Running Diary: Champions League
Exactly a week ago, I was wandering in north London, running here and there into Villarreal fans killing time before their semi-final match with Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League. Ignoring the fact that the so-called "Yellow Submarine" knocked out Everton in the qualifying stages AND that I'll be pulling for the Gunners....I dedicate this running diary to those die-hard Spaniards who made the trip to London last week.
2:31 - Tommy Smyth is ready to call the game with his overwhelming Irishness (and the superb Derrick Rae). Eric Cantona is ready to peddle fair football and Nike sneakers with his overwhelming Frenchness. I'm ready to watch the game and commentate with my overwhelming Americaness. My soup and sushi lunch is ready with...well, that's self-explanatory.
2:37 - The big story coming into the match is Arsene Wenger's blow-up following the big Premiership derby against Tottenham this weekend. Two Arsenal players ran into each other and fell down. Arsenal stopped playing, despite the lack of a whistle, expecting Tottenham to kick the ball out. Tottenham and the referee felt the two bumbling Gunners were fit enough to carry on. Edgar Davids played on, feeding Robbie Keane for the goal. The game ended 1-1, and Tottenham stayed 4 points ahead of Arsenal in the race for the final spot in the Champions League next year. Wenger hasn't stopped crying about it. Literally. His tear ducts have yet to close. Doctors have never seen anything like it.
2:43 - I'm going to come right out and admit I know nothing about Villarreal. Their player to watch Tommy Smyth and Soccernet tell me, is the Argentinean Juan Roman Riquelme. Oh yeah! Diego Forlan, of Uruguay, is up front. Dangerous former Man U striker. Arsenal simply has the greatest striker in the world. Henry started off the weekend game on the bench before coming on to score the equalizer. He's starting tonight.
2:45 - Off we go. Prediction...Arsenal, carrying the 1-0 edge coming in, holds on for a 2-1 win on aggregate, ending the Cinderella run. (We'll switch to game-time for diary purposes...)
5:00 - Jens Lehmann has set the record for most consecutive Champions League minutes without conceding a goal: 650 minutes and counting.
10:00 - Villarreal is attacking fairly well. Looking like the wide open game everyone hoped for.
12:45 - Arsene Wenger sends in Gael Clichy to replace Mathieu Flamini (hamstring) on defense for Arsenal. Speaking of overwhelmingly French...
23:49 - Lehmann is busy, but not stressed. Villarreal needs to test him more. Same story on the opposite end, but Arsenal is playing well with the 1-0 lead.
24:57 - Arsenal defenders have been stressed three times in the last minute, but no shots resulted.
27:56 - Smyth hits the nail on the head: "The big boot has been effective for the Arsenal defenders, but I don't think you can play that way for 90 minutes."
29:30 - Free kick for Riquelme from 30 yards...nice flick inches away from his teammate. Still no stress on Lehmann, who scoops it up
32:00 - How are you supposed to eat 12 pieces of sushi with one little packet of soy sauce? Honestly! Have to break out the La Choy...
34:20 - Derrick Rae notes that Arsenal are in a 4-1-4-1. The holding midfielder idea really looks a lot better when you've got Henry as your lone striker.
37:17 - Guillermo Franco, Villarreal's other striker, was born in Argentina but he just became a Mexican citizen so he could be named as an alternate for their World Cup squad. I dislike him already.
40:18 - THERE is a big save from Lehmann off a flicking header from Franco, almost point-blank. Nice cross led to that chance.
45:00 - Reyes of Arsenal goes down after a tough (but clean) challenge. He starts to get up, so Villarreal plays on, but moments later he is back down and Villarreal clears. Everyone immediately thinks of the Tottenham game...
45:00 - Riquelme from straight on, 30 yards... bending to Lehmann's right, Jens juggles it but keeps it out.
Half - Villarreal was the better side. I'm more convinced that Arsenal will need a goal in the 2nd half, but they are not playing like a team that is going to get one.
Half - First GREAT new commercial. By Gatorade. "Take me out to the ballgame" plays as images of the US traveling to far, distant, hostile lands flash on the screen. At the end, the US scores one, two, three goals. A whole new ballgame. I love it. Go USA.
Half - Second GREAT new commercial. Little Latino boy directs 22 of the greatest players on earth into position as two opposing teams on a dirt field in an unknown city. Impossible is nothing. Adidas.
47:30 - Villarreal picks up right where they left off with a Franco header just wide.
55:20 - All Villarreal at this point. Arsenal hasn't sniffed the other net. I can't remember what Villarreal's goalie looks like. But still no scoring.
59:20 - Another free kick for Riquelme from straight on...dropped right at the face of the goal. Another test for Lehmann but he fists it away. Riquelme has been quite crafty with his free kicks. Each one is unique and fun.
