The Dearth of Kampombwa is leading to the decline of Zambian Football

Zambia losing 3-0 to Morocco may have come as a shock to some but expected to others. Those who expected it would say the Zambian game is not as good as it was say in 1993 when we narrowly lost to Morocco 1-0 in a game which made Gabonese referee Diramba famous and robbed Zambia of a deserved maiden appearance at the world cup in USA in 1994.

Whereas it is quite universally agreed that the Zambian game is on a downward spiral, reasons for this will differ from one observer to another.

One reason is that young Zambians are not taking to the game with love like before when people played the game at every street corner and indeed backyard. In the olden days, we heard of the "Kalukungu Stadiums" as kids played football in dusty patches. The ball of choice was a ball made of plastics from the rubbish bin and held together using strings or commonly refered to us "kampombwa". We shall get back to the issue of the "Kampombwa" later.

The second reason is that technique, tactics and other vital aspects of the game of football are not taught at the correct age due to lack of football academies and a cadre of well trained and equipment youth coaches.

There are some footballers, like Andrei Arshavin of Russia who are late bloomers and so show their best form as they age. Even Zidane looks like such a player. However, many players learn their skills early in life and start manifesting their best form by the time they hit 18 or so. Players like Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi being good examples. It is the early teenage when players should learn vital skills.

Zambia lags behind because the players are not learning these technical skills early enough. We need to start early; Anybody emerging from the 5-11 age group has to be comfortable on the ball. And we are not talking of footballing age here by the real age of 5 to 11. If not done, by the time kids join academies, the skills they need later on in their careers have already been lost. We must start with the very young children and we must get the best coaches coaching these kids.

Apart from the skills, other aspects of the game such as the philosophy of the game should also be learned early. When kids are so young, it is not time to think about winning, to think only about winning as you do. They need to learn how to pass a ball, how to control a ball, how to control a game, how to cross, head and shoot. It is not important to tell the kids to win - they must be taught instead the skills that will help them to become winners. If winning is primary, they end up playing roughly and ugly just to win and this seriously affects their game in future.

Most of the time when football kids are young, they should be playing with a football. Give a ball to each kid to play with, look after and even sleep with! With the younger groups the philosophy is about fun and just letting youngsters play, we have to take away the pressure of results.

Kids play soccer because it is fun! Scoring is fun, dribbling and shooting are fun. Being outside with a bunch of other kids running around is fun!

If kids think something is fun, they will do it more. You have to struggle to get your kids to clean their room because it isn't enjoyable for them. Do you have to argue with them to play more video games? Or do you have to ask them twice to eat more candy or watch their favorite TV show? No, of course not. They like to do the things they enjoy.

The development of the youngest players involves ensuring that they love the game of soccer. I want them to love to dribble, love to shoot and love to chase that ball around the junior sized pitch. If they love the sport, then tactics and technique will come in their own time and can be introduced bit by bit.

One of the most exciting things in soccer is to see a skilled player perform a dynamic soccer move in a game situation. Cristiano Ronaldo blasting down the line with his lightning fast step over moves, Ronaldinho smoking a defender with his elastico and Zidane twirling past his opponent with the Marseille Roulette all cause the crowds to jump to their feet with a roar.

There are dozens of soccer moves that you can learn and perfect, but it is smart to start with some of the more basic technical skills as a foundation for everthing else you do in soccer such as scissors/Step Over, reverse scissors, pull back, chop, stop and go and many more.

Players must be competent in all facets of the sport if they are to be a successful soccer players. They need to work on their skills by perfecting fundamental kicking, passing, dribbling and shooting techniques. They need to master a variety of soccer moves so that they can break down opponents one on one. Good players can instantly kill the ball (any ball), get their heads up and move it on accurately with any legal part of the footballing anatomy. And then move intelligently to find space to do it all over again.The best soccer players that I have seen also work on their fitness, conditioning and soccer speed with the goal being to be as good an athlete as possible. And finally, smart soccer players have an understanding of the tactical side of soccer as well, knowing their role on the field for the formations their team runs.

Well, we all know that to get good at something, you have to practice at it. You need a lot of repetitions. If soccer isn't fun for the kids, then they won't want to play or go to practice. If they don't play, they won't get any better.

But how do kids in Zambia get to learn the skills early in life and have a chance to practice day in day out to became better? What did the kids of the 70s, 80s and 90s and earlier practise in ways different from these days.

The answer is they played "kampombwa" which kids of nowadays don't do that often. The "kampombwa" helped hone vital techiques and other vital skills which kids playing the full-sized football these days cannot benefit from.

Many of the skills and apects of the game mentioned above need very good coaches to teach. The lack of good coaches and indeed training for coaches is well documented and so will not be discussed here. In Zambia, the best coaches are in the Premier League and in Division one. However, we need the best coaches at the youth level and in the academies. In earlier days, it was not that we had better coaches teaching the game better. It is not about teaching players to play football. This is best done spontaneously, out in the street, the way it has always been done. Kampombwa. But for all the technological progress, today's generation lacks the same opportunities. The sad fact is that, though old fashioned street and wasteland football can still be found in Zambia, it has come under sustained attack. There is urban expansion and real estate speculation eating up the areas where previous generations used to play. Play packs and backyards have given way to construction as land becomes scarce.

What is needed right now is providing a space where the kids can play, spend time in a healthy and productive manner and hopefully turn into better people as a result.

Can we get back to the kampombwa days or can something be done to help us develop skills for Zambian players? Can we learn from such great footballing nations like Brazil?

Why does Brazil produce so many great players? Many people argue that futsal is the great Brazilian secret.

The term Futsal is the international term used for the game. It is derived from the Spanish or Portuguese word for "soccer", FUTbol or FUTebol, and the French or Spanish word for "indoor", SALon or SALa.It really took off in Brazil where the love of creative football is most manifest.

Pele, Zico, Socrates, Bebeto, Ronaldinho, Robinho, Rivaldo, Ronaldo and other Brazilian superstars developed their skill playing Futsal. Whereas many brazilian footballers start by playing Futsal before playing football, some, like Falcao, the world's best Futsal player, continue in the mini-game without going to the full game. Whereas the argument that Futsal helps Brazil be world beaters makes sense, the answer should be elsewhere because even before the days of Futsal were with us, Brazil always produced great players. In part, for the same reason that Australia is such a production line of wonderful cricketers and South Africa great rugby players. It is part of the cultural tradition. One generation inspires and sets the standard for the next. If Zambia is number 1 in Africa on FIFA rankings this year, children will grew up knowing they need to maintain that position for Zambia in Africa. As for Brazil, Leonidas inspired Zizinho, who inspired Pele, who inspired Zico, who inspired Ronaldo, who inspired Alexandre Pato, and so the dance goes on.

The important thing to remember is that this tradition was established long before the rise of futsal. And more than anywhere else, it was established in the streets and on the wastelands where boys honed their skills in endless games.

Football in South America was introduced by the British. It was then re-interpreted by the locals, the hard running musculinity of the English approach giving way to a more sinuous, balletic game, ideal for the guy with the low centre of gravity. This re-interpretation led to international triumphs and recognition for a region starved of both.

Yes Futsal greatly attributes to getting better players in Brazil but there are other reasons Zambia can learn from. Trying to attribute the success of this process to futsal alone seems to me to be hopelessly naïve.

One other big reason is that millions of players and trained every year as football becomes a global game and means for poor Brazilians to make milions of dollars. Lots of little clubs have been set up all over Brazil in recent years. They compete at youth level only, have top facilities but are not trying to win titles or attract supporters. They are hoping to groom players to be sold to Europe. Promising players - like coffee - are a commodity to be sold to the First World.

This is taking place on an industrial scale like never before. An immensely strong cultural tradition, a huge population, millions willing to take the risk of becoming players, others with money prepared to invest in them - it's no wonder that Brazil is a conveyor belt of footballing talent.

In Zambia, producing players is almost an accident. We have not developed serious soccer academies that churn out good honed players despite seeing benefits of academies. Manchester has been known to produce great players from youngsters such as the class of '92 which had Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, the Nevilles, Butt etc. Ivory Coast has produced many good players due to academies like the one at Asec Mimosas. But in Zambia we are not taking this root seriously.

Even though we can teach techniques via Futsal like Brazil, we are yet to have enough futsal picthes in Zambia to seriously use this route. Futsal is played between two teams of five players, including the goalkeeper. The Futsal court is not separated by walls, instead the court is lined. The Futsal ball is smaller than a standard soccer ball. The emphasis is on ball control and passing in small spaces, as well as improvising and technique. Futsal introduces kids to a smaller Futsal ball which is easier to control. Part of the success of the sport is due to the fact that it can be played in a small space - anything from a sports hall to a tennis court, a car park to a side street. A futsal pitch can be squeezed in almost anywhere. Though the official surface is a gym floor or wooden floor, any surface can be used. Futsal is gaining popularity because of the fast pace and the fact that goals are frequent and can be scored in a variety of ways and techniques which is motivating for the players and entertaining for the fans.

For the first time in Zambia, we watched The Futsal World Cup on DSTV. Brazil have regained their crown as world champions of Futsal. It went to penalties in the final against Spain, but even if the result had gone the other way the tournament would still have been a triumph for Brazil - the squads of some of the other leading nations were full of naturalised Brazilians. There is no doubt that Brazil is the leading country of futsal.

In Zambia, we have a Futsal league, registered by FAZ and sponsored by Parmalat. It has a division 1 and Premier with interest for expansion being there. The fact that the league is only for Lusaka teams and the players are mostly adults who have since stopped playing football, for instance, I founded a Futsal team called Blackboys Sports which players in the second tier and is comprised of players who work and so have no time to play football, It means that in the current set-up we cannot use Futsal to develop the technique of our young players but may do so in the future.

But it is clear that the kids playing in the futsal teams in Zambia have better control, technique and other skills that those we see in the academies and lower rungs of the football leagues. With the 2011 All Africa Games coming up, Zambia has included Futsal on the list oif the games to be competed against and with Zambia having taken part
in the African Championships in Libya this year (2008), there will be need to take the sport to other parts of the country and for investment into equipment and pitches to be made. This all therefore means we still have a long way to go better Futsal can be utilised as a path for developing our football and for to return our dizzy heights of 1994 when we were the best footballing nation in Africa and among the best 20 countries in the world.

The only viable alternative is "Kampombwa" on the streets and in the backyard. We cannot yet afford to build pitches for Futsal in communities and in schools. The poorer kids and young men of Zambia often can not afford to buy a proper ball and make do with cheap, plastic balls or even tennis balls. But they play for hours, honing the skills that make footballers so good at the game. Short players can also become good enough in street football as the game where good balance, explosive speed and the ability to twist and turn quickly are ideally suited to the wiry and agile physique. In Kampombwa, like in Futsal, young players learn the art of total ball mastery, as well as moving the ball using the sole of their foot, the inside and outside, the heel and the ball of the foot to gain control and mastery of the ball, feints, moves, turn stops/starts to get away from your opponents. They also learn how to use their opponent's lack of balance against them by maneuvering the ball with quick turns and change of direction. Kampombwa will develop the players dribbling, foot speed, touch, field vision, shooting power, defensive stance, and overall of the ball movement through drills and one on one training. Eventually, kids also learn player formations as well. For kids, this is a great way to continue to develop their game and get touches on the ball. Remember, the main goal for the young soccer player is to have fun and get touches, touches & more touches.

But we cannot teach kampombwa that much. Even the making of the plastic ball was an art most kids learnt and cherished which also came spontaneously and was not deliberately taught. All we need is to provide the space for the game to take root like it did in the 70s, 80s and 90s.

It is interesting to note that the madalas leagues in Zambia are more vibrant that the kampombwa leagues. This is because the current madalas were kampombwa players when they were young in the 70s and 80s and their love for the sport, which comes spontaneously with playing in the streets and backyards in guaranteed. We allow and indeed entice kids to get dirty and play kampombwa.

