World Cup 2006 Blog

Was Sven the Strangest International Appointment of All Time? Posted: 03 Apr 2009 09:06 AM PDT Sven-Göran Eriksson got his marching orders from the Mexican football federation yesterday. Not a huge surprise after some dreadful results (Mexico should not be losing to Jamaica) and seems it was the 3-1 loss away to Honduras that put the final nail in Sven’s Mexican managerial coffin. “The decision was made because we could not risk Mexico’s participation in the World Cup,” said federation president Justino Compean. Which was a polite way of saying the federation didn’t trust Sven to get them to South Africa. And so arguably the strangest and worst interntational managerial appointment of all time comes to a close. Steve McClaren and Steve Staunton were bad choices for England and Ireland respectively, but at least the two men were English and Irish. From the second Sven was appointed, his face didn’t really fit. Mexican football is passionate to say the least, while Sven has that air of icy calm about him. I always though he seemed like a substitute teacher just filling in because the real guy was running late. And he didn’t even speak Spanish when he took the job. If Mexico has to go down the route of hiring a fashionably foreign manager, they could at least have found someone who spoke the lingo. To be fair to Sven he seems to have mastered it less than a year after taking the job. So at least he got something out of his Mexican adventure. Well, that plus the usual sweet sweet compensation package. From Times Online: It is believed that the Mexican federation will have to pay Eriksson about £2 million after dismissing him, the Swede's third seven-figure payoff in three years. He is said to have received compensation of about £3 million from the FA after standing down as England head coach in 2006 and another £1 million when he parted company with Manchester City. So there you have it. Sven-Göran Eriksson: bad at international managemenet, good at getting paid to be sacked. Man’s a genius. For more on the Mexican national team, visit Mexico World Cup Blog

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Sporting News Today: This Motown foursome could become a new classic

MAMUDU, Your April 04, 2009 issue of Sporting News Today is now available, please click here. Here are some articles in Today's Issue DeCourcy: 'Nova stopped partying when it began preparing for UNC Prediction: After close game, expect Tar Heels to pull away Giants had to purge Plaxico Giants offseason outlook: Big Blue needs playmaking WR MLB picks: Big Z, Dice-K for Cy Young If you experience any problems with your issue, please click here to contact our customer service department. Know a friend who might like Sporting News Today? Just click here or email him/her the link: www.sportingnewstoday.com.     Trouble Viewing? If any of the above links do not work for you,   copy and paste this URL into your browser:   http://today.sportingnews.com/t=c/?1&41644&127065&13379&0000&1236450362&EIInjEOx9cS45     Please do not reply to this message. Questions may be submitted to Digital Support.   To stop receiving email notifications for digital issues of Sporting News Today,   click here.   Sporting News Today 120 West Morehead Street Suite 200 Charlotte, NC 28207

World Cup 2006 Blog

Bizarre Happenings In Wales v Germany Posted: 02 Apr 2009 10:00 AM PDT And no, this time it has nothing to do with a mascot. At least that we know of, anyway. Craig Bellamy was left out of the starting lineup for a knee issue. At least that’s what they’re saying publicly. To open up the sans-Bellamy proceedings, Michael Ballack scored a fantastic goal in front of what looked to be precisely no one at Millenium Stadium in Cardiff. Clearly Bellamy’s ‘defeatism’ has spread. Wales had a real chance to climb back into a game they had no business being in when Serdar Tasci fell down (1:25), watched the ball into his his hand…swatted it away…in the box…all while the Welsh attacker tripped over his body. That’s at least one red card and two penalties. Or vice-versa. And yet no whistle sounded. Then Mario Gomez finally broke his German duck with a positively exquisite finish. From Welsh defender Ashley Williams. Just wasn’t a Welsh day, was it? (Oh, and Poldi slapped Ballack.)

The High Price of High Altitude: Bolivia 6 - Argentina 1 Posted: 02 Apr 2009 07:00 AM PDT No good deed goes unpunished. “Before becoming Argentina coach, Maradona had backed Bolivia’s campaign against a FIFA ban on matches at high altitude, taking part in a charity match in La Paz alongside President Evo Morales last year. The ban was later overturned.” After captaining Argentina’s most embarrassing defeat in some time, do you think Maradona might change his mind? Maybe? And if the sword was bad, the swordsman was worse: Striker Joaquin Botero, who plays for Mexican second division team Correcaminos (Roadrunners), scored a hat-trick. A player from the Mexican second division beating the likes of Lionel Messi, Kun Aguero, Esteban Cambiasso and Angel Di Maria - all seven minutes of him. Who’d have thunk it? A Cinderella story if ever there was one, surely, despite Botero’s long history of goal scoring above sea level. Much of this will be blamed on the 3600m Argentina had to climb - not literally, then it would’ve been 12-1 or so - and that’s certainly a logical and valid reason. But while altitude does make a difference - you’ll hear no argument there - to turn a club which many consider, coach aside, to be a contender in South Africa to become the heavybag for a team which sits second bottom in qualifying is something else entirely. Something beyond environmental factors. Bolivia simply had their day. Now how will Argentina be compensated for their troubles? With a trip to the thin airs of Quito in the next qualifying round. Out of the frying pan and into the fire? Certainly could be.

