football UNIVERSE

Romania vs France

2008-06-09T09:52:00.000-07:00

Monday, June 9, Kickoff 18:00 CET
Zürich (Switzerland) - Travel to Zurich

THE BIG PICTURE

Group C gets underway, with Romania and France battling for psychological advantage in the Group o’Death. A win for either side would prove a huge boost and a loss would be devastating, as both sides still have to face Netherlands and Italy.

ROMANIA

Three Key Players:
Adrian Mutu will need to provide at least some of the firepower if Romania is to advance.
Christian Chivu is the captain and will give experience and stability to Romania’s back line.
Cosmin Contra is a somewhat volatile rightback who can perform defensively, but is also capable of stepping up to help out the offense.

Romania squad
Romania Team Profile

Team News: Stefan Radu is getting over the flu and may start this one on the bench.

Triviatastic: Coach Victor Piturca previous played for the Romania team as a striker, securing thirteen caps and scoring six goals.

Visit Ian at the Romania Euro 2008 Team Blog for more.

FRANCE

Three Key Players:
Franck Ribery is coming back from a mild ankle injury. This team relies heavily on his play up the wing, and he’s been dubbed “the next Zidane” for his ability to direct and inspire. Will he be fit and ready for this game?
Thierry Henry is suffering from longterm sciatica that limits his ability a bit, but he tends to rise to the occasion for les Bleus.
Karim Benzema is only twenty, but chances are that in this tournament he will usurp Nicolas Anelka’s role in the starting XI. Will he be able to deliver, or will he be too exhausted from being overused at Lyon this year?

France Squad
France Team Profile

Team News: Team captain Patrick Vieira will miss this game with a thigh injury. Thierry Henry may start the game on the bench. And Samir Nasri is recovering from a cold and possibly not at his best.

Triviatastic: Like his Romanian counterpart, Coach Raymond Domenech also played for the team he now coaches. But where Piturca was a prolific striker, Domenech was a defender whose nickname was “‘terror of the pitch.”

Visit Jeff, Inara and me at the France Euro 2008 Team Blog for more.

Netherland Vs Italy

2008-06-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

Monday, June 9th, 2045 CET
Berne (Switzerland) - Travel to Berne

THE BIG PICTURE

For starters, this is just a game in Group C, and all six will be worthy of watching with all three teams ranked in the top dozen in the world by FIFA. The Netherlands show up missing a great deal of its attack in Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Ryan Babel, but the Azzurri show up without four legends from their World Cup winning squad: Francesco Totti, Alessandro Nesta, Fabio Cannavaro and coach Marcello Lippi. It’s a game of new faces, who will transition better?

Netherlands

Three Key Players:
Ruud van Nistelrooy - Ferguson thought he was done, van Basten dropped him…bullshit. He’s scored 41 in two years for Real and he’s as potent as ever.
Wesley Sneijder - Missing the pace of Robben and Babel, creativity will have to take over. After feeding balls to Ruud in Madrid this year, he’ll have to do it again.
Edwin van der Sar - Even though the back line only conceded five in qualifying, their are still major questions with the defense, especially in this group. EVDS will probably have his work cut out for him.

Netherlands squad
Netherlands Team Profile

Team News: Robben, Babel and van Persie are out and Melchiot is questionable. But perhaps more importantly, the quality veteran duo of Clarence Seedorf and Mark van Bommel want nothing to do with van Basten and pulled themselves from the tournament - van Bommel doing so long ago. With the injuries, they could sure use them.

Triviatastic: With Seedorf off the team, not a single Dutch player called up by van Basten is currently playing in Italy. Makes scouting a tad more difficult.

Visit Jan at the Netherlands Euro 2008 Team Blog for more.

