First, the UAE footballer Awana Diab, who scored with a back-heeled penalty against Lebanon, was threatened with punishment for his creativity. Then, Manchester City’s Italian wild-child Mario Balotelli was hauled off by his manager Roberto Mancini for attempting a back-heeled finish when one-on-one against the goalkeeper. Diab was also substituted soon after his apparent crime.
This begs the question: is footballing innovation in danger of being classed as disrespect? Diab’s penalty was taken when the UAE were ahead by several goals. If anything, serious questions should be asked of the goalkeeper, who failed to react to a pretty poorly executed backheel, which lacked any pace or power. In fact, Roma legend Francesco Totti, attempted a much better one, albeit in training.
As for Balotelli’s finish, it’s clear that he would be lauded if he had pulled it off. Failure to execute the trick properly is his only crime, in my opinion. The context in which this back-heel was attempted is important to consider before we decide to berate the Italian and label him ‘troubled’. There are suggestions that the young striker felt he was offside, hence the nonchalant, unorthodox finish. It happened in a pre-season friendly against LA Galaxy, where the optimization of fitness is the most important thing, the result is completely irrelevant.
Amateur psychologists among us could even argue that Mancini felt pressure to act strongly in a public sphere against any critics, much like Phil Brown’s infamous half-time team-talk at Hull. For, it was he who brought Balotelli from Inter Milan last summer. It was under his management when Balotelli accumulated more cards than goals last season.
So by hauling off the youngster, and bringing on James Milner, a player devoid of any flair but always a hard worker, Mancini moved dangerously close to becoming the Italian catenaccio-worshipping managerial stereotype, rather than the brilliant striker who used to scored goals with the very flair and innovation he punished his own player for exhibiting.
LiberoFootball’s Greg Cross with another hilarious extract from his imagining of Phil Brown’s diary:
(20/05/2011) The Year of Our Lord, 2011.
I await the endless, consuming blackness which is explicitly twinned in glorious juxtaposition of ecstacy that comes with autoerotic asphyxiation. I am strung up, bound, helpless, awaiting my end, my North End, in Big Sam’s ‘Kloomph’ Ikea wardrobe. In tasteful ‘birch’. Preston are down. My reputation, so highly thought of, shot to shit. Shot to the very same faecal matter that lines this festering wardrobe, where I have been since my boys, my Preston boys, dropped me in the brown stuff.
The belt, the belt that was to end it all, slipped off my neck two Saturdays ago. It lies on the wardrobe floor, coated in my own filth, my fetid, squalid filth.
The ‘Thirst Aid’ cap that Mrs Brown bought me back from her travels to Bangkok last year has long been drained of its life-sustaining ‘Um Bongo’.
The ‘Trio’ bars that I found lodged in the back of this wardrobe (sell-by-date, June 1992) long since eaten.
My ‘Bluetooth’ earpiece is dangling from my ear. I can hear Big Sam, downstairs, on his, ordering a pineapple and ham pizza. The sick bastard. The sick, naked, watching ‘Air Wolf’ handsome bastard. I’m upstairs, awaiting release. Release from relegation. Release from unannounced cameo appearences on ‘MOTD2′ and release from the cheap sodding market bought crap red braces that are hanging me like a naked, orange tinged Marionette puppet from Big Sam’s hanger bar.
I don’t want the blackness now. I want promotion. I want to taste the glory again. I want my Preston North End. I want to sign ageing veteran players and take credit for their skill, I want to see Big Sam, doing the ‘Snoopy Dance’ when his latest Amazon purchase slides through the letter box, I want to leer like ‘Hannibal Lecter’ at Kelly Cates next time I am on ‘Talk of the Terrace’, I want to wear a pink cashmere sweater around my neck like a young James Van Der Beek, and I want to sing ‘The Beach Boys’ to my adoring public just one more time.
