Wednesday’s Special: Meet David Beckham

In this third episode of Wednesday’s Special, The Writer will bring the readers into the life and brief story of a weekly selected footballer. Today, readers will have the chance to meet the world proclaimed 'Golden Balls', David Beckham, albeit in words only.

David Beckham began his football career at Manchester United. He also played for Preston North End, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Los Angeles Galaxy, and Paris Saint-Germain. He was a former captain of England national team. He has won numerous amount of trophies and was known for his free-kicks and crossing ability. His techniques are so unique that Roberto Carlos during their time at Real Madrid, once said that he used to stand near the ball that Beckham was going to kick as he liked to watch how beautiful the balls were executed by Beckham. David Beckham became more popular after his marriage with Victoria, a former member of Spice Girls (world renowned girls band). In fact, The Writer thinks that Beckham is still and will forever be the most popular football player in the world because of his celebrity status. He and Victoria have three sons named Brooklyn, Romeo, and Cruz while they also have one daughter named Harper. David Beckham retired with PSG in the 2013.

There are so much things that readers already know about David Beckham. So, The Writer just put together facts about him that may sound rare for some...

1) Beckham never personally appeared in the 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham, except in archive footage. He and his wife wanted to make cameo appearances, but scheduling proved difficult, so the director used lookalike Andy Harmer instead

2)  Beckham makes a cameo appearance with Zinedine Zidane and Raúl, in the 2005 film Goal!: The Dream Begins.

3) Beckham captained England 59 times.

4)  Beckham has at least 20 tattoos adorning his body. There are names of his sons Romeo, Cruz and Brooklyn, and the name of his wife Victoria.

5)  Beckham reportedly spent hours after training sessions ended practising his free kicks. Ferguson was quoted as saying "David Beckham is Britain's finest striker of a football not because of God-given talent but because he practises with a relentless application that the vast majority of less gifted players wouldn’t contemplate."

6)  In 2005, Beckham founded the David Beckham Academy football school, operating from two sites: in London and in Los Angeles, California.

"He Looks Like Him..."

The Writer offers his opinions on footballers' lookalike...

Analysis EPL 14/15: Week 1

The EPL is finally back and The Writer offers his brief analysis on all those 10 matches played. Some pre-match predictions went wrong which shows how unpredictable this competitive league can be…

Manchester United vs Swansea City

The most shocking result of Week 1. No one expected Louis van Gaal and his new team to fail so early. Wayne Rooney started brightly as the new United’s captain by scoring an overhead kick but cannot bail out United for a win. Swansea needed no time to rebuild on this evidence as they played with a purpose. Gylfi Sigurdsson was back home again and was the star man with a goal and an assist. United needs to spend big and faster. This loss shows how good Sir Alex was in organizing United’s average team. That’s why he was called ‘The Godfather’ of EPL.

Leicester City vs Everton

Early predictions were to see Ross Barkley scored, but unfortunately he didn’t even start the match and was ruled out for more than 2 months. Aiden Mcgeady and Steven Naismith proved to be the unsung players for Everton in Barkley’s absence by scoring. Leicester on the other hand didn’t want to lose either. Especially at home. Expect them to be a tough nut to crack this season.

QPR vs Hull City

Hull City continued their fine form from pre-season and managed to nick a goal to win this match. QPR was just unfortunate but the 3-5-2 formation may be a weakness against bigger teams. Loic Remy was the surprised starter for QPR when it looked like he was very nearly going to leave for Liverpool. But it is indeed a bless in disguise as QPR can rely on him to score goals this season.

Stoke City vs Aston Villa

In the end, Bojan Krkic failed to score. But his performance was decent. The whole Stoke team surprisingly switched off during the game. Aston Villa deserved their win as an underdog. Paul Lambert and Roy Keane passed their first test and Villa maybe safe if both of them managed to instill winning mentality to Villa players throughout the season.

West Brom vs Sunderland

Yeah, The Writer got this almost right. A draw. Saido Berahino to star for West Brom. What else? But in a nutshell, West Brom showed that they can stay in this league with a confidence performance. Sunderland still the same passionate team like last season but still need better players to join them. If not, a relegation battle once more.

