Predict The Number of Petulant, Flouncing Gestures Dimitar Berbatov Will Make Toward The Referee in Tottenham Hotspur's FA Cup 3rd Round Tie With Reading on 5th January 2008

www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=yQulNhj7lA4#t=323

bollocks, he's not celebrating coz he knows the keeper should of had it

he is celebrating you putz, watch his first goal too which is a fine finish and gets the same response

according to someone on twitter he has now scored more goals with his right foot than his left this season

:D

the touch of course is nigh-on otherworldly

that is just how it goes for messi now unless it's a significant goal or the assist was impressive

does messi need to just keep doing this

argentina form the most important part of his narrative from here on out y/n

i guess if the narrative is 50-goal seasons until 2020 then that is more important than international football could ever be

and by 50 i mean 'anything over 25-30'

ahh all this tiresome 'narrative'. thinking like a sports journalist. not enjoying the moment, ceaselessly hurrying to the death of things. let this be penance.

that is what i used to think, but not any more, unless he goes one better and wins the world cup in 2018, or plays outrageously brilliantly there, in which case that will overshadow the rest

the most important thing now is how he adapts to playing as 'enganche' -- barcelona are now playing (sort of) a traditional argentine formation with him behind two strikers; look at how deep he is playing for the suarez goal

he has lost a little bit of acceleration from his early years, although not as much as sometimes suggested and he is still quick, but this is a role he could play into his dotage, and it's quite distinct from the free floating goalscorer that ronaldo has become

to my mind it is fairly clear now that these are two of the four greatest ever to play the game, and i expect messi to confirm he is the greatest eventually, even in pure playmaking terms he is more efficient than anyone since maradona and he is scoring a goal a game from this deeper position

ronaldo 'free floating' seems wrong, free storming maybe, free vanquishing

messi is the subtler man, going riquelme plus is probably natural

'enganche' sounds absolutely filthy btw - think it has literal sexual connotations - the one who penetrates from deep?

this explains it from one of the best football journalists whose articles seem thin on the ground now

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2007/nov/30/sport.comment1