tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22537378645813971352024-02-19T04:30:55.065-08:00GolGolGolGolGolDavid Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-60976886417168342122011-08-11T06:38:00.000-07:002011-08-19T15:11:14.307-07:00TRANSFERS & TAKEOVERS<br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/08/19/3492.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/08/19/s_3492.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='228' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">SOME NON-PREMIER LEAGUE POINTS OF INTEREST FOR THE COMING SEASON</span><br /><br />Aside from the usual questions, such as Who can stop Barcelona in Europe, and How long before Arsenals form utterly collapses, and Can Ibrahmovic win another League title this Season, many of the most intriguing stories in European football in the 2011-12 Season appear connected to big clubs recently given cash injections by big-money foreign purchasers. Then there are the risky transfers of young South American talent and the new Managerial appointments. Some clubs combine a few or all of these elements...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">1. ROMA</span><br />New money means a new project, new players and most startlingly, a new Coach. Spanish legend Luis Enrique, a fine player for both Real Madrid and Barcelona in his time, has been brought in to introduce some Barcelona-style magic to the Roman giants. He guided Barcelona B to third place in the Spanish Second Division in a role last occupied by one Pep Guardiola, playing football of similar style and tactical basis as that played by the European Champions.<br />The aim, then, will be to play beautiful possession football, and finish as high up as possible in a Serie A which looks wide open this Season. Champions Milan will start as favourites, but their weaknesses were exposed by Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League last Season, and late wobbles hurt Napoli and Udinese, who both could have increased the pressure on an awkwardly broken-backed, if talented, Milan side. This year Inter are in transition, Napoli and Udinese will have Champions League distractions, Lazio have strengthened and Juventus have a host of new signings to bed in. <br />Roma face the new Season with their established performers - the likes of Totti, Pizarro and DeRossi - ageing but still classy, a few high-maintenance, high-earners transferred out (Vucinic, Riise, Mexes) and some exciting young talent to debut in Serie A. Most obvious is the undoubted talent of Bojan Kirkjic, taken from Barca with much still to prove. Then there is Erik Lamela. The young Argentine prodigy was awesome for a struggling River Plate last Season, and he may find the rhythms of Serie A much to his liking, once he's settled in. More experience was added in the shape of the wily, cynical old Gabriel Heinze, from Marseille, and goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenberg, from Ajax. How Luis Enrique persuades such a group to trust his Catalan brand of passing football in such a radically different League should be fascinating...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">2. MALAGA</span><br />Legendary Holland centre forward Ruud van Nistelrooy, who has scored goals at every club he has played for, on a free transfer, but with presumably huge wages. Diminutive wunderkind attacking midfielder Diego Buonanotte, from River Plate for €4.5M. Exciting Spanish International playmaker Santiago Cazorla, attacking lynchpin for the stylish Villarreal side of the last few years, for €21M. Wily, experienced French International holding midfielder Jeremy Toulalan from Lyon, for €11M. Joaquin, Spanish International winger, from Valencia for €4.2M. Isco, a 19 year old winger of dazzling ability and potential, from Valencia for €6M. Big centre half Sergio Sanchez, from Sevilla, for €2M. Spanish International left back Nacho Monreal, from Osasuna, for €6M. Cultured, vastly experienced Dutch centre-half Joris Mathijsen from Hamburg for €2.5M. <br />And with a single summer of purchases, Malaga have made themselves players in La Liga. Funded by their Qatari Owner Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani, and coached by the sage Manuel Pellegrini, who did so well with modest means at Villarreal before being mistreated at Real Madrid for the crime of not being able to dislodge Barcelona from the top of the table, their new signings address every department of the team. Already possessed of a couple of exciting attackers - Julio Baptista, whose late- season form in 2010/11 basically guaranteed them a mid-table finish and young Uruguayan Seba Fernandez and Venezuelan Rondon - the additions of Buonanotte, Isco and Cazorla in particular suggest that Malaga may be one of the venues in Spain this Season for exciting attacking football. The experience of Van Nistelrooy, Toulalan, Mathijsen and Joaquin should help everybody settle in and pre-Season form has been dazzling. If it doesn't work out, well, they can just go and buy ten more players...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">3. PARIS SAINT GERMAIN</span><br />Very much the sleeping giants of French, if not European football, PSG have been waking up and stretching their limbs over the last couple of Seasons after years of underachievement, serious crowd trouble and flirtation with relegation. More Middle Eastern investment has meant the return of hero Leonardo as a sort of smoother-than-smooth project director, and he has overseen the acquisition of lots of exciting new players, with young French talent like striker Kevin Gamiero (€11M from Lorient), winger Jeremy Menez (€8M from Roma) and defensive midfielder Blaise Matuidi (€10M from Saint Etienne) joined by, most notably the brilliant young Argentine playmaker Javier Pastore, who cost €43M from Palermo. Pastore is worthy of the hype surrounding him, and once he finds his feet and gels with his teammates, PSG will present a serious threat in France to the likes of Lille and Marseille. Whether the solid coach Antoine Kombouare will still be there when success comes is another matter. Once a teammate of Leonardo, and making slow but steady progress at the club before it was bought out, he is tactically rigid, and falls out with players. PSG want success, and the want it now. Slow and steady likely will not do.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">4. BIELSA AT BILBAO</span><br />Marcelo "El Loco" Bielsa makes a long-awaited return to European Club Football after his brief stay at Espanyol in 1998, when he left to take over the Argentina National team after just three games. This time he's at Athletic Bilbao, a club with it's own philosophy and an academy to rival that of Barcelona, and indeed, Bielsa has one of the most exciting young squads in Spain at his disposal, containing the likes of the classy holding player Javier Martinez and towering centre-forward Fernando Llorente (both part of the World Cup winning squad), tricky, aggressive little forward/winger Iker Muniain, and new signing Ander Herrera, an imaginative, technical playmaker with vision and a work ethic. As he showed with Chile, Bielsa works well with young, flexible players, who are open to his methods and have the stamina for the hard work required, and he is already drilling Athletic in his attacking play, using Martinez as a centre back and attacking midfielder DeMarcos as a wing-back of sorts. Bilbao face Mourinho's Real Madrd in their first game, a fascinating clash of football thinkers which should be great to watch. But then, I would expect to say that of all Bielsa's Athletic Bilbao games this season. It's good to have him back in Europe. Let's hope it lasts.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">5. VILLAS-BOAS AT CHELSEA</span><br />Another exciting Football Thinker, Andre Villa-Boas doesn't duck any challenges. Having led Porto through an incredible Season where they went unbeaten in their domestic League, won both it and the Portugeuse Cup, then added the Europa League for good measure, he might have been tempted to stay put and see how his exciting team would do in the Champions League. But instead he accepted the poison chalice of trying to please Roman Abramovich at Chelsea, where only a League Title and/or Champions League triumph will be deemed acceptable. All that and he has to deal with the abhorrent personality of John "I quite fancy being Chelsea manager some day" Terry and the ageing legs and huge egos of Lampard, Drogba, Cole and Malouda, while trying to retrieve Fernando Torres from the depths of himself and give youthful prospects like Josh McEachran and exciting signings like Lukaku a chance to settle and play. And he only has to see off the might of the two Manchester clubs, a resurgent Liverpool and a still-dangerous Tottenham and Arsenal.<br />But he is the real deal. A great talker, an expert motivator, his Porto team blew teams away all last Season, and he seemed to know exactly when to tweak personnel and or formation. If anybody can do all of the above, AVB, as the Englsh Press already appear to have named him, he can.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">6. PACIENCIA AT SPORTING LISBON</span><br />Sporting have had a difficult last ten years. After winning the Portugeuse Championship in 2000, they have had to watch in the years since as the other two members of the "Big Three", Porto and Benfica, have swallowed up all of the titles. In the last few years, little Braga have overtaken them with a second place finish and a Europa League Final appearance. They have to console themselves with the manner in which graduates of the Sporting academy and youth systems dominate the National team (Ronaldo, Nani and Moutinho, most notably) while hoping for the return of good times. Well, this Summer there were big changes in the hope of making those changes happen. Domingos Paciência, the Coach who brought Braga to second place and that Europa League final, has been hired, and virtually an entire team of new players purchased. Some of those many signings are extremely exciting: Fabián Rinaudo, a tough, savvy defensive midfielder from Gimnasia in Argentina, Ricky van Wolfswinkel, the lanky, prolific young Dutch centre forward from FC Utrecht, Diego Capel, the unpredictable Spanish winger, from Sevilla, Diego Rubio, the exciting Chilean wunderkind striker, from Colo Colo and Jeffren, the young forward/ winger, from Barcelona. <br />Paciência is plainly a capable Coach, but it will take a monumental effort to overtake both the Porto team still in place and Benfica, strengthened with some astute summer signings.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">SOME TRANSFERS</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Maxi Moralez to Atalanta</span><br />Arguably the best player in Argentina over the last two years or so, the little playmaker has played in Europe before. A 2008 move from Racing Club to FC Moscow lasted 6 months and 8 games and possibly came too early. His return to Argentina led to Velez Sarsfield and a crucial role in two title triumphs. How good is Moralez? So good that he was perhaps the best player in the 2007 U-20 World Cup winning side that also starred the likes of Aguero, DiMaria, Banega, DiSanto and Zarate. Small but pacy, blessed with vision and the technical ability to exploit it, a skilled dribbler with the ability to score from distance, he can dictate games but also decide them, and if he performs to his potential at Atalanta, then it won't be long before a bigger club comes in for him.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Steven Defour to Porto</span><br />The Belgian midfielder moved from Standard Liege alongside his club mate, the young French centre-half Eliaquim Mangala, after years of persistent links to Manchester United. An all-round midfielder, he has a great engine, good range of passing, tackles well and seems to think tactically. He has left his homeland at a good stage in his development, and this Season will be crucial if he is to fulfil his potential. First up, making himself a fixture in a talented Porto midfield, where he will compete with Moutinho, Belluschi,and Guarin for a place..<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Gokhan Inler to Napoli</span><br />This transfer had been mooted for the last two Seasons. The one thing Napoli's impressive team lacked last Season was a truly commanding midfielder, and Inler is just that. He might be the final piece in the puzzle, and the key to a title Season by the Neapolitan giants.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Arturo Vidal to Juventus</span><br />Juve got Vidal - a versatile, industrious, dominant midfielder or defender - from Bayern Leverkusen right out from under the noses of Bayern Munich who had been linked to him for much of last Season. He is one of the transfers of the summer and Serie A should be a doodle for him.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Djibril Cisse/ Miroslav Klose to Lazio</span><br />Voila, Lazio buy themselves a new, prolific, incredibly experienced strike force in Just a few weeks. Already scoring in pre-Season and the Europa League Qualifiers, they will play in front of the awesome Brazilian playmaker Hernanes, who sometimes seemed to single-handedly keep Lazio in last seasons title race. He will notch up lots and lots of assists, and they will score lots and lots of goals, I fancy...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Sergio Canales to Valencia</span><br />A casualty of Real Madrid's stockpiling of talent - he competed with Kaka, Ozil and Granero for a single place in Mourinho's team - Valencia have bought Canales to be the player they have lacked since David Silva left for Manchester City: the schemer between the lines, the supplier of through-balls, the king of assists. They also nabbed the penetrators little Argentine winger Pablo Piatti from Almeria, and thus their attacking line-up looks rejuvenated and exciting again this year. <br />David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-67930929819303167252011-04-08T07:24:00.000-07:002011-04-22T12:10:29.595-07:00Latin Wonderkids 2When I did my first "Latin Wonderkids" post a few years ago, all of the players I chose were playing in South America. In the months since, all of them bar one moved to Europe. The one who didn't had already been and returned before I wrote the piece. Young South American talent doesn't stay long in South America, and you can probably expect to see every one of the players listed below in European football over the next year or two.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Juan Manuel Iturbe of Cerro Poteno (Argentina)</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/865.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_865.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='202' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Born in Argentina to Paraguayan parents, this tricky little forward has been dubbed the "Paraguayan Messi". An unfair comparison for any player, that, and yet from his appearances for Argentina in the South American U20 Championship and for Cerro Porteno in this years Copa Libertadores, it's almost understandable. Short and stocky yet with a brilliant ability to surge past players with a burst of sudden, unmatchable acceleration, the Messi comparisons stem from his habit of drifting in from the wing and combining clever one-twos with dribbles and feints. He can also finish off those moves, and his play is as reminiscent of Carlos Tevez as it is of Messi. The circumstances of his birth meant that he was eligible to play for either Argentina or Paraguay, and he opted for Argentina after appearing for different youth teams for each Country through his teens. European clubs have been sniffing around him for a couple of years, and he has already signed a pre-contract agreement with Porto, which means he officially becomes their player when he turns 18 in June. Any knowledge of Porto's transfer dealings with South America suggests that they know their business, and if that's not enough, here's some Iturbe in action:<br /><br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/g_DILpEyaXE?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/g_DILpEyaXE?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Erik Lamela of River Plate (Argentina)</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/866.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_866.jpg' border='0' width='207' height='281' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />That the current River Plate first team is thriving and playing some sparkling, fluid attacking football is down mainly to the brilliance of the generation of players recently produced by the Clubs academy. Playmaker Manuel Lanzini, centre forward Gabriel Funes Mori and winger Roberto Pereyra all look to be potentially fantastic talents, but the undoubted star at the centre of this constellation is 19 year old Erik Lamela. He gained some noteriety when Barcelona tried to buy him as a 12 year old, forcing River's Chairman to offer his family financial incentives to remain in Buenos Aires. His emergence into the Senior squad has suggested Barcelona were wise to try to grab him early, as his value will only grow from now on. Possessed of an elegance and sweetness of movement which belies his lanky frame, Lamela can play on the left, but his most effective role appears to be as an enganche or playmaker. His long legs give him terrific pace, enabling him to drift effortlessly past tackles, and his left foot is a magic wand; he is already taking most of River's set-pieces and is the hub around which some lovely passing moves revolve, prompting and moving with intelligence and subtlety. River have already given him the Number 10 shirt formerly worn by such legends as Enzo Francescoli, Pablo Aimar and Ariel Ortega, which isn't bad company. But with a host of European clubs circling it seems unlikely he'll get to wear it for too long...<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/30mmiXwPR-k?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/30mmiXwPR-k?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></div><br /><br /><b>Lucas of Sao Paolo (Brazil)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/867.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_867.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='213' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />His full name is Lucas Rodrigues Moura da Silva, so, ensuring maximum confusion when he shares a pitch with fellow Brazilian Lucas Leiva, of course he's called Lucas. He's an entirely different player, however, a stocky, quick little attacking midfielder who began his career at Corinthians before moving to Sao Paolo, where he has been compared to Kaka. That's more due to position than style, but he is as explosive as that Brazilian playmaker. He dazzled at the South American Under 20s, scoring a hat-trick in a dazzling 6-0 destruction of eventual Runners-Up Uruguay. He combines aggressive eruptions of dribbling with slide-rule passes, making him terrifying in the final third. Brazil's problem over the next decade may well be how to accomodate both him and the more widely known and equally gifted Ganso. Not a bad problem to have, admittedly.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/t89xM1KVYRg?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/t89xM1KVYRg?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Gio Moreno of Racing Club de Avellaneda (Colombia)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/868.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_868.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='223' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Colombian playmaker Moreno is a fantasy player, the sort who does unbelievable things, a luxury player who never bothers defending- never bothers with any of the "negative" aspects of the game - but the sort who can turn a Match in an instant. He's the kind of player who makes you remember why you love football. Elegant, technically perfect, athletic and gifted with superb imagination and vision, Colombia's National team ought to be built around him for the next ten years. His first Season with Racing Club in Argentina instantly confirmed his promise - here was a player seemingly worthy of comparison to the Leagues MVP, Juan Roman Riquelme, and bearing some similarities as a player - and he has been consistently linked with Porto among several big European clubs. A serious injury early in the Season has ruled him out for the remainder, severely damaging Racing's hopes but probably ensuring he stays in Argentina for another Season at least.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/UmgIR4wTuHk?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UmgIR4wTuHk?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Diego Rubio of Colo Colo (Chile)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/869.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_869.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='191' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This 17 year old Chilean striker has goals in his blood. Son of former Colo-Colo forward Hugo Rubio, his brothers both play professionally in Chile and legendary striker Ivan Zamorano (ex-Real Madrid and Inter Milan) is his Godfather. So it's perhaps no surprise that he has scored five goals in his first three appearances for Colo Colo, and that there have already been calls for his selection for the Chilean squad. I've only seen highlights so can't really comment on his style as a player, but you can't argue with this impact or the finishing in this clip:<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/OJbNdK3zdmI?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OJbNdK3zdmI?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Ruben Botta of Tigre (Argentina)</b> <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/870.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_870.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='210' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This 21 year old attacking midfielder has risen to prominence this year back in Argentina at Tigre, after a baffling spell on-loan at FK Ventspils in Latvia. He came through the youth system at Boca Juniors, and can play both as playmaker and on the left side of midfield. He is exciting and inventive on the ball, with an eye for the spectacular and he seems to be growing into his talent, a good sign in a creative player:<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/tXZi7x7VljQ?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tXZi7x7VljQ?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Ivan Pillud of Racing Club de Avellaneda (Argentina)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/871.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_871.jpg' border='0' width='210' height='281' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Pressure? Try the Coach of your National Team invoking comparisons to a living legend and claiming that you can replace him. Thats what Argentina Coach Sergio Batista did when he discussed 24 year old Right Back Pillud in the same breath with Javier Zanetti. But watching Pillud for Racing Club this Season, the comparisons make sense. In a 3-4-3 formation which demands most from its wing-backs, he is a force of nature up and down the flank, displaying attacking threat, defensive sense and quite awesome stamina. He debuted at Tiro Federal in the Argentine Second Division, moved briefly to Newells Old Boys before a big transfer to Europe and Espanyol. There he barely played, and went back to Racing on loan last year. After early injury problems he has been a revelation, and is a contender for a spot in the Argentina Squad for the Copa America this Summer.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/o1EWlQwn1a0?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/o1EWlQwn1a0?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Raul Ruidiaz of Universitario (Peru)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/872.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_872.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='209' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Universitario Desportes are one of Lima's, and by extension Peru's big two alongside Allianza Lima, and their big homegrown success over the last few seasons has been 20 year old Ruidiaz, a forward heavily linked with Udinese, who probably see him as a replacement for bound-for-a-bigger-club Alexis Sanchez. The similarity there would be Ruidiaz's penetrative dribbling ability and recent nose for goal. Far from the finished article, he shows undoubted talent and promise, and a move to the right European club in a year or two might be just the thing for his development.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/tVl63VF28cA?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tVl63VF28cA?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Bryan Carrasco of Audax Italiano (Chile)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/873.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_873.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='153' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Almost a Brazilian-style full-back in that he can play purely in defence, as a winger or as a marauding Wing-back, Chilean Carrasco has gained some notoriety of late due to a ridiculous simulation during a Chile-Ecuador U-20 Qualifying fixture a few months ago where he slapped himself in the face with an opponents hand then dived to the ground clutching himself. Vile as that behaviour may be, Carrasco is an exciting, enterprising defender, strong and fast, confident on the ball and hard in the tackle. Tottenham Hotspur have been consistently linked with him, but at 20, he's only been in the Audax Italiano Senior team since the start of this Season and perhaps needs a little more experience before he makes such a move.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/iHYe4E5twxk?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iHYe4E5twxk?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><b>Santiago Garcia of Nacional (Uruguay)</b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/show_photo.php?p=11/04/20/874.jpg'><img src='http://photo.blogpressapp.com/photos/11/04/20/s_874.jpg' border='0' width='281' height='187' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Stocky, explosive 20 year old Uruguayan striker Garcia has scored 39 goals in 69 games for Nacional of Montevideo as well as 5 in 9 for the Uruguayan U20 team. It's a matter of time before he is fighting for a place in the senior squad alongside Forlan, Suarez and Cavani, and probably only a matter of time before he's playing in Europe, too.<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" style="width:450px; height:366px;" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/PJM8s3OroSg?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0"><br /><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PJM8s3OroSg?rel=0&showsearch=0&showinfo=0" /><br /></object><div style="font-size: 0.8em"><a href="http://www.tools4noobs.com/online_tools/youtube_xhtml/"></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-89446793725390261672011-01-22T15:22:00.000-08:002011-01-22T18:06:49.784-08:00Magico Magico<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi97fPEh281KEnWT2GXgxnOO-9RrexNasjVjkxuYMuxl6huN5MO-tZQfe4SlIKULDL1tCHW4_TovIax1cVxerUVRgpqO68sYVkXDmBOR7mJzuClf7zs3xMCtBU7-ipJgtkkGWH5UpTyaG8/s1600/magico-gonzalez.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi97fPEh281KEnWT2GXgxnOO-9RrexNasjVjkxuYMuxl6huN5MO-tZQfe4SlIKULDL1tCHW4_TovIax1cVxerUVRgpqO68sYVkXDmBOR7mJzuClf7zs3xMCtBU7-ipJgtkkGWH5UpTyaG8/s400/magico-gonzalez.