Monthly Archives: October 2011

Goals galore in South American World Cup qualifiers

“It’s the same teams, three months apart, coming up with a totally different spectacle. Back in July the Copa America in Argentina was always enthralling, but its fascination was frequently the grim, attritional kind, with defences holding the upper hand. Now in October, the first round of South America’s marathon World Cup qualification campaign produced four open games – at times absurdly so – and 15 goals. Much of this can be explained by the differing demands of tournament and league football.” BBC – Tim Vickery

The White Elephants of Italy

“An economic downturn, the calciopoli scandal, pockets of violence and racism have all scarred Italian football in recent years, but some truly dreadful planning hasn’t helped either.” In Bed With Maradona

Montenegro 2 – 2 England

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Jacques-Louis David, The Intervention of the Sabine Women
“Wayne Rooney was sensationally sent off for the second time in his England career to spoil what should have been the celebration of reaching Euro 2012. First-half goals from Ashley Young and Darren Bent were enough to claim a draw against a Montenegro side who were rampant in the second half following Elsad Zverotic’s deflected effort in stoppage time before the break, and they levelled at the end through Andrija Delibasic to grab a play-off berth. But the journey home for England was spoiled by Rooney’s red.” ESPN

Montenegro 2 England 2: match report
“On a stormy night in the Balkans, England made desperately heavy weather of reaching Euro 2012, receiving a timely wake-up call about the work required before next summer, also receiving a painful reminder that Wayne Rooney can still walk on the wild side. No excuses for Rooney. No expectations for England. As the rain lashed down, goals from Ashley Young and Darren Bent put Fabio Capello’s side in charge but poor concentration allowed Elsad Zverotic and then Andrija Delibasic to underline the reality that England are only a qualified success.” Telegraph – Henry Winter

Montenegro or bust: England must be wary of an in-form striker
“England: beware Mirko Vucinic! He has a penchant for scoring goals against English sides; as he showed when he was playing up front for Roma. Now the Montenegro striker is playing up front with great success for Juventus and had an outstanding match last weekend when Juve beat Milan in Turin. Just turned 27, Vucinic was the perfect all round lone ranger, linking cleverly with his midfielders, well able to hold the ball up, as well as to strike for goal.” World Soccer

Self-harming England give Fabio Capello plenty to ponder
“Fabio Capello must now prepare not for one European Championship, but two. At some point in the group stage – after one game or two if Uefa extends the punishment – the England coach will have to take his team sheet for the start of the tournament and rip it up, to allow for the return of Wayne Rooney, who was dismissed against Montenegro for a lamentable loss of self-control.” Guardian

Euro 2012: Five lessons Fabio Capello can learn from World Cup failure
“1. Avoid a repeat of the claustrophobic training camp in Rustenburg. England and Fabio Capello appear to have learned from their experiences in South Africa, where their choice of base – the isolated, if plush, Royal Bafokeng complex on the outskirts of Rustenburg – prompted the familiar complaints of mind-numbing tedium from his squad.” <a href=”

The race to the Euros

“By Tuesday evening we’ll know the 12 of the 16 nations which will participate at Euro 2012. Poland and Ukraine will be there as hosts of the tournament, while England, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain can already book their flights. The eight group winners qualify automatically along with the best runner-up. As three groups only have five teams, the groups with six teams will have the record of the team finishing bottom of the group ignored to calculate the best runner-up. We take a group-by-group look at who can still qualify, and how they can get to the finals. Head to head record comes before goal difference in this qualifying campaign.” ESPN

Football Manager 2012 3D Match Views: Sneak Video Preview

“The release of Football Manager 2012 is just weeks away, but we have a sneak preview of what the enhanced 3D Match Views will look like. As you can see from the above video, the level of detail that has been added to the 3D Match Views is quite substantial. That includes everything from improved stadiums, player injuries, animated player responses, better lighting and much more.” EPL Talk

Belgium’s “Golden Generation” hits a rocky road on the way to Rio

“The idea that Belgium could have an outside chance of winning the 2014 World Cup might seem strange to anyone who considers its lack of recent success and a domestic league suffering from low budgets and poor stadiums. However, a look at the current squad shows that for the first time in 20 years there is talent to spare: Vincent Kompany, Marouane Fellaini, Eden Hazard, Steven Defour, Axel Witsel, Jan Vertonghen, Thomas Vermaelen, Moussa Démbéle; the list is endless. This sudden blossoming of talent though is more by accident than design. Sadly, there is no Belgian blueprint.” SI

