World Football Thread XVI - The demise of one Ronaldo and the rise of another

[Maquiladora]

Liverpool do have the advantage of home leg second, and Chelsea have got many more games to think about, but it depends how they go. It could be a good thing for them to build up some momentum. Certainly not one I'd gamble on though.

The Man U tie is more interesting, and I think, with a decent ref, it could be a good watch, which won't suit Milan's boring style at all. Unfortunately, UEFA has a habit of using picky refs for the bigger games.

[Ãskallin]

Man utd is going to **** it all up, I can feel it in my toes. Lot of injuries and vds has been dodgy in the last few games. You heard it here first...

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by Ãskallin
Man utd is going to **** it all up, I can feel it in my toes. Lot of injuries and vds has been dodgy in the last few games. You heard it here first...

Just don't let Chelsea win all of 'em, FFS.

[Colonâ„¢]

6 French Ligue 1 games ended in 0 - 0 this weekend.

[LordShiva]

Originally posted by Ãskallin
Man utd is going to **** it all up, I can feel it in my toes. Lot of injuries and vds

Surely the VDs won't affect how they play?

[Thedrin]

vds = Van Der Sar

[LordShiva]

Did he get them from Posh?

[CerberusIV]

I'm really rather torn by indecision at the moment. As a Liverpool supporter I naturally want ManU not to win anything. But I also want to see Chelsea not win anything and implode amidst recriminations about the most expensive flop in the history of world football.

CL is easy - Liverpool, but the Premiership and FA Cup are a problem. I think I can bring myself to endure ManU winning both - but only because Fergie will be less smug and odious about winning than Mourinho.

[LordShiva]

I, too, want neither Man U nor Chelsea to win anything

[MikeH]

Originally posted by CerberusIV
But I also want to see Chelsea not win anything and implode amidst recriminations about the most expensive flop in the history of world football.

Flop? Back to back titles, 2 Carling Cups, FA cup final, Champions League semi-final for the 3rd time in 4 years and despite massive injury problems they are still in contention for a quadruple and that is a flop?

Liverpool can only wish they'd had the season Chelsea have had.

[Cort Haus]

"massive injury problems"

Is this referring to the way Drogba gets shot by a sniper several times a game, then mysteriously bounds back on the field as if nothing had happened?

Or is it referring to the way that whenever one of their xx million pound players is injured, another is available?

No wait, it must be the way that they were forced to play someone out of position againsy mighty Wycombe Wanders in their succession of incredibly tough domestic cup games against lower league opponents.

I'm not saying that Chelsea's season has not been superb, it just sounds silly for The Special One to be whining about injuries. I could name other clubs with far, far worse injury problems than Chelsea, but we don't constantly hear about their seasons being blighted with injury.

[MikeH]

I thought you were an Arsenal fan? This season the one thing that we all thought could ruin an Arsenal season happened, Henry got injured and the season was ruined. Newcastle are about the only team I can think of with worse problems than Chelsea, and I've heard several times that their season was blighted by injury.

At one point Chelsea didn't have a single fit center back or left back and both first choice goalkeepers were injured. That's most of the defence gone. Essien was pressed into service at center back in Champions League matches. Robben's been injured, Joe Cole out almost the whole season, Wright Phillips has been out. Yes, their backups are high quality, but they have one of the smallest squads in the league.

Anyway, they coped with the problems, are still in the hunt for 4 trophys and they do have a decent squad but if Chelsea hadn't dropped the points they did during the weeks when Terry and/or Cech were out, they'd be comfortably top of the league as well. And the stats bear that out. Remember the Liverpool Chelsea game? Chelsea lost 2-0 but the team they put out was a shadow of their best 11. Back 4 was Geremi, Ferrera, Essien and Cole. The figures are something like they conceded something like 8 goals in those few weeks, the same as they had in the season up until that point. Rate was about twice as many.

ManU are just starting to have similar defensive problems, although we'll see how they cope. They have been on fire this season, but you have to be exceptional to beat Chelsea, no matter what problems they have.

[MikeH]

Anyway, I was only comparing with ManU injuries, because they are the only competition.

[reds4ever]

The 'dream' end to the season (well, the best on offer).....

CL - Liverpool - of course.
League - Chelsea - stop ManU getting closer to LIverpools 18 wins
FA - Tricky......but ManU to stop Chelsea getting the Double.

EDIT: I'm really not sure about the FA Cup, perhaps a large explosion on match day.....

[Cort Haus]

Originally posted by MikeH
I thought you were an Arsenal fan? This season the one thing that we all thought could ruin an Arsenal season happened, Henry got injured and the season was ruined. Newcastle are about the only team I can think of with worse problems than Chelsea, and I've heard several times that their season was blighted by injury.

You think Henry is Arsenal's only injury - that proves my point.

Here is our seasons injury list (it may have some inaccuracies)

First Team

1. Henry, missed more than half the season
2. RvP, missed more than half the season
3. Eboue out for more than half the season
4. Gallas out for nearly half the season
5. Clichy out for around half the season
6. Silva missed many games
7. Rosicky out for nearly half the season.
8. Hleb out for many games
9 and 10 Toure and Lehman have missed games through injury.
11. Cesc has been largely injury free this year.

And the reserves

1. Adebayor - missed many games
2. Lauren - Injured to the point of virtual retirement
3. Flamini - Several injuries, missed many games
4.Walcott - Several injuries, missed many games
5. Diaby - Missed more than half of the season
6. Hoyte - Missed several games
7. Senderos - Several injuries missed many games
8. Djorou - Several injuries, missed many games
9. Baptista - Missed several games
10 Freddie - Missed much of the season

We got to the CL final last year with a makeshift backfour costing a tiny weeny fraction of the 'hard-done-by' all-star line up of Geremi, Ferrera, Essien and Cole including a fith choice left back in Flamini.

This season we've had Gilberto filling in at centre back, right-backs filling in at left back, midfielders filling in up front and so on.

The one point I will give you is that yes, the Blue Circus's youth system is shÃt, and when they haven't got a £20 million player for a position they are completely screwed. Poor ickle Chelsea.