Liverpool's management had seen and heard enough. Kenny Dalglish's head in the sand post match
interview coming on the heels of Luis Suarez's dastardly snub of Patrice Evra's handshake were
considered damaging enough for their MD, Ian Ayre, to come out condemning their striker.
In particular, Suarez's promise to shake hands with Evra made earlier in the week and then
reneging caused much anger.
This should prove beyond a shadow Luis Suarez meant what he said to Patrice Evra. Every racist
word. This does not mean he is a paid member of the KKK. He's just a prick with a very low
threshold for frustration. Many fans in some blind reflexive way believed Suarez was the victim of
a smear job and their misguided support probably emboldened him today.
Legend. Arsenal true blue. Competitor. Finisher extraordinaire.
You couldn't write a better script for Thierry Henry to end his England return. An added time
goal for the winner against Sunderland. A bookend to the bookend he installed with his instant
winner against Leeds. Both Wenger's subs made massive contributions to the victory as Aaron Ramsey
scored the equalizer and Andrey Arshavin sent in a pinpoint cross to Henry lurking in front of goal
to elevate his leg and guide the ball past Simon Mignolet.
szólj hozzá: Man Utd v Liverpool 2:1 GOALS
The scoreline does not reflect how good Man Utd were or the dire Liverpool performance
especially in the second half. That was on the pitch as the rest of the world tuned into the Luis
Suarez vs Patrice Evra telenovela.
The Manchester side came to play football while the Reds came to do, well, whatever Luis Suarez
wanted to do.
The winning goal for the Taranga Lions was all Gervinho in the 44th minute. The Arsenal winger
robbed the ball well behind the half line, and then turned on the burners to blow past the Malian
defense down the left channel, cutting in for a superb finish.
Arsenal cannot wait to have him back.
The amazing Chipolopolos scored the winning goal in the 77th minute as substitute Emmanuel
Mayuka found space and on the turn curled a right footed shot past Adam Kwarsey in goal. It was
probably the second chance for the Zambians and very much against the run of play.
The Black Stars should have gone ahead early as Asamoah Gyan missed out on a golden chance when
his penalty was stopped by Kennedy Mweene (bringing back painful memories of his World Cup PK miss
against Uruguay).
The Anfield tabby who made an appearance in the Liverpool vs Spurs match has become a major
sensation like Susan Boyle, out of nowhere. Probably the most exciting event in that match other
than Luis Suarez's kick to Scotty Parker's stomach that sent the Spurs midfielder to the ground
grovelling in pain.
Cesc Fabregas and Xavi guide Barcelona to their 12th Copa Del Rey final. Leo Messi had a hand in
both goals. Gol TV's inimitable Ray Hudson, "Messi, like a gazelle through the
cheetahs" couldn't have said it better. They meet Athletic Bilbao in the final most likely on
25th May.
Mirandes, the giant killing third division Liga club bowed out beaten by Athletic Bilbao, 6-2,
in the second leg of the Copa Del Rey (8-3 aggregate). Fernando Llorente showed why he's on the
wishlist of some of the world's biggest clubs by scoring a brace. Athletic also got goals from Iker
Muniain, Markel Susaeta and defender Jon Aurtenetxe.
The world's most over rated striker receives a three match ban for slapping Napoli's Salvatore
Aronica. To be fair Aronica also indulged in some extra-curricular activities against Antonio
Nocerino but Ibra's was a reputation call. He will miss crucial matches against Udinese and
Juventus.
szólj hozzá: Liverpool Tottenham HIGHLIGHTS
Who let the cat out? A tabby provided the most excitement in the Liverpool vs Spurs match, a
cagey affair. Luis Suarez came on in the 66th minute after his nine match ban and promptly plonked
Scott Parker on the abdomen with a scything foot, an accident more than anything else, but with
Suarez the line is finely drawn.
Co-hosts Gabon looked like it was going to be headed to their best showing in any ACN when Eric
Mouloungui shot them into the lead in the 55th minute. But Mali had other ideas as Cheick Diabate
equalized in the 84th minute. At the end of extra time, with the two teams deadlocked, the fate of
the match was decided on PK shootout.
Captain John Mensah puts Ghana ahead through his third international goal. Saber Khelifa
equalized after beating Samuel Inkoom to a lofted ball. The match headed to extra time and in the
110th minute, Abedi Pele's son, Andre Ayew scored the winner after Tunisia's goalie, Aymen
Mathlouthi coughed up Inkoom's cross right into his path.
