Lasallians have had this long tradition of excellence of having a team capable of beating anyone in the league. It took only 3 years for Green Archers to win their first UAAP Championship since coming into the league in 1986 and finishing with a two peat. From 1993-1997 the team had finished second place to UST (4 times) and FEU before running on to win 4 straight until 2001. It was until 2007 when they got their next championship, officially at least. The 1991 championship match of the Archers against the Tamaraws continues to be a point of discussion until today and the 2004 championship is still etched in the hearts of the green and white – despite returning the trophy. Since the final four format, the archers had only missed the finals in 2003, 2006, 2009 and 2010 and making 13 appearances – not a bad feat for the youngest team in the UAAP.

We’ve been spoiled by a very rich history of excellence.

2006 may have been the turning point for the entire program but 5 years down the line, we’ve won a title and made the finals twice. We’ve missed the UAAP Final Four for the first time in history and are set to miss the one this year as well, winning the last 3 assignments aren’t enough as ultimately, the results of the resurgent UST play a big role if the team makes the final four. Sadly, we won the title with holdovers from the year before and then they started going down the hill.

The rich expectation of history lies heavily on the shoulders of the very young Archers and with very few people there to help them carry it. And those who are supposed to help them simply watch them strut around the court with the same plays they’ve had last year, without improvement and without the necessary moves.

The modern game is cruel to team management and it’s no surprise that the fans want heads to roll. But while rationality may dictate the time must be given, there doesn’t seem to be much improvement tactically on the part of the team nor individually as it seems to be their own doing. The players don’t like losing as it’s very obvious and they do seem to care a lot, but with the lack of plays and the lapses defensively it all points to a flaw in the fundamentals of college basketball players. And these fundamentals should have been taught by the coach.

It’s shocking that as players stay longer on the team they continue to deteriorate as it’s exactly the opposite should happen as they stay. Players have lost their shooting, a player who once scored 26 against Ateneo is now a turnover-prone player who consistently gets called for a traveling violation, or even a play who used to almost average a triple double hasn’t become that dominating presence that was expected of him. But while it’s easy to blame the players, I do not precisely because I can see a big coaching problem in the team.

Monfort was a liability once upon a time and is now a big time player for the Blue Eagles, Fortuna has turned into a back-up point guard into one of the best in the league today. Jeric Teng may not be as dominating as he was as a freshman but still goes to the court, exerts his influences and is a man who is marked. RR Garcia who one played in team B rose to become the UAAP MVP in a perfect Cinderella story. It does say a lot when no La Salle player has become a member of the mythical five since Casio and Rico (who I daresay improved under other coaches).

The program has suffered tremendously since unsung heroes such as Gee Abanilla and Tyrone Bautista have left in search of greener pastures. These same heroes have produced the players who are seemingly legends in their own right namely MacMac, Joseph, JV, RenRen, Mike, and TY just to name a few. Those who replaced them don’t seem to have anything going for them right now.

There is no doubt Dindo is a good coach leading the Warriors to a 14-0 record but perhaps with amazing assistant coaches behind him. I think that’s exactly what La Salle is lacking right now. More often than not the spotlight is focused on the head coach and players but key players in the team are missed such as those in charge of developing the players. These coaches have been given since 2007 to develop the players and to say they have failed miserably is an understatement. They have all the talent with them but improvement seems nonexistent.

For the sake of the players and their future careers, a call for change is clearly in the air. For the sake of the fans we deserve to see these players growing up and developing the way we all anticipated. A call for a short term solution is never in the cards but a call for something more long term and something more sustainable. This really isn’t just for the championship, this really is for the players and for their future.

But as we can see, change is clearly inevitable. Voices have been resounding online for this call and only time will tell if we’re heard. But for now, all we can do is play their game and hope that their talent shines through in an obvious lack of tactical and offensive awareness and simply hope for the best.

