Comments on: A Couple of Questions

By: Steve

Steve — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 03:09:44 +0000

1. Germany v Italy in the 2006 WC semifinal. I was in Siena at the time, and the place went insane after the win. Of course, I was eyeing a couple German hotties in the same little cafe, but alas, the national team didn’t do me any favours that night.

2. I really would’ve loved to have been at Hampden Park for that CL win against Leverkusen. I watched it in a bar with some Spanish mates, and we went nuts.

3. Any loss to Barca is a scoreline I wish we could reverse.

4. Zidane, Casillas, Roberto Carlos, Figo, van Nistelrooy. Sorry, I really only started watching football in 2001.

5. Cantona, Fabregas, Giggs, Vieira, Roy Keane. I’m quite aware that my list is 3 Man U guys and 2 Arsenal guys, but hey, you can only go with what you have seen. Number 6 on my list would be David Ginola though, I thought he was the dog’s bollocks at Tottenham.

6. Having seen neither play, I’ll go with Pele because Maradona strikes me as a real twat.

7. Raul, though only because I’ve seen him at his best.

8. Del Bosque, you can’t argue with the results.

9. Casillas, again due to short-term memory.

10. Agree with Corey, Cruyff is an idiot. Beckenbauer can also stick his foot in his mouth quite well. Materazzi just for the last World Cup.

11. If any, it would be Arsenal.

12. Yeah, Zidane for real. Just magical on his feet. Present players would be either Fabregas or Benzema.

13. Dream or impossibility? Spain to win the WC for the former, Canada to win the WC for the latter.

14. My Casillas shirt.

15. I hate to go with C-Ron, but I do think he’s currently the best… Kaka maybe too.

16. Alessandra Ambrosio, yup.

By: Corey

Corey — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:35:37 +0000

Nah Gonz, Marissa Miller is not that thin actually, and she has the chest of a real woman, big C I believe, its why I like her, she is an American woman and looks beautiful while having the phsyqiue of an almost average girl. As for your players, I never saw Santillana, Juanito and Hugo play, and I noticed people saying Laudrup and my own inclusion into the greats, Zamarano. I never say these guys play though, so I didnt think it was fair to add them to my list.

By: Gonzalo

Gonzalo — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 14:28:10 +0000

1. Failing any decent performances from Spain, I’ll keep the 1998 final with France putting 3 past Brazil

2. No question – Hampden Park 1960 – 7-3 against Eintracht; the greatest European cup final ever

3. 1981 European Cup final against Liverpool – this is the first one I remember watching and was desperately wishing to see Real winning it “in colour” after listening to my dad’s tales of the great Real Madrid of the 50s and 60s

4. Of those I ever saw play: 1. Santillana, 2. Juanito, 3. Raúl, 4. Zidane, 5. Hugo Sánchez

5. Maradona, Maldini, Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Van Basten

6. Maradona – I never saw Pele play

7. Raúl – more of a captain than Butragueño ever was

8. As a player: Camacho. As a coach: Del Bosque

9. Casillas

10. Stoitchkov – the man radiates hate

11. No – I’m a one-club man

12. Zidane – for the same reasons as everyone else – wish we could have had him for longer

13. Spain win the World Cup

14. My memory of Mijatovic scoring against Juventus in 1998 to give us our first European Cup in 32 years. Zidane’s goal against Leverkusen is a distant second.

15. No single player stands out

16. Don’t care – they’re all far too thin

By: Corey

Corey — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 01:39:05 +0000

We will not know what is going on with the medical staff this is true, and as Haran pointed out, when the going gets tough there needs to be a scape goat doesnt there? I dont like the scape goat approach though, the whole club is involved in wins or losses, even down to the minute details of pitch preperation from the old man who mows it.

But, the fact that the medical staff head, Di Salvo, is not responisble to the coach but Calderon makes no sense to me. Being a management major, I know plenty of organizational theory and I can tell you one thing, Real needs a total restructuring and some intensive role clarifitication and core competencies identification. The fitness head should be under the coach, the coach is in control of all aspects of the players, not the president of the club. Di Salvo had such a clause in his contract where he is responsible to none other then the president, so if Schuster doesnt like what he is doing he has to talk to Calderon. Now that just smells fishy to me, along with how much money we are paying his team of experts.

By: john

john — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:56:02 +0000

It’s so hard to speculate on matters like this – as an outsider I have absolutely no clue what’s happening in the locker room, on the practice field, and on the medical bench. I do agree that Pepe’s re-introduction seemed a little hasty, even to me, and the fact that he went back out injured that same day seemed confirmation. But even with that, how much of it is outside pressure, Calderon and Schuster wanting (needing!) him back on the field, and Pepe himself insisting he’s fit. Impossible to know.

But, in essence, Corey’s right. If they’re shite, they need to go.

p.s. Good call on Redondo, Sanchez and even Laudrup, peeps. All glaringly absent from my list, and not justly so.

By: Haran

Haran — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 18:51:26 +0000

When the team was doing well, in particular Raul, everyone lauded the medical staff for that. For keeping him fit, giving that oxygen etc.. but now they’re saying they’re not doing well. It is as much down to the players as to the medical staff.

By: Corey

Corey — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 18:40:57 +0000

People around Real have recently questioned the methods of our physical trainer Di Salvo, who supposively only answers to Calderon meaning Schuster can not question his methods. It seems that many senior players are unfit and the recovery time for injured players is really poor. And the same players keep getting injured, namely Robben, Pepe and Metz. If indications are true, he should be axed immediately, his team costs a cool 2 million to have on the staff and our players are fragile like glass, what does everyone think of this?

By: Haran

Haran — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 18:26:33 +0000

1. It has to be Argentina vs Holland 98 WC. I cried and cried and cried, for Argentina. Sad moment though.

2. Tough one. Real vs Bayern Leverkusen or Real vs Manu. Maybe the former because it was the final.

3. Real vs Arsenal. home leg. It hurt a lot.

4. Raul, Redondo, Guti, Zidane, Casillas

5. Bergkamp, Torres, Riquelme,

6. Di Stefano

7. Raul

8. Del Bosque

9. Casillas

10. Henry, Viera, Wiltord, Trezeguet

11. A very very far second. Ajax

12. Zidane!!! hands down! present – Messi or Ronaldo. or Mascherano! he’s the best holding midfielder.

13. Argentina for WC. Spain for euro

14. none!

15. Messi?

By: mike

mike — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 08:33:15 +0000

no mention for REDONDO???
my favorite to ever wear a Real jersey. raul a close second.

By: elisa

elisa — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:53:52 +0000

1. Being in Stuttgart and watching Spain beat Tunisia in person.

2. La Septima when we won the CL for the 7th time. It had been what 34 years?

3. When we last the 1980 CL Final to Liverpool. 1 nil =(

4. Di Stefano, El Butre, Hugo Sanchez, Raul, Zizou, Iker, Hierro, Laudrup – hah can’t count

5. Baggio, Totti, Platini, Henry, Pele

6. Di Stefano, then Pele

7. Hard one – Raul

8. Del Bosque

9. Iker

10. Well – I don’t really hate anyone. OK Romario

11. Roma and Liverpool

12. Zizou in his prime agreed

13. Spain as World Champions, like John. Or US.

14. Spain cap and frienship scarves from all the 2006 games that I attended.

15. Messi, then C-Ron

16. Francesco Totti, Iker Casillas, and Steven Gerard. Hah.