Soccer Logo - Pride of Every Football Team

A soccer logo can be found anywhere but primarily it represents the ultimate character of a team. Football logos are the best choice in providing recognition and identity for a club. The very reason for logos in general is the identity and relevance of its teams. Soccer tournaments are all over the world and each team wears a logo to signify the team's crusade towards victory. The logo for each team is a symbol of its hard work and is also the best reminder for the players so that they will work with one another to find victory.

A soccer logo doesn't just pop out of a canvass. It results from a thorough conceptualization of the strong attributes of a certain team. An essential symbolism and recall can be employed so that the team can leave a mark in the minds of the enthusiasts. A strong sense of belongingness in the minds of the players can bring their skills to a higher level. Team Logos will eventually motivate them which thereby results to a different level of entertainment.

Chelsea FC

Trademarks are also found on the uniforms of professional players. These trademarks are often logos of brands of certain products. The embedded logos of uniforms add vibrancy to the attractive colors of the shorts and shirts. Often these logos complement the color of a certain team. Logos are used not just for aesthetic or advertising reasons. They stand for the recognition, pride and teamwork of the teams. In addition, they serve as source of motivation and inspiration to the soccer players.

Soccer Logo - Pride of Every Football Team

In Football Marketing What Matters is Getting the Basics and Fundamentals Right

I have watched armature teams spending hours on end training day in day out. They do not have holidays, no weekends and no weekdays. Everyday is a football day. When two armature teams meet it is very difficult to see the difference for an untrained eye. Each team stands its ground. But, every time these armature teams meet the professional outfit that is when you see the gulf in abilities. They lick goals in dozens. These armature teams spend equal time some times more time training than the professionals. But why can't armature outfits hold their own when they meet professionals? Why do they get beaten convincingly? Michael Jordan deciphered this mystery for us, he said:

"It comes down to a very simple saying: there is a right way and a wrong way to do things. You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way.

Chelsea Fanclub

Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise."

All the armature teams are doing through these hours of training day in day out is practicing the wrong techniques, they get the fundamentals wrong and become experts in doing the wrong things. That is why the get a pasting every time they play professional outfits.

This is true with football marketing as well. I have seen clubs doing TV adverts, setting up street posters, opening supporter branches and doing all kinds of things with little or negligible difference. The stadiums continue to be empty on match days. The support base continues to be lukewarm and the benefits from fans continue to elude these clubs.

These clubs have got the fundamentals and basics wrong. They have simply become experts at doing the wrong things.

In football marketing fundamentals involve getting fan relationships right and putting in place community activities that keep you in the mind of the fans. When you get these fundamental down the level of everything you do will rise vis-à-vis filling your stadium and fan growth.

In Football Marketing What Matters is Getting the Basics and Fundamentals Right

100 Percent Win Betting Strategy For Football

Rather than just randomly picking football matches to place your bet on, there is a recent trend in fixed odds betting to employ a 'betting strategy' or 'betting system'. Almost all systems rely on some sort of points rating scheme where a team is awarded a certain number of points depending upon aspects such as home advantage, league position, recent form etc.

You must know the rules and regulations of the sport you want to bet on in detail before you develop a strategy. This means that you have to be a football fan already. It is a lot easier for those who have prior knowledge of the sport whether as a player, spectator, or a tactician. For those without prior knowledge, watching and analyzing football matches can help you learn the rules of the game quite easily.

Chelsea FootballClub

There is no betting system that can achieve 100% success; however, some are far much better than others at predicting the outcome of games. One football season might see one betting strategy work and another fail, whereas the following season the roles can be reversed. For example, many punters study the rankings table in order to predict outcomes of games.

One punter might use a system which says that if the home team is 3 or more places higher than the away team, then he would back the home team to win every game. This may prove to be quite correct many times, but over the course of 2 or 3 seasons it would be guaranteed that he would be as effective as earlier. Of course to improve upon this system the punter would need to study current form, goal difference, injury problems in teams etc. and then balance this against the odds which are being offered to him.

Price percentage betting

The bookmaker earns his living through what is known as 'the bookies over-round'. There is no way to bet on all 3 outcomes of a game; win, lose draw and expect to win. The three different odds on offer usually know as price percentage, will work against you and eventually you will lose the bet. You must remember that in order to win money at fixed odds betting you must be able to guarantee long term profits.

The art of success is to guarantee a long term returns on bets. Successful betting on fixed odds football matches can be sound financial investment advice if you have a sound system.

In order to get good returns you need to gain an 'edge' over the bookie. 99.9% of amateur punters fail to do this for various reasons. You must a excellent knowledge of betting, football and statistics.

The do's and don'ts of football betting:

- Don't place a bet just because you 'fancy having a bet'.
- Don't waste money on high accumulator bets.
- Don't persist with losing systems.
- Keep a record of all the bets placed

100 Percent Win Betting Strategy For Football

France National Football Team - A Little History

France made their entry into the international field of Football in 1903. The team, associated with the French Football Federation, goes under the nickname "Les Bleus" (The Blues) in France. Today, France's football team offers a high level of competition in matches - but believe it or not, the team used to be very modest, one that some would consider an "easy game". Their first international match was versus Belgium, and was a tie game. In 1930, France's national team was one of the four initial teams from Europe that participated in the inaugural World Cup. Nonetheless, at that time, France's team was still looked down upon as an easy defeat. In the mid 1950's, France did see some mild success, for once not being at the bottom of the standings.

Their first true experience at being a huge success came at the end of 1984. From December of 1984 to April of 1985, France was ranked number one in the Elo ranking categorization of football teams. This success was held out fairly well, and met another high point from May of 2001 to May of 2002, when the team from France sustained a FIFA ranking of number one; today, this number one FIFA ranking means more worldwide, as FIFA is an internationally recognizable organization.

