Surprise, Surprise?

Another installment of the UEFA European Championship is almost upon us.  Given what we just witnessed in the English Premiership, will the 2016 edition of this tournament include a surprise of equal proportion?

Albania

Sorry, I cannot name a single Albanian player.  The Leicester City of the Euros, perhaps?
Group Stage

Austria

The Austrian squad includes Leicester City's left back Christian Fuchs.  Could he be the lucky charm?
2nd round

Belgium

Chock full of household names, will this Belgian edition follow the under-achievements of  the recent golden generations of England and Portugal?
Semi final

Croatia

Always competitive and easy on the eye, Croatia probably won't win the tournament but might cause a surprise or two.
2nd round

Czech Republic

Boasting a couple of familiar veterans, including the appropriately named 'keeper Petr Cech, I give the Czech Republic a better than even chance of getting out of arguably the toughest group.
2nd round

England

(Trying to be objective) The England squad seems to offer a nice blend of youth and experience.  Assuming the Tottenham contingent -- likely to occupy 4 of the 10 outfield positions -- is over its end-of-season crash and disappointment, I expect a deep run in the tournament.
Quarter final

France

The host's squad is rich with talent even without, perhaps, France's two most famous active players (Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema).  We have heard about (and occasionally seen) the great things that Paul Pogba is doing at Juventus.  Perhaps, he will be the breakout star at this international tournament.
Winner

Germany

As usual, the Germans are a pre-tournament favorite.  No surprise really when you look at the quality throughout the Bundesliga and the insane depth of the squad itself.
Quarter final

Hungary

It's great to see the Magyars back among the soccer elite.  Unfortunately, I haven't heard even faint comparisons with Puskas for any of the current squad.
Group stage

Iceland

In my lifetime, I never dreamed that Iceland would qualify for a major tournament.  But here they are.  Along with Albania.  Go figure.
Group stage

Italy

Italy has a habit of vastly exceeding and occasionally massively failing expectations.  Given the seemingly desperate consideration of Pirlo to fill the midfield void left by injuries, I am thinking it's the latter this time around.
Group stage

Northern Ireland

Two words: Kyle Lafferty
Do it for Bestie.
Group stage

Poland

Nicely balanced squad with Robert Lewandowski at his prime leading the line.  I pick the Poles to surprise in France.
Quarter final

Portugal

The defense looks a little creaky and the offense lives and dies, of course, by Cristiano Ronaldo, but I pick the Portuguese to make a deep run in the tournament.
Quarter final

Republic of Ireland

Group stage

Romania

2nd round

Russia

2nd round

Slovakia

Group stage

Spain

Rid of Diego Costa, Spain can revert to style and make like Barcelona again.  I don't know much about the forwards, but the rest of the squad is world class and includes Manchester United's most prized asset, David de Gea, between the sticks.
Runners up

Sweden

Like Portugal with Ronaldo, so go Sweden and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.  I actually see them getting out of a tough group.
2nd round

Switzerland

A team that has steadily improved over the last 10 years and is currently ranked 14th by FIFA (yes, those guys).  Xherdan Shaqiri seems to be the type of player that can inspire (or exasperate) and put the Swiss in contention.
2nd round

Turkey

Group stage

Ukraine

Always technically sound, the Ukrainian squad will need to tap into the same kind of emotional source that Schevchenko recently provided.  More than half of the squad is comprised of players from two clubs -- Dynamo Kiev and Shakhtar Donetsk -- presumably lending it more cohesion than most national teams.
2nd round

Wales

Derisively referred to by some as "Bales" due to their reliance on the brilliance of Real Madrid's Gareth Bale, Wales is actually a team to be feared, particularly as it features in one of the many potentially wide open tournament groups.
Semi final

