Archive for the ‘Dirk Kuyt’ Category

Outright Odds: 12/1
Group C Winners: 13/8

New coach Marco van Basten has proven to be a revelation off the pitch as much as he was on it since taking over the Dutch national team. Plucked from an obscure youth coaching role at Ajax where he kept his head down and had low responsibilities when Dick Advocaat quit after Euro 2004, van Basten has made this new-look Dutch team his own.

Out with the old and in with the new seems to be van Basten’s philosophy so while former well known favourites such as Clarence Seedorf and Patrick Kluivert have been given the chop, some of the best players the Dutch Eredivisie has to offer have come in to replace them.

Players such as AZ Alkmaar’s Denny Landzaat, Feyenoord’s Dirk Kuyt and Ajax’s Ryan Babel may not be household names yet but have all won the backing of the manager. Ajax have a strong representation in the squad, with John Heitinga, Nigel de Jong, Hedwiges Maduro and Wesley Sneijder, all under the age of 23, vying for a place in the starting line-up.

The faith shown in locally-based players along with more recognisable faces such as evergreen trio Edwin van der Sar, Edgar Davids and Philip Cocu and the likes of Arjen Robben and Ruud van Nistelrooy has paid off.

The team are showing true team spirit and togetherness, unlike the inconsistent squads of the past and in qualifying notched up 32 points, the highest of any European side. Holland finished five points clear at the top of their group that also included bogey side Czech Republic and Romania, both of whom they beat twice. Surprisingly, the only country they didn’t beat was Macedonia who they drew with twice.

Ruud van Nistelrooy was in scintillating form during qualifying with seven goals in 10 matches and now back in favour at Manchester United, could be a good investment for the top goalscorer market.

The Dutch are always one of the favourites for the tournament but never quite manage it. They have reached the final twice, the semi finals and quarter final stages but never have enough to win it outright.

The team entering this year have little World Cup experience and it would be a big ask of this team to go all the way in Germany.

BetBonus.co.uk Recommendation:
Holland offer better value to win Group C than Argentina but a lack of experience throughout the squad means they cannot be backed to win the tournament outright. Ruud van Nistelrooy could be a good each-way investment for the top goal scorer berth on his debut at the finals.

Holland to win Group C @ 13/8
E/W Ruud van Nistelrooy as top goalscorer @ 16/1

The clock is ticking, and we’re into the final week -when most of mankind falls into a soccer coma for a month and the female species just has to put up with it!

The coaches are becoming more engrossed in formations and strategies than a Grand Chess Master, and the fans are trying to spot any teams emerging from the World Cup warmup matches that could take on the defending champions, Brazil.

There’s only one weekend left to get everything in order, and then Friday the greatest team sports event in the world unleashes a spectacular that sometimes takes four years to get over!

Over the past week, football fans have seen the usual results.

America enjoyed success at the end of its “send off series” against Latvia. EPL star Brian McBride scored the only goal of the game. Coach Bruce Arena knows that a 1-0 victory against Latvia means there’s room for improvement as the Americans have to face the Czechs in their opening game in Gelsenkirchen on June 12 and then face two tricky teams, Italy and Ghana, to fulfill their group schedule.

In Europe, France and Holland won by the same scoreline. These teams usually start slow in the World Cup and improve through the tournament. You don’t want to peak on June 9 – the coaches want their teams to peak on July 9!

France celebrated one of its favorite sons’ milestones in Paris, with Zinedine Zidane receiving his 100th cap. The game was not a classic, and Lyon’s Florent Malouda saved the red blushes for “Les Blues” with a 45th-minute goal.

Raymond Domenech, the French coach, admitted his players had to improve, and he wanted a much better performance against Denmark last Wednesday. In the Lens Stadium, goals by Thierry Henry and a penalty from Sylvain Wiltord showed that “Les Blues” are now really focusing on reclaiming the trophy in July.

Ruud van Nistelrooy may be out of favor in Manchester, but in Rotterdam he was king after scoring the only goal of the game against Cameroon. The Dutch have a quality team on paper, who would not want “Van the Man”, Van Persie, Arjen Robben, Cocu, van Bommel, Dirk Kuyt and, of course, one of the best goalkeepers in Europe in Edwin van der Sar.