Italy

Three Key Players:
Andrea Pirlo - The man is an Italian metronome with fantastic hair. His playmaking abilities are second to none and as he goes, the Azzurri attack goes.
Luca Toni - Oh he of great goalscoring prowess has bounced back after the metatarsal injury he suffered towards the end of his stint with la Viola to dominate scoring charts. Even if he doesn’t score goals, he is an elite target man with an array of technical abilities.
Gigi Buffon - With Cannavaro out he may have to face a few more shots while wearing the armband as the captain in Canna’s stead. They’ll need his keeping and leadership.

Italy squad
Italy Team Profile

Team News: Fabio Cannavaro is out for around two months, leaving a gaping hole in the back, a dent in the leadership department and this guy heavily medicated.

Triviatastic: Italy conceded one goal in open play during the entire 2006 World Cup, and that lone goal was an own goal by Cristian Zaccardo, who has finally been shipped off to Germany for his sins.

Visit the trio of Marco, Ricci and Chris (me) at the Italy Euro 2008 Team Blog for more.

Oranje: silence before the storm…

2008-06-07T00:53:00.000-07:00

With the EC approaching real fast now, the Dutch team enters yet again another phase. Dick Advocaat: “Van Basten will know by now who he will play against Italy. Maybe he still doubts one or two positions, but he will be interacting very intensely with those 13 players… The players will also know what Van Basten will decide. You can feel this and see this in little details.”

Dick Advocaat, the Little General, was in charge of Holland during the WC1994 campaign and the EC2004. “Players have a sixth sense for stuff like that. But it’s not rocket science. The ones that most certainly won’t play will know too, because Rob Witschge or Frank de Boer will be working with them. They get less attention. That’s how it is.”

The preparation phase went smooth, apart from Babel’s injury of course. But there were no rifts, no wars fought out through media columns (Gullit and Michels in 2000), no cable discussions (1996) and competitors didn’t try to injure each other (don’t know if that ever happened…). The silence before the storm?

It’s remarkable however, how stories come out of the Oranje camp regarding Ryan Babel. The Liverpool striker had skipped a training due to some little pains. The next training he went for it, full blown ahead. Some players (Van Nistelrooy, Van der Vaart and Gio) told Babel to take care and not overdo it. The youngster was determined to prove himself however, and threw caution in the wind. At the end of the training his ligaments snapped.

Jan Kromkamp, PSV full back and part of the squad in 2006: “The prep in 2006 was also really calm and controlled. You wouldn’t tackle a “competitor” with your foot at knee-height.” He did see some changes in the final phase though.

“Little irritations come up, once it’s clear what the manager wants to do. Personally, I also felt some pressure from Van Basten. I can handle some extra scrutiny, no problems, but in my case it did felt too much. It didn’t help me, I felt I really really had to perform. I think Mark van Bommel suffered from that as well.”

Kromkamp started in the line up for 2006 but was subbed after the first match. His tournament ended there. His tournament ended in a disaster when during a training, two players got to chose their team mates for a training match. Kromkamp was picked as the last player and felt humiliated.

“It was like at school, with gym. The losers stay till the last. I was that boy this time. I was very disappointed about it, but that’s professional football, I guess. The survival of the fittest.”

Dick Advocaat doesn’t want to comment on who he thinks should play. “No, it’s never fun when other coaches or ex-team managers start to meddle. I had my doubts once about two players. Marc Overmars was the man then on the wings, in 1994. But Gaston Taument trained so well, he was in super form, so I played him against Saudi Arabia as a sub. He scored the winner late in the game.”

Right before the EC2004, Andy van der Meyde was the designated right winger for Oranje. During a press conference, a journo asked Van der Meyde what he tought of playing opposite Phillip Lahm (Germany). The Ajax winger said: “Who? Lahm? Never heard of the guy!” German tabloid Bild tore Van der Meyde to pieces.

Advocaat: “I never really talked about it with Andy. He is the kind of player that can say these types of things. You never know if he means it. I said only one thing: “Ok, Andy. Show us that Lahm is a nobody in the match, ok?”

The preparation is actually the best time. “The atmosphere is always good. A lot of optimism. Everyone is working hard. Once the tournament starts, you’re in this avalanche, it’s hard to get out.”

