FM: P'boro Utd. - Year 6 ('09-'10) - Quest for Europe

[Butter]

The pieces seem to be in place for the Posh to make the next big move... compete for a European spot. But there are a lot of things to contend with.

Like can we overcome our horrible end to the '08-'09 season (http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/showthread.php?t=38168)? Can we overcome our tiny stadium? Can we outplay the big 4 of Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, and Liverpool? And most of all, will Ross and Rachel finally get together?

Stay tuned to find out, in the exciting Year 6 Peterborough United story.

[Butter]

Mid-June 2009

Carlton Cole is the Fans' Player of the Year. No surprise there.

We pick up another $24.5 million for TV rights for the upcoming season.

The board announce plans to expand the stadium by 2500 seats (whoopee.). The renovation will take about 3 months to complete, and will involve closing the South stands for the duration. Considering we ranked dead last by about 6,000 in attendance last year, I can't say this is going to help much. Checking the records, the expansion looks to be costing about $4.5 million.

The board also announce that the club is in the "best of financial health". They subsequently have paid off the debt which was costing the team hundreds of thousands in interest per season.

We also announce a new sponsorship deal worth $2.2 million per year, replacing our current one which was only in the $200k per year range.

Our transfer budget for the year is set at $12 million. Not great, considering the surplus of $49 million we currently have. They did increase our budget and wage budget last year around the beginning of August, though, and I would expect the same this year.

The board is now merely "very pleased" with my performance.... the supporters are also merely "pleased". The supporters expect a "safe mid-table" position this year.

Szilard Nemeth announces that he has become a licensed FA coach... and he plans to retire at season's end. He's only 31, but he sees the writing on the wall.

Our friendly list is completed, and here it is, starting on July 7th:
v. Sparta Prague (CZE)
@ Crewe Alexandra (Champ.)
@ Shrewsbury Town (Conf. Nat'l)
@ Greenock Morton (SCO)
v. Bayer Leverkusen (GER)
@ Harrogate Town (Conf. Nat'l)

Harrogate Town were Conf. North winners last year... and I couldn't tell you much about Shrewsbury or Greenock Morton. But Sparta Prague and Leverkusen are 2 perennial quality European sides.

It should be interesting. It's about time for July, and all of our new signings to arrive, and the lads to return to camp.

[Izulde]

Just went through and read all of these. You've got a nice dynasty series going here :)

[Butter]

Thanks. I prefer to stick with the one team and see just how far I can take them. I don't really have an ultimate goal... but I think winning England, or maybe even Europe one day would probably be it.

[Butter]

July 2009

Here come the signings!

Let's list them... I've already discussed them at length in last year's wrap-up, but I'll put their wage and value here. There are some coming on August 1st, but these are most of them:

22 year old FC Lebohang Mokoena, $1.4 million/yr. thru 2014 (w/$7M min. fee release clause), $7M value.

27 year old SW/D/DM-RC Ibrahim Kargbo, $600k/yr. thru 2013 (w/$5M min. fee release clause), $4M.

30 year old D-LC Carlos Bocanegra, $1.75M/yr., thru 2011, $3M.

27 year old DC Alex, $2M/yr. thru 2014, $12.5M.

27 year old AM-LC Marco Ingrao, $600k/yr. thru 2013, $4.6M.

30 year old F-RC Bosko Balaban, $2.6M/yr. thru 2012 (w/$12.5M min. fee release clause), $7.8M.

27 year old striker Roman Wallner, $2.6M/yr. thru 2013, $16M.

I also get a note that Peterborough's Commercial Director expects to see a big boost in shirt sales with the signing of Alex, a well-respected "continental" player.

These signings bring our wage bill to $22.7 million, and our recently increased allowance is $39 million. I still have a lot of room here.

With all that room, we throw out an offer to current Dutch keeper Maarten Stekelenburg. It's the biggest offer I've made to a player yet, $3M per year with a $1.5M signing bonus. I notice that Man. U. have offered him a contract as well, and figure the cause is lost.

We also throw a couple of offers out to some big name defensive midfielders. We get a bite, and sign 27 year old Brazilian DM-C Fabio Rochemback to a long term deal worth $3 million per year, with a $1M signing bonus away from his Spanish club, Mallorca. Sadly, Rochemback's work permit is turned down, so I decide we'll stand with who we have.

USA fire coach Bruce Arena after losing the "Continental Cup" to Brazil, 2-0. They bypass me, and hire Man. City's Craig Gant... an Englishman.... to be their new coach.

It's time for our first friendly.

July 7, Friendly #1
v. Sparta Prague

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Jensen, Alex, Marcos, Kargbo
Mid: Arzo, Fernandes, Lunt, Viana
Str: Mokoena, Cole

A well-played first half, especially from our vantage point. We open scoring in the 33rd, as Alex's free kick from our half finds Mokoena at the top of the arc... he heads down for Viana, who curls in a 25 yarder for a goal. In the 45th, Arzo with a good long ball to Mokoena, who beats the trap... he brings it down, enters the box, and scores low to the near post. We lead 2-0 at the half, and Viana and Mokoena looked terrific, as we bring the subs on for the 2nd half. Cataldo scores in the 71st minute on a rebound off a Vagner shot to make it 3-0. Sparta pull one back in the 80th, but we take the impressive win.

Win, 3-1
A: 1,108

Gillingham offer a contract to Andy Monkhouse... we've been unable to sign him for any sort of reasonable price ($750k or less), so I resign to let him go. He was a great player for us, with 26 goals and 27 assists in 113 starts and 25 sub appearances over 4 seasons. He was a dominant force in our drive from League One to the Premiership, and I'm sad to see him leave us.... but that's business. He's 28, and I think his best playing is behind him.

We take a couple of players in on trial, including U-21 goalkeeper Mathias Temmerman who I'd like to sign to the reserves, and an either sided winger who most recently played for WBA, Jason Koumas.

July 12, Friendly #2
@ Crewe Alexandra

Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Bocanegra, Pritchard, Chalwe, Sarr
Mid: Kargbo, Eriksson, Koumas, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Balaban

Bosko Balaban scores in the 10th minute off a Koumas corner... his initial shot was saved, but the rebound came right back to him and he squeezed it past a line of defenders and in from 10 yards. Mokoena with a good through ball to Balaban in the 24th, and the Croatian makes it 2-0. We dominate the rest of the game, including the 2nd half with the subs on, and win easily. Kargbo, Sarr, and Balaban were particularly impressive.

Win, 0-2
A: 10,065

Sadly, Sashi Chalwe tore a groin muscle in this one that will leave him out a month. He's way down on the depth chart, but it's still not good to lose someone for that long.

We sign former Leeds winger Aaron Lennon to a trial contract. I've had my eye on this kid since he was 19 and playing well for Leeds. He comes in, and doesn't look all that impressive, but his skills are on par with Andy Monkhouse.

Steve Bruce, the former Man U. head man, is named boss at St. James's Park.

July 16, Friendly #3
@ Shrewsbury

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Pritchard, Kargbo, Bocanegra, Sarr
Mid: Arzo, Ingrao, Lennon, Balaban
Str: Cataldo, Wallner

Wallner with a great individual run to earn a goal in the 43rd, beating a couple of Shrews defenders. Mokoena just runs over Shrews in the 2nd half... but his finishing lacks, as he fires at least 3 free chances right into the keeper's gut. But he redeems himself by heading home a Nemeth cross in the 61st. We dominate Shrews throughout, and Mokoena earns the MoM, rating our only 8.

Win, 0-2
A: 7,963

Cataldo breaks his arm during the late stages of the first half of this one, he'll miss 4 weeks.

With Mokoena's recent performances, I now fear that someone will poach him with that $7M min. fee release clause. I guess I'll have to take that chance... and try to outbid someone if they do offer him a deal.

Aaron Lennon agrees to sign with us for just $400k per season and take a bench role with the club.... I get him to do what Monkhouse wouldn't, and he's much younger to boot.

July 19, Friendly #4
@ Greenock Morton

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Sarr
Mid: Kargbo, Fernandes, Lunt, Viana
Str: Wallner, Cole

We start nearly all of the first team today, though the wings, DM, and a striker role is still up for debate.

Cole runs down a long ball in the first minute, and crosses to Fernandes in the six, who heads it in for a quick 1-0 lead. Roman Wallner runs through 2 defenders and scores a beautiful strike to the far post in the 5th minute, to make it 2-0 in the blink of an eye. Cole with a great individual effort, one-ups Wallner in the 8th minute, and we lead 3-0 before 10 minutes are even up. Cole scores again in the 19th off a good feed from Lunt. Viana misses a penalty in the 31st that would've made it 5-0. This is an absolute defensive dismantling... an unbelievable offensive show. We get 18 shots in the first half alone before pulling the regulars. Cole has a 10, and Fernandes a 9, along with several 8's by the interval. Stack with a long ball to Lennon, who gets all the way to just outside the six before cutting it back to Johansen, who finishes in the 51st. Mokoena hits a post in the 80th... but just for good measure, Lennon with a nice through ball for Robnik, who scores far post in the 93rd minute to complete the rout.

Just an awesome game.

Win, 0-6
A: 11,531

Jim Johansen had to leave midway through the 2nd half, and he'll miss 2 weeks with a groin strain.

This is going to be one hell of a team. Not that you can tell by beating up on a lower-level Scottish team... but we did dominate Sparta Prague as well.

I throw the first team out there again against Leverkusen to see how we fare.

July 22, Friendly #5
v. Bayer Leverkusen

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Marcos, Alex, Sarr
Mid: Kargbo, Viana, Koumas, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

A masterful ball by Mokoena in the 4th through 2 flat-footed defenders gets Cole onside, and he finishes. In the 6th minute, Sarr with a long free kick to Wallner at the edge of the box... he heads down for Cole, who has another easy finish. 2-0. Mokoena is just causing chaos from his AMC spot. He is going to have to start there. I think I have my starting 11 nailed down, as we dominate Leverkusen in the first half. We bring the subs on about 15 minutes into the second half. Balaban crosses to Marco Ingrao in the 63rd minute... and Ingrao earns a penalty. Balaban converts it. We control the rest of the game pretty well, and earn a 3-0 win. Cole gets a 10, and Fernandes an 8 in 2nd half duty.

Win, 3-0
A: 1,128

The starting 11 will get a rest for our final friendly, but I release our starting XI for our first game of the season against Newcastle to the press. Remember, this is pending arrival of 2 more players, AMC Gerard, and D/DM-R Cristiano Zaccardo.

Starting XI
GK: Lee Grant
Def (L-R): Carlos Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Sarr
Mid (DM, ML/MR, AM): Ibrahim Kargbo, Hugo Viana, Fabrice Fernandes, Lebohang Mokoena
Str: Roman Wallner, Carlton Cole

July 26, Friendly #6
@ Harrogate Town

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Jensen, Pritchard, El Karkouri, Arzo
Mid: Navarro, Ingrao, Lennon, Mngomeni
Str: Balaban, Robnik

Midfielder Dominique Krief scores for Harrogate in the 5th minute, after a good square ball and poor defending by Arzo. But Pritchard with a terrific long ball right to Robnik behind the defense at the edge of the area, and he brings it down and scores in the 14th to even the game at 1. Right after the break, masterful stuff from Mngomeni, as he fires a low shot at the keeper, who blocks it out... but it comes right back to the South African, who crosses to the far post for Balaban, who heads it in. Navarro with a good ball in to Balaban in the 70th, and Bosko turns, shoots, and scores inside the far post, and it finishes 3-1. The entire attacking midfield, and our 2 strikers pick up 8's, with Balaban getting MoM for his 2 goal performance. Embarassingly for Harrogate, one young right-sided defender of theirs picked up a 3 rating... the lowest I've ever seen someone get.

Win, 1-3
A: 3,714

It's time to start the season.

[Butter]

I get keeper Lee Grant to sign a new contract to get him to stop being "unhappy"... he wanted $1 million per year, and I get him to sign for $650k per year through 2012, with a nominal signing bonus of around $50k.

Premiership odds
Arsenal - 6:4
Liverpool, Man Utd., Chelsea - 2:1
Manchester City - 25:1
Tottenham H. - 33:1
.
.
.
Peterborough United - 150:1

With your team being priced 150:1, it is apparent the bookmakers don't believe you have any real chance of winning the title. A high mid-table finish is probably the best you and your side can hope for.

Gillingham suffer a big blow, as former Posh midfielder Andy Monkhouse breaks his ankle, and is likely to be out until around Christmas.

August signings

27 year old D/DM-R Cristian Zaccardo joins us from Palermo... his salary is $1.5M/yr. through 2014. His value is $5.4M.

30 year old AMC Gerard joins us from Tenerife... his salary is $1.6M/yr. through 2012. His value is $5.4M as well.

The board announces that as a result of the improvement in our finanacial situation, our transfer budget has been increased from $9.4M to $21M. I really don't know what to do with all this money.

We move some players to the reserve squad, because we just have too many players at the senior level. They are:
Str. Jim Johansen
GK Libis Andres Arenas
DM Alan Navarro
DC Sashi Chalwe
AM/F-LC Tobias Eriksson
Str. Szilard Nemeth
Str. Elvis Hammond
Str. Dejan Robnik
Str. Franco Cataldo

I offer all of these players on transfer to many teams, at reduced prices. No takers.

Community Shield
Chelsea 3:1 Arsenal
- Chelsea dominate the Gunners in the traditional season opening special game from Wembley. Patrick Vieira avoided the shutout for Arsenal with a 61st minute strike, then was promptly sent off 10 minutes later by Rob Styles. Chelsea making a statement here?

Hey, guess what? 27 year old Brazilian DMC Fabio Rochemback, who I had left for dead, wins his work permit appeal and will join us after all! He becomes the Posh's most expensive signing ever, making $3 million per season. But he instantly becomes a starter at DMC, and maybe (and this is saying something) the best midfielder on the squad. His only possible weakness is his heading ability and off the ball movement on defense. When I request a team report, Mark Proctor agrees that Rochemback is the best midfielder... but he also suggests starting AM-LC Marco Ingrao at left fullback, so what does he know?

We also sign 4 English youngsters to the reserves... a keeper, 2 strikers, and a left winger. All 4 17 year olds get assigned to the U-18 club.

[Butter]

So, I announced our starting lineup a couple of weeks ago, but have made 2 changes to it... so there. A big home match against fellow mid-tablers Newcastle. This should help to show us where we're at in relationship to the league. Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Fernandes, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

August 8, Match 1
v. Newcastle United (10th in EPL last year)
Series: Magpies lead 2-0-0
Fav: Magpies, 5:4

6'- Carlton Cole gets screwed... Bocanegra with a long throw-in (he's our new throw-in specialist) to Cole... Cole heads it in, but the Newcastle keeper, Morgan De Sanctis, is charged with an own goal. Either way, we lead 1-0!

9'- Viana with a good through ball for Wallner... Wallner holds off his man, and shoots high and hard at De Sanctis... pushed away, right back to Wallner... his second attempt is blocked to the left, but Mokoena is there and heads it in past 3 defenders! 2-0, Posh! A dream start for the men in blue!

12'- Zaccardo with a good long ball that Mokoena heads on to Cole... Cole just whips his man and is in free, but his shot rolls into the side netting.

14'- Harry Kewell with a good pass to Craig Bellamy... Bellamy gets into the box, and shoots from 15 yards off to the right... his shot deflects off Marcos and just rolls inside the far post, 2-1.

31'- Cole is loose again, but this time his shot whizzes past the left post.

55'- Wallner is free this time, but his shot is just wide.

63'- Bellamy gets open in the box, but Grant cuts the angle and forces a poor effort from Bellamy.

72'- A corner kick for Newcastle finds the head of Darren Ambrose, and he heads it past Grant. 2-2.

Balaban in for a tiring Cole, and Lunt in for an ineffective Viana. Fernandes moves to the left wing, Lunt on the right.

79'- Another corner kick to Ambrose, but this one is just high.

86'- Fernandes with a free kick from the center circle... he lofts it into the arc, where Mokoena has a free header, and flicks it to Wallner... Wallner with a volley from 8 yards, and it's in!!! 3-2, Posh!

88'- Off the restart, Lunt with a steal in defense... he fires it up to Balaban, who beats his man in the middle, and is free on goal... Balaban with a 45 yard run with the ball, and he chips the keeper from the edge of the area... and scores! Bosko Balaban! 4-2, Posh!

Not a great effort for about 50 minutes of the game, but we dominate the beginning and end, and win fairly comfortably. Roman Wallner with a great debut, earning an 8 and MoM honors. Also with 8's are Zaccardo, Marcos, Rochemback, Mokoena, and Balaban. All the newbies! Viana and Grant disappointed with 6's.

Win, 4-2, start in 5th place
Shots/on target: Posh 16/11, Magpies 10/3
Poss: 52-48, Posh
A: 13,946

EPL Round 1 results
Norwich 4:0 Blackburn R.
Cardiff 1:4 Aston Villa
C. Palace 0:1 Fulham
Man. City 5:0 Middlesbrough
Tottenham 2:0 Liverpool
West Ham 3:0 Gillingham
Bolton 0:3 Man. Utd.
Portsmouth 3:1 Southampton
Chelsea 3:0 Arsenal

Impressive starts for Chelsea, Man. City, and Spurs. Chelsea whips Arse for the second time in 9 days. Cardiff and Gillingham may be in for long seasons.

Sadly, Mokoena suffers a damaged foot, and will miss 2 weeks. That will give Gerard an opportunity to make an impression.

[Butter]

Fabio Rochemback suffers a groin strain in training, and he'll miss 2 weeks. Kargbo will be in the lineup for him.

Next up, a road trip to Villa Park. Villa embarrassed us here late in the year last season, so we'd like to show them how we've grown. Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Jensen, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Viana, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

Aug. 15, Match 2
1-0-0, 7th pl., 3 pts.
@ Aston Villa (1-0-0, 4th pl., 3 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Villans, 5:4

4'- A terrible goal kick by Stack is stolen by Darius Vassell... Vassell walks in on Stack, but Graham stops the shot.

6'- Stack looks frozen to his spot, as Vassell unleashes a meandering 25 yard strike, and it goes in the top left corner.

10'- Wallner with a great flick on to the run of Cole... Cole is free on Sorensen, but his shot is parried away.

19'- Viana with a good whipping cross, Gerard gets a head to it, but it goes across the goal mouth and just wide.

30'- Steed Malbranque with a 15 yard attempt that deflects off 2 Posh players, and Stack is lucky to be able to tip it... Marcos clears.

