SAF's shot at Newcastle would have been better if he'd not mentioned them and just said "not a wee club in the northeast.

Swansea may need a manager again soon.

Too bad Nottingham Forest have scooped up Alex McLeish.

I can think of someone with international experience who might listen

SAF's shot at Newcastle would have been better if he'd not mentioned them and just said "not a wee club in the northeast.

He's softening in his old age, I guess.

Injury news!

Michu is out this weekend but Suarez should be ok to play. They were both hobbling after the games on Wednesday with ankle injuries.

The only thing that would make things better is if SAF had told the "There was a break-in at the Newcastle trophy room..." joke.

Pfft pathetic effort Jose. Nobody is going to click on a link that has Medeleine Albright right there in the URL...

Pfft pathetic effort Jose. Nobody is going to click on a link that has Medeleine Albright right there in the URL...

Yeah, I was rushed and picked the wrong one. Oh well. As I always say in these situations, it's Shooty's fault.

Pfft pathetic effort Jose. Nobody is going to click on a link that has Medeleine Albright right there in the URL...

Not so much a pathetic attempt as a wee attempt. A very, very wee attempt.

Yeah, I was rushed and picked the wrong one. Oh well. As I always say in these situations, it's Shooty's fault.

Ach! A wee sentiment, at that.

Why Stoke don't concede.

Or one interpretation of it. It sounds very similar to how I was taught to play defense in basketball--you're not trying to prevent a shot, you're trying to prevent high quality shots.

Also, I'm really bored so I've been messing around at whoscored.com for the first time in a while. I am freakin shocked to see Freiburg is rated 12th by their metrics in Europe. Freiburg! Das ist super, ja? Santi Cazorla is the highest rated player in England followed by Garreth "not as good as ANthony Pilkington" Bale and Robin Van Persie. I was surprised, also, to see both Tottenham and Arsenal rated higher than Man City. Real Madrid are 11th, just ahead of Freiburg, which seems also very unusual.

Anyway, because, like I said, I'm bored, an EPL first 11 based on whoscored stats and taking some positional liberties:
xxxxxxxxDe Gea
Rafael Chico Vertonghen Baines
xxxxxxxFellaini
Mata Cazorla Bale
xxxxxxSuarez
xxRobin Van Persie

Of those, only Cazorla and Vertonghen would make an all-Europe 11. De Gea would be my biggest surprise followed closely by Chico. The others make pretty good sense. Keep in mind that they have Andy Carroll rated higher than Wayne Rooney, too, so, you know, lies and damned lies and all. But I am now 10 minutes closer to closing time!

Speaking of the NWSL...

Worst team name ever?

It's actually a recycled name. The first Seattle Reign was an ABL basketball team back in the 1990s.

Bale booked for getting fouled for the third time this season, by my count. Ridiculous. Aaron Lennon's goal was absolutely superb. I love that little guy.

Always nice to see Sami Nasri get sent off for being the tw*t that he is.

Ah, Arsene. Don't ever change.

Is this just how every Newcastle game is going to be now?

Always nice to see Sami Nasri get sent off for being the tw*t that he is.

I just saw what happened. I really don't understand how he got sent off for that.

Is this just how every Newcastle game is going to be now?

No, this is how every Arsenal game is going to be now.

Didn't Newcastle defend well last season? Who's missing/hurt this year?

I just saw what happened. I really don't understand how he got sent off for that.

It's like getting a booking for persistent fouling. The eventual booked offence may be trivial, but it's a cumulative thing.

Nasri has that backpfeifengesicht every minute he plays and should absolutely be sent off at regular intervals accordingly.

Didn't Newcastle defend well last season? Who's missing/hurt this year?

Steven Taylor, Ryan Taylor, and Coloccini's mojo.

Also, they punched way above their weight for the first half of last season and then kinda coasted from there.

This game is mental. My advice to Arsenal: do not let Tiote shoot from distance as time winds down.

My advice to Arsenal: do not let Tiote shoot from distance as time winds down.

They chose the strategy of scoring a bunch more. Giroud almost got a hat trick and he come on in the 74th minute.

Scoring four unanswered goals works too, I guess.

I just saw what happened. I really don't understand how he got sent off for that.

The angle from the assistant made it look like he headbutted him with that little flick. I don't agree with it, but understand it.

At least it is defensible. Some other reds this season (e.g., Pienaar's second yellow) were not.

Bale booked for getting fouled for the third time this season, by my count. Ridiculous.

Once you get the reputation, you aren't going to get the calls. Suarez has finally started to realize this and hasn't dived since his ridiculous flop. Even the penalty he earned against Stoke he tried to fight through the pulling before he finally let go. Bale is going to have to do the same.

Bale deserves his rep. He needs to prove that he has changed his ways. Once he does the officials will adjust accordingly.

And to follow up, he barely got touched. Here's and admittedly poor clip of it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcUiLjT1TJ0

That's a dive.

He got clipped on the back of the knee at full speed. It's a foul, not a dive.

