Monthly Archives: August 2011

Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 Werder Bremen

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“Robin Dutt finally won his first game as Bayer Leverkusen manager as the home side scored a late winner in what had been an even and entertaining game. These two attack-minded sides dominated one another in separate spells throughout the 90 minutes, with both goalkeepers on top form to keep the game scoreless. But a moment of brilliant athleticism by Simon Rolfes in the 86th minute saw the Bremen defence caught off-guard and a deserved point cruelly snatched from their grasp.” Defensive Midfielder

Stoke 0-0 Chelsea: Villas Boas starts with draw

“A decent game, but a 0-0 draw in Andre Villas Boas’ first game in charge of Chelsea. Tony Pulis gave a a debut to Jonathan Woodgate at the back, and started with Stoke’s usual 4-4-1-1 from last season – two wingers, plus Jon Walters just off Kenwyne Jones. Villas Boas kept Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka on the bench, using two wide players either side of Fernando Torres. Chelsea struggled to get going and spent most of the first half dealing with Rory Delap’s long throws into the penalty area, but got better as the game went on.” Zonal Marking

Will Wenger survive the loss of Fabregas?

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Jan Massys, Visit to the Tax Collector, 1539
“Even the most optimistic Arsenal fans – the ones with Denilson on their replica shirts – must have known Cesc Fabregas would go to Barcelona this summer. Better this time, in fact, then have to go through it all yet again next year. But still the fee had to be fair. That was important. It didn’t have to be as much as Ronaldo – but it should have been more than Andy Carroll.” WSC

Barca made to wait over Cesc
“Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes has revealed that talks are ‘very advanced’ for Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas but the Spanish champions will be forced to wait to clinch his signature.” ESPN

Sabella tries to steady Argentina

“Argentina recently unveiled its fifth manager of the main national squad in as many years. Alejandro Sabella, aka Pachorra — a colloquial expression denoting a mellow laid-backness — is perhaps the most low-profile among the handful of names who have attempted the challenge of returning the once great soccer nation to its former glory.” SI

2011-12 Premier League predictions: What the bloggers say

“We asked some of the best football bloggers in the business to give their predictions for the forthcoming Premier League campaign – here’s what they said…” itv

The moral decay of our society is as bad at the top as the bottom

Peter Oborne: “David Cameron, Ed Miliband and the entire British political class came together yesterday to denounce the rioters. They were of course right to say that the actions of these looters, arsonists and muggers were abhorrent and criminal, and that the police should be given more support.” Telegraph

Germany down Brazil, Italy slay Spain

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“Germany claimed an impressive 3-2 scalp of Brazil in Wednesday night’s international friendly in Stuttgart. The impressive Bastian Schweinsteiger opened the scoring from the penalty spot for Germany before Mario Gotze doubled their lead, capping off a fine attacking move. Robinho reduced the deficit on 72 minutes, slotting home a spot-kick, but Andre Schurrle restored Germany’s two-goal advantage as he lashed into the top corner before Neymar scored a curled consolation.” ESPN

1990s Month: Keegan’s Entertainers

“You could always guarantee entertainment at St James’ Park under Kevin Keegan. The goals may not have always been at the away team’s end, but it made for an engaging afternoon nonetheless. The drama, the joy, the heartache; it was all condensed into ninety minutes every week, and it made Newcastle one of the most appealing aspects of English football in the 1990’s.” The Equaliser

1990s Month: Denmark’s European Adventure
“Danish coach Richard Moller Nielsen was on the brink of the sack following Denmark’s failed attempt at qualification for the European Championships in 1992. Nielsen had become sick of seeing his Danish side play beautiful football but lack positive results. He tried implementing his unique managerial approach with the team, but it resulted in one of their most vaunted players – Michael Laudrup – quitting the international game in protest at Nielsen’s playing style. What Nielsen, his squad, and the media didn’t know at the time was that it was an event which would turn out to be for the greater good.” The Equaliser

