Those who know me will tell you I'm not one for controversy. They'd also be lying to you! I've followed our club since I took my first breath almost 29 years ago to the day. Although I can't remember the good times very well, I'm proud to say I was there when we were the best in the land. I'm also proud to say that through many of my school years where I had the back ripped out of me for being an Evertonian, nothing meant more to me in the world than going to Goodison Park every Saturday and then to the far reaches of England to watch the eleven men the manager picked represent the crest I looked up to.

It may be this ribbing I took at school which fuels my passion to see cause hindrance to Liverpool Football Club and consequently bring a smile on my face. Love thy neighbour? Not a chance.

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This is an open thread. You can talk about anything you like, whether it be the Premier League matches going on or the current typhoons striking the Philippines.

I have a couple of thoughts on the match:

1) I know that the red card has been discussed to death, but I just want to put in my two cents. Obviously, the decision to give a red to Rodwell was ridiculous. It was a clean challenge and it could have been argued that it wasn't a foul at all. I know a lot of people are getting on Suarez for his ridiculous reaction, but I think Atkinson was ready to pull out the red regardless.

Given that, that doesn't make the reaction by Suarez any more innocent. He made that reaction in order to get a response from the referee. All the Liverpool players then running up to Rodwell and getting angry doesn't help either. I know you have to support your teammates and should come in their defense so I don't fault them for that. But Suarez could have legitimately started a fight after acting like his ankle broke into 15 pieces.

2) People are making a big deal about Jagielka not shaking or ignoring Suarez's hand later on in the match after they had gone up. If I was Jags, I wouldn't have either. Sportsmanship works both ways. Suarez was falling down and grimacing in pain all game (not just the red incident). If you are a defender and a striker you are defending does this constantly, I can understand that it would piss him off. After they start winning, and then Suarez starts acting all innocent and friendly, doesn't change anything. Jags had every right to refuse to shake his hand.

3) The coins and objects that were thrown onto the pitch at Kuyt and Suarez was disgraceful. It just sucks when a couple of people give the whole community of fans a bad name. From all accounts I heard from Liverpool and Everton fans who attended the match, they said everything was quite peaceful and fine in their respective sections. I really hope these kind of incidents don't happen again. We are better than that.

Now that I have gotten that off my chest, talk away in the comment section!

Beginning with the Euro 2012 Qualifiers and at Wembley, Phil Jagielka was an unused substitute as England staggered to a 1-0 win over a very efficient Welsh team who's FIFA Ranking of 113th looked completely off the mark. Leighton Baines withdrew of course and is a doubt for Saturday.

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England 2 v 2 Switzerland  

I don’t really like Everton players playing for England as it usually does us more harm than good. Andy Hinchcliffe earned a debut when at Everton, and then moved to Sheffield Wednesday.  Nick Barmby was an England regular when he moved to us and continued to earn a starting berth until the brainwashing from within began and he made the career boosting move over there.  Francis Jeffers played and was signed by Arsenal, Wayne Rooney by Manchester United; now Phil Jagielka is being beady eyed by Arsenal and Leighton Baines by the denims from the City of Manchester.

However, I do like watching England and consider myself patriotic.  I like it when England win, and dislike it when they lose.  I enjoy watching how different players from different leagues in different countries match up.  I like dissecting shape, movement, positioning etc. Its eye opening and is a good education for me.

Anyway, Capello sprung a surprise before the game when naming his starting XI. The Italian, paid £6million per year to solve the problems that traditionally face England during major international competitions, decided that England’s in form attacking player Ashley Young would start from the bench.  Capello went for Joe Hart in goal.  Joe is definitely England’s number one by a mile.  He should have played in the world cup, but then the manager picks the keeper and vitally he got this one wrong in South Africa. Hart started nervously and was probably partly to blame for the Swiss’ second goal, along with others.

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England manager Fabio Capello has taken a lot of stick this week for sending five players home ahead of the England v Ghana game at Wembley. But what it does mean is both Leighton Baines and Phil Jagielka will start –  the first time two Blues have started an England game since 2007.

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Phil Jagielka and Leighton Baines headline the list of Blues who are in international action this weekend. The pair have been named on Fabio Capello’s squad for the EURO 2012 qualifier against Wales in Cardiff on Saturday and a Wembley friendly against Ghana on Wednesday.

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A new regular column appearing on the site will be Friday Football Frenzy - a collection of the best football stories, quotes, videos or just generally interesting stuff found on the web during the past seen days.

As part of our partnership with Everton:The Offside   we will share blog duties with our new regular columns fluttering between the two sites. Brian has done the research on FFF this week so do go over to the site and check them out.

Also part of the new partnership is updated match reports on the day of a game - as close to the final whistle as possible. Today it is my turn to do the post-match write up so check out RBM tonight for my immediate take on the Toffees' game at Goodison. Then after a few days to reflect we will have a more detailed look at the game, it's impact on our league position as well as a quick look round results elsewhere.

Hopefully it will be a happy report, though with this season being the way it is you just never know!

COYB!

So there we have it.  After 18 months of political lobbying, journalist digging, scandal, corruption and a last minute Royal-infused, David Beckham inspired dash to the line, England’s 2018 World Cup bid ended in dismal failure.

We are not alone though. For my friends on the other side of the Atlantic it was also a grim day yesterday as America missed the chance to host the World Cup again to, of all places, Qatar.

After witnessing England and then America lose out in their bids it is easy to be accused of being bitter. And I admit I am gutted England lost. To see the World Cup come back to my own country would be a dream come true and I fear we may never get the chance again.

But, nearly 24 hours after the event and taking my England hat off for a minute, I still feel the whole bidding and voting process leaves a lot to be desired....

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