The Official Deutsche Fußball Bundesliga Thread

[LTU932]

Somebody please tell me what the hell is going on with Werder? Do they like going from one extreme to the other? First, Wiese becomes an Elfmeterkiller, then he screws up during the Rangers match, and now all of Werder gets shot down 6:3 (!!!) by the VfB Stuttgart (with Per Mertesacker contributing directly to Stuttgart's victory with his Eigentor and later ejection). Now Bayern has extended its lead, and Bayer 04 is closing in on the HSV in their quest for qualification to the Champions League (for which I congratulate them for keeping our archrivals from Bahrenfeld on the backseat).

Slightly OT: http://www.sport1.de/de/sport/artikel_2190814.html (German only)

Jacques Rogge now wants that the Olympic Games feature football all-stars playing for their country at the olympics and he wants to have a chat with FIFA about it. Apparently, he thinks that the current settlement his predecessor Juan Antonio Samaranch and Joao Havelange made, in which only a U-23 squad with only three senior players can go to the Olympics, which was introduced to "protect the World Cup", should end soon. For me, the title of Olympic Champion in Asociation Football has become totally useless. It used to be worth something in the times before the World Cup, but now it's the same as playing for the goldene Ananas.

And also, congrats to Barnsley, the current equivalent to Carl Zeiss Jena in terms of how much damage they can do to top flight teams in Cup competition (or as we call them, Pokalschreck) for kicking Chelski OUT! And shame on you, ManU, for allowing your replacement goalie to get a red card and force with Rio Ferdinand a defender to play goalie (though that must have been a fun sight ).

And finally, St. Pauli is playing tomorrow night against 1860. It'll be on DSF for those who are interested and receive DSF (I wish I had tomorrow the day off and DSF).

[LTU932]

And we're going from climax to anticlimax, since Werder allowed itself 2 Torwartfehler from the very Tim Wiese we considered an Elfmeterkiller just a couple of weeks ago, to lose against the Rangers!

It's time we demand a Wunder von der Weser for the return match. The good thing is that the return leg will be played in the Weserstadion, so that will give Werder some advantage.

And in other news, Bayer 04 is currently winning as I was hoping.

[DAL767-400ER]

Good game, against an admittedly VERY weak competitor. Nice training game for Karlsruhe on saturday . Though the freekick by Ribery, awesome, right into the corner, perfect . The game next week in the Allianz-Arena could be interesting though, we might see some players that we didn't even remember were with Bayern anymore, like Breno or Schlaudraff .

Oh, and of course, 27 goals in 9 games, 3 goals average in the UEFA-Cup. Just wish they'd have the same quote in the Bundesliga.

[LTU932]

Damn! Bayern is having a surprise Galavorstellung against Anderlecht! 5:0, goals by Hamit Altintop, Luca Toni, Lukas Podolski, Miroslav Klose and now Franck Ribéry! For all I know, the RSC Anderlecht could now just skip the return leg and let Bayern go to the quaterfinals now.

And may Werder kick Rangers's ass tonight. As a Celtic fan, a win by Werder against Rangers would be even sweeter than Bayer 04 winning against the HSV.

[DAL767-400ER]

But they will be the "winner of hearts".

No doubt about it, but it doesn't make it any better when people who hear that term immediately think of crying Schlackski's .

[LTU932]

But they will be the "winner of hearts".

Very likely, if they make it, but the word "Champions League-Sieger der Herzen" or even "Champions League-Meister der Herzen" doesn't have the same sound to it as just "Meister der Herzen".

[seahawk]

But they will be the "winner of hearts".

[DAL767-400ER]

That being said, even though I hate Schlackski, they have to make it to the finals in Moscow if we want to be even better in the Fünf-Jahreswertung.

I have already envisioned the scenario: Schlacke will be in the final against whomever. They go up 1:0 in the 23rd minute and from then on just try to avoid getting a goal, which works fine, until the 94th minute, when the opposing team scores a last free kick inside the goalie zone . Afterwards in overtime of course, the opposing team will score the 1:2, and all Schlacke folks will be crying their eyes out once again.

[LTU932]

Definitely a good evening, Neuer was absolutely off the hook tonight. No doubt a welcome change after the criticism he faced over the past weeks. Overall, even though I hate Schalke, in regards to the "UEFA 5-Jahreswertung", it was an excellent result, in that a German team continues to earn points, while a Portugese team has now been kicked out .

Not to mention that the French are in trouble in the Fünf-Jahreswertung as well. I believe due to the 2002/2003 season becoming void in that rating, we may even have a chance at getting a fourth CL spot back for at least another 2 years or so.

That being said, even though I hate Schlackski, they have to make it to the finals in Moscow if we want to be even better in the Fünf-Jahreswertung.

As for the UEFA-Cup, I would bet one German team won't make it to the next round .

Ah yes, the Bayer 04 vs HSV match. Let me go on record and say that I want Bayer 04 to win this round. And also, if by some chance they even make it to the final, they'll win the UEFA-Cup, just like they won it 20 years ago. Even though they are a Werksteam and one owned by a major pharmaceutical company, at least they have some tradition, so if they go all the way, let them win it.

