Thursday, January 10, 2008
Owen burst into the international scene with his spectacular solo strike against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup.
He helped Liverpool achieve the treble in 2001. His success and accolade accumulated and he won the European footballer of the year.
We expected him to go to greater heights but since then his performance has been mediocre. He is always hampered by his hamstring and is easily injured. Houllier had to take care not to use him too frequently to aggravate his situation.
Was he getting too big for his head or was he too ambitious when he decided to leave Liverpool and play for Real Madrid.
Gerrard for all his prima donna ways did the wise thing and stayed to see what changes Benitez could bring. There 's nothing to lose by remaining in Liverpool. If things didn't work out , he could always move on.
Though Liverpool struggles in the premiership they are walking on water when it comes to one off battles in cup competitions like FA Cup or European competition.
Last season he opted to move to Real Madrid as he thought he was going to a better club to have more opportunities to play champions league football.
He should have given the new manager a chance to prove himself in Liverpool . After all, isn't this the man who won the Primera Liga twice with Valencia and a Uefa cup to boot?
How ironic to see his former club lift the Champions League trophy while Real Madrid languish in the shadows of pitiful sorrow after being ejected in the round of 16 against Juventus!
Another irony I find is that Michael Owen willingly went over to Real Madrid to exchange place with Morientes. Morientes took over Owen's first team position while Owen himself found himself in fourth position in the striker role.
Michael Owen knows his first team position is in doubt following purchases by Real Madrid of two strikers Rohinho and Baptista . Next year is World Cup year and Owen needs to play regularly to remain in top form in order for England Coach Erickson to select him for his team.
Ironically, he wants to come back to premiership but the big guns do not need his services.
Liverpool has so far garnered only one goal from two premiership matches. Benitez has also sold off Baros to Aston Villa reducing the number of strikers available to him. Michael Owen is a proven striker in the premiership scoring 20 goals a season. He is also a Kop favorite and English. There has been a precedent before where a Liverpool player went abroad for more playing experience and then returned to Liverpool. His name is Ian Rush.
However, I think it makes poor business sense for the club for buy high and sell low and making loss of a few million pounds. Also, Michael Owen is physically small in size. His style of play is to be a lone striker. Benitez preferred style of play is different . So Michael Owen may not suit Benitez requirements.
Smaller teams are eager to sign him on like Newcastle, Everton and even Wigan. But I think it would be too embarrassing for him to accept these offers.
4 Steps to Sure-Fire Basketball Free Throws
NBA Finals, Game 7...Your team is down one point...One
second left... A foul and two free throws coming... Who do
you want at the charity stripe?
Of course, we'd like to have a Reggie Miller or a Larry Bird
or even better Michael Jordan at the line to sink those
crucial shots. Chances are, though, they're not on your team.
So now what? It's up to you!
So how do you build the skill and confidence needed to win
the big games at the charity stripe? 4 simple steps:
Ritualize - Visualize - Optimize - Capitalize.
Free throws are an important part of your game. How many
times have we seen games come down to the final seconds and
either be won or lost at the free throw line? All the time!
So learn these 4 timeless secrets and join the ranks of John
Stockton and become a Great free throw shooter.
1. Ritualize
Ritualize means you create a specific repeating pattern of
behavior prior to performance, a regular pre-task routine,
which sharpens your focus, concentration and attention.
Reggie Miller would step up to the line holding the ball on
his hip with his left hand and place his feet about 12-14
inches apart with his right foot slightly forward. He then
would raise his arm straight up towards the basket with his
hand bent as if he had just released the ball. Then he would
take three consecutive dribbles, sit back into a slight crouch
and let if fly. Every free throw was exactly the same.
Karl Malone could be seen mouthing something to himself (We
have no idea what he was saying) right before he shot the
ball. Whatever ritual you develop for yourself, know that
it's the most effective device for delivering yourself into
the mindset you must be in to sink every free throw.
"Repetition brings familiarity, and familiarity is the
opposite of the unknown." - Steven Levenkron
2. Visualize
Visualize means mentally rehearsing or "seeing" in your mind
what you intend to do before you do it. When you visualize
perfect form and a flawless shot that draws nothing but the
bottom of the net, it becomes exponentially more likely to
happen.
You've heard the saying, "What you see is what you get",
haven't you? Focus on the process and see perfection. You'll
find that visualization is a powerful tool.
"I see a mental movie before I hit every shot." - Jack
Nicklaus
3. Optimize
Optimize means allowing yourself to trust in yourself and
your capabilities, to have the self-confidence to pull the
ripcord, knowing the parachute will open. Simply put don't
hesitate! Delay does damage.
Nike said it best with their million dollar slogan: "Just Do
It!" This is when shooting free throws just becomes automatic.
