Pre-Match EPL 14/15: Week 4

The EPL is entering its fourth phase and The Writer offers his brief pre-match previews on all those 10 matches scheduled. The real season starts now as all transfer in and out have all but finished…

Arsenal vs Manchester City

The so called replay of English Community Shield 2014. City will want revenge from the loss to Arsenal and to make amend for the last EPL match’s loss against Stoke. Danny Welbeck will start from the central striker spot for The Gunners and will be hoping to score and help beat his former United’s rival.

Chelsea vs Swansea City

Top two teams in the EPL will be in for a tough fight this weekend, but Chelsea looks likely to win this contest as they will be playing at their fortress, Stamford Bridge. If Diego Costa is fit, he will be the man to watch that can win this game. Gylfi Sigurdsson is the man to watch for Swansea but it’s looking like Chelsea at home will be difficult for him to continue his impressive form.

Crystal Palace vs Burnley

Two struggling teams are fighting for the first three points of the season, but Crystal Palace maybe the winner based on their last EPL match performance against Newcastle. Wilfried Zaha is expected to start and to star for Palace this time around and Burnley will hope Danny Ings can lead them to a goal fest; something that was lacking from Burnley this season.

Southampton vs Newcastle United

Newcastle must win this game to please their owner and the fans, but they have too many injuries at the moment. Expect Rolando Aarons of Newcastle to start this match and to provide key defining moments with James Ward-Prowse of Southampton to improve his set pieces delivery by finally scoring.

Stoke City vs Leicester City

Stoke is on high after defeating the EPL champions at the Etihad but they maybe struggling against a highly energetic Leicester. Leicester is hopeful to conclude their impressive style of play so far with a first win and Leonardo Ulloa and Riyad Mahrez are keys to that. Stoke will rely on Mame Diouf once more.

Sunderland vs Tottenham Hotspur

This is a match between two tacticians from the America Latin and it will be probably be a draw. Sunderland wants to unleash their America Latin playmaker, Ricky Alvarez as soon as possible while Spurs will want their own America Latin magician, Erik Lamela to bounce back from last defeat against Liverpool.

West Brom vs Everton

This will be an Everton reunion where former people of Everton such as the current West Brom’s manager Alan Irvine, former players Joleon Lescott, and Victor Anichebe, will want to defeat their former club. But Everton may win this game through the most consistent striker in EPL right now, Steven Naismith.

Liverpool vs Aston Villa

Daniel Sturridge is injured yet again and Balotelli will be asked to lead the line alone this time. But Adam Lallana will help him through his debut EPL match as well as help from Raheem Sterling, Lazar Markovic, Jordan Henderson, and Steven Gerrard who will form an impressive midfield line-up. Meanwhile Villa will want to continue their excellent start of the season as quiet as possible, so maybe just a small marginal win for Liverpool.

Manchester United vs QPR

Everyone will be excited to watch this new Manchester with world class forward, Radamel Falcao to be the main attraction. QPR will throw everything they’ve got to stop United but United maybe the one who will pick up the three points with a big marginal win. Robert Green and Rio Ferdinand are in for a tough Sunday.

Hull City vs West Ham

The Writer is looking for Nikica Jelavic to continue scoring goals like his last two matches as Jelavic is in his fantasy premier league’s team where Hatem Ben Arfa will be in for a help to Jelavic straightaway with an assist or two. For West Ham, they will want their new favourite son, Mauro Zarate to repeat his scoring ability. So, a draw with a high scoreline is a big possibility.

Danny ‘THE MAN OF THE MOMENT’ Welbeck

Currently there are widespread stories of Danny Welbeck everywhere in the football media. Be it his transfer from Manchester United to Arsenal. Be it his two goals scored against Switzerland recently. And be it his stories at Manchester United since his younger days. The spotlight on Danny Welbeck is so bright even Arsenal’s supposed marquee signing of the summer, Alexis Sanchez, looks like an ordinary Joe. So, what is this all fuss about Danny Welbeck anyway? Last month and backward, Danny Welbeck was just regarded as a promising Englishman making his career at the club he loves since the day he joined in his youth. Danny is a Manchester born and he grew up in the town of Manchester. So it is a no surprise that he loves Manchester United very much, the coaching staffs love him very much, and Danny was very determined to be a United football great. But in truth, Danny Welbeck was never any great at Manchester. His best was ordinary kind of best. Nothing magical about him. People always scrutinized him of being in the Manchester United first team squad because he is English and he was born at Manchester. It’s true that he was not given proper chance to be the main striker at United because there are a lot of better strikers at the club. However, his performance when the better strikers were not on show was not great either. Even Danny was often being made the scapegoat of United’s failing. From The Writer’s point of view, Danny is just a good English footballer but not a great one. He is fast, yes. He is tall, yes. And he is skillful, yes. But being a striker, he will be judged by goals scored and the ability to fear the opposition defenders. As long as The Writer has known about Danny, his name never made any opposition afraid of, or any opposition took better notice of. He was that kind of ordinary. On one occasion against a weaker opposition in the Champions League a few years back, Danny at one time was through on goal with only one defender to beat and the goalkeeper. But he fluffed his golden chance and he even didn’t manage to square up the chance to a better positioned Wayne Rooney to score. That was the end of The Writer’s trust on this promising Manchester’s talent to be a great one.     

