Sport-Blog.com

Wednesday Nov 29, 2006

Man Utd 3 Everton 0
Man U are mounting a serious title challenge this season. They are still 3 points ahead of Chelsea after easily dispatching Everton with an under strength team. Chelsea are off this weekend, and so when the Blues next play, Man U could be 9 points ahead.

Sir Alex Ferguson rested several players (Paul Scholes, Louis Saha and Gabriel Heinze) to prepare for the Champions League match against Benfica next week. The weakened team took a while to get going, and Everton were actually the better team in the first half an hour or so. But once Cristiano Ronaldo scored in the 39th minute, it was smooth sailing from there.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said, "After dropping two points against Chelsea this was an important game for us. I had to make changes because we have got an important Champions League game against Benfica coming up and we couldn't afford injuries and players coming out of the cold to play. Cristiano Ronaldo took his goal well and it was a good strike from Patrice Evra as well. He's a good striker of the ball and he's got real enthusiasm. We have got players to win games, but need a defensive record that wins titles and it was good to get another clean sheet."

Everton manager David Moyes said, "I'm pleased with how we played, especially in the first half. There was no shame in how they played and they can leave here with their heads high. We don't feel 3-0 was a fair reflection of the game. When you are 2-0 down it is very difficult, but it was important we didn't go to pieces. I'm very disappointed with the way we lost the third goal, which was very poor from our point of view."

Man Utd
Edwin Van der Sar, Patrice Evra, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville, John O'Shea, Mikael Silvestre, Michael Carrick (Wes Brown), Darren Fletcher, Kieran Richardson, Cristiano Ronaldo (Gabriel Heinze), Wayne Rooney
Subs Not Used: Kuszczak, Saha, Scholes.
Booked: Patrice Evra.
Goals: Cristiano Ronaldo 39, Patrice Evra 63, John O'Shea 89.

Everton
Richard Wright, Joleon Lescott, Phil Neville, Jorge Pereira Silva Nuno Valente, Alan Stubbs, Joseph Ikpo Yobo, Mikel Amatriain Arteta, Lee Carsley, Leon Osman (James Vaughan), James Beattie, James McFadden
Subs Not Used: Ruddy, Weir, Van der Meyde, Anichebe.
Booked: Mikel Amatriain Arteta.

Referee: Halsey, M
Venue: Old Trafford
Attendance: 75,723


Aston Villa 1 Man City 3
Man City outplayed Aston Villa. Captain Gareth Barry described this defeat as a "reality check" for the team. "The manager knows and the squad here knows we need a few faces to come in and strengthen us up," said Barry. "The squad has been over-achieving, definitely. Our main aim was to improve and get into the top half. Everyone knew we were exceeding expectations. [Manchester City] was a reality check. It was big eye opener for us. We didn't play like a team in the top five of the Premiership. We have still made a good start. If you look at the overall picture we have got to be pleased. But if we are going to strengthen in January, we need to get as many points on the board as we can now."

Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill said, "I think Mr Lerner has seen a number of our games now. He has watched us do well and not so cleverly. He will be disappointed but he knows what needs to be done. There's still a lot to be done to even become a decent Premiership side. We didn't play well enough and frailties can be shown up on nights like this."

Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce said, "I have been getting fed up with questions about our away form and I think the media have also got bored with asking me the same question. Hopefully we will now have something different to talk about. The performance of the players was magnificent, collectively and individually. It is one of the best performances we've put on this season."


Aston Villa
Stuart Taylor, Gareth Barry, Wilfred Bouma (Steven Davis), Gary Cahill, Olof Mellberg, Liam Ridgewell, Gavin McCann, Stilian Petrov, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Juan Pablo Angel, Milan Baros
Subs Not Used: Olejnik, Whittingham, Hughes, Gardner.
Booked: Gareth Barry.
Goals: Gavin McCann 66.

Man City
Nicky Weaver, Sylvain Distin, Richard Dunne, Micah Richards (Nedum Onuoha), Ben Thatcher, Hatem Trabelsi (Paul Dickov), Joey Barton, Claudio Reyna, Bernardo Corradi, Georgios Samaras (Dietmar Hamann), Darius Vassell
Subs Not Used: Hart, Miller.
Goals: Darius Vassell 18, Joey Barton 32, Sylvain Distin 75.

Referee: Dean, M
Venue: Villa Park
Attendance: 30,124

This weekend, the Cincinnati Bengals will have a pivotal game. The team started the year strong, going 3-0 against their first opponents, including the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Then, they stumbled against the New England Patriots. Bengals fans had no reason to worry, however, as the Patriots are worthy opponents, and the Bengals were in the game the entire time. Then came the next week. The Bengals found themselves struggling, and eventually losing to the then-winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers. What had happened to this team with so much promise at the beginning of the season? Would they recover?

After a much needed bye week, the Bengals were back, and they looked better. They played the Carolina Panthers, a team on a roll at that time. the Bengals stopped the streak and won a nasty, hard-fought victory. Last week, though, they again lost to the Atlanta Falcons as Michael Vick torched the Bengals defense on the ground and in the air.

This week, Cincinnati will face the Baltimore Ravens, a team with new desire and energy under quarterback Steve McNair. The Ravens started the season off well but have been in a bit of a slump themselves. Still, when the Bengals and Ravens tussle this weekend, more will be on the line than just another tick mark in the win or loss column. The teams will be playing to see who leads the AFC North division. The other two members of the division, the Steelers and the Cleveland Browns, are not proving to be much competition this year. That leaves the Bengals and Ravens to tough it out for the top spot and a trip to the playoffs.

Should the Bengals lose, they will have a chance to even the score in three weeks when the teams play again, but the Bengals will need to win out over the Ravens for the rest of the season. In the fourth year under head coach Marvin Lewis, the Bengals are not meeting expectations. Anyone who has followed the National Football League for long knows that it speaks volumes to even discuss expectations in the same sentence with the Cincinnati team. Going without a winning season for 13 years, no one expected much of the Bengals when Lewis took over the team, but in his first year as the coach, the Bengals were .500. That alone was reason to celebrate in Cincinnati. Then came the 2004 season when the Bengals had a (barely) winning season and then last year when they made it to the first round of the playoffs. This year, everyone anticipated a ramped-up defense to propel the Bengals to the top of the NFL, but halfway through the season, it just is not a sure thing anymore.

Part of the problem for Cincinnati is that the team has had so many off-the-field problems, including the arrests (some multiple) of six players, which has led to several suspensions and massive fines, that the team has been plugging holes all season. Add to that some pretty significant injuries, and you can see the problem. When David Pollack, a second-year player out of the University of Georgia, broke his neck during the second game of the season, the Bengals took a hit, despite the fact that Pollack did not contribute a lot during his rookie season.

T.J. Houshmanzadeh, who has emerged as the go-to guy for quarterback Carson Palmer in the place of Chad Johnson, has been injured off and on, and the Bengals are without Kelly Washington as well.

Johnson himself has proven uncertain this year despite all the trash talking he continues. He has yet to have a 100-yard game, and as the long threat receiver, that means the Bengals have not had anyone to make the big plays. Houshmanzadeh and Chris Henry, who was suspended for two games earlier in the season, are great receivers, but they are not the end zone threat that Johnson has been in past years. The running game is limited to Rudi Johnson as Chris Perry has only recently been reactivated after an injury, which means that the Bengals cannot put up the offensive threat needed to win in the AFC. This weekend should tell whether or not the team can get it together in time to contend for the playoffs.

Stephen Jackson, the Indiana Pacers players charged with felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from an incident last weekend, is one of the players the National Basketball Association would like you to forget. Oh, it is not Jackson on the court that the powers-that-be wish would go away. It is the Jackson who cannot control himself in hostile situations.

Two years ago, he was one of the players suspended in the brawl between the Detroit Pistons and the Pacers after things got out of hand on the court. The NBA crackdown was necessary then because the fight was extraordinarily violent and because fans were involved.

Jackson, who had criminal charges filed against him stemming from his role in the fight, is still on probation and will remain so for another year, which makes this latest incident all the more scary for the Pacers.

Last weekend Jackson was at a strip club in Indianapolis last Friday when he and a group of men who went to the club with him were involved in some sort of argument with another group of men. Chaos ensued outside the club, and one of the men in the other group tried to run Jackson over with his car. At some point, Jackson aimed a pistol into the air and fired several times.

Jackson maintains that he was firing the gun in self-defense although it is not clear how firing a gun into the air was a self-defense move. Prosecutors also determined that Jackson did not originally have the gun in his possession but that he retrieved it from his car before firing it and that he did so before he was run down by the other man.

When Jackson appeared in court today, an appearance that caused him to miss practice, the judge entered a not guilty plea, standard practice in Indiana. Jackson has 20 days to change his plea to guilt if he would like. He most likely will appear in court again on November 1.

The problems with Jackson and his run-in with the law are many. For starters, three other players were there. They apparently were not involved in the dispute, or at least they were not involved beyond words being exchanged, because none of them found themselves in a courtroom today. The problem is that they were all there! They allowed the situation to escalate to this point. Now, Jackson is an adult, but at some point, the other men with him should have made an effort to calm the situation, particularly since they all had to know of the trouble Jackson has had in the past.

The second problem is that the Pacers have not made any legitimate comments about the situation beyond Larry Bird saying that they are upset and Rick Carlisle assuring media representatives that Jackson will catch up on whatever he misses in practice because of his court appearances. There does not seem to be anyone within the organization who is questioning what happened. Now perhaps they are doing so behind closed doors, but it seems in a time when the NBA is trying to recover its reputation that the Pacers would make more of an effort to assure everyone that Jackson is not typical for the players they employ, particularly when it is Indiana that made the NBA look so awful in the first place.

