De Futebol

Barcelona came out looking for total domination over the Mexican side Atlante. Not so, fast bucko. Atlante sent a shock wave through the mighty Barca squad. Atlante struck first. Guillermo Rojas ripped the twines in the 4^th minute to give Atlante the early 1-0 lead.

A misplayed long ball by the Barca “D” allowed Rojas to slip into the goal area. Bam. Bingo. Goal.

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Barca said this is not going to happen on our watch. We’re not going to allow Atlante to upset us big time.

Barcelona began to apply lots of pressure. The siege began on the Atlante goal. Sergi Busquets rammed home the winner in the 35^th minute to tie this sucker up at one all.

A well-placed corner kick set up this baby. The ball was fired into the box. Pass. One timer. Goal.

Enter the best player in the world Lionel Messi in the 53^rd minute. Instant presto. Goal. Messi takes charge. Mate Ibrahimovic slipped a great pass to Messi.  Messi breaks free in the box. Whoop. Messi makes the keeper looked silly.  Shot. Goal. Messi’s walk in goal in the 54^th minute gave Barca a 2-1 lead.

Pedro flat out beat the keeper in the box in the 66^th minute to give Barcelona a 3-1 lead.

Turn out the lights the party’s over.

Stick a fork in Atlante for they are surely done.

A gallant effort by Atlante but this was close but no cigar.

Barcelona proved they were the better side on this day.

Was there any doubt?

Barcelona comes from behind to beat Atlante 3-1.

It is onto the finals for Barcelona where they will face Estudiantes.

This should be a good one.

Now lets go to the fun in the sun EPL

Chelsea almost pulled a draw out of their hat but thank God, for Frank Lampard’s PK winner in the 79^th minute that gave Chelsea a 2-1 win over lowly Portsmouth.

This baby could have wound up in one all draw.

Nicolas Anelka fired a rocket from inside the box to give the Blues the early 1-nil in the 23^rd minute.

Portsmouth discovered the equalizer in the 51^st minute. Once again, the Blues can’t defend a set piece. Fredrick Piquionne rifled home the winner from dead center of the box to tie this baby up at one all.

Enter a dumb foul in the PK area by Portsmouth’s Marc Wilson. Super man to rescue Frank Lampard and thus Chelsea is rewarded a win instead of a tie.

Do you want to talk about crazy? Try this one on for size. The Gunners had a chance to really keep their “MO” alive. But no Arsenal gives up a dumb penalty and winds up snatching a draw from the jaws of victory. It is one all draw between Arsenal and Burnley. Fabregas scored first on a dead on strike that gave the Gunners a 1-0 lead in the 7^th minute.

Then a boneheaded penalty by Thomas Vermaelen gave Burnley the equalizer in the 28^th minute. The run up. The Kick. Crunch time baby. Goal by Graham Alexander to level this sucker at one all.

Instead of three points, Arsenal has to settle for one point.

There goes the Gunners Mojo right out the window.

Now do want to talk about Mojo taking a hike. Let us look at City and the abomination of a performance against Spurs. Spurs kicked City’s butt. This was one of those old fashion take me to the woodshed whooping. 

Spurs win in a cakewalk 3-0.

Way to go garoto.

I just love it.

Tottenham took it Manchester City from the opening whistle. Sure, Tevez missed a gimmie in the opening moments but that was about it for City. City played with a whimper from that point on.

Niko Kranjcar fired the opening salvo in the 37^th minute.  It was follow the bouncing ball as Kranjcar poked home the winner that gave Spurs a 1-0 lead. Lennon fired the cross into the box. Header by Peter Crouch. The ball bounces off of City’s Ireland. Kranjcar deposits the gift into the bank.

Defoe adds another goal in the 54^th minute to make 2-0 Spurs.

Then City just quit. They sorta attacked but not really. Spurs played pitch and catch the rest of the match.

The icing on the cake came in the final moments of the match. Kranjcar attacked the City goal. It was one on three. Whoop. Kranjcar flied past three City defenders. Adebayor was the last line of defense. Here’s your jock mister defender. Shot. It was right through the keeper’s wickets.

Kiss this baby bye-bye for City.

This was a total domination of City by Spurs.

Sure, City was missing some key players but Manchester City quit.

Liverpool picked up a much needed win. The Reds defeated Wigan 2-1. Ngog and Torres scored for Liverpool.

This win keeps the Reds in the hunt for a Champions League spot.

Chelsea is in the drivers seat with 40 points. Manchester United is in second place with 37 points. The Gunners are third on goal difference with 32 points. Arsenal has as game in hand. Villa is in fourth spot with 32 points.  Spurs are in fifth place with 30 points.

Liverpool is now in sixth place with 27 points. City drops to eighth place with 26 points.

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De Futebol

The EPL and FIFA World Club Cup are on tap for today. This is a good mixture of futebol for us on this fine day. Sports Memorabilia and Luci Now Com-e Cigarettes bring my blog to you.

Estudiantes was locked in deadly nil-nil draw with the Pohang Steelers in the semi-finals of the FIFA World Club Cup.

The Pohang Steelers were hanging in there with the superior Argentinean side then a dumb challenge by Pohang’s Jung Kim in the 45^th minute created the opportunity Estudiantes needed to take a choke hold on this match.

Whamo. Bam. Match changer time. Free kick. The ball was lifted high into the air. Bing. Header.  Nothing but the back of the net. 1-0 Estudiantes. Leandro Benitez’s head ticks the winner to send this match spinning out of control.

This goal took all the steam out of the Pohang Steelers sails.

Estudiantes put the match out of reach when Leandro Benitez hit the daily double in the 53^rd minute. This made 2-0 Estudiantes.

Estudiantes Enzo Perez lobbed the ball over the keeper. Benitez was left free near the left post. Pohang defender Kim Jae-sung lost Benitez. Benitez ripped the ball that went boom off the left post and went flying into the back of the net.

Pohang made it very interesting in the 70^th minute. Denilson Martins Nascimiento ripped home the close range winner to make it 2-1 Estudiantes.

Three Pohang Steelers got the heave-hoe.

Pohang’s headman Brasileiro Sergio Farias alluded to the fact that the fix may have been in.

From what I saw, no way Jose was the fix in. The Pohang Steelers played dirty futebol.

Estudiantes has their spot booked in the 2009 FIFA World Club Cup final.

We will know on Wednesday who their dance partner will be. It will be either Barcelona or Atlante.

If I were a betting man, the other finalist would be… I will give you three guess and the first two don’t count.

Aston Villa took care of business in Sunderland’s house the Stadium of Light. Villa breezed to a 2-0 win over Sunderland.  Heskey found the back of the net in the 24^th minute to give Villa a 1-0 lead.

James Milner sealed the deal in the 61^st minute. Milner ripped the shot past the keeper Fulop that put Villa up 2-0. This was all she wrote.

Game, set, and match to Villa.

