After a very long and hard work, we are proud to announce that the new version of SL Predictor is up and running, offering a new experience for our members.

For the past couple of football seasons we tried to make all necessary adjustments to make SL Predictor a fun Virtual Betting Site combining the fun elements of football betting with the competitive elements of not only beating the bookie – but also proving your wits and superiority over the rest of SL Predictor members.

So, in order to continue our push forward, we came up with the new version, which holds a bunch of new features. Here are some of them:

1. New and improved design – We have decided it’s time not only to change the general looks of the site, but also to alter the betting flow just a bit, so placing multiple bets will become easier.

2. More Competitions – Well, let’s face it – winning real money prizes in our competitions makes a great incentive. No matter how hard we looked, we failed to find any member who disliked the idea of winning great prizes for only sharing his opinion with us. That is why we will add competitions, hence giving you more opportunities to win one of our prizes.

3. Mega Match – This new competition will allow you to win some great prizes with a short-term-effort. You keep falling behind in our monthly competition? Not to worry – The Mega Match will put you up to the challenge of getting down to the details in a specific match. We’ll choose the specific match and you’ll have to try and hit on the winner, Over/Under 2.5 Goals, Correct Score and pick the First Goal Scorer. You don’t have to hit on all 4. You just have to be the top earner. Do that and our prizes are on their way.

4. Improved Over/Under bet – Until now, the Over/Under 2.5 bet in SL Predictor had… well, no real meaning. It allowed you to show your knowledge, but was not a real factor in SL Predictor. So, we sat and came to the conclusion that the time for a change has come! From now on the Over/Under bet will come with odds and budget, so your successes and failures will be taken into account in the competitions leaderboards.

These improvements make only the tip of the iceberg. We urge you to take a deeper look in the new SL Predictor. You will learn that the new Mega Match, combined with the various leagues we deal with, provides constant action – week in and week out. The new Bet Slip will show you all relevant information regarding the open matches with a single click, and so on and so forth.

If you find something is missing, or if you have any suggestions that might help us improve the site even more, do not hesitate to contact us through Predictions@Soccerlens.com.

Sign up and get started here.

The SL Predictor Team

In a season which has already produced its fair share of talking points, the Premier League once more exploded into life after the two week recess, with a flurry of goals and a controversy set to dominate the back pages long after the match reports have faded.

On the up:

Manchester City

Let us forget for a moment the behaviour of Emmanuel Adebayor (more on which to follow) and focus upon an otherwise scintillating display of counter attacking football from Mark Hughes’ team. In the space of fifteen devastating 2nd half minutes, the light blues ripped apart the Gunners with exactly the brand of fast, incisive, hit them on the break football which has been a hallmark of Arsene Wenger’s team in recent times. Arsenal simply had no answer for the pace and movement of the City attack and despite once again playing beautiful football and dominating the bulk of possession, they lacked the necessary cutting edge and competitive bite in midfield.

Wayne Rooney

His pace, movement off the ball and boundless energy proved far too much for Tottenham. Rooney has started the season on fire and ominously looks to be getting better. He will never fill Ronaldo’s shoes as they are completely different players. However, on the evidence of the season thus far, he looks more than capable assuming the mantle as the catalyst for another United title charge. If he can control the hot tempered lack of judgement which has at times blighted his career to date (and that remains a big if), this could be a very special season.

Manchester United

Games vs Spurs are starting to feel like a sort of Groundhog Day. Fall behind and then bounce back to comprehensively outplay and easily defeat your opponent. It’s as if these matches follow a preset formula. More importantly for United, having produced far less than their best in a fortunate victory over Arsenal, they were back on cruise control here. Even with ten men following Scholes’ justified dismissal, they never looked in danger.

Robin Van Persie

Despite the result going against his team, ‘RVP’ can take a lot away from his performance and conduct at Eastlands. His importance to the Arsenal side cannot be underestimated and Wenger must have been a relieved man indeed when the Dutchman finally signed his long term contract extension in the summer. On Saturday, he led the line with aplomb, produced a fine moment of individual skill for the equaliser and conducted himself with dignity, both on pitch and in the post match press conference following ‘that’ challenge.

Chelsea

Champions find a way to win. To the eye an under-par display, yet three points nonetheless and five straight wins for Ancelotti’s men. Chelsea have a long way to go to prove they are title material, yet is difficult to envisage all of their main rivals taking maximum points from the Britannia, and in that context it is an excellent result. It is also somewhat ironic that Stoke were finally undone deep into injury time by none other than a long throw into the box; with Malouda pouncing on the ensuing knockdown. Although in the final analysis substitute goalkeeper Simonsen may well feel he should have done better.

Liverpool

Liverpool needed to produce a clinical display against Burnley to calm the nerves after a less than convincing start to the season. Mission accomplished; though in truth we learnt very little from this performance. The gulf in class between the teams was obvious and although Burnley may provide an altogether sterner test on home soil at Turf Moor, they offered precious little here and it proved to be a stroll in the park for the red half of Merseyside.

Sliding down:

Emmanuel Adebayor

Perhaps it is the measure of the man that his actions on Saturday will serve to completely overshadow the otherwise fabulous beginning to his Man City career. The celebration was bad enough but a lengthy ban will surely follow for an act which can only be described as verging on common assault upon Robin Van Persie.

In fairness to the referee, it is difficult to pin-point intent when viewing the replay at game speed, let alone in a match situation without the benefit of a 2nd look. However, the slow motion paints an extremely harsh and unflattering picture. Already saddled with the tag of mercenary, I suspect far less pleasant adjectives will be forthcoming from fans and media alike. His post game apology for the goal celebration also seemed somewhat hollow. Heat of the moment? I doubt it; he knew what he was doing.

The saddest aspect is that, on most occasions such a celebration usually just riles the crowd and makes the player involved look like an egotistical childish twit. Unfortunately, Adebayor’s ill-judged actions also resulted in the wounding and hospitalisation of a match steward; struck by an object thrown from the away end. This in itself was an inexcusable act and if caught the culprit should rightly be prosecuted and banned for life. That said, we need not look far for the catalyst. In the long run, his goal in the game will mean little. His ‘other’ contributions may resonate a lot longer.

Portsmouth

Paul Hart will doubtless be spending a large portion of training this week working on the art of finishing. Bolton never deserved three points from the fixture, a fact readily admitted by Gary Megson after the game, and while fans may point (rightly so) to the harsh penalty decision awarded against Tal Ben Haim for a clean tackle, this would have been a mere sidebar if not for the home side’s incredible profligacy in front of goal. Having headed the equaliser, Younes Kaboul was then guilty of an appalling miss with a free header, while Frédéric Piquionne time and gain carved space for himself before spoiling promising moves with some truly atrocious finishing. Pompey do not have the quality to break down many teams this season and throwing away precious points against a struggling side such as Bolton looks ominous indeed.

Hull’s defence

What can one say other than oh dear. At times in the 2nd half, Hull’s defence would have been the laughing stock of the local park pitch. Looking across the line, there were often yards separating the full backs from centre halves, making Sunderland’s task of springing the offside trap something akin to taking candy from a baby. Kamil Zayette may have popped up with the first half equaliser but frankly he is picked and paid first and foremost as a defender and in that aspect his performance was truly shambolic. That Michael Turner scored and briefly ran toward the Hull supporters before turning behind the goal to embrace his new fans will only rub salt into raw wounds.

Manuel Almunia

He is good, but part of the problem for Arsenal is that he’s just not that good. Almunia simply does not belong at a top four club. Great header though it was from Micah Richards, I suspect a Given or Reina may well have kept it out and it’s such differences which may be telling in the final analysis of the season. Mostly he looks solid and he is certainly not out of place in the Premier League per se. However, Arsenal really need a truly commanding presence behind a back four which can be defensively uncertain at times, and I’m not convinced Almunia inspires the necessary level of confidence.

How does one go about measuring greatness in football? I mean real, obvious, blatant greatness; that rarest of qualities. Today “greatness” is such a woolly, over-used term that sometimes we lose its meaning and start labeling all sorts of mundane, workaday things as “great”. The evolution of language has distilled its meaning, reduced its potency, but we still know greatness when we see it.

