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J. League title race drops down to three

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Tuckerman) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:18:58 PST

There are three teams left in the J. League title race after Shimizu S-Pulse and FC Tokyo both dropped out of the running following the latest round of fixtures.

A Renatinho hat-trick propelled Kawasaki Frontale to a 3-2 win over relegated JEF United in a thriller watched by 18,470 fans at Todoroki Stadium.

Renatinho had already hit the post with one header before JEF United took the lead against the run of play, as a Seiichiro Maki header ballooned off the crossbar, with Kohei Kudo on hand to volley the rebound home.

It took until the second half for Kawasaki to respond, as Renatinho converted a spot-kick after playmaker Kengo Nakamura had been felled inside the area, and the Brazilian scored again soon after with the help of a vital deflection.

United pulled a goal back two minutes from time thanks to a scrappy finish from defender Takumi Wada, however Renatinho stole the headlines with his third goal just seconds later, as he tapped home a cut-back from compatriot Juninho to seal the win.

Kawasaki's late victory was bad news for second placed Kashima Antlers - although they beat lowly Montedio Yamagata 2-0 at home, while third-placed Gamba Osaka hammered Kansai neighbours Kyoto Sanga 4-1 in a derby watched by 20,394 fans at a jam-packed Expo '70 Stadium.

The shock of the round came at Kashiwa Hitachi Stadium, where fourth placed Shimizu S-Pulse crashed to a stunning 5-0 defeat at the hands of Kashiwa Reysol, who are struggling to avoid relegation.

A crowd of 40,701 fans turned out at Ajinomoto Stadium in the capital, but the home fans left disappointed as FC Tokyo crashed to a 1-0 defeat to regional rivals Urawa Reds, with Edmilson scoring the only goal of the game.

Shimizu S-Pulse and FC Tokyo have now dropped out of the title race, as Kawasaki Frontale lead Kashima Antlers by a point with three games remaining, while Gamba Osaka are a further three points back.

At the other end of the standings, bottom club Oita Trinita will be joined in J2 by JEF United, while Kashiwa Reysol currently occupy the third relegation place - some six points behind Omiya Ardija.

Full November 8 results

Nagoya Grampus 1 Vissel Kobe 0
Jubilo Iwata 0 Albirex Niigata 2
Kashima Antlers 2 Montedio Yamagata 0
FC Tokyo 0 Urawa Reds 1
Kawasaki Frontale 3 JEF United 2
Kashiwa Reysol 5 Shimizu S-Pulse 0
Omiya Ardija 0 Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1
Yokohama F. Marinos 1 Oita Trinita 2
Gamba Osaka 4 Kyoto Sanga 1

J2

Cerezo Osaka maintained their lead at the top of the J2 standings with a 5-0 thrashing of Thespa Kusatsu watched by 20,727 fans at Nagai Stadium.

Takashi Inui was the star for Cerezo as he scored four times, with the former J1 club needing just one more victory to confirm their return to the top flight.

Elsewhere, second placed Vegalta Sendai hammered Mito Hollyhock 4-0 on the road, while Shonan Bellmare and Tokyo Verdy played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in Hiratsuka.

Fourth placed Ventforet Kofu went down 2-1 at Avispa Fukuoka, as their battle with Shonan Bellmare for the third and final promotion place heats up.

Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com

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Enjoy Messi, Pato and Kaká while you can… Europe’s only got them on loan

noreply@blogger.com (Tim Sturtridge) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:41:40 PST

The economics of the game in South America demand that the region’s best players spend the prime of their careers in Europe.

Fans of even the most prestigious clubs such as Boca Juniors and Flamengo must savour watching their young prospects because as soon as they demonstrate an ounce of class they will be snapped up and shipped out.

In extreme examples such as the Da Silva twins at Manchester United and Lionel Messi of Barcelona the fans of Fluminense and Newell's Old Boys never even got to see the players make their first team debut. Not yet anyway...

Once the cream of South America hit their autumn years and the blood and thunder of Europe’s top leagues becomes too much for their aging legs there is always one place willing to take them.

It is therefore possible to catch some of the finest players of their generation seeing out their careers in their native South America. More often than not these players will return to the club where they first made their name and further endear themselves to the fans who supported them in the beginning.

The players below have won a wealth of cups with club and country as well as scooping top individual honours throughout their careers. After calling time on their respective European adventures they are currently seeing out their playing days back home.

Name: Juan Sebastián Verón

Age: 34

Nationality: Argentina (65 caps, 9 goals)

Current Club: Estudiantes de La Plata (ARG)

Previous Clubs: Inter Milan (ITA), Chelsea (ENG), Manchester United (ENG), Lazio (ITA), Parma (ITA), Sampdoria (ITA), Boca Juniors (ARG), Estudiantes de La Plata (ARG)

Great things were expected from Juan Sebastián Verón as soon as he made his debut for Estudiantes over 15 years ago. It was assumed that he must be a great a player as he was the eldest son Juan Ramón Verón who won three Argentine titles and three Copa Libertadores with Estudiantes in the late 60s.

The crowning glory Verón senior’s career was netting with his head against Manchester United in 1968 at Old Trafford. The goal secured the Intercontinental Cup for Estudiantes against Busby’s European Cup winning team of Best, Law and Charlton et al.

Despite the family connection to Estudiantes Juan Sebastián Verón left the club to join Boca Juniors a few seasons after making his debut. While at La Bombonera Verón formed an impressive partnership with perhaps the Godfather of all returning heroes Diego Maradona.

During his single season with Boca Verón was selected for the national team and with this breakthrough came interest from the then all conquering Serie A of Italy.

Spells at Sampdoria, Parma and Lazio cluttered the Argentine’s mantelpiece as he collected winners medals for the Coppa Italia, UEFA Cup, European Super Cup, Scudetto, Coppa Italia again and Supercoppa Italiana.

His move to the English Premier League is generally viewed as a fallow time for the player but his sheer talent shone at times and he played his part in Manchester United’s 2003 title.

Verón’s signing for Chelsea made him the most expensive footballer in the world as his cumulative transfer fees hit £77 million. Throughout Verón’s time in Europe he helped out Estudiantes financially and stumped up the cash to revamp their training facilities.

The midfielder did not hit it off at Stamford Bridge but was soon back prospering in Italy. While at Inter Milan Verón won the Coppa Italia twice and got his hands on a second Scudetto medal after Juventus’ 2006 title was stripped.

Verón took the decision to head back to Argentina and despite overtures from Boca Juniors and River Plate he signed for his hometown club.

In his first season back he steered Estudiantes to the 2006 Apertura title but then suffered a series of injuries and it was feared that his career was coming to an end.

Verón returned better than ever however and was named South American Footballer of the Year in 2008 before going on to captain Estudiantes to victory in the 2009 Copa Libertadores.

The player is central to Diego Maradona’s plans for the South Africa 2010 and the tournament will be La Brujita’s third World Cup. Verón’s 35 yard screamer against Banfield earlier this week shows that the player still has plenty of quality left in the tank.

Name: Nolberto Solano

Age: 34

Nationality: Peru (95 caps, 20 goals)

Current Club: Universitario de Deportes (PER)

Previous Clubs: Larissa (GRE), West Ham United (ENG), Newcastle United (ENG), Aston Villa (ENG), Boca Juniors (ARG), Sporting Cristal (PER), Deportivo Municipal (PER)

Diminutive wideman Nolberto Solano first came to prominence in his homeland as part of the talented Sporting Cristal team which reached the final of the Copa Libertadores in 1997.

Sporting Cristal became only the second Peruvian team to reach a Copa Libertadores’ final but narrowly missed out to Cruzeiro as a single goal over the two legs secured victory for the Brazilians.

Prior to reaching the historic final Solano along with the likes of Roberto Palacios, Flavio Maestri, Julinho and Jorge Soto had won three Peruvian league titles on the bounce.

After starring in the Copa Libertadores Solano was brought by Boca Juniors who had recently sold midfielder Juan Sebastián Verón. Playing alongside Diego Maradona Solano shone at La Bombonera and was soon on the move again as Newcastle United came knocking.

