futbolite

Football and broadcasting are literally merging

2011-10-06T00:04:00.003+02:00

It's one of those situations where everyone seems to have become an expert. In this case it's football media rights, telecoms, and EU law all at once. And the context being pub football renders the issue more appetizing - apologies for the bad pun.

A lot has (already) been written and said about the Murphy case. I had made a mental note of the 4th October and looked forward to the Preliminary Ruling. And yet, after a couple of super busy days I already find myself commenting on reactions, rather than the ruling itself (something I hope to be able to do anyway soon).

Most of us have an eager sense of anticipation to see how the 'post-Murphy' scenario will unfold. Out of these, I can see one which could literally merge football with broadcasting, namely that of having a Premier League TV network, and eventually similar endeavours by the Lega Calcio, the Bundesliga, and so on. I see few other ways to maximize the benefits (read profits) of a single market of half a billion Europeans. UEFA's Champions League model is the best example.

It's not as easy as it sounds. And it may not be the best of news for the proverbial good of the game. Such a model could prove successful for the big leagues but the situation in the smaller or even the micro leagues (like Malta) could be way more complicated. Then again, it could be an opportunity for development. Not necessarily at the same speed and through the same model, but as basis economics the bigger the market the bigger the potential a product has to grow.

My take is that the ruling was a much-needed pronouncement. In one way or another the grey area had to be addressed for a myriad of reasons.

Valletta TV

2011-10-01T12:22:00.000+02:00

Interessanti l-proposta tal-Belt. Sa ċertu punt se nidħlu f'għalqa ġdida, dik tax-xandir.

L-ewwel li ġewni f'moħħi kienu dawk il-programmi tar-radju, li ssib minnhom speċjalment l-Italja, li jagħmlu ġranet sħaħ jiddibattu u jitmasħnu fuq il-futbol u jieħdu t-telefonati tas-supporters. Ta' Ruma, per eżempju, ma jieqfu qatt.

Tista' wkoll tara kbir u taħseb fil-varji MUTV, Real Madrid TV jew Milan Channel. Imma ejja ma ngħaġġlux.

Li qed naħseb fih jien hu fuq kollox il-fatt li l-klabb se jkun il-produttur tal-programm, b'linja editorjali (jew xi ħaġa simili) u x'naf jien. Tgħiduli, anki s-Sliema kellhom xi ħaġa hekk fil-passat, imma - ngħiduha kif inhi - il-Belt ħaġ'oħra.

Qed naħseb per eżempju kif tista' żżomm standard biex l-eżerċizzju minn pass innovattiv biex ikattar l-introjtu fuq livell kummerċjali ma jsirx xi ħaġa li taħdem kontra l-klabb innifsu. L-immaġni tal-klabb hija imprezzabbli. U programm fuq it-TV idaħħlek fid-dominju pubbliku. Li jfisser li ma jistax kulħadd jibda jgħid li jrid f'dak il-kuntest daqs li kieku qiegħed jgħid l-istess diskors fil-bar tal-każin. Distinzjoni li ħafna ma jirrealizzawx li tapplika wkoll fuq l-internet!

Inħoss li dak hu l-element li batew minnu l-Belt fl-aħħar snin, minkejja s-suċċessi fil-ground. Minnu li tim li jirbaħ ta' spiss isir awtomatikament 'mibgħud' sportivament mill-avversarji. Imma l-Belt m'għenux ruħhom lanqas. Jiġu f'moħħi l-inċidenti wara l-final tat-Trophy.

Għandi kurżità biex nara l-esperiment hux se jirnexxi. Jekk hawn klabb li għandu following li jippermettilu jimbarka fuq xi ħaġa hekk, żgur li huma l-Belt. Għandi ftit riservi għall-fatt li l-platform magħżula hija dik ta' Smash TV. Imma m'għandix idea tal-ispejjeż involuti, jiġifieri ftit nista' nikkummenta dwar dan.

Insomma, pass ieħor ġdid. Nistennew u naraw.

Aktar dettalji hawn.

Minn wara l-kwinti

2011-09-28T22:42:00.001+02:00

Peter Harrison kien jilgħab mal-Forest taħt Brian Clough. Jien żgur ma niftakrux u ma kellix idea min hu.

U forsi kont nippreferi nsir naf min hu bħala plejer, minflok bħala aġent li qed jikxef sigrieti (forsi magħrufa) fuq il-mod kif isiru l-affarijiet fil-futbol. Jikkonferma teorija tiegħi li l-mard fil-futbol hu simili irrispettivament mil-livell - sew jekk tilgħab Old Trafford u sew jekk tilgħab is-Centenary. Id-differenza qiegħda fl-ammonti.

Peter Harrison kien l-aġent ta' Andy Carroll - il-plejer Ingliż li qatt l-aktar li sewa flus fil-Premier League Ingliż (kemm jiswiehom ħaġ'oħra). Jgħid li ġieli qala' £900,000 f'ġurnata waħda fejn ikun irranġa t-trasferiment ta' plejer, ħafna drabi billi jsib aġent ħabib tiegħu stess biex jidher fuq in-naħa l-oħra għall-klabb involut.

L-istorja tiegħu hija waħda ta' xi ħadd li jaf tajjeb kemm flus jgħaddu mill-idejn, u mhux bilfors jidhru, meta jsir dan iċ-ċaqliq. Skont hu, meta ġie ċ-ċans li Carroll jagħmel il-qabża min-Newcastle għal mal-Liverpool, lilu qatugħ barra, u allura ovvjament baqa' b'xiber imnieħer.

Jallega li hemm klabb 'favorit' u protett mill-FA Ingliża. It-trasferimenti mill-klabbs il-kbar isiru dejjem mill-istess aġenti. Dikjarazzjonijiet li taf li x'aktarx jirriflettu xi forma ta' realtà imma li tibqa; tittama li mhux minnhom.

L-artiklu kollu jinsab hawn.

Il-UEFA f'Limassol

2011-09-24T17:19:00.000+02:00

Ikolli nistqarr, Platini daqxejn enigma għalija. Ma narahx partikolarment simpatiku. Bħala plejer bl-eżatt ma lħaqtux jilgħab. L-ewwel kompetizzjoni kbira li niftakar (bil-biex) hija t-Tazza tad-Dinja tal-1986 fil-Messiku. Meta kien qed ipaxxi - kif jgħidu - lid-dilettanti kollha bil-flokk tal-Juve u ta' Franza jien kont għadni se nibda nqalleb ir-rivisti, inġemma l-kupuni u nara l-futbol fuq ir-RAI. U nħossni naqra deluż li għal ftit ma jistax ikolli opinjoni xi nfendi fuq le roi Michel u minflok ikolli noqgħod fuq li nisma' u naqra.

©uefa.com 1998-2011

Forsi wkoll għax kien Juventin. Imma ma nillargawx wisq. Għax minkejja din is-semi-antipatija li għandi lejh, fl-istess ħin narah jirrappreżenta nifs ġdid fl-amministrazzjoni tal-logħba. Issa veru, huwa minnu li joqgħod għal-logħba tal-poter, imma għallinqas il-logħba vera lagħbha u eċċella fiha. Esperjenzaha f'kull rwol possibbli - plejer, coach, amministratur. U meta tisimgħu jitkellem b'ċertu frankezza lilhinn mid-diplomazija jew l-ipokrezija li tisma' minn xi oħrajn.

Din il-ġimgħa l-Kumitat Eżekuttiv tal-UEFA kien qed jiltaqa' f'Limassol, Ċipru, wara jumejn ta' diskussjonijiet mal-Assoċjazzjonijiet nazzjonali - ħaġa, din tal-aħħar, innovattiva. Fost oħrajn dawn iddiskutew il-kalendarju tal-partiti internazzjonali. Għalkemm fl-aħħar mill-aħħar kompetenza tal-FIFA, il-UEFA qed tieħu l-inizjattiva f'dan ir-rigward u jidher li l-preferenza hi dik li jkun hemm aktar fixtures 'doppji', kif drajna naraw isiru fil-logħob ta' kwalifikazzjoni dan l-aħħar. Hemm ukoll kwistjoni fuq il-ġurnata ta' partiti ta' ħbiberija f'nofs Awwissu li kulħadd - klabbs, plejers, u jkolli ngħid anki supporters - jaraha żejda!

Imma lura għal Platini, meta l-Gazzetta dello Sport għamlitlu sensiela ta' mistoqsijiet diretti, ma ddejjaqx jgħidilhom li l-Juve setgħu ma ħlewx il-bolla biex jiktbu lill-UEFA fuq il-lig li ngħata lill-Inter - għax mhux kompetenza tagħha; lanqas li l-probbabiltà hija li r-regoli fuq il-Financial Fair Play minn hawn u minn hemm se jispiċċaw quddiem il-qrati; jew li hemm min qed ikun irritat għax il-UEFA qed tindirizza l-problema tal-flejjes u d-djun kbar fil-klabbs. Ma ddejjaqx jgħidilhom Platini. U xi ftit ħatab fuq il-problemi tal-FIFA, l-elezzjoni ta' Blatter, u l-futur tiegħu ma ddejjaqx jitfgħu lanqas.

Nittama li jibqa' jdoqqli kliem Platini.

Sheffield United - We nearly signed Maradona

2008-11-19T14:54:00.001+01:00

Ma stajtx ma naqsmux ma ħaddieħor dan l-artiklu. Mhux għax se jarawh aktar nies hawn milli fuq il-websajt tat-Times ta' Londra, imma insomma...

It's true, we nearly signed one of the greatest players/cocaine hoovers that the world has ever seen. Google it if you don't believe me.

However the recommendation that we pay £200,000 for a seventeen year old by Happy Harry Haslam was immediately shot down by our forward-thinking board, and instead we signed Alex Sabella. Great.

This goes down as possibly one of the worst decisions ever. Or does it?

It's worse than the bloke who didn't sign the Beatles. We passed up the chance for one of the best players the world has ever seen to come to the Lane.

But every cloud has a silver lining. At least we've not got the stigma of one of the greatest cheats world sport has ever seen having been one of ours. We've not been swamped by Columbian drug dealers, or had Fidel Castro come to visit.

All the fuss about Maradona, all the Scots grinning like maniacs on the tellt the other day, because they'd got his signature. He's a hero to them, because he cheated against England. They love him, because he dumped us out of the World Cup, and because they are so desperately short of heroes of their own they have to adopt those who beat the English.

Terry Butcher should get a knighthood for not shaking hands with the short-arsed coke-head.
Yes, Maradona could have been a Blade, but given our finances in the late 70's we'd have had him for a season at most and then flogged him to Leeds, as we did with all our best players at that time, and who out there would have wanted Maradona in a Leeds shirt?

So thank us that we didn't sign him then flog him to Leeds. Maybe our board weren't the blinkered idiots we thought.......

(http://timesonline.typepad.com/fanzine_fanzone/2008/11/sheffield-uni-1.html)

Stennija

2008-08-29T11:05:00.002+02:00

Daż-żmien idejjaqni. Qisek tkun trid taqta' l-għatx bil-perżut. Kulħadd jitkellem fuq iċ-ċaqliq ta' dak u l-ieħor, imma logħob ftit li xejn. U x'logħob! Partiti ta' ħbiberija qisek qed tara 'l nannti tippassiġġa max-xatt. Ikollok sebgħa mitt sena biex tara l-akkwist il-ġdid tat-tim tiegħek, imma jkollok titqanna b'xi tifel tal-youths. Insomma, issa drajna. Tournaments bla sens għax fis-sajf ukoll hemm bżonn il-flus tad-drittijiet tat-televixin. Ħalliha li Chalsea-Milan jiġu 5-0.

Imbagħad ikun hemm il-kurżita' tal-preliminari tal-kompetizzjonijiet Ewropej. M'għandniex xi ngħidu, kif tfixklina minn meta waqa' l-ħajt ta' Berlin! Issa qajla għadni niftaħar li naf dwar il-maġġornaza tat-timijiet tal-futbol Ewropej, jew li naf il-ġeografija ta' l-Ewropa bis-saħħa tal-futbol. Mhux ta' b'xejn il-UEFA ddeċidiet li taqsam il-preliminari tat-tazza UEFA f'reġjuni - għallinqas nippruvaw insegwu t-timijiet tan-naħat tagħna...

Il-futbol is-sabiħ

2007-12-06T15:51:00.000+01:00

Mark ġibidli l-attenzjoni għal din il-kollezzjoni mill-isbaħ ta' fotografu Olandiż. U probabbli kienet l-isbaħ ħaġa li ġratli f'nofstanhar ta' emails u laqgħat meta hemm barra kien hemm ix-xemx ta' Diċembru li ssibha Malta biss. Is-serje ta' ritratti tgħaqqad flimkien is-sbuħija, l-innoċenza, il-ġenwinita' u l-passjoni tal-futbol tad-dilettanti max-xenarju ġeografiku mill-isbaħ lfejn (ġieli) jintlagħab. Minn banda tefagħni lura fiż-żmien meta konna mmorru għal-logħob bil-vann daqqa San Pawl il-Baħar, daqqa Ħad-Dingli, daqqa l-Mosta, biex ma nsemmix ix-Schreiber jew xi logħba l-Mellieħa l-Ħadd fit-8.30am (inkredibbli, fil-kampjonat tal-Youths kull meta konna nilagħbu mal-Mellieħa kienu jtuna logħba għand Alla kmieni filgħodu).

Mill-banda l-oħra fakkarni f'kemm hawn min japprezza l-logħba per se', aktar mix-xinxilli li ġġib magħha aktar ma' tmur 'il fuq fil-livell. Bħal meta qomna filgħodu nparlaw qisna żewġ subien ħerqana dwar dokumentarju - ta' Olandiż ieħor - li konna rajna fuq l-Arte dwar logħba bejn l-agħar żewġ timijiet tad-dinja, li ressqet żewġ komunitajiet minn żewġt itruf tad-dinja lejn xulxin - u jien mort niġri nordnah fuq dvd.