61:35 - Three quick corners all of a sudden for Arsenal. Third one was the best as Toure gets a clean head on it but misses the target.
63:00 - Villarreal substitutes a striker for a midfielder. (Arsenal just got served!)
64:15 - Franco collects a long ball at the top of the box, pulling Lehmann out. The ball gets dropped back to Forlan who misses a wide open target. That will be the moment Villarreal looks back on if they fail to score in the next 25 minutes.
67:30 - Franco puts the ball into the back of the net, but he's offsides. No doubt about the call. We play on, but Villarreal keeps getting closer without any sign of offense from Arsenal.
70:00 - Arsenal only 20 minutes away from their first Champions League final.
71:00 - Barcelona v. AC Milan in the other semi-final tomorrow night. It's only on ESPN Deportes here in the US. If I had a dollar for every time I wish I had ESPN Deportes, I'd have like 15 or 20 dollars...still not enough to pay for a subscription to ESPN Deportes.
73:00 - Arsenal subs midfielder Robert Pires on for forward Jose Antonio Reyes. (Villarreal just got served back! That means it's on!)
80:00 - Now Villarreal has gone 10 minutes without a good chance. Tommy, Derrick, and I suddenly favor Arsenal to hang on without scoring after all.
82:30 - Arsenal looks much fresher now, after playing defense all game. Villarreal is stale.
83:45 - In other news, Manhattan just hired a former Pitt assistant Barry Rohrssen as head basketball coach. I hope he doesn't bring Chevon Troutman back as an assistant. Crime in the Big Apple would spike.
86:10 - Franco flops in the box to no avail. The Yellow Submarine is sinking...or floating...or whatever happens to a submarine when it is about to lose a soccer game (I'm not very good at metaphors).
88:00 - Unbelievable. Jose Mari flops on a bump in the box and earns a penalty for Villarreal! He was bumped, but he also flopped big time. Rae reports that he has a reputation as a diver and Arsenal should have known better than to even touch him.
89:00 - SAVE LEHMANN!! Riquelme denied! That was the biggest save of Lehmann's career! Riquelme went low and to Lehmann's left, but the German guessed correctly.
90:00 - Henry almost slips one in off a break, but can't beat the keeper. 3 minutes of stoppage time to go.
Ballgame. Arsenal through to their first Champions League final.
2:31 - Tommy Smyth is ready to call the game with his overwhelming Irishness (and the superb Derrick Rae). Eric Cantona is ready to peddle fair football and Nike sneakers with his overwhelming Frenchness. I'm ready to watch the game and commentate with my overwhelming Americaness. My soup and sushi lunch is ready with...well, that's self-explanatory.
2:37 - The big story coming into the match is Arsene Wenger's blow-up following the big Premiership derby against Tottenham this weekend. Two Arsenal players ran into each other and fell down. Arsenal stopped playing, despite the lack of a whistle, expecting Tottenham to kick the ball out. Tottenham and the referee felt the two bumbling Gunners were fit enough to carry on. Edgar Davids played on, feeding Robbie Keane for the goal. The game ended 1-1, and Tottenham stayed 4 points ahead of Arsenal in the race for the final spot in the Champions League next year. Wenger hasn't stopped crying about it. Literally. His tear ducts have yet to close. Doctors have never seen anything like it.
2:43 - I'm going to come right out and admit I know nothing about Villarreal. Their player to watch Tommy Smyth and Soccernet tell me, is the Argentinean Juan Roman Riquelme. Oh yeah! Diego Forlan, of Uruguay, is up front. Dangerous former Man U striker. Arsenal simply has the greatest striker in the world. Henry started off the weekend game on the bench before coming on to score the equalizer. He's starting tonight.
2:45 - Off we go. Prediction...Arsenal, carrying the 1-0 edge coming in, holds on for a 2-1 win on aggregate, ending the Cinderella run. (We'll switch to game-time for diary purposes...)
5:00 - Jens Lehmann has set the record for most consecutive Champions League minutes without conceding a goal: 650 minutes and counting.
10:00 - Villarreal is attacking fairly well. Looking like the wide open game everyone hoped for.
12:45 - Arsene Wenger sends in Gael Clichy to replace Mathieu Flamini (hamstring) on defense for Arsenal. Speaking of overwhelmingly French...
23:49 - Lehmann is busy, but not stressed. Villarreal needs to test him more. Same story on the opposite end, but Arsenal is playing well with the 1-0 lead.
24:57 - Arsenal defenders have been stressed three times in the last minute, but no shots resulted.
27:56 - Smyth hits the nail on the head: "The big boot has been effective for the Arsenal defenders, but I don't think you can play that way for 90 minutes."
29:30 - Free kick for Riquelme from 30 yards...nice flick inches away from his teammate. Still no stress on Lehmann, who scoops it up
32:00 - How are you supposed to eat 12 pieces of sushi with one little packet of soy sauce? Honestly! Have to break out the La Choy...