Spectacular goals such as his effort against 1860 München quickly endeared him to fans of the Magpies. He rewarded the fans for their support with sparkling performances and almost delivered some much sought silverware to the club but had to make to with a FA Cup runners-up medal after Newcastle were defeated by Manchester United’s treble team of 1999.

Solano went on to join Aston Villa in 2004 and it didn’t take long for the Peruvian to become a crowd favourite in the Holt End as well as the Gallowgate. Despite being with The Villains for just 18 months he did the treble at the club's Player of the Year awards when he got the votes of the supporters, the local press and his teammates.

His return to Newcastle United coincided with the arrival of Michael Owen in the North-East. Fans didn’t hide their excitement at the return of the Peruvian by chanting his name at Owen’s unveiling.

Solano further cemented his cult status with performances of his Salsa trio The Geordie Latinos, Nobby providing trumpet for the group.

Solano’s final stop on his English adventure was West Ham United and during his one season in East London he won over the Hammers’ faithful as well as getting rapturous receptions when he played against Newcastle and Villa.

A switch to Greece didn’t work out for the player and in August 2008 Solano headed back to Peru signing for Universitario de Deportes.

Nothing comes easy in Peruvian football at the moment and Solano retired from the international scene after his country finished bottom of the South American qualifying group for the 2010 World Cup.

Solano who will turn 35-years-old next month is just shy of 100 caps and regarded as one of his country’s greatest players of all time.

Solano has said that he hopes to finally see out his career at Sport Boys, a lower league team hailing from his home city of Callao. The player would also like to manager his country at the World Cup after never appearing in the competition as a player.

Name: Ronaldo

Age: 33

Nationality: Brazil (97 caps, 62 goals)

Current Club: Corinthians (BRA)

Previous Clubs: AC Milan (ITA), Real Madrid (ESP), Inter Milan (ITA), Barcelona (ESP), PSV (HOL), Cruzeiro (BRA)

From the humblest of beginnings Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima rose to become the best know face in football and scoop nearly every honour going in the game.

Tipped for stardom while playing youth football Ronaldo was snapped up by Brazilian first division outfit Cruzeiro. In his one and only season with the club the 17-year-old netted 12 times in just 14 games, playing his part Cruzeiro’s Copa do Brasil triumph in 1993.

After appearing as an unused substitute in Brazil’s 1994 World Cup triumph scouts brought him to the attention of PSV Eindhoven and O Fenômeno left his homeland for Europe while still a teenager. His found no problem carrying on his goalscoring antics in Holland and maintained a strike rate of just under a goal a game.

After two season’s with PSV he packed his Dutch Cup winners’ medal and headed off to Camp Nou. In his single season with Barcelona Ronaldo bagged over 40 goals, including the best strike of his career against Compostela, and helped the side to victory in the Cup Winners' Cup, Copa del Reya and Supercopa de España.

Ronaldo then switched Camp Nou for the San Siro and joined Inter Milan for a world record fee. The Italians were immediately rewarded for their investment as the Brazilian’s goals helped them towards the UEFA Cup title in his first season.

At the World Cup in France the following summer he brought his club form onto the international stage and helped Brazil towards a place in the final against hosts France. However the night before the biggest game of his career so far Ronaldo suffered a convulsive fit and although he played in Brazil’s 3-0 defeat it was clear the player was well off the pace.

The following season saw the beginning of the player’s knee injury problems and Ronaldo missed large chunks of the next three Serie A seasons. He did regain his fitness however in time to travel with Brazil to the Far East for the 2002 World Cup.

In his second appearance in a World Cup final O Fenômeno showed his true colours as he scored the only goals of the game as Brazil won their fifth World Cup with a 2-0 victory over Germany.

With his exploits in South Korea and Japan Ronaldo saw his stock rise to new levels and he went back to Spain to join Florentino Pérez’s Galácticos project at the Bernabéu. Yet another successful debut season followed with Real Madrid winning the La Liga, Intercontinental Cup and Spanish Super Cup.

Unfortunately for the player and fans of Real Madrid more injury problems were just around the corner and Ronaldo was in and out of the team for the next four years. He was fit enough however to represent Brazil at the 2006 World Cup where he become the tournament’s all-time record goalscorer with his 15th goal in finals against Ghana.

After falling out of favour with Fabio Capello at Real Madrid he moved back to the San Siro, this time to wear the red and black of AC Milan. In 18 months with the Rossoneri the Brazilian managed just 20 games but still netted just under a goal every other game even against the watertight defences of Serie A.

Speculation was rife that Ronaldo would retire after being released by AC Milan but on returning to Brazil he trained with Flamengo, the club he had supported as a boy. As a player who has turned out for both sides in Milan as well as Barcelona and Real Madrid it should have come as no surprise the player eventually agreed terms with Flamengo’s great rivals Corinthians.

Soon Ronaldo turned the goal tap on once more and the three time FIFA World Player of the Year won the Campeonato Paulista with 10 goals in 14 games. The player is also in double figures in this year’s Brazilian top flight and is a firm favourite with supporters at his new club.

Current Brazil coach Dunga has showed no inclination to recall Ronaldo since taking the job but with O Fenômeno looking trim and banging them in there may still be a place on the plane yet for the country’s second highest ever goalscorer.

Name: Juan Román Riquelme

Age: 31

Nationality: Argentina (60 caps, 19 goals)

Current Club: Boca Juniors (ARG)

Previous Clubs: Villarreal (ESP), Barcelona (ESP), Boca Juniors (ARG)

Juan Román Riquelme followed in the footsteps of his boyhood hero Diego Maradona by making an early switch in his career from Argentinos Juniors to Boca Juniors.

In fact the player came to La Bombonera to fill Maradona’s vacant number 10 shirt after the 1986 World Cup star retired in 1997. Within two weeks off making his debut Riquelme opened his scoring account for Boca and kicked off a love affair with all those who follow the team in blue and yellow.

Riquelme came into the Boca side already a complete footballer and further demonstrated his class in Argentina’s under-20 World Cup win.

Riquelme stayed put for seven seasons and played a key role in the most successful period in the club’s history. With Carlos Bianchi managing the team and Riquelme running things on the pitch Boca won three Argentine titles between 1998 and 2000.

Continental wide success came with Boca winning the Copa Libertadores at the turn of millennium and then retaining the trophy the next year.

In winning the Intercontinental Cup in 2000 with a 2-1 victory over a Real Madrid side boasting Roberto Carlos, Luís Figo and Raúl in their pomp this Boca team was arguably the greatest the club ever had.

It was understood that Riquelme was central to this team as he dictated the play from the middle of the park. This talent did not go unnoticed and again he trod the path which had previously been beaten down by Maradona and left Boca to join Barcelona.

As with El Diego the player did not enjoy the best of times at Camp Nou. Barcelona’s manager Louis van Gaal simply did not rate Riquelme and rarely started him in his natural position.

With his time on the pitch restricted Riquelme requested to leave the club at the end his first season and a compromise was reached when he was loaned to Villareal. He was much more at home at El Madrigal, especially when Chilean Manuel Pellegrini was in charge and the side was jam packed with fellow South Americans.

The Argentine received the Don Balón Award when he was acknowledged as La Liga’s Foreign Player of the Year. With the honour Riquelme joined a prestigious list of previous winners including Johan Cruyff, Hristo Stoitchkov and Zinedine Zidane.

His most successful season with El Submarino Amarillo came as the player starred in club’s run to the semi-finals of 2005/06 edition of the Champions League. After dumping out Manchester United and Inter Milan Riquelme missed the decisive penalty against Arsenal to put the Londoners through to the final at Villareal’s expense.

Worldwide acclaim for the talented Argentine came after his slick performances made his country look unstoppable in the early rounds of the 2006 World Cup. Argentina eventually lost in quarter-finals to hosts Germany after Riquelme was substituted with his team a goal up.

The following season amongst growing tension between the player, his manager and the club’s board Riquelme was loaned back to Boca. The midfielder hit the ground running as a bunch of goals helped his old club to the 2007 Copa Libertadores title. In claiming his third winners’ medal in South America’s top club competition Riquelme was voted the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

The player celebrated breaking his contract with Villareal and official singing for Boca a second time with league triumph in the 2008 Apertura.