Il-logħob fil-perspettiva t-tajba. Niżlitli għasel, Mark.

Biljuni u bsaten

2007-11-27T11:42:00.000+01:00

Bejn separazzjoni u spekulazzjoni fuq mara ġdida, bejn ir-rifjut imġedded lit-Torok u l-insistenza li l-Parlament Ewropew ma jitlaqx minn Strasbourg. Filli daħkan wara li aċċerta ruħu li l-Franċiżi se jdaħħlu €30 miljun mill-investiment sfrenat Ċiniż u filli jappella għall-kalma għax fakkruh li d-duda fil-qalba ta' pajjiżu għadha hemm. Sarkozy huwa dak li qabel l-elezzjoni ddikjara li se jixkupa l-irmixk mill-irħula madwar Pariġi.

Sadanittant fl-Italja għadhom jidħku bihom infushom u jfakkru lil dak il-povru li miet f'inċident sfortunat fi triqtu lejn logħba futbol daqs li kieku kien xi plejer leġġendarju. Għadhom iridu jipperswadu lilhom infushom li l-futbol irid jgħid il-"ħtija tiegħi" tliet darbiet - sempliċiment għax dan inzerta jsegwi t-tim tiegħu. U l-gazzetta teżalta delinkwenti li jinqeda b'din l-orġa ta' miżinformazzjoni biex ipinġi tila differenti u forsi naraw farka minn kif jaraw il-ħajja hu u sħabu.

X'inhi r-ribelljoni lejn l-ordni pubbliku? Għala quddiem il-kompjuter nindiehsu ma' ruxxmata nies li qas qatt ma ltqajna magħhom u aktar ma jkollok friends fuq il-facebook aktar tħossok 'in', imbagħad mill-għatba 'l barra qisu kulħadd irid joħodha kontra kulħadd?

Meta se nindunaw?

2007-11-20T10:35:00.000+01:00

Frustranti wisq meta tkun trid u ma tistax. Min jaf kemm iħossuha individwi li volontarjament jagħtu sehemhom fl-amministrazzjoni ta' xi sport (jew anke oqsma oħra). Trid u ma tistax, għax m'għandekx riżorsi, għax m'għandekx nies jew sempliċiment għax issib bibien jingħalqu f'wiċċek.

Nuqqas li tant jitfagħna lura huwa dak fl-infrastruttura. Mhux qed nitkellem dwar stadia daqs il-Maracana...qed nitkellem dwar pitch diċenti mgħammar bi dressing rooms, xi żewġ uffiċċji fejn tista' tagħmel laqgħa jew attività, u forsi bar - f'kull raħal. Qed nitlob id-dinja? Hija proposta li taqa' daqshekk lura fil-prijoritajiet ta' min imexxi? Taqta' ftit eċċezzjonijiet, iva.

L-impressjoni li kelli fil-Lussemburgu kienet li n-nies hemmhekk bil-kontra: jistgħu imma ma jridux. Għandhom il-faċilitajiet li aħna noħolmu, imma fl-isport għażżenin u anonimi mhux ħażin xorta waħda, tant li jħaqquha magħna (għalkemm mhux fid-dixxiplini kollha). Jien, li hawn Malta bħala plejer (!) lanqas kont ninġabar fit-Tielet Diviżjoni, hemmhekk kont nilgħab f'lig bejn il-kumpaniji fi grawnds bil-ħaxix (u mhux kwistjoni ta' xita u temp għax ħaxix artifiċjali hemm ukoll), bil-faċilitajiet kollha miżmuma bl-akbar attenzjoni - f'kull biċċa raħal fejn nesa' l-karkura x-xitan, li ħdejhom Birżebbuġa tidher metropoli. Taqta' l-faċilitajiet ta' l-MFA, f'Malta tgħoddhom fuq subgħajk ta' id waħda l-klabbs li għandhom dawn il-faċilitajiet. F'moħħi jiġuni l-Hibs, St Andrews u forsi l-Ħamrun (il-Furjana jekk iridu). St Andrews, tim li jikkompeti fit-Tieni Diviżjoni (mhux fix-xinxilli tal-Premier) għandu l-aqwa faċilitajiet u waħda mill-aħjar skejjel għat-tfal.

Naf li l-paragun jinxtamm qisu cliché, imma inevitabbli. Naf li l-gvern lokali fl-irħula lokali fil-Lussemburgu jkollu baġit daqs kemm ikollhom erba' kunsilli minn tagħna. Imma l-infrastruttura sportiva hija proprju l-għeruq ta' l-iżvilupp sostenibbli tal-klabbs, tal-kompetizzjoni, u fl-aħħar mill-aħħar tal-logħba nnifisha. Biex ma nsemmux saħħet in-nies li jipprattikaw xi sport u l-effett pożittiv indirett għaliex ikun hemm inqas pressjoni fuq is-servizz tas-saħħa pubbliċi.

F'Malta, lanqas jekk trid tagħmel dan ma tista'. Lanqas jekk klabb (u l-membri tiegħu) jissallab biex iġib il-finanzi meħtieġa. Trid post fejn! U biex klabb jingħata art fejn jista' jsir żvilupp utli (mhux blokka appartamenti b'garaxxi taħthom), emmnuni aktar faċli nirbħu t-tazza tad-dinja. Hemm min irnexxielu, imma forsi hawn tidħol il-logħba politika taċ-"ċejċa fid-distrett tiegħi". X'jibqa' fik li ġej u sejjer laqgħat u tħabbel moħħok fuq pjan fit-tul għas-sostenibbiltà ta' klabb żgħir? Mhux qed ngħid li kull klabb li rnexxielu jagħmel din il-qabża, għamilha għax ġie ffavorit. Altru minn hekk - hemm min iservi ta' mudell, xi wħud semmejthom hawn fuq. Imma din hi l-impressjoni li tieħu meta tkun għadek tittama li l-kabb tiegħek xi darba jingħatalu grawnd fejn jilgħab u jittrenja (immaġina mekkanik bla garaxx, furnar bla forn).

Qed ngħid dan proprju meta l-MFA nediet programm ta' fondi mill-UEFA maħsub għa proġetti infrastrutturali fil-klabbs. Meta nisma' min jgħid li l-MFA għandha tgħin aktar lill-klabbs nibda naqbeż minn ġewwa. L-assoċjazzjoni nazzjonali m'għandhiex tkun il-father christmas li jduru lejh il-klabbs. Il-futbol ikun vera b'saħħtu meta l-klabbs ikunu jkampaw waħedhom - mingħajr ma jiddependu fuq il-bwiet fondi ta' l-individwi. Li jiġi mingħand l-assoċjazzjoni huwa kollu fsied: li nilagħbu l-kampjonati fi grawnds bil-ħaxix għal wieħed, tnejn u issa ġej it-tielet wieħed (għall-youths) f'Ta' Qali huwa grazzi għall-assoċjazzjoni. Fil-verità għandhom ikunu l-klabbs li jkollhom dawn il-faċilitajiet. U għandha tiġi mill-gvernijiet, possibbilment permezz tal-kunsilli lokali, li jagħmluha possibbli. Biex min irid jaħdem, ikun jista'. U jkun qiegħed jagħti servizz mhux biss lill-klabb tiegħu, imma lil komunità sħiħa.

Imma mbagħad il-famuża "issa ċ-ċans li jtukom widen, għax ġejja l-elezzjoni"...

Il-perspettiva ilha li ntilfet

2007-11-13T10:34:00.000+01:00

1.
Ir-riklam għaddej qisu mhux hu, bil-flash player u x'naf jien, jalterna bejn Cannavaro jgħolli t-tazza tad-dinja, bit-tbissima solari tiegħu, u karozza Taljana li tinbiegħ daqs il-qubbajd. Nofs skrin 'il bogħod, u n-naħa fejn qed naqra dinja oħra. Din il-Gazzetta dello Sport, din l-Italja tal-ballun. Sal-bieraħ kont għoddok tittarrax bil-caroselli ta' campioni del mondo, u il cielo era azzurro sopra Berlino.

Sadanittant erġajna lura nilagħbu fil-grawnds qishom gaġeġ u scaffoldings, bil-barrikati kull fejn tara u numru (żgħir) ta' nies li jidħlu qishom sejrin għall-gwerra. Sadanittant inqatel pulizija waqt xogħlu. Sadanittant rajna xeni li jħaqquha ma' l-agħar protesti tan-no global wara li t-traġedja ta' sapporter ittieħdet bħala pretest biex b'xi mod tiġġustifika r-ribelljoni kontra min xogħlu jżomm l-ordni.

Parole, parole, parole, ma tistenniex mod ieħor. Parole li għadhom friski f'moħħna għax kien biss fi Frar li għadda li smajna l-istess diskussjonijiet u qrajna l-istess artikli. Ir-riżultat huwa strixxun 10-100-1000 Raciti. Għall-ftit mill-ftit li jaqraw dan il-blogg li ma jafux, Raciti huwa kunjom il-pulizija li kien inqatel f'Catania. Dan hu l-mission statement ta' dawn in-nies.

Fejn jidħol il-futbol? X'għandha x'taqsam il-logħba ħdax kontra ħdax, ballun, referi u assistent ma' dan kollu? Xejn. Huwa fenomenu soċjali iva, u dak jirrikjedi reazzjoni mod fuq tul ta' żmien: fuq kollox edukazzjoni akkumpanjata b'miżuri ġudizzjarji. Iżda l-ħarsien tal-logħba mill-manipulazzjoni u l-istrumentalizzazzjoni tirrikjedi reazzjoni mod ieħor. Nies b'valuri ta' vjolenza assoċjati mal-logħba titfagħna fl-abbissi ta' l-oppost tal-pjaċir li suppost ittina.

...U jien ukoll qed inżid mal-paroli. Xi dwejjaq.

2.
Biex naqta' mill-ipokrizija tal-kuntest patetiku Taljan, kont qed nistenna bil-ħerqa l-logħba tal-Coventry. La lagħbu t-Tnejn kien ċans tajjeb biex nara logħba oħra ta' Michael Mifsud. Wasalt tard, u biex żgur ma nitlef xejn intfajt fuq is-sufan bi platt għaġin fuq ħobbi. Mhux se nkompli ngħidilkom kif sħittu ma' l-ewwel erba' furkettati. Tistgħu taraw hawn.

Rivista ġdida

2007-10-31T14:52:00.000+01:00

Din l-entrata ta' Jean Paul tgħidx kemm ġabitli memorji. Kien iż-żmien meta ta' kull xahar kont nixtri l-Forza Milan! (u infallibbilment ommi ttertaqli qalbi biex ittini l-flus għalih - "flus fil-ħela, aħjar taqra xiħaġa sura") u ta' kull ġimgħa r-rivista Sprint (ħafna irħas, allura mingħajr wisq xenati, jew forsi kien ikolli xiħaġa fil-but).

Minn dak iż-żmien 'l hawn ma reġax kellna inizjattiva editorjali stabbli fil-kamp sportiv. Mingħajr dubju, f'Malta tgħallem il-liġi tas-suq, u aktar ma jiżdiedu l-mezzi aktar isir diffiċli li tippenetra d-drawwiet tan-nies. Imma għal xi raġuni nemmen li jekk hawn settur li fih tista' tkampa xiħaġa hekk, dan huwa l-isport, speċjalment lokali. Ma ninsewx li llum jekk dħalt id-dar tard u trid tara r-riżultat tat-tim favorit tiegħek (għalkemm skond ir-regoli morali ta' kull sapporter, jekk lagħab it-tim tiegħek kellek tkun ġewwa tara l-logħba u mhux tiġġerra barra), kull m'għandek tagħmel hu li tixgħel il-kompjuter u tara mhux biss ir-riżultat, imma anke l-kummenti tal-protagonisti u xi opinjonijiet oħra. Jiġifieri, ftit jifdal spazju għal kontributi oħra.

Imma l-istampa hija kompletament differenti fil-kuntest lokali. Tant nies huma involuti b'xi mod fl-isport, fuq kull livell, imma ftit kompetizzjonijiet jingħataw spazju lilhinn minn żewġ linji bir-riżultati fil-gazzetta. M'hemmx artikolisti li jikkummentaw x'inhu jiġri u x'inhu mistenni, u forsi jħolqu xi kontroversja b'kitba tajba ħielsa mill-clichés tas-soltu.

Nittama li fuq dan jiffoka Sportiv. Good luck!

On a roll

2007-10-03T14:12:00.000+02:00

Mela wara r-riżultat tan-nazzjonal kontra t-Turkija bqajna għaddejjin b'mumenti mill-aqwa għall-futbol Malti. Is-serata maġika li kellu Michael Mifsud f'Old Trafford kienet fuq fomm kulħadd, u proprju l-fatt li kulħadd sebaħ jitkellem fuq plejer Malti fix-xena internazzjonali kien l-isbaħ aspett ta' dan l-avveniment. Min soltu ma jinteressahx, jew x'aktarx huwa ċiniku fuq il-futbol f'Malta, kellu jigdem ilsienu u joqgħod jisma' l-paraguni sproporzjonati li bdew isiru fil-midja. Il-ħaġa li laqtitni wkoll hija li Michael (għax issa f'daqqa waħda kulħadd qed jgħajjatlu b'ismu qisu kulħadd jiekol il-kirxa miegħu) ingħata ċ-ċans ikun ma' l-ewwel ħdax fiż-żewġ logħbiet li ġew wara l-Carling Cup, u fit-tnejn sab ix-xibka. B'hekk l-attenzjoni baqgħet kostanti hux ħażin.

Min-naħa l-oħra, il-kampjonat Malti baqa' għaddej b'riżultati interessanti. Il-Furjana għadhom quddiem (issa ilu naqra ma niftakruhom hemm!), qisu kulħadd jista' jirbaħ lil kulħadd, u nittama li t-taqtigħa ddum sejra hekk għal aktar żmien.

A' quand la victoire?

