"In football two days is a long time, and a week is a very long time."
So said The Ruddy-Faced One many years ago, and it couldn't be more true for TDH. But TDH is back, and there's a lot of catching up to do.
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First of all, TDH finally made the pilgrimage to Avellaneda to see Independiente play live and in person. The team, which first attracted TDH's attention on late-night cable in the US during the first Menotti Era, recently obtained for the third time the services of one Daniel Gaston "Rolfi" Montenegro, to whom TDH wrote a rather extended paean on March 21.
The knock on Rolfi has always been that he's a "pechofrio," someone who plays without emotion and doesn't care about the shirt. This reputation was undoubtedly enhanced by his frequent transatlantic moves (cuidate, this link is in Spanish). And as if facing the mounting suspicions of the hinchada from the start wasn't enough, he was replacing whiz-kid Sergio "El Kun" Aguero at number 10 and taking the captain's armband.
To all of this, TDH says, fuhgeddaboutit. Rolfi is the real deal. Having led Los Diablos Rojos (yes, the echo with Manure does grate a bit) in an away romp over Colon de Santa Fe, he personally destroyed Belgrano de Cordoba with a scintillating display. Rolfi was a constant threat all over the offensive half of the pitch, seeming to squirt out of traffic with the ball whenever play jammed up in midfield. He created two of the team's three goals and celebrated all of them wildly with the kids.
Independiente may not go all the way this year, but it's certain to be an entertaining ride. And dare TDH mention that there's more than a passing resemblance between Rolfi and Captain America? Coincidence? You be the judge, loyal readers!
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Second, behold the Stevie Mac ascendancy. With just a couple of subtle changes, he seems to have stripped all the calcified plaque off the England squad, turning it into a slicing, dicing football machine capable of turning any inferior team into a pile of julienne. Or so we'd like to believe.
TDH has doubts. Yes, they began with the appointment of a certain fan of loud stripey ties as the new boss's assistant. Say what you will, El Tel is a one-way ticket to mediocrity. TDH figured Stevie Mac might just luck into something good, but with the blagger from Dagenham on board the future looks bleak.
---
Coverage of the Copa Libertadores second-leg final was completely off the hook, with pre-match interviews including one of referee Horacio "The Poet" Elizondo's Brazilian security guard. No doubt the match will be a huge thrill for the Argentine after the small matter of the 2006 World Cup final. Fascinating stuff - full report tomorrow.
---
Last but certainly not least, the Toon seem to be off to a flyer against Europe's minnows. TDH is hoping against hope that Roeder won't be fooled by Amoeba's early form against a bunch of teams with too many consonants in their names. Please no. Yet the gaffer's frank comments, reprinted here on nufc.com, certainly do nothing to raise hopes of a big signing anytime soon. Ah well, the deadline is still 15 days away. Let us pray.
---
First of all, TDH finally made the pilgrimage to Avellaneda to see Independiente play live and in person. The team, which first attracted TDH's attention on late-night cable in the US during the first Menotti Era, recently obtained for the third time the services of one Daniel Gaston "Rolfi" Montenegro, to whom TDH wrote a rather extended paean on March 21.
The knock on Rolfi has always been that he's a "pechofrio," someone who plays without emotion and doesn't care about the shirt. This reputation was undoubtedly enhanced by his frequent transatlantic moves (cuidate, this link is in Spanish). And as if facing the mounting suspicions of the hinchada from the start wasn't enough, he was replacing whiz-kid Sergio "El Kun" Aguero at number 10 and taking the captain's armband.
To all of this, TDH says, fuhgeddaboutit. Rolfi is the real deal. Having led Los Diablos Rojos (yes, the echo with Manure does grate a bit) in an away romp over Colon de Santa Fe, he personally destroyed Belgrano de Cordoba with a scintillating display. Rolfi was a constant threat all over the offensive half of the pitch, seeming to squirt out of traffic with the ball whenever play jammed up in midfield. He created two of the team's three goals and celebrated all of them wildly with the kids.
Independiente may not go all the way this year, but it's certain to be an entertaining ride. And dare TDH mention that there's more than a passing resemblance between Rolfi and Captain America? Coincidence? You be the judge, loyal readers!
---
Second, behold the Stevie Mac ascendancy. With just a couple of subtle changes, he seems to have stripped all the calcified plaque off the England squad, turning it into a slicing, dicing football machine capable of turning any inferior team into a pile of julienne. Or so we'd like to believe.
TDH has doubts. Yes, they began with the appointment of a certain fan of loud stripey ties as the new boss's assistant. Say what you will, El Tel is a one-way ticket to mediocrity. TDH figured Stevie Mac might just luck into something good, but with the blagger from Dagenham on board the future looks bleak.
---
Coverage of the Copa Libertadores second-leg final was completely off the hook, with pre-match interviews including one of referee Horacio "The Poet" Elizondo's Brazilian security guard. No doubt the match will be a huge thrill for the Argentine after the small matter of the 2006 World Cup final. Fascinating stuff - full report tomorrow.
---
Last but certainly not least, the Toon seem to be off to a flyer against Europe's minnows. TDH is hoping against hope that Roeder won't be fooled by Amoeba's early form against a bunch of teams with too many consonants in their names. Please no. Yet the gaffer's frank comments, reprinted here on nufc.com, certainly do nothing to raise hopes of a big signing anytime soon. Ah well, the deadline is still 15 days away. Let us pray.
posted by Daniel Altman at 12:39 AM
1 Comments:
welcome back, TDH.
I saw bits and pieces of the england game in a bar saying goodbye to a friend. Looked like the first three were due to errors from George Clooney in the Greece goal.
Gerrard looked pretty good, from what I saw.
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