Probably not a surprise, but Portsmouth has gone into administration, the first Premier League club to do so. It’s been announced on the team website, but I can’t link for the moment because I keep getting a server error message.
Jesus. That Ramsey injury was horrific.
No replay (thank god) but the sight of Vermaelen sitting down on the pitch trying not to throw up told everyone who didn’t see it what they needed to know.
I feel desperately sorry for Shawcross as well though - it certainly wasn’t malicious (and in that regard probably not a red card) and it utterly devestated him once he’d realised how badly Ramsey was injured. Shawcross was in tears as he walked off the pitch. He’s a really promising English defender and I really hope he doesn’t let it get to him too much as these things just happen sometimes (I’ve broken someone’s arm in a couple of places before playing football without intending to, so know a small bit about how he must feel).
As an Arsenal fan trying to find a positive in the situation though, I was impressed with how we reacted - a “fuck this! we’re not having this done to us again!” attitude was very obvious afterwards - almost the exact opposite to the Eduardo injury. Harsh as it sounds, midfield is also one of the positions we’ve actually got decent cover in.
Not that I’m not devastated for Ramsey though - god knows how long he’ll be out, and he was such a promising player (and by all accounts a thoroughly grounded and classy bloke).
Poop. Poop poop poop poop. And it was pig-man with the winner too. Poop.
Good win for United. Dunne is close to being the buy of the season. Berba and Park were excellent.
Arsenal got a lucky penalty yesterday but the Ramsey injury was a nightmare. Based on schedules though Arsenal could really win the league.
United have both Liverpoll and Chelsea coming to OT and they have to travel to Man City.
Can see Arsenal taking it but will take great pleasure if Liverpool don’t make 4th place. I’m a bitter man like that 
I didn’t see the whole game, but I did see him making a mistake for United’s first goal, being caught offside when Villa had a promising position, and heading wide at the death. Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve never seen him play well - in my mind he’s a complete liability who is as likely to get sent off or score a spectacular own goal as make a superb saving tackle. I mentioned this upthread in a discussion with chowder.
Speaking of which, has anyone heard from chowder lately?
Really hoped for a Villa win, just to wipe some of the smugness of the collective United face. Unfortunately my joy in the City thrashing of Chelsea was tarnished by the thought of it helping United at the top. Oh well, thumping them on their home ground was very satisfying regardless.
Richard Dunne was called the buy of the season by SAF this week too, partially because he has played well this season, and I think partially by SAF to get a dig in at City. Dunne can be a truly outstanding player at time, but he makes some gawd-awful decisions, does not position himself well, and has the touch of a club footed donkey. When he is on, he can be a stone wall in the rear guard. When he is off, he is terrible though.
I think you need to watch more of Dunne. Player of the year for City for four years in a row and has been a rock for Villa and Ireland. He’s a very good defender. He has been consistent for quite some time now. As a die-hard Ireland fan I go out of my way to watch just the Irish players and Dunne has been excellent for years now.
And as for United being smug…well the Glazers are almost done burying the team so there won’t be much to be smug about soon enough.
I’m sure you’re right - it’s just one of those odd things where you get a false impression of someone due to skewed data.
Not UK related, per se, but this is the football/soccer thread, so I’ll put it here: how would you react to someone saying Spain is a dark horse for this year’s World Cup? On another board I visit, someone said that. He’s an American who spent a semester in London while Cantona played, so he’s highly qualified to opine about the game, despite not actually following it very closely. All evidence of Spain actually being the top national team right now was given, and the guy stood by his statement, basically saying they’re a dark horse because they’ve never won the World Cup. But they’re either favorites, or co-favorites! How can a favorite be a dark horse? If anything, he should say he thinks they’re vastly overrated, or a sucker’s bet, or something like that. I’d still disagree, but I can’t fathom how someone sticks to an “opinion” (quotes, because I think it’s factually speaking that they are not a dark horse) like that. Unfortunately for me, that site’s blocked for me at work, and I won’t be able to keep up with the thread for another 9 hours.
Jose Bosingwa needs another knee operation and will miss the rest of the club season and the World Cup, Chelsea said today. Also, Michael Owen will miss the rest of Man U.'s season.
Your adversary does not understand what the term dark horse means. As you indicate, they are the literal antithesis of a dark horse, being the bookies favourites at 4-1 across the board (in the UK, Brazil are 5s).
You can speculate on whether they will choke - they’re historically the most underachieving side in world football after all. But they’re a settled side at the moment, talent pool a mile deep, playing superbly and on a great run of form. They will start the tournament as the best team IMO.
How 'bout that Wayne Rooney?!
As a Man U fan, I liked the fact that Arsenal got through as it will distract them somewhat from the league title race (and it’s good to have more English teams doing well in Europe). I was even more pleased that Man U managed to match their score on the night (and beat it on aggregate) :D.
Milan were atrocious but United took their chances well. A good win against Fulham and the title race will continue to be interesting.
Indeed! Best title race I can remember for a long time, with 3 teams still in with a good chance.
Chelsea have the toughest remaining matches (@ United, @ Liverpool, who’ll be fighting for 4th and will hopefully put up a fight, @ Spurs, and Villa), while Arsenal have Sol Campbell at the back. A lot will depend on what happens with Chelsea tomorrow vs Inter. I hope they win just so they have to keep playing, but I fear a United-Chelsea CL Qtr-final, which would mean they play 3 times in 8 days. But, I’m backing United for #19.
As I said earlier in this thread, I have backed United from the start this season, the only thing worrying me is that Alan Shearer agrees with me!
I think it may all hinge on United v Chelsea, I can see the winner of that (if there is one) taking the title.
Does anyone know why the CL timetable has been tinkered with this season? Having the last 16 spread over 5 (or is it 6) weeks and then playing the QFs close together seems a bit bizarre. I know the final has been moved to a weekend for the first time but I don’t see why that should affect the earlier rounds so much.
Well done Fulham, what a terrific performance against Juventus, particularly considering that they were down by a goal very quickly and the aggregate scoreline at that point was 4-1 against them.
Agreed - one of the best performances I’ve seen for years. Clint Dempsey is probably being measured for the statue that’s going to be placed outside the Cottage.
Fuck. Rooney’s out 2-4 weeks. Time for the others to step up big time.