2007-09-17T17:20:00.000+02:00

Il-weekend li għaddha ridt napprofitta mill-ftit jiem li fadalli f'nofs il-kontinent biex immur nara logħba futbol (qabel ma nirritorna għas-Centenary Stadium). L-aħjar okkażjoni fil-madwar hija li nara lill-FC Metz fil-kampjonat Franċiż, u m'hemmx aħjar li tinzertahom meta jilagħbu kontra t-tim rebbieħ tal-kampjonat għal sitt darbiet wara xulxin. Fi Franza l-Lyon, minkejja li bħal kull sena neħħew diversi plejers, għadhom bla dubju l-aqwa tim. Għalkemm tkun tixtieq li tissapportja lill-home team, ma tistax ma tqumx iċċapċap meta jilagħbu l-futbol ixxamplat u rapidu kif ftit timijiet fl-Ewropa jafu jagħmlu. Jispikkaw plejers ta' eta' żgħira li bħas-soltu jkunu mistennija li jkunu fiċ-ċentru tal-qlajja tas-suq tal-plejers għas-sena li ġejja.

Metz tim ħelu. Dejjem telgħin plejers żgħar li jkun sabu Alla biss jaf minn fejn. Il-volonta' hemm tkun, imma l-iżbalji tipiċi ta' tim ta' qiegħ il-klassifika jwassluhom biex jititlfu b'marġni saħansitra kattiv wisq (1-5). Jibqa' l-gost li tara l-futbol milgħub fuq livell tajjeb. Kont ili ma nara logħba sura. Diġa' rrid nara liema ħa tkun li jmiss. Apparti Birżebbuġa kontra l-Imġarr...

Dragut u l-bqija

2007-08-27T11:37:00.000+02:00

Bdew il-kampjonati u d-diskussjonijiet fuq ir-riżultati u l-prestazzjonijiet. Imma jien qisni dawn inħallihom għal waqt xi kafe' jew birra. Inutli noqgħod nagħmilha ta' kowċ jien ukoll u ningħaqad mal-miljuni li diġa' jeżistu quddiem it-televixin. Minn issa nibdew insibu x'ngħidu: Baldini tal-Catania kien qisu wieħed tifel li kien jilgħab magħna fit-triq meta konna żgħar u li meta jitlef kien dejjem idur għall-oħrajn; is-sapporters tal-Milan ma tħallewx imorru Genoa għax kienu ser jipperikolaw l-ordni pubbliku wara li tnax-il sena ilu (le le, mhux eżattament ilbieraħ) kien inqatel partitarju Genoan fl-istess logħba (iva, għax wara kollox hija 'logħba'); il-United kisbu l-ewwel rebħa (forsi meta l-anqas li kien jistħoqqilhom) u issa beda anke l-kampjonat Malti.

Imma qisu l-akbar għagħa bħalissa hija din l-imbierka logħba fil-Vitorja, proprju kontra t-Torok. Ħewla din il-biċċa xogħol, u l-għażla tad-data ma kinitx koinċidenza. F'Maltam fil-kuntest tat-tim nazzjonali, diffiċilment ngħidu li għandna xi rivalita'... u għal din il-logħba ddeċidejna lli noħolquha (forsi frott l-istorja kemm kemm imċajpra li għallmuna, imma nsomma). Sakemm l-għajta sarraf biex ittella' n-nies il-grawnd, merħba biha, u prosit lil min jieħu l-inizjattiva. Anzi nittama li ma tkunx ta' darba. U ma jimpurtax x'ikun ir-riżultat: fih innifsu sabiħ li eluf ta' persuni jieħdu gost bl-okkażjoni u l-futbol ikun biss il-mezz biex xiħaġa hekk tinvolvi daqstant nies f'daqqa u jieħdu gost...l-isbaħ element tal-logħba.

Għal darba

2007-08-14T09:14:00.000+02:00

Fuq il-midja tant mifruxa u aċċessibbli ssib bosta stejjer ta' kull tip, u spiss tispiċċa tiddubita mill-awtentiċita' jew il-ġenwinita' tagħhom. Imma din irrid nemmen li hi vera: żagħżugħ li jirrifjuta kuntratt professjonali fil-Premier League biex jibqa' jilgħab ma' sħabu dilettanti. "Ma narahiex ġusta li taqla' l-flus għal xiħaġa li wara kollox hija divertiment".

Hekk sabiħ il-futbol. Ħalluni noħlom ftit.

It-triq lura

2007-08-09T16:08:00.000+02:00

Dalwaqt naqbadha. U għadni ma nafx sew jekk huwa qiegħed nirrealizza li sejjer. F'Ottubru għandi nirrapporta l-uffiċċju. Mhux hawn imma, fejn meta nħares 'il barra mit-tieqa qiegħed nara ċlampu u xita nieżla bil-lajma.

Minflok għandi nkun Ta' Xbiex, inħares (nittama) lejn il-jottijiet fuq baħar żejt. U dawn is-sentejn u ftit xhur ikunu għaddew qisu qatt ma kien xejn. Meta nerġa' lura anke għal ftit jiem inħossni qisni qatt ma tlaqt. Aħseb u ara issa, li mhix vakanza.

Allura qiegħed inħares lejn l-affarijiet li kont mixtieq minnhom hawnhekk. U fuq fil-lista jkolli ngħid li hemm...erm, iva l-futbol. U iva l-familja u l-ħbieb u hekk. Imma lilhinn minn hekk, il-laqgħat tal-kumitat, tiela' u nieżel Ta' Qali (aktar is-Centenary milli l-Istejdjum Nazzjonali), iż-żmien li nqatta' naqra u nistad għal ideat ġodda li forsi jistgħu jagħtu nifs jew impetu ġdid f'ambjent ikkakkmat b'nies li għalihom il-futbol kien dak li kienu jsegwu l-Gżira.

Insomma, sejjer lura. Il-futbol Malti ma nibqax insegwih biss mill-internet u dak internazzjonali, sfortunatament, ma nibqax insegwih daqstant direttament mill-grawnd. Għalhekk ħa nilħaq nipprova mmur nara xi logħba mil-lig Franċiż qabel ma nerġa' lura. U kważi anke logħba internazzjonali tal-Lussemburgu ma rridx nitlef. Insomma, dik ma tkunx wisq differenti minn fejn sejjer...

Min rebaħ?

2007-07-29T10:40:00.000+02:00

52-49 verament riżultat imdendel fuq xagħra. Il-verdett qiegħed hemm, imma l-messaġġ ukoll. Id-delegati ta' l-MFA għażlu mill-ġdid lil Dr Mifsud biex jibqa' fl-ogħla kariga ta' l-assoċjazzjoni.

Inzertajt qiegħed Malta għal btala, u għalhekk stajt insegwi l-midja aktar mill-qrib: xejn ħlief is-soltu rapport ta' żewġ paġni fil-gazzetti tal-Ħadd. Bażikament rakkont tar-rapporti ppreżentati waqt il-laqgħa. Possibbli ħadd ma jaqagħlu f'moħħu li japprofondixxi kemm kemm b'opinjoni, b'interpretazzjoni ta' l-eżitu tal-laqgħa u tal-prospettivi tajbin u ħżiena tal-futbol lokali? Ikolli ngħid li l-input tal-mezzi tax-xandir fl-iżvilupp ta' l-isport huwa nieqes ħafna f'Malta. Kif nistgħu ntejbu dak li niksbu jekk m'għandna l-ebda ħjiel ta' rispons - mill-pubbliku li jassisti mill-grawnd jew minn fuq is-sufan, mill-ġurnalisti suppost speċjalizzati (li ma jeżistux bil-gzuz, u li forsi s-suq ma jippermettix), u mid-diretti interessati l-amministraturi?

Lura għall-MFA. L-okkażjoni titlob li nifirħu lil Dr Mifsud u l-kollegi li reġgħu ġew eletti, kif ukoll lill-ftit uħuh ġodda. Nawgurawlhom ikomplu x-xogħol tajjeb li jagħmlu fl-assoċjazzjoni u li jtebuh. Il-proġetti mħabbra huma ta' min iħares lejhom b'ottimiżmu. Prosit ukoll lil min ma telgħax, min bi ftit u min b'ħafna. Dan ifisser li l-proġetti tagħhom kienu kredibbli wkoll, u li hemm bosta persuni li jridu jagħtu kontribut.

Wegħdiet

2007-07-24T14:01:00.000+02:00

Biex inkompli fejn ħallejt. Din il-ġimgħa rajt dan ir-rapport fejn Norman Darmanin Demajo, wieħed miż-żewġ kandidati għall-presidenza fl-elezzjoni ta' l-MFA spjega l-programm tiegħu fl-eventwalita' li jkun elett. Fl-istess nifs, f'dawn l-aħħar ġimgħat rajna sensiela ta' inawgurazzjonijiet, mill-kwartieri l-ġodda ta' l-assoċjazzjoni fil-Millenium Stand sal-wiċċ il-ġdid fis-Centenary Stadium.

Issa. Jiena nifhem li l-element ta' politika fil-makkinarju ta' l-amministrazzjoni huwa neċessarju biex wieħed jaċċedi għal ċerti karigi. Nifhem li trid tkun attraenti biex tiġbed lil min ser jivvota u turi x'għamilt jew x'bi ħsiebek tagħmel. Iżda wisq nibża' li dan qiegħed isir mhux biss biex id-delegati li għandhom vot ikunu infurmati aħjar. Hawnhekk qiegħed jittieħed kapital minn nuqqas kbir li għandna fil-futbol (u fl-isport kollu) Malti.

Kif nixba' ntenni, iċ-ċokon tagħna jimmanifesta ruħu f'kull aspett, mhux anqas l-isport u t-tmexxija tiegħu. Diffiċli jkun hemm biżżejjed riżorsi umani bil-kompetenza u l-esperjenza neċessarja biex imexxu, f'kuntest fejn l-organizzazzjoni tal-logħba tirrikjedi ħafna, irrispettivament mil-livell tekniku milħuq. Dan in-nuqqas diġa' jinħass fuq il-livell ta' l-assoċjazzjoni, aħseb u ara fuq il-livell tal-klabbs. B'kompetenza nifhem l-għarfien (professjonali/akkademiku u mhux) neċessarju biex tim ta' nies imexxu klabb b'missjoni maħsubha fit-tul. X'inhi l-missjoni ta' klabb? Kemm tazzi jirbaħ fl-aħħar ta' l -istaġun? Mhux biss. Il-missjoni hija usa' mir-riżultati fil-grawnd. Amministrazzjoni kompetenti fil-fehma tiegħi tirrikjedi pjan biex il-klabb ikun stabbli u sostenibbli, permezz ta' l-infrastruttura xierqa li trendi lura l-frott kemm fil-grawnd kif ukoll fl-uffiċċju. Naf x'jiġifieri li tkun involut fi klabb fejn l-għajnuna f'termini ta' jdejn kif ukoll imħuħ tkun verament skarsa. U huwa għalhekk li dejjem niġġustifikaw irwieħna li mn'alla jkunu l-ftit voluntiera li jagħtu l-ħin tagħhom għall-klabbs. Min-naħa l-oħra dan iwassal biex il-klabbs jilqgħu fi ħdanhom lil kull min joffri kontribut, ikun xi jkun. Dan m'inix ngħidu bi kritika lejn min jipprova jagħti sehmu, minkejja li ma jkunx xi espert. Anzi. Is-suspett tiegħi huwa li n-nuqqas ta' professjonaliżmu li jeżisti fil-klabbs minħabba r-raġunijiet li għadni kemm tajt jiġi użat/abbużat/sfruttat f'okkażjonijiet ta' natura politika bħalma hi l-għażla tat-tmexxija ta' l-assoċjazzjoni.

Possibbli allura li l-klabbs jagħmew wara ftit mijiet ta' kontanti mwiegħda? Sfortunatament iva. Possibbli li l-klabbs jivvutaw (esklussivament) skond l-interessi suġġettivi tagħhom? Probabbilment il-maġġoranza iva. U l-maġġoranza l-kbira tar-rappreżentanza fl-MFA hija tal-klabbs. U allura, dan jittraduċi ruħu fi programmi 'elettorali' li jiffukaw fuq il-wiegħdi u mhux fuq il-ġid tal-logħba. U dan ma jifhmuhx il-maġġoranza tal-klabbs. Ibda minn l-akbar fosthom fil-premier. Ma jirrealizzawx li huma interdipendenti u li qabel ma jaraw kemm ħa jirbħu tazzi, irid ikun hemm strutturi sodi li jipproteġu l-logħba. Huwa minnu li l-klabbs huma essenzjali, iżda huwa minnu wkoll li l-assoċjazzjoni m'hijiex biss il-klabbs, u d-distinzjoni għandha tkun netta.

Ma jkunx lok li r-rappreżentanza fl-MFA tiżdied għal entitajiet ġodda, ngħidu aħna l-plejers u l-kowċis, li għandhom rwol ċentrali fil-logħba? U min-naħa l-oħra, verament il-klabbs jaħsbu li biex ikampaw iridu joqogħdu jistennew il-manna mill-MFA? Mhux aħjar li jivvintaw lilhom infushom mill-ġdid b'mod li jsiru verament finanzjarjament indipendenti u sostenibbli? L-impressjoni tiegħi hi li l-parti l-kbira m'għandhomx paċenzja; jekk mhux il-kumitat, is-sapporters, u jekk mhux is-sapporters il-president li qed idaħħal idu fil-but. Iżda bil-paċenzja l-klabb jinvesti fl-infrastruttura u fit-tfal, u dawk inaqqsu l-ispejjeż u possibbilment iżidu d-dħul. Meta r-rota tibda ddur it-tama hi li dawk ir-riżorsi (umani) tant neqsin jibdew jitkattru. U mhux bil-manna mill-MFA...