The first match always sets the tone for the tournament. When Oranje lost it’s first match at the EC1988, Michels immediately took some drastic measures. It’s important to start well. “I am very curious to see how Oranje does. I’m normally pretty realistic but I do feel Oranje will do very well this time around… I don’t know…it’s just a feeling I have. These boys could surprise everyone.”

The predictions: Group A

2008-06-07T00:29:00.000-07:00

By: Yuko Méd'a Orii | June 7th, 2008 | 3 Comments »

Time flies, can’t believe it was 4 years ago when I traveled around Portugal and ended up in Lisbon. Was completely speechless after the stunning semi-final, Greece - Czech Republic. No words to describe what was on my mind came up…didn’t taste anything…Was half-dead…

First of all, I’d like to remind you that football is a game played by 22 men, the trainers, and capable assistants and not something can be won by a few “star players.” The English football legend Gary Lineker said, “Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and in the end, the Germans always win.” Well put.

Sorry if I sound racist, but IMHO, the Turks eliminate themselves out of the group stage. Occasionally watching the Turkey domestic league matches and international matches that the Turkey squad involves, the players are too short-tempered to control themselves and often cause trouble with the refs. So do their supporters. Must be the toughest match. Hope no Czechs won’t get injured. And be careful before/after the match. If some drunken assholes start fighting, leave the place immediately. STAY OUT OF TROUBLE!

Portugal…like I said, you can’t win with a few selected stars. Deco? Christiano Ronaldo? Just crush’em so that they will lose control automatically. The easiest match to win. The Portguese supporters are basically quite friendly and they are good fellas to share a pint of beer.

I have to say, the Czechs cannot beat Switzerland because of UEFA politics not because of their potentials. With Alexander Frei, Philip Degen(whom I am quite familiar with as they are playing for my favorite German club, BORUSSIA DORTMUND) plus Valon Behrami(SS Lazio - no, I don’t support them), they could go through on their own, however, the implicit rule is, host countries won’t lose backed up by some invisible political (UEFA, in this case)power.

Remember, we, the Czechs ARE a “team.” If someone is missed, there IS always someone to fill in his spot. With or without Rosický doesn’t matter. We’ll just do all we can do. That’s pretty much it.

Overall, my predictions for Group A is:

1. Switzerland
2. Czech Republic
3. Portugal
4. Turkey

No matter whomever you support, BE SAFE and enjoy the match! Ask for the directions at hotels when you are lost and if necessary, tell them to call a cab to your hotel. The receptionists usually speak English, they are pretty much familiar with the area and are more helpful than the local police. Oh and make sure to grab a free match guide provided by the sponsors when you find them at the tourist infomation or fan meeting point. It helps.

Germany Euro 2008 National Team

2008-06-06T23:14:00.000-07:00

Nickname: No real nickname, but sometimes referred to as “Die Nationalelf” (The National Eleven) or “Die Nationalmannschaft” (The National Team.) (And our Germany team blogger, Jan, would like me to point out that “Die Nationalmannschaft” is generally not used as a nickname in Germany, except by English-speaking Germans wanting a naughty-sounding double entendre.)

Jerseys: Home: White. Away: Red.

FIFA World Ranking (May 2008): 5th (third highest in the tournament)

Fixtures/Schedule:
Group B; Austria, Croatia, Poland
Sun June 8th: 20:45 Germany vs Poland, (Klagenfurt)
Thu June 12th: 18:00 Croatia vs Germany, (Klagenfurt)
Mon June 16th: 20:45 Austria vs Germany, (Vienna)

Coach: Joachim Löw.

Former coach Jürgen Klinsmann brought Löw in as his assistant coach for the German team in 2004, as Germany was heading into World Cup qualifying preparing for World Cup 2006, and the two of them spent the next two years laying a solid foundation for the team.

When Klinsmann left after the World Cup, Löw’s job was to continue building on that foundation. His stated goal when he took charge was to continue implementing what he and Klinsmann had started, and to win Euro 2008. So far, it looks like he’s halfway there.

