These are some of the stories we talked about in our review of the footballing week.
The Good
- Gretna are thrown a lifeline by the Scottish Premier league. The SPL gave the struggling minnows A£70,000 which means they can play their remaining matches of the season and look for more cash for next year.
- David Wheater gets called up to the England squad. The Middlesbrough defender has impressed recently, particularly with his power in the air.
- It was good for Manchester United, who go top of the Premier League after their win against Bolton, and for Christiano Ronaldo who scores again – he now has 34 goals in all competitions and 24 in the Premier League.
- Thai team, Chomburi beat Melbourne 3-1 in a humdinger of a game despite going down to 10 men – take note Liverpool!
The Bad
- Bad for the game in England as Ashley Cole escapes with a yellow card for a terrible tackle and then turns his back on referee Reilly – showing an incredible lack of respect. He apologised later, but it was too little too late.
- Urawa Reds sack German coach Osieck after losing 2 games this season. The Reds of course are the AFC Champions.
- La Liga leaders Real Madrid continue an 18 year streak with no wins at Deportivo la Caruna, but it was just as bad for second place Barcelona who drew with Almeria and are knocked out of the Copa del Rey by in form Valencia. There’s trouble brewing between the club and Ronaldinho, too.
The Ugly
- It was a violent week of football and our prediction game last week – Velez Sarsfield vs San Lorenzo was called off after a fan was shot and killed before the game and hundreds of fans rioted.
- Betis fans again cause trouble this time by throwing a bottle at Bilbao keeper, Armando
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