Chelsea Football Club

Perhaps most memorable for many people is France's win of the FIFA World Cup in 1998. Thirty two different teams, from five different confederations, competed through 64 matches. France won nearly every match that they competed in, and ended up taking the championship upon beating Brazil 0 to 3. Other awards given to the French football team during the 1998 FIFA World Cup include "Most Entertaining Team", and the "FIFA Fair Play" Trophy. The Stadium that the French Football team usually plays at is the "Stade de France", which was built in 1995 and opened during 1998. The construction of the stadium cost over 285 Million Euros. In fact, the stadium was built for the purpose of the 1998 FIFA world cup - it's both ironic and fitting that France would win the world cup at their own stadium the year that it opened. After the World Cup, the Stade de France has continuously been used for various football events, although for the majority of the year, the stadium is empty. The majority of events that France's team participates in at the Stade de France are won by the French team, partially owing to the home team advantage of having more frequent access to that field, as well as higher morale and support from the crowd.

France's team may still not be the most reputable team around, but from their humble beginnings they were able to rise into a team that is recognizable in many places around the world, and were even able to claim the glorious title of World Champions.

France National Football Team - A Little History

Chelsea Football Club Facts

History

Chelsea football club is an English football club that was formed in 1905. They currently play in the top division of English football being the premier league. They play all their home games at the magnificent Stamford bridge stadium which was officially opened in 1877 but wasn't used for football until 1904. Chelsea has one of the wealthiest owners in the English premier league being Roman Abramovich who acquired the club in 2003. The current manager of Chelsea football club is former AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti.

Chelsea Football Club

Stadium

Chelsea has only ever had one stadium being Stamford Bridge where they have played since foundation. It was officially opened in 1877 but wasn't used for football until 1904 due to it being used by London Athletics Club. The stadium has a capacity of around 42,000 and has many facilities along with the football pitch. Added facilities include two hotels, apartments, bars, restaurants and the Chelsea megastore. These facilities have been created to help provide extra revenue for the football side of business. The club has plans to increase there stadium size to over 50,000 which may mean the club having to relocate due to health and safety regulations.

Crest

Since foundation Chelsea football club has had four main crests which all underwent minor variations. Chelsea's crest was first formed in 1905 which had the image of a Chelsea pensioner on it giving the club the nickname pensioner. It wasn't until 1953 when the clubs crest started to take shape with an image of a blue lion which has remained through out other designs of the crest with minor variations to colour.

Records

Chelsea football club have conquered many records which are proving hard to break for current Chelsea players. Chelsea's current highest appearance maker is Frank Lampard who has appeared for the club 460. Chelsea's all time top goal scorer is Bobby Tambling with 202 goals in 370 games in 1959 - 1970. The current top scorer for Chelsea is Frank Lampard with 136 goals. Chelsea holds the record for the highest home attendance match which was against Arsenal with an attendance of 82,905.

Chelsea Football Club Facts

Help You Know More About Chelsea Football Club

Chelsea Football Club is an English professional football club, located in West London. Chelsea F C was founded in March 10, 1905. They spent most of their history in the top tier of English football, and now play in the Premier League. Chelsea have won four Premier League titles, 6 FA Cups, 4 League Cups and 2 UEFA Cup Winners' Cups.

In 1955, Chelsea F C won the league championship, that was their first major success. They won no major title until 1997 after won some cup competitions between1960s to 1970s. The past 7 years (1993-2010) was the most successful period in Chelsea's history, winning Premier League Championships in 2005, 2006 and 2010, runners-ups in 2004, 2007 and 2008. And they did well in UEFA Champions League too, reached the final in 2008.

Chelsea

In fact, Chelsea F C is not based in Chelsea, but in neighbouring Fulham. Stamford Bridge football stadium in Fulham (with 41,841 capacity) is the club's home, they have played since their establishment there. Roman Abramovich who is Russian oil magnate bought the Chelsea in 2003.

Chelsea kit is royal blue shirt and shorts with white socks, this combination was used since the 1960s. The club crest has been changed several times for modernising or re-branding. The current crest, featuring a ceremonial lion holding a staff, is a modified version of one first adopted in the 1950s. We can see fans wearing Chelsea jersey everywhere, since Chelsea have been one of the most successful in Europe.

Help You Know More About Chelsea Football Club

Football in Stoke

For those couples who adore watching sports, especially football, Stoke is a great place for that holiday vacation. There are two teams in Stoke-on-Trent that compete in the Football League: the Stoke City Football Club and the Port Vale Football Club.

Stoke City Football Club
The Stoke City Football Club is regarded as the second-oldest British football league club. It was established in 1863 and was initially called the Stoke Ramblers. The first players of the team were students from Charterhouse School. The Stoke Ramblers had their first documented game on October 1868 at the grounds of the Victoria Cricket Club when the team battled EW May XV.

Chelsea FootballClub

The first captain of the club was Henry Almond, who was also its founder and the first player to score a goal for the team. In 1875, the Stoke City Ramblers transferred from their initial location in Victoria Cricket Ground to a new location near Sweetings Field due to the increasing number of spectators at their games.

In 1878, the Stoke Ramblers were merged with the Stoke Victoria Cricket Club and the new team became known as the Stoke City Football Club, the same name the club carries to this day. The team also moved to a new playing venue at the grounds of the Athletic Club, which would later be known as the Victoria Ground. Soon, the club would adopt their traditional red-and-white colours.
The Stoke City Football Club entered the professional arena in August 1885, some15 years after the team was formed.

In 1888, the club became one of the 12 founders of the Football League. Unfortunately, their first performances were dismal as the team struggled in its initial two seasons, from 1871 to 1873, finishing at the bottom of league standings during that time.

The Football League was suspended for four years during World War I and games resumed in August 1919. During the wartime lull, the Stoke City Football Club competed in the Lancashire Primary and Secondary Leagues.

Despite its initial lack of success, the club also had its share of victories in the Football League, particularly in 1992 and 2000 when they captured the league championship.

The Stoke City Football club also had a taste of success in the country's primary football competition, the Premier League (also known as The Premiership). They won their first major trophy during the League Cup Final of 1972, defeating the Chelsea Football Club in the championship game, thanks to the outstanding efforts of players Terry Conroy and George Eastham. Conroy still works with the club to this day, while Eastham took up residence in South Africa.

Unfortunately, the team hasn't played at the highest level since the 1984-85 season, when they posted their record-low score of 17 points, which would earn the dubious distinction of being the lowest score in the league for 21 years.

