Weekend Club Review: The Americas
by Richard Farley on Feb 8, 2010 4:46 PM EST
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Vélez Sarsfield's start to the 2010 Clausura is probably not related to the last Clausura, though those with a literary bend could ascribe El Fortín's start indicative of a desire for a second straight closing tournament title.
Those with a sinister literary bend would note the nature of last year's title, winning in a controversial final match against Huracán that saw a goalkeeper take a boot to the chest before the match's only goal went across the line.
It took followers of the Argentine Primera a long time to get over that finish, but if Vélez continues their strong place in their year's tournament, the way the last Clausura finished could be relegated from plot point to foot note.
This weekend Vélez got two goals within 25 minutes in route to a 2-1 over Gimnasia La Plata, who were coming off a big derby win over Estudiantes. An own from Gimnasia in the eighth minute preceded Fernando Tobio's 25th minute tally, with Gimnasia securing the final score with a consolation shortly before half.
The win puts Vélez atop the Primera table with seven points, pending Rodoy Cruz's Monday match with Independiente. Rodoy Cruz is the only team in the league still with a one hundred percent record.
More on Argentina and the rest of the leagues in the Americas, after the jump.
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Weekend Club Review: Europe
by Richard Farley on Feb 8, 2010 12:46 PM EST
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Followers of the club game focused on London this weekend, neutrals could be forgiven if they zoned-out on a match that saw one side post two early goals and control of the match.
Many who follow the English Premier League are ringing an "I told you so" tone in the wake of Arsenal's 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge, throwing Chelsea back to the top of the table, one point clear of Manchester United (who beat Portsmouth, 5-0).
Today, Gunners' supporters have little retort. After Didier Drogba scored in the 8th minute, Arsenal played some inspired soccer, but their inability to consistently threaten after Drogba's second goal (beautiful finish to a counter attack in the 23rd minute) affirmed the gap between England's top two and the third place Gunners.
In successive weeks, Arsenal has lost to the top two, posted an aggregate score of 1-6 in matches that could fairly be called "uncompetitive." Arsenal never led in either, ultimately lost each by two goals, and showed glaring defensive weaknesses in both.
Unless Arsène Wenger can solve his problem with left back Gael Clichy and left-center half Thomas Vermaelen, Arsenal will have trouble maintaining third place.
Andrei Arshavin (to close the first half) and Cesc Fabregas (early in the second) threatened Petr Cech - who had one of this best matches of the season - but Arsenal never looked in the same class as Chelsea.
With Liverpool looming on Wednesday, Arsenal now faces a fight for third place and the last English Premier League automatic UEFA Champions League spot.
Meanwhile, Chelsea provided EPL-followers some top-of-the-table clarity. Stop me of you've heard this before: This season's coming down to Chelsea and United.
More from England and across Europe, after the jump.
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World Club Weekend Preview: An Experimental Writing
by Richard Farley on Feb 5, 2010 12:54 PM EST
9 comments
While I could apologize for getting this article up late (and not writing since Monday), I think you will understand. Heck, I'm sure you've noticed!
So news has been happening. And happening. And when they're not happening, I've been consuming myself with dry-erase pitches: Xs, Os, and arrows. And talking about it, after I'm done.
All along these last two days of activity in the soccer world, I've had this idea of my weekend preview piece:
What if I wrote it for you in real time?
As I went league-by-league, what if I updated the article, then paused to say what you're talking about in the comments (if you're talking about anything at all)? Then, I can take your queues as to what you want next, and we can get all new media interactive-y .
Please don't use "interactive-y." Copyright's pending.
That aside, let's give it a shot. Here is your interactive world club weekend preview. Which leagues do you want to talk about? Let me know, below, and that will help steer me to the next league which will be discussed in this article.
Also, watch for the poll to appear: "Which match are you most looking forward to this weekend?" We've got some great matches, particularly in England and México. Before I can get up the poll, tell me where I should be looking.
And check back often, throughout the day, as this article expands.
Let's do this.
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Pharaohs Make History With Third-Straight Cup of Nations Title
by Richard Farley on Feb 1, 2010 1:22 PM EST
7 comments
It was the only match of the tournament that Egypt failed to win by more than one goal, but Sunday's final against Ghana still exhibited the Pharoah's control over the 2010 African Cup of Nations.
