Reuters Soccer Blog
World Soccer views and news
From Tranmere to Bayern Munich in a flash
Dale Jennings may as well be called Roy of the Rovers.
The teenage striker, who only made his first-team debut last season, completed a dream move from English League One (third division) side Tranmere Rovers to German giants Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
Tranmere said the 18-year-old, who scored six goals in 32 appearances and was named League One Apprentice of the Year, had signed for an undisclosed fee.
“This is an amazing opportunity for Dale and one which any younger player would jump at,” Tranmere manager Les Parry told the club’s website.
“Bayern Munich made us a very good offer for Dale and we’re happy for him to progress his career with them in Germany.
“He has had an incredible 12 months with us now and hopefully he’ll go on to do great things at Bayern.”
Such comic book transfers are rare these days but Bayern have made similar moves before with differing results.
Soccer Break Tuesday
Spring is here and love should be in the air, but instead all we’re left with is bickering managers.
Fabio Capello and Jose Mourinho are no strangers to controversy, so it’s no surprise to see them at it again, though the timing is odd. Mourinho still has it all to prove at Real Madrid over the next two months, while Capello has yet to truly inspire confidence in England fans.
What do you make of Capello’s captaincy decision after handing the armband to Gareth Barry, days after excluding him from the squad to face Wales?
And Real fans, does it annoy you to see Mourinho flirting so openly with other jobs?
Back to action on the pitch, and on Tuesday there will be a special reason to watch England’s friendly against Ghana. Read more here.
Another special occasion will take place in Japan when the national team play a J-League select team to raise funds for the stricken victims of the tsunami and earthquake earlier this month.
A Different League takes a look at Ireland and whether they are strong enough to qualify for Euro 2012 from a formidable group including Slovakia, Russia and Macedonia. Thoughts?
Thanks Redcoat..but what if the Special One wins a trophy this season at Real? Would he stay or he would he jump ship with a better offer?
Soccer Break Monday
Welcome back to another week of digesting the global game, and where better to start than with a look at the Lionel Messi effect on the sport.
The wizard-like Argentine is a joy to watch and by playing in countries such as the United States, where soccer is not the main sport, he can only have increased enthusiasm for the round ball game.
The U.S. will also face world champions Spain in June.
In Europe, while Spain huffed and puffed and finally blew the Czech Republic’s door down for a 2-1 win in Granada with yet another mesmerising display of quick passing, there was little else to go crazy about.
In fact, UEFA president Michel Platini fears that Euro 2012 qualifiers are becoming a little boring, and he is concerned that players look forward more to Champions League matches than internationals.
Brazil were another big name to take to the field and win at the weekend but despite their 2-0 loss at the hands of the five-times World Cup winners, Scotland’s Charlie Adam said his team had learnt some valuable lessons.
Other people who could be a taught a lesson are the laser users at the Wales-England match and the fans who were noisy during the minute silence for the Japan earthquake and tsunami victims at the U.S.-Argentina game.
Good stuff
http://www.suite101.com/content/scotland -v-brazil-review-a362234
Soccer Break Thursday
Gareth Bale. The dashing Welsh winger primed to scare the living daylights out of England on Saturday. Injured. Did anyone else hear that collective sigh of relief from England fans today?
But what about Tottenham Hotspur fans. Are you worried your star man’s recent struggles with injury could hamper your club’s Champions League quarter-final chances against Real Madrid?
There are of course plenty of qualifiers this weekend so read our preview for all the latest.
Anna on the Italian Soccer Serie A has picked what she reckons might be Italy’s team to play Slovenia in Friday’s Euro 2012 qualifier having spied on Cesare Prandelli’s training sessions. Read more here.
Our man Simon Evans in Miami has written a blog on a player familiar with Spurs, Real, and Euro qualifiers. Read on for the latest on David Beckham’s US adventure.
We’ve a bit of a US theme going today in fact. NFL player Chad Ochocinco (see last Thursday’s Soccer Break) has started his soccer experiment. Can he be successful?
Over in San Francisco, spare a thought for a referee on the receiving end of a player’s anger.
I wouldn’t be so sure Redcoat. The bizarre turn of events regarding the England captaincy and the fact England haven’t played well recently mean that Wales could certainly spring a surprise on Saturday. It’ll be interesting viewing.