Port Vale Football Club
Based in Burslem, Staffordshire, the Port Vale Football Club currently competes in Football League One. Their local rivals are Crewe Alexandra and the Stoke City Football Club. There is slight confusion on whether the club was named after a geographical location in the city or something else. For instance, a Port Vale existed on maps before the club was formed in 1876, but whether the club was named after this location is still under debate. That Port Vale was known as a place within the ports of the Trent and Mersey Canal, which is located in the East Midlands, North West of England.

Martin Foyle was an important manager for the Port Vale Football Club, steering the club to the pinnacle of its success during his tenure. He was replaced by Lee Sinnott on November 2005.

One of the well-known nuggets of trivia about the Port Vale Football Club is that pop star Robbie Williams is one of its biggest fans and a major shareholder. Williams, who was born in Stoke-on-Trent, purchased thousands of shares in the club. The remaining shares were snapped up by Castle Comfort and Stairlifts, the other major sponsors of the team.

This was not the only contribution of Williams to the team. For the computer game called FIFA 2000, he created an original song called "It's Only Us." He did so with the stipulation that Port Vale should be included in the said game.

Other sports clubs in Stoke
Football is not the only sport that couples can watch in Stokes. There are also amateur teams that compete in rugby and cricket as well as competitive water polo games courtesy of the local Paragon Water Polo Team, considered as one of the top British teams.

Football in Stoke

Football Shirts

The world of football shirts seems to have gone a little mad in recent times since the whole scam to do with supermarkets and cheap prices, but make no mistake about it, it's still massive business.

Football is a business these days, we all know that and the shirts have a massive impact on profits for clubs, so getting things just right in terms of design and sales must rank highly in terms of importance.

Chelsea Football Club

Why is it then, that so many teams have so many awful football shirts? I mean event the teams at the very top, will all the money and resource in the world seem to fall victim to some of the most god awful tops you could ever hope to see.

This season, let's take Chelsea for instance. They've won two Premiership titles and countless other trophies and plaudits over the last three or four seasons and this year they're being paraded round in fluorescent green tops that make them look like traffic wardens.

Is it just the fact that manufacturers think they have to come up with designs for football shirts that stand out from the crowd in order to be considered worthy? There is one kit manufacturer who seems to have things down however, and that's Nike.

No matter who they're asked to design for, they always seem to come good and they've been doing that same high class job for years now. Arsenal, Celtic and Man Utd are just three teams to benefit from the quality of their shirt designs in recent times and I'm sure there's a line of others waiting in the wings.

But what are Nike doing that all of the other manufacturers aren't? Well, they're keeping it simple. Most real football fans are just everyday people who don't want a tight fitted pink shirt with a white round neck collar. They want their teams colours represented in a simple manner so they can wear the shirt with pride on a Saturday.

A lot of manufacturers seem to be forgetting this and I hope dearly that football shirts are given the attention they deserve in the future.

Football Shirts

TOP 10 Moments in Football History

10. Luis Figo, a world famous football star, who played for FC Barcelona from 1995 till 2000. He was arguably the fans' most favorite player in FC Barcelona, until 2000. That's when "it" happened, Barcelona's biggest rivals, Real Madrid, decided to splash the cash and break the transfer list fees record by getting Luis to Real Madrid.

The move caused outrage among Barcelona fans, Madrid got him for a world record fee of 38 Million Pounds. And that's when the fun begins, during the match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, when Luis Figo stepped up to take the corner kick, a pig's head was thrown at him from Barcelona's side. Another incident took place during the 2004 EURO Cup Final between Greece and Portugal. A Portuguese fan ran out on the field, managed to outrun the police, and heading towards Luis threw a Barcelona jersey at him, as the whole world was watching.

Chelsea FootballClub

9. 1996 - African Challenge.
1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, The most surprising gold medals went to the hands of Nigerian football stars after they overcame Brazil in thrilling semi-finals, with a 4-3 score. The finals was between Argentina and Nigeria, well over 2 billion people were watching it, of course most of them thought that Argentina will have no problems getting the gold medal, but most of them were wrong. Argentina was in the driver's seat after leading 1-0. The goal came on a 3rd minute, scored by Claudio Lopez, on the 28th minute Nigeria managed to equalize, as Babayaro scored a perfect finisher. So it was 1-1 on half-time. In the early second half Hernan Crespo gave Argentina the lead again and Argentina was on the way to get the gold medals, but "not so fast" said Amokachi as he scored the equalizing goal and again gave Nigeria hope. Match was almost over and everybody thought it was going to be decided by the penalty shoot out. 90th minute and Amunike gave the lead to Nigeria, it was a shock for Argentina, time was almost over, Argentina had no chance, so it ended with a final score 3-2. Nigeria won the gold medal, for the first time in Olympic Games history.

8. 1960, First ever UEFA European Football Championship (EURO) held in France. It was won by the USSR, beating Yugoslavia 2-1 in a tense final in Paris. It is however quite interesting to note that earlier in the competition Spain had withdrawn from its quarterfinal match against the USSR due to political reasons. As an interesting fact, USSR also scored the first goal in the EURO history, during the qualification games.

7. 1998/1999 English Premier League season, Manchester United got all trophies possible that season. They became the first ever team in football history to do so in one season. First they got the Premier League title, finishing first in the league table, then they took the F.A. Cup title by beating Newcastle United 2-0, and of course the most famous UEFA Champions League final, when United managed to come back from a 1-0 defeat, and score not one but two goals in an injury time beating Bayern Munich 2-1; it was considered to be one of the greatest comebacks ever witnessed.

6. 2002 World Cup, Korea/Japan. Korean fans will never forget that historic moment, when Guus Hiddink took them all the way to the Semi-Finals of 2002 World Cup. Korean national football team became the first ever Asian national football team to reach semi-finals of World Cup. Nobody expected the underdogs to go that far, as they beat Portugal 1-0 in a group stages, then a famous 2-1 win over Italy, drawing with Spain in a quarter-finals and then beating them 5-3 on penalties. In the end however they couldn't take on Germany in semi-finals, and they lost 1-0. In the game for the third place Korean team met Turkey, but again they lost. Eventually the Republic of Korea finished 4th in the 2002 World Cup, which was still a great success for the country's football team.

