Archive for November, 2021
Leider nicht mehr Didi…
Mit „Endlich Didi!“ habe ich im Oktober 2018 die Ernennung von Rapid-Legende Didi Kühbauer zum neuen SCR-Cheftrainer kommentiert. Etwas mehr als drei Jahre später heißt es beim österreichischen Rekordmeister Abschied nehmen von Didi: er wurde nach den beiden Niederlagen gegen Dinamo Zagreb (1:3) und Wolfsberg (1:4) und aufgrund des für Rapid untragbaren 7. Tabellenplatzes beurlaubt. Ein neuer Cheftrainer wird gesucht.
Die Leistungen in der österreichischen Meisterschaft waren heuer alles andere als zufriedenstellend, die Mannschaft von Didi Kühbauer liegt immer noch „unter dem Strich“ und die Sorge bei den Rapid-Verantwortlichen, dass das Meister-Play-off, so wie 2019 verpasst werden könnte, hat nun den Ausschlag gegeben, obwohl bei den Heimspielen in der Europa League durchaus ansprechende Leistungen geboten wurden.
Seit seinem Amtsantritt am 1. Oktober 2018 hatte Didi bei 141 Pflichtspielen die sportliche Verantwortung beim SK Rapid inne, fast die Hälfte davon konnte siegreich beendet werden (70), 25mal wurden die Punkte geteilt und 46mal behielt der jeweilige Gegner das bessere Ende für sich. Das bedeutet einem Punkteschnitt von 1,67 Punkten pro Spiel unter Kühbauer.
(Verglichen mit West Hams Managern würde Didi damit ganz gut liegen, kann aber mit West Ham unter David Moyes in der letzten und der laufenden Saison nicht mithalten: WHU-Legende Trevor Brooking hat während seiner kurzen Zeit als Interimstrainer die höchste Quote aller West Ham-Trainer mit 2.21 points per game, die anderen Manager seit den Neunzigerjahren liegen aber deutlich darunter: Spitzenreiter ist Billy Bonds mit 1.58 Punkten/Spiel, Sam Allardyce kommt auf 1.39, Bilic auf 1.41 and Pellegrini auf 1.30. Der aktuelle Punkteschnitt von David Moyes in dieser Saison beträgt laut Footy.Stats bisher sensationelle 2,18 Punkte, in der letzten Saison waren es 1,75. In den beiden vorangegangenen Saisonen, in denen Moyes zweimal als Retter vor dem Abstieg kam, kommt er dagegen nur auf 1,10 bzw 1,19 Punkte/Match. Das ergibt in insgesamt 113 Spielen einen bisherigen West Ham-Gesamtschnitt von 1,54 points per game für David Moyes, der damit noch knapp hinter Kühbauer liegt.)
In der Bundesliga endeten die Saisonen unter dem Burgenländer für Rapid auf Rang 7 (2018/19) und zweimal mit dem Vizemeistertitel (2019/20 und 2020/21); im ÖFB-Cup war zweimal gegen den Seriensieger aus Salzburg Endstation (2019 im Finale, 2020 im Achtelfinale), in der laufenden Saison steht Grün-Weiß nach Siegen über die Wiener Viktoria (6:0), Admira (2:1 n.V.) und Amstetten (3:0) im Viertelfinale.
International war Rapid 2019/20 nicht qualifiziert, konnte sich aber in der Europa League 2018/19 mit Siegen gegen Spartak Moskau und Glasgow Rangers sowie einem Remis gegen Villareal den zweiten Platz hinter den Spaniern sichern und zog damit sogar in die K.O.-Phase der EL ein (was – für mich unverständlich – in der auf der Rapid-Homepage erschienenen Würdigung verschwiegen wird).
In den Saisonen 2020/21 und 2021/22 wurde jeweils nach dem Aus in der Qualifikation zur UEFA Champions League (2020 gegen Gent und 2021 gegen Sparta Prag) die Gruppenphase der UEFA Europa League erreicht (2020 Platz 3 mit 7 Punkten gegen Arsenal, Molde und Dundalk; 2021 nach vier Spieltagen derzeit Platz 4 mit 3 Punkten gegen West Ham, Dinamo Zagreb und Genk).
