The Season That Was...

So, another season has come to an end.

Manchester United have remained top dogs, but on the European scale, Barcelona have laid down a marker for others to try and beat. They have produced scintillating performances on a regular basis throughout the year as goals came at an even faster rate than yellow cards for Marouanne Fellani.

Real Madrid were shown up to be nothing but a bunch of pretenders in both the Champions League and then La Liga, while in Germany, Hoffenheim provided the game with a feel-good factor as they pushed forward in the race to win the Bundesliga before having their hopes cruelly hit by an injury to their star forward.

Closer to home, Newcastle United have come back down to Earth with an almighty bang, and their fans will be planning for trips to Scunthorpe and Blackpool next season, while followers of their greatest rivals, Sunderland, will continue to plan for trips to Old Trafford and Anfield.

Liverpool staked their claim for greater honours, as did Aston Villa and Everton, but as they say, the table never lies, and all three sides finished up where they deserved to finish, but not exactly where they wanted to finish.

After installing new managers, West Ham and Manchester City had contrasting seasons. While West Ham struck gold with the appointment of magic main Gianfranco Zola, City struggled to match the expectations of the fans who were sent into dreamland with the whirlwind entrance of their rich owners and their new 'star' player, Robinho.

On a personal note, it was a tremendous season for my local side Birmingham City who 'got the job done' as we were promoted back to the Promised Land along with Wolves and Burnley who won the lottery of the play-offs. The season was long and difficult, but all three sides should approach the 09/10 Premier League season with no fears at all after seeing their competition in action in the 09/10 Prem season.

Nicolas Anelka hit top form for Chelsea as he finished as top goalscorer, but it was Didier Drogba who hit all the headlines for his antics during the Champions League semi-final.

It was the season when Fabio Capello started to extract some of the undoubted talent from within the England side, and a season when Newcastle went through more Messiah's than I went through hot dinners.

It seems that Premier League players took the storylines from 'Roy of the Rovers' a little too seriously, as Kiki Macheda stole the headlines not once, but twice with crucial goals against Villa (yayy!) and Sunderland.

It was a strange season where Chelsea's home form disappointed in comparison to previous seasons, in direct comparison to Stoke City who had an absolutely fantastic season at home, mainly thanks to their vociferous crowd who never gave up hope.

Ryan Giggs seemed to defy the laws of ageing as continued to ply his trade at the very highest level for United, as Sir Alex search for a new central midfielder came to an abrupt end with the sensational form of Darren Fletcher, who finally emerged from the shadows to become a key player in the United side.

It was a Premier League season when playing the Arsenal-way brought few rewards for both Wenger's side and Mowbray's great pretenders as Arsenal held on to 4th place (just) and West Brom suffered relegation (for the 1 millionth time).

Hull were given a right royal dressing down by their manager on the City of Manchester Stadium pitch, but Harry Redknapp chose a more traditional mode of managing as he saved a Spurs side from the humiliating fate of relegation (which eventually befell Newcastle instead).

This has been another monumental season in the history of the beautiful game. It has been a season full of joy, pain, laughter, tears and anything else you can think of. It is the only game that can make big men cry, and unite men and women, young and old, to stand together as one.
It is the only game of its kind.
It is our game.
What a season.


Can't wait for next season?
Join the club.

Hiddink Leaves On A High

Guus Hiddink finished his stint as Chelsea's temporary manager with an excellent victory over Everton in the FA Cup Final, where a Chelsea team full of class and experience dealt with the big-game situation better than an Everton side that lacked ideas on a warm day in London.

I must say that like many neutrals, I was gutted that Everton were not victorious, and they were given the perfect start after 25 seconds when Louis Saha's exquisite shot found the back of the net to provide Everton with a 1-0 lead and the record of the quickest goal in an FA Cup final...ever.

One must pay respect to Guus Hiddink's side in the resilience that they showed in coming back to equalise through a powerful header from the effervescent Didier Drogba before the half-hour mark. Everton's attacking influence was nullified by a combination of the strong Chelsea midfield and the weather conditions which made it extremely dificult for the two sides to play at a high-tempo.