5. June 2003, Chelsea FC was bought by the Russian Billionaire Roman Abramovich for a record fee of 140 million pounds. Back then it was the biggest sale of an English Football club. Straight away Roman wanted to make Chelsea the best and strongest club in the world. He began buying players for a record braking transfer fees. First season with a new owner Chelsea FC finished as a runner-up. But next year, the 2004/2005 English premier league season, Chelsea became champions of England, for the first time since 1954/1955 season. 2005/2006 Season they took the premier league trophy again as they were crowned the champions of England for the second time in a row. These 2 seasons were the most successful 2 years in the club's history.

4. January 11th 2007. It was confirmed that David Beckham will be leaving Real Madrid to play for the United States "soccer" club, Los Angeles Galaxy. Beckham's decision was a shock to many, as one of the world's best football players moves to United States of America, where "soccer" is not that popular. He was the first big player to enter Major League Soccer.

3. 6th February 1958, the Munich air disaster. It was the darkest day in Manchester United Football Club history. On the board of the plane was Manchester United football team along with the club supporters and journalists. 23 of the 44 passengers on board died. Captain James Thain, the pilot tried to take off twice, but both attempts were aborted due to engine surging. When a third take off was attempted, the plane failed to gain adequate height and crashed into the fence surrounding the airport and then into a house. Now every year on this day Manchester United holds a memorial to the people who lost their lives in the Munich air disaster.

2. 2006 World Cup Final produced one of the most famous moments in football history, when Zidane's head-butted on Italian defender Marco Materazzi. It was Zidane's last international appearance for the French national team and 3 billion people around the world were watching it. The next day newspapers all over the world were not writing about how Italy won their 4th World Cup title, but they were writing about how Zidane pulled the "stunt" on Marco. Definitely that was one of the biggest moments in the history of football.

1. Edison Arantes do Nascimento, aka Pele, the world's most famous name in football. Football is probably the most famous sport in the world, and Pele is the man who made it what it is today. Pele made 669 appearances in club football, scoring 626 goals. He also made 92 appearances for Brazilian National football side and scored 77 goals. He made his first club appearance when he was just 15 years of age. He made his first international appearance for Brazil when he was 16, and won his first World Cup when he was just 17. Pele is hailed in Brazil as a national hero. The number one moment in football history is when Pele managed to score his first international goal for Brazil, just three month before his 17th birthday.

TOP 10 Moments in Football History

10 Things You Didn't Know About Espanyol Football Club

1. RCD Espanyol de Barcelona is said to be the sixth most successful football team in Spain, despite being continually overshadowed by the ever-popular FC Barcelona.

2. This was the first club to be formed exclusively by Spanish fans, unlike clubs like FC Barcelona, which were founded by immigrants. Ángel Rodríguez founded the club with the help of his school mates from the University of Barcelona.

Chelsea FootballClub

3. The blue and white stripes on the shirt colors that were adopted in 1910 were inspired by the colors on the Catalan Admiral Roger de Lluria's shield. The admiral had sailed the Mediterranean during the Middle Ages in protection of Catalonia's interests.

4. The team has won a total of four cup titles through the years 1929, 1940, 2000, and 2006.

5. The current team of Espanyol FC started out playing in a large field near the Sagrada Familia before it moved to Sarnia and later to the Olympic Stadium. A new four star stadium, which will become the permanent home of the club, is currently under construction. The new stadium will have all the latest modern amenities including steps toward energy efficiency and handicapped accessibility.

6. In 1912, King Alfonso XIII awarded the club his patronage, giving them the right to use the "Real" (Royal) title as well as to depict the crown in their crest. The club changed its name to Real Club Deportivo Espanol, but changed it again several times due to external influences arising from the conflict in Spain.

7. Espanyol FC won its first Spanish Cup in 1929 when playing against Real Madrid in a 2-1 victory. History repeated itself in 1940 when they won their second Spanish Cup, once again while playing against Real Madrid, scoring a 3-2 victory.

8. When the Professional Football League, La Liga had just been formed in 1929, Pitus Prats scored the first goal in the competition's history. This was reminiscent of the first goal scored in Spanish Cup history, a victory achieved by Ponz.

9. In 1992, Espanyol Club became a sportive joint stock company.

10. In the summertime, Espanyol FC opens the doors of its Sporting City, where the players train and play matches, to the children of Turbula School for a sporting summer camp. The Club also runs a football school where children train and engage in competitions for internal trophies.

10 Things You Didn't Know About Espanyol Football Club

Liverpool Football Club - A Positive Outlook

LFC

LFC - You'll Never Walk Alone

Chelsea FootballClub

Welcome to the first edition of The LFC Times which is a new, independent view of the events at Liverpool FC.

I have written a number of blogs on a wide range of subjects related to LFC, as well as being a regular contributor to posts in the LFC website fans forum, simply because Liverpool Football Club is my passion and just like millions of other fans worldwide, I have very firm views on everything to do with this world sporting icon that I happen to love very much.

However, this new project is designed to be more than just another blog and more than can be achieved within existing forums. The purpose of this new, online voice is to counter the vast amount of negative material that is being written and spoken about Liverpool FC by presenting an honest, forthright viewpoint of events at Anfield. The Story So Far.........

Let me see. It goes a little like this:

* The tactics are wrong

* The manager is old school, whose failed ideas are rooted in a previous generation that is not compatible with football today

* Our team is too old

* Our players are not good enough

* We have no chance of winning anything

* We were outfought and outclassed by Manchester City when we played them

* We need another striker

When you consider all the 'expert opinion' that has been written and spoken about LFC since the start of the season, it is a wonder that we are bothering to even turn up this season.

On top of all that, there is the ongoing saga of 'The Takeover' which is currently an issue that has gone very quiet but which seems to be a source of so much depression amongst LFC supporters.

It seems that whenever I pick up a newspaper or tune in to the television or radio, someone is voicing an opinion that amounts to "The King is dead. Long live The King"

Well, if you don't all mind, I think that rumours of the death of LFC are a little premature. We are alive and well and I have every reason to believe that L4 will soon be buzzing again.

