The Beautiful Game Thread 10/11

[Jimmydeicide]

No jokes about soccer players having bad hands

I'm kind of disappointed.

Sure, how about Foster and Doyle?

[Naples39]

Just flipped on the Real-Barca game. Scoreless at the half, but is anyone else embarrassed by the diving and constant gang-raping of the referee by complaining players?

Maybe it's just because I'm coming from watching NHL playoffs nightly, where at least (most) have the decency not to dive and save their complaining for the reporters after the game.

[toonarmy]

Red card for Pepe on a ridiculous acting job by Alves. I'm rooting for Barca but that call was about as atrocious as they come. This match has become more a match of who can act the best as opposed to who can play football the best. What a sham!

[toonarmy]

Don't feel too good about all the diving, but it sure is nice to see Little Lionel put in two goals! Barca sitting pretty right now.

[Macca00]

Messi showed why he's the best attacking player on the planet.

[toonarmy]

Messi showed why he's the best attacking player on the planet.

Both goals were great, but that second one was a thing of beauty. I agree he's the best.

[Macca00]

...but is anyone else embarrassed by the diving and constant gang-raping of the referee by complaining players?

Both are absolutely pathetic. I'm glad Pedro got stepped on because that d*****-bag is the king of diving. The way the Barca players circled the ref in a split second after the Pepe foul was worthy of the United sides of early 2000s.

I must say seeing Jose being made to 'sit in the corner' was hilarious.

[10spro]

Messi showed why he's the best attacking player on the planet.

Both goals were great, but that second one was a thing of beauty. I agree he's the best.

My hero.

[XXXIV]

Messi showed why he's the best attacking player on the planet.

Both goals were great, but that second one was a thing of beauty. I agree he's the best.

My hero.

I think we have found something we can all agree upon.

[EZSnappin]

Red card for Pepe on a ridiculous acting job by Alves. I'm rooting for Barca but that call was about as atrocious as they come. This match has become more a match of who can act the best as opposed to who can play football the best. What a sham!

It was a red. Same as the Scholes tackle a week or so ago - late, high, unnecessary, studs to the thigh.

Still, both sides diving and cheap-shots all over the place. At least this means Real will have to come out guns blazing in Barcelona so we might get to see both sides do what they do best.

[RobVarak]

Definitely a red IMO. The diving was obviously despicable all over the pitch on both sides.

I'm fascinated by Mourinho's negative football at this point. I understand the pragmatism of parking the bus and hoping to hit a team on the counter, but I find it a bit offensive (no pun intended) when he implements tactics like this with the array of talent on his team. This isn't a lower division team fighting against a superior enemy; It's not even a defensively stellar but offense-challenged team trying to cope with a game that it can' play. You have Ronaldo, Higuain, Ozil, Alonso, DiMaria et al. Go out and let them play football for God's sake!

Jose makes so much out of all his close calls in the CL, Luis Garcia's goal, so many games with his side down to 10 men etc. The fact of the matter is that as long as he keeps playing with these tactics the games are going to be physical and close and those sorts of things are more likely and will have a bigger impact on the outcomes.

He's gotten to 90's Pat Riley level at this point, embracing a disgusting style of play and playing the villain role to the hilt. Hell, at least Riley's Knicks teams were doing it because they were orders of magnitude less talented than the rest of their competition.

[toonarmy]

Red card for Pepe on a ridiculous acting job by Alves. I'm rooting for Barca but that call was about as atrocious as they come. This match has become more a match of who can act the best as opposed to who can play football the best. What a sham!

It was a red. Same as the Scholes tackle a week or so ago - late, high, unnecessary, studs to the thigh.

Still, both sides diving and cheap-shots all over the place. At least this means Real will have to come out guns blazing in Barcelona so we might get to see both sides do what they do best.

I disagree that it was the same as the Scholes tackle. If Alves doesn't roll around like he is demon possessed there is a simple yellow given since there was very little contact made, if any. The attempt was high to be for sure, but not reckless to the point of a red IMO. The replays are pretty damning against the call.

[Feanor]

Yes, it was less serious than the Scholes tackle and only worthy of a yellow. If the ref wasn't a p***y he would have also given yellow cards to every Barcelona player who surrounded him and begged him to send Pepe off.

[Jimmydeicide]

I was this close to turning it off, but i fell asleep so i didnt need too. pathetic other than Messi.

[fsquid]

Last two matches between the two haven't been very watchable.

[wco81]

Mourinho's comments are hilarious.

Imagine if all coaches said what they really thought, though he said he respected Guardiola as a manager.

But then said all of Barca's big victories in recent CL matches, including the championship in Rome, were tainted by the favoritism they get from UEFA.

[fsquid]

By the way, NEuer is going to look great in a Bayern jersey next year.

[F308GTB]

Messi's goals did save an otherwise terrible game. All the diving (there's a reason I don't tend to watch Spanish or Italian leagues) is a real turn-off. It's a breath of fresh air to pull up some Aussie Rules Football on the Xbox/ESPN3 feed and see some real men leave it all on the field.

[Naples39]

Really cool water-color animations. If only the last Real-Barca game was so beautiful!

[GB_Simo]

It was a red. Same as the Scholes tackle a week or so ago - late, high, unnecessary, studs to the thigh.

I couldn't find the words to tell you how much I disagreed with that, so I found a video instead:

Still, both sides diving and cheap-shots all over the place.

With you completely on that one, though. Horrible, niggly game of football. With regard to the second leg, Real have to come out and have a go if they're to have any hope of progressing, but the last time they opened up against Barca they were taken to pieces. I wouldn't hold out any great amount of hope for them.

[GB_Simo]

The last thing the bloke sat behind me said before this corner was taken was, "What the f*cking Hell is the goalie coming up for?"

[fsquid]

Pigs relegated to League One. Oh happy day.

[fsquid]

Dortmund wins the big beer.



More than half their squad is under 22 years old. Hopefully they can keep that team together and see what they can do in Europe next season.

[XXXIV]

Spectacular header from Osman tops off a great second half from Everton to get the three points..... Sucks to be Man City today.

[miget33]

Sucks to be Man City everyday