Happy Boxing Day folks! The holidays means days where I have nothing to do but play FIFA 08, so the Virtual Season got some work put into it. Now, in our last episode,  Arminia had just lost a home match against Werder Bremen which denied them the top spot in the Bundesliga, going into a stretch of matches which could make or break their season: at Bayern, home to high-flying Hansa Rostock, at slumbering Schalke, and home against Hamburger SV. If they could survive this stretch, they could be heading into the transfer window looking to fill gaps for a title run; if not, they could be drug into a dogfight for a UEFA Cup. Sure, it would be a remarkable season nonetheless, but a title would sure look nice in the trophy room.

Match #11: Bayern Munich 6-6 Arminia Bielefeld 

Scoring: Bayern Munich: Altintop (12'), Toni (44'), Ribery (60'), Klose (63'), Schlaudraff (72'), Schweinsteiger (78'); Arminia Bielefeld: Masmandis (20'), Zuma (48'), Marx (56'), Eigler (66', 90' [Penalty]), Leonidas (84') 

What Happened: Simply the best Bundesliga match of the season, and perhaps in the past several seasons. Arminia came out with all guns blazing, putting Bayern under serious pressure until Bayern finally got a break, which they capitalized on with a goal by Hamit Altintop. Undeterred, Arminia struck back on a great volley by Ioannis Masmandis in the 20th minute. Right before injury time Luca Toni ran right through the Arminia back line to give the German Giants a 2-1 lead at the half. On the opening kick off of the second half, Sibusiso Zuma went right through the Bayern defence himself and drew level at 2-2. Thorben Marx then gave them the lead with a fantastic volley that Oliver Kahn could merely wave at as it passed him by. Almost immediately after Bayern struck twice with Franck Ribery and Miroslav Klose giving them the lead. Substitute Christian Eigler drew Arminia level at 4-4 immediately after with a wonder goal of his own after stealing a poor pass by the Bayern back line. The scoreline once again proved to be short lived as Jan Schaudraff did his own fly-by of the Arminia back four, followed 6 minutes later by a free kick by Bastian Schweinsteiger. In an act of desperation the Arminia manager brought on Leonidas and changed formations to a 4-2-4, which put Bayern right back on the back foot. Despite this Bayern almost made it 7-4 when a poor clearance by goalkeeper Rowen Fernandez found Klose, who easily rounded Fernandez. However his shot flew high to the chagrin of over 70,000 supporters at the Allianz. On the ensuing Goal kick Fernandez found a wide open Leonidas Kampantis, who went in one-on-one and made it a single goal deficit. Arminia almost drew level twice after hitting the post, but their opportunity came in injury time when Christian Eigler was brought down in the area by Lucio, who was not amused by the decision. Eigler slotted home the penalty to put both sides level to end the match.

*phew*

Match #12: Arminia Bielefeld 3-2 Hansa Rostock

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Leonidas (8', 16'), Eigler (64'); Hansa Rostock: Kern (45', 70')

Sendings off: Arminia Bielefeld: None; Hansa Rostock: Orestes (68' [Professional Foul])

What happened: Arminia started right where they left off with a quick goal by Leonidas Kampantis in the 8th minute, and a backs-to-the-wall defencive stand 7 minutes later where Jonas Kamper cleared the ball off of the line. Two quick passes later Leonidas made it 2-0 with a nice shot. Hansa tried to match blow for blow with Arminia, but couldn't match their pace. Kern made it 2-1 right before halftime to make the match interesting. Christian Eigler made it 3-1 in the 64th minute, and almost made it 4-1 whenOrestes Alves brought him down on the edge of the penalty area, earning him a straight red card. Siyabonga Nkosi hit the post with the resulting free kick, and Kern took the rebound all the way down the pitch to make it 3-2. Despite this Rostock did not threaten again as the woodwork proved to be Arminia's toughest opponent.

Match #13: Schalke 04 2-2 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Schalke 04: Kuryani (55'), Altintop (76'); Arminia Bielefeld: Nkosi (45', 81')

What happened: Unlike other previous matches, Schalke kept Arminia on the back foot for most of the first half, but despite this could not get more than 2 shots on goal. Arminia struggled to get forward from midfield, and finally succeeded in injury time, where they forced a corner which resulted in Siyabonga Nkosi heading in the kick from Artur Wichniarek to give Arminia the 0-1 lead at the half. Schalke drew level in the 55th minute and then took a 2-1 lead in the 76th minute, putting Arminia's back to the wall like at Bayern. Nkosi responded with an incredible free kick goal in the 81st minute to draw level, but Schalke held the midfield to hold onto the draw.

