ON THIS DAY IN FOOTBALL HISTORY

28 June 2011 - IF I SOUND SKEPTICAL,IT'S BECAUSE I AM

On 28 June 2011, the United States women opened their World Cup campaign with a win over North Korea. But all was not as it seemed, apparently.

 The North Koreans were one of the first teams to qualify for the tournament by finishing as runners-up in the 2010 Asian Cup, while the US were the last team to qualify after beating Italy in the UEFA-CONCACAF playoff. Nevertheless, the Yanks were favored when the two teams met on the opening day of Group C.

 Playing before a crowd of almost 22,000 at Dresden's Rudolf-Harbig Stadium, the North Koreans kept the match close for the first half, taking a scoreless draw into the break. But they grew visibly tired after the restart and surrendered goals to Lauren Cheney (54') and Rachel Buehler (76') to end up on the wrong side of a 2-0 result. And that's when things got a little weird.

 In the post-game press conference, North Korean manager Kim Kwang-min claimed that his side had under-performed because of an accident almost three weeks earlier in which a handful of players were struck by lightning. He said more than five of them had to go to the hospital, but it was unclear which players they were. According to the official FIFA translation of the press conference, Kim said that the goalkeeper, four strikers, and some midfielders were affected, but the North Korean press officer said it was four defenders.

 Regardless, North Korea lost their next match to Sweden, then drew with Colombia to bow out of the tournament in the group stage. The US advanced all the way to the final, where they lost to Japan on penalties.

REDKNAPP BRANDS WILSHERE A 'MAGICIAN'

Harry Redknapp believes Jack Wilshere can help take England to the next level - but he does not expect overnight improvement.

The former Tottenham boss, who was overlooked for the manager's job in favour of Roy Hodgson, was surprised by the manner of England's Euro 2012 exit, losing on penalties to Italy in the quarter-final after being outplayed.


But he feels a fit and in-form Wilshere, who missed the whole of Arsenal's season through injury, could help England improve their ability to keep possession.

Writing in his column on Betfair, he said: "It's a depressing way to go out as we were dominated by an Italian team that hasn't looked that special at Euro 2012.


"In Andrea Pirlo, Italy had a magician on the pitch...but England do have one of our own in the shape of Jack Wilshere and that's one reason to believe we can improve in the future."

He went on: "They were in a completely different class to us.


"It's the same old story in international football, you have to keep the ball and we couldn't do that. Italy dominated possession and, in Pirlo, they had a man who could just run the game. He was on another level to everyone else on the pitch.


"It was almost complete dominance, and to be fair, I didn't see that coming. I didn't particularly rate this Italy side."


Despite the performance, Redknapp was quick to defend the man who got the job he coveted.


"Don't blame Roy Hodgson though, he did the best he could at Euro 2012 with limited time. We were hard to beat and well organised, but hopefully now he can change the way England play and that goes right back to the youth teams," said Redknapp.


"We have got to produce teams who can play the game properly from schoolboy level right through to the senior team. We need to start producing coaches who want to play football. It is going to be a long-term thing, I'm afraid."


He added: "It's over to Roy now. He has four years to stamp his style on the national team and set-up.


"And maybe with Wilshere to the fore and a few of the old guard around him he can do it."


Culled from football365.com


Harry 'Wedknapp' seems to think Wilshere is the next Harry Porter,might just be what England need though as it is quite obvious the team needs something supernatural.

TRANSFER NEWS:BALE SIGNS FOUR-YEAR TOTTENHAM EXTENSION

Tottenham have announced that Gareth Bale has signed a new four-year deal that will keep him at White Hart Lane until 2016. 


The Welsh star has long been linked with a move away from the club with both Manchester United and Barcelona reported to be interested in signing the 22-year-old, but he has now committed his future to the north Londoners.

You can read the rest of the story here.

