2016
Division 3 Season 3 Stats and facts
Stuck in the middle with you !
The league where there has to be a price to pay.
Almost half of the managers in Division 3 have decided to sacrifice depth of squad for a strong starting team.
You would expect those managers to have made a good start and to a large extent they have.
However as the season progresses 1 or 2 injuries, rating changes or suspensions will start to hit home meaning blips along the road.
Monaco and Marseille have the strongest overall squads if not the best starting teams, they haven't had the greatest starts but are still within distance of the top contenders. Bilbao , Besitkas and current leaders Aston Villa also have strong balanced teams with a good depth to the squad. Ready reckoning suggest you need an average rating of 87 to gain promotion. This gives over half the teams a fighting chance. Of the teams who don't have a great deal of depth Genoa or Stoke look best placed to gain an automatic spot if all goes well.
Then we have the enigma of Leicester. Never has it been so easy to sit on a team of players and wait for them to rise. They will do as well as their team does in real life at the start of the next premier league season , they could well gain automatic promotion or quickly fall by the wayside.
Of the relegation candidates there is little to choose between them , although Bordeaux have the better keeper , which could be crucial.
Division 3 soon becomes a division to pass through on the way up or down and naturally has the biggest through put of teams. What has occured already is that with 6 better teams coming down from above and 6 improving teams coming up from below there are a dozen or so teams more than able to fight out for the elusive promotion spot, this makes it increasingly tough for the lesser lights to pick up the scraps and avoid relegation.
| Gk | Def | Mid | Att | Top15 | Top21 | Average | |
| AS Monaco | 88 | 89 | 89 | 90 | 87 | 86 | 88.17 |
| Olympique Marseille | 91 | 88 | 89 | 89 | 86 | 85 | 88.00 |
| Athletic Club | 90 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 87.83 |
| Besiktas JK | 88 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 87 | 87 | 87.67 |
| Aston Villa | 88 | 88 | 87 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 87.33 |
| Genoa CFC | 89 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 86 | 82 | 87.33 |
| Stoke City | 89 | 88 | 88 | 89 | 87 | 82 | 87.17 |
| Hoffenheim | 88 | 87 | 87 | 88 | 86 | 86 | 87.00 |
| AS Saint-Etienne | 89 | 87 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 85 | 87.00 |
| SC Internacional | 88 | 87 | 88 | 88 | 86 | 85 | 87.00 |
| Swansea City | 88 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 86 | 83 | 86.83 |
| Udinese Calcio | 87 | 87 | 87 | 88 | 87 | 85 | 86.83 |
| Sunderland | 87 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 86 | 86 | 86.67 |
| Leicester City | 89 | 88 | 88 | 90 | 84 | 80 | 86.50 |
| PSV | 87 | 88 | 87 | 88 | 85 | 84 | 86.50 |
| Southampton | 89 | 89 | 87 | 89 | 85 | 80 | 86.50 |
| Cruzeiro | 87 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 86 | 85 | 86.50 |
| Crystal Palace | 87 | 87 | 88 | 87 | 85 | 82 | 86.00 |
| Girondins Bordeaux | 88 | 87 | 88 | 88 | 85 | 80 | 86.00 |
| Galatasaray SK | 87 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 84 | 80 | 85.83 |
Espanyol: New and Improved.
After their month long transfer ban ended, Espanyol have been very busy making up for lost time. Since the start of the ban several players were sold externally to make room in the squad for the planned recruits. Lasse Sobiech moved back to Germany for a fee of £3 million to join St Pauli. Vitória de Setúbal made a trio of signings from the Spanish side spending just over £5 million to gain the services of Joao Costinha, Lukas Raeder and Andre Claro. Zinho Gano was the 5th player to be sold this season sealing a £1.1 million move back to Waasland-Beveren after a poor two and a half months in Spain. Rafael Marquez also departed Espanyol. The veteran defender had fallen out of favour under Earle and wanted to return home to finish his career. Following the end of the ban a further five players were sold. Jan Kliment made a £3 million move to Sao Paulo while Alvaro Arbeloa has joined Besiktas for around £2.5 million. Danny Simpson, Marko Vejinovic and Leonardo Pavoletti have also departed in part exchange deals.
