Promising Arsenal (like always)

1. After three Premier Leagues games, Arsenal FC have yet to concede a goal.
2. Yes, they were firing blanks in the first two game but the solid back four is a worthy mention.
3. Surprisingly, Steve Bould got the credits despite being a coach for already 11 years now at Arsenal.
4. The central midfield now boasts Abou Diaby, Mikel Arteta with Podolski and Oxlaide-Chamberlain on the flanks, with the future of Walcott and Arshavin hang in a balance.
5. I am eating my words as Abou Diaby played really well in the 2-0 win at Anfield.
6. Suddenly, people are talking about Arsenal becoming serious title contenders.
7. Well, as a fan of 16 years and after 7 years being trophyless, I have the right to remain skeptical.
8. However, I did have a wee bit of gut feeling that we will win it this season, the league, before it kicked off.
9. As promising at it seems, we will still have to wait until the final day of the season, if not earlier.
10. At least thats what happened to Manchester City (United) when Kun Agueroooooo scored in the virtually final kick of that game.
11. No heart ache again, please.

FC Muslims: EPL Muslim Footballers 2012/13

FC Muslims have got a bright start to the EPL Season 2012/13.

Here's the line-up:

Fantasy.Premierleague.com (Week 2)

Sleepy head! I knew Gabby Agbonlahor was going to perform well. I dozed off only to put in Cahill (Everton) the following day! While the latter missed 2 glorious chances, Gabby scored one and assisted another. Tough, but also a weird week. I saw my team being inducted to the league 'x Budak-budak Ujung' only to realise the moderator kicking me out (for being too good their league, I presume) seconds later. Then, the results of QPR winning against the troubled Everton, Wolves snatching a precious victory today and not to forget, Liverpool's first win at the Emirates Stadium. As an Arsenal fan, I do want the Club to be successful. Arsene Wenger cut a frustrating figure and I started to feel sorry for him. Hope he will get a great centerback to partner the world class Verminator. Mouth watering game coming up tomorrow (Monday)

Go back to the old formula, Wenger

Today marked the day Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas left the club he joined as a 16-year-old. In what I call déjà vu, Fabregas is emulating former club captains Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry and William Gallas in leaving. I will not rule out the possibility of the next Arsenal captain keeping the tradition unless we revert to the old formula.

I was cheekily informed the reason Wenger was sacked by his old club Monaco was his win-the-title with-kids policy, something the gaffer was trying to do for the last six years for his current club Arsenal. Two weeks ago, he promised of a “super quality” signing, only to sign the unproven, 18-year-old winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for a whopping £15 million from Southampton. Sounds familiar? Let me help you: Theo Walcott.

I would not say Theo Walcott is a world-class player. However, Wenger will right away say Walcott is still young even though he is already 22. He has been at Arsenal for five years already! Still young, you say?

Wayne Rooney, signed by arch-rivals Manchester United as a 19-year-old in 2004, is now a 25-year-old powerful striker. Some of us thought he is already 30, not because of his failed attempt to patch his balding head but because he has since scored 147 goals from 323 games for the Red Devils and winning 10 championships. Now, that is world-class and still young as well!

Wenger thinks he can win the title with kids but unless he is managing a Dutch club in the Eredivisie like Ajax Amsterdam, he can just forget it. The English Premier League is a bloody tough league. Leg-breaking finds no remorse in the hearts of players like Nigel De Jong, Ryan Shawcross and former player Roy Keane.

Wenger himself is thought to have a degree in psychology but he usually forgets, psychologically, kids still look up to elders and sometimes pee in their pants when they see players like Drogba, Vidic or Yaya Toure. Thus, Arsenal need well-respected, seasoned, quality players to lead and “protect” the group.

Oh, don’t say Sebastien Squilacci!

How I wish Jack Wilshere is 29-years old. I always see Wilshere like Rooney. He is tenacious, determined, robust and skilful too. He has shown time and time again he is no pushover off and on the pitch. Of course I am not asking Wenger to buy undisciplined yobs like Joey Barton. But a bit of Patrick Vieira would not hurt; someone that will strike fear to the opposing team. The current Arsenal team is seen to be kids, pushovers, sissies to some extent. If Jack was a bit older, I would pick him as captain.

Do you see any Bergkamp, Henry, Pires, Adams or Overmars from the current team? You might think I am living in the past, but as Fabregas once said, we lack “wow” players. Sad enough, the name that has been mentioned to replace Fabregas is Jadson. I say who in the blue world is that? Why can’t it be Ribery or Juan Mata (who we missed out) or Marek Hamsik?

No wonder the players are leaving.

Clearly we need a balanced, quality team. I seriously do not know what is playing inside Wenger’s head. But what I know is bringing in experienced, quality players will restore confidence in the dressing room and fans alike.