Villa looks like they are making at run at a league leaders Manchester United and Chelsea.

Villa moves into third place with 32 points.

United righted their wobbly ship by thrashing lowly Wolves 3-0. Rooney started off the goal parade for Manchester United.

Ronald Zubar gave the Red Devils a gift goal. There was no pressure what so ever on Zubar. He made a bone headed play. All he had to do was head the ball out of danger. But no dumbo punched the ball out. Maybe he thought he was playing volleyball. This was a no-no. It was PK time. Up stepped Rooney. Bam. The back of the net was ripped. It is 1-0 Manchester United after thirty minutes.

Man U applied more pressure on Wolverhampton. In the 43^rd minute Darron Gibson fired a corner kick right on the button. Vidic ripped the header from dead center of the box to make it 2-0 Red Devils.

You can now stick a fork in Wolves for they are surely done.

Valencia nailed the right-footed winner in the 66^th minute to give Man U a huge 3-0 win over Wolverhampton.

The win moves Manchester United into a first place tie with Chelsea in the EPL.

Both Arsenal and Chelsea will play on Wednesday night.

Both of these squads know what result is needed. A loss by either side would be disastrous.

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De Futebol

A huge way to go garoto goes out to Banfield for winning their first Argentinean League title in 113 years. El Taladro (The Drill) was founded in 1896. English, Irish, and Scottish immigrants founded the club.

Banfield is located 17 Kilometers south of the center of Buenos Aires. The club is named after Edward Banfield. He was general manager of the Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway from 1865-1892.

Banfield was given the nickname El Taladro (The Drill) by the newspaper El Pampero because the forwards on the futebol team drilled the rival defenses.

Please Bobby Gee enough of the history BS. I can dig it. But I thought you might like it.

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I knew Boca Juniors would come out loaded for bear in their house the La Bombonera.  

This was Boca’s final match of the year. Pride was on the line for Boca Juniors. Lets be really honest Boca was having a crappy year. Los Xeneizes were play like dung. Yes, it was that bad.

Martin Palermo had the daily double for the Genoese. Palermo took it to the rack and was pulled down in the box. Wham. Bam. PK in the 8^th minute and Boca were up 1-0.

Palermo fired a wicked strike that ripped the twines in the 61^st minute to seal the deal for Boca.

Newell’s Old Boys were hoping for this result. Los Leprosos (The Leapers) now had the opportunity to steal the crown. No way Jose. Newell’s lost to San Lorenzo 2-0. You can kiss the title bye-bye.

El Taladro needed a little bit of luck to win the title. Banfield was locked in scoreless draw with bottom feeder Tigre. Then Bam. Shot. Score. Victor Lopez nails the header in the 85^th minute. Game over. El Taladro escaped with a 1-0 win. Hello championship.

Both Boca and River Plate struggled throughout the season. Struggled is a huge understatement. Both teams stunk the joint out. The players should be quartered and shot at dusk for horrible play.

Boca finished in eleventh place with 27 points. River wound up in 13^th place with 21 points. ‘

Both Boca and River are two of the most famous and storied clubs in Argentina futebol history.

Boca has won 24 league titles.

Boca’s last title came with the Genoese won the Apertura in 2008.

Since then, the Los Xeneizes have bombed out of the Copa Libertadores, the Clausura, and the 2009 Apertura.

River Plate has won 33 titles in their 108-year history. The Los Millonarios name came about when River Plate bought two players from rival Argentinean futebol clubs in 1931 and 1932. River secured the services of Carlos Peucelle from Sportivo Buenos and Tigre’s Bernabe Ferreyra.   

To get under the skin of a River Plates fan call them River Gallinas and see what happens.

The EPL has some huge matches coming up on Tuesday and Wednesday. We’ll talk about them when the results come in.

Manchester United battles bottom feeder Wolves on Tuesday. Aston Villa has a hot date with Sunderland.

On Wednesday, Arsenal battles Burnley and Chelsea take on Portsmouth.

Ah yes, fun in the sun with the EPL.

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De Futebol

Arsenal righted their ship while Liverpool’s ship is taking on so much water it is about to sink. You can almost stick a fork in Liverpool’s season after the Reds were defeated in their house Anfield by Arsenal 2-1.

Liverpool played a very strong first half. Dirk Kuyt ripped the rebound winner in the 41^st minute to give Liverpool a 1-0 lead.

Aurelio hit a great free kick into the box. Lucas fired a header that was blocked by Arsenal keeper Almunia. The ball comes bounding out. Shot. Save. Rebound. Header. Goal.

The second half was a different story. The Gunners came out breathing fire. Arsenal played like their lives were dependant upon them winning.

It was.

Then wham bam thank you madam the match was spun around and changed on its head.

Nasri fired a great crossing ball into the box.  Whamo. The ball goes flying off of Reds defender Jamie Carragher. Liverpool’s Glen Johnson is cemented to the spot. Bing. Bam. Boom. The ball ricochets off Johnson and into the Reds net to tie this baby up at one all in the 50^th minute

Eight minutes later, 58^th minute, Liverpool’s Glen Johnson was once again the main ingredient in the Gunners second goal. Fabregas fired a wicked cross into the box. Reds defender Glen Johnson failed to make a play on the ball. Johnson gave Arsenal attacker Andre Arshavin a free play on the ball.

Arshavin took the gift. He quickly turned. Arshavin fired. Goal. 2-1 Gunners and this was all she wrote.

The fat lady sang.

Now you can say Voce Vai Liverpool for your season is surely cooked and burnt to a crisp.

This  was the Reds six loss for the season.

Liverpool’s only hope to save their sorry year is that if the top clubs Chelsea, Manchester United, and Arsenal fall apart and lose their next four matches.

Stranger things have happened.

Do you remember what I said about Aston Villa and Manchester United? 

I do have ESPN, I mean ESP.

They way it stands right now. Chelsea is the top dog with 37 points. The Red Devils are in second place with 34 points. Arsenal is in third position with 31 points. Villa is in fourth place with 29 points.

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De Futebol

Do I have ESPN I mean ESP or what. Aston Villa pulled off the grand daddy of em all. Villa took it to the mighty men of Old Trafford with a convincing 1-0 victory over Manchester United.

The 26 year Old Trafford winless streak is dead and buried for now.

Way to go garoto.

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The Red Devils came out loaded for bear but on this Saturday night Villa had all the answers.

Manchester United pressed the attack.

Villa counter attacked. Aston Villa found the answer in the 21^st minute. Gabriel Agbonlahor headed home the only tally of the match.

This goal was set up by a great give and go between Ashley Young and Agbonlahor. This one two combination proved deadly for Aston Villa.

This loss stuck a fork in Manchester United’s chance of wrestling first place away from Chelsea. Instead, the Red Devils drop their fourth match of the season. This was Man U’s first home loss.

Man U had their chances but once again, the boys from Old Trafford came up firing blanks.