West Ham vs Tottenham Hotspur

Two red cards, without the match being violent. Draw is the almost outcome until centre back, Eric Dier scored on his debut in the stoppage times. The goal was a striker’s goal, such was the beauty and Dier’s level of composure. Mauricio Pochettino’s joyous celebration was an indicator of how Spurs really need to win this one. Mark Noble of West Ham was to blame for being so noble to Spurs by missing his penalty kick.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace showed that they are still an organized team and that Tony Pullis left them in a good hand. They showed character by scoring first through Brade Hangeland’s header. However, they couldn’t maintain their focus throughout 90 minutes where they let Arsenal made a comeback and outscored them. Palace needs added quality and Tony Pullis was right to leave before the possibility of being sacked comes in if Palace still doesn’t get any better players.

Liverpool vs Southampton

No Adam Lallana? No problem. Southampton has got Dusan Tadic. He was the star of the show against Liverpool. The Writer was left wondering of how Southampton decided to withdraw him on the 70^th minutes when they had the chance to maybe win it at 1-1. Liverpool was relieved by that decision and in fact they came out as the winner on the 79^th minutes by Daniel Sturridge’s weak flick. They were lucky too, to win. As Liverpool looked out of sort where Coutinho had seen lost since the game’s kick-off.

Newcastle United vs Manchester City

For all the Newcastle’s hardwork and determination during the Sunday’s match, they still lack the world-class quality of ManCity. The Writer has focused again and again on the importance of world-class quality before this. These kinds of players can win you games when it looks like almost impossible and going to be a draw. David Silva’s goal oozed class and shocked Newcastle. Then the late Sergio Aguero’s goal showed how it’s done. Something Emmanuel Riviere has to learn and hope that he can do the same on many occasions this season for Newcastle.

Burnley vs Chelsea

Cesc Fabregas was the man of the match. He is unlucky and under appreciated at Barcelona but in truth, his performance and ability never going down. His passing is still sharp, still tricky, and still manages to change the game’s outcome. He was involved in all those 3 goals Chelsea scored. Meanwhile for Burnley, a decent job that they have done. Next game against weaker teams than Chelsea will show their true capability.

The INVINCIBLES

The ‘Invincibles’. That’s what they are called. Arsenal’s legendary group of players. If readers get the chance to watch the video compilation of their run of 49 unbeaten matches, surely all will feel highly amused. That was a complete team. From the goalkeeper to the defenders to the midfielders and to the strikers. All of them played with flair and without fear. They all knew where their teammates were and they all knew where their teammates were going to run. They played in a perfect system where anybody can replace anybody in any match, yet the outcome will be exactly the same. They will outclass the opponents. They will outscore the opponents. They will win matches. The only thing that stopped them from winning was their own luck, because there were matches where they play with the same brilliance but cannot score. No tactics from the opponents can defeat them in those 49 unbeaten matches. The season was in the year of 2003-2004.

The chief of that unbeaten run was undoubtedly Thierry Henry. One of the best players of the modern English Premier League era. Henry was a supreme goal getter in any angle, against any opponents, and using any scoring techniques. His only imperfection was scoring with headers. He was supported by the three tricky musketeers in the likes of Robert Pires, Fredrik Ljungberg, and Dennis Bergkamp. Pires was the vice chief of the team’s source of goals. He started from the left flank but ended up scoring on the left, right and even centre of the pitch. If Henry was not playing for Arsenal at that time, Pires will be the main superstar. Ljungberg on the other hand was stationed on the right flank. He also scored many goals but assisted more. One thing standout from him those days was his hair colour. Then there was Dennis Bergkamp. No blood relation with the more popular David Beckham. Bergkamp was the magician and playmaker of that great team. He played behind or beside Henry in the centre.

Not to forget, the steel behind those four were the formidable midfield partnership of Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva. Vieira offered leadership and box to box kind of play, while Gilberto offered ball tackling services with a touch of easy-looking Brazilian style. The Arsenal defenders were strong and almost unbeatable, but they had to thank their class forwards for making the opponents focused more on defending at their own half. With Ashley Cole on the left, Lauren on the right, Kolo Toure and Sol Campbell at the centre of defence, not many teams scored against them at that time. Last but not least, there was the great but often eccentric Jens Lehmann to safeguard their goal post. Other players who also involved in that historic run were Jose Antonio Reyes, Jermaine Pennant, Edu, Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie, Nwankwo Kanu, Gio van Bronckhorst, Ray Parlour, Martin Keown, and Gael Clichy.