Though Ghana was the better side at the match's onset, there was never the feeling that Egypt was in danger, and as play progressed Egypt slowly asserted themselves. The strength of their grip on the match increased as time ticked away, and by the end a Pharaoh goal looked inevitable.
With help from Mohamed Zidan, Gedo scored his tournament-leading fifth goal - all off the bench - giving the Pharaohs the 1-0 win.
While Ghana approached this tournament as a feeling-out process for a number of young players who needed evaluation before June, Milovan Rajevac got the young Black Stars within a breath of winning this tournament. They were the only team to keep Egypt under two goals (through Cameroon did the same through regulation time). Had they found the early goal they got against Burkina Faso, Angola, and Nigeria, a squad that was missing most of its regulars from World Cup qualifying might have knocked off the Pharaohs.
Might have, could have - these are the doubts that Rajevac embraced when he decided to go with an untried squad. He deserves credit for guiding that team to the final, even though the tactics he employed to do so were criticized as (I'll be euphemistic) unambitious.
In that sense, the final was a bit unfair to the Egyptians. What should have been a historic event - the first time a team has ever won this tournament three times in a row - was undermined by Ghana's squad selection.
But consider that Egypt had to beat Nigeria, Cameroon, and Algeria before the final - winning each match with relative ease - and Egypt had a championship resumé before the final kicked-off. Looked at in the context of a Cup of Nations unbeaten streak that has reached 19 matches, Egypt's win over Ghana is less about Sunday, more about legacy.
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Copa Libertadores: First Round, First Match Results
by Richard Farley on Jan 29, 2010 3:04 PM EST
5 comments
The Copa Libertadores is off-and-running, with twelve teams taking part in the first round: a series of six, two-match series, out of which the final group stage participants will advance.
Notable teams in action at this stage: Interliga runners-up Estudiantes Tecos; Paraguayans Libertad; Universidad Catôlica from Chile; Argentina's Colón; Cruzeiro, who qualified on the last match day of the Brasileirão; and Newell's Old Boys.
Note these are two match series, not two-legged ties. For each of the two match, you get awarded 3-1-0 points (win-draw-loss), and the team with the most points goes through. In the case of a tie, the winner is determined by goal difference, goals scored, then away goals.
This week, the first leg of each series took place, with one Argentine side inching close to an early exit.
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Different Paths: Egypt, Ghana Through to Cup of Nations Final
by Richard Farley on Jan 29, 2010 1:16 PM EST
1 comment
Egypt and Ghana are through to the African Cup of Nations finals, defeating Algeria and Nigeria (respectively) in Thursday's semifinals.
Egypt is now one win away from an unprecedented third consecutive Cup of Nations title, while the Black Stars reach their first final since 1992, seeking their first championship since 1982.
Ghana got there through a first half goal from Asamoah Gyan, his third o the tournament, headed home off a beautiful, in-swinging Kwadwo Asamoah corner. It was one of the few chances the Ghanians had, with the Super Eagles being the more ambitious side throughout.
But most of Nigeria's forays never manifested into more than half-chances, with credit due Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingson, who read many players beautifully, coming off his line at the right time to destroy opportunities before they developed.
It was Ghana's third consecutive 1-0 win, and after the match Gyan admitted that the team has developed a conservative tact. The only match Ghana has not won 1-0 was their tournament opener against Côte d'Ivoire, a 3-1 loss. Since, Milovan Rajevac's formula for success has been identical: early goal, slow down the match, win.
Now he gets the opportunity to try that approach against an Egypt side that has scored 14 goals while allowing only two, a difference buffered by Thursday's 4-0 win over Algeria.
The landslide started just before half when Algeria fullback Rafik Halliche - having an otherwise strong tournament - was shown a second yellow card in giving away a penalty kick, leading to the first goal. In the second half, the Algerians lost their composure after Mohamed Zidan put Egypt up two.
Nadir Belhadj earned a straight red for a dangerous tackle, while goalkeeper Faouzi Chaouchi was shown a second yellow after intentionally trying to kick an Egyptian player.