Taqtigħa oħra

2007-07-22T12:02:00.000+02:00

Erġajna. L-elezzjoni ta' l-MFA din is-sena xiħaġa speċjali. Diġa' għaddejna minnha tliet snin ilu meta Dr Joe kien sfidat mis-Sur Joe. Ukoll kien hawn naqra għagħa mhux ħażin. Dr Joe baqa' f'postu, u sadanittant ikkonferma postu wkoll fl-eżekuttiv tal-UEFA għal erba' snin oħra. Mhux ċajta.

Din id-darba l-kwistjoni donnha deja vu'. L-isfidant huwa mill-ġdid Norman Darmanin Demajo. Tiftakru l-armonija li kellhom bejniethom dawn it-tnejn meta t-tnejn kienu jkunu fuq l-istess mejda? Issa l-kontestazzjoni hija uffiċjali, u probabbli tista' tkun paġna importanti fl-amministrazzjoni tal-futbol f'pajjiżna. Diffiċli wieħed ikejjel it-tendenzi tad-delegati li ser jitfgħu l-vot tagħhom nhar is-Sibt. Kif inhu magħruf, f'dawn is-sitwazzjonijiet anke jekk wieħed ikollu ħjiel qabel, ħafna drabi l-eżitu xorta waħda jkun differenti. Ħadd ma jkun ma' l-individwu li jivvota, irrispettivament mill-klabb li jirrappreżenta (patetika, imma tiġri). U kemm-il darba l-kontestanti jibqgħu b'xiber imnieħer wara li kulħadd ikun wiegħdhom appoġġ. Nistennew u naraw.

Aktar kien (nofs) sorpriża għalija l-involviment ta' Pippo Psaila. Forsi kien ta' min jistennih wara li esprima pubblikament l-intenzjoni tiegħu li ma jibqax Direttur Sportiv tal-Kumitat Olimpiku, kariga li ilu jokkupa għal 14-il sena. Is-Sur Psaila kulħadd jafu bħala l-ex kowċ tat-tim nazzjonali, li fl-opinjoni ta' bosta kien x'aktarx l-aktar wieħed ta' suċċess (jew forsi l-aktar wieħed li gawda popolarita'). Il-kapaċita' tiegħu, kemm teknika kif ukoll amministrattiva, ma jista' jiċħadha ħadd, u wieħed ma jistax ma jikkonkludix li l-involviment mill-ġdid tiegħu fil-futbol ikun ta' siwi kbir. Minkejja li ma naf lil ebda wieħed personalment, huwa magħruf li Psaila u Darmanin Demajo ħadmu ħafna flimkien. L-amministrazzjoni tal-klabb tal-Luxol li huma involuti fiha hija waħda eżemplari, fejn sar investiment kbir fl-infrastruttura u fl-istruttura ta' l-iżvilupp minn etajiet żgħar.

Min-naħa l-oħra s-CV ta' Dr Mifsud huwa mill-aktar rispettabbli fix-xena tal-futbol internazzjonali. Kemm ilu fit-tmun ta' l-MFA sar tibdil kbir u ħafna deċiżjonijiet ittieħdu bl-għarfien minn qabel ta' dak li jkun qiegħed jiġi deċiż fuq livell Ewropew u dinji (il-liċenzji għall-klabbs huma eżempju wieħed, li tant sabu oppożizzjoni mill-klabbs imbagħad kienu imposti mill-UEFA nnifisha). Dak li jiddistingwieh minn oħrajn li jagħtu sehemhom fit-tmexxija tal-klabbs huwa li jaħseb aktar f'termini tal-logħba in ġenerali u mhux ta' l-element kompetittiv tagħha. Ħaġa li napprezza ħafna personalment.

Issa. Huwa fatt magħruf li dawn it-tlieta ma jaħdmux jekk mhux ma' dawk leali lejhom. Xi tkun is-sitwazzjoni jekk kwalunkwe minnhom ikollhom jaħdmu ma' nies li ma jappoġġawx il-veduti tagħhom. Fil-fatt hija ħasra u inevitabbli li xiħadd (jew aktar minn wieħed) minnhom jitlef u jinqata' kompletament mill-ambjent tal-futbol. Li nispera (forsi ideali wisq) huwa li l-għan ikun dejjem li titħares il-logħba u mhux l-interessi suġġettivi li jagħmlu parti minnha. L-element ta' kompetizzjoni huwa importanti, imma t-tazzi u s-suċċessi tal-klabbs jiġu u jmorru, filwaqt li s-sostenibbilta' ta' l-assoċjazzjoni u tal-klabbs tibqa' l-bażi l-aktar fundamentali. Min iħarisha l-aktar?

Is-soltu

2007-07-20T12:08:00.000+02:00

Filwaqt li Luke Dimech kompla fejn ħallejna fl-aħħar bloggata, it-timijiet Maltin bdew (u temmew) l-impenji tagħhom fil-kompetizzjonijiet Ewropej. Issa aktar minn qabel, meta ċ-ċansijiet huma li l-klabbs Maltin jiltaqgħu ma' oppożizzjoni mil-Lvant ta' l-Ewropa. Iżda hawn xiħadd ġenwinament jazzarda jgħid li r-riżultati ta' din il-ġimgħa ma kinux mistennija? Fil-fehma tiegħi, iċ-ċokon tagħna joħroġ ħafna aktar fuq il-livell ta' klabbs. U dan ngħidu mingħajr diżrispett lejn ix-xogħol kbir li jwettqu matul is-sena (ħafna drabi senza interessi) dawk kollha involuti. Għall-kuntrarju, inħoss empatija kbira għad-diżappunt li kull sena joħolqu dawn il-logħbiet. Minbarra xi sorpriża b'ċikka (Santa Coloma ta' l-Andorra rebħu lill-Maccabi Tel Aviv, imma stennew ftit it-tieni leg...), il-kompetizzjonijiet f'dan l-istadju rarament ikunu eċitanti. Ngħiduha kif inhi, huma maħsuba biex jeħilsu mit-timijiet iż-żgħar.

Ma jimpurtax. Il-logħba sabiħa fuq kull livell. Taqtigħa bejn il-Belt u l-Furjana tibqa' dejjem aktar eċitanti milli bejn il-Hibs u Vojvodina. Ingawdu dik u nilgħabuha tajjeb. Fil-bqija, nagħmlu li nistgħu.

Jilagħbu barra

2007-07-13T13:03:00.000+02:00

Għal kull min isegwi l-futbol f'Malta, il-fatt li plejer Malti jmur jilgħab f'kampjonat barrani dejjem iqajjem interess partikolari. Fl-Ewropa ta' l-2007 dan m'għandux ikun xiħaġa daqstant rari. Iżda l-gżira gżira tibqa'. Xorta waħda, naħseb li qatt ma kellna daqshekk plejers jilagħbu barra fl-istess waqt daqs kemm għandna llum.

John Buttiġieġ kien stilla. Għamel ftit żmien ma' Brentford li fih ġie msellef lil Swindon. Gilbert Agius ukoll ma kellux wisq suċċess kemm ma' Blackpool kif ukoll ma' Pisa. F'ċirkostanzi bħal dawn nemmen li l-fortuna tilgħab parti importanti, u ċertament li fejn fallew dawn il-plejers ma kienx għaliex ma kinux biżżejjed ta' kalibru. Iżda min-naħa l-oħra, jidħlu elementi ta' attitudni, personalita' u psikoloġija, fatturi li żgur irnexxielu jegħleb il-Bużu l-ewwel fid-diviżjonijiet tad-dilettanti Taljani ma' Verbania u wisq aktar ma' Genk fil-Belġju, fejn saħansitra għamel erba' snin captain tat-tim.

Issa bla dubju dak is-suċċess jista' jintlaħaq u jinqabeż minn Michael Mifsud. Esperjenza ma' Kaiserslautern f'eta' żgħira bħal ma kellu mhix ċajta. Kelli x-xorti mmur narah fin-Norveġja ma' Lillestrom (waħda mill-bloggati tal-bidu) u kien jidher li huwa wieħed mill-aħjar plejers tal-klabb. Issa l-qabża għall-futbol Ingliż fiċ-Championship. Jekk wieħed isegwi ftit x'jingħad mill-partitarji, Mifsud diġa' huwa wieħed mill-favoriti fir-Ricoh Arena. L-istaġun li jmiss huwa kruċjali. Nawgurawlu.

Sadanittant, oħrajn ser jittantaw xortihom. Nemmen li anke meta l-plejers Maltin jittantaw xortihom anke f'diviżjonijiet verament baxxi barra minn Malta jkunu qegħdin jagħmlu tajjeb. Min hu verament ta' stoffa ċertament li għandu aktar ċans jolqot l-għajn. Hija sfortuna tal-gżira li tgħodd għal kull qasam, wisq aktar il-prestazzjoni ta' atleta. Barra minn hekk, anke l-fatt biss li plejer ikun espost għal metodi, attitudni u sfidi ġodda huwa pożittiv. Andre' Schembri ser ikun jilgħab ma' Entiracht Braunschweig fir-Regionalliga Nord, it-Tielet Diviżjoni Ġermaniża maqsuma ġeografikament. Haber qisu ma saddad imkien...il-Bulgarija kienet l-ewwel esperjenza, US Quevilly forsi kien livell baxx wisq. Ma' Virton milli stjat insegwi naħseb li ġera qabel ma beda jimxi. Id-diskors fuq trasferiment ulterjuri ma' tim aħjar minn qabel ma stabbilixxa ruħu fit-tim naħseb li m'għamillux ġid. Issa l-avventura fil-Greċja. Nawgurawlu wkoll. Il-mixja kostanti lejn livell ogħla trid tkun sostnuta minn prestazzjonijiet tajbin u kontinwi. Il-bqija jiġi waħdu.

Is-sitwazzjoni għal oħrajn qisha għadha mhux daqstant magħrufa. Gilbert Agius qiegħed jissemma' li jista' jingħaqad ma' tim Żvediż għal ftit xhur (Enkopings SK fit-Tieni Diviżjoni). Dejjem esperjenza, għalkemm Gilbert jidher li qalbu marbuta wisq mal-Belt. Luke Dimech jista' jerġa jingħaqad ma' tim Ingliż u Bogdanovic għandu ċ-ċansijiet tajbin tiegħu wkoll. Iżda hemm ukoll il-pożittiv fi plejers aktar żgħażagħ. Andre' Agius għandu quddiemu staġun kruċjali ma' Messina (jew mat-tim lil min isellfuh) filwaqt li oħrajn iżgħar jidher li qegħdin ikunu esposti mhux ħażin lilhinn mix-xatt.

Nipprova nsegwi kemm nista'...

Għall-Belt dis-sena?

2007-07-11T11:25:00.000+02:00

Orrajt, mela ejja nibdew nieħdu naqra gost inħejju ruħna għall-istaġun li jmiss għax id-dwejjaq li jkun hawn meta l-gazzetti jibdew jitqanżħu biex isibu xiħaġa ġdida xi jgħidu fuq il-futbol irridu negħlbuh b'xi mod.

Il-kampjonat Malti sar qisu dak Norveġiż, bażikament bilkemm jieqaf fis-sajf. Fix-xemx taqli l-ankri ta' Lulju jkunu qegħdin fil-preseason(!) u diġa' għandna tim barra mill-Intertoto (iva, ta' l-istaġun 07/08).

Imma...kellna naqra trasferimenti interessanti u kollox jindika li l-Belt ikkargati li jikkompetu għall-unuri. Ir-raġuni hija ovvja...hemm il-boqxiex. Għalina li noqogħdu ċiċċi beqqi tajjeb, għax l-affarijiet isiru daqsxejn aktar interessanti. Il-Ġermaniż il-ġdid għad irridu nara x'isarraf, imma plejers bħal Monesterolo, Giglio, Scicluna u Hogg huma garanzija mhux ħażin. Iżda xorta waħda għad hemm min jikkompeti...Sliema, Hibs u Marsaxlokk jibqgħu pretendenti kredibblli.

U għar-relegazzjoni? Possibbli l-Furjana ħa jerġgħu joqogħdu jitmieku fir-Relegation Pool? Ftit hemm x'jindika l-kuntrarju...u onestament ngħid ħasra. Fid-diviżjonijiet inferjuri għadni ma segwejtx biżżejjed biex inkun aġġornat. Normalment ukoll ikun hemm min jindika l-miri tiegħu billi jingaġġa numru ta' plejers.

Iġri jibda l-futbol milgħub!

Much too wet

2006-11-24T11:07:00.000+01:00

The Women's preliminary tournament is over...or almost. Malta lost heavily, as expected, against a clearly superior Slovakia side. However, the weather and pitch conditions sweeped all hopes of entertainment as the players ended up clearing the ball to and fro by just a few meters. On the other hand, in some other obscure stadium in Luxembourg, the match between the hosts and Lithuania was rightly abandoned. Both matches were being played at the same time and certainly not miles apart, under the same weather. One ended up being a farse...the other apparently not.

We still thanked the girls for their effort. No doubt, the biggest disappointment is the defeat against Luxembourg which had probably illuded us all in the beginning. Still a good experience. And we enjoyed it.

UEFA Women's Championship:

2006-11-19T14:11:00.001+01:00

Malta 0-0 Lithuania

It was my first time, and I must say I enjoyed it. With me a good numbers of compatriots here in the Grand Duchy. Apart from the result, which is probably a fair reflection of the game, our team showed great spirit and that was the best thing of the evening. The girls' collective effort was admirable and they were very appreciativ of our modest, but probably unexpected, support.

There are two other fixtures to be played here, one against the home team, which is making its international debut, and another against Slovakia, the clear favourites to win the group and proceed to the next round.

Well done and good luck girls! Keep it up!

Commerce et démocratie: Le double jeu des Occidentaux

2006-10-27T09:50:00.000+02:00

La France n’a pas d’amis, elle a des intérêts, disait en substance feu le général Charles de Gaulle. Des décennies après, un non moins célèbre héritier du gaullisme, Jacques Chirac en l’occurrence, redonne du tonus à cette assertion en se rendant en Chine populaire, en quête de...marchés !