Jackson is a terrible example for others, and although many athletes want to hide behind curtains when speaking of being a role model, the reality is that they have put themselves in a position to be a role model to children. Athletes market themselves, their jerseys, their shoes, sports drinks, and scores of other products to children; they cannot then claim no responsibility for the impressions they leave on those children. They are paid millions to perform in front of audiences, and they should act as if they can handle that responsibility.

Instead, Jackson and others like him act as if they do not know how to act in public. How many people routinely get into violent altercations with others? Jackson has ended up in police custody twice in two years for his poor judgment and lack of control, and it is time he has to pay for it..

By Julia Mercer

A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I were watching a lackluster Sunday night National Football League (NFL) game. I cannot recall now who was playing, and I do not think we even watched the entire game. Still every commercial break, we were treated to a commercial starring Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning. Now, I must admit that I find some of the commercials with him clever and even enticing. The MasterCard commercial, for example, in which Manning asks for autographs and shift aprons from everyday workers is hilarious, if a bit pretentious. The interesting part is that Manning can pull off this commercial without anyone getting offended by his slight condescension of the working class.

I think that is because Manning seems like an everyday Joe even if he is far from it. Manning grew up in the famed and beautiful Garden District in New Orleans. The son of an NFL quarterback, Manning grew up with a privileged life few will ever know. He was a star almost from Day One at the University of Tennessee, where he is one of the most successful graduates ever from the program.

When Manning was drafted into the NFL, he became the highest-paid rookie ever. Now ESPN reports that he makes about $11 million a year from football and a staggering $12.8 million every year from the aforementioned endorsement deals. At any rate, while watching the umpteenth Manning commercial, my husband commented on the fact that he seems to be everywhere. You cannot get on any sports websites or watch a game without seeing him multiple times. Do you think people will get tired of it? My husband was not critical, just curious.

As luck would have it, I ran into an article a day or two later that addressed this very question. The author was examining sports marketing models and used Manning as a test case. Is he too exposed? The writer examined the question in a cursory fashion, but his basic answer was no.

The writer quoted a marketing agent for Manning and a couple of executives from companies he now represents. They all concluded that Manning is not, in fact, too exposed right now. People want to see him; they love to see him. Even if he is playing in Indianapolis, a place where basketball reigns supreme, Manning has been successful at presenting himself for audiences to applaud.

Part of the appeal is that Manning does seem so naturally friendly to audiences. His lack of style, as askmen.com reports, is something that men find appealing to them. Most people could see themselves hanging out with Manning without feeling awkward or star struck, and that is what the cursory report on his exposure level failed to address. Some athletes may be amazing at their sport, but they do not seem down to earth enough to relate on more intimate levels.

Michael Jordan is a good example of this kind of athlete. Who could deny his basketball abilities? Yet Jordan does not resemble a buddy, which makes him off-limits. He has that super-human quality about him that Manning does not seem to have. Who has wondered, for instance, why Manning is doing those MasterCard commercials anyway? Does he use credit cards? Why would he? No one cares because they are too busy laughing at the absurdity of the commercial.

Reebok has been running a series of commercials asking athletes to tell the story of when they knew they had made it in sports. Many of them talk about getting the starting job or buying something grand. Manning, though, talks about being in the shadow of his father in his spot. He ends with "when they stopped calling me Archie's boy and started calling me Peyton." Now that is something the average person can understand. Anyone who has lived or work in the footsteps of a family member gets that commercial. At some point, others understand the very human experience of stepping out of a shadow, and that makes the commercial that much more appealing to the average fan. This ability to tap into what football fans and just regular old viewers may enjoy is what makes Manning a viable sports marketing icon.

It has been several years since my preseason football expectations have met as much disappointment as has been the case this season. While living in Cincinnati, I began to cheer for the then-hopeless Bengals franchise. Although I have not been a fan for many years, I was excited when the team started to do better. It is like seeing a wayward child begin to turn in the right direction. Right now the Bengals are a decent 4-3 team with a big test coming up.

My disappointment is not really with the Bengals, however. They do not have my heart the way a lifelong team would. Instead I am saddened by the performance of the University of Georgia team. As a proud member of Bulldog Nation, I have been gnashing my teeth every week this year. When we went up against the University of Colorado, then with the second-worst offense in the nation and struggled, I thought it was a fluke. We will get better, I told my husband. Maybe the experience was good for the team.

Then we sat the next week befuddled by the team we saw playing against Ole Miss. To make matters worse, we had a group of friends over, most of whom are loyal University of Kentucky fans, and they got no end to the entertaining possibility that the Rebels would snuff out our national championship hopes. Alas, Ole Miss would not complete the task, however, and we would have time to sit back and prepare for the next game.

That, my friends, is where our dreams went down the toilet. We came out strong against the Tennessee Volunteer, leading by a healthy margin at halftime, and then fell apart, giving over every possession in the fourth quarter. The 51 points our defense allowed was deplorable. We did not just lose. We were destroyed. An 18-point loss is not something a loyal Bulldog can write off. The disappointment (and shame?) only grew the next week when we lost to Vanderbilt. Yes, we lost to Vanderbilt. And it is a year after Jay Cutler left. Two measly points. A do-over on that missed field goal would have been nice. We could have left with some dignity intact.

One boring game against Mississippi State permitted us to regain some semblance of hope. Last week, I did not expect much going into the Cocktail Party against Florida. They lost to Auburn, but it was a respectable game. We surely could not provide the kind of opposition that the Tigers so deftly displayed. We did hang in there, but in the end we lost 21-14, which left us a three-loss team for the first time in recent memory.

When Mark Richt first arrived at Georgia, we lost four games. Then he began to put together a good team with solid players, and we started winning again. People started comparing Richt to Vince Dooley, the legendary Georgia coach against whom all future coaches will be measured. Perhaps Richt could be the new savior of the team.

The problem is that people (present company included) overlooked some of the flaws in the way Richt puts together his team, and this year those flaws are becoming apparent. Under Bobby Bowden, Richt coached quarterbacks, and he is good at it. In addition to the two Heisman trophy winners Richt trained, he has led plenty of others into the ranks of the NFL. He never had the final decision making power, however. That was the job of his boss and one for which Richt does not display great talent.

When he had a two-quarterback system during his first years at Georgia, a few people balked, but the team won. That made it okay. Now, we are rotating QBs like they are on a merry-go-round, and defensive and special teams players are doing the same. This week, you may be a strong-side linebacker, and next week you are fielding punts. Richt tries to put too much finesse on the strategy instead of teaching the positions and letting the players play. The changing and indecisiveness has cost this season for the Bulldogs. We can only hope that next year we will enter the season with a clear picture of who will be leading our offense and how he will be getting the job done.

By Derek Wilson

The Champions League may be stealing the limelight in terms of European competition but forty teams are currently battling it out in the UEFA Cup who deserve at least a fraction of our attention. The UEFA Cup used to be viewed as the toughest competition to win but many people now view it with disdain that reflects badly upon those involved in administering the game. However for those involved on the playing side it is still a big pot worth winning. Now that four match days out of five have been played a clear picture is emerging about who will be playing after Christmas and who will be free to concentrate on their domestic campaigns.

Group A - Rangers and Maccabi Haifi are already home and dry but the remaining spot is still up for grabs between Auxerre and Livorno. Partizan Belgrade have endured a horrific campaign and will be only too happy to for the competition to end so they can focus on their domestic league. Auxerre and Livorno meet in France in the last game and the home side only need a point to secure qualification in third place. A win, coupled with a Rangers loss against Belgrade, could skip them to the top of the group on goal difference. However since they lost to Haifi, a Rangers draw or better will see the Scottish side through in top spot and then Auxerre can finish no higher than third. Rangers will win against Belgrade but the do or die match between Auxerre and Livorno could be worth watching.

Group B - this group is relatively straightforward looking but both games are still alive. Poor Club Bruge are sitting fourth after four games so they will only be worrying about Belgium after Christmas but bottom placed Bayer Leverkusen could still skip Besiktas and take third place if they beat the Turks in Germany. The final game is between two sides that are already through. Tottenham Hotspur take on Dynamo Bucharest in London with the hosts needing just a point to secure top spot. If Bucharest fail to win they'll still take second but it is important to take the first place. That means a meeting with a team which finished third in a UEFA group in the first knock out round while finishing second leads to a contest with a team parachuting into the UEFA from the Champions League group stage. Everyone will want to avoid that so the match at White Hart Lane should still be competitive.

Group C - this group is almost identical to the one above but there is an extra bit of interest in the form of the middle team. Slovan Liberec are sitting third on five points having played all their games and unless Braga can defeat Grasshoppers at home they will progress. However the Swiss side have had a terrible campaign and are out with nothing to play for in the last game that could make Braga slight favourites. AZ and Sevilla will joust in Spain to see who tops the group and who finishes second. The Dutch only need a point but Sevilla have scored a few and not conceded and with the game being played at their ground they will be confident of getting the win they need.

Group D - this group is intriguing despite two sides already knowing their fate. Parma are already through, in top spot, but they could yet play a big part. Odense BK from Denmark are already out having only picked up four points from their matches. Osasuna, Lens and even Heerenveen can still jump through as well. Lens only need a point against the Dutch side to go through but should they lose Heerenveen will skip them. However, should Heerenveen win then Lens will still progress if Parma beat Osasuna. The Spaniards need a point to guarantee their progression regardless of the other score. An interesting night awaits, no doubt with many calculations to be made!

