Thursday, May 31, 2007

A Conversation

Here is a funny conversation between an interviewer and the interviewee. It's really funny, I got this from a friend of mine. It made me laughed out loud.
Consul: What is your name?
Arab: Aziz.

Consul: Sex?
Arab: Six to ten times a week.

Consul: I mean, male or female?
Arab: Both male and female and sometimes even camels.

Consul: Holy cow!
Arab: Yes, cows and dogs too!!!

Consul: Man, isn’t it hostile?
Arab: Horse style, dog style, any style.

Consul: Oh… dear!
Arab: Deer? No deer, they run too fast.

Note:
Everything written in the dialog is just for fun use only. Anyone who is being offended by the dialog is politely suggested to leave this site.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Crystal Report and C#

Does the title seem familiar? Well for me I've been working with Crystal Report 8.5, SQL Server 2000 and VB for almost three years now. But C#... wait a minute it is not a mistype or anything, this is a new programming language for me. Maybe not entirely new, because it has been wondering around since the introduction of Visual Dot Net by Microsoft. Ok, to cut the story short. Last couple of days, I've been given a task to migrate some of our reports from VB6 to Dot Net. I have successfully exported a report, but have been unsuccessfull in a report which has subreports in it. I don't know what's wrong, because in the report itself I have defined the link value which links the main and subreport. If I ran it from VB6 it's perfect, however each time I ran it from Dot Net the same window pops up. The window always ask for a discrete value for each parameters in the subreport. I tried to feed a value in it or passing it programmatically but still no success. Has anybody experienced the same problem? Or does anybody know what's going on and how to overcome it?



Tuesday, May 29, 2007

How To Hide Your Navigation Bar

Really annoyed by the navigation bar on top of your blog? Want to get rid of it? Read on... After sometime surfing in the internet, I finally managed to find this good article of how to show or hide your navigation bar. Thanks to Derya my blog now looks great. You can see how to do it here. For your note, I didn't use the second part of the code because I want to get rid of the bar permanently.

Friday, May 25, 2007

MouseUp

This is a really funny story. It happened in my office, while we (I and my coworkers) were developing a project using Visual Studio Dot Net. We had to built a custom component using standard CheckedListBox. We were discussing where to put some code and for what event. Those of you who have experiences in programming must know what I am talking about. Then I suggested we put the code in an event called "MouseUp". I said, "that is the best event where we have to put the code". But a colleague of mine seem a little bit confused. After a while we finally knew what made him confused. He thought that the event "MouseUp" was triggered when we literally move the mouse up. I said, "if the event triggered when we move the mouse up, how does the computer know we move the mouse up or down?". We laughed about it for a while, then we explained to him and he understood. For your information, the event "MouseUp" is triggered shortly after we release the left or right button of the mouse.

Pirate's Of The Caribbean

At World's End





In the follow-up to the record-breaking smash 2006 hit "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," we find our heroes Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) allied with Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) in a desperate quest to free Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) from his mind-bending trap in Davy Jones' locker - while the terrifying ghost ship, The Flying Dutchman and Davy Jones, under the control of the East India Trading Company, wreaks havoc across the Seven Seas. Navigating through treachery, betrayal and wild waters, they must forge their way to exotic Singapore and confront the cunning Chinese Pirate Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat). Now headed beyond the very ends of the earth, each must ultimately choose a side in a final, titanic battle - as not only their lives and fortunes, but the entire future of the freedom-loving Pirate way, hangs in the balance. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Gore Verbinski from a screenplay written by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio, our beloved cast sets sail once again on a fresh new adventure in May 2007.

