FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying update September 11, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Africa, Asia, Europe, FIFA, FIFA World Cup 2010, South Africa, South America, World Cup.Tags: World Cup 2010 South Africa
1 comment so far
South America
It would be highly unfair if Argentina doesn’t qualify for the World Cup. They were the best side in the last world cup and unfortunately they came up against Germany and a tactical flaw in the substitution meant they were out. Currently they might finish fifth with a play off against one of the North/Central/Caribbean team. They are one point behind fourth placed (last automatically qualifying position) Ecuador with two matches against Peru at home and Uruguay away.
Already qualified: Brazil and Paraguay
Europe
Already Qualified:Spain, England and Netherlands
With unbeaten records in their respective groups Euro Champions, Spain, Capello inspired England and attractive Dutch have qualified for next years World Cup. It has been impressive showing by all the three teams in the qualifying, needs to be seen if they can carry forward this to the finals.
Asia
Already qualified: Japan, Australia, South Korea and North Korea
The first three looked like sure shot contenders for the Asia spots for the World Cup but it was the fourth, North Korea which is making an entry after 44 years. They had a good outing in 1966 when they were beaten in the quarters. So lets see how they will fare this time.
Africa
Already qualified: Ghana and hosts South Africa
Ghana which is one of the power houses of Africa became the first team from Africa to book its place other than the hosts South Africa. Since 1990 the African teams have been giving the European and South American teams a tough time. So lets wait and watch who else qualifies from there
The better team won May 6, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Arshavin, Champions League, Europe, Kieran Gibbs, Ronaldo.1 comment so far
There is no doubt in my mind that the better team amongst Arsenal and Manchester United won over two legs and qualified for the finals. Manchester United beat Arsenal 1-3 at the Emirates and with an aggregate of 4-1 will play in the finals in Rome. The other finalist will be decided tonight from the Barcelona and Chelsea match at Stamford Bridge.
Going into the match Arsenal needed to score 2 goals and concede none to reach the finals. The crowd was the loudest I have heard in the Emirates and the flags which were distributed in all the seats were a sight to watch. Maybe that inspired the team for the first 5-6 minutes where they fought tooth for tooth for every ball and was dominating the play. United had no clue. Then came the first killer blow. A advancing Ronaldo on the left side crossed in front of the goal and the youngest player on the field, Kieran Gibbs, who had a mammoth game in the first leg, keeping Ronaldo under control, slipped and could not recover enough to beat Park’s shot at goal. Taanng!!! So now Arsenal need to score 3 goals for a outright entry into the finals.
Within another 3 minutes, Fabregas lost the ball and in trying to recover the ball Van Persie fouled Ronaldo (though Ronaldo went down too easily)and in the resultant free-kick, Ronaldo unleashed a fierce shot which dipped and curled in and caught Almunia by surprise (he should have saved it, but I guess it was one of those things). Well this goal virtually killed the tie. Expecting this Arsenal team to score 4 goals against this United side will be asking for too much. Felt bad for the crowd who had been behind the team and was positive about a fightback from the team though we had conceded a goal. The game was buried in the 11th minute.
The rest of the match was something that just passed by. Arsenal was trying to break through the midfield-defensive wall of United and were unsuccessful.United on the other hand substituted their players who were on yellow card and also scored one more in a counter attack.
So Arsenal’s title hunt comes to an end and probably the only thing left to do for the season is to win all the remaining matches in the premier league, which include a match each against Chelsea(next weekend) and Manchester United. Finishing third looks difficult as it is not in our hands(Chelsea has to lose two matches and we have to win all our remaining matches). The differene between finishing third and fourth is an automatic qualification to the Champions League and playing a qualifier which could also be depending on the luck of the draw a 4th placed team from Italy or Spain or some Eastern European team.
Its time for Arsene to think of what is lacking in this team, a central defender (very urgent) probably. I think with Song and Denilson maturing,Rosicky hopefully back for the next season, I feel we have a good midfield back up. Not to forget Ramsey. If we do not lose Van Persie and lose Adebayor, the forward line will still look healthy with Eduardo, Bendtner, Vela acting as back up to Van Persie and Arshavin. I feel we have a good team for the next season if we can keep the flock together.
More later.
5 good reads before the CL clash against Man Utd April 29, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Alex Ferguson, Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, BBC, Champions League, Europe, The Guardian, The Independent, The Times.add a comment
1.Daniel Taylor (Guardian) looks at the tactics that Ferguson is going to employ against Arsenal
2.Matt Hughes (Times) talks about the conflics between the two managers
3.Ian Herbert (Independent) looks at the threat of Walcott and others against Man Utd
4.Daid Pleat(Guardian) analyses the keyclashes in tonight’s match
5. BBC match preview
Arsenal in Champions League semis April 16, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Champions League, Europe, Villareal, Walcott.add a comment
Its been a while since I blogged but I should put in a word for the entry into the semi finals of the Champions league where we take on a lacklustre Manchester United. Villareal were without their influential midfielder Senna and Arsenal has three of their back four injured and Fabianski at goal.
Walcott had one of his best European matches and his goal was a cool finish from a deft pass of Fabregas of a Eboue pass. Adebayor scored his 8th consecutive Champions League goal in 8 matches in which he has started. Van Persie rounded off a penalty in the 69th minute to kill the tie. Song, Eboue and Fabregas were brilliant and it seems the young Arsenal team is now gelling together and producing results.
The best thing is Arshavin is fresh and raring to go in the Premier league and FA cup so we have one creative guy waiting to perform. With Eduardo also expected this team is looking really good. Gibbs deputising for CLichy is also in his elements and looked confident in the CL tie. Walcott was causing all sorts of trouble for the current European Champions left back, Capdevila.
The weekend also sees us taking on Chelsea in the semis of the FA cup. Chelsea played one of the best European matches in drawing with Liverpool 4-4 and hence qualifying for the semis with an aggregate of 7-5. It was one of the best European ties I have seen and I was quite happy that Liverpool lost. Sweet revenge for what they did to us 2 years back. With Arshavin etc available for the weekend I am looking forward to that match.
Last weekend’s league match in which we beat Wigan 4-1 took some time coming, making many a fan nervous. Arshavin has been a catalyst who has come and improved the team and Fabregas has been looking very effective with Arshavin as you see that these two are involved in almost all the Arsenal build ups. Anyways lets see if we can win at Wembley on Saturday.
Rome was not built in a day March 12, 2009
Posted by freekicker in A S Roma, Arsenal, Champions League, Europe.add a comment
It will take 3 more nights like this or better for us to get there to play the finals. Well what matters at the end of the (European) night is that along with Manchester United, Chelsea ( both with not all that great display), Liverpool (very inspiring form), Barcelona (Quite decent play), Bayern Munich (Absolutely stunning performance at this level of the competition), FC Porto and Villareal (again not all that much to write about), we are also in the final 8. So now we wait till March 2oth to know who our opponents will be and I hope it is not any of the English teams or Barcelona or Bayern.
We played pathetically and I think Roma realised from their previous match that they should not give so much room to us and kept us tight throughout the match. How I wished we had scored atleast a goal more in the previous leg. Almunia was good under the bar and our experienced defenders Gallas and Toure let in a goal which could have been avoided. Bendtner had so much trouble controlling the ball after his first and second touches I can’t express here. He will dribble past one…two defenders and in the process take the ball so much away from his body that he kept on losing possession. Same was the case with Diaby. I am still saying that we should now start every match with Persie and Eduardo upfront. We need some creativity and clinical finishing to take us where we want to be.
But lets all forget that and relish our Champions League Quarterfinals entry and build up on our league form starting this weekend.