Rachel Nachula wins Gold and Sets Commonwealth Record

Rachael Nachula, a young Zambian athlete has just set a new Commonwealth Youth Games record clocking 52.97 seconds in the 400 m women's race finals at Balewadi in Pune. As Rachel was setting this record and winning gold, her twin sister Rabecca got a bronze medal in the event and was only beaten to silver via a photo-finish by India's Machettira Raju Poovamma who came from behind in the last 100 meters to post a timing of 55.17 seconds. 18-year old Rachel Nachula becomes the first athlete to run below 54 seconds in the Commonwealth Youth Games. She bettered the earlier record of 54.46 seconds set by Kim Wall of England at the Edinburg 2000 Commonwealth Youth Games. The world record in the event is 47.60s set by Marita Koch of the German Democratic Republic on October 6, 1985 in Canberra, Australia.

What is immediately striking about Zambia's new find is the similar physique and background before athletics she shares with Mozambique's Maria Mutola; she is 1.64m tall and weighs 60kg and she and her twin sister used to play football in Lusaka, Zambia before they were encouraged to take athletics instead. "I have given up playing football because I do not see much of a future in women's football as compared to athletics. It is encouraging that I have been selected for the team to the World Youth Championships," said Rachel ahead of the games in India.

Zambian sisters Rachael Nachula and Rebecca Nachula, stocky and muscular, bounded down the track on the turn for home in the women’s 400m final and it all looked set for a history Zambian performance until the Indian, running in front of home fans moved up from fifth to second with a lung-bursting effort over the last 50 metres. Rabecca Nachula posted 55.20 which ensured she witnessed the Zambian flag being hoisted for her elder sister from the medal podium.

On the track, Rachael finished the semi-final heat one on first position clocking 54:74 seconds to qualify to the finals as top seed ahead. Rebecca, qualified to the finals after clocking 55:31 seconds to finish third in heat two behind Indian, Poovamma Raju Machettira (55:10) and England's Shelayna Oskan (54:90). Earlier in the first round, Rachael was number one in heat one with time of 56:23 seconds while Rebecca despite recording better time (55:88) than her sister, finished heat three in second position.

Background and Progress

I have never met Rachel personally though I have met other athletes like the Great Kalu, Carol Mokola, Tiger Boy Nkandu, the legendary Samuel Matete and even Esther Phiri who have put Zambia on the map. But her story is the stuff for the movies and so she is the first athlete I am blogging in details. Like a grade 1 singing the Zambian national anthem, “Stand and sing’o Zambia, ploud Humphrey . . . . “, I hereby sing her praises.

Rachael, of Green Buffaloes athletics club and on an International Olympics Committee (IOC) scholarship in the University of Pretoria's Hign Performance Centre in South Africa, has been fighting the odds all through her life.

The Zambian athlete has a personal best of 51.39s, clocked at the African Championships in Addis Ababa on May 2, 2008 when she took a bronze there. In the indoor version of the event, her personal best is 53.30s, set in Valencia, Spain in March 2008 during the 12th IAAF World Indoor Championships when she came 4th in the semi-fianl. She was in the national squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where she made it to the semi-finals of the 400m. She finished last in the event and posted 52.67s.

It has not been plain sailing but Rachel has achieved a lot in a short time of 3 years. A gentleman called Michael Lungu, based in Sudan, claims to have been the first coach to identify her from the inter-Schools competition held in Chongwe around 2004. This was part of the Zambia Amateur Athletics Association’s Talent Identification Programme. He later took her to the Police Team.

However, National Olympic Committee of Zambia Secretary Hezel Kennedy claims her career in athletics started with Outreach Community Club run by Hanson Mushili in Lusaka. If her initial steps are yet to be cleared, her racing credentials are not shroud in clouds of doubt.

Rachael Nachula announced her arrive in the world of athletics at the Southern Africa Regional Championships meet held at Harare, Zimbabwe, in July, 2005. She was perhaps the biggest revelation of the games.

Running barefoot, Rachael won the senior women's 400m (53.8) and 200m (24.0). She went on to anchor Zambia's 4x 400m relay where she held off the challenge from Piliza Leona to propel Zambia (3:47.3) to victory over Mozambique (3:47.6) and South Africa (3:51.3). Only 16 years (born on 14 Jan 1990), Rachael was competing in just her third athletics meet. Her first was the Zambian National Championships in Lusaka earlier on and the Southern Africa Youth Championships on 5th June where she set a championship record when she came first in the 200m with 24.49 seconds.

100m Performances

Nachula was in superb form at the 2008 Namibian Track and Field Grand Prix when she posted her personal best time in the 100 meters race with the time of 11.71 seconds adding to her new time in the 400 meters which saw her through to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

200m Performances

In July 2005, straight from Southern African Regional Championships, Rachel went on to compete in the 4th IAAF World Youth Championships in Marrakech, Morocco. She came out 7th in the semi final of the Girls 200m with a worse time of 24.79s.

The following year, in March 2006 during the 18th Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia, Rachael came out 5th in her heat in a time 24.38. This was her second personal best at the time. Later in the year in June, she was to run 24.49s in Pretoria, South Africa.

In June 2006, during the 11th IAAF World Junior Championships in Beijing (Chaoyang Sport Center), she ran a time of 24.51.

The following month in Windhoek, she improved her time to 23.89s.

Her personal best time in the 200m outdoor event came in Gaborone in May 2007 at the CAA Permit Meeting in Gaborone, Botswana when she won the final ahead of South Africa’s Estie Wittstock.

In February, 2008 in Pretoria, Rachel ran 23.52s.

In April 2008, Rachael during the t the Coca Cola Frankie Fredericks Invitational (Namibia Track and Field Grand Prix) championships held in Windhoek, ran the 200 meters in 23.53 seconds.

400m Performances

In 2005 Rachael Nachula ran 54.56 at an athletics meet in Windhoek, Namibia.

In 2006, she ran a time of 53.05s achieved in the semi-finals of the 11th IAAF World Junior Championships in Beijing (Chaoyang Sport Center) when she was 3rd.

In May 2007, at the CAA Permit Meeting in Gaborone, Botswana, Rachel Nachula (52.99s) came out second behind South Africa’s Estie Wittstock who ran a season’s best of 52.53sec to win the 400m. Earlier the two had reversed roles in the 200m with the Zambian (Rachael) coming up trumps.

In Stellenbosch, South Africa, in March 2008, during the Yellow Pages Senior National Championships, Zambian runner, Rachel Nachula, came out second in the 400ms and she clocked 52.97. This was an improvement on her national outdoor record by 0.02 seconds and it was a great achievement seeing there was a strong head wind.

The following month, in April 2008, Rachael Nachula qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games after a stunning performance during the t the Coca Cola Frankie Fredericks Invitational (Namibia Track and Field Grand Prix) championships held in Windhoek. Rachel made it to Beijing after clocking 52.21 seconds in the women's 400 meters dash. Although she was not among the top finishers in the 400 meters, her time was good enough to land her in Beijing and become the third Zambian to qualify for the Games. This was also faster than the B standard of the Olympic Games in Beijing. Her performance meant that at the time, the 18-year-old also improved her personal best time and broke two Zambian records in the 400 meters sprint round the track. Nachula broke her Zambian junior and the senior records which stood at 53.05 seconds.

In July 2008, at the 12^th edition of the IAAF World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, Rachael suggested she could make history as a first ever Zambian medallist at the championships by leading the qualifiers in the opening round of the women's 400m. The stocky Nachula ran hard to take heat three in an impressive 52.65 to book her spot for following day’s semi-finals. In the final, she barely missed the medals when came out 4th with a time of 52.44. This was an improvement on her time 53.05s achieved in the semi-finals of the 11th IAAF World Junior Championships in Beijing (Chaoyang Sport Center) when she was 3rd in 2006.

During the Beijing games in the National Stadium, Rachel qualified to the semi-finals whilst posting her second best ever time of 51.62s in heat 7 of the 400m. Five African women made it into the last 16 of the women's 400m at the Beijing Olympics. Botwana's Amantle Montsho, Nigeria's Folashade Abugan and Ajoke Odumosu, Zambia's Rachael Nachula and Sudan's Nawar ElJack all progressed into the semis. Rachel progressed after claiming third spot in her heat.

Congrats!

In congratulating Rachael for her record and the gold medal (not the first of her career though the best honour so far), I leave you a quote one of her fans who said “viva mpanga ya mambwe kwikala yasichula”. And her video from youtube.

Herve Renard is to Blame for Zambia Under-20 Loss to Egypt

On www.zambianfootball.net, a blogger called Whisper had mentioned the best formation the Zambia Under 20 was supposed to use and I even agreed with him about it.

At 1:38 pm, October 10th, 2008, Whisper, on the story, 'Galactico' Fwayo joins U/20 Camp, commented and said:

"… I am worried that we might get overwhelmed using a 4-3-3 formation. The Egyptians are masters at counter attacking and with 4 very offensive minded players (Fwayo, Bomber, Thierry and Kola) our backline might be too exposed. In a 4-3-3 the midfield is very narrow and you have to rely on the the guys upfront dropping back and helping out. If they don't then our fullbacks might be facing 2 vs 1 situations all afternoon."

"I like the idea of Justin and Stophira anchoring the midfield . . ."

At 7:25 pm, October 10th, 2008 I responded and said

"Whisper, that is a great analysis and I am with you all the way."

Admin also did report that the technical bench led by Herve Renard and Oswald Mutapa Jr is believed to have made three changes from the team which held the Young Pharaohs of Egypt 3-3 on their own turf . . .

These two posts by Whisper and Admin just sum up everything. This is where it all went wrong and let me offer my opinion but you can always shoot me down.

1. Zambia U20 has a weak defence and its strength is in attack and so to depend on a defending strategy was myopic by the coaches. We were better off relying on our attackers to get us the all important goal than hope for the defence to hold water all afternoon. "Attack being the best way to defend" was not in Renard's book.

2. Making three unforced changes to a team I would call winning side (seeing that 3-3 in Cairo is almost a win) was unstrategic because it changed the balance of the team and also demanded a different approach. I know that mayuka, Kola and Fwayo are all vital players but the long and short of it is that the players who got us here and especially those who played in cairo should have started with the likes of Mayuka and Lungu wh missed should have been trampcards to
come in and change things at a later stage. Stick to a stable team and avoid shuffling the pack

3. Talking of shuffling the pack, what was Sunzu doing playing at the back? This was too decisive a match to experiment.

4. Did the word "possession" mean nothing to the coaching bench? Are you supposed to defend nby hitting the balls hard and into your opponents half and giving them a chance to build up everytime? We wind time by holding onto the ball, making lateral passes and getting free-kicks and not giving away free-kicks.

5. What kind of midfield cannot tackle? Midfileders were 'escorting the Egyptians' and only using their shoulders to try and muscle the ball away. Just tackle and get the ball clean especially when it is still far from the 18-yard area.

6. Whisper predicting of using 3 strikers and 3 midfielders was spot on. Zambia was overwhelmed in the midfield. We should have played two strikers and then bring on ne later in the game. Substituting Kola and Mayuka shows that the coach got it wrong in the first place and was trying to do what he should have done in the first place which Whisper and I were suggesting. We should have packed the midfield to avoid giving the young Pharoahs any initiative.

7. The technical bench was comfortably sitting on the bench even when things were going badly towards the end of the match. The keeper had kept Zambia in the match at one point he saved when faced with a striker who had beated the whole defence and was just pulling the trigger to beat the keeper. Luckily that shot was straight into the palms of the Keeper and by saying so I am not demeaning the work he did which was really tremendous.

8. Was Mayuka in the right frame of mind after all the talk?

I squarely place the blame on the bench and in this case, it is Renard I blame. He should have started with the stable team and fused in the new guys no matter how good they are and he should have gone for the all important goal.