Match #14: Arminia Bielefeld 2-1 Hamburger SV

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Zuma (29', 44'); Hamburger SV: Chopu-Moting (57')

What happened:  It is becoming apparent that, despite Arminia's goal scoring pace for this season that they are in dire need of a clinical finisher up front, along with three new defenders. Arminia could have easily won the match 4-1 or 5-1 if not for poor final moves and shooting  on the strikers' part. Sibusiso Zuma scored both of Arminia's goals in the first half with great individual efforts, but Hamburg stayed in the match mainly because of shocking misses by the Arminia strikers. HSV pulled a goal back in the 57th minute but rarely threatened after that.

With the win Arminia moved 5 points clear at the top going into their DFB-Pokal match at Erzgebirge Aue. Here's what the table looks like:

For the stats geeks, here's the Top 10 for goal scorers, assistmen, and clean sheets for goalkeepers 

Top goal scorers:

Place	Name	Club	Goals
1	Sibusiso Zuma	Arminia Bielefeld	12
2	Alexander Frei	Borussia Dortmund	11
3(tie)	Miroslav Klose	Bayern Munich	9
3(tie)	Leonidas Kampantis	Arminia Bielefeld	9
5	Enrico Kern	Hansa Rostock	8
6(tie)	Christian Timm	Karlsruher SC	7
6(tie)	Artur Wichniarek	Arminia Bielefeld	7
6(tie)	Theofanis Gekas	Bayer Leverkusen	7
6(tie)	Jose Paolo Guererro	Hamburger SV	7
6(tie)	Christian Eigler	Arminia Bielefeld	7

Top Assistmen:

Place	Name	Club	Assists
1	David Jarolim	Hamburger SV	6
2	Florian Kringe	Borussia Dortmund	5
3(tie)	Artur Wichniarek	Arminia Bielefeld	4
3(tie)	Sibusiso Zuma	Arminia Bielefeld	4
5(tie)	Torsten Frings	Werder Bremen	3
5(tie)	Stefan Beinlich	Hansa Rostock	3
5(tie)	Roberto Hilbert	VfB Stuttgart	3
5(tie)	Arturo Vidal	Bayer Leverkusen	3
5(tie)	Nigel de Jong	Hamburger SV	3
5(tie)	Leonidas Kampantis	Arminia Bielefeld	3

Top Clean Sheets for Goalkeepers:

Place	Name	Club	Clean Sheets
1	Manuel Neuer	Schalke 04	10
2(tie)	Rene Adler	Bayer Leverkusen	9
2(tie)	Stefan Wächter	Hansa Rostock	9
4	Stefan Schäfer	VfB Stuttgart	8
5(tie)	Jan Lastuvka	VfL Bochum	7
5(tie)	Marcel Herzog	MSV Duisburg	7
5(tie)	Jaromir Blazek	1. FC Nürnberg	7
5(tie)	Jaroslav Drobny	Hertha Berlin	7
5(tie)	Tim Wiese	Werder Bremen	7
5(tie)	Simon Jentzsch	VfL Wolfsburg	7

One last thing, check out the English page for Arminia on the Bundesliga's website for a review of the first half of the season, both good and bad. See you on Saturday! 

The Virtual Season is off and running, and the last time we checked in on our pixellated heroes, they were 1-1-1 after three matches, coming off of a 5-3 thumping at the hands of Karlsruher SC. It was time for a serious change after the back line was savaged by an admittedly-mediocre KSC strike force. Whilst playing Football Manager, the manager found success with the virtual virtual Arminia in a 3-5-2. So, during the week's practices, the team was forced to change from their traditional 4-3-1-2 formation to a 3-5-2 formation. In addition, goalkeeper Mathias Hain was replaced by South African international Rowen Fernandez. Going into what the manager called a "critical" match against defending-Bundesliga champion VfB Stuttgart, the lineup looked like this:

Goal: Fernandez

Defence: Kucera, Gabriel, Moises

Midfield: Böhme, Marx, Kauf, Kamper, Nkosi

Forwards: Wichniarek, Leonidas

Was it a success? Well... 

Match #4: Arminia Bielefeld 5-2 VfB Stuttgart

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Wichniarek (18', 67' [Penalty], 72' [Penalty Miss], 72'), Nkosi (59'), Kauf (78') VfB Stuttgart: Cacau (45', 85)

What Happened: The struggling title holders were completely steamrolled by Arminia, who outshot the Swabians 20-8. Shots came from all angles, and Stuttgart was constantly trying to unlock the midfield, with limited success. Despite this, when the Stuttgart attack did break through, it was all hands on deck for the back line, who were barely able to contain them, as witnessed by Cacau's two brilliant runs. Despite these gaffes, the manager was happy with their performance. "Can't complain too much about the win," he said "But Artur's getting extra penalty practice this week." he said with a laugh.

