Manchester United News

[Father Ted]

Originally posted by Motterman
Keane banned for one match (not three) for Red Card against Porto.

Surely, if they felt he "stamped" on Baia, it would have been more.

Cheating Porto player! http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage05/5.gif

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=293668&cc=5739

UEFA to appeal their own decision. Just great:(

[/TinFoilHatOn] UEFA and the whole world are against us [/TinFoilHatOff]

[Achtung]

Eriksson: Rio ban is costing United (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=293662&cc=5901)

Once again, Sven-Goran Eriksson displays the razor sharp insight that makes him the well-respected coach he is. :rolleyes:

[Coach_McGuirk]

Originally posted by Father Ted
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=293668&cc=5739

UEFA to appeal their own decision. Just great:(

[/TinFoilHatOn] UEFA and the whole world are against us [/TinFoilHatOff]

I just saw this on NewsNow. WTF is UEFA thinking? Nothing more than a one match ban is warranted because it just wasn't that bad.

Maybe you guys aren't paranoid. Maybe UEFA IS out to get you.

[Motterman]

Originally posted by Coach_McGuirk
I just saw this on NewsNow. WTF is UEFA thinking? Nothing more than a one match ban is warranted because it just wasn't that bad.

Maybe you guys aren't paranoid. Maybe UEFA IS out to get you.

Still pissed about Fergie's "match draws are fixed" allegations last year, perhaps?

Not that the FA Cup draw wasn't fixed either, eh? :rolleyes:

[johno]

Originally posted by Coach_McGuirk
I just saw this on NewsNow. WTF is UEFA thinking? Nothing more than a one match ban is warranted because it just wasn't that bad.

Maybe you guys aren't paranoid. Maybe UEFA IS out to get you.

who are you? and what have u done with the real arsenal fan?

j/k... yeah, i thought that 3 matches would be harsh for this... not because of what Baia id to get the response from the ref but rather that Keano really did not want to hurt the guy, if he did, he could have done alot worse, he could have just tripped and kneed him in the face, as a goalie I have seen many similar occurances and after what Keane did I would have jumped up and yelled at the ref, then went to said player and whisper in his ear that if he ever came close to the six-yard box again i would level him... (of course being 6'3'' and 200 pounds goes hand in hand with verbal threats...)

[Coach_McGuirk]

Originally posted by mtkillamanjohno
who are you? and what have u done with the real arsenal fan?

j/k... yeah, i thought that 3 matches would be harsh for this... not because of what Baia id to get the response from the ref but rather that Keano really did not want to hurt the guy, if he did, he could have done alot worse, he could have just tripped and kneed him in the face, as a goalie I have seen many similar occurances and after what Keane did I would have jumped up and yelled at the ref, then went to said player and whisper in his ear that if he ever came close to the six-yard box again i would level him... (of course being 6'3'' and 200 pounds goes hand in hand with verbal threats...)

You could tell when he jumped that had he kept his knees bent he would have missed the keeper. It was just a little nudge in the ribs. I agree that had Keane wanted to, he could have hurt him bad. Just by coming down with more weight on the foot that made contact he could have broken a couple of ribs, at least.

And all the real Arsenal fans know when a decision is crap (I think you could check that I agreed that 8 months was ridiculous for Rio, as well).

As for you, Motterman....

I think the pairing of Arsenal and ManU in the Semi's is the proof that the FA Cup draw is not rigged. If it was, wouldn't it make more sense for the FA to have Arsenal and ManU all to themselves on the Final Sunday? It would be their match and everyone in the free world with access would watch. This is sort of like the early 90's in the NFL: Everyone knew that the Super Bowl was played in the NFC Championship game between San Francisco and Dallas, or Dallas and Green Bay. Same goes for this match: whoever leaves the field with the match will win the Cup, and I'm 99.9% sure about that, as I'm sure most fans will be, as well.

[bigp]

Originally posted by Coach_McGuirk
You could tell when he jumped that had he kept his knees bent he would have missed the keeper. It was just a little nudge in the ribs. I agree that had Keane wanted to, he could have hurt him bad. Just by coming down with more weight on the foot that made contact he could have broken a couple of ribs, at least.

And all the real Arsenal fans know when a decision is crap (I think you could check that I agreed that 8 months was ridiculous for Rio, as well).

As for you, Motterman....

I think the pairing of Arsenal and ManU in the Semi's is the proof that the FA Cup draw is not rigged. If it was, wouldn't it make more sense for the FA to have Arsenal and ManU all to themselves on the Final Sunday? It would be their match and everyone in the free world with access would watch. This is sort of like the early 90's in the NFL: Everyone knew that the Super Bowl was played in the NFC Championship game between San Francisco and Dallas, or Dallas and Green Bay. Same goes for this match: whoever leaves the field with the match will win the Cup, and I'm 99.9% sure about that, as I'm sure most fans will be, as well.


I would agree if this draw happened in another year but this year the FIFA Centennial Match between France and Brazil is scheduled on the same day as the FA Cup Final. So that would have left both teams with a depleted squad and would've made the match less special.

[bigtoga]

Originally posted by bigp
I would agree if this draw happened in another year but this year the FIFA Centennial Match between France and Brazil is scheduled on the same day as the FA Cup Final. So that would have left both teams with a depleted squad and would've made the match less special. Welcome to BS, BigP. And you bring up an interesting question...

Hmmmmmm... an FA and FIFA conspiracy. Hmmmmmmm

[Narmec]

Originally posted by bigp
I would agree if this draw happened in another year but this year the FIFA Centennial Match between France and Brazil is scheduled on the same day as the FA Cup Final. So that would have left both teams with a depleted squad and would've made the match less special.

