Some of football’s biggest names, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, are in danger of missing out on next year’s World Cup, as countries such as Argentina, Portugal and France struggle in qualification.

Most, if not quite all of them, may make it in the end, of course, but for a bit of pre-weekend qualifier fun, here’s my stab at a world XI wtill fretting over their places at South Africa 2010.

Think I’ve got it about right? Missed anyone out? Let me know in the comments.

Petr Cech (Czech Republic): The Chelsea keeper is arguably the best in the business, but the Czech Republic are currently fourth in group three and could be eliminated on Saturday if results go against them.

Patrice Evra (France): The left back could pick up his fourth consecutive Premier League crown with Manchester United this season, but he could miss out on the World Cup with France currently second in their group behind Serbia and hoping for a play-off place at a realistic best.

Thomas Vermaelen (Belgium): The former Ajax defender has enjoyed a superb opening to the season since completing a move to Arsenal, but he will not get the chance to showcase his talents in South Africa after Belgium were eliminated from their qualifying group.

Dmytro Chygrynskiy (Ukraine): Barcelona paid €25 million for the former Shakhtar Donetsk defender, but Ukraine will need to overhaul Croatia in Group Six for the centre back to stand a chance of playing in the World Cup.

Christian Chivu (Romania): The Inter defender was a €16 million signing for Serie A champions Inter in 2007 and has since won consecutive Italian titles. But his Romania side need to beat Serbia on Saturday for them to stand any chance of making the finals.

Javier Mascherano (Argentina): The Argentina captain is one of the most highly regarded holding midfielders in the world, but his team have suffered an accident-prone qualifying campaign that has left them fifth in their group, clinging on to a play-off place.

Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal): The World Footballer of the Year became the most expensive player in history when he completed his move to Real Madrid from Manchester United. With Portugal currently third in their qualifying group, he could be the biggest absentee from this summer’s tournament.

Lionel Messi (Argentina): The miniature magician has lit up pitches across Europe for Barcelona, but he is another who could be absent from South Africa, if Argentina cannot get results from their final two group games against Peru and Uruguay.

Franck Ribery (France): He was reportedly being lined up by Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson as a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo after some devastating displays in the Bundesliga for Bayern Munich. But France are currently four points behind Serbia in their group, and are likely to need the play-offs to make it to the finals.

Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo): The Togo international has courted controversy since leaving Arsenal for Manchester City, but has proved an instant hit at his new club. His country, however, are currently third in their qualifying group behind Cameroon and Gabon with only two games left to play.

Karim Benzema (France): The France striker’s move to Real Madrid was overshadowed by the signings of Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo, but he has made an early impact at the Bernabeu. He may not have the same effect in South Africa, however, with France needing to beat Faroe Islands just to guarantee a play-off place.

Coach: Giovanni Trapattoni: Trap is one of the most successful coaches in the history of club football having won 10 league titles in four different countries. But as manager of Republic of Ireland, he needs to beat the country of his birth on Saturday to stand any chance of winning the group and booking a spot in South Africa.

Let me know in the comments if you disagree with my choice…

PHOTO: Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo (L) and Barcelona’s Lionel Messi shake hands before the start of the Champions League final soccer match at the Olympic Stadium in Rome May 27, 2009. REUTERS/Albert Gea

One swallow does not make a summer, but Sevilla’s bristling 2-1 victory over Real Madrid on Sunday offers hope that the answer to the question posed in Thursday’s blog is ‘no’.

Three teams can challenge for the La Liga title this year.

Manolo Jimenez’s side inflicted a first defeat on Real with a vibrant, attacking display that was reminiscent of their performances under Juande Ramos when they won back-to-back UEFA Cups.

Sevilla are now level on 15 points with Real, though third due to their inferior goal difference. Barcelona are top with 18 points from six games.

Wingers Jesus Navas and Diego Perotti did the damage at the Sanchez Pizjuan, truly testing Real Madrid’s defence for the first time this season, but it was a strong all-round team performance.