Soccer Break Wednesday
Happy middle of the week to you all, and if like me you are in London where the sun is out and there is very little football to write about, you are forgiven for thinking the season is over and the grasscourt tennis season is about to kick in.
Don’t look so worried, David (right). While the weather will probably change before I’ve finished writing this blog, the good news is it’s only March and there is plenty more football left. It’s just this week it’s the international break.
One of the most intriguing matches is Friday’s qualifier between Serbia and Northern Ireland. Why? There will be no supporters in the ground after Serbia’s clash with Italy in October was abandoned following crowd trouble and the 2006 World Cup winners were handed a 3-0 win.
Also in action on Friday are Italy, France and the 2010 World Cup finalists Spain and the Netherlands, while on Saturday Wales host England in a British Isles derby and Norway host Denmark in a Scandinavian battle. Germany and Russia are two other big names playing.
Chelsea fans fond of Guus Hiddink should also keep a close eye on next Tuesday’s Turkey v Austria match. Blues supporters, should Carlo Ancelotti go if Chelsea fail to win any silverware this year?
Back to European football, and read here for a very dedicated look at the major European leagues including an analysis of AC Milan’s loss in form that has made the Serie A title much more open.
Some good news for Barcelona fans on Tuesday was fullback Dani Alves renewing his contract until 2015.
Does anybody actually care who captains England?
Last week, when Chelsea held a news conference to preview their Champions League match against FC Copenhagen, manager Carlo Ancelotti spent the first 20 minutes fielding questions about John Terry’s re-instatement as England captain.
The Chelsea press officer finally stepped in in an attempt to steer the subject back to club football by asking if there were any questions about the forthcoming match or for fellow guest, defender Branislav Ivanovic.
“Yes,” came the first reply. “Branislav, what do you think of John Terry as a captain?”
The feeding frenzy continued through the weekend and into England’s preparations for Saturday’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales. Rio Ferdinand was “understood” to be furious. “Sources” said he had considered retiring from international football. Capello was widely attacked, ironically, for releasing the news through the media and then for not acting quickly enough to “clarify” the situation when that self-same media cut loose on the matter.
Finally, on Tuesday, Terry was wheeled out by England to face the press.
The defender duly said all the right things. He was “very delighted” of course and yes, Rio had been in contact to say congratulations, proving “what a great man” he was.
Terry decided that the players saying nothing when Capello asked them if they had any questions on the issue was proof that they were all behind him, though he did admit that he was probably “not everybody’s cup of tea”.
yes, Europeans put hardly any importance at all on the captain. The armband is flung around from person to person based on appearances. In Italy if the player with the most caps is on the bench and comes on, the captain has to give him the armband. But if he forgets no one cares
Soccer Break Monday
Welcome back to a new week of football stories but not before we’ve taken you through our roundup of the weekend’s action around Europe.
What was your highlight? Milan’s loss in Italy which breathed new life into the Serie A title chase, or the ability of the leaders in England, Spain, France and Germany to win no matter what?
Dimitar Berbatov’s late strike for Manchester United certainly produced a large sigh of relief from the red half of Manchester as well as several of my colleagues.
The Bulgarian is an interesting character. Read here for a look at a player who could well be a shoe in for the player of the year award but who remains a little difficult to work out.
There were few if any highlights from the last few days as far as Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli is concerned. Hit by luggage, dropped from the Italy squad, when will it ever go right for the gifted yet temperamental youngster?
Would you like him at your club? Which manager do you think would have the best chance of taming him? Surely Roberto Mancini has as good a chance as anyone with his Italian.
Now this week is a first for Soccer Break with internationals on the horizon. Any Wolves fans out there? proud to see Matt Jarvis in the squad? Well deserved we say, there’s not been a harder worker in the Premier League over the last 12 months and Jarvis will be hoping he can help Wolves avoid the drop.
Scotland on their way back to London, but England match must wait a while
Scotland’s soccer team return to London for the first time since 1999 at the end of this month — but they won’t be playing England at Wembley.
Instead they will face five-times world champions Brazil in a high profile friendly at the Emirates Stadium which should be filled close to its 60,000 capacity.
If that game goes ahead without trouble — which is the most likely outcome — it could give added impetus to the English FA’s plans to host a one-off “home international” series in 2013 to mark their 150th anniversary.
