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Saturday, June 28, 2008
It's the final of yet another major international tournament!! It's the Euro 2008 final, going to be held in Vienna, Switzerland, and it's going to be on the tele in the wee hours of Monday morning, a school day. Argh... Still gonna watch though, check scripts nia. Haha... UEFA are apparently upsizing the Henri Delaunay Trophy, or better known as the EURO2008 Cup that I hope Spain will lift.
This hotair balloon shaped as the Euro 2008 trophy looks kinda cool, I think they should give this balloon instead of the silver trophy next time. Maybe to the country with the best fans? Ahh what crap.
If Spain win, their national FA will receive a total prize money of €23 million for their national team's one month work, but of course there will be more in terms of sponsorship deals? I don't know, but they do have to pay their Spanish players for playing in the Championships. If Germany win, they will receive a prize money of €22 million, a million less. Whichever team does lose, they'll just lose €3 million off their potential total prize money. Finance, business... It should not be too involved in football.
The most realistic player that could win the top scorer of the tournament award is Spain's David Villa, but he is out of the finals, and that could pave the way for German Lukas Podolski, on three, to score two goals, that will surely allow him to win that award, and most likely win Germany the cup. Other Germans on two are Michael Ballack, Miroslav Klose and Bastian Schweisteinger, so if either of those three get an hat-trick, they'll be the clearcut top goalscorer. Spain still has some hope of still obtaining that trophy should Villa not win it, as they have supersub Dani Guiza on the two goals mark, and should he start in place of Villa, he might grab a couple to equal or better his compatriot. Interesting stuff...
Spain's probable team line-up: iker Casillas; sergio Ramos, carles Puyol, carlos Marchena, joan Capdevilla; marcos Senna, andreas Iniesta, Xavi hernandez, david Silva, cesc Fabregas; fernando Torres.
Germany's probable team line-up: jens Lehmann; arne Fredrich, per Mertesacker, christoph Metzelder, philip Lahm; torsten Frings, thomas Hitzelsberger; bastian Schweinsteiger, michael Ballack, lukas Podolski; miroslav Klose.
So let the best team win!
Bye~!
my thoughts at 2:35 pm
Friday, June 27, 2008
Haha I gotta say, the one week break is good for only around two reasons. For one, I managed to have some GOOD rest for two days, before starting to worry for the Chinese 'O' Levels Oral exam like three days before. And the second is, how obvious, is that it allowed me to watch the two semi-final matches of Euro 2008, free on the preview channel. Haha...Oh yeah... the pissing thing was... somehow, with all the technology in the world now, "thunderstorms and a power failure" in Vienna, apparently affecting the 'international broadcasting centre' in Vienna. Argh... the frickin' Starhub feed lagged or hanged out three times. First was okay, nothing happened. The second time was so long, and I, or everyone else, missed the third and fourth goals from Germany and Turkey in such an exciting match. It came back on at the 88 minute, and after Phillip Lahm of Germany scored the winner, and with all the blah blah replays and celebrations, the final shot of Lahm slow-motioning down the touchline was the last play we saw, as it hanged at his motion and lagged out. Thanks man... "We apologised for any inconvenience caused" was the second part of the Starhub message.
LUCKILY this morning, the Spain-Russia match had not blacked out once. That was a good sign, even when the rain poured down on the players, read bad, I must say.
The Euro 2008 finals better not black out even once!
So yeah... Today saw me finishing my Chinese oral exams for the 'O' Levels, giving perry his belated birthday present, hoped he liked it... And playing a lot of football? My feet are kinda suan. Argh... Can't wait for the final on Monday morning...
Hmm... I guess it's 0-2 now, sy... I need to get off the mark!! Argh... Chemistry and Chinese, the former is neither here nor there, and the latter is really a no brainer, so, right now, it's not surprising I'm behind...
Bye~!
Hmm... I guess it's 0-2 now, sy... I need to get off the mark!! Argh... Chemistry and Chinese, the former is neither here nor there, and the latter is really a no brainer, so, right now, it's not surprising I'm behind...
Bye~!
my thoughts at 9:22 pm
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
The second semi-finals of the Euro 2008 kicks off on Friday morning. Argh!! Don't ask me why... And it's the rematch of the opener of Group D a couple of weeks or so ago. This will be more fairly match than the other semi-finals that is taking place tonight, but the lingering thought of the thrashing Russia got in that group game, by a score of 4-1, will be the Russian's springboard and motivation, to overcome that score in a more significant match, but for the Spanish, they will want to forget about that in case of complacency. It's going to be a much anticipated tactical battle.Will master-tactician Guus Hiddink or soon-to-resign Luis Aragones who would get the better of each other?
Russia's Likely Line-Up (4-4-1-1): Young goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev will continue in goal for the Russians, and will hope to stop the freeflows of goals in that first group game. CSKA Moscow stars Yuri Zhirkov and Sergei Ignashevich will definitely start at left-back and centre back respectively, with the latter the commander in defence. Offensive full-back Aleksandr Aniukov will play at right-back, continuing from the quarters match, adding much offensive flair and runs down his flank. Denis Kolodin will also very much feature, and if this semi goes to penalties, he'll surely be one of those who takes the pressure kick.
Creative midfielder Konstatin Zurianov will play in midfield, his experience will definitely help in calming the nerves of the younger Russians in this epic game. Former-forward Igor Semshov will take his place in midfield. Another experienced head, he'll hope to hold the midfield well against the likes of Spain's Andreas Iniesta and Xavi. Another over-thirties midfielder in Sergei Semak will be the holding midfielder at hope to stop David Silva's runs. Hot property Diniya Bilyaletdinov is good with the ball at his feet and unpredictable with his movement, and will most likely start to give Hiddink another midfield player.
He's so good, he's a star, he's getting his own paragraph. I know he won't care, okay?! Playmaker Andrei Arshavin, can't really see he is 27... with his baby-face, will be the main man and the one who will pull the strings for the Russians. If he doesn't deliver, the Russians will most likely not, and Hiddink should surely have a plan should the unthinkable happens. He's runs and passing will surely be a handful for Marcos Senna.
Russia's top scorer Roman Pavluchenko will be one to look out for. He's strong, a little pacey and powerful in the air, the perfect combination for most strikers, a handful for the Spanish defence. He's presence can alone panic Carlos Puyol and co.. He'll have to hold the ball up well for the midfielders to support him.
Spain's Likely Line-Up (4-3-1-2 or 4-3-3): Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas, and also the hero of the quarters, will almost certainly start. Barcelona captain Carles Puyol will also start and command his defence, with Valencia's Carlos Marchena beside him. Goal-scoring left-back Joan Capdevila will continue in defence with Madrid's Sergio Ramos also continuing at right-back., giving Aragones a solid defence that he has used for most of the tournament. Good chemistry, you know... =)
Barce's midfield duo and creative forces Xavi and Andres Iniesta will surely start, but back-up Xabi Alonso, Cesc Fabregas and Santi Cazorla calling for starts, but one or two of them will surely come on as a sub. Villareal's Marcos Senna will be holding off the Russian invasion and having an eye on Andrei Arshavin especially.
Valencia's wonderkid David Silva will appear on either flank or running through the middle, a nightmare for the Russian defenders. He has a good shot in him, definitely can dribble and also has a winger's cross, rightly so, since he can play on the wing. His diminutive size gives him a nice balance and agility. He'll be one to watch in the years to come.
