It’s the Premier League

[sphericthor]

Saturdays FA Cup 3rd Round Results:

Accrington 0-0 Colchester
Birmingham 4-0 Blackburn
Barnsley 0-0 S****horpe ;)
Bradford 1-2 Luton
Cardiff 0-1 Sheff Utd
Coventry 2-1 Peterborough
Crewe 0-1 Telford
Everton 3-1 Norwich
Gillingham 3-2 Charlton
Ipswich 3-0 Derby
Kidderminster 1-1 Wolves
Mansfield 0-2 Burnley
Man City 2-2 Leicester
Middlesbro 0-0 Notts County
Millwall 2-1 Walsall
Northampton 1-1 Rotherham
Nottm Forest 1-0 West Brom
Portsmouth 2-1 Blackpool
Preston 3-3 Reading
Southend 1-1 Scarborough
Southampton 0-3 Newcastle :applaud:
Sunderland 1-0 Hartlepool
Swansea 2-1 Macclesfield
Tottenham 3-0 Crystal Palace
Tranmere 1-1 Bolton
Watford 2-2 Chelsea
Wigan 1-2 West Ham

[tedward]

Ar 3-0 to Newcastle and a 3-0 victory for Celtic in the old firm derby aswell. (your other team I believe)

Still those rumours about Martin Oneil going to Liverpool - They are saying he has taken celtic as far as he can without new money and that is why he might want to leave.

[sphericthor]

Yeah my teams are doing well and both games were screened live on the BBC, which made it even better.

Also about Martin O'Neill, you might find this story from Ceefax interesting;

Martin O'Neill has laughed off fresh reports that he is to replace Gerard Houllier as Liverpool manager in the summer.
And the Northern Irishman has reiterated his desire to stay with Celtic.

"It's totally and utterly untrue," said O'Neill. "How many times have I got to say it?

"I'm going to try and remain calm and say that story is totally and utterly untrue."

The rolling nature of O'Neill's present contract led to speculation that he could use it as a way to take up a major Premiership post and the latest reports suggest that he has told Liverpool to bear him in mind should Houllier leave.

"I wouldn't worry too much about what clauses are in my contract, because it's immaterial," he insisted.

[tedward]

yea i already heard that - theres no doubt though that Liverpool would jump at the chance of having martin oneil on boad.

[sphericthor]

I don't think there'a many teams that would turn down the chance to have Martin O'Neill on board but he is a Celtic fan which is the best kind of manager you can ask for because they'll put their heart into every game, they'll feel the joy of victory and the sorrow of losing even more than your typical manager. I think he'll stay with Celtic for at least another year before deciding if he wants to leave or not.

[sphericthor]

Sundays FA cup 3rd Round results

Aston Villa 1-2 Man Utd
Fulham 2-1 Cheltenham
Leeds 1-4 Arsenal
Yeovil 0-2 Liverpool

[sphericthor]

Full fourth-round draw

Man City or Leicester v Tottenham
Swansea v Preston or Reading
Northampton or Rotherham v Man Utd
Kidderminster or Wolves v West Ham
Arsenal v Middlesbrough
Coventry v Accrington or Colchester
Ipswich v Sunderland
Luton v Tranmere or Bolton
Liverpool v Newcastle :eek:
Burnley v Gillingham
Nottingham Forest v Sheffield Utd
Portsmouth v Barnsley or S****horpe
Everton v Fulham
Telford v Millwall
Southend or Scarborough v Watford or Chelsea
Birmingham v Wimbledon or Stoke City

[tedward]

Yeh thats some draw for newcastle :)

[smokiechimp]

BASTARDS! :p

[sphericthor]

Hey Smokie one of us has to win and it wont be the team in Red :p http://www.smilies.okipages.com/s/contrib/ed/before.gif

[tedward]

Im leaning towards liverpool in this match up.

[smokiechimp]

http://www.smilies.okipages.com/s/contrib/ed/before.gif

I saw that gif ages ago and pissed myself!!!! :funny:

Is that Bruce grobbolar!?! ;)

[tedward]

lol.

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by smokiechimp
http://www.smilies.okipages.com/s/contrib/ed/before.gif

I saw that gif ages ago and pissed myself!!!! :funny:

Is that Bruce grobbolar!?! ;)

Could be, I just spotted it and thought it would be hilarious to use but now that I think of it, that just could be Bruce

[sphericthor]

Last nights mid week results

BOLTON 1-2 MAN UTD
EVERTON 1-1 ARSENAL
CHELSEA 0-1 LIVERPOOL
MAN CITY 1-1 CHARLTON
MIDDLESBROUGH 2-1 FULHAM
NEWCASTLE 1-0 LEEDS :D
SOUTHAMPTON 0-0 LEICESTER
TOTTENHAM 4-1 BIRMINGHAM
WOLVES 2-2 BLACKBURN

[smokiechimp]

YEE FRICKIN' HA!!!!!

Cheyrou comes through for the reds! What a result!

Also I'm glad Everton got a result against Arsenal too. :)

[tedward]

Thought you would be chuffed.

Do you guys reckon Man U have the league all but sewn up again this year or do Arsenal stil have a chance

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by sphericthor
NEWCASTLE 1-0 LEEDS :D
Bad luck leeds, hopefully Spurs will be better this weekend, even without Alan Smith.
By the way, i'm decided not to post very often anymore, this is because I have found better things to do, but if your lucky i may still bless you with my presence.

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by tedward
Do you guys reckon Man U have the league all but sewn up again this year or do Arsenal stil have a chance

Well if my dreams come true and Newcastle beat United tomorrow and Arsenal win then it's back again but if Arsenal draw that's it all over

[tedward]

Originally posted by J Diddy
Bad luck leeds, hopefully Spurs will be better this weekend, even without Alan Smith.
By the way, i'm decided not to post very often anymore, this is because I have found better things to do, but if your lucky i may still bless you with my presence.

You'll be back, they all say that but you will be back maybe not today, nor tomorrow but you willl be back - feel the force.

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by tedward
Thought you would be chuffed.

Do you guys reckon Man U have the league all but sewn up again this year or do Arsenal stil have a chance

Man U will take it.

I keep thinking that Leeds are going to pull out of this mess and then they go and put in a crap performance like they just did and prove me wrong! Get it together guys!

Liverpool will move to 4th if they beat bottom of the table Wolves in their game in hand match up! COME ON! :D

[sphericthor]

Arsenal 4-1 Middlesbrough
Blackburn 3-4 Bolton
Birmingham 2-1 Southampton
Charlton 2-0 Wolves
Fulham 2-1 Everton
Leeds 0-1 Tottenham
Liverpool 1-0 Aston Villa
Portsmouth 4-2 Man City

[tedward]

How many Champions League places are there for next year? three, four?

[smokiechimp]

Four, Liverpool should get it.

[tedward]

A draw for your team thor against the devils - and a fair penalty disallowed.

[sphericthor]

Damn right it was an unfair decision by Gurkin, he even admitted it after the match. Jenas hitting the crossbar was another moment that nearly killed me, I just watched it fly past Howard and bang off the bar, it was going in slow motion for me. Then when they had the goal disallowed justice was served for the earlier mistake but in all fairness we ruled the first half but faltered in the second

[smokiechimp]

Good result for Liverpool that was! :)

[A+]

And just in case you didn't notice, Torquay pulled off a good win against Northampton, 3-1 the final score. Lee Cannoville is a football genius.

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by J Diddy
Bad luck leeds, hopefully Spurs will be better this weekend, even without Alan Smith.
By the way, i'm decided not to post very often anymore, this is because I have found better things to do, but if your lucky i may still bless you with my presence.

1. You never posted often in the first place

2. Your only spending more time getting stoned

and 3. Blehhhh! :p

[sphericthor]

England have been rated eighth in the latest Fifa rankings along with Euro 2004 qualifying rivals Turkey.
The announcement sees no move for Sven-Goran Eriksson's side, while Scotland and Wales have both steadily climbed.

Wales have moved up one place to 65th place despite their failure to reach the European Championship.

Meanwhile Scotland climb from 54th to 51st, while of the other home nations Northern Ireland slump below Rwanda and Madgascar in the latest standings.

They are now 124th, two places below their December ranking.

The Republic of Ireland remain in 14th spot.

And Brazil, on 848 points, are still clear at the top spot, a further 22 points ahead of France.

Spain are third, while Holland and Argentina round off the top five.

1 Brazil
2 France
3 Spain
4 Holland
5 Argentina
6 Czech Republic
7 Mexico
8= England
8= Turkey
10 Italy

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by smokiechimp
2. Your only spending more time getting stoned

time and money!
But like i said, i've got better things to do ;)

A sad loss yesterday, one of the best goalkeepers englands ever had, retired from the game.

Seamo!!! Seamo!!!!

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by J Diddy
time and money!
But like i said, i've got better things to do ;)

A sad loss yesterday, one of the best goalkeepers englands ever had, retired from the game.

Seamo!!! Seamo!!!!

I might just join you, I'm sick of this place, it sucks right now.

