Football and Sports News Blog from former Charlton Athletic, Newcastle United and West Bromwich Albion Professional Footballer Andy Hunt, including Current Football News, blog feeds from Football Fans, Football Videos and Articles
What did Materazzi say to Zinedine Zidane in the World Cup Football final that provoked the French star to retaliate with a head-butt?
"I prefer the whore that is your sister," Materazzi wrote in his yet-to-be-released autobiography, according to Italian news reports Saturday.
Materazzis "furbo" had to be family orientated to get the kind of reaction Zidane produced. I thought he might have spat at Zidane. Calling your sister a whore might even get a reaction from Borat but I still cannot believe Zidane fell for it. This scheming continues to fool the best players in the world as seen by Ronaldos sending off against Portsmouth, forcing Ferguson to admit that he fell into a trap as old as the game of football itself.
I have been rescuing all my old football videos from my 10 year professional football career. In all I totalled 135 goals in 361 appearances in the Championship and the premier league and I thought it was time to make an attempt to digitize these old VHS tapes.
At the end of every season I would buy the club video that highlights the season and shows all the goals. I have West Bromwich Albions seasons from 1992/1993 up to 1997/1998, the year I transferred to Charlton Athletic.
I also have the Charlton promotion and championship season in 1999/2000. I have transferred all of these old videos on to DVDs and then to my computer, backing them up on an external hard drive. Now all I have to do is upload them to youtube and my football career is preserved forever.
Unfortunately my videos from Newcastle United in 1990/1991 and 1991/1992 have been destroyed by 6 years of mould and fungus from living in the tropics. I also neglected to purchase highlights of Charlton Athletics first season in the Premiership in 1998/1999 (I guess I was disappointed with the year and didn't want to be reminded of how crap that season was) and also forgot to buy the Premiership season highlights from 2000/2001.
Well life passes by and I am now keen to get this stuff down on a hard drive. Scoring goals at Highbury, White Hart Lane and other famous stadiums are parts of my Professional Football career that my children will love to see when they get older and something I should be proud of.
If any kind Charlton or Newcastle fans have copies of these missing seasons I would love to get them. Of course I will pay for the post and videos, so please email me at andy@greendragonbelize.com if you can help.
So again here are the videos I am looking for :
Newcastle United Football Club Season - 1990/1991 Newcastle United Football Club Season - 1991/1992 Charlton Athletic Football Club Season - 1998/1999 Charlton Athletic Football Club Season - 2000/2001
I am on holiday in England and Holland and enjoying watching the start of the 2007/2008 Football season. I even got the chance to chat to BBC Radio 4 about my career and change of life after Football on Saturday Live with Hardeep Singh Kohli. Hardeep suggested several times about how I must be envious or jealous of players and the lifestyle they lead, citing David Beckham and Thierry Henry as examples. Although my career was cut short at the Premier League level and the heady heights of £15,000/week contracts I never feel envy, regret or jealousy about what could have been. It's a shame the interview was cut because we had a good discussion. The interview is on BBCs website : http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/saturdaylive/saturdaylive_20070811.shtml
Charlton have definitely suffered early season nerves after their first 2 games. My article about the media and fans expectations at Charlton Football Club highlighted the difficulties they may face this season and how I as a Football player experienced it last time Charlton had to climb back out of the Championship.
Charlton will definitely need to show the mental strength required of all pretenders to the throne after this early blip, although their plight is nothing compared to the expectations at White Hart Lane. Tottenhams failure to secure a win after their first 2 games has seen Martin Jol come under increasing scrutiny already. Even arch rival Arsene Wenger provided comfort to Jol after the pack of sportswriters closed in on Tottenhams early frailties.
If anything has been seen from the Premiership seasons first few games it is that 2 games means very little, the big clubs may be slightly mis-firing at the moment but their high calibre squads will push the quality sides up the table and I still stand by my Top 7 Premier League Predictions.