1. Ateneo can’t just rely on one player, or their starters for that matter.

Ateneo is undoubtedly the strongest team in the UAAP right now, boasting of a starting 5 with very good players and a very good support system as well. But the trend of the last few games is that there is one dominant scorer who led the team in securing the W, most especially the game against Adamson where Slaughter almost scored half of their total output. It was the same case against La Salle in the first half at least, with Keifer scoring at will in the first half. What we can take out of this though is that in the second half, they started playing more like a team and we could really see how good they are – from the inside presence of Slaughter, the much improved jumpers of Salva and the fact that there are several players out there who can contribute here and there. They have the strongest starting 5 but their bench is put into question – the starting five scored 69 of their total 81 points in the last game. For Ateneo to get that 4-peat, a little more bench production is needed.

2. Adamson is for real this season?

Adamson have historically shown glimpses of brilliance but this season, they are no pushovers. After losing a very close game to Ateneo and dismantling the hapless Tamaraws, can we really say that fortunes have turned in their favor? It’s difficult to tell based on the two games, but with a relatively intact line-up from last, they may just mount a serious push all the way to the finals. The first two games are good indicators of what they can offer, with that extra 5 or 10%, they may mount a serious challenge. Let’s see how this season pans out, but for now, it’s really too early to tell.

3. La Salle, or rather, LA Revilla needs help. 

Coming into the season, De La Salle was supposed to be that team which played much differently from the rest of the team – a team that featured no legitimate star player and with balanced scoring. This was the trend in the preseason games at least. It so happens that it’s the complete opposite. LA Revilla seems to be leading the team when no one else is playing, Norbert Torres is taking too many unnecessary jumpers, Simon can’t seem to get his shots while De La Paz and Marata can’t seem to get as much open looks as they would want to have (although occasionally they still do), perhaps it’s because they’ve played against arguable the two best team in the league but this really is no excuse. For De La Salle to have any real hope of mounting a serious charge this season, a lot more is expected from the other players. With no legitimate star (but with LA a rising star at that), a lot of help is needed of the bench. I’d rather see everyone score 6-10 points per game than one person to score 30, that’s the only way they will win.

4. FEU should remember that there are 6 more teams besides La Salle. 

For the Tamaraws, they seem to always get the better of La Salle. In the preseason for instance, RR Garcia was playing like a rookie until La Salle came along and he scored 30 points. Same in the opening weekend where he torched the hapless Arhcers. But against Adamson, it seemed like they just didn’t want to play at all. It’s an interesting phenomenon in that sense because they should be one of the stronger teams this season. I see FEU’s problem the same as La Salle, they can’t seem to get their offense running. They now have a couple of easy games before that all important match against Ateneo to get themselves back into shape.

5. NU Bulldogs aka Ray Parks and the crew. 

Much has been hyped about NU this season especially with the addition of Ray Parks. But if he continues to play like a one-man show, the team won’t get anywhere. He’ll probably win ROY or maybe even MVP for that matter, but for NU to mount a serious charge at the final for spot, Parks needs to share the ball more.

6. UST, the probable contenders. 

UST has been playing well so far but against far weaker opposition. It’s not like they’ve dominated though, but they are one of the teams that could give La Salle a run for their money. Expect them to mount a serious final four charge.

7. UP with a win

Common joke was the UP had finally won a game after almost two years. But I feel that UP can cause problems for the other schools – they have the firepower, and the players. A little bit more cohesion and they could prove to be one tough team to beat.

8. UE is just…

After losing several key players, I’m not surprised to see the Warriors at 0-2 right now. I can’t say much about them since I haven’t really observed their games.

The Eagles will be trying to get their fourth successive title and are obviously the favorites while FEU will try to pull all the stops again to try and get the title back at Morayta. The Green Archers and the Falcons, much improved from the previous season will bring in not only experience but more importantly, hunger and desire for that all important final four run. The Bulldogs backed with more funds and even more talented players are set to make it an even more interesting season. The Warriors will feel the loss of key players such as Paul Lee, Val Acuna and Ken Acibar, with only Paul Zamar as the notable returnee from last season. UP has lost key players as well but there’s really nowhere to go but UP for the fighting maroons. UST meanwhile has 8 rookies and 8 veterans but can perhaps be challengers for the title with the addition of two international players (Karim Abdul and Jamil Sheriff) a solid returning cast and Louie Vigil, expect UST to come out strong as well.

