Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek didn't quite measure up to his illustrious predecessor in charge of South Korea. On Wednesday night, Verbeek retried Guus Hiddink's shoes on for size as Australia mounted their maiden World Cup qualifying campaign through the AFC.
If Verbeek's 3-0 victory over Qatar wasn't quite enough to prove the bulk of his doubters wrong, it must have gone mighty close.
There will still be those - the cynics who harboured a personal preference of the shining CV of Omar (formally Philippe) Troussier over Hiddink's countryman and former assistant - who might remain unconvinced.
Let's see how Verbeek's inevitably jetlagged Socceroos handle the altitude of southwestern city Kunming in their first AFC qualifier overseas against China next month, they might remark.
But most of the 50,000-plus clad in the green and gold at the Telstra Dome in midweek, not to mention a host of interested TV viewers, will be jointly relieved and excited by a ruthless first-half display which saw the outgunned Qataris put to the sword in the opening 33 minutes.
The first test of the unheralded Verbeek was always going to be his wider influence in the boardrooms of Europe's grandest.
His sway over the often reluctant full-time employers of Tim Cahill and the like increased in magnitude when the Dutchman, in what has already become typical of his forthright style, discarded virtually every one of his original A-League contingent, labelling them not up to international standards.
Only Queensland's Craig Moore made Verbeek's first starting XI, excelling alongside captain Lucas Neill in central defence. Although whether the former skipper and 2006 World Cup goalscorer is truly considered a member of the A-League gang is doubtful.
In any case, Moore, 32, pulled the pin on his national team career immediately after the match.
Verbeek also showed his ruthless streak in quietly electing not to call-up Harry Kewell - to surprisingly little fanfare - and then axing Norway-based defender Michael Thwaite after he'd already completed the arduous trip home.
"I have better players in his position," was the coach's blunt assessment. "That’s the only reason. Michael did well at training and I really appreciated that he took the time and energy to come here but I have better players in his position. That’s football."
It would take a narrow-minded individual not to spot Verbeek gently asserting his control over a notoriously big-headed bunch.
Another absentee was Mark Viduka. The Newcastle United frontman played against Middlesbrough in the Premier League the Sunday previous with Boro goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer proving the flight home possible by doing it himself.
However, while Viduka's self-imposed international exile continues, Verbeek is not prepared to give up on him without a fight.
The Dutchman made a public play for Viduka's future services in the wrap up of the Qatar victory and said he would fly to the north east in person to share a coffee and a chinwag.
"Mark is always on the list," Verbeek clearly stated. "I would prefer to have five strikers to choose from and it's always better that players have a headache over fighting for their position than coaches have a headache."
Viduka might be on his shortlist, but at 33 this year and with first team football under Kevin Keegan at Newcastle no certainty, Verbeek needed to trial Plan B and stylishly did so in Melbourne, Viduka's hometown.
After toying with the idea of playing just one up front, he paired long-haired Karlsruher SC targetman Josh Kennedy with Scott McDonald, the stocky Celtic forward who hasn't stopped scoring in the SPL since moving to Glasgow in the off season.
Kennedy headed the opener from Brett Emerton's whipped delivery while McDonald was a menace all night, supplying the low centre which Cahill dummied for Mark Bresciano to tuck away for the clincher.
PSV's Jason Culina, in a holding midfield role, also received plaudits after the game, as did revitalised left-footer David Carney, now at Sheffield United in England's second tier.
Kennedy and McDonald aside, the names weren't actually that different from the failed Asian Cup campaign last July. But the attitude was.
However, with just one full training session to work with a group he'd mostly never before met, the nagging feeling about Verbeek's influence hasn't instantly gone away.
The March 26 game in China is another non FIFA-designated matchday which means Verbeek will have a similarly limited time with his players to prepare.
But at least for the next month or so he has, as Hiddink did before, Australia's goodwill behind him.
Copyright © Marc Fox and Soccerphile.com
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Showing posts with label World Cup 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Cup 2010. Show all posts
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
The Swiss Roll for Fabio's First Outing
As debuts go, Fabio Capello's as England manager was reassuring but ultimately meaningless.
After the misery of the Croatia defeat at the same venue in November, Wembley's sell-out crowd was happy to witness a victory instead, but the contest will pass quickly into memory.
As if it needs repeating, Steve McClaren and Graham Taylor both won their first games in charge but ended their reigns in humiliation, while Alf Ramsey lost his but ended up winning the World Cup.
England's 2-1 win on Wednesday was unremarkable. Capello's men dominated the first half hour territorially, although Switzerland looked the more incisive in the final third.
Jermaine Jenas finished off a smart passing move five minutes before half time to give his Italian boss the first goal of his reign, and when Capello replaced the goalscorer and Joe Cole on 57 minutes, it seemed the game would wind down for the remainder into the slumber England friendlies often serve up.
Plaudits, therefore, to Switzerland's Eren Derdiyok for making a match of the occasion when he lashed a snapshot past David James a minute later - the goal of the evening.
England responded confidently and were ahead again in the 62nd when Steven Gerrard, the Man of the Match, powered through the Swiss backline before laying the ball off to Shaun Wright-Phillips for an easy tap-in.
Wayne Rooney and Joe Cole underlined why they should be next on the teamsheet after Gerrard; Rooney with some deft flicks and impromptu shooting and Cole with some dogged foraging down the left wing, including the incursion which lead to Jenas' goal.
If David Bentley is David Beckham's natural replacement on the right, he must improve his crossing to finally dislodge Goldenballs from the running. After one especially overhit centre, the fans in the adjacent corner serenaded the Blackburn midfielder with 'there's only one David Beckham'.
Capello's England has only just begun the metamorphosis from also-rans to contenders, but there were still some interesting hints of things to come. England might have kicked off with some misplaced passes and nervy indecision in defence, but did not resort to aimless long balls like they did against the Croats and showed some rare understanding of the phases of the game as it went on.
Instead of just attacking stubbornly for 90 minutes, for a spell in the first half the Three Lions played keep-ball Latin-style, although their failure to advance out of their own half soon had the crowd jeering, perhaps provoking them to respond with a goal.
For much of the opening 45, Capello's men showed the importance of playing in the opponents' half and when leading in the second, they did well by taking the game to the Swiss instead of sitting on their advantage and counting down the clock.
While England never looked like losing to Switzerland - the Euro 2008 joint-hosts lost at home to the USA in October and are ranked 44th in the world (England are 12th), they also did nothing to dazzle the spectators or stake a claim to be up there with Europe's best.
Still, I think we would settle for humdrum 2-1 wins all the way to the World Cup final in 2010.
If there was anything revolutionary in the air, it was the disciplined regime initiated by the much-travelled Italian, which may have had a knock-on effect on the fans, too.
No one can reasonably complain if he opts to call his captain 'Gerrard' instead of 'Stevie G', orders the players to keep to rigid meal times like friars in a monastery, and, at long last, has sent the WAGs, agents and assorted hangers-on packing from the team hotel.
The much-trumpeted minute's silence to commemorate the 1958 Munich air disaster was barely 30 seconds, and was interrupted by two or three morons, but only two or three, which amid 86,857 at Wembley is not a bad ratio.
For the first time in my Wembley memory, I heard nobody in my section boo the visitors' national anthem. I also failed to spot any flags emblazoned with the names of banned Ulster terror groups, and heard no bone-headed renditions of 'No Surrender to the IRA'.
Looking around the gleaming new arena with its magnificent architecture, I wondered if at long last the boorishness that has dogged England’s fanbase for years was finally withering away in the face of a new era.
What surprised me most, though, was glancing to my left and finding my eyes fixed upon the familiar form of one of the world's greatest coaches, looking unfamiliar in an England tracksuit, but brooding over his troops with his reknowned intensity.
Sterner tests will come, beginning with the trip to Zagreb to face Croatia on the 10th of September for a
World Cup qualifier.
So far, so good: Capello has a 100% record. And for a non-English speaker picking up a team strangled by player egoes, and a nation demoralized by their failure to perform, he has showed an encouraging desire to do things his own way.
Assessments will change when the meaningful games arrive in the autumn, but for now, Fabio's road looks the right one for England.
Scoring –
ENG – Jenas 40'
SWI – Derdiyok – 58'
ENG – Wright-Phillips 62'
Line-ups -
England: James, Brown, Ferdinand, Upson, Ashley Cole (Bridge 73'), Bentley, Jenas (Wright-Phillips 57'), Gerrard, Barry (Hargreaves 73'), Joe Cole (Crouch 57'), Rooney (Young 87').
Switzerland: Benaglio, Lichtsteiner (Behrami 46'), Senderos (Grichting 55'), Eggiman, Spycher, Inler, Gelson (Huggel 84'), Barnetta, Yakin (Margairaz 63'), Gygax (Vonlanthen 46'), Nkufo (Derdiyok 46').
Att: 86,857.
As debuts go, Fabio Capello's as England manager was reassuring but ultimately meaningless.After the misery of the Croatia defeat at the same venue in November, Wembley's sell-out crowd was happy to witness a victory instead, but the contest will pass quickly into memory.
As if it needs repeating, Steve McClaren and Graham Taylor both won their first games in charge but ended their reigns in humiliation, while Alf Ramsey lost his but ended up winning the World Cup.
England's 2-1 win on Wednesday was unremarkable. Capello's men dominated the first half hour territorially, although Switzerland looked the more incisive in the final third.
Jermaine Jenas finished off a smart passing move five minutes before half time to give his Italian boss the first goal of his reign, and when Capello replaced the goalscorer and Joe Cole on 57 minutes, it seemed the game would wind down for the remainder into the slumber England friendlies often serve up.