Three thoughts on U.S.-Mexico

“Three quick thoughts following the U.S.’s 1-1 tie against Mexico in a friendly on Wednesday night …” SI

The American Outlaws

“American patriotism is a heart on sleeve affair. As a visitor to the United States there is a sense that you’re never more than a few hundred yards from a flagpole flying the Stars and Stripes. American children pledge allegiance to the flag at school, and the national anthem is sung at all levels of sporting events, not just show piece finals. There is then perhaps an irony that America’s main spectator sports provide little opportunity to cheer on American national teams in major sporting events. Enter football to fill the void.” In Bed With Maradona

Milan 2-1 Inter: Gasperini’s 3-5-1-1 dominates first half, but needless switches see him beaten

“Inter were 1-0 up at half time but managed to lose 2-1, after a strange tactical change from their new boss Gian Piero Gasperini. Gasperini was widely expected to bring his favoured 3-4-3 to Inter, but for this match he started with a 3-5-1-1, with new signing Ricardo Alvarez breaking forward from the left of midfield to form a lopsided front three. Max Allegri played the same 4-3-1-2 he favoured last season. In fact, with the exception of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in place of Pato, it was the same XI that started the previous derby. This was, of course, a game of two halves – the only question was why Inter relinquished their dominance from the opening period.” Zonal Marking

How Arsenal have been shaping up for 2011/12

“With all the talk of Arsenal’s pre-season performances centring around defensive meltdown, it’s arguable (and we will argue that in our next article this week) that replacing Cesc Fábregas – or at least replicating his creativity – will be Arsenal’s main concern this impending season. Frustratingly for us tactical anoraks and dissectors, he hasn’t played a single minute in pre-season which means any tactical conclusions that are to made — if Cesc Fábregas stays of course — will be treading on the hypothetical.” Arsenal Column

Through Gritted Teeth #35: Liverpool 1988

“Occasionally in life, something happens that is so alien, so counterintuitive, so brain-jarringly wrong that it makes you question whether there can ever again be such a thing as certainty. It was May the 14th 1988, FA Cup final day, and I was in the pub. Nothing unusual or counterintuitive about that, as anyone who knows me would confirm.” Twisted Blood

LFC Season Preview – Time To Go Fourth?

Lucas Leiva
“My previous look at the season ahead revolved around the work we had done on the Transfer Price Index, and how the cost of a club’s XI (called its ‘£XI’, as inflation is taken into account) over the course of the season correlates fairly accurately with where they will finish in the table; and the higher up the division you go, the more predictable it gets. No team’s chances are chained to conclusions taken from retrospective analysis, but they do set a benchmark – a starting point – for what is probable.” Tomkins Times

Why Lucas is needed ahead of the rest of Liverpool’s midfield army
“I was at Anfield on Saturday for the final warm up match before the 2011-2012 Premier League season begins. It was a competent win against a good Valencia side. Agger was my man of the match yet others such as Downing impressed. Lucas was fantastic when he came on with a patient, intelligent and exciting performance within just 45 minutes of playing time – surprisingly sharp considering he’s only just back at training after his break following Brazil’s Copa America exit.” Joshua Kearney

A Degree of Progress Will Be Enough: Liverpool FC 2011/12 Preview
“When Paul Konchesky was sold to Leicester City earlier this summer, one of the strangest and most stressful periods of the past two decades in Liverpool’s history came to a close. Seen as the embodiment of the mediocrity that had somehow become the norm at the club, Konchesky’s departure was deemed as confirmation that the standards that had been allowed to drop were now being pushed upwards again.” A Liverpool Thing

The Reducer: Premier League Preview

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“Welcome to The Reducer, Grantland’s weekly soccer column focusing on the English Premier League. A Reducer is a particularly nasty sliding tackle, one often aimed at something other than the ball (like, say, the knee or thigh). To pick one of hundreds over the years as an example, please watch Manchester United’s Paul Scholes commit midair assault with a deadly Puma boot on Barcelona’s (not particularly lovable, himself) Sergio Busquets in the 2009 Champions League final.” Grantland