Arsenal dream line-up: GK Szczesny, DR Sagna, DL Gibbs, DC Gary Cahill, DC Vermaelen, DMC Song, ML Arshavin, AMC Wilshere, MR Ribery, FC van Persie, FC Tevez

Young Star Series: Muslim Footballers

Here's a complete list of Muslim footballers who I think will make it big in the world of football.

Goalkeepers
1. Asmir Begovic, 24, Bosnian-Canadian, Stoke City
2. Sinan Bolat, 22, Turkish, Standard Liege
3. Zacharie Boucher, 19, French-Reunionais, Le Harve
4. Matej Delac, 18, Bosnian-Croat, Chelsea

Defenders
1. Mamadou Sakho, 21, Senegalese-French, PSG
2. Omer Toprak, 22, Turkish-German, Bayer 04 Leverkusen
3. Dejan Lovren, 22, Bosnian-Croat, Lyon
4. Atila Turan, 19, French-Turkish, Grenoble
5. Neven Subotic, 22, Serbian-Bosnian, Dortmund

Midfielders
1. Xherdan Shaqiri, 19, Albanian-Swiss, Basel
2. Necip Uysal, 20, Turkish, Besiktas
3. Haruna Lukman, 20, Nigerian, Dynamo Kyiv
4. Mehdi Abeid, 19, French-Algerian, Lens
5. Zakaria Labyad, 18, Dutch-Moroccan, PSV
6. Nuri Sahin, 22, Turkish-German, Real Madrid
7. Marouane Fellaini, 23, Moroccan-Belgian, Everton

Strikers
1. Khouma Babacar, 18, Senegalese, Fiorentina
2. Ishak Belfodil, 19, French-Algerian, Lyon
3. Yaya Sanogo, 18, French-Senegalese, Auxerre

Young Stars Series: A Tribute to Muslim Football Figures

It is a great honour to let you readers know that the entry "Muslim Football Figures" has been the most popular page of this site! To pay tribute to these visitors, I will now shed some light on the future stars of football who are Muslims. This will be done weekly, Insya-Allah. Here we go:


Omer Toprak
Position: Central defender
Club: Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Age: 21
Height: 186cm
Description: Omer was born in Ravensburg and is a son of Turkish immigrants from Sivas region. He has a brother Harun who plays for Sivasspor, Turkey.
Verdict: Commanding center back with an eye for goal. Can also play at both flanks. Future looks bright if he can maintain his fitness.

Chelsea to win it

That was a very-very good result at Upton Park. I did not expect Chelsea to drop points at the weekend but with Arsenal (the team I support) drawing at Turf Moor (Burnley) at mid-week but winning at home against tricky Hull City, I can proudly say that the English Premier League is now the most exciting league in the world!

Of course, it's not that I have high-hopes for the Gunners. I am always skeptical these days with Arsenal since they have yet to claim a major trophy in 4 years. However, deep inside my heart, I know that Arsene is Mr. Arsenal. He's building a proper football club, concentrating on the development of the youth and who knows, in the years to come, these creme de la creme will be the most feared team in the world, winning back to back titles.

Saying that though, Mr. Wenger has a problem. He's too stubborn. When the media said this, he will quickly brush off their opinions just to prove that he's got his own stand. It is true that football is a physical game. Thats why you have a gym at your training ground. I know this since my younger days, failing to get into the school team simply because I was too small.

Maybe I should marry a Swedish girl so that my children won't suffer the same fate!

So, Arsenal really need lanky players on the field. Abou Diaby should play more regularly as long as he can put behind his niggling injuries. He could provide more aerial prowess and win the ball from the middle of the park. We also need a towering striker because it would be a waste to have Bakary Sagna supplying the crosses but with a Crouch-like bean-pole unavailable up front. I am not sure if Bendtner is ready for the job though.

As for our two center backs, Gallas and Vermaelen, well, they might be fast, but we still need to improve on defending setpieces because we do struggle with them a lot of times. I have no proposals on who we should sign to replace Gallas next season but I do hope tall players from other positions will come back and defend well for the shorties.

Note that I use 'we' because I feel like I am a part of Arsenal FC. It's a 'religious' thing if you ask the English.

As for this season, I really think is going to be tight. I do not think Chelsea will have a difficult January due to the African Nations Cup because, if you look at the fixtures, they will have some easy opponents. Manchester United meanwhile is having a torrid time solving their defensive crisis with the likes of Rio and Nemanja struggling to be fit. Aston Villa can mount a serious title challenge this season if they can get atleast a point from the Boxing Day game against the Gunners. Even Tottenham is not far behind.

Liverpool is already out of the race strictly speaking.

It is going to be an exciting season. With Arsenal giving hopes to the faithfuls, my verdict is that Chelsea will grab the title from holders Manchester United.

What? Of course I'm an avid Arsenal supporter, but I'm just being realistic and impartial here. We will finish second this season if we are lucky enough.

Man Utd and their City rivals will complete the Big Four.

West Ham, Hull and Portsmouth will be relegated.

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to everyone.