38'- A good series of possession ends with Viana being all alone on the left of the box, but his weak shot is saved.

65'- Fernandes on for a gimpy Kenny Lunt.

80'- Balaban in for Zaccardo, as we switch to a 3-4-3.

86'- Mngomeni in for Kargbo, and he moves to midfield.

90+'- Viana with 2 corner kicks in the 3rd and final minute of stoppage time, but neither can find a friendly face in the box.

We take the loss. We were very competitive here, just couldn't find the target. Might try Viana at AMC, his "normal" spot next game. Alex does manage a 9 and MoM honors, Stack picks up an 8.

Loss, 1-0, drop to 10th
Shots/on target: Villans 14/7, Posh 6/3
Poss: 52-48, Villans
A: 37,820

EPL Round 2 results
Liverpool 1:3 Chelsea
Arsenal 2:2 Man. City
Blackburn R. 4:1 Cardiff
Fulham 0:0 Tottenham
Gillingham 0:1 Norwich
Man U 4:1 C. Palace
Middlesbrough 0:1 West Ham
Newcastle 0:1 Portsmouth
So'ton 3:0 Bolton

Man U. find themselves in 1st, Chelsea in 2nd.

[Butter]

Alex is named in the Team of the Week.

Carlton Cole complains about his rate of pay. Maybe I'd increase it if you'd score me a goal, eh bub?

Norwich sign away Newcastle keeper Morgan De Sanctis for $5.8 million.

Balaban damages his neck in training, and he'll miss 2 weeks.

Aug. 19, Match 3
1-0-1, 10th pl., 3 pts.
v. Blackburn Rovers (1-0-1, 12th pl., 3 pts.)
Series: Rovers lead 3-0-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Sarr
Mid: Kargbo, Ingrao, Lennon, Viana
Str: Wallner, Cole

Blackburn pretty well dominate us in the first half... we muster one good shot from Wallner, who bends it sharply from the top left corner of the area, but it's saved. Other than that, it was Rovers with shot after shot, but Grant did well to keep the game scoreless at the interval.

Fernandes enters for an ineffective Aaron Lennon at halftime.

61'- Wallner squares it for Viana, who runs and tries to piledrive one into the top left corner, but the Rovers keeper with a good save.

80'- Vagner in for Cole.

Not much else happens, and Blackburn effectively freeze us into a scoreless draw. Another disappointing effort. Grant picks up an 8. Lennon gets a 5. The Rovers' keeper picks up a 9 and MoM honors.

Draw, 0-0, up to 9th place
Shots/on target: Posh 8/6, Rovers 6/3
Poss: 52-48, Rovers
A: 13,950

EPL Round 3 results
Bolton 1:2 Newcastle
Cardiff 2:0 Gillingham
C. Palace 0:0 Southampton
Man City 0:1 Chelsea
Norwich 0:0 Middlesbrough
Portsmouth 2:0 Aston Villa
West Ham 1:4 Arsenal

Portsmouth move up to 2nd, and Chelsea into 1st against idle Man U.

[Butter]

Aug. 22, Match 4 - Televised
1-1-1, 9th pl., 4 pts.
@ Gillingham (0-0-3, 19th pl., 0 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-2-1
Fav: Posh, 4:6

We play a bit of a makeshift lineup today, against a hungry Gills team. But we have to give some guys a rest with a 3 match week this early in the season.

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Pritchard, El Karkouri, Dakinah, Jensen
Mid: Arzo, Fernandes, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Mngomeni, Vagner

9'- Good defensive play, as 2 shots are charged down at close range, and Grant tips a final attempt wide. Sadly, off the corner kick, Jensen clears, but the return cross finds striker Chris Swift inside the six and he heads it home for Gills' first goal of the season.

We start getting a bit more dangerous as our 2nd/3rd teamers get their footing. Then:

34'- Lunt with a pass to a nicely cutting Vagner. Vagner with a good pass parallel to the end line that finds an unmarked Mngomeni flashing to goal, and he touches it home just outside the six. Good forward play by Vagner and Mngomeni. 1-1.

45'- Grant puts us a goal down just before halftime, by misplaying a cross by striker Michael Bridges. Midfielder Chris Clark beats Grant to the ball and heads it in behind him. 2-1, Gills at the break.

68'- Cole and Wallner enter for Gerard and Jensen. Mngomeni retreats a bit and plays outside the box as we switch to a 3-4-3.

76'- Fernandes' 20 yard free kick nestles into the top left corner. 2-2.

88'- El Karkouri tries to pop one from 25 yards, but it whistles about a yard wide of the post.

We weren't at our best today, but still managed a point. Cesar Arzo is named MoM for his 8-rated performance. Lunt and Mngomeni also pick up 8's today.

Draw, 2-2, up to 7th place
Shots/on target: Gills 14/7, Posh 8/3
Poss: 54-46, Gills
A: 10,666

EPL Round 4 results
Arsenal 4:0 Norwich
Aston Villa 3:0 Bolton
Blackburn R. 0:0 Portsmouth
Man U. 1:1 Fulham
Middlesbrough 1:0 Cardiff
Newcastle 3:0 C. Palace
Chelsea 2:0 West Ham
Southampton 0:0 Tottenham

[Butter]

We get a good draw for the 2nd round of the League Cup (jinx alert). We'll visit League 2 Huddersfield on Sept. 15.

Newcastle pay Real Zaragoza $13 million to bring in 27 year old American winger DaMarcus Beasley. Beasley played in their 3-0 win over Palace, and won man of the match honors and a 9 playing on the wing for the Magpies.

Southampton spend $14 million to sign 26 year old striker Robin van Persie away from Manchester City. Van Persie had already scored 4 goals in 3 games for Man City before the move. The Saints are active before the end of month transfer deadline, signing 25 year old Middlesbrough center back Michael Dawson away from The Riverside for $7 million.

We decide to make no moves before the close of the transfer window.

Luckily for us, we get a nice long 2 weeks off thanks to 2010 World Cup Qualifying before our next glut of matches start around September 9th.

Middlesbrough allow former Man U. keeper Roy Carroll to escape to Bolton... then Valencia meet the minimum fee release clause on their starting 22 year old keeper David Knight, who then leaves for Spain.

Marcos wins the Young Player of the Month award for August, averaging a 7.33 in his 3 starts for us... he is settling in after his late-season nerves from last year.

EPL Round 5 Results
C. Palace 0:1 Aston Villa
Fulham 0:1 Southampton
Norwich 0:0 Chelsea
Tottenham 1:1 Newcastle
Bolton 1:1 Blackburn
West Ham 3:2 Man City
Portsmouth 0:0 Gillingham

How about these standings? We've got Chelsea, then Villa, Portsmouth, West Ham, Southampton, and Norwich. Liverpool is dead last, but have only played 2 matches, losing both.

Sept. 9, Match 5 - Televised
1-2-1, 12th pl., 5 pts.
v. Middlesbrough (1-1-2, 15th pl., 4 pts.)
Series: Boro lead 3-0-0
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Wallner's stamina is way down, so he's out... Rochemback recently picked up another, more serious foot injury and will miss another 4 weeks. With the keeper problems I outlined for you, Middlesbrough is starting an 18 year old still on a youth contract in goal today, Ian Walsh.

Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Viana, Fernandes, Mokoena
Str: Cole, Balaban

4'- Carlton Cole finally gets on the board... Marcos with a header away in the center, to Mokoena... Mokoena to Balaban, who one touches it to Cole... Cole is onside, and finishes deftly inside the right post. 1-0, Posh.

10'- Cole must be waking up... Balaban chases down a loose ball near the corner flag, then sends a great cross into the middle, where Cole heads it inside the post. 2-0.

29'- Joe Cole keys a nice play, sending a ball down the right for striker Paul Gallagher... Gallagher cuts it inside to Mendieta, who lays it off for Romanian Tiberiu Ghioane... Ghioane strikes from 15 yards, and Stack can only flail at it. 2-1.

We keep up the pressure, but can't score any more.

66'- Arnold Bruggink, a super-sub who I remember scoring a 2nd half hat trick on us last year, promptly scores in his 3rd minute on the field after a nice through ball from Mendieta. Zaccardo was out of position on the play, giving Bruggink an open shot.

72'- Lunt enters for Viana, who is not liking the left wing role. Fernandes switches to the left wing, Lunt plays the right.

78'- Gerard enters for Kargbo, who moves up to centerfield.

90'- Bruggink scares me with a storming run past Zaccardo and Marcos, but his shot goes into the side netting. Mngomeni enters for a limping Fernandes.

And another draw. We barely had any draws last season, and now we have 3 in 5 matches. I had visions of a 4-0 rout early on. This is not a good result, especially at home against a 3rd rate keeper. Carlton Cole wins MoM for his great 10-rated, 2 goal performance. Stack and Mokoena pick up 8's.

Draw, 2-2, up to 11th place
Shots/on target: Posh 15/10, Boro 11/5
Poss: 53-47, Posh
A: 13,951

[Butter]

Sept. 12, Match 6
1-3-1, 12th pl., 6 pts.
@ Arsenal (2-1-1, 9th pl., 7 pts.)
Series: Arsenal lead 1-1-0
Fav: Gunners, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Arzo, Lunt, Balaban, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

2'- Great midfield passing results in Henry with an open 15 yard shot behind the defense, and he doesn't miss those, not even at age 31. 1-0, Arse.

5'- Henry nearly scores again from 20 yards, but Grant with a good save.

9'- Zaccardo has to leave with an injury, Kargbo replaces him.

27'- A great series of passes, as Lunt finds Mokoena, who gets the ball on the end of a nice Cole run, but his 8 yard strike is denied acrobatically by Arsenal keeper Tim Wiese (formerly of Kaiserslautern).

34'- Reyes with a long shot that Grant can only parry, and Henry is set up to put away the rebound, but sends it wide.

We're actually holding our own much better than we did last time we visited Emirates Stadium... but we're still being dominated.

67'- On Arsenal's 5th corner in a 3 minute span, Freddie Ljungberg finally finds William Gallas at the top of the six, and he scores. 2-0, Gunners.

71'- Viana in for Marcos, Mngomeni in for Lunt... Viana goes to the AM role, Balaban is moved into the box, and Mokoena plays the right wing... we are now in a 3-4-3.

76'- Henry breaks free, and just runs diagonally, neutralizing the 2 defenders after him, then slots it home past Grant. 3-0.

Before I can tell the lads to back off and get back on defense, Ljungberg strikes from the left and makes it 4-0.

Our showing here was slightly better than last year, but in the end the scoreline was the same. Our attackers just didn't have the pace or skill to beat Arsenal's back 4, while they ran all over ours. Henry picks up MoM honors.

Loss, 4-0, drop to 13th
Shots/on target: Gunners 24/9, Posh 5/2
Poss: 56-44, Gunners
A: 53,747

EPL Round 6 results
Boro 2:0 Pompey
Rovers 1:1 Palace
Chelsea 2:0 Cardiff
Gills 0:2 Bolton
Liverpool 3:0 West Ham
So'ton 2:2 Man U.
Villa 2:0 Spurs

Aston Villa continue their sizzling form in the early season, still clutching to 2nd place.

[Butter]

Sept. 15, League Cup Second Round
@ Huddersfield Town (7th in League Two)
Series: Posh lead 1-3-0
Fav: Posh, 1:3

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Jensen, El Karkouri, Marcos, Dakinah
Mid: Arzo, Ingrao, Lennon, Gerard
Str: Mngomeni, Vagner

The Terriers play the typical home underdog cup role, playing far above their heads, and keeping us out of goal, while failing to muster much of any offense themselves. We enter the second half scoreless.

55'- Grant takes down a Terrier attacker on a breakaway, and is shown the door for his effort. Stack comes on and concedes the PK. 1-0.

61'- A nice cross and a header later, the Terriers lead 2-0.

Lunt enters for a slightly injured Gerard. What can I say? It seems as though our Premiership Cup runs are always doomed from the start.

78'- To top things off, Lennon gets his 2nd yellow, so now we're down to 11 on 9 for the final quarter hour.

Burn the tapes, gentlemen. Burn them.

Loss, 2-0, out of League Cup
Shots/on target: Terriers 10/5, Posh 9/5
Poss: 51-49, Terriers
A: 20,941

Grant and Lennon get the automatic one match bans. Our keeper situation is slowly falling apart... again.

[Butter]

I think we might have to switch to a 4-3-3 to see where that gets us against Chelsea.

EPL mid-week results
Liverpool 4:1 Man City
Spurs 0:2 Man U.

Sept. 19, Match 7
1-3-2, 14th pl., 6 pts.
v. Chelsea (5-1-0, 1st pl., 16 pts.)
Series: Blues lead 2-1-0
Fav: Blues, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Jensen
Mid: Fernandes, Viana, Lunt
Str: Wallner, Cole, Balaban

4'- It doesn't take long for Chelsea against this deflated team... Mutu switches play to Duff... Duff to D'Alessandro, who draws 2 defenders in the box, and he cuts it back for Lampard... Lampard's open 15 yard shot goes in off the post. 1-0.

8'- Cole with a good ball to Wallner, he beats the last defender... but Cech saves it... Viana's follow up from the arc is also parried away.

24'- Lampard's attempted pass to Mutu is blocked by Bocanegra... but Mutu still gets a head to it, and places it nicely for Fernando Torres, just behind Marcos... Torres beats Stack. 2-0.

Mokoena enters for Kenny Lunt, who is rating a 4.

38'- Gerard enters for Viana, whose stamina is already down in the low 60's... very low for a first half. Usually somewhere around 80% is normal. Viana hasn't done much either, so let's see what Gerard can do.

54'- Gerard with a nice pass to Fernandes, who first times a cross to the far post... Mokoena is there, but it's a tough angle for a header... Cech handles it easily.

68'- Fernandes sends in a cross again, but John Terry heads it into touch.

80'- Mngomeni on for Balaban, who is rating a 5.

Makes no difference. We can't penetrate Chelsea's shell. Stack gets a 5. John Terry wins MoM in Chelsea's central defense.

Loss, 0-2, drop to 15th
Shots/on target: Posh 5/3, Blues 9/4
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 13,955

Well, we're thoroughly failing our tests this year. We do seem to be slightly better than last season, but things just aren't coming together right now. I was hoping a 3 man striker line would help us to pop a goal in, but it made no difference.

EPL Round 7 results
Man U. 0:0 Newcastle
Bolton 0:0 Boro
Fulham 0:0 Villa
Portsmouth 0:1 Arsenal
So'ton 0:2 Liverpool
Tottenham 1:0 Blackburn
Cardiff 0:1 Man City
Palace 0:0 Gillingham
Norwich 2:0 West Ham

The top 4 are Chelsea, Villa, Arsenal, and Man U... while the bottom 3 are Cardiff, Gillingham, and Palace.

[Butter]

Mid-week fixture
Newcastle 2:0 Fulham

Pretty much the entire team is at "very poor" morale... but to be fair, we have dropped games to the current 2nd place team, Aston Villa, the current 1st place team, Chelsea, and last year's champions, Arsenal. Our draws could've been better, but I can't see much way around the losses.

We try the 4-3-3 again in this next match.

Sept. 27, Match 8
1-3-3, 16th pl., 6 pts.
@ Manchester City (2-1-3, 13th pl., 7 pts.)
Series: Citizens lead 3-0-0
Fav: Citizens, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Viana, Mokoena, Fernandes
Str: Wallner, Cole, Balaban

Mike Zonneveld, a left sided fullback in MCFC's 5-3-2 (or 3-5-2) creates a lot of havoc early, sending in at least 4 crosses from the left... but we deal with them all pretty well.

28'- Mokoena plays Balaban through on a diagonal run... Balaban strikes from 10 yards away from the keeper, but it's struck right at the keeper... Wallner gathers the rebound, but he decides to lay if off to Viana... Viana's cross is cut out.

37'- Nice play as the throw-in is headed by Balaban to Cole... Cole turns on his man and fires a quick shot that just misses and goes into the side netting.

45'- Cole and Wallner pass the ball back and forth for 50 yards... then Cole lays back and plays it onto the run of Wallner into the box... Wallner takes the open shot, but the onrushing keeper beats it away.

51'- If these were the Chicago Bulls, I'd say we played a triangle offense on this play... Cole leaves it for Mokoena and runs into the box... Mokoena plays it wide to Fernandes... Fernandes with the pass to an open Cole at 15 yards... Cole turns, dribbles once, and shoots from 12... goal! Inside the far post, Cole puts us ahead, 1-0!

Man City switches to a 4-2-4 in the 65th minute.

Play goes up and down the field for several minutes.... Arenas with a nice save on a corner kick header... then we dominate the midfield, keeping the long balls out of danger, but unable to crack the Citizen back 4 ourselves... until:

82'- Mokoena finds Viana... Viana turns on his man and passes to Wallner... Wallner in the box, takes a 12 yard shot that the keeper deflects wide... but Balaban is all alone on the rebound, and taps it in! 2-0!

Kargbo, Lunt, and Gerard enter for Viana, Fernandes, and Wallner... we switch to a 4-4-2 with a defensive midfielder. The final whistle goes after some boring midfield play, and we win it!

A massive effort today to secure 3 much needed points. Libis Andres Arenas wins the MoM award, rating a 9... finally, some promise showing out of the 22 year old Colombian keeper. Zaccardo and Alex also with 9's, and the entire midfield and front 3 earn 8's (except for Fernandes' 7).

Win, 0-2, up to 14th place
Shots/on target: Citizens 15/8, Posh 18/10
Poss: 50-50
A: 39,049

EPL Round 8 results
Chelsea 3:1 Portsmouth
Liverpool 3:1 Norwich
Boro 0:0 Palace
Newcastle 1:2 So'ton
West Ham 2:0 Cardiff
Blackburn 5:0 Fulham
Gillingham 1:1 Tottenham
Aston Villa 3:0 Man U.
Arsenal 4:0 Bolton

The win puts us only up to 14th, but we're only 3 points behind 4th place Liverpool right now, that's how tight things are in the middle of the table.

[Butter]

Arenas, Zaccardo, and Alex are all picked in the Team of the Week.

Mid-week fixtures
Fulham 1:4 Liverpool
Man City 3:0 Norwich


In international play, Bosko Balaban scores a hat trick for Croatia, as they beat Azerbaijan in World Cup Qualifying, 9-0. Graham Stack shut out Spain, but Ireland were shut out themselves in a scoreless draw. Arenas shut out Chile in a 2-0 Colombia win. Ibrahim Kargbo set up Sierra Leone's only goal in a 1-1 draw with Congo.