Football Weekly: Premier League 2011-2012 preview
“James Richardson Check! Barry Glendenning? Check! Gags, predictions, stats and more puns than you could shake a stick at? Check-checkity-check-check! Yes, Football Weekly is back to preview the new Premier League season, with Sean Ingle and Gregg Roughley joining James and Barry to shoot the breeze over each team’s chances. Predictions abound, so keep this edition safe to beat us with later in the year.” Guardian – James Richardson

WhoScored.com’s France National Dream Team XI

“Laurent Blanc leads his France side to Montpellier to take on an exciting Chile side, that reached the quarterfinals of the Copa America, in a friendly on Wednesday night. Under his guidance Blanc has tried to mix the experienced internationals with some of Ligue 1’s most talented players including Marvin Martin and Yann M’Vila. Lille’s new winger Dimitri Payet would also possibly have been given a place in the starting line-up.” WhoScored

Are Málaga The Man City Of Spain?

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“For 15,000 supporters to turn up for the unveiling of a 35-year-old forward arriving on a free transfer, the club in question is either based in a city which is clearly lacking in fun stuff to do, or is an institution that possesses a horde of extremely excited fans. As the side in this particular scenario is in the playboy paradise of Málaga, the masses that turned up to give Ruud Van Nistelrooy a warm hand on his entrance are an indication of a club whose supporters are genuinely living the dream and close to peeing their pants in giddy anticipation at the season to come.” Football365

Paying homage to Catalonian Luis Enrique
“Even before the satirical film An American in Rome was released in 1954 with the legendary comic actor Alberto Sordi japing around Trastevere wearing a baseball cap in the style of Joe Di Maggio threatening to destroy macaroni, Italians have held a curious fascination with the strength, opulence and freedom of the United States.” Fox Sports

Super build-up for Super Cup
“The friendlies are all but over, the endless waffle and piffle concerning Cesc and Neymar have been banished to the inside pages, Karim Benzema has been reborn for the 15th time and Leo Messi is back in Barcelona ready to open another can of whup-ass on Real Madrid. This is the state of play in the Spanish press just six days before what has been branded by one paper’s rather feeble attempt at hype as ‘the most important Supercopa in 14 years’.” FourFourTwo

Being Tweeted Fairly? Footballers, Clubs & Social Media

“Footballers are always going to be in the headlines. Late night drinking, kiss-and-tell stories and mega transfers create big news stories. We even have Kenny Dalglish (and most of his extended family) on Twitter. Traditional media has relied on the mutually beneficial relationship between on one side players, clubs and managers and on the other, local and national journalists to publicise (and criticise) in equal measure. The advent of Twitter and other social media platforms has provided novel and more direct channels of communication and interaction. Clubs, associations, companies and individuals can communicate instantaneously with fans and followers. The immediacy, ease of communication and the instantaneous nature of, for example, tweeting players means mistakes and mishaps are inevitable. The more high-profile the individual, the juicer the story.” Tomkins Times

Bielsa set to thrive in Bilbao

“It has been 13 years since Marcelo Bielsa has managed a club side. Six years as coach of Argentina and four in charge of Chile endeared him to the world, but with international football placing obvious restrictions on how much a manager can shape his team, there has always been a lingering question – what would Bielsa do with a club side?” Zonal Marking

On the Border

“To understand the soccer rivalry between the United States and Mexico, you have to start with the Border. I don’t mean the border, the physical region where the two countries intersect. I mean the Border, the mythologized, only quasi-geographical territory where the idea of America and the idea of Mexico bleed together. The border, the physical region, is a place with a real climate and real people, an economy, cities, maquiladoras, drug trafficking, checkpoints, and so on. The Border, the psychic region, is a sun-obliterated desert where law and chaos expire into each other and civilization dissolves. It’s a terrain of rattlesnakes, liquor, and bones, the place where criminals run to escape. Lonnie Johnson was singing about the Border in 1930, when he recorded ‘Got the Blues for Murder Only’.” Grantland – Brian Phillips