Jeg Hui

Jeg Hui's Predictions (EPL Round 1)

Aston Villa 0-2 Wigan (Wrong)
Blackburn 0-2 Man City (Correct)
Bolton 0-1 Sunderland (Wrong)
Chelsea 2-1 Hull (Correct)
Everton 1-6 Arsenal (Correct)
Portsmouth 0-1 Fulham (Perfect)
Stoke 2-0 Burnley (Correct)
Wolves 0-2 West Ham (Wrong)
Man Utd 1-0 Birm (Correct)
Tottenham 2-1 Liverpool (Wrong)

Score: 6/10 + 1 Perfect score

Snippy-Piglets

On unity government...

I don't know what Abdul Hadi Awang is trying to do. Did he just realise that the Pakatan way would be a more liberal and anti-Malay/Muslim way of living in Malaysia because of the presence of more dominant parties PKR and DAP (difference of ideologies)? Or simply he could smell an opportunity to join the Federal Government the quickest? Or maybe SINCERELY wanting to bring all Muslims in Malaysia together looking at how Muslims are divided in Malaysia? (UMNO-Muslims, UMNO-seculars, PAS-pro muzakarah Muslims, PAS anti-muzakarah, PAS Erdogans, PKR-Muslims, PKR-liberals-seculars, Indian-Muslims... etc). Whatever the reason is, PAS joining UMNO would be cheating. (froggies rule?). PAS joining Barisan Nasional to fight together for the next GE is however, not cheating. I don't really mind if Muslims in Malaysia really want to bond together because that is what Prophet Muhammad PBUH would want, since he detests Qabilah practice (Muslims having various groups) among the Muslims. However, this must only be done without the expense of the Non-Muslims because Prophet Muhammad encourages Muslim leaders to take good care of all citizens regardless of races. I know the Pakatan leaders have held a press conference rejecting a unity government, but, they can always discuss with Barisan Nasional on how to improve Malaysia for the benefits of the people.

On Tuan Guru Nik Aziz...

I have to agree with Mahathir when he said Tuan Guru is old and grumpy, like him! Although it could be contributed by the way PAS was so-called 'treated' many years ago (1970s when they joined Barisan), he forgot that Islam encourages people to forgive and forget. Depicting UMNO as communists and Sky Kingdom practices is somewhat shallow and of a sweeping statement. Worse, UMNO was once called kaffirs which really left a bad taste on people's perception of PAS, extreme and shouldn't be able to go well with liberals and seculars like DAP. Tuan Guru can accept ex-UMNO people (ie forgiven and forgotten of their past) like Anwar and many others in PKR (literally ex UMNO members and MPs) but not the current UMNO people although they had nothing to do with the 1970s issue. I guess it's because this is politics. He is againts the idea of a unity government, like Husam, because he doesn't want to see PAS under UMNO, worse than what he feels PAS's current position. Well, Nik Aziz is still human... derived from the word Insaan, that would mean Forgetful, in Arabic. So he made a mistake calling people names.. even Nasha was not spared, being emotionally shown to the door to join UMNO if Nasha was so interested about uniting the Muslims. Well, I am. So don't call me names if I want something better for the Muslims. In fact what are you so scared of? You can even expose UMNO wrong-doings when you are with Barisan in a party of your own!

On Chin Peng returning to Malaysia...

Man this one is so ridiculous even having to discuss it! Anwar seconded the motion (expectedly), because he simply wants to please people who support Communism/Socialism that made of some part of Pakatan Rakyat (shall I say DAP? SAPP?). I almost choked to death when some Malay guys on Facebook bravely saying how they welcome Chin Peng back home, obviously hardcore fans of Anwar Ibrahim. (monkey see, monkey do!). They even said something like "those people killed by PKM are the slaves of the invaders (English)". Slaves of invaders or slaves of the nation? Nothing against the former DPM, I am saying all this because I don't want to see the decendants of the people getting killed fighting the Communist guerillas being illy-provoked. Well yeah, PKM fought for the country against the Japanese and even the English later to achieve democracy. Well, it's because they wanted to rule Tanah Melayu as well! With their own ideology 'some more'! Who wouldn't jump into that kind of opportunity? Being the new kings? The Malayan and English forces fought them off and the Malaysian government called truce with PKM in the 1980s. Chin Peng, Samsiah Faqih, Razak Mohiedeen.... I don't think they were allowed home because the Government didn't want to spur anger among the fighters who were still living, and their families and friends. Bringing them home would indicate they were forgiven of their brutal insurgency. So, it's a no-no. I think Samsiah died and her body was brought home. I don't think it's a big deal anyway since they are happy to believe in Communism, now that China's current government practices a bit of the Communism anyway so they will be fine. In addition, my great uncle was killed by a PKM member and so was their Chinese neighbour, simply for not co-operating. So over my dead body PKM can be forgiven. Yeah I talked about forgive and forget earlier but this is different when we are talking about innocent and national heroes' lives been taken. Nuff said.