[tedward]

Im only here 'cos i'm so close to 3000.

[A+]

Come on guys, we can rebuild this place, make it our very own home from home. This is my only outlet for venting football furies.

[sphericthor]

At this rate I'll have the whole thread to myself, there's no fun in that. There's just nothing happening in here to have a discussion about. I try posting news but that usually lasts for 2 replies because that's all the people who are here to reply

[A+]

OK, let's discuss. Seaman out, James in, what do you think?

Scarborough earning a dream tie with Chelsea in the cup. Could they cause an upset?

Strachan to leave Southampton. Will this leave their season in tatters? Will others follow him out?

Can Alex Rae single handedly keep Wolves in the Premiership?

The answers to these and other exciting questions...next.

[smokiechimp]

I'll still be around the backroom forums but I'm not posting alot anymore for a while.

I live 1 hour away from Scarborough so I'm naturaly DELIGHTED about that fixture. :)

[sphericthor]

Todays fixtures

Premiership

Bolton v Portsmouth
Everton v Charlton
Man City v Blackburn
Middlesbrough v Leicester
Southampton v Leeds
Tottenham v Liverpool
Wolves v Man Utd (12.30 Kick off)

Division One

Bradford v Cardiff
Burnley v West Brom
Derby v Gillingham
Ipswich v Crewe
Millwall v Sunderland
Nottm Forest v Reading
Preston v Wigan (12.30 Kick off)
Rotherham v Norwich
Sheff Utd v West Ham (5.35 Kick off)
Walsall v Coventry
Watford v Crystal Palace
Wimbledon v Stoke

Division Two

Barnsley v Bournemouth
Bristol City v Chesterfield
Luton v Stockport
Oldham v Sheff Wed
Peterborough v Brentford
Plymouth v Rushden
Port Vale v Grimsby
QPR v Brighton
Swindon v Colchester
Tranmere v Hartlepool
Wrexham v Notts Co
Wycombe v Blackpool

Division Three

Carlisle v Yeovil
Huddersfield v Boston
Hull v Oxford
Kidderminster v Darlington
Leyton Orient v Mansfield
Lincoln v Torquay
Macclesfield v Cambridge
Northampton v York
Rochdale v Bristol Rovers
S****horpe v Bury
Southend v Doncaster
Swansea v Cheltenham

Scottish Premier

Rangers v Motherwell
Kilmarnock v Dunfermline
Dundee Utd v Aberdeen
Livingston v Hibernian
Partick Thistle v Dundee

[A+]

Premiership

Bolton 1-1 Portsmouth
Everton 1-2 Charlton
Man City 2-0 Blackburn
Middlesbrough 0-0 Leicester
Southampton 0-1 Leeds
Tottenham 1-2 Liverpool
Wolves 0-2 Man Utd (12.30 Kick off)

Lincoln 0-3 Torquay

My predictions for the day.

[sphericthor]

My predictions

Bolton 2-1 Portsmouth
Everton 2-2 Charlton
Man City 0-0 Blackburn
Middlesbrough 1-0 Leicester
Southampton 2-0 Leeds
Tottenham 1-3 Liverpool
Wolves 0-3 Man Utd

[sphericthor]

Wolves has just beaten Man Utd 1-0

[tedward]

Wow what a great result.

My predictions.

Bolton 2-0 Portsmouth
Everton 1-0 Charlton
Man City 0-1 Blackburn
Middlesbrough 0-0 Leicester
Southampton 1-0 Leeds
Tottenham 0-2 Liverpool
Wolves 1-0 Man Utd :)

[sphericthor]

Premiership

Bolton 1-0 Portsmouth
Everton 0-1 Charlton
Man City 1-1 Blackburn
Middlesbrough 3-3 Leicester
Southampton 2-1 Leeds
Tottenham 2-1 Liverpool
Wolves 1-0 Man Utd

Division One

Bradford 0-1 Cardiff
Burnley 1-1 West Brom
Derby 2-1 Gillingham
Ipswich 6-4 Crewe
Millwall 2-1 Sunderland
Nottm Forest 0-1 Reading
Preston 2-4 Wigan
Rotherham 4-4 Norwich
Sheff Utd 3-3 West Ham
Walsall 1-6 Coventry
Watford 1-5 Crystal Palace
Wimbledon 0-1 Stoke

Division Two

Barnsley 1-1 Bournemouth
Bristol City 4-0 Chesterfield
Luton 2-2 Stockport
Oldham 1-0 Sheff Wed
Peterborough 0-0 Brentford
Plymouth 3-0 Rushden
Port Vale 5-1 Grimsby
QPR 2-1 Brighton
Swindon 2-0 Colchester
Tranmere 0-0 Hartlepool
Wrexham 0-1 Notts Co
Wycombe 0-3 Blackpool

Division Three

Carlisle 2-0 Yeovil
Huddersfield 2-0 Boston
Hull 4-2 Oxford
Kidderminster 1-1 Darlington
Leyton Orient 3-1 Mansfield
Lincoln 1-3 Torquay
Macclesfield 0-1 Cambridge
Northampton 2-1 York
Rochdale 2-2 Bristol Rovers
S****horpe 0-0 Bury
Southend 0-2 Doncaster
Swansea 0-0 Cheltenham

Scottish Premier

Kilmarnock 1-1 Dunfermline
Dundee Utd 3-2 Aberdeen
Livingston 1-0 Hibernian
Partick Thistle 1-2 Dundee
Rangers 1-0 Motherwell

[A+]

Woo, go Torquay! Another great win as the gulls go marching on to...uh, maybe the playoffs. Hooray!

Shocker for Man Utd, they just didn't seem to know what to do going forward, and Wes Brown always seems to cost them a goal. Overall my predictions were pretty bad.

[tedward]

I got three out of six. Arenal beat villa today too and Arsenal are now two points clear at the top.

[A+]

Chelsea held to a goalless draw. Like Man Utd they didn't really look like they had too many ideas about how to break their opponents down. Arsenal never seem to look like that.

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by A+
Woo, go Torquay! Another great win as the gulls go marching on to...uh, maybe the playoffs. Hooray!

Shocker for Man Utd, they just didn't seem to know what to do going forward, and Wes Brown always seems to cost them a goal. Overall my predictions were pretty bad.

What about Hull Citty beating Oxford 4-2! :D

Still top of the table! :applaud:

[A+]

Yeah Hull are running away with it. About time they took all that money up a division. But we fully outplayed them at Plainmoor!

[smokiechimp]

I agree, we seem to have these spurts of rubbish football half way through a good run. Thats what lets us down in the last third of the season.

[sphericthor]

3-1 to the Toon last night and Laurent Robert scored an excellent goal, an overhead back heel damn that was excellent to see

[A+]

An overhead back heel? How does that even work? I must seek out this goal.

[sphericthor]

Trust me it was something very strange and I can't work out how it was done, but it was special at the same time

[sphericthor]

First Arsenal get beat by Middlesborough 1-0 on Tuesdya night and then Bolton thrashed Aston Villa 5-2 both in the Carling Cup.

Liverpool were also held to a 1-1 by Wolves after Kenny Miller scored in the 89th minute

[A+]

So good they named him twice, and by looking at that second free kick, they were right to do so! He hit that! I don't think the keeper would've wanted to get a touch on that. Angel is about the only thing keeping Villa from really struggling.

Still haven't seen that Robert goal.

[Peter]

Whats up with Wolves at the moment - first they beat Man Utd and then a tie with Liverpool!

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by A+
Still haven't seen that Robert goal.

Damn!! He was quoted on his official site talking about it claiming that it was all down to playing his sons PlayStation2 and when he was in front of goal the only thing he could do was to hit it reverse and it just ended up as a back heel over head kick

[sphericthor]

SATURDAY'S FA CUP TIES

Arsenal v Middlesbrough
Birmingham v Wimbledon
Burnley v Gillingham
Coventry v Colchester
Ipswich v Sunderland
Liverpool v Newcastle (5.35PM Kick Off)
Luton v Tranmere
Portsmouth v S****horpe
Scarborough v Chelsea (12.30pm Kick Off)
Swansea v Preston
Telford v Millwall

SUNDAY'S FA CUP TIES

Everton v Fulham
Man City v Tottenham (1pm Kick Off)
Northampton v Man Utd (4.05pm Kick Off)
Nottm Forest v Sheff Utd (2pm Kick Off)
Wolves v West Ham

[sphericthor]

SATURDAY'S FA CUP TIES

Arsenal 1-0 Middlesbrough
Birmingham 1-1 Wimbledon
Burnley 2-1 Gillingham
Coventry 3-1 Colchester
Ipswich 2-2 Sunderland
Liverpool 1-2 Newcastle (5.35pm Kick Off)
Luton 1-1 Tranmere
Portsmouth 2-0 S****horpe
Scarborough 0-4 Chelsea (12.30pm Kick Off)
Swansea 2-3 Preston
Telford 2-0 Millwall

SUNDAY'S FA CUP TIES

Everton 2-0 Fulham
Man City 2-1 Tottenham (1pm Kick Off)
Northampton 0-3 Man Utd (4.05 Kick Off)
Nottm Forest 2-1 Sheff Utd (2pm Kick Off)
Wolves 0-1 West Ham

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by Peter
Whats up with Wolves at the moment - first they beat Man Utd and then a tie with Liverpool!

