+10
- Elmander makes Bolton move
- City agree Jo fee
- Spurs agree Gomes fee with PSV
- Reds Set To Confirm Dossena Move
Good couple of days in the transfer market for next season's fantasy teams.
Iraq dissovles national team
AFP
Iraq's football federation has dissolved its entire national team and withdrawn from August's West Asian championships.Just another example of How Soccer Explains the World. Or at least reflects it.
The war-torn state made an early exit from 2010 World Cup qualifiers following defeat to Qatar in their final third round qualifier on Sunday.
The federation said the national side's failure to reach the later stages of qualification for the tournament in South Africa had disappointed the Iraqi people, and the entire team needed to be rebuilt.
"The Iraqi FA has decided to disband the team as of now and also not continue with the services of Adnan Hamad as coach," a federation statement read.
"It is really sad that Iraq lost in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Iraqis are not happy with the results.
"We will concentrate on rebuilding the team for the Gulf Cup in 2009 as well as the FIFA Confederations Cup. The team will not participate in the West Asian Football Federation Championship."
Liverpool set for Dossena capture
AP Photo by Paolo Giovannini
Steve Finnan, please back your bags. The next Midlands Express leaves in 20 minutes and will have you in claret and blue by day break.Liverpool are hoping to complete the signing of Udinese full-back Andrea Dossena next week.
Reds chief executive Rick Parry confirmed a deal for the 26-year-old Italian is almost done.
"We are now ready to confirm the signing of Dossena. The deal should go through next week," Parry told the club's official website.
I say that expecting Dossena to be the starting left back for Liverpool with Arbeloa moving to his more natural right back spot. With Degen slotted as Arb's back up, that makes Finnan, who has some transfer value, expendable. And of course Villa is still looking for a specialist right back, and Finnan would fit the bill nicely.
Solo selected for Olympics, Scurry left off roster
I'm happy to see Sundhage picking on athletic merits, rather than bizarre motivational ploys or petty squabbles. As to the rest of the roster, I'm surprised that the US is only taking three forwards to the Olympics. Granted Wambach is a force and the US has lots of attacking talent in midfield with Wagner, et al. But might it limit the US' options if they need to change the pace or rhythm of a match, or (god forbid) have to chase one in search of a goal?CHICAGO -- Goalkeeper Hope Solo is among 18 players picked for the U.S. Olympic women's soccer roster, nine months after she was kicked off the team at the World Cup.
Briana Scurry, who took over from Solo for last year's World Cup semifinal loss to Brazil, was left off the roster by coach Pia Sundhage, who replaced Greg Ryan following the World Cup debacle.
Solo was the starter for most of 2007, but Ryan surprisingly replaced her with Scurry for the semifinal, which the Americans lost 4-0. Solo criticized Ryan, saying she would have made the saves, and was dropped from the team.
Finally, while there are quite a few veterans on the roster, most American will never have heard of any of these players... well, save for Solo after the aforementioned dust up. But no Hamm, Lily, Chastain, Milbrett, or Fawcett. NBC (and US Soccer) and going to have to rev up the old PR machine to sell this team to us all over again.
Olympic roster
GOALKEEPERS (2): Nicole Barnhart, Hope Solo.
DEFENDERS (6): Rachel Buehler, Lori Chalupny, Stephanie Cox, Kate Markgraf, Heather Mitts, Christie Rampone.
MIDFIELDERS (7): Shannon Boxx, Tobin Heath, Angela Hucles, Carli Lloyd, Heather O'Reilly, Lindsay Tarpley, Aly Wagner.
FORWARDS (3): Natasha Kai, Amy Rodriguez, Abby Wambach.
Arsenal secure signing of Nasri
AFP/Getty Images
Arsenal have signed French midfielder Samir Nasri from Marseille, according to the player's website.As to the question of where he fits in with the Arsenal side:
The 20-year-old has signed a four-year deal for a reported £15.8m, although Arsenal have yet to confirm the move.
He can play on either wing or through the centre and won the French first division's young player of the year award, and was voted Marseille's player of the year by fans, at the end of the 2006/2007 campaign.That's not much help, is it? But seemingly he's either a replacement or insurance for Hleb, Rosicky, or both. And definitely +10.
Last season he scored six goals in 30 games for the French outfit, his final strike in a 4-3 win over Strasbourg helping secure Marseille's berth in next season's Champions League.
Stereotypical Gestures
AFP/Getty Images
But it's like a photo of Bigfoot. You're not really sure it's true. I'm much more used to this...
AFP/Getty Images
... and this.
AFP/Getty Images
Make way for ducklings
AFP/Getty Images
Spain national football team players walk during a training session.That's some training ground! Though perhaps the training session might be a little more taxing than a walk around the pond.
In the News
AFP/Getty Images
- Rovers 'excited' by Ince - Perhaps this is continuity by any means necessary? Ince another branch of the SAF coaching tree and could bring a similar approach/tone to Rovers that Mark Hughes did.
- Milan confirm Adebayor focus - Don't know how much of this is bluster, but Arsenal really need to hold on to K2. He gave them something different than what they've had over the past few years in an aerial threat. It meant that teams had to respect crosses from the fullbacks which opened the middle of the pitch up for Cesc to work. It doesn't appear that Benchtner is ready to step up to being an every week player at this level, so Arsene may have to look to bring in someone new to partner RvP (while he's healthy). Any names come to mind? RSC, perhaps?
- Podolski hits out at Bayern - It would be nice to see Podolski in the Premier League. He's +10 for sure! Surely he'd only move for European football, so that means Spurs, Everton, or one of the big boys. Wouldn't he look nice in blue -- either in the capitol or the north west.
- Arshavin prefers Spain move Arshavin/Messi playing in behind Barca's new center forward? Reminiscent of what the Dutch were doing this summer, or Milan did with Kaka and Seedorf.
- Nihat heads home - Huge loss for the Turks to only compound their problems with injuries and suspensions.
More Nicknames
![[DC-United-1192498633.gif]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis1MokbJrmoNTcolnN8HyMy262Lg3QbDkcZSg5gD_JCCzkKJ5VyC-PU9PNMDy2gU2iVYvCqh3qeaLbEVlXnod36Ekp5mJGR9y4S9xcJxSs-I8Fah_jLe6YP5KHc4_L4hvjn4Jf/s1600/DC-United-1192498633.gif)
Brooks insists that I "publish it. It's awesome." So here's his list of the best soccer nicknames.
- El Diablo Marco Etcheverry
- El Pescadito Carlos Ruiz
- Padwan Rodrigo Palacio
- der Kaiser Franz Beckenbauer
- The Black Pearl Eusebio
- De rots van Kampen (The Rock from Kampen) Jaap Stam
- The Beast Julio Baptista
- The Apache Carlos Tevez
- Baby-Face Assassin Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
- The Ebony Tripod Claude Makelele
- The Matrix Marco Materazzi
So who makes your all-time nickname list? Other than K2, of course.
Tactics Matter
Who could even have imagined that in a tournament where the Dutch abandoned Cruyff's 4-3-3 formation in favor of a flexible 4-2-3-1 we would also see the Germans adopt the 4-3-3, as they did in their victory over Portugal? Joachim Low set out his three midfielders - Ballack, Hitzelsperger, and Rolfe - to disrupt Portgal, and especially Deco's, passing lanes and gave his wide men, Schweinsteiger and Podolski, the freedom to attack Portugal's full backs.
The result speaks for itself.
Star trio set for Barca exit
Those must be some CRAZY requirements. Sure Eto'o seemed off the boil last season. But no worse than Henry. And Deco is only proving his worth for Portugal. But I guess Xavi plays that same role, and Ronaldinho didn't play much of a role at all for Barca this year.New Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola says Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o and Deco are surplus to requirements at Camp Nou.
