Une Saison en Enfer - Ligue 1 and French Football thread 2010/11

http://www.virginmedia.com/images/sarkozy-wenger-brown.jpg

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Football/Pix/pictures/2010/6/21/1277132082601/The-France-squad-huddle-t-006.jpg

THEY'RE NOT READY

http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7813/zahiadehar.png

SHE MOST DEFINITELY IS READY

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_mCq2hJPW2-g/TD82cIs4Y7I/AAAAAAAAECg/xZgPkx_v1A0/s512/Henry%20New%20York%20Red%20Bulls%20(3).jpg

HE'S ALREADY GONE

I WASN'T READY. The Trophée des champions was last week (in Tunisia!) and I missed it. Nil-nil, Marseille beat PSG on penalties.

I HOPE JIBE AND BAADERONIX ARE READY because that's me all out of knowledge.

Starts tomorrow by the way.

In the US it looks like Fox Soccer Plus will be showing at least some Ligue 1 games. This Saturday they have PSG vs Saint Etienne (delayed) and on Sunday they're showing Bordeaux vs Montpellier (live).

Great Nike / Mamadou Sakho commercial with music by Oxmo Puccino

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmRJxn6cvKA

Caught the end of PSG-St Etienne just now. PSG playing some lovely passing stuff, albeit that St Et were pushing up and leaving room. Three very nice goals for a 3-1 win.

I didn't even notice the big story until injury time - OM getting their title defence off to a flying start by losing 2-1 at home to newly-promoted Caen. All goals at least partly down to blunders from what I could see, though by all accounts Caen were good value for it.

Spurs have supposedly offered Nice £7m for Loic Remy. Can't say I know the chap. Any good?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/LoïcRemy.jpg/250px-LoïcRemy.jpg

Here's a picture of him (in the foreground)

yes i need to know more about this guy- pacy/strong/tricky?

"new Thierry Henry".

also hey there le guys!

supporting... lille this season. anyone else going to pick a team? (some already have some obv.)

Yeah okay - I'll have PSG, they looked tasty from the little I saw of them on Saturday (feel like I'm going against everything I hold dear here)

Depressed by news that Newcastle are haggling over taking Ben Arfa on loan. Jibe was quite enthusiastic about him iirc

shall we do spain/italy/germany/general 'other' threads as well?

Maybe one general thread for the others unless we can recruit local knowledge, and treat this as a pilot scheme meantime?

Does the season start everywhere else this weekend? One of the channels I don't get seemed to be promising live Russian footy this afternoon.

D'oh, forgot they play through the summer instead.

As captain of les Bleus in the summer, it has been said by certain pundits in the French media that Evra lacked leadership in his role, with former defender Thuram particularly critical of the part the Manchester United man played in South Africa, where the French team even went on strike from one training session.

“He has sullied my name without knowing what had happened,” Evra raged in Le Figaro. “What we did in South Africa was serious. Why put the oil on the fire? It is not enough to walk with books on slavery, glasses and a hat to become Malcolm X.”

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2890/world-cup-2010/2010/08/09/2062476/insert%20url

^ wtf is this dude lately imo

eh nakh not evra.

hopefully you mean where tf and not what tf.

also loooooooool evra.

evra seems to have become quite anglicized

as a player he's gone from a kinda haphazard lw/lwb at monaco to a committed and tenacious defender

and this takedown of self-appointed spokesperson for the subalterns / talmudic voice of reason thuram is very much in keeping with that english habit for cutting ppl down to size

altho his contretemps w/ the fitness coach was very french

he's better than ashley cole too isn't he

he's not as good going fwd, better at the back. they're much of a muchness.

takedown of thuram is pure french imo

haha evra's expression

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Football/Pix/pictures/2010/6/21/1277132082601/The-France-squad-huddle-t-006.jpg

if they could only take their hands out of their fucking pockets that wd be a suitable template for a late renaissance depiction of political conspirators

Haha, that's it exactly! I hadn't even noticed Evra's face. Needs sidelighting & deep shadows, but otherwise perfect.

firembrandts

And so, inevitably, les bleus begin the new era by going down 2-1 in Oslo. The starting XI boasted 35 caps between them, of which Mexes and Nasri had 28. Eight players made debuts tonight.

L'Equipe is pretty happy with the outcome - decent going forward, a bit ropey at the back seems to be the verdict.

Caen are having a storming start to season - having beaten Marseille last week, this week they turn Lyon over 3-2. a hoy hoy's Lille taking on ismael's PSG right now - a fairly mundane 0-0 at half-time.

Back from holidays and ready to help keep this thread alive ismael! Well maybe not right now since I haven't seen a single game from this new season obv, as the Ligue 1 is not really one of the championships to be broadcast around the world.However, I can comment a bit on a couple of teams who aren't up to par right now: Lyon and Marseille.
In the offseason, Lyon has let go of a number of players (Boumsong, Clerc, Govou) who were amongst the highest salaries in the team and Ligue 1 for some. They've only bought one player, Jimmy Briand, from Rennes, as a replacement for Govou. They also have a number of young players from their academy, some of whom apparently had a good U19 or U21 (can't remember which it was) Euro. One of the main changes tho, is that Toulalan will move down the field and play central defender. Which, in my mind is fucking stupid. He's the best defensive midfield in France imo and Puel puts him in defense. Meaning that Lovren, who Lyon bought in Jan for 10M€ iirc stays on the bench (well right now, Cris is injured, so I guess Lovren will get to play). Add to that the fact that right now Lisandro is injured, Ederson just sustained a big injury while playing for Brazil (aproximately 5mns after setting foot on the pitch) which will keep him off the fields for a few months at least, Delgado is injured. And in their last game, Cris and Bastos were injured too. So Lyon is going to field a young team in the upcoming games. Apparently, they don't have too much money to buy players so they'll remain quiet. Or at least that's what was expected, but with all those injuries, they might buy a player or too. Anyways, as much as I want to see them do well in Ligue 1 and the Champions League, it doesn't look likely right now. Especially since from what I've read here and there, they still play like they did last year, which means they control the ball but are unable to build chances for themselves.

Marseille.... last season's champions. What can I say? Marseille is known for always being in the news for this and that and this offseason has been no different. Just like about every offseason since forever, the management has talked about buying a great striker. This year apparently, they were in talks to buy Luis Fabiano but it looks like it's not going to happen. There was also some terrible management this summer. Niang was supposed to stay in Marseille and would not be sold whatever the price, Ben Arfa was told he could leave if a club made a decent offer for him. That was in the beginning of the summer. Now, Niang is gone to Fenerbahce and Ben Arfa, who Newcastle made an offer for, is told that he has to stay. He now refuses to practice and play with Marseille, saying that Marseille shouldn't have gone back on their word like they've done. Playing outside of France, far from the gaze of spectators who always expect the most from him since he's been presented as a boy wonder for the past 5 or 6 years, would definitely do him some good I think.

Hatem Ben LOLfa

Is there a match of the day equivilant I can download every week btw?

Nice to have you back, Jibe. Where did you go on holiday?

Bordeaux having a shocker too, by the looks of things. Them, Marseille and Lyon - one point between them.

Anelka banned for eighteen matches, Evra for five, Ribery three and Toulalan one

a hoy hoy: Match of the day equivalent? I've never seen motd but I guess you're looking for a show with highlights from all the games. There's Canal+ Football Club that does this, every sunday at 7pm (which means no highlights from the sunday evening games tho)

ismael klata: went to thailand and cambodia. And yeah, most of the big teams expected to be on top are just not ready yet. Bordeaux and Marseille are in the relegationzone, Lyon is just outside of it, Lille isn't doing too good either (same as last year... and last year that cost them a spot for the Champions League). The big surprise is obv Caen with 6 points from 2 games against Marseille and Lyon. I'm also intrigued by PSG who seem to have spent their money cleverly this summer and who could play for the top spots if they don't go in full crisis mode like they usually do every year.

Is there a match of the day equivilant I can download every week btw?

i've never DL'd this Ligue1 2010-11 Matchday 2 Review WS PDTV XviD-433 but it sounds about like what you're looking for. around on trackers. not sure what language.

a hoy hoy, I could start a thread for the Bundesliga if there's interest.

Also: supporting Rennes this year, Metz in Ligue 2, although I have no great hopes for either (even though S.R.F.C. do seem to be off to a good start.)

Yeah, they're off to a good start but the problem with Rennes is that they're perpetual underachievers. They usually have the means and the players to end in the top 5 but they rarely end up there. They're a nice team tho

anelka seems amused by his 18 match ban

I could start a thread for the Bundesliga if there's interest

Are you in Germany? I'd have nothing to contribute, but yeah I'd be interested - always fascinating to learn something new. Plus I see that St. Pauli are back, everyone likes them.

He is very amused indeed. And I must say some of his comments have me laugh. There's one which wasn't put into the article linked by ismael which I found particularly great. Basically he says he doesn't care about this ban because "he already plays in blue every weekend with Chelsea"

french footballers give good quote imo

Ismael -- Yes, I'm in Germany. Starting Bundesliga thread now.

Here it is

Agreeing with Anelka that the bans are stupid

The bans are stupid but what else were they going to do?

May just watch the highlights on 101 great goals + stream that weeks most exciting match (am determined to watch all twenty teams - same goes for Bundesliga, except that only has 18 teams.)

The bans are stupid but what else were they going to do?

Travel back in time and fire Domenech after Euro 2008? I don't know - start working to towards the future instead of pointing fingers about the past - what's done is done. Dropping everybody from the friendly a week ago was enough.

Yeah and now everything is done with.

Plus France's future looks rosy enough, assuming we stop breaking their prospects.

Mmh, Marseille are close to an agreement with Nice to buy Loïc Rémy for 15M€. it seems they are also still in talks with Toulouse to buy Gignac (at a price that would be no less than 15M€ too, Sadran, the Toulouse president, hoping for 18M).

Hey Jibe - my friend is going to Cambodia for a couple months to teach/travel/etc. - any tips/cautions/advice/etc.?

wasn't Gouvou tipped to go somewhere big? What happened that he ended up at Panathinaikos, or have I got crossed wires somewhere?

he's shit

remy and (possibly) gignac are good signings imo

marseille could do alright in the cl this year

Rémy underwent a medical on the same day and signed a five-year contract.[27][28] He was presented to the press on 20 August.[29] The transfer fee is undisclosed, but is reported to be in the region of €15 million.[30]

During Rémy's press conference, Marseille president Jean-Claude Dassier revealed that during the player's physical, tests revealed that Rémy suffered from a possible heart defect. Rémy will miss the team's league match against Lorient on 21 August and further tests will be conducted on 23 August to determine whether the defect is career-threatening.

is this not bizarre...? why would the transfer still go ahead?

Nah that happens with players. Look at Kanu!

However, soon after returning from the Olympics, Kanu underwent a medical examination at Inter, which revealed a serious heart defect; he underwent surgery in November 1996 to replace an aortic valve and did not return to his club until April 1997.

That was 13 years ago! And he's still playing! And supposedly only 34!

Still eligible for the under-21s iirc too. The point is why would OM still sign him surely, with the risk it's not okay - maybe they reckon they've got cast-iron insurance in place?

idk, that wiki entry reads like inter had already signed him and they only discovered it after but maybe ur right.

i'm sure some players have had to retire from it though. but yeah the point was what klata said, especially since the test's only being done three days later anyway

yeah i know, i was just saying heart defects aren't nec. the end of a career. but this is a game where teams won't sign a player because their teeth are a bit wonky, so...?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asa_Hartford

in November 1971 a high profile transfer to Don Revie's Leeds United was cancelled when a suspected hole in-the-heart condition was found during a pre-transfer medical examination. He was eventually transfer listed by then West Brom coach Don Howe alongside favourites Len Cantello and Jeff Astle in April 1974 and his subsequent career made nonsense of the fears occasioned by Leeds' doubting staff.

He played for another 20 years after the discovery of the heart problem.

He also scored the first goal I ever saw

PSG-Bordeaux is looking like it might be pretty great. I really like the look of PSG so far.

PENALTY!

OH WAIT!

YELLOW CARD!

REPLAY - CAMARA SEEMS TO BE A FRENCH CARRAGHER?

I can't get the hang of this interviews-while-the-match-is-in-progress thing. Gourcuff basically confirming that he's played his last match for Bordeaux then trotting off to warm up is mighty strange.

lol

where is gourcuff going?

1-0! The third Diarra!

My stream makes my English commentator sound screwed and chopped, but the picture is fine.

I dunno - he has the talent to go almost anywhere but who actually is in for someone like him? Inter maybe if his agent is on the ball?

I don't think either of them said - he was just being very cagey while gazing shiftily into the middle distance and trying not to smirk. I haven't seen him linked with anyone recently.

