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Greetings footiecall faithful.

International break, done and dusted. Back to the business of league football.

Before we get there though, 

This article suggests that Gordon Igesund will be looking to a few 'foreign-based' Saffers to further strengthen his squad. Players who were born in RSA, but who have never worn the colours of Bafana Bafana...some of these players may even have opted to play for their new 'home' countries before.

The news made me cast my mind back to that French national side of '98. So many in that side were of African descent. Marcel Desailly [Ghana], Patrick Vieira [Senegal], Zinedine Zidane [Algeria] etc...

There is a bit of a back story to Desailly though. Adopted by a French diplomat, who would marry his mother...Odenke Abbey was just 4years old when he arrived in France 
[and subsequently changed his name to Marcel Desailly]

Les Bleus have been benefiting from Africa for many years though, we can go as far back as Jean Tigana, a fantastic talent, who could have chosen Mali over France...or further yet to Just Fontaine, one of the finest marksmen the game has seen, who was born in Morocco. 

Besides their 'World XI' winning team of '98, they've relied on neighbours for other talent too. Raymond Kopa [Poland], Michel Platini [Italy] and Robert Pires [Portugal].

Of course, France is not the only nation to benefit from "forced" movements of our African brothers and sisters, seeking a better life in these 1st World countries.

Independent tests prove that 3 of 4 Dutch players come from Suriname

Quite interesting to look at the amount of players Holland have 'grabbed' from their former colony Suriname
Davids, Bogarde, Hasselbaink, Kluivert, Seedorf, Winter and Rijkaard to name a few...

Portugal have also drawn strength from their colonial links to Mozambique...their greatest 'import' is certainly Eusebio, while the little maestro Deco hails from Brasil [so too Pepe].


Now then to ze Germans. It's well known that Jerome  Boateng has chosen his new home Germany as the country he wants to represent, while his brother Kevin-Prince Boateng is more than happy to don the colours of the Black Stars.
There are also a few Polish lads running out for Die Mannschaft, Poldi, Klose and also Trochowski of the current crop.
Then there are those who are ethnically Turkish, like Mesut Ozil and Serdar Tasci...
So naturalisation has happened for many years and continues to be the order of the day.

What are your thoughts on this? 


Should players be allowed to choose their allegiance based on length of stay, where they feel most comfortable and/or the football jersey that fits better?!




After all...HOME, is where the heart is.

Which league dominates the UEFA Champions League?

Last season I noticed an increasing feeling on social media platforms and amongst the tv pundits, that La Liga is the best performing league playing in the UEFA Champions League. Now in the past few years with Barcelona dominating, it can be understood. Yet if you took a look at Real Madrid’s past few years in the UCL, you’d notice that they were rather disappointing. I decided to go back into the record books and see which league really does dominate the Champions League.

As a kid growing up in the early 90’s, Serie A was the dominant force in Europe. It was clear to see in this competition too, with a Serie A club involved in every final for 7 straight years: 1992-1998.

Although the Champions League was rebranded in 1992, it didn’t resemble the current tournament until the 1997-98 season. This was the first season where teams could enter the UCL without the need to win their league.  In my research I aim to see which league is consistently in the final KO rounds of the UCL and if 1 league has more than 1 team, they get more than 1 point. So to keep everything as fair as possible, here were my guidelines for this test:

• I’ve taken the date range from 1997/98 – 2011/12
• I consider teams in the QF stage and onwards only (final KO rounds)
• 1 point per team
• I’ve only taken into account the top leagues:
• EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Primeira Liga, Eredevisie

Quarter-final stage

So let’s see who really does dominate the Champions League as we know it. The consensus seems to be La Liga, but let’s see who’s dominated the past 15 years of the QF stage:

Over the past 15 seasons, the English Premier League has been an ever-present in the quarter-final stage. Aside from that, they’ve made a total of 32 appearances at this stage. This is more important since it is a reflection of the strength of the league. An example is the 2007/08 & 2008/09 seasons which both had 4 EPL teams reach the QF stage. That’s 8 appearances in the QF over 2 years for the EPL. No other league has had 4 teams from their league in the QF at this stage, yet the EPL managed it in 2 consecutive seasons. La Liga trails in this regard with 27 appearances over 15 seasons.

Semi-final stage

It has to be said that the QF stage of the Champions League has been dominated by the EPL teams for nearly 2 decades, but if we think about the Semi-Finals over the past few years, one team springs to mind – Barcelona. An ever-present for half a decade in the semi’s, and possibly the main reason many believe La Liga to be stronger in Europe. It’s quite true though. The last time Barca failed to reach the SF stage was 6 seasons back. They are clearly the best team in Europe based on UEFA coefficients. But what about the rest of La Liga?

Even though the past 6 seasons saw 11 appearances by EPL teams in the semi’s against the 9 from La Liga, the Spanish league pips the Premier League since the EPL made most of their SF appearances in the past few years.

One of the most striking facts one can take from this table is the gulf between the EPL/La Liga teams when compared against the rest of the European Leagues. None of the other leagues have made 10 appearances at this stage, yet the EPL & La Liga might make their 19^th & 20^th appearance this season if more than 1 team reaches the SF. It speaks volumes as to why many foreign players are choosing the EPL & La Liga over Bundesliga & especially Serie A. There seems to be more chance of glory in those 2 leagues.

Having said that, there has been a Bundesliga team in the semi’s for the past 3 seasons. Italy’s last appearance in the semi’s – 2009/10. In fact, out of the past 15 seasons, a Serie A team has only been present in 7 of those 15 tournaments at this stage. And what of the Eredivisie? 1 appearance in the semi’s in 15 seasons? It’s little wonder that the youth of Ajax choose to move to the giants of Europe.