Angry Wenger after a Frustu match September 18, 2008
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Champions League, Dynamo Kiev, Europe, Gallas, Sagna, Walcott.3 comments
Arsenal return back to England after yet another dismal performance in Ukraine. Dynamo Kiev scored from a very disputable penalty and seemed to take all three points at home when Gallas the new Euro top scorer restored parity with two minutes left. All in all it would be satisfying to come back with a point given the circumstances but I think Arsenal will sink this Ukrainian ship in London in the return leg. Walcott was once again the hero providing the cross from the right which was poked in by Gallas.
Wenger has come out strongly against the Kiev players, especially on their tackle on Walcott…He says
The referee should have sent the left-back off three times because he tried to destroy Walcott.
On the Sagna Penalty
Sagna is convinced he [Ognjen Vukojevic] pulled him with his two hands on his shirt and then went down. We have to deal with that; if you get a penalty you get a penalty.
On the referee not giving enough injury time
I wanted to know how we only played three minutes injury time and then during these three minutes we only played one minute of injury time. Every referee looks to have a different computer to calculate injury time and I still don’t know how it works. He couldn’t explain to me; he just told me he felt it was enough.
The game was a mixture of frustration and relief, frustration because the game should have been over at half-time, and relief because we scored with minutes to go. When we got back to 1-1, Dynamo looked very, very tired but the game was finished with the interruptions. You could feel the game was there for the taking but we had no opportunity to play. We feel we have lost two points but the referee should have sent the left-back off three times because he tried to destroy Walcott.
Next up is Porto at home on September 30th
Season 2008-09: Contenders – I August 12, 2008
Posted by freekicker in 2008-09 season, Champions League, Chelsea, EPL, Europe, Manchester United.add a comment
Manchester United
With both the domestic and the European titles under their belt, they would be brimming with confidence this time around. They would ideally be looking at retaining both the titles and in doing so become eligible to be the best United team ever. Ferguson has managed to retain his talismanic winger Ronaldo for one more season and has not made any notable buys so far. He is short of one striker and is eyeing the Spurs spearhead Berbatov who Ramos is reluctant to sell as he has already lost Keane.
The community shield was won in the penalty and it once again showed the fighting skills of Tevez and the youth and exuberance of Nani in the absence of Ronaldo and Rooney. But are they good enough to win the league this time also? Needs to be seen, as I can see them challenging the others only if they buy one more striker. This could be the last season for Van Der Saar, Giggs, Scholes and Gary Neville in this team. Queiroz has already left for Portugal and it is quite odd to see Alex Ferguson without his partner in coaching.
With Ronaldo and Rooney missing the beginning of the season I think United will lose their momentum initially though they will come back strongly. But how will Ronaldo play after his operation, will their new striker(if they buy anyone) fit in well with the team, can the Defenders put in one more stellar season? A lot of questions but I think they will not prosper as they did last year.
Prediction: Finish 3rd in the league
Chelsea
A new coach, old players and couple of good additions, Chelsea just look bigger and better this season. Having got Scolari as the coach who admitted openly that his only motivation was money, Chelsea did the best they could in getting a good coach. The other important thing they did was retain the services (so far) of Frank Lampard, their star player. With Drogba now looking at seeing out his contract and Ballack in some good European form this team will be pushing all limits this time around.
Deco was a wonderful signing and I wonder where he would fit in as the Chelsea midfield looks packed with talent. They have to make sure Lampard, Ballack, Essien, Deco, Joe Cole all get to play now. Scolari’s man management skill will be tested and if his past experience in handling the Brazilian national side is anything to go by then he definitely will. He is still pursuing Robinho and wonder if that is required at all.
Last year they know how close they came to winning the league as well as the Champion’s league. People like Ballack and Deco have shown their class in the just concluded Euros and would like to give it one more shot and honestly I think this year’s Chelsea team has got a better cutting edge than the previous season’s. They can maintain the winning momentum for 38 games and now they have coach who will provide the spark.