That was a great header even if it looked rubbish in real time.

Haha, he's coming on now - already played his second-last match, he should've said.

HOREAU!

I have to say it is refreshing to see a black manager in a high profile job and also how depressing it is that I can't really think of another higher up than PSG.

Nene you nene! It was 3 on 1 and you cock it up!

Pretty sure Rijkaard could have any job he wanted, but yeah, glad to see you're not counting Newcastle. Though I guess black players only really started coming through in numbers from the early 80s onwards, so the relative lack of managers maybe isn't that strange just yet.

In Europe, obv, lest I look like I'm writing Brazil out of footy history.

Well yes Rijkaard is the greatest ever black manager isn't he? Or European at least.

Also yeah its not a big thing yet but if the black players of the 00s aren't given the same chance in coaching that the white ones are then I think we can start talking about it as an issue.

Poor Saint Germain :(

shocking defending.

Great game this was, I enjoyed it immensely even if my guys lost

Gourcuff to Man City seems to be the most prevalent recent rumour, depressingly. Lyon second most, though they have supposedly already conceded defeat.

City decided to buy English Milner instead.

Oops hadn't seen this thread! We wuz robbed last night by Bordeaux but still feeling quite good about this year's PSG

i kinda think i should follow ligue 1 more closely but i'm trying to watch less football this season

how good is ciani from bordeaux?

Very irregular. He was quite good at some points last season but he just fell apart after january iirc (much like the rest of his team tho).

Also breaking news, Gourcuff is officially a Lyon player. Can't wait to see him play for Lyon. Sad to say that I think Bordeaux is fucked.

!!!

how does that affect pjanic?

Not sure. I think midfield might be Makoun or Gonalons + Gourcuff and Pjanic. At least that's what I've seen here and there. And I think that could be great. If the defensive midfield can manage on his own (Toulalan could, not too sure about Makoun, and Gonalons is a bit of a liability at times, too aggressive and can easily get a red card), two playmakers in midfield might make Lyon able to build plays and not just pass the ball around uselessly like they've been doing these last few days. Can't wait to see Lyon play with Gourcuff+Pjanic!

How much for?

Also !!!

Did Lyon make the champions league in the end? They could do well again if they did.

22M€ + 4.5M€ bonus when they trade him. And yeah !!! Love the fact that there was talk of this happening at the beginning of the summer. Then no news. And two days ago this came back in the news and now it's official. Gourcuff will play again with his good pals from the French team, Toulalan and Lloris, who helped in getting him to come to Lyon. Apparently, during the World Cup, there were a few occasions on which they set Gourcuff up, like handing him a phone to talk with Lacombe or Aulas...

Yeah Lyon reached 2nd spot last season so are in the CL. They could even be in pot 1 for the draw if Sevilla doesn't make it.

seems like marseille and lyon both have talented and extensive squads now

i haven't seen enough of gourcuff (bordeaux once or twice in cl, a few terrible france matches) but i had the impression he could become a great playmaker - maybe not zidane but say rui costa or riquelme level, and with better defensive skills

He wasn't as amazing last season as he was the one before, when Bordeaux won the championship. That season, everything he tried worked and he scored a couple of amazing goals (see one against Paris, the other against Toulouse iirc). Yeah, I don't think he'll become the new Zidane even though that nickname has been bestowed on a couple of good young French players including him. Agree about the defensive skills, I think in Lyon he'll play a bit more down the field and be the link between defense and the strikers, bringing the ball up the field which is something that Lyon has not done too well of late.

yeah i remember lyon used to play a midfield like toulalan, makoun, kallstom with almost no attacking threat

So who is going to replace him? Or are Bordeaux just going to fill a swimming pool full of euros?

So this means that Lyon will probably sell Bastos to Inter or Real Madrdid. Not sure that's such a smart move

Rumour has it that Bordeaux is going to use this money to buy Cabaye from Lille and Gameiro from Lorient to replace Chamakh.
Also, not sure that Lyon is going to sell Bastos. The way I see it, the offers they have received for him are about equal to what they paid for him and it is not really like Aulas to let go of players for the price he got them for. Unless one of those clubs actually puts up big money I don't really think he's leaving. I hope he isn't at least.

Is Bastos any good then?

i was thinking of players who theo walcott could emulate and he's about the best of them

consistently prolific wing-forward, also an alright full-back for brazil (not so sure theo will get there tho)

+ quite alright taking FKs

Lyon's first game since they bought Gourcuff... and they lose 2-0 to Lorient. Gourcuff wasn't initially on the field, but after a Cesar Delgado injury around the 30 mn mark he came on. What is it with Lyon and countless injuries of a similar nature. Every season, for the past three seasons, there is one type of injury that plagues their players and this one is no exception. Anyways, only saw the 2nd half but was not too impressed by what I saw. First goal for Lorient apparently came off a Toulalan handball. I really wish Puel would bring him back to the midfield dammit, he's so much better there.

In other news, Toulouse is still on top of the ligue1 with teir fourth victory in as many games.

Are Toulouse any good? Dark horses seem to emerge, and then stay the course, better in Ligue 1 than pretty much any other league in Europe.

I guess whoever they replace Gignac with is the nuts then?

Arles 0-1 Rennes. Seems to have been a somewhat laborious victory for Rennes from what I read, but still, #2 ain't bad, so no complaints.

Toulouse in the past four seasons have finished 4rd, 13th, 4th, 14th or something to that effect. They are good , but I'd see them more as a 6-7th spot finish than top 3, though there often is an unexpected team towards the top of the table.
They replaced Gignac by getting Tafer on loan from Lyon. He's a young player, 19 or 20 iirc, played a few times for Lyon. Rumour has it that he's more talented than Benzema (but yeah, just a rumour). Also, Toulouse got lucky with Braaten, one of their players who scored in their 3 first games while being played as lone striker (not his usual place on the pitch).

JP Paclet, Les Bleus doctor between 1993 and 2008, has written a book, entitled L’Implosion, on his 15 years working within the French set up.

Anti-Domenech to the core – after being unceremoniously relieved of his duties in 2008 – he digresses and delves into a study of the concept of management (Lippi, Capello, Hiddink, Van Gaal, Zagallo, Eriksson), and elaborates on his theory that managing the French team has driven many a man to madness.

Sprinkled with interesting anecdotes, other central moments are the Thuram and Vieira cases of 2008, microcosms of the questionable medical methods and lingering ’98 legacy respectively.

Arguably the most potent element of the book surrounds the 1998 World Cup, and the suspect blood samples.

“Blood analyses taken just before the 1998 World Cup revealed anomalies (in the samples of) several Bleus. We can be reasonably suspicious when we consider the clubs where they played at the time, notably in the Italian Serie A.”

The two players inferred being the prominent Bianconeri duo, Zizou Zidane and DD Deschamps.

Paclet insinuates, without making any direct accusations.

“Everyone already knows this, I haven’t invented anything. Having a raised hematocrit (blood proportion in red blood cells) level didn’t explicity proved that they had taken Erythropoietin, and as we didn’t have any proof, we didn’t bother them (about it). It’s public notoriety that the methods practiced at Juventus at that time were bordering on the legal at the very least.”

The physical evolution of Zizou and Deschamps during their Juventus days have long since raised the eyebrows of protein shake-guzzlers.

It will be intriguing to follow how subjective the French media analyse and dissect these revelations. With both players retired, and now heralded as benevolent and sage-like bretheren of the ’98 generation, it will be convenient to keep schtum and propel the prostitution scandal to the forefront of the public eye.

“Thou hast it now, King, Gladis, all…..and I fear thou play’d most foully for’t.”

What’s done is done, eh.

PS. An anecdote that cannot go unmentioned: JP Paclet, while tending to Zizou’s dislocated shoulder, regards the approaching Marco Materazzi: “You’re not needed, piece of shit doctor! He’s dead, the old man. You understand? He’s dead!”

Winner Takes It All.

I don't get that last sentence.

me neither, i just c&p the whole thing

Seems we should understand that Materazzi said this after the final, walking past ZZ? Don't remember him having a dislocated shoulder though

That would make some sense yeah. Had the same problem understanding that quote.

Missed today's games, with the big clubs all still struggling. Bordeaux snatch a late equaliser against OM; while PSG lose again, well beaten 3-1 by Sochaux this time.

can I just

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FRSXVzv7aY

best thing: their kit is basically Wycombe Wanderers'

Materazzi-

"I could imagine that this Materazzi-Zidane story would be never-ending, but I didn't think people would randomly tell lies. Today I read the declarations of the French national team doctor at the 2006 World Cup and according to his account, when Zidane fell to the ground and dislocated his shoulder, I approached the 'shitty doctor' shouting at him that there was no use doing anything, because 'the old man was dead'.

I had no need to check because fortunately I have a good memory, but I like to be precise so I looked at the footage that Mr Paclet refers to: well, in the 79th minute of the match I didn't even approach the zone of the pitch where the doctor was aiding Zidane, and I didn't even speak to him.

I would like to know how and when Mr Paclet heard the phrase that he attributes to me and, above all, in which language he heard it, given that I don't know a word of French. Or maybe it's convenient for him to make it seem that he heard it from faraway, based on his perfect knowledge of Italian?

He's not the first person and perhaps he won't be the last to try and bring my name into disrepute, but perhaps he doesn't know that with me it doesn't work like this... Therefore, to protect my reputation and the truth, I have already instructed my lawyers to verify what is written in the book and reported in today's newspapers. If the contents are confirmed, I will continue with legal proceedings. Many things were said and written after that final, many false things. And the lawsuits I have brought forward, including those abroad, have always proved me right."

What, Zidane dislocated his shoulder in the final? I don't remember that at all.

falling to the ground apparently.

About that goal shown upthread (thanks acoleuthic), those are two teams playing in the Ligue2. Le Havre Athletic Club (team that scored the goal) is the oldest French football club. They're playing against Reims, team that used to be great in the 50-60s. They played a Champions' League final or two against Real Madrid way back when.

They're playing against Reims, team that used to be great in the 50-60s. They played a Champions' League final or two against Real Madrid way back when.

They beat the great Hibernian side of the 50s in the semi-final of the first ever European Cup - a reversal of that result might have led to a very different footballing landscape in Scotland and maybe in Europe.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/sportscotland/asportingnation/article/0043/print.shtml

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/2010-09-08-10805001_x.htm

French player deprived of license for being gay

Yoann Lemaire played with Chooz for 14 years but the club refused to renew his license this season to avoid "troubles" with his teammates after some of them made homophobic comments in front of TV cameras in 2009.

wait whut

http://efcchooz.nuxit.net/efcchooz/index.php

Google says this says ---
"The articles in the local press concerning only a few people and is within the scope of a criminal case in progress, it should all be careful of all this is said and written!

This is not going after anyone and because a club, it takes disparaged all that is done by volunteers, leaders, educators and players, a decision was made for the good of all and must be accepted as such!

Tolerance should not be one-way!"

o_O

(unofficial site, by the looks of it the official one is dead)

well if it was done for the good of all, and volunteers are involved, i guess there's maybe two sides to every story yknow

Seems there is more to this than "club bans gay guy for being gay" as they were positive towards gay rights not so long ago

http://journalistaward.stop-discrimination.info/fileadmin/ja08/Winning_articles/147_JA_EN.pdf

^interesting wee article about Chooz, Yoann Lemaire and France Foot Gay. They had an anti-homophobia benefit match a few years back.

The mayor’s office in Chooz became the first in France to sign up to the charter
against homophobia drawn up by Paris Foot Gay. The local football club is one of only
two clubs to have signed this same charter, the other being Paris-Saint-Germain. The
players sport a large logo, “Show homophobia the red card”, on their shirtsleeves.

just boring interpersonal issues then?

I think he's reacted badly to homophobic language directed at him and his team-mates think he should grin and bear it.

well there's obviously something there. not good stuff.

tho wtf the licence is being withdrawn for i dunno. haven't read in detail tho.

2nd half of Lyon vs Bordeaux starting now. Both teams are having shitty starts to the season (ranked 16th and 18th or somewhere thereabouts). neither team playing that great

1-0 to Bordeaux just now. Appalled by µLyon right now, have no clue what's happening to their football, but they are not bringing it today

Should be 2-0 as well in this bottom-of-the-table repeat of last year's Champions League QF. Worst example of offside I think I've ever seen - Bordeaux breaking three-on-three and their centre forward just runs away miles ahead of the retreating defenders to attract the ball and smash it home. Lovely finish and all, but it was real head-in-hands stuff.

Haha, awesome goal! Thought he'd totally screwed up there.

Fucking hell what a goal! Thought he'd missed his chance to score and then he does this.