Notably though most teams are parading players who have foreign experience – Ateneo with Coach Black, Kirk Long (US but grew up here) and Greg Slaughter (studied HS in Virginia), La Salle with Norbert Torres (Canada), Adamson has Manyara (Kenya), UST has Abdul and Sheriff (both from the US), NU has Parks and Mbe, FEU has Noundou (albeit injured) and Sentcheu, and finally UP has Mbah (Nigeria), Silungan (US) and Gingerich (US) as well. The trend of having foreign players in collegiate basketball seams to be another quick solution to have more competitive program but at the same time could have drastic effects on the developmental role of the UAAP in training future professionals and potentially national team players. Of these players, only Norbert Torres, Slaughter, Parks and Silungan seem to have that Filipino blood though I may be mistaken.

The influx of these foreign players though has created an already very colorful preseason for the UAAP which included eligibility problems most notably between Parks and Slaughter. Yet these foreign players may be good for the league in terms of marketing – the preseason for example has drawn much more spectators as opposed to the previous years. Some fans for example were very excited to see the Eagles parade a very talented class of rookies in Slaughter and Ravena.

I however expect a very exciting UAAP season. I expect at least 6 teams to be very competitive in Ateneo, FEU, La Salle, Adamson, NU and UST while UP and UE could pull of potential upsets. It will be nice to see how these foreigners come to play in the UAAP and see if they adjust early on. An early favorite for the championship is Ateneo which I would have to agree with, but it doesn’t mean that they are unbeatable – La Salle has beaten them twice in the preseason (FilOil and in Dubai) while San Sebastian has also beaten them. But while this may not be exact indicators of how vulnerable a team may be, I still expect to be perhaps the best team this season.

Tomorrow starts another season and hopefully a very exciting one. I’m glad Parks and Slaughter were cleared so there’s absolutely no excuse for failing now. Personally, I expect the final four to be the same cast from last year. As for the positioning, all I know is Ateneo will probably get a twice to beat advantage. For everyone else, it’s a toss up. Let the games begin!

Lampard's disallowed goal against Germany, 2010 World Cup. If allowed, the score would have been 2-2. Germany went on to win 4-1.

The call for technology in modern football seems to be growing really quickly. Every offside, non-offisde call, every goal given or not given contribute to the growing number of football personalities who clamor for technology. With more money being spent in football, every decision, or wrong decision at that could cost a club millions. So then it becomes increasingly relevant for top flight football to push for this technology.

Among many considerations are that it won’t be universal – while most top flight clubs in Europe, America and perhaps even in Asia will have access to instant replays, other competitions may not be able to benefit from this ruling. The argument is valid, because they want football to be the same from the grassroots level all the way up to the pros. But, the question is, is that important? Lower level football clubs do not benefit from wonderful dressing rooms, a huge support to back them up, wages that rank into the thousands per week and good flood lights. The argument then can be called invalid because the experience is, in reality, not the same. Even the quality of the referee won’t be the same. As you go up the ladder, you are able to see the benefits of better stadiums, better referees, better opposition and ultimately, better decisions. Because as of now, football is not equal from grassroots all the way to the pros. It wouldn’t hurt to add a technology that will make the game better right?

Will it give less power to the referees? While many argue that the use of video could make the referees have significantly less power, the truth is they will have more power now. Currently plays end up getting mad at the referee for several wrong decisions. Likewise, fans also get riled up to the point that death threats towards the referee are sent out. The power to have more eyes in a match is a big plus for the referees. While I personally feel that tackles should be under the discretion of the referee, the manager and the referees should have the right to review an offside call or a disallowed goal using video replay.

Time time aspect though is for me, not even worth debating. Give more added time just as long as decisions are correctly given.