Match #5: Hertha Berlin 2-2 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Hertha Berlin: Pantelic (21'), Lakic (90') Arminia Bielefeld: Zuma (19'), Leonidas (79')

What Happened: This match was actually the second replay of the fixture, as I had to restart it twice because of some absolutely horrific calls made against me that simply required me to restart them. The first match got a restart when Andre Mijatovic got a yellow card on a play. The problem was that there was no foul, and his only crime was deflecting a pass past the end line for a corner kick. Considering he was already on a yellow. I was down to ten men for literally no reason. The second gaffe in the replay was at the halftime whistle, a shot for Hertha Berlin was in mid-flight from about 10 yards. All of the players began to walk off and the shot went in as a result of the goalkeeper not being in front of goal (it's automatic). On the splash screen of the halftime score, it showed 2-1 Hertha. I could have sworn I was playing Dynamo Berlin back during the Cold War after seeing that.

No shenanigans on the third try, unless you count the continued horror show that is the back line. Zuma scored on a nice volley to make it 0-1, only to see Pantelic walk through the defence to tie it up. After much consternation at the finishing ability of the forwards, the manager took off Wichniarek for Leonidas, and he immediately took a pass from Kauf and made it 1-2. The 3 points were in the bag until Lakic scored on a play in which he somehow evaded all three defenders which surrounded him. In the postgame press conference, the manager commented that Lakic must have had the wrong shirt on, as he should have had one with "Houdini" on the back. The press corps didn't get the joke, unfortunately.

Match #6: Arminia Bielefeld 4-1 Eintracht Frankfurt

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Kauf (27') Wichniarek (32' [Penalty Miss], 32') Zuma (35'), Nkosi (45') Eintracht Frankfurt: Amanatidis (55')

What Happened: In the most dominating Bundesliga match to date, Arminia simply beat Frankfurt to a pulp. At the end of the match Arminia put 15 shots on goal to Frankfurt's 2, and at the time of Kauf's 35-yard volley, the shot count was 12-1 for Arminia (it ended up 22-6). Nearly immediately after, Wichniarek drew a penalty, which he missed once again. Replays showed that he didn't  get all of his foot on the shot, but he got the roubound to make it 2-0. Zuma made it 3-0 after a 50-yard dash left the Frankfurt defence in his wake, and on the stroke of halftime, Nkosi got a hold of a poor clearance, and chipped a shot past the shocked goalkeeper from 40 yards (A rather fortuitous shot on my part. I pressed the wrong button!). After halftime Arminia did their best to kill the clock, but the Frankfurt captain intercepted a pass and put a shot past a shocked Rowen Fernandez to make it 4-1. The rest of the half was set to the soundtrack of "Auf Wiedersehen"s and plenty of "Ole!'s, which actually began after Zuma's goal.

Going into their seventh match, Arminia sat in fifth in the table, only two points behind league leaders Borussia Dortmund with a game in hand. The switch to a 3-5-2 has been successful so far, as Arminia lead the league with 17 goals for, but despite 12 goals against, their +5 goal differential is joint-best in the league.

Bundesliga League Table, during Matchweek 7

Until next time!

I've tried more than once to sneak a preview of this, but with the Winter Break less than a week away, it's a great time to unveil the centrepiece of our Winter break discussions (That is, other than transfers and the search for a new manager). Yes, I'm trying my hand at running the club this season, albeit on FIFA 08.

Now, before we dive into the season, I just need to make sure everyone knows that I am hopeless at this game. I've tried to play it on normal difficulty, but despite my best efforts I can only win when it's Arsenal-TuS Koblenz or some other ridiculous mismatch. As a result, I have to take it back a notch to Easy difficulty, which means that if/when I get the lineup like I want it and start rolling up the score, it isn't because I'm that good, but rather I've gathered enough talent to finally get the leg up on the AI to compensate for my ineptness.

So with that said, let's look at the financial situation as well as the Board's expectations:

Opening Budget: $1.3 million

Sponsor: $120,000 per match with 50% win bonus 

Expectations: 

(1) Don't get relegated

(2) Don't spend more than $920,000 on player transfers 

(3) Sign Jonas Kamper to a 3 year extension 

(4) Get to the 2nd round of the DFB-Pokal 

Yikes. Financially we're in good shape, especially if we get on a good run with the win bonus. However, being handcuffed on transfer spending is not good (albeit pretty realistic), so if I want to get some players, it's going to have to be on some free transfers. And yes, I'm looking to shake up the squad a lot. Like in real life, priority one is to fix the back line, which is old, slow, and not that great.

