Pim-p our team

No it’s not X to the Z... this is the real PIM-p and he has a whole lotta work to do with not much time to do it in!
As the third of four Socceroos training camp kicks off today, it is still not known exactly who will fill the make-shift Socceroos lineup, although the ace up his pimp sleeve, which won’t be revealed till the weekend before the match on Feb 6th, is if he’s going to bring down any of Australia’s European big guns.

I have talked by phone - or in person - with our European players and they have all made themselves available. Now it’s up to me to make a final decision on what to do.”

My friend drives a sky blue 1973 Steevie Cor-ica 3.4 litre, which he has thrashed and is nearing it’s last legs wheels. A couple weeks ago PIM-p knocked on his door and offered to pimp his ride. He figured some body filler, a fresh coat of paint and a bit of bling was all it needed to look good and perform like it once used to.... and he wasn't wrong. I saw my mate and his car in front of 33,458 spectators yesterday and it still looked awesome... it was running well and getting looks from the crowd... my only concern was that while cutting out the rust and patching it with body filler looks good, under the hood it was still the same old engine and could it be a solution to rely on?... short term, maybe... I guess only time will tell.

Autralia's World Cup campaign kicks off at Melbourne's Telstra Dome on February 6 against Qatar.

The problem with Victory is...

With one match remaining in Sydney and no chance of making the top four, Melbourne will be reviewing their season and asking themselves how they got it so wrong. Their recruiting at the end of last season and even before this one kicked off was getting praise from pundits far and wide cause they weren't resting on their laurels. They put the signs out early that they were keen to go back-to-back and on paper they looked the goods... so what happened?

Well inside sources suggest that they put way too much emphasis on being fit for the looming Asian Champions League (Asian hookers give you more bang for your buck ya see) and the conditioning coaches got their calculations a little wrong; hence why Melbourne is peaking at the end of the season as opposed to months earlier. Also, Thompson and Allsopp's poor goal scoring form means that Melbourne have had to rely on mid fielders such as Hernandez, Caceres and Muscat to score the bulk of their goals. Whatever the case though, as long as Melbourne can keep up this late season form they shouldn't really have a problem in the group stages of the ACL... I predict Thompson opening the flood gates and scoring uncontrollably on and off the field! First up Chonburi FC winners of the 2007 Thailand Premier League and a lady boy named Pwonphakdee Supaporn! Go on Archie, do it for the team mate!

Other reads:
Victory on prowl for strikers [The World Game]
Which International Should Melbourne Ditch? [MVFC Blog]

A-League: The end is nigh

So we're down to the business end of the A-league season and all top 4 teams are locked on 31 points heading into the final game day of the season. At stake a place in the Asian Champions League, potentially worth US$600,000 and a place in the World Club Championships.
This has been the closest finish to a season in the A-league so far and it'll be interesting to see how it pans out; especially cause the games take place on seperate days as opposed to being played simultaneously, so as to not favour any one team.
Surely the A-league will review this for next seasons fixtures and plan accordingly.
Queensland currently top the group with a +6 goal difference, then Sydeny (+4), Central Coast (+3) and followed by the Jets (+3) but with less goals scored than CC.

Final day fixtures
Kicking off the round on Friday night are the Newcastle Jets v Perth Glory. Newcastle are my pick to win of the final series but winning the minor premiership would be a big ask seeing as they'd have to beat Perth at least 4-0.

On Saturday night the Mariners will take on the Phoenix and well anything could happen here. The Phoenix were drilled 3-0 last Friday by a resurgent Melbourne Victory, yet showed glimpses throughout the second half that they could maintain possession. The Mariners are on a cold streak, having conceeded something to the like of 13 goals in the last 4 matches while only picking up a point. They should have wrapped up the minor premiership weeks ago, yet now they’re trying to salvage their season.

Sunday sees Melbourne traveling to rivals Sydney in what is expected to be Sydney’s biggest crowd of the season. It’s a pity they don’t stand a chance though; Melbourne have a great record against them, only ever losing 1 game in the A-league brief 3 year history. In all fairness though, both teams are playing some attractive football so I think this game will be won by the coaches… and boy don’t Merrick and Cosmina go back a long way!? I’m predicting a fiery 2-2 draw in which Allsopp will score the first, Brosque will equalise. Fyfe will get the second for Sydney and then to cap off a great finish to the season a thunderbolt free kick by Hernandez will rip the net and the home crowd a new A-hole!

Sunday will also see Queensland take out the A-league minor premiership and secure their place in the Asian Champions League for the 2009 campaign. I’ve always had my doubts about the Roar, and they were only boosted when Farina took over, purely because he’d failed so miserably on so many occasions to do anything descent for Australian football... apart from beating a full strength England squad 3-1 at Upton Park back in 2003. Anyway having said all that, the Roar have played the most consistently throughout the season and they’ve also managed to entertain their fans while doing so... let’s see if they can back that up for the finals series where they’ll meet Newcastle in the finals.

In Action: Nike Mercurial Vapor IV

The Nike Mercurial Vapor IV SL, a by-product of the Nike Mercurial SL, have finally hit the feet Cristiano Ronaldo and will soon be hitting stores as well. Weighing in at 210 grams, these are by far the lightest boot out on the market at the moment. Designed to be fast, there's no wonder why Nike enlisted the services of Ronaldo to promote these beasts... And what a way to show them off! Overnight, Manchester United destroyed Newcastle United 6-0 at Old Trafford, with Ronaldo bagging a hat-trick. That brings his goal tally in the Prem. League to 13 this season and 22 across all competitions. He truly has stepped up his game and it'll only be a matter of time before a Spanish or Italian giant comes knocking at Manchester's door.



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