Vor allem die Spiele in der Europa League unter Kühbauer haben mich fast immer begeistert. Aber leider waren weitere drei Jahre ohne Titel – das Warten dauert nun schon seit 2008! – und die schwachen Leistungen in der Bundesliga für Rapids Anspruch einfach zu wenig! Auch wenn manche Niederlagen aufgrund der Unzahl von Spielen seit dem Sommer, den zahlreichen Verletzten und dem für diese Belastung wohl doch zu kleinen Kader erklärbar sind: dass die „Rapid-Viertelstunde“ heuer vom aktuellen Team in ihr Gegenteil verkehrt wurde, indem viele Matches in den letzten 15 Minuten verloren gingen, und allzu oft der legendäre Rapid-Geist nicht mehr vorhanden war, muss man Cheftrainer Didi Kühbauer anlasten! Auch soll zuletzt die „Chemie“ zwischen Trainer und Mannschaft nicht mehr gepasst haben.
Danke, Didi! Schade, dass es zuletzt nicht mehr geklappt hat.
Massive West Ham On Stairway To 🔝
West Ham United showed that their place in the Premier League’s top four was fully warranted as they outmuscled Liverpool for a memorable 3-2 victory at a rocking London Stadium on Sunday. With this victory the Hammers leapfrogged the Reds in the PL table and are third now, level on points with Manchester City! “West Ham are massive, everywhere we go!”
(From The Telegraph) Victory for high-flying West Ham ended Liverpool’s 25-match unbeaten run in all competitions and lifted them above Juergen Klopp’s side into third place in the table.
An own goal by keeper Alisson gave West Ham a dream start, but Liverpool went in level at halftime thanks to a superb Trent Alexander-Arnold free kick.
Craig Dawson hit the bar for West Ham early in the second half as Liverpool wobbled at the back, before Pablo Fornals restored West Ham’s lead in the 66th minute when he was played through and his shot evaded Alisson.
Alisson was found wanting again eight minutes later when Kurt Zouma headed in West Ham’s third in the 74th minute.
The man who scored what proved to be the match-winning goal, declared after the match that West Ham were like one big “family”. Now it’s five years that this family has moved to the new London Stadium, but during these five years now in Stratford, rarely has a win been more ecstatically celebrated.
Though there was a late lifeline for Liverpool when Divock Origi made it 3-2 with a shot on the turn in the 82nd minute, but the hosts clung on for a memorable victory and could rightly celebrate that they have shown relentless consistency in seven games within three weeks (since the last international break) with six wins and one draw.
West Ham boss David Moyes, speaking to Sky Sports:
“It is a brilliant victory against a really good team. We played Thursday night too and to put in a performance with the energy to hang in at the end is great for the players. At the moment I’ve got really good players who play with incredible character.”
“We are still growing the seeds a little bit – but I think we are there [top three] on merit,” Moyes said. “I wanted to challenge whoever the teams will be in the top four. I hope one will be us. I’m hugely proud of the players. These players were close to relegation, now we’re pushing for Europe.”
By Europe, Moyes meant the Champions League, The Telegraph writes, and it was further to his and the players’ credit that this performance followed Thursday’s 2-2 draw against Genk.
It is now four league wins in a row for Moyes’ side and with the Hammers also in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals and the knockout phases of the Europa League, fans can rightly dream of more magical moments to come this season, BBC said in their match report. And that’s the new West Ham Way of David Moyes winning team (according to The Times):
Ultimately, you see that West Ham players reflect their manager, Moyes, a hard-working, grounded football man. These are Moyes’ men, a team united, following their manager’s instructions perfectly. Moyes, who celebrated his 1,000th game as a manager on Thursday, was managing against Liverpool for the 36th time and this was only his sixth win, and it felt so sweet that he celebrated Zouma’s goal with a jig on the touchline. It was hardly the Dashing White Sergeant but his joy and pride were understandable. He certainly had Liverpool reeling. Moyes and his staff drill the players extensively on set-pieces and two of their goals came from corners. His tactics of a low block and countering also paid off.