However, the very idea of finding some sort of gauge on which to measure greatness, particularly in sport, can be extremely problematic. The main issue with bestowing greatness upon an individual athlete is that it is near impossible to avoid straying from objectivity and into the territory of personal, subjective judgments.

To one man Pele might be the greatest of all-time, to another it will be Maradona and to another perhaps Di Stefano. When it comes to the greatness of individuals, the subjective cannot be avoided because the statistics don’t always add up. George Best never inspired Northern Ireland to World Cup success, Gianfranco Zola never fired Chelsea to a Premier League title, but that does not mean they were not great players.

Individual brilliance does not always shine through in statistical records, there is also an intangible quality that is almost impossible to describe. We just seem to know it when we are witnessing it.

When it comes to the records of clubs, however, it is possible to be a little more objective when forming opinions. Sheer weight of silverware is as good a gauge as any, a tangible measure by which to assess the relative “greatness” of some of the game’s most successful clubs.

In this article I will be using a simple formula to come to some sort of conclusion as to which are the most successful clubs in the history of the sport. Obviously it’s not flawless, I’m no mathematician, but it’s something.

By awarding 1 point for major domestic trophy triumphs (e.g. FA Cup, Coppa Italia), 2 points for a minor continental trophy (UEFA Cup, Cup Winner’s Cup, World Club Cup etc), 3 points for a league title and 5 points for a major continental trophy (Champions League, Copa Libertadores etc), I hope to reach a rudimentary verdict as to which clubs around the world can truly come to be considered “great”.

I have decided to exclude secondary domestic cup competitions (e.g. the Carling Cup) and titles which are decided by a one-off fixture (e.g. the European Super Cup) from the list, because they are not held in quite the same regard as the other competitions and, in the case of the Super Cup, can only be contested by clubs that have already won silverware the previous season.

For the European teams, to avoid clubs from smaller, less competitive leagues dominating the list through sheer weight of trophies won in relatively weak competitions, I will multiply each club’s league title points score by the UEFA coefficient of its domestic league to provide a more balanced figure. Hopefully all will become clear…

Most Successful Clubs by Region

AFC

(Asia & Australia)

Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (7 league titles, 1 domestic cup, 0 minor continental trophies, 1 major continental trophy) = 27

With the advent of professional football being a relatively recent occurrence in the Far East, the statistics for some of the region’s most successful clubs may not look particularly impressive, but this is an area where football is growing more rapidly than anywhere else on the planet and should not at all detract from the achievements of the AFC’s most dominant teams.

During the 20 years since the club’s foundation, South Korea’s Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma have grown quickly to become a dominant force in the Asian game. 7 K-League championships make the club the most successful in the relatively brief history of Korean professional football, whilst an AFC Champions League triumph in 1995-96 confirmed Seongnam’s position at the very pinnacle of Asian football.

CAF

(Africa)

Al-Ahly (34 league titles, 35 domestic cups, 4 minor continental trophies, 6 major continental trophies) = 175

Egypt’s Al-Ahly have dominated African club football for the best part of sixty years, serial successes making the club the most decorated outside of Europe. Not content only with domestic supremacy, Al-Ahly are also the most successful team in the history of the CAF Champions League with a highly impressive six titles, four having come in the last nine years.

Today “The Red Devils” continue to possess a highly talented squad, the likes of Ahmad Belal and Mohamed Aboutrika contributing to a smooth and aesthetic style of football which will, in all probability, lead to Al-Ahly continuing their ascendancy over the African game in the coming years.

CONCACAF

(North America, Central America & The Caribbean)

C.D. Saprissa (28 league titles, 0 domestic cups (n/a), 5 minor continental trophies, 3 major continental trophies) = 109

Although it is perhaps the Mexican sides who grab most of the headlines when it comes to Central American football, it is Costa Rica’s C.D. Saprissa who are the most decorated club in the region. With 28 domestic titles and 3 CONCACAF Champions League trophies to their name, Saprissa have secured their status as one of the very best sides in Latin America, but it was the club’s performance in the 2005 World Club Cup that gained them the most attention.

Going into the competition as, on paper at least, the weakest side in the tournament, Saprissa beat Sydney F.C. 1-0 in the quarter-final before putting in a decent performance against Liverpool, eventually going down 3-0 to the European Champions. The club’s performance in the tournament equaled the best ever by a team from the CONCACAF region and further raised the growing international profile of the prolific Saprissa.

CONMEBOL

(South America)

C.A. Penarol (46 league titles, 0 domestic cups (n/a), 0 minor continental trophies, 5 major continental trophies) = 163

Uruguay, one of world football’s earliest powerhouses, may have seen its influence on the global game diminish with the passing of the decades, but Penarol, the South American nation’s most prestigious club, have continued to be a significant force on the continent despite their country’s gradual decline on the international stage.

With 46 league titles, the last being won in 2003, Penarol are certainly well established as the strongest side in Uruguay and, despite perhaps lacking the worldwide profile of the likes of Boca Juniors and River Plate, their five Copa Libertadores triumphs show that the club deserve to be more widely recognised as one of South America’s most prestigious footballing establishments.

OFC

(Oceania)

Auckland City F.C. (4 league titles, 0 domestic cups (n/a), 0 minor continental trophies, 2 major continental trophies) = 22

Although, with the move of Australia into the Asian zone, the OFC region is almost certainly the weakest of FIFA’s global administrative areas in plain footballing terms, Oceania does possess a number of successful clubs that will be hoping to develop a more global presence as the game continues to develop in the region.

New Zealand is the strongest football nation in the region and it’s most prominent club, Auckland City F.C., can lay claim to being the best in the OFC. The club has won four domestic titles in the last four seasons and is the current holder of the Oceania Champions League title, having won it in 2008/09 and also three seasons earlier in 2005/06. If Auckland – and OFC football in general – can find the greater investment needed to develop the game further, then there’s no reason why club’s like Auckland can’t establish themselves as a more significant international force in the years to come.

UEFA

(Europe)

Real Madrid C.F. (31 league titles x 74.266 UEFA coefficient, 17 domestic cups, 2 minor continental trophies, 9 major continental trophies) = 159 (without coefficient) 2330.246 (with coefficient)

Although Rangers are the most decorated football club in Europe, when adjusted by the UEFA coefficients it is, almost poetically, Real Madrid who come out on top. The world’s richest, most glamorous club have dominated Spanish football since the 1930s and were voted the most successful club of the 20th century in FIFA’s official poll.

A club with a gloriously rich history, some of the game’s greatest ever players have plied their trade for Madrid during its 107 year existence. It is names like Di Stefano, Puskas, Gento, Butraguengo and Zidane that have established Madrid as the best club in Europe over the last century and give the club its air of grandeur and majesty. With a new generation of galacticos now in residence at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu it’s almost certain that Real Madrid will continue to be a major force in world football for the foreseeable future.

European Top 10 (Using UEFA coefficients)

Real Madrid (2330.246)

Juventus (1713.570)

Rangers (1483.500)

Barcelona (1443.054)

Liverpool (1355.982)

Manchester United (1355.982)

Bayern Munich (1210.595)

Celtic (1205.750)

Ajax (1157.770)

Benfica (1157.322)

The 09/10 Premier League season starts in 2 weeks and the inaugural Football Media Fantasy Football league is now open for business.

There are a host of prizes to win, it’s free to join and it’s based on the popular and very easy to use premier league fantasy football game.

How To Play

1. Visit fantasy.premierleague.com and sign in (if you’ve never registered at the site before, click on this link to register). Depending on your account history, you might need to add your team and pick your team colors before moving to the next step.

2. After logging in click the ‘Leagues’ link in the left navigation panel, enter the Football Media league code (see step 3 for how to obtain the code) in the ‘Join a League’ text box and click the ‘Join League’ button.

3. Get the league code by signing up to the Football Media Fantasy Football newsletter:

That’s it. You’re good to go. If you’re new to fantasy football, read this excellent introduction to fantasy football games.

Let’s get started already – come on in and sign up!