Since the end of the ban Espanyol have made a number of signings. Here we will take a brief look at these players including in game expectations and real life statistics.
Players in as Part Exchange
- Christian Kabasele – (Joining as one of three players in exchange for Leonardo Pavoletti)
Real Life – Currently playing for KRC Genk, the Belgian defender has played every minute of every league game this season and has only missed one game in all competitions contributing 5 goals. This impressive season has led to him being selected for the Belgian Euro side and has been named in the Pro League team of the season.
In Game – With a rating of 85 he may not be an immediate starter, however the 25-year-old will play a big role in cup and championship matches. It is also expected that he will get a decent rise soon as a result of a fantastic season and international selection.
- Onyinye Ndidi – (Joining as one of three players in exchange for Leonardo Pavoletti)
Real Life – Also playing for KRC Genk, the 19-year-old has made 43 appearances this season with a total of 3688 minutes under his belt. He is primarily a defensive midfielder but has filled in at centre back when needed. He has also represented Nigeria on three occasions and has been voted into the Pro League team of the season.
In Game – Despite being of little significance to the first team, he will play a large role in Earles youth cup push. With the ability to play at centre and left back along with defence midfield, the 82 rated youngster will be a regular in the youth squad.
- Jean Luc Dompe – (Already joined for £4 million as part of Leonardo Pavoletti deal)
Real Life – Having signed for Standard Liege in January the 20-year-old winger was one to watch. He initially struggled to get into the squad but came on as a sub against his former club, Sint-Truiden, to make his debut. He has contributed two goals and an assist in his 10 games for Liege and has played a number of attacking roles. He has also represented France at Under 20s level.
In Game – Similar to Ndidi, the Frenchman won’t push for first team football but will play a key role in the youth squad. With a rating of 82 he is likely to be one of the major players in the Espanyol youth cup team.
- Azevedo Silvio – (Joining as part of the deal for Marko Vejinovic)
Real Life – Having spent two seasons on loan at Benfica from Atletico Madrid, the full back has played only a minor role at the Portuguese side playing only 1129 minutes in 14 games this season. Returning to Atletico for the season to come could see a change of fortune for the 28-year-old. He has made 11 appearances for Portugal since 2010, the last of which was in 2013.
In Game – With a questionable rating of 87, and the ability to play at left and right back, Silvio will play a big role at Espanyol. With Simpson departing the staring spot will be his.
- Abdoulaye Doucoure – (Joining as part of the deal for Danny Simpson)
Real Life – Starting his season at Stade Rennes, Doucoure made 16 Ligue 1 appearances before joining Watford for just under £8 million in February. He then joined Grenada on loan appearing in 15 La Liga games. The 23-year-old Frenchman will return to Watford for next season and can hopefully perform well in the Premier League.
In Game – With Marko Vejinovic leaving, Earle will look to Doucoure to fill in at centre midfield. With a rating of 86 his position will be far from secure but if he plays well he can make it his own.
Cash Transfers from Managed Clubs
 |
| Earles new most expensive signing |
- Benjamin Moukandjo – (Joining from Atalanta for £6.2 million)
Real Life – Having joined FC Lorient this season the forward has had an outstanding first season. With 13 goals and 2 assists in his 31 Ligue 1 matches the 27-year-old has been linked with Sunderland and Crystal Palace. He has also been a regular in the Cameroon squad since 2011 with a total of 36 international caps.
In Game – With a rating of 87, and the potential for more, the versatile forward will fill in for Leonardo Pavoletti. He is now Earles mos expensive signing and is likely to be a key asset up front.
- Pablo Armero – (Joining from Boca Juniors for £4 million)
Real Life – The Columbian left back is far from what he once was back when he first signed for Udinese back in 2010. Having moved to Napoli and back and having had around 4 loan spells at clubs ranging from West Ham to Flamengo the 29-year-old has certainly got experience. However, he has only played 5 games this season and, despite having 66 caps, hasn’t represented Colombia since June 2015.
In Game – Another questionable rating of 87, the left back will be a starter but will face competition from current left back Jony. A good short term solution but is likely to fall soon.