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565183970388704562" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Dept of Great Players You've Never Heard Of</span><br /><br />Pity the ludicrously talented footballer not born in a traditional football power. <br /><br />A short but telling list:<br />George Best (Northern Ireland), Ryan Giggs (Wales), Dejan Savicevic (Montenegro), Michael Laudrup (Denmark), Enzo Scifo (Belgium), Hugo Sanchez (Mexico), George Weah (Liberia), Gheorgi Hagi (Romania), Kenny Dalglish (Scotland), Teofilo Cubilas (Peru). I could go on and on.<br /><br />But if those Gentlemen were somewhat unlucky to be denied the chance to ever earn the rank of undisputedly Great - I'm assuming Greatness comes through a combination of talent and achievement - by originating from Nations unlikely to ever contest a World Cup Final, at least most of them played at World Cups or for major Clubs, winning major honours, playing in Cup Finals, scoring legendary goals in famous games.<br /><br />Fans of Cadiz, a smallish club from a lovely City in Andalucia in Southern Spain, still claim that the greatest player they ever saw came from an even smaller Football Nation, and never won a single major title in his career. His name was Jorge Alberto González Barillas. They shortened that to "Magico" Gonzalez. He came from El Salvador.<br /><br />He would spend his peak years as a Footballer at Cadiz, playing there for almost a decade between 1982 and 1991, with only a brief and Ill-fated spell at Valladolid in 85/86 interrupting his time there. His problem, aside from his Salvadorean Nationality, was his love of nightlife, clubs and drinking, which meant he was sometimes in no condition to play in games. When he did play, he was a dazzling, Maradona-esque talent, his exquisite touch and dribbling combining with surging acceleration. Cadiz fans worshipped him, and he was similarly adored in Salvador, having led the National Team to their first World Cup a finals appearance in 1982. Don't believe the hype? Just take a look at him in action:<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OMemVOhSLRw?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe><br /><br />Another player revered by fans at his club but largely unknown to the rest of the world is Vassilis Hatzipanagis. Born to Greek Political Immigrants in Uzbekistan in the USSR in 1954, he played first for Pakhtakor of Tashkent before returning to his parents homeland to spend the next sixteen years of his career representing Iraklis of Salonica, for whom he played 281 times, scoring 62 goals. His long, curly hair and spectacular dribbling ability earned him Maradona comparisons, and such was his popularity with Iraklis supporters that the club were afraid to sell him despite interest from numerous sides from Europe's more glamorous leagues. He had represented the USSR at Under-21 level, and after choosing Greece as his senior International side and dazzling Athens in a solitary appearance in the white shirt in a friendly against Poland in 1976, FIFA informed him that he could no longer play for Greece. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPxO5bA4uWpEBDXOQextl2mRbeVOzwkP0IxADvMuGbh4VPzJYPoPfmbqi4F2e_kCYyksKRdY6zHS3_XJG4ZENeiPYs9T-vOBueaZxnLsuo6Jswq_7om1Z_jVJrgRzqfsuf2Q9u_FmYdL0/s1600/50512_123571670987030_7737_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 289px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPxO5bA4uWpEBDXOQextl2mRbeVOzwkP0IxADvMuGbh4VPzJYPoPfmbqi4F2e_kCYyksKRdY6zHS3_XJG4ZENeiPYs9T-vOBueaZxnLsuo6Jswq_7om1Z_jVJrgRzqfsuf2Q9u_FmYdL0/s400/50512_123571670987030_7737_n.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565189662872895298" /></a><br /><br />Despite this, Greeks still regard him as their greatest player of all time, and he was part of a World XI which played the New York Cosmos in 1984 alongside the likes of Keegan, Beckenbauer and Kempes, which gives some idea of the respect those in the know had for him. So, the "Greek Maradona"? Perhaps:<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/RasHFGOAsUs?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe><br /><br />The player Chileans regard as their greatest of all time is a Central defender, Elias Figueroa. He was Captain of Chile for almost sixteen years, played in three World Cups (1966, 1974 and 1982), won numerous individual awards (South American Player of the Year Three years in a row from 1974 to 1976) and dozens of titles and cups with the likes of Penarol, Internacional of Porto Allegre and Palestino.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPRCBdw_ZrjvMCJ3Dw3MGlg0482sVktZMlGtAreJ8eUOG2B7Hsy5NpQ4D3COeg6ImzsppavXBEt0rkBDfi47XK18Uw_wtE263M4nRF7cHbsJSmUbRSkH-zr-ZunOOTXF-FOFJk-JwXncM/s1600/Chile-82-adidas-red-white-white.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 313px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPRCBdw_ZrjvMCJ3Dw3MGlg0482sVktZMlGtAreJ8eUOG2B7Hsy5NpQ4D3COeg6ImzsppavXBEt0rkBDfi47XK18Uw_wtE263M4nRF7cHbsJSmUbRSkH-zr-ZunOOTXF-FOFJk-JwXncM/s400/Chile-82-adidas-red-white-white.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565195946861255938" /></a><br /><br /> Most often compared to Franz Beckenbauer, he was a supremely modern defender: he read the game expertly, was hard in the tackle, dominant in the air, and superbly composed and skillful on the ball. Many South Americans rate him as perhaps the greatest South American Defender of All Time.<br />Defenders are harder to make montages for, but heres one anyway:<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UDQA73-g4uM?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-14583212854135984652010-11-09T15:27:00.000-08:002010-11-16T17:01:26.820-08:00Football in sun and shadow 7<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ULN2yDDqsp-xkvvVsNk2qi_3gCRvUtCduep38CC0YIVhLZ3PiivWhWuOtfOJjDW50f1WtvXQwEJv4bIQwAE39uslvyZPWrI4hS8xc12cRZBxdBxkAAMVifJZlZ2hIxLzZgVRgLAYZtQ/s1600/Conca.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 347px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ULN2yDDqsp-xkvvVsNk2qi_3gCRvUtCduep38CC0YIVhLZ3PiivWhWuOtfOJjDW50f1WtvXQwEJv4bIQwAE39uslvyZPWrI4hS8xc12cRZBxdBxkAAMVifJZlZ2hIxLzZgVRgLAYZtQ/s400/Conca.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539567420882328418" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">- Department of great Argentine Players you've never heard of Number 1: Dario Conca</span><br />Somewhat predictably, Conca is a playmaker and classically Argentinean in his range of skills; short and pacy, he is a sublimely gifted dribbler on the ball, can pick virtually any type of pass due to his excellent technique, and has the vision to see things on the pitch before they've even happened. At the moment he is spearheading Fluminense's charge for the Brazilian title - he was named the best player in Brazil by much of that country's football media last season, no mean feat for an Argentine - and if anything, he has improved this year. He'll probably never play for his country, such is the range of talent in the queue ahead of his for his position, but he has impressed during spells at Chile's Universidad Catolica and Vasco Da Gama before Fluminense signed him in 2009 after a Season-long loan. He had initially emerged at River Plate, not the first brilliant little enganche that club has produced. He's also not alone as a foreign playmaker in the Brazilian League; it seems to be a position that Brazil has trouble filling these days. Promising Brazilians in the position are generally whisked off to Europe - Ederson and Diego are good examples - or are utilized in slightly different roles, like Hernanes or even Kaka. That leaves Big Brazilian clubs employing the likes of the Chilean Valdivia (Palmeiras), Serbian Petkovic (Flamengo) and Argentines D'allessandro (Internacionale) and Montillo (Cruzeiro) in the position linking midfield and the strikers. Conca is one of the best in the business:<br /><br /><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YYIJuAAmWJc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YYIJuAAmWJc?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />- Speaking of attacking midfielders who emerged at River Plate, <span style="font-weight:bold;">Fernando Belluschi</span> has finally started living up to some of that potential at FC Porto this season, playing a crucial part in their dazzling attack, alongside Hulk, Moutinho, Varela and Falcao.<br />He's also done things like this piece of magic:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vq20pdH1M_U?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vq20pdH1M_U?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />- One of the big mysteries of South American Football is Colombia's consistent underachievement. Aside from the great team of the mid-90s (Valderama, Rincon, Asprilla etc) which played some dazzling football on the way to a couple of World Cups before choking for various reasons (including death threats in one case), the Colombian National Team has never performed as well as you feel it should have done. Colombia is, after all, a football-mad Nation with the second biggest population in South America, some massive clubs and a steady stream of young talent emerging, if the Country's appearances at Youth tournaments are anything to go on. It should be the third Football Nation in South America. Yet in recent years, that position has been held by Colombia's neighbours and arch-rivals Ecuador, lowly Paraguay or the more traditionally powerful Uruguay, a country with a population one tenth the size of Colombia. At the moment Chile are also ranked above Colombia, leaving them above only Peru, Bolivia and Venezuala in the Continental stakes.<br />Aside from the obvious socio-political factors (Colombia remains a troubled Country in many different areas) it seems Colombia doesn't produce footballers with the same artistry and creative talent of a generation or so ago. Indeed, the only Colombians currently playing at the highest level in European Leagues are Luis Perea of Athletico Madrid, Mario Yepes of AC Milan, Juan Zuniga of Napoli and Ivan Cordoba of Inter Milan, all defenders, alongside Faryd Mondragón of FC Koln, a goalkeeper. There are also a couple of strikers: the exceptional Radamel Falcao of FC Porto and Hugo Rodalega of Wigan, and Freddy Guarin, Porto's defensive midfielder. Colombian players do generally tend to stay in South America, and many play in the big Leagues across the continent, in Argentina, Brazil and also in Mexico.<br />One young Colombian has been making waves in Argentina this Season, and he displays the kind of technique and imagination that recalls Valderama and Asprilla. 24 year old <span style="font-weight:bold;">Giovanni Moreno</span>, who plays either as an attacking midfielder or support striker, has put in a few breathtaking performances in a struggling side at Racing Club, and he has the potential to be a massive star.<br />This is him embarrassing some hapless Boca Juniors defenders a few weeks ago: <br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/txLCNF8Jwvg?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/txLCNF8Jwvg?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />And scoring a lovely chip for Nacional in Colombia:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/trPlCBkOqkQ?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/trPlCBkOqkQ?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7qoEwaKXmIYSSjiIlPa3Y0XHKjbOZI0T995XAedkokLDDb9hhWbBSDZOvhyRQQr6qrKwEEePhgoX8_PHZQqHdDkLZHo0aqItFNzDjfmNR-MQWETWAm3EAqKqKxJ5iwVWN1klJFXzDok/s1600/pastore-javier-getty-101114.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7qoEwaKXmIYSSjiIlPa3Y0XHKjbOZI0T995XAedkokLDDb9hhWbBSDZOvhyRQQr6qrKwEEePhgoX8_PHZQqHdDkLZHo0aqItFNzDjfmNR-MQWETWAm3EAqKqKxJ5iwVWN1klJFXzDok/s400/pastore-javier-getty-101114.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540313505489837554" /></a><br /><br />- <span style="font-weight:bold;">Javier Pastore</span>: I've written about him before, but the hype around his immense talent keeps growing, and he more than lives up to it. The idea that Argentina will be able to construct an attack around the talents of Pastore, Messi, Banega and DiMaria over the next decade is frankly mind-boggling. Recently, Pastore has performed wonders for Palermo. Firstly, this splendid hat-trick against Sicilian rivals Catania :<br /><br /><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Fur1yEXyEyA?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Fur1yEXyEyA?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />And this stunner against Bologna:<br /><br /><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4B-6ad1HBZo?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4B-6ad1HBZo?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />- <span style="font-weight:bold;">El Superclasico</span>: Having just sat through a pretty disappointing River Plate vs Boca Juniors match, time to revisit a Classic from that fixture. In 1981, Argentina were still World Champions, and young genius Diego Armando Maradona was still playing for his beloved Boca. Facing him for River was Mario Kempes, el Matador, hero of the 1978 World Cup. Except Maradona was at his unplayable best that night as Boca ran out 3-0 Winners:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/v2bmhyI1SLY?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/v2bmhyI1SLY?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />Heres a map of the movement of the players from that game, fascinating if you're a tactics geek and from <a href="http://globoesporte.globo.com/platb/futebolargentino/2010/11/16/resenha-tatica-do-1º-superclassico-de-maradona-10-de-abril-de-1981/">this Portuguese site. </a> <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXvIV8eHb9hKJnEgr2N5BhvxBVg8A9gQq4FaK8bE91PRKzml5x_xWq3E5P7IxiwPPgB6Xu7ZhF4a1WDWSW8Xrdkt8eRH8PwDYA8BuTQhB77kuFlZzkQDCwAVTTQY-yB-LsAjT-uph5RLU/s1600/BOCA-JRS-3-X-0-RIVER-Maradona-metro-1981.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 289px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXvIV8eHb9hKJnEgr2N5BhvxBVg8A9gQq4FaK8bE91PRKzml5x_xWq3E5P7IxiwPPgB6Xu7ZhF4a1WDWSW8Xrdkt8eRH8PwDYA8BuTQhB77kuFlZzkQDCwAVTTQY-yB-LsAjT-uph5RLU/s400/BOCA-JRS-3-X-0-RIVER-Maradona-metro-1981.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540168730693498850" /></a><br /><br />And, from the same year, a victory for Kempes and River in what looks like a cracking game:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/I6KspMp-5qI?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/I6KspMp-5qI?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-14159141237190572932010-07-09T17:16:00.000-07:002010-07-21T16:45:11.836-07:00Tiki-Taka & 4-2-3-1<span style="font-weight:bold;">Some Thoughts on the 2010 World Cup</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDE2riYoXNsNSrA9_AYQUsfH8NFdUJe9KsZfvmRliIA0EQApGQ_g9k5kTJNTxgAN813puYsfhG_38YSjUxvJc9CmJXl-XeMp3pEIInb8CfohNP82RDRGOJHB6PWd2NfpJUAWIbfnQTKbI/s1600/fernando-navarro-xavi-hernandez-david-villa-and-andres-iniesta-euro2008-championships-final-germany-vs-spain-june-29-2008-0KU527.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 254px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDE2riYoXNsNSrA9_AYQUsfH8NFdUJe9KsZfvmRliIA0EQApGQ_g9k5kTJNTxgAN813puYsfhG_38YSjUxvJc9CmJXl-XeMp3pEIInb8CfohNP82RDRGOJHB6PWd2NfpJUAWIbfnQTKbI/s400/fernando-navarro-xavi-hernandez-david-villa-and-andres-iniesta-euro2008-championships-final-germany-vs-spain-june-29-2008-0KU527.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496504146751659282" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">1. Viva Espana</span><br />"Spain are boring". People I know, friends, actually said that to me with a straight face during the World Cup. It was briefly a big Twitter talking point, too. The argument runs something like "Oh yes, their passing is very pretty, but they don't create enough chances, there are too many sideways passes, nobody taking a chance or trying a moment of individual magic, not enough goals, not enough incident." To me, this is simply idiotic. If you're bored by Spain, then your conception of what football can and should be is fundamentally different from mine. <br />It should be entertainment. We probably agree on that much. And I find the beauty and perfect technique, the bravery and precision of the Spanish passing game inexhaustably entertaining. Exhilarating, even. Give me a 0-0 with Spain playing a decent counter-attacking side over a 4-3 between two limited teams who cannot defend and cannot keep the ball anyday.<br />Is this where this "boring" tag comes from? The generation who has grown up with Sky Sports and has been conditioned to expect drama from every game, who expects red cards and controversy and lots and lots of goals? This is part of football, of course, this manufactured spectacle, this natural drama. But it does not define it.<br />For me, Sport is about that search for perfection, and Spain are close to that at times. They play their game so well, nobody can really touch them, which is why their games may seem "boring" to some. Because everybody knows they will be outplayed if they try to play a possession game against the Spanish, and so nobody does. Everybody plays with bodies behind the ball and tries to counter quickly. But they seldom see much of the ball, and so they retreat and Spain painstakingly try to pick holes in tightly drilled defences. Usually, it works. Usually they wear down the opposition with the consistency of their possession and ball movement. But nobody really opens up and goes at them, Chile aside. Germany - outclassed and overwhelmed. Holland - reduced to the role of bully-boy. Portugal - playing a long-ball game. Spain make decent teams look bad.<br />This Spanish team against the Pekarman/Basile Argentina of 2005-2007, with Riquelme orchestrating a possession-based short passing Argentine game, that would be a match I would like to see, that would be "one for the Purist". Something which I have been very much surprised to find out I am. <br />An interview with the magnificent Xavi, from El Pais, summed up some of the difficulties inherent in the Spanish "tiki taka" style: "What did people think? That we were going to win every game 3-0? I can't believe what I am hearing sometimes. Do you not realize how hard it is? Teams aren't stupid; we're European champions. They all pressure us like wolves. There isn't a single meter, not a second on the pitch. We are passing faster and faster and faster. We're playing bloody brilliantly. Then there's the pitch and the ball -- I have spent the World Cup thinking, 'That's a good pass,' only to see the ball disappear off in a different direction."<br />So, who do people posit as an "exciting" team, if Spain are not one? Germany. More on that later.<br />As for Spain, they stand as the best National team in the World, and one of the best ever. The best team rarely wins the World Cup. This time they have.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">2. On the Counter</span><br />This was the first World Cup since Italia 90 which saw negative tactics clearly hold sway. So many teams played not to lose, packing midfield and maintaining eight to ten men behind the ball at all times, only attacking on long, pacy counters. It worked on occasion - Switzerland memorably defeated Spain, albeit with a great deal of luck, and the likes of New Zealand and North Korea performed better than many had expected merely by holding off superior teams. Of the four Semi-finalists, all bar Spain played counter-attacking football. <br />That the prevalent formation of this tournament was 4-2-3-1 speaks volumes for the tactical approach of many of the coaches, favoring this set-up mainly for the defensive security it affords with two holding players in midfield. But then not every 4-2-3-1 is the same. Spain's "double-pivot" in defensive midfield was made up of the gifted, creative Xabi Alonso and Sergio Busquets, whereas Holland made do with the purely destructive, disruptive duo of Mark Van Bommel and Nigel De Jong. Not every team employing the formation had fullbacks as dynamic as the Brazilian Maicon or Spain's Sergio Ramos. And not every striker can play at the tip of such a spear. <br />Germany played this system as well as anyone throughout the World Cup. But all of the plaudits they have received have baffled me. They played a reactive game of counter-attacking and they got lucky in that the two giants of the International game they ran into both entered the ties with shambolic defenses. They undoubtedly have some gifted young players - Ozil and Muller, Schweinsteiger finally performing to his potential - and they stuck to their coaches game plan with skill and dedication, but I rarely saw any great football from them. Both England and Argentina dominated long spells of their respective games and had more efforts on goal. When the Germans broke forward, they were deadly. But they had been exposed earlier in the tournament by the energy and pressing of an equally young, hungry Ghana side who were unlucky to lose. They never had to carry the game to the opposition, which suited them. It will be interesting to see how they fare when teams enter games prepared for their style. Only Ozil and Kroos look capable of opening a tight defence, and I am sure that now their talent is out in the open, the Germans will find themselves facing many of those. <br />Meanwhile, Spain made them look pedestrian in their semi-final, denying them time, space and most crucially of all, possession. The 1-0 should have been 3-0 and Germany showed that when they cannot break, they cannot really attack, a problem common to many sides at this tournament. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">3. Marcelo Bielsa is a Genius</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVb9SrLpp2dRzBPDyvfbJUIuPhMyCVd_vm52Ar0mSEZoRRsGEEXO5RT86bX6bu2I8sTPVZT7jonKSORgz0ufHhs-rjwcbB89-rzloRM1rJ4AnU35rUn9YRYCi_fgvGFDet9Uvhhj2EoCU/s1600/ih4ltu.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 222px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVb9SrLpp2dRzBPDyvfbJUIuPhMyCVd_vm52Ar0mSEZoRRsGEEXO5RT86bX6bu2I8sTPVZT7jonKSORgz0ufHhs-rjwcbB89-rzloRM1rJ4AnU35rUn9YRYCi_fgvGFDet9Uvhhj2EoCU/s400/ih4ltu.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496506759439269394" /></a><br /><br />Chile, on the other hand, always attack. Argentine Coach Marcelo Bielsa is obsessed with attacking football, and his side set out with a radical formation: 4-3-3, meaning that when they were in possession they attacked with at least 6 players. Their youth, energy, intricate one touch passing and willingness to take on a man made them the most entertaining, exciting team at the tournament and always a joy to watch, just as they had been in South American qualifying. This commitment to attack also benefited them in defence, since they tackled and hustled high up the pitch, always keen to win the ball back early, and only suffered when they played Spain (who they troubled more than any other team in the tournament managed to) and Brazil. Ironically, for such a ceaselessly attacking team, they scored too few goals in the group stage, meaning that they lost top spot to the Spanish and as a result played Brazil in the Second Round. The reason for this goal shortage mainly came down to the pre-Tournament injury to striker David Suazo, top scorer in that (incredibly competitive) South American Qualifying Group and the fulcrum around whom much of the team's attacking play usually revolves. <br />In his absence, Bielsa played both of his playmakers, Matias Fernandez (as the trequarista) and Jorge Valdivia (as the centre forward), which worked, but never with the fluidity of the first choice line-up.<br />What may have cost Chile against Brazil and Spain was their individual quality. For all that Fernandez, Valdivia, the often dazzling Alexis Sanchez, Gary Medel and Carlos Carmona appear World Class, one or two of the back up squad are not of the same calibre, and once suspensions (an unfortunate and common consequence of Chile's high-energy pressing game) and injuries took their toll, their performance level dropped. But Bielsa remained true to his philosophy throughout. When he had a man sent off against Spain, he made attacking substitution, and his team terrified the European Champions all game. When 3-0 down against Brazil, Chile kept right on attacking. There is something so admirable in his kamikaze commitment to offence.<br />Bielsa's last World Cup was as Coach of Argentina for their disastrous 2002 campaign, where he was undone by an aging Squad and some woeful luck. Its hard not to imagine that with the current pool of ridiculously talented Argentine Players and Bielsa as Coach, Argentina would have walked this World Cup. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">4. AWOL</span><br />Rooney, Ronaldo, Kaka, Torres, Gourcuff, Cannavaro, Drogba, etc etc etc.<br />Of the World's elite players, only Lionel Messi, Wesley Sneidjer, Arjen Robben and Messi's Spanish Barcelona colleagues really enjoyed good World Cups. But even Messi was finally overwhelmed by the demands placed upon him by Diego Maradona's tactics, after his early performances had clearly demonstrated why he is the best in the World. The reasons for the failures of the others are many and varied, and tired. Rooney, Drogba, Torres and Kaka all looked unfit. Ronaldo and Gourcuff were undermined by tactics and squad politics respectively. Cannavaro, like a few too many of his Italian teammates, looked as if this was one Tournament too far for him. <br />For me, Xavi was the player of the tournament, even as he fell slightly below the standards he regularly sets with Barcelona. Close behind him was Diego Forlan, confirming his quality and class on the biggest stage.<br />A World Cup needs its stars, and this one had many. But for the most part, the World's Greatest Players were not amongst them, which contributed to the undeniable sense of disappointment left by the tournament in general.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">5. XI</span><br />In a 4-2-3-1, of course:<br /><br />-------- Eduardo----------<br /><br />Ramos-Lugano-Carvalho-Contreao<br /><br />---Schweinsteiger----Carmona---<br /><br />----Xavi---Ozil---Sneijder---<br /><br />---------Forlan------------<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">6. Goals</span><br /><br />A top three:<br /><br />1. Quagliarella vs Slovakia<br /><br />2. Suarez vs South Korea<br /><br />3. Maicon vs North Korea<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">7. "Expert Analysis"</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyUsk_wgPr-xy1gaWoRG8u8XRWSmYoFMOSnmkxfHpZRUX1mN1x2tBIOPB82tUh9kwOHmJlG04o73J38mLmp3AwgisEe-Y1yAcUyCASunv6lv9uoXHPsItwKqMpXliaLBZi_Cx-oAZsGc0/s1600/article-1025317-017D09EC00000578-207_468x406.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 347px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyUsk_wgPr-xy1gaWoRG8u8XRWSmYoFMOSnmkxfHpZRUX1mN1x2tBIOPB82tUh9kwOHmJlG04o73J38mLmp3AwgisEe-Y1yAcUyCASunv6lv9uoXHPsItwKqMpXliaLBZi_Cx-oAZsGc0/s400/article-1025317-017D09EC00000578-207_468x406.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496506307597630610" /></a><br /><br />If you live in the UK, then you probably watched the games on the BBC or ITV. In which case you were treated to some shockingly bad punditry. ITV is always bad. Its main pundit is Andy Townsend, who talks a lot at a fair old clip without ever saying anything that is not a cliche and not blindingly obvious. He has mastered a sort of rueful delivery, as if he hates to be cruel to the players, but somebody has to be, and it might as well be him. For this World Cup, ITV put him alongside Adrian Chiles as the presenter. His matey jokiness, so natural and suited to his old job on the BBC's "Match of the Day 2" proved insufficient on the grander stage. Instead of the gravitas that the big occasion deserves, Chiles proved himself capable of only gags. Mostly unfunny ones, at that. His cheerleading for Ghana once England had been eliminated was frankly embarrassing, reducing the coverage of the Ghana-Uruguay tie to a strangely old-fashioned example of anti-South American bias, The rest of the ITV team was at a similar level: Gareth Southgate did best, speaking the odd bit of charisma-free common sense. But Edgar Davids, Marcel Desailly, Patrick Vieira and Lucas Radebe all offered little insight. In the commentary box, Clive Tyldsley was as awful as ever, while Jim Beglin, who can read a game well, seems inhibited in his analysis, as if he has been told to tone down the "high-brow" tactical stuff.