In recent times the player has had a well documented falling out with Argentina’s manager Diego Maradona. It looks very likely that the global audience will be denied another look at the skills of Riquelme but fans of Boca hope the self imposed exile from international football will give the player a few more precious minutes on the pitch at La Bombonera.

Liverpool Vs Lyon – Dr. Joel Rookwood

noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rookwood) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:23:44 PST

Clinging to the rickety banisters I walked slowly up the seemingly endless winding staircase before climbing onto the roof of the Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourviere. The guide directed us down a narrow passageway which led onto an overhanging balcony that can’t have been designed for touring parties. I was beginning to think the middle-aged tour guide, whose capacity to converse in English would rival Paul Merson’s, was not as official as he had claimed. Having seemingly made up a route around the upper echelons of this impressive eighteenth century structure, he proceeded to bombard us with the least interesting and most questionable information known to man. It was like spending an afternoon with Bryan Robson.

Accompanying me and the linguistically challenged but otherwise likeable pensioner was little Danny, a connoisseur of great heights and an experienced building site campaigner. The rest of the lads wisely opted to remain in the bars and leave the culture well alone. Danny laughed at my fearful shuffling across the roof, and pushed me into every dangerous surface he could see. When I eventually summoned the courage to stand on and then look out over balcony however, I was suitably impressed with the view of Lyon that stretched out below us. The guide pointed out the ground of Olympique Lyonnais, and immediately our mindset changed. We could only hope that as the events of that evening unfolded, Liverpool’s grip on their Champions League status would be as unyielding as my grip on the stone handles of the Basilique.

As impressive as the building was, this tour was not the cultural experience I was expecting on arrival in France’s second city on Wednesday afternoon. It was however a far safer adventure than that experienced on my last visit to Lyon. We had stayed in the city en route to getting knocked out of the UEFA Cup in Marseille in 2003. On that occasion an unofficial stadium tour was preceded by the even less official leap off the top diving board into the open air pool in the grounds of the stadium. It was a strange decision to make on a murky March morning, and in retrospect it was an act I wish I had performed with clothes on. This time around there was to be no such embarrassing antics, and yet the painful irony that the events of match day four could see Liverpool knocked back into the UEFA Cup was not lost on any of the 3000 travelling Scousers.

When news reached me of the draw for this season’s Champions League I was somewhere in the Australian outback, trying not get eaten by spiders. My arachnophobia was not matched by a concern for Liverpool’s impending season, which promised a great deal. I was suitably convinced that Fiorentina (whose solitary European success came in the 1961 European Cup Winners Cup), Lyon (who had never won a league title before 2002) and Debreceni Vasutas Sport Club (who?) would not produce a significant threat to Liverpool in the group stages. On the pitch, the sublimely talented but ultimately ineffective Xavi Alonso may have departed for Real Madrid, but with the limited Alvaro Arbeloa joining his countryman at the Bernabeu, we had acquired the cash to fund the purchase of Glen Johnson, a defender capable of crossing the halfway line, and Alberto Aquilani, a midfielder who could and indeed would score goals. Pre-season optimism in Liverpool was predictably high – and yet the quest to bring promise and practice into closer alignment so far eludes us.

In European competition a lacklustre victory at home to Debrecen was followed by a deserved defeat in Fiorentina and an ill-deserved loss to Lyon at Anfield. The match-winner of the latter fixture, Cesar Delgado, had by that stage written off Liverpool’s chances of progressing to the knock-out stages of the competition. Liverpool went into the return fixture in France knowing that defeat to group leaders Lyon would leave them on the brink of elimination, with second-placed Fiorentina favourites to beat the pointless Hungarian minnows Debrecen. Delgado might as well have knocked on the away dressing room of the Stade Gerland before kick off on Wednesday and said, ‘Mr Benitez, I know you are under pressure so I have taken the liberty of writing your team talk to inspire your side’. He was quoted in an unmentionable newspaper as saying: “It won’t surprise me if we beat them again. People thought Liverpool would be a fixture in the quarter-finals but now we make sure they are left out. The problem with Liverpool is they are so inconsistent, with huge differences in the levels of their performances. We have analysed them against Manchester United and against Fulham and they are like two different teams. Nobody could doubt that Lyon are the best team in the group. We can go a very long way.”

The match that followed was inevitably dominated by Liverpool, although the least balanced attack in world football proved unable to break the deadlock. The exceptional Fernando Torres looked as confused as the rest of the Liverpool faithful as his enigmatic partner Andriy Voronin exhibited an alarming tendency to squander both chances and possession. The equally frustrating Ryan Babel replaced the Ukrainian ‘footballer’ with twenty minutes remaining, yet surprisingly it took him only twelve minutes to find the net. As if to confirm the view of the ‘it’s not meant to be’ brigade, Liverpool’s deserved lead was cancelled out in stoppage time however, as the hosts forced home an equalising goal. Lyon’s qualification was confirmed in the process whilst Liverpool’s chances of avoiding relegation to the farcical Europa League were slipping away.

Following a wave of unexpected defeats however, I am not about to offer a diagnosis on ‘where it has all gone wrong’ at Liverpool, like so many other journalists have insisted, somewhat prematurely, in doing. Liverpool truly are hanging on to the threads of their Champions League status, and their campaign looks on the brink of ruination. This draw may have been preceded by six defeats in seven matches, and at some clubs that would indeed leave the manager searching for alternative employment. But this is Liverpool. We will not bow to the weight of pressure from the press. We will put our faith in the man responsible for putting Liverpool back on the European map. The man who took a team without a centre forward to the European Cup final twice in three years. The man responsible for giving Igor Biscan and Djimi Traore a winner’s medal that John Terry and Frank Lampard can only dream about. Rafa has earned patience and will be given the opportunity to rectify his mistakes – and Mr Dalgado, how’s this for cockiness: I’ve just booked my flight to Madrid for May 22nd. Your team won’t get past the quarter-final.

FC Tokyo crowned League Cup champions

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Tuckerman) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:47:27 PST

FC Tokyo have been crowned 2009 Yamazaki Nabisco League Cup champions after beating Kawasaki Frontale 2-0 in the final in Tokyo on November 3.

Before a sell-out crowd of 44,308 fans at a packed National Stadium, teenage midfielder Takuji Yonemoto opened the scoring with a swerving long-range drive that appeared to catch Kawasaki goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima off-guard.

Yonemoto had been honoured with the competition's "New Hero" award on the eve of the match, and he added the Man Of The Match crown for good measure thanks to a commanding midfield display.

The languid midfield anchorman kept Kawasaki playmaker Kengo Nakamura well shackled throughout, and by the time FC Tokyo added a second goal through towering striker Sota Hirayama just before the hour mark, the trophy was destined to stay in the capital.

Defeat leaves Kawasaki still searching for their first major title and marks the second time in three seasons that the Kanagawa outfit have lost the League Cup final.

Coach Takashi Sekizuka will need to rejuvenate his side ahead of a tense J. League title race, with Kawasaki just a point above defending champions Kashima Antlers with four games remaining.

The plaudits belong to FC Tokyo for the time being, as Hiroshi Jofuku's side claim a second League Cup trophy having also won the tournament back in 2004.

Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com

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Al Ittihad Stand In Way Of Pohang's Asian Dream

noreply@blogger.com (John Duerden) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:56:48 PST

Pohang Steelers are just 90 minutes away from making soccer history. On Saturday night, the team from Gyeongsang province could become the most successful club in Asia – ever.

The South Koreans meet Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad in Tokyo in the final of the Asian Champions League. The opposition also has two wins under its belt. No team from the giant continent has ever won three but that is set to change.

It is going to be an interesting evening. Pohang, who won the 1997 and 1998 editions, started this season slowly but have improved over time and the team has lost just once in eleven games in Asia this year, one more than their opponents.

Pohang deservedly progressed past Umm Salal of Qatar last Wednesday. After winning 2-0 at home in the first leg of the semi-final, the Steelers went to Qatar just needing to avoid defeat to book a place in the final. The K-league team did not disappoint and won 2-1 thanks to two great strikes from Macedonian marksman Stevica Ristic and Noh Byung-joon.

Coach Sergio Farias was a happy man. "The final is going to be great and we think that we are going to face a good team similar to ours," he said.