His team-mate, David Villa, will also start alongside Liverpool hotshot Fernando Torres. Both are very composed, and also great finishers in front of goal. Clinical and deadly, this Spanish duo will be the envy of most European nations. Both are very pacey too and can dribble well, especially the latter. Torres is also quite surprisingly good in the air, with Villa better at long shots, and is more of a passer compared to Torres.
So I'm cheerin' on Spain for the win. Guus Hiddink will definitely be plotting against them now. But... In this game of football, no one knows, really. Hope the amount of goals will equal the number in the first game!!
Bye~!
Creative midfielder Konstatin Zurianov will play in midfield, his experience will definitely help in calming the nerves of the younger Russians in this epic game. Former-forward Igor Semshov will take his place in midfield. Another experienced head, he'll hope to hold the midfield well against the likes of Spain's Andreas Iniesta and Xavi. Another over-thirties midfielder in Sergei Semak will be the holding midfielder at hope to stop David Silva's runs. Hot property Diniya Bilyaletdinov is good with the ball at his feet and unpredictable with his movement, and will most likely start to give Hiddink another midfield player.
He's so good, he's a star, he's getting his own paragraph. I know he won't care, okay?! Playmaker Andrei Arshavin, can't really see he is 27... with his baby-face, will be the main man and the one who will pull the strings for the Russians. If he doesn't deliver, the Russians will most likely not, and Hiddink should surely have a plan should the unthinkable happens. He's runs and passing will surely be a handful for Marcos Senna.
Russia's top scorer Roman Pavluchenko will be one to look out for. He's strong, a little pacey and powerful in the air, the perfect combination for most strikers, a handful for the Spanish defence. He's presence can alone panic Carlos Puyol and co.. He'll have to hold the ball up well for the midfielders to support him.
Spain's Likely Line-Up (4-3-1-2 or 4-3-3): Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas, and also the hero of the quarters, will almost certainly start. Barcelona captain Carles Puyol will also start and command his defence, with Valencia's Carlos Marchena beside him. Goal-scoring left-back Joan Capdevila will continue in defence with Madrid's Sergio Ramos also continuing at right-back., giving Aragones a solid defence that he has used for most of the tournament. Good chemistry, you know... =)
Barce's midfield duo and creative forces Xavi and Andres Iniesta will surely start, but back-up Xabi Alonso, Cesc Fabregas and Santi Cazorla calling for starts, but one or two of them will surely come on as a sub. Villareal's Marcos Senna will be holding off the Russian invasion and having an eye on Andrei Arshavin especially.
Valencia's wonderkid David Silva will appear on either flank or running through the middle, a nightmare for the Russian defenders. He has a good shot in him, definitely can dribble and also has a winger's cross, rightly so, since he can play on the wing. His diminutive size gives him a nice balance and agility. He'll be one to watch in the years to come.
His team-mate, David Villa, will also start alongside Liverpool hotshot Fernando Torres. Both are very composed, and also great finishers in front of goal. Clinical and deadly, this Spanish duo will be the envy of most European nations. Both are very pacey too and can dribble well, especially the latter. Torres is also quite surprisingly good in the air, with Villa better at long shots, and is more of a passer compared to Torres.
So I'm cheerin' on Spain for the win. Guus Hiddink will definitely be plotting against them now. But... In this game of football, no one knows, really. Hope the amount of goals will equal the number in the first game!!
Bye~!
my thoughts at 5:32 pm
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Suddenly, there's light at the end of the tunnel... But for how long? Only time will tell... Ahh another plan fails... I'll have one left. yeah sy?Well... At least I feel happier now. =)
my thoughts at 10:07 pm
Portugal vs Germany? One was on form in the group stages, another made it with one loss, form vs pedigree, they said.
Spain vs Italy? One flung itself out of the group stages with 9 points, another barely made it through with one win, one lost and one draw.
Spain vs Italy? One flung itself out of the group stages with 9 points, another barely made it through with one win, one lost and one draw.
Now its this. One has it's full complement and manager back on the bench from suspension, the other has only 14 fully fit players, with 3 doubtful. One had a straightforward quarters win, the other had a come-from-behind-in-the-last-minute plus penalties victory. It would be nice for Turkey to prevail, though.
Germany's Likely Line-Up (4-2-3-1): Arsenal's back-up Jens Lehmann will start in goal. Arne Fredriech will play to force the ineffective Marcell Jensen out of the team, with Phillip Lahm taking his place at left-back. Real Madrid flop signing Christoph Metzelder and Per Mertesacker will line-up like two tall towers overseeing the German box.
If Torsten Frings remains unfit for the match, two will come in his place. Former Aston Villa hotshot Thomas Hitzlsberger and Bundesliga midfielder Simon Rolfes will hold the German fort. Chelsea midfield general Michael Ballack will support the attack with his surging runs and his dangerous presence in the penalty box, with his wonderful heading ability.
Lukas Podolski and quarter-finals hero Bastian Schweinsteiger will be stationed on the German's flanks. Their running will be essential and will surely be a threat towards Turkey. Miroslav Klose will be the tip of their attack, and his heading ability will be other to look out for.
Turkey's Likely Line-Up (4-4-1-1): 2002 World Cup veteran Rustu Recber starts in goal again, after first choice Volkan Demirel lost his appeal against a second match ban. Midfielder-turned-right back Sabri Sarioglu will fill in again at that position, whilst Galatasary dynamo Hakan Kadir Balta will continue at left-back. Gokhan Zan will have to command his defence well, alongside him could be youngster Memet Topal whom will be drafted in should Servet Cetin not be fit enough to start, as Emre Asik is suspended.
Hamit Altintop will continue on from the side which faced Croatia. Suspended midfielder Mehmet Aurelio is back in contention and will almost certainly slot into his playmaking role. Experienced midfielder Ayhan Akman could start to hold Turkey's midfield, unless doubtul Fenerbache-bound midfielder Emre Belozoglu becomes fit in time for the semis. Gokdeniz Karadeniz might start, giving the Turks more than enough creative flair.
London-born Colin Kazim-Richards will definitely play with the Sanli Tuncay and Nihat out supsended and injured respectively, probably on behind the main man. Supersub Semih Senturk might lead the attack, looking for more goals.
So the first semis. Will the Turks prevail? Or will Germany's quality and strength in depth end Turkey's Greek fairytale? Let's just wait and see. Hmm... Maybe seeing Turkey's line-up might be more interesting than the game itself.
Bye~!
Germany's Likely Line-Up (4-2-3-1): Arsenal's back-up Jens Lehmann will start in goal. Arne Fredriech will play to force the ineffective Marcell Jensen out of the team, with Phillip Lahm taking his place at left-back. Real Madrid flop signing Christoph Metzelder and Per Mertesacker will line-up like two tall towers overseeing the German box.
If Torsten Frings remains unfit for the match, two will come in his place. Former Aston Villa hotshot Thomas Hitzlsberger and Bundesliga midfielder Simon Rolfes will hold the German fort. Chelsea midfield general Michael Ballack will support the attack with his surging runs and his dangerous presence in the penalty box, with his wonderful heading ability.