Parce que ce pays a longtemps été décrié pour la question des droits de l’homme, il apparaît fort important de dénoncer le double jeu des Occidentaux, auquel on commence à trop s’habituer, ce "dialogue stratégique" qui se fait de moins en moins discret !

L’Occident, il est vrai, ne s’embarrasse plus de considérations morales. Au nom du pétrole, du gaz, des métaux précieux, du bois, de l’aéronautique, du nucléaire, de l’armement et de l’électronique, il est prêt à tout brader. La sempiternelle question des droits de l’homme appartient bel et bien au passé. Vive le commerce : l’argent n’a point de couleur, le marché point d’odeur !

- from Le faso.net

Bojkott

2006-10-13T23:40:00.000+02:00

Mela nhar l-Erbgħa, fit-tentattiv li nivvinta xiħaġa x'nagħmel, ħadt spunt minn nofs kelma ta' Mark u spiċċajt kaxkart is-solitu Letis, u did-darba ġie wkoll Aaron, sa l-Istade Josy Barthel. Kif! Ma tafx liem hu? Ma ntikx tort. Dan huwa l-verżjoni Lussemburgiża ta' Ta' Qali. U biex ingħidilkom Lussemburgu vs Bulgarija ma setgħetx tfakkarna aktar minn hekk f'Ta' Qali: attendenza kemm kemm issejħilha suffiċenti għall-pajjiż li hu, Bulgari daqs kemm kien hemm Lussemburgiżi, logħba medjokri, prestazzjoni tajba u telfa.

Minn banda ħassejtni qed nitkessaħ meta bdejt ngħaddi battuti ironiċi fuq l-ambjent li konna fih. Jien li ġej minn pajjiż b'tim ta' l-istess kalibru imma li x'aktarx f'kuntesti oħrajn wasal ħafna inqas. Imma nsomma dik ħaġ'oħra. L-għada ġiet f'idi l-gazzetta, u t-titli u l-kummenti kienu l-istess! Ħasra wara prestazzjoni tajba...jonqosna nagħmlu dak il-pass biex niksbu r-riżultat eċċ eċċ.

L-ironija hi li kif jaf kulħadd, dakinhar Malta kisbet l-aktar rebħa pretiġjuża fl-istorja tal-logħba fil-gżira. Il-mistħija mbagħad kienet riflessa fuq l-iskrin tal-kompjuter meta għamilt sa nofsillejl nistenna li b'xi mod nara l-gowls jew għallinqas x'ħa jgħidu l-aħbarijiet Maltin. Dlonk intasabt, kif ngħidu, quddiem id-di-ve u spiċċajt nara l-aħbarijiet tan-Net. U dawn għamlu siegħa jitkellmu fuq Tonio Borg, nofs ta' nhar jitkellmu fuq il-GWU (li ma setgħux jiffilmjaw ġewwa, li għalhekk il-GWU għadha u ħa tibqa' union leninista u x'naf jien...), imbagħad kien imiss rappurtaġġ minn Ħal-Safi dwar 'ċentru ta' matul il-ġurnata' għall-anzjani (il-bqija taċ-ċentri huma ta' bil-lejl), u mbagħad....iva ta! semmew il-problema nukleari mal-Korea ta' Fuq f'5 sekondi! Wasal l-isports (sa bħalissa kont wasalt biex nidħol għax-xogħol). Tennis......boċċi.......spiċċa!

Għall-kronaka....minn qiegħ il-Lussemburgu naf li la TVM, la Super 1, la Net u lanqas ħadd (ħlief l-RTK mid-dehra!) ma għadu jsemmi r-riżultati tal-futbol. Għala? Għax Joe Mifsud talab xi 400 biljun Euro għad-drittijiet (qed nitkellmu dwar xi Lm 25000). Dawn l-istazzjonijiet kollha f'daqqa (wieħed minnhom taħt l-obbligu tas-servizz pubbliku) qed jirifjutaw li jħallsu aktar minn kwart li kienu jħallsu sas-sena l-oħra. U sadanittant, jgħolli subajgħ min kien jaf li Malta rebħu (aqta' 'l dawk li ħaqqhom prosit talli marru l-grawnd - nofshom tfal tan-nurseries) jekk mhux l-għada filgħodu - probabbli minn xi uefa.com!

Lille (Lens)

2006-10-02T20:46:00.000+02:00

Dosing off with Gazzetta pages all around me I was gearing up for the Lille-Milan Champs Lge fixture. I was sure I wouldn't finish off the article before passing out. Yet, a tiny parenthesis in the middle of nowhere said (in a way indicating it was so superfluous to the reader that it could have easily been left out) that the match was going to be played in Lens, not Lille. Yeah right...I might have been dreaming already. No I wasn't! I had a hotel booked in Lille, and my French geography did not permit me to stay calm since Lens is only half an hour south of Lille. Only after checking mappy did the panic start to ease off.

Since the group draw was made, I knew I couldn't miss the fixtures in Lille and Anderlecht...Milan close to home. To say that getting tickets is rather complicated is an undrestatement. It involves a lot of emails, telephone calls (some of them including some very helpful, gentle, colourful Italian language), mad driving, meeting strangers etc. The end result is you're entering the Felix Bollaert, Lens's concrete people container - used in France 98 - with the visiteurs surrounded by hoards of impressively serious looking policemen in full riot gear.

I won't bother you much with the game. A 0-0 which won't exactly be remembered in the history of football. With just one forward Milan are always less spectacular. But it's always nice to be close to your beniamini.

By the way, the 30 minute drive back to the hotel waiting for us in Lille took us an hour and a half. It was to be expected when a city moves to another to watch its football team play. It proved to be worth it. Lille is a charming city...3 hours to reach it slightly less.

Latest football trip: Turkey 2 - 0 Malta

2006-09-07T12:45:00.000+02:00

Commerzbank Arena, Frankfurt

This one was even more complicated. Normally getting tickets is the trickiest bit. This time around we wanted to watch a game which was being played behind closed doors (a disciplinary consequence of the Turkish fracas against the Swiss in their decisive World Cup qualifier), which, as the name suggests, is intended to do without the presence of the fervent amongst us. Yet, there we were, watching the game from the Commerzbank Arena VIP lounge, sneering as the Turks got edgy until they were sure (late in the game) the points up for grabs were theirs, albeit not without much effort.

But, about the game itself, more to come as I've got some thoughts to share for those who are interested...

Summertime is boring

2006-08-02T16:56:00.000+02:00

For the football fan, especially in world cup years (after a month-long indigestion), summer is the most boring time of the year. Not only because no (real) football is played, but especially because of the truckloads of rubbish we have to endure on all kinds of sports media who just spread news for the sake of filling their pages or websites or whatever. I personally end up following Intertoto matches, all kinds of European competition preliminaries (where you get to brush up your georgraphy, especially that of Eastern post-1989 Europe as you try to figure out who the hell Hafnarfjördur are), and ...erm I admit..even the Norwegian League (well, they at least have their league in its most interesting stages, and I can say I have been to one match this year in Lillestrom to watch my compatriot Michael Mifsud - by the way, he might be on his way to a better club elsewhere...). The rest is crap: judiciary proceedings in Italy, lambasting Cristiano Ronaldo in England, and all the transfer news imaginable linked to Real Madrid and Inter (they might take me up for a trial as well in the end).

Happy holidays!

What's next?

2006-07-14T21:29:00.000+02:00

Corriere.it:

Juventus, Fiorentina e Lazio in serie B e Milan in serie A. I rossoneri restano però senza Champions League e partiranno con 15 punti di penalizzazione. In B la Juventus partirà con 30 punti di penalizzazione, la Fiorentina con 12 e la Lazio con sette.

La Caf ha deciso di revocare lo scudetto del campionato 2004-05 vinto dalla Juventus e di non assegnare quello del campionato 2005-06, vinto sempre dalla Juventus.

...u issa s-sitwazzjoni fl-Iraq...

2006-07-11T14:27:00.000+02:00

Tfakkarkom f'xiħaġa din l-espressjoni li saret qisha parti mil-lingwaġġ li nisimgħu fl-isfond kull filgħaxija int u tiekol jew tizzappja. Saret qisha l-għamara, parti mill-ambjent tal-kamra. Jew il-Grande Fratello, it-Twistees jew Daphne Caruana Galizia. Dan l-aħħar xahar aktar u aktar, kienet qisha l-għabra li tħammeġ naqra naqra mingħajr ma tinduna. L-aħbarijiet 'iddominati' mill-futbol. Għalija m'hemmx isbaħ. Imma anke lili ttini f'għajni li wara xi għoxrin minuta ta' skandli għax ir-referi keċċa lil xiħadd inġustament jew għax il-gowl kien offsajd....imbagħad naslu għas-sitwazzjoni fl-Iraq jew fil-Palestina. Niftakar tajjeb meta kont żgħir l-appuntament sagru tal-ġenituri ma' l-aħbarijiet tat-tmienja. Kont nisforza biex nipprova nifhem għala qishom kienu jkunu l-kulminu tal-ġurnata, meta jum wara l-ieħor konna nisimgħu fuq il-Palestina, il-famuża Strixxa ta' Gaża (qatt ma kont nifhem għala jgħidulha hekk) eċċ eċċ...tafu xi rrid ngħid - dawk l-aħbarijiet li dejjem hemm u qisna rassenjati li nibqgħu nisimgħu dwarhom infilsati f'kull bulettin.

Imma terġa' u tgħid, għalhekk sabiħ il-futbol. Għax għallinqas din il-l-logħba sempliċi ġġiegħel lil kulħadd jitkellem dwarha. U mhux retorika din. Hija analiżi sempliċi ta' x'iwassal il-ferħ jew il-pjaċir, id-delużjoni jew id-diżgust, insomma l-emozzjonijiet varji lil persuni differenti madwar id-dinja. U dan kollu għax plejer ikun għeja u ma laħaqx iwaqqaf avversarju, għax Trezeguet ħariġlu penalti 5ċm ogħla milli riedu, għax referi jiġġudika deċiżjoni sekonda tard, jew għax Maxi Rodrigez joħroġlu xutt li kien joħlom bih meta kien għadu daqs tikka. Veru li hawn min ma jinteressah xejn, u li m'għandniex nippretendu li l-logħba tinteressa lil kulħadd...iżda ma nistgħux niċħdu li f'dan l-aħħar xahar il-parti dwar l-Iraq tressqet addirittura aktar lura fl-aħbarijiet. Għax qabel dik kellna ridna nisimgħu li l-Brażil inqalgħu mill-Franċiżi, li Cannavaro qed jilgħab tajjeb, li r-raptus ta' Zidane ħalla lil kulħadd jitkaża...u li l-pizzajoli, Mafjużi u parassiti rebħu t-tazza...

Edson

2006-07-06T17:01:00.000+02:00

Is-suq jiddetta li l-awtobijografija ta' l-akbar leġġenda fl-istorja tal-logħba toħroġ lejlet it-tazza tad-dinja. U jiena ta' marid li jiena kont ili li ordnajtha minn qabel minn fuq l-internet. Onestament minn banda ddeludietni. Miktuba qisha komponiment tat-tfal, u mhux li tgħid li fiha xi rivelazzjonijiet ġodda li jixxukkjaw id-dinja tal-ballun. Pele' qatt ma kien magħruf għal xi intellett ta' l-għaġeb, u għalhekk forsi l-aspettazzjonijiet tiegħi kienu għoljin wisq.

Iżda mill-banda l-oħra sirt naf aktar dwar x'irnexxielu jagħmel dan il-ġenju fil-25 sena li dam jilgħab il-futbol. U għalhekk fittixt vidjows bħal dan...nistedinkom tarawh sa l-aħħar biex tapprezzaw ir-repertorju kollu. Kollox hemm: xellug, lemin, bir-ras, dribbles, finti, kreattivita', saħħa...kollox. Ix-xettiċiżmu tiegħi ġiegħlni saħansitra nżomm għajnejja fuq id-difensuri. Ta' spiss tisma' li l-futbol ta' dak iż-żmien kien aktar 'faċli' jew soft. Pero' f'dan il-klipp ma stajt nagħti tort lill-ebda difensur vittma. U allura, ħa nagħmel pass lura. Għax minn banda veru li l-futbol kien differenti...għal ħafna miż-żmien li kien jilgħab fih lanqass kien hemm il-possibbilta' ta' sostituti jew karti ħomor u sofor(kienet tiġri ħafna li logħba tiddeġenera u tispiċċa b'xi żewġ plejers jitkaxkru u jibqgħu fil-grawnd). U veru li t-tattika tal-logħob dejjem tiżviluppa. U forsi l-kompetizzjonijiet kienu inqas strutturati (ħafna mill-mijiet ta' gowls Pele' skurjahom f'logħob ta' ħbiberija, tournaments, u leagues differenti)...għax lanqass kampjonat veru u proprju Brażiljan ma kien hemm. U veru wkoll li kellu x-xorti jilgħab ma ġenerazzjonijiet ta' plejers ta' barra minn hawn (ma nsemmu xejn, Didi, Vava, Rivelinho, Garrincha, Zagallo eċċ eċċ).

Imma veru wkoll li l-ħiliet ta' dan ir-raġel kienu akbar minn kull wieħed ieħor li lagħab il-ballun matul is-snin. Forsi taqta' xi e%u

Eros: «Moggi voleva imporsi anche con me»

2006-06-06T21:41:00.000+02:00

Corriere.it:

Ramazzotti a Milano per l'ultima tappa del suo tour: voleva dirmi lui cosa dire e fare in una trasmissione tv in cui si parlava di Juve

«Moggi? Ho avuto modo di conoscerlo anch'io: voleva imporsi anche con me». Lo ha detto il cantante Eros Ramazzotti, a Milano per l'ultima tappa del suo tour primaverile, rispondendo ad alcune domande su quanto sta accadendo nel mondo del calcio.

