After sixteen straight days of football we have a two-day break before the semifinals get underway. A chance perhaps to indulge in some observations?
In terms of entertainment and quality this edition of the European Championships far exceeds what was on show four years ago. It’s on par with 2000 but the latter stages of the tournament in Netherlands and Belgium had two fantastic extra time games and one that was not unlike the Spain and Italy (except this time Italy supposedly played with 11 men for the full 120 minutes) game yesterday. The last three games of Euro 2008 will decide where it will ultimately sit in the list of great tournaments.
And that partially segues to the fallout from the last quarterfinal match. Contrasting the column inches and tone of blog posts emanating from North America dedicated to Russia versus Netherlands against Italy versus Spain makes interesting reading and may give an indication of how far the game still has to go in these parts.
It seems to me that more effort has been dedicated to trashing the Italy - Spain game than celebrating and reveling in the quality of the play and the spectacle that was Russia versus the Netherlands.
There are far too many posters and writers overly concerned about the reaction from non-soccer fans and sportswriters in North America. It is if a multitude of North American soccer fans/bloggers/posters decided after yesterday’s game to strap on the cilices and whip themselves bloody before the soccer-haters of North America even had a chance to mobilize.
It is a reaction of a bullied child that would opt to inflict self administered pain rather than allowing the bully the pleasure. It is also the reaction that does nothing to grow the game in North America. It was a poor game yesterday - you get them from time to time and not only in soccer. That’s just the way it is and self-flagellation isn’t going to change anything.
Celebrate the great, praise the beautiful, rejoice that on occasion we get to enjoy 120 minutes of footballing heaven the likes of which we were privileged to see on Saturday. No one every grew anything worthwhile by wallowing in the negative and when you respond to soccer-haters gripes all you are doing at best is reinforcing the darkside. At worst it runs the risk of becoming a self-fulfilling prophesy.
As group winners Portugal, Croatia and Netherlands fell at the first knockout stage you could hear a rising crescendo of “it’s not fair.” Perhaps it’s not fair, but there is nothing that grants a right to go on and win a tournament just because a team starts well.
Tournament play is about pacing, peaking at the right time and taking advantage of the breaks when they come your way. You don’t get bonus points for artistic impression, going unbeaten in the group stage or even qualifying after only two games.
You only have to glance at the history of major tournaments such as the World Cup and the European Championships to see how difficult it is to lead from start to finish (as it is in any competition in any sport). Now and again a country will come along and be able to pull off such a remarkable achievement.
Performances by the likes of Brazil in 1958 and 1970, and France in 1984 are extremely unusual and it is easier to find examples of teams burning intensely in the early stages but flaming out spectacularly while failing to reach their overall goal.
Hungary (1954), Netherlands (1974), Italy (1978), Denmark (1986), Spain multiple times, and the daddy of them all Brazil in 1982 played memorable football in the early going only to fail in the later stages.
Comment(s) of the Day “Previously, Daneiele de Rossi and Alessandro Di Natale had failed for Italy, while Daniel Guiza, of Italy, also had his effort saved.” –Kevin McCarra in the Guardian.
Now that I have seen that it can happen to the best I don’t feel so bad about Fernando Cannavaro!
It was later corrected to read - “Previously Daniele de Rossi and Alessandro Di Natale had failed for Italy, while Daniel Güiza, of Spain, also had his effort saved,” but as of this morning Antonio was still being referred to as Alessandro.
“European football has been at a crossroads for some time but the dull, negative style that won the championship for Greece four years ago – and let's be honest propelled Rangers to the UEFA Cup Final and to a lesser extent served Scotland well in their qualifying group – has been found wanting in the face of a new dawn.
Manchester United showed the way at club level by winning in Moscow and at least four of the quarter-finalists in the current tournament have also seen the light. If ever a tournament has rekindled our enthusiasm for the beautiful game and provided a hopeful vision of the future, this has been it. If we are honest, we must also admit that this vision has been helped by the fact that the home nations were not there to cloud the view.” – Pat Nevin in the Scotsman on Sunday.
Prediction Update With three games to go here is a list of the top fifteen. *Indicates no countries left.
Netherlands Antilles 0-1 Haiti Haiti wins 1-0 on aggregate.
Cuba 4-0 Antigua and Barbuda Cuba wins 8-3 on aggregate.
Guyana 1-2 Suriname Suriname wins 3-1 on aggregate.
Barbados 0-1 United States United States win 9-0 on aggregate.
Costa Rica 3-0 Grenada Costa Rica wins 5-2 on aggregate.
Mexico 7-0 Belize Mexico wins 9-0 on aggregate.
St. Lucia 1-3 Guatemala Guatemala wins 9-1 on aggregate.