Which brings me to my final point. We made it to the Under 20 World Cup with local coaches like Chicken George but FAZ was saying this assignment is so important the local coaches needed beefing up with the frenchmen. Does they realise that football in Zambia is mostly played in Bemba and to some extent Nyanja and that the local coaches and more likely to squeeze the juice out of these players better? So now having been eliminated from the cup what does FAZ say? It was better for the local coaches to go for it and fail. At least the lessons would have been learnt and the money paid as allowances would have fed Zambian families. Now the funds have to go to France on top of our loss. Shame.

Let us give our local coaches chance. PP was being lambasted but he is the last coach to get Zambia to win by 2 goals of more. South 3-1 and Sudan 2-0. Ever since, we either win 1-o, both cases lucky through a bolt from the blue (with all due respect to katman) and a penalty (with all due respect to katman's elder brother Soldier or Tsunami). The rest of the results are draws or losses. PP is now showing how good he is with a small team like Nkana (not small in stature seeing it is the most supported team in Zed like Celtic in RSA but small in terms of team and calibre of players). But I don't want PP back at national coach. Let Renard continue but local coaches should handle the junior teams.

God bless Zambia.

Weekend Soccer Analysis

Dirk Kuyt . . .! Best moment? Hull's Geovanni's goal was brilliant,
but it's got to be Dirk Kuyt's last-gasp winner to cap an unbelievable
comeback from Liverpool. Let me leave that for later.

Local Games . . .

In the Zambia local league, there were the Barclays Cup games but I am not going to look at them.

Bundesliga . . . .

Bayern Munich's Bundesliga woes continued on Saturday when they blew a
two-goal lead in a 3-3 home draw with VfL Bochum while promoted
Hoffenheim took over at the top. Bayern were leading 3-1 with seven
minutes to go through goals from Daniel van Buyten and Ze Roberto (2)
only to allow Bochum to stage a comeback with two bad defensive lapses
inside three minutes. The draw follows two successive Bundesliga
defeats and leaves Bayern 11th in the table with nine points from
seven matches in Juergen Klinsmann's first season in charge.

The only consolation for Klinsmann is other title challengers also
lost ground. Werder Bremen were thumped 4-1 at VfB Stuttgart while
Bayer Leverkusen lost 1-0 at home to Hertha Berlin.

Ex-UNZA. . . .

With Manchester United back to their free-flowing best at Blackburn,
Ba Mwenda didn't come and so we missed his goals having being on a
current rich vein of form and having scored the winner for ZRA when
ZRA played Caltex. Ex-UNZA drew with Club 5ive. It was a tough match
with Peter Mwiya doing two crucial tackles and Ole being denied a
penalty in the first half. Club Five, boasting the likes of Australia
Mweemba formerly on Nakambala, ex-international and now National
Assembly coach Alex Namazaba, Mwila Nchimunya, Julius and a host of
other players who have played for local league teams, were a tough
team to crack though Ex-UNZA should have scored through Sheva and Ole
who had the easiest chances in the first half.

Arsenal . . .

Sh*t happens I guess. That goal by Van Persie was a legitimate goal as
it didn't go out. But it was disallowed.

Roy Keane has made some inspired substitutions during his short time
in management to date but none more so than his decision to replace
Dwight Yorke with Leadbitter with just four minutes left on the clock.
Sunderland came up with a moment of brilliance as the young Sunderland
midfielder took possession just seconds after entering the field and
made inroads on Arsenal's back four, before firing a magnificent and
unstoppable shot from the edge of the box into the top corner from the
edge of the box that crashed in off the underside of the bar and
beyond Manuel Almunia. It was Hull City reloaded; Giovanni someone?
Its de ja vou all over again.

That seemed to have won it for Sunderland but there was still time for
a final twist as Fabregas managed to rise highest at the near post to
head in Van Persie's corner. 1-1 was the result at the Stadium of
Light.

"The bottom line for any of these top teams, they will tell you, part
of the game is breaking down the opposition." - Roy Keane. A wry
observation which is spot on. After results such as this Wenger has
often used the excuse of "they just kept 11 men behind the ball"...
It's time that Arsenal learn't how to play and win against such
tactics.

But they derseved the one point if you rated the two teams equally
though as favourites, Arsenal could have easily lost and also
dersevingly so.

Arsenal should forget about winning the league,the ghost which used to
haunt liverpool in the league has gone now to arsenal,the best they
can do is the fourth position.

My nickname for Arsenal and Liverpool is usually '10 game fame' after
that they are gone. This maybe correct for Arsenal I am not sure yet
but Liverpool up to now are proving me wrong. Liverpool I guarantee
will start to go downhill very shortly.

I will talk of Liverpool another day though they look like a great
team this season. That 3-2 win against man City was great and deserves
credit. But how about this for a Liverpool joke?

Q: What do Liverpool do when they win the leauge?
A: Turn off the play station.

Liverpool . . .

It would be churlish to do anything other than congratulate Liverpool
for a truly memorable comeback at the City of Manchester Stadium,
after being 2-0 down at half-time against, let's face it, a team with
Champions League ambitions. Have Liverpool underlined their status as
genuine Premier League title challengers today?

I'm a Man United fan, but oh my word. Any team that is losing 2-0 at
half-time, only to win 3-2 deserves a whole lot of credit! Well done
Liverpool... proven you can play like champions! I know the Scousers
are our bitterest rivals but beating Man City just makes it
bitter-sweet for man Utd. Especially with Man City's big mouths.

This game also proved that Robinho, whilst not being useless, isn't
world-class. Obviously. Sheva will never agree but if he was, would he
let a 2-0 lead disappear while Torres shined? Robinho - who many of
you are telling me is world-class - lifts the ball over the bar from
three yards after a Shaun Wright-Phillips cross at one point in the
game. Gilt-edged. Reminds me of Kanu at West Brom Albion.

How can Robinho be mediocre? His name ends with "inho" and therefore
his legendary status is fully deserved and we should just turn off our
brains and accept this. Personally I think he's the most beautifully
elegant player I've seen since Iain Dowinho was destroying teams at
Southampton 15 years ago.

Hull City

I'm putting money on Hull ending Chelsea's unbeaten run at home - they
seem to enjoy London! They beat Tottenham after beating Arsenal. And
Giovanni must be the least liked Brazilian in London for scoring two
brilliant goals that meant doom for Arsenal and Spurs. The on-fire
Geovanni curls home a delicious free-kick from fully 30 yards into the
postage stamp top corner of Gomes's net. Spurs in disbelief, Hull in
dreamland - again.

"Are you Arsenal in disguise?" sung the Hull fans to their gutted
Tottenham counterparts after the goal. Is Geovanni on a free from man
City the best piece of business in the history of the Premier League?
Sure looks that way at the moment.

The result means If Tottenham, now have their worst start to a season
for 96 years. That's going all the way back to 1912, when something
fairly major happened that was later turned into a film, as I'm sure
you know. The Titanic . . .

Didier Zokora has been Spurs' best player for Spurs this season and
but he failed to get his first goal for the club in his 100th game.

Zaki and Wigan . . . .

With Zaki leading the top scorers chart with 5 goals and still
officially a player in the Egyptian league, I though it wise to
include Wigan. We do not speak about the lesser teams but considering
also that Wigan arrived unbeaten in their last four league games and
Boro with four defeats from as many outings in all competitions, it
was hardly surprising that the Latics made the brighter start but it
was Boro that won with an undeserved goal in the 89th minute.

With just one win from their previous six visits to Blackburn, United
were not expecting an easy ride and, for the opening 25 minutes at
least, they were not disappointed. In a game which United manager Sir
Alex Ferguson believed was his team's most impressive display of the
campaign so far, a lot happened.

Manchester United . . .

Reports suggest Blackburn boss Paul Ince was left apoplectic on the
touchline when Wes Brown, starting for the first time in the league
since United's defeat at Liverpool, headed in Rooney's short corner at
the far post in the 31st minute, convinced as he was that Nemanja
Vidic had impeded his goalkeeper Jason Brown. If United's first was
contentious, Rooney's second was picture-book perfect. A lightning
raid of the sort that has been missing this season, concluded with a
jet-heeled Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Martin Olsson for dead down the
right flank. A cut-back for Rooney left his team-mate with plenty to
do but a sumptuous clipped effort into the opposite corner saw Brown
clutching fresh air and cemented United's supremacy.

Thereafter and it was a case of Blackburn chasing shadows on a
afternoon when the master showed his pupil there is still plenty for
him to learn in the management game. Manchester missed a host of
hances as the keeper saved some and some either came off the post of
landed on the roof with the keeper beaten.

Chelsea . . .

League leaders and looking good for the title. On the evidence of this
display Chelsea, who were without several first-choice players, will
be hard to stop this season.

John Carew gave John Terry nightmares. Something Milan Baros would
only have done dressed as Fred. Premier League's best ever swap?

Anelka meanwhile is proving why he leads in being the most expensive
player in the world (cumulative cost of buying him) as he has already
scored 4 goals now.

La Liga . . .

In a game billed as a duel between two Argentina forwards Messi and
Sergio Aguero, the Atletico man saw hardly any of the ball and was
unsurprisingly withdrawn 12 minutes into the second half.

Rafa Marquez, Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi put the locals three up
inside eight minutes as the game got off to an explosive start.

Maxi Rodriguez pulled one back for Atletico five minutes later, but
Eto'o restored Barca's three-goal advantage shortly afterwards and
Eidur Gudjohnsen added a fifth for the home side short of the
half-hour mark. Thierry Henry wrapped up a brilliant Barcelona win
with his side's sixth after 73 minutes.

Valencia returned to the top of the Primera Division while Sevilla
moved up to third after thrashing Athletic Bilbao. A Manuel Fernandes
goal proved the difference as Valencia went top of the league on
Sunday night.

Madrid drew with Espanyol at home i.e. 2-2. In their last game, Raul
made history. Raul Gonzalez Blanco became only the seventh player in
history to score 200 league goals in Spain with a penalty that gave
Real Madrid a victory over Espanyol. But this time around, they didn't
win but it was Raul again scoring. He twice equalised for Madrid.

Serie A . . .

The man affectionately known as Ibracadabra, scored first through a
fabulous backheel before Adriano added from the spot. The Sweden
striker connected with Adriano's cross in mid-air and sent the ball
flying inside the near post after 25 minutes. Inter Milan, winning
2-1, moved level on points with Lazio at the summit of the Serie A
table as Jose Mourinho's side bounced back from their derby defeat.
Lazio drew 1-1 at home through substitute Simone Inzaghi's late
strike. The bit-part player, younger brother of AC Milan's Filippo,
swept in at the far post a minute from time..

Mourinho's Inter slumped to a 1-0 loss to rivals AC Milan last weekend
but returned to winning ways on Saturday against a Bologna team which
ironically won at the San Siro on the opening day when they beat AC
Milan 2-1.

With the criticism for making Chelsea win ugly, Mourinho seems to have
kept that tag in Italy. Mourinho was whistled by the crowd after the
Werder draw in the UCL and has faced criticism in the press for his
favoured 4-3-3 formation. He changed to 4-4-2 against Bologna, with
wingers Ricardo Quaresma and Mancini supporting Ibrahimovic and
Adriano up front. It was a good game but not really fluid and
convincing seeming that they were gifted a goal by luck and they also
gifted their opponents a goal.

Following Lazio's failure to win on Saturday, Udinese are now level
with them and Inter - but they separate the two on goal-difference.
Udinese moved second, level on points with leaders Lazio, after a 2-0
win over Torino on Sunday.

The late game saw bottom-of-the-table Cagliari hold AC Milan to a
goalless draw on Sardinia - who are not three points off the top of
the table.

Palermo find themselves in fourth after a very good 2-1 over Juventus.

Roma's dismal start to the new league season shows few signs of
abating after going down to a 1-0 defeat in Tuscany to Siena.