<br />It is the lack of any analysis - or seemingly even awareness - of tactics which really disturbs me when I watch this coverage. Formations are often called wrongly, players roles misunderstood, and movements in play not read. But then some of these men - all ex-Pros, of course - seem proud of their ignorance. On the BBC, the contempt and condescension shown to the "little" Nations was appalling. Colin Murray - whose smug smarminess is a poor replacement for Chiles as the comic relief on the BBC Sports Team - giggled his way through a preview of New Zealand versus Slovakia, the entire conceit being "who would want to watch that"? Alan Hansen mocked Lee Dixon (the best of the BBC's lot, for me) and Gary Lineker for having the temerity to mention Marek Hamsik by name, as if preparation for a game that didn't involve England was a silly or unlikely thing to do. Which just shows how unprepared he was, cruising through games on autopilot, as if being run by a random generator. These days, Hansen generally just spews adjectives: "Pace, power, precision" "Technique, skill, awareness." He doesn't bother with a conceptual or even linguistic framework. Why should he? Hes Alan Hansen.<br />He did roll back the years with a few nice deconstructions of error-strewn defences. Which is more than could be said for Alan Shearer, even more partial to a blindingly obvious cliche than Andy Townsend. Backing them up were Roy Hodgson (not bad), Harry Redknapp (ignorant & jingoistic), Clarence Seedorf (cheerful & relaxed), Jurgen Klinsmann (fantastic, but on too rarely) and Emmanuel Adebayor (his mobile phone rang mid-broadcast and he was famously unintelligable). When Danny Baker was brought on for the last five minutes of one show, his wit and energy put the entire panel to shame. And his love for the game and the tournament shone through, whereas the others often seemed bored by it all.<br />The BBC's commentary team is better than ITVs, at least, even if it is often marred by the presence of Mark Lawrenson, whose jokes get more tired by the year. Mick McCarthy's comedy Yorkshireman isn't much better, to be fair.<br />As it was, the best World Cup coverage I found was on Twitter, a rolling collection of observations, breaking news and jokes which massively enhanced my experience of what was otherwise a rather disappointing World Cup.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">8. Diego</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGyIQ4AiazirgKIJSA7dMch1lRHDCXJBkVIim7IwjZsfEfTL0j5Ltm9ZkanN6oQGr_ISg_7FFI7p5qd-Gk7afktXv-CoFPBG9-hkrPET4D53XRWiGEgzwu_Gggxq3K0B_bz-s8Y80_4A/s1600/maradona-006.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGyIQ4AiazirgKIJSA7dMch1lRHDCXJBkVIim7IwjZsfEfTL0j5Ltm9ZkanN6oQGr_ISg_7FFI7p5qd-Gk7afktXv-CoFPBG9-hkrPET4D53XRWiGEgzwu_Gggxq3K0B_bz-s8Y80_4A/s400/maradona-006.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496508112369876498" /></a><br /><br />Maradona was the great character of the early weeks of the Tournament, but his team was an accident waiting to happen throughout, and it saddens me that he will stay on as Coach despite his seeming total disregard for coherent selection and tactical decisions. It saddens me a little too that he's become such a comedic figure, always good for a hilarious quote or an amusing training routine. The greatest player I have ever seen deserves better. I can't see him remaining Coach as long as the next World Cup, despite the seemingly inevitable new contract, but I can't feel unhappy about that, because the incredible generation of Argentine players who will be at their peak at that tournament - I mean Messi, Aguero, Tevez, Banega, Higuain, Pastore etc - themselves deserve the best possible chance to win it. And that means no Diego.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">9. The new Hand of God</span><br />And so to the treatment of Luis Suarez after he handled the ball and denied Ghana a "certain" goal in the quarter final, which would have put them through and made them the first African side in the last four at a World Cup. Seemingly everybody wanted Ghana to win that game. They were the neutrals choice, and "An African World Cup needs and African team to do well" and they played such bright, positive football and....<br />I was supporting Uruguay. Because I love South American football. And Diego Forlan and Edison Cavani and Nicolas Lodiero and a dozen other players who have worn the Uruguayan shirt over the years. <br />Uruguay had the better of the match, for me, and were denied a certain penalty, while Ghana dominated extra time. But the tone of the coverage was entirely pro-Ghana. Uruguay still enjoy some of their old reputation for violent play, though it was little in evidence in this tournament, and it is easy for British commentators to trot out old cliches about South American football when they feel they need to justify some xenophobia.<br />Such as - "typical South American cheating" to sum up Suarez handling the ball on the line. It was undeniably cheating and too much has already been written about the morality and lawfulness of the act and its consequences. But yes, most other players would have done the same. No, that doesn't make it right. No, the rules should not be changed to allow for a "penalty goal".<br />One thing that went almost entirely without remark in the press coverage of the game was the fact that the goalmouth incident in which Suarez thwarted Ghana came from a freekick which should never have been given. And that from that freekick, a Ghana player headed the ball towards goal and <span style="font-style:italic;">two Ghana players were offside.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8FrNK1kdUa7XvTgXbTt6wDkT_dxoQlet55g9Kt2DEHXzRMkgPAI_yqn3LiTCWiqliDdNPWkVA0Rn6TRF4cvRZH6K8ue7LVcEgIzK96Qe2F_m4Lr9xT4gCq8asyUIfVx76bLTZtLlFWVs/s1600/124085518-1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8FrNK1kdUa7XvTgXbTt6wDkT_dxoQlet55g9Kt2DEHXzRMkgPAI_yqn3LiTCWiqliDdNPWkVA0Rn6TRF4cvRZH6K8ue7LVcEgIzK96Qe2F_m4Lr9xT4gCq8asyUIfVx76bLTZtLlFWVs/s400/124085518-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496503602498544626" /></a><br /><br />All of the ensuing scramble, shots and blocks should never have happened. It should have been a Uruguayan freekick, and the controversial incident would never have happened. <br />But the media - unsurprisingly starting with the host South African broadcasters - were far more interested in Suarez's celebrations at Gyan's missed penalty, and the story became the story of a single piece of cheating.<br />Far more interesting to me was the nerveless panenka-penalty taken by Sebastian Abreau to win the shootout which settled the tie, but you know, Ghana were busy crying all over the pitch after that, so again the media weren't really interested.<br />But in this game, a country with a Population of 3.3 Million had beaten a country with a Population of 23.3 Million to reach the last four. And I, for one, saw that as something worth celebrating.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">10."Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?"</span><br />The best single piece of journalism I read on the World Cup was by Tom Humphries, a great Irish Times Sports Writer. It is absolutely worth your time to read it. <a href="http://tinyurl.com/398cabd">Please do so here. </a>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-33502889042883653742010-05-11T15:22:00.001-07:002010-05-11T17:23:50.053-07:00Argentina BTonight Diego Maradona announced his Provisional Squad of 30 players for the 2010 World Cup. And its mildly shocking reading. <br />Earlier today, Dunga announced his Brazilian squad, leaving out both Ronaldinho and Adriano. But that fits with the systems Dunga has always played by, as depressing as they are. Maradona's list, in contrast, doesn't fit into any tactical pattern, excludes players in vital positions, includes a couple of bizarrely whimsical choices, and seems to indulge the coaches desire to select as many Argentina-based players as possible to the detriment of the talent available in the squad in South Africa.<br /><br />Instead of listing the squad - which you can easily find out by googling it - I'm just going to list some of the players Maradona has ignored. This is without even considering the case of Juan Roman Riquelme, who declared himself unavailable for selection more or less as soon as Maradona took over.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Juan Pablo Aimar</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5gsuzQmLSGuHUAoLX8y9CeUB_D0wiy6bKE23TGLGnlKsMtDREDfhSMM3D6j2Hlwgt523ypKrwVDl0X04hJihi_13MVLaISe7SvUrwqJalo5p3_NCqRqJZgnCWj5CPQPY_K1FMxQf2g9w/s1600/2910082809_4c8c631aec.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 346px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5gsuzQmLSGuHUAoLX8y9CeUB_D0wiy6bKE23TGLGnlKsMtDREDfhSMM3D6j2Hlwgt523ypKrwVDl0X04hJihi_13MVLaISe7SvUrwqJalo5p3_NCqRqJZgnCWj5CPQPY_K1FMxQf2g9w/s400/2910082809_4c8c631aec.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470169163370506994" /></a><br />Probably the leading contender for the role of playmaker, or Enganche, as Argentines call it, Aimar has just won the Portuguese title with Benfica, where he played a vital role in a thrillingly attractive and versatile side, contributing goals and assists. He played for Maradona's team in the vital final sequence of Qualifiers, made a goal for Higuain, and has been ignored despite fine form. Obviously, he's a beautiful little player - contributing quick-thinking, excellent passing, dribbling ability and an eye for goal. In his position, Maradona has instead selected Javier Pastore, probably the future holder of the position, and Sebastian Blanco, a real surprise for the young player from Lanus. Aimar would have been the better option.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Luis "Lucho" Gonzalez</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPmioKXLBkNA_k4fP1aT7Tm8Df_S-RikIgS7MNRtkAcraF8IXF-Z9vstsy_nX4lGyiKRn2_vgSU4VNGZeAUVXqN9PXG3htpdw3jrQ04HWoienzFxP5za1xpyD-VyuB9klKmTPIBh083w/s1600/lucho-gonzalez-a-fait-ses-premiers-pas-sous-les-couleurs-mar.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 291px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPmioKXLBkNA_k4fP1aT7Tm8Df_S-RikIgS7MNRtkAcraF8IXF-Z9vstsy_nX4lGyiKRn2_vgSU4VNGZeAUVXqN9PXG3htpdw3jrQ04HWoienzFxP5za1xpyD-VyuB9klKmTPIBh083w/s400/lucho-gonzalez-a-fait-ses-premiers-pas-sous-les-couleurs-mar.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470169181093885826" /></a><br />Porto fans called him "El Comandante" due to his leadership on the field, and he was a great favourite of Argentina's Coach at the last World Cup, Pekarman. He was injured for much of the first half of his first Season with Marseille (after winning the League title for each of the last four Seasons in Portugal) but when he regained fitness and found form, he was an awesome sight; an almost faultless passing machine who made a big difference in both attack and defense, became the teams de facto leader and dictated the tempo of every game. Result: Marseille won the French league. Maradona picked him and he scored a goal against Bolivia in last years shock 6-1 hammering. The coach seemed to blame him, to some extent, for that result, as he hasn't been picked since. His versatility means that he could have played more or less anywhere across Argentina's midfield. But he'll be watching on TV instead.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Esteban Cambiasso</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIgFPPKPsjo8af_fU0inQJUNm3OKpf8yDZddRi7-1fhyQiVJqkz_g8Qg09kASZ1tYvpLn1uQnEtYNglrP6YFXxfaH-aewCNXk1YcaOurEiJHzqeCCh_3Jw8AVeMfhfaR9b7LRV9Ydiy5Q/s1600/cambiasso_interfcit.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIgFPPKPsjo8af_fU0inQJUNm3OKpf8yDZddRi7-1fhyQiVJqkz_g8Qg09kASZ1tYvpLn1uQnEtYNglrP6YFXxfaH-aewCNXk1YcaOurEiJHzqeCCh_3Jw8AVeMfhfaR9b7LRV9Ydiy5Q/s400/cambiasso_interfcit.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470169177237039602" /></a><br />Anyone who watched Inter Milan's heroically defiant, tactically brilliant performance against Barcelina at Camp Nou a few weeks ago will be able to tell you why Cambiasso would probably walk into most teams at the World Cup, never mind squads. More than just a defensive midfielder, hes simply a great footballer, amazingly hardworking, intelligent in his movement and passing, committed and possessed of deceptive skills. Maradona presumably decided that Javier Mascherano is better, which may be true. But Mario Bolatti, the alternative selection in that position, is not yet at the level of Cambiasso or Mascherano.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Lisandro Lopez</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbzbM2DqvlIur5wtRDIIgYAl5VQPJ5pspSB4gbz7psAwqB_CaQQYPrdiOqKkCwXmLcBgckz5T6QTyUvTUrX633VvOWrNh2H2E2mVIveqsh_HS4CaCUfs9WzE1zGrnF6EZc58QZvZ7HITs/s1600/x610.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbzbM2DqvlIur5wtRDIIgYAl5VQPJ5pspSB4gbz7psAwqB_CaQQYPrdiOqKkCwXmLcBgckz5T6QTyUvTUrX633VvOWrNh2H2E2mVIveqsh_HS4CaCUfs9WzE1zGrnF6EZc58QZvZ7HITs/s400/x610.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470172399940183074" /></a><br />49 goals in 106 games for Porto. 14 in 26 this Season for his new club, Lyon, where he was also voted Player of the Year in France. He scores headers, long-distance drives, neat close range finishes, from dribbles, volleys - hes a goalscorer, the type who can tie up an opposition defence on his own. Of course, Argentina have arguably teh greatest line-up of strikers in teh World in their squad - Messi, Tevez, Higuain, Aguero, Milito. But surely Lisandro is a better bet than Martin Palermo, a 37 year old who has never really shown he can cut it at International level?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Ever Banega</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTcscC_kcvwxNYL9wLNzMxhJGluQcl5AjJidCljCfu9VHXG2pl_FMwqItLvt-V4wa3spDQu5-rNIeUtPLkrgSoSlxCjjxLfT3IyYXJBEIsMKFpQeL2SgJaNVwQTOe6KoMhtuvJsEccnLQ/s1600/n_valencia_ever_banega-362439.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 360px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTcscC_kcvwxNYL9wLNzMxhJGluQcl5AjJidCljCfu9VHXG2pl_FMwqItLvt-V4wa3spDQu5-rNIeUtPLkrgSoSlxCjjxLfT3IyYXJBEIsMKFpQeL2SgJaNVwQTOe6KoMhtuvJsEccnLQ/s400/n_valencia_ever_banega-362439.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470171521511209762" /></a><br />The real star of a Valencia team who will finish third in Spain this Season - "first" behind the financial muscle of Real Madrid and Barcelona, the player with the second most assists in Spain this Season (after Lionel Messi), part-playmaker, part holding player, he should be the future of the Argentina midfield. And it looks like Maradona wants it to stay that way. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Fernando Gago</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBjUi5u8q0XCu3FA5pVx-JwLLfEj4TzhStQFHc3gDpATDJXKryQfv49akt93UFcmbMQzmGfawjGErFZabndGDvNPJO5W4DPPY_G5WP0Gb3uMjrnXEmEwdcFaamHZY4gth8R9buOCUl2s/s1600/1250442515575_f.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 301px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBjUi5u8q0XCu3FA5pVx-JwLLfEj4TzhStQFHc3gDpATDJXKryQfv49akt93UFcmbMQzmGfawjGErFZabndGDvNPJO5W4DPPY_G5WP0Gb3uMjrnXEmEwdcFaamHZY4gth8R9buOCUl2s/s400/1250442515575_f.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470169172083266498" /></a><br />He was one of Maradona's untouchables. But he fell out of favour at Madrid - favour he has since regained, forming a formidable central midfield partnership with Xabi Alonso over the last two months - and, allegedly, his terrible relationship with clubmate Gonzalo Higuain may have cost him a place in the National Squad. But here is a player who once formed a great duo with Mascherano, who maintains the Argentine ideal of short passing from deep midfield at every moment in every game, who works tirelessly and has grown up playing alongside Messi, Aguero et al. Maradona is fickle...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Javier Zanetti</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7606BcFFXWSVWPmo6HbDy1JFM_Vt-ca9mYCpQXrSWz39sRBBtGTlNRS6qLAhmr53O6CBiHhxMO7JtuaIg6uL6aehMzRwHVYvqLX2nM7ay7gc1V-eU8ji_xh76c3nIGs5S2qjyCdEG61E/s1600/zanetti-evra-manu.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 308px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7606BcFFXWSVWPmo6HbDy1JFM_Vt-ca9mYCpQXrSWz39sRBBtGTlNRS6qLAhmr53O6CBiHhxMO7JtuaIg6uL6aehMzRwHVYvqLX2nM7ay7gc1V-eU8ji_xh76c3nIGs5S2qjyCdEG61E/s400/zanetti-evra-manu.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470172047983010770" /></a><br />Unequivocally, undoubtedly, truly one of the greatest Argentine players of all time. Hes 36, hes got 136 caps, hes won lots of trophies. And yet hes still the best option Maradona has at right-back. He prowls the flank for Inter - where he is Captain - like an 20 year old, driving up and down, pushing forward yet never relinquishing his defensive duties. <br />Instead, he has chosen two journeymen to fill in at right back if and when his patented "Four Central Defenders" system malfunctions. Clemente Rodriguez and ariel Garce are both dependable players. Neither is even worthy of comparison with Javier Zanetti.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Javier Saviola</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxsN4a8KkKwLjQYH1j0FzMOPoTCO_QKrKDVv7grOXrX7mZOWbSvhK5oVpXsqhemiGAW8o5IluHnYZKVBaJ6Mud9D8KLP2HSoPoA-0cOvung0ZmKV4TjiIdLloqU0dl6C_nuCgZmIDERs/s1600/610x.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 314px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxsN4a8KkKwLjQYH1j0FzMOPoTCO_QKrKDVv7grOXrX7mZOWbSvhK5oVpXsqhemiGAW8o5IluHnYZKVBaJ6Mud9D8KLP2HSoPoA-0cOvung0ZmKV4TjiIdLloqU0dl6C_nuCgZmIDERs/s400/610x.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470169160829988834" /></a><br />Like Aimar, Saviola has enjoyed a great Season with Benfica, scoring 11 goals in 24 games and setting up Oscar Cardozo, his strike partner, for many others. Hes got undoubted classand perhaps offers something slightly different to the others upfront. Maradona has never picked him, however. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Gabriel Milito</span><br /><br />A defender of undoubted style and class, Milito had been out for a year with a serious injury, but his recent return for Barcelona has shown that, while rusty, he has lost none of his pace, ability on the ball, or footballing intelligence. He would have been a good insurance policy for the Coach to have in case of injury to one of his first choice defenders.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Andrés D'Alessandro</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxeXYla9DvvqkQz_KSrX2oG1N8PPf2e-2jeqpb6FKygeyaHupgdb1S68Oc6Fl7ISh0IMZLygcYCT1NOgP7K4UEYYI-JqnZC-cJXnVv3mCHfC60kd4mNmrpPrLBQUUkaeyhVG-jqPQtOsM/s1600/NEWS_1259831442_d-alessandro.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxeXYla9DvvqkQz_KSrX2oG1N8PPf2e-2jeqpb6FKygeyaHupgdb1S68Oc6Fl7ISh0IMZLygcYCT1NOgP7K4UEYYI-JqnZC-cJXnVv3mCHfC60kd4mNmrpPrLBQUUkaeyhVG-jqPQtOsM/s400/NEWS_1259831442_d-alessandro.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470171512762977906" /></a><br />He has wandered across clubs and continents and never really, you feel, fulfilled his enormous talent. But what a player. Currently wowing fans of Internacional in Porto Allegre, Brazil, he can play as the enganche or on the left wing. He has issues with temperament and discipline, but he is a constant threat to the opposition. He hasn't played for Argentina since before the last World Cup, and Maradona was never likely to change that.David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-23466602354788053042010-04-22T16:27:00.000-07:002010-05-02T16:12:10.382-07:00YugoBosniMaceSerbiCroaSlovenegro<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBPnhvh9oCxw9-mKSVKq-g3pT476fJj52kjZavtXAmi5k07NHIO7C0ipxIXBaky9HLMYTkoFLs-W_dFZ9BQnJmPryu5jq33pNxk1ZbH9DtDk0IQcJD7EmjuiR95r3I7iDU6740T7SSes/s1600/Yugoslav_Football_Federation_1990.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 293px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBPnhvh9oCxw9-mKSVKq-g3pT476fJj52kjZavtXAmi5k07NHIO7C0ipxIXBaky9HLMYTkoFLs-W_dFZ9BQnJmPryu5jq33pNxk1ZbH9DtDk0IQcJD7EmjuiR95r3I7iDU6740T7SSes/s400/Yugoslav_Football_Federation_1990.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466811175563364834" /></a><br /><br />Yugoslavia may well have won the 1992 European Championship. They had qualified, they were dark horses, before the War in the country intervened, and they were excluded from the tournament. Their replacements, Denmark, came and won in their absence. That was a tournament without an outstanding team, remember, and that unremarkable Denmark side were far from the best team in Europe at the time. Yugoslavia, back then, before the country had divided into its original form - the nations of Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzogovnia, Macedonia and Slovenia - had a magnificent squad full of the talent that would eventually enable Croatia to thrive on the international stage.<br />At that tournament, Yugoslavia could have chosen from a squad containing Robert Prosinecki, Zvonimir Boban, Dejan Savićević, Predrag Mijatović, Darko Pancev, Robert Jarni, Siniša Mihajlović, Dragan Stojković, Alen Bokšić, Davor Šuker, Zlatko Zahovič and Savo Milošević, among others. That midfield, in particular, sounds fearsome, combining some of the greatest attacking talents in world football at the time (Prosinecki, Savicevic) with a wily toughness typical of football in the Balkans.<br /><br />But it wasn't to be. Yugoslavia will be remembered for some lovely football (another country in a long line called "the Brazil of Europe"), and for never winning anything. They came fourth in the World Cups of 1930 and 1962, and were runners up in the European Championships of 1960 and 68. Their youth teams were famously formidable.<br /><br />Nowadays, each of the Nations listed above has its own National side. Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia have enjoyed notable success since the dissolution of Yugoslavia. I can't help thinking, though, of what a team Yugoslavia would maintain if the country still existed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYFH-QraVMSbDsd-HErXSw9c9apVAEhQmKAMLFBjmaiZV718P23F6fMiaKnGoaciy2kvbmUSmwsg_xqoYtp7PHvSuoLYIYxf_yHWdd7-1hBUjH4VKtcD-nUb96y0M6ydyvggcC4EQx6UQ/s1600/nemanja_vidic_1527339c.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYFH-QraVMSbDsd-HErXSw9c9apVAEhQmKAMLFBjmaiZV718P23F6fMiaKnGoaciy2kvbmUSmwsg_xqoYtp7PHvSuoLYIYxf_yHWdd7-1hBUjH4VKtcD-nUb96y0M6ydyvggcC4EQx6UQ/s400/nemanja_vidic_1527339c.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466811562389410050" /></a><br /><br />From Serbia, noted for their defensive solidity, Nemana Vidic would be a certainty, as would the experienced, tough Ivica Dragutinović, who plays for Sevilla, and Chelsea's Branislav Ivanović. Serbia produces defenders of breathtaking calibre, enjoyng outstanding defensive records in their last two qualification campaigns, and even the young Neven Subotić of Borussia Dortmund would be in with a good chance of making this squad. In midfield, the class and experience of Inter Milan's Dejan Stanković - creative but combative, a midfield all-rounder - would be supported by Miloš Krasić and Liverpool-bound Milan Jovanović on the wings, while Ajax's Marko Pantelić poaches upfront. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Y7iBgKA1zY1iENaEvknOgDpT07fLyZw2jSM1GsWmHb0e9tgfgLboblbL7nOSE15Sfh8wv6BuP3IKxqlDxxQ1IE0wIbRnrNFnDX1_8idrTAThEx_9KItU4oRuDjNLOswtlCA3W5TZdyo/s1600/2004474173.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 296px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Y7iBgKA1zY1iENaEvknOgDpT07fLyZw2jSM1GsWmHb0e9tgfgLboblbL7nOSE15Sfh8wv6BuP3IKxqlDxxQ1IE0wIbRnrNFnDX1_8idrTAThEx_9KItU4oRuDjNLOswtlCA3W5TZdyo/s400/2004474173.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466811292396879170" /></a><br /><br />From Croatia, only Hoffenheim's Josep "three yellow cards" Simunic would challenge for a place in such a strong defence. But Croatia produces creative players of great skill and vision, as Tottenham's Luka Modric and Shaktar Donetsk's Darijo Srna attest. Both hard-working midfielders, both capable of defence-splitting passing, both technically brilliant, they would be an asset to most national Teams. As would Tottenham's Niko Krancjar, a more direct, "luxury" player than the other two, but one capable of turning a game with a moment of magic. Croatia would supply the back-up forwards for this team: Ivica Olić (Bayern Munich) and Mladen Petrić (Hamburg). Talented players with great work ethics, but, like Serbia and Valencia's Nikola Žigić, men lacking the magic associated with the strikers who would undoubtedly be first choice in this squad.<br /><br />They would both come from tiny Montenegro: Stevan Jovetić of Fiorentina and Mirko Vučinić of Roma. Vučinić is a talismanic player - Montenegro's Captain, a versatile attacker capable of playing as centre-forward, support striker or winger, blessed with lovely dribbling abilities and explosive shooting. Jovetić is something of a golden boy; a prodigiously gifted 20 year old whose range of talents resemble his older countryman in both depth and dimension.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLxmZluNLPdl1xikZKfEeMM6bCTmfVDRmDPA7xGAj549-XldrOaZa5ssHxKHct0Cx_RUMcxv2poqhnfyyipl7Zkk4AoXGWSTOkDMAPYjC8NMoSdcSpgPgql74XMzJxEJJi7NNNutr47tc/s1600/vucinic_romania.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 333px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLxmZluNLPdl1xikZKfEeMM6bCTmfVDRmDPA7xGAj549-XldrOaZa5ssHxKHct0Cx_RUMcxv2poqhnfyyipl7Zkk4AoXGWSTOkDMAPYjC8NMoSdcSpgPgql74XMzJxEJJi7NNNutr47tc/s400/vucinic_romania.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466811781657130674" /></a><br /><br />There is the spine: Serbian defense, Croatian midfield, Montenegran attack. Some wild cards come from the other Nations. Bosnia and Herzegovina supply perhaps the key creative midfielder for the team: Wolfsburg's old-fashioned playmaker, Zvjezdan Misimović, who, with his exquisite technique, controls tempo, creates chances and rarely gives the ball away. His heir, Lyon's Miralem Pjanić, would also feature in the squad, alongside Misimović's Wolfsburg teammate Edin Džeko, a commanding, prolific goalscorer.<br />Macedonia would be represented by Internazionale's Goran Pandev, another attacker able to switch between the centre and the wings, while Slovenia donate goalkeeper Samir Handanovič of Udinese.<br /><br />So here is a possible XI, in a 3-5-2:<br /><br /> Handanovic<br /><br /> Ivanovic-Vidić-Dragutinović<br /><br /> Srna-Stanković-Misimovic-Modric-Krasić<br /><br /> Jovetić- Vučinić<br /><br />Subs: Dzeko/Simunic/Jovanovic/Pantelic/Pjanic/Pandev<br /><br />A team capable of winning the World Cup? Maybe not, but certainly as talented a group of players as will be at the tournament, worthy of comparison with the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Portugal and Holland. As good as that Yugoslavia team that never quite was, with Boban, Suker, Savicevic and Pancev? Well, maybe not. But not all that many teams would be...David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-5514565087076941522010-04-13T16:55:00.000-07:002010-04-13T16:55:00.509-07:00Its Not You, Its Me Part 1Club signs player. It looks a great fit. And it doesn't work out.<br />Happens all the time.<br />Sometimes its understandable, often baffling.<br />Here are some that remain, well, regrettable:<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVK1h3hY2f1fMIifQZKVJj1UzG6a3zywa1bCbaWZg0MdBryvDcF2BlQQ3F6Gng94cY6T92v1qbuopJgI2wexuX-LBFeMUbMbAVNADsiYAdgoq6xusf0zLTylVGlZpfRhDmO1yoPqQSL50/s1600/fotos-juan-roman-riquelme-regate-con-barcelona.