Ian Wright admitted to being reduced to tears after some of the films on TV this Christmas. If that isn’t embarrassing enough, his son popped up claiming that it’s not an unusual sight.
It seems everyone who loves football is appreciating Gareth Bale’s current form. But the guys over at ‘Who Ate all the Pies’ have noticed that the love gets stronger if you play against him.
Producer Will|09:00 UK time, Saturday, 24 December 2011
The 606 newsletter
Football headlines, gossip and nonsense directly from the 606 office.
Balotelli picks up award
Well done to Mario Balotelli who, after Mark Cavendish picked up Sports Personality of the Year, has won 606's inaugural Football Personality of the Year.
North London to Birmingham isn't far, but there's enough time for Arsenal players to slyly take pictures of each other on the coach ahead of their game versus Villa.
Who and where have nearly 20,000 goals been scored?
We're just a few away from the 20,000th goal in Premier League history. Here is a nice little graphic of where they were scored, the clubs with the most goals and the highest scoring Premier League XI.
Is Mario Balotelli a genius?
He wears silly hats, he can't put a bib on and he may or may not go round Manchester handing out money dressed as Santa.
Bolton fans are desperate to see Stuart Holden back on the pitch given their recent form, so his return to the club's gym today will be a welcome sight.
Saturday's show in front of a live audience was a first for 606 and you can relive it, along with Sunday's show by downloading the podcast or listen to them on the iPlayer.
Also, make sure you are kept up-to-date with breaking news, debate and ridiculous videos with our Facebook and Twitter.
These three sides are not traditional powerhouses of world football, nor do they have any rich history – Anzhi’s only previous appearance in Europe saw Rangers knock them out in the first round of the UEFA Cup.
But the players they are attracting have won World Cups, Champions Leagues, league titles.
A lot of callers to 606 and a lot of you on our Facebook and Twitter have criticised players for joining these sides – but can you blame them?
The likes of Roberto Carlos are coming towards the end of their careers and a big pay cheque is certainly one way to bow out.
But on the other hand, even though Anelka and Eto’o may be the wrong side of 30, they could certainly still do a job at the very top teams.
David Beckham was criticised for joining LA Galaxy initially, and it is all well and good to call these players ‘mercenaries’ or ‘selfish’ – but wouldn’t most people jump ship in their everyday jobs if the money was better?
Should footballers put wanting to play football at the highest level above monetary rewards?
Producer Jamie|09:00 UK time, Thursday, 15 December 2011
The 606 newsletter
The 606 newsletter
Football headlines, gossip and nonsense directly from the 606 office.
A not so Haj-been
An abundance of football greats came together last night for the annual UN ‘Match against Poverty’ between a squad of legends and a Hamburg SV All-Stars team. The UN side featured Drogba, Zidane and the Brazilian Ronaldo.
Napoli have released a behind the scenes video to the making of their new calendar for 2012. The video sees the team in an array of costumes and poses, promising an interesting 12 pages.
19-year-old Brazilian wonder kid, Neymar is one of the hottest prospects in the game at the moment, with all the big clubs reportedly after his signature.
Producer Jamie|09:00 UK time, Wednesday, 14 December 2011
The 606 newsletter
The 606 newsletter
Football headlines, gossip and nonsense directly from the 606 office.
City hit the town in fancy dress
Hours after walking off at Stamford Bridge, the Manchester City players walked on to the streets of London to drown their sorrows at their Christmas party - making quite the effort on the costume front.
Micah Richards got ahead of himself a bit whilst watching his team mates play against Chelsea. Richards tweeted just as Mario Balotelli put City ahead. Next time Micah, wait for the final whistle!
We never thought we would talk about Michael Jackson and Thierry Henry in the same sentence, but both have statues of themselves at Premier League clubs and we would like to know who you’d have a statue of at your club?
Sammy Ameobi is becoming one of our favourite Tweeters in the 606 office. The Newcastle striker Tweeted pictures of his team mates dressed up as superheroes.
Mario Balotelli faces a fine after he broke his manager’s curfew and went for a midnight curry less than 48 hours before his team’s big match at Chelsea.
England’s Euro 2012 tie against Sweden will be shown live on the BBC. ITV will have coverage of England’s other two group games with France and Ukraine.
"LAST SEASON - Liverpool are rubbish, constant talk of financial troubles, playing in Europe and it's all Roy Hodgson's fault.
THIS SEASON - Liverpool are awesome, financially secure, not hindered by having to play in Europe and Kenny Dalglish is great.