Lukas Podolski and quarter-finals hero Bastian Schweinsteiger will be stationed on the German's flanks. Their running will be essential and will surely be a threat towards Turkey. Miroslav Klose will be the tip of their attack, and his heading ability will be other to look out for.
Turkey's Likely Line-Up (4-4-1-1): 2002 World Cup veteran Rustu Recber starts in goal again, after first choice Volkan Demirel lost his appeal against a second match ban. Midfielder-turned-right back Sabri Sarioglu will fill in again at that position, whilst Galatasary dynamo Hakan Kadir Balta will continue at left-back. Gokhan Zan will have to command his defence well, alongside him could be youngster Memet Topal whom will be drafted in should Servet Cetin not be fit enough to start, as Emre Asik is suspended.
Hamit Altintop will continue on from the side which faced Croatia. Suspended midfielder Mehmet Aurelio is back in contention and will almost certainly slot into his playmaking role. Experienced midfielder Ayhan Akman could start to hold Turkey's midfield, unless doubtul Fenerbache-bound midfielder Emre Belozoglu becomes fit in time for the semis. Gokdeniz Karadeniz might start, giving the Turks more than enough creative flair.
London-born Colin Kazim-Richards will definitely play with the Sanli Tuncay and Nihat out supsended and injured respectively, probably on behind the main man. Supersub Semih Senturk might lead the attack, looking for more goals.
So the first semis. Will the Turks prevail? Or will Germany's quality and strength in depth end Turkey's Greek fairytale? Let's just wait and see. Hmm... Maybe seeing Turkey's line-up might be more interesting than the game itself.
Bye~!
my thoughts at 4:09 pm
Monday, June 23, 2008
Forgive me for the amateur illustration. This... is the Italian way of play. And to reiterate, it's not their way of defending. Imagine that! This was what Italy deployed against the Spanish creative forces this morning, and fortunately for Euro 2008 as a tournament and advert for football as the beautiful game, they were knocked out, albeit on superior penalty taking skills of the Spanish.They play two banks of four, much like Everton when they played for a goalless draw at Anfield a couple seasons ago, with a basic and everyday backline of four defenders. However they had not started Marco Materazzi and continued with full-backs Cristian Panucci and Giorgios Chiellini in their heart of their defence, but to be fair they are decent centre backs. How Italy are dreaming of the days of Fabio Cannavaro, Alessandro Nesta and Paolo Maldini? Anyway, back to this morning, they had Gianluca Zambrotta and Fabio Grosso as their full-backs. This all looks okay, until... They played FOUR, yes 4, central midfielders as their four middlemen. And yes, they used a flat 4-4-2, meaning two of the central midfielders, namely Massimo Ambrosini, played on one side. All this to stifle Spain's creative duo of Xavi and Andrea Iniesta, and deadly trio of Fernando Torres, David Villa and David Silva.
Even when Torres, Villa and Silva got isolated with the full-backs, they managed to draw some pretty clear-cut fouls from them, showing how bad the situation could be had Italy played more positively, leaving a little more space behind. Penalty should have been awarded to David Villa for the clip by one of the Italian midfielders.
Fortunately, Villa managed to convert his spot kick, and substitutes and youngsters Santi Cazorla and Cesc Fabregas really had the balls to take theirs and kudos to them for converting theirs. Dani Guiza missed his, but it didn't matter as Italians Daniel De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale missed theirs.
I was wondering, you know, when you've just lost a shootout, and if you missed yours, which is the crucial one, and you see your team-mates coming to console you, it really means two things, really, is that they know it's your fault that they are out, and the other is that they really feel bad you are sad. Aww...
Darn I can't watch the Spain-Russia rematch/semis... Frickin' Chinese 'O' Level Orals... Argh!!!
Bye~!
my thoughts at 8:37 pm
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Haha!!! How jack can jack be? Hmm... I must be feeling for Croatian rocker coach Slaven Bilic. After seeing his side battle for 119 minutes and then seeing them score, he ran up and down the touchline in celebration. I don't see no wrong, it's just letting your feelings and emotions out... I would think even the calmest managers would do that, like Harry Redknapp or Rafael Benitez... I wouldn't be surprised seeing Jose "Ego Hungry" Mourinho do that though. Haha back to the quarter final match, and with like immediate effect, Turkey villian Rustu Recber pumps the ball upfield towards a group of players, and with some scrambly effect, it falls to the Turk hero and he lashes the ball home. It was 0-0 after 118 minutes, and now its 1-1 after 120+minutes. 2 minutes. 2 goals. Wonderful stuff.So and like how football likes to play with us... After Luka Modric converted his spot kick in the group stages, he slides it wide. Ivan Rakitic can't hold his nerve either. And Rustu Recber turns hero after he saves Mladen Petric's spot-kick. With that, Turkey went against the odds and will hope to do so against Germany, without Tuncay and Emre and Arda unfortunately...
Well done to Russia. Holland, on a high, after 9/9 in the Group Stages, couldn't find their rhythm against Russia. Guus Hiddink totally outclassed his younger compatriot Marco van Basten. His subs did the trick too... Spain vs Italy next, the one we're all waiting for...
Bye~!
my thoughts at 11:38 am
Friday, June 20, 2008
The Prelim II are over... And I would have mixed feelings on it. The only positive of it being held in the June Holidays is that this makes us continuously study during the holidays, not just having an empty break and forgetting everything we learnt in the past semester. Well, the bad part is that we only have effectively one or two weeks break, at the start of the holidays and the additional one week given, and even then there's the frickin' I'm-so-going-to-screw-up Chinese 'O' Level Orals next Friday... Zzz...History...
Guessed the memorising of essays paid off. The SBQ however was a little tricky. The sources given were not as straightforward and it needed a lot of thinking. A1? Haha... Can't be too overconfident.
Chemistry...
Studied more for it than any other Chemistry exam in the past. Knew more as a result and hopefully I would get an improvement on my results and pull it up to a B at the minimum? Well... A's not a possibility.
Geography Elective...
Din learn shit for it for two months. Studied little and only chionged on the night itself and day before. Just crapped a lot and hope for the best I guess...
Physics...
Don't know about this one. Okay okay... B? I dunno...
Social Studies...
Another one that I didn't study for the past two months. Well now I know that listening in Mr F's lessons are important! Haha... Most would BEG TO DIFFER!! Hmm... Cramped in one semester of his lessons and teachings in one night and one morning. The revision kit was shite. Crapped out for the essays, but the SBQ was manageable...
E Maths...
Mixed feelings. Could go either way. If I'm not careless, it should be a good result... If I am, I'm screwed.
Add Maths...
Well breezed through the first part, but the second part of it was slightly trickier. Lost marks through carelessness already. Hope the rest wouldn't be so screwed up.
So let the start of the preparations for prelim III begin! Haha...
Bye bye Portugal and Ronaldo. Complacency is the main reason I think they did worse than they should have. Big Phil was kinda arrogant in naming his side even before the match, giving the Germans time to regroup and came out with a smart 4-5-1 to stop Portugal's attacking trio of Deco, Ronaldo and Simao. Bastian Schweisteiger showed how good he is with two assists and a goal of his own. Well done to him. 3-2 to Germany with Joachim Loew in the stands... Next up it's Croatia and Turkey... Go Turkey! Haha...
