If form is any indication, Australia will almost certainly play Iran in the semi-final of the Asian Cup.
I no longer hold any bad feelings towards Team Melli for promoting Australia's exit from the 1998 World Cup at the final qualification hurdle. A certain match in November 2005 and the reform of the local game in the wake of arguably our grandest and most tragic failure has changed all that. It's hard as well to forget the fantastic movie, Offside, which depicts the tribulations of female football supporters in Iran as they try without much luck to enter the national stadium for an important match. The fact that Iranian players tend to embrace flair and celebrate a football of attractions also steers them very much into favour. Hopefully, they will remain respected opponents of Australia for years to come. However, the next meeting of the two teams will be the first at senior level since that fateful evening in 1997 when a 2-2 draw was enough to see Iran through to the World Cup finals on away goals. If it so happens, then, that the two teams meet in a fixture as important as an Asian Cup semi-final (or a final should one of the two finish second, rather than top, their group), so much the better for Australian football - which finally will have the chance to put a final and extremely delayed nail into the coffin our darkest modern era day.
Here's to expectations being fulfilled and a spectacular game on the 25 July between Asia's two highest ranked teams.
But first things first. The Socceroos have some work to do to adapt to the conditions and top their group, then either Japan or the United Arab Emirates will probably be up next. Japan's preparation hasn't been good at all, but their matches with Australia are usually always unpredicatble affairs. And with the way the United Arab Emirates are playing at the moment, experienced coach Bruno Metsu and wonder striker Ismail Matar leading the way, we can pretty much rest assured that Australia will not be waltzing into the final four. Major tournaments have a habit of going very sour and totally pear-shaped for at least one pre-tournament favourite. I don't think it's going to be Australia, with South Korea a far more likely victim, but hey you'd think by now that we've suffered enough heartbreak to start learning from our perhaps slight over-confidence going into these events.
Of course, what I really just want to say is the hell with it - let's take out the cup!
7 July 2007
18 June 2007
Fantasy Football
Sad, depressed, lonely . . .? Looking for some fantasy action that doesn't come attached with an '000' telephone suffix?
The good fellows over at FourFourTwo have set up an Asian Cup Fantasy Football game that, while seemingly a tad buggy at the moment, promises some fine points-hoarding and transfer-wheeling action.
Sign-up for free here: http://fourfourtwo.fantasyasiancup.com.
Once you're set-up with a cool as Harry team name and you've selected a line-up (good luck getting Kewell, Viduko and Bresciano on the field in your chosen formation), you may feel a bit lost in the wilderness if you don't have a private league in which to compete. (Maybe your friends just don't get it, most of mine certainly don't - no, Mike, my brother in forgotten transfer deadlines and retrospective line-up re-engineering, not you.) So, feel free to join the league I have arranged for just such a possibility. Here's the info you'll need to join:
League name: A-League Junkies
Password: australia
Happy punting, whether you join or not!
The good fellows over at FourFourTwo have set up an Asian Cup Fantasy Football game that, while seemingly a tad buggy at the moment, promises some fine points-hoarding and transfer-wheeling action.
Sign-up for free here: http://fourfourtwo.fantasyasiancup.com.
Once you're set-up with a cool as Harry team name and you've selected a line-up (good luck getting Kewell, Viduko and Bresciano on the field in your chosen formation), you may feel a bit lost in the wilderness if you don't have a private league in which to compete. (Maybe your friends just don't get it, most of mine certainly don't - no, Mike, my brother in forgotten transfer deadlines and retrospective line-up re-engineering, not you.) So, feel free to join the league I have arranged for just such a possibility. Here's the info you'll need to join:
League name: A-League Junkies
Password: australia
Happy punting, whether you join or not!
9 June 2007
The Squad
Can this team win the AFC Asian Cup 2007?
