sweet waffle

At least our away fixtures are relatively local, we're not going to Russia etc.

I know what you mean, they're still talking sh*t in Monaco. Get on with it!!

The draw for the group stage takes place tomorrow 5PM GMT. We're in the tops seeds, Real Madrid and Inter are in the second seeds, what are the chances of us getting drawn with one of them Mr Platini??

Here's an interesting article by Jonathan Wilson on the history and weaknesses of the diamond. The Question: Is the midfield diamond here to stay and how do you counter it? (Guardian)

Great to see Liverpool get turned over, makes me feel warm inside. Got to give credit to referee Atkinson, he was spot on tonight. Also I was mightily impressed with ESPNs coverage.

No doubt Saint Stevie G will wriggle out of this as well.

Drogba all the way. One goal, one assist, one first class performance. Long may it continue.

Good result against a resolute Fulham side. A couple of little negatives for me, one was our sometimes questionable passing, too many times we tried to force a pass when it wasn't necessary. The other is Anelka needs to play closer to Drogba (MotM) and stop coming so deep, we look far more threatening when the two of them are further up the pitch which was proven with the goals the pair of them scored today.

I totally agree, I understand doing it with corners as it changes the angle of approach but free kicks just allows the defence to close down the kicker and move up the pitch.

I can't believe he's tired already, he said in his blog that he feels the fittest he's felt in ages didn't he? It's got to a case of simple rotation, Essien will come on as an impact sub at some point I'm sure.

Thanks for the knowledge, gotta say Mikel better step and perform, he's been proper dodgy so far this season. I understand Deco being benched, as I expect a lot of robust tackles today and I doubt he'd get the same amount of room he was given against Sunderland.

Just turned on Sky Sports and caught the back end of a conversation where the pundits were talking about player being rested after only three games, anybody know who it is?

And then he went and passed the ball to Defoe to score the equaliser. Quite literally from the sublime to the ridiculous.

I'm happy with third. Thanks for putting this together Loz.

Starman gets the nod from me, I think it was the first Bowie song I ever heard and it has been my favourite since.

West Ham United footballer Calum Davenport is having surgery on both legs after he and his mother were stabbed, his spokesman has said. Mr Davenport, 26, and his mother are both in a serious condition after being stabbed at their home in Bedford. Police said the attack happened late on Friday. West Ham said its thoughts were with the player and his family. The defender and former England under-21 joined West Ham from Tottenham for £3m in 2007. He had a spell on loan for Sunderland last season and also played for Coventry City. A West Ham spokesman said: "The club's medical team are in contact with hospital staff. "The thoughts of everyone at West Ham are with Calum and his family and, due to the on-going investigation, no further information will be released." (BBC) Shocking and just a little bit suspicious considering his legs were the target.

Yeah he's going to be out for a while by all accounts, obviously it's good news for us on Sunday but I'm a bit disappointed as he was in my Fantasy Team and consequently I've had to draft in Bendtner as a replacement. :)

Neill Blomkamp directs District 9, Jackson produced it.

Yeah District 9 does look brilliant, will definitely be going to see that. I also want to see which was released last month in the UK.

AVATAR takes us to a spectacular new world beyond our imagination, where a reluctant hero embarks on a journey of redemption and discovery, as he leads a heroic battle to save a civilization. The film was first conceived by Cameron 14 years ago, when the means to realize his vision did not yet exist. Now, after four years of actual production work, AVATAR delivers a fully immersive cinematic experience of a new kind, where the revolutionary technology invented to make the film, disappears into the emotion of the characters and the sweep of the story. Avatar trailer I like the look of it, certainly looks like the kind of film that demands to be seen on the big screen.

PES 2010 to feature 360 degree controls (Guardian) In the perennial top of the league clash between FIFA and PES, the former has clawed ahead over the last couple of iterations, with Konami's in-house dev team seemingly running out of ideas. But today the company has confirmed that it's introducing a flexible new control system, offering gamers complete 360 degree control over the direction of the ball when passing and shooting. "Via forums and feedback, the PES Productions team in Tokyo has canvassed opinion on elements fans hoped to see included in PES 2010, and 360-degree control was part of the long list," says the press release. The system, which Konami says will, 'allow players to spread the ball with ease, opening up new attacking and defensive possibilities' is supported by analogue controllers on the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. The PS3 d-pad will also work, but the 360 pad only offers eight-way directional control. Konami also ran through some of the other key additions and tweaks. Here they are: Manual Goalkeepers "PES 2010 will be the only football title to offer users complete control of the keeper. Players can switch to their goalkeeper at any time, and will enjoy total control of his actions." New Goalkeeper Moves "Players can now perform quick under-arm throws to their nearest defender to get attacks rolling more quickly." All-New Animation "Key animation related to dribbling, running, turning, etc, has been reworked and enhanced, creating a more natural and organic feel to the way players chase down balls, change direction and move around the pitch. The result is a more fluid and natural look to the game." Fine-tuned Close Control "The PES Productions team has worked to improve trapping of the ball and basic close control elements, giving the user more ways to spread and move the ball around effortlessly." Manual Ball Request "The ability to demand the ball when running into space is now available to the player, and will be accessible in all game modes, such as multi-player, online, etc." Simpler Skills "Moves such as feints, drag backs and upper body feints can be applied more naturally when taking on or trying to beat an opponent. The PES series has long been associated with clever flicks and tricks, and PES 2010 will boast the most to date."

...around the corner to the pie shop.

£249.99 on Play.com

Good. I'd rather have an off form Anelka on the pitch than Kalou. Good old Ballack. :)

Sounds like we're all over them but everything is going through the middle and they're more than happy to sit and defend. I can't believe that Carlo started with Kalou. :)