Bye~!
my thoughts at 9:02 pm
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Bye bye Riise...
Memories such as the cracker against Manchester United, the European Super Cup goal against Bayern, the goal against Everton that resulted from a run that lasted half the length of the pitch, two against Chelsea in the semis of the FA Cup and the Community Shield and of course, the cross that led to Steven Gerrard's headed goal that pulled Liverpool back to 1-3 in the final in Istanbul... Good luck at AS Roma!
So I'm now wondering, what's happened to the imminent signing of Andrea Dossena? The man supposedly to replace Riise? Now there's only Fabio Aurelio and reserve Emiliano Insua at left back, and maybe Alvaro Arbeloa... Do we need Dossena for less than ten million? Why don't save that money plus the sale of Riise for around four to buy another winger or striker? We have Phillipe Degen at right-back to cover Steve Finnan already... And Gareth Barry isn't worth 20 million pounds!!! He's only worth at most 13... A dozen more pounds on that 20 and we could get David Villa.
Congrats to Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Italy, Croatia, Turkey, Portugal and Germany. Tonight's Germany vs Portugal, so one would be knocked out soon. Netherlands' reserve looked impressive, so did Croatia's and Spain's, although Portugal's one looked pretty under-par. Italy held their own against France, albeit some unfortunate incidents that turned the tide against the French. Turkey's magnificent comeback against the Czechs, the villian is Petr Cech and the hero is definitely Nihat. Germany downed Austria easily I must say... Guus Hiddink guides another underdog to the knockout stages of a major international competition. Not bad... Haha... Can't wait for the semis, I think it's showing free on the preview channel. I hope...
Oh yeah... The new firefox's out, heard the new features are pleasing, and that it's pretty good and safe, go check it out and download...
Bye~!
my thoughts at 7:56 pm
Sunday, June 15, 2008
So tonight the curtains fell on Singapore's GOAL 2010 World Cup finals dream, after losing 2-0 to Saudi Arabia, despite a spirited performance. Ahh Singapore needed a win to stay alive in the qualification, and it all could have been so different had left winger Khairul Amri scored after being through on goal, one-on-one against the Saudi goalie.John Wilkinson looked poor in midfield, despite one or two surging forward runs. Midfielder-turned-winger Shahril Ishak looked very out of place on the wing. He tried to get pass his opponents but failed and his crosses were poor. He should have pulled one back late in the second half.
Hassan Sunny looked good in place of the injured Lionel Lewis.
Alex Duric's touch was poor on the night.
In four years time I guess...
my thoughts at 12:06 am
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Holland showed that their 3-0 win over Italy was no fluke, and followed up with a 4-1 thrashing of France. Well... Liverpool workhorse Dirk Kuyt headed in the first from a corner, and Arsenal treatment room regular Robin van Persie added a second from a Arjen Robben cross. Robben added one more after France got one back via Barca flop Thierry Henry, and Rafael van der Vaart rubbed it in with a superb long range effort. They join Croatia and Portugal in the quarters.Italy were lucky to draw 1-1 with Romania. Adrian Mutu fired home a first after a mistake from the Italian defence, but Cristian Panucci equalised. The real drama came in the last ten minutes when Mutu could have thrown Italy out of the competition and could have resulted in Romania being the unlikely team from the so-called Group of Death to advance. Credit to Gianluigi Buffon for the great save.
So this is how things stand...
1 Holland 6 points
2 Romania 2 points
3 Italy 1 point
4 France 1 point
2 Romania 2 points
3 Italy 1 point
4 France 1 point
The final group games are Italy vs France and Holland vs Romania. Since Holland is confirmed to top the group and advance, I wouldn't be surprised to see Marco van Basten field a weakened side against Romania, which would give Romania all the chance of getting an unlikely win and advancing with the Dutch. Italy and France, on the other hand, both must win to stand a realistic chance of going through. So one has to lose, if they draw, and Romania loses, all would be stuck on 2 points, and all the ways of tie-breaking would be used... Interesting. Go Romania!
Bye~!
Bye~!
my thoughts at 10:16 am
Friday, June 13, 2008
simply sensational!
Croatia's 2-1 win over Germany. What a shocker. Lotsa luck, though.
English referee Howard Webb awards a last minute penalty to Austria, which some 38 year old experienced dude takes and scores, which pisses off the Polish manager, saying Webb wants to show he is a "big boy" and has the "guts to do it"... Well after seeing the highlights, I thought it was a correct decision. C'mon, a pull on the shirt like that so bad would be given anywhere else on the field. This time, the English has gotten it right!
my thoughts at 10:44 pm
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Spain 4-1 RussiaMagnificent performance from the Spanish against the team that knocked England out of Euro qualifying. David Villa's hat-trick could not have come without the unselfishness of Fernando Torres, but the last two goals scored by him was finishing at the highest level. Cesc Fabregas' goal looked a bit offside? No? There was no Russia player outside of play injured...
Sweden 2-0 Greece
That's what you get when you play so defensively. It's dangerous. Henrik Larsson's return to the international squad paid dividends when he laid the ball off for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and he duly cracked the ball into the top corner. Larsson then played in Ljungberg, and after a scrappy play, Greece 'keeper Nikopolidis was smiling after somehow Peter Hansson forced it home.
Switzerland 1-2 Turkey
A last minute winner from Turkey's Arda Turan knocked the first team out of the tournament, co-hosts Switzerland. They started well, going one up through Hakan Yakin, but Turkey fought back to equalise, and Turan broke so many neutral hearts with a goal close to the end.
Czech Republic 1-3 Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo had a hand in all three of the goals, scoring one, assisting one, and doing something for the first one. Deco scrambled in a goal after Ronaldo's close-range effort his Petr Cech. Ronaldo scored his own when Deco squared the ball for him in the eighteen yard box to fire home, and in the last minutes, he broke free of the Czech's offside trap and unselfishly squared the ball for substitute Ricardo Quaresma to score. He's tryin to show he ain't selfish no more? Hmm...
my thoughts at 10:16 am
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
So Spain's first match against Russia. Russia the obvious underdogs, but don't count them out! They have a hard-to-beat squad, and like today's match, any scoreline is possible. Just look at Netherlands vs Italy, who would expected a 3-0 win, even for either side? Incredible... If you look at this game at Guus Hiddink vs Luis Aragones, you might think Hiddink's side might have a chance... Haha...Today went to get the Singapore-Saudi Arabia tickets for this Saturday night with sy, bought for sw too... Hmm... Singapore did well against Uzbekistan, I'd be as optimistic as the Channel 5 commentator. Haha... Erm... So yeah, Singapore do need to win though, and they HAVE to beat Lebanon. Indra needs to step up, so does Khairul Amri with his pace, and Alex Duric needs to know how to head the ball on properly.
Some longkang-cum-passage way. Kinda quick how it was broke down and left hanging so quick, cause I saw it only a few days ago installed to tell people to exercise caution. Well maybe the people who usually uses this route don't really care and decides, this sign isn't exercising caution itself either? Hmm... Random seh.Bye~!
my thoughts at 9:40 pm
Lukas Podolski was born in Poland, but moved to Germany when he was two, now he has scored two to break Polish hearts. Very convincing German performance
Austria 0-1 Croatia
Luka Modric's fourth minute penalty, then it was defending, defending, defending.
