BIG Clubs, Rules & Football

The recent ban by FIFA on Chelsea FC from signing players till Jan 2011 comes down as a warning to all the big clubs around the world to show some respect for the rules and regulations prescribed in the FIFA rule book. Chelsea FC apparently lured young talent Gael Kakuta from French first division club Lens by offering him a huge sum of money,thereby making him break his contact with Lens.

The world has produced many great footballers and will keep producing them. Only when young talent is recognized early can it be nurtured and given the right platform to showcase it on the world stage. Of late many clubs (especially the BIG clubs) have started scouting for players as young as 9-11 years old with extraordinary talent and who if inducted and given a contract with the club would bring bigger and greater laurels to the club. This is good in one sense but this too has its own ramifications. First,the young footballer is unaware of the expectations from him and continues to train in the usual way with the club. Suppose he is not able to deliver the quality expected from him then he is put on the club’s reserve team, denying him to play in major matches and also not allowing him to leave the club because of his contract. This young chap could have easily secured a place in the main team of another first or second division club and would at least get to play in most of the matches rather than warm the bench.

Secondly if the young guy gets seriously injured,which could threaten his football career then his contract with the big club remains a big question mark because the big clubs want results and would never hesitate to scout for better talent to replace this poor chap. Many a time young talent is spotted by the lesser known clubs in the world and they take all the pains in bringing up the young player and wait for years for the fruit but all of a sudden this young player is lured away by the BIG clubs who tempt him with great career prospects and money. This is absolutely outrageous because in doing so the top clubs always remains at the top as all the great players want to play only in the top league and would not settle for anything less. But if that is the case when would the lesser known clubs make into the top flight? What happens to their investment in the young talent whom they manged to find with great difficulty? What happens to the hopes of thousands of fans of that small club? What happens to the dreams of the small clubs to win titles?.. All these questions remain unanswered and the domination of BIG clubs continues.

Of course all players are allowed to choose which club they want to play for but there are some rules by which they must abide. The same applies for the clubs too. A player under a contract with a club can move to another club only if the clauses mentioned in his contract are not satisfied or his present club mutually agrees for the transfer. Under no circumstances can the player or club take own decisions to terminate the contract before the stipulated contract period. Any breach in the contract would be subject to serious ramifications from the Football Governing Body. The same has happened to Kakuta,who has not been allowed to play for 4 months and Chelsea has been penalized from signing any new players. Now this could spell even greater disaster for Chelsea because the other players of the club could leave at the end of the season when their contract expires and leave Chelsea FC with even lesser man power.

FIFA has been right in imposing such a hard decision on Chelsea FC because they want football to be a clean game,fair for each and every club and not be dominated by the BIG clubs alone. This also serves as warning to all the clubs that rules and fair play come foremost before laurels and recognitions and money alone cannot make a club win trophies.

One way for clubs to increase young talent in their squad is to have their own local training academy, nurture young talent from their own area and community and cherry pick those who show a promising future for the club. Of course scouts are allowed to pick youngsters from other countries and regions but not at the cost of the lesser known clubs and in cases where they need a particular youngster from a lesser known club the BIG clubs must act according to rules and have the player transferred in an appropriate way rather than luring him away from the club that picked him.

Hyderabad half marathon (30 Aug 2009)

My passion for running has been growing over time and I take immense pleasure in covering long distances. I also got a GARMIN 305 about 4 months back with which I can check the distance covered,calories burnt,the speed of my run etc. It has also got a load of features which I still haven't explored. The best part is its got a GPS and works absolutely fine. The Hyderabad half marathon was to be held on 30th of Aug and I was quite excited about it. A consortium of about 20 runners from Chennai were going all the way to Hyderabad to take part in this special event.

I had booked my flight to Hyderabad on 29th Aug and was travelling with a fellow runner on the same Spicejet flight. Travelling alone is boring,though some might not agree. The flight took off on time,covering the stipulated distance in precisely 1 hour and 5 min. The Hyderabad airport is just awesome,the infrastructure is just too good. We took a taxi from the airport to Gachibowli,travelling along the new express way and reaching Gachibowli in about an hour.The runners from Chennai and Bangalore had asked for accommodation and we were all accommodated in the Gachibowli stadium dorms.

