In a notebook somewhere I have some names scribbled down under the heading, "What the hell happened?" Mainly its pop culture figures who've faded away from the spot light, like Reginald Vel Johnson, aka Carl Winslow on 'Family Matters'. (Guess those Urkel residuals are paying the rent.)
Anyways, why not apply the concept to the Premier League since every clubs seems to have a couple players who've simply -- like Mike Tyson -- faded into bolivian. Would these players be worth buying? Or has their star faded completely away?
The starting point seems natural if you're a longtime reader of this here slice of the Inter-nets...
* Morten Gamst Pedersen, Blackburn -- With 10 goals from the midfield in the 2004-06 season the Norweigan attacker seemed poised to breakout or end up at a massive club. Since then the goals have trickled away and completely dried up this year. Perhaps he'll be reborn under new Rovers boss Sam Allardyce, who never met a set piece goal he didn't like. The lesson here, is probably never record a pop-song if you're a professional athlete.
* Paulo Ferreira, Chelsea -- Maybe the question here was if the Portuguese right back was ever good in the first place? A mainstay in Mourinho's title years in West London, he's made one appearance this season under Phil Scolari, displaced completely by countryman Jose Bosingwa.
* Leighton Baines, Everton -- A revelation at Wigan, a spare part at Everton. His last four showings for the Toffees have been as a substitute after the 85th minute.
* Jermaine Pennant, Liverpool -- Maybe this is a reflection of me, but I thought this was a perfect move when he transferred from Birmingham to Liverpool in 2006. How he's lasted at Anfield this long, is frankly a minor miracle. How he escapes the wrath of Rafa next month would be another miracle. Another word to the wise, don't play games with a ankle monitoring unit.
* Joey Barton, Newcastle United -- Man, this guy had so much promise at Man City and I haven't seen him once this year ... wait ... yeah, you can't much play when you're incarcerated.
* Luís Boa Morte, West Ham -- He used to be pretty spry at Fulham, now seems like a spare part at Upton Park.
So that's my list. Not as long as I thought it would be. Feel free to add any other nominations.
Champions League quickie -- Pretty good matchups for the Round of 16. In fact they seem to have a little more variety than years past. The English clubs definitely have tough roads ahead, with all four drawing legitimate opposition -- three being Italian clubs. It's especially good to see Chelsea get a 'real' opponent in Juventus, because who else would have bet money the Blues would have ended up with Panathinaikos? Also, how much ink will be used to hype Jose Mourinho's return to Old Trafford and how much speculation will there be that he'll be Sir Alex's successor?
Sweet home, Ohio -- There was some speculation where the U.S. v. Mexico World Cup qualifier would be held. The USSF took the obvious choice -- Columbus. Considering people of Mexican descent/Mexicans live everywhere in American there isn't a venue on homesoil where the home team will be the better supported. Maybe some day, but not this February. That said, the only other option is to play it in a colder climate, which makes Columbus make sense. I have no qualms about Ohio's capital and went to the very enjoyable 2-0 win in September 2005 that punched the U.S.'s ticket to Germany. (You can read about it here.)
One other short USMNT note, Sweden announced its preliminary roster for its January friendly in California. Included is Henrik Larsson. Can coach Lars Lagerback simply not let go? Has he turned out in front of Larsson's home with the boombox blaring Peter Gabriel?