The Great Melting Pots

The United States is often referred to as the "great melting pot" for its ability to assimilate races, cultures and religions with seeming ease.  Although it was clearly ahead of the rest of the world, it is no longer unique in this regard.  One only need to look at the rosters of the nations competing in the 2014 World Cup to see evidence of this population heterogeneity that is a natural result of globalization.  There are many far more important social, political and economic implications of the trend, but one that I have noticed -- in particular with this edition of the World Cup -- is the lack of diversity in the style of soccer on display.  To my eyes at least, the distinction between the style of play between, for example, an African national team and a European national team are far less obvious than they were in previous tournaments.  For that matter, even Brazil's distinctive style is less apparent than in any World Cup tournament that I can recall, yes even 1974 and 1994.  Much of this "heterogeneous soccer style" , it can be reasonably argued, is the result of "tactical sophistication".  With almost half of the 32 national teams sporting "foreign coaches", I suppose it should come as little surprise that some national teams' "quirks" have been identified and eliminated.  Of course, I am not questioning the competitiveness nor the excitement of the tournament so far.  There have been few, if any, blowouts.  I am merely observing that, perhaps as a natural result of the game's unparalleled globalization, we have sacrificed some of the idiosyncrasies that made the World Cup unique.

Post round of 16 ramblings

Depressed and yet excited if it's possible.
Utterly depressed over my home teams early, flaccid exit and not being able to further participate in the best WC ever.
My predictions are also mixed. Though I've been so wrong I will now consult my newly renamed terrier "Oxlade Chamberlain" nee Rooney for predictions - I did predict Spain's demise and France in the semis.
One thing that fascinates me- How does it seem that collectively, virtually all teams have decided to "go for it" and defence is now a lost art? tiki taka has been overrun by the press and fast break.

On Chewy Luis - Psycho to some - hero to others. I don't get it. The South American value of " By any means necessary as long as you get away with it because I'm just some poor street kid" is baffling. What's next? "The English press doctored this photo of me tazing the center half!"

U.S. - As Oxlaide the terrier will attest my predictions were totally wrong. Klinnsy is either operating on a different plane to us or is the luckiest manger ever. Almost everything he does I disagree with, yet to get out of that group is a miracle.

Best goal - RVP.

I hope the knock out rounds continue to be fab'
I think Chile might shock the world....What's that Oxlaide? I'm talking out of my arse again?

Sepp Blatter And The Death Of The World Cup (revised)

I just realized this never got published. It's actually a few years old but given the recent uncovering of actual proof of corruption it's still very relevant.


The recent decision to host the WC in Russia then Qatar have put a further serious dent in my love of the worlds greatest sporting event.

After a largely disappointing South African tournament (my own country's lame performance not withstanding) the shady and overtly corrupt nature in which the future hosts were chosen should have all fans in the traditional football nations up in arms against FIFA president Sepp Blatter and other delegates.

To a certain extent I could have appreciated the choice to host the tournament in Russia until I saw the series of shady dealings between FIFA delegates and Russian oligarchs and the practicality of such a massive country pulling it off.

If the Russian choice smelled a little, the Qatar choice was outrageous, and after listening to various reporters from the soccer press, then reading accounts from my favourite journalists and websites, I came up with following series of rhetorical questions, thoughts and facts that make up the absolute rottenness that is FIFA.

The Russian bid:

FIFA headquarters are in Geneva Switzerland, the home of anonymous numbered bank accounts.

Meetings and votes are behind closed doors with no transparency. Only press tip-offs tell us what transpires behind these closed doors. Imagine the suspicion's aroused when Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich met in private with Blatter and other members.

After being told that they had the best bid, England embarrassingly sent their future king and current prime minister to make a final presentation. They, along with other bidders were led to believe that the decision was still not made. It was implied that Russian PM Putin would be there in person too, after another private phonecall with Blatter he decided it wasn't necessary.....I've drawn my own conclusions.

If Russia does deserve to host then the practicalities of providing 8-12 new stadiums and the infrastructure such as transportation, accommodation etc. in such a huge country seems impossible.

