Archive for November, 2007

Binya Not Happy with Treatment

November 21st, 2007

Augustin Binya understands that what he did was wrong, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy with the treatment he’s received from fans as of late. The Benfica player took a bad angle and made a bad tackle on Celtic star Scott Brown in a play that could have easily led to serious injury.

Luckily for everyone involved, Brown was able to get away without any serious injury, but the play that happened during a Champions League game wasn’t pretty. UEFA took strong and evasive action in reprimanding Binya, as they instructed him to sit out six games.

Binya didn’t have any problem serving out that suspension, but he does have a problem with how he’s been treated since then. He feels that he’s not being allowed to play his game because of the event.

Though Binya knows that his tackle wasn’t the best move he’s ever made, he’s tired of being treated like a dirty criminal because of it. He indicated to local media that some people have been saying awful things to him, including an assertion that he’s as bad as a murderer.

Brown contended at the time that Binya had clearly aimed to hurt him, but the ex-Hibs youngster recovered from the incident quickly.

Brown hasn’t helped matters much, as his statements indicated that he felt Binya’s intention was to injure him. Still, Binya wanted to make it quite clear that he’s no animal and he doesn’t intend to stand pat while people run down his good name.

Does International Success Effect English Football?

November 20th, 2007

If you have watched a Premier League game in the last few years, you’ve probably noticed that they are an influx of foreign players taking over the game. Though the past has been a good one for the English national side, the future may be more daunting as the international talent seems to have taken a serious strong hold.

Though things still seem to be headed in the right direction for the most part, things might not look quite as nice if things continue on the way they are currently. English football has been the world’s standard for a long time, but now it’s time for the players to step up and meet the standards presented by their international counterparts.
At current standing, the 220 players who hold starting positions in the Premiership were largely foreign. Only 74 of those players were English. This is a startling trend for those who hold the game near and dear.

The international stars have certainly made the game much more enjoyable for the fans. Names like Didier Drogba and Cristiano Ronaldo are mainstays with their current British clubs. They are certainly part of the reason why the English Premier League remains the best and most watched league on the planet.

This is a recent trend that might leave some people within English football feeling somewhat jaded, though. Coach McClaren has some great young talent of his own to work with, but it looks like his job is going to get much harder.

That leaves fans to consider the newest proposal, which looks like it could be a solution. A new proposal has mandated that at least six English players must be on each team in the league. Though it might be a good idea for English football on the whole, some wonder about the impact that it might have on the Premier League. Will it make the league a less than desirable product?

Still, there is hope out there that the wild success of the league will promote more kids in England to play the game. According to those within the know, that’s the only way to help preserve the game that we all love.

Gerrard Still Holds Confidence

November 10th, 2007

Gerrard Still Confident, Despite Rough Run of Luck….

Count Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard among those that still believe in the Red’s chances. He reiterated this week that Liverpool is still in very favorable position to claim the Premier League crown, even given his side’s rough go of it.

What was his basis for that claim? Arsenal, according to his thinking, can’t stand up to the pressure of leading. Gerrard is the long time captain of the Reds and he claims that his squad is just starting to hit their own high notes. Earlier this week, Gerrard and company destroyed Besiktas in Champions League play and seem to have found their swagger once again. As far as production goes, it would be hard to argue that Gerrard isn’t doing his part to help the Reds succeed.

He enters this weekend’s games having notched a goal in four of his last five. Like the rest of his side, the captain ran into a rough patch during the first part of the season. He seems to think that such a streak is all in the past now. In a comment to a British soccer magazine last week, Gerrard said, “Personally, I have played through my struggles and I have come out of the other side. Now I’m scoring goals and I’m feeling great.”
Gerrard insists that the Reds still have their eye on the prize and they haven’t given up hope on this season. According to him, they just have to continue to play their game and the rest of the pieces of the puzzle will fall into place.