Real Madrid has secured another Spanish Championship, Bayern has done the same with the Bundesliga while Inter remains within touching distance of a third consecutive scudetto.
Elsewhere Ligue Une could take an interesting turn this weekend as leaders Lyon are at home to France’s surprise package AS Nancy.
Nancy leaped over Marseilles last weekend and currently occupies the third and final Champions League spot. To grab the final spot Nancy needs to match Marseille's results over the next two games – this weekend at Lyon and after that at home to Rennes.
If it is goals that you are looking for then AS Nancy is not going to be your cup of tea. They have recorded seventeen clean sheets in 36 starts, conceded a miserly twenty-six goals while scoring a parsimonious forty-two goals.
Lyon have recorded a win, a loss and 3 draws in last 5 matches and are dormie two over second place Bordeaux. However, they can take some comfort from their weekend opponents away record this season – only two wins, ten draws and six losses so far.
Lyon finishes with a match against 15th place Auxerre while Laurent Blanc’s Bordeaux faces two bottom half sides in Sochaux and Lens.
The EPL goes into Sunday’s final games with the title, the remaining UEFA Cup spot and two tickets (complete with parachute payments) to the Championship still to be decided. Although Manchester United appears to have the tougher task they also know that they only have to match Chelsea’s result in order to secure back-to-back Premiership titles for the first time since 2001.
Since taking over at the JJB, Steve Bruce has brought some defensive organization and grit to Wigan. With clean sheets in seven of their last eleven games and thirty-two points from Bruce’s 23 games in charge Wigan are enjoying their best run of results since their early splash when they joined the Premiership back in the 2005/06 season.
On the down side Wigan are facing a United side that has a 100% record in five Premiership matches between the the two while scoring 16 goals to Wigan’s three. Strangely all three goals for Wigan have come from defenders. Toss in for good measure that Steve Bruce’s record against Manchester United is nine matches without a win then the league leaders will go into the game with enough good omens to satisfy the most superstitious of fans.
Chelsea are faced with a situation of doing their absolute best but finding out late Sunday afternoon that even that may not be good enough to capture a third Premiership title in four seasons. Theoretically Bolton are still not safe from the spectre of relegation but it requires not only wins for Fulham or Reading but also a huge winning margin combined with Bolton being taken to the Stamford Bridge cleaners.
It is testament to how badly Reading are playing that even a trip to woeful Derby calls into question Reading’s ability to score a goal let alone get three points. Steve Coppell’s side are on the longest current streak in the Premier League without a goal of 6 matches or 551 minutes and need to better Fulham’s result and at least match Birmingham’s if they are to line up in the Premiership in August.
Derby also has a goal (really two goals) going into this game. Derby needs to score two more in order to overtake the Premiership low of 21 in a season set by Sunderland scored five years ago.
Fulham visits FA Cup Finalists Portsmouth with 3 wins in their last four games and last weekend they finally put together back to back wins this season. Fulham are winless at Pompey (2 losses and 2 draws) but appear to have convinced most fans that they can get the win that they need to stay up.
Birmingham is in the most precarious position – the bottom version of Chelsea. They could put in a season-best performance at home to Blackburn but still not beat the drop if other results conspire against them.
Of the nine Premiership matches between these two only one has been decided by more than one goal. Birmingham’s home record (a single home loss since Christmas) has proved to be their flotation device although by the same token the defense has failed to record a clean sheet since the Boxing Day win over Boro.
If Fulham and Reading should both lose then Birmingham could survive with a draw but playing for such an outcome would be a huge gamble.
Craigy_f – 1. Who do you rate more highly Best or Ronaldo? 2. What are your first football memories? 3. What moments made you laugh at the weekend – football related of course? 4. Casano’s first of Trezeguet’s second – which was more enjoyable? 5. How do you think that FSC gets it’s team sheets for Serie A games?
Bobby – 1. George Best. 2, Being taken to an amateur international at Dens Park between Scotland and Ireland. First professional game was I think Dundee United vs. Aberdeen. 3. Nothing. 4. Cassano. 5. They get team sheets?
Leche010 - Who do you see surviving and not this season? Obviously Derby are going down, but it's not like that was a surprise from the start. Fulham appear to be joining them, but have brought in quite a few new names, and could easily make a push to get out... I consider them in the relegation fight, as opposed to condemned.