God, Jean-Michel Aulas' face at the end of the game was very telling. Lyon were just awful through and through. I never was much of a fan of Puel as coach but he really needs to get his shit together. He's on his third year as coach and I don't think I've ever seen Lyon play well for a few consecutive games. They look like they have no strategy and tbh I'm still surprised that they managed to reach the CL semis last year.
Puel's time at Lyon is looking more and more like Domenech's with the French team btw. We keep being told that he needs a bit more time, that things will fall into place, that the way the team plays will improve, that he's having a tough time because his players keep getting injured etc. They both play with 2 DM (fucking hell, Toulalan+Makoun has almost never looked good in any way, yet both keep finding themselves on the field together). Honestly, I never had too much trust in Puel but i was willing to see what he could do with this team, especially with all the expenses he's been allowed (Lyon have spent upwards of 100M€ in the past 2 seasons). And yeah, this is the kind of shit that I end up watching. Lyon honestly looked like 11 headless chickens who didn't have a fucking clue what to do!

can't wait to see what we get from the lyon relegation fire sale.

You'll get nothing! I'm still willing to believe that they'll get by eventually, I mean there are so many good players on this team that they will beat enough teams during the season to end up with a qualifying spot for CL or Europa. Then kick out Puel, get a good manager and Lyon wins its first European title :D

start of a new era y'all - le jour de gloire, etc.

What's gone wrong at PSG? They looked very, very good first game of the season in beating St Etienne. But St Et are now clear at the top while psg languish.

haha, you'll get to know the PSG... promising starts and Autumn crisis is a long established pattern for the club

with some freak stories thrown in the mix. This year's is particularly odd: their GK Edel is being accused of identity theft!

?! The Police might want to take a look at the Arsenal bench while they're at it.

Actually, didn't Buffon get done for that years ago?

Googling shows no trace - recollection was that he got in trouble for 'impersonating a law student' circa 2000, whatever that entails. Why would I have a false memory like that?

Yeah PSG can't really have a season without some kind of crises during. But tbh I think they might do well ths season, notwithstanding the small slump there in. And if you look at the main title contenders, Lyon and Marseille, they're still behind PSG. And I'm starting to think that PSG might have made the best offseason deal of any team buying Nêné for only 5M€. I don't know his exact stats since the beginning of the season but he's already scored at least a couple of goals and made a few decisive passes non?

yeah Nene has been excellent - a bargain at that price.
There seems to be a problem with striker Erding, who can't put one in these days and generally seems to have a bit of a negative attitude problem

Yeah that. He was quite good last season, 3rd best goalscorer with around 16 goals iirc. I guess as soon as he scores one it'll make things better. Though yeah there is that attitude problem but Kombouaré looks to be the kind of coach who knows how to deal with that no?

lol i thought nene looked p average v. bordeaux although thats the only ligue 1 match i've watched so far this season.

yeah well this is ligue 1 we're talking about after all

Tsk, maybe he didn't have a good game that day. Also don't badmouth Ligue 1 please :D . I know it's not always amazing but I already have to endure listening to my friends doing that all the time and telling me how Chelsea like 6-0 drubbings are so much greater.

(you may not have been doing that btw but I just had to vent my feelings about poor ol' ligue 1 the not-so-great, cause I hear stuff like that all the time)

hehe - I hear you ;-)

Very important game for Lyon tonight playing against hated rivals St Etienne. This derby is not like the past ones tho, the tables have been turned: Lyon is 17th and St Etienne is on top of the standings (first time since 1982 or thereabouts for them), where we're more used to seeing Lyon, at least in the past decade.
Lyon hasn't lost the derby for 16 yrs running iirc. Its the 100th time both teams meet. Rumour has it that disgruntled Lyon fans have talked to players while they were training, telling them to drop the game so that Puel could be kicked out (ffs stupid fans, as much as you hate the coach, why would you even want your team to lose in a derby). Puel is not exactly doing too well and even though Aulas has said that he wouldn't consider this kind of talk until Lyon plays their 10th Ligue 1 game, a loss while playing like shit would obv not help Puel keep his job.

sad article about Charlie Davies' attempts to return for Sochaux:

http://www.socceramerica.com/article/39745/davies-comeback-is-painful-to-watch.html

it is sad yeah
sochaux is playing against marseille rn and taiwo scored a very nice goal just a few mins ago

(not sure if he was shooting for the goal or crossing but its a nice one nonetheless)

and lyon lose 1-0 to st etienne after completely dominating the game. struck the woodwork twice, two headers stopped on the line by st etienne defenders, a handball in the box not whistled, whereas st etienne got a freekick off a nonexistent foul, scored and that's about all they did during the game (ok, no at the tailend of the game they had a chance or two since lyon was all the way upfield trying franctically to score). Payet scored the freekick btw, very nicely done and he's now on 7 goals in 7 games, top scorer in ligue 1 - his previous best in an entire season being... 5 goals iirc.
really pissed about this defeat, lyon finally played well for an entire game and that's how they're rewarded. saw the game on a stream with no commentators, that was actually quite enjoyable just listening to the crowd. also allowed me to hear what jean-michel aulas (president of olympique lyonnais) said to the referees after the game, namely: "the freekick from which st etienne scored should not have been given, watch it again and you'll see for yourself", in a really scornful tone.
So lyon is now 19th in the ligue with 5 points in 7 games, with only Arles Avignon behind them (who still haven't scored a point). dunno how this season is going to end, but it's a painful start.
fun things about the game: lyon's second keeper was sent off without stepping foot on the field. two yellow cards while sitting on the bench. bastos hit a freekick so hard that it knocked out a st etienne player. and that's it. now i'll go punch a few things really hard. :(

*head in hands*

for some reason I thought it was on tomorrow night - I even read your post earlier and it didn't click. I've been working tonight and could easily have had it on in the background. Sounds like it would've been an entertaining watch (my sympathies, etc)

fun things about the game: lyon's second keeper was sent off without stepping foot on the field. two yellow cards while sitting on the bench.

explain?

srs, we have to buy loris from the relegation fire sale. (or reina obv.)

First yellow card for being too loud and annoying more or less. Second one AFTER the game ended, for being too pushy with the refs.
And we're keeping Lloris whatever happens. Anyways Lyon will not be relegated, srsly they played really well yesterday they just had no luck and that won't happen all the time (i hope). Go get Reina instead! Or some young gk from somewhere but not Lloris!

Congrats Lyon, grimly clinging on for a rare win.

Leaders St Etienne take on champions Marseille in a moment.

ooh, controversy - Marseille take the lead with an assist from the referee

Really good half that was. Marseille totally dominant in the period after the goal. St Etienne must feel like they're playing against twelve men out there.

Terrific game ends 1-1, probably the best I've seen this season so far.

Only saw the first half of Lyon's game. Not very convincing football but they ended up winning so that's that. Heard the St Etienne Marseille game was really good. Also, Ciani scored quite a nice goal for Bordeaux against Lorient (can't find a youtube link tho).

Here's that Ciani goal.

http://rutube.ru/tracks/3639432.html?v=20df8b3040c3268862826b17a8a4c705&autoStart=true&bmstart=11865

Also, after St Etienne on top of Ligue 1 for the first time in abt 30 years, we now have Rennes on top of Ligue 1 for the first time in abt 40 years, after their 3-1 win against Toulouse.

And we now have a new leader in France. This time its Brest, a newly promoted club. They'd reached the top spot only once before iirc, in the 80s. After a bad start (two defeats, 1 draw), they've managed to keep the opposing team scoreless for the past 8 games. Fun story about the club: in the 80s, their president was a bit of a show-off. While his club were in the relegation zone in the 80s, he went to Colombia to try and get Roberto Cabanas to sign for his club. He signed a contract over there, but the Colombians decided they wanted more money. They kept him for a few weeks before he manged to leave, taking Cabanas along with him. Also the guy who decided to hire Gonzalo Higuain’s father (which explains why Higuain jr was born in Brest and could have chosen to take the French nationality).

In other news, this weekend’s Marseille – Rennes was cancelled because there was too much rain, depriving Marseille of the chance to take top spot in Ligue 1. No date has yet been set to play this game. Good omen for Marseille fans since last year the same thing happened (they played their day 11 Ligue 1 game around day 35) and they won the championship for the first time in 18 yrs.

Ligue 1 does seem a remarkably even competition - Brest wouldn't be near the top in November in any other major league except maybe Germany. I feel like this has to be a good thing, but maybe it makes things too random to get excited about?

Well tbh this season is quite weird. usually, you have Lyon, Marseille and Bordeaux near the top of Ligue 1 (at least the past 2 yrs), with a surprise team close by (last year Montpellier). This season, Lyon is off to a horrendous start, Marseille has been struggling and winning ugly so is at the top of the table, but they haven't looked very convincing.
This season thus far has seen 4 or 5 different clubs at the top of Ligue 1 (Toulouse, Rennes, St Etienne, Brest now, maybe another club at some point), most of them for the first time since forever (St Etienne: 1st time in 20 or so yrs, Rennes: 1st time in 30 or so yrs, Brest: 1st time since the 80s). I still expect to see Marseille and Lyon in the CL qualifying spot at the end of the year though, maybe Lille too?
I find it to be very exciting personally, but there are a shitload of people who complain about that and tell us that the Premier League is so much better because you know the Big 4 is going to dominate, that La Liga is better because Barca/Real etc. I totally disagree with those people though. I love seeing surprising teams having their time at the top. Also, those people were the same ones who were complaining that Lyon kept winning, so I dunno what they want.

While I was walking to work this morning, I happened to see Raymond Domenech on a cycle. He looked kind of worried. But that makes sense because he is currently engaged in a trial with the Fédération Française de Football over his lay-off which he deems unfair (“ a political decision, not a jurisdictional one” in his lawyer’s words), for which he is claiming 2.9M €. His tenure as coach of France finished at the end of the World Cup, but he still had a job in the DTN, which is a part of the FFF, from which he was fired for serious misconduct (dunno how to translate faute grave), namely for : not shaking hands with South Africa’s coach at the end of their game, failing to disclose to the FFF’s president what had happened in the lockers with Anelka and for reading the players’ letter when they stayed in their bus instead of practicing.

Now, I may not have been a great fan of the way he handled the French team, but he is going against even worse incompetents than he has ever been. They had no reason to fire him except to please the public’s outcry against Domenech (probably the most hated man in France after the WC). All those things he was blamed for happened in his position as a coach, which he no longer is. Also, by firing him for serious misconduct (or whatever the equivalent term is), the FFF did not have to pay him severance. At that time, I’m sure they thought they were smart by doing this, but today, I’m pretty sure they must feel stupid because they know they fucked up and they’re almost certainly gonna have to pay him.

otm.
Funny, I saw Domenech in the street with Estelle last year pushing a stroller. I wonder how it must feel to be the most hated man in the country.

Must be horrible, permanent paranoia and maybe fear that somebody just might do something stupid to you?, judging by the look he gave me when I stared at him passing by me.
Also funny is that yesterday my boss was on the phone with his wife who was sitting next to him in the metro. He's everywhere!

Tho tbh, I think Sarkozy just may have taken back the title of most hated man in France. Maybe not numberswise, but on intensity of hatred levels, pretty sure he wins.

wtf - domenech takes the metro? that takes some real guts. respect

def agree about that.

wtf why wasn't he just fired for poor results and team unrest like normal managers?

needs an fc twente imo.

Actually, after the WC, he finished his contract as France manager. He's getting fired from his position as DTN (Directeur Technique National, working at the FFF) which is a different position and has nothing to do with the results he got as France manager. He was fired just because it looked good at the time for the FFF to do so, seeing as he made a perfect scapegoat for the whole WC debacle and everybody hated him. The FFF fucked up and now they're going to pay a hefty price for it. DTN is a very common position for most France managers unless I'm mistaken. And usually, tbh, its your safety cushion for when you fail miserably at being France manager - see Houllier for ex who's one ever since an infamous France - Bulgaria.

For some weird reason, I decided to find a stream to watch Arles Avignon - Caen, a match which promised to be boring by all means. Well actually I know what I started to watch it, its because Arles was leading 2-1, which meant they were on their way to their first victory this season.

And what a brilliant decision that was. Two minutes after I start watching, a great goal for Caen. Think I'll stop watching though since the game is boring.

Also Rennes - Lyon tonight. Should be a good game, hope Lyon wins. Tomorrow, big match with PSG - Marseille, probably the biggest rivalry in France.

sounds like time for me to get back into this

I find it to be very exciting personally, but there are a shitload of people who complain about that and tell us that the Premier League is so much better because you know the Big 4 is going to dominate, that La Liga is better because Barca/Real etc. I totally disagree with those people though. I love seeing surprising teams having their time at the top. Also, those people were the same ones who were complaining that Lyon kept winning, so I dunno what they want.

