We’re like the Ikea of football: *work on the punchline for this a joke for next week. Something, something Zlatan (Swedish), something, something drawers.*

Here’s 5 things we learned about the things that happened, in addition to a joke about Mourinho winning on the Pools before the season ends (backatcha Benno Re: preview):

1. Rick Sanchez is the hero we all deserve.

2. Jerry is still a massive bell.

3. Mourinho will definitely scoop a big win on the Pools before the season ends.

4. I hated watching that. It made me discuss football with other football fans but without the jokes and stuff.

5. Traitor.

Footballiversity Issue #10 – Footballiverse 4

August 2015

Footballiverse 4 is a place in which David Moyes is still manager of Manchester United. That’s it.

It is a warm, early autumn evening in Manchester. In the manager’s office, David Moyes is sat, reclined in his leather chair, feet on his desk. He is wearing a United tracksuit and eating a Pot Noodle (curry flavour). Across the hunk of wood from him is the Big Wood himself, Ed ‘Big Wood’ Woodward. It is the 31st of August, deadline day on the Continent. Ed is checking his phone.

“Whatcha lookin’ at Ed?” Moyes asks through a be-noodled mouth “Not tryna sell anymore of our players are ya?”
Moyes gives a chuckle. Ed shifts uneasily, though Moyes, distracted by a noodle he’s just dropped down his front, doesn’t notice.

“Y’know,” the manager carried on “I’m real happy about the work we’ve done in this window. Jags’ll work wonders for the defence, everyone’ll really learn a lot from him (that’ll show Rio), an’ getting big Timmy Cahill for peanuts was just grand Eddy.”
“Hehe, yes master,” Ed snivelled.

“I’m thinking we stick with Marouane up top but we move Cahill in alongside him, bump Wazza back to the midfield, y’know how he keeps going on about playing there. Yeah, Youngy on the left, Tony V on the right, Jags and Jones at the back and the rest sorts itself out.”

Moyes finished his Pot Noodle and disposed of the pot and disposable fork in the bin by his chair.
“Anyway,” he said “Where are we on selling De Gea to Real?”
“Yeeesss,” drawled Ed “Are you sure it’s Real Sociedad you want to sell him to?”
“Yup,” Moyes said, pulling his feet down off his desk, suddenly very serious “Sir Alex said he wouldn’t sell Madrid a virus so I’m not going to sell them our best player. And anyway, you told me you were driving a hard bargain. Not many keepers go for £12m.”
“Bu-“
“No buts, Ed, it’s what Sir Alex would have wanted.”

Ed nodded dutifully.
“Anyway,” Moyes carried on “Could you take a look over what I want to say before the Liverpool game? I know we’ve got the international break in between but, y’know…”
Ed nodded eagerly “Yes, master, of course, master.”
Ed’s eyes scanned the pages as he read, speaking the words quietly as he went.

“…Liverpool have a great history and it would be an honour to be considered their equals…”
“Yes,” cut in Moyes “I wasn’t sure about that part.”
“It’s very respectful master.”
“I know. It’s just the fans don’t seem to like that kind of thing. I was thinking of changing it.”
“What to?”
“I’ve got a draft, hold on.”

Moyes opened a drawer to fetch his draft alternative, pausing only briefly to gaze at the framed picture of himself and Sir Alex Ferguson on his desk.
“Here it is,” he said. He cleared his throat.

“Fuck those fuckers. I hope we fucking trash their balls off and send them down to the Championship where they deserve to be. There’s a reason I took the United job after the Everton one – so that I could legitimately keep my hatred of those red Scousers alive.”

Moyes looked up.
“So, whaddya think. The soft version or the aggressive one?”
Ed shifted uneasily in his seat.
“The respectful one, I think, master.”

—————–
Footballiversity #11 will be available on the 7th of October.

Phil Jagielka:”We were chatting before the game & one of the lads had heard a rumour Falcao had a Flamingo phobia…”

From the moment the line-up was announced it was fairly obvious what was coming next. The following ninety-odd minutes or so certainly proved to be just that; obvious (keep up).  That’s not to say I disliked what I saw; at least you know what you’re getting when those names appear and you read them to yourself, or out loud (usually in the company of someone else, but it’s not important). After putting my initial cynicism to one side, I found myself actually enjoying the bits that were enjoyable, but not enjoying the bits that weren’t. Call me old fastened, but I like what I like and I don’t like what you like.

The first half was definitely stronger than the second and I’m sure everyone involved, or not, or even slightly involved but not really and integral part, would agree with that. It was never going to be easy to maintain the tempo that was set early on: for a start there was no one taking an accurate recording of the speed, so maintaining it would have been pure guesswork. It’s not so much that there was a running out of steam, more a lack of ideas – after all there’s only so many times you can go to the same well. Well, what?

All things considered, I’d probably give Step Brothers a solid 5/10. Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly played their parts adequately, sometimes better than that, and the supporting cast were as unlikeable as the plot demanded.

I didn’t watch the football. From what I saw on Match of the Day 2, it looked alright. I heard some gooder things said about our three new creative players Angela, Di, and Maria.