After that there are Boro, Reading, Bolton, Birmingham, Wigan, and Sunderland all within 2 points of each other, fighting not to be bottom of that pack. Simply which of the 7 clubs do you think have what it takes to survive, and which clubs don't?
Bobby – I picked Derby, Wigan and Fulham to go down this season and as normal I will stick with these picks until it is mathematically impossible that it won’t happen. I can see Derby’s fate being sealed with at least five games to go in the season.
Boro will continue to pick up points only to get BLEEPed back down but will stay up; Reading is too strong at home and will survive; Bolton – they scored goals before Anelka and will find enough goals to win a couple of important matches; Birmingham have enough zip about them to finish above the bottom three as long as they hold their nerve. Sunderland – Keane will batter them if they don’t – I don’t think he will allow them to go down.
Apad03-I just read the news that the Concacaf is starting up a champions league for this region. What do you think? I am thrilled to see this happen. I have suggested this for a few years now and I think it will be great to see MLS teams flying to Honduras or the Caribbean for these games. Great experience and I think some lively football.
Bobby – A step in the right direction but it is going to take a few seasons to establish the competition in the hearts and minds.
Craigy_ f - PROMOTION TO THE PREMIER LEAGUE
Any of the current top ten in the Championship you'd love or hate to see in the Premier League next year? They are:- 1 - West Brom, 2 - Bristol City, 3 – Watford, 4 – Stoke, 5 – Charlton, 6 – Palace, 7 – Burnley, 8 – Ipswich, 9 – Cardiff, 10 - Wolves
Bobby – Nothing stands out for me really and they all have the potential to drop back down fairly quickly. Take the clubs you list and the seven clubs listed as possible relegation candidates from a question above and you have parity and an extremely competitive league.
Henry 14 - q1 Do you know how Ericksson might feel now that the bucket load of money from Thaksin seems to not have come as he thought and he really has not spend as he might have thought and do you see them challenging the course for European places if he does not strengthen?
q2 Do you think we will see the full potential of Rooney at Man Utd as long as Ronaldo is there because two years ago he was sort of going to be the alfamale now it seems he is in the shadow of Ronaldo?
q3 With Eduardo coming into his own and playing well by the game, assuming that Adebayor is a shoe in, how do you view the future of RVP because he direct rival striker are at an age that if you know if they become shoe in the team he will be frustrated because they are both 24 years.
Bobby – Q 1. I have no idea what was said to Sven when he signed on but he certainly got a bucket full of money in the summer. The new signings settled in quickly and City benefited from Sven’s organizational skills. However, the momentum has stalled and the rest of the Premiership has done its homework. He needs a regular goal scorer if they hope to compete for a European place.
Q 2 - I don’t see how a player would not achieve his full potential by playing with excellent players. I can’t agree that players can only become great players if there is no one else on the team that might challenge them. I would have thought it the other way around.
Q3 – You are assuming that there is such a thing as a first choice eleven and that all the first choicers are fit and raring to go. It just doesn’t work like that anymore and hasn’t for a long time.
LGB - Would you say that Ronaldo is already a greater player for United than Cantona was?
Bobby – No. Cantona’s influence on United goes well beyond his performances on the park and so I don’t think he ranks behind Ronaldo. The problem with the “who is better” debate is that in almost all cases it favours the current player. Only in retrospect can you really judge whether or not players should be considered as truly great or just one of the best of their generation. And like managers it may not necessarily come down to trophies won.
Farleft - I was wondering if you had any insight into the decision making of which officials get to officiate certain matches? Do officials also get promoted and or relegated at the end of the season based on their performance throughout the season? I am not trying to slag off officials or anything like that, I am just curious.
Bobby – Here is an article that explains the FA’s move a number of years ago to professional referees and another that includes an interview with Keith Hackett. The answer to your promotion/relegation is yes and in some cases referees have been “demoted” for a period of time during the season.
I wrote an article in the fall of 2006 on professional referees and their preparation and the constant feedback and evaluation they receive. Different leagues will deal with referee assignments in different ways but I am confident in stating that any league or association worth its salt is continually evaluating and working with their officials.
Neophyte - Real Madrid continue to show what a great job Capello performed while manager there. Do you think he deserves the credit of bringing back the club to preeminence in La Liga or did the rebuild start before he got? When I watch them play (Real Madrid) they look so strong...solid all the way across. Do you see a fatal flaw that may haunt them later in the season? How about Villarreal? Just out gunned in the final minutes. Got to admire the fight they showed.