― Jibe, Thursday, 4 November 2010 00:15 (2 days ago) Bookmark

Difficult to have both strong teams with great players AND a large, varied group of teams in contention for the title. I think Seria A of late 90s/early 00s and maybe La Liga in early-mid 00s is the closest balance I've seen.

Then again Marseille and Lyon both have good players. Zilina were terrible but Lucho, Gignac, Rémy, Ayew, Mandanda, Cheyrou, Valbuena, Azpilicueta, Heinze, M'Bia is a squad of depth and promise.

Yeah, I agree with you on both your points. I'd add add mid-90s Ligue 1 to your list of strong teams - varied group of teams in contention, but I'm very biased obv :D

You forgot Diawara in that list of players though, his pairing with M'Bia in defense is one of the main things that lead to Marseille to its first title since 1992. Lyon also has good players obv, but they've kind of struggled to play a full match. Most of the times they'll have one good half in the game and play terribly in the other.
Amongst the good teams you can also add Lille, though it looks like they're only good against smaller teams and get beaten by bigger ones.

grrrr, finished typing that, found a stream for Rennes Lyon just as Rennes score. Big defensive errors. I'm guessing the first half is gonna be the one the Lyon players are not gonna play...

OK maybe not, big save from Douchez (Rennes gk) there. Game is starting off well. Gonna stop liveblogging it though

Didn't forget, but there's a reason nobody in the UK takes Diawara seriously, no matter how many Ligue 1 titles he wins.

ha!
am watching the game on a turkish stream and i just saw the weirdest ad, for vodafone. there's a player lying on the field, seemingly injured and this nurse with a big ass syringe is threatening to inject him in the knee. the nurse is played by a fat turkish man with a wig and everything, it is very unsettling.

how are bordeaux doing this season without... everyone?

That was really good - Rennes have a lot of nimble attackers and they move the ball around quickly. Lyon looked decent too, I wonder what's wrong with them? I had a stream without sound, which was also nice.

Didn't find Lyon too convincing personally. They still seem to have the same problem imo, which is that they struggle to get the ball upfield. It looked like everytime the defense had the ball, they'd pass to each other, back and forth, because they had no one free in midfield whom ti give it to. Then, they'd either send it far upfield, hope that Gomis managed to keep control of the ball, or Gourcuff or Pjanic would come downfield and bring it up. Every time i watch them play, it always feels like the opposing team has one more player on the field than Lyon do so the Lyon players have a hard time shaking free of whoever's marking them.

As for Bordeaux... they're currently mid-table, 9th. They play awful football. Things are not looking good as Alou Diarra has just received a 6 match suspension for roughing a referee, so I fully expect them to lose quite a bit in the upcoming weeks. They missed a penalty in their game today. Tigana is not doing a good job. They'll probably end up 8-12th this season.

Streams without commentary are great. Or did yours have absolutely no sound at all, not even that of the stadium? No commentary probably means you did not get this little piece of trivia : Rennes's scorer is called Jires Kembo-Ekoko. He was names Jires as a tribute to great Bordeaux French midfielder Alain Giresse (part of the midfield that won Euro 84).

I had stadium noise but no commentary. Got the same for the US playoff just now and no idea what the score is - it seems to be extra time , though both teams were really hammering forward at the end of the last period, which is unusual.

I like footballers being named after footballers. Bergkamp was supposedly named after Denis Law, and I remember Brazil had a striker Muller about 1990. C. Ronaldo is named after Ronald Reagan though.

yeah, it's cute. edson buddle is named after Edson Arantes do Nascimento

Enzo Zidane is named after Enzo Francescoli iirc.

http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/arles-caen-7463600/

Around the 36s mark for the goal i was talking about yesterday in the Arles - Caen game.

felipe melo named his kid this summer lineker.

So PSG beat Marseille 2-1. Only saw the 2nd half, which wasn't too good, Marseille never looked like they want to win it. Hoarau's goal comes from a beautiful Nénê pass. PSG did a great thing buying Nénê, he is on fire for them this season. Treated Azpilicueta to some very nice dribbles in the 2nd half, after a while Azpi got tired of it, said fuck it and took him down. That was fun to see.
In today's other games, lots of beautiful goals.
Lille beat leader Brest 3-1, putting an end to their 800 or so mn without taking a goal. First goal saw Hazard do a beautiful backheel pass in the box. 2nd goal came from some nice passing near the box. Brest's goal is an amazing strike. On 101greatgoals, the commentary in the highlights is in Arabic, so I didn't understand a word they were saying, but for that goal, the commentator named Marco van Basten and Michael Laudrup. You don't bring up van Basten's name for just any goal, this one was absolutely magnificent.
Lens beat Montpellier 2-0, their first goal coming from a wonderfully struck freekick un the top right corner. Goalkeeper had absolutely no chance to stop it.
Nice beat Toulouse 2-0 and their second goal comes from a lovely touch from Ben Saada.

I watched psg-om from half-an-hour onwards - seemed like a better bet than the Madrid derby at that point, but turned out not to be. I guess it was okay, both teams were trying and it was decent enough technically, but there's an element that wasn't really there - it might be an element of physical commitment, neither seemed to be pushing at the limits. It felt a bit like watching two Wigans was what I was thinking - good enough teams, but would be crushed by any committed big team.

luckily for both, right now there are no committed big teams in ligue 1. so they can safely play in half-assed style.

A bit of a harsh judgement there as the first 30 minutes were pretty spectacular.
Second half mostly boring, PSG just clinging to the result (might have been tired from last thursday intense game against Borussia). Anyway that's a pretty great result for Paris, who might have a shot at a CL spot this season.

Didn't forget, but there's a reason nobody in the UK takes Diawara seriously, no matter how many Ligue 1 titles he wins.

― Adrian Roosevelt "Adie" Mike (nakhchivan), Saturday, 6 November 2010 20:08 (2 days ago)

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

whats the reason?

ok sorry this is in French but too good to pass up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ki5OEmkhMY&feature=player_embedded#!

Ha, I was just watching this video like half an hour ago.

guess we have the same sources ;-)

I've watched this ad like 6 or 7 times since tuesday and I have to say I still find it very enjoyable.

poker face !

poker face! playing "je te tiens par la barbichette"! fancy card tricks! so many great things going on in this ad.
Also, couldn't help but wonder if he actually learned how to do all those card and chip tricks.

ahah, also the "grand ecart facial" ! (to answer your question : all post prod fx !)

I'm not quite up to par on my jean-claude van damme filmography, but I'm guessing it mimics one of his films? also, sad to learn that while he was being hated on by the entirety of France, Domenech wasn't locked up in his house being all "haters gonna hate" and learning amazing card tricks.

Excellent second-half comeback by Lyon tonight, 3-1 over Lens. Makes it kind of tight at the top though - if my maths is right, that's the top EIGHT covered by two points!

Missed the match, but from what I read of it Lyon were just inexistent in the first half. Then they played well when Gourcuff and Licha came on. Very happy to see that Gomis has scored two. He always finds himself playing a terrible role, lone striker upfront who has to keep the ball waiting for his teammates to come upfield and because of this fans were really starting to dislike him and boo him and shit. These two goals should shut them up a bit.
Also, yeah, insane that after 14 games the top eight are covered by two points! This weekend has also seen four different leaders - Brest at the beginning, then Paris after their victory (Erding and Hoarau scored, good for them too), then Montpellier yesterday evening and now Lille. Guess this is what happens when your top 8 is in 2points !

Btw, here is a nice goal from this weekend's matches, a great scissor kick by Adriano against Lille :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NUKfYO0Rkk

Hazard involved in both goals scored by Lille in this game (though those are not shown in this yt). Coming back quite well after having a shitty start to the season.

nice

i've only see hazard once (for belgium) but he was very quiet

i know he's rated as one of the best prospects tho

I haven't seen too many of Lille's games either. But the few times I did see them I usually am not impressed by Hazard and just as I'm getting ready to dismiss him he does some impressive thing, usually leading to a goal being scored or something. If you have the time, go see the recap of sunday's game, Hazard is at the beginning of both goals scored. And then if you want to see more of his impressive touch, try and find the highlights of Lille's game against Brest iirc, where he once again does a few impressive things.

With a name like that it seems ireelevant whether he has ability or not

Hope his little brother gets some fame too, cos being named Thorgan Hazard and not becoming famous seems like a waste of a great name.

Pretty fun interview of Maldini in l'Equipe shattering the image of Gourcuff

That's quite forthright from Maldini. Does he talk about anything other than Gourcuff? Why has he given this interview? Footballers don't normally get stuck in to other players like that.

he was interviewed before the Auxerre-Milan CL game (seems he made his CL debut against Auxerre in ... 1985!), and ats ome point was asked about Gourcuff. L'Equipe apparently thought that was juicy enough to publish it separately a week later

that's kinda unchill. gourcuff wasn't rly trusted by ancelotti at milan, but it was their loss in the end.

according to Maldini, Gourcuff was ome kind of egotistical asshole, who did some pretty extravagant things off the pitch, which sounds a bit weird. Ancelloti is quoting as saying that the guy was crazy and "peculiar"

Rumour is that he was quite an alcoholic. He apparently showed up to a game smelling strongly of booze. He drank quite a lot and was horrible once drunk. Apparently Maldini invited the team to celebrate his birthday in Dubai and most of the players implored him not to take Gourcuff along with them cause he'd fuck shit up. He was invited finally and he did fuck things up.

Those are rumours I've heard from people who know people who work at L'Equipe, so you know, not terribly reliable. This is just one of the many many stories I've heard about the guy though. He's the perfect target for those kind of stories.

wow - never ever would have thought of him as a trouble-making booze hound... I was actually wondering whether this was some kind of veiled reference to all those gay rumors

I'd never have suspected anything like that. I thought he was supposed to be the good guy in this summer's fiasco?

I was meaning to ask about his name, which sounds quite unusual - is it a francofied Russian name possibly?

breton!

no it's a pretty typical name from Brittany

xp

srsly, that reminds me of when i was reading some richard hannay trash as a kid and i looked up doer thinking it was afrikaans

Ah, ok - was going by the double-f ending, thinking it might be like Djorkaeff (now you'll tell me that's a typical Provençal name, and I'll go and hang my head in shame)

Oh, there are also a shitload of rumours about him being gay. One of the guys I play football with often tells me that one of his best friends lives in Lyon and has a friend there who is Gourcuff's fuckbuddy. Once again friend of a friend of a friend. If that's not a reliable info source, what is :D

I'm willing to believe that maybe Gourcuff was a booze hound (he's breton! they drink a lot! yes this is a cliché!) but people like his dad and Blanc put some sense into him. And also maybe he matured and realised he needed to calm down on the booze. If this is true thou_gh, good thing that Govou left Lyon just as Gourcuff was arriving :D

what's would be the problem with govou? (apart from not being very good at football obviously)

's

tsk tsk do not speak ill of govou for he is great. but the problem with him is that he's a notorious partier and an even more notorious drinker. Once caught driving with 2.6g alcohol in his blood, lost captaincy for being very drunk at a tennis event in Lyon etc. Famous for his drinking ways.

(Some rumours also have Govou about to be fired from Panathinaikos for being drunk all the time)

hahah yeah love the story of how Pana asked, of all people, Djibril Cissé to tell him to cut down on the partying

Oh man today gave me even more reasons to like Govou. In an interview in L'Equipe, he said that he was amazed at all the stories that have been written about him (that he came drunk to trainings, he mowed down a cyclist while driving drunk, he was gonna get fired for being drunk all the time etc), especially since none of them were true. He did admit that he'd been fined once for going out too late after a game, but that all the other stories are bullshit. And to prove his point and show people that he did not come to Greece only to live the good life, he has asked Panathinaikos to lower his salary to 1050€/month!

wow

is this gonna be a thing? onyewu, redondo, govou playing for nothing/little

lyon vs psg yall

this is a bit dull

was just musing on that - it's quite pleasing on the eye, but rather lacks the sound & fury of e.g. The Best League In The World. Can't help thinking that turning up the crowd volume would solve most things

yeah it is rather subdued

could use some of the best sound engineers in the world

makalélé/bodmer not exactly xavi/iniesta tho

I do wonder about the indiscriminate marketing of games on these channels. Dover v Aldershot has got to be a pretty niche event in Dover or Aldershot, never mind how much clout it's going to carry selling the game in the US

Splendid pass there from Kjallstrom(?) - looked like a really awkward ball to play

well this got kind of exciting eventually

Oh man! Was watching this with a friend who's a PSG fan and I have to say that listening to him after Lyon made it 2-2 was probably one of the funniest things I've heard in a while. Especially since a few seconds before he was saying that Apoula Edel was actually turning out to be a much better keeper than expected. Really happy for Gomis who usually has th most ingrate role to play in this team. Totally deserved to get a goal.

