Category Archives: Italy

World Cup scouting: The 32

Leave a reply


Matías Fernández (Chile)
“The following 32 names represent Football Further‘s players to watch at the 2010 World Cup. We’ll be following their performances closely over the course of the tournament, with weekly scouting reports rounding up their progress. Names preceded by squad numbers. Players in bold have been scouted by Football Further in the build-up to the World Cup. Players in brackets were scouted but not called up by their national sides.” (Football Further)

Six to watch: the key players

Leave a reply

“Everyone knows that Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney are the star men for their sides – here are six more relatively unsung heroes that could be crucial for their respective teams.” (Zonal Marking)

Six to watch: the fringe players
“Often players who weren’t considered part of the starting XI at the beginning of a tournament emerge to play a leading role by the knockout stages. Here’s six who hope to do that…” (Zonal Marking)

Italy’s problem with creativity must be overcome

Leave a reply


Creative Destruction, Da Vinci
“No-one is talking about Italy ahead of this tournament, despite them being the holders, despite them breezing through qualification, despite them having received the most favourable draw of any side. The pessimism stems from the lack of quality, both in their playing squad as a whole, and from the performances over the past four years. Star names like Gianluca Zambrotta, Fabio Cannavaro, Rino Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo are still around and capable of big performances, but all are nowhere near the players they were four years ago.” (Zonal Minute)

USA a good side, but need tactical tweaks
“United States fans seem to go into every World Cup thinking that the rest of the world is underestimating them – which has traditionally been fair. This time, however, ranked 14th in the world and widely expected to qualify from their group, it’s a different challenge for the US – everyone expects them to be a good side. Firstly, a nod to a great article that analyses the USA’s tactics in greater detail than this piece shall, at the Shin Guardian. It breaks down the game against Turkey in excellent detail, examining the difference between the first-half and second-half shape, and summarising what Bob Bradley should do at the World Cup.” (Zonal Minute)

Japan worse than the sum of their parts
“Japan probably should be better than they are considering their attacking talents, but manager Takeshi Okada is intent on playing a certain way, even if it means leaving out star names. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course – international football is about assembling a cohesive XI rather than squeezing all your best talents into one team – but there’s no guarantee it’s going to work. Japan were unconvincing throughout qualification and their three pre-tournament friendlies have all ended in defeat.” (Zonal Minute)

The Style and Skill to Reach the Final

1 Reply

“And the winner is. … As the World Cup opens Friday amid a celebration of exceptional vibrancy with host South Africa playing Mexico, two countries float above the field of 32 teams: Spain and Brazil. Yes, Africa is the host. Yes, Asia is developing. And, yes, there are dark horses — the gifted but erratic Argentines, the talented Dutch and the ever self-confident English among them.” (NYT)

Thirty-One World Cup Shirts

Leave a reply

“It’s that time again. Back by popular demand (to be precise, two people), it’s time for our quadrennial report of all the team shirts that will be on display at the upcoming World Cup. As ever, the menu is overwhelmed by items produced and designed by the twin behemoths of the sportswear universe, Adidas and Nike. Whether they have been using their market domination to the benefit of the sartorial elegance of international football, however, is something of an open question.” (twohundredpercent)

World Cup Predictions, Betting Tips, SEO SEO

1 Reply


Tiziano Vecellio, Venus and Adonis
“Just when you think that David Bowie has retired from the site, that the Goblin King will no longer grace our presence, that Jorge Luis Borges really is dead and not just waiting for a USMNT run to the finals, bam. It hits you. Despite the odd jokes, obscure historical references, and kinda weird pictures, we at Futfanatico give you the best betting tips for the World Cup while mocking the SEO keyterm Google carousel in an ironic act of betrayal, subversion, and delightful perversion. Thus, here are your WORLD CUP BETTING TIPS.” (futfanatico)

