All this & a bargain bucket of KFC each night along with the entire back catalogue of the 70's classics 'The Likely Lads' & 'Citizen Smith'............. a sure-fire source of pain relief.
We name and shame them...........!
Link
Monday, September 29, 2008
The Physio Room - Injury Update
Click on the 'Link' below to see which Premier League players are feeling below par this week, & will instead be staying at home to play 'camps' in the front room, using a clothes horse, towels & old bed linen, whilst hoping the missus is up for a bit of hilarity at the suggestion of a pretend game of 'Doctors & Nurses' (in the desperate hope of a bit of a fumble)!
All this & a bargain bucket of KFC each night along with the entire back catalogue of the 70's classics 'The Likely Lads' & 'Citizen Smith'............. a sure-fire source of pain relief.
We name and shame them...........!
Link
All this & a bargain bucket of KFC each night along with the entire back catalogue of the 70's classics 'The Likely Lads' & 'Citizen Smith'............. a sure-fire source of pain relief.
We name and shame them...........!
Link
Monday, September 22, 2008
The 'Goal' That Never Was & The Top 5 'Genuinely Good Goals' That Got Away!
As the shenanigans of 'The Stuart Atwell Circus' left Watford this weekend, Steve Coppell the Reading manager has renewed the campaign for video technology, after blundering officials awarded his team a 'phantom' goal during their fixture with Watford at the weekend (20 September 2008).
Coppell was as puzzled as Watford manager Adrian Boothroyd, the players and the fans when the officials awarded Reading a goal after the ball clearly went wide in Saturday's 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road in their Championship League clash.
While they were waiting to see whether the officials would give either a corner or a goal kick, they were amazed when referee Stuart Atwell awarded Reading a goal after after he received a signal from his linesman Nigel Bannister, indicating that a goal had been scored. This put Reading one up.
'I was in the stand at the time and I haven't seen it since. But when the whistle went I wondered what it was for as I couldn't see a foul,' Coppell said. 'Everyone trooped back to the centre and then it became obvious that the referee had given the goal. But after speaking to Noel Hunt after the game it became clear that the ball went out of play wide of the goal.'
Coppell said the incidents strengthened the argument for the introduction of cameras and goal-line technology to help officials decide whether the ball had gone into the net and crossed the goalline.
But he dismissed the suggestion that, after realizing the officials' blunder, Reading should have then let Watford equalize.
'Let's get this clear. The responsibility is not with the opposition to right a wrong,' he said. 'It is up to the officials to get it as right as they can.'
Boothroyd said it appeared the mistake was by the linesman rather than the referee.
'I've never seen anything like it. It's like a UFO landing, a mistake like that,' he said. 'I've been to see the referee and, in fairness, he's only going on what the linesman says. He's working in a team and if someone comes in his ear telling him it's a goal then I suppose he's got to give it.'
Watch it here:
Link
There is a growing list of instances where the wrong call has been made over whether
the ball did or did not cross the line and here are some of the most famous genuinely good goals that got away.....!
1/ Clive Allen - Coventry v Crystal Palace, September 1980.
Allen, playing for Palace in those days, collected a free-kick passed square to him by Gerry Francis and lashed it goalwards, the ball arrowing into the far corner of the net. Only this thunderbolt hit the stanchion behind the goal & rebounded out with such ferocity that the referee did not even see that it had gone a good three feet over the line.
'They called my free-kick at Coventry the goal that never was & soon after that they got rid of the stanchion at the back of the net,' Allen said. 'We were 2-1 down at the time so it would have been an equaliser — but we lost 3-1. We went on a bad run after that & that certainly contributed.'
2/ Pedro Mendes - Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur, January 2005.
Tottenham were holding United to a goalless draw at Old Trafford with just over a minute to go. Roy Carroll raced from his goal in an attempt to pump the ball back into the Tottenham penalty area, but after a bit of head tennis the ball fell to Pedro Mendes some six yards inside the halfway line. Spotting Carroll haring back towards his own goal he let fly. The goalkeeper regained his ground in time to make what should have been a routine catch, but inexplicably spilled the ball behind him, where it bounced once before he scooped it back out, the ball having been an estimated two feet behind the line.
'Carroll has been denied the most embarrassing moment of his career, that is a travesty,' said commentator Alan Parry at the time.
It certainly is a decision that Mark Clattenburg, the referee & in particular Rob Lewis, his linesman, will want to forget.
3/ Jonathan Howard - Middlesbrough v Chesterfield, April 1997.
Chesterfield, of Division Two, looking to cause a huge upset, raced into a two-goal lead in this famous FA Cup semi-final at Old Trafford. Still ahead 2-1 and trying to weather a comeback from Middlesbrough, Jonathan Howard appeared to have given them some breathing room when he fired a shot that rebounded down off the crossbar. David Elleray, the referee, was unsighted and did not award a goal, though replays later showed it was several inches over the line. The match ended 3-3 with Middlesbrough winning the replay 3-0.