Yea, lets not mention that......Mkay!?! :p


WELL DONE SCARBOROUGH :applaud:

[smokiechimp]

Liverpool 2 - 1 Newcastle

Wahoo!

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by smokiechimp
Liverpool 2 - 1 Newcastle

Wahoo!

http://www.click-smilies.de/sammlung0903/traurig/sad-smiley-044.gif

[A+]

Torquay win again! 4-1! Come on!

No major shocks as I recall, looking forward to this afternoon's draw. Why do I sense a tie between two of Arsenal, Chelsea and Man Utd.

[A+]

Fifth-round draw
Man Utd v Man City/Tottenham
Tranmere v Swansea
Telford/Millwall v Burnley
Sunderland v Birmingham
Sheff Utd v Coventry/Colchester
Arsenal v Chelsea
Liverpool v Portsmouth
Everton/Fulham v West Ham

Please note my previous predictive post was made before the draw. Arsenal and Chelsea have indeed been drawn against each other. I feel sorry for the likes of Swansea and Telford who've managed to miss out on getting glamour ties. Though I guess it's nice to have little teams later on in the competition.

[sphericthor]

I read your previous post before the draw so you have nothing to worry about for confirmation of your predictions but Aresnal vs Chelsea is the tie of the round but I would love to see Man City get through and knock United out of the cup

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Man Utd 3-2 Man City/Tottenham
Tranmere 1-0 Swansea
Telford/Millwall 2-1 Burnley
Sunderland 1-1 Birmingham
Sheff Utd 2-0 Coventry/Colchester
Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea
Liverpool 3-0 Portsmouth
Everton/Fulham 1-0 West Ham

[tedward]

And the Olyroos beat newzealands olympic team 2-0 - only one more game then its on to Athens.

Have they decided about entering a Great Britain team for the olympics yet? I think they went cold on the idea, but i would like to see it.

Liverpool for the cup btw. (maybe)

[A+]

Whenever I wonder about a GB olympic team I get told that you can only enter a team if that's the usual team that represents the country, and since we have England, Ireland, Wales, Scotland all with seperate football teams I think it's against the rules for us to have a GB team. Plus all the club bosses would get annoyed that it's yet more tiring games for their precious pampered stars.

Isn't it a bit early to make predictions? You don't even know all the ties. If Tottenham get through United will crush them far more convincingly than that, though that could be a good rpediction if it's city.

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by A+
I feel sorry for the likes of Swansea and Telford who've managed to miss out on getting glamour ties. Though I guess it's nice to have little teams later on in the competition.
What are you on about, Telford might get to play Burnley, I've personnally only been to one better place than Burnley and that was Dewsbury, it's got everything you could possibly imagine.

[sphericthor]

Lets see what I can sum up for today

Newcastle are set to sign Stephen Carr from Spurs a day after Nolberto Solano left for Aston Villa in a £1.5million deal

Leeds have until 5pm today to get the £5million they need to avoid Administration but they might just have it

Chelsea signed Scott Parker from Charlton for £10million

Ruud Van Nistelrooy signed a new 5 year deal with Manchester United

[smokiechimp]

Liverpool 3 - 1 Everton

[smokiechimp]

thats my prediction by the way. :)

[sphericthor]

Man Utd v Southampton (1230) - 3-2 to United (latest score)

I'm just writing my predidctions beside the fixtures

Birmingham v Newcastle - Newcastle to win 2-1
Charlton v Bolton - Charlton to win 2-0
Fulham v Tottenham - 1-1 draw
Leeds v Middlesbrough - 2-2 draw
Leicester v Aston Villa - Villa to win 2-1
Liverpool v Everton - Liverpool to win 2-0
Portsmouth v Wolves - Wolves to win 2-1

[sphericthor]

Birmingham 1-1 Newcastle
Charlton 1-2 Bolton
Fulham 2-1 Tottenham
Leeds United 0-3 Middlesbrough
Leicester City 0-5 Aston Villa
Liverpool 0-0 Everton
Man Utd 3-2 Southampton
Portsmouth 0-0 Wolves

[smokiechimp]

I couldn't have been more wrong! :funny:

What a great game though! :D

[tyneside_lad]

Transfer news. (source: bbc.co.uk)

Leeds striker Michael Bridges has signed for Newcastle on a three-month loan deal.

Leeds United are trying to tie up a deal for Newcastle striker Lomano Tresor LuaLua.

Goalkeeper Paul Robinson seems set to join the Leeds exodus and is undergoing a medical at Tottenham.

Birmingham are hoping to seal a move for Martin Taylor of Blackburn, who in turn are keen to tie up a deal for Huddersfield striker Jonathan Stead.

[sphericthor]

Not bad news, I was just checking up on BBC Sport too.

[tyneside_lad]

More Transfer news.

Brazil international Ricardinho has moved to Middlesbrough on loan until the end of the season.

Portsmouth have signed Newcastle's LuaLua on three-month loan deal. Leeds had hoped to land LuaLua as part of the deal that took Michael Bridges to St James' Park for three months. But the switch fell through and Pompey boss Harry Redknapp moved in to complete a deal before the deadline.

Pompey have paid a £100,000 loan fee for LuaLua, and will discuss a permanent deal at the end of the season. Portsmouth have also captured Leicester defender John Curtis on a free transfer.

Paul Robinson has decided to stay at Leeds after holding talks with Tottenham over a £2m move.

Premiership strugglers Leicester City have signed Derby striker Lee Morris for a nominal fee.

Elsewhere, Birmingham have signed Martin Taylor of Blackburn, who in turn are keen to tie up a deal for Huddersfield striker Jonathan Stead.

And Charlton have bagged talented young midfielder Jerome Thomas from Arsenal in a deal worth £100,000.

Source: bbc.co.uk

[A+]

You've missed the major shock: Defoe to Tottenham! Didn't expect that one when he had interest from the likes of Man Utd. I feel sorry for Bobby Zamora though.

[tyneside_lad]

Originally posted by A+
Defoe to Tottenham! Didn't expect that one when he had interest from the likes of Man Utd.
With the top three clubs already making a big(ish) signing, i wouldn't have thought that they'd go for him now IMO. Tottenham need someone to help keep them away from the bottom third of the table, dont know if he'll do the job but i cant see them getting relegated though (unfortunately). :)

[Myers]

Middlesborough just scored; it's 2-0 on Aggregate against Arsenal...

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

GET IN THERE BORO!!!!!! WE'RE OFF TO CARDIFF!

[A+]

It's great seeing Arsenal get beaten.

[A+]

Torquay are at Swansea today, so I'm going to QPR to see Notts County. How odd.

[sphericthor]

Results

Aston Villa 2-0 Leeds
Bolton 2-2 Liverpool
Everton 3-4 Man Utd
Middlesbrough 0-1 Blackburn
Newcastle 3-1 Leicester :applaud:
Southampton 0-0 Fulham
Tottenham 4-3 Portsmouth
Wolves 1-3 Arsenal

[rObix]

Originally posted by A+
It's great seeing Arsenal get beaten. it's so rare :p

go gunners.

henry is one away from his premiership century goal mark.

[J Diddy]

Being a Leeds fan is ridiculas at the moment, they've lost about 7 on the trot.
Henry and Hasslebank are only one goal away from 100 premiership goals, i have some pride in saying that Jimmy Floyd Piggybank used to play for Leeds before thay sold him years ago, so some of those goals are for Leeds.

[sphericthor]

<img src=http://img3.photobucket.com/albums/v32/sphericthor/prem_table_top.jpg>
<img src=http://img3.photobucket.com/albums/v32/sphericthor/prem_table_bottom.jpg>

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by J Diddy
Being a Leeds fan is ridiculas at the moment, they've lost about 7 on the trot.
Henry and Hasslebank are only one goal away from 100 premiership goals, i have some pride in saying that Jimmy Floyd Piggybank used to play for Leeds before thay sold him years ago, so some of those goals are for Leeds.

Is that where he learnt how to dive in the box and get a penalty!?! :p

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by smokiechimp
Is that where he learnt how to dive in the box and get a penalty!?! :p
Funny! :rolleyes:
Tard

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Results
Everton 3-4 Man Utd
heard this was a great match, anyone see it?
its supposed to be on mutv here on thursday. hopefully they dont double it up as the FSN match of the week. i'd like to actually see the whole arsenal game, and not just highlights.

[smokiechimp]

Originally posted by J Diddy
Funny! :rolleyes:
Tard

Shut it you Poop Pusher! :p

Leeds Suck Balls! :clown:

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by rObix
heard this was a great match, anyone see it?
Great match, i wanted Everton to win, but the match you want to see is Super Leeds 4:1 victory over Wolves. Leeds now rise off the bottom.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

WOOO

United 2 - 3 BORO!!!

