giggsy
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Posts posted by giggsy
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The only radio I listen to is the footie when its not on tv.
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I went out with a heavy smoker once and I just couldnt put up with it one of the reasons I finished it. She was distraught
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Nice one!
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the suns a good laff. And Prince Williams new lady is in it. Cor.
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You should experience Manchester, mate.
One minute it's raining, the next it's raining hard. Then it's just cloudy. And then after that it flippin well rains again!!!
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What does this inedible fruit look like?
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Goemon is that from the Argentina game vs England in the World Cup.
Hadn't seen that before? -
Not actually seen it, but I've heard about it and its supposed to be interesting if only to see the reactions from bosses. etc
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You won't like this rach. It's too close to a possible truth....
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Bad luck cannot conceal truth of United's decline
By Glenn Moore
11 March 2004
The nagging suspicion that Old Trafford will this season bear witness to the end of an era hardened as Manchester United slipped out of the European arena on Tuesday night. Notwithstanding the lateness of Porto's winner, the linesman's error which denied United a two-goal advantage, and the prospect of FA Cup success, there is clear evidence of decline.
It is not just that United's play lacks the swagger of old. Porto were manifestly the better side over two legs and United's equal on Tuesday. Yet they are not of Europe's first rank and are unlikely to reach the Champions' League final.
It might seem premature to write off a club which continues to generate a greater income than any in the world, which contains players central to the national teams of England, France and the Netherlands, and is overseen by one of the game's most successful managers. But in football, as in life, empires are rarely as solid as they appear. United fans have only to look down the East Lancs Road to see that.
When Liverpool lifted the title in 1990 it was their 10th championship in 15 years. Only once in 18 seasons had they finished lower than second, and that was in 1981 when they may have been distracted by winning one of four European Cups they claimed in this period. The thought then, that in 2004 Liverpool would still be waiting for another title, and only twice finished in the top two in the interim, would have been inconceivable.
The seeds of Liverpool's decline were sown at Heysel and Hillsborough. The former tragedy robbed the club of European competition, with its income and allure, the latter inflicted on Merseyside the suffering felt in Turin. Both incidents dented the club's self-confidence and imposed a huge strain on individuals. Two years later the toll became apparent when Kenny Dalglish walked away for the sake of his health. Liverpool were thrown into turmoil and have not won the championship since.
United have not been involved in such seminal events, their decline is the stuff of Greek, rather than actual tragedy. The central figure is Ferguson. It is a staple of classical drama that a person's strength becomes their weakness. Just as United's rise has been driven by his indomitable will so might their fall be precipitated by his bloodymindedness.
With the departure of Martin Edwards, who for all his faults was prepared to stand up to the manager, Ferguson utterly dominates Old Trafford and absolute power has not become him. The once approachable Scot has appeared increasingly arrogant and his belief that the world is against him borders on the paranoid. This has been evident in the selling of David Beckham, the dispute with John Magnier over Rock Of Gibralter, and the club's mis-handling of the Rio Ferdinand affair.
Each of these incidents have damaged United. Beckham, sold because of a personality clash rather than for footballing reasons, has been missed, both for his technical ability and his capacity to change games. The Magnier dispute occupied Ferguson's attention at a time when he needed to concentrate on his team and created uncertainty over the club's ownership and governance. The high-handed response to Ferdinand's failure to take a drug test was the biggest error. Had the club admitted he was at fault the case would have been considered earlier and, in all probability, a lighter sentence delivered. Ferdinand might even be playing before the end of the season.
Either way Ferdinand's absence has been as crucial as the loss of Eric Cantona through suspension in 1995 and Roy Keane with injury in 1998, both occasions in which United surrendered the title. Once again the squad was not strong enough, in personnel and mentality, to overcome the loss.
All of which begs the question why Ferguson failed to sign Gareth Southgate either in the summer or in the transfer window after Ferdinand was banned. Not that this is his only misjudgement in the market. Of his summer signings only Tim Howard has been a success although players from different cultures, such as Kleberson, often need a season to settle while it should be remembered Cristiano Ronaldo is still a teenager.
