If I Were van Basten...

Well folks, tonight's much-anticipated Euro 2008 group C last fixture is just hours away, where it's a battle of mind-games and managers trying to outsmart the other. Well thanks goodness I managed to sneak in their office and stole their diaries. And I even got Fabregas' too! Enjoy their diary entries, and by the way sorry for the gay pictures lol ^^ Warning: Some crude humour included!


If I were van Basten...

Just few hours before the match against Romania. Now I have to face a big decision; should I tell my squad to just let Romania win or should I rather keep my pride and own Romania 6-0? If I ask Johan Cruyff he's going to give me a definite "Win with pride" answer. So let me think things through.

If I lose to Romania (on purpose, of course. There's no way that would happen), then I would face either Sweden or Russia. Which is good. And you know what's better? The Les Blokes and the Italians, who even dared to play that bad-boy Cassano, are not going to qualify! Can it get better than that? I'll be the hero! Maybe not...

My pride and reputation is going to be tarnished, Johan Cruyff is going to scold the shit out of me, and I won't even have a chance to manage AC Milan. So what to do...?

If I were Raymond Domenech...

Oh man. Vieira won't be playing tonight, he seems like he's having some kind of terminal illness! When is he ever going to be fit for France? Maybe he should have went to represent Senegal all along!

I must beat Italy, only then will my team qualify. But only if van Bastered's team win Romania. Tough one to tell, only Michel Platini knows whether he will abandon his pride and honour just for me and Donadoni to be banging our heads on the wall. How I wish I could do what Zizou did in the World Cup 2 years ago to van Basten, too bad I forgot to shave my hair or it would be a "WC Flashback". Thierry Henry should be able to play, Gomis should get a new haircut too because he sucks at the moment with it, and Gregory Coupet should have retired earlier. What to do???

If I were Roberto Donadoni...

Bad news. I just met the chairman of the Italian National Team. He says that unless I qualify and advance to the next stage of Euro 2008, I can fu**ing kiss my Italian job goodbye. This time it seems really true; I massaged his back, scrubbed his feet, and darkened his boots. It just doesn't convince him that we were unlucky to be at this difficult position because if I called the damn repair man to fix the damn hole in the drain Cannavaro wouldn't have fell inside and break his foot.

I need to beat France, the team which is managed by the guy who copied my hairstyle. He's okay, I should be able to thrash his team 3-0 easily, but for Holland, it is a different story. That wily and sly van Basten may not field their best players in order for me and Donemech or whatever his name is to be out at the group stages. Dino Zoff said we could qualify, but pl-ease! He's already 66, he better go x-ray his head and see if there's even a brain inside! If you were so accurate you wouldn't have let Maldini kick your ass by beating your record.

What to do...

If I were Fabregas...

No way would I want to face van Persie. I know there is a high possibility that Spain would meet Netherlands in the semi-finals, but I would rather sit on the bench. He's good, and I really hope he doesn't execute that "flying kick" which scored him a goal years ago, which was deemed by many the best goal he scored. I don't want to end up like the 2 idiots Rooney and Ronaldo, who fought like babies at the World Cup 2006, who then stupidly patch up their differences by treating each other KFC meals. Bummer.

Guess my fate is sealed .. I WILL face RVP, but whose team will win?

Villa or Podolski?

I'm sure if you're a Gooner who reads the hottest rumours about Arsenal these players will look familiar to you. They have been linked with the Goon Squad recently, both being quality players playing for their national team in Euro 2008 currently. Now here's the big question, "Who would you sign if you're Arsene Wenger?" Of course some people would just give a simple "Sign both!" reply, but judging from the amount of strikers we have in our team and Arsene Wenger's stubborn attitude of not signing too many big stars, it is safe to say only one will come to Arsenal. Maybe he won't even sign any of them, but today's focus is on David Villa of Spain and Valencia and Lukas Podolski of Germany and FC Bayern Munich.