Cristian Zaccardo suffers a dislocated jaw (ow!) in training that will leave him out 3 weeks.

EPL Round 9 results
Bolton 0:2 Chelsea
Cardiff 0:1 Norwich
So'ton 1:2 A. Villa
Fulham 1:2 Gillingham
Tottenham 3:0 Boro

We have a mid-week game this time around, due to international call-ups.

Oct. 14, Match 9
2-3-3, 15th pl., 9 pts.
v. West Ham United (4-0-4, 9th pl., 12 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 3-4-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

We switch to a 4-3-1-2 this time, with Rochemback returning, he slips into central midfield.
Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Bocanegra, Dakinah, Alex, Kargbo
Mid: Viana, Rochemback, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

4'- Bocanegra's throw in down the touch line to Viana is controlled... Viana turns his back to the end line and swings in a long cross... Cole gets up above the keeper and heads it in! 1-0, Posh!

13'- This is shaping up to be a vintage Hugo Viana performance... he strikes a 30 yard free kick with lots of bend... keeper Darren Behcet doesn't even try to go after it as it goes in off the post! 2-0, Posh.

Viana maybe gets a little too happy, as he unleashes 3 very hopeful 20+ yard strikes in the next 10 minutes that are off target.

26'- Bocanegra with a header away, to Gerard... Gerard with a couple of dribbles, then a great ball wide to Wallner... Wallner is onside, and his speed carries him clear of defense... Wallner attacks goal from the right, and fires inside the left post... GOAL! 3-0!

28'- Cole with a steal off the kickoff, and he just walks in on the keeper... but the Hammer defense recovers in time to charge down the shot. The clearance comes out, and West Ham advance... but Rochemback with a steal in the center circle. To Gerard... Gerard with a great through ball to Cole again, who is just onside! Cole beats Behcet this time, and easily fires it home! 4-0!

34'- Arzo enters for an injured Kargbo... Dakinah shifts to right fullback. Marco Ingrao enters for Viana, who is already fatigued a bit.

West Ham pull one back in the 71st, on a poorly defended free kick. I put Grant in shortly thereafter to improve his morale.

78'- A little pinball action, as Lunt's cross is headed away from Wallner, then chested down... then an attempted clearance is blocked... the ball falls to Gerard at the top of the 18, he tries his luck... it deflects off another defender and goes in! 5-1.

Grant gets a nice save in the 88th, and we take the big win! We pass 7 teams with the win, moving into 8th place. Nearly everyone picked up at least an 8 today, but Gerard was Man of the Match with a 10 rating, assisting on 2 goals and scoring 1. Alex, Cole, and Grant pick up 9's.

Win, 5-1, up to 8th place
Shots/on target: Posh 15/10, Hammers 14/6
Poss: 54-46, Hammers
A: 13,964

Ibrahim Kargbo just has a minor toe injury, and will only miss a few days.

The board is delighted with the win, and the fans move from "satisfied" to "pleased" with my job performance... and the board now become "satisfied with the team's Premier Division" standing.

[Butter]

More international action, as Arenas leads Colombia to another WC Qualifying win, beating Peru 3-1. And reserve DM Kevin Grant rates a 5 for the U-19 English team before being pulled in the 2nd half.

Our stadium expansion is completed... which now gives us 16,472 as full capacity, with 11,000+ seats. This only increases our attendance possibility by about 1,000 or so, but does give us the chance to charge a bit more for those in the 2,500 new seats... our previous seating capacity was around 8,700.

While we're at it, I request an upgrade to the team's training facilities... and they say that they know the facilities are not good enough for a team of our size. And the plan to invest accordingly. I guess that's.... good?

Oct. 17, Match 10
3-3-3, 8th pl., 12 pts.
@ Norwich City (4-2-3, 5th pl., 14 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Back to the 4-3-3 against a tough Canary side. Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Pritchard, Bocanegra, Arzo, Jensen
Mid: Fernandes, Mokoena, Lennon
Str: Mngomeni, Vagner, Balaban

2'- Arzo with a good slide tackle away from striker Andriy Voronin... Kevin Kilbane retrieves the ball, and shoots low in the wet from a tough angle 20 yards away... Arenas is slow to react, and watches it go in. 1-0, Canaries.

7'- Kilbane with a lazy cross into the middle for striker David Clarkson... he beats his markers and heads it in. 2-0.

22'- Arenas with a superb save of a 20-25 yard free kick.

We make no waves of any kind in the first half. This lineup sucks.

53'- Viana in for Fernandes, Cole on for Vagner.

73'- Lunt on for Bocanegra, we switch to a 3-4-3.

It does no good. Arenas looked pretty good, aside from allowing the early rebound in. He and Mokoena pick up 8's from this one. Kevin Kilbane wins the MoM honors for Norwich. They're just on fire right now. They did make the UEFA Cup a few years back, so I wouldn't be too surprised to see them stay in the hunt for it all year here.

Loss, 2-0, drop to 11th place
Shots/on target: Canaries 22/12, Posh 3/3
Poss: 62-38, Canaries
A: 22,590

EPL Round 10 results
Liverpool 2:0 Cardiff
Blackburn 2:0 So'ton
Chelsea 3:0 Palace
Gillingham 1:2 Man U.
Boro 1:0 Fulham
West Ham 0:1 Portsmouth
Man City 2:0 Bolton
Villa 2:1 Newcastle
Arsenal 3:2 Spurs

Chelsea and Villa continue to run away from the pack... but Arsenal and Liverpool sit in 3rd and 4th, 9 and 10 points behind first respectively, with 2 games in hand.

[Butter]

Grant, Alex, and Gerard are picked in the Team of the Week for their outings against West Ham.

Oct. 24, Match 11
3-3-4, 12th pl., 12 pts.
v. Cardiff (1-0-8, 20th pl., 3 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-2-1
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Cardiff have scored 4 times, and allowed 17 goals... but they do have a win. Crystal Palace sit in 19th with 4 points from 4 draws, but no wins. Back to the diamond for this one.

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Kargbo
Mid: Rochemback, Gerard, Balaban, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

For some reason, we spend most of the first half settling for long distance shots... that gets us mostly nowhere. We do have a good chance in the 40th, when Gerard gets to a loose ball near the edge of the six and lays it back for Wallner... but Wallner's shot is deflected, then the ball pinballs around and is finally cleared.

55'- Lunt in for Cole, who picked up a minor knock. Balaban switches to striker... we also switch Mokoena and Gerard, as Gerard is doing nothing from the wing position.

66'- Finally, some good connecting play... Marcos to Kargbo... to Rochemback in the center... to Gerard, who plays it ahead of Lunt... Lunt with an early cross that falls nicely to Wallner... Wallner unmarked from 8 yards at the back post, and he slots it home! 1-0, Posh.

67'- Off the ensuing kickoff, Kargbo heads a long ball away... to Lunt... Lunt to the middle, Gerard... to Wallner, who beats his man with a nutmeg, and is free on goal. Wallner with a shot at the oncoming keeper, deflected wide... but Balaban is there to tap the rebound home! 2-0... 2 goals in 2 minutes.

73'- Rochemback with a great through ball to Wallner, who nearly makes it 3-0, but Kelvin Davis with a good save.

Viana on for Mokoena on the left wing, and Arzo in for Rochemback, who has a yellow card.

80'- Cardiff have an offensive sub sent off for bringing down Balaban, then arguing too much about it. That won't help their cause.

The final seconds tick away, and we take the points. A tough game early, but the player/position switches in the early 2nd half seemed to bring us to life. Balaban and Wallner both pick up 8's... Balaban wins the MoM.

Win, 2-0, up to 7th place
Shots/on target: Posh 27/11, Cardiff 3/0
Poss: 57-43, Posh
A: 16,443

I get notice of our record attendance for this match. Well, duh.

EPL Round 11 results
Spurs 0:3 Chelsea
Villa 0:2 Liverpool
Bolton 0:2 West Ham
Fulham 1:3 Arsenal
Man U. 2:0 Boro
So'ton 3:0 Gillingham
Newcastle 0:0 Blackburn
Portsmouth 0:0 Norwich
Palace 3:1 Man City

Palace climb out of the drop zone with their win, pushing Fulham in, along with Bolton and Cardiff. Gillingham sit just one point clear in 17th.

[Butter]

Balaban is picked in the Team of the Week.

Oct. 31, Match 12
4-3-4, 8th pl., 15 pts.
@ Liverpool (7-0-2, 4th pl., 21 pts.)
Series: Reds lead 2-0-0
Fav: 4:7

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Kargbo
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

An even game early... a nice save made by Grant on a banana shot by Kallstrom.

12'- Viana is moving down the left... he plays it into space for Gerard... Yobo leaves his man, Cole, and Gerard finds him right away. Cole turns, shoots from 15 yards, and scores! 1-0, Posh!

23'- Kallstrom sets up and shoots from 25 yards, and Grant can't save it. 1-1.

27'- Great crisp passing through midfield, as all the midfielders end up with a quick touch, and in the end Wallner is open from 15 yards with a great chance, but the keeper turns it aside.

We actually have slightly the better of play throughout most of the first half, and end up with more chances and even ball possession by halftime.

46'- Cisse nearly scores 15 seconds in to the second half, but Grant with a good save.

51'- Gerard with a good pass into tight quarters for Cole, Cole wheels and shoots it blindly goalward and forces a nice save out of Chris Kirkland.

57'- Cisse breaks free in the middle with a good diagonal run... his shot is turned away by Grant... Alan Smith with the follow-up, into the side netting!

59'- Cole dribbles to the right side of the field... he lofts it forward to Wallner, who is all alone at 15 yards... Wallner is closed down quickly, but lays it off to Hugo Viana... Viana with an open shot, but a very tough angle from 15 yards... but he scores! Great goal! 2-1, Posh!

73'- Cesar Arzo on for Viana... he'll play the left wing, but we switch to defensive counter-attacking tactics to try and salt it away, moving Gerard back to the center circle.

74'- A pacey cross is cleared by Kargbo to Cole... Cole with space to Arzo... Arzo lays it back to Cole... Wallner can't hold his run, so Cole doesn't play it to him... Fernandes draws a defender down the left, and forces him upfield a bit... that allows Cole to loft it ahead to Arzo, who is onside! Cesar Arzo with no one within 10 yards of him! He attacks Kirkland... cuts it right, and slots it home!!! 3-1, Posh, as we strike on the counter attack!

79'- Mokoena on for a superb Gerard.

83'- Cisse gets open in the arc, but fires wide.

86'- Milan Baros is played onside by Cisse, and has several yards on the last defender... Grant comes out... and brings him down! A yellow for Grant, and a PK for Liverpool. It's converted, and it's 3-2 now.

89'- Substitute Anthony Le Tallec with a cross to Cisse... Cisse's header! WIDE! By inches.

90'- Luis Garcia with a curling strike from 25 yards.... SAVED by Grant!

A final corner by Riquelme is cut out by Cole... the ensuing cross cleared to Wallner... and the final whistle goes!!! What a win at Anfield! Carlton Cole is man of the match, rating a 10! Gerard with a 9's, and there were several 8's to be had. Our best win in the Premiership!

Win, 2-3, remain in 8th
Shots/on target: Liverpool 23/11, Posh 22/11
Poss: 51-49, Reds
A: 53,262

EPL Round 12 results
West Ham 1:1 Palace
Cardiff 0:2 Portsmouth
Gills 0:2 Newcastle
Boro 0:0 So'ton
Norwich 3:0 Bolton
Chelsea 2:0 Fulham
Blackburn 0:1 Villa
Man City 1:1 Spurs
Arsenal 1:0 Man U.

Gerard with a surprise Player of the Month win! I finish third in Manager of the Month voting.

[Butter]

We get 2 weeks off after our big win at Liverpool to rest before traveling to Fratton Park to face Portsmouth.

Gerard and Cole are picked in the Team of the Week.

EPL mid-week result
Cardiff 0:4 Arsenal

Roman Wallner strains his back in training, and will miss about 3 weeks. Marco Ingrao dislocates his jaw in training, and will miss the same. Mokoena twists an ankle a few days later, and will miss 2 weeks. Lee Grant picks up a calf strain shortly thereafter, and HE'LL miss 2 weeks. Must be time for a couple new physios.

European World Cup Qualifying wrap-up
Group winners: Italy, France, Germany, England, Ireland, Holland, Portugal, Slovenia, Hungary
Second place qualifier: Belgium
Playoffs (aggregate scores):
Czech Rep. 1:5 Turkey
Spain 2:1 Greece
Sweden 5:2 Georgia
Wales 4:0 Latvia

Nov. 14, Match 13
5-3-4, 8th pl., 18 pts.
@ Portsmouth (5-3-3, 7th pl., 18 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-0-1
Fav: Pompey, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Fernandes, Lunt, Viana
Str: Cole, Balaban

2'- Kamara with an open 12 yard shot, but the onrushing Arenas deflects it wide... and Zaccardo clears.

A tight first half, neither team with many chances of note.

47'- Viana with a great through ball to Balaban down the middle... Balaban cuts around the keeper, but the keeper recovers well and stonewalls Balaban's shot.

51'- Rochemback with a good ball to Fernandes' run down the left... Fabrice holds it up, then crosses onto the run of Balaban, who heads it inside the left post! 1-0, Posh!

58'- Zaccardo heads a ball away to Lunt... Lunt to the center circle for Viana... Hugo with a nice pass forward to Cole. Cole beats his man, and runs to the right side of goal, then shoots back left and nestles it inside the post! 2-0, Posh!

60'- A deep cross comes in for Kamara.... he beats Alex to the ball and heads it past Arenas. 2-1.

65'- A scary cross and header for Portsmouth again, but this time Kamara can't get it on target.

72'- Gerard on for Viana, and Arzo enters for Balaban... we switch to a 4-5-1 with 2 defensive midfielders.

84'- Lua Lua chases down a ball and crosses for Yakubu... Alex heads away to Kamara at the edge of the box.... the whistle goes, I hold my breath... it's a yellow on Kamara for tripping Zaccardo.

87'- An Oliver Schroder cross skips past Kamara to Lua Lua... he fires at Arenas, who gets a hand to it, but can't keep it out. 2-2.

Mngomeni on for a tiring Lunt, and we switch back to a 4-4-2, with Rochemback on the right wing and Arzo pushed up to the center circle.

Cole with a steal late deep in the Portsmouth end, but he's too tired to do anything with it.

The final whistle goes, and we blow another 2 goal lead. If we go defensive, we blow the lead because they keep the ball in our half too long. If we don't go defensive, they overwhelm us in numbers, and eventually equalize that way too. I can't win. Bosko Balaban is named MoM with an 8. Cole, Viana, Alex, and Bocanegra also pick up 8's in a disappointing draw.

Draw, 2-2, up to 7th
Shots/on target: Pompey 14/8, Posh 9/8
Poss: 53-47, Pompey
A: 32,243

Zaccardo and Fernandes both pick up minor injuries during the game that will leave them doubtful for our next match in a week.

EPL Round 13 results
Blackburn 1:4 Liverpool
Bolton 1:1 Cardiff
Palace 0:1 Norwich
Fulham 0:1 Man City
Villa 4:0 Gills
Newcastle 0:1 Boro
Spurs 4:1 West Ham

We finish the round in European position... but trailed by Manchester United by just one point... who have 3 games in hand.

[Butter]

Next up, we host 1-win Bolton Wanderers... hopefully we can skate by them at home without too much difficulty. Mokoena, Grant, and Wallner are still out with injuries.

Nov. 21, Match 14 - Televised
5-4-4, 7th pl., 19 pts.
v. Bolton Wanderers (1-3-9, 19th pl., 6 pts.)
Series: Trotters lead 2-1-1
Fav: Posh, Evens

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Sarr
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Lennon, Gerard
Str: Cole, Balaban

4'- Bocanegra and Rochemback both get yellows inside the first 5 minutes for holding back attacking midfielder James Milner.

6'- Lennon with a good long ball to Balaban... he squares it for Cole, who winds up and shoots from 20 yards at a fairly open target, but the shot is charged down well.

24'- Bocanegra nearly gets a 2nd yellow for dissent, as he argues a push call.

44'- We have been keeping up pressure the entire half, but Bolton has done well keeping men back to get in the way of crosses and shots. Until here, when they just flat give it away to Cole on the edge of their own area.... Cole crosses to Balaban, making an unmarked run to the back post... Balaban with a half-volley inside the right post, 1-0. Bosko's 5th goal of the season.

65'- Mngomeni enters for Cole.

71'- Gerard holds the ball up, and Mngomeni is played through down the middle... a Bolton defender on the right was just wandering about on his half of the pitch, allowing Mngomeni to make an easy onside run... sadly, former ManU keeper Roy Carroll saves Mngomeni's shot AND Viana's follow-up nicely.

77'- Balaban is onside... he squares for Viana, but Carroll reacts very well and saves the 15 yard strike. Viana's corner kick finds Mngomeni's head at 6 yards, but he nods it over the bar.

Lunt enters for Viana.

80'- Lunt with a great ball to Mngomeni... who crosses from the edge of the box to Balaban, who has a step on his man, but his volley is errant.

85'- Arenas with a great long ball to Lunt, and we have a 5 on 3... Lunt to Mngomeni, ahead to Balaban... Balaban has it tackled away at the top of the box, but Aaron Lennon collects and attacks from the right... Carroll charges at him and stops the first shot... the rebound right back to Lennon, but again right into Carroll, and it's cleared.

90'- Carroll with another great save on a Mngomeni onside play.

The final whistle goes, and Bolton didn't really threaten us all match... but Roy Carroll gets the well-deserved MoM award. Gerard picks up our only 8. But a win is a win, despite our mediocre performance.

Win, 1-0, up to 6th
Shots/on target: Posh 21/13, Trotters 2/1
Poss: 60-40, Posh
A: 16,447

EPL Round 14 results
Boro 0:0 Villa
Norwich 1:1 Spurs
Chelsea 0:1 So'ton
Cardiff 0:1 Palace
Liverpool 4:1 Portsmouth
Gills 1:1 Blackburn
West Ham 0:1 Fulham
Arsenal 2:0 Newcastle
Man City 3:2 Man Utd.

