Bleacher Report - Articles by Davie Jones

Second Guessing EPL Managers: What Would Your Ideal Side Be?

Davie Jones — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 17:36:57 -0500

"The coach should never have played Rooney alone.

"I don't think Gerrard deserves the captain's armband."

"Why didn't the coach play three strikers instead of two?"

Yes, ladies and gentleman, those are the words that many echo when watching a football game. M

any of us offer some great advice to Sir Alex Fergusson and Arsene Wenger. I believe that we should support our managers and allow them to play the best side they can and let they ideas flow onto the pitch. I mean, that is why they earn millions of pounds.

I do realise though that when watching a cup final with our favourite team in it, it is hard to stay quiet when we know that if we just play a more attacking game then we are sure to score. ("Why doesn't Benitez see this?")

But fellow football lovers, a lot of thought goes into the preparation of these games and I'm sure that Sir Alex Fergusson has a reason for every little thing on the pitch like the starting line-up and the formation.

I do know though that we as fans, just have to give our comments so today I am giving everyone a chance to respond and give me the pleasure of viewing your chosen starting eleven in the English premiership. Your response would be greatly appreciated. Here is my starting eleven:

I would have Peter Cech between the posts. My centre backs would naturally be Terry and Ferdinand. In the laft back position i would have Clichy and on the right i think that Scharner would do the job for me. I would play Fabregas in a holding position and and Gerrard and Lampard would would be attacking just in front of him. Christiano Ronaldo would play right midfield and I would play Babel on the left. Now for the tough choice for a lone striker. Rooney, Torres, Tevez, Adebayor, Drogba and the list goes on. So much of talent but just one position to fill. I think that I would just have to go with Fernando Torres. He attacks with venomous speed and tenacity and he is a clean striker of the ball. All in all, i think he is the most clinical striker in England and the 22.3 million investment is now paying a great dividends.

Cech

Scharner Terry Ferdinand Clichy

Fabregas

Lampard Gerrard

Christiano Ronaldo Babel

Torres

That is what my side would look like. Your response to this article would be greatly appreciated. May you have as much fun as i did when selecting my side.

Liverpool Recovers From FA Cup Defeat In Style

Davie Jones — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 21:40:01 -0500

Anfield served as the battleground for the clash of two great forces in Europe.

Liverpool, needing to come back from a poor FA Cup fifth round defeat, outclassed an Inter Milan side that seems to be more than capable of lifting this year's trophy. Fluid play and an on-form Babel helped Liverpool claim victory.

To me, Babel seems to be Liverpool's answer to Christiano Ronaldo. He does tend to hold the ball for far too long, but his pace and excellent dribbling skills are certainly something the Liverpool fans greatly appreciate.

Inter Milan were simply outdone by a confident and motivated Liverpool side. It was another great UEFA encounter, except for the fact that the referee seemed very easily persuaded by the Liverpool supporters, but then again, who wouldn't be.

I am looking foward to tonight's other English-Italian encounter between Arsenal and AC Milan. If poor FA Cup results mean an excellent result in Europe, then Arsenal should easily take the lead going into the return match at the San Siro. Let's just hope that the Emirates can provide the atmosphere that Anfield brings to football.

Arsenal-Manchester United: The Rivalry

Davie Jones — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:48:12 -0500

Manchester United versus Arsenal FC—it's always a great occasion and this time it's proven to be another dramatic encounter.

To add to the event, an FA Cup quarter final place was up for grabs.

As an Arsenal supporter, defeat at the hands of bitter rivals Manchester United was always going to be hard to swallow. Both sides fielded second string sides which was a great insult to the prestigious FA Cup, but this has been a trend among the top football teams in England over the past few seasons.

As the game progressed, it was easy to see that sportsmanship wasn't a prerequisite to playing football. Tackles were flying all around the park and at the final whistle the four-nil scoreline was not something a team at the top of the league expected to happen.

Hopefully, Arsenal can recover in time for the AC Milan clash or else another embarrassing defeat could be awaiting them.