Chelsea were always on top in the match and Everton never really got going, and so Chelsea's second goal, that came courtesy of Frank Lampard, came as no real surprise.
Lampard finished with aplomb but Tim Howard will probably be a bit annoyed with himself that he failed to get a better touch on the shot to tip the ball beyond the far post. Florent Malouda's blast looked to have crossed the line but you can't blame the assistant for not awarding the goal, because you can never be sure with those kind of shots.

Louis Saha had one final chance to take the game to extra time with a header but as the ball went north of the goal, Everton's chances of victory went south. Chelsea ran out winners and Everton can have no complaints.
David Moyes put on a brave face after the game but it was obvious that he, like many of the playing squad, were simply gutted at the result.
For Chelsea, the victory was all the more sweeter as it was the first victory since the enigmatic Jose Mourinho left the club for good, and the players dedicated the victory to the exiting manager Hiddink, who has been praised constantly throughout the season for his professional approach.

Everton missed out on their big chance to get their first piece of silverware, but something tells me that with David Moyes in charge, they will get a fair few more chances in the future.

The Greatest Cup Competition In The World

The FA Cup.
The single greatest cup competition in the world.

The magic of the great cup continues, as Everton look to win their first piece of silverware under manager David Moyes.
Chairman Bill Kenwright has always said that his one goal is to one day hold up a trophy to crown his success at the club. Kenwright is an Everton fan himself, and he has said that he will treat FA Cup final day as an experience, just like any other Everton fan.

Wouldn't hear Roman Abramovich saying that now, would you?

Everton are a fantastic side with a manager to match. Since arriving as an unknown manager from Preston all those years ago, David Moyes has created a legacy at Everton, establishing them as probably the 'Best of the Rest' in the Premier League.
However, there is one blot on his CV. Moyes has never won a Cup trophy. Beating Chelsea would be the crowning glory for a manager who has completely transformed his Everton side.

What is more amazing is that in a season where Everton have been blighted by injuries to key players, Everton have had continued success. Mikel Arteta, probably the club's best player, has been missing since February, and the club have been without an out-and-out striker for large parts of the season, yet Moyes has still managed to lead them to 5th place in the League and an FA Cup Final. Moyes doesn't even know the meaning of the words 'squad rotation' (take note Messers O'Neill and Benitez) and he has excelled by mixing his experienced stars with young players such as Rodwell and Gosling.

Everton's determination to be victorious in the FA Cup has helped to restore some of the magic of the cup that was damaged by comments from Reading in the not too distant past where manager and player Dave Kitson dismissed the FA Cup as "irrelevant".

On the other hand, the FA Cup was probably the least of Chelsea's worries a few months ago but after conceding defeat in the race for the title, and then their controversial exit from the Champions League, the FA Cup has been left as the only way for manager Guus Hiddink to get his hands on some silverware before returning to Russia.
There isn't much about Chelsea to say, that you won't already know. They are one of the best clubs in the land, and the players will be desperate to give Hiddink a good send off.

It's going to be one hell of a final.
Who am I supporting?

Well, in the battle of money - the team who have it against the team who don't, I will be rooting for the team who I feel deserve it.
Everton deserve it. Bill Kenwright deserves it. David Moyes deserves it.

Saving Southampton

It has emerged that Southampton's administrators are entering into a period of exclusivity with the Pinnacle Consortium over a takeover of the club.
What fantastic news.
The group is being fronted by Matt Le Tissier.
Even better.

Personally, I'm delighted that this has happened. Why?
Now that's a question.
I've seen the Saints live once (a 2-1 victory for the Blues at home!), but that's it.
I've never met a Saints player, or a manager.
I've never been to St Mary's.

It's just something about the club that draws affection from all corners. You cannot identify why...it's just the magic of football.