Argentina 4-1 Chile: debut victory for Sabella

“Alejandro Sabella’s first competitive game ended in a convincing 4-1 win over an ever-entertaining Chilean side. Sabella chose a flexible 4-4-1-1ish shape for the game – more on that later. One of the more eye-catching selection decisions was his choice of Rodrigo Braña in the holding role, his trusted number five from Estudiantes. Having played 3-4-1-2 for most of the Copa America, Claudio Borghi tilted the midfield triangle to include both Mati Fernandez and Jorge Valdivia, leaving Carlos Carmona as the sole holder in an unusual 3-1-4-2ish shape. Main man Alexis Sanchez was out injured.” Zonal Marking

Czech Republic 0 – 2 Spain

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“Spain continued their 100% record in Euro 2012 qualifying and kept Scotland’s hopes of sealing a play-off place from Group I alive with a dominant win over the Czech Republic. Juan Mata’s calm finish in the sixth minute put the visitors in control and they doubled their lead midway through the first half as Xabi Alonso slotted home a fine cut-back from David Silva.” ESPN

Arsenal’s Finances – 21 Questions

“Just a few months ago Arsenal were riding high, as they still had credible chances to win trophies in four competitions. However, a late defeat to unfancied Birmingham City in the Carling Cup final initiated an awful sequence of events. Elimination by Barcelona in the Champions League was maybe predictable, though hopes had been high after a scintillating victory in the first leg, but the collapse of form in the Premier League was less understandable.” The Swiss Ramble

Shallowness of France squad echoes Blanc’s Bordeaux slump

“In the build-up to France’s final two Euro 2012 qualifiers, the French press have been quick to draw comparisons with the situation that faced Les Bleus at the end of their ill-fated qualification campaign for the 1994 World Cup. Needing just a single point from their last two matches at home to Israel and Bulgaria, Gérard Houllier’s side somehow conspired to lose both to gut-wrenching last-minute goals. The stunning failure confirmed France’s unwelcome reputation for producing gifted but psychologically fragile sportsmen and the trauma of the event was only partially alleviated by the outcome of the next World Cup on home soil five years later.” Football Further

European Football Weekends A to Z

“The 2011 EFW Oktoberfest will take place between October 20-24. Based in Prague, and branching out as far afield as Bratislava, forty or so fans of clubs from all around Europe will attend a festival of football, beer and giggles. Danny Last and Stuart Fuller put some meat on those bones……” European Football Weekends

Brian Clough: Nobody Ever Says Thank You – By Jonathan Wilson

“Brian Howard Clough was never less than a complex man; the sum of a contradictory bunch of impulses, desires and drives. Jonathan Wilson, in this first full, critical biography draws an intimate and powerful portrait of one of England’s greatest football managers, and his right-hand man, Peter Taylor, and reveals how their identities were forged in the unforgiving world of post-war football, a world where, as Clough and Taylor’s mentor Harry Storer once said, ‘Nobody ever says thank you.'” In bed With Maradona

Brian Clough, Bosnia & Bruce – Our Chat With Jonathan Wilson
“The words ‘genius’ and ‘legend’ are bandied about football these days far too easily. Nyron Nosworthy accidentally does a Cryuff turn in the face of Wayne Rooney, he’s a ‘legend’… A manager staring defeat in the face brings on two strikers with ten minutes to go, they both score, the team wins, he’s a ‘genius’… please, don’t insult us.” Roker Report

Happy Twenty First, Germany

“It has been, by any standards, a quiet twenty-first birthday. The reunified German nation celebrated its coming of age on Monday, not with wild revelry, but with a mature, modestly demure acknowledgement of this remarkable achievement. Of course, Germany has been young before its time. Alcohol consumption began not this week, nor surreptitiously in mid-teens, but with uncharacteristic abandon upon its very birth, in the wreckage of the Berlin wall in the remarkable autumn of 1990. Germany has been financially responsible for itself for a long time; and for some years has held the keys to the Eurozone door. It is a protective parent, privately admonishing a young, careless Greece, whilst agreeing to bail it out of its worst excesses.” In Bed With Maradona