France 0-0 Romania
France did themselves no favours with a 0-0 draw against a Romanian side that they should beat in their Group of Death. Well, at least they have one point more than Italy, but the latter still have to play Romania, and should they win, France are in trouble.
The Netherlands 3-0 Italy
What a game, I must say. From Italy coach Roberto Donadoni's point of view, Italy could have grabbed like three goals, especially after the introduction of Alex Del Piero... maybe he should start the next game? Well... with that said, Ruud van Nistelrooy did well to stay on his feet when Gianluigi Buffon brought him down, maybe a penalty, but the former got his goal after he deflected in a Wesley Sneijder shot, and there was much of a hint that he was actually offside. Lucky Holland. But when Andrea Pirlo's corner was cleared off the line by Giovanni van Bronckhorst, he ran the length of the pitch to cross for Dirk Kuyt, who headed it down for the on-rushing Sneijder who rammed it beyond Buffon's near post. Late in the game, van der Sar managed to palm away Pirlo's free-kick, and again, the Dutch's counter attacking football in the end saw Kuyt centre the ball to van Bronckhorst who headed in goal-bound to score. Italy had many chances from Del Piero, and should have also scored when Luca Toni broke free after Antonio Cassano's lobbed through pass. Netherlands have the advantage in this Group of Death, and Italy and France are definitely going to struggle to go through. Marco van Basten's Holland definitely have a good counter-attacking system. Fast and efficient.
my thoughts at 10:23 am
Monday, June 09, 2008
form is temporary, class is permanent
this isn't a cliché! it's nice...
my thoughts at 10:34 pm
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Euro 2008 Group D Preview:Russia
Coach: Guus Hiddink
Star Player: 10 Andrei Arshavin
Rising Star: 1 Igor Akinfeev
Captain: 11 Sergei Semak
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group E, ahead of ENGLAND but below Croatia
Top Scorer: Alexander Kerzhakov (6 goals)
Expectations: Quarter Finals
With master tactician Guus Hiddink as Russia's mastermind, they, along with Croatia, are the dark horses of the tournament. They'll have to depend on playmaker Andrei Arshavin, and the pace of Dmitri Sychev and Ivan Saenko upfront. Their goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev are, like Holland, the only bright spot in their weak defence, probably, only Sergei Ignashevich can boast some quality. Even then, they prevented England from going through, didn't they?
Greece
Coach: Otto Rehhagel
Star Player: 9 Angelos Charisteas
Rising Star: 22 Alexandros Tziolis
Captain: 6 Angelos Basinas
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group C, ahead of Turkey and Norway
Top Scorer: Theofanis Gekas (5 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
The surprise winners of the last edition of this tournament, Greece will still certainly start as the ones destined not to advance to the quarters. Angelos Basinas and Alexandros Tziolis will hold up the defensive guard in midfield, shielding the back four. Gergios Samaras, Theofanis Gekas and Angelos Charisteas will need to score some goals for Greece to stand any chance of advancing.
Sweden
Coach: Lars Lagerback
Star Player: 10 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Rising Star: 18 Sebastian Larsson
Captain: 9 Fredrik Ljungberg
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group F, below Spain and ahead of Northern Ireland and Denmark
Top Scorer: Marcus Allback (6 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
After sensationally bringing legend Henrik Larsson back into the international fold, Lars Lagerback will have some difficulty in picking either qualifying top scorer Marcus Allback or Larsson himself to partner Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front. If Ibrahimovic delivers, Sweden have a chance, if Ibrahimovic decides to be lazy, Larsson and Fredrik Ljungberg will be heavily burdened to bag goals.
*Spain
Coach: Luis Aragones
Star Player: 9 Fernando Torres
Rising Star: 21 David Silva
Captain: 1 Iker Casillas
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group F, ahead of Sweden
Top Scorer: David Villa (7 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
1 Iker Casillas
5 Carles Puyol __ 20 Juanito
15 Sergio Ramos ______________________________________ 11 Joan Capdevila
19 Marcos Senna
8 Xavi __________________________ 10 Cesc Fabregas
David Silva
7 David Villa ______________________ 9 Fernando Torres
5 Carles Puyol __ 20 Juanito
15 Sergio Ramos ______________________________________ 11 Joan Capdevila
19 Marcos Senna
8 Xavi __________________________ 10 Cesc Fabregas
David Silva
7 David Villa ______________________ 9 Fernando Torres
The world's biggest underachievers in international football, Spain will be hoping to triumph in this year's edition. They have the best EPL debutant this time in Liverpool's Fernando Torres, partnering David Villa, to be supported with one most would think is David Silva, or otherwise. They also have Arsenal's wonderkid in Cesc Fabregas, and Barcelona's playmaker Xavi, whilst either Marcos Senna or Xabi Alonso guards the back four. Iker Casillas leads the back line, with Carles Puyol and Sergio Ramos the stars of the defence. They have good back-up in Andres Iniesta, Daniel Guiza and the defensive likes of Alvaro Arbeloa and Raul Albiol. They even have a quality 'keeper should Casillas get injured, in Jose Reina and the very experienced Andres Palop. Spain will have to do good and realise their potential with such a talented squad.
Yesterday's Results:
Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic
A very scrappy game. A game of missed chances. But even after substitute Vaclav Sverkos scored the eventual winner, Switzerland had quite a number of chances to score in the game. Czech 'keeper Petr Cech did well to stop a number of shots, but had to thank his upright on a couple of occasions.
Portugal 2-0 Turkey
I must say... Portugal should have gone at least 5-0 up. Their skipper Nuno Gomes kept hitting the bar, and Cristiano Ronaldo's showing on the left should have been rewarded by a goal from his usual free-kicks. Having said that, Turkey should have scored a few too, Nihat and Sanli Tuncay the guilty parties. Portugal look very convincing. I really loved the last goal. Nice turn by Joao Moutinho, and his passed allow the substitute to score the last goal. Nice name too from him, Raul Meireles.
Bye~!
Yesterday's Results:
Switzerland 0-1 Czech Republic
A very scrappy game. A game of missed chances. But even after substitute Vaclav Sverkos scored the eventual winner, Switzerland had quite a number of chances to score in the game. Czech 'keeper Petr Cech did well to stop a number of shots, but had to thank his upright on a couple of occasions.
Portugal 2-0 Turkey
I must say... Portugal should have gone at least 5-0 up. Their skipper Nuno Gomes kept hitting the bar, and Cristiano Ronaldo's showing on the left should have been rewarded by a goal from his usual free-kicks. Having said that, Turkey should have scored a few too, Nihat and Sanli Tuncay the guilty parties. Portugal look very convincing. I really loved the last goal. Nice turn by Joao Moutinho, and his passed allow the substitute to score the last goal. Nice name too from him, Raul Meireles.