Villa has three wins and zero losses against the big boys. Aston Villa has whipped Chelsea, Manchester United, and Liverpool.

One defensive lapse caused Man U problems.

Once again, stupid defending came up and bit the men of Old Trafford in the butt.

If Man U can learn how to finish, they would be deadly.

They can’t so it may be a long season for Manchester United.

The Red Devils had Rio Ferdinand one of their premier defensive players on the injury shelf. His absence cost Man U dearly. 

The lone goal of the match that did in Man U was a mix up between Wes Brown and keeper Kuszczak gave Villa’s Agbonlahor the crack he need to head home the match winner.

All and all this was a much-deserved win for Aston Villa.

You gotta love the dogs.

Chelsea took on lower feeder Everton. Guess what? The Blues barely escaped with a three all tie with Everton at Stamford Bridge. Another dog bites a top echelon club in the butt.

What has happened to the Blues “D”?

It sucks.

An own goal by Peter Cech in the dying moments of the match killed Chelsea’s chance of putting more distance between them and the rest of the field in the EPL title chase.

Bolton and Manchester City played to a three all tie. This was a crazy but fun match to watch. 

Both teams, left it all on the pitch.

It looked like the Wanderers were going to win when Bellamy dived and was given the heave-hoe. This was his second yellow card.

But No! City pressed the attack. Man City forced their will on the Wanderers. At one point, it looked like City was playing with thirteen men instead of being a man down.

Carlos Tevez death defying goal in the 77^th minute save City’s bacon.

A great run into the box by Tevez. Tevez fired a skittering shot that was squeezed between the right post and the net. Pay dirt for City.

Tevez’s daily double may have saved City’s season.

This what I don’t get. The Wanderers let City attack instead of taking it to them. This should have been pedal to the metal time for Bolton.

It was time to squash City like a bug. No! Bolton sat back and did nothing.

This stupid play cost the Wanderers two points.

Chelsea is in first place with 37 points. Manchester United is in second place with 34 points. Aston Villa is in third place with 29 points. Arsenal is in fourth place with 28 points. Spurs are in fifth place with 27 points.

Spurs had a chance to move into third place but no Tottenham lost to bottom feeder Wolves 1-0.

This win allow Wolverhampton to move out of the drop zone. Wolves are in 17^th place with 16 points.

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De Futebol

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There are two matches that I will be watching with a very keen eye. First up on Saturday is the battle between Manchester United and Aston Villa at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils are a scant two points behind league leader Chelsea.

I am not saying this is a must win but it is pretty damn close to it. 

Man U defender Vidic will be back in the line up. Rooney, Berbatov, and Ryan Giggs are rested and ready to go too.

Aston Villa will have central defender James Collins in tow for this all-important encounter.

Villa will be looking for their first win at Old Trafford in 26 years.

Manchester United cannot afford to sit back and play the waiting game. The Red Devils need to use their superior speed as a weapon by attacking and pressing Villa. This will open the game up and allow Rooney and his mates to create a ton of scoring opportunities. The Red Devils have to be able to finish these chances. If not it will be a long match for the mighty men of Old Trafford.

Villa will be looking to end the 26-year winless streak at Old Trafford. All good things have to an end. It might as well happen on Saturday. It is a good as time any so lets see what happens.

The other match with dire and huge consequences is the Gunners-Liverpool tug of war. Both sides are hurting. Arsenal is missing their big gun RVP. Liverpool hasn’t won in what ten years or so. No, it just seems that long for the scousers.

Torres and Gerrard will be on the pitch for Liverpool and this should help.

The Reds cannot afford to drop any more points. Liverpool has five losses and one more could end their slim chance of winning the EPL let alone compete for a Champions League spot for next year.

Arsenal on the other hand is in contention for the EPL crown. The Gunners trail league leader Chelsea by eight points but Arsenal has a game in hand. A loss by the Gunners could squash their hopes of winning the EPL title but not kill them all together.

The Gunners need to get off to a quick start against the Reds at Anfield. What I mean by a quick start is to attack and force the Reds to play “D”. Tilt the pitch towards the Reds end and pepper the goal with shots. Eduardo, Arshavin, and Walcott need to find the back of the net.

Liverpool on the other hand must have a lights out game from Torres and Gerrard. The Reds cannot afford to have another defensive brain fart by giving up a late goal to either tie or lose the match. If this happens can you say bye-bye Rafa.

Chelsea has somewhat of a breather when the Blues take on lower feeder Everton.

Tottenham has a big date with heave-hoe zone Wolves.

The Blues have been playing like crap of late. If Chelsea takes this baby for granite, they could wind up on the short end of the stick.

Don’t be surprised if the Toffees take it to the Blues.  

I would like to see the Spurs win.

This would keep the pressure on Chelsea, Manchester United, and Arsenal to win.

I love it when it is a real horse race between four or five teams.
I like the dogs even though I am a Manchester United.

In Brasil, fans of teams have names. I am a Flamengo fan. I am called a Flamenguista. Boca Juniors fans are called Los xeneizos or the Genoese. Sao Paulo fans are called Sao Paulinos.

What are the fans called of Chelsea? Manchester United? Arsenal? Liverpool?

I think it is really cool for fans of teams to be called names.

Let’s think about it.

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De Futebol

This is really a strange day. I don’t have my beloved Flamengo to write about. I am lost.

I am lost with nothing to do or write about.

This is really strange but I will get over it.

So, lets talk about the Argentina Apertura. I haven’t written or spoken about Argentinos futebol in a long time.

This is the final week of the Apertura. It comes down to one match and winner takes all. Banfield battles hated rival Boca Juniors. All Banfield has to do is beat eleventh place Boca and the title is theirs. If Banfield wins this will be their first title in 113 years.

Banfield scored a last second goal by Victor Lopez to beat bottom feeder Tigre 1-0 to set up the drama this Sunday December 13^th.

Second place, Newell’s Old Boys defeated Gimnasia La Plata 1-0 on Wednesday night to keep the title out of Banfield’s eager waiting paws.

So, this is the deal.

Banfield leads Newell’s by two points. Banfield has 41 points while Newell’s has 39 points.

Newell’s battles San Lorenzo.

Newell’s can win the title out right if Banfield losses and Newell’s Old Boy wins or if Banfield ties with Boca and Newell’s wins by three or more goals.

All Banfield has to do is win baby.

That’s it.

I am pulling for Banfield to win. I like the dog to win it all.

Why?

Banfield has zippo nothing nada in 113 years playing in both the Apertura and Clausura.

It is about time Banfield wins some hardware for their effort.

The Banfield-Boca match will be played in Boca’s house Estadio Alberto J Armando or better know as the Lá Bombonera or the chocolate box.

This is one of the hardest places for a visiting team to play in the world.

The Boca fans or as they are called Los xeneizos or the Genoese will jump up and down in the stands so that will be life a living hell for the opposition. The Chocolate box will vibrate as if an earthquake is happening while the match is being played on the pitch.