The Dutch always enter the World Cup with hope of success. But “The Oranje” always seem to come unstuck in the knock out games. Legendary striker Marco van Basten, now head coach for Holland, needs to get his players focused on the whole 90 minutes, as he stated after the game: “We must work hard on that in the next two weeks before the World Cup starts.”

After that match in Eindhoven, the Dutch put in a very impressive performance against Mexico. The Mexicans opened the scoring, and with a weakened team Van Basten’s men rolled up their sleeves and duly earned a 2-1 win. I think the bookies have lowered the Dutch’s odds after this match.

It is still a shock that the Dutch didn’t qualify for the last World Cup – so they need to show the world that they are a major footballing powerhouse in Germany in this edition.

The World Cup hosts and Ukraine sent their fans home dreaming of World Cup glory after “caning” their opposition.

The former Soviet Republic hit four against fellow World Cup entry Costa Rica. Goals from Serhiy Nazarenko, Andriy Vorobey and Maxym Kalinichenko closed the tie at halftime, and both coaches radically changed their teams for the second half. However, Ukraine is a dark horse as it wants to host the 2012 European Soccer Championships with
Poland, so any good showing in Germany will push its cause for hosting Europe’s biggest competition in six years. Plus, Ukraine’s Group H in the World Cup is weak. Ukraine only has to worry about Spain to win the group; victories should come against Saudi Arabia and Tunisia. Once Ukraine enters the knockout stages, it could upset some bigger names if it can carry this form to late June.

Pardon the pun; you can be the sub-editor here!

“Germany take fans to 7th heaven” – “Lucky Seven” – “The Magnificent Seven” – you can take the pick after
Germany did not break a sweat in scoring seven goals against Luxembourg.

However, it was a different story on Tuesday night, when Jurgen Klinsmann’s men were attacked from all sides and were two goals down before they realized they had to quickly do something. The Luxembourg stroll had probably lured the team into a false sense of security, and the Japanese seized on that.

To be fair to the coach, he didn’t get carried away by the scoreline against Luxembourg, as Germany’s worst side could have beaten the Benelux country, a team that only has one professional footballer representing the nation.

One recent shock was the defeat of Trinidad and Tobago against Wales, and the Welsh didn’t even qualify for the World Cup.

The Caribbean “Soca Warriors” tested themselves against a side that had good EPL players. However, Robert Earnshaw, who with due respect to him is no Thierry Henry, scored two easy goals against the “Warriors” defense. The Islanders need to shape up fast if they want to make some headlines in Germany, and the alarm bells started to ring again when they lost to Slovenia 3-1in Ljubljana.

Individual performance of last weekend came from Portugal’s Pedro Pauleta; he has already overtaken the legendary Eusebio’s scoring record. Over the weekend against the Cape Verde, Pauleta scored a hat-trick to give his side a 4-1 win over the Minnows.

To be cynical, a side of Cape Verde’s quality is never going to appear in the World Cup. So, we should not read too much into this victory.

Argentina had a little warmup against Angola in Salerno, Italy, and a couple of goals was the margin of victory, as expected.

At Old Trafford, the “awesome” midfield of Joe Cole, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and David Beckham probably made Hungary feel like a “bunny” in a juggernaut’s headlights. But, the Hungarians did manage to frustrate the “Three Lions” until Gerrard opened the scoring.

Peter Crouch scored the final goal in a 3-1 win, and if you didn’t see his celebration dance then let me tell you that it shows why 6-foot-7 inch white sportsmen should not try and look cool doing a robotic dance. Let’s just say it was not on the same level as Michael Jackson doing his moonwalk

Just as an aside, Sven Goran Eriksson will probably take more questions about a player who is not playing at the moment than any other one. The Wayne Rooney Saga is great for the papers as it fills column inches during a “dry period” of top-class sport.

But, you have to wonder now that the way these “fashion” football boots are made, is there enough protection for the actual foot. Of course, the sports companies are not going to say anything else but “yes” as they try to push their boot into the billion dollar industry.

However, back in the 1980s every English schoolboy could not spell “metatarsal.” But after Beckham and Rooney’s injuries, this small little piece of the human body has become as famous as the players.