Prizes

The following prizes are offered by Football Media and apply only to members of the Football Media fantasy football league:

1st Prize

The winner will receive:

• An authentic signed football shirt of their choice from Icons.
• The latest football boot of their choice from SoccerPro.
• A Soccerlens Evolution T-Shirt.

There’s also the possibility of winning football tickets, a free shirt each month from Subside Sports and a hefty cash prize to top things off.

The following prizes are offered by Fantasy Premier League and apply to overall winners.

1st Prize

The overall winner of Fantasy Premier League 2009/10 will win a VIP trip for two to a Barclays Premier League match (the identity of which is determined by The Premier League) featuring a team of the successful player’s choice. The Winner’s Prize includes travel, two nights’ hotel accommodation, two match tickets, pre-match meal and £250 spending money.

Monthly Prize

This season the person who finishes top of the monthly leaderboard will be declared Manager of the Month and will win a digital camera, an mp3 player, and a Premier League club replica kit of the Winner’s choice.

For more details, see the official Football Media Fantasy Football page. To stay updated with the latest updates about the fantasy football league, sign up to the FM fantasy football newsletter (below).

Sign up today.

Modern football is a relentless beast – it’s literally on 365 days an year, there’s no break even during the summer (thank you transfer window, pre-season tournaments and weird international football schedules) and there’s always the sideshow attractions – the obligatory footballer orgy or someone finding new ways to stick it to the Premier League.

So if you’re fretting that July will be a dry month for football, rest assured that Soccerlens has the extensive coverage not only of the football going on this month but also tons of other fun stories that will keep you in touch with the beautiful game till August and the 2009/2010 season rolls.

Without further ado, here’s a preview of what coming up on Soccerlens this July:

Football Transfers

You can follow all the latest transfer news and rumours this summer one page – our transfers list section. It contains all confirmed transfers for major European leagues as well as a daily transfer news roundup column that not only gives you all the transfer rumours but also tells you which ones are real and which ones are, well, plain BS.

Catch all the latest transfers here: Football Transfer Lists.

Also see: our daily transfer rumours column.

Hot Babes

If you thought it was hot this summer, you might want to check out these smoking babes we’ve worked so hard to put up on our Babes section. For months (and months) we have slaved over hundreds of thousands of photos to bring you the very best of what the world of football babes has to offer.

Our offering to you for July – the 50 hottest football fans this side of heaven. Forget the bare beer bellies for this summer, feast on these beautiful gifts from god. Aren’t you glad you love football?

The hottest thing(s) you’ll see this summer: 50 Hot Football Fans

Also see: Soccerlens’ Babe of the Month for July – Ariane Gonzalez.

Football Shirts

From the end-season through to the summer, football clubs release new shirts for the upcoming season. It’s soulless corporate swindling, you should never buy a replica shirt, especially one with the sponsor’s logo, players are going to leave your club anyway so why put their name on it, etc etc…

But don’t you want Kaka’s new #8 Madrid shirt for next season?

Soccerlens gives you the latest kits for next season on a single page – whether you want to buy one for yourself, buy a gift for a friend or just want to check out the strokes of genius / madness from kit manufacturers, this is the place to be.

What will your club be wearing next season? Find out: 09/10 Kits

Also see: The SPL 09/10 Kits (more league pages coming shortly).

Summer Football

It’s not beach football and it’s not co-ed soccer, but it’s still football and there are some big teams flexing their muscles (in club and international football).

In club football you have the World Football Challenge and the Peace Cup, plus Manchester United’s and Liverpool’s tours to the far east. And then there are the preliminary rounds for the UEFA Champions League and the Europa League.

In international football you have the Gold Cup, plus a myriad of World Cup qualifiers.

We’ll be covering as much of the football on display this month as possible, so make sure you’re following Soccerlens via RSS, Facebook and Twitter.

If there’s something you’d like to see on Soccerlens or if you just want to give your feedback, get in touch through this contact form.

Chelsea (Essien 9′) 1-1 Barcelona (Iniesta 90′ + 3) (Barcelona win 1-1 on Aggregate on Away Goals Rule)
Stadium: Stamford Bridge, England
Competition: UEFA Champions League, Semifinals, Leg #2
Date: 6 May 2009
Kickoff: 18:45 GMT, 14:45 EST

Barcelona pulled off a great escape and eliminated Chelsea to advance to the Champions League Final! Soccerlens brought you the action live! You can see the goals from the Chelsea-Barcelona game here, or click below for the minute-by-minute live-blog. Make sure to share your thoughts about the game in the comments!

Match Preview:

The old adage goes “offense sells tickets, but defense wins championships.” If that’s the case, then Chelsea’s performance in the first leg against Barcelona was Treble caliber. Guus Hiddink’s men rarely ventured forward and seemed content to eke out a scoreless draw. Their hope was to take a 0-0 scoreline into the second leg at Stamford Bridge, where they’ll take on a more offensive posture against a club that hasn’t played nearly as well on the road in Europe as they have at home.

Indeed, heading into this past weekend, you could argue that Barcelona haven’t been in the best of form. They drew with Valencia which opened the door for Real Madrid to close the gap in La Liga. They haven’t won on the road in Europe since November, when they defeated Sporting Lisbon. However, then came Saturday’s 6-2 demolition of Real Madrid in El Clasico. Barcelona confirmed their credentials as the most dangerous and dynamic offensive team in Europe and dismantled one of the hottest teams in recent history in Real Madrid. Their big guns, especially Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto’o, Thierry Henry, Xavi, and Andres Iniesta, were quiet in the first leg, but were in excellent form over the weekend and will be looking to prove that the first leg was a fluke. Most importantly, they know that they don’t have to win at Stamford Bridge in order to advance. Any goal that they score will give them an advantage over Chelsea, and any scored draw will send them through to the Finals.

Chelsea, however, have reason to feel confident going into this match. They’ll be getting Ashley Cole back from suspension, and he’ll be able to mark Messi, allowing Jose Bosingwa (who did a respectable job) to move back to his natural position at right-back. They should also have Alex and Michael Ballack available, despite both players leaving last weekend’s match with Fulham with slight knocks. Moreover, Chelsea can take heart knowing that Barcelona have been suspect on defense all year, and they were burned for two goals on set-plays by an otherwise impotent Real Madrid side. Chelsea have scored numerous goals on set-pieces this year, and we need look no further than the first leg of the Liverpool tie to see that. They’ll need all hands on deck, especially if Barcelona bring their scoring boots that they used to humble Real Madrid.

Hopefully, we should see a more wide-open and entertaining game than the first leg. Will Barcelona continue their offensive rampage and overwhelm Chelsea at Stamford Bridge? Or will Chelsea prevail and make it to their second consecutive Finals? Tune in and find out!

Lineups:

Chelsea: Cech, Bosingwa, Alex, Terry (c), A. Cole, Essien, Ballack, Malouda, Lampard, Anelka, Drogba.
Subs: Hilario, Ivanovic, Di Santo, Mikel, Kalou, Belletti, Mancienne.

Chelsea will make only one change from the side that defeated Fulham over the weekend, bringing back Ballack in favor of the defensive-minded Mikel. That, along with Anelka’s place in the starting lineup, could indicate that Chelsea will have their attacking boots on. Otherwise, they would have gone with their lineup in Barcelona last week and simply played for penalty kicks. Ashley Cole is back in the lineup after his suspension, and will be tasked with stopping Lionel Messi.

Barcelona: Valdes, Alves, Pique, Toure, Abidal, Busquets, Xavi (c), Keita, Messi, Iniesta, Eto’o.
Subs: Pinto, Caceres, Gudjohnsen, Bojan, Sylvinho, Hleb, Pedro.

As expected, Barca will be without Thierry Henry, who sustained an injury during the weekend’s victory over Real Madrid. Barca will start with Toure at center-half in place of the suspended Puyol. Busquets will come into the lineup to sit in front of the defense, and Keita will start alongside Xavi in midfield. As with the first leg, former Chelsea man, Gudjohnsen, will be available off the bench, as will former Arsenal players Hleb and Sylvinho.