Boca is buried in eleventh place so I have this sneaky suspicion that the Los xeneizos will be loaded for bear in an attempt to stop Banfield from winning the first title in 113 years.

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De Futebol

There is lots of fun stuff to talk about today. Where to begin is the hard part. Arsenal and Liverpool had little incentive to play today. The Gunners played their junior team while Liverpool just played out the string. Arsenal is moving on in Champions League play while Liverpool is going home for good.

The youngsters of Arsenal lost to Olympiacos 1-0. Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott proved they have lots of promise.  Ramsey almost found the equalizer in the dying moments of the match but a great sweep save by the Greek keeper Nikopolidis kept the 18-year-old Ramsey off the scoreboard.

Theo Walcott is totally back from his hamstring injury. Walcott took it to the rack. He just missed on a high-powered riser shot that was tipped over the cross bar by the keeper Nikopolidis.

Vela and Wilshere each had some great shots on goal but they couldn’t quite find the back of the net.

Olympiacos started their first team against the young studs. Arsenal’s young studs took it to the more experienced Greek side. The Gunners almost pulled off the win. This is a very good sign for Arsenal.

Olympiacos moves on to the knockout stage.

Liverpool on the other hand sleepwalked their way through their final Champions League match at Anfield.

The Reds gave up two late goals and lost to Fiorentina 2-1.

Liverpool found the back of the net first. Yossi Benayoun header tickled the twines in the 43^rd minute to give Liverpool a 1-0 lead.

The Italian side was playing for the top spot in Group E. Fiorentina attacked and attacked until they cracked the Reds “D” in the 63^rd minute. Martin Jorgensen zinged the winner past Reds keeper Diego to tie this baby up at one all.

Fiorentina scored the match winner in the 90^th minute. Alberto Gilardino struck twelve to lift the Italian side to a 2-1 win.

There is a ray of hope in the clouds of doom that hovered over Anfield. Reds super star Fernando Torres played the final quarter of the match.  It looks like he’ll be ready to play in the Reds Gunners clash this Sunday December 13^th at Anfield.

In Group D, Internazionale, Barcelona, and Rubin Kazan were duking it out for the final two-playoff spots.

Inter defeated Rubin Kazan 2-0.

Barcelona fell behind early to Dynamo Kiev before rallying for a 2-1 victory. Kiev scored first. Artem Milevskiy ripped the twines in the 9^th minute to give the Russian side the 1-0 lead.

Barcelona began to squeeze the Russian side back into Kiev side of the pitch. Xavi knocked home a close range marker in the 33^rd minute to tie this baby up at one all.   

Messi scored the match winner in the 86^th minute. His free kick ripped the twines to seal the deal for the defending Champs Barcelona.

Both Inter and Barca are on to the next round.

Next up for Barca is the FIFA World Club Cup Championship.

In play in game for the FIFA World Club Cup New Zealand’s Auckland City took it to the hosts Al Ahli 2-0.

The Kiwis recorded the opening salvo. Adam Dickinson ripped a winner in the 44^th minute to give Auckland City a 1-0 lead.

Chad Coombes put the final nail in the hosts Al Ahli coffin in the 66^th minute. Coombes smashed the twines to give Auckland City the 2-0 win.

Next up for the Kiwis is the Mexican side Atlante.

The 2009 addition of the FIFA World Cup should be a wild and crazy affair. If it all goes according to plan Barca and Argentina side Estudiantes should meet in the finals in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday December 19^th.

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Sports/Futebol

The mighty Red Devils came into their final match in the group stage of the Champions League one hurting puppy. Manchester United’s entire back line “D’ is hurt.

The Red Devils needed at least a tie to be assured of winning Group B.

Maybe Man U should have called 911 for this match against the German side VfL Wolfsburg.

But superman came to the rescue in the form of old man Michael Owen.

Owen’s hat trick led Man U to a 3-1 win over Wolfsburg to insure the Red Devils will win Group B with 13 points.

Both teams played pretty even Steven for much of the first 45 minutes. Owen changed that in one fail swoop. Owen headed home a great pass by Nani in the 44^th minute to give Man U 1-0 lead at the break.

Wolfsburg equalized in the 56^th minute. Edin Dzeko poked home the unchallenged header to even this puppy up at one all.

Edin spilt the seam between Red Devil players Carrick and Evra and that was all the space Edin needed to find play dirt. 

Owen scored the go ahead goal in the 83^rd minute. Gabriel Obertan took on three Wolfsburg defenders. Obertan beat all three of them. He laid off a great pass to teammate Michael Owen who knocked home the winner to give the Red Devils a 2-1 lead.

Owen’s final goal in the 90^th minute sealed the deal for Manchester United.

This goal was a set by a crossing ball by Wolfsburg’s Ziani into the Man U box. Seven of his mates miss played the ball. Bam. Fletcher clears it to Obertan. Obertan hit Owen’s. Owen has a one on one with the Wolfsburg keeper Benaglio. Owen dinks the ball over the helpless keeper.

This was all she wrote.

The money match or nut-cutting match of the day took place between Juventus and Bayern Munich. Win and you advance. Lose and you go home.

I love it this way.

Juventus scored first. David Trezequet nailed the winner in the 19^th minute to give the Italian side the 1-0 lead.

The Germans found the answer in the 30^th minute when Jorg Butt nailed a PK  to even it up at one all.

Goals by Olic, Gomes, and Tymoschuk ended Juventus ambitions of advancing to the knockout stage of the Champions League.

What made this all the worse for Juventus was that they bombed out in their own house. This is not cool. This stinks.

Chelsea sleepwalked through a two all draw with Apoel Nicosia. The Blues have already advanced to the next round.

This is not a good sign for the Blues.

Chelsea is on a three game winless streak.

Lets see how this translates when the Blues take to the pitch this weekend.

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Sports/Futebol

Flamenguista land is still on cloud nine after Mengao won their sixth Campeonato title. Way to go garoto. This is the best news since sliced bread. Adriano won the golden ball award in The Campeonato Brasil. This is the USA’s version of the league MVP.

Adriano was the key force in Rubro-Negro’s Campeonato Title. The Emperor led the Mengao attack with 19 goals.

Petkovic was the big reason way Rubro-Negro won the title. Since he joined the club in early September, the mad Serbian has scored 8 bad boys. This forced the opposition to play a more honest defensive game. Instead of just concentrating on Adriano, the other teams had to stop Petkovic too.

Emerson had eight tallies as well.

Ze-Roberto found the net five times too.

The addition of Petkovic changed the complexion of Flamengo’ s offense. Sure, he lacked speed but he brought power to the line up. What I mean is that Petkovic in hoops terms was a power forward that crashed the goal and forced other teams to stop him from gathering up the trash in front of the net and turning it into points.

This cat is a Dennis Rodman, Luke Jackson, and Bobby Orr type of player.