[sphericthor]

Ah Jeez, Craig Bellamy is injured again, he could hardly walk after the match against Blackburn last night but it's only a slight knock on his knee

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

The tackle he took was a ****ing bastard, how was the Blackburn player not even booked for that? He just dove in and took Bellamy down, even his reaction looked like he had no intentions of winning the ball.

But Thor..Your going down on saturday at the hands of the Boro!

[smokiechimp]

Liverpool Are 4th, Liverpool Are 4th, Ee Ehy Adio, Liverpool Are 4th!

MINT! :D

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
But Thor..Your going down on saturday at the hands of the Boro!

hahahahahahahaha you wish!! We're not even playing on Saturday :p

But you can dream all you want, the Toon will destroy Boro

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Well... I forgot saturday was FA Cup.. but WE WILL WIN!

[sphericthor]

Gordan Strachan just quit as manager of Southampton

Source BBC Sport

Southampton boss Gordon Strachan has quit the Premiership club with immediate effect.
The club have released a statement confirming that Strachan has left three months ahead of his planned departure.

But speculation that Glenn Hoddle will return to the club is premature - with reserve team boss Steve Wigley handed the reins until the end of the season.

Chairman Rupert Lowe will then choose a successor - with Hoddle and Plymouth boss Paul Sturrock in the frame.


Strachan was due to step down at the end of the season on health grounds - but he believes leaving now was the best course of action to take.

"This is a truly great club with a truly great squad of professionals and it is with regret that I am leaving for my own reasons," Strachan told the club's website.

"Steve Wigley will do a first class job between now and the end of the season and I fully support his interim appointment.

"The chairman and I feel this to be the best course of action.

"I hope the media will now allow the club to fully concentrate on the remaining fixtures of this season while the chairman works to appoint my successor."

Lowe revealed he met with Strachan on Thursday and decided it was in the club's best interests to part company.

"Gordon and I met and have both concluded that it is in the best interests of the club for him to step down as manager with effect from Friday," said Lowe.

"Gordon has done a great job for us during his two-and-a-half years tenure and, unusually in football, leaves us on the very best of terms.

"He and his family will always be welcome at our club while I remain chairman."

[sphericthor]

Sat Feb 14 2004

FA Cup Fifth Round Results

Sunderland 1 - 1 Birmingham
Fulham 0 - 0 West Ham Utd
Millwall 1 - 0 Burnley
Tranmere 2 - 1 Swansea City
Man Utd 4 - 2 Man City

[rObix]

Originally posted by J Diddy
Great match, i wanted Everton to win, but the match you want to see is Super Leeds 4:1 victory over Wolves. Leeds now rise off the bottom. i missed it because there was a hockey game on, but it might be on again here. the amount of MU **** they play over here is sickening to an arsenal fan :x
we did get the arsenal wolves game, which was good.
man, molineux is a ****ty pitch...

didnt get to see the southampton match though. oh well.

cant wait to see the arsenal chelsea FA cup match. got a friend in the uk to do a computer cap for me. i hope he'll do the premiership match next week as well.

[A+]

It's quarter final draw day! Anything but United v Arsenal! That should really be the final, or possibly one involving Liverpool. So basically I want those big three to avoid each other and fight it out in a later round, otherwise we're gonna have a Millwall v Fulham final. Or Arsenal will walk it. I just want the FA cup to have a few decent games in the later stages, rather than a load of predictable ties cos the big teams put each other out in round 3.

[smokiechimp]

If Liverpool don't beat Portsmouth in the reply Houlliers head will be on the chopping block for sure!

At least where 4th now! :D

[sphericthor]

You're only in 4th place on goal difference Monkey boy, the Magpies will take 4th place at the end of the season


FA CUP SIXTH-ROUND DRAW


(Ties to be played March 6/7)

Millwall v Tranmere Rovers
Manchester United v Fulham/West Ham
Birmingham/Sunderland v Sheffield United
Liverpool/Portsmouth v Arsenal

[A+]

At least we're still on for a United-Arsenal final, which I think would be a great game cos whoever misses out on the league will want revenge and the others will be looking for the double and be high on confidence.

Now I've said that we'll get the bore fest of Birmingham-Liverpool.

[sphericthor]

All praise the Rep. of Ireland for the fine display against the world champions Brazil ending in a 0-0 draw

[sphericthor]

Two promotion-chasing Indian football teams have been suspended for cheating after scoring an incredible 116 goals between them in their final games of the season.

Promotion rivals Curtorim Gym and Wilfred Leisure went into the last round of matches level on points, but with Curtorim seven ahead on goal difference.

As both teams attempted to out-score the other, Curtorim finished with a 61-1 win over Sangolda Lightning, while Wilfred thumped Dona Paula Sports Club 55-1.

When the half-time interval arrived, there was little sign of what was to follow. Wilfred Leisure were a mere 6-0 up, while their challengers were being held to a humble 1-1 draw.

But when news filtered through of how the other team was doing, all hell broke loose and the crazy scoring antics began.

Both teams were vying for promotion from the second division of Goa's regional league, but after the 'unusual' results, they have been suspended for a year, together with their unworthy opponents Sangolda and Dona Paula.

Goa Football Association secretary Savio Messias said, "It is really unfortunate. We have suspended all four teams for one year and have recommended that they should be expelled permanently."

Maybe Northern Ireland could arrange a friendly with the defeated sides as a little morale-booster. Even they could manage to bang in a goal or two.

Click here for full story (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3500353.stm)

[A+]

That is just bizarre. I think they got what they deserved, those players shouldn;t be allowed to play the game any more if that's all the respect they have for it.

Though playing them against Northern Ireland? I think a bet on 0-0 would be a wise investment! ;)

Hats off to the Republic though, showing they are a decent outfit despite unfortunately missing out on Euro 2004.

[rObix]

any word on if Henry will be back for Arsenal tomorrow for the Chelsea match?

[sphericthor]

There's no news on Henry at the moment

Bolton v Man City
Charlton v Blackburn
Chelsea v Arsenal (1230 GMT)
Man Utd v Leeds (1230 GMT)
Newcastle v Middlesbrough
Southampton v Everton
Wolves v Fulham
A Villa v Birmingham (Sun)
Tottenham v Leicester (Sun)

FA CUP
Portsmouth v Liverpool (Sun)

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
There's no news on Henry at the moment
crap.
well, i guess if reyes scores two more, we won't miss him terribly :x

[rObix]

i guess i can answer my own question.
Henry, Gilberto, Ljungberg, and Campbell are back.

however, Cole, Parlour, Aliadiere, Wiltord, and Keown are out with injury.

i'll take that trade off though :x

[A+]

Only loss in that lot would've been Cole, but Clichy did well.

I think it's safe to congratulate Arsenal on winning the title. The only side who might have beaten them lost to them today, and if Man Utd can only draw with Leeds then they're not gonna make any kind of comeback in the title race. Though given some of the football the Gooners played today they're worthy champions.

[rObix]

Originally posted by A+
Only loss in that lot would've been Cole, but Clichy did well.

I think it's safe to congratulate Arsenal on winning the title. The only side who might have beaten them lost to them today, and if Man Utd can only draw with Leeds then they're not gonna make any kind of comeback in the title race. Though given some of the football the Gooners played today they're worthy champions. i havent seen the match yet. im hoping its fox sports net's match of the week, otherwise i'll just have to live with a box score :/

this is crazy...is their unbeaten streak a premiership record, or just an arsenal record?

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Damn you and the Geordie scum Sphericthor! DAMN YOU TO HELL!

You didn't deserve the win to be honest, and thats not a biased opinion, I watched the game and it looked like Boro we're the better side, at most it should of been a draw.. Ricketts goal shouldnt have been disallowed as he was anything but offside, he was miles onside and finished it superbly, yet unfortunately.. Newcastles 14th man, (linesman, other 2 are the referee and the other linesmen) disallowed it.. utter ****e

[sphericthor]

Excuses, excuses.............. I told you last week to stop dreaming about Boro beating Newcastle but I haven't seen the highlights yet but The Premiership is on ITV soon so I'll be back after I see how it went

[sphericthor]

Just seen the highlights of the Newcastle/Boro game and all I can say is that you have Mark Scwarzer to thank for making a few great saves during the game to keep the score down but as for the 1st Newcastle goal there was only 1 person to blame and that was Ehiogu for taking the ball away from the keeper.

Now on to Ricketts' equalizer, I'm not going to be biased and I agree that he wasn't offside but someone else was (didn't catch the name) so that might've been the reason

[sphericthor]

Bolton 1-3 Man City
Charlton 3-2 Blackburn
Chelsea 1-2 Arsenal
Man Utd 1-1 Leeds
Newcastle 2-1 Middlesbrough :applaud: :p
Southampton 3-3 Everton
Wolves 2-1 Fulham

[A+]

Woohoo, Liverpool out of the cup! You gotta love seeing the reds fail quite so impressively at every opportunity. Owen should jump ship while he can, if he sticks at a sinking club much longer noone'll want him in a couple years time and he'll end up at Birmingham.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Just seen the highlights of the Newcastle/Boro game and all I can say is that you have Mark Scwarzer to thank for making a few great saves during the game to keep the score down but as for the 1st Newcastle goal there was only 1 person to blame and that was Ehiogu for taking the ball away from the keeper.