I think then it’s time for Football to learn from Basketball – replays are checked to see if a shot was released before or after the buzzer sounded, if the shooter touched the 3 point arc or if the person went out of bounds. While I feel that these important decisions can affect a game, in football, all we really need to look after are offsides and disallowed goals.

So, here are my suggestions:

1. Use video replays to see if a goal is offside or if it really went over the line – that way we get the correct decision because for me, these decisions are the most important of all.

2. Only the manager or the on-field team captain has the power to contest an offside, allowed or disallowed goal – that way only two people on the pitch have the right to call it. The manager talks to the fourth official while the team-captain may choose to talk to the referee.

3. When question a call, it must be done within a specified amount of time (preferably right after the decision was made) so that the referee can review the tapes.

4. The team cannot contest fouls, penalty claims, etc. However, they can complain about if the foul was made inside the penalty box or not.

5. If the manager or player abuses this right, a yellow card will be given.

Title Deciding Offside Goal - Drogba was several yards offside before the goal and scored to make it 2-0 to Chelsea. Chelsea went on to win the game 2-1 and won the EPL by 1 point.

Now is the time for technology to come in. It was evident in the game last night between Tottenham and Chelsea, where Chelsea were gifted two goals despite one seemingly not go over the line and one that was offside. Ancelotti himself admitted that these goals were fortunate and Redknapp was left fuming after the game because this all but buried their chances for a Champions League spot next season. Last season, it was Drgoba’s offside goal the gave Chelsea a big 2-0 lead at Old Trafford, eventually winning 2-1 and being crowned Champions a few days later by a single point. Imagine, if the game ended level, Chelsea would drop 2 points, Manchester United get one point and would’ve won the title. Of course, Lampard’s goal in the World Cup was very important as it could’ve leveled the scores and at the same time, it would’ve given England the momentum to push forward, thus having perhaps a more exciting game.

Club finances are greatly affected by incorrect calls, fans are left fuming and debating over several things, players morale are affected, and more importantly, championships are lost. Are we losing the integrity of the game by going into video? Definitely not. Because, from where we stand now, the game is becoming much more of a heart-ache than something pleasing because of all the incorrect decisions that are shown to us over and over again. It’s time to take advantage of the extra-eyes that are given to the referee. It’s time to stop dismissing claims for technology to come in simply because, it will make everything easier, and in the end, will actually make the game better.

The Archers were missing several players in Webb, Banal, dela Paz, Mendoza, and Tolentino while San Beda was without their inspirational leader in Hermida. We will not dwell with excuses that the team was undermanned or without Hermida,but the point is you need to make do with what you have – something De La Salle did.

Offense

The Archers didn’t really change that much offensively – they started off with a lot of 3 point shots just like again the Knights. However in the second quarter the Red Lions got themselves back into the game and it was close from there until sometimes in the fourth quarter. They continued to execute offensively and despite the 8 blocks of Daniels, it did not stop the Archers from getting shots inside and also taking those all important jump shots.

However one interesting statistic is the fast break points – De La Salle scored 17 points as opposed to beda who uncharacteristically scored only 2 points. More importantly though they had almost the same attempts, 10 for La Salle and 9 for Beda.

La Salle also has 11 second chance points, as opposed to Beda with none. These two statistics are hussle points – La Salle has a total of 28 as opposed to San Beda with only 2. The hussle of the Archers also got them 24 offensive rebounds as opposed to the Lions with only 15. These statistics really define the way La Salle played as opposed to San Beda.

But despite this offensively the Red Lions were not off sync especially when they get to set up, more often than not their plays would result in open shots by certain players and just like in the NCAA it was a joy to watch. It was mentioned by a friend that perhaps they forced plays for their big men which will be discussed in the next section.

Defense was Key

While we didn’t see much changes offensively, it’s interesting to see how the Archers defended against beda. It was good defense and more importantly getting those all important rebounds. The Archers out-rebounded the Lions 56-44, but while defensive rebounds the Archers only lead 32-29, the disparity in offensive rebounds is very important because it limits opposing possessions, which results less time on defense and more time on offense.