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 291px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVK1h3hY2f1fMIifQZKVJj1UzG6a3zywa1bCbaWZg0MdBryvDcF2BlQQ3F6Gng94cY6T92v1qbuopJgI2wexuX-LBFeMUbMbAVNADsiYAdgoq6xusf0zLTylVGlZpfRhDmO1yoPqQSL50/s400/fotos-juan-roman-riquelme-regate-con-barcelona.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455697763980496098" /></a> <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Juan Roman Riquelme - Barcelona</span><br />You look at Barcelona, look at the way they play football, the ceaseless economy and beauty of that passing carousel, and its difficult to imagine any player could improve such a team. But Riquelme, the most talented Argentine footballer between Maradona and Messi, is perhaps the best passer of the ball of his generation from anywhere in the world, an unerring magician with vision and wonderful technique and an understanding of tempo and space even Xavi, for all his undoubted gifts, cannot replicate. Riquelme also scores goals and takes set pieces. He was signed in a blaze of publicity, another "new Maradona", the heartbeat of an all-conquering Boca Juniors side who had beaten Real Madrid to be crowned Club World Cup Champions inspired by an impeccable Riquelme performance which had made Zinedine Zidane look positively ordinary. But it never worked out for him. Bought in 2002 for €11 million, his transfer was overshadowed by the kidnapping of his brother just before he left Boca, where his departure had been controversial due to his refusal to sign a new contract over a long few months. Coach Louis Van Gaal didn't want him, wasn't shy about saying so (he famously called him a"a political signing"), and kept his new Number 10 mainly on the bench, playing him on the wing when he played him at all, and then in Cup matches and dead rubber European ties. That didn't work and Barcelona struggled. Another post-Van Gaal season with multiple coaches, a squad made up of many talents but no real identity, and big failures in the League and Europe made Riquelme something of a scapegoat among Barca fans, who had expected him to turn around their club. He was loaned to Villarreal when Ronaldinho was signed. The Brazilian, alongside Messi, would spark the Barcelona revival that continues to this day. As Riquelme could have, given the chance. As it was, he was instrumental in guiding Villarreal to unprecedented League success and a Champions League Semi-Final, and won Boca Juniors the Copa Libertadores upon his return to his beloved hometown club. But I can still see him, picking out Messi runs with those casually perfect passes. In reality, he scored 3 goals in 30 games for Barcelona, mainly as a substitute. He wouldn't quite fit with the ethos of the modern Barca - his talent is restricted to a single role and is best expressed when he is the fulcrum of a teams entire attacking dimension, but he had the talent to succeed when he did play there. Its just a shame that he was never really given the chance.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil3XXAcNHkFrheMbHSn00SK_DZ2fJET6jML4n5g0iaNsrHRn5ikJQlVOc2pKAMTL3JILlW4HWVWm4NUJIfzbJcGHw1ECMn8VLTDWneT9oBbOcb5mUTx_dVNr6Ae5OSI1cBhnKqw7k8bK4/s1600/Diego_Forlan_280x39_848777a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 280px; height: 390px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil3XXAcNHkFrheMbHSn00SK_DZ2fJET6jML4n5g0iaNsrHRn5ikJQlVOc2pKAMTL3JILlW4HWVWm4NUJIfzbJcGHw1ECMn8VLTDWneT9oBbOcb5mUTx_dVNr6Ae5OSI1cBhnKqw7k8bK4/s400/Diego_Forlan_280x39_848777a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456766685093547362" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Diego Forlan - Manchester United</span><br />If, in August 2004, when Man Utd sold Forlan to Villarreal, you had told a Man Utd fan that he would twice win the European Golden Boot over the next five seasons, they would have laughed at you. The Uruguayan striker had been bought from Argentina's Independiente for £6.9 million in 2002, and it took him 27 games to score his first goal, making him another in a rich heritage of failed strikers at United - precedents include Garry Birtles, Nigel Davenport, Dion Dublin and Alan Brazil. He had averaged nearly a goal every two games for Independiente as they twice won the league but he took a while to settle and adjust to the pace of the game in England. One of his problems was playing alongside Ruud Van Nistelrooy - an awesome poacher and goalscorer, but also a player who needs an entire team's play to revolve around his game (which is one reason Sir Alex Ferguson sold him once it became clear Rooney and Ronaldo were the players he should build a team around). Forlan then was more of an old-fashioned inside right; with the ability to take the ball off the midfield and run at defences, able to shoot with either foot and slip passes to other attackers. He worked hard to make himself more of a European striker and improved his movement in the box. In the Championship winning year of 2002-03 he scored some crucial goals and earned himself a lifelong place in United cult fandom by scoring two against Liverpool at Anfield. But United's purchase of Rooney made him surplus to requirements, having scored only 10 goals in 63 games. For Villarreal, he would notch 54 in 106, and for Atletico Madrid, 64 in 97, suggesting that we never quite saw the best of him in England, though United fans could always see that he was a class act; just not the right class act at that time.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhefIfCYMaQFYnAFWkG-QEfbMra3fXsDSvope-sLolhssFmY_jJKULEA6oFrSybeUych8rMeHQmKO_6H_4d4wlOIe124yNZ41nKJ31HNROHB6Ak3Ad0BKrxhbm0apgQylB1fUw3HjQGNvk/s1600/scan0002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 273px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhefIfCYMaQFYnAFWkG-QEfbMra3fXsDSvope-sLolhssFmY_jJKULEA6oFrSybeUych8rMeHQmKO_6H_4d4wlOIe124yNZ41nKJ31HNROHB6Ak3Ad0BKrxhbm0apgQylB1fUw3HjQGNvk/s400/scan0002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456767029473646642" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Jari Litmanen - Liverpool</span><br />It often seemed during the Evans and Houllier eras that Liverpool really needed a Cantona figure. Somebody to tie it all together, a genius to make the difference in the tightest games, that spark, something out of the ordinary. Preferably a foreigner, an unknown quantity in Britain. Litmanen was meant to be that player.<br />He had been one of the hottest players in World football after a magical spell at Ajax, where he wore the totemic Number 10 in Louis Van Gaal's European Cup winning team. He was a playmaker but a great goalscorer too, topping the Dutch scoring charts in the 93-94 season. He began moves with visionary passes and then arrived in the box to finish them off. Had he not been unfashionably Finnish, he would possibly have been voted World Player of the Year at that time. He was that devastating. He followed Van Gaal to Barcelona in 1999 but played little over two seasons as he was frequently injured, setting a pattern that would continue for much of his playing career. It certainly continued at Liverpool after he was signed by Houllier on a free transfer in 2001. He only lasted a season, playing 21 times, and it quickly seemed that even when he was fit Houllier didn't quite trust him or use him enough. He scored 5 goals and donated a few match-changing performances, but it wasn't quite enough, and having missed out (through injury, of course) on all three of the Finals Liverpool won at the climax of the 2000-2001 Season, he returned to Ajax in August 2002.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14VC_AB-hBOkPCEMNd4npfMouCyFO67OMRLrGZxbsU2yg2XUNbW2GxYlHmG5AtdhIJPDrDaJgf0mh8gbf8FMDPKW29Cn08W-r3MKfRB49TDkLTK5FzNaFUFJjwtYzbqH4zEqkyC6LiIg/s1600/andrei+shevchenko.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14VC_AB-hBOkPCEMNd4npfMouCyFO67OMRLrGZxbsU2yg2XUNbW2GxYlHmG5AtdhIJPDrDaJgf0mh8gbf8FMDPKW29Cn08W-r3MKfRB49TDkLTK5FzNaFUFJjwtYzbqH4zEqkyC6LiIg/s400/andrei+shevchenko.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457923629546922978" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Andriy Shevchenko - Chelsea</span><br />In his pomp at Milan Shevchenko was unequivocally the greatest striker in European football. But at Chelsea, after Roman Abramovich had pursued him for years and spent a large amount of money to prise him away from Silvio Berlusconi, he looked a shadow of that player. He scored 127 goals in 208 games for AC Milan. He won a scudetto or two, a European Cup, and European Player of the Year. He was awesome and feared across the continent. He scored tap-ins and headers, thunderbolts from distance, placed finishes. Chelsea paid £30.8 for him in May 2006, and altough the goals never quite dried up, he was never the same. Overshadowed by Didier Drogba, seemingly not trusted by Jose Mourinho, and most crucially, lacking that burst of pace which had allowed him to arrive in the right pace at the right time more often that most strikers, he never seemed to settle at Chelsea. He scored here and there, even some significant goals, but he never shone the way the player from Milan had, was never the talisman his price-tag demanded he be. His second season was blighted by injury and after a third, he was loaned back to Milan and eventually sold back to Dynamo Kiev, the club where he had originally broken through. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwXBB8NQIYW9ND4WjRMJu3QQoUixN0iv6d7l5BOiH964a6P9G_P3Y5oYX7h3PsGYBzOUfZiv05PAzrfLyCtKTarhfPk6xO3jtrPH1usgdJ6d7lu1N1qARu_0pXbuG3mbhyei4JOR36TE/s1600/scott_dobie_01_470x389.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 331px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwXBB8NQIYW9ND4WjRMJu3QQoUixN0iv6d7l5BOiH964a6P9G_P3Y5oYX7h3PsGYBzOUfZiv05PAzrfLyCtKTarhfPk6xO3jtrPH1usgdJ6d7lu1N1qARu_0pXbuG3mbhyei4JOR36TE/s400/scott_dobie_01_470x389.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457925581123091426" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Nelson Vivas - Arsenal</span><br />Arsene Wenger has never really had much of an eye for a defender. Attacking football is obviously never a problem. But defense? Consider that he arrived at Arsenal to find that legendary back four already in place and that over the next decade he attempted to replace them with the likes of Stepanovs, Luzhny, Cygan and Grimandi. His best defensive purchases have been lured from clubs right under his nose - Sol Campbell from Spurs and William Gallas from Chelsea. Then there is Nelson Vivas. He had a solid early career in Argentina - seven years with first Quilmes and then Boca Juniors, followed by a 1997 loan to Switzerland's AC Lugano. Arsenal bought him after only a Season there with a view to replacing Lee Dixon at right back. He played games that first Season, but was never quite a regular as Wenger juggled him between fullback positions and his struggle to cope with the Premier League's pace meant that he made a lot of late tackles and received sundry yellow cards. His willingness to attack also proved something of a weakness, given his inability to match the pace of the games around him.<br />His second season was affected by his injury problems and, altough he had a small cult among Arsenal fans for his strength and bravery, his fate was already sealed by the club's purchase of Luzhny. Here is a player who should have been to Arsenal what Gabriel Heinze would be to Manchester United - an Argentine Warrior-defender, committed, driving, courageous and technically adroit. Instead his career in England drifted away from him and he was sold to Inernazionale in 2001 after a Season's loan at Celta Vigo. He played 39 times for his country.David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-40638811684545931962009-12-21T15:16:00.000-08:002009-12-21T17:08:41.707-08:00Forever and Ever<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMkST4pxozrza_HuTnds7MGPXm_iXXILX6tEa3zO9pqQgyGJXpFk0Jox9oP1gK6ogMZBvV0FTVez0e3yshpvUiZQKApvsdRSVgcRKrBAcJ3HXOvVnkmh1Vr6DqCRaaje3Z_UdN9fD1U4Y/s1600-h/3974841039_2d0047641e.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 304px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMkST4pxozrza_HuTnds7MGPXm_iXXILX6tEa3zO9pqQgyGJXpFk0Jox9oP1gK6ogMZBvV0FTVez0e3yshpvUiZQKApvsdRSVgcRKrBAcJ3HXOvVnkmh1Vr6DqCRaaje3Z_UdN9fD1U4Y/s400/3974841039_2d0047641e.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417853600888468770" /></a><br /><br />Its always uniquely satisfying to see a young player whose talent you have admired from early in his career blossom and start to fulfil some of his potential. That strange sense of ownership a fan can have with a player is unavoidable and only sharpens the pleasure of seeing him do well.<br /><br />Tomorrow night Argentina play the Johan Cruyff managed-Catalonia National team (which counts such stars as Carlos Puyol, Victor Valdes, Bojan, Xavi, Cesc Fabregas and Gerard Pique amongst its ranks) in a friendly in Barcelona. Argentine Coach Diego Maradona is currently suspended from any public football-related activities by FIFA due to his foul-mouthed tirade at the press in the immediate aftermath of his sides win over Uruguay and qualification for the World Cup, but he did pick the squad for the game, and as is now-habitual, he named a couple of players he hasn't used before (one of the startling features of Maradona's reign so far has been the sheer quantity of players selected and used, if only briefly). <a href=" http://golgolgolgolgol.blogspot.com/2009/07/latin-wonderkids.html">Wonderboy playmaker Javier Pastore</a> has been a firm favourite of the Argentine press for the last year due to his elegant, incisive performances for Huracan, but Maradona had previously ignored him. His summer transfer to Palermo and recent good form seem to have altered this and he has received his first call-up. But the player whose selection is most satisfying to me is Ever Banega.<br /><br />Banega came up through the youth teams at Boca Juniors and made his senior debut in February 2007 at just 18. Replacing a Real Madrid-bound Fernando Gago in the traditional Number 5 position in defensive midfield he distinguished himself to such an extent that some Boca fans were upset that the return of former Boca legend Juan Roman Riquelme to the club might harm Banega's development. Instead, Banega and Riquelme dovetailed beautifully as Boca won the Copa Libertadores - South America's equivalent to the Champions League - in 2007. After less than a year as a regular in Boca's first team, Banega was transferred to Valencia for €18 million. But he arrived at a club on the brink of disaster, riven with financial difficulties and internal politics. He didn't help himself with a widely circulated internet chatroom sex video and his early performances weren't good enough to help him break into a team with a lot of competition for places in midfield. After only half a Season, he went on loan to Atletico Madrid, where again he was unable to establish himself in the first team, generally making appearances from the bench and contributing little. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZCOttR6dOoq0F9jh3KaCK2zGR0IYkyZMDeEFCBdI3lVUJhSqvkw4SZq5-djA_l8_Yw5Z_z-DMgC6hGMQ9qB-4tk4LsLpOQSyefndm6h9L7yjeg3XH814Yw_pYB4Vx-lTUO7kX_whq36w/s1600-h/b_PRETENDIDO_b_Ever_Banega.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 276px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZCOttR6dOoq0F9jh3KaCK2zGR0IYkyZMDeEFCBdI3lVUJhSqvkw4SZq5-djA_l8_Yw5Z_z-DMgC6hGMQ9qB-4tk4LsLpOQSyefndm6h9L7yjeg3XH814Yw_pYB4Vx-lTUO7kX_whq36w/s400/b_PRETENDIDO_b_Ever_Banega.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417853784726910290" /></a><br /><br />A return to Valencia in the summer meant that he was at the centre of much transfer speculation. He was linked to a host of British clubs - Everton were seemingly closest - but new Valencia coach Unai Emery seems to rate Banega more highly than his predecessors did, and he has arguably been the side's midfield lynchpin so far this Season, finally recapturing his Boca form in Europe and earning his International recall. He has previously played twice for the Senior National team after winning caps at every single youth level, playing in the Olympic Gold Medal-winning team and captaining the Under 21 team in the tournament at that level in Toulon in May. The prospect of him linking up in central midfield with Pastore, or indeed with Angel Di Maria or Mario Bolatti, could prove an exciting glimpse into the future for Argentine football fans.<br /><br />Banega's most obvious quality is his passing ability, evident from his Boca debut. He is admirably two-footed, though he favours his right, possesses great touch and control, and is adept at mixing up his game with a variety of long and short balls. He never seemed a classical Number 5 at Boca, surging from deep with the ball (he is deceptively pacy) more than a Mascherano or Redondo would and obviously fond of the playmaker role behind the forwards, from where he can inflict real damage with his vision and precise, incisive through-balls. Currently he alternates at Valencia, carrying much of the creative threat from midfield (especially in the recent absence of David Silva) but also doing his share of defensive work. His positional sense is perhaps a weakness, but he compensates with his pace and a nice ability to time a clean tackle. He formed such an effective duo with Riquelme because he knew when to time his runs forward, and when to hold and because he could always deliver the ball accurately to the Playmaker, often first time. Like Riquelme, he is capable of utterly dictating the pace of a game, and when he is playing well, everything goes through him. Another slight weakness may be a slightly immature need to always attempt the perfect defence-splitting pass, but then who can blame him when he is so evidently capable of doing just that?<br />But he is the best sort of Argentine midfielder - always open and hungry for possession, generally aware of what he wants to do with the ball before he receives it, blessed with the technical ability to execute his intent, and driven by a fierce competitive spirit which means that he is usually in the thick of the battle.<br /><br />His recent rejuvenation at Valencia doesn't really surprise me. He was always plainly a great talent, and it was just a question of when he would prove that. Hopefully Maradona will let him start tomorrow night and he will prove it in the National shirt too.<br /><br />A few YouTube highlights:<br /><br />A general compilation of flicks and tricks:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ugmkqkq6otA&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ugmkqkq6otA&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Banega showing his class, and range of passing, for Boca against Milan in the World Club championship final:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aMFp1I4y98E&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aMFp1I4y98E&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Nothing quite as lovely as a nicely done nutmeg, and there is one at 1:46 in this video, which is otherwise a selection of some perfect through-balls and nice short pass and move play:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0iHjtUN_UY&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0iHjtUN_UY&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-25355746588911389092009-10-15T01:25:00.000-07:002009-10-16T01:15:03.696-07:00Danish Dynamite<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho5COkmLoecOP32T1htC0PaVESURMD3pXYmi1rUxxh6ev3iQd9_5JZTj6DGnDXv3tPp2opXWz6ZMbHLS2z0ILsvg2fEHYBN1E9ke4VXtFJuktSZvLubKQdKkxexbu9DJ8spVAyJMWsSWw/s1600-h/ldk86.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho5COkmLoecOP32T1htC0PaVESURMD3pXYmi1rUxxh6ev3iQd9_5JZTj6DGnDXv3tPp2opXWz6ZMbHLS2z0ILsvg2fEHYBN1E9ke4VXtFJuktSZvLubKQdKkxexbu9DJ8spVAyJMWsSWw/s400/ldk86.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392462331360289138" /></a><br /><br />The Denmark National team of the mid-80s was one of the teams that defined the way I see football. I was 11 during the 1986 World Cup, when they played some of the best football I had ever seen and were easily the best team of the tournaments opening phase. I was aware of how good they were - they had pulverized Ireland 4-1 at Lansdowne Road in a group game and been a mite unlucky to go out of Euro 84 in the semis to a decent Spanish side (who would again prove their undoing in Mexico in 86).<br />But watching them destroy Uruguay (6-1!) and West Germany in the so-called 'Group of Death' was a different experience entirely. They had some amazing players - Laudrup, Elkjaer, Olsen, Olsen, Lerby, Arnesen, Molby - and they played a sort of 'total football' of a type I'd never seen before. They also had a magnificent kit, which was no small thing to an 11 year old football fan. And my club, Manchester United, soon had two Danish internationals on its books - Jesper Olsen and John Sivebaek. i wished it was Laudrup - my favourite player in the world after Maradona - but they weren't bad substitutes.<br />The legacy that team has had in my view of football is probably evident in the fact that I've written two profiles of players from its ranks on this blog - Laudrup and Molby.<br /><br />I'm not alone in my fondness for this particular team. As <a href=" http://tinyurl.com/yf96el6">this exceptional Guardian piece</a> reports at some length, they came surprisingly high in World Soccer's list of the Greatest Ever Team, and if you grew up in that era and had any interest in International football, i guarantee you will remember them well too. So; please read the piece, follow every link (there are some awesome youtube clips at the end of many, especially the Elkjaer footage) and enjoy, then <a href=" http://www.frontlinefootball.com/Video-Stories/world-cup-1986-film/">go here</a> for access to streaming prints of all the official FIFA films up until 1986, and HERO, which features that Danish side quite prominently.David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-26003035064740313702009-10-05T15:30:00.000-07:002009-10-05T15:35:21.237-07:00Stitch thisMartin Palermo, Boca legend, infamous taker of three missed penalties in a single game, ludicrously consistent goalscorer, nicknamed "el Loco", currently not speaking to fellow Boca teammate/legend Juan Roman Riquelme and expected to lead the line for Argentina in this weekend's crucial World Cup qualifier against Peru despite never having really made it at International level, scored the winning goal for Boca against champons Velez Sarsfeld at la Bombonera last night. With a header. Pelermo is good with his head, so that isn't a surprise, perhaps. But this was from 40 yards, literally:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MtDw6jhPXI0&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MtDw6jhPXI0&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-11328303715628050322009-09-24T15:26:00.000-07:002009-09-24T15:31:19.996-07:00More Than A ClubThis is the video Pep Guardiola had a friend of his at a Spanish TV station cut to be played for the Barcelona players in the dressing room before the Champions League Final against Man United in Rome. A bit obvious, maybe, but the Gladiator score is stirring, and who could fail to be inspired by footage of themselves excelling?<br /><br />The players watched it in total darkness just before they stepped into the tunnel then out onto the pitch to destroy United. So, whatever its merits, it worked.<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/o8Dhj7KsEyQ&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/o8Dhj7KsEyQ&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-54931186888780938692009-07-14T17:48:00.000-07:002009-07-15T06:45:53.162-07:00The Magic Dragao<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHeKo71xNktgh2RBr6amCcaHez5DGi6no3UzWsXOVYb10oRBp91JNNk34ebgb10u9PbgcmcHeU-Aps1jpdHpYKvebY34BBHXEVumndGkc08MVfDq4BEig19cBlhGbjf1c_0q9aY4LUwNs/s1600-h/2911074264_d88a0cd011.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHeKo71xNktgh2RBr6amCcaHez5DGi6no3UzWsXOVYb10oRBp91JNNk34ebgb10u9PbgcmcHeU-Aps1jpdHpYKvebY34BBHXEVumndGkc08MVfDq4BEig19cBlhGbjf1c_0q9aY4LUwNs/s320/2911074264_d88a0cd011.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358489508813993106" /></a><br /><br />In perhaps the craziest Summer ever on the European transfer market, with Real Madrid buying everybody but Barack Obama, Manchester City front-loading a squad in a manner that recalls nothing so much as Ossie Ardiles' Tottenham Hotspur team; and just about everybody else (even the usually mighty likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Juventus and AC Milan) wondering what exactly the suddenly tiny sum of £20 Million buys you nowadays, one club seems to me to have done great business in the transfer market. That club would be FC Porto.<br /><br />How can that be? you say. Haven't they just sold their most influential player, their heartbeat, playmaker, captain and midfield general, Luis "Lucho" Gonzalez? Why, yes they have, to Marseille for €18 Million. And, and - haven't they also sold their buccaneering, ultra-prolific centre forward, Lisandro Lopez? Why, yes. To Lyon, for €24 Million. How then, you ask, can this be mistaken for 'great' business?<br /><br />Well. This is the Porto model. They identify South American talent, (and not in the way Barcelona or Man Utd do, recruiting youth team players before they make their full debuts), they monitor its development, then they buy it. Not too cheaply, either, but never at an exorbitant price. They seem to have a great knack of picking players who <span style="font-style:italic;">will</span> make the grade in Europe, where a lot of clubs recruit unknown quantities who don't have what it takes and go home after a Season or two, having discovered their actual level. Or perhaps they just handle those players well, shepherding them through a difficult cultural change and allowing them to find their form and way without rushing anything.<br />Then they make that talent work for them. Since the Mourinho era, Porto have won the League in six out of seven Seasons (the single unsuccessful year was the immediate post-Mourinho wobble) and established an iron-fisted dominance over the two big Lisbon clubs. They also regularly make the latter stages of the Champions League.<br />Then they sell these players, generally at a significant profit. And back they go to South america, to buy the next player...<br /><br />Examples: Deco, who was playing for tiny Salgueiros in Portugal when Porto bought him, the unknown Brazilian had been brought to Portugal by Benfica but never given a start, instead being farmed out on loan. Porto bought him for a pittance, Mourinho made him the focal point of the team and he was one of the best players in the World for a few seasons after that; able to pass long and short, tackle, dribble and with a great tactical brain. They won the Portuguese League, the UEFA cup, then the Champions League, and then sold him to Barcelona for €12 Million and Ricardo Quaresma. <br />Quaresma himself - a dazzling talent for Sporting Lisbon, he had flopped horribly after a big-money (€6 Million) transfer to Barcelona. Porto rehabilitated him and he would be a key member of the squad that won two consecutive League titles before being sold to Internazionale for €18 Million. <br />Porto replaced Quaresma with Cristian Rodriguez, the young Uruguayan who had done well in a struggling Paris Saint Germain before being loaned to Benfica, where he thrived. Porto nipped him from under Benfica's noses, paying €7 Million for him, giving him the Number 10 shirt and playing him as a roaming left winger in a potent three-man attack.<br />One of the other members of that attack, Hulk, had been a revelation this season. Bought from Tokyo Verdy in Japan and accordingly absolutely off the radar for most of Europe's clubs, the young Brazilian cost only €6 Million and scored eight goals in his debut Season in Portugal.