So how's it all going? After 14 games:
THIS SEASON - Liverpool 15 points behind leaders (with a game in hand) LAST SEASON - Liverpool nine points behind leaders
THIS SEASON - Liverpool five points behind fourth (with a game in hand) LAST SEASON - Liverpool six points off fourth
No Europe for Liverpool this season while Hodgson was taking them to the top of their Europa Cup group last term.
Hodgson had to manage under constant talk of him getting the boot, constant reference to Liverpool's financial troubles and without the big money signings Dalglish has been allowed to make.
So why the difference in how they are regarded? Why no big moans from Liverpool supporters this season? Are they accepting they have reached their level?"
The first reaction in the 606 office was: “Fans love him [Dalglish] so naturally he'll get more time - that's about the extent of it.”
But this is a fascinating comparison.
Liverpool fans – were you really that upset with life under Hodgson and if so, what do you think of King Kenny?
Surely after all that money he’s spent on Andy Carroll, Luis Suarez, Jordan Henderson etc you’d be expecting him to do significantly better than the man he replaced?
Let us know your thoughts – because I think Mr Bliss has a point.
Let us journey to Bolivia - where Gualberto Mojica of Oriente Petrolero tees himself up and scores his third of the game with this beautiful overhead kick.
Eboue strikes again!
First he had a jibe at Chelsea's strike force - now he's turned to Man City.
Producer Will|17:06 UK time, Wednesday, 7 December 2011
When the Sports Personality of the Year shortlist was announced, there were quite a lot of talking points - and one we noticed in the 606 office was football's lack of representation.
Is this surprising – not really. There has been no major international competition in the past 12-months, no cup winners in Europe and not one individual really set the sport alight ahead of anyone else to win honours.
But we asked you on Twitter and Facebook who should be the Football Personality of the Year – and the result is this shortlist of five:
Mario Balotelli – Oh Mario, how much joy you’ve brought to our lives the past 12 months. From silly hats, ridiculous finishes and not being able to put a bib on – you’ve been a true ‘personality.’
Luka Modric – He's been one of Tottenham’s stars over the past two seasons, and by all accounts wanted to leave in the summer. But despite not being allowed his move across London, he hasn’t sulked and his good form has continued, showing why he’s such a skilled and well regarded professional.
Gary Speed – Before his sudden and sad death, he had led Wales out of international obscurity and seemed to be taking a young group of players on a journey, which could - and still might - end in their first major international competition for generations. Grant Holt – Beginning his career in non-league football, Holt joined Norwich in 2009 for £400,000 and has helped them move up the football ladder from League 1 to the Premier League – scoring in every division.
Billy Sharp – Many of you went for Sharp because of his class, professionalism, and utter strength of character when he started for Doncaster two days after the death of his son and scored a fantastic goal.
The news of Socrates' death was met with great sadness in the 606 office. He passed away at just 57-years old and will always be regarded as one of the game's greats.
Their Prime Minister? Boyko Borisov (44%) won the annual poll ahead of Dimitar Berbatov (24%) in a protest vote against the country's poor recent form.
Producer Dave|13:23 UK time, Monday, 5 December 2011
"I'll let you get on with it, ta-ra."
Yesterday's 606 was probably the most I've ever laughed making a radio show. Thank you Frank.
He had a serious point to make, mind. Frank was annoyed. He wanted to let the nation know how he doesn't enjoy seeing players getting sent off lightly. Red cards, after all, can completely change a game and this was his platform to vent. This was his moment. But he blew it, at least initially.
He was one of seven callers* lined up for our regular quick-fire feature in which listeners have a seven second window to let their opinion be heard. He was number six, but when Robbie uttered the words "caller six - name, team, point, go!" there was silence down the line.
And that's the beauty of the feature. It's unpredictability; in the seven seconds available to Frank, only two of those included any voices - Editor Jo shouting down the line, "Frank, come on", followed by a surprised "yes" from Frank, concluding with a lot of laughter from Robbie and Darren.
We had to give him another chance. After a short trail from John Pienaar, Frank came back on-air to say his piece (both promptly and politely) and then hung up.
But it was his sign off that made Frank, at least briefly, a legend of the airwaves. It reminded me of Roy from this Alan Partridge sketch.
Welcome to the 606 blog. Have your say on all the biggest footballing stories and read regular posts from the production team and presenters like Robbie Savage, Jason Roberts, Chappers and Darren Fletcher.
Plus exclusive audio and video from behind the scenes in the 606 office and all the latest information on how you can take part in our regular presenter Q&As.
Follow 606 on Twitter and Facebook for even more updates and thoughts.
Comments on posts are automatically closed after seven days. The House Rules can be found here.
|09:00 UK time, Saturday, 31 December 2011