World Cup Group D Preview: World Cup Buzz Podcast

Leave a reply

“The deepest group in the tournament was made all the more interesting when injuries to Michael Ballack and Michael Essien took the two biggest names out of Group D. On this episode of the World Cup Buzz podcast, myself, Laurence McKenna and Kartik Krishnaiyer consider what the absences of Ballack and Heiko Westermann do to Germany’s chances to get out of a group that also features Ghana, Serbia, and Australia. Along the way, we hear thoughts from Andy Brassell, Raphael Honigstein, Jonathan Wilson and Simon Hill.” (EPL Talk), (World Cup Group A Preview), (World Cup Group B Preview), (World Cup Group E), (World Cup Group H), (World Cup Group F)

Switzerland 1-1 Italy – Video Highlights and Recap – Friendly – 5 June 2010

Leave a reply

“Italy looked to rebound from a disappointing friendly loss against Mexico with a match against Italy on June 5, 2010. The Swiss qualified for their second consecutive World Cup and have been a nation on the rise in the last few years. Italy remains one of the top teams in the world but many don’t give them a realistic shot to repeat as World Cup champions.” (The 90th Minute)

Netherlands 6-1 Hungary – Video Highlights and Recap – Friendly – 5 June 2010
“The Dutch continued their World Cup preparations with a friendly match against Hungary on Saturday, June 5, 2010. They are a side that is often overlooked but talented enough to make a deep run in the tournament. Hungary did not qualify for the World Cup and are focusing on the upcoming Euro 2012 qualifying matches in the fall.” (The 90th Minute)

United States 3-1 Australia – Video Highlights and Recap – Friendly – 5 June 2010
“The United States and Australia played a friendly about a week before both sides were to begin the FIFA 2010 World Cup Group Stage. The Socceroos have high hopes to make it out of the group stage while the USA will consider the 2010 World Cup a disappointment if they don’t make it out of the group stage. The two teams met on Saturday, June 5, 2010.” (The 90th Minute)

Experience at the World Cup

Leave a reply

“It’s an oft-used cliché that experience is necessary in order to win the greatest football competition in the world. In fact, only the other day I saw Steve Hodge being interviewed on Sky Sports News talking about this very subject. I think he was trying to tout his Maradona ’86 World Cup shirt again but was nonetheless happy enough to offer his wisdom to Sky Sports’ rolling news feed. He made the point that the sides who won the World Cup normally had an average age of around 28/29. He’s got a point, the average age of the World Cup winning Italian squad of four years ago was 28 years and 8 months.” (twinty tin)

Italy 1-2 Mexico – Video Highlights and Recap – Friendly – 3 June 2010

Leave a reply

“Italy, the defending World Cup champions, faced off against CONCACAF side Mexico in an international friendly on Thursday, June 3, 2010. Italy are not picked by most to repeat as champions or even make the final. Mexico on the other hand have a group that could be tough but they are definitely good enough to make it to the second round.” (The 90th Minute)

World Cup 2010: Matthew Booth the perfect advertisement for integrated South Africa

Leave a reply

“So when some members of the Spanish press thought they heard him being booed by black fans at the Confederations Cup last summer they thought they had a great story about racial disharmony in the new South Africa and filed their copy to Madrid. They got it excruciatingly, embarrassingly wrong. The fans were celebrating their cult hero, launching into a resonant chant of “Booth!” every time the 6″6 centre-half met the ball with one of his thumping defensive headers.” (Telegraph)

…And then I booked my flight

Leave a reply

“It was a Wednesday. The Copa del Rey final had just finished. Sevilla beat Atletico Madrid in a pulsating game at Camp Nou in front of a packed crowd. I’ve always thought Atletico Madrid had rowdy fans, though I’ve never seen them live. Now I’m sure of it. Someone on Twitter in Barcelona said the Atletico fans outnumbered the Sevillistas down Las Ramblas by eight to one. Given the noise they made inside the stadium, I believe it.” (Just Football)