Group E - a fascinating round four here as left many things up in the air going into the last day. Basle are already out while Blackburn and Nancy are already through. Indeed the latter two there will duke it out at Ewood Park to decide who tops the group and finishes second. The visitors have the edge on goal difference so a draw will do them but Blackburn have been excellent in Europe this year so they will fancy their chances of taking three points and top spot. On paper, right now, Wisla Krakow go to Feyenoord needing a draw to guarantee their progression. However Feyenoord fans caused a substantial delay during their loss at Nancy and it seems almost certain that a point deduction will be implemented. That could mean that game means nothing in Rotterdam which would be great for the Poles. It would though be a major shock for Feyenoord, former European Cup winners, to be knocked out at the group stage.

Group F - at long last there is a group that is all but dead and buried. Austria Magna are already out with no points from their three games and they travel to group leaders Espanyol. The Spaniards have won all their games and will surely win another here. That leaves Zulte-Waregem taking on Ajax at home although with both sides already through and out of contention for top spot presumably neither will really be giving everything. Zulte only need a point to go through in second place although they may not be devastated at losing which would mean they play a UEFA Cup group winner rather than a Champions League dropout team. This is a group to ignore, especially in light of some of the more exciting games on offer elsewhere.

Group G - but after the dullness of group F the UEFA Cup bounces back with an absolute humdinger. Panathanaikos have won the group already and take on PSG at home in the last game. If the French side win, they go through. If they lose, that means Hapoel Tel-Aviv and Mlada Boleslav will progress. Those two pair off against each other and they will have to give it everything just in case PSG win. If that happens the Israeli's only need a draw to progress and playing at home they will feel that they should manage that. This group could turn into a damp squib depending on the result in Greece but a late goal giving PSG the lead could cause chaos in Israel. And that's always worth watching!

Group H - a good drama should always save the best for last. Group H is an absolute peach. Newcastle have done superbly well to take 10 points from 4 games despite only scoring 4 goals and they will definitely top the group. Celta Vigo are on 4 points, Fehrnebache and Palermo on 3, and Eintracht Frankfurt are on 2. In the last fixture round Celta visit to Palermo and Fehrnebache go to Frankfurt. It boils down, roughly, to this. Win and you're through, lose and you're out. That's what the UEFA Cup should be all about. There are, of course, hundreds of combinations depending on draws, losses and wins which and there are way too many of them for me to even begin although Celta Vigo are the only side that can progress even if they lose. For that to happen the other game needs to be a draw. A night of real drama waits.

So the decision is yours but there can only really be one group for flicking between games while frantically trying to do arithmetical calculations you've not attempted since school. Group H is the only game in town and it will be a fascinating evening. Other games to hold some interest but they are very much only needed to pad out the highlights later on. Enjoy!

Wednesday, Nov 29, 2006

Bolton 0 Chelsea 1

Bolton put up a good fight, and they were unlucky to concede a goal seconds before the half time whistle. But it showed that you cannot have a moment of lapses against Chelsea.
Andriy Shevchenko had a mostly quiet game again, but his only shinning moment was a fantastic strike from 30 yards that tested Bolton keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen to the limit. From the resulting corner, Michael Ballack took advantage of the loose marking and headed in the winner. The two new big name signings were still unconvincing. There are even talks of Shevchenko returning to AC Milan on a loan move.

What is really important is that Chelsea are winning these tough games, and are still keeping pace with Man Utd. As Jose Mourinho pointed out, Man Utd have a much tougher second half of the season than Chelsea, which includes a trip to Stamford Bridge. The fact that Man U are so in form and the lead is still only 3 points, while Chelsea are still playing somewhat below expectation, suggests that Chelsea are still the favorites to retain the title.

Bolton found that Chelsea were a tougher nut to crack than Arsenal. The reason being the two teams share the same pragmatic approach to football, except Chelsea have a team full of players that Sam Allardyce could only dream of signing.

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce said, "They are very good at set pieces and that's the difference in terms of the result. In open play we limited them to shots outside the box. They scored on the stroke of half-time from a corner, which was very disappointing. I have to praise the players for the way they approached the second half. But our finishing let us down."

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho said, "It was always going to be a tough game at Bolton. We were magnificent in the first half and a 1-0 scoreline was the minimum reward we deserved for our efforts. They came back strong after the break. Every one of our players was a fighter. We played a complete game."

Bolton
Jussi Jaaskelainen, Tal Ben-Haim, Nicky Hunt, Abdoulaye Meite, Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye, Ramos Ivan Campo, Kevin Nolan, Gary Speed, Nicolas Anelka, Kevin Davies (Ricardo Vaz Te), El Hadji Diouf

Booked: Ivan Campo, Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye, Kevin Nolan.

Chelsea
Carlo Cudicini, Ricardo Carvalho, Ashley Cole, John Terry, Michael Ballack, Michael Essien, Ndjitap Geremi, Frank Lampard, Claude Makelele, Didier Drogba (John Obi Mikel), Andriy Shevchenko (Salomon Kalou)

Booked: Ricardo Carvalho.
Goals: Michael Ballack 45.
Referee: Bennett, S
Venue: Reebok Stadium
Attendance: 23,559

Liverpool 0 Portsmouth 0

Even the Anfield fans were frustrated by their team's lack of progress as they booed their own players off the field. Portsmouth were excellent in defence but Liverpool's problem in front of goal has got to be a concern now. They had good possession but were unable to be creative enough to unlock the resolute defence.

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez said, "When you work as hard as we did and you cannot score you must be disappointed. You cannot say anything to the players as they tried everything but they broke up the game all the time. They tried to waste time from the beginning and it depends on the referee if you can stop those things."

Portsmouth keeper David James said, "It's the first time I've got anything on my return so I am delighted. We were very strong defensively and I didn't have a great deal much to do and it was a thoroughly deserved point. We stuck to our game plan. I know it wouldn't have been the greatest game for Liverpool fans too watch but we couldn't afford to be gung-ho."

Liverpool
Jose Manuel Reina, Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher, Steve Finnan, Sami Hyypia, Steven Gerrard, Javier Sanz Luis Garcia (Nabil El Zhar), Jermaine Pennant (Danny Guthrie), John Arne Riise, Peter Crouch (Robbie Fowler), Dirk Kuyt
Booked: Jermaine Pennant.
Portsmouth
David James, Sol Campbell, Noe Pamarot, Linvoy Primus, Matthew Taylor, Richard Hughes, Niko Kranjcar (Andy O'Brien), Gary O'Neil, Miguel Pedro Mendes (Henriques Manuel Fernandes), David Thompson, Benjani Mwaruwari (Nwankwo Kanu)
Booked: Richard Hughes, David Thompson, Noe Pamarot.
Referee: Wiley, A
Venue: Anfield
Attendance: 42,467

Wednesday, Nov 29, 2006

Fulham 2 Arsenal 1

Now 16 points adrift of league leaders Man Utd, Arsenal's title hope seems to be as good as over. Before the match, manager Arsene Wenger called this busy period of fixtures the "moment of truth" for this Arsenal side, but the performance suggests that they are not yet ready to win the championship. It was the first time Fulham have beaten Arsenal in 40 years. Even though Fulham played a fantastic match, Arsenal's performance was one of their worst under Wenger's management.

Wenger rested several first team players with one eye on the upcoming fixtures: a derby with local rival, Tottenham on Saturday; a Champions League match against Porto in mid week which they must at least draw to progress to the knockout round; and then a visit to Stamford Bridge against Chelsea. The plan backfired horribly. Robert Song was out of his depth in midfield. Justin Hoyte and Mathieu Flamini were shaky at the back. Fulham fully exploited Arsenal's defensively frailty, especially on the flanks. Former Arsenal player, Luis Boa Morte, now captain of Fulham, was too much for Justin Hoyte to handle.

It only took 6 minutes for Fulham to score. Once again, Arsenal conceded a goal from a set piece, this time from a corner. Brian McBride, the US international, had to free header and Jens Lehmann was partly at fault for not doing better to keep the ball out. McBride was a constant danger to the Arsenal rearguards. Soon, it was 2-0 to Fulham when Tomasz Radzinski scored from a easy tap in. At this point, Fulham was dominating the game, and the disjointed Arsenal could not their rhythm going at all. Robin van Persie scored a marvelous free kick to reduce the deficit before half time.

In the second half, Cesc Fabregas was on to replace the poor Robert Song, and injected Arsenal with much needed creativity. The Gunners played with much more purpose, but it was game over when Philippe Senderos was sent off for a clumsy challenge.

It was Arsenal's third successive away defeat, but Wenger refused to concede the title. "I will leave the mathematics of the title to you," he said. "We will go away and focus on the next game. It was our third away defeat in a row, we cannot deny that, but as with West Ham and Bolton we could have got points. At the moment it doesn't go for us."

Fulham manager Chris Coleman said, "At half time we said we can't sit back, we have to ask more questions andd take the game to them. Over the 90 minutes we deserved it. Arsenal are at their best when the opposition attack so we said when we do make sure we're tight at the back. You need a bit of luck against Arsenal and if we've had it then we earned it."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said, "The game was played at a high pace, I can't fault the team but it's difficult when you're 2-0 down early on. We're playing many games at the moment but the team showed great spirits and reactions, we fought until the end but it just doesn't seem to be going for us at the moment. Of course we are down and disappointed, but it's part of your job to cope with that - if you want to play at the top level, sometimes it doesn't got your way. We have character and we will respond, don't worry."