<br /><br />Of course there have been players who didn't do quite so well. But Porto generally made a profit on them, too. Diego is a rare exception, joining for €7 Million from Santos and leaving for Werder Bremen, his reputation damaged by two seasons of underachievement, for €6 Million. Anderson is more representative - bought from Gremio for around €10 Million, a horrific broken leg (the result of a tackle) meant he played little for Porto, but Manchester United paid €18 Million for him anyway. As is Carlos Alberto, who played little but scored the crucial first goal in the Champions League final and was sold to Werder Bremen for €7.8 Million.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8KGvWnUPDYhGs3QJjK4WHMCMNFpbB9IdAkUA3odO0sMSZFiqW54tZww16_Msb2UKfyMTkJDISur3gLZVxQlJ8mv_8N-TYk30sg2cq3quhRbiJRjtGlLMT7hvuSpbbX7YM9Lj_qcN-kI0/s1600-h/i220070b769965fa31ffad3fea4a1e92d-getty-fbl-eur-c3-olympiakos-herta.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8KGvWnUPDYhGs3QJjK4WHMCMNFpbB9IdAkUA3odO0sMSZFiqW54tZww16_Msb2UKfyMTkJDISur3gLZVxQlJ8mv_8N-TYk30sg2cq3quhRbiJRjtGlLMT7hvuSpbbX7YM9Lj_qcN-kI0/s320/i220070b769965fa31ffad3fea4a1e92d-getty-fbl-eur-c3-olympiakos-herta.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358681849605588274" /></a><br /><br />Bringing me back to this summer, Lucho and Lopez. Porto obviously have been eyeing their replacements for some time. Lucho has been linked with various Spanish clubs for the last two summers (Valencia and Atletico Madrid, most prominently) and within a week of his transfer, Porto had begun negotiations to bring Fernando Belluschi in to replace him. Belluschi is another former River Plate creative midfielder, perhaps more imaginitive than Lucho, if less commanding, and after a solid (and occasionally inspired) first Season with Olympiakos he may be ready for a bigger League. This is business - Porto paid €11 Million for Lucho, sold him for €18 Million, and have bought Belluschi for €5 Million. They are also persistently linked with Lanus' Diego Valeri, an oustanding young playmaker, and their history with recruits from Argentina suggests he too could be a success.<br />As for Lisandro Lopez, he was bought from Racing Club in Argentina for €2.5 Million, giving Porto a €20 Million profit on his sale to Lyon. In his time at the club he doubled his goals-per-game tally and was a lethal spearpoint to their attack. They have acted quickly to replace him, paying River Plate €3.9 Million for the 23 year-old Columbian striker Falcao, a hot property over the last few Seasons, and as good a striker as there is in South America at the moment.<br /><br />Man City, prepared to pay €40 Million for Emmanuel Adebayor, and Real Madrid, with the same fee for Xabi Alonso, could do worse than take a few notes. Though they would probably rather wait a Season or two, then offer €50 Million for Falcao...David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-71818198105135220282009-07-14T17:44:00.000-07:002009-07-14T17:45:41.197-07:00Latin Wonderkids<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNKm6LeqkLheN1YgrqTwkcw0pmW1yxzQUYecuK9tUGuRs5FXhwzOvYEmdEb-sQV-lm5-5_8IJK8Sjv8yIoZr0uaJX8_vz-Rz16WWdGhWDjE_ewuLyHWeMjY1lk8W3u8HqjgKGYpsMkFHNz/s1600-h/49ff209a19c9f_300x400.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNKm6LeqkLheN1YgrqTwkcw0pmW1yxzQUYecuK9tUGuRs5FXhwzOvYEmdEb-sQV-lm5-5_8IJK8Sjv8yIoZr0uaJX8_vz-Rz16WWdGhWDjE_ewuLyHWeMjY1lk8W3u8HqjgKGYpsMkFHNz/s320/49ff209a19c9f_300x400.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350303449140462018" /></a><br /><br />South America has long exported its football talent to Europe. <br />In recent years, however, the talent drain has been beginning earlier as young players flee Economic and social uncertainty at home in Brazil or Argentina in order to live more comfortably, funded by their new European owners. Lionel Messi and his entire family left Rosario in Argentina because his boyhood club, Newells Old Boys, could not afford to pay for the hormonal treatments needed to stimulate his growth if "the flea" was ever to develop enough to give him a shot at a career as a professional. Barcelona could afford it, and afford to employ his father and put up the family in town. The Da Silva twins left Brazil before ever featuring for the first team at Fluminense. Manchester United had spotted them at an International Youth Tournament and moved quickly to sign them up.<br /><br />This is increasingly common. And South America continues to produce great players, with new wonderkids appearing on the conveyer belt every season. They shuffle off to a mid-ranked European club, struggle with just about everything, go on loan, and finally return home, older and wiser, career more or less wasted. The odd exceptional talent - a Messi or a Kaka - thrives on or ahead of schedule. Many others take a few years to adapt to the weather, the rigours of the training ground, the physicality of the European game and the expectations upon their shoulders. Life must feel different once you're worth millions of dollars. Still, European Club football is full of South Americans. The latter stages of the Champions League positively teem with Brazilians and Argentines, alongside the occasional Uruguayan. And they keep coming. There will be more this summer, and in the January transfer window, and after the 2010 World Cup, when a few new talents have been unearthed. <br /><br />I watch a lot of Argentinian football, and as much of the Copa Libertadores as I can. So I know a little about Uruguayan and Brazilian and Chilean football too. Enough to have spotted a few up and coming stars. It helps, too, that the media in those countries carefully monitors young talent in order to predict the next big thing as early as possible - many of these kids (none older than 22) have been persistently linked with the usual suspects (Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barca, Milan, Inter etc) for years, and its as if the local media wants them to leave and further weaken domestic leagues. Go figure. Anyway, a short primer of some names to watch out for over the next few years:<br /><br />Nicolas Lodeiro of Nacional (Uruguay)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGoHPHVUl0CPkUHKtEfQkXLYJkysGxocH4BsVUPzBFBvKW0ltKBapqwIR6zAxbscSYGhMVO6aPWVKNYisM4cjIxs-O8rSW48nQbNvwuucBTO-zhTp_7vjxkHEcJOc1lxSgiFke1kZOO5Vg/s1600-h/42718_news.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 288px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGoHPHVUl0CPkUHKtEfQkXLYJkysGxocH4BsVUPzBFBvKW0ltKBapqwIR6zAxbscSYGhMVO6aPWVKNYisM4cjIxs-O8rSW48nQbNvwuucBTO-zhTp_7vjxkHEcJOc1lxSgiFke1kZOO5Vg/s320/42718_news.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350887173065333266" /></a><br /><br />Lodeiro, 20, is always being compared with Lionel Messi, which suggests how highly he is rated in South America. There are similarities - he is short (5ft7in) and plays on the wing yet with a licence to drift inside and link up attacks. But his game is very different to Messi's. He is more old-fashioned in that his playmaking comes more through passing than through the penetrative dribbles which Messi favours. He reads the game well and has an eye for a killer ball, which he appears to have an eerie knack of seeing before it actually materialises. He scores fewer goals than Messi, altough this part of his game looks to be improving. He is also a hard worker, tracking back and ferreting for the ball and displaying some trademark Uruguayan grit when contesting possession. He really emerged at the South American U21 Championship in January, where he scored three goals in six games and ran the show for Uruguay, who qualified for the U21 World Cup as a result. Since then he has played a key role in Nacional's successful run to the semi-finals of the Libertadores for the first time in over a decade. Uruguayan football never holds onto its brightest stars for very long, and the odds are that he will be in Europe soon, and the loudest talk has been of a move to either Barcelona or Liverpool...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zYXtNAMPgGU&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zYXtNAMPgGU&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Javier Pastore of Huracan (Argentina)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz4BMHXuylVkGL_x61S1u663IMk2zvJ8FrIeyEV6gpq_KVb5ZW3gT7S4TKGkFr0XjLreiTbVZG2TAtVUCxgWyMUGCMEF3bju8yuh69gYWADOq1MIj5hPSscYg0dJYPVbtjAprg-WzEFKFq/s1600-h/pastore.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 238px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz4BMHXuylVkGL_x61S1u663IMk2zvJ8FrIeyEV6gpq_KVb5ZW3gT7S4TKGkFr0XjLreiTbVZG2TAtVUCxgWyMUGCMEF3bju8yuh69gYWADOq1MIj5hPSscYg0dJYPVbtjAprg-WzEFKFq/s320/pastore.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350891389524931618" /></a><br /><br />The Argentine League has been quite topsy turvy of late. The traditional "Big Five" (Boca Juniors, River Plate, Independiente, Racing Club and San Lorenzo) have suffered through sales of young stars to Europe and financial crises brought on by mismanagement and concerted attempts at Libertadores success. River won the Clausura last year, then came bottom in the Apertura, and Boca are not too far off repeating that feat in this Season. Which means that the dominant sides at the moment are a lowlier trio of Buenos Aires clubs - Lanus, Velez Sarsfeld and Huracan. Huracan have a historical reputation for attractive, attacking football (which in a country as devoted to attacking football as Argentina is no small claim) and under current coach Angel Cappa, they more than live up to that reputation. they also feature a duo of young stars who are stealing headlines in Argentina and attracting attention in Europe. Matias De Federico is another half-pint dribbler, blessed with explosive acceleration and feet seemingly magnetic to the ball. Inevitably, he is continually compared with Messi. Javier Pastore, on the other hand, is a playmaker for whom the term "elegant" might have been coined. Graceful of movement and with a fine range of creative passing, Pastore is also a deceptively strong runner, covering lots of ground with his rangy 6ft1in frame. This allows him to arrive late in the box on a regular basis and has meant he has scored 8 goals this Season for Huracan, including two in a 4-0 hammering of River Plate (he provided an assist for another). He seems always calm and composed, and his use of the ball, given any space at all, is often sublime. His agent reported that Man Utd bid £8 Million for him a month or so ago, but at 19, he may need another Season or two in Argentina before a move really appeals. He also needs to impress his National Team Coach, who snubbed him when picking an entire squad of domestically based players for a recent friendly against Panama. De Federico was selected (and scored) and the suspicion stands that Pastore was excluded because Huracan would not release him for the U21 Championship. In the past, Maradona has similarly punished Gonzalo Higuain, so at least Pastore is in good company...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IXQFnEyDpe4&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IXQFnEyDpe4&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Juan Forlin of Boca Juniors (Argentina) <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimffRlL-STpzDuX2ZhraVEipEd4ABDHifpprNGpJgKLzb0tHv7tyBcprfv30hwWirDRYG_qXU37kIfoIkEoKwMme8orrNugmjLO5mrpg7lTRAXApwcdUV92Ep_P_6HqLYpYU6m2NpvfnN7/s1600-h/0+juan+forlin+boca+juniors+barcelona.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 249px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimffRlL-STpzDuX2ZhraVEipEd4ABDHifpprNGpJgKLzb0tHv7tyBcprfv30hwWirDRYG_qXU37kIfoIkEoKwMme8orrNugmjLO5mrpg7lTRAXApwcdUV92Ep_P_6HqLYpYU6m2NpvfnN7/s320/0+juan+forlin+boca+juniors+barcelona.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351046563467331778" /></a><br /><br />The Argentine National team, struggling somewhat under the guidance of Diego Maradona, have a few problem positions if they do reach the World Cup in South Africa. Chief amongst them is Centre Back. Since the retirement of Roberto Ayala and the long term injury to Gabriel Milito, nobody has satisfactorily made either of the central defensive positions definitively his own. Maradona has experimented with various different players and combinations there, with mixed results. Which explains why Juan Forlin was fast-tracked into the squad during his first full Season as a first team player at Boca. If he continues at his current rate of development, then he could well be first choice for his country by the time the World Cup rolls around. He is certainly good enough. At 5ft11in, he is short for a centre half, but he makes up for it with incredible anticipation, smooth, apparently effortless pace and clean, precise tackling. He makes many sliding challenges, yet rarely concedes a free kick, instead often emerging with the ball at his feet, his opponent baffled by this lightning ghost. His spring is good in partial compensation for his stature. And, in the Boca tradition, he is adept at passing the ball out from the heart of defence. Barecelona have been sniffing around...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ifCRw-0D0hI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ifCRw-0D0hI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Sebastian Blanco of Lanus (Argentina)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXBox6PBO0mVTqYAUXiAuKbF40gDvQZxD9scY1SNpamf_Tc82adUTKSBh39BBBkGfwv_oTZONwOMmLgf__nTcOYZQMFDUfMMZRfV-lhMzx049oyUjP3Bau4LKH6zAfPGCJGTCPFwSi3EzI/s1600-h/i00002512-23.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 242px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXBox6PBO0mVTqYAUXiAuKbF40gDvQZxD9scY1SNpamf_Tc82adUTKSBh39BBBkGfwv_oTZONwOMmLgf__nTcOYZQMFDUfMMZRfV-lhMzx049oyUjP3Bau4LKH6zAfPGCJGTCPFwSi3EzI/s320/i00002512-23.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351057624781790402" /></a><br /><br />Over the last two or three years, Lanus have easily and consistently played the best football in Argentina. They won their first ever League title two years ago (Apertura 2007), a triumph for their inimitably Argentinean short passing style. They possess a surfeit of creative, positive midfielders. Diego Valeri, the most classical, old-fashioned playmaker to emerge from Argentina since Juan Roman Riquelme (but with pace and a better work ethic, even if he does lack Riquelme's genius), was their lynchpin when they won that League title. Since then both Eduardo Salvio and Sebastian Blanco have become fixtures in the team. Blanco has often been preferred to the out-of-form Valeri this season. A truly two-footed attacker, he can play either wing, as a support striker, or in the Playmaker role at the tip of midfield, which is where he seems best used. Beautifully balanced and with a quick turn, it is that ability to use either foot to deliver his passes which marks him out, and the way he has started to shape Lanus' attacks with changes of play and sudden slide rule balls which suggest he could have a very bright future indeed. Lanus have done a good job holding onto all of their their young talent so far, Blanco included, for fear of selling off all of their success, but sooner or later the money on offer will prove too good to resist...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/imEjB6O71zk&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/imEjB6O71zk&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Maxi Moralez of Velez Sarsfield (Argentina)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1B0cRsMjjTE0orTa_UEqb8QzxObN0_pftrumeJ3l4LRUxS5H8JZSY0lcSayrzvJofmzoBFwqkbxZM8NHO20okwlAy0HQNvfeeZL_GEQLjGOviZnK_4s6RCK3-kbbB8OcPoQbt8INlspp/s1600-h/Moralez.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1B0cRsMjjTE0orTa_UEqb8QzxObN0_pftrumeJ3l4LRUxS5H8JZSY0lcSayrzvJofmzoBFwqkbxZM8NHO20okwlAy0HQNvfeeZL_GEQLjGOviZnK_4s6RCK3-kbbB8OcPoQbt8INlspp/s320/Moralez.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351422182273253906" /></a><br /><br />Maxi Moralez stands out on this list for having done it all already. Aged 22, he has already moved to Europe for a lot of money, already failed and returned with his tail between his legs. And somehow it seems to have improved him as a player. He built a great reputation for himself at Racing Club in his teens, his technique, link up play, quick passing and incisive runs all impressing observers. At the 2007 U-20 World Cup in Canada, he was the outstanding performer in the victorious Argentina side which also included Sergio Aguero, Angel Di Maria and Franco Di Santo. Moralez, clearly at home in the traditional Number 10 position in the hole behind Di Santo and Aguero, made his strikers look good with his clever prompting and numerous fine assists. FC Moscow promptly bought him for $5 Million. He didn't adapt well to Moscow, barely played, and was loaned back to Racing after 6 months, out of shape and in poor form. It took him around another 6 months to recover form, fitness and confidence, and by then it was unclear whether Racing actually wanted to keep him. So Moralez joined Velez Sarsfield instead, was given the Number 10 shirt and the responsibility to make things happen, and has driven the club to within one game of title success. He is the definition of a livewire - quick on his feet and with them, always looking for options, always a threat. at some point a return to Europe seems inevitable, perhaps in a more hospitable league than Russia's.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/p8-lvNlbPVI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/p8-lvNlbPVI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Douglas Costa of Gremio (Brazil)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_xyFBgDna4vnynTGCvKJHSVc9y1LWq4GvDaRyid9mfHkF6trTKWuHByXdn9Ow_5FTsYhyphenhyphenymuNCeJ8I93u2Asyto0LSzDWM1U0I9iN1xQjlPgZjm9s3Eka9CKBcqBqTGOvLYyn2-LMkfd/s1600-h/douglas+costa.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 249px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp_xyFBgDna4vnynTGCvKJHSVc9y1LWq4GvDaRyid9mfHkF6trTKWuHByXdn9Ow_5FTsYhyphenhyphenymuNCeJ8I93u2Asyto0LSzDWM1U0I9iN1xQjlPgZjm9s3Eka9CKBcqBqTGOvLYyn2-LMkfd/s320/douglas+costa.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351427192676910386" /></a><br /><br />A left-winger with a penchant for lots of step-overs and stunning swerves above the ball, Costa has already been compared to Ronaldinho, Robinho, and Cristiano Ronaldo in his native Brazil. One thing he definitely has in common with these players is an uncommon cockiness - he swaggers with belief in his own ability. Which does seem partly warranted by his undoubted potential. He has vision, astonishing pace and is a magnificent dribbler. His dead-ball ability also belies his youth (he is 19). But he is far from the finished article and above Brazilian ball wizards of his ilk always must loom the shadow of Denilson, who never came close to living up to the huge transfer fee which took him to Europe (he went to Real Betis for £21.5 Million in 1998). Douglas could do with at least one more Season in Brazil before his inevitable move materialises. He has been, unsurprisingly, most prominently linked with Man Utd as a Ronaldo replacement...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ou6qrCNPk1c&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ou6qrCNPk1c&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Gary Medel of Universidad Catolica (Chile)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc4dCO9pKysedbRUPmwjTh_8YDDcjNXPUAPAjemjIA7PaJwEe-7f3wOnXViBjCDS1BZKdaUXXua1Ud4djusqrZk1t8Oh6Sr2o6hQa1MxmnYnF_0NbrnhxVQ0LROZ50YFfL3rp4K8qkP1Eo/s1600-h/1205683999_f.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc4dCO9pKysedbRUPmwjTh_8YDDcjNXPUAPAjemjIA7PaJwEe-7f3wOnXViBjCDS1BZKdaUXXua1Ud4djusqrZk1t8Oh6Sr2o6hQa1MxmnYnF_0NbrnhxVQ0LROZ50YFfL3rp4K8qkP1Eo/s320/1205683999_f.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351430704607146546" /></a><br /><br />His nickname: "El Pitbull" probably tells you all you need to know. A defensive midfielder in the Gattuso/Mascherano mould, Medel is a gritty competitor with fine footballing ability and a fantastic engine. Universidad Catolica are one of Chile's "Big Three", and for them he patrols the midfield, but Chilean National Coach Marcelo Bielsa usually uses him on the right side of a three-man defence, while encouraging him to forage forward, employing that amazing energy to burn his way through a match. In the recent 2-0 victory over Argentina in Santiago, Medel was probably Man of the Match, his drive and hunger for the ball and awesome sight. He will undoubtedly impress many at next year's World Cup, where Chile, who play a lovely high tempo passing game which is the most exciting, attractive sight in current South American football, could well be a surprise package. Independiente of Argentina seemed to have a move for him tied up a few months back, but that appears to have dissolved at the contractual stage. He will undoubtedly be anchoring the midfield of a major European club very soon, however...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/taAL0NbbIdo&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/taAL0NbbIdo&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-53685950597410529082009-04-04T06:48:00.000-07:002009-07-15T06:49:24.000-07:00Andy Reid & Stephen Ireland<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUbLfjtBY9W5eZltfDF_pTNe78AuvDskuFwW7wHGzzVkjT94ZudlO2lpVGcRC_m9CMSmXtj5OTxlOnkMQVJwgLKifhLmFe3WM4Li3fJIeksF-a8-c7OV5JQlZjI7Dkc0W0s2h7k34ek2jp/s1600-h/StephenIrelandR_468x541.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUbLfjtBY9W5eZltfDF_pTNe78AuvDskuFwW7wHGzzVkjT94ZudlO2lpVGcRC_m9CMSmXtj5OTxlOnkMQVJwgLKifhLmFe3WM4Li3fJIeksF-a8-c7OV5JQlZjI7Dkc0W0s2h7k34ek2jp/s320/StephenIrelandR_468x541.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319517862016832562" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-mnT9LWdR0FMyZn1lYyweMdiR5JvnZVROvKQrytcVLU950w04NBKZmoO0Z0RMAry2Ww-WD3Iuc4j_FVUqgmLPX2xErzdJ1r695xDFI4H1UFuPvSIPLeoDDlKOvZ3y2HTDFOIZHXTYICQd/s1600-h/article-1121209-01F7049F000004B0-149_468x358.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-mnT9LWdR0FMyZn1lYyweMdiR5JvnZVROvKQrytcVLU950w04NBKZmoO0Z0RMAry2Ww-WD3Iuc4j_FVUqgmLPX2xErzdJ1r695xDFI4H1UFuPvSIPLeoDDlKOvZ3y2HTDFOIZHXTYICQd/s320/article-1121209-01F7049F000004B0-149_468x358.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319517862065773970" /></a><br /><br />"Football is a beautiful game, and it should be played beautifully" - Brian Clough, The Damned United<br /><br />If you love football, it can be really depressing coming from a small country. <br />You don't qualify for most tournaments. When you do, you don't go very far. Because of this you get horrible seeding, which means you get awful draws in qualification groups, so ensuring that, yet again, you don't qualify. Each generation has a maximum of two top-class players, if you're lucky, and none if you aren't. This lack of quality encourages coaches to opt for percentage football - style is sacrificed. Results are paramount. The football is dire. Your club sides are terrible, the play unexciting, the best players swept off to bigger, more lucrative markets at a young age. You, like most lovers of football in this small country, look abroad for entertainment, for a team to care about. But you still love your national team. How could you not? Even though its an ugly beast. Its <span style="font-style:italic;">your</span> ugly beast, dammit.<br /><br />Ireland haven't qualified for a major tournament since the 2002 World Cup. Under Manager Brian Kerr we came very close. In a tough group with France and Israel, the team played nice, attractive football, but choked in the big games and narrowly missed out on qualification. Under his successor Steve Staunton Ireland hit a nadir - the worst results since the Charlton era, bad football, a lack of any tactical nous, <span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> awful results. So Giovanni Trappatoni, legendary and incredibly experienced septegenarian Italian coach, was given a Big Money contract. Results immediately improved. Trappatoni knew exactly what he wanted and he knew how to get it. He placed two holding midfielders at the centre of his team, leaving the flair to the wingers and the forwards, knowing that his two midfielders provided security to the defence above all else. <br /><br />In theory this is not an entirely bad idea. But it depends on the calibre of the playing staff for its success. A key player for Ireland in this system would be Blackburn midfielder Steven Reid. He is a good example of the modern central midfielder; strong, fast and incredibly fit, he has the stamina to run all game, to cover the entire pitch, to go ceaselessly from box to box. He is good at almost everything - he can tackle, run the ball, shoot from distance, his awareness is good, his passing varied, and he is fine in the air - but exceptional at nothing. He would work beside a journeyman destroyer in such a midfield, because his energy and pace would allow him to join the attack when required, and he can be a danger in the opposition half, but he would also so his share of defensive work. The destroyer could hold back all game, making Trappatoni happy.<br /><br />But Reid is injury-prone, and he is suffering from a long-term injury at present. So Trappatoni has been forced to use lesser players in the midfield roles. Players like journeymen Glenn Whelan and Keith Andrews. Or Darren Gibson, a Youth team player on the fringes of Manchester United's first team, who had played for Ireland at senior level before he ever played in a serious competitive match for his club. Or Liam Miller, who has consistently had to drop down a level to the Championship to find first-team football. None of these men is really fit to play in a midfield that has, over the years, been filled with the likes of Johnny Giles, Liam Brady, Ronnie Whelan and Roy Keane. Meanwhile, Ireland's two most creative Midfielders are absent from Trappatoni's Squads. Andy Reid and Stephen Ireland.<br /><br />Lets start with Reid. Arguably the most creative Irish player of his generation, he is perhaps better known for suffering from recurrent weight problems than for having one of the best left feet in the Premier League. Not only that, but Reid knows how to use it, deploying a range of passing that seems more Latin in its variety than Northern European. Indeed, when he signed for Charlton Athletic a few years ago, a profile in a club match programme claimed that early in his career he was called the "Irish Maradona". I don't remember anybody ever being called anything so silly, but Reid's sheer talent has never really been questioned (and during his stint as Irish Assistant coach/Advisor, Bobby Robson echoed the sentiment by claiming that if Reid was Argentine, the media would rave about the purity of his technique). His first coach at Charlton, Les Reed, compared him to Ferenc Puskas. On a good day he has the kind of gift that inspires these sort of comparisons. He can pass accurately over distance or can play a rapid short game as well as anybody from these islands since Paul Scholes. He also takes a mean free kick, his control and touch is lovely, he has a few close control tricks in his arsenal, and his shooting is ferocious. That all makes him sound like a luxury player, a lightweight technician of the type the modern pragmatic Coach has little time for. But no, Irish football culture prizes effort as much as (if not more than) skill, and so Reid closes down, clatters into tackles and generally runs himself into the ground for his team.