Curse broken: New York wins 2013 Supporter's Shield

Photo credit: MLS Soccer

 

There have been many constants in MLS: high attendance in Seattle, LA a perennial contender, spring-fall schedule. But another constant, that of New York never winning a single tournament, has now been erased. The Red Bulls won the MLS Supporter's Shield yesterday with a 5-2 decision over Chicago

I've been around MLS, or the other way around, since its inception. New York's lack of silverware was always an oddity and also a concern. How can you have a deep-pocketed, centrally-located, and soccer-rich city such as New York. Let's face it, Beckenbauer and Pele ruled the land and soccer in America for several years through Cosmos and the NASL. So why can't the city have this in MLS?

It's not for lack of trying that New York hasn't won anything until now. Their squad has included players like Branco, Roberto Donadoni, Tony Meola, Jozy Altidore, Juan Agudelo, Yuri Djorkaeff, Lothar Matthaus, Rafa Marquez, Eduardo Hurtado, Michael Bradley and Juan Pablo Angel. Some young and unproven, some in their prime, and some in their twilight of their careers, but all significant in their own right.

It took the addition of French-great Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, as well as the subtraction of Rafa Marquez to get this team through. Add in Espindola, Olave and Dax McCarty and you get a stronger and more balanced group. But the missing piece was the coaching and this year marked a new direction. Mike Petke, a man without coaching experience but deep love for the team took the helm.

Petke suffered from the now-normal inconsistencies that always plagued this New York club but broke through thanks to the incomparable play of Tim Cahill and a suddenly-stout defense. New York was more difficult to beat and gathered enough points to push for winning the league. And win they did.

Mike Petke is a different sort of coach. Young, energetic, with a bit of Guradiola to his look and style. Along with Caleb Porter or Portland, he is a new breed of MLS coach. One that knows what it's like to play in the American soccer scene, and for Petke, one that knows what it's like to play in Major League Soccer.

It's now up to a newly-minted New York Red Bulls team to continue its good fortunes and go beyond the Shield won yesterday and win the MLS Cup. With the Caricola curse lifted, this team knows no bounds and West Coast squads should be wary. It would be great to have another title in this city ahead of the second MLS New York team: New York City FC.

The Beckham Experiment Worked

Photo credit: AP

During the winter of 2007, the soccer world was shocked when it was announced that David Beckham would be joining Major League Soccer later that year. Although there had been hints of this eventually occurring near the twilight of Beckham's career, the sudden shift towards one of the up-and-coming markets in the world was nonetheless astounding. At just 31, Beckham remained in his prime to help the league get to new levels.

The English midfielder joined the LA Galaxy later in the summer, after a buzz was created around the league and the country. Even CNN had him on their front page when he announced his move. And Victoria Beckham (the Spice Girl) made a reality show about moving to America. The glam was here to stay.

On the pitch, things were different. Becks was plagued with injuries early on in his first games for the Galaxy, and would not show up at some of the games. This was besides the fact that every single MLS stadium was full for every Galaxy game, and most Galaxy games had been moved to the end of the season to maximize on the hype.

But did Beckham really change the league and the sport in the US? Yes, definitely. First, a new type of player was added to the choices for MLS teams. The Beckham rule, it was called, and it meant that teams were allowed to have one player beyond the MLS salary cap. Enter Cuautemoc Blanco for Chicago, Denilson for Dallas, Juan Pablo Angel for New York. Just like that, stars in their prime were coming to MLS.

But besides the influx in world talent, the MLS brand became international and, more importantly, Americans turned to the sport once more. And this happened at the right time because new cities started to sign up to be MLS hosts. Enter Toronto FC, the first Canadian team in MLS and a first in the world, then followed the return of the San Jose Earthquakes. Next came additions to Seattle and Philadelphia, which had pursued a franchise for a long time. Finally, the Pacific Northwest entered the picture with Portland and Vancouver, and eventually Montreal. 

With the new teams came a new type of audience. They were there to see the players but they were also there to enjoy the sport. Seattle and Portland have yet to have a non-sellout in their brief history. Player academies started popping up, encouraging young talent that eventually led to a successful Gold Cup 2007, Confederations Cup 2009, and World Cup 2010. It also led to players such as Altidore, Stuart Holden, Sacha Kljestan, Eddie Johnson to jump to European teams.