Fulham
Antti Niemi, Philippe Christanval, Zat Knight, Liam Rosenior, Moritz Volz, Michael Brown, Papa Bouba Diop, Claus Jensen, C, Luis Boa Morte, Brian McBride (Heidar Helguson), Tomasz Radzinski (Wayne Routledge)
Booked: Michael Brown, Liam Rosenior, Luis Boa Morte, Heidar Helguson.
Goals: Brian McBride 6, Tomasz Radzinski 19.
Arsenal
Jens Lehmann, Justin Hoyte, Philippe Senderos, Kolo Toure, Mathieu Flamini, Aleksandr Hleb (Johan Djourou), Tomas Rosicky (Theo Walcott), Gilberto Silva, Alexandre Song Bilong (Cesc Fabregas), Thierry Henry, Robin van Persie
Sent Off: Philippe Senderos (66).
Booked: Alexandre Song Billong, Philippe Senderos, Tomas Rosicky, Robin Van Persie, Mathieu Flamini.
Goals: Robin Van Persie 36.
Referee: Webb, H
Venue: Craven Cottage
Attendance: 24,510

Corners: Fulham 6 Arsenal 6
Goal Attempts: Fulham 13 Arsenal 7
On Target: Fulham 7 Arsenal 2

Wednesday Nov 29, 2006 Fixtures:

Aston Villa vs Man City
Aston Villa have not lost at home this season while Man City have not won away.

Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill said, "The Premiershp is hard and we are disappointed at the moment but we have an opportunity to go out all guns blazing - we are going to go for it. Winning the first of our two home games takes the pressure of the second. Our poor record against them doesn't bother me but I would prefer people not mentioning it so the players don't get to hear about it."

Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce said, "We are looking at everything and we have changed our preparations to try and get a win. But there are seven Premiership clubs looking for their first away win so it is obviously a problem for many clubs. The performances have been fine but the results haven't gone our way and we want to remedy it as soon as possible."

My Prediction: Aston Villa 1 Man City 1

Bolton vs Chelsea
The Reebok Stadium may be Arsenal's least favorite ground, but Chelsea do not mind going there at all. If fact, they won their last title there. Believe it or not, this is actually the 2nd placed team against the 3rd placed team. Bolton have come a long way.

Bolton assistant boss Sammy Lee on Andriy Shevchenko said, "People are quick to knock others and label them flops or disasters. No-one at Bolton will say Andriy Shevchenko is a flop because we all realise he is a quality player."

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said, "We are staying in Manchester for four days, to rest and eat well and prepare for the game, because it is another important one for us. We have sacrificed time with our families to play these two important games to the maximum of our qualities. Bolton have good morale after beating Arsenal, but we are ready for it."

My Prediction: Bolton 1 Chelsea 1

Fulham vs Arsenal
After playing their bogey team Bolton, Arsenal must be welcoming this fixture against their whipping boys Fulham. Arsenal hold an unbeaten Premiership record against Fulham with 9 wins and 1 draw, including all 5 victories at the Cottage.

Fulham manager Chris Coleman said, "Arsenal always have chances so no matter how well you play against them, you have to have a bit of luck if you're to get any kind of result. We've played them many times and we've tried everything. We tried to play, pass, get stuck in but it never works. You can see your team are doing their best but you have to credit them."

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said, "We must not hide. There is a big obstacle in front of the players but I feel they are ready to jump it. They will try, I am confident. When you have quality, you always have a chance. If this team takes off, we can kill teams by four or five goals. Wait until the end of the season before you judge us."

My Prediction: Fulham 0 Arsenal 3

Liverpool vs Portsmouth
Liverpool at home are tough to beat. Portsmouth have lost a bit of their momentum lately. Liverpool have won 3 matches in a row at home while Portsmouth have lost 4 away matches in a row. Portsmouth are actually 5 places above Liverpool in the table, but a loss here would see Liverpool jump ahead of them.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said, "I don't know whether our away form is becoming a psychological problem, we will see on Saturday. First we have to play Portsmouth and, if we can beat them, that will give us more confidence. I will wait to see how Craig Bellamy is during the week with the trial but involving him against Portsmouth on Wednesday will be difficult."

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp said, "I have not got a left-back on the books. We need to be at full strength to do OK and if we lose three or four players, we are in real trouble. We lost Glen Johnson who was also very important to us, and you really need your full squad to be fully effective. We have a hard game at Liverpool coming up but we will keep on going."

My Prediction: Liverpool 1 Portsmouth 0

Man United vs Everton
Man U should have won that match against Chelsea. They had won 7 in a row before Chelsea held them to a draw. They have a very good record against Everton at Old Trafford and I think they will win this one as well.

Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz said, "Soon after playing Chelsea it it important to react with the right mentality and motivation and be alert. Against Everton it is the third part of Sunday's game. The Everton game is like extra time against Chelsea, so we have to react in the right way otherwise your hard work can be undone."

Everton manager David Moyes said, "Any time you go to Old Trafford it is a thrill because of the challenge you will receive. You are up against maybe the best team in the country at this time. Who wouldn't want to go there? We have had a couple of good results at Old Trafford but not good enough in my eyes. I want my teams to win."

My Prediction: Man U 2 Everton 0

Saturday Nov 25, 2006

Liverpool 1 Man City 0

It was a tight contest until Steven Gerard scored. It was the Liverpool captain's first Premiership goal of the season. Playing in his favorite central midfield position in a 3-5-2 formation, Gerard made a case that maybe manager Rafael Benitez should keep him there instead of deploying him on the right. Gerard is gradually getting back to his best after the World Cup. His teammate Jamie Carragher was full of praise of his skipper, "I wouldn't swap Steve for Ronaldinho. Steve was outstanding; I think he can be the best player in the world."

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said, "It was certainly important for him [Steven Gerard] to score his first in the Premiership this season. It will give him more confidence and he is a player of such quality we know he can do things like that. And he is now playing well, happier when he scores goals and happier with his performances generally."

Man City manager Stuart Pearce said, "You cannot give Gerrard the ball like that 20 yards out. If you do, all the hard work that has been put in goes down the drain. They had thrown everything at us and they were not going to break us down. It was one costly mistake and that is what happens when you are playing a top-four club."

Liverpool
Jose Manuel Reina, Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher, Steve Finnan, Sami Hyypia, Steven Gerrard, Javier Sanz Luis Garcia (Jermaine Pennant), John Arne Riise, Boudewijn Zenden, Peter Crouch (Robbie Fowler), Dirk Kuyt (Craig Bellamy)

Goal: Steven Gerrard 67

Man City
Nicky Weaver, Sylvain Distin, Richard Dunne, Nedum Onuoha (Georgios Samaras), Micah Richards, Ben Thatcher, Hatem Trabelsi (Stephen Ireland), Joey Barton, Claudio Reyna, Bernardo Corradi, Darius Vassell

Referee: Styles, R
Venue: Anfield
Attendance: 44,081


Fulham 0 Reading 1

The sending off of Ian Pearce and the resulting penalty proved to be the difference of the match. Reading are now seventh in the table. Their success does not surprise Fulham manager Chris Coleman as he knows full well of Reading manager Steve Coppell's ability, since it was Coppell who brought Coleman to Crystal Palace for 275,000 pounds in 1991. "Reading have done very well and it's not a fluke. They are very well organised, because that's the way Steve is. And he keeps it simple for the players."

But the bosses did not agree with the ref's decision of the red card.

Fulham boss Chris Coleman said, "It was a penalty, I think Ian Pearce would say that himself. But does he need to be sent off as well? It wasn't a malicious challenge, he's just got it wrong but I don't think he has to be punished twice. I think a penalty can be given and perhaps a yellow card, but unfortunately it wasn't the case."

Reading boss Steve Coppell said, "The game obviously lost its thread when the penalty decision was made. The poor old referee - the law is the law but the law is an ass in this situation. It's the denial of a goal scoring opportunity so you should replace it with a goal scoring opportunity. The sending off, I don't think, is relevant but Dermot Gallagher had no option. From then onwards, the game took on an edge which is not conducive to anything, least of all good football."

Fulham
Antti Niemi, Zat Knight, Ian Pearce, Franck Queudrue (Carlos Bocanegra), Liam Rosenior, Michael Brown (Papa Bouba Diop), Claus Jensen, C, Luis Boa Morte, Collins John, Brian McBride, Tomasz Radzinski (Wayne Routledge)

Reading
Marcus Hahnemann, Ivar Ingimarsson, Graeme Murty, Nicky Shorey, Ibrahima Sonko, James Harper, Steve Hunt, Glen Little (John Oster), Ki-Hyeon Seol (Leroy Lita), Steven Sidwell (Brynjar Gunnarsson), Kevin Doyle

Goal: Kevin Doyle (penalty) 17

Referee: Gallagher, D
Venue: Craven Cottage
Attendance: 22,673


Aston Villa 1 Middlesbrough 1

Aston Villa have only lost once in 14 Premiership matches since Martin O'Neill became manager. However, they have drawn 8 of those 14 matches. It is apparent that they need a good striker. "Finding that cutting edge is really important. We played with a little bit of invention, we knocked it around and we are comfortable in possession," said O'Neill. "If we can hang in there until January and strengthen ... but I don't know how much a cutting edge would cost me."

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill said, "They tell me Malcolm Christie's goal was offside but Boro aren't pleased with our penalty so that's one at each end. I think we're disappointed we dropped a couple of points, we played some delightful stuff at times. We probably lacked a cutting edge which is important if you are going to win regularly in the Premiership."

Boro manager Gareth Southgate said, "I thought the penalty was a bit of a soft decision but I've no complaints. Petrov was probably on his way down when Mark Schwarzer caught him but the referee gave what he saw. I'm told our goal was offside and that one went for us. Nobody deserves a bit of luck more than Malcolm Christie."

