Posts Tagged ‘World Cup’

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Where Italy Will Look For The Next World Cup

Saturday, August 28th, 2010

Italian Marcelo Lippi has faced a number of soccer pundit jokes this season due to the age of his team.  The Italian team is undoubtedly old, with 30-year old Vincenzo Iaquinta, 31 year-old Andrea Pirlo, 32 year olds Gianluigi Buffon, Gennaro Guttuso, and Antonio Di Natale, 33 year-olds Mauro Camoranesi and Gianluca Zambrotta, and 36-year old Fabio Cannavaro all likely to have to be replaced by Lippi or Azzuri’s next manager by the Brazilian World Cup in 2014.

Lorenzo De Silvestri    Defender     (Fiorentina)    Aged 22
De Silvestri, a former full back for Lazio, is slightly over six feet tall.  After a 2009 move to Fiorentina, De Silvestri has exemplified the form that set him apart whilst playing for Italy’s U16 and U21 teams. A marauding, powerful full back, he gets forward well and looks to be a possible long term replacement for Gianluca Zambrotta in the national team.

Davide Santon        Defender    (Inter)        Aged 19
Able to play down either flank, Santon is a hugely talented young defender who made 28 appearances for Inter this season as well as five appearances already for the Azzuri. Santon’s energy is boundless; his energy on the pitch has earned him a comparison to Paolo Maldini by Italian head coach Marcelo Lippi. We can expect to see the immensely talented Santon in the Italy’s next few squads for major finals events.

Mario Balotelli        (Striker)    (Inter)        Aged 19
  Mario Batelli, though prone to fights and poor sportsmanship, may be one of the best attackers or wingers wearing the Italy soccer apparel in upcoming games.  Despite his tender years and numerous run ins with fans and management at Inter, Balotelli has scored an impressive 20 goals in 59 games and has notched 6 in 16 for the Italian U21 side. Batelli is sure to see the Euro 2012 qualifiers, when the Italian team will be looking for a new strike force.

Federico Macheda    (Striker)    (Man Utd)    Aged 18
Although he has yet to make the first team on a regular basis at Old Trafford, the signs are promising that Manchester United’s talented striker could have a big 2010-2011 season and perhaps even force his way into the thoughts of the Azzuri management team. Macheda is a strong, intelligent striker, who has an eye for goal. His particular talent is scoring with his back to the goal, and he has been capped at U21 for Italy; if Macheda makes a difference in the first team for United, he should end up with a spot on the Italian national squad.

Antonio Candreva    (Midfielder)    Udinese    Aged 23
Candreva just may be the only replacement for Italy’s great Andrea Pirlo. The Udinese midfielder follows in the footsteps of Pirlo’s creative play, owning any position on the midfield.

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Where Italy Will Look For The Next World Cup

Monday, August 9th, 2010

Italian Marcelo Lippi has faced a number of soccer pundit jokes this season due to the age of his team.  The Italian team is undoubtedly old, with 30-year old Vincenzo Iaquinta, 31 year-old Andrea Pirlo, 32 year olds Gianluigi Buffon, Gennaro Guttuso, and Antonio Di Natale, 33 year-olds Mauro Camoranesi and Gianluca Zambrotta, and 36-year old Fabio Cannavaro all likely to have to be replaced by Lippi or Azzuri’s next manager by the Brazilian World Cup in 2014.

Lorenzo De Silvestri    Defender     (Fiorentina)    Aged 22
De Silvestri, a former full back for Lazio, is slightly over six feet tall.  After a 2009 move to Fiorentina, De Silvestri has exemplified the form that set him apart whilst playing for Italy’s U16 and U21 teams. A marauding, powerful full back, he gets forward well and looks to be a possible long term replacement for Gianluca Zambrotta in the national team.

Davide Santon        Defender    (Inter)        Aged 19
Able to play down either flank, Santon is a hugely talented young defender who made 28 appearances for Inter this season as well as five appearances already for the Azzuri. Santon’s energy is boundless; his energy on the pitch has earned him a comparison to Paolo Maldini by Italian head coach Marcelo Lippi. We can expect to see the immensely talented Santon in the Italy’s next few squads for major finals events.

