Liverpool Decline is Arsene's Gain

With the red side of Liverpool currently floundering in the Premiership relegation zone, a certain Frenchman in North London is smiling.  Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal, must be enjoying feelings of vindication as he sees one of his major rivals slip out of contention and seemingly, out of top flight football altogether.  Long derided for being stingy in the transfer market, as he endures five years without a trophy, Wenger has long preached ideals of long term stability on a sound financial footing.  Moreover, aware as he is of his potential (albeit unlikely) sacking, on the back of continued failure, Wenger will no doubt point to Liverpool's decline as proof that good stable managers, no matter how eccentric, and at times frustrating, need to be retained over the long term.

Put simply, after watching the Anfield side's tribulations this term, chairmen will think twice before firing their managers.  Especially teams close to the top and just shy of winning trophies.

Of course, having a winning legacy helps.  As is Wenger's continued ability to play an entertaining brand of football while turning over an annual profit.  With Arsenal's debt now down to 135 million pounds, Wenger's worth as manager is higher than ever.  And in truth, despite the lack of trophies, Wenger's Arsenal has come preciously close to winning the big ones.  A Champions' League final loss to Barcelona, despite Arsenal taking the lead; a winning Carling Cup final lead squandered; as well as a potentially winning Premiership campaign that saw Arsenal lead the league by eight points in March, before losing players to injury and thereby getting overhauled by United and Chelsea.

Although he may inspire and frustrate in equal measure, Wenger's ability to run a competitive club on a tight budget is unrivalled.  Wenger has managed to polarize one of football's most patient and loyal fan bases, as his teams retain familiar failings and lack basic directness.  However, looking at Liverpool, they can now see the results of removing a formerly successful manager, who is struggling to compete with financial behemoths, but able to bring a level of stability that most clubs can only dream about.

Chelsea is an anomaly in that their team seems to keep competing and winning despite an almost annual change of managers, post Mourinho.  But they have the ability to pay infinite sums of money for players and managers.  Tottenham removed a manager that saw them make consecutive fifth places finishes and then witnessed an alarming plummet down the table.  Both Spanish giants, Real Madrid and Barcelona, went through relative lean periods after parting ways with managers deemed not fit to lead them any longer; despite the managers not being terribly unsuccessful, or in some cases Champions' League winners.

Liverpool will recover and finish in the top half, perhaps even top eight, but their present trials are a stark warning to other clubs who seek to replace stable near success for the sake of attempting to win trophies.  Sacking Wenger may not get Arsenal nearer the summit, but it will undo all his hard work while potentially weakening their hold at the top of European football.  Arsenal have never won the Champions' League and to be fair, have rarely looked like winning it either, but they have never missed out on progression from the group stage either.  They haven't won the Premiership since 2004 but in the last six years have not finished out of the top four.  And all that is despite spending far less than most teams in the top 10.

The grass may always seem greener, but as Liverpool has shown, it rarely is.

Europhiles Notebook - Europe's most Even League

Comment on the Bundesliga

The breakout story and standout performer of the Bundesliga so far, is the success of Mainz.  The small Rhineland club, whose best previous finish had been ninth spot last season, ran off seven consecutive victories to top the league table with a perfect record.  Enroute to the record equalling best ever start, were wins over a selection of recent German Champions’ League glitterati:  Bayern Munich, Werder Bremen, Stuttgart and Wolfsburg.  While heavyweights Bremen and Bayern were beaten at their own arenas, Mainz also ensured they did not slip up against the smaller clubs, beating Cologne and former champions Kaiserlautern, as well as edging recent stalwarts and moneybags Hoffenheim.

Their success has been built around a core of younger players mixed in with some foreign imports; some loaned from other clubs, but mostly home grown.  Although they have since lost, at home to Hamburg, to surrender both their perfect start and top spot to Borussia Dortmund (more on them later), their success is a beacon to other smaller clubs who seek to compete with the bigger names.    Players such as Hungarian Adam Szalai, dual-citizen Lewis Holtby (of Evertonian roots) and young German Adam Schurrle are fast becoming household names.