Standings:
1. Chelsea, 34
2. Aston Villa, 32
3. Arsenal, 31
4. Liverpool, 27
5. Norwich, 25
6. P'boro, 22
7. Man City, 20
8. So'ton, 19
9. Portsmouth, 19
10.Man Utd., 18
11.Tottenham, 18
12.Middlesbrough, 18
13.West Ham, 16
14.Blackburn, 15
15.Newcastle, 15
16.Crystal Palace, 11
17.Fulham, 9
18.Gillingham, 8
19.Bolton, 6
20.Cardiff, 4

[Butter]

Bocanegra with a groin strain in training that is to keep him out 2 weeks.

Gerard is named to the Team of the Week.

League Cup Quarterfinals
Liverpool 3:1 Chelsea
Man City 1:1 Blackburn (Man City advance 3-2 on PK's)
Newcastle 1:2 Crewe (Champ.)
Portsmouth 2:0 Wigan (Champ.)

EPL mid-week fixture
Palace 2:0 Arsenal

We're getting hit hard with niggly little injuries again, so we hire a 4th physio, and assign 2 to each active training schedule (goalkeeping, defending, midfield, attacking).

Nov. 28, Match 15
6-4-4, 6th pl., 22 pts.
@ Crystal Palace (3-5-6, 16th pl., 14 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 2-2-0
Fav: Eagles, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Jensen, Alex, Arzo, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Fernandes, Lunt, Viana
Str: Cole, Balaban

16'- Not much action early, but Palace with a prolonged build up here, that ends with midfielder Ben Watson curling a shot inside the far post from 30 yards, beating Arenas on a terrific shot. Watson's first of the year, 1-0 Palace.

31'- Watson completely unmarked at the top of the area, and he puts it away easily from that distance, beating a shielded Arenas. 2-0, Eagles.

34'- Fernandes with a cross to Cole, but his 10 yard header is off target.

56'- Just as I'm preparing Gerard to come in for Viana, who has done nothing, Cole flicks a header to Viana, who shoots a curler from 30 yards and beats Gabor Kiraly... 2-1.

I bring Gerard on for Kenny Lunt on the right wing.

67'- American Steve Cherundolo with a free kick... Kargbo heads to Cole, who leaves it for Viana... Viana dribbles around a bit, then plays Balaban through with a great ball ahead, right to his feet at 20 yards. Balaban attacks the keeper, and slots it home past Kiraly inside the left upright! 2-2!

74'- El Karkouri enters for an ineffective Cesar Arzo.

90'+- In the dying seconds, Fernandes finds himself in acres of space after the defense is drawn to Cole... Fernandes' first shot is hit weakly into Kiraly, who can't hold it, but Fernandes' follow-up is into the side netting. The ensuing goal kick goes, and so does the final whistle.

A road point is never bad in the Premiership, especially coming back from 2 down. Glad I didn't sub out for Hugo Viana, who ends up with a 10 and man of the match honors from his AMC spot. Balaban, Fernandes, Alex, and Zaccardo pick up 8's on the day.

Draw, 2-2, remain in 6th
Shots/on target: Eagles 7/4, Posh 22/11
Poss: 52-48, Eagles
A: 24,643

Turns out that Wayne Routledge, who left the game after a yellow card challenge by Fernandes, broke his leg on the play and will miss 5 months.

EPL Round 15 results
Man Utd. 4:0 West Ham
Blackburn 3:2 Boro
Bolton 1:0 Portsmouth
Gills 0:1 Liverpool
Newcastle 2:3 Chelsea
Spurs 0:1 Cardiff
Villa 1:3 Arsenal
Fulham 0:0 Norwich
So'ton 2:0 Man City

Southampton move into 7th place just behind us with a Monday Night win over 8th place Manchester City.

[Butter]

Viana is picked in the Team of the Week.

We get another crappy opening round FA Cup draw, as we draw Chelsea... at London Road. We will get them at home, but Christ, how about we not draw one of the Big 4 in the FA Cup someday, huh?

Champions League Group Stage, Results
Group A
Juventus 11, Barcelona 9, Ajax 7, Rosenborg 5
-Ajax with a chance to pass Barcelona on the final match day, but they lose at home to Juve, 1-0, and Barcelona with a 0-0 draw at home to Rosenborg puts the Spanish club through.

Group B
Milan 14, Chelsea 10, M. Haifa 6, Celtic 4
-M. Haifa with a meaningless 3-2 win over Chelsea on the final match day to get out of the group cellar.

Group C
Porto 13, Bayern Munich 12, Grazer AK (AUT) 5, CSKA Moscow 3
-This group was decided long ago.

Group D
Liverpool 18, Lokomotiv Plovdiv (BUL) 7, R. Madrid 5, Red Star 4
-Real Madrid were in last place in the group until a final match day win over Red Star, who could've advanced with a win themselves based on their superior goal difference to Plovdiv. This is Lokomotiv's 2nd straight round of 16 appearance in the Champions League.

Group E
Inter 12, Dinamo Kiev 11, Valencia 6, Levski (BUL) 4
- No drama in this group.

Group F
Benfica 15, Man Utd. 13 Paris SG 5, Werder Bremen 1
- Or this one.

Group G
FC Kobenhavn 12, Anderlecht (BEL) 8, Wisla (POL) 6, Fenerbahce (TUR) 5
-Fenerbahce could've advanced on a last day 2 goal win, as Anderlecht drew 1-1 with Copenhagen, but they lose on the road to Wisla 1-0 to drop into the basement.

Group H
Arsenal 12, Roma 9, Panathinaikos 4, PSV 4
-Another group decided long ago.

EPL mid-week fixture
Portsmouth 1:1 Man City
-Both teams remain mid-table, Pompey 10th, MCFC 9th.

Dec. 5, Match 16
6-5-4, 6th pl., 23 pts.
v. Tottenham Hotspur (4-6-5, 13th pl., 18 pts.)
Series: Spurs lead 2-1-0
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Kargbo, Marcos, Alex, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Balaban, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

1'- Rob Styles is the referee today, and he gives Robbie Keane a yellow for dissent in the first minute.

15'- Balaban with a nice ball into the box for Cole... it's tackled away, but right to Roman Wallner, who volleys it, but it comes off a Spurs defender's leg, and out for a corner.

23'- Midfielder Scott Parker gets his second yellow card already, and we go up a man... but for how long?

30'- Wallner plays Cole down the middle, and he scores on a breakaway, but he looked offside to me, and indeed the flag is up.

38'- Marcos has a pop from 20 yards off a clearance, but his shot is into the stands.

39'- Zaccardo has a pop as well from long distance, but his shot is deflected out.

53'- Robbie Keane brings down Mokoena, and now we're 2 men up as he gets an early bath with his second yellow.

60'- Some good possession on the left side... then Wallner switches to Rochemback, who passes to Balaban on the right... Balaban tees up from 25 yards, and curls it in!! 1-0, Posh on Balaban's 6th of the year, a great 25 yard strike.

Mngomeni enters for a tiring Wallner... Fernandes in for Viana.

64'- Marcos with a great ball down the left for Fernandes... he cuts it in short to Mngomeni, who has a wide open chance, but gets under it and misses.

75'- Spurs hit on the counterattack, as Paul Reid beats Zaccardo on the right side, then scores inside the far post. 1-1, as Spurs equalize 2 men down.

Gerard enters for Zaccardo, as we switch to a 3-5-2, pushing Rochemback up to midfield, and having Gerard join Mokoena in the attacking midfield.

We push even further ahead late, but we can't penetrate as Spurs are laying back all 9 men in defense. Another draw thanks to a poor keeper performance, allowing in the only shot on goal Spurs had all match. Kargbo, Balaban, Alex, and Rochemback pick up 8's for their performances.

Draw, 1-1, drop to 8th
Shots/on target: Posh 14/5, Spurs 2/1
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 16,467

We must get a new keeper. Grant has bitten the dust this year. Arenas is stringing together mediocre performances, and Stack has shown no inclination to snap out of his mediocrity either.

EPL Round 16 results
Boro 2:0 Gills
Arsenal 3:0 Blackburn
Cardiff 3:1 Fulham
Chelsea 3:3 Villa
Norwich 0:3 Man Utd.
West Ham 0:2 So'ton
Man City 0:2 Newcastle
Portsmouth 4:3 Palace
Liverpool 2:0 Bolton

Chelsea, Arsenal, and Liverpool are now 1-2-3, and Man Utd. pass us this week on their inevitable march to the top... now on 24 points. Southampton also pass us into 6th place.

[Butter]

Kargbo is picked in the Team of the Week. Odd, since he was playing out of position at left fullback in the Spurs match.

EPL mid-week results
Man Utd. 1:1 Chelsea
So'ton 0:3 Arsenal
-ManU moves up to 6th, and Southampton drop to 7th, just 1 point ahead of us.

Dec. 12, Match 17 - Televised
6-6-4, 8th pl., 24 pts.
@ Fulham (2-4-10, 17th pl., 10 pts.)
Series: Cottagers lead 3-1-0
Fav: Posh, Evens

Lineup:
GK: Stack
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Dakinah
Mid: Rochemback, Fernandes, Balaban, Viana
Str: Wallner, Cole

6'- I don't know how Fulham keep killing us over and over again, but here it is again, a long cross, and Luis Boa Morte finds the handle on the ball, and shoots it far post past Stack. 1-0, FFC.

17'- Fernandes receives a pass from Wallner... he forwards it to Viana, who one touches a great through ball to Cole, who outruns his man to it and touches it past the onrushing keeper, 1-1.

Fulham get the better of most of the play in the first half. We replace Stack with Arenas at halftime, as Stack is rating a 6. I'm just tired of him, pretty much.

46'- The switch may immediately pay dividends, as Boa Morte slips through the defense and tries to squeeze it inside the near post, but Arenas tips it away.

51'- Bocanegra with a great long ball to Cole in the arc, he turns on his men but shoots it over the crossbar.

80'- Mngomeni in for Wallner, Gerard for Hugo Viana.

85'- Fernandes with a corner kick, and it falls to Gerard perfectly from 8 yards, he even has time to settle it before shooting, but skies it.

We are unable to muster any more in attack, and we end with another draw. Fabrice Fernandes picks up a 9, playing on his preferred left side. Arenas also with a 9. Dakinah, Bocanegra, Rochemback, and Cole pick up 8's, as we keep our unbeaten string alive, now pushing it to 7 matches.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 8th place
Shots/on target: Cottagers 18/6, Posh 12/6
Poss: 52-48, Cottagers
A: 19,854

EPL Round 17 results
Newcastle 3:2 West Ham
Man Utd. 1:0 Cardiff
So'ton 1:0 Norwich
Gills 0:1 Arsenal
Palace 1:1 Bolton
Spurs 2:0 Portsmouth
Blackburn 0:1 Chelsea
Villa 1:0 Man City
Boro 1:1 Liverpool

[Butter]

Fernandes is picked in the Team of the Week.

Bosko Balaban slips a disc in his back, and will be out 2 critical months. Balaban is our 2nd leading goal scorer, and he'll be sorely missed, as he was seemingly settling in on the right wing pretty well.

Dec. 16, Match 18
6-7-4, 8th pl., 25 pts.
v. Manchester United (8-4-3, 5th pl., 28 pts.)
Series: Red Devils lead 3-0-0
Fav: Red Devils, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Sarr, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

7'- Bocanegra with a ball down the left for Cole... Cole into the box, lays it back for Viana, who passes again to Gerard about 10 yards from goal... his shot is just wide of the target.

18'- Bocanegra with a header away... we have some passing in the middle of the park, then Kenny Lunt with a long ball to Viana... Viana is away, and shoots from near the top left corner of the box... and it curls in! 1-0, Posh, great goal by Viana!

31'- Great ball to Ivica Olic, and Arenas hesitates charging the ball for a moment... and that kills him, as that gives time to Olic to finish in between Arenas and the post. 1-1.

45'- Olic feeds Wayne Rooney this time, Rooney gets around Alex, then chips Arenas from 20 yards, and scores. Not much Arenas could do there, as if he lays back, Rooney would have a wide open goal to shoot at. 2-1, Man U.

45+'- Viana breaks open again, from near the same spot where he scored, but this time his shot is just wide.

59'- Cole gets loose on the left of the box twice in a minute's time, but Stekelenburg saves both shots.

67'- Mngomeni in for Wallner, and Mokoena enters for Zaccardo, as we switch to a 3-5-2. This has not worked for us before against very strong opponents.

83'- Arzo in for Hugo Viana, and we go with an even more aggressive 3-5-2.

The remainder of time ticks away, and we take a tough loss. We just can't create any chances when we get behind against these top class sides. Hugo Viana wins MoM with a 9, and Arenas gets an 8 for a couple of nice late saves against van Nistelrooy. Rochemback with a disappointing 6.

Loss, 1-2, drop to 10th place
Shots/on target: Posh 18/10, Red Devils 11/4
Poss: 54-46, Posh
A: 16,442

EPL Round 18 results
Arsenal 4:0 Boro
Bolton 0:2 Spurs
Cardiff 0:2 So'ton
Chelsea 3:0 Gills
Liverpool 0:0 Palace
Man City 0:0 Blackburn
Norwich 1:2 Newcastle
Portsmouth 3:1 Fulham
West Ham 1:2 Villa

We drop to 10th with the results for Portsmouth and Spurs, but are still just 1 point out of 7th place.

[Butter]

The forecast reads breezy for our next match, a South Coast encounter with Southampton. The Saints have had a similar season to ours, starting out slow, but now making a move up the table.

Jon Masalin, the reserve goalkeeper, returns from his loan to West Brom. He started 4 matches for the Baggies, and conceded 6 goals in those starts. Not too bad.

Due to fatigue, we decide to start the freshest lineup we can and hope for the best.

Dec. 19, Match 19
6-7-5, 10th pl., 25 pts.
@ Southampton (9-4-5, 6th pl., 31 pts.)
Series: Even, 0-2-0
Fav: Saints, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Pritchard, Marcos, Kargbo, Jensen
Mid: Arzo, Fernandes, Lennon, Mngomeni
Str: Mokoena, Vagner

17'- James Beattie looks to be free and clear on Arenas, and looks to have beaten him, but Arenas with a magnificent play to somehow get on top of the ball from an impossible angle.

21'- Fernandes' corner kick meets the head of Vagner, but it's over the top.

28'- A long bending shot is saved acrobatically by Arenas.

30'- The ball pinballs around the box after an entry pass by Fernandes, but it eventually comes back out to Pritchard, who squares it to Arzo... Arzo beats Yoann Folly into the arc, and gets pulled down there. This sort of free kick is Fernandes' bread and butter... a 20 yarder straight on... and he doesn't disappoint! The former Saint strikes on a set piece for a goal! 1-0, Posh!

39'- Dexter Blackstock is played onside... he charges at Arenas, who slowly backs up and denies him the post... and that's where it's shot. Good play by Arenas.

45+'- In the third added minute, Blackstock with a good diagonal pass to Folly, who cuts inside the area and has a step... he shoots first time and just barely gets it inside the far post. 1-1 at halftime.

54'- Vagner with a good long ball onto the run of Mokoena.... Mokoena shoots too early, and Niemi saves it.

58'- Lunt enters for Aaron Lennon.

73'- Wallner in for Mngomeni, as Mokoena moves back to attacking midfielder.

82'- El Karkouri enters for a tiring Cesar Arzo.

90'- Rory Delap with a long distance shot that takes a deflection off Emil Jensen.... and goes out for a corner. Whew!

We settle for a draw. Again, we cough up a lead. I'm not sure what it's like to keep a clean sheet anymore. Lots of 8's to be had, as Arenas, Pritchard, Jensen, Kargbo, Fernandes, and Arzo pick them up in a decent effort.

Draw, 1-1, up to 8th place
Shots/on target: Saints 20/10, Posh 11/5
Poss: 52-48, Saints
A: 29,018

EPL Round 19 results
Boro 1:2 Chelsea
Villa 5:1 Norwich
Blackburn 2:1 West Ham
Fulham 0:0 Bolton
Man U 1:0 Portsmouth
Newcastle 5:0 Cardiff
Gills 0:2 Man City
Liverpool 3:3 Arsenal
Spurs 3:1 Palace

Spurs Monday night win pushes us back to 9th place.

[condors]

good stuff-KUTGW! (keep up the good work)

[Butter]

Kargbo and Viana are picked in the Team of the Week.

We finally get Carlton Cole to sign a long-term deal, signing for 4 years on a deal worth a total of $9 million + goal scoring incentives. He is signed through 2013 now. Cole is not on the same crazy pace he was last year, when he averaged 1 goal a match, but he has scored 8 goals in 16 starts, which is still very good.

EPL mid-week fixture
Man U 0:1 Liverpool
-Liverpool remain in 4th, and the Red Devils stay 5th, but now Man U are 5 points adrift of the Champions League places.

A big mid-table battle next against the Magpies. Should be tough. We've had 3 1-1 draws out of our last 4 matches. We need the offense to break through.

Dec. 26, Match 20
6-8-5, 9th pl., 26 pts.
@ Newcastle United (8-3-7, 8th pl., 27 pts.)
Series: Magpies lead 2-0-1
Fav: Magpies, Evens

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Viana, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

3'- Fernandes with a great short through pass to Cole, and his shot to the near post is tipped aside.

4'- DaMarcus Beasley with a great move down the left flank, and his cross nearly bends into goal, but is wide. Beasley has been playing well for Newcastle, averaging a 7.4 along with a goal and 4 assists in 15 starts.

We have at least 2 more great through balls go to waste at the feet of Wallner and Cole.

22'- Finally, Cole gets another pass and is onside, and he is able to jam it through the keeper and in the net! 1-0, Posh.

27'- Rochemback with a steal... to Gerard... Gerard with a dribble across midfield, ahead to Wallner... Wallner with the one-touch pass to a through Carlton Cole... Cole advances on the keeper again, and beats him near post! 2-0, Posh! Cole's 10th of the season.

36'- Another steal by Bocanegra, who heads a long ball away to Viana... Viana near the center line, to Gerard. Gerard ahead, on to Wallner's diagonal run... Wallner is free, and he shoots to the far post... GOAL! Wallner with a great move, and we lead 3-0 now!

Arzo enters for a dinged up Bocanegra at the half. We back off to defensive counter-attacking tactics with the same 4-4-2 diamond formation to start the 2nd half.

46'- Arenas with a great save on a shot from 10 yards... he charged at the attacker, who almost had no choice but to hit it into him.

60'- Viana with a great long ball to Cole, who scores a 3rd... but again he was a good 2 steps ahead of the pack and is called for offside.