One more question....Did you see Riquelme during the Boca/River match-up this weekend? He is still impressive (especially on those free kicks). Do you know why he hasn't been linked to more teams in Europe? I thought I heard Newcastle was interested (who wouldn't they be interested in?). Riquelme seems like such a talent that other teams would have picked him up already.
Bobby – Capello deserves credit because he was the one that took on the galaticos culture and won…even though he lost if you know what I am getting at. I am not convinced that Real Madrid are as strong as their record indicates.
Castillas is still relied upon to bale the team out on more occasions than seems fair and I think their midfield is going to come up short in Champions League play. Villarreal certainly went for it on Sunday – perhaps too much so. It would have been more interesting if Pires had been playing.
I did catch the second half of the Super Classico and the first half highlights. Riquleme was impressive but I don’t think you will see him leave Argentina for Europe again. He is a special talent but he needs a coach who is willing to build a team around him.
At Barcelona that didn’t happen and that is why it did not work out. At Villarreal – initially anyway – they were willing to do that. To answer your question of “who wouldn’t be interested”? – the answer is the overwhelming majority of good teams would not be interested. They are not too many teams willing to gamble success or failure on a single player and that is pretty close to the straight choice with Riquelme. A wonderful talent but with limitations.
AlanV - Different subject. I just finished reading the article about the pilot program to have only the team captain be allowed to discuss decisions with the Ref. As a parent whose son plays at the club level, we already have a similar program here in So. California, at least as far as the parent and player accountability go.
My son has to sign a code of conduct each year where he promises to maintain a level of decorum and civility. He's a ref (U14 and lower) and has noticed a difference for the better in the comments of both players and the sidelines. I think it's a great idea and hope it works. I can agree to a players initial reaction when he disagrees, that's human nature. But there's no call for half the team to be discussing the situation with the ref, especially knowing he won't change his mind. What's your take? Will it work at the pro level or will that be impossible to enforce.
Bobby – It will work if the leagues are willing to stick with it. However, too often we have seen these initiatives taper off after a few weeks. It is really about setting standards and sticking to it. Unfortunately it is easy to say but difficult to stick to.
Henry 14 - My question is that Owen is given an excuse when he does not score that he needs service and other strikers are not given such a ride. The poacher is a dying breed hence reference to Ruud's assist rate
Bobby – You make a good point. I have read a number of articles over the last few seasons that allude to the same point that pure strikers are now a luxury and that they need to deliver more. Having said that it really doesn’t matter if a striker is a pure poacher or a more rounded player they still nned service or some kind to get goals.
LGB - If there is anyone who believes that LFC's most profitable year was a pre-tax profit of £9.46m than I have a bridge that I'd like to sell you...
Ursusarctos provided a top class explanation but I will chime in with my two cents worth.
It is not what they (businessmen) are losing, it is their take on how much more revenue potential there is. Generally successful entrepreneurs do not make money by buying successful businesses, they make money buying companies that they consider to be undervalued and that have potential to generate significantly more revenue or have a poor cost structure.
In the case of football clubs in England the Glazers, Hicks and Gillett see that additional revenue coming from fans. To cut to the chase they purchase the club with little of their own money at stake and then through increased revenue from the fans they pay off the loans incurred in the purchase. End result - they own the club and the fans pay the purchase price and more. The problem is that it is a gamble and should certain assumptions not work out then you see the potential of a financial meltdown ala Leeds.
“What I'm trying to say is that the numbers are BLEEP (just like with United) and these clubs even with the construction of new stadia and the like are still making money hand over fist.”
I can understand that this stuff is not easy to understand but that doesn’t make it BLEEP. Your example of United reminds me of the guy that jumps from the 40th floor of a building and as he passed the 20th floor people heard him say “so far so good.”
The Glazer deal may work out but that doesn’t preclude the fact that it is highly leveraged and comes with significant risk – as does the Liverpool deal. Try telling Leeds fans that it was BLEEP …….they went into Administration for fun right!
The Leeds example is only used as an example of a meltdown …Leeds problems were not caused by a buy-out but they were caused by making some key assumptions that proved to be wrong.
Craigy_f - (Are you) feeling a tad more confident after beating the Ukraine? What’s your take on Lampard being booed? Are there any other instances like that which you can recall? Do you pay attention to stats in football? Do you read any print media on football?
Bobby – I will not feel confident until there are enough points to finish in the top two. However, the win against Ukraine does guarantee that Scotland will go into the Italy game with a chance of qualifying. As for Lampard being booed – I can’t understand how supposed fans can boo one of their own players.