Cut me down Sam. Cut me down and allow me to be your wingman; you be ‘Maverick’ and I’ll be ‘Goose’. Or ‘Merlin’, depending on my moustache status.’
Which team can score a goal in the 97th minute, only for there to remain doubts in the supporters’ minds of the certainty of victory – doubts which are confirmed as a 100th minute equaliser is conceded through a moment of pure stupidity? Of course, it can only be Arsenal, the team, who are dangerously close to becoming a caricature of themselves, through the frequency of their collapses. They have now lost leads in 39 games since they last won a trophy – which amounts to an entire season and one other game of dropping points.
This latest Arsenal collapse in the dramatic 1-1 home draw with Liverpool can only serve to popularize the use of amateur psychology in trying to understand why this Arsenal team are fast gaining a reputation for being the most famous nearly-men in the modern era. Psychological blocks that cannot be overcome, a plethora of injuries hitting key members of the team at vital points during the season, and unfathomable football errors are recurring images when one analyses any Arsenal season for the past few years. It can only lead to media ‘pundits’ proclaiming Groundhog Day.
One would think it would be unthinkable for a title-chasing team to be playing at walking pace when chasing a win with only ten minutes to go till full time. There was no intensity, or movement off the ball to provide options to the player in possession of the ball. Liverpool defended and counter-attacked efficiently but the onus was on Arsenal, and they typically failed to make it count when the pressure was on them to cut Manchester United’s lead to four points.
One must credit Liverpool, but teams like Sunderland and Blackburn have also performed a similar tactical task without too many problems either. When one sees the most technically gifted team in football in Barcelona not hesitating to making several off-the-ball runs to try to make small gaps within the defending team, you wonder why so many Arsenal players remain static. The best team in history doesn’t shirk the hard work and graft required to implement their footballing style, so why should its imitators?
Barcelona had just scored eight goals without reply at Almeria the previous week, which prompted Cristiano Ronaldo to dismissively say: “I’d like to see them get eight on Monday”. They got five in the end, but it was a performance so complete, it probably felt like an eight-goal thrashing. The result was an era-defining one. They had destroyed their arch-rivals, who had fielded the most expensive side in history, costing €292m. They had rendered the tactics of Real Madrid manager Mourinho, so often the scourge of Barcelona with his exploits with Chelsea and Inter Milan, impotent.
The statistics were also damning. Barcelona had completed 636 passes to Real’s 279. They scored with their first four shots on target, the second being a twenty-pass move accompanied by a chorus of olés. Strangely, Lionel Messi (who has scored a record number of goals this calendar year with an insane total of 58 goals in 54 games) didn’t get on the score-sheet but did assist twice. Surely this game finally ends the pointless debate concerning who is the better player – Messi or Ronaldo?
There were fewer dribbles and less fantasy in Messi’s game, as he adopted the team ethos in precision passing, which humiliated Real Madrid. Xavi, now generally recognized as the best midfielder in Spanish history, hit a 100+ passes for the sixth time this season, completing 114 of his 117 passes. He also scored the opener, before Pedro, Villa (2) and Jeffren Suarez completed the rout. Real were reduced to kicking Barcelona off the pitch and bemused looks at one another, wondering how to cope with such genius.
Barcelona 1-0 Inter Milan (28/04/2010)
Mourinho called this result “the most beautiful defeat of my life”. Inter lead this Champions League semi-final 3-1 from the first leg in the San Siro. This was a clash of vastly different philosophies – tiki-taka and catenaccio. The clash in styles of further emphasised as Mourinho altered his starting line-up minutes before kick-off, replacing the “injured” Goran Pandev for the more defensive Christian Chivu.
In the opening leg, the Catalans had complained that the pitch had been altered to suit Inter’s tactics. This time, the grass had been cut short and watered to Guardiola’s specifications. Barcelona, as expected, monopolised possession, as Inter defended admirably. It was a much harder task as Motta was sent off for a second yellow, catching Sergio Bursquets lightly in the face. The Spaniard went down in a comically inept fashion, holding his face, before sneaking a look to make sure his opponent would be sent off. Inter battled manfully, with Barcelona’s eventual breakthrough coming in the 84th minute through a smart turn and finish from defender Gerard Pique.