Goalkeepers:
Mark Schwarzer (Middlesborough, England)
Brad Jones (Middlesborough, England)
Michael Petkovic (Sivasspor, Turkey)
Defenders:
Lucas Neill (West Ham, England)
Patrick Kisnorbo (Leicester City, England)
Michael Beauchamp (FC Nürnberg, Germany)
Michael Thwaite (Wisla Krakow, Poland)
Mark Milligan (Sydney FC, Australia)
Midfielders:
Harry Kewell (Liverpool, England)
Mark Bresciano (Palermo, Italy)
Tim Cahill (Everton, England)
Vince Grella (Parma, Italy)
Brett Emerton (Blackburn, England)
Jason Culina (PSV, Holland)
Mile Sterjovski (FC Basel, Switzerland)
Luke Wilkshire (FC Twente, Holland)
Carl Valeri (Grosetto, Italy)
David Carney (Sydney FC, Australia)
Nick Carle (Newcastle United Jets, Australia)
Forwards:
Mark Viduka (Mewcastle United, England)
John Aloisi (Alaves, Spain)
Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory, Australia)
Brett Holman (NEC Nijmegen, Holland)
Hell, yes it can.
While the absence of Moore and Skoko will be felt to some extent, there's really quite decent cover in the squad for both those veterans (Neill is such a giant these days, and, with the possible exception of Japan, we must have the deepest quality midfield in the competition).
The loss of Chipperfield's versatility will be more keenly felt. The big question is who will start on the left side of a back four or as the left wingback in a back three? Just about half the squad are potential options: Thwaite (at fault against Uruguay), Milligan (in what would be only his fourth-best position), Sterjovski, Carney, Carle, Culina or Kewell (all would be positioned much deeper than usual) or Wilkshire (about the most versatile player in the team after Chippers)? The warm-up match should give us some clues, but it seems that more than one player will be rotated through the role in order to impress before the latter stages of the tournament.
Some other questions:
Who will partner Neill, Kisnorbo or Beauchamp? Or both in a back three?
Who will be the backup 'keeper, Jones or Petkovic?
Unlike during the recent World Cup, will we find a way to get Kewell, Bresciano, Cahill, Grella, Emerton, Culina all on the park at the same time?
Will Cahill and perhaps even Kewell be ready in time or risked early on? (If not Sterjovski looks absolutely primed and good to go.)
Who, like Skoko in the World Cup, will be disappointed not to make it on the park?
Will someone like Sterjovski, Holman, Kisnorbo, or dare I say Nicky Carle emerge as a bonafide, match-winning top-drawer national team player for the next World Cup cycle? Or are those players still not even regular fixtures in the set-up at the moment (e.g. Spiranovic, McDonald, Vukovic, Bridge, Leijer, and the like)? (Or are those next generation stars even less visible for contention at the moment, like young whipper-snappers such as Bouzanis, Patafta, Burns, Troisi, Williams and so on?)
And some off-the-cuff tips:
Goalkeepers:
Mark Schwarzer (Middlesborough, England)
Brad Jones (Middlesborough, England)
Michael Petkovic (Sivasspor, Turkey)
Defenders:
Lucas Neill (West Ham, England)
Patrick Kisnorbo (Leicester City, England)
Michael Beauchamp (FC Nürnberg, Germany)
Michael Thwaite (Wisla Krakow, Poland)
Mark Milligan (Sydney FC, Australia)
Midfielders:
Harry Kewell (Liverpool, England)
Mark Bresciano (Palermo, Italy)
Tim Cahill (Everton, England)
Vince Grella (Parma, Italy)
Brett Emerton (Blackburn, England)
Jason Culina (PSV, Holland)
Mile Sterjovski (FC Basel, Switzerland)
Luke Wilkshire (FC Twente, Holland)
Carl Valeri (Grosetto, Italy)
David Carney (Sydney FC, Australia)
Nick Carle (Newcastle United Jets, Australia)
Forwards:
Mark Viduka (Mewcastle United, England)
John Aloisi (Alaves, Spain)
Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory, Australia)
Brett Holman (NEC Nijmegen, Holland)
Hell, yes it can.
While the absence of Moore and Skoko will be felt to some extent, there's really quite decent cover in the squad for both those veterans (Neill is such a giant these days, and, with the possible exception of Japan, we must have the deepest quality midfield in the competition).