The media have an agenda, or several agendas, actually and the trouble at the moment is, that so many people are being sucked in by the poisonous words that they are spouting.

Let us look at the first 10 games that we have to play, in the Premier league, this season. Arsenal and Chelsea at home plus Man City, Birmingham, Everton and man Utd away, that's 6 really tough away fixtures in the first 10 matches, not to mention Bolton, a notoriously difficult away fixture for any team. If you count that one as well, that makes 5 tough, uncompromising away fixtures plus 2 very tough home fixtures.

Given that sort of start to a season, I would be happy if, at the end of that run, we had only lost a couple of matches and were within 6 to 9 points of a top four place. Currently we are 2 points from that goal!

Let me repeat that.

After what the pundits are describing as a wretched start to the season, we are just 2 points away from 4th place. Hmmm.... awful start eh?

Shankley

How come, I wonder, no one seems to be writing about the early demise of Spurs and free spending man City? Have you had a look at their league position? Taken a peek at how many points they each have?

Well, just in case you haven't, let me enlighten you.

Man City and Spurs both have 5 points, which is exactly the same as....... erm...... Liverpool! And Villa have 6. Add in to that the fact that Everton have 2 points and you can see that, apart from Chelsea and Arsenal, none of the expected top 8 clubs have yet performed this season.

I don't, however, see or hear the same terminal diagnosis for any of the other slow starters.

Liverpool, though, have become the number one, easy targets and so, this onslaught is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Allow me to explain why...

Firstly, they make an easy story. Journalists don't even have to think. All they need to do is rewrite all the old stories, over and over again. Stories about the failings of LFC are easy to write but have you noticed, when you read and listen to this stuff, that there is nothing new or original about any of it?

* Torres has never recovered from his injury

* Torres is lazy and disinterested

* Liverpool are short of quality and have a weak squad

* The manager doesn't seem to know what he is doing

* Our players are lacking in motivation

These same old phrases keep getting written and rewritten by every Tom, Dick and Harry without any thought, research or imagination whatsoever.

Let's have a look at Liverpool's strongest 11:

Steven Gerrard

Reina, Johnson, Carragher, Skrtel, Koncheski, Kuyt, Gerrard, Meireles, Maxi, Cole, Torres.

Then let's look at the choice of subs: Agger, Kyrgiakos, Aurelio, Lucas, Poulson, Pacheco, Kelly, Ngog, Babel, all of which are either established full international players or Under 21, promising and talented young players and I have left a few out, too.

That makes 20 players who are somewhere between good and brilliant.

So, spare me the rubbish about the quality of our players. They are more than good enough for the top 4 this season.

Next we have the backlash from 4 successive decades of being one of the top sides in England, and for 2 of those decades we were THE top side in England, Europe and, truth be told, probably the world, at club level. During that time, in fact, we probably would have beaten most international sides.

So, there are a lot of reporters and ex players out there with an axe to grind, who have been waiting 20 to 30 years for Liverpool to stumble, just so they could gloat and exact some revenge. Most of those are part of the southern press machine.

And finally, we have the awful PR job that we have carried out these past 3 years, meaning that some of what we are currently receiving is to be expected.

Our owners have made a right pig's ear of overseeing club business matters, we had a chief executive (Rick Parry) who just made matters worse by being inept in the transfer market and then we had Rafa, the subject of some sort of misplaced and misguided folklore status by so many of our supporters.

Rafa, with his smug, self serving media attitude did us a lot of harm and brought a lot of the poor perception of LFC down upon us himself. Had he been a bit more media friendly, I am convinced the press image of us would be much better than it has been.

Having said that, lets look at what we have won during the past 5 years:

* Champions League

* FA Cup

* Super Cup

* Charity Shield

Then, on top of that, we have been League Cup runners up, Premier League runners up, World Club runners up and Champions league runners up as well, plus Champions League semi finalists and Europa League semi finalists.

How bad is that, eh?

Last season we lost 19 matches in all competitions and so is it any wonder that we have started off in an uncertain manner? The squad has had to exist through endless rumours of takeovers, a new manager, the loss of 2 very influential players, plus continual speculation (again, magnified by the media) about key players and then, we have new players who need time to settle into the team and the team is having to get used to new personnel on and off the pitch, new ideas, new ways of doing things.

You don't go from losing 19 matches to suddenly playing great football all in one seamless movement. It takes time.

The first thing is that a team needs to tighten up and become hard to beat, which we are in the process of achieving, in my view and then, from that comes confidence. Then, bit by bit, that confidence grows and shows itself in the type of football that is played.

On top of that, new players have to bed in and the manager has to discover, through trial and improvement, through experimenting, which combinations of players is the best suited to achieving what he wants.

It just takes time.

But be in no doubt. The players are plenty good enough. The manager is good enough. The fans are good enough.

Let's give the team and the manager a break. Let's be patient and see out the first 10 matches and then, once they are out of the way and once the early season international fiasco is over, maybe we will start to see the revival become stronger.

I am most certainly not walking alone. Remember, we are LFC. We are proud, we are strong, we are knowledgable and we are passionate.

Bring it on!

Liverpool Football Club - A Positive Outlook

Barcelona Football Club - The New Line Up For 2007-2008

Players in:

Thierry Henry, Arsenal (£16.1m)

Chelsea FootballClub

Yaya Toure, Monaco (£6.1m)

Eric Abidal, Lyon (£10m)

Gabi Milito, Real Zaragoza (£12.1m)

Players Out:

Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, Feyenoord (Free)

Maxi Lopez, FC Moscow (£1.3m)

Javier Saviola, Real Madrid (Free)

Ludovic Giuly, Roma (£2m)

Belletti, Chelsea (£3.7m)

Motta, Atletico Madrid (undisclosed)

The summer transfer window saw some interesting activity for Barcelona, including the signing of Thierry Henry from Arsenal after months of speculation. This addition to Barcelona's strike force should create a wealth of opportunities up front, although Henry has admitted to finding it difficult to get used to Barça's style of play, but his versatility should eventually work to the Catalan team's advantage.