Firstly, let's compare the stats. Villa is older and thus have more experience and goals with him; he scored an amazing hat-trick in Spain's first match against Russia in Euro 2008 and went on to score a total of 4 goals (so far) in the tournament. Podolski, being younger, did not score as many goals as Villa for club, but surprisingly, Podolski easily beat Villa in goals for country; Podolski scored 28 goals for Germany while Villa scored 18. And Podolski even made more appearances for his national team. So it's difficult to tell who is better at this, but I would have to go with Podolski. Younger but more goals, Villa ought to be ashamed of himself!

Secondly let's forget about records and stats all written on paper. Let's move to their ability. There's not much to say about this one. It's based on one's opinion as to who is the better player, but this time Villa gets my vote. Overall he has more technical ability with him, he shoots the ball with power, scores goals with composure, which makes him one of the most lethal strikers in the world.

Thirdly, we'll be talking about adaptability. Podolski lives in Germany while Villa lives in Spain. I don't know about the weather in these countries, but Villa looks more likely to be able to adapt the English football style. It's fast-paced so if you're slow then you can pack your bags and go home. Podolski's not slow, but Villa's faster. I don't know about adapting to life in Engand, but I'm sure Villa would be able to adapt to life in English football.

Fourthly, the price. There have been rumours that Villa can go for 20 million pounds while Podolski can leave for 15 million pounds. Villa is easily more expensive, and there seems to be more competition for Villa than Podolski (major clubs like Chelsea and Liverpool are going for Villa, while so far I've only heard Man City to be the only club going for Podolski). If Arsene wants Villa, he needs to act fast and give a convincing price. But what's good news for us is that Vila have once declared that he would be happy to go to North London, so as long as Valencia gives the consent we probably won't have much problems settling a deal with Villa.

Finally, attitude. I can't resist but bring this up, if any of the players Arsene sign has the attitude of Bendtner then I would rather he forget it. But thankfully, I believe neither Villa or Podolski have a really f***ed-up attitude like Niklas Bendtner. So this one is a tie; but from what I think, Villa would be a better mentor than Podolski if anyone of them is going to tutor Bendtner. Podolski is 23 while Bendtner is 20, and 3 years of age difference is not a lot. Just picture this: Podolski tutoring Bentdner, it seems funny doesn't it? Then now picture this: David Villa tutoring Niklas Bendtner. Seems much better.

So after all the comparisons, no doubt about it, David Villa is the eventual winner. Of course, like always they are based on my opinions, so if you disagree with me then prove your point below. Debate on the different comparison subjects, and explain why that player is the winner. That's all for now, take cares from Dariano.

Next Season Starts Today

Indeed, next season may have just started. After looking at the fixture list from Arsenal.com, I got some mix feelings. It seems that we'll all be hyping up on the fixtures, predicting the outcome for each of them. So rather than start preparations late, we must as well start NOW. Anyway, before I start you should check out the list first.

Seen the list? Now firstly we've to look at our starting matches. We'll be having our Champions League qualifying match (This didn't deserve to happen to us), which our opponents are still unknown. Days after our first match we would be having our first premiership match, against newly-promoted West Bromwich Albion. Hopefully we can go through that fixture without problems. Soon we'll be having our next qualifier, and then Fulham, and finally perhaps our first tough test (no offence to the other clubs), Newcastle United. This may just be the match that decides whether we can win the premiership next season.

Secondly, let's move on to October the 28th, what I believed to be our first rival match, more simply known as "North London Derby". We'll be facing perhaps our fiercest rival on home soil, and tbh I'm really worried about their new signings (Modric, Dos Santos). They once said thy could be the dominating team of North London, and I really hope we can shut their mouth on that day.

We'll be facing Man Utd and Chelsea in the same month (Why does this always happen?) of November, and 5 days before Christmas we will be facing Liverpool at home. Let's see if Santa would give us a good Christmas present :)

A North London Derby on February, Carling Cup Final on March, and another encounter with Liverpool at the Kop, what more of we Gooners would be interested in is the month of May, no not totally because it's the final month of the premiership, but because it's a hot month for us. We'll be facing Chelsea at home, and exactly 7 days later we'll be going to Old Trafford to face Man Utd. We'll be having a breather with Stoke City, which hopefully will turn out to be a trashing to them like how we did with Derby close to the end of the season.2 important matches, plus 2 cup finals (CL Final and FA Final) in one, single, month. Wow. Fixtures may still change though, and remember this list is accurate as of 16 June 2008, any changes after that will not be reflected here.