Canada 4-1 St Vincent & Grenadines Canada wins 7-1 on aggregate.
You can find the make-up of the groups for the next stage by following the link.
It is poorly laid out but it is supposed to indicate three groups of four with the the top two moving onto a final group round. The top three will qualify and the fourth place side finisher will play-off against the fifth team from South America.
It looks as if the Heskey and Owen partnership has reached the iconic stage. The statistic of 14 goals in 14 starts or 12 starts together (and that was before Russia and Israel) crops up in almost every article about them. It seemed to me that given that both of these players started their careers in the late nineties and that Owen has 85 caps and Heskey 45 that 12 or 14 starts together seemed very low. I might be missing something (and it certainly becomes difficult to track appearances because of substitutions) but this is what I have come up with in terms of starting together and goals.
Russia Sept 12/07 Owen 2, Heskey 0. Israel Sept 8/07 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Croatia Aug 20/03 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Serbia & Mont. June 3/03 Owen 0, Heskey 0. South Africa May 22/03 Owen 0, Heskey 1. Liechtenstein Mach 29/03 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Slovakia Oct 12/02 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Portugal Sept 7/02 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Brazil June 21/02 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Denmark June 15/02 Owen 1, Heskey 1. Nigeria June 12/07 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Argentina June 7/02 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Sweden June 2/02 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Cameroon May 26/02 Owen 0, Heskey 0. South Korea May 21/02 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Italy March 27/02 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Albania Sept 5/01 Owen 1, Heskey 0. Germany Sept 1/01 Owen 3, Heskey 1. Greece June 6/01 Owen 0, Heskey 0. Mexico May 25/01 Owen 0, Heskey 0.
I make that 20 starts together with Owen scoring 13 and Heskey 3. Still a decent strike rate but not what has been widely reported. In all it appears to me that they have played in 32 games together although they may not have been on the park at the same time when one has replaced the other. I used the FA archives as a source and I would be more than happy to admit an error if someone can come up with support for the 14 goals in 14 or 12 starts statistic. I did rattle this off quickly.
Euro 2008 qualifying is centre stage this weekend. The biggest game would appear to be in Prague with Germany - top of group D on goal difference - facing the Czech Republic. Slovakia, Cyprus, the Republic of Ireland and Wales will all be hoping to make up ground but I see this group as a two-horse race.
Greece and Turkey go head-to-head in another titanic Mediterranean struggle. Both countries have 100% records after three games and neither have conceded a goal so far. They also faced each other in 2006 World Cup qualifying and both games finished scoreless. Norway and Bosnia-Herzegovina sit third and fourth (Norway are three points behind the leaders and two ahead of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Bosnians have played a game more) and play each other in Oslo. Norway then plays Turkey in Istanbul on Wednesday so this group could be turned on its head by this time next week.
Group A may turn out to be the most competitive of the seven groups. Two of the 2006 World Cup finalists currently sit third and fourth – Poland and Portugal – behind group leaders Finland and second place Serbia. Portugal versus Belgium (5th place) looks to be a vital one for both sides. A win for the Portuguese would make sure that they remain in a strong position while a loss for Belgium would mean that they would have already dropped 11 points and that would leave them in an impossible position.
Italy has to wait until Wednesday when Scotland will travel to Bari. Group B leaders Scotland – how strange does that sound ? – will have new manager Alex McLeish in charge for the first time against Georgia. Although the game against Italy is the glamour tie, a win over Georgia at Hampden Park is much more important. France currently trail Scotland on goal difference and have to play away to Lithuania – a tricky task I would suggest.
In Group E all eyes are on Israel against England. Much as been made of the fact that Israel have lost only one of their last 14 competitive fixtures while also drawing with the likes of France, Switzerland, Russia, and the Republic of Ireland. The never-say-die spirit of the Israeli squad has seen them fight back a number of times over the last two seasons to #### draws as the seconds tick down. A draw may again be the outcome. The Israeli loss came at home in November when group leaders Croatia beat them 4-3 in Tel Aviv. Croatia are at home to Macedonia on Saturday.
Spain are currently sitting in fifth place in Group F and they have no margin for error when they face Denmark. The Danes are four points ahead of Spain and have yet to concede a goal in their first three games. The good news is that the Spanish have an outstanding record against the Danes. Since 1985, Spain have beaten Denmark five times, drawn once and lost only once. Sweden leads the group with a 100% record after four games and have a rest day this weekend. On Wednesday Sweden faces third Northern Ireland in Belfast. Norhern Ireland plays group whipping-boys Liechtenstein on Saturday.
In Group G the Netherlands and Romania is a battle of first versus third with both countries unbeaten. Second place Bulgaria are also unbeaten but don’t play until Wednesday when Albania are the opposition.