With the advent of friendlies in Manager Mode, I'll see exactly how bad they are and try to get some players before the transfer deadline. As a result, I scheduled four friendlies with some pretty straightforward opposition.

Friendly #1: Rapid Wien 0-2 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Rapid Wien: None Arminia Bielefeld: Christian Eigler (17'), Sibusiso Zuma (90')

What Happened: Arminia controlled the flow of play against the T-Mobile Bundesliga's 4th Place team from the previous season for the entire match. The score could have been 0-5 if anyone from Arminia could hit a barn door from three paces, which is proving to be an issue already. 

Friendly #2: Columbus Crew 2-3 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Columbus Crew: Rogers (45'), Moreno (55') Arminia Bielefeld: Robert Tesche (8', 47'), Zuma (41')

What Happened: The match was nowhere near as close as the scoreline indicated, as Arminia put 11 shots on goal to Columbus' 3. Robert Tesche put Arminia up in the 8th minute with a shot from 35 yards which beat goalkeeper Will Hesmer. Two more goals had Arminia up 3-0 shortly before halftime, and Columbus got one back shortly before halftime after walking past a stoic defence (Get ready to hear this a lot...). Despite Columbus cutting the lead down to one in the 55th minute, Arminia faced no further challenges for the rest of the match.

Friendly #3: Arminia Bielefeld 1-0 Los Angeles Galaxy 

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Eigler (75') Los Angeles: None 

What Happened: The Galaxy, ever looking for new and exciting ways to make money off of David Beckham, came to Bielefeld to take on Arminia in a friendly. The match was quite chippy, with tackles flying on both sides. Beckham wowed the crowd with two sensational free kicks from 30 yards, both hitting the crossbar despite beating Rowen Fernandez. Unlike LA, Arminia converted on their chances when Christian Eigler scored from a pass from a Jorg Bohme free kick. After the match, Galaxy manager  Frank Yallop complained about Arminia's incessant tackling against Landon Donovan. Arminia's manager quipped "Landycakes needs to man up and take his tackles like a man."

Friendly #4: Arminia Bielefeld 5-1 Slavia Prague

Scoring:  Arminia Bielefeld: Leonidas Kampantais (11', 60' [Penalty]), Tesche (38'), Artur Wichniarek (44' [Penalty]), Jonas Kamper (66') Slavia Prague: Vicek (57')

Sendings off: Slavia Prague: Brabec (44')

What Happened: Evidently Slavia Prague were looking ahead to their Champions League Qualifying Matches against Ajax Amsterdam, as Arminia pounded Slavia Prague 5-1 in their final preseason friendly. Leonidas scorched the Slavia back line with a 40 yard run to score in the 11th minute, and Arminia did not look back. It was 2-0 in the 44th minute when Artur Wichniarek was taken down by a professional foul, resulting in a red card for the Slavia defender. Wichniarek converted the penalty, and after that Arminia dominated possession despite Slavia getting a goal back. All and all, a great way to end the preseason.

With the preseason done, I tossed the three youth team members that I had signed (All with forgettable names) and shipped them off on loan deals to 2. Bundesliga sides. Knowing how players fatigued, I levelled my medical staff up three times, and looks to start bulking up my squad. I placed a $900,000 bid for Munich 1860 striker Markus Schroth, only for 1860 to turn me down. Looking around on the Free Agents list, I saw striker Nicola Amoruso (Reggina) and Moises Hurtado (Espanyol) sitting there. Amoruso would provide me with a real striker with pace that would be a great stop-gap whilst I look for some younger striker since Zuma and Wichniarek's days are numbered. Moises, despite being sent off in last year's UEFA Cup Final, would be a great fullback who's young, fast, and still has room for improvement. In the end, I was only able to sign Moises, and only after the third match of the season. To finish up the transactions, VfL Osnabrück offered nearly $500,000 for defender Markus Schuler, a full $100,000 over his listed value. Considering I has just signed a defender 4 years younger than him with a better rating, he was sent packing.

The Bundesliga's season opened up with Arminia on the road for two of its first three matches. As of now I've just finished the third match.