When Petkovic arrived in early September Mengao went on an eighteen match unbeaten string.

Can you say we are the Champions?

Tottenham had a chance to move into third place in the EPL. But, no, Spurs blew it and wound up with two all tie with Everton.

Spurs jumped out to a big 2-nil lead. Goals by Jermain Defoe and Michael Dawson gave Spurs a 2-0 lead.

Then all hell broke loose in the final twelve minutes. Can you say collapse? Or was this a bad case of the yips.

Wham bam thank madam Everton scores twice to tie this bad boy up.

Red Devils reject Louis Saha and Tim Cahill scored to tie it up.

Spurs had a chance for the winner but no, choke city by Jermain Defoe on a PK in added time.

Palacios drove into the box. A great tackle by Hibbert sent Defoe to the line. Clank. A shot right at Everton keeper Howard. Stop. Save.

Kiss bye-bye Spurs chance of moving into third place.

Not on this day.

Oh yes, the 2009-10 version of the EPL title race will be a wild and crazy affair.

I just love it.

Go ahead and make my day. On Sunday Flamengo did.

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Sports/Futebol

Happy days are here again. All us Flamenguistas are screaming and yelling. Yes, Flamenguista land is filled with joy and happiness.

Flamengo took care of business. Mengao came from behind to beat Gremio 2-1 to win the Campeonato title for the sixth time.

Yes, I know the 1987 title is a bone of contention for many but Mengao won it so it counts.

This was Rubro-Negro’s first title since 1992.

The unthinkable happened.

Mengao rose up the table while Palmeiras, Internacional, and Atletico-MG all fell apart.

Flamengo languished near the bottom of the Campeonato during the first half of the season. Cuca was fired. Enter Andrade. Rubro-Negro goes on an eighteen match unbeaten streak that culminated in Mengao being crowned Campeonato for the sixth time.

Rubro-Negro fell behind early. Gremio scored first when Roberson poked home the free ball past Mengao keeper Bruno in the 21^st minute.

This goal was set up by a great corner kick.

Rubro-Negro “D” fell asleep.

Mengao didn’t sit back. Flamengo took it to Gremio.

David was rewarded when he knocked home the equalizer in the 29^th minute.

Ronaldo Angelim scored in the 69^th minute to seal the deal for Flamengo.

Angelim headed home a great ball off a corner kick.

Sao Paulo ended their season on an up note with a decisive 4-0 shutout of Sport.

Internacional took it to Santo Andre 4-1. Botafogo upset Palmeiras 2-1.

This just proves that Tricolor was right when they got rid of Muricy.  Muricy almost ruined two clubs in one season Sao Paulo and Alviverde.

With the win, Botafogo escaped getting the heave-hoe. Fluminense tied Coritiba one all.

Sport and Nautico already had their fate settled. Both Leao and Alvirrubro were already given their walking papers to Series B.

Santo Andre and Coritiba filled the final two I am outta here spots.

Once again, Flamenguistas are the Champions.

Oh happy days.

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Sports/Futebol

So far so good for Arsenal and Manchester United. Both sides came away with much needed wins. Liverpool on the other hand could only come up with a nil-nil draw against Blackburn.

The mighty Red Devils started out the match against West Ham with a whimper but in the second half Manchester United found their stride and kicked some major butt.

The tide in the matched turned just before halftime when Paul Scholes struck twelve. Scholes strike gave the Red Devils a 1-0 lead in the 45^th minute.

In the second half, it was Katie bar the door. Darron Gibson’s power strike gave the Red Devils a 2-0 lead in the 61^st minute.

Valencia discovered the back of the net in the 70^th minute to give Man U a 3-0 lead. Valencia’s shot was from point blank range. West Ham’s keeper Daniel Gabbidon never had a prayer to stop that baby.

Rooney scored two minutes later, 72^nd minute, to stick a dagger in West Ham’s heart.

Kiss this match good-bye. The final tally was a 4-0 win for Manchester United.

Wayne Rooney had a hand in all four goals.

The Red Devils have finally found their stride. Manchester United was sluggish in the first half but the Red Devils dialed it up a notch and showed that speed kills. Man U has fantastic team speed.

The Gunners ground out an all-important 2-nil win over Stoke City. Andrey Arshavin was the hero of the match for Arsenal. Arshavin sweet goal in the 26^th minute made 1-0 for the Gunners. 

Fabregas could have been the goat of the match when he missed a sure fire PK in the 21^st minute.

Redemption was sweet for Fabregas when he made up for it with a great assist to set up Arshavin’s goal in the 26^th minute.

Aaron Ramsey’s strike in the 76^th minute secured the Gunners 2-0 win over Stoke City.

Liverpool may have stuck a fork in their season. The Reds and Blackburn played to a nil-nil draw.

This match was an utter bore.

The closest score came when David Ngog’s shot rattled the cross bar in the 71^st minute. Other than that nada.

I wonder if Liverpool has given up on the season.

The Reds performance lacked heart and desire. It looked like Liverpool sleepwalked through the match.

This is not good.

Maybe it’s time to fire the team and the manager in one fail swoop.

Finally, City’s fixture in the EPL draw column is over. Manchester City upset Chelsea 2-1. Yes, I said upset for this was truly upset city baby. City did it. They finally beat one of the top four clubs.

This was truly an amazing game. Chelsea drew first blood. A crazy scramble ball in front of the City net led to an own goal by Adebayor in the 8^th minute to give the Blues 1-0. Shot. Block. Kick out. Shot. Rebound. Own goal. Score.

Many thought here we go again.

Not.

Instead of quitting City ratcheted up the pressure and took it to Chelsea.

This attacking style changed the complexion of the match.

Adebayor redeemed himself in the 37^th minute. He smashed the rebound home to tie this sucker up at one all.

Tevez nailed a free kick in the 56^th minute for what was for all intensive purposes the match winner.

There was no quit in the Chelsea dog. For the Blues turned up the heat and furiously attack City.

It almost paid off.

Drogba was leveled in the box by City defender Onuoha in the 81^st minute.

I thought oh baby here we go again. City decided to sit back and let Chelsea attack.

At this point, the Blues tilted the pitch towards City’s end. Chelsea had 90% of the possession in the last thirty minutes.

Up steps mister reliable Frank Lampard. The run up. The shot. Saved by Given. Whew baby that was close.

City escaped by the hair of their chinny chin chin.

This win ends City’s seven-match sting of draws.

Way to go garoto.

People I know what I am talking about. I have been saying this all season long. The way to beat Chelsea is to attack them with short passes. Press the ball up the pitch. Don’t play long ball and for whatever you do don’t sit back and play the wait and see game.

This tactic almost cost Manchester City the game.

Manchester United did this. The Red Devils couldn’t finish. Man U made two stupid defensive errors that cost them the match. But the Red Devils gave the rest of the EPL  the blue print on how to beat Chelsea.

Please trust me on this.