Maybe I am getting old, but a good thick piece of black leather always stopped me from getting injured, and I was playing against amateurs that didn’t have the timing of top class defenders!

The Italians got some normality back against Switzerland win a 1-1 draw. But they couldn’t score against the tough Ukraine side in Lausanne on Friday night. If I was a bookmaker I would take any money from punters on the Italians lifting The World Cup.

Therefore, from all the previous week’s international friendlies, I personally feel Brazil will cruise tothe semfinals. However, England’s attack is first class – its midfield is the strongest on the planet and then you add ace striker Michael Owen up front – what a dream combination. If England finally clicks, then 40 years of hurt could be over.

The only problem is that the FA has already sacked the coach. If Sven wins, are they going to ask him back?!

The French are now hungry to prove that France ‘98 was not a fluke or they’re not a “fair weather” team – i.e., they only do well on home soil.

I think Italy will be lucky to scrape through the group phase, and my dark horse for a good showing is Ukraine. It has done nothing wrong and quietly is going about its business.

Also, if you like to party make sure you catch Trinidad and Tobago’s group matches, as they’ll be watching the knockout stage in a pub next to you !

So, get ready. The teams are warming up, get the beers in, the bookmaker on the phone or Internet and make
sure you try and catch as much of this football fiesta as you can.

Paul Scholes is generally admired as a footballer, but rarely receives the recognition he deserves as a role model. When Paul was a ginger schoolboy, he didn’t wallow in self pity praying for baldness, he played football with the normal children until he reached a level where Manchester United were prepared to sign him.
Wayne Rooney has also struggled to overcome adversity; he was born in Liverpool. The Roonatic scored a spectacular hat-trick last weekend, which may explain why he’s been walking around with the match ball tucked under his shirt, or so it would appear. United are a shoo-in at 1/3 to see off Pompey at Old Trafford.
Claude Davis allegedly threatened Ade Akinbiyi with a razor this week; how on earth did he persuade Neil Ruddock to leave the pie shop? My mother always said, “Never trust a man whose eyebrows meet in the middle;” all she missed out was the word ‘tubby’. Sheff U have been tonked on their last four trips to Newcastle, back the Toon to dish out a fifth at 5/6.
Kieron Dyer is not a lucky man. After making his 49th comeback from injury, Dyer has been ruled out for another two weeks following a ‘freak’ injury, although the scale of Iain Dowie’s involvement remains unclear. Rossi looks the call at 9/2 to bang in the opener.
Stewart Downing believes he’s been made a scapegoat for England’s poor results. That’s unfair; a goat has a better first touch than the ineffectual Downing. Boro are the weekend nap at 15/8 to see off an outclassed Watford.
Jonathan Woodgate has surprisingly named ‘Grease’ as his favourite film. (I’m guessing Frank Lampard is also a huge fan.) For first goalscorer betting, I’m hopelessly devoted to Euell at 10/1.
Sure, Kieron Dyer is unlucky, but what about me? As a result of missing Match of the Day, I was forced to endure ‘Goals on Sunday’ with Beavis and Butthead. The Sky boys have an annoying habit of referring to Liverpool’s Dirk Kuyt as ‘Kout’, which has wreaked havoc with my punning possibilities. I fancy Liverpool to see off Reading at 4/11, but I won’t be tipping a first goalscorer. Thanks Beavis.
When I heard that Rafa was approaching a ton, I assumed he was tapping up Frank Lampard. After tinkering with his team for 99 consecutive games, the Liverpool manager has finally embraced stability; I’ll be embracing the 11/2 about a 2-0 win to the Scousers.
Henri Camara remains steadfast in his belief that Wigan will avoid defeat at the Reebok, and the Camara never lies. Wigan were unbeaten in three games against Bolton last season, they can snatch a point at 12/5.
The Charlton board would be well advised to beg their former manager to return, there’s nothing wrong with a little bit of Curb crawling. Charlton v Man City is as close as you can get to a certain draw without moving to Italy. Get on at 9/4.
Stuart Pearce wants a ‘managerial sacking window’; that would be a pane. There’s been 20 goals in the last 4 matches between the Addicks and City, a small dabble on a 2-2 draw makes economic sense at 14/1.
It’s great to see Joe Cole back to full fitness, anything that moves Downing further from the England team can only be considered an encouraging development. Chelsea will beat up Tottenham at a ridiculous 8/11.
Jose Mourinho has accused Barcelona of promoting a diving culture; it’s great that the former Porto boss and current coach of Robben and Drogba is prepared to make such an honourable stand. Chelsea are available at 7/1 to win 2-0; dive in.
Robbie Savage always receives plenty of abuse when he plays at Villa Park, which is odd, as blondes who go down easily are normally warmly received. Villa have beaten Blackburn 1-0 at home for the past two seasons, there’s no reason why a hat-trick should be denied at 6/1.
Arsene Wenger believes that Theo Walcott is still two years away from being a top class striker. He resisted the temptation to add, “But he’s already better than Heskey.” You’ve got to fancy Arsenal at 8/13 to put an end to the mini Hammer revival.
The Fulham v Everton match is proving a tough nut to crack. Before last week’s fixtures, I’d have put my mortgage on the Coleman taking the points, but Everton’s draw at the Emirates coupled with Fulham’s dismal performance against Wigan has led me to flip like Naomi Campbell. Everton are the shout at 17/10.
I’ve heard it said that the reason why Tim Cahill is so adept at sneaking past defences is because he’s an Australian. Personally, I find that offensive. I’d like to say to all of my Aussie friends, “I’ll have a pint of lager please.” The magnificent Cahill is available at 45/1 to score the only goal of the game; get the drinks in.
This week’s accer is so mature; Alan Pardew is considering playing it up front against Arsenal. Man Utd, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Arsenal and Chelsea are the selections; the payout is a sweet 16/1.