Romania have yet to win in eight friendly and competitive games against Holland, drawing two and losing six, while scoring just only once.
Gongatore - Even though the US-DEN match was meaningless and if you saw it, what would you take away from the match?
Bobby – First off I didn’t see the game as it wasn’t broadcast in Canada so I can’t really comment on the display. Having said that and even though it was probably more like a “B” international (or the Danish League vs. MLS) the result was important in that it took some pressure off Bob Bradley. After the Jurgen Klinsmann situation, a loss would have reactivated the debate about the coaching position-not withstanding that he remains an “interim” appointment. If the team can put together a run of good results, then it will be extremely difficult not to make Bradley's appointment permanent.
Twinkletoes - What's your take on stadium sharing? I couldn't care less if Pool is bought by #### or Gillett, but it seems to me that sharing grounds w/Everton might make financial sense and little else. I think it's important for a team to have a true home atmosphere, identity, and advantage over visiting teams. I can't quite picture Gerrard celebrating in front of blue and red seats of the Coca-Cola Greater Merseyside Sports Complex West Stand, but maybe it's just me.
Bobby –This is a subject in which both sides of the argument can bring forward strong evidence to support their case. The traditionalists, as you point out, look to issues such as atmosphere and identity while the financial realists factor in capital costs, operating costs etc. I stand to be corrected on this but it seems to me that apart from Italy not many other teams in the world actually share stadiums - yes I know it happens in Los Angeles as well. That may have something to do with the fact that in Italy stadiums are mostly built through government funded projects and considered a community asset. The San Siro situation is the one that is usually used to support the stadium sharing idea but I have read on a number of occasions over the years that Inter and the Milan are not necesarily happy with the arrangement.
When a stadium is shared then other revenue streams are compromised so although capital costs may be less, revenues may also decline.
However, you also have to consider that my opinion is probably flavoured by the fact that I grew up in a city where a ball could be punted from the ground of one professional team into the other the grounds were so close. I can also remember a number of players that regularly attempted the feat allbeit by accident!
Toffeenose - Please try to give a mention to the 100 anniversary of the birth of William Ralph (Dixie) Dean 1/22/2007. The greatest goalscorer in the history of the game 60 league goals in 1927/8.
Bobby – I'm sorry but I didn't get chance to fit a mention of this into the show on Monday, but to make up for it here is an excellent article by Robert Galvin on the great Dixie Dean.
Venti_vidi_vici - How surprised are you to see Oba Martins' exceptional performance for Newcastle so far this season? He was incredible as Inter's super-sub the past couple of seasons, but now seems to have adapted very well in his new role for a new club in a new league.
Bobby – I am surprised at Martins’ performances for Newcastle. When he was with Inter he struggled with consistency and I think that was why we saw them coming on as an effective substitute so often - 20 minutes was fine, 90 minutes seen too much. But perhaps there is a simple explanation for his performance. This from Glenn Roeder his Newcastle manager - "She has been staying with him and this has given him a lift. I don't how long she is staying, but if she is the reason why he perked up in the second half against West Ham on Saturday then I hope it is for a long time." The lady in question - his mum - Martins' not Roeder's.
atleti_female - Apparently Atletico Madrid are close to signing two new defenders: Kanga Akalé, an Ivory Coast defender who currently plays for Auxerre and Fabiano Eller, a Brazilian defender from Inter (Bra). Hopefully, this means the end of Perea and Seitaridis.
Bobby - I haven’t seen much of Atletico but going into this season they looked to have built a solid back four with the arrival of Seitaridis and Pernia. The statistics seem to indicate that the defense has played well – 13 goals against in 19 games and they have only conceded more than a single goal once. But obviously you are not happy with Seitaridis and Perea.
As for the latest recruits Eller looks to be a very solid player. When I was researching information for the FIFA Club World Cup he constantly came up as an outstanding player. He spent some time playing in Turkey but never settled down.
As for Akale I believe he is a midfield player rather than a defender – or should I say that at least he was a midfielder at the World Cup this summer.
Djnima - The commentator for the Arsenal Man U match was commenting how Giggs was playing a bit inside and Rooney was allowed to roam on the left to get a bit more space. Isn't this how Wenger plays Henry and do you think it could work with Rooney?
Do you think Mourinho could possibly go to Real next season? And with the talent in the squad do you think he would bring Madrid in the instant success he had with Chelsea?
Bobby – Henry starts in the centre and drifts out to the left when it suits him. That isn't how Fergie played Rooney on Sunday - Rooney was very much the left sided midfield player. Rooney's strength is as a support striker that can drift deeper while Henry is very much a mobile front line striker. If you are looking for a comparison Saha when he drifts out to the left would probably be a better comparison or option.