That could then mark Scotland’s return to Wembley for the first time since the stadium was re-opened four years ago.
The game against Brazil though, and Scotland’s return to London, evoke memories of the days when Scotland were regular visitors to Wembley, playing England there in alternate years in the world’s oldest international series that began in 1872.
The reasons why the matches ended after the short-lived Rous Cup in 1989 following the demise of the Home Championship between the four British nations in 1984, have been well documented down the years.
Questions began to be asked after the 1977 game at Wembley when Scottish fans rioted after a 2-1 victory, demolishing the goalposts and wreaking havoc on the Underground and in central London.
Soccer Break – Wednesday edition part two
Simon Evans here in Miami with an update on the most interesting stories out there on the web today:
Here in the States – Real Salt Lake turned in a very impressive display last night in the CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final, beating MLS rivals Columbus Crew 4-1. RSL are usually attractive to watch and you can catch some free goal highlights here. RSL become the first team from MLS to reach the last four in the CCL and they will play the winner of Thursday’s game between Costa Rica’s Saprissa and Olimpia of Honduras.
The New York Cosmos have headed out for a tour of Asia. Or as ‘Unprofessional Foul’ puts it: Non-Existent Soccer Team Tours Asia. Say what you like about the new New York Cosmos but their PR and marketing people are certainly putting in the hours.
In the Telegraph, Paul Kelso says that the British government wants to see concessions from the Premier League to help strengthen the performance of the national side. Politicians love to get involved in these sort of issues and in England you can’t lose by suggesting more needs to be done to help the national team but what actually can be done? And is it the job of government to get involved in these issues?
Football hooliganism is no longer much of a story in England but it remains a frequent problem in the Eastern half of Europe as Jonathan Wilson discovered when he attended the Sofia derby between CSKA and Levski.
And finally, for now, one of the most predictable pieces of transfer talk - Manchester United are interested in Schalke 04 and Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
In today’s/tonight’s games Schalke are in action against Bayern in the German Cup while in England’s FA Cup – Manchester City face Aston Villa and Arsenal are up against Leyton Orient. Celtic and Rangers clash in Scotland, Barcelona are at Valencia and in Portugal, Benfica face Sporting. Later, an all-Mexican quarterfinal in the CONCACAF Champions League as Monterrey host Toluca. Monterrey have a one goal advantage from the first leg.
Can’t wait to check out the new NY Cosmos team. Hope it all goes through, I love to see Beckham play in the team. Love this classic video http://www.kitbagdigitalcatalogues.com/n ycosmos/2011/
It has to happen!!!!!
Classy Wilshere looked like a Barcelona No 4 in the making
Scrunching up the eyes a bit, and using just a touch of imagination, watching Jack Wilshere on the ball for England against Denmark was almost like watching Xavi. It was quite a shock, in fact, to see a player in an England shirt pause, look up and think before picking out a team mate with a precise, considered pass.
Comparing Wilshere to the peerless Barcelona midfielder Xavi will be stretching it for some. I was pretty surprised, I must say, to read match reports on Thursday suggesting Wilshere had been a bit disappointing.
The conventional wisdom on Wilshere seems to be that Capello risks wasting his talent by playing him in such a deep role. Reporters in England clearly want to see Wilshere playing much closer to the opposition penalty area, wreaking havoc with his deft touch and eye for a pass.
The problem is that Capello’s England have a far more pressing problem than the need for a tricky midfielder to set up chances. As was made abundantly clear at the World Cup in South Africa, England must learn how to hold the ball with more assurance and for much longer periods of time if they are to mix it with the best.
Playing Wilshere as a deep-ish midfielder is a great start. Barcelona used to have Pep Guardiola playing just ahead of the defence, always available to take possession and pretty much always using it effectively with sharp passes, short or long. Xavi plays a bit further forward now but early in his career his game was modelled on that of Guardiola. Wilshere even wore Guardiola’s number four, synonymous with the Johann Cruyff-influenced passing style of Barcelona.
If Capello had half a dozen players as comfortable as Wilshere on the ball he could afford to play the Arsenal man as far forward as he liked. Given the lack of such players in the Premier League, he is best off sticking with Wilshere where he started on Wednesday, allowing England to hold possession and start building from the back.
Capello rarely gets much credit from England’s soccer reporters. This time, the Italian seemed to have got it right.
