Speed is temporary, class is permanent

Thierry Henry was a star the size of a supernova in 2006 with Arsenal Football Club. Even with his signing a long contract extension, staying to carry the torch of Arsenal football to Ashburton Grove in Islington from the old historic ground in the Highbury neighborhood, 2006-07 would be his last season in North London. Then on Monday evening, Henry returned to his old club as a late substitute in Arsenal’s first FA Cup match of 2012 against Leeds United. The entrance was heartwarming. The exit was epic.

Blackburn gets a lump of coal for Christmas

The team at the bottom of the table of the English Prermier League on Christmas Day has been relegated at the end of 19 of the 20 seasons the league has been in existence. It’s called the Curse of Christmas. Blackburn Rovers are this season’s recipient of the lump of relegation-threatened coal in their Christmas stocking.