They have strength in depth, are solid at the back and club president Jose Maria del Nido boasts: “the best strike force in Europe” with Frederic Kanoute, Luis Fabiano and Alvaro Negredo. They have now won seven on the trot in all competitions.

Real were without top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo due to an ankle strain, but it was the absence of first choice left back Alvaro Arbeloa that may have been more telling as Navas made a fool of his replacement Marcelo.

Once again, Real lacked fluidity in their play and it was the familiar figure of Iker Casillas who was their outstanding player, pulling off a couple of magnificent saves.

“Real reveal their shortcomings in the first serious test of the year. They have CR9 dependency. They continue to rely excessively on their stars,” Marca wrote on Monday.

Barcelona remain unbeaten after shaking off Almeria 1-0, but the Andalucians made life extremely difficult for them at the Nou Camp with their man-marking of midfield creators Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

“It wasn’t marking, it was an obsession,” Xavi said of Almeria midfielder Chico’s work on Saturday. “All he did was watch me. I felt very important. I told him ‘Why don’t you go and mark Messi?’”

It may not be pretty but it was effective, and as Espanyol and Chelsea showed last year an asphyxiating pressure on the midfield can throw Barca off their game.

“I hope it is a blueprint for a way to play against a team as powerful as Barcelona. I hope they respect my patent,” Almeria coach Hugo Sanchez said.

After six rounds of matches, La Liga could be about to get a bit more interesting with both Real and Barca showing chinks in their armour. Maybe it won’t be the most boring league in Europe after all…

PHOTO: Real Madrid’s Kaka (top) falls over Sevilla’s Didier Zokora during their Spanish First Division soccer match at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium in Seville October 4, 2009. REUTERS/Marcelo del Pozo

An unusual headline in Spain’s El Mundo newspaper caught my eye this morning: “Real Madrid threatened by wizard.”

According to the respected conservative daily, the La Liga club has received a letter from the magician, whom it did not identify by name, warning that he has been contracted to cast a spell that would inflict injury on their Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo.

“I can’t promise that it will be a serious injury but he’ll certainly be out of action more than playing,” El Mundo quoted the wizard as saying.

He told the paper he was unable to reveal the identity of his client “because I am a mixture of priest and doctor and I have to respect the confidentiality of my followers.”

El Mundo said it was the third time the wizard had threatened Real after targeting players including David Beckham and Ronaldo (the portly Brazilian version) in 2003 and Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Fabio Cannavaro and Raul in 2006.

The wizard has apparently already begun the process of casting his spell over Cristiano Ronaldo using photos of the world record signing spread out around his “laboratory”.

“It’s a step-by-step process and depends on various factors so the result you are looking for is achieved sooner or later,” El Mundo quoted the wizard as saying.

He pointed out that Ronaldo’s run of a goal-a-game had ended against Tenerife at the weekend and he had been angry at being substituted by coach Manuel Pellegrini in the second half.

Real are not taking the threat seriously and have dismissed it as “the kind of craziness we deal with on a daily basis”, according to El Mundo.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on Ronaldo in the next few weeks but in the meantime can anyone think of anything similar happening in other leagues?

There are plenty of superstitious soccer players out there but someone being targeted by a wizard really is bizarre.

PHOTO: Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo reacts during their La Liga match against Tenerife at the Bernabeu, Sept. 26 REUTERS/Rafael Marchante

Having spent 250 million euros on reinforcements and with the final due to be staged at their own Bernabeu stadium, winning the Champions League is seen almost as an obligation for Real Madrid this season, at least by much of the Spanish media.

Kicking off their campaign, perhaps appropriately, in one of Europe’s most expensive cities, Real showed flashes of what may be to come, both in terms of attacking inspiration and defensive vulnerability, as they beat Swiss champions FC Zurich 5-2.

Cristiano Ronaldo was his old self, firing in two free kicks at decisive stages of the game, performing a few trademark shimmies and stepovers and remonstrating with the referee every time he was tackled by an opponent.

There were tantalising glimpses of the potential offered by his parternship with Raul and former World Player of the Year Kaka, although Real often gave the impression that they are still finding their feet with so many newcomers.