Cash Transfers from External Clubs
- Salvador Agra – (Joining for £2.8 million from CD Nacional)
Real Life – Having joined Nacional from Braga for free, his former club will be kicking themselves. He has appeared in 41 games throughout all competitions, and the 24-year-old winger has been nothing short of extraordinary. 13 goals and 14 assists made him one of the most impactful players in Portugal. As a result, he was named in the Liga NOS team of the season.
In Game – He is only rated 85 at the moment but should certainly rise following an outstanding season. He could make a good impact on the cup team and, depending on a rise, could push for a starting spot.
- Aleksandr Erokhin – (Joining for £2.6 million from FK Rostov)
Real Life – Starting the season at Russian side Ural, the attacking midfielder played 12 games scoring 4 goals and assisting a further 5. In February he completed a free transfer to league rivals FK Rostov where he has featured in a further 11 games bagging another 2 goals and helping his new team to 2nd in the league.
In Game – Another potential riser who currently has a rating of only 85. With the ability to play central midfield, attacking midfield and centre forward Erokhin will be a strong asset for the cup squad and possibly the first team depending on rating changes.
- Michael Santos – (Joining for £2 million from River Plate de Montevideo)
Real Life – With 30 played games this season in all competitions, the Uruguayan forward scored 15 goals. After a fantastic season and with time on his side, the 23-year-old will move to Malaga for next season where it looks as though he will play a large role up front. He has also represented Uruguay twice.
In Game – Rated only 83 for now, the young forward will play a small role at Espanyol. With the likes of Pizarro, Moukandjo, Demir and Wagner all rated better and with Demir rated the same it will be tough to make an impact.
- Omer Ali Sahiner – (Joining for £2 million from Konyaspor)
Real Life – Aged only 24, the Turkish speedster can play anywhere from right back to right wing. Moving up and down the right side throughout his 33 league appearances for Konyaspor this season has resulted in 3 goals and 6 assists for Sahiner. Due to this he made it into the Super Lig team of the season.
In Game – With Silvio coming in, it is unlikely the 83 rated Turk will start. However, with Espanyols next best right back being youth defender Ntim, rated 76, Sahiner would be the first choice back up in case of injury or for in cup games. He is also likely to see a decent rise anytime soon.
 |
| Key youth member |
- Sergio Gonzalez – (Joining for £1.4 million from Lanus)
Real Life – Currently playing in Argentina for Lanus, the 21-year-old is already showing potential. With over 1000 minutes last season and 4 goals he is surely one to watch.
In Game – A steal for the youth squad of Espanyol, the Argentine youngster will be a first choice youth cup player up front with a rating of 80. He will be the final piece in the Spanish youth squad which will look to cause an upset in the tournament this season.
- Fernando Bob – (Joining for £1.2 million from Free Agency)
Real Life – Having spent last season on loan at Ponte Preta and making 47 appearances, the Brazilians market value went up from £450k to over £3.3 million. A transfer to Internacional then followed where he has played 22 games and has helped them to become current Serie A leaders. This has seen a further rise in value to over £4 million.
In Game – A low rating of 83 means the 28-year-old won’t play much of an impact on the squad. But surely a rise is soon to come for the central midfielder who has had a very strong season and has got a decent market value.
That sums up the recent transfers for Espanyol. Some have suggested the moves are negative with Earle letting go some of the clubs most highly rated players. However, Earle has assured fans that changes were needed and the new recruits will provide enough ability to fill the first team while offering developmental depth at the same time. He has previously said he would happily remain in Division 5 for as long as it takes for the team to take shape as he does not wish to be rushed and make desperate signings to cope with higher pressures. He said he feels the team he has built has the potential to gain promotion, it’s just a matter of time for the players to settle and clear leaders to be established.
With these moves we have put together the expected starting XI for now.
GK - Volkan Demirel - After a lot of speculation it looks as though the veteran will start in goal.
RB - Azevedo Silvio - The best right back in the squad by some distance should be a regular.
LB - Pablo Armero - Despite pressure from others we expect Armero to command this position.
CB - Robson Weligton - With a move away looking less likely the Brazilian will be key in defence.
