Reuters Soccer Blog

from Mark Meadows:

Reuters Soccer blog merges with Left Field

Dear readers,

The Reuters Soccer blog is merging with our sister site, Left Field -- Reuters' global sports analysis and opinion page.

In future please head to Left Field http://blogs.reuters.com/sport/ for all sports blogs including soccer articles.

It only takes a moment to register so please leave all your insightful comments on Left Field too.

Thanks

from Left field:

Va-va-voom. Vintage Henry scores on Arsenal return.

The clock said 68 minutes, and no one at the Emirates Stadium in north London was looking at the action on the pitch as the fourth official held aloft his lit-up board to signal the re-introduction of Thierry Henry to English football.

Ten minutes later and he'd scored the game's eventual winner. Comebacks don't get this good this often.

14 to replace 15 shone the bright numbers before the goal, but alas Henry's former number has since been taken by young English talent Theo Walcott, who idolises the French great.

Now, for six weeks and six weeks only after which he will return to the United States with the New York Red Bulls, Henry can be seen wearing an Arsenal shirt with the number 12, the same as his France days during which he won the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship.

The only numbers Arsenal fans will care about are 228, 229 and who knows, possible even into the 230s.

With a trademark movement of his right boot, Henry had added to his record Arsenal tally of 226 having watched his new teammates spurn chance after chance against Leeds United in the third round of the FA Cup.

Arsenal fans out there, does this worry you? Would you like to see Arsene Wenger bring in another striker in the January transfer window given the lack of goals?

from Left field:

Post-Christmas cheer in Oslo for out-of-contract players

By Philip O'Connor, Scandinavia sports correspondent

For many football fans, the post-Christmas blues will be banished by the prospect of their club buying big when the transfer window opens in January.

But the out-of-contract players taking part in the FIFPro Winter Tournament in Oslo are hoping to get their futures sorted out before the window opens again.

On a full-size indoor pitch, players affiliated to Norwegians, Swedish, Finnish and Irish unions got together to play a tournament in front of invited scouts and club representatives from across the region.

All the players are out of contract, and many are desperate for a chance to stay in the game.

“We had 120 players looking for places in the squad,” Irish players’ union boss Steephen McGuinness told Reuters. “Last week we took the decision to bump the kitman, just so we could bring another player on the plane”.

For McGuinness and some of his players, it’s their second visit; some of them got short-term deals at the first tournament here in January, but with many clubs in Ireland and elsewhere only offering short-term, 40 week contracts, several have come back to try their luck again.

from Mark Meadows:

NFL Week 15 Lineman picks

By Steve Keating

'Tebow Time' runs out this week when the Broncos host the Patriots but the Lineman's time has come. We've been close to a perfect week a few occasions this season but with time ticking down Week 15  looks like a promising bet.

Ok, the Eagles are at home, have Michael Vick back under centre and beat the Miami Dolphins last week to snap a two game losing skid and have never lost to the Jets (8-0).

But this is also an under-achieving team with a mopping star running back, a fragile quarterback and an erratic defence going up against a Jets team that is flying high on the wings of a three game winning streak.

Buffalo, Washington, and Kansas City may not exactly be the cream of the NFL but Rex Ryan's boys, unlike the Eagles, have delivered when they had to remain in the AFC wildcard chase.

The Jets offence and their quarterback Mark Sanchez remain an enigma.

They rank near the top of league in scoring (6th) averaging 25.2 points per game but near the bottom (25th) in total offence averaging 311-yards per game.

from Left field:

And Porto will play…..Europa League draw provides some stardust

There was the usual hushed silence and then sudden intake of breath heard in Nyon on Friday, though not for the Champions League Round of 16 draw but the first two ties of the Europa League Round of 32.

Holders Porto will play mega-rich Manchester City, they were the first two names out of the little plastic balls when UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino was finally able to open the second after Davor Suker had tried and failed, and Ajax Amsterdam will take on Manchester United.

So what about the Champions League draw? Well, here it is in full:

Olympique Lyon v APOEL Nicosia

Napoli v Chelsea

AC Milan v Arsenal

Basel v Bayern Munich

from Mark Meadows:

Real’s psychological barrier key to Barca’s 3-1 win

By Drazen Jorgic

Annoyingly for Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, the supposed plot line of  El Clasico on Saturday did not follow the script. The much-anticipated power shift from Catalunya to Madrid did not take place and his team are back to the drawing board as far as playing against Barcelona is concerned.

Mourinho blamed bad luck for the loss, as you would expect, but a lot of the press have zoomed in on Real's psychological barrier when it comes to facing Barca.

These things are always difficult to quantify but the awe-inspiring Real team that crushed everyone so far in 2011 simply crumbled when Barcelona reversed a one goal-deficit and went 2-1 up.

Even Mourinho conceded the third Barca goal was a 'psychological blow', though I would argue it was the second goal that mentally defeated them.

Perhaps the players -- a bit like many of the Madrid fans -- had that feeling of 'here we go again'. The doubts crept in, slowly but surely, and Barca took what is now their customary control of latter parts of El Clasico clashes.