Bye~!
my thoughts at 8:25 pm
Saturday, June 07, 2008
Euro 2008 Group C Preview:~The Group of Death~
Italy
Coach: Roberto Donadoni
Star Player: 9 Luca Toni
Rising Star: 22 Alberto Aquilani
Captain: 1 Gianluigi Buffon
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group B, ahead of France and Scotland
Top Scorer: 9 Luca Toni (5 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
With many hoping they're going to win this tournament, Italy will indeed be a force to be reckon with. They have a really stable defence, which consist of the infamous Marco Materazzi, Gianluca Zambrotta and of course, one of the best goalkeepers in Buffon. Their midfield will definitely have enforcers like Gennaro Gattuso and Daniele De Rossi, but in the playmaking department, they have much more to saviour. Youngster Aquilani and Milan midfielder Andreas Pirlo are the ones who can split open most defences, while ever-green Alessandro Del Piero, Bayern sensation Toni and Inter youngster Marco Borriello will be hoping to be amongst the goals that will hope to guide Italy to at least the semi finals.
Netherlands
Coach: Marco van Basten
Star Player: 10 Wesley Sneijder
Rising Star: 20 Ibrahim Afellay
Captain: 5 Giovanni Van Bronckhorst
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group G, behind Romania
Top Scorer: Robin van Persie (4 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
The Oranje boast a front line any nation or club would desire. Goal-poacher Ruud van Nistelrooy is the point man in attack, and will be supported by versatile attackers in Hamburg captain Rafael van der Vaart, Real team-mates Sneijder and Arjen Robben. Back-ups include Ajax wonderkid Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Liverpool workhorse Dirk Kuyt and Arsenal's van Persie. Their defense, on the other hand, looks extremely weak, with only the ageing Edwin van der Sar the only bright, but erratic, spark. Villa's Wilfred Bouma, Blackburn's Andre Ooijer and Birmingham's Mario Melchiot are hardly world class, but they at least have Premiership hard experience behind them. van Basten will have to lead them to a semi final berth to be considered a success in his last games in charge.
Romania
Coach: Victor Piturca
Star Player: 10 Adrian Mutu
Rising Star: 9 Ciprian Marica
Captain: 5 Cristian Chivu
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group G, ahead of Romania
Top Scorer: Adrian Mutu (6 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
With a core of defender Chivu, playmaker Nicolae Dica and forward Mutu, Romania are going to have a hard time getting out of the proclaimed Group of Death. Youngster Ciprian Marica will certainly use this stage to get a transfer to a bigger club in Europe. The Romanian's will certainly be banking on some Greece-inspired defending to try to sit back and counter, with the hope the likes of Mutu will grab the odd goal. You never know, don't you?
*France
Coach: Raymond Domenech
Star Player: 14 Thierry Henry
Rising Star: 11 Sami Nasri
Captain: 4 Patrick Vieira
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group B, behind Italy
Top Scorer: Thierry Henry (7 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
Coach: Roberto Donadoni
Star Player: 9 Luca Toni
Rising Star: 22 Alberto Aquilani
Captain: 1 Gianluigi Buffon
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group B, ahead of France and Scotland
Top Scorer: 9 Luca Toni (5 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
With many hoping they're going to win this tournament, Italy will indeed be a force to be reckon with. They have a really stable defence, which consist of the infamous Marco Materazzi, Gianluca Zambrotta and of course, one of the best goalkeepers in Buffon. Their midfield will definitely have enforcers like Gennaro Gattuso and Daniele De Rossi, but in the playmaking department, they have much more to saviour. Youngster Aquilani and Milan midfielder Andreas Pirlo are the ones who can split open most defences, while ever-green Alessandro Del Piero, Bayern sensation Toni and Inter youngster Marco Borriello will be hoping to be amongst the goals that will hope to guide Italy to at least the semi finals.
Netherlands
Coach: Marco van Basten
Star Player: 10 Wesley Sneijder
Rising Star: 20 Ibrahim Afellay
Captain: 5 Giovanni Van Bronckhorst
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group G, behind Romania
Top Scorer: Robin van Persie (4 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
The Oranje boast a front line any nation or club would desire. Goal-poacher Ruud van Nistelrooy is the point man in attack, and will be supported by versatile attackers in Hamburg captain Rafael van der Vaart, Real team-mates Sneijder and Arjen Robben. Back-ups include Ajax wonderkid Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Liverpool workhorse Dirk Kuyt and Arsenal's van Persie. Their defense, on the other hand, looks extremely weak, with only the ageing Edwin van der Sar the only bright, but erratic, spark. Villa's Wilfred Bouma, Blackburn's Andre Ooijer and Birmingham's Mario Melchiot are hardly world class, but they at least have Premiership hard experience behind them. van Basten will have to lead them to a semi final berth to be considered a success in his last games in charge.
Romania
Coach: Victor Piturca
Star Player: 10 Adrian Mutu
Rising Star: 9 Ciprian Marica
Captain: 5 Cristian Chivu
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group G, ahead of Romania
Top Scorer: Adrian Mutu (6 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
With a core of defender Chivu, playmaker Nicolae Dica and forward Mutu, Romania are going to have a hard time getting out of the proclaimed Group of Death. Youngster Ciprian Marica will certainly use this stage to get a transfer to a bigger club in Europe. The Romanian's will certainly be banking on some Greece-inspired defending to try to sit back and counter, with the hope the likes of Mutu will grab the odd goal. You never know, don't you?
*France
Coach: Raymond Domenech
Star Player: 14 Thierry Henry
Rising Star: 11 Sami Nasri
Captain: 4 Patrick Vieira
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group B, behind Italy
Top Scorer: Thierry Henry (7 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
23 Gregory Coupet
5 William Gallas __ 17 Sebastien Squillaci
19 Willy Sagnol ______________________________________13 Patrice Evra
4 Patrick Vieira (C) ____ 6 Claude Makelele
22 Franck Ribery _________________________________ 11 Samir Nasri
12 Thierry Henry ______ 9 Karim Benzema
5 William Gallas __ 17 Sebastien Squillaci
19 Willy Sagnol ______________________________________13 Patrice Evra
4 Patrick Vieira (C) ____ 6 Claude Makelele
22 Franck Ribery _________________________________ 11 Samir Nasri
12 Thierry Henry ______ 9 Karim Benzema
With a wealth of options in each department, le Blues are well equipped to go far in this tournament. William Gallas will be leading the defensive line to repulse the Group of Death's attacks, while skipper Patrick Vieira and Claude Makelele will be providing much defensive cover, allowing offensive-minded full-backs like Willy Sagnol and Patrice Evra to bomb forward in support. Attacking midfielders like Franck Ribery, Sami Nasri, Sidney Govou and Florent Malouda have a tendency to cut in, so the full-backs offensive runs will be important. Thierry Henry and Karim Benzema should be the front two, if any are to misfire though, they still have Ligue 1 sensation Bafetimbi Gomis and Nicolas Anelka in reserve. Not bad, eh?
Ah yes, VJ's soccer trials only lasted 10 mins. One 4v4 game decides whether you make the first cut to play in a 7v7 game. Fair? I dunno, you decide. The girls were so nice, all screamin' around and so happily playing a 5v5 game, well that's after they had some noob passing practice and shooting practice that proved girls have zero technique. They just came for fun I guess. I like~ Haha...
Uzbekistan vs Singapore. I just hope it's not another thrashing. Respectable lost, like 1-0 would be a huge result? A draw? Even better. A win? VERY unlikely... Please I'm a realist... Well they do need a draw to stand a chance of going through...
Bye~!
Ah yes, VJ's soccer trials only lasted 10 mins. One 4v4 game decides whether you make the first cut to play in a 7v7 game. Fair? I dunno, you decide. The girls were so nice, all screamin' around and so happily playing a 5v5 game, well that's after they had some noob passing practice and shooting practice that proved girls have zero technique. They just came for fun I guess. I like~ Haha...
Uzbekistan vs Singapore. I just hope it's not another thrashing. Respectable lost, like 1-0 would be a huge result? A draw? Even better. A win? VERY unlikely... Please I'm a realist... Well they do need a draw to stand a chance of going through...
Bye~!
my thoughts at 7:52 pm
Friday, June 06, 2008
Euro 2008 Group B Preview:Poland
Coach: Leo Beenhakker
Star Player: 1 Artur Boruc
Rising Star: 22 Lukasz Fabianski
Captain: 9 Maciej Zurawski
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group A, ahead of Portugal and Serbia
Top Scorer: Ebi Smolarek (9 goals)
Expectations: Group Stages
Poland will have to depend heavily on goalkeeper Boruc, very talented one too by the way, playmaker Zurawski to pick out top scorer in the qualifier Ebi Smolarek and co. if they are to get some goals, hopefully enough for them to qualify. Other than that, their squad looks a little above average.
Austria
Coach: Josef Hickersberger
Star Player: 10 Andreas Ivanschitz
Rising Star: 15 Sebastien Prodl
Captain: 10 Andreas Ivanschitz
Qualification Stats: Automatically due to being host nation
Top Scorer: None
Expectations: Group Stages
Austria's David Beckham in the form of captain Ivanschitz will be the co-host nation's inspiration and creative force. Roland Linz will need to bag a couple of goals and be strong up front, while defenders Emanuel Pogatetz and rising star Prodl will need to be strong at the back, covering for the very experienced goalkeeper Jurgen Macho.
Croatia
Coach: Slaven Bilic
Star Player: 19 Niko Kranjcar
Rising Star: 14 Luka Modric
Captain: 10 Nico Kovac
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group E, ahead of Russia and ENGLAND
Top Scorer: Mladen Petric (7 goals) - it was Eduardo with 10, but his injury ruled him out of Euro 2008
Expectations: Quarter Finals
After preventing England from going into the Euros and making Steve McClaren lose his job, Croatia will go into this tournament as the dark horses, much like the Czech Republic in the last two major tournaments. They have a wealth of midfielders with great vision and creativity, not least Kranjcar, Modric, Ivan Rakitic. They also have defensive rocks in Vedran Corluka and Robert Kovac, not to mention Dario Simic. They have a hard to beat side and an attacking force, even without Eduardo, that everyone would be afraid for. Slaven Bilic is another wild-card, the coach that downed England.
*Germany
Coach: Joachim Löw
Star Player: 13 Michael Ballack
Rising Star: 9 Mario Gomez
Captain: 13 Michael Ballack
Qualification Stats: 2nd in Group D, behind Czech Republic
Top Scorer: Lukas Podolski (8 goals)
Expectations: Semi Finals
1 Jens Lehmann
17 Per Mertesacker __ 21 Christoph Metzelder
16 Philip Lahm ______________________________________ 2 Marcell Jensen
13 Michael Ballack (C) ____ 8 Torsten Frings
7 Bastian Schweinsteiger _________________________________ 20 Lukas Podolski
11 Miroslav Klose ______ 22 Kevin Kuranyi
17 Per Mertesacker __ 21 Christoph Metzelder
16 Philip Lahm ______________________________________ 2 Marcell Jensen
13 Michael Ballack (C) ____ 8 Torsten Frings
7 Bastian Schweinsteiger _________________________________ 20 Lukas Podolski
11 Miroslav Klose ______ 22 Kevin Kuranyi
Germany have a wealth of attackers, like Klose, Kuranyi, Podolski, Mario Gomez, Piotr Trochowski, Schweinsteiger and 2. Bundesliga striker Oliver Neuville, who is a seasoned campaigner for the European nation. Their defensive backup beyond the first four are impressive too, boasting Arne Friedrich, Clemens Fritz and Heiko Westermann. Their midfield still have Tim Borowski and ex-Villa winger Thomas Hitzlsperger not mentioned. So, Germany do have a good squad with much depth, and would be much able to put in a substitute in an event of any injuries to key men. Much to be desired from Germany, whom will do well to reach the finals and hopefully win it.
Ahh yes... Tomorrow's dooms day, I've bought my shin guard, $12 only though. I'm going to be a nervous wreck tomorrow whilst on the long journey to the place. And I wonder how many people would be there, and whether I would be able to perform tomorrow. Good luck sy and jeff.
Bye~!
Ahh yes... Tomorrow's dooms day, I've bought my shin guard, $12 only though. I'm going to be a nervous wreck tomorrow whilst on the long journey to the place. And I wonder how many people would be there, and whether I would be able to perform tomorrow. Good luck sy and jeff.
Bye~!
my thoughts at 7:46 pm
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Euro 2008 Group A Preview:Czech Republic
Coach: Karel Bruckner
Star Player: 1 Petr Cech
Rising Star: 8 Martin Fenin
Captain: 21 Tomas Ujfalusi
Qualification Stats: 1st in Group D, ahead of Germany
Top Scorer: Jan Koller (6 goals)
Expectations: Quarter Finals
After a disappointing 2006 World Cup showing, the Czechs will be hoping for a better campaign in the Euros. The height of Koller and pace of Milan Baros should terrorize defences, but it will be interesting to see if Baros can utilize his pace to the max, and whether in the absence of Tomas Rosicky, the likes of David Jarolim and Marek Jankulovski can supply the front men.
Turkey
Coach: Fatih Terim
Star Player: 8 Nihat Kahveci
Rising Star: 14 Arda Turan
Captain: 1 Rüştü Reçber
Qualification: 2nd in Group C, ahead of Norway but below Greece
Top Scorer: Nihat Kahveci (3 goals) - it was Hakan Sukur but he was left out of the squad
Expectations: Group Stages
A promising World Cup 2002 campaign in which they won 3rd, Turkey has been quite anonymous since. They'll need the likes of Villarreal sensation Nihat, Middlesbrough forward Tuncay Sanli and midfielder Mehmet Aurelio to fire on all cylinders if they are to manage a few goals and get into the next round.
Switzerland
Coach: Kobi Kuhn
Star Player: 9 Alexander Frei
Rising Star: 15 Gelson Fernandes
Captain: 9 Alexander Frei
Qualification: Automatic due to being host nation
Top Scorer: None
Expectation: Group Stages
Switzerland boast a forward line of Hakan Yakin, Johan Vonlanthen and Frei in their squad, but how will they fare in the Euros? Their superb defensive record in the last World Cup, bowing out in the knockout phases, on penalties, without letting in a single goal, will be something they are looking to continue on. Philippe Senderos might be a weak link for club side Arsenal, but he is their main man in defense, with club mate John Djourou his deputy.