4/ Tommy Black - Crystal Palace v Leeds United, February 2003.
Trevor Francis, the then Crystal Palace manager, was absolutely livid when referee Dermot Gallagher disallowed a Tommy Black ‘goal’ that would have given his side a 2-1lead over Leeds United in an FA Cup fifth-round tie at Selhurst Park. Gallagher decided the ball had not crossed the line, but again replays proved otherwise & what made it even more galling for Palace was that Michael Duberry, the Leeds defender, actually clawed the ball back into play using his hand. The visitors went on to give Terry Venables an undeserved 2-1 victory on his return to a former stomping ground.
5/ Gerry Taggart - Bolton Wanderers v Everton, September 1997.
Bolton were denied their first ever victory in the Reebok Stadium when Stephen Lodge, the referee, failed to spot Gerry Taggart’s looping header fall six inches behind the line, before it was cleared by defender Terry Phelan. The match finished goalless, and the two sides finished level on points at the end of the season. Bolton were relegated on goal difference, whilst Everton stayed up.
Coppell was as puzzled as Watford manager Adrian Boothroyd, the players and the fans when the officials awarded Reading a goal after the ball clearly went wide in Saturday's 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road in their Championship League clash.
While they were waiting to see whether the officials would give either a corner or a goal kick, they were amazed when referee Stuart Atwell awarded Reading a goal after after he received a signal from his linesman Nigel Bannister, indicating that a goal had been scored. This put Reading one up.
'I was in the stand at the time and I haven't seen it since. But when the whistle went I wondered what it was for as I couldn't see a foul,' Coppell said. 'Everyone trooped back to the centre and then it became obvious that the referee had given the goal. But after speaking to Noel Hunt after the game it became clear that the ball went out of play wide of the goal.'
Coppell said the incidents strengthened the argument for the introduction of cameras and goal-line technology to help officials decide whether the ball had gone into the net and crossed the goalline.
But he dismissed the suggestion that, after realizing the officials' blunder, Reading should have then let Watford equalize.
'Let's get this clear. The responsibility is not with the opposition to right a wrong,' he said. 'It is up to the officials to get it as right as they can.'
Boothroyd said it appeared the mistake was by the linesman rather than the referee.
'I've never seen anything like it. It's like a UFO landing, a mistake like that,' he said. 'I've been to see the referee and, in fairness, he's only going on what the linesman says. He's working in a team and if someone comes in his ear telling him it's a goal then I suppose he's got to give it.'
Watch it here:
Link
There is a growing list of instances where the wrong call has been made over whether
the ball did or did not cross the line and here are some of the most famous genuinely good goals that got away.....!
1/ Clive Allen - Coventry v Crystal Palace, September 1980.
Allen, playing for Palace in those days, collected a free-kick passed square to him by Gerry Francis and lashed it goalwards, the ball arrowing into the far corner of the net. Only this thunderbolt hit the stanchion behind the goal & rebounded out with such ferocity that the referee did not even see that it had gone a good three feet over the line.
'They called my free-kick at Coventry the goal that never was & soon after that they got rid of the stanchion at the back of the net,' Allen said. 'We were 2-1 down at the time so it would have been an equaliser — but we lost 3-1. We went on a bad run after that & that certainly contributed.'
2/ Pedro Mendes - Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur, January 2005.
Tottenham were holding United to a goalless draw at Old Trafford with just over a minute to go. Roy Carroll raced from his goal in an attempt to pump the ball back into the Tottenham penalty area, but after a bit of head tennis the ball fell to Pedro Mendes some six yards inside the halfway line. Spotting Carroll haring back towards his own goal he let fly. The goalkeeper regained his ground in time to make what should have been a routine catch, but inexplicably spilled the ball behind him, where it bounced once before he scooped it back out, the ball having been an estimated two feet behind the line.
'Carroll has been denied the most embarrassing moment of his career, that is a travesty,' said commentator Alan Parry at the time.
It certainly is a decision that Mark Clattenburg, the referee & in particular Rob Lewis, his linesman, will want to forget.
3/ Jonathan Howard - Middlesbrough v Chesterfield, April 1997.
Chesterfield, of Division Two, looking to cause a huge upset, raced into a two-goal lead in this famous FA Cup semi-final at Old Trafford. Still ahead 2-1 and trying to weather a comeback from Middlesbrough, Jonathan Howard appeared to have given them some breathing room when he fired a shot that rebounded down off the crossbar. David Elleray, the referee, was unsighted and did not award a goal, though replays later showed it was several inches over the line. The match ended 3-3 with Middlesbrough winning the replay 3-0.
4/ Tommy Black - Crystal Palace v Leeds United, February 2003.