Yaya Toure and Eric Abidal were also signed in the same week, arriving from Monaco and Lyon respectively and with Gio leaving for Feyenoord it seems that Abidal was brought in as a direct replacement. The club also signed Gabi Milito from Real Zaragoza to replace Motta who departed for Atletico Madrid.

Another player to depart was Maxi Lopez, who had been on loan to Mallorca during the last season. With Henry arriving on the scene the chances of first team appearances for Maxi didn't look good and so he made a move to FC Moscow. Saviola and Giuly were in a similar situation, the former moving to Real Madrid on a free transfer and the latter moving to Roma. Both players found themselves under utilised last season and the arrival of both new players and up and coming homegrown talent up front they seemed unlikely to do much this year.

Back in defence, Belletti finally moved to Chelsea after finding it hard to compete for a first team place with Zambrotta and Motta was put on the transfer list after apparently falling out with coach Frank Rijkaard. Eventually he was signed to Atletico Madrid on a one-year deal.

The summer also saw the emergence of two players from Barcelona's youth team who are beginning to mark on the first team. Giovani dos Santos is considered a wunderkind comparable with Ronaldinho, while Bojan Krkic, aged just 17, is hailed as one of the most exciting up and coming strikers in the game.

Barcelona Football Club - The New Line Up For 2007-2008

The Oldest Football Club In Wales

Wales oldest football team are the Cefn Druids Football Club, originally known as Plasmadoc Football Club they are believed to have been formed in 1869, which makes them the oldest football team in the World outside of England.

A few years after they formed, Plasmadoc were renamed as 'The Druids', as several of the local mining and quarry teams from the North Wales area, were amalgamated into one team. Six players from the Druids were selected to play for the Wales national team in their first ever international match when they played Scotland in 1876.

Chelsea Football Club

The Druids joined the Welsh League in 1890, but at that time they were also allowed to compete in English competitions, including the FA Cup, although they never actually won the trophy, they did beat Bolton Wanderers in the fourth round of the competition in 1882/83, before losing to Blackburn in the quarter finals of the cup, who then went onto win the trophy.

The Druids have been more successful in the Welsh cup, winning the trophy eight times, and have been runners up in the competition a total of eleven times, the Druids also became the first team to win the Welsh Cup for three seasons in succession, from seasons 1880-1882.

In total, thirty players from the Druids have represented the Welsh national team, but the last of these was in 1904. With the development of the English league, the Druids suffered as a result, with many of their more talented players opting to leave and play for English teams in the football league.

By 1920 the club were struggling and they formed a combined team with Rhosymedre to become Rhosymedre Druids, they merged again in 1923 with Acrefair United then being known as Druids United, and by 1930 they had dropped out of the Welsh league and began playing in the Wrexham & District League.

There was a slight resurgence for the Druids during the 1950s, and in 1957 reached the Welsh Amateur Cup final, but lost after a replay. The Druids also moved to a new ground at Cefn Mawr, and played a friendly match against a Manchester United team, to commemorate their first match at the new ground, a United team that contained a young player by the name of George Best.

Druids United didn't really improve, and things became worse when a new local team were formed in 1967 by the name of Cefn Albion, an arch rivalry was immediately formed, but this didn't prevent the newly formed Albion team winning several trophies. All talk of a merger was fiercely resisted, until 1992, when both teams were persuaded to merge and formed Cefn Druids Football Club and it was decided at that time they would wear the original the black and white colours of the 1869 Plasmadoc club.

Following new sponsorship and management, Cefn Druids were promoted to the League of Wales in 1999 and in 2002 reached the semi-final of the Welsh Cup, however after narrowly avoiding relegation for two season, they were finally relegated from the Welsh premier league.

The Druids finally departed their home ground of Cefn Mawr after more than fifty years at the beginning of the 2010-11 season, after the construction of a new stadium called 'The Rock' was completed, the stadium has a 2,000 spectator capacity and will hopefully see a new era for the oldest club in Wales.

The Oldest Football Club In Wales

Manchester United FC is Every Football Player's Dream Club

Manchester United FC (Football Club) is one of the greatest football clubs in the world. An English Premier League football club, the home ground of MU is at Old Trafford in Greater Manchester. Manchester United FC was formed in 1878 as Newton Heath and in 1892 the club joined the Football League. Manchester United has been playing in the top division of English football since 1938. The only years it didn't play was in the 1974-75 season.

Today, Manchester United FC is the reigning champions of the English Premier League since they won the 2008-09 Premier League Championship Trophy. It is considered as one of the most successful football clubs in the history of English football. Since 1986, the team has won 22 major honors under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson. In 1968, Manchester United became the first English club to win the European Cup after they defeated Benfica 4-1. They won the European Cup for the second time in 1999 followed by another win in 2008. They finished as the runner-up in 2009. Manchester United FC holds the joint record for maximum number of English league titles and FA cup wins with the former being 18 and the latter being 11.

Chelsea Football Club

This football team is also considered as one of the richest clubs in the world since the late 1990s. Currently, it is ranked as the most valuable as well as richest club in any sport across the world and has an overall estimated value worth £1.136 billion (.870 billion/EUR1.319 billion). Known to its fans as the "Red Devils", the current manager of Manchester United FC is Sir Alex Ferguson and captain is Gary Neville.

The Manchester United club was known as Newton Heath L&YR F.C. in 1878 and went almost bankrupt in 1902. It was saved from bankruptcy by J. H. Davies who was the managing director of Manchester Breweries. The club came to be officially named as Manchester United on 26 April 1902. Davies then changed the club's colors from white and navy to red, white and black, which is symbolic in modern football.

Since 1904, The Red Devils have been winning and losing in different seasons till Matt Busby was appointed in 1945 as the manager. Busby had innovative ideas and they paid rich dividends in the form of the club's performance. Manchester United finished second in the English league in 1947, 1948 and 1949 and won the FA Cup in 1948. The Red Devils went on to win the league again in 1956 and at that time the average age of the players was 22. The players scored as many as 103 goals through the championship. Known as the Busby Babes and led by Duncan Edwards, they went on to win the league again in 1956-57. The team also became the first team to compete in the European Cup. Manchester United on their way to the semi-final defeated Belgian Champions Anderlecht 10-0 and till this day, it stands as their biggest ever win in any competition.