I had my breakfast that morning and was hungry by the time it was 13:00 hrs. We were also to collect our bib numbers from KBR park,which was the starting point of the race. But one of the organizing team member was kind enough to note down our order numbers and get the bib numbers and t'shirts delivered to our dorms. We had to kill time so we all went to Lingampally in a share auto and ended up watching a Telugu movie, "Magadheera". The movie was ok,the usual masala stuff and I must confess this was the first movie I have watched without knowing the language,trying to work out the story with my imagination and figuring out what the characters in the movie were conversing.

After the movie we had a quick and early dinner,bought some bananas,bread and crocin and got back to our dorms. We were told the bus would be here at 4:30am the next day to pick us up. I had a quick shower,ate a banana and went to bed early.

The D day arrived, I woke up from the sound of my cell-phone alarm,which sings "You've got to pick it up,oh yeah...",brushed my teeth,washed my face and got ready for the half marathon stint. This being my third half marathon I was quite thrilled and excited. My body was tuned to long distance running so I did not have to worry about cramps and back pain.

The half marathon started off at 5:30 and I started off with a slow pace. I had set a time target of 2:17:00 hrs to complete the 21.1 km run. The half marathon path had many ups and downs so the race was quite tiring. Having more stamina and endurance was the key to complete the race successfully. I did the first 6 km with ease before I stopped and started to walk,gulping down a little water to keep myself hydrated. The number of people taking part in the running event like this was huge, and I kept motivating myself that I have to overtake one person after another to complete my race. I completed half of the race in about 1:08:00 hrs and this was a pretty cool timing as far as I'm concerned.

Traffic was stopped on one side of the road for this event. Thanks to the Hyderabad traffic police for their wonderful support. As I was nearing the finish line I increased my tempo and pace, reaching an amazing max speed of 7.3mph. I entered the stadium premises with about 1.5 km to complete. I went round the stadium and entered the stadium via the second gate and completed my race in an impressive 2:39:44 hrs. I was cheered as I entered the stadium and was given a medal for completing the race successfully. I felt elated about what I had achieved and thanked God for his support in giving me the physical and mental stamina to complete the race.

Last but not the least I would like to thank the organizing team of the Hyderabad 10K foundation for having organized the event beautifully. Kudos to them for doing a wonderful job. I would like to thank Ganesh and his wife in particular for their wonderful support and the care which they took of us during our stay at Hyderabad.

"Keep running for a healthy body and soul"

Liverpool edge past Bolton (29 Aug 2009)

Liverpool,having lost two out of their three games this season were a bit rusty and needed to get some points in their bag to contend for the title. 'The Reds' travelled all the way to Lancashire to the Reebok stadium for their away game against 'The Wanderers'. Liverpool had to win this game to stay alive in the title race else their hopes for the English title could be laid to rest for another season.

The atmosphere at the Reebok was amazing and Gary Megson's side had the pressure on them selves for having lost the last 6 or 7 EPL games. Liverpool started with a decent line up,I would not say their strongest side but quite a competent one. Liverpool, this season has always struggled with set pieces, having conceded goals from cheeky penalty corners and free kicks. This has cost them two vital games and more importantly championship points. This game also was no different. In the 33rd minute Bolton got a penalty corner, which was not cleared away by Liverpool;thereby the ball landed right in front of the goal post for Kevin Davies, to push it inside the net. Bolton were up 1-0;leaving the Liverpool fans in jitters about the ability of their squad. Liverpool's best buy this season,Glen Johnson put Liverpool back in the game with a stunning strike which left the Bolton Goalkeeper a mere spectator,to watch the ball drift sweetly past the goal line. Liverpool were ecstatic but needed more out of the game. Half time gone both the teams were tied up at 1-1.

The second half resumed with Bolton making a comeback ,with Cohen scoring a goal and giving Bolton a 2-1 lead. The second goal was lolly pop to Cohen who made no mistake in slotting the ball past Reina. Liverpool's defence was called into question again for the second time in the match. This can be attributed to the lack of a solid partner to Carragher, with Agger injured and Skrtel injuring his jaw in the opening fixture Rafa probably was left with no choice but to experiment with his reserve players. Kyrgiakos filled in Skrtel's shoes and did quite a good job,keeping in mind that this was his first EPL game with Liverpool in the main team.