On Manohara vs Hubby...

I don't think it's a national issue. It's a waste of time really. So what if your husband loves dominatrix sex? Don't give me that bull-crap that you were against it. You could have said no and asked him to stop nicely. You are his wife for God sake, not his slave! When you said you were 'numb', it is sort of like a give away to me that you are simply being in denial. I can't find drugs that can make you numb but concious at the same time. You kinda loved it didn't you? Until you found it awkward being treated like a sex slave after telling the whole ordeal to your mom. You naive little girl. You thought you hit the jackpot marrying a prince and living like a princess. Well, I am sorry. Life is definitely not a fairy-tale movie. Did anyone tell you that? Did your mom tell you that or she was delightful when she heard the news her daughter's marrying a prince? And what the hell is this talk about you being kidnapped and being raped by your husband? My God. My prophet told me a wife is like a field, where her 'husband can plow the seeds in anyway he wants... as long as the wife is clean from haid and nifas... and never do it from the anus because God will never look at the face of men who do it in Paradise...'. So there's no such thing as rape in a married life. Allowing sex is one of the reasons people get married in Islam. I'm sure this Manohara is Muslim despite her Indonesian name and that half-covered-UMNO-like scarf. And yeah, suddenly you wanted to make it like a national issue by joining forces with the riots against Ambalat-invasion? Fame-seeker! Glory-hunter! And now she is shooting for an Indonesian series. Obvious! So again, just keep your bloody love story behind closed doors! You are just making a mockery of your already-screwed marriage. It's a joke really!

On calls for justice for gay people in Malaysia...

Oh please... you are in Malaysia, you live by its rules. You wanna change it, make your own party, win election and debate in the Parliament and see if it's gonna work in a traditional, Muslim-dominated country like Malaysia. Adultery, be it from the 'front' or from 'behind' is a crime in Malaysia. But I know the authority (cops) don't really catch people for adultery (hell yeah spas with prostitutes are everywhere in KL). The JAKIM snoop-cats however, are more interested with Muslims committing adultery. This is somewhat against the real teachings of Islam as Muslims are not allowed to search-and-catch, storm into properties, snoop around people committing sins (mencari-cari kesalahan orang lain adalah dosa besar). However, if by-chance that you are caught committing a crime, you should be punished. If one is committing a crime and a neighbour called the authority, that shouldn't be a problem, Islamically. But again, I am sure there are thousands of gay people in Malaysia (Western-culture-shocked, easily-influenced, emotional people - yeah don't blame God for it), they can live on with their lives as long as they don't get caught. I bet gay guys in Malaysia are mostly Malays. Wanna bet on that? I don't care really as long as you realise one day what you are doing is against any religion, unnatural, unhealthy and you don't establish a recruitment agency to lure others into your dungeon and thats fine really. P/S: I have a senior who is a drag Queen now in KL. Or should I say drag half-Queen?

On not punctual people...

I was really angry having to wait for 42 minutes for a couple of so-called educated, Raja Petra fans friends to treat them from my first pay. That was not the first time and on top of that, I was double booked for their friend from Portsmouth. (obviously if they are reading this, yeah screw them I had enough of being nice to KIDS). If you made a promise, I don't expect you to break it. If you are late, should have called or texted me earlier. I even gave 40 minutes of waiting time but thats probably the limit. In the 42nd minute, I just left for home from Leicester friggin Square. Saved me some bucks as well despite losing some 'friends'. I don't care I just hate being made a waiting toy!

On Arsenal new signing...

Fact: Thomas Vermaelen is shorter than Toure and Gallas by a centimeter. And we are having problems with the aerial defence at the back! Thank God for that. I expect more signings especially from the midfield. Strong, powerful, Vieira-like midfielder. A prolific towering striker like Dzeko wouldn't hurt as well after getting rid of that Ade-BAH-yor.

Mega-buys not the way. Clever buys are to stay.

Yup, the season's over. Now clubs in the Premier League are flexing their muscles in the summer transfer window with the likes of Manchester City and Portsmouth joining Chelsea, Man Utd and Liverpool with the mission to 'buy' trophies.

For me, it's a clear way of cheating when big clubs win all the titles with superior financial advantage. I am still waiting for the day when a small spending club clinches the title - in which will NEVER happen if the Big Clubs with Big Bucks continue financing their transfers with debts.

Maybe the FA should introduce the transfer-solvency mechanism where a club, which is debt-ridden, will have their transfer budget cap even though their assets indicate an ability to fully finance the debts.

It is cheating because the mid-table and poor from the wealthiest clubs table won't be able to fork out 32 million pounds for a world class player, and they will continue to be in mid table, or even relegated, being unable to outclass the big clubs with their home-grown youngsters.

The big four will continue to dominate unless billionaire-owners begin taking over many lowly clubs and challenge for the title.