Guardiola, who has replaced Frank Rijkaard as Barca boss, admits he is not currently planning on having the star trio in his squad next season.
I always liked Pep Guardiola as a player, and it seems like he's putting together a team by subtraction rather than addition... for now. But if they add Alves at right back and a center forward -- "We are looking for an out-and-out striker that can score 60 goals a season," he joked. "Well, we want a No.9, we need one to complement Henry and Bojan." -- they are going to have a very powerful attacking side in the Barca tradition.
Annals of Commentary
ESPN's Adrian Healy after Wesley Sneijder's goal with the final-kick of the Holland/France match:
It's a Dutch oven, and the French are toast!Delicious!
Dunne set for Man City departure
Manchester City are resigned to losing captain Richard Dunne after he turned down a new contract - with Spurs leading the chase to sign the defender.
BBC Sport understands Dunne has rejected a long-term deal, leaving City facing the prospect of him leaving on a free transfer at the end of next term.
Spurs are now closing in on a £5m deal for the Republic of Ireland star.
£5?!?! That's a HUGE bargain and it would be a great bit of business for Spurs. Dunne and Woody could be a spectacular pairing and will make Spurs' new keeper even more of a +10 player than he would have otherwise been.
McBride leaves Fulham
Too fond a farewell.
Veteran USA striker and Fulham captain Brian McBride is set to return to his homeland after deciding to leave Craven Cottage.
The 36-year-old former Everton, Preston, Wolfsburg and Chicago Fire hit-man was expected to leave the West London club after his contract expired at the end of the 2007/8 season.
And, despite helping the Cottagers avoid relegation on the last day of the campaign, McBride has called time on his four-and-a-half years at the club.
"After much consideration with my family, we have decided to leave Fulham after four and a half fantastic years," McBride stated. "I have always stated my intention to return to America at some stage and this seems like the right moment in my career to move on...
McBride is the second USA international to leave Fulham this summer, after defender Carlos Bocanegra was told by Hodgson that he no longer featured in the club's plans.
Hopefully he'll be jumping from one fantasy game to another. He will be a big draw for MLS and should still be a class above most strikers in the league - especially this season. It will be interesting to see where he ends up. The sentimental choice would be Columbus, but I believe that Houston is sitting on a designated player allocation and they could certainly use some firepower. The question would be if McBride and Brian Ching are too much alike to play together. Though they said that - albeit for different reasons - about Tevez and Rooney and look how their season turned out.
Drogba to Manchester United
Let's get the rumour mill spinning today. As Neal writes over on the mother-ship:
Jeremy very rightly pointed out that ManYoo are in desperate need of a striker. My take on the situation is that Rooney should move back to replace the Corpse of Paul Scholes at the top of midfield (he's best dropping back a little deeper and running at defenders). CRon moves up to become a fulltime striker and then ManYoo need to find a target man for him to work off of. Berbs would be ideal, Huntelaar could certainly be that guy as well if he can translate his success in Holland to the Prem. Jeremy put an interesting option out there as well, how about Drogba in Red? Santa Cruz would be a pretty interesting option as well.Wouldn't Drogs be the perfect upgrade from Saha? Big, physical, certainly skilled if a bit petulant. Drogs/Saha and Rooney/Tevez would be SAF's perfect foursome. And CRon could move back to the wing opposite Nani, with Giggs and Park backing them up.
Wow, SAF would have two world-class players in every position! Midfielders Scholes/Anderson, Carrick/Hargreaves with such spare parts as Fletcher in reserve. Perhaps they would still need a new right back and someone to replace the player that was Mikel Silvestre. But otherwise they are well positioned to remain the premier team in the Premier League and Europe. Arsenal, Liverpool, and even Chelsea, have a lot of catching up to do.
