[Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Obviously subjectively Celtic 1-0 Man Utd or Ac Milan 1-0 Celtic would be in there for me, but both (the first in particular) werent great games.



But the best 5 games ive watched this year, are;


1. Man Utd 3-2 Ac Milan

2. Liverpool 1-0 Chelsea

3. Man Utd 7-1 Roma

4. Tottenham 2-2 Arsenal

5. Scotland 1-0 France


Obviously im taking into account a few factors here - enormity of the occasion - quality of the game - quality of the finish (games #2 and #4 especially).

But i'd go with these as a first draft. Yours!

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

1. Cardiff 2-0 Birmingham - Outclassed all over.
2. Cardiff 4-1 Preston - we're going up ! easily !
3. Cardiff 1-0 Leeds - we won't be seeing you again !
4. Plymouth 3-3 Cardiff - 3-0 and we ****ed it up !
5. Cardiff 0-0 Spurs - flares are pretty.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

So far in 2007 I'll go with the following (They aren't in any particular order) :

Portsmouth 2 - 1 Manchester United

An absolute blood and thunder match, with Manchester United's superior skill being dealt with in brutal fashion by Portsmouth, shutting them down all over the pitch and slicing down Ronaldo whenever he got the ball. Portsmouth forced two goals and then spent the last 5 minutes playing an impressive backs to the wall performance while Manchester United were totally in charge and desperately trying to score. The game was more of a battle than a football match, was just like one from the old days.

Manchester United 3 - 2 AC Milan

(it's going to be on everyone's list)

Barcelona 3 - 3 Real Madrid

Great open play, great goals, 2 teams who really want for it with Messi putting in an absolute showstopper performance. The last thing you expect from a derby match between two teams that just ooze class.

Bayern Munich 0 - 2 AC Milan

This one featured AC Milan at their best. Bayern threw everything at Milan for 30 minutes and just couldn't get anywhere, they were either stopped by Dida or just didn't hit the target. Then Kaka, Inzaghi and Seedorf just went up the other end with two beautiful attacking moves and finished the tie. Bayern pressed more in the second half, but AC defended with real style, Nesta in particuIar. It was clinical Italian football at its best, reminiscent of the world cup in some ways.

West Ham 3 - 4 Spurs

This game was mental and really West Ham should have won it, it was end to end stuff with West Ham attacking beyond reason because they were utterly desperate to win. Teams fighting relegation are often the best to watch, as they play with more intensity than any team at any time. Tevez and Berbatov running the show, Tevez's goal with the manic celebrations and the near farce and absolute dejection of West Ham conceding that late goal after they had tried so hard.

I'd take issue with the Roma game, as Roma were crap and were more Ryman League than Champions League. I don't enjoy teams being flogged when they roll over, no excitement for me.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Barcelona 3-3 Real Madrid
Never really bought into the Messi hype until this game. Amazing that's he is so young and already capable of carrying a team like Barcelona.

Man Utd 7-1 Roma
Just a dream performance. I particularly like this game for two reasons. Firstly because a lot of our maligned squad players like Fletcher, O'Shea and Smith were all outstanding and restored my faith in Ferguson's judgement. Secondly because of the RTE coverage before, during and after the game where Eamon Dunphy and the other "experts" ripped into the United team. They said many of our players didn't have what it takes, that Ronaldo was vastly overrated and not good enough and all confidently predicted Roma would kick our ass. Their backtracking at half and full time was great to watch. Utter twats, particularly Dunphy, what a bitter old man he is.

Tottenham 2-1 Chelsea
This was just a really good match with some great goals. Desperate for Chelsea to drop points and when they went one up I almost switched it off because I couldn't see them letting the lead go. But Tottenham fought back brilliantly to equalise and then take the lead with 40 minutes to go. Then it was just end to end attack, great match. Also Terry got sent off which should happen more often.

West Ham 3-4 Tottenham
What lokken said. Crazy game.