Minute-by-Minute:

Post Match Apparently, it’s pandemonium at Stamford Bridge, and Drogba has not helped matters by getting in Tom Henning Ovrebo’s face and launching into a long and nasty tirade. He’s booked (as if he cares at this point) and has to be restrained. Well, I can sympathize with Chelsea, but they’re really acting like a bunch of sore losers. Remember how they were the worst behaved team in Europe last season? Every time a ref made a decision against them, it seemed like John Terry, Michael Ballack, Joe Cole, Ashley Cole, and Didier Drogba would surround the ref and look like they were going to do a gang assault on him? I guess that Chelsea never really went away. Get over it guys. You lost.

90′ + 7 Eto’o comes off and Sylvinho will replace him. Chelsea win a free kick and Cech comes up for it. They can’t do much with it, though, as there’s the whistle and we’re done! Chelsea players are bum-rushing the ref and are really giving him a earful. They feel jobbed, and it’s hard to argue. However, Barcelona have pulled off a great escape and will meet Manchester United in the Final! Thanks to everyone who followed along! I’ll see you next time!

90′ + 6 Cech comes up for the corner and Lampard plays it into the box for him. It’s knocked out to Ballack and he tries a hard shot that looks like it might have hit Eto’o’s shoulder! No call from the ref and Ballack is incensed. In fact, he looks like he’s trying to grab the ref and beat him up. I’m actually afraid for this ref’s safety. Needless to say, Ballack’s booked and he’ll miss the next match.

90′ + 5 Chelsea look shell-shocked, but they win a corner. Barcelona make a change as Iniesta will come off for Gudjohnsen.

90′ + 3 GOAL!! Wow! What a heartbreaker! Alves lifts a cross from the right and Terry heads it away. Essien whiffs on his clearance attempt and Messi corrals it inside the box. He sends it out to Iniesta, and he fires a shot from the center edge of the box and he beats Cech to the top right corner!

90′ + 1 Four minutes will be added on. Essien gives it away poorly, and Messi’s pass to Pique on the center edge of the box is taken away by Lampard. Eto’o is booked for mouthing off to the ref and he’s clearly had a frustrating night. Belletti gets through, but his shot is wide of the post.

90′ Alves with a long cross from the top-right edge of the penalty area to the far post. Eto’o tries valiantly to keep it from going out, but the linesman rules that it crossed the line.

89′ Lampard wins a corner and, for some reason, Guardiola hugs Hiddink. What’s that about? Is he conceding defeat already? Nothing doing on the corner as Chelsea are called for a foul.

88′ Iniesta and Messi play a one-two on the center edge of the penalty area and Messi takes a tumble. No call, though.

87′ Lampard gets free down the left edge of the box, and he sends it back to a trailing Essien. His shot is easily blocked by Pique, though.

86′ Lampard’s pass to Anelka is poor and Pique cuts it out. Malouda wins it back, but he loses it before he can do anything with it.

85′ Busquets is off for Krkic. Will that make a difference?

84′ Messi with a terrible cross and he’s been mediocre tonight. Let’s say that the score, right now, is Ronaldo 1, Messi 0.

83′ Lampard wins a corner off Pique. Chelsea take their time setting this up, and you can’t blame them. Malouda’s corner is easily cleared away from danger.

82′ Long pass into the box for Anelka, and it looks like Pique hands it inside the box. No call from the ref, and on the replay, it looked like a clear penalty. Pique got away with one there.

80′ Alves whips a cross from the right but Alex heads it away. It’s into some space and Pique gets it. He tries a shot, but it’s just wide of the post.

79′ Toure makes a mistake as he misjudges the long pass to Anelka. The French forward is away from him and he goes down under the contact from Toure. No penalty call, though, and it would have been a soft penalty had it been given.

78′ Alves takes the free kick from about 30 yards out, but it’s just over the crossbar.

77′ Alex muffs his clearance as he slips on the pitch as he tries to kick it away. Messi pounces on it, and Alex catches him in the midsection with a nicely placed kick. That’s a yellow for Alex, and he’ll miss the Final.

76′ Essien plays it through to Anelka and he’s got a great chance in the box. Too bad he’s flagged offside. So much for that.

75′ Messi gets away from Terry and he sends it to Alves. He crosses it into the box, but Ballack is back there and he heads it away.

74′ Essien is booked for a late tackle on Iniesta.

72′ Drogba will come off and he gets a deserved ovation from the Chelsea fans. Belletti, the former Barca man, will replace him.

71′ Drogba is still limping around, and he’s probably going to come off. Lampard takes a good shot from the edge of the box. It takes a bit of a deflection, but Valdes makes the diving save.

70′ So, if Barca make it to the Final, they’ll be missing their starting left-back and their starting right-back. I bet Sir Alex is rooting hard for Barca right now.

69′ Drogba limps off the pitch so it’ll be 10-on-10 for now. Lampard takes the free kick from about 25 yards out, but his low effort flashes wide of the far post.

66′ RED CARD! Pique and Drogba go for the 50-50 ball in the air, and they both miss. It bounces to Anelka, and Abidal brings down him outside the box and he’s off for committing the professional foul! But wait! On the replay, it looks like Abidal barely touched him. It looks like Fletcher isn’t the only one with a complaint about the officiating. Anyway, it’s no matter as he’s off and Barca are in a huge hole.

65′ Messi gets away from Cole and cuts across the edge of the penalty area. He tries a speculative shot, but it’s over the crossbar.

64′ Drogba is giving them all kinds of problems today, and he gets it inside the box yet again. This time, he gets held up and Barca are able to knock it away.

63′ Iniesta makes a nice run into the box and he tries to thread it through to Eto’o. It’s out of his reach, though, and Eto’o has some choice words for his teammate.

62′ Drogba takes a dive inside the box as Abidal barely touches him and he’s clearly trying to win a penalty to make up for that no-call earlier. Like any great actor, Drogba commits to it and Chelsea even bring out their medical staff to tend to him. Not even Daniel Day-Lewis is that devoted of an actor.

61′ Keita with a nice bit of skill to take it on a half-volley, but it’s not even close to bothering Cech.

60′ Terrible corner from Xavi as he plays it low and it’s right to Drogba on the near edge of the box. Pique then sends it through to Alves, but he unleashes a terrible cross from the right wing.

59′ Messi nearly threads it through to Eto’o, and Alex stumbles and falls. Luckily for him, Bosingwa is there to cover for him, and he kicks it away. Malouda then gives away a corner.

56′ Malouda with an optimistic effort from long range, but it’s not even close. Drogba gets it inside the box and Toure is grabbing his arm and shirt. How that’s not a foul, I don’t know. He eventually slides in and knocks it away, and Drogba wants a penalty. No call and I don’t disagree with the tackle in the box, but Drogba was clearly fouled outside the penalty area. Oh well.

55′ Terrible long-range shot from Alves and he’s not winning any admirers tonight.

54′ Great ball by Toure and Alves gets it deep down the right. He sends a cross into the center of the box, but it’s between two players.

52′ Anelka with a nice run into the box and he finds an unmarked Drogba in the box. He eludes a sliding Pique and looks to have Valdes at his mercy. He fires a low shot and Valdes saves it with his feet. Malouda tries to follow up, but he hits the side netting. Wow. Valdes came up huge there.

51′ Iniesta with a clever ball into the box from the left wing, but it bounces awkwardly for Keita, who can’t handle it.

50′ Xavi sends it to the near post again, but this time, Essien clears it away.

49′ Busquets with a nice run into the box, and he flicks it over-the-top to Keita. It’s off Ballack for a corner. Xavi’s corner strikes Toure at the near post and it’s out, but Barca gets another corner.

47′ They’re only about 30 yards out or so, and the free kick will come in from left side of the field. Xavi touches it to Iniesta at the center edge of the box, and he touches it back to Alves. He shanks it wide and Guardiola is incensed. Not their best effort there as they were trying to be a little too cute and it cost them.

46′ Chelsea will kick off and we’re underway! No changes for either side at the half. Iniesta gets fouled close to the edge of the box, and they’ll have a great chance here.