Match #1: Hannover 96 1-1 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Hannover 96: Pinto (47') Arminia Bielefeld: Zuma (20')

What Happened: Arminia had shown in its friendlies that they were going to be a side with a relentless attack, since its back line had proven to be weak against weak opposition, much less full Bundesliga sides. They established this right off the bat with three corners within the first 10 minutes. Zuma made it 1-0 with a great pass from Siyabonga Nkosi, leaving Arminia in control at halftime. Immediately after halftime Hannover levelled as Pinto walked past the Arminia back four. *ugh* Despite Arminia's best efforts, the match ended 1-1.

Match #2: Arminia Bielefeld 2-1 Energie Cottbus

Scoring: Arminia Bielefeld: Leonidas (68') Rudiger Kauf (78') Energie Cottbus: Aloneftis (26')

What Happened: A packed Alm were shocked as Cottbus pressed the Arminia defence, ending up with a 1-0 lead after Mathias Hain let in a soft goal, which lasted well past halftime. As the second half wore on, the crowd became more and more dejected until the manager switched formations from a 4-1-2-1-2 to a 4-3-3 and brought on Zuma to help out Leonidas and Abdelaziz Ahanfouf. It worked as planned as immediately after Zuma fed Leonidas a sweet pass which he converted into a goal. 10 minutes later a gaffe by a Cottbus defender put the ball at Leonidas' feet, who passed it to Kauf, whose volley from 25 yards would not be denied. Of course, the crowd treated the manager like the genius he is as Arminia took the 3 points.

Match 3: Karlsruher SC 5-3 Arminia Bielefeld

Scoring: Karlsruher SC: Iashvili (18', 50' 68'), Timm (53', 61') Arminia Bielefeld: Leonidas (39'), Kauf (56'), Eigler (76')

What Happened: The good feeling from the previous week's win were washed away in a hurry as KSC went up 1-0 on the first of five occasions where the back line simply let a player walk through them and score on a shocked Mathias Hain. Arminia leveled up from Leonidas via a great pass from Wichniarek, but two goals in a 3 minute span made it 3-1. Yet another volley by Kauf made it 3-2, but another pair of goals in a short span made it 5-2. In a desperate bid to draw level, the manager took off Kauf and brought on Zuma in the 70th minute, switching from a 4-3-3 to a 4-2-4 formation last seen in the 1950s by the Mighty Magyars. It seemed to work as Eigler made it 5-3, but Eigler missed two more sitters in the final 15 minutes to ensure KSC's victory.

After three matches Arminia sit in midtable with 4 points, and the manager is at a loss as to how to fix the leaky defence. Part of the problem is unavoidable (The defencive AI is shambolic), but I'm still looking for a solution. There's plenty of depth in midfield so I may be tempted to go to a 3-5-2 or a 3-4-3 to keep opposing attackers from the back line. We will see.

... at least your questions, that is.

With the Bundesliga Winter Break looming in December-January, there will be a dearth of stories to talk about, and I don't want to be stuck just making posts regaling you with tales of players who almost signed during the January transfer window. And you probably don't want to read posts like that either.

So with that said, I'm tossing out the old Mail Bag looking for your questions about die Blauen. I'm asking now at the dawn of autumn because I know I'll be getting e-mails that will require me 4 months to get the answer to, so I'm getting a jump on it now! Almost any question will be fair game, and, depending on the response, we may have an early edition of Die Blauen Mailbag or two just to try it out.

Now that you've read this and are absolutely dying to e-mail the blog wanting to know who the All-time Arminia XI is, or something of that sort, there are two ways to contact the blog:

(1) If you're a member of OleOle (if you're not, why aren't you? It's free!), you can send me a message via my profile.

(2) If you're not a member of OleOle, or don't want to message me that way, you can send an e-mail to die blauen blog at gmail dot com (Avoiding spam here).

When you contact me, put "Die Blauen Mailbag" in the topic and make sure to give me a real name/screen name and a location so I can mention it in the mailbag. 

Despite my best efforts, mastery of the German language has eluded me. After all, it isn't the easiest language to learn, and as Mark Twain summed the experience up:

Whenever [a] German dives into a sentence, that is the last you are going to see of him till he emerges on the other side of his Atlantic with his verb in his mouth. (For the record, he had a lot more than that to say about the German language)

It's not for the faint of heart, especially if you're entering the world of football in Germany. 

So, there was great joy here at die Blauen Blog when on the club's new and improved website, a news story appeared today that went as such:

Dear Arminia-Fans,

We now offer a special section on arminia-bielefeld.de devoted to our English speaking supporters and guests. Here you will find basic information on ticketing and your way to the SchücoArena. We are planning on gradually expanding this section, so check back later for more on “Die Blauen”.

What can I say? I'm stoked, or rather Ich schürte... I think.