I hate Christmas. Last year the wife bought me a ‘Rudolf’ umbrella just so she could use the line, ‘It looks line rain dear’. My decision to kick her out of the house was perfectly justified.

In a freakish coincidence, I saw another umbrella as a result of her mother’s gift. I can’t complain too much though, it had a street value of £35.

The Premiership’s very own ‘Rudolf’ will soon be joining me in the miserable corner. Fergie’s title aspirations received a Hammer blow last week; the Villa can land a knockout strike at 9/2.

I’m taking the kids to Villa Park to see young Rooney; it’s the only way they’ll get to see a fat man with a beard this Christmas. Get your claws into Petrov at 16/1 to score the first goal.

Apparently, the Chelsea players are spending a total of £5 on presents for each other; typical flash footballers. A win over Wigan at 4/9 could see the champions on top of the tree on Christmas day.

AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi has sensationally labelled Andriy Shevchenko a ‘lap-dog’. At least the Chelsea flop is under the thumb of a super-model; I get ordered around by a mad Sweaty. I’m nuts about the 4/1 for a Drogba opener.

Everton have asked the FA to launch an enquiry into Jose Mourinho’s tirade against Andy Johnson; I expect the FA’s report to contain three words.

Like Jesus, Steve Coppell has performed absolute miracles this season. I can see Reading getting the better of the Moyes boys at 7/5.

I was shocked to read that Anton Ferdinand made out with Big Brother’s Aisleyne at West Ham’s Christmas do. It wasn’t the fact that he was partying so soon after Alan Pardew’s dismissal that upset me; I just hate to picture unattractive people kissing. I’m cuddling the 9/4 about a draw between Fulham and the Hammers.

Liverpool’s festive shindig looked a classy affair. Robbie Fowler dressed up as Saddam Hussein, Dirk Kuyt donned a Superman outfit and I’m guessing Peter Crouch came as the beanstalk. Jermaine Pennant wanted to go as a highway robber; but was told he needed fancy dress. You can’t disguise the fact that Liverpool will demolish Watford at 1/4.

Stevie Gerrard has been awarded the freedom of the borough of Knowsley. One perk is that he can freely drive his sheep down the main street; Craig Bellamy wants a piece of that action. I want a piece of the 9/2 about Bellamy netting the opener.

Where would we be without laughter? Watching Soccer AM. I’m in hysterics at the 7/4 on offer for a Bolton win at Manchester City.

Could there be more to Iain Dowie’s dismissal than meets the eye? There’s a rumour going around that he was sacked to avoid potential mistletoe related resignations at the Crimbo lash-up. That theory remains contentious; few would argue with the 4/5 on offer for Boro at home to the Addicks.