Moving on to Borussia Dortmund, the former European champions (1997), seem to have turned a new leaf this season; as an opening day defeat to Bayer Leverkusen aside, they have reeled off seven straight wins themselves.   They’ve eclipsed early front runners Mainz to now top the table, having in their turn, also beaten Bayern, Stuttgart and Wolfsburg, to complete the set of vanquished recent Bundesliga champions.  Their campaign seems primed for the long-term with their squad more resilient than former editions.  Japanese midfielder Shinji Kagawa and Paraguayan striker Lucas Barrios have scored eight times between them, with the shot happy South American an outside bet for 20 goals this season.  Without any big names present, Dortmund have managed to rotate a decent squad with plenty of options around the pitch.  With many of the other bigger clubs struggling, the black-yellows will look to regain the title they last won in 2002.

And with that one marvels at what is happening outside the top two.  With Bayern languishing outside the top half, Schalke and Stuttgart both in the relegation spots, with Wolfsburg and Bremen also in the lower reaches; the stage is set for the Bundesliga to produce another entertaining, unpredictable campaign with potentially another winner not named Bayern Munich.  With both Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen well placed, the odds are short on either of them to take the title home.

Interestingly, three of the biggest guns are having nightmare starts.  Bayern supremo, Franz Beckenbauer, has already thrown in the towel, conceding that Bayern has an extremely small, unlikely chance of winning.  The Bavarian giants are rolling in Europe but forever stuck in second gear at home.  Will this mean the Champions’ League runners-up will concentrate on Europe, hoping to do one better than last season’s vintage?  Time will tell of course, as it will for the chances of Stuttgart and Schalke, who though mired in the drop zone, will surely improve.

All three teams have been amongst the most successful German clubs in recent times but seem to be suffering from lengthier than normal slow starts.  Just like Bayern, Schalke is doing well enough in Europe, well placed to progress from the group stage while Stuttgart, Bundesliga champions in 2007, is topping their Europa League group.  With just 20 points and 32 goals from 24 games between the three, one or more will surely finish outside the European places this season.  Unlike Beckenbauer, Schalke manager, Felix Magath, is making the right noises though, stating that he will not leave before Schalke wins the Bundesliga.  However, he may have to contend with the departure of star goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who has admitted interest from Manchester United.

The Bundesliga has long been the best supported league in Europe, with the highest average attendances but are now becoming a byword for parity as well.  That theme is constant this season as well, with no teams still unbeaten (Hamburg took care of that with their defeat of Mainz), no team winless and just six points separating 3^rd place Leverkusen from Nurnberg in 13^th spot.  Competitive top flight football has never had it so good.

Amongst the other bigger names, 2009 Champions Wolfsburg are in 12^th place with just one away win from four games while Werder Bremen have none.  Werder Bremen, at least, have the distraction of a tough Champions’ League group to use an excuse while seeking to emulate last season’s third place finish; but such reasons are unavailable to Steve McLaren, manager at the Volkswagen Arena.  Both clubs are suffering from a lack of consistent firepower having only scored 27 times in 16 games.  These numbers are all the more galling, as Bremen are one of Europe’s highest scoring teams and Wolfsburg currently boast Edin Dzeko, Grafite and playmaker Diego, who ironically used to play for Bremen.

Elsewhere, in view of the troubles at the Bundesliga’s elite, some of the lesser lights are building on impressive starts.  FC St Pauli, the eccentric half of Hamburg, are currently floating just outside the European slots, having scored just one more goal than they have let in.  Hannover 96 are in 7^th while Freiburg, boosted by the scoring of Papiss Demba Cisse, are relatively well placed in 9^th spot.  Trivia alert: Freiburg are managed by Robin Dutt, born and raised in Germany but whose father is from Kolkata, India.

The more traditional side of Hamburg is well represented with Hamburg in fifth.  Having finished well in the Bundesliga (never below 8^th since 2002) and almost won the Europa League in recent seasons, Hamburg may well fancy their chances this year.  Despite a seven point gap to first, they seem capable of mounting a charge up the table.  And in Armin Veh, who won the title with Stuttgart three years ago, they have the right man at the helm.

For the nostalgic fan, old warhorses Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Raul are having mixed seasons.  The latter is still trying to dovetail with partner Klaas Jan Huntelaar at Schalke, having only scored once, while the Dutchman is enjoying a possible last season at Hamburg and has netted four times.  Frankfurt’s Greek marksman Theofanis Gekas and Freiburg’s Cisse lead all scorers with seven goals apiece while Holtby is the top creative presence having assisted on six goals.