One of the raps on Capello is that he has Real Madrid playing boring football - why they expect Mourinho to suddenly arrive and play entertaining football just because he moves to Real Madrid is beyond me. Capello and Mourinho are cut from a similar cloth.
Real Madrid has short and long term problems. The short term solution was to try and shore up the team with experienced and normally dependable players - RVN, Emerson etc. Even though they are not playing exilirating football Real is still well ahead of last seasons performance. The next stage is bringing in younger players - like Gago and Higuain - and that has started.
You have to consider that when Mourinho arrived he inherited a good Chelsea side plus he was able to cherry pick players from Porto plus he had money to spend on others such as Drogba. I am not so sure it would be the same if or when he moves to Real.
As for the future I have to agree that Mourinho looks to be an act that wears out relatively quickly and he is not going to hang around one club like Fergie or Wenger.
J3sUsD - What do you think of Mexico's appointment of Hugo Sanchez as its head coach and how do you think his team will perform against Bob Bradley’s U.S. Side.
Bobby –By his constant criticism of LaVolpe Sanchez has created a stick for his own back and faces incredible pressure when his Mexico side finally takes to the field early next month. (As I mentioned earlier, the fact that Bob Bradley has a win under his belt already will help his position, Sanchez needs the same thing.) Perhaps Mexico's situation with a foreign coach being replaced by a native son was very similar to the situation faced by Scotland after they decided to get rid of Berti Vogts and to replace him with Walter Smith. Although you would have to say that LaVolpe was a lot more successful with Mexico than Vogts was with Scotland!!
Bubbles07 - Ok I know I may be beating a horse to death... but here's what I am wondering... I think that Beckham moving to LA will be good for MLS, but can he help to fill a gap or to improve the LA Galaxy themselves? Or is he more o####ood idea, than a good addition?
Bobby – As long as he remains injury free Beckham will be an outstanding addition to the L.A. Galaxy. The challenge for the Galaxy is to make sure that they have the players to take advantage of a Beckham's skill and ability.
Henry14 - To be honest l feel the gunners can not win the premiership title but l feel that this will give the young team unbelievable belief in themselves. How do you rate them for next season?
I have to say the standard of football in La Liga this season is the poorest l have seen all of my lifetime. There is a lot of diving, bad officiating and football quality is low.
Bobby – I have never considered Arsenal as a realistic Premiership title contender this season and so with 14 games left and a 12 point deficit I don't see any reason to change my mind. Next season - that is a different matter. They are definitely beginning to gel and I see no reason at the moment why they can't challenge for the title next season. Of course it doesn't mean that they can't still pick up a trophy of two this season if they can hold their form.
As for Spain you can look at it from two different perspectives - things are so tight at the top of La Liga that it shows that it is an extremely competitive league. Or the league is mediocre so a number of clubs can win it.
Given that Spanish clubs won the Champions League and the UEFA cup last season I wouldn't be writing league off quite yet! Perhaps we should wait to see how the Champions League unfolds when it gets going again in a few weeks. Real Madrid – Bayern Munich, Liverpool – Barcelona, and Valencia-Inter Milan - all interesting and challenging matches.
Finally, Speakers’ Corner was created to provide an opportunity for FSR viewers and FSC readers to ask questions or to make comments on anything to do with the game no matter where it is played.
It is always a temptation to project the present into the future and the history of the World Cup is littered with countries that treated the tournament as a sprint rather than a very quick middle distance race – league championships are marathons.
So although much of the hot money may have moved in the direction of Argentina, in particular, and Spain, it may not be worth considering some of the other countries who have had the look of Champion-in-waiting over the last half century or so, only to flounder.
1954 – Hungary won their first four games and scored an amazing 25 goals while only conceding 7. One of those wins was 8-3 over West Germany and they met again in the Final. Hungary led 2-0 but West Germany came back to score three in what become known as “The Miracle of Berne.”
1974 – A Johan Cruyff inspired Netherlands won five and drew one while destroying some good teams in the process. They scored from a penalty kick awarded in the first minute of the Final but eventually lost 2-1 to West Germany.
1982 – The best Brazil team since 1970 won their first four games convincingly before a Paulo Rossi hat trick saw them off.
1986 – Denmark won all three games in the “Group of Death” but disintegrated in losing 5-1 to Spain in the first knockout round.
2002 – Spain took a 100% record into the last sixteen and then defeated the Republic of Ireland on penalties. However, the quarterfinal was the end of the road as they lost to South Korea.
I am the soccer analyst for the Fox Soccer Report and appear twice a week - every Monday and Friday at 10:00 EST. I have also been a regular contributor to the Fox Soccer Channel website since the summer of 2004. Over the last twenty years I have contributed to various radio and television programs throughout North America as well writing about the game for newspapers, magazines and websites.
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