Ferguson has also been unfortunate with injuries, notably Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's as the Norwegian was inked in as Beckham's right-flank replacement while Ronaldo settled.
The latter's arrival showed Ferguson was aware that the team needed regenerating. By introducing players such as Ronaldo and Darren Fletcher he aimed to rebuild without suffering a transitional phase. Ferguson might have got away with it in the domestic game but for two external factors. Roman Abramovich's purchase of Chelsea means United are no longer the wealthiest club in Britain, the consequences of which were made clear when Arjen Robben went to Stamford Bridge. Meanwhile Arsenal have taken their football to a new level, one presently out of United's reach.
In Europe the signs of decline have been more obvious. Despite spending vast sums on Ruud van Nistelrooy, Juan Sebastian Veron and Ferdinand United have been unable to follow up the 1999 European Cup win. A lack of coaching support has been a factor. United's football has stagnated with Ferguson's failure to replace Carlos Quieroz, just as it did in 2002 after Steve McClaren left.
It remains a bold move to call time on Ferguson's United. As Gary Neville said: "We know people will say it's been a disastrous season for Manchester United. Suddenly we are a shambles but seven weeks ago we were clear in the Premiership and had the best defensive record in the League."
He added: "Rio Ferdinand's suspension is a factor but you should be able to cope with things like that. What you can't legislate for is losing so many players in the same position at the same time."
Neville, though, admitted the team lacked form and belief. He is convinced they will recapture both and, given a couple of judicious signings, and the return to fitness of key players, United could yet mount a last hurrah. In the long term, however, the sands of time are running down on the club's golden age.
THE SIGNINGS WHO HAVE YET TO DELIVER...
LOUIS SAHA
Age 25. Cost £12.8m from Fulham, January 2004. Barely two months into his United career it is far too early to pass judgement. And yet in the two Champions' League matches he played against Porto, Saha looked hopelessly lost, a worrying sign for one who cost more than Thierry Henry.
CRISTIANO RONALDO
Age 19. Cost £12.3m from Sporting Lisbon, August 2003. You cannot call a boy of 19 who possesses enormous promise a failure. Nevertheless, he was given the famous No 7 shirt and as yet he is not in the class of Best or Beckham. United paid double the amount offered by any other club.
KLEBERSON
Age 24. Cost £5.93m from Atletico Paranaese, July 2003. Sir Alex Ferguson boasted that he could afford to lose Seba Veron because in Kleberson he had his equal. Kleberson, left out against Porto, has suffered, as many do, from the transition between the English and South American games.
DAVID BELLION
Age 21. Cost £3m in a tribunal payment to Sunderland, July 2003. The Frenchman's pedigree was exceptional. However, his record in a Sunderland side that was the most ineffectual in last season's Premiership should have set alarm bells ringing. Twenty-four games, one goal.
ERIC DJEMBA-DJEMBA
Age 22. Cost £4.2m from Nantes, June 2003. He idolised Eric Cantona when growing up in Cameroon but, despite the first name, he has not made quite the same impact at Old Trafford. Porto was his first start for United since November and he proved no replacement for Roy Keane.
DIEGO FORLAN
Age 24. Cost £6.9m from Independiente, January 2002. Sadly, you don't get goals through hard work alone, otherwise the Uruguayan would be in Van Nistelrooy's class. He has scored three times in the Champions' League and they have each come against relatively minor clubs.
..AND THE PLAYERS WHO LEFT OR GOT AWAY
JUAN SEBASTIAN VERON
Age 29. Sold to Chelsea for £12.1m in July 2003. The Argentinian was supposed to be the final piece in United's transformation into a European style side but he rarely lived up to his billing. The board's need to reduce the wage bill meant they took a £16m loss on the fee they paid Lazio.
DAVID BECKHAM
Age 28. Sold to Real Madrid for £23m in June 2003. Perhaps his personality was never compatible with Ferguson's but he was still the best crosser of a ball and taker of a free-kick in Europe. Beckham is proving at the Bernabeu he can adapt to central midfield, a role Ferguson was reluctant to find for him.