So what is your opinion on this? Is it good or is it bad? Any matches that caught your attention? Discuss here. That's all folks, for now take cares and goodbye.

Defensive Midfielder Candidates

Seeing that nothing much have happened about Arsenal today, and that now I have the time, I thought it would be wasteful not to publish anything. So I've decided to write this article about the possible candidates for the vacant DM position left by Mathieu Fla-money. Lots of candidate, and lots of opinion from me.

Miguel Veloso



To see his full profile, click here.

Strengths: Great technical player, rather good holding midfielder

Weaknesses: Can't perform holding role as well as Flamini, Costly

Recommendation: 8.5/10

Yaya Toure



Strengths: Excellent holding midfielder; even better than Flamini, may cooperate well with his brother Kolo

Weaknesses: Lacks the technique of Flamini, rather costly

Recommendation: 10/10

Raul Albiol



Strengths: Strong holding midfielder, versatile; can play as center-back

Weaknesses: Probably plays better in CB role

Recommendation: 8.5/10

Johan Djourou



Strengths: Good holding midfielder, rather determined and ambitious, versatile

Weaknesses: Young and inexperience, I would rather see him play as a CB

Recommendation: 7.5/10

Torsten Frings



More detailed profile can be found here.

Strengths: Great technical player, versatile; can play all across midfield, experience

Weaknesses: Old, can't perform as well as Flamini in holding midfielder role, a little playmaker style which may interfere with Fabregas' style of play

Recommendation: 7/10

Denilson



Strengths: Good playmaking ability, young and quick

Weaknesses: Not performing to best potential yet; may outshine Flamini in the future though, inexperience, need more time to adapt

Recommendation: 7.5/10

Gilberto Silva



Strengths: Very experience, good holding midfielder, influential and commanding, professional attitude

Weaknesses: Old and slow, a shadow of his former self, unhappy at the moment, inconsistent

Recommendation: 8/10


So after reviewing all the possible candidates for the empty DM position, you can probably see that Yaya Toure was my best and preferred choice. I gave him an outstanding 10/10 for recommendation, which probably shows how much I would want him at Arsenal. For now these are the only players I know Wenger feels can replace Flamini, although there may be more. Once the transfer window opens, we shall see. But if I could tell Wenger one thing, I would tell him to sign Yaya at all cost, and also tell him to read this article. It's based solely on my opinion, whether you guys agree with me is a different story ;)

Do you agree with my recommendation levels? Who's your preferred choice? Share it with me :)

Latest news: Wenger going for Parejo

One of the latest news I received is that Arsene Wenger is renewing his interest in Real Madrid youth starlet Daniel Parejo.

Arsenal once had a bid for Parejo rejected, but now it seems that Wenger still want more youth starlets for the future, even after getting Aaron Ramsey.

Daniel Parejo is currently playing for Real Madrid's reserve squad, aka Real Madrid Castilla. He is a Spanish midfielder who impressed Wenger during last year's under-19's European Championships, which the senior version of the championship is currently being held in Switzerland and Vienna, more famously known as UEFA Euro.

He hopes to transform Parejo into the next Fabregas, who also originally came from Spain but was playing for Real Madrid's La Liga rival, Barcelona.

Parejo have explained that although he is flattered to be link to Arsenal, he would rather stay with Los Merengues as he knows more familiar faces there, and Real Madrid is also his hometown club. He aims to succeed in Madrid. Here's what he said:

"For me, it is a compliment that such an important European team is showing interest. I have heard rumours but my intention is very clear - my dream is to succeed in Madrid. Nobody dislikes something like that (being compared to Cesc Fabregas) but I prefer to look in the mirror and see Raul, Guti and Iker Casillas, three footballers who have come out of this youth system and have gone on to triumph in Madrid. I am young and I have patience."

But will that change?