Originally posted in: Movieweb.com

Thursday, May 24, 2007

A Sweet Revenge

Milan 2 - Liverpool 1


AC Milan have won their seventh Champions League title after beating Liverpool 2-1 in last night's final in Athens. Liverpool started the game as the offensive team, they pressed Milan and won the ball in the midfield through Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano. Mascherano was the surprised in Rafa Benitez's line up, but he was responsible for marking Kaka. Unlike the final two years ago, Milan were a little bit cautious and let Liverpool took control of the game. The chances were minimum, until Milan had a free-kick just outside of the area, after Alonso fouled Kaka. Andrea Pirlo took the kick which hit Inzaghi and diverted the ball into the net. Pepe Reina was left stranded. It was 1-0 at half time for Milan.
The second half was very much the same as the first with Liverpool still controlling the game and looking for the equalizer. But the goal they were seeking didn't arrive.
Left frustrated the Liverpool's defense was wide open. Kaka then had several chances to run out the defender, but couldn't get through Jamie Carragher. On the 83rd minute, a loose ball in Liverpool's midfield was won by Seedorf who then passed the ball quickly to Kaka. Kaka saw the run of Inzaghi and provided him a delightful pass. The rest was fairly simple goal by Inzaghi. He slotted the ball passed the oncoming Reina. Liverpool then began to attack sporadically. Benitez brought Crouch and Arbeola on. The changes soon paid off, after Dirk Kuyt scored with a header following a corner on the 88th minute. Fired by the goal, Liverpool players was pouring forward to look for a second goal. But it was Milan who was in control, and played possession football throughout the last few minutes.
It was then a sweet revenge for Milan after their defeat in the final of 2005 at the hand of Liverpool. This is a proof that history may not repeat itself, and while the ball is still round, the game of football can not be predicted. FORZA MILAN !

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Totally Different Story

Speaking at the pre-game press conference, Carlo Ancelotti has put Istanbul behind him. Paolo Maldini is proud to be captain for such a side and Ricky Kakà hope to write another page in the history books.


Carlo Ancelotti

It will not be easy, but I have no doubts we will give everything. All my decisions have been made. On a purely technical level perhaps Milan were stronger two years ago and for that side it was almost ‘normal’ to reach the Final. For today’s team it is extraordinary and we want to end this year on a high. We deserved this final more than any other side because we suffered like nobody else. We had points penalties and had to rush our pre-season training to prepare for the preliminary round. If we have the fortune to lift the trophy, then it will be absolutely and totally deserved. This has been the most difficult season in my time at Milan. We ran into problems we had never encountered before, but the great unity between myself, the team and club proved decisive. Steven Gerrard is charismatic, but you cannot base your match on one player. Liverpool, like Milan, have many other qualities. Our opponents are Liverpool, not Gerrard. I don’t see myself as the leader of the group, but rather a part of the group. We all come together to answer questions and solve problems. We have worked well and I hope it will be considered even better tomorrow. We never sought alibis or scapegoats, we just tried to resolve our problems together, so what we have been through makes us stronger for this final. We feel very strong in these days leading up to the match. It was here in Athens against AEK that we suffered three injuries, it was the most delicate moment. Being compared to Sacchi and Capello by Doctor Galliani is pleasing. We have all done well. Milan’s presence in this final shows the strength of Italian football and we do feel ourselves a very Italian side.


Paolo Maldini

I have never been crazy about looking at history, it difficult to find the comparison with Athens now and in 1994, there are great players, Kakà today, Savicevic then. The Golden Ball is not as important as the final in general. If I can say, no one deserves the Golden Ball more than Kakà. It will be an emotional final even if you manage it differently from when you were 18 or 19. The best image is fitting the cup in Manchester with the whole team behind me. The important thing to get there rather than not. Crouch can be difficult in the air but I want to get out there once again and experience the shiver of excitement you only get in games like this. To be doing this again at this level is something fantastic and I am proud to be captain of a team that is always at these levels.


Ricardo Kaka'

No team plays man-marking at this level. I think that it will be like this tomorrow. I had the chance to win the Champions League two years ago, hopefully I have a great game tomorrow and write my name in the history books. If we can repeat what we did in the first half against Manchester United then it will be difficult to face Milan. Thanks to the example of Maldini and Costacurta, there is always the desire to win. I requested not to play in the Copa America in the interests of the Brazilian national team as I have played every summer for the last three years.