Milan's newest Red Devils

Once again, Silvio Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani have delivered.  Just as it seemed Milan would start the new campaign with the same old toys, Milanista’s notorious uncles have come up with surprise gifts.

Brazilian forward Robinho and Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic have been signed to add ballast and verve to a weak and stale Milan side.  While the latter, despite three stints at continental giants, is still only 28 and at the top of his striking game, Robinho, when in the mood, can be the creative catalyst that the club so require in the attacking third of the pitch.

Since their Champions’ League win in 2007, Milan have fallen of the pace both locally and in Europe.  Inter’s prominence, coupled with a strange reluctance to spend, have seen the Rossoneri fall victim to the twin evils of age and staleness.  The team has struggled to create much on the pitch, as it has been left behind by both Inter and Roma.  With Fiorentina and Sampdoria both at large; the former, having edged out Milan to a Champions’ League place in 2008, while the latter are the new rising stars of the domestic game; Milan can afford little rest in their pursuit of the Serie A title while cementing their place at the top.  Finally, with Juventus slowly rediscovering their hunger of old, as they reawaken from their slumber post Calgiogate, the gauntlet has been thrown down.  Milan had to respond, and respond they have.

The twin signings of Robinho and Ibrahimovic are just the tonic the side needed as it seeks to rebuild with youth and rediscover its free scoring legacy.  Although notoriously mercurial, with a tendency to go missing in big games, Ibrahimovic is a proven talent at this level having scored for fun, while notching 80 goals in just over 150 games, for both Inter and Juve.  Although deemed a failure at Barcelona, he still found the net 16 times in 29 games and has a real eye for goal with a penchant for finishing.  With his move being a loan, Milan are set to lose little if he fails this season, with his purchase price of 24 million euros only kicking in during an outright purchase in 2011.  Fans will be licking their lips in anticipation of Ibra’s third Italian act.

Robinho, deployed a bit behind and on the wing, is a tantalizing option, who can drift in from the touchline, set up players and drill home spectacular blockbusters.  Often criticized for not working for the team or tracking back, Milan can afford to field an attacking tearaway like Robinho, with defensive steel present in the likes of Mathieu Flamini, Gennaro Gattuso and Massimo Ambrosini.  Already possessing fellow Brazilians Alexandre Pato and Ronaldinho, Milan will hope Robinho dovetails to some effect with his counterparts to get the Rossoneri attack firing on all cylinders.  With Pato, Ibrahimovic and Filippo Inzaghi the other strikers, Robinho completes the quartet upfront while presenting an option as an attacking midfielder on the wing.  However, having never played in Italy, he may take some time to bed in.

Ominously, both players’ debuts were muted as Milan lost their second Serie A game, 2-0 to Cesena, newly promoted from Serie B.  But, with both age and talent on their side, both players should eventually deliver as the season progresses.  New Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri has to tinker somewhat to discover his best team.  Playing all four of Pato, Ibrahimovic, Robinho and Ronaldinho, although exciting, reeks of imbalance.  Moreover, with continental games notorious for being defensive cat and mouse affairs, Allegri may be forced to start just two of the aforementioned quartet.

Both new players however, come with well published defects, which, Milanese fans hope, will not develop into a prolonged malaise.  Ibrahimovic’s mettle for a fight is questionable, as this is his first stint for a club that is not at the top of the footballing pyramid.  Moreover his petulance and lack of respect for coaching instruction are both well documented.  Robinho, too, often reserves his best for low pressure situations and is unlikely to fight when the going gets tough.  Again, his lack of respect for experienced managerial advice is a well known trait.  Expect both heads to drop on cold evenings away from home if both game and scoreline are against Milan.  But, with no player perfect, and the flipside so much more promising, both players will be welcomed with open arms by the Milanese tifosi.

Internazionale are still the biggest threat to the title in addition to being the hated cross town derby rivals.  Milan’s fans however, will expect the pendulum to swing back to the red half of Giuseppe Meazza after 6 years of Nerazzurri dominance.  And if it does, expect both Robinho and Ibrahimovic to be at the forefront, come May 2011.

Blue Revolution

The winds of change have blown through Italian Football.

After a pathetic 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Italian football has undergone an emphatic facelift.  Coach Cesare Prandelli, thrust into the national hot seat after his work with Fiorentina, has been tasked with restoring both morale and results to a football team that has lost the imagination and pride of the Italian public.  His reign, although presaged with an emphatic 5-0 win, will surely have much harder challenges ahead.  But having rebuilt the team around a new, youthful core, featuring the former enfante terrible, Antonio Cassano, his troops seem well equipped to recapture their place among global football’s elite.