Sorry England, you won't get to joke about Rod Fanni in the Premier League as he's just been transfered from Rennes to Marseille (who needed a right back after Azpilicueta was injured and out for 6months at least).
Also, this weekend sees Lyon and Marseille play against each other. Both teams have a few key players missing, mainly in the defensive area so I can only hope that we'll get a 5-5 as thrilling as last year's!

btw, I have to say I find it very strange that a player can be transfered from one contender ton another in the middle of the season but maybe that's just me. (and I'm maybe stretching a little bit the definition of contender by saying Rennes is one)

yeah this transfer is just so weird. Good one too, I'm saddened to admit..

marseille, involved in something dodgy? who would have thought it!

Marseille-Lyon kicking off now in everyone's favourite league. Fanni at CB for Marseille too, not that that's amusing in any way.

goal for Lyon, which I got to see in three instalments thanks to streaming nightmare

Vintage set of midweek fixtures going on here atm - with only Lens-Bordeaux to play, none of the top fourteen have managed a victory

and it's 2-0 to 19th-placed Lens at halftime

finishes 2-2, absolutely mental stuff

Amazed at yesterday's fixtures. It's like no one wanted to take top spot away from Lille. Or make any real progress in the rankings. Maybé all the players could not give a fuck about those games and were just raring to go on vacation.

btw, Heinze had some kind words for referees (who get shit all the time from players, coaches, managers, team owners, fat fucks like Pierre Ménès) after one made a questionable decision which may have cost Marseille some points against Auxerre. After the game, Jean Claude Dassier (president of OM) and José Anigo (sporting director) went all out on the referee for having given a penalty and a red card to M’Bia for a tackle that was (after multiple replays) shown to be just outside the box.
And this week, in an interview Heinze spoke up in favor of referees during a press conference saying “There’s too much pressure. When I see how we treat refs… Last week, the referee may have made a mistake. So what? I’ve made 1000s of mistakes. And you too probably. But now, TV rules above all. We see slow-mo replay after slow-mo replay in order to point out those errors”.

He was involved in some kind of fight at the end of Marseille-Lyon - what was that about?

Yeah there was something between him and Jean II Makoun but he refuses to go into details about it. It's because of this altercation that he gave a press conference on monday.

WARNING : tl,dr post!

This weekend's cup ties were a disaster for Ligue 1 teams, 10 of them are out (first time so many of them were eliminated at such an early stage).
Among the losing teams, Marseille, who are still struggling attack-wise.

The Ligue 1 is back this weekend, so I thought I'd do a quick recap of each teams’ season (ok, may skip a few of them).

1. Lille : On top of the world (ok, of ligue 1). They have a 1pt lead on the second team, with a game on hand. Attractive football usually, score lots of goals, have yet however to beat big teams (3-1 losses to both Marseille and Lyon). I hope they'll finally manage to get into the top 3 and qualify for the CL. There was a statistic bandied around a few days ago: teams leading at the middle of the season with a 4pt lead end up champion around 80% of the time, so they know what they have to do with their game in hand.

2. Paris Saint Germain : to say that nobody expected them here at this stage is kind of an understatement. They’ve been below expectations so many times that it still amazes to see that they’re in second place and have not suffered their usual November crisis that sees them fall down the table. They have one man to thank for all of this, the Brazilian Nêné, scorer, passer, does everything for them. Bought him around 6M€ from Monaco and so far they have the player of the season on their hands. Still, I don’t expect them to stay all the way up, as they’ve somewhat benefited from the fact that Marseille and Lyon have struggled quite a bit this season. They should finish in the 4-6 range I guess.

3. Rennes : Every year, people say Rennes has a chance to do something and place in the top 4 or 5, and every year, they bottle it. This year, they started the season after having sold almost all their forwards (including Moussa Sow who’s killing it in Lille), so expectations were lower than usual. And yet they’re in 3rd. Go figure. They don’t score much (18 in 19 games), but they allow even fewer goals (12, best defense). Kings of the 0-0 (5 in 19 games).

4. Lyon : Very shaky start to the season, their worst since the early 90s I think. They don’t play very well. They lost the derby against St Etienne for the first time in 16 yrs, after which fans were calling for Puel to be sacked. Aulas kept saying he trusted Puel to turn things around. And turn things around he has I guess. They still play ugly football, but since that loss against St Etienne, they haven’t lost once, taking from 18th spot to 4th. They’ve been plagued by injuries,as they’ve always been for the past 2 or 3 seasons, with a few key players out, hardly ever managing to put their first 11 all together on the field. Gourcuff hasn’t dazzled or anything, it is looking more and more like he had 6 amazing months during which he was playing above his level. Still have some hope that he can get that form back. They will finish in the top 3 is my not very bold prediction.

5. Marseille: defending champions. In the middle of august they let go of Niang, their main goalscorer, and Ben Arfa, meaning that their entire attacking line had to be remodeled. Spent 30M€ on Gignac and Rémy, which right now looks like a piss poor investment since they’ve less than 10 goals to their names. André Ayew who showed great promise during the WC is proving somewhat useful. Deschamps had called for a defensive midfield player all through the off season and never got him and looking at their defensive woes, it seems his calls should have been heeded. They had an amazing defense last year and this year not so much. Then again, they haven’t been able to field their back 4 very often together, Mbia was injured, then Diawara, and just when Azpilicueta was starting to come into his own, he suffered an year-ending injury. If their offense starts coming together, they should be better. And, tbh, they are 5th while not playing very well, only 3 points off the top, so things could be worse.

6. St Etienne: they had a great start to the season, were leaders just after their victory against hated neighbors Lyon, with Payet seemingly unstoppable. Since that victory things have gone a bit downhill, Payet looks like an average player and Lyon have gone ahead of them. Still, that’s always better than past seasons where they were on the brink of
relegation till the very end.

7. Brest: newcomers to Ligue 1, back at this lvel for the first time since the end of the 80s, they had their time in the spotlight when they reached top spot for a week or two. They have a promising forward in Nolan Roux, dubbed by some “mini-Torres”.

8. Bordeaux: they started 2010 with a 10 pt lead in Ligue 1 only to see 6 teams overtake them in the final run as they started crumbling. This season is not very promising either, and even though their president is asking the players to reach a CL spot, that looks very unlikely. They lost their coach (Laurent Blanc), their main attacking threat (Chamakh), their playmaker (Gourcuff), another of their forwards (Cavenaghi). They did manage to keep Alou Diarra from leaving to Marseille, but he must be dreading his time there right now. And with all the money they made from the Gourcuff sale, they bought Ben Kalfallah who quickly found his way to their bench and Modeste, who is true to his name.

9. Toulouse : soldGignac to Marseille, thus losing arguably their only forward. Well actually no. They had Pentecôte, but he suffered a bad injury just as he was finally getting some playing time. They’ll stay in
the middle of the table till the end of the season is my guess.

10. Montpellier : last year’s surprise, finishing in 4th or 5th spot (can’t remember) even though they’d only just been promoted. Things aren’t looking as great right now, but then again it seemed impossible that they’d do as well as last year.

11. Sochaux : they have a couple of very promising young players, they play nice attacking football (3rd or 4th best attack), but they have a shitty defense. Very hard to take points off them at home, but they have a hard time away from home (2nd worst record after Arles’).

12. Lorient: helmed by Gourcuff father, they are not really a “park the bus in front of the goals” team. They play rather nice attacking football too which explains why they were involved in this year’s only tennis score result in Ligue 1, and one that was not one-sided too (they suffered a 6-3 loss to Lille, but at one point it was 3-3). Their star forward, Kevin Gmeiro is currently being sent to half the teams in France and Europe, andif a deal is not struck in january, he is sure to leave in the summer.

13. Nancy: the exact opposite of the two teams above. Their aim is not to score one goal more than their opposition, they’d rather leave with a draw than to attack. I guess. I don’t really see them play very often. Actually, make that I haven’t seen them play a single time. They’re just that boring.

14. Auxerre: last year, they surprised everybody by finishing third. Then, in the summer, they surprised everyone by beating Zenit St Petersburg to take a spot in the CL. Then, they surprised everyone by not buying any players, despite the fact that their squad appeared to be wearing thin if they wanted to play both CL and championship. They did their best in the CL and were far from humiliated by big guns Madrid and AC Milan, but it took its toll on their Ligue 1 placing. Especially since chronically injured Polish forward Jelen was, well, injured.
OK, we’re reaching the lower reaches of the table so I don’t have a lot to say.

15. Nice: sold Rémy, have no goal scoring threat (again, this is a somewhat educated guess, but a guess nonetheless, as I haven’t seen them play).

16. Valenciennes: I dunno. Used to be they were called the Barcelona of the North (of France). Can’t say that that seems a very apt nickname cause I’m used to seeing Barca up top.

17. Monaco: just fired their coach, Guy Lacombe. That ought to tell you that things are not well. Also, must be harsh to see the player you sold for 6M€ in the offseason as main (and almost only) contender for player of the season awards.

18. Caen: they have a habit of yoyo-ing between Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 and this year seems no different. And to think that they had a really tough schedule at the beginning of the season (played Lyon first and then Marseille, or the opposite), won both those matches so people were starting to say good things about them… and then, this.

19. Lens: it must suck to be a Lens player. It sucks so bad actually, that you get into fights with your own teammates on the pitch during a game.

20. Arles-Avignon: everybody said they were a cinch to go back to Ligue 2. Everybody was right. Then again, when your main strategy to stay up is to buy 15 “past-their-prime” players, you get what you paid for. Though seeing the names on their roster, they could have fielded a very competitive team circa 2003-4 I guess.

Outstanding post. Have there been any good scandals we should know about? I was looking forward to lots of good fallout from the world cup, hookers, etc, but haven't heard very much.

Scandals? No, I guess everybody's staying quiet because the image of players has already gone down the drain thanks to France's amazing WC.
OK, obv not.But tbh, I have to admit that I haven't followed whatever scandals might have been very closelu.
Among the good stories, we've had Aulas (Lyon's president) slapping a fan after a humiliating draw against Arles (a week or two after their loss to St Etienne) and getting into a shouting contest with L'Equipe, the only sports newspaper in France. L'Equipe was accused of plotting to unsettle Lyon by publishing front page articles about how the players dsliked the coach etc. Tbh they did publish those articles right after Lyon had a couple convincing matches, so it looked particularly stupid. Aulas lashed back at them, there were a couple of heated exchanges and Aulas ended up calling a writer from L'Equipe a cunt or something to that effect.
There have also been the usual referee-bashing outrages and stuff like that, but nothing tht isn't the norm for Ligue 1. I think I said something to that effect some time back in this thread about how referees are always, always blamed for just about everything and keep being told they suck.

That's a great post yeah. I suppose I'm glad to see PSG doing well, but in the only Ligue 1 game I have seen this season (vs Lyon), they were every bit as dull as a team playing 4-4-2 with Bodmer and Makalélé in midfield ought to be. How do you see Rémy and Gignac doing in the long-term? Also, whither Eden Hazard?

Nêné was a good player for Celta Vigo (remember them?) and was linked to a £6m move to Tottenham in 2007.

<3 jibe. if only we had someone to do this with all the leagues worth caring about. (anyone want to do one for the english lower leagues?)

Great post Jibe. Rennes - 18 goals in 19 games and 3rd!!!!

And with all the money they made from the Gourcuff sale, they bought Ben Kalfallah who quickly found his way to their bench and Modeste, who is true to his name.

― Jibe, Tuesday, January 11, 2011 8:43 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

lol

Thanks, glad to know people enjoyed it.

xp to nakh:

PSG is actually entertaining to watch usually. That game against Lyon was not very revelatory about their level. It was kept entertaining by Edel’s huge mistake (and, to me, by the fact that I was watching it with big PSG fans who I duly mocked after Lyon equalized).

Gignac just gave an interview where he said that in 2011 people would see the real Gignac. Have no idea what the real Gignac is like. I wasn’t too enthralled by Marseille buying him because he’s had one good season (08-09*). and a couple of shitty-to-ok ones. And tbh up to now I sure as hell haven’t been proved wrong since he’s scored only one in 13 games. He is kind of a one-trick pony, stay a bit on the left side, with his back to the goal, turn around and strike, usually from outside the box. One and a half trick if you also accept the left side, cut back on right foot, strike. Defenders are fully aware of that. In his defence though, he arrived in Marseille coming back from an injury, into a team whose offensive sector was almost completely overhauled in the summer. Some overly optimistic Marseille fans keep claiming that Jean-Pierre Papin also struggled quite a lot in his first few months in Marseille. Still, I don’t really see him achieve great success. He’ll do better than what he is showing right now, but he’ll never be fantastic.