CB - Ragnar Klavan - Already with 2 goals this season, Klavan looks to be ahead of Rolando so far.
DM - Abdoulaye Doucoure - A young spark in midfield could be key to the teams season.
RM - Jose Reyes - After a good season last year the Spaniard should be a leader in the squad.
LM - Edin Visca - Should offer creativity down the flanks but could face competition.
AM - Ricky Alvarez - Should be the first name on the team sheet every week.
CF - Claudio Pizarro - Providing a target in the box as well as experience in tough games.
CF - Benjamin Moukandjo - Offering pace and power along with a bit of flair to keep fans excited.
Other players threatening for a first team spot could include the following;
CB - Jorge Rolando - Having made one start already, the Portuguese could push for a bigger role.
LB - Rodriguez Jony - With 4 starts this season, Jony could look to outclass Armero at full back.
DM - Federico Mancuello - With a new unproven midfielder starting, the spot is far from secure.
CM - Lukas Rupp - Similar to Mancuello, Rupp could push for a starting midfield role.
CM - Aleksandr Erokhin - A more attacking option for games where they need a boost.
AM - Nathan Redmond - Was a regular last season and impressed many.
CF - Andy Delort - Has already showed his worth scoring twice in the championship match.
CF - Sandro Wagner - Yet to make his full debut but could impress in the cup and get into the team.
A number of others sit in wait of their opportunity with a number of youngsters in the squad. Earle is unlikely to make many changes now and says he is very happy with how the squad has shaped up. With two wins in a row Earle will hope their form can carry on and that the new players will integrate well with the existing squad.
PSV Life
Life at PSV has been fantastic these past two season, we managed to avoid relegation last season when I took them over late on in the season, a brief spell out of management after looking after WBA in season 1.
A good full season with PSV and we nearly made the play offs last season after missing out in the last game then, a difficult time followed as bids came in for my prize players. Bids turned down for the following.
Zoet
Willems
Brum
Mayher
Moreno
Brenet
Bergwjin
Hendrix
De Jong
Periero - pictured only recently signed is in high demand.
Not the happiest squad (they look it though).
I promised the team we will be pushing for promotion this season and we are capable of winning this league.
I also wanted to look at entering the Youth Cup this season and along with some shrewd signings for the first team. I have added some excellent youth, We are really looking forward to the game on Saturday, we have a strong 9 a little week in goal and the middle of the park but exiting times.
GK Bertrams 78
Def - Henley 80 Hendrix 85 Koch 80 Ashong 81
Mid - Havlik 80 Pais 80 Lukovic 78
Att - Umarbaev 81 Fierro 83 Pereiro 85
A min run three games unbeaten and looking forward to all competitions this season really are exiting times at PSV with a young capable squad and fanatastic modern stadium we look forward to your visits.
The Doctor's Office - Good to be Back
Hi all,
Unexpected to many, including myself, that I am back in the Top 100. A lot has changed since I left but I am delighted to be part of a truly exceptional setup on SM. The blog, existing in somewhat of an embryonic phase, was an inspired decision by Frank and the gang. Along with The Ash, it set a precedent to really create a community with a game world in SM.
The Facebook page didn’t existing during my first run but with a little time and patience, I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things.
So without further ado, let me give you my initial thought on the club I have taken over, Sporting CP.
I figured that initially there would be offers for some of the key talent at the club and indeed there also looks to be a couple of holes in the first 11 I am hoping to address. That and the fact that the club has a commitment to the Youth Club (being represented in Group G along with Twent, Chelsea, West Brom and Sassuolo) means that there is plenty going on and to get involved with. I will be kept on my toes that is for sure.
I haven’t had a great opportunity to look at all the clubs roles and responsibilities, something I am hoping to get sorted over the coming weekend. While I appreciate offers that have been coming through, there will be little chance for me to even look at offers, let alone accept/reject them while I am comfortable with the first 11, a benched 7 and 5-6 squad players.
I still haven’t got a formation I am 100% happy with but I think I am getting close, certainly something that covers all bases, though the bench does need a bit of work for some impact players or players who can help defend a lead a little more comfortably should we be fortunate enough to get to that position.