The same thing happened to Gary McAllister playing for Scotland. A few decades ago it wasn’t unusual for Old Firm players to get bad treatment from the other side of the divide. In terms of the stats question is yes. I do most of my daily reading electronically.
D Powell22 - Has anyone heard of any clubs that are interested in Jozy Altidore? I know he is turning 18 at the end of this year. Is he going to play for a European team next?
Bobby – With his physique and talent I can guarantee that there are a lot of European teams watching him. However, I don’t think it is a slam dunk that he will be off to Europe next year. I also don’t think it is necessarily a bad thing either.
Therealrico - Derek Rae feels South American needs to revamp their WC qualification process. While I do think that Fifa's rankings are fairly BS, I think that the WC and Euro Cup qualifiers need to be revamped using the Fifa rankings. For example all the minnows of Europe or South America I think should have to play a pre qualifier. With countries like the Faroe Islands, San Marino, and so forth having to play in a qualifier to determine who get to go to the next level. Similar to what they do in the champs leagues with teams from places like Wales. This would put less strain on countries like France, or Italy, who have players playing way too many games as it is. What do you guys think?
Bobby – I think the upside of the present South American qualification system has been missed. First of all they are playing games while European countries are either playing WC or Euro qualifiers. In fact South American countries are playing fewer games than European countries as they don’t play a qualifying tournament for the Copa America.
South American countries will play 18-20 games; European countries will play a minimum of 24 games between the two qualifying tournaments. That’s an average of 33% fewer games played by South American countries if you exclude the possibility of a play-off round.
Since South America went to the 18 game qualifying round the gap between top and bottom has narrowed considerably. For example you referenced the minnows of COMNEBOL - who would these minnows be? I can’t think of one South American country that wouldn’t finish in the top four in CONCACAF. You also have to consider that the 18 game format guarantees as far as it is humanly possible that the best 4 (or 5) countries from South America reach the WC finals.
Before the 18 game format it was a case of only 4 or 6 games which significantly increased the chances that a good team would pay a hefty price for an off day.
Finally do you really think if there were less WC qualifying games that the clubs would not simply pick up the slack?
Djnima - 1. Do you think management is the problem at Spurs? I think Jol should go. However Spurs seem to have a problem more with defending rather than management. They rely too much on King and he is always injured. 2. Pls post a new pic on the website without your glasses. 3. Have you seen Fifa 08? Are you into video games? 4. Where do you see Mourinho popping up this season? AC? Inter?
Bobby –1. What is your definition of management? If you are talking about the board then the answer is yes. 2. I don’t have one. 3. No, and no. Jeremy is the guy you want for video games. I’m from a different generation. I'd do just about anything before playing video games. 4. You might not see him popping up any place if all the bigger sides play reasonably well until spring.
Ringo - I say bring back pitches like the old Baseball Ground, Derby. Two months into the season and not a blade of grass left and ankle deep mud. Now THAT was football! I`m planning on watching tomorrow`s Georgia/Scotland game, but I`m not sure which team to root for, could you help me out?
Bobby – Was it at the Baseball ground that Brian Clough perfected his love of over watering? The pitch always seemed to be a mud bath. If I was you, I would support the team with the most surnames beginning with the initial M.
CIAO - What do make of Donadoni as Italy's coach so far?
Bobby – Inconclusive. Italy’s position is a product of a poor start right after the WC last summer. I don’t think you can blame Donadoni for that. However, if Italy fail to qualify then the excuses will count for nothing and he will be gone.
MeanBLEEPa - What do you think of John Terry's sudden knee injury ahead of the Russia match? I'm sure it will give more fuel to the whole "plastic pitch" fire, no? I can't believe some people are comparing Field Turf - which is relatively new to the Astroturf fields of the 80's and 70's. That's pretty bad journalism, isn't it?
Bobby – Terry’s knee was a problem before he got any place close to a “plastic pitch”. Blaming his knee locking on the Moscow pitch? You might as well every other injury on grass surfaces. Newer artificial surfaces versus what we had 20 years ago was the point I made on Monday’s show - it is not an apples to apples comparison.
CIAO -Do you think any of the clubs fighting for CL glory need to bring in any additional players? Are any of the Ajax player cup tied? Do you think Huntelaar will make his long awaited move to a bigger club in January?