There are no egos in claret and blue, just good characters. Mark Noble, the club captain, embodies that. So does the current team captain, Rice, an established England international who would walk into any midfield in the country, yet is as down to earth as they come.
Where some players elsewhere copy-and-paste club-approved messages on social media, Rice types out his own heartfelt, emoji-filled posts, including a celebratory picture of him and a beaming Tomas Soucek, his midfield accomplice, after this famous win.
Goals: http://www.whufc.com/news/articles/2021/november/07-november/goals-west-ham-united-3-2-liverpool
Extended highlights: Extended Highlights: West Ham United 3-2 Liverpool | West Ham United (whufc.com)
Five Things We Loved About the Liverpool Win (WHUFC): Five things we loved about West Ham United’s Premier League win over Liverpool | West Ham United (whufc.com)
Celebration: https://twitter.com/westham/status/1457475448896516096?s=21
“West Ham are massive, everywhere we go”: Derek Richter ⚒ auf Twitter
50 Years “Stairway To Heaven”
Zwei ganze Seiten widmete der KURIER diesen Sonntag einem legendären Rocksong: Vor 50 Jahren erschien Led Zeppelin IV mit “Stairway to Heaven”.
“And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last
When all is one and one is all, that’s what it is: to be a rock and not to roll”
“Und wenn du ganz genau zuhörst, wird die Melodie endlich zu dir kommen. Wenn alles eins ist und eins alles, dann ist es das: ein Fels zu sein und nicht zu rollen…”
Nun, ich denke bei “Stairway to heaven” an Jesus und Gottes Liebe und nicht an ein unklares “Wenn alles eins ist und eins alles”. Ich denke an das Wort und das wahre Licht, das mit Jesus in die Welt gekommen ist (Johannes-Evangelium Kapitel 1) und daran, dass durch Jesus der Weg zu einer persönlichen Beziehung zu unserem Gott möglich geworden ist. ER ist der “Stairway to Heaven”. Durch das, was Jesus für uns – für jeden einzelnen – getan hat, ist der Weg zum Himmel frei geworden. Durch Seinen Tod am Kreuz ist der Weg zum Vater nun für immer offen und es ist eine persönliche Beziehung zu Gott, zu Jesus möglich. Und ich denke daran, dass wir, wenn wir IHM die Türe 🚪 öffnen, Gemeinschaft mit Jesus haben können (Offenbarung 3:20) und gerettet sind.
Dann kann ich fest stehen wie ein Fels – gewiss, dass Er mich liebt und mir beisteht und bei uns ist alle Tage bis ans Ende der Welt (Matthäus 28:16-20).
There’s a lady who’s sure all that glitters is gold
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven
When she gets there she knows, if the stores are all closed
With a word she can get what she came for
Ooh, ooh, and she’s buying a stairway to heaven
There’s a sign on the wall, but she wants to be sure
‘Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings
In a tree by the brook, there’s a songbird who sings
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven
You know
There’s a feeling I get when I look to the west
And my spirit is crying for leaving
In my thoughts I have seen rings of smoke through the trees
And the voices of those who stand looking
That’s youAnd it’s whispered that soon, if we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason
And a new day will dawn for those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter
Remember laughter?
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah…And it makes me wonder
If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now
It’s just a spring clean for the May queen
Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run
There’s still time to change the road you’re on
Your head is humming and it won’t go, in case you don’t know
The piper’s calling you to join him
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow, and did you know
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind?And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul
There walks a lady we all know
Who shines white light and wants to show
How everything still turns to gold
And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last
When all is one and one is all, that’s what it is
To be a rock and not to roll, oh yeah
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven.
Thinking of Liverpool …
Today against Liverpool! I very well remember two games I have witnessed live: an emphatic 3-1 win at Upton Park (goals: Sakho, Reid and Amalfitano) with Sam Allardyce at the helm and Alex Song in the team (2014) – and a 1-4 defeat at London Stadium which ended Slaven Bilic’s tenure as West Ham manager (2017).