World Cup Coaches, By Nationality and Numbers

Leave a reply


“Below you’ll find a complete list of the 32 coaches at World Cup 2010. You’ll also find their nationality, and their age going into the tournament. Beneath that you’ll find some amateur hour number crunching I did with pen, paper and the calculator on my cell phone to work out a few statistics.” (World Cup Blog)

How to sound smart at the watercooler

Leave a reply

“Everyone isn’t a soccer expert. Yet many of you will be caught in a conversation that veers toward the World Cup at some point in the coming summer. For those of you not inclined to scour Slovenia’s World Cup roster for hidden clues that could help the U.S. gain possession in the middle third, here are a few lines that will help you sound like you know what you’re talking about…” (ESPN)

ZM’s end-of-season awards

1 Reply


“The Champions League final has been and gone, so we are now officially at the end of the 2009/10 season. This would not be an internet football site without an article outlining some reasonably pointless ‘awards’, but since this is a site focussed on tactics, hopefully the tactical angle will – like a newly-signed winger that doesn’t appear to fit into the team – ‘provide something different’.” (Zonal Marking)

Inter 2-0 Bayern: Milito the master of Madrid

Leave a reply


Jan Massys, Loth et ses filles
“Inter have deservedly won the Champions League – beating this season’s champions of England, Spain and then Germany on the way to collecting the trophy. Jose Mourinho has conquered Europe again, Inter have won the treble for the first time in the history of Italian football, and Italy retains its four Champions League places ahead of Germany.” (Zonal Marking)

How Inter Milan Won its Treble
“Bayern Munich manager Louis Van Gaal is not generally a man prone to hyperbole. On the eve of the Champions League final between his team and Italy’s Inter Milan he was asked whether the two finalists were the best sides in Europe. ‘No,’ he said, pausing a moment for the briefest of frowns. ‘No, these are not the best teams. The three best teams in Europe this season were Barcelona, Chelsea and Manchester United.'” (WSJ)

Bayern Munich 0-2 Inter Milan (Internazionale) – Video Highlights and Recap – Champions League – 22 May 2010
“The UEFA Champions League ended the 2009-10 season with the final of Bayern Munich v Inter Milan aka Internazionale. The two sides made improbable runs to the final which included beating FC Barcelona, Chelsea, and Manchester United. The final was play at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu which is the home of Spanish La Liga side Real Madrid.” (The 90th Minute)

Inter v Bayern: Champions League final preview

Leave a reply


Jose Mourinho
“This is what the Champions League is all about: England’s best side against Spain’s best side in last season’s final in Rome, Italy’s best side against Germany’s best side this season in Madrid. This is an intriguing match-up between two sides who have underachieved in Europe in recent years, and between two of the greatest tacticians in modern times. The Italy v Germany clash is emphasized when you consider the situation regarding both countries’ UEFA coefficients (which determines the number of European places each national league is allocated) where Germany currently leads Italy by 0.155 points.” (Zonal Marking)

Champions League Final Preview
“The most anticipated event of any European season, this year’s Champions League final looks set to be yet another intriguing battle both on and off the field, with several fascinating plot lines running through the pre-match build-up to further stoke the fire of what should be a wonderful spectacle and, perhaps more appealingly, a struggle for tactical supremacy between two of the game’s most astute Coaches. As one-time Barcelona manager Louis van Gaal’s Bayern Munich and his former translator, Jose Mourinho’s Inter prepare to face off in the magnificent surrounds of Madrid’s Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, The Equaliser looks at the potential line-ups of both sides and tries to get the measure of the personnel and systems these two prestigious sides may look to use on Saturday evening.” (The Equaliser)