Bobby – It very tough to find players that are not cup tied so any “winter” signings tend to play in domestic leagues and allow the players they have replaced to be rested for the European games. Ajax players – if they played – are cup-tied. There were a few posters that were telling me a few months ago that Huntelaar was sure to go to a big club last summer – it did not happen and it may not happen in January either.
Gegz - Don't you think that Ever Banega should be included in the Argentina line-up as he may be the long-term replacement for Riquelme? And don't you think at times Tevez tends to overdo it a bit?
Bobby – I don’t see Banega as a long term replacement for Riquelme – he has a very different style. Having Riquelme in the side dictates that Argentina plays through him – otherwise he doesn’t bring very much to the team.
Banega brings a bit of everything with him - more like a Redondo. Tevez’s strength is his desire and his ability to run at defenders – he would not be the same player if you asked him to do anything different.
Craig_f -The plonker and his mate on Fox are talking about Premier League games outside England, either in the US or Asia. Kind of a mirror of what the NFL is doing with the Giants Dolphins at Wembley.
Bobby – I have no idea why anyone would suggest taking Premier league games outside of England. There is no business case to be made for a move like that. The NFL does it because they need to try and develop an overseas market for their product. That is not a problem for the Premiership. It sounds as if someone may have come up with an answer before making sure that they understand the problem. And to top it off I can only imagine the sanctioning and jurisdictional issues that something like that would create.
I will put up a midweek European Championship qualifying post on Wednesday morning.
I won't be posting a blog on the game but here's a place tp post your comments. Eight minutes gone and Julio Baptista strikes early to give Brazil a lead then Riquelme thumps one against the post.
A whole series of questions relating to Makelele foul on Angel as he broke free and Zokora’s blatant dive.
bliss_street - Makelele's tackle on Angel would have earned him an unnecessary roughness penalty in the NFL. I wondered whether referee Graham Poll was going to give him a straight red card or let him off with a yellow. Imagine how flabbergasted I was when he made no call at all!
henry14 - I have to say they is a tendency for Chelsea to go away with the most decisions, on all their games l have seen they have been given fair decisions on penalties, but the officials were not consistent when they are guilty, l felt Makelele deserved a straight red card. The most outrageous decision to me was the way Zokora sunk so low to fall to the ground, it is one thing to make the most of a tackle but to fall to the ground is tacking cheating to unprecedented levels. I think the FA should ban players who do so for games if they go unpunished in the game, because it is so unprofessional
AlexMorph - I'll probably be immensely unpopular for suggesting this, but I think that Angel played Makelele for the foul because he knew that he couldn't outrun him. The Frenchman was right on his tail, running off to the side a bit, and Angel showed him his back without bringing the ball. He went across the direction of the ball and Make ran into him (ok, he didn't have to use his arms), so the ref probably saw it as obstruction from the Villa striker.
travel_coach - Since the ref. made no call on Zokora's dive in the Pompey game, cannot the FA review the incident and penalize Zokora with some time off and a fine for unsportsmanlike conduct?
Ducky_Jones - I've read comments from Glenn Hoddle & Tony Adams about the Zokora phantom penalty; they're calling him a cheater and that if he wants to stay in the EPL he can't do that sort of thing. Is there a double standard in how they treat foreign players compared to English ones? I've seen Rooney dive in the area and get the penalty call. I'm sure that I've seen other English players do the same thing. What gives?
bigdavedisaster - As a Spurs supporter in the EPL I can not defend Didier Zokora’s dive. There is no place for it in football except for apparently the EPL, La Liga, Serie A Champions league (Giggs) the world cup and just about all the other leagues and competitions until something is done it will only get worse! As long as diving continues to produce results it is here to stay in today’s big dollar global football world were wins mean so much....oh and with all those dollars come all those cameras so we can see the dive from all angles as to be sure not to miss one
Bobby – I have watched the challenge by Makelele on Angel and in my opinion Makelele was very lucky to stay on the park let alone get away without even a foul being given against him. Angel is not the quickest forward in the Premiership but he was in front of the Chelsea player, heading for the goal with the ball under his control. I can agree that Angel played for the foul but the ball was always within his playing distance so an obstruction call couldn’t be given by Graham Poll. Makelele was all over Angel – Chelsea was very fortunate in that situation.
In terms of Zokora the FA’s position would be that the referee made his decision and so calling Zokora to account for the dive would be undermining the ref’s decision. If Zokora had punched Mendes off the ball without an official seeing it then video evidence could be used as the referee did not make a decision.