Clint Dempsey and the Fate of America

“Clint Dempsey is not an angry person. Countless profiles Adam Spangler’s ‘The Game Don’t Care’ at This Is American Soccer is the one worth reading. of the United States and Fulham star reveal a family man who loves his wife Bethany, his children (Elysia and Jackson), and his large family. They tell the touching tale of a young Clint sacrificing his soccer dreams so his talented sister Jennifer could pursue her tennis career, only returning to his expensive travel team after she tragically passed away from a brain aneurysm. A grown Dempsey chats with kids to help them reach their goals. He’s a nice guy.” Run of Play

Jurgen Klinsmann: U.S. must develop more attack-based style
“The first thing you notice is the shirt. Jurgen Klinsmann is wearing a blue-and-red Nike shirt with the badge of the U.S. national team as we sit down on Sunday for our first private interview since he took over as the U.S. coach. For some reason, seeing Klinsmann in the team gear for the first time rams home the point more than anything else so far. He’s here. The World Cup-winning German really did take the job.” SI

Nottingham Forest – Shadows And Tall Trees

“Last season was a bit of a déjà vu experience for Nottingham Forest fans, as their team looked a good bet for promotion to the Premier League for much of the campaign, only to be defeated in the Championship play-off semi-final for the second year in a row. Their disappointment was not lessened by the fact that they lost to the eventual winners, Swansea City and Blackpool, on both occasions.” Swiss Ramble

Premier League 2011-12: Manchester City can cause trouble for United

“As if it were not enough to win the Premier League title once again, Manchester United insisted on staying ahead of the pack even in the close season. Business was completed briskly, with the 20-year-old goalkeeper David de Gea bought from Atlético Madrid, Phil Jones, a teenage defender, coming from Blackburn Rovers and the winger Ashley Young relocating from Aston Villa. These were not breathtaking moves, but they sufficed to ensure that United would be made favourites at that moment to retain the title.” Guardian

The TwoHundredPercent Premier League Previews: Liverpool

Luis Suarez
“When Paul Konchesky was sold to Leicester City earlier this summer, one of the strangest and most stressful periods of the past two decades in Liverpool’s history came to a close. Seen as the embodiment of the mediocrity that had somehow become the norm at the club, Konchesky’s departure was deemed as confirmation that the standards that had been allowed to drop were now being pushed upwards again.” twohundredpercent

Premier League preview No8: Liverpool
“The voice of reason is often muted at Liverpool pre-season by improbable title predictions (except when the club stares into the financial abyss and asks Roy Hodgson to steady the ship) and this summer’s extravagant spending has fuelled a revival. Praise be then for John W Henry, the man who has so far sanctioned over £100m of investment in Kenny Dalglish’s squad since January yet did his manager another, cheaper favour this week by confirming common sense prevails at the top at Anfield.” Guardian

Why Suarez should lead Liverpool’s attack and not Carroll
“With Liverpool adding Stewart Downing, Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson to their midfield this summer, much attention has centred upon what Kenny Dalglish will do with that area of his side. There has been less discussion about what will happen upfront. It has been widely assumed that Luis Suarez will play alongside Andy Carroll, but after the Uruguayan’s excellent performances at the Copa América – where he won the Player of the Tournament award – he might be better off alone. … Video: Aquilani deal proves that Premier League is a soft touch. Video: Is Henderson the most under pressure player at Liverpool? Video: ‘This is a bigger summer for Comolli than Dalglish’. Video: ‘Liverpool will be genuine title contenders next season'” Lifes a Pitch