CL Comment: Five Ways Inter Can Beat Bayern Munich
“Keep The Tempo Running High. Inter are not a team generally linked with fast flowing football, and many believe that they’d struggle were they plonked straight into a Premier League fixture list. Besides that being a pointless argument, it also overlooks the fact that some of Inter’s better performances this season have come against teams who like to play the ball around at speed (see Chelsea, Barcelona, Genoa, Milan, Palermo…) Therefore, should they go for the spoiling approach in trying to deal with Arjen Robben et al, they may be on the wrong track. By allowing the game to be played at a decent pace it will give them extra opportunities to punish Bayern on one of their notorious counter-attacks.” (Goal)

Champions League Final Is Clash of Coaches
“As Bayern Munich and Inter Milan take the field for Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final, even the most ardent football fan could be forgiven for taking a second glance at the match program: Just who are these guys? In a tournament that’s supposed to be dominated by the world’s greatest players, the 2010 final is conspicuously short on star power.” (WSJ)

World Cup Preview: Group F

Leave a reply

“The 2010 World Cup kicks off in just three weeks time, so by this point the majority of football fans everywhere are only using products made by official tournament sponsors and eating impala for breakfast. Our intrepid Wikipedia monkey Dotmund has once again put his vuvuzela aside for just long enough to take a look at another of this summer’s groups. Today we find out about the reigning champions, a South American dark horse, a team from a very long way away and a European team who have only ever been in the World Cup before in disguise.” (twohundredpercent)

23 for 2010 – Italy: World Cup squad analysis

Leave a reply

“Italian head coach Marcello Lippi has named his 28-man provisional squad for this summer’s World Cup in South Africa, with some surprise omissions (Totti, Cassano, Balotelli) and some not so surprise omissions. Let’s dissect Lippi’s selection and predict the 23 that will board the plane for Cape Town in June.” (Just Football)

Master and the apprentice

Leave a reply

“Confidence is something José Mourinho has probably never lacked, but if one man more than any other helped the FC Internazionale Milano coach believe in himself, it could be the one who will try to deny him a second UEFA Champions League title on Saturday: FC Bayern München’s Louis Van Gaal.” (UEFA)

Italy finally going to the World Cup without a #10 headache

Leave a reply

“Italy has always been known to produce some of the best creative players in the world. We’re talking about the #10 players, the players that can change games at any instant, the players that are worth the whole ticket price. In Italy, this player is called the “fantasista” (literally one that creates fantasy). Because of Italy’s traditional defensive mindset, years ago there was only room for one creative player on the field, and with usually two of these players on the roster, the whole debate would commence as to who would start and who would ride the pine. There have been many of these debates throughout the years.” (World Cup Blog)

There is a world of difference in how football is played

Leave a reply

“On Wednesday nights I play bad football with some other old blokes in Paris. I spend the game shouting instructions at my team-mates in bad French. They don’t listen. What is going on here is a clash of football cultures. I grew up in the Netherlands, where football is a sort of debating society. In France, as far as I can gather, talking during football is rude.” (FI – Simon Kuper)

Is Capello set to switch to a three-man defence?

Leave a reply


“There are strong rumours this morning that, in Gareth Barry’s absence, Fabio Capello is considering switching to a system featuring three centre-backs for the World Cup. It would unquestionably be a risky move, completely changing England’s shape that was so successful in qualifying, and installing a three-man defence that hasn’t been used effectively by England for twenty years. The BBC report states that ‘A switch in formation would be a major change for the Italian, who has demonstrated his preference for 4-4-2 throughout his coaching career’, which is certainly true, but a three-man defence has not been alien to him.” (Zonal Marking)

World Cup scouting: Antonio Di Natale (Italy)

Leave a reply

“The express purpose of the World Cup scouting feature is to shed light on up-and-coming young players to look out for in South Africa, but this week Football Further is focusing on a more established player who tends not to receive the attention his ability richly deserves. Antonio Di Natale was this week named in Italy’s provisional 30-man World Cup squad and if, as expected, he retains his place when Marcello Lippi whittles his group down to 23, it will be the first time that the 32-year-old Udinese captain has been selected for football’s showpiece event.” (Football Further )

