18.11.09

I had initially planned to make some predictions before the first legs of these playoff matches at the weekend, but what with my busy schedule I didn’t have chance to. Intriguingly though, each and every tie is delicately poised and could easily go either way when all is said and done later on tonight. Playoffs are always hard to call, they’re essentially like Cup Finals and form goes out the window but I had NZ down to beat Bahrain by one goal (though I’ll admit, I’d picked 2-1) so let’s see what I can do…
European Qualifying Playoffs
Bosnia-Hercegovina vs. Portugal (agg. 0-1)
Portugal were certainly the favourites going into this playoff tie despite a stuttering qualification campaign that saw them limp into second place, they have enough quality in their side to be a real force if they make it to the World Cup. Bosnia are looking to make it to their first World Cup and as is so often the case with nations recently affected by civil war, the national side carries the hopes of the nation with them. They’re also quite technically gifted though and if the home fans can provide a threatening atmosphere they’ll trouble a fragile Portuguese outfit. I think Portugal will probably get a crucial away goal though and make it to South Africa.
Prediction: 1-1 (agg. 1-2).
Click through for the rest of the playoff predictions…
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European Football, Internationals, World Football | Tagged: 2010, Algeria, Bosnia, Egypt, Football, France, Greece, Ireland, Playoffs, Portugal, Qualifiers, Russia, Slovenia, Soccer, Ukraine, World Cup |
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Posted by A. Howard
27.10.09

Beckham flourished during his last stint in Milan, will he do so again?
So AC Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani has assured the world that the loan deal to take David Beckham back to the red half of the San Siro in January is “100% done” and “The only thing missing is the signatures” which simultaneously confirms that he’s lying (let’s face it, unless it’s signed and sealed, it isn’t 100% done) and that David Beckham will almost certainly be part of England’s World Cup squad in South Africa next year.
He’s proven popular as a squad member during Fabio Capello’s time in charge of the three lions but because of the Italian’s reluctance to take a player plying his trade in the sub-European standard MLS to a World Cup there was still a chance that Beckham could miss out. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that a move to Milan was the only way that Beckham could give himself a really good chance of being included – a much talked about Premier League return could actually have harmed his chances.
Click through to find out why…
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English Football, European Football, Internationals, World Football | Tagged: 2010, AC Milan, David Beckham, England, Fabio Capello, LA Galaxy, South Africa, World Cup |
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Posted by A. Howard
18.09.09

Will Everton's new star 'Bily' help Russia shine in South Africa?
After a full midweek’s worth of Champions and Europa League action, we should have plenty to talk about. Unfortunately, most matches involving English sides went… pretty much as planned. Still, I’ve drawn a couple of conclusions from this little lot of results, do let me know what you think…
1. Russia are going to have a cracking World Cup.
We all remember just how well Russia played at Euro 2008. I watched an awful lot of that tournament when I wasn’t moping around and wishing England were there, and the Russians were brilliant. Not only were they technically good, but they just seemed to run and run and run and then, for a change, run some more. They work incredibly hard, have great discipline and are a very effective team. Plus, they were managed by Mr. Magic himself, Guus Hiddink.
Click through for the rest of this, plus two more conclusions…
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Champions League, Europa League, European Football | Tagged: AEK Athens, Andrei Arshavin, Arsenal, Champions League, Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, Europa League, Everton, Felipe Melo, Football, Patrick Vieira, Russia, Soccer, Standard Liege, World Cup |
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Posted by A. Howard
27.07.09

Will Zlatan upset Barca's apple cart?
Does anyone else think that Barcelona have negotiated a really poor deal for Zlatan Ibrahimovic? Zlatan is a player that has always and will always divide opinion – some say he’s the best in the world, some say he’s terribly ineffectual. I count myself among the latter camp, however you can’t argue with his domestic scoring record, and his technical ability is second to very few. However, I don’t think anyone would really have thought he was worth Samuel Eto’o plus Alexander Hleb for a season plus about £40m. It’s obscene.
However, even if you did value Ibrahimovic that highly, there is also the question of just why Barca want to sign him in the first place. One can argue that you can never have too many quality players, but that may not be the case. Manchester City have too many strikers and the first Galacticos proved that too many superstars will ruin any team, with Madrid maybe about to re-prove that point this time around. Barca were the best team on the planet last season, so what does Ibrahimovic add to the equation?
To me, it just doesn’t quite seem to add up, click through for more…
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European Football | Tagged: Alexander, Barca, Barcelona, Eto'o, Football, Galactico, Hleb, Ibrahimovic, Madrid, Real, Samuel, Soccer, Transfers, Zlatan |
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Posted by A. Howard