Une Belle Fille Come Moi!

Truffaut is one of my top top directors. I love the gentle style of his films and I love how he intertwines stories and retells them, through a third person or encounters. He hardly shows sex, but still they are very sensual. He is a gentleman of the true kinds. You always have such a warm touch within your heart after watching his films, you tend to fall in love with the characters. There is always a moment where you think oh that was nicely done. When nice is normally a word to avoid, or to be nice is an act to avoid, I think it can justifiably be said to be something positive, when referring to Truffaut. I simply just love him. When this world if full of people wanting to shout the loudest I really appreciate understatement and humbleness. However Une Belle Fille Comme Moi is just annoying, harsh, brutish and compared to other films you never get any affection of his characters, which gives you a cold feeling. There is some of those typical Truffaut shots, where he freezes the camera in order to prolong, but that is about it. As a fan of François Truffaut, I wanted to see it to the very end, but it is true, it is his worst film.

Fischer vs. Spassky

Bobby Fischer
Boris Spassky
Two of Iceland’s Chess Champions in the last 10 years
A future Chess Champion of Iceland
Crowd from Iceland
Crowd from all over the world
Tv Crews
Sponsors, Organisers and other important people

Laugardalshöllin: the day after Fischer has beaten Spassky and claimed the new World Chess Champion. This will be their perhaps last goodbye to the Icelandic nation.
Fischer: (dressed in an immaculate white shirt, black loose tie and smart grey trousers), Even if I’m a member of the central committee now, (fiddling with a pencil) I can’t say anything too definite, as I want to keep my options, but I want to play a lot of chess and I like to play matches, ... I feel... you know... I want to play... a lot of (pauses)matches, you know, the money is there, it’s a question of money, not a question, you know of waiting three years, it’s a long time, a very long time.
Spassky: (dressed also in a white shirt, even more immaculate a blue tie and dark blue trousers) I agree.
Fischer: Definitely, yes. Definitely if the money is there, we are going (a long pause, where he turns his pen around his finger a few times) to have a return match, its no question emm... er...
Spassky: I agree.
(a young boy or girl, one can not tell shouts, In Iceland, there is a hush hush from presumably his dad)
Fischer: You can ... the Russians, made me wait a long time, you know, dishonesty and everything. It’s nothing personal you know, but you know what I am trying to say.
Spassky: Well (seems to look straight through Fischer)what can one say.

Both are now rocking back & forth in their chairs - like two dead men dancing.

Fischer: I feel bored now, not tired (a longish pause, where you can hear the audience breathing), I just want to get back in action, I am not interested in making some kind of spectacle of myself (he turns to the audience) I am interested in serious chess you know.

Spassky: You played very very well in the second half. I have (someone caughs in the audience, followed by a second and a third cough) to admit I felt under tremendous pressure in the last games, except for the last game. I can only think of it as a huge fish, which I had caught, but somehow I could not contain it, it was slippery and so I lost it.
Fischer: Hmmm.

(a long long long applause, which seems to last an eternity erupts, with Spassky and Fischer shaking hands before leaving to the back room, the cameras having focused on the two great masters, now aim their lenses at the Icelandic crowd for a few minutes, no one seems to want to leave, no one seems to want this magical moment to come to an end, but in the end the rooms becomes empty and the cameramen pack up, with no sign of neither Spassky nor Fischer).

Swimming In The Desert

For some reason or other, this clasico has not been of previous excitement. I remember the times when all one could think of was el clasico, feeling it in the blood thrusting through, trying to come to ones senses, trying to make a coherent sentence after the other, not being able to do anything due to nausea, when all one could hear was el clásico, when on each corner you noticed we were all in the same boat, depending on the result in order to put our state in the right place.

This year it has been watered out, in the first one Barça was in between clashes against Chelsea (perhaps the rival that is taking Real's place), and now just after Liverpool. It is true that the team is out in the Champions League, almost not having shown up in the first knock out round, but there was some pride left. The same for Real. Both teams had to show there is some life left in them.

Real's decadence has been coming for some years and even existing for some years, ever since Barça's resurrection from the Dark Era of Gaspart. However it is amazing how quick things can turn, it is less than a year ago that Barça was the team in Europe. The one everyone wanted to emulate, who had the neutral fans on their side. There are many reasons that have been stated for the quick fall of the team and in previous three years not one scandal had been heard, now there is one a week. Player after player is coming out, criticizing their team mates or criticizing their team mate for critisizing their team mates. It has happened so quick that no measures had been thought up, and now suddenly half the team is for sale (at least in the fans opinions) who are more than scared of becoming Los Galacticos Two. it is true that perhaps some players are in need of a new challenge and some even are a bad influence on the behaviour of others.

There will be some turnover in the summer and one of the cracks, if not two will be shown the door.

The game itself was probably the best in ages, or the worst in ages, as both teams defended like schoolboys. I am not sure that the probable result of 6-6 would have been enough, and that shows what an awful defending there was, the total anarchy on the pitch. In the middle of the first half, one was expecting each team to have had two sending offs, a multitude of opportunities and in the end it was almost like in most games. Barcelona were punished for their defensive neglection and saved by their individual geniouses. Real Madrid proved to be more of a team, with a courageous spirit (and that is not
Capello's order I believe), with Barça saved by a 19 year old who scored his first hat-trick. It was a Madrid who played the best game of the year, but could do no more. A Barcelona who at times were vulgar, playing a 3-4-3 formation, that is nothing but suicuidal, especially with Oleguer at the back and Márquez who's head is everywhere apart from on the pitch.