<br /><br />The problem is his build. He is typically Irish - short and squat, barrel-chested and broad-shouldered. He would need to be super-fit to even look like he was moderately fit, and Reid generally looks a little out of shape. Paunchy. Carrying a half stone too much weight. Sometimes he obviously is out of shape, but the point is with his sort of build, he always looks tubby, no matter how hard he works or how much ground he covers. For Nottingham Forest and Spurs he usually played on the left-wing, and people expect wingers to look a certain way: whippet-thin, rangy, all angles and bones. They also expect wingers to operate using pace above all else. Reid was never about pace. As a winger his game resembled (to a certain extent) David Beckham's - he could send in a brilliant delivery with the minimum space. He could lose a full back with a trick and shoot from outside the box. The main comparison he endured was to Forest legend John Robertson. At Spurs, the crowd got on his back early, he struggled with his fitness, and despite securing a regular place in a team with far too many midfielders in its squad he never seemed to settle, and he was moved along relatively quickly. Charlton embraced his talent more enthusiastically, and he thrived once more in the Championship. Partly this was he was given more freedom in his role. He drifted infield in possession, his passing able to damage teams, his confidence increased by the trust placed in his creative ability. His form earned him a move to Sunderland, where he was a key player in keeping the club in the Premiership, as manager Roy Keane acknowledged. Reid had the ability to put his foot on the ball and use it intelligently, something missing in all too many struggling teams, who descend into panicked kick-and-rush. Take this Daryl Murphy goal against Wigan. Reid had just come on as substitute, and this is effectively his first touch:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/H-Xofyd3dKI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/H-Xofyd3dKI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Steve Staunton, for all of the horror and ineptitude of his stint as Ireland coach, placed similar faith in Reid's ability. He played Reid as playmaker - surely the position he was born to play - in a European championship Qualifier against Germany at Croke Park. Reid virtually ran the game, pinging first-time passes across the pitch throughout, fighting a strong German midfield for possession and holding his own, and setting up numerous chances for the strikers with his astute through-balls. But his development in the position was not enough and Staunton's replacement by Trappatoni sealed Reid's fate. Included in the first few squads selected by Trappatoni (presumably at the behest of Assistant coach Liam Brady, a confirmed fan of Reid) he went unused and had a screaming match with the Coach after a late-night singalong went on past curfew. He has not been selected since, altough Trappatoni says that this is because Reid does not fit in with the system he uses. He doesn't work hard enough, in other words, he is <span style="font-style:italic;">too creative</span>, too much of a passenger. Setting aside the fact that this is not the case, games like the recent 1-1 draw with a 10-man Italy in Bari were crying out for a bit of creativity, for somebody - anybody - to put their foot on the ball, look up, and find the right pass. Instead, Ireland's 80th minute equalizer came from a long ball lumped upfield. without the injured Damien Duff, all of the other creative players were either stifled (Robbie Keane) or not creative enough (Stephen Hunt). Where was Reid? <br />At home, thats where.<br /><br />As was Stephen Ireland. His case is more complex. Primarily, he is obviously a young man with some issues. In brief - he fell out with Irish Youth team Coach Brian Kerr over an incident with the Under-18 team after being dropped from two successive games. Kerr told him he would never again play for Ireland while Kerr was Coach. Kerr then became Coach of the Senior National team, and Ireland has claimed that at that point he considered declaring for England or Italy, for both of whom he has eligibility. However, Steve Staunton's appointment brought Ireland into the team, and he scored a couple of important goals and delivered some impressive performances in his first few games in an Irish shirt. Then, on an away trip to play the Czech Republic in a crucial european Championship Qualifier, Ireland spun a ridiculous web of lies in order to leave the team camp on compassionate leave. His girlfriend rang and informed the squad officials that Ireland's Grandmother had died. Ireland backed this claim and a private jet was chartered for him. However the Irish media soon discovered that this story was untrue. Confronted, Ireland claimed it was his <span style="font-style:italic;">other</span> Grandmother. Again, the media disproved this story. Ireland now claimed it was a Step-Grandmother by Marriage before finally admitting that his girlfriend had suffered a miscarriage, and that he had hastily lied out of a stress-induced panic, believing that the Grandmother story would more easily provide the compassionate leave he sought. The Irish public and the rest of the squad was baffled, the team lost the game, Staunton was sacked, and Ireland has not played for his country since.<br /><br />There have been rumours of bullying in the camp - Ireland is plainly a highly sensitive individual, and mockery of his hair (or lack of it) are alleged to have disturbed him enough that he is reluctant to return. But he is desperately needed. For, despite his stupidity in the Granny-Gate affair and his silly goal celebrations, he is an outstanding young footballer, an outside candidate for player of the season this year, and he seems already twice as effective as he was when last he played for Ireland. In my dream Irish line-up, he plays in a three-man midfield alongside the two Reids, with a front three of Keane in the centre with Duff and McGeady on the wings. Ireland is talented enough to make such a formation work. He is almost as gifted as Andy Reid in his passing, has a pleasing directness in possession, and is increasingly adept at nicking the ball from opposing players with quick challenges and hard running. His football brain is excellent, and the way he has linked up with the likes of Robinho and Elano at Manchester City in the last two seasons displays his true level. <br /><br />Added to that is his habit for scoring insanely spectacular goals. Last minute volleys of balls crossing his body? No problem. He has a cavalier flair to his game that is balanced by his work ethic. Trappatoni has admitted he would love to have Ireland back in the team. He and Liam Brady have met the player, and were informed that he would come to them at such a time as he was ready. That has not happened yet, despite the comments from his fellow Irishmen in the Man CIty team. <br /><br />To an Irish football fan, none of this is news. The absence of these two players has been the biggest story of the early portion of Trappatoni's stint as Ireland Manager. Irish football journalists want to see both of them in the team. Reid is highly rated at home, and Ireland's form is impossible to ignore. Pressed on the issue at a recent Press Conference, Liam Brady lost his temper and said "Have some pride in your country" in apparent reference to Stephen Ireland. Trappatoni, meanwhile, is unrepentant about the exclusion of Reid, and justifies his tactics with his results. He also claims that he doesn't believe Ireland will soon return to the national team, based on the players body language and attitude when they met. <br /><br />Which means we will continue to play a plodding sort of low-risk football without any real beauty or imagination. We may qualify for the World Cup - we are big on fighting spirit, and sometimes that is enough, if a team is properly organised. But if we do get there, we will go out at the group stage. Or maybe in the first knockout round. We won't score many goals. We won't concede too many either. Ho hum.<br />If you love football, it can be really depressing coming from a small country.<br /><br /><br />The two gentlemen in question:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/baO96_dg_gI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/baO96_dg_gI&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hdRThyK4G7k&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hdRThyK4G7k&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-19523033105397085222009-02-20T14:30:00.000-08:002009-02-20T14:31:33.527-08:00Cambiasso vs Serbia & Montenegro<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE9Ir9ViabEwTc436azDQVM8unW0Wj9I0PC_ulTiDO1oW_O60ugcPnEIoQkfJFnwCwERzFDOp-uK1r4YMFWmSb29Wx2fbjqKnrr6GyiZE-jQdW1aFbUITsCqCbA_b7zg9VK-TRhXH2BkY/s1600-h/434px-Argentina-Serbia&Montenegro_line_ups.svg.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 289px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE9Ir9ViabEwTc436azDQVM8unW0Wj9I0PC_ulTiDO1oW_O60ugcPnEIoQkfJFnwCwERzFDOp-uK1r4YMFWmSb29Wx2fbjqKnrr6GyiZE-jQdW1aFbUITsCqCbA_b7zg9VK-TRhXH2BkY/s400/434px-Argentina-Serbia&Montenegro_line_ups.svg.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296177841035039602" /></a><br /><br />There are great goals, and then there are immortal goals.<br />When Esteban Cambiasso connected with a Hernan Crespo backheel to drive the ball hard into the roof of the net in a world Cup Group Game between Argentina and Serbia & Montenegro on June 16th 2006 to put the Argentines 2-0 up, an instant classic was recognisable. An immortal goal. It came at the end of a sequence of 24 passes, involving eight players, in a classic move redolent of the purest aesthetic of Argentinean football - moving the ball on the ground quickly in a sweeping sequence of short passes, back and forth, dragging the opposition team all over the pitch until their defence leaves a gap which is then ruthlessly exploited. It was a breathtaking thing of beauty and a pleasure to behold. What was so beautiful? There are few instances of breathtaking skill, nothing really spectacular beyond a couple of truly superb touches. The beauty lies in the communal effort of a team, the combination of solid technique and hard work to create and exploit an opportunity. Pure football.<br /><br />We'll begin almost halfway through the passage of play. Serbia had been attacking, an urgency evident in their need for an equalizer to Maxi Rodriguez's opening goal, just minutes before. Maxi had begun the match on the right wing, his usual position with Atletico Madrid and the National team, but Lucho Gonzalez had left the game early with an injury, replaced by Cambiasso. Maxi switched to the left with a licence to roam infield to support playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme. This World Cup would be the making of Maxi. He scored two fine goals in this game and probably the second best goal of the tournament in the first knockout round against Mexico with his chest-and-volley from distance into the top corner. He ended the tournament badly, however, banned for his part in the fighting at the end of Argentina's quarter-final with Germany. If he is best remembered for the sublime technique of that volley against Mexico, it is worth noting that Maxi is as much a grafter as he is a technician, and tracking back, he nipped in and won the ball deep in his own half with a sliding toe. It rolled to Gabriel Heinze, playing at Centre Back alongside the legendary veteran Roberto Ayala in a formidably cynical pairing. Heinze, with a directness borne either of his time in England playing for Manchester United or his relative lack of sparkling technique, passed it forward instantly and it was received by Javier Mascherano.<br /><br />Having Mascherano and Cambiasso on the pitch together may seem a little redundant - both holding midfield "destroyers" who like to shield a defence. But Cambiasso is an intelligent and underrated player, clever enough to realize that his position as first-choice holding player had been usurped by the emergence of Mascherano as possibly the World's best in that role (Fernando Gago would push him back to third choice in the following year or two). So he showed he could be versatile. Lucho, the player he replaced, is a midfield all-rounder, good at everything, and for Argentina he played as the third point of a triangle with Riquelme and Mascherano. He tracked back, he supported the forwards, he kept chalk on his boots and he ferreted infield for possession. Cambiasso aped his teammate, his formidable engine driving him all game.<br /><br />For the moment he loitered in right midfield. Perhaps loitered is the wrong term, for rewatching this goal is a lesson in good movement. All of the Argentines move constantly, running towards one another, away from each other in angled lines, slowing down and twisting away, a ballet of perpetual motion from all of the front six. Riquelme, in particular, is a master of slyly evading his markers and finding an empty patch of pitch in which to receive possession. In this passage of play, he, Mascherano, Captain Sorin and Maxi exchange a series of short passes in tightly congested areas, the ball zipping around between them in simple straight lines, Serbs turning and tracking them all the while. What is fascinating is their eagerness to play the simple ball. Riquelme, the most technically gifted player on the pitch, is never afraid of playing the ball first-time back the way it came. He knows that maintaining possession is more important than always seeking the killer ball, that even such a simple ball has meant an adjustment has been made by an opposition defender. And for Riquelme, such adjustments are opportunities. He is patient. He waits for an opportunity, confident that he will spot it when it comes.<br /><br />Ayala plays an easy ball forward to Cambiasso, who has pushed infield to join the ceaselessly evolving passing triangles being worked by the others. Mascherano pushes forward into the Serbian half while Riquelme and Maxi make runs between Serbian players. Mascherano doesn't push forward often in a game. His tactical discipline is part of his brilliance. But he will surge upfield in an attempt to present a teammate with a better passing option, to drag opposition midfielders after him. His pace and fitness allow him to get back to cover any breakaways. No other player in modern top level football displays the same hunger to be first to the ball, the same shattering power in his tackling. But his distribution is excellent, too, his passing varied and accurate with either foot, his brain unhurried and calm.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7TNTNyujYm_6bkE_gWVyffRgbODoYnI9TdRKKmmEC3ATlSLxIT28ZvE6Jpywd8uinxiYWIqraP7D7qUbh49K6JLNlXbwqcwvzArvIsU4L-rK4WNxZV4nIBjRBOeVyYZ-lmEZneMmwwsd-/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16106620.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7TNTNyujYm_6bkE_gWVyffRgbODoYnI9TdRKKmmEC3ATlSLxIT28ZvE6Jpywd8uinxiYWIqraP7D7qUbh49K6JLNlXbwqcwvzArvIsU4L-rK4WNxZV4nIBjRBOeVyYZ-lmEZneMmwwsd-/s400/vlcsnap-16106620.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295947716572840306" /></a><br /><br />Cambiasso sees him and plays an easy square ball. Easy passes are a funny thing. Part of the criticism of British football abroad - one of the reasons it gets branded overly simple and tactically naive - is the British instinct to attack. Players look to play the forward ball at every opportunity, the crowd demands it, the opposition has to press to prevent it, and so we have the helter-skelter pace of the average Premiership game, which is what makes the league so attractive to viewers worldwide. But possession is not quite the precious currency it is in some football cultures, because in the English game, a team always knows it will soon get the ball back. This leads to various players, from Ray Wilkins to Jamie Redknapp to Deco; getting nicknames like "the Crab" from ignorant fans because they only ever move sideways. But the aim is continual motion, the aim is misdirection. Every pass sideways or even backwards is a step towards a pass forwards. This Argentina team knew that very well. This move is full of simple, "easy" balls. But they add up, every one of them adding to the subtle shifts in the Serbian lines. Including Cambiasso's low, crisp ball over the ground to Mascherano.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigZYmTGMOfw4OwTxoizfE1xLekBfmg-M9ye5OPTJ8R7eOfzvbrC5Pag27cf0RI6tGGRTOM1ghwmYc6Qz1ASVUv5Yp4INX4ti68TxH7liu9c35F3BolKaA8X2OcpdZ6aj4Ft-xYPV4wXwzK/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16106884.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigZYmTGMOfw4OwTxoizfE1xLekBfmg-M9ye5OPTJ8R7eOfzvbrC5Pag27cf0RI6tGGRTOM1ghwmYc6Qz1ASVUv5Yp4INX4ti68TxH7liu9c35F3BolKaA8X2OcpdZ6aj4Ft-xYPV4wXwzK/s400/vlcsnap-16106884.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296151842738669058" /></a><br /><br />When he receives it, Mascherano, as usual, does things calmly, simply. He moves the ball along to Maxi, who has already been involved in this move three times, inbetween those touches roaming with intelligence and great awareness. Here he takes the ball and plays a high, bouncing ball out towards Sorin, on the left wing. It is the first pass of this move to leave the ground, and as such it seems almost decadent in its flight, too risky. Sorin is a most Brazilian of Argentine fullbacks, spending the entire game driving forward into the opposition half, joining the attack, then relentlessly tracking back down that line when the opposition gains possession. His drive and competitive spirit saw him made Captain for this tournament, and he seemed to thrive on the responsibility. He chests the ball up to trap it, takes a touch in the face of an onrushing defender, then moves the ball back to Maxi, who again has run around the ball's passage after he played it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigB9y_uZ2GbGgOdAB7PAdzdj9avsFqc2wUOj4cLfrIroyheXewperQ4MhS97r3NcSDgi9hAQGEmAl__wqtS1A5k6hwDFROF6QlbN_KPGN4BNkBDFNoan907-20zosRZ1RhqER1KpqUkCpx/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16107323.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigB9y_uZ2GbGgOdAB7PAdzdj9avsFqc2wUOj4cLfrIroyheXewperQ4MhS97r3NcSDgi9hAQGEmAl__wqtS1A5k6hwDFROF6QlbN_KPGN4BNkBDFNoan907-20zosRZ1RhqER1KpqUkCpx/s400/vlcsnap-16107323.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296151852621966434" /></a><br /><br />The Serbs are assiduous in their closing-down. They were, before this match at least, famed for a defensive meanness unparalleled elsewhere in the competition - in qualifying, they had conceded the fewest goals of any European side. But here they are missing the injured Nemanja Vidic, colossal centre half, and their defence is shakier than usual. Still they press whoever was on the ball. Maxi takes it and has to turn away from a Serb, then play a longish square ball to Cambiasso who has crossed the field from the right to help out. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdsskjxz5aok9Pm2D-hmwe4CAlSo9-RAyoDjwffuJibhLDclGLRE4npRC1v4wJw2MRFbTyg7ruGVyS-dHh7VodGy41w0HlRHiZIa7ah0a80sK1j7swq0P6Xp_EOo2ipO0oik3P1vVc3MYF/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16107459.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdsskjxz5aok9Pm2D-hmwe4CAlSo9-RAyoDjwffuJibhLDclGLRE4npRC1v4wJw2MRFbTyg7ruGVyS-dHh7VodGy41w0HlRHiZIa7ah0a80sK1j7swq0P6Xp_EOo2ipO0oik3P1vVc3MYF/s400/vlcsnap-16107459.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297218016578528018" /></a><br /><br />It is around this point that the rhythm of the move changes. Cambiasso lays the ball off into the path of Riquelme, who, his back to goal and two defenders approaching, plays it first time sharply back to Mascherano, another easy ball. But the pace has been injected with Riquelme's instant touch, and it will only gather momentum over the next five passes. Riquelme's greatest gift is perhaps an ability to dictate the pace of a game, and here he has just done it. A great team moves as one to some extent, changing gears together, instantly, and in the next fifteen seconds or so this team moves up a gear and will have scored before their opponents have even noticed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4u5LB-3xD-PsorxSy5PwvD6Ed-sT59VmAPABKFHjR1IzBBtlWIkE_8_81i29rDBb4WsB4igkwyxpuVOkaiqPYDe9GwiqkI6mXYBLOI_ucbEGNrNmYFHFAscIgUMcTY2V8WElCEA2xkHw_/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16107633.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4u5LB-3xD-PsorxSy5PwvD6Ed-sT59VmAPABKFHjR1IzBBtlWIkE_8_81i29rDBb4WsB4igkwyxpuVOkaiqPYDe9GwiqkI6mXYBLOI_ucbEGNrNmYFHFAscIgUMcTY2V8WElCEA2xkHw_/s400/vlcsnap-16107633.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297218023697357602" /></a><br /><br />Mascherano picks up on the new pace instantly and hits a quick ball out to Sorin, still lingering on the wing. With three Serbs in close attendance, his options seemed limited. Javier Saviola gives him another. Saviola is the most baffling and frustrating of players. Anyone who saw anything of him as a youngster with River Plate in Argentina will remember the purity of his talent. He had pace, trickery, guile and imagination. He scored wonderful goals (44 in 86 games) and yet his game had more than just goalscoring to set him apart, in his ability to drop into the hole and create opportunities for others. He was Messi, Tevez and Aguero five years before they emerged, the seeming future of Argentinean football. But somewhere along the way it all went a bit wrong. He moved to Barcelona for £15 Million in 2001 and had a decent first season there under Louis Van Gaal, but his second Season was less thrilling and when Van Gaal was replaced by Radomir Antic and then Frank Rijkaard, he slipped down the pecking order and went out on loan to Monaco in 2004. That was followed by another loan, this time to Sevilla, in 2005. Finally, his reputation having taken something of a battering, he joined Real Madrid in 2007, where he remains, perhaps fifth in line for a start in a striking role and constantly linked with moves away. He has scored goals - albeit never as many as at River Plate - everywhere he has played, but has inarguably failed to live up to his massive potential. So it was something of a surprise to see that he was central to Pekarman's plans for this World Cup. Reportedly it was his understanding with Riquelme that convinced the coach, and this move would demonstrate that understanding at its best.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxIIdK4u-moMYbLNa9Kc0Py570ZnRik-izOWJ7zk9n_O5Ua-ndppin5TxeoDtnXTCJ_P8FywlOP4Lgc14yx1g6dBdTE24iPHLXtYCm9_X4EXEsFcN2A4ln_qtjmA2QITchPHmXiPwtz7sr/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16107787.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxIIdK4u-moMYbLNa9Kc0Py570ZnRik-izOWJ7zk9n_O5Ua-ndppin5TxeoDtnXTCJ_P8FywlOP4Lgc14yx1g6dBdTE24iPHLXtYCm9_X4EXEsFcN2A4ln_qtjmA2QITchPHmXiPwtz7sr/s400/vlcsnap-16107787.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297218957692780338" /></a><br /><br />Saviola drifts out towards the wing, takes Sorin's pacy pass on one foot, spins around and moves infield, picking up speed. With Serb playmaker Djordevic advancing to tackle him, he prods the ball sideways to Riquelme, who has another Serb charging at him and Djordevic turning to cut off another avenue. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3H2SnQEWbc4pzUkOHMYed9Uz7ywSk8wdL1mRpM1rOapnB7Ickp-Re_uFrintOeNZJMkqQJ5m84ITSeY0fGRMq6LMwp8Ru8tYNOZRT5hUUbozg3I6es1KSJx2vW97CQRHYKFPIpEsor5M/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16107929.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3H2SnQEWbc4pzUkOHMYed9Uz7ywSk8wdL1mRpM1rOapnB7Ickp-Re_uFrintOeNZJMkqQJ5m84ITSeY0fGRMq6LMwp8Ru8tYNOZRT5hUUbozg3I6es1KSJx2vW97CQRHYKFPIpEsor5M/s400/vlcsnap-16107929.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297218966045920834" /></a><br /><br />So again Riquelme ups the pace, flicking the ball first time off his outstep, perfectly over the raised leg of the onrushing defender and into Saviola's path. And there it is: two Serbian players eliminated from the game, their defence suddenly teetering with one single flick of the boot. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNk1YsGb7ZSzpWGHiIoQtWpgW4nB7R7A5QWvYqZ-KhXMuTWSsIBJrqRWknsbDqQnOUdeV0YOHKHjMfcXdYPfn24Hb29pSm2j9ZW9ak0_q4n-vnCg1wfEc94FFAhQMWY2y5vRIHOVBczJdr/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16110146.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNk1YsGb7ZSzpWGHiIoQtWpgW4nB7R7A5QWvYqZ-KhXMuTWSsIBJrqRWknsbDqQnOUdeV0YOHKHjMfcXdYPfn24Hb29pSm2j9ZW9ak0_q4n-vnCg1wfEc94FFAhQMWY2y5vRIHOVBczJdr/s400/vlcsnap-16110146.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297221822431287954" /></a><br /><br />Here Saviola's technical ability comes into play, as he cushions the ball with his left on the move, then plays a volleyed pass towards Cambiasso, who is making a late run into the box from midfield. He plays the bouncing ball first time towards Hernan Crespo, darting around the penalty area in classic centre forward style. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOSkpS8qEefcNbQFxpE7wO_MKTHiR1DRBtp6e0SmagVmw_CVX0fjSB_HZNIQSuI_jzZvyxZ0v7kQbT_-ZGbTAbaun3nZhHyBmbS43Q4P3IFImc65zB_TgEIv1ekwKQdJmYpSijeb2Sbz77/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16109002.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOSkpS8qEefcNbQFxpE7wO_MKTHiR1DRBtp6e0SmagVmw_CVX0fjSB_HZNIQSuI_jzZvyxZ0v7kQbT_-ZGbTAbaun3nZhHyBmbS43Q4P3IFImc65zB_TgEIv1ekwKQdJmYpSijeb2Sbz77/s400/vlcsnap-16109002.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297219977109983570" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlwpuSYu63GA76ONKr1hmGrNdEySNsH0AOoykBhUg3TQ7aANmo7ntg1tvorR_JI6niI3Vk344iaJHciwZAaCKZne0_qS7saJlhWDVeHFWmQ8BF3vusQxbWaRY4Ml3H5UtbmM0zwxusfek/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16109110.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlwpuSYu63GA76ONKr1hmGrNdEySNsH0AOoykBhUg3TQ7aANmo7ntg1tvorR_JI6niI3Vk344iaJHciwZAaCKZne0_qS7saJlhWDVeHFWmQ8BF3vusQxbWaRY4Ml3H5UtbmM0zwxusfek/s400/vlcsnap-16109110.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297219995287114146" /></a><br /><br />Crespo is all about goals. He scores lots of tap ins and little dinks over despairing goalkeepers because his movement and anticipation are so good. So when he receives the ball on the edge of the six yard box, most educated observers would probably expect him to swivel and shoot. He's technically skilled enough that a goal will be the likely outcome. But it is as if the symmetry and team-play of the move up to that point have gotten to him, and Crespo instead pulls up and moves the ball back into Cambiasso's path with a curt little back-heel.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCYJ9BFUfAljOid2XhysJ6jM2RrF_R46y8FyDC3bgBNKp2JmQuvugDFItYlfaTI7cNhmb7rB-_nwfMdT3eC61XMAuTQacWxIGFxKUqbDZgS9vxjfNIhaBGMA5gy_GZMk99thnOwtTXTXpr/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16109357.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCYJ9BFUfAljOid2XhysJ6jM2RrF_R46y8FyDC3bgBNKp2JmQuvugDFItYlfaTI7cNhmb7rB-_nwfMdT3eC61XMAuTQacWxIGFxKUqbDZgS9vxjfNIhaBGMA5gy_GZMk99thnOwtTXTXpr/s400/vlcsnap-16109357.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297220769899649762" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjDfTv3PgTrYDnl511RNcgpKLNv1I9e4NjTu0ukTI2GPiQfTu-XNQdcuBEmUrfM0Jfy_N2IyNI8zTTDFIrZnRdxelK7wNp4j1iLCS8a1wAR05VSZvaWnnyH0aJBlQvmW61LZiHFKBqmIsX/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16110465.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjDfTv3PgTrYDnl511RNcgpKLNv1I9e4NjTu0ukTI2GPiQfTu-XNQdcuBEmUrfM0Jfy_N2IyNI8zTTDFIrZnRdxelK7wNp4j1iLCS8a1wAR05VSZvaWnnyH0aJBlQvmW61LZiHFKBqmIsX/s400/vlcsnap-16110465.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297221895610902594" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNXKTpIutJLrUgSw8mVBNnPCRIFq0aNQta_hqPQSWDI4pLRdH0ZYy1CqWxnpW1xzvhx-oDMc8KB08I6nNDoxrfb6H0plZ5l1hXuSR2HsC2SNPlelAEcl4b0KpwaskYQ8ZL46rQf2B17Je/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16110321.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNXKTpIutJLrUgSw8mVBNnPCRIFq0aNQta_hqPQSWDI4pLRdH0ZYy1CqWxnpW1xzvhx-oDMc8KB08I6nNDoxrfb6H0plZ5l1hXuSR2HsC2SNPlelAEcl4b0KpwaskYQ8ZL46rQf2B17Je/s400/vlcsnap-16110321.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297220776551375490" /></a><br /><br />Cambiasso has no option but to hit it first time. There is a Serbian defender a fraction of a second away from smashing the ball into the stands and so he launches himself at it and, sliding almost as soon as he hits it, crashes it into the roof of the net. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjphxa-Jd8cWXcV7nlB4MCZe5qnSmvmvq_m3PnN0OEOSZR8m0M0EBaUsfFGZ8_wYc80EBD322YAKv1s5FR5zOYJmUX8YZLOHQW38xjBNmghl3tUVBODiEqOiT2Qn0DIACLVy4SmKlmDTES/s1600-h/vlcsnap-16109597.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjphxa-Jd8cWXcV7nlB4MCZe5qnSmvmvq_m3PnN0OEOSZR8m0M0EBaUsfFGZ8_wYc80EBD322YAKv1s5FR5zOYJmUX8YZLOHQW38xjBNmghl3tUVBODiEqOiT2Qn0DIACLVy4SmKlmDTES/s400/vlcsnap-16109597.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297221863885527090" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgPcr9E1a4JHwfkU0lH2dWRLxQASliZGHVq2K7hyIbbbWtWoYJ7YXOIx_E9kIDUkWb6nY9LWDF9B7kqSJJqhyphenhyphenEf_b-b5xEfd_ojeZcFvLiU7GU8RL8JD_WcWw1B_s1tYu-QktJCbpCrLc/s1600-h/argentina_celebrate_39839.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgPcr9E1a4JHwfkU0lH2dWRLxQASliZGHVq2K7hyIbbbWtWoYJ7YXOIx_E9kIDUkWb6nY9LWDF9B7kqSJJqhyphenhyphenEf_b-b5xEfd_ojeZcFvLiU7GU8RL8JD_WcWw1B_s1tYu-QktJCbpCrLc/s400/argentina_celebrate_39839.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296178300479256786" /></a><br /><br />Delirium from the Argentinian supporters, superlatives from the pundits. The team go a bit mental too, and will go on to score six goals in all, Riquelme running everything, the mercurial Saviola scoring one before substitutes Tevez and Messi will come on to snatch a goal each. Late on Kezman is sent off for Serbia and Montenegro for a wild lunge at Mascherano.<br /><br />Argentina would go out to Germany in the knockout phase of the competition and yet, apart from Zidane's insane head butt on Marco Materazzi in the final, in this match they had created the most memorable moment of the tournament. And a sort of mission statement for how the game ought to be played. Two years later Spain would win the European Championship playing a similarly aesthetically pleasing brand of possession football, with Xavi Hernandez in the Riquelme role and David Villa as a sort of even better Saviola. The unlikely possibility of a final to the 2010 World Cup featuring Spain vs Argentina literally makes my mouth water.<br /><br />So, the goal itself, with Martin Tyler commentary:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6R_iYLca2gc&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6R_iYLca2gc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><br />And a Mobile Phone film from the stand behind, which is interesting for the view it affords of the cluster of Serbs drawn towards the Riquelme-Sorin-Saviola triangle out on the left, leaving a hole in the centre, and also for the people all getting very happy after the ball goes in:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8kpIXg1dLjY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8kpIXg1dLjY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-67733913371915920592008-11-14T18:08:00.001-08:002008-11-14T18:08:38.242-08:00Jan Molby<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5oY6P9DuM_BbNJxT4JcWdre9-bO-bhhNtDGO2UaWSoIWgecti5cvqQjFhCHpen8FaU6K2wRzY3OedaggfG3R1YnC5WFH1GOLC3bv9HQklI5UpLCY8gaIMxfRUp0-NoWUDetiMEH9jCLTj/s1600-h/molby15.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 218px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5oY6P9DuM_BbNJxT4JcWdre9-bO-bhhNtDGO2UaWSoIWgecti5cvqQjFhCHpen8FaU6K2wRzY3OedaggfG3R1YnC5WFH1GOLC3bv9HQklI5UpLCY8gaIMxfRUp0-NoWUDetiMEH9jCLTj/s320/molby15.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268325853393560498" /></a><br /><br />Understand: for a Manchester United fan, Liverpool are the enemy. More than City, more than Arsenal, more than Leeds, more than Chelsea. The two greatest clubs in English football come from two cities less than an hour apart with a bitter historical rivalry. They are the most successful clubs in the Country with the biggest support, the most glorious histories and the biggest auras. Arsenal and Chelsea have new weight, glamour, wealth and meaning in the age of Premier League games being followed worldwide, but it is not the same as the Legendary qualities of the two big clubs from the North-West. So its difficult for me to write about any Liverpool player with affection. Their enduring and incredible success in the 1980s was hard for a young United fan to deal with. They won everything. We won nothing, existing on reputation and occasionally glorious football, not unlike the modern-day Tottenham Hotspur. <br /><br />My brother - less than two years younger than me - is a devoted Liverpool fan. He lives it in a way I never have. Losses wound him, depress him, effect his daily wellbeing. He hates United more than I hate Liverpool, I imagine. Our triumphant dominance of the 1990s has been hard for Liverpool fans to swallow and increased the keenness of the rivalry. But it was different when we were younger. Then I could watch Liverpool matches - as long as they were not playing United - with some neutrality. The years of crowing and nose-rubbing hadn't really taken their emotional toll yet. I didn't have quite so much invested. I watched the 1984 European Cup Final with my brother, rooting for Liverpool against Roma. And, oddly enough, the 1986 FA Cup Final, when Liverpool played Everton. Back then, the FA Cup Final felt like as big a deal as the World Cup Final, somehow. We got up early and watched the entire build-up, cameras on team buses, interviews with fans etc. Wembley always seemed to lie under a blanket of sunshine. Its different now. I just had to rack my brain to recall who won this year's FA Cup Final. The Premier League, the Champions League - they really have changed football.<br /><br />In 1986, Liverpool were on for a Double, having beaten Everton to the League title by 2 points. Everton, who had been League Champions in 1985 and would be again in 1987, were possibly the best team in the Country at the time, capable of scintillating football. But Liverpool were frighteningly experienced and efficient, their game a passing-and-moving machine with Ian Rush the best centre-forward of the 1980s scoring an unhealthy amount of goals. It was a mouthwatering prospect of a Final - the two best teams in England, their passionate fans moving on London en masse. And among an array of the biggest stars of English football - with the likes of Lineker, Dalglish, Rush, Sharp, Steven and Reid all on show - Jan Molby was man of the match by a mile.<br /><br />Molby fits into that category of great players with weight problems. Like Puskas and Ronaldo his sometime tubbiness hardly seemed to matter. Throughout his Liverpool career his weight fluctuated, but after his first season or so he never ever looked slim, or even anywhere near fit. His qualities were of a different nature. He allowed his partners in Central midfield - usually combative Englishman Steve McMahon but often Scot Kevin McDonald - to do the running and harrying, and he got on with shaping and directing play as only he could. In a team of great passers - Ronnie Whelan, Alan Hansen, Mark Lawrenson, Dalglish - Molby's ability to spot an opening and to put the ball exactly into that space were unsurpassed. This video of the goals in that FA Cup final gets the order all wrong (Everton scored first, before halftime, and the first two Liverpool goals are in the wrong sequence) but what remains undimmed is the excellence of Molby's vision and technique. Wearing the Number 10, as is only proper, he provides killer passes for each of the three Liverpool goals, one a skidding cross with pace, one a deft flick into acres of space and the other a simple short ball for Ronnie Whelan to chip into the only unmarked part of a crowded penalty area. He did the same thing for the entire second half of the game, spreading the play all over the pitch with beautiful passes, exhausting a stretched Everton:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/I59TfkUs9os&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/I59TfkUs9os&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />If his technical ability was ever to be called into question, one look at his CV would serve as an eloquent answer. Bought by Ajax from his hometown club, Kolding, in 1982, he spent two years in the first team there, winning a Dutch Championship in 1983. Ajax - home to Crujiff, Van Basten, Huillet, Bergkamp etc - is a club where technical excellence is mandatory. Molby combined a delicacy of touch and fantastic range of passing with a thunderous shot and his physical stature; he could operate as either playmaker or as holding midfielder, forming such a formidable physical barrier as he did. When Liverpool Manager Joe Fagan paid £200,000 for him in 1984, he arrived in a team undergoing a subtle transition. That was the Liverpool way. Big name, big money transfers were rare. Players were replaced from within. After the League and European Cup double of 1984, Graeme Souness, the teams midfield general and leader, left for Sampdoria in Italy. Phil Neal was in his last season at the club and Dalglish was nearing is own retirement. Molby had to find his way in a team of big egos and huge talents and in his first Season, when he was never a first team regular, Liverpool missed out on the League title and lost the European Cup Final to Juventus on the night of the Heysel Stadium disaster. With Fagan's retirement the next Season, Dalglish became player-manager and Molby became a regular fixture in the side. His versatility meant that he often played as a deep-lying midfielder, somewhere between an old-fashioned sweeper and the modern Pirlo role, where he could break up play and begin attacking moves from deep within his own half. However, he was better suited to playing as an attacking midfielder, and in that Double-winning Season he scored 21 goals for the club.<br /><br />That was a good year for Molby. After that triumphant FA Cup appearance he flew out to Mexico with the Danish squad which would play perhaps the best football at the 1986 World Cup. Molby was a fixture in a stellar squad alongside the likes of Laudrup, Elkjaer, Lerby, Arnesen and Olsen. with Laudrup already an incredibly accomplished playmaker, he played in a more defined central midfield role, but that Danish team was built to attack ceaselessly, meaning that he got forward as much as anybody. His typical pass spreads the break out wide for the second Danish goal in this match against West Germany:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nsda4GDOb4k&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nsda4GDOb4k&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Denmark made a nonsense of the "Group of Death" they had been drawn in, defeating Uruguay (6-1!), Scotland and the Germans on their way to a confrontation with Spain where their fearlessly attacking approach was undone by the clever counters of a fine Spanish side. <br /><br />1986 was probably the best year of Molby's career. Liverpool won nothing in the 86-87 Season and he began to struggle with persistent injuries in 1987, which only added to his weight problems. From then on, until his eventual departure in 1996, he was in and out of the team, playing at Centre-half and in central midfield but rarely as a first choice. He was still often an impressive performer, illuminating games with his touch and awareness. He was persistently linked with transfers to big Continental clubs, but the feeling persists that he had gone native, with his strong Scouse accent, his love of a flutter and a beer. In 1988 he was sentenced to three months imprisonment for drink driving, and after Liverpool stood by him, perhaps he remained at the club out of some misguided loyalty. Better if he had moved abroad, where his talents would have been better appreciated. He did win trophies at Liverpool, however - two league titles and two FA Cups, scoring 44 goals (mainly penalties) from 218 appearances. But his remains a frustrating career, with its sense of a talent never really fulfilled.<br /><br /><br />That talent never really ebbed, however. He scores the second goal, a penalty, in this game against Leeds from 1993, but more notable are the two passes preceding the penalty, which show him as the beautifully visionary playmaker he was. First he scoops the ball between two defenders to put Rush clear on goal inside the box. Then he creates the penalty with a finely measured through ball into space. Both first time, instant touches. His left foot was always a precision instrument:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NoiY4usB61I&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NoiY4usB61I&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />One last clip, an oddity. Many Liverpool fans in attendance claimed this as one of the greatest goals they had ever seen. From an Anfield League Cup tie, Liverpool vs Man United, November 1985. Paul McGrath had scored to put United 1-0 up when Molby ran with the ball from his own half, nutmegged Brian Robson, beat a defender, then hit a dipping 30 yard shot into the top corner. Only there was a dispute on so there was no football coverage on TV. No cameras at the game. Absolutely unimaginable today. No film of the goal, or of Molby's second, a penalty a few minutes later. So somebody has taken the time to recreate it, and it looks impressive, and easily within the scope of Molby's talent:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_tANyC2tjj8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_tANyC2tjj8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-41752340443641132262008-09-02T14:47:00.000-07:002008-09-02T18:41:37.768-07:00FIFA's Film Factory<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXS1v0TVmZMqkGOOmFEO5Fq2ERpnS0BuA-6MyUu3qkQJl9k2DWhMzkY3uuCvGOwG4TtpGCefb_UQ78HG4yXayAw_22X9mJgswNXOTntaOtco3GlgcvxZwZnQnCRo3JAWoW56SJ20yyzWA/s1600-h/1402321222_3e37176987.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXS1v0TVmZMqkGOOmFEO5Fq2ERpnS0BuA-6MyUu3qkQJl9k2DWhMzkY3uuCvGOwG4TtpGCefb_UQ78HG4yXayAw_22X9mJgswNXOTntaOtco3GlgcvxZwZnQnCRo3JAWoW56SJ20yyzWA/s320/1402321222_3e37176987.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241601846089910578" /></a><br /><br />A Sunday Afternoon, sometime in the mid 1980s. There was never much on tv on Sundays. Old films. Westerns, English dramas from the 40s and 50s. The steady march towards Bullseye and Songs of Praise. <br /><br />One Sunday, I come across some football on tv. It is unmistakably Brazil. Those yellow shirts, the blue shorts, lean shaggy haired players. But it looks different. The camera is at ground level, roaming around, tracking players as they move across the pitch in tight close-up. The ball is rarely if ever in shot. Instead we can identify where it is by following the eyes of the players, so tightly are the cameras focused upon them. And the commentator. It sounds like - can't be - it sounds like Sean Connery. I am spellbound.<br /><br />That film was "G'Ole!", the Official FIFA film for the 1982 World Cup. FIFA continue to make an Official film for each World Cup, but the form peaked in the 1980s, with "G'Ole!" and its 1986 follow-up, "Hero". Until very recently I hadn't seen "G'Ole!" in full since that initial viewing on a sunday in the 80s, when I must have been 10 or 11. Its became more and more difficult to get hold of. Unavailable on DVD, videotapes change hands for ridiculous amounts on eBay. It seems odd that FIFA continue to make these films but show no regard for the archive they possess. Clips from these films show up in various other Football documentaries - the brilliant 2006 BBC series "World Cup Stories" (oddly, also unavailable on DVD) was built around various sequences - and they always stand out due to the quality of the footage. There is only one clip from "G'Ole!" on YouTube, but it does manage to convey in 4 minutes or so the exact tone and feel of these films - the amazing, intimate footage, the distracting, often awful music, the epic tone the games are embued with. And of course, Sean Connery saying "Barshalona":<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6xYy5BQ3k9k&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6xYy5BQ3k9k&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The strangest fact of these films is that they are so vulnerably at the mercy of their director. FIFA might have commissioned a piece which made great use of the exclusive footage they could provide, but it seems doubtful they were quite prepared for how idiosyncratic the results might be. Directors have agendas, stories they are determined to tell, images they wish to include, themes they need to address. FIFA just wanted goals compilations, you feel.<br /><br />"G'Ole!" was directed by Tom Clegg, best known at that time for "McVicar" (1980), and since then something of a jobbing television director. Clegg, with the aid of writer Stan Hey, seems set upon painting a lyrical portrait of Spain as a beachside utopia, its people uncorrupted by the modern world, living in their beautiful small towns beneath the fiercely blue Iberian skies. There is one montage midway through the film which is filled with shots of old people sitting chatting in town squares, sophisticates at outdoor cafes, children playing and crowds at the beach. The football almost takes a back seat, as Clegg indulges his interest in the World Cup as carnival. There is perhaps slightly too much footage of fans dancing and chanting and drinking, alongside one too many trips to the stadium on the team coach, and the film loses focus towards its climax. Its also bizarrely lecherous - topless sunbathers in the Mediterranean draw a lot of the camera's attention, as so bikinis glimpsed on dancing girls in the Brazilian crowd. Clegg dips in and out of the tournament, allowing us to briefly visit with various sides. So we start off with Maradona and Argentina, then move on to Brazil, France, Spain, Italy and England. Other teams appear in games, as if from nowhere. Poland suddenly materialize in the semi-final, despite not having featured at any point in the hour before. But Clegg is plainly fascinated by minnows. He spends extended passages locked with the Kiwi and Cameroonian teams, watching them at their hotel bases, following them to the stadium and observing their team talks, their running onto the pitch, their valiant failures. The players are generally denied personality - we hear their names, but their roles are quickly sketched stock ones. Platini is skillful, Robson bright and aggressive, Maradona fouled, Rossi redeemed. Nationalities are defined by cliches, too - the relaxed Brazilians, engaged always in Samba, the resilient, methodical Germans. We are expected, it seems, to already know who these players and teams are and what they mean.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgojQolQpxxCETg08sovBP_QalFsOdvE9-1bXrRVSNZsJv6rt2DbpIsk3hkqxzN5wUx0FnQ-VtizHS9ujtV7RljmxbFKJoNMNuZOy9wpy3InrNAKS_2OXjA5ceE85Qn9Q4kvaNwCO11TXM/s1600-h/10cd36d98cc.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgojQolQpxxCETg08sovBP_QalFsOdvE9-1bXrRVSNZsJv6rt2DbpIsk3hkqxzN5wUx0FnQ-VtizHS9ujtV7RljmxbFKJoNMNuZOy9wpy3InrNAKS_2OXjA5ceE85Qn9Q4kvaNwCO11TXM/s320/10cd36d98cc.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241602889322378514" /></a><br /><br />But despite its many quirks,"G'Ole!" is still a fantastic piece of work. Mainly because it features so much incredible footage. The 1982 World Cup was a vintage competition, containing perhaps the greatest game in the competition's history - Brazil vs Italy. Spain, at that time still something of a post-Franco backwater, has always been a beautiful, cinematic location, and Clegg and his team shoot and edit the whole thing so that it is all atmospheric and visually arresting. Connery is incomparable and Rick Wakeman's score is not the abomination that his work on the next FIFA film would be. But its the raw material that makes it all work, and in the 1980s there were a handful of giants in International football who these films focus on - Maradona, Platini, Zico, Ruminegge. To see any of them on a pitch, shot so intimately, so cinematically, is thrilling for a nostalgic football fan.<br /><br />"Hero" is just as strange and fascinating an experience. Written and directed by Tony Maylam, otherwise best known for either his stiff adaptation of "The Riddle of the Sands" (1979) or his cult horror "The Burning" (1981), it tells the story of a tournament in a determinedly poetic and personal way. At the same time, it is hilariously bombastic and epic in its treatment of a ball game, creating an odd but effective dynamic. Maylam focuses on a series of individuals - each of whom could be the "Hero" of the title - and his cameras follow them in flashes through a game, creating a mini-narrative within the wider story of the World Cup itself. What makes "Hero" so sublime is the choice of players - some of the finest in the world at that time; including Michael Laudrup, Enzo Francescoli, Hugo Sanchez, the aforementioned Platini and Zico, and Emilio Butragueno. <br /><br />But football is a game primarily concerned with the creation, identification and use of space on the pitch. Accurate passing and individual technique - dribbling ability, the skill to beat a man - come to the fore. As such, television cameras are ideally located to capture the most vital action on the pitch. From their position above and to the side, tv cameras can show us the wider picture - tactical configurations, movement off the ball, the spaces opening and closing all around - while also showcasing the vignettes of skill from individuals involved in the play. Both "G'Ole" and "Hero" virtually ignore the former aspect of the game in their zeal to glorify the latter. The films are both shot by cameras at ground level on the side of the pitch, so that we see the action as the players do. The field becomes a three dimensional system of moving lines, ripples of motion, the ball crossing and creating these lines, the players dancers and warriors, clashing, slipping past one another with feints, bursts of speed, rapid passes. "G'Ole!" contains more passages viewed from the traditional angle, but "Hero" embraces its predecessor's innovations wholeheartedly, and long sequences are seen from pitch level. Occasionally Maylam will cut away to show us the actual tv coverage of a goal or a vital moment. So we witness Maradona's extraordinary second goal against England with commentary by the BBC's man : "And that is why Maradona is the greatest player in the World!" But for the most part the voice we hear is that of Michael Caine, his narration slightly removed, affectless, even ironic. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPHLE_ypDvFSUVRkFwuWcR1Osh6j_QUj0Ep6UH-jQc-w04LNyhFhtO7Mvwy-EV7BwtZoTLG929VKPPcWJuj8OoWnlgC2DhIHhpx64vIfqYnm05w4a83YYH5T3SoTgGDRdlnPzjYLLtoNs/s1600-h/97202825_a011fb84a7.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPHLE_ypDvFSUVRkFwuWcR1Osh6j_QUj0Ep6UH-jQc-w04LNyhFhtO7Mvwy-EV7BwtZoTLG929VKPPcWJuj8OoWnlgC2DhIHhpx64vIfqYnm05w4a83YYH5T3SoTgGDRdlnPzjYLLtoNs/s320/97202825_a011fb84a7.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241603144365534994" /></a><br /><br />Of course the real "Hero" of the film is Maradona himself, and the last half hour effectively follows his progress through the latter stages of the tournament. He had a big role in "G'Ole", too, with an extended segment showing his brutal treatment first by the Italian, then the Brazilian team, climaxing in his sending off for retaliation. An early scene in "Hero" shows him being kicked and hacked to the ground time and again versus South Korea, but his first goal seems to liberate him - as the film itself acknowledges - and from then on the camera is more interested in his brilliance in manipulating the ball. Francescoli instead is shown being stymied by rough treatment, battered as he is by the Danes in a 6-1 defeat for Uruguay. Its an odd, elliptical approach to a portrayal of a tournament, leaving out so many goals, players and incidents, and yet it works. It self-consciously casts these matches as epic narratives, with heroes and heroic acts, high stakes and gripping climaxes. Maradona alone seems to have read the script, and he provides the film with everything it needs to succeed. The last 20 minutes of the film follow his Argentina through the final against West Germany, and it is loaded with importance, it feels thrillingly epic. Rick Wakeman's score almost spoils it, but what could possibly spoil Maradona's effortless first-time pass for the winning goal or his surging run past four Germans?<br /><br />What makes these films feel significant is that they feel like the birthplace of modern football coverage. In the 1980s, there were not multiple camera angles of each and every moment available to television viewers, there weren't steadicam operators running along the touchline, automated cameras located above the pitch on wires, cameras behind the goals, cameras in the tunnel. There was one camera. There was no footage of the beautiful girls in the crowd, the crazily face-painted foreign fans playing drums and dancing. There was one camera. It followed the ball around the pitch. Slow motion replays showed the same shot - from that single camera - again and again, just more slowly.<br />Whereas nowadays modern football coverage looks like "G'Ole!" and "Hero" did. Classily shot and edited, with every single conceivable angle covered by one camera or other. The crowd cut to throughout, the benches watched. Sky had a digital option a few seasons ago where the camera followed a single player throughout a game, if the viewer wished. These films have been surpassed by tv. <br /><br /><br />Which is the major problem faced by the contemporary FIFA films. The only subsequent one I've seen the entirety of is "The Grand Finale", the film of the 2006 Finals, directed by Michael Apted and narrated by Pierce Brosnan. You might imagine that in this age of YouTube and Goals compilation dvds FIFA would crave a more personal, even slightly pretentious treatment of a tournament, but no - "The Grand Finale" is a goal compilation film with padding, in essence. It focuses on seemingly random games without much context as to what is occurring throughout the rest of the competition, so we see Spain tonk Ukraine 4-0 and are told they were eliminated in their first knockout game. Argentina are introduced with an onscreen count of the number of passes in the lead up to their amazing goal against Serbia, the only action shown from that game. We briefly glimpse Brazil beat Ghana 3-0 in the first knockout round and Brosnan tells us that France subsequently knocked them out. The Epic sense of the earlier films is entirely absent, the sense of continuity and coherent narrative close behind. What we get is mainly the same shots I saw on tv as I wactched these games with a few nice passages thrown in. There is no obtrusive soundtrack (instead we hear the crowd noises, its sighs and roars, loud over the top) , no lyricism, no attempted poetry. It all feels hard, slick, empty, depressingly modern. As does the football played. Watching it soon after viewing "Hero" and "G'Ole!", the pace of the games is shocking. In the 80s, teams played football almost languidly - Brazil stroked it fondly to one another, players trotting about the pitch with their socks rolled down to reveal shinguard-less legs. Now the ball pings about, everybody sprints, tackles erupt in seconds. Even Argentina, guided by Riquelme's slow-slow-slower-quick-quick-slow style knock the ball around at amazing speed. Maybe the cooler climate (Germany, compared wit Spain and Mexico) is responsible. But I think the game has changed in this regard. Perhaps that is why "The Grand Finale" is so lacking in stars comparable to the giants of those films of the 80s. Artistry is more difficult at 1000 miles an hour. For Film directors too, apparently.David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-39090857359957296242008-06-26T16:13:00.000-07:002008-08-13T08:21:19.305-07:00Football in sun and shadow 6A group of clips of Number 10s. Playmakers. Inside-Forwards. Whatever.