However in the case of the elbow Thatcher threw at Mendes – and connected with – the referee gave a yellow card but the FS still used video evidence. Although I can see the difference – the Thatcher decision involved further punishment of a foul correctly called by the referee versus what would essentially be the retroactive overturning of a referee decision – it does not seem to me to be that great a leap to make sure that dives such as the one by Zokora are punished using video evidence. Bringing the game into disrepute is a pretty good catch-all for something like this I would think.
And yes – there is a double standard in terms of diving. Foreign players are singled out. Diving may not have been so prominent before foreign players became more prevalent but it was definitely there.
davard - Could you please explain the Makelele/France situation to me? Can a player not retire internationally but still play in a domestic league? Does this mean McClaren could, within his rights, declare Paul Scholes onto the nat’l team, with or without his consent? In fact, he should, just to see Fergie's reaction.
Bobby – We went over this one a couple of weeks back if I remember correctly. I don’t believe FIFA anticipated their rule that a player can be suspended if he doesn’t report for international duty would used to force a player into reporting when he had already announced his international tournament. The rule was imposed to try and deal with situations where players were being pressured into calling off “injured” after being named to a national team. Your point is well taken. McClaren could name Scoles to the squad and force a suspension if he didn’t turn up. The obvious solution is for FIFA to create a register of retired international players. Then the likes of Makelele would register his retirement and would not have to bother with the antics of Domenech.
neophyte - Great pieces on the Yanks at Reading. We have been following them in our household. They are everyone’s favorite 2nd team. Question: Why doesn't USSOCCER promote the Americans abroad? I would think they would be the poster kids for the up and coming generation.
Did you see Villarreal against Zaragoza? Riquelme put on a show! Note to the rest of La Liga, do not make him mad. You won't like him when he's angry. I think the press in Argentina pushed too far and now they (the Argentines) will be looking even more troubled against their South American competition.
Bobby – I guess the question is better put to the USSF. However, what would they promote – that Reading has two US players? I think US soccer fans know that so they would really be preaching to the choir. I didn’t see the Zaragoza – Villarreal match but I have noticed that Villarreal’s performances have improved over the last couple of weeks and they are moving up La Liga – to my relief seeing that I picked them to finish third!
spike24 - What do you think about Reading's Ibrahima Sonko? It seems he must be considered one of the surprising standouts of the new season. The only games Reading has failed to get a result were the ones he missed from his red card. And in the games he has played, he's been a dominating force - neutralizing Rooney against Man Utd, and coming up with tackles and deflections to preserve 1-0 wins against West Ham and Man City.
Will we see him playing as a French International any time soon? I understand that since he's never played for the top squad, his time at Senegal does not invalidate him from playing for France.
Bobby – I am holding judgment just a little bit longer on individual performances from Reading. As a team I think they are an entertaining team to watch and their goalscorers will get enough goals to keep them out of relegation trouble. However, after so few games we will have to wait and see who is playing above their normal level. I understand he was ready to join Senegal for an African Cup of Nations qualifier this weekend but called off through injury.
gregz – What’s the deal with Shevchenko? He is a much more lethal striker than Drogba and yet Drogba has been totally outshining him. I wonder though is it a case of Sheva making Drogba look good because he attracts so much attention from defenders which leaves Drogba open to score goals. And what of Tevez is it too early to expect anything good from him.
Bobby – I think generally fans have unrealistic expectations when big signings move to another club and sometimes another country. I am convinced that Shevchenko will come good. At the moment Drogba is carrying the load in fine style. As for Tevez and Mascherano – it far too early to tell.
wickedzoot - Regarding the West Ham meltdown. I saw a not on the rumors page that at least one of the Argentines is already bucking for a transfer. I kinda lost track after that. Was that smoke? I haven't seen much reporting on WH lately so I wonder if I've missed something. Will they get a chance to turn things around or are we just waiting for the next window to see where they go?
Bobby – It is a normal type of rumour when a player has moved in a high profile transfer and success hasn’t been immediate. There was the ridiculous story earlier this week that Shevchenko was heading back to Milan in January. At the moment the Argentine pair have not made an impression and so what other European teams would be looking to step in anyway? I find it interesting the Chelsea conspiracy theorists have gone strangely quiet since the pair arrived and WH has not won a game since.
MeanBLEEPa - Becks' work rate seems to have greatly increased since being brought off the bench, most notably against Dinamo Kiev. Think he was gunning for inclusion on the England squad? Or trying to get back in Capello's starting 11? Or both?