Plaudits, therefore, to Switzerland's Eren Derdiyok for making a match of the occasion when he lashed a snapshot past David James a minute later - the goal of the evening.
England responded confidently and were ahead again in the 62nd when Steven Gerrard, the Man of the Match, powered through the Swiss backline before laying the ball off to Shaun Wright-Phillips for an easy tap-in.
Wayne Rooney and Joe Cole underlined why they should be next on the teamsheet after Gerrard; Rooney with some deft flicks and impromptu shooting and Cole with some dogged foraging down the left wing, including the incursion which lead to Jenas' goal.
If David Bentley is David Beckham's natural replacement on the right, he must improve his crossing to finally dislodge Goldenballs from the running. After one especially overhit centre, the fans in the adjacent corner serenaded the Blackburn midfielder with 'there's only one David Beckham'.Capello's England has only just begun the metamorphosis from also-rans to contenders, but there were still some interesting hints of things to come. England might have kicked off with some misplaced passes and nervy indecision in defence, but did not resort to aimless long balls like they did against the Croats and showed some rare understanding of the phases of the game as it went on.
Instead of just attacking stubbornly for 90 minutes, for a spell in the first half the Three Lions played keep-ball Latin-style, although their failure to advance out of their own half soon had the crowd jeering, perhaps provoking them to respond with a goal.
For much of the opening 45, Capello's men showed the importance of playing in the opponents' half and when leading in the second, they did well by taking the game to the Swiss instead of sitting on their advantage and counting down the clock.
While England never looked like losing to Switzerland - the Euro 2008 joint-hosts lost at home to the USA in October and are ranked 44th in the world (England are 12th), they also did nothing to dazzle the spectators or stake a claim to be up there with Europe's best.
Still, I think we would settle for humdrum 2-1 wins all the way to the World Cup final in 2010.If there was anything revolutionary in the air, it was the disciplined regime initiated by the much-travelled Italian, which may have had a knock-on effect on the fans, too.
No one can reasonably complain if he opts to call his captain 'Gerrard' instead of 'Stevie G', orders the players to keep to rigid meal times like friars in a monastery, and, at long last, has sent the WAGs, agents and assorted hangers-on packing from the team hotel.
The much-trumpeted minute's silence to commemorate the 1958 Munich air disaster was barely 30 seconds, and was interrupted by two or three morons, but only two or three, which amid 86,857 at Wembley is not a bad ratio.
For the first time in my Wembley memory, I heard nobody in my section boo the visitors' national anthem. I also failed to spot any flags emblazoned with the names of banned Ulster terror groups, and heard no bone-headed renditions of 'No Surrender to the IRA'.
Looking around the gleaming new arena with its magnificent architecture, I wondered if at long last the boorishness that has dogged England’s fanbase for years was finally withering away in the face of a new era.
What surprised me most, though, was glancing to my left and finding my eyes fixed upon the familiar form of one of the world's greatest coaches, looking unfamiliar in an England tracksuit, but brooding over his troops with his reknowned intensity.
Sterner tests will come, beginning with the trip to Zagreb to face Croatia on the 10th of September for a
World Cup qualifier.So far, so good: Capello has a 100% record. And for a non-English speaker picking up a team strangled by player egoes, and a nation demoralized by their failure to perform, he has showed an encouraging desire to do things his own way.
Assessments will change when the meaningful games arrive in the autumn, but for now, Fabio's road looks the right one for England.
Scoring –
ENG – Jenas 40'
SWI – Derdiyok – 58'
ENG – Wright-Phillips 62'
Line-ups -
England: James, Brown, Ferdinand, Upson, Ashley Cole (Bridge 73'), Bentley, Jenas (Wright-Phillips 57'), Gerrard, Barry (Hargreaves 73'), Joe Cole (Crouch 57'), Rooney (Young 87').
Switzerland: Benaglio, Lichtsteiner (Behrami 46'), Senderos (Grichting 55'), Eggiman, Spycher, Inler, Gelson (Huggel 84'), Barnetta, Yakin (Margairaz 63'), Gygax (Vonlanthen 46'), Nkufo (Derdiyok 46').
Att: 86,857.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Verbeek gets crafty ahead of Qatar clash
More mind games from new Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek who stunned the Australian media this morning by announcing a 39-man squad for the Socceroos' upcoming World Cup qualifier against Qatar at Melbourne's Telstra Dome on February 6.
Only 25 players were expected to be named.
The unwieldy size of the group can be attributed to the influx of 19 of Australia's Europe-based stars which again does not include Newcastle United striker and World Cup captain Mark Viduka.
However Liverpool's Harry Kewell, Palermo's Mark Bresciano, West Ham's Lucas Neill and Everton's Tim Cahill have been included.
They are not expected to jet in to Melbourne until 48 hours before kickoff.
Uruguayan-Australian striker Richard Porta, who recently transferred from Montevideo's Club Atlético River Plate to Siena in Serie A, was not selected. He is tipped to choose between representing Uruguay or Australia next month.
Australia's forward line will almost surely be led by Celtic's Scott McDonald, with either Karlsruher SC's Josh Kennedy or Central Coast Mariners' John Aloisi as support, depending on Verbeek's preferred formation.
Verbeek's rationale for the number of players picked is "maximum flexibility", but in truth it will have more to do with keeping Qatar coach Jorge Fossati guessing on his starting line-up as long as possible.
With so many European club players selected, it is highly unlikely that any more than a handful of the 20 A-League players in the provisional squad will make the 18-man final squad to be named on February 4. Two days earlier, Verbeek's Australian-based players will have their last chance to impress in a behind-closed-doors hit-out with 2008 Asian Champions League debutant Melbourne Victory.
Pacesetting A-League club Newcastle Jets can be happy with its contribution, though, coughing up no less than seven players among the 20-strong Australia-based unit.
Sydney FC coach John Kosmina, who threatened to pull five of his players out of Verbeek's third all-A-League training camp on January 21 so as to prepare unhindered for his side's first-leg finals showdown with Queensland Roar on January 25, got little joy with the selection panel.
Only Socceroos defender Mark Milligan and fringe national-team striker Alex Brosque were deemed indispensable.
Roar's talismanic midfielder Matt McKay can count himself very unlucky not to make the 39, as he has been one of the A-League's most consistent and electric performers. Yet his team-mate Craig Moore, who didn't even participate in any of the three two-day training camps with Verbeek, was picked.
Verbeek, who has kept a relatively low profile since arriving in Australia from the Netherlands, knows he is set for a baptism of fire if he fails to get a result against the No. 88-ranked Qatar, which held Japan to a 1-1 draw during the 2007 AFC Asian Cup,
His preparation has been hampered by scheduling conflicts caused by the A-League going into the business end of the season and controversy over the make-up of his support staff, which includes his predecessor as national-team coach, failed Asian Cup helmsman Graham Arnold.
It is a situation highly unusual in international football to have the incumbent manager paired with the man who came immediately before him and tanked.
Qatar, meanwhile, is due to face Denmark at home on January 27 in its third and final international friendly before the WCQ on February 6.
In its two international warm-ups this month, against Iran and Syria, it has failed to score. Both matches ended in 0-0 draws. Verbeek's European-based assistant, Henk Duut, was shut out of the game against Iran at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on January 9 and all broadcast footage of the match was banned at the request of the wily Uruguayan.
Fossati named a 28-man squad in early January that did not contain the Gulf nation's most celebrated player, Boavista striker Hussain Yasser Abdulrahman. The 24-year-old is currently being loaned out by Sporting Braga.
Given the cat-and-mouse antics so far between Verbeek and Fossati and the Qataris' dry spell in front of goal, don't rule out Yasser turning up in Melbourne when the Qatar squad touches down Down Under on January 29.
Verbeek's 39-man squad: John Aloisi, Michael Beauchamp, Mark Bresciano, Mark Bridge, Alex Brosque, Jacob Burns, Tim Cahill, Nick Carle, David Carney, Simon Colosimo, Ante Covic, Jason Culina, Bruce Djite, Travis Dodd, Brett Emerton, Vince Grella, Adam Griffiths, Joel Griffiths, James Holland, Brett Holman, Josh Kennedy, Harry Kewell, Scott McDonald, Mark Milligan, Craig Moore, Kevin Muscat, Stuart Musialik, Lucas Neill, Jade North, Tom Pondeljak, Mark Schwarzer, Archie Thompson, Nikolai Topor-Stanley, Michael Thwaite, James Troisi, Carl Valeri, Rodrigo Vargas, Danny Vukovic, Luke Wilkshire.
© Jesse Fink & Soccerphile
A-League Australian Soccer
Only 25 players were expected to be named.
The unwieldy size of the group can be attributed to the influx of 19 of Australia's Europe-based stars which again does not include Newcastle United striker and World Cup captain Mark Viduka.
However Liverpool's Harry Kewell, Palermo's Mark Bresciano, West Ham's Lucas Neill and Everton's Tim Cahill have been included.
They are not expected to jet in to Melbourne until 48 hours before kickoff.
Uruguayan-Australian striker Richard Porta, who recently transferred from Montevideo's Club Atlético River Plate to Siena in Serie A, was not selected. He is tipped to choose between representing Uruguay or Australia next month.
Australia's forward line will almost surely be led by Celtic's Scott McDonald, with either Karlsruher SC's Josh Kennedy or Central Coast Mariners' John Aloisi as support, depending on Verbeek's preferred formation.
Verbeek's rationale for the number of players picked is "maximum flexibility", but in truth it will have more to do with keeping Qatar coach Jorge Fossati guessing on his starting line-up as long as possible.