Originally posted in: AC Milan Official Site

A Reflection Of Trojan War

AC Milan vs Liverpool
Athena, 24th of May 2007


For the ancient Greek, myths have been part of their life which past on through all generation. Although binded by their ancestor's story, they have always believed that those myths was the foundation of their civilization, thus help them became the center of ancient world. One of the most popular myth which last until now is the legend of Trojan war. Trojan war became an important myth because it is the most told story in the Greek history. Even until now there are still arguments to prove the story.
The war started because of the kidnapping of Princess Helena, the wife of the Spartan's king, Menelaus, by the the charming Prince of Trojan Kingdom from France. To the Greek, this war has a very deep meaning and they are always proud to remember it. The war shown the Greek's ability to combine both muscle and brain.
Under the brave warrior, Achilles, Greek who before was torn into many countries which were fighting and competing against each other, was united with one ultimate goal to destroy King Priam's fortress. With the help of Odysseus, Achilles has an honor mission that is to bring back the pride of Greek which was taken after the kidnapping of Princess Helena.
In the context of the duel between AC Milan against Liverpool in tonight's Champions League Final, Milan's coach, Carlo Ancelotti, has experienced the price of a single carelessness. Like King Priam who let the Trojan horse entered his fortress, Ancelotti was arrogant and let Steven Gerrard torn apart his team's defense in the second half of 2005 final.
The effect was a total disaster. Just like the Trojan Palace which was destroyed and cancelled the honeymoon of Prince Paris and Princess Helena. Milanisti have to forget the glory of winning the Champions League trophy. Milan were careless, like Trojan who were partying with the presence of the Trojan horse, they were celebrating after they went 3-0 ahead in the first half.
The two mighty teams will again come face to face in this year's final. Maybe it is a coincidence, Rafa Benitez and Carlo Ancelotti will play in Greece, where the legend of Trojan horse came from. For the two side, Champions League trophy is the only silverware they can win this year, so they undoubtedly will do anything to win it. The trophy is like a pride they must defend, like Menelaus who was humiliated when his wife who was his pride, taken away from him. Liverpool and Milan surely won't let the pride of their season's lost.

Translated from: printed version of BaliPost, 23rd of May 2007

Monday, May 21, 2007

News Flash

A hotel near my office was on fire just now. The hotel name is Nusa Indah Hotel. The hotel is located about 200 meters to the east from the office. It is near Kuta Square. I was not aware of the fire, until Wiwin's brother called him and said that there is a fire. When I look outside my window, the hotel was covered with smokes. Fortunately, not more than 10 minutes the fireman arrived and took control of the fire. I managed to take two pictures using my mobile phone.



I took the first picture a few minutes after the fireman arrived, and the second after the fire was under controlled.

One Hit Wonder?

Yesterday when I went to a supermarket, they were playing this song. It keeps singing in my head because I couldn't remember who was the singer. At last, I finally found the answer: The Radio's. The song was called Teardrops. Anyone knows what happened to this group? Or they are amongst other bands who is only a one hit wonder? The lyrics:

Something in the words you never said
makes me feel I ain't seen nothing yet
catch me now I'm falling,
Hear the angels calling,
Calling somewhere deep inside my head

Close encounters of a different kind
Open up the part that's hidden inside
Many hearts get broken
While words are left unspoken
leaving nothing but a worried mind

We could flow like teardrops on the ocean
We could flow like water to the sea
It may sound unclever
We'd last forever
If you want to stay with me
If you want to stay with me

Never now for sure what's comming up
Sad the echo-beat will never stop
You're the one and only
But if you leave me lonley
You might as well let all the curtains drop

We could flow like teardrops on the ocean
We could flow like water to the sea
It may sound unclever
We'd last forever
If you want to stay with me
If you want to stay with me

Instrumental solo

We could flow like teardrops on the ocean
We could flow like water to the sea
It may sound unclever
We'd last forever
If you want to stay with me

If you'd just lay your love on me

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Hacking Recent Comments

First, I would like to thanks Hans for this beautiful blogger hacks. This posting will not tell you how to add the recent comments to your blog, you can find it here and the Indonesian version here. Those two versions are working great, but if you want to have a different look for your recent comments please read on. If you follow the first link, you will find something like this:


Remember to choose Custom CSS. Click Customize and then Add Widget To My Blog. You can then follow the rest of the instructions to add the widget. But, before you view your blog you have to edit your template and declare three classes called ".bbrecpost", ".bbrecpostsum" and ".bbwidgetfooter". You can put those three classes anywhere in the skin declaration of your blog. Or just find this code: "]]>" and put the classes above that. Your recent comments will surely work.
Now, if you would like to take it a little bit further you can customize the look of your recent comments. The script that is responsible for this recent comments looks like this:

