[sir roy keane]

Originally Posted by coolroy

Well, there are multiple angles to this. Barcelona-Real, Milan Derby, Merseyside Derby are some of the fiercest rivalries. But nothing tops the Boca Juniors VS River Plate rivalry. Its the most fiercest in football. Period.

no period , if your logic is based on the violence that takes place during the match (more violence = more rivalry) , then i'm afraid , thats not how a rivalry is to be judged

otherwise i'm fine with it


@ankit insane
awesome news. Congratulations bro.

sad news : gazza attempts suicide

.......................When police were called by worried staff, Gascoigne allegedly tried to drown himself in the bath, and police had to drag the former England player out of the water.

full story ->

Gascoigne taken to hospital after suicide attempt in London hotel | the Daily Mail

[joel1702]

General Awards(across all leagues)

Player of the season: Cristiano Ronaldo
Team of the Season: Manchester United ( Hate to say it!!:frown
Underdogs of the Season: Villareal
Coach of the season: Avram Grant
Goal of the Season:
Save of the Season: Cech against Liverpool (UCL semis)
Worst(or most hyped) Player of the season: Florent Malouda
Youngster of the Season(Player who had his debut season): Fernando Torres
Oldie of the Season(player with 5+ years in the same team): Steven Gerrard
Revelation(unexpected)Player of the season: Mathieu Flamini

English Premier League

Best Goalkeeper: David James
Best Defender: Nemanja Vidic
Best Midfielder: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Striker: Fernando Torres
Best Buy: Fernando Torres
Worst Buy: David Nugent

Will vote for La Liga later...No real opinions on Serie A

[coolroy]

Originally Posted by sir roy keane

no period , if your logic is based on the violence that takes place during the match (more violence = more rivalry) , then i'm afraid , thats not how a rivalry is to be judged

otherwise i'm fine with it

Actually, its the biggest even without the violence. It was voted the fiercest by a BBC poll survey also. See the excerpts from Wiki :

These two teams from Buenes Aires , Argentina are the protagonists of what is known as, Superclásico (Superderby Spanish, clásico –meaning classic– is the word used instead of derby in Argentina). Boca Juniors is traditionally regarded as the club of Argentina's working class, in contrast with the supposedly more upper-class support base of cross-town Atlético River Plate. The rivalry between Boca Juniors and River Plate is most intense, and the team's fans usually take to distribute posters to tease the other after a defeat between them or even a loss in any major competition, or to show off after winning the local league or an international championship.

This derby is considered to be the most exciting in the world. In 2004, British newspaper The Observer made a list of 50 sporting things you must do before you die, with Watch Boca Juniors Play River Plate in Buenos Aires at the top of the list. Due to their huge fan bases (Boca has 40% of the Argentine population and River 33%, contrary to the popular claim that Boca is club of the half plus one (la mitad más uno), and remarkable success, the enmity broadspans an important part of the country's populace.
Known worldwide for the passion of the fans, the stands of both teams are loaded with passionate songs (often based on popular Argentine rock band tunes) against their rivals, fireworks, flags and rolls of paper. Sometimes ending in riots between the hardest supporters of both sides or against the police. Tourists from around the globe come to Argentina to watch the match, sometimes even with packages that include a ticket to the Superclásico

[anvesh23]

Wow ! yes , this thread does move fast

Coming to El Classico , well the loss added to Barca's humiliation and lot of big changes will take place this summer at the catalan club . They want success and this season was rather disappointing for them to say the least !

@Ankit - Congrats Bro


and regarding the best derby , yes violence cannot be the criteria to judge that , but for me there is no bigger Derby than Boca - River ! It is undisputably the best - period

[rockball]

Looking at the derbies from players' perspective the Boca-Plate derby is a lot more passionate. For the simple reason that most players are homegrown and who have been fans of the club since childhood. Because of that, they feel the rivalry and passion that the fans feel. Also like in Italy, most fan clubs or supporters of a club are also based on political beliefs. Like Inter and Lazio fan clubs are right wing. The rivalry in European clubs is generally led by the fans and club presidents. Many of the foreign players generally don't have much regard for it. But in case of Boca-Plate, its well ingrained in the players too.

A small excerpt someone told me. For the past 8 years the English and Spanish champions have been pretty much in sync.

Madrid Man United 2001
Valencia Arsenal 2002
Madrid Man United 2003
Valencia Arsenal 2004
Barcelona Chelsea 2005
Barcelona Chelsea 2006
Madrid Man United 2007
Madrid Man United(?) 2008

[joel1702]

Originally Posted by anvesh23

Wow ! yes , this thread does move fast

Coming to El Classico , well the loss added to Barca's humiliation and lot of big changes will take place this summer at the catalan club . They want success and this season was rather disappointing for them to say the least !

@Ankit - Congrats Bro


and regarding the best derby , yes violence cannot be the criteria to judge that , but for me there is no bigger Derby than Boca - River ! It is undisputably the best - period

Things have been going from bad to worse for Barca...Started somewhere at the end of last season, when they threw away the league from a winning position.
This season Real have simply extended the gap over Barca, who now look like they'll finish third. The CL loss to Man Utd too would count as a disappointment by their high standards.

Inspite of the talent on show -Messi, Etoo,Henry,Ronaldinho,Xavi , they still flatter to decieve.

I Just hope Barca dont become the next "galactico" side..full of big names but winning nothing.

[rockball]

I don't think you can call Barca galacticos. The only real galactico they have is Henry. All the other players became that famous only at Barcelona. Ronaldinho was already popular but not proven player at this stage.

[alagati]

Some Liverpool news :

Harry Kewell shall leave Liverpool at the end of the season, after the player and agent did not agree to a new deal with reduced wages...

Also, Rafa has slapped a 15 million tag on Peter Crouch, with Portsmouth linked heavily with the player...we know Redknapp is a big fan of Crouchie..!!

ESPNsoccernet - England - Benitez slaps £15m price tag on Crouch

Also, Martin O Neill says that Barry is "under-valued" by Liverpool...hope this does not become a contracted saga..!!

Man City news :

Errikson confirmed tday that he met Benfica officials possibly over a deal..!!


Also, Andy Cole has not been offered a contract by Sunderland boss Roy Keane...!!

P.S: Chennai pulled out a blinder against Delhi tday..!!!

[the_egonomist]

@ankit
congrats! Welcome to Pune...

As for football rivalries, I always liked Liverpool and Everton's (purely because I havent watched too many derby of other clubs)

Btw is Rijkaard sure for Chelsea? Or is that speculation?

Cheers!

[alagati]

Originally Posted by the_egonomist

@ankit
congrats! Welcome to Pune...

As for football rivalries, I always liked Liverpool and Everton's (purely because I havent watched too many derby of other clubs)

Btw is Rijkaard sure for Chelsea? Or is that speculation?

Cheers!

With all due respect to Everton, I guess the last few derbies havent been that great..the one at everton this year was very good....but apart from that, have been pretty one-sided..!!!

How abt Mohan Bagan-East Bengal...maybe coolroy can comment..!!!