Prediction: English Premier League Champions
Spain Triumph June 30, 2008
Posted by freekicker in Casillas, David Villa, Euro 2008, Europe, Germany, Spain, Torres, UEFA Euro 2008 Team of the tournament, Xavi Hernandez.add a comment
After 44 years and many forgetful tournaments, Spain held the nerve to win an important tournament and erase the underachievers tag. Thanks to a goal from Fernando Torres, the Spaniards gained the upper hand in a match they dominated for shots on goal and chances created. They won a tournament for scoring the most number of goals, conceding the least number of goals, attempting the most number of shots on goal, making the least number of saves and completing the most number of passes. Reasons good enough to win any tournament.
The Germans were completely shut out and they did not even have a proper shot on goal. For me the player of the tournament should have been Casillas for the sterling display throughout the tournament and the confidence he gives the defence when he takes guard under the bar. It would have taken something spectacular to beat him last night. The Spanish midfield did not create too many melodies (like Platini put it) but created enough to trouble Lehmann. If not for a tough chance gone begging to Senna towards the end of the match, the score would have been 2-0.
The Germans were toothless in front of the opposition goal. Klose had a very harmless game and had to be replaces by Kurnayi who added some much needed tempo to the German attack, but all that came to nothing as Spain held on to win the match. All those Euro and World junior praise has finally landed in a senior trophy for the first time for a country starving for some glory. And in my lifetime I have seen Spain win something. All this while the European domination in football has come from Germany, Italy and France, ever since I have started seeing football. And now there is one more country, Spain.
Xavi was adjudged the player of the tournament
David Villa won the golden boot
and Spain dominated the team of tournament
UEFA EURO 2008™ Team of the Tournament
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Iker Casillas (Spain), Edwin van der Sar (Netherlands).
Defenders: Bosingwa (Portugal), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Carlos Marchena (Spain), Pepe (Portugal), Carles Puyol (Spain), Yuri Zhirkov (Russia).
Midfielders: Hamit Altıntop (Turkey), Luka Modrić (Croatia), Marcos Senna (Spain), Xavi Hernández (Spain), Konstantin Zyryanov (Russia), Michael Ballack (Germany), Cesc Fàbregas (Spain), Andrés Iniesta (Spain), Lukas Podolski (Germany), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands).
Forwards: Andrei Arshavin (Russia), Roman Pavlyuchenko (Russia), Fernando Torres (Spain), David Villa (Spain).
Nihat in the forward line instead of Torres would have been welcome. Nice to see some Russian names in the list too. Anyways more reviews on the Euro in a few days…
Germany vs Spain June 29, 2008
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Ballack, Casillas, David Villa, Euro 2008, Europe, Fabregas, Gary Linekar, Germany, Spain.add a comment
This is a final which all the sponsors and the neutral fans would have wanted. A fitting finale to end what has been a wonderful tournament. Two favourites from the start of the tournament, Germany and Spain. I am not saying that many would have complained if it was Turkey vs Russia also, because such has been the quality of play throughout the tournament, say a few matches.
Gary Linekar has famously said,”Football is a simple game;22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans win”. This is very true of the German determination and spirit that however they have to play, they come out trumps in crunch matches in big tournaments(read World Cups and Euros). So once again they find themselves in a final playing some good matches and playing second fiddle to Turkey in the semifinal and still coming up trumps 3-2. That match showed the resilience of the Germans in crunch matches.
The Spanish have been the form team of the tournament. They have not lost a match in this tournament and have played some good football, beating the form team of the tournament Russia twice. Their midfield has been one of the strongest and creative midfields in this edition. The defence has not been tested too much this time around but in Casillas they have one of the best Goalkeepers in the world.
Villa will miss the tournament due to the injury he sustained in taking a free kick against the Russians. Michael Ballack is also a suspect for the final as he has a calf injury from training on Friday. So the teams go well balanced into the finals. The Spanish did not miss Villa that much as they controlled the midfield with Fabregas’ introduction in the semifinal. The Germans are yet to play without Ballack and it needs to be seen how they play without their talismanic captain.
As an Arsenal player, the only thing I am looking forward to is some good football and whether Fabregas become the player of tournament? He can if he can put in a performance like in the semi and setting up some goals for his teams. Anything is possible.