As things stand in the Football transfer market and with just a few days to go to the start of the Premiership season this is where I see the Football title heading next year in 2007/2008.
Manchester United
Liverpool Football Club
Chelsea Football Club
Tottenham Hotspur
Newcastle United Football Club (If they keep Owen Fit)
Tevez signing for United gives them an undoubted attacking edge over all the other teams in an already formidable United line up and I see them going from strength to strength over this coming season. (Manchester United thrash Home Team Football Club 14-0). It will be very close but I think that even with my predicted sensational transfer of the season by Chelsea to lure Beckham back from the MLS (Beckhams Major League Football mistake), the title will be red this year.
Will Signing Carlos Tevez make Manchester United untouchable
When I played professionally I used to have a little wager at the start of the Football season on who would win the various leagues. I would place a £100-£200 yankee bet at the local bookmakers which if it came in would bring a big return. Looking back now I believe that this was probably illegal and against the FA rules, but with all the corruption and scandal that is hitting the Leagues at the moment I doubt they would even bat an eyelid.
If I did win the 4 bet Yankee I would send a "friend" to pick up the winnings in case I was spotted by an observant fan. I have just returned to the UK for a months break so I might re-ignite my pre-season ritual and make it to the bookmakers one last time.
Charlton Athletic Football Club will feel the pressure as they are expected to bounce back to the premier league this year at the first attempt. As one of the players who was in the team that was relegated from the Premier League the last time Charlton went down I feel qualified to comment on the feelings and pressures that the Football club will be going through.
I remember in 1999, at the start of the season, Alan Curbishley was very nervous. It seemed to me that he knew the expectations on the club even though we had only graced the premier league for 1 unsuccessful season.
His first few team meetings were to drill into the squad that it was vital we got off to a good start in that 1999/2000 season. In pre-season and the early games I felt Curbs was over-anxious that we get off to a good start.
Curbs knew that as one of the sides that had been relegated from the Premier League we were expected by the media and by our own fans to be one of the front runners to get promotion. Life then was different for the club as Curbs had not spent big in the summer, signing only myself on a free transfer from West Brom and a few others to strenghten his squad.
This year, the 2007/2008 season will be very different down at the Valley. Charlton have had a long stay in the premier league, subsequently building a squad of higher calibre players than we had in 1999, upon whom the expectations of the fans will be huge.
The bonus Curbs had then in 1999 was that his squad was a good Championship squad, full of experienced players from that division such as Richard Rufus, Clive Mendonca, John Robinson, Mark Kinsella, Steve Brown, Myself and many others who were competent playing at that level. This allowed us to put together a strong season of consistent play as we marched towards promotion and the championship title.
Many of Charltons players will not know life in the Championship and it could be a big surprise to them. With a squad of higher paid players, expectations from the fans will no doubt be very high and emotions will be tense in the early stages of the season as everyone wonders whether Alan Pardews inherited team have what it takes to scrap their way out of the Division.
Pardews side will need a strong start to ensure that they live up to their role as early season favourites and get the crowd on their side. What Pardew will be keen to avoid is a shaky start which will tough on his squad. We worked very hard in the 1999/2000 season and it showed as we dominated the league. Our players were very fit, well organized, played well together, but more than anything mentally very strong.
Pardew has proved himself to be a great manager in the Championship and he will definitely know what it takes to get the addicks back into the Premier League this season. Charlton deservedly are one of the favourites for promotion and lets hope the team hits the ground running on the opening day. I will be watching the season unfold from another continent and will not be nearly as nervous as the last time Charlton tried to climb out of the Championship League.
Will Charlton Athletic Football Club get promoted?
Manchester United Football Club get closer to signing their man as Carlos Tevez looks set for his medical at the reds. Although not seemingly the most prolific goal scorer, notching 25 goals in 75 appearances for Boca Juniors, 25 goals in 38 appearances for Corinthians and only 7 in 26 for West Ham United, Tevez as he shows below is in the mould of many footballing geniuses.