Arsenal v Blackburn is as close as you can get to ‘Beauty and the Beast’ without staring through my front window. The 4/11 about the Gunners is simply stunning.

Robbie Savage must be backed at 7/4 to pick up a booking. It’s the only way he’ll get a card this Christmas.

I’m incredibly jealous of Matt Taylor. While i’ve been stuck at home with a Christmas pudding, the Pompey star has bagged a couple of real crackers. The 8/13 on offer for a Portsmouth win over Sheffield United is so attractive; I’m considering kicking the wife out and moving it in.

I’m embarrassed to say that if Tottenham fail to win at St James’ Park, the kids are having bread and butter for their Christmas dinner. If Spurs come through at 7/4, I’m going to splash out on a jar of strawberry jam.

I am so confident that the weekend accer of Arsenal, Boro, Pompey, Reading and Chelsea will romp in at 12/1; i’ve already paid for the wife’s Christmas presents out of the winnings. There’s a miniskirt and a weekend break in Ipswich under the tree.

Liverpool beat Chelsea 1-0 by forcing the penalty kicks and then won the shootout 4-1 on Tuesday night assuring a spot for the final on the European Champions League that is going to be held on May the 23rd in Athens, Greece.

Daniel Aggert scored at the 23rd minute for the Liverpool, and nothing else happened in the regulation time neither in the 30 minutes of overtime, forcing that to go to the penalty shootouts which the Liverpool won 4-1 with goals of Boudewijn Zenden, Xabi Alonso, Steven Gerrard and Dirk Kuyt. The goalkeeper for the Liverpool Jose Reina saved 3 kicks giving the victory to the Liverpool.

Chelsea was eliminated in the semifinals by AS Monaco in 2004 and by Liverpool in 2005. “Everybody has to try to be strong, I think they have a lot of reasons to be proud of themselves,” Mourinho said of his players. “They were the best team today … In extra time we were the only team who tried to win, but football is like that and the penalty shootout is part of the game.”

Liverpool has won the European title five times, including a penalty-kicks victory over AC Milan two years ago after rallying from a three-goal deficit. Manchester United won in 1999 and 1968, while AC Milan has won the championship six times, the last in 2003.

Liverpool is playing the final against either AC Milan or Manchester United. Manchester won the first leg last week.

Liverpool seeks to take advantage of Inter’s weak defense in order to become the fourth English team to obtain a place in the Champions League’s quarterfinals.

Next Tuesday’s game at the San Siro stadium will mean the end of the quarterfinals; Milan also played its game in the same stadium, therefore; this will take place a week later as FIFA does not allow the use of the stadiums in consecutive days.

Liverpool managed to win the game in Anfield with a score of 2-0 due to Dirk Kuyt and Steven Gerrard’s goals. Inter did play for more than half of the game with one less man after the expulsion of defense Marco Materazzi. The player’s removal is not the only concern for the Inter as also the Colombian Ivan Cordoba and the Argentinean Walter Samuel are injured.

Firmly; Gerrard affirms Inter is an experienced talented team and does trust the players will do whatever it takes to overcome the obstacles on the road; everyone is aware of the efforts involved to achieve their goal, which is winning the game, and be able to take part of the great event next May 21st in Moscow.

If Liverpool is able to move forward it will become the first of the four teams from the same country to be included in the quarterfinals stage. Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal are the other three English teams that already were classified, next to Barcelona (Spain), Rome (Italy), Schalke (Germany) and Fenernahce (Turkey).

The English team of Liverpool arrives to this game after four previous consecutive triumphs in the Premier League. This outstanding performance places the team in the fourth position overall and gives them the opportunity to still dream of becoming the Champions of the next season.

On the other hand; Inter heads the Serie A with a six points advantage and despite the difficulty to defeat Reggina; they managed a 2-0 score and the good performance of their Brazilian goalkeeper Julio César who caught more than one possible goal. It was Inter’s first victory after three games, including a first riot in the Italian tournament against Napoli as well as a pair of ties.

