Archive for May, 2012

Bank Holiday weekend plans

Thursday, May 24th, 2012

The weather’s been cracking this week, as I’m sure you all know already, and thankfully it’s been quiet in the studio so I’ve been able to get out and enjoy the sunshine. I had some mastering work to do on Wednesday morning then gave myself the afternoon off and went out walking in the Peak District. I haven’t done that for a long time and it made me think I should definitely do it more often – it can be so easy to forget there’s so much amazing countryside around you when you’re living the city life. I’ve been working all day today but am just about to head down to the pub to enjoy a couple of beers in the sunshine with a mate. I drove through town earlier and all the students were out having barbecues and drinking in the sun so I thought if they can do it so can I!

I’ve decided to stay around Manchester over the Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend, so I’m hoping the good weather stays for at least another week. I’ll try and get out into the countryside again I think, maybe to the Peak District or just for a drive around the Cheshire lanes. A couple of the lads have said they’re heading into town for a night out on the Saturday and maybe the Sunday as well, so I’m looking forward to hitting a few bars and eating out Manchester style – it’s got to be a curry.

England have got a friendly against Norway on Saturday that I’ll keep an eye on, just to see how the new team looks. There’s another one the following Saturday, against Belgium on 2 June, then we’re heading straight into Euro 2012. Can’t wait.

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Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend

Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012

As a Manchester United fan, you could consider these to be dark times. We’ve just lost the Premier League title to our biggest rivals, Man City, and Chelsea have just won the Champions League, a competition we embarrassingly got knocked out of, sending us to the Europa League, in which we suffered the same fate. Add to that the fact that one of our star players, Rio Ferdinand, hasn’t been called up for England duty and it could look like a pretty awful season for us.

It’s true that these circumstances aren’t ideal, to put it mildly, but I like to look on the bright side. We came a very close second in the league, only losing because of goal difference, and played a major part in one of the most exciting ever climaxes to the end of a Premier League season. As for the Champions League, all I can do is repeat what I’ve said before – we’ve done it before (three times) and we’ll do it again, simple as that. We’re too well managed, too passionate and quite frankly too good not to. And the best thing is that all of the negatives from this season, losing to City and getting dumped out of the Champions League, will only make us stronger. I’m looking forward to next season already.

Anyway, June looks set to be a good month. Euro 2012 starts for us on the 11th June, as I mentioned before, and there’s the four day Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend before that. I haven’t decided what I’m doing for it yet – either a weekend away or just spending some time at home and around Manchester. There are a few new bars and restaurants I want to try out so I might have to stay around here.

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England squad for Euro 2012

Thursday, May 17th, 2012

I know I said I was going to have a month off football but I can’t help getting wrapped up in the Euro 2012 hype, especially as they’ve announced the England squad going to Poland and Ukraine this week. The biggest shock, especially as a Manchester United fan, is that Rio Ferdinand hasn’t been selected. Roy Hodgson probably won’t do much in the way of explaining his decision but you’ve got to assume he thinks John Terry will bring all the experience the defence needs. I always thought Rio was a more commanding presence than Terry, to be honest, but I may be slightly biased there.

The surprise up front is not from a player being left out but one being included – Andy Carroll gets the nod after a mixed season with Liverpool. Jermain Defoe is another gamble in my eyes, as he’s not had a decent showing for England in a long time. Having said that I’m not sure who I would have taken instead and it’s very easy for us all to sit back at home and criticise the decisions. If we were all that good at picking teams and organising tactics, we’d be the football managers, not them.

In all honesty, the important thing now is not the players individually but how they connect and play as a team. It’s a cliché I know but it’s so true and it seems to be one of the things we’ve really lacked in recent years. Maybe Roy Hodgson hasn’t necessarily concentrated on who’s in top form but which collection of players he thinks will work the best together. That would be a different, smart approach to take and I will of course be watching with interest to see what happens for England in Euro 2012.

And if you’re anything like me you’ll need a reminder of England’s Euro 2012 fixtures, so here are the dates for the first three group games:

  • Monday 11th June, 5pm – France v England
  • Friday 15 June, 5pm – Sweden v England
  • Tuesday 19 June, 7.45pm – England v Ukraine

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Next stop: Euro 2012

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012

What did I say about my predictions being wrong? I don’t mind about the scores but I was hoping that the main one, about Man City winning the title, would have been another duff one from me. But, as we all know, it wasn’t. And I have to say, my own allegiances aside, what an exciting end to the season. I was gutted when I was watching it live, of course, but I watched it again on Match of the Day later and I couldn’t help but be amazed at the way it unfolded. And I have to say that City deserved it in the end. I actually think they had the better side this year and for us to win would have been more of a surprise – I just wasn’t expecting them to do it in such dramatic fashion.

There’s inevitably loads of muck being thrown around by United and City supporters but I’m not interested in that – it’s only football, after all, and it would be boring if we just won everything. It gives us something to come back and fight for next year. Some of my mates who are die-hard United fans would hate me for saying this but I actually think it’s a good thing City won.

So, moving on, it’s less than a month until the Euro 2012 competition starts, with England’s first game against France on Monday 11 June. It is obviously going to be a bit ‘in at the deep end’ for the new manager, Roy Hodgson, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a problem in itself. Time will help in the long run of course but he must know roughly the players he’s going to use and he’ll know their strengths and weaknesses. It’ll just be a case of seeing how well they play alongside each other and their individual attitude and approach to international football. That’s been England’s biggest problem for me over the years – the players just don’t seem comfortable within themselves when they get on the world stage.