Mario Balotelli        (Striker)    (Inter)        Aged 19
  Mario Batelli, though prone to fights and poor sportsmanship, may be one of the best attackers or wingers wearing the Italy soccer apparel in upcoming games.  Despite his tender years and numerous run ins with fans and management at Inter, Balotelli has scored an impressive 20 goals in 59 games and has notched 6 in 16 for the Italian U21 side. Batelli is sure to see the Euro 2012 qualifiers, when the Italian team will be looking for a new strike force.

Federico Macheda    (Striker)    (Man Utd)    Aged 18
Although he has yet to make the first team on a regular basis at Old Trafford, the signs are promising that Manchester United’s talented striker could have a big 2010-2011 season and perhaps even force his way into the thoughts of the Azzuri management team. Macheda is a strong, intelligent striker, who has an eye for goal. His particular talent is scoring with his back to the goal, and he has been capped at U21 for Italy; if Macheda makes a difference in the first team for United, he should end up with a spot on the Italian national squad.

Antonio Candreva    (Midfielder)    Udinese    Aged 23
Candreva just may be the only replacement for Italy’s great Andrea Pirlo. The Udinese midfielder follows in the footsteps of Pirlo’s creative play, owning any position on the midfield.

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Who To Watch For In The Future

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

With the 2010 World Cup finals well on the way, several of England’s players may be facing their last chance to win.   By the time the 2014 Brazilian World Cup finals roll around, John Terry Gareth Barry, Rio Ferdinand Steven Gerrard, Ashley Cole, Frank Lambert David Beckham and David James will all be well into their thirties so the team will be oh so different. 

Who is going to replace England’s greats in the next few years? Some likely replacements include…

Joe Hart    (Manchester City, Goalkeeper) – Joe Hart has made a name for himself at Birmingham, where he has been on loan, and is enjoying status as a third choice goalkeeper to be used in the finals.  Hart may find himself at first goalkeeper status as James nears 40 and Green fails to perform, especially if he makes his way into the first team at Manchester city or that of another large Premier league club. When he does, it may be some time before England are looking for a new number 1.


Kieran Gibbs    (Arsenal, Defender) – Gibbs may have been injured at Arsenal, stunting his career, but the left sided defender is expected to make an outstanding come back.    Gibbs, who has the astounding reputation of being able to play successfully anywhere on the left flank, will improve in years to come.  Clichy can expect to be pushed hard for a spot on the Arsenal team next season and Gibbs is expected to join the ranks of the national team soon. 

Jonjo Shelvey    (Liverpool, Midfielder) – Shelvey, experts agree, maybe the only one who could replace Steven Gerrard for both Liverpool and England national team.  The 17-year-old Shelvey might need a couple of years to advance through the levels at Anfield, but he could end up being as useful to England’s national team and Liverpool as Gerrard has.

Daniel Sturridge (Chelsea, Attacker) – Sturridge has found his progress hampered at Chelsea due to Anelka and Drogba’s partnership but the former Manchester City striker has immense potential.  we can expect to see Sturridge grow as he becomes a stronger player in the fiercer contributor for Chelsea in the next season, and he may even be expected to claim Anelka’s place on the team.    Still young and naive at times, he does have an unerring knack for goals and could prove to be a boon for both Chelsea and England.


Connor Wickham (Ipswich Town, Attacker) – Not heard of him? Wickham is a prodigious talent and is already being linked with a big money move to a Premiership giant, all at the tender age of 17. The attacker has become a big name on the first team at Portman Road, where he began playing shortly after turning sixteen.  It isn’t a case of if Wickham moves into the Premier League, simply when and for how much.

So, while this looks like being the final World Cup for many of Capello’s stars, it also heralds the start of an exciting future for many.

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USA Soccer’s Father Son Team

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

  For better or worse, manager-father, player-son teams are in it together. There are the somewhat tiresome claims of nepotism from those seeking to cause mischief.  Brian Clough, when he managed his son Nigel at Nottingham Forest, refused to even acknowledge him by his first name, simply referring to Nigel as “our Number 9”.    Contrary to popular belief, fathers who manage their sons might actually treat them more harshly than the rest of the team.  Manager fathers, it seems, may be far tougher on their offspring than they are on the majority of the team.   Whether trying not to give too much leeway or trying not to crack down too hard, managers face a problematic conundrum.

Not that this will be a problem for Bob Bradley and his son Michael during this summer’s World Cup Finals in South Africa.  One exception to the rule seems to be the Bradley family, US Coach Bob Bradley and his son Michael, who will compete in the World Cup Finals together this summer in South Africa.