Champions League Day 2 Results and Review

Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo ended Manchester United's training session yesterday with a game of keepy-uppy for the cameras - in which they only touched the ball with their chests and backs. AaB were apparently so excited about their visitors, they have put up signs around the town saying: "Man U are more than welcome here." Lovely.

When the teams were announced, I went like O'Shea... over Anderson or Park (or even Fletcher!)?!?! Are you kidding me?! My face lit up when I saw Rafael's name, and then turned negative when I saw O'Shea's name. I thought Fergie wasn't taking risks? O'Shea is not a midfielder, he is a defender. If you insist on playing him in midfield you need a midfielder who is willing to support the attack, and unfortunately Scholes doesn't have the legs to do that anymore. Strange, strange decision. Hopefuly I was not proven wrong.

With rival teams like Mumba's Royals roaring to 6 points from a possible six before kikc-off, Manchester needed to put their campaign on track and convincingly. With a strong team albeit with a few experiements as O'Shea played in midfield ahead of players like Fletcher and Anderson, and Rafael da Silva playing at right back ahead
of Brown, Manchester United claimed their first win in this year's competition thanks to two Dimitar Berbatov volleys and a Wayne Rooney slide home from a pass from Ryan Giggs against AaB Aalborg.

While Marcos Senna was helping Villarreal join United on top of the group with four points after through a brilliant curling free-kick, Manchester was left ruing the loss of Paul Scholes to injury (ligament damage so says Fergie); the loss of Scholes potentially until late November will be a significant blow to United. His replacement was not. Ironically it was Giggs failure to play with O'Shea in midfield
that led to the buying of the likes of Carrick and Andersson but today Giggs dictated play in midfield and laid Rooney through for the first goal.

Dimitar Berbatov finally broke his Manchester United duck as the Champions League holders swept aside Danish minnows Aalborg to kick-start their campaign. Berbatov, who made an undistinguished start with a dreadful miss after five minutes with an empty net waiting for him to volley in, opened his goal account when he took advantage of a defensive mix-up to score 10 minutes after half-time. He then volleyed
in Cristiano Ronaldo's cross for his second after 79 minutes. The miss followed Cristiano Ronaldo charging down the AaB keeper's kick and the ball spun to Dimitar Berbatov - who volleyed wide with the goal gaping. An absolute sitter.

It was a job well done by United - but at what cost in terms of injuries remains to be seen tomorrow; Wayne Rooney and full-back Rafael had to withdraw from the game with ankle and knee injuries as well. Not all was sad news. The youngster Rafael da Silva, the less impressive of the two teenager twins before Man Utd bought them,
produced a display beyond his years in a Euro debut that promises much. I am very impressed with Rafael Da Silva, he's only 18 and has got a pretty impressive shot! Like with the other Man Utd youngsters, I'm a bit unsure if he is on the same wavelength as the other players yet but I'm sure it won't take long to adjust.

As for Celtic, they are not bottom of Group E but qualification for knock-out stage looks difficult now. Their nightmare run away from home in Europe continues: one point from 16 matches.

Madrid . . .

Real Madrid were also given a tough battle by Zenit St Petersburg but maintained their 100% winning start thanks to Ruud van Nistelrooy's winner in Russia. An own goal by Zenit defender Tomas Hubocan, who put Rafael van der Vaart's low cross into his own net after about two minuts of the match, put Real ahead but Andrei Arshavin set up Danny to level before Van Nistelrooy's opportunistic strike gave Real a 2-1
victory - their first away win in Europe since October 2006. Danny stabbed in his second goal for his new club. The £24m striker got ahead of marker Gabriel Heinze, who rather foolishly attempted to clear with a diving header.

The second half saw Madrid outplayed by Zenit with Arshavin staring but Cassilas and the post saved Madrid. A penalty appeal was also turned down despite Pepe handling with ten minutes to go.

Maybe the shock news from Denmark that the Brazilian youngster Rafael started for Manchester United was because Madrid coach Bernd Schuster sprung a small surprise by leaving club legend Raul on the bench. The Zenit line up was as expected, with Andrei Arshavin returning to the line-up after missing their last game through suspension.

The Old Lady . . . .

Juventus needed two goals by Vincenzo Iaquinta to salvage a 2-2 draw in Belarus after trailing 2-0 against BATE Borisov. Igor Stasevich set up Sergei Kryvets for Borisov's first goal on 17 minutes and extended his side's lead soon afterwards. Iaquinta pulled one goal back when he headed home Sebastian Giovinco's cross and levelled from another Giovinco pass on the stroke of half-time.

Gunners . . . .

While Dynamo Kiev, who drew with the Gunners in their opening game, picked up another point in a 0-0 draw with Fenerbahce in Turkey, Arsenal eased past FC Porto with Robin van Persie and Emmanuel Adebayor both scoring two goals apiece in a routine 4-0 victory. Arsene Wenger's promised 'sweeping changes' involved replacing
Emmanuel Eboue with Samir Nasri only. No other changes were made. Does this mean English teams are just tough hence Hull's win over Arsenal? That was Porto's 10th defeat in 11 visits to England.

Apart from the impressive display by Arsenal, there were some moments for the cameras; like Theo Walcott volleying wide from six yards - prompting laughter from watching England coach Fabio Capello.Another moment was 'Hulk' coming in for Porto. That is actually what was written on the back of his shirt. Real name: Givanildo Vieira de Souza. Had it been Giovanni, the gunners would have been scared I
guess.

Arsenal could have had double figures, but four will do and that puts them top of Group G

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS

GROUP E
AaB 0-3 Man
Villarreal 1-0 Celtic

GROUP F
Bayern Munich 1-1 Lyon
Fiorentina 0-0 Steaua Bucuresti

GROUP G
Arsenal 4-0 FC Porto
Fenerbahce 0-0 Dynamo Kiev

GROUP H
BATE Borisov 2-2 Juventus
Zenit St Petersburg 1-2 Real Madrid

UEFA Champios League Day 2 Analysis and Preview

Starting with my team, we play Aab Aalborg of Denmark. Last time we
went to Denmark, we lost 1-0 and Fergie knows too well that there is
no time for sentimentality or complacency as we try to be the first
team to successfully defend the UCL. Having dropped two points against
Villareal means Man Utd needs to win in Denmark. Losing will mean
going to Parkhead against Celtic and going to Villarreal for a win
which would be very difficult psychologically. Man Utd will use a
strong side; Fergie did use a weakened side last-time in Denmark and
Man Utd ended up scrapping to qualify. So Ronaldo is expected back in
the starting line-up and this Group E clash is easily the biggest game
in Aalborg's history.

The disparities between the two clubs are stark: while United's
average attendance last season was 75,638, Aalborg struggle to fill
their 10,000-capacity stadium. And the £30m Ferguson shelled out for
striker Dimitar Berbatov could fund the Danish club for seven years.
The club is so small that they have a ground with no players' lounge
and even the team manager has no office of his own office, so Ferguson
could miss out on the traditional post-match glass of red wine with
his counterpart.

However, the game will not be between two teams that are too far in
quality. Man Utd are favourites but Aalborg And they have a spine of
senior international players in the shape of Zaza (Morocco), Marek
Saganowski (Poland), Andreas Johansson (Sweden) and Michael Beauchamp
(Australia). Goalkeeper Karim Zaza, saved a penalty in the goalless
draw with Celtic.

But the Aalborg manager doesn't expect to make it to the knock-outs
like Fergie. "My last match will probably be the final Champions
League game at Old Trafford," said Rioch a former Gunners coach.

Talking of Gunners, losing 2-1 to Hull City for the first time since
losing in 1915, Arsene promises changes to the team. But he claims the
changes have nothing to do with punishment for the weekend lose. But
we know it is for that reason. I would have benched most of the
Arsenal frontliners and the midfield which kept sending long balls
upfront having gone 2-1 down instead of playing their brand of
football which is one-touch football. Problem with Arsenal is they
cannot take a beating. It is like Mike Tyson. He could not take a
beating and so whenever he was under the kosh, he lost.

I could not recognise the Arsenal way of play as the game went to the
end. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger thinks the club's next boss must
maintain the stylish brand of play he has established - or risk a
backlash. He says the crowd are used to it and demand it now. Losing
to Hull City was so uncharacteristic especially that they had just won
their last game 6-0 in the Carling Cup win against Sheffield United,
which saw Arsenal field a team with an average age of 19. Most players
were rested for Hull City. Hope they deliver against Porto because the
Portuguese team can be bad customers.

The Gunners could only pick up a point in the Ukraine against Dynamo
Kiev in their opening Group G game but home form will be key if they
are to progress to the knockout stages. Seeing them lose to Hull at
home only makes Porto more determined.

The match with Porto is very important to Arsenal because in the UCL,
a team needs 10 points to qualify, so if they win their home games
they get their 10 points and go through. That is remembering they have
a point already.

UEFA Champios League Day 1 Analysis and Preview

This is going to be a great UCL campaign. Almost like "Euro Two Thousand and Great" only this time Argentines and Brazilians are invloved too. What a delight for Taonga, Henry and Uncle Bobs.

To avoid being labeled EPL fan, I will start with the other teams.

The first shock ironically involved an Italian team. CFR Cluj-Napoca, making their bow in the tournament, won away at Italian giants Roma. Cluj won their first Romanian title last year, the first to be won by a team from outside Bucharest for 17 years and now they have just won their first UCL and what a win. First, ex-Chelsea defender Christian Panucci put the Italians in front in the Olympic Stadium and 90 minutes later, the unknown team from Romania had bagged the points. They have never won before in Europe. It was just the performance of the night, it would be one of the UCL performances of all time.

Brazilians did the job for Mourinho's Inter. Firstly, Alessandro Mancini, the guy who does more step-overs than Ronaldo and Robinho combined and formerly of Roma, scored. Then the forgotten Brazilian, Adriano, sealed the win. It was an away win.

Like i said, this is Euro 2008 plus the Brazilians and Argentines included. Need I say the English too? So the Argentines were not to be outdone.

First Argentine up, Aguero. The future best striker in the World I guess. Athletico Madrid won their match 3-0, with the brilliant young Argentine Sergio 'Kun' Aguero shining. He grabbed a brace and ex-Chelsea midfielder Maniche got the other goal. PSV were outclassed at home.

The second Argentine was in the Roma game. Roma lost because of the two goals by the 24-year-old Argentine Juan Emanuel Culio. Watch this space, I see that boy in England next year. So that is two braces by a couple of Argentines though Lampard which have joined Gerrard to equal that.

Like I said, Barca were impressive and look like the team to beat this year. 3-1 was only surpassed by two other games last night. Marquez, Eto'o, who almost left the team (scoring via a penalty) and Uefa's Player of Euro 2008 Xavi all scored. But the game showed their weakness. They cannot defend and the manner in which they conceded their goal shows that with better teams, they shall struggle.

No comments on the Basle and Werder Bremen games. Nothing of note there, except maybe that for Shakhtar, the scorer for the first goal was the Brazilian Luis Fernandinho. So thats three different Brazilian scorers there.

Liverpool didn't have their sponsor's name on their jerseys due to French law forbiding alcohol adverts but they still won their game which was the best game of the night. Couple that with the goal of the season so far from Gerrad; his sidefoot/shot/curler/rocket was a marvel to watch. Chamakh, Bakari Kone, Mamadou Niang and others failed to capitalise on Liverpool defending at the end of the match when Reina did a good job but the goal but the twice-taken penalty by Gerrard was good enough for the come-back to win them 3 points. So far they look like they may have a good season after all.

Chelsea is just too strong right now. I do not see any team beating them. Though that is the time when Man Utd usually pounces and so the weeked game should be interesting. 4-0 with English players and French scoring did the job. Joe Cole (that excellent player), malouda, Anelka (deserved his goal after 92 mins and working hard all game) and Lampard (who should have scored 2 goals) made sure of the points.

