WE REMIND OURSELVES

First of all I salute you all in the name of the beautiful game and all that makes it so. Ronaldo, Messi, Scholes, Xavi.... OK, let me stop. I might mention all of the Barca players. I am no Barca fan. Neither am I a hater, don't get me wrong. Today... WE REMIND OURSELVES.

Remember the days when AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia were relegation battle material? NO? Me neither. Kenyan football was only for the players then. Even Kenyan media didn't cover it. They still dont. But look at the attention they have gotten since they changed managements. Now every mashemeji derby is like a publlic holiday. Cops are extra, fans even more. Lets now wait and see if either of them will win the title and then we shall have something to reminisce. In the meantime, Tusker FC are giving them a run for their money. I remember when they were fifth, and AFC looked to have a solid grip on the lead. I thought they'd never make it. Turns out Coach Matano is really just what they needed.

EL CLASSICO: Remember the post about Ronaldo that I wrote? Here it is: great players win, good players affect games I cannot go into the details again you can read it for yourself. I can only say a few words about the Classico. Heated affair. Barca and their flair play were all over the pitch running things, AS USUAL. And boy were they passing the thing all around. Let me tell you, if Real Madrid can change their formation when they play Barcelona(and mind you they are only one of the few teams who can beat the latter), then that just places Barca at the top of the food chain. 
One thing is a fact though; Real Madrid have one of, if not the best defenses, and attack force(ask City), in the world. Not many teams can keep Barca at bay like that, and still reserve the attacking threat that they had. They rode their luck although you could see they tried at least. 
That said, the fluidity of Barca last night night.... You cannot be a hater, honestly. Although Cristiano, aka CR7, and Messi(insert your favorite nickname here)stole the show from the others, as usual. Whomever you pledge your loyalties to, CR7 or Messi, you are in a lucky generation. One that got to watch two great players do battle. Remind yourself of that fact. You will tell your kids

THE MILAN DERBY: This used to be a great contest. The days of Ronaldo(Brazilian), then later Ibrahimovic, Adriano, Dejan Stankovic, Ronaldinho, Gatusso, Inzaghi, Zanetti, Maldini(remember him?) and the likes. I personally focused on it more during the days of Maldini(AC Milan) and Adriano(Inter). I made Inter my team henceforth on Play Station(am a PES guy btw) and yes, I was also a force to reckon with, on 'loser-pays'. People feared me. Until Manchester City rose to glory. Thats beside the point. The Milan derby was played on the same day as the Classico(7th October 2012) just in case you've forgotten yesterday's date). That went unspoken of. Anyway, Walter Samuel scored the only goal, as Inter were red carded but held on for the three points. These guys in Italy just love to play it rough. Remember those days? When football was football? And no referees 'protected' the players? Yes, we all do.

Moving on to the the juicier stuff. Giroud broke his Prem duck. yaaay! Hooray for Arsenal guys. Remember when Tottenham had gone winless against Manchester United at OT? Well, gone are those days. My friend told me to make sure I blogged it. Damn, that was a... different game. Tottenham really wifed us in the first half. 62% possession, 2 goals up. That was a tough reality. 
And Chelsea are having a great season. They are now not dependent on wingers, they have play-makers all over their mid(Mata, Oscar, Hazard) and engines in the names of Mikel and Ramires. But they have always been strong in midfield. And QPR... Remember the days they had a team, now they have a new full team and subs... and they're still rooted at the bottom of the EPL table. I think what they need now is a new manager. All in favour of having Mark Hughes sacked say AYE!!... sorry i forgot this is not Parliament and am not the Speaker. 

Do you remember the days when the Prem was graced by players like Dirk Kuyt, Fabrice Muamba, Ole Gunaar Solskaer and the likes? Kuyt, leave alone Gerrard, carried Liverpool on his back. Look where they are now without the man. Mwamba... he helped his team a lot. Sad he wasnt around to help them survive. Neither will he be there to help them back up into the Prem. Manchester United still remains the team to beat on the other hand. They've had no shortage of attackers. Though they will need a powerful man to take up the role of Scholes. Just like Barca will struggle to  replace Xavi, another great player.


DID YOU KNOW:
Sir Alex Ferguson took up the management of Manchester United at a time when they were in the relegation zone? 
Well, now you know. 



Our 'Know KPL Teams' blog just took a step closer. My friend @MikeOkinyi, yes, THE one and only Mike Okinyi, Citizen TV sports anchor, has agreed to do a guest post for us. Thanks in advance Mike, that'll be awesome. 

Also, our new website will be online hopefully.... next week. Its about time, eh?  We would want that 'Know KPL teams and their managers'
Lets talk football another time, good people.