But are these developments really due to Beckham. Partially, yes. The influx of media coverage, attention, sponsors, expansion money, allowed for the erection of new stadiums in major markets such as New York, as well as classic MLS teams like Houston, Kansas City, Colorado and mid-decade expansion team Salt Lake. Suddenly, new stadiums were full and money could be diverted to further player development, expansion of the DP field, and increased marketing.

Finally, let's remember that new web pages were added to the soccer internet traffic, including this very blog, and others like the now-defunct mls-rumors.net, and increased attention to professional blogs like Ives Galarcep's soccerbyives.net, Steve Goff's Washington Post page, among others.

So, did the Beckham experiment work? Yes, but it depends on how you define it. Bigger league, bigger names, better players such as Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez, new venues, international attention, increases in player pool for the national team. And goals from Becks' signature free kick. Who doesn't like that?

So now, with word that Beckham will play his last LA Galaxy game in next month's MLS Cup final versus Houston, the league is ready to jump onto better things. Beckham is no longer necessary to fill stadiums, nor is his name a per-requisite for television coverage. The league is here to stay and with new rivalries that will keep the sport going for decades to come. So, thank you, David, for helping to grow our league and the sport in the United States.

MLS Attendance Statistics Week 28

As the MLS season begins to wind down, a few locations in the attendance arena show some real patterns compared to years past. Nowhere is this more a fact than in New York. The Red Bulls may have 3 designated players in Thierry Henry, Rafa Marquez and Tim Cahill, but big bucks and a shiny, recently-built stadium haven't translated into the filled arenas seen in Seattle, Portland, Kansas City, Philadelphia and Houston.

New York's deficit compared to last year now stands at almost 3000 seats. This is after a considerable positive jump in the past two years following the completion of RBA and the signing of Henry and Marquez. So what is it? Quality on the pitch? Hardly, in my opinion. Accessibility of venue? Nope. Style of play? Maybe. New direction for team? Perhaps. We will see after this season is complete. Maybe New York needs the other New York team to start playing.

Another sore spot for MLS these days is Toronto FC. The once-gleaming venue for full stadiums and ardent fans, has now run into its 6th year of mediocrity. The team has yet to make it into the playoffs and the fans have begun to notice. What was once 100% attendance has since become 80%. The same fate could be in hand for the Timbers if they are unable to capitalize on a dedicated fan base.

The numbers:

Team	Average	Relative	Median
DC	13833	71	14131
KC	19296	104	19422
NE	12690	63	12523
CLB	14140	69	13651
TOR	18480	80	18773
CHI	15956	80	16914
NYRB	16744	66	16464
PHI	18217	98	18412
HOU	20850	95	21423
MON	23100	114	19223
LA	22309	83	21731
CHV	13285	71	13594
DAL	13590	66	12203
SJ	13633	130	10525
COL	14975	83	14987
RSL	18897	94	19341
SEA	42327	110	38934
POR	20438	100	20438
VAN	19409	92	19394

Trial 1: Ochocinco in MLS

Photo credit: Getty Images

Chad Ochocinco is trialing with MLS side Sporting Kansas City. Yes, the same Chad "Johnson" from the Cincinnati Bengals. And yes, Sporting Kansas City is the team formerly known as the Kansas City "Wiz" and then the Kansas City "Wizards." Formerly knowns should be the motto for this turn of events. But wait, could this really be true? A bona fide NFL star trialing with a modest MLS team? Yes, see for yourself.

Why did this happen? 1.) NFL lockout, 2.) Ochocinco was an avid soccer player in his youth, 3.) friends with C. Ronaldo, among others, 4.) publicity for the league and the team.

Positives: Okay, benefit of the doubt for the outspoken footballer. He was indeed a fan of the game and a youth player during his teenage years up until the higher paychecks from American football came calling. His friendship with high-profile players like Cristiano Ronaldo are certainly positive. He also conversed with Beckham and Thierry Henry before trialing with SKC. Lastly, MLS is in the public eye for an entirely different reason. More attention equals more appreciation? Perhaps.