The loss of Chipperfield's versatility will be more keenly felt. The big question is who will start on the left side of a back four or as the left wingback in a back three? Just about half the squad are potential options: Thwaite (at fault against Uruguay), Milligan (in what would be only his fourth-best position), Sterjovski, Carney, Carle, Culina or Kewell (all would be positioned much deeper than usual) or Wilkshire (about the most versatile player in the team after Chippers)? The warm-up match should give us some clues, but it seems that more than one player will be rotated through the role in order to impress before the latter stages of the tournament.
Some other questions:
Who will partner Neill, Kisnorbo or Beauchamp? Or both in a back three?
Who will be the backup 'keeper, Jones or Petkovic?
Unlike during the recent World Cup, will we find a way to get Kewell, Bresciano, Cahill, Grella, Emerton, Culina all on the park at the same time?
Will Cahill and perhaps even Kewell be ready in time or risked early on? (If not Sterjovski looks absolutely primed and good to go.)
Who, like Skoko in the World Cup, will be disappointed not to make it on the park?
Will someone like Sterjovski, Holman, Kisnorbo, or dare I say Nicky Carle emerge as a bonafide, match-winning top-drawer national team player for the next World Cup cycle? Or are those players still not even regular fixtures in the set-up at the moment (e.g. Spiranovic, McDonald, Vukovic, Bridge, Leijer, and the like)? (Or are those next generation stars even less visible for contention at the moment, like young whipper-snappers such as Bouzanis, Patafta, Burns, Troisi, Williams and so on?)
And some off-the-cuff tips:
- Viduka to score four goals for the tournament.
- Kewell to take penalties if Aloisi is off the pitch.
- One of Neill, Bresciano or Sterjovski to earn player of the tournament honours.
- Grella to miss a latter-stage match due to accrued yellow cards.
- Cahill to escape worse offences than Grella, as usual. (How does he do it?)
- Australia to be the most penalised team by at least a factor of two.
- Kewell to play within himself until the semi-final, then have to contend with a double-teaming job in the final, which will free-up Bresciano, Cahill or Culina for a blinder and/or the winner. (Although it'd be nice to see Dukes score the goal to get us the Cup . . . yet that might make him consider stupid premature thoughts, like retirement. Don't do it Mark!)
- Schwarzer to do enough to seal his position for the World Cup qualifiers and beyond.
- Post-tournament, Carle to get what he wants and deserves: a contract in Europe.
28 May 2007
Cup Quiz
Sigh. No free trip to Thailand for me.
I bombed out of the 'Expert' trivia category in Telstra's Be Involved campaign to take five people to Thailand for the Asian Cup finals, scoring only 17 out of 20. (Embarrassing, but there you have my startling, pathetic admission in black on yellow.) Checking back through my browser I noticed I'd somehow managed to incorrectly select North Korea instead of Lebanon for the second question regarding the team that withdrew from Australia's qualifying group for the tournament - damn lack of mouse control!
No idea what else I got wrong, though. I thought I was geek enough.
I bombed out of the 'Expert' trivia category in Telstra's Be Involved campaign to take five people to Thailand for the Asian Cup finals, scoring only 17 out of 20. (Embarrassing, but there you have my startling, pathetic admission in black on yellow.) Checking back through my browser I noticed I'd somehow managed to incorrectly select North Korea instead of Lebanon for the second question regarding the team that withdrew from Australia's qualifying group for the tournament - damn lack of mouse control!
No idea what else I got wrong, though. I thought I was geek enough.
27 May 2007
Revenge? Pointless.
Australia's friendly international versus Uruguay next week is not a rematch, at least not a fair one. With Uruguay bringing over Recoba, Forlan, Lugano, Garcia, Canobbio, Diogo, Estoyanoff, Sanchez, and so on, La Celeste are close to full strength. (I say close mainly because Sebastian Abreu has again been selected. I admit to only having seem Abreu play a couple of times, but that seems evidence enough to me: any squad that needs him around has to have a bit of a problem with depth up front. Perhaps Regueiro, Pouso and Varela are the other notable absentees.)
Australia on the other hand are nowhere near full strength. No Kewell, Viduka, Bresciano, Grella, Cahill, Schwarzer, Aloisi, Moore, Chipperfield or Skoko for starters.
