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OS Soccer Blog - Rooney, Mancini, FIFA 14 Stuck
Posted on May 16, 2013 at 04:22 PM.


So Let Me Get This Straight, Part I:

Man City's Chairman Al Mubarak was embarrassed by the way Mark Hughes was fired by the club. And now they hang Mancini out to dry by doing the exact same thing, pretty much confirming Pellegrini's hire the day before Mancini had to lead the team out onto Wembley for the FA Cup finals?

Interesting to read City fans' reactions on the club firing Mancini. There are a few ways to look at it. One: yes, he made a few errors this year, both in his tactics and the way he deals with players. But are the suits at City so impatient that they can't go one year without success? Let the man have some time to learn from his mistakes. Or maybe City saw something in Mancini that they believed can't be changed, and despite the fact that he brought them the cup last year, he wasn't their man for the long run. Or it could simply be that they City and its sporting director Txiki Begiristain just think Manuel Pellegrini is a better manager.

What to expect from Pellegrini? Michael Cox has a few guesses.


So Much for Any Last-Second Drama:

With Arsenal beating Wigan 4-1 (boy, that Cazorla is a pretty decent player, isn't he?) and consigning the Latics to the drop, there won't be any balls-to-the-wall action by teams fighting for survival in the final week of the season. That's a shame, since Survival Sunday is usually the next best thing to watch after the title has been sewn up.

But the potential of an extra game between Arsenal and Chelsea? Sign me up.


Barcelona Wins La Liga Title (Yawn)

Arsenal also benefits.


A Special Exit

So Jose Mourinho's good as gone from the Bernabeu. The man doesn't know how to exit quietly, does he? Is it that hard to leave at least one bridge unburnt?


So Let Me Get This Straight, Part II:

Wayne Rooney asked to leave Manchester United in 2010 because they couldn't sign good enough players to match his ambitions. Now he asks to leave again because the players around him are too good and he isn't an automatic first-teamer anymore?

On a side note, even as he rides off into the sunset, Fergie still can't resist laying good ol' Roo on the train tracks one more time. First he leaves Rooney out of the squad entirely for his Old Trafford farewell, then he reveals, oh so nonchalantly, that Rooney's asked for a transfer, knowing full well that the next day there will be a parade where the red half of Manchester can show Rooney exactly what they think of him. It wouldn't surprise me if Ferguson re-inserts him into the team next week either, just to give the visiting fans one more chance to have a go at him. Don't cross the man until he vacates that seat in the dugout once and for all.

Potential destinations? Well, Bayern has ruled out its interest, not that it made too much sense in the first place anyway. There have been rumblings about interest from Chelsea, PSG, and potentially Arsenal. Of course, he may also just stay put as well. But... Newcastle? Heh, well played, Mike Ashley.


Liverpool and Anfield

Amidst all the news on who won what and who fired who, this piece by The Guardian's David Conn, on Liverpool and the underhanded tactics it used to try to buy its way around Anfield for an expansion, is a wonderful read.

Accompanying pictures here.


Racist Fans

The Roma-AC Milan game was marred by racist chanting from a part of the home fans.

Idiots.



FIFA 14's Promo Blurb

Not much new in these bullet points, but if you want a quickie version filled with exciting, action-oriented descriptions (and a whole lotta verbs), along with features that sound like just a common gameplay action except They're All Capitalized Which Must Mean They're Significant, here you go.

One thing that does have me a little on edge, though, is the follow point: "Navigate the intricacies of ball possession, mastered by FC Barcelona". Now, there's no point in overreacting at this moment, and we can speculate all the way to the end of September to figure out what that really meant-- if the game does indeed, in the way the AI is designed, force users to play Tiki-Taka, or if they simply just wanted to work the name Barcelona into its marketing material and that's the best they came up with.

npower Championship Action

They're still fighting for promotion in the league below the Prem. Cardiff and Hull are already going up, but the last spot is still to be decided between Crystal Palace and Watford. That game takes place on May 27th.

I'm personally rooting for Crystal Palace, because of its manager Ian Holloway, who turns into Michael Scott whenever he's in front of a mic. The Premier League needs this man (watch out, language):

Quote:
On Cristiano Ronaldo: "He’s six foot something, fit as a flea, good looking – he’s got to have something wrong with him. Hopefully he’s hung like a hamster – That would make us all feel better. Having said that, me missus has got a pet hamster at home, and his c**k’s massive."
Video of the Day

Jose Mourinho is looking more and more likely to return to England. And so is his puppet counterpart. Yay!

Comments
# 1 willyfantastic @ May 16
Good post, but Ian Holloway has already been in the Premier league 2 seasons back with Blackpool. I don't want Palace to go up because I'm a Brighton fan, but also because even though Holloway is funny, he's not that good of a manager
 
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