Real Madrid began to play like a team that was facing an opponent who had whipped them in six of the previous seven encounters under their current coach, including a 5-0 drubbing.

Time for UEFA to revert to goal difference in Champions League

My head is hurting after all the mathematics that has been needed to work out qualification chances in the Champions League.

It is all because UEFA believes head-to-heads rather than goal difference in all group games should be the first deciding factor.

Many don’t see the logic of this. Using goal difference as the first determining factor, like many domestic leagues, encourages attacking play for a start which is surely a laudable aim. Head-to-heads don’t especially.

The reason head-to-heads is preferred seems to be because one team could have scored many more goals against the group whipping boys than their rivals and this is deemed an unfair advantage. Why?

If Team A batter Team C 7-0 and Team B only beats Team C 1-0, why should Team A be penalised if their head-to-head with Team B is worse. The head-to-head could be 0-0 and 1-1 and Team A would go out on one away goal.

It would be so much more accessible and understandable for the average fan if it was just goal difference (and then goals scored and then perhaps a playoff on a neutral ground) rather than the sometimes mindboggling head-to-heads which can get very tricky when three teams are involved.

Most of the media organisations in Europe got it wrong when trying to work out what Chelsea needed to do in the final round of matches because the rules were so complex. That can’t be right.

One hundred reasons why Denmark are a good Euro 2012 bet

OK, I’m not actually going to list 100 reasons. The 100 refers to the amazing 100-1 odds some bookmakers have given to Denmark’s chances of winning Euro 2012 following Friday’s draw.

Yes they are in the toughest group with Germany, Netherlands and Portugal but it is quite possible for those three teams to cancel each other out with draws meaning Denmark only need a win and a draw to guarantee second spot.

Not impossible for the 1992 winners who boast a top defender in Liverpool’s Daniel Agger as well as very highly-rated Ajax midfielder Christian Eriksen.

If they get through from Group B they would then face a relatively easy quarter-final against Poland, Greece, Russia or Czech Republic.

A win and the Danes could be in the semi-finals where anything can happen, especially in stadiums in Ukraine and Poland which big players are not accustomed to. Morten Olsen will also be the longest-serving coach at the finals so knows a trick or two.

Quite how Denmark are the biggest outsiders, having beaten Portugal to the automatic spot in their qualifying group, is not quite clear. Ireland are only 50-1 with some bookmakers.

PHOTO: Denmark coach Morten Olsen instructs Christian Eriksen REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

Manchester City will struggle to offload pricey Tevez

It is quite conceivable Carlos Tevez will still be at Manchester City in February.

For all the talk of his City career being over, after the Argentine was accused by manager Roberto Mancini of refusing to come on in a Champions League game in September, no concrete offer has been forthcoming.

AC Milan are interested in cover for Antonio Cassano, out for months after heart surgery, but are keeping a lid on spending and only want a loan deal in the January transfer window.

City only want to sell Tevez and Milan’s proposal does not appeal. But City don’t have many other options if they want to recoup tens of millions of pounds in transfer fees.

Inter Milan could do with another forward and president Massimo Moratti said “we’ll see” when asked about Tevez.

Inter too are reining in costs with Financial Fairplay on the horizon and Moratti doesn’t want to spend big, seemingly ruling out his club in the pursuit of Tevez unless City relent and accept a loan with a view to a permanent move.

Juventus have yet to show their hand but with the side finally riding high in Serie A again after two seasons of woe, it could be dangerous to upset the apple cart in January by recruiting a personality like Tevez. How much Juve have to spend is also in doubt.

Real Madrid’s Alonso maturing like a fine wine

Xabi Alonso’s 30th birthday on Friday has prompted an avalanche of praise for the Real Madrid midfielder and has also served to highlight the former Liverpool man’s importance in coach Jose Mourinho’s plans for Spanish and European domination.

Widely regarded as one of the finest players of his generation, as well as one of the most astute purchases by big-spending Real president Florentino Perez, the quietly-spoken Alonso has gone from strength to strength since joining Real for a fee of 35 million euros ($47 million) at the end of the 2008-09 season.

Spraying passes around the pitch from the centre of midfield with consumate ease and unleashing a crunching tackle when necessary, he is the well-oiled cog at the heart of Mourinho’s Real machine and it would be hard to see them mounting a realistic challenge to great rivals Barcelona without him.

Mourinho has used him more than any other player this season, more even than captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

Alonso has spent 1,626 minutes on the pitch, (1,110 in La Liga, 421 in the Champions League and 95 in the Spanish Super Cup, compared with Casillas’s total of 1,592 minutes.

Alonso’s role in the Spain team is no less vital. Alongside Barcelona’s Xavi, the world and European champions surely have two of the best midfielders ever to have played the game, capable of orchestrating long periods of ball possession before unlocking the meanest defence in the blink of an eye.

Among Alonso’s attributes, Spanish media commentators picked out his calm demeanour, leadership qualities on the pitch and the fact that he is able to live his life away from soccer well outside the glare of the media spotlight.