Hiya, and welcome to my first blog post.
When thinking of things to do to kill my free-time, I thought of revising, nah. I thought of getting a job, nah. Instead, I thought I'd put my enthusiasm and creativity into a blog and entertain a few bored web searchers across the globe. Yes!
Then I had to think up of a name for this blog, something really catchy, intelligent and quite representative of the blog itself. In the end, I came up with a name which is none of those 'How to tame your pet gorilla, among other things' Admit it, you're loving it already!
After deciding that my blog would contain posts about anything and no specific topic really, I thought that I'd start of with talking (or typing) about some of my favourite hobbies. Football. Or soccer if you're reading from the US. Damn you and your 'soccer'
Lastly, I had to think of what I would actually write about football, yes football. So after many seconds of intelligent thought processing,I decided I'd write on the topic of legends. The word legend. Lets face it, it's an over used phrase, everyone refers to their mates as a legend (or a 'ledge') the funny window cleaner is a legend, that random kid in your school who can't spell his own name is a legend, you might class yourself as a legend, but here I'll discuss who I'd class as a footballing legend and why, based mainly on character than ability because lets face it there are many great players but not so many great chracters, that's what makes a true 'ledge.' Here's my Top 10...
10. Al Shagran, read the name. Nuff said.
9. Diego Forlan, Diego oaaah Diego oaaah, he comes from Uruguay, he stinks of fish pie! Well, maybe not quite, but the cultured ex-Man Utd forward was certainly unpredictable to say the least, which is just one of the criteria for a football legend. Far from the best player ever, Diego never seized to amaze fans how brilliant he could be one week, and the how drastically awful he could be another. Just his long, blonde locks, his Batistuta style hair band and take your shirt off celebration put him in the top 10. Oh, and the way he stuggled to put it back on after every goal, don't deny it ladies, you loved it! Old Trafford has never seen another stiker like him, that's for sure. For those of you that don't fully appreciate how much of a legend he is:
The miss: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_A6QHdWcXg
The clebration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9s_oJaFXVrE&feature=related
8. Zinedine Zidane, what can I say about Zizou? Possibly the greatest player of his generation, the way he graced the pitch was a delight to watch and the way he had total control just make him a footballing god. Of course, he'll be forever known for that crazy head-but on Marco Materazzi in the World Cup Final of 2006, which incidentally was his last ever appearance in football. That'll do his skills injustice forever, but he just made the number 10 shirt his own and anyone that doesn't know who Zinedine Zidane is deserves a good slap round the face and a lesson in footy. Finally, possibly the greatest Champions League goal ever? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3m623uGCow
7. Fabien Barthez, they say all keepers are mad. Well, judging by Barthez this claim is most definitely true! After Sir Alex tried and failed several times to replace the 'Great Dane' Peter Schmeichel, United thought they'd found the cure to their problems when French keeper Fabian signed in 2001. How wrong could they be? He was eccentric to say the least, and after many embarrassing moments, he was sent back to France with his reputation in tatters. Luckily for him, he didn't have any hair to tear out. His antics in goal, and the way he made you feel that even your Gran has hope of a footballing career, make him a top 10 legend! Here's some vids to prove my point,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOGE6ZUfLN4&feature=related
"Is he offside? He must be offside!" Maybe not it would seem Fabien! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=677RvTR6zJ8&feature=related
6. Ali Dia, oh god, Ali Dia, what a disaster. In fact, he possibly had the shortest footballing career ever, but what a career it was! The greatest footballing con ever took place when and unnamed person rang up then Southampton manager Graeme Souness claiming to be then World Player of the Year, George Weah. He claimed that his cousin, one Ali Dia, was an exceptional talent just as good as himself, and he recommended that he gave him a trial. He'd previously tried the same prank on West Ham boss Harry Redknapp, he didn't fall for it. Souness however, fell for it, even the pranker must have been surprised that he'd got this far, but after Dia 'impressed' in a trial. He was named on the Saint's bench for a League game against Leeds. Early in the first half, club legend Matt Le Tissier pulled up with a calf strain. There was only one man to replace him, one Ali Dia! It turned out that instead of being an 'exceptional talent,' Dia turned out to be more of a headless chicken, who seemed to have no coordination between brain and feet. Before long, Souness took him off and the greatest prank ever was complete, it turns out that he'd been released by the less famous Blyth Spartans weeks earlier. Dia didn't give in though, he found a club closer to his true ability, non-league Gateshead! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyT1r_oVcdA&feature=related
5. Eric Cantona, where can I start with Cantona? Well his unbelievable goal scoring talents could be mentioned, but he was just as well known for his crazy personality and occasional violent moments that landed him in hot water! The frenchman first came to us Brits notice at Leeds, before a transfer to Man Utd, where he earnt such a reputation and best days are remembered. Eric's craziest moment must have been that day at Selhurst Park when Man Utd were playing Crystal Palace, not many remember the game that day, but many remember the moment of madness that Cantona is best known for. After being sent off, Cantona got involved with an altercation with a Palace fan, after exchanging words, Cantona proceeded in karate kicking the fan in the chest, much to the shock of the whole nation. Claims that he was invited to the World Kick-boxing Championships that year can be confirmed as false. He suffered a year long ban, and his reputation was in tatters. Never mind how volatile, he's still a legend!