Rémy also has not shown too much. Then again, I don’t think his style of play is very suited to Marseille’s game. He was successful in Nice mainly because they played counter-attacking football, where his speed proved useful. Right now, he’s scored 7 goals for Marseille (5in Ligue 1, 2 in CL), so numbers wise he looks ok, but he seems kind of lost on the field. Still think he’d be far more suited to the English game. Still willing to give him some time too, as I am with Gignac. Apparently he had a good game sunday against Evian Thonon Gaillard, but that's never gonna be remembered since Marseille lost.

Hazard is sure to leave Lille in the summer. And he’s already said that if he left Lille it wouldn’t be to join a big French club (which considering Lille’s stature could only be Lyon or Marseille). Rumours have him leaving for Arsenal (just like every talented youngster in the world) and Real Madrid. Have no clue where he’ll end up.

* only time he went in to double digit territory goalscoring wise. Highest goalscorer in Ligue 1 that season with 24 goals. But a case can be made for the fact that the team was geared towards making him score.

I was at the Parc des Princes yesterday to see PSG beat Sochaux 2-1. First half was very enjoyable, I had nice seats close to the field that allowed me to see Nêné in action. 2nd half was a bit less action packed though. Mevlut Erding is still very low on confidence, everything he tried, he failed. Even stepped on the ball and fell at one point.

However, the atmosphere in the stadium is shit. It used to be that the Parc des Princes had some of the noisiest fans, with great songs (and a whole lot of violence). Now that they're trying to clean up the stadium, there is absolutely no atmosphere, fans try to sing a bit but it fails every time. And now the main thing they sing seems to be "Marseille, Marseille, on t'encule" (not gonna translate that, but its obv not kind words for good friends) which is shit, especially considering the fact that Marseille were nowhere near the field. The cleaning up of the stadium seems to be working tho, never seen so many kids and girls in there.

there were riots outside a psg game not so long ago between nationalists and arabs/africans weren't there

do psg have much money? they will probably be in the champions league next season and they could use some extra depth

Yeah, there were a lot of fights between Boulogne and Auteuil stands. I had written a long post about that some time back. I could try and find it if you want. But basically, riots were common, fights broke out all the time, and n 3 or 4 yrs, I think 2 or 3 people were killed. So the president took drastic measures to clean up that whole mess.

PSG don't have a whole lot of money. They were bought by Colony Capital, a hedge fund, who are tring to sell back the club apparently. They bought the club not because they had high ambitions for it, more because they want to make money from gaining the rights to the use of the stadium. Last year, their budget for transfers was about 10M€ or so. But I have to say that they've had some good buys these past few years. Nêné for 6M€ looks like a steal right now, they got Hoarau for 200k€.

They'll probably have a bit more money next year, especially if Makélélé and Giuly leave, as they've high salaries. Don't know if they'll get into the CL however. I'd say Lille, Lyon and Marseille will get the CL spots. PSG might be able to take one of those team's spot but we'll see. As you said, they don't have a lot of depth, and seeing as they're still in it in the championship, the cup, the league cup and the Europa league, that might lower their chances for a CL spot as they wear thin.

Also, one of my post appears to have disappeared so I'll say it again. Lyon won 3-0 against Lorient, with two beautiful goals from Gomis and Kallström. Really happy to see them back on top :)

the commercial potential of psg is huge so i can see why a hedge fund bought it

two other cities of similar size in europe

london - arsenal, chelsea, tottenham, west ham etc
moscow - cska, dynamo, torpedo, locomotiv etc
paris - psg....

are you a lyon fan jibe? i forget..

i remember when gomis scored those two great goals on his france debut, he's definitely a talent

are they playing 4-3-3 with him at centre-forward?

Yeah, I'm a Lyon fan. They play 433, with either Gomis or Lisandro upfront. If Gomis is upfront, Lisandro is either injured or playing on the left. Lisandro upfront means Gomis is ijured or on the bench.

PSG commercial potential is huge yeah, but because of the hatred between the stands and the ensuing fights and riots, the club had a sucky reputation. The fact that people were killed made it easier for them to change the population of the stadium.

What's the deal with the other Paris clubs, Jibe? I was watching Paris FC on a stream one night last week - had never even heard of them before! There are other teams too I'm sure - Red Star, Racing Club, etc

OK, honestly Ismael, how in the world do you end up watching Paris FC!
Oh, unless you were watching their Coupe de France match against Toulouse last week. Because that club is in National, which is the third division.

Anways, tbh I don't know much about other Paris clubs since they are in lower divisions. There are no Parisian clubs in Ligue 2. Paris FC and Créteil-Lusitanos (suburb of Paris) are in National, which as said above is third division. I'm not even sure that gives them pro status.

The deal with other Paris clubs is basically that they are inexistent. I don't mean that harshly but playing at any level other than Ligue 1-2 means that other than a handful of folks, nobody even knows you exist.

Haha yes, it was against Toulouse. I didn't know what competition it was, there were a handful of random games listed - Villareal B v Numancia, Schalke v Dardanelspor and the like - and I'd at least heard of both cities so chose that match

The new French team jersey has just been revealed by Nike. Until now, Adidas was in charge of that. Nike bought the rights for that just before the France - Ireland and WC 2010 fiascos so they paid 42.5M€/yr for the right to dress the French players (I think it is the highest sum paid to a national team which amuses me). Here is the new jersey (and no I'm not mistakenly showing you the rugby shirt):

http://img.lequipe.fr/Medias/Football/201101/650x475/le-nouveau-maillot-des-bleus-presente-lundi-en-presence-de-l.jpg

That's nice, but they haven't really distinguished between the home & away versions

The away versions haven't been shown yet I think. This is the home one. It is a welcome sober jersey but I still feel it doesn't look like a football one.

Créteil-Lusitanos (suburb of Paris)

My French lessons at school were based around Créteil. Voici l'hôtel de ville, il y a un lac, etc. The football team did not feature as I recall.

It's been a while but I could not not talk about Lyon. They have been rather disappointing all season long. And now in one week, they've won two games in a row: 4-1 against St Etienne (this is Lyon's derby and they really wanted to win since they'd lost against St Etienne for the first time in 16 yrs(!) in october) last week and 4-0 against Nancy yesterday evening.

Yesterday's 4-0 victory bodes well for their game against Madrid in the CL (tbh as much as I'd like to see Lyon go through I feel like they won't) since Gourcuff played better than he has in months, César Delgado is coming back (countdown to his next injury has alreay started), Briand proved to Gerland that he really is the new Sidney Govou by wasting a few chances and then scoring an amazing goal (similar to Rooney's the other day)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdQ0M27g5VE

Did you see the 4-1, Jibe? I was annoyed at myself for missing it.

Also, vote in the 'players of the decade' poll, please.

Did not see the 4-1. But from what I've heard it could have gone either way, St Etienne had a lot of chances too but failed to put them in. I guess it was kinda the opposite of the previous game, where Lyon had all the chances yet failed to win.
Will try and make a ballot for the players of the decade but I'm afraid that my ballot would be skewed heavily in favour of French players and players who played in France as that was probably the only football I followed or a ballot of obvious choices (Zidane, Messi etc).

Which I see is something a few people have already said on the relevant thread. Will try and send you one when I have a bit more time to think about it.

wtf happened to bordeaux?

Are you talking about their 5-1 defeat to Lorient or their place in the table?

Anyways, they've been shit all through 2010 (started 2010 with a huge lead in Ligue 1 yet ended out of the European spots) and then in the summer they lost Chamakh (to Arsenal, I guess you're aware of that :D) and Gourcuff (to Lyon), 2 of their 3 most important players (the third being Alou Diarra, who wanted to leave but Bdx wouldn't let him). Add to that the fact that Blanc left, replaced by Tigana, who's been anything but convincing, that all the new players they bought have been shit (Ben Khalfallah : useless, Maazou : useless, Modeste : useless) and you've got a recipe for disaster.

I'd like to share a surprising quote from Maazou, dating from January (keep in mind that the guy talking is a pro being paid high wages) :
"My style is to play upfront and receive long balls, as was the case in Monaco. It was a very direct style of play and it worked. Here, we have to pass the ball and all that. We play football. It's a lot more complicated."

is 'we play football' a literal translation? i wondered the other day whether other countries use that expression, ie in england 'playing football' is actually a small subset of, you know, playing football, which is mostly about chasing clearances down the channels, running around aimlessly, sometimes clattering into another player as if by brownian motion

also how do you expect marseille to do in the cl

awesome quote

Literal translation yeah, meaning exactly what you said. Like he's surprised to play football rather than just having to run straight ahead very fast and then shoot very hard (keep in mind this guy is like a very shit Djibril Cissé).

As for Marseille's chance, I fear they don't stand much of a chance. They've kind of managed to weather through the storm, winning matches while playing horribly in the past few weeks/months. but that was against Ligue 1 teams. Not Man U. Also, they have a slight problem with their forwards. Gignac finally looked like he was getting his shit together (scored 3 in his last two games) but he injured himself this weekend against St Etienne so he won't be playing. Rémy has been very uneven, occasionally scoring and then disappearing, Brandao, as much as I like him, is not really a great goalscorer... So they don't have a very threatening attacking line.
Also, keep in mind this is the first time they've come out of the group stages. And that usually, against big teams, they have a tendency to just fail. This season, in Stamford Bridge, they were beaten 2-0 but that kinda was because Chelsea stopped playing. Last season against Real Madrid and AC Milan, they looked convincing at times but as soon as they were a goal down, they disintegrated. So basically, if Man U manage to score quickly, Marseille are in trouble.

Briand proved to Gerland that he really is the new Sidney Govou by wasting a few chances and then scoring an amazing goal (similar to Rooney's the other day)

Lucky shinner tbh

Well I don't care what part of his body touched the ball, it went in and it looked brilliant, that's all I need.

After two months far away from European (well tbh mostly French football), I see things have decanted a bit. Lille is leading, a point ahead of Marseille, but they've lost a bit of ground after a loss to Monaco (!) and a draw with Bordeaux (!). Before those 2 games, the French sport press kept saying that Lille were sure winners. Now they think it might be Marseille.

Lyon has been awful. Leading 1-0 against a 10 men Rennes 3-4 weeks ago, game ended in a draw after an 89th minute Rennes goal. Following week, while enjoying a great wine tasting halfway across the world with a friend who supports Lyon, we checked the score to see Lyon lead 2-0 with less than 5mns to play. A couple of hours later we check again and lo, Nice scored two goals on the 90th and 93rd min (they can thank Diakhaté, who played horribly and gave them a penalty), while Lyon had missed a penalty. Then this weekend Lyon lost to Paris Saint Germain, which means they only have a 1pt lead over PSG (both teams are fighting for 3rd spot, which qualifies you to the CL). Everyone is now convinced that Puel will be kicked out in the summer.

After having spent so long in the top3 places, Rennes are now fifth, a point behind PSG, 2 behind Lyon and I'd wager they probably won't finish in the top 3. Arles Avignon are now mathematically sure to go down. Their only aim is to try and not be the team to score the least amount of points in a season (current record is 17, by Lens, can't remember when) - they have 7 games to score more than 4 points. Lens look like they're going down too. And its down to Caen, Monaco, Nancy, Auxerre, Toulouse, Valenciennes (all those teams have between 35-38points) to who the third team to go down will be. I could have added Nice and Brest (39 points each) too but I think they'll be fine.

Excellent. Where have you been? You holiday well.

I've got to feeling about Ligue 1 the same way I do about a 10,000 metres race or Nascar or something - the first forty laps or whatever don't really matter, it's all going to be about the finish.

I spent a great month and a half in South America. Now I have to find a job and that's not as much fun.

Also I just might steal what you said about the Ligue 1. It sounds very true. Well at least for the past two or three years. Last year Marseille finished very well to win it, the year before that saw Bordeaux win its last 13 straight games to become champion. Before that though, you had Lyon winning with about 6 more games to play.

<3 Jibe's occasional widescreen snapshots of the league.

Thanks, glad to know you enjoy them!

André Ayew, whom you might have heard of during the world cup (plays for Ghana), is really shining lately for Marseille. He scored a hattrick in their 4-2 win against Nice yesterday, leading his club to the top of the table. The 4th goal was scored by Jordan Ayew, his younger brother.

Ah, that explains it - I didn't know there were games last night so was surprised to see Marseille top when I checked the table this morning. OM will win this easily from here, no?