34:20 - Derrick Rae notes that Arsenal are in a 4-1-4-1. The holding midfielder idea really looks a lot better when you've got Henry as your lone striker.
37:17 - Guillermo Franco, Villarreal's other striker, was born in Argentina but he just became a Mexican citizen so he could be named as an alternate for their World Cup squad. I dislike him already.
40:18 - THERE is a big save from Lehmann off a flicking header from Franco, almost point-blank. Nice cross led to that chance.
45:00 - Reyes of Arsenal goes down after a tough (but clean) challenge. He starts to get up, so Villarreal plays on, but moments later he is back down and Villarreal clears. Everyone immediately thinks of the Tottenham game...
45:00 - Riquelme from straight on, 30 yards... bending to Lehmann's right, Jens juggles it but keeps it out.
Half - Villarreal was the better side. I'm more convinced that Arsenal will need a goal in the 2nd half, but they are not playing like a team that is going to get one.
Half - First GREAT new commercial. By Gatorade. "Take me out to the ballgame" plays as images of the US traveling to far, distant, hostile lands flash on the screen. At the end, the US scores one, two, three goals. A whole new ballgame. I love it. Go USA.
Half - Second GREAT new commercial. Little Latino boy directs 22 of the greatest players on earth into position as two opposing teams on a dirt field in an unknown city. Impossible is nothing. Adidas.
47:30 - Villarreal picks up right where they left off with a Franco header just wide.
55:20 - All Villarreal at this point. Arsenal hasn't sniffed the other net. I can't remember what Villarreal's goalie looks like. But still no scoring.
59:20 - Another free kick for Riquelme from straight on...dropped right at the face of the goal. Another test for Lehmann but he fists it away. Riquelme has been quite crafty with his free kicks. Each one is unique and fun.
61:35 - Three quick corners all of a sudden for Arsenal. Third one was the best as Toure gets a clean head on it but misses the target.
63:00 - Villarreal substitutes a striker for a midfielder. (Arsenal just got served!)
64:15 - Franco collects a long ball at the top of the box, pulling Lehmann out. The ball gets dropped back to Forlan who misses a wide open target. That will be the moment Villarreal looks back on if they fail to score in the next 25 minutes.
67:30 - Franco puts the ball into the back of the net, but he's offsides. No doubt about the call. We play on, but Villarreal keeps getting closer without any sign of offense from Arsenal.
70:00 - Arsenal only 20 minutes away from their first Champions League final.
71:00 - Barcelona v. AC Milan in the other semi-final tomorrow night. It's only on ESPN Deportes here in the US. If I had a dollar for every time I wish I had ESPN Deportes, I'd have like 15 or 20 dollars...still not enough to pay for a subscription to ESPN Deportes.
73:00 - Arsenal subs midfielder Robert Pires on for forward Jose Antonio Reyes. (Villarreal just got served back! That means it's on!)
80:00 - Now Villarreal has gone 10 minutes without a good chance. Tommy, Derrick, and I suddenly favor Arsenal to hang on without scoring after all.
82:30 - Arsenal looks much fresher now, after playing defense all game. Villarreal is stale.
83:45 - In other news, Manhattan just hired a former Pitt assistant Barry Rohrssen as head basketball coach. I hope he doesn't bring Chevon Troutman back as an assistant. Crime in the Big Apple would spike.
86:10 - Franco flops in the box to no avail. The Yellow Submarine is sinking...or floating...or whatever happens to a submarine when it is about to lose a soccer game (I'm not very good at metaphors).
88:00 - Unbelievable. Jose Mari flops on a bump in the box and earns a penalty for Villarreal! He was bumped, but he also flopped big time. Rae reports that he has a reputation as a diver and Arsenal should have known better than to even touch him.
89:00 - SAVE LEHMANN!! Riquelme denied! That was the biggest save of Lehmann's career! Riquelme went low and to Lehmann's left, but the German guessed correctly.
90:00 - Henry almost slips one in off a break, but can't beat the keeper. 3 minutes of stoppage time to go.
Ballgame. Arsenal through to their first Champions League final.
posted by Prof. A at 1:27 PM
4 Comments:
It was P&C sushi. I'm not sure if they have extra soy sitting around. I don't even know where they keep the chop sticks. Luckily I had some at home. I don't mind using my own soy sauce. Less packaging waste. I'm all about planet earth.
Why wasn't Henry even threatening out of the 4-5-1, or whatever? No interest, or unable to get free?
He really didn't see the ball that much. When he did, he attacked, but with virtually no help. I wouldn't say Villarreal shut him down as much as Arsenal didn't put him in good positions to score.
Landon
Post a Comment
<< Home