Mokoena in for Cole, Mngomeni for Viana.

Newcastle only muster one more shot on goal, as Beasley lets fly from 18 yards, but Arenas saves it with ease.

The final whistle goes, and we notch a convincing win at St. James's Park! Roman Wallner with a marvelous performance, earning a 10 and MoM. Arenas, Cole, Viana, and Gerard pick up 9's, and all other starters except Kargbo get 8's. A vintage performance from the club.

Win, 0-3, up to 8th place
Shots/on target: Magpies 9/8, Posh 20/13
Poss: 53-47, Magpies
A: 45,517

EPL Round 20 results
So'ton 3:1 Portsmouth
Arsenal 1:3 Chelsea
Villa 3:0 Cardiff
Blackburn 1:1 Norwich
Fulham 0:1 Palace
Gills 0:3 West Ham
Liverpool 0:0 Spurs
Man U 3:0 Bolton
Boro 1:3 Man City

We're now even with Spurs on points, and just one behind in goal difference for 7th place. Southampton continue their blazing run, 6 points ahead of both of us in 6th place. Chelsea move 4 points clear of Arsenal with their win at Emirates Stadium.

Rochemback picks up his 5th yellow of the season, so he'll miss the next match.

The board is delighted with the win, and I've now moved from the board and fans being "pleased" with my performance to "very pleased." Gives me some more wiggle room.

[Butter]

Arenas, Viana, and Gerard are picked in the Team of the Week.

Rochemback picks up a broken shoulder in practice, and will miss 4 weeks.

It would appear that Arenas is making the starting keeper job his with his performances of late.

Dec. 29, Match 21
7-8-5, 8th pl., 29 pts.
v. Aston Villa (14-3-3, 3rd pl., 45 pts.)
Series: Villans lead 2-0-1
Fav: Villans, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Dakinah, Jensen
Mid: Kargbo, Viana, Lunt, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

We control early play, but Villa control the 2nd 15 minute section of the first half... but neither side create much in the way of danger.

31'- Viana with a steal, and he plays it back to Arenas... Arenas with a booming ball downfield, and Cole is onside and wide open down the center! Cole to 20 yards, and he tries a chip... the keeper gets a finger to it, but he can't keep it out! 1-0, Posh!

43'- A corner kick, and a free header from 8 yards for defensive midfielder Neil Janczyk (formerly of Sunderland), but it's over the bar.

Fernandes on for Viana to start the 2nd half.

53'- Mokoena gets his 2nd booking... his first was for a push in the chest during a corner kick setup... this one for a two-footed tackle, and we go down a man.

Gerard enters for a limping Wallner, and we move him back to midfield... Arzo enters for a gimpy Kargbo. We switch to defensive counter-attacking tactics.

72'- Sub striker Jeremie Aliardiere gets free from 10 yards, but Bocanegra with a tackle away... it falls to Darius Vassell, and he strikes it... Arenas with a save!

87'- Cole with an 18 yard shot that is saved.... the clearance by the keeper knocks Cole in the head, and it almost goes in the net.

90+'- Aliardiere breaks free on a nice long ball... he shoots one on one with Arenas in the dying seconds... but his shot whistles past the post.

Arenas' goal kick is the final touch of the ball, and we get a big win over one of the top 3! Alex, Cole, and Lunt pick up 8's... we didn't perform particularly well today, but we gutted it out.

Win, 1-0, remain in 8th
Shots/on target: Posh 10/5, Villans 11/1
Poss: 55-45, Posh
A: 16,452

EPL Round 21 results
A full slate of Tuesday games here, 5 days before the start of the main draw of the FA Cup.
Bolton 0:0 So'ton
Cardiff 1:0 Blackburn
Chelsea 1:2 Liverpool
Palace 0:0 Man U
Man City 0:1 Arsenal
Norwich 3:1 Gills
Portsmouth 2:0 Newcastle
Spurs 3:0 Fulham
West Ham 0:1 Boro

Little movement in the table, but Chelsea's loss gives Arsenal opportunity to close to within a point of first place.

[Butter]

In case you're keeping track, that's one loss out of our last 11, and 2 out of the last 14. If we could turn a draw or two into wins, we'd be sitting pretty.

Speaking of sitting pretty, Chelsea comes to town for our FA Cup tie on Saturday, the first of the New Decade. Should be interesting.

The transfer window re-opens on New Year's Day, but now I'm not so sure about signing a keeper with the emergence of Arenas. He has been playing very well, and I want to stick with him.

Jan. 2, 2010, FA Cup Third Round
v. Chelsea (1st in Premiership)
Series: Blues lead 3-1-0
Fav: Blues, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Prichard, Marcos, Sarr, Zaccardo
Mid: Arzo, Ingrao, Gerard, Viana
Str: Wallner, Cole

We go with defensive counter-attacking tactics to start this one. Let's see what happens.

12'- An attempted square pass by Mutu is deflected, and it falls right to Didier Drogba, who beats Marcos and strikes it home past Arenas. 1-0, Chelsea.

We muster pretty much nothing, and Chelsea dominate us, but we manage to keep them off the scoreboard further for the next 60 minutes-plus.

70'- Mngomeni on for a gimpy Wallner... Lunt enters for Viana, and we switch Gerard to his natural attacking midfield role.

72'- Zaccardo with a free kick from near midfield, to Cole at around 30 yards, but it's cleared... back to Sarr in the center, who heads it to Cole again, at 35 yards... Cole with an innocuous short pass to Mngomeni. Thando turns, and hits a curling 30 yard strike... and it goes in! Petr Cech was helpless to save that one in the rain, and we're level!

74'- Lunt tries his own curling shot from 30 yards, but it just strikes the post and goes wide.

78'- Marcos and Arzo both pick up their 2nd yellow on the same play, for dissent about a call that was against neither one of them. WTF???? We're down to 11-on-9. I was going to push for the win, but screw that.

El Karkouri enters for Cole, and we switch to a 4-3-1.

82'- Andres D'Alessandro scores, and that pretty well wraps it up.

87'- Gerard actually gets a clean 20 yarder off, but it's not close. Gerard is a great ball handler and passer, but he sucks at finishing. He has not finished one clean chance out of 10 he's had this year.

90'- Sarr with a long ball to Kenny Lunt... Lunt and Mngomeni are 2-on-4, so they pass it back and forth a bit... and Mngomeni tries a 25 yarder straight on from the right post... he curls it inside the left post, and Mngomeni beats Cech again!!! 2-2, as London Road erupts with the unlikely equalizer!

90+'- Of course, Chelsea have to spoil the party, as they throw 5 men forward to try and avoid a replay, and Drogba squeezes a 10 yarder in between Arenas and the post to win the game.

Mngomeni with our only 8. Drogba picks up a 9 and MoM honors. Not surprisingly, those were Drogba's 2nd and 3rd goals of the year. The layabouts always seem to wake up against our defense. Arenas fails to pick our team up late and earn the replay. Oh well. Mngomeni did well to keep us in this one.

Loss, 2-3, out of FA Cup
Shots/on target: Posh 10/6, Blues 10/4
Poss: 55-45, Blues
A: 16,446

Marcos and Arzo will miss our next match, and Roman Wallner has a groin strain that will keep him out 2 weeks.

3rd Round FA Cup - Major Upsets
Aldershot (CON) 2:0 Cardiff (EPL)
Gills (EPL) 1:3 Sheff. Utd. (Champ.)
Rochdale (CON) 0:0 Reading (Champ.)

[Butter]

Alex twists a knee in training, and he'll miss a week. The new physio is not helping here.

Middlesbrough sack Micky Adams, their manager, while Fulham do the same to their boss, Jurgen Klinsmann. I am mentioned as possibly taking over at 'Boro.

Hopefully our scrubs can handle Gillingham, because our main team is being decimated for this next game.

Oh, a big injury occurs... Hugo Viana goes down with a broken pelvis, and will effectively miss the remainder of the season! ARGH!

I really want to go out on the transfer market and replace him... but I decide to play some of the people we already have and see what happens.

EPL mid-week results
Arsenal 2:0 West Ham
Gills 4:1 Cardiff
Man U 2:0 Blackburn
Boro 2:1 Norwich
Newcastle 3:2 Bolton
So'ton 1:0 Palace

Southampton are running away with 6th place, now 7 points clear of us. And we've got a tough stretch coming up.

Jan. 9, Match 22
8-8-5, 8th pl., 32 pts.
v. Gillingham (2-5-15, 20th pl., 11 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-3-1
Fav: Posh, 4:7

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Dakinah, Sarr, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Ingrao, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Mngomeni, Cole

It's a pretty sad first half all around... we dominate possession and chances, but Cole and Mngomeni seem uninterested in pushing forward in this game. Gillingham get exactly 0 shots in the first 45.

61'- Bocanegra with a long throw to Cole in the box... and it's a penalty! Cole is pushed over, and we earn a spot kick. Gerard takes it... and scores! His 2nd of the year, struck straight down the middle, but it eludes Stephen Bywater and goes in.

66'- Mokoena enters for an underwhelming Marco Ingrao.

73'- Fernandes plays it down the left to Mokoena, who is wide open, played onside by a defender on the right... Mokoena to 12 yards, and he shoots... the shot is deflected, and Bywater has to flail at it to keep it out, but he taps it right to Mngomeni, who scores his 4th of the year! 2-0!

79'- Vagner enters for Cole, Lunt on for Gerard... Mokoena moves to Gerard's spot, and Lunt and Fernandes switch wings.

Vagner takes a knock during injury time.... and the final whistle goes shortly thereafter. Carlos Bocanegra earns MoM for his defensive effort, picking up an 8. Arenas, Cole, Fernandes, and Mngomeni also pick up 8's.

Win, 2-0, up to 7th place
Shots/on target: Posh 20/8, Gills 3/3
Poss: 58-42, Posh
A: 16,425

EPL results
Spurs 1:2 So'ton
Cardiff 0:1 Boro
Palace 2:1 Newcastle
Man City 0:3 Liverpool
Norwich 1:0 Arsenal
Portsmouth 1:1 Blackburn
Fulham 1:0 Man U
Bolton 0:2 Villa
West Ham 0:2 Chelsea

It looks like it'll be Chelsea and Arsenal fighting it out for the title. Southampton move into 5th, passing Man U., who still have a game in hand.

Gillingham, Bolton, Fulham, and Cardiff look to be the 4 who'll be battling against relegation for the remainder of the season, all separated by 3 points at the bottom.

[Butter]

Man City sign Adrian Mutu away from Chelsea for $11 million.

Jan. 12, Match 23
9-8-5, 7th pl., 35 pts.
@ Blackburn Rovers (5-9-8, 14th pl., 24 pts.)
Series: Rovers lead 3-1-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Pritchard, Marcos, Kargbo, Jensen
Mid: Arzo, Mngomeni, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Mokoena, Cole

Blackburn controls early play, but the defense is just throwing their body everywhere, and Arenas is doing a great job of anticipating long passes and crosses and coming out to get them.

37'- Lunt with a ball to Mokoena... he heads to Gerard, who sends it back to Mokoena running behind the defense... he's onside, and shoots quickly from 15 yards... GOAL! Mokoena with a straight shot into the upper left corner, 1-0 Posh!

43'- A great 50 yard free kick, that the defense stands and watches fall to a striker at 10 yards... luckily, Arenas comes out and stones the shot.

We switch to defensive counter-attacking tactics for the 2nd half.

56'- So much for that, as some great passing off a short corner leaves a great 10 yard shot for Mexican striker Santiago Fernandez... 1-1.

71'- Fernandes on for an injured Mngomeni.

75'- Horrible defending allows a player free at 8 yards... Arenas charges him but is stepped around, and the chance is finished. 2-1, Blackburn.

Ingrao enters for Pritchard, we switch to a 3-4-1-2.

79'- The same guy scores again, naturally his first 2 league goals of the season. It's 30 year old Polish striker Andrzej Niedzielan. 3-1, Rovers.

The final whistle goes, and it was a pretty wretched effort all around. No 8's to be had on our side.

Loss, 3-1, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Rovers 13/7, Posh 10/3
Poss: 55-45, Rovers
A: 27,981

Mngomeni shouldn't miss our next match, as it's a minor shoulder injury. Luckily, we have 11 days off until that next one.

EPL mid-week fixtures
Man U 2:0 Spurs
Chelsea 3:0 Man City
Newcastle 4:1 Liverpool

Manchester United do us a favor, handing Tottenham a loss on their game in hand against us. We remain in 7th.

FA Cup Fourth Round - Selected Results
Brighton (L1) 0:2 Southampton
Aldershot (CON) 1:1 Tottenham Hotspur
Arsenal 1:2 Chelsea
Charlton (Champ.) 3:1 Norwich
Leeds (Champ.) 3:1 Portsmouth

[Butter]

Ajax with a shock offer of $900k plus future incentives (30% of next sale) for 20 year old reserve midfielder Felix Hermsen (a Dutchman). Hermsen is out of contract this summer, and I wasn't going to re-sign him... but this is even better. I hit accept quickly. Hermsen agrees to a deal with the Dutch power, and we're nearly $1 million richer.

Nottingham Forest get reserve keeper Jon Masalin on loan for 3 months.

Unfortunately, for us, 2 key players leave us for the African Nations Cup during a particularly tough stretch of the schedule. Ibrahim Kargbo joins Sierra Leone, and Sarr joins Senegal. El Karkouri also leaves us for Morocco, and reserve midfielder Inzaghi plays for Guinea-Bissau. Unfortunately, all 3 of the senior squad players leaving are defenders, which will leave us extra short on bodies. In addition, Viana is out for a long while, Balaban is still out, along with Rochemback and Mngomeni... which really could constitute an entire starting midfield.

Jan. 23, Match 24 - Televised
9-8-6, 7th pl., 35 pts.
@ Middlesbrough (8-7-8, 11th pl., 31 pts.)
Series: Boro lead 3-1-0
Fav: Boro, 6:4

I decide to try defensive counter-attacking tactics on the road... let's see if we can prevent a good team from scoring 2.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Arzo, Fernandes, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

8'- It doesn't start well, as Igor Biscan with a great ball right into the head of South African attacking midfielder Benedict Vilakazi, and he heads it in.

16'- We strike back, as Lunt and Cole lead a charge up the field, with Lunt sending Cole into the box with a short pass, and Cole nailing it hard past the keeper. 1-1.

22'- Marcos pushes a player over on a cross into the box, and a PK is awarded. Mendieta to take it... SAVED! Shot right at Arenas, and it remains 1-1.

23'- Arzo with a ball wide to Fernandes... it's headed away, but to Gerard at 30 yards. Gerard one touches it to Wallner, who is clear in the box! Roman Wallner... scores! Tucked inside the near post! 2-1, Posh.

27'- Marcos with a header away to Arzo... he passes short to Lunt. Lunt looks ahead, and sends a 60 yard ball to Cole. Cole outruns the back line to it! He's at 20 yards... 15... he shoots to the far post, and scores! 3-1, Posh.

42'- Joe Cole breaks clean through on goal, and he's not likely to miss... and doesn't. 3-2 now.

60'- A long clearance by Arenas.... Cole heads to Wallner. Wallner forward to Lunt. Lunt to Fernandes, who plays Cole onside. Cole is clean through on goal! Carlton Cole.... scores again! It's a hat trick! 4-2, Posh.

72'- Arnold Bruggink victimizes us again... this time, it looked innocuous though, but Bruggink with an unconscionable shot from about 5 yards off the end line, on the edge of the area on the left. He shoots and it curls about 3 miles around Arenas and goes in. Ridiculous. 4-3.

Mokoena on for Cole... Lennon for Fernandes.

78'- Mokoena with a good run with the ball... he holds off his man, but it's tackled away just inside the box... it comes to Lunt, who plays it back to Mokoena. This time, Lebohang is free, and shoots from 12 yards... GOAL! Another shot inside the far post, and we lead 5-3!

83'- Dakinah in for a gimpy Wallner. We switch to a 5-4-1.

We are able to hold on for the win. Carlton Cole wins MoM and picks up a 10 for his hat trick. Lunt gets a 9, Arzo and Wallner pick up 8's. A shootout that we come out on the good side of.

Win, 3-5, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Boro 15/8, Posh 18/13
Poss: 52-48, Posh
A: 31,440

Fernandes picks up his 5th yellow of the season in this one, and will miss our next match.

The board jump to being "absolutely thrilled" with me again after the win. And the supporters are once again delighted. Time for that losing streak now!

EPL results
Arsenal 6:0 Cardiff
Newcastle 3:0 Spurs
Villa 1:1 Palace
Chelsea 1:0 Norwich
Gills 1:1 Portsmouth
Man City 4:0 West Ham
So'ton 2:0 Fulham
Blackburn 1:0 Bolton
Liverpool 3:0 Man Utd.

Inzaghi scores in his game with Guinea-Bissau, but they lose to Nigeria 2-1. Kargbo is named man of the match in Sierra Leone's 1-0 win over Senegal... Sarr rated a 7 for Senegal in that one. Talal El Karkouri was also named man of the match for Morocco, in their 2-0 win over Congo.

[Butter]

Lunt and Cole are picked in the Team of the Week.

Rochemback returns to full training, but Vagner breaks 2 ribs in practice, and will miss 3 weeks. I think we have to fulfill an injury list quota or something. Alex sprains his wrist the next day, but should only miss a week. Still, it's a big week.

Next up, we host Arsenal, who just hammered Cardiff 6-0. I decide to stick with our defensive counter-attacking style for this one. We drew with them last year at London Road, but have lost both ventures into Emirates Stadium by a 4-0 count.

Jan. 27, Match 25
10-8-6, 7th pl., 38 pts.
v. Arsenal (18-2-4, 2nd pl., 56 pts.)
Series: Gunners lead 2-1-0
Fav: Gunners, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Marcos, Dakinah, Zaccardo
Mid: Arzo, Mngomeni, Lennon, Gerard
Str: Mokoena, Cole

4'- A throw-in in the Arsenal half is stolen by Arzo, who heads to Mngomeni... Mngomeni to Mokoena at the left angle of the area... Mngomeni to a flashing Gerard, who is wide open at 12 yards... he shoots, and scores inside the far post! 1-0, Posh!

23'- A long shot by defender Gael Clichy rattles off the crossbar - Zaccardo clears.

31'- Mokoena gets free on keeper Tim Wiese... but his shot is saved, and Cole is offside on the rebound chance.

