How to Philosophise with a Tottenhammer, Part One

Some time back, I failed to win a debate despite having superior intellect and knowledge of the subject matter. It happened one night as I was watching an Arsenal match alone in the lounge. An Indian guy in a Spurs jersey joined me after a bit, asking me how the game had been so far. I said I'd just got here myself, but that the passing didn't seem too fluid. This led to a long discussion of football in general. Somewhere along the way, I made a passing comment about how Arsenal had been undercompensated for the sale of Fàbregas, arguably the world's third best midfielder. Which sparked the debate, whether he was indeed the third best in the world.

LoL 2011

Due to a technical mishap regarding My Documents late in 2011, some categories will be skipped owing to my inability (or laziness) to reconstruct them. Nonetheless, the categories that remain succinctly sum up my year. Entries will be in ascending order of rating.

Adiós to el Capitán

The departure of Arsenal's captain and playmaker Fabregas has been a fait accompli since the start of the transfer window; the price has not. Indeed, one of the world's best midfielders has been sold for not even €40 million, a marked reduction on the asking price of £40 million, which is already a huge drop from his market value of £60 million. For comparison, even Andy Caroll cost £35 million, and Kaka was £56 million. That said, even if the club had gotten the full £40 million, an adequate replacement might not be available on the market.

What has Arsenal lost? Arguably the third best central midfielder in the world, behind Xavi and Iniesta (one wonders how Barcelona is going to line up this season), and the most effective midfielder in terms of assisting and scoring goals in the whole of Europe last season. Fabregas plays just behind the striker, allowing him to play the final ball, but also drops deep to dictate the tempo and loft long killer balls (notably for Adebayor and van Persie), or go into the box to finish off moves. Arsenal more than most clubs relies on that position to create chances, as play usually goes through the middle, and to score goals as well, since van Persie plays as a false nine. (Perhaps to bypass his absence against Newcastle, they tried to play down the wings, which failed as the quality of crosses was inconsistent, and too few players attacked the ball when it was sent in. Fluency and ball retention was also poor.) Not only has Fabregas consistently shown the vision and positioning needed to shine in that role, he has developed a good understanding with many of his teammates as well. Without him, the entertainment value of Arsenal (not spectacularly high in recent seasons, to be sure) will go down. To replace all of that will be hard. What are the options?

List of Lists 2010

In this inaugural List of Lists (LoL), I shall recap some of the most memorable things of 2010. Overall 2010 was a year of exploration, both of the inner and outer world. I pushed the boundaries in many areas, experiencing and learning new things, discovering moments of artistic and sensory delight along the way. Without further ado, here is the LoL 2010 with categories in alphabetical order. Music-related entries to follow in a separate post.

The Compleat Man

What are the qualities needed by the compleat man? Whatever qualities you may come up with, you can't deny that the compleat man exudes coolness by the megawatts. In the first part of this series we look at some men in very different fields who can lay claim to true coolness. 

Hippocrates Geometrica

I was dreaming of the Proust Geometrica again when the question struck me - would it be possible to integrate my interest in design with a career in medicine? Well, why not?

The idea is to have a stylishly and ergonomically designed hospital/clinic catering to rich patients. Through the use of colours and design, the building aims to improve the emotional conditions of patients and staff, which then leads to better health. This is not dissimilar to the concept proposed by the folks over at Reversible Destiny, that our surroundings influence our health. Perhaps they might even be interested in a tie-up, though it is likely most patients would be too sceptical.

Top 10 Reasons to Retire in Milan

1 Soccer.
Two great football teams to watch, AC and Inter. Oh right, Benítez is at Inter, make that one great team.

2 Fashion.
It is the world's fashion capital, with menswear such as Cesare Attolini, Etro and Trussardi in addition to the more famous names like Armani and Ermenegildo Zegna. People of style can be seen on the streets as well.

3 Food.
Pizza and pasta everyday, especially with a pizza oven of my own in the garden. Awesome for garden parties or chillax evenings.

The First Post

First, a brief and completely misleading history of football formations:

1877: The 2-3-5 formation was first recorded.
1925: A change in the offside law led to the creation of the WM system (3-2-2-3).
1958: Brazil won the World Cup with a 4-2-4, the first formation to be described using numbers.
1969: Ajax pioneered the use of totaalvoetbal: no formation.
2010: Four One Three Two was started.

So that answers any questions about the origins of this blog. Moving on.