Negatives: As a counter for the last point, isn't the type of attention given to MLS for this a bit sad and unsatisfying? Maybe a running joke that this megastar is with a relatively unknown (to mainstream America) soccer team? Although, given his production (actual touchdowns, not fantasy yards) last year of TDs (4 total), it sounds like a mediocre/substitute striker's output for a subpar team.

The NFL lockout is the ultimate driving force for Ochocinco's genuine desire to get back to his soccer roots. That can be taken negatively or positively depending on your point of view. One last thought, though: remember that megastar that switched sports for a bit after temporary retirement? His name was Michael Jordan. It didn't work out.

New York vs San Jose: Superclubs don't always win

It was truly a tale of two matches. On the away match, the overbearing New York Red Bulls stomped all over the San Jose Earthquakes at Buck Shaw Stadium in the first leg of the quarterfinals in MLS' convoluted playoff system. The scoreline was 1-0. Many out there, including myself, thought the Red Bulls should come home with the away advantage and score a routine win or a tie to see them through. We were wrong.

Enter Bobby Convey (remember him?). His goal in the 6th opened up spaces in the defense as Rafa Marquez kept moving forward. Tim Ream and company were leaving too many spaces open after that in a push for the equalizer. Chances came and went via Agudelo, Richards, Lindpere and Angel. None got through thanks, in part, to John Busch.

With the first half behind and an ever-more-dangerous New York pushing farther up San Jose's defense, more room was left in the back line for the Red Bulls. Convey punished them for this with his second strike of the night. Immediately after, however, a smart play by the 17-year-old Agudelo set up a free header for Angel. 2-1. It's a game again.

Then came Wondolowski, the league's top scorer, with a superb header. 3-1 was the final score.

What do we take away from this result? Big spending doesn't necessarily mean success, and this is not a "Tea Party" remark, let's stick to football. Consider this: New York had 3 designated players on the pitch: Rafa Marquez, Thierry Henry and Juan Pablo Angel. Together they are worth three MLS teams, so to speak. Henry was a commodity. Angel was a proven scorer. Marquez was a brilliant move...but Henry and Marquez came in too late in the season (August). Not enough time to transition into MLS play.

San Jose went in the other direction. They signed a designated player late in the season also (Giovanni), but it wasn't their centerpiece. They were smart about spending and about having a blue-collar team that can do some damage. They snuck into the playoffs and are now semifinalists. Players like Wondolowski (27-year-old veteran of MLS), repatriated Convey (his time in Europe was cut short due to form), Corrales, and a hard working team. That's worth more in MLS right now when two or three year projects are allowed to proceed. New York went the opposite direction. New manager, pricey players, big team attitude.

But New York isn't completely flawed. This can be a team to reckon with in the coming seasons if Hans Backe is allowed to remain at the helm and if a more skillful playmaker is signed. Add to this the promising 17-year-old Agudelo, Richards, Lindpere, Tim Ream, and this adds up to a successful franchise.

So cheer up, New York. There's always next season. And to San Jose, welcome back to the big leagues.u

MLS 2010 Attendance stats week 16-22

Yes, I know it's been a long while since I last posted any graphics. As stated on my last post however, important matters needed to be settled.

Most important of all in the new analysis is the presence of Henry, Castillo and Marquez on the die-hard soccer fans in New York as well as the Mexican contingent in Chicago and the Big Apple. Their latest battle (in Chicago, sold out) came to a 0-0 draw thanks to newcomer goalkeeper Johnson. A future USA prospect? Perhaps. This country has a knack for great goalies. I leave you with an amplified view of the change in attendance from 2009. Most glaring is the jump in New York given its new stadium and marquee acquisitions. Seattle also upped its capacity and keeps selling out every week.

More to come. Stay tuned.

MLS Designated Players 2009

Is it silly season yet? In Europe, it is. Fabregas is flirting with Barcelona. Drogba is being lured out of Chelsea. Efrain Juarez is now a Celtic man. Carlos Bocanegra has moved to St. Etienne. Roy Hodgson is now the Liverpool manager and Fulham are about to pick their own. It doesn't stop there: MLS also has its share now.