The team was nearly wiped out by the Munich air disaster on 6 February 1958 but what didn't get wiped out was the spirit of the Red Devils. Even today, the clock at Old Trafford shows the time of the crash but since then the team was created from scratch and they went on to win the FA cup in 1963 and the UEFA Champions League in 1968.

Manchester United FC is Every Football Player's Dream Club

Hull City Football Club - City Independent Fanzine Review

City Independent is a website and fanzine solely devoted to Hull City Football Club. Established back in the 1990s as an original printed format style of fanzine, CI continues to grow and develop in the modern era and boasts the largest independent internet community for City fans from all around the world, while maintaining its traditional roots with a periodic magazine during the football season. Unsurprisingly, it is little wonder that when Hull City fans want an up to date and irreverent read about their football club, they continually turn to City Independent first.

So, how did it all begin?

Chelsea FootballClub

City Independent began life as a collective of three Hull City fans keen to provide an independent voice for supporters in the mid 90s. Today, only one of the original editors remains in place, but the editorial team now consists of two ardent City supporters. The very first issue of the magazine was published over a decade ago, but even to this day, the fanzine version of CI continues to be sold to fans before, during and after home games.

What happened next?

Despite a clutch of competition - as was the current trend at the time in the 90s - all other printed variations of Hull City fanzines fell by the wayside. Now, City Independent is the ONLY fanzine that can still be found in magazine format - and continues to thrive with almost 100 issues put into circulation since inception, exclusively dedicated to the Tigers.

And now?

With the expansion of the internet and modern technology as it is today, City Independent has kept pace with the ever changing times. From primitive begins as an independent website, as City forums go, CI has now established itself as the number one place for news, views and opinions with a wide range of interesting articles, video interviews and audio clips to keep readers bang up to date with news on Hull City Football Club in a modern, fluent website environment.

Hull City Football Club - City Independent Fanzine Review

Do Football - Soccer Players Get Paid Too Much Money?

I saw the other day a club chief executive moaning about the wages the club pays to the players at the club, I can't remember who he was but it just annoyed me. There he was smoking a big cigar, driving a brand new Bentley, doing nothing for the club, bar taking a big fat pay packet of his own while not actually getting out on the pitch and making a difference for the club.

Now don't get me wrong I think he had a point. There are players at every club that just because they are being paid at all means they are receiving too much. But it's the fact that the people that are telling us players get too much are the ones that are taking money away from the game that makes me think that maybe players are not getting paid too much.

Chelsea FC

Though having said that a lot do get riches beyond the amount their ability deserves. A few examples spring to mind immediately: Robbie Savage, Ok a good player but is he really that good, that he is able to afford to drive a Ferrari? Not in my eyes he's not. He is far too busy play acting for my liking. Then there is Tim Sherwood, Ok he may of won a League Championship medal while at Blackburn but was he really anything other than a good player?

Again I would say no, he was just lucky to be playing in the EPL before the big star influx raised the level of ability needed to make it. but at a time when the big money had entered the game. But in my view the biggest example of an overpaid footballer is Ian Walker, surely the worst 'keeper the EPL has seen, even when he dropped down a flight with Leicester he was no better than average.

However, when you see the likes of Gianfranco Zola, Thierry Henry, Ronaldinho and Pavel Nedved. These are players that make a match worth watching just to see them, it doesn't matter what team they play for it's all about them and their ability to produce magical skills that make your jaw drop in admiration.

Maybe a better answer to the question would be yes some are, but no others are not. Though of course that doesn't make for good headlines when a player signs a new contract.

Lets be honest how many Manchester United fans begrudge Roy Keane a single penny he made from the club? But that didn't stop the newspapers whining about the massive sums he was making, well so what? It is nothing compared to the sums that the likes of Martin Edwards made from Manchester United yet Edwards was not the one out on the pitch knowing that his career could be over tomorrow if he receives a bad challenge.

Sometimes I think its just jealousy that creates these headlines about overpaid players, or maybe its just a complete lack of anything interesting to write that leads to it? Either way I would rather they gave both sides of the story before whinging about it. I mean how about a list of the directors and shareholders of a club and how much they took in wages, bonuses and dividends? So that we can have a reference point to compare player's wages to. I would especially like to know how much the likes of Peter Ridsdale made from Leeds.

To my mind the only way forward is to take clubs back into the hands of the fans, like Wimbledon AFC and FC United. Let's have all their finances completely transparent, and get rid of agent's involvement in transfers. Surely the PFA could offer that as one of their services to their union members, after all they certainly have the money. Surely all clubs need to do transfers between themselves is a solicitor, a representative and an FA, UEFA or FIFA or whoever representative to make sure it is all legal and above board.

I know this will never happen as too many people are busy creaming off money from the game to line their own pockets. But at the end of the day it should be about the fans - the players should all be on performance based contracts so they can earn massive amounts but only if the club does well and the ticket prices should be as low as possible so that as many fans as possible can afford to go.

Still this will never happen because too many people would lose out and at the end of the day football is no longer a sport it is a business and that will unfortunately never change.

Do Football - Soccer Players Get Paid Too Much Money?

5 Christmas Gifts For A Football Fan

Gift Number 1 - Football Shirt

One of the best gifts you can get a football supporter is the latest strip of the club that they support so for example if the support Arsenal then you would want to either buy the an Arsenal shirt or go all the way and buy them the full Arsenal kit. This is probably the number one gift you could get them and the fact is there are many good deals online for official football strips.

Chelsea Football Club

Gift Number 2 - Football Match Ticket or Season Tickets

Depending on your budget you could either get someone a football match ticket for the team that they support or you could also look at getting them a season ticket for the team they support. This would be very expensive so you would have to have quite a high gift budget to be able to get them a season ticket. So if they support Arsenal then you would buy them an Arsenal match ticket or an Arsenal season ticket.

Gift Number 3 - Football Merchandise

There are great little gifts that you can buy which are ideal for stocking fillers such as branded cups, mugs, scarf's, hats and stationary which again you would want to buy them for the football team they support.