The unsung Gonzalo Higuain was just as influential as the Portuguese, setting up the second goal for Raul and scoring a superb third himself as he burst past a defender and then scored with a low shot into the far corner. It remains a mystery as to why Higuain has not been given a look-in by Argentina coach Diego Maradona.

Their defensive problems, however, show no sign of letting up. Having led 3-0 at halftime, Real had to sweat through the last 20 minutes after the unrated hosts scored twice in two minutes to bring it back to 3-2. Iker Casillas upended Alexander Alphonse to give away a penalty, they Silvio Aegerter was allowed to head in another at the near post.

Two late goals, including Ronaldo’s second free kick, gave the visitors a somewhat flattering win.

To put it into perspective, Grasshoppers, who may be forced to drop into the Swiss third division next season because of chronic financial problems, managed to put three past Zurich last Saturday and had a further goal controversially disallowed, although they conceded four in the progress.

One thing which money cannot buy is passionate support. The large contingent on Real fans sat silently through Tuesday’s match, stirring only with a few cries of Madrid after their team scored and a half-hearted version of Viva Espana late in the first half. Zurich’s South Curve never stopped singing, even when their team were 3-0 down.

Brian Homewood, Zurich

PHOTO: Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring during their Champions League soccer match against FC Zurich (FCZ) at the Letzigrund Stadium in Zurich September 15, 2009. REUTERS/Miro Kuzmanovic

“Ronaldo and Messi could miss the World Cup!” screamed the headlines after Portugal drew 1-1 in Denmark and Argentina were humiliated 3-1 at home to Brazil.

It sounds awful, doesn’t it? How will we ever manage without Cristiano and Leo, two of the poster boys for the elite, Masters of the Universe level of footballer we’ve come to know and love?

Leaving aside for a minute the fact that Argentina almost certainly will qualify, and Portugal are by no means out if it either, let’s get one thing clear: the World Cup will get along fine without them or any other individual players, should their countries get left behind.

Comparatively minor tournaments, such as soccer at the Olympics and regional championships outside Europe and South America, need glamour players from the big leagues to attract worldwide interest from media and sponsors. Domestic leagues need them to do overseas rights deals, the Champions League needs them to keep the money flowing but the World Cup is in a different category altogether.

The World Cup has always been bigger than any one player, or indeed any combination of them. It has consistently been a tournament that has created new stars rather than one that has simply allowed established ones to shine.

It’s striking, in fact, how many players have come into recent tournaments lavished with praise, and adorning the advertising posters of the boot manufacturers, only to find themselves upstaged.

Take France in 1998. I don’t remember anyone going to that tournament with the express intention of seeing Zinedine Zidane. He was certainly much admired, but he was not in the same league as Ronaldo, the FIFA World Player of the Year for 1997, and we all remember how the tournament turned out.

Four years later, Ronaldo staged that remarkable comeback from his career-threatening knee problems, at a time when many had written him off. The players expected to light up that tournament were Luis Figo of Portugal, Raul of Spain, Zidane again and England’s David Beckham yet their contributions were minimal, and were overshadowed completely by the remarkable feats of co-hosts South Korea.

As for 2006, that was supposed to be the tournament of Ronaldinho and Kaka, but an overhyped Brazil side made a premature exit, to no one’s great regret. And what did Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard or Zlatan Ibrahimovic do to justify their reputations?

If Messi, Ronaldo or any other member of the football royal family misses the World Cup, it will generate a lot of wailing and teeth-gnashing in the build-up — heck, I’ll be sorry myself — but I bet any absences will swiftly be forgotten once the tournament is underway.

Perhaps it will be another established star who takes South Africa by storm — Franck Ribery, Karim Benzema, Fernando Torres or David Villa, maybe — but we may also see someone quite unexpected come from nowhere to make an indelible mark on world football.

Jermain Defoe to score the winning goal in the final, anyone?  

PHOTO: Argentina’s Lionel Messi (R) falls down next to Brazil’s Luisao during their World Cup qualifier in Rosario, September 5, 2009. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci

Real Madrid’s expensive new team boasts an awesome array of attacking talent and huge goal-scoring potential but their defence looked worryingly porous in their opening match of the La Liga season on Saturday.