Russia is simply massive, it's the largest country in the world, it occupies one ninth of the worlds land mass, it has 9 time zones! Simply getting from one venue to another is a major undertaking....England fans - You know we'll be in Siberia! Many of these cities are unheard of, unfriendly and poverty stricken. As of now some of them are not directly transport connected. Sound like fun?

The Qatar bid.

As I am writing this, Blatter and other FIFA delegates are suggesting that the WC be moved to December- January. Apparently they have incredulously just realized that it gets very hot in that part of the world. 120- 140 degrees! No thought given beforehand that changing the date would clash with the African cup of Nations, The Asian cup, The European leagues, The winter Olympics, The height of the American sports calendar? No thought at all given to the heat problem during the voting?

Once again, outside money can fix anything. The oil sheiks will simply air condition the whole tournament. Easy! 12 stadiums in a country the size of Greater Manchester. Unlike Russia there is now the possibility of 32 nations fans condensed into an artificially created soccer Mall.

This time around the voting screwed other countries that had been led to believe they had a chance to host. Blatter himself encouraged Australia to spend tens of millions of dollars putting together a bid - they got one vote, their own.

June 2014.
It looks like FIFA will finally be fully investigated. The embodiment of this loathsome organization is Blatter. I've never looked more forward to a persons potential demise!
Rumours have started to surface about Qatar being humiliated and are planning to pull out.
Australia and U.S. have been told to start contingency plans,

 

Pre WC Ramblings

You know,
I almost love this period the best. Like a kid before Christmas, it's the anticipation.
 I've been watching "friendlies" all week as an appetizer to the main event. I've been listening to soccer talk shows, nervously waiting to hear about a teenagers knee ligament.

For what it's worth, here are some of my thoughts and predictions. Yes, they are seen through my St Georges cross lenses so I'll start with The Three Lions.

Or should I say lion cubs. Uncle Woy has chosen a youthful squad that the English public has been crying our for after the embarrassment of S. Africa.
Problem is, will he actually play them? Hodgson is known for being a pragmatic manager and has indicated that will be his approach, especially for the stifling humidity of Manous, the venue against Italy in the opening game. Despite the exciting promise from some of the youngsters in the Ecuador game, I still feel he'll hold them in reserve to bring on as shock troops later in the second half.
Rooney: In his defence, injuries have often hampered him from fulfilling the potential he showed when he burst upon the international seen years ago but I personally hope that the manager isn't afraid to leave him out if he doesn't perform. The sight of Ox', Sterling and Barkley running with the ball was the most exciting thing I've seen from an England team in years, in fact since Rooney himself.
With that in mind I also hope that if we do go out early, then it's a blaze of youthful entertainment with an eye on the next 2-4 years rather than yet another turgid under achievement....Let'em go Roy!
It would also be nice to not go out on some ridiculous referee blunder. Putting on my conspiracy theory hat, it's been 48 years since the infamous goal against W. Germany in '66. The Lampard disallowed goal in '10 that was two yards over the line completed that karmic circle but in between we've had more than our fair share of insanity from the officials.
The hand of god. Mexico '86
The Beckham red card and subsequent disallowed perfect goal from Sol Campbell also against Argentina in France '98.
The Rooney red card vs. Portugal in Germany '04.
Yes, I know there are many famous grievances over the years, we've come to expect some nutball official from a country you've never heard of ruining a whole nations well being. I just think we've had more than our fair share.

Shaking it off and moving on -
U.S.
Bottom line- you can't tell me there's one more experienced, influential, U.S. player that has done it on a world stage than Donovan. Let alone 23 of them. If you're a manager/ coach then you simply have to make it work. It's your job! The whole thing has come across as petty.
The documentary surrounding the U.S. team countdown to the WC finals has been a fascinating insight into what appears to be either a long term project or a short term overly planned fiasco. If they make it out of the group it will be a miracle. Klinnsy must have a secure contract.

