Football. Fussball. Voetbal.

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group F

2014-06-23T09:56:00.000+01:00

Part six of FFV's eight-part World Cup preview focusses on Group F, which sees one of the tournament favourites - Argentina - pitted against debutants Bosnia-Herzegovina, African powerhouses Nigeria, and Iran, who make their second appearance at a World Cup finals.

Argentina

World Cup record: Winners 1978, 1986

Squad:

GK: Sergio Romero (Monaco), Mariano Andujar (Catania), Agustin Orion (Boca Juniors)
DF: Federico Fernandez (Napoli), Ezequiel Garay (Benfica), Martin Demichelis (Manchester City), Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City), Marcos Rojo (Sporting Lisbon), Jose Basanta (Monterrey), Hugo Campagnaro (Inter Milan)
MF: Fernando Gago (Boca Juniors), Augusto Fernandez (Celta Vigo), Javier Mascherano (Barcelona), Angel Di Maria (Real Madrid), Lucas Biglia (Lazio), Maxi Rodriguez (Newell's Old Boys), Ricardo Alvarez (Inter Milan), Enzo Perez (Benfica)
FW: Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Paris Saint-Germain), Rodrigo Palacio (Inter Milan).

Coach: Alejandro Sabella

A tournament held in South America. A relatively fit squad. Arguably the world’s finest player among the ranks. Surely it is Argentina’s time, right? Always touted as the favourites prior to each tournament since their landmark win in 1978, this year is no exception. The only difference is that this time, Albiceleste Coach Alejandro Sabella has picked a squad with purpose, rather than one full of stars.

The reputation of certain players counted for a lot in the case of Diego Maradona, who steered a stuttering squad to the 2006 finals; and which occasionally showed glimpses of potential winners, before their frailties were exposed by Germany. It was argued that Maradona’s squad was top-heavy with attacking talent, with little emphasis on defence – and a valid argument at that, as ‘El Diego’ played four central defenders in each of the four defensive positions. Sabella likes to play a pressing 4-3-3, with a balanced defence, playing each of his defenders in their favoured position. Pablo Zabaleta and Sporting Lisbon’s Morcos Rojo occupy the left- and right-back berths respectively, with Ezequiel Garay and one of Matias Fernandez or Martin Demichelis in the centre.

Fernando Gago – now recovered after a knee injury which almost threatened a place in the finals will play on the right of a three-man midfield, with the in-form Angel Di Maria providing attacking thrust on the left. Keeping things tight will be the ever-dependable, and disciplined Javier Mascherano. Both attacking midfielders will look to link up and continually provide service to arguably the most explosive attack in international football. Lionel Messi – so often constrained to the right of attack in the Maradona era – will again start on the right of a trident attack, but now has a more central/floating role to wreak havoc and home in on goal, with either Sergio Aguero or Gonzalo taking opposing defenders out of the game with intelligent off-the-ball running. The short passing and interchanging of possession between the front three is a delight, so opposing defences will have to be on their toes.

Reputation, and even sparkling form, has counted for nothing in Sabella’s mindset as he omitted Carlos Tevez – with 19 Serie A goals for Juventus – out of the final 23-man squad. Also omitted was Ever Banega, who endured a good run of form for Valencia and Newell’s Old Boys, whom he joined on loan to gain extra playing time ahead of the World Cup, following injury.

Argentina coasted through an increasingly-competitive South American qualifying process, and with the most settled and balanced squad for years, anything short of a place in the World Cup Final will be deemed as a failure. 28 years of hurt will surely end on this occasion. Prediction: World Cup winners

Star Man: Lionel Messi
One To Watch Out For: Enzo Perez
Big Tournament For: Ezequiel Garay

Bosnia-Herzegovina

World Cup record: N/A

Squad:

GK: Asmir Begovic (Stoke City), Asmir Avdukic (Borac Banja Luka), Jasmin Fejzic (VFR Aalen)
DF: Emir Spahic (Bayer Leverkusen), Sead Kolasinac (Schalke 04), Ermin Bicakcic (Eintracht Braunschweig), Ognjen Vranjes (Elazigspor), Toni Sunjic (Zarya Lugansk), Avdija Vrsajevic (Hajduk Split), Mensur Mujdza (Freiburg)
MF: Zvjezdan Misimovic (Guizhou Renhe), Haris Medunjanin (Gaziantepspor), Miralem Pjanic (AS Roma), Sejad Salihovic (Hoffenheim), Senad Lulic (Lazio), Izet Hajrovic (Galatasaray), Senijad Ibricic (Erciyesspor), Tino Sven Susic (Hajduk Split), Muhamed Besic (Ferencvaros), Anel Hadzic (Sturm Graz)
FW: Edin Dzeko (Manchester City), Vedad Ibisevic (VfB Stuttgart), Edin Visca (Istanbul BB)

Coach: Safet Susic

Voted Bosnia’s best-ever player in a poll conducted a decade ago, Coach Safet Susic will attempt to take the hopes of his nation beyond its wildest dreams by taking a squad brimming with confidence through to the Round of 16, in what is already a landmark campaign. In qualifying for its first-ever World Cup finals, the Bosnians topped their qualification group on goal difference ahead of former European champions, Greece, scoring 30 goals in 10 games, with a goal difference of 25. Star striker Edin Dzeko contributed with 10 of the 30 goals; and was the only team within the UEFA qualification zone to not have incur any disciplinary-related suspensions. A marvellous achievement for a squad still growing in (international) stature.

Susic likes to play a 4-4-2 system, using a diamond-shaped midfield to focus on the squad’s key strengths – the attacking quintet of strike duo Dzeko and VfB Stuttgart’s Vedad Ibisevic. The dangerous Zvjezdan Misimovic will operate behind the front two, and is fantastic in his possession and timely distribution of the ball, which has served wide midfielders - Nenad Lulic, widely-tipped to join Juventus this summer; and Roma’s brilliant Miralem Pjanic, arguably Bosnia’s most influential and creative player.

At the back, the explosive Sead Kolasinac will start at left-back, and will look to belie his youth and inexperience at this level with some stellar performances. To his left, regular right-back Mensur Mujdza be accompanied by veteran captain Emir Spahic, who despite his authority and experience, is prone to picking up bookings and giving away needless free-kicks around the Bosnian penalty area. Ermin Bicakcic will partner Spahic in defence despite only making his debut in August last year.

The clear train of thought in the former Cannes Coach’s thinking is ‘attack! attack! attack!’ , in the hope his side can replicate the kind of form shown during the qualifiers. However, there is a marked difference in facing the likes of Lichtenstein and Argentina. His defence will have their work cut out in lieu of a world-class defensive midfielder at the base of the ‘diamond’, so his strikers will have no choice but to take their chances when they present themselves and outscore the opposition. Failing that, expect a change in formation to a 4-2-3-1, with Haris Medujanin partnering Sejad Salihovic in central midfield at the expense of Ibisevic. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Edin Dzeko
One To Watch Out For: Sead Kolasinac
Big Tournament For: Miralem Pjanic

Iran

World Cup record: Group Stage 1978, 1998, 2006

Squad:

GK: Daniel Davari (Eintracht Braunschweig), Rahman Ahmadi (Sepahan Isfahan), Alireza Haqiqi (Sporting da Covilha)
DF: Hossein Mahini (Persepolis), Jalal Hosseini (Persepolis), Amir Hossein Sadeqi (Esteghlal), Hashem Beykzadeh (Esteghlal), Mehrdad Pouladi (Persepolis), Ahmad Alenemeh (Naft Tehran), Pejman Montazeri (Umm Salal SC), Steven Beitashour (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Mohammad Reza Khanzadeh (Zob Ahan Isfahan)
MF: Reza Haghighi (Persepolis), Andranik Teymourian (Esteghlal), Ghasem Hadadifar (Zob Ahan Isfahan), Bakhtiar Rahmani (Foolad), Javad Nekounam (Kuwait SC), Ehsan Hajsafi (Sepahan Isfahan)
FW: Khosrow Heidari (Esteghlal), Karim Ansarifard (Tractor Sazi), Reza Ghoochannejhad (Charlton Athletic), Alireza Jahanbakhsh (NEC), Masoud Shojaei (UD Las Palmas), Ashkan Dejagah (Fulham)

Coach: Carlos Queiroz

After his South African and Portuguese teams failed to produce in 2002 and 2010 respectively, ex-Real Madrid Coach Carlos Queiroz is given another crack to make some headway with an Iranian squad that endured had a tough time since their superb final qualification win over South Korea which sealed their place at these finals. Given an economic ban over the country’s controversial nuclear programme affecting the nation’s domestic and international game, Queiroz requested that the Iranian Football Association bring forward the end of the domestic season to prepare his squad for the finals ahead.

Team Melli will want to put their 2010 horror-show behind them by making a better fist of things time around, in what will be an extremely tough group. Their opening encounter against Nigeria may prove to be the best chance of claiming at least a point, with Queiroz preferring a defensive 4-4-1-1 formation, and having conceded only two goals throughout the qualifiers, expect the Iranians to keep things tight at the back again, with very little enterprise in the attacking third. In Dutch-Iranian striker Reza Ghoochannejad, the Iranian Lions have a striker who has been in good form for his country despite a lack of playing time at club side Charlton Athletic. Ghoochannejad will lead the attack with 20-year-old attacking midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh playing as the second striker.

In midfield, the combative duo of Andranik Teymourian and the inspirational Javad Nekounan, dubbed the ‘Iranian Steven Gerrard’ add solidity in front of the flat-back four, with Nekounan famed for scoring crucial goals where required. The wide midfield positions will be occupied by arguably the most creative player in the squad, Ashkan Dejagah, and midfield-cum-striker Masoud Shojaei.

Hopes among fans are not particularly high to progress through to the Round of 16, given their relative knack of scoring ability against the very best defences – in addition to the small matter of an Argentinian defence to overcome in their second group game. But Queiroz is much-heralded as a Coach, bringing unity and a ‘siege mentality’ approach to a team that will look to play the games, not just the occasion. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Javad Nekounam
One To Watch Out For: Ashkan Dejagah
Big Tournament For: Reza Ghoochannejad

Nigeria

World Cup record: Round of 16 1994, 1998

Squad:

GK: Vincent Enyeama (Lille), Austin Ejide (Hapoel Be'er Sheva), Chigozie Agbim (Gombe United)
DF: Elderson Echiejile (Monaco), Efe Ambrose (Celtic), Godfrey Oboabona (Rizespor), Azubuike Egwuekwe (Warri Wolves), Kenneth Omeruo (Chelsea), Juwon Oshaniwa (Ashdod), Joseph Yobo (Fenerbahce), Kunle Odunlami (Sunshine Stars)
MF: John Mikel Obi (Chelsea), Ramon Azeez (Almeria), Ogenyi Onazi (Lazio), Reuben Gabriel (Waasland-Beveren), Michael Babatunde (Volyn Lutsk)
FW: Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow), Shola Ameobi (Newcastle), Emmanuel Emenike (Fenerbahce), Peter Odemwingie (Stoke), Michael Uchebo (Cercle Brugge), Victor Moses (Chelsea), Uche Nwofor (Heerenveen).

Coach: Stephen Keshi

Having qualified for their first finals since 2006, the Super Eagles are confident of being one of the few African teams to make it through to the Round of 16. Winners of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations - their first for 19 years - the African powerhouses have stuttered along for the past year, yet produced results when it mattered without really convincing. Their triumph last year was symptomatic of this, as a huge win over tournament favourites Ivory Coast set them on their path to their long-overdue success, with wins over Mali and Burkina Faso papering over what were unconvincing performances.

Faring less better in last year's Confederations Cup, Coach Stephen Keshi turned around any scepticism amongst the Nigerian faithful as he guided his side through to this year's finals, irrespective of the fact his side were the favourites to progress in arguably the easiest of groups in the African qualification zone. But Keshi remains a popular figure, which stems from captaining his nation to a successful African Cup of Nations triumph on 1994.

Fast forward to these finals, Keshi is taking a relatively youthful squad to Brazil, with an injection of key, experienced individuals in each area of the squad. Peter Odemwingie's reintegration into the squad after making up with the Coach will ease the burden on the likes of fellow striker Emmanuel Emenike; John Mikel Obi will add bite in midfield, with the vastly-experienced Joseph Yobo will marshal the defence. Obi will patrol proceedings from his defensive midfield position and will offer protection to a flat back four.

Given the relative unknown quantities of Iran and Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Super Eagles will be confident of progression into the second round. Using a 4-2-3-1 formation, the emphasis is very much on attack, with wide attackers Ahmed Musa and Victor Moses providing pace and width down both An exit early may tarnish the esteem of Keshi. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Emmanuel Emenike
One To Watch Out For: Ahmed Musa
Big Tournament For: Vincent Enyeama

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

2014-06-15T23:26:00.001+01:00

Part five of FFV's eight-part World Cup preview focusses on Group E, which for many is the easiest of groups, featuring Switzerland, Ecuador, Honduras, and 1998 World Cup winners France.

Ecuador

World Cup record: Round of 16 2006

Squad:

GK: Alexander Dominguez (Liga de Quito), Maximo Banguera (Barcelona, Ecuador), Adrian Bone (El Nacional)

DF: Gabriel Achilier (Emelec), Walter Ayovi (Pachuca), Oscar Bagui (Emelec), Frickson Erazo (Flamengo), Jorge Guagua (Emelec), Juan Carlos Paredes (Barcelona, Ecuador)

MF: Segundo Castillo (Al Hilal), Carlos Gruezo (Stuttgart), Renato Ibarra (Vitesse Arnhem), Fidel Martinez (Tijuana), Edison Mendez (Santa Fe), Christian Noboa (Dinamo Moscow), Luis Saritama (Barcelona, Ecuador), Antonio Valencia (Manchester United)

FW: Jaime Ayovi (Tijuana), Felipe Caicedo (Al-Jazira), Jefferson Montero (Morelia), Joao Rojas (Cruz Azul), Enner Valencia (Pachuca), Michael Arroyo (Atlante)

Coach: Reinaldo Ruelda

Having reached three out of the last four finals, La Tri will look to emulate their feats of 2006, where they beat Poland en route to the Round of 16. Placed in a tricky group, many expect the South Americans to fight Switzerland for second spot in the group - and the notion within the camp is that even top spot is achievable.

With arguably their strongest squad ever - the majority of them regulars at their respective clubs - in addition to the fact that the tournament is on familiar territory, they could cause an upset and even top the group. Coach Reinaldo Ruelda likes to play a 4-4-2 formation, with an emphasis on keeping things tight in defence. With their brilliant central defender Ivan Hurtado now retired and the absence of his erstwhile partner Giovanny Espinoza, a huge problem exists with Flamengo's Fricson Erazo prone to defensive lapses and partner Jorge Guagua not the quickest of defenders. A lot will be asked of full-backs Juan Carlos Paredes and Walter Ayovi to help out in defence whilst attempting to carry out attacking duties.

La Tri's biggest handicap during the World Cup qualifiers was their profligacy in front of goal, scoring only 20 goals in 16 games. However, Ruelda has tried to instil some belief in their goal-shy attack, reflected in recent friendlies as they put four goals past Australia, secured a 1-1 draw away to Holland, and a very impressive 2-2 draw against England in their last friendly in Miami before the World Cup finals. Much will depend on the form of their biggest star, Manchester United winger Antonio Valencia and Enner Valencia to propel them onto bigger things. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Antonio Valencia
One To Watch Out For: Enner Valencia
Big Tournament For: Jefferson Montero

France

World Cup record: Winners 1998

Squad:

GK: Hugo Lloris (Tottenham), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Mickaël Landreau (Bastia)

DF: Mathieu Debuchy (Newcastle United), Lucas Digne (PSG) Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Eliaquim Mangala (Porto), Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Mamadou Sakho (Liverpool), Raphaël Varane (Real Madrid)

MF: Yohan Cabaye (PSG), Blaise Matuidi (PSG), Rio Mavuba (Lille), Paul Pogba (Juventus), Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille), Remy Cabella (Montpellier), Morgan Schneiderlin (Southampton)

FW: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Olivier Giroud (Arsenal), Antoine Griezmann (Real Sociedad), Loïc Rémy (Newcastle)

Coach: Didier Deschamps

After their horror show in 2010 which included that player revolt, Les Bleus Coach Didier Deschamps - in his own understated manner - has managed to dampen any egos in his squad, and any expectations of the French faithful who believe they can go all the way. An example of this was the omission of Samir Nasri - in fine form for Manchester City last season - on the grounds of "not being a good traveller". A risky, but wise choice, if that is the route the ex-Juventus star-turned-Coach wishes to make.

Bordering on the pragmatic and the adventurous, Deschamps often adopts a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation, with a settled back four of Mathieu Debuchy, Raphaël Varane, Blaise Maituidi, and Patrice Evra - the latter who broke the news of the players' revolt to then-Coach Raymond Domenech. Ahead of them, Paul Pogba and Blaise Matuidi will provide the defensive screen and link to the attack, with the former using his energy and hunger for goals to make frequent bursts into the opposition penalty box. Oh, and he strikes a mean ball from distance, too. In attack, influential winger Franck Ribery was ruled out of the tournament at the last minute, so Mathieu Debuchy will be expected to claim a starting berth on the left of midfield, and much-talked about winger Antoine Griezmann will fire balls into the box for lone striker Karim Benzema to pounce on. After going nearly a year without a goal to his name, the Real Madrid striker is in fine form, with six goals in his last six international outings.

With a young, vibrant squad with plenty of club experience at his disposal, Deschamps will hope his current squad will be together by the time the 2016 European Championships come to town on home soil, and a tournament in which he expects to lead his charges - which is why a strong showing here is imperative to confirm signs of progression in terms of tournament experience, maturity and cohesiveness - all hallmarks of the French Coach. Prediction: Quarter-Finals

Star Man: Karim Benzema
One To Watch Out For: Antoine Griezmann
Big Tournament For: Paul Pogba

Honduras

World Cup record: Group Stages 1982, 2010

Squad:

GK: Noel Valladares (Olimpia), Donis Escober (Olimpia), Luis Lopez (Real Espana)

DF: Brayan Beckeles (Olimpia), Arnold Peralta (Rangers), Emilio Izaguirre (Celtic), Juan Carlos Garcia (Wigan), Maynor Figueroa (Hull), Victor Bernardez (San Jose Earthquakes), Osman Chavez (Qingdao Jonoon), Juan Pablo Montes (Motagua)

MF: Luis Garrido (Olimpia), Roger Espinoza (Wigan), Jorge Claros (Motagua), Wilson Palacios (Stoke), Oscar Boniek Garcia (Houston Dynamo), Andy Najar (Anderlecht), Mario Martinez (Real Espana), Marvin Chavez (Colorado Rapids)

FW: Jerry Bengtson (New England Revolution), Jerry Palacios (Alajuelense), Carlo Costly (Real Espana), Rony Martinez (Real Sociedad)

Coach: Luis Fernando Suarez

Now making their second successive appearance at a World Cup finals, La Bicolor will hope to make a greater splash than in 2010, where they finished bottom of what was admittedly a tough group. Coach Luis Fernando Suarez has an experienced squad at his disposal, with a number of players plying their trade in English and Scottish leagues.

An excellent qualifying campaign saw them claim third place in the CONCACAF section ahead of regional powerhouse Mexico, so confidence is high leading into these finals. Suarez like to play a traditional 4-4-2 formation, with Carlo Costly and Jerry Bengtson continuing their partnership up front - a partnership which yielded 8 of the 13 goals during the World Cup qualifiers. The experienced Wilson Palacios will play in the 'hole' behind the two strikers, using his guile and power to support the front two, with Luis Garrido and Roger Espinoza adding grit and steel to central midfield. Arnold Peralta, Victor Bernardez, Brayan Beckeles and Emilio Izaguirre are all regular starters in defence and will be expected to line up in the Central American's opener against France. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Carlo Costly
One To Watch Out For: Andy Najar
Big Tournament For:

Switzerland

World Cup record: Quarter-Finals 1934, 1938, 1954

Squad:

GK: Diego Benaglio (Wolfsburg), Roman Buerki (Grasshopper), Yann Sommer (Basel)

DF: Johan Djourou (Hamburg), Michael Lang (Grasshopper), Stephan Lichtsteiner (Juventus), Ricardo Rodriguez (Wolfsburg), Fabian Schaer (Basel), Philippe Senderos (Valencia), Steve von Bergen (Young Boys), Reto Ziegler (Sassuolo)

MF: Tranquillo Barnetta (Eintracht Frankfurt), Valon Behrami (Napoli), Blerim Dzemaili (Napoli), Gelson Fernandes (Freiburg), Gokhan Inler (Napoli), Xherdan Shaqiri (Bayern Munich), Valentin Stocker (Basel)

FW: Josip Drmic (Nuremberg), Mario Gavranovic (Zurich), Admir Mehmedi (Freiburg), Haris Seferovic (Real Sociedad), Granit Xhaka (Borussia Monchengladbach)

Coach: Ottmar Hitzfeld

Like Belgium, the Schweizer Nati also have an abundance of youthful talent now plying their trade in some of Europe's biggest leagues, fast accruing top-level experience. For this reason, there is genuine hope of matching the feats of the Swiss sides of yesterday by reaching the Quarter-Final stage.

One of the great European Coaches, Ottmar Hitzfeld, will be in charge in what will be his last tournament, and his methodical approach will no doubt be transmitted to his players, as he looks to negotiate a tricky group. A 4-2-3-1 system will be deployed with question marks remaining over the quality of three of the four defenders: Johan Djourou, Steve Von Bergen and Ricardo Rodriguez. The fourth defender - Stephan Lichtsteiner - has quality in abundance, and a terrific engine which has served Juventus so well since his arrival at the club in 2011.

The real quality, however, lies in the Swiss midfield and attack, with captain Gokhan Inler and Valon Behrami dictating play in the centre; Bayern Munich's Xherdan Shaqiri, Granit Xhaka and Valentin Stocker will interchange positions behind the lone striker, expected to be Josip Drmic. Once a regular, Gelson Fernandes would only be introduced to add more defensive protection when defending a lead.

Having led the Swiss to their second successive World Cup which saw them unbeaten in qualifying, Hitzfeld will look to end his tenure with a flourish and a lasting legacy, before stepping down and handing the reins to his successor, Vladmir Petkovic. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Granit Xhaka
One To Watch Out For: Haris Seferovic
Big Tournament For: Gokhan Inler

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D

2014-06-15T17:03:00.000+01:00

Part four of FFV's eight-part World Cup preview now turns its attention to Group D, which contains three teams who have won seven World Cups between them - Italy (four wins); Uruguay (two); and England (with that solitary win in 1966) - and group outsiders Costa Rica.

Costa Rica

World Cup record: Group Stages 1990

Squad:

GK Keylor Navas (Levante), Patrick Pemberton (Alajuelense) Daniel Cambronero (Herediano).

DF: Johnny Acosta (Alajuelense), Giancarlo Gonzalez (Columbus Crew), Michael Umana (Saprissa), Oscar Duarte (Bruges), Waylon Francis (Columbus Crew), Heiner Mora (Saprissa), Junior Diaz (Mainz 05), Christian Gamboa (Rosenborg), Roy Miller (New York Red Bulls).

MF: Celso Borges (AIK), Christian Bolanos (FC Copenhagen), Esteban Granados (Herediano), Michael Barrantes (Aalesund), Yeltsin Tejeda (Saprissa), Diego Calvo (Valerenga), Jose Miguel Cubero (Herediano).

FW: Bryan Ruiz (PSV Eindhoven, on loan from Fulham), Joel Campbell (Olympiakos, on loan from Arsenal), Randall Brenes (Cartagines), Marco Urena (FC Kuban Krasnodar).

Coach: Jose Luis Pinto

Los Ticos needed a tougher draw in the group stages. Facing the likes of England, Italy and Uruguay to qualify for the knockout stages would be a struggle for the best of teams, however, the Central American outfit seem to have embraced the challenge. Blessed with the best crop of players since the cult side who performed so admirably in Italia 90, they are fearless in their approach and qualified for these finals in second place behind perennial CONCACAF heavyweights, the United States.

Pinto likes to play a traditional 4-4-2, with Arsenal striker Joel Campbell spearheading the attack with captain Bryan Ruiz playing off him in support. The loss of Alvaro Saborio will be felt, especially if Los Ticos require another attacking outlet when chasing the game. Jorge Bolanos - still performing at a high level since his breakthrough in the mid-noughties with Deportivo Saprissa - will provide width on the right, with Diego Calvo offering pace and directness on the left. Calvo will be a handful for any right-sided defender, so opposing Coaches may decide to double-up on him to prevent him from doing any damage.

Celso Borges and Yeltsin Tejeda will dictate matters in central midfield in front of a flat-back four of Jose Salvatierra; the highly-rated Oscar Duarte (born in Nicaragua); Michael Umana and Junior Diaz - the latter earning a starting berth after Everton right-back Bryan Oviedo's unfortunate injury. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Joel Campbell
One To Watch Out For: Oscar Duarte
Big Tournament For: Bryan Ruiz

England

World Cup record: Winners 1966

Squad:

GK: Joe Hart (Manchester City), Fraser Forster (Celtic), Ben Foster (West Bromwich Albion)

DF: Leighton Baines (Everton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Southampton), Chris Smalling (Manchester United)

MF: Ross Barkley (Everton), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Adam Lallana (Southampton), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), James Milner (Manchester City), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Liverpool), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal)

FW: Rickie Lambert (Southampton), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Daniel Welbeck (Manchester United)

Coach: Roy Hodgson

"The Golden Generation is dead, long live the Golden Generation!!", proclaim the England faithful, believing that the good times are just around the corner. Retaining only a few members of the last 'great' bunch of players expected to claim a first world crown for the Three Lions in 48 years, there is genuine optimism that Roy Hodgson's men will make a decent showing at these finals in the hope of gaining enough tournament experience before a realistic assault on the 2016 European Championships in France.

The ex-Udinese and Liverpool Coach has brought European, Premier League and international tournament experience to a relatively-young squad still yet to reach their full potential in terms of age and success. The fact that he is the first England boss in a very long time with prior experience of what it is like to manage a squad at a World Cup finals speaks measures - and in light of this, he has instilled a much more calmer, rational approach in terms of preparation; levels of expectancy and belief in the younger players in his squad. Out has gone the media circus which has surrounded the national team for well over 30 years; in has come a sports psychologist (Dr Steve Peters) to help prepare the English players in the rigours and mental challenges of tournament football and expectations - and overcome the mental block of them all: how to win a penalty shoot-out.

Hodgson likes to play a 4-2-3-1 system, with a high-pressing, fast-paced approach - especially on the counter-attack. Pivotal to this are flying attackers Raheem Sterling; the currently-injured Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain; Danny Welbeck; in-form Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge; and Wayne Rooney - who has flattered to deceive in his previous three international tournaments. So much rests on the influential Steven Gerrard, who plays in the deep-lying role he now occupies for his club side, given his advancing years. Club-mate Jordan Henderson is expected to get the nod to partner him in central midfield ahead of the more creative Jack Wilshere, with the latter often criticised for being too lightweight and losing possession of the ball too often.

Manchester United's Danny Welbeck - a favourite of the England boss - will start on the left-hand side of the attack ahead of Lallana, with left-back Leighton Baines providing overlapping runs and crosses an expose opposing right-backs. The Sterling/Glen Johnson combination will be a likely feature on the right, as they look to transmit their understanding at club level onto the international area.

Doubts still remain vis-à-vis Johnson's defensive capabilities, but in light of competition for the right-back berth, the Liverpool man will start on the right of a four-man defence. First-choice defenders Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka will continue their defensive partnership, with Leighton Baines finally establishing himself as first-choice left-back ahead of long-time regular Ashley Cole. But big things are again expected of Wayne Rooney, who after years of disappointing performances may find his almost-guaranteed starting position under threat should he fail to deliver either in the first two group games.

If the Three Lions are chasing the game, expect a more attacking 4-3-3 formation, with Lallana, Wilshere, and Everton's Ross Barkley stepping into the fray. Prediction: Group stage exit.

Star Man: Steven Gerrard
One To Watch Out For: Raheem Sterling
Big Tournament For: Wayne Rooney

Italy

World Cup record: Winners 1934, 1938, 1982, 2006

Squad:

GK: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Mattia Perin (Genoa), Salvatore Sirigu (Paris Saint-Germain)

DF: Ignazio Abate (Milan), Andrea Barzagli (Juventus), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Matteo Darmian (Torino), Mattia De Sciglio (Milan), Gabriel Paletta (Parma)

MF: Alberto Aquilani (Fiorentina), Antonio Candreva (Lazio), Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Claudio Marchisio (Juventus), Marco Parolo (Parma), Andrea Pirlo (Juventus), Thiago Motta (Paris Saint-Germain), Marco Verratti (Paris Saint-Germain)

FW: Mario Balotelli (Milan), Antonio Cassano (Parma), Alessio Cerci (Torino), Ciro Immobile (Torino), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli)

Coach: Cesare Prandelli

Typically slow starters in tournaments, the Azzurri will not make the same mistakes as 2010, where as reigning champions, thought they could merely turn up and win. Coach Cesare Prandelli has eliminated such complacency, and introduced competition for every starting berth, thus keeping each of his players on their toes. Some will be relied on for their extensive tournament experience and dedication to the Italian cause - Gianluigi Buffon; Giorgio Chiellini; Daniele De Rossi; and the magnificent playmaker Andrea Pirlo among the few - however, these core players have also been in outstanding form for their respective club sides, Juventus and Roma.

After a great showing in last year's Confederations Cup, pre-World Cup finals form was patchy at best, forcing Prandelli into making some incredibly tough decisions to omit players nailed on to make the final 23. In light of this, Fiorentina's Giuseppe Rossi - widely regarded as the Nazionale's most natural goalscorer - failed to make the cut despite making a remarkable recovery to be fit in time; and Luca Toni - who at the age of 37 scored 19 goals in a remarkable season at Verona. Much will now depend on temperamental striker Mario Balotelli, who endured a troubled season at Milan. On his day, he is unplayable; but can Italy rely on him to deliver when it matters - especially when opposition defenders will use every trick to roughen him up or put him off his game? Prandelli will insist the ex-Manchester City striker keep his head down and work quietly and diligently, and strike when a chance really presents itself.

The notion seems to be that if you stop Pirlo, you stop Italy. You would be right to a point, as everything great the Italians do goes through the stylish Juventus midfielder. However, with the emergence of Marco Verratti who is getting regular game time with Paris Saint-Germain and now with the national side, Prandelli may opt to start with both Pirlo and Verratti in the same line-up, in the hope that opposing midfielders will stop the more youthful bursts and passes from the younger midfielder, allowing Pirlo to distribute the ball at will - with De Rossi adding bite in midfield to protect his two companions.

Prandelli will start with a 4-3-3, but is not impartial to using a 4-5-1, or the Juventus-inspired 3-5-2, using regular Juve defenders Barzagli, Bonucci and Chiellini in front of legendary 'keeper Gianluigi Buffon. In a back-four, Milan's Ignazio Abate and Matteo Di Sciglio will occupy both full-back berths, and will push up to support Antonio Candreva and Claudio Marchisio. Prediction: Quarter-Finals

Star Man: Andrea Pirlo
One To Watch Out For: Matteo Darmian
Big Tournament For: Mario Balotelli

Uruguay

World Cup record: Winners 1930, 1950

Squad:

GK: Fernando Muslera (Galatasaray), Martin Silva (Vasco da Gama), Rodrigo Munoz (Libertad)

DF: Maximiliano Pereira (Benfica), Diego Lugano (West Bromwich Albion), Diego Godin, Jose Maria Gimenez (both Atletico Madrid), Sebastian Coates (Liverpool), Martin Caceres (Juventus), Jorge Fucile (Porto)

MF: Alvaro Gonzalez (Lazio), Alvaro Pereira (Sao Paulo), Walter Gargano (Parma), Egidio Arevalo Rios (Morelia), Diego Perez (Bologna), Cristian Rodriguez (Atletico Madrid), Gaston Ramirez (Southampton), Nicolas Lodeiro (Botafogo)

FW: Luis Suarez (Liverpool), Edinson Cavani (Paris St-Germain), Abel Hernandez (Palermo), Diego Forlan (Cerezo Osaka), Christian Stuani (Espanyol)

Coach: Oscar Washington Tabarez

Semi-Finalists in 2010. Copa America winners in 2011. La Celeste would be regarded as one of the pre-tournament favourites to continue their recent revival on the international stage, but with a squad that has not been refreshed since their 2011 triumph in Argentina, this may be a tournament too far for this squad of veterans.

Preferring a 4-4-2, Uruguay's most successful Coach Oscar Washington Tabarez will line his battle-hardened and most-trusted generals up across the four defensive positions: full-backs Martin Caceres and Maxi Pereira; and captain Diego Lugano - who barely featured for West Bromwich Albion last season - and the brilliant Diego Godin of Atletico Madrid. Ahead of them will be midfield destroyer Egidio Arevalo Rios and Nicolas Lodeiro who will be given another chance to shine after blowing his initial attempt to showcase his talents after getting sent off in the first game of the 2010 World Cup. Cristian Rodriguez and Christian Stuani will provide the width on both sides of midfield.

Despite the shock of damaging his meniscus two weeks before the start of the tournament, so much will depend on record goal scorer Luis Suarez - joint-winner of the European Golden Boot award with Cristiano Ronaldo last season - to fire in the goals to take them as far as possible; and Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani who will play as a second striker. Both are world-class strikers, regularly finding the back of the net for their clubs; but like other strikers, will rely on quality service to feed on. However, huge question marks remain as to when the Liverpool striker will return. Odds are that he will be rested for the opener against Costa Rica, and given enough time to rest before his services will be called upon in the crucial second match against England. Diego Forlan will now feature as reserve striker to add his experience and eye for goal, and may feature as a third striker should Tabarez opt for a more attacking 4-3-3 formation. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Luis Suarez
One To Watch Out For: Nicolas Lodeiro
Big Tournament For: Diego Godin

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C

2014-06-14T20:59:00.000+01:00

Part three of FFV's eight-part World Cup preview now turns its attention to Group C - arguably the most evenly-matched of all the groups, containing Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast and Japan.

Colombia

World Cup record: Round of 16 1990

Squad:

GK: David Ospina (Nice), Faryd Mondragon (Deportivo Cali), Camilo Vargas (Santa Fe)

DF: Mario Yepes (Atalanta), Cristian Zapata (AC Milan), Carlos Valdes (San Lorenzo), Eder Alvarez Balanta (River Plate), Santiago Arias (PSV Eindhoven), Camilo Zuniga (Napoli), Pablo Armero (West Ham)

MF: Carlos Sanchez (Elche), Fredy Guarin (Internazionale), Abel Aguilar (Toulouse), Aldo Leao Ramirez (Morelia), Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto), Víctor Ibarbo (Cagliari), James Rodriguez (Monaco), Juan Guillermo Cuadrado (Fiorentina), Alexander Mejia (Atletico Nacional)

FW: Jackson Martinez (Porto), Carlos Bacca (Sevilla), Adrian Ramos (Hertha Berlin), Teofilo Gutierrez (River Plate)

Coach: Jose Pekerman

Coach Jose Pekerman coached Argentina to the Quarter-Finals of the 2006 World Cup before succumbing to Germany on penalties. This time, he hopes to lead Los Cafeteros to at least a spot in the last-eight in familiar surroundings, and there is nothing to suggest why the South Americans cannot achieve that target. In previous World Cup finals, the worst opponents have been their own , which proved to be their downfall in 1990, where they failed to deliver on their undoubted promise; 1994 saw them flatter to deceive after an impressive qualification campaign; and the 1998 edition - their last appearance at a finals - saw Faustino Asprilla walk out on the squad. The mild-mannered, and meticulous Pekerman will temper any situation which may attempt to spiral out of control in attempt to fulfil his squad's enormous potential.

The Argentina-born Coach favours a possession-based game (anyone remember that great 27-pass move, culminating in Esteban Cambiasso scoring in their 6-0 group stage win over Serbia and Montenegro in 2006?), with his attackers asked to press the opposition high up the field. Blessed with a team full of individual talent, he led the Colombians to second place in the CONMEBOL qualification group; and has slowly inspired a large degree of cohesiveness and fluidity to their play, with Porto's James Rodriguez often interchanging positions and passes with fellow attackers Juan Cuadrado and Victor Ibarbo.

It is a shame that the World Cup finals will not be blessed with arguably the best no. 9 in world football - Radamel Falcao - and while it would be too far to suggest that teams have been built around is strengths, it is also fair to say that this side could flourish in the great striker's absence. Had Falcao made the finals, Pekerman would have played a 4-4-2, with Teofilo Gutierrez in support. Now, Pekerman has to think what system suits his high-pressing game without compromising the defence, so expect a 4-3-3 formation to be deployed. A lot will depend on the ageing central defensive duo of Mario Yepes and Luis Perea to stem the opposition, who will no doubt get the ball out of their area and distribute the ball to central midfielders Abel Aguilar or Carlos Sanchez. Attacks will largely be launched by those two by quickly spraying the ball to - and supporting - the attacking trident of Cuadrado, Rodriguez and Ibarbo. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: James Rodriguez
Ones To Watch Out For: Juan Cuadrado and Juan Quintero
Big Tournament For: Jackson Martinez

Greece

World Cup record: Group stage 1994, 2010

Squad:

GK: Orestis Karnezis (Granada), Panagiotis Glykos (PAOK), Stefanos Kapino (Panathinaikos)

DF: Kostas Manolas, Jose Holebas (both Olympiakos), Sokratis Papastathopoulos (Borussia Dortmund), Vangelis Moras (Verona), Giorgos Tzavellas (PAOK), Loukas Vyntra (Levante), Vasilis Torosidis (Roma)

MF: Alexandros Tziolis (Kayserispor), Andreas Samaris, Giannis Maniatis (both Olympiakos), Kostas Katsouranis (PAOK), Giorgos Karagounis (Fulham), Panagiotis Tachtsidis (Torino), Giannis Fetfatzidis (Genoa), Lazaros Christodoulopoulos, Panagiotis Kone (both Bologna)

FW: Dimitris Salpingidis (PAOK), Giorgos Samaras (Celtic), Kostas Mitroglou (Fulham), Fanis Gekas (Konyaspor).

Coach: Fernando Santos

The days of defensive football are gone, right? Right! Out has gone the cautious-first approach under European Championship-winning Coach Otto Rehhagel, replaced by Portuguese-born Santos' more attack-minded philosophy. A sea change was required after another poor World Cup finals showing in 2010, and once Santos was installed in post, the amiable ex-Porto Coach led the Ethniki to the Quarter-Finals of Euro 2012 - a highly-respectable showing, and have been in and around the world's top-15 in the FIFA rankings.

Santos has retained the defensive ethos of his predecessor, but his attacking instinct and tactical nous often sees his shift formations from his preferred 4-3-3 to either a 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-1-1. Promising young defender Kostas Manolas and Sokratis Papastathopoulos sit in the centre of defence, with Jose Holebas and Roma's Vasilis Torosidis going up and down both flanks. Many expect Greece's midfield to be overrun, with captain Giorgos Karagounis and PAOK's Kostas Katsouranis battle-scarred from competition for many a year - probably a year too many in this, a much faster-paced game these days. Should one be sacrificed, expect the captain to be dropped in favour of Giannis Maniatis.

Any other tournament, Fulham's Kostas Mitroglou would have been first-choice to lead the Greek attack, but after barely featuring in his club side's eventual relegation from the Premier League last season, Fanis Gekas will get the nod to be the focal point of the attack, with Giorgos Samaras and Dimitris Salpingidis providing able assistance from wide attacking positions. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Giorgos Samaras
One To Watch Out For: Kostas Manolas
Big Tournament For: Jose Holebas

Ivory Coast

World Cup record: Group Stage 2006, 2010

Squad:

GK: Boubacar Barry (Lokeren), Sylvain Gbohouo (Sewe Sport), Sayouba Mande (Stabaek)

DF: Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro (Toulouse), Serge Aurier (Toulouse), Souleyman Bamba (Trabzonspor), Arthur Boka (VfB Stuttgart), Viera Diarrassouba (Caykur Rizespor), Constant Djakpa (Eintracht Frankfurt), Kolo Toure (Liverpool), Didier Zokora (Trabzonspor)

MF: Geoffroy Serey Die (Basel), Ismael Diomande (St Etienne), Max Gradel (St Etienne), Cheick Tiote (Newcastle United), Yaya Toure (Manchester City), Didier Ya Konan (Hannover 96)

FW: Mathis Bolly (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Wilfried Bony (Swansea City), Didier Drogba (Galatasaray), Gervinho (AS Roma), Salomon Kalou (Lille), Giovanni Sio (Basel)

Coach: Sabri Lamouchi

The Elephants have flattered to deceive over a number of years now both within their confederation and on the world stage. Touted as odds-on favourites in at least the last five editions of the African Nations Cup, they have failed to win the tournament, and given the individual talent at their disposal, that is a considerably poor return. In previous appearances at World Cup finals, they have failed to progress past the group stages; but this year may buck the trend, given their individual and collective strength - and the strengths of their group opponents.

Ex-Internazionale star-turned-Coach Sabri Lamouchi has been charged to lead the Ivorians into unchartered territory by making it out of the group, and given the club form of a number of players in his squad, it should come as no surprise regarding their possession. Combining individual skill and physical power - both important in energy-sapping conditions in Brazil - the team will be built around an experienced spine of Kolo Toure in defence, Yaya Toure in central midfield and captain Didier Drogba in what will largely be a tried-and-trusted 4-3-3 formation. Winger Gervinho, who had a sparkling season with Roma, is currently in the form of his life; as is Yaya Toure, who scored more than 20 goals in City's championship-winning season.

The highly-rated Serge Aurier - expected to replace Bacary Sagna in the right of Arsenal's defence - will provide continual assists and defensive cover in attack along the right-hand side of the Ivorian pitch. Arthur Boka on the other side of defence may not be able to offer the same kind of explosiveness as Aurier, however, his experience may serve him well when defending against opposition (right) wingers. Most of the play will predictably go through Yaya Toure who will continually make his usual lung-bursting runs to home in on goal and strike when in range, and track back to provide the defensive screen in front of older brother Kolo Toure and Souleymane Bamba. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Didier Drogba
One To Watch Out For: Serge Aurier
Big Tournament For: Yaya Toure

Japan

World Cup record: Round of 16 2002, 2010

Squad:

GK: Eiji Kawashima (Standard Liege), Shusaku Nishikawa (Urawa Reds), Shuichi Gonda (FC Tokyo)

DF: Masahiko Inoha (Jubilo Iwata), Yasuyuki Konno (Gamba Osaka), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter Milan), Masato Morishige (FC Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Schalke), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Hiroki Sakai (Hannover), Gotoku Sakai (Stuttgart)

MF: Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Makoto Hasebe (Nuremberg), Toshihiro Aoyama (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka)

FW: Keisuke Honda (AC Milan), Yoshito Okubo (Kawasaki Frontale), Shinji Okazaki (Mainz), Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United), Hiroshi Kiyotake (Nuremberg), Yoichiro Kakitani (Cerezo Osaka), Manabu Saito (Yokohama F Marinos), Yuya Osako (1860 Munich)

Coach: Alberto Zaccheroni

Having topped the Asian qualifying zone's Group B, optimism leading into these finals is high, but with a degree of caution. Why? The nation's continued defensive frailties keep letting them down - they just do not be able to keep a clean sheet. Since September 2012 - when the Blue Samurai kept three clean sheets in each of their three-successive wins - 25 official games have been played, with 47 goals scored, with 44 goals conceded. To be considered a good international side, these defensive frailties need to be addressed; and it is a fair assumption that current Coach, ex-Milan and Juventus trainer Alberto Zaccheroni, has failed to eliminate this particular weakness.

That is not to say that Zaccheroni places a lot of emphasis on his attacking talent in the belief that they can outscore their opposition, but he is heavily reliant on players such as Manchester United's Shinji Kagawa; Keisuke Honda - who has endured a torrid time at Milan; and Shinju Okazaki - who scored some vital goals to secure their passage to these finals - to provide the creative thrust and goals to take them into the round of 16. With boundless energy, 'Zac' prefers his sides to play in a 4-2-3-1 system, with a lot of running required to press the opposition into conceding possession and short, incisive passing. Given the technical abilities of his attacking players, and Internazionale's Yuto Nagatomo, this should not be a problem. The only problem is believing they are better than the opposition, as it is their mindset and ability to lose focus their biggest downfall. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Shinji Kagawa
One To Watch Out For: Shinju Okazaki
Big Tournament For: Keisuke Honda
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B

2014-06-13T22:20:00.000+01:00

Part two of FFV's eight-part World Cup preview focusses on Group B, which contains the current World Cup holders (Spain); the first European team to qualify for this year's finals (Holland); a dynamic South American side (Chile) that qualified in third place; and one of Asia's strongest footballing nations in Australia.

Australia

World Cup record: Group stage 2010

Squad:

GK: Mat Ryan (Club Bruges), Mitchell Langerak (Borussia Dortmund), Eugene Galekovic (Adelaide United)

DF: Jason Davidson (Heracles Almelo), Matthew Spiranovic (Western Sydney Wanderers), Ivan Franjic (Brisbane Roar), Bailey Wright (Preston North End), Ryan McGowan (Shandong Luneng), Alex Wilkinson (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors)

MF: Oliver Bozanic (Luzern), Mark Bresciano (Al Gharafa, Qatar), James Holland (Austria Vienna), Mile Jedinak (Crystal Palace), Mark Milligan (Melbourne Victory), Dario Vidosic (Sion), Matt McKay (Brisbane Roar), James Troisi (Atalanta), Massimo Luongo (Swindon)

FW: Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls), Matthew Leckie (FSV Frankfurt 1899), Tommy Oar (Utrecht), Ben Halloran (Fortuna Duesseldorf), Adam Taggart (Newcastle Jets)

Coach: Ange Postecoglu

The Socceroos are on a hiding to nothing. Given a nightmare group draw, one of the Asian confederation's strongest nations will nevertheless attempt to give a good account of themselves against the current world champions and 2010 runners-up (Spain and the Netherlands, respectively), and one of the dark horses of the tournament in Chile.

Looking to emulate the feats of antipdoean neighbours New Zealand - who achieved a creditable draw against then-reigning champions Italy in the 2010 World Cup - Coach Ange Postecoglu has steadily dispensed with their own "Golden Generation" and introduced a stream of exciting youngsters - forwards Matthew Leckie and Adam Taggart as examples - to restore a faith in a national side that is quickly diminishing, despite the increasing strength of its domestic A-League.

Postegoclu favours a 4-3-3 system - a departure from tactics deployed by previous Aussie Coaches Pim Verbeek and Holger Osieck - with his attack-minded approach making him the most successful Coach in domestic football. He will look to transmit that positive attitude to his players as they use the World Cup Finals as a springboard for Asian Cup success on home soil in January 2015. Depending on the state of play as the group progresses, the ex-Brisbane Roar Coach may opt for a defensive 4-5-1 to stem the attacking tides of their group opponents, with wide attackers Tommy Oar and Matthew Leckie dropping further back into midfield.

A relatively-inexperienced defence consisting of full-backs Ivan Franjic and Jason Davidson will constantly look to overlap and offer support to attackers Leckie and the tricky Oar. Crystal Palace's Mile Jedinak will provide the defensive screen and discipline in central midfield, allowing midfielders Mark Milligan and Mark Bresciano to support the trident of attackers in Leckie, Oar, and record goal scorer Tim Cahill. Prediction: Group stage exit

Star Man: Tim Cahill
One To Watch Out For:
Big Tournament For: Mile Jedinak

Chile

World Cup record: Third-place 1962

Squad:

GK: Claudio Bravo (Real Sociedad), Johnny Herrera (Universidad de Chile), Cristopher Toselli (Universidad Catolica)

DF: Gary Medel (Cardiff City), Jose Rojas (Universidad de Chile), Eugenio Mena (Santos), Gonzalo Jara (Nottingham Forest)

MF: Arturo Vidal (Juventus), Mauricio Isla (Juventus), Marcelo Diaz (Basel), Francisco Silva (Osasuna), Felipe Gutierrez (FC Twente), Jose Pedro Fuenzalida (Colo Colo), Carlos Carmona (Atalanta), Jean Beausejour (Wigan Athletic), Charles Aranguiz (Internacional), Miiko Albornoz (Malmo)

FW: Alexis Sanchez (Barcelona), Eduardo Vargas (Valencia), Jorge Valdivia (Palmeiras), Mauricio Pinilla (Cagliari), Esteban Paredes (Colo Colo), Fabian Orellana (Celta Vigo)

Coach: Jorge Sampaoli

Coach Jorge Sampaoli, brought in to salvage Chile's faltering World Cup qualification bid, has overseen a remarkable turnaround in La Roja's fortunes. His high-tempo approach has found favour with an energetic squad - led by Juventus' midfield dynamo Arturo Vidal - yielding a remarkable run of 10 wins and three draws since his appointment in December 2012.

A disciple of former national Coach Marcelo Bielsa - who led Chile to the 2010 World Cup finals in 2010 - Sampaoli is as temperamental as his Argentine-born mentor; and his high-pressing, 'attack-is-the-best-form-of-defence' mentality in a 4-3-1-2 formation makes it easy for the likes of the tireless midfield duo of Vidal and Internacional's Charles Aranguiz to take turns to push further up and support playmaker Jorge Valdivia. Valdivia will most likely start games to break down much tougher defences, but do not be surprised if he is left out of their opening game against Australia. Basle's playmaker Marcelo Diaz will pull the strings from a deep-lying position - like Spain's Xavi - and will look to spray early balls through to the pacy strike duo of Alexis Sanchez and Eduardo Vargas. Prediction: Round of 16.

Star Man: Arturo Vidal
One To Watch Out For: Eduardo Vargas
Big Tournament For: Alexis Sanchez

Holland

World Cup record: Runners-up 1974, 1978

Squad:

GK: Jasper Cillessen (Ajax), Tim Krul (Newcastle), Michel Vorm (Swansea)

DF: Daley Blind (Ajax), Daryl Janmaat (Feyenoord), Terence Kongolo (Feyenoord), Bruno Martins Indi (Feyenoord), Joel Veltman (Ajax), Paul Verhaegh (Augsburg), Ron Vlaar (Aston Villa), Stefan de Vrij (Feyenoord)

MF: Jordy Clasie (Feyenoord), Leroy Fer (Norwich), Jonathan De Guzman (Swansea), Nigel de Jong (AC Milan), Wesley Sneijder (Galatasaray), Georginio Wijnaldum (PSV Eindhoven)

FW: Memphis Depay (PSV), Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (Schalke 04), Dirk Kuijt (Fenerbahce), Jeremain Lens (Dynamo Kiev), Robin van Persie (Manchester United), Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich)

Coach: Louis Van Gaal

Dutch Master Louis Van Gaal will look to end his second stint as national team Coach with a flourish before taking over the managerial reins at Manchester United. Having steered his team through an emphatic qualifying campaign - being the first team from Europe to qualify for the finals - the former Ajax and Bayern Munich Coach will ensure his squad maintain their form throughout a difficult set of group games. But they have the quality to spring a surprise or two when least expected.

With the majority of players playing outside of the 'big four' leagues in Europe, the Dutch faithful have downplayed their chances of success, but their understated approach could work in their favour. World-class players in the shape of Robin Van Persie, Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder have the ego to wreak havoc in any dressing room, however, the counterbalance is the youthful, raw vibrancy of players playing in their first major tournament.

Van Gaal has proved over the years he is not afraid to place his trust in youth, so expect the likes of Bruno Martins Indi, Ajax's Daley Blind and Daryl Janmaat to occupy three of the four defensive positions. Blind is a carbon copy of his father (Danny), with his excellent reading of the game, but lacking pace to keep up with the quickest strikers. The Red Devils' Manager-in-waiting will play a tried-and-trusted 4-3-3 in the Dutch mould, with veterans Nigel De Jong and Wesley Sneijder working alongside Swansea City's Jonathan de Guzman, but may miss the drive, energy and technical abilities of Roma's Kevin Strootman who misses the finals through a long-term injury. Should he look to keep his side in the game before switching to a 4-3-3 formation, expect Van Gaal to start with a 5-3-2, with Jeremain Lens making way for defender Stefan De Vrij. Prediction: Group stage exit

Star Man: Robin Van Persie
One To Watch Out For: Daley Blind
Big Tournament For: Arjen Robben

Spain

World Cup record: Winners 2010

Squad:

GK: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Pepe Reina (Liverpool), David De Gea (Manchester United)

DF: Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Raul Albiol (Napoli), Javi Martinez (Bayern Munich), Juanfran (Atletico Madrid), Jordi Alba (Barcelona), Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)

MF: Xavi (Barcelona), Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Koke (Atletico Madrid), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona), Santi Cazorla (Arsenal), Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona), Juan Mata (Manchester United), David Silva (Manchester City)

FW: Pedro (Barcelona), Diego Costa (Atletico Madrid), David Villa (Atletico Madrid), Fernando Torres (Chelsea)

Coach: Vicente Del Bosque

Current world champions. Reigning European champions. A squad that contains Champions League-winning players from Real Madrid and La Liga winners Atletico Madrid, not to mention the heartbeat of the Barcelona midfield. Anything less than a semi-final appearance will be deemed to be a failure, despite the retirement of the inspirational Carles Puyol, and injury to Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcantara.

Vicente Del Bosque's attempt to become the first Coach to win back-to-back World Cups will largely hinge on the current - albeit ageing - squad's ability to continue with the "tiki-taka" philosophy which has yielded so much international success. The signs are good, and unlike Euro 2012 - where the now-infamous 'false no. 9' approach was adopted - La Roja Furia now have an out-and-out striker in the naturalised Brazilian Diego Costa, who after a prolific season for Atletico Madrid, will join Chelsea next season for £32 million fee was agreed. Former no. 1 striker - and record goal scorer - David Villa often started on the left before bursting through the centre to bag his record number of goals. Costa is more of a physical threat in the air and plays much further upfield, using his body to hold up play and bring wide attackers David Silva and the great Andres Iniesta into play. The only caveat being that Costa limped out early of the Champions League Final and is hardly in the kind of form or mindset to lead the Spanish attack. Del Bosque may live to regret not taking the in-form Juventus target-man Fernando Llorente with him.

A 4-2-3-1 system will continue to be deployed with Costa spearheading the attack, with the attacking trio of Xavi, Silva and Iniesta in support. Real Madrid's Xabi Alonso will provide the supplies from deep-midfield, with Sergio Busquets sitting in front of the back four. The weakest link is in central defence with Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique not often on the same wavelength, which is why Puyol's absence will be sorely missed. In addition, Casillas' lack of matches for Real Madrid over the past two seasons may prove to be Spain's undoing. Prediction: Semi-finals

Star Man: Andres Iniesta
One To Watch Out For: Koke
Big Tournament For: Sergio Ramos

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group A

2014-06-12T23:38:00.001+01:00

Football fans of the world, unite! It's here! It is actually here! Four years since the last edition of the FIFA World Cup - and seven years since Brazil was awarded the vote as host nation for 2014 - the biggest show on earth is upon us as the 32 competing nations commence their final preparations ahead of their respective opening group games.

The build-up to the World Cup has not been without incident. Endless delays in the construction of new stadia; the needless deaths of workers in their bid to accelerate the construction of said stadia; protests across the streets of Brazil for monies ploughed into the tournament as opposed to addressing socio-economic issues. And Michael Garcia - the US lawyer commissioned to investigate allegations of corruption in the bidding process for rights to hold both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, due to submit his findings to the FIFA Ethics Committee next week, with serious concerns raised by key partners adidas, Sony, and Hyundai.

But enough of off-field antics - we'll leave FIFA and their conscience to their ethics committee. The World Cup - as always - should be about the football. So let us talk about it. First up, Group A - with Group B to follow on Friday.

Brazil

World Cup record: Winners 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002

Squad:

GK: Julio Cesar (Toronto FC), Jefferson (Botafogo), Victor (Atletico Mineiro)
DF: Dani Alves (Barcelona), Thiago Silva (Paris St-Germain), David Luiz (Chelsea), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Dante (Bayern Munich), Maxwell (Paris St-Germain), Henrique (Paris St-Germain), Maicon (Roma)
MF: Fernandinho (Manchester City), Paulinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Oscar (Chelsea), Ramires (Chelsea), Hernanes (Internazionale), Willian (Chelsea), Bernard (Shakhtar Donetsk), Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg)
FW: Hulk (Zenit St Petersburg), Fred (Fluminense), Neymar (Barcelona), Jo (Atletico Mineiro)

Coach: Luiz Felipe Scolari

Tournament hosts. Tournament favourites. Purveyors of the beautiful game. No pressure, then. Selecao Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, with one World Cup win already under his belt, has opted for youth and vibrancy in a bid to retain the mood and optimism following their spectacular Confederations Cup triumph, culminating in that rather-dazzling 3-0 win over World Cup-holders Spain in the Maracana in 2013.

In a marked contrast to 2002, Scolari has pinned his hopes on a select number of outfield players who have yet to reach their respective peaks, yet are expected to claim the biggest prize in football. The likes of Oscar, Paulinho, Hulk, and pin-up boy Neymar, may all be taking part in their first World Cup, but such is their talent and promise, they are guaranteed a starting place in what is a settled starting XI. Having favoured a 4-4-2 over the years, the Brazil Coach will start with a 4-2-3-1 system for the Finals, with David Luiz and captain Thiago Silva keeping things tight at the back; and Marcelo and Dani Alves providing both attacking thrusts and defensive tracking cover down the flanks. Tottenham Hotspur's Paulinho will add some guile in his support of Oscar through the centre, plus assisting Luiz Gustavo who will sit in front of the defence.

It is up front where Scolari has real options. It is likely he will start with Neymar, Oscar and Hulk on the left, centre and right side respectively, of a three-man attack to support lone striker Fred, whose forward play will look to bring his attacking support into play. Both Hulk and Neymar have the ability to cut inside onto their stronger foot (respectively), with the former's booming shot expected to be a handful for opposition 'keepers. Should Plan A start to unravel, the Coach may opt for a 4-3-3, with Hulk replaced for the tireless Ramires. His disciplined approach would see his slot into the centre of midfield, allowing Oscar and Neymar to push further forward.

The popular Scolari has used the passion and enthusiasm of an expectant nation, whilst portraying his team as a symbol of joy and celebration, to lift the spirit of a nation amidst a backdrop of political tension. Heaven forbid if the same level of expectancy falls flat on its face as it so cruelly did in 1950... Prediction: Finalists

Star Man: Neymar
One To Watch Out For: Paulinho
Big Tournament For: Thiago Silva

Cameroon

World Cup record: Quarter-Finals 1990

Squad:

GK: Charles Itandje (Konyaspor), Sammy Ndjock (Fetihespor), Loic Feudjou (Coton Sport)
DF: Allan Nyom (Granada), Dany Nounkeu (Besiktas), Cedric Djeugoue (Coton Sport, Aurelien Chedjou (Galatasaray), Nicolas Nkoulou (Marseille), Henri Bedimo (Lyon), Benoit Assou-Ekotto (Tottenham Hotspur)
MF: Eyong Enoh (Antalyaspor), Jean Makoun (Rennes), Joel Matip (Schalke), Stephane Mbia (QPR), Landry Nguemo (Bordeaux), Alex Song (Barcelona), Edgar Salli (Lens)
FW: Samuel Eto'o (unattached), Eric Choupo Moting (Mainz), Benjamin Moukandjo (Nancy), Vincent Aboubakar (Lorient), Pierre Webo (Fenerbahce), Fabrice Olinga (Zulte-Waregem)

Coach: Volker Finker

The Indomitable Lions - having qualified for their seventh World Cup Finals - are a team fraught with problems, both on and off the field. Star man Samuel Eto'o - he of 'creaking' legs fame, and with a wounded ego after being let go by Chelsea - will lead a team whom he accused of not wanting to pass the ball to him. But one of the great strikers of recent times still has the quality to steal a goal or two in a team built around his considerable strengths.

Finker will use a 4-2-3-1 system, using the physical power and athleticism of the squad he has at his disposal. Two holding midfielders (Alexandre Song and Enoh Eyong) will sit in front of a flat-back four, allowing the trident of forward-thinking midfielders (the volatile Vincent Aboubakar, Jean Makoun and fleet-footed winger Benjamin Moukandjo) looking to provide the assists for Eto'o. Should the Lions chase the game, expect Finker to revert to a 4-3-3. Prediction: Group stage exit

Star Man: Samuel Eto'o
One To Watch Out For: Benjamin Moukandjo
Big Tournament For: Stephane Mbia

Croatia

World Cup record: Semi-Finals 1998

Squad:

GK: Stipe Pletikosa (Rostov), Danijel Subasic (Monaco), Oliver Zelenika (Dinamo Zagreb)
DF: Darijo Srna (Shakhtar Donetsk), Dejan Lovren (Southampton), Vedran Corluka (Lokomotiv Moscow), Gordon Schildenfeld, Danijel Pranjic (both Panathinaikos), Domagoj Vida (Dynamo Kiev), Sime Vrsaljko (Genoa)
MF: Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Ivan Rakitic (Sevilla), Ognjen Vukojevic (Dynamo Kiev), Ivan Perisic (Wolfsburg), Mateo Kovacic (Inter Milan), Marcelo Brozovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Sammir (Getafe), Ivan Mocinic (Rijeka)
FW: Mario Mandzukic (Bayern Munich), Ivica Olic (Wolfsburg), Eduardo (Shakhtar Donetsk), Nikica Jelavic (Hull City), Ante Rebic (Fiorentina)

Brought in for the play-offs after previous incumbent Igor Stimac guided the Croats to second spot in their World Cup qualifying group, the former national team captain-turned-Coach Niko Kovac embodies the never-say-die attitude of the Hrvatski who will look to claim the other round of 16 spot behind group favourites Brazil.

His ethos is an accurate image of his playing career, where German efficiency (he played for Bayern Munich, Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen) works in tandem with patriotism and Slavic flair - the latter very much a trait of Croatian football over the last 20 years. Much of the play will go through Real Madrid star Luka Modric, who will conduct things in arguably one of the best midfields in international football despite playing further back in midfield than for his club, with both Ivan Rakitic - who will join Barcelona after the Finals - and Internzaionale's Mateo Kovacic providing extra ammunition to forwards Ivica Olic and Mario Mandzukic; and reserves Nikica Jelavic and Brazilian-born Eduardo.

Banned for the first game, Mandzukic will give way to Jelavic, with the hard-working Olic retaining his place on the left of a trident supporting the lone striker. Despite the loss, Kovac will no doubt stick with his favoured 4-2-3-1 system, with captain Dario Srna and Danijel Pranjic expected to counter-attack down both flanks. A stickler for discipline, the Hrvatski Coach will deploy two midfielders in Modric and Rakitic in the centre, with Kovacic playing off the lone striker. Prediction: Group Stage exit

Star Man: Luka Modric
One To Watch Out For: Mateo Kovacic
Big Tournament For: Ivan Rakitic

Mexico

World Cup record: Quarter-Finals 1970, 1986

Squad:

GK: Jose de Jesus Corona (Cruz Azul), Guillermo Ochoa (Ajaccio), Alfredo Talavera (Toluca)
DF: Miguel Layun (America), Carlos Salcido (Tigres), Paul Aguilar (America), Andres Guardado (Bayer Leverkusen), Hector Moreno (Espanyol), Francisco Javier Rodriguez (America), Diego Reyes (Porto), Rafael Marquez (Leon)
MF: Miguel Angel Ponce (Toluca), Jose Juan Vazquez (Leon), Javier Aquino (Villarreal), Hector Herrera (Porto), Isaac Brizuela (Toluca), Marco Fabian (Cruz Azul), Carlos Pena (Leon)
FW: Oribe Peralta (Santos), Javier Hernandez (Manchester United), Giovani dos Santos (Villarreal), Raul Jimenez (America), Alan Pulido (Tigres)

Coach: Miguel Herrera

El Tri Coach Miguel Herrera will look to guide Mexico through a tricky group after a problematic World Cup qualifying campaign which eventually yielded a Finals berth after a play-off win over unfancied New Zealand. Drafted in for the World Cup Finals only, the Club America Coach will hope to restore some pride in the national side and use experiences of their continued appearance in the Copa America, in terms of the South American climate, to their advantage.

Using a 5-2-1-2 or 5-3-2 system - depending on which way you look at it - Herrera's system ensures that both wing-backs Aguilar and Layun and the defensive trio of captain Rafael Marquez, Diego Reyes and Hector Moreno all provide the defensive stability needed for the great hope of Mexican football, Porto's Hector Herrera to pull the strings in midfield. Santos Laguna's Oribe Peralta - arguably the best striker at the World Cup not to ply his trade in Europe - will be expected to provide the goals with a ratio of one goal every other game. Prediction: Round of 16

Star Man: Oribe Peralta
One To Watch Out For: Hector Herrera
Big Tournament For: Hector Moreno

World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group B
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group C
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group D
World Cup 2014 Runners and Riders - Group E

A Brief Encounter in London Town

2012-09-01T13:36:00.004+01:00

Taking in the Earl's Court atmosphere during one of the many time-outs in the Brazil-Russia Women's Volleyball game (at the London 2012 Olympics), I happened to look around to see which supporters sat where; who in the crowd would be asked to play the bongos as part of the entertainment; and who was sitting either side of me in the same row of seats...as one does.

As the chap sitting immediately to my left got up and left the arena, I noticed who sat two seats away from me. Perplexed at being recognised in a non-footballing environment - and subsequently losing all sense of anonymity - ex-Chelsea Coach Avram Grant immediately warmed to me as I introduced myself as a football writer. What transpired over the following seven minutes banished misconceptions many people - myself included - had of the ex-Chelsea and Portsmouth boss of being a dour and difficult character, as we happily talked about the forthcoming season; both Chelsea's Champions League win and chances during the 2012-13 season; and his immediate future, having left Partizan Belgrade earlier this year - details of which you probably expect me to divulge!

As we went our separate ways after the game, I wished him luck with his future and asked if he enjoyed the game - the underlying reason for our encounter. "Brazilian women. Who wouldn't enjoy it?", he said.

What a guy.

The Boy Is Back In Town!

2012-07-12T23:13:00.001+01:00

Sorry! After a brief hiatus, normal service will now resume on Football. Fussball. Voetbal., as we ready ourselves for the start of the European season.

Yours truly has been a bit pre-occupied of late, writing for other publications - with the addition of now-regular appearances on Sports Tonight Live - having analysed games during the course of Euro 2012, and adding further commentary on Serie A-related news and issues...with more appearances to come over the course of the 2012-13 season (their words, not mine!). That said, any attention is good attention!

With the worldwide transfer window currently in motion, the season of intriguing trading and outlandish rumours will continue to dominate the back pages until , and Football. Fussball. Voetbal. intends to cover as much as possible over the coming months ahead of, and after the big kick-off...but not before I continue to cause more mischief on Twitter by making up some truly astonishing rumours of my own - like Paris Saint Germain spending €60million on both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva. Wait a minute...

What we learned from Euro 2012: Day 4

2012-06-15T12:47:00.001+01:00

Group D finally sprung into life as England and France kicked off their respective campaigns, as the two rivals eventually battled their way to a 1-1 draw in Donetsk. However, that only served as an appetiser for the evening's game between Sweden and co-hosts Ukraine - an emotionally-charged game played in front of a passionate and expectant crowd, who went home delirious after national hero Andriy Shevchenko bagged a brace to put his nation top of the group after the first round of games.

So national pride and lives left in old dogs aside, what else did we learn from Day 4?

There's nothing worse than a missed opportunity

England wanted to play a good game. After the match ended in a 1-1 draw, they thought they did just that. While they restricted France to a series of long-range shots from outside their penalty area - with Samir Nasri scoring from one of those attempts - their disciplined showing precluded them from doing some real damage at the other end of the pitch, despite the obvious attacking talents of Manchester United duo Danny Welbeck and Ashley Young, and 18-year old winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Affectionately known as 'The Ox', the young Arsenal man went one better than previous wunderkid Theo Walcott by getting a finals appearance under his belt, and took his opportunity to showcase his talent with confidence which belied his age. His direct approach, pace and power had Mathieu Debuchy and Adil Rami running scared, and it was a shame he ran out of steam in what admittedly was energy-sapping conditions. It was equally-frustrating to see Young and James Milner failing to capitalise on the French defence's fear (and lack) of pace, and it was this approach which prevented the Three Lions from turning their objective of picking a solitary point into all three points.

That is not to say that England's attitude was based on the in-vogue description applied when describing Chelsea's approach during their semi-final and final wins over Barcelona and Bayern Munich, respectively, where the Blues sat back for most of the game before hitting their opponents on the counter. Germany are also a counter-attacking side - demonstrated so ably in their World Cup wins over England and Argentina - so why should England be castigated for their approach? Yes, they set out to not lose their first game. First objective achieved. Secondly, they put in an efficient and coherent performance - much different from the confusion which reigned under Fabio Capello. Job well done, you would think. But the difference between England and Germany is that the latter - despite their ability to destroy on the counter-attack - constantly ask questions of opposing defences throughout the game, such is their ability and confidence. Something England failed to apply to the French rearguard.

While it is true that England do not possess the same array of attacking talent as Joachim Loew's men, therefore playing to their strengths, a certain style of play soon becomes a habit - as does the notion of setting out not to lose games instead of winning.

Statistics show that les Bleus dominated possession and shots on goal, but could not capitalise on their dominance. England, on the other hand, recognised their opposition's weakness from the outset, which became evidently obvious as they threatened the much-maligned French rearguard during the first half, but still did not do too much about it. A point earned, yes, but France were there for the taking.

What we learned from Euro 2012: Day 2
What we learned from Euro 2012: Day 3

What we learned from Euro 2012: Day 3

2012-06-12T20:30:00.001+01:00

Day three - better than day two? Depends on one's perspective, I guess. Euro 2012 favourites Spain played out an entertaining draw against fellow European heavyweights Italy in what was arguably the tournament's best game to date. Whilst over in Poznan, Croatia put in an impressive all-round performance as they defeated the Republic of Ireland in the other Group C game.

Whilst neither game provided any real shocks, both games, you could say, outshone those which took place the previous day for its excitement, intrigue and confident performances by the three more established sides in the group. We take a look at what we learned from the day's events:

The Berlin Wall may be gone, but DDR still stands

Daniele De Rossi - AS Roma's Il Capitan Futuro - was most observers' 'Man of the Match' in the Spain-Italy encounter, as Azzurri Coach Cesare Prandelli deployed him in the middle of a three-man defensive unit to counter Spain's interesting 'midfielders-only' attacking formation.

A midfielder by trade, the 28-year old has often played in defensive roles for both club and country, either due to tactical reasons or injuries sustained by colleagues. However, in this instance, he was used to satisfy both instances - which proved to be a masterstroke by Prandelli. With Cesc Fabregas playing as Spain's 'false no. 9', the Barcelona midfielder's influence on goal was negated at almost every opportunity through timely interceptions or last-ditch tackles. The one time he lost Fabregas, the Barca schemer's starting position was a lot deeper than one he occupied during the course of the match, as De Rossi attempted to pick up David Silva, who was the Spanish player furthest forward at the time. Unable to pick Fabregas up in the hope that wing-back Emanuele Giaccherini would track back and cover his run, Fabregas ran onto a through-ball from Silva to slot past the on-rushing Gianluigi Buffon - De Rossi's only blip of the game. Even then he made every attempt to to rush back and aid Buffon, with others making half-hearted efforts to assist.

World-class players are able to carry out their job effectively in their preferred positions - which is why they are highly sought after. What sets these players apart is their ability to adapt and perform equally as well in other positions when asked - even better than those whom they are playing alongside. One such example is Barcelona's Javier Mascherano - also a defensive midfielder, but equally-adept at covering for either Carles Puyol or Gerard Pique, and has proved to be a capable defender when called upon.

To be a great defensive midfielder, you must 1) have a defensive-biased mind; 2) be tactically disciplined and aware of one's surroundings to break up the opposition's play; 3) be timely and robust in challenges without giving unnecessary fouls away; and 4) be able to get the ball fairly, and distribute it quickly to team-mates in advantageous positions - traits also required to be an effective defender. These elements help make the transition from a deep-midfield position to a defender all the more smoother. Mascherano carries the role out in an assured manner, and De Rossi is no different, as he demonstrated each of those qualities - highlighted in the video below.

The subject of numerous failed bids by Real Madrid in the past - and with Jose Mourinho a known admirer of the Roman gladiator - it would come as no surprise if los Merengues made yet another attempt to lure him to the Bernabeu and pitch him opposite Mascherano himself. The Italian recently signed a five-year extension with the Giallorossi to become the highest-paid Italian player to ply his trade in Serie A. But then quality - in the shape of De Rossi - always comes at a price.

What we learned from Euro 2012: Day 2

2012-06-12T18:50:00.000+01:00

If day one of the 2012 European Championships set the scene for what could well be an entertaining three weeks of football, day two provided the first shock of the tournament as the perceived whipping boys of Group B - Denmark - defeated the much-fancied Netherlands in Kharkiv.

Later that evening, two European powerhouses in Germany and Portugal faced-off in the newly-built Lviv Area, with the Nationalmannschaft overcoming their Latin counterparts 1-0 despite a less-than-inspired performance.

There were a couple of things to note from these two games, however, as we look to see what we learned from the second day of the Euros:

1. Why Portugal are flightless without wings

If evidence was ever needed for a team to have a genuine marksman in front of goal, Portugal provided the answer on Saturday evening. Real Zaragoza striker Helder Postiga put in what could be described as a toothless performance.

Similarly, Denmark's Nicklas Bendtner - known more for his confidence and pink boots than his goalscoring ability - also failed to find the net in his side's shock opening win against the Dutch. While he may not be the world's most prolific striker, Morten Olsen utilises him in a way which makes him a pivotal part of the team. Even if the on-loan Arsenal marksman fails to put the ball away, he is still fundamental to the way Denmark play by shielding the ball from opposing defenders, thus laying the ball off to the incoming Michael Krohn-Dehli or Dennis Rommedahl - and if he does score, it is regarded as a bonus. Bendtner's existence in the team serves a purpose.

Postiga is not the archetypal back-towards-the-goal player, and is not asked to hold up the ball and bring both wingers in Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani, and one of Raul Meireles or Joao Moutinho in the same way as Bendtner. No - Postiga is given a starting place to score goals alone, and his possible inclusion in the next group game against Denmark (coincidentally) will only be seen as be depriving a place from someone who actually deserves a place.

Qualifiers aside (where he scored five goals in eight games), the time may be ripe for Coach Paulo Bento to replace the 29-year-old with Benfica's highly-rated Nelson Oliveira to add a bit more invention and a cutting-edge to the Portuguese front line, in addition to taking away the burden of scoring off both Nani and Ronaldo, who himself seems to be trying a bit too hard to impress.

2. Mueller light

Something is amiss with Thomas Mueller. Unhappy at Bayern Munich, and seemingly unhappy with football, the midfielder summed up his mood as he put in a woeful performance during Germany's somewhat-laboured win in their opening group game. Mueller's display - far removed from his Golden Boot-winning performances at the 2010 World Cup finals - echoed fully his displeasure with footballing life at present, not that he would ever care to admit it.

"Disappointed and bitter" were his words as he was left on the sidelines in some of Bayern's key matches towards the tail-end of last season, including the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid. Being the subject of a bid from Internazionale, the 22-year old intimated that his future would be decided after the European Championships.

Usually a supreme creator of chances, and a scorer of goals, Mueller fluffed his lines on virtually every occasion, as he misplaced several passes and overhit crosses to end what were promising German attacks and hand possession back to their Portuguese opponents, before being replaced in the 89th minute.

If his current state of mind is pre-occupied with domestic troubles, he could well do with snapping out of it before he, too, finds himself parked on the German bench - giving him plenty of time to consider his future options.

Euro 2012: The Runners and Riders (Netherlands - Ukraine)

2012-06-09T00:38:00.001+01:00

Part two of our Euro 2012 preview focusses on the remaining eight participants not covered in the first of our two-part series, including reigning European champions Spain and co-hosts Poland and Ukraine.

NETHERLANDS

One of the big pre-tournament favourites, the Oranje will look to go one better than their last outing at a major finals when they lost to Spain in the 2010 World Cup Final. Not much has changed within the Dutch camp since then - the Coach (Bert van Marwijk) is still in place, as is his 4-2-3-1 system; there are only a few changes in his playing personnel, with the emphasis still the same as in 2010 - to perform well at the back as in attack, and win a major trophy.

The real big advantage for the Dutch is that the desire to win the European Championship remains sky-high, and with all but three of the squad regular starters for their clubs, they have accrued plenty of playing time, and remain in form. Wesley Sneijder - despite his club's topsy-turvy season - remains their true inspiration, with both the Coach and squad referring to him as their primary source of threat. Doubts over Arjen Robben's footballing state of mind remain after his heartbreaking end to last season, as his saved spot-kick in normal time of the Champions League Final allowed Chelsea to win after penalties. However, the rage which now burns inside him may fuel an outstanding performance in the Euros, so van Marwijk will want him to focus and channel his anger solely on beating opponents and providing an even greater end product.

Everton's John Heitinga and Joris Mathijsen of Malaga will form the central defensive pairing, with Gregory van der Wiel providing defensive and overlapping duties on the right - Erik Pieters offering the same service on the left. The Dutch have a wealth of talent in midfield, with captain Mark Van Bommel, Nigel De Jong and Wesley Sneijder being the key triumvirate, with PSV's Kevin Strootman providing able back-up to De Jong, if not preferred as first-choice partner to club-mate Van Bommel. Dirk Kuyt and Arjen Robben will push forward either side of the preferred central striker - be that the prolific Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, or the equally-prolific Robin Van Persie. Not short of options up front, then! Verdict: Group-stages.

(Click on the image above to enlarge)

Star man: Wesley Sneijder (Internazionale)

One to watch out for: Kevin Strootman (PSV Eindhoven)

A big tournament for: Robin Van Persie (Arsenal)

POLAND

With the tournament being played on home soil, excitement - and expectations are high. And so they should be. Tournament hosts usually have a habit of progressing beyond the group stages, and given the quality of the Polish squad, there is no obvious reason to buck this trend. The Czech Republic, Russia and Greece may have something to say about that, however.

Hopes are pinned on key performers within the squad, with much depending on players playing at some of Europe's biggest clubs. Robert Lewandowski netted 30 times for Borussia Dortmund last season - scoring a hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the German Cup Final - to secure a famous domestic Double. The current Polish Player of the Year plays as a lone striker - a role he also occupies for his club - and will be supported by Jakub Blasczykowski who is also a club-mate of Lewandowski, and the White Eagles' most dangerous player; French-born Ludovic Obraniak who will break forward from an advanced midfield position, and fleet-footed left-winger Maciej Rybus.

Arsenal's Wojciech Szczesny edges out fellow club-mate Lukasz Fabianski for the no.1 jersey, and will be protected by a flat back four defence including striker-turned-defender Lukasz Piszczek. Smuda has the tricky task of deciding whether Sebastian Boesnich starts at left-back despite only recently returning from a year out with a knee injury, or his replacement - Jakub Wawrzyniak - who has proved to be a reliable understudy.

Smuda's 4-2-3-1 system sees two defensive midfielders shield the back four, with Blaszczykowski and Rybus pushing back alongside the central midfield to make a second bank of four when defending. Verdict: Quarter-finals.

(Click on the image above to enlarge)

Star man: Jakub Blaszczykowski (Borussia Dortmund)

One to watch out for: Rafal Wolski (Legia Warsaw)

A big tournament for: Robert Lewandowski (Borussia Dortmund)

PORTUGAL

Technically gifted, but perennial underachievers - Portugal have now become the Spain of old. Blessed with an array of gifted attackers and robust defenders, it is hard to fathom why the Seleccao are still unable to claim a major international trophy. The talent is most certainly there, however, it seems the belief is not.

A succession of respected Coaches have attempted to steer the Iberian nation to glory without much success. Former international midfielder Paulo Bento currently occupies the coaching hot-seat, having taken over from the ex-Manchester United Assistant Manager - Carlos Queiroz - after a troublesome start to the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign. Adopting a 4-3-3 system, Bento quickly removed the shackles which restricted his star names under Queiroz, and moulded his team into a winning outfit which eventually scraped into the play-offs. Along the way, he lost the services of defender Ricardo Carvalho and Jose Bosingwa - both key elements in previous years - however, their omissions have since opened up opportunities for the likes of Braga's Miguel Lopes to make a name for themselves.

The Portuguese have a powerful defence, with the imposing duo of Pepe and Bruno Alves marshalling the back line. Former winger Joao Pereira and Real Madrid's Fabio Coentrao will make marauding runs up and down both wings, but both are equally-renowned for their defensive excellence as they are for their attacking prowess. Miguel Veloso continues to occupy the defensive midfield berth with the more attack-minded duo of Joao Moutinho and Raul Meireles taking turns to help wingers Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani. Hugo Viana returns to the fold after a five-year hiatus to add even more creativity in the centre. Helder Postiga ploughs a lonely furrow up front, but with the pace of the two wingers on either side, he will not be up on his own for too long.

Bento will hope the quick, crisp passing and movement of his midfielders proves too much for the opposition, however, they key to success is Ronaldo. A happy, expressive Ronaldo is an unplayable Ronaldo, and Bento will hope the Real Madrid man inspires his team to achieve the minimum objective of a quarter-final place. Verdict: Semi-finals.

(Click on the image above to enlarge)

Star man: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

One to watch out for: Nelson Oliveira (Benfica)

A big tournament for: Joao Moutinho (FC Porto)

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

Nobody parties quite like the Irish - Brazil excepted, of course - and while they have no realistic expectations of winning the tournament, the men in green will look to enjoy the experience and hope that both luck and good football take them as far as possible.

The legendary Giovanni Trapattoni ensured that his adopted nation had nothing to feel ashamed about, after Thierry's handball in the 2010 World Cup play-off denied them a finals place in that particular tournament, and somehow harnessed their sense of injustice by channeling their focus on qualifying for this year's Euro finals - which they did after negotiating their way through a tricky qualification phase and an eventual play-off win over Estonia.

There may well be a lack of stars within the squad, but they are resolute, and very hard to beat. Il Trap's rigid 4-4-2 is testament to that fact. Stout defenders Richard Dunne and Leicester City's Sean St Ledger are difficult to get past, and extremely good in the air at both ends of the pitch; John O'Shea and Stephen Ward are first-choice full-backs who may not have the inclination to constantly push forward and overlap wingers Aiden McGeady and Damien Duff. Therefore, the onus is on both wingers and the two strikers - record goalscorer Robbie Keane and either one of Kevin Doyle or Shane Long - to provide something from what little possession they usually tend to have. Verdict: Group stages.

(Click on the image above to enlarge)

Star man: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy)

One to watch out for: James McClean (Sunderland)

A big tournament for: Aiden McGeady (Spartak Moscow)

RUSSIA

The surprise team of the 2008 edition, Russia will hope to at least match their achievements in Austria/Switzerland by reaching the semi-finals. Four years have passed, but have they gotten any better?

Having failed to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, one objective has been fulfilled by participating in the European Championship finals. Like Brazil, many of Russia's players are returning to play domestic football after achieving moderate success, or finding very little playing time abroad. The key driver, of course, is the Russian Super League's ability to attract some of the world's best players due to the money on offer, which, in turn has produced a better quality of football, helping raise standards of players within the Russian squad. The likes of captain Andrei Arshavin, Roman Pavlyuchenko, and Yuri Zhirkov amongst others have returned home and are playing regularly which bodes for Russia's chances of progressing to the latter stages of the competition.

Dick Advocaat was brought in after Guus Hiddink failed to steer them towards South Africa two years ago, and the former Zenit St Petersburg Coach has kept with the majority of players who played regularly under his predecessor. Topping a major tournament qualifying group for the first time in ten years, confidence remains high - even more so after thumping Italy 3-0 away in a recent pre-tournament friendly.

Advocaat's principles are based on a self-confessed love of the 4-3-3 system - used frequently whilst at Zenit - and a quick, attacking game, with two attacking midfielders pushing up to consistently press the opposition into making a mistake. The more attack-minded players at his disposal fit well into his way of thinking, equally comfortable in any position as they constantly look to interchange positions during the course of each match. Captain Andrei Arshavin has rediscovered his form, and will look to thread passes through to Aleksandr Kerzhakov and Pavlyuchenko to latch on to. Alan Dzagoev - Russia's outstanding youngster - will start in an advanced position on the right, but his ability to float around the opposition penalty box makes him particularly difficult to pin down. Expect a huge tournament for a young star tipped for even greater things, and for his national side which has the capacity to go all the way - only if they are in the right mood. Verdict: Quarter-finals.

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Star man: Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow)

One to watch out for: Aleksandr Kerzhakov (Zenit St Petersburg)

A big tournament for: Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal)

SPAIN

What else is there left to say about the current World and European champions that hasn't already been said? Having achieved everything they could ask for from both a collective and individual perspective, what else is there left to do? No team in Europe of South America has ever won three successive tournaments in a row, and while the majority of la Furia Roja's squad has remained intact from that epic 2010 World Cup triumph, this may be this particular group's final chance to claim footballing immortality.

Many predict the demise of Spain after this year's finals, and with a similar cycle at Barcelona perhaps coming to an end at the same time, that may well be the case. However, there is a bunch of youngsters ready to step up and attempt to emulate this nation's own 'Golden Generation' - and while Coach Vicente Del Bosque will demand another trophy, he will have one eye on introducing a few of those young stars in the hope of giving them some valuable tournament experience, knowing that established stars like Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, Xabi Alonso and David Silva will still be on hand to lend their experience and class to overcome opponents.

The loss of influential Barca duo Carles Puyol and record marksman David Villa are a huge blow even to a Spanish team packed with stars, let alone any other side, and adequately replacing their experience and world-class ability will be a problem facing Del Bosque. Another issue facing the Spanish Coach is that of fatigue. His Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao-based players contested the Copa Del Rey Final in late May, by which time the other competing nations had squads already assembled, preparing for their assault on the Henri Delauney trophy. Del Bosque will no doubt welcome the timely return to form of two of his key players: Fernando Torres, boosted by his side's successes in both the FA Cup and Champions League, in light of Villa's failure to recover in time from a broken leg; and David Silva - in sparkling form in the first-half of Manchester City's ultimately-successful season in the Premier League, before fading away in the latter half - but has since rediscovered his form and energy in time for Euro 2012.

The Spaniards have long since been accused of lacking width, however, with Silva, Jesus Navas, Santi Cazorla, and Chelsea's Juan Mata all still relatively young and having stellar seasons with their respective club sides, they will no doubt overcome that particular weakness, and offer a different - more direct - perspective to the usual tiki-taka possession-derived approach used to such devastating effect over the past four years. Expect Del Bosque to deploy his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation, with Real Madrid's central defender Sergio Ramos retaining his position as Spain's right-back, which leaves Athletic Bilbao's Javi Martinez to partner Gerard Pique in the heart of the seleccion's defence. Highly-rated Valencia left-back Jordi Alba assumes the left-back position he occupies for his club.

Not much has changed ahead of the back four, with Carlos Busquets and deep-lying playmaker Xabi Alonso offering their own brand of quality protection. Much of the play will, of course, go through the brilliant Barca duo of Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez who will look to interchange passes and positions around the opposition penalty box. It remains to be seen if Torres wins the battle to be Spain's first-choice striker ahead of the technically gifted Fernando Llorente. Either way, Spain have more strength in depth in this squad than teams have over three different cycles, so they really do not have that much to worry about. Verdict: Runner-up.

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Star man: Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)

One to watch out for: Jordi Alba (Valencia)

A big tournament for: Fernando Torres (Chelsea)

SWEDEN

"Give the ball to Zlatan Ibrahimovic and he will do the rest". If that tactic was once good enough for a star-studded Internazionale side, in addition to the same put in place by current club Milan, there is no reason why Sweden should not adopt the same strategy. Easier said than done, however, as the 30-year old continually fails to deliver on the biggest stage, despite his status as one of the most outrageously-gifted forwards of his generation.

That said, the ex-Juventus and Barcelona striker is currently in the form of his life, having scored 28 goals in 32 matches for the Milanese giants, so his fellow countrymen would be mindful to supply him with the ball in areas where he can do some serious damage. But then he does have the ability to conjure up a goal out of nothing - from any position. Coach Erik Hamren wishes to pursue a desire to play attacking football, and for the first time in years, Sweden actually has a team to fulfil that need at the expense of a less-than-reliable defence - a hallmark of tournaments past.

Kim Kallstrom is the pivotal player in Sweden's midfield, providing the engine and the quality - much like England's Steven Gerrard - to support Ibrahimovic, who himself will play in a no. 10 role behind an out-and-out forward, most likely to be Johan Elmander. Sebastian Larsson and Rasmus Elm provide the width either side of Ibra, with Anders Svensson dictating play from a deep-midfield position.

Working from the left across the defence, Martin Olsson, Olof Mellberg and Jonas Olsson are all first-choice starters Michael Lustig at right-back offers an exciting attacking alternative, however, his lack of tactical discipline often leaves him out of position. Attacking the opposition just may well be Sweden's best form of defence. Over to you, Ibra. Verdict: Group stages.

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Star man: Zlatan Ibrahimovic (AC Milan)

One to watch out for: Kim Kallstrom (Olympique Lyonnais)

A big tournament for: Rasmus Elm (AZ Alkmaar)

UKRAINE

The tournament co-hosts have a lot of work to do if they are to satisfy public expectations of a place in the quarter-finals at the very least. Ex-USSR star Oleg Blokhin is back in charge for a second spell, as he hopes to patch up differences between the Dynamo Kyiv and Shakhtar Donetsk contingent within his squad - a situation borne from a contentious and rather-hostile league game between the two sides in April. But Blokhin is an old-hand at dealing with crisis-situations, so who better to lead this team and upset the odds?

The core of the squad is made up of a few select players who have plied their trade at some of Europe's biggest clubs - however, age and/or a lack of fitness have caught up with those concerned with these finals primed to be their international swansong. Captain and Ukrainian goalscoring legend Andriy Shevchenko will lead the line for the last time with Artem Milenvskyi alongside him. Fellow veteran Anatoliy Tymoschchuk will anchor himself in the heart of midfield, as he looks to protect the back four as well as allowing Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk's Ruslan Rotan to provide the creative spark further up the field. Verdict: Group stages.

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Star man: Andriy Shevchenko (Dynamo Kyiv)

One to watch out for: Bohdan Butko (Shakhtar Donetsk)

A big tournament for: Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kiev)

Euro 2012: The Runners and Riders (Croatia - Italy)

2012-06-07T21:06:00.000+01:00

That's it - the final Euro 2012 squads are in. After a final round of friendlies which saw last-minute replacements drafted in, each of the participants will now look to fine-tune their preparations ahead of the big kick-off on Friday 8 June.

This is the last chance for Coaches in charge of their national teams to bed down tactics and stress the importance of winning that all-important first fixture. On the eve of the tournament itself, we look at the make-up of each competing nation, and their chances of European success. The first of our two-part preview can be found below, with the second part to be published on the day the tournament finally kicks off.

CROATIA

In what will be Slaven Bilic's last tournament as Croatia Coach, he will look to surpass his achievements in previous tournaments - having reached the quarter-finals as both a player (1996) and Coach (2008). Much will depend, however, on the form and fitness of star man Luka Modric. When he is on song, Croatia are irresistable. The playmaker's qualities aside, the Croats are in a group which include current holders Spain and Italy, which makes their task of qualifying from that particualr group all the more difficult.
Due to a severe lack of pace in defence, Bilic will look to play a counter-attacking game - utilising tireless wing-backs Danijel Pranjic and Vedran Corluka to maraud up and down both flanks - which may work well against both the Spaniards and Italians. Adopting such a tactic may come up short, ironically, against the supposedly-weakest side in Group C - the Republic of Ireland.

Wolfsburg-bound striker Ivica Olic has been ruled out of the tournament, so Everton striker Nikica Jelavic steps in his place. Fans and critics do not rate the Croats chances of success of progressing beyond the group stage, let alone going all the way. Verdict: Group stage.

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Star man: Luka Modric (Tottenham Hotspur)
One to watch out for:
A big tournament for: Nikica Jelavic (Everton)

CZECH REPUBLIC

National Coach Michal Bilek has had a bit of a rough time as Coach. After a poor start to his helm, the ex-Sparta Prague tactician managed to reverse the tides of misfortune which threatened to undermine his position. Having tried more than 50 players in the last two years, Bilek has now found a blend of youth and experience to fit within his favoured 4-2-3-1 system, with Galatasaray's Milan Baros - if he stays fit - acting as the lone striker.

The Czech's strength lies in its industrious - but equally-attacking - midfield, with Jaroslav Plasil and Petr Jiracek acting as the defensive screen, allowing Tomas Rosicky, Jaroslav Plasil and Jan Rezek to all support Baros with pace and guile. Question marks remain over the potency of the Czech attack, with Baros being inconsistent of late; Tomas Necid having recently returned from a long injury lay-off, while Jablonec's David Lafata - although having become the Czech league's all-time leading goalscorer - has not quite proved his worth on the international stage to date. Verdict: Group stage.

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Star man: Petr Cech (Chelsea)
One to watch out for: Tomas Necid (CSKA Moscow)
A big tournament for: Michal Kadlec (Bayer Leverkusen)

DENMARK

Denmark were written off once before - and look what happened back then. With the Danes' chances of winning Euro 2012 scoffed by many - even before they were drawn in the tournament's 'Group of Death' - they actually go into this competition as one of the highest-ranked teams in FIFA's current list.

Rankings aside, Coach Morten Olsen has constructed a side looking to build on what was a rather-valuable outing in South Africa in 2010. Some of the younger players have matured to the point where they are considered mainstays of their respective club sides. One such player is Christian Eriksen, who after a couple of brief appearances in 2012 has consistently produced high-quality performances for Ajax since, to the point where some of Europe's biggest players are readying themselves for a big-money move immediately after the tournament ends. National team captain Daniel Agger is fit and injury-free, and his presence is vital in light of regular partner Simon Kjaer's inconsistent season at AS Roma.

Regular custodian Thomas Sorensen was ruled out of the tournament this week after sustaining a back injury in Saturday's friendly defeat to Brazil, which leaves Evian's Stephan Andersen and Manchester United's Anders Lindegaard to battle it out for a starting spot. With the latter's injury ruling him out of action since February, expect Andersen to claim the No. 1 jersey.

Olsen prefers to play a fluid 4-3-3 system, with Nicklas Bendtner preferred as a lone striker; with Dennis Rommedahl providing pace and width on the right flank, despite his advancing years; Michael Krohn-Dehli offering support on the left, and Eriksen pushing forward from the top of the midfield triangle - Niki Zimling and William Kvist providing protection in midfield. Verdict: No fairytale this time - Group stage, at best.

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Star man: Christian Eriksen (Ajax)
One to watch out for: Tobias Mikkelsen (Nordsjaelland)
A big tournament for: Niklas Bendtner (Arsenal)

ENGLAND

Another tournament, another set of problems within the England camp. Fabio Capello - who guided the nation through an unbeaten qualifying campaign - resigned after John Terry was stripped of the captain's armband. In stepped Roy Hodgson, coming in for criticism for the inclusion of some players - and the shock omission of others; while injuries have beset the England camp, with Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Gary Cahill all ruled out of the tournament within the past week.

Concerns have been raised with the make-up and balance of the squad, however, Hodgson has had limited options to choose from, with team harmony and injuries key considerations in squad selection. Recent friendly wins masked inconsistent performances by the Three Lions, with a lack of ball retention and player movement evident despite those wins. The England Coach will need to work hard on getting his squad to retain possession, and improve the accuracy of their passing in and around midfield - something Belgium could not capitalise on, but would be easily punished by a team with perhaps more experience and quality...like France in that all-important first game.

The ex-Switzerland boss may continue to deploy his favoured 4-4-2 formation, however, he will most likely opt for a 4-2-3-1 system, using Scott Parker and James Milner in deeper positions - allowing Steven Gerrard to provide providing the drive from midfield as he supports Danny Welbeck up front. Question marks continue to remain over Parker's ability to pick up bookings and concede free-kicks inside his own half - a point which will be made clear to the Spurs midfielder. Having tried a number of combinations up front in light of Wayne Rooney's two-match ban, it appears Hodgson has settled on a front pairing of Ashley Young and Welbeck - both of Manchester United - after their impressive showing against Belgium. Andy Carroll - included at the expense of Peter Crouch, despite the latter's record of 22 goals in 42 appearances - makes the squad, and offers a different alternative should a game ebb away from England.

The biggest headache, however, surrounds Terry's defensive partner, with regular sidekick Rio Ferdinand omitted from the squad for 'footballing reasons' and Gary Cahill ruled out with a fractured jaw, so it remains to be seen which one of Everton's Phil Jagielka or Manchester City's Joleon Lescott is the preferred candidate to partner the Chelsea captain. Terry will have to stay injury-free or else England will be in serious trouble, should they wish to go all the way.

The pressure is off, with much-lower expectations for success for a team which has now become a work in progress. There is harmony in the camp, and the players are happy. Could they upset the odds for once? Verdict: Quarter-finals

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Star man: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

One to watch out for: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal)
A big tournament for: John Terry (Chelsea)

FRANCE

With the debacle of 2010 erased from memory, Les Bleus are on a high, as they take their 21-match unbeaten into the tournament. Former players, current squad members, the press and fans are all confident about the nation's chances of repeating their success of 1984 and 2000, however, the ever-quiet Coach Laurent Blanc has been quick to play down talk of success, focussing quietly on taking each game as they come.

Deep down, le President must be quietly confident, having weeded out the negative forces carried over prior to the start of his tenure. Never one for the limelight, he has placed his faith in those who do not entertain as high a profile as those in previous campaigns, relying much on the industry and craft of Olivier Giroud, Yann M'Vila, Yohan Cabaye and Mathieu Debuchy. Blanc has worked hard to formulate a plan to incorporate these players alongside the more illustrious Franck Ribery and Patrice Evra, adopting a 4-2-3-1 system to get the best out of each player by playing them in positions they occupy for their clubs.

The spine of the side is a match for some of the world's best sides, with goalkeeper and captain Hugo Lloris a stellar performer between the sticks; Valencia's Adil Rami is an assured defender - much in the Blanc mould - and offers much more robustness in defence compared to the overly-aggressive Philippe Mexes; Yann M'Vila is a worthy heir to Claude Makelele and Patrick Vieira, always looking to win the ball and distributing it with intelligence, while up front, Karim Benzema is now first-choice striker, after a prolific season in front of goal for Real Madrid, helped no doubt by a consistent run of games and faith shown in him by Merengues Coach Jose Mourinho.

Both full-back positions could be regarded as potential weaknesses - with Patrice Evra's star fast fading, and regular right-back Bacary Sagna ruled out of the tournament - however, Clichy and Debuchy respectively offer more-than-sound cover. Expect much of the play to go through Ribery, Samir Nasri and PSG's Jeremy Menez in support of Benzema, with M'Vila and Cabaye sitting in front of the defence. A serious contender. Verdict: Semi-finals.

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Star man: Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)
One to watch out for: Yann M'Vila (Rennes)
A big tournament for: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

GERMANY

Euro 2008 finalists...World Cup 2010 semi-finalists....Euro 2012 winners? Germany Coach Joachim Low has one of the most complete squads in international football at his disposal - one which many expect to claim this year's edition. The former Stuttgart Coach has retained the majority of the squad which performed so admirably in South Africa, and has made an exciting squad even more exciting with the addition of Borussia Dortmund trio Mats Hummels (defence), Marco Reus and Mario Gotze (midfield) - the latter two offering an exciting alternative should the brilliant Mesut Ozil be replaced at any stage.

Low will stick with his 4-2-3-1 system, with Manuel Neuer once again the last line of defence. Ahead of him, Mats Hummels will be partnered by Bayern's Holger Badstuber, with captain Phillip Lahm switching to left-back from the usual right-back he occupies for his club side. In midfield and up front, not much has changed since 2010, with the same personnel retained to provide the kind of potency which saw them put four goals past England and Argentina.

Germany are equally-adept in taking the initiative and scything through opposing defences with quick and incisive passing as they are on the counter attack. It is this change in their speed of play which makes die Nationalmannschaft so difficult to overcome, helped in no small way by the quality of players within the squad. That said, tensions between the Bayern and Borussia contingent may spill onto the training pitch, so Low will be mindful to retain the spirit which has taken them this far, with the promise of greater things to come. Verdict: Winners.

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Star man: Mesut Ozil (Real Madrid)
One to watch out for: Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund)
A big tournament for: Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich)

GREECE

Portuguese Coach Fernando Santos has big shoes to fill after replacing Greece's hero of 2004, Otto Rehhagel - and is filling them quite ably, so far. Having steered his side to the finals after an unbeaten qualifying campaign, the real test now begins for the experienced tactician as he attempts to rectify his team's last outing in 2008, where they lost all three of their group games.

Adopting a 4-3-3 formation, the former Porto boss has a penchant for attacking football, with marauding full-backs in German-born Jose Holebas and Vasilis Torosidis pushing up at every opportunity to offer an alternative option in attack. The attack itself will be led either by Samsunspor's Theofanis Gekas, who came out of international retirement when Santos assumed control, or AEK Athen's Nikos Liberopoulos - flanked by Celtic's Giorgos Samaras and Dimitris Salpigidis. Kostas Katsouranis occupies the pivotal central/defensive midfield position as he looks to keeps things together. If golden boy Sotiris Ninis fails to recover from a long-standing injury, expect the young Kaiserslautern midfielder Kostas Fortounis to stamp his mark on games - if given the chance.

The economic crisis has thrown Greece into chaos, and their fans could really do with the national side giving them something to cheer about. Not this time, however, if Santos manages to progress into the quarter-finals, it could be deemed as a job well done. Verdict: Group stages.

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Star man: Giorgos Karagounis (Panathinaikos)
One to watch out for: Kostas Fortounis (Kaiserslautern)
A big tournament for: Sotiris Ninis (Panathinaikos)

ITALY

Match-fixing has yet again reared its ugly head ahead of another finals tournament for the Italians. Domenico Criscito has been omitted from the squad, as he is still currently under investigation as part of the ongoing Scommessopoli scandal; while goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon's name has also been dragged into the affair. All this has left a messy afterthought for Coach Cesare Prandelli, as he looks to put right what went horribly wrong in South Africa under his predecessor, Marcello Lippi.

Several members of the Juventus squad who last season went unbeaten en route to claiming another Italian championship form the majority of the Italian squad, with hopes pinned on Andrea Pirlo to provide the necessary quality and vision to assist the Azzurri's quest for a first European title since 1968. A purveyor of youth, Prandelli - like counterpart Laurent Blanc - has opted for fast-maturing youngsters, given plenty of domestic action over the past two years. The difference, however, is that the majority of Italy's youngsters are relative newcomers to the international stage - and it is this lack of experience amongst the substitutes which may prove to be his undoing if more experienced members of the starting XI are taken out of the equation.

The Ex-Fiorentina tactician usually prefers an attack-minded 4-3-1-2 system, knowing that the Juventus-dominated defensive unit of Andrea Barzagli (if he remains fit), Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci worked well as the Bianconeri conceded the fewest goals in Serie A last season. Should Barzagli not recover in time to start the opening match, AS Roma's Daniele De Rossi may be asked to help out in defence. In light of poor performances in recent friendlies, expect Prandelli to adopt a 3-5-2, with De Rossi dropping back to become the fourth defender if Italy come under immense pressure.

Possession, and quick movement off the ball is key to Italy's game, with the latter prevalent during the qualifying campaign, as only Spain, unsurprisingly, retained the ball longer than the Italians. Pirlo sits in front of the back four, relying on others to move quickly for him to spray his trademark passes to colleagues in more advanced positions. However, with so much of the play going through the ex-Milan maestro, it is easy for opposing Coaches to identify an area/individual to nullify. Stop Pirlo, you stop Italy - but when the Juve midfielder is on-song, opposing defences had better watch out.

Antonio Cassano and Mario Balotelli look likely to lead the Italian attack, however, there are concerns over their replacements, with Giuseppe Rossi out with a long-term injury, and both Sebastian Giovinco and Fabio Borini relative novices in international terms. Verdict: Quarter-finals at best.

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Star man: Andrea Pirlo (Juventus)
One to watch out for: Sebastian Giovinco (Parma)
A big tournament for: Claudio Marchisio (Juventus)

The second of our two-part Euro 2012 preview can be found here.

Planet football: what we learned this week - 21 May 2012

2012-05-21T14:05:00.001+01:00

A slight change of tack, as from this week onwards, Football. Fussball. Voetball. attempts to take a slightly different approach in a bid to encapsulate events dominating the world of football across Europe and beyond with bite-sized snippets. First up:

1. Why Liverpool continue to let Roy Hodgson down

On what was supposed to be the recently-installed England Manager's big day by announcing his preliminary 26-man squad for the forthcoming European Championships, Liverpool - Roy Hodgson's former club - once again rained on his parade as they decided to dispense with Kenny Dalglish after their honeymoon period came to an abrupt end.

Rumours of Dalglish's demise were abound as the Scot flew out to Boston to meet with club Chairman John W Henry in a bid to save his job, after the Reds ended an inconsistent campaign in eighth-place in the Premier League, with only a Carling Cup trophy to show for his efforts. While results were not quite what the owners, fans and Dalglish himself wanted, the ex-Liverpool boss did reduce the wage bill by offloading so-called 'deadwood' including Philipp Degen and Paul Konchesky amongst others, and attempted to blood more youngsters - with the likes of Raheem Sterling and Jonjo Shelvey being introduced alongside the rather-expensive Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson, and Stewart Downing. But with a Carling Cup trophy and a lucrative kit deal with American sportswear firm Warrior Sports proving to be a bigger source of satisfaction to Dalglish than a top-four finish - considering the size and ambition of the club which employed him - it was no surprise that the Reds legend's tenure ended before he was given another season to prove his worth.

In comparison, Roberto Mancini took over at Manchester City half-way through the 2009-10 season where he missed out on qualification for the following season's Champions League, before finishing third and delivering an FA Cup the following season. Yes, the Italian's net spend was far greater, however, the Dalglish/Comolli partnership spent £115.3million, offset by departures totalling approximately £74.5million. Do the math, and ask if a net spend of £40.8million warranted eighth-place, a trophy which could have been won by a Championship side (Cardiff City) and a place in the FA Cup Final? No, I didn't think so, and neither did Fenway Sports Group. To emphasise the discussion further, Chelsea caretaker Manager Roberto Di Matteo was drafted in after previous incumbent Andre Villas-Boas was jettisoned after a woeful run of results in both the Premier League and a 3-1 first-leg loss to Napoli in a Champions league quarter-final tie threatened to derail their season completely. With his team bereft of any confidence, the former Blues star went back to basics and reinvigorated a squad which saw them win their fourth FA Cup in six seasons and finally deliver Roman Abramovich's personal 'Holy Grail' - and yet, he is still unsure of his long-term future at Stamford Bridge!*

So what next for Liverpool? Dalglish's ties have now been severed with the club for good, while owners FSG will now look to bring in their own men after granting the fans their wish with the appointment of Dalglish in January 2011. Whoever comes in will again work with a newly-appointed Director of Football after the departure of Damien Comolli, however, with a largely-reduced transfer budget - helped in no way by the profligacy shown by Dalglish and Comolli in the transfer market - and even the potential loss of their most prized assets - Luis Suarez and Martin Skrtel.

Juventus' Technical Director Fabio Paratici - who worked alongside Giuseppe Marotta in constructing a championship-winning squad - was approached, however, the Red's offer was rebuffed. Liverpool Chairman Tom Werner may now approach the man most likely to arrive at Anfield - former Barcelona Sporting Director Txiki Begiristain - who himself may look to influence and/or bring in a more fluid style of play, starting with a continental Coach. All this may sound alarm bells for the likes of Andy Carroll, who's very bruising and British style of play may not be welcome in any new Coach's style of play.

Andre Villas-Boas would be the most logical choice, working with the younger players introduced by Dalglish; whilst not having to endure a battle of wills like he did with established stars at Chelsea, with long-time servants Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard's respective careers winding down. His biggest problem - and that of any incoming Coach - would be to introduce a more fluid, dynamic style of play with a group of British players who only really know how to play one way.

Back at Wembley, Roy Hodgson surprised many by leaving out the likes of England veteran Rio Ferdinand and Micah Richards - both whom despite suffering injuries throughout the 2011-12 season had stellar campaigns - as he went for a far-more pragmatic approach in his squad selection. Richards' omission was startling, considering his prowess in defence and attack, and the general lack of (public) belief in Liverpool's Glen Johnson as an able defender. Richards played his part in Manchester City's recent title success, and while it was accepted he made fleeting appearances towards the tail-end of the season, he still clocked up more minutes than his rival for the right-back position.

It was even more surprising to see Ferdinand not even make the reserve list, as it was widely acknowledged amongst the press that Ferdinand's omission was a result of his ongoing dispute with John Terry over the latter's criminal charge for an alleged use of racist language, and the potential divisiveness within the England squad, Hodgson's protestation to the contrary, coupled with Sir Alex Ferguson's intervention (regarding his fitness) notwithstanding. It was clear that only one of Ferdinand or Terry would go to Poland/Ukraine, and with the former's fitness and confidence not in question, combined with Terry's recent lack of form (where he was completely outfought by Carroll; earned himself a unnecessary red-card in the Champions League semi-final) and his mind elsewhere after a potentially-damaging court case in July, not including Ferdinand in the back-up list at the very least should be somewhat disconcerting for anyone who has the English national team at heart.

Elsewhere, the eternal problem of who should occupy the left-wing position continued as the vastly overrated Stewart Downing was given a place in the squad at the expense of Manchester City's Adam Johnson, criminally-underused at both club and international level. With no league goals or assists last season, it is hard to justify the inclusion of the Liverpool winger given his lack of confidence and wretched form - if form was an underlying factor in Hodgson drafting a squad harbouring realistic hopes of European success.

* If I was told to wait up to six weeks after delivering an FA Cup and Champions League double, I would have no hesitation in leaving. Di Matteo, take note.

2. Goal-line technology trialled

The Hampshire FA Senior Cup - not a competition familiar with many across England, let alone the world - made the news this week, as the Hawk-Eye system (used at the Wimbledon tennis championships) was trialled during a quarter-final match between AFC Totton and Eastleigh FC, played at Southampton FC's St Mary's Stadium.

Eastleigh ran out 2-0 winners, with Chris Flood - scorer of the first goal - tweeting that he had made history as the first goal in a match which had goal-line technology. The second goal provoked a spate of controversy as Mitchell Nelson bundled the ball over the line, and while a goal was given without the aid of Hawk-Eye - as the match referee had no access to the technology before, during, and after the match itself - only an independent adjudicator - it will be interesting to see the equipment's take on the incident.

After recent incidents regarding 'ghost goals' in key games - the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, for instance - where the Blues' Juan Mata's effort was given despite the whole of the ball not crossing the line. In Italy, Milan's Sulley Ali Muntari's follow-up was palmed away by a contrite Gianluigi Buffon who carried on as if nothing happened - in the same manner as Manuel Neuer after England's Frank Lampard's disallowed goal in Bloemfontein in 2010. Milan were 1-0 up at the time, and had the goal been allowed, it was almost certain that Juventus' unbeaten record in Serie A would come to an end, with the pendulum of momentum swinging its way towards the Milanese giants and possible scudetto success. Alas, it was not to be on both counts.

Key decisions - or lack of - in key games over a number of seasons have prompted the International Football Association Board (IFAB) to press ahead with testing both the Hawk-Eye and GoalRef systems - the latter developed by a German/Danish firm - with rigorous testing planned to check reliability and accuracy. While Hawk-Eye has already been tested once, GoalRef will be tested in two separate matches over the next few weeks, with a Danish Superliga fixture and a forthcoming international friendly earmarked. A final decision made by IFAB on 2 July 2012 to see who will be FIFA's authorised supplier of goal-line technology for official matches, with either system being given the green light to have their system implemented in professional leagues from 2013-14 onwards in time for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Not sure who will be more excited with the outcome - the winning company, clubs, fans, match officials, or Sepp Blatter's sweaty forehead.

3. Should he stay or should he go?

Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri, Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy, Thierry Henry, and yes, even Aleksandr Hleb and Jose Antonio Reyes. All players who left Arsenal in recent seasons and achieved domestic and/or European club success elsewhere. A similar train of thought entertains Robin Van Persie's mind as he enters the final year of his contract. Watching his club Manager Arsene Wenger talk about five-year plans - now entering its seventh iteration without a trophy of note during that time - and aforementioned ex-colleagues moving onto pastures new with considerable success, the Dutch international has seemingly reached a crossroads. Does he stay and A meeting with Wenger and club director Ivan Gazidis earlier this week saw no immediate outcome, with the striker flying out to join up with the Dutch squad ahead of the Euros.

Whether the Arsenal Manager paid lip service during the discussions, convincing the ex-Feyenoord striker to stay - citing the signing of Lukas Podolski and the rumoured interest in Rennes and France midfielder Yann M'Vila as a sign of intent - is open to debate. If ever there was a sign convincing him that leaving would be the best thing to do, Munich provided the answer. Ashley Cole - a chaser of dreams, girls, fame, money, and trophies - had no hesitation in jumping onto the Chelsea bandwagon in search of greater treasure, and has been amply-rewarded. To say he has been swimming in a pool of gold is no understatement. Accused of greed after his controversial switch across London, the Stepney native has since accrued a Premier League, four FA Cup, a League Cup and now a Champions League winners' medal. "Now no-one can say anything to me. This is the reason I came here", is what he proclaimed after his side's win. Justifiably so, and something Mr Van Persie may come to agree with before pondering his next move.

Liverpool's Gerrard has resigned himself to the fact his career is in decline as his influence on the pitch wanes as injuries continue to take its toll. His career is fast matching that of his club. However, at 29 years of age, Van Persie is about to sign the last - and potentially the most important long-term contract of his career - one which may define his career as an exquisite player who finally became a champion after being a serial contender for so long.

A Case For The Defence - The 10 Best Defenders To Have Played In My Lifetime

2012-03-05T21:01:00.000+00:00

Reading an article by Jamie Redknapp in Saturday's edition of The Daily Mail - where he talked about the ten best defenders he faced during his professional career - it got me thinking about the greatest defenders to have played the game since I first watched Argentinian centre-back Daniel Passarella lift the 1978 World Cup as a somewhat-curious four-year old.

Defenders have come and gone, but some have stood out - some for their style, for the way they dominated games like no other, or marked superstars out of games. The majority of plaudits are quite rightly reserved for attacking players who win matches with strokes of genius, however, any successful team is built on a solid defence - something which regularly gets overlooked as many purr over the merits of o jogo bonito and the all-out attacking instincts of Barcelona - the best club side in world football at present. Not that there is anything wrong with the way the Catalan side play the game, of course!

It takes a former defender to admire the qualities of fellow (but significantly more illustrious) defenders, and my own top 10 is not based on any bias towards a particular club or nation, but what each player brought to the game whilst playing, their legacy after hanging up their boots, and the effect they had on me as a keen observer of the game - not to mention being a burgeoning defender in my own right.

So here are my own thoughts of the ten best defenders I have seen in my lifetime - not of all time, I hasten to add - in no particular order:

Laurent Blanc (France, 97 caps)

Tall, quiet, unassuming - and that is just the man himself. Le President was one of the most elegant defenders to have graced the game, and was equally adept in front of goal as he was protecting his own, having originally started his career as an attacking midfielder at Montpellier. Blanc regularly reached double figures in each of his eight seasons with La Paillade before moving around Europe, playing for some of the biggest clubs sides including Barcelona, Internazionale and Manchester United.

The one constant throughout his club and international career was that he remained calm, always keeping his cool in the face of challenging situations - and opponents - despite his obvious lack of pace. For all his successes at club level, Blanc reserved his best performances for the French national team - none more so than during the 1998 World Cup finals on home soil, as his attacking instinct saw him become the first person to score the first-ever golden goal in World Cup history.

A thinking man's defender, he transmitted his thoughts on the game onto the playing field, using his tactical nous, leadership skills to marshal well-drilled back-lines, and technical ability with the ball, singling him out as one of the finest defenders in French history.

Andreas Brehme (Germany, 86 caps)

One of the finest left-backs of all time - let alone his era - in a time when Antonio Cabrini and France's Manuel Amoros were still active in the game, 'Andy' was renowned for being equally as adept with his right foot as he was with his left, which was used to devastating effect at times.

A league winner with Bayern Munich, Internazionale, and 1. FC Kaiserslautern, the Hamburg-native was best known for wining the 1990 World Cup with West Germany, having put away the winning penalty in the Final with his right foot. His athleticism and versatility saw him used frequently as a left-midfielder and left-winger, but it was as a left-back where he earned his name. Being blessed with two great feet, he seamlessly played his way out of trouble, and very seldomly gave his club and national sides cause for concern. He had excellent positional sense, always ensuring he was in line with his central defenders, and that a reasonable distance was kept between himself and the left of the two centre-backs, and it was this awareness which stood him out as the thinking man's footballer.

Ricardo Carvalho (Portugal, 75 caps)

Internazionale aside, wherever Jose Mourinho has gone, he has taken Ricardo Carvalho with him. That says as much about the defender when one of the great Coaches of modern times constantly calls on his services, knowing fully well the Portuguese defender will do a more-than-admirable job.

Carvalho's game has always been based on possessing an impeccable sense of timing both when tackling and in the air, and while he does not subscribe to the adage of being too physical, he has not been too afraid to stick his boot in when required. Not the tallest of defenders at 1.80m, however, his undoubted aerial ability sees him frequently out-jump significantly-taller opponents - again, down to perfect timing - while his deceptively-slight frame allows him to use his pace to great effect to either step in and retrieve the ball or to constantly position himself between the ball and his own goal, thus restricting goalscoring options of opposing strikers.

Injuries may have taken its toll over the past few seasons, however, when fit, he has arguably been Europe's finest defender over the past decade.

Karlheinz Forster (Germany, 81 caps)

As man-markers go, Forster was one of the best around in a career spanning three decades. Although he did not achieve as much success as his West German team-mates at domestic level - despite winning a league championship apiece with VfB Stuttgart and Olympique Marseille - no-one was in doubt that his defensive performances contributed to much of West Germany's success in the 1980 European Championship, and his nation's reputation for defensive solidness throughout the 1980's.

His partnerships with elder brother Bernd, Hans-Pieter Briegel and Klaus Allofs garnered his reputation as a no-nonsense defender whom opposing attackers found hard to get past. He used every defensive skill in the book to shackle the opposition, and was disciplined enough to stick to his brief of marking men out of games - which he did on countless occasions. A defender's defender.

Carlos Gamarra (Paraguay, 110 caps)

Ivan Cordoba, Mario Yepes, Lucio, Walter Samuel...some of the great central defenders to have come out of South America over the past two decades. Yet, the defender topping that stellar quartet is one which may not immediately spring to many peoples' minds, however, ask football purists who will also name-check Carlos Gamarra.

Whilst not possessing the power of the aforementioned South American stoppers - or even a trophy cabinet to match - the former Paraguay World Cup captain was undoubtedly the most naturally-gifted defender to emerge from those shores. His leadership, positioning, and ability to tackle and intercept - with precision - set him apart from his peers, thus making him one of the most respected defenders of the modern game.

The former Internacional and Atletico Madrid man currently holds the record for most appearances in a Paraguay shirt, and it was whilst wearing the red and white stripes where he gained his worldwide reputation, having played all four games for La Albirroja at the 1998 World Cup Finals without conceding a single foul. His performances saw him named as South America's Best Defender that year, while he also repeated his feat of going through a tournament without conceding a foul in the 2002 World Cup Finals. Exceptional.

Alan Hansen (Scotland, 26 caps)

One of the best ball-playing central defenders of modern times, the Sauchie-native anticipated every ball in every situation throughout a trophy-laden 14-year career with Liverpool. Blessed with great vision and an ability to play the ball out of defence with ease, Hansen set up numerous attacks from deep within his own half, or still with the ball at his feet, venturing forward into opposition territory - ensuring his side kept up the momentum as they turned the screw on opposing defences.

His defensive partnership with Mark Lawrenson was the stuff of legend, and he was a leader of one of the tightest defences in club football as Liverpool dominated the domestic scene throughout the 1980s and in Europe in the first-half of the same decade. Given the captaincy after Kenny Dalglish became full-time Liverpool Manager in 1986, the ex-Scotland defender became only the third captain at the time to win the Double. Hansen went on to win two more league championships and another FA Cup before retiring from the game in 1991. Unfortunately, the elegant defender never got to showcase his talent at a World Cup finals tournament, however, his legendary performances both at home and in Europe merited his inclusion in this list.

Jurgen Kohler (Germany, 105 caps)

Germany has produced some great central defenders over the past 38 years - either in the libero position (think Lothar Matthaus or Matthias Sammer), or man-markers in the shape of Karlheinz Forster - but former Juventus and Bayern Munich stopper Jurgen Kohler tops the list for his consistently brilliant performances in a stellar career spanning 19 years.

A World Cup winner with West Germany and European Championship victor with Germany; Intercontinental and Champions League wins with Borussia Dortmund and the UEFA Cup whilst at Juventus; and with domestic league winners' medals at Bayern Munich, Juventus and Die Borussen, the 46-year old has accrued a winners' medal collection as an ever-present member of some of the finest domestic and international teams ever assembled.

Despite being partnered by the likes of Klaus Augenthaler, Sammer - both world-class defenders in their own right - Kohler's unerring sense of perception, physical prowess and sheer determination win the ball at every attempt even saw him outshine his stellar accomplices with all-action performances sometimes bordering on one-man shows! This was typified by his out-of-the-world performance in the 1997 Champions League Semi-Final second leg at Old Trafford, single-handedly protecting the Dortmund goal by throwing himself at every opportunity to prevent an Eric Cantona-led Manchester United progressing through to the Final. The Germans eventually prevailed, going on to shock Juventus in the Final itself.

Paolo Maldini (Italy, 126 caps)

A true one-club legend if ever there was one, Paolo Maldini burst onto the scene as he made his first competitive bow for Milan in 1985 as a slender 15-year old, and played until his retirement - 1028 games later (for both Milan and Italy) - at the age of 41. During his illustrious career, the right-footed left-back amassed 26 winners' medals with his club side - and countless individual awards which illustrated his excellence as a world-class defender playing at the highest level - in addition to leading the Azzurri on 74 occasions - a national record.

Maldini was not renowned for his tackling prowess - although when he did commit himself, they were always carried with precision timing and minimal fuss, with no damage done to his opponents and needless free-kicks given away deep in the Milan half. The Milanese native prided himself on his positioning to overcome opponents of all types - and overcome he did on many an occasion. Unlike his mentor Franco Baresi - who faded badly in his final two seasons before his own retirement in 1996 - Maldini continued to perfect the art of defending until his final game.

Opponents and colleagues have been effusive in their praise for the legendary defender - Alessandro Del Piero described Maldini as "quite simply the best there is", while Sir Alex Ferguson named the former Rossonero as his favourite player on any team that he had managed against. High praise, indeed.

Gaetano Scirea (Italy, 78 caps)

A role-model for excellence and sportsmanship, Gaetano was one of the greatest defenders of all time, having picked up 15 domestic, European and intercontinental winners' medals - and the small matter of the 1982 World Cup - in a stellar career, without earning a single red card - a remarkable achievement considering the central defensive position he occupied during his career with both Juventus and Italy at a time when the game was a lot more physical than it is today.

He served much of his career alongside another 'great' - Claudio Gentile - however, being the polar opposite to his more rugged partner, Scirea was a much-more cultured defender, using his class and intelligence to get the better of the opposition. He carried on the the Franz Beckenbauer-inspired libero role with elegance and aplomb, and set up countless attacks with forays into the opposition half - illustrated perfectly by his weighted set-up for Marco Tardelli's goal in the 1982 World Cup Final.

Many talk about the biggest compliment paid to Scirea was that he kept Franco Baresi out of the Italian national team for four years until his retirement in 1986, however, his biggest legacy was the way he conducted himself both on and off the field. Feted by Coaches, commentators and his peers, he mastered the art of skilful defending which he consistently displayed at the highest level, and had a tactical brain rarely seen in defenders. Scirea was a champion of champions who will always be held in the highest regard for his excellence both on and off the field.

Lilian Thuram (France, 142 caps)

Powerful, athletic, disciplined, cool....the Guadeloupe-born French international had the lot. His attributes marked him out as one of the standout defenders in what was becoming an increasingly-faster and athletic game, and playing alongside such luminaries such as Fabio Cannavaro and Laurent Blanc with the French national side brought out the best out of the ex-AS Monaco man during a much-decorated career. It was of little surprise when Juventus came calling in 2001, forking out €30million - unheard of for a defender at the time - to acquire his services.

Tough, but fair in the tackle, Thuram was a defensive rock, using his pace and intelligence to intercept through-balls or using his power to shackle his opponents to great effect. In essence, very few attackers ever got the better of him. A regular centre-back at both Parma and Juventus where he forged a great partnership with Cannavaro at both clubs, his versatility allowed him to be used as a right-back - a position he occupied during Les Bleus memorable 1998 World Cup triumph, which they then followed up by winning Euro 2000. Not known for his goals, he memorably scored two goals in the 1998 World Cup Semi-Final against Croatia, and went on achieve further success at club level with Juventus - winning four league titles in five years - before finally ending his illustrious career with Barcelona as recently as 2008.

So there you have it - my top 10. Honourable mentions must also go to Manuel Amoros (France), Franco Baresi (Italy), Antonio Cabrini (Italy), Cafu (Brazil), Fabio Cannavaro (Italy), Ivan Cordoba (Colombia), Ciro Ferrara (Italy), Claudio Gentile (Italy), Oscar Ruggeri (Argentina), Walter Samuel (Argentina), and Jaap Stam (Holland) - all of whom would no doubt walk into any other top 10 defenders list, but alas, not this one.

In case you were interested, Jamie Redknapp's top 10 was:

1. Tony Adams (Arsenal)
2. Sami Hyppia (Liverpool)
3. John Terry
4. Marcel Desailly
5. Rio Ferdinand
6. Jaap Stam
7. Jamie Carragher
8. Steve Bruce
9. Martin Keown
10. Laurent Blanc

One door closes, so another door opens - who is up next for England Coach?

2012-02-09T23:31:00.002+00:00

An astonishing day for English football on Wednesday began with the Tottenham Hotspur Manager Harry Redknapp - many people's choice to succeed Fabio Capello as England Coach - walking free after being cleared of cheating the public revenue, before Capello himself resigned from his role as England Coach exactly four months ahead of the 2012 European Championships after feeling undermined in his role as selector-in-chief of his playing staff.

This long and painful divorce brings to an end the most successful (however fruitless) reign of an England Coach in recent times, but the search now begins for someone to bring some calm to the chaos that currently reigns within the corridors of power at Wembley Stadium; and to salvage something from a situation which is fast spiralling out of control, as the Three Lions currently face life without a captain and Coach with the 2012 European Championships only five months away.

An overwhelming majority - players, managers, fans, and yes, even the press - have all publicly canvassed the Tottenham Manager for a number of weeks. But more importantly, Redknapp himself wants the job – something which would no doubt please The Football Association (FA) immensely - but not Spurs, whom although aware of the void his departure would create, will eventually not stand in his way if he wants to leave. If his stance over Luka Modric's ultimately-doomed move to Chelsea was anything to go by, Tottenham Chairman Daniel Levy will ensure his club is handsomely recompensed. Cue a club-versus-country row of a different kind.

The biggest problem The FA have now is that they have been trying to grow and promote from within: current under-21 players to the full side, with Stuart Pearce - installed on Thursday as Caretaker Manager - groomed to take over from Capello, having accrued a considerable amount of international (and tournament) experience. Redknapp and his backroom staff have no international experience as managers, so what do The FA do? Suspend their ideals and get the nation’s favourite in, or install Pearce now and see how he does in Euro 2012? Going with the former will threaten to undermine everything the likes of Sir Trevor Brooking - The FA's Director of Football Development - has spent years attempting to embed in his vision to improve the nation's psychological and sporting mindset in pursuit of excellence...and silverware. The biggest question The FA need to ask themselves is how big a priority is the Euros at this present moment in time? Do they want to go all out and win it? If so, get Redknapp in now, however, if they wish to deem the tournament a write-off - but make a decent go of it - continue with Pearce, and start working towards Brazil 2014.

That is not to say that Redknapp himself goes against everything Brooking is trying to set out. The former West Ham and Portsmouth Manager has developed and blooded a raft of young players who have gone on to serve the England national side to this day: Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand, Glen Johnson, Kyle Walker to name a few. Capello - at Milan, Roma, Juventus and Real Madrid - worked with a host of seasoned and world-class players, and got them working effectively - albeit unspectacularly - yielding a spectacular haul of trophies. His one biggest problem was that he - like Jose Mourinho, to a certain degree - were never long-term strategists. What legacy (in terms of bringing young players through at each of the clubs he managed) did he leave? Redknapp is quite the opposite. He knows when to bring in experience, and he knows young talent when he sees it. It worked for Germany after their 5-1 thumping by England in Munich in 2001. After that nadir, they invested a huge amount of money in developing and improving grass-roots football and its coaching infrastructure, and hired a succession of progressive Coaches, unafraid of blooding promising youngsters at the right time. Since then die Nationalmannschaft reached the 2002 World Cup Final under Rudi Voller; finished third at the 2006 World Cup (under Jurgen Klinsmann), and under current Coach Joachim Loew, finished runner-up in Euro 2008 and third in the 2010 World Cup. Now their current crop of stars and future talent is the envy of all Europe. England and The FA take note.

Other home-grown candidates have been thrown into the hat, but in all honesty, none of them quite fit the profile of an England Manager. But what makes one become England Manager? Success? Capello and Sven-Goran Eriksson had that in abundance at club level; Man-management? Kevin Keegan's powers of motivation saw him resign on a wet Wembley afternoon in 2000; For media friendly, read Steve McClaren and the aforementioned Eriksson. So what exactly is the recipe? Perhaps there is none. Of all the managers, however, there is no-one more capable at present to step into the breach than Redknapp. His Spurs side have played arguably the best football over the past two years; his tactical awareness and ability to get the best out of players playing in positions completely alien to them (citing Modric and Bale, as examples) have posed problems for the opposition; he is media-savvy - often honest and curt when he wants to be; but overall, it is his ability to instil belief and a team-ethic into his players that currently set him apart from other British-born managers - Pearce included.

Of the overseas contigent, Jose Mourinho is obviously the first name that comes to mind. While he is rumoured to be wanting a return to England, he may not wish to enter international football when he still has so many years left to offer at club level. Ex-Liverpool Manager Rafael Benitez has a winning pedigree, but his alienation of players would do more damage than good to an already-fractious squad - let alone his 'set-out-to-not-lose-a-game' policy - something which will polarise fans. The vacancy has come at the wrong time for Carlo Ancelotti, who has enjoyed a 100% start with Paris St Germain and their multi-billion petro-dollars, while Guus Hiddink remains the other most outstanding candidate to replace Capello on a long-term basis. His remarkable record at international level - a disappointing stint with Turkey excepted (everyone is allowed a 'duff' moment, you know) - and at clubs he has led to either domestic and continental success (or both with PSV Eindhoven, sets him apart from his peers.

But what is the common demoninator with all the foreign coaches named above? Yes, they have all managed in England. They understand the English game; how it works and the relationship between the FA, the Premier League, and its clubs; they have worked with the media; they speak the language, and can make themselves clear during matchday situations and in training. If The FA choose to again go down the non-British route, it is imperative they take the above attributes into consideration and think carefully before naming their next Coach - something which FA Chairman David Bernstein alluded to during Thursday's press conference.

It is somewhat ironic that St George's Park - The FA's soon-to-be home of English football development - opens its doors this summer. With the promise of improving the health of the national game, it could serve its first purpose by admitting its malfunctioning national team and reviving its fortunes.

Free To A Good Home - potential English Premier League Bosman transfers this summer

2012-01-01T01:02:00.000+00:00

From 1 January 2012, the worldwide transfer window opened for a calendar month, sparking a raft of deals in the hope of salvaging clubs' seasons or to bolster squads in their respective pursuit for silverware. New Year's Day also signalled the start of a period where players - whose contracts are due to expire over the summer - are free to talk to potential suitors, if unable to negotiate contract extensions with their present clubs.

In the English Premier League, 127 players will be out of contract from 1 July 2012. Below is a club-by-club run-down of those plying their trade in England's top flight who will either look to prolong their stay or move onto pastures new - unless their present clubs look to cash in on their current market value.

Arsenal

With a suspect defence plugged by the deadline day signing of Werder Bremen and Germany defender Per Mertesacker, Arsenal Coach Arsene Wenger will now concern himself with the signing of a goalkeeper to compete with current number one custodian Wojciech Szceszny for a first-team berth, with three of his goalkeepers' contracts up on 31 June 2012. Andrey Arshavin - after two years of under-performing seems to be on his way out, with fellow midfielder Yossi Benayoun's season-long loan set to expire - without any evidence of an extension.

Manuel Almunia (Goalkeeper, 34 years)

Andrey Arshavin (Midfielder, 30 years)

Yossi Benayoun (Midfielder, 31 years)

Lukasz Fabianski (Goalkeeper, 26 years)

Emmanuel Frimpong (Midfielder, 19 years)

Vito Mannone (Goalkeeper, 23 years)

Tomas Rosicky (Midfielder, 31 years)

Aston Villa

On-loan midfielder Jermaine Jenas looks set to return to parent club Tottenham Hotspur after an injury-ravaged loan spell. American 'keeper Brad Guzan is likely to extend his stay at Villa Park after cementing his position as the club's number one. Expect Emile Heskey - a Martin O'Neill signing - to depart for pastures new. Sunderland, perhaps?

Carlos Cuellar (Defender, 30 years)

Brad Guzan (Goalkeeper, 27 years)

Emile Heskey (Striker, 33 years)

Jermaine Jenas (Midfielder, 28 years)

Andy Marshall (Goalkeeper, 36 years)

Blackburn Rovers

With under-fire Manager Steve Kean proclaiming that funds will be made available in January, the question remains as to whether he will replace certain members, or add to his first-team squad. If he is to play nine more games this season, Michel Salgado will see an automatic one-year extension to his contract, however, seeing as Blackburn has no real money to burn - despite Kean's insistence - the Spaniard will not expect to see his contract renewed.

Nick Blackman (Striker, 22 years)

David Dunn (Midfielder, 32 years)

Vince Grella (Midfielder, 32 years)

Junior Hoilett (Striker, 21 years)

Josh Morris (Midfielder, 20 years)

Jason Roberts (Striker, 33 years)

Michel Salgado (Defender, 36 years)

Bolton Wanderers

Bolton Manager Owen Coyle has a lot of work to do. Short on confidence, short on cash, and with an ageing squad, the Scot has a big decision to make over the coming month - should he cash in on his high-earning players on the wrong side of 30, or stick with his squad in the hope of relying on each one of his members to see him through a make-or-break season for the Trotters? The departure of Gary Cahill is all but guaranteed - where to, remains the question, with Chelsea leading the pack ahead of Liverpool and Arsenal.

Robbie Blake (Striker, 35 years)

Dedryck Boyata (Defender, 21 years)

Gary Cahill (Defender, 26 years)

Kevin Davies (Striker, 34 years)

Sean Davis (Midfielder, 32 years)

Ricardo Gardner (Defender, 33 years)

Jussi Jaaskelainen (Goalkeeper, 36 years)

Ivan Klasnic (Striker, 31 years)

Zat Knight (Defender, 31 years)

Martin Petrov (Midfielder, 32 years)

Sam Ricketts (Defender, 30 years)

Paul Robinson (Defender, 33 years)

Tuncay Sanli (Striker, 29 years)

Chelsea

With Nicolas Anelka having signed for Chinese outfit Shanghai Shenhua before his contract was up in July, will fellow striker Didier Drogba also leave Stamford Bridge in the New Year? Having scored his 150th goal in Saturday's loss to Aston Villa, his celebration suggested a parting of the ways in what may have been his last appearance for the Blues before he leaves for the African Cup of Nations, never to return. Florent Malouda - frustrated by a lack of playing time after the arrival of Juan Mata - looks set to play under Carlo Ancelotti at Paris St-Germain. Alex - whilst not out of contract at the end of the season - is also on his way out after handing in a transfer request.

Jose Bosingwa (Defender, 29 years)

Didier Drogba (Striker, 33 years)

Henrique Hilario (Goalkeeper, 36 years)

Salomon Kalou (Striker, 26 years)

Florent Malouda (Midfielder, 31 years)

Everton

David Moyes will somehow look to retain his squad with the promise of yet another top-half finish, despite having no money to splash. Argentinian striker Denis Stracqualursi will no doubt return home, however, Landon Donovan is all set to return for a second-spell with the Toffees, this time on a longer-term deal after his recent Major League Soccer success with the LA Galaxy.

Sylvain Distin (Defender, 34 years)

Royston Drenthe (Midfielder, 24 years)

Marcus Hahnemann (Goalkeeper, 39 years)

Tim Howard (Goalkeeper, 32 years)

James McFadden (Striker, 28 years)

Louis Saha (Striker, 33 years)

Denis Stracqualursi (Striker, 24 years)

Fulham

Some key performers will be out of contract, but expect the likes of captain Danny Murphy, Andrew Johnson and Mark Schwarzer - the latter, despite the emergence of David Stockdale in the Fulham goal - to extend their stay. One guaranteed departure - though not confirmed as yet - will see striker Bobby Zamora leave Craven Cottage after his spat with Fulham Manager Martin Jol, coupled with the emergence of Bryan Ruiz after his difficult start to life in the Premier League.

Zdenek Grygera (Defender, 31 years)

Andrew Johnson (Striker, 30 years)

Alexander Kacaliknic (Midfielder, 20 years)

Stephen Kelly (Defender, 28 years)

Danny Murphy (Midfielder, 34 years)

Mark Schwarzer (Goalkeeper, 39 years)

Csaba Somogyi (Goalkeeper, 26 years)

Liverpool

With the majority of his squad tied to long-term deals, only Fabio Aurelio waits to see if he, too, will see his contract extended. However, with the form of summer signing Jose Enrique and the emergence of 18-year-old left-back Jack Robinson, the Brazilian may see a move back to his homeland.

Fabio Aurelio (Defender, 32 years)

Manchester City

Free signing Owen Hargreaves waits to see if his stay at the Etihad Stadium will be prolonged for another season. Restricted to only making six appearances this season, the midfielder may find salvation in light of Nigel de Jong's rumoured departure, therefore freeing up a spot for world-class defensive midfield spot. The former England star now only needs to stay fit to keep his place in Roberto Mancini's squad.

Owen Hargreaves (Midfielder, 30 years)

Costel Pantimilon (Goalkeeper, 24 years)

Stuart Taylor (Goalkeeper, 31 years)

Manchester United

Polish custodian Tomas Kuszczak looks odds-on to leave the Old Trafford giants in January after becoming disillusioned with life as the club's number two 'keeper ever since his arrival in July 2007. Now fourth-choice 'keeper behind David de Gea, Anders Lindegaard and Ben Amos, the former West Bromwich Albion man is desperate to a regular starting spot in the hope of gaining a place in his nation's Euro 2012 squad. Rumours suggested a fresh start for Darron Gibson who failed to capitalise on his early promise, however, with only a finite amount of cash available and long-term injuries to both Darren Fletcher and Tom Cleverley, the Irishman may yet keep his place in Sir Alex Ferguson's squad for next season. Both Ryan Giggs and Michael Owen both expect to see their contracts extended for another season.

Tomas Kuszczak (Goalkeeper, 29 years)

Darron Gibson (Midfielder, 24 years)

Ryan Giggs (Midfielder, 38 years)

Michael Owen (Striker, 31 years)

Newcastle United

The emergence and subsequent form of Tim Krul has seen Steve Harper play second fiddle yet again, however, he is an able understudy, and does not expect to be sold. Peter Lovenkrands offers width and pace when called upon, and is still a useful squad member. Again, expect the Dane to remain, unlike Alan Smith - rumoured to return to Leeds United, where he started his professional career.

Danny Guthrie (Midfielder, 24 years)

Steve Harper (Goalkeeper, 36 years)

Tamas Kadar (Defender, 21 years)

Peter Lovenkrands (Striker, 31 years)

Alan Smith (Midfielder, 31 years)

Norwich City

Injuries to a host of Manchester United's defenders may see Ritchie de Laet return to Old Trafford after his loan spell ends in the summer, however, Norwich boss Paul Lambert will be desperate to extend the Belgian's stay after his excellent start to the season with the Canaries.

Ritchie de Laet (Defender, 23 years)

Adam Drury (Defender, 33 years)

Simeon Jackson (Striker, 24 years)

Kyle Naughton (Defender, 23 years)

Declan Rudd (Goalkeeper, 20 years)

Zak Whitbread (Defender, 27 years)

Aaron Wilbraham (Striker, 32 years)

Queens Park Rangers

Hoops' owner Tony Fernandes has promised that funds will be made available for Neil Warnock to spend in the January transfer window, which may hasten the departure of some whose contracts are set to expire in the summer. A 20-goal-per-season striker is at the forefront of Neil Warnock's thoughts, so expect the likes of Patrick Agyemang to exit Loftus Road along with fellow striker Alessandro Pellicori, who will no doubt return home to Italy.

Patrick Agyemang (Striker, 31 years)

Radek Cerny (Goalkeeper, 37 years)

Kieron Dyer (Midfielder, 33 years)

Danny Gabbidon (Defender, 32 years)

Fitz Hall (Defender, 31 years)

Clint Hill (Defender, 33 years)

Alessandro Pellicori (Striker, 30 years)

Bruno Perone (Defender, 24 years)

Jason Puncheon (Midfielder, 25 years)

Danny Shittu (Defender, 31 years)

Stoke City

The Potters will continue to rely on Rory Delap's exocet-like throw-ins, so expect 'The Human Sling' to stay at the Britannia Stadium beyond the summer. Ex-Real Madrid defender Jonathan Woodgate - one of England's most elegant centre-backs of recent times - has had an inconsistent season due to injuries and a loss of form, and may not remain.

Danny Collins (Defender, 31 years)

Rory Delap (Midfielder, 35 years)

Salif Diao (Defender, 34 years)

Ricardo Fuller (Striker, 32 years)

Carlo Nash (Goalkeeper, 38 years)

Mamady Sidibe (Striker, 32 years)

Tom Soares (Midfielder, 25 years)

Michael Tonge (Midfielder, 28 years)

Jonathan Woodgate (Defender, 31 years)

Sunderland

With Marouane Chamakh expected to leave Arsenal in the summer, Niklas Bendtner may yet have a future with the Gunners. His loan stint with the Black Cats has not been successful to date, and with new boss Martin O'Neill looking to bring in some fresh blood in the summer, expect the Dane to exit the Stadium of Light. Jack Colback - outstanding in the New Year's Day win over Manchester City - will have secured a contract extension, unlike Craig Gordon who has now become third-choice and is expected to depart.

Niklas Bendtner (Defender, 23 years)

Trevor Carson (Goalkeeper, 23 years)

Jack Colback (Midfielder, 22 years)

Jordan Cook (Midfielder, 21 years)

Craig Gordon (Goalkeeper, 29 years)

Ryan Noble (Striker, 20 years)

Swansea City

Greek defender Vangelis Moras looks set to depart the Liberty Stadium after only playing a bit-part role so far this season. Kemy Agustien - having made 10 appearances so far this season, with half of those as a substitute - should see his stay prolonged for at least another season, along with young defender Stephen Caulker.

Kemy Agustien (Midfielder, 25 years)

Ferrie Bodde (Midfielder, 29 years)

Thomas Butler (Midfielder, 30 years)

Stephen Caulker (Defender, 20 years)

David Cotterill (Midfielder, 24 years)

Vangelis Moras (Defender, 30 years)

Ashley Richards (Defender, 20 years)

Tottenham Hotspur

Club captain Ledley King - despite years of injuries hampering his career - looks set to be handed a one-year extension, as Harry Redknapp publicly stressed his importance and continued influence on and off the pitch. Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor hopes to remain at White Hart Lane, but has stressed that talks over a permanent deal or an extension of his one-year loan will not take place until the latter stages of this season. A successful partnership with Rafael Van Der Vaart, coupled with the rumoured departures of Jermain Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko should free up enough capital to purchase the controversial striker. Carlo Cudicini should remain as an effective back-up to Brad Friedel, but Heurelho Gomes will be on his way out after his erratic spell with the Lilywhites.

Emmanuel Adebayor (Striker, 27 years)

Carlo Cudicini (Goalkeeper, 38 years)

Heurelho Gomes (Goalkeeper, 30 years)

Ledley King (Defender, 31 years)

West Bromwich Albion

Number one 'keeper Ben Foster will remain at the Hawthorns, as will the majority of those out of contract in July. WBA Manager Roy Hodgson will look to retain experienced members of his squad which will prove to be invaluable in a league this demanding, as they continue their eternal battle to stay in the top flight.

Roman Bednar (Striker, 28 years)

Marc-Antoine Fortune (Striker, 30 years)

Ben Foster (Goalkeeper, 28 years)

Marton Fulop (Goalkeeper, 38 years)

Steven Reid (Midfielder, 30 years)

Paul Scharner (Midfielder, 31 years)

Nicky Shorey (Defender, 30 years)

Somen Tchoyi (Midfielder, 28 years)

Jerome Thomas (Midfielder, 28 years)

Wigan Athletic

After another troubled season, key members - and much sought after - will look to leave for new challenges. Maynor Figueroa and Hugo Rodallega will no doubt angle for moves to bigger clubs, while Patrick van Aanholt may return to parent club Chelsea after his season-long loan deal ends.