"You must seek to have control and then act with abandon!" -
Anonymous
4. Capitalize
Capitalize means celebrate your success as well as the
success of your teammates. Pat yourself on the back with
each success at the line. When you make your free throws
savor the success, nourish it, grow it, use it - capitalize on
it. Allow it to build your confidence in other aspects of
your game - defense, offense or whatever. Let this positive
energy ooze out all over you and your team.
"What I do best is share my enthusiasm." - Bill Gates
With these easy-to-follow principles you can become the
elite free throw shooter of your team. Actually, you can apply
these principles to every part of your game. Whatever you do,
keep on shooting!
Matt & Dave run
http://basketball-plays-and-tips.com/freethrow
and enjoy teaching basketball players and coaches more
about the basketball plays, drills, fundamentals and tips that
result in individual and team success. For our free report,
"5 Keys to Discovering the Successful Coach Inside You",
plus two additional player/coach reports, send a
blank email to mailto:basketballtip@aweber.com .
We give full permission for you to use this article in your
newsletter or on your site as long as you include our
Resource Box with our website link and email link included.
How to choose your road bike
How to choose your road bike? Well the first question is how much do you want to spend and how much cycling will you do? The answer to the first question is a difficult one, many people when they are younger they want to ride there bike all day and what to be the next winner of the Tour de France, but they can not afford to spend much on there bike. If they get fit and win some races and get in a good team they will be given a top class bike, but what usually happens is they have to give up and work, have a family etc. When they are older and have more money they can afford the bike of there dreams. As to how much cycling you do, that depends on whether you can justify having the best bike around and only doing a short ride on Sunday morning. Remember you get what you pay for.
Basic Level Bikes.
If you go to the larger sports stores or bike shops they will have complete bikes for sale, probably a alloy frame with Shimano Tiagra or Campagnolo Mirage or a mixture of cheaper components, this bike will be built to a price, will ride fairly well, wont be very light and is a good place to start. To get some thing better, start with a nice alloy frame and if you can afford it, carbon forks, then with what money you have left chose your group-set of either Shimano or Campagnolo and then you can pick your saddle, handlebars, wheel rims and tires, this is all fun, but if you are working to a budget, it can be tricky.
Mid Level, Touring and Possibly Racing.
In this range of bikes you can buy them as a complete cycle, in the cycle shop, sports store or even in the specialist magazines or on the web. It is more fun to choose the components for your frame and how much you want to spend. At this level you would probably be looking at Shimano 105 or Campagnolo Centaur road bike parts and you could possibly buy some built up wheels from Shimano, Campagnolo or Mavic, but first start with the frame, there are many frames out there to choose from, get on the net and look for what you want, it will probably be alloy again, with carbon forks. Alloy seat pin, handle bars and stem and a comfortable saddle.
Top Level Bike For Racing and Pleasure.
Now it gets more difficult, your components would be Campagnolo Chorus or Shimano Ultegra, unless you can afford the top components of both manufacturers. Wheels again would be possibly Mavic, Shimano or Campagnolo, deep carbon rims look Great and have a wonderful ride, but will probably be too expensive, best if you stick to alloy rims for high pressure tires as tubulars, even though they ride wonderfully, will be expensive and a lot of trouble. Handle bars, stem and seat pin could be alloy or carbon, if you have the money. The frame is the heart of your bike and you will want a good one, at this price range alloy is going to be the first choice with carbon forks and possibly a carbon rear triangle. If you look around you might manage to find an all carbon frame at this price, Giant make a very well priced carbon frame in a compact, sloping design, there are others but you will have to spend a lot more money.
The Top of The Shopping List.
When're looking at a lot of money here if you want to buy a professional road bike. The frame will be all carbon or titanium with carbon forks and maybe a carbon rear triangle or alloy main tubes with carbon front or rear end. The nicest ones on the market at the moment, in my opinion, are Colnago, De Rosa, Pinarello, Battaglin, Time, Scott, Cervelo and many more, all are available in different colours, geometries and sizes, check out there web sites for information and try to make your choice, it's a difficult job. This is a professional road bike so it will have to have the best components, Shimano Dura.Ace or Campagnolo Record are your only choice at this level. Same with the wheels, Dura-Ace or Campagnolo Bora, these can be for high pressure clincher tires or tubulars, tubulars are more trouble but do ride well, but clincher tires are very nearly as nice and much more practical. Handle bars, stem and seat pin will be carbon and your saddle will have a carbon base with a leather cover and sometimes with gel for a little extra comfort.
The Best Bike You Can Afford.
You do only get what you pay for, so get the best bike you can afford, look around the magazines and the web sites and don't forget your local bike shop until you get that little jewel, but be careful not to make your partner jealous!
About The Author:
Andrew Caxton is the webmaster as well as a successful author of http://www.bike-cycling-reviews.com. Mr.Caxton adds very often reviews related to road bikes and mountain bikes
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