An embarrassed Desert Foxes side would finish with eight men, allowing Egypt to gain a measure of revenge.
More after the jump, but first, here is the knock-out round table, courtesy of Wikipedia.
| Quarter finals | Semi finals | Final | ||||||||
| 24 January – Luanda | ||||||||||
 Angola |
0 | |||||||||
| 28 January – Luanda | ||||||||||
 Ghana |
1 | |||||||||
| Ghana |
1 | |||||||||
| 25 January – Lubango | ||||||||||
 Nigeria |
0 | |||||||||
 Zambia |
0 (4) | |||||||||
| 31 January – Luanda | ||||||||||
| Nigeria |
0 (5) | |||||||||
| Ghana |
||||||||||
| 24 January – Cabinda | ||||||||||
 Egypt |
||||||||||
 Côte d'Ivoire |
2 | |||||||||
| 28 January – Benguela | ||||||||||
 Algeria |
3 | |||||||||
| Algeria |
0 | Third place | ||||||||
| 25 January – Benguela | ||||||||||
| Egypt |
4 | |||||||||
| Egypt |
3 | Nigeria |
||||||||
 Cameroon |
1 | Algeria |
||||||||
| 30 January – Benguela | ||||||||||
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WPS: Los Angeles Sol Folded on Thursday
by Richard Farley on Jan 29, 2010 11:50 AM EST
2 comments
Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) in the United States is considered the highest quality women's league in the world, but only one year old, it has yet to reach even its infancy. Small hiccups should be expected.
Losing your marque franchise, however, is more than a hiccup. From the outsider's perspective, WPS having to fold the Los Angeles Sol hints at instability, harkening back to the financial woes the befell the league's predecessor: WUSA.
The good news for the world's best women's soccer league: this situation is weird enough to bely generalization.
Sol's ownership group, the same Anschultz Entertainment Group that owns Los Angeles Galaxy, just wanted out, and rather than wait for another buyer to meet their demands, they walked away, forcing commissioner Tonya Antonucci's hand.
In the long run, it might be a good thing: the league losing an ownership group that did not seem entirely supportive of the cause. In the short term, the women's soccer world is worse off for having lost WPS's headline act.
More thoughts after the jump.
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World Cup 2018 Likely Going to Europe
by Richard Farley on Jan 26, 2010 2:32 PM EST
18 comments
In the "is what we already knew news" department, Sepp Blatter hinted today that the 2018 World Cup is likely to return to Europe.
"There is a movement at the moment among the various candidates," Blatter said from Spain, were he was to meet the Prime Minister. "In the end it would be a good solution ...if the candidates for 2018 would only be those from Europe,"
Here's more news: It's likely going to Russia.
Call that an educated guess, as Blatter has previously hinted he would like Russia to get the event. But that requires the Russians putting forth a competitive bid, something that is problematic given infrastructure issues concerning stadia and transportation.
This news has also lent to speculation that England is closer to getting the World Cup. Perhaps, however, I have not heard good things about their bid. The English language press has justifiably focused on England's chances, but with issues regarding stadia (the bid will prominently feature a rickety Stamford Bridge and a hypothetical New Anfield) and some exodus from the bid committee, the English campaign is not doing what it takes to bridge the gap between themselves and Blatter's preferred option.
In the United States, Blatter's comments are being portrayed as a blow to bringing the finals back to the States. Clearly, it is, but there have always been unduly heightened expectations surrounding the USSF's bid. Just as in England they are positive about winning the finals, coverage in the States has been optimistic.
But this story has always leaned to Europe. Those surprised by today's revelation from Blatter may also be surprised if Russia wins this bid.
My view: I don't think Russia is ready, but giving the World Cup to South Africa before stadia and infrastructure were built set a precedent. I think it would be best if Blatter and FIFA reversed that precedent and give the World Cup to neither Russia nor England.
Blatter should also reverse his antipathy for duel bids. Giving the World Cup to Spain-Portugal would allow the event to go to area that would be ready from day one. That award would also be a nod to a great footballing culture in Spain while allowing in small-ish country like Portugal to get in on the excitement.
Great footballing countries like Portugal and the Netherlands are unlikely to win the finals in a bidding process restricted to one-country proposals.
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