40'- Thierry Henry with the corner... it looks like it comes off Zaccardo, and Dede is there in the six to head it past Arenas. 1-1.

51'- Lunt on for Lennon, who narrowly avoids a second yellow after a clumsy foul and arguing with Graham Poll about the call.

57'- Lunt with a super long ball to Mngomeni, who is free on the left... he attacks Wiese, but he tips it over nicely.

58'- Wallner in for an injured Gerard, and Mokoena switches to the attacking midfield.

64'- Wallner with a nice ball to Mngomeni, who skips past Sol Campbell as though he were a zombie... Mngomeni with some fancy footwork on Wiese, and he scores a beautiful goal! Great skill by Mngomeni for his 5th goal of the year, and we lead the Gunners 2-1.

77'- Jose Antonio Reyes (a sub. for Dede) dribbles in on Arenas, then tries to cut around him and shoot, but Arenas with a great fingertip save... Mokoena clears to Wallner. Wallner dribbles, then passes ahead to Cole, who looked offside, but the flag stays down... he is closed down and the ball is tackled to Lunt... Lunt is free on the keeper, fakes left, shoots right, and scores! Hopefully the decider! 3-1, Posh!

83'- I may have spoken to soon, as Reyes, Henry, and Vieira hook up on a pretty goal to make it 3-2.

Jensen on for Cole, and we try to go with packing in the defense to preserve the lead. It never works, so let's see.

We withstand an onslaught of attacking, but Cristian Zaccardo specifically with a masterful final few minutes! He harasses Reyes all over the pitch, blocking several passes and crosses, and we finally get the final whistle to take the points! Another great win! Dede wins MoM for Arsenal. Zaccardo, Mngomeni, Gerard, and Mokoena pick up 8's in the win.

Win, 3-2, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 12/7, Gunners 19/8
Poss: 55-45, Posh
A: 16,448

EPL Round 25 results
Bolton 0:0 Gills
Cardiff 0:5 Chelsea
Palace 1:1 Blackburn
Fulham 1:1 Newcastle
Man U 2:1 So'ton
Norwich 0:2 Man City
Portsmouth 0:2 Boro
West Ham 1:1 Liverpool

We make an offer to a stunning looking 18 year old of Aston Villa's... he is a right winger, and already averages a 7 rating in 7 appearances for Villa. He is weak in a few areas, but in all the technical and key mental areas, is very strong. His name is Chris Morgan, and he would cost us $3 million in transfer fee, but he looks worth it to me. Sadly, Morgan wants a wage in the $1.5 million range... a bit too high right now, I think.

[Butter]

Bolton sign American defensive midfielder Ricardo Clark to a contract. He, formerly of the MetroStars.

We nearly beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last season... and I'm still ticked about how we lost to them in the FA Cup earlier this month.

Jan. 30, Match 26
11-8-6, 7th pl., 41 pts.
@ Chelsea (20-3-2, 1st pl., 63 pts.)
Series: Blues lead 4-1-0
Fav: Blues, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Jensen, Bocanegra, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

5'- After holding up through 3 early attacks, we get a break. Marcos with a long ball to Cole. Cole beats Lucio... he tries to get around Cech... his shot is deflected by Lucio, and it goes in! 1-0, Posh! Cole's 15th of the season gives us a familiar start... we lead Chelsea here 2-0 last year before losing 3-2.

12'- Damien Duff gets around Zaccardo... his shot is deflected by Fernandes... out in front, an open goal for Fernando Torres... Bocanegra charges it down and deflects it for a corner! Aliaksandr Hleb's corner... Tiago with a header from 12 yards, off the crossbar! It deflects off Arenas and out for another corner. Damien Duff with the second corner, and it's headed to midfield.

20'- Donovan with a great cross to Damien Duff... his header is directed wide. Off the goal kick, a steal and a through ball for Fernando Torres... Torres is in on Arenas... shot to the near post... tipped, and it rolls across the goal mouth and is cleared by Zaccardo!

39'- Duff gets all the way to the byline before crossing in to Tiago... his diving header nearly rips the net with its power. 1-1.

57'- A long ball to Wallner is not quite long enough, and the defense catches up to him... but he still manages to poke it to Fernandes, who plays it back to Wallner in stride... Cech with a good save.

68'- Mokoena in for Wallner... Lunt in for Fernandes.

70'- Tiago with a good 15 yard chance that's deflected... but Arenas scrambles over to save it. The counter-attack finds Mokoena clear... his shot is stopped by Cech, the rebound tackled away from Mngomeni, and Cech holds it.

71'- Fernando Torres slips past the defense, and gets a pass in good position, 15 yards from goal. He shoots, and bends it inside the far post. 2-1, Chelsea.

75'- A steal by Lunt, and he finds Gerard... the right back is out of position for Chelsea, playing Mokoena onside! Mokoena attacks Cech, and scores it! 2-2!

77'- Off the ensuing kickoff, Torres looks to be free again, but Zaccardo tackles it to Lunt. Lunt finds Gerard, who plays it long for Mokoena. Onside again! Mokoena attacks Cech from the right again... GOAL! This one squeezes past Cech low to his left, and we lead it 3-2!

Arzo enters for a tiring (and recently recovered from injury) Rochemback.

81'- A long ball for Cole, down the right sideline. Cole enters the box, but it's tackled away... right to Lunt, who shoots from 12 yards... off the post! And cleared.

90'- We withstand a Chelsea attack, and launch one of ours... it ends with a supremely difficult ball from Mngomeni to Mokoena, that spins away from the keeper... Mokoena blasts it goalward from 12 yards, but Cech acrobatically gets a hand on it to keep Chelsea alive.

We play balls long and out of our area... and make a couple of nice plays to earn time-consuming throw-ins and free kicks... and the whistle goes! We've beaten the league leaders on the road! Revenge for the FA Cup! What a run of form we're having. Lebohang Mokoena scores his 5th of the year, and earns MoM honors with a 10 for his storming 25 minutes of play. Gerard also with a 10, and Mngomeni picks up a 9. There are several 8's to go around as well, as THIS may well be the finest moment of the season!

Win, 2-3, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Blues 17/9, Posh 21/14
Poss: 56-44, CFC
A: 38,298

Sadly, we were so far adrift of 6th place to start this magnificent run, that we're only now closing in on it. We're now just 1 point behind Southampton for 6th, and only 4 behind Man U for 5th. And for that matter, we're just 6 behind Aston Villa for 4th place.

Posh fans everywhere (OK, mostly in Peterborough) will remember when we beat Arsenal and Chelsea in the same week!

Lebohang Mokoena has hit a superb run of form... but I think I'm content to bring him in off the bench. His blazing speed is very well suited to a substitute striker role, where he can run past the tired defense.

EPL Round 26 results
West Ham 2:0 Norwich
Arsenal 2:0 Portsmouth
Villa 2:2 Fulham
Blackburn 1:1 Spurs
Liverpool 3:0 So'ton
Boro 0:0 Bolton
Man City 2:0 Cardiff
Newcastle 1:1 Man U

[Butter]

Zaccardo, Gerard, and Mokoena are picked in the Team of the Week.

Butter is named the Manager of the Month! My first such honor in the top flight. 4 wins out of 5, including 3 over Boro, Chelsea, and Arsenal will win that for you.

Arnold Bruggink wins 2nd place in the Goal of the Month race for his magnificent goal against us this past month. I'd love to know how many of his total goals have been against us. He eats us for breakfast. Luckily, we outscored them this time around.

It's always good to slightly alter your tactics every once in a while... but this latest switch to "defensive, counter-attacking" tactics has given us more goals than we were scoring before... but it's also yielded them in bunches. 7 goals allowed to our last 3 opponents. But, to be fair, 2 of the 3 were 2 of the elite teams in all of Europe. And wins for us, which I'm still trying to wrap my head around.

Arenas suffers a groin strain during Colombia's 3-1 win over St. Lucia... it will keep him out about 2 weeks.

Feb. 6, Match 27
12-8-6, 7th pl., 44 pts.
v. Manchester City (11-4-11, 9th pl., 37 pts.)
Series: Citizens lead 3-0-1
Fav: Citizens, 5:4

Back to standard attacking tactics at home for this one.
Lineup:
GK: Grant
Def: Bocanegra, Marcos, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

12'- A 15 yard shot by Adrian Mutu caroms back off the right upright.

25'- Mngomeni and Wallner with blazing 20 yard shots within 3 minutes of each other, but neither finds the target.

60'- Mokoena on for Wallner.

69'- Lunt on for Fabrice Fernandes.

74'- Lunt with a 25 yard free kick... tipped away, but just barely!

84'- Adrian Mutu with a 30 yard effort the comes off the crossbar this time.

Arzo enters for a carded Rochemback.

The 2 added minutes come and go, and we've got ourselves a scoreless draw. The Man City keeper earns MoM honors, while Grant, Zaccardo, and Cole pick up 8's for the Posh.

Draw, 0-0, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 11/6, Citizens 8/4
Poss: 56-44, Citizens
A: 16,459

EPL Round 27 results
Fulham 0:0 Blackburn
Cardiff 1:0 West Ham
Palace 2:1 Boro
Norwich 1:1 Liverpool
So'ton 3:1 Newcastle
Spurs 2:1 Gills
Portsmouth 2:1 Chelsea
Man U 1:1 Aston Villa
Bolton 0:5 Arsenal

[Butter]

Cole is picked in the Team of the Week.

EPL mid-week fixtures
Gills 0:0 Palace
Liverpool 0:0 Fulham
Aston Villa 0:0 Portsmouth

With Europe actually within reach, I now find myself rooting for Chelsea to pull out the FA Cup, and Liverpool to win the League Cup. They'll both clearly be in the Champions League again, and their wins would free up a UEFA Cup spot for us, if we finish 7th.

Champions League Round of 16, Leg 1
Arsenal 4:1 Anderlecht
Barcelona 2:0 AC Milan
Benfica 2:0 Dinamo Kiev
Chelsea 2:0 Juventus
Inter 2:2 Man U.
Liverpool 1:1 Bayern Munich
Porto 6:0 Loko (Plovdiv)
Roma 2:0 FC Kobenhavn

We only have one mid-week match the rest of the season, unless one gets moved due to European play. We also have a 3 week break between our last match and our next one.

League Cup Final
Liverpool 1:1 Portsmouth
-Liverpool's decision to use largely backup players in this match nearly cost us the chance to go to Europe with a 7th place finish. AMC Richard Heller scored a 6th minute goal for the Reds, and they looked early like they could make it a blowout. But Pompey found their legs, and Yakubu finished a breakaway chance in the 76th minute with a 15 yard shot inside the far post. Extra time decided nothing, and the match went to penalties.... where thankfully, Liverpool prevailed, 3-0.

Everyone (except Hugo Viana) is back and fit for our next match, a visit to Upton Park.

Feb. 27, Match 28
12-9-6, 7th pl., 45 pts.
@ West Ham United (7-2-18, 16th pl., 23 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 4-4-1
Fav: Hammers, 6:4

We decide to go back to defensive counter-attacking tactics on the road.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Balaban, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

2'- Wallner on a breakaway thanks to Rochemback... he maneuvers around one defender, then aims and shoots through the rain... saved by Darren Behcet.

4'- Roman Wallner ate his Wheaties this morning... he and Mngomeni play a give-and-go... Wallner leaves the last man flat-footed, then curls in a shot from a tough left side angle... 1-0, Posh! Great strike by Wallner.

12'- Rochemback with another steal... long to Cole. Cole is 3 yards ahead of his man, and attacks Behcet... GOAL! Cole with another great breakaway goal, and we lead 2-0!

17'- Bocanegra with a long throw into the area... Cole heads it at Behcet... should've been an easy save, but Behcet falls down reacting to the shot, and can only lay a finger on it... meanwhile, Cole is there to pick up the pieces and make it 3-0!

29'- Wallner with a cross to the back post... Cole misses a hat trick by a hair, ringing his header off the crossbar.

44'- West Ham start to wake up, but fail to put a couple of decent chances past Arenas. Then, Mngomeni makes it a moot point, scoring off a nice flick on by Roman Wallner. He scores from 12 yards out, inside the near post. 4-0, Posh.

Fernandes in for Mngomeni, Lunt on for Balaban at the half.

70'- Mokoena in for Cole.

84'- Just to rub it in against the hapless Hammers, Fernandes scores on a through ball from Wallner. Fernandes's 3rd goal of the year to make it 5-0.

90'- Kenny Lunt makes it 2 for the backup midfield, scoring off a nice pass from Mokoena. 6-0.

Roman Wallner and Carlton Cole both rate 10's, but Wallner gets the MoM nod for his 2 assists. Zaccardo, Bocanegra, Mngomeni, and Gerard pick up 9's, and everyone else but Lunt, Balaban, and Mokoena get 8's. Nice to rub this one in Harry Redknapp's face, as he has trash talked us on more than one previous occasion.

Win, 0-6, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Hammers 11/6, Posh 23/13
Poss: 54-46, Hammers
A: 32,704

EPL Round 28 results
Arsenal 2:0 Palace
Villa 0:1 So'ton
Chelsea 3:0 Bolton
Man City 1:0 Portsmouth
Norwich 2:1 Cardiff
Liverpool 1:1 Newcastle
Gills 0:2 Fulham

Gillingham and Bolton must feel demotion almost certain with the Gills loss to Fulham... that puts 17th place Fulham on 22 points, and Gills and Bolton even at the bottom on 14 points... both with identical records of 2-8-18. Cardiff still with a glimmer of hope, with 5 wins and 16 points, but are still on life support.

As for us, we're 1 point behind 6th place Manchester United, but they have a game in hand on us. Southampton are in 5th, 3 points ahead, but we have the goal difference tiebreaker now, thanks to our 6 goal win over West Ham. We're also just 4 points behind 4th place Aston Villa... but I expect ManU to fire it up here soon, and move up to that 4th spot. We are 7 points clear of 8th place Manchester City, so hopefully we can hang on to win a UEFA Cup spot... pending the outcome of the FA Cup, where a number of Championship teams and lower table Premiership clubs are still alive.

Alex picks up his 5th yellow card of the season, and will miss our next match.

[Butter]

Zaccardo, Bocanegra, Wallner, Cole, and Gerard are picked in the Team of the Week.

Rochemback strains his groin in training, and will miss 2 weeks.

Champions League Round of 16, Second Leg
Aggregate scores in parentheses
Anderlecht (1) 0:1 (5) Arsenal
Dinamo Kiev (1) 1:1 (3) Benfica
Bayern Munich (2) 1:0 (1) Liverpool
FC Kobenhavn (0) 0:0 (2) Roma
Juventus (0) 0:0 (2) Chelsea
Lokomotiv Plovdiv (0) 0:1 (7) Porto
Man Utd. (4) 2:1 (3) Inter
Milan (1) 1:1 (3) Barcelona

Thando Mngomeni publicly complains about his pay rate... a measly $260k per season (though quite large when he signed for us). I note it, but his demands are a lofty $1.85 million per year, along with a hefty signing bonus.

Real Madrid supporters protest after the club's 0-0 home draw in the 2nd knockout round of the UEFA Cup... to Maccabi Tel-Aviv. Looking at their roster, it is padded mostly with aging superstars who are fizzling out. No wonder you're losing, Galacticos!

FA Cup Sixth Round
Chelsea 4:1 Middlesbrough
Man U. 2:0 Nott'm Forest (Champ.)
Newcastle 4:0 Reading (Champ.)

Aston Villa and Leeds will play in about 2 weeks for the final semi-final spot.

EPL mid-week fixtures
Blackburn 1:2 Man U.

UEFA Cup Second Knockout Round
Advancing to Quarterfinals: Grazer AK (AUT), Lazio, M. Tel-Aviv, Panathinaikos, Schalke 04, At. Madrid, Standard (BEL), Lyon

EPL Round 29 results - Saturday
So'ton 1:0 Blackburn
Cardiff 0:4 Liverpool
Palace 0:1 Chelsea
Fulham 1:1 Boro
Man U. 3:0 Gillingham
Portsmouth 2:1 West Ham

We're left with the tough task of needing a win to stay up with the 3 teams directly ahead of us, as So'ton and Man U. both jump Villa, who have 2 games in hand on us. It's now: ManU 55 pts., So'ton 54 pts., Villa 52 pts., P'boro 48 pts..

March 14, Match 29 - Televised
13-9-6, 7th pl., 48 pts.
v. Norwich City (10-7-11, 11th pl., 37 pts.)
Series: Canaries lead 2-0-1
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Alex is out due to suspension, and Zaccardo gets a rest. We go with standard attacking tactics at home.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Kargbo, Marcos, Dakinah
Mid: Arzo, Mngomeni, Balaban, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

9'- Cole with a 20 yard shot, and keeper Morgan De Sanctis tips it onto the post, and it's cleared.

12'- Wallner with a 45 yard free kick right to Cole, who is free and clear... offside.

Neither team can do much for a while...

55'- Bocanegra with a bad giveaway in our end, and the cross falls to Andriy Voronin, who luckily can't direct his volley.

61'- Mokoena enters for Arzo, who is rating a 4, and Mokoena moves up to the center circle.

69'- Bocanegra with a nice long throw-in, Mokoena heads it, over the bar.

71'- Andriy Voronin picks up his 2nd yellow for Norwich, and we go up a man. Lunt enters for Marcos, and we go to a 3-5-2, with Balaban moving to attacking midfield alongside Gerard, and Lunt coming in to play the right wing.

85'- Fernandes on for Mngomeni... but it does no good.

We can't break through, and we finish with another scoreless draw at home. Very disappointing. Arenas picks up our only 8 for the shutout. 5th and 6th place are getting further and further away.

Draw, 0-0, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 10/4, Canaries 8/2
Poss: 50-50
A: 15,957

EPL Round 29 Results - Sunday/Monday
Newcastle 3:0 Villa
Spurs 1:0 Arsenal
Bolton 1:1 Man City

The Trotters do us a great favor, keeping us 7 points clear of 8th place, with their draw v. the Citizens. Now, Villa are digging themselves a hole, and all we have to do is catch them.

[Butter]

EPL mid-week fixture
Boro 0:1 Spurs

FA Cup Sixth Round
Aston Villa 2:0 Leeds (Champ.)

We get the weekend off, thanks to large numbers of international call-ups moving our Monday night match, but 18 of the other 20 teams are in action.... since the call-ups fell within the 3 days lead time that is apparently OK for a team to play with.