I know this stuff like the back of my hand.

Chelsea is still in first place with 36 points. Man U is in second with 34 points. Arsenal moves up to third with 28 points. Tottenham drops to third with 26 points but the Spurs have a match on Sunday. Man City moves up to sixth place with 25 points.

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Sports/Futebol

Lets get down to the business at hand. No not the World Cup draw. It’s EPL time baby. There are some huge matches with some heavy implications for several teams this weekend in the EPL.

The biggie is City taking on Chelsea at City of Manchester. This one will be a thriller.

City finally found a way to get into the win column instead of the draw column by thrashing the Gunners Wednesday night 3-0 in the Carling Cup quarterfinals.

Now let’s see if City can win in a real EPL match.

This will be a hard task. The Blues will be loaded for bear. Drogba, Anelka, Ballack, and Malouda will attack pedal to the medal to make up for the Blues horrible performance against the Rovers in Wednesday nights 4-3 shoot out loss in the quarterfinals of the Carling Cup.

You can bet the farm on this fact.

City will be looking to get into the win EPL column for the first time since Man City defeating lowly West Ham 3-1 on September 28^th.

This was way back in the time machine.

It’s put up or shut up time for City.

Will all this high priced talent finally pay big dividends? 

Will Tevez, Adebayor, Gareth Barry, and Robinho finally torch the nets as expected and lead Manchester City to the Promised Land?

Will Craig Bellamy be a force against an A team?

Or will he be a popgun against the likes of Drogba and company?

These are good questions aren’t they?

Maybe Bellamy and the City boys will fizzle out and lose or draw against the Chelsea juggernaut.

The Red Devils need to explode out of the box against West Ham. Rooney and the boys must attack and put this baby away early. Rooney needs to tickle the twines. Berbatov will be back and lets hope he can rip the twines as well.  Welbeck needs to step his scoring out put too.

West Ham is a wounded duck team.

West Ham will be without striker Carlton Cole and Mathew Upson.

Arsenal needs a big “W” against Stoke City. This is a must win. With Theo Walcott and Van Persie out the Gunners desperately need youngster Jack Wilshere to have a slam bang match. This means shove it into the back of the net baby. As my main man Dickie V would scream, “ This kids a Prime time player. He needs to step up and rip the twines. He’s a PTPer baby.”  

Eduardo needs to have a huge match as well.

The Gunners need to show up big time and kill em.

It’s matter of heart my man.

The other must win team is Liverpool. The Reds can’t afford to screw up against the Rovers. This match will be a blood bath. Blackburn’s manager Sam Allardyce will be back to guide the Rovers. Allardyce had heart surgery earlier this week. His return will be a huge boost for Blackburn.

Besides that Blackburn is coming off a great 4-3 PK shoot out win over Chelsea earlier this week.

Liverpool will be without Torres.

Liverpool needs to win.

These are the money matches for this Saturday.

My wife and I can’t wait to watch all the action unfold before our very eyes.

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Sports/Futebol

When I am wrong I am really wrong. I totally misread the entire situation regarding Arsenal and Manchester City. I thought the Gunners would come out breathing fire instead Arsenal played with a whimper. Vela, Wilshere, and the rest didn’t look like they even bothered to put up a fight.

There was no fight in this dog.

This is not a good sign for the Gunners.

This was a half assed performance. This was bad.

Sure, the Gunners had some good moments but this was about it.

After a scoreless first half, Tevez ripped the twines top shelf to give City a 1-0 lead at the 50^th minute.

Gunner’s keeper Fabianski never had a chance.

The Tevez goal was the result of bad turnover in the Gunners end. Rosicky was careless with the ball and flat out lost it. I can hear Dickie V screaming, “TO baby. TO Baby.”

Shaun Wright Phillips put the nail the Gunners coffin in the 69^th minute. Wright Phillips made Gunners defender Silvestre look stupid. Hey, Silvestre here’s you jock back. Walk about in the box. Shot. Goal.

2-0 City it’s all over Arsenal.

Bellamy made the Gunners “D” look foolish in the 89^th minute. Bellamy gives City newcomer Vladimir Weiss his first goal for City. Thank you very much Craig Bellamy.

Stick a fork in the Gunners. They are done.

Wilshere and Song should be rewarded for great defending.

City slaughters Arsenal 3-0.

City’s seven-match draw string is over.

The Gunners are in deep trouble.

Wenger was really pissed and he didn’t even bother shaking City’s headman’s Mark Hughes hand after the match.

Yet, reports have surfaced that Hughes was acting like an ass throughout the match. So the truth is? Who knows?

In one of the craziest matches, I have ever seen the Blackburn Rovers defeated Chelsea in a PK shootout 4-3.

This match had a little bit of everything. Two missed PK’s. Two blown for sure goals in extra time by Blackburn. Bad defending. An injury that cost Chelsea the match. Mister excitement scores and a whole lot more.

I just loved it. This was a fun one to watch.

Blackburn scored first on a great strike by Nikola Kalinic in the 9^th minute.

Blues manager Ancelotti had seen enough of Chelsea’s crappy play in the first half so he inserted superman Drogba, Gael Kakuta, and Jeffery Bruma into the second half lineup.

Magic presto, Drogba scored in the 48^th minute. Four minutes later Kalou scored to give the Blues a 2-1 lead in the 52^nd minute.

The Rovers tied this baby up four minutes later, 56^th minute, when Brett Emerton leveled the match at two all.

Regulation ended in a two all draw.

Now Blackburn and Chelsea headed into extra time.

Chelsea was a man down when Kalou injured his groin in the 71^st minute. Chelsea used their maximum of three subs at the start of the second half.

Blackburn’s Benedict McCarthy nailed a PK in the 93^rd minute to almost seal the deal for the Rovers.

But no, all hell broke loose. Blackburn took their foot off the gas pedal. David Hoilett missed two point blank shots in the 118^th and 120^th minutes that could have put a dagger in Chelsea’s comeback chances.

A misplayed ball in the box by Rovers keeper Robinson allowed Chelsea to send this baby into a PK shootout in the 120^th minute. Robinson looked like the Keystone cops when he misplayed Malouda’s free kick.  Paulo Ferreira knocked home the equalizer.

Two great stops by Robinson saved Blackburn’s bacon and thus allowed the Rovers to advance to the semi-finals of the Carlin Cup by defeating Chelsea 4-3 in the PK shootout.

Yes, dear you can now resume breathing naturally again.

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Sports/Futebol

Manchester United’s young studs showed up and shutout Spurs 2-0 to send the Red Devils into the Carling Cup semi-finals. This was about time guys.

Darron Gibson scored both Red Devils goals.

This was a complete whitewash of Tottenham.

The first was a powerful strike that flat out beat the keeper Gomes. Gomes never had a chance. Gibson’s shear power struck twelve. Actually, it was lower left corner of the net. This made it 1-0 for Man U at the 16^th minute.

