They are yes.

Get in there, finally Arsenal lose a lg game, they only lead by 1 point now, it should be at least 8 points.

Middlesbrough 2-1 Arsenal

lacklustre Arsenal suffered their first Premier League loss of the season against an inspired Middlesbrough.

Stewart Downing's penalty put Boro ahead after ex-Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere was fouled by Kolo Toure.

Emmanuel Adebayor nodded a rare Arsenal chance just wide before Tuncay Sanli angled a Boro shot inches past the post

But Tuncay fired high into the net to ease Boro to a win, while Tomas Rosicky ended a late Arsenal move with a precise shot for a consolation goal.

Arsenal were punished for producing their poorest performance of the season as their lead at the top of the table was cut to one point after Manchester United won on Saturday.

Aliadiere had failed to make the grade at Arsenal before being sold to Boro in the summer and will have enjoyed his part in his side's opener.

He outpaced Toure to a through ball and touched it past the centre-back, whose leg came across too late and tripped the striker to concede the spot-kick.

Downing squeezed the penalty past keeper Manuel Almunia to add to the strong sense of purpose Boro were showing.

Arsenal looked unsettled at the back and Emmanuel Eboue raised hands at Emanuel Pogatetz but no action was taken for an offence which has yielded a red card in other games this season.

The visitors appeared to be suffering the toll of two tough away games at Aston Villa and Newcastle, whose best spells came when they hunted and harried the Gunners.

Boro adopted the same strategy as Arsenal struggled for rhythm, fluency and potency with the home side the more threatening.

Arsenal were being forced into mistakes by Boro's work ethic and being denied sights on goal by some resolute defending.


Adebayor shows the distress of a bad day at the office for Arsenal

Adebayor's towering header went wide for a poor Arsenal but that only sparked a burst of attacking play from Boro.

They created two promising openings but Tuncay lacked the clinical final pass and the precise shot as the chances went begging.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger struggled to keep a lid on his frustration in the dug-out and he hauled Eduardo da Silva off for fellow striker Niklas Bendtner at half-time.

But the move did not signal any impact and, instead, Boro should have extended their lead.

Tuncay was clean though but slid an angled shot agonisingly wide of the far post as Almunia closed him down.

George Boateng fizzed a shot wide for the home side before Tuncay reacted quickest to a loose ball in the box - after Gary O'Neil's shot was parried - and sidefooted in Boro's second.

The comfort with which Boro held on for a first win in 11 games will worry Wenger, who will also be hoping Cesc Fabregas, Alexander Hleb, Mathieu Flamini and Robin van Persie return quickly.

Rosicky netted an injury-time goal for the visitors who have picked up four points from the last nine.

Wow, Arsenal was soooooooo terrible today. Just terrible. 'Boro deserved the win.


And Ronaldo is diving again. That was a joke that he was given that pk yesterday. And what about his stutter step when shooting it. You cant do that. Oh well.

Yes you can.

You cant come to a complete stop, which is what he did. I should have been more clear in the other post.

Agreed, ap_capone. The football world is full of fucking c unts.

I hope Arsenal win the league.

And I'm not just saying that because Ronaldo plays for United, I also feel the same way about Eboue who plays for Arsenal. He has good skill but he is a total douche with his diving and whining to the refs.

I can't believe the Smogsters beat Arsenal

They will probley go another 11 games without a win now..

They play Chelski at the weekend though.....

This weekend should be exiting

My Preditions
Liverpool v Man Utd 0-1
Asrenal v Chelski 1-1

I'll say 1-1 between Pool and Utd, and 2-0 to Arsenal.

i was thinking 1-1 Utd.But of course im ganna go for the win.

I hope Man City win the leaugue

your ganna be hoping a long time..

De Niro, regarding your signature: you should start putting your prediction for each Man Utd game in brackets after the score.

E.g.

"LM-Man Utd 4-1 Derby (prediction: 3-0)"

Or something.

I'll join in on the predictions... Next two Blackburn matches:

Blackburn 2 - 0 Wigan

Blackburn 1 - 1 Chelsea

This could end up embarrassing since I'm a rookie to the Premier League and still learning everything.

No way:

Blackburn 0 - 5 Wigan
Blackburn 0 - 11 Chelsea

I may start doing this.

I think both games will be draws. Hoping that Cesc plays. The midfield has just not been to good without him the last few games. At least Drogba is out.

Liverpool just gone 3 nil up good goal by kuyt but not as good as torres goal absolute class

4-0. Impressive.

In other news, I'm fucking football off for a week to concentrate on the snooker. My man Mark Williams is playing well again.