Mohamed Diame (Midfielder, 24 years)

Maynor Figueroa (Defender, 28 years)

Jordi Gomez (Midfielder, 26 years)

David Jones (Midfielder, 27 years)

Chris Kirkland (Goalkeeper, 30 years)

Lee Nicholls (Goalkeeper, 19 years)

Michael Pollitt (Goalkeeper, 39 years)

Hugo Rodallega (Striker, 26 years)

Hendry Thomas (Midfielder, 26 years)

Patrick van Aanholt (Defender, 21 years)

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Not considered by Manager Mick McCarthy at the start of the current season, the ex-Sunderland defender eventually earned a recall to the starting XI at the expense of Roger Johnson, with the latter suffering from a loss of form. Not expected to see his contract renewed.

Jody Craddock (Defender, 36 years)

England 1-0 Spain - A Weekend To Remember

2011-11-13T20:46:00.001+00:00

As weekends go, this one was one to remember for all those associated with the England national team. Be it supporters; members of the English Football Association or the England coaching staff, everything that could go right, did go right as an impeccably-observed minute's silence to remember those who gave their lives in service preceded a 1-0 win for England over the reigning World and European champions in their friendly encounter at a packed Wembley Stadium.

The furore over the 'should they, shouldn't they (stitch poppies onto each England players' shirts)' issue took some much-needed attention away from Fabio Capello's squad as they prepared to face the Spaniards. Following lacklustre performances towards the end of the Three Lions' ultimately successful Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, the ongoing police investigation surrounding team captain John Terry, in addition to the thought of playing without Wayne Rooney, it was perceived by many that the Wembley crowd feared the worst as their nation faced a mission impossible to repel the modern-day version of the Spanish Armada and their own arsenal of world-class attackers.

None of these thoughts occupied Fabio Capello's mind. In fact, he used the Spanish side - feting them as demi-Gods with their brilliant brand of possession football - and welcomed the distraction of the 'poppy issue' to deflect unwanted attention from his underperforming players. This was the perfect opportunity for the Italian to use his psychological and man-management skills which served him so well at AC Milan and Real Madrid, but rarely displayed during his tenure as England boss. He called his squad together only three days before Saturday's match, and therefore eliminated any boredom which plagued the majority of his players throughout their troubled World Cup campaign in South Africa. Capello also identified a ploy to counter the threat of David Villa, David Silva, Xavi, and Andres Iniesta amongst others; and selected a raft of younger, inexperienced players at international level to assess, to see if they could cope with the very best Europe, and indeed the world, had to offer.

The worry, however, was that he would be placing far too much pressure on the likes of Jack Rodwell, Danny Welbeck and Kyle Walker if they were to start the friendly and not deliver - afterall, there is nothing worse than to dent the confidence of a player - young or old - if they flatter to deceive, and be hauled off to a lukewarm response from the crowd. Think back to the pressure placed on Fernando Torres, as he started on his debut for Chelsea after his £50million move from the team he left - Liverpool - before being replaced to a chorus of jeers from the Anfield faithful after a tepid performance belying his hugely-inflated transfer fee. He left the field on his own which made it even worse for him, as the spotlight was on him alone. Had Torres entered the field as a substitute, he would not have faced the kind of pressure placed on him had he started, and even if he did not deliver, he would have left the field along with 21 other players, so how would he know if it was he who was being jeered at, or his team-mates, who eventually lost the encounter? Football management is all about psychology, tactics and good judgement or management - whichever you wish to call it - which the then Chelsea Manager Carlo Ancelotti got badly wrong. As for Torres himself, he has not been the same player since.

Thankfully, this scenario was never the case on Saturday night, as Rodwell, Welbeck and Walker all entered the fray as second-half substitutes, given the freedom to create havoc amongst a watertight and well-drilled Spanish side who regularly work with Trojan-like efficiency to close down the opposition and wrestle back possession of the ball which they then maintain with consummate ease. England earned themselves a hard-fought win - earned by a determined show of resilience and graft - and through a set-piece as stand-in captain Frank Lampard stole in to head in Darren Bent's effort which rebounded off the post and into the Chelsea midfielder's path. Spain dominated possession - as they do against most sides - and had a number of attempts which failed to go in, which served as a reminder that despite the Three Lions' win, there is still plenty of work left to do if they harbour serious hopes of becoming European champions in Poland/Ukraine. Beating arguably the finest international side of recent times in a friendly is one thing, reproducing it when it really matters - and under intense pressure - is an entirely different matter.

Let us not forget that despite the friendly win somewhat kick-starting a renewed wave of enthusiasm for England among their followers, Argentina trounced the then newly-crowned World Champions 4-1, also in a friendly in Buenos Aires. Sergio Batista, who guided the Albiceleste to victory over the Spaniards lost his job within ten months after a poor start to the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign. Similarly, Portugal thumped their Iberian rivals in a non-competitive match in Lisbon, winning 4-0. Since that memorable win, the Seleccao have also struggled in their own European Championship qualifying group, barely scraping into a play-off place ahead of Norway. For those now looking at England with rose-tinted glasses after Saturday's win, it would be highly advisable for them to revise their opinions of their glorious (immediate) future, and add a degree of caution - both Argentina and Portugal have already taken heed.

So Don Fabio got it right on all counts: his man-management to keep his players focussed ahead of the game; his game plan to stifle the threat of Spain and seek a win by replicating the performance of Switzerland in their shock defeat of la Furia Roja in their opening group encounter in the 2010 World Cup Finals; and the deployment of his youngsters at exactly the right moment. But the England fans also got it right, too, for a change. They knew their team would watch their opponents display a masterclass in ball retention, and against any other opposition, they would have started their jeering from the minute they knew their team were being outplayed. The support remained patient as they knew what the game plan was: fight hard, and fight for the shirt - which the England team all did, with Scott Parker and Joleon Lescott both deserving special praise.

In addition, the Wembley crowd - for the first time in many years - observed the opposition's national anthem without the xenophobic and unceremonious booing which usually accompanied each playing, before singing their own anthem with gusto. This set the scene for the England team, as for a change, there was no hostile crowd for an audience - not on this weekend of remembrance. So, credit where it's due.

The spirit of Madchester lives on as Tevez suffers a rush of blood to the head

2011-09-28T17:06:00.002+01:00

The Madchester music scene may now be a distant memory, but in Carlos Tevez - erstwhile captain of Manchester City - the spirit of that era lives on. On a night when his much-talked about Manchester City side were outclassed by Bayern Munich in Tuesday night's Champions League tie, the surly Argentine had a rush of blood to the head, reportedly refusing to come to the aid of his team-mates who were at the time being taught the harsh realities of Champions League football at the Allianz Arena as they attempted to overcome a two-goal deficit before eventually succumbing to a 2-0 defeat, courtesy of a Mario Gomez brace.

Various reports suggest that Tevez simply refused to warm up when asked to appear in the second-half after watching Nigel De Jong enter the fray as a substitute, replacing the ineffectual Edin Dzeko on 55 minutes to prevent the Bavarians from going further ahead. Now, having started the match on the bench; watching his side go two goals down in the first half alone; seeing Dzeko's unsavoury reaction to being substituted and being replaced by a defensive midfielder instead of Roberto Mancini calling on a striker - Tevez or anyone else - to salvage something from the game, one would understand the Argentine's reaction. Afterall, prior to this season, he was the club captain, and arguably their most inspirational player. And despite various proclamations from the management, coaching staff and players that Tevez was not an outcast and most certainly part of the squad, Mancini's deteriorating relationship with the former Manchester United forward suggested anything but - highlighted by what Tevez perceived to be a snub by Mancini for the reasons above, therefore triggering his subsequent refusal to take his place on the pitch during the second half.

So it seems that pride came before teamwork. As unpleasant as it was to witness, Dzeko's reaction when taken off was borne out of frustration, knowing he had failed to deliver when called upon - and in the clear light of day, he will come to realise that he took a hit for the team to stop them from falling further behind. But with Tevez, it appears his pride was too big to help a team in trouble, confusion notwithstanding - which was something the Argentine alluded to when releasing a statement on Wednesday morning: "In Munich on Tuesday I had warmed up and was ready to play. This is not the right time to get into specific details as to why this did not happen. But I wish to state that I never refused to play. There was some confusion on the bench and I believe my position may have been misunderstood". At the time of writing this article, no further comment had been added to this statement, so one suspects that the Argentine striker may still be feeling a bit sheepish after his antics in Munich.

But amongst all this furore, could this be a case of 'just desserts' for City? Afterall, they remained unmoved in their pursuit of Samir Nasri to the point where the French midfielder asked Arsenal Manager Arsene Wenger to leave him out ahead of the Gunners' Champions League qualifier against Udinese, which paved the way for his eventual move up north to the Etihad Stadium. Manchester United's Ryan Giggs and Michael Owen - multi-trophy winners who seemingly kick a ball in anger each time they are either left out of squads or placed on the bench in the essence of squad rotation. But do they ever complain of being hard done by, refusing to be included in match-day squads or refusing to come on at all? No. It was rumoured that Dimitar Berbatov refused to be included in the Tottenham Hotspur squad to face Sunderland in August 2008 in his bid to engineer a move to Manchester United. The Bulgarian eventually got his wish a week later, however, fast forward to the current season, and you will now see the striker sitting in the stands patiently biding his time. He may not be happy with the situation, and why should he be? Afterall, he - like Tevez - was his club's leading scorer in all competitions last season. So, any similarities between the two end there.

Bayern left-back Jerome Boateng did not exactly endear himself to the City faithful during his spell in Manchester, and drew an even bigger line under his brief stay as he gave an insight into life within the City dressing room ahead of Tuesday night's clash, as he alluded to a fractured dressing room full of individuals with a distinct lack of team spirit. He was right. The capturing of silverware may bring some respite to a club starved of success over the years, but would merely paper over the potential fractious nature of the first-team squad - but in a squad full of egos all competing for regular starting places and back-page headlines, those fractures are becoming more exposed, and unless these 'mutinies' are curbed, the deteriorating relationship between certain players and the Coach will threaten to undermine everything the club's owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan has set out to achieve in his grand plan for European domination.

Some blame could perhaps be apportioned to Mancini and the likes of former Chief Executive Garry Cook and Football Administration Officer Brian Marwood - the latter duo with their brusque manner in which they operate - for encouraging the purchase of expensive, but highly-strung players. With this collection of egos, they have collectively failed to foster a harmonious spirit amongst the squad to bring instant success to the blue half of Manchester, but no blame can be attached whatsoever on the trio in light of Tevez's insubordination, when you consider just how much the club have done to reintegrate El Apache back into the squad after his transfer request, criticisms of English life and his ongoing unhappiness after being separated from his two children.

Mancini has clearly realised that a greater measure of control has to be asserted before matters really get out of hand, following Tuesday night's debacle. The Italian publicly declared his stance on Tevez and his refusal to select him in future; Dzeko was verbally censured after his tantrum, and subsequently warned his other stars to toe the line in future or risk being reprimanded or disarded completely; so it will be interesting to see exactly how Mancini reacts to further misdemeanours from Mario Balotelli, should he step out of line? Further insubordination from his playing staff will see them excommunicated, so where will that leave the club in their attempt to construct both a Premier League and Champions League-winning squad, especially in light of UEFA's Financial Fair Play ruling coming into play?

The squad at Mancini's disposal is currently one of the strongest in Europe, and having had prior experience of managing a high-profile squad at Internazionale, it remains to be seen just how good a man-manager he actually is. Managing a squad of trophy-winners and maintaining that success whilst keeping everyone happy is one thing; managing a team desperate for silverware and with each member having a point to prove is something else.

If anything, the Citizens have been performing far better with Tevez out of the equation, and their impressive start to the current season justifies that claim. Sergio Aguero - brought in as a direct replacement for the ex-Corinthians star - has settled in immediately and is thriving on the opportunities afforded to him by David Silva, while Dzeko himself is proving to be the striker befitting his £35million transfer fee. Mancini has allowed himself the luxury of trying out different formations to get the best out of his potent strikeforce with Tevez nowhere to be seen. But as stated earlier, quality comes at a price.

Rumours suggest that Sunderland Chairman and all-round-good-guy Niall Quinn will be the man to take over the Chief Executive role vacated after Cook's departure and bring some much-needed stability and calmness to the club which is getting carried away by ambition, whilst losing sight of its core values, and attachment to the majority of the Manchester faithful who proclaim the club to be their own. Quinn's honesty and integrity has endeared him to many within the footballing world, and his arrival at the Etihad Stadium could not come soon enough.

The Continuing Failures of Jermain Defoe

2011-08-24T07:12:00.004+01:00

As observers continue to question Tottenham Hotspur Manager Harry Redknapp's wisdom to omit in-demand midfielder Luka Modric from his team in the wake of Monday night's defeat to Manchester United - bearing in mind that Manchester City-bound Samir Nasri gave a sparkling performance in Arsenal's recent loss to Liverpool - one startling fact that has been overlooked is that Spurs' strikeforce yet again failed to produce when it matters against a 'Big Four' side - with one of their key strikers in particular firing yet another blank.

Now, which of the 20 Premier League teams occupy the 'Big Four' berths is open to debate (mine include Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, as it happens), however, what is not in question is the goalscoring record of first-choice striker Jermain Defoe. While a career record of 130 league goals in 357 games (97 of them as a substitute) may seem rather impressive, one has to ask just how many of them were scored against the biggest names in Premier League football. Answer? Not many. Okay, the actual answer is that over the previous nine seasons, the Londoner played 62 league games against the 'Big Four', scoring only 11 times - a very poor return for a striker still regarded as one of the most vibrant strikers in the game.

His athleticism in addition to his ability to run along the opposition defences, beat offside traps and strike the ball early are trademarks of his game, and has modelled his style - even his goal celebrations - on his boyhood idol Ian Wright. However, a striker is judged purely on goals alone; his ratio, which of the big sides he scores against, and the importance of them. Wright scored all manner of goals against the very best opponents and in games when it mattered, and while Defoe's career record is respectable, his continued failure to score against the bigger sides - both domestically and for his country - has somewhat tarnished his reputation of being one of the best homegrown striker of recent times. Goals scored in matches already won or four or five-goal salvos in rousing wins do not constitute as great marksmanship.

The same label was attributed to ex-Manchester United and Newcastle striker Andrew Cole whose one-in-two goals-per-game ratio belied the fact that that most of his goals early on in his spell with the Old Trafford club were scored in games where games had been long since won. Stung by the criticism, he eventually started to become a more decisive player as he scored match-winning goals or struck at key moments which changed the course of games. Take the winner against Juventus in the epic 1999 Semi-Final second-leg encounter in Turin, or the final game of the Premier League in the same year where he netted the winner against Tottenham to secure the first part of their Treble success. Love him or loathe him, Cole finally came good and even in those two moments, finally started to repay the British record fee paid to secure his services.

Apart from Defoe's profligacy or mediocrity - call it what you wish - against the big sides at domestic level, take a look at his goalscoring record for England, and whom his goals have come against - with his only international goal of note securing top-spot in their group at the 2010 World Cup finals. A scorer of great goals? Yes. A Michael Owen he most certainly is not.

Having started in the loss to the Red Devils on Monday night, the ex-West Ham striker striker had the perfect chance to improve on his record against Manchester United. Having played his part in a strong first-half showing, his performance matched that of his side as all manner of confidence and fortitude ebbed away as the match progressed, eventually succumbing 3-0 to the current Premier League champions. In fact, his most notable contribution was to pick up a yellow card - something which leads to another fact: in eight of the last nine seasons, Defoe has managed to accrue more yellow cards in each of those campaigns than goals scored against the aforementioned big guns.

All this is not to say that the blame for Tottenham's current woes and inability to win more trophies should lie solely with Defoe, as collectively, the Lilywhites' strikeforce over the past decade have simply not been good enough. But to think that Defoe has seen off the challenge of Robbie Keane, Peter Crouch, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Darren Bent, John Utaka, Nwankwo Kanu, David Nugent, Bobby Zamora, amongst others, to retain his no. 1 status at both Tottenham and Portsmouth would sense of Redknapp placing his trust in the wrong man

Modric's exclusion from the party which played in Manchester on Monday may have had a destabilising effect on morale within the Tottenham camp, but their hammering cannot be pinned to the Croat's absence. The bitter truth is that had Modric played and provided the guile and vision to service Defoe, the 28-year-old would still not have found the net - a damning indictment of a striker who has spectacularly failed to be the player he threatened to become.

Rumours continue to suggest that Redknapp is looking to bring in another striker before the end of the current transfer window. While Pavlyuchenko has not been given enough games to show exactly how good a striker he really is, Diego Forlan, Emmanuel Adebayor, Espanyol's Pablo Daniel Osvaldo and former striker Dimitar Berbatov are names suggested to provide some much-needed reinforcements up front as Spurs look to get back into the Champions League. However, it is world-class competition for Defoe which is required to either (no pun intended) spur the England striker into becoming a more consistent and match-winning striker, or call time on his latest spell at White Hart Lane and become just another one of those strikers who failed to deliver on their promise.

Tevez to Corinthians....For The Good Of The Game

2011-07-13T21:46:00.005+01:00

'For The Good Of The Game'. FIFA's often and ill-advised used motto, not mine. The same saying could could also apply to Carlos Tevez' move should he renounce another lucrative transfer to a top Latin European club, and opt instead for a return to Brazilian club Corinthians who yesterday lodged a near-€40million bid, subsequently rejected by present club Manchester City.

Ever since Carlitos announced his intention in January to leave the Citizens to be closer to his family - his two daughters Katie and Florencia, in particular - only to subsequently withdraw his transfer request to at least see out the season out of loyalty to owner Sheikh Mansour and the club's fans, the transfer rumour mill went into overdrive with the stocky Argentine linked to the likes of Internazionale and Real Madrid, whose Coach Jose Mourinho made no secret of his desire to sign a powerful centre-forward. While a transfer to southern Europe - and another bumper contract - offers him an escape route from (and apologies for quoting a line from a Smiths song, here) a place where the rain falls hard on a humdrum town, that still does not solve the conundrum of life away from his wife and children, who themselves may not be as receptive to a move across the Atlantic.

Who exactly would take on the prolific striker still remains to be seen, as his estimated €57million transfer value has placed many of Europe's top clubs out of contention for his signature - and that is before we even start on his annual salary. Barcelona have identified Alexis Sanchez and Cesc Fabregas as the two to keep them at the top of the pile both at home and in Europe - both coming at a combined cost of €70million, thus ending their pursuit of another one of their other targets - Villareal's Giuseppe Rossi; Real Madrid are after a striker to take the pressure off Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema, and may eventually push through the permanent transfer of City striker Emmanuel Adebayor who would come half of Tevez' price, or even Atletico Madrid's Sergio Aguero should they meet his €35million buy-out clause. After Diego Milito's inconsistent second season at Inter, a move to the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza was mooted, however Sporting Director Marco Branca quashed all speculation, stating: "Tevez is a great player, a great character, but absolutely no. His salary means it is out of the question". No deal there then, either. So which other Italo/Spanish club could offer the ideal escape route? Roma, with Thomas DiBenedetto's millions, not to mention newly-installed Coach Luis Enrique's promise to bring Barcelona to the peninsula with El Apache as the focal point in attack? I think not, either.

Manchester City have more than enough money to repel any bids which fall short of the valuation placed on the Argentina striker's head, and will attempt to play hard-ball by getting the best deal to fund a bid for a replacement striker. Boca Juniors - his first love - would be the perfect solution, especially in light of veteran striker Martin Palermo's recent retirement. However, the Argentine club's finances mean that no such homecoming will occur. Across the border in Brazil, the financial power of its clubs have seen the return of Ronaldinho, Gilberto Silva, Luis Fabiano and Rafael Sobis amongst others, offering big enough terms to entice them back ahead of the 2014 World Cup. After legendary striker Ronaldo announced his retirement midway through last season, the perfect opportunity has now arisen for a star striker like Tevez to adequately fill the Brazilian's shoes. While Tevez' relationship with the Timao during his two year stint was excellent, the same could not be said of Carlitos' agent and the former head of Media Sports Investment Group - Kia Joorabchian - the investment firm which controlled the Sao Paulo-based club between 2004-2007, and questions remain if the club would be willing to do business with a man with whom they continue to have a tempestuous relationship with to this day.

Having already secured domestic and European success at both Manchester clubs and acquiring a bank balance only one could dream of, it is a want of a more personal, human level which is stirring the emotions, much more than the opportunity to lead Manchester City to an array of silverware - something very rarely seen in the sport. With 43 goals in 63 games, City's fans would not begrudge the striker a move after everything he has done for the club - unless it was a move to a Champions League rival with money as the underlying motive, and with his family not joining him, which is why it is imperative he makes good his promise and moves to Corinthians - should they meet the Citizens' valuation - for himself, his family, for FIFA, and for football. For the good of the game, remember....for the good of the game.

Coventry City - The Club That Cried Wolf

2011-06-11T21:40:00.005+01:00

On a day when Wigan Manager Roberto Martinez declared his unswerving loyalty to club chairman Dave Whelan by issuing a polite "thanks, but 'no' thanks" to Aston Villa, Coventry City's Marlon King lived up to his controversial reputation by 'supposedly' letting go of the hand that helped him back into football as he moved across the Midlands to join fellow Championship rivals Birmingham City.

The transferring of players is part and parcel of football. Always has been, always will be. Loyalty, on the other hand, was once a common occurrence with players only reluctantly moving to help a club in need - be it to help reinvest monies made from their own sales into the purchasing of new blood; or to relieve crippling debts. There was no such dilemma on King's mind, however. Brought in by Aidy Boothroyd for whom he played under during a spell at Watford, King ended the season as the club's leading scorer with 12 goals in 28 games. His rehabilitation as a person was still ongoing, however, it seemed his rehabilitation as a footballer was now complete. With Boothroyd having departed and the fans' Player of the Season award firmly tucked away, the former Wigan attacker thought he had paid his dues - regardless of a contract extension or otherwise. Now out of contract, the forward waited for a three-year deal (in writing) after a verbal agreement was made with new Sky Blues manager Andy Thorn. As no document was forthcoming, his moral compass saw him up sticks, taking him westwards to Birmingham.

No crime had been committed - despite what many of City's supporters think to the contrary. A verbal agreement had been reached, but when a deal was not delivered when asked for, one cannot blame the London native for walking away. But who exactly was at fault here? King, for going back on his word, coupled with his impatience for wanting to secure an income? His advisor (Tony Finnegan) for exploring other options like most agents are paid to do? Or the 'victim' in all of this - Coventry City itself - who dithered about, believing that a word is one's bond and delayed the despatching of the three-year contract in question. As for believing a word anyone says, did the club's directors not pay any attention to the farce surrounding England's failed 2018 World Cup bid as the likes of Jack Warner allegedly promised his vote and that of his fellow FIFA executive members to Prince William in Zurich before his about face? Football is football, and business is business - except it seems those in charge of the club may not know much about either.

While King looks forward to a new challenge at St Andrew's, a more pressing concern faces the Sky Blues as yet another player has seemingly used the club as a stepping stone to seek further gain elsewhere. Since the club's relegation from the Premier League at the end of the 2000-01 season, envious glances have since been cast at others who have dropped from the top tier into the Championship, only to see them bounce back into the promised land at some stage or other. However, the Sky Blues' situation has remained the same in the 10 years since their demotion. Like it or not, they are a Championship side, and will remain so at best unless they get their own house in order.

Numerous battles to stay afloat and avoid administration due to financial mismanagement; a constant changing of ownership; not to mention a revolving door policy which has seen 15 managers come and go has seen City become one of a handful of sides since the advent of the Premier League who have failed to make it back into the big time after relegation (Leeds, Southampton and Charlton some of the other sides to have suffered the same fate). To compound the issue, monies made from match day revenue and other corporate events held at the stadium and adjoining conference arena go straight into the pockets of those who own the stadium - not the club itself - so any reinvestment into the squad is made only by selling their talented players - often at a price far less than their actual worth. Again, something the club have continually failed to address.

With no direction, vision, stability and money, it is hard to see how the Sky Blues think they can retain members of their playing staff. With the club having failed to even make the play-offs in their 10 years in the Championship, what incentive is there for players plying their trade week in, week out to achieve lower-table obscurity at the end of each season? Marlon King - for all his faults - did what he had to do, and is not the first to break a promise, nor will he be the last. Coventry City has done plenty of that in the past by selling the dream of Premier League football, and continue to do so. If City really wanted to tie King down to a longer-term deal, a contract would have been issued as quickly as possible to keep away any prying eyes. The slightest of hesitations and other clubs would be in. Coventry delayed, and Birmingham City got their man.