Trevor Francis, the then Crystal Palace manager, was absolutely livid when referee Dermot Gallagher disallowed a Tommy Black ‘goal’ that would have given his side a 2-1lead over Leeds United in an FA Cup fifth-round tie at Selhurst Park. Gallagher decided the ball had not crossed the line, but again replays proved otherwise & what made it even more galling for Palace was that Michael Duberry, the Leeds defender, actually clawed the ball back into play using his hand. The visitors went on to give Terry Venables an undeserved 2-1 victory on his return to a former stomping ground.
5/ Gerry Taggart - Bolton Wanderers v Everton, September 1997.
Bolton were denied their first ever victory in the Reebok Stadium when Stephen Lodge, the referee, failed to spot Gerry Taggart’s looping header fall six inches behind the line, before it was cleared by defender Terry Phelan. The match finished goalless, and the two sides finished level on points at the end of the season. Bolton were relegated on goal difference, whilst Everton stayed up.
Friday, September 19, 2008
The Physio Room - Injury Update
Click on the 'Link' below to see which Premier League players will be crying off this weekend, in favour of an afternoon playing Blackjack in a darkened room with a bowl of cheesy Quavers and a couple of cans of Irn Bru for company!
We name and shame them...........!
Link
We name and shame them...........!
Link
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Saquen al Triste - Pongan al Indiecito.
Los verdaderos jugadores de categoría, esos que pueden tirar paredes con Francescoli, Zidane, Roberto Carlos y Ronaldo, son capaces de demostrar todo lo que saben con un par de toques. Es mas, ni siquiera les hace falta ponerse la 10. Solari ayer usó la 6 la misma camiseta que alguna vez usaron en el Ciclón: Ruggeri, Tuzzio, Loeschbor y Arevalo. ¡¡¡Cuanta diferencia!!!. Mientras tanto la Selección y River siguen penando con la ortodoxia y la falta de ideas de sus inventos mediaticos: Basile y Simeone, los dos grandes maestros del terror futbolístico. San Lorenzo, en cambio apuesta al fútbol y prefiere juntar a Solari, con otros que saben: Ledesma, Adrián Gonzalez, Bergessio, y cía. siguiendo los consejos de ese técnico al que le hicieron la cama por $$$, pero del que aprendieron a jugarla limpia y no reventarla. Decí que ahora dan ventaja con el banco porque tienen un técnico como Corega que no es para un equipo campeón de todo (como Bokita). No es como Chirolischia(?) que es un ganador nato(?). Que se le va a hacer, el fútbol es simple. Si querés romperla en serio, ponelo al Indiecito.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Jolly Hockey Sticks or Ice Creamed!
As the clock ticks by the England National Football team is preparing to tip-toe into a volatile Zagreb tonight knowing defeat to Croatia in this 2010 World Cup qualifier could demote us to also-rans on the World football stage. If Croatia,(not Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil or Agentina) beat England tonight then there will be carnage in the tabloids tomorrow, burning effigees on the streets, messageboards dining out on four letter expletives from now until kingdom come, along with a comprehensive meltdown on radio phone-ins, as enraged fans holler in despair at our demise........once again!
After sneaking away from a ski resort on Saturday by 2 black runs to none, pride may have been dented but the points were won. However there can be no slip up tonight as the former love child of the cockney East End wide boys from the London Borough of Newham will tell you, Slaven Bilic is no mug & he will take almighty pleasure from outsmarting his opposite number as he prepares a modus operandi of his own - it's just which English Football Club he endorses, not when!
Never in the history of International football have England ever been beaten on three successive occasions by the same nation until........hopefully never!
English sport is not all doom & gloom...........spare a thought for the Bulgarian National Hockey Federation.
With more goals than minutes in a game, Slovakia's women's ice hockey team claimed an amazing 82-0 victory last Saturday over Bulgaria in a European Olympic pre-qualifying tournament for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, in the Latvian town of Liepaja.
Bulgaria conceded a goal on average every 44 seconds!
Slovakia outshot the Bulgarians 139-0 during the 60-minute game, scoring on 58.9 per cent of their shots on goal.
The margin of victory is a record for a women's International Ice Hockey Federation-sanctioned event.
Janka Culikova led Slovakia with 10 goals, while Martina Velickova scored nine, Slovakia had 12 players record hat tricks, & fourteen different players scored at least one goal.
Bulgaria was eliminated after scoring one goal and conceding 192 in the tournament. Bulgaria lost to Italy (41-0) and Latvia (39-0), and it followed its 82-0 loss with a 30-1 defeat to Croatia.
In total, Bulgaria's women's ice hockey team surrendered more goals in four games(192) than the Detroit Red Wings did in 82 games last season (184).
The game was 7-0 after five minutes, 19-0 after 10, and an incredible 31-0 after only one period.
So at what point during an 82-0 loss in a women's ice hockey game do you turn to your mate and say, 'Come on pal, finish your drink we're outta here, & we may even beat the traffic.'
Well apparently there were fewer than 40 fans in the crowd for this rather one-sided contest.
After two periods, Slovakia led 55-0. If you're Bulgarian and still in the arena during the third period, chances are you're either one of the players or someone who also refuses to leave the worst movie ever made because you paid 'good money' for your ticket.