For that reason, every neutral football fan felt for the club when they were relegated to League 1 at the end of the 08/09 season, and every fan feared the worst when the club entered administration.
For years, the club has been in a bad shape. However, they have always survived...just about. This time, this time the owners took the club to the brinks of extinction.
Fans feared for their club like never before. All hope seemed lost.

But then, arriving in the distance on a white horse rode the man himself. Le God. He has fronted the takeover bid which could well save the club from extinction.
You have to respect Le Tiss. Not because he was an awesome player. Not because he scored great goals. Not out of sympathy for the man who was never utilised fully by the national side.
Because he was a true gent. A loyal, honest football who deserves to be rewarded.

Good for Le Tiss. Good for the Pinnacle Consortium. Good for the long-suffering Southmapton fans. Good for football.

Johnson's gone?

There are rumours doing the rounds that Adam Johnson, the Middelsbrough winger could be on his way to either Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, or maybe even Real Madrid.
...Are you serious?
Come on. Be reasonable. The kid has talent. He has potential, and he definitely has a future, so why would he go to one of those clubs?
If he goes to any one of the aformentioned clubs, he will not get a game. It's as simple as that.
He should take this opportunity to move to a club like Everton, West Ham or Spurs where he has a good chance of playing week in week out.
Footballers play the game to go out there and play football...not sit on the sidelines.
Simple.

A New Article

I've started writing a Birmingham City Blog for BlogsFC, and you can see my first article here:

http://brum.blogsfc.com/blues-in-need.html

Ireland's Your Man

Who is Manchester City's best player?
Richard Dunne? Elano? Martin Petrov? Craig Bellamy? Surely it's Robinho?
Not a chance.
Stephen Ireland...by a distance.

Forgett all that has gone before, and all the trouble that he has got himself into (the 'my grandmother passed away...again trick). He has had a fantastic year in which he has outshone the majority of the underperforming, work-shy Manchester City side. He has just signed a new 5 year deal and my word, he deserves it. If you took a random person off the street and made them watch videos of Manchester City (hell, i know) before asking them who they believed was the 30 million pound signing, everyone would point to Ireland.
His distribution has been excellent, his teamwork is improving all the time and he is finally starting to grab a few goals to make him the complete midfielder.

What should the owners of Man City be looking to do in the transfer market this Summer?
Forget Terry, Kaka and Ronaldo, sign a team of Stephen Irelands.

Welcome to the Site!

Who are ya?

May I welcome you to my new blog. First things first, an introduction.
My name is Arun, I'm 17, a sixth form student, and as you can guess, a massive football fan. The game is my passion, and my team are none other than my local team, Birmingham City Football Club. I love the club, and the magic surrounding it. At their best, their fans are the best in the land. Sir Alex Ferguson said that they made the atmosphere more "intimidating" than the Galatasary fans themselves...and that is some feat.

My aim one day is to become a professional sports journalist, and currently I write for two websites and a magazine.
Under the name akvbcfc, I write for a website all about my team:
http://www.birmingham.vitalfootball.co.uk/
and another fantastic website called Joys & Sorrows:
http://www.joysandsorrows.co.uk/
Along with those two, I also write for a brilliant fanzine (a magazine wrote by fans for fans), sold at Birmingham City home games, called Made In Brum. And may I say, if you ever find yourself at St Andrews for a game, be sure to go and pick up a copy!


Why create this blog?

Why? It's a good question.
I chose to create a blog, so that I could share my views about the beautiful game with an even larger audience (hopefully!).
I am passionate about football, and talking/writing about football, and therefore I believe that a blog is the best way forward.
I hope that you enjoy this blog, and if you have any opinions on what I say, then please do not hesitate to let me know.
If you like what I think, let me know. If you think i'm a complete idiot...let me know (nicely)!


Anyway, now the Premier League season has come to an end, I will give my take on some of the stories hitting the headlines, and then after a focus on the Internationals, and after the Summer break, I will return with my views on the greatest game in the world.

To paraphrase Bill Shankly, how can you even consider calling football a matter of life and death?
Come on...Seriously...We all know that isn't true.
It's much, much more important than that.