the curse of the RED jersey

Other people may have written about the american idol results on their blogs, but well, I'm going to write about football. Because I had already thought of what to write on my blog today when I was watching the Liverpool vs AC Milan game. The thoughts came in when the two teams were playing in extra time. Well, to set things right, I don't have any superstitious beliefs[don't be too engrossed in my use of the the word "curse"] about what happened in the game this morning. I just thought "the curse of the RED jersey" was a catchy title for my current post. And when you spot a trend[albeit only in one season], you can't help but try to "theorise"...

Anyway, back to the game, did anyone realise that both the Champions' League final teams have red jerseys? I'm not talking about their jerseys in the game itself, but rather their day-to-day jerseys. Of course we couldn't have both teams wearing red jerseys this morning cos it'd be difficult to differentiate the players from the 2 sides. So, look at their day-to-day jerseys. Liverpool with a completely red kit, and AC Milan with their famous black and red striped shirt and black shorts. How did the game end? With a penalty shoot-out right?

Now, try to recall what happened to the FA Cup final match between Arsenal and Man Utd. Both these sides have red-based jerseys. No explanation needed cos I think almost everybody knows how their respective jerseys look like. So, how did the game end?

Well, you may say that the route to the penalty shoot-out differs in both matches. After normal time, the game in England was tied at 0-0. In the case of the game in Turkey, the game was tied at 3-3 after normal time. While the Arsenal vs Man Utd match was made exciting through the 20-odd shots delivered by the various Man Utd players[and yes, none went in], the Liverpool vs AC Milan game was more exhilarating in that most of the shots delivered actually materialised. Although I am a not a fan of any of the 2 sides that played this morning, watching the goal feast was really a thumping experience. The only way it could have been more interesting was if the score had changed bit by bit, like 1-0, 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, 3-2 and finally 3-3. But nobody's complaining about how the game went to AC Milan in the first half, with a scoreline of 3-0, and how Liverpool's destiny was completely changed in the second half by having their players score 3 goals in the space of about 10 minutes. I say it was a thriller.

So, back to the curse. If one could follow what I was saying, he would realise that the trend is such that 2 teams with red jerseys cannot compete in a final. Cos, the game will end in a stalemate and the winner can only be decided through penalties converted by equally stale players. 90min+injury time+30min+injury time=roughly 130min of play. So it wouldn't be a wonder that we have stale players trying to shoot that ball into the back of the net to end the stalemate. AC Milan has always been lauded as a team with flair and class, but this morning, they became stale much faster than the ever-energetic Liverpool side. Who knows? Liverpool might have written the plot for the final long ago. Give Milan a few goals and play the game only in the 2nd half. It would have taken a very brave Liverpool to execute that master plan, but hey, nothing is impossible in football.

I seem to be enjoying myself so much typing this post that I dunno where to end. Let's just observe what happens in future seasons. Just remember, if you have 2 red-jersey teams competing in a final, chances are the game will go to extra time and can only be decided by a penalty shoot-out. If my hypothesis is proven, maybe some kind soul can buy a red jersey someday. An original red jersey belonging to my beloved club, Manchester United.