Referring to Chelsea, it is clear the Club itself is in debt but with the backing of mega-rich Abramovic, he will continue to pump in money when ever which is needed. When he took over Chelsea, his own money was used. Man Utd however, is not the case when the takeover is financed by long term loan but they still continue to buy big like Dimitar Berbatov and potentially Carlos Teves even though their arch-rival City has claimed interest too.

Arsenal with their Emirates Stadium being their new source of gate receipts after leaving Higbury, has always wanted to work prudently. However, they took a gamble in which has paid off by securing a 300million pounds of loan to finance their new home. It has paid dividends thanks to their strict transfer policy and wage structure where only clever or 'boring' signings are made.

They have signed Andriy Arshavin in January for 15 Million pounds during which the sterling pounds was a lot weaker then. With his great start to his Arsenal career, it has proven that he is a worthwhile signing, a clever one if you may.

Chelsea, would have offered 30million pounds for Arshavin if they were keen for him, which I can say here, as silly money. This is a clear difference between both clubs.

The aim for Arsenal, just like other companies, is to make the company works in a going-concern basis and act prudently to stay in a financially sound position. Others, like Chelsea and Man City are being made as the big boys' toys - making Football Manager (the game) a reality, simply to show to the people that they have power and control of whatever they want.

If I were a billionaire myself, I would buy shares in Arsenal. I would take over the Arsenal NOT to show people what I got, but to seriously make Arsenal achieve things while making good decisions on its finance, so that I will stay longest in the Club. I am a fan of Football Manager as well but trust me, I only buy the youngsters and if I had to sell them in the future, I will make sure I make profits out of it.

What the Arsenal board is doing is somewhat in the interest of Arsene Wenger - buy intelligently. There may be some stupid buys like Franny Jeffers and Jose Reyes but at least they were not signed for about 25 million pounds (like Veron) or 30 million pounds (Shevchenko). Jose Reyes had a problem settling in London and as far as I am concerned, his so called 19million pounds signing were only settled in half, as Jose didn't achieve much during his stay at Arsenal. The track record has said it all. World-class players were made at Arsenal where they were virtually nobody before. Dennis Bergkamp was a flop in Inter, Henry was made to play on the left wing in Juventus, Patrick Vieira was a fringe youngster at Milan, Marc Overmars was badly injured when he signed from Ajax, Kanu was a forgotten man at Inter, Petit was a nobody in France and so were Clichy, Sagna, Toure and Adebayor. It's the Arsenal way to buy cheap and develop players to become world class stars.

Honestly, I am not sour about Man Utd's achievements for the past seasons, but if the likes of Everton, Aston Villa and Wigan can challenge for the title with the money they have, that would be better for the game, so that it won't be perceived as 'you can buy the title' game where about 4 billion fans out there cheering for the beauty of it, not ugly money.

Bitesize Updates

On Penanti by-election...
Shouldn't be held at the first place. But Fairus the Misai Kucing Silat Ultraman felt betrayed but remains loyal with PKR. I mean, what is your problem? One even told me that Fairus had to do it to further his studies? Come on.. in what? Silat Cekak Penjejak Badai Tahap Qigong Meriam? You were selected by the people to serve them for a term. And the results shown as if there is no need for that by-election. Only 43% went out to vote? That's like the lowest ever! Apart from the by-elections triggered by deaths, other by-elections were unnecessary as well. It cost a lot of tax payer money and what a waste of time when evidently the results indicated the people remains loyal with the party won in the General Election 2008. What a load of rubbish.

On Guy Carpenter...
It's my 5th week now. Really happy with it. The people here are soo brilliant and it's different for me because the bosses actually sit near you. I can actually meet the SVPs because they are only 3 cubicles away. I got the corner lot where people past by every time they go for tea/coffee in the mini-canteen. Kantoi surfing Internet...

The future...
Depends really. Would hope to stay longer here. Qualify maybe? Definitely. 5 years here and 6 years with MNRB that sounds Alright as long as everything goes smooth with me.

The new house...
Still think its a bargain. I paid 375pounds per month for the Neasden house, 350 for the one at Park Court, 300 for Linacre Road I hardly occupied and now 460 for Scarborough St. I have got a double-bed room, with newly furbished shower room and toilets plus we got the new stove as well. Low point is I am actually sharing with unknowns but I'm quite click with one of them named Martin, who, ironically, was made redundant by Guy Carpenter earlier this year. Gulp! The distance to Tower Place? 7 minutes walk so no 100 quid monthly travel pass for me!

Food hunting...
Yeah went Shanghai Inn's Noodles (Halal), Bayswater the first time with Adrian, Arin and Amir (Arin's brother). Very nice the duck! I like! But the disappointment was for the dumplings.. tasteless. But will come again. And there is an Indian restaurant just round the corner of my house named Halal Restaurant. A lot better than Khan's. Good food, good service. Very polite. Got free dessert some more. After my last visit with Shukur from Malaysian Re, that could be my last.