You can find the actual script here. The script called a function named "showrecentcomments" and uses json feeds as the input. If you have a little knowledge of C++ or Java, this wouldn't be a problem because the code is really similar. What this function do actually is looping through all the comments and then write it one by one in your blog. In the actual script, each comment will be divided into there groups (bbrecpost for the header, bbrecpostsum for summary of the comment and bbwidgetfoot), hence you must provide those three classes mentioned above to give it a different style than the common recent comments. In my script I didn'use the ".bbwidgetfooter" and introduce a new class called ".bbrecdate". You can see the implementation right here in this blog. These are my classes:

.bbrecheader {
font-size: 80%;
font-family: verdana, Trebuchet;
padding-left: 2px;
line-height: 1em;
}

.bbrecheader a:hover {
font-size: 100%;
text-decoration: none;
}

.bbrecdate {
text-align: right;
border-bottom: 1px dashed $bordercolor;
border-left: 1px dashed $bordercolor;
border-right: 1px dashed $bordercolor;
line-height: 1.2em;
font-size: 80%;
width: 70px;
float: right;
}

.bbrecpostsum {
background: #F5F5F5;
font-size: 80%;
font-family: verdana, Trebuchet;
padding-left: 2px;
line-height: 1em;
border-top: 1px solid $bordercolor;
border-bottom: 1px solid $bordercolor;
}

.bbrecpostsum a:hover {
font-size: 100%;
text-decoration: none;
}

Everything is quite clear I guess, but you must have a variable called "bordercolor" declared in your variable declaration. You can also download my script here. Use it at your own risk or better download it and put it somewhere where you usually put your online files. A little note: the script is originally Hans's, you can use the script or modify it but please remember to put credit for the original author in your blog. If you have any question, just leave it in your comments. I would love to help you and get back to you soon.

Friday, May 18, 2007

Where Are You?

I was sitting in front of the computer, with not much to do when I heard this funny conversation on the radio between the radio announcer (R) and a girl (G).
R: Hello this is ... radio. Who is this?
G: Hi, this is someone.
R: Okay someone, where are you?
G: Fine.....
R: ??????

Thursday, May 17, 2007

Long Weekend

Today supposed to be the beginning of a long weekend. That is if you work in government's office or any other office than mine. Thursday is the ascension day for Jesus Christ, all Christians have the day off. Friday, all government's office have put a public leave. Saturday and Sunday are as always a holiday. But not for me, argh... poor me. So for all of you who have their plans for the long weekend, namely holiday in Bali, surfing, going to beach, or just be with your family, I greet you a happy long weekend.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

The Dresden Files



A new tv series telling the story of a supernatural detective called Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. The series is based on Jim Butcher's best-selling novel. Harry got that long name from his father, who is a fan of Harry Houdini, Harry Blackstone, Sr., and David Copperfield. Harry is a regular guy with a life which is not so regular. Harry is a wizard, a practitioner of magic who uses his unique abilities to solved various cases that come through his Chicago's front door office. Harry's world is much like our world, but from time to time he can walk into a supernatural, metaphysical and unexplainable world. Dresden unravels otherworldly schemes and crimes and does battle with the forces of darkness, all while keeping his true activities veiled from Lt. Connie Murphy (Lt. Karrin Murphy in the novel) of the Chicago Police Department. There is a governing body called the High Council (or White Council in the novel). The High Council is responsible for law and order in the supernatural world and to make certain that nobody from the ordinary world knows about what's happening in the supernatural world. In Chicago, Morgan is the High Council's Warden who is also Harry's probation officer. Three years ago, Harry killed his uncle Justin Morningway (Justin DuMorne in the novel) using black magic. Harry violated The Seven Laws of Magic, but the High Council ruled it as a self-defense which is a very rare case. Morgan doesn't think so, he would be very happy to prove otherwise. Dresden's confidante and adviser on all things magical is Bob. Bob was a medieval wizard who took up the dark arts but went too far. He was caught and killed by the Wardens, who then bound his soul into eternal servitude as punishment. Bob haunts Harry's apartment, hoping for a chance to regain his corporeal self — or at least get out for a walk in the park once in a while. Through it all, Harry Dresden retains his wry, sardonic view of both the natural and supernatural worlds. If you ever need his special kind of detective skills, you can find him listed in the phone book. For $500 a day, with a two-day minimum, he'll take your case and bring it to a successful conclusion. Just don't ask him how he does it.

