Reuters Soccer Blog
World Soccer views and news
Overtaking Baggio could solve Inzaghi’s image problem
After bagging his 300th career goal last month, AC Milan’s Filippo Inzaghi has set his sights on Roberto Baggio’s tally of 318.
The 35-year-old hit a hat-trick in Sunday’s 5-1 thrashing of Torino in Serie A to take his total up to 304 and he looks good to achieve his target next season.
This got me wondering whether reaching a milestone set by a universally recognised great of the modern game will win over those still sceptical about Inzaghi’s talents.
Inzaghi’s goal feats often fail to receive the enthusiastic greeting they get in Italy outside his homeland, especially with British fans and journalists.
Friday afternoon question: Should Giggs win PFA player of the year?
Ryan Giggs has probably never received the recognition he deserves for his contribution to Manchester United’s success over the last 15 years.
No other player has collected the full set of medals for all the silverware which has filled the Old Trafford trophy cabinet over that time. Yet several, including Eric Cantona, Roy Keane and Cristiano Ronaldo, have received the major individual awards which have eluded the man who has played more games for United than anyone else.
Stat anoraks in a frenzy over Van der Sar
The anoraks have had to dig deeper and deeper into their stat books to deny Manchester United’s Edwin van der Sar another goalkeeping record.
His side’s 3-0 win over a toothless Fulham at Old Trafford on Wednesday took the 38-year-old Dutchman’s unbeaten league run to 14 successive games and an astonishing 1,302 minutes.
Time for Ronaldo to retire?
When you manage just 22 minutes in a charity friendly, it is usually a bad sign.
Brazilian Ronaldo was huffing and puffing after his short cameo in Morocco on Monday against a Zinedine Zidane XI and now he is seriously considering retirement.
“I don’t know if I will continue playing or retire. I still haven’t taken a decision,” he told Gazzetta dello Sport. “There is no rush. I could decide tomorrow or in a month. I really don’t know.”
Del Piero…34 years young
Italy coach Marcello Lippi doesn’t want him, his predecessor Roberto Donadoni wasn’t keen, but Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero just keeps on coming up with the goods.
Few visiting players get standing ovations at the Bernabeu, but Il Capitano deserved it after two sublime strikes in Juve’s shock 2-0 win over Real Madrid on Wednesday which sent the in-form Turin club to the Champions League last 16.
Time to revamp player awards
This week we had the nominations for FIFA world player of the year, discovered the winner of the FIFPro world player of the year and mulled the contenders for the Ballon d’Or.
Exactly how many gongs do we need? In the recent past the situation was a bit clearer.
What would a great goal be worth on the art market?
Having seen replays of Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s remarkable backheel goal for Inter Milan on Saturday, I reckon it’s one of those rare moments when football reaches the realm of art.
I realise you risk sounding like a wally by comparing something frivolous like football to such a serious business. (more…)
Why is Bruce Springsteen playing for Italy? Euro 2008 lookalikes
Wow, Donald Sutherland seems very upset by that penalty decision!
A lot of people in football look like a lot of other people but more people in Euro 2008 seem to have doubles than in any other tournament.
It’s well known by now of course that Portugal and soon to be Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari is the spitting image of Hollywood actor Gene Hackman.
All-time Euro XI: anyone here who could make it?
Now we’ve seen all 16 teams in action at Euro 2008, here’s a question for you. Could anyone here play their way into the All-time Greats XI?
I first saw a match in the European Nations Cup, as it then was, in 1968 when England beat Spain 1-0 in a qualifier at Wembley to reach the four-team finals in Italy.