Isn't Champions League just great? Lets wait and see with the UEFA Cup, we can't forget our friends at Milano and Bolton. Or sorry West ham. Or sorry Spurs. As of UCL, that was a thrilling night of Champions League action once again. Performance of the night, if we ignore the Roma upset for a while, must go to Atletico. Or Chelsea? With the best game being the Liverpool game.

So tonight, the fun continues. Zenit shone last season but the Champions League is a big leap up from the UEFA Cup. Their first test against Juve will be very interesting. Sheva will either smile or frown tomorrow. It is a chance to see whether Juve can really challenge this season. Apart from Arshavin, the person to watch in this game will be a kid called Giovinco. He's a bit like the new Roberto Baggio, without the pony tail.

Then there is the return of Cristiano Ronaldo for Man Utd tonight. Yours truly will cover all games for you from the confines of Alpha Bar once again.

Ine naalanda kwena empompelele.

Phelps is Great but not the Greatest Olympian. Not yet.

No one can say which Olympian is the greater athlete based either on the number of medals they have won or which sport is "more difficult". This is a classic case of "comparing apples and oranges".

Is Phelps the greatest Olympian of all time? No he is not as far as I am concerned. Not yet. The greatest athlete or greatest Olympian is different from the athlete with the "most gold medals". It is like calling the winner of 15 medals in Draughts at the Olympics is the greatest Olympian. Or imagine for a moment a shooter -- air pistol, air rifle, small bore rifle -- piling up 20 golds over 4 consecutive Olympics. Would that make him the "greatest Olympian ever"? Swimming is a minor sport and so it cannot make him the greatest but what do you expect when he is American and most of the hype comes from the American media.

Phelps himself has placed his sport in perspective when stating that his ambition was to raise the status of swimming "in the public mind – to make it a major sport". In truth, swimming only dominates public attention when the Olympic Games come round every four years.

Some say he is not an athlete because swimming is recreation. But I am for him being a great athlete.

There was more excitement over Usain Bolt's win of the 100m and 200m dash double especially with world records in both than Phelps' 8 medals for many reasons and one of them is the profile of the two sports. 100m is like the main event of any athletics and swimming just isn't in the same league.

Because Phelps is a swimmer, somehow his accomplishments aren't as impressive. It is argued that it's "easy to win multiple medals in swimming" because swimming has so many racing opportunities, they say, and medals are cheapened. This is not entirely true however. Of the 20
men who have won the most Olympic medals, only three were swimmers. Gymnasts dominate the top 20. If winning swimming medals was so easy, swimmers should theoretically be all over that list.

Even if they did, though, Phelps' versatility renders that argument moot. Just because all swimming strokes take place in a pool doesn't mean they're the same. Phelps won at three different distances - 100, 200 and 400 meters -- in Beijing. It's the swimming equivalent of a runner pulling the 200, 400 and 800 triple. That's never been attempted in any Olympics, let alone accomplished. Michael Johnson only did the 200 and 400 double.

Phelps also won golds in three different strokes, a feat made even more impressive considering he was competing in those events with stroke specialists who gear their entire training toward that one discipline. That he had to swim a staggering 17 races in eight days is also not to be overlooked.

One observer says you cannot be called the greatest swimmer ever if you don't win 100m freestyle - the ultimate prestige swimming event; Phelps didn't and never will. Also: too many (3) relays in that medal count and those are far from being just Phelps's medals.

As for my verdict whether he is the greatest, it's too early to tell, since Phelps likely isn't finished winning Olympic medals. If he returns in 2012 at the London Games and wins, say, five more medals, then there will be no question that he should be hailed as the top Olympian of all-time. If Phelps retired tomorrow though, one could still make a compelling case on his behalf. But not entirely declaring him the greatest without dispute.

It must not be forgotten that Phelps was there at the 2000 Olympics and won nothing. The American press say nothing of this. At the age of 15, Phelps competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, becoming the youngest American male swimmer at an Olympic Games in 68 years. While he did not win a medal, he did make the finals and was fifth in the 200 m Butterfly. So he has not dominated all the Olympics he participated in.

Another point to note is that Phelps ranks second in total career Olympic medals, after Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina, who won a total of 18 medals (nine gold) spanning three Olympic Games. If one is counting only gold medals, sure, Phelps has the most, and what he did was truly exceptional (like touching out what's his name by .01 sec -- that was pretty freakin' exciting).

Others say the best Olympian is Germany's Birgit Fischer, who competed in 7 Olympic games spanning 24 years.

May argue for Jim Thorpe who was a winner in the decathlon and pentathlon which are the ultimate test of an athelete. In the decathlon, Thorpe won 9 of the events and so could have won 9 medals had each event had a medal.

Carl Lewis for many is the greatest; Lewis is one of only three Olympic competitors to have finished first in the same event in four successive Games, the others are a sailor and a discus thrower. The discuss thrower however, broke records in each consecutive Olympics. Lewis's supremacy in the long jump between 1984 and 1996 was remarkable, but he was also a wonderful sprinter and in 1984 matched the performance of Jesse Owens in 1936 by getting four gold medals in the same Olympics. Unfortunately for him, he dominated at a time (1984) when
there was the Soviet boycott and so we will never know whether things would have been different.

As one writer puts it, "At the moment, I would put Phelps level with, rather than ahead of, Nurmi and Lewis, because he has yet to demonstrate their longevity of excellence. However, the American swimmer may well continue until London 2012 and we will have to reassess his status then."

What reduces his greatness for me is the fact that in Phelps' case, only four of his 11 golds over two Games have come from straight events. Three were from medleys and four from relays. But Lewis was more dominant in terms of straight events. How many medals might Lewis have won in his remarkable Olympic span from 1984-1996 had there been sprinting and hurdling medleys? Also other past athletes were disadvantaged by the amateur-only limitation that prevented Jim Thorpe and others from winning more medals.

Still, competition is much stiffer today, with more widespread participation in most sports. This is despite the fact that conditions are better with pools and swimming gear having been improved.

The last person's opinion I am quoting says "I believe that the greatest Olympian ever is Jesse Owens for the simple reason that Owens had to overcome the pressure of a country that did not embrace him and a country that considered him to be inferior. If he lost then there could possibly have been no Jackie Robinson or any other Olympian such as Carl Lewis or Michael Johnson or any other track and field athlete. I rate Olympians such as Wilma Rudolph and Nadia over Phelps because not only did they blaze a trail for others to follow they did it under dire circumstances wherein other athletes might have crumbled under the pressure".

This reminds me of fellow American swimmer Spitz . . . Phelps was great no doubt about it, however Spitz had only 7 opportunities, set World Records in all 7 i.e. 7 for 7 vs 7 for 8WR's in Phelps' case and Spitz being a Jew in Germany was difficult coupled with what was happening with the killings in Munich the other pressures must have been off the human ability to cope with, so with all that under those circumstances you still gotta go with Spitz. Will you?

Some still favour Phelps over Spitz. Spitz's record seven gold medals stood for 36 years, and he may have won eight golds if the 50-meter freestyle had been an event in 1972, as it is now. But even if Spitz had won eight golds in 1972, what Phelps has done would still be more impressive because worldwide swimming was weaker then than it is now. In 1972, the United States won nearly half of the Olympic swimming medals, but now countries have stronger swimming programs, meaning Phelps has more global competition than Spitz had.

Your truly's conclusion is that after his extraordinary performance in Beijing, Michael Phelps earned a spot on the list of all-time Olympic greats. Four years from now, he'll likely sit alone at the top.

For Phelps to be the most decorated gold-medal winner to date is magnificent, though not necessarily synonymous with the title eagerly bestowed upon him over the last few days by marketing sharks and American commentators. It would be ill-advised to detract from the acclaim for Phelps in total.

Michael Phelps just delivered the greatest Olympic performance in history and this to me is purely based on his levels of concentration and perfection. That is (or should be) without debate. But does Phelps' dominance in Athens and Beijing put him atop the list of greatest Olympians ever? Even after not making the mark in Sydney?

When Phelps wins another few medals, doubling all others - Say he wins four more golds, a large percentage of them being individual golds and say another four silvers being added to give a tally of about 24 Olympic medals - all doubt will be gone.

This is despite the fact that comparison's are futile....the sports are different and different athletes competed at different times in different conditions. Comparisons between different generations even in the same discipline are inevitably speculative, never mind in sports as different as swimming, running and gymnastics. In my opinion, in any estimation of Olympic distinction beyond simple medal count, many other factors need consideration.

Ronaldo Moving to Madrid - A Financial not Footballing Move

If Ronaldo were to move to Madrid, there are two possibilities, as Man Utd, we would go on and be a better team or we would be worse. If he went this year, I think we would be worse off but I would still say thanks CR7 for the 5 years; we all knew it was an affair never a marriage.

Before I look at either side, let me discuss the transfer itself.

I say it is a money move not a sports move or as the title says a financial move and not a footballing move.

One thing that will be a bonus all round for those involved is the financial situation; Man U will clean up in a whopping transfer fee, Ronaldo will get an astronomical salary, Real will be able to hide the losses in merchandise gains with a few years, the agent will be rich for life, Ronaldo will be a great icon and earn more money. It's a money deal, not a football deal, much like Beckham's was.

If he leaves, he will be missed, but will never be a Manchester Utd legend like Cantona, Giggs, Beckham or Hughes. He will never be a Zidane or a Raul either. He has so much more potential and more to give for United, but if he leaves, it's not for his own personal development in the game, it's all about the money, plain and simple........

Ferguson just said it that for the sake of his career, the best place for Ronaldo is at Old Trafford. Of Gold Trafford for that matter, what with all the trophies.

Not so long ago, the FAO Food Summit ended in Rome. The Spanish government said it will give 500 million Euros to aid the starving people of the world at the Rome meeting. As a Director of an NGO, I am concerned. Real Madrid are said to be offering 100 million Euros for C. Ronaldo + 21 million a year in "wages". It is an insult to humanity for these people (club presidents, managers,players) to be playing about with such staggering amounts of money and all just so fans can watch them wearing shorts and kicking a ball about with a few t-shirts being sold out to fans. And super rich bums, like Calderon, make even more filthy lucre. A pox on all of them.

Now, I'm a long term Man Utd fan - one who has reveled in watching Ronaldo mutate from the petulant stick-insect that arrived five years ago to probably the best player in the world - one who I had grown in admiration for, notably because of how he dealt with the ridiculous carry-on of so-called football fans who booed his every touch after the World Cup. Back to back Premier League titles, player of the year awards and a staggering 42 goal tally shut even the likes of Shearer up. I am a big fan of Ronaldo, but my heart really belongs to the Red Devils. I'm a die hard Ronaldo fan and I know he's the best winger in the premiership and in the world, and has been a genius at scoring those vital goals that have won us back to back premiership titles, the Champions League, and other domestic cups. But that won't fool me to realise that I am only his fan because he is at Man Utd. I will always support Ferrari whether Schumacher is there or not. Just like I believed Ruud was as better in being influential to Man Utd than Henry was to Arsenal when the whole world believed otherwise. And to an extent I was at times backed by the awards won over Ruud. I believe in Man Utd and its players.

I think this will be a disaster for Real Madrid and an even bigger disaster for Cristiano if the move went through. United, on the other hand I think Man Utd would cope very well, especially with a nice fat cash injection.

I doubt Ronaldo or Real will do much better either because of the following reasons:

1. Ronaldo was the centre of the team at Man U - that ain't going to happen at Real - plus he's had a mega season, the odds of that happening again are low especially in a new league under new pressure.