Like many national team managerial appointments, Cesare has to weather the twin storms of media and public scrutiny, especially since everyone on the peninsula has an opinion on Squadra Azzurri following this summer’s debacle.  And with an underwhelming 1-0 defeat, in neutral London, to the Ivory Coast, in Prandelli’s first game in charge, the start has been ominous.

Although subsequent victories against Estonia, dispatched 2-1 in Talinn, and the Faroe Islanders, sees Italy sit atop Group C; forthcoming games against Serbia, Slovenia and November’s upcoming friendly in Russia, on the notorious plastic pitch; will pose a real test for Prandelli’s new look squad.

Heartening then, is the sight of so many new faces, players both young and from smaller Serie A sides, as the national team has been swept clean of cobwebs and deadwood.  Of the old guard, only captain Andrea Pirlo and Gianluigi Buffon remain, with the duo joined by Daniele De Rossi and Alberto Gilardino, as the sole members of the squad with more than 40 caps.

Retooled around the talents of young playmaker Ricardo Montolivo and the aforementioned Cassano, Italy will hope to use the hunger and drive of players like Giuseppe Rossi, Gianpaolo Pazzini, Simone Pepe and Angelo Palombo to fuel future success.  Looking around the dressing room, lesser known names like Cristian Molinaro, Lorenzo Di Slvestri, Luca Antonelli and Leonardo Bonucci have all been handed recent debuts, blooding them for future combat.  Waiting in the wings, but part of the 23 man squad, are more strangers in Cesare Bovo, Andrea Lazzari and Luca Cigarini, as Prandelli seeks to try both variety and novelty in an effort to please media and public alike.

And that in itself is the challenge that Prandelli must accept.  Treading the fine line between keeping his media critics and the tifosi happy, while forging a winning team, is a daunting task for the 53 year old.  With recent challenges in rebuilding Fiorentina post Calciopoli and during his wife’s ultimately tragic battle with cancer, Prandelli is no stranger to pressure.  But with Euro qualification assumed and a deep run, at Ukraine and Poland, in two summers’ time, considered the basic remit by a baying Italian fan base, he knows he has little time to find the winning formula, and even less sympathy should he fail.

At the moment, both media and public are playing a waiting game.  With the former’s call for a flush of the old staff and the latter’s cries for more regional representation both achieved in the new look squad, Prandelli is seeking to keep most observers happy.  Fielding rookie goalkeepers Salvatore Sirigu and Emiliano Viviano in the opening two games of qualification was a bold yet timely move, but typical of his new policy of fielding fresh faces.  Sticking to the tried (and failed) would have brought fresh criticism from a tired public, but trying new personnel allows for experimentation, while keeping the critics silent.

Former bad boy Cassano has enjoyed stellar seasons at Sampdoria over the past few years, as he has successfully rebuilt his reputation as one of Italy’s finest playmaking forwards.  Fellow Samp players Pazzini and Palombo recreate an excellent system that has seen the club from Genoa go some way towards reaching the summit of the domestic game.  While Montolivo is still the heir apparent to fill Pirlo’s boots, once the latter retires, Cassano gives the Azzuri an extra option in the attacking third.  And with Pepe and De Rossi now in the prime of their careers, Italy’s new midfield has a balanced and versatile feel to it, whether the coaching staff goes with four or five players.

Chiellini is still the leader at the back and will hope new boys, Di Silvestri and Antonelli, can bed in quickly, while Bonucci and Domenico Criscito can redeem themselves after lackluster showings in South Africa this summer.  While Buffon, when healthy, is still the undisputed numero uno as custodian, his backups are somewhat untested and to that end, Prandelli has summoned a new generation to try their luck in goal.  Upfront, Gilardino and Rossi, are the starting strikers with any of Mario Balotelli, Pazzini and Fabio Quagliarella worthy backups, as Prandelli is spoilt for choice.

Despite the 1-0 reverse in London, the team seems to be coming together but more importantly, team Italia is playing with a vibrancy and enthusiasm not seen since Fabio Grosso wheeled away after slotting the winning penalty in 2006.  The future may seem bright, but the onus is on both Prandelli and his players to re-ignite the torch, one that they must then carry to the final in Kiev on July 1, 2012.

