It is? Really? Wow. With insights with these the following...




...simply speaks for itself. Cheating is cheating. Here's me thinking cheating wasn't cheating at all.

So every single form of cheating no matter what context or end result is the same?

You don't think preventing a team from entering the world's premier sporting tournament and causing an international incident is slightly worse than cheating in a dead rubber game early on in a league format when your team is getting beat 3-0?

Hmm. Please, Aristotle, give me some more of your wisdom.

In what way was it a dead rubber game?

They were already out of the Davis Cup.

Perhaps the wrong word in this instance. I just meant the game was already over at that point.

Who's calling for Henry to be thrown out of anywhere?

Don't talk daft. 5 yards out of the penlty area, with no striker around, is defender territory. No question about it. There was no reason for the keeper to around 20 yards off his line.

What?

Has the league season ended? Was the Spurs / Wigan game a friendly? Does goal difference not count anymore? If Spurs had hit the woodwork, rather than the net, on 9 occasions, would you still have the same view? If not, why not?




Have you actually read Aristotle? Tell me how Aristotle has influenced some of the great German thinkers?

If Spurs miss out on the Champions League by one goal, then it is just as, if not, more crucial than Ireland not getting to the World Cup.



Quite a lot of people actually. That was one suggestion put forward after FIFA refused to back down to the FAI's requests. Stupid, I know.

Are 2 footed tackles allowed now?

Even if you win the ball i did not think this type of challenge was permitted.

You talking about the Stephen Ireland tackle?

De Jong (I think thats how you spell it) on Babel

It was a block. Babel was injured by the ball. Is stamping on someone's back legal? Skrtel thinks so.

De Jong is slowly turning in to a favourite of mine after some anonymous displays, followed by inconsistency. He has been impressive in most games he has played this season, and seems to be improving.

I am not really keen on holding midfielders, as they are not proper footballers in my opinion as most of them cannot pass the ball. However, he is becoming a favourite of mine because of his attitude.

In a 50:50 I would back him against any Prem footballer.

He's a good player but not sure he is any better than Mascherano, Fletcher, Essien, Palacious to name but a few.

As defensive midfielders go in the Prem there is Essien then daylight.

He can only be compared to Mascherano as he is a completely different player to the others. By the end of this season, I will be able to compare the two. Both can tackle, and neirther of them can pass.

Palacios? Don't be daft. What are his strengths?

Fletcher? Ireland and Barry are better. Why does Fletcher look Championshiop class while playing for Scotland?

Since you only give a player a few months (far be it from me to call an out-of-towner fickle), I can then say that Valencia and Obertan are rubbish.

In what way do you mean 50:50?

In a 50:50 tackle? Aerial battle? Shoulder to shoulder?

To be honest, he'd come off second to Essien in all of the above pretty much every time.

Your very defensive aint ya. And no stamping is not allowed, that was not what i was enquiring about. Never mind you got it in quick enough when someone dares mention something about your team.

It was not a block challenge however, 2 feet off the ground with studs showing. He won the ball which i dont have a problem with, i just thought that this type of challenge was not allowed.

If it was Gerrard or Masch who had done it, then im sure it would have been mentioned before now.

I remember the Everton fans in uproad when Kuyt did it in a Derby, which he should have been sent off for if that is indeed the rules.

1. He's not a holding midfielder
2. Makele three years ago, with a creaking body, was better in that position than Essien will ever be. Essien is regarded by some as world class. IMO Xavi or Yaya Toure are better in a deeper role.

50:50 fight for the ball on the ground. I doubt Essien would be brave enough to try.

Answer the question. You can respond while Paul uses Google.

Of course he would. I can't recall him backing out of any challenges, he's strong in the challenge and fear isn't a word I'd associate with Essien.

De Jong is good, I thought he was the perfect signing back in January, even if it was for a hefty fee, he's a good player and he brings terrific energy and strength to the midfield, something I felt City lacked at times as they were regularly bullied in the middle. He's done well this year and he was one of the only players who impressed me from City on the weekend, as well as Ireland on occasions.

I thought the game on the weekend was pretty poor, I thought City were poor and we were just as bad, the draw was a fair result but I thought both sides failed to reach anywhere near the level we know they can.

It's all objective of course but I think he showed almost straight away at Latics that he was far too good for a team of that size and quality.
He is comfortable on the ball and very strong. I've seen defenders and other midfielders charge into him and bounce off. One negative is that sometimes he's too laid back and he can get caught in possession. He isn't a stand out player in the way that Essien, Gerrard or Lampard are, but I'd be more than happy to have him in my midfield.
Redknapp loves him and commented on his arrival coinciding with them moving up the table earlier in the year.
How much did he cost? Wasn't it something around 12 million? Bargain if you ask me.

De Jong only really impressed on a couple of occasions last season - Villa at home and Liverpool away. He is abolsutely fearless.

I wouldn't say we were poor. Regardless of Liverpool's current form, going to Anfield is daunting (especially when your club has as poor a record as we do at that stadium) and teams will be wary of the threat of Gerrard. You also have to remember that we are not the most confident team at the moment. We conceeded three against a poor team in our last game and we have only played well in patches. Don't forget that the team is still gelling.

I was disappointed because I felt that if we had been less cautious, we could quite easily have won.