With so many European club players selected, it is highly unlikely that any more than a handful of the 20 A-League players in the provisional squad will make the 18-man final squad to be named on February 4. Two days earlier, Verbeek's Australian-based players will have their last chance to impress in a behind-closed-doors hit-out with 2008 Asian Champions League debutant Melbourne Victory.
Pacesetting A-League club Newcastle Jets can be happy with its contribution, though, coughing up no less than seven players among the 20-strong Australia-based unit.
Sydney FC coach John Kosmina, who threatened to pull five of his players out of Verbeek's third all-A-League training camp on January 21 so as to prepare unhindered for his side's first-leg finals showdown with Queensland Roar on January 25, got little joy with the selection panel.
Only Socceroos defender Mark Milligan and fringe national-team striker Alex Brosque were deemed indispensable.
Roar's talismanic midfielder Matt McKay can count himself very unlucky not to make the 39, as he has been one of the A-League's most consistent and electric performers. Yet his team-mate Craig Moore, who didn't even participate in any of the three two-day training camps with Verbeek, was picked.
Verbeek, who has kept a relatively low profile since arriving in Australia from the Netherlands, knows he is set for a baptism of fire if he fails to get a result against the No. 88-ranked Qatar, which held Japan to a 1-1 draw during the 2007 AFC Asian Cup,
His preparation has been hampered by scheduling conflicts caused by the A-League going into the business end of the season and controversy over the make-up of his support staff, which includes his predecessor as national-team coach, failed Asian Cup helmsman Graham Arnold.
It is a situation highly unusual in international football to have the incumbent manager paired with the man who came immediately before him and tanked.
Qatar, meanwhile, is due to face Denmark at home on January 27 in its third and final international friendly before the WCQ on February 6.
In its two international warm-ups this month, against Iran and Syria, it has failed to score. Both matches ended in 0-0 draws. Verbeek's European-based assistant, Henk Duut, was shut out of the game against Iran at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on January 9 and all broadcast footage of the match was banned at the request of the wily Uruguayan.
Fossati named a 28-man squad in early January that did not contain the Gulf nation's most celebrated player, Boavista striker Hussain Yasser Abdulrahman. The 24-year-old is currently being loaned out by Sporting Braga.
Given the cat-and-mouse antics so far between Verbeek and Fossati and the Qataris' dry spell in front of goal, don't rule out Yasser turning up in Melbourne when the Qatar squad touches down Down Under on January 29.
Verbeek's 39-man squad: John Aloisi, Michael Beauchamp, Mark Bresciano, Mark Bridge, Alex Brosque, Jacob Burns, Tim Cahill, Nick Carle, David Carney, Simon Colosimo, Ante Covic, Jason Culina, Bruce Djite, Travis Dodd, Brett Emerton, Vince Grella, Adam Griffiths, Joel Griffiths, James Holland, Brett Holman, Josh Kennedy, Harry Kewell, Scott McDonald, Mark Milligan, Craig Moore, Kevin Muscat, Stuart Musialik, Lucas Neill, Jade North, Tom Pondeljak, Mark Schwarzer, Archie Thompson, Nikolai Topor-Stanley, Michael Thwaite, James Troisi, Carl Valeri, Rodrigo Vargas, Danny Vukovic, Luke Wilkshire.
© Jesse Fink & Soccerphile
A-League Australian Soccer
Saturday, January 19, 2008
World Cup 2010 qualifiers
World Cup Qualifiers Schedule
The race towards South Africa starts in August
Fabio Capello has his work cut out for him. England start their qualifying campaign for the next World Cup on September 6th away to Andorra four days before meeting their recent nemesis Croatia in Zagreb.
Present at the negotiations in the Sheraton Hotel in the Croatian capital were David Rodrigo of Andorra, Arno Pijpers of Kazakhstan, Bernd Tange of Belarus, Aleksei Mikhailichenko of Ukraine plus Capello and the host Slaven Bilic.
It took six and a half hours in Zagreb for the six coaches from the teams in the England's group to reach an agreement on the calendar and in the end both Capello and Bilic claimed they were very happy with the outcome. The Ukrainians were reportedly the least satisfied as they didn't want to play in June of 2009 and ended up having to visit Croatia and entertain the same team in the space of four days.
"I thank Belarus and Andorra for accepting some compromises, as without them it would have been difficult to reach the agreement," said the Croatian coach, who was only unhappy with the trip to Belarus on August 19th next year.
"It's FIFA's date for friendlies so we'll be able to count on our internationals just three days before the trip," moaned Bilic.
Capello on the other hand stated he got exactly what he wanted – an easy opener with Andorra, a relatively lightweight rival in Belarus for the closure and both Croatian games in September.
Group 6 – qualifying calendar
2008
20th August
Kazakhstan vs. Andorra
6th September
Croatia vs. Kazakhstan
Andorra vs. England
Ukraine vs. Belarus
10th September
Croatia vs. England
Andorra vs. Belarus
Kazakhstan – Ukraine
11th October
Ukraine vs. Croatia
England vs. Kazakhstan
15th October
Croatia vs. Andorra
Belarus vs. England
2009
1st April
Andorra vs. Croatia
England vs. Ukraine
Kazakhstan vs. Belarus
6th June
Croatia vs. Ukraine
Kazakhstan vs. England
Belarus vs. Andorra
10th June
Ukraine vs. Kazakhstan
England vs. Andorra
19th August
Belarus vs. Croatia
5th September
Croatia vs. Belarus
Ukraine vs. Andorra
9th September
England vs. Croatia
Belarus vs. Ukraine
Andorra – Kazakhstan
10th October
Ukraine vs. England
Belarus vs. Kazakhstan
14th October
Kazakhstan vs. Croatia
Andorra vs. Ukraine
England vs. Belarus
Note: Only the group champions qualify for the World Cup directly, and the second placed team enter an additional qualification round against another of the eight best runners' up out of the total of nine European zone groups.
England games
2008.
Andorra vs England (Sep 6th)
Croatia vs England (Sep 10th)
England vs Kazakhstan (Oct 11th)
Belarus vs England (Oct 15th)
2009.
England vs Ukraine (Apr 1st)
Kazakhstan vs England (June 6th)
England vs Kazakhstan (June 10th)
England vs Croatia (Sep 9th)
Ukraine vs England (Oct 10th)
England vs Belarus (Oct 14th)
Copyright Soccerphile & Ozren Podnar
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The race towards South Africa starts in August
Fabio Capello has his work cut out for him. England start their qualifying campaign for the next World Cup on September 6th away to Andorra four days before meeting their recent nemesis Croatia in Zagreb.
Present at the negotiations in the Sheraton Hotel in the Croatian capital were David Rodrigo of Andorra, Arno Pijpers of Kazakhstan, Bernd Tange of Belarus, Aleksei Mikhailichenko of Ukraine plus Capello and the host Slaven Bilic.
It took six and a half hours in Zagreb for the six coaches from the teams in the England's group to reach an agreement on the calendar and in the end both Capello and Bilic claimed they were very happy with the outcome. The Ukrainians were reportedly the least satisfied as they didn't want to play in June of 2009 and ended up having to visit Croatia and entertain the same team in the space of four days.
"I thank Belarus and Andorra for accepting some compromises, as without them it would have been difficult to reach the agreement," said the Croatian coach, who was only unhappy with the trip to Belarus on August 19th next year.
"It's FIFA's date for friendlies so we'll be able to count on our internationals just three days before the trip," moaned Bilic.
Capello on the other hand stated he got exactly what he wanted – an easy opener with Andorra, a relatively lightweight rival in Belarus for the closure and both Croatian games in September.
Group 6 – qualifying calendar
2008
20th August
Kazakhstan vs. Andorra
6th September
Croatia vs. Kazakhstan
Andorra vs. England
Ukraine vs. Belarus
10th September
Croatia vs. England
Andorra vs. Belarus
Kazakhstan – Ukraine
11th October
Ukraine vs. Croatia
England vs. Kazakhstan
15th October
Croatia vs. Andorra
Belarus vs. England
2009
1st April
Andorra vs. Croatia
England vs. Ukraine
Kazakhstan vs. Belarus
6th June
Croatia vs. Ukraine
Kazakhstan vs. England
Belarus vs. Andorra
10th June
Ukraine vs. Kazakhstan
England vs. Andorra
19th August
Belarus vs. Croatia
5th September
Croatia vs. Belarus
Ukraine vs. Andorra
9th September
England vs. Croatia
Belarus vs. Ukraine
Andorra – Kazakhstan
10th October
Ukraine vs. England
Belarus vs. Kazakhstan
14th October
Kazakhstan vs. Croatia
Andorra vs. Ukraine
England vs. Belarus
Note: Only the group champions qualify for the World Cup directly, and the second placed team enter an additional qualification round against another of the eight best runners' up out of the total of nine European zone groups.
England games
2008.
Andorra vs England (Sep 6th)
Croatia vs England (Sep 10th)
England vs Kazakhstan (Oct 11th)
Belarus vs England (Oct 15th)
2009.
England vs Ukraine (Apr 1st)
Kazakhstan vs England (June 6th)
England vs Kazakhstan (June 10th)
England vs Croatia (Sep 9th)
Ukraine vs England (Oct 10th)
England vs Belarus (Oct 14th)
Copyright Soccerphile & Ozren Podnar
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Tuesday, November 27, 2007
World Cup draw brings England and Croatia together
Disturbing Durban Draw:
Oh no, England vs Croatia again!?
An unpleaseant realization for England and Croatia: these teams will meet each other again in the European zone of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers! The whimsical Lady Luck decided that competing alongside England and Croatia in the Group 6 will be Ukraine, Belarus, Kazahstan and Andorra. The draw has not amused the English fans, with the wound inflicted by Croatia very fresh, but the trips to Kiev, Minsk and Almaty cannot be pleasant either.