Of all of these numbers & figures, the 3 year stretch by the EPL between 2006 & 2009, has to be the most impressive. 3 EPL teams reached the semi’s 3 years in a row. 9 appearances in 3 seasons.

La Liga takes the prize for the best semi-finalists, edging out the EPL for now at least.

Finals

It’s very easy to count who has won the most titles over 15 years, but dominance doesn’t always result in titles. Chelsea vs Barcelona/Bayern last season. The dominant team didn’t win. Simply reaching the finals is a massive achievement. Things can go wrong within the game, but reaching the final is no accident. Having said that, which league has had the most appearances in the Final since 1997/98?

The EPL slightly edges La Liga, having made 9 appearances in the finals over 15 years. The graph roughly states that there’s currently over a 50% chance that a team from the EPL will reach the finals. However, if you look at their run before 2004, you’ll notice the stark contrast. Simply 1 final before 2004 – the famous 1999 victory from Manchester United. It clearly shows how far the EPL has come over the past decade. Over the past 8 seasons, there have been 8 appearances in the finals by an EPL team. That is ridiculously good. In comparison, the past 8 seasons have seen 3 finals from La Liga teams (all 3 appearances from Barcelona). La Liga had more of a presence in the finals in the years building up to the 2002 Galacticos victory.

Winners

La Liga has taken more UCL titles than any other league in Europe. Currently sitting on a 75% chance of victory if a La Liga team reaches the final. All 6 of the La Liga titles have been won by either Real Madrid or Barcelona, whereas 3 of the 4 EPL titles have been won by different teams. A shock to the Bundesliga (recently rewarded with 4 UCL spots) is their success rate over the past 15 seasons. 1 title (Bayern Munich). Even more worrying for the rest of Europe is that there have been no winners over the past 8 years other than Serie A, La Liga & EPL. A total domination of titles shared amongst 3 leagues.

Bear in mind that all of these stats are taken from the 1997/98 season – 2011/12. The reason is that 1997/98 was the first season to invite other teams apart from the league winners. This means we can grade the league and not just 1 team from the league (as pre-1997/98 tournaments were structured). Since UEFA have invited more than just 1 EPL team into the UCL, I would venture to say that they have dominated. Using the tables above, we can take the following info:

This is a table based on presence – basically, who was there in the final stages over a period of 15 years. There has been more of a presence in the final stages by EPL teams rather than La Liga. The difference is that the La Liga teams go on to win the trophy when reaching the final. Well 6 out of 8 times, that is. At the end of the season, the winners are always remembered & rightfully so. Hopefully this article shows that the EPL in recent years has dominated. It also shows the vast gap between EPL & La Liga teams when compared to the rest of Europe.

Cheers.

@thembasweet 

Liverpool Crisis? Not one dam bit!

'Sup footie nuts? No premier league Football this weekend. How will we survive!? I know... Footiecall!

So Liverpool's current lack of strikers at the club is a worrying concern to all involved. Be it fans, coaches, journos and according to an open letter, the principal owner John Dubya Henry. I, like many, was left frustrated, angry, shocked and even embarrassed at our inactivity on the transfer deadline day (a pubic holiday in my life). Adding to this were rumours floating around that Liverpool were about to "put in a bid for almost everyone". Annoying to no end. There was even a point, when I was HOPING we had signed Clint Dempsey. We all know my feelings about him. I don't think (and still don't) that we need him. What we needed was a striker. Yup! An out and out striker. A goal scorer. We never got that. We never got anything. Not even a mean cup of instant coffee.

Waking up the morning after transfer deadline day, I felt shattered, gutted really that we embarrassingly missed out on Dempsey, Sturridge, Hunterlaar, Rob Sneijder and Bane from Batman. In my mind, Liverpool NEEDED a striker! I went so far to suggest that we should get Michael Owen. To possibly keep Henderson company on the bench. Yes, that's right. I was calling for Michael Judas Owen to come in and be our saviour. WHAT was I thinking!? Following the loss to Arsenal at Anfield. I made up my mind again, that a striker is needed. We are doomed for mid table AGAIN if we don't sort it out. Get Owen in BR!

However after the rage at the loss to Arsenal, I sat down, had some lavender tea and decided, "Let's think about Liverpool's options up front." This is what I came up with:

Realistically, we only have two first team forward men. Luis Can't close my mouth Suarez and Fabio I miss when I want Borini (more on him later). Liverpool have recently purchased an u/21 Yesil from Bayer Neverkusen. He was, however, bought with the intent of playing in the newly formed u/21 league. We do have three promising forward men in the reserve team though. Dani twitter freak Pacheco, Adam get me 10 000 followers Morgan and also Big Mike Ngoogle. Pacheco hasn't been a managers favourite since Rafa Benitez left Anfield for  unemployment. Kenny Dalglish? He wasn't British. And now Brendan Rodgers, who tried to send Pacheco on loan to some team outside the top two in La Liga. Anybody who isn't Brendan Rodgers, won't know the real reason why Pacheco is out of favour at Melwood. All we can do is speculate. And, if anything, Liverpool fans are GREAT at speculating. Embarrassingly so. Mike NGoogle hasn't really been tested in the first team. In fact, I'm not sure if he has played a competitive game for the first team. He has been prolific for the reserves though. So maybe he is worth a shout? Morgan, we have seen. He looks determined. Looks like he loves the crest on his chest. At 18 years old, he needs to be a bit more composed in the box. But that will come with more playing time in the first team. Here's a thought, put him on the bench and leave one of Carra, Kelly or Coates out of the match day team? With the lack of strikers, it makes much more sense to do that no? Yes.

Back to Borini. I always believe, that a striker's form shouldn't be judged on the chances he misses or converts. But rather, that the striker is in that position in the first place. If I had a striker in my team who wasn't scoring OR missing chances, I would be VERY worried. But with Borini, he has missed at least 3 sitters and 3 half chances this season. We can sit back and mock him for that. But just the fact that he was in a goal scoring position at least 6 times so far this season in league and cup competitions is at least some sort of positive to take out of this situation. He will score. He should be played up the middle. Like all strikers should.