46′ I would have thought that Manchester United would want to face Chelsea, especially with the way they’ve handled them this season. But after that first half, I think they’d take Barcelona in a heartbeat.

Well, as Yogi Berra once said, it’s like deja-vu all over again. Much like last season’s semifinal, Barca were held scoreless at home and then fell victim to a long-range strike early in the second leg to their English opponents. Said English opponents then defended the one-goal lead and held on to eliminate Barca from the competition. Could history repeat itself here tonight? So far, it looks like it will. Barca have yet to solve Chelsea’s defense, and now that Chelsea have a lead to protect, you can expect more of the same tactics that they employed in the first leg. We will see what Barca are made out of as they try to get that all-important away-goal.

45′ + 3 Messi takes on the entire Chelsea defense and he lays it off to Alves down the right. His cross is defected out for a corner. Barca play it short and Xavi eventually gets the shot opportunity on the edge of the box. It’s out and Xavi claims he’s won a corner. No matter, though, as there’s the whistle and we’re at halftime!

45′ + 2 Bosingwa gets it and actually moves back towards his own penalty area. He’s under a lot of pressure from Iniesta, but he gets it away.

45′ + 1 There will be three added minutes.

45′ Drogba gets it to Anelka, and he makes the run down the right. He can’t get away from his defender, though, and he gives it away to Valdes.

43′ Lampard tries to send the corner to Ballack, but he can’t control his header. It’s out for a Chelsea throw.

42′ Toure gives away a free kick, and Lampard will take it from about 35 yards out. He tries to set up his teammates, since Barca are so vulnerable on set pieces. Toure eventually nods Lampard’s freebie out for a corner.

41′ Alves wins a corner as his cross is knocked out by Bosingwa. They take it quickly and Messi eventually sends a long cross from the right to the far post for Eto’o, but gets flat-footed and it’s out for a goal-kick.

40′ Tommy Smyth actually makes a good point (!). He mentions that Barcelona look like they’re getting rid of the ball more quickly than usual and that it’s wrecking havoc with their usual offensive rhythm. It’s like they’re afraid of getting hit by the Chelsea players and are more worried about that than anything else. In other words, he’s calling them soft.

39′ Messi sends it into the box for Xavi, but it’s long and out for a goal-kick.

38′ Messi turns on the wheels and burns Cole down the right. He has Eto’o in the box, but Messi decides to go for goal, instead. He’s got a poor angle and his shot is easily handled by Cech.

37′ Iniesta is fouled by Bosingwa near the centerline. Eto’o threads it through to Messi down the right. He curls a shot on goal that gives Cech some problems. He’s able to handle it, though, and that’s really the first thing Messi has done today.

35′ Cech kicks it away and Drogba gets it on the edge of the penalty area. He heads it forward to Malouda, but Valdes is out to take it.

31′ Lampard is on the ground after he catches an elbow from Keita. He looks like he might be bleeding from the mouth. He’ll come off to receive treatment, but he should be okay. He’s been excellent, thus far.

30′ Alves gets booked for a flying elbow on Cole. Stupid play and he’s suspended for the Final if Barca make it. Well, it was coming.

29′ Xavi with a nice pass to Iniesta and he tries a shot that’s well off the mark.

28′ Xavi chips a great pass from the edge of the box to the right post where Alves tries to head it in. He’s called for a foul, though, and Cech will kick it away.

27′ Great pass into the box by Lampard for Drogba and Abidal grabs him by the shirt. Drogba goes down and Valdes is there to take it away. No penalty call, and I have to disagree with the ref here. Abidal looked like he fouled him.

26′ Chelsea are really taking it to them right now, aren’t they? So much for anti-football.

25′ Drogba fires it to the far post, but Valdes just gets a touch on it and concedes the corner. On the corner, Terry gets his head on it, but it’s just wide of the post.

24′ Malouda makes a run down the left and Alves fouls him on the edge of the box. It looked like the foul might have occurred in the box, but the ref won’t award the penalty. Now, Chelsea will have a free kick from the lower left corner of the penalty box.

23′ Lampard flicks it forward and Drogba gets behind Toure and Pique! Drogba has a chance, but Valdes is alert and kicks it away. Great play by the keeper, because Drogba could have chipped it past him and had an open net to shoot at.

21′ Iniesta is fouled from about 35 yards out by Anelka. They’ll have a good chance here, especially with Alves kicking it. He kicks it and gets it over the wall. However, it travels well wide of the post and Cech had it well covered anyway.

20′ Messi tries to play it into the path of Eto’o down the left, but Cech comes out to collect it. He almost collided with Alex there, but Cech was able to get to it first.

18′ Alves runs over Malouda and he’s called for a foul. No booking, though.

17′ Malouda gets it and he’s got a ton of space along the left. He lays it back to Lampard, and he tries a shot from inside the box that is just wide. He was unmarked and probably should have done a little bit better with that shot, but Valdes closed off the near post well.

16′ Messi and Xavi try to play a one-two on the edge of the box, but Xavi loses it. He takes a tumble, but no call from the ref.

15′ Iniesta passes it long into the path of a hard-charging Xavi, but it’s just beyond his grasp and it’s out for a goal-kick.

14′ Eto’o tries to make a move inside the box, but he loses it. Anelka takes it, but he’s run over by Busquets. Yeah, both Anelka and Drogba are back defending, so I guess we know what they’re going to do here.

13′ Bosingwa gives away a free kick from about 40 yards out on the left flank near the end-line. Xavi’s free kick is easily cleared from danger, and he’ll have to do better than that if he wants to make Chelsea’s defense sweat.

12′ Xavi tries to pass it to Eto’o at the left edge of the box, but the pass is behind him and out for a Chelsea throw.

11′ Barca win a corner but Drogba clears it away. Will Chelsea go into their shell now?

9′ GOAL!! Xavi tries a long pass to Keita, who gets in front of Alex. However, the pass is long and Cech will kick it away. Chelsea come back as Cole slides in a pass into the box for Lampard. He tries to turn and fire, but his shot is blocked. It’s deflected out off Toure’s back to the Essien, who volleys it from outside the penalty area, and he clips the shot under the crossbar and it bounces over the line! Wow! What a shot form Essien!

7′ Messi plays it through to Alves, who makes the run down the right. He tries to whip a cross to the far post for Iniesta, but it’s out for a Chelsea throw.

5′ Alves is inside the box and he chips it to Messi deep down the right edge of the box. Messi tries a cross, and it looks like it may have gone off Ballack’s hand. No handball, though, and Bosingwa eventually clears it away.

3′ Messi makes a run into the box from the left, but Terry closes him down and makes the great defensive play to take it away.

2′ Terry plays Drogba through the middle, Drogba’s touch is poor and he gives it away. He would have been through on goal if he hadn’t done that. Eto’o then comes back and tries a long-range shot, but it’s well wide and doesn’t trouble Cech.

1′ Barca kick off and we’re underway! Tom Henning Ovrebo is our referee. Messi tries to get around Cole, but he has him well played. Ballack is also back to help out and they take it away.

0′ The Chammmmm-pionnnnns!

0′ Let’s hope that the presence of Anelka means that Chelsea are going to actually play some offense today. I don’t have a problem with what they did in the first leg, at least not compared to some people who have labeled their tactics as “cowardly,” “negative,” or “anti-football.” I mean, you have to put your team in the best position to advance, and they certainly did that. If they had gone with an open-approach and lost like Real Madrid did over the weekend, then that would have been foolhardy, right?

0′ From the “Let’s Not Get Ahead of Ourselves” Dept. A lot of Barcelona fans think that, just because they thrashed Real Madrid on Saturday, that they’ll be in great form for this match. Not so fast. Real Madrid’s defense is hardly anything to write home about. Plus, Barca have not faced stiff competition in Europe, thus far. They took out an overmatched Lyon side in the Round of 16 (and couldn’t win on Lyon’s home pitch), and outclassed a Bayern Munich side that recently fired their manager and may not qualify for Champions League play next season.

0′ One last note about yesterday’s Arsenal/Manchester United match. We knew that the Gunners were caught with their pants down, but Nicklas Bendtner seems to have taken that literally. Apparently, he wears briefs, which is more than I ever wanted to know about him.