Yes, no longer a pushover league after the success of the US national team and the rise of its players abroad, MLS is quickly becoming more interesting to the international audience. Not too long ago, MLS was a league akin to that of Qatar or Saudi Arabia: big name stars in the twilight of their career. We are talking about Valderrama, Stoichkov, Zenga, Matthaus, Djorkaeff, Donadoni, Hugo Sanchez, Luis Hernandez, Leonel Alvarez. Not now: Freddie Ljunberg, David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Juan Pablo Angel, Marcelo Gallardo, Nery Castillo, Blanco, Nkufo. These are all players capable of working at the highest level in the toughest leagues. Note that Beckham missed the World Cup due to injury while Henry had some minutes for the ill-fated French squad and Blanco scored on a PK for Mexico.

Consider the fact that Nery Castillo is by no means a grade B player. He had a monstrous time with Olimpiakos before an ill-advised move to big-pocketed Ukranian team Shaktar Donesk. He's 26, not a 32-year-old retiree. Also consider that both Beckham and Blanco were recalled by their respective nations given their play in MLS. I can't say the same for a team in the Middle East, not yet. Also, Henry is no pushover. His time in Barcelona was winding down given the accuracy of Pedro, the consistency of Ibrahimovic and the arrival of David Villa. Few people want to sit on the bench. Henry wouldn't be the first.

Then there are the Omar Bravo, Ronaldinho and Rafa Marquez rumors. Some probably truer than others. For Marquez, it would be change in scenery for one of the best Concacaf defenders of all time. He has ascertained that he has already won everything in Europe and is ready for something new (New York is a possibility). Omar Bravo has been released by Chivas Guadalajara and is rumored to be on his way to Kansas City. Ronaldinho is another matter entirely: he has been rumored to be going to the Galaxy ever since Becks made his way there.

Perhaps the most important signing is Thierry Henry. He is by no means done with the sport. He knew from 4 years back that he would be a Red Bull eventually... this was just the right time. His recent bad press with the "Hand of Gaul" against Ireland, limited time on the pitch with Barcelona, and the French debacle in 2010. Americans love outlaws and controversies and redemption stories. Henry should fit the bill. Added to that is the fact that he will be paired with Juan Pablo Angel, with the possibility for another DP (Marquez?) to manage the midfield. How fun does that sound?

So there you have it. Even if Landon Donovan were to leave MLS, the league would have newer and younger (Castillo) stars to continue the growth of the sport in this country. I'm looking forward to seeing them in action with their teams. Nkufo already played for Seattle (impressive, although the team hasn't been). Henry will debut next week in MLS action (this week versus Tottenham in a friendly match). Castillo is likely to do the same this week or next for Chicago.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats week 11

I will be short on this one. Please also be aware that MLS 2010 attendance graphics are likely to come less often for the next 3 months due to the World Cup and other commitments. It's fascinating material, however, so this by no way means that no more graphics will be available.

Most interesting this past week was the great attendance for the Columbus versus Galaxy match... and rightly so since they are the hottest teams in the league. Colorado also sold out a game against Seattle. Decent attendance for RSL at 80% for their last match. Tonight's match at the Red Bull Arena had poor attendance... about 11k, much more like the days of the Meadowlands. But, Henry is (hopefully) on his way, as are one or two other big stars after the World Cup. Expect attendance to rise after the tournament is over. Sometimes Americans can't get enough of a good thing.

MLS 2009 Attendance stats weeks 7-10

Apologies for the long delay. This sort of delay may go through most of the season this season due to other commitments. Do expect analysis on at least a bi-weekly level. In this post we review weeks 7-10. Much has happened since the last MLS attendance post for week 6. Philly has played again in front of a sizable crowd at Lincoln Financial Field (28,000 aproximately). Seattle keeps on selling out 35K+, albeit still beaten at home to teams like LA and San Jose. Dallas is drawing slightly larger crowds and barely outside the 4-digit realm. New England is also weak. Above we present a high-res view at changes in average attendance from 2009 to 2010. New York is a big winner, even if they haven't sold out their brand-new Red Bull Arena. Expect this place to be rocking once Thierry Henry comes to town after the World Cup.