Captain: Michael Ballack

History: Germany has a long tradition of winning play. They’re three-time World Cup Champions: 1954, 1974 and 1990, and they’ve made it to the finals on four other occasions. They’re also three-time Euro Champions: 1972, 1980 and 1996, and made it to the finals twice more. They were third in World Cup 2006, behind only Italy and France.

And even though they finished second in their Euro 2008 qualifying group, with two fewer points than the Czech Republic, they lost only one game — and that was after they’d already qualified for the final tournament. They finished qualifying with 8 wins (five of them shut-outs), 3 draws, and only one loss. Their best game was against tiny San Marino, where they won by a jaw-dropping score of 13-0.

Expectations: Most observers expect this team to go far in this tournament. France coach Raymond Domenech, among others, has picked them as the team to beat in the finals.

Key Player: Michael Ballack. A lot of people wrote him off after his less-than-stellar performance at the beginning of his time at Chelsea in 2006, and three ankle surgeries in ‘07 nearly finished his career. But he came back with a vengeance and was one of Chelsea’s key players at the end of their season this year. And since he didn’t play the first half of the EPL season, he will be more rested than many of the other players.

He has always been a solid player for Germany, scoring 35 goals in 80 games — as a midfielder, not a striker. He’s not the captain for nothing, folks.

Other Key Players: VfB Stuttgart’s twenty-two-year-old striker Mario Gómez has played only nine games for Germany, but he’s already scored six goals. In the Bundesliga this year, his form was even better: Nineteen goals in 25 games.

Volatile midfielder Torsten Frings, who’s come back this season from two serious injuries, could also be a factor. He and Ballack offer much-needed stability and experience in the midfield.

X Factor: Jens Lehmann, the probable starting goalkeeper, may be best known outside of Germany for winning the penalty shootout with Argentina in the quarterfinals of WC 06. But he hasn’t played much for Arsenal this year. Will he be in form?

Another factor could be penalty shootouts. Germany has not lost a shootout since 1976.

Squad:
Goalkeepers: Jens Lehmann (Arsenal), Robert Enke (Hanover 96), Rene Adler (Bayer Leverkusen)

Defenders: Christoph Metzelder (Real Madrid), Per Mertesacker (Werder Bremen), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich), Arne Friedrich (Hertha Berlin), Marcell Jansen (Bayern Munich), Clemens Fritz (Werder Bremen), Heiko Westermann (Schalke 04)

Midfielders: Michael Ballack (Chelsea), Thomas Hitzlsperger (VfB Stuttgart), Simon Rolfes (Bayer Leverkusen), Torsten Frings (Werder Bremen), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Piotr Trochowski (Hamburg SV), Tim Borowski (Werder Bremen), David Odonkor (Real Betis)

Forwards: Miroslav Klose (Bayern Munich), Lukas Podolski (Bayern Munich), Mario Gomez (VfB Stuttgart), Kevin Kuranyi (Schalke 04), Oliver Neuville (Borussia Moenchengladbach)

Team blog: Our Germany team blog is ably manned by Angela and Jan (no relation to the Switzerland Jan OR the Netherlands Jan.)

Magic Germany Moments:
That penalty shootout between Germany and Argentina in WC 06.

Euro 2008: Team Profile: Italy

2008-06-01T00:28:00.000-07:00

The History

Italy has won the Euro only once, back in 1968, when it was renamed the UEFA European Championship. It remains the only triumph in this competition for the Azzuri so far, when their team featured some great names of world football, like Giacinto Facchetti, the Inter legend who captained the side, Sandro Mazzola, Luigi Riva, Pietro Anastasi, and the great Italian goalkeeper, Dino Zoff.

Though they came close to regaining the crown in 2000, when they were denied in the final by a golden goal from France’s David Trezeguet, Ferruccio Valcareggi’s men remain the only Italian team to this day to have held the Henri Delaunay trophy aloft.