LA TELEFONATA - Ramazzotti, oltre ad essere uno dei più popolari cantautori italiani, è anche appassionato di calcio e tifoso juventino. Proprio in qualità di fan della squadra bianconera era stato contattato qualche tempo fa, così ha raccontato, da Luciano Moggi che lo voleva ospite in una trasmissione in cui si sarebbe parlato della Juventus. «Io avevo accettato ma poi lui ha cominciato a telefonarmi per dirmi tutto quello che avrei dovuto fare durante la mia partecipazione - ha raccontato Eros Ramazzotti - Mi diceva: "prima di tutto canti l'inno della Juventus, poi fai questo e quell'altro". A quel punto, quando ho capito che con lui non era possibile discutere, ho smesso di rispondere alle sue telefonate e non ne ho più saputo nulla».

comments anyone?

PS This is to answer my guilt trip for another blog which I should have posted days ago...when there was a powercut as I was almost finished writing it...

One big disillusion

2006-05-23T20:41:00.000+02:00

You might be thinking this is a great time for futbolite. Lots of stuff to discuss. This whole story going on in Italy, the world cup coming up. Yet there has been complete silence. Indeed, personally I cannot really get myself to talk about football these days. Everything which could be said has already been splashed on all kinds of media, including, and most of all, on non-sports-related media where people who don't have the necessary passion discuss investigations by prosecutions and who demand the resignation of x and y. It's so not good for the game.

So here I am, wondering what a cheated disappointed fan might still have to say. Nothing at all. Hope to see some real football during the world cup? I should be more than eager, being one of the lucky ones to plan to actually watch a match in Kaiserslautern on the 26th June. Yet, the feeling is that football - and probably most sports - on a professional level is one big mess. World cup and all included. Fan talk is there no more. The much loved sfotto' on Moggi and co. has actually been revealed as true!

This is why I insist, today more than ever, that the real game is just round the corner, not on tv in midweek. It is in grassroots football, the one kids play at school, the one you play with work colleagues where the heart is often way more willing than your physique allows! It's amateur teams battling out on sunday mornings where the best part is having a beer with the opponent at the end.

That's were the game resides. That is what leads to an acute form of futbolite.

Not requested by Nike this time...

2006-05-12T12:14:00.000+02:00

2006-05-07T17:57:00.000+02:00

Juventopoli

2006-05-04T14:17:00.000+02:00

Conversazioni tra Moggi e Pairetto

L'11 agosto 2004 il dg bianconero e il vicepresidente della Commissione arbitri dell'Uefa si telefonano e parlano dell'andata del preliminare di Champions League disputato la sera prima tra Juventus e Djurgarden, terminato con il punteggio di 2-2.
Pairetto: «Pronto»
Moggi: «Gigi? Dove sei»
Pairetto: «Siamo partiti»
Moggi: «Oh, ma che c... di arbitro ci avete mandato?»
Pairetto: «Oh, Fandel è uno dei primi...»
Moggi: «Ho capito, ma il gol di Miccoli è valido»
Pairetto: «No»
Moggi: «Sì, come no? (...) Ma poi tutto l’andamento della partita ha fatto un casino a noi»
Pairetto: «Gli assistenti non mi sono piaciuti molto, in assoluto, no, ma stavo pensando ad un altro, quello che aveva alzato era quello di Trezeguet che mi ricordo davanti»
Moggi: «Quello è un altro discorso. (...) Ora mi raccomando giù a Stoccolma, eh?»
Pairetto: «Porco Giuda, mamma mia, questa veramente dev’essere una partita...»
Moggi: «Ma no, ma si vince, ma sai, si dice...»
Pairetto: «Ma questi sono scarsi»
Moggi: «Però con uno come questo qui resta difficile, capito?» (...)

La telefonata prosegue parlando di alcune amichevoli estive che il club bianconero disputerà nei giorni seguenti
Moggi: «Oh, a Messina mandami Consolo e Battaglia»
Pairetto: «Eh, l’ho già fatta»
Moggi: «E chi ci hai mandato?»
Pairetto: «Mi pare Consolo e Battaglia»
Moggi: «Eh, con Cassarà, eh?»
Pairetto: «Sì»
Moggi: «E a Livorno, Rocchi?»
Pairetto: «A Livorno Rocchi, sì»
Moggi: «E per il Trofeo Berlusconi Pieri, mi raccomando»
Pairetto: «Non l’abbiamo ancora fatto»
Moggi: «Lo facciamo dopo»
Pairetto: «Vabbò, lo si fa poi»

La seconda telefonata è datata 24 agosto 2004, il giorno prima del ritorno del preliminare di Champions contro gli svedesi: la Juve vincerà nettamente per 4-1 e si qualificherà ai gironi senza problemi.
Moggi: «Pronto?»
Morena: «Signor Moggi buongiorno. Volevo comunicarle arbitro e assistenti per la partita di Champions League di domani sera»
Moggi: «L’arbitro chi è, Cardoso? »
Morena: «No, io vedo arbitro Poll Graham»
Moggi: «Uhm»
Moggi: «Di dov’è l’arbitro...»
Morena: «È inglese» (...)
Pairetto: «Pronto»
Moggi: «Buongiorno»
Pairetto: «Ohilà buongiorno»
Moggi: «Oh, all’anima di Cardoso, eh?...»
Pairetto: «Eh»
Moggi: «Paul Green (in realtà è l’arbitro Graham Poll, ndr)»
Pairetto: «Come?»
Moggi: «Paul Green»
Pairetto: «Allora è successo qualcosa all’ultimo momento, io ho Cardoso, è successo qualcosa... si vede che è stato male o qualcosa del genere»
Moggi: «Informati, informati un momentino»
Pairetto: «Sì sì, verifico subito»

Sempre il riferimento alla stessa edizione della massima competizione europea, la prima gara del girone della prima fase è Ajax-Juventus in programma il 15 settembre e già due settimane prima (la telefonata è datata 1/9) Pairetto annuncia l'arbitro di quella partita, poi terminata 1-0 per i bianconeri.
Moggi: «Pronto»
Pairetto: «Ehilà, lo so che tu ti sei scordato di me, mentre io mi sono ricordato di te»
Moggi: «Ma dai»
Pairetto: «Eh, ho messo un grande arbitro per la partita di Amsterdam».
Moggi: «Chi è?»
Pairetto: «Meier»
Moggi: «Alla grande»
Pairetto: «Vedi che io mi ricordo di te anche se tu ormai...»
Moggi: «Ma non rompere, adesso vedrai, quando ritorno, poi te lo dico io se mi sono scordato»

Conversazione tra Moggi e Giraudo
Il 14 agosto 2004 i due dirigenti bianconeri si parlano delle designazioni arbitrali
Giraudo: «Lo vediamo subito come tira, tu hai qualche notizia di come tira l'aria, lì a Sportilia?»
Moggi: «Bene, bene con Gigi (Pairetto, ndr)»
Giraudo: «Ma non è come l'anno scorso?»
Moggi: «No, no, con Gigi è una cannonata»
Giraudo: «Perà adesso bisogna dirgli che si impegni per sto' corvo, perchè non si può mica andare avanti con sta testa di c...»

Conversazione su una macchina per un amico importante
Uomo: «Casa Agnelli buongiorno»
Moggi: «Sono Moggi buongiorno. Avrei bisogno di Nalla»
Nalla: «Ciao Luciano»
Moggi: «Io avrei bisogno in tempi rapidi perché siccome dobbiamo fare...»
Nalla: «Sì»
Moggi: «Per un amico importante, di una Maserati»
Nalla: «Sì»
Moggi: «Quattroporte»
Nalla: «Quattroporte?»
Moggi: «Sì. Ti diamo tempo una settimana dieci giorni, va bene?»
Nalla: «Va bene»

Enzo: «Pronto?»
Pairetto: «Enzo?»
Enzo: «Ciao Gigi»
Pairetto: «Ascolta volevo dirti la macchina ce l’ho già praticamente»
Enzo: «Quale?»
Pairetto: «Quindi quando vogliamo andare poi a prenderla c’è a disposizione praticamente la Maserati»
Enzo: «Ma dai»
Pairetto: «Sì quindi»
Enzo: «Madonna»
Pairetto: «Adesso quando rientro domani chiamo direttamente la Casa Reale».

Mazzini su Carraro
Il vicepresidente della Figc e Moggi parlano, il 6 settembre 2004, di elezioni federali e di un incontro con gli arbitri
Mazzini: «Perché questo cogl... (riferito a Carraro, ndr), ricordati che lui crede, che anche se passa così come vuole normalmente, di vincere lui. Invece devi metterglielo nel c... Ricordatelo».
Moggi:«Ooh se ti dico lasciamici parlare, poi domani io ho l’appuntamento»
Mazzini: «Va bene» (...)
Mazzini. «Venerdì vado a fare gli arbitri»
Moggi: «Venerdì vengo anch’io»
Mazzini: «Gliel’ho detto ad Anto’ e mi ha detto che non viene»
Moggi: «Lascia sta’, quello è un ambiente un po’ ibrido, meno uno ci si confonde e meglio è, e vale neppure la pena di starci alla lontana: io uno ci faccio partecipa’, o partecipo io o ci mando Alessio».

Conversazioni tra Moggi padre e figlio
Si parla anche di mercato nelle intercettazioni ed è il centro dei due discorsi tra Luciano e Alessandro Moggi. La prima telefonata è del 10 settembre 2004, la seconda è del 19 agosto dello stesso anno, l'ultima è del 28 agosto e si parla di Miccoli
Alessandro Moggi: «...io l’altro giorno, tu prendila come informazione, poi, io non lo so, mi sono rivisto con Preziosi (ex presidente del Genoa, ndr), come sempre capita»
Luciano Moggi: «Uhm»
A. Moggi: «Mi ha incominciato a fare tutto un discorso, il calcio come cambia, bisogna stare attenti di qua, di là, Carraro, Galliani, poi mi fa, non vi fidate di Montezemolo. Dico perché? Perché io ho sentito una conversazione alla Juve, vogliono fare fuori tutti, rimane solo Giraudo»
L. Moggi: «Sì, ma questa è una cazzata»
A. Moggi: «Io te lo dico come cosa, siccome molte volte Preziosi è negli ambienti di questo genere qui, lui c’è dentro»
L. Moggi: «Non c’è mai»
A. Moggi: «Bé, pa’, io te lo dico perché, insomma...»
L. Moggi: «È esattamente il contrario».

A. Moggi: «Mi ha chiamato Morabito (procuratore, ndr), in particolare Vigorelli (procuratore, ndr), per sapere se volevi fa un cambio di prestiti per pia’ Liverani»
L. Moggi: «No, no, ma perché ora lavorano per la Lazio?»
A. Moggi: «Che ne so, mi ha detto così?»
L. Moggi: «Porca miseria, da quando quello lì ha agganciato lì di sotto, mo ci voglio parla’ con quello, perché gli hanno dato Lopez e gli vogliono dare Marquez, a loro, eh?»
A. Moggi: «Eh, lo so»
L. Moggi: «Quindi è sicuro che sono riusciti a entrarci poco, perché lì non è che si possa anda’ granché, almeno che Cinquini (ex d.s. Lazio, ndr) non lavori ancora con la Lazio».

L.Moggi: «Io a Lotito gli ho chiesto 10 milioni e lui mi ha detto 5, no? Tu gli devi dire: guarda che io posso convincere mio padre a farlo a 7,5. Fagli un po' di storie all'inizio».
A.Moggi: «Ok».
Poi Luciano Moggi chiama un amico del giocatore: «Gli dica di fare meno lo stupido, altrimenti non lo faccio chiamare in Nazionale, così gli metto giudizio, perchè in Nazionale ce l'ho mandato io».

Conversazione con Biscardi
Il dg bianconero si arrabbia con Aldo Biscardi, poi parlano di regali
Biscardi: «Pronto?»
Moggi: «Vorrei il dottor Biscardi»
Biscardi: «Sono io»
Moggi: «Io sono Moggi Luciano»
Biscardi: «Uehh... Lucia’»
Moggi: «Allora ieri ho chiamato qui il nostro amico di Trieste...Baldas (ex designatore e commentatore delle moviole del «Processo», ndr). Gli ho fatto una bella cazziata, ma non ce n’era bisogno. Lui non ha colpa» (...)
Moggi: «Ma se non viene poi un cambio non prendo più nessuno, ma perché dobbiamo ammazzare il campionato?»
Biscardi: «No, tu non ammazzi un c..., magari l’ammazzavi l’anno scorso, mi dovresti da’ 40 milioni, hai fatto la scommessa con me e hai perso»
Moggi: «Aldo, ma io... sei come un orologio già assicurato, che vuoi che ti dica?»
Biscardi: «E dove sta?»
Moggi: «E lo sai che quando te lo dico...»
Biscardi: «E non lo so. Non me lo mandi mai...»
Moggi: «Ma vaff..., uno te l’ho dato costava 40 milioni»

One last tribute to Liverpool

2006-04-26T14:11:00.000+02:00

The casual encounter with a past school mate over this blog gave me the opportunity to try something out, namely giving space on my blog to contributions by other fans.

Those who know me well would appreciate the fact that as a first I am going to publish an article on Liverpool's successful 2004-05 season. No further comment needed. But here you go, just as we get to know who will play this year's Champions League final - the best way to confer last year's ultimate fixture to the history books.

This is taken from the last issue of Anfield Island, the Liverpool Supporters Club (Malta) magazine. Thanks to Jean Paul...

Shankly used to call the league our bread and butter. Then the gentleman Roy Evans claimed that Anfield without European football is like a banquet without red wine. Lately, our banquet, the hollowed turf of Anfield along with its stands produced more than its fair share of wine. From its fierce red one to the mellower white one. One thing is for sure though, it’s been unique, different, making UEFA’s claim of Liverpool being a ‘club without country’ more credible by every day it passes.

Last year for a start was exceptional and totally unexpected after the previous season of poor harvest which only produced enough grapes to qualify for the higher European club in the very last minute. In May, the wine matured into champagne with a sweet, sweet taste – which I’ve never so tasted myself before.