Anyway, that gives me effectively a month off football so I’m going to indulge a few of my other passions, one of which, a little by default, is cars. I’ve been looking at used cars for so long I think I’ll be disappointed if I ever do decide on one because it will mean I won’t be able to go and look at them anymore. Maybe I should open a used car dealership? Hmm… anyway, I’m looking at leasing Peugeot 107 deals this week, so I’ll see how that goes.

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Last game of the season

Thursday, May 10th, 2012

I’ve been trying to take my mind off the football this week. I’ve had a band in the studio Tuesday to Thursday so that’s kept me busy but now that’s finished I’ve got no choice but to start looking forwards to Sunday. It’s traditional for me and a couple of mates to go into town to watch the last game of the season and it’s particularly special this year, for obvious reasons. So we’re going to make a bit of a weekend of it I think – some bars in Manchester on Saturday afternoon for a few beers then probably for a curry on Saturday night. We’ve been trying to get to all of the Indian restaurants Manchester has to offer over the years but new ones crop up all the time and it’s hard to keep track of which we’ve been to and which we haven’t. I think this time we’ll just go to one we know we like.

As it’s an away game on Sunday, up in Sunderland, we won’t be going to the actual match so I think we’re going to watch it at my place. We’d normally consider going to a pub I think, especially as it’s the last game of the season, but it’s so important we’re going to want to concentrate and listen to everything that’s going on, and that would never happen in the pub. I’ll fill the fridge up and get some decent snack food in then we’ll just have to sit it out and see what happens – and keep an eye on the Man City result as well, of course.

Oh, and I’ve gone with the prediction from the last post and placed a bet on it – Man City to win 2-1 at QPR and us to draw 1-1 with Sunderland, giving Man City the Premier League title. I figured if Man United don’t win the Premier League, at least I might win some cash to soften the blow a little.

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Premier League finale

Tuesday, May 8th, 2012

Regular readers will have quickly realised that my football results predictions aren’t the best and I’ve proved myself once again with that last one on the FA Cup Final. At least I got one thing right – Chelsea won. No Torres goal though and no 3-1 battle. It was a bit of an average game but that’s fairly common for a Cup Final I think – there’s a nervousness in the teams and a bit of a fear of conceding the first goal that holds them back. Quarter or semi finals tend to be more exciting.

With FA Cup Final finished, I had no choice but to focus on the Premier League finale. Man United and Man City both had their penultimate games on Sunday and we both won, meaning we’re still level on points. With just one game left each, both taking place next Sunday, it really has gone down to the wire. We’re level on points but City have a much better goal difference than us so we really need them to lose or draw and for us to win to make certain of it. If we both win, we’d have to do it by at least a nine goal margin, depending on how many they won by, to take the title, so you have to say that Man City are the favourites. I’d rather take my chances going to play Mega Jackpots online than put any money on the Premier League title but I thought I’d have one last go at a prediction, to see if my lack of success might work the other way.

So I predict that Man City will win 2-1 at home to QPR and we will draw 1-1 away to Sunderland, meaning City take the title. And I’m really hoping that, like all my other predictions, this one won’t turn out to be correct.

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FA Cup Final prediction

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

One of the things I like about football is that there’s always a different game or competition to watch, which is just what I need at the moment with Man United’s Premier League chances in the balance. It was the Champions League last week and now we’ve got FA Cup Final weekend, which has always been a bit of a tradition for me and my group of friends. No matter who’s playing we always make a day of it and head to the same pub each year to watch the match and soak up the atmosphere, with a trip to the betting shop along the way just to make it a little more exciting.

It’s Chelsea v Liverpool in the final this year and I have to say my money is definitely going to be on Chelsea. They’re having a great run of form at the moment and even Torres has started scoring again, so you’d have to back them over Liverpool, who have been a bit erratic recently. If Chelsea win this and then the Champions League final as well it would be an amazing end to a turbulent season for them and you’d have to say Di Matteo should be in the running for the manager of the year award. Some people might be surprised to hear me talk like that, as a United supporter, but I’ve always said I’m a fan of football first and foremost and I always give credit where it’s due, even if it is to our rivals.

Anyway, my FA Cup Final prediction is for Chelsea to win 3-1. I might even put an extra bet on for Torres to score the first goal.

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Super Sundays

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Well the football didn’t provide the perfect end to a great weekend that we wanted. Obviously gutted at losing to Man City and slipping down into second place in the Premier League. It was a bit of a flat match, as far as the football was concerned, especially considering all the hype around it. I think they probably deserved the win to be honest and 1-0 was a fair score line. I was surprised to see Sir Alex lose it a bit on the touchline, exchanging a few heated words with Mancini. He’s normally so controlled – there’s obviously a lot of pressure on him and the team and I hope this isn’t a sign that it’s getting to him a bit too much. The last thing we need at this stage of the season is the manager falling apart.

Still, onwards and upwards. We have two games left to redeem ourselves and of course we’ll have to keep an eye on City’s results. Mancini says Man United are still favourites for the title because we’ve got easier games but at this stage no game is easy. On paper, I would agree that Swansea and Sunderland are a better prospect than Newcastle and QPR, but you never know what will happen. QPR are fighting a bit of a relegation battle, which will undoubtedly inspire them, but the other three don’t really have anything to lose, which could be just as dangerous, especially if we let the nerves get to us and don’t relax into the games. The next two Sundays will be big football days for us.

Anyway, I’m trying to take my mind off football for the time being, at least until Sunday. Had a cracking weekend with the lads, out in town on Saturday and Sunday night. We went to a few bars around Manchester on Saturday then for an Indian and had a really nice steak meal on Sunday. It was good to catch up with them all – a bit like the good old days. One of them took us to the football in his Renault Grand Scenic on Monday night. It’s a decent sized car, easily fitting five of us, and would work well for all the studio equipment and stuff I have to shift around, so I might take a look at one later this week.

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