But it also was during Slaven’s reign that West Ham have last won against Liverpool: 2015/16 the Hammers made it three wins out of four games against Liverpool (including two FA Cup matches) eliminating the Reds from the FA Cup in a cup replay at Upton Park on 9 February 2016.
It’s a winless streak of ten games in all competitions now against Liverpool. It’s about time to win again … but Liverpool are a force that the Irons always struggled against and the Reds are the only team still unbeaten this season. They always could be overcome only on days when everything went very well for the Hammers.
Could it be a day like these today?
By the way: West Ham U23 beat Liverpool U 23 yesterday -> Highlights: West Ham United U23s 3-0 Liverpool U23s | West Ham United (whufc.com)
Come on you Irons!!!
It’s So Unfamiliar To Win And Win And…
I am writing articles for the West Ham blog WEST HAM TILL I DIE from time to time. As I came across this Guest Post on the blog WEST HAM TILL I DIE by Simon Walters, I found it was such an accurate description of what Hammers fans feel right now, that I should dare to post it on my blog, too. That’s what Simon Walters, Assistant Editor of the Daily Mail, wrote:
Am I the only West Ham fan who is both delighted and discombobulated by the team’s continuing success?
Have we really knocked out both ManU and ManC out of the EFL Cup in successive matches; done so without Rice and Antonio; are unbeaten in the Europa Cup without conceding a goal and are one match away from guaranteed progress to the last 16; and, oh yes, I nearly forgot, are fourth in the Premiership.
It is a whole new conversation for a West Ham fan. Usually, by this stage of the season, we are discussing whether it is 40 or 37 points we need to avoid relegation.
West Ham fans adopt a Tony Hancock style of hangdog humour to cope with the stress. It is a way of coping, a way of life.
We say: ‘We’ve got Palace and Burnley at home in the next fortnight, if we win those we will be four points clear of the drop.’
My optimistic West Ham mantra has always been: ‘If we win the next three games we should be eighth.’
Trouble is we would often lose all three and end up 18th.
It wasn’t all misery. The thrill of the final whistle when we clinch the point we need to avoid the drop in late April is exhilarating, even if only in the sense that an unexpected reprieve from a year long prison sentence would be exhilarating.
The joy of seeing the Hammers scrape home at Wembley against Blackpool in the 2012 Championship play-off final felt as good as an FA Cup win.
After last season’s success, many West Ham fans feared normal service would be resumed this season.
Doubters like me whinged: ‘We haven’t the squad to do the Europa Cup, half the team will crocked by November and we’ll be struggling in the league.’
Well, it’s cold outside but it hasn’t happened. Yet.
The discombobulation of the team’s continuing success comes from having a football fan’s version of imposter syndrome.
Are we really the new Spurs? Embedded on the fringe of the top four?
Dare we set our sights on the Champions League? I am looking over my shoulder just saying it.
Might we even become the new, or rather old, Arsenal, actually a member of the top four?
The unloved London Stadium becomes the Stratford Bernabeu.
OK I have gone too far. That’s ridiculous.
The point is that West Ham fans like me don’t quite know what to talk about. We need a new language.
We came to know our below stairs place in the Premiership pecking order and what was expected of us, how to behave, we knew the lingo of football’s lower classes.
Now we have clambered out of the relegation scullery and are tiptoeing towards the Premiership banqueting halls of Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea.
We haven’t plucked up the courage to knock on the door yet. What will we say if they do let us in?
But old habits die hard. To turn my mantra on its head, if we lose the next three we won’t even be eighth.
And it could be downhill all the way after that.
Or worse, Chelsea ‘do a Lampard 2.0’ and buy Rice for £150 million.
We’d certainly have the lexicon to talk about that.
Most of it unprintable.
“Time For Action”
https://youtu.be/eXvfqUe4EFQIn her address to the climate summit COP26 in Glasgow Her Majesty The Queen urges world leaders to “achieve true statesmanship” and create a “safer, stabler future” for the planet. She says in a video message they should “rise above the politics of the moment”, and that “time for words has now moved to time for action.”
Link: COP26, Glasgow
Glasgow, 31 Oct -12 Nov 2021
EXTRA TIME 
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