England remain a World Cup long shot

Leave a reply

“Most bookmakers have England as third favourites to win the World Cup this summer. Their odds are always fanciful – driven down by patriotic bets made more in hope than belief. But a cursory glance around the competing squads should discourage any drunken wagering. It is not so much the players in the opposing squads that should deter potential gamblers, but who they can afford to leave out.” (WSC)

Ronaldinho Misses Out on Brazil Selection

Leave a reply

“Ronaldinho’s gap-toothed grin will be missing from the Brazilian team photos from South Africa. The most dazzling player of a generation was omitted from Dunga’s preliminary roster Tuesday, signaling perhaps that supreme talent alone is not enough to be part of the Seleção, and that training habits and commitment may also be important.” (NYT)

Italy World Cup Team History

Leave a reply


World Cup 1982
“We have trudged through to the final part, a portion which is vaguely familiar to many in the peninsula – some good, some bad. In fact, they just about ran the gamut of Italian emotions from ‘98 to ‘06: disappointment, anger and ecstasy. It all may change in June, but as of right now, this long labor of love that is Italian football history has an awfully nice bookend: they won their first and they won the last.” (World Cup Blog – Pt. I: 1934 & 1938), (Pt. II: 1950-1974), (Pt III: 1978 – 1994), (Pt. IV: 1998-2006).

How the 2000s changed tactics #1: The fall and rise of the passing midfielder

Leave a reply


“In 2004, Gabriele Marcotti wrote an article for The Times about Barcelona legend Pep Guardiola. It wasn’t a celebratory piece looking back at Guardiola’s fine career, nor remarking on his ability to defy the critics and keep playing at a high standard, like Paolo Maldini. It was about how, in 2004-spec football, Guardiola was useless. That is not to say that he had declined as a player. A physically unremarkable player, his domain was sitting front of his own defence and spraying passes across the pitch for his more illustrious teammates – Michael Laudrup, Hristo Stoichkov and Romario being amongst the biggest names to have benefited from his presence. When Marcotti wrote the article, at 33, Guardiola should have been at his peak.” (Zonal Marking)

Unlike Europe, Brazilian league preserves its competitive balance

Leave a reply

“In England, Chelsea and Manchester United are fighting for the domestic title. In Spain, it’s Real Madrid and Barcelona. Inter Milan is out front in Italy, as are Bayern Munich in Germany. It’s the same old same old.” (SI – Tim Vickery)

Reasons To Love (and Hate) All the teams in South Africa

Leave a reply

“So with the World Cup coming up, many of you will be looking for a team to follow either as a second team when your team inevitably gets knocked out in the Quarter Finals on Penalties (perhaps that one is just me) or because your team didn’t make it to South Africa. Either way, at some point you are going to need someone to follow. Often this is irrational and you just like a team. Sometimes you need a reason, sometimes you just inexplicably hate someone, or maybe they have a player you like from the club you follow.” (World Cup Blog)

France, Thierry Henry & The New Calciopoli

Leave a reply

“All the way back in 2006, there was this thing they called ‘Calciopoli’ whipping up into a furor on the peninsula. It was an enormous distraction, one fraught with harsh accusations against the very core of Italian football, and left the club futures of many in the Italian team hanging in the balance. The players had far more on their plates than merely the biggest football games of their lives.” (World Cup Blog)

The Question: Why is the modern offside law a work of genius?