ON THIS DAY IN FOOTBALL HISTORY

 27 JUNE 2006 - THE RED BULLS SAY NO MO' TO MO

On 27 June 2006, the New York Red Bulls sacked manager Mo Johnston after just over eight months in charge. He had enjoyed a lengthy and successful career as a striker in Scotland and England, winning league titles with both Celtic and Rangers. In 1996, he arrived in the US to play for the Kansas City Wizards and propelled them to the MLS Cup title in 2000 before retiring the following year. Then, in 2003, he moved into management, joining the New York/New Jersey MetroStars as an assistant to new manager Bob Bradley. Bradley's time in New York was brief; the club--rebranded as the New York Red Bulls--dismissed him on 4 October 2005 and named Johnston the interim head coach, removing the "interim" tag just over two weeks later. But Johnston's tenure proved even shorter, as he was undone by only two wins in their first twelve matches of the 2006 season. Johnston resurfaced as manager of Toronto in 2007, but was reassigned after one season and became the club's Director of Soccer. That position ended in 2010 as Toronto sacked Johnston along with their manager, Preki.

EURO 2012: THE BEST AND THE WORST 'PANENKA' PENALTIES

Following Andrea Pirlo's spectacular 'Panenka' penalty against England in their Euro 2012 quarter-final shoot-out, we showcase the best and the worst of the genre in our collection of similar efforts.


ANTONIN PANENKA
The original and still the best, Antonín Panenka graced the first penalty shoot-out in European Cup history with this effort, scored to secure a 5-3 win on penalties for Czecheslovakia over West Germany in the 1974 final. A run-up length that would equal that of a West Indian pace bowler from the same era deceived German goalkeeper Sepp Maier who fell to his left as Panenka chipped down the middle in a clip also graced by one of the most corpulent referees ever to take charge of an international final.


ZINEDINE ZIDANE
Probably the most audacious of all Panenka's imitators, Zinedine Zidane's penalty in the 2006 World Cup final against Italy highlights the thin margins between success and failure as it rebounded off the crossbar and bounced across the goal line. Notable for the calm and measured French commentary, this clip shows the moment that Zidane put his country 1-0 ahead cementing the impression of nonchalant brilliance which had already earned him that tournament's Golden Ball award as its best player. Unfortunately, he was to go on to make an even deeper impression on the chest Marco Materazzi in extra time, and his red card meant that he was to miss the penalty shoot-out which Italy won 5-3.


ANDREA PIRLO
In the wake of a dominant performance in a scoreless draw, Italy found themselves staring down the barrel in their Euro 2012 quarter final against England. Riccardo Montolivo's penalty miss had handed the advantage to England who were a goal up after two rounds of penalties. Andrea Pirlo's effort changed the dynamic of the shoot-out, sending England's vocal keeper Joe Hart to the floor, he spooned the his penalty home and then watched as a combination of exhaustion and pressure got to England's two Ashley's, Young and Cole.


DWIGHT YORKE


Ex of Aston Villa, Manchester United and Jordan, Dwight Yorke's stint in the Australian A-league was notable for this effortless penalty in Sydney FC's match against Adelaide United. The Tobagonian hit-man struck a deft chip down the middle which appeared to hang in the air as it deceived the goalkeeper and crossed the line.


AND TO THE SIMPLY 'DREADFUL' ONES...


FRANCESCO TOTTI
In the wake of Pirlo's penalty success against England, Italian midfielder Daniele De Rossi claimed "I'd not seen such a crazy shot as that since the days of Totti." Unfortunately for England, Pirlo's chip proved slightly more successful than this magesterial effort while Totti was playing for Roma.


CRISTIANO RONALDO
Cristiano Ronaldo's gratifyingly awful penalty for Real Madrid showcases just how obnoxious such attempts can appear when they go wrong. And when they are struck by Cristiano Ronaldo.


Culled from: telegraph.co.uk


Now you have seen them,what is your take?