All materials are compiled from:
Wikipedia
SkyOne

Links:
The Official Site
Jim Butcher's Official Site
The Dresden Files (a Titles & Air Dates Guide)
TVGuide: Spoilers, Episodes Guide, etc.

Monday, May 14, 2007

ReviewMe

Do you know this site, ReviewMe? If you don't know it yet, please read on... ReviewMe is a site for bloggers or advertisers. If you are an active bloggers and want to make money just by writing blogs, this site is perfect for you. All you have to do is register and submit your blog address. The system will then verify your blog. There are few criteria which have to be met so your blog can be accepted, e.g. number of visitors, number of links to your blog, traffic, etc. If your blog is accepted, then you have to wait for review offers. If there is an advertiser who wants to use your service, they will sent a notification and information about the review you have to make. You can either choose not to take the offer or make the review under a certain rules. After you have published the review in your blog, you will have to give the exact address of your review. They will sent a confirmation to accept or reject your review. If they accepted it, you will be rewarded by some amount of money. This will be sent via check or to your PayPal account.
For advertisers, the system works the other way around. You post a review me add, and wait for bloggers to take the job. After he or she finished the review, then you have to accept or reject the review. If you accept the review you will then have to send the reward to the author.
I have tried this on my other site. You can see there I have posted a review about The CuteKid baby contest. And the advertisers have approved my review. If you would like to join click here.

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

AGLOCO (A Global Community)

I recently joined AGLOCO because of a friend recommended it to me. I am now promoting it to you because I like the idea and I want you to share in what I think will be an exciting new Internet concept.
AGLOCO’s story is simple:
Do you realize how valuable you are? Advertisers, search providers and online retailers are paying billions to reach you while you surf. How much of that money are you making? NONE!
AGLOCO thinks you deserve a piece of the action.
AGLOCO collects money from those companies on behalf of its members. (For example, Google currently pays AOL 10 cents for every Google search by an AOL user. And Google still has enough profit to pay $1.6 billion dollars for YouTube, an 18-month old site full of content that YouTube’s users did not get paid for!
AGLOCO will work to get its Members their share of this and more.
AGLOCO is building a new form of online community that they call an Economic Network. They are not only paying Members their fair share, but they’re building a community that will generate the kind of fortune that YouTube made. But instead of that wealth making only a few people rich, the entire community will get its share.
What's the catch? No catch - no spyware, no pop-ups and no spam - membership and software are free and AGLOCO is 100% member owned. Privacy is a core value and AGLOCO never sells or rents member information.
So do both of us a favor: Sign up for AGLOCO right now! If you use this link to sign up, I automatically get credit for referring you and helping to build AGLOCO. Click here if you want to join.

Monday, May 07, 2007

Origin of Soccer

?Did you know that soccer has been played in Japan since 3000 years ago? But the role of goalkeeper only introduced in 1880.

Source: Visioner

Sunday, May 06, 2007

Christian Bautista

Hi, for all of you who is in Bali or Denpasar to be exact on Wednesday 9th May 2007, you have a chance to see Christian Bautista performing live.

He will be singing in front of a crowd in BC lounge-bar located in 2nd Floor, Jl. Teuku Umar 173, Denpasar-Bali. The event is held to celebrate the grand launching of the lounge-bar. If you want to be there, you better hurry because you will have to compete with girls from all over Denpasar (and maybe Bali).

2022 or 2202?

After we went to Timezone, we rested for a while at KFC. I went to Gramedia and bought a Bola tabloid. In there I found a cartoon which was really funny. As you can see in the picture below, a member of the football assosiation of Indonesia is attending a seminar. There he sees a banner which says "Seminar Indonesia Menuju Pentas Dunia 2..2". He soon realizes that the banner was missing two digits. He then calls an officer and ask for it to be fixed. The officer who doesn't have any understanding about the seminar fixed the banner. But the official then gets really mad because the banner now says "Seminar Indonesia Menuju Pentas Dunia 2202".