Tuesday, 11 December 2007


UEFA Champions League

Chelsea 0-0 Valencia
FC Porto 2-0 Besiktas
Marseille 0-4 Liverpool
Olympiakos 3-0 Werder Bremen
Real Madrid 3-1 Lazio
Schalke 04 3-1 Rosenborg

The FA Cup sponsored by E.ON

Barnet 1-0 Burton Albion
Chasetown 1-0 Port Vale
Luton 1-0 Nottm Forest
Southend 3-0 Oxford Utd
Walsall 1-0 Northampton

The Coca-Cola Football League Championship

Blackpool 0-1 Cardiff
Burnley 0-2 QPR
Ipswich 3-1 Leicester

Wednesday, 12 December 2007

UEFA Champions League

Arsenal v Steaua Bucharest, H, 19:45
Barcelona v VfB Stuttgart, E, 19:45
Fenerbahce v CSKA Moscow, G, 19:45
PSV v Inter Milan, G, 19:45
Rangers v Lyon, E, 19:45
Roma v Man Utd, F, 19:45
Slavia Prague v Sevilla, H, 19:45
Sporting v Dynamo Kiev, F, 19:45

Carling Cup
West Ham v Everton, QF, 19:45

Capello closes in on England post

Capello

I would have Capello!
does'nt speak a word of English but who cares...

Wednesday, 12 December 2007

UEFA Champions League
Arsenal 2-1 Steaua Bucharest
Barcelona 3-1 VfB Stuttgart
Fenerbahce 3-1 CSKA Moscow
PSV 0-1 Inter Milan
Rangers 0-3 Lyon
Roma 1-1 Man Utd
Slavia Prague 0-3 Sevilla
Sporting 3-0 Dynamo Kiev


Carling Cup
West Ham 1-2 Everton

Six Britons have been arrested after fighting broke out ahead of Manchester United's Champions League tie against Roma in the Italian capital.
Five United fans were stabbed during skirmishes between a group of 50 rival fans on Wednesday evening.

Four of the six Britons detained were formally charged with obstructing police officers in their duty. Two others were released without charge.

None of the stabbed fans suffered serious injuries.

Embassy staff said it appeared there were no further disturbances as fans left the stadium after the game, which finished 1-1.

This is something we hoped would not happen

Sir Alex Ferguson

The violence flared at the Pont Duca d'Aosta bridge, the scene of many clashes between visiting fans and Roma's Ultras contingent.

Police used two baton charges to disperse the fans during the violence, which was the latest in a series of clashes between supporters of the two clubs.

The last time the two teams met in April, 11 fans were taken to hospital after supporters were beaten by riot police inside the stadium. Three United supporters were also stabbed outside.

Scuffles also broke out outside Old Trafford during the second leg of the tie a week later, with 21 people arrested.

Warnings issued

Greater Manchester Police officers had travelled to Rome before this latest match and had issued warnings to hooligans not to attend.

With the two sides having a history of trouble United manager Sir Alex Ferguson admitted he was disappointed by the scenes in the city.

"This is something we hoped would not happen," he said.

"We wanted a nice quiet night and to be able to go home with no incident. It is disappointing that has not happened.

"Obviously, we are not sure of the details but we hope the supporters concerned will be okay."

ENGLAND GOSSIP
Fabio Capello will become the highest paid coach in international football history as the Football Association will pay him about £6m-a-year to manage England. (Daily Mail)

But, no, it's more of a bargain than that as Capello will actually be earning £4m-a-year. (Daily Mirror)

Real Madrid striker Raul says Capello will solve England's problems - like he did in Spain when he led the Bernabeu club to league titles in his two spells with them. (Times)

John Terry has told Capello he wants to stay on as England captain after doubts were raised about his position. (The Sun)

Capello must be good - even his closest rival for the job, Italian World Cup-winning boss Marcelo Lippi, says he is the right man to manage England. (Various)

Former Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri, who is now in charge of Juventus, says Capello might not charm England like him but that his fellow Italian will be loved for winning. (Daily Mirror)




TRANSFERS AND GOSSIP
Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov says he will not be leaving the club - in January. (Daily Star)

Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann has fallen behind Manuel Almunia in the pecking order but says he wants to stay with the Gunners. (Times)

Matt Taylor, Lauren, Pedro Mendes, Djimi Traore and Richard Hughes face being sold by Portsmouth in January. (Times)

Fulham, Wigan, Birmingham, Celtic and Rangers all want Everton striker James McFadden. (The Times)

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is planning a spending spree in the January transfer window and a striker and left-sided midfielder are his priority. (Various)

O'Neill also faces trying to keep defensive duo Olof Mellberg and Martin Laursen at the club as they are out of contract next summer. (Daily Star)

Derby boss Paul Jewell says several clubs want striker Steve Howard but he wants to keep him (The Times)

But Rams defender Tyrone Mears will be sold by Jewell to raise funds for January signings. (Daily Express)

Everton, Newcastle and Portsmouth are vying for the services of Swindon left-back Ben Tozer. (Sun)

Norwich boss Glenn Roeder will return to his former club Newcastle to try to sign striker Shola Ameobi. (Sun)

Manchester United defender Mikael Silvestre has no plans to leave the club until his contract expires in June 2009. (Daily Telegraph)

West Ham boss Alan Curbishley has warned Anton Ferdinand not to get drawn into pop-star culture to the detriment of his career. (Daily Express)

Sunderland manager Roy Keane wants to sign Chelsea midfielder Steve Sidwell, Blackburn striker Jason Roberts and Manchester United defender Wes Brown. (Guardian)

Birmingham have targeted former Liverpool and Aston Villa striker Milan Baros, who is currently at Lyon. (Daily Mirror)

Could be a new exicting era for England hopefully, maybe, please