Down 77-0 with three minutes to go, Bulgaria put in its back-up goaltender, who promptly let in another five goals in just 85 seconds of playing time.
The 82-0 defeat capped what may have been 'the most pathetic tournament appearance in international hockey history.'
Slovakia, which also beat Croatia, Latvia and Italy, advanced to another qualifying group with Germany, Kazakhstan and France. The winner will secure a spot at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
To add insult to injury Slovakian coach Miroslav Karafiat said after Saturday's game, 'we took it as training.'
Ironically The Slovakian men's team clinched its biggest ever victory against none other than Bulgaria 14 years ago, when they won 20-0.
According to sources a Bulgarian media outlet that actually stands up for the women's team has taken the Bulgarian Government to task rather than hitting out at the players.
With a population of 7.4 million, Bulgaria have just 299 registered hockey players of which only 37 are registered female players, (Canada has about 74,000 female players) & only three indoor ice rings in the whole country.
On that basis Bulgaria could have hardly hoped for a successful run in the competition, although this ruthless and systematic destruction was nothing short of a national embarrassment.
The International Ice Hockey Federation said the result, set a record score for a women's IIHF-sanctioned event. It was not the all-time record for futility, however, that is still held by Thailand, who lost 92-0 to South Korea in the 1998 Asia-Oceania U18 Championship. Well that's a relief then!
The chair of the Bulgarian Hockey Federation is calling Slovakia's 82-goal win 'a kind of insulting mockery, & not at all sportsmanlike.'
We're counting down the moments until he lashes out at the glib reaction of the international sports media, which refuses to acknowledge goalie Liubomira Shosheva's amazing 57-save performance,(she faced 134 shots in 57 minutes).
A few Bulgarian news sources are picking up the story today, and they're calling it 'one of the biggest defeats in sporting history' & 'nothing short of a national embarrassment.'
.......Go on England, make us proud & bring home three precious points from Zagreb!
After sneaking away from a ski resort on Saturday by 2 black runs to none, pride may have been dented but the points were won. However there can be no slip up tonight as the former love child of the cockney East End wide boys from the London Borough of Newham will tell you, Slaven Bilic is no mug & he will take almighty pleasure from outsmarting his opposite number as he prepares a modus operandi of his own - it's just which English Football Club he endorses, not when!
Never in the history of International football have England ever been beaten on three successive occasions by the same nation until........hopefully never!
English sport is not all doom & gloom...........spare a thought for the Bulgarian National Hockey Federation.
With more goals than minutes in a game, Slovakia's women's ice hockey team claimed an amazing 82-0 victory last Saturday over Bulgaria in a European Olympic pre-qualifying tournament for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, in the Latvian town of Liepaja.
Bulgaria conceded a goal on average every 44 seconds!
Slovakia outshot the Bulgarians 139-0 during the 60-minute game, scoring on 58.9 per cent of their shots on goal.
The margin of victory is a record for a women's International Ice Hockey Federation-sanctioned event.
Janka Culikova led Slovakia with 10 goals, while Martina Velickova scored nine, Slovakia had 12 players record hat tricks, & fourteen different players scored at least one goal.
Bulgaria was eliminated after scoring one goal and conceding 192 in the tournament. Bulgaria lost to Italy (41-0) and Latvia (39-0), and it followed its 82-0 loss with a 30-1 defeat to Croatia.
In total, Bulgaria's women's ice hockey team surrendered more goals in four games(192) than the Detroit Red Wings did in 82 games last season (184).
The game was 7-0 after five minutes, 19-0 after 10, and an incredible 31-0 after only one period.
So at what point during an 82-0 loss in a women's ice hockey game do you turn to your mate and say, 'Come on pal, finish your drink we're outta here, & we may even beat the traffic.'
Well apparently there were fewer than 40 fans in the crowd for this rather one-sided contest.
After two periods, Slovakia led 55-0. If you're Bulgarian and still in the arena during the third period, chances are you're either one of the players or someone who also refuses to leave the worst movie ever made because you paid 'good money' for your ticket.
Down 77-0 with three minutes to go, Bulgaria put in its back-up goaltender, who promptly let in another five goals in just 85 seconds of playing time.
The 82-0 defeat capped what may have been 'the most pathetic tournament appearance in international hockey history.'
Slovakia, which also beat Croatia, Latvia and Italy, advanced to another qualifying group with Germany, Kazakhstan and France. The winner will secure a spot at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
To add insult to injury Slovakian coach Miroslav Karafiat said after Saturday's game, 'we took it as training.'
Ironically The Slovakian men's team clinched its biggest ever victory against none other than Bulgaria 14 years ago, when they won 20-0.
According to sources a Bulgarian media outlet that actually stands up for the women's team has taken the Bulgarian Government to task rather than hitting out at the players.
With a population of 7.4 million, Bulgaria have just 299 registered hockey players of which only 37 are registered female players, (Canada has about 74,000 female players) & only three indoor ice rings in the whole country.
