What I have been listening to lately #39

Happy birthday, Johnny Cash (born February 26, 1932).

Match report: Fiorentina 1 - Milan 2

• Goals scored: Gilardino 14', Huntelaar 81', Pato 90+2'
• What happened: Because this match had been rescheduled and conflicted with Champions League play, it was not shown on television. Milan were losing, but came back and won late. Milan are back in second place, four points behind Inter.

Match report: Bari 0 - Milan 2

I don't really have time for a full match report, but I will mention the following highlights-- Borriello's goal, his hug for coach Leonardo after scoring, Abbiati's penalty save, and the always excellent black road uniforms.

What I have been reading lately #45

Left Foot Forward: A Year in the Life of a Journeyman Footballer by Garry Nelson and Anthony Fowles

Garry Nelson played football in England for many, many years without ever reaching the Premiership (or, before that, the First Division). He played for a number of clubs, such as Southend United, Plymouth Argyle, Brighton & Hove Albion, and Charlton Athletic. He wrote this book during one of the very last years of his career, when he played for Charlton.

Below: Nelson is the player in red.

2010 Winter Olympics Update #1

The Vancouver Winter Olympics are not yet to the halfway point, and already lots of people are complaining about what a disaster they are turning out to be. Whether it is the warm weather, the death of a Georgian luger, Zamboni problems, or the confused starts to several biathlon events, it is easy to find things that are going wrong. And don't forget the ridiculously uncompetitive scores coming out of the women's hockey tournament.

Champions League update: Mind-boggling mistakes lead to mind-boggling goals

Porto 2 - Arsenal 1

Porto's first goal was nothing more than a single mistake by the goalkeeper, Lukasz Fabianski. Porto's second goal was a bit more complicated, because it involved multiple mistakes. Arsenal defender Sol Campbell's back pass to the keeper was picked up by Fabianski (one mistake), which resulted in an indirect free kick for Porto. Fabianski then handed the ball directly to the referee (yet another mistake) who allowed Porto to quickly restart the game and score.

Bayern Munich 2 - Fiorentina 1

In the Bayern Munich-Fiorentina match, the mistakes all belong to the referee and linesman. On Bayern Munich's first goal, the referee had called a penalty before the ball went in the net, so he disallowed the initial goal. Luckily for everyone involved, the subsequent penalty was made, so the score turned out 1-0 as it should have. Bayern Munich's second goal is even simpler-- the fault lies completely with the linesman, who failed to call Klose offside.

Match report: Milan 2 - Manchester United 3

Above: Wayne Rooney scores Manchester United's second goal

Below: Wayne Rooney scores Manchester United's third goal

• Goals scored: Ronaldinho 3', Scholes 36', Rooney 66', Rooney 74', Seedorf 85'
• What happened: Milan scored right off the bat on a deflected shot by Ronaldinho. For the next hour, Milan had many more chances to score but could not do so. Unfortunately, during that time, Manchester United scored a ridiculous goal. Between the 60th and 84th minutes, Milan went completely flat and allowed Manchester United to run all over them. Wayne Rooney scored two goals. Near the end, Seedorf scored an amazing goal on a back/side heel and Milan came back to life. They were unable to score again, however.
• What happened on Manchester United's first goal: The ball was crossed in to Paul Scholes in front of the net. He swung his foot at the ball and completely missed. The ball, however, struck his non-kicking, planted leg and rolled slowly into the corner of the net.
• What this match teaches us: In order to defeat Manchester United in the second leg at Old Trafford next month, Milan must either win by two or win 3-2 and then win the subsequent shoot-out.

Highlights are below:

In today's other match, Lyon beat Real Madrid 1-0. Highlights are below: