Nearly a year after John Terry allegedly used “abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour” towards Anton Ferdinand during a premier league football match on October 23rd 2011 and the debacle is still ongoing. Terry, 31, decided that the night before his FA hearing was the perfect time to announce his international retirement, claiming that the FA made his position untenable, merely hours after Patrice Evra and Luis Suarez shook hands in an attempt to finally put aside their own personal issues over race.
Terry was charged by the FA on July 27th 2012 and has since represented his country in the world cup qualifying match against Moldova, underlining the fact that the FA has not made his position in the national side “untenable.” The timing of the announcement is clearly a well thought-out and somewhat tactically decision in a bid to place extreme pressure on the FA disciplinary panel whom have a conviction rate last year of 99.5%.
The consequences of such a decision will be a lengthy ban for a player whose career is beginning to dwindle. After already witnessing the humiliation of being stripped of his captaincy back in February, the player has decided to remove himself from international selection before being dropped by manager Roy Hodgson. He has effectively, spat the dummy.
Terry said: “It breaks my heart to make this decision.” Yet, when you consider that both Wayne Bridge and Rio Ferdinand were effectively forced to remove themselves from the international scene due to John Terry’s inclusion in the England squad then there is little sympathy.
Terry feels aggrieved that the FA are not following the criminal court verdict of “not guilty” when his case was heard in July. In the FA’s own rule book it does state that court verdicts will indeed be followed so maybe John Terry, and his legal team, have a point.
Rule 6.8 states. "Where the subject matter of a complaint or matter before the Regulatory Commission has been the subject of previous civil or criminal proceedings, the result of such proceedings and the facts and matters upon which such result is based shall be presumed to be correct and the facts presumed to be true unless it is shown, by clear and convincing evidence, that this is not the case".
It does seem rather black and white. However, in a court of law the burden of proof required to make a conviction is “beyond a reasonable doubt” whereas in the FA hearing the burden of proof is lower, with a conviction occurring on the “balance of probability”.
Therefore, the facts could be exactly the same, with the same evidence presented, yet differing outcomes may be reached. And given that the chief magistrate Howard Riddle stated that it was "possible that what was said was not intended as an insult but rather as a challenge to what he believed had been said to him" it does suggest that the court does not deny that something unseemly was stated.
Therefore, one could suggest that the FA is indeed complying with Rule 6.8 as they are accepting that the facts, matters and result of the criminal case are all correct. However, when you lessen the burden of proof, a charge could be brought.
Also, the FA is an autonomous body, they are not bound by the law in sporting issues. For instance, the players who represent the English national side have to be English. That may seem obvious, but when you consider that the manager is not bound by the same constrictions, it does suggest that without the ruling that enforces clear discrimination, there would be nothing to prevent the English team being made up of foreigners.
As the autonomous body that it is, the FA has to conduct their own separate hearing in this case. Luis Suarez received an eight match ban for his alleged racial comments. If that case would have gone to court with the higher burden of proof, would Suarez have been convicted? Probably not. The FA cannot allow one player to get off for free, whilst another received such a lengthy ban. It would encourage players to take footballing issues to court, potentially allowing players to escape punishments for clear breaches of the game.
The FA needs to follow the precedent it set with the Evra/Suarez situation by banning the Chelsea skipper. Terry was fined two weeks’ wages back in 2001 for allegedly shouting abuse at U.S tourists the day after 9/11 and let’s face it, we have all seen the footage with Anton Ferdinand. On the balance of probabilities, we all know he is guilty.
Monday, 24 September 2012
Thursday, 20 September 2012
Brazilian Armadillo v Clyde the Thistle
In the past few days we have had the honour of witnessing two of the most exciting revelations since the strictly come dancing line-up was announced just over a week ago. I know what you are thinking, what could be so exciting that it could eclipse the announcement that Lisa Riley would be slipping into a sparkling, skimpy outfit in order to samba the night away? Well, hold your breath no more, for we now know the 2014 World Cup and Commonwealth Games mascots!
World Cup hosts Brazil have created a yet to be named armadillo mascot. The armadillo looks modern, cool, loveable. It wears the tradition colours of the Brazilian flag in yellow, green and blue. It even rolls up into a ball shape, a rather handy added extra for a mascot representing the world’s biggest football tournament. You can imagine children throughout the world idealising the armadillo the way their parents’ idealised the footballing star who helped unveil the mascot, Ronaldo.
The three-banded armadillo is an endangered creature native to Brazil bringing comments from FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke about how the world cup in 2014 will be an event used to “communicate the importance of the environment and ecology”. It brings meaning to an otherwise commercial tool, even if those words are carefully selected PR.
Come November we will know whether the mascot will be christened Amijubi, Fuleco or Zuzeco. Amijubi is meant to represent “friendliness and joy”, whereas Fuleco and Zuzeco provide a link to the “ecological message” that the tournament wants to represent.
Compare this to the Commonwealth Games mascot for Glasgow 2014 – Clyde the Thistle. 12-year-old Beth Gilmour’s design was selected out of 4,000 entries. It represents Scotland strongly, with both the Thistle and the name Clyde being iconic to both Glasgow and Scotland. The animated design looks bright and colourful yet it fails to really inspire.
But the real downfall of the mascot is the fact that in real life it looks like a man has been dressed up as a giant turnip, only to get the order of colours slightly wrong, dressed in jogging bottoms with felt arms that have been slipped on over a t-shirt with a pair of shorts that appear too tight. It just looks amateur.
Beth’s idea is a strong one yet the people implementing it have done such a poor job it does send warning signals about just how professional the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is going to be.
With such high expectations after the London Olympics went so well, will Scotland be able to represent their country on a global scale in the manner that they desire. Given the look of the two mascots unveiled this week, both for major sporting events occurring in 2014, it is clear that Scotland may have a lot of work to do.
World Cup hosts Brazil have created a yet to be named armadillo mascot. The armadillo looks modern, cool, loveable. It wears the tradition colours of the Brazilian flag in yellow, green and blue. It even rolls up into a ball shape, a rather handy added extra for a mascot representing the world’s biggest football tournament. You can imagine children throughout the world idealising the armadillo the way their parents’ idealised the footballing star who helped unveil the mascot, Ronaldo.
The three-banded armadillo is an endangered creature native to Brazil bringing comments from FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke about how the world cup in 2014 will be an event used to “communicate the importance of the environment and ecology”. It brings meaning to an otherwise commercial tool, even if those words are carefully selected PR.
Come November we will know whether the mascot will be christened Amijubi, Fuleco or Zuzeco. Amijubi is meant to represent “friendliness and joy”, whereas Fuleco and Zuzeco provide a link to the “ecological message” that the tournament wants to represent.
Compare this to the Commonwealth Games mascot for Glasgow 2014 – Clyde the Thistle. 12-year-old Beth Gilmour’s design was selected out of 4,000 entries. It represents Scotland strongly, with both the Thistle and the name Clyde being iconic to both Glasgow and Scotland. The animated design looks bright and colourful yet it fails to really inspire.
But the real downfall of the mascot is the fact that in real life it looks like a man has been dressed up as a giant turnip, only to get the order of colours slightly wrong, dressed in jogging bottoms with felt arms that have been slipped on over a t-shirt with a pair of shorts that appear too tight. It just looks amateur.
Beth’s idea is a strong one yet the people implementing it have done such a poor job it does send warning signals about just how professional the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is going to be.
With such high expectations after the London Olympics went so well, will Scotland be able to represent their country on a global scale in the manner that they desire. Given the look of the two mascots unveiled this week, both for major sporting events occurring in 2014, it is clear that Scotland may have a lot of work to do.
Champions League Evaluation
After two thoroughly entertaining nights of football our appetites have now been fully wettened for another year of dramatic flurries throughout Europe in a bid for teams to play in the pinnacle of European club football next May, the Champions League final. Yet, after opening games of differing fortunes, will any British club have the opportunity to lift the European Cup at Wembley?
Chelsea started their campaign with a challenging match against Serie A champions Juventus. However, after two fantastic strikes from Champions League debutant Oscar had put the home side 2-0 up, goals from Vidal and Quagliarella meant the defending champions had to settle for a point.
This was the first time Chelsea had failed to win the opening tie of the Champions League since their 1-1 draw with Rosenborg at Stamford Bridge in 2007. A rare Shevchenko strike had saved them then. The poor start failed to hold them back that season however as they reached the final only to be beaten by rivals Manchester United on penalties. This year with Group E’s other occupants being Shakhtar Donetsk and Nordsjællan last night’s result is more of a solid start rather than a stuttering or superb one so expect to see the London club progress but retaining their title is highly unlikely.
Fellow Londoners Arsenal came from a goal behind in a tricky encounter with French Champions Montpellier to take all three points back from the Stade de la Mosson. Admittedly Arsene Wenger’s summer acquisition of last season’s Ligue 1 golden boot Olivier Giroud from Montpellier should have made the task simpler but in the end his side were lucky not to concede a late equaliser.
Despite the exit of Robin Van Persie the Gunners still look like a real threat going forward, with Lukas Podolski netting his third goal in three games for Arsenal. Another attacking left-midfielder who can also be utilised as a striker appears to be Wenger’s speciality and with Steve Bould strengthening the mentality of the defence Schalke and, last year’s group opponents, Olympiacos should prove easily beatable.
On the other hand Manchester City face an arduous task after their 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Spanish champions Real Madrid. To think that a loss at the Bernabeu by a single goal to last season’s la Liga winners could be catastrophic is unbelievable really. Most seasons a point would be seen as an enviable achievement, a loss nothing more than an expected result that could be nonchalantly wiped from memory.
But it is the manner in which City lost which is most worrying. They had relented the onslaught, twice received a glimmer of hope, points placed within their grasp only to watch them all snatched from them as they ran for the exit. With the Dutch champions Ajax and the Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund still to come can the team mentally recover to dice with death once more?
Their city rivals United started in a manner consistent with their previous five years of Champions League openers with a slow 1-0 victory against Turkish champions Galatasaray. The last time United scored more than one goal in the first group game of the Champions League was back in 2006 when they beat Celtic 3-2 at Old Trafford. Three 1-0 wins, two 0-0 draws and one 1-1 goalfest with Benfica last season highlights just how slow Manchester United can be at the start of a campaign.
Having said this you have to go back to 1996 to find the last time Manchester United lost their first encounter of the group stages when a certain Zinedine Zidane slipped a ball through for Juventus striker Alan Boksic to dink past Schmeichel. Last season’s surprise early exit was exactly that. Braga and Cluj will not be able to cause a second upset, making the victory against Galatasaray look extremely positive.
Celtic have little to be positive about after a tame goalless draw at Celtic Park with their main rivals for that elusive second qualification spot Benfica. With home games against Barcelona and Spartak Moscow to come and a previous away record of one draw and seventeen defeats in the Champions League Celtic’s home games are of paramount importance. Neil Lennon says his side have “gained respect” from the result, but really what they have gained is little chance of proceeding past the group stages.
In opening encounters that witnessed English clubs face the champions of Spain, Italy, Turkey and France the signs look extremely positive for most. Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea should advance after competent starts. Celtic are likely to struggle and if Manchester City perform like they did in Spain they will progress. But that is a big if.
Chelsea started their campaign with a challenging match against Serie A champions Juventus. However, after two fantastic strikes from Champions League debutant Oscar had put the home side 2-0 up, goals from Vidal and Quagliarella meant the defending champions had to settle for a point.
This was the first time Chelsea had failed to win the opening tie of the Champions League since their 1-1 draw with Rosenborg at Stamford Bridge in 2007. A rare Shevchenko strike had saved them then. The poor start failed to hold them back that season however as they reached the final only to be beaten by rivals Manchester United on penalties. This year with Group E’s other occupants being Shakhtar Donetsk and Nordsjællan last night’s result is more of a solid start rather than a stuttering or superb one so expect to see the London club progress but retaining their title is highly unlikely.
Fellow Londoners Arsenal came from a goal behind in a tricky encounter with French Champions Montpellier to take all three points back from the Stade de la Mosson. Admittedly Arsene Wenger’s summer acquisition of last season’s Ligue 1 golden boot Olivier Giroud from Montpellier should have made the task simpler but in the end his side were lucky not to concede a late equaliser.
Despite the exit of Robin Van Persie the Gunners still look like a real threat going forward, with Lukas Podolski netting his third goal in three games for Arsenal. Another attacking left-midfielder who can also be utilised as a striker appears to be Wenger’s speciality and with Steve Bould strengthening the mentality of the defence Schalke and, last year’s group opponents, Olympiacos should prove easily beatable.
On the other hand Manchester City face an arduous task after their 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Spanish champions Real Madrid. To think that a loss at the Bernabeu by a single goal to last season’s la Liga winners could be catastrophic is unbelievable really. Most seasons a point would be seen as an enviable achievement, a loss nothing more than an expected result that could be nonchalantly wiped from memory.
But it is the manner in which City lost which is most worrying. They had relented the onslaught, twice received a glimmer of hope, points placed within their grasp only to watch them all snatched from them as they ran for the exit. With the Dutch champions Ajax and the Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund still to come can the team mentally recover to dice with death once more?
Their city rivals United started in a manner consistent with their previous five years of Champions League openers with a slow 1-0 victory against Turkish champions Galatasaray. The last time United scored more than one goal in the first group game of the Champions League was back in 2006 when they beat Celtic 3-2 at Old Trafford. Three 1-0 wins, two 0-0 draws and one 1-1 goalfest with Benfica last season highlights just how slow Manchester United can be at the start of a campaign.
Having said this you have to go back to 1996 to find the last time Manchester United lost their first encounter of the group stages when a certain Zinedine Zidane slipped a ball through for Juventus striker Alan Boksic to dink past Schmeichel. Last season’s surprise early exit was exactly that. Braga and Cluj will not be able to cause a second upset, making the victory against Galatasaray look extremely positive.
Celtic have little to be positive about after a tame goalless draw at Celtic Park with their main rivals for that elusive second qualification spot Benfica. With home games against Barcelona and Spartak Moscow to come and a previous away record of one draw and seventeen defeats in the Champions League Celtic’s home games are of paramount importance. Neil Lennon says his side have “gained respect” from the result, but really what they have gained is little chance of proceeding past the group stages.
In opening encounters that witnessed English clubs face the champions of Spain, Italy, Turkey and France the signs look extremely positive for most. Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea should advance after competent starts. Celtic are likely to struggle and if Manchester City perform like they did in Spain they will progress. But that is a big if.
Tuesday, 18 September 2012
Manchester City Lose in a Frantic Opener against Madrid
Manchester City twice took the lead at the home of the Spanish champions only to capitulate at the hands of a forcefully motivated Real Madrid team. Dzeko and a late Kolarov freekick in the 85th minute pushed the points towards Manchester only for a Marcelo curler, Benzema shot and a 90th minute Ronaldo strike to give Real Madrid a deserved victory.
With a summer of sensational sport now over, the fight to advance in the Champions League has now firmly begun. Manchester City embarked on the mammoth task of conquering the might of Europe, and that’s only to get out of their group, by venturing to the fortress that is the Bernabeu to take on the emperor of football management Jose Mourinho and his Real Madrid men.
Mancini’s team was certainly set-up to attack with Nasri preferred to the hard working James Milner, who failed to even make bench. Yaya Toure was also pushed to a more advanced position in a bid to counteract Xavi Alonso’s potential grip on the match and attack with powerful surging runs.
Mourinho, surprisingly, went slightly on the defensive, dropping Ozil to bench allowing Michael Essien to make his first appearance for the club since joining on-loan this summer from the European Champions Chelsea.
However the big changes were in defence. Sergio Ramos was left on the bench due to alleged row with Mourinho, allowing Verdane to start. Whereas 19 year old Mattija Nastasic, nicknamed “the new Vidic”, was preferred to the experienced Joleon Lescott for City.
It was the Spanish Champions that started the brighter with Ronaldo firing two speculative shots within the first two minutes, clearly looking to add to his 150 goals in 149 appearances for Real.
City failed to learn from his warnings with only a splendid low save from Joe Hart preventing another Ronaldo shot after the Portuguese forward continued to shimmy inside past Kompany to steer the ball towards the bottom right hand corner of the goal.
City were exposed on the flanks as Aberloa and Marcelo constantly provided width for Madrid. Any brief moment of possession the English side did received was met with a fierce pressing game from a flood of white shirts.
Hart was forced to react again after a Di Marie chip found Higuain alone in the penalty area but the goalkeeper stood up strong to negate the opportunity.
In his advanced role Toure was struggling to get a grip on the match, unusually misplacing his passes on frequent occasions. Yet, wife Madrid’s high pressing game when Toure broke the initial influx of tackles then his solo runs looked extremely threatening.
On 35 minutes Samir Nasri was forced off with a calf issue to be replaced by Kolarov which turned into a blessing in disguise as the more defensive minded Kolarov cancelled the threat of the advancing fullback Arbeloa.
Xavi Alonso began to turn the screw, threading passes across the pitch for Real but it was another sudden charge from Yaya Toure, bypassing the entire Spanish midfield, that caused panic. Four Manchester City players were converging on two Real defenders only for Toure to provide a poor pass to Silva, giving defenders time to recover.
Di Marie chipped a pass to Higuain again but the striker could only poke the ball poorly over the bar from five yards to end the second half goalless.
Real Madrid had been energetic, pressing high on the pitch constantly, causing Mancini’s men to fail to keep possession through a mixture of misplaced passing and poor control. However, Real’s threat was lessening as shots from far outside of the box were becoming more frequent.
A quiet Javi Garcia received the first yellow card at the start of the second half despite winning the ball for a lung on Sami Khedira. Yaya Toure then caused immense problems, gaining a corner, after another surging run through the heart of the Madrid team.
With Arbeloa quieter on the right, Marcelo grew in confidence down the left, drilling two shots in quick succession inches passed Joe Hart’s goal.
In a bid to change the match Mancini brought on Dzeko to replace an ineffectual Silva and Mourinho switched Ozil for Michael Essien.
But it was Mancini’s team that finally got the break through when another powerful charge from Yaya Toure broke through the ranks to create a two on one. This time his pass was inch perfect and Dzeko calmly stroked the ball past a wrong-footed Casillas to put the away side 1-0 up after 69 minutes.
This only incensed Real Madrid who had never lost an opening game of the Champions League. Kompany received a yellow card as Ronaldo stormed towards goal in a bid to obtain parity within minutes. Alonso’s chipped free-kick was glanced over by Kolarov and Verdane’s header missed the goal from the resultant corner.
Mourinho made a double substitution bringing on Modric and Benzema for Khedira and a poor Higuain, whereas Mancini went defensive, replacing a limping Maicon for Zabaleta.
Toure once again found the legs to go forward but his first time shot from inside the area hit the side netting.
That miss proved vital as Madrid went straight up the other end, finding Marcelo in space. This time the fullback chose to step inside and curled the ball passed a diving Joe Hart to equalise.
The game suddenly became extremely frantic as both teams searched for a winner. Zabelate failed to connect with a Tevez cross and Hart kept out Benzema, Alonso and Modric.
In the 85th minute, Zabelate reacted quickest to a cleared corner causing Benzema to give away a freekick 40 yards away from the Madrid goal near the right hand touchline. Kolarov whipped a left-footed ball into the box causing it to skid off the surface and passed a helpless Casillas.
Manchester City’s celebrations were cut short though as one minute later Di Marie jinked past two players to find Benzema on the edge of the box. The Frenchman turned and angled his shot into the bottom corner of the goal to make it 2-2.
Madrid were not content with a draw though and only saves from Ronaldo, Benzema and Di Marie kept City level.
But then Ronaldo in the 90th minute finally beat a distraught Joe Hart after cutting inside Zabeleta and firing a shot over a dipping Kompany head. After 10 shots on goal, 7 on target the much loved Portuguese forward grabbed the winning to send the Bernabeu into hysterics.
Mancini insists that his side can win the Champions League this season but his team will need to recover strongly after such a disappointing, draining defeat. Mourinho believes that Manchester City will gain the title eventually, whether or not it will be with Mancini at the helm he is less decided. Either way, in this group of death, Mourinho’s Madrid have won the first battle against Mancini’s Manchester.
With a summer of sensational sport now over, the fight to advance in the Champions League has now firmly begun. Manchester City embarked on the mammoth task of conquering the might of Europe, and that’s only to get out of their group, by venturing to the fortress that is the Bernabeu to take on the emperor of football management Jose Mourinho and his Real Madrid men.
Mancini’s team was certainly set-up to attack with Nasri preferred to the hard working James Milner, who failed to even make bench. Yaya Toure was also pushed to a more advanced position in a bid to counteract Xavi Alonso’s potential grip on the match and attack with powerful surging runs.
Mourinho, surprisingly, went slightly on the defensive, dropping Ozil to bench allowing Michael Essien to make his first appearance for the club since joining on-loan this summer from the European Champions Chelsea.
However the big changes were in defence. Sergio Ramos was left on the bench due to alleged row with Mourinho, allowing Verdane to start. Whereas 19 year old Mattija Nastasic, nicknamed “the new Vidic”, was preferred to the experienced Joleon Lescott for City.
It was the Spanish Champions that started the brighter with Ronaldo firing two speculative shots within the first two minutes, clearly looking to add to his 150 goals in 149 appearances for Real.
City failed to learn from his warnings with only a splendid low save from Joe Hart preventing another Ronaldo shot after the Portuguese forward continued to shimmy inside past Kompany to steer the ball towards the bottom right hand corner of the goal.
City were exposed on the flanks as Aberloa and Marcelo constantly provided width for Madrid. Any brief moment of possession the English side did received was met with a fierce pressing game from a flood of white shirts.
Hart was forced to react again after a Di Marie chip found Higuain alone in the penalty area but the goalkeeper stood up strong to negate the opportunity.
In his advanced role Toure was struggling to get a grip on the match, unusually misplacing his passes on frequent occasions. Yet, wife Madrid’s high pressing game when Toure broke the initial influx of tackles then his solo runs looked extremely threatening.
On 35 minutes Samir Nasri was forced off with a calf issue to be replaced by Kolarov which turned into a blessing in disguise as the more defensive minded Kolarov cancelled the threat of the advancing fullback Arbeloa.
Xavi Alonso began to turn the screw, threading passes across the pitch for Real but it was another sudden charge from Yaya Toure, bypassing the entire Spanish midfield, that caused panic. Four Manchester City players were converging on two Real defenders only for Toure to provide a poor pass to Silva, giving defenders time to recover.
Di Marie chipped a pass to Higuain again but the striker could only poke the ball poorly over the bar from five yards to end the second half goalless.
Real Madrid had been energetic, pressing high on the pitch constantly, causing Mancini’s men to fail to keep possession through a mixture of misplaced passing and poor control. However, Real’s threat was lessening as shots from far outside of the box were becoming more frequent.
A quiet Javi Garcia received the first yellow card at the start of the second half despite winning the ball for a lung on Sami Khedira. Yaya Toure then caused immense problems, gaining a corner, after another surging run through the heart of the Madrid team.
With Arbeloa quieter on the right, Marcelo grew in confidence down the left, drilling two shots in quick succession inches passed Joe Hart’s goal.
In a bid to change the match Mancini brought on Dzeko to replace an ineffectual Silva and Mourinho switched Ozil for Michael Essien.
But it was Mancini’s team that finally got the break through when another powerful charge from Yaya Toure broke through the ranks to create a two on one. This time his pass was inch perfect and Dzeko calmly stroked the ball past a wrong-footed Casillas to put the away side 1-0 up after 69 minutes.
This only incensed Real Madrid who had never lost an opening game of the Champions League. Kompany received a yellow card as Ronaldo stormed towards goal in a bid to obtain parity within minutes. Alonso’s chipped free-kick was glanced over by Kolarov and Verdane’s header missed the goal from the resultant corner.
Mourinho made a double substitution bringing on Modric and Benzema for Khedira and a poor Higuain, whereas Mancini went defensive, replacing a limping Maicon for Zabaleta.
Toure once again found the legs to go forward but his first time shot from inside the area hit the side netting.
That miss proved vital as Madrid went straight up the other end, finding Marcelo in space. This time the fullback chose to step inside and curled the ball passed a diving Joe Hart to equalise.
The game suddenly became extremely frantic as both teams searched for a winner. Zabelate failed to connect with a Tevez cross and Hart kept out Benzema, Alonso and Modric.
In the 85th minute, Zabelate reacted quickest to a cleared corner causing Benzema to give away a freekick 40 yards away from the Madrid goal near the right hand touchline. Kolarov whipped a left-footed ball into the box causing it to skid off the surface and passed a helpless Casillas.
Manchester City’s celebrations were cut short though as one minute later Di Marie jinked past two players to find Benzema on the edge of the box. The Frenchman turned and angled his shot into the bottom corner of the goal to make it 2-2.
Madrid were not content with a draw though and only saves from Ronaldo, Benzema and Di Marie kept City level.
But then Ronaldo in the 90th minute finally beat a distraught Joe Hart after cutting inside Zabeleta and firing a shot over a dipping Kompany head. After 10 shots on goal, 7 on target the much loved Portuguese forward grabbed the winning to send the Bernabeu into hysterics.
Mancini insists that his side can win the Champions League this season but his team will need to recover strongly after such a disappointing, draining defeat. Mourinho believes that Manchester City will gain the title eventually, whether or not it will be with Mancini at the helm he is less decided. Either way, in this group of death, Mourinho’s Madrid have won the first battle against Mancini’s Manchester.
Friday, 18 May 2012
Sweden
Despite finishing second in Group E, the Swedes qualified automatically for Euro 2012 as the best of the runners-up. Sweden definitely deserved to escape the play-offs having obtained 24 points, only Germany, Netherlands and Italy gained more. They were also the third highest scorers in qualifying, netting 31 times in 10 games.
The bright yellow shirts of Swedish fans provide a colourful backdrop to colourful games. Only twice in the last two years have they drawn a football match, once against Germany, another against co-hosts and fellow Group D occupants, Ukraine. Other results include a 3-2 victory against the Dutch and a 5-0 thrashing of fellow Scandinavians Finland.
In November, they lost in a friendly to England thanks to a rare Gareth Barry goal meaning that come summer France will be the only nation in their group who they have not faced within the past year. This knowledge and experience could prove vital for the Swedes.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic leads the line and captains the side. There are rumours that the lanky charismatic Swede could be making a summer switch to Manchester City for a menial wage of £300,000 a week after the tournament but don’t expect that to distract him. He was Sweden’s top scorer in qualifying and certainly has the ability to cause huge problems for the opposition defence.
Former Bolton striker Johan Elmander could partner him up front. With probably the most experienced midfielder in the tournament Anders Svensson occupying the centre of the park. At the age of 35 he has 126 caps for his national side. He will take the set-pieces and turn his former left-wing attacking role into a more central, slower paced, playmaker. Svensson is the Ryan Giggs of the Swedish team.
If that was not enough experience though Kim Kallstrom (90 caps), Christian Wilhelmsson (72 caps) and Olaf Mellberg (112 caps) add a little more. Kallstrom will attempt to add to his 3 goals in qualifying as Mellberg will provide a commanding presence in the heart of the Swedish defence.
A Premier League trio of comparably inexperienced players could also start for Erik Hamren’s team. Sunderland’s Seb Larrson, West Brom’s Jonas Olsson and Blackburn Rover’s Martin Olsson all have the potential to be in the starting line-up but Celtic’s defender Mikael Lustig is more certain first team option.
PSV’s Andreas Isaksson will play between the sticks in the Ukraine. Another 91 caps of experience is part of his repertoire. The injury prone keeper represented Sweden in Euro 2008 and the World Cup in 2006. He never managed to establish himself at Manchester City but that was partly due to the emergence one of Euro 2012’s opposite number 1s, Joe Hart.
Sweden have a capable, extremely experienced team. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the only really world-class player, yet he is capable of winning matches alone. The rest of the team will need to work hard to cause considerable trouble. They won’t top Group D but second is a possibility. However, with the tournament being played in the Ukraine they may finish 4th.
Thursday, 17 May 2012
Ukraine
Co-host for this summer’s tournament Ukraine enter their own party as European Champions debutants after two years of uninspiring results. Yet, whether planned or through a surge of added commitment in a bid to represent their nation at home in front of a packed home support, they have won four of the last five matches. The reason it may have been planned is due to their opponents in these games – Bulgaria, Estonia, Austria and Israel.
It could be an embarrassing summer for the home nation though. Ukraine played both Group D opponents Sweden and France in friendlies. They drew 1-1 and lost 1-0 to Sweden but got thumped by France 4-1. With England being their other opponents I think they will find it hard to advance out of the group stages.
Even worst for the hosts, Ukraine manager Oleh Blokhin has insurmountable issues in the goalkeeping department. The three men named in Blokhin’s provisional squad have a solitary cap between them. To have to play a keeper with literally no international experience is potentially a disaster for the yellow and blues.
There is little that can be done about the situation but to stand a chance you would look for some experience in the centre of defence to guide the novice through the tournament. However, Oleksandr Kucher has the most caps of anyone in the defence with 28 and none played for the country in their only other international outing, the World Cup in 2006.
However, Kucher’s Shakhtar Donetsk teammate Yaroslav Rakitskiy is a strong defender who has scored 3 goals for the national side in his 14 appearances. The defender has the ability to shoot from out of the box and with his young age could be a part of the Ukrainian set up for a long time yet.
Thankfully Blokhin can call upon some seasoned campaigners further up the park. Anatoliy Tymoshchuk is one of only two players in the provisional squad to play his football outside the Ukrainian league and with 114 caps the midfielder is the Ukraine’s most capped player ever.