The Archers pressed throughout the game and then shifted to a zone defense once San Beda sets up. meaning they wanted to keep the pressure on the Red Lions but at the same time forced them to shoot from the outside as opposed to shooting from the inside. They defended Daniels and Marcelo very well too, the two premier big men of Beda combining for only 15 points, 12 were from Daniel.

Hussle Plays win the Game

This said it’s interesting how La Salle won. Field goal statistics are almost equal – 23/70 for the Red Lions and 29/78 for the Green Archers. The Red Lions also had 1 more assists than La Salle (17-16).

Interestingly as well in terms of extra possessions, La Salle had an obvious advantage with 9 more from offensive rebounds and an extra 5 from the turnover difference between the Archers and Lions (21 for SBC, 16 for DLSU) thus with 14 extra chances to score.

But as mentioned above it’s really the fast break points, the steals (5 for DLSU, 2 for SBC) and the second chance points plus incredible defense and checking Daniels was key for this big win. A team playing this well will be difficult to beat especially after giving the Red Lions their first loss since the summer.

It’s time to look at all the games United have played so far this season.

Clean Sheet Wins by more than 1 goal – Newcastle, West Ham, Tottenham, Wigan Athletic (4) – 19%

Clean Sheet Wins by 1 Goal – Valencia, Burasaspor, Rangers (3) – 14%

Wins by 1 goal – Wolves (EPL), Wolves (carling Cup), Stoke, Liverpool (4) – 19%

Wins by more than 1 goal – Blackburn (7-1), Scunthorpe (2) – 10%

Draw – Aston Villa, Manchester City, West Brom, Sunderland, Bolton, Rangers, Everton, Fullham (8) – 38%

Note that in the Champions League games, apart from the Home Draw against Rangers they have won everything by a single goal. That means they are grinding out the results and not playing particularly well. But more importantly United have not won 1-0 in the English Premier League all season. In their title winning campaign in 2009 they won 1-0 eight (8) times in the Premier League and won by a single goal five (5) times, roughly 34.2% of their total games. They also only drew 6 games, roughly 1/3 into the season United have already drawn 8 games and have already one by 1 goal only thrice. Results are not being grinded out and it seems as though they are heading for draws instead.

But here’s a trend about United. Apart from the wins against Newcastle, Westham and Tottenham, United have had several trends in terms of how they play football:

1. Attacking well, defending bad – We see United going up and scoring several goals but only to let the other team get back into the game and get draws. Their forwards are in sync, wingers get in well and attack quite well but are left empty at the back. But not only that, soft goals are conceded, those which are not supposed to be conceded.

2. Attacking badly, but defending well – Once in a while we see an out of sync United team but still get so many men behind the ball and defend in numbers. This is why they haven’t lost their game. I feel that if they attack properly they get excited and move forward, but if they don’t they stick back and defend. Draw is always better than a loss right?

3. Never Say Die Attitude – When losing they’d always fight and go for it. This is important for any team and it was shown during the games against Aston Villa and Bolton.

The form of Chelsea and Arsenal in reality have been better than United’s, but taking a look at it they’ve already lost some games. United haven’t. The story about United’s season just starting now is quite interesting, especially after it comes off a big 7-1 win over Blackburn, at the same time tying the goal difference with Chelsea. Is United’s season really just starting? Without a doubt.

Berbatov seems to play well with Rooney and Nani around him which is important. The Chemistry between Rooney and Berbatov is very important and we’ve seen them combine earlier. But apart from that those in midfield are starting to step up. Carrick’s ratings at Goal.com are always at 6.0 and I wouldn’t be surprised if it stayed at 6.0 even after the Blackburn game, but it went up to 8.0! Interesting.

Scholes started off the season very well but performance went down to a little above average. Carrick hasn’t had a good year but is regaining that all important form. I still feel that he’s a very important player to United with that holding midfield role. Fletcher has been the most consistent, and with Anderson back they are able to rotate more properly.

In defense the right back has always been the weak point of United but I’m enjoying Rafael, who is this attacking right back and gets back down on defense well. With Rio and Vidic fit they’re sure to be the starting center backs of United, and with a little more playing time they’ll perhaps form an unstoppable wall.

