World Football Postulant

Last night  I was able to get caught up on a little La Liga action thanks to video from Sporting de Gijon v Real Madrid and Barcelona v Real Betis.  I’ll start with the former, as there is a lot less to say.

I can not imagine a club at the top level of any of the seven big fall-start leagues that is worse than Sporting de Gijon.  They  do not have a point, sit alone at the bottom of the table, and allowed 13 goals over two matches to Barcelona and Real Madrid.  Against Real in mid-week, they were so poor that I could not make any kind of judgments of Real.  Gijon is not a measure against which top teams can be assessed.

Barcelona, on the other hand, looked very impressive in dismantling  Real Betis.  Nobody is going to confused Betis for a true contender, but they are an established club with a track record in La Liga.  Barcelona still picked them apart.

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All of the big four are still in the Carling Cup, and this late into the competition, you can expect each to smell the silver.

Today, the draw for the fourth round was released. Here are the match-ups with some brief comments, my wit willing: Continue Reading »

For as bad as I’ve been picking Eredivisie maches, I’ve been that good picking Portugal’s fixtures.

Knock on virtual wood.

I think it’s because the range of scores is so little, and although I bemoaned the lack of scoring in this year’s Eredivisie, though would explain why my picks are bad in the Dutch league. Where there are more goals scored, there more variance in results and the games are more difficult to pick. Too bad I have no idea if that’s actually true.

Unlike France or the Netherlands, Portugal gives us a marquee league match-up when Benfica hosts Sporting CP on Saturday. I look for Benfica to be in another shootout, a five goal result that’s an eruption for this league.

The rules, one more time: Win for matches I predict correctly, regardless of score; Draws for matches that end in a draw, but I’d picked a winner; Losses for everything else.

September 20
Sporting Lisbon 2-0 Belenenses (pick: Lisbon, 2-1)
September 21
Amadora 0-0 Martimo (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Naval 3-1 Trofense (pick: Naval, 2-0)
Rio Ave 0-0 FC Porto (pick: Porto, 3-0)
Academica 1-0 Vitoria Setubal (pick: Academica, 1-0)
September 22
Vitoria de Guimaraes 0-2 Nacional (pick: Guimaraes, 2-1)
Pacos de Ferreira 3-4 Benfica (pick: Benfica, 2-1)

Results: 5 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss
Cummulative: 12 wins, 4 draws, 5 losses

September 26 - Pick
FC Porto 2-0 Pacos de Ferreira
September 27 - Pick
Sporting de Braga 1-1 Naval
Vitoria Setubal 2-0 Rio Ave
Benfica 3-2 Sporting Lisbon
September 28 - Pick
Maritimo 0-0 Academica
Nacional 2-0 Amadora
Trofense 1-1 Vitoria de Guimaraes
September 29 - Pick
Belenenses 1-1 Leixoes

I have no idea what’s going on in the Dutch league. Hey, at least I’ll admit it.

The biggest clue as to things being all screwy is the scoring, or lack there of. Scoring is noticeably down in the league, with no club more emblematic of it than Ajax. Ajax was a team that could ahve pushed 100 goals, but through three games have only 4. So long century mark.

This weekend both league powers (Ajax and PSV) will be at home with a chance to post a decisive result. Ajax, who have struggled to four points through three matches under new coach Marco van Basten, can use the three points.

Here are the picks:

September 12
Heerenveen 2-2 Heracles (pick: Heerenveen, 3-1)
September 13
PSV 1-0 Sparta Rodderdam (pick: PSV, 3-1)
ADO Den Haag 2-0, AZ (pick: AZ, 2-1)
FC Twente 1-1 NEC (pick: Twente, 2-1)
Feyenoord 5-0 Volendam (pick: Feyenoord, 2-0)
September 14
De Graafschap 1-0 Vitesse (pick: Draw, 2-2)
NAC 1-3 Willem (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Ajax 1-0 Roda JC (pick: Ajax, 4-1)
Groningen 2-0 Utrecht (pick: Draw, 2-2)