Link: Arminia Bielefeld's English page

 

With the international break upon us, there is no match this weekend for me to get heartburn over, so that means that it would be a good time to delve into a little Arminiageschichte. Now, in the last edition of Die Arminiageschichte, the subject of Bielefeld's very existence was questioned, but this time the metaphysical will be cast aside in favour of a football player who was truly a force of nature, and his run-in with Arminia Bielefeld on a pitch in a rather unlikely place. Perhaps you've heard of this fellow?

Some folks say this guy was pretty good.

Yes. Pele. Everyone loves him, and everyone knows he scored a metric ton or two of goals in his career for FC Santos, the Brazilian national team, and the New York Cosmos, but what most folks don't know is that Pele, as a player for Santos, played against Arminia Bielefeld in a friendly in the United States on 10 June 1973.

I ran across this story on the rather exceptional Arminia Bielefeld blog Blog5 (Blog auf Deutsch), who gave a link to the story surrounding this match from the Vlothoer Anzeiger, the newspaper of record from Vlotho, a town of around 20,000 about a half hour to the northeast of Bielefeld. The story (Link auf Deutsch) is based on Vlotho resident Dieter Preis, who got to play in the Bielefeld-Santos match during his short stint with the club.

Lucky dog.

In the aftermath of the 1971-72 Bundesliga Bribery Scandal (a subject of a future die Arminiageschichte), Arminia Bielefeld was tossed down to the third division of German football, and the young Preis was signed up for the squad. His career with die Blauen ended a bit ignominiously when, despite a ban on alcohol during preseason training, the manager caught him in a tavern with a beer glass in his hand. Despite it being filled with an innocent soft drink, he got the axe. I guess that's a footballer's life for you.

Sitting in the Regionaliga West in the second season after their forced drop, which they finished 11th, the club managed to arrange a friendly with Brazilian giant Santos, led by, of course, Pele. This friendly would, of course, not be held in the cozy Almstadion, but rather the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a part of Santos' tour of the US. Bielefeld would get money for the appearance, and the semi-pro players (When Preis wasn't milling about for die Blauen, he was an electrician.) would get their chance to play against Pele and Co.

In front of a crowd of over 60,000 (JFK Stadium's capacity was 75,000), the friendly got underway with Preis sitting on the bench. In the 10th minute, defender Wolfgang Mittendorf had to be replaced because of stomach cramps, and Preis got the unenviable job of defending against Pele. Of course, Preis noted how Pele was a step ahead of everyone else--even at age 34--and at one point slipped through a slew of defenders to score a goal in Santos' 5-0 rout of Bielefeld. After the match, Pele came to the Bielefeld locker room and talked to the players and signed autographs, which Preis showed in his photo above.

Nowadays, Preis is a tennis player for VfL Herford, and recently won the district championship in his age category. However, to Preis, this pales in comparison to the day he shared the pitch with a force of nature in, of all places, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

ESPN Soccernet columnist Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger is a rather swell fellow. His columns are always entertaining and informative, and most of all, he actually mentions Arminia Bielefeld from time to time, and almost always in a positive light, which makes him one of the world's greatest English-language football writers automatically. Unlike previous mentions of die Blauen, Hesse-Lichtenberger gives Arminia, and in particular manager Ernst Middendorp, a column all to their own.

Without quoting the column in full, he names Middendorp the Bundesliga manager of the year, and goes into detail as to why he is Bielefeld's Manager of the Century.

Enjoy!

Read the article at this link.

Since I started this blog, I've received several e-mails questioning me why exactly would I waste so much time writing a blog that centres on a club that virtually no one in the English-speaking world's ever heard of. So, rather than respond to these questions individually, I figured I'd put on my teaching cap (since it's what I do five days a week anyway...) and begin a not-quite-regular series on the history of the club, aptly named "die Arminiageschichte," or "Arminia History," for those who have even less of an understanding of German than I do.

With that said, supporting Arminia Bielefeld isn't so much a matter of supporting a club as it is a matter of the metaphysical. After all, is it possible to support a club from a city that does not exist?

 

Sparrenburg Castle: A figment of your imagination...or is it?

 

It is a question that has perplexed folks from around the world since at least 1995, when a Usenet post brought up the question of the city of Bielefeld's existence (Link auf Deutsch). As the poster noted, despite the government's statistics showing Bielefeld as one of Germany's 20 most populated metropolitan areas, a rather well-attended university, and two Autobahns connecting nearby, the city of Bielefeld did not exist. After all, as he noted, no one seems to have ever been there, met anyone, or claim to have lived there.