Three Stadiums, A Team and A Road: Remembering Romeo Menti

“Football pays homage to the great and the good through various touching appreciation. At the bottom, above conversation in the pub of course, are songs, ‘I still see that tackle by Moore and when Lineker scored Bobby belting the ball and Nobby dancin,’ that sort of thing. In England most clubs will honour a real legend with a staute, Billy Wright outside Molineux, Billy Bremner at Elland Road, Sir Stanley Matthews at The Britannia. Great managers get roads; Sir Matt Busby Way, Brian Clough Way, Sir Alf Ramsey Way. That prospect certainly gives the adage; Where there’s a will there’s a way, a more physical feel. Finally there’s stands; the Matthew Harding Stand at Stamford Bridge, the Gill Merrick Stand at Birmingham City and so on.” In Bed With Maradona

Ecuador and Venezuela set sights on 2014 World Cup

“As recently as two decades ago, when Ecuador met Venezuela in World Cup qualification it was about as significant as when Liechtenstein take on the Faroe Islands. Not any longer. This Friday, the two South American countries face each other in the opening round of the continent’s Fifa 2014 World Cup qualifiers – with both entitled to believe that they are taking the first step on the road to the finals in Brazil.” BBC – Tim Vickery

‘Shrek’ represents Valencia’s future

“He isn’t green or fat, he doesn’t have a movie franchise and there is no Princess Fiona in his life, but Valencia defender Adil Rami is happy to answer to his nickname, “Shrek.” The French-Moroccan will freely admit it’s because he eats voraciously and has been known, just occasionally, to belch. Loudly.” ESPN

Conversations with Paul Binning (Bristol City)

“Following Keith Millen’s exit from the managerial post at Bristol City earlier this week, we are very pleased to welcome Paul Binning for our latest interview. Paul trades under the name @cider1977 on Twitter and runs the consistently enjoyable blog, The Exiled Robin. He also contributes a regular feature on social media and football that appears in the Bristol City matchday programme and I was lucky enough to pave the way for this conversation when I met Paul in person at Bedminster Cricket Club last week. Here are his thoughts on the interregnum at Ashton Gate…” thetwounfortunates

Ronaldo vs. Messi

“Tall, powerful, sneering Cristiano Ronaldo and short, slippery, cheerful Lionel Messi ought to form one of the great dichotomies in sports — think Magic/Bird, only in Romance languages. They’re the two best soccer players in the world.1 They star on opposite sides of Real Madrid versus Barcelona, currently the game’s most compelling rivalry. And they’re temperamental opposites — Ronaldo a flamboyant, collar-popping he-diva who measures time in lingerie models, Messi a low-key, affable team player who seems to live for the game.” Grantland

A New Age For the New Saints

“When a football club averaging just 350 regular fans plays its way into the European history books you cannot help but wonder how it has belied the odds against it. After frightening mighty teams such as RSC Anderlecht and CSKA Sofia in recent years its progression could be the catalyst for a generation of change both in its own fortunes and the league in which it plies its trade.” In Bed With Maradona

Rainbows in the Sky at Night

“Like every aspiring plutocrat who loves AC Milan, I sometimes fantasise about owning the club. I have big plans for it. Investing heavily in the youth programme. Engineering unbreakable bonds of affection between players and club. Brokering a creative and generous understanding between our ultras and local government. Smiling calmly from the director’s box as the team crushes English clubs in the Champions’ League. This is before we lead our revolutionary boycott of UEFA competitions, demanding a structure that creates more equitable opportunities for smaller leagues and clubs. Giving incentives to star players for participating in local coaching initiatives, and encouraging young players (from the revitalised youth programme) to undertake higher education. Improving the rose gardens at Milanello. Exacting lasting vengeance on those who let so much as a single tear fall from the eyes of Andrea Pirlo.” Run of Play

Soccer Cities: The Ruhr

“Connected by the local overland regional train, the S-Bahn, Germany’s industrial heartland is home to Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund and German Cup holders Schalke in the top flight, along with Duisburg and Bochum in the second tier. All four enjoy a healthy fan base, with Dortmund and Schalke pulling in some of the highest attendances in Europe, while even modest Rot-Weiss Essen, who reached the German Cup Final as recently as 1994, attract relatively good crowds to their Regionalliga West games in the country’s fourth division.” World Soccer

