Radamel Falcao: The Debate

After a stuttering season so far with Manchester United – Radamel Falcao’s proposed £43Million pound move to at the end of the season looks in doubt. Such a transfer fee is high, however for a player of Falcao’s calibre, it appears a good deal. But what will Louis Van Gaal, manager of Manchester United, choose to do? More importantly, what is best to do?

The goal-record of Falcao is almost second to none. For years he has performed brilliantly for some of Europe’s biggest clubs – FC Porto, Atletico Madrid and AS Monaco. However he has also had several unfortunate moments. He had a serious injury during the 2013-14 season, culminating in him missing the 2014 World Cup. It is also a well-known secret that Falcao wasn’t openly happy to move to AS Monaco, and the move to Manchester United as well perhaps wasn’t his favoured choice, with a dream-move to Real Madrid dashed by his injuries.

Louis Van Gaal on the other hand is the current Manager of Manchester United and has overseen an overhaul of the squad, subsequently leading to them rising the table. Van Gaal has had many critics so far in the 2014-15 season, though recent victories over bitter rivals Liverpool and Manchester City have helped to boost United’s hopes of qualifying for the 2015-16 Champions League. What is important to note, however, is that Falcao has scarcely been involved in recent months, with just four goals all season.

It is getting to the point now where Van Gaal and the powers that be at Old Trafford need to make a decision. It would be an incredible gamble to spend over 40M on a player who is close to 30, along with a track record of poor injuries. Many question over whether or not Falcao will ever return to his goalscoring form that made him one of the most-feared Forwards in the game. A move to a different club may help re-invigorate Falcao, though United will know that Falcao needs to start scoring on a more regular basis to have a move considered for him – though time is quickly running out of time.

However, the attitude of Falcao cannot be questioned. Falcao is the ultimate professional – he is known to be highly popular in the United dressing room. “El Tigre” as he is known in his native Colombia also has a fantastic track-record, suggesting that he might one day return to form. Falcao is known to be popular to the United fans as well, while his immense reputation around the world can have potential positives in sponsorship deals – after all Falcao is still one of the biggest names in the game.

Overall, decision time for Manchester United and Falcao is fast approaching. There is no doubting just how good a player Falcao is – his track record speaks enough for that. However, he has had a dreadful season, and there is no doubting that on current form United would be considered ill-minded to spend over 40M on Falcao. But it is possible that he will regain his scoring form in the future – and perhaps a gamble is well worth it on this occasion. It shall be interesting to see what happens – though time Is running out for Falcao – it looks like the two parties could soon part ways.

/MF/
(‘051’)

The Value of Anything: It’s only known when Gone

“See you Again” is the hit song by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth that acts as the soundtrack to the end of the famous “Fast and Furious 7” movie. The movie acts as a tribute to the now-deceased Paul Walker. The movie has been a huge commercial success and fans of Walker have found the ending to be incredibly emotional. However, one You Tube comment that gained particular attention was one talking about how only now Walker is appreciated. This is true of anything in life – something is only truly appreciated when it is gone.

Paul Walker was a well-known actor who passed away in 2013 at the age of 30. The cause of death was a car crash, before flames engulfed the car. Walker had completed much of the filming for the movie Fast 7 before his death. However, in a fitting touch, the Director changed the ending to accommodate a tribute to Paul Walker, where his character meets with actor Vin Diesel’s character, the two sharing a final drive together before driving in their separate ways, followed by a “For Paul” graphic. The scene has garnered rave reviews, with many finding it incredibly emotional. I mentioned in the Introduction that there had been a comment on You Tube that had inspired this post, written by a user dubbed “Austin K” – take a look at what he had to say:

This comment does beg the question – why is it that something is only appreciated when it is gone? But it is also quite a sad question, which I am sure many people can relate to in many different ways. Supposedly the answer is quite simple – when someone or something is no longer around, only then you realise you never had the chance to say all of those things you wish you had been able to say.

Moreover, it is interesting how the comment talks about being “nice and compassionate.” This also begs the question why society can’t be like this all of the time. There are always so many meaningless arguments in life, disagreements which shrouds friendships in disarray. It looks as if it would be near-impossible for society to always be compassionate about one another, until sadly the person isn’t around any longer.

As I said earlier, I am sure many people can relate to the messages in this post. As sad as it is – it is true that the value of something is only known when it is gone. It is highly possible that anyone reading this has lost someone or something that they wish had been treated differently. But sadly that is life, but it doesn’t mean that  the good times shared with the person can be forgotten and the happy times treasured.

Overall, the 2013 death of Paul Walker led to an outpour of grief, perhaps his true talent was only appreciated then. We often see with celebrity deaths, such as Michael Jackson and other famous singers, that only then are they appreciated. But it isn’t just celebrities, it is the friends, brothers, sisters of people who too are only truly appreciated when they are gone. A final message would be to therefore cherish every second of life, as we never know what lies around the corner – make the most of what life has to offer.

/MF/
(‘050’)

This is my 50th post. Thanks for all of the views up to this point. All the best for the forthcoming times, here’s to the next 50! Keep the Faith all!

American Police Black Person Shooting: A History

Not for the first time in recent history, an unarmed black man was shot dead by a member of the American Police a few days ago, prompting widespread condemnation of the incident. As mentioned, this is far from the first time something like this has happened, with down the years several black people shot dead. Perhaps what is most poignant about this story, is that it has led to black citizens in America to detail their plight, with several interesting images surfacing since the shooting.

American Police

In the latest incident, Walter Scott, a black man, was shot dead by a Police Officer named Michael Slager, who is white. Although White looks like he could be prosecuted, there have been several instances when this hasn’t been the case. Recent cases similar to this include Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and Michael Brown among others.

As mentioned, several images have surfaced, with many being shared heavily on social media. The first of these features “the talk”.

The image above was created by writer Derrick Jaxn recently, yet after the shooting of Walter Scott, gained mass notoriety. The talk suggests that parents need to tell their children to fully comply with authorities, but not as it is necessarily the right thing to do, but because it seems it is either comply or die, if you are black.

The next image shows how Walter Scott was linked with the military.

It is interesting in this image how there is a quote about how “black lives matter.” It is almost as if the recent incidents surrounding black people has led to them believing that black lives aren’t as important – which is highly harrowing. The fact that Walter Scott was a US Veteran could change any perspective on this incident.

This final one is perhaps the one that provokes the most discussion. The image shows protests taking place back in 1936, and now once again in 2015 – almost eighty years later. Quite rightly, it asks – “how far have we come?” This is a great question – in all of that time have things really changed? It doesn’t seem so, with again black people seemingly at risk from police brutality more than ever.

Overall, this is a another sad incident to engulf USA. For such a great country – there are many disappointing incidents involving their Police force. The images that have raised on social media since the incident sum up what life is like for black people in USA – it isn’t equal.  In this day and age there really should be equal rights, it also questions how far society has come in the last few years – it is highly apparent things need to change. In conclusion., may Walter Scott Rest in Peace, and hopefully time will help solve this issue.

/MF/
(‘049’)

For more reporting on this issue, a writer specialising in this topic, for whom much inspiration for this article was gained, can be found here: https://twitter.com/mwendling