RSSHas Inter Milan’s Wesley Sneijder been the most productive offseason acquisition in Europe?
The 2009 summer transfer window in Europe was dominated by Real Madrid’s campaign to capture many of the world’s top players. Old habits die-hard. Madrid President Florentino Pérez began his second term the same way he spent his first, by building a superstar roster of Galácticos that he believes will allow Madrid to win trophies. The flashy headlines from last summer included ‘Kaká to Real Madrid for £60 million!’ and three days later ‘£80 million sends Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid!’. Throw in the £30 million each for Karim Benzema and Xabi Alonso and other teams found themselves helpless to compete with Madrid for the top players.
Does Manchester United have enough scoring depth to win the Premiership?
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Rooney, along with Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, is considered one of the elite players in the world. Prior to this year, however, Rooney was not even the best player on his own team, having played five years beside Ronaldo (the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year). With Ronaldo's high profile transfer to Real Madrid last summer, as well as Carlos Tevez‘s departure to Manchester City, many United fans came into the 2009-10 season asking themselves 'where are the goals going to come from?'.
France vs Spain – International Friendly Match Preview
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France trying to reclaim their giant status
Nobody speaks about football’s top 20 elites without mentioning France. The 1998 World Cup champions elevated themselves among the sport’s highest ranked nations such as Brazil, Italy, and Argentina.
The achievements of the French national football team in the late 1990s and the early part of the last decade are a proof of Les Bleus’ power.
In the past few years though, France have struggled to affirm their authority even against minor teams. Their disastrous run during Euro 2008 which saw them exit from the group stages publicly exposed the weaknesses of the club.
Portugal vs China – International Friendly Match Preview
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Portugal working for a smoother future
South Africa 2010 is indeed not far away and Portugal are optimistic over their fortunes come June.
A Selecção have endured tough moments since the retirement of the legendary skipper Luis Figo after the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Throughout the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, their fate seemed to be hanging from a thread. In dramatic fashion, Carlos Queiroz’s side pipped out Sweden to grab Group A’s play-off spot where they subsequently saw off Bosnia Herzegovina to seal their place in the finals of the World Cup.
Now, Portugal are looking forward to entering a new phase where their hard work will be compensated by convincing wins in a less difficult road to achieve success.
England vs. Egypt Match Preview
England manager Fabio Capello’s selection plans for the upcoming friendly against African champions Egypt on Wednesday hit a few snags over the past couple of weeks.
First the intense scrutiny on England captain and Chelsea defender John Terry over his personal life choices caused Capello to relieve Terry of the England captaincy.
Then England and Chelsea defender Ashley Cole broke his ankle in a game against Everton.
Uruguay vs Switzerland
After a harsh qualification, Uruguay finally managed to obtain a place in South Africa, and they know they must make the most of this opportunity not to be left with a bitter taste in their mouth. They've entered a death group, facing World Cup's host South Africa along with an European giant (France) and a Latin American promise yet unable to take off (Mexico). They have booked their place for the World Cup upon a draw last November home, making their victory in the first leg of the South America/CONCACAF play-off be enough to take them to the Cup.
One of the many surprises for this match will be defender's Sebastián Coates, who will take the place of Mauricio Victorino and Alvaro Fernández, both unable to leave Chile after the vicious earthquake that shook the country the last few days.
Scotland vs. Czech Republic Match Preview
As Scotland prepare for their friendly encounter with the Czech Republic at Hampden Park on Wednesday news comes that new manager Craig Levein has banned alcohol from the squad during international duty.
Scotland team quote of the day:
"I don't think anyone has any major problems not being able to have a drink. We are only here for a short period of time.”
Scotland and Birmingham midfielder James McFadden.
“Och no, it’s nae bother,…” you can almost hear the Scotland players say,… “but if we were going to be here a wee while longer we would have a problem with that.”
There it is in a nutshell. Scotland’s hopes and dreams of international glory encapsulated innocently enough in an unconsciously amusing statement of support for the new manager.
Amusing though it may appear the sad reality is that Scotland’s history of international competition has been riddled with incidents of excessive drink, poor behavior and even an allegation of drug use.
Italy vs Cameroon –International Friendly Match Preview
The Azzurri possess a strong record against African teams. But who knows if Cameroon won’t emulate the achievement that Egypt managed to have during the 2009 Confederations Cup tournament when they triumphed over Italy?
Injury-hit Italy squad has different faces
Marcelo Lippi will be testing his side in an interesting friendly fixture against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. The World Cup winning coach affirmed some time ago how dangerous African teams could be during South Africa.
In what will be the first of Italy’s three international friendly encounters ahead of the tournament in June, Marcelo Lippi will have the chance to test and to ready the Azzurri against an African nation, Cameroon.
Germany vs Argentina Match Preview
Only 101 days away from the World Cup, this friendly match will be of utmost importance for both teams, as it could be a preview of what might happen in South Africa.
Germany will be lacking many important players, but nonetheless they find themselves as the favorite on this giant's clash.
After a disastrous qualification, Maradona and his players are eager to show they are ready to reach glory once again. During the last few months Argentina has played a series of friendly matches in which Maradona tested many local players. But the team's performance has left a bitter aftertaste on Diego's lips. As a result, only three local players were called for this match against Germany; Juan Sebastian Veron and Clemente Rodriguez (Both from Estudiantes La Plata) and Nicolas Otamendi (Velez).
It is strange not to see Martin Palermo within the called players, as he has provided team's coach with at least a goal at every match. But with 36 years, it's understandable Maradona is looking for a fresher alternative to enhance Argentina's offensive.
Watch Italy, Argentina & Germany Live on GolTV
All-Soccer Network Builds the Buzz to 2010 World Cup with Live Coverage of Italy, Germany, Argentina and Cameroon Exclusively on GolTV
MIAMI – March 1, 2010 - GolTV, the nation’s only bilingual channel delivering the most sought-after international soccer, will telecast exclusive live coverage of two FIFA international matches on March 3. First, Germany will go head-to-head against Argentina at 2:45 p.m. ET, and then the reigning FIFA World Cup champions Italy will take on Cameroon at 4:45 p.m. ET. All four national teams have qualified along with 28 other teams to compete in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, which begins on June 11.
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