Vids: the best and worst of Cantona, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etAwiDwZHQc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovYWY4Pf9_M&feature=related
4. Diego Maradona, when you think of all-time greats, you think of Maradona. Not always the most popular, he had an unrivalled dribbling ability and the way he ripped apart defenders was second to none, he was class and had a top character to boot. The 'hand of god' moment still remains his most famous, and is still hated by English football fans for it, but who else can say they've won a World Cup single handedly? He'll be hoping for a similar outcome in South Africa this summer.
Hand of god http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbbsytHDp2o
What a goal http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rW-lK9F6TU
3. Paul Gascoigne, no legends list would be complete without a mention of one of Englands most gifted, and most amazing characters. Paul John Gascoigne. While he had undoubted ability, both this and the most lovable of chracters was on show during a Euro '96 game against Scotland. After England players were barracked by the media following an alleged night out involving a drinking game involving a dentist's chair. 'Gazza' responded in the only way he knew how, he scored an unbelievable goal, much to the joy of the whole country as he smashed past Andy Goram, he then produced an un-rivalled celebration as Teddy Sheringham squired a drink (admittedly water) down Gascoigne's throat to totally take the mick out of the media. That summed up Paul and everything he ever was. Vids, the moment itself, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0NT6aUwN8c
Paul at his best, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr0Vroca5zg&feature=related
2. Paolo Di Canio, the Italian master himself, Paolo Di Canio won the hearts of many a football fan during his stay in England with Sheffield Wednesday, West Ham and Charlton. He personified the word 'dramatic' and whilst being a top class footballer, he was a typically Italian, crazy person, who got himself in trouble following a push on referee Paul Alcock, he was sent off , and an11 match ban followed. Paolo reminded me of footballs 'Del Boy', his heart was in the right place, but it didn't always happen for him. This was shown by an amazing piece of sportsmanship after goalkeeper Paul Gerrard lay injured on the floor, instead of scoring an easy goal, Di Canio stopped play and ended up costing the hammers a win! Despite the controversy, he was still loved by most and had an knack of scoring goals, including one of the Premier League's best for West Ham vs Wimbledon. Di Canio, a worthy runner up in my top 10 list!
The Goal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUh-NcHi5ug
The Push: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TFVuHrwgyY&
The Legend: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgAbu4zOxg4&feature=relatedfeature=related
1. Jimmy Bullard, okay maybe I'm a little biast being a Wigan fan, but Jimmy has to be near the top of anyone's legends list, due to his jovial character and the love for him throughout the game. He came into the public's notice during Wigan's burst onto the Premier League scene, his antics maybe weren't as dramatic as Cantona or Di Canio and the likes, but he was far more light hearted and did everything with a smile on his face. Portrayed as a lovable cockney, Jimmy was, and still is, a huge hit on Soccer AM, and even has his own back door named after him on the show! He is known for his sense of humour and crafty prank pulling, aswell as being a handy footballer too. Words can't do justice to a worthy winner of the Legend's list! Vids, Jimmy's humorous ad that only he could pull off, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyZ7TfC5shU
A simple task made hard http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QC2Ady-WfMA&feature=related
Leapfrog http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMDin8UlYYU&feature=related
Abit of fun http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TZ_1jest_I&feature=related
Goal! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqLGnQJN1Sg
Another Goal! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FUD78jUV2o
Thanks for reading my blog post, please follow for more quality posts!
Cheers
twils
Yes twils! loving it.
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