Match Day 19: Liverpool Veterans Down Newcastle

Following Boxing Day's disappointing 1-1 draw with Blackburn, Liverpool fans must have had the 'oh no, not again' feeling when Newcastle went up 1-0 after 26 minutes of play at Anfield. The goal, which came completely out of nothing, was as awkward as it gets. A Ryan Taylor right foot in-swinger found a Yohann Cabaye glancing header towards goal, which deflected off Daniel Agger's shoulder, wrong stepping goalkeeper Pepe Reina in the process.


The shock of the goal was still fresh in every Liverpool fan's mind when veteran Craig Bellamy, cancelled it out with a well taken right footed strike to the bottom corner of Tim Krul's goal post in the 30th minute

Breathing a sigh of relief, I sat up straight in anticipation of a Liverpool onslaught to finally begin. Nothing followed. The half ended with Liverpool looking more likely, but less threatening than expected.


The second half looked pretty bleak with Liverpool lacking any bite upfront. Newcastle looked much worse. While the Magpies strung passes very well, the failed to create any visible chances, and seemed content to disrupt Liverpool's flow in the middle.


By the 60th minute, Kenny Dalglish had seen enough. The Liverpool Manager decided it was time to bring in the one factor that could change the game - Captain Fantastic. Off came Charlie Adam and on came Steven Gerrard, who was only making his third appearance this season due to a lengthy injury layoff. 


In the absence of Luis Suarez, the sight of the Liverpool team captain ignited the fans, energized his team mates and terrorized Newcastle. For the last 30 minutes of the game, Liverpool looked every inch capable of taking all three points.


In just four minutes after his entry, Gerrard found Andy Carroll with a glorious pass inside the Newcastle 18 yard box, only for the former Newcastle number 9 to let everyone down with a poor first touch. Carroll must have been taken by surprised as he clearly looked unprepared to capitalize on the 'platter' opportunity.


Marauding central defender Daniel Agger, decided to take matters into his hands. His 68th minute surge forward resulted in a free kick outside the Newcastle box, as Cheik Tiote brought him down. Craig Bellamy converted the free kick for his second goal of the night. 


From then on, it was all Liverpool flying on the wings of captain Steven Gerrard.


In fairness, Newcastle could have easily reset the game when Demba Ba saw his delicate chip over the onrushing Pepe Reina cleared off the line by Martin Skrtel in the 69th minute.

With the lead still intact, Gerrard again found Carroll with a pinpointed cross, and this time the tall striker didn't disappoint. He met Gerrard's cross with a firm header that beat Tim Krul, only to watch the ball cannon off the bar in the 72nd minute.


Finally, in the 78th minute, talismanic Gerrard put the game to bed, finishing close from a good Henderson through ball.

All together a veterans effort for Liverpool as thirty-something Gerrard and Dirk Kuyt came off the bench to compliment another aging star - thirty-three year old Craig Bellamy.


Alan Hansen, the former Liverpool man may have made the mistake in thinking that clubs could not win with kids (Alex Ferguson's 'kids' proved him wrong).


But there is no question in anyone's mind that veterans can win. A bunch of old men proved it tonight for Liverpool.

English Players Don’t Dive? Think again.

English Players Don’t Dive, Leon Osman’s Blatant Cheating Ignored By Media (courtesy of Who Ate All the Pie)

By Alan Duffy

On Boxing Day, Martin O’Neill’s Sunderland were a goal ahead and looking to pick up all three points against Everton when, early in the second-half, the Toffees’ diminutive schemer Leon Osman ran into the Black Cats box with the intention of shooting on goal. The midfielder then completely missed his kick, with his foot hitting the turf instead of the ball. As he lost his balance and fell, Osman then raised his arms in protest at an apparent trip by a Sunderland player before punching the ground in anger at the phantom foul. This blatant act of cheating won Everton a penalty which Leighton Baines duly converted, to give his side a share of the points.