RONALDINHO
Age 23. Sold to Barcelona for £21.25m by Paris St Germain. July 2003. The fact that the world's wealthiest club attempted to get Ronaldinho on the cheap was punished by the Brazilian's departure to Catalonia where he has inspired Barcelona's run of seven successive victories.
DAMIEN DUFF
Age 25. Sold to Chelsea for £17m by Blackburn, July 2003. The shy, talented Irishman should not have been too difficult a capture for Manchester United. Quite simply, Ferguson considered him overvalued, although Claudio Ranieri claimed Duff's passes have already set up 11 Chelsea goals.
ARJEN ROBBEN
Age 20. Sold to Chelsea for £12m by PSV Eindhoven, February 2004. Once more when it came to spending as big as they talked Manchester United failed to come up with the cash and one of the most talented young attacking midfielders in Europe went elsewhere.
GARETH SOUTHGATE
Age 33. Remained at Middlesbrough. Ferguson has been good to Steve McClaren. First he signed Forlan and then he did not buy Southgate who would have been an ideal stopgap centre-half to nurse a team through the hole left by Rio Ferdinand's suspension.
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I'm on early Bowie at the moment, haven't listened to it for years and years, but good stuff.
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They should've called them "Bobs". Much better.
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Ey? Hot drinks for me. Be specific dude!
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Defeated by a friggin linesman rach.
Scholesy's 2nd goal was 100% OK.
It was NOT offside.
It should've been 2-0.
Very different story.
Bring in the video judges, this kind if shit is getting tiresome.
We'll be back in force next season, you watch.
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Japan playing England here in Manchester June 1st. Going to go and check it out.
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I get 4 weeks.
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Or hea-nuudo even better.
I got called goggle eyed once. Panda is much better.
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Where were you enderzero with that grass showing?
So sand comes all the way from China and dumps itself on Japanese snow. That sounds like a raw deal.
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Whats that Japanese girl mogul goddess called...Eiko????
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That would sure be good to see.
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There's a 30 min sumo program on tv in the uk on satellite (or there used to be anyway). cult following
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Certainly did
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Good old Mozzer.
The usual Mozzer-type song titles:
"America is Not the World"
"I Have Forgiven Jesus"
"The World is Full of Crashing Bores"
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"This is the best album I've ever done."
- Morrissey, on You Are The Quarry
You Are the Quarry, the first new solo material in seven years from Morrissey, is to be released May 17th in the UK and May 18th in the US on Sanctuary's revamped imprint, Attack. Recorded in Los Angeles and London, Quarry is an album of extraordinary original songs using keyboards interwoven with crunchy guitars that work to create a lush, musical backdrop.
"There are no links to the past. This is a much brighter sounding album, than much of my previous work. We've turned the page with Quarry. It's a dynamic album and I couldn't be any happier."
"America is Not the World," "I Have Forgiven Jesus" and "The World is Full of Crashing Bores" illustrate that Morrissey's genius and wit haven't waned a bit. On "America", Morrissey personally pleads with the U.S. of A to hold on to its humility and to cease its heavy-handedness but, make no mistake, "America" is not an anti-American song. "I love you/I love you/America/ but you are not the world," Morrissey sings in a melancholy voice while a thunderous guitar strums and a drum beats heavily in the background. "I'm Not Sorry" shows that Morrissey has no regrets. "I'm not sorry for the things I've done" he sings to the sound of a droning guitar and the beat-beat-beat of a drum loop as Morrissey warns "There's a Wildman in my head." Morrissey lets his detractors know that harsh words have helped his career in "You Know I Couldn't Last," "the critics can't break you/they unwittingly make you."
"The song is my response to the negative press I have endured over the years," Morrissey says.
Instead of firing back at his detractors, however, Morrissey takes the criticism in stride. In fact, "Last" sounds more like a thank you note to the nay-sayers what with the song's powerful drum beat and hummable chorus making it an irresistible foot tapping piece of pop poetry.