Aston Villa
Thomas Sorensen (Stuart Taylor), Gareth Barry, Wilfred Bouma, Gary Cahill, Olof Mellberg, Isaiah Osbourne (Steven Davis), Liam Ridgewell, Gavin McCann, Stilian Petrov, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Juan Pablo Angel (Milan Baros)

Goal: Gareth Barry (penalty) 45

Middlesbrough
Mark Schwarzer, Luis da Silva Abel Xavier, Julio Arca, Robert Huth, Emanuel Pogatetz, Andrew Taylor, Jonathan Woodgate, George Boateng, James Morrison (Lee Cattermole), Yakubu Ayegbeni, Malcolm Christie (Massimo Maccarone)

Goal: Malcolm Christie 43

Referee: Walton, P
Venue: Villa Park
Attendance: 33,162

Charlton 1 Everton 1

Charlton earned their first point under new manager Les Reed. Their performance showed some improvement, but will they improve enough to get out of the relegation zone? For that, they have to start winning matches.

Charlton manager Les Reed said, "There are a lot of positives to take. They got their goal first and it triggered a very spirited performance and that's what the fans wanted to see. We've talked a lot about how we handle setbacks and it was important that we had a mentality that dealt with the goal and fought back."

Everton boss David Moyes said, "We gave it away. We had the game won and had played well, especially in the first half, and threw it away. Our performance warranted three points but we have to stop giving it away with a crazy moment. We also have to take our chances. But Charlton did make it very difficult."

Charlton
Scott Carson, Talal El Karkouri, Hermann Hreidarsson, Djimi Traore, Luke Young, Darren Ambrose (Marcus Bent, M), Amady Faye, Matt Holland, Andy Reid, Darren Bent, D, Dennis Rommedahl

Goal: Andy Reid 68

Everton
Tim Howard, Joleon Lescott, Phil Neville, Jorge Pereira Silva Nuno Valente, Joseph Ikpo Yobo, Mikel Amatriain Arteta, Lee Carsley, Simon Davies, Leon Osman, James Beattie (James Vaughan), James McFadden (Victor Anichebe)

Goal: Hermann Hreidarsson 52 og.

Sunday Nov 26, 2006

Tottenham 3 Wigan 1

Man of the Match, Dimitar Berbatov, is fast becoming a hero at White Hart Lane. Signed for 10 million pounds, the Bulgarian inspired the Spurs to comeback from a goal down to defeat Wigan. Berbatov also made the assists for the other two goals. Next up for the Spurs is the local derby with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, which will really test Tottenham's credentials, especially with their poor away form.

Tottenham boss Martin Jol said, "The Premiership is a tough league, at the end of the season the table does not lie and Wigan play a style which is very difficult to defend against. We are a footballing side, but our character came through today. We have the most points of the teams in the Uefa Cup, are in the Carling Cup quarter-finals and had a good win today. We can be pretty satisfied."

Wigan boss Paul Jewell said, "I felt they had run out of ideas but then they got two goals in a minute or so which completely changed the complexion. Those minutes cost and those two goals were poor ones defensively. I am disappointed. We have got to try and see things out and we didn't today. Sometimes we are a bit naive."

Tottenham
Paul Robinson, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Pascal Chimbonda, Michael Dawson, Tom Huddlestone, Ledley King, Aaron Lennon, Steed Malbranque, Didier Zokora, Dimitar Berbatov, Jermain Defoe (Robbie Keane)

Goals: Jermain Defoe 43; Dimitar Berbatov 44; Aaron Lennon 90

Wigan
Chris Kirkland, Leighton Baines, Emmerson Boyce, Matt Jackson, Paul Scharner, David Wright (Fitz Hall), Kevin Kilbane (David Cotterill), Josip Skoko, Gary Teale (Emile Heskey), Henri Camara, Lee McCulloch

Goal: Henri Camara 25

Referee: Clattenburg, M
Venue: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 35,205

Tuesday Nov 28, 2006

Watford 0 Sheffield United 1

A dubious late goal from substitute Danny Webber gave Sheffield 3 valuable points against fellow relegation rivals Watford. Television replays show that Webber was offside. Nonetheless, Sheffield did play well enough to deserve their win. It was probably Watford's worst performance of the season as they gave away possession far too easily.

Watford manager Adrian Boothroyd said, "Danny Webber's goal was offside but let's be right about things, we didn't perform. They hit the post twice and deserved to win, simple as that. We didn't play our way, didn't compete, and things we are normally very good at we didn't do. If we lie down now then we've got a problem but I'm sure we'll bounce back."

Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock said, "We were determined to win and I thought we showed that. It was the biggest game of the season - we had said before if you want to stay in the Premiership you have to win, make no mistake about that. It's absolutely fantastic to come away with three points. It was hard work but I thought we were magnificent."

Watford
Richard Lee, James Chambers, Jay DeMerit, Malky Mackay, Chris Powell, Damien Francis, Gavin Mahon, Anthony McNamee (Danny Shittu), Matthew Spring (Lloyd Doyley), Darius Henderson, Tommy Smith

Sheff Utd
Paddy Kenny, Claude Davis (Leigh Bromby), Derek Geary, Rob Kozluk, Mikele Leigertwood, Chris Morgan, Keith Gillespie, Phil Jagielka, Alan Quinn (Colin Kazim-Richards), Rob Hulse, Christian Nade (Danny Webber)

Goal: Danny Webber 88

Referee: Atkinson, M
Venue: Vicarage Road Stadium
Attendance: 18,887

Saturday Nov 25, 2006

West Ham 1 Sheffield United 0

It was a great new beginning under the new owner for West Ham as they took 3 points off fellow relegation strugglers Sheffield United. After weeks of takeover speculations, at least there is some closure at West Ham as new owner, Eggert Magnusson made his appearance. Before kick-off, Magnusson, holding his rather bemused two-year-old grandson, was serenaded with a rendition of 'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles' as the home fans celebrated the end of an uncertain period in the club's history.
It was a nervous win for West Ham as the players might be a bit to keen to impress the new owner. But a win is a win, and three points mean a lot of the Hammers nowadays.
Now that the club ownership problem is solved, Alan Pardew will turn his attention to his two troublesome South American players. Carlos Tevez did not take his second half substitution well at all and walked out of the stadium before the final whistle. Pardew will most likely fine him. Their West Ham career looks to be quite short.

West Ham boss Alan Pardew said, "There was a lot of pressure today, with the new owner and a game against a team who were always going to make it difficult. It was tense and I was very pleased to come away with a win and a clean sheet. The uncertainty about the club created a very disturbing situation but now we have a very enthusiastic new owner - and we've produced a gritty display."

Sheffield United boss Neil Warnock said, "The disallowed goal at the end was unfortunate. Referees should learn more from managers about the game. But it's like climbing glass mountains for us: we make basic mistakes at the back and we're not taking our chances. But the Premiership's great isn't it? I know we're struggling but I love it."

West Ham
Robert Green, Anton Ferdinand, Danny Gabbidon (George McCartney), Paul Konchesky, Hayden Mullins, Jonathan Spector, Lee Bowyer, Matthew Etherington, Nigel Reo-Coker, Carlos Tevez (Teddy Sheringham), Bobby Zamora (Marlon Harewood)

Goal: Hayden Mullins 36

Sheff Utd
Paddy Kenny, Claude Davis, Derek Geary, Rob Kozluk, Mikele Leigertwood, Keith Gillespie (Colin Kazim-Richards), Phil Jagielka, Nicky Law, Nick Montgomery (Steven Kabba), Alan Quinn (Christian Nade), Rob Hulse

Referee: Riley, M
Venue: Upton Park
Attendance: 34,454

Sunday Nov 26 2006

Newcastle United 1 Portsmouth 0

Newcastle finally won a Premiership match! It was their first win in 10 matches. The last victory was in mid-September. It was also their first home win since the opening day of the season.

Portsmouth, despite their fantastic start to the season, have lost their last three Premiership matches coming in to this fixture. It was clear to see that they current form has dipped considerably. Apart from an early effort from Nwankwo Kanu that was cleared off the line by Nolberto Solano, Harry Redknapp's side never really posed any threats. If not for David James' heroics, the score line could have been far worse.

"One-nil doesn't tell the story," Newcastle boss Glenn Roeder said. "We have kicked them out of the way today. We have not been in a comfortable position for the last few weeks but we have shown amazing mental strength. We all knew that we had to start winning."

He added, "We have played well in the past and not picked up points. But the players knew it was only a matter of time before they played well and won a game. It is just a shame a couple of the other chances did not go in to give the scoreline a more realistic look."

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp said, "We did not play very well. To be honest, I could see a 0-0 draw coming. But look at their squad - you would not have said at the start of the season they would be where they are and we would be fourth with our squad."

Newcastle
Shay Given, Titus Bramble, Peter Ramage, Kieron Dyer, Belozoglu Emre, James Milner (Antoine Sibierski), Charles N'Zogbia (Albert Luque), Scott Parker (Nicky Butt), Nolberto Solano, Steven Taylor, Obafemi Martins

Goal: Antoine Sibierski 69

Portsmouth
David James, Sol Campbell, Noe Pamarot, Linvoy Primus, Dejan Stefanovic (Matthew Taylor), Sean Davis, Gary O'Neil, Miguel Pedro Mendes (Niko Kranjcar), David Thompson, Nwankwo Kanu, Benjani Mwaruwari (Rudolphe Douala)

Referee: Halsey, M
Venue: St James' Park
Attendance: 48,743

On December 13, 2006, UFC Fight Night will take place at Miramar (Marine Corps Air Station) in San Diego, California as a tribute to our men and women fighting overseas. A great gesture by the UFC.

Another nice gesture, by the way, is the fact that this one will take place on Spike Television. Thus, it won't cost you a dime to watch it.

Wondering how it might go? Then keep reading.

Alan Belcher vs. Jorge Santiago

What Belcher brings to the table.- Sports an overall MMA record of 8-2 with five (T)KO's and two submission victories to his credit. Very little is known about him because he hasn't fought in many large market events (though we do know that he is difficult to stop as evidenced by the fact that this has never happened). Belcher's only two losses have come against the best competition he's faced (Marvin Eastman and Yushin Okami).

