And that is all UK tabloids are about. Which is really quite amusing for people to read and which is why they sell so well. But sometimes, you just feel for the people who are 'shot' only to be hyped up again not long after, and then 'shot' again in a cyclical manner. Case in point -1. Capello, who was built up by the press as the 'best candidate after Mourinho', and soon after he got the England job, his tactical skills were continually boasted by the press. And then after only his 2nd match, in which England, whose team consisted of players who were not going to EURO 2008, and were tired out by an exhausting league race and champions league run, lost to France, whose team were going to compete in EURO 2008 in the summer and so had to treat the game seriously, the press raps Capello for being 'clueless' and 'a fool of a tactician', I mean come on. It doesn't take a genius to realise the mess that the team is in, and yet a 1-0 reverse to France makes it seem like its the end of the world.
Case in point 2. Avram Grant, has done so well after Mourinho left Chelsea abruptly, and yet the press keeps saying its the players that are playing well and that the manager has nothing to do with it. And when his good results are finally commended, he is just brought down to earth with every next defeat. And it is not just the culture of the press, it is also the culture of football fans. Fickle-minded. Chelsea fans, when they were trailing 0-1 to Arsenal, shouted chants of 'you don't know what you are doing' when Grant brought Anelka and some other player on. The same fans were screaming their team on after they came roaring back to win 2-1. The same fans who will curse him again now that Chelsea lost 2-1 to Fenerbahce, the weakest team remaining in the Champions League, after they were leading 0-1 and could have had 5 or 6. And we all know Chelsea will go through to the semis anyway. A single goal deficit is just so easy to overcome at the bridge. Thankfully Drogba stood up like all players should for their managers, saying 'We turk-ed it, not Avram'.
Anyway it's advantage Liverpool after the 1-1 draw at the Emirates. It was typical Arsenal, profligate, typical Liverpool, tight at the back (and boring). But they got their goal and that's all that matters to them, and that's all that hurts us Arsenal fans. 0-0 would be good. 1-0 would have been fantastic. It should have been 3 or 4. If not for a major refereeing blunder for not giving the penalty and a moment of horror for Bendtner (am I on the opposite end of the field?) clearing a goal-bound ball right before it went in. Speaking of that, the blunder was just a blunder. It surely wasn't any kind of favouritism to Kuyt, if it was so then he would have red-carded everyone who touched van Persie. And yet the press goes on to suggest conspiracy theories about the referee, when they should focus on the wonderful football that Arsenal played against an in-form Liverpool team and how we had 61% of possession. Probably the highest in a quarter final. And if the press was nonsensical, then I don't know who Kuyt is, Kuyt who said 'it was never a penalty'. Well try listening to Mourinho saying the opposite after what happened when Liverpool played Chelsea earlier this year. Laughs.
Point is: Admit you all had the luck. Yes the performance was 'professional' by virtue of the fact that you all got the away goal you wanted, the same way a penalty is 'good' if it hits the back of the net. Admit we outplayed you. And while that probably won't happen at Anfield next Tuesday, know that if we played the same way we did on Wednesday, and if we played the same way we played Milan, we would win.
Thankfully, any little bit of spite I had for the refereeing decision was eliminated by a UEFA statement that said 'He (referee) got a big decision wrong and a decision that could very well change the outcome of the tie. He will suffer the consequences for his mistake as will any other referee who performs similarly in such a showpiece match.' And fortunately for the referee, this is not Chelsea, this is not Mourinho. So we Arsenal fans are very accepting. If not, he would have received death threats and been forced to continue his remaining two jobs of being a husband and a bunch of organic molecules.
That's all the football rants I have this week. Oh, and Manchester are playing beautiful football, credit to them. They will fully deserve the league title and (very likely) the champions league this season.
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