0′ One word about Darren Fletcher, because I didn’t think of it until after the game was long over. You have to feel for him as a human being. Burglars broke into his house when he was out of town, getting ready to play at Inter Milan. They held his family at knifepoint and threatened to cut his fiance’s throat. Fletcher could have gone home and left his team, but he was professional about it. Not only did Fletcher play against Inter Milan, but he did a decent job. I remember thinking that he looked like he was about to break down and cry during the playing of the UEFA Anthem before the match. You had to feel for him then, and you certainly have to feel for him now. For him to miss the Final, on a disputed foul no less, seems incredibly unfair after everything he’s gone through.

0′ Who will join Darren Fletcher on the sidelines if they pick up another yellow today? For Chelsea, Michael Ballack, Alex, and Nicholas Anelka had better be on their best behavior. For Barcelona, Sergio Busquets and Dani Alves better watch themselves.

0′ Welcome to Soccerlens’ live coverage of the UEFA Champions League Semifinals between Chelsea and Barcelona! The winner will face Manchester United in the Finals from Rome on May 27, 2009! I’m Victor and I’ll be your liveblogger! I’m watching this match on ESPN. However, this match is available, on-line, at ESPN360. For information on how to access that fine service, feel free to consult this article. Click here for other, free, options.

Match Review:

Chelsea dominated the entire match and looked set to book a Finals rematch with Manchester United. Then Iniesta scored and Barcelona pulled it off. Chelsea are right to be upset with the officiating, as they were denied a clear penalty on Pique’s handball and should have had a penalty when Alves fouled Malouda in the first half. However, they also showed why you have to keep playing until the referee blows his whistle. They had chances to put this out of reach and they were unable to. As such, they have only themselves to blame for giving Barcelona a chance to steal this one.

As for Barcelona, they’ve won the match, but it could be a Pyrrhic victory. They won’t have Alves and Abidal due to suspension, and they showed that all it takes is a little physicality and their entire offense gets thrown out of whack. Obviously, the buildup to the Final will feature the Ronaldo vs. Messi angle, but the real key will be whether Barcelona’s defense will be able to stop Manchester United’s offense. They’ll have a huge hole to climb from, and I don’t envy Pep Guardiola’s task. Still, getting there is half the battle, and they deserve credit for doing that much. They showed a lot of heart and tenacity, especially when it looked like they were dead and buried in this match.

Man of the Match:

Didier Drogba

Drogba can be so confounding and mercurial that it’s hard to see why Chelsea put up with him. Well, he showed why tonight. He gave Barcelona’s defense so many problems and he was a nightmare matchup for their center-halves. He looked like a threat to score every time he touched it. When he exited the match, you could immediately see the difference as Anelka lacked the same kind of power and presence inside the box. Lampard also played well, as did Cole who did a number on Messi that will probably be studied endlessly by Patrice Evra over the next few weeks. As for Barcelona, Iniesta was, once again, their most influential force as he continues to show why he could be the most underrated player on this squad. Messi, Eto’o, and Xavi, however, were underwhelming and will need to step up their games significantly.

At Soccerlens Shirts you’ll find some of the best football tshirts around, starting with our first offering, the Evolution tshirt.

The Soccerlens Evolution t-shirt is a remake of the popular ‘evolution’ shirt and is (hopefully) the first of many cool football shirts that we’ll be releasing over the coming months. The ‘Evolution’ is on sale now and is available through our friends at Subside Sports in both their US and UK stores.

More details here: The Soccerlens Evolution T-Shirt.

Modern football is on 24/7, 365 days an year. It’s intense. It’s in your face. It’s ridiculously easy to get sucked in and react to news on a daily basis, and in this process we tend to miss the bigger picture and especially miss the opportunity to see how stories develop over time.

Mainstream media is no help either – their bread and butter is the daily grind, not more knowledge for fans, and thus the average fan is jerked around all year long on Ronaldo’s sexcapades, Arsenal’s refusal to experienced players, the most exciting title race since the start of title races, the backstage shenanigans at Tottenham, Newcastle, Real Madrid, West Ham and Manchester City, and of course, the effing referees.

So let’s take a few steps back and look at the whole of 2008 instead of just yesterday, today and tomorrow. In our year-end review, we look at the most important football stories covered here on Soccerlens from January to December. Let’s see if you can spot the long-running trends. And remember, football may be your bread and butter or it may be your #1 escape to a happier place – but there is always, always, more to life than football.

Month-by-Month 2008 Review

I understand that these reviews are biased towards the Premier League – we (try to) cover a lot more than just the Premier League but in terms of ‘football news’, it is one of the focal points of the site’s coverage.

Doing this review (over 2200+ articles to sift through this year) was a labor of love, I hope you enjoy it.

January 2008 Review: When Keegan led Newcastle and Tottenham beat Arsenal

February 2008 Review: When Ramos won the Cup and Arsenal’s bubble burst

March 2008 Review: When England dominated Europe and Mascherano threw a fit

April 2008 Review: When Liverpool wanted Barry and Barcelona couldn’t beat Manchester United

May 2008 Review: When Manchester United Did The Double And Real Madrid Humbled Barcelona

June 2008 Review: When Spain won the Euros and the World hated Ronaldo

July 2008 Review: When Tottenham lost their strikers and Nereida Gallardo became a star

August 2008 Review: When Liverpool Had No Money And Argentina Won The Olympics

September 2008 Review: When Manchester City became Manchester Dhabi and Newcastle United went for sale

October 2008 Review: When the credit crunch hit football and Arsenal dropped out of the title race

November 2008 Review: When Arsenal and Manchester United lost ground and Tottenham beat Liverpool

December 2008 Review: When Liverpool Were Top And Arsenal Lost Fabregas

Year-End Features

• Top 20 Young Footballers to Watch in 2009
• The 2008 Soccerlens All-Star XI – The Best Footballers of 2008
• The Top Five Fantasy Football Games of 2008
• The Biggest Winners of 2008 – Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona, Lionel Messi, Fabio Capello and TSG Hoffenheim
• The Biggest Losers of 2008 – Real Madrid, Avram Grant, Juande Ramos, Arsenal and Mike Ashley
• Soccerlens 2008 Awards Winners
• Five Best Mainstream Football Bloggers Of 2008
• 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year
• World Football Quotes of the Year – 2008
• The Best Goalkeepers of 2008
• 10 Football League Youngsters To Watch In 2009

You, Dear Readers

To our regular readers, commenters and RSS subscribers, thank you for reading Soccerlens, thank you for bookmarking it, thank you for checking it every (other) day, thank you for taking the time to comment on the articles. It’s been a long and eventful year and without your support we would be nowhere, so please keep it coming.

I realise that over time we’ve managed to piss just about everyone off at some time or the other, which in my view is proof that Soccerlens attracts a more diverse readership than most other football blogs. Remember, Soccerlens is open for reader contributions and as long as you write well we don’t care who you support, so if you feel strongly about some of the things said here it’s your chance to step up and take the mike.

And finally, it’s always nice to read your comments as long as you have something to say, so keep the comments and feedback coming and we’ll do our best to keep improving Soccerlens.

A special thanks to those bloggers who found Soccerlens interesting enough to link to – we do our best to link back out to interesting news that we haven’t covered, so if you think we should be linking to your site, get in touch.

Great Team To Work With

Reading all (ok, some) of the articles from this year, I couldn’t help but feel inspired by the quality of some of the writers here at Soccerlens (guests and regulars). It’s renewed my faith in quality over quantity, and going on in 2009 I hope we can continue to improve and get more fantastic writers to work with us.

In no particular order but my memory, I’d like to thank the following people for making Soccerlens a success this year:

Eddie (transfers guru), Marco (super editor), Steve (all the great interviews), Victor (resident live-blogger), Graham (for the letters and his insight into football), Gary (for his weekly column), Hugo (when he’s around, some of the best articles this site has seen), Rob (for working with Soccerlens in-between Pies and Off The Post), Brian (for the guest commentary), Scott (resident United fan), Nic (for his Spanish football roundups), Gerry (for all the laughs), David (ditto), Andrei, Andy, Kenny, GT and several others I’ve missed (my apologies).