Anyway, pleased to be back, lot of work ahead, looking forward to getting cracking in a tremendous setup once again.
Cheers all,
The Good Doctor Fox
Division 2 Season 3 do you have what it takes to make the big leap
Division 2 the edge of greatness or a fall into darkness.
Four defensive teams lead the pack.
If you take 90 as the gold standard there is one team a cut above the rest which is clearly Tottenham who should easily gain promotion. They should fear no team and with strength in depth should put a good cup campaign together. Roma should also push them hard but lack a little in depth ,which deep in the season will count against them. After the obvious 2 favourites a pack of others have little to split them. Zenit or Everton should fancy the 3rd spot.
Ajax and CSKA may well finish higher than predicted if they can keep a full team out most games.
However to secure promotion and your place in D1 you really need to top 89 as your average here which means the rest really have some building to do if they are to go up and stay up.
Spartak are off to a flying start but with a weak keeper that won't last . Of the relegation favourites Lokomotiv have the strength in depth to avoid the drop where as Benfica look well adrift of the rest.
GK |
Def |
Mid |
Att |
Top15 |
Top21 |
Ave |
|
Tottenham Hotspur |
92 |
90 |
92 |
90 |
88 |
87 |
89.83 |
AS Roma |
90 |
89 |
92 |
91 |
88 |
84 |
89.00 |
Monchengladbach |
90 |
89 |
90 |
91 |
87 |
86 |
88.83 |
Internazionale |
91 |
90 |
89 |
90 |
87 |
86 |
88.83 |
Zenit |
90 |
89 |
89 |
89 |
88 |
87 |
88.67 |
AC Milan |
89 |
89 |
90 |
90 |
88 |
85 |
88.50 |
Everton |
90 |
90 |
90 |
89 |
87 |
85 |
88.50 |
Sevilla |
88 |
89 |
89 |
90 |
88 |
86 |
88.33 |
Ajax |
91 |
89 |
89 |
89 |
87 |
84 |
88.17 |
CSKA Moskva |
90 |
88 |
89 |
89 |
87 |
85 |
88.00 |
Shakhtar Donetsk |
89 |
89 |
90 |
89 |
87 |
83 |
87.83 |
Olympique Lyonnais |
88 |
89 |
88 |
88 |
87 |
86 |
87.67 |
Boca Juniors |
88 |
87 |
89 |
88 |
86 |
86 |
87.33 |
Wolfsburg |
89 |
87 |
89 |
89 |
87 |
83 |
87.33 |
Spartak Moskva |
86 |
88 |
88 |
88 |
87 |
86 |
87.17 |
Newcastle United |
88 |
87 |
89 |
89 |
86 |
84 |
87.17 |
Sporting CP |
88 |
87 |
88 |
88 |
86 |
84 |
86.83 |
FC Basel |
87 |
87 |
87 |
89 |
86 |
85 |
86.83 |
Lokomotiv Moskva |
87 |
88 |
88 |
89 |
87 |
82 |
86.83 |
SL Benfica |
88 |
87 |
88 |
89 |
85 |
83 |
86.67 |
World Club Cup Round Up
A quick round up of the World Club Cup - Gameday 1 which saw masses of action across all divisions as each side looked to get of to a flier as brought to you by the Italian journalist Gino Kinnearo.
As ever a run-down of the Top 8 performers/managers:
1) Athletic Club (Gareth Crisp) - Many manager who have lost two World Cup finals in a row would be down and out, would have given up on life, would have sought an alternate career in retail, but not Gareth Crisp. Maybe his life in football management over the last 3-4 months has been a living hell but not tonight as his Athletic Club side scored FIVE (5) away to Espanyol to get off to a great start in the World Club Cup.
2) Milan (Stephen Beddows) - Who else? The No 1 manager in the Youth Cup from the weekend proved again why he is so good with an amazing 5-0 away win in Vigo. Mr Chisholm, cousin of Beddows could only bow down to Beddows at the end of the game asking “WTF” “How did you do that?” It was Mr Andy Carroll (apparently available for transfer) who set them on their way but Candreva who was the star of the show with 3 goals and 1 assist to give Milan a massive start to the World Club Cup and left Chisholm wondering if he could ever be as good as his cousin.