Now on to Ricketts' equalizer, I'm not going to be biased and I agree that he wasn't offside but someone else was (didn't catch the name) so that might've been the reason

I do blame Ehiogu, the fool. Schwarzer was having one hell of a game until Ehiogu made him look bad with that **** up, I feel that Schwarzer should of got man of the match

Ricketts equalizer, someone else was offside yes, but because of this new interpretation that shouldnt matter, it seems that the new interpretation is in effect only if your name is Ruud Van Nistelrooy.. you could see the way the ball was kicked that it couldnt of went to Job or Juninho who were offside and could of only went to Ehiogu or Ricketts, Job was even walking towards our goal.

[sphericthor]

Well I am a very proud Newcastle fan and I do agree with what you have said about this new interpretation of offside, I think that Sepp Blatter doesn't have a clue about the game, either that or he's trying to destroy it with all these new rules he comes up with.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

^ Exactly

Don't get me wrong, I don't blame Newcastle for the loss, and I don't accuse Darren Ambrose of diving for that penalty either, because to be honest it wasnt a dive, at least it didnt look like one but it also didnt look like it should of been a penalty, so like I said.. I don't blame Newcastle, just some dodgy decisions by the officials

[rObix]

that charlton - rovers game looked crazy from the highlights.

i'd never heard of a keeper scoring until today.

[Tony Montana]

Tommorow, Champions League starts ...

Bayern Munich - Real Madrid is the game to see!!!

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by rObix
that charlton - rovers game looked crazy from the highlights.

i'd never heard of a keeper scoring until today.

go look through Peter Schmicheal's career tapes.


Tommorow, Champions League starts ...

Originally posted by Tony Montana
Tommorow, Champions League starts ...

Bayern Munich - Real Madrid is the game to see!!!

Too true... oh too true, if all the stars are playing that match will be a beast

[Tony Montana]

All games today (first leg):

18.30

Lokomotiv Moskau - Monaco

(Monaco is 10 times better, should make it)

20.45

Celta - Arsenal

(Wow, another fantastic game!!! Cant predict. Love the way Arsenal is playing, hope this year they finaly make it, but on the other side, Savo Milosevic is playing for Celta and I really admire his talents)

Sparta Prague - AC Milan

(Milan is the titel defender, Sparta is no problem)

Bayern Munich - Real Madrid

(Top game!!!)



Tommorow next 4 games including Juventus, ManU, Stuttgart....

[rObix]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
go look through Peter Schmicheal's career tapes.take it easy on me. im just a stupid american who is new to the EPL...

[A+]

Goalkeepers often have the best technique for kicking, and they're always jumping so can get good height. I also reckon they're the most two footed players on a pitch most of the time, so I reckon they should go up more often and get in the goals.

And if you think Schmeichel's something, look up Jose Luis Chilavert, ex Paraguay keeper. he used to take all his team's penalties and dangerous freekicks. At France 98 he hit the bar against France. A few inches lower and he'd have achieved his dream of scoring in the world cup, and would've kept the french from winning it.

Today is a magical day: Torquay vs S****horpe!!! Come on you Gulls!!!

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
^ Exactly

Don't get me wrong, I don't blame Newcastle for the loss, and I don't accuse Darren Ambrose of diving for that penalty either, because to be honest it wasnt a dive, at least it didnt look like one but it also didnt look like it should of been a penalty, so like I said.. I don't blame Newcastle, just some dodgy decisions by the officials

Well I guess football needs more people like us talking about it because at the end of the day it is only a game

[rObix]

3 goals by two different edu's, and arsenal down celta in spain 3-2. nice.

[sphericthor]

ARGH!!! Damn UEFA and their stupid rules mean Lee Bowyer hasn't started his 6 match European ban which means he'll miss Newcastles Uefa Cup tie against Valenrenga on Thursday

[A+]

Well technically it's Newcastle's fault for not realising this was the case. The UEFA rules haven't changed, Newcastle just thought they could get around them.

Generally good results for English clubs in Europe so far this week, let's hope the UEFA lot can keep it going.

[Sock-Man]

I'm very pi$$ed off. I'm a Middlesbrough fan and I never managed to get tickets for the carling cup final...

[sphericthor]

Uefa Cup

Valerenga 1-1 Newcastle

Well at least we got the all important away goal which was scored by Craig Bellamy although from what I've read it wasn't a very good display from Newcastle but there's always the home game back at St. James'

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by Sock-Man
I'm very pi$$ed off. I'm a Middlesbrough fan and I never managed to get tickets for the carling cup final...

Same here mate, whats even worse is.. I know ****ing, Man United fans who have a tickets and thats a joke

[sphericthor]

That's a bad thing, how the hell do people get their hands on tickets if they aren't even interested in the game? I believe Bolton were having a problem too where 900 of their priotity fans were still left without tickets

[Sock-Man]

Annoying thing his my family are STILL dragging me off to Cardiff for the weekend. Now I get to watch it in a pub right round the corner from the stadium... oh the joy...

[A+]

I don't get why people do that. If you get a pub with fans in it anywhere there'll be just the same atmosphere. You'd be better going to a pub in Middlesborough, then you won't get many Bolton fans cheering when they score.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by A+
I don't get why people do that. If you get a pub with fans in it anywhere there'll be just the same atmosphere. You'd be better going to a pub in Middlesborough, then you won't get many Bolton fans cheering when they score.

I agree, im watching it in Middlesbrough with my fellow fans

[Sock-Man]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
I agree, im watching it in Middlesbrough with my fellow fans

Lucky you. Well it looks like the whole going to Cardiff things been called off now. But I don't live anywhere near Middlesbrough so so much for watching it with fellow fans. Now I'll be watching it with my dad, in the pub round the corner from my house in Tamworth, surrounded by a few drunken locals and a bunch of school-'mates' pointing and laughing at me...

[sphericthor]

Sorry boys but I'm gonna go for a 2-1 win for Bolton

[A+]

I'm gonna be harsher and say 2-0 Bolton. Jay-Jay's just too good.

[sphericthor]

Yeah but I'm giving a prediction that Juninho will get himself a goal

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

2-0 the Boro Zenden & Juninho

[rObix]

any of you guys know a site to get match highlight videos?

[A+]

Try one of the club's sites, or if the FA has a site or something like that. I always got Torquay highlights through Gullsworld and most of the Nationwide clubs have something similar so I'd expect Premiership clubs to do the same sort of thing.

[rObix]

arsenal has a plus membership, but im not paying for highlights. if they showed the whole game i'd pay. someone told me about premgoals.com, but that site is down.

[Sock-Man]

2 - 0 to THE BORO - Big game today, sadly I'm not going to be there...

[A+]

OK I got that one wrong, Boro did the business. Penalty should technically have been disallowed, and Boateng should've been sent off for diving in the first half (he'd already had a yellow) and Schwarzer made a few great saves, but in the end they did it. Well done Boro.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

When did Boateng dive?

Noone gives us credit for winning it, its more about Bolton losing it and how unlucky they were..

Zendens penalty - he just slipped, didnt look like it happened on purpose and the ball didnt move and theres Allardyce being a sore loser saying that everyone caught onto it when I didnt see anyone appeal against it :rolleyes:

[J Diddy]

Boro's first ever trophy, about time if you ask me.

Leeds did well to draw with the dirty reds, hopefully they'll continue on this run.

[sphericthor]

Well done Boro, in the end they deserved the win

[A+]

Draws aren't gonna keep Leeds up, they need to start turning them into wins. As do Man Utd if they're not gonna give the title to Arsenal really early.

[sphericthor]

Fifa president Sepp Blatter has held informal talks which could see the Premiership reduced to 18 teams and FA Cup replays being scrapped.
Blatter would ideally like to see domestic leagues down to 16 clubs.

"You have an FA Cup and League Cup and still the old tradition of replays in the FA Cup," said Blatter.

"This was mentioned in a meeting with the Football Association and Premier League. If there were no cup replays you can have 18 teams."


He added: "We want to make sure there are not too many dates for national competitions.

"We should have between 43 and 47 dates for domestic football. Players should not play more than 60 games a year."

[A+]

That's a stupid idea. Players should play football, not rest all the time, or play stupid international friendlies which don't tell anyone anything, except perhaps that England are dependent on Becks and Owen, and Joe Cole can't cut it at any level.

And the FA cup is an institution. Replays are a major part of the romance of it, it means a tiny club can have a grand day out at a big club. And how does shortening the FA cup help with the size of the league? Madness!