Results: 3 wins, 2 draws, 4 losses
Cummulative: 7 wins, 2 draws, 9 losses

September 20
Vitesse 1-1 Sparta Rotterdam (pick: Vitesse, 2-1)
Heracles 1-1 Groningen (pick: Draw, 2-2)
AZ 1-0 PSV (pick: PSV, 3-2)
September 21
Feyenoord 2-2 Ajax (pick: Ajax, 3-1)
De Graafschap 2-0 ADO Den Haag (pick: De Graafschap, 2-1)
Volendam 1-2 FC Twente (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Roda JC 0-3 NAC Breda (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Heerenveen 2-1 NEC (pick: Heerenveen, 3-2)

Results: 3 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses
Cummulative: 10 wins, 4 draws, 12 losses

September 27, 2008-Picks
NAC Breda 2-1 Heerenveen
FC Twente 1-0 De Graafschap
PSV 4-0 Volendam
Willem 2-1 AZ
September 28-Picks
ADO Den Haag 2-1 Utrecht
Groningen 2-1 Feyenoord
Sparta Rotteerdam 2-2 Roda JC
NEC 1-1 Heracles
Ajax 3-0 Vitesse

My Ligue Un picks have not gone well, though a good weekend has pulled me back to .500. I have really been hurt by Bordeaux and an ill-placed faith in Valenciennes. Auxerre seems to be laughing at me.

This week gives us a rather lackluster slate of fixtures in Ligue Un, though the last match on Sunday does see St. Etienne visit Bordeaux. Perhaps Laurent Blanc’s side will wake-up eventually, but I see this is another match where they leave points on the pitch. At some point, we need to accept that last year’s Bordeaux club may not return any time soon.

Scoring: Win - when I pick the right result, regardless of score; Draw - a match that ends in a draw, though I predicted a winner; Loss - everything else.

September 13
Auxerre 1-1 Nancy (pick: Auxerre, 1-0)
Monaco 2-0 Lorient (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Lyon 3-2 Nice (pick: Lyon, 2-0)
Le Mans 1-2 Toulouse (pick: Le Mans, 2-1)
Valenciennes 1-1 Grenoble (pick: Valenciennes, 3-1)
Rennes 1-1 Le Havre (pick: Rennes, 1-0)
Bordeaux 1-1 Marseille (pick: Draw, 2-2)
September 14
Caen 2-0 St. Etienne (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Sochaux 1-1 Lille (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Paris St. Germain 1-0 Nantes (pick: PSG, 1-0)

Results: 4 wins, 3 draws, 3 losses
Cummulative: 19 wins, 8 draws, 23 losses

September 20
Nantes 2-0 Valenciennes (pick: Valenciennes, 2-0)
Lorient 1-1 Caen (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Grenoble 0-1 Bordeaux (pick: Bordeaux, 2-1)
La Havre 0-1 Lyon (pick: Lyon, 2-1)
Toulouse 2-1 Sochaux (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Lille 3-2 Auxerre (pick: Lille 2-0)
Nice 2-2 Le Mans (pick: Nice 2-1)
September 21
St. Etienne 1-0 PSG (pick: St. Etienne, 1-0)
Nancy 0-0 Rennes (pick: Nancy 1-1)
Marseille 0-0 Monaco (pick: Marseille, 3-0)

Results: 6 wins, 2 draws, 2 losses
Cummulative: 25 wins, 10 draws, 25 losses

September 27-Picks
Sochaux 1-1 Lorient
Rennes 1-1 Nice
Caen 2-1 Nantes
Auxerra 2-1 Le Havra
La Mans 1-3 Marseille
Lyon 2-0 Nancy
Paris St. Germain 1-0 Grenoble
September 28-Picks
Monaco 0-1 Lille
Valenciennes 2-0 Toulouse
Bordeaux 1-1 St. Etienne

I still can’t remember to make my Bundesliga picks on Thursday, and as a result I always fail to pick the Friday game. This week, however, I know I would ahve picked Schalke to beat Koln, so even though I already know that Koln was able to beat Schalke, I’m predicting the game - an early loss for me.