2. It's not a fix all for Real either, their problems are not one that a flashy winger who scores goals are going to solve. The defense is poorly organised despite being chock full of talent (Cannavarro, Pepe, Heinze, Ramos) and the midfield seems disjointed and unfocused. The attack lacks glamour and flair - which Ronaldo will solve - but surely scoring goals was not Real's problem but conceding them? With 100 million Euros or Pounds Madrid could buy Rio Ferdinand (or a comparable top top defender) to teach Pepe how to actually play the position without being in constant red card danger, a winger of Ribery quality, plus a young up and coming midfielder Aquilani (excellent against RM in the two CL Roma games) and still have cash left over.

3. It was at United where he developed into one of the best footballers in the world, and basically had a team and formation set-up to allow his strengths to prevail. He has excelled mainly because of this freedom, and because of the hard work of Rooney, Tevez et al. He will not get the same treatment within the Madrid team. He will have alot of space to play in Spain but he wont get the ball from Guti, Raul and others and even his chagrin!

As for me and my house, even though he's been a great player for the club I'd be half glad if Ferguson threw him in the reserves for a year just for his greed and lack of loyalty - but there aren't many footballers working who lack the former and believe in the latter. United are never going to find a club crazy enough to pay 100 Euros for one player and they'd be equally crazy to turn down such an offer - especially for a player so willing to hold the club's pay structure to ransom. But does Manchester need the money? Would the deal in the long run benefit Manchester with Madrid recouping that in mechandising within a year?

Simply because more glamorous player have left before and Man Utd survived doesn't mean we should say he can go because we shall survive.

But to the Man Ure supporters complaining about CR7, I think they are behaving like the punter in the brothel worrying about his provider being a virgin or not. Relax. And enjoy the sportsual intercourse. CR7 is not British and he was never meant to stay for years on end. He was bound to leave one day. I know he is going away one day and I knew he would go one day. So it is time to smell the roses. Don't expect a virgin in a brothel.

That said, my opinion of him has drastically dropped this last few weeks. His recent behaviour speaks of an egomanical attention-whore who simply loves causing trouble, almost as though the man sees himself as the star is his own personal soap opera. His constant 'will I, won't I' twaddle is reminiscent of a teenage boy flirting with a girl in the playground - truly hideous stuff to watch.

And, speaking as a man working hard to feed my son and wife, his near-psychotic passion for joining Real tells me that he's clearly lost his mind. If he was ever in possession of it - Real Madrid is a cauldron of egomaniacs and with a boardroom populated by the kind of vicious, scheming, back-stabbing scumbags one would more normally find in the palace of a 16th Century monarch's court. Whether it is Perez or Calderon, these guys are always politicking, stabbing each other in the bad and mind less about the football. Becks was told to go, then again they fired the guy who told him to go etc. Coaches have been fired after winning the league or Champion's league because there were new presidents or new Board members.

As for Ronaldo, other than wanting to get away from Manchester weather, what's the upside? Madrid fans are no less annoying and grotesque than United ones, he could face the Owen treatment (no one pass him the ball), and the organization does not exactly reciprocate for loyal service (see R. Carlos). I love the team (though I love Barca and Valencia more) but the management are sh*t, whereas with United it's the owners who are shi*t but the organization shows some loyalty. Ferguson started Scholes and made sure Giggs played in the CL final, Madrid was happy to see Redondo leave.

If he wants to go, then United should let him go (albeit for a very large sum of money...around £100 million would actually be cheap considering his age, merchandising potential (£50m+ per year) and possibly his future sell-on value when they have bled him out). I will not support the idea of letting him rot on the bench until January. Though this would help us get the WPOTY Award instead of it being claimed by Madrid like they did over Cannavaro. So for me I would say let him go but take every ngwee of the muted £100 million for him. Zidane, Figo and the real Ronaldo were bought before they had won a Champions League, not just after (the Beckham signing was a different form of idiocy). Ronaldo will put on a wonderful show - he is a marvelous player - but I don't see him as they key to La Decima. So he has to be more expensive than Zidane. If they want him, they can damn well pay through the nose for him. No instalments or player swaps as I do not want any of the three best players there i.e. Sergio Ramos, Cassilas and Robinho to come to Gold Trafford. They have to be made to pay. Pay Up or Shut Up. This is me as a Man Yoo fan not fanatic.

On the other hand, I have never really become upset about things that are out of my control, I knew this was coming almost from the day that he signed, and most importantly, I have to, and certainly intend to, maintain the ideal that football is about far more than one -- admittedly very important -- player. Manchester United have survived far worse, and it is in times of adversity that we really see what people are made of. Of course, I am in no way suggesting that this 'adversity' (if that is what you would call it) represents anything like what other clubs, or people, have to face -- it isn't, and that is really the point. It is all relative, however, to some degree, at least. Bottom like is I am happier is he stays for at least 2 years. One year I know he will. His mother just said it.

The fact is that most United fans will not accept any player that doesn't want to play for the club, no matter who they are. But we all love his ability, his arrogance and assuredness, and the glamour that he projects on to the club. I will of course be sad to see Ronaldo leave, but it gives the club and the fans a great opportunity to use that disappointment to our advantage. I am, after all, a Manchester United fan, not a Ronaldo fan, when all is said and done.

We won't be giving up our titles quite as easily as some people might think. Of that I am quite sure, and as happened with the Arsenal players once Henry finally moved on, the same could well happen to Rooney and Tevez and Nani and Anderson, etc, and the extra responsibility is likely to allow those players flourish. People wondered where the goals would come from when Van Nistelrooy left. Any keen follower of football understands that it doesn't quite work that way, except as a projection of a rival fans hope, as well as journalistic laziness.

I've always admired Ronaldo's skills and certainly this year he deserves to be recognized as the best player in the world. BUT, I always had my doubts about his character and maturity. Take for instance, Kaka and Messi. The level of maturity show on and off the pitch is simply too obvious not to notice. You can certainly see that Kaka and Messi (and even Rooney) are humble in their own ways and they seem to be more about winning than personal glory, but it's sad to say that Ronnie doesn't pocess these same qualities which makes him less likable as a human being. For years, I've been hearing it from by friends whenever I mentioned that he was the top or the one of the top players in the world. I still think I'm correct in regards to his skill level, but I will never would be able to say that he is better than any of his young contemporaries. Ponder this!!! Do you think it would have been this easy for Real Madrid to get Kaka or Messi?? Loyalty and strength of character should always come before money. Besides, he makes plenty already. How sad.

Personally I think Ronaldo is infatuated with himself and his own 'personal achievements' such as potentially winning the world player of the year and, in this case, being known as the worlds most expensive footballer.

The other half of mean says we should not stand in his way. That he wants to go doesn't surprise me but what does really surprises me is that he wants to go NOW when United look such a good bet for the near future whilst Madrid, in contrast, look so wobbly (despite winning the Spanish league). That is something I find hard to fathom. Not that I blame him, after all he is a lad from the Madeira near the Iberian peninsula, from a family of apparent Real Madrid fans. I think it is normal that he should want to play their one day for the team of his boyhood. And neither am I so sure he owes the Reds anything. He's been crucial in back to back premierships, one of which, of course, was doubled up with the European cup. And he will in the end fetch the club oodles of pasta. People seem to expect loyalty and say it's not like the old days. There were days when British players went to Italy and came back pretty quick - Law, Greaves, Baker etc. I remember Mark Hughes, enjoying his football in Munich where he was very popular and yet not being able to resist returning to Manchester when they called. With more and more top players coming from abroad I think we just have to get used to the idea that for foreign players, in the main, Britain's biggest clubs don't capture the imagination in the same way that they do for Brits.

Many Man Ure fans have never felt that Ronaldo has identified with the club and, as a result he is the first great Manchester United player that they have never warmed to, which is not a criticism of Ronaldo just a fact. From Charlton to Cantona and Rooney they have felt that the club meant a great deal to them.

So for some Man Ure fans, they are strangely pleased that he is to go. But I think he'd make a big mistake going just now. But maybe they are just bitter and wish him ill but just not admitting it to themselves. I have even heard a suggestion that Utd should offer £10 million to the first player at the Euro's who flies over the ball landing a double footed horror tackle just above Ronaldo's knees successfully irreversibly breaking his legs in half; rendering him useless to football for the rest of his life. Then claim the insurance for the lost service of his current contract and potential transfer fees. This should clear around 60 million, whilst Real Madrid lose out and Ronaldo remains a millionaire. This, the fans say, would be the correct path if they were the Glazers.

I am not like those fans. Sorry I vied to another thing . . . . . .

Madrid is not a bad team: Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo, Gago, Robinho, Robben, and Higuian are all young (23 or less) while Casillas, Diarra, Heinze, Baptista and Metzelder (yeah, he's not great) are all 25-28 I believe. The older players are Raul, Guti, RVN, Cannavaro & Salgado, and of these only Salgado is past it. He could improve the team and they could be one of the great teams in two-three years.

Madrid IS a great team because great comes from more than just team and form. Pedigree and more importantly as Sheva would say about Madrid, it is the GLAMOUR! These attributes make a team great. Even a team on form can just freeze when it meets a glamorous side. Remember Man Utd at the San Siro last year and three/four years ago?

There is too much turnoover at Madrid of players. A bit of longevity would help. Look at Raul, after two useless season he was top scorer this year and gave good service. Wes Brown for us has taken many years to mature but he is getting on to the of top notch, just one rung below World Class.

It's funny to see football fans outside of Man U rubbing their hands together and drooling over what they see as an inevitable capitulation of the club at Gold Trafford. I also found it funny when Schmeichel Left, Cantona retired, Beckham Left, Van Nistlroy Left, Staam left need I go on? Point is we've had big losses and I'm not going to be naive and say it isn't a big loss if not the biggest but at the same time United have always shown that they are capable of overcoming such losses. Though this maybe the biggest test. So before you fans start reveling in his departure (Which I personally think won't happen this year) concentrate on your own team.

Ronaldo - a Devil or King Next Season?

Marca has done it's job, CR7 missed the penalty that should have made him stratospheric, Calderon and Schuster have played their part and so have Robinho, Heinze etc. Fergie has said what he has had to say, Queiroz, Dennis Law, Becks, Mourinho, Capello, etc. The question remains, is CR7 going to remain a Red Devil next season or will be go to the Royal Club despite the era of the galacticos being bygone?

In this posting, I am not looking at whether he wil be treated as a Devil or a King when the season starts. But whether he will be at Madrid or not.

CR7 wants money and glamour and he is being greedy at both. Felipe had to issue a ban for media announcements from him in the Portugal camp as he was disturbing peace there. He is going the Beckham way where he is becoming too big for himself and he is just fueling this talk so
that he either gets a good deal with Man Utd to be the highest paid at Man Utd (which he deserves) and maybe even hold up to be the highest paid in the world (which he doesn't deserve yet even if he gets the ballon d'Or and the FIFA 1 Award.)

Portugal was being watched by 12 000 people who paid to watch them train and they are the only team to charge for training. Mostly this is because of CR7; it happened with Becks with Man Utd, England and Madrid. Their (Portugal) last two trainng sessions were behind closed doors to keep away the hundreds of paparazzi and adoring fans.

Back to the young man, he will stay. He has said he will stay so long as Fergie is there. But I have said it a number of times, the winner if he moves are the clubs and he will be the loser because he is not going to command the attention he gets at Man Utd. There is Guti and Raul at the Royal Club and those two are royalty there. Ronaldo will have to come down the pecking order ala Becks. Becks is even better at handling problems . . look at how he handled Capello at Madrid. He came out the victor with capello losing his job for handling the affair badly.

Ronaldo cannot even handle the refs' decisions that go against him.

He will stay because Man Utd will not sell even at 120 million pounds. This is because business wise, Madrid would benefit, not with all the image rights and sells etc. Further, Man Utd wants to be seen as the top dog, they have previously sold to Madrid players they didn't feel they needed like Becks, Heinze and Ruud but they will not sell their most-prized possession (aside of Fergie, Old Trafford, the trademark and Balance Sheet).