If the league gets shrunk too much there'll be hardly any Saturday games played, cos once you have a couple on Sunday and possibly one on Monday that would leave 6 Saturday games, which isn't really a jam packed program for the biggest league of the biggest sport IMO. Sod off Blatter and leave our football alone. There's a reason they say it's the best in the world.

[sphericthor]

I mentioned the other day about Sepp Blatter trying to destroy the game and this just makes me hate him even more now. The players always complain that they don't get to play enough games and I'm sure there will be numerous complaints after they see this story

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Jesus christ, what the hell is it with Blatter.. the gimp, he needs to piss off and stop messing about with the rules etc.

[sphericthor]

woohoo the Newcastle game against Valerenga is live on BBC3 tonight :applaud:

I'll get to see the lads progress in the UEFA Cup which they really must win

[sphericthor]

Manchester United have again topped the rich list of football clubs based on last season's income.
The list, produced by accountants Deloitte, revealed that United's income was £167.83m last term, well ahead of nearest rivals Juventus.

Juventus earned £145.75m, while crisis club Leeds are surprisingly 16th on the list after earning £61.41m.

Leeds' presence is down to income, despite shares being suspended and reported debts of around £100m.


They dropped down from 11th place on the last list and the Premiership has a strong presence elsewhere.

Arsenal, who have finally confirmed plans to move to a new stadium based at Ashburton Grove to boost revenue, were named as the seventh richest club.

And they have now secured funding for the 60,000-seater stadium, which they expect to be open for the 2006/07 season.

Arsenal raised £260m for the Ashburton Grove project via a senior loan facility from a stadium facilities banking group, and added £97m themselves through Granada, Nike and sale of land

They earned £99.87m last season, with Liverpool a place behind with an income of £99.74m.

Liverpool are also in the process of putting plans together to move from Anfield to a 60,000-seater stadium in Stanley Park, near to their current home to increase their income.

They have applied for planning permission for the £80m stadium and - like Arsenal - want to make up ground lost to Manchester United financially and increase income by having a greater capacity.

Officials at both clubs are concerned at their ground capacity at both Highbury and Anfield being so far below United's 67,000-plus at Old Trafford.

Newcastle United were ninth on the list with an income of £92.73m, while Chelsea, now backed by the financial muscle of billionaire Roman Abramovich, are a place behind with £89.32m.

Tottenham make the list in 15th (£63.81m), while Scottish Premier League champions-elect Celtic earned £58.07m.

Champions League winners AC Milan were the third richest club with an income of £133.66m.

And Real Madrid, complete with England captain David Beckham, are fourth after earning £128.5m.

Manchester United also come out on top in comparison against the biggest sporting franchises in the United States, where the New York Yankees head the list with an income equivalent of £162.7m.


FOOTBALL'S INCOME RICH LIST

1. Manchester United £167.83m
2. Juventus £145.75m
3. AC Milan £133.66m
4. Real Madrid £128.5m
5. Bayern Munich £108.6m
6. Inter Milan £108.4m
7. Arsenal £99.87m
8. Liverpool £99.74m
9. Newcastle United £92.73m
10. Chelsea £89.32m
11. AS Roma £88.39m
12. Borussia Dortmund £82.78m
13. Barcelona £82.38m
14. Schalke 04 £79.17m
15. Tottenham Hotspur £63.81m
16. Leeds United £61.41m
17. Lazio £59.34m
18. Celtic £58.07m
19. Olympique Lyonnais £56.27m
20, Valencia £53.73m

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Damn United!

Makes you wonder why they never offered more for Arjen Robben :S only as low as 5mil and Chelsea offered 12m, United can't have wanted him that much

[sphericthor]

Although Newcastle won 3-1 last night I'm very disapppointed by the way we played. Seriously Valerenga deserved to win the game and for our first goal well the linesman made a brilliant mistake

[A+]

Paul Sturrock is to be named as Southampton manager today. To me this is good news cos I don't like Plymouth, so now they can slide down the table. :D They just better not go stealking Leroy!

[sphericthor]

Fourth round draw

1 CELTIC v Barcelona
2 Genclerbirligi v Valencia
3 Bordeaux v Club Bruges
4 NEWCASTLE v Real Mallorca
5 Auxerre v PSV Eindhoven
6 Inter Milan v Benfica
7 LIVERPOOL v Marseille
8 Villarreal v Roma
Games to be played on 11 and 25 March

Quarter-final ties

1 Winner match 3 v Winner match 2
2 Winner match 7 v Winner match 6
3 Winner match 1 v Winner match 8
4 Winner match 5 v Winner match 4
Games to be played 8 and 14 April

Semi-final matches

1 Winner quarter-final 4 v Winner quarter-final 2
2 Winner quarter-final 3 v Winner quarter-final 1
Games to be played 22 April and 6 May

[A+]

Woo, Torquay won, and the dream of a United-Arsenal final stays alive. Arsenal put on one hell of a display tonight. I only saw the start of the second half, and it wasn't that Portsmouth were playing badly, they just couldn't get near the ball. Every Arsenal player had the confidence and the skill to carry the ball, pass it accurately, and the work rate to always be moving and making options. Unless something goes very wrong they're looking unbeatable and are shoe-ins for at least the league.

[A+]

Sunderland into the semis and Tranmere will have a home replay with Millwall for the final place. I'm now unsure whether I want a United-Arsenal final, or gurantee one of the little teams in it. Either way.

[sphericthor]

Celtic 1-0 Rangers

Hail, Hail,
The Celts are here,
What the hell do we care,
What the hell do we care,
Hail Hail, The Celts are here,
What the hell do we care now

For its a Grand Old Team to play for,
For its a Grand Old team to see,
And if you know the history,
Its enough to make your heart go,
Nine-in-a-row.

We don't care what the animals say,
What the hell do we care,
For its all we know,
Is that there going to be a show,
And the Glasgow Celtic will be there.

[J Diddy]

Thats a very similar song to one i know about Everton, just a few word changes.
Man U v Arsenal - nice one, i'm looking forward to that as a neutral, and it's good to see a nationwide team in the final which ever one it is, first time since '92.

[rObix]

Originally posted by A+
Woo, Torquay won, and the dream of a United-Arsenal final stays alive. Arsenal put on one hell of a display tonight. I only saw the start of the second half, and it wasn't that Portsmouth were playing badly, they just couldn't get near the ball. Every Arsenal player had the confidence and the skill to carry the ball, pass it accurately, and the work rate to always be moving and making options. Unless something goes very wrong they're looking unbeatable and are shoe-ins for at least the league. those portsmouth fans may be some of the best fans in the world. still singing team songs(or just songs in general, as being a dumb american im not even sure what the hell they are saying :x) when they were down 5 nil.

[A+]

United have just lost to Porto. it was a pretty bad game, in the second half United just thought one would be enough so stopped playing, then the ref makes a bad decision and Porto score from the free kick. Looks like United are gonna end the season without a trophy.

[J Diddy]

they could win the FA cup though, last time they were in the semi's they knocked Arsenal out, Chelsea have done well to get through although they should have won against Stuttgart (i've no idea how to spell it, that might be right, it might not though) as they had loads of chances in the second half.

If you think Porstmouth fans were good when losing 5:0, you should have heard the Leeds fans when Leeds were getting beat 6:1 by Portsmouth, or the 4:1 defeat by Arsenal infact, there's too many to mention.

[sphericthor]

Tuesday Results

Juventus 0 - 1 Deportivo La Coruna (Deportivo win 2-0 on aggregate)
Lyon 1 - 0 Real Sociedad (Lyon win 2-0 on aggregate)
Manchester United 1-1 Porto (Porto win 3-2 on aggregate)
Chelsea 0-0 Stuttgart (Chelsea win 1-0 on aggregate)

Wednesday Results

Arsenal 2-0 Celta Vigo (Arsenal win 5-2 on aggregate)
Real Madrid 1-0 Bayern Munich (Real win 2-1 on aggregate)
Monaco 1-0 Lokomotiv Moscow (Agg: 2-2. Monaco win on away goals)
AC Milan 4-1 Sparta Prague (AC Milan win 4-1 on aggregate)


Now all ae have to wait on is the draw for the quarter finals which will be held tomorrow at 11am with the possibility of Arsenal facing Chelsea

The teams in the draw are:

AC Milan
Arsenal
Chelsea
Deportivo
Lyon
Monaco
Porto
Real Madrid

[sphericthor]

Newcastle 4-1 Mallorca
Celtic 1-0 Barcelona

Woohoo both my teams won last night

Newcastle played very poorly in the 1st half and then just rampaged after conceding a goal. I was watching it on BBC3 and it made my night a hell of a lot better

[Sock-Man]

So Arsenal have drawn Chelsea. This should be an interesting match...

[sphericthor]

Might as well throw in a few predictions

SATURDAY'S GAMES

Birmingham 2-1 Leicester
Blackburn 1-2 Arsenal
Bolton 1-2 Chelsea
Charlton 2-0 Middlesbrough
Everton 2-0 Portsmouth
Fulham 1-0 Leeds

SUNDAY'S GAMES

Man City 1-0 Man Utd
Southampton 1-1 Liverpool
Tottenham 0-3 Newcastle
Wolves 2-2 Aston Villa

[Sock-Man]

Ahem, I think you might have got the scores the wrong with the Charlton v Middlesbrough match...