Inter's wheels are coming off. After such a strong push to within sniffing distance of Milan and
Juve, they have lost to lowly Lecce, drew Palermo and yesterday, Roma took the lumber to them. Juan
gets the Giallorossi on the board, Fabio Borini's lovely brace follows, and the Bojan Krkic
finishes emphatically to give Roma a thumping 4-0 victory.
Demba Cisse the most expensive player in the January transfer and the other half of the
Senegalese strike force alongside Demba Ba, provided an instant impact as he scored a majestic goal
on his debut. Majestic.
Ba and Cisse were away on ACN duty and how they were missed, especially Ba, who gave Newcastle
the lead in the 30th minute for his 16th Premiership goal.
Zambia cruised past Sudan, 3-0 to the semi-finals of the ACN, the first time since 1996. Sudan
made things difficult for themselves after Ali Saif Eldin was sent off for his second violation
when he brought down Rainford Kalaba in the 63rd minute. By that time the Chipolopolos (The Copper
Miners) were already a goal up from Sunzu Stoppila.
Didier Drogba could not be denied as he made up for a missed penalty by pouring in a brace.
Ivory Coast added another through Yaya Toure as they send Equatorial Guinea, the co-hosts, out of
the ACN. The Taranga Lions are through to the semi-finals.
Drogba will be missing today's huge showdown with Man Utd, and in his absence, Chelsea is hoping
that misfiring Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge, take up the goalscoring slack.
szólj hozzá: Arsenal Blackburn 7:1 HIGHLIGH
In which RVP scores a sublime hat trick. In which the Ox is unleashed. In which Song continues
to find his passing groove. In which Thierry Henry scores his first Premiership goal on his return.
In which Theo Walcott made the right choices. In which Frances Coquelin showed why the flanks are
so important.
Valencia served a reminder of its proud heritage as a football team holding Barca and then
denied Leo Messi a PK goal in the Copa Del Rey semi-finals first leg.
Jonas gave the home side the lead at the Mestalla but Carles Puyol who seems to have made a
career scoring very important headers equalized for the Blaugrana.
At least 74 soccer fans died as deadly riots broke out in Port Said after a soccer match between
Al Masry and visiting Al Ahly. Fans from Al Masry invaded the pitch after their team beat Al Ahly,
3-1 and clashed with their rivals. Most of the deaths were attributed to the ensuing stampede as
supporters desperately tried to make for the exits.
bolton 0-0 arsenal by Futbol2101
What does it take for any other player other than RVP to score goals? It is now official, he's
not pretending any more - Theo Walcott has a mind made of mush in front of goal. Always. Aaron
Ramsey is another. The Ox too for all his brightness was presented with a clear chance.
szólj hozzá: Everton v Man City 1:0 MOTD
Darron Gibson, did his former club Man Utd a huge favour by striking the one lethal blow last
evening. Landon Donovan continuing his great assist work. City were undone before one could say
Denis Stracqualursi.
Goodison Park is not exactly happy hunting grounds for City, winning only two of their last 15
encounters in that venue.
There was some fond hope that the man handcuffed to the goalpost was making a grandiose
statement about the unholy sums of money destroying football (read City). Or maybe he had tried
handcuffing himself to a badger the previous evening with unsatisfying results and wanted something
different.
Sudan's chances in Group B resting on slim hopes were realized yesterday as they beat Burkina
Faso through Mutahdir's brace and an underwhelming Angola lost to Cote D'Ivoire, 0-2. Former
Arsenal full back Emmanuel Eboue gave the Ivoirians the lead and the second goal was a comedy of
errors.
Novak Djokovic beat Rafal Nadal in a herculean Australian Open finals that lasted 6 hours. The
same day Arsenal had to summon every fibre to overcome a two goal deficit to overcome Aston Villa
and prevent a FA Cup exit.
And then there is the US Women's team that blanked Canada, 4-0, en route to winning the CONCACAF
qualifiers to the London Olympics.
Lowly Lecce knock of Inter leaving it reeling. Here is the reaction to their loss. Great
commedia dell'arte! No milk of human kindness from Massimiliano Benassi who was immense in goal for
Lecce. Here is a clip of the match >>
Alessandro Matri gives the Bianconeri the lead but Udinese answer through Antonio Floro Flores.
However, Matri would not be denied the winner. Would it be hyperbolic to say Claudio Marchisio is
the preeminent midfielder in the Serie nowadays? Juventus sit on top of the Serie in a dogfight
with Milan.
szólj hozzá: a3-2av
Today was a must win for Arsenal. Not just to reverse the perception of a club descending into a
familiar and vicious cycle of self inflicted wounds and low self esteem. But to resurrect the
career of a manager under fire.