The veterans on the ground are pretty thin. Only Neill, Emerton, Culina, Wilkshire, Sterjovski and Thompson will be there to guide the emerging younger guns, e.g. the likes of Brett Holman, Patrick Kisnorbo, Scott McDonald and Matthew Spiranovic. The rest of the squad is a bit touch and go . . . and I think that's fantastic. With so many major tournament matches and friendlies crucial to the countinued reign of Graham Arnold, it's been a long time since we've seen such a squad. Finally, we've embraced a chance to evaluate some of the fringe performers against world class opposition. Uruguay is coming here to whip our asses, and unless some of these lads on the periphery step up that's exactly what will happen. It's going to be an interesting evening.
With the non-selection of Michael Petkovic, Ante Covic or Clint Bolton we're certain to start with a debutante in goals, and it's not Paul Henderson or Danny Vukovic. Brad Jones will start, with Adam Federici, another first-timer, backing him up. It's great news for Jones and I'm sure many in the community who've been scratching their heads about our second and third goalkeeper selection strategies of the national team ever since Covic went to the World Cup. Federici seems more of a longer-term prospect to me, with circumstances rather than consistent form edging him into the frame earlier than expected. If Reading were not flying so high in the Premiership, perhaps someone like Henderson would have been picked, if only to balance the experience somewhat. After years of selecting keepers in or past their prime, we've now turned 180 degrees and picked a pair of kids with zero international exposure. No real complaints from me, but others may wonder why a balance couldn't have been struck.
At the back, it Neill and Kisnorbo ought to start, with Beauchamp in contention if we start with a back three. Jade North and Michael Thwaite are pretty much on the outer rim, with Matthew Spiranovic far more likely to come on as a late substitute (as he did in the German DFB Pokal final overnight) to earn his first cap and spurn forever the whispering advances of Croatia. Personally, I'd like to see Spiranpovic make the Asian Cup squad. He was far and away our best performer for the U-20s and he's proven himself at least the equal of Beauchamp in Germany. He's one of the few bonafide long-term prospects we have at the moment, so why not?
Unless North or Thwaite occupy a wide defensive role, Emerton and Shane Stefanutto will probably start in the wingback positions. It'll be good for the local audience to see Stefanutto on home soil again and gauge what the impact of losing Scott Chipperfield will be for the forthcoming Cup. Chippers is pretty much irreplaceable, but if he decides to take a thoroughly well-deserved break then we'll need someone like Stefanutto or Ryan Griffiths or Wilkshire to take over that versatile man-of-action down the left.
The situation is similar in midfield. Carl Valeri will try to impress on the home crowd that he's a suitable backup for Vinny Grella in the holding position, at least, that is, until Mark Milligan returns from U-23 duty. From memory of the Athens Olympics, Valeria is a technical player with pretty good vision and who likes to roam. In this way he's probably more similar to Grella than is Milligan - an analog who doesn't upset the team balance quite so much. Regarding this speculation, Simon Colosimo may other other ideas of course. If he's in the sort of form (after playing in Turkey) that somehow kept the dire Perth Glory above the fast-finishing New Zealand Knights in the second season of the A-League, he may find himself thrown into what will arguably be the most important position on the park against Uruguay (somebody has to stifle the service to the super dangerous forwards; maybe we could do with a Rafa Bentizesque 4-5-1 for this match, with two defensive midfielders protecting the backline).
Culina and Wilkshire (or Emerton - those two are pretty interchangeable) will probably patrol the central midfield. What odds Wilkshire is sent off for a late lunge on Garcia? While Holman will definitely get a run, with Nick Carle and David Carney possibilites, Bresciano and Sterjovski will probably start as the supporting players for the striker, which I guess will have to be Thompson or McDonald. Archie might get the nod, but some might feel he's already been given a chance at this level and is yet to really fire. However, promoting new Celtic signing McDonald to such a lofty height will no doubt impel many a punter to wonder if they are dreaming. It seems that for years now people have been screaming for the introduction of a younger forward, be it McDonald, Joshua Kennedy or David Williams (thankfully we can still rely on Viduka and Aloisi to turn up when it really counts). Everyone in the stadium, I think, would love to see McDonald play, but we'll then be forced to play a new style of football. In such a scenario, how, why and how successfully Arnold tinkers with the system that's been in place since the last time we played Uruguay is possibly the biggest question of the night.
There could be one 'out' for Arnold that allows him to adopt the same tactics and plow on with the Hiddink method: playing Danny Allsopp up front as the target man. It would be a massively controversial decision to start Allsopp over McDonald, a kid who's been screwed or just been plain unlucky with the national team on several occasions already. Yet, Allsopp provides all the intangibles of the big lug Viduka - he's a solid presence, he can hold the ball, he can turn and run at defenders, he can shoot with power from outside the box, he has a good sense of the runners around him (running ahead of Allsopp is all Archie seems to do at Victory sometimes). We know that when you play Uruguay you need to have a certain sense of street thuggery about your game, or guile at the least. A large, tall striker becomes a sort of figurehead for the team, a crushing yet agile bastard up front that you can poke or smash the ball at whenever you're in trouble or simply pissed off at all the legs flying in around your ankles.
Possibly the biggest surprise of among Arnold's squad selection is in fact one of the most sensible: Allsopp is just the type of guy you want around when facing off against Uruguay, a national opponent we've come to love to hate (and certainly respect) more than any other (proviso: until we again play Iran again at the top level).
Australia on the other hand are nowhere near full strength. No Kewell, Viduka, Bresciano, Grella, Cahill, Schwarzer, Aloisi, Moore, Chipperfield or Skoko for starters.
The veterans on the ground are pretty thin. Only Neill, Emerton, Culina, Wilkshire, Sterjovski and Thompson will be there to guide the emerging younger guns, e.g. the likes of Brett Holman, Patrick Kisnorbo, Scott McDonald and Matthew Spiranovic. The rest of the squad is a bit touch and go . . . and I think that's fantastic. With so many major tournament matches and friendlies crucial to the countinued reign of Graham Arnold, it's been a long time since we've seen such a squad. Finally, we've embraced a chance to evaluate some of the fringe performers against world class opposition. Uruguay is coming here to whip our asses, and unless some of these lads on the periphery step up that's exactly what will happen. It's going to be an interesting evening.
With the non-selection of Michael Petkovic, Ante Covic or Clint Bolton we're certain to start with a debutante in goals, and it's not Paul Henderson or Danny Vukovic. Brad Jones will start, with Adam Federici, another first-timer, backing him up. It's great news for Jones and I'm sure many in the community who've been scratching their heads about our second and third goalkeeper selection strategies of the national team ever since Covic went to the World Cup. Federici seems more of a longer-term prospect to me, with circumstances rather than consistent form edging him into the frame earlier than expected. If Reading were not flying so high in the Premiership, perhaps someone like Henderson would have been picked, if only to balance the experience somewhat. After years of selecting keepers in or past their prime, we've now turned 180 degrees and picked a pair of kids with zero international exposure. No real complaints from me, but others may wonder why a balance couldn't have been struck.
At the back, it Neill and Kisnorbo ought to start, with Beauchamp in contention if we start with a back three. Jade North and Michael Thwaite are pretty much on the outer rim, with Matthew Spiranovic far more likely to come on as a late substitute (as he did in the German DFB Pokal final overnight) to earn his first cap and spurn forever the whispering advances of Croatia. Personally, I'd like to see Spiranpovic make the Asian Cup squad. He was far and away our best performer for the U-20s and he's proven himself at least the equal of Beauchamp in Germany. He's one of the few bonafide long-term prospects we have at the moment, so why not?
Unless North or Thwaite occupy a wide defensive role, Emerton and Shane Stefanutto will probably start in the wingback positions. It'll be good for the local audience to see Stefanutto on home soil again and gauge what the impact of losing Scott Chipperfield will be for the forthcoming Cup. Chippers is pretty much irreplaceable, but if he decides to take a thoroughly well-deserved break then we'll need someone like Stefanutto or Ryan Griffiths or Wilkshire to take over that versatile man-of-action down the left.