I've never heard of Daniel Parejo until I read the article. He is touted as the next Fabregas, which means he plays as a playmaker. But what bothers me is that it will probably take 11 million to buy him from Madrid. A big sum off 11 million pounds for a player whom I have never heard of? And also a player who plays in a position we don't need at the moment? I would rather not.

Keep that money Wenger, maybe we should sign this kid next season, I trust you, but I don't trust that you should actually sign him during the this winter's transfer window. Keep it for next summer or winter, and we're talking about 11 million for goodness sake. We can probably buy Nasri with that amount of money.

So like I said Wenger, next season.

Going for Frings

Recently I have heard news that Arsene Wenger may be interested in signing Werder Bremen midfielder Torsten Frings.



Full Name: Torsten Frings
Position: MC/DM/ML/R
Age: 31
Team: Werder Bremen
Nationality: Germany
International Caps: 74 caps/ 2 goals
Height: 1.82m
Weight: 80kg

I have gotten many sources that say the 31 year-old midfielder could be going to Arsenal for 4 million pounds, as a replacement for Mathieu Flamini, with Gilberto Silva being a shadow of his former self and Denilson being too young and inexperience.

The 31 year-old Torsten Frings has experience, versatile and a good skillful and technical player. The 31 year-old is also a good set-piece taker, and is a first-team player for Werder Bremen and Germany for the current Euro 2008. And added by the fact he's only 31, he can leave for a small fee of only 4 million pounds, something that Arsene Wenger would most probably be willing to pay for. But if Wenger were to ask me about my views on the 31 year-old Torsten Frings, I would say this: Don't sign him.

If you realise I have actually been emphasizing the words "31 year-old", and I have always been repeating and calling Frings just that. Why? Mainly because that is the very reason why I wouldn't want him to come to Arsenal. yes, no doubt, last season we let the title escape from our clutches due to a lack of experience, and we certainly need a defensive midfielder to replace Fla-money, added with a little experience to inspire the Gunners to fight on for the title. But to me, a 31 year-old may be experience, but the thing is, he's old. So old, that he would leave Gilberto Silva puzzled when he comes to the club. To me, players who are 20-23 years-old are young, and 24-26 years-old are inexperience. 27-29, however, is the perfect age for Arsenal, because they are still at their prime and have the experience to lead the team. Players 30 and above are definitely experience, but they are also old. Which means in a few years time they won't be able to cope with Arsenal's fast-pace football, and thus gets sold for even less money. Frings is just that. He is experience, he's versatile and can easily cover for Rosicky when he's injured or any other midfielder, and he's a good technical player who can also take good set-pieces. But one thing that always bugs me about him and just don't seem right is that he's old. And furthermore, he can play as a defensive midfielder but will not be able to do the holding role Flamani have done well, so I can actually picture Fabregas and Frings fighting it out on few occasions. So sorry, Frings, if I were manager of Arsenal I wouldn't sign you. That's my opinion actually, whether Arsene Wenger signs him or not, it's all up to the Professor. Remember, Arsene knows.

But trust me, if Frings was younger, he would be close to perfect for Arsenal.

"Big Phil" to Chelsea

Luiz Felipe Scolari have been appointed as Chelsea manager, it's official.

The 59 year-old manager who is currently the head coach of Portugal, have agreed terms with Chelsea as he looks set to move from Portugal to England. An excellent manager who famously managed the 2002 Brazilian National Team to World Cup glory and 2 semi-finals and a final with Portugal, he is a well-known and world-class manager in the international stage.

But can he do as well in club management?

My answer, sadly, is a brief yes. Why sadly, you may ask. It's because of this theory:

Big Phil + Club filed with Talent = Trouble for Arsenal

In fact, it's not only trouble for Arsenal, but also trouble for all the other Premiership clubs. Scolari is a good manager, and although he's not really proven at club management he is still a wise old manager who famously made his players read The Art of War, a world-renown military treatise written centuries ago, to raise their morale and make them have that winning mentality.

Many will still argue whether Big Phil can cut the mustard at club management, but one thing's for sure, even Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson did not make their players read any strategy books.

So as a Gooner I just hope he will be a major letdown.