The shot of he and Ronaldo sitting on the bench at the beginning of the game was interesting. I guess they're discussing the best places to live in the states! Now if we could only get an MLS franchise here in Miami - especially since we recently lost our only draw - Romario.
Bobby – I think the chances of a Beckham recall to the England national team is very low. But one thing is for sure – he will not be called up by Steve McClaren if he is not a first choice for Fabio Capello.
Venti-vidi-vici – Many people (Jose Mourinho included) seem to think that Inter Milan is, ON PAPER, one of, if not, the best club teams in the world. Crespo-Ibrahimovic-Adriano is arguably the best trio of strikers anywhere, along with Figo, Vieira, Cambiasso, Solari and Stankovic in midfield and a very experienced back-four, Inter should amount to a formidable force. I guess, like Real Madrid teams of recent years, it’s not always about the sum of the parts. Unfortunately, most of the Inter team is (or at least acts) semi-retired !!!!
On the other hand, Milan is simply trying to get used to life without Sheva. Gilardino had an excellent first season at the club, and if Oliveira can find the form which saw him claim the La Liga scoring title, the two can form a lethal partnership for many years. In the mean time Sheva is very sorely missed. The midfield of Gattuso, Pirlo Kaka’, Seedorf, now in their fourth or fifth year together, can play from memory, and Gourcuff (incredible potential) will fit in nicely. The back four with Nesta, Simic, Jankulovski and Kaladze, along with the elder statesmen of the game, is one of the stingiest in Europe. Do you think it will all come together for the rossoneri?
Speaking of Milan’s defense what do you think of the careers of Milan’s aging defenders, Cafu, Costacurta and, in particular, Maldini? Paolo represented Italy 126 times, including 23 consecutive World Cup finals games (all starts), losing a final, a semi and a quarter all on penalties, and losing the final of Euro 2000. He has played in seven Champions League/Champions Cup finals (winning four), and holds the record for the fastest goal ever scored in a UCL final. He is in his 23rd season with Milan’s senior squad and has now played over 800 games in all competitions for Milan. He is the first and only defender (excluding goalies) ever to win the World Player of the Year Award (1994). When he retires at the end of this season, where will he rank among the all time greats of the game?
Note: When Maldini made his debut for Milan, he played alongside Ray Wilkins and Mark Hateley, and a couple of his current teammates were not yet born!
And who are your top 5 midfields?
Bobby – I was surprised that Milan did not make more moves in the summer. The Milan midfield looks to be a solid unit once again but they have relied on the full backs to give them width. When the full backs fail to get forward Milan tends to become a bit predictable. Maldini has been the greatest defender of his generation and history will consider him one of the greatest ever – right up there with Franco Baresi. The World Player of the Year title he won was from the publication “World Soccer” rather than thee FIFA award. If FIFA has any sense at all they should present Maldini with a special award for services to the game and to recognize his outstanding play over 20 years at the end of this year.
Top 5 midfields? I am assuming current midfields. In no particular order I would have Milan in the top group and Chelsea – more on potential than current form though. Barcelona has to be included. If Alonso could find his form again then Liverpool would be another. Valencia would have to come into the reckoning especially if Vicente can stay fit and once Joaquin settles in. Given that Lyon have lost two excellent midfield players over the last two seasons and they are still producing great football then they would also be up for consideration.
buffytvs - You missed listing another atrocious call -- the blatant handball on Paul Scholes' shot by a Newcastle defender (whose name I've blotted out I think) was ignored. The Richard Dunne block I've never seen a good enough angle on, but it looked really suBLEEPious too.
Bobby – I am surprised that there is not more debate over handballs. The appropriate section of law 12 states “A direct free kick is … awarded to the opposing team if a player commits any of the following ….offences: handles the ball deliberately (except for the goalkeeper within his own penalty area)”.
Liverpool fans will find the bracketed section ironic I am sure. It is what constitutes deliberately that is the problem. It seems to me that for many referees the rule is flexible and has much to do with where the “offence” occurs on the field.
Richard Dunne did very well to save the ball and not with his hand either.
For seventy minutes Argentina played the perfect away game. It looked as if Argentina lost their shape after the Riquleme substitution. They started to defend deeper and Klose's goal was a great piece of opportunism. He anticipated Borowski's flick on perfectly and Franco had no chance whatsoever.
Cruz is on for Crespo and although he lacks Crespo's mobility he is better in the air and harder to knock off the ball.