Rooney’s value is always there – he defends and is a workhorse and makes everyone look so good.

United’s season has only just begun, Rooney is back, the midfielders are finding their form and the team is starting to gel properly. The premium on defense is the most important thing United have for them this season, they have not been beaten in 29 games and I don’t think that’s going to finish anytime soon. 20 more games and they’ll probably be champions, 20 more games and they surpass Arsenal’s record!

Hopefully they remain consistent because they haven’t been playing well so far, but to be challenging for top honors despite having 8 draws is very impressive. And I will tell you this, what United have which other teams don’t have are quality players off the bench. Chelsea’s starting 11 is perhaps the best, but as a whole squad the United team are the strongest in the league.

Gab Banal, Joshua Webb, Joel Tolentino were all out while Simon Atkins and Luigi dela Paz sustained injuries during the first quarter. Personally I believe that despite the absence of several players, anyone who makes the cut for the UAAP team is more than capable of contributing something on the floor.

DLSU dominated 3 of the 4 quarters, outscoring Letran 59-40. Save for the third quarter where Letran had a big run, we see the DLSU played very well and limited the Knights. Which is why the discussion of the game will focus on the big first quarter, the adjustments made by the Knights in the 3rd, and the adjustments DLSU made in the 4th.

1st Quarter

Letran started with a zone defense clogging up the lanes and forcing DLSU to shoot. Not a good idea. In the past we’ve seen DLSU scoring well from midrange to three point range because of their shooters. Papot, Maui, Yutien and Jovet are all capable inside players but have that mid range game as well that extends the defense. The guards of La Salle can hit a shot just about anywhere (except maybe Tampus, but he still has that midrange jumper which I feel is very important). Which is why it was odd that Letran would play a zone against DLSU. And while the zone has proved effective against DLSU during the UAAP, it seemed Letran were also very lax giving up so many open looks.

DLSU scored 24 points in the first quarter, the breakdown is as follows:

• 4 three point shots – 3 from Marata and one from Dela Paz
• 2 mid-range shots – 1 from Vosotros and 1 from Dela Paz
• 1 lay-up – Mendoza
• 2 fast-break lay-ups – 1 from Marata and 1 from Andrada
• 2 free throws – Mendoza

The point I’d like to make here is that of the 24 points scored, half came from the outside and only one legitimate layup from an offensive set. 16 of the 24 points (roughly 2/3 at 66.667 percent) came from midrange to outside. The zone did not work at all for the Knights as showed here.

Which is why it’s interesting to note that once the 2nd Quarter started, Letran shifted to a man-to-man defense.

3rd Quarter

In the third quarter, if we look at the defense of the Knights they still stuck to that man-to-man defense with an emphasis on Marata who hardly got any good looks. They might have been surprised with his stop and pop three point shots during transition but this time around they were not taking any more chances. He finished the first half with 14 big points (33.33% or 1/3 of the total output of DLSU). By the end of the third Letran outscored DLSU by 5 points, 16-11.

What they did was they were executing their plays properly this quarter. Plays were made for their numerous 3 point shooters, something we missed during the entire first half.

Letran made 4 three point shots, accounting the 12 points and 75% or 3/4 of their total output in that quarter. This three point shots were key in reducing the lead of the Archers.

Coupled with scrappy play from the archers with bad passes and by trying to speed up the play thus making bad decision on the court, the nights crawled their way back during the 3rd quarter.

4th Quarter Adjustments

In the 4th DLSU simply went back to executing their plays to go for the win. Of the 17 points they scored in the 4th quarter, 8 came from midrange jumpers and 2from short range jumpers (inside the paint) accounting for 10 points. These 10 points came from well executed plays by the Archers. Adding one 3 point shot by Marata, they 76% of their points came from jump shots, the other 4 came from layups by Tampus.

So did they really adjust? Not much. They clamped down on defense better to contest the 3 point shooters of the Knights and started executing properly. These changes stopped the impending rally of the Knights and ultimately sealed their win and advance to the elite 8.