Bolton 0-4 Man Utd
The first 20 minutes of this game was the best football United have played for about a decade. After that the quality dropped to just 8/10 but seriously I spent the first 20 minutes watching with my mouth open. We were flawless, I think the possession until Rooney got his second was over 80% in our favour, Bolton hadn't managed to get out of their half and it was just perfect football.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

I realise that its sacrilege to say so but i much prefered manu's 3-2 win over milan to the 7-1 at roma. As a neutral is became a tad boring and all you were left with was predicting the scoreline. 'Comebacks' make for the most enthralling matches. All the games i was going to mention have been.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

the west ham-spurs, man utd-ac milan and the barca-real games have easily been at least 3-4 levels higher than any other games i've seen this season. west ham-spurs was the most conflicting since i truly did feel joy as a spurs fan when tevez scored, just for the passion he displays.

lennon's flick off for tainio's goal in that game is god given genius as well

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Milan - Man United 3-0

the rest will follow later

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

qft :D

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

He said best game not best result.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Enormity - Champions League Semi-Final. Check!
Quality of the game - Man U lost. Check!
Quality of the finish - 3-0 to AC Milan. Check!

;)

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

yeah milan were great tonight.

it says a lot about bitter football fans that theyre happy to see the team that played the best football this year lose. still, biggest result of arsenals season i guess

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Aye, bitter indeed. Having a great season and losing the league to Inter :(

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Milan were good but Man U were very very poor.

that does not a good game make.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

I just thought Milan deserved it myself. When you're shit enough to let Gilardino score against you you deserve everything you get.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

the thought of Man U doing the treble this season would not make me happy. I want AC Milan to avenge their last defeat against Liverpool in the final.

I don't like Man U, but I respect them.

I ****ing hate Liverpool with a passion. Champions of Europe? It's a ****ing disgrace.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

I've grown to admire Man United's season - going from being a hateful Arsenal supporter to a genuine fan of their play. Can't stand Liverpool though.

I really wanted to see a Man U-Liverpool final, mainly because you could guarantee that Man U would trounce Liverpool - comedy at its finest.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Liverpool are doing well in Europe because they are quite good but not a great side. Not being a great side has worked to their advantage in the sense that since about January they have played largely free from pressure matches having been well on course for champions league qualification but nowhere near challenging from the title and being knocked out of the two cup competitions. On Wednesday, the Chelsea haters all came out of the woodwork, very little was actually said in praise for Liverpool, more was said about Chelsea and Mourinho, which to me spoke volumes.

It's hard to even grudgingly respect Liverpool's achievements considering they've faced teams that haven't had the luxury of being free from pressure and are now in a position where they can beat the top teams and become champions of europe simply because the admission of 3rd and 4th place teams into the top european competition that effectively let you hit enough points to be in a comfort zone then kick back and focus on europe while you stroll through domestic matches. Obviously this can't be reversed because it would financially break teams like Liverpool and Arsenal but I don't see that as a satisfactory way of running a competition where the also rans can profit from not being the best, which is exactly what Liverpool are doing. That's not what the European Cup should be for.

Regardless of how well Milan played yesterday, I am concerned that they won't win in Athens, because as Milan teams go, this one has a few holes in it. Their best striker can't play in Europe, Inzaghi is wonderfully inconsistent, the defence is aging and there are players like Ambrosini and Gilardino who I think don't deserve to wear the Milan shirt. The one saving grace for them is that Milan are a very angry team - they are deeply hurt by what calciopoli did to them when it was none of their business and probably want to stick a middle finger up at the world of football. It affected their form early on but they are now playing very well to get themselves back in the champions league hunt and to get themselves on the football map by right. The fact that they are channeling their anger to positive ends is something in their favour. Just like in Istanbul they will have to blow Liverpool away, except this time not choke.

Also without super Djimi Traore Liverpool have no hope anyway FFS.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

h8r, you didnt live in the 80s, get over it,

bitter, you have no european pedigree, get over it

potentially the worst football post ive ever read.

Liverpool have beat the probably champions of spain, the 2nd placed team in the premiership, and the champions of Holland. They now face an AC Milan side with the best player in the world who have just trounced the probable winners of the best league in the world.

