ooh fancy a punt?

Well we’re what just 3 weeks into the season and it’s already bloody interesting. MU slow start and already 5 points behind Russia fc, who apparently are trying to sign Ronaldinho (well their Chairman is). Man City doing well under Sven (it’ll never last), little Sam struggling, Leicester C sacked their manager today (sorry he left by mutual consent), Jol dead man walking at Spurs incredibly. Sure he lost it at that match v the Ruskis last year. Blackpool beat Premiership side Derby last night in the Carling Cup, woo hoo. Boro surely doomed if their striking options are moody Mido – I’ll give it 4 weeks before he becomes disenchanted – some unknown bloke from Turkey and Jeremy Ally-ally-o. Apparently they are now willing to part with £6m for that waste of space from Man C, Samaros. Sigh.

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OGS; you made me happy, when skies were grey

Sorry back to a footie posting but forgive me because this morning it was announced that one of my favourite and probably most unassuming of players in Man U’s recent history has retired. The player? Ole Gunner Solksjaer, whose last name Barry Davis, surely the High Priest of commentating pedantry, tried to convince us was pronounced Solz-yaye-ar-ah. Yeh just like your last name is pronounced as f*ckwit.

100 not out

Well folks this is my 100th posting on the Pasta Paulie blogsite. Blimey that’s starting to be a lot of opinion, rants and slightly gentler words now I think about it. That’s said, it’s been a blast for me. I’m full of crap I know but this has been a great release valve for me now that we’ve stopped playing 5-a-side (unwillingly). So what’s the subject for this posting? It ought to be about life in Italy as that’s the core theme of the PP site. But as you know we are largely over here at present trying to get this house sold after 2 years on the market. We hope to get back there very soon. But it’s been a difficult few months now and something happened last night to make me feel very good again.

bob’s genes and cooking.

Something tends to happens to men between the ages of 42 and 50. In my case, from being an independently-minded guy with distinctive and individual tastes and interests I started to morph into my father Bob. I don’t just mean that people could spot some similarities between us, I’m talking about turning into him. Take a look at these pictures and bear in mind Bob’s over 20 years older than me. We look like bloody twins…

tarrah kara-tracey

Is it just me or is BB8 getting duller and duller now that the prial of Queens, parly Chanelle, gobby Charley and demure Shannessa, have all gone. Last night two more women were evicted from the house but it was hardly a shock and no complaints here.

PC World and michael jackson’s hand

No more football postings for a while – it’s just too depressing at the moment. So back to ad watch and two stinkers which have cheered me up with their awfulness this week. The first is the latest ad for PC World – it’s like all the rest in the series, full of happy smiling informed assistants (ha!) dressed in lurid purple shirts offering snappy selling points on the latest piece of laptop technology they’re trying to flog off.

frigging england rubbish

Well don’t really want to say I said so but that was frigging rubbish tonight. Issues:

– Micah Richards surely the best young defender in the country. Exposed and played DB off the field

– Paul Robinson surely not totally at fault for the goal. He got caught out by a wicked under-the-bar-cross that was never meant. What did James do when he came on?

– DB rubbish I thought in terms of effort. He’s crocked for christs’s sake.

– Why didn’t SRPhillips play on the right? How often does he play on the left? For f*cks sake McClaren.

– Why didn’t Gareth Barry replace Joe Cole directly on the left instead of into midfield?

– Owen rubbish and Smith too. What on earth is he (Smith) doing at NU?

– Dyer rubbish

– Crouch never touched the ball

That apart I thought McClaren had a great game. NOT!!!! There were no positives apart from Richards. Hopeless waste of time the whole thing. Please Brainiac B give somebody with a strategic sense of purpose a chance. I’ll happily do it for £50k and I promise I’ll not make these stupid frigging selections. Honest to god it’s just crap. Doesn’t anybody at the FA see it like we all do? I’m just so happy that NI got a result tonight. In fact, I’m pleased for Wales, Scotland and Ireland tonight who also had great results. What’s the chances Wembley will be full next match? Not good.

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(don’t)…. come on england

Is it just me or is tonight’s match between England and Germany the least eagerly awaited in football history? I must be alone in thinking this because new Wembley’s full apparently. I’ll be checking in of course but I just don’t fancy this one. We’ve a lame-duck manager who’s having to pick a bunch of half-fit discards. None of the major clubs (all managed by non-English managers) see any reason to support the England cause and release their precious talent to McClaren’s safe-keeping. Few of the players seem bothered anymore about playing for their country anyway it seems. DB’s turned up but he’s manipulating the media coverage astutely as ever and the Quiff can now do nothing about it. Those 100 caps are nailed on even though he’s crocked, jet-lagged and playing in Disney league football.

Apart from the revenue for the FA, the fixture is meaningless and will have precious little bearing on the qualifying matches to come. Even the Germans seem disinterested by it all. Who’s their manager these days? Seen any coverage of him or the team this week? A bit, but it’s not what it was as a fixture. Maybe I’ll be surprised and we’ll get another cracker like the September 2001 5-1 thriller (which I missed at the time as we were on holiday in Italy – in fact I turned the Italian radio off after Germany went 1-0 up!). JP gave me his videotape of the match when I got back. What a game and perhaps the last time England played brilliantly? The Rooney v Croatia match was great but a one-man show I’d suggest.

Those were the days eh. In footballing terms 2001’s a special oddity.

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