The scenario is either

1. CR7 will say something silly and he either gets sold to another Team like Barca in exchange for Messi or cash but not Madrid or he is shunted into the reserves like other players have been treated in the past. He may even be allowed to play in the team after being told he is not being sold but the backlash from the fans would be so bad he would lose his glamour and form. But he would never go to madrid this year. We all remember how Heinze never went to Liverpool. Fergie is stubborn and likes winnng both on and off the pitch and so he would love to win over CR7 and his agents. Or
2. CR7 asks for payrise gets it but does it so nicely the fans still like him. This would make him one of the highest paid players in the world which he derserves. This scenario I expect despite David Gill and Fergie so salary increase shall be entertained.

Fergie is not joking by saying he could stick CR7 in the stands just to prove a point alongside the Glazers. he knows letting Ronaldo go just like that may pave way for Rooney, Rio and Tevez among others to move whenever they want.

It is a different kettle of fish when Fergie leaves in 2010 as he announced.

Ronaldo has been told by Beckham, Pele, Queiroz, Capello, Dennis Law and others to stay but Scolari and others tell him to move on. As for me and my house, we know CR7 will be at Old Trafford next season but he is unlikely to be my favourite player ever again. I am really ashamed of his behaviour.

Rooney to do Well after Ronaldo Saga

Saying Manchester wouldn't do without Ronaldo is funny in the least. Manchester has always gotten goals from midfield. Remember the haydays of Paul Scholes, Becks and Giggs. So somehow we shall still get goals from the wing irrespective of Cristiano Ronaldo (CR or CR7) being there or not. But of course he is not leaving so this hypothesis is not going to be tested just yet.

Rooney should come out of his shadows now whether Ronaldo leaves or not and this saga has just helped his case for more goals.

This fact supports the thought that the rise of CR has come at the expense of MU as a collective attacking unit. The best attacking performance last season was perhaps vs Arsenal in the cup. And CR was not involved. Coincidence?

It was said Manchester would not recover past scorers like Cantona, Beckham, Ruud and others. But any club, especially the European Champions should always have no problems when they lose a single player. Some players will step up and do the scoring. It always happens; Henry left Arsenal and they did very well, Ronaldo left Real and they still get goals, george Weah left Chelsea and now there is Drogba. Wishing Manchester to hit poor form is another thing.

As suggested and backed by statistics, Manchester loses when Rooney is not playing not when Ronaldo is not playing. This is clear for the 2007/2008 though in the 2006/2007 season, we lost when Ronaldo was not playing. This is because when Rooney is on the pitch, he takes on the defenders and leaves space for the free-roaming Ronaldo to exploit the spaces and score.

Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo's goalscoring graphs for United had been running parallel on an upward curve until last season. When the England striker joined the Reds in 2004, he hit 17 goals in his debut campaign. It was Ronaldo's second Old Trafford season and he contributed nine goals. The term later both increased their tallies. Rooney inched up to 19 for the season and the Portuguese winger crept up to a dozen.

In 2006-07 Ronaldo soared to 23 and Rooney matched it with an increase to finish on the same amount. Last season, Ronaldo blew Rooney's effort out of the water and raced ahead to 42 goals while Rooney suffered the first dip in his account during his four seasons at Old Trafford as his contribution fell to 18.

Many United fans believe Ronaldo's phenomenal increase has been at the expense of Rooney's haul. While the winger operated as a centre-forward for the Reds as his purple streak grew, Rooney has been asked at times to operate in a wide left berth.

If Real Madrid succeed in their bid to land Ronaldo the Reds support are comforting themselves with the thought it may free up Rooney to bag a few more goals and get his graph climbing back towards the top.

Sir Alex Ferguson will continue to employ the England forward in a disciplined wide role when the occasion demands it. Fergie recognises that in certain situations Ronaldo is not best suited to carry out the disciplined role. Ronaldo does his fair share of tracking back and work but there are moments when he switches off on that side of things. You cannot afford that particularly in away ties in Europe. But with Rooney you get the fully switched-on player. He keeps the discipline. That is while in away tough matches, Ronney is the target man.

If the manager asks Rooney to stick out wide left and stop the opposition defenders coming through that flank, then he'll do the job from the first minute to the last. Sir Alex asked him to do that job a few times last season e.g. away to Roma and away to Barca. Fergusson yesterday spaeking after beating Orlando Pirates mentioned this and even said Rooney had done this without complaining.

This has even made Rooney to be praised by Lippi, the Italian National Team coach when he called Rooney the ideal player who all Italian players should emulate.

No matter what people might be saying now about Ronaldo, the fact is he did appreciate the work others put in. In fairness to him he acknowledges that a number of times. Ronaldo knew that you can't be great unless you are surrounded by very, very good players. Fergie particularly showered praise on Rooney when United played Roma in Italy in the Champions League quarter- finals for his sacrifice in the Stadio Olimpico.

Obviously, tackling back can diminish the goalscoring part of his game. But that has always been the case. That is the kind of player he is. I don't think United would want to change that.

The only situation where he might get a bit more freedom up-front and be relieved of those defensive duties is if Ronaldo goes and a winger, like Ryan Giggs, comes in who you can rely on to work back and concentrate on that job for 90 minutes.But even then I think we might always want Rooney's discipline, particularly in a European situation. If that comes at a slight cost to his goalscoring figures, then I think both he and United would accept it.

Rooney's shooting / finishing is woeful, at the moment, he missed sitter after sitter last season. add his touch and passing to that list as well. If Ronaldo does go, then it may give Rooney's career a boost as it needs one soon as possible. If Ronaldo stays, Rooney will still get a boost because people now know that there should be life after the little 'diver' has gone. Even Fabio Capello the England Coach said Rooney needs to finish off his chances.

And when I say Rooneys career needs a boost, you may ask if I am mad. After all, he was an integral part of the team that won both the Premier League and the Champions League. Rooney is a team player and his attitude is awesome. And yes, if Ronaldo leaves he will become more visible, and get more credits because of that. He won't necessarily play any better, he'd just play differently.

If I had to choose between Rooney and Ronaldo I'd definitly pick Roo. As Sir Alex often say; "There's no doubt about that.".

Wayne Rooney will become a Man United legend. Ronaldo wont. Whether he stays or goes to Madrid. Loyalty is the word.

Ronaldo - Great Footballer but Studpid Man

Listen to Ronaldo after the final were he missed a penalty and would have cost us the trophy. The Portuguese star admitted he felt he had cost his side victory when Petr Cech saved his penalty but Terry hit the post for Avram Grant's side and Van der Sar made the decisive save from Anelka.

"I thought we were going to lose," conceded Ronaldo. "I had played well and scored but I had missed my penalty and it felt like the worst day of my life. But the lads did a proper job and I feel very proud for them. It means everything to me - now it is the happiest day of my life."

Some people have called Man Utd a one-man team, in reference to Ronaldo's 42 goals last season. Well their opinions respected on him winning us the Champions League single-handedly. And if he did, he did it as a Manchester Player and we are proud of one of our players doing that. What a great feat. That is why I say he is such a great footballer. But, ya but, he is a lousy and stupid man who has no respect for people and doesn't know how to behave.

Ronaldo is a great footballer. I have no doubt he shall be the World Footballer of the Year this year and why he came out third not second last year is still a mystery. He broke George Best's record by scoring more than 32 goals in a season from midfield but broke other records before the end of the season including wiping the slate clean on awards available for individual accolades. Though he didn't beat Ferguson in the scoring stakes who notched an impressive 45 goals for Dumfermline...42 years ago, Ronaldo only failed by 5 goals to become the club's highest scoring player in a single season - a mantle currently held by Denis Law who scored 46 in the 1963/4 season. He also failed to reach Van Nistelrooy's record of 44 goals per season though this would have been different had Ronaldo been an out and out striker.

But the achievements were still too great to have been imagined at the beginning of the season. He is exceptional; he has perfected his penalties and free-kicks.

And with the money he earns, TV coverage of the EPL even in America as opposed to La Liga and Serie A, the Ronaldo brand including his CR7 brand, has grown. Cristiano Ronaldo can become the Tiger Woods of football and rival golf's No.1 as the most recognisable face in global sport. Why he even wears a red shirt. Just like Tiger. Three of the most influential men in the art of marketing and making money - big money - reckon Ronaldo is already on course to outplay David Beckham in terms of multi-millionaire, iconic status. One of them, sports management boss Chubby Chandler, reckons Ronaldo has the potential to fly far higher than that, starting by becoming the first £200,000-a-week footballer in the world.

He is that great.

If he can handle the pressures of football on the pitch so well, how come he can't just handle his dealings of the pitch better for the liking of the masses? Why doesn't he just activate his escape clause if he has it or buy out his contract whilst he is at it?

As Man Utd, we are not clinging to Ronaldo. We signed a deal with him which says he is with us. We are not asking him to sign now. We own his signature for the next 4 years. So clinging is not the word.

Employment contracts have a dissolution clause or a get-away clause. Ronaldo would go if he were to follow one of them; which is to buy out his contract but in football, he can only do that when he has two years to go. FIFA say so not Yours Truly.

As for salaries, Rooney gets less money than Ronaldo right now and only Rio gets more than Ronaldo. Giggs and Scholes both get less than Ronaldo and so it is not like the young man is short of cash. He is a millionaire with big house and big cars. And how much was he getting when we bought him? US $500 per week. So much for mistreating the boy and slavery as Blatter puts it!

Yes we can move between companies if a good offer comes but do we do it in the press and keep fanning flames of acrimony between the two companies? No. If we do that, we become stupid. We move between companies by resigning following what the contract allows. By the way, Ronaldo has the right to ask for a transfer but he know that once he does that, no loyalty allowances shall be paid to him and because he loves money, he hasn't done that.

My saying he is stupid is not that he has wants to move to another club. It is that he has not handled the saga well. He kept the story going this way and that way and up to now, people are not clear about things. A good man, like Sneijder will say I'm staying at my club or like Asharvin shall say I am leaving, so that people have time to make plans etc. Not acting like a prima donna and wanting all the attention on himself.

I am starting to believe what Mourinho said about the young man's background and education. Yes he has advisers but can an adviser like agents say stay at Man Utd when he is supposed to get millions from a transfer? Haven't many advisers told him to stay or announce if he is leaving and he is saying nothing up to now? Didn't he lie to the world that he is going to announce about the future in three days and it is now weeks after he lost his Euro match? Just shows you of someone not having a stable program.

We know he wants to go to Real and we shall allow him to go but only when we want to. Bayern did it with Hargreaves. In fact we did not make noise over Hargreaves in the press. We put in a bid which was rejected and we waited until the club was ready to trade the young man and we are happy. We didn't say he should ask for a transfer and the club should say he is for sale before we move in like Real is doing. That is why Bayern yesterday was telling off Madrid. And by the way, this is the first time a 3rd party football club board is making a comment on a deal between two clubs.

The of course we have head the likes of Wenger against Madrid, redknapp, Pele etc.

May be the stupidity I see is in the public relations but businesswise, he may be very shrewd. Time will tell.

People Tired of the Ronaldo Saga

Its been a long summer (northern hemisphere summer and hence English Premier league summer) and I am happy that finally people seem tired of the Ronaldo Saga as it looks more and more likely that he is staying at our club; a fact we Man Utd (or as our rival football fans call the team ManUre) fans knew from day one.

This means only one thing and that is peace for us poor souls. I know you would be happy to see us lose the young man and your teams then would have better chances against us.

The press in Spain and London, and fans of rival teams like Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Madrid in particular, have been stirring this whole saga up for months and months, and repeatedly fanning the flames. I think everybody's sick of it and its about time it stopped. They hate United and will do anything, anything, to destablise Man Utd simply because we're the best, biggest and more famous club in the world and they can't stand to see it, and are jealous of us.