Saturday
* Blackburn v. Stoke City -- New Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce might just have a tinge of jealousy watching the Potters on set pieces. Still, Rovers get a little boost from the new managerial blood who figures to bunker down and might ever right the ship. ... Blackburn 1, Stoke 0
* Bolton v. Portsmouth -- (Live, FSC, 10 a.m.) Usually when dealing with Bolton my comments range from 'bleach' to 'yuk'. This time I'm actually interested to see what the Trotters have up their sleeves. I like what I've seem from Johann Elmander. ... Bolton 1, Portsmouth 1
* Fulham v. Middlesbrough -- So, yeah, it's Mark Schwarzer against his old team. (Hey, it's better than telling you to find something else to do. Go buy his children's book, why don't ya!) ... Fulham 1, Middlesebrough 0
* Hull City v. Sunderland -- (Live, Setanta, 10 a.m.) Will Hull be tired from taking all those bows after a nice draw at Anfield last weekend? Bigger question, will the club have the depth to survive the crowded holiday fixture dates? Sunderland might have won convincingly last week, but that might be a smokescreen. ... Hull 2, Sunderland 1
* West Ham United v. Aston Villa -- (Live, FSC, 12:30 p.m.) The 'Claret-and-Blue' Bowl! Note to Martin O'Neill -- these are the games a Champions League club wins. ... West Ham 1, Villa 3
Sunday
* West Brom v. Manchester City -- (Live, Setanta, 8:30 a.m.) It's a good thing I don't actually wager money on these things. Who would have thought Sven Goran Ericksson would have had City in better position than Mark Hughes this time last season? ... West Brom 1, City 3
* Newcastle United v. Tottenham -- Hard to say which club has had a rockier start? Both have fired managers. Both have spent the bulk of the season in the relegation zone. Will Harry Redknapp whisper sweet nothings in the ear of Michael Owen and try to convince him that White Hart Lane is his future? ... Newcastle 1, Tottenham 1
* Arsenal v. Liverpool -- (Live, FSC, 11 a.m.) Weird how when these members of the 'Big Four' play there isn't as much acrimony as the other pairings. Maybe it's because of the continental-ness of the managers. This one Sunday should be interesting to see if both sides come out walking on eggshells. Neither club is playing very well, or consistently. The danger, here, might be scoring first since it could let down the intensity, especially if it's Arsenal. If I had to guess, Emmanuel Adebayor scores a goal in massive traffic, yet once again Steven Gerrard rescues Liverpool, like every week. Of course, the man can only do so much. ... Arsenal 1, Liverpool 1
Monday
* Everton v. Chelsea -- (Live, Setanta, 3 p.m.) If you're David Moyes how do you play it? Your defense probably isn't good enough to hold Chelsea to a stalemate for 90 minutes. Your attack, as is, probably isn't enough to scare Chelsea's defense. Can you spring on a counter-attack like West Ham did last weekend? Perhaps it's just anecdotal evidence, but Everton usually seem to wilt, oddly at home, when playing the big clubs. Chelsea lets out a little frustration here. ... Everton 0, Chelsea 2
Last week: 3-7
Season: 69-97
Anyways, why not apply the concept to the Premier League since every clubs seems to have a couple players who've simply -- like Mike Tyson -- faded into bolivian. Would these players be worth buying? Or has their star faded completely away?
The starting point seems natural if you're a longtime reader of this here slice of the Inter-nets...
* Morten Gamst Pedersen, Blackburn -- With 10 goals from the midfield in the 2004-06 season the Norweigan attacker seemed poised to breakout or end up at a massive club. Since then the goals have trickled away and completely dried up this year. Perhaps he'll be reborn under new Rovers boss Sam Allardyce, who never met a set piece goal he didn't like. The lesson here, is probably never record a pop-song if you're a professional athlete.
* Paulo Ferreira, Chelsea -- Maybe the question here was if the Portuguese right back was ever good in the first place? A mainstay in Mourinho's title years in West London, he's made one appearance this season under Phil Scolari, displaced completely by countryman Jose Bosingwa.
* Leighton Baines, Everton -- A revelation at Wigan, a spare part at Everton. His last four showings for the Toffees have been as a substitute after the 85th minute.
* Jermaine Pennant, Liverpool -- Maybe this is a reflection of me, but I thought this was a perfect move when he transferred from Birmingham to Liverpool in 2006. How he's lasted at Anfield this long, is frankly a minor miracle. How he escapes the wrath of Rafa next month would be another miracle. Another word to the wise, don't play games with a ankle monitoring unit.
* Joey Barton, Newcastle United -- Man, this guy had so much promise at Man City and I haven't seen him once this year ... wait ... yeah, you can't much play when you're incarcerated.
* Luís Boa Morte, West Ham -- He used to be pretty spry at Fulham, now seems like a spare part at Upton Park.
So that's my list. Not as long as I thought it would be. Feel free to add any other nominations.
Champions League quickie -- Pretty good matchups for the Round of 16. In fact they seem to have a little more variety than years past. The English clubs definitely have tough roads ahead, with all four drawing legitimate opposition -- three being Italian clubs. It's especially good to see Chelsea get a 'real' opponent in Juventus, because who else would have bet money the Blues would have ended up with Panathinaikos? Also, how much ink will be used to hype Jose Mourinho's return to Old Trafford and how much speculation will there be that he'll be Sir Alex's successor?
Sweet home, Ohio -- There was some speculation where the U.S. v. Mexico World Cup qualifier would be held. The USSF took the obvious choice -- Columbus. Considering people of Mexican descent/Mexicans live everywhere in American there isn't a venue on homesoil where the home team will be the better supported. Maybe some day, but not this February. That said, the only other option is to play it in a colder climate, which makes Columbus make sense. I have no qualms about Ohio's capital and went to the very enjoyable 2-0 win in September 2005 that punched the U.S.'s ticket to Germany. (You can read about it here.)