It’s been a pleasure, it’s hard to find a better team.

Soccerlens in 2008, 2009 and Beyond

Soccerlens has grown a lot in the last year, and will hopefully continue to progress even faster in the coming year as we introduce new features and sections to the site. If you have any feedback on what we’ve done in 2008 or suggestions for what to do in 2009, please let us know.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!l

Update: Thank you for participating. This offer is now closed.

Love Football Manager but haven’t had the chance to play it? Or do you love it so much you want to give the gift of Football Manager (or curse, if you want your coworkers to stop working completely) to your friends?

Next week, Soccerlens will pick one lucky SL reader to give away a FREE copy of Football Manager 2009 (PC only) – DVD, packed and all that. To qualify for this giveaway, all you need to do is answer a simple question that we’re asking in this forum thread.

It’s that simple. We’ll pick the winner at random from everyone who answers our question in the forum thread above. The winner will be announced on Monday morning (22nd December 2008).

So go here and put your name in the hat for your free copy of FM 09.

And the winners are…

The Soccerlens Awards recognize excellence in football blogging. After the great success of the 2007 edition, SL readers and editors gathered again to choose among 20 different awards categories and crown the best out of over a hundred quality football sites.

Yes people, YOU voted (over 16,000 times) for your favorite blogs. The Soccerlens Awards provides you, the public, with the opportunity to give props to those who have kept you informed, amused, and entertained for the past year. The writers who have made you laugh, those who have made you cry, and all those kickass blogs of footy goodness that no matter how hard your boss screams, you just can’t keep away from at work.

Just like last year, there are two winners for each category in the SL Awards: a Readers’ Choice (voted by you) and an Editors’ Choice. That is our way of saying “we’ll give you the public a right to vote, but if we don’t like who you vote for we’ll still get to pick the guy sitting on the president’s chair”.

But seriously guys, both choices bear equal weight. It’s just that we are so nice here at SL, we don’t want anyone to be left out. In some cases, the Readers and the Editors selected the same winners. However, more often than not, the Readers and Editors selected different winners, and we’ll leave it for you to decide who made the better choice.

And so, after two weeks of intense voting and behind-the-scenes deliberations we’ve selected the winners of the 2008 Soccerlens Awards. What we have here is a solid collection of some of the best football sites in the blogosphere. Organzing this ceremony sure was no easy feat, but we definitely hope you like the final product. For us, it was well worth the effort.
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Best British Football Blog Of 2008

And we don’t mean the best blog based in Britain, but rather the best blog covering UK football (i.e. English or Scottish Premiership… no we’re not counting you Ireland/Wales!! Get interesting already!!)

Readers’ Choice: Republik Of Mancunia.

ROM offers the best in news on Manchester United with a mix of daily news coverage and insightful commentary. Scott puts a lot of time and effort in his articles, and it shows in the support he got for these awards.

Runner Up: EPL Talk.

Editors’ Choice: Two Hundred Percent.

If you want a) the big picture on where English football stands and where it’s going and b) news about all tiers of English football – then Ian’s the man for you. Possibly the most well-rounded blog in terms of covering English football from top to bottom.

Runner Up: The Spoiler.

Best World Football Blog Of 2008

The best football blog to cover non-UK football, or at the very least not restricted to UK football. You may call this the “Soccerlens Ultimate Award”, or SUA.

And the SUA goes to…

Readers’ Choice: The Offside.

This isn’t really a surprise, is it? The Offside has the broadest and most in-depth news coverage of football around the world with dozens of writers working day and night to make it the best football blog around.

Runner Up: La Liga Loca.

Editors’ Choice: The Offside.

We admit it, we’re in love with The Offside too. If they keep winning like this, we’ll need to retire the award some day.

Runner Up: 101 Great Goals.

Best Football Blog Design Of 2008

The football blog which, by its artistic beauty, extreme Web 2.0-design, and ultra-fast loading speed puts Chris Pearson to shame.

Readers’ Choice: Kickette.

Designed by Michael Heald of Fully Illustrated, Kickette is the premier site for female football fans, and the new skin just pops off the screen. Kudos.

Runner Up: Premiership Talk.

Editors’ Choice: Studs Up.

I think we’re going to have to send this one directly to Michael, as Studs Up is another one of Fully Illustrated’s works of art. Studs Up is cool, the design makes it that much cooler.

Runner Up: This Is American Soccer.

Best New Football Blog of 2008

To be eligible, a football blog must have been created after 1 Jan 08. Or in other words: the “Rookie of the Season” award.

Readers’ Choice: The Chelsea Blog.

The Chelsea Blog has established itself as one of the best sites for Chelsea-related news and opinion in a short period of time, no mean feat considering that they’re up against some of the best in Ole Ole’s Chelsea blog and Blue Champions.

Runner Up: Premiership Talk.

Editors’ Choice: Premiership Talk.

PT is not even an year old yet and is already a reliable and comprehensive source for football news. Well done Brian.

Runner Up: Off The Post.

Best Football Podcast of 2008

The day when technology granted us football fans the ability to rant not only in writing, but through the repeated use of our vocal chords, was both a blessing and a curse. This award recognizes the most blessed (or least cursed) football podcast.

Readers’ Choice: Arsecasts.

The most popular Arsenal blog, the strongest online community, and one of the oldest football blogs around. Is it any wonder the Arsecasts are the undisputed winners?

Runner Up: Non-League Podcast (BBC London).

Editors’ Choice: Arsecasts.

Votes apart, the Arsecast is a quality podcast and non-Arsenal fans should give it a listen to decide for themselves (although I imagine bias trumps common sense, so you might be better off with Chris below).

Runner Up: Chris Harris (EPL Talk).

Best Football Blog Community of 2008

Let’s face it people: us bloggers would have one hell of tough(er) job if there was no one to read and comment on our daily footy ramblings. This award recognizes the best football blog community, both in quantity AND quality.

Ahmed’s Note: NUFC Blog won the popular vote but were disqualified from the Readers’ Choice award after a couple of their readers cheated (and admitted to doing so on NUFC Blog). I’m sorry Ed, we’ve taken measures to ensure that this can’t happen again in the future.

Readers’ Choice: Arseblog.

Not hard to see this one coming. Arseblog truly is one of most popular communities around.

Runner Up: Kickette.

Editors’ Choice: Arseblog.

Runner Up: NUFC Blog.

Vote-rigging aside, NUFC Blog is the #1 community for Newcastle fans and Ed has done a fantastic job in building the site up.

Best Football Forum of 2008

A wise man here at Soccerlens decided to keep the “Blog Community” and “Football Forum” awards separate. When asked why, the wise man replied “because a blog’s a blog and a forum’s a forum”. Nuff said.

Readers’ Choice: Soccerpulse.

Soccerpulse is the first name we think of when we think ‘football forums’, and from the votes it seems that plenty of other voters think the same.

Runner Up: BigSoccer Forum.

Editors’ Choice: Soccerpulse.

Running a forum is a serious business, and making one as popular and universally loved as SoccerPulse is damned-near impossible. Props to Chris and the team for making SoccerPulse into what it is today.

Runner Up: BigSoccer Forum.

Best Football Blogger of 2008

Award recognizing the best individual writer. Give props to the guy (or girl!) who regularly blows you away with his/her razor-sharp wits, dead-on tactical analysis, or overwhelming bits of interesting/pointless-but-equally-funny footy news.

Readers’ Choice: Gerry McDonnell (GM Football).

Gerry’s column here on Soccerlens was possibly last season’s most popular column . If you miss his entertaining style and wit, be sure to follow his blog.

Runner Up: Laurie (The Offside).

Editors’ Choice: Brian Phillips (Run Of Play).

This is the most difficult award to give out. We’re huge fans of Laurie and Brian, and Tim is just fantastic anyway. Unfortunately only one blogger can win this, otherwise this would have been a three-way tie.

Brian, congratulations, you’re the best blogger this year. Laurie and Tim – sorry to see you guys miss out, best of luck for next season.