[sphericthor]

Nah that's the right score :p

[A+]

No way will City beat United, Wolves score 2 at the same time as Villa or Newcastle keep a clean sheet while one of their defenders is in my fantasy team. Pretty accurate with Saturday's predictions though. Not a lot of goals around.

[sphericthor]

Well we'll have to see about that later but it's football.......... anything can happen

[Sock-Man]

I really wanna see Wolves beat Villa. I'm fed up of my mates being so smarmy about how they're above Boro and I think Wolves deserve a derby win.

And I thought Boro were very unlucky to lose to Charlton. All we need is a goalscorer and we could shoot right up the table.

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by Sock-Man
Ahem, I think you might have got the scores the wrong with the Charlton v Middlesbrough match...

Couldn't resist :p

I might have got the score wrong but it's the right result and that's the most important thing ;) :p

[Sock-Man]

Like I said, it means nothing. We played well in that game and should have won. We just need a striker who doesn't suck.

[tedward]

Man - C, I think I love you.

(4-1)

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by A+
-------> No way will City beat United <-------, Wolves score 2 at the same time as Villa or Newcastle keep a clean sheet while one of their defenders is in my fantasy team. Pretty accurate with Saturday's predictions though. Not a lot of goals around.

I'm looking at one part in particular :p

[Sock-Man]

Isn't it great to be able to point and laugh at the suddenly oh-so-crap Man U

[sphericthor]

My joy was ruined in the 87th minute when Andy O'Brien scored an OG but hey at least United were stuffed and there was 4 goals in the Wolves/Villa match, it just wasn't the draw I predicted

The good part is that I was right in saying Man City woud beat United, I just didn't expect such a good scoreline

[DRAGID]

I hope to god liverpool get rid of gerrard houllier and owen and bring in martin o neil and cisse

[rObix]

hey, can someone tell me what the offside rules are in football?

i'm only familiar with it from hockey, which has lines painted under the ice to let you know. the offsides rule in football has been bugging me for a while now.


also, i just got to see arsenal/rovers tonight...why was henry's first goal disallowed? he made no contact with the keeper.

[sphericthor]

A player is in an offside position if:

- he is nearer to his opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent

A player is not in an offside position if:

- he is in his own half of the field of play
- he is level with the second last opponent
- he is level with the last two opponents

Commiting an Offside Offence

A player in an offside position is only penalised if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team, he is, in the opinion of the referee, involved in active play by:

- interfering with play
- interfering with an opponent
- gaining an advantage by being in that position


There is no offside offence if a player receives the ball directly from:
- a goal kick
- a throw-in
- a corner kick


Infringements/Sanctions

For any offside offence, the referee awards an indirect free kick to the opposing team to be taken from the place where the infringement occurred.

[DRAGID]

nicely put but their is a new rule now, they can be offside but they cant touch the ball ( like a distranction) so the defender will go back and put him on side

[tedward]

yeh i think thor covered that in the 'active play' bit.

In ice hoceky is it not just you cant pass past the line? i.e you cant pass from to a player in front of the line unless your past it as well?

[rObix]

Originally posted by tedward
In ice hoceky is it not just you cant pass past the line? i.e you cant pass from to a player in front of the line unless your past it as well? yeah, here are two blue lines, and a center red line. i guess the blue lines would be like the top line of the penalty area in football, and the center line is the center line. there are two offsides plays in hockey, though. you can't pass the puck over two lines(which is a stupid rule), and the other one is you can't be over the opponants blue line before the puck. in an instance where you are, you have time to get back past the blue line before the puck is over. there is a delayed offsides rule if you are over the blue line, but the defense has the puck, as well.
to be honest, hockey and football are very similar sports. it's also entirely possible that hockey is a bastardization of football, since to the best of anyone's knowledge it was created by a bunch of brittish soldiers stationed in canada who decided to play field hockey on frozen pond. but, i dont know the origin of field hockey.
i dont know why football fans generally don't like hockey. anyway.

btw, second last opponant means the first defender who isn't the keeper, right?

[sphericthor]

The second last opponent would be the 2nd last defender

[DRAGID]

bout fcuking time liverpool beat Porstmouth

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
The second last opponent would be the 2nd last defender christ, thats way too ****ing complicated...

[sphericthor]

Few predictions

SATURDAY'S GAMES

Arsenal 2-0 Bolton
Aston Villa 1-1 Blackburn
Chelsea 2-1 Fulham
Leicester 1-0 Everton
Liverpool 2-1 Wolves
Man Utd 1-1 Tottenham
Middlesbrough 1-1 Birmingham
Newcastle 2-0 Charlton

SUNDAY'S GAMES

Portsmouth 1-1 Southampton

MONDAY'S GAME

Leeds 1-2 Man City

[Sock-Man]

Yeah that's pretty much what I've predicted - apart from Middlesbrough drawing, I predicted a win... :p

[A+]

Originally posted by rObix
also, i just got to see arsenal/rovers tonight...why was henry's first goal disallowed? he made no contact with the keeper.

The explanation the ref gave was that the ball does not come back into play from the keepers hand in that situation unless it touches the ground or he kicks it, so when Friedel released the ball to kick it it was not yet in play, thus not available for Henry to take from him.

[rObix]

Originally posted by A+
The explanation the ref gave was that the ball does not come back into play from the keepers hand in that situation unless it touches the ground or he kicks it, so when Friedel released the ball to kick it it was not yet in play, thus not available for Henry to take from him. what a shame. that was highlight reel material...

[sphericthor]

Arsenal 2-1 Bolton
Aston Villa 0-2 Blackburn
Chelsea 2-1 Fulham
Leicester 1-1 Everton
Liverpool 1-0 Wolves
Middlesbrough 5-3 Birmingham

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

You got 2 of them right Thor, tut tut

[sphericthor]

Well the Newcastle game is going my way with the score at 2-1 at the moment

[sphericthor]

Ended about an hour ago with the final score Newcastle 3-1 Charlton

[smokiechimp]

LIVERPOOL ARE 4TH!!!!!!!!



HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!


(Well Done Leeds)

[sphericthor]

Liverpool are joint 4th with Newcastle including Goal difference :p

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Last night, it was VERY harsh to Van Buyten

1. It was outside the penalty area
2. Theres no way that should have warranted a red card

[rObix]

man, lehman must be kicking himself in the ass after giving up that goal today...

oh well, at least aresenal got the away goal.

[sphericthor]

Club Brugge 0-1 Bordeaux (Aggregate: 1 - 4)
PSV Eindhoven 3-0 Auxerre (Aggregate: 4 - 1)
Roma 2-1 Villarreal (Aggregate: 2 - 3)
Inter Milan 4-3 Benfica (Aggregate: 4 - 3)
Marseille 2-1 Liverpool (Aggregate: 3 - 2)
Real Mallorca 0-3 Newcastle (Aggregate: 1 - 7) :applaud:
Barcelona 0-0 Celtic (Aggregate: 0 - 1) :applaud:
Valencia 2-0 Gençlerbirligi (Aggregate: 2 - 1) Valencia win via "Silver Goal"

[sphericthor]

Predictions

Birmingham 1-1 Leeds United 12:30
Southampton 2-1 Tottenham
Blackburn 2-0 Portsmouth
Charlton 1-0 Aston Villa
Chelsea 2-0 Wolves
Everton 1-2 Middlesbrough
Man City 1-0 Fulham

Sunday

Bolton 1-2 Newcastle 14:00
Leicester City 1-2 Liverpool 15:00
Arsenal 1-1 Man Utd 16:05


Old Firm Derby (Sunday 12.30)

Rangers 1-2 Celtic

[sphericthor]

OK I was a bit off on the first game of the day

Result:

Birmingham 4-1 Leeds

[sphericthor]

More results

Blackburn 1-2 Portsmouth
Charlton 1-2 Aston Villa
Chelsea 5-2 Wolves
Everton 1-1 Middlesbrough
Man City 0-0 Fulham
Southampton 1-0 Tottenham

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Has anyone seen the new Nike advert in full?

If you have, can anyone tell me who that player is who grabs Roberto Carlos and says "Ole" right in his face?

[sphericthor]

Yeah I've seen the ad and I think it's Christiano Ronaldo

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Nah its not, cause that guy I think knocks it to Cristiano who volleys it out of the tunnel

[sphericthor]

I'm going for Portugese players so another guess is Marquez (can't remember first name)

[DRAGID]

WHICH AD ??