What Santiago brings to the table.- Sports an 11-6 overall MMA record with four (T)KO's and six submission victories to his credit. Santiago is an excellent grappler/ submission guy with mildly below average technical striking skills (with good power).

Santiago has been defeated by the best competition he has faced as well (Chris Leben via KO, Diego Sanchez and Joey Villasenor via decision).

What to expect in the Octagon.- Tough call, as very little is known about both of these guys. However, Santiago seems to have more experience, which could prove to be beneficial.

Santiago via decision.

Marcus Davis vs. Shonie Carter

What Davis brings to the table.- This former TUF 2 competitor sports an overall MMA record of 9-3 with three (T)KO's and five submission wins to his credit. Despite the fact that he is known as an excellent striker with a professional boxing pedigree, Davis has recently begun to look good on the ground as well (four of his last six wins have come via submission). Still, five of these fights have come on the small market stage.

There are a lot of questions surrounding Davis. These questions should be answered when he takes on. . .

What Carter brings to the table.- Sports a career MMA record of 34-15-7, with a 3-2 record in the UFC (not counting his 1-1 record from TUF 4). In short, there are few MMA practitioners with as much experience as Carter.

Carter has good takedown skills and takedown defense. Further, he has average submissions and better than average striking.

In other words, he's pretty well- rounded.

Of his 34 wins, only 15 have come by way of stoppage (eight (T)KO's and seven submissions). Thus, his fights tend to go to the scorecards quite often.

Look, here's the bottom line. When Carter trains hard and leaves his ego at the door, he is a dangerous hombre (just ask TUF 4 Champion, Matt Serra, about that flying back fist of his).

What to expect in the Octagon.- Tough call as Davis is likely the better technical striker. Still, Carter is a wizard that knows how to survive. In the end, you've got to go with the more proven fighter here, though Davis could definitely surprise.

Carter via a close decision.

Dave Menne vs. Luigi Fioravanti

What Menne brings to the table.- Sports a 39-14-2 overall MMA record with 14 submission victories and five (T)KO's. For the most part, Menne's vast experience has come in small market arenas. However, he has participated in five UFC matches where he has accumulated a 2-3 record.

Menne is an excellent submission fighter with good wrestling skills. However his striking is somewhat limited (average, perhaps mildly below). Further, he has lost three of his last four fights. In his last contest, he was defeated by Josh Koschek via decision (Ultimate Fight Night 5). When Menne does lose, it tends to be by decision (eight times) or (T)KO (five times).

What Fioravanti brings to the table.- Sports a 9-1 overall MMA record with five (T)KO's and one submission victory. Fioravanti has competed in two UFC matches previously, where he is 1-1 (he lost a rather uneventful decision to Chris Leben).

Fioravanti fights with the great American Top Team, has good cardio, and is difficult to stop. However, he gives up a lot in experience to Dave Menne.

What to expect in the Octagon.- Tough one to call. If this one ends up on the ground for any significant length of time, expect Menne to find a way to win. However, it's doubtful that it will. When standing, Fioravanti seemingly has an advantage. Further, his American Top Team teammates will have him ready for this one.

Fioravanti via TKO in round two.

Drew Fickett vs. Karo Parisyan

What Fickett brings to the table.- Sports a 27-4 overall MMA record with three (T)KO's and 17 submission victories to his credit. Along with this, he is 3-2 in his UFC career.

Fickett is a very well- rounded fighter with better than average jiu- jitsu/ submission skills and striking skills. Further, he is very tough. This toughness was on display in a recent UFC match against Josh Koschek where he was dominated on the ground until the very last minutes of the fight. Then, in the shocker of the year, he dropped Koschek with a knee, and while he was dazed, choked him out.

However, that fight also told the story on Fickett's takedown skills. Though they are good- getting taken down by a wrestler the likes of Koschek is nothing terrible- they aren't up to par against the best takedown men in the business. If the referee hadn't stood he and Koschek up late in the game, Fickett never would've gotten his chance.

What Parisyan brings to the table.- Karo Parisyan sports a 15-4 career MMA record. He's won 5 straight mixed martial arts matches and 9 of his last 10 (4 of his last 5 victories have come in the UFC).

Karo Parisyan has a very strong skill set. His takedown skills, particularly of the judo variety, are second to none in the division. They are simply outstanding. Further, he possesses excellent jiu- jitsu/ submission skills. Along with this, of his 15 victories, nine have come by way of submission (and he's never lost via submission). Beyond the above, Parisyan also has great cardio and a good jaw.

In terms of striking, Parisyan is about average. Further, he doesn't have much stand up power. Speaking of power in a different sense, he’s been bullied by very strong fighters with solid wrestling skills in the past as evidenced by his two losses to Sean Sherk- once via TKO- and his 2004 loss to Georges St. Pierre.

What to expect in the Octagon.- Fickett is a very tough, well- rounded fighter; but this is Karo Parisyan. Expect the judo practitioner to start strong and dominate from the outset. Fickett won't know what hit him.

Parisyan via second round submission.

Diego Sanchez vs. Joe Riggs

What Sanchez brings to the table.- This former TUF 1 champion sports an undefeated 16-0 record with eight submission victories and four (T)KO's. In short, he's a dynamo and one of the best up and comers in the UFC today.

Along with this, Sanchez has excellent takedown skills- of the wrestling variety- and his submission/ jiu- jitsu skills are also outstanding (eight of his 15 wins have come via submission). Further, he's a ground and pound nightmare with ridiculous cardio. Think it can't better? You're wrong. He also fights in a great camp- Jackson's Submission Fighting.

Sanchez's striking skills continue to improve. In his most recent win against Karo Parisyan, the Mexican fighter showed an ability to really work on his feet. Along with this, what was once a major weakness is now about average for the division.

What Riggs brings to the table.- Joe Riggs is a very strong fighter. Let's say it again. Joe Riggs is a very strong fighter. How he makes weight every week is beyond most of us. His size and strength are clearly his greatest assets.

Beyond that, Riggs exhibits average stand up, jiu- jitsu, and overall wrestling skills. However, when he gains the top position on the ground, he certainly knows how to use his power to his advantage. In other words, he possesses absolutely devastating ground and pound (if you want to see this in action, watch his 10/7/05 win over Chris Lytle).

Thus far, Riggs has achieved a career MMA record of 25-8 with 12 of his wins coming via (T)KO and 11 by way of submission. However, many of those submission wins were really due to strikes. In other words, Riggs has caused several fighters to tap- in essence give up- from an onslaught of strikes.

Last, Riggs may be susceptible to submissions. He's been beaten five times via that route.

What to expect in the Octagon.- Even with his strength advantage, Riggs is outclassed on the ground in this one. Sanchez has better takedowns, takedown defense, cardio, and submissions. Given that, Riggs's best chance is to keep this fight upright where the skill level is pretty close.

Expect a pretty tight stand up encounter for the better part of a round before Sanchez finally gets Riggs to the ground. Then expect an onslaught of strikes from the former TUF 1 winner. The second round will bring much of the same.

And eventually, expect Joe Riggs to make a mistake.

Sanchez via second round submission.

Saturday, Nov 25 2006

Bolton 3 Arsenal 1

It is no secret that Arsene Wenger and Sam Allardyce do not like each other. This rivalry between Arsenal and Bolton is just as intense as Arsenal vs Man U or Tottenham. The problem for Wenger is, he just cannot find a way to beat Allardyce's "in your face" tactics.

The Gunners failed to take advantage of Bolton's recent slump and once again proved that Bolton is their bogey team. Like any Arsenal fan, I dreaded this fixture. Credits have to be given to Sam Allardyce to be the first one to figure out a way to beat Arsenal consistently. Now, most teams copy his methods, and Arsene Wenger must come up with a plan B. The 4-5-1 formation is simply not working. Emmanuel Adebayor is not effective as the lone striker. Even though Theo Walcott was causing havoc on the right wing, I felt that he would be even more dangerous as Adebayor's striking partner. Arsenal have to go back to 4-4-2 for domestic fixtures. Four key Arsenal members were missing. Thierry Henry, Robin van Persire, William Gallas, and Tomas Rosicky were all unavailable for this fixture. So it was always going to be tough, especially mentally for this team of youngsters.

It had to be against his old club that Nicolas Anelka scored his first and then second Premiership goal for Bolton. The "Incredible Sulk" was bought by Wenger for 500,000 pounds, and sold for over 22 million. It was probably the best piece of business in Premiership history. But of course, he would come back to haunt us.

Bolton have moved ahead of Arsenal to 3rd place. Can Bolton sustain this position and get into the Champions League. I doubt it. But they do have a good chance of UEFA cup football next year.

Are Arsenal out of the title race? Probably. It will depend on Man U and Chelsea dropping points, and I don't see them, especially Chelsea dropping too many. The other factor is, Arsenal have to sort out the scoring problem. Chances are created but not taken, this is not how to win a championship. However promise these young players have shown, I still think that Arsenal are a team in transition, even though Arsene Wenger would argue otherwise. A Champions League is entirely possible. The 4-5-1 formation is actually quite suited for European games, as demonstrated last season.

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce said, "We knew this was a must-win match after throwing points away recently. Doing that against a team of Arsenal's quality was always going to be a big task but we have done it again. They always get irate when you upset them and that is why other teams have copied what we do. You know that they will lose their cool and composure and, when they do that, you know you have got a chance. It was a really great victory at a difficult time and gives us so much confidence."

On Anelka, Allardyce said, "Because he is a quiet lad, I have to make the conversation. He has definitely been a bit fed up and he has been asking what we can do to get him a bit better service."

