Last night Barcelona were knocked out of the champions league by Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan 3 -2 on aggregate. Barcelona lost 3 – 1 in the first leg of the champions league tie which meant they had to win 2 – 0 to go through. Some may say that the fact that Barca had to do a day’s travelling to get to the first leg set them at a huge disadvantage but there were few complaints from the Barcelona team and they got on with the job in hand. It was clear to see that the players were tired though and it showed in the results and the stats after the match, Barcelona players had run 1km less on average than they had done in the round before against Arsenal. Inter Milan capitalised on this as they won the 1st leg 3-1 after going 1 – 0 down to a goal from Pedro.
Even after the 3 – 1 defeat many people thought that Barcelona could still go through, the game started and it was evident to see that inter were keen on defending their 2 goal lead. They seemed to employ time wasting tactics as early as the 2nd minute, just over 25 minutes into the game the first major piece of action happened with Thiago Motta already being booked, he caught Sergio Busquets in the face with what seemed like nothing but his little finger and the Spaniard went down rolling around, the referee then brandished the Portuguese midfielder a straight red card. Rightly the Inter team and fans were incised but the decision had been made, it was now a matter of setting up camp on the 18yard line and defending for their lives.
It took Barcelona 82 minutes to break down the Italian side who seemed to be making every stoppage in play last 20 seconds longer than necessary, Pique collected a through ball from Xavi and did a wonderful turn that sent both the Keeper and Defender flying in the wrong direction before coolly slotting the ball in the net. It was now a nerve racking last 10 minutes for Inter. Barca had attack after attack, and when all seem lost Yaya Toure blocked a clearance on the edge of the Inter box and the ball fell to Bojan who smashed the ball into the back of the net, Barcelona fans erupted but the jubilation was short lived as the referee blew the whistle for handball. This was a outrageous decision Toure was no more than a yard away from the ball with his hand on his stomach, yet the referee gave handball. Inter then defended for the last 4 minutes with ease and were through to face Bayern Munich in the Champions League Final.
Some people will say that Inter Milan were unfortunate to get a player sent off and that they deserved to win because of their performance in the 1st leg, but the fact of the matter is if the referee hadn’t of given the a handball for nothing, the right amount of extra time was added on and Barca hadn’t of had to go on a day long trek to Milan for the 1st leg then Barcelona would be in this year’s champions league final.
I watched the Live Football game on http://www.livegoals.com
If you are a halfback, you must be aware of the fact that as halfbacks can move to forward positions, they can be used for serving the offensive purposes as well. This is particularly useful when the coach is thinking off some counter attack strategy and the halfbacks also get a chance to score goals themselves. The positions in a team game like football are very important and unless all the players stick to their basic roles, a game cannot be ever won.
Center Back
The “king pin” of a football team, this position is pretty commanding one. A center back actually plays the role of a central defender who halts the attack of opponent team with certain interceptions and if required some timely tackles. Proper heights, speedy movement, strength to do necessary tackling are they key physical attributes of a center halfback. In addition, confidence, decisiveness and tenacity can help a center halfback grow fast with time.
Midfielders
Midfielders or the playmakers are always with the responsibility of organizing any attack of the team. They change the pace of the football game. Unless they are in sync with their teammates, the team will be led towards a poor performance. Possession is pretty important in this team game and only midfielders can ascertain this fact that the ball stays with the team.
Wingers
They have two different responsibilities to handle with the changing flow of game. They can either supply the ball to the strikers or they can stretch the defense in moments of crisis. Not the physical attributes but speed is the most important factor while choosing a defender and an ability to dribble properly makes things even better. Remember, at certain conditions, wingers may need to go in a body contact with bigger players, so they should have the confidence and know the “principles of the width in an attack.”
Forwards
The scorers of a team and as it said “Goals win Matches”, indeed one of the most important roles. The strikers sometimes rotate their role in the game as feeders. They look out for any possible flaw in the opponent defense and a chance to score a goal.
But, if you think this one as the best position, think again. This needs you to withstand the pain as the strikers are most likely to face the hard tackles of an opponent team. Stamina and speed are two added factors which may help you out as well.
After the shocking relegation of Newcastle United last year, Portsmouth is confirmed to be out of the Big Boys’ list for the next season. But Avram Grant’s side showed some determination that helped them to beat Tottenham and reach the finals of the FA Cup. Frederic Piquionne and Kevin Prince-Boateng were the stars of the night. Portsmouth is going to fight the battle out against the mighty Chelsea in the final. This is surely great news for the long-suffering fans Pompey who can still end the season on a high.
Initially things looked bright for Tottenham as they started very well. They created their first chance within five minutes when David Bentley’s corner almost found Defoe. Another corner taken a little later was saved by David James as Crouch’s header dribbled past the post. But Portsmouth never lost their calm and slowly began to move the ball nicely. Dindane was playing with confidence; he provided a nice pass to Piquionne in the first half that failed to beat Gomes.