Liverpool are NOT in any sort of crisis. We are a bit light up front (Leave the Suarez racism jokes alone) but a crisis? Almost entering into administration is a crisis. This... this is nothing.... this is Anfield...

Twitter - Give us a follow - @POTZ56

Golden Generation Rusting

Today's piece comes from a lover of the local game. He's a player himself, a coach & has SAFA badges to prove it! He's one of the few Cape Town residents who actually take the time to pay & watch the PSL. He's got a much more positive view on the local talent. Read below to see why -

While we start drooling over yet another Brazilian generation and what looks like it could be one of their best if not there best ever. Many of us south Africans are thinking when is our golden generation coming to save this country’s football from albatross? Do we even have the infrastructure and development plans in place to produce a golden generation? What if I told you South Africa had a serious chance at a medal in this football Olympics!! “Not possible” “we didn’t even qualify” that we didn’t qualify is not the lack of talent or the development excuse that every junior national team coach throws in the media’s face after yet another failed qualifying campaign neither is it the coach.  The sole blame lies with SAFA and their lack of vision in identifying a talented group of players. To give everyone an indication, South Africa have only qualified twice for the Fifa U-20 world cup, the first time was in 1997(a team containing McCarthy,fortune,etc) that team made up the core of the Olympic team in Sydney that shook the footballing world by beating a Brazilian team containing Ronaldinho,Adriano and Alex. This team of amaglug should have gone on to dominate the national team for years to come and bring us glory. That sadly was not the case due to reasons we all know(coaching changes no 1) the 2^nd time we qualified for the Fifa u 20 world cup was in 2009 where we lost out on progression from the group stages on goal difference. Now if you were in Safa`s shoes alarm bells should have been ringing. This team should have been earmarked for the Olympic qualifying campaign to lead us to only our 2^nd Olympics. How wrong we were, shakes Mashaba could not choose he’s best team for the last qualifying tournament where SAFA and the PSl were at each others throats over the release of certain players. Sanity eventually prevailed if you can call it that with Shakes Mashaba taking a 2^nd string team consisting of bench warmers and NFD players with just a few days preparation  but how different could it have been? Let me break this team down department by department to give everyone an indication of the wealth of talent that Shakes had at he’s disposal if SAFA had any vision at all.

Goalkeepers

This would be 1 of our strongest departments. We have Darren Keet who made his psl debut at 19 for Wits University and went on to cement his place as the number 1, resulting in a move overseas. He is currently plying his trade in Belgium’s top league for Kv Kortrik and is the clubs number 1, should be battling Khune for number 1 but a case of out of sight out of mind for SAFA! As backup there is Superports  Ronwen Williams who just won the absa young player of the year and forced former Bafana keeper Rowen Fernandez to play 2^nd fiddle to him. Showed tremendous maturity and has exponential potential testament to that is that he is the number 1 keeper at a big club at 20.(baby years in keeper terms) Brilliant Khuzwayho any keeper who the coach nicknames Cassilas must be worth having a look. Khuzwahyo was on loan at Thanda Royal Zulu where he skippered them to the brink of promotion where they narrowly lost out in the playoffs has recently been signed by Kaiser Chiefs where he will push Khune for the number 1 spot.

Right backs

Doctor Mampura skippered the u-23 team and is one of the best crosses in the psl. Mampura talents became noticed in Puk twana (Sundowns development team) run in the nedbank cup a few seasons back. Game time has been hard to come by at Sundowns as he is competing with u-23 teamate Ramahlwe Mphahlele who was the previous skipper of the u-23. Mphahlele debuted in the psl at 18 for Moroka Swallows and established himself as one of the best right backs in the psl. A very versatile player who can cover centre back and midfield. A big money offer was accepted by swallows and he is currently battling for game time resulting in a loan move to newly promoted Tuks. Thulani Hlatswayo nicknamed Tyson for he’s hard tackling and strength is a regular in Ajax ct back four played an influential role in Ajax 2^nd placed finish 2 seasons back and is one of few positives of Ajax ill-fated last campaign. Has been earmarked for a European move.

Left backs

Sundown’s Subusiso Khumalo a player blessed with incredible pace and extremely skilful concerns over he’s defensive capabilities have resulted in him struggling to get game time also having to compete with Bafana international Punch Masenamela for a starting place has limited he’s opportunities has been compared to brazils Marcelo. Bafana international Keegan Ritchie is eligible for selection too. The Kaiser Chiefs man is one of the best crosses and is a set piece specialist. Concerns has been raised over he’s pace but makes up with he’s reading and tough tackling and is extremely hard to beat one v one. There is backup in Ajax ct Aiden Jenniker and the versatile Thato Mokeke who’s best position is centre back but can fill the roles of dm and left back as well. The former Supersport man has played an integral part of Ajax ct last season and is a fantastic passer of the ball

Centre backs

The recent bidding war that erupted between Sundowns and Kaiser Chiefs over the services of Eric Mathoho. The much sought after centre back was in the psl team of the season plying he’s trade at Bloem Celtic. Tower as Mathoho is known combines physical presence with composure on the ball and fantastic aerial prowess. Was linked with numerous clubs in Europe before he decided to join Kaiser Chiefs in a big money deal. Tower is also a big threat from set pieces and has chipped him with he’s fair share of goals will be in the Bafana team for many years to come.

Siyanda Xulu a player who was a regular at Mamelodi Sundowns at 18 was on trail at Barcelona, Arsenal and Athletico Madrid. The latter having a bid rejected as it was deemed insufficient. Is now the mainstay of the Mamelodi backline and a European move is not too far off.