THREE LIONS:AN EXPECTED DISASTER

On the 1st of May 2012,the announcement was finally made,Roy Hodgson had become the new England manager.Hodgson, who has managed sixteen different teams in eight countries, guided the Switzerland national team to the last 16 of the 1994 World Cup and qualification for Euro 1996; Switzerland had not qualified for a major tournament since the 1960s. From 2006 to 2007, he managed the Finland national team, guiding them to their highest ever FIFA ranking of 33rd place and coming close to qualifying for a major tournament for the first time in their history. He has been the beaten finalist in the UEFA Cup and the Europa League. Hodgson has also coached many notable club sides, including Inter Milan, Blackburn Rovers, Grasshoppers, FC Copenhagen, Udinese, Fulham, Liverpool and West Bromwich Albion. Hodgson served several times as a member of UEFA's technical study group at the European Championships and was also a member of the FIFA technical study group at the 2006 World Cup.Hodgson speaks five languages and has worked as a television pundit in several of the countries in which he has coached. Hodgson was the man who was supposed to stabilise the 'mourning' national team who had just lost its manager abruptly and its team captain(much more expected).
Some weeks and a few games later,the handwriting was on the wall(or in this case,the TV) that this team was not a team that could score goals,it grounded a 1-0 win over Norway(albeit its first win over Norway in 32 years),another uninspiring win over Belgium followed and for the first time in recent years,the optimism(most times,simply patriotic) that follows the English national team gave way to caution(although the team showed they were much more compact and difficult to beat).THIS TEAM WAS NOT JUST IT...There were some good signs though:Young's adaptability,Welbeck and Chamberlain's promise,the watertight defence etc. but the bad signs were more: a lot of injuries notably to Lampard,Cahill and Barry,Rio's ommission(for 'footballing' reasons),Rooney's suspension,Defoe's bereavement etc.
At long last,the tournament began,England's 1-1 result against France was widely lauded,the win against Sweden brought some more optimism while the win against Ukraine(albeit,aided by a 'distracted' official) with Rooney scoring a goal on his comeback brought some high hopes in some areas.What happened next?
PIRLO HAPPENED NEXT!!!the midfield maestro unlocked the defence time and again but the clean sheet was preserved and for sustained periods(especially after Montolivo's PK miss),it seemed as if England were going to do a 'chelsea' until Pirlo stepped in again and the 'Ashleys' did justice to the game.
Enough said...my submission is this:the disaster(not to me) was waiting to happen,England was too conservative under Roy Hodgson even against 'lesser' teams(with all due respect),they needed to take more risks and they failed to do so.The time to rebuild is now and younger players should be brought on board as soon as possible.Failure to do so will just result in great qualifying outings and a woeful tournament finish...again.

ON THIS DAY IN FOOTBALL HISTORY

26 JUNE 1988 - IT HELPS TO HAVE FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES
On 26 June 1988, the Romanian Cup Final ended abruptly when one of the teams stormed off the field and refused to return.The Final was an Eternal Derby contest between Bucharest rivals Steaua and Dinamo. Steaua were in the midst of a 60-match unbeaten run that stretched back to the start of the 1986-87 season and included the 1987 and 1988 league titles and the 1987 Romanian Cup (they had also recently won the 1986 European Cup Final over Barcelona).
 The game was a rematch of the previous final. With only a few minutes left, and the score level at 1-1, Steaua striker Gavril Balint put the ball in the back of the Dinamo net for a certain match-winner, but he was flagged for being offside. Upset with the call, the Steaua players and staff marched off the pitch, reportedly at the direction of the club's highest-profile supporter, Valentin Ceaușescu, son of Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu.
 The referee abandoned the match and gave the trophy to Dinamo. But the next day, the government intervened, ruling that the goal should have been allowed and declaring Steaua the winners. Two years later, after the fall of the Ceaușescu regime, Steaua renounced the cup and offered it to Dinamo, who refused to accept it. That year's cup title remains vacant.
Steaua, meanwhile, continued their unbeaten run, extending it to a total of 119 league and cup matches.