Gonzalo Higuain scored the winner in this repeat of the 1986 and 1990 World Cup Finals as Argentina triumphed in Germany.
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Seriously we love this shirt and even though no one in the COS Towers office has any allegiance whatsoever with Germany we would gladly own this fine footballing garment (Adidas, I hope you see this and kindly send us a shirt in the post). We have no qualms about naming it the best shirt of this century and have duly done so.
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A last gasp Podolski goal earned Germany a draw against Finland.
0-1 Johansson
Germany secured a crucial win over Russia in this hard fought World Cup Qualifier.
0-1 Klose
Easy win for the Germans over weak opposition who only had ten men for half the match.
1-0 Ballack
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I had high hopes that Stuart Pearce would bring the trophy home from the European Under 21 Championship’s, those high hopes were extinguished by the Germans…Big Time!
(Commentary is in German but I am reliably informed that the woman talking is saying “We Stuffed them”)
Ex-Real Madrid coach Vincente del Bosque is set to take charge of European Championship holders Spain until the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. With this move to a tried-and-tested, older manager could this point to the end for young ex-players?
The president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF) Angel Maria Villar proposed the nomination of del Bosque to the executive committee which was accepted.
RFEF Spokesperson
As the double Champions League winner settles into his chair at the Real Federación Española de Fútbol offices, having succeeded new Fenerbahce coach Luis Aragones, a trend can be spotted in international football.
In the summer of 2006, a handful of top European countries turned to bright, young ex-players with little, or no, managerial experience to guide them to international glory. Germany and Jurgen Klinsmann, Holland and Marco van Basten, Italy and Roberto Donadoni.
Lets forward ourselves two years: Holland’s naive defence was breached by Russia, under the experienced Guus Hiddink. Donadoni’s mismanagement of the World Cup winners exposed young ex-players as perhaps not the greatest choice for major tournaments. They may have experience of playing international football but management is more than that. Jose Mourinho is a great example. Never a good player, yet a great manager.
Have football associations now realised that international football needs an experienced and talented manager? Have they seen Guus Hiddink and the experience he has pay dividends with the four countries he has managed? Preparing a team for competitive games when only seeing them every two months (at best) shows a manager for what he truly is. England opted for a proven manager in Fabio Capello. Italy reinstated the World Cup winning Marcelo Lippi. Spain have turned to a proven, trophy-winning manager in Vincente del Bosque.
Granted, Klinsmann went of his own accord after rejuvenating the German side, and van Basten got the Dutch playing football reminiscent of the 1970’s, but the trend is there for all to see.
Franz Beckenbauer, a man I have always admired, is a beam of light that is a constant counter-claim to this current trend. He expertly managed to guide West Germany to the 1986 World Cup final. Four years later, he went one step better and won the World Cup in Italy, at just 45 years of age.
So it may seem at the moment that the larger European teams who have not given a young ex-player the reigns are not willing to take the gamble. But the Dutch and Germans who did, may continue beyond their current coaches and bring around the next Franz Beckenbauer. As always with international football, there won’t be a quick answer, it’ll take some time to see.
You might expect Arsene Wenger to be backing Cesc Fabregas’ Spain to win this summer’s tournament, although [Read the rest of this entry »]
In footballing terms, one is a big loser, and one is an even bigger loser – but, far more importantly – who is the bigger pillock? [Read the rest of this entry »]
Indeed, it would be a surprise if the interest in this player was restricted to just two clubs. [Read the rest of this entry »]
While the likes of Ricardo Carvalho and Paolo Ferreira were always going to praise the appointment of Big Phil Scolari as the new Chelsea manager, it’s naturally more interesting to hear the thoughts of the non-Portuguese players in the camp. Germany’s Michael Ballack has stepped forward [Read the rest of this entry »]
Kasey Keller was pretty rubbish for Fulham towards the end of the season, despite the Cottagers staying in the Premier League after a last-day victory at Portsmouth. It was clear that the American was only a temporary number one, and The Guardian report that Roy Hodgson has pounced for Mark Schwarzer to guard the Fulham goal next season.