The situation is similar in midfield. Carl Valeri will try to impress on the home crowd that he's a suitable backup for Vinny Grella in the holding position, at least, that is, until Mark Milligan returns from U-23 duty. From memory of the Athens Olympics, Valeria is a technical player with pretty good vision and who likes to roam. In this way he's probably more similar to Grella than is Milligan - an analog who doesn't upset the team balance quite so much. Regarding this speculation, Simon Colosimo may other other ideas of course. If he's in the sort of form (after playing in Turkey) that somehow kept the dire Perth Glory above the fast-finishing New Zealand Knights in the second season of the A-League, he may find himself thrown into what will arguably be the most important position on the park against Uruguay (somebody has to stifle the service to the super dangerous forwards; maybe we could do with a Rafa Bentizesque 4-5-1 for this match, with two defensive midfielders protecting the backline).
Culina and Wilkshire (or Emerton - those two are pretty interchangeable) will probably patrol the central midfield. What odds Wilkshire is sent off for a late lunge on Garcia? While Holman will definitely get a run, with Nick Carle and David Carney possibilites, Bresciano and Sterjovski will probably start as the supporting players for the striker, which I guess will have to be Thompson or McDonald. Archie might get the nod, but some might feel he's already been given a chance at this level and is yet to really fire. However, promoting new Celtic signing McDonald to such a lofty height will no doubt impel many a punter to wonder if they are dreaming. It seems that for years now people have been screaming for the introduction of a younger forward, be it McDonald, Joshua Kennedy or David Williams (thankfully we can still rely on Viduka and Aloisi to turn up when it really counts). Everyone in the stadium, I think, would love to see McDonald play, but we'll then be forced to play a new style of football. In such a scenario, how, why and how successfully Arnold tinkers with the system that's been in place since the last time we played Uruguay is possibly the biggest question of the night.
There could be one 'out' for Arnold that allows him to adopt the same tactics and plow on with the Hiddink method: playing Danny Allsopp up front as the target man. It would be a massively controversial decision to start Allsopp over McDonald, a kid who's been screwed or just been plain unlucky with the national team on several occasions already. Yet, Allsopp provides all the intangibles of the big lug Viduka - he's a solid presence, he can hold the ball, he can turn and run at defenders, he can shoot with power from outside the box, he has a good sense of the runners around him (running ahead of Allsopp is all Archie seems to do at Victory sometimes). We know that when you play Uruguay you need to have a certain sense of street thuggery about your game, or guile at the least. A large, tall striker becomes a sort of figurehead for the team, a crushing yet agile bastard up front that you can poke or smash the ball at whenever you're in trouble or simply pissed off at all the legs flying in around your ankles.
Possibly the biggest surprise of among Arnold's squad selection is in fact one of the most sensible: Allsopp is just the type of guy you want around when facing off against Uruguay, a national opponent we've come to love to hate (and certainly respect) more than any other (proviso: until we again play Iran again at the top level).
24 March 2007
Beijing Breaks
Yep, it's been a while.
The site's been on hiatus for a number of reasons. Other work has taken priority, the off-season has restricted content a bit, and I haven't felt that burning desire for a while that urged me to start this thing in the first place. Really, the original mission of bringing of this site - to contribute to fan-oriented promotion of the league - has already been accomplished. Now that we're two years into the A-League, there are thankfully numerous places to find out the latest info, canvass a wide section of opinions, and flame away at whatever topic takes one's fancy. A content dearth two years ago has become a content overload in some respects, with site's like this one fast becoming redundant against the surging tide or bandwagoning of the mass media outlets.
In order to feel compelled to return to regular updates, I'll probably need to give the blog an overhaul, or at least a change of emphasis and direction.
The mission of the national team to become Asian Cup champions is certainly an interest worth studying in finer detail. Tonight the Socceroos play away against China in a friendly that is shaping up as a fascinating test of the team's depth. The Australian midfield - such a strength over the past few years - will tonight include only three players (Bresciano, Sterjovski, Wilkshire) with World Cup experience. Kewell, Cahill, Grella, Culina, Emerton, Chipperfield and Skoko are all missing. In their place we have Holman, Stefanutto, Valeri, Ryan Griffiths, Jacob Burns, Colosimo and Carle. Had he been fit, Elrich would surely have been a cinch for a start tonight; ditto Milligan were he not on U-23 duty.