But the Brazilian knows that his team is the underdog. The Saudi Arabians have yet to taste defeat in the Asian Champions League and in the semi-final defeated Japan’s Nagoya Grampus 8-3 over two legs.

"Al Ittihad scored a lot of goals in the semi-final but our team has also scored good goals,” Farias announced.

The Tigers of Jeddah have a fearsome reputation in South Korea and rightly so. Since the Asian Champions League came into existence in 2003, Al Ittihad has eliminated all three of the Korean teams it has come up against.

First to fall under the Saudi scimitar was Jeonbuk Motors in the semifinal of the 2004 version. The Jeonju team was heading for the final when goals from Brazil’s Tcheco and then, in the last minute, Osama Al-Harbi put the West Asians in the final.

There, another Korean team was waiting. Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma won the first leg in Saudi Arabia 3-1. As far as Asia was concerned, the tie was over and the second leg a foregone conclusion. It wasn’t. Al Itthad stunned Seongnam by winning 5-0 in the second leg in one of the biggest shocks in Asian soccer history.

If that wasn’t enough, Al Ittihad then extinguished Korean hopes a year later. Busan I’Park became the next victim at the semi-final stage. The south coast club was savaged at home, losing 5-0. Asking Busan to travel the length of Asia for the second leg was cruel and there, the scoreline was a more moderate 2-0.

Al Ittihad went on to win the final and the nickname from the Seoul media of the ‘K-League Killers’.

There are some survivors from that all-conquering team. Mohammed Noor scored twice against Seongnam and three times in the recent victory over Nagoya. The defensive duo of Hamad Al Montashari and Rehda Tukar are also still around.

New are Tunisian sharpshooter Amine Chermiti, aiming to become the first player to play in FIFA's Club World Cup with two different teams (the first was with Etolie in 2007) and Moroccan marksman Hicham Aboucherouane. Along with the experienced Saudi spine that runs through the team, the North Africans offer menace in attack. Al Ittihad is in form and is feared.

Coach Gabriel Calderon is playing down his team’s chances.“Before every match the chance to win is 50/50 for each team so I cannot say who will win,” said the Argentine.

"But we always play for a win and we will do so again in the final.”

As the final is no longer played over two legs but just the one, the destination of the round-shaped trophy will be known after 90 minutes, or perhaps after 120. At the end of it, either Pohang or Al Ittihad will be basking in the glory of making history in one of Asia’s most modern cities.

Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com

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Voucher Alerts Football Merchandise

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:19:33 PST

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Spurs reveal stadium plans, but transport remains an issue

noreply@blogger.com (Sean O'Conor) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:00:44 PST

Tottenham Hotspur revealed plans for a 56,000-seat rebuilding of White Hart Lane this week. An undoubted step forward for Spurs, even if the undulating roof-line is a little unoriginal and redolent of Arsenal's new gaff down the Seven Sisters road.

Ashburton Grove's extra capacity means Arsenal are coining in £3million per game, a revenue stream Spurs at present can only dream of matching. But with 20,000 on a season-ticket waiting list and 70,000 members, the club is confident of filling the new seats. The new stadium will be London's third football ground of more than 50,000 seats. With the Olympic Stadium and Twickenham to boot, the capital city itself could almost hold a big tournament by itself.

Spurs' problem remains its location, possibly the worst of any of the city's dozen pro clubs, around half an hour's walk from the nearest Tube station, which for London is a real trek. The nearby overground stations only accommodate toy-town trains, certainly not enough to transport the best part of 60,000 supporters.
As with the construction of Arsenal's new stadium, no money has apparently been allocated in the planning application to improve transport links, which seems suicidal given it is hellish trying to reach WHL at the moment and 20,000 extra fans will soon be heading to this fairly grubby and isolated corner of North London.

Arsenal built a big ground despite questionable transport links. They have an overground station smack beside their new home and an underground stop five minutes walk away but perversely both remain closed on match days. The club called the local council's bluff by threatening to leave the borough unless they gave them planning permission without having to pay to upgrade the stations, and they got away with it.

In addition, nearby Finsbury Park, a transport hub for North-East London, partially closes its tube station on Arsenal match days, inconveniencing the non-supporters in the locality (most Gunners fans do not live in the Highbury area anymore).

So Spurs, after years of pleading for improved transport links and eying possible moves to Wembley, the Olympic stadium in Stratford or further north to a greenfield site in Enfield, have decided to redevelop WHL and grin and bear it.

But how easy it will be to reach what is already an awkward destination on time for kick-off remains to be seen.

(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile

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League Cup final a local affair

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Tuckerman) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:10:51 PST

All the colour of the Japanese Yamazaki Nabisco League Cup final will descend upon the National Stadium in Tokyo on November 3, with this year's showpiece event set to be an all-local affair.

FC Tokyo have reached their first League Cup final since 2004, with Hiroshi Jofuku's team winning through on the back of some impressive displays.

The capital club topped their group from 2008 finalists Shimizu S-Pulse, before confidently dispatching Nagoya Grampus in the quarter-finals.

Their final four tie saw them pitted against cup specialists Shimizu, where a 3-2 aggregate win over the two legs propelled them into a final played in their home city.

If FC Tokyo figured they would command the lion's share of support at a jam-packed Kokuritsu Kyogijo, their hopes were dashed when neighbours Kawasaki Frontale also won through to the final.

The Kanagawa outfit took a different route to the Culture Day showdown, parachuting into the League Cup at the quarter-final stage due to their participation in the 2009 AFC Champions League.

Takashi Sekizuka's side signalled their intent with an aggregate 3-1 quarter-final win over Kashima Antlers, before beating local rivals Yokohama F. Marinos by the same scoreline in the semi-finals.

With the city of Kawasaki located just twenty kilometres from downtown Tokyo, thousands of Frontale fans will make the short trip to the capital, as they look to put the memories of their 2007 final defeat to Gamba Osaka behind them.

Sekizuka's free-scoring outfit could be forgiven for having their minds on other matters, with Kawasaki currently leading the J. League table by a point from defending champions Kashima Antlers.

However, Kawasaki arguably have the upper hand going into this League Cup final clash, with FC Tokyo's talismanic midfielder Naohiro Ishikawa set to miss the rest of the season through a serious knee injury.

Ishikawa had rattled home fifteen league goals prior to his shock injury, whilst Japan defender Yuto Nagatomo is also racing against the clock to prove his fitness for this clash, as FC Tokyo brace themselves for the potential absence of their two most dynamic personnel.

They'll nevertheless be desperate to add to their solitary trophy, after FC Tokyo claimed the 2004 League Cup crown by beating Urawa Reds on penalties.

Kawasaki Frontale are equally determined to lift some silverware, with the Kanagawa side still waiting for a maiden major trophy.

Higher stakes than usual for this Tamagawa Clasico then, as two of the most popular clubs in the region do battle for the 2009 League Cup at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com

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Superclasico brings River and Boca's slump into sharp focus

noreply@blogger.com (Tim Sturtridge) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:58:58 PDT

The latest instalment of Buenos Aires’ Superclasico did little to give fans of River Plate or Boca Juniors hope of an quick upturn in fortunes for either ofArgentina’s traditional footballing superpowers.

The 1-1 draw was played out with the trademark tenacity and tempo the fixture demands but a point a piece does nobody any favours. At the final whistle both teams still find themselves struggling at the wrong end of the Apertura table.

With the season now over halfway through Boca find themselves six points adrift of surprise leaders Colón. River are a further eight points behind Boca as they plod along with the league’s also-rans.

River appear to be a club in terminal decline. After scooping the 2008 Clausura title the club finished bottom of the table in the next campaign.

Nestor Gorosito managed to steady the ship by guiding them to an eighth place finish in this year’s Clausura only to lose his job less than halfway through the Apertura season.

With results going against Gorosito he stepped down after defeat at San Lorenzo left River with just one win from their opening eight games.

El Millo´s single victory this term came against newly promoted Chacarita Juniors courtesy of a splendid late lob from the resurgent Ariel Ortega.

With Gorosito’s exit after 10 months in the job Leonardo Astrada stepped up for his second spell in charge at El Monumental. Astrada won the 2004 Clausura title in his first managerial stint with the club after a playing career which saw him win the Argentine league 11 times with River.