Ukraine, the quarterfinalists of the last World Cup, have had a meagre Euro qualifying campaign, but cannot be easily dismissed, specially in the early stages of the new qualification cycle. The odd Belarus side proved capable of losing at home to Luxembourg, winless for ages, but also of defeating Holland on the last day of the competition. Kazahstan offer more of the same uncertainty: the Asians kicked out Serbia from Euro by beating them 2-1 last March. They will also naturally want to avenge Englishman's Sacha Baron Cohen's massive insult dealt upon the whole nation through the infamous movie featuring Borat, one of Cohen's alteregos.
Inspite of the euphoria reigning because of the historic 3-2 win at Wembley, Croats are not exactly happy to see England. Coach Slaven Bilic said the draw in Durban has been particularly cruel to his team, although he believes Croatia can hold their own against any of the world's leading teams. "At least it will be nice to play at Wembley again", said the former West Ham and Everton defender.
English players have been trying to regain confidence after the scorching last week's defeat that cost them a place in Austria and Switzerland. Michael Owen offered an expert opinion that "no Croatian player could currently make the England team" just days after Portsmouth's coach expressed pretty much the same view. With such awareness of other teams' qualities England may have been lucky to finish third, level on points with Israel. Steve McClaren's successor will be lucky if he can count on a healthy Owen to reinforce the depleted England attack rather than Owen the soccer analyzer.
European zone qualifying groups
Nine top teams qualify directly. Eight second-best teams play-off to produce the remaining four WC participants.
Group 1: Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, Albania, Malta
The most evenly balanced group with three strong competitors and not a single true minnow.
Group 2: Greece, Israel, Switzerland, Moldova, Latvia, Luxembourg
The group with the lowest specific weight. Not much difference in quality between the top seed, Greece, and the third, Switzerland.
Group 3: Czech Republic, Poland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia, Slovenia, San Marino
Northern Ireland were the most improved team in the past qualifiers. It is conceivable they may make the life bitter for the Czech Republic and Poland.
Group 4: Germany, Russia, Finland, Wales, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein
Germany will win the group yet again. Russia are better than Finland. Wales may upset someone on a good day.
Group 5: Spain, Turkey, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Armenia, Estonia
Spain and Turkey will take the top two spots. Probably in that order, too.
Group 6: Croatia, England, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Andorra
England have the potential to win the direct qualification. Croatia are likely to battle it out with Ukraine for that consolation second spot that leads to the playoffs.
Group 7: France, Romania, Serbia, Lithuania, Austria, Faroe Islands
France and Romania are highly fancied, but Serbia plays well against the best.
Group 8: Italy, Bulgaria, Republic of Ireland, Cyprus, Georgia, Montenegro
Lucky, lucky Italy. Unlucky Montenegro. A potentially good national team have to start from the bottom. And Ireland have a real chance!
Group 9: Holland, Scotland, Norway, Macedonia, Iceland
Holland face a serious challenge from Scotland and Norway. Macedonia and Iceland will molest a favourite or two.
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Oh no, England vs Croatia again!?
An unpleaseant realization for England and Croatia: these teams will meet each other again in the European zone of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers! The whimsical Lady Luck decided that competing alongside England and Croatia in the Group 6 will be Ukraine, Belarus, Kazahstan and Andorra. The draw has not amused the English fans, with the wound inflicted by Croatia very fresh, but the trips to Kiev, Minsk and Almaty cannot be pleasant either.
Ukraine, the quarterfinalists of the last World Cup, have had a meagre Euro qualifying campaign, but cannot be easily dismissed, specially in the early stages of the new qualification cycle. The odd Belarus side proved capable of losing at home to Luxembourg, winless for ages, but also of defeating Holland on the last day of the competition. Kazahstan offer more of the same uncertainty: the Asians kicked out Serbia from Euro by beating them 2-1 last March. They will also naturally want to avenge Englishman's Sacha Baron Cohen's massive insult dealt upon the whole nation through the infamous movie featuring Borat, one of Cohen's alteregos.
Inspite of the euphoria reigning because of the historic 3-2 win at Wembley, Croats are not exactly happy to see England. Coach Slaven Bilic said the draw in Durban has been particularly cruel to his team, although he believes Croatia can hold their own against any of the world's leading teams. "At least it will be nice to play at Wembley again", said the former West Ham and Everton defender.
English players have been trying to regain confidence after the scorching last week's defeat that cost them a place in Austria and Switzerland. Michael Owen offered an expert opinion that "no Croatian player could currently make the England team" just days after Portsmouth's coach expressed pretty much the same view. With such awareness of other teams' qualities England may have been lucky to finish third, level on points with Israel. Steve McClaren's successor will be lucky if he can count on a healthy Owen to reinforce the depleted England attack rather than Owen the soccer analyzer.
European zone qualifying groups
Nine top teams qualify directly. Eight second-best teams play-off to produce the remaining four WC participants.
Group 1: Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, Albania, Malta
The most evenly balanced group with three strong competitors and not a single true minnow.
Group 2: Greece, Israel, Switzerland, Moldova, Latvia, Luxembourg
The group with the lowest specific weight. Not much difference in quality between the top seed, Greece, and the third, Switzerland.
Group 3: Czech Republic, Poland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia, Slovenia, San Marino
Northern Ireland were the most improved team in the past qualifiers. It is conceivable they may make the life bitter for the Czech Republic and Poland.
Group 4: Germany, Russia, Finland, Wales, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein
Germany will win the group yet again. Russia are better than Finland. Wales may upset someone on a good day.
Group 5: Spain, Turkey, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Armenia, Estonia
Spain and Turkey will take the top two spots. Probably in that order, too.
Group 6: Croatia, England, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Andorra
England have the potential to win the direct qualification. Croatia are likely to battle it out with Ukraine for that consolation second spot that leads to the playoffs.
Group 7: France, Romania, Serbia, Lithuania, Austria, Faroe Islands
France and Romania are highly fancied, but Serbia plays well against the best.
Group 8: Italy, Bulgaria, Republic of Ireland, Cyprus, Georgia, Montenegro
Lucky, lucky Italy. Unlucky Montenegro. A potentially good national team have to start from the bottom. And Ireland have a real chance!
Group 9: Holland, Scotland, Norway, Macedonia, Iceland
Holland face a serious challenge from Scotland and Norway. Macedonia and Iceland will molest a favourite or two.
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Sunday, November 25, 2007
No rush for England's poisoned chalice
"There are not many candidates because it looks a bit like a crocodile that opens the mouth and says: 'Jump into that.' Once he's in there, he's eaten. And once you have eaten four, five says: 'No, maybe I don't jump in there.'"
So went the words of Arsene Wenger, the best coach working in England at present.
In the old days, before the savaging of Bobby Robson and Graham Taylor by the tabloids and the realization that the real money and chances of success were to be found in the Premier League and not the international game, the nation’s best coach would have leapt at the chance of managing England.
Not any more. In the aftermath of Steve McClaren’s quick exit from Soho Square, the candidates for the top job have been scurrying into the shadows. Like schoolkids desperate for the teacher not to pick them to answer a tricky question, the candidates are doing their best to look at their shoes instead.
Aston Villa coach Martin O’Neill could probably have signed a contract the day after the Croatia fiasco had he wanted to, but yesterday appeared to shut the door. “It’s gone for me. It’s absolutely gone,” he said.
Reading’s Steve Coppell would appear to be the best English candidate working in the Premier League, but also realises his nationality counts against him this time.
So went the words of Arsene Wenger, the best coach working in England at present.
In the old days, before the savaging of Bobby Robson and Graham Taylor by the tabloids and the realization that the real money and chances of success were to be found in the Premier League and not the international game, the nation’s best coach would have leapt at the chance of managing England.
Not any more. In the aftermath of Steve McClaren’s quick exit from Soho Square, the candidates for the top job have been scurrying into the shadows. Like schoolkids desperate for the teacher not to pick them to answer a tricky question, the candidates are doing their best to look at their shoes instead.
Aston Villa coach Martin O’Neill could probably have signed a contract the day after the Croatia fiasco had he wanted to, but yesterday appeared to shut the door. “It’s gone for me. It’s absolutely gone,” he said.
Reading’s Steve Coppell would appear to be the best English candidate working in the Premier League, but also realises his nationality counts against him this time.
If the next leader of the Three Lions must be English, the options are fast disappearing beyond Coppell. Alan Curbishley now says he is no longer interested, Harry Redknapp’s colourful reputation surely precludes him and the FA are unlikely to go crawling back to the doors of two men they have previously fired – Glenn Hoddle and Terry Venables.
Almost certainly, the FA will pick another foreigner, following the appointment of Sven-Goran Eriksson in 2001.
Jurgen Klinsmann is believed to be interested and would have little trouble adapting once again to London. Indeed, ‘Klinsi’’s articulate and popular persona would probably pull the fans and media onside from the start, in a way few recent England coaches have succeeding in doing.
But the German legend still lives in Santa Barbara, California, which entails a day’s commuting and eight hours’ jet lag to reach England. His refusal to accept the USA job is still clouded in mystery and a flood of criticism will be inevitable as soon as results get sticky with England. The risk that it could all end in tears just looks too great for FA chief executive Brian Barwick to approach him in the first place.
Fabio Capello is the only man to so far declare his candidacy. The 61 year-old has long had an eye on English football, perhaps since scoring for Italy at Wembley in 1973, and had expressed an interest in replacing Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford back in 2002.
Capello has fallen out with a number of high-profile players over the years, including David Beckham, Alessandro Del Piero and Ronaldo, but boasts a stunning coaching CV including seven Serie A shields (four with Milan, two with Juventus and one with Roma) and two La Liga titles with Real Madrid.