Leave a reply

“Nothing in football is so traduced as the offside law. Most seem to regard it as a piece of killjoy legislation, designed almost to prevent football producing too many goals and being too much fun, while for the punditocracy it has become the universal scapegoat, the thing that “nobody understands”. Just because Garth Crooks doesn’t get something, though, doesn’t make it a bad thing. The modern offside law may be the best thing that’s ever happened to football, and it is almost certainly the reason Barcelona have been so successful with a fleet of players whose obvious asset is their technique rather than their physique.” (Guardian)

Immigrant pride and working-class thrift

Leave a reply


Italy
“A century ago when the Velez Sarsfield club was founded in Argentina their shirts were plain white – the cheapest they could find. Then they went with stripes of red, green and white – a tribute to the Italian origins of the club’s founders. Finally they settled on the current strip – which, with a blue V on a white background looks like something out of rugby league. This is no coincidence. The story goes that they were offered a good deal on the shirts, which a rugby club had ordered and not bothered to collect.” (BBC – Tim Vickery)

How Many Africans Bound for South Africa Remains to Be Seen

Leave a reply

“As the 32 national team managers evaluate players consider injuries and plot strategy ahead of the 2010 World Cup, millions of soccer fans around the world are completing their own plans for the qaudrennial tournament. Most will watch on TV (some in 3-D). Still, organizers expect as many as 450,000 fans to travel to South Africa and join almost a million vuvuzelas-blowing local fans attending the tournament.” (NYT)

‘Galacticos’ in Hell

1 Reply


The Hell, Coppo di Marcovaldo
“It has become a sign of spring: as swallows crowd the sky over Madrid, Real is eliminated at the knock-out stage of the European Champions League. Yet again, the richest club in the world has spent obscene amounts of money with the sole intention of winning the most important club competition in the world, but on March 10, they were knocked out from the last 16 for the sixth year in a row (in 2003, they were eliminated from the last eight).” (The New Republic)

Brazil coach Dunga still has issues to resolve before South Africa

Leave a reply

“With just under 100 days to go until Brazil’s 2010 World Cup gets under way against North Korea, coach Dunga stomped away from Emirates Stadium in London aware that, for at least half of it, that time will be dominated by appeals for the recall of Ronaldinho.” (World Soccer – Tim Vickery)

The World Cup Of National Anthems (Part Three)

Leave a reply

“For many people, major sports tournaments are the only occasion that national anthems are heard. These peculiar tunes have become a genre of their own, transcending the mere hymns that many of them were in first place, and they range from the gloriously uplifting to mournful dirges. The selection of words has, in many countries, brought about national debate that has been all-encompassing. In the case of Spain, it was decided that it would probably be for the best just to not bother having any for the sake of national unity.” (twohundredpercent)

World Cup 2010 National Anthems: South Africa, France, Mexico, Uruguay
“Seems like the most popular part of our World Cup 2010 preview podcast was the national anthems segment. I would agree, in that any segment where we’re not talking is instantly preferable to the segments where we are. But since those podcasts contain only 10-15 second lyric-less samples, I thought it was worth expanding the idea into a full series of posts about national anthems.” (World Cup Blog)

Spain are the team to beat in South Africa

Leave a reply

“Spain’s last game before they name their final squad in June could be summed up in a single word. The same word that could also be used to sum up their qualifying campaign for the 2010 World Cup. The same word could be used again for their Euro 2008 campaign.” (World Soccer)

France Is Back in Football Hunt

Leave a reply


“It’s elementary sports psychology: To produce their best in the biggest moments, athletes are advised to recall peak performances from the past. But as Bordeaux prepares to face Olympiakos for a place in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals tonight, Laurent Blanc, coach of the French club that’s been the surprise of this year’s tournament, will focus his team’s attention not on the six European matches it’s won this season, but the only one it didn’t.” (WSJ)

Mid-Week Review Show: EPL Talk Podcast
“Looking back on the mid-week action for Premier League sides in Champions League, Europa, and within the Premiership, analysts Laurence McKenna and Kartik Krishnaiyer join host Richard Farley on this version of the EPL Talk podcast.” (EPL Talk)

Match Of The Midweek: Chelsea 0-1 Internazionale
“How would you feel if you were Roman Abramovich after this evening’s Champions League match between Chelsea and Inter? When he disposed of Jose Mourinho just over three years ago, it was reportedly a show of player power the likes of which the English game had seldom seen before.” (twohundredpercent)