This one has a penalty kick look about it. The betting column in the Times says that penalty kicks actually favour the away team.
Both countries are 3-0 in WC penalty deciders. Germany has scored 13 of 14 and Argentina 11 of 14 penalties.
Mexico came out flying and can consider themselves unlucky not to be leading. It took Argentina six minutes to get into the Mexican half and they scored. It was a bad mistake by Borgetti as he got caught on wrong side of Crespo.
Riquelme is very quite. Mexican defense is compact and making it very difficult for Argentina to create space. As the game moves into the last twenty minutes it might be more difficult to keep it that tight.
Morales is doing a great job of stretching the Argentine back four. Heinze’s blunder nearly cost Argentina right on half-time.
Pardo off for Torrado. Pardo is so important to the Mexican set-up that it will be interesting to see how it affects the Mexican performance in the second half.
I wonder if we will see a change or two from Peckerman - Tevez is the obvious choice.
I hope I don’t hex him but I think the referee Busacca is having a good game. He got it right giving Heinze a yellow card as Scaloni was in line with Heinze and could have got across.
There may be a few changes in the teams but Netherlands and Argentina is always one worth watching.
It's all been a bit cagey with the defenses in control for most of the half. The closest we came was when Riquelme whipped a free kick in along the ground only to see it deflected onto the post.
I am always amazed at how good Roberto Ayala is in the air despite the fact that he is only 5' 10''.
If we were "scoring" this one I think Argentina would be slightly ahead on points based on showing a bit more initiative.
Are Argentina that good or are S&M that bad? I think it is definetly the former today.
I expressed doubts about the Argentine defense before the tournament started and we probably still don't know how they will do.
However these two games will help Heinze get his match sharpness back and that will benefit Argentina. A game-fit Heinze is a real bonus for Argenina.
But it is early days and WC history is riddled with great starts and sad ends - blog to come later on that I think.
Tevez gets into the act. 5-0 - if this was boxing the fight would have been stopped at half time. And Messi gets another 6-0.
Only time will tell whether not it will end in tears of joy or sadness for Argentina but all I can tell you is that we have just seen one of the great World Cup performances that I can remember. If you didn't get a chance to watch it the first time, catch the replay, tape and keep it to show kids.
That was a spiritual experience!
Man of the match - Juan Roman Riquelme but it could have easily been any of five Argentine players.
S&M just cannot keep up with Argentina. They are chasing - and from time to time trying to kick - shadows.
Kezman gets sent off for a lunge at Mascherano - that came after he had a wee kick just a minute before at Riquelme after the ball had gone. He got away with the first one - but not the second.
Is Kezman really a superstar?
A flick from Riquelme puts Crespo through - a clear penalty there - but the referee waves it off.
And for S&M it just gets worse with Messi on and Maxi off.
Ibrahomovic is off and Allback is on. A groin injury is supposedly the problem.
Allback has added some BLEEPe to the Swedish attack. He beats the offside trap only to have his chip over the keeper cleared off the line by Denis Caniza. A great defensive play and still no score.
Paraguay give us the first look at Julio dos Santos (Bayern Munich). Dos Santos is a rumoured to be a Riquelme type playmaker.
You can't question Sweden's drive but it is all a bit frantic. Perhaps the weather is too cool, if it was warmer maybe they would settle down?
Paraguay's captain Carlos Gamarra put through his own goal with the game just underway and it turned out to be the only goal England needed.
English fans who expected a win and an entertaining performance. (Historical note - when England won the World Cup in 1966 Alf Ramsay was absolutely slaughtered for England's performance in the their first game a 0-0 draw with Uruguay).
Anyone Swedish and in particular Lars Lagerback the Swedish coach. Lagerback makes Sven look like a maverick.
It was a good day for....
English fans who were happy just to win and to start the World Cup on the right foot.
All of Trinidad and Tobago who pulled off a stunning draw against Sweden despite playing almost all of the second half with 10 men after left back Avery John collected a second yellow card.
Leo Beenhakker the BLEEPmp;T coach who reacted to John sending off by pulling off an attacking player (Collin Samuel) and replacing him with Cornell Glen, another attacker. Glen then proceeded to rattle the crossbar and almost win the game.
Juan Roman Riquelme who set up both Argentine goals in their win over the Ivory Coast.
And the most overstated fact of the day...
Trinidad and Tobago is the smallest country ever to reach the World Cup.
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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