David Boysen has been a regular for Maritzburg united producing some sterling performances. The lanky defender has put in some sterling performances and he’s composure, ability to read the game and command in the air has him touted as a Bafana international

Thamsanqa Sangweni brother of Bafana and Orlando Pirates centre back Siyabonga is arguably the more talented brother played a sterling role in Amazulus success last season which resulted in a big money move to Sundowns. Is a generally a holding midfielder but has produced some brilliant performances at centre back blessed with the same composure as he’s older brother but looks to have the edge in passing ability. Packs a rocket of a shot. Has been placed in defence due to the quality possessed in midfield by this team

Central midfield

This is the department where we are spoilt for choice. This midfield could rival any in world football at the Olympics. Picking a starting 3 from these midfielders would have been tough for Mashaba if he had all of them available. These are our central midfielders.

Andile Jail a stalwart in Orlando Pirates midfield resulting in 2 treble winning seasons(enough said) not many a midfielder has won the battle over Gattuso as jail is known. Freakish energy, excellent in the tackle and a decent distributor. Has outgrown the psl and should be playing in Europe. A man to take with you to war!

George maluleke was the spine of Ajax ct for 2 seasons. Blessed with all the qualities of a box to box midfielder. Maluleke has recently been signed by Superport United after 2 fantastic seasons at Ajax ct where he was the team’s most consistent player.

Daylon Classens Has been touted for great things ever since he had a trial with real Madrid at 15. the former Ajax cape town player has been plying he’s trade in the Belgium league for SK Lierse and was voted club player of the year which has alerted QPR who are interested in signing the silky playmaker. How he is not a Bafana regular is the question everyone in Belgium has been asking!

Thulani Serrero the jewel in South Africa’s crown. The most talented player to come out of mzansi in many a year. The Ajax Amsterdam player left these shores in a big money move from Ajax Cape Town to mother club Ajax Amsterdam after a clean sweep in the individual player awards at the back end of the 2010/2011 season almost single handedly winning the psl title. Has found game time a bit difficult but this is due to the sensational form of Christian Ericksen who has been on the wanted list of almost every top club in Europe.

If a midfield 3 of jail, Classens and Serrero has you salivating. There is still a few more gems left none so than May Mahlangu. Displays in Sweden for Helsingborg sent shockwaves throughout South Africa. Here was an unknown South African player getting rave reviews in Sweden this resulted in him becoming the Swedish player of the year talks of Swedish citizenship being offered to Mahlangu to play for the Swedish national team were rumoured. Still no Bafana call up! Eventually Pitso yielded to the media and public and called him up to the Bafana national team. How the playmaker was not capped at junior level is a mystery to all and sundry!  Kamohelo Mokotjo is a currently plying he’s trade for Dutch super powers Feynoord played 22 games last season for feynoord can play in midfield or defence. Moktjie displays in midfield has led him to signing an extended contract (foreign players in Holland can not sign a contract for less than 550 000 euros per anum) this shows how highly rated mokotjo is. Yet another European player who fails to grab the attention to the bafflement of the feynoord technical team.  Thandani Nhshumayelo burst onto the scene in the 2008/2009 season winning the absa young player of the year. A starring role for Superport united for numerous seasons resulted in a big money move to Orlando Pirates.  Low centre of gravity results in him possessing incredible strength for he’s small statue, energy in abundance and fantastic passer of the ball are just some of the qualities possessed. For depth we have Jabulani Shongwe who is one of the most creative players in the psl and the versatile Michael Morton who has been a regular for wits and Maritzburg united for numerous seasons.

On the wings we are blessed with numerous game breakers and potential superstars none other than Masibusuane Zongo the most talented left footer this country has seen. Discipline problems has led to stagnation in he’s career after scintillating displays in he’s debut season resulted in a bid from none other than Tottenham Hotspurs. Rumours of he’s ill discipline led Tottenham to abandon the deal. Mind boggling balls skills along with an excellent end product was recently taken under the wing of Roger De Sa where he flourished for wits on loan towards the end of last season currently on the books of supersport where he has fallen out of favour with Gavin Hunt’s rigid style of coaching. Shameeg Doutie is a player who in the qualifying tournament was selected for the team of the tournament even tho amaglug performed dismally. One of the best crosses in South Africa. Doutie is your archetypal winger with pace to burn. After a big money move to pirates did not work out. A move to supersport worked out perfectly for the fleet footed winger who thrives under a more direct style. George Lebese has shown when given a chance for Kaiser Chiefs he is a very talented player has found opportunities limited due to him having to compete directly with Bafana incumbent Simphiwe Tshabalala. Lebese has shown over the past season he is more than capable and is one for the future. Mandla Masango is the former captain of the u-23 is a player that has all the attributes to become a star. Was just 19 when chiefs gave him he’s debut and big things were expected even given the nickname as the next Jabu Pule

Strikers

Upfront we have Kermit Erasmus one of the top goal scorers in the Fifa u 20 tournament in 2009 Erasmus was on the books of feynoord even before he played in the psl where he found opportunities limited. A loan deal to Sbv Excelsior yielded some success but the call of the Bafana selection resulted in a transfer back to supersport did not quite live up to expectations due to Gavin hunts direct style of football. The diminutive forward struggled as he was often played on the left of a midfield but showed glimpses of why he is so highly rated. Is still being rumoured for a European move.

Bogani Nduluda was the top goalscorerer in the Olympic qualifying campaign. Is seen as the future target man for Bafana Bafana. Ndudlula is on the books of Orlando pirates where he chipped in with a number of crucial goals. Ndudlula has a good first touch for a big boy and has shown composure in the box having to compete directly with mzansi finest striker McCarthy did not aid he’s development as he found opportunities limited.