If this was the case, then there was no other conclusion-- Bielefeld did not exist, at least not how the German government portrayed it. The site of Bielefeld was obviously Germany's Area 51: Home to Ailens, Elvis, Jimmy Hoffa, and JFK too! Bielefeld's existence was merely a facade to cover up the goings-on there. The Train station? A mock up. The university? Made up too. The fact that Bielefeld was hit with an eleven-ton bomb in World War II? The history books were doctored. Arminia Bielefeld, the city's football club? A group of actors hired out for the government. After all, if they were a real football club, as one German noted, why else would they be so anonymous?

 

Actors. Every one of them.

 

The Bielefeld Conspiracy or die Bielefeld-Verschwörung, has been a mainstay of Germans on the Internet since Achim Held's post in 1994, and any time the city is brought up, it usually goes like this...

Innocent Person: Say, you're German. Have you ever been to Bielefeld?

Your Average German: Bielefeld does not exist!

Innocent Person: Why do you say that?

Your Average German: Are you from there?

Innocent Person: No.

Your Average German: Know anyone from there?

Innocent Person: No.

Your Average German: Ever been there?

Innocent Person: Why yes! I wa...

Your Average German: You're just a part of the Conspiracy...

Poor Bielefeld (about the size of Montgomery, AL, Peoria, IL, or Anchorage, AK for comparison) has been the butt of jokes across Germany ever since, and the municipal government has spent hundreds of thousands of Euros trying to point out the fact that Bielefeld does exist, and is a very nice place to be. What doesn't help Bielefeld is, in fact, its location. Other cities its size in Germany are a part of a larger metropolitan conglomerate (Bochum, Wuppertal), or were important enough to be noticed on their own (Bonn). Bielefeld, on the other hand, sits in a rural area of Germany between Dortmund and Hanover, and has little in the way of tourist traffic because of the fact that it is off of the beaten path. Germany's ICE train line zips through on its way to more popular spots and the Autobahn runs around the town, giving passers-by little chance to stop by.

 

Bielefeld's Courthouse: Doesn't exist either!

 

Of course, Arminia's relatively anonymous status in the Bundesliga does little to help either. So, until Elvis, Jimmy Hoffa, and Bigfoot all escape from their cages to frolic in the Westphalian countryside or Arminia make some serious noise in the Bundesliga, Bielefeld's status will remain in doubt, making supporting die Blauen not just a question of dedication, but also a question of the fabric of the universe itself.

 

 

Week 2 is in the books, and what a week it was, especially fantasy-wise. Manchester United's struggles continue to foil fantasy rosters everywhere, and the Eredivisie and Scottish Premier League each had games with 7+ goals. With that said, let's take a look at the leagues around Europe.If you're unfamiliar with the scoring system I'm using, check out the first Fantasy Football Roundup of the year .

Dutch Eredivisie

Field Player of the Week: Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (F), Ajax Amsterdam: 9 points (1 App, 1 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Well, that's one way to kick the season off.

Huntelaar was front and centre of Ajax's 8-1 dismantling of newly promoted de Graafschaap on Sunday with 4 goals and an assist. Huntelaar was all over the pitch, scoring from at range, in the box, and from the penalty spot. Now, if he can only do the same for Ajax this week against Slavia Prague in the Champions League, Ajax supporters would be even happier.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Brian van Loo, FC Groningen: 9 Points (1 App, 1 Win, 4 S, 0 GC, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

It's hard enough to keep a clean sheet in the goal-happy Eredivisie, but van Loo took advantage of NAC Breda's rusty aim to get a clean sheet in Groningen's 3-0 win on Saturday.

Player to Pick Up: Hedwiges Maduro (M), Ajax Amsterdam: 4 points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

The heir-apparent to Wesley Sneijder impressed folks in Ajax's 8-1 win on Sunday with a pair of goals If Ajax is to repeat its goal scoring output from this past season, it will need service from attacking midfielders, and Maduro's performance today may be a harbinger of things to come.

 

English Premier League

Field Player of the Week: Steed Malbranque (M), Tottenham Hotspur: 4 Points (2 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

When you spend 40 million on goal scorers, and your strike force is sputtering, who do you call? Why Steed Malbranque, of course! It didn't hurt that Tottenham played Derby County, but Malbranque took advantage of a shocking opening fifteen minutes by Derby to net two goals, but spent the next seventy-five fruitlessly looking for his hat trick.

Goalkeeper of the Week: David James, Portsmouth: 17 Points (2 App, 1 Win, 1 Draw, 16 S, 2 GC, 0 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Last year's Goalkeeper of the Year is at it again, as David James allowed Portsmouth to take a crucial point in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United as well as a 3-1 win over Bolton. To top the week off, James got a call up for the England National team for their Friendly against Germany.