Just a few caps behind is Ukraine’s top goalscorer, and undoubtedly the best player to come out of the country ever, Andriy Shevchenko. At the tender age of 35 he is not overcoming defensives in the same manner that saw him denominate Europe for AC Milan but we can still except to see some magic escape his skilful feet. Whether he can inspire his country to a victory in the opening game against fellow yellow and blues Sweden, is yet to be seen.
One to potentially watch in the middle of the park is young midfielder Yevhen Konoplyanka. The nifty Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk winger has scored 5 goals in his 16 appearances and could pose a significant attacking threat.
Andriy Yarmolenko is another young player who could grab the headlines this summer for all the right reasons. Shevchenko has apparently recommended the left-footed striker to AC Milan after some impressive performances for Dynamo Kiev. His 7 goals in 18 games for the national side may have helped also.
Ukraine have a lot of young, new international start-ups who could be ready to bloom this summer. Tymoshchuk and Shevchenko bring class to Oleh Blokhin’s side and will be looking to guide the young pretenders through the tournament. With the home support and every neutral thoroughly behind the host nation they will attack the European Championship’s with real vigour. Hopefully they will at least allow them to win a game.
Spain
Spain, the perennial underachievers. Not anymore. The European Champions cruised to the title of World Champions in South Africa after a minor hiccup against Switzerland. They continually nullified matches through their constant possession, before scoring the one goal required to beat their opponents. Getting the ball off them seemed difficult, keeping it for long enough to create a goalscoring opportunity felt almost impossible.
Yet, despite Spain’s flawless qualifying campaign there is a sense that their air of invincibility is thinning. Nobody likes a certainty. It defies the unpredictability aspect of sport that makes it so special. Everyone is willing to try that little bit harder. To throw an extra tackle in. To sit and think that little bit longer about how to defeat the tournament favourites. So much so that even friendlies take on a more competitive edge.
Due to this the losses to Argentina, Portugal, Italy and England, the four highest ranked opponents in the last two years, albeit all in friendly matches, have proved significant. It has given nations hope that La Furia Roja (The Red Fury) can be defeated. The recent semi-final exits from Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Champions League has added to this concept. Yet, you would be daft to believe that Spain has placed even a toe on the slippery slope to obscurity.
They are still the team to beat and are nothing but entertaining. In the 19 international matches since the World Cup final in Johannesburg there have been on average 3.6 goals per game and there has never been a 0-0 draw.
A string of world-class players could all represent Spain in this summer’s finals. Barring injury Iker Casillas will don the Number 1 shirt and captain the nation. The Real Madrid keeper has represented his country 128 times, the most in Spain’s history. Still only 30 Casillas’ cat-like reflexes have kept 72 international clean sheets and have enabled him to win every major club and national tournament.
Influential centre-back Carles Puyol is set to miss the tournament and one of the most potent strikers in world football David Villa is still struggling to recover after breaking his leg in December. Spain have enough quality throughout the pitch, although their all-time record goalscorer may be hard to replace.
Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique are almost certainties for a starting defensive role. Ramos is renowned for his attacking presence from right-back whereas Pique’s controlled technique will aid him in starting off the Spanish passing game from the back.
The midfield sees Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas, Busquets, Pedro, Silva, Mata and Xabi Alonso all vying for a spot on the plane to Poland, let alone a shirt that will confirm that they will play. Vincente del Bosque certainly has some huge decisions to make in this department but with David Villa potentially unavailable up front, a five man midfield may incorporate more of these major stars.
For me it has to be the same four that started the World Cup final in 2010 with Silva replacing Pedro. Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets are fundamental to how the Spaniards play whereas Xabi Alonso goes from strength to strength. His control, pin-point long passing from his exceptional vision and calm head make him a driving force in the national side and undoubtedly he played a huge role in Real Madrid’s title winner season.
With Villa potentially unavailable and Torres not really finding true form at Chelsea yet, the striker position is up for grabs. Fernando Llorente has impressed for Athletic Bilbao and could certainly play as the lone frontman. His height and technical ability make him a quality Peter Crouch. However, it was Roberto Soldado who took his international chance. Replacing Llorente in the game against Venezuela at half-time, the Valencia striker scored a hat-trick and had one goal disallowed. Sevilla’s Alvaro Negredo is another option.
It is safe to say that Vincente del Bosque has a lot of decisions to make. Each player in the 23 man squad would arguably be a certain starter in other nations. Their group is not easy though and with Italy as an opener they could get off to a slow start. But then again, they did that against Switzerland in the World Cup and went on to be crowned champions.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)