*Portugal
Coach: Luiz Filipe Scolari
Star Player: 7 Cristiano Ronaldo
Rising Star: 10 Joao Moutinho
Captain: 21 Nuno Gomes
Qualification: 2nd in Group A, below Poland
Top Scorer: Cristiano Ronaldo (8 goals)
Expectations: Semi-Finals
1 Ricardo
16 Ricardo Carvalho __ 5 Fernando Meira
4 Bosingwa ______________________________________ 2 Paulo Ferreira
8 Petit ____ 18 Miguel Veloso
7 Cristiano Ronaldo ______________________________________ 17 Ricardo Quaresma
20 Deco
21 Nuno Gomes (C)
16 Ricardo Carvalho __ 5 Fernando Meira
4 Bosingwa ______________________________________ 2 Paulo Ferreira
8 Petit ____ 18 Miguel Veloso
7 Cristiano Ronaldo ______________________________________ 17 Ricardo Quaresma
20 Deco
21 Nuno Gomes (C)
Cristiano Ronaldo, Ricardo Quaresma, Nani and Simao, all talented wingers for Portugal. Joao Moutinho, Deco, Miguel Veloso, Petit and Raul Meireles, all talented midfielders for Portugal. Scolari's practically packed with players who can open up any defence at any instance, whether they like it or not. But what about the main man that's suppose to be finishing off those great through passes or exquisite crosses? Captain Nuno Gomes, Helder Postiga and Hugo Almeida do not look as convincing as the legendary Pauleta. So that's the area they need to work on. They also have a good balance in defence, with Ricardo Carvalho to partner either Fernando Meira or Pepe in defence. Bosingwa and Miguel will fight it out for the right back spot, with Paulo Ferreira likely to be placed out of position at left back, and that should be Portugal's only weak link.
Singapore 3-7 Uzbekistan
This is what's left of the National Stadium after the thrashing we received. I'm getting a Grandstand seat for the Singapore-Saudi Arabia game!! No predictions, though.
Haha Bye~!
Singapore 3-7 Uzbekistan
This is what's left of the National Stadium after the thrashing we received. I'm getting a Grandstand seat for the Singapore-Saudi Arabia game!! No predictions, though.Haha Bye~!
my thoughts at 8:00 pm
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
I find those people who try to comment on something they are usually not interested in, or just don't know anything of, extremely irritating. I mean, c'mon... It's not like their comments are going to add anything significant. My reasoning? 'Cos they know nuts about it, just adding their two cents worth to try to come in into an on-going conversation. It's just damn stupid. And you don't call that coming out of your comfort zone. Oh please! If you're really into TV and music, and try to comment on something related to football, you're going to be talking bullshit if you ask me.June holidays suck. Two weeks to exams.
DSA _JC's website is so unclear.
my thoughts at 10:23 pm
Sunday, June 01, 2008
So England play Trinidad & Tobago in a friendly tonight at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, in the Port of Spain. Seven Manchester United or Chelsea players have not traveled to the Caribbean nation, giving the other England noobs a chance to shine. David Beckham gets the armband, why not Gareth Barry or Steven Gerrard? That's just crap. Why try someone who was a captain for so long before, surely you would know his abilities and potential as a captain?England's Probable Line-Up:
1 Joe Hart
5 David Wheater __ 6 Jonathan Woodgate
2 Glen Johnson ______________________________________ 3 Wayne Bridge
4 Steven Gerrard ____ 8 Gareth Barry
7 David Beckham (C) ______________________________________ 11 Ashley Young
10 Dean Ashton ______ 9 Gabriel Agbonlahor
5 David Wheater __ 6 Jonathan Woodgate
2 Glen Johnson ______________________________________ 3 Wayne Bridge
4 Steven Gerrard ____ 8 Gareth Barry
7 David Beckham (C) ______________________________________ 11 Ashley Young
10 Dean Ashton ______ 9 Gabriel Agbonlahor
Substitutes:
12 Joe Lewis, 13 David James; 14 Rio Ferdinand, 15 Phil Jagielka, 16 Stephen Warnock; 17 David Bentley, 18 Tom Huddlestone, 19 Stewart Downing; 20 Theo Walcott, 21 Peter Crouch, 22 Jermaine Defoe
So this is the line-up England might come out with, against a lesser opposition in T&T, in which Dwight Yorke might surprisingly feature, Joe Hart might get his chance in goal. Joe Lewis will probably only start on the bench, maybe too soon to start a match, and maybe he might come on in the second half. David James, too much experience already, surely he doesn't need to play this match right? This is the match you start an international youngster, not in a game where you need to at least draw against a rugged European team to go through to a major competition!
Glen Johnson might continue from the last game as a substitute, to being a starter tonight, with Wayne Bridge given a chance ahead of substitute Stephen Warnock to show he's better than Ashley Cole. David Wheater and Jonathan Woodgate should have enough quality to stop T&T, with Rio Ferdinand given a break, and Phil Jagielka might feature at some point.
Steven Gerrard to start? Maybe... And he should partner a sure-starter in Gareth Barry. David Beckham will definitely start, with his armband, and Ashley Young will try to show he's the solution to England's left side problem, and another alternative to Joe Cole. David Bentley and Stewart Downing are sure to come on in the second half, with Tom Huddlestone maybe playing ahead of Gerrard from the start, or coming on for the latter in the second half too.
Dean Ashton will finally make an England appearance. He's height, combined with the pace of Gabriel Agbonlahor, will surely cause T&T loads of problems, and give Capello another option of strike pairs to choose from in the future. Big & Small Combo. Theo Walcott might come on as a winger or a replacement for Agbonlahor, with Peter Crouch more likely to come on ahead of Jermaine Defoe, since the former did not play last week against the U.S.A.
Haha... Sure to be a decent match to watch, no one's showing eh?
Bye~!
12 Joe Lewis, 13 David James; 14 Rio Ferdinand, 15 Phil Jagielka, 16 Stephen Warnock; 17 David Bentley, 18 Tom Huddlestone, 19 Stewart Downing; 20 Theo Walcott, 21 Peter Crouch, 22 Jermaine Defoe
So this is the line-up England might come out with, against a lesser opposition in T&T, in which Dwight Yorke might surprisingly feature, Joe Hart might get his chance in goal. Joe Lewis will probably only start on the bench, maybe too soon to start a match, and maybe he might come on in the second half. David James, too much experience already, surely he doesn't need to play this match right? This is the match you start an international youngster, not in a game where you need to at least draw against a rugged European team to go through to a major competition!
Glen Johnson might continue from the last game as a substitute, to being a starter tonight, with Wayne Bridge given a chance ahead of substitute Stephen Warnock to show he's better than Ashley Cole. David Wheater and Jonathan Woodgate should have enough quality to stop T&T, with Rio Ferdinand given a break, and Phil Jagielka might feature at some point.
Steven Gerrard to start? Maybe... And he should partner a sure-starter in Gareth Barry. David Beckham will definitely start, with his armband, and Ashley Young will try to show he's the solution to England's left side problem, and another alternative to Joe Cole. David Bentley and Stewart Downing are sure to come on in the second half, with Tom Huddlestone maybe playing ahead of Gerrard from the start, or coming on for the latter in the second half too.
Dean Ashton will finally make an England appearance. He's height, combined with the pace of Gabriel Agbonlahor, will surely cause T&T loads of problems, and give Capello another option of strike pairs to choose from in the future. Big & Small Combo. Theo Walcott might come on as a winger or a replacement for Agbonlahor, with Peter Crouch more likely to come on ahead of Jermaine Defoe, since the former did not play last week against the U.S.A.
Haha... Sure to be a decent match to watch, no one's showing eh?
Bye~!
my thoughts at 12:42 pm
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