Pele Bids Farewell To the Cosmos and To Football

“Nostalgia. We all love to indulge in a little of the retro now and then eh dear reader? Of course we do. As I write, the updated and rebooted New York Cosmos brand is currently surfing a wave of full on publicity and heavyweight marketing. The club, referred to as the Cosmos, has been wafted under the collective nose of a savvy and soccer hungry US audience with a view to recapturing the club’s golden era during the mid to late 1970’s.” In Bed With Maradona

City a serious title threat and other Premier League storylines to follow

“With the start of the new Barclays Premier League season just over a week away, here’s a few things to keep an eye on…” SI

Ligue 1 2011-12 season preview

“The best stories in France go all the way to the top, and this one is no different. Paris St Germain, newly under the ownership of Qatari Sports Investments, this summer appointed Leonardo as sports director and in one month spent €83m (£72m) on eight players, including €42m on Javier Pastore, the Argentinian playmaker coveted by Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona, in a deal set to be confirmed before the new season kicks off on Saturday.” Guardian

Energie Cottbus 0-5 1860 Munich

“A Benjamin Lauth-inspired 1860 Munich ruthlessly destroyed one of the 2. Bundesliga favourites for promotion, aided by the early sending off of Cottbus defender Konstantin Engel. But the hosts had looked ropey and were 1-0 down even before their right-back saw a straight red for hauling down the superb Lauth, and were always going to struggle to contain the likes of Lauth and intelligent livewire Kevin Volland anyway.” Defensive Midfielder

Augsburg 2-2 Freiburg
“Quality met commitment in this opening round Bundesliga tie between two of the division’s minnows, as Augsburg twice fought back through their new hero Sascha Mölders to earn a point from the kind of game they know that they could not afford to lose if they are to have any chance of staying up this season. After a chance-free first half which saw Papiss Cissé offer nothing, the Senegalese showed one moment of quality early into the second half to open the game up.” Defensive Midfielder

The Double

“The mainstream football media are convinced that there is a ‘new Mourinho’ at Chelsea. Although I’m inclined to agree, I’m not entirely sure who this ‘new Mourinho’ actually is. Of course, to even ask who this ‘new Mourinho’ is implies a form, a Mourinho, from whom to begin. José Mourinho was a Chelsea manager, young, Portuguese, poached from Porto after a blistering season domestically and in Europe, who was expected to grasp a small but ambitious club by the horns and haul it that final step which it couldn’t take under its previous (Italian) coach.” Run of Play

Dalglish: Spending was necessary

“Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish believes the club have gone about their transfer business ‘responsibly’ – even though the club have spent over £100 million since he returned as manager. Luis Suarez, Andrew Carroll, Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, Charlie Adam and Alexander Doni…” ESPN

A Farewell to Cannavara

“A couple of years ago, when Brian was running his ‘Inner Life of … ‘ posts, I wrote to him to suggest that this would be a good representation of the Inner Life of Fabio Cannavaro. Cannavaro may be the calmest defender I’ve ever seen, and his on-pitch serenity stemmed directly from his uncanny positional awareness. One way to think of Cannavaro is as the defensive counterpart to Xavi: just as Xavi with the ball at his feet sees angles and opportunities invisible to other players, so Cannavaro, when he was in his prime, saw attacking developments earlier than anyone else and intervened incisively to stop them.” Run of Play

The Improble Legacy of Los Matadres

“If you were to pay a visit to a home game at the Saniat R’mel stadium in the Moroccan City of Tetouan, you would be forgiven for thinking you were in the domain of a lower league Spanish side. For although this is the home of Maghreb Athletic Tetouan of the Botola League, there is a distinctly Spanish theme present amongst the clubs fanatical supporters. From the banners honouring ‘Los Matadores’ (the matadors) and the passionately waved Spanish flags, to the replica shirts of Athletic Bilbao and Athletico Madrid that echo the Red and White colours of the home team, the tributes are commonplace on the terraces.” In Bed With Maradona