Favours are difficult to came by for anyone connected with River and Independiente showed no mercy on Astrada in his first game back in charge. Independiente went for the jugular against a team short on confidence and ran out 3-1 winners in River´s own backyard.

Astrada has been charged with rediscovering River’s identity on the pitch but it is no easy task with the squad he has available to him. Although Marcelo Gallardo, Ariel Ortega and Matias Almeyda were among El Millo´s best performers in the draw against Boca the trio have a combined age of 103-years-old and cannot be expected to go on forever.

The standout prospect at the club is Diego Buonanotte who won both a penalty and the freekick which Gallardo converted in the Superclasico. The latest club to show an interest in Buonanotte is Juventus and a much needed payday for River maybe coming soon.

The trouble is that with so many aging heads at the club further readymade replacements are thin on the ground.

The production line which has developed Radamel Falcao, Alexis Sánchez, Gonzalo Higuaín, Javier Mascherano and Lucho González in recent years is simply no longer the deep well of talent it once was.

One bright spark is 17-year-old stocky support striker Daniel Villalba. The player has two goals in six appearances for River and is currently starring for Argentina in the under-17 World Cup. It is far too early in his career however for Villalba to be burdened with the kind of pressure currently reverberating around El Monumental.

If problems on the pitch were not enough there is also an unpleasant bun fight being played out in the media between favourite sons Enzo Francescoli and Daniel Passarella as the club’s Presidential elections approach.

Francescoli has slammed Presidential candidate Passarella for walking out on Uruguay whilst managing the nation back in 2001. Passarella goes up against other hopefuls Rodolfo D’Onofrio, Hugo Santilli, Antonio Caselli as well as the unpopular current River President José María Aguilar for the post in December.

One of these men will have their work cut out if they are to return River to their former glory and start adding to the club’s 33 Argentine league titles.

The signs that this season was not going to be plain sailing for River or Boca was apparant very early on. Both club’s crashed out of the Copa Sudamericana in the first round after receiving their last ever qualification to the tournament through invitation.

Limp defeats for River and Boca by Lanús and Vélez Sársfield respectively fully supported the withdrawal of automatic entry for the two big boys to South America’s second most prestigious club tournament.

It is however the Copa Libertadores that all the teams in South America want to win and in the last decade it has been a happy hunting ground for Boca.

The self styled Manchester United of South America have appeared in five Copa Libertadores finals in the last ten years, winning on four occasions.

Before the Superclasico Boca Juniors president Jorge Amor Ameal dangled a carrot in front of his team in the shape of US$500,000 bonus for the squad on qualifying for the next edition of the Copa Libertadores.

As with Europe´s top clubs Boca Juniors budget on appearing in the top competitions and banking the revenue that a good run generates. Boca´s yearly outgoings of US$7,000,000 are based on the club reaching the last eight of the Copa Libertadores at the very least every year.

After the Superclasico however they lie seven points behind San Lorenzo who hold the last qualification place for next year´s edition of the tournament. They have eight games left in the Apertura to make up this deficit.

Right now there are some sparks of optimism around La Bombonera as Boca went into their derby with River having strung together three consecutive league wins. This upturn in form has seen Juan Román Riquelme on top of his game. The touch to setup Martin Palermo for the equaliser against River was a piece of skill that only he alone could pull off.

With Palermo chipping in with his usual share of goals there is a glimmer of hope for Los Xeneizes picking up the points needed and showing up in next year’s Copa Liberadores.

Boca head coach Alfio Basile had offered his resignation earlier in the season but it was refused by the club and he has capitalised on the faith that has been bestowed on him.

Basile knows though that failure to get the club up the league and into the Copa Libertadores will ultimately put an end to his second spell in charge at La Bombonera.

Like their rivals across the city Boca also have an overreliance on aging heads. The average age of their staring XI for the Superclasico was just over 29-years-old and the talented youngsters are just not there at the moment.

River and Boca are unashamedly selling clubs and rely on transfer income to stay afloat. Pre-season saw Rodrigo Palacio move from Boca to Genoa and Radamel Falcao from River to Porto.

A balance needs to be struck at both clubs between continuing to sell their best players while remaining competitive enough to met the demands of their fans as well as their bank managers.

New Football Books - October

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 21:41:00 PDT

New football book titles out this month include We Are The Damned United, another take on Brian Clough's ill-fated stay at Leeds in the 70s, written as a response to David Peace's classic The Damned Utd and an autobiography of BBC football commentator John Motson Motty: Forty Years in the Commentary Box.

Other new books published in October are Aber's Gonnae Get Ye! an autobiography from St. Mirrin's hard man and alcoholic Billy Abercromby and Classic Football Debates Settled Once And For All by the two Dannies, Kelly and Baker - a comic look at the game.

The top 3 selling football books in the UK are Why England Lose: And Other Curious Phenomena Explained, Sky Sports Football Yearbook and Taking The Tiss.

New Football Books September

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J-League Results October 25

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 21:04:18 PDT

Sunday October 25

Kawasaki Frontale 7 Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0
Nagoya Grampus 3 Jubilo Iwata 3
Shimizu S-Pulse 1 FC Tokyo 2
Urawa Reds 0 Omiya Ardija 3

Saturday October 24

Gamba Osaka 0 Yokohama F Marinos 0
Kashima Antlers 3 JEF United Chiba 0
Kashiwa Reysol 0 Montedio Yamagata 1
Kyoto Sanga 1 Oita Trinita 1
Vissel Kobe 1 Albirex Niigata 0

Kawasaki Frontale lead the J-League after 30 rounds of the J1 championship following an incredible 7-0 thrashing of Sanfrecce.
Antlers are second followed by Gamba and a faltering Shimizu S-Pulse. Urawa Reds are 8th, 9 points adrift of top spot after a 0-3 loss in the Saitama derby.

Leading Positions

Kawasaki Frontale P30 Pts 55
Kashima Antlers P30 Pts 54
Gamba Osaka P30 Pts 51
Shimizu S-Pulse P30 50
FC Tokyo P30 49
Albirex Niigata P30 Pts 46
Sanfrecce Hiroshima P30 Pts 46

Leading scorers

Jubilo Iwata's Ryoichi Maeda has 18 goals so far this season after a hat-trick against Grampus. FC Tokyo's Naohiro Ishikawa has 15.

Ryoichi Maeda, Jubilo Iwata 18
Juninho, Kawasaki Frontale 16
Naohiro Ishikawa, FC Tokyo 15
Shinji Okazaki, Shimizu S-Pulse 14
Edmilson, Urawa Reds 13

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K-League Offers Coaches More Than Crumbs Of Comfort

noreply@blogger.com (John Duerden) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 05:36:21 PDT

In a league that is famed through Asia for its physicality and aggression, K-League clubs can be fairly gentle off the pitch when it comes to firing coaches. China and Japan have almost-European style practices in that regard while in West Asia - rare is the head coach that lasts over a season.

Not in South Korea. Perhaps it is a legacy of corporate culture where the likes of Samsung and Hyundai prefer to ease older people towards and then out the door over time rather than kick them out in one fell swoop. In 2006 for example, former Chelsea boss Ian Porterfield took Busan I’Park on a winless streak of 21 games. He still wasn’t forcibly relieved of his duties but took it upon himself to leave the south coast club.

This season has seen just two casualties. Veteran coach Kim Ho was the first. The 1994 World Cup boss was forced to leave Daejeon Citizen in June. There were vague rumors of off-the-field intransigencies from the silver-haired fox but the fact that the club was struggling at the foot of the table wouldn’t have helped.

The Citizen has been patient in the past. Even when Kim’s predecessor Choi Yoon-gyum reportedly hit his assistant with a beer glass back in 2007, it took a while before he left his job as club and fans were reluctant to say goodbye.

Jeju United’s Brazilian boss Artur Bernandes said just that last week. The well-travelled coach was coming to the end of his second season in the Land of the Morning Calm but handed in his notice. Officials at the club should not have been too surprised; Jeju was his 23rd coaching job on the past two decades. This is a man that liked to move around.