Different Routes Yield Same Result
“One of the joys of sports is that they confound just about any theory that attempts to explain them. When Real Madrid was eliminated from the Champions League last week, and Manchester United produced one of the biggest victories in its history, it was reasonable to conclude that stability counted for something.” (NYT)

Italian press celebrate Inter’s victory over Chelsea
“Having held a grim-faced silenzio stampa (press silence) for the past week, Jose Mourinho’s relationship with the Italian media had reached a new low on the eve of Inter’s Champions League return leg against Chelsea. A touchline ban, a pitiful display against Catania and ongoing grief with Mario Balotelli had formed a simmering backdrop to the game, with the Nerazzurri lumbered with the added burden of being Italy’s sole survivors in the competition.” (WSC)

Chelsea vs. Inter Milan
(footytube)

Serie A title race blown wide open as Inter take eye off the ball

Leave a reply

“”The fox is wounded,” yelped Gazzetta dello Sport, and they weren’t talking about Goldenballs. David Beckham’s ruptured achilles represents a cruel blow for the player and perhaps also for England (then again, perhaps not) – but on a weekend like this it was never going to get top billing in Italy. As if a Ferrari one-two in the first grand prix of the season wasn’t enough to be getting on with, this was the weekend when the Serie A title race got blown wide open.” (Guardian)

Uncertainty stalks Gianfranco Zola as relegation clouds gather over West Ham

Leave a reply

“Italian coaches will be everywhere at the Bridge. The Impossible Job has become the Italian Job. Marcello Lippi has won the World Cup while Giovanni Trapattoni wins friends with the Republic of Ireland. Zola, though, is under pressure. Widely considered one of the nicest men in an often heartless profession, the Sardinian who made the ball smile as an elegant maestro with Napoli, Parma and Chelsea, among others, now battles to keep West Ham United in the Premier League.” (Telegraph – Henry Winter)

Italy coach Marcello Lippi still has plenty to ponder

Leave a reply


Marcello Lippi
“At the start of the season, looking forward to the World Cup finals in June, Italy coach Marcello Lippi said he was ready for any number of tormentoni (literally, pest or nuisance) on the run-in to South Africa. The tormentoni in question, let’s be clear, do not concern player injuries, match schedules or training facilities. No, these torments are media and fan inspired and take the form of pretty forthright “advice” as to who he should take to the finals this summer. In particular, Lippi was bombarded with suggestions for his attack.” (World Soccer)

Some Wannabes Seize Stage in Rehearsals

Leave a reply

“Rehearsals are not everyone’s cup of tea. The Germans and Italians, for example, seldom show up in body and soul for them. Yet this is World Cup year, and on Wednesday their people paid top dollar to see those nationals teams, and others, go through the motions. It didn’t always have the desired effect. More than 60,000 people in Algiers saw their heroes, who are going to the World Cup, succumb, 3-0, to Serbia, which is also playing in the finals.” (NYT)

The Best Football Tournaments, Ever…

Leave a reply


Mario Kempes
“Since the dawn of time man has wrestled with this impossible conundrum. And following the glorious football that has generally been on display in Euro 2008 a lot of people are wondering where it stands in the pantheon of great tournaments. Coupled with this excellent Guardian blog and some terrific contributions from posters, it’s got us here at MD Towers thinking. Is it possible to assess which are the best and worst major tournaments? The simple answer is no. So here goes.” (midfielddynamo)

Fabio Capello

Leave a reply


“Fabio Capello (born 18 June 1946) is an Italian football manager and former professional player. He is the current manager of the England national team, having started the role in January 2008 after the dismissal of Steve McClaren, who was sacked after England failed to qualify for Euro 2008. He is the second foreigner to have managed the England side, the other being McClaren’s predecessor, the Swede Sven-Göran Eriksson.” Wikipedia, Guardian