However, on Match of the Day that evening, none of the pundits dared to question Osman’s motives, instead pointing the finger at referee Howard Webb for awarding the penalty. This pre-meditated glossing-over of an obvious and outrageous act of cheating was repeated in most of the media after the game and one again highlighted the English media’s refusal to treat English and foreign players equally. Imagine if it had been Balotelli, Nani, Arteta or Adebayor who had won their side a spot-kick in a similar fashion to Osman? The pundits and journos would have had no hesitiation in branding the player a cheat or at least properly highlighting the player’s dishonest actions. Indeed, players such as Morten Gamst Pedersen have been mocked on MOTD for blatant diving, yet Osman is an Englishman and, as we know, Enlgishmen don’t cheat. Except Rooney, Gerrard and myriad others, of course.

There has been much talk about racism in football in recent weeks, but the fact that a casual, subtle xenophobia still pervades the media who cover the game, is also an issue which needs to be addressed.

To watch highlights of the match, click on 'video' to take you to the Who Ate All the Pie's website.The incident starts at 1 min 19 secs on the video…

Match Day 18 (Boxing Day) Scores and Analysis

Chelsea vs. Fulham - Stamford Bridge, London

Three things Andre Villa Boas got wrong in this game -

1. Didier Drogba should have started against Fulham instead of Torres. The mere presence of Drogba terrorizes Fulham's Centre Back, Phillipe Senderos. In fact, thanks to Drogba 'owning' him, his career ended at Arsenal.
2. Frank Lampard should not have started or played. Juan Mata should  be Chelsea's number #1 attacking midfielder. A diamond formation midfield with Mata up top, Ramirez, Merieles and Romeu at the bottom should be AVB's lineup.
3. Sturridge should not have been substituted. Bringing in Drogba and moving Torres to the right side didn't make sense. Torres is useless wide, while Sturridge has scored all his goals playing wide.

Three things Fulham did right -

1. Pack the midfield with Dempsey, Dembele, Bryan Ruiz, Murphy and youngster, Frei
2. Frei was sensational operating on the left wing
3. Dembele  made the game look easy with his skillful control and navigation in the middle. Dempsey stayed hungry and it paid off with a goal.

West Brom vs. Man City - The Hawthorns, West Bromwich

West Brom worked very hard to secure a point at home against the league leaders. They not only defended solidly, they counter attacked and looked likely to take all three points during some parts of the game.


Man City's formation and selection looked odd with James Milner  playing defensive midfield while  Yaya Toure joined the attack. Nasri, Milner and both Full Backs performances were underwhelming. 


Sunderland vs. Everton - Stadium of Light, Sunderland

Stephane Sessognon is slowly showing just how good he is for Sunderland. I will be surprised if he remains at the club next season.




Manchester United vs. Wigan Athletic - Old Trafford, Manchester

Another five-star outing for the defending champions. Dimitar Berbatov makes an appearance and grabs a hat trick. Antonio Valencia gets a rare start at the Right Back position and scores a beauty. Nothing seems to be going wrong for the champions.


For Wigan, same as usual. They find themselves in a very familiar territory at the bottom part of the league. 


Liverpool vs. Blackburn - Anfield, Liverpool

A very disappointing result for the Reds and their fans. Failing to take maximum points from Blackburn at home is a massive miss. What is most troubling is the fact that this is the sixth draw at Anfield this season. On a positive note, Steven Gerrard returned from injury and saw action late in the second half. Nice timing, considering Suarez will be going on a 'forced vacation' soon due to the FA ban.


Steve Kean may just make it to the New Year as Blackburn's boss.


Bolton Wanderers vs. Newcastle United - Reebok Stadium, Bolton

Demba Ba and Hatem Ben Arfa each get a goal to make life miserable again for Owen Coyle. A victory for the Bolton Manager would have guaranteed the safety of his job. He's definitely back in the top 5 managers to be sacked soon.


