This movie could easily have been titled, Little Zizou: A Gratuitous Reference To or the Incredible Vanishing Zidane. Apart from some TV clips and some newspaper articles of him visiting Bangladesh there was nothing else on Zidane.

I happened to see it in a recent NY festival.

Terry Butcher has to now live with the fact that Maradona will be the topic du jour of the soccer world and the subject of pundit chatter everywhere.

What can he do to exact revenge for that goal?

He can hire a fat man wearing a Maradona mask to run onto the field after the match, drop him with a sliding tackle, and then administer an enema all the while looking at El Diego.

Bayern was poised to take three points as they were coasting to a 2-0 victory over lowly Borussia Moenchengladbach before Rob Friend got one back from a header in the 79th minute. Two minutes later Bradley made it level when he placed a header perfectly off a cross by Roberto Colautti.

Jurgen Klinsmann was livid.

Anytime you talk about Arsenal, you have to qualify it with the paeans that Arsene Wenger so richly deserves. We did not see this sort of soccer in England as a system till he came on the scene. But Jason Burt clearly lays out the head in the sand mentality that seems to have taken hold of Wenger.

Diego Maradona landed in Scotland just before Wednesday's game and with a curt "I don't speak English" blew by TV crews, hundreds of reporters, and throngs of adoring fans hoping to catch a glimpse of the most famous name in soccer. (Video here)

He was protected by a dozen police officers and private security guards who escorted him to a waiting bus.

Arsenal vs Villa was supposed to showcase the best and brightest talent. But only one team showed up to play and it was not Arsenal. Yet again.

Arsene Wenger deservedly receives many plaudits for encouraging youthful talent but on Saturday we were reminded that Martin O' Neill has been no slouch in that department either.

Now it is Oscar Ruggeri.

Maradona wants the former Boca defender and 1986 team mate as his assistant. Ruggeri, an outstanding defender for his country has a poor record in managerial positions. It has led to a standoff between Julio Grondona and Maradona, with threats that he will resign if Ruggeri is not included.

A flurry of articles examining Obama's relationship with soccer.

David James believes Obama's transformational presidency will be good for the game.

Obama's club of choice, West Ham sends this "We are delighted that Barack Obama has an association with West Ham and are sending him our congratulations and an invitation to attend a match whenever he is in Britain.

Remember Alexi Lalas and his grandiose pronouncements on how Becks would single handed turn the MLS into a world beater. It seems like eons ago. Well, he isn't too happy at the way his man has inveigled his way to Milan (Sports Business Daily, Nov 7, subscription needed).

"Hello, a courtesy telephone call, a little bit of respect to call the coach so that head coach Bruce Arena knows what's going on, knows that you're being shopped around.

The Wizards went ahead with a 53rd minute goal by Arnaud and then played the last 15 minutes a man down when Hercules Gomes was sent off with a red card. They stemmed the tide of chances till the very last minute when Steven Lenhart scored of a Moreno pass in the 92nd minute.

KC travels to Columbus for the second leg to play the team with the best home record.

The hottest team in the MLS is without Josh Wolff but Claudio Lopez is peaking at the right time. Lopez is vying for newcomer of the year with Darren Huckerby and Andre Rocha. He has scored six goals and assisted in seven more. They meet Columbus Crew and Guillermo Barros Schelotto in one of the marquee playoff matches.

The words exchanged between Sir Alex and Ramon Calderon might escalate into a diplomatic fracas between the Spanish and British government. It re-opens wounds.

With Spain electing one of the most progressive governments even by Western European standards, it has since actively embarked on distancing itself from Franco's totalitarian legacy.

Marca's cover morphs Sir Alex into the Franco of Manchester

Man Utd boss Sir Alex Ferguson came off the sidelines accusing Sepp Blatter, FIFA's president for acting like an African despot and then lambasting Ramon Calderon, Real Madrid's president for behaving as if the club were still run by Generalissimo Francisco Franco.

Brand resigned today from his BBC radio show following obscene calls left on the phone of Andrew Sachs that spurred outrage. The 78 year old Sachs played Manuel in Fawlty Towers. Russell Brand and Barack Obama are both West Ham fans. Inquiring minds want to know if Obama wants to continue to associate with a known perv who supports the same club.

If Maradona can take Boca out of their current neurosis and put them on top of the table, I will be one step closer to believing that he can guide Argentina back to the days of the 1986 World Cup.