One other short USMNT note, Sweden announced its preliminary roster for its January friendly in California. Included is Henrik Larsson. Can coach Lars Lagerback simply not let go? Has he turned out in front of Larsson's home with the boombox blaring Peter Gabriel?
Saturday
* Blackburn v. Stoke City -- New Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce might just have a tinge of jealousy watching the Potters on set pieces. Still, Rovers get a little boost from the new managerial blood who figures to bunker down and might ever right the ship. ... Blackburn 1, Stoke 0
* Bolton v. Portsmouth -- (Live, FSC, 10 a.m.) Usually when dealing with Bolton my comments range from 'bleach' to 'yuk'. This time I'm actually interested to see what the Trotters have up their sleeves. I like what I've seem from Johann Elmander. ... Bolton 1, Portsmouth 1
* Fulham v. Middlesbrough -- So, yeah, it's Mark Schwarzer against his old team. (Hey, it's better than telling you to find something else to do. Go buy his children's book, why don't ya!) ... Fulham 1, Middlesebrough 0
* Hull City v. Sunderland -- (Live, Setanta, 10 a.m.) Will Hull be tired from taking all those bows after a nice draw at Anfield last weekend? Bigger question, will the club have the depth to survive the crowded holiday fixture dates? Sunderland might have won convincingly last week, but that might be a smokescreen. ... Hull 2, Sunderland 1
* West Ham United v. Aston Villa -- (Live, FSC, 12:30 p.m.) The 'Claret-and-Blue' Bowl! Note to Martin O'Neill -- these are the games a Champions League club wins. ... West Ham 1, Villa 3
Sunday
* West Brom v. Manchester City -- (Live, Setanta, 8:30 a.m.) It's a good thing I don't actually wager money on these things. Who would have thought Sven Goran Ericksson would have had City in better position than Mark Hughes this time last season? ... West Brom 1, City 3
* Newcastle United v. Tottenham -- Hard to say which club has had a rockier start? Both have fired managers. Both have spent the bulk of the season in the relegation zone. Will Harry Redknapp whisper sweet nothings in the ear of Michael Owen and try to convince him that White Hart Lane is his future? ... Newcastle 1, Tottenham 1
* Arsenal v. Liverpool -- (Live, FSC, 11 a.m.) Weird how when these members of the 'Big Four' play there isn't as much acrimony as the other pairings. Maybe it's because of the continental-ness of the managers. This one Sunday should be interesting to see if both sides come out walking on eggshells. Neither club is playing very well, or consistently. The danger, here, might be scoring first since it could let down the intensity, especially if it's Arsenal. If I had to guess, Emmanuel Adebayor scores a goal in massive traffic, yet once again Steven Gerrard rescues Liverpool, like every week. Of course, the man can only do so much. ... Arsenal 1, Liverpool 1
Monday
* Everton v. Chelsea -- (Live, Setanta, 3 p.m.) If you're David Moyes how do you play it? Your defense probably isn't good enough to hold Chelsea to a stalemate for 90 minutes. Your attack, as is, probably isn't enough to scare Chelsea's defense. Can you spring on a counter-attack like West Ham did last weekend? Perhaps it's just anecdotal evidence, but Everton usually seem to wilt, oddly at home, when playing the big clubs. Chelsea lets out a little frustration here. ... Everton 0, Chelsea 2
Last week: 3-7
Season: 69-97
Labels: Prem League, Prem Picks, Premier League, Soccer
Again, regarding Villa- it's claret and blue.
Claret is the red- so named for its resemblance to the wine of same name
good catch...don't know why i keep doing that when i know it's wrong.
Re: WC qualifier in cold weather?
Why is that such an advantage? I could see if the whole US team grew up playing in cold weather in northern lattitudes then maybe there would be some benefit. Brett Favre is from the deep south and he did just fine in the frozen tundra.
They should have played the game at the Rose Bowl and had ESPN hype the crap out of it to get US supporters in the seats. Tell people that Beckham is now on the US team or something.
Wasn't carl winslow in NBC's chuck this week?
Random that you would mention it!
Hello there,
I am Peter Robert Casey and I am a basketball columnist. I have initiated an idea to create a sports blogroll where bloggers from all sports disciplines could participate. All you need to do is to add my blog link to your blog and i'll do the same. That way, we could have a mutual partnership and we could refer visitors to each other's blog.
Please let me know if you would be interested.
Your's in Hoops,
Peter Robert Casey
http://www.peterrobertcasey.com
Minor point, but Keegan quit Newcastle. He wasn't fired.
Also, in Seattle, Ljungberg underwent hip surgery this week and is out 10-12 weeks. But the Sounders say they wanted him for the long term. Right.