Player to Pick Up: Antoine Sibierski (F), Wigan Athletic: 5 Points (2 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Wigan Athletic's early season success can be attributed to the smart signing of the former Newcastle United striker. Sibierski's 3 goals currently lead the league, and if Wigan are to continue their success, Sibierski will have to shoulder the load.

French Ligue 1

Field Player of the Week: Marama Vahirua (F), Lorient: 8 Points (2 App, 4 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

The Ligue 1 goal scoring leader struck four times this week with two goals each in Lorient's 3-1 win over Paris-St. Germain and 2-1 win over Lyon. Add two assists the previous week against AS Monaco and his ten fantasy points lead all French field players.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Stephane Cassard, Strasbourg: 14 Points (2 App, 2 Win, 9 S, 1 GC, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

What a week for newly-promoted Strasbourg. Six goals and two wins over Auxerre and Toulouse, backed by Cassard, who blanked Auxerre and allowed a single goal against Toulouse, have the club only three points out of the league lead. The test for the club is upcoming as they host Lens and go to Lorient in the next two weeks. We shall see if they can keep it up.

Player to Pick Up: Jan Koller (F), AS Monaco: 4 Points (2 App, 2 G, 0 A, 1 YC, 0 RC) The ageless Czech striker, serving in a limited role so far this year for Monaco, struck twice in Monaco's 3-0 win over Sochaux. Whether he can keep up scoring or not is another question, but he is a sneaky play because of his size (6' 8").

German Bundesliga

Field Player of the Week: Tommy Bechmann (F), VfL Bochum: 4 Points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Goals abounded in the Bundesliga this weekend, but Bechmann was the only multi-goal scorer this weekend. What made it better? His double provided all the offence Bochum needed in their 2-1 win over Energie Cottbus.

Goalkeeper of the Week: Jan Lastuvka, VfL Bochum: 11 Points (1 App, 1 Win Draw, 1 GC, 7 S, 0 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

It was a bad weekend for goalkeepers as goalkeepers either faced a ton of shots and let in a ton of goals in the process, or faced a couple of shots. Jan Lastuvka stood out above the mediocrity with his seven saves in Bochum's 2-1 win over Energie Berlin, giving Bochum a sweep of player of the week honours.

Player to Pick Up: Luca Toni (F), Bayern Munich: 3 Points (1 App, 1 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

The Italian striker was a key component of Bayern's 4-0 demolition of Werder Bremen on Saturday with a goal, assist, and a bucketful of chances. Any questions of whether he can fit in the Bundesliga should be answered by now.

Scottish Premier League

Field Player of the Week: Jean-Claude Darcheville (F), Rangers: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Rangers blew out Falkirk 7-2 on Saturday, and leading the attack was the enigmatic Frenchmen, who opened his account with a pair of goals and an assist. Long associated with the Scottish giant from Bordeaux, it should be only a matter of time until he reaches his career high of 11 goals, scored in the 2002/03 season

Goalkeeper of the Week: Yves Ma Kalamby, Hibernian: 10 Points (1 App, 1 Draw, 7 S, 2 GC, 1 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

In a rather mediocre 0-0 draw with Dundee United, the Belgian goalkeeper outdueled Grzegorz Szamotulski for not only the match, but also for Goalkeeper of the Week honours. Kalamby's stellar season so far has Hibs withing two points of Rangers at the top of the table.

Player to Pick Up: Daniel Cousin (M), Rangers: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Rangers' other new French signing equaled Darcheville's two goals and an assist in their win on Saturday, and the duo look posed to keep Rangers above their Old Firm rivals this season. In the process, Cousin should be a solid signing for any team searching for some extra goals.

Team of the Week

Goalkeeper

• David James, Portsmouth: 17 Points (2 App, 1 Win, 1 Draw, 16 S, 2 GC, 0 CS, 0 YC, 0 RC)

Field Players

• Jan Koller (F), AS Monaco: 4 Points (2 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Steed Malbranque (M), Tottenham Hotspur: 4 Points (2 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Hedwiges Maduro (M), Ajax Amsterdam: 4 points (1 App, 2 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Daniel Cousin (M), Rangers: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Jean Claude Darcheville (F), Rangers: 5 Points (1 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Antoine Sibierski (F), Wigan Athletic: 5 Points (2 App, 2 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Marama Vahirua (F), Lorient: 8 Points (2 App, 4 G, 0 A, 0 YC, 0 RC)
• Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (F), Ajax Amsterdam: 9 points (1 App, 1 G, 1 A, 0 YC, 0 RC