Alex Ferguson is fit to be mentioned in the same sentence as Jock Stein. That is most of what needs to be said on his retirement.
Except to remind that fool Abramovic that Ferguson won nothing for his first four seasons at Old Trafford. I recall in 1990, at the end of Ferguson’s third season in charge, Manchester United just escaped relegation and there were Manchester United fans clamouring for Ferguson to be sacked. The reconstruction of the squad and the installation of his system took time and care. It took a full four years for Ferguson to lay the foundations for the following twenty years of great achievement.
Nowadays managers are not given four months, let alone four years, to mature their designs. There can be no doubt the short-termism of glamour hungry individual foreign owners accounts in part for the relative decline of the quality of Premier League clubs compared to their continental rivals.
It a mistake, Komodo, to think that The Games are only the elites distraction to their own games.
That’s their intention of course, but they also produce unintended consequences like Spartacus.
Six thousand of Spartacus’ followers were crucified, along the length of the Appian way. His own body was reportedly never found. Much the same result would be expected if [insert any overpaid prima donna footballer here – can’t be arsed Googling one] were to lead an uprising. Even if Millwall casuals were involved.
Spartacus today is incorporated into the elite. It doesn’t fight it as an other.
That in itself will change things.
Herbie, probably a large majority of football fans rely on the Sun for their politics (subliminally, along with acres of purple sports-hack prose and pictures of men kicking footballs). Hence the elite is now cosily incorporated into Spartacus’s head, and nothing will happen as far as that demographic is concerned. Can’t see anyone who is paid as much as *insertkickballerhere* starting a revolution, either. Why rock the very pleasant boat?
The main danger for the elite/establishment/Them is that the bourgeois start getting impatient, see also UKIP, and the terror on the face of Cameron. When the bourgeois are actually cutting back on food, rather than Porsches….then. Not yet, or nearly.
And…
http://images2.dailykos.com/i/user/312562/Kos111-teaser.jpg
(‘sequestration’ roughly = government funding cuts)
That item on Radio 4 Today about Prof Hawking’s boycott of Israel was never given a separate live link. If you want to hear the Israel propaganda, it is at 1hr 34mins in on http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01s8qx7
0734
One of the world’s best known scientists, Professor Stephen Hawking has decided to support a boycott of Israel by pulling out of a conference which he’d been due to attend in Jerusalem next month. Dr Ghada Karmi, a research fellow at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at Exeter University, and Dr Toby Greene, research director of BICOM in Jerusalem, discuss the significance of the decision.
Moyes is another Labour supporter like Ferguson who is up for a peerage according to some reports.
Hope Mr Moyes’ judgement on choice of MU players is better than his political judgement.
‘He is a supporter of the Labour Party and in 2010 backed Andy Burnham to be leader in the Labour Party (UK) leadership election, 2010.’
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Moyes
Regarding Manchester United getting more than their fair share of favourable refereeing decisions. There might be an explanation other than Fergie’s charms.
I read an article a few years ago which claimed that referees favour teams/contestants wearing red. They analysed the results of Olympic boxing matches where fighters are randomly alloted either red or blue colours. In contests which went the distance, the referees decided in favour of the contestant in red significantly more often than the one in blue.
They claimed to be able to detect the same bias in football and other sports, reckoned that it’s part of our evolutionary hard-wiring to associate red with dominance. They also believe that the opposition suffer from the effect of playing against a red team.
It was a Guardian article but I (Google) can’t find it. Here’s another similar article:
http://pss.sagepub.com/content/19/8/769.extract
However the effect don’t seem to be doing Aberdeen much good in the Scottish Premier League.
It could be a very weak effect (discrimination between red and blue) and still be statistically significant given more than ~30 odd random bouts to correlate. I expect it is very weak, if not its discovery would affect betting calculations.
crab: “I expect it is very weak, if not its discovery would affect betting calculations.”
But how would you seperate the ‘colour factor’ from the team’s history of success? If you want to bet on Man United winning next year, you’re going to get short odds. Why? Cos they win a lot. Why do they win a lot? Maybe partly because they play in red.
The studies into boxing, Taekwondo and wrestling are more reliable and they suggest the difference would be worth betting on:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/the-annals-of-sports-psychology-winners-wear-red-a-570918.html
“But how would you seperate the ‘colour factor’ from the team’s history of success?”
See its a silly question -the separation of the ‘colour factor’ is very clearly marked by the colours!