Metaphors and analogies apart, European football has always been a rich part of Liverpool’s folklore. May 25th remains etched in every Liverpudlian’s heart and the glow that emanated from that glorious day carried on and on.
It gave a spring to our step, and a pride that personally I hadn’t experienced. This year’s campaign started well albeit more than a little bit early, and it would appear that the squad is now beginning to pay.

The group stages started smoothly enough with a victory away in Seville against Real Betis. Then Chelsea called at Anfield, and we had a share of the spoils and so on. For the first time, Liverpool won their group and qualification was ensured on the fifth match rather than in the eleventh hour.

The memories of that night in May echoed and echoed around Anfield, the length and breadth of the country and in the far flung cities that the UEFA draw reserved for us.
The belief came back and personally I believed every word I sung when Paris and six times were mentioned.

Along with the belief, responsibility, pressure and expectations followed. The draw reserved Benfica from Lisbon, Portugal. Another club with a European pedigree, a rich footballing history and boasting the great Eusebio as one of their legends. The onus, as holders and favourites was this time on Liverpool’s side with the underdog tag going the opposite side.
Two weeks after the first encounter, Liverpool found themselves with the onus to attack going into the home leg one goal down. It wasn’t exactly a formality, but as said before along with the belief, the expectations were to turn the tie and advance another stage to Paris.

Appetites were whetted for the wine, which makes a change from the usual draught beer. The vocal chords were more than lubricated and the atmosphere something to write home about, with the original banners remembering Liverpool’s history, having a dig at the no-marks and looking with optimism for the bright future.

Wave after wave of attack by the men in red accompanied the atmosphere, but the targeted net refused to bulge. The opposite one did though which left the task even harder.

In face of such adversity the atmosphere grew thicker and the wall of sound taller.

Once again the targeted net refused to bulge. The atmosphere though refused to subdue. European nights last year got the best out of the Liverpool players. The same can be said of the fans. The manager’s name echoed around Anfield and it didn’t go unnoticed. A bond was strengthened in times of trouble and the recipient is more than appreciative.

With talk of money (or lack of it) once again rising at the fore, trust seems to be the overriding factor. The much loved boss knows that talk of an open cheque book is out of question. But he is not looking for it either. He is a man of integrity and above all trust. The thought alone reassures me.

‘The most positive thing for me this week was the reaction of our supporters after the Benfica game. They were the winners. When you're losing at home it's difficult, but for them to sing my name and applaud the other team is amazing.’

The wine cellars will only wait a couple of months to resume their service at Anfield.

My favourite ads

2006-04-21T11:36:00.000+02:00

The count down to the world cup is ticking fast now. Commercials exploiting the fans' passion and eagerness for the competition to start are in full swing. Adidas have given us the Teamgeist ball, announcing there will be an individual one for each fixture bearing the names of the teams, venue and date. Then there's the extra special golden one for the final match. The design of the various team shirts have long been unveiled. Not much fancy stuff here compared to the eighties and nineties.

But what most captures the viewer's imagination today is the tv advert, which now can hover through various other effective media - the internet and mobile phones in particular. Nike came out with the amazing Joga tv, Adidas have their own Impossible is Nothing ads (both excellent sites). I also enjoyed Carlsberg's Probably the best pub team in the world ad with several English past stars now making the most of their beer belly.

Cool stuff. Highly effective marketing. Enjoy the party!

Helpless

2006-04-18T23:04:00.000+02:00

It is hard to bow in front of a better opponent. Yet that's exactly how I feel after tonight's match. In a field where space was surely not abundant, Barca managed to keep the ball, move it quickly and make the best out of the slightest chance given to them. Milan on the other hand did just the opposite. Didn't take the chances, weren't quick, and probably could not get anything more out of such a difficult fixture. Hope is the last to die of course. We'll see what happens next week.

PS I don't really like to write post-match blogs. Forgive me, but I have to bear this one in some way...

Irrid

2006-03-15T14:36:00.000+01:00

Irrid nagħmel bloggata bil-Malti. Għax qaluli nikteb bil-Malti. Għalxejn nippruvaw nilħqu l-massa fil-babilonja diġitali qaluli. Il-Malti jinqara xorta. Jien irrid ninqara? Irrid nikteb wara kollox? Naħseb li naf nikteb? Jien kuntent li naħseb. Forsi frustrat li ma nafx nikteb. U għalfejn għandi nsemma' leħni?

Irrid ngħix, irrid naqra kull ma jinkiteb, irrid nisma' kull ma jindaqq u kull ma jittanbar u jitqies leġġenda. Irrid ngħid tiegħi dwar il-Kunsilli u l-Lvant Nofsani. U dwar ir-raġġiri tas-setgħana. Irrid inlaħħaq ma' l-espansjoni tal-Google u ta' l-Arcelor. U rrid inmaqdar lill-Inter u lil Bush fl-istess nifs. Għax id-dinja ma ddurx oħra jekk nimmissja l-aħħar rebbieħ tal-Pulitzer. U rrid nikteb?

U mbagħad jgħiduli nifhem f'kollox. U ma nkun nifhem xejn. U ma nkun nifhem f'xejn. Imma nifhem fl-immigranti u għaliex għandna nkeċċuhom 'l hemm. U fin-nukleari, għaliex l-Iran m'għandux skop ta' paċi, imma l-bqija iva. Għaliex m'jien ngħid xejn ġdid. U xorta nikteb.

Petange

2006-03-13T15:59:00.000+01:00

Looks like I will start telling bollocks on Luxembourgish football now as well! Can you believe it? Yesterday, we have been to this remote (is it?) village 20km off Luxembourg city. To do what? There's nothing better on a Sunday afternoon than randomly choosing a match from the set of fixtures which you happen to go through browsing a local paper for the first time. So Patange be it. Against second placed Jeunesse Esch (mitica squadra). And, yes, the random addition this time was Norbert...

Freezing. 7 euros. How worse could it be? Where's the stadium? There's no stadium. It's a football field. Rightly so. There are spectators, not supporters. Referee and linesmen are not even Luxembourgish (Belgian, of course). Ladies club is where you can find a cup of coffee to help you raise your body temperature. Most exciting part: Red card, as your team is actually given a freekick - naturally you assail an opponent. Half-time, back home...too cold.

Result, as your curiousity leads you to look for it on the internet the following day: 2-1 for the visitors ('Eschites'?) with 10 men. And what does a Maltese like me, who goes to Petange and back to laugh his head off with his friends over these poor old Luxembourgish football lovers do after that? Can't forget these lot beat us twice last time we met in European Championships qualifiers...

FC Avenir oldest football club in the city

2006-03-08T09:57:00.000+01:00

Forget Ronaldinho and Champions League gibberish. Here's a piece of news of utmost importance which all the fans around the world were anxiously waiting for:

After a while of research, it is now considered a fact that FC Avenir Beggen is the oldest still existing football club in the city of Luxembourg. Founded in 1915, the clubs that were "born" closest to FC Avenir and are still existing are Tricolore Gasperich, AS Luxembourg and Red Black Pfaffenthal, all founded in 1919. After the big merger(!) between Alliance 01, Spora and Union Luxembourg, Luxembourg-City's oldest club so far, Union, disappeared from the map. They were founded in 1908. But they were not the first football club in town ever. In 1907, Racing Luxembourg were established, but in 1923 they merged with Sporting to form Spora. Foundation years of all clubs in Luxembourg-City: Beggen 1915, Cebra 2001, Tricolore 1919, RM Hamm 2004, RFCUL 2005, AS Luxembourg 1919, Merl 1927, Muhlenbach 1932, Red Black 1919 and Weimerskirch 1926. (source)

Catching up

2006-02-23T13:37:00.000+01:00

I still feel (and will for some time I guess) like a freshman within the blogosphere. What aroused my curiousity had been a circle of friends who were already very much into it. Maltese bloggers appeared to me as a most welcome relief making up for the everyday blabber we have to keep up with in our press.

Yet, somehow there are always undercurrents going on between bloggers and this represents another side to the whole blog activity. Irony and all ok, and it's great to show one is able to laugh at others as much as oneself. But doesn't this risk to end up in yet another syndrome of having to battle it out with the 'usual suspects' and leaving behind those debates which attracted me and several others to the Maltese blogosphere in the first place? Does tajbin biss għal bejnietna ring a bell?

I might be naive or even shallow. I might be cheesy, or what about tacky? In that case let me know, and I will return to blogging just on good old football.

Brugge

2006-02-22T13:45:00.000+01:00

Here I am again. Months after my last blog. Evidently, it proved rather difficult for me to keep up with my own blog and with the blogosphere in general. The reason behind my total apathy will be confessed in a later post. In the meantime just wanted to update my football trips with the latest UEFA cup fixture which brought me, with Mark, David and Ian, to Bruges, the pictoresque Flemish city wherein Roma giallorossa embarked in their quest for a UEFA last 16 spot.

After having been constrained to bed for 3 days, catching the 3 hour train to Brussels wasn't really what I was longing for. Waiting for Mark in the grey drizzle in front of Central station was even worse. But soon we were on our way to the stadium, a pretty one indeed.

The match was ok. Roma without Totti but still a very helathy squad (on its way to the 10th win in a row). As usual the Italian style 90 minutes which ended in a 2-1 scoreline despite seeing De Rossi being sent off just after 20 minutes. Fans cheerful and appreciative of their team's effort (Evviva Portillo who is the star player, together with the Leko and Balaban). They still chanted as their team saluted all around the pitch at the end, as the winning team was already having a shower.

The next day we played the tourists in Bruges and Brussels. Although nothing beats the end of the trip at the auto-grill...

When football meets politics

2005-12-21T11:26:00.000+01:00

The title of the post is quite corny, alright. But this is an area I find particularly intriguing. And I will surely have more opportunities to broach on the subject. Partly because the blend between the two disciplines is lately getting even more blurred than the tradition of their fusion suggests, and also because I see it as yet another expression of the passion that surrounds tha game.

I'm not much into the prosaics of modern day footballers' 'autobiographies'. I know that it's an efficient money-maker in Britain, but I cannot see myself having to go through some hundred pages supposedly to relive one football season (and yet John Terry's recount of last season has sold really well in the past months, and that's after winning the league...just imagine Paolo Maldini writing his memoirs - sorry. Irresistible diversion. As usual.). However, I had enjoyed Paolo Di Canio's autobio in 2000. I used to like the guy whose skills had been so underrated in his homeland. He's had his crazy moments, but he's always managed to come out finely with his tricks on the field. Those who read this book might have second thoughts on prejudging the whole mess he's put himself so nicely into by his repeated, presumably fascist salute towards the Curva Nord. I tend to do so as well. But he might be going slightly overboard. His descriptions of the notorious 'trasferte' of which he used to form part of when he was still a kid (and a quasi-professional youth player in the Lazio ranks) gave a more realistic picture of how football is seen by the real hardcore fans in Italy. What irks me is the fact that Paolo is not a kid anymore, and he knows that he's got the media attention all over him with a simple gesture. So I start to question how genuine his behaviour is this time around.
I don't see why he should insist in being an ultra' rather than a lucky footballer who has the chance to play for his favourite team.

Anything which might remind anyone of the mussolini days in Italy is anti-constitutional and illegal. Which fuels the media frenzy even more. Do they really need anything of the sort to have something to talk about in Italy?

More to come...

At the Rockhal

2005-12-15T11:49:00.000+01:00

Yesterday Duran Duran's concert was actually good. It was so cool to see Simon Le Bon and the Taylors so close coming from Jane's posters and pictures almost twenty years ago. And it was thanks to those Music-Trip-day casettes that I knew most of the songs they played. Apart from Simon, who has grown a considerable beer belly and some extra wrinkles, they all look exactly as they did way back in their heydays. Especially John Taylor. And they had a pretty good live show. Who could have ever told me that I would one day watch Duran Duran live, now that most of my colleagues' reactions were: 'Oh are they still around'?

Il Metronomo

2005-12-06T14:50:00.000+01:00

He might not be Franco Baresi or Paolo Maldini, but we're not too far. The tenacity and vision of Demetrio Albertini was also an integral part of the massive achievements of Milan's 'imbattibili' in the early nineties. He's been through it all under Don Fabio, to reach the peak with the scudetto-champions cup double after that magnificent final in Athens against Cruyff's Barcelona in 1994. That particular fixture had a clear favourite, the Catalans, who fielded the likes of Romario and Stoitchkov and who were coming from 4 consecutive league titles in Spain.

He was always at the centre of it all, pun included. That's why they called him
Il Metronomo, he undoubtedly managed the pace of the whole team. And after such a glorious career, he left (temporarily, as we all hope) the world of football without much fanfare. As was his style after all. Far from the media limelight, where possibble. The few personal moments of glory where the (not-so-rare) goals from direct freekicks. As was the case in a Coppa Italia final when he opened the score at the Stadio Olimipico in Rome, to see all the hopes of winning the often-snobbed trophy ruined as the team was outplayed by a couple of Lazio reserves.

In the end, the milan-born midfielder might have been the scapegoat for a couple of anonymous seasons in the late nineties. Recently he has tried his luck elsewhere at Atletico Madrid (where tha highest point was scoring yet another freekick in a derby against Real, clinching a draw in the 96th minute), then Lazio, Atalanta and finally Barcelona. But his home was Milan.

Until we see him again as Mister Albertini...

Latest football trip: Frankfurt

2005-12-01T20:21:00.000+01:00

Here we were again...the usual three, with a random addition, all set for another football day. This time east, longer, colder, more stressful.

First things first. My friends pick me up. It's my role to plan the journey. First mishap. No GPS. Fine. Coming from an island where your longest drive if you're unlucky to find traffic cannot take more than an hour, we panic. The driver (whose notion of reality is at times rather blurred, to say the least) suggests driving ahead and following signs (where any) - actually we expected to find FRANKFURT on the first sign we find round the corner. I suggest buying a map (can't we get back to basics?). The wisest opinion comes (surprise surprise) from the only woman in the car. Let's borrow another GPS.