Bob welcomed his son into the world while working as the coach of the Princeton University soccer team.   When Michael was young, his father received a position coaching the MLS Chicago Fire,  and Michael was raised in Palatine, gaining a love for the game that rivalled that of his father.  After Bob gained a position with the Chicago Fire, Michael grew up in Palatine, and began to enjoy the sport immensely.

Due to his excellence in the Junior leagues, Michael was drafted in the 2004 MLS Superdraft, the team which his father coached. During his first season as a professional in New York, Michael didn’t see any playing time, his year ruined by a problematic foot injury, but in his second full year at the club, both Bradley’s had an impact, Bob leading the team to the play offs, while Michael played in thirty of the thirty two games that season and headed his first goal for Metrostars in a vital win over Chivas USA, which put Metrostars into the play offs.

Bradley left the New York Metrostars in 2006, when he was sold to Holland’s SC Heereveen after making an impression on an international scale. Taking over the anchoring role in the team, Bradley made a quick impact at the Dutch side, playing an important role in leading the club to a place in the UEFA Cup and the following season, he added goals to his already impressive performances from midfield, scoring 20 goals in all competitions in season 2007-08.

Bigger clubs were soon sniffing around, Birmingham City wanted Bradley in their soccer jersey, but their relegation from the Premier League scuppered any chance of a deal. Borussia Moenchengladbach instead snapped up the midfielder and he has become a regular player for the German side, playing 58 times in the Bundesliga and scoring 7 goals.

Michael Bradley’s success so far exceeded expectations that most took it for granted that he would be promoted to the National Team (and he was). When his father Bob became coach in late 2006, Michael had already made his first appearance and under his father, Michael has become a key man at the heart of the US midfield, with his intelligent play and clever passing key in allowing more offensive players like Landon Donovan free reign to get forward.

The family connection will be central to the US team once again this summer and for both members of the Bradley family, it looks like being an African summer to remember, hopefully for the right reasons.

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Why The Premier League Is Ruining England’s Chances

Monday, June 14th, 2010

Just days before the World Cup starts and Rio Ferdinand, Manchester United and England captain, has been ruled out of the competition after sustaining a knee ligament injury during training.

 

Many people may put this down to bad luck.   Ferdinand’s injuries are alternately cited as the result of poor attention to prior injuries, and the outcome of a long and unwelcome injury jinx in which players are hurt directly before finals.

I don’t hold with these black magic theories and prefer to believe that the reason that so many players on the brink of wearing the England home jersey is down to one thing and one thing alone, the sheer intensity and the volume of matches that the top English (and those from other countries playing in the Premier League) are forced to play in an average season.

If you are playing for a top side, who have qualified for Europe, then you can expect to participating in four competitions each season.  The Premier League, The Champions League or Europa Cup, The FA Cup and the Carling Cup.   This list doesn’t include any of the pre- and post-season games that occur in a season, or the number of pre-season friendlies in which a team can participate.

Then there is the speed and intensity of the game in England. Whereas on the continent the game is often played in a more stop/start fashion, in England it is often full blood from the first whistle and played at a speed and pace which makes injuries inevitable.  A number of top players are known to engage in between forty and fifty difficult games in a single season, plus training.

The workload is immense and the toll comes on the player’s body. Injuries are unavoidable with this kind of consistent strain.

Look at England’s current squad. We’ve already had to lament the loss of Rio Ferdinand, Bobby Zamora, Owen Hargreaves, and Michael Owen from the World Cup tournament, a very sad fact, considering that they are all great players. Capello eliminated Theo Wolcott After his game performance suffered due to an injured shoulder that he sustained in 2008 match against Stroke. 

The players on the team that are fit, didn’t get that way easily Ledley King needs specialist training to keep his knees in prime condition. Other recovering athletes with injuries this season include Steven Gerard, and Joe Cole, Ashley Cole, Aaron Lennon, Glen Johnson, Wayne Rooney and David James. People like Gareth Barry will be missing the first game of the World Cup finals against the United States.  Soccer hero David Beckham finally had to call it quits after an Achilles injury pushed him out of the playing squad for the finals.

It’s an odd quirk of fate that our love of the game in England, our thirst and desire for big games at a quicker pace, more often, is seemingly at odds with the ability to produce that which almost all England fans craves more than anything else: A second World Cup winning team.

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