Liverpool once again finding themselves behind increased the pressure on Bolton,forcing Bolton to defend deep. The turning point in the game was when Sean Davies was sent off ( having received a second yellow card) and Bolton was reduced to ten men. Liverpool capitalised on this opportunity and equalised within 8 minutes,this time Torres doing a wonderful job in flipping the ball past the Bolton keeper. Kuyt's contribution to this goal must not go unrecognized as it was he who controlled the ball off his chest from a cross by Gerrard and made it available to Torres to complete the rest of the task. Once Liverpool had equalised the tempo was scaled up manifold and Bolton were under siege from 'The Reds'.

Gerrard had a couple of screamers kissing past the goal post, which on any other day would have gone down as a typical Gerrard goal. Liverpool also had a couple of penalty decisions turned down,the referee doing a wonderful job and not succumbing to pressure. With 80 minutes gone Bolton was just hoping to get something out of this match but one can never write off Captain Courageous. Steve Gee stepped in and fired one hell of shot at the left top corner,giving Jussi Jaskeleinen no chance to even get his fingers on the ball. Liverpool were up 3-2 and thanks to their ever inspiring captain.

Liverpool now with 6 points out of the possible 12 sit seventh in the table and have to keep their tempo going; no slip ups would be permitted if they want to have a taste of the Premier League Title, which has eluded them for over 20 years. Bolton on the other hand have yet to register a win and sit just one position above Portsmouth in the League table in the bottom half.

LIVERPOOL begin the 2009-10 season on a low note

The 2009-10 BARCLAYS Premier League has begun with full gusto with each team battling it out,some to stay alive in the most coveted league of England,some vying for silverware and the others playing for the sheer revenge and humiliation they suffered against the other teams last season. Liverpool travelled all the way down to London,to take on Tottenham Hotspurs in the first game. Liverpool's bench strength was weak compared to Spur's but the main team looked pretty strong. With Xabi Alonso leaving for Real Madrid this summer there was a big dent in Liverpool's midfield. Harry Redknapp started off with Keane and Defoe,leaving Crouch (former Liverpool) and Pavlyuchenko on the bench. Both teams payed homage to the late Sir Bobby Robson before kick starting the match.

The first 20 min of the game lacked lustre from both the teams,Liverpool playing in their typical defensive style. Spurs had a couple of chances to score in the first half,Keane failing to convert a lolly pop header from a superb cross by Luca Modric into the six yard box.Kudos to Pepe Reina for showing some goalkeeper instincts. Keane also had another chance of taking Spurs in to the lead but superb keeping skills from Reina kept Spurs at bay. Liverpool's lone striker Torres wasn't impressive at all,failing to control the ball leave alone put it at the back of the net. Liverpool's best chance in the first half came when Captain Courageous (Gerrard) tried to score from outside the box into the far corner of the post but the ball just went wide of the post. Tottenham had another chance from a corner when Jermaine Defoe was unmarked and headed in a powerful header which just went wide. With half time nearly approaching and both teams locked in at 0-0 it seemed as though the game was heading for a goalless draw. In the 43rd minute Spurs got a free-kick which taken by Huddlestone but he made a complete mess of it,rebounding off the Liverpool defensive wall but Ekotto took the return shot and slotted it BANG into the net,giving Reina no chance to stop the ball or rather get a hand to it. With half time gone Spurs were leading 1-0 at White Hart Lane.

Liverpool started the second half with more aggression and desire to equalize first and then then to score a couple of more goals. The pressure was on them because out of the 'Big Four' the other three had won their opening fixtures and to win the title this season no slip ups would be acceptable to them. Johnson made a timely run into the penalty box,going past the Spur's goalkeeper,Gomez only to be tripped by him and winning Liverpool a penalty kick. Steve Gee stepped up and slotted the ball neatly into the back of the net. Liverpool were now level , charged up, invigorated and stepping up the tempo and pushing forward for another goal. But Spurs responded positively with another goal from a free kick and this time it was Sebastian Bassong who headed the ball past Reina,into the net and giving Spurs the vital lead. Liverpool tried hard to equalize but of no avail, substitute Benayoun doing some amazing tricks and trying to score a few goals for Liverpool.