Euro 2008 – The Qualifying Campaign

Drawn into Group B with Scotland, Ukraine and France, whom they defeated in the FIFA World Cup 2006 final to become world champions, Italy faced a not-so-easy road to Austria-Switzerland. Added to that, newly appointed coach Roberto Donadoni had a shaky start, with a home draw to Lituania, and a 1-3 loss to France. But the men in Blue went undefeated in their next ten games, which included nine wins and a draw with France, and finished top of Group B, and attained automatic qualification.

Italy’s Squad

By many experts’ reckoning, this is the best team coach Donadoni could have picked, with the resources available to him (Refer Carlo Garganese’s article ‘Bravo Donadoni and Forza Cassano’ on 21st May 2008).

The defense, which has always been Italy’s stronghold, looks as secure as ever, with Gianluigi Buffon, arguably the best goal-keeper of his generation, leading the line, and Fabio Cannavaro, the only defender to have been named FIFA World Player of the Year (he achieved this honour in 2006), leading the back four. Materazzi’s temperament might be questioned, but there is no doubting his presence, and his towering headers. Full-backs Zambrotta and Grosso are experienced, and are good at running with the ball and pulling it back into play for the strikers.

Donadoni has preferred the 4-3-3 style of formation, with Gattuso shielding the defense, and Pirlo and one of De Rossi or Aquilani giving the side the creative spark. In fact, Pirlo and Gattuso, both of whom play for the same club, complement each other well. The tenacity of Gattuso and the flair and grace of Pirlo make for a perfect combination.

At the front, Donadoni is not short of options, with Camoranesi and Toni in good form. The dribbling skills of Camoranesi are excellent, and Toni, the perennial finisher, is always a threat for rival defenders. It would not be a surprise if picking the third forward is going to be Donadoni’s biggest headache. Alessandro Del Piero has established his stake for an inclusion in the side, by becoming this season’s Serie A’s Capocannonieri, where as Di Natale has been scoring some important goals for the Azzuri. Cassano’s inclusion, which was a big surprise to many, gives the coach another option up front, as he is a player who can change the face of the game on his day.

The Group

Italy are in Group C, dubbed as the group of death, along with France, The Netherlands and Romania. Traditionally, Italy have been slow starters in international tournaments, and they better start performing fast, if they are to qualify for the later stages.

Portugal - the "Champion" of 2008 Euro Cup

2008-05-30T22:21:00.001-07:00

The Big Phill ( Scolari )...feel so optimistic with this 2008 Euro Cup, cause he has a very agressive team...specially there's a Christiano Ronaldo as a very best player in Premier League and Champion League inside this team.
He has also Deco, Nani and others....with this kind of team...wow, it's a very powefull team and this is kind of a euro 2008 champion team.

Front Row, Left to Right: Mike, João Moutinho, Art Deco, Simão, Petit, Miguel Veloso, Jorge Ribeiro, Nani

Middle Row, Left to Right: Quaresma, Raul Meireles, Bosingwa, Big Philly Style and Staff, holy God Hugo Almeida is huge (that’s what she said ooohh), Hélder Postiga, Paulie Ferreira

Back Row, Left to Right: Quim, “Chief” from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Bruno Alves, Richie Carvalho, ugghhhhh, Ricardo, Cristiano Ronaldo, an advertisement for Pepe’s dentist, Fernando Meira, Rui Patricio

The boys are facing off in their final Euro2008 tune up against Georgia (the country, not the American state) tomorrow in the Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, which is home to newly relegated Portuguese side União de Leiria. The match is supposed to be broadcast live on RTPi at 18:00 Lisbon time. It’s going to also be repeated on Setanta Sports later on in the day.

I’m looking for at least a 4-0 ass whooping here. The losses to Italy and Greece (while essentially try outs and filled with injuries) may still be lingering somewhat. A good thrashing and comprehensive victory will go a long way to making the ride into the Alps a lot more enjoyable. That, and I hear Ronaldo and Nani are providing the “entertainment” for the trip. Força Portugal!

