Friday linkpost

• Liverpool win their fourth preseason friendly. Interesting, though, that (I believe) Torres hasn't scored yet. Hopefully this is just him taking a little bit of time to warm up.


• Dudek's really going to Real. I have to say, I don't understand this deal at all. I know he was basically the Cup keeper last season, but he didn't really do well when he did get to play. Whatever; he's finally gone. He burned through his Istanbul credit really fast for me, and I think he should have probably gone in January 2006.


• Totti retires from international play. I don't know how much they'll miss him -- he's always been a better club player than international, but I do like him.


• And two stories I am sick of: Beckham not likely to play against Chelsea tomorrow, and no one knows who controls Carlos Tevez's contract. Ugh. I feel like we've been hearing about these since last year. Over it.


• And finally today, this is perhaps the most clueless marketing I've ever seen. Soccer is hard! Boys are cute! Um, which US team has won the World Cup again? (Thanks to Jen for the link.)

Managerial wife swap!

(What can I say -- I'm sick to death of the "managerial merry-go-round" headlines. Let's change it up a bit.)

Uh. I don't dislike Coleman, but. What? I'm not sure this was the best decision for Sociedad.

And speaking of bad decisions... Not that I love Capello, but this is weird. And seems like an odd way to reward someone for winning the league. Not in the most stylish fashion, true, but can Real really afford to be so picky, considering it was their first trophy in three seasons? They think they can, I guess, and that's all that matters. Maybe we can get a switch going -- Capello to Chelsea, Jose to Barca, Rijkaard to, um. Somewhere else. That's where it all falls apart.


Liverpool? Still haven't bought anyone. Though I do like these Torres rumors. A lot, if we're being honest.

In other news, the earth is round

Beckhams' move to L.A. to be reality show.

Really, is anyone surprised by this? That said, I'm totally going to watch it -- I have a fairly large soft spot for the Beckhams, and their pre-World Cup special on the BBC was unexpectedly charming. As long as they don't convert to Scientology, I'm totally supportive of this show. Everyone needs a little fluff in their TV schedule, and there's no Top Model in the summer. Perfect.

Champions League round of 16

Oh, Champions League, I have missed you. Really, it's been far too long since Liverpool got ignominiously knocked out of a cup competition. And with Barcelona coming up on Wednesday, I can't really see this going any other way, honestly. I know Barca have had some dressing room turmoil recently, but nothing on the level of attacking your teammate with a golf club, I don't think. Seriously, boys? Now is not the time. (Not that there's ever really a time to attack your teammate with a golf club, I suppose.) I'd like to discount this, but the club's not denying it, so I'm inclined to think it's true. Which, what the hell? I can think of very few things worth attempting to break a person's legs, and "refusal to perform karaoke" sure as hell isn't on the list.

Anyway. The Champions League returns this week with the round of 16, and for some reason, I feel the need to predict the winners. Mostly because it's distracting me from my ridiculous amounts of reading. So, without further ado:

Tuesday's games

• Celtic-Milan: Say whatever you want about Milan having a bad year (and it's probably true). Celtic can't win away in Europe, and they've had some trouble scoring at home against quality opposition. UEFA.com is saying Inzaghi is out for Milan, but I don't see that making much of a difference, honestly. Celtic's been lucky to get this far, and I think this is where their lack of experience will show. Milan.


• PSV-Arsenal: This one's hard to call for me. PSV aren't anywhere as solid as they've been in the past; Liverpool drew them away and beat them pretty handily at home, and I think in the past they would have struggled there. PSV have been struggling a bit since Hiddink left, but my god, Arsenal have been incredibly inconsistent all season, and unable to score when they really need to. That CSKA game comes to mind, as does the FA Cup match against Rovers this weekend. I think they'll be able to pull it out, though, especially since they actually care about this competition. Arsenal.


• Lille-Manchester United: Man, I never want to hear Man U fans complain about a difficult draw again. Lille are improving, but Man U is worlds better than they were when they finished fourth in their group last year. As much as I'd like to call this as an upset, I just can't. Man U.


• Real Madrid-Bayern Munich: Hm, this is two traditional powerhouses, both in all kinds of trouble this season. Well, where all kinds of trouble is defined as still being in the top four in their domestic leagues. But they're both having managerial issues, with Capello not being the cure-all Real had hoped, and Munich firing their manager. Considering Bayern topped a more difficult group, and Real got swept by Lyon, I'm going with Bayern.

Wednesday's games

• Roma-Lyon: Um, two teams from leagues I don't really follow. Lyon have been good in the Champions League the past few years, but they've struggled in their domestic league recently (though they're still about 500 points clear of everyone else). This is Roma's first trip to the Round of 16 in a few years, but they've been a lot stronger domestically in the past few weeks than Lyon have. I have no idea how to call this one, so I'm going with who has the better uniforms. Since there's no brown in theirs, that means Lyon.