World Cup Memories: France

Vive les bleus! That was the chant in 1986 as Michel Platini worked his magic to get past Brazil to a semifinal date with Argentina. It was also the chant when they played again, 12 years later, in St Denis outside Paris... and when they beat Brazil, again, but this time in the final. That's the story of the French national team with me. Always a favorite, always able to get past Brazil. Always controversial. They have two Euro championships (1984, 2000), two Confederations Cups (2001, 2003) and one World Cup (1998).

France is a nation with deep roots in world football. France was present at the inaugural and 1934 World Cups but did not advance far in those tournaments. They hosted the World Cup in its third and final tournament before World War II in 1938. They advanced to the quarterfinals in that tournament, losing to eventual champions Italy. In the 1950s, France saw a golden age with players like Just Fontaine (13 goals in one tournament, unmatched since then). They lost 5-2 at the semifinal in 1958 to eventual champions Brazil courtesy of a Pele hat trick. The French saw a significant decline in the 1960s and 1970s before roaring back to the scene in the 1980s.

This is where the story begins. Easily one of the most memorable games in my memory, Brazil-France in 1986 cemented the team as one of my favorites. It was Platini versus Socrates. It came down to penalties...and the French prevailed. Since then, not one team has been able to knock out Brazil from the competition except for Argentina (1990). When France didn't meet Brazil (1994, 2002), the "Samba boys" won the tournament. When they met (1986, 1998, 2006), the French ousted the Brazilians... Pattern? Maybe, because in sports, as we know, psychology plays a major role.

Two World Cups passed with a glaring absence (1990, 1994), as France failed to qualify twice in a row (once against Bulgaria in 1993 courtesy of Hristo Stoichkov). But the Gauls would return with a vengeance. They were hosting 1998, and what a tournament that was! For the first time, 32 teams were included. For the first time, Asia and Africa were dully represented. Who can forget games like Nigeria-Spain or Brazil-Chile? And as for the French team? Just say the names: Zidane, Henry, Petit, Deschamps, Laurent Blanc, Trezeguet, Dessaily, Vieira, Thuram, Fabien Bartez, Lizarazu, Djorkaeff, Dugarry. Simply an amazing squad. On that final versus Brazil, Zidane, who had not scored at all in the tournament, stepped in to initialize the scoreboard and seal the deal with a 2-0 that would later be appended by Petit's goal. Goleada!

On to 2002 and the pains of being number 1 but relying on one player--Zidane. "Zizou" was injured for the first two matches. France went on to lose their opening match (which I incidentally had called) to Senegal 0-1. Scoreless tie against Uruguay and a 2-0 loss versus Denmark doomed the squad and they bowed out after the first phase.

In 2006, the "old guard" would have its chance once more. After a slow start in a relatively weak group, France squeezed out of the group phase by defeating Togo and with help from Switzerland. The round of 16 pitted them against Spain, heavily favored by many. It was not to be for the Spaniards... 3-1 for the French in an amazing match. Next came Brazil, again, except this time there was no penalties. This time it was Zidane dancing around Ronaldinho and connecting superbly with scintilating Henry. Henry's touch on the 57th minute marked the difference. Portugal, with a young Cristiano Ronaldo, met them in the semifinal. Zidane's penalty early in the match decided the contest. And the final? Still fresh in the memory of, dare I say, American fans. Zidane's header on Materazzi's humanity eclipsed the penalty he had scored early in the match. The legend would be ejected and Trezeguet would miss the penalty that decided the game. Italy won in another installment of antifutbol.

So what's next? They are in 2010 due to FIFA oversights but are here nonetheless. Franck Ribery, for one, rose up during 2006 to become Zidane's apprentice and now sits comfortably in the midfield directing plays left and right. He's joined by Toulalan, Diarra, Diaby, Malouda. Up top are Benzema, Henry, Anelka. Anchoring the back line are Gallas, Evra, Sagna, Abidal. Against them are the hosts, South Africa, along with Uruguay and Mexico. You could pencil them in for the next round but remember that they are a streaky bunch (as 2002 showed). They are in need of a spark at the moment, yes, but they can never be counted out.

