Last Friday we got a thingy through the door from the electricity people which advised us that they were going to shut off our electricity today between 9am and 2pm.
I thought to myself that I had better set my alarm for early wakeage on Monday so that you, loyal readers, would have a blog to begin your week with. However, having watched England v Germany in a pub full of Germans (so efficient they only cheered four times, anything other than a goal wasn’t worth bothering with it seems), and then returned home to have all the white wine in the world foisted upon me by Mrs Blogs, who is surely to blame for the fact my head is pounding and my fingertips have absolutely no feeling in them whatsoever, I neglected to get up early.
So, the leccy could go at any point. Not that you would know. Well, not until the blog was posted some time this afternoon. Have I ever told you about the seagull that lives across the road from me? He makes a sound like a person. It’s so strange. I’d be sitting in my office and then someone calls out ‘Wurrrrgh wurrrrgh’ except it’s not a person at all. It’s a bird. I’m not one for gods or religion or any of that stuff but this makes me wonder if this wasn’t some annoying fucker who works in an office somewhere who was reincarnated in the body of a sea bird. It seems harsh to suggest I’d like to shoot him in the eye but I really, really would.
So, the World Cup, eh? I suspect they have got the officials from the BIFL, the football league I used to play in when I lived in Barcelona. There was a terrible fat bloke who stank of Ducados who never, ever left the centre-circle and he used to give outrageously awful offside decisions like the one for Tevez’s first goal against Mexico last night. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone quite so offside in all my life. Ridiculous. His second goal wasn’t at all bad though but the stand out player on the night was Mexico’s left back Carlos Salcido who plays for Mexico because he’s Mexican in the face. We nearly signed him a couple of summers ago, I wish we had. We would go going loco down in Acapulco if he played for us.
And England. Another shockingly terrible piece of officiating. Lampard’s ‘goal’ wasn’t just a bit over, it went over the line, had a sandwich, marked its spot by urinating slowly and then came back out. Everyone could see it was over. The German bloke in the pub laughing his head off going ‘Sechsundsechzig! Sechsundsechzig!’ could see it was over, not that he cared. It would have taken all of 3 seconds for some kind of Technology official to tell the ref it was over the line, once again Blatter will refuse to even have the debate, which really is nonsense.
As gscully Twittered at me last night: If Blatter is so against modern technology, what the fuck is he doing on twitter?
A very good point indeed. Nevertheless, the row about the goal that wasn’t will do nothing but take away from the real issue which is that England were fucking shit. We’ll hear this and that about foreign players and foreign managers but it all boils down to the same problem that football in these islands has had for years – foreign players are far, far better technically. They learn a different game as kids, they’re not stuck on a full sized 11-a-side pitch at 9 years of age and told that passion and spirit are what will win games.
They learn to pass, control the ball, move off the ball, retain possession, slow things down and not do everything at 100mph. Technical ability counts at this level, having players who don’t think they’re the best in the world is a good thing too. The BBC commentator who said “You look at this German team and think about who would get in the England team and you have maybe 1 player” summed it all up. I mean, seriously. How about 11?
Regardless of the ‘goal’ England were played off the park yesterday. Germany were fantastic, clinical and well organised. England were a shambles and while fingers will be pointed at Capello it seems odd to me that a successful manager wherever he has gone is the one to blame. Look at John Terry first, a man so pumped up by his ego he neglected the basics and cost England goals yesterday. Why does Wayne Rooney never play against us the way he did for England? He’s always brilliant. It’s the players and the nonsensical expectation levels that exist around the England team that brought about yesterday’s defeat. Not dodgy officiating.
That’s not to say something shouldn’t be done about it because clearly it should. We have the technology, the resources and the know-how and to continue blindly on like luddites is just stupid. We don’t play with pig skins and laces anymore, do we? I think we have to accept a certain amount of human error in the game and I’m definitely opposed to measures that would stop the flow of the game, but there’s no reason why goal line technology is not part of the game right now. Dodgy offsides are one thing but it takes seconds to see whether the ball has crossed the line or not.
Refusing to deal with this makes a mockery of the sport. Even yesterday’s officials knew it had gone over yet they couldn’t do anything about it. If Blatter is so entrenched in his way of thinking that he won’t countenance a proper look at technology then football needs a better man in charge.
Anyway, back to Arsenal and Joe Cole says he wants to sort out his future as quickly as possible. On yesterday’s display I hope he goes to Sp*rs.
And that’s about that. I’d better leg it before the ESB man flicks the switch. Have yourselves a good Monday. I’m off for Ibubreakfast.