Do you get it? If not maybe you don't know Indonesian football. The football association of Indonesia have a goal, which is
taking Indonesian football to world level in 2022. The year is 2022 not 2202. This author of the cartoon maybe trying to critised the football association as they are trying to achieve a goal which is more realistic to achieved in 2202. It is also an irony because Indonesia has a population of more than 200 million yet they are still behind of Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia in the FIFA world rank. Singapore only have a population more or less the same as Bali. Isn't it amazing? How hard could it be to find eleven players with world class qualities such as Kaka, Ronaldo or Nakamura in a country with that many people? Or is it not hard to find but to find the willing to find is hard? Maybe the year 2022 or 2202 can answer that question. Let us all see.

Source: BOLA tabloid No. 1720, Friday 4th of May 2007

A Machine Ate My 50 Thousand

On Saturday, I went to Timezone at Matahari Duta Plaza, Denpasar with my family. Ewa like always wanted to play throwing basket ball which he didn't throw because he was always holding it (with strength). Even when the ball rang that didn't stop him from taking the ball outside. I had to distract him with something else. So we went to a game machine.

I didn't know the name of the game but it was a first person shooter (FPS - borrowing the term of computer game). There are a member of an elite squad (like SWAT team). Your job is to save people from terrorists. There are three different scenarios to play, 1st rescue on a plane, 2nd rescue on a palace, and 3rd rescue in the jungle. I have tried to play all of them and I prefer to play the 3rd scenario as it is more challenging to rescue people in the jungle where you can't see your enemies clearly. In the middle of the game I was partnered by a kid (don't laugh) who didn't last long because he soon ran out of money. It was a very addicting game, I think the game made it really difficult for you to survive. A play (which is 3900 rupiahs a game) for me only last about 5 minutes, and then either I was shot to dead or I shot dead a hostage. Either way I was doomed. I didn't realize I have spent 50 thousands for only 30 minutes of game. Only after Ewa reminded me (by crying), I stopped playing. But because we have surpassed the budget for playing we had to check out, while Ewa was still thinking where did his basket ball go.

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Spiderman 3



Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) has finally managed to strike a balance between his devotion to M.J. (Kirstin Dunst) and his duties as a superhero. But there's a storm brewing on the horizon. When his suit suddenly changes, turning jet-black and enhancing his powers, it transforms Peter as well, bringing out the dark, vengeful side of his personality that he struggles to control. Under the influence of the suit, Peter becomes overconfident and starts to neglect the people who care about him most. Forced to choose between the seductive power of the new suit and the compassionate hero he used to be, Peter must overcome his personal demons as two of the most-feared villains yet, Sandman (Thomas Haden Church's Flint Marko) and Venom (the transformed version of Topher Grace's Eddie Brock), gather unparalleled power and a thirst for retribution to threaten Peter and everyone he loves.

Athens: AC Milan vs Liverpool

Milan have beaten Manchester United 3-0 in the yesterday's Champions League Semifinal 2nd leg. This result gave Milan a 5-3 aggregate and went on to the final to face Liverpool on 23rd of May in Athens. The final itself is a rematch between these two clubs after 2005 when Liverpool beat Milan on penalties. Milan started the match really well, with Kaka and Seedorf both have shots saved by Van Der Sar. It only took Milan ten minutes to score. Oddo sent a lob ball to Seedorf which then headed back into the area. Kaka came from behind and shot low into the left corner. The goal would have been enough to take Milan to the final, but this was not the case as they continued to press the visitors. Soon after the first goal, Seedorf scored another. This time it was because Manchester's defense were to casual in securing the area. Brown lost possession of the ball in the edge of the area and then Pirlo sent a cross. The ball fell to Seedorf who evaded the challenge of three defenders and sent a volley again to the bottom left corner. The first half ended 2-0 for Milan.
In the second half the visiting team played the ball more efficiently. Ronaldo and Rooney whom in the first half were very quiet, started to give the Milan defenders a hard time. Rooney had a penalty claim turned down by the referee. Although in the replay it was clear that Massimo Oddo pushed him from behind. Things didn't change, Sir Alex then brought on Louis Saha for John O'Shea. It was soon proved to be a mistake because Milan scored another goal. This time it was Gilardino who answered his critics. Jankulovski won the ball in the middle and saw Gila ran into the blind
side of Manchester's defender who reacted too late. He was left all alone against Van Der Sar. Gila finished beautifully, 3-0 to Milan. At this time there was no stopping back for Milan. They went on to control the game and left Manchester United regretting their mistakes.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Repeat of 2005 or English Derby?