Gibson struck again in the 38^th minute. A give and go between Welbeck and Gibson killed the Spurs “D”. Gibson’s curled shot landed top shelf right to stop Tottenham dead in their tracks. Gomes was as helpless as a baby.

If this kid Gibson can get on track Manchester United will be a very dangerous club down the road so the rest of the EPL better watch out. Two shots on goal and two scores. Way to go garoto.

The cats at Tottenham are very sad about this showing but hey; Manchester United had a chip on their collective shoulders. I don’t care what Gibson and the  rest tell us the Red Devils were  on a mission to prove that the young studs are for real.

Spurs will tell ya Manchester United’s young dudes are.

This just goes to prove the point that when a team plays with a chip on their shoulders they will perform at a top level.

The big difference between this year’s Red Devils and last year’s Red Devils is this. You think I am going to say the fake Ronaldo has gone onto to Real Madrid. Not!

The 2009-10 edition of Manchester United is quicker than the 2008-09 squad. Anderson, Gibson, Welbeck, and Rooney have such blazing speed that once these cats can find the back of the net on a regular basis watch out EPL for here come the Red Devils.

The one thing that cannot be taught or coached is speed. Speed kills.

What killed the Red Devils in the Chelsea match was not finding the back of the net and those two stupid defensive errors. Manchester United was so much faster than the Blues. Chelsea had a hard time keeping up with the Joneses, I mean the Red Devils.

In the other half of the bracket, Aston Villa doubled up Portsmouth 4-2.

Portsmouth started off on a great note when Villa’s Stiliyan Petrov knocked the ball in his own goal in the 10^th minute to give Portsmouth a 1-0 lead.

Villa found their stride and scored the next three goals to end Portsmouth dreams of an upset city baby.

Heskey’s strike in the 12^th minute tied this sucker up at one all.

James Milner scored the go ahead goal in the 27^th minute to give Aston Villa a 2-1 lead.

Stewart Downing’s goal in the 74^th minute made it 3-1 Aston Villa. This goal nearly put the match out of reach for Portsmouth but Pompey inched ever so closer when Kanu nailed a winner in the 87^th minute to cut the Villa lead to 3-2.

Ashley Young found the back of the net in the 89^th minute to put the kibosh to Pompey’s dream of finding the equalizer.

This was all she wrote.

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Sports/Futebol

It has all come down to this. Win and Flamengo is the Campeonato champ. Lose and all hell breaks loose in Rio de Janeiro. The pressure is on baby. This is more important than winning.

Rio’s pride and reputation is on the line.

This is what us Flamenguistas have been waiting for since 1992. Mengao’s last Campeonato title.

Mengao has won Campeonato titles in 1980,1982, 1983, 1987, and 1992.

The 1987 title is counted by Flamengo but not by the official governing Brasil futebol body the CBF.

Flamengo won it so it counts.

Maracanã will be rocking on Sunday afternoon. All eyes will be turned to Adriano, Petkovic, Ze-Roberto, Moura, and the rest of the guys.

Please God no screw-ups.

Campeonato titles don’t come everyday. The only side to win a three peat is Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo has won a record six Campeonato’s.

Sao Paulo lost 4-2 to Goias on Sunday and Alviverde lost 2-0 to Gremio on Wednesday November 18. These two losses paved the way for Mengao to move into first place in the Campeonato.

Tricolor can become the first side to complete a four-peat but three things have to happen Internacional, Palmeiras, and Flamengo all have to lose.

Let’s hope not.

It is now time for Flamengo to step up to the plate and knock it out of the park.

Andrade says the tie with Goias taught Mengao a valuable lesson. This helped Flamengo to become more mature. Rubro Negro needs to go after the title.

Principal interessado, o técnico Andrade prefere ser imparcial. “Aquele empate com o Goiás deixou o time mais maduro, calejado, experiente. E há tropeços que vem na hora certa. Aquele serviu de alerta. No campeonato inteiro não conseguimos a liderança. E conseguimos agora, na penúltima rodada. Acho que isso é um grande passo que demos. Mas temos de buscar o título, que é o mais importante para o Flamengo”.

It is now or never for Flamengo.

This is put up or shut up time for Rubro-Negro.

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Sports/Futebol

Flamengo did what they needed to do on Sunday. Mengao came up with a huge 2-0 shut out victory over Corinthians.  Sao Paulo lost to Goias 4-2. Rubro-Negro is now in first place of the Campeonato with 64 points.

Way to go garoto.

The entire Flamenguista nation is very happy.

Ze-Roberto led off the scoring with a great drive to the rack. Ze-Roberto spilt the “D” in two. He flat out beat the keeper Felipe with a great strike top shelf left to give Flamengo a 1-0 lead after the 26^th minute.

In the 88^th minute, Leo Moura had a clear run into the right side of the box. Dodo shoved Moura in the back. Moura nailed the PK to salt this baby away for Mengao.

All Flamengo has to do is beat Gremio at home in Maracanã next Sunday and Mengao will win their sixth Campeonato crown.

Rubro-Negro started the season off like crap. At one point Mengao was on the verge of getting the heave-hoe. Cuca was leading Flamengo into ruins. Cuca was given the voce vai amigo. Enter Andrade mid-July and magic presto Flamengo goes on a seventeen match unbeaten string.

League leaders Palmeiras, Internacional, and Atletico-MG went into a huge nosedive and thus paved the way for Rubro-Negro to climb up the table into first place in the Campeonato.

During the final months of the season, Palmeiras completely fell apart. Alviverde won four, lost five, and tied three. Sao Paulo on the other hand worked their way up the table but when push came to shove Tricolor lost four matches in October and November. These losses may have cost Sao Paulo’s chance for a four-peat.

Sunday’s match against Goias is a prime example of what I am talking about. Tricolor could have moved one point clear of Mengao but no; the Evil Empire got their clocks cleaned by Goias 4-2. Tricolor has lost two straight. Tricolor have lost two out of their last three. In October and November Tricolor has four wins, four losses, and two ties.

You don’t win championships playing this way.

This crappy play opened the door just enough for Flamengo to barge through. Mengao is now on the verge of winning their sixth Campeonato.

One more win is the Flamenguista cry.

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Sports/Futebol

What started out with such promise ended in utter disaster for Arsenal. The matched started out great for the Gunners. Arsenal had most of the possessions but little to show for it.

But once again, mister money player showed up. Didier Drogba punished the Gunners in the 41^st minute. Cole’s great low cross into the box was struck home by Drogba to give the Blues a 1-0 lead.

Can you say game, set, and match?

Four minutes later, an own goal by Thomas Vermaelen sealed the Gunners fate. Ashley Cole fired ball into the box. Bing. Bam. Boom. The ball ricochets off of Vermaelen’s shin into the Arsenal net to make it 2-0 Chelsea at the break.

Turn out the lights the party’s over.

Stick a fork in Arsenal for they are surely done on this Sunday.