Travel Forward in Football Time - 2007/2008 Season - Home Team 0 Manchester United 14
Now cast yourself forward to the 2007/2008 season as United take the field against a gutsy lower team from the Premier League called Home Team FC. (take your pick from any side outside the top 4 or 5 elite premier league sides).
Manchester United field their strongest side with Tevez, Ronaldo, Saha, Hargreaves, Scholes and Giggs providing devastating rapid passing and moving, honed by their pre-season football training sessions.
At home Manchester United find it more difficult to break teams down because the opposition play with a more defensive attitude. But Home Team FC are the hosts and under pressure from an expectant crowd they have to attack the Reds.
Ronaldo Scores and Winds up the Home fans
Manchester United play with a sense of freedom and after 5 minutes Ronaldo puts them 1 up. Ronaldo is getting baited by the home team fans who still can't forgive him for his 2006 World Cup antics, but needless to say the PFA player of the year rises above this and continually eludes his markers.
Remember this is just football fantasy - but it could come true??
Several late tackles by Home Team FC defenders earn them yellow cards. After just 15 minutes another bad tackle, this time against Tevez reduces Home Team FC to 10 men. Manchester United are in full flow scoring several more goals before the half hour mark.
Billy Bulldog
Billy Bulldog, the heart and soul of Home Team FCs midfield and player of the year from the previous season is charging around the field trying to get close to Manchester Uniteds superstars. Home Team FC's own foreign imports are conspicuous by their absence and not "digging in" for the teams cause.
"Twat the dago *&$@&*? " (fill in the accent) bellows a Home Team FC fan to Billy Bulldog. Billy, frustrated by his teams inability to get into the game, rallies to the Fans cry and smashes into Tevez, leaving the Argentinian in agony on the floor. Another Red card for Home Team FC.
30 minutes gone and Home Team FC are 4-0 down and with only 9 players on the field they are in a desperate state.
Manchester United score another 3 goals before half time and relax in the dressing room with a 7-0 lead.
Home Team FC substitute their star foreign striker who has not touched the ball all day and play with a 4-4-0 formation in the second half. It doesn't stop United from notching another 2 quick goals after just 10 minutes of the second half. 9-0 to Manchester United.
172 passes, 5 minutes of uninterrupted Passing and 84% possession
Manchester United, full of players who need little coaching or encouragement to keep the ball, pass the ball from left back to center half to right back, back to center half, into midfield, back to the right full back and so on, exhausting Home Team FC's players.
The key to playing against a team with only 10 men (or 9) is to keep possession and make the opposition work hard chasing the ball. Too many times 10 men teams inspirationally survive because the 11 men teams do not move the ball and keep the penalized side working. After an hour of chasing a ball with one less player a side will wither.
United string together 172 passes and keep the ball for a full 5 minutes of play. At one point Rio Ferdinand actually sits down on the center circle, only to be lectured by Alex Ferguson for his arrogance and disrespect to Home Team FC.
Ferguson brings on Solksjaer for the final 15 minutes of the game and the little Norwegian scores 4 goals in just 9 minutes of play to bring the scoreline to an unlucky 13 for Home Team FC.
Van der Sar, Manchester Uniteds Goalkeeper, scorers their 14th goal from the penalty spot in the final minute of the game, after a tired and desperate Home Team FC defender lunges at Tevez and brings down the diminutive Argentine striker.
The stats show United had 78% possession in the first half and 84% possession of the Football in the second half.
Ok, so this is all fantasy but I really think that Manchester United could do this to an unlucky team this year, especially if they do secure the services of Tevez. What do you think?
Could Manchester United beat a Premier League Football Team 14-0 this season?
What did Materazzi say to Zinedine Zidane in the World Cup Football final that provoked the French star to retaliate with a head-butt?