World Cup Memories: South Africa

This is the first of a 32-part series in which I reminisce about each of the teams participating in the World Cup. Some teams I have little experience with but will include a few caveats most aren't familiar with. I start with the hosts of next year's tournament: South Africa.

South Africa was marred for most of the century by its Apartheid system. What was used to segregate people induced a self-segregation and isolation of the country from world soccer. At one point, there were three different federations within the country: The all-white Football Association of South Africa (FASA), was formed in 1892, while the South African Indian Football Association (SAIFA), the South African Bantu Football Association (SABFA) and the South African Coloured Football Association (SACFA) were founded in 1903, 1933 and 1936 respectively (source: wikipedia). In 1992, they returned to the world stage once Apartheid was lifted and participated in the African Cup of Nations as well as the FIFA World Cup.

My first memory of the South African team stems from its first game in the 1998 World Cup against hosts France. France was always one of my favorite teams ever since 1986, when they ousted Brazil through penalty kicks in the quarterfinal. I was happy to see the French back in the tournament and also newcomer South Africa. By this World Cup, the team total had been raised from 24 to 32, thus opening the way for more teams from less-represented confederations (i.e. CAF, AFC, CONCACAF). Most of us were content with France's 3-0 win over lowly, entry-level South Africa. I remember this game because I was watching it from my grandmother's store whilst on my way to get some paperwork done (visas and such).

On that day it was Dugarry that started the game for France. Little did we know that soon Trezeguet and Henry would become France's dynamic duo. South Africa shared that group with Saudi Arabia (2-2 tie) and Denmark (1-1 tie).

On to 2002. South Africa was now a soccer nation with aspirations to host a World Cup and one tournament under its belt. They were pitted into a "group of death" of sorts alongside Paraguay and Slovenia. Spain was the headliner and didn't disappoint. This tournament actually came down to who had scored more goals. South Africa tied Paraguay 2-2 and beat Slovenia 1-0. They lost to Spain 3-2... just enough to give Paraguay a berth having gone 0 goal differential but with a margin of 6 goals for and 6 against. South Africa had 5-5. I caught only highlights of that game, but I remember Jose Luis Chilavert (the emblematic Paraguay goalkeeper) saying that he was thanking his "Spanish brothers" for handing them the result.

South Africa has had few stars in recent years, except for Benni McCarthy. The Blackburn Rovers man is 32 and has scored on 32 out of 77 competitive games for his country. Added to him are Portsmouth's Makoena (captain of South Africa) and Everton's Pienaar. The majority of the current squad play at home in the local league...something that might hamper their chances come next summer. Still, they face Mexico, Uruguay and France. They are at home and given their play in the Confederations Cup, they can hold their ground against any team.

FC Barcelona: Enhancing a superclub

Move over, Real Madrid. Barcelona might just outdo you during the January transfer window. Never mind that the team already has Messi, Henry, Xavi, Iniesta, Dani Alves, Ibrahimovic, Pique, Busquets, Keita, Puyol, and counting. The latest from the BBC pipeline and other media outlets have confirmed that Barca is looking for further reinforcements emanating from the EPL... None other than Robinho (Manchester City) and Fabregas (Arsenal).

The addition of Fabregas would almost make the team have the majority of its midfield and defense be comprised of the Spanish national team. And who will they unload? Yaya Toure comes to mind. Bojan Kirkic, Jonathan dos Santos and even Thierry Henry are in danger (I see Henry staying until the summer window and then, possibly, to MLS).

Will this shift the balance of power further towards the Catalan side? Yes, in Spain. Yes, in Europe. Manchester United are depleted after losing Ronaldo and also due to injury. Chelsea can cause some headaches but the quality and style of Barca is still superior. Arsenal will be left without a creative midfielder and Manchester City will have deep pockets but no talent left. So, if the two transfers above actually do happen, then Barcelona will rival some of the best teams in history. A repeat of the Champions League title might be on the horizon.. and the local cup and league too. It's just too much power.