Then Bojan fired the all-important goal in the 91st minute as the Nou Camp erupted, only for the goal to be disallowed because of a harsh handball call on Yaya Toure in the build-up. Perhaps it was karmic retribution for Busquet’s douchebaggery earlier in the game, but for Mourinho, it was vindication for the transcendental negativity of his tactics as he took Inter to their first European Cup win since 1965. It wasn’t a great game but the tension alone made it one of the defining games of the year.
It is a well known fact that some of the greatest amounts of natural resources on the planet lie within the geographical boundaries of Russia and Qatar. It is also common knowledge that neither of these nations has ever hosted a World Cup. They present FIFA and its sponsors a clear opportunity to exploit new markets and continue the world football governing body’s rampant commercialism in the Blatter era. When you combine financial possibilities with bikini-clad models (as Russia did in their final presentation at the FIFA ExCo hotel in Zurich), it is no surprise that Russia were chosen as the hosts of the 2018 World Cup and Qatar as the 2022 hosts.
England’s bid team are left in a problematic place. The Chief Executive Andy Anson criticised the timing of the BBC Panorama investigation, while the bid team essentially denounced any accusations of corruption directed towards FIFA as false. Any moral or ethical high ground was lost when the notion of a free press was lambasted. Despite, being one of the strongest bids in terms of the independent technical report, England accrued only two votes from the twenty-two Executive committee members.
After the disappointing outcome and first round bidding exit, Anson called for FIFA to reform the bidding process. Sadly, his opinion lacks any credibility and smacks of rank hypocrisy, given the uncomfortable amount of sycophancy directed to FIFA President Sepp Blatter and his followers prior to the final announcement. Where the English bid failed was that it failed to wholly relinquish its morals and buy completely into Blatters’ agenda that FIFA is essentially a force of good for humanity.
After another calendar year of football, there have been some fantastic goals and LiberoFootball is back to look back on some of the best:
Martin Palermo – Best Header (04/10/09)
Before this goal, in a 3-2 win against Velez Sarsfield, Martin Palermo was most famous for missing a trio of penalties in a 1999 Copa America first round tie against Columbia in a 3-0 loss. He never wore the Argentina shirt until a call-up this year by a desperate Diego Maradona, where his last-gasp winner against Peru gave their faltering campaign a much needed boost.
Velez Sarsfield goalkeeper German Montoya came out of his box to clear the ball, which sailed harmlessly, at head height, towards the centre circle, where Palermo was standing, 38.9 metres from goal. The rest is history. The veteran striker said afterwards, “It always happens to me. When I look for similar stories of other players there aren’t any. Things happen to me that I can’t explain”.
UEFA have had massive publicity in the past week – mainly for the wrong reasons. Wednesday night’s Champions League qualifier at the Emirates Stadium was at the centre of the controversy. Eduardo dived after minimal contact from Arthur Boruc – that much is true. What followed is ridiculous.
Firstly, a charge was administered to the Brazil-born Croatian based on Article 10, paragraph 1c of their regulations which deals with ‘acting with the obvious intent to cause any match official to make an incorrect decision’. The prospect of a two-match ban is being mentioned for Eduardo, assuming he can be proven to have acted with intent and a desire to cheat and deceive the referee. While the player dived, there was minimal contact with Boruc. Can UEFA prove this clearly? It does seem unlikely.
It seems that UEFA have suddenly decided to pull out a rule barely referred to in the history of the Champions League. A cynic would argue this organisation is acting upon the media hysteria in Scotland and England. But that is exactly what is happening. The last time a player was banned for diving also involved a Scottish side. Lithuanian Saulius Mikoliunas did so against the national side. Of course the coincidence has led to Wenger claiming the Scottish influence at UEFA has led to the charge being administered. UEFA general secretary David Taylor, a Scot, said of Wenger’s comments:
“It’s our duty to apply the rules without fear or favour. We simply refer the matter to the disciplinary committee, which is independent.”