Milan’s unforgettable 4-0 demolition of Barcelona in the 1994 Champions League Final in Athens remains perhaps the apex of Capello’s coaching history.
The other big name still in the frame is Jose Mourinho. The recently-departed Chelsea coach is surely a little tempted, or else he would have publicly ruled himself out this week.
Instead, the mercurial Portuguese is playing a game of brinkmanship, aware that vacancies may pop up before the end of the year at Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid.
While Mourinho’s family allegedly are keen to resume their London life, one cannot help but wonder how coaching a discredited national team without competitive fixtures for another year can compare to leading one of the European club heavyweights.
It is hard to see how maverick personalities like Mourinho could enjoy the amount of down time this position entails, when a man of his calibre could surely walk into one of the top jobs on the continent over the next few months and before long cross swords again with the best in the UEFA Champions League.
A team booed off by its own fans as it lost embarassingly on a bleak and rainy winter’s night was no advert for the manager’s job.
And perhaps all speculation on on this issue is pointless as the fault lines in English football run too deep for any magician to swan in and wave a magic wand in the first place.
In the 1970s and ‘80s, the outstanding English club coach, Brian Clough, winner of two European Cups, longed to be picked as England manager.
But in 2007, for coaches of real talent from whatever country, the chance of supping nectar at the helm of a top European club outshines the poisoned chalice of the England manager’s job by some distance.
Can you blame them for avoiding the telephone after all they have seen recently?
Almost certainly, the FA will pick another foreigner, following the appointment of Sven-Goran Eriksson in 2001.
Jurgen Klinsmann is believed to be interested and would have little trouble adapting once again to London. Indeed, ‘Klinsi’’s articulate and popular persona would probably pull the fans and media onside from the start, in a way few recent England coaches have succeeding in doing.
But the German legend still lives in Santa Barbara, California, which entails a day’s commuting and eight hours’ jet lag to reach England. His refusal to accept the USA job is still clouded in mystery and a flood of criticism will be inevitable as soon as results get sticky with England. The risk that it could all end in tears just looks too great for FA chief executive Brian Barwick to approach him in the first place.
Fabio Capello is the only man to so far declare his candidacy. The 61 year-old has long had an eye on English football, perhaps since scoring for Italy at Wembley in 1973, and had expressed an interest in replacing Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford back in 2002.
Capello has fallen out with a number of high-profile players over the years, including David Beckham, Alessandro Del Piero and Ronaldo, but boasts a stunning coaching CV including seven Serie A shields (four with Milan, two with Juventus and one with Roma) and two La Liga titles with Real Madrid.
Milan’s unforgettable 4-0 demolition of Barcelona in the 1994 Champions League Final in Athens remains perhaps the apex of Capello’s coaching history.
The other big name still in the frame is Jose Mourinho. The recently-departed Chelsea coach is surely a little tempted, or else he would have publicly ruled himself out this week.
Instead, the mercurial Portuguese is playing a game of brinkmanship, aware that vacancies may pop up before the end of the year at Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid.
While Mourinho’s family allegedly are keen to resume their London life, one cannot help but wonder how coaching a discredited national team without competitive fixtures for another year can compare to leading one of the European club heavyweights.
It is hard to see how maverick personalities like Mourinho could enjoy the amount of down time this position entails, when a man of his calibre could surely walk into one of the top jobs on the continent over the next few months and before long cross swords again with the best in the UEFA Champions League.
A team booed off by its own fans as it lost embarassingly on a bleak and rainy winter’s night was no advert for the manager’s job.
And perhaps all speculation on on this issue is pointless as the fault lines in English football run too deep for any magician to swan in and wave a magic wand in the first place.
In the 1970s and ‘80s, the outstanding English club coach, Brian Clough, winner of two European Cups, longed to be picked as England manager.
But in 2007, for coaches of real talent from whatever country, the chance of supping nectar at the helm of a top European club outshines the poisoned chalice of the England manager’s job by some distance.
Can you blame them for avoiding the telephone after all they have seen recently?
The top job has now become “the impossible job”, as a previous victim Graham Taylor memorably noted, adding that his advice to any future encumbent of the cursed throne would be this:
“Win every game!”
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Thursday, November 22, 2007
England all played out again
The Emperor has no clothes and it’s official.For the first time within the walls of the awesome citadel that is the new Wembley Stadium, the English national team has come a cropper in a big way, and this time there can be no hiding from the naked truth.
Now let these sombre words ring out across our green and pleasant land: England are a mediocre football nation and it’s high time we accepted it.
One final appearance in 57 continuous years of international football competitions tells its own story and cannot by any logic justify the perennial Mount Everest of expectations heaped upon the Three Lions.
As the 3-2 victory over England by a competent yet not exceptional Croatian eleven on Wednesday proved once more, there is simply no case for believing we deserve a place at the high table of the world’s football nations, so please don’t try to make it.
After such a miserable and humiliating surrender, can anyone seriously believe we can win the 2010 World Cup? Will the patriotic punters be out in force again to waste their money, like they have for the last forty years since we won the World Cup at home?
That the English invented the sport and still sustain a 92-team professional league is utterly immaterial if the national team consistently fails to perform, yet year after year, an inferno of fan fervour is stoked up by London’s boorish tabloid media with no basis in reality.
But the media is only partly to blame for the unrealis
tic expectations and to a great extent is only a mirror of the national zeitgeist.The obscenely ballooning waistline of the cash cow that is the FA Premier League is also only reinforcing an existing tunnel vision shared by millions throughout the home of football.
There is a foreign influx in our leagues and globalization all around us, but it clearly does not follow that a great domestic league can produce a world-class national team.
So who do we blame this time?
The usual suspects for the latest shambles are lining up and while they all shoulder a part of the blame, are mostly red herrings while the prime suspect is still at large.
Steve McClaren is not the main culprit and I take no pride in having predicted as soon as he was appointed that he would fail.
Although guiding your club to 15th place in the Premier League is not the best preparation for coaching your country, McClaren had served apprenticeships under Alex Ferguson and Sven-Goran Eriksson and there were no realistic alternatives for England last summer.
While some fans are slating McClaren for starting with 4-5-1 at home, without Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney his striking options were limited and when reinforcements did arrive in the shape of Darren Bent and Jermain Defoe, the much-needed punch up front was still lacking.
In fact, the catalyst for England’s comeback was the arrival of David Beckham, in perhaps his last national team appearance, after halftime, a player from Major League Soccer who provided an artistry and finesse with the ball otherwise lacking from his team on the night.
The English players’ superstar salaries are almost irrele
vant too. Serie A pays huge wages but that never stopped Italy’s national team winning the World Cup impressively last summer. And English players certainly do not lack passion. If anything, they play with too much heart and not enough head, yet England critics routinely bemoan a lack of passion and self-belief as the reasons for falling short.That there may be too many foreign players in England for the national team’s good is also an argument that looks shakier by the day. In fact, on the evidence of last night, no wonder Arsene Wenger shops overseas.
The dissections and post mortems on the corpse of England’s latest failure are everywhere, though few have realised the fatal disease is merely an inherited and myopic attitude that the English way is best.
Like Charybdis, the fearsome whirlpool of Greek mythology, our semi-permanent debate on the national team ends up going round in circles of self-delusion, our consistent demand for unrealistic success devouring all passing managers lured too close to the job.
This insular hara-kiri was evident off the field as well as on. Thousands of England fans pointedly ignored the Wembley announcer’s request to respect both national anthems by booing Croatia’s loudly, before revelling in taunting the traveling fans with several renditions of ‘You’re not singing anymore’, only to be confounded as supersub Mladen Petric speared a spectacular 25-yard winner with 13 minutes remaining.
‘Rule Britannia’ is still one of our favourite songs, but its boasting of global dominance had a particularly pathetic ring at Wembley last night, a specious self-aggrandizement amid the carnival of English obsolescence on the field.
Sheltering from the Wembley monsoon while the queues to the tube station still stretched down Bobby Moore Way a full hour after the final whistle, I got talking to some Croatian fans, who gave me some refreshing points of view on our particular malaise.
The heavens were downright miserable, but there was some blue-sky thinking to be found beneath the deluge.
“England has good players, but they don’t play as a team,” thought Branko from Dubrovnik.
“You’re right,” I said, “but we don’t know any different.” Contrary to some opinions aired this week, England can produce great talents.
I could reel off names such as Bobby Charlton, Tom Finney and Stanley Matthews, but from more recently, what about John Barnes, Paul Gascoigne, Gary Lineker and Chris Waddle from the 1980s and David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Owen and Rooney from the ‘90s.
“Your style is twenty years behind the times,” offered Zlatko from Mostar. “You hit long high balls to the big forward, Crouch. We know that is what the English do. It is simple to play against.”
“Well Crouch did score tonight,” I offered in defence
, but I broadly agreed with his analysis.“Look at the Germans,” said Goran from near Split. “They work hard the whole time too, but they do it as a team.”
I then racked my brains for times in my life when England have played with great fluidity and got stuck on a handful of occasions: In the latter stages of Italia ’90, for the first half of a friendly against Mexico in 2001, against Italy in Rome in 1997 and most famously smashing the Netherlands 4-1 at Wembley in Euro ’96 and Germany 5-1 in Munich five years later.
Our national style still leans towards passionate and direct attacking – ‘droit au but’ –‘straight to goal’, as the motto of Marseille says. And we have to change this mindset, wholesale, from the grass roots up, if we want to challenge for international trophies.
One final in 57 years of FIFA and UEFA competition is surely proof there is a hairline fracture in the monolith of the Football Association, a lingering faultline that cannot and should not be attributed to any particular coach or set of players.