After all there should be no shortage of inspiration since La Bombanera is Maradona's stomping grounds.

The reasons Zabeel Investments gave for not pursuing the Addicks were concerns regarding foreign ownership and the economic downturn in the UK. However, the financial crisis has also left Dubai vulnerable.

The booming real estate market that has changed its landscape has been fueled by a ballooning debt which tops $47 billion and is expected to grow further leaving Dubai exposed to the vagaries of the financial crisis.

Remember that huge flap about Arsenal defenders being short of height after their loss to Hull City. Well, we discover that Gallas in addition, is short of breath.

Obama is a West Ham fan, so he knows something about soccer. Read this article to find a sure hand on the tiller.

Last Saturday afternoon FIFA president Sepp Blatter, 72, roared out of an Alpine mountain tunnel in his £100,000 luxurious 6.2 litre Mercedes sports car, smashed into a slower-moving car he was trying to overtake, lost control and cannoned across double white lines, hitting an oncoming VW Golf.

It was a goal fest as Adebayor, Walcott, Diaby, Song, and Ramsey scored for Arsenal while Silvestre (own goal) and Guiza put Fenerbahce on the board. The Gunners gave Wenger something to cheer about on his 59th birthday.

Evincing a genuine concern about mounting debt in the EPL unleashes an unhinged rant from Martin Samuel on Lord Triesman. I wonder why he even bothers to call him Lord PleasedMan. Lets just call him Lord Treason since Samuel keeps playing up his former Communist Party ties. Sure, the EPL is the cynosure of the soccer world but so was the US in the global economy.

Brian McBride never ceases to amaze. He is a warrior. His second goal against his former team tied the game 11 minutes before close. The Fire now join the Crew and the Revs in the playoffs.

Read McBride's interview. Its got some funny bits to do with a 'cup size.'

Shakespeare might have put it this way .." Hath not a ref eyes? Hath not a ref hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions; fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as everyone else is?

You have to go back 96 years.

Spurs lost to Hull City, 0-1 after a Geovanni free kick struck from 30 yards lodged the ball in the top corner reducing Heurelho Gomes to a bystander. With rumours linking Mark Hughes and Terry Venables to Spurs, Juande Ramos is in hot soup. An easy target for the fans when everyone in the front office from Damien Comolli to Daniel Levy's job should be on the line.

Alecko Eskandarian, the ex DC United player has been Preki's go to guy

Chivas vs DC United's encounter boiled down to which team would rally better from missing key personnel.

Injuries and suspensions have crippled DC United's bright start to the season when Luciano Emilio was virtually unstoppable.

Was it the lack of height that got Ledbitter the goal or the abject abandonment of good defending and tackling? This was atrocious. Song actually put up his hands in apology for the incidental bump on Ledbitter instead of tackling him on the spot. This after Richardson poached the ball right back from the clueless Song.

Courtesy Sarah Palin:

Asked about the economy, Palin suggested talking to a parent at a soccer game. "I'll betcha you're going to hear some fear in that parent's voice," she said. Asked who was to blame for the subprime lending crisis, she said, "Darn right it was the predator lenders.

Players from opposing teams who exceed this height and weight need not enter the Emirates because Arsenal has a size problem. This message approved by Arsene Wenger and Kolo Toure.
P.S. We are also working on away games too.

The creator of Rio's World Cup Wind Ups is fronting the Nigerian consortium bidding for Newcastle.

Here is a sample >>

An attempt at black humour >>

If he buys it will be under the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation to improve the fans health in the toxic environs of St James Park. An environmental impact statement on how Mike Ashley and Dennis Wise are affecting the physical and mental well of the locals is being prepared. Bill and Melinda will use that to talk down the price.

Bramble shows why he is a menace in his own half. Another game, another display by the player whose name should now be synonymous with a feeling of impending disaster. "Was there a time more fraught with bramble?" or " I had a bramble when my father discovered his empty liquor bottles.

Arsenal made the return up north to face a team that has posed so many problems in the past. But this was an Arsenal team that had an ascendant Theo Walcott brimming with confidence and newly found decision making skills. You could see it in the way he asserted himself in the match.

Blackburn was at the receiving end with Walcott laying down a crisp pass to the flying Dutchman who had the honour of notching up Arsenal's first strike.

Oy. Roy Keane gets tetchy, very tetchy.

A lot of this has to do with Jack Warner's unsavoury reputation.

Well on its way >>