EPL round 30 results
Norwich 0:0 Portsmouth
Arsenal 2:0 Fulham
Blackburn 1:1 Newcastle
Gills 2:3 So'ton
Liverpool 3:1 Villa
Boro 0:1 Man U
West Ham 0:1 Bolton
Man City 2:0 Palace
Chelsea 1:1 Spurs

So'ton and Man U are leaving us in the dust. We play them on the last 2 weekends, though.

Gerard twists a knee, and will miss our upcoming 2 matches.

March 27, Match 30
13-10-6, 7th pl., 49 pts.
v. Liverpool (18-8-4, 3rd pl., 62 pts.)
Series: Reds lead 2-0-1
Fav: Reds, 4:5

We go with defensive, counter-attacking tactics.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Lunt, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

1'- Liverpool pass it around for about 35 seconds, then Zaccardo steals a lazy pass from Ashley Cole... he heads it ahead to Lunt.... Lunt with a long ball to Wallner, who is onside! Wallner holds off a defender, making up ground. Wallner closes in, shoots... and scores from 12 yards! 1-0 after 41 seconds!

4'- Alex with a steal in midfield, ahead to Mngomeni... he passes to Cole, who plays Wallner in with a nice diagonal pass... Wallner from 15 yards, straight on... GOAL! Roman Wallner with his 2nd in 5 minutes!

9'- Sinama-Pongolle with a great long shot, but Arenas reads the bend and gathers it up on the post.

10'- Kallstrom with another nice bending shot from 25 yards, but Arenas is there again.

31'- Liverpool switch to "defensive" tactics around minute 20, but their pressure is still high. Here, Kargbo heads a corner back toward our goal line, very dangerously... but Bocanegra calmly collects it and hits it forward to Wallner... Wallner with a nice 40 yard dribble up field, then he passes in the middle to Mokoena... Mokoena 30 yards from goal, cuts the ball inside for Cole, who is onside! Cole attacks Chris Kirkland... and scores far post! 3-0, Posh!

38'- Sinama-Pongolle breaks onside just inside the area, Kallstrom finds him, and he slots it home. 3-1.

46'- Liverpool "have given themselves more options in attack."

50'- Mngomeni with a steal in midfield, ahead to Wallner in acres of space... Wallner passes to Cole, who is closely marked around the spot... Ashley Cole barges Carlton over... it's a penalty! Lebohang Mokoena steps up... GOAL!!! 4-1, Posh!

68'- Lennon replaces Kenny Lunt... Vagner on for C. Cole.

78'- Substitute Milan Baros with a great run around 3 defenders, and he passes square to El-Hadji Diouf, who just makes a hash of it with a horrific 20 yard attempt.

85'- Baros is onside on Arenas... but Arenas with an excellent save to turn him aside.

86'- Arzo in for Roman Wallner.... Wallner gets a standing ovation! We switch to a 4-5-1.

The final whistle goes, and again we get a big win... we have swept Liverpool this year! Roman Wallner wins MoM with a 9, Mokoena also with a 9. All other starters besides Lunt and Rochemback pick up 8's.

Win, 4-1, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 14/8, Reds 13/7
Poss: 52-48, Posh
A: 16,440

This game begs the question... what am I doing ever NOT being in this formation? That is, defensive counter-attacking tactics. The last 2 times I played our standard attacking tactics, we had scoreless draws with inferior opponents. I think I'll stick with this for a while.

EPL Round 31 results
Newcastle 2:0 Gills
Villa 4:2 Blackburn
Bolton 0:0 Norwich
Portsmouth 3:2 Cardiff
So'ton 2:1 Boro
Spurs 2:0 Man City
Fulham 0:2 Chelsea
Man U 1:2 Arsenal
Palace 3:1 West Ham

We remain 3 points behind Villa, 6 behind Man U, and 8 points behind 4th place So'ton (on whom we have a game in hand). Southampton with a terrific come from behind win over Middlesbrough on Saturday, scoring twice in the final 5 minutes to secure all 3 points.

[Butter]

Mokoena and Wallner are picked in the Team of the Week.

Marcos badly sprains an ankle, and he'll be out nearly the rest of the season (about 4 weeks).

We're currently on a 7 game unbeaten streak, that includes 5 victories.

Champions League Quarterfinals, First Leg
Arsenal 2:0 Benfica
Barcelona 2:0 Bayern Munich
Porto 2:1 Chelsea
Roma 3:0 Man U.

March 31, Match 31
14-10-6, 7th pl., 52 pts.
@ Cardiff (5-1-24, 19th pl., 16 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 2-2-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Our default tactic from now on is "defensive (just slightly defensive), counter-attacking" play out of the 4-4-2 diamond.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Jensen, Alex, Kargbo, Dakinah
Mid: Arzo, Fernandes, Lunt, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

Cardiff get a few good attacks going, but their strike force is lethargic, and their shots lack pace. We stay scoreless through the first half hour, with very little attacking play of our own.

35'- Finally, we get a good counter-attack going. Arenas long to Wallner, to Mokoena... he plays Wallner onside, but Wallner with a great extra pass to Cole, who is free at 12 yards, and first-times it into the back of the net. 1-0, Posh.

Not a whole lot happens for a while, we have a couple of attacks fizzle out, but Cardiff just have nothing.

75'- A good series of midfield attack ends with Mokoena open on the left edge of the box... he crosses to Cole, who dives on to a header from 8 yards and scores! Cole's 20th of the year, and we lead it 2-0.

80'- El Karkouri on for Cole, Mngomeni in for Wallner, and Lennon replaces Kenny Lunt... we switch to a 4-5-1.

84'- Arzo plays Mngomeni onside, and he attacks the goal and slots it home from 10 yards. 3-0.

89'- Dakinah leaves injured, and now we're down to a 4-4-1, with El Karkouri switching to the back from defensive midfield.

Carlton Cole with a 10 for his 2 goal effort, while there are lots of 8's to be had as well, as we easily dispatch the Bluebirds. Surprisingly few cards in this match refereed by Rob Styles.

Win, 0-3, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Bluebirds 10/2, Posh 12/6
Poss: 53-47, Bluebirds
A: 26,285

Other EPL mid-week fixture
Spurs 1:2 Villa

Spurs fail to do us a favor, as Villa remain 3 points ahead of us... the entire league is now on 31 games played. Here's how the top looks (pts, GD):
1. Chelsea - 73, +45
2. Arsenal - 71, +50
3. Liverpool - 62, +32
4. Southampton - 60, +14
5. Man Utd. - 58, +24
6. Aston Villa - 58, +21
7. Peterborough - 55, +22
8. Newcastle - 46, +12
9. Tottenham - 46, +7
10.Man City - 45, +5

[Butter]

Carlton Cole finishes third in the Player of the Month voting, and I finish third in the Manager of the Month voting.

Sarr declares that he wants to be a first team regular, or be sold. I imagine he won't be playing much any more. Also, Elvis Hammond declares that he wants to bury the hatchet.... fine with me, but he's still a reservist.

April 3, Match 32
15-10-6, 7th pl., 55 pts.
v. Portsmouth (11-9-11, 11th pl., 42 pts.)
Series: Even, 1-1-1
Fav: Posh, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Balaban, Mokoena
Str: Wallner, Cole

A tight first half... we have the better of play, but don't have any real threatening chances.

55'- Mokoena shoots from 20 yards... it takes a deflection, but the keeper with a great adjustment to tip it aside.

57'- Keeper Peter Enckelman with a bad giveaway to Balaban... he holds up play about 25 yards out to the right of the box... he waits for support, then crosses in low to Wallner, who is open at the penalty spot. Wallner has time to collect the cross, and shoot on target... and he scores! 1-0, Posh!

73'- Cole breaks free, but a last ditch tackle from behind picks the ball cleanly from him.

83'- Ingrao on for Cole... Mokoena switches to striker. Fernandes in for a tired Balaban.

88'- Portsmouth's last decent chance (and really only good one of the 2nd half)... Lua Lua's 25 yard free kick is bent about 10 yards wide of the goal.

Not a pretty game, but we just shut Pompey down. They did a great job of holding us back on the counter-attack, but all we needed was one, and we got it. Pompey keeper Enckelman wins MoM, and Mngomeni and Wallner pick up 8's for us.

Win, 1-0, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 20/12, Pompey 6/1
Poss: 59-41, Posh
A: 16,456

EPL Round 32 fixtures
West Ham 2:4 Spurs
Arsenal 0:1 So'ton
Cardiff 1:1 Bolton
Chelsea 1:1 Man U.
Gills 0:0 Villa
Liverpool 3:0 Blackburn
Man City 3:0 Fulham
Norwich 0:0 Palace
Boro 1:2 Newcastle

Southampton with an impressive win at Emirates Stadium. We close within 1 point of 5th place, as both Man U. and Aston Villa sit ahead of us in 5th and 6th with 59 points. Southampton are 5 points clear of us in 4th place, on 63 points, and Liverpool are still in danger a bit, sitting in 3rd place on 65 points.

Crystal Palace sack manager Steve Coppell.

[Butter]

Champions League Quarterfinals, Second Leg
Benfica (2) 2:1 (3) Arsenal
Chelsea (5) 4:1 (3) Porto
Bayern Munich (1) 1:2 (4) Barcelona
Man Utd. (0) 0:1 (4) Roma

UEFA Cup Quarterfinals
Aggregate scores
Grazer AK 3:1 Lazio
Panathinaikos 1:3 At. Madrid
Schalke 04 3:1 M. Tel-Aviv
Standard 0:0 Lyon (Standard adv. 4-3 on PK's)

Alan Irvine of Everton is quickly hired on at Crystal Palace.

April 10, Match 33
16-10-6, 7th pl., 58 pts.
@ Bolton Wanderers (3-11-18, 18th pl., 20 pts.)
Series: Even, 2-1-2
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Balaban, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

Very little in the way of action in the first 45 minutes, but lots of fouls... 7 yellows, 4 on us, 3 on Bolton in the first half.

67'- Fabio Rochemback picks up a 2nd yellow card, and we're down a man. We bring on Mokoena for Cole, and move Gerard back to centerfield, and play a 4-3-2. Lunt also enters for Balaban.

87'- A terrific defensive series, as Arenas stops 3 shots from inside 10 yards, including having Bocanegra clear a deflection off the line at the last minute. Arenas is becoming a big-time keeper!

We get a scoreless draw at the Reebok... not exactly what we needed, but still a point. GK Libis Andres Arenas picks up MoM, earning an 8 for his great end of game display in net. Wallner also with an 8.

Draw, 0-0, move up to 6th place
Shots/on target: Trotters 6/4, Posh 7/4
Poss: 56-44, Trotters
A: 24,160

EPL Round 33 results
Portsmouth 0:2 Liverpool
Blackburn 2:0 Gills
Palace 5:0 Cardiff
Fulham 0:0 West Ham
Spurs 2:1 Norwich

We pass Aston Villa in the table, and are just 1 in GD away from passing Man U for 5th... but they now both have a game in hand on us.

[Butter]

FA Cup Semifinals
Aston Villa 2:1 Chelsea
Newcastle 2:0 Man U.

Wallner is picked in the Team of the Week.

Balaban hurts a foot, and will miss 2 weeks.

A full slate of Wednesday night action up next. We've lost just once since Christmas, and are unbeaten in 10... we've yielded just 1 goal in the last 7 matches.

April 14, Match 34
16-11-6, 6th pl., 59 pts.
v. Crystal Palace (8-13-12, 14th pl., 37 pts.)
Series: Posh lead 2-3-0
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, El Karkouri, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Mngomeni, Fernandes, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

12'- Wallner with a great move around a defender after receiving a pass from Gerard... his shot is stopped by Gabor Kiraly, but the rebound falls to Cole, and he taps it home! 1-0, Posh!

38'- Gabor Kiraly is forced to leave with an injury for Palace.

43'- A nice cross in and a header comes off the bar for the Eagles, and Zaccardo clears.

68'- Lunt in for Mngomeni, Mokoena in for Gerard.

We have about 3 chances in the 70th-85th minutes, but can't convert any of them.

87'- A nice centering pass in the box, and Collins John with a great angle on a shot, and he finishes it inside the far post. 1-1.

Lennon on for a tired Fernandes. We try to switch to attacking tactics, but it's too late.

A disappointing draw. Alex and Cole pick up our only 8's. Palace's substitute keeper, Paul Smith, picks up a 10.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 6th
Shots/on target: Posh 23/10, Eagles 10/4
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 16,446

EPL Round 34 results
Arsenal 1:1 Villa
Cardiff 1:5 Spurs
Chelsea 2:0 Newcastle
Liverpool 4:0 Gills
Man City 3:0 So'ton
Boro 1:1 Blackburn
Norwich 0:1 Fulham
Portsmouth 1:1 Bolton
West Ham 1:2 Man U.

We're now just 3 points from 4th place, where Southampton take a big hit against Man City, and stand on 63 points. Man U. remain 2 points ahead of us in 5th place, and Villa are even with us, but trail in the table on goal difference, at 60 points. Spurs are closing fast, now just 5 points back in 8th place.

[Butter]

2 straight draws against supremely inferior opponents... tough to take when you're in a race for Europe. With wins in the last 2, I could be in 4th place right now.

Fabrice Fernandes sprains his wrist, and will miss about a week.

April 17, Match 35
16-12-6, 6th pl., 60 pts.
@ Tottenham Hotspur (15-10-9, 8th pl., 55 pts.)
Series: Spurs lead 2-2-0
Fav: Spurs, 5:4

A critical matchup for Spurs' European hopes, as they can jump back into the race with a win today.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Jensen, Alex, Sarr, Zaccardo
Mid: Rochemback, Mngomeni, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

13'- A great break off a corner kick... Rochemback plays it long to Lunt, who is well clear of the field... he advances on Paul Robinson.... Cole is streaking downfield to Lunt's right... he squares the ball across, and Cole with the shot... Robinson deflects it, but can't keep it out! 1-0, Posh!

33'- Arenas with a world class save on a point blank Robbie Keane chance.

49'- Roman Wallner with a long ball to Cole... he's onside down the center... he attacks Robinson, and shoots with his left foot.... GOAL! 2-0, Posh!

65'- Kargbo in for Mngomeni, and he'll play the right wing while Lunt moves left... Mokoena in for Roman Wallner.

79'- Sarr barges 19 year old striker Daniel Holmes in the box... Holmes to take the penalty himself... he sends it wide! The Spurs' fans begin to head for the exits with that miss.

Lennon on for Gerard.

That takes care of it... Spurs offense was non-existent in the 2nd half. Kenny Lunt wins MoM honors, rating a 9... Cole also with a 9, and there were numerous 8's as well.

Win, 2-0, remain in 6th
Shots/on target: Spurs 10/4, Posh 14/7
Poss: 55-45, Spurs
A: 33,200

EPL Round 35 results
Fulham 0:1 Cardiff
Blackburn 1:1 Arsenal
Bolton 1:2 Liverpool
Gills 0:0 Boro
Man U. 2:0 Norwich
So'ton 3:0 West Ham
Villa 1:0 Chelsea
Palace 2:0 Portsmouth
Newcastle 0:0 Man City

We're going to have to beat both Southampton and Manchester United to get into the Champions League... and even then, we may not make it. But a place in the UEFA Cup should be well within reach... provided Aston Villa win the FA Cup, which would allow the top 7 teams in England to make it to Europe. Otherwise, it would be Newcastle stealing the 7th spot's European place.

[Butter]

Alex and Rochemback are named to the Team of the Week.

Rochemback injures a groin, and he'll miss 2 weeks.

Champions League Semifinals, First Leg
Chelsea 2:2 Barcelona
Roma 2:0 Arsenal

EPL mid-week fixture
Villa 2:0 Boro
-That win leapfrogs Villa into 4th place, and we slide into 7th.

April 24, Match 36
17-12-6, 7th pl., 63 pts.
v. Fulham (5-12-18, 16th pl., 27 pts.)
Series: Cottagers lead 3-2-0
Fav: Posh, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Kargbo, Zaccardo
Mid: Arzo, Ingrao, Lunt, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

After a boring first 45 minutes, we switch to straight attacking tactics for the second half.

62'- Mngomeni on for a slightly injured Marco Ingrao.

75'- Mokoena on for Arzo... Kargbo moves up to def. midfield. We turn up the heat, to a 3-4-3.

90+'- In the 4th and final injury minute, Cole is played onside... his shot is deflected to Wallner, who has a 15 yard chance, but he puts it into the side netting.

Another crappy scoreless draw. Maybe next year we can turn these into wins. 4th place is effectively out of our reach now. Cole was pretty awful today, rating a 6.

Draw, 0-0, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Posh 9/3, Cottagers 2/0
Poss: 52-48, Cottagers
A: 16,437

EPL Round 36 results
Man City 3:1 Villa
Bolton 0:0 Palace
Cardiff 0:2 Man U.
Chelsea 1:0 Blackburn
Norwich 1:1 So'ton
Portsmouth 4:4 Spurs
West Ham 3:3 Newcastle
Arsenal 2:0 Gills
Liverpool 3:0 Boro

Gillingham is relegated from the Premiership with their loss. We remain 4 points behind Man U. for 4th, 3 points behind So'ton for 5th, and 2 points behind Villa for 6th. Man U and So'ton have a game in hand on us.

[Butter]

Champions League Semifinals, Second Leg
Arsenal (0) 0:1 (3) Roma
Barcelona (4) 2:1 (3) Chelsea

EPL mid-week fixture
Man U. 2:0 Man City

UEFA Cup Semifinals
Aggregate scores
Atletico Madrid 2:1 Standard (BEL)
Grazer AK (AUT) 2:1 Schalke 04
-An Austrian team makes a European final for the first time since Salzburg made the UEFA Cup final in 1994.

EPL Round 37 fixtures - Saturday
Newcastle 4:3 Norwich
Villa 2:0 West Ham
Blackburn 1:2 Man City
Palace 2:2 Liverpool
Gills 0:0 Chelsea
Boro 1:2 Arsenal
So'ton 2:2 Cardiff

Cardiff are relegated with their draw against Southampton. We're now 4 points out of 6th place. We need a miracle -- or we need Villa to beat Newcastle in the FA Cup final, as we're pretty well locked into 7th place. We finish up with Manchester United at Old Trafford, and home against the Saints.

Kenny Lunt breaks his jaw, and will miss the rest of the year.

Here come the big 2 matches that could make or break our season.

