fade out into the stars

this e mail by sir iqbal really tickles me..and it exactly and precisely support what i really think about football...as football is not just a plain football match..it involves human values...right under our nose...


. . . in football, the rule is unambiguously clear: your job is simply to put the ball in the net (opponent's net obviously) that's it, khalass.

for that you have to have a good player. if you have one (or two or many, or in a case like m'sia: none at all) and he is fit, that player must play. if he is playing and the game styill progressing, he must stay till end, unless his continuance of play is extremely unavoidably impossible. that's it, khalass

. . who to decide ? of course the coach!!! one needs to be an extreme idiot or a complete lunatic to replace a formidable player at crucial moments when one gaol lead is to be retained and protected. and sadly, yesterday, Argentinian coach was one of them. you brought out requilme and crespo in favour of less respected players, its suicidal. and a terrible suicide it was!!!

from the very beginning, the game was hailed as requilme vs ballack. it went just as expected. it could easily go either way and it happened that the skillful argentinian was overshadowing the well structured volksgeist of the German.

you look at klinsmann, ballack was limping for the last twenty minutes or so. he even requested for substitution. klinsmann paid no attention to the plea. why? because he knew, he is the essence of the team. he need not be fit but he has to be on the field. to take him out means to put the moral of the rest in total mess. cruel it may look but that's basic in football.

that stupid coach called requilme out at the time when he looked like running for another two hours without stopping in no slight trouble. German equalised and pushed the next gear while Argentinian could offer no more meaningful resistant.

i never interested in any of the games at all after the Iranian defeat, but yesterdys night was an exception.

jangan lupa, bagun pagi pergi chambering.

see you