On that basis Bulgaria could have hardly hoped for a successful run in the competition, although this ruthless and systematic destruction was nothing short of a national embarrassment.
The International Ice Hockey Federation said the result, set a record score for a women's IIHF-sanctioned event. It was not the all-time record for futility, however, that is still held by Thailand, who lost 92-0 to South Korea in the 1998 Asia-Oceania U18 Championship. Well that's a relief then!
The chair of the Bulgarian Hockey Federation is calling Slovakia's 82-goal win 'a kind of insulting mockery, & not at all sportsmanlike.'
We're counting down the moments until he lashes out at the glib reaction of the international sports media, which refuses to acknowledge goalie Liubomira Shosheva's amazing 57-save performance,(she faced 134 shots in 57 minutes).
A few Bulgarian news sources are picking up the story today, and they're calling it 'one of the biggest defeats in sporting history' & 'nothing short of a national embarrassment.'
.......Go on England, make us proud & bring home three precious points from Zagreb!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Jugando por un Sueño (la FARSA de Grondona, Boquita, Basile, y cía)
La próxima vez que un periodista me tilde de imparcial lo mando a la puta que lo parió. En serio. La selección es una FARSA, bancada por la obsecuencia de periodistas amigos y un aparato de prensa que banca el negociado y las preferencias de camiseta de la mayoría ese pseudoperiodismo. La selección argentina se transformó en un reality show televisivo. Hay que garantizar la presencia de aquellos que tienen mas rating o banca oficial (algún padrino "fuerte": Boca, Grondona...): Tevez, Riquelme, además de otros jugadores identificados con Boca (Abbondanzieri, Cata Diaz, Gago, Palacio, Pablo Ledesma, Ibarra, Monzón en el sub23), hasta se pidió insólitamente a Palermo!!! en la previa) o Independiente (Aguero, Ustari (hoy lesionado), Denis, Montenegro que ligó alguna convocatoria). Para que esto no sea tan evidente se convoca a jugadores de dudosas cualidades técnicas, que no están tan identificados con ninguna camiseta (Heinze, Cruz, Jonás Gutierrez, Pinola) para "cerrar" la lista. De manera de que la presencia de dichos jugadores denote una aparente escasez que no es tal. Son jugadores como el Gringo Heinze por los que nadie va a reclamar si son sacados en el entretiempo de un partido o dejados afuera de una lista a último momento como el caso de Pinola. Mientras tanto, los jugadores que podrían pelear de igual a igual (Gonzalo Higuain, Crespo, Cavenaghi, Saviola, Buonanotte, Belluschi, Aimar, Lucho Gonzalez, Villagra, Ferrari, Augusto Fernandez, Placente, D'alessandro, Solari, Ledesma) poniendo en duda la aparente incuestionabilidad de algunos jugadores que demuestran una parsimonia exasperante y una recurrencia en los errores atroz (Tevez, Abbondanzieri o Riquelme los "jugadores del pueblo"); son ignorados.Argentina debe ser la selección FIFA con mayor cantidad y calidad de delanteros, sin embargo eso en la selección del obsoleto y transero de Alfio Basile no se nota. Si uno hace una enumeración se dara cuenta de lo que hablo:
Gonzalo Higuain, Hernán Crespo, Fernando Cavenaghi, Lionel Messi, Javier Saviola, Sergio Aguero, Mariano Pavone, Oscar Trejo, Angel di Maria, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Gonzalo Bergessio, Lucho Figueroa, Darío Cvitanich, Mauro Zarate, Lisandro Lopez, Gastón Fernandez, Diego Milito, el Chori Dominguez, Franco di Santo...
Sin embargo, ¿quienes son los convocados?: El indiscutible Messi (ya se tuvo que comer un Mundial en el banco por culpa de esta MAFIA que hizo jugar a Tevez), el propio Tevez y Palacio (Boca), Aguero y Denis (Independiente) y Cruz, el "candado virtual" del que les hablaba.
Y si vamos a los arqueros, no nos olvidemos de Lux (arco invicto en los JJ.OO del 2004) que fue dejado afuera de la lista cuando Pekerman confirmó que no llevaba a Aguero y Don Julio presionaba para meter uno de su palo, Ustari. De Carrizo, eterno suplente en juveniles nacionales que tuvo que esperar las desgraciada muertes de Eberto (Boca) y los Molina (Independiente), y las lesiones de Ustari y Abbondanzieri para poder debutar oficialmente en la mayor.