The club has been known to move too, a 2006 switch that was a great deal more shocking. The energy arm of giant conglomerate, decided to move its underachieving professional club from Bucheon, just to the west of Seoul, to Jeju, 300 kilometers to the south - results have been uninspiring.

Jeju may have a beautiful World Cup Stadium but the team is struggling. There have been hints of hope and slivers of suggestions that Bernandes was taking the team in the right direction – a comfortable 3-1 win over soon-to-be champions Suwon Bluewings in September 2008 springs to mind and – but nothing concrete and nothing consistent. 2009 has been a disappointment.

Like most other clubs in Asia’s oldest professional league, Jeju was in vague contention for a top six finish in the middle of the season. All hopes of that have vanished with a rotten run of six straight defeats has seen the islanders plummet to 13th in the standings. 20 goals have been conceded too.

The worst day came in September when Jeju, playing at home, was thrashed 8-1 by Pohang Steelers. That was embarrassing enough but it was also the heaviest ever defeat in the 26-year history of the K-League.

With three games remaining, the 54 year-old decided to call it quits and has already returned to South America. There won’t be any more changes before the end of the season but there are sure to be some new faces peering out from K-League benches next season.

It remains to be seen who is on the Jeju sidelines. The K-League has never been an easy place for foreign coaches to succeed but the likes of Seoul’s Senol Gunes and Sergio Farias at Pohang have shown that it is possible and have added a good deal to the local set-up. Another couple of managers from foreign climes will do the league no harm at all.

Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com

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44 Stellenbosch Bed & Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 03:03:31 PDT

44 Stellenbosch is a multi-functional accommodation perfect for rental during the 2010 World Cup.

44 Stellenbosch Bed & Breakfast is located in the lovely Western Cape Winelands.

Your holiday will be relaxed from the moment you open the front door of this comfortable family home. Enjoy the spacious open plan lounge and dining room with central fire place for long winter evenings or the sparkling pool on a hot summer day. The exquisite kitchen will embrace your gourmet skills.

The Stellenbosch Wine Route is the country's most famous. The Stellenbosch Wine of Origin area includes over 300 estates and wineries of which more than a 100 are open to the public, each with its own unique character and style.

Enjoy a long relaxed day's wine tasting, wine talk and wine buying and you'll sip more than our great South African wines - you'll taste our South African way of life. The cellars of the Stellenbosch Wine Route are up to 300 years old, making it the oldest, most established in the country.

As an important cultural centre, Stellenbosch has many galleries and museums housing important national and international art collections. The Stellenbosch Conservatoire is also the country's oldest music school.

If you have accommodation in South Africa available during World Cup 2010 and wish to advertise it on Soccerphile please Contact Us for further advertising details.

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Nagoya Grampus fly the flag for Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Tuckerman) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:46:17 PDT

When the draw for the AFC Champions League group stage was made back in December 2008, few tipped unheralded Japanese side Nagoya Grampus as potential title contenders.

The general consensus was that Dragan Stojkovic's team had been lucky to sneak into third place in the J. League, and thereby qualify for the Asian Football Confederation's recently revamped continental jamboree.

It is perhaps a testament to the strength of the J. League that Nagoya have seen off challengers from Australia, South Korea, China and their native Japan to reach the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League at their first attempt.

After topping their group, Nagoya defeated South Korean giants and defending K-League champions Suwon Samsung Bluewings in a hard-fought Round of 16 encounter.

Stojkovic's side then matched up with a confident Kawasaki Frontale in the quarter-finals, and it was here that their fighting spirit came to the fore.

Down 2-1 from the first leg in Tokyo, Nagoya roared back to win 3-1 in front of their home fans and book a showdown with two-times Asian champions Al-Ittihad from Saudi Arabia.

With the first leg set to take place tonight in Jeddah, Nagoya will hope to take something back to their Mizuho Athletics Stadium home a week later as they aim to book a place in a one-off final at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

Their recent run has come despite injuries to Japan internationals Seigo Narazaki and Keiji Tamada, while Serb defender Milos Bajalica has also endured an injury-plagued Champions League campaign.

Fortunately for Nagoya fans, coach Stojkovic invested wisely over the summer - drafting in Australian striker Josh Kennedy, former Japan international Alessandro Santos and exciting Montenegrin youngster Igor Burzanovic mid-season.

All three have contributed to Nagoya's run to the final four, with Burzanovic in particular looking a shrewd investment for a team that also possesses rising star Maya Yoshida, tricky winger Yoshizumi Ogawa and mercurial Brazilian playmaker Magnum.

Japanese clubs have dominated the past three editions of the Champions League, with Urawa Reds lifting the crown in 2007, before Gamba Osaka went on to win in 2008.

What price Nagoya Grampus making it three from three for the Japanese?

After a forgettable campaign on the domestic front, the combustible Stojkovic will be desperate to lift some silverware at a club that hasn't tasted success for the best part of a decade.

Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com

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World Cup 2010 Playoffs

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 08:12:03 PDT

The four playoffs for the European Zone of World Cup 2010 qualification are:

Republic of Ireland v France
Portugal v Bosnia-Hercegovina
Greece v Ukraine
Russia v Slovenia

France, Portugal, Greece and Russia as the seeded teams are favorites with the bookies to progress to the World Cup finals in South Africa. Ukraine v Greece is close to call, but France, Russia and Portugal will progress.

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J-League Results October 18

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:11:21 PDT

Sunday October 18

JEF United Chiba 1 Kyoto Sanga 1
Oita Trinita 2 Shimizu S-Pulse 1

Saturday October 17

Albirex Niigata 0 Urawa Reds 1
FC Tokyo 4 Kashiwa Reysol 0
Jubilo Iwata 0 Kashima Antlers 0
Montedio Yamagata 1 Vissel Kobe 0
Omiya Ardija 2 Kawasaki Frontale 3
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 2 Gamba Osaka 2
Yokohama F Marinos 2 Nagoya Grampus 1

Kawasaki Frontale now lead the J-League after 29 rounds of the J1 championship.
Antlers are second followed by Gamba and Shimizu S-Pulse. Urawa Reds are 8th, 6 points adrift of top spot.

Leading Positions

Kawasaki Frontale P29 Pts 52
Kashima Antlers P29 Pts 51
Gamba Osaka P29 Pts 50
Shimizu S-Pulse P29 50
Albirex Niigata P29 Pts 46
Sanfrecce Hiroshima P29 Pts 46

Leading scorers

For once a Japanese-born player leads the J-1 scoring charts - in fact the top two strikers are both Japanese players. Jubilo Iwata's Ryoichi Maeda has 15 goals so far this season as has FC Tokyo's Naohiro Ishikawa.

Naohiro Ishikawa, FC Tokyo 15
Ryoichi Maeda, Jubilo Iwata 15
Juninho, Kawasaki Frontale 14
Edmilson, Urawa Reds 13
Shinji Okazaki, Shimizu S-Pulse 13

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Bet365 Special Betting Offers

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 07:08:25 PDT

To add to the In-Play excitement, bet365 streams over 4,000 events live to your PC every year - so you can bet as the action unfolds. Highlights include 5 matches from Serie A every week along with Masters Series tennis.

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Fifa World Rankings October 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:21:44 PDT

Brazil stay at the top of this month's Fifa world rankings. Brazil are followed by Spain, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany. England stay in 7th place. Argentina are 6th.

France are in 9th. Cameroon are the highest African team in 14th. Russia are 12th, with the USA in 11th.

1 Brazil
2 Spain
3 Netherlands
4 Italy
5 Germany
6 Argentina
7 England
8 Croatia
9 France
10 Portugal
11 USA
12 Russia
13 Switzerland
14 Cameroon
15 Czech Republic
16 Greece Denmark
17 Chile
18 Mexico
19 Côte d'Ivoire
20 Serbia

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El Diego turns victory into vengeance

noreply@blogger.com (Tim Sturtridge) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 00:13:18 PDT

Fans of a bit of blue will be happy with the news that Argentina has now finally booked their place at South Africa 2010.

It’s not just on their famous striped shirts however that the blue will be found but also coming from the mouth of Diego Maradona if his latest press conference is anything to go by.

El Diego rounded on his critics from Argentina’s press pack after his side’s hard fought 1-0 victory over Uruguay in Montevideo.