He got clipped on the back of the knee at full speed. It's a foul, not a dive.

Right. The defenders knee smacked Bale's knee pretty solidly. Really, the defender deserved the yellow for jumping up and hamming it up that Bale dived. That was the only simulation on the play. This Bale is a Diver story has become self perpetuating nonsense. The only dive in the game yesterday was actually Defoe. Now that Bale has been falsely booked for diving this year as much as he's actually dived, I hope the refs will take their heads out of their asses and call it even.

Other than that, I was happy with the way Spurs played. Sunderland are in good form and Spurs looked much better against them than Man City did. Now, if we can just get rid of these dumb Wesley Sneijder rumors...

Also, I feel bad for Villa and Villa fans but I still think they'll stay up and Lambert will figure something out. I think of Spurs as being on pretty much the same level as Villa so it's a "there but for the grace of god..." kind of situation. It's amazing how much difference a good chairman makes to the fortunes of a club.

Why is the Fox Deportes feed fine but the FSC feed is broken? Grrr. But, hey, go Everton! I should root for a draw, I guess, but #### that!

OK, now I'm rooting for the draw. That was a heartbreaking minute and a half for Everton.

Good news for Newcatle: They've finally signed Matthieu Debuchy. I think that's a pretty great signing for them.

Good win though Everton was a bit unlucky. Chelsea needs to resign Super Frank. Our side still lacks composure at times and we need him for that alone.

Rumours are that Chelsea will push Demba Ba's release clause for 7mil. That would be a great signing to replace Sturridge. Torres made some just incompetent runs today and needed to be subbed off. At this point, I'd rather pair a Ba/midfielder signing than say going for Falcoa for 42.

That's a dive.

No, it very much isn't.

Here's a video and a gif that shows clear contact from Gardner and Bale's knee wobbling before he goes down. Gardner also threw an arm across Bale's chest at the same time. Could Bale have stayed on his feet? Maybe. I don't think I'd want to take a knee to my knee when I'm sprinting flat out. It's absolutely a foul, though, so it's kind of irrelevant whether or not Bale needed to go down.

It was a terrible decision by Atkinson, who should have booked Defoe for simulation in the first half and Jack Colback for his repeated saddling up of Mousa Dembele for countless thrilling reenactments of Mark Bavaro hauling Ronnie Lott around like a jockey.

QPR have checked out, but that first goal by the Imp was a work of art. Really, though, I don't think anyone on the QPR team would even make first 11 for, say, Norwich City. Taarabt has gone back to his old ways of trying to reenact Maradonna's highlight reel except for the whole escaping the defenders part. It remains surreal to me that Julio Cesar is on this team.

Derry on for Cisse. I think 'Arry has checked out, too.

I'm struck by the lack of "true" EPL quality on both sides, Suarez aside, but Cesar has been most awful of a truly wretched QPR bunch. It's so bad I'm almost feeling sorry for Harry, but the true pity is that Loftus Road and the QPR fans will be back to watching Millwall, Burnley and Huddersfield Town next year.

An Aston Villa v. QPR matchup right now would be an amazing anti-advertisement for the league.

Granero is right up to speed...

Aston Villa and QPR played to a scintillating non-scoreless draw on December 1, during QPR's coachless interim. Sadly we have to wait until March 16 to renew the rivalry. By that point QPR will probably have added Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Robbie Keane, Fernando Llorente, Nicolas Anelka, Marco Verratti, Angelo Ogbonna, Leighton Baines, Nigel Reo-Coker, Ricardo Carvalho, Miralem Pjanic, Kaká, Alexei Eremenko Jr., Pontus Wernbloom, Roope Riski, Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Tor Hogne Aarøy, Jens Lehmann, and Michael Parkhurst, and will be solidly in 19th place.

Angelo Ogbonna

Not funny!

No, it very much isn't.

Here's a video and a gif that shows clear contact from Gardner and Bale's knee wobbling before he goes down. Gardner also threw an arm across Bale's chest at the same time. Could Bale have stayed on his feet? Maybe. I don't think I'd want to take a knee to my knee when I'm sprinting flat out. It's absolutely a foul, though, so it's kind of irrelevant whether or not Bale needed to go down.

That angle you can see the contact. You could not from the other clips I had seen (sorry didn't watch the game).

With that said, if he doesn't fall immediately he probably gets the call. With his reputation (well deserved, IMO), he's going to have to attempt to fight through these types of contacts or he's never going to get the benefit of the doubt. I mentioned Suarez because I haven't seen him dive since the ridiculous belly flop against Stoke. This week, he worked hard in the penalty area and earned a well deserved spot kick without having to resort to a dive. Bale needs to do the same.

Luis Suarez is so, so good. He's one of the very best players in the EPL in my book and Liverpool should be thrilled that he seems to genuinely like playing for them. If only they could stop pissing away money and put a decent team around him. I think he's a top 10 forward in the world.

I think he's a top 10 forward in the world.