Such drastic change represents a significant challenge for the lads as they try to bounce back from the recent loss to Denmark. It also gives the recently introduced players a chance to prove something on the pitch, not just at training. Yet for all the long term value of those opportunities, we have a match to win, and the answer I think lies in the contributiuons of the more senior midfielders, especially Wilkshire and Sterjovski. The match tonight is ready-built for those two to step up and really emphasise their senior position in the international pecking order. Sterjovski needs to start scoring and improving his communication with Viduka. Wilkshire needs to keep a level head and demonstrate confidence. Good performances from both ought to fill the alarming void in midfield left by the departed superstars. Poor displays will put far too much pressure on Bresciano, who like any great player lives and breathes off the movement, fast-thinking, and return balls from those surrounding him.
Beauchamp is of course the other senior player who is hopefully aiming to cement his status tonight. I think it's fair to suggest that Kisnorbo has already staked a claim as the best of our centre-half options after Neill and Moore. With Thwaite waiting in the wings, Spiranovic pushing Beauchamp at club level (witness his start over Beauchamp in Nurnberg's last encounter with Bayern Munich), and doubts still lingering over Beauchamp's ability to adjust to the national team set-up, what's required is a convincing display tonight as Neill's shield.
Let's hope as well that Arnie, in his eternal wisdom, sees fit to cap Jones in the second half. It's amazing how the retirement of Kalac has suddenly made our goalkeeping ranks seems extraordinarily slim. There's really nobody behind Schwarzer who oozes confidence and has the experience to slot straight into the team without inducing a comedy of errors at the back. Not Petkovic, Covic or Bolton. Leicester's Paul Henderson is yet to be given a shot. Vukovic and Federici are still coming on, while Coe and van Strattan remain bereft of opportunity. Jones needs to start getting his chances. Maybe over the next 18 months he'll start to push a lot harder for Schwarzer's role. Maybe in the mean time we need to think seriously about getting John Filan into the equation, as a worst case scenario Plan B. Maybe we need Dean Bouzanis to be a freakish prodigy.
Cheers to Arnie as well if he throws McDonald into the fray for an extended period. His introduction will necessarily instigate a reshuffle - it's not like he can replace Viduka as a target man - but given the shot in the heart to our midfield we're likely to have some trouble breaking the Chinese defense down and thus need some fresh input.
The site's been on hiatus for a number of reasons. Other work has taken priority, the off-season has restricted content a bit, and I haven't felt that burning desire for a while that urged me to start this thing in the first place. Really, the original mission of bringing of this site - to contribute to fan-oriented promotion of the league - has already been accomplished. Now that we're two years into the A-League, there are thankfully numerous places to find out the latest info, canvass a wide section of opinions, and flame away at whatever topic takes one's fancy. A content dearth two years ago has become a content overload in some respects, with site's like this one fast becoming redundant against the surging tide or bandwagoning of the mass media outlets.
In order to feel compelled to return to regular updates, I'll probably need to give the blog an overhaul, or at least a change of emphasis and direction.
The mission of the national team to become Asian Cup champions is certainly an interest worth studying in finer detail. Tonight the Socceroos play away against China in a friendly that is shaping up as a fascinating test of the team's depth. The Australian midfield - such a strength over the past few years - will tonight include only three players (Bresciano, Sterjovski, Wilkshire) with World Cup experience. Kewell, Cahill, Grella, Culina, Emerton, Chipperfield and Skoko are all missing. In their place we have Holman, Stefanutto, Valeri, Ryan Griffiths, Jacob Burns, Colosimo and Carle. Had he been fit, Elrich would surely have been a cinch for a start tonight; ditto Milligan were he not on U-23 duty.