I think we've been treated dreadfully by the press and you guys. Our magnificent double seems to mean nothing and all that is being written about is how nasty we are for wanting to keep Ronaldo against his wishes. (Rio Ferdinand did admit that the shine of the double had been dulled by the Ronaldo saga but he said Ronaldo would still be welcome to the Old Trafford dressing room at the end of it all).

Have we treated Ronaldo so badly in the all the time he has been here? Have we acted wrongly to say that he is not for sale as one of our best young players? Obviously we're the ones at fault simply because we are Manchester United, envied all over the world. I tend to think of it all as a positive because it's sure to get the fans' backs up and just remind of us all of our siege mentality. I don't have any fears over our future because there are so many talented players at the club and the unity between them is too great to be destroyed by Cristiano Ronaldo and his "dream move".

And about Madrid not being punished by FIFA, Man Utd rushed to FIFA to show their level of seriousness in wanting to stop Madrid pursuing Ronaldo aggressively though they knew that there was no full case at the time. But it is also a move which allows FIFA to act as soon as sometime goes wrong; more of a "proactive suit" as opposed of retrospective one.

You see . . . Real will never pay up, its as simple as that. They don't have the funding required to make the transfer happen and United will not be forced to sell their player either. United didn't want Beckahm or Van Nistelrooy and as a result they lost out on gaining these players full transfer values by maybe as much as a further £25m. The lesson has now been learned and United won't let it happen again.

Heinze on the other hand wasn't forced out but wanted out. His choice though wasn't Real Madrid, no, he wanted to swap allegiances for the bin dippers of Liverpool. The reason of course was he knew he'd be 2nd choice to Evra and at his age wanted to be 1st choice. As we all know though, SAF told Heinze that he'd never allow such a transfer to happen and the result was a move to Real with a return on the £6.9m we'd originally paid for him. Ronaldo should take careful note of this scenario!

Ronaldo should also be very careful of Real Madrid and their tactics. The Madrid rags of AS and Marca have been spouting "leaked" figures of an £80m transfer fee + Ramos or Robinho and £300k a week wages to get "their man" Ronaldo. Thing is, if they're now saying they can't afford the mere £80m + Ramos, SORRY I mean "won't be held to ransom" for Cristiano then what makes Ronaldo think that they'll be true to their word and pay him £300k a week? Or £200k depending on your source. If Ronaldo were to ask for a transfer (which he won't if he's smart) then he'll have weakened his own hand. Should Madrid somehow find the money needed to sign him whats to stop them offically offering CR7 only half the wage being mentioned. What then does he do? He'll be an outcast at United and Real will hold all the cards. Didn't the same thing happen Beckham, losing out on his image rights and also offered £30k less than had been "leaked" as well.

To my mind Real Madrid are trying to play both United and Ronaldo in a game of 3-way chess. Hoping to lure United to the transfer table and also turn Ronaldo's head enough to make him request a transfer in a bid to gain an advantage in forcing United to sell and also in making a more realistic offer to CR7 of about £150k a week. Neither will work, United have Ronaldo tied to a contract with 4 years left to run and can of course simply do nothing and cash in when they want to in 2 years time. Ronaldo is now sweating because he will lose out on any loyalty bonus his contract has and will become an OT outcast placing his whole career in jeopordy should he buckle to Real's "the player must state he wants to play for us" tactic. Real, having applied this tried and trusted technique many times with success also know that should Cristiano say nothing then they won't have any leverage in the battle and will simply have to go back with their tails between their legs and tell their own fans more lies just as they did when they failed to "get their man" with Fabregas and Kaka. Maybe they are not just as big and great as they'd have everyone believe eh!!!

And another thing, the fans don't decide this one; SAF does and I have no doubt he will not sell. For months he has said he is not selling Ronaldo. He has also been backed by the two other factors in the decision-making process of selling the player: the chairman David Gill and the club owners, the Glazers. He has further gone on to advise that leaving Man Utd would bad for Ronaldo's career.

SAF wont sell because the next time we develop Anderson or Nani into the next big thing all & sundry will think it's a possibility for them to leave as well to whatever their dream team. If Ronaldo stays it will be because SIR ALEX FERGUSON wants him to stay. If he goes it will be becuase SIR ALEX FERGUSON wants him to go. The Glazers would never overrule SAF. Ask keane, RvN or Becks.

This is what I predict. SAF won't sell and Ronaldo will stay. Ronaldo will not go on strike and SAF won't leave him in the stands or on the bench. He will be back like nothing ever happened and after the first couple of goals go in (as Ronaldo himself said during one interview) it will be as though this saga never happened until next Summer (or until we face Madrid in the Champions League) when Madrid will try and ramp up the pressure again...

When Ronaldo was interviewed was asked about how he would be received by Man U fans after all this saga and he said "After a couple of goals they will be all happy"...so i think he also knows his chances of moving this season is slim to nothing.....

I choose not to quote the millions of people who have spoken for or against Ronaldo going to Madrid but suffice to say this was the saga of the summer what with the following having commented: Arsene Wenger, Blatter, Platini, Pele, Becks, Canavarro, Scolari, Mourinho, Robinho, Raul, Rio, Redknapp, Keane, Sneijder, etc.

Support the Team and Live the Dream..... Believe!!

My Life as a Small Time Golfer

Who is winning the Ryder Cup this year? America this time or Europe continues dominating? Is the fact that Tiger is out going to favour Europe or Europe was gonna win anyway seeing this has happen with Tiger in the Team?

I know in Zambia we talk about football alot but I also happy that there is the occasional Wimbledon, the occasional Heaton vs Mayweather discussion and other sports. One thing for sure is that we are sports men or sportsmen or at least people that love sports alot. I decided to l0ok at golf seeing it is the gentleman's game and I rarely fantasise about the fairway when twist and turf on the turf at Barclays Sports Complex playing football. I know cricket and tennis are the ultimate gentleman's game but a game whose name is sometimes argued to have come from the moniker "Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbiden", in short GOLF, sounds sexy.

What made me think was golf was two things this week, football personalities have of late been getting into other sports to try and divert attention away from football what with such sagas as Ronaldo's. First Calderon took advantage of the Spanish Euro win and Nadal's win to use the attention from tennis onto his Ronaldo pursuit instead of away from football. On the other hand SIR Alex Ferguson has urged his United team to take inspiration from Padraig Harrington's successful British Open defence as they look to repeat the heroics of last season. Granted he knows winning big competitions in successive years is "terribly difficult", Ferguson remains energised and enthused by the ability of top sports people to maintain their focus under extreme pressure. Using Golf, Fergie praised Sunderland supporter Harrington for the way he retained his title at Royal Birkdale - and challenged his players to show similar drive and ambition in the months ahead. He said "Harrington, however, was so cool and showed to me he had the bottle. When he needed to perform in the last six holes, he had four birdies. His second shot at the 17th, right on the pin... unbelievable. He thoroughly deserved the victory." On retaining the European Cup and chalking up a hat-trick of Premier League victories Ferguson said: "It can be done.

The second Golf moment this was, again related to Harrington's win, is when American players complained of the conditions at the British Open. This is how BBC Blogger Robbo Robson put it about those who were complaining of the conditions: "Yanks mostly, who bleated on about how nasty it is to have to play golf when it's windy and raining. Ah, bless! But just where do you think golf was invented? California perhaps where every day is the same day and the grass never changes and the bunkers are filled in with sand imported from the Outer Hebrides? No, it was invented in Scotland, that haven of climatic peace and serenity. Shut up or go home!" Robbo then ended "I can't wait for the Ryder Cup! All we need is a light breeze and the Americans will just hand it over while they put on their anoraks and hide in the clubhouse".

Golf and yours truly go way back. . . if 1998 is way back. But for a guy who spent along time in the village during my formative years and so never had a chance to go to trust schools or tag on Dad's spurs to a golf course, that is way back. I remember buying an almost complete golf set (3 woods, 2 putters, lots of irons with only about two clubs missing). We used to go to Chainama Golf Club to pick stray golf balls and then go play at the University of Zambia (UNZA). This was during the 8 month closure. I must admit it is a very tough game to play and the skill levels involved plus decision-making vis-a-vis opportunity costs are as high as probably only in the mini-game of Pool or Snooker. Every shot in golf is a compromise between length and precision, and long shots are often less precise than short ones. A longer shot may result in a better score if it helps reduce the total number of strokes for a given hole, but the benefit may be more than outweighed by additional strokes or penalties if a ball is lost, out of bounds, or comes to rest on difficult ground. Therefore, a skilled golfer must assess the quality of his or her shots in a particular situation in order to judge whether the possible benefits of aggressive play are worth the risks. And then there is the wind and the slope when the ball lands etc.

Problem was on the first two to three times we tried playing golf, my first short with the 3 wood always got the first ball into the Goma lakes. I had to buy a book from the UNZA Bookshop to improve my swing and understand my scoring etc. It worked. As more balls dropped into the lakes, we had to move away from the water and "teed off" near the back gate of UNZA with the "greens" nearer to the water. We played both stroke play and match play and this was foursome or singles etc. I am not sure what my handicap is now but back then, it came close to the average entrant at Chainama Golf Club. So we enlisted as student members at the club. Then we got excited one day and starting playing on one green during an actual game instead of being at the practice range. This infuriated the club captain and coupled with us having untucked our shirts, hence breaking club rules, we got de-registered barely two weeks into our membership. And that was the end of yours truly's golf career. It ended before it started. I guess now that am a bit mobile and can behave better, I would consider going back to Chainama Golf Club. Any volunteers to join me? I still love the way they score in Golf: birdie, albatross, eagle, condor (these are bird-related or feathered) etc. I guess only cricket has a better scoring system. What can beat wickets, runs, not outs, centuries, etc? But cricket is for another "blog". But the types of shots in golf (i.e. drive, approach, chip, punch, knock-down, lay-up, flop shot, draw, fade, shank, chunked shot or turfed shot, duffed shot) are only rivalled if not beaten by pool and snooker which has top-spins, english-left, jump shot, scratch, bottom-right, etc.

Am thinking of being a small type golfer again. Not to rival Madalitso Muthiya (pictured above) or Machael K. Chiluba. But maybe we can make use of some holidays and afternoons better. All that is needed is golf clubs (quite expensive I must say), golf balls, golf shows, a golf bags, some golf t-shirts, good slacks and belt (ha ha ha!) and pins of course. On clubs, a full set typically consists of a driver, two fairway woods (generally 3- and 5-woods), a set of irons from 3 to 9, a pitching wedge, a sand wedge, a putter, and one more club of the player's choice. Many players opt to avoid the 3- and 4-irons (which are more difficult to hit). Another common variation is to use only the 3, 5, 7 and 9 out of the numbered irons. The extra space in the player's bag can then be filled with more woods, easier-to-hit "hybrid" clubs, additional high-loft or intermediate wedges, and/or a specialized chipping club or multiple putters. Good way to invest into a better future as a mature. Not starting golf when it is too late.

Which reminds me, Madalitso Muthiya has the distinction of being the first and only Black African and Zambian to play in the U.S. Open in 2006.

But before I go, a few other things golf, Tiger Woods (the guy is aptly named for golf right), gets too much money compared to his colleagues and at more than 100 million dollars from sponsors and appearance (this is not including prize money but just endorsements and other contracts), he makes the likes of CR7 look poor (there I go to football). With Schumacher gone and Mike Tyson history, he is going to take long to beat. He deserves the money though. Tiger Woods has helped 'revitalize' world interest in golf. On Sunday April 8th, 2001 he created history by holding all 4 major championships simultaneously: the US Open, British Open, US PGA, and the Masters. In 1930 the legendary Bobby Jones won what is generally regarded as a golfing Grand Slam, when he won the then 4 majors in the same calendar year: the US and British Open and Amateur titles. Maybe the unique title 'GrandMaster of Golf' describes Tiger Wood's achievements.

This inspired the joke "What do you call hundreds of rich, adult white males chasing one black man?" Answer: "The PGA Tour".