President Florentino Perez spent 250 million euros ($359 million) to bring excitement and spectacle back to the Bernabeu after two barren years and judging by Saturday’s 3-2 win over Deportivo Coruna, when Real twice surrendered the lead and created a host of chances, the fans will not be disappointed.

The return of the suspended Pepe and injured pair Christoph Metzelder and Sergio Ramos may help to eradicate the errors that blighted their performance.

However, Real’s hopes of mounting an effective challenge to treble-winners Barcelona seemingly rest on the ability of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema and their team mates to score more goals than are inevitably conceded.

Sports daily Marca said in an editorial on Sunday that Real were following a script against Depor that the fans had become well used to over the years.

“An opponent with a solid back line who refuses to be intimidated by so many star players and knows how to exploit the whites’ defensive weakness but who ultimately yields to massive firepower,” the paper wrote. “This (Real) promises excitement.”

Perez’s latest creation resembles the band of “galacticos” he assembled during his first stint in charge in 2000-2006, who included Zinedine Zidane, Figo, David Beckham and Brazilian striker Ronaldo.

DYNAMIC SIDES
El Pais soccer correspondent Jose Samano said that coach Manuel Pellegrini was under orders from Perez to focus on attack because the president had grown up watching dynamic Real sides including players such as Alfredo di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas in the 1950s and 60s.

“Over time soccer has become more conservative but not in the mind of (Perez),” Samano wrote.

“Manuel Pellegrini has no other option than to field as many defenders as attackers, a gamble that almost got them into trouble against Depor,” he added.

“Madrid were struggling to dictate the game and obviously won’t be a balanced and well calibrated side anytime soon but their box of tricks is limitless.”

Writing in El Mundo, Orfeo Suarez said that the new-look Real side were “terrific going forward and vulnerable at the back“.

“That’s the conclusion to be drawn from the start of the second Florentino Perez era; understandable because it’s a project under construction,” he said.

“Madrid kept Depor’s hopes alive because they are not yet a team and perhaps never will be, and some of the stars are still not firing on all cylinders.”

PHOTO: Real Madrid’s Raul celebrates his goal against Deportivo Coruna with Karim Benzema (L) and Kaka (C) during their Spanish first division soccer match at Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid August 29, 2009. REUTERS/Susana Vera

Real Madrid’s 250 million euros spending spree has left new coach Manuel Pellegrini with the kind of headache most managers could only dream of.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema, Xabi Alonso, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Arbeloa, Esteban Granero and Ezequiel Garay have all been added to a squad that finished second in the league under Juande Ramos last year.

Pellegrini has made the most of pre-season friendlies to experiment with players and lineups, and they have lost only once in their eight warm up games, against Juventus in the Peace Cup. They have netted 22 goals, and conceded just six.

But with only a week to go until Deportivo Coruna visit the Bernabeu for their opening game of the new Primera Liga campaign, the Chilean has yet to make it clear what his best starting 11 will be, and what formation he will play.

There is no debate over the position of goalkeeper, so Iker Casillas is easy to put first on the team sheet.

In defence he can pick from Garay, Arbeloa, Albiol, Pepe, Christoph Metzelder, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo and Miguel Torres. Royston Drenthe has performed well at fullback in the last couple of matches.

Ronaldo, Kaka and Xabi Alonso will be guaranteed a place in midfield which leaves perhaps Lassana Diarra as the fourth component of a traditional 4-4-2. Arjen Robben and Granero have impressed in pre-season games while Fernando Gago, Guti, Wesley Sneijder, Rafael van der Vaart and Mahamadou Diarra wait in the wings.

And who to play in attack? Raul has topscored with four in the pre-season friendlies, so the evergreen captain and Benzema? Last season’s top scorer Gonzalo Higuain and the returning Ruud van Nistelrooy complete the choices up front.

Assuming everyone was available, the following 4-2-3-1 formation would be a tasty lineup in front of Casillas. Ramos, Pepe, Albiol and Drenthe at the back, Alonso and Lass Diarra holding the centre midfield, leaving Ronaldo, Kaka, and Robben to support Benzema up front.