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said, "I'm sad for my team as they gave a lot and they played well. We should have won this game and I don't know what impact it will have but it is a big blow to lose. In every game it is the same - we have fantastic potential but we do not get what we should. That is down to experience and a learning process."

When asked of his team's title chance, the Arsenal manager said, "It would be very pretentious to say we can be champions when we could be 15 points behind [the leaders]".

Bolton
Jussi Jaaskelainen, Tal Ben-Haim, Nicky Hunt (Stelios Giannakopoulos), Abdoulaye Meite, Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye, Quinton Fortune (Ramos Ivan Campo), Kevin Nolan, Gary Speed, Nicolas Anelka, Kevin Davies, El Hadji Diouf (Ricardo Vaz Te)

Goals: Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye 9, Nicolas Anelka 45, 76.

Arsenal
Jens Lehmann, Gael Clichy, Emmanuel Eboue, Philippe Senderos, Kolo Toure, Cesc Fabregas, Mathieu Flamini (Julio Cesar Baptista), Fredrik Ljungberg (Aleksandr Hleb), Gilberto Silva, Emmanuel Adebayor, Theo Walcott

Goal: Gilberto Silva 45

Referee: Dean, M
Venue: Reebok Stadium
Attendance: 24,409

Sunday, Nov 26, 2006

Even thought the final result was probably a fair reflection on the performances, Man Utd must have felt that they let this one slipped away. One goal up from Louis Saha's wonderful strike, Man U dominated a lackluster Chelsea in the first half. There were several good opportunities to increase their lead, especially early on in the second half, but Man Utd failed to convert them, and it came back to haunt them. With the score line at 1-0, there was always a chance for a side of Chelsea's quality to equalize. One look at the two clubs' substitute bench revealed the difference between them. On Chelsea's bench, there were potential match winners like Arjen Robben or Joe Cole, compare with Darren Fletcher or John O'Shea on Man U's bench. Jose Mourinho had so many more options to change his tactics, and in the second half, he did just that and Man U could not really cope with it.

At their heights, namely the treble winning season of 1999, Man U had four first rate strikers in Dwight Yorke, Andy Cole, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. On Sunday, they did not have a single striker on their bench.

In the second half, Mourinho took off Geremi and moved Michael Essien to the right back position. He also introduced Arjen Robben and Joe Cole to provide the some width. You can say whatever you like about Mourinho but he knows his tactics and it worked. On the other hand, Sir Alex Ferguson did not have the luxury of first rate subs, and even though Cristiano Ronaldo was not helping the defence at all, Fergie could not afford to take him off until the last ten minutes. It was almost inevitable that Chelsea equalizer would come.

Andriy Shevchenko once again had a disappointing match. It is hard to say whether he is over the hill or just need some time to adjust to the Premier League. 30 million pounds is nothing to Chelsea anyway. I wonder how long Mourinho would keep starting him.

So the result did not change the standings in the table, but psychologically, it was a blow to Man U. Jose Mourinho did not waste any time to rub it in.
Mourinho said: "United lost a big, big chance to open up six-point lead. We're not top like we want to be but three points is just one weekend. It's a better result for us than them. If I was in their place I would be very disappointed. We showed our power in the second half and that we are not sleeping,"

"Ricardo Carvalho was the man of the match and I want to dedicate the result to the medical department. They did an unbelievable job to get him fit for this match and sometimes people don't remember these people at the club."

Mourinho even praised the ref, "Webb did his job well. He had a good game and I think this is what people around the world want to see: a lot of good players and a lot of respect."
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was understandably disappointed, "It was a big opportunity for us but we didn't get the breaks. I think Edwin Van der Sar had Carvalho's header covered but these things happen in football. We knew they were going to change and for a little spell we started to sit off them a bit. They didn't make any chances but we should have been a bit more positive. But the most important thing is that we have proved we deserve to be in top place in the league. I am pleased at the performance and the effort they made."

Man Utd
Edwin Van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand, Gabriel Heinze, Gary Neville, Nemanja Vidic, Michael Carrick, Ryan Giggs, Cristiano Ronaldo (Darren Fletcher), Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha (John O'Shea)

Goal: Louis Saha 29

Chelsea
Carlo Cudicini, Ricardo Carvalho, Ashley Cole, John Terry, Michael Ballack (Renato Paulo Ferreira), Michael Essien, Ndjitap Geremi (Arjen Robben), Frank Lampard, Claude Makelele, Didier Drogba, Andriy Shevchenko (Joe Cole)

Goal: Ricardo Carvalho 69

Referee: Webb, H
Venue: Old Trafford

Corners:
Man Utd: 3
Chelsea: 2
Goal Attempts:
Man Utd: 8
Chelsea: 13
On Target:
Man Utd: 8
Chelsea: 13

By Derek Wilson

When you think of clubs that generate respect from everyone, even from fans or their rivals, there are few that spring to mind. Perhaps the Liverpool sides of the 70s and 80s could claim to have risen above petty squabbling but that was the players themselves rather than the club which had the admiration of everyone. Manchester United in the immediate aftermath of the Munich air disaster had respect. Barcelona have respect in some regard for their charity work and in particular their decision to carry the UNICEF logo on their shirts instead of signing a multi-million pound sponsorship deal. But for all their good work they are still one of the two biggest clubs in Spain and possibly even the biggest club in the world. It is hard to admire a club with so many resources behind them especially when they have underachieved so often in European competition. What's more, their membership of the G14 organisation puts a big black cloud over any kind of moral high ground they seek to occupy. However one club that is already in that exclusive club is already beginning to speak out. They may be hated throughout Germany - and let's be honest a team of murderers would be as welcome in most German cities - but Bayern Munich deserve credit for trying to stand up to the rest of the rich clubs. They seem to be the first reasonable to large sized club that has realised that football and the money within it is spiralling out of control. Will anyone listen to them? That is unlikely and certainly not at first. But that doesn't mean they don't deserve praise for trying and one day they may be able to make a difference.

First of all it should be noted that while Munich are speaking on behalf of common sense and the many clubs without millions to waste it should be acknowledged that they are of course primarily looking after their own self-interest. They are still a member of the G14 group that was so influential in tearing up the tried and tested format of European competition. And it is worth noting that before the group stages of the Champions League took on their current set up Munich had won three European Cups, a Cup Winners Cup and a UEFA Cup. Since the biggest restructuring they have only added one more European Cup to their continental haul. They essentially feel that when they, as a big club, operate successfully to make profit and reinvest that profit in their team they should have a reasonable chance of winning the big trophy. However they point out that given the TV money generated by teams in Italy, England and Spain they simply can't compete at the higher level. They also take exception to a club like Chelsea being bankrolled to a ridiculous extent by someone like Roman Abramovich. Under his backing Chelsea have made huge losses but as he seems to be willing to underwrite these losses there is nothing to stop them buying up the best talent and effectively buying titles as a result. It is hard to give credit to Munich for raising these objectives because of course they are worried about themselves and it is hard to be sympathetic to the biggest and richest club in a country of over 80m people. But nonetheless, no matter how bad a taste it leaves in the mouth, the fact remains that Munich are right. Money is sucking the life out of football to the extent that making cash is no longer a pleasant by product of success, it is the sole reason football is played at a high level. The fans may care what their teams wins but many of those sitting in the boardrooms at Europe's most glamorous venues care more for the large number on their financial bottom line.

The main point behind Bayern's argument, articulated by chairman Karl-Heinz Rummennige, is that football must remain competitive for it to survive. They feel that there are three main points that must be addressed. The biggest issue they have seems to be TV money. Germany is unusual in that it is just about the only major country that shows every game live on pay per view on their regular playing day, Saturday afternoon. Despite this huge concession to TV, German clubs still have full stadiums nearly every week as a result of two things, cheap prices and a competitive league. The cheap prices is one thing that is undeniable good for the game in the long term as it keeps people involved but the likes of Hamburg, Munich and Bremen who want to compete in Europe will wonder how long they can maintain this when sides in England charge double the prices and as a result take in double the income every fortnight. The TV income is also shared out in a much more even way in Germany than other countries. Yes the bigger and more successful clubs do get more but there is much more of a trickle down effect than in other countries. Again the same applies, this makes the domestic league strong but hinders the progress of the top sides when they are playing in Europe. Bayern want something to do done to stop such an obscene amount of TV money going to other sides although quite what they would like to see happen is unclear. Certainly TV is a problem for all but the biggest clubs and once, as inevitably will happen, clubs are allowed to negotiate their own TV rights individually the division between the have and have nots will increase tenfold. Bayern want to encourage a fairer distribution throughout Europe of all TV income, both domestic and continental, but they are in effect asking clubs to giveaway money. While the German league is still egalitarian it is hard to see Juventus or Manchester United being quite so considerate.

But if Bayern are fighting a losing cause on that one they have a good chance of getting some kind of change in relation to their next bone of contention. Chelsea, while being a moderate club, were certainly among the also-rans before Abramovich spotted their ground from his plane and decided to buy them. They won the occasional cup but with only one league title to their name before his arrival their place in the English game was comfortably in the second or even third tier. On a European level they were nothing. But that changed virtually overnight when Abramovich and his infinite bags of cash arrived. Chelsea strolled to a first title, then another and their dominance is such that even a challenge from Manchester United is welcomed this season to keep interest in the league alive. They can now offer wages which Bayern Munich cannot even dream of matching and, pre-Abramovich, no one would consider Chelsea to even be close to being a peer of the Bavarian giants. No one is suggesting that the order of clubs should be preserved for all time and that change and competition in this field is not good for the game; it is the very nature of the game. But when one man can simply hand his manager a blank cheque and give him carte blanche to win everything that surely defeats the purpose of sport. There is no contest in simply buying all the best players until you win. Football should be about gradually building up a team and challenging year in year out to achieve your goals. A Cinderella story is all well and good in the lower leagues but is surely not healthy at the top of European football. And on this Bayern might have support. The European Union will be looking carefully at corruption in the game and clubs themselves, worried about player costs spiralling out of control (after all, no one can match Chelsea), may introduce a voluntary cap on investment which either limits wages in relation to turnover or places a limit on how much one person or group can use to subsidise losses. Football will always have some clubs being bigger than others and some clubs being more successful than others but the clubs should be responsible for generating their own revenue. Charitable donations running into tens of millions simply distort the game and remove the sporting element from football.