Otherwise, I hope Werder wins it, with Bayern as my last option. One thing that definitely has to be a must: three teams have to go to the semifinals. However, the final in Manchester won't be in Old Trafford, but in the City of Manchester Stadium. Too bad, because Old Trafford would have made a fine venue due to its capacity. Still, just imagine the possibility of an all-German final in England (of all places) this year.

[DAL767-400ER]

Definitely a good evening, Neuer was absolutely off the hook tonight. No doubt a welcome change after the criticism he faced over the past weeks. Overall, even though I hate Schalke, in regards to the "UEFA 5-Jahreswertung", it was an excellent result, in that a German team continues to earn points, while a Portugese team has now been kicked out .

As for the UEFA-Cup, I would bet one German team won't make it to the next round .

[LTU932]

Well, this CL matchday has been full of surprises. First, Arsenal beats Milan, Fenerbahçe goes to penalties and beats Sevilla and penalty killer Andrés Palop, becoming the first Turkish team ever to make the quaterfinals in the Champions League, and now Schalke 04 goes to penalties against FC Porto, and actually wins the thing!

The series ends in a 1:1 aggregate tie, with Porto winning this leg 1:0, but the result forced Extra Time and later on Penalties, and S04 wins the penalty shootout 3:1! The most surprising part of this victory was Manuel Neuer who I admit has had a Galavorstellung and even became an Elfmeterkiller tonight. Talk about a shocking upset...

Let's see what upsets the UEFA-Cup will bring tomorrow.

[LTU932]

Oh, and Pauli is tooo fvcking stupid for the Zwote. They lead 3:1 in Offenbach, yet lost 4:3.

I'm not even bothering with the result. The offense can score, but the problem remains the Viererkette, maybe a few defensive midfielders, and Patrik Borger. I didn't read the report, but I stand by what I've said on repeated occasions, Patrik Borger needs to go OUT.

I even have a proposal: since the Club also hired a pretty much incompetent goalie who has been an Unsicherheitsfaktor all along, even though they have a perfectly good Elfmeterkiller with Daniel Klewer, maybe we should hire Daniel Klewer and make him Nummer Eins. I'm sure he'd make a fine addition to the team.

[RingwaySam]

while Martin Taylor only gets a 3 match suspension for literally almost ripping off Eduardo da Silva's foot in the Birmingham vs Arsenal match. I mean, if we go by the logic of the FA, van Bommel would have certainly gotten away with what he done, and not even receive Gelb-Rot for his gesture. That three match suspension on Taylor is nothing but the FA mocking this sport.

You gotta be kidding. Yeah Martin Taylor's challenge was missed timed, but he didn't mean it. He went in for the ball and was far to slow. Eduardo stretched and put all his weight on his foot as Taylor caught him hence why it probably broke. I hate Arsenal, so maybe you think im being biased but im not. It was a horrible day and I wouldn't wish it on any player.

If that was 3 minutes into the game (like it was) and Eduardo just got up and didn't brake his ankle, I pretty much guarantee it would have been a yellow card. Just because it was an horrific injury doesn't mean he should be banned for so long. Playing any sport always has it's risks, whether it's hockey, baseball, football, rugby etc...

btw - Anyone got Fifa or Pro Evolution on the PS3 fancy a game?

[DAL767-400ER]

^Well, as said, I still question why van Bommel's gesture was such a big deal, yet Asimoah's throat-slashing gesture never resulted in any consequences.

Oh, and Pauli is tooo fvcking stupid for the Zwote. They lead 3:1 in Offenbach, yet lost 4:3.

[LTU932]

http://www.sport1.de/de/sport/artikel_2184848.html

I was honestly hoping for a Pokalkracher between Dortmund and Bayern in the Westfalenstadion, but at most, that's a possible constellation for the Pokalfinale. Dortmund will play against Pokalschreck Jena at the Westfalenstadion, and Bayern will receive Felix Magath and the VfL Wolfsburg. In other news, Frankfurt loses against the HSV, and Bayer patzt gegen Bochum, which means in the Fernduell for the number 3 spot, the HSV has retaken the lead over Bayer 04.

And it's ironic that Mark van Bommel, as much as I hate the guy, gets a total 3 game suspension (the automatic suspension from his ejection after the second yellow card, plus 2 extra BL matches of suspension) for an obscene gesture, while Martin Taylor only gets a 3 match suspension for literally almost ripping off Eduardo da Silva's foot in the Birmingham vs Arsenal match. I mean, if we go by the logic of the FA, van Bommel would have certainly gotten away with what he done, and not even receive Gelb-Rot for his gesture. That three match suspension on Taylor is nothing but the FA mocking this sport.

This isn't the NFL or Rugby Union, where you're expected to get major hits all the time with only few rules on fouls in the rulebook, this is football and while there is critique (and I admit, some of it has its grounds) on how easily players fall down when being fouled, this is a sport that is less of a contact sport than NFL football and Rugby Union combined. Maybe such suspensions are nothing in the NFL and in Rugby Union, but in football, they're simply an outrage because they don't measure up to the severity of the foul. Taylor should have gotten a six month ban by FIFA (or at least from UEFA, which would have made the ban valid in all of FIFA).