This week’s stand out match-up is sees Bremen, fresh off their destruction of Bayern in Munich, hosting upstart Hoffenheim. I like Bremen to continue their goal scoring ways and Hoffenheim to ge their second major reminder that they are not quite in the league’s elite. Yet.

Reminder on scoring: Win - I predict the right result; Draw - I predict a winner, but it ends in a draw; Loss - Everything else.

September 13
Hertha Berlin 2-2 Wolfsburg (pick: Berlin, 2-1)
Hamburg 3-2 Bayer LEverkusen (pick: Hamburg, 3-2)
FC Koln 0-3 Bayern Munich (pick: Bayern 2-0)
Borussia Dortmund 3-3 Schalke (pick: Draw, 2-2)
Werder Bremen 3-0 Energie Cottbus (pick: Bremen, 4-1)
Hoffenheim 0-0 Stuttgart (pick: Hoffenheim, 3-2)
September 14
Hannover 5-1 Monchengladbach (pick: Hannover, 2-0)
Bochum 2-0 Bielefeld (pick: Draw, 2-2)

Results: 5 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss
Cummulative: 16 wins, 7 draws, 11 losses

September 20
Arminia 2-0 FC Koln (pick: Arminia 3-1)
Schalke 1-0 Frankfurt (pick: Schalke 3-0)
Borussia Monchengladbach 0-1 Hertha Berlin (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Energis Cottbus 1-1 Bochum (pick: Cottbus, 2-1)
Bayern Munich 2-5 Werder Bremen (pick: Draw, 2-2)
September 21
Hoffenheim 4-1 Borussia Dortmund (pick: Dortmund, 3-2)
Stuttgart 3-1 Karlsruhe (pick: Stuttgart, 3-1)
Wolfsburg 3-0 Hamburg (pick: Hamburg, 2-1)

Results: 3 wins, 1 draw, 4 losses
Cummulative: 19 wins, 8 draws, 15 losses

September 26-Pick
FC Koln 0-3 Schalke
September 27-Picks
Werder Bremen 4-2 Hoffenheim
Hannover 1-2 Bayern
Hamburg 2-0 Monchengladbach
Hertha Berlin 2-0 Energie Cottbus
Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Stuttgart
Bochum 1-2 Bayer Leverkusen
September 28-Picks
Frankfurt 1-2 Arminia Bielefeld
Karlsruhe 1-1 Wolfsburg

Like with my La Liga picks, I’m behind with Serie A and also forgot to pick the mid-week matches. Below is a recap of the two weeks I forgot to post my picks, followed by my picks for this weekend.

The Milan derby might be the match of the European weekend, and it could not come at a better time for Inter. They are at the top of their game, have gotten players back to health, and are catching Milan in a bit if disarray. It’s true that Carlo Ancelotti started sorting things out last weekend when Milan got their first win, benching Ronaldinho to do it. But Inter Milan’s on another level.

The scoring, which I forgot to mention in the La Liga Picks post: I win when I pick the winner correctly or I correctly pick a draw. I draw when the match ends a draw but I didn’t pick it as such. Everything else is a loss.

September 13
Palermo 3-1 Roma (pick: Roma, 2-0)
Inter Milan 2-1 Catania (pick: Inter Milan 3-0)
September 14
Lazio 2-0 Sampdoria (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Lecce 2-0 Chievo (pick: Lecce, 2-1)
Napoli 2-1 Fiorentina (pick: Napoli, 2-1)
Reggina 1-1 Torino (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Siena 2-0 Cagliari (pick: Siena, 2-1)
Bologna 0-1 Atalanta (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Genoa 2-0 AC Milan (pick: AC Milan, 2-1)
Juventus 1-0 Udinese (pick: Juventus, 3-1)