Inter’s coach Roberto Mancini is also thinking of incorporating two other players; the Argentineans Julio Cruz and Hernan Crespo. Cruz is already recovered from an injury while Crespo is in good shape but left lightly hit after Saturday’s game. The team believes in giving their greatest effort as if they get eliminated it will be an impact on the Italian Tifosi.

Inter expects to repeat the same victory during the semifinals in the European Cup of 1965, when in a first round lost 3-1 in Liverpool before winning 3-0 at home then raising the trophy.

The adult film industry has many knockers, but I remain a fully-fledged supporter. My only possible critique would be that the storylines occasionally lack realism. I can’t begin to tell you how disappointed I was with my job as a photocopier repair man.

My wife is a fierce critic of the genre as she incorrectly believes that the art form demeans women. Personally, I think it’s a positive when a hobby becomes an occupation; I would love to get paid for sending nude photographs of myself to Cheryl Tweedy. I’ll have to finance my pastime by backing Portsmouth at 10/11 to beat West Brom in their FA Cup semi-final.

My favourite sub-genre of the adult entertainment industry is the one when two ladies take a spiritual road to self-discovery. There are things I’d rather not see though, and watching Barnsley play Cardiff is the equivalent of watching Lisa Riley tinker with Jade Goody. Cardiff will probably win their semi at 11/8, but I’d rather watch something a little more uplifting.

Robbie Savage has all the attributes needed to launch a career in exotic films. He’s blonde, he breathes heavily for 90 minutes and he never needs a second invitation to go down. I can’t see the Derby man getting any satisfaction from Everton; the Toffeemen are the weekend banker at 2/7.

Roy Keane has always enjoyed a ruck, but he may be punching above his weight by labelling Sir Alex Ferguson ‘a hypocrite’. Admittedly, he never mentioned Fergie by name, but it couldn’t have been more obvious unless he used the term ‘purple-nose’. Fulham can momentarily quieten the fiery Irishman at 11/8.

Manchester City have gone backwards since they signed Benjani. To be fair to Sven, he tried everything in his power to get out of the deal; he said he’d accept Benni McCarthy, Benayoun or Benny from Crossroads as a compromise, but it was all to no avail. Chelsea will take full advantage of Sven’s massive rick at 4/5.

Mike Ashley has reportedly lost £129m gambling on financial markets; he’s probably regretting following me in on last week’s bets. I’m having £2 on Newcastle to beat Reading at 4/5.

The world and his dog are singing the praises of Cristiano Ronaldo, but Middlesbrough fans are a little more hesitant – all three of them believe that he’s a diver. I nearly collapsed when I saw 15/2 next to a Boro win over Manchester United.

Steve Bruce will do everything in his power to send Birmingham down when Wigan face his former side on Saturday. I have nothing but admiration for Bruce’s stance, you should always finish a job that you start. Wigan may have to settle for a point at 23/10.

I was stunned when Tottenham’s defences were breached on numerous occasions by Newcastle last week. It was just like a scene from my favourite movie, ‘Snatch’. I have a feeling that Tottenham may already be on their summer break; Blackburn can take full advantage at 6/4.

El Hadji Diouf would never make it in the world of erotic film – he’s a spitter. I had to swallow on several occasions when I saw 8/11 for an Aston Villa win over Bolton.

They say that good things come in threes, and I’m a huge fan of the ‘Rod-Farther Trilogy’. Arsenal are a confident shout at 6/5 to win the second part of their triple-header against Liverpool, unless the referee is Dirk Kuyt’s neighbour.

It’s now reached the stage where my wife has forced me to choose between her and my collection of adult art; so i’m on the lookout for a new dishwasher. Portsmouth, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle form an 11/1 accer that will bring in the necessary funds.

Recently in the English Premier League, Arsenal overcame Bolton by 3 goals and this serve to take advantage and surpass Liverpool that had previously played against Stoke City in a game that ended in a tie. This way in a fifth game played Arsenal positioned itself in the first place of the English Premier standings. Chelsea and Manchester United remain the biggest favorite to win this year’s home and away titles especially the UEFA Champions League, which Sir Alex Ferguson and his team achieved last season.

During the match the Spaniard midfielder Cesc Fabregas failed to catch, in the 14th minute, Kevin Davis’ shot and Bolton took the leading but within two minutes Arsenal’s Emmanuele Eboure and Niclas Bendtner scored. Right after that, the Londoner squad took control of the rhythm of the game and managed to win with a final goal by Denilson at the 87th minute. 