If this doesnt impress you then you shouldnt watch football. You're just desperately finding reasons to rationalise your hatred for liverpool.

If they had beaten Lille, Arsenal, and Villareal or something you'd just be moaning they hadnt beaten anyone of any worth.


I'm also pretty sure that if you look at a list of Champions League winners then it will correlate mostly to teams that also won their domestic league in the same year. The fact liverpool are 3rd/4th in their league doesnt cheapen their achievement at all, it makes it all the more impressive.

Overall, try harder. Terrible.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

who'd believe you were a celtic fan

Lokken's argument was compelling. You didn't bother to make one, you just ignored his and restated a flawed position. Bad form.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

trolling, ban please.

please re-read and find one coherent argument

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Sadly I come from a school where the European Cup should only be contested by the best sides in each championship and whether Milan are is debatable considering that they won serie A but had it taken away and only ended up qualifying by the punishment being fiddled so they finished 4th. I actually think Milan are a poor team by their standards and I'm stunned they've got this far also. Kaka, however good he is, is just one player. I am an admirer of AC Milan and I find the fact they weren't even close or winning matches in serie A absolutely disgusting because Milan are not the kind of club that should accept 3rd or 4th in their league. Liverpool with their history should approach things in the same manner, but instead use their European success to paper over what are some very large cracks.

I don't agree with Liverpool's approach that they can settle for securing qualification for next years Champions League and treat their league matches casually, taking no domestic cup competitions seriously and just throwing everything at the European Cup. A club like Liverpool should aspire to want to win everything but the fact they approach their season the way do just highlights their own weaknesses and inadequacies. I shall continue.

Sadly Liverpool haven't advanced much under Benitez in my opinion. They were a cup team under Houllier and they are under Benitez, except Benitez is smart enough to put the emphasis on European football and perhaps the quality of the playing staff has improved, if ever so slightly. Liverpool are meant to be a great club that are defined by their league titles in the 70's and 80's and for 17 years have never really come close to the trophy that will reaffirm their status as one of the giants of English football.

The way the competition and qualification is structured just allows them to settle for what for a club like Liverpool is second best in the league so they can win a cup competition. It may well be a top cup competition, but to be one of the top clubs you try and win in every competition and Liverpool are doing anything but that, which is why Chelsea and United are still miles ahead of them. Liverpool aspire to be at the top level, their followers claim they are at that level but they are very far away from it.

If people think that's what a big club is meant to be, then they are very much mistaken.

As for my clubs European Pedigree. Our glory days were 50 years ago, thanks. Since then we've had chairmen who have leeched the club of all its resources and after years of absolute misery (including a trip down to division 4, thankfully I wasn't alive for this bit) there's half the prospect of us standing on our two feet again. UEFA cup football would be very nice but isn't demanded because unlike Liverpool, we are rebuilding our football club from a £1 shell and we accept it will take time. I envy no other club because its a ****ing miracle we've got as far as we have. 10 years ago our club was dying. So you leave Portsmouth out of this because we can accept the fact that we're shit.

The only thing I'm rationalising is the fact that I watch Liverpool and that apart from flashes of genius from Gerrard, I don't think they are a particularly special football team at all. As a fan of a team that can never win the league because the top of football is now largely an oligopoly where market entry requires billions, if we're going to this pisspoor situation lets have as many of the top teams challenging each other in our league as we can.

EDIT: If I have reason to hate any club it's Chelsea who got their status by being lucky. But they are the absolute nailed on proof that money doesn't buy success considering that Mourinho succeeded where Ranieri failed and Ranieri pissed ****tons up the wall. The difference is that like a big team, Chelsea are winning lots of matches, they are doing exactly what United are doing this season and did in the 90's and what Liverpool did before that. They are just another another team at the top of their game. If Liverpool think what's happening now is fantastic, quite frankly they are taking the piss out of their previous achievements.

Re: [Football] Best 5 games you've watched this year
 

Just because your Portsmouth is shit, doesn't mean the rest is as well ;)

But umm, Milan > * :p
And Chelsea < * (Praise to Liverpool!)