The one excuse I didn’t hear on the tortuous journey from the Wembley mega-arena back to my home in North London was perhaps the most obvious one: Croatia were just better than us.
“Wake up,” Croatia coach Slaven Bilic said succinctly post-match. “We’re simply a better team.”
They undoubtedly were the superior side, having defeated England home and away in the qualification campaign, yet I still heard a fan moaning that England had played badly and lost to ‘a shit team’. ‘Yeah, they are a shit team,’ echoed his equally dim friend.
Well, relativism aside, any team who tops a UEFA qualification group cannot by any sound reasoning be made of caca.
The Croats gave England a footballing lesson in both Zagreb and London in soaking up pressure, throwing bodies into attack or defense appropriately, counter-attacking and
shooting from distance.But what really stood out for me at Wembley was their outfield players’ superior technique.
The Croats’ creed is possession, like it is for all great football nations, while England still go for broke in the final third and try to hit that killer ball into the channels or lump it onto the head of that big lad in the box, too often finding their optimistic punts intercepted or overhit instead.
On the night, Shaun-Wright Phillips typified what is wrong with English football. Energetic and brimming with passion, the Chelsea winger charged goalward whenever he was given the ball, but too often his ardour burned out as he mishit a cross, collided with a defender or ran the ball out of play.
Time and again, England played without any telepathy when they managed to get the ball near the opponents’ box, while every Croatian tap, layoff or backheel seemed to be wired to an incoming teammate.
The Croats clearly knew how to counter-attack better than we did, sprinting upfield, stretching our retreating defence and hitting first-time passes to runners without hesitation. They built a shape-shifting, multi-dimensional game which defeated our rigid, one-dimensional structure with ease.
We might lazily lump all Eastern European football nations together as tough, former communist, crack army sides from chilly lands, but remember Croatia, like Romania, is essentially a Mediterranean country whose warm weather breeds skilful ballplayers.
Facing Italy across the Adriatic, Croatia has only been a country since 1991 and with a population of under five million, has in that short space of time, produced stars of the calibre of Zvonimir Boban, Alen Boksic, Robert Prosinecki and Davor Suker.
Yet however you compare the two countries, England should be a far better football nation than Croatia.
Once again, I fear we will skirt around the answer to our ills – a complete and radical overhaul of the coaching culture.
The intangibility of the problem and its equally nebulous solution just discourage us from addressing it properly, and so England stumble to under-achievement every time.
It almost seems a treasonable offense to the Anglo-Saxon virtues ingrained in our national game to tell our kids to keep the ball instead of to ‘get it in there!’, to think about their shape and position instead of to ‘get stuck in lad!’ and to bring others into attack instead of to ‘go on your own, son, have a pop!’ etc.
The continental method does seem anathema to a windy Sunday morning league game in Rotherham, but ask yourself who is the more successful soccer nation – Italy or England?
‘Look at Arsenal,’ Zlatko continued. ‘They have a great coach and play in a European style but are an English team’.
Treating football seriously from a young age also draws us into a political debate we would rather steer clear of, that of mass education’s historic lack of importance in England in general.
If we want well trained footballers, we need well educated players, who understand the professional commitment and the intellectual ability the game demands at the highest level.
‘What about Wayne Rooney?’ you holler. Nothing can compensate for raw talent like his, surely; only to a point. Imagine what Gascoigne could have done with the self-discipline of a Zinedine Zidane, or how Rooney could prosper with the spatial awareness of strikers like Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry or Henrik Larsson.
On the train home, there was no anger, nor misery at England’s premature exit from Euro 2008, just a resigned mood, an unspoken acceptance that we have seen it all before.
I really felt that maybe for the first time, an accommodation of our ineptitude had begun to set in with the fans, a growing acceptance of the obvious mediocrity we have been dealing with for years.
‘What about Wayne Rooney?’ you holler. Nothing can compensate for raw talent like his, surely; only to a point. Imagine what Gascoigne could have done with the self-discipline of a Zinedine Zidane, or how Rooney could prosper with the spatial awareness of strikers like Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry or Henrik Larsson.
On the train home, there was no anger, nor misery at England’s premature exit from Euro 2008, just a resigned mood, an unspoken acceptance that we have seen it all before.
I really felt that maybe for the first time, an accommodation of our ineptitude had begun to set in with the fans, a growing acceptance of the obvious mediocrity we have been dealing with for years.
Make no mistake. This umpteenth failure for England will not be the last, unless we do start again from the grass roots, bite the bullet and admit the FA’s manuals are mistaken in many ways and our coaching outdated.
Or, we can bury our heads in the sand once more, blame Steve McClaren or whoever underperformed last night and come 2010, summon up the blood to bellow from the rooftops our belief that England can win the World Cup, if only we the fans and they the players want it enough.
Unless there is a revolution, the future history of the England team writes itself.
All may not be lost however. As I traipsed down the many steps from Wembley’s upper tier, and some fans began to sing ‘Jose Mourinho’, I began to think that the foreign influx in our game could end up being the solution instead of the problem, whoever the next coach may be. The tide of the world game is all around us now, at home and abroad.
And what is for sure is that England’s national football culture, more than ever, is all played out.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
When winning isn't enough …
The past week has bought victories for Australia's senior side as well as its under-23s who booked a berth at next year's Beijing Olympics on Wednesday with a hard-fought 1-1 draw in North Korea. The Young Socceroos, the country's under-20s team, also won three out of four AFC qualifying matches to guarantee a spot in the 2008 Asian Youth Championships earlier this month.
But the heavy shadow darkening Australia's dreams of reaching the 2010 World Cup refuses to lift.
Australia's search for Guus Hiddink's long-term replacement has been rather like watching an English League One relegation scrap. Lots of running through mud chasing endless lost causes only for your star striker to miss a stoppage time penalty with seconds remaining.
This week, after a year-and-a-half's worth of wild goose chases around the major European cities, Dick Advocaat reneged on his agreement to coach the Socceroos.
Depending on who you believe, a written contract to take charge of Australia from February's World Cup qualifiers onwards either was or wasn't broken by Advocaat's decision to agree a yearlong extension with Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg. Tellingly, though, the Russians are expecting a financial backlash.
"Yes, he will remain here in St Petersburg," Zenit director Konstantin Sarsania told the Reuters news agency. "The only matter left to resolve is the compensation package to the Australians but we have our lawyers on the case."
The verbal backlash has already started. More than once since deceitful Dick's dastardly U-turn, Football Federation Australia has been likened to a jilted lover in the nation's media.
Under the headline 'Advocaat turns the stomach', Sydney-based football writer Tom Smithies went further in penning this diatribe: "In Holland they drink the liqueur advocaat as a digestif, which is highly ironic because the contempt that a coach of the same name has shown for Australia has turned the stomachs of even those inured to the opportunism of top-level football".
Strangely, the Advocaat affair might actually be one of the few football stories which unites the rival codes in Australia's oft-disputed sporting battlefield. There are just as many loathers as lovers of the beautiful game here, but no Australian of any persuasion could fathom anyone turning down a chance to be involved with the lucky country. Especially to stay in Russia.
Bankrolled by the personal fortune of FFA chairman Frank Lowy, Australia's second-richest man, the scouring of the global coaching landscape has been as pointless as it has relentless.
Whatever the angle taken by a frustrated and disappointed media, money is rarely the prime motivator for the game's elite. Yes, Advocaat will be earning bigger bucks at Zenit, the biggest spenders in Russian football. But he will also remain to lead the club into the Champions League for the first time.
Perspective can be lost when personal interest is high.
Is the job of coaching Australia, ranked 52nd in the world, two places below Canada, really bigger than coaching a team in the Champions League? Is it more challenging than managing in the Premiership, or in the English Championship for that matter?
The fact that Graham Arnold's audition for the top job failed miserably in Australia's Asian Cup quarter-finals exit appears to have kyboshed his credentials and by default any of his fellow countrymen.
So a foreign coach it is. But why are the names of Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klinsmann, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard being bandied around. Logically, what are the odds of a top class manager leaving Europe to spend eight months a year in Australia?
Asian Cup-winning Iraq coach Jorvan Vieira and former South Korea coach Pim Verbeek are lesser profile figureheads but without question more attuned to the Socceroos' needs.
They understand the quirks of qualifying through the AFC in a way Mourinho et al do not. They also know that over the course of World Cup qualifying, the A-League will provide a greater proportion of players.
Australia needs a well-credentialed coach willing to spend the majority of his time in Australia scouting local Australia players and passing on knowledge to the local coaching fraternity.
With that in mind the hunt restarts in earnest.
Copyright © Marc Fox and Soccerphile.com
Australian Soccer News
But the heavy shadow darkening Australia's dreams of reaching the 2010 World Cup refuses to lift.
Australia's search for Guus Hiddink's long-term replacement has been rather like watching an English League One relegation scrap. Lots of running through mud chasing endless lost causes only for your star striker to miss a stoppage time penalty with seconds remaining.
This week, after a year-and-a-half's worth of wild goose chases around the major European cities, Dick Advocaat reneged on his agreement to coach the Socceroos.
Depending on who you believe, a written contract to take charge of Australia from February's World Cup qualifiers onwards either was or wasn't broken by Advocaat's decision to agree a yearlong extension with Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg. Tellingly, though, the Russians are expecting a financial backlash.
"Yes, he will remain here in St Petersburg," Zenit director Konstantin Sarsania told the Reuters news agency. "The only matter left to resolve is the compensation package to the Australians but we have our lawyers on the case."
The verbal backlash has already started. More than once since deceitful Dick's dastardly U-turn, Football Federation Australia has been likened to a jilted lover in the nation's media.