And finally, Bayern Munich are questioning the motives of the G14. They feel that there is no longer constructive dialogue between the group and UEFA and that the greed of the biggest G14 members is threatening the game as we know it. Again, the caveat needs to be added that Munich were happy to exert influence in this group when it suited them but it is still true that the greed of the top clubs could ruin the game. The G14, as Bayern points out, is now no longer a friendly or amiable group. Their demands are frequently harsh and often do not even attempt to disguise the harm that would be done to smaller clubs by their proposals. Bayern do not deserve to be chastised forever for being part of the group as at least now they are standing up for common sense and less money swirling about a few elite clubs. The G14 need to remember that without smaller clubs there will be no competition left. They may think that fans just want to see repeats of matches between the same top seven or eight sides over and over again but they are wrong. Well done to Bayern for realising this and coming out and saying it.

It is of course easy for Munich to come up with words. It is harder for them to take action but there is little action that can obviously be taken. They have made their representations to the G14 and the European Union, what else can they do? They will, very soon, need to decide whether or not they are better remaining part of the G14 to lobby for change from the inside or are they better off by withdrawing altogether. And if they do remove themselves, what then? It would be possible to form an anti-G14 of sorts with large clubs wanting fair distribution of money and increased competition but they would have little power over UEFA and ultimately the threat of being excluded from any future G14 league would put many clubs off. Bayern are then stuck between a rock and a hard place. They don't like where things are at present but they cannot very well remain a member of the G14 when they object to its main goals. On the other hand, outside of the G14 their influence is limited in the extreme. Perhaps it is a good job for them that their fans, while demanding domestic success, are reasonable enough to understand that the good domestic league in Germany makes European success tougher to come by. But regardless of how it turns out, well done to Bayern for highlighting some big problems in the European game.

By Tovash Hatcher

It is Monday night October 23 and you're Drew Bledsoe. It's the Giants versus Cowboys and the nation is watching you. The Cowboys are down 12-7 and they have a chance to go ahead just before the half. You then throw your last pass which is a red zone interception. The crowd boos as the teams head to the locker room.

In the locker room one of the assistant coaches approach you and tell you that Coach Parcells is opting to go with the backup quarterback to start the 2nd half. What now??

October 23 was also the beginning of the end for the Dallas Cowboys. The Giants ended up beating the Cowboys soundly that night and Cowboys nation was up in arms over the benching of Bledsoe as well as the direction of the team.

After Bledsoe was benched his face was in the lenses of all the cameras in the building. The look on his face said it all. It appeared as if Bledsoe had been told that he had 3 more months to live. Meanwhile, Tony Romo was beginning his career before the entire country. Romo's first pass was an interception. And that came immediately after a 30 second standing ovation from the Texas Stadium crowd. Romo couldn't get the job done against the Giants either. The Cowboys lose and Romo's performance, well it wasn't that good. He tossed 3 interceptions and 2 touchdown passes.

The buzz around the city of the Dallas was nothing but Romo. Even though Dallas had just lost to the Giants, the media was interested in the fact that Bill Parcells has finally put Romo on the field. Why now? Why so late? What took him so long? Those were the questions around the sports world and for good reason too. Heck, Cowboys fans have been calling for Romo. Sports writers around in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area formed two camps. One was for playing Romo, and the other side was backing Bledsoe. One side's argument was that Drew has had it, bench him and get the youngster in there. The other side claimed that Drew would give his team "the best chance to win".

Antonio Ramiro Romo was named the starter in three straight road games against the Carolina Panthers, the Redskins, and the Cardinals. All Romo did was lead the Cowboys to a 2-1 record on the road which could have easily been 3-0 if it wasn't for a dropped pass by your favorite wide receiver and a missed block. He put up good numbers against those teams and had people believing that the Cowboys may have found their quarterback of the future. Troy Aikman was the last quarterback in Dallas who was worth anything and that seems like decades ago.

Romo then came home to Dallas and took down the then undefeated Indy Colts and the Bucs on Thanksgiving Day. Since October 23 Romo has once been named the NFC Player of the Week, leads the NFL in the quarterback rating with a 110.8, and has a 4-1 record. His numbers are outstanding as well. He has 13 touchdown passes and only 5 interceptions and looks like a veteran as he piles up the stellar numbers. He is getting every receiver involved and unlike Bledsoe, is avoiding the sack.

Off the field Romo is the hottest thing since American Idol. The charm, the smile, and the confidence are spreading. His teammates love hanging with him off the field. He's appeared on many television broadcasts. Rumors have also floated around Tinsel town that the 26-year old is supposed to be dating one Jessica Simpson. Guys around the country are now living vicariously through Romo. It's like he has gone Hollywood and it's all within a 6-week period.

What's to come for the young QB? The New York Giants are fading fast and the Cowboys have an opportunity to drive a steak through their hearts by getting a win and going up 2-games in the division. With Romo at the helm, the Cowboys resemble a team that has a promising remainder of the schedule. With 3 out of the next 5 games at home and each game being very winnable, I don't see Romo coming down from his hot streak and losing anytime soon. That's funny to me considering the fact that this team was written off when Bledsoe was under center. Romo has become the savior in Dallas and has turned this season completely around.

I'm Tovash Hatcher

By Tovash Hatcher

My college basketball coach used to always tell me that when it gets close to season's end, the pretenders and contenders start to show their true colors. Week 12 in the NFL has shown me something as well. The contenders, pretenders, and all those in between have begun to sort themselves out. "All those in between" you ask? Well there are a few teams that the jury is still out on. I'll explain.

One of those "in-between" teams is the New York football Giants. There is no reason to be up in a game by 21 points against a bad team like the Tennessee Titans and find a way to give the game away. Let me put it another way. The Giants were up in the fourth quarter 21-0 and still lost. This team reminds me of a bad tire on my car that I took on a road trip from Texas to Florida. As the trip progressed, the tire got worse and worse. By the time I got back to Dallas, the tire had enough. The rubber flew off the wheel and before I knew it, I was on the side of a major interstate changing a flat tire. The Giants are that tire that needs to be changed. That team is falling apart at the seams and if they're not careful the playoffs will be just an afterthought. However, this is the NFL and next week the G-men could turn the season around in just one game.

There are a lot of players in the New York locker room who are pointing fingers. TE Jeremy Shockey is always blaming the coaching staff for not calling the correct plays and head coach Tom Coughlin is faulting his own quarterback for ill-advised throws. Heck, even Tiki Barber has taken some shots at management. The injury bug made like Godzilla and took a big chunk from this team's starting players. Defensive ends Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora have been sidelined and now the Giants have not been able to get a decent rush on the quarterback. And wide receiver Plaxico Burress is not playing like himself. Dropping balls, giving up on plays, and not showing any toughness or heart have Giants fans booing his efforts on the field. And did I mention that the new NFC East leading Dallas Cowboys are coming to town next week? Week 12 was not good to the Giants (6-5) as they fall to Vince Young and the Titans 24-21.

And speaking of the Cowboys, do you know the hottest name in the NFL right now? No, not Peyton Manning or LaDainian Tomlinson. Give up? Let’s go with Antonio Ramiro Romo, better known as Tony Romo the quarterback of the extremely hot Dallas Cowboys for $200 Alex. This has become Romo's World and no offense to Lebron James, but we are all witnesses. The NFL's passer ratings leader with 110.8 is on a roll in his starting quarterback role. Romo has led the Cowboys in 2 wins in just 5 days. He beat the Indy Colts last Sunday, something that hasn't been done all season, and on Thanksgiving he destroyed the Tampa defense by throwing 5 TDs and going over the 300-yard mark for the first time in his career with 306 yards. Romo has set the NFL and the city of Dallas on fire. He has been the guest on many local TV shows and broadcasts in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area. He has also been mentioned in the same breath as Troy Aikman. And you know something else? Romo has even kept your favorite wide receiver out of the media spotlight as well. That could be qualified as breaking news I think. Mr. Terrell Owens has been unusually quiet and that has me scratching my head just a bit. The last time Owens has been this quiet, news broke that he had downed some pain pills. I don’t think a lion has a chance to roar when he has his mouth full. Tony Romo and the Cowboy defense has been the reason why Dallas is atop the NFC East and is looking to seal up the division with a showdown in the Meadowlands next week.

Is New Orleans the only team that can stop Mike Vick and the Falcons ground game? Well, not necessarily because Vick was able to get loose on the Saints on Sunday. With 166 yards on the ground, the Falcons' ground game wasn't the problem. It was the lack of defense and a huge Hail Mary pass from Drew Brees to Terrance Copper at the end of the half that gave the Saints 21 first half points. New Orleans had no problems scoring in this one by racking up 31 points. And even though they made Michael Vick look like the human version of the Roadrunner, New Orleans was too much for the Falcons in this one. The Saints march out of Atlanta with a 31-13 win.

The Indianapolis Colts are now 10-1 and they are back to their usual run-the-scoreboard-up type offense. The Colts are no pretenders and this time, QB Peyton Manning took a backseat to the rookie running back Joseph Addai. Addai gave an impressive national performance by running behind the Colts' offensive linemen on his way to a career-high 4 touchdowns. Addai ran through the Ea