For the spectator it was spectacular. Real will go away from the match with a sour feeling, having had one man more for 45 minutes and the feeling of two points loss, while Barça will have to do some serious auto criticism and not be blinded by a goal that felt like victory (Messi's third in injury time), they will have to start to reflect on what they are doing wrong and perhaps taking Gudjohnsen's words to the heart.
If only everyone would give that hundred percent, the team with all its talent would be unbeatable. Otherwise...it will be a long long swim in the desert.

Over

It is mostly black now. Not because of the result yesterday, it has been coming for a long long time.
Since Paris. Since the hangover of the double.

This year a lot of things have been made wrongly.

It has not only been a year with a World Cup for Barcelona. To my knowledge Liverpool, Manchester and other teams had if not more international players.

Yesterday the team was lucky not to go into the second half with a 4-0, it was something like 11 shots against 1. I thought we were supposed to score goals.
I had the feeling that apart from the first 20 minutes in the first leg, Liverpool controlled the game, but all aspects of it.
They might not play "beautiful" football, but has Barcelona played beautfully?
I am sorry, but history accounts for nothing. It was last year Barcelona played well.
Not this year. Some players have entered into a vicious circle, that I am not sure is reversible.
Could it be that the club misses that much Henk Ten Cate?
What does Neeskens do?
I never even see him communicating with anyone.
Is he there on a work placement?

At no times did the team show any team solidarity, mental strength, it was neither that el cracks appeared to make the difference, nor team work that made it.
It is true that Liverpool scored both goals due to our mistake, but that is what they do well.

I don't think it is needed for a total renovation, like at Madrid, but some crack needs to go. The other cracks need a rocket from below.

I would say it is over for:
Belleti, Gio, Sylvinho, Edmilson, Motta, Deco, Giuly, Ezquerro and Saviola.
Ronaldinho has one year left as a margin, for the years of service.

HMMMM

I don't really care in which way we will go through. The criminal or the civil way.

There is no doubt that Anfield will have some importance, but I also believe that Barça are used to many hostile anti-catalan stadiums in Spain.

At the moment there is a chess game between Rafa and Frank, with no one showing their cards and both coaches trying to read the other ones cards.
However Rafael Benitez has the favourable result and it is Barca that need to go for it.
Barcelona will not care too much about conceding a goal, as they have to score at least two anyway.

I believe they have to attack fiercely, agressively and take their chances, as they won't be too many.

In one way the result in Barcelona favours Barca, as they can't be complacent, they can't take it easy believing they will score. Like what happened at Camp Nou.

It is doubtful that Eto'o or Messi will be up for 90 minutes, but I would start with the whole artillery, trying to get the result as soon as possible, in order not to become nervous and neurotic. If the result is there, allow Benitez to make the first changes, so you have the capability to surprise.

Força Barça!

Are They Back?

Are They Back (the team, Eto'o and Messi) ?

We are reaching the point of the season that is actually important, decisive in order to judge success or failure.
On either side of the games against Liverpool Barcelona will be meeting Valencia and Sevilla and shortly after Real Madrid in the league. All teams are candidates for the league title. It won't be definite but definitely important.

After a long break from Champions League and Barcelona scraping through in the last game, it will be interesting, exciting and an emotional encounter with Liverpool. While Liverpool are slowly getting better with confidence and hope regarding their future, after being bought, Barcelona have struggled. They have scored very few goals and suffer away from home.

Since September they have been without Samuel Eto'o, their main goalscorer in the last couple of years and he has been thoroughly missed. Barcelona were also without Messi and had to rely on Gudjohnsen who is not really a main striker and Saviola, who scores lots of goals, but not very often against tough teams. Most clubs would have suffered being without two of their three best players, but Barcelona are still top of the league, perhaps due to the other teams failures rather than their own merit. But still.

In Barcelona life is never very easy though, the team has been criticisised heavily and almost no one has escaped. It can go from that Rijkaard has little tactical knowledge and Ten Cate (former assistant coach) made all decisions, the debate Saviola or Gudjohnsen, that Deco and Ronaldinho spend far too much time in night clubs, that without Eto'o Ronaldinho is no one, that fans want Mourinho, that Puyol is not the rock he was and back again. The only players to have escaped criticism are Iniesta and Valdés. It is true that the team has not been itself, but perhaps people forgot how difficult it is to replace Eto'o and perhaps how much their system relies on him. He is extremely fast and opposite defenders have something of a panic attack when they see him galloping towards them, without Eto'o teams can build up their attack at their own pace. As he is very fast teams tend to push backwards in order not to leave any space, which in turn gives Barcelona the possibility to play higher up in the field. His aggression and competitiveness is needed in a team that has won everything and his character allows no complacency to take place.

Ronaldinho has struggled all year, the World Cup was a big blow which left him half depressed, with Eto'o and Messi out, the defender could concentrate on marking him, and he would often have two or three players on top of him, kicking him. It did not help he has not gained his form making it difficult to get away from opposite defenders, with Ronaldinho out of form, Deco has to work twice as hard, which has left him exhausted in the end of the games.

It will be a huge psychological boost to have these two players back, even if it could take a long time until they both get fully fit, with them on the bench it will scare teams and that it is a psychological advantage.

There has been criticism of Barcelona's arrogance in the U.K., especially with Laporta's comments that he was happy to go to Liverpool to visit the Beatles museum…I can reassure you though that the players are not taking Liverpool lightly, they know that they need to go to Anfield with a 3-0 cushion to have a chance, it is to see if Barcelona will have managed to reach some form of consistency and apart from pure physical superiority they will have to deal with height as well. It is a shame ex Barcelona player Luis Garcia is injured, but the rumoured interest in Xabi Alonso (whose father played for Barcelona) adds to the morbidity.

It will be extremely tight and an even knock-out phase and if Barcelona manage to beat them it will prove they have matured and it will bring confidence for the season. If they loose it might get the alarm bells ringing louder and a clear out in the summer. That is F.C. Barcelona for you.