Arséne Wenger’s side are still searching for their identity

“Begrudgingly, Arséne Wenger may have to accept progress has been made despite facing defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. Arsenal didn’t play like second-best but the difference in confidence was evident between the two sides; Tottenham with a ruthless ambition about their forward play and Arsenal, nervy and twitchy around the box. When Spurs took the lead, there was an uncertainty about Arsenal’s attacking play. Both their most direct players – and both carrying knocks before the game – were withdrawn, making you wonder why they both started.” The Arsenal Column

Premier League chalkboard analysis

“Manchester City’s forward pressing, a lack of understanding up front for West Brom and Pepe Reina’s sharp distribution” Guardian

Eredivisie Top Scorers Chart based on Win Points Added

“Traditional top scorers charts rank players simply by counting the number of goals scored, thereby assuming that every single goal scored has equal value. This goes against both emotional feeling and rational thinking. A late winner against superior oppositions ranks higher on both these scales than a goal that extends a dominating home team’s lead from four to five goals.” 11 tegen 11

Guardiola’s cosmetic changes at Barca not necessarily for the better

“It didn’t start with ‘an exciting interpretation of the 3-4-3 formation,’ but Barcelona admitted a move from pop to pretension with that teaser. As brilliant as Pep Guardiola’s team has been at times this season — last Saturday’s 5-0 win over Atletico shimmered in the floodlights, as did Wednesday’s 5-0 win over Bate in the Champions League — its winks at the pantheon have left it the kind of self-conscious that can be crippling. Three draws from seven games so far are the result: it’s far too good for any of that nonsense. The club is riddled with third album syndrome. Two European Cups down, the search for a third has come with a nasty awareness of what great is and what great should be. The tick-list on what’s required for history-making has been drawn up and handed out to players and coaching staff.” SI

English Premier League Match Of The Day Video Highlights

“Below are MOTD video highlights for all the EPL matches on October 1, 2011. The full edition of MOTD can be viewed here (a link will be added here later).” The 90th Minute

Energie Cottbus 1-4 St Pauli

“St Pauli moved level on points with 2. Bundesliga league-leaders Eintracht Frankfurt and Greuther Fürth after punishing Energie Cottbus’ mistake-laden defence. The home side cannot stop shipping goals this season, but the worst part was that against St Pauli, they barely created enough chances to compensate for their numerous lapses in concentration at the back. Full credit to the visitors, though, who put in a disciplined performance on and off the ball, capping it by showing their top-flight credentials in front of goal.” Defensive Midfielder

Everton 0 – 2 Liverpool

Joseph Vernet, Imaginary Landscape, Italian Harbor Scene
“Liverpool striker Luis Suarez was the villain in the eyes of Everton fans after he was involved in the sending-off of Jack Rodwell before scoring the second goal in a controversial 2-0 derby victory. The Uruguay international was berated as a cheat by the majority of Goodison Park – and appeared to have a coin thrown at him – after making the most of Rodwell’s sliding tackle midway through the first half.” ESPN>

Everton vs. LIVERPOOL: 15 positives to take from the game
“Liverpool’s victory against Everton at Goodison Park was marred by an outrageously negligent red card decision, but there were still plenty of positives to take away from the game.” Liverpool Kop

Conversations with Danny Brothers (Northampton Town)

“Our latest conversation is with Danny Brothers, author of a number of posts for us including a look back at Northampton Town’s 1996-7 play-off winning side. Danny runs his own blog and this has the obligatory moniker, A Load of Cobblers, although he spreads his net beyond the watershed of the River Nene to League 2 as a whole, joining forces with our last interviewee Ben Mayhew and Maxi Hobbs for an enjoyable preview of the season back in August. Here, Danny gives us his views on Gary Johnson, Adebayo Akinfenwa, the challenge of the oval ball game and the club’s current home at Sixfields…” thetwounfortunates

Groningen 1 – 0 Ajax: On hard labor and playing to your strengths

“By putting up an intense physical battle and smartly targeting their opponent’s weaker points, Groningen earned a 1-0 victory. Winning most tackles in midfield, while pressuring Ajax early on, Groningen frustrated their opponents, paying a price in terms of yellow cards earned, but getting away with three well earned points. Ajax made a powerless and tired experience and never really got to their opponent’s box in order to exploit their own strengths.” 11 tegen 11