The match ended with Spurs winning their opening fixture comfortably. The guys from the back had won Spurs their opening game,doing an amazing job. Liverpool's hopes of the title, which has eluded them for nearly 20 years looks jittery but there is still lot more football to be played and I do hope that Liverpool would shed back this bad memory and start their next game on a positive note.

My 20Km run down the ECR (26 July 2009)

The 'Chennai Runners' organize 'The ECR' run every year sometime around July or August. This time a couple of people from my office (regular runners) got interested and roped me in too to participate. I was excited and gave my name for the 20Km category. I am regular runner(mostly long distance running) and doing a 20Km won't be cumbersome task for me. Of late I have been regularly doing 5km and 10 Km runs,building up my stamina and strength for the big ones like these. Just before the D day three people out of five back out and only myself and Mr. Saravanan (Special Director,Ashok Leyland) are left. The information bulletin sent by 'The Chennai Runners' said the run would start and end at MGM beach resorts. Quite excited about the ECR run I quickly do a google map search to get directions to MGM,not that I didn't know but just wanted to confirm that I don't miss it during my drive the next morning.

The D day finally arrived,I woke up at 3:30 am,freshened myself,packed water bottles and lime juice in my car and hit down the road by 4:00,driving at a leisure pace. This is the first time that I have done my running so early; normally I for a jog only at 6:30. Before jumping into my car I put on my GARMIN forerunner 305 and switch it on. The GPS in this watch is pretty cool,and its an excellent companion for training purposes. I drive past VGP golden beach,green coconut and many other restaurants before reaching the starting point (MGM beach resorts). I was there by 4:50 and collected my bib number which was 119. I take out my t-shirt ad pin the bib number carefully onto it,making sure that I don't prick myself in the process. The organizers set out with water packs and isotonic drinks to their respective places down the ECR to cater to the needs of the participants.

I do my usual warm up exercises,stretching my limbs and body, little bit of squats and knee bends. I tie my long kerchief across my forehead to prevent sweat from dripping on my face and also to make myself look cool. At 5:00 am sharp the 25Km & 30Km participants kicked off with their race, the others cheering and wishing them good luck. My run started a 5:30 and there were about 25 people totally taking part in it. I set my watch for the 12.42 miles so that I can keep track of how much distance I have covered and how much is left. I slowly begin my jog, the rest of the pack surging ahead,leaving myself and a couple of others behind. I knew that the 20 km would be a tough one to complete and that conserving as much energy as possible was vital so that I am not completely drained at the end of the run. At 2.5 km I see the first water point, but I didn't stop over there and continued with my run. My going was getting better, I could feel a factor motivating me from within,pushing me further towards my goal. I run non stop until I reach the second water point which was at 5Km. I quickly drink a little of water to keep myself hydrated and continue with my run. Let me tell you some facts here. One should not drink too much water at these water points because it would make your stomach heavy,fills it with water,causing discomfort while running. Secondly you might have to take a nature's break which might hamper your rhythm and lastly drinking more water while running would cause the hear to pump diluted blood to ones body thereby preventing the muscles from receiving a good amount of oxygen. So take a few small sips just to keep yourself hydrated.

After covering the 5Km mark I am slightly tired and i slow down my pace, continuing like that for a kilometer or so before picking up again. At the 7.5km mark I quickly grab a small portion of isotonic drink ( this is an electrolyte,so replenishes your lost nutrients) and march on to the 10Km mark. During the course of my run photographers were doing a wonderful job of capturing each and every runner in their cameras and I posed for the cameras with aplomb. I now reach the half way mark where Tiger was waiting with the drinks ( Tiger was one of the volunteers and member of the Chennai Runners). I grab some gatorade and turn back to complete the remaining half of the run. The good thing about this run was myself and another guy,Venkat from Bangalore kept running together. Though we didn't speak during the first half of the run we were kind of motivating the other silently, to keep up pace,push further beyond one's limits and complete the run with a decent timing.

The second half was getting tougher because the Sun had come up and traffic on the ECR was increasing. I completed 14 Km when I could feel the heat of the sun and stiffness of my shoulder muscles. I quickly slowed down myself and started walking at a brisk pace, stretching my shoulder and neck muscles so that my back doesn't get stiff and completing the run. I decide to stop at just one of the water stations on my way back,grabbing a small bottle of water,sipping and gargling water to keep my mouth and body hydrated all the time. My GARMIN forerunner ws one of my key motivators,telling me the distance left to cover. I completed my run in 2:43:00 , the organizers cheering at the finish line.