[Butter]

Fabio Rochemback has been thoroughly ineffective this year, despite my throwing serious money at him. He has been often injured, and has also received a lot of cards. I ask the physios if there is a long term problem, and they suggest sending him to a specialist. I decide to do this AFTER the season, since he might be able to play in our final game against Southampton.

May 2, Match 37 - Televised
17-13-6, 7th pl., 64 pts.
@ Manchester United (21-8-7, 4th pl., 71 pts.)
Series: Red Devils lead 4-0-0
Fav: ManU, 4:6

We can no longer catch Manchester United, but a win today might help someone else pass them for 4th.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Mngomeni, Balaban, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

13'- Darren Fletcher with a curling 25 yard shot, and Arenas with a quality save to beat it away... Alex heads behind for a corner, which Wallner clears.

27'- Roman Wallner with a small opening, and he tries to curl in a 20 yarder, but it goes wide.

Very good first half for us... we dominate the goal scoring opportunities... but neither side is allowing strikers free anywhere near the box. A very well-played contest all around so far.

46'- Man U. nearly score off the 2nd half restart, but Arenas with another great save of a shot from the left side of the penalty box.

53'- Wallner has space between 2 defenders... he tries to get Maarten Stekelenburg to commit, but fails. An easy save.

59'- Cole with a breakaway, but he has to attack goal at a sharp angle, and Stekelenburg forces the shot high.

Mokoena enters for a slightly injured Roman Wallner.

62'- Sub. striker Ivica Olic (on for van Nistelrooy) with a shot from the arc, but the bend takes it wide.

64'- Marcos's free kick is hit well, and right to Mokoena at 10 yards... Stekelenburg stones the shot.

74'- Fernandes in for Balaban... who has not performed real well and has a yellow card.

84'- Mokoena plays Cole through... Cole holds off a defender. Stekelenburg comes way out to the spot... Cole tries to slot it home with his left foot, but it goes inches wide! Mngomeni gets a pass from Cole off the ensuing goal kick... Mngomeni with a shot from near the top left corner of the area.... it's struck just over!

90'- In the final minute of regular time, Gerard in the center circle plays it to Cole. Cole to Mokoena at 30 yards... Mokoena leaves Gabriel Heinze standing still... he attacks goal and shoots from the top of the box... GOAL!!!!!! Lebohang Mokoena with a huge goal, struck into the top left corner of goal! No chance for Stekelenburg, and we lead it in the dying moments! It's Mokoena's 7th goal of the year, and the 100th of his club career (he scored 93 for Orlando Pirates).

Man U. switch to a 2-3-5 for the added on time. We back lots of people into our half and try to just send the ball upfield. Arzo enters for Carlton Cole.

Man U. can't penetrate, and Mokoena runs with the ball for about 20 seconds and kills off the rest of the 3 stoppage minutes! What a win at the Theatre of Dreams! We keep our hopes of moving up another spot alive. Ibrahim Kargbo wins MoM for his defensive midfield performance, rating an 8, winning 9/10 headers and 6/6 tackles attempted. Several other players rate 8's as well, including the goal scorer, Mokoena.

Win, 0-1, remain in 7th
Shots/on target: Red Devils 11/3, Posh 15/8
Poss: 51-49, Posh
A: 65,869

Roman Wallner may miss our final match with a concussion.

EPL Round 37 - Sunday/Monday
Fulham 0:0 Portsmouth
Spurs 1:0 Bolton

Birmingham City have won the Championship title, and Coventry also gets promoted. Sheffield Wed., Charlton, Wolves, and Hull will battle it out in the Championship playoffs. Burnley, Reading, and Doncaster are relegated from the Championship.

Here's how 4th through 7th place look now, with Southampton still needing to make up a game (which will be v. Chelsea in mid-week):
4. Man U. - 71 pts.
5. Aston Villa - 69 pts.
6. Southamtpon - 68 pts.
7. Peterborough - 67 pts.

We still have a shot to get as high as 5th place with the right set of results. Villa and So'ton still have a shot at 4th place.

[Butter]

Kargbo is picked in the Team of the Week.

EPL mid-week fixtures
Newcastle 3:0 Arsenal
So'ton 1:3 Chelsea

This set of results not only guarantees us a chance at 6th place if we beat Southampton... but it also gives Chelsea the title, as they move 5 points clear of Arsenal with 1 to play. Liverpool and Arsenal could still flip-flop 2nd and 3rd, as Arsenal are on 79 points, and Liverpool are on 78.... the best part there is that these 2 teams will face each other at Emirates Stadium on the final day. Manchester United could still be passed by Aston Villa for 4th, if Villa beat Norwich, and the Devils lose at Portsmouth. But if Villa draw at Norwich, and we win, we will finish 5th based on superior goal difference.

Lots of interesting possibilities.

We have not lost since January 12th (a 3-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers). If we win today, we're in the UEFA Cup. If we lose, we have to wait for the FA Cup Final, and hope for a Newcastle loss to Aston Villa to confirm our European spot. A lot on the line today. Luckily, nearly all of our first choice starting XI will play today.

May 8, Match 38
18-13-6, 7th pl., 67 pts.
v. Southampton (20-8-9, 6th pl., 68 pts.)
Series: Even, 0-3-0
Fav: Posh, 5:4

Roman Wallner recovers well enough from his mild concussion against Manchester United to play today. Kargbo starts for Rochemback at defensive midfield, though Fabio will be on the bench if needed. Antti Niemi is out with injury for Southampton, so 22 year old Andrew Green makes his 3rd start of the year for him.
Lineup:
GK: Arenas
Def: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos, Zaccardo
Mid: Kargbo, Mngomeni, Balaban, Gerard
Str: Wallner, Cole

6'- Wallner leaves with an injury... Mokoena on for him.

9'- van Persie with a pass to James Beattie... Beattie maneuvers around Zaccardo, then slots it home past Arenas inside the far post. 1-0, Saints.

13'- Balaban with a 20 yard drive that hits the outside of the post and goes out for a goal kick.

34'- Cole with a long ball to Mngomeni... Mngomeni attacks the left side... he passes ahead to Mokoena in the box. Mokoena attacks Green from the left... he shoots hard and low from 12 yards... and Green can't handle it! It goes right through his legs and in! 1-1.

48'- Gerard with a long range bending shot that Green deflects out... it falls to Balaban, who tries to cross in, but it's deflected for an uneventful corner.

Southampton have turned inward, knowing they only need a draw to clinch 6th place. Good news for us, though, as Villa trail Norwich 2-1 at the half, so a win would give us 5th place as it stands now.

72'- Bocanegra with a steal, headed to Gerard... he dribbles forward, then sends it long to Cole, who is just onside! Cole attacks Green.... and slots it home! 2-1, Posh, as the London Road faithful go bonkers!

Now we have them where we want them... our counter-attack is deadly, and they're going to be forced to push forward.

75'- Cole to Balaban in the middle... he plays it back to Cole, who dribbles forward to about 35 yards, then sends a ball into the box for Mokoena... Mokoena collects it, turns, and shoots... GOAL!!! Mokoena's 9th of the year, and we lead it 3-1!

85'- Fernandes in for Mngomeni, Rochemback on for Kargbo.

90+'- Midfielder Eddie Anaclet with a vicious 10 yard volley off a corner kick, but Arenas collects it!

The final whistle goes, and we're going to Europe!!! Carlton Cole with another MoM, rating a 9. Arenas, Zaccardo, Mngomeni, Gerard, and Mokoena collect 8's. Now the only question is, did Norwich hold on against Aston Villa?

Win, 3-1
Shots/on target: Posh 17/10, Saints 7/2
Poss: 50-50
A: 16,441

EPL Round 38 results
Arsenal 0:0 Liverpool
Bolton 1:1 Fulham
Cardiff 2:2 Newcastle
Chelsea 0:0 Boro
Palace 1:2 Spurs
Man City 0:0 Gills
Norwich 2:1 Villa
Portsmouth 1:0 Man U.
West Ham 0:0 Blackburn

Indeed, Aston Villa do lose, and we finish 5th in the league! Man U. lose, so we finish just one point behind them for 4th place. Bolton could have dragged themselves out of the drop zone with a win over Fulham, but they draw, and West Ham remain 2 points clear of 18th place, so Bolton is the final team relegated to the Championship. So, in the end, all 3 newly promoted teams get relegated.

[Butter]

We are awarded $17 million for our final league position of 5th place.

Apparently, since Rochemback's injury went away, I can no longer send him to rehab. So, I just send him and all of the other players home on holiday until the end of June.

Final league table:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v633/agprice98/standings-09-10.jpg

Final stats:
Not pictured are GK Graham Stack, who averaged a 6.67 in 5 starts and 1 sub appearance -- allowing 9 goals in those appearances, and midfielder Aaron Lennon, who averaged a 6.64 in 6 starts and 5 substitute appearances.
GK Libis Andres Arenas conceded 25 goals in his time, and kept 15 clean sheets out of 27 starts.
GK Lee Grant conceded 11 goals and kept 4 clean sheets.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v633/agprice98/playerstats-09-10.jpg

Instead of listing all of our contracts and such, I'll just note who is due to leave us this summer:
AM-RLC Kenny Lunt
D/DM-RC Kofi Dakinah
Reserves:
Str. Dejan Robnik
DMC Alan Navarro
Str. Szilard Nemeth
Str. Jami Puustinen
GK Peter Karlsson
D/DM-RC Gideon de Graaf
AM-L Charlie Daniels

None of the reserves I want to keep... except maybe Robnik, but he has no interest in a reserve role. He is still only 25, and seems to still be developing some skill. Nemeth is retiring, Navarro is past his usefulness, and the others are aging prospects who haven't really developed.

I tried to offer contracts to both Lunt and Dakinah, but they both want more than I'm willing to pay.

[Butter]

Roster review/preview of 2010/11

Goalkeepers
Libis Andres Arenas, the 22 year old Colombian international, began the year 3rd on the depth chart behind Lee Grant and Graham Stack. Grant struggled early on, against Arsenal, then in the League Cup against Huddersfield... Stack had problems against Chelsea, then Arenas got the start in our 8th league match against Manchester City, giving us a 2-0 win. The more he played, the better he got, and we rode him all the way to the end of the season... we allowed just 3 goals in the final 12 games of the season after a stretch of allowing 7 goals in 3 games... all wins. Grant will enter next season as the #2 keeper. Stack is on the transfer list. We have signed a 21 year old Dutch keeper from Ajax on a free transfer... he'll go into the reserves, and join our top reserve keeper, Jon Masalin.

Defense
The most steady player on defense was Alex, the signing from PSV. Zaccardo and Bocanegra were both very good at the fullback spots, though. Our only question mark all year was the 2nd center back spot... Marcos played a lot there, but struggled. Pritchard had a pretty good season, and Ibrahim Kargbo played well at center back when placed there. Dakinah, Sarr, and El Karkouri saw limited playing time, but were more than serviceable when run out there. I think we could do for signing another center-back, but I like who we have now... and they played extremely well down the stretch. Emil Jensen also played reasonably well when called upon... but if we have any injuries to our top 4 defenders, we will likely struggle to plug the gap.

1st Team for 10/11: Bocanegra, Alex, Marcos (or new signing), Zaccardo
2nd Team: Jensen, Kargbo, Sarr, Dakinah
Backups: Pritchard, El Karkouri, Arzo, Chalwe and Cave from the reserves

Midfield
The big story was the loss of Hugo Viana just after the New Year. Viana already had 4 goals and 5 assists in just 16 starts, and was on his way to equal or better his 2008/09 marks of 9 goals and 8 assists. Our wing play was pretty weak this year, with few assists coming on crosses, and most goals coming from breaks straight down the center of the field. Thando Mngomeni proved he could score pretty well from the left wing, and Bosko Balaban did the same on the right wing... but neither one is a pure wing player. Fabrice Fernandes had a largely disappointing 2nd season with the Posh, and Kenny Lunt had some flashes, but was mostly just mediocre on the wings as well. Signing a pure right winger is definitely a goal, as Lunt is likely to depart. Aaron Lennon will probably be sent to the reserves, as he was mostly a waste of time at this level. Marco Ingrao was largely a non-entity as well. At the defensive midfield spot, both Rochemback and Kargbo played fairly well there, though neither was outstanding. Rochemback seemed to have a problem with both injury and getting cautioned. Cesar Arzo was mostly mediocre... but he was MoM in one match, and rated a 4 in another. Gerard was sensational at AMC, though he didn't score much... he did have 9 assists, and keyed a number of other goals. Lebohang Mokoena did alright when placed at AMC, but it seems striker is his more natural role. We'll probably also look on the market for another attacking midfielder.

Depth chart going into 10/11:
DM: Rochemback, Kargbo, Arzo
ML: Viana, Mngomeni, Fernandes, Ingrao, Lennon
MR: Balaban, Fernandes, Lunt
AM: Gerard, Mokoena, Balaban

We definitely need more midfield depth to become an even more dangerous team.

Striker
The strength of our team. Even playing a largely defensive posture for the last couple months of the season, we finished 4th in goal scoring in the Premiership, including 3 goals in wins over Arsenal and Chelsea, and 7 goals in our 2 wins over Liverpool. Carlton Cole continues to be one of the classiest players around, scoring 24 this season to make his 2 year total 46 goals for the Posh. Roman Wallner had a slow start, but finished strong with 9 goals, and led the team in assists with 12. I have a tough decision to make next year, as Lebohang Mokoena scored 9 goals in far less playing time than Wallner had, including the game winners on the road against Chelsea and Manchester United. Balaban didn't get much time up front, but he played very well at striker early in the season before being shelved with an injury, then coming back in largely a right wing function. Vagner probably should spend some time in the reserves, as he didn't show much in very limited action.

Striker depth: Cole, Wallner, Mokoena, Balaban, Vagner, Mngomeni

I doubt I will sign any more strikers, as Rafael Santos is capable on the reserve level to come up and play with the seniors right now. But I can't say I won't, if the opportunity presents itself.



In all, we recovered wonderfully from a horrible start to the season. We opened 1-3-3, and ended up finishing 19-13-6... losing only once after the New Year, and going unbeaten in the final 15 matches of the season. If we keep that form up next season, we can compete for the title.

[Butter]

Our Under 18 squad wins their group title with a record of 16-3-5, beating out Aston Villa's U-18's by 2 points.

Arsenal's Gael Clichy wins the Player of the Year honor... 2nd is Rafael van der Vaart of Liverpool, 3rd is Stewart Downing of Man U.

Players' Select Team of the Year:
GK: Robert Green (Man. City)
Def: Gael Clichy (Arsenal), Josemi (Liverpool), Alex (P'boro), Jurgen Colin (Newcastle)
Mid: van der Vaart (Liverpool), Gerard (P'boro), Harry Kewell (Newcastle), Shaun Wright-Phillips (Liverpool)
Str: Carlton Cole (P'boro), Thierry Henry (Arsenal)

I finish second in the Manager of the Year voting, behind Jose Mourinho of Chelsea.

Posh players in top-25 of final stats
Average rating:
1. Daniel Bierofka (Man. City), 7.96
5. Cole, 7.78
16. Arenas, 7.63
21. Alex, 7.52
22. Zaccardo, 7.50
25. Gerard, 7.47

Goals:
1. Djibril Cisse (Liverpool), 28
2. Fernando Torres (Chelsea), 25
3. Cole, 24
18t. Wallner & Mokoena, 9 each

Assists:
1. Jose Antonio Reyes (Arsenal), 17
4t. Wallner, 12
11t. Gerard, 9
16t. Lunt & Cole, 8 each

Yellow cards:
1. Clive Clarke (Cardiff), 13
5t. Rochemback, 8

Man of Match awards:
1. Daniel Bierofka (Man. City), 10
12t. Cole, 5
20t. Wallner, 4

Average attendance: 15,764 (19th/20)
Goals For: 68 (4th)
Goals Against: 40 (8th)

[Butter]

May 2010

UEFA Cup Final, from Estadio de Luz, Lisbon
Grazer AK 0:2 Atletico Madrid
-Jorge emerges from quiet to score twice for Atletico before halftime. GAK was frustrated in the second half, and it showed with the sending off in the 52nd minute of attacking midfielder Thomas Aigner. A near melee erupted late in the match, and another Grazer player was sent off in the 85th minute for a two-footed tackle. Atletico with their first major European win since winning the Super Cup in 1985.

Champions League Final, from Giorgis Karaiskakis, Piraeus
Barcelona 0:1 Roma
-Winger Mario Alberto Santana (an Argentinean, formerly playing for Palermo) scores in the 10th minute, a shot that seemingly goes right through the fingers of Barcelona keeper Antonio. Barcelona control the rest of the match, but can't beat Ivan Pelizzoli, and Roma win Europe for the first time ever.

FA Cup Final, from Wembley
Newcastle 0:2 Aston Villa
-The Villans with an easy win over the Magpies in front of nearly 90,000. Darius Vassell scored a slotted shot in the 23rd minute off a neat pass from Steed Malbranque... then Luke Moore finished it off in the 83rd with a volley off a corner kick. Newcastle didn't even manage to bother keeper Thomas Sorensen in the easy win for AV. So, as it turns out, we needn't have sweated our league position, if we had finished 7th. The Villa win means Southampton qualify for the UEFA Cup.

Hull win the Championship playoffs (1-0 over Wolves), and will join Birmingham and Coventry in the top flight next season.

8 of our players have been called up for the World Cup:
Sweden: Emil Jensen
USA: Carlos Bocanegra
Colombia: Libis Andres Arenas
S. Africa: Lebohang Mokoena and Thando Mngomeni
Ireland: Graham Stack
Slovenia: Dejan Robnik
Morocco: Talal El Karkouri

Financial report
Our surplus stands at $31 million. We are still about $8 million under our allowable $39 million wage budget. We also have a transfer budget of around $22 million. We really need to expand the stadium even more to increase our gate revenue, if we want to have any hope of keeping up this success (which the board has already approved, in addition to approving expansion of the training grounds). We lost a crapload of money last year ($14 million), mostly thanks to our increased wage budget.... a total of $14 million in the red. That will be cleaned up through our $24.5 million TV rights... and hopefully even more with European prize money. We had a surplus of $27.6 million going into last season, and finish this season with a surplus of $31 million... but we still lost money overall, considering our surplus was around $50 million after we received our TV money. We are having problems keeping our income matching our expenses. But having this large of a surplus should shield us from trouble for the foreseeable future.

[Butter]

Continue on to Year 7 (http://dynamic.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/showthread.php?t=39034).