Results: 6 wins, 4 losses
Cummulative: 11 wins, 2 draws, 6 losses

September 20
Catania 1-0 Atalanta (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Roma 3-0 Reggina (pick: Roma, 2-0)
September 21
Cagliari 0-1 Juventus (pick: Juventus, 2-1)
Fiorentina 1-0 Bologna (pick: Fiorentina, 3-0)
Lecce 1-1 Siena (pick: Lecce, 2-1)
Palermo 2-1 Genoa (pick: Palermo, 2-0)
Sampdoria 1-1 Chievo (pick: Sampdoria, 3-0)
Torinto 1-3 Inter Milan (pick: Inter Milan 2-1)
Udinese 0-0 Napoli (pick: Draw, 2-2)
AC Milan 4-1 Lazio (pick: Draw, 1-1)

Results: 6 wins, 2 draws, 2 losses
Cummulative: 17 wins, 4 draws, 8 losses

September 27-Picks
Sampdoria 0-1 Juventus
Fiorentina 2-0 Genoa
September 28-Picks
Bologna 1-2 Napoli
Catania 2-1 Chievo
Lecce 2-1 Cagliari
Palermo 3-1 Reggina
Roma 2-0 Atalanta
Udinese 1-0 Siena
Torino 2-1 Lazio
AC Milan 1-2 Inter Milan

I have not updated the site with my picks for a while. I’ve gotten so busy that I’ve been writing them in my notebook. Here are two weeks of catch-up and then this weekend’s picks.

Match to look forward to: Atletico Madrid hosting Sevilla. The Atleti were dominant last week but step up the competition a bit in hosting Sevilla. It will be a good test of whether they can string together good performances. Should they be able to do so, they will show a quality needed from a team that’s going to challenge for the league title.

Note: I did not make any mid-week picks. I just plain screwed up.

September 13
Match
Barcelona 1-1 Racing Santander (pick: Barcelona, 2-1)
Valladolid 2-1 Atletico Madrid (pick: Atletico, 2-0)
Sevilla 4-3 Sporting de Gijon (pick: Sevilla, 3-1)
September 14
Villareal 1-0 Deportivo (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Mallorca 1-1 Osasuna (pick: Mallorca, 2-1)
Getafe 0-0 Real Betis (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Recreativo 0-1 Espanyol (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Malaga 0-0 Bilbao (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Real Madrid 4-3 Numania (pick: Real Madrid, 4-0)
Almeria 2-2 Valencia (pick: Draw, 2-2)

Results: 5 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses
Cummulative: 8 wins, 4 draws, 7 losses

September 20
Atletico 4-0 Recreativo (pick: Atletico, 3-1)
Espanyol 1-1 Getafe (pick: Espanyol, 2-0)
September 21
Valencia 1-0 Osasuna (pick: Valencia, 3-2)
Real Betis 0-0 Sevilla (pick: Sevilla, 2-1)
Almeria 1-0 Malaga (pick: Almeria, 2-0)
Bilboa 2-0 Valladolid (pick: Draw, 1-1)
Numancia 1-2 Villareal (pick: Villareal, 2-1)
Deportivo 0-0 Mallorca (pick: Deportivo, 2-1)
Racing 0-2 Real Madrid (pick: Draw, 2-2)
Sporting de Gijon 1-6 Barcelona (pick: Barcelona 3-0)

Results: 5 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses
Cummulative: 13 wins, 6 draws, 10 losses

September 27 - Picks
Real Betis 1-3 Real Madrid
Sporting de Gijon 1-3 Villareal
Espanyol 2-2 Barcelona
Racing Santander 2-1 Mallorca
Almeria 2-0 Recreativo Huelva
Malaga 1-2 Valladolid
Atheltico Bilbao 2-1 Getafe
Numancia 1-0 Osasuna
Valencia 3-2 Deportivo
Atletico Madrid 2-1 Sevilla

World Football Postulant is going to try Twitter.

If you are unfamiliar with Twitter or don’t know what it is, I can’t really help you too much.  I don’t have a good explanation.  I do know that a lot of people are using it so distribute and aggregate information.

WFP will do the same.   At least, for a while.

Here is WFP’s Twitter page, user worldfootpost.

I will add a Twitter tab to the top, too.