Under the headline 'Advocaat turns the stomach', Sydney-based football writer Tom Smithies went further in penning this diatribe: "In Holland they drink the liqueur advocaat as a digestif, which is highly ironic because the contempt that a coach of the same name has shown for Australia has turned the stomachs of even those inured to the opportunism of top-level football".
Strangely, the Advocaat affair might actually be one of the few football stories which unites the rival codes in Australia's oft-disputed sporting battlefield. There are just as many loathers as lovers of the beautiful game here, but no Australian of any persuasion could fathom anyone turning down a chance to be involved with the lucky country. Especially to stay in Russia.
Bankrolled by the personal fortune of FFA chairman Frank Lowy, Australia's second-richest man, the scouring of the global coaching landscape has been as pointless as it has relentless.
Whatever the angle taken by a frustrated and disappointed media, money is rarely the prime motivator for the game's elite. Yes, Advocaat will be earning bigger bucks at Zenit, the biggest spenders in Russian football. But he will also remain to lead the club into the Champions League for the first time.
Perspective can be lost when personal interest is high.
Is the job of coaching Australia, ranked 52nd in the world, two places below Canada, really bigger than coaching a team in the Champions League? Is it more challenging than managing in the Premiership, or in the English Championship for that matter?
The fact that Graham Arnold's audition for the top job failed miserably in Australia's Asian Cup quarter-finals exit appears to have kyboshed his credentials and by default any of his fellow countrymen.
So a foreign coach it is. But why are the names of Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klinsmann, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard being bandied around. Logically, what are the odds of a top class manager leaving Europe to spend eight months a year in Australia?
Asian Cup-winning Iraq coach Jorvan Vieira and former South Korea coach Pim Verbeek are lesser profile figureheads but without question more attuned to the Socceroos' needs.
They understand the quirks of qualifying through the AFC in a way Mourinho et al do not. They also know that over the course of World Cup qualifying, the A-League will provide a greater proportion of players.
Australia needs a well-credentialed coach willing to spend the majority of his time in Australia scouting local Australia players and passing on knowledge to the local coaching fraternity.
With that in mind the hunt restarts in earnest.
Copyright © Marc Fox and Soccerphile.com
Australian Soccer News
Thursday, October 25, 2007
England get the Blatter blessing
Sepp Blatter has officially welcomed an England big for the 2018 World Cup, but stressed the FA faces stiff competition from other nations before it can pop open any champagne.
The FIFA President met UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown at 10, Downing Street yesterday to discuss England's desire to stage the tournament.
The home of football is the obvious choice as host if the World Cup returns to Europe following stops in South Africa in 2010 and, as is likely, Brazil in 2014.
"England is the motherland of football and I'd welcome a bid for 2018," said Blatter.
"But England will not be the only candidates. As well as China and Australia, there are the United States, Mexico and perhaps Canada. In Europe there is Russia and I will have talks with Holland and Belgium next month about whether a combined candidature is valid."
All those candidates with the exception of England, Mexico and the United States can plead they have never hosted the finals before, but should the consensus in FIFA's corridors be that a return to Europe is advisable, England's pulling power as a footballing, economic and media center surely puts the FA in the driving seat.
But World Cups are decided by intense lobbying of FIFA's executive committee, not by merit alone, and England will have to learn the lessons from their failed bid for 2006. A blessing from Blatter is not necessarily a cause for celebration either - the Swiss repeatedly advocated South Africa's candidature for the last finals but Germany ended up pipping them at the death.
While welcoming an English bid yesterday, Blatter provided more information on the imminent jettisoning of the much-criticised rotation policy for World Cup hosting. After previous rumours abounded that the previous two host confederations would be prevented from bidding, yesterday Blatter said that only the immediately previous confederation would be exempt. This would mean any country could bid every three tournaments to host the event.
Apart from speaking on World Cup matters, the FIFA President attended a service in Sheffield Cathedral to commemorate 150 years of Sheffield FC, the world's oldest existing football club. Blatter also unveiled a bust of co-founder William Prest, who with Nathaniel Creswick, started a worldwide revolution.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile.
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The FIFA President met UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown at 10, Downing Street yesterday to discuss England's desire to stage the tournament.
The home of football is the obvious choice as host if the World Cup returns to Europe following stops in South Africa in 2010 and, as is likely, Brazil in 2014.
"England is the motherland of football and I'd welcome a bid for 2018," said Blatter.
"But England will not be the only candidates. As well as China and Australia, there are the United States, Mexico and perhaps Canada. In Europe there is Russia and I will have talks with Holland and Belgium next month about whether a combined candidature is valid."
All those candidates with the exception of England, Mexico and the United States can plead they have never hosted the finals before, but should the consensus in FIFA's corridors be that a return to Europe is advisable, England's pulling power as a footballing, economic and media center surely puts the FA in the driving seat.
But World Cups are decided by intense lobbying of FIFA's executive committee, not by merit alone, and England will have to learn the lessons from their failed bid for 2006. A blessing from Blatter is not necessarily a cause for celebration either - the Swiss repeatedly advocated South Africa's candidature for the last finals but Germany ended up pipping them at the death.
While welcoming an English bid yesterday, Blatter provided more information on the imminent jettisoning of the much-criticised rotation policy for World Cup hosting. After previous rumours abounded that the previous two host confederations would be prevented from bidding, yesterday Blatter said that only the immediately previous confederation would be exempt. This would mean any country could bid every three tournaments to host the event.
Apart from speaking on World Cup matters, the FIFA President attended a service in Sheffield Cathedral to commemorate 150 years of Sheffield FC, the world's oldest existing football club. Blatter also unveiled a bust of co-founder William Prest, who with Nathaniel Creswick, started a worldwide revolution.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile.
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Friday, October 12, 2007
Blatter U-turns on World Cup rotation
FIFA President Sepp Blatter has signalled that the policy of World Cup rotation is about to be ditched.
Speaking to the BBC, Blatter admitted he would welcome England bidding for 2018, a tournament which under the present model, should be held in North or Central America.
"I am advocating we open the market," said Blatter. Back in May, he described rotation as "a milestone", speaking to FIFA delegates in Zurich, while only a month ago, announced that a final decision on rotation with regard to 2018 would come at the end of October.
With 2010 going to (South) Africa and 2014 to South America (Brazil), Europe's next turn would not have been in 2018 (CONCACAF) but in 2022, a ridiculously long wait for that continent's front runner, England.
Given the concentration of money, power, media and fan interest in European football, it seems brave, or foolhardy, to award it the tournament only once every 24 years (there are six FIFA regions).
The traditional system of alternating from Europe to South America was ripe for reform with the global spread of the game and now Japan/Korea, South Africa and the USA have all hosted, or are about to host, the sport's showpiece event.
Outside of the traditional power bases, Australia and China could both mount serious bids before long, but political worries will probably keep the Islamic world, in the form of Morocco and Egypt, excluded for the foreseeable future. The USA is also determined to host the World Cup again after the success of 1994, the the swathe of impressive new American stadia and the arrival of David Beckham to MLS. Mexico, too, is interested in hosting its third World Cup.
It is therefore, unquestionably the world's cup, yet any change to the traditional Atlantic alteration should not be so rigid as FIFA's rotation system. Four years is a long time to wait and in a continent like Europe where England, Russia, Spain, Italy and Holland & Belgium are all itching to host the World Cup, a possible wait of half a century is too long for any country.
Rotation was never fully explained - does Oceania or CONCACAF has as much right to host the World Cup as Europe? , never universally accepted by the football world and was only rushed in as a response to Germany sensationally snatching the 2006 tournament from the heavily Blatter-endorsed South Africa by the narrowest of margins (Oceania's Charles Dempsey abstained on the final vote).
Brazil had a shoe-in for 2014 because South America had not hosted the event since Argentina in 1978.
Brazil and its decrepit stadia and infrastructure is far from ready to host the World Cup however, a fact which swayed Blatter to renege on one of his favourite pet policies.
After Colombia and Argentina withdrew, the one-horse race south of the equator illuminated a flaw in the rotation system if the only contender is manifestly unable to host the month-long show.
"We are not in a very comfortable situation in South America," admitted the FIFA President.
"It is better to have three or four associations trying to get the number one competition of the world."
Rumours abound that a new system will prevent only the previous two host regions from applying, reducing the minimum wait for any country to 12 years.
It should be remembered of course that the FIFA Executive committee and not Blatter ratifies policy and CONCACAF's controversial Jack Warner for one is against any change to the status quo.
However, the days of the half-baked, hasty and unconvincing rotation system are now clearly numbered.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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Speaking to the BBC, Blatter admitted he would welcome England bidding for 2018, a tournament which under the present model, should be held in North or Central America.
"I am advocating we open the market," said Blatter. Back in May, he described rotation as "a milestone", speaking to FIFA delegates in Zurich, while only a month ago, announced that a final decision on rotation with regard to 2018 would come at the end of October.
With 2010 going to (South) Africa and 2014 to South America (Brazil), Europe's next turn would not have been in 2018 (CONCACAF) but in 2022, a ridiculously long wait for that continent's front runner, England.
Given the concentration of money, power, media and fan interest in European football, it seems brave, or foolhardy, to award it the tournament only once every 24 years (there are six FIFA regions).
The traditional system of alternating from Europe to South America was ripe for reform with the global spread of the game and now Japan/Korea, South Africa and the USA have all hosted, or are about to host, the sport's showpiece event.
Outside of the traditional power bases, Australia and China could both mount serious bids before long, but political worries will probably keep the Islamic world, in the form of Morocco and Egypt, excluded for the foreseeable future. The USA is also determined to host the World Cup again after the success of 1994, the the swathe of impressive new American stadia and the arrival of David Beckham to MLS. Mexico, too, is interested in hosting its third World Cup.