Wenger’s dismay at how UEFA informed Arsenal of the charge is understandable. A number of senior officials were in Monaco for the CL group stage draw and could have easily been informed by UEFA. Instead a fax was sent to the club, where it was only spotted by a junior worker, who informed Wenger of UEFA’s rash decision.
The retrospective ban has opened the door to a dangerous path for UEFA. When a player is caught simulating a tumble by the referee on the pitch, he is in most cases cautioned. Why the sudden increase in punishment if the action has been taken after the match? It makes little sense and lacks any consistency.
Yet again, England is being placed as strong contenders for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. All after two giants of world football were dispatched in the Ukraine and Slovakia. Patrick Barclay, now of The Times, has claimed only Spain present a viable threat to England’s quest for global supremacy.
To return from Wembley late on Wednesday night, turn on the television and find Argentina being mangled by Bolivia was to be reminded of just how close England are to world supremacy.
This idea is flawed, with the closest contenders all masters of possession football – a style which England undoubtedly struggle against. Brazil, Argentina, Spain all play a ‘tiki-taka’ or ‘pass and move’ game, and even Lippi’s Italy can play fluid counter-attacking that can expose the holes in a static England. The Germans always perform on the big stage, while a number of other sides are also capable of defeating England in a one-off game and vice-versa. Holland, Russia, Turkey are also strong contenders and it would be logical to place England below that bracket currently, given the failure to qualify for Euro 2008 and the inability to play against sides who can starve England of the ball.
Arsenal appear to be experiencing what Bayern Munich and AC Milan did in the past few years. The side has transparent flaws which from the outside seem quite easily fixable, with balance being the buzz word bandied around Arsene Wenger’s recent press conferences, along with the now-famous quotes such as ‘We lacked a little bit of sharpness’ and ‘We played with a little bit of a handbrake’. The imbalance in the side has meant neither priority of goals and clean sheets is fulfilled simultaneously.
Early in the season, creatively and goals were at a premium, unfortunately for Arsenal, at both ends of the pitch. The lack of a midfield shield or enforcer meant too many runners bypassed the ball-watching Denilson and Arsenal were conceding far too many chances. The focus shifted once Fabregas strained knee ligaments in the home clash against Liverpool, with Song the only viable option. The decrease in attacking potency catalysed a shift to a more defensive approach, with Clichy and Sagna reducing the frequency of their attacking forays, Song and Denilson breaking up opposition attacks but creating largely nothing. The pressure of creativity fell largely on the shoulders of Samir Nasri, a promising signing in his first six months of English football. To be fair to the former Marseille youth, he had largely adapted very swiftly, but on several occasions, he has opted to pass back to his full-back rather than attempt to put his marker on the back foot, ending any attacking momentum. The club was also reliant on Robin van Persie for goals and assists; he provided both through the whole of January. Such pressure on two players is in most cases ephemeral.
Don’t you just love deadline day? Brian Swanson and Dharmesh Seth repeatedly refer to their millions of sources and contacts around the footballing world and attempt to break news every other second. The obsession of the 24 hour media and its constant need for new news and exclusives is hilarious. The number of times Sky Sports News has contradicted itself over the past 72 hours is quite frankly disturbing. This is supposed to be a reliable source of news not a tabloid or the disgusting excuse for a website in tribalfootball.com
Take for instance, the ‘sagas’ of Robbie Keane and Andrei Arshavin. This morning we were told that Arshavin had arrived in London for talks if a fee was to be agreed. Then suddenly, the deal was off, as Arsenal and Zenit couldn’t agree a fee. Arshavin was supposedly off to the airport, despite all flights from Heathrow being cancelled.