Como Demichelis, que tuvo que esperar retiros varios y demas hechos fortuitos, para convertirse en el bastión del fondo, o Mascherano que después de haber sido la gran figura en el último mundial se lo seguía poniendo en duda diciendo que el titular debía ser Gago. Al final, con Mascherano irremplazable se tuvo que apelar a la figura del doble 5, para manijearle un lugar al 5 del Real Madrid.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
La estafa maestra (II)
Antes que nada quiero aclarar que el post anterior no pretendí hacer reir a nadie. Tampoco llevar adelante una argumentación cerrada, si no tratar de abrir la discusión lo máximo posible en virtud de una afirmación que considero inconsistente. No pretendo ganar un juicio ni una recompensa. No es mi objetivo faltarle el respeto a Varsky. Soy hincha de River (no lo niego), pero eso no me hace menos crítico. Cualquiera que lea este blog sabe de mis reparos al actual técnico, dirigencia y a muchos de los jugadores que visten actualmente la banda roja.
Boca 98-08 no es un equipo. No hay un solo jugador que haya estado presente en todas las celebraciones de este "megaequipo". Imaginense si yo dijera: el mejor "equipo" es River 1940-2008 porque en todo ese lapso fue el mas ganador y porque: Amadeo jugó con la Máquina, Pinino Mas jugó con Amadeo, el Beto jugó con Pinino, Enzo jugó con el Beto (poco), Ortega jugó con el Enzo, y Buonanotte jugó con Ortega. Ya está. Es exactamente lo mismo a lo de este supuesto equipo de Boca en donde Ibarra, Palacio, Riquelme, Tevez, Abbondanzieri y Cascini indirectamente se entrecruzaron alguna vez. Porque si vamos al caso Boca en todo este tiempo ni siquiera mantuvo el mismo presidente, ni el mismo entrenador, ni el mismo sistema de juego (del 4-3-1-2, al triple 5 sin enganche y sin 9 faro, al 4-3-1-2 actual sin los carrileros que caracterizaban a ese primer Boca) y solo estan presentes un puñado de jugadores (nunca todos juntos) que estuvieron ausentes en muchas de las celebraciones a las que se hace alusión. Sí hay una mística, y esa mística es la misma que hace que Calderón y Verón se sientan la Bruja Padre y Pachamé cada vez que juegan una copa internacional, o la que dice que River debe ganar, gustar y golear, o el Rojo satisfacer el paladar negro del hincha. Es más, es una mística mas propia de la factoría Bianchi, y que ya estaba presente también en su Velez, que "guapeaba" en el exterior tanto como "este" Boca. Tal es así que el equipo de Liniers ganó la Supercopa unos años después sin Bianchi y sin muchos de los jugadores que habían ganado el Clausura 93 y la Libertadores 94, iniciadores de aquella epopeya. Otros argumentarán que en cuanto a logros, tampoco "este" Boca superó en Libertadores al rojo de los 60-70.
Quizás no sea del todo sólido lo que digo. Hacer un repaso de 50 años de historia es un poco engorroso. Son muchas las cosas que se pueden agregar. Dejo abiertos los comentarios para que cada uno proponga su candidato y dé sus motivos.
Boca 98-08 no es un equipo. No hay un solo jugador que haya estado presente en todas las celebraciones de este "megaequipo". Imaginense si yo dijera: el mejor "equipo" es River 1940-2008 porque en todo ese lapso fue el mas ganador y porque: Amadeo jugó con la Máquina, Pinino Mas jugó con Amadeo, el Beto jugó con Pinino, Enzo jugó con el Beto (poco), Ortega jugó con el Enzo, y Buonanotte jugó con Ortega. Ya está. Es exactamente lo mismo a lo de este supuesto equipo de Boca en donde Ibarra, Palacio, Riquelme, Tevez, Abbondanzieri y Cascini indirectamente se entrecruzaron alguna vez. Porque si vamos al caso Boca en todo este tiempo ni siquiera mantuvo el mismo presidente, ni el mismo entrenador, ni el mismo sistema de juego (del 4-3-1-2, al triple 5 sin enganche y sin 9 faro, al 4-3-1-2 actual sin los carrileros que caracterizaban a ese primer Boca) y solo estan presentes un puñado de jugadores (nunca todos juntos) que estuvieron ausentes en muchas de las celebraciones a las que se hace alusión. Sí hay una mística, y esa mística es la misma que hace que Calderón y Verón se sientan la Bruja Padre y Pachamé cada vez que juegan una copa internacional, o la que dice que River debe ganar, gustar y golear, o el Rojo satisfacer el paladar negro del hincha. Es más, es una mística mas propia de la factoría Bianchi, y que ya estaba presente también en su Velez, que "guapeaba" en el exterior tanto como "este" Boca. Tal es así que el equipo de Liniers ganó la Supercopa unos años después sin Bianchi y sin muchos de los jugadores que habían ganado el Clausura 93 y la Libertadores 94, iniciadores de aquella epopeya. Otros argumentarán que en cuanto a logros, tampoco "este" Boca superó en Libertadores al rojo de los 60-70.