The second half was also dominated by the Spurs. Mokoena tackled Crouch very well throughout the match and their had been flashes of individual skills. But none of the teams was able to make it look like a thrilling FA Cup final. Pavlyuchenko replaced Defoe and Bentley was replaced by Kranjcar in the second half where as Pompey were yet to use their bench till then. The Wembley Stadium was stunned in the 99th minute when Piquionne coolly placed the ball inside the net from a close range. The centre back Michael Dawson, generally a reliable customer in the defense line, slipped that helped Piquionne to score the first goal.
Crouch converted Bale’s beautiful pass only after a couple of minutes of the first goal. But luck denied to stand by the Spurs as the referee ruled the goal out for a foul. Spurs created a few moves this time but all of them were defended away by the firm and determined Pompey defense line. Things turned even worse for Spurs when Palacios brought Aruna Dindane down inside the penalty box with just three minutes remaining on the clock. Boateng then made no mistake to drill home the penalty against his former team. John Utaka almost made it 3-0 but Gomes made a fine save. Unfortunately, the damage was already done.
To keep Track of the livescores in these games i use http://www.livegoals.com
Javier Mascherano has announced that he wants to move back to his home country before the end of his career.
“Right now I’m thinking about playing for another three or four years at the highest level and returning home to play at a good level there.”
“I want to enjoy Argentinian football for four or five years and I’d love to do it at River (Plate), the club that gave me everything and treated me so well.”
He is looking forward to signing a new deal with Liverpool to keep him at the club for another 3 -4 years, which is great news for all Liverpool fans as he is a integral part of the Liverpool team. He joined Liverpool in 2007 on loan from a struggling West Ham before making the move permanent in February 2008, he quickly established himself as a first team player and later in the year was voted the man of the match by Liverpool fans in the champions league final, which they lost 2-1 to Ac Milan.
He has only scored twice for Liverpool, the first a scrappy goal against Reading, but the 2nd of which was a cracking goal against Unirea Urziceni. The midfielder is well renowned for his tenacious tackling and attack stifling play, and has recently been praised by both Rafa Benitez and Diego Maradona
Benitez “ he is a monster of a player” and Diego had to say this about the Argentina side “ it’s Javier plus 10 others”
Here are some highlights of the little midfield chief
Saturday could possibly be the decider for the title race in La Liga as Real Madrid host the champions Barcelona in round 30. The teams are currently separated by goal difference with Real being 3 goals better off. The game could be one by one of many individual talents but each player has a high quality opposition who they must get the upper hand on to give their team the best chance of winning. Here are a few key battles that could decide the game depending on which player wins:
1) C.Ronaldo v Leo Messi – This is possibly the most crucial battle on the field, with each player being able to produce a moment of brilliance that could win the game for their respected team, this showdown is surely one not to be missed. The little Argentine is currently being hailed as best player in the world, if not the best player ever which i am sure the hot headed Portuguese star will not like hearing as he was the World player of the year in 08 and is the most expensive player in history. Both players have an amazing goal scoring record this season, Ronaldo has 18 goals in 20 games, where Messi leads the goal scoring chart with 26 goals in 22 games. These 2 players are sure to light up the pitch at some point during this massive encounter.
2)Xavi Alonso v Xavi – The two conductors of each team, both these players will try and run the game from the centre of the park, Alonso from just inside his own half trying to play 30 yard passes and Xavi from just inside the opposition half with intricate 1, 2’s and little 5 yard balls. Both forms of passing game is affective and these two are the supply lines to both teams attacking players.
3)Iker Casillas v Victor Valdes – Just like the previous 2 battles these players could be the difference in the game, one mistake or great save could turn the game. With Casillas being the Spanish number 1, and seemingly under no threat for his position Valdes will be trying to out shine his international companion. Valdes is expected to be the 3rd choice keeper at the world cup for Spain but as it stands he has currently the best stats in La liga and if he ends the season with these then it will be the 2nd year in a row. He must feel a little hard done by not to be first choice by now.
I posted an article last week about the key battles which were going to take part in the 1st leg of the Quarter-final. The battles were intense and for atleast an hour of the game Barcelona won every single battle, how they were only 2-0 up at 60 minute mark only they know. The tie looked as if it was over as a contenst and that the 2nd leg would be a fomality for the Catalan giants as they cruised into a 2 goal lead just after half time. But after bringing Theo Walcott on, the game turned on its head.
Arsenal got 2 goals late on to end the game 2 – 2. Now the tie is poised on a knife edge, but both teams suffered major blows in the 1st leg, with Cesc Fabregas, William Gallas and Andre Arsharvin all getting injured meaning they won’t take part for the rest of the season, and Barcelona loosing both of their center backs to suspensions.
The 1st leg didnt dissapoint and i’m, sure that the 2nd leg will be even better. Arsenal will look to get an early away goal and try to stop an onslaught from Barcalona, if it’s anything like the 1st leg Arsenal may come away having been comprehensively beaten at the hands of Pep Guardiola and his formidable barca team.
Here are the live football highlights just to wet your appetite