Tokelo Rantjie scored he’s first Bafana goal in Bafana last game. Explosive pace and good finishing has led him to being an integral part of Orlando Pirates treble winning team. Rantjie was on loan from Hasslehom(Swedish league) but has a number of suitors after he’s services. A failed bid from pirates to buy him outright failed as was deemed insufficient. Has just recently been signed by Helsingborg.

Starting 11?

How they will line up in the starting 11? A 4 3 3! With the abundance of central midfield talent available. Keet would be in goal. Right back will be a tough call but would have to go with Hlasthwayo. Xulu and Mathoto would be the centre backs with Khumalo on the left. The midfield would be jail as defensive along with Classens as the box to box and Serrero in the hole behind a fluid front 3 of Rantjie Zongo and Erasmus who all have the ability to interchange. This team has everything pace and creativity lacks height in midfield and the wingbacks would have been a small problem defensively but that never stopped an all conquering team before forget tika taka! This would have been superdiski with all the flicks, tricks and shibobos that come along with it. 2014 Brazil SAFA?????

_____________________________________________________________________________

Thanks Paul. Loving it! Wanna hear some more from Paul, follow him on twitter. He has no girlfriend

so it's strictly sport tweets - @superlamb1987 

Double crossed

Moments before kickoff, players walking onto the hallowed surface...a few taking in the moment, others crossing themselves as they prepare.

Football. Religion. Rituals. Superstitions.

Seemingly there's place for all of this on the turf.

Today we'll look at a few players who have their way of going about things before the first whistle blows for kickoff.

Good day footiecall FAITHFUL!

Before every game of FIFA World Cup '98, Laurent Blanc would kiss the bald head of Fabien Barthez. Worked a charm! MUFC should maybe have signed the centre half earlier...

Argentina goalkeeper, Sergio Goycochea, had the dirty habit [or was it ritual] of urinating on the field before a penalty shootout. Worked for him, until Italia '90...
Mario Gomez will only use the urinal furthest to the left. 
How's that for taking the piss?!

Anyone recognise him? This Englishman opted not to have any shots on goal in the warm up, so he didn't waste any goals. If he hadn't scored by halftime, he'd change his shirt...if this didn't help, he'd go and get his hair cut.

Kolo Toure needs to be the last man out onto the pitch. According to him. This  is fine, until he missed the start of a UEFA Champions League game for Arsenal and was subsequently booked for entering the field without permission.

During FIFA World Cup 2010, Diego Maradona would come out wearing the Albiceleste tracksuit, only to return after half-time wearing this grey suit. I reckon it'll take more than that to improve his coaching.

Another legendary Argentine, Juan Sebastian Veron wore bandage around his right knee for every game. This started in 1997, when he injured that knee, bandaged it and it apparently brought him good fortune.

Finally, closer to home, the coach of Midlands Port Cement [a Zimbabwean 1st Division Club] commanded his players to bathe in the crocodile infested waters of the Zambisi river...as it is believed this would allay evil spirits. What it did do is reduce the squad from 17 to 16 players...and they lost their next fixture.


I'm sure there's a whole list of other routines we could refer to. Feel free to drop them in the comments section below.



Thanks for joining me.

Loyalty... it's over rated.

'Sup Footie nuts? We are well under way with the majority of the European leagues up and running. Life is good... nay! Beautiful! 

Since Robin “I score when I want” Van Persie moved to Manchester United, there has been a lot of talk about players “selling out” and that “Footballers aren’t loyal anymore”.  Well, I personally feel that loyalty is over rated in the work place. And this is exactly it, it IS their work place.

Let me use a different example. You (yes you) are an attorney at a rather large firm. A bigger firm with more chance of promotions, bigger salary and more perks, makes you an offer. What are you going to do? Are you going to say “Uhm, no thank you? I am loyal to this firm, because it has treated me well and stuck by me through some bad times.” Yeah, I didn’t think so.

You see, I know this type of transfer. Yeah, I’m still a bit bitter that Torres left Liverpool to join Chelsea. At the time, I hated him. I wished death upon his tortoise. I hoped he would never score a goal again and that every time he did, a fairy would die. But, I’ve moved on. And I’ve realised why he decided to join Chelsea and leave Liverpool. It wasn’t for the money. We would have (could have) offered him more or less the same as what Chelsea offered him.  It was about trophies. It was about playing in the second best European competition (behind the Europa League). Why should loyalty be brought into it? He made a decision, he moved. What has he accomplished since then? Well, a Champions League winner’s medal.

The reality of this entire situation is that Arsenal hasn’t won a trophy in EIGHT years. Van Persie is 29 years old.  He wants to achieve something. The most likely place for him to achieve that would be at Manchester United OR at the only club in Manchester... Manchester City.

We have all seen players moving for money and there shouldn’t be any sort of surprise about that. Everything nowadays is about money. Television rights, Champions league, bonuses. It ALL centres on money. It’s not ideal. But it is the reality of it. If (most clubs) are running like a business (stock exchange etc) why shouldn’t the players look after their future (read: Pocket) in the same way. A clubs life span runs a lot longer than a player’s career.

To conclude this debatable post. I'm not saying that what these players are doing is right. I personally feel that there needs to be some sort of loyalty. The likes of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard are current premier league players that have chosen the loyal side. Adebayor... not so much.

Twitter follow - @Potz56

 

Write for Your team - Arsenal Part 2

Sean tells us something about Arsenal. We don't comment. 

Write for your team - Arsenal FC

In recent times, Arsenal fans have had to endure pre-season's of pain and suffering as money-rich clubs have pulled up at the Emirates stadium with briefcases laden with cash hoping to turn the heads of some of our most influential stars. And they've gotten it right too.

As the club sticks to it's model of being self-sustainable, players look elsewhere to earn more money and win trophies. Our strict wage policy, stadium debt and outdated commercial deals do not allow us to compete with the mega rich clubs of today.