There were to games last night, Lyon - Montpellier and Marseille - Nice because Marseille and Montpellier played the League cup final on saturday (when all the other teams were playing their regular Ligue 1 schedule). Not too sure about OM winning it easily since they still have to play Lyon - who aren't playing very well but still, it's Lyon, and well, Marseille haven't been amazing either this season - and Lorient - at Lorient on their synthetic grass field which all the teams complain about for some reason and who can prove to be a bit difficult, especially since Amalfitano and Gameiro are looking good these days. Then again Lille has PSG and Rennes on the last two days of play, so no easy schedule either.

Also in case you're wondering who won the shit trophy that is the League cup, Marseille did thanks to a Taiwo goal. Which means that since Deschamps's arrival Marseille have already won three trophies after going 17yrs with none (so a hoy hoy keep your spirits up, Arsenal hasn't yet reached Marseille levels of despair trophy-wise ^^)

lol.

i've heard gameiro's name quite a bit recently, and ayew is well known as a future wunderkind thanks to football manager - you able to go into any detail? <3 the updates everytime.

Gameiro strikes me as a Pippo type. PSG is keen to grab him but the kid is eager to try the Liga

FFF heads mired in race row over alleged player quotas: Senior heads of the French national team allegedly approved a system to limit black and Arab players on youth training schemes

This whole thing is an ugly mess and is doing wonders to make French football look good after our amazing performance at the WC. One of the guys involved in the discussion has already been fired. Blanc might be let go too I guess.

It's unbelievable, I couldn't even compose a comment about it last night. Quite apart from how offensive and wrong and unFrench it is, the the idea of improving French football by having fewer black/arab/etc players is absurd.

i believe the proper comment is: wtf

Ugh supporting Lyon this season is hell. They're awful right now playing against Toulouse. Bastos did amazing work by getting 2 yellow cards in a minute. Cissokho has just scored an own goal.

It kind of looks like Lyon fielded 11 players who'd never played together once in their life. Also, I thnik for the past 5 years, everytime they play in Toulouse they have at least one player getting a red card.

hey ho red card for Cissokho, Lyon down to 9 men.

sorry for liveblogging this lame game but i have to vent somewhere for the shit i'm seeing

Ha go for it. How long is left? Worth tuning in for?

not worth it no. 5 mn left

unless you want to see what you and your friends playing against a pro team would look like

(i'm taking a huge risk here by assuming that no one on ilx is actually a pro player)

'huge'

pro evo maybe

Henning Berg making it into the ultimately doomed ILX HOF happened for a reason you know.

Leighton Baines' username is Geir Hongro

race thing gets no better

this is highly dispiriting

thought laurent blanc was a mensch yet this sounds like awful drunken ranting

Guardian opinion piece on this disaster. Actually rather good at teasing out the context - it doesn't exactly justify anything, but I've come out appreciating that there's more going on here than appeared at first, which is pretty rare for that newspaper ime so well done. Hasn't changed my view though - you can't select to preempt someone switching nationality, you just have to suck it up basically. I don't see any alternative.

afaik paul doyle is one of the better football journalists

Lille four clear with four to play after back-to-back wins while Marseille took just a single point. Didn't see it, but Lyon-Marseille tonight must've been good - OM comeback from 2-0 down to equalise with ten minutes left, before Lyon grab a winner with five minutes to go.

Lille 66pts, OM 62, Lyon 59, PSG 57

Saint Etienne - Lille is off to a great start. After 15mns 1-1, and Landreau, Lille's keeper, has just stopped an unfairly given penalty. And de Melo's goal is a beautiful strike.

Ugh supporting Lyon this season is hell. They're awful right now playing against Toulouse. Bastos did amazing work by getting 2 yellow cards in a minute. Cissokho has just scored an own goal.

― Jibe, Sunday, May 1, 2011 6:26 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

It kind of looks like Lyon fielded 11 players who'd never played together once in their life. Also, I thnik for the past 5 years, everytime they play in Toulouse they have at least one player getting a red card.

― Jibe, Sunday, May 1, 2011 6:29 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Oh time passes and nothing changes. Auxerre lead 2-0 against Lyon after 45mn and a red card for Lovren (Lyon defender). Good thing I'm going to play football in a few minutes as I won't have to see more of this horrible shit. And only 3 days after Lyon beat Marseille in semi-convincing manner.

was OL-OM as good as the scoreline suggests?

Yeah OL OM was quite good. Lyon leading 2-0 and then Marseille scored very quickly after that. César Delgado scored a nice goal. It feels like Lyon can only be bothered to show up once in a while, and never when they have a chance to break away from Paris (these days) or catch up Lille or Marseille (that was a few weeks ago).

Good piece on Lille's finances. I was surprised to learn they have a 50,000-seat stadium in the works. Less surprised (than the author, anyway) to learn that Heinze is Ligue 1's highest-paid player.

Coupe de France final has been good so far. Lille almost opened the scoring around 10' with a lightning counterattack, would've been much like that great Senegal goal against Denmark in the '02 WC, but the final ball was poor.

Love that they're drinking from regular bottles of Evian rather than those big Gatorade sport bottles more commonly seen. Game has slowed down, 0-0 at half.

Kind os sad I can't watch this game as both teams are usuall very nice to watch playing. I wish i could have fotten tickets for ths game.

woa... my typing is shit. I blame my friends and the drinks I've been having!

It's had its moments but has not been consistently entertaining. You probably made the right choice.

Did not expect Giuly to be so quick! He looks like he could still be an impact sub for Barça.

Player ratings thus far: Hazard excellent (he's like a cross of Robben and ... Nasri? or someone), Gervinho frustrating (incredible pace down both wings but no eye for a pass), Hoarau Crouch-like in his finishing.

Wow - Lille 1-0 in the 89th minute from an amazing curled free-kick by Obraniak. Beautiful trajectory - maybe 10% chance he was going for goal, 90% mishit cross.

90th minute, Coupet brings down Gervinho, penalty to Lille, Coupet saves with his shin. 1-0 final, Lille look set for the double.

http://youtu.be/lTep3b6EXjE

Rather, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTep3b6EXjE

Beautiful trajectory - maybe 10% chance he was going for goal, 90% mishit cross.

Actually, scratch that. Here he is in a Poland-Ivory Coast friendly in November:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4e8i8OcPrQU

I watched all that game but missed the goal by going to the loo. It was a shiter.

Lovely symmetry to St Etiene's league campaign: W12 D12 L12 F44 A44

Nice. Too bad they have two more games to play!

In other news, Lille is now all but officially champion as they have a 6pt lead and a much better goal average than 2nd place Marseille. The race for the 3rd place, which qualifies the team for the Champion's League, is heating up for lack of a better word. Lyon are 2 points clear of PSG who shockingly lost against Bordeaux yesterday evening. Rennes are catching up too, 2 pts behind PSG.

It is a very comical race for the 3rd spot as most of those teams look like they don't want to win. Lyon drew against Brest this weekend, which is an insanely good result for them as they'd been stringing shockingly awful defeats to lowly teams. Paris isn't doing a whole lot better, they lost against Bordeaux yesterday. And the two games before that they drew against Nancy and Monaco (both teams fighting against relegation).

PSG have to play against Lille and St Etienne on the last day. Lyon will play against Caen and Monaco. Rennes play Nancy and Lille. I hope and think that Lyon will end up ahead of PSG but it could be close, considering how terrible they've been of late.

Lille almost there now - just gone 2-1 up against PSG, half-an-hour to go, absurdly harsh diving yellow reducing PSG to ten men, Hazard got kicked on the knee but seems okay...

Lovely thing from Giuly there - breaking to the byline, he gave the keeper the eyes for the cutback, but instead passed it behind him and unluckily off the far post.

Ooh - 2-2 now.

Great game. Congratulations Lille and a hoy hoy - it must feel awesome to finally support a winning team!

Yeah, great to see Lille grab the league! I've not really seen this thread until now (lol too late) but it's great to see how Lille at times trembled but kept on its feet during this season.

Lol Ismael! while it's true that it must be nice to support a team that won, this is Lille's first title since 1956 or thereabouts. I hope a hoy hoy (and my dad!) won't have to wait that long to see Arsenal win something again!
Anyways, the "sprint" for third place is actually a snail race. Lyon and Paris haven't won a game in respectively 3 and 4 games and have takn 5 and 6 points over the last 5 games. It is on between those two to see who least wants to play the Champion's League. Lyon will have to beat Monaco or draw and hope that PSG don't win with too wide a margin. But Lyon fans are fearful cos PSG play against St Etienne, Lyon's derby rival, and they think that St Etienne might let itself lose by a huge margin so that PSG gets the CL spot rather than Lyon.
Two teams are already headed to Ligue 2, Arles-Avignon and Lens. The last relegated team will be decided next week and no less than 5 or 6 teams can take it iirc. the 18th spot team will have something like 46 pts!!!

And obviously, congrats to Lille. they played well. I used to really like this team a few yrs back but now i have a grudge with them for selling us expensive players that turn out to be shit ^^ I hope they can keep most of their players so that their CL campaign isn't total shit. It will be tough for them tho as they're liable to end in the4th pot, or with a bit of luck in the 3rd.

:D

i only watched like 5 games of ligue 1 this year, i dunno if i can be called a fan. or why it sucks to work saturday nights - i miss watching random foreign football so much.

The Ligue 1 also has games on saturdays at 7 and sundays at 5 and 9 :D (though you're probably watching the epl at some of those times). But fear not, the LFP, in charge of selling the rights to Ligue 1 games, is working on a horrible new schedule so that they have a load of matches at different times and days in order to sell them for more money. iirc we might get games on friday evenings and sundays at 1 or something.

The season isn't over yet (last day of play next sunday at 9) but the season awards have been given today. Hazard is player of the season, Garcia is coach of the year, Mamadou Sakho is Youth player of the yr and Mandanda is keeper of the yr.

As great as Hazard has been since january he had at best an OK-ish start to his season. But seeing as how Lille won the cup and championship it was kind of a given that he'd get it. Same for Garcia, while a guy like Gillot for example (Sochaux's (ugh, ...x's is really ugly) coach) did good things with a very young group of players and I'd love it if he'd get some recognition. Still I guess it makes sense. Unless I'm mistaken the past 3 yrs, the coach of the yr has been the coach who won the Ligue 1 title.

Sakho is a beast of a defender (and it is always nice to see a guy who's not a forward or midfield player get his due) and wins the title of youth player of the season that had been Hazard's for the past 2 seasons. Sakho is going to have an amazing career for sure. He's very young yet has handled the pressure of playing for PSG really well. He's their captain, at 19 yrs of age, and has been the captain of all the teams he's been in. Really a great player, hope he stays in France for a year or two more.

And Mandanda is a v good keeper and clearly one of the best in Ligue 1 (not as good as Lloris though... wait, a hoy hoy don't listen to me and get Arsène to buy Mandanda, not Lloris ^^). Have got no pb with him getting the title.

Don't worry Jibe, it's Sakho they want now more than a keeper.

well that's less of a concern to me. as much as i like the player, i'd be far more disappointed by the loss of my team's keeper than that of an opponent's defender.

Arsenal have Chesney and even so have never been able to afford Lyon prices.

Is Chesney good? I saw him play for a game and he didn't look very convincing. serious question btw. as long as you don't try and steal lloris away from us (and are all epl big spenders set at the gk position?).
also, i'm sad to say lyon prices are not really what they used to be. we've been paying lyon prices when we buy for the past 2-3 yrs but hardly ever sell at those levels anymore.

Man Utd are all but certain to spend big on a keeper this summer. De Gea (Atletico Madrid) and Stekelenburg (Ajax) probably favorites now that Neuer's taken. Haven't heard Lloris mentioned in connection with them. Tottenham also looking probably.

It's going to be hard for Lille to compete in CL and defend the Ligue 1 title losing Rami (Valencia), Gervinho(Liverpool?), Hazard(Arsenal?) and Sow(Fenerbache?).

Kind of a bummer to see, much like what Bortmund is going through losing Sahin, Dede, and potentially Subotic or Hummels.

As for Sakho, he has Arsene Wenger signing written all over him. Would be weird to have two left footed CBs starting side by side though...

Is Dede retiring? He's been at that club since 1998! I think they still have a great squad minus those guys you named. Lille not so much if all those guys leave in one summer.

As for Sakho, he has Arsene Wenger signing written all over him. Would be weird to have two left footed CBs starting side by side though...

― wabi sabi, Monday, 23 May 2011 00:59 (30 minutes ago)

otoh it will be great having two decent centre halves next to each other.

chesney is young but dope. i.e. he may still have a few errors in him but he has won us points and will continue to do so. on a scale of young keepers i'd have him above hart, below de gea.