Quizás no sea del todo sólido lo que digo. Hacer un repaso de 50 años de historia es un poco engorroso. Son muchas las cosas que se pueden agregar. Dejo abiertos los comentarios para que cada uno proponga su candidato y dé sus motivos.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
La estafa maestra
(Juan Pablo Varsky)
No digan boludeces muchachos. En los ya “legendiarios” 90 con el 1 a 1 no jugaba cualquiera en el fútbol argentino. Los jugadores (y entrenadores) que no encontraban club en el fútbol de primera de acá se iban a un equipo de mitad de tabla de España, Italia o Inglaterra (como segunda opción): Me acuerdo de “Corega” Russo, Lombardi, Cardetti y cía en el Salamanca, Desio en el Alavés, el Cai Aimar, Lopez y Caballero, Ferraro, Pompei, Acuña, Silvani, Basualdo, Mena, Astudillo, Casartelli, Taricco, Gastón Cordoba, Arzeno. Ninguno era Crespo o Verón, jugadores que se fueron por la puerta grande. El piojo Lopez, Batistuta, Zanetti o Gustavo Lopez. Cuando Boca empieza a ganar, la sangría (ante la crisis económica que se avecinaba) ya era evidente: (sin contar el retiro de Francescoli) Gallardo, Berti, Solari, Salas, Burgos en River; Bielsa, el Turu Flores, Trotta, Bassedas –después- en Velez; Cuper, Roa, Siviero, Mena y Hugo Morales en Lanús; Silas, Gorosito y Acosta en San Lorenzo; Menotti, Matute y Calderón en Independiente (hacía un tiempo se habían ido ya los Islas, Cagna, Rambert, Gustavo Lopez, Usuriaga, un tiempo después los Cambiasso, Forlán y cía.); Nacho Gonzalez en el quebrado Racing, por nombrar los casos mas salientes. Desde entonces el fútbol argentino se parece (y cada vez más) a un fútbol golondrina. En aquel entonces el campeonato argentino se empezaba a desmantelar. River intentaba reemplazar a los Francescoli, Ortega, Salas, Berti, Almeyda con jugadores como Pizzi, Castillo, Marcelo Gomez y Victor Zapata, mientras que Boca invertía cada vez mas dinero en proyectos a mediano plazo. Convengamos que si Palermo, Barros Schelotto, Ibarra, Cagna, y cia. hubiesen tenido una carrera prolífica en Europa el auge y la vigencia de este “supuesto mejor equipo argentino de los últimos 50 años” según la exageración de Varsky, no hubiese sido tal. Boca fue el primero que entendió el carácter de cabotaje del fútbol local, por eso se dedicó a armar su propia base con jugadores que no iban a ser seducidos por las grandes luces de Europa o la selección (Palermo, Barros Schelotto, los colombianos que fracasaron en los mundiales del 94 y del 98 y perdieron con River la Libertadores del 96). Sangría general e inversión fuerte fueron las claves de Boca. Los jugadores se adquirieron con el famoso Fondo de inversión (47.000.000 de dólares!!! en el periodo 95-98 sin contar los contratos por partido de Maradona y Caniggia, lo que se le pagó a Parque por las inferiores, a los profesionales como Griffa que vinieron a trabajar al club, las obras de casa Amarilla, los palcos de la Bombonera, etc). Bianchi llegó en Agosto del 98 y pulió lo que ya había, vendido Fabbri a Francia, prescindió de los “conflictivos” y costosos Caniggia y Latorre, se mostró partidario del retorno del Pepe Basualdo, pidió a Ibarra y alguno más. Quedó eliminado en la Mercosur, pero ganó el campeonato invicto con un fútbol efectivo, primer título del ciclo. Quiero decir, muchas veces cuando se recuerda vagamente la política económica y el modelo de país de aquellos años se olvidan muchas cosas. En el deporte que “del segundo nadie se acuerda”, de las circunstancias y las variables que llevaron al triunfo menos. En aquel entonces en el país con un 20% de desempleo, la rescisión operaba sobre los clubes, sobre las microempresas, sobre los organismos del Estado vaciado. Había empresarios que habían hecho fortunas con el modelo neoliberal, la privatización de grandes empresas, empresarios que se llevaban la plata afuera y de vez en cuando se daban el gusto de invertir alguna pequeña suma en el club de sus amores (sin ir mas lejos lo que hace ahora Abramovich, lo hacía Boca hace 10 años). El modelo de gestión en un club de fútbol como plataforma para un proyecto político nacional. Desde ese lugar es más fácil de entender las generosas contribuciones de empresarios y allegados al Mundo Boca (en un contexto que no ayudaba). Así se gestó el equipo del que habla Varsky. A los jugadores se los extorsionó de mil maneras para que no abandonen el club (nunca dentro de la ilegalidad hay que aclararlo). Palermo vio truncada su transferencia a la Lazio (by Mascardi). De esa época se recuerdan los insultos y cánticos a Salvestrini por parte de los jugadores -después del partido con Palmeiras- en el vestuario del club brasileño, los desplantes de Bianchi a Macri, el Topo Giggio de Riquelme. Solo se vendían jugadores cuando se intentaba una relación comercial a largo plazo con algún determinado