Stoke City 0 vs. Aston Villa 0 - Britannia Stadium, Stoke-On-Trent

At press time, this game was just getting underway. Final score Stoke City 0 Aston Villa 0

Suarez/Terry Race Saga: Let's Get Back to Playing Ball!!!

Much has been made about racial abuse in the Premiership lately, with Luis Suarez and John Terry playing prominent roles in the issue. However, with the Boxing Day fixtures around the corner, it's time to play ball again.


But before we move on to why we all love this game so much, Footy Bozz will attempt to set the record straight with our thoughts on the Race Sage -


What they did wrong?

1. Luis Suarez - Any insinuations towards an opponent's skin color in a game situation cannot be complimentary, therefore it's wrong. He needs to apologize to Patrice Evra
2. John Terry - Same goes for Terry. I know he's is still being persecuted and he is innocent until proven guilty. But Footy Bozz is going by what was seen on tape. He certainly wasn't complimentary towards Anton Ferdinand in his comments caught on tape.
3. The FA - The eight match ban is pretty harsh, not giving Suarez the benefit of the doubt on grounds of cultural ignorance in appropriate language to use. Unlike the western part of the word, 'Negro' is still a word commonly used in latin america in reference to people of African decent. However, when used to taunt an opponent, it can't be complimentary. Footy Bozz strongly believes the FA harsh ban was imposed to gain political credit for fighting racism, in addition to punishing Suarez. 
4. Liverpool Fooball Club - They have the right to support their player and keep the team and fans motivated. It probably wasn't right to further p**s off the FA, considering Suarez still has another charge hanging on him

Now, LET'S PLAY!!!

Live! Blackburn 0 vs. Bolton 1: Davies scores for Bolton in the 5th minute

...clocks ticking for Steve Kean

Wolves 0 vs. Norwich 1 - Live!

18th minutes gone, the visitors lead by a lone goal scored by Surman, the former Wolves player. Looking like McCarthy may be biting his nails on this one and possibly catching a taxi if this result stays

Manager Sack Index: Bolton vs. Balckburn basement brawl

Match Day 17 do-or-die encounter between Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers will surely result in the sacking of one of their managers.

Currently ranked #1 and #2 on the sack index, Owen Coyle and Steve Kean will go into Tuesday's game knowing that the victor will live to fight another day while the vanquished packs his bags

Joining them both is our good friend Mick McCarthy, Roberto Martinez and returnee Alex McLeish

#1. Steve Kean

Kean knocks off Owen Coyle from the number #1 spot because his team is more likely to lose on Tuesday at Ewood Park. Despite having home advantage, listening to the supporters call for Kean's sack has to be taking a toll on the players. There's only so much they can do.

#2. Owen Coyle

Owen Coyle has to be looking at Kean and Blackburn as the much needed life line to end Bolton's horror start to the season. Playing away from the Reebok Stadium may actually take some pressure away, especially against a side that lacks home motivation.

#3. Mick McCarthy

Nothing changes for Mick McCarthy as his team hosts Norwich City. On paper this looks like a likely game to win, but not so fast. Wolves have lost almost half of the games they've played at home including Saturday's loss to West Brom after taking the lead in the 16th minute. 

Besides, Norwich City are proving a hard team to beat. Since getting trashed 5-1 by Manchester City, they have produced impressive results against Newcastle (4-2) and away at Everton (1-1). Anything less than a draw and McCarthy will surely be catching a bus out of town.

#4. Roberto Martinez

A well deserved draw against Chelsea has bought Roberto Martinez some more time.

Another good result against Liverpool on Wednesday will certainly see him exit the sack index. But a slip up means he gets to go to Old Trafford five days later empty handed. Then on the last day of the year, he gets to visit Stoke City. Brutal.

#5. Alex McLeish

The ginger-head Manager's team display against Liverpool in front of the home crowd was atrocious. 

Next up is Arsenal at home and Stoke City away. He should have moved up to #3 or #4 on the sack index by the time the Stoke game's over.