Anybody not wishing to see the result should look away now.

After joyful scenes on the pitch at the final whistle Maradona cut a very different figure when he emerged for his press conference in the bowels of the Estadio Centenario.

“To those who did not believe in us,” Maradona said before apologising to the women present for what he was about to say, “they can suck my d***, and keep on sucking it.”

Maradona had not even been overly lambasted in the Argentine press for his management record in World Cup qualifiers. Before narrow wins over Peru and Uruguay this week he had only secured six points in six games.

“You lot take it up the a***,” Maradona further taunted the press, “This victory is for all Argentines, except for the journalists.”

Last week it was reported that Maradona was due to quit his post and had fallen out with several members of his backroom staff. The manager was clearly angered at these stories and did not pull any punches with the assembled journalists.

“For those who did not believe in the team and treated me like dirt,” Maradona said in launching yet another verbal broadside. “They will now have to accept this. I want to thank the players and the fans, no one but them.”

José Mourinho is often lauded for using his press conferences to divert attention away from his players but El Diego took things a good hop, step and jump away from anything the Special One has ever come out with.

“So I repeat, to all those that said anything against me, keep eating your words.” Maradona concluded. “I am very proud of my players. They made me feel like a real coach because all of what we had planned in the dressing room, they did it on the pitch.”

The comments have, perhaps unsurprisingly, not gone down too well with Argentina's daily newspapers. Top selling rag Clarin dubbed Maradona's comments “scandalous” while football daily Olé slammed the manager as being “absolutely out of place.”

The game itself was played out with a caginess at odds with Maradona's press conference. After all not was this a derby match but also a cup final for both sides.

Argentina went into the game needing only a draw to secure the fourth and last automatic qualifying spot for the World Cup and they set themselves up accordingly.

Last gasp goal hero from Saturday’s 2-1 win over Peru, Martin Palermo was left on the bench along with Carlos Tevez.

Instead Maradona paired Lionel Messi with his new favourite Gonzalo Higuain of Real Madrid. Juan Veron was recalled in midfield after serving a suspension against Peru and captain Javier Mascherano also added bite in the middle of the park.

The first half saw yet another ineffective performance from Messi in the number 10 shirt for Argentina and it was at the other that Diego Forlan and in particularly Luis Suarez of Ajax looked far more likely to break the deadlock.

Argentine ‘keeper Sergio Romero dealt with everything that made its way through however and he was ably assisted by his backline which included veterans Martin Demichelis and Gabriel Heinze.

With Paraguayan referee Carlos Amarilla dishing out four yellow cards early on it was clear that he was looking to crackdown on any gamesmanship between the two sides.

The eighth yellow card of the game turned out to be the second for Uruguayan defender Martin Caceres and Amarilla duly sent him packing for an early bath.

From the resulting free kick on the right-hand angle of Uruguay’s penalty area second half substitute Mario Bolatti found himself in space and stoked home from eight yards out to give Argentina a precious lead.

With news of Chile’s 1-0 lead over Ecuador also reverberating around the stadium it was clear that Uruguay were still heading for fifth spot in the qualifying group and another chance to reach South Africa via a playoff.

At the close of play Argentina celebrated on the pitch in much the same way Brazil had done on in Rosario last month. The night's hosts were left to contemplate two games against Costa Rica next month.

It will be the third consecutive time Uruguay have gone into a playoff to determine whether or not they will get the chance to perform on the biggest stage.

Their passage to South Korea and Japan in 2002 was secured by a two legged victory over Australia while the same opponents prevented them from attending Germany 2006.

“We can do it,” Was Diego Forlan’s optimistic assessment of the upcoming games with Costa Rica. “Nobody likes being in this position but we've been there before and know how to approach it.”

The night's big losers were Ecuador who could not spoil the celebrations in Chile and nick a result. A win would have seen them leapfrog Uruguay but a second half strike from Chile's leading marksman Humberto Suazo saw the Ecuadorans go down to a 1-0 defeat in Santiago.

Elsewhere on the continent Brazil and Paraguay, both already scouting hotels in South Africa, fielded experimental line-ups against Venezuela and Colombia respectively.

Colombia managed to finish their campaign on a high with 2-0 win in Asuncion. Second half efforts from Gustavo Ramos and Hugo Rodallega of Wigan gave fans of the Cafeteros a taste of what might have been.

Brazil maintained their unbeaten home record in qualifying and Dunga blooded more of the impressive domestic based talent he has at his disposal. Despite the 0-0 draw the coach will have been happy with what he saw from the likes of Nilmar and Ramires operating alongside established stars such as Kaká and Luis Fabiano.

In the basement battle a single goal handed Peru victory over Bolivia. The Incas still finish bottom of the group however despite Johan Fano's strike handing them all three points. Peru’s entire campaign seemed personified by Fano getting himself sent off just two minutes after his good work had given his team the lead.

© Tim Sturtridge & Soccerphile.com

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Bolatti saves Diego's bacon

noreply@blogger.com (Sean O'Conor) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 18:18:43 PDT

The impossible shock didn't happen in the end as Argentina won 1-0 in Montevideo to bag the last South American place in South Africa and send Uruguay into a two-legged play-off with Costa Rica.

Chile's 1-0 win over Ecuador meant neither of tonight's teams in the Centenario would go home empty-handed. A nervous tussle went star-studded Argentina's way seven minutes from time when Uruguay's Martin Caceres was sent off and Argentine substitute Mario Bolatti side-footed home from the resulting free-kick's melee for the game's only goal.

Diego Maradona, predictably ecstatic at the end as a tearful Carlos Bilardo hugged him, lives to fight another day. Had Argentina gone out tonight, would that have been the last the soccer world had seen of its arguably greatest player?

Argentina join Brazil, Chile and Paraguay as the CONMEBOL automatic qualifiers for 2010.

Argentina's win was also belated revenge for the first World Cup final played between the two nations at that stadium in 1930:

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World Cup 2010 Qualifiers - October 14

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:54:42 PDT

In another tense evening of World Cup qualifiers across the globe, Switzerland and Slovakia qualified from the European zone for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Switzerland played out a nervous 0-0 home draw with 10-man Israel and Slovakia held on for a 1-0 win in Poland.

Portugal, Greece, Slovenia and Ukraine took the remaining play off spots.

England won 3-0 in their last qualifying match against Belarus in Group 6 with Peter Crouch scoring two.

Elsewhere in the the European qualifying zone Italy beat Cyprus 3-2, the Republic of Ireland drew 0-0 with Montenegro at Croke Park. France beat Austria 3-1, Germany drew 1-1 with Finland and Sweden beat Albania 4-1, but miss out on the finals in South Africa.

In South America, it's 0-0 in the first half in the crucial game between Uruguay and Argentina in Montevideo.

World Cup Qualifiers October 10

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Sad End For Korea But Much To Be Positive About

noreply@blogger.com (John Duerden) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 16:01:01 PDT

For almost all teams, international tournaments end in sadness and thoughts of what-might-have-been. That is the case with South Korea in regard to the Under-20 World Cup in Egypt but as time passes, the competition will be remembered fondly in the Land of the Morning Calm.

The run to the quarter-finals ended on Friday evening with a 3-2 defeat against Ghana at the Mubarak Stadium in Suez. It was an exciting match though the teenage Taeguk Warriors could never quite recover from a poor start.

Dominic Adiyiah gave the Black Satellites the lead after just eight minutes, scoring from close range from a low cross from the right. The second goal came 20 minutes later in a similar fashion except it was Ransford Osei who got the finishing touch.

Minutes later, Park Hee-sung headed a goal back for the Koreans who then spent much of the remaining time probing the Ghanaian defense. Another lapse in concentration cost the Asians as Adiyiah scored his second and his team’s third twelve minutes from the end.

Just two minutes after that however, substitute Kim Dong-sub found the back of the net with a header to send the red-clad fans in the stadium into a frenzy and set up an exciting finale. It never quite happened and the Africans held out.

Thus ended two weeks of football that started badly but steadily improved. A 2-0 defeat at the hands of Cameroon suggested a short stay in North Africa but then coach Hong Myong-bo, a legend of Korean football, and his players dug in for a 1-1 draw against Germany. Then came a comprehensive 3-0 win over the United States which gave them a ticket to the knockout stage.