World Cup teams set, scheming begins

Vive la France. Vive les Bleus. France are in after Henry "handed" them a victory thanks to his pass for William Gallas. It's tough to argue that significant dividends will come from the French's inclusion in next year's tournament. Add Anelka, Benzema, Henry and Malouda and you start to see the economic impact. This also sets up another possibility for Brazil to not win the tournament. For the past six World Cups, only France and Argentina have been able to knock off the "verdeamarela." France-Brazil in quarterfinals of Mexico '86 and Argentina-Brazil in the round of 16 in Italia '90 are some of my best memories.

Another economic success is Portugal's entry into the tournament. Cristiano Ronaldo will be in the World Cup after all. After a poor showing at home versus Bosnia in a match that the Bosnians deserved to win (3 hits on the post), the Balkan team collapsed at home due to player suspensions and saw their chances of advancing come to an end on a sad night in Zenica. Portugal won without CR9 by the minimal score away from home.

Welcome back, Greece, Slovenia, Uruguay, Algeria. Greece, the unlikely Euro chanps in 2004, enter their second World Cup since their debut in 1994. This a stronger Greek team full of defensive potential. They are the new Italy of defensive football. Out is Shevchenko's Ukraine, which failed to win in Donetsk. Slovenia also managed to knock off another former Soviet republic--Russia. Guus Hiddink failed to qualify a young and promising Russian team that had raised a few eyebrows during the last three years.

Uruguay are back thanks to a playoff versus relatively weak Costa Rica. The team is loaded with attacking talent in Bueno and Forlan. Then there is Algeria, appearing in its first World Cup since 1986. They are a country rich in soccer history (Zidane's family is from Algeria). They battled against Egypt on neutral soil in Sudan after tying in every statistic in their respective African group. The match was a gut-wrenching 90+ minutes full of joy and sorrow. I caught the Egyptian-based signal and it was sad to hear the tones of voice emanating from the announcers even though I couldn't understand a word they said.

The next phase is Friday, December 4th in Cape Town (ESPN2 at noon), where the draw will take place that will decide the groups for the initial stage in next summer's tournament. Who will be in the "group of death"? Who will have an easy "group of life"? What group will the USA land in? It will be a fun couple of hours .

Henry gives France a hand

La main de Dieu. La mano de Dios. The hand of God. Not Maradona. Thierry Henry. Easily one of my favorite players, but even they can fall from grace. And so he did. Kind of. At least in Ireland and most places that don't fancy the French and/or their national team. He handled it, no doubt. He probably thought he would get called on it, yes. In the end it wasn't really his fault. It wasn't the referees'. It was the game.

For some time now, maybe 40 years, there have been calls for video playback to be included in the officiating of matches. FIFA was slow to act and simply never did it. It would be useful for handballs, dives, goal-line decisions and other important calls that might change the result of a game. True, it might hamper the flow of the game. True, it might lengthen the game. But how long are we going to watch travesties such as today's to continue when we have the technology to circumvent this problem?

I propose this: With NFL rules as a start, why not allow two "challenges" to each team that can be reviewed by the officiating crew? This way it will only be a limited amount of calls, adding potentially another 4 minutes to each game.

But now it's just the result that matters. France are back in the World Cup, and with it the millions of dollars in sponsorship deals and media contract. Out is Ireland. A country proud of its sport, whose warriors on the field were handed an unfair result. But that's football.

Barcelona: A lesson in being number 1

Barcelona 6 - Real Madrid 2. No, it's not a typo. And yes, this line has echoed throughout Planet Football for the past 18 hours or so. And why not? Six goals from the best collection of players available. Yes, Chelsea prevented Barca from opening play and took down their offensive qualities. But the game against Real Madrid was different. The "merengues" needed a win to cut their points difference from Barcelona from 4 to 1. It was not to be.

Messi showed his quality once again and why Maradona refers to him as the only player to come close to his abilities during his prime in the 1980s. Henry showed why he's one of the world's most perfect strikers. There are no balls and no plays too difficult for him to turn into goals. If in doubt, just look at the 4th goal of the game. 10 yards or so away from the area, touches it slightly against an ill-advised advancement from Casillas and somehow his touch enters the goal.