Weekend football...
4 a side the first time I went with the likes of Arin, Amir, Amir, Amir, Yas, Zaid, fadhli and others.. If no people, we play Frisbee. Very weird the frisbee. But very fast.. travels so long. Got injured last weekend. Amir Abdillah was soo sweet to check out on my ankle the next day by calling. Budak baik ni! Haha. Unlucky je tak dapat masuk Final British Got Talent. (AMir, if you are reading this, jgn marah wei ko dah nak kawen kena control macho nanti bersanding. Haha).

Ok now I need to go solat Zuhur at Level 2. Yes, GuyCarp/Marsh ada bilik solat! Woohoo!

Chalos

End of season review

::::::::SPOILER AHEAD::::::::::

The English Premier League 2008/09

I wanted Liverpool to win the championship. I know, coming from a Gooner I shouldn't be rooting for the Scousers. It was simply because of how I hate Man Utd winning the league season after season. Sadly, the Merseysiders blew their chance of any silverware (again, same goes to Arsenal) after drawing with so many lowly clubs.

On a higher note, United failed to get their so called "Quintuple Champions" status, ended up with as "shit Treble winners" after winning the league and collecting the uncompetitive World Club Cup and the League Cup (where Arsenal only fielded their reserve team). Before you say anything, as you can see from my season preview I never said Arsenal is going to win something this season... but "Quintuple" sounds a bit more like Mel Gibson and his octoplets-fatherhood brag while losing half of his fortune dumping his wife in the process after claiming his new girlfriend is expecting his 8th child.

Come on Mel. If Gene Simmons doesn't use the condoms, he could have fathered the many children of 100+ women he slept with.

And now Man Utd had to settle for the cheap treble. In my books, they can be respected for retaining the title for the 3rd time but you can now see their achievement has declined from last season. New champions next season? Well, hopefully. Maybe some new contenders as well from the likes of Manchester City, Everton and even Portsmouth which is currently linked with a takeover bid from Sulaiman Al Fahim.

Sulaiman must have been a keen admirer of British football. The TV revenues is something he can pounce on with his deep pocket investment. Maybe its the crescent on Pompey's badge that he could seek luck from.

Oops I forgot to mention I feel sorry for Newcastle Utd fans out there.. especially Nik and Haniz. Just hope and pray that The Looney Toons won't do a Leeds.

Amazing Race Season 14

What a finale! I was rooting for Margie and Luke since the start but Tammy and Victor became stronger and stronger after their fall out earlier in the episodes to win the 1 Million dollars. The team had an advantage of being able to speak Mandarin for the final rounds in China before jetting to Hawaii. Keisha and Jen made a boob by stopping at the WC at the wrong time and blew their chance to be in the final three where Jaime (woohoo) and Cara pipped them to the final round. Margie and Luke (who could have been the first deaf contestant to win The Amazing Race) were leading in the final round but Luke was nervous with the final two surfboards indicating the task for each last two rounds but he completely forgotten about it. How can he forgot what happened the day before that really puzzles me until now. Well the best team won.

Hell's Kitchen USA Season 5

Danny is a cocky bastard. But he is indeed a great chef. I thought Paula was going to win it but as I saw the door handles (with Danny's slightly leveled than Paula's) I knew Dan's going to win it. It was simply unfortunate as it was so clear that Danny's restaurant was soo ugly with the fake fishes hanging on the walls compared to Paula's glam decor. I guess it's true it's all about the quality of the food. William's Kedai Haram Tepi Jalan and Sri Murni proved that as well. Come on, even the smell of the drain and higher prices can't deter the customers flocking for William's carbonara pasta and nasik goreng ketam.

British Got Talent

I had no favourites. I enjoy watching the auditions as usual but when I saw the final, I predicted the top 3 would be Diversity, Susan Boyle and Julian Smith. Well it was an accurate prediction but it was quite like a give away judging at the final performances of the contestants. Aidan didn't perform as good as the night before though he was one of the favourites. Susan gave her all but the recent media sort of like portraying her having a bad start riding with Big Boys. Shaheen was alright but it was probably because he didn't improve that much through time that saw him lose out even in the top 3.

Prison Break Finale

Very moving. I've been watching the series since it began and watching your hero die to save his beloved ones made you ponder about the real purpose of life.

Encik Kadir scored!!

Togo lively forward Mohammed Kader scored the opener before succumbed to a 2-1 defeat by the Koreans in yesterday's match. The French are still hunting for their first goal since World Cup 2002 after a goalless draw with Switzerland. Holders Brazil snatched a narrow win against Croatia goal scored by the elegant Kaka.

More info please visit www.soccernet.com

As for me, I am sufferring from a shoulder injury inflicted during the course of... sleeping. I hope it has nothing to do with any torn ligaments injury but it hurts kinda bad. Still waiting in limbo land. Waiting for the result for my Masters application. And also waiting for my instalment into PNB. But it's a good thing. If I were to start working now I guess I would make a bad first impression drooling because of watching World Cup in the wee hours in the morning.