Arsenal thought they had cut the lead to 2-1 but Arshavin’s smash into the back of the net was disallowed due to Eduardo’s high boot on Blues keeper Cech.

Drogba’s lightening quick strike from twenty-five yards out in the 86^th minute sealed the deal for Chelsea. The Blues 3-0 win over Arsenal places Chelsea into the drivers seat in the race for the EPL title.

Chelsea is in the pole position with 36 points. Man U is in second place with 31 points.

The Spurs are now in third place with 26 points. Arsenal is in fourth place with 25 points.

Liverpool jumped into fifth place with a huge 2-0 win over Everton.

Everton completely outplayed the Reds but Liverpool won on an own goal by Joseph Yobo. Reds Javier Mascherano fired a great ball into the box Yobo made a bone head play. Yobo deflected the ball past keeper Tim Howard to give Liverpool a 1-0 lead after the 12^th minute

Dirk Kuyt nailed the winner off another defensive boo-boo by the one and only Yobo in the 80^th minute to make it 2-0 Reds.

Can you say I would rather be lucky than good?

The Reds now have 23 points.

This win may have saved Liverpool’s season.

Chelsea looks like the class of the EPL so far however there is still a lot of futebol to be played. The EPL champ will have anywhere between four and six losses.

Please don’t forget that the Blues will be without out Drogba for the month of January due to the Africans Cup.

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Sports/Futebol

Three penalties. One questionable PK awarded. All and all Manchester United came away with a hard-earned 4-1 win over bottom feeder Portsmouth.  Wayne Rooney finally got off the schnid and had a hat trick. Two PK kicks and a powerful strike by Rooney led the Red Devils to an all-important win.

Rooney’s second goal was a classic futebol play. Buda bing Buda boom right down the pitch. A great give and go at the top box between Giggs and Rooney made Pompey look really stupid. Shot. Score. Kiss this baby bye-bye for Portsmouth.

Pompey made it interesting when Red Devil’s defender Vidic was called for a Mickey Mouse penalty on a free kick in the 32^nd minute.

The ref said that Vidic tugged Frederic Piquionne shirt. Give me a freakin break. This was an insane call. Why not put a dress on Piquionne instead.

Kevin Prince Boateng connected on the PK to send shivers down Manchester United’s collective spines.

Not to worry The Red Devils came out smoking in the second half and scored three goals to salt this puppy away.

Manchester City recorded their seventh consecutive tie a one all draw with Hull City. Seven consecutive draws by City set a new EPL record for kissing your sister. This is getting patently ridiculous for City.

This begs the question. With all the big bucks spent to buy a title, was the money spent wisely?

I will give you three guess and the first two don’t count.

City now has more draws than wins. City has five wins and seven draws.

Spurs fell behind early to Aston Villa. Villa’s Gabriel Agbonlahor knocked home a scramble ball in front of the Spurs net in the tenth minute. Shot. Block. Rebound. Block. Score. 

Tottenham rallied in the second half to tie this baby up on great strike by Michael Dawson in the 77^th minute.

Villa keeper Brad Friedel was the hero of the match. He made several point-blank saves of for sure Spurs goals late in the match to preserve the tie for Aston Villa.

I love the style of futebol Spurs and Villa played. This was racehorse futebol up and down the pitch. Punch counterpunch. Attack counter attack.

Spurs needed three points but a tie will do in a pinch.

Tottenham has 26 points.

Villa has 23 points.

This tie still keeps Spurs within striking distance of league leader Chelsea.

Chelsea has an epic struggle with Arsenal on Sunday.

If Chelsea wins, there will be a ten-point spread between the Blues and Spurs. If Chelsea losses the spread will only be seven points.

In the survival race in Brasileiro Series B America, Ipatinga-MG, Juventude, and Fortaleza are fighting to avoid the last two heave-hoe spots. The bottom four clubs get 86^th.

It all comes down to this final Saturday to see who gets the final two heave-hoe invites.

ABC and Campinense-PB are already booked their demotion spots.

American tied Ceare zero-zero.

Ipatinga-MG defeated Vasco 2-0. Vasco didn’t have that much to play for since Gigante de Colina has already secured first place in Series B and will be promoted to the Campeonato for next season.

Juventude had a chance to leap-frog out of the heave-hoe zone but Verdao lost to Guarani 2-1.

Gone are ABC, Campinense-PB, Juventude, and Fortaleza. America just missed being sent down by a mere two points. Juventude had 44 points. America had 46 points.

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Sports/Futebol

It is nut cutting Saturday and Sunday in the EPL and Campeonato Brasil. The grand daddy of em all happens on Sunday at Arsenal’s house Emirates Stadium. League leader Chelsea takes on the Gunners.

This is a must win for Arsenal.  Even though the Gunners have a game in hand, Arsenal trails Chelsea by eight points. The Blues have 33 points. Arsenal has 25 big ones.

The wild card player in the Blues Gunners match up is Drogba. If Drogba has his typical match, it will be a long one for Arsenal. The Gunners have to put the clamps on Drogba. Do not give him space to operate and set the table for Anelka, Deco, and Lampard.

With Van Persie out Arsenal needs to have Walcott, Wilshere, and Eduardo rip the twines.

Fabregas will have a huge role in the match against Chelsea as well. Fabregas will be wearing the Captains armband. Cesc Fabregas has scored six goals so far so it is imperative for him score as well too.

I have this sense the match changers will either be Drogba or Fabregas.

Flamengo has a huge match against Corinthians as well on Sunday. Mengao is in second place with 61 points.  Sao Paulo is in first place with 62 points.

Rubro-Negro travels to Sao Paulo take on Corinthians at Timao’s house Brinco de Ouro de Princesa. 

Adriano needs to come up big. So does Petkovic and Ze-Roberto. Ties not wins are a must if Flamengo wants to win their sixth Campeonato.

Adriano said that Mengao must forget what Sao Paulo does against Goias and concentrate on Corinthians. Adriano said Flamengo has to come away with the win.

“Não podemos ficar pensando no São Paulo. Precisamos fazer a nossa parte diante do Corinthians. O nosso confronto será muito complicado. Esperamos fazer um grande jogo e sair com a vitória de Campinas”, salientou Adriano, acrescentando.

So there, you have it from the Emperors mouth. It is put up so shut up time for Rubro-Negro.  We have to play together. The only way Mengao can win is if Flamengo plays together as a unit.

 ”O grupo é muito unido. Todos se respeitam e isso é muito importante. Sabemos que só vamos conseguir o nosso objetivo se estivermos juntos. Queremos o título brasileiro, mas se ele não vier, tenho certeza que todos ficarão com o sentimento de um bom trabalho”, emendou o Imperador.

Palmeiras has a hot date with Atletico-MG on Sunday. Sport and Internacional battle it out on Sunday as well.

Three points separate the top four clubs Sao Paulo, Flamengo, Palmeiras, and Internacional.

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