<br /><br /><br />Zico destroys Liverpool, 1981:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d59xjbkQ3KM&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d59xjbkQ3KM&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Berlusconi's favourite player, the greatest Montenegran player of all time, and one of the best in the world on his day, Dejan Savicevic, Il Genio:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qD8HIsMonTM&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qD8HIsMonTM&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Enzo Francescoli, who will be the subject of a long piece here some day:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/sg89jr0_k54&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/sg89jr0_k54&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Gunter Netzer, the great German playmaker, and Der Bomber. Plus a lovely German song:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yDsdjM527WI&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yDsdjM527WI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Enzo Scifo, little Italian-born Belgian with great feet and a beautiful range of passing:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gec_bvPgOTk&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gec_bvPgOTk&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The greatest hairstyle ever seen on a football pitch, and one of the greatest passers of the ball, too. Watch for a couple of sublime assists from Colombia's 5-0 defeat of Argentina in Buenos Aires in 1993, where "El Pibe" utterly dominated the game:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/giq8VLI0A-I&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/giq8VLI0A-I&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-16896669769596668792008-06-11T16:12:00.000-07:002008-08-13T08:21:44.836-07:00Claudio Borghi<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb82W-flli8bu-xWzS_Au5-QIoxOJAQD4VyLfkS9eZM_gwYXMnByzjuvsmvg2tHXJ8JABQwb9w7GM07aX6G3sbPeflwhaRnA0Y5pEgMuVX-uEeyu_JepCE-yBZ2XD714D3Vd_Do6zb3tnN/s1600-h/BORGHI_C_19860605_JM_L.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb82W-flli8bu-xWzS_Au5-QIoxOJAQD4VyLfkS9eZM_gwYXMnByzjuvsmvg2tHXJ8JABQwb9w7GM07aX6G3sbPeflwhaRnA0Y5pEgMuVX-uEeyu_JepCE-yBZ2XD714D3Vd_Do6zb3tnN/s320/BORGHI_C_19860605_JM_L.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5191494386489123778" /></a><br /><br />It must be like being the cleverest pupil at your school. You always do the best, gets the highest marks in tests, receive unending praise from a teacher. Then you have to leave, and go to another school, a school for older children. Maybe you're not the cleverest pupil anymore. Maybe somebody else - another who was the best in their class - maybe they are cleverer, maybe they do better in tests, maybe they get more praise. Maybe, for the first time, they make you feel inferior. <br />Or maybe not. Maybe you're the one making the others feel inferior, all the way through school, through every grade and age. But then you reach University. And you don't stand out at all. Here, everyone was the cleverest at their school. This is a thousand people who have always made others feel inferior. <br /><br />Now imagine you're a young footballer. You play as the link between the forwards and the midfield, in the hole. Your passing is beautiful - visionary, incisive, perfectly timed. You can dribble too, able to swerve and turn at speed past dumbfounded defenders. You score your fair share of goals. You have been something of a phenomenon at your club - a golden boy, of whom great things are expected. You are called up to the National Team, hoping to play a major role in the World Cup. Only there is another player, who plays in your position, who has also been called up. He is, there can be no denying it, better than you are. He is the best player in the World, maybe the best player of all time. He leads your country to victory at that World Cup, scoring some unforgettable goals, and you are lost in his wake. You never play for your country again. Your career -while continuing in a variety of countries for a multitude of clubs - flounders, to an extent. You never live up to those early expectations. You are Claudio Borghi. You are a Nearly Man.<br /><br />Borghi's great misfortune was to emerge as a young playmaker in the mid-1980s when Maradona was at the peak of his abilities. If he had been Chilean or Paraguayan or Mexican, he would have probably become a legend. As it was, he starred in the Intercontinental Cup Final in Tokyo in 1985, when Juventus beat his club, Argentinos Juniors, on penalties. Italy was so impressed by his extraordinary promise that AC Milan signed him in 1987, but the "3 foreigners" rule meant that he was loaned out to Como (the foreigners preferred by coach Arrigo Sacchi were Van Basten, Gullet and Rijkaard) and upon his return he fell out with Sacchi and was sold on, ricocheting via Switzerland's Neuchatal Xamax to River Plate, Flamengo, Independiente and a clutch of clubs in Chile. That club career would undoubtedly have panned out differently had Borghi been playing for Argentina at the crux of an attack spearheaded by Valdano. The confidence and increased status in world football that would have given him would probably have extended his stay in Europe. Instead Maradona was the chosen one, and the timing could not have been better for his career. Borghi, in contrast, is known now primarily as a Coach, having enjoyed a remarkably successful tenure with Colo Colo, Chile's biggest and most historically prestigious club.<br /><br />Its not something you read about all that much. The reserves, the substitutes, and how they feel about their role, holding up the squad at the heaviest point. What it must feel like to be a gifted player, only not gifted enough. Sport loves a hero, so those who carry out an important but unseen task are of no interest, and the media obsession with every aspect of football has seemingly worsened this state of affairs. To be an understudy. The strange pressure of it, the resentment, the effect it must have on one's self-worth...<br /><br />It is more obviously pronounced in a National team, where a player who is the first choice at his club can become second or even third in line. A truly great player can overshadow a dozen others with his talent, his intimidating influence. Zinedine Zidane was always going to be the conductor of the French national team from his first emergence as a young player. But his talent was so vast and so much more complete than that of his rivals that they were all but cast into the wilderness. If Zizou was fit, he played. Hence Johan Micoud, a fine attacking midfielder in his own right, played rarely for France, if at all, when in another generation, he might have been the creative lynchpin. Vikash Dhorasoo, another mercurial playmaker suffered a similar fate (his documentary, "Substitute", basically chronicles his frustrating experiences as Zidane's understudy during the 2006 World Cup). Robert Pires would possibly have developed as a traditional playmaker in the hole if not for Zidane's pre-eminence in the position. Instead he played on the wing, in tandem with Zidane, his talent too great and versatile to be ignored.<br /><br />National teams are rife with great players being second-best to even greater players, or just to players who fit into the coaches tactical approach better. In modern International football, Riquelme keeps out the genius of Aimar for Argentina. Quaresma and Simao constantly leap-frog one another for Portugal. The Brazilian squad is so bursting with talent that there will always be immense players left on the bench or not even in the selection at all. How does any manager contain Ronaldinho, Kaka, Elano and Diego when there is only really room for a single attacking midfielder on the pitch? He tries to pick as many of them as he can and his team is an unbalanced mess, albeit an unbalanced mess stuffed with genius. So Ronaldinho and Kaka - as the biggest stars, the most proven talents - have been the two most favoured in the past. But this demeans a talent as great as Diego's. He is too good to be a nearly man. They all are.<br /><br />In the 1980s, the heroic athleticism of Bryan Robson was generally preferred to the classier, silken skills of Glenn Hoddle by a series of England managers. Hoddle was the sort of player teams should be built around. Instead he never lived up to his undoubted talent for his country. This fate has befallen a series of the more obviously talented players to emerge in English football over the past three decades, from John Barnes to Matt LeTissier. Though neither of those players was regularly excluded because of any other single rival, they still lost out to the likes of Steve Hodge and Steve McMahon. It happens in other European countries too. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxJj5CSX38Ul_tOBju1jW9rvNrwiJK78WEC59xiBN1tbHBGRgkt5rowZ520up6lM7QsWacQbI2uAXmiDp39ESx8sx_0qy4m5WW5gE4tmRq0yYZbFPDx8sJhG58cGprKwKpbgN2-PiJti2/s1600-h/images1252855_rivera_mazzola.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxJj5CSX38Ul_tOBju1jW9rvNrwiJK78WEC59xiBN1tbHBGRgkt5rowZ520up6lM7QsWacQbI2uAXmiDp39ESx8sx_0qy4m5WW5gE4tmRq0yYZbFPDx8sJhG58cGprKwKpbgN2-PiJti2/s320/images1252855_rivera_mazzola.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210815867094977842" /></a><br /><br />In the 1960s Italy possessed two extraordinary playmakers - Sandro Mazzola and Gianni Rivera. Mazzola was the star of the all-conquering Inter Milan team of the 60s, while Rivera played for AC Milan (the picture above shows Rivera tackling Mazzola). They were similarly gifted players, both capable of pinpoint passing, either able to dribble or shoot from distance. Rivera was perhaps the more silken of the two, Mazzola a burlier, more athletic presence. Each was the talisman for his club, winning numerous Scudettos and a couple of European Cups each. However, Italian National coach Ferruccio Valcareggi believed that they could not play together. He favoured Mazzola (despite Rivera's greater popularity) and started him in the first matches at the 1970 World Cup. Without Rivera, who had been so effective when Italy had won the 1968 European Championship, the Italian offence couldn't get started. So Valcareggi developed a scheme he called "stafetta" (which translates literally as "relay"). He would play Mazzola for the first half and Rivera for the second. Italy progressed to the final, with Rivera in particular shining as he scored the winner in the 4-3 semi-final victory over West Germany. For the final however, Valcareggi reverted to type and played Mazzola alone until eight minutes from time, when he brought on Rivera. Italy lost 4-1. You could never really refer to either man as a "Nearly Man". But they strangled one another's International careers. Both must have wondered what it would have been like if not for the other.<br /><br />Rivera in action:<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OwuKIRe_GdY&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/OwuKIRe_GdY&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />In the late 1980s, Guiseppe Giannini was the playmaker for the Italian team and captain of Roma. But the emergence of Roberto Baggio meant that he lost his place in the starting line up for the national team at the 1990 World Cup, and he retired from Internationals in 1991. He could see what was coming, and he was too proud to be another nearly man, no matter how much genius Baggio possessed. Some players seem almost offended by the competition for the role their career has taught them to consider theirs alone, as if its unseemly. Others are inspired by it. And some, like Claudio Borghi, find themselves facing a force they cannot defeat, a skill they cannot match, and they slip quietly away.<br /><br />What, then, of Claudio Borghi? Well here he is, wearing the Number 10 shirt and scoring a quite sublime goal from late in his career, somewhere in Chile I think, in the only clip I could find:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/txJr1DNYCE4&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/txJr1DNYCE4&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-7146653592662664012008-04-30T16:11:00.000-07:002008-08-13T08:22:28.114-07:00Theres something happening but don't be scaredBefore tonight's absorbing Champions League Semi-Final match (Man Utd 1- 0 Barcelona, Hurrah!) on ITV, the final ad break was taken up entirely by one single commercial. An awesome commercial. If you like football, you'll probably like the advert - its thrilling, brilliantly shot and even quite funny, especially in the appearance of Marco Materazzi.<br /><br />I instantly wondered who had directed it. Somebody young and hip, at the cutting edge of cinema, perhaps? Well, no actually, it was Guy Ritchie. I hate his films, but that is based mostly on his inability to write a single believable line of dialogue or create an interesting, convincing character. Visually, he has always been assured behind a camera. His films are all slickly put together with a control and feel for the surface of things - for colour and visual tone and atmosphere - which seems perfectly suited to advertising. <br /><br />For this advert, he seems to have tapped into a style which has been conspicuous in Pop culture over the last year or so - the first person POV. "Cloverfield" and "[Rec]" have both used this device with a degree of success in the context of horror stories over the last few months, and "The Diving Bell & the Butterfly" used it to heartwrenchingly emotional effect. But what Ritchie's advert (entitled "Take It to the Next Level") is really reminiscent of, especially in its non-football scenes and its vomiting shot, is the briefly infamous video for the Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up". It also recalls, to an extent, the Michael Mann Gridiron advert I posted here last year, in its relentless motion and the procession of superstars it parades fleetingly before our eyes. The song is "Don't Speak" by the Eagles of Death Metal. It becomes instantly the best thing Ritchie's ever done:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/anwlpTgbQTE&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/anwlpTgbQTE&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-88888640928983138122008-04-21T16:10:00.000-07:002008-08-12T16:11:09.980-07:00Football in sun and shadow 5Diego Forlan with an absolutely perfect finish:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yk4trcd-oNk&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yk4trcd-oNk&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Karel Poborsky with the best goal and the worst hair of Euro 96:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qpBCc515hIw&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qpBCc515hIw&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Henrik Larsen with a truly diving header:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iGF4dxNym80&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iGF4dxNym80&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Wayne Rooney, remember the name:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bhCE9dYjU2M&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bhCE9dYjU2M&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Denilson, he of the quick feet:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8eZ5MCUWRvw&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8eZ5MCUWRvw&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Tevez for Corinthians:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RcyluJ_JXak&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RcyluJ_JXak&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />"Thats the greatest soccer goal I've ever seen!"<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dMR0Srd-axc&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dMR0Srd-axc&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-84348325277043761952008-04-06T16:09:00.000-07:002008-08-12T16:10:09.236-07:00Francesco Totti<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh89RnGYiWfEAwwIXL1LuIYjsAQuB45xvnPSIH3sXeATXBLIzCgnwjNSkvN5wQ2eb7qWsakRvfilpoYndbDuYxIcfYF_t4TItxbSMPb66vKln5NGl55FJ8-ogwobpEcxEUuRTN_tl-FcygL/s1600-h/4904525.jpeg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh89RnGYiWfEAwwIXL1LuIYjsAQuB45xvnPSIH3sXeATXBLIzCgnwjNSkvN5wQ2eb7qWsakRvfilpoYndbDuYxIcfYF_t4TItxbSMPb66vKln5NGl55FJ8-ogwobpEcxEUuRTN_tl-FcygL/s320/4904525.jpeg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5185190565522968594" /></a><br /><br />And so we come to that thorniest, most awkward of questions: what exactly defines a great football player?<br />Is it purely down to skill, to the ability to manipulate the ball, to make it do your bidding? Is it some physical gift - the stamina to run back and forth, tackling and passing, for two hours, the pace to outsprint athletes faster than most people will ever dream of being after a flying ball, the strength to barge giants off their feet, the spring to leap and hang in the air? Is it some combination of all these gifts? Or is it defined purely by success? Great players win things. They drive their teams to win matches, to win trophies, cups, leagues. A truly great player enforces his will on a team, on a game, on a season. He wins things. Doesn't he?<br /><br />There has always been some question over the status of Francesco Totti. It is taken for granted that he is a good player. Outrageously skillful, with vision and cunning, it would be foolish to deny his natural talent. But in Italy - and most especially in Rome - he is regarded as just about the equal of any player on earth, as one of the best in the World, a true modern great. The rest of Europe is not quite so sure. There are a few reasons for this. Totti has never really performed effectively enough on the biggest stages for some. He has been to a couple of World Cups, to European Championships, without ever making too great an impression, some say. Others would query his temperament. He is prone to lashing out if things aren't going his way, and also likely to drop out of games if his team is up against it. He is neither the perfect playmaker, ala Zidane, nor an outright goalscoring centre-forward. Teams have to play around him, critics would suggest. He can't adapt. <br /><br />Well, to all this I say: Totti is a great player, worthy of comparison to the greats of the modern game. Loyalty to his home town club has served to make his talent seem smaller than it is - he has often been held back by the restrictions of the team at A.S. Roma. When playing alongside colleagues of the right calibre, Totti has delivered the goods, scoring and creating goals and crucially, winning trophies. Roma won Serie A under Fabio Capello, when Totti was given Batistuta and Emerson as team-mates, and he could express himself, safe in the knowledge that some of his own side were on a similar wavelength. Under Spaletti, Roma are a force in Europe, Italian Cup Winners, and Totti has won the Golden Boot as Europe's top goalscorer. The question of what he might have accomplished had he moved to Madrid or Milan is an intriguing one, but irrelevant to the issue of his quality as a player. He has proven that already, in Rome.<br /><br />Perhaps part of the issue is that his gifts are quite so extravagant. He can do everything well - he dribbles at pace with disguise, the ability to drop the shoulder always an instant away. He is two footed, and his passing and shooting with each foot is frequently extraordinary. He excels at the rapid interplay around the opposition box, quick passes with the out-step, backheels and drag-backs. And he is a fantastic finisher, often scoring the most spectacular, unlikely goals:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0GyYaI6DoU&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/G0GyYaI6DoU&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />He is particularly adept at what Italians call the "cucchiaio" - the chip. This is a compilation formed entirely of clips of Totti sending perfectly dinked balls over the despairing grasps of goalkeepers from all areas around the penalty box. He often takes penalties the same way, and it is as if he feels no pressure, taking a penalty in the 2000 Semi-final shootout with Holland in Amsterdam before a Dutch crowd just that way. And scoring.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oev5maQIVas&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oev5maQIVas&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />But what I most like about Totti is his imagination and his vision. The fact that he scores so many inventive goals testifies to the latter, and his range of passing and prompting is evidence of the former. Having begun life as an orthodox "trequarista" or playmaker, he has been reinvented at Roma in the last two seasons in Spaletti's new tactical formation. He now plays up front, often as a lone striker. But Roma's midfield is full of players who burst forward when they break with the ball, and the effect allows them to join Totti in attack, prompting him to play his perfect little through balls to the feet of his onrushing midfielders. He drops deep to control the play but also roams in the opposition half, dragging defenders in his wake, leaving space for his team to exploit. Or, if he sees an opportunity, Totti can go it alone, either by shooting or trying to trick his way into the box:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/B-2NhUprng4&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/B-2NhUprng4&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /> It was in this system that Totti scored 26 goals for Roma in the 06/07 Season. He seems to have improved with age, his football intelligence and experience giving him maturity and perhaps better decision-making than in his youth. He is now Roma's highest ever goalscorer and holds the record number of appearances for the club. In modern European football, only Raul and Del Piero, Totti's great rival in the Italian National team, really compare in terms of long-term service to one club. His standing in Italy is perhaps unmatched - he won Italian footballer of the year 5 times between 2000 and 2007. It was a near National state of emergency when he was injured in the last few weeks of the 2005/06 Season in the run-up to the World Cup. He was considered vital to his country's chances of success in the tournament, since Italy lacked another attacker of similar creativity and brilliance. He had an operation which required the insertion of metal plates, yet made it, only semi-fit, to the World Cup, where he played a fleetingly crucial role in Italy's triumph.<br /><br />His Italian career probably explains why he is regarded with such ambivalence outside Italy. He ousted Del Piero from the role of first choice playmaker in the qualifying campaign for the 2000 European Championships, and was perhaps the Azurri's best player in the tournament itself. Then in the second round match with South Korea at the 2002 world Cup, with so much riding on his performance, Totti was sent off. Italy went out. At Euro 2004, when he was again under great pressure to perform and frustrated with his marking, he lashed out and spat at Danish midfielder Christian Poulsen, and was banned for three games. Without him, Italy's attack malfunctioned badly, and they again went out. His role at the 2006 tournament went some way to redemption, but he subsequently retired from International football to concentrate on Roma.<br /><br />Disgracefully, he has never won either the FIFA World Player of the Year award, or the Ballon D'Or. But they don't define greatness, or even quantify it. Only what he does on the pitch does that, really. And he does amazing things on the pitch:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xBzDDOjsObI&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xBzDDOjsObI&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-81146665916859827772008-03-18T16:08:00.000-07:002008-08-12T16:09:18.006-07:00Football in sun and shadow 4<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjraogsca7IQf5mTk_sRaq7ZnBcFyn3lGB0DhIdQ-Ij8JfM7pX0PWBtuGpaV6z2yMxcKg1Qt-P9kk8AqQLPuS84nRW3ThTsYmvcyuzCz4tvjvo4MoyvJiKLsrKOvkmi64i_R_3RzZtnQCdg/s1600-h/maradona.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjraogsca7IQf5mTk_sRaq7ZnBcFyn3lGB0DhIdQ-Ij8JfM7pX0PWBtuGpaV6z2yMxcKg1Qt-P9kk8AqQLPuS84nRW3ThTsYmvcyuzCz4tvjvo4MoyvJiKLsrKOvkmi64i_R_3RzZtnQCdg/s320/maradona.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178896161543337042" /></a><br /><br />Diego Armando Maradona. The greatest player of my lifetime by a very wide margin. It would be wrong to have him share a post with lesser players, he deserves his own collection of clips. So:<br /><br />This is what is called a proper range of passing:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/--ACUzCCza8&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/--ACUzCCza8&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Dribbling, attracting some of the most ferociously brutal tackling I've ever seen, making opponents fall over, flip-flops, drag-backs, multiple stepovers:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ah8xBnjtYWw&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ah8xBnjtYWw&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Deliberately injured (and out for months) by Athletic Bilbao's Goikoetxea during his time at Barcelona, Maradona returned to Bilbao with a score to settle. So he decided to start a fight:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/tg8Z6AOH6Sg&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/tg8Z6AOH6Sg&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />He didn't warm up like anybody else, either:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WgdJaj9hzTc&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WgdJaj9hzTc&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />"Hero", the Official FIFA film of the 1986 World Cup understandably concentrates on Maradona. The entire thing is on Youtube in 10 minute chunks and its all worth a watch, especially part seven, featuring France vs Brazil, Platini vs Zico etc. But this part is Argentina vs England. The greatest goal ever. Michael Caine, synthesiser music. Ace.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8cc_N8CfiPs&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8cc_N8CfiPs&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2253737864581397135.post-31343262095300280442008-02-19T16:07:00.000-08:002008-08-12T16:08:16.864-07:00Football in sun and shadow 3Teofilo Cubilias, the greatest Peruvian footballer ever. And a No. 10. Nuff said.<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d3D16kwXcaM&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d3D16kwXcaM&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Quaresma:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xa1IHjSAXYo&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xa1IHjSAXYo&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Bergkamp:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/v64exGkaD_Y&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/v64exGkaD_Y&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Rivaldo:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DPWXuJuTYQM&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DPWXuJuTYQM&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Ariel Ortega, who more or less specialised in scoring goals just like this:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4MB6kBW4ysQ&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4MB6kBW4ysQ&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />The 1985 FA Cup Final. Man Utd down to 10 men after Kevin Moran has been sent off, against the new champions Everton. Up steps Norman Whiteside:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1StMGwpO62M&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1StMGwpO62M&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Hagi:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gVMdkhn0NHo&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gVMdkhn0NHo&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>David Nhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01289610966074361701noreply@blogger.com0