From mandolin to flute to harp to moog keyboard, Quarry's richly textured musical layers see Morrissey exploring new musical territory. The album crosses many genres, incorporating subtle elements of dance, jazz, world and rock. Morrissey said the combination will definitely appeal to his core fanbase and will also reel an audience that may not be familiar with his earlier solo work.
Quarry was produced by Jerry Finn, one of the most in-demand producers working today, who was behind massive selling hit albums by pop-punk rockers such as Blink-182, AFI and Green Day. It may seem strange that a producer who is best known for breathing new life into the punk rock movement would be twisting the knobs for an artist like Morrissey. But to hear Morrissey tell it, theirs is the perfect marriage.
"I wanted a louder sound for this record," said Morrissey. "I was introduced to Jerry by a mutual friend. He made me feel very confident. He's not easily pleased and he's not prepared to be overwrought. He knows exactly what he wants to do. He was able to help me create the sound for this album that I had already been hearing in my head."
Finn said he set out to create an organic "creamy" album with Morrissey and the outcome is much better than even he anticipated. "This is one of the best records I've produced," said Finn. "It's just purely organic and it sounds incredible."
Finn recruited acclaimed keyboard player Roger Manning, a founding member of the seminal pop band Jellyfish who has also worked with Blink-182, Air and Beck, to the fold. Manning's contribution to Quarry is nothing short of spectacular. His keyboard and synthesizer work gives the album a somewhat vintage feel but still manages to sound current and blissful behind Morrissey's dynamic vocal arrangements. Morrissey is backed up on Quarry by his longtime band: guitarists Boz Boorer and Alain Whyte, bass player Gary Day and Dean Butterworth on drums. You Are The Quarry marks the first time in Morrissey's solo career that he recorded his vocals with the band in a studio, Finn says. On his previous albums, Morrissey would record his vocals first and the band would record the music later.
"Having everyone in the studio at the same time made the creative process much easier," Finn said. "Instead of trying to create the music around Morrissey's vocals, which is how it used to be done, we were able to create a much more listenable album because everyone was in the same room at the same time and it made the album much tighter. I think Quarry is Morrissey's best work because of how it was recorded."
There's no denying Morrissey's impact on pop music. As lead singer for The Smiths, arguably the best alternative act of the 80s, Morrissey blazed a trail for dozens of modern day alternative rock acts including The Strokes, The Rapture and The Shins amongst others.
Morrissey has sold millions of records worldwide both as a solo artist and during his time with The Smiths. His concerts sell-out in minutes and in 2003, despite the fact that Morrissey hasn't released an album of new material since 1997; he played two sold out nights in Anaheim to three thousand ravenous fans. .
"My audience believed through the years that I've never received the recognition I deserved on my records," Morrissey said. "I have an incredibly loyal following and they have made it their mission to support me when ever I play a concert. I'm grateful for that."
Prior to signing with the Sanctuary family, Morrissey said he met with the label's chief executive officer Merck Mercuriadis in New York and expressed interest in reviving the Attack label. "They had a drawer full of labels that they bought and Attack was part of the Trojan family," Morrissey said. "I've been a fan of the Attack label for quite some time. I have a Gregory Isaacs seven inch on my refrigerator. Well, I told Sanctuary that I wanted to re-launch the label and have Quarry released on Attack and they agreed."
Attack was launched in 1969 and became the breeding ground for dub and reggae artists including Gregory Isaacs, Family Circle and The Monkey, many of whom at the time had no place to showcase their talents. The label became part of the legendary Trojan Records in the 1970s. Trojan itself is wholly-owned by Sanctuary.
Morrissey will also sign new talent to the Attack label. Morrissey said he's already found three bands to work with and has written a song that was recorded by legendary chanteuse Nancy Sinatra, who will release an album on the label in the near future.
"This is the album that I've wanted to make for quite a while. I believe You Are The Quarry has something for everyone." Morrissey said. "I didn't want to do the same thing over again. That's so boring."
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Welcome back 4-4-2??
We shall see.
Davros looks like the mayor of my town...
in General off-topic discussions
Posted
Did you know theyre making a new one.