Crisis

RvP celebrating after scoring the winning goal. He even kissed Cesc!

No not me. Chelsea.

Yes, my beloved Blues crashed and burned again (I had a sinking feeling they would) as they sunk to a new low: a 2-1 defeat by Arsenal. Now instead of Arsenal's title hopes dissapearing into smoke, it looks like we're the ones in danger. Not the title challenge, but in general. *Van the man* scored 2 stunning goals (although the first one was offside) in 3 minutes to shock the Blues at Stamford Bridge. That means we have now taken only 1 point from a possible 9 from all our home clashes with the Big 4 so far. Not good. The next match is away to Bolton at the Reebok where we drew 1-1 on the last day of the season. One of our bogey teams I'm afraid. Liverpool drew with the Hammers last night but that was enough to leapfrog us into pole position. No worries, we'll gain it back soon enough.

Arsenal have a *horrible* habit of rising to the occasion when necessary. They did it against Man Utd when a Nasri double pinned back the Red Devils. Hmm, notice the similarity. And then they went on to lose 2-0 to Villa after that. That's not the stuff of title challengers but honestly, I don't know what to say. They continue to confound the pundits and their fans: somedays looking like they can tear the whole world apart and another falling to pieces at the Brittania. Unless Wenger learns to get some consistency with his young team, I don't see them beating out the likes of United and Chelsea to the title.

Another interesting match was the Manchester derby, which the Devils won thanks to Rooney's simple tap-in after Joe Hart spilled his save from Carrick's initial strike. It was the giant bear's 100th career league goal. After watching the highlights, I can say that my favourite part was towards the end. 1 minute left of stoppage time, and City were awarded a corner. Joe Hart came up after Mark Hughes gave him the green light, and Robinho took the corner (or was it SWP or Ireland?). Anyway, somehow van der Sar made a wonderful reflex save to deny City their equaliser. However, after he saved it the ball somehow flew up to midfield where it was collected by Giggs. Joe Hart was still up at the other goal, and he sprinted all the way back to his own goal! Rooney and Giggs played a one-two before Rooney fired a dipping strike goalward. Somehow, Joe Hart managed to get there in time and he madly punched it away just before the line. It was a terrific save, utterly top class. He also made a couple of other good saves. I thought he was great last year (save for that 6-0 thrashing by Chelsea), future England No. 2! No.1 is gonna be Ben Foster XD

Another ugly crisis has also unfolded at Sunderland, where Roy Keane's job is on the line. After a horrendous thumping by Bolton at home, speculation is rife that Keane will walk out after a bad run of a solitary win in 7 games. Nial Quinn is keen to keep Sunderland playing PL football next season, and fans and Keane himself is questioning whether he is the right man for the job. Instead of signing an extension to his contract which expires this summer, Keane hinted that his 100th game in charge could have been his last. There are suggestions that his imposing persona has sapped player confidence and morale. In my opinion, it's ridiculous. Keane is exactly the type of manager Sunderland need: He's authoratative, commanding and charismatic. He's done miracles with them: Dragging them up from the foot of the League One table to eventual champions in his first season in charge, and finishing 15th last season. If Keane leaves, 2-1 chance they'll be relegated. They're rubbish without him. On a more personal note though, the club is going to lose popularity among the female fans online with the parting of ways with the hottest man at the club. Yeah, you guessed it, I'm a huge Keano fan.

It's difficult to pinpoint what went wrong at the club. Keane spent heavily in the summer, bringing in quality players such as the likes of Malbranque, Tainio, Ferdinand and most importantly, Cisse. The mood on Wearside was so buoyant there was even talk of challenging for European places this season. 15 games later, the mood has changed dramatically with talk of relegation, manager's exit and such. After reading loads of articles, I personally hope this is not the end of the *love-affair* between Keane and the Mackems. All clubs go through rough periods, and this just could be the making or the breaking of Keane. As a player, he was never a quitter and I just don't see him quitting now. Another interesting POV I read was that the presence of troublemakers such as Diouf and Chimbonda has unsettled the dressing room. Cue the pic of Diouf celebrating with the BOLTON players after the horrific loss. Is this the kind of players that Keane wants in his squad? The squad has improved talent-wise but someone pointed out that what Sunderland lack now is not quality, but character and mental resilience. Last year, Keane had a cohesive squad of Championship players. This season, he's got a bunch of Premiership sell-by-date troublemakers. Maybe that's harsh, but whatever it is Keane has got to stop the rot, and fast. But this weekend's trip away to Old Trafford, Keane's old alma mater is not going to make matters easier.

On a lighter note, I did a home Science experiment today.

1. Mg + orange juice (citric acid) → NOTHING. My orange juice was too dilute.

2. Mg (s)+ CH3COOH (aq) (apple cider vinegar)→ (CH3COOH)2Mg (aq) + H2 (g)

Hehe I had stolen the Magnesium ribbon from the Chem lab 2 weeks ago, along with a red and blue litmus paper. The second one was successful, there were quite a lot of bubbles. Reaction was extremely slow though, 30 minutes to go to completion! In the lab with HCl it was on average 1-2 minutes.

Lyrics to Can I Have This Dance :-

[Gabriella]

Take my hand, take a breath

Pull me close and take one step

Keep your eyes locked on mine,

And let the music be your guide.

[Troy, Gabriella]

Won't you promise me (now won't you promise me, that you'll never forget)

We'll keep dancing (to keep dancing) wherever we go next

(Chorus)

It's like catching lightning the chances of finding someone like you

It's one in a million, the chances of feeling the way we do

And with every step together, we just keep on getting better

So can I have this dance (can I have this dance)

Can I have this dance

[Troy]

Take my hand, I'll take the lead

And every turn will be safe with me

Don't be afraid, afraid to fall

You know I'll catch you threw it all

[Troy, Gabriella]

And you can't keep us apart (even a thousand miles, can't keep us apart)

Cause my heart is (cause my heart is) wherever you are

(Chorus)

[Gabriella And Troy]

Oh no mountains too high enough, oceans too wide

'Cause together or not, our dance won't stop

Let it rain, let it pourWhat we have is worth fighting for

You know I believe, that we were meant to be

(Chorus)

It's like catching lightning the chances of finding someone like you (like you)

It's one in a million, the chances of feeling the way we do (way we do)

And with every step together, we just keep on getting better

So can I have this dance (can I have this dance)

Can I have this dance

Can I have this dance

Can I have this dance...