A defeat would have tipped the scales between the two camps, the AKB and the ASG (Arsene Should
Go) resting at a precarious 50-50 irrevocably in favour of the latter.
Group D at the ACN is at a knife's edge as it heads to the last group match with Ghana, Guinea,
and Mali in contention for the two spots to the knock off stage. The only one out is Botswana.
Yesterday, the Black Stars got the better of Mali as Asamoah Gyan (Sunderland could have done with
his finishing skills today against Boro) scored his first goal and Anthony Ayew added another.
The US WNT overcame early match nerves and a very game Costa Rican team through goals scored by
Tobin Heath, Carli Lloyd, and Alex Morgan. This win qualifies them for the London Olympics. In the
other semi-finals, Canada held off Mexico, 3-1, to also book their spot. The final will be played
tomorrow and pits two of the most potent goalscorers in the game.
Video: FA Cup: Everton/Fulham
In a showdown between two of the USA's best attackers, Landon Donovan prevailed providing both
the crosses that resulted in two perfect strikes as Everton beat Clint Dempsey and Fulham. The man
from Nacogdoches had a quieter evening.
Donovan has had an instant impact on Everton making the best of his two month loan and Dempsey
is on par to repeat last season's success, most recently scoring a hat trick against Newcastle.
szólj hozzá: BRIGHTON v NEWCASTLE 1:0 GOAL
Gareth Bale, sorry, Will Buckley hares down the left showing gut busting pace and plenty of
footy skills to elude Danny Simpson and Yoann Cabaye. He then unleashes a left footed shot which
deflects of Mark Williamson and past Tim Krul for a famous Brighton and Hove Albion victory.
szólj hozzá: q0-1c
The other match with a potentially explosive racial overtones was effectively nipped in the bud
as the FA decided to do away with handshakes pre-empting Anton Ferdinand's contemplated threat not
to shake John Terry's hand. The Chelsea captain begins his legal challenge on Feb 1st defending
against charges of a racist verbal assault on Ferdinand in their last match on Oct 23rd.
szólj hozzá: l2-1mu
The subtext was Luis Suarez watching from the stand with Patrice Evra getting booed by the
Anfield crowd and all the lovely chanting between the two sets of fans about the existence of
racism. At the end, the Reds had the greater satisfaction of beating Utd, the second Manchester
club to suffer at their hands in three days.
What happened to the Taranga Lions? They went out with a whimper. One of the ACN's most
formidable teams on paper boasting names like Demba Ba, Moussa Sow, Mamadou Niang, and Papiss
Cisse, were unceremoniously dumped out by co-hosts Equatorial Guinea. The Lions lost their first
encounter, 1-2 to the unfancied Zambians.
Video: Carling Cup: Liverpool/Man City
Kenny Dalglish feeling the heat after a series of underwhelming displays by Liverpool in the
Premiership was able to get a satisfying consolation in today's Carling Cup match pipping City to
the Wembley finals.
Nigel De Jong gave City the lead to level the aggregate.
Today, Real Madrid played as it should have in the first leg. The first half began so brightly
for Real with Gonzalo Higuain the main culprit for not finishing those chances. Gerard Pique was
caught napping and the Argentinian striker should have done much, much better. Minutes later, Pinto
was barely able to foil Higuain whose timing was less than impeccable.
Carli Lloyd scores a hat trick, Heather O' Reilly chips in with another as USA easily beat
Mexico, 4-0, to secure a semi-final spot against Costa Rica in the Olympics qualifiers. This result
reversed their shocking loss to Mexico in the World Cup qualifiers which forced them into a playoff
match.
Leo Messi scores his hat trick over the weekend. But this is not so much about his skills as
sublime as they are but Ray Hudson's orgasmic Gol TV commentary that accompanies those goals.
"Nothing less than the equivalent of a footballing bird of paradise. He is like Dr Spock, out
off his Vulcan mind" .
Ghana 1-0 Botswana by goalsarena2012
Ghana made a jittery start to their ACN campaign overcoming a plucky Botswana through John
Mensah's 25th minute goal. The Black Stars then had to endure without Mensah who was sent off in
the 66th minute for his foul on Jerome Ramatlhakwane.
Goran Stevanovic's squad were at full strength minus Kevin Prince Boateng with World Cup
standouts Asamoah Gyan, Andrew Ayew, and Sulley Muntari present.