And what about Real? Clearly not the team they were hoping to be. Robben, Sergio Ramos and Raul were insistent but their chances were outnumber by a factor of three by the "azulgrana." Robinho is sorely missed, as is (insert fake cough here) Beckham. A move for Cristiano Ronaldo next season? Either that or a move for a top playmaker and a couple of extra strikers would help as well.

Cheers, Barcelona. Stamford Bridge will be a harsh task. No Puyol and no Marquez will make things interesting. Barcelona is a better attacking team but Chelsea has order in the back line and great holding midfielders. Still, Manchester United versus Barcelona in Rome would be the ultimate clash of the titans.

Justice: La furia Espanola

Call it premonition. Call it due date. Call it glory. Call it Iberian. When in mid-May I was asked whom I thought would be the likely winner for Euro 2008 I innocently answered Spain or Portugal. I was going for my Iberian roots and had a fool's hope for those teams, especially Spain. I was hoping it wouldn't be France or Italy or Germany.
When it came time to decide I went with Spain because they have an amazing team from the backline to the forwards. Casillas is a top notch goalkeeper and surely has surpassed Buffon to be the reigning number 1. Puyol has the mastery at the back with years of experience and a knack for frustrating forwards. Capdevila and Sergio Ramos always clean up their act by moving forward and stealing the scene from the attacking line while Marchena is quite but effective. Marcos Senna stole the scene more than once in the tournament and silenced critics and fans alike that questioned his allegiance and place in the team for being Brazilian-born. Silva did a nice job cleaning up the messes in the midfield and put together a good number of tikitaka plays. Xavi is a master of the midfield and proved it by snatching a key goal against Russia while Iniesta proved why he's in one of football's most prodigious teams (FCB). Fernando Torres pulled a Zinedine Zidane (not the headbut) and scored in the final when he was most needed (ZIdane scored twice in the 98 final after not scoring once in any game prior to that). David Villa made soccer look pretty and proved why when I played the simulated final on Wii all the scores came from him. Alas, he got injured and had to miss the final. Xavi (Shabby for the spanish-impaired) Alonso came in when necessary as did Guiza, both acting admirably and timely.
Loew's Germany is a very strong, very aggressive, very dominant and physical side that rekindled the Germany of old with the play of old with Ballack and Shweinsteiger. After having competed in 5 finals and won 3 most were siding with history to crown them champs. Klose and Podolski (both Polish, I might add) were the only other bright stars and only at certain points in different games. The rest of the bunch had good games but they did not light it up on the pitch, save for Lahm against Turkey. Feel free to disagree with me here. I was a German fan for a very long time and still cheer for them against most opponents. The Spaniards saw past the history and the 12th man and looked at the flesh and bone of the German players on the pitch at Wien. That is why Spain won. They convinced themselves that they could.
Sore losers? France is an aging side and Ribery and Co. need to regroup if they want to make it to South Africa. This should be the end of the line for Vieira, Anelka, Thuram, Makalele, among others. Henry still has a couple more years in him so don't count him out yet.
Italy was dreadful except against France. Their style of play tends to be boring to me and many other critics out there.
Holland payed the price for peaking too early and Russia dismantled Van Basten's program. Practice makes perfect and this side can handle most teams out there.
Portugal was a letdown. It's defense needs a lot of help because Deco, Cristiano Ronaldo and their attacking crew can't win a game if the other team can breeze through their defense.
Turkey showed amazing courage and had me cheering and chanting for them in every game. Keep up the good work. Same goes to Russia. Maybe the killer instinct of the Soviet predecessors can be resurrected and we can stop attributing USSR's success to players from the Ukraine and other soviet states.
Speaking of... Ukraine/Poland is next in 2012. The mini world cup (minus Brazil and Argentina) awaits its next chapter. As I say to people out there... when it comes time for Euro, all bets are off. That's why only two teams have won it more than once (Germany and France) and why teams like Greece and Denmark can claim the crown at times. Now it's world cup qualifying time. Let the games begin!