I'm not convinced by De Gea. Though he might just have a shit defence ahead of him. Would take Hart first of the three.

Jibe is a Lyon fan right? Just seen the women's team win the Champions League Final 2-0 over Potsdam. The second goal was an absolute beauty and the win was very much deserved. In their domestic league with one game to go they have yet to drop a point and have scored 105 and conceded 5! A small consolation for you Jibe;)

Yeah I didn't see the game but I know they won. Yeeessss! Aulas said 3 yrs ago that his aim was to win the CL in 4 yrs. He did it! Good job! (wait what, he was talking about the men's CL...). Anyways this actually made the front page of L'Equipe this morning, which is good for women's football in France. And yeah, Lyon is killing it in the league. They're on their way to beating the men's 7 titles in a row (current total is 5)

and that's a wrap - I seriously thought Monaco could give Lyon a run for its money and help out PSG reach the CL sport but in the end logic prevailed. Really can't get my head around the fact that Monaco is going down.

they're what 7 years removed from a CL Final? From that to relegation. Wow.

after juve that ain't shit :DDD

Juve schmuve, Marseille were relegated the year after winning the whole thing

It's the offseason. And it had to kick off with a nice little story. Omar Kossoko is a player who's been bought by Auxerre from Amiens (currently playing in National, the 3rd division). This idiot found nothing better than to exchange messages onhis facebook with friends along the lines of " Sammaritano, it's simple, I hate this dwarf bastard" (Sammaritano is an Auxerre player who's about 1m65 tall) or "you're crazy, that town is dead and buried they have nothing but football, you'll see on your own you're gonna cry when you see how shit it is". Oh, and obviously his facebook was open for all to see. (Those are approximate translations)

"Samaritano, ces simple je le hai ce bâtard de nain looool...! (...) tes fou la ville est morte et enterré gars y'a que le football la bas. tu verras par toi même tu v'as pleurer de rire tellement ces claqué"

oops forgot to erase the quote in French

lol

First hour of Ukraine-France was pretty dire, then this guy came on and lit it up briefly - two goals and an assist in 15 minutes. I'd only seen his name as the assists leader in France this year, haven't caught a Sochaux match. Anyone know much about him?

great name, that's all I know

Oh, I was coming here to say exactly the same thing as you boxall.

I watched the first 15mns of the game, left and came back when the score was 1-1, around the 80th minute, just in time to see Marvin Martin light up the game. Having scored two goals on his debut, he obviously earned a comment about how Zidane had done the same on his debut. Strangely, the interviewer didn't mention that the last player to score two on his France debut is Bafé Gomis.

I was thinking about writing a little round-up of this season, mentioning a few players to watch out for and Marvin Martin was gonna be one of those. Anyways, yeah, he's a good passer obv, best in Ligue 1. He plays for Sochaux, who were very enjoyable this season, playing attacking football (and it paid off they finished 5th). He's part of a group of young players at Sochaux that have proved quite good (him, Boudebouz, Ideye and Maïga being the most talked about). Rumours had him maybe leaving Sochaux since the head coach left for Bordeaux, but after this game I can bet there are going to be even more rumours about him.

And I'd like to add that I really hate commentators for forgetting that Gomis scored two on his debut, love that dude! (also, it's supposed to be their job to know stuff like that, at times it feels like football ended with Zidane here... which you know isnt entirely false)

The commentator on my stream only compared him to Xavi, not Zidane. I hope someone comes up with a more realistic reference point soon. Modric, maybe?

You should definitely do that round-up Jibe.

Yeah, he's def not a Zidane, but that's the easy comparison point for lazy commentators. As to the round-up, I'm thinking about it, but I'm also helping my parents move, looking for a job and a place, while proving far too competent in the art of procrastination !

so no-one's commented yet on the looming Man City-fication of PSG?

Ha, I was actually researching their ownership about a month ago - I had the prospect of a bit of spare cash and if there's one club who might be an investment that could make you rich PSG is the one imo. (that's a MASSIVE if obviously)

Of course I got no further than tracing them to a US venture capital fund, but this all shows I had the right idea for once.

Anyway, what's the plan for them now?

true size of their cash envelope still a bit of a mystery but they already sent a pretty strong signal by snatching Gameiro, 2nd league scorer with Lorient this season. They also seem about to hire Leonardo as general manager. Can't say, as a supporter, that I'm not excited.

I have heard rumblings. I've even started seeing rumours saying that when Arsene's contract is up he might want to indulge himself. I'm annoyed that this means Sakho isn't leaving but if this makes Ligue 1 a force to reckon with in Europe again, I'm excited.

Yeah this looks good for PSG. Buying Gameiro is def a good move, though that may not be their most pressing need (a DM, a right winger seem more urgent). They benefited from a bit of luck there tho, as apparently Laurent Blanc advised Gameiro not to go to Valencia and stay in France in a team where he wouldn't be a sub. The price they bought Gameiro for is approx what Colony Capital were spending for the entire summer, so yeah, thx Qatar!

They've also got themselves a decent goalkeeper in Douchez. This year their team lacked a good keeper and an efficient attack (Hoarau and Erding are good, they just can't seem to score lol) so I think they'll grab one of the CL spots (if they find a good replacement for Makélélé).

Which is not good news for Lyon, because things are not looking good right now. They've already let go of Chelito Delgado :'( (but he's going to play for the Rayados, which is my team in Mexico so that's good :D), rumours are sending Toulalan to Malaga (ugh, this sucks, i really hope he stays). Also, we won't be able to get rid of Cris, who, as great as he was in years past, has had a terrible year and is payed far too much money for his actual worth.

has claude retired?

Yup

Heaven needed more accents aigus.

Sylvain Marveaux. What's he like?

Injured, quite often. Otherwise, good left winger. Have not seen him play too much tho. I think he's quite good at free-kicks.

tipped as a hot prospect a year ago but then spent most of the season in the reserve as punishment for not renewing his contract. Not sure where he stands now.

he was injured in october or november and hsan't played since i think

haha ok

sports papers/sites are having a field day with the PSG rumour mill these days - now Ancelotti's tipped as new coach... o_0

yeah. there are no real stories to talk about, no players being bought or anything so they're having their fun sending just about everybody to PSG. Let's see, I've read rumours about Eto'o, Berbatov, Ganso, Cambiasso, Wenger, Ancelotti, even a Mourinho one. Writing for a sports paper/site has to be the easiest job in the world: choose a player you like, write a story about your favorite club having gotten in touch with the guy, sit back and watch the money flow. Ok, maybe not that much money, so you choose another player you think sucks, a club you dislike and off you go again. And again and again.

I've just spent 10 days away from the internet and any news and come back to see that PSG is going to be the club to beat this season. if the rumours are right that pastore has indeed signed for them, PSG is going to be unstoppable. and their attack is going to be scary :
gameiro
nene - pastore - menez

they've bought quite a few players : douchez and sirugu , bisevac, gameiro, matuidi, menez, sissoko. each of them being a nice improvement compared to last season - douchez and sirugu > coupet and edel, gameiro (twice second best scorer in ligue 1) > hoarau & erding, matuidi & sissoko > aging makelele, menez > giuly who struggled to play 90mns every week. and obv pastore ! (if he has indeed signed)

i'm guessing you're enjoying this quite a lot baaderonixx.

in the meantime lille has replaced their players who've gone rather intelligently (payet for gervinho, pedretti for cabaye, basa for rami) , marseille seems to be doing ok too with a good central defender (nkoulou), amalfitano, diarra. and the younger of the ayew bros, jordan, who's in great form of late (end of last season and preseason games). rémy seems to be doing quite well too. their trophée des champions game (usually coupe de france winner vs ligue 1 winner, but since lille had won both they played against 2nd place team in ligue 1, OM) was v entertaining apparently, ending with a 5-4 victory for OM even though they were trailing 3-1 at the 85th minute!

all this makes me scared for lyon, who've sold toulalan and delgado and haven't bought anyone yet. they're short on cash and seem to want to let their young players come up to the first team. also, all their creative midfielders are injured or away for the beginning of the season and the all important CL qualifier - ederson is out for a few months, gourcuff just had surgery on his ankle and should come back around the beginning of september, pjanic has a small injury but should hopefully be back for the 1st game of the season, grenier is at the U20 world cup (as are 6 other lyon players). they really need a central defender as cris has been awful those past 2 seasons and while john mensah is back, he'll more than likely spend half of his time injured. they also need a defensive midfielder because they only have gonalons right now, no one to replace him apart from Koné, a youth team player, if he's injured or suspended (which will probably happen seeing as he does get his fair share of yellow and red cards). i'm really not too optimistic about their chances this season. not optimistic about even getting a CL spot at the end of the season, which would be the end of a very long streak.

Terrific stuff Jibe! I was hoping you'd do one of these but didn't wanna pressure you!

grenier was supposed to be a new kakà, how do you rate him

and yeah obv i affirm the stupidity of any of those 'new' nicknames

kaká, then

Should be a way to bookmark single posts for later reference -- thanks Jibe! :)

Yeah thanks again Jibe, great update, always inspiring!

I'm thinking about doing the same for the lol-Dutch league, like you have done so eloquently. But I don't know if anyone is waiting for updates from a league that once brough Afonso Alves as a big promise to England ;_;

Please do! I'm from Norway, our league is beneath yours in the pecking order! :D

yeah i think people would read updates about the eredivisie, especially about news afellays and afonsos

@Anatol, we do seem to get some good Norwegians every now and again from your league :)

I'm seriously considering it, inspired by Jibe's wonderful efforts.

Ah, from my team even? Grindheim? One of the good guys. Is Pa there still? :)

I think Grindheim was great over here! Always wanted PSV to pick him up, sadly didn't materialize.

Haha, well, what to say about Pa? He left this summer for Qatar, but was one of the biggest cult figures in Dutch footballers. What a butcher! His last goal was fantastic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T5TWCdWcAY

I was sad to see him go!

<3

thx glad you appreciate my updates! would love to read yours on the eredivisie le bateau, if only cos the dutch league was the only one i had access to on the tv when i was younger so i have a fondness for it.

@nakh: he hasn't had too many chances to play last year though when he did come on, he proved quite good, did a better job than gourcuff usually (who really was awful last season, i hope he'll reach bordeaux godlike levels soon). problem is if all of lyon's players are fit, he should come after gourcuff, ederson and pjanic in the pecking order. luckily for him most of these players have a bad habit of injuring themselves or underperforming.

a charity game between ManU and OM is anout to start. i hope the money they raise will go to pay for the millions who'll turn blind thx to marseille's kit...

http://le13emehomme.football.fr/public/.maillot-om-europe-2011-2012_m.jpg

sorry for postin this shirt again but it is just so fugly. i don't know who's worse, the crazy ppl who designed this or the fools at om who accepted this design...

thank jibe

i hope gourcuff gets back to his old self, though i read that he is an introverted type, probably liable to long slumps in form when his confidence deserts him...

Pretty good but not up to Jibe standards obv ;)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/aug/04/ligue-1-2011-12-season-preview

Is Niang really gonna start as first choice up front for Caen? A 16 yr old? Blimey!
Have you seen much of him Jibe?

he's young enough to be mamadou niang's son

Haven(t seen much of Niang, no, but he did have quite a nice stretch at the end of Caen's season. That article is actually very good though there are a few incorrect facts. One of them being that the second highest transfer in Ligue 1 history is Anelka to PSG for around 30M€. Also, I disagree with a couple of their team targets : Rennes isn't gunning for top 6, they should be trying to be top 4, maybe even aim for CL spots, while Sochaux isn't aiming for top 4, they should hope for a repeat of last season's success and try and be in the top 6.

Are they going to lose Marvin Martin soon, to PSG or another league?

Right now it looks like they're keeping him. Which if i were him would be the best case scenario. However, as with all ligue 1 clubs, if a really good offer came through, he could leave. We'll just have to wait and see till the 31st of august.

No wonder Marseille figures past and present have been queueing up for a pop at PSG. "You can't go out and buy a style of play, a culture and an identity," the former president Bernard Tapie said

lol can't get over this

I've really not been doing my job contributing to this thread but Jibé seems to have it covered. It does look indeed like Marvin M. will stay at Sochaux since PSG is pretty flush in center midfield and no other L1 club would be able to afford him. The guy or his agents seem wise enough to focus on the L1 for now.
I'm puzzled by the PSG/Berbatov rumours since we def. do not need another striker, otoh the defense and the wings could do with some good subs.

the season has now started. new season, same old lyon. in the first fifteen month, they've already conceded a goal on a set play and lisandro has scored a great goal.

Too late for a new thread?

Nah, do it Jibe! :-)

oh well same as it ever was... (#psg)