Like a good builder, Prandelli has all the right pieces and plenty of raw materials.  It’s up to him to craft the winning structure.  And on this form, it’s a decent start.

Epic Defeat - Team USA at World Cup 2010

Continuing on from my World Cup 2010 Series 

South Africa 2010 saw the coming of age of an American team.  Having come so close to breaking new ground, so many times, it is perhaps in epic failure that team USA has finally earned its greatest respect.   Not quite a miracle, but far from underachieving, this USA team has, and whisper this quietly, just perhaps announced itself as a consistent top flight international side.  One that is here to stay, compete and win.

Despite a patchy history, never has the side looked this unbeatable, this comfortable, at world football’s top table.

Let’s be honest, the 1950 win was a one off.  And although USA competed regularly in the 1990s, they finished close to the bottom at both Italia ’90 and France ’98.  A round of 16 elimination to eventual champions Brazil, at home in 1994, was a decent enough achievement but progression at that tournament was achieved with several fortuitous goals; not least from Andres Escobar’s slip in the penalty area, an own goal that resulted in the latter’s tragic death.

The 2002 run in Japan and South Korea was the most encouraging, with only a Michael Ballack header sending Germany through.  However, USA never convinced and Bruce Arena rarely looked in control.  With group stage elimination at Germany in 2006, one felt USA was reverting to type; especially in a 5-0 Gold Cup final reverse to Mexico in 2009.

This class however, honed by coach Bob Bradley, has both guts and inventiveness, creativity lined with steel.  Not once, during the group stage, did they look out of place; the first half against Slovenia apart, never did they look like losing.  And with that barnstorming finish against the Slovenes, they proved they were capable of rousing themselves for a glorious comeback; even if referee Koman Coulibaly’s error robbed them of a famous win; one that their fightback richly deserved.

Tim Howard and Clint Dempsey have long been some of the unheralded stars of the Premiership with Landon Donovan, having cut his teeth in the Bundesliga, now a regular starter for Everton. With Jozy Altidore and DaMarcus Beasley, now regular strikers in Europe, towering defender Oguchi Onyewu‘s transfer to one of Serie A’s institutions, AC Milan, gave the American roster both a capable and accomplished feel.

Their opening game against England was a real confidence booster.  Despite the latter’s sluggishness, the USA grew in strength and matched their more illustrious opponents stride for stride.  With Donovan, a real presence, on the wing and both Michael Bradley and Altidore tireless in their running, the English midfield had their hands full.  Although the game finished a 1-1 draw, USA looked far more convincing.  The comeback against Slovenia fell just short but the USA still ensured they topped the group with a last minute winner, from that man Donovan, against moribund Algeria, in their final game.  Positive throughout, there was no team more confident in the entire tournament.

After having deservedly topped their group for the first time ever, USA lined up for a round of 16 match with Ghana.  With Ghana making waves with a young incisive team that represented Africa’s lingering hope of World Cup glory, one felt that the American’s were crashing someone else’s party.  Throughout regular time, despite trailing to an early Kevin Prince-Boateng strike, USA were neck and neck with Ghana, rarely outplayed, never out of position.  When, Landon Donovan levelled matters from the spot, it was no less than they deserved.

As the game headed to extra-time, one felt the USA were getting the upper hand, passing with more composure as their African opponents wilted.  Then, as often happens, a moment of rare genius settled the game.  A long ball over the top completely outfoxed the American defence.  Carlos Bocanegra was caught looking skywards and Jay Demerit left in Asamoah Gyan’s wake, as the Ghanaian striker sprinted through, taking the ball down with ease and slotting home what turned out to be the winning goal, at close range.

USA’s performance was a great fillip to fans and audiences in both the USA and Canada.  With more than 5.1 million Canadian viewers tuning into the see the World Cup final, rest assured youth programmes are set for a busy season of coaching and training, hoping to emulate their heroes in future tournaments.

Beaten but not humbled, bested but not embarrassed, the USA were only a whisker away from progressing to the quarterfinals for the second time in three world cups.  And this time it was a commanding set of performances that saw them get this far.  In four years they return, with many of this current team at their peak, hoping to go further, or even better, all the way.  Although a win is rather unlikely, USA will continue to challenge, at the very top of the global game.