club-empresario (el Villarreal y la familia Roig: Arruabarrena, Gaitán, Battaglia, Palermo, Cagna, Gustavo Barros Schelotto). Otra modalidad era el compromiso de adquisición de algún jugador por parte de un club grande de Europa, ocurrió con el Barcelona y Riquelme, Barcelona y Palacio (operación que quedó trunca), operaciones diagramadas previamente en papel, por afuera de las planificaciones deportivas (Van Gaal a Riquelme: “yo no te pedí”), la limpieza de los cabecillas que no se acoplaban a las reglas de conducta que establecía el club (los colombianos, Traverso, el Chelo Delgado). Desde entonces siempre la sartén la tuvieron los dirigentes (y si no que le pregunten a Maradona), por eso mas allá de rebeliones momentáneas, los jugadores entendieron que solo podían sacar partido, claudicando en el enojo del momento y apuntando al beneficio a largo plazo (los Riquelme, Palermo, Ibarra, Barros Schelotto y Palacio, Battaglia, Abbondanzieri, la famosa base de este equipo, lo entendieron así). Sabían los jugadores que no tenían la chapa para ser vendidos en 56.000.000 de dólares como Crespo a la Lazio, por eso asumieron la derrota económica. Mientras tanto River vendía adolescentes de 20 años -con apenas un par de años en primera- por cifras multimillonarias con la promesa (a sus hinchas) de que algún día iban a volver como lo hicieron Passarella, Ramón Diaz y Francescoli. Los jugadores nunca volvieron conociendo la conducta de sus dirigentes en aquellas transferencias. El resto de los clubes permanecía sumergido a las variables económicas del país, con jugadores que preferían jugar en la segunda B de España antes que en un club de acá (crisis 2001-2002). Otros 10 millones de dólares al comienzo de la era Basile para un segundo período de bonanza, un River que truchaba balances, pagaba deportivamente los favores de la AFA para no quedar en rojo y sufría los embates de la era Aguilar (llenando el equipo de “baldoseros de lujo” para cumplir con algún empresario), el resto apuntaba al cortoplazismo mas descarnado. No me quiero olvidar de un factor sustancial, como los actores de las comedias domesticas de Suar o las vedettes danzantes de Tinelli en Argentina, los jugadores de Boca se convirtieron en “heroes del continente” de la mano de la televisión. Para acelerar el mito, se programaron copitas a un partido organizadas por la empresa televisora que se contaban como Champions Leagues. Se multiplicaron los slogans publicitarios: “Papá Boquita otra vez a Japón”(un ardid para vender miles de paquetes turísticos, de hinchas bosteros que llevaban a las agencias de viajes la guita que sacaban del “corralito”), el “zar de Copas”, “el campeón de la Galaxia” y demases.
Hoy el esfuerzo está puesto en vender a los pibes de 20 (como hizo River a finales de los 90). A diferencia del club presidido por Aguilar, los dirigentes de Boca son más pillos. Saben que con la base del equipo consolidada, no se van a vender a las figuras centrales. Hay que vender a los pibes que recién arrancan (y ocupan un lugar secundario en el equipo) como si fueran las “futuras estrellas del fútbol mundial”: Tito “el Pajaro Caniggia” Noir, Fabián “el lateral izquierdo de la selección por los próximos 10 años” Monzón. Para que no mueran en Chacarita, Chicago, y San Martin de San Juan como sus antecesores: los Carreño, Chavo Pinto y el Pollo Herrera, hablamos por supuesto de jugadores (que a futuro) no tienen ningún lugar en el primer equipo. Para llevar adelante esto, se crea una movida de prensa con periodistas o redacciones “adornadas” (ojo también lo hace River, con la diferencia que no se dedican a tapar los mocos de Aguilar) que fogonean A DIARIO las bondades de estas pseudo estrellas y el interés galáctico de los principales clubes del mundo. De vez en cuando se le hace un llamadito a Don Julio para que el Coco o el Checho haga una convocatoria que sirva de vidriera. Se pasea a empresarios por todo el mundo con DVDS escuálidos de gambetas pero generosos en recortes periodísticos. Surgen intereses estrafalarios: Jonathan Maidana al Palmeiras y Ucrania en cifras millonarias, Monzón al Hamburgo en transferencia record. Así hasta que algún ingenuo pique como el Betis con Monzón. Muchas de las cifras que se manejan son incomprobables: así es como Banega, vendido supuestamente en 28 millones de dólares al Valencia en Enero, unos meses después es cedido a préstamo al Atletico de Madrid con una opción de compra de 11 millones de euros. ¿Qué kamikaze (dirigente español) blanquea una pérdida de mas de 10 millones de euros en 7 meses?. La frase de Varsky (un periodista serio que también picó) es el moño del paquete. Así se gestó Boca, el “mejor equipo argentino de los últimos 50 años”.
(el video es de un post mío publicado en Enero)
Monday, September 1, 2008
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