Come July if I was not called yet, I am looking at other possibilities. DBKL project looks very interesting for me.

Chow

Rosicky sick of the Americans

Tomas Rosicky (pic) scored twice to give Czech Republic an impressive 3-0 win over the Americans in a match which was marred by the injury to towering striker Jan Koller. The 6ft 8inc giant popped up the first goal with a header but it was the new big money signing Arsenal player Rosicky who stole the show with the first one being potentially touted as the goal of the tournament just yet.

Hopefully, Rosicky could transform his World Cup form at the club level when Arsenal start their new challenge at the new Emirates stadium, Ashburton Grove.

Meanwhile, crest-fallen Japanese sufferred late strikes by the Socceroos no thanks to Tim Cahill's double and John Aloisi's cool finish. The Asian representative saw themselves picking up the pieces after they look tired in the dying minutes of the game.

Italy ease passed through a Ghanaian side with goals from Andre Pirlo and VIcenzo Iaquinta but I missed that game. It was the first time I missed a World Cup match since it started. Talk about makan bola, tidur bola, minum air kelapa addiction.

It's still early in the morning so I'll just continue with my sleep lah. Zzzzzz.

Oranjeg!!

2 days ago I had futsal with Diyah, Kebau, Siput, Din and Pah versus Eznal's friends. Was mengantuk that day. We played in Segambut and I didnt play well that day although I scored a looping piledriver after a slip by the opposition's defender.

Robben starred in the Nederlands 1-0 win over gutsy Serbia and Montenegro. Formerly known as Yugoslavia, the likes of Savo Milosevic, Mateja Kezman, Nikola Zigic (6 ft 7in) and Koroman didn't manage to find the equaliser. The Dutch started with the three prongs English based players Robin van Persie (Arsenal), Arjen Robben (Chelsea) and Ruud van Nistelrooij (Man Utd) up front. An intelligent flick by van Persie set up Robben who boasts excellent skills on the ball and blisterring pace that strike fear among the Serbian defenders.

Portugal squeezed into redeeming the points as galant Angola forced them to a narrow 1-0 win. It was not the best of performance by the Portuguese with veteran winger Figo's below par performance. The late introduction of Mantorras who replaced showing-off Akwa failed to give the point that the Angolans actually deserved. Angola was formerly administered under the Portuguese nation.

The Iranians however showed complacency in the second half after they surrendered their 1-1 stalement point to the Mexicans who saw their striker Jared Borgetti unimpressive. The Iranians have Vahid Hashemian, Ali Karimi (Asian player of the year), Ali Daie and Mehdi Mahdavikia in their talented squad but ran out of gas in the final 20 minutes of the game.

More to follow.

Poor Ivorians

Shaka Hislop made SIX world-class saves to deny Sweden the points as Trinidad and Tobago clinched their first ever point in the World Cup. The West Ham keeper was lucky to be picked after TnT's first choice goalkeeper was injured 10 minutes before kick-off. Leo Bennhakker's faith on the veteran paid dividends when Hislop made back to back reflex saves to put misery on prolific Swedish strikers Henrik Larsson and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

England, by the way, won their opening boring match with an own goal by Carlos Gamarra. Captain Beckham curled in the free kick before finding Gamarra's weak clearance turned him into an infidel of his national team Paraguay.

The Ivorians boasted great attributes in their team with their blisterring pace and robust physique. In addition, their first touch was superb, except for Aruna Dindane. The actors of football Argentina saw their former great Maradona dancing and cheering when they were 2-0 up thanks to a poor decision by the linesman to let the goal stand. Not interrupting play my ass. Crespo was clearly offside and Saviola got the ball to prod in their second.

When Crespo strayed offside, the galant Ivorian defence deployed their offside trap. They did it simply because they know Crespo was offside. So how can you say Crespo was not interrupting play when the ball was passed?

Interrupting or not, getting the ball or not, an offside position is defined as any player who strayed ahead of the opponents' defence line when the ball was played forward.

Poor Ivorians. Maybe the ref is a racist. Maybe.

"Come on Tommy, before Ze Germans get here!"

Phillip Lahm inspired host Germany to a convincing 4-2 win over Costa Rica. The wingback, who can operate both on the left and right flanks was also involved in the 3rd goal of the most pulsating World Cup 2006 opening game ever. It was a late scare for the Germans when Paolo Wanchope's double cut the deficit but Torsten Frings' delightful thunderbolt from an indirect freekick wrapped up the game.

Poland received a setback when they were beaten by unfancied Ecuador who saw former Soton striker Agustine Delgado clinching the winner in the 80th minute.

Meanwhile, Pak Lah was cool when he was badly criticised by former PM Tun Dr M. From the way I see it, Tun Dr M's comment was inappropirate and he must have personal interests on the projects which were called off by the government that made him infuriated.

More to follow...