Is Pellegrini tough enough to put Raul on the bench or does the fans’ favourite have to start? If you were in the hot seat, who would you play?

If your first reaction on hearing about the Samuel Eto’o-Zlatan Ibrahimovic deal was “How much?” then I can assure you you weren’t the only one.

To land Ibrahimovic, who is due to be presented this evening at the Nou Camp, Barcelona will not only hand over the Cameroon international striker but will also give Inter Milan a reported 45 million euros and the loan, for one season, of Aleksandr Hleb.

According to Marca, who are not exactly fans of Barcelona it must be said, that makes the total cost of the Swedish striker at least 87.5 million euros (with Eto’o valued at 35 million, and Hleb for a season at 7.5).

So how on earth is Ibrahimovic worth close to 90 million euros? How on earth is he valued at double Eto’o, one of the world’s top strikers?

Ibrahimovic is the sort of striker coaches love. Tall and strong, he is happy playing with his back to goal and therefore gives the team a target man. He scores goals too, of course, and he has contributed to six league title-winning campaigns with Ajax and Inter.

But Eto’o is no mean player himself. The Cameroon international is also strong but relies more on his skill and explosive pace to get past defences. After signing for Barcelona in 2004 he proved to be the missing piece in the puzzle, joining forces with Ronaldinho to get the team back to title-winning ways.

Eto’o scored not only in the 2006 Champions League final win over Arsenal, but also in this year’s victory over Manchester United and he will leave Barcelona with a record of 130 goals in five seasons.

I think it goes without saying that Ibrahimovic is not really worth 40-45 million euros more than Eto’o, so it looks like yet another case of Barcelona letting a player go at far less than their market value, and for reasons other than simply their value to the team.

It happened with Schuster, Stoichkov, Romario, Kluivert, Rivaldo and Riquelme and now coach Pep Guardiola says he’s happy for Eto’o to go for no reason other than a “feeling”, even thought they’re getting next to nothing for him.

Why is it so many big names seem to leave Barcelona in such circumstances? Why have they never mastered the art of selling?

And looking to the future, can you see Ibrahimovic living up to the inflated price tag the Spanish press have put on him?

PHOTO: Barcelona’s new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Sweden poses in front of a FC Barcelona sign at the team headquarters in Barcelona, July 26, 2009. REUTERS/Gustau Nacarino

Click the video above for a look at how Shamrock Rovers are preparing for the visit of Real Madrid — a match the entire soccer word will be keeping an eye on, with Cristiano Ronaldo set to make his debut for the Spanish club.

Interesting line about Real’s continued interest in Franck Ribery. Do they really need him still. Raul seems to suggest they’d still like him…

Watching Cristiano Ronaldo getting the rock star treatment at a packed Bernabeu stadium on Monday night, I found myself thinking back to the U2 concert I had been to at Barcelona’s Camp Nou last week.

At a record $130 million, the Portuguese winger has cost Real considerably more than the Irish band’s entire world tour, which kicked off in the Catalan capital and is reported to be their most expensive to date at an estimated $100 million.

Industry publications believe the 360 tour could earn Bono & co. as much as $400 million, while Real president Florentino Perez is banking on Ronaldo and fellow new signing Kaka shifting enough shirts and other merchandise to maintain the club’s place at the top of the rich list.

He also hopes to use his new signings as bargaining chips to help him negotiate lucrative contracts for marketing and audiovisual rights.

Bono donned a Barcelona shirt midway through last week’s concert and praised the club for being the only one to carry the Unicef logo.

But at the Bernabeu on Monday it was all about showing off the most expensive and glamorous player in the world, reportedly on an annual net wage of 13 million euros.

“I have always said that if a club wants the best players it has to pay,” a beaming Ronaldo told reporters at a post-presentation news conference. “I am happy to be the world’s most valuable player and I feel proud.”

Perez the showman has successfully stolen the headlines from arch rivals and last season’s treble-winners Barcelona in recent weeks. (more…)