Gift Number 4 - Car Accessories

For many people in the UK the two biggest passions they might have are cars and football and so combining them together is always a good Christmas gift idea. There are many car accessories for football fans such as car mats, window covers, seat covers and many more. A lot of fans like to deck their cars out in their football teams colours on the day of an important match to show their support.

Gift Number 5 - Football Documentaries and DVD's

This is a nice gift for a stocking filler as DVD's and documentaries are normally very well priced especially if you can find some good deals online. There are many good DVD's released each year on many of the big teams such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United etc so these are always a good buy if they support them. Alternatively you can get them a more generic gift such as the best goals DVD for 2009 or any football related DVD.

As you can see there are many good options to buy football fans gifts related to football. The one thing you need to make sure is that you buy them the gift for the right football team as they will not be happy if you get them a football shirt for the wrong team.

5 Christmas Gifts For A Football Fan

Chelsea Football Shirts - Show Your Support For the Blues

The new English Premier League Season has begun and many of you are glued to it every weekend. Some of you are lucky enough to witness these matches live in the stadium. But it's as much fun if you are watching them at home with your family or at the local pub with your mates. There is nothing more uplifting than a thrilling game of football. You don't even have to be an active participant, just being a spectator gives you such an adrenaline rush and drives your blues away.

Speaking of blues, you can only think of Chelsea Football Club, England's top team that dominated the season last year and has successfully challenged the might of Manchester United in the last few years. Things are looking bright this season as well and if you are a supporter, are you ready with your Chelsea Shirt to cheer on your team?

Chelsea Football Club

Chelsea has an illustrious history of over a century to boast of; the club has won dozens of trophies and produced some sensational players of their times. This year is no different. The names wearing Chelsea Football Shirts include the likes of Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and John Terry. As loyal fans, you will be wearing your Chelsea Shirt with pride every time the team goes on the field and showing your allegiance to your favorite team.

Chelsea's fan base is not restricted to the UK but goes far beyond into remote pockets of Africa and Asia. In fact, people all over the world are watching the team with keen interest. So why should access to the prestigious Blue jersey be restricted to lucky ones living in the UK?

When it comes to football shirts cheap imitations that you can find in any town centre all over the world just don't cut it. If your passion is real the shirt should be authentic as well to go with it. That's why you need to look at online options to buy your Chelsea Football Shirts.

Benefits of buying football shirts online are:

You don't have to settle for cheap imitations but get original shirts and wear them with aplomb.

You might be based in a rainforest in Africa or on top of some mountain in Asia, it is still possible to get your favorite team's football shirt. What's more it will be delivered to your doorstep because online retailers are known to have excellent distribution system.

You can have shirts with your favorite player's name and jersey number printed on it. When it comes to your love for Chelsea, it's no less than Lampard's or Terry's.

You can buy half sleeve shirts, full sleeve winter shirts, home and away shirts, and the special Champions League jerseys all at the same time.

You can make bulk buys for your friends and family and avail of handsome discounts.

You don't have to restrict yourself to shirts but can buy other club merchandise as well.

If you are a true blue Chelsea supporter prove it in style.

Chelsea Football Shirts - Show Your Support For the Blues

Real Madrid - One of the Best Football Clubs of the Century

Real Madrid is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. It is the most successful team in Spanish football and was voted by FIFA as the most successful club of the 20th century, having won a record thirty-one La Liga titles, seventeen Spanish Cups, a record nine European Cups and two UEFA Cups.

Real Madrid was founded in 1902 and has spent all of its history in the top flight of Spanish football. In the 1940s, the club, the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium and the Ciudad Deportiva were rebuilt following the Spanish Civil War. During the 1950s, the club was reckoned as a major force in both Spanish and European football.

Chelsea Football Club

In the 1980s, the club had one of the best teams in Spain and Europe, winning two UEFA Cups, five Spanish championships in a row, one Spanish cup and three Spanish Super Cups. The team plays on home ground in an all-white equipment. The team also has two more equipments: blue and black. Real's stadium is the 80,354-person-capacity Santiago Bernabeu in downtown Madrid, where it has played since 1947.

The club holds long-standing rivalries with some other clubs; the most notable of these is with FC Barcelona, the two teams regularly contesting the match called "El Clasico". Unlike most European football clubs, Real Madrid's members have owned and operated the club since its beginning. The club is the world's richest football club (EUR351million) in terms of revenue and the second most valuable (worth over EUR950million as of 2008 study).

Real Madrid - One of the Best Football Clubs of the Century

Swindon Town Football Club - A Brief History

Swindon Town Football Club is generally regarded as being formed in 1879, with the club becoming established as one of the leading clubs outside the Football League by the 1900's. Harold Fleming, good enough to be capped by England, helped the club to win the Southern League twice and also make runs to the FA Cup semi-finals.

When the Football League was expanded, Swindon Town Football Club were admitted a part of the new Third Division in the 1920, winning their first ever league game 9-1 against Luton, which remains a club record.

Chelsea Football Club

Swindon remained in the division for the next 43 years until finally clinching promotion into Division Two in 1963 with an exciting young team that included a future international in Mike Summerbee, plus other players who would go on to play in the top division. Two seasons later though, they were relegated.

The finest moment in Swindon Town Football Club history winning the League Cup at Wembley in 1969 against Arsenal after beating other top division sides on route. Swindon won the final 3-1 with winger Don Rogers, a cult hero at the club scoring twice. In the same season they returned to the Second Division.

The club gradually declined though and in 1983 dropped into the Fourth Division for the first time. The appointment of former Manchester United player Lou Macari engineered a transformation and by 1990, although Macari had moved on, Swindon were promoted to play in the top division of English football. They were relegated though, before the season had started after being found guilty of making payments to players that broke league rules.

Swindon, then managed by Glenn Hoddle, finally made it into the Premier League in 1993, but were relegated straight away.

The club has failed to recapture those heights since then, suffering from some poor managerial appointments and questionable decisions by owners, before coming under the chairmanship if Andrew Fitton. They now play in the third tier.

Swindon Town Football Club - A Brief History