Who Didn't See This Coming?

Posing nude for Playboy does have a drawback, it can ruin your career. Ana Paula Oliveira has been left off the "elite list" of Brazilian match officials that the country turns over to FIFA for international consideration. With the commission that oversees referees in Sao Paulo coming out against Oliveira, the Brazilian FA has taken the decision to stop the ref's match-officiating career in it's tracks.

With Oliveira out doing press for Playboy, a spokeswhore for the FA said that since she cares more about showing herself off than she does about her job, the FA was justified in leaving her off the list.

Oh well, at least we'll always have the pictures.

The Naked Pics of Ana Paula de Oliveira [The Offside]
Ana Paula Oliveira gets naked and takes a career hit (in Spanish) [Marca]

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What If It Was A Male Ref?

I know I wouldn't post about Anders Frisk showing the ladies what he's got. BL might, but not me. Nevertheless, Ana Paula de Oliveira is easy on the eyes, and very NSFW in this spread. It all comes courtesy of Bruno Romani at The Offside.

The Naked Pics of Ana Paula de Oliveira [The Offside]

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Get Your Printer Warmed Up

While I can see the fun in printing off a Steven Gerrard or Wayne Rooney mask, heck, I might even understand someone wanting a cheap print of Peter Crouch's mug. But please, could some one explain the reason for even offering a Sven-Goran Eriksson mask?

If you're looking for something to wear next Halloween, try this one. Scary stuff.

Download a football mask [BBC]

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Obrigado

Well, I guess they let him hold onto his "kit." Note to FIFA: keep extra shirts and shorts at the stadiums for the 2014 World Cup refs.

Brazilian referee robbed at gunpoint on way to match [Reuters]

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All To Play For On Sunday

Well it seems like we've got a Mexican Graham Poll in our midst. In the same way that the Englishman enjoys pointing to the spot when there's doubt and waving play-on when it's clear cut, referee Gabriel Gomez missed an obvious take down of Chivas forward Omar Bravo. But in the end, only Chivas were to blame for not putting away the chances afforded to them and then falling asleep at the wheel with just 15 minutes left in the game.

The second-leg of the Mexican final takes places on Sunday afternoon in Toluca. As opposed to the way it's played in Europe, if the aggregate scoreline is even after the 90 minutes this weekend, there is no away-goals rule. The teams go straight to two 15 minute extra time periods, and then to penalties if necessary.

Follow the build-up to the second-leg match at Soccer y Futbol, Joe and Bernardo have got it covered.

Chivas, Toluca play to tie in first leg of Mexican soccer finals [The Houston Chronicle]

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A Little Bit Of La Liga History

All hell broke loose yesterday at the Camp Nou, and it wasn't because Ronaldinho scored with his head. The match saw ten yellow cards, two players sent off, and the lengthening of the home team's injury list. All the news you need to know can be found here, at the Guardian's Sportblog. Sid Lowe revisits a story from ten years ago that had just a bit to do with yesterday's game. In case you were wondering, in the above photo, Rafa Guerrero is the linesman on the left.

Either way, Barca find themselves with a shortage of fit, attacking players. With a stretch of crucial games coming up in the Champions League, it'll be interesting to see how Frank Rijkaard handles the situation. Will he just go with what he has? Will the Dutchman look beyond his bench and dip into the youth teams? What happens during the January transfer window?

After the weekend's matches, Barca top the table on 23 points after 10 games. Sevilla trail by two after getting shut out at Racing Santander, while Real Madrid rode Ruud Van Nistelrooy's goals to move up the table and land four back of Barca.

The best game next week looks to be Valencia traveling to play Sevilla. After such a bright start to the season, Quique Flores' team find themselves in sixth place and five points off the pace. This match will go a long way to determining just how up for it this Mediterranean club really are.

Barca's injury worries [Reuters]
Rafa, don't f*ck with me [Sportblog]
Yesterday in Spain [ESPN Soccernet]

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How To Get Suspended, #263: Titty Twister

It can be a lonely existence out there for a linesman. They have to worry about getting the offside rule right, coins tossed from the stands, keeping EPL managers from each other's throat, and, evidently, pinching.

After this incident and the resulting suspension, game officials in Colombia have been advised to be on the lookout for any future transgressions. Topping the list were: wedgies, noogies, and indian burns.

Colombian player banned for pinching linesman [Guardian UK]

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Manchester United v. Arsenal

In a ridiculously packed weekend where powerhouses collide, haven’t-won-a-game-because-we-can’t-be-bothered-to-score Arsenal meet up with the table-leading Manchester United that’s just made itself a nice bit of GBP from their 3-2 win over Celtic in CL Matchday 1. This matchup of 1 vs. 17 may not have the intensity it used to, but history and emotions can ramp that up fairly quickly, especially at Old Trafford.

And “Pizzagate” is revisited, as Ashley Cole serializes his upcoming autobiography, explaining how he was done wrong by the Arsenal board. Perhaps that’s the one thing Sir Alex and Arsene have in common (if they would ever admit it), a mutual distaste in their mouths for the kind of crap that’s getting served up in the Times. Thankfully, Martin Samuel is the only thing keeping the Times an inch away from the Daily Mail and The Sun (and we love thee, as our links to the right prove).

What does Manchester United v. Arsenal on Sunday provide? Well, we’ve got the same git who issued three yellows in the World Cup, who also refereed last year’s corresponding match (Man winning 2-0), Graham Poll. We’ve got Fergie attempting to rile up the supporters (prawn sandwiches anyone?) and Wenger hoping to play against an attacking team so the game might open a bit for the misfiring Gunners.

For Man Utd, they miss Park Ji-sung, but get Nemanja Vidic and Alan Smith back, as well as Cristiano Ronaldo after suspension. Arsenal’s injury list grows with their skipper, Thierry Henry, and striker Robin Van Persie both doubtful for Sunday’s clash. The statistics are in Man U’s favor, since about the last ¼ of the last year’s season, and Arsenal would be lucky to walk away from Old Trafford with a point.

Man United are just too strong and Arsenal are extremely inconsistent. The loss of Thierry Henry and Robin Van Persie are huge, as the captain can single-handedly win games, but it’s fairly apparent that can’t last you through a season. Van Persie is invaluable since he’s seemingly the only player willing to take shots on goal. But Arsenal’s play has been so frustratingly unrewarding, it may be good for Arsenal to try something different and hope for some mistakes from Man United, as Rio Ferdinand and Wes Brown bumbled in United’s win over Celtic.

For a detailed preview from the Beeb, click here [BBC Sport]

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Oh Dermot, You Silly Bastard

Is this Dermot Gallagher's fate, being sent down to the minors? Granted the guy looks like an idiot, but if he didn't see Ben Thatcher's blatant elbow to Pedro Mendes' face, he didn't see it. I will say that he didn't help his cause by handing out a yellow to the Manchester City player.

Which leads me to this: If Wayne Rooney gets a three game suspension for going up for a challenge with his arms extended, how many games will Thatcher get for putting Mendes in the hospital? If he gets anything less then Rooney, how soon before Fergie holds a press conference? At said press conference, how red will the Man U manager's face get?

Gallagher demoted [Guardian UK]

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