Predictions.
Biggest surprise - England.
Biggest disappointment - England. (see above)
Next biggest disappointment - Messi.
Surprise sleeper team not called Belgium...... Bosnia Herzegovina
Golden Boot.. see above.... Dzeko.
 Prediction based on probabilities - Round of 16 possible match ups mean that either Holland, Spain or Brazil will be out at this early stage. Look at the bracket.

Final four.
Brazil - Argentina (who have an impossibly easy route) France, Germany.
I've got a feeling that Spain may be a little weary.

Finally, despite the apparent shoddy preparation off the pitch. I'm hoping for an exciting wonderful World Cup on it. It might be the last great one for a while given the future venues. Here's hoping our beautiful game survives the contemptible Sepp Blatter and co.

Managing Expectations

USMNT coach Jurgen Klinsmann

As another World Cup finals tournament approaches, this time in Brazil, expectations across the globe run high.  Of course, only one of the 32 qualifying nations can be called champion at the end of the tournament, resulting in the mathematical certainty that 96% of us -- or at least the competing national teams -- will be ultimately disappointed.  I have slightly better (theoretical) odds in that I am rooting, about equally, for my adopted USA and my native England.  However, neither of these national teams are among the favorites in Brazil.  In fact, it is fair to say that many predict neither will get out of its respective first round group.  How have the recent squad selections affected those expectations?
For USMNT, the big news is that coach Jurgen Klinsmann

Donovan not going to Brazil

decided to omit Landon Donovan from his 23 man squad.  It brings to mind the occasion when Glenn Hoddle, then coach of England, left Paul Gascoigne out of his World Cup squad.  Despite the very different personalities of these players, there are similarities in the situations.  Each coach can point to the age of the player, early 30s, as at least a partial explanation for the controversial exclusion.  However, it appears to be something else entirely.  The real reason that both Donovan and Gascoigne were left out, I believe, is down to a perception (by the coach) of a lack of appreciation (on the player's part) for the game, the national team, and the coach's authority.  In short, no amount of talent, in any walk of life, is a substitute for respect.
As for those included in USA's squad, I am a little concerned about the back-line.  However, there may be no keeper in the world that I would take over Tim Howard.  I also like the midfield, Michael Bradley in particular.  If the famed "squad unity" can survive the shock of Donovan's omission, then who knows?

Gascoigne: lack of respect?

The current England coach, Roy Hodgson, surprised some with the inclusion of a number of relatively inexperienced players (Luke Shaw, Ross Barkley, Raheem Sterling amongst others) in his World Cup squad.  I like the balance of this squad and hope that Hodges has the courage to now play those youngsters alongside the likes of Lallana and Sturridge in what could make for a buccaneering, pacey and skilful England line-up.
So much for managing my expectation!

The Last Dictator?

The so-called Arab Spring was the beginning of the end for autocrats in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya. Syria, Yemen, and others may yet follow. Another leader with a tight stranglehold on power, Sepp Blatter, President of FIFA, is, perhaps too, starting to feel his empire crumble. Rumors abound that he may relinquish power to UEFA chief Michel Platini before the end of his fourth term as president. With evidence of widespread corruption mounting under Blatter's watch, a change at the top would seem to offer the chance for the globe's most popular sport to rescue its reputation. However, with the huge financial risks and rewards resulting in such high stakes, is it even reasonable to expect one man to "govern the world's game"? Perhaps we should instead consider a committee, possibly comprising of representatives from the world's biggest leagues and/or clubs. Remember, of course, that it is those clubs that pay the vast majority of players' wages. For example, in the fiscal year ending mid-2009, Manchester City's payroll was $127 million, out of the club's gross revenue of $133 million! Such a committee would likely reduce financial corruption simply by distributing power amongst leagues or clubs, who have both competing and complimentary goals (pardon the pun). The committee approach might also improve the quality (by reducing the quantity) of International games. This would result from the clubs' increased influence (at the International level) and desire to reduce damage to prized assets (i.e., player injury).
We don't need to change the rules of the beautiful game, but maybe we can improve it by changing the puppet masters.