After Liverpool have confirmed their place in the final, soccer fans will now turn their attention to the other semifinal. Tonight in San Siro stadium AC Milan will entertain Manchester United for their second face off in two weeks. Manchester won the first match 3-2 thanks to a late winner scored by Wayne Rooney, although Milan have a two away goals advantage. Milan only need a 1-0 or 2-1 victory to repeat 2005 Champions League final. A draw or a lost will surely devastated Milan's hope for silverware this season. The Serie A title has gone to Inter, while the Coppa Italia will be contested between Inter and Roma. After almost certainly securing their place in next year's Champions League, Milan will do everything they can to overcome Manchester United. Kaka was reserved when Milan played against Torino last saturday, that way he will be fresh to face Manchester United. Gattuso, Pippo Inzaghi and Kakha Kaladze have all recovered from their injuries. The only question is will Il Capitano Paolo Maldini play? The latest press release from Milan stated that Maldini will not play because he is still recovering from his knee injury. As for Manchester United, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic are the ones who are missing from the usual starting line-up. Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes and Patrice Evra will have to be careful as they will miss the final if they receive another yellow card. As usual Kaka is the player to watch. The Brazilian born playmaker played a wonderful match last week which can only be cancelled by a stunning shot from Rooney at the closing stage of the match. Ronaldo will try to prove his worth after a fairly boring display. Ancelotti probably will ask Gattuso to watch over him. To wrap it all, today is the real final. Whoever wins will have a huge chance to achieve glory in Athens.

Prediction: Milan win 1-0

Chelsea? No, It's Liverpool

Liverpool booked their ticket in this year's Champions League final after defeating Chelsea in the second leg semifinal yesterday. Daniel Agger scored from a freekick in the 22nd minute and brought Liverpool levelled on aggregate. The two teams then had to play the extra times which again ended level. So the match had to be decided by a penalty shootout. Pepe Reina emerged as the hero after saving to penalties from Arjen Robben and Geremi. Liverpool now have the chance to repeat their triumph two years ago, and the their opponent will be Milan or Manchester United. If Milan beat Manchester tonight, it will be the rematch of Champions League final of 2005 in Istanbul where Milan lost on penalties. As for Chelsea this would mean their dream of a Quadruple has gone astray. They are currently behind Manchester United by five points in the race of the premiership title.

The Match

Rafa Benitez fielded Javier Mascherano to partner Steven Gerrard in the middle. Jermaine Pennant started as right wing and Boudewijn Zenden on the left. The visiting team played Michael Essien as a central back alongside John Terry with the injury of Ricardo Carvalho while Khalid Boulahrouz was still unfit. John Obi Mikel and Salomon Kalou also got the chance to replace Michael Ballack and Andriy Shevchenko. The first shot on goal came from Steven Gerrard who shot from outside of the box which hit
sidenetting. Peter Crouch then failed to connect with a cross from Pennant. Beside those two events, there was nothing more.
On the 22nd minute Liverpool got a freekick after Gerrard was fouled by Mikel. The Chelsea defender was ready for a lob ball into the penalty box, instead Gerrard just launched a pass to Daniel Agger who was free just outside of the box. He then shot the ball pass Peter Cech. The Anfield supporters reacted crazily after the goal. The first real chance for Chelsea came on the 31st minute when Drogba was free from the offside trap only to find his shot was well stopped by Reina.
It was all Liverpool on the second half. On 55th minute, Peter Crouch leaped above the defender to head a cross from Pennant. But the header was saved by Cech using his leg. Three minutes later Liverpool was again on the attack. A cross from Riise was headed by Kuyt against the bar. Because the score was still level the match went to overtime. Kuyt scored a goal on the 100th minute mark, but had it ruled out for offside. He had another chance saved by Cech on 118th minute which conclude the match. In penalty shoot out, all of Liverpool's penalty taker scored while Robben and Geremi failed which made Liverpool through to the final in Athens.