3) Real Madrid (Roy Keane) - A manager who parades the World Club Cup trophy before every home game, getting rounds of appaluse from everyone and tonight was no exception but the performance of his Madrid side against a tough looking Sevilla under the leadership of Rab Kennedy who had no answers to Keane’s brilliance. Rab is apparently still working on his Spanish and regularly messing it up with his French/German/Italian that he spoke in Switzerland and for such a talented manager to be such a failure thus far in Spain surely communication is the No 1 problem.
4) Celtic (Ruts) - Another manager who is about as dull as watching paint dry or doing the gardening on a lovely summer’s afternoon - yet he managed to lead his Celtic side to a dull 2-1 win over VFB Stutgart to show that perhaps the Scottish side are the ones who should be in the higher division and not the Irish Germans.
5) Leverkusen (Noisy) - The German side almost produced a performance comparable with Milan, but not quite good enough to be No 2… yet Noisy can be mightly proud of his side’s start to the World Club Cup with a 4-0 win at home against Chievo Verona.
6) Anderlecht (Prince Michael William) - The so-called No 1 manager in that little country called Belgium, and a manager who could not cope in Top 100 Division 1 has made the Top 10 managers of the day in the World Club Cup after a good 1-1 draw against the poorly managed and put together side that is Arsenal. Prince was delighted with the point but rather pessimistic about his sides chances against the bigger clubs like Milan.
7) Valencia (David Senior) - A great start by Valencia under the leadership of the Warden Mr David Senior - he is a wise man and a great manager of his players - he communicates what he wants and they produce - a great 4-0 win tonight and he is unlucky to not have any players in Team of the Week.
8) Juventus (DP) - It is mightly difficulut to manager a top side when under pressure but Dan has shown that his relationship with all his palyers such as Coman for example is fantastic and despite the pressures of impending failure in the League and the Youth Cup the bond and morale within the squad remains high as his side overcame a difficult trip to Ukraine to win 2-1.
There is your Top 8 Managers this week.
Here is Team of the Week
Division 1 Stats and Facts season 3 where will you finish.
The true state of Division 1 in the Top 100.
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern top the list once again.The top 3 suggests a similar result to last season Barcelona perhaps lack a little strength in depth , with Real performing better in that respect Bayern have a more of a problem with a weaker if improving keeper.
Juventus down to Chelsea should be able to field a team of 90+ players most weeks, have Chelsea decided to go for broke this season , the stats suggest so, short term gain could mean long term pain. In the lower reaches the teams tend to become less balanced favouring an attacking or defensive approach. Of the relegation contenders. Dortmund should start well but the fade. Leverkeusen have a good keeper if they wish to play the defensive game. Fiorentina look set for the chop, but the manager has built a deeper team this season and it will be interesting to see how that works for him.
| Gk | Def | Mid | Att | Top15 | Top21 | ||
| Barcelona | 96 | 93 | 94 | 97 | 88 | 85 | 92.17 |
| Bayern | 89 | 93 | 94 | 98 | 93 | 84 | 91.83 |
| Real Madrid | 92 | 93 | 94 | 94 | 90 | 87 | 91.67 |
| Juventus | 94 | 92 | 92 | 92 | 89 | 88 | 91.17 |
| Arsenal | 92 | 92 | 91 | 92 | 89 | 88 | 90.67 |
| Manchester United | 94 | 90 | 92 | 92 | 89 | 85 | 90.33 |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 90 | 91 | 92 | 94 | 89 | 85 | 90.17 |
| SSC Napoli | 90 | 90 | 92 | 92 | 89 | 87 | 90 |
| Manchester City | 91 | 90 | 91 | 93 | 88 | 87 | 90 |
| Liverpool | 90 | 90 | 92 | 91 | 88 | 86 | 89.5 |
| Chelsea | 93 | 90 | 91 | 94 | 87 | 82 | 89.5 |
| SS Lazio | 89 | 89 | 90 | 93 | 88 | 87 | 89.33 |
| Fenerbahçe SK | 89 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 88 | 88 | 89.17 |
| Valencia CF | 90 | 90 | 91 | 90 | 89 | 85 | 89.17 |
| FC Porto | 91 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 88 | 86 | 89.17 |
| Atlético Madrid | 91 | 90 | 89 | 90 | 88 | 87 | 89.17 |
| Dortmund | 89 | 91 | 92 | 92 | 87 | 82 | 88.83 |
| Leverkusen | 90 | 89 | 91 | 90 | 87 | 85 | 88.67 |
| Schalke | 89 | 90 | 90 | 91 | 88 | 83 | 88.5 |
| ACF FIORENTINA | 88 | 89 | 88 | 90 | 87 | 86 | 88 |
Wheels Wonders #2
Wheels Wonders #2
This week: How would the young footballers of today coped back in footballing world of the the 1970's?