Swiss hit home straight after patchy preparation

2008-05-24T20:14:00.000-07:00

Reuters, Thursday May 22 2008
By Mark Ledsom
BERNE, Switzerland, May 22 (Reuters) - As Euro 2008 co-hosts, Switzerland will surely be hoping that home advantage can help paper over some of the cracks that have emerged during their rather patchy run-up to the June event.
The Swiss had appeared to be on a roll after qualifying for both Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup, exiting the latter tournament in a second-round penalty shootout against Ukraine without conceding a regular goal in any of their matches.
Automatic qualification as Euro 2008 co-hosts has since seen Koebi Kuhn's men restricted to a two-year diet of friendly matches, however, and the fare has not often been savoury.

Switzerland have lost nine of their 17 games since the World Cup, including their last four in a row against the USA, Nigeria, England and Germany.
Their seven wins included an impressive 2-1 triumph over the Netherlands last August but their other conquests comprised less considerable scalps such as Liechtenstein, Costa Rica and fellow Euro 2008 hosts Austria.
Apart from the actual results, there has been concern over the abject nature of some of their performances, particularly in their February 2007 3-1 trouncing by Germany and an even worse 4-0 home defeat by the same opponents in March of this year.
"There is nothing I can say to make that performance seem better," was Kuhn's stark post-match assessment in Basel.
"We just have to put it behind us and look to the next game. It's an old football saying perhaps but I can't come up with anything better than that at the moment."
FITNESS QUESTIONS
While motivation levels are usually low for non-competitive games, a bigger concern for Switzerland is the number of first-team regulars who have suffered from injuries or a lack of regular action at club level.
Top scorer and captain Alex Frei is thankfully back scoring again for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund after missing a year of international duty with calf and thigh operations in 2007.
Playmaker Xavier Margairaz has been ruled out however after tearing a cruciate ligament in February while experienced central defender Patrick Mueller is facing major fitness doubts after sustaining the same injury in December.
A groin injury saw right-sided midfielder David Degen dropped from Kuhn's provisional 26-man squad and twin brother right back Philipp Degen is a doubt as he fights to recover from a torn leg joint.
Aside from the lengthy injury list, there are serious match fitness questions over Arsenal defender Johan Djourou, Bolton Wanderers defensive midfielder Blerim Dzemaili and Salzburg midfielder Johan Vonlanthen, all of whom have struggled for selection at their clubs.
Home advantage can of course not be underestimated and Belgium are still the only host nation to fail to get beyond the group stage of a European championship.
Various newspaper surveys have suggested that the general Swiss public is far from overwhelming in its support for the tournament, but Switzerland's surprisingly vociferous turn-out at the World Cup suggests that there will be no lack of noise in the stadiums themselves.
Perhaps the biggest factor in Switzerland's favour though is the luck of the draw which has presented them with tough but not impossible prospects against the Czech Republic, Turkey and Portugal.
Many Swiss seem to be hoping for a good start against the Czechs and a meeting with Portugal after the 2004 finalists have already made sure of their place in the quarter-finals.
Progression to the last eight would be satisfactory enough for most local fans who have already noted that bogey team Germany are the likeliest opponents should Switzerland really get that far.
(Editing by Miles Evans)

Manchester United the WINNER

2008-05-24T04:49:00.000-07:00

BRAVO MU !!

Finally the Champion League Trophy have to "go home" to the Dream Theatre at Old Trafford the base of the 2008 Champion League Winner MANCHESTER UNITED !!
Congrat to Sir Alex, Christiano, Ryann and all you guys...specially to "the Hero of the match" Edwin Van Der Sar...
read this interview with Edwin (pick from MU website) :...
Q : What went through your mind after you'd saved Anelka's penalty?
E : You see it coming, you save it and then you get up and you know the game's over. You have two, three or four seconds on your own, arms in the air and everything goes through your mind. You see your team-mates coming and it's just happiness; one of the greatest feelings you can ever have.