Fine, so here we go. Three and a half hours of snow, rain and Eldoradio. The awe of the stadium can be felt as soon as you get a glimpse from the motorway. Newly built for next year's World Cup, the Commerzbank Arena is beautiful both from the outside and the inside. The bar a bit less...a coffee can cost you up to 10 euros thanks to their 'clever' system of paying for your ritual snack.

The match (oh, by the way our aim was to watch a Bundesliga match) is between Eintracht Frankfurt and Stuttgart. The previously rather glorious home club which recently had its reputation tarnished with a corruption scandal as a result of which it had been relegated to the 3rd division is currently trying to get back to the glory days and climb up to the levels that matter. Trapattoni's side, on the other hand, is fighting off the dangerous 'draw syndrome' (Inter fans would know very well how chronic this can prove to be!! - couldn't resist). They drew their last 8 out of 11 matches, and they are currently anchored in mid-table, 18 points after leaders Bayern.

The outcome? A draw of course. 1-1. At least we enjoyed the opening goal by the home team. It's so cool to have 44000 Germans shouting 'Eintracht ein, Stuttgart NULL' with their soft spoken tendency which only their very melodious language allows. One tiny detail: for two hours it felt as if only my torso was still alive. The cold was unbearable unless you were a...real fan.

The stadium facilities are state of the art...light years away from the concrete old structures you find in Italy. There are still works going on of course, especially on the outside. The match as a means of entertainment is much more attractive to the fans. To the encounter itself: pretty good. You can recognise a Trapattoni side as easy as ABC. Very pragmatic, everyone strictly keeping his position and with an inevitable gap between a well packed midfield and the two strikers. Up there, Tomasson is still as ineffective as he was at Milan, while Ljuboja is a very interesting player, very fast and dynamic. The opponents on the contrary were adventurous, constantly creating space, especially on the flanks, and fast in their creative part.

Anyway. Mission accomplished. Now we've been to a Bundesliga match as well. The trip back was even more stressful. Looking back? Worthwhile. As always.

Tribute to the Best

2005-11-25T20:23:00.000+01:00

It cannot really be hailed as a literary masterpiece. But one of the autobiographies I enjoyed most was certainly George Best's. His life had enough to fill way more volumes than his own 'Blessed'. These days a lot will be written on one of the most talented and contrasting figures of the game. I will not even attempt to go through the cliche' of his ups and downs and his career highlights and misfortunes.

Yet, after reading his book - after all had felt that due to my young age I did not know much about this much loved character - I kept following Best's random appearances in the media, which unfortunately were almost always related to his eternal enemy, his alcoholic self.

This is why I'd like to remember him like this, the 1968 European champion and Golden Ball winner: the fifth beatle, the first football icon, the flair player who took the mickey out of the opposing defenders, the kid from Northern Ireland who would never have the chance to play in a world cup, who could confuse even Matt Busby, the lover of women....and uncluckily his own destruction.

Lite

2005-11-04T16:24:00.000+01:00

Just in case you didn't notice (actually I haven't done much yet to help you), the lite part in futbolite is a way for me to dare and wander in anything other than football. Because, yes, unlike what some people might think I do breathe, eat, drink and s*** without football on my mind.

I had Mark's same dilemma on Thursday watching prime time television. Admitting that normally my linguistic competences limit my choice, this time I could actually zap between intelligible-sounding channels, namely Rockpolitik on Italian (state) tv, the MTV EMAs and various football matches (in German or French, but thank God watching football does not trouble much the left cerebral hemisphere)...you see I'm at it again! What promised to be a spoilt-for-choice situation could almost degenerate into a prize for the most pathetic tv entertainment, which nowadays seems to be the order of the day.

Presuming I could bear only the music on Celentano's show, including the fabulous Crozza and Cornacchione, I was rather looking forward for a couple of performances at the EMAs. Madonna is always fascinating. At 47 her live act is still powerful and spectacular. She's always had producers who allow her to 'make all the others look like a bunch of amateurs', in Mr Robbie Williams' words. The latter was also fun as he's always somewhat unpredictable (actually I'd like to go to one of his concerts). Coldplay are good and their sound is rather complete notwithstanding being snubbed by some (yes, please do have a look at the link). But that deserves another blog.

What bugs me most is the dismal and horrid multinational that MTV has become (for quite a number of years now), where music has long been relegated in terms of the station's sell-to-teenagers target. Of course you have to take such awards with a pinch of salt. It takes just a look at the various categories of nominees to figure out that what mattered most were the 13 million teenagers who 'voted' and the coverage the commercial partners (even bigger than MTV) get. The legendary Black Eyed Peas together with U2, Coldplay and The Gorillaz for 'best group' says it all (oh, so Black Eyed Peas are actually a group! hmmm).

Anyway, I ended up missing on some (and they were indeed a few) good parts of Rockpolitik, missing half of Coldplay's performance and not knowing any of the Uefa cup matches results...;)

Les grenats

2005-10-31T13:45:00.000+01:00

I admit that for me the word 'granata' meant only Torino. But residing at this crossroad is bringing me to unexplored stadiums, cities and fans. The latest one is the Stade St Symphorien home of les grenats of FC Metz. Of course we chose the best fixture possible as they were playing Gerard Houllier's Olympique Lyonnais. Any further comment on the opponents would be superfluous. So here we were in a very welcoming stadium, in the grenats' ultras favourite sector supporting the team currently anchored in last position of Ligue 1 playing the first, and undoubtedly best team of the league.

Planning is of course part of the fun...first consulting a map to see which team in which league would be playing the best fixture on the day chosen, getting to know where to get tickets from, making sure we will be able to find the place etc etc. Then comes the company of a couple of equally sick football lovers which is essential. Of course there will be many other trips to come and by time I will perhaps get better.

Metz have been quite resilient in the French top league along the years. Their best era was the mid-nineties when they won the League Cup and finished second in Ligue 1 behind RC Lens a year later. For the record they have won the French cup and another league cup all between 1984 and 1988. Their participation in European competitions has also been rather constant, albeit always anonymous.

Anyway, if you really want to know the final result was 0-4. But against the likes of Carew, Juninho, Wiltord, Tiago and Malouda we could not really hope for anything much different. But there is always an element of sympathy towards the underdog. We will have to see what the grenats will be up to in 6 months time...

And to look for an interesting Bundesliga fixture we go...

2005-10-31T13:39:00.000+01:00

This is a sign in Ecthernach, on the very fringe of Luxembourg on its border with Germany. Now I know why they stand 152nd in the Fifa rankings and why you can have a (lower division) competitive match and the referee does not show up... Coming from a Maltese fan it's really bad.

The game at its worse...

2005-10-21T12:22:00.000+02:00

From Il-Giornale (21-10-05):

Profondo Sud. Nei metodi, nel vivere lo sport, nel far risuonare sullo sfondo un vago clangore di «scacciapensieri». C'è un terzino da comprare, sarebbe pure bravo. Anche perché è figlio di quel Loseto che giocò in serie A. E allora? Compratelo oppure andatelo a guardare quando gioca. No, in questo profondo Sud che sta ritrovando consuetudini selvagge, un terzino bravo non lo si compra, lo si ottiene gratis con la forza. Roba da Padrino, da retro di un macello con i quarti di bue appesi e l'ostaggio che ulula. Roba da mazza da baseball fatta luccicare davanti al naso. Il fatto è regolarmente accaduto come da denuncia. La polizia ha sottoposto a indagini le due persone che ieri sera avrebbero aggredito il presidente del Monopoli calcio Vito Ladisa per costringerlo - secondo la denuncia che lo stesso imprenditore ha presentato - a cedere a titolo gratuito al Brindisi calcio il terzino del Monopoli (serie D) Gianluca Loseto, figlio di Onofrio (mediano del Bari negli anni '90).
A quanto si è saputo, agenti della squadra mobile sono giunti ai due aggressori, che hanno agito con i volti coperti da bandana, su indicazione dello stesso Ladisa che ha indicato i loro nomi nella querela presentata mercoledì sera in questura. Secondo la denuncia, Ladisa è stato aggredito nella sua ditta di ristorazione che si trova in via Napoli, a Bari. I due malviventi hanno fatto irruzione e con metodi da telefilm di quart'ordine hanno tentato di estorcere al presidente la firma per la cessione gratuita del calciatore. Della serie: «Se non firmi ti sfregio. Se continui a non firmare ti ammazzo».

Da qui la denuncia, l'inchiesta, gli arresti. Loseto junior resta al Monopoli. Che trattativa.

Sheffield FC oldest club in the world

2005-10-14T09:37:00.000+02:00

From Soccernet.com :

Real Madrid will make the trip to Sheffield in 2007, but not to Wednesday or United.
The Spanish giants have agreed to be part of Sheffield FC's 150th anniversary celebrations.
Sheffield FC, who play in the Northern Counties East League, are the oldest football club in the world, formed in 1857.

Last year, Real and Sheffield FC became the only two clubs to be awarded the FIFA Order of Merit as part of the body's Centennial festivities.
FIFA usually concerns itself with international football but specifically chose the two clubs for the special honour - uniting the oldest and the greatest.

Sheffield FC chairman, Richard Tims, has spent years reorganised and rebuilding Sheffield FC - including moving them to their own ground in Dronfield, a village just south of the city. And in more recent times he has been organising a huge party to celebrate their 150th birthday.
This week Tims was in Madrid to meet Real officials and confirm they would be supporting the celebrations.

Real Madrid vice-president Emilio Butragueno personally showed Timms and fellow club director Simon Webster around the famous Bernaneu stadium.
A partnership and in-principle activity was agreed and will be formalised over the coming months.

Sheffield FC are planning to invite a number of teams to play at their Coach and Horses ground in 2007, and it's looking increasingly likely that Real will provide the showpiece event.
Tims said: 'This is a huge step on the road to our goal of establishing Sheffield FC as a major brand within the sport. Our unique position as the world's oldest club means we are taken very seriously by football's leading lights - like FIFA, and Real Madrid.

'The fact that Mr Butregueno is exploring the possibility of sending a Real Madrid team over to play against us in 2007 says a lot about how far we've come and the potential for the club.'

2005-10-13T21:35:00.000+02:00

Ok, so the question is whether this blog will be just about football. In actual fact, my very first thought was that this should be a place for lovers of the game. But coming to think of it the name should not act as a constraint. Instead, I'll try to express myself on other things, but I am sure I can still do it as a futbolite. Mixed up? We'll see.

In the meantime, my internet wanderings this week have thrown at me some interesting stories. For example the drama of poor Cameroon full-back Pierre Wome who missed a decisive penalty in the 93rd minute which meant that his team would miss the world cup. It can barely get any worse (Milan fans do know something about suffering lately...but more of that later). But there are several experiences of bitter disappointment and mishaps which at times carry the mood of whole city or nation. The rummaging through Wome's house and the danger for his relatives is stuff for non-fans. The same can be said for the rather unfortunate (to say the least) guy who shot himself by mistake while celebrating the Croatian qualification. A revolver isn't exactly a scarf, a banner or a flag....

But back to extraordinary stories of extraordinary fans. This swedish guy won a great lottery and the first thing he could think about was buying his idol Ibrahimovic to play in his hometown club in the Swedish second Division. I will add the sad part to the story myself: I guess Zlatan's opinion would not be so romantic. And only becauseVisby (yes, that's the name of the club) do not play Champions League football (!)

And finally....what about the results of the Maltese national team lately? Croatia and Bulgaria aren't exactly Tagikistan and Lesotho! Was it a fluke again? I'm glad I might have to swallow some of words of mine these last days. Results like these mean to us as much as a World Cup qualification (or let's say almost). Time for the hopefuls!!

El pibe de oro

2005-10-10T18:47:00.000+02:00

Like the most naive of debuts, mine would start with the very best there is in the repertoire. And in the realm of football there is no better role than that of el pibe de oro, the one who did anything with a sphere at his feet, be it an adidas ball in a world cup final or an apple during a tv show, he who is the symbol of a nation and the peak of football aesthetics. What sparked my imagination was an interesting article by Ian Hawkey in the London Times (here).

However, I won't be so much daring as to keep trying to find further adjectives for Diego Maradona's twenty years of football, or to recount all that he has attained along the way.

"Beyond everything else, no ball ever had a better experience than when it was at his left foot.” - Jorge Valdano

Quite frankly Maradona has a rather particular relationship, to say the least, with the British. Since denying his achievements is close to impossible, they limit themselves to composed language when they mention the actor who they consider synonymous with the drama of La mano de Dios to which they assisted in a Mexican June night of 1986. In actual fact, it is hihgly unlikely not to find a reference to this match whenever he who cannot be mentioned is in the news [which is to say quite often]. One of the most remembered encounters in the history of the game, the 1986 World Cup semi-final had a significance way beyond the field of play and a place in the final.

“Before the match we all declared that football didn’t have anything to do with the Falklands. That was a lie. We hardly thought of anything else. A lot of Argentinian boys had been killed over there. This was revenge.” - From El Diego

To top it all he scored a game with the help of "God's hand". Till this day Diego hasn't been forgiven for his infamous act. And subsequent encounters between the two nations proves the point (does a rather notorious scene between Becky and Pablo ring a bell?). Hawkey's contribution brings us to the latest confession, which cannot really be described as a sign of good will. In fact in an episode of Maradona's most recent tv venture he declared “He who robs a thief gets 100 years of pardons”. Seems like he would have been an international diplomat in another life! And on this I am pretty sure. Look at how he put his rivalry with the only other person who reached such otherwise-unseen level of football, Pele':

“Who was the best out of us two?” asked a beaming Maradona. “My mother thinks I was. Pele’s mother thinks he was.”

And now? Fans wouldn't bemoan at another Anglo-Argentine clash on German soil next year. In the meantime Diego practices cha-cha, presents tv shows, and copes with the no less arduous task of technical director of his beloved Boca Juniors. And is he investing some of his money into Brighton & Hove Albion together with Osvaldo Ardiles? Oh no but that's another story...