The feeling of completed the 20Km run gave me immense pleasure and satisfaction. We had breakfast at the beach resorts,munching on vadais,bread and idlys. I gulped down a couple of glasses of grape juice after breakfast and received my certificate for completing the run. I thanked the sponsors for organizing such a wonderful event and the amazing experience I had. I got behind the wheel and drove back to reach home at 9:30.

Great running and good experience indeed!

Automobile SUSPENSION of the future

We all have travelled around the world in various forms of transport viz cars,auto-rickshaws,cycle-rickshaws,trains,planes,buses etc. Humans have always sought for comfort, during their travel from one place to another. Various modes of transport have two dimensions which people take into account while they travel viz the comfort level and the cost factor. Unless there is a balance between the two the society would be divided into two segments: the affluent ones and the common ones. The affluent wouldn't mind spending on luxurious travel while the common man is cost conscious. So to provide comfortable travel and to make it available to the common man (aam aadmi) an optimum must be reached.

Automobile suspension systems constitute one of the items that affect comfort levels in a vehicle. The present suspension systems include leaf springs,bogey suspensions, spring type suspensions and air suspensions. While the former ones have been used for many years, the air suspension concept a recent one ( say about 10-15 years old). Air suspensions were invented so that the bumpiness on the roads would be absorbed in the air bellows and less vibrations would be transmitted up the vehicle to the passengers. Air suspensions have done quite a good job in improving the comfort level in automobiles though the concept of vibration less travel could not be met by them. Engineers have experimented with various combinations wrt suspension systems,developing hybrid suspensions (combination of two suspension systems) albeit with limited success to ensure 100% vibration free travel.

The concept of electromagnetic suspension holds a lot of promise to ensure 100% vibration free travel. The concept is very simple: A magnet has two pole ; the North pole and the South pole. Unlike poles attract each other while like poles repel each other. So if the North poles of two magnets were brought close to each other they would repel each other and same would be the case with South poles. The electromagnetic suspension uses this concept. There are two ways of doing this:

Option1: We could use plain magnets with like poles facing each other one above the other. In this case during a bump or a pothole the magnets would tend to squeeze in but like poles would repel,absorbing the shock of the vibration. This design has a couple of drawbacks although a good theoretical concept. First the size of the magnets has to be extremely large because we are talking of an automobile and the forces transmitted up the vehicle would be thousands of Newtons. Secondly if the like poles are not strong enough to repel force which tend to squeeze the magnets together then the whole concept of vibration free travel goes for a toss.

Option2: We could use electromagnets which come into action when electricity is passed through them. These magnets can be made to come into action whenever required or can be made active permanently (which need current to be passes through it at all times). Electromagnets tend to be more superior than permanent magnets because permanent magnets could lose their magnetism after a certain period of time. The magnetic flux could also be controlled by regulating the amount of current passing through the electromagnet. Thus the problem of the like poles of two magnets squeezing each other during a major bump could be avoided. But electromagnets also have their own drawbacks: first we would need a superior battery system to cater to the needs of the electromagnet,giving good performance without draining out quickly,secondly they tend to be more costly than permanent magnets.

We could improve on the electromagnetic suspension system by providing an electronic control unit which constantly monitors the road conditions,giving signals to the suspension magnets and controlling the amount of flux generated between them. The vehicle speed also needs to be regulated when the automobile encounters a bump or a pothole because the speed with which the vehicle hits the obstacle determines the amount of upward thrust on the vehicle suspension system.The suspension system is the key to passenger comfort and also a necessary element in the control mechanics of the vehicle. Electromagnetic suspensions are not used on a mass scale in automobiles because quite a lot of research needs to be done to make it commercially viable and effective rather than keeping it as a theoretical concept but they hold a bright future in ensuring 100% vibration free travel, giving passengers the feel of floating in the air.

My experience with 'The Yellow Man'

I was once again deputed to Alwar for the project I am working on ( this trip being my 5th this year) by my boss. Being at Alwar at this time of the year was no fun at all. First of all the Sun was burning down,pouring out all its heat and making Alwar one of the hottest places in North India (mind you 48 degree Celsius and hot dry wind). The second reason for it not being a fun trip is because I have already been to Alwar 7 times. But during this trip I found some good dinner companions. Let me take you through the happenings of what would happen during dinner time.