Despite all the restrictions the club have placed upon themselves, we've somehow managed to compete on the field and have qualified for the Champions League for the last 15 years. Quite a feat for a club that have never bought a player for more then £20m.

This pre-season has shown some positive signs despite our double Footballer of the Year captain telling the fans on his personal website that he and the club disagree on the way it should be moving forward. We've done some business early on, signing German international Lukas Podolski and last years French Ligue 1's top scorer Olivier Giroud. 

Santi Cazorla, our most recent signing, is probably the most exciting one of the lot. Targeted by Wenger to replace Cesc Fabregas last pre-season, the midfielder comes in to add some creative flair to our midfield and also, more than likely, to be available as Jack Wilshere recovers from his injury problems. 

The players we have brought in, including Arteta from last season, are experienced and at a good age. I wouldn't say we've seen the end of Arsene Wenger's 'Project Youth' but we are certainly seeing a change of ideas for the club, and rightly so.

Whether or not Robin van Persie stays, I feel we have a well balanced squad that can challenge. The three additions will add some much needed attacking strength to the squad and their responsibility for goal getting will be shared.

I doubt whether the transfer activity is over for the Arsenal especially where players leaving the club is concerned. Wenger has mentioned the names of three players who would be leaving and this excludes our captain. What matters though is that Arsenal have done their business early and I feel this puts the club firmly in the driving seat.

On paper, our squad looks much improved and stronger than recent seasons and because of this I think the team can improve on last seasons position of 3rd and hopefully reach one or two cup finals.

Up The Arse!

Follow Sean on twitter - @seansheraton

Write for your team - Arsenal part 1

'Sup footie nuts? We missed out on the Arsenal piece(s) in last week. So let's get it sorted with a brand new piece! 

Chaps, let's have a read at what Craig Wolmarans has to say on his beloved Arsenal.

Write for your team - Arsenal part 1

Prediction: (pre-RVP leaving), Top 3 with a domestic cup

Prediction: (post-RVP leaving), TREBLE!....or 4th. 4th is a trophy now right?, well Kenny said that kit deals are trophies so 4th is the UCL.

It's over Robin...

So the Captain's armband curse continues, if I was Vermaelen I would have rejected the offer, remain vice & give it to Arteta. He has some Barca DNA & next year when we sell him to C*ntalunya we can get a nifty 8-10million (I kid! I kid!). As sad as I am about the Robin van Persie issue, I’m not totally devastated. Thanks to Arsene Wenger's "mental strength" mixtapes (reasonably priced at all good retailers) I mentally prepared myself for this. One incredible season in 8, that's how I look at it, he has always had fitness issues & if we had re-signed him there would of been 2 scenarios, would we have had the 2011 RVP? or the RVP of old minus a rape case?, I'd go for the latter.

Now I know we don’t want to sell our best players. But think of it this way, this is what his last 5 seasons have looked like.

49 – 28 – 17 – 36 -21 (@LeGrove)

On average, that gives us 30.2 games per season. Take out last seasons wonder year & what do you have? An average of 20.4. His return on goals has been impressive. He has averaged 19.6 goals a season over the last few years. A healthy return when you average 30.2 games a year, a goal every 1.54 games.

Throughout all of that you cannot discount the leadership & experience he could offer Podolski & Giroud if he had stayed, we would have had one hell of an impressive attack force for this campaign. Without RVP, it's back to bed in time, the last player to bed in was Chamakh, he was awesome. Then Park something something, he's off to fight a war soon.

Still there are silver linings, we saw the display from our summer recruits playing in 2nd gear & tearing FC Cologne a new one on Sunday. Santi Cazorla looks the business, Lukas Podolski will be key for us in this season & I feel the goal scoring burden will fall upon him in this campaign. Oliver Giroud is not a Chamakh upgrade, he can be a 20+ goals a season striker but needs time to adapt. I'm looking forward to his partnership with Poldi (nicknames already!) & our 4-4-2 formation looks more formidable than the 4-3-3 that brought us so much success in the past (Emirates cups & Berlin Bear's).

So with Alex Song leaving, Wilshere out until October & Diaby soon to be injured our midfield looks very lightweight. We need reinforcements & I still believe M'vila will be joining, Sahin, well...BOOOOM!!!!!!

The board & Arsene have shown that they are serious about mounting a challenge for silverware this season, now we need to go out & show everyone that Robin van Persie made the biggest mistake of his life. We'll be treble winners come May!.

Our huge gaping hole in defense needs to shore up. They have probably benefited the most from our 1st summer signing Steve Bould. He will no doubt have them drilled with that 90's defense attitude "only run forward to celebrate ya hear me!". With Thomas Vermaelen, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Sebastien Squillaci (I can hear those laughs!), Johan Djourou(stop laughing already!) & Ignasi Miquel waiting in the wings we have the makings of a soliddefense, they should only concede less than the 60+ goals we had last season. Happy days!

We don't need to go overboard like Chelsea or PSG…but we need to address some glaring holes in our squad. We need our current batch of players to see our club as the place to be, not the place to learn.

1st. Man United

2nd. Man City

3rd. Chelsea

4th. Arsenal

5th. Liverpool

6th. Everton

______________________

10th. Spurs!

Follow me on twitter - @craigmaran

#COYG.

Footiecall's feedback

Look out for Sean's piece later during the day. Also about Arsenal.

All sold out

The transfer window will close soon. Some surprising moves happening, big money being spent. It's the norm these days though.

Got me thinking of a time when football was played with passion...more passion than you could imagine now. When fans were true to their clubs...and players dare not cross the great divide.

If they did! All hell would break loose.

Robin Van Persie has just joined MUFC from Arsenal. Honestly speaking, I never saw this coming. It just didn't seem possible...but, alas...it's happened.

In modern times, we've seen Tevez move across town from MUFC to City...Adebayor has gone from being a Gunner to now courting a relationship with THFC, this after the Spurs fans sang a rather defamatory song relating to his parents. You'd think, that sorta rubbish would deter him...if not the city rivalry!?

Luis Figo left FC Barcelona to join Real Madrid FC in 2000. One of the strongest rivalries in the game and he shuns loyalty to join Los Blancos for a fee of 37million Euro...that's great business for Barca, as they paid just over 2million for him. Football isn't about business though, or at least, back then it wasn't all about bringing home the bacon...I think he got off easily with just the pigs head.

London rivalries are quite big. The North London derby, arguably the biggest, with the first encounter dating back to the late 1800s. So when Sol Campbell decided to leave Spurs, on a free, to join the Gunners...it was no surprise when the COYS faithful felt hard done by and quite frankly, betrayed.

Another feisty rivalry is the one between the two Milan giants. The box to box midfielder had a stint with either side. Starting off at Internazionale, who signed him for close to $25m from Real Madrid FC, before moving to i Rossoneri in 2002, where he rewrote the record books with a memorable decade at the club. 

Looking back a number of years, a certain Johann Cruyff, the finest player out of Europe at the time did the unthinkable and left the grandiosity of Ajax Amsterdam for the working-class Feyenoord. This infuriated the Amsterdam faithful...although in honesty, it was their [clubs'] fault as they had not offered Johann a new contract.

The Superclasico. Argentina's fiercest rivalry. Gabriel Batistuta didn't quite get that. One of the finest forwards for Albiceleste opted to move from River Plate to Boca Juniors after having a fall-out with River coach Daniel Passarella. He only stayed at Boca for a year though, before moving to Fiorentina, where his performances would turn him into a cult-hero...

Finally, closer to home, Kaizer Motaung left Orlando Pirates FC to play abroad, returning home in 1970 he chose to establish Kaizer Chiefs. Today we have one of the fiercest football rivalries on the planet, based mainly on one man's decision.
Years later the likes of Jimmy Tau would also cross the great divide. This time leaving the Buccaneers to play for the Glamour Boys. Unthinkable, but it happens.


A decade+ ago, players joining rival clubs was not the norm. There was loyalty and respect for the badge and the fans.
Today, it's common-place.

Then again, loyalty amongst fans is hardly existent either...with any and everyone jumping on the most fashionable bandwagon and hopping off the moment it loses it's shine.



This is modern football.

Why it's not such a bad idea to sign the current PFA Player of the Season, Players Player of the Season, FWA Player of the Season, PFA Team of the Year, EPL top scorer, record breaker, captain, set-piece specialist, 3rd highest goal scorer in Europe, Arsenal player of the Season, Robin Van Persie, who also scores when he want.

Read the title......if that's too long, check out the bullet points below, for interests sake.
"It is not a bad idea to sign the current:

• The PFA Player of the Year
• The Players Player of the Year
• The PFA Team of the Year striker
• FWA Player of the Year
• Arsenal's best player last season
• Set-piece specialist 
• Captain
• 3rd highest scorer in European leagues behind Messi & Ronaldo
• guy who scores when he wants & brings the song with him"

Wayne Rooney + Robin Van Persie contributed (assists [13] + goals [57]) towards 70 Premier League goals last season. Let's put that into perspective:

• Rooney + RVP = 70
• Spurs total goals = 66
• Chelsea total goals = 65
• Liverpool total goals = 47

Many people are saying "He's 29, that's too old!!"

If you are a rude person, your instant response should be: "You do realise that Van Persie is 3 months older than he was last season......the season he finished as top scorer with 30 goals & 9 assists you nincompoop!!"

If you are like me & believe that stats win arguments, the simply mention this:

• at 29 Alan Shearer scored 23 goals & went on to play another 6 seasons, scoring 84 league goals
• at 29, Drogba was Premier League top goalscorer with 20 goals (he scored 29 EPL goals in the season he turned 32)
• at 29, Henry was the EPL top scorer with 27 league goals
• at 29, Berbetov was Premier League top goal scorer (well he turned 30 during the season)

Now I know Arsenal have been through a lot already, but I'd like to raise 1 point before I depart:

Robin Van Persie born in 1983 is too old to be any good.

Santi Cazorla born in 1984 is a brilliant signing with a bright future.

In closing, I have no idea what RVP will do this season. If he plays, he's likely to score, as discussed above. Anyone can get injured (see the Ramsey tackle) so that isn't the smartest thing to say IMO. You buy a player based on either their current ability or their potential ability. Never on their potential uselessness. What I do know is that it's ridiculous to write him off as a bad buy since he outperformed everybody else in the only league we truly care about. In fact, buying the best player in your league is generally a clever thing to do. I hope both Santi & Robin Van Persie Pig bring us tons of action & very little injuries.

I, for one, would have paid £24m simply for the catchy tune - "He scores when he wants, he scores when he wants". It really is magical and I have nothing better to do with the money.

Twitter - @thembasweet 

Write for your team - Manchester United part 2

'Sup Footie Nuts, today Septizzle, gives us his dribble on the down fizzle my nizzle YO!

Okay, we move on. So he tells us about Manchester United's chances of a 20th League crown... 

Write for your team Manchester United

From the offset, let me state, that I am a Manchester United fan. I’ll try and write this article as unbiased as possible, and also try and separate my HOPES for where I want them to end, as opposed to where I THINK they will end.

What an amazing end to the 2011/2012 Barclays English Premier League? It was heartache for most Manchester United fans, and the right to gloat and brag about winning for all the (newly acquired) Manchester City fans. It practically went down to the last kick of the season! It was an incredible end that re-wrote the history books and will be spoken about for years to come.