So, when the news of Danny Welbeck’s transfer to Arsenal broke up, suddenly almost everyone took notice of his existence. He was said to be the signing of this transfer window because of his relatively affordable price and the massive quality that he will bring to Arsenal. What quality actually? Just now when he was at Manchester, people were criticizing him most of the time. So how come Danny was suddenly being applauded to be one of the best talents England has ever produced? His two goals scored against Switzerland further supported the notion that Danny is the new hope of England. But Switzerland is no Costa Rica. They are an unimaginative team with not much creative source, a weak defensive unit with Senderos and Djourou to rely on, and have only one mighty pace in Xherdan Shaqiri. So Switzerland was very beatable on that day. Danny Welbeck was lucky to be scoring two goals, cause on another day against Switzerland, a fit Daniel Sturridge could have scored four! Whatever it is, it will be interesting to see how Danny Welbeck will show his true potential at Arsenal, if any. Arsene Wenger is so confident that he can turn Welbeck into a prolific goalscorer. It is still remain to be seen. Whether Danny Welbeck will become a Thierry Henry or another Yaya Sanogo. A true performer or a mere pretender? Give this man of the moment every right to prove his cause…

Wednesday’s Special: Meet Juan Roman Riquelme

In this sixth episode of Wednesday’s Special, The Writer will bring readers into the life and brief story of a weekly selected footballer. Today, readers will have the chance to meet one of the greatest talents from South America, Juan Roman Riquelme; albeit in words only.

Riquelme is often regarded as a reluctant superstar. He does not search for fame and glamor, unlike most football superstars. And he often looks uninterested on the pitch for most of the time. But his football quality alone is enough to include him in the same bracket as one of the greatest talents football has ever seen. Riquelme is widely known for his exquisite passing ability and his knack of scoring goals from the center of the park. He is now 36 years of age and is still going strong playing in the Argentine league for Argentinos Juniors, the club where he started his fledgling football career.
 

Rewind back to the year 1992, a young Riquelme started his career by joining Argentinos Juniors as a youth player. A super impressive display from midfield made two giants of the Argentine league, Boca Juniors and River Plate, aware of his existence. The next thing Riquelme knew at that time was a transfer to Boca Juniors in 1995. Then a year later Riquelme made his first senior debut aged 18. He scored his first senior goal just two weeks after his debut. Seven seasons then flew away and a now matured Riquelme had already helped Boca Juniors won 6 major titles including the league, Copa Libetadores and Intercontinental Cup. In the year 2000, Riquelme’s brother was kidnapped and Riquelme himself paid for the ransom. After that he soon decided to leave Argentina and Barcelona managed to sign him for 11 million. However, Barcelona manager at that time, Louis van Gaal, didn’t like him much and seldom let him played. When he did play, he was used as a winger and thus discouraged him from showing his real potential.
 

In 2003, Villareal came to the rescue. They signed him on loan for two years, and later bought him permanently. It was at Villareal that the football world really got to see how big Riquelme’s talent is. In 2004/2005 he scored his best ever goals tally of 15 in 35 league appearances and was nominated for the 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year. That year he helped Villareal achieved a 3^rd placed finish in La Liga. Riquelme together with Diego Forlan, Marcos Senna, Juan Pablo Sorin and others played a very good brand of football under the guidance of Manuel Pellegrini. They qualified for the UEFA Champions League the following year and then managed to go for a very respectable placing, which is the semi-final of the competition. Manchester United flop, Diego Forlan rejuvenated his career too by the help of Riquelme at Villareal. In summary, Riquelme’s time at Villareal was a legendary stuff. Villareal was on an absolute high at that time. Both in Spain and Europe as a whole. And they never recovered after Riquelme left and were even being relegated from La Liga in 2011/2012 season.
 

Riquelme left Spain to return to his beloved Boca Juniors in 2007 for an initial loan but later moved there permanently in 2008. He managed to win Copa Libetadores and the league titles again with Boca Juniors but there were a lot of conflicts between him and his teammates at Boca Juniors. They accused him of lacking passion to play for the club and the feud became public at some points. Then in July 2014, Riquelme decided to return to Argentinos Juniors, perceived to be the last and final stop before his retirement. He was once quoted saying that he never miss playing football anymore and he just want to end it at Argentinos Juniors.
 

Before The Writer forgets, Riquelme was also once a regular fixture for his national team, Argentina. In all, he managed to play in 51 senior international matches, scoring 17 goals. He was once selected as the national team captain by Alfio Basile but then resigned from the post after receiving heavy criticism whenever he failed to inspire Argentina towards victory. In 2009, Riquelme decided to retire from Argentina’s duty because of a disagreement with coach, Diego Maradona. Riquelme never played for Argentina after that. It is part of a sad ending to this wonderful talent. Wherever or whenever he played before, at his prime, he will always being selected as the Best Player or at least being included in the Team of the Competition. Now, he is just finishing all that he gets left in his locker at Argentinos Juniors before he will finally decide to retire from football for good. Whatever it is, Juan Roman Riquelme will always be remembered for his undoubted talent and footballing ability. He is a legend of football magician and technician. It will be no surprise if the name of Juan Roman Riquelme will be included in any of football fans’ greatest ever starting eleven in the future. That is a legacy he will be leaving… 
 

 

Funny Football

The Writer offers his undivided opinions on some hilarious situations in football these days...