The Aussie keeper has spent the bulk of his career at Middlesbrough, winning a Carling Cup winner’s medal with the club in 2004 and generally being pretty reliable as far as catching crosses and shot-stopping is concerned. However, despite the overtures from Germany and Italy, it’s clear that west London was the unanimous winner.
“I felt the time was right for me to move on, ” said the 35-year-old Australian international. “Although I had other offers from some great clubs throughout Europe, it didn’t take long to make a decision about joining Fulham. I don’t think anyone can say anything negative about my stay at Middlesbrough, I fulfilled every contract I had with them.”
He’ll feel at home in England’s capital, especially if he ventures into a nearby bar where some of the staff will almost certainly be of the Australian variety, something that can’t be said of Middlesbrough. I can recommend a very good pub to Mark, just on the other side of the river Thames to Craven Cottage, it sells a cracking pint of bitter and even has an outdoor seating area overlooking the river.
Jens Lehmann has certainly been a colourful character during his five years in England. Above anything else, he’s been a fantastic goalkeeper for Arsenal, and it’s only this season where he’s fallen out of favour with Arsene Wenger. The German has also been involved in a fair few altercations with opposition team players who have dared to invade his private space, the most notable being Didier Drogba last season where the pair indulged in a top class game of handbags.
The official Arsenal website reports that Lehmann isn’t bitted and twisted at being left on the sidelines this season and actually got quite emotional on Sunday after his final match at the Emirates. Bless his cotton socks…
“I had one or two tears in my eyes,” he said afterwards. “It was a great farewell for me. This farewell will always stay in my heart.
“The boss told me before that he planned to get me on. It was a very warm welcome on the pitch and I was very fortunate because the team didn’t let me down before, just in case it had been 3-0 or 2-0 for Everton, it would have been a different reception.”
“It was the right decision from the start to the end, to come here,” he said. “Not only in terms of football but as well for my family. My children now are talking, are speaking better English than German, and they don’t want to go back.
“My wife and myself, we learnt the language quite well and we learnt about another way of life. A very respectful, very kind way and that’s a little bit different to Germany. There are a lot of similarities between English and German people but there are some differences as well.
“As for the football I was part of a team which was playing probably the most attractive game. It was really good.
“In the first two years we won something, unfortunately in the third year we were very close to winning the Champions League, but failed in the end.
“My biggest memory was probably the Real Madrid game at home, when we played 0-0. Then of course the FA Cup Final and then there was the game we became champions at Tottenham.
“I was together with Sol Campbell we were the only players who felt disappointed in the dressing-room because we didn’t know we were champions by this time. We had conceded a goal just at the end and it finished 2-2. That was a very, very emotional moment for me.
“But, I said before, there are more memories than only just playing, there is the reception of the supporters. The respectful kindness of the supporters.”
It’s probably fair to say that Lehmann and Manuel Almunia won’t be staying in touch after this season has finished. The latter recently went on record as stating that his predecessor ‘hates’ him, something which Jens immediately denied.
Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack is all too eager to rush to the new Wembley. Goal.com quotes the German international as saying that he is ready to play at the stadium where Chelsea have contested two other cup finals previously which Ballack unfortunately missed due to injuries.
Ballack says:
I played the last game at the old Wembley and it was good, especially for the German players because we won it I think it will be another difficult game because we know for Everton this is their chance to play in a final this year, and they know this and so I think they will give everything to go to the final. But we know that, and we will as well, because we are the holders and it is also a big motivation for us. It would be good to be in the final again. We want to go to the final, so you have to take your chance. Every player is ready.
Chelsea are certainly the favourites against Everton for Wednesday’s Carling Cup semi-final second leg match. And oh, if you are thinking which “last game” Ballack is talking about, then let me tell you that he is actually referring to that 1-0 defeat of England by Germany at the old Wembley in a 2002 World Cup qualifier.
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