It is therefore, unquestionably the world's cup, yet any change to the traditional Atlantic alteration should not be so rigid as FIFA's rotation system. Four years is a long time to wait and in a continent like Europe where England, Russia, Spain, Italy and Holland & Belgium are all itching to host the World Cup, a possible wait of half a century is too long for any country.
Rotation was never fully explained - does Oceania or CONCACAF has as much right to host the World Cup as Europe? , never universally accepted by the football world and was only rushed in as a response to Germany sensationally snatching the 2006 tournament from the heavily Blatter-endorsed South Africa by the narrowest of margins (Oceania's Charles Dempsey abstained on the final vote).
Brazil had a shoe-in for 2014 because South America had not hosted the event since Argentina in 1978.
Brazil and its decrepit stadia and infrastructure is far from ready to host the World Cup however, a fact which swayed Blatter to renege on one of his favourite pet policies.
After Colombia and Argentina withdrew, the one-horse race south of the equator illuminated a flaw in the rotation system if the only contender is manifestly unable to host the month-long show.
"We are not in a very comfortable situation in South America," admitted the FIFA President.
"It is better to have three or four associations trying to get the number one competition of the world."
Rumours abound that a new system will prevent only the previous two host regions from applying, reducing the minimum wait for any country to 12 years.
It should be remembered of course that the FIFA Executive committee and not Blatter ratifies policy and CONCACAF's controversial Jack Warner for one is against any change to the status quo.
However, the days of the half-baked, hasty and unconvincing rotation system are now clearly numbered.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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Monday, April 30, 2007
South Africa World Cup doubts grow
FIFA President Sepp Blatter has increased the doubts surrounding South Africa's ability to host the World Cup in three years' time by admitting the world governing body has back-up countries in place, should the hosts fail to be ready in time.
England, Spain, Japan and the USA are the reserve hosts, according to Blatter in an interview with the BBC, but only "a natural catastrophe" will derail the African World Cup. England and the USA have already announced their intention to bid for the 2018 finals.
Blatter openly backed the South African bid for both 2006 and 2010, and recently referred to it as "a moral obligation", mindful of the continent's votes which got him elected, but only last year he expressed concern that the construction of the ten new or renovated stadia was behind schedule.
CEO of the organising committee Danny Jordaan and South African President Thabo Mbeki both insisted in late 2006 that all was well and that their nation was ahead of Germany at a comparable stage before the finals, but despite the constant assurances, controversy continues to dog the South African hosting.
While the stadium construction issue remains, many observers are repeating concerns about the transport and hotel infrastructure and the perennial Achilles' heel of South Africa, crime.
For now, FIFA & South Africa are steaming ahead, and with Blatter having staked his presidency on an African bid since long ago, it would be a major surprise if South Africa didn't end up hosting the finals, despite all the fears.
Amongst the new arenas under construction is the rebuilt 104,000 capacity Soccer City stadium near Soweto, Johannesburg, venue for the final in 2010.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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England, Spain, Japan and the USA are the reserve hosts, according to Blatter in an interview with the BBC, but only "a natural catastrophe" will derail the African World Cup. England and the USA have already announced their intention to bid for the 2018 finals.
Blatter openly backed the South African bid for both 2006 and 2010, and recently referred to it as "a moral obligation", mindful of the continent's votes which got him elected, but only last year he expressed concern that the construction of the ten new or renovated stadia was behind schedule.
CEO of the organising committee Danny Jordaan and South African President Thabo Mbeki both insisted in late 2006 that all was well and that their nation was ahead of Germany at a comparable stage before the finals, but despite the constant assurances, controversy continues to dog the South African hosting.
While the stadium construction issue remains, many observers are repeating concerns about the transport and hotel infrastructure and the perennial Achilles' heel of South Africa, crime.
For now, FIFA & South Africa are steaming ahead, and with Blatter having staked his presidency on an African bid since long ago, it would be a major surprise if South Africa didn't end up hosting the finals, despite all the fears.
Amongst the new arenas under construction is the rebuilt 104,000 capacity Soccer City stadium near Soweto, Johannesburg, venue for the final in 2010.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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Monday, July 10, 2006
Why You Must Go in 2010
There are two broad types of fans, those who attend matches in the flesh and those who don't. OK, it is impossible to get tickets these days to Premiership games so one is forced back into the armchair with the remote control and a PC to mull over the media coverage of the sport.
But there is a third type and that is the fan who travels to away games but not the match. A scarce species in the domestic game and at qualifiers but found in huge numbers (e.g. 80,000 English fans in Cologne) at a World Cup or European Championship Finals.
What made this World Cup for me were the legions of travelling fans, the vast majority without a cat's chance in hell of a ticket, who came to the host country to cheer their team alongside thousands of others in the same boat. Previously travelling to a World Cup entailed having a ticket or attempting to obtain one, but no longer.
If someone says they are going to a World Cup now one automatically does not assume it is to get inside the stadium, or even near the host city.
This has been a phenomenon I have only noticed previously with Welsh rugby fans, who, when the dragons are playing in Dublin for instance, will travel to a random Irish city to watch the game and then sail home the day after.
At this World Cup I witnessed several such 'odd' gatherings such as legions of Croatian fans, bedecked in their tablecloth flag and with replica shirts, scarves and face paint on the occasion of their nation's match with Brazil in Berlin, but they were stood in front of a big screen in Hamburg.
Some of the best fans left the tournament too early - the Australians, Koreans, Polish and Dutch and once again it was confirmed to me how the fun level diminishes after the first round.
It really was a supporter's World Cup, as the fan fests confirmed. Let's face it the footy wasn't that memorable. Take away Italy's classy execution of the host nation in Dortmund, Zidane's thuggish au revoir to the sport and that Argentina goal against Serbia that let every man on the field plus the groundsman and a few ball-boys have a touch before it crossed the line and it was not a WC to remember on the field.
Australia's comeback against Japan was somewhat memorable, as was Custer's last stand when a nine-man USA held off the eventual winners Italy, plus the card-fest of Portugal v Holland but overall it was more an Italia 90 than a Spain 82.
There were no Cameroons of 1990 or South Koreas of 2002. Only T&T's draw with Sweden had a whiff of the plucky underdog heroism we eagerly anticipate each World Cup. And Zidane apart, whom we knew rather well already, were there any real stars to savour this time?
But if you had been there you would have come away beaming at the memories. For me it was Japanese & Trinidadians in Frankfurt, Tunisians in Stuttgart, Spanish in Cologne and Germans in Munich. And some of those were on days when their countries were not playing there.
Forget the expense, the corporate takeover, the disappointing games and travel headaches, there really is nothing compared to attending a World Cup Finals in person. Once you get the bug your life will come to be defined by four-yearly cycles. I met a man at his eleventh WC for instance, and I am sure he was not alone. He was not a nerd either, but an apparently normal guy with a wife, kids and career.
You might need a bullet-proof jacket for 2010 if the scare-stories are correct but what the heck, paint it in your national colours and come along. A television in your own country is simply no comparison.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
But there is a third type and that is the fan who travels to away games but not the match. A scarce species in the domestic game and at qualifiers but found in huge numbers (e.g. 80,000 English fans in Cologne) at a World Cup or European Championship Finals.
What made this World Cup for me were the legions of travelling fans, the vast majority without a cat's chance in hell of a ticket, who came to the host country to cheer their team alongside thousands of others in the same boat. Previously travelling to a World Cup entailed having a ticket or attempting to obtain one, but no longer.
If someone says they are going to a World Cup now one automatically does not assume it is to get inside the stadium, or even near the host city.
This has been a phenomenon I have only noticed previously with Welsh rugby fans, who, when the dragons are playing in Dublin for instance, will travel to a random Irish city to watch the game and then sail home the day after.
At this World Cup I witnessed several such 'odd' gatherings such as legions of Croatian fans, bedecked in their tablecloth flag and with replica shirts, scarves and face paint on the occasion of their nation's match with Brazil in Berlin, but they were stood in front of a big screen in Hamburg.
Some of the best fans left the tournament too early - the Australians, Koreans, Polish and Dutch and once again it was confirmed to me how the fun level diminishes after the first round.
It really was a supporter's World Cup, as the fan fests confirmed. Let's face it the footy wasn't that memorable. Take away Italy's classy execution of the host nation in Dortmund, Zidane's thuggish au revoir to the sport and that Argentina goal against Serbia that let every man on the field plus the groundsman and a few ball-boys have a touch before it crossed the line and it was not a WC to remember on the field.
Australia's comeback against Japan was somewhat memorable, as was Custer's last stand when a nine-man USA held off the eventual winners Italy, plus the card-fest of Portugal v Holland but overall it was more an Italia 90 than a Spain 82.
There were no Cameroons of 1990 or South Koreas of 2002. Only T&T's draw with Sweden had a whiff of the plucky underdog heroism we eagerly anticipate each World Cup. And Zidane apart, whom we knew rather well already, were there any real stars to savour this time?
But if you had been there you would have come away beaming at the memories. For me it was Japanese & Trinidadians in Frankfurt, Tunisians in Stuttgart, Spanish in Cologne and Germans in Munich. And some of those were on days when their countries were not playing there.
Forget the expense, the corporate takeover, the disappointing games and travel headaches, there really is nothing compared to attending a World Cup Finals in person. Once you get the bug your life will come to be defined by four-yearly cycles. I met a man at his eleventh WC for instance, and I am sure he was not alone. He was not a nerd either, but an apparently normal guy with a wife, kids and career.
You might need a bullet-proof jacket for 2010 if the scare-stories are correct but what the heck, paint it in your national colours and come along. A television in your own country is simply no comparison.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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