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Sporting News Today: Impact of Jay Cutler trade is far-reaching

MAMUDU, Your April 03, 2009 issue of Sporting News Today is now available, please click here. Here are some articles in Today's Issue Debate: Which team, Broncos or Bears, got the better deal? Who is the most important player in the Final Four? MLB preseason predictions, preview Offseason outlook: Cowboys still have work to do Frustrated Pistons struggle to stay in race If you experience any problems with your issue, please click here to contact our customer service department. Know a friend who might like Sporting News Today? Just click here or email him/her the link: www.sportingnewstoday.com.     Trouble Viewing? If any of the above links do not work for you,   copy and paste this URL into your browser:   http://today.sportingnews.com/t=c/?1&40873&126979&13344&0000&1236449971&EIInjEOx9cS45     Please do not reply to this message. Questions may be submitted to Digital Support.   To stop receiving email notifications for digital issues of Sporting News Today,   click here.   Sporting News Today 120 West Morehead Street Suite 200 Charlotte, NC 28207

World Cup 2006 Blog

Wolfgang Stark Can Cross Italy Off His List of Holiday Destinations… Posted: 02 Apr 2009 04:10 AM PDT Because only the German referee himself knows why he gave Gianpaolo Pazzini this red card in the 4th minute of Italy’s World Cup qualifier vs Ireland yesterday. I’ve watched the above video (spotted on - you guessed it - 101GG) a few times and all I see is a player jumping up for a header. But Stark imagined/saw something more sinister. Yeah, Pazzini uses his arms for leverage. And he does accidentally catch John O’Shea. But emphasis is on the accidentally. There’s clearly no intent as Pazzini is looking at the ball the whole time. Here’s how Italy WCB’s Julian saw it: Pazzini's sending off? Harsh at the very least. Maybe a yellow, and that would've been worse than fair. The game finished 1-1. Not a horrible result for either team, but Italy can definitely feel that playing 86 minutes with ten men may have denied them all three points. A quick glance at Wolfgang Stark’s Wikipedia entry reveals a man with a taste for flashing plastic at players. The two red/seven yellow card combo he showed to Chile in the 2007 U-20 World Cup semi-final resulted in him needing a police escort to get off the field safely. Always the sign of a good referee. UEFA World Cup qualifying Group 8 now looks like this: Bad news for Italy is that if and when they get to South Africa, they could be meeting Stark again. His name is on the 38 man shortlist of referees for World Cup 2010 duty.

In Defence of International Week Posted: 01 Apr 2009 06:40 AM PDT I’ve heard a few complaints about the international break this week. Chris at Studs Up called it “a necessary evil”, while Travis at Arsenal Offside has branded it “the interlull.” But me? I love it. I genuinely look forward to international week. Maybe not when it’s just friendlies, but when it’s World Cup qualifiers from all around the world… what’s not to like? First and foremost, I love the feeling that the whole world is playing football. While domestic football leagues are on varying calendars, when World Cup qualifying happens, it happens all around the world. This past weekend saw World Cup qualifying games in Africa, Asia, Europe, North/Central/South America, the Caribbean and Oceania. So basically everywhere. International break underlines exactly why football is the world’s game. And with the exception of the tragic events in Abidjan, this international week has thrown up some great stories so far. We’ve already had Togo’s surprise win over Cameroon, Diego Maradona winning his first competitive game 4-0, Artur Boruc’s howler, Craig Bellamy’s unmissable post-match interview and so on. And there’s still a whole round of games to come today. More importantly, if you’re among the many many football fans who feel that club football is being slowly suffocated by money, then international games should be a welcome break. They play national anthems before these games, not the Champions League anthem. And for the most part, players don’t represent their country for any financial gain. You think David Beckham needs to keep playing for England to put food on the table? Course not, the man’s got mega-millions. And Posh Spice doesn’t eat anyway. Even better, though there are a few mismatches (eg Germany 4-0 Lechtenstein this weekend was Lechtenstein’s best ever result against Germany) you’re more likely to see an upset at international level, more likely to see Northern Ireland beating Spain or Scotland taking down France (twice!) because the techincally inferior players are playing for pride. I know it’s frustrating to have to break for a week if your club team is on a good run and I know most people feel a closer affiliation to club than country. But it’s worth remembering that - though far from perfect - international football is still the pinnacle of the beautiful game.

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