People at home started to get really excited when the youngsters put Paraguay to the sword with another 3-0 win. Suddenly, the team seemed to have the ingredient that is necessary in all tournaments – momentum. It was punctured by slack defending in the first 30 minutes against Ghana.

As the two defeats came against African teams there are suggestions that the less powerful Koreans struggle with opponents from that continent, adding a little extra spice to the senior team’s friendly match against Senegal in Seoul on Wednesday.

"We certainly found African opposition difficult to deal with, but the team will learn from the experience, that's for sure," said coach Hong after the match. "We're a quick team, both in possession and in terms of pace, but African teams combine that sharpness with power, which we found extremely difficult to cope with.”

The coach of Ghana put Korea’s defeat down, not to a lack of power, but to a lack of precision in the danger area.

It was a great match and it must have been nice to watch for everyone. For us though it was a very difficult match,” said Sellas Tetteh. “I have to pay tribute to South Korea; they gave us a very tough match. They pass the ball well and they have tremendous energy. If they'd have been a bit more clinical, it would have been even more difficult for us.”

Turning possession into goals has long been a problem for Koreans, and Asian, teams though the recent 2010 World Cup qualification campaign suggested that a corner may be being turned in this respect.

Coach Hong, a quiet but charismatic man, was a defender who played in four World Cups, made 125 appearances for the national team and was the captain during the 2002 tournament. The 40 year-old has done enough to hint at a bright coaching career to come.

He will do well though not to take too much notice of an excited Korean media. The signs are that he will keep his feet on the ground and he was happy to deflect the praise that came his way onto his players.

"They've been absolutely magnificent and I am very proud of them,” said Hong of his young charges.

"They gave their all. They showed that have a very strong mentality as well as a great aptitude to learn whatever has been asked of them. They're also a team in every true sense of the word. We don't have any superstars or big egos. We work together - and I hope they continue to do this for many years to come. They have a lot of potential.”

Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com

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World Cup 2010 Qualifiers - October 10

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 19:52:06 PDT

In an exciting day and evening of World Cup qualifiers across the globe, Côte d'Ivoire, Mexico, Paraguay, Serbia, Denmark, Germany and Italy qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

In Europe, England lost their 100% record in Group 6 after goalkeeper Robert Green was dismissed early in the first half and Nazarenko's deflected goal was enough for the hosts in a match marred by flares thrown from the crowd.

Elsewhere in the the European qualifying zone Italy grabbed a late 2-2 draw with the Republic of Ireland at Croke Park in Dublin to qualify. Fellow European powerhouse Germany also made it to South Africa with a 1-0 win in Moscow to condemn the Russians to the play-offs.

Switzerland, Serbia and Denmark also gained automatic qualification with Denmark's 1-0 defeat of local Scandinavian rivals Sweden opening the door for Portugal to advance to the play-offs, where they will probably join France and the Republic of Ireland.

In South America, Paraguay qualified with a 2-1 win over Venezuela while a dramatic match in the rain in Buenos Aires, saw Argentina scrape a last-gasp win thanks to an injury-time goal from Martin Palermo to leave Diego Maradona's team needing to avoid defeat in Uruguay in their last match to go through.

Another recalled veteran, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, inspired Mexico to a 4-1 win over El Salvador to progress to the finals in South America from the CONCACAF qualifying zone. The USA can join them with a win in Honduras.

In Africa, Côte d'Ivoire joined Ghana and the hosts South Africa in the finals as Chelsea striker Didier Drogba's late goal gave the Elephants a 1-1 draw in Malawi and top position in Group E.

World Cup Qualifiers September 9

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EDUCATION COALITION CALLS FOR LASTING LEGACY FOR 2010 WORLD CUP

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:45:53 PDT

Australian Government Minister for Youth and Sport, the Hon Kate Ellis MP,
joined soccer stars Socceroo Vincenzo Grella, Matilda Sarah Walsh and a coalition of non-governmental organisations to launch the 1GOAL: Education for All campaign in Australia.

World leaders, including Australia’s Prime Minister the Hon Kevin Rudd MP, United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon will joined each other via video-link to pledge their support for the campaign.

1GOAL has one purpose: to ensure that people of all ages around the world and especially the 75 million children out of school – half of them in Africa and nearly two-thirds girls – get access to quality education, classrooms, teachers and the future that education provides.

1GOAL was launched in Australia by a coalition of non-governmental organisations led by ActionAid Australia, ASPBAE Australia (Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education) and Football Federation Australia.

“Education is key to breaking the cycle of poverty for families, communities and whole countries, leading to economic growth, democracy and a more stable future, said ActionAid CEO Mr Archie Law.

“Today more than 900 million adults are unable to read or write, but it doesn’t need to be this way.
“Since 2000, because governments and people took action, 40 million more children are in school. We have a plan, we know how to beat this – all we need now is the will to make it happen.
“If we come together around this World Cup, we can do even more and reach our goal.”

1GOAL is the official campaign of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first world cup to be held in Africa, and calls on football fans and the public to sign-up at www.join1goal.org and tell world leaders that education beats poverty.

The leaders are calling on football fans and education campaigners to make education the legacy of the FIFA World Cup 2010 and have agreed to meet on the eve of the FIFA World Cup 2010 in Africa for a summit on education.

Bernie Lovegrove, Executive Director of ASPBAE Australia called on the government to ensure its overseas aid to education contributes to achieving all six international Education For All goals. “We are pleased that the Rudd government has scaled up education aid, but at the same time we urge the government to ensure that funding covers education from early childhood through to adult and lifelong learning, rather than trading one education goal off against another.”

He further called on the Australian Government to pay its fair share of the education financing gap: “The financing gap for primary and lower-secondary education is estimated at US$16 billion per year and Australia still has quite a way to go to pay its fair share. In this time of financial crisis governments must not retreat from their commitments to aid for education.”

Football Federation Australia CEO Ben Buckley said he was delighted to support the 1GOAL initiative and encourages everyone to show their support.

"Education is an important policy objective in any society to ensure that people have the best possible opportunity to reach their potential and to realise better economic, health and social outcomes,” Mr Buckley said.

Sports star Socceroo Vincenzo Grella said the Qantas Socceroos were honored to support this worldwide movement to promote education for all and that he urges all football fans to visit the 1GOAL website to show their support.
Sarah Walsh of the Matildas called on all Australians to support the initiative. “The Westfield Matildas are proud to be part of the 1GOAL initiative and ask all world leaders and all Australians to support education for girls and boys.”
To pledge support to 1GOAL: Education for All, log onto join1goal.org

BACKGROUND
About ActionAid Australia
ActionAid Australia is part of an international anti-poverty network working in over 40 countries, taking sides with poor people to end poverty and injustice together. Education is one of ActionAid’s priority areas of work. Further information about ActionAid can be found at actionaid.org.au/

About ASPBAE
ASPBAE Australia is part of a broader regional network, the Asia South Pacific Association of Basic and Adult Education, of over 240 member organisations in 30 countries around the Asia Pacific region. ASPBAE Australia works with education coalitions in many countries in the region to achieve the six EFA goals. aspbae.org/

About 1GOAL: Education for All
1GOAL is a new campaign for the 2010 FIFA World Cup to ensure that every child worldwide has the opportunity of an education. Global football stars, the football world and FIFA are behind 1GOAL – this World Cup, we’re asking fans to sign up to give 75 million children a chance in life. Together, name by name, we can make a difference and call on world leaders to ensure education for all.
1GOAL is a part of the Class of 2015 initiative, led by the Global Campaign for Education and includes support from key charities, teaching unions, faith groups, private sector and committed governments.

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Watch Ukraine v England Online

noreply@blogger.com (Soccerphile) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:57:46 PDT

England travel to Ukraine for their final away World Cup Qualifier in Group Six on Saturday 10th October - and you can watch all the action live at bet365.

The game will not be shown anywhere on UK television but bet365 will be Live Streaming the match absolutely free for all customers with a funded account.

With fantastic Live Streaming and an extensive range of pre-match and In-Play markets on offer, make sure you're following England with bet365.

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