Thought I'd start a football blog, we might keep this going until 2010.....England doing well....did not see the match or even the goals....I'd like Michael owen back in the squad though....and I think Peter Crouch would make a very good substitute...remember against Argentina in Geneva a few years ago....with Michael Owen and some very good movements on and off the ball...they caused havoc.....did see Scotland's missed chance....that could be very costly losing those 2 points !.

Joeif we banned every footballer that has cheatedthere would not be a single club that could field a team Saturdaythe rules of the game favour those that cheat the mostThierry Henry risked with a split second decision handballthere could have only been two possible outcomeshis infringement was spotted by an officialand he gets sent off with a concluding small ban.or he gets away with breaking the rules and France find themselves in the World Cuphis governing body gave him those two choices.where do you think the blame lies?
I am a football puristI am not blind to achievements made by other clubs that I may not otherwise supportArsene Wenger is the only non-British manager to win the Double in Englandthis he achieved in 1998 and 2002... In 2004 he became the only manager in FA Premier League history to go through the entire season without defeatand I doubt if that will ever be matched againa master's degree in Economicswhich is just as wellas he has a fraction of the finance the upper echelon have access tooand just to prove he is not racisthe speaks six languages.which helps with the Arsenal team talk?simply the best Manager in the World!Parisians asideI find the French by and large have high moral standards

If you want to solve a problem you need to get to the root of it.

Too many people/media/experts focus on officials who by and large imo try to give the correct decision as they see it, only to be pilloried and castigated when they get it wrong (by those with the benefit of numerous camera angles, and slow motion replays).

Fundamentally, if players did not cheat and could demonstrate the honesty and integrity as shown by the likes of Di Canio, then we would not be debating refeerinf performances or the need for a 4th official/camera validation etc.

Managers could help by encouraging honesty and integrity and your mistaken view of Wenger (the only manager to repeatedly not see the fouls and cheating of his own team, only to exagerate those of their opponents) does not help.

As a CFC fan, I can respect Sir Alex, O'Neil, Moyes, etc but Wenger - you've got to be joking.

And btw - in Arsenals unbeaten season they were extremely fortuitous several times over, most notably at Portsmouth I recall. Perhaps your hero could have shown some integrity there ?

lol as a CFC fan and watching Drogba "performing" week in week out you should be an expert on cheating Joe !

Get the fourth official in with video replays and then come down hard on the cheats I say with corresponding fines for the clubs / countries and deduction of points.

May be an idea to introduce "citing" too as they do in rugby but for cheating and not just foul play.

Dil - I and many other CFC fans are embarrassed and non-supportive of Drogbas actions.

The only thing I would say in his defence is that he tends to exagerrate (slightly !!!) when fouled rather than pretend he's been fould when hes not.

But fundamentally I think we need to crack down on all cheats and if Drogs is one then so be it.

Good morning all>

Dilyou took the words right out of my mouth with the CFC/Drogba remark.Joeunfortunately you watch football with blinkers onmost players cheatincluding West Ham players! the root of the problem is in the punishment they receive for committing the offences if caught?most Managers will back their players whilst being questioned by the mediayou would be naive to think otherwiseyou quote Di Caniowas that the same Di Canio who pushed referee Paul Alcock to the ground during a match and received an eleven game ban?
Wenger is not my herodont like Arsenaldont support Arsenalequally I dont believe lucky teams win the doubleor lucky teams go through a season without getting beatenWenger never pays big bucks on playersand usually makes a profit when off-loadingyour example of honesty and integrity when mentioning Sir Alexis not a good example.
Arsene Wenger was instrumental in choosingGreat Ormond Street Children's Hospital as their Charity of the Season for 2009/2010.and aims to raise 500,000 to help the hospital build a new lung function unit for childrenJoeI respect your viewas I do all football fansbut the problem will not be solved until vital decisions are made with the aid of video evidence and by a small panel of professionalsa amateur referee...that in most instances has never played the gamewill never be the answer!

Joelet me take you back to 19 August 2007...When Florent Malouda flung himself into the air like some kind of flailing seagull and fooled sorry-excuse-for-a-ref Rob Styles he could have shaped the entire season
Mourinho could have made a difference All he had to do was hold his hand up... criticise his player and maybe then help to turn the tide against these cheats. Liverpool were rightly incensed when they were robbed of three points by the actions Rafa Benitez and Steven Gerrard were scathing in their post-match commentsthe chosen one backed his player

ManU beaten at home last night......this has to be Chelsea or Arsenal's year in the Champions league......good to see Defoe getting 5 goals...let's have some more of that...and with the national side...

RF - Hope you are right but like any cup competition its a lottery and Man U are one of the ticket holders

Arsenal out of the carling cup (League cup).....not surprised...one day brilliant, one day not so good.....England seeded for the world cup draws...very good that....I'm surprised that Argentina are seeded and France are not.....hand balls aside they did play in the last world cup final....How much do you bet that we get either them or Portugal in our group ?...1 chance in 4 for that...

And Chelsea as well....Villa set for glory this year ?.

The world cup draw could go like this : England, France or Portugal, Chile, and USA......now that would be the group of death as they call it...or it could be : England, Slovenia, Algeria and Honduras.....that would be a good draw, not easy but a very good one.....

This is FIFA's favoured formula according to the press :- World Cup, current world rankings and performances in the previous two finals would see Germany, Brazil, Italy, Spain, England, France and Argentina seeded in that order along with hosts South Africa.
The rest of the draw would then proceed with no other seeds, but ensuring that no more than two European teams are in any of the eight groups, and no more than one country from South America, Africa and Asia in any group. After the elite trans-continental pot one, all the other European nations would be in pot two, African and South American teams in pot three, with Asian and North American sides in pot four.
Nowthis might be my cynical view of FIFAbut that aint much of a drawplacement would be a better descriptionI am all for producing a better competitionbut FIFA make me cringe with their portrayal as being democratic and fairthere past improprieties very clearly violate everything they pretend to stand for

Holland are seeded and France are not.....if we do get through, it's how the draw pans out in the second round like : winners of one group against second of another...you wouldn't want to be pitched against a group in the second round (with Brazil and France) or (Portugal) in the other group that we would bump into, that would be tough, so apart from the first round, a quick look at the way to the quarter finals is a must.....I sometimes think that the lottery is rigged, I just hope that tomorrow's draw isn't.

Wouldn't worry about the draw too much rf as England will make it difficult for themselves whoever they get , struggle through to the knock out stages before getting knocked out by a lesser team on pens.

That's cheered me up no end, thanks...

lol , it happens everytime and is about as close as you can get to a sure fire bet behind Wales never qualifying.

I hope Joe Cole will be fit and playing...a rare player that creates space....

He's fine when England are dominating a match.

RF.Joe Cole without doubt has a natural talenthe reminds me of Gazza in many wayswhat frustrates me about him is the % of times he gives the ball awayI dont count wide ball crosseswhich is a calculated play or even defensive clearancesbig punt up field when under pressure?but the amount of time he gives the ball away when there is an option within yards frustrates meI dont mind flair players that take on last defenders when the opportunity presents itselfbut he does not seem to be able to weigh up the risk factor in situationsif I was his managerhe would have a perforated ear drum