My dinner companions were Chinese (totally 3 of them). I had a good time because I usually used to have dinner all by myself which was quite boring. These guys would drive up to 'Big Bazaar' every other day after work and buy raw vegetables which includes: garlic,coriander,capsicum,green chillies and some more stuff. They would also buy bottles of beer outside,not from the hotel as the hotel was selling them at higher price( smart people aren't they?). I would go for dinner at say around 20:00 hrs and would find the three of them occupying the same dinner table every other day. I was pleased to join their company and as soon as I occupy my position at the dinner table I would be poured a glass of coca cola. The irony is that the guy would tell me that soft drink is bad for health but would keep pouring coca cola into my glass. When I refuse more he would say 'no problem' have more. These guys have bought some kind of pickle from China and would eat the vegetables I mentioned above along with this pickle. Mind you eating raw vegetables,weird isn't it? Out of the 3 guys only one fellow knew English to a decent extent. Whatever communication i had to do was with this man who would then translate my words to his pals. Also if I speak too fast he would not understand so I had to slow down my pace to the least possible. Many of the words which we take for granted is not understood by them. For example words like 'shy','global','architecture' and many more they would not understand. They would type these words into their Chinese-English dictionary and then shake their heads saying 'ooooo'.

After they finish off with their raw vegetables they would order 'veg chowmein' and gobble up the noodles by bending their heads low into the chowmein bowl,one noodle string after another. I would order my usual stuff- a soup first,followed by Naan and a side dish. Most of the days I wouldn't need a dessert because I would have coca cola with me. These guys would not try any Indian dish because they do not like to experiment so it was noodles everyday for them. I introduced them to Indian vegetable hot and sour soup which they liked and I am glad that they enjoyed it. They also enjoyed the 'Garlic naan' and now that would be their main course whenever they felt bored of noodles. It was quite interesting to get along with them, learning new things from them.

Our conversations would mostly linger about the Chinese and Indian economy, the different ways the Chinese do things and about how China is different from India. The guy who knew English to a decent extent would keep telling me that Chinese economy is 2nd in the world,only next to the American economy. I would be thinking in my mind " Buddy, wait and watch how India overtakes you in a decade". Frankly speaking we Indians have a edge over the Chinese because we speak quite good English, this is plain truth yet Indian students are asked for TOEFL and IELTS. We would then talk about how American economy is going down and how the third Asian countries are playing a major part in the world economy now. Once I stumbled upon the topic of Tibet and this guy got wild about it,cursing Dalai Lama for trying to snatch Tibet away from China. The guy is loyal to his country I tell you and who wouldn't be? But when we touched upon Kashmir he coolly tells me 40% belongs to India,30% to Pakistan and the rest to China. I was thinking " what the Hell did you just say Mister?" Kashmir belongs solely to India,you guys have infiltrated into its territory and now claim that its yours. Not fair Yellow Man, stick on to your virtues.

Our daily dinner conversations brought us closer and he invited me to Beijing. He said I could drop into his home any time I wanted and his daughter would take me round the city. Boy! this would be just amazing. Did you guys know that having a second child in China could mean you could lose your job? Yes its true. The population of China is so much that the government has imposed this law of having only one child for a couple. So my friend tells me that even though he wants to have a second child he is not allowed to have one. In a few years time would India too have certain laws to curb the population which is growing by millions everyday? Did you guys know that covering a distance of 2000 Km in China by train would mean that you have to sit only for 14 hours. Wow that's amazing, the kind of trains they have-the fast electric ones. Hats off you 'Yellow Men'. India would still take its time in getting such trains to revolutionize travel. This guy tells me that he has visited only 15 countries and I start wondering Buddy I haven't stepped out of India and you say ONLY 15!!!

We would finally break off after about one and half hours,wishing each other good night and getting ready for work the next day. Its amazing that we find different people from different cultures, interacting with them,learning new things and at the end of the day pack off as good friends. I must say 'The Chinese' are very hard working and intelligent people. If they could speak flawless English as we do there would be no race between China & India as they would have already reached the finish line. But every country has its own strengths and weaknesses.