Instead of feeling hard done by, and thinking the world is against them, fingers have to be pulled out of certain places within the club's corridors of power before their loyal following eventually lose their faith and start believing others. It is now time for City to stop spinning tales. It is a time for action, not words.

The Final Straight

2011-05-16T08:07:00.005+01:00

Plenty of winners and losers across Europe and Brazil last week, as the footballing calendar draws to a close in leagues worldwide. League champions and Cup winners have been crowned, relegation confirmed for others; managerial casualties are afoot, while many fans and owners are already contemplating on what might have been and what is yet to come for their respective clubs.

BRAZIL

Paulista Championship Final: Santos 2-1 Corinthians (2-1 aggregate)

Goals from Arouca and striking sensation Neymar saw Santos crowned as Paulista winners for the second successive season after a hard-fought win. Having already played out a tough goalless draw in the first-leg and an away trip to Colombia in the Copa Libertadores - a match they won against Once Caldas - there was little sign of exhaustion as the Peixe took the game to their rivals.

Arouca slotted the ball home on 16 minutes after some excellent work by Ze Eduardo, and Neymar put the game beyond Corinthians' reach as he made space for himself inside the opposition box and fired a shot Corinthians' goalkeeper Julio Cesar should have saved, but saw the ball squirm from his grasp only to see it trickle over the line. Morais' consolation strike was just that, but it still made for a nervous end to the game for the Peixe and their loyal fans.

Gaucho Championship Final: Internacional 3-2 Gremio (5-5 aggregate; Internacional win 5-4 on penalties)

An intense battle over two legs between these two rivals from Port Alegre saw 180 minutes of unbelievable tension, which intensified as both Internacional and Gremio were locked at five goals apiece, which meant the Final had to be decided on penalties. Already a goal down after the first-leg, Colorado Coach Paulo Roberto Falcao saw his charges fall further behind on aggregate as Lucio netted on 15 minutes. However, attacking trio Leandro Damiao, Argentine playmaker Andres D'Alessandro and Andrezinho combined to somehow put the 2010 Copa Libertadores winners ahead in the tie before Tricolor forward Borges popped up with an equaliser 10 minutes from full-time to take the game to a penalty shoot-out.

Having given their all, both teams scored four of their first six spot-kicks before Gremio midfielder Adilson fluffed his lines, allowing Ze Roberto to seal their 40th Paulista title and exact revenge for last year's Final loss.

Mineiro Championship Final: Cruzeiro 2-0 Atletico Mineiro (Cruzeiro win 3-2 on aggregate)

After their disastrous Copa Libertadores exit at the hands of Once Caldas earlier this month, Cruzeiro redeemed themselves with a positive, attacking display to come from behind in the tie and secure their first State title since 2007.

Fellow Belo Horizonte rivals Atletico Mineiro came into the second-leg determined to protect their one-goal lead and allowed the Raposa to attack at every opportunity - a ploy which eventually saw their defence breached as Wallyson skipped past two defenders before rifling a shot past the despairing Renan Ribeiro. With four minutes of the game left, Wallyson again pounced following some sterling work by Thiago Ribeiro to seal their 37th Campeonato Mineiro.

Bahia Championship Final: Vitoria 1-2 Bahia de Feira (Bahia de Feira win 2-3 on aggregate)

Bahia de Feira made history by winning their first ever Campeonato Baiano to wrestle the title away from the city of Salvador for the first time since 2002 and for only the fifth time in 107 editions of this particular competition.

ENGLAND

Manchester United secured the one point required through Wayne Rooney's 73rd-minute spot-kick, cancelling out Brett Emerton's opener to seal their 12th Premier League crown, and their 19th league championship in total - an English record. Outgoing champions Chelsea stuttered to a 2-2 draw in what may well be Carlo Ancelotti's last home match in charge, earning a point which practically ensured second place and automatic qualification into the Champions League group stages. Arsenal's shock 2-1 home loss to Aston Villa - for whom Darren Bent scored his eight and ninth in 15 games since his arrival in January - on Sunday afternoon left the door open for FA Cup winners Manchester City to sneak into third place and condemn the Gunners to the Champions League play-offs, with the Citizens only two points behind and with a game in hand.

Tottenham Hotspur stole a march on rivals Liverpool for fifth place and a spot in next season's Europa League with an excellent 2-0 win at Anfield, courtesy of goals from Rafael van der Vaart and Luka Modric's penalty, and with one game left for both sides, Kenny Dalglish's men will need a win and hope that Tottenham stumble to a defeat at home to Birmingham to ensure they do not miss out on European competition for a second successive season.

At the bottom, the possibility became a reality as West Ham threw away a 2-0 lead to eventually lose 3-2 to Wigan at the DW Stadium in a gripping match, thus ending their six-year stay in the top flight. An hour after the match ended, it was announced that Avram Grant was relieved of his position as Coach and that Assistant Manager Kevin Keen would take charge of the Hammers' final game of the season at home to Sunderland. Any two of five teams - Wigan, Blackpool, Birmingham, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Blackburn - face the drop as they head towards the final game of the season, with the former two still occupying the remaining two relegation berths. Birmingham were the only side which failed to pick up any points this weekend after a poor 2-0 reverse at home to Fulham on Sunday afternoon and face a tricky game away at Spurs.

A bigger test awaits Blackpool - who overcame Bolton Wanderers 4-3 on Saturday in what was one of the games of the season - as they take on Manchester United, despite the likelihood of the champions resting key players ahead of the Champions League Final the following week. However, it is all to play for in the winner-takes-all showdown at the Molineux which sees Wolves take on Blackburn to avoid relegation.

FRANCE

Lille captured their first major trophy since 1955 as Ludovic Obraniak's last-minute free-kick secured the Coupe de France against Paris Saint-Germain, in what may well be the first part of an historic Double. Going into Saturday's Final, Les Dogues topped the Ligue 1 standings, four points ahead of reigning champions Olympique Marseille, who themselves stumbled to a 2-2 draw at Lorient on Sunday evening. L'OM's loss now leaves them three points adrift of the lead, having played a game more and with an inferior goal difference. PSG will not have long to wait to exact revenge on LOSC as both sides resume hostilities at the Parc des Princes next Saturday in a match which may decide the destiny of this year's championship.

Rennes' 2-1 win over Saint-Etienne moved them closer to securing a Europa League berth as Jerome Leroy's strike ensured the side from Brittany remain fifth in the standings, whilst almost condemning les Verts to a season of non-European action next season as they sit in eighth place, four points behind Sochaux who occupy the last Europa League placing.

With Arles-Avignon long-since relegated, attention turned to two of French football's bigger names - RC Lens and AS Monaco - as they both battled to avoid relegation, but not before battling against each other on Sunday afternoon. The visitors went to the Stade Louis II knowing a win and favourable results elsewhere would keep their slim hopes of staying up alive, however, it was to no avail as a 1-1 draw - coupled with Nancy's 3-0 defeat of Nice saw les Sang et Or relegated to Ligue 2 after two years in the top flight. Nancy's win allowed them to leapfrog Monaco who now sit third-from-bottom.

GERMANY

Bayern Munich's Mario Gomez became the first German to score 28 or more goals in the 1.Bundesliga for 30 years, following former Bayern great and now-club President Karl-Heinz Rumennigge who himself netted 29 times during the 1980-81 season. Gomez's strike negated Shinji Okazaki's opener for VfB Stuttgart, before Bastian Schweinsteiger sealed a home win for the Bavarians to end the season in third place, outside the automatic places for direct entry into the Champions League, courtesy of Bayer Leverkusen's away win at SC Freiburg. Hannover 96 and FSV Mainz 05 also secured places in the Europa League alongside Bayern, with the former returning to European action after a 20-year absence.

Eintracht Frankfurt were relegated to 2.Bundesliga, as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at newly-crowned champions Borussia Dortmund. Sebastian Rode gave the Eagles some hope as he put his side ahead, but Paraguayan Lucas Barrios netted an equaliser before Robert Lewandowski and Barrios put the game to bed to seal a comfortable win, despite missing two penalties. Borussia Moenchengladbach were the last team to fall through the trap-door as they drew 1-1 at mid-table Hamburg, coupled with VfL Wolfsburg's season-saving 3-1 win at Hoffenheim. Die Wolfe's pre-match preparations were hit as record-signing Diego refused to travel with his teammates after being dropped for the game by Coach Felix Magath. The ex-Juventus star's antics surely hastening his departure from the club after a troubled season which saw him pick up seven yellow cards in the league and in February, infuriating former Coach Steve McClaren by going against team orders as he contrived to miss a penalty having snatched the ball from designated penalty-taker Patrick Helmes in a match his side eventually lost, almost guaranteeing the ex-England Coach the sack.

HOLLAND

Ajax won their first Eredivisie title after a seven-year wait as they beat their only challengers and defending champions - FC Twente - in a title showdown at the Amsterdam ArenA on Sunday afternoon. The party atmosphere got into swing as Siem de Jong rifled the home side ahead on 22 minutes, and the 47,000-strong crowd went into overdrive as Denny Landzaat's spectacular headed own-goal put the game to bed, but not before de Jong's second capping off a memorable day for the Amsterdammers and for Coach and Ajax legend Frank de Boer who celebrated his 41st birthday on Sunday. Michel Preud'homme's side ended the season in second place and entry into the third qualifying round of next season's Champions League, in addition to the KNVB Cup Final win over Ajax last week.

Excelsior's outstanding win at fellow strugglers Vitesse Arnhem was not enough to see them avoid the relegation play-offs, as despite a 4-1 win, their inferior goal difference put paid to any hopes of surviving their first season back in the top tier of Dutch football.

HUNGARY

Celebrations were afoot in the town of Szekesfehervar - home of Videoton - as the 1985 UEFA Cup Finalists secured their first championship win a 3-1 win at home against Kaposvar which left them eight points clear of nearest challengers Paksi with just two games remaining. No sooner had the champagne been opened, in walked former Juventus and Borussia Dortmund great Paulo Sousa to take over the coaching reins from Gyorgy Mezey on a three-year deal.

ITALY

With Milan having already secured their 19th scudetto, it was party time at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza as an open-top bus parade led the Rossoneri to their home ground before going on to defeat Cagliari 4-1 and that moonwalk from Kevin-Prince Boateng., all eyes were on who would end up in the remaining European berths and who would join already-relegated Bari and Brescia. Internazionale and Napoli faced-off against each other on Sunday evening in their race to finish second, however, it was the Nerazzurri who guaranteed their position as runners-up after a 1-1 draw; Samuel Eto'o firing Inter ahead before Colombian defender Camilo Zuniga equalised for the Partenopei on the stroke of half-time. Napoli's third-place finish guaranteed them their first taste of Europe's premier competition since the 1990-91 season.

Udinese took a huge step towards Champions League qualification as they defeated Chievo 2-0, maintaining their two-point lead over fifth-placed Lazio who kept up the pressure by thumping four goals past Genoa in a resounding 4-2 win at the Stadio Olimpico. The Biancocelesti face an away tie at Lecce in their last game while Udinese hope to net a result at home to champions Milan. Roma's defeat at Catania ended any hopes of Champions League football, while Juventus face life outside European football for a second successive season, as they went down 1-0 at Parma, with Sebastian Giovinco scoring against his parent club. Expect some major changes in Turin over the summer.

Sampdoria's fall from grace was confirmed as they were relegated with a game to spare after they suffered a 2-1 defeat at home to Palermo. Survival was not in their own hands, however, this result - coupled with Lecce's defeat of Bari in the Derby di Puglia - ensured a remarkable reverse in fortunes a year after finishing fourth in the league, thus earning themselves a place in this season's Champions League. How times change.

SPAIN

With the La Liga title already secured at Levante in their 1-1 draw on Wednesday night, the pressure was off Barcelona ahead of their penultimate two games, with one eye focussed on Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo who aimed to equal - if not better - the all-time league record of 38 goals in a season set by Athletic Bilbao's Telmo Zarra and matched by another Merengues great, Hugo Sanchez. His brace against Villareal in a comfortable 3-1 means the Portuguese attacker is now primed to set a new record in Real's final league game against Almeria at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.

Valencia clinched third spot for a second successive season after a 0-0 draw against local rivals Levante earned them direct entry into next season's Champions League. Atletico Madrid Coach Quique Floro Sanchez announced his departure prior to Sunday night's game against Hercules after a mediocre season, despite guiding his team to seventh spot at present, just outside the two Europa League places - a competition he won with los Colchoneros last season. Although Atleti are level with Sevilla and Athletic Bilbao on 55 points, Sanchez Flores' side have an inferior head-to-head record against the other two sides.

Relegation matters will be decided in the final round of the season with seven teams fighting for survival. Hercules and Almeria have already gone and Real Zaragoza currently occupy the final relegation spot, but are only three points behind 12th-placed Levante despite a 1-0 over Espanyol, courtesy of Leonardo Ponzio's solitary strike. It's any one of Levante, Real Mallorca, Real Sociedad, Osasuna, Getafe, Deportivo La Coruna and the aforementioned Real Zaragona who will end up in the Segunda Division next season.

UKRAINE

Shakhtar Donetsk secured their fifth domestic title in seven seasons to cap off a memorable season both at home and in Europe. Despite eternal rivals Dynamo Kyiv's 5-1 demolition of Volyn Lutsk, the Hyrnyky secured the point required to leave them eight points ahead with two games left to play with midfielder Vitaly Vitsenets setting them on their way to yet another triumph.

A Flame That Burns Twice As Long Flickers Half As Bright

2011-04-19T12:19:00.011+01:00

Another match, another Paul Scholes mis-timed tackle. Yes, that old chestnut. Unfortunately for the the Salford native, his latest challenge last Saturday earned him a straight red card in what could be his final competitive appearance at Wembley Stadium. In a career littered with many highs, talk of him before and during matches have continually centred around his ability to time his tackles well – or not, for that matter – and with the raising of his studs into the left thigh of Manchester City’s Pablo Zabaleta, he surely hastened his departure from the club and game he so dearly loves.

The recently-retired Gary Neville claimed he knew his time in the game was up a few months before his shock announcement midway through the current season, however, his performance against West Bromwich Albion – where he was continually done for pace, almost gave away a penalty and escaped a red card for a professional foul on Graham Dorrans – was so bad, the inevitable became a reality as the fact he was of no more use to his club side finally hit home. With his influence waning with each game, perhaps it is time for Neville's fellow 'Fledgling' to hang up his boots before he becomes another player remembered for his misdemeanours rather than his technical ability which have cast admiring glances over the years from the likes of Zinedine Zidane and Xavi Hernandez - both citing the midfielder as arguably the best midfielder of his generation.

Scholes will not be the first nor the last of elegant midfielders with a streak of madness inside them. Even the mild-mannered model-of-professionalism David Beckham dared to show his mean streak not once, but twice in front of the watching world. The first, was of course in that epic Round of 16 match against Argentina in St Etienne in the 1998 World Cup, as he stuck out his leg to trip up Argentina's Diego Simeone in front of referee Kim Milton Nielsen who had no hesitation in sending off the-then young midfielder. If age and inexperience went against him back then, there was no excuse two years later as a carbon-copy of Scholes’ latest red card offence saw him thrust his leg into the thigh of Necaxa's Jose Milian in the Red Devils' opening group game in the 2000 World Club Championship. Without thought or hesitation, match official Horacio Elizondo brandished the red card to halt the Londoner's post-France rehabilitation.

Scholes - unlike Beckham who is known to shirk a challenge or two – has failed to learn his lessons, as while his intentions to fight United’s cause are honourable, he really has let his team-mates down when needed most, and even to his own cost on occasion. Already a goal down to Yaya Toure’s opener in Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final, both Scholes and Zabaleta attempted to pounce on a loose ball, with the Argentine coming away with a dent in his leg to match that of the Manchester United legend’s reputation. A hard task became even harder with ‘Archie’s’ dismissal, and the 10 men of United saw the game ebb away as City’s power and dominance held out. And who can forget his challenge in the Champions League second-leg win at Juventus when he picked up a second yellow card which ruled him out of what was to be a dramatic Final win over Bayern Munich at the Camp Nou? That said, for someone who takes to the field with the sole purpose of giving his all for his club, picking up a booking here or a red card there is the last thing on his mind, as his commitment to Manchester United and England have won him admirers stretching far beyond the British isles. Quite and unassuming off the field, Scholes has been quite the opposite for his club side, having received 89 yellow and four red cards in the Premier League, whilst being booked 32 times in the Champions League – the latter statistic the highest number in the competition’s history. Non-members of both Mark van Bommel and Gennaro Gattuso fan clubs take note.

Nigel De Jong - Scholes’ midfield opponent on Saturday - will have marvelled at his counterpart’s lunge, not only because he was not the first one in the book for a change, but he did not make a rash challenge of note, which came as something of a first for the Dutch destroyer who has developed a reputation of digging his studs into the opposition. De Jong has played in the same midfield enforcer role for years at Ajax, Hamburg, and now City, and he still cannot time his tackles right which suggest that if the basics are beyond him, it means he lacks technique. And to be paid £67,000-per-week for not being able to do his job properly is criminal…as are most of his tackles. Scholes is no De Jong or Roy Keane; he is merely an architect who just happens to think he can do the ground work, too.

Great players become even greater when they bow out at the right time, however, even some of the greatest midfielders of all time have left a sour footnote to their respective careers. Gheorghe Hagi – named as the greatest player in Romania’s history – came out of international retirement to represent his country in Euro 2000 and led his team to the quarter-final where they were beaten by Dino Zoff’s Italy. The defeat was not what marked the end of Hagi’s career, but the second booking he picked up during the match for a dive inside the Italian penalty area. Not the greatest way to bow out. Zinedine Zidane attempted to undo his legendary status on the field and ambassadorial work with the United Nations off it with that one moment of madness when he firmly planted his head into our not-so-short memories as well as the chest of Italy’s Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup Final. For all their glories, the spectre that eventually looms large are their ignominious exits, and even the greatest of players have been a kick away from infamy with Scholes no exception.

A candle that burns twice as long flickers half as bright, and every good thing eventually comes to an end. Scholes has had one hell of a career, and whilst his best days are not quite over, perhaps the time has come for the flame-haired midfielder to hang up his boots and bow out gracefully.

The Future's Bright, The Future's Yellow

2011-03-30T15:24:00.006+01:00

With Adriano becoming the latest Brazilian to repatriate himself - joining the likes of Elano (Santos), Rivaldo, Luis Fabiano (both Sao Paulo), Ronaldinho (Flamengo), Rafael Sobis (Internacional), and Brandao (Cruzeiro) in recent times - thus swapping the intensity of European football for a somewhat 'colourful' winding down of his career at Corinthians, a growing batch of homegrown youngsters are readying themselves to make the reverse journey across the Atlantic in the hope to make as big a splash, if not more, as their illustrious predecessors.

With the return of the aforementioned Selecao stars, the Campeonato Brasileiro is now brimming with talent, with a heady mix of young and experienced players currently slugging it out over 38 rounds. Such is life, that some of those budding superstars have already been earmarked for big-money moves, with some already having made the move across to Europe.

Santos' Paulo Henrique Ganso is arguably the hottest property on the South American market at present. The 21-year-old trequartista is currently the subject of a €35million bidding war between Internazionale and Milan, with recent reports suggesting Inter Coach Leonardo using his presence and influence to secure a deal for a summer move. With rumours surfacing of a potential bid from Manchester United for star attacker Wesley Sneijder, it would be easy to see why Sporting Director Marco Branca and Leonardo are so eager to snap him up as a more than adequate replacement, despite already having the talented Philippe Coutinho in their ranks. Blessed with a collective ability to coast past opposing defenders with ease and set team-mates free with flicks and tricks - not to mention his long-range strikes with that left foot of his - his acquisition would more than fill the void left by Sneijder, should the Dutchman leave for pastures new.

Another player primed for a big-money move to one of Europe's biggest clubs, Neymar gave another fine example of his burgeoning talent with a double strike against Scotland in the friendly on Sunday. His turn of pace and eye for goal is reminiscent of a young Romario, and whilst he does not quite possess the power of the recently-retired Ronaldo, his slight frame allows him to glide past opponents with ease. That said, his ability to go to ground rather easily has not gone unnoticed with detractors also quick to point out his petulant attitude at times.

Targeted by Juventus to be the answer to their problems in front of goal, his admirers stretch far and wide across the European continent with Chelsea and Olympique Lyonnais both interested. He has suggested a preference to join compatriots David Luiz, Ramires and Alex at Chelsea, and thought of him alongside the equally-devastating (when in form) Fernando Torres, may not only whet the appetite of the Stamford Bridge faithful, but that of owner Roman Abramovich.

Lucas - listed in FIFA's XI to watch - will lead the Selecao attack at this year's World Youth Cup later this year in the absence of Neymar, and should he deliver, many expect Brazil Coach Mano Menezes to catapult him into the full national team sooner rather than later to provide competition for Neymar and Luis Fabiano. His recent hat-trick in the Final of the South American Under-20 Championships earlier this year showcased his ability, as he demonstrated his pace, power, and an ability to effortlessly switch the ball to either foot at speed - a rare quality - something which the young Sao Paulo star has in abundance.

It is only a matter of time before the 18-year old is snatched up by the likes of potential suitors Barcelona or Manchester United, who will no doubt work on his inability to supply a pass to those in better positions and teamwork in general - should they succeed, he will be one hell of a player.

Although Sao Paulo's Lucas Piazon was the subject of huge interest from Juventus - who invited him over to Turin for a week-long stay with a view to signing him - it was Chelsea who blinked first as they snapped him up for €6.03million (rising up to €9.1million, depending on clauses), although the 'new Kaka' will not arrive at Stamford Bridge until January 2012 when he will be eligible to obtain a work visa. Similarities between himself and the Real Madrid star are not just confined to their physique and facial resemblance, as Piazon also plays with the same style and grace as his more illustrious compatriot. Playing as an attacking midfielder or out-and-out striker, his speed, vision and accuracy in front of goal will be a valuable commodity to the Londoners as they look to move away from the ageing and predictable approach of fading strikers Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou.

Belief in his own ability and worth is something not lost on either the 17-year old or his agent, as his €1.1million signing-on fee was deemed far too excessive by Juve Director General Giuseppe Marotta - taking into account he has still to make his full debut for his current club.

Leandro Damiao of Internacional bucks the trend of the modern-day Brazilian striker in that he is more a target-man than a fleet-footed striker in the mould of, say, a Neymar or Alexandre Pato. That is not to say, however, that he is not mobile at all - as he is. Using his pace on and off the ball, he offers much more than the archetypal Selecao attacker, and allied to his obvious goalscoring ability (with 25 goals in 44 games in all competitions for his club) he may prove to be a very useful asset for Menezes should the Brazil Coach choose to impose a more imposing style of play up front. Making his debut against Scotland on Sunday, he gave scouts keeping tabs on other Selecao players some food for thought with some incisive play and even hit the woodwork with a header.

A purveyor of giving youth its chance, Menezes is already looking towards the future - not only the 2014 World Cup on home soil, but this year's Copa America - where he hopes to unleash this latest bunch of budding samba superstars in front of the South American public and the watchful eyes of European scouts. Stars like Ronaldinho may have opted to see out their careers back home in the hope of a final hurrah in three years' time - helped by the fact that Menezes has openly admitted a preference to call up home-based players - and while their presence brings a touch of glamour to the domestic game and highlights the growing economic power of Brazilian clubs, the age-old tradition of young talent migrating over to Europe in exchange for vast sums of money is an inevitability which can be prolonged but never avoided.

A spine of the new Brazil is starting to take shape with the likes of David Luiz, Sandro, Hernanes and Giuliano amongst others, already makes waves across Europe in addition to those highlighted for an inevitable move across - all of whom are accruing valuable experience with the national side as they make the most of their call-ups. While the England national team still deliberates on whether to blood young upcoming talent in the hope of gaining experience for Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup, the same cannot be said for Brazil, as the train of thought of 'if you're good enough, you're old enough' very much applies in the Brazilian psyche.

The future looks very bright for the Selecao, as Menezes gears himself for a very important three years, culminating in what he hopes will be his country's crowning glory with a sixth World Cup triumph at the Estadio do Maracana. With these players at his disposal, who would bet against it?