A significant tendency may have an effect which is much weaker than other tendecies present, yet still be confidently ‘noticed’
Things are very often statistically significant, yet of the least importance to individual outcomes.
For journalisms sake they list the sports out with the highest percentage win, but it is very doubtful that these individual sections are significant. A certain correlation, perhaps unlikely to be more than a percent in average outcomes (strength) has been significantly (confidently) measured over all sports. But i dunno i cant read the article cause education aint free.
Right then all you footie pundits. Which Roberto will win the cup?
Predictions?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/fa-cup/10039157/Manchester-City-v-Wigan-Athletic-FA-Cup-final-match-preview.html
April Showers 11 May, 2013 – 8:15 am
Put our money where our mouths are, eh?
Well, my head says Mancini but my heart says Martinez. I’m following my heart.
WIGAN FOR THE CUP
“Everybody Do the Wigan Wiggle”
Not today. With my rollers in and my slippers on I’d look a right **** . 😉
….. and the winner is ……WIGAN!!!!!!
Go on, Dreoilin, everybody is on the other thread, nobody’s watching this one ….. do a little Wigan Wiggle.
We come from Wigan and we live in Mud huts,
ooh, ah, ooh ooh ah
you should be a Wiganer.
Everybody Do the Wigan Wiggle,
Al-habsi in Nets, Alcaraz Defence, Shaun Maloney Midfield, Super Kone Up Front,
Everybody Do the Wigan Wiggle.
And it’s Wigan Latics,
Wigan Latics FC,
We’re by far the greatest team,
The world has ever seen.
A Node I was out but I see that ‘the boys done well’ as the saying goes. Excellent 1 – 0 in the 91st minute. Were they the better side anyway?
Hi April Showers,
I was busy in my workshop most of the afternoon, listening to the Scottish football on the radio, hoping that 2 teams above my beloved Ross County would both lose so that we would still have a chance of finishing third and getting a European place. Both teams did indeed lose, one in the 90th minute, leaving the dream alive. Our first season in the Premier League and we’re still fighting for a top spot with 2 games to go!
I watched the last half hour of the FA cup final on the TV, and based on that, Wigan deserved to win They played magnificently, with team spirit and organisation making up for their lack of talented individuals. When a Man City player was sent off with 10 minutes to go, Wigan redoubled their efforts, and the ball didn’t really get out of City’s half until Wigan scored a fine header from a corner. Then and only then did Man City really push forward, but of course by then it was too late.
Wigan’s win was satisfying on many levels – giant killing underdogs; passionate local chairman whose last visit to Wembley was as a losing player who broke his leg and ended his career in the process; a reward for a modest unassuming manager who’ll probably be moving on soon; a consolation to a team who may soon be relegated unless the victory spurs them to great things in their last 2 matches; and once again, the English Premier League defying the pundits, except me 🙂
It must be the most exciting football league in the world.
“Go on, Dreoilin, everybody is on the other thread, nobody’s watching this one ….. do a little Wigan Wiggle.”
There was me, wiggling my arse off last night, and not even a whisper of applause from this place. I ask you …
On behalf of 20,000 grateful Wigan fans and myself, I would like to express our sincere appreciation for your wiggle. I’m pretty sure I heard somebody say that they know someone who overheard Roberto Martinez saying “It was a gamechanger, an inspiration, we couldn’t have done it without Dreoilin’s wiggle. I look forward to seeing the slow motion replay later”
🙂 🙂 🙂
I saw you, Dreoilin. From behind a tree, with my binoculars. You lewd Jezebel. When’s Wigan playing again?
Man U are really milking Fergie’s departure. There is a parade tonight into the city with a double decker bus and another sea of red. Q Who is paying for all the flags?
PS How does a Komodo lizard use binoculars? I thought their eyes swivelled individually and had unilateral sight on either side of their heads! 🙂
It’s a shame that Wigan are our of the Premier League now.
OUT
David Beckham has announced his retirement.
~~~~
The World Cup is coming to Brazil at great cost to the people by order of FIFA.
Romario Tackles Brazil
Duration: 25 minutes
First broadcast:Thursday 16 May 2013
Brazil is getting ready to host the 2014 World Cup. But the preparations have become mired in controversy. And leading the charge against over-budget stadiums, vested interests and corruption is an unlikely figure: Romario. Brazil’s World Cup-winning footballer has transformed himself into a serious, hard-working politician. Tim Franks meets him for Assignment. Is this a genuine transformation for one of Brazil’s most notorious celebrity bad-boys?
Produced by Linda Pressly
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0188d2n