Why I’ll Be Cheering For Man United, Arsenal and Liverpool This Week

Leave a reply

“Watching European football has always had an exotic element for us in Britain. In the 60s and 70s, abroad was a long way away. The world seemed much bigger and the visit of a team from Italy, Germany or Albania was like a visit from another football planet. We hadn’t heard of most of the players, we didn’t know much about the teams. How could we? They were not on TV and rarely covered in the press. Our only exposure to non-British players was at World Cups and on European nights. Hardly any played in the UK.” (EPL Talk)

The Joy of Six: Long-range screamers

Leave a reply


“Long-distance goals should intrinsically have a reduced element of surprise, but tell that to Ronaldinho. Just because you are outside the box doesn’t mean you can’t think outside the box in the way that you shoot for goal. Ronaldinho’s incomparable imagination manifested itself in under-the-wall free-kicks and strikes with scarcely any backlift.” (Guardian)

Football Weekly Extra: Super Saha stars as Everton stun Chelsea

Leave a reply

“James is back with another top-banana podcast featuring John Ashdown, Barry Glendenning and Paul Doyle. Midweek Premier League matches mean plenty of talking points: including Louis Saha increasing John Terry’s woe, Arsenal back to winning ways, and Aston Villa’s limited ambition against Manchester United. Sid Lowe is on the phone from Madrid with the truth about those Cesc Fábregas to Barcelona rumours, while James’s Italian round-up includes news of Ultras storming Lazio’s training ground.” (Guardian – James Richardson)

Video Of The Week: All The Goals Of The 1998 World Cup

Leave a reply


“This week’s Video of The Week continues the World Cup theme of the last few weeks, with all the goals from the 1998 World Cup, which was, of course, held in France. The optimism that may have existed after England’s decent performance at the 1996 European Championships evaporated over the weeks of the tournament. Tabloid exclusives about the behaviour of the players, rioting in Marseille and a defeat at the hands of Romania were just the build up to a penalty shoot-out defeat at the hands of Argentina. Meanwhile, France and Brazil made the final of a tournament that was the first to feature thirty-two nations. Iran beat the United States of America in the first round but both teams went out,but Jamaica and Japan, who were both arguably beneficiaries of the expansion, brought colour to the tournament off the pitch but offered little resistance on it.” (twohundredpercent)

Inter’s victory over Milan appears to have settled the title race

Leave a reply

“If ever anyone had any doubts about the current domination of Internazionale in Serie A, they were definitively dispelled by their emphatic 2-0 win over Milan in a thrilling city derby at the end of January. For much of this season, Inter have looked as if they will soon run far and away with another scudetto and, after this latest triumph, their escape to final victory has already begun.” (World Soccer)

A Week Is A Long Time In Serie A: Feb 3rd 2010

Leave a reply


“Another eventful week in Italian football, both on and off the pitch. Following the possibly season-defining Milan derby, both Milan teams faced midweek Coppa Italia quarterfinals at San Siro. Milan were humiliated by Udinese in a 1-0 loss, while Inter bounced back from a Francesco Toldo error to defeat Juventus 2-1, courtesy of goals by Lucio and Juve-killer Mario Balotelli. Juventus’ exit from the Coppa was the last game in charge for Ciro Ferrara, who was replaced by former Udinese, Milan, Inter and Torino manager Alberto Zaccheroni, after Juventus’ public courting of Guus Hiddink and Rafael Benitez proved fruitless.” (First Touch Online)

Video Of The Week: Every Goal Of Italia ‘90

Leave a reply

“Continuing our series of World Cup compilation videos, this week we have every goal from the 1990 World Cup, which was, of course, held in Italy. Time has a tendency to soften our viewpoint of previous World Cup tournaments – particularly when, as with this one, England surpass everyone’s expectations and scramble as far as the semi-finals – but the truth of the matter is that the 1990 World Cup finals were probably the worst that have been held in recent years.” (twohundredpercent)