No doubt.

They're really not that far from being a good team again. They just need some depth at forward and better players on the wing. That and a little more experience for the young guys and I think they could be like Everton/Tottenham and challenging for a top 4 spot when one of the big 4 spenders are scuffling. The question is if that's good enough for the faithful, though. Being as good as Tottenham and Everton would be hard to swallow for a certain element of the fanbase. But, honestly, I just don't see them competing with the kind of money Chelsea, City and Man U can throw around. I think those days are past.

Man, that was a tough loss for Everton today. They really could use a right side attacker; every good move comes from the left.

They have Mirallas, but he is out hurt, when present he has added much more balance to their attack. I agree that was a tough loss, but I thought they played pretty well considering the injuries and suspensions. Jelavic hit a post and a crossbar and fluffed a good chance right at the end. But that is how things go sometimes. Onto 2013 we go!

Seamus Coleman looked like he was going to be a real asset in the department, but it seems that he makes too many mistakes for some people.

I haven't been impressed with Coleman. I'm kind of hoping Landon was watching...

Sepp Blatter continues to be a massive gigantic dick.

Not only is he being a dick, but he seems remarkably ignorant about the business of soccer for a guy who heads the ####### sport. I can only hope one day MLS will be as awesome as the pro leagues in Qatar and the UAE and Saudi Arabia. I wonder how Brazil will ever have a decent pro league since they don't follow the European calendar, either. Truly they are also doomed.

Blatter can't hear you, he's been fully buried by the bribes he's taking.

Blatter said the MLS has to "play in summer because they are using the stadia of American football. And when they have their own stadium, they can change the calendar-they have to change the calendar". And that it doesn't draw. It's the 8th most attended league by average. He has no ####### clue what he is talking about.

re: Blatter

I can assure you Blatter is as ignorant on the subject of the popularity of soccer in America as he is on every subject not named graft. I can pinpoint the exact moment in time when I knew soccer had made it in America. It was when I spotted a kid in Pigeon Forge TN wearing a Torres Spain jersey. To paraphrase a great man, these are the facts.

re: Newcastle

They pretty much went 11 deep last year and have been shredded by injury. Also as I've said before they were due for a regression. Its mainly the absence of certain players though. Tiote and Cabaye are the heart and soul of the team. Without them hale and hearty as a tandem they are screwed.

re: Suarez' loyalty to LFC

The racism case was ugly on many fronts to include those terrible t shirts. But from what I've read Suarez believed that the club supported him to the hilt. Not exactly a heartwarming tale, but I think its part of why he does genuinely seem to like playing for the club. I'm not proud to say I enjoy watching him play and that I'm glad he's on the team, but I do and I am. I think he's the dirtiest player in the league and he intentionally set out to wind up Evra through racist abuse last season. But he also runs himself to death and creates ridiculous chances at insane angles. A joy to watch, but man can he be insufferable.

re: LFC talent level

I have to respectfully disagree Shooty. There are times when the club doesn't appear to be that far from a 4th place contending team and then I look at their roster. If I'm being brutally honest there are only two players on the team I really feel comfortable leading a charge to CL qualification. Suarez and Agger. The rest of them have too many problems. I'm not saying they don't have other players with some talent, but I'm saying Agger and Suarez are the only two they have that could walk into most top sides in the world. Agger is criminally under rated. Suarez is young enough that if he sticks around they might be able to build around him. They need the kids to develop fast and to nail a few transfers. I'm feeling optimistic on the academy front. On the transfer front, not so much. Comparing their roster to a team like Spurs' is depressing. Its not even close. As pointed out that's the club going forward they have to catch along with Arsenal.

re: Bale

Since I said something nice about Spurs I'll balance it by being mean:

Spurs fans defending Bale are cute. I follow a team that employs a player with the rep as the biggest diver in the PL. The thing is, Bale sucks when he dives. If he's going to dive, he needs to learn how to at least make it look good. There have been a few this year where the ref should have handed him a boogey board to go with his yellow card. Bale took over the actual title of worst diver in the league awhile ago. As Grover noted, Suarez hasn't been drawing calls for the most part this season (even on plays where he was actually fouled) so he's stayed on his feet more.

edit: for clarity

They have Mirallas, but he is out hurt, when present he has added much more balance to their attack. I agree that was a tough loss, but I thought they played pretty well considering the injuries and suspensions. Jelavic hit a post and a crossbar and fluffed a good chance right at the end. But that is how things go sometimes. Onto 2013 we go!

Agreed on Mirallas. I also think Jelavic has been pretty awful recently, the Merseyside version of pre-Benitez Torres. He gets so many chances but almost never puts anything home. I also think Everton has really been gypped by refs, both for penalties against (errr...City?) and penalties not called for.

One does have to wonder what happens if Gibson is out for awhile. They don't have much in the defensive midfield and really need him healthy. I can't imagine Fellaini dropping back in that role given his success up front. It will be interesting to see how they adjust.

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