and Berger for laying down the 1-4-3-3 revolution, with a little help from Rob Baan the former Dutch Technical Director.

Why the England squad would never agree to play while the streets they come from burned

In the middle of five-star luxury, the real world intruded on England's stars. They may have their mansions in the millionaires' rows up and down the land, but the likes of John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole the majority of the England squad, in fact began their lives on the streets of our inner cities.

At least in the more vague sense of the definition, this has little real world explanation at this moment in time.

Erika found herself injured in the closing or so we thought stages of the Brazil v US game yesterday as the ladies in yellow were clinging to the lead. (Didn't work out so well.

We've heard a lot of talk already about the improved Player Impact Engine which will debut in FIFA 12 on September 27 in the US and September in Europe, but what does the addition of "real world physicality" really mean in a video game? In the above...
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We've heard a lot of talk already about the improved Player Impact Engine which will debut in FIFA 12 on September 27 in the US and September in Europe, but what does the addition of "real world physicality" really mean in a video game? In the above...
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A few days ago, someone called JRS put up a link to a Twitter page operated by Opta, the collectors of statistics for all matters football. See http://twitpic.com/4t9shh. I hadn't seen it when it was published, but it had a table showing what the Premier League table would have looked like on 1st May had all shots that hit posts and crossbars actually resulted in goals.

The video game, that is.

I'm not much of a gamer myself, but gosh, how could you not smile when watching a game of FIFA or the insane promotional material that comes around its release. Seriously, where else can you watch a kid from Ghana talk about playing around with Wayne Rooney, then watch Wayne Rooney talking about taking on Joleon Lescott after United beat City.

FIFA 12 Official Gameplay Trailer - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

We shared some FIFA 12 gameplay screenshots with you earlier this week and now it's turn for the official FIFA 12 gameplay trailer. But first, a short note on what makes FIFA 12 better than previous incarnations and a list of key features:

FIFA 12 Official Blurb

FIFA 12 brings to the pitch the game-changing new Player Impact Engine, a physics engine built to deliver real-world physicality in every interaction on the pitch.

Ahead of June's video gaming showcase Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), EA Sports has unveiled the first details of the latest installation of its FIFA soccer simulation FIFA 12. Based on a press release from EA Sports, FIFA 12 introduces "revolutionary changes to the best sports game on the planet with innovations inspired by real-world soccer [.

FIFA 12 will feature a new Player Impact Engine in the game which will add real-world physicality. According to the above video, it'll show "collision variety, accuracy and momentum preservation" (whatever that means). In simpler language, we'll get...
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We always say we support any player who dons the prestigious Red & White shirt, but is this really true? In all honesty, what were your thoughts when Mr. Wenger took off Theo on Sunday to replace him with Eboue? Come on be honest!

I can tell you my reaction, it was dismay. Not purely as a response to AW's frustrating habit of trying to defend a lead (more of that another time) but because I really thought I had seen the last of Mr.

It has been difficult to be excited about soccer in recent weeks as one disaster after another has struck the real world. From civil wars in Africa to environmental disasters in Japan, boating accidents in Italy and school shootings in Brazil, the sobering images of reality that have pressed upon us from all angles of television, internet and newspapers have been enough to quell most cheerful thoughts and pre-game fantasies lately.

It looks like the real world has caught up with the double-barrelled controllers of Arsenal. American Stan Kroenke [ 'we don't need his money and we don't need his sort'] has taken a majority stake in the Gunners and has agreed terms for the purchase of the remaing stock which values the club £731 Million.

Correspondent Wenger.

• FIFA Rankings explained. (The Best Eleven)
• A racist banana in the real world. (Studs Up)
• Serbia's nonexistent backbone. (WSC)
• Bendtner's truth. (The DA)
• Surge of the Central African Republic. (Guardian)
• Inside Ajax.

Those of you who aren't long time readers of our blog may not realize that my day job is as a management consultant. Yes, it's true. In the real world as well as the fantasy EPL world, I tell people what to do for a living. The reason I bring this...
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There is a growing trend of neuvo goons who just don't get what supporting a football team is all about... there seems to be some kind of fashion in showing the social media world how much more of a fan you are than the next one.

Shove it... you don't fool me... you are fake as hell and desperate for acceptance.

Sit back and watch the best goals of February from FIFA 11 Ultimate Team. Some of the goals are sublime. Some will make you sick how easy they look. With FIFA 11 Ultimate Team, you can build your football club the way real-world coaches and managers...
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Thailand has many attractions. For example there are many, many temple. Oh and don't forget the Thai people. They are very friendly and they always smile alot to help foreigners to their country.
This first paragraph is (C) Thailand Lonely Planet and I take no responsibility for any errors in the paragraph or any misunderstandings that may arise.

Let me qualify what I am about to say by stating that I love football and its potential to thrill, excite, inspire and unite us. However, in recent times football has become harder to love.

You go to see your team play, and you have to sit there listening to the screaming swearing of thousands of depressed men using football as some form of therapeutic escapism.

From a U.S. Soccer Federation press release:

The U.S. Soccer Federation has announced that the match between the U.S. Men's National Team and Egypt has been canceled due to the current conditions in the country. The teams were scheduled to meet on Feb. 9 in Cairo. After exploring other options, the U.

Photo by Monasosh

The United States is scheduled to play an international friendly next week in Egypt against the host country, and as many of you are well aware, the political situation is unsettled, to put is lightly. By the February 9 friendly there may not be a government in Egypt, or even a new one, but the situation is incredibly fluid.

It's been a while since I dreamt about Arsenal. Last night I was playing an indoor training match with some of the players. I say some because I'm pretty sure Zoolander wasn't an Arsenal player (he's rubbish, btw). Anyway, at one point I had the ball out on the touchline, Jack Wilshere came over to tackle me and I nutmegged him.

Special 1 has returned from their Christmas break to wax on all things football, while also hocking a few of January's most eligible products, including a a certain Spanish midfielder who plies his trade in North London, a bucktoothed Brazilian and an LA-based brand.

Meanwhile, in the real world, Jose did what Jose does and caused a ruckus with his celebration in front of the Villarreal bench.