On the other hand, we need to say it was not such a good day for Liverpool coached by Spaniard Rafael Benítez who thought that would be an easy game against one of the teams at the bottom of the classification, Stoke City, but the team had a major objective, which was to obtain a local triumph. Right from the start, Liverpool had a major disappointment as their first goal was annulled. Also, Liverpool’s player Fernando Torres was not able to overcome the rival’s resistance laid upon him.

Liverpool’s head coach, Rafael Benítez was very upset that the referee annulled the Gerrard’s free shot goal. The linesman had advised a fault by Dirk Kuyt who headed the shot. The decision to cancel the goal was the referee’s and that was a turning point for the team as they were not able to play a more open game.

The remaining action was shared in the games that brought the West Ham’s triumph over Newcastle by 3 goals to 1. This was Gianfranco Zola’s debut in the Premier League as head coach, a very good experience for the rookie coach. The Italian Zola is the current West Ham’s leading man since Alan Curbishley was removed from his position. The West Ham’s player David Di Michele scored the third goal for the team while Michael Owen scored for Newcastle. Zola was very pleased with the victory and he feels his players have provided all the support he needed to feel in command to make the right choices.

Additionally, Suderland and Blackburn achieved home wins against Middlesbrough (2-0) and Fulham (1-0). These two games were very interested and brought plenty of action especially Michael Chopra Middlesbrough’s player performance. Lastly, Blackburn won over Fulham with a powerful goal by Matt Derbyshire at the 84th minute of the game. Nevertheless, there is a new leader in the standings but the question remains for how long this team will continue in the premium position…we will have our answer in the coming days of football action in the English League.

But an unexpected outburst of words from club manager Rafael Benitez, criticizing the way the FA seemed to turn a blind eye to Manchester United’s manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s alleged actions of disrespect to the referees seemed  to have rocked Liverpool’s boat and which made them tense the night they played. Which is perhaps a contentious statement. But to fail to come up with a win against a side whom you have met before, wouldn’t Benitez been able to come up with a better strategy against Stoke? For one thing, I cannot understand his decision to play with only one striker, and picked Dirk Kuyt over Robbie Keane, provided that Fernando Torres still isn’t fit to play the whole 90 minutes. And to clog the middle with five midfielders with Steven Gerrard playing support? As if the Stoke half wont get crowded enough when they let everyone stay back and defend it.Stoke has lost 10 games, but has also snatched a win against Arsenal. Meaning does this team play differently against other teams but employ this defensive style of play against the big four clubs? Unfortunately though, I can’t watch all the games and whenever I watch a game of Stoke against the Big 4, I often see this defensive style of play. Is it wrong? No, but the team lost against Chelsea and Manchester United so there must be a way for Liverpool to defeat Stoke. Instead, I witnessed a sequel of the their first meeting.With United perhaps leading the soccer standing after the Saturday night game, Liverpool now have to win not only this Monday’s Merseyside derby but all their remaining games and win so in convincing fashion. To do so means that they have to stay focused and courageous. And it also means that any external factors be shut out, from the mind of manager Rafael Benitez to the minds of the players.Benitez, with his tirade, appears to have been the first manager to succumb to Ferguson’s mind games. Its different to talk the talk but Benitez also has to show that the club can walk the walk. That plus his health matters, soon to undergo another operation to remove more kidney stones and his ongoing negotiations regarding his future with Liverpool Football Club , it seems that the manager has a lot on his plate at the moment. Rumors about Daniel Agger’s agent was allegedly seen talking to AC Milan representatives also provides unwanted distraction.It is up to Liverpool’s home grown heroes of Gerrard and Jaime Carragher to rally the players and instill in them the belief that they can withstand this onslaught of United, break an 18 year title drought and win the English Premier League crown. Lucky for the Reds that Chelsea are sputtering at this time and that loss to Man U really showed that the Blues appear to be not that in to their campaign. And Arsenal? Until they get Cesc Fabregas back from injury, might lose to Stoke once again. Why do I say that? It’s a sequel!Read about the current soccer scores at Scorespro.com/soccer