Javier Pastore – El Flaco the new star in Paris

“‘He is irreverent, an ignoramus of football…he touches the ball as if he has already played in four or five World Cups.’ Of all the plaudits heaped onto the back of Javier Pastore, perhaps this endearing quote from one of the greatest legends of the game, Diego Maradona, speaks best to his unbridled potential and future as a superstar. With his record-breaking transfer from Serie A to Ligue 1, the question is whether the Argentine playmaker can live up to the hype his price tag brings.” French Football Weekly

Balotelli, Mancini & The Schizophrenia of the Manager

“The brief furore surrounding Mario Balotelli’s fluffed backheel and subsequent substitution by Roberto Mancini left the public divided. Was this just the latest indication of a player on the verge of a mental breakdown or a manager over-reacting to a bit of fun in a pre-season knockabout?” Ghost Goal

Klinsmann Calls In 22 Players to Face Mexico on Aug. 10 in Philadelphia

“U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has named a 22-player roster that will travel to Philadelphia in advance of the match against regional rival Mexico on Aug. 10 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. The match will be the first for the former FIFA World Cup and European Championship winner at the helm of the U.S. Men’s National Team since being named head coach.” US Soccer

Klinsmannismus

“‘We are ourselves’ — that’s what Jürgen Klinsmann wanted to teach the players of Bayern Munich. He wanted them to ‘open up’; he wanted to get to know them, to ‘look inside’ them, to meet their emotional needs. It was a philosophy of liberation — of helping players to get beyond the Wanderer in a Sea of Foginhibitions of consciousness, back to some easy inner self. The Inner Game of Football. Zen. From Songs of Experience back to Songs of Innocence.” Run of Play

Batista must have thought he was safe as houses

“Just before the Copa America he signed a contract to be Argentina boss in the coming set of World Cup qualifiers. Argentina had not sacked a coach in decades – either they had resigned or had reached the end of their contract. Why would it be any different now? On his record over the past year, Sergio Batista is unfortunate to have been ousted – with former Leeds and Sheffield United midfielder Alejandro Sabella lined up to replace him.” BBC – Tim Vickery

Ten storylines to follow entering the French Ligue 1 season

“Top 10 storylines on the eve of the new French Ligue 1 season…” SI

Venezuela’s Loudest Cheerleader

“The ubiquitous nature of Twitter in celebrity circles ensures that us less exalted types are always kept up to date on their thoughts whenever an event of significance is occurring and it was no different at this year’s Copa America. But amongst all the usual Latin American ex-players, silicone enhanced models and other two-bob celebrities, the most compelling account to follow was that of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez (@chavezcandanga).” In Bed With Maradona

“Just Fantastic” – Just Fontaine

“Just Fontaine is a name etched in the folklore of the World Cup. His goalscoring exploits for France in the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, where he scored 13 goals in the tournament, are legendary and the record he set there has yet to be surpassed by any player since. Born in Marrakech, Morrocco in 1933, Just Fontaine made his professional debut playing for Casablanca, where he grew up. There, he won the Moroccan championship and the North African championship in 1952.” French Football Weekly

Analyzing the Liverpool Midfield

“It’s not even August, and Kenny Dalglish has been busier than the Pitt-Jolies’ au pair brigade when it comes to restocking the barren midfield corps that awaited him last January. Well, it’s perhaps disingenuous to call it barren; more like, not stocked particularly well. Like if a $30 dish at a fine dining establishment boasted signature ingredients like soap, anchovies, a box of Rice-A-Roni, and a plunger. All things you might need, but not at once. And so, without so much as blinking an eye, he’s signed just about every midfielder ever so much as whispered about in the paragraphs of a transfer rumor mill.” Run of Play

Gavin Hamilton: The winners and losers from the World Cup draw

“As everybody heads back home from the 2014 World Cup draw in Rio de Janeiro, attention will now turn to Brazil’s lagging preparations for the finals three years from now. In the meantime, a few thoughts on yesterday’s draw.” World Soccer