In all, Arsene Wenger successfully managed to organize this group of players to play the best football in England at that time and maintain their discipline as well. Game number 50 against Manchester United was the end of that magnificent run. Ruud van Nistelrooy and Wayne Rooney were the responsible culprits. The Writer hopes to see another team emerges in the future to emulate this legendary team but if anyone has lost the appetite to watch football these days, it is highly recommended for them to go and watch that video compilation of 49 games unbeaten run to restore the love for this beautiful game...          

Pre-Match EPL 14/15: Week 1

The EPL will be back this weekend and The Writer wants to give his brief analysis on all those 10 matches scheduled. This season will surely have another close race at the top to the title and at the bottom towards relegations. With Luis Suarez gone, the race for the EPL’s best player will also be up for grabs…

Manchester United vs Swansea City

This is a good opener for the new EPL season. Everyone is excited to see Louis van Gaal and his new team. Wayne Rooney will be motivated to start strong as the new United’s captain. Swansea on the other hand is a new team. Many players come and go. The identity of the club that won the League Cup two years ago is diminishing. Gone are Michu, Chico Flores, Michel Vorm, Pablo Hernandez and the scorer in the final, Jonathan De Guzman. United will win this game to at least prove LVG is the man to take them forward and Swansea will take time to rebuild.

Leicester City vs Everton

Leicester is an unknown quantity and has nothing to lose against Everton. Playing at home, they may cause an upset. But expect Everton to win this one with hopefully Ross Barkley scores a screamer just like last season’s first game. He looks to be another Wayne Rooney than another Jack Rodwell.

QPR vs Hull City

This will be a tight game. Hull City is on fire at the moment. They won almost all their friendly and passing the Europa League qualifier with flying colours, although through a late goal. QPR is not in good form but Harry Redknap will know how to motivate his team with the help of Rio Ferdinand’s influence and Glenn Hoddle’s new tactical advice.

Stoke City vs Aston Villa

Bojan Krkic. The Writer hopes this name will be on the scoresheet at the end of this game. Cause he really needs it to resurrect his free-falling career. Chances are high for Stoke to win this game because they are quite excellent in pre-season but Villa players will be afraid to upset Roy Keane so early in the season. They have to at least give a fight against Stoke.

West Brom vs Sunderland

This is predicted to be a game of relegation battlers. Gus Poyet is a good motivator but he needs to bring more players to replace the key players of great escape last season. West Brom may struggle this season and they need their own wonderkid, Saido Berahino to mature faster and be their savior. A draw for both teams.

West Ham vs Tottenham Hotspur

West Ham beat Spurs last season with the solo goal from Ravel Morrison being the highlight. On paper, Spurs looks stronger but The Writer expects a nervy game from them to impress their new manager. Spurs may play safe with West Ham and a draw is likely. Unless Ravel Morrison pops up once more to run himself free into the Spurs goal net.

Arsenal vs Crystal Palace

What??? The Palace has crumbled again. Once more they lost their manager early in the season. But this time, the season has not even started yet. They will surely hoping to hire another type of Tony Pullis. However, the players will be very much disappointed to see Pullis gone and there is no way a comeback of 3 goals down against Liverpool last season can be repeated with this kind of motivation at such a crucial time. Arsenal will hit them hard at home. Aaron Ramsey and co will have no mercy, for sure.

Liverpool vs Southampton

Trio of Rickie, Adam, and Dejan will be anxious to wait for this fixture. But only Rickie and Dejan get the chance to play in it as Adam is out injured. Ronald Koeman will want to show the new exciting batch of Southampton's young fledglings in this match and prove that the club is still the real deal even after losing their stars. Liverpool is desperate to win this match to ease the pressure of having to face ManCity in the second fixture. Raheem Sterling and Coutinho will have to grow up and be the main men faster.