1)      Presentation of the new club’s jersey for new season

What they say :

“The kit is designed to improve the players’ performance to a new elevated level and with this new NIKE V8 technology, the players will feel more confidence to show their very best ability in the club’s colour”,

“The new PUMA kit suits our club’s identity which is fearlessness on the pitch”,

“My teammates and I will wear this new kit with pride and show our hunger to win even more silverware this upcoming season”,

“When I saw the new WARRIOR kit for the first time, I felt really in love with it. It was love at a first sight. I can’t wait to wear this kit on the pitch”.

What The Writer thinks :

That is nonsense. Every jersey is no different. Old or new. Pretty or ugly. Nothing can change performance except for hardwork and practices on the training pitch. Players always said that they really love the new kit in front of the camera. The reality is, they just don’t care. And again, how can a kit improve players’ performance so dramatically? By giving them more strength? More speed? More composure in front of goal? Nah, don’t believe in any of that. A team performing so well last season can be relegated the next season. Are they wearing a new kit? Yes! How can that be interpreted as improved performance? Huh?!

2)      Presentation of the new official ball that will be used in an upcoming tournament

What they say :

“My first impression on the official ball is fantastic, and we're going to have a lot of fun with it. ADIDAS has created an incredible-looking ball fitting for a tournament as big as the FIFA World Cup. Most importantly, it plays well on the ground and in the air. I'm sure all the players will love it! It has increased my levels of excitement even further and I honestly can’t wait for the opening game!"

“I’m looking forward to score a lot of goals with this new official ball as I think it is lighter and the direction of this ball will be more accurate than ever!”,

“This ball is very much better than the previous ball used in the last EURO”

What The Writer thinks :

That is another nonsense. What can a ball be more different than the others? Only some attributes change, but the characteristics will be very much similar. And how can a striker be so sure to score a lot more goals with the new ball? Maybe he can change his boots and stockings too…?! Lol. Another thing, players will not be excited to play in a World Cup just for the sake of a new official ball. He lies! They all lie. Lastly, players can hope to have more fun with the new ball, but hopefully the new ball will not make fun of them either. Scoring an own goal with a miss-kick is an absolute embarrassment. Let alone in front of thousands of camera and the whole world’s watching. Ha ha ha ha…   

3)      Presentation of a new player joining a club during the transfer window

What they say :

“I’m delighted to be here joining the best club in the world”,

“This is a club of my dream, in fact I dreamt of this moment since I was a little child”,

“I spoke with my international teammates from Chelsea and they all said good things about Chelsea and ask me to join them immediately”,

“I love the weather here, it feels perfect with me!”.

What The Writer thinks :

Bla bla bla…players can say anything they want. Right? Joining the best club in the world? Which one? If Manchester United or Real Madrid, it is fine. If PSG or Monaco, the player is crazy. And he knows nothing about football. Next, the player joins the club of his dream? Which dream? Dreaming of joining Barcelona when he was seven years old, or dreaming of playing at Anfield when he was fifteen years old? Nah, anyone can say that he dreams of something. But don’t believe the hype that he has created. Be safe people.  Then the player said that he ask his friends on their clubs. Of course they will say the best things about their clubs. However the player will not know that the friends maybe more than annoy if he were to join the same clubs. His place in the starting eleven at the clubs may be jeopardized if their clubs decide to sign the player. Last one, how can a player be so sure that he likes the weather straightaway after just only an hour or two signing for the club? He might get a cold fever the next morning and will declare his homesickness in the media after two or three months there. Gotcha!

4)      Player writes an open letter to bid farewell to his former club

What they say :

“Over the last few years I have experienced lots of good moments and other, more difficult ones, both in good and bad times. But I always felt supported by the wonderful fans at this wonderful club”

"I would also like to express my gratitude to all my teammates, the coaching staff and the managers who were always showing such faith in me at all times”,

“I love this club with all my heart and I hope to one day donning the jersey of this great club once again in the future”.

What The Writer thinks :

Arghhh…so pitiful letters. So dramatic and so melancholic. Yet all fans alike are feeling not so much touched by the words. They are lot more aggrieved, supposedly. If the player loves the club so much, why he wants to leave in the first place? Maybe he thinks that he will get no chance whatsoever in lifting trophies if he stays. If he really cares about the club, the player will tear sweats and bloods playing the best football that he can to bring glory to the club. The fans might hope that the player will retire in a bad ending than to see the sight of the player donning their club’s jersey once again when the player’s experience at his new club turns sour. And speaking about the faith that his teammates and coaches have shown to him all these years? Ahhh, stop saying that. He doesn’t deserve their faith anymore and they will hope to beat him in any game that his new club and his old club may encounter. Moral of the story, don’t write open letters. Just leave!

Thank you! Ciao!