Such drastic change represents a significant challenge for the lads as they try to bounce back from the recent loss to Denmark. It also gives the recently introduced players a chance to prove something on the pitch, not just at training. Yet for all the long term value of those opportunities, we have a match to win, and the answer I think lies in the contributiuons of the more senior midfielders, especially Wilkshire and Sterjovski. The match tonight is ready-built for those two to step up and really emphasise their senior position in the international pecking order. Sterjovski needs to start scoring and improving his communication with Viduka. Wilkshire needs to keep a level head and demonstrate confidence. Good performances from both ought to fill the alarming void in midfield left by the departed superstars. Poor displays will put far too much pressure on Bresciano, who like any great player lives and breathes off the movement, fast-thinking, and return balls from those surrounding him.
Beauchamp is of course the other senior player who is hopefully aiming to cement his status tonight. I think it's fair to suggest that Kisnorbo has already staked a claim as the best of our centre-half options after Neill and Moore. With Thwaite waiting in the wings, Spiranovic pushing Beauchamp at club level (witness his start over Beauchamp in Nurnberg's last encounter with Bayern Munich), and doubts still lingering over Beauchamp's ability to adjust to the national team set-up, what's required is a convincing display tonight as Neill's shield.
Let's hope as well that Arnie, in his eternal wisdom, sees fit to cap Jones in the second half. It's amazing how the retirement of Kalac has suddenly made our goalkeeping ranks seems extraordinarily slim. There's really nobody behind Schwarzer who oozes confidence and has the experience to slot straight into the team without inducing a comedy of errors at the back. Not Petkovic, Covic or Bolton. Leicester's Paul Henderson is yet to be given a shot. Vukovic and Federici are still coming on, while Coe and van Strattan remain bereft of opportunity. Jones needs to start getting his chances. Maybe over the next 18 months he'll start to push a lot harder for Schwarzer's role. Maybe in the mean time we need to think seriously about getting John Filan into the equation, as a worst case scenario Plan B. Maybe we need Dean Bouzanis to be a freakish prodigy.
Cheers to Arnie as well if he throws McDonald into the fray for an extended period. His introduction will necessarily instigate a reshuffle - it's not like he can replace Viduka as a target man - but given the shot in the heart to our midfield we're likely to have some trouble breaking the Chinese defense down and thus need some fresh input.
26 January 2007
Round Twenty One Report
Best of Round Twenty One:
Player: Ufuk Talay, Sydney - sent off late in the match, but instrumental in controlling the middle of the park to just get Sydney over the line against Queensland
U-20 Player: Nathan Burns, Adelaide - claiming a neat hat-trick after great build-up work from the likes of Bruce Djite and Bobby Petta; Ruben Zadkovich also had a strong game, again as a right-sided wing back
Coach: Gary Van Egmond, Newcastle - following a 4-0 demolition of the runaway competition leaders, who isn't scared of the Jets heading into the finals? GVE has turned it all around
Match: Queensland Roar vs Sydney FC
4-4-2 Team of the Week:
Malik Buari - Mark Bridge
Bobby Petta - Ufuk Talay - Jonas Salley - Noah Hickey
Matt Thompson - Paul Okon - Iain Fyfe - Andrew Packer
Clint Bolton
Subs: Ante Covic, Dean Gordon, Ross Aloisi, Reinaldo
Player: Ufuk Talay, Sydney - sent off late in the match, but instrumental in controlling the middle of the park to just get Sydney over the line against Queensland
U-20 Player: Nathan Burns, Adelaide - claiming a neat hat-trick after great build-up work from the likes of Bruce Djite and Bobby Petta; Ruben Zadkovich also had a strong game, again as a right-sided wing back
Coach: Gary Van Egmond, Newcastle - following a 4-0 demolition of the runaway competition leaders, who isn't scared of the Jets heading into the finals? GVE has turned it all around
Match: Queensland Roar vs Sydney FC
4-4-2 Team of the Week:
Malik Buari - Mark Bridge
Bobby Petta - Ufuk Talay - Jonas Salley - Noah Hickey
Matt Thompson - Paul Okon - Iain Fyfe - Andrew Packer
Clint Bolton
Subs: Ante Covic, Dean Gordon, Ross Aloisi, Reinaldo
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