Newcastle vs Manchester City

Yaya Toure will love this game. He likes to score against Newcastle. City will continue their momentum of winning from last season's finale. Just hope that Alan Pardew doesn't headbutt any City player during the match. Steven Jovetic will be nervous to wait whether his fine pre-season form is good enough to warrant him a place in the starting eleven.

Burnley vs Chelsea

Ginger versus Grey. Different version of Mourinho. That's what the people are calling the Burnley manager, Sean Dyche. Dyche will hope he can be the new special one at least for this match by beating the star-studded Chelsea team. But expect Diego Costa to save Mourinho and prove he is better than the returning Didier Drogba.

Between the Post

Every club needs a great goalkeeper to safeguard their last line of defence. But two? It's insane to have two great goalkeepers in the same club. That is the situation at clubs nowadays, ironically. There is no way a manager can make his players happy all the time by putting some of them on the bench. Let alone great goalkeeper. Normally, goalkeeper will only be substituted if he is injured. Even if his performance is really bad during a match, manager seldom substitutes his goalkeeper. So to have a great goalkeeper sitting on the bench watching his teammate, another great goalkeeper, performing on the pitch is a mental torture. Unlike international football, where the national team manager will choose three of the nation’s goalkeepers for a match but still only use one or two of them. That is different because international match is a one-off. The gap between matches is long, often 1 or 2 months before international players will meet again for another match.

But at club level, it is a week in week out sort of game schedule. Goalkeepers are like other outfield players. They need match experience to improve. They cannot hope to just improve their ability by performing in training. Training and playing in a match is a very different thing. Although a goalkeeper is the most relaxed spectator on the pitch, he needs to a have a high focus and concentration because one lapse of these two can drag the goalkeeper into trouble. To have high focus and concentration level, a goalkeeper needs match experience. The intensity of the game. That really makes a goalkeeper improves actually.

So, back to the fact that most clubs now have two great goalkeepers. In the past, clubs will have one main goalkeeper and two backup goalkeepers. The backup goalkeepers comprising of one who has lesser ability than the main goalkeeper and another one usually from the reserve team or the club’s youth team. That is almost perfect balance because clubs cannot have goalkeepers of the same quality. Because at the end of the day, either one will question the manager’s decision not playing him for a particular match as both feel they should be the main one. Currently, Chelsea will have this problem to face as they have two world class goalkeepers in the likes of young Thibaut Courtois and the veteran Petr Cech. Even Mark Schwarzer, their third goalkeeper is a great goalkeeper. It will be very interesting to see how Jose Mourinho will accommodate all his goalkeepers’ demand to play. But surely it is a good situation to have rather than not having any great goalkeepers to win crucial points or saving decisive penalty when clubs really need one. The likes of Real Madrid, Arsenal, and Barcelona will face the same problem as Mourinho this upcoming season.

Wednesday’s Special: Meet Francesco Totti

In this second episode of Wednesday’s Special, The Writer will bring the readers into the life and story of a weekly selected footballer. Today, readers will have the chance to meet Francesco Totti, albeit in words only.

Totti was born in Rome. He is already 37 years old this year. But still going strong today and there is no sign of slowing down. He has even signed a new contract until the age of 39 years old. He started his football career as a youth team player at AS Roma and he has been there ever since. Totti is among a few one-man club in this world. He is the current captain of AS Roma and is already considered Roma's living legend and one of the most iconic people at the club and the city of Rome itself. 

 

Among his notable accolades are Italian Serie A title, Italian Super Cup, Italian Cup, and the FIFA World Cup 2006. In his youth, he was a quite temperamental player. He once spitted at Denmark's player, Christian Poulsen during EURO 2004 and was banned for three matches thus ending Italy's hope of progressing to the final stages without one of their best players. However he has improved now and becoming more discipline which enable  him to prolong his career until this golden ages. During his career, he was often deployed as a lone striker and advance playmaker or what football experts call as 'trequartista'. Totti has scored so many goals, won so many Golden Boot awards, and is currently the second highest goalscorer in Italian football with 235 goals to his name.

 

 

Totti often celebrates a goal by sucking his thumb, which is for the purpose of remembering the birth of his son and daughter. He is married to Ilary Blasi, an Italian TV celebrity since 2005.