Ode to Frustration

How many times have you ever heard
Of a wise man without a beard
Of towering love and showering rain
But without sorrow - without pain

This is one such funny tale
That takes you not through hill and dale
But through common ground of yore
Here's something you've not heard before

Once there was a small town nearby
Clear blue springs and an open sky
And there were some boys and cute little girls
Like threaded beads on a chain of pearls

To school they all went from june to june
From the day's first ray to the shimmering noon
And they danced and sang and played around
Under beautiful skies over lush green ground

Then one day there came to town
A teacher who would make your heart go down
That is, if you are one of those boys
Who would romp about with all their toys

Marching around and bossing about
Those little boys would destroy and shout
And leave the playroom for the poor girls to clean
Who would then cry about how those boys were so mean

Here in came the teacher to set the record straight
He would be strict with Jack and be soft on Kate
For every toy that the boys would break
He would take away their daily piece of cake

And this he would give to the girls
Along with some pastry and a couple of twirls
And if this would not make them stop
He would promptly hand them that cream lollypop

So as the punishment continued for the boys
The girls got to play with all those lovely toys
And that is how it was always to be
This is the history behind it - don't you see

This is why when boys always muck up
Girls promptly go and then suck up.

~Abhishek

Wel-com Glazer

It's almost final now. Malcom Glazer has finally bought out the Scottish racing magnates John Magnier and J.P. McManus and has moved upto 70% stockholding in ManU. He just needs 5% more to acquire his needed 75% to control ManU fully and thus ending an almost 3 year saga in his struggle with the fans and the board for what is perceived by many as a 'hostile' takeover bid. The major concerns all the ManU fans have about Glazer is that unlike the smiling Russian he comes in with a huge debt which the club will have to bear. Until now ManU has probably been the only club in the EPL to carry on it's proceeding without any major debts. It has also been able to at the same time buy major players at relatively large transfer fees without any major dents in it's bank balance. When ManU decided to list on the exchange it made ManU a very transparent business, whose fortunes would be even more dependent upon the performances on the pitch. It also meant that ManU could no longer spend astronomically at any given time like say Chelsea in a short time and without major opposition. While in recent times ManU's North London rivals Arsenal have done better on the pitch winning back-to-back championships it did not spend a single pound on transfer fees this season owing to large debts especially due to the costs for the huge new stadium it is building.

The emergence of the once almost bankrupt Chelsea and the Millionaire from Moscow has indeed upset a lot of applecarts. For once major spenders in the EPL no longer compare with the amounts Chelsea has spent. ManU has spent about £38 Million while Chelsea has spent in excess of £200 million in transfer fees alone. What remains to be seen if Abrahamovic continues his policy of buying out the best players - but he will definitely have to sell players to accommodate the new entrants. Now Glazer will bring in a debt worth about £500 million into the club from the blue and ManU will go from being a financially stable entity to one with huge amounts of debt.

One of the major reasons for the delay in the takeover bid and for 2 unsuccessful attempts has been the pressure of the fans. The ManU fans have been an extremely organized unit running an extremely effective and hard-hitting campaign against Glazer. They see Glazer as a hostile money-making businessman with no love for the sport. That Glazer has very less knowledge in the sport is well known. The fans have highlighted the fact that Glazer having no interest in the sport will effectively mean that he will only use the club as a tool to pay off his debt and probably won't even hesitate to sell of some of it's star players. There is speculation as to the role United's long serving manager Sir Alex Ferguson will take in this matter. The amount of money he will get in the summer to add some steel to his squad in their efforts to bring back the title to Old Trafford will also be affected by this major change at the top and could be the deciding factor as far as his reign at the club is considered. However it is said Glazer himself will not antagonize the fans even further by sacking the well-loved long-serving United manager.

However what Glazer does next is anybody's guess. What he will definitely try and do is to make more money out of the club. He might increase ticket prices(which are still relatively low) and probably bring even more sponsorships/endorsements to the club. Whether he spends money to strengthen the squad needs to be seen. However if he really wants to make money ManU will have to regain it's lost supremacy in Europe and in England. And for now the only way to that seems to be getting the best players. So Glazer will effectively have to make the club more successful - which in turn is what the fans want. So it might not be as gloomy as it seems for the fans. The only things that can be done is wait and watch.

As for the immediate present - the only thing that the players can do is not get distracted and figure out a way to get past what seems to be an absolutely fantastic Arsenal team in the FA cup final.

UPDATE : Till Now Glazer has acquired 74.86% of the Club - just short of 75%

And you thought he has two left feet

You'll Never Walk Alone !

If I admire any team other than my beloved ManU it's got to be Liverpool. And when Mourinho went out with his bag of arrogant self-centered bikaau players none was more happier at 2 in the night than me.Mr.Abrahamovic, you can buy anything but not a goal or a place in the final.Here's to Istanbul !

Check out the follwowing links :

History
Match Report
Whom does Benitez have to live upto?
Was it just fluke ?

Take that Mr. Adams !

We just got a brand new digital watch at our place. It's more of a digital 'clock' if you know what i mean - more for public viewing rather than for private procrastination. I've always wondered from when i was I think about 10 why people bothered using analog watches in which you couldn't ascertain minutes accurately let alone the seconds. When i told my dad that i wanted that latest FastTrack he looked at me with a scorn saying 'but that's a digital' maybe comparing it with some of those amazing G-Shocks you get at Lakshmi Road. Now that this new clock continues to enlighten me about the time i take to eat and other such things i would never ever have noticed. And yes if your dear DNA gets upset remind him to check the Rolex at Wimbledon, the next time he's there.

Cheers,