Manchester United - Champions of Europe again
Well, that had a little bit of everything, didn't it? Penalty kicks, of course. With the incumbent saves and misses. But with extra drama as CRon's "little" stutter cost him dearly. Luckily for ManU, Terry pings the post and they can go on to win.
Red cards. Phantom yellows and goal kicks. Lovely goals from CRon - showing again that he is as good in the air as he is with the ball at his feet, and Lampard -- showing why he is among the best midfielders in the world in supporting the attack and arriving into the box late to finish. More thoughts and analysis as it sinks in, but congratulations to the Red Devils who have combined the best of age and experience - EvdS, Giggs, Scholes - with youth and vitality - Tevez, Rooney, CRon, etc - and are, at least in my mind, deserved champions.
Your mileage may vary.
Photo courtesy REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach and Yahoo! Eurosport
Who is K2?
A handy guide to blog nicknames and shorthand
- AJAndrew Johnson
- ArbAlvaro Arbeloa
- The BeastJulio Baptista
- BenchtnerNiclas Bendtner. So named for his habit of being stuck on the bench when picked for one's fantasy team.
- BFARBig Fat Andy Reid
- BFAYBlog Favorite Ashley Young
- BFDBBlog Favorite David Bentley
- BFFLBig Fat Frank Lampard
- Captain Kirk(also The Capt. or Capt. Kirk) Chris Kirkland.
- CarlitoCarlos Tevez
- CescCesc Fabregas. See also, Fab
- CletusClint Dempsey, See also, The Duece
- CletusClint Mathis. The original Cletus.
- CRonCristiano Ronaldo
- DogboyDidier Drogba. See also, Drogs
- DrogsDidier Drogba. See also, Dogboy
- The DeuceClint Dempsey, See also, Cletus
- Duff Duff DuffDamien Duff. See also, Duffman
- DuffmanDamien Duff. See also, Duff Duff Duff
- EdSEduardo da Silva. Not to be confused with...
- EvdSEdwin van der Sar
- FabCesc Fabregas. Now confused by the emergence of reserve keeper Lukas Fabianski.
- FaddyJames McFadden
- FASDAFuture Arsenal Striker (in Neal's fondest wishes) Dean Ashton
- GabbyGabriel Agbonlahor
- The GoatShaun Goater
- The ElkNicolas "Le Sulk" Anelka
- JARJohn Arne Riise
- JRobJason Roberts
- JummyJimmy Bullard
- K2Emmanuel Adebayor. He is tall as a mountain, and reminiscent of former Arsenal striker Kanu in his stature and playing style. Hence K2 or K2.0, or K2.6.
- KaboomYounes Kaboul
- KJKenwyne Jones. See also KWyne and Wyn-e the Pooh
- KWyne(pronounced K-Win) Kenwyne Jones. See also KJ and Wyn-e the Pooh
- LMO(Little Mikey Owen) Michael Owen
- LRobLaurent Robert, formerly of Newcastle United and Derby County; now with Toronto FC in Major League Soccer.
- MPetMartin Petrov
- MTayMatthew Taylor
- MGPMorten Gamst Pedersen
- NandoFernando Torres
- NRCNigel Reo-Coker
- paR-TayRyan Taylor. See also, RTay
- PRobboPaul Robinson. See also, Robbo
- RobboPaul Robinson. See also, PRobbo
- RSCRoque Santa Cruz
- RTayRyan Taylor. See also, paR-Tay
- RVNRuud van Nistlerooy
- RVPor RvP, Robin van Persie
- SAFSir Alex Ferguson
- SGESven Goran Eriksson
- SickyTomas Rosicky
- SPetStyllian Petrov
- StevieGSteven Gerrard
- SWPShaun Wright-Phillips
- THThierry Henry, the man so good he needed a nickname, and began this whole thing
- TheoTheo Walcott
- THoTim Howard
- THudTom Huddlestone
- Wyn-e the PoohKenwyne Jones. See also KJ and KWyne
- The YakAgbyeni Yakubu