Conclusion

DLSU actually played to their strengths in this game. Their very mobile forwards who run just like guards were able to expand the floor which is why they were able to get quite a lot of mid range shots. The guards didn’t really show up for good reason – a lot of them were out. But those who were there particularly Tampus and Vosotros played extremely well, being the 2nd and 3rd leading scorers for the Archers.

We’d attribute their offensive problems with lack of rotation and running down the court quickly and not slowing down, this game though proved quite differently. They were passing the ball and executing very well and save for some miscues in the third quarter, the Archers were actually very smart in their on-court decision making, something Elorde and Vosotros did very well today.

It’ll be interesting to see how the match up against Beda or UE next week to see if the team is for real. I daresay they’ve improved quite a lot, Marata for instance seems to have shaken off the fever that slowed him down last season and the rookies are making better decisions on the court.

On a sidenote, it was interesting to see Steph report for DLSU yesterday. Can’t wait for Job to do it. AdMU AB Comm 2012 ftw!

While I’m sure ties won’t be broken between him and his teammates, unknowingly he just told the world that “the team is not good enough.” That’s an odd statement considering that United have not lost this season, have consistently finished within the top 4, and more importantly, we have to look at the caliber each player in the club have.

1. Giggs – need I say more? Welsh legend and United legend

2. Scholes – England Management tried to get him out of retirement. Not only does SAF have faith in him but also Capello

3. Ferdinand – England capatain

4. Vidic – A rock at the back and has been a very consistent player all season long.

5. Evra – French Captain and is one of the most consistent United players for the longest time, hardly makes a mistake.

6. Fletcher – Scotland Captain. Has turned into one of the better midfield players.

7. Nani – Always part of the Portugal XI, form has continued and is one of the better United players this season.

8. Berbatov – We know what he can do and this season, he has done very well.

9. Valencia – Injured now, but was one of the best players United had last season and is still capable of getting those key crosses in.

10. Van Der Sar – Ex Holland International and legend, has saved United several times this season.

And these are perhaps the best players in the club at the moment. But we should also look at several key players more than capable of making an impact:

1. Hernandez – fastest clocked player in the World Cup and has scored vital goals for the club in his early career

2. Owen – Even if the guy is in his 30′s and is not as sharp as he was in Liverpool he continues to be that one person who consistently scores when called upon, and, we cannot doubt his calibre.

3. Carrick – Not as steady and consistent as he was a few years ago but still is that good holding midfield player.

4. Oshea – Mr. Utility man who can play just about any position from keeper to striker

5. Neville – say what you want about Gary but he still has that experience that can just drive the team

6. Anderson – Runs have been good recently and can be a spark as well.

7. Hargreaves – Sure he’s injured, but he was the top player for England in the 2006 World Cup and played a very important role in that Champions League winning season.

8. Gibson – A regular in the international team, can hit those long shots when needed.

9. Park – South Koreans captain, not impressive lately but we know what he can do.

The youngsters coming in aren’t too bad either:

1. Evans – Evans has been a good deputy for Ferdinand, has made some errors but otherwise pretty solid out there.

2. Smalling – I think Smalling has done a better job than Evans recently, already opened his United account, and can only improve.

3. Macheda – Really? Need I say more? This guy is really good. Your typical center forward.

4. Rafael – Was awful against Munich, but otherwise has done very well. A rampaging full back just like Sergio Ramos of Madrid, I have high hopes for this guy.

So basically I just named 23 players in the United Squad, and these guys are very good players. Most teams would want these players in their team, especially the top ones and the young ones coming in. Need I say more about them? It’s simply an awesome team. Are they not good enough? No. It’s a modern footballers way of seeing things, which is sad.

United have not spent as much as City or Chelsea recently, even Barca or Real, but have consistently been ranked among them. They have not lost all season, but have drawn quite a lot of times. We can say there not having a very bad season if we think about it, but I guess we’ll never really understand how Rooney defines ambition.