I was watching these Euro's whilst enjoying a bottle or two of finest Jamesons' Irish & I got to thinking: How would the young players of today coped in the footballing world of yesteryear?
Bottle
Well, for a start there was non of this rolling around nonsense when tackled. Back in the black n white days it would take more than a knee trembler to knock us off our stride I can tell you.
At Arbroath I had the good fortune to play alongside Nobby Nobson, arguable the hardest footballer of the 1970's. I remember once against East Fife, I think it was, 63 minutes gone, we're 2-0 down & Nobby is violently ramming a dead otter up our keepers arse to encourage him not to fumble another cross. All of a sudden a young Italian winger jinked past Nobby and caressed the ball into the onion bag. It was non other than a certain Mr D. Piero making his loan début for Fife. Of course Nobby was livid. 'I'm not avin' that from no eye-talian ponce' he raged before smashing a Manns' brown ale bottle against the goal post & heading straight for Del-Piero.
Piero thought he'd got one over on Nobby by sprinting into the St John's Ambulance corner but little did he know they all drank with Nobby down the Faecal Duck after (& before) every game and were more than handy themselves. Suffice to say Del Piero never played for East Fife again, in fact his playing career only recovered once the physio at Grimsby managed to carve his wooden stump into a new type of instep and the rest is history.
Miss World
I met Georgie best when taking raining with Cobh Ramblers back in '79, what a legend he was, no-one can touch him even to this day. He turned up on a Friday afternoon at our rough, unkempt training pitch, Miss World Anna Kimberley-Blake in tow & proceeded to dazzle us with his silky drinks mixing skills. 10 Whiskey Sour & a couple of dozen Redditch Sunrises later he flew us all to the Old Bulls Head in Dublin where we drank till we puked up our stomach linings......what a guy.
Barm Cakes
The trouble with kids today is they go down to easy, one tiny shattered ACL & they're expecting stretchers, oxygen tanks, trips to the States, absolutely ridiculous.
I was lucky enough to be involved in the Cup final of 1956 – the Stanley Matthews Final – between Torquay Utd & Chesterfield Sofas. Matthews was a good solid old fashioned centre forward – he stood no nonsense from anyone.
He was known for wearing a pistachio nut on his chin for good luck, something he'd got from his dad, Albert Spinney who would go down the pit with a barm cake up his arse as a kind of a lucky charm. Indeed it worked a treat until he was killed in the Great Mine Collapse of '34 aged 21.
And Firearms
Matthews has been on the piss for 3 days solid before the final (he'd laid off the booze a bit for the big game) & was in fine form, not even spilling his pint when chopped down at the halfway line by Mad Machete Morrison, the maverick centre half & part time morris dancer from Morecambe Bay. It was a game we should have won, George Lardcastle missing a sitter when he stopped to sign a young lads autograph with the goal at his mercy & young 'Pickles' Harrison put clean through with just the keeper to beat converting to militant Islam & renouncing all forms of Western competitive sports when it would have been easier to score.
We, in fact lost, to a soft last minute penalty when wee Scots winger Jock McTavish shot their keeper in the neck with an ex WW1 rifle that a tsuicidal groundsman had left lying by the side of the pitch. Unfortunately for us the referee was perfectly sighted and awarded the spot kick – and the rest is history. Bugger that groundsman!