EPL Talk Blog Has Moved
The EPL Talk Blog has moved permanently. Point your browser to http://eplleague.blogspot.com (or point your RSS reader to http://eplleague.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Also, check out the Premier League lens at http://www.squidoo.com/premiership
Radio With A Difference
Three divine women out of Southern California have created an addictively sweet radio show — and prove that you don’t have to a macho man to appreciate the beautiful game.
Every Tuesday night, Nikki, Diana and Jenny broadcast The Treble, a live radio show that’s 100% focused on soccer but from a female’s perspective.
Streaming live every Tuesday night (or also available as a handy-dandy podcast), the precious girls are energetic, passionate, beautiful and very knowledgeable about the game — including the EPL, Serie A and other mas importante leagues.
Give them a test drive at http://www.thetrebletalk.com
Also, The Treble’s Nikki writes The Treble Blog, which captures all of the excitement and highlights of the weekend games. Definitely required reading, although it could be updated more often (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). Check it out at http://thetrebletalk.blogspot.com/
All The Best
Another tribute to George Best. Except this one focuses on his days at the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Fantastic piece by soccer journalist Jeff Rusnak, and delightful quotes from former Strikers and Newcastle star Ray Hudson.
Read the entire article here.
George Best: 1946-2005
“Georgie Best, there’s only one Georgie Best, one Georgie Be…st, there’s only one Georgie Best” sang the 20,182 Portsmouth and Chelsea fans at Fratton Park today.
For an in-depth tribute to understand how much Bestie meant to the British hearts, click on the image to hear interviews and more from the BBC.
$25 Million Down The Drain?
That’s how much revenue Man United will lose if they don’t qualify for the next round of the Champions League.
What can you say about their game yesterday against Villarreal? The game was definitely more entertaining than the nil-nil scoreline suggests. The first 20 minutes, especially, were riveting as Man Utd delivered onslaught after onslaught of attacks at the Villarreal goal, only for the Spaniards to escape punishment.
Towards the end of the game, manager Alex Ferguson resorted to desperate measures by throwing Gary Neville and Louis Saha on in hopes of making something happen. But the spark was missing and despite numerous free kick opportunities in perfect scoring positions, Manchester United failed. And failed again and again.
Sometimes the difference between teams these days is a penalty or free kick. Look back to the Arsenal and Wigan match from the weekend, and see how Henry’s free kick was the deciding factor. The sad thing is that United had that player, who would have won the game last night. His name is David Beckham.
Picture Perfect English Premier League
In the four EPL games that Fox Soccer Channel televised this weekend, viewers witnessed 15 goals – an average of 3.75 per game! Who said the EPL was boring?
Not only were the number of goals impressive but the sheer quality was astounding. In three out of the four games, we have the following contenders for goal of the season:
– Van Nistelrooy’s volley against Charlton (and sublime run by Rooney)
– Henry’s precise long-range free kick against Wigan
– Nathan Ellington’s twist and turn, followed by the shot that sneaked the ball inside the post
In highlights of the Middlesbrough v Fulham match and Boro’s incredible comeback (ditto to the Hammers too), Collins John’s goal for Fulham was a superb piece of skill, lofting the ball over the goalkeeper’s head and into the far corner. Another candidate for goal of the season perhaps?
Numero Uno: EPL or Primera Liga?
Watching Barcelona clobber Real Madrid this weekend, I couldn’t help but compare Spanish’s Primera Liga to the EPL.
My conclusion is that:
- The skills on display during the Spanish crunch match were far superior to the EPL,
- The pace of the game is noticeably faster in the UK, and
- Spanish fans are much less passionate (although Real didn’t have much to sing about).
Ronaldinho, the Brazilian who so cruelly ended England’s World Cup dream in 2002, produced the most impressive individual display I’ve seen in several years. The speed, the skill, the precision. The boy genius completely tore apart the Real Madrid defense making them look like mere amateurs instead of Galacticos.
Two Turtle Doves
Another cracker of a game. This time the Charlton 1-3 Man United one. Without a doubt, Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s first goal has got to be the one of goals of the season after that run by Rooney. And, seriously, I’m no fan of ManU!
Plus Ruud’s second goal was scored from outside the box.
In other observations, it’s good to hear the fans already singing “The 12 Days of Christmas� song. A bit early for me, perhaps since next week is the Thanksgiving Holiday here. But it’s great to hear the song in public since we live in such a “PC� world these days.
See, Britain hasn’t turned into America quite yet.
Wigan 2 – 3 Arsenal
YES! The Premiership is back after a two week break, and what a scintilating match the Wigan v Arsenal game was.
You can immediately see what a huge difference Henry makes to the Arsenal team. Pure world class, especially his free kick. And what about Wigan’s Jason Roberts knocking Fabregas to the floor after he was holding the ball up after Wigan scored their first winner — a fantastic header by Camara?
Wigan were unfortunate not to draw, and you could see the fighting spirit and teamwork that manager Paul Jewell has instilled in his team.
Bring on the rest of the Premiership games this weekend!
ESPN Nil, Fox Soccer Channel Two
It was June 9, 1993. Graham “The Turnipâ€? Taylor’s England team is defeated 2-0 by the US national side at Foxboro – just five months before Taylor was sacked by England. What sticks in my mind, though, is the inexcusable television coverage by ESPN.
Anyone remember watching this match? It’s hard to believe but *while* the game was playing, ESPN decided to break to commercials because the action had slowed down a little. After returning from a 2-3 minute break, ESPN reporters updated TV viewers that the US had scored during commercials. It’s hard to believe, but it wasn’t that long ago.
Twelve years on, we’re spoilt for choice thanks to Fox Soccer Channel, GOL TV, etc. And thankfully, the coverage is much improved. We even have a better selection of matches each weekend to watch from than even those fans in the UK. But what does the future hold for us? How many games can we possibly watch a week? Stay tuned to this blog for insights and observations about watching the beautiful game — the English Premier League.
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