When I opened Goal.com to get my daily dose of football news I couldn’t believe what I saw. While I normally see Goal.com as the rumor site with first hand information that may lead to potential transfers, it’s never really that credible when it comes to news like these. But when I checked the official site of Manchester United, it merely confirmed what Goal.com said,Wayne Rooney wants out of United.

The first question that popped was, where will he go? United will probably not sell them to their rivals most especially Chelsea, Liverpool and City, which means he’ll probably go abroad. Will he go abroad? That’s another question we should consider.

It dawned to me though that he hasn’t left yet, and more importantly, until a move is finalized he is still a United player.

Reports state that as early as August he already had that intention of leaving. His ankle knock and an alleged burst up with Alex Ferguson were the initial reasons to why he wanted to leave, leaving us only to speculate if he really wanted to leave.

If he wanted to leave as early as August we can already speculate to his poor form leading to the World Cup and also to this season. His goal tally last season may have eclipsed his performances but after the Champions League game against Bayern he hasn’t been back to his best since. Perhaps it’s a psychological thing? If as early as August he had already decided he wanted to quit United and there must be this motivating factor we do not understand yet.

Could it also be the Glazers ownership or the lack of transfer activity? We don’t know. But United have barely moved in the transfer market and are still in a good positioning in the league despite not playing very well recently.

However, the press conference by SAF comes as a shock as he normally does not do this, it’s great PR for the manager and against it reaffirms that no man, even if it’s Wayne Rooney, is bigger than the club.

This explains several things: when you buy a player like Javier Hernandez and leave Michael Owen, a similar player, with the team, you know something is up. Ferguson reiterated over and over again Owen is going nowhere. Then he buys a player in Bebe whom we’ve hardly heard of, whom SAF did not see. This revelation answers the strange transfer activity of United, and if they knew that as early as August he wanted out, they needed to keep their bases loaded.

But will he leave? He wants out, he’s probably going to be given the permission to get out, but again, will he leave? The contract is on the table which they claim is hard to match. Maybe it’s just a phase? Perhaps an emotional roller coaster that leads him to making those decisions.

In the end he needs to honor his contract and we can only speculate about where he will be in the next few seasons.

One thing is for sure: no one expected this.

From inboundpass.com

NCAA Finals Game 1

It’s time for the NCAA Finals to start and the unbeaten Red Lions are there against the San Sebastian Stags. If there’s anything to discuss about this game it’s the big third quarter run which pulled the Red Lions away from the Stags which included a failed alley-oop that went in by Pascual, things seemed to go right for San Beda. But I’ve said this over and over again that San Beda is such a wonderful team to watch because they have great half court plays, you seem them swing the ball around and making cuts to the basket which is something the UAAP number 1, FEU, lacked this season. At the same time they have that killer instinct on the fastbreak that gives them easy points. The third quarter looked like it was the first quarter of the Ateneo FEU Game 1 of the finals. Started out toe to toe until that big run which put the game away.

Towards the end of the game though, up by 20, Beda committed two 24 second shot clock violations instead of hoisting up a shot, I think it’s a good show of sportsmanship not to make the lead balloon any further.

I told a friend that Beda would win one game by a big margin, and this was it. It was amazing and I really think that San Beda is on another level in terms of talent, teamwork and set plays. And, only Hermida is graduating, they still have a solid core to back them up.

I expect a sweep by Beda, I really think they’re too strong for anyone in the collegiate ranks.

from BBC.co.uk

England v Montenegro

I stayed up to watch the England Montenegro game and was visibly disappointed with how England played. They seem to lack this team cohesion expected from them and when they threatened to score, their shots were not strong enough. Even with the substitutions I felt that England were going for a draw either way unless Gerrard, who in my opinion was the best player for England last night, would conjure something up.

Perhaps the missed the services of Lampard, the injured players, and we can even blame the out of form Rooney, but in the end England can’t be over reliant on these players, there is that need to play cohesive football with passing and creativity. Looks like it’s back to the drawing board for England.

P.S.

Did you see Jeff Chan’s shot against Air21? That’s amazing.