MyTeam must follow FAM procedures

We saw how MyTeam took the lead last Sunday through Arun against the make-shift Malaysian team. And one minute later we saw their team captain stupidly sent off for violent conduct. Admit it. The goal was a fluke. It was a cross, not an intended goal. And the sending off of Harmizam further weighed the claims that MyTeam is still young as a team and still has a lot to learn.

Say what you want to say Khairy. But I believe we must follow the rules of FAM. Any team wants to join the Malaysian League must start from bottom. "Segera tak segera, kalo perencah dah power mee segera pon power," Khairy barked at the FAM Chief who said that a football team cannot be made like mee-segera (instant noodles). But that was not exactly what he said bulat-bulat. I am still looking for the correct words from sources.

In the 60th minutes, the ice-blended Malaysian team equalised, and notched in the winner before the end of the game. I think justice was done. What a relief. The project MyTeam is a good one but I don't think a good team can be made overnight.

My suggestion would be MyTeam to play in the Non-League before qualifying for the Malaysian League. Nothing is to be scared of what. Khairy said his MyTeam is capable of playing at the top level and there is only one thing to prove that - playing in the Non-League. This way no one can question MyTeam's credibility. This is not politics. This is sport. One day another PM wannabe will create a new team. So, should this one go straight into Malaysian League? And then comes another, and another, and another...

Unfair. I call this impatience. I dont want to get into trouble commenting about a Pemuda UMNO Chief candidate but I think it is fair to say that we need time to gain experience. Just like MyTeam. To blend as a team is not that easy. We need time. Look at even Real Madrid. They acquired many stars but still they crumbled. Time is essential to work as a unit.

Time is also needed to be a leader. So be patient. We have seniors and we learn from seniors. Learn from their good work. And most importantly learn from their mistakes.

Majulah Sukan Untuk Negara.

Pires and Futsal Finale

Talented fleet-footed winger Robert Pires has left Arsenal after a tremendous 6-year spell. Nicknamed Bobby, he signed a two-year deal with Villarreal, a Spanish club that was knocked out by Arsenal in the semi-final of last season's Champions League.

"I woke up this morning and received this sad sad news. I think he deserved a two-year deal but the arrival of Rosicky would meant him no regular football next season." Jeg quoted.

The Club wishes him luck with the Yellow Submarines. However Jeg further emphasizes that lady luck would smile on any Arsenal player who leaves for a Spanish outfit this time.

"I remember when Manu (Emmanuel Petit) and Marc (Overmars) left Arsenal for Barcelona few seasons ago. They both sufferred bad luck and saw their career been cut shot with injuries and inconsistent performances. Gio (Van Bronckhorst) and Sylvinho was a different story. They had short spells in Arsenal and in my opinion are not considered in the Hall of Famer. But I'm pretty sure Manu, Marc and Bobby are."

Meanwhile, Jeg commented he had a great time in the Futsal Finale wih CS222 about a week ago.

"I scored a hattrick and it is not common to play at my best with the mates from CS222." Jeg admitted.

"Now for the second time running, I scored three goals in both games. I didn't score many goals for them but had hatful of goals with others. Not to say that I hate playing with them but I know I had torrid times playing futsal with them before this. I just want to play and have fun. So, I don't expect people to be so serious when playing futsal with me. Just.. enjoy the game." he elaborated.

Jeg opened the scoring in the free-flowing game which ended 10-8 win with a thunderous 'tonjol' after a great work by Nain. He added another with a shot from an acute angle and completed his hattrick later in the game with a simple tap-in. Rahman scored one for the team which comprised of Nain-Jeg-Arwin-Rahman-Nizam but the star of the night was Arwin, who switched side to score 6 goals.

"It shows that he (Arwin) has the eye for goal, speed and determination. Not many strikers have those attributes." Jeg sang the praises for Arwin.

Jeg had a more defensive role later in the game and stood firm at the back. It indicated fatigue in his last game with the mates.

"I had fun. We all had fun. It is my dream to have this team. We were not that serious to win the game. We simply wanted to have fun. Yup, I was hit in the face when I was defending but it only helped increase my determination. This is football. I don't expect any apology." Jeg commented relating to the been-struck-in-the-face incident.

Jeg expects to play again with the CS222 mates in the future but hopes he will be playing with the same combination of players.

"Otherwise, I refuse to score!" he joked.

Superfan Jeg welcomes Rosicky

Czech playmaker Tomas Rosicky has signed a long term contract with Arsenal in a deal reported to be around 7 Million pounds. Jeg was delighted about the latest transfer made by Arsenal and admitted it was an unexpected one.

"Tomas Rosicky is a player who is too expensive for Arsenal. But somehow there is a minimum fee release clause in his contract and Arsenal were swift enough to secure his services," Jeg spoke to the press.

Rosicky is touted as one of the best playmaker in the world who scored the decisive winner againts Norway in the World Cup Play-off second leg.

Czech Republic is currently second in the FIFA World Ranking