[sphericthor]

The new Nike ad where Brazil and Portugal players are standing in the tunnel, then Figo nutmegs Ronaldo (I think) and the whole thing goes crazy

You can find it HERE (http://nikefootball.nike.com/nikefootball/front/front.jsp?languageNum=1)

[sphericthor]

Weekend predictions

Sat Apr 03 2004

Premiership

Fulham 1-2 Birmingham (12.30)
Middlesbrough 2-1 Bolton
Newcastle 3-1 Everton
Tottenham 1-2 Chelsea
Wolves 2-0 Southampton

FA Cup

Arsenal 2-1 Manchester United AET (12:00)

Sun Apr 04 2004

Aston Villa 1-1 Man City (14:00)
Liverpool 2-0 Blackburn (15:00)

FA Cup

Sunderland 0-1 Millwall

Mon Apr 05 2004

Leeds United 1-1 Leicester City (20:00)

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Weekend predictions

[B]FA Cup

Arsenal 2-1 Manchester United AET (12:00)
...if only.

[A+]

I like that ad, very funny the way they sneak in Cantona and Van Nistelrooy. Wonder how much Eric gets paid for that sort of thing.

But more importantly...

ARSENAL LOST!!!!!!! AT LAST!!! It had to happen some time, I'm just glad it happened this season. Shame it wasn't in the league but you gotta take what you can get.

[rObix]

Originally posted by A+
ARSENAL LOST!!!!!!! AT LAST!!! It had to happen some time, I'm just glad it happened this season. Shame it wasn't in the league but you gotta take what you can get. well, they've lost before.
inter milan, dynamo kyiv, and middlesbro beat them twice in the carling cup...

and last weekends draw with manu felt like a loss, despite the record breaking feat(mostly because chelsea won and inched closer.)

[smokiechimp]

Liverpool back in 4th! YaY! :D

[rObix]

Originally posted by smokiechimp
Liverpool back in 4th! YaY! :D arsenal - liverpool friday. should be a good match :p

[sphericthor]

Newcastle vs Arsenal on Sunday should be a good match too especially since it's at St. James' Park

Hey Smokie, better watch out that Liverpool don't suffer Deja Vu in the last match of the season............... headed for 4th place only to lose out to Chelsea and now they have Newcastle at the end of the season so you might as well say bye to 4th spot already

[tedward]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Yeah I've seen the ad and I think it's Christiano Ronaldo

Yeh him and figo both say ole to the brazilians at some point.


Now who is the guy out ini the carpark who has to kick the ball back in? and did everyone else spot cantona?

[sphericthor]

The guy in the car park is Ruud Van Nistelrooy and I spotted Cantona the 2nd time I seen the ad

[tedward]

ah thanks.

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Newcastle vs Arsenal on Sunday should be a good match too especially since it's at St. James' Park and arsenal's 4th game in 9 days. played #3 in the league last week, #2 in the league today, #4 in the league friday, and #5 in the league sunday. christ. what a test, i hope they dont fail the rest of it miserably

[The Insider]

Wow. Didn't realize that we had a thread dealing with the greatest Football (or 'soccer' for those who don't know any better) league on te planet, or that rObix was still alive for that matter. Hey man :)

Oh, and in case you don't know it (even though it's not directly linked to the Premier League, although it involves two teams from it).

CHELSEA BEAT ARSENAL 2-1 IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE QUARTER-FINAL!

YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! :applaud:

[rObix]

Originally posted by The Insider
Wow. Didn't realize that we had a thread dealing with the greatest Football (or 'soccer' for those who don't know any better) league on te planet, or that rObix was still alive for that matter. Hey man :)

Oh, and in case you don't know it (even though it's not directly linked to the Premier League, although it involves two teams from it).

CHELSEA BEAT ARSENAL 2-1 IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE QUARTER-FINAL!

YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! :applaud: hey man...

blah blah blah :p
they'll never beat real madrid anyway ;P

--
erm. ok, i guess AS Monaco beat real. didn't see that one coming.

[tedward]

That was quite a night of football. I couldnt take my eyes of monaco v real madrid.

[sphericthor]

Loved the Arsenal-Chelsea match but I really expected Arsenal to win

Although I really hope Newcastle can beat PSV tomorrow night

[The Insider]

Originally posted by rObix
hey man...

blah blah blah :p
they'll never beat real madrid anyway ;P

--
erm. ok, i guess AS Monaco beat real. didn't see that one coming.

Monaco - piece of cake ;) Didn't know you were a Football fan rOb. Cool. Arsenal fan? I've been a Chelsea fan for almost a decade, and it's been a LONG time since Chelsea last beat Arsenal at Highbury, so of course I'm overjoyed :applaud:

[A+]

Hooray, Arsenal lost again. Now they just have to throw away the league and this'll be the best season ever, I don't care who else wins it, it would just be funny for them to lose it now.

I thought Monaco would beat Madrid. Real are just so bad defensively, as shown by Monaco's goals. And what are they doing shipping off a great striker like Morientes and letting him play against them? Real made problems for themselves and deserve to go out. Still, now looks pretty straightforward for AC Milan to win the competition.

[The Insider]

Originally posted by A+
looks pretty straightforward for AC Milan to win the competition.

No way, man. Chelsea will tear them apart (I hope) :)

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Loved the Arsenal-Chelsea match but I really expected Arsenal to win

Although I really hope Newcastle can beat PSV tomorrow night arsenal probably would have won had they actually showed up for the match.

Originally posted by The Insider
Monaco - piece of cake ;) Didn't know you were a Football fan rOb. Cool. Arsenal fan? I've been a Chelsea fan for almost a decade, and it's been a LONG time since Chelsea last beat Arsenal at Highbury, so of course I'm overjoyed :applaud:
my roommate is a gunners fan, and got me into it this summer. so, im an arsenal fan by virtue of the fact my roommate is an arsenal fan(and hence, not a front runner :/.) im so sad i'd only really been exposed to horrible horrible american soccer all my life(and world cup.)
anyway, we found this football bar in the city, and started going. quite a fun time, unless arsenal loose, which has been rare this season.

[tedward]

Originally posted by A+
Still, now looks pretty straightforward for AC Milan to win the competition.


AC Milan just got thumped 4-0! By Deportivo. Overturning a 4-1 loss to win overall 5-4 on agregate. Wow, maybe newcastle should be worried.


4 remaining teams in the european cup (and therefore four best teams in europe at the mo)

Chelsea
Porto
Monaco
Deportivo.

Who would of seen that coming?

[sphericthor]

Why should Newcastle be worried?

[rObix]

glad i woke up early for henry's hat trick this morning. had me worried in the first half though.

[The Insider]

By far the most refreshing and interesting Champion's League tournament in years.

[J Diddy]

Yeah man, Leeds win, still in the drop zone but level on points with Blackburn and Portsmouth, there is still life in the old dogs yet.

[sphericthor]

Come on Newcastle........... we can take away Arsenal's unbeaten run

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Come on Newcastle........... we can take away Arsenal's unbeaten run nope, turns out you cant :P
boring game on most fronts. not worth the pay per view price, but oh well.
i can't believe reyes didn't score on that header.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

I think Wenger should start resting Henry, he clearly isn't 100% which is one of the consequences of playing him every game of the season

[rObix]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
I think Wenger should start resting Henry, he clearly isn't 100% which is one of the consequences of playing him every game of the season i think that'll depend on chelsea's results against villa tomorrow.
though, Ranieri seems to have conceeded the league trophy to arsenal in his post game interview after the draw with middlesbrough...

hopefully everything goes ok with freddie and the plate they are putting in his hand :x

[sphericthor]

Originally posted by rObix
nope, turns out you cant :P
boring game on most fronts. not worth the pay per view price, but oh well.
i can't believe reyes didn't score on that header.

I can't believe Wiltord missed :eek:

I agree that it was a boring game but my heart stopped on a few occasions when there was a few chances at both ends.

[J Diddy]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
I think Wenger should start resting Henry, he clearly isn't 100% which is one of the consequences of playing him every game of the season
Just because he didn't score doesn't mean he's not 100%, Henry now has the expectation of scoring hat-tricks and wonder goal every game, when he plays badly he's still as good as most other players.

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
I can't believe Wiltord missed :eek:

I agree that it was a boring game but my heart stopped on a few occasions when there was a few chances at both ends. oh, yeah. wiltord. i think i blocked that from my mind for a moment, ha. he just whiffed on his strike. caught the top of the ball, it looked like.

lots of good chances that just went unfulfilled.

Originally posted by J Diddy
Just because he didn't score doesn't mean he's not 100%, Henry now has the expectation of scoring hat-tricks and wonder goal every game, when he plays badly he's still as good as most other players.
well, he isn't 100%. he has back pain issues. it should be reyes and bergkamp up front against leeds on friday.

[sphericthor]

Todays results

Aston Villa 3-2 Chelsea
Fulham 3-4 Blackburn
Liverpool 0-1 Charlton
Middlesbrough 3-1 Southampton
Portsmouth 3-1 Birmingham
Tottenham 1-1 Man City
Wolves 1-2 Bolton

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Get in there Boro!!

Strange but we're only 4 points off 4th spot, and all our games are winnable, none of the teams we have to face have beat us this season :D

[rObix]

Originally posted by sphericthor
Todays results

Aston Villa 3-2 Chelsea
Liverpool 0-1 Charlton :D that's ****ing great.