Depleted? I doubt Henry, Saha, Vieira, and Pires would play in that match over the FA Cup Final.

Nevertheless, a great post for a new member to BigSoccer.

[bigp]

I think Henry, Vieira and the others would've been forced to play the FIFA match instead of the FA Cup Finals. Afterall it is a FIFA event and you know Sepp Blatter would force both teams to release their players.

[johno]

Originally posted by Coach_McGuirk

I think the pairing of Arsenal and ManU in the Semi's is the proof that the FA Cup draw is not rigged. If it was, wouldn't it make more sense for the FA to have Arsenal and ManU all to themselves on the Final Sunday? It would be their match and everyone in the free world with access would watch. This is sort of like the early 90's in the NFL: Everyone knew that the Super Bowl was played in the NFC Championship game between San Francisco and Dallas, or Dallas and Green Bay. Same goes for this match: whoever leaves the field with the match will win the Cup, and I'm 99.9% sure about that, as I'm sure most fans will be, as well.

Let me say that with the way ManU have been playing this was probably the only way you were going to guarantee that we make it to the finals... seeing as the draw came before this match against Porto when we performed reasonably well...

[Acronym]

UEFA and the FA can both fck off...simply some establishment run by men in suits who know fck all and hold vendettas, its obvious they think SAF holds too much power and speaks out too much!

[bigtoga]

Boards are slow lately - Gazza speaks his mind: http://www.skysports.com/skysports/article/0,,53-1126955,00.html

If the rumors were that Ruud and Fergie had a row over Ruud's mention of Beck's sale, I can't imagine what Fergie will do over Gary's latest...

And ********ing hell - Silestre's out for longer: "Mikael trained on Monday and in the last five minutes he stopped a shot and that was him out. It could maybe keep him out for two or three weeks now." (from RedNews)

[bigtoga]

And Gazza was asked to pick his EPL TEAM OF THE YEAR (but wasn't allowed to pick United players):
MY TEAM OF THE YEAR: E van der Sar — K Touré, J Terry, S Campbell, A Cole — S Gerrard, Lampard, P Vieira, R Pires — D Duff — T Henry.lol - nine of eleven players are ahead of United. The man respects winners!

[bigtoga]

"The Secret Gary Neville Diaries" from football365.com (http://**************.com/2kgln) a snippet:

Sunday

Took Sir an apple. But Weasley :-) gave him a bottle of red wine so he'll probably play on Tuesday. Creep. Went to Mum's for dinner but she tried to make me eat sprouts and then laughed when I banged my fists on the kitchen lino. She won't laugh again. Read Sir's book in bed. Coloured in moustache with marker. Looks manly.

Monday
Rained at training. Marker wasn't permanent.

Tuesday (early)
Playing tonight so was definitely worth washing bibs for Sir. Looked at papers and I was in them again! Will put in scrapbook. So glad I said Porto don't act like men. Am really getting good at this mind games business. Photo on back of The Sun made my moustache look thin but Mum says it's just the ink. She says I look handsome.

Tuesday (late)
Not fair. Not fair. Not fair. It was a goal and we should have won and someone pushed me and someone tried to hurt Ronaldo and the girls dived on the floor and the referee blew the whistle before we could score and they celebrated in front of OUR fans and that made me so angry but I had to go and tell the TV that they deserved it (they didn't and I had my fingers crossed. Ha!). It's just not fair because we're the best team in the whole wide world.

Have given Philip a Chinese burn for that free-kick and told Sir to sell him.
Funny read lol

[johno]

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/headlinenews?id=293845&cc=5901


very interesting Draw...

Porto will probably reach next round... they drew Lyon

Madrid will definetly go through as they drew Monaco

Arsenal vs. Chelsea

Milan vs. Super Depor...

Best match up is prolly Milan vs. Deportivo...

Milan are my favorites to hoist the trophy when all is said and done...

In a side note, Juve are said to be 22.5 million in debt... they were counting on some money from CL... now there will be none... perhaps we could snap up Nedved!!! 20 million would not be too much...

[Father Ted]

Another twist in Rio saga

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=94&si=1144878&issue_id=10581

RIO FERDINAND will appeal against his eight-month ban from football next week by producing a hair sample, which, he claims, will prove that he had nothing to fear from his missed drugs test.

The Manchester United defender hopes the new evidence will prove he had nothing to hide and he is privately optimistic that he can reduce his suspension so drastically that he could play in the European Championship finals this summer.

A three-man panel appointed by the English FA will meet next Thursday and Friday to consider Ferdinand's appeal against the verdict and sentence. The test on the player's hair will form a substantial part of his defence.

Ferdinand is understood to have submitted his hair for testing early in the new year, after the two-day hearing in December at which he received the ban.

Tests on hair can reveal whether a person has taken recreational drugs and some, but not all, performance-enhancing substances. The longer the strand, the farther back in time the testers can go and Ferdinand's camp will claim that his sample proves that he had been clean for up to seven months.

[Motterman]

Originally posted by Father Ted
Another twist in Rio saga

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=94&si=1144878&issue_id=10581

The ABU's never cared if he took drugs or not. Even while this proves his innocence at having not taken any drugs, they will still brand him a drug cheat, etc.

[bigtoga]

Originally posted by mtkillamanjohno
In a side note, Juve are said to be 22.5 million in debt... they were counting on some money from CL... now there will be none... perhaps we could snap up Nedved!!! 20 million would not be too much... Wow - cherish the thought of seeing him as a Red. I just can't imagine it happening but OMG that would be fantastic if it happened.

[johno]

"perhaps we could snap up Nedved"

Dear God, I am beginning to sound like soccernet/CM03-04