• Barcelona-Liverpool: Liverpool's coming off a disappointing loss to Newcastle, an extremely distant third in the Premiership, and they're apparently choosing to spend training beating each other up over karaoke. Barcelona are having a little bit of difficulty over Eto'o's return and Ronaldinho's morale, but most of that seems to be resolved now. Oh, and also they're top of La Liga and looking to defend their double. As much as I'd love to believe Liverpool will win this, I just can't. Sorry, boys. Barca.


• Porto-Chelsea: Meh. This is another one I'd like to call as an upset, but as great as that would be, I don't think it'll happen. Porto way overpeformed when they won in 2004, and their squad has been really weakened since then. Oh, and also, Mourinho's now at Chelsea, as y'all may have heard. Chelsea's having an off-season for them, and their two big buys haven't really paid off. But you don't really need Shevchenko to be firing on all cylinders when Drogba's scoring enough for two strikers, which he has been recently. This is an easy call, as much as I hate it. Chelsea.


• Inter-Valencia: Inter's running all over (a weakened) Serie A. Valencia's struggling in La Liga. Inter's got a gigantic squad, with a lot of quality acquired by picking over Juve's team. Valencia has some good players, but they're in a bit of difficulty recently, too. While this could be tough, I'm saying Inter.

You may notice that I didn't mention the FA Cup. This is because I am pretending it doesn't exist. Unless Reading manage to beat Man U, in which case I will be cheering for them all the way.

Seriously, Real (Part 3 in a continuing series.)

Because they weren't being big enough jackasses already.

"David Beckham will be an average cinema actor living in Hollywood," said Calderon. "The proof that our technical team was right in not considering his continuity has been ratified by every single technical team in the world, because no one, with the player having been free, has wanted him."

Stupid, stupid, stupid. (There was more here, but Blogger just ate it.) Say what you want about the Galaxy -- what's a "technical" team, anyway? -- but the fact that Beckham has a contract would seem to indicate that someone did, in fact, want him. This almost sounds like sour grapes, but they have to have known that most players wouldn't be happy to sit on the bench forever, even at a team as indisputably awesome (cough) as Real. So either they're stupid or just bitter that he went to, like, America. How tacky.

Also, another "average cinema actor living in Hollywood"? Was he talking about Posh and got confused?

Bad idea theater!

Seriously, Real. Everyone knew you were going to get rid of Beckham -- the speculation's been intense even before this season started and Capello arrived. I'm not saying you were wrong to do so; he's aging, kinda slow, and if he doesn't fit into the team, he doesn't fit into the team. But, god, are you really getting this pissy because he made a better deal? Grow up.

God, it's a good thing I never liked them anyway. This is pretty tacky behavior from the self-styled biggest club in the world. Other players leave all the time, so why Becks? It's weird, and it kinda seems like bitterness that he left them to go to MLS. Calling them the redheaded stepchild of international soccer is probably being a bit too generous, so maybe Real feel spurned? Still. No excuse; this is incredibly petty of them. Bah.

Mascherano? Please. No. I don't want to dwell on this too much, because it doesn't look all that likely right now, but dear Liverpool. No. He can't get into the first team at West Ham. And really, there are more than enough central midfielders floating around Anfield right now. Do y'all really need another one? Or another overrated South American? I mean, you already have Aurelio and Gonzalez. (Yeah, I said it.) In conclusion: no.

New sidebar links: Losing the Dressing Room and I Dislike Your Favorite Team. Both excellent, but only one's challenging me to a tickle fight.

The new Real Madrid, the old one and also some Liverpool.

Chelsea = the new Real? Well, a girl can hope. But the parallels are there -- tension and arguments between the board and the manager, a lack of control over transfers and signings, and an underperforming team. If Mourinho goes, which is looking increasingly likely, it's easy to see Chelsea getting into the same self-destructive pattern that Real's been in for two or three seasons now. Managerial merry-go-round, signings made on the basis of their marketing potential instead of their talent (I'd even argue that this part's already happening, with Shevchenko and Ballack both aging and having poor seasons) -- before you know it, you haven't won anything for three or four seasons. I'd say that I hope that doesn't happen, but we all know that'd be a lie.

No final game for Beckham. Speaking of Real. I can kinda understand them not wanting to play him much -- they haven't been playing him much anyway, and now he's committed to another team. But it's not like that's an unusual situation, really, and refusing to give him even a final game just seems petty, especially after Real practically forced him out. I can't help wondering if this is because Beckham decided to go to the Galaxy, as opposed to Milan or some other European team. Like, "he's chasing the money, screw him" or something. Or maybe Real would be that childish no matter what. I'm not saying play him in the Champions League final or anything, but come on. The Real fans liked him; would one more game, against Sociedad or someone, kill y'all? I'm not sure when I became a Beckham defender, but seriously. Real need to grow up.

Oh, and this is a Liverpool blog after all, I guess -- Liverpool 3 - Watford 0. I didn't get up to watch this one (dude, I'm still mad about that Carling Cup match), so I don't really have a lot to say about it. It's good to see Liverpool getting back to winning; another away win is always good, even if it's against a relegation-threatened team like Watford. Thank god they weren't playing a more challenging team, because losing three in a row would have been a pretty big hit on any team's confidence. If they can get a solid handle on third or fourth, I'll be happy.