Moving forward in the new 2012/2013 Barclays EPL season, let us take a look at what the Manchester United squad looks like at 08/06/2012, to give you some insight as to how they will line up. The Manchester United squad remains almost identical to last season with the addition of a few new players in Shinji Kagawa, who was brought in for a fee of £13.200.000 from current Bundesliga champions, Borrusia Dortmund, and Nick Powell, who was purchased for £6.600.000 from Crewe Alexander, who compete in League One in England. A couple of players leaving and going on Loan, in Ji Sung Park, Fabio, Paul Pogba, Ben Amos, Richie de Laet, Tomasz Kuzczak and Michael Owen who will also most likely be leaving before the end of the transfer window.

United have the upper hand leading into the first ten games of the season with Manchester City being under pressure most of the season, being the defending champions. It is with the advantage that Manchester United will be tackling their league campaign. I’m sure most of the players that played an integral part of the previous campaign, especially the youth that have been incorporated into the squad, will also want to prove themselves to the gaffer, as well as the fans. It is with all these factors that United stand with a huge advantage.

Quoting a few players about the forthcoming season:

Nemanje Vidic: “The young players can learn from last year, so I’m confident we’ll be better this year. We were punished and we can’t allow that to happen again. We had a few injuries last season too. I hope everyone can stay fit this season.”

Wayne Rooney: “I’m happy with how I’m doing. I’ve been training for almost two weeks and I’ve been working hard. Everything’s going well so far. I feel good. Everybody needs games to get up to match fitness, not just me. I’m training well, though, and I’m looking forward to the next few games. Hopefully, by the start of the season, I’ll be ready to play.”

Michael Keane: "They've all got great experience and they're great players to play with. I grew up watching all of them and to play in the same team as them is great. I really enjoyed it."

As you can see the players are feeling good about the build up to the season and are amped to tackle the new season ahead. Manchester United has only made one new major signing in Shinji Kagawa. All the players welcome the addition of Shinji Kagawa, who will add speed to the attack, yet another positive aspect to take forward into the new season.

Manchester United, have three things going for them going into the new season. The first thing being the hunger of the players and youth coming through and wanting to prove their status as the number one club in England. Secondly, a fresh start, with the bulk of the players that had injury prone seasons, coming back.  Lastly, they have a manager and coaching staff that know how to setup a league to win trophies, as they’ve displayed year in and year out. With the management bringing in so few signings, they must be adamant and confident that they can challenge for the 2012/13 Barclays English Premier League.

Ultimately, the staff, management and players must have the know-how to run a successful league campaign.

Manchester United have quality players in every position, starting at the back, in the poles, David De Gea, who took a while and looked shaky in the start of the previous season, has all the know how it takes to be a talisman in between the posts for the reds. His ability as a shot stopper and being able to pull out spectacular agile saves is a valuable asset to the team. I would however like to see De Gea improve on the accuracy of his distribution, which Edwin Van Der Sar had down to a tee and also command his 6 yard box with more authority in the next campaign. The boy has safe hands, and his uncanny similarity to the little monkey boy from the movie “Jumanji” will surely scare some of the other attacking players from the opposing teams, which is always a plus. Jolean Lescott would be proud!

Across the back 4, Evra, Vidic, Ferdinand and Rafael, form a solid (predicted) back four. With the addition of Vidic coming back being out for most of the season with an injury.  The captains ability to produce quality performances week and in week out was sorely missed last season, even though the players that were chosen to fill in, did very well. Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra provide the experience and level heads that Rafael sometimes doesn’t have. I would like to see Evra push forward and produce quality performances as he did in the 2010/2011 EPL season. Ferdinand has all the experience and calmness that you need from a centre back, he is valuable, but he will also need to cut down on the unforced mistakes that he makes at times.

Moving to the midfield, being Nani, Valencia/Young, Scholes, Carrick, Anderson and Kagawa. With Kagawa in the team, as stated earlier, this will bring a different dimension in attack, which is another posistive going forward into the new season. Carrick needs to come to the party and produce more killer forward passes, even though, by passing backwards, he does help us to keep possession of the ball. Scholes runs the midfield in most games, week in and week out, its a pity his age and fitness is going to be a problem. I’d like to see at least 15-20 strong 60-70 minute performances from him as the centre midfielders will obviously be alternated as the season goes on. Anderson, needs to produce a run of good games and also try and score more goals from midfiled, if not, I’m personally writing him off! Valencia’s pace, power, consistency and simplicity is a quality that other players in the team need to adopt. He has a high work rate which is excellent and he just needs to keep doing what he’s doing, which is taking the ball to the line and getting that cross in, if you’re a youngster and want to know how to play as a winger correctly, watch Antonio Valencia. Nani needs to make better decisions more of the time. Young (who people claim looks just like me) is a player that does the right thing most of the time, very good and I have no doubt, he will continue to play well for the reds.

Now, the forwards, Welbeck, Rooney, Chicharito, Macheda, Berbatov just need to put the ball in the net! Welbeck has potential to do great things, we know what Wayne Rooney is capable of and he is an inspiration to the rest of the team with his hunger to keep making the fans, his team and the manager proud. Javier Hernandez and Macheda need to do well coming off the bench and Berbatov? I think he’ll be having a bit more time to plant an extra row of tomatoes in his vegetable garden at home.

All in all, the squad looks pretty good and if anybody knows how to get the best out of players, it would be Sir Alex Ferguson.

My prediction (as unbiased as I can be) is that Manchester United, will acquire their 20^th league title.

Follow me on twitter - @Septizzle

FootieCall's response:

......... 

I kid! Good piece. I agree with you, top of the league this year. With the real Manchester team in blue a far second. 

FootieCall's prediction:

League Position: 1st

Controversy: Giggs, Kagawa's girlfriend.