Runner Up: Laurie (The Offside).

Best New Football Blogger of 2008

Also an individual writer award. To be eligible, a football blogger must have started blogging after 1 Jan 08. A “Rookie of the Season, part 2″ award, if you will.

Readers’ Choice: Chris Taylor (It’ll Be Off).

Chris is a freelance writer who blogs about FC United and football in general – and hopefully we’ll be seeing him do some guest commentary on Soccerlens in 2009.

Runner Up: Alessio (Juve Offside).

Editors’ Choice: Fredorrarci (Sport Is A Show).

Alan Shearer is dead! Alan Shearer is dead! Long live Alan!

On a serious note (as if that’s ever possible), Fredorrarci is hilarious, outrageous and spot on with almost everything he says. As with Brian, a richly-deserved award.

Runner Up: Alessio (Juve Offside).

Best Football WAGs site of 2008

Looking for the latest Abbey Clancy spread, bikini pics of Nereida Gallardo (C-Ron, you dumbass!!), or ANY picture of Sylvie Van der Vaart? This award recognizes the best resource for WAG goodness.

Readers’ Choice: Kickette.

Kickette is the #1 source for anyone looking for the latest news and gossip on WAGs around the world.

Runner Up: TheSpoiler.

Editors’ Choice: TheSpoiler.

And if you’re looking exclusively for the photo galleries, The Spoiler has got your back (and then some).

Runner Up: WAGS Blog.

Best Football Goals Site of 2008

Best resource for goal videos and clips. No, YouTube isn’t nominated. If you could, would you really want to vote for a site where FIFA/UEFA clips are removed faster than the José puppet can say “I’m fantastic”?

Readers’ Choice: 101 Great Goals.

101 Great Goals, along with FootyTube, is synonymous with ‘football goals’ and football videos.

Runner Up: Timesoccer.

Editors’ Choice: 101 Great Goals.

FootyTube is a great site, but 101’s greater football coverage gets it the nod. Top stuff.

Runner Up: Footytube.

Best Media Blogger of 2008

Award for the best mainstream media blogger/journalist. Essentially, your favorite writer from the BBC, Guardian, Independent, Times, Fox Sports, etc.

Readers’ Choice: Bobby McMahon (Fox Sports).

You know how footballers who don’t make it to the top level are often better pundits than those who do make it? Bobby McMahon (no offense to the man) may not have been a crack footballer but he’s an excellent pundit and football writer.

Runner Up: Tim Vickery (BBC Sport).

Editors’ Choice: Bobby McMahon (Fox Sports).

Runner Up: Marcela Mora y Araujo (Guardian).

Best Football Game of 2008

This can be live action (FIFA, Pro Evolution Soccer, etc.) or management (Football Manager, etc.). Let’s face it: if we had separated this into two categories, FM would have stolen the term “landslide victory” away from Obama this year.

Readers’ Choice: FIFA 09.

The FIFA series has improved massively in the last couple of years with EA Sports working hard to make the game more ‘real’. It’s worked out well and FIFA 09 pretty much beats it’s other console rival, PES 09.

Runner Up: Football Manager 09.

Editors’ Choice: Football Manager 09.

More players, football now in 3D and a host of small improvements that make FM 09 a must-get for FM enthusiasts. FIFA may still be the game of choice if you’re with friends looking for quick entertainment, but FM is the only game for serious football gamers.

Runner Up: FIFA 09.

Best Online Football Game of 2008

Strictly and exclusively ONLINE games. Video-games with an online multiplayer option (e.g. FIFA, PES) are not eligible for this category.

Readers’ Choice: Hattrick.

Possibly the most popular online football game along with the excellent OFM.

Runner Up: Online Football Manager.

Editors’ Choice: Online Football Manager.

We’ve tried other online footy games but we keep coming back to OFM – it’s simple, it’s addictive and it’s brilliant.

Runner Up: Football Manager Live.

Best Fantasy Football Game of 2008

My friend Tim doesn’t understand the concept of a “balanced team”. Tim always blows his entire budget buying three overpriced strikers, ends up with a goalkeeper like Massimo Taibi and then wonders why he loses every game 5-0. We hope the people who voted in this award aren’t like Tim.

Readers’ Choice: Times PlayTheGame Fantasy Football.

PlayTheGame isn’t the simplest of fantasy football games but it’s easily the most innovative and much loved by hardcore fantasy football fans.

Runner Up: Fantasy Premier League Football.

Editors’ Choice: Fantasy Premier League Football.

The Premier League’s fantasy football offering keeps it simple and does it best. Perfect for a more ‘hands-off’ approach and for newcomers to fantasy football.

Runner Up: Times PlayTheGame Fantasy Football

Best Football Shirt of 2008

This award recognizes the most beautiful shirt (club or national team) of the year 2008. To be eligible, it must have been used during the current year, so “Spain’s Euro 2008″ shirt is IN, but Jorge Campos’ attempts at redefining goalkeeper fashion are OUT.

Readers’ Choice: Bayern Munich 2007-08 Home.

The Bayern, United and Spain shirts were in a very close contest but ultimately the Bayern shirt won out, and fairly too – on the pitch it’s probably the better looking of all 3.

Runner Up: Man Utd 2008-09 – 3rd kit (blue) & Spain Euro 2008 Home.

Editors’ Choice: Bayern Munich 2007-08 Home.

Runner Up: Marseille 2008-09 Away.

Best Football Player of 2008

The best player of 2008. Call it a “FIFA World Player of the Year” award à  la sauce Soccerlens. Minus you know, the pricey silverware and hot female models presenting it (although Ahmed is available upon request).

Readers’ Choice: Cristiano Ronaldo.

For all his faults, it seems like more people like Ronaldo than they like Messi. Ok, I know that’s not true, but at least he didn’t win 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, did he?

Runner Up: Lionel Messi.

Editors’ Choice: Cristiano Ronaldo.

The numbers say that Messi was more influential per game whereas Ronaldo was more influential through the course of the season. Numbers say a lot of things, in this case 2 titles to 1.

Runner Up: Lionel Messi.

Best Football Team of 2008

This award recognizes the best club or national team of 2008. Call me crazy, but at the time the nominations were published I predicted either the UEFA Champions League or Euro 2008 champions were gonna win this one.

Readers’ Choice: Manchester United.

English and European Champions, it’s hard to contest against this one but nonetheless people will argue that Spain were the better team, albeit only for 3 weeks. The popular vote suggests otherwise.

Runner Up: Spain.

Editors’ Choice: Manchester United.

How do you measure the performances of a team? By percentage of wins? By the number of trophies? By the tough and trying circumstances in which victory was achieved? By the number of games played? It’s not an easy choice and your decision may change depending on which factors you consider the most important.

For us, it comes down to this: who went up against teams better than themselves and came out on the other side as winners? United’s Champions League triumph is built on beating teams bigger and possibly better than themselves, and it’s not something Spain can lay claim to.

Runner Up: Spain.

Best Live Football Site of 2008

The best website providing access to live football matches. Can be commercial (e.g. Setanta broadband) or P2P (e.g. my2p.eu).

Readers’ Choice: Live Soccer TV.

LiveSoccerTV.com gives you the latest tv schedules for live games for US and Canada. Although not necessarily a ‘provider’ of live football games, they nevertheless provide a very useful service.

Runner Up: MyP2P.eu.

Editors’ Choice: MyP2P.eu.

The premier site for live football streams (and other sports), hands down.

Runner Up: Setanta Broadband.

Best Football Betting Site of 2008

Betting odds, betting tips, maximization of earnings, etc. The terror of the housewife and paradise of the modern football gambler.

Readers’ Choice: OLBG.

Online Betting Guide (OLBG) is a comprehensive resource for football betting and one of the most popular betting sites around.

Runner Up: Betfair.

Editors’ Choice: OLBG.

We’ve discussed this before – not all the top sites on football betting were included in the nominations. Of those that were, OLBG (and Betfair) stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of providing useful betting advice to their readers.

Runner Up: Betfair.

Design Credits:

Major props to Randa Clay for her impressive design work on the award graphics.