by Sean O'Conor - Most popular for 2011
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I'm in Denmark watching Europe's "stars of today, superstars of tomorrow" as UEFA bills their
biennial Under-21 Championship.Two years ago I saw Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira and friends announce
themselves before going on to star for Germany at the World Cup. As UEFA keeps reminding us, this
tournament has previously showcased the likes of Eric Cantona, Xavi and Zinedine Zidane.
Machinations at the top of soccer politics revolve around Qatar 2022 -We should all pay more
attention to the name of Mohamed Bin Hammam, as he could end up running our sport before long.The
global condemnation of FIFA's handling of December's World Cup vote has increased the likelihood of
a challenge to the tumultuous 12-year reign of Sepp Blatter, and the knives are already being
sharpened.
I just heard from a contact that Chuck Blazer has been given the heave-ho by CONCACAF...more to
follow...Jeez I can't keep up with this FIFA house-fire...
Having just digested the shock news that Chuck Blazer had been stripped of CONCACAF's General
Secretary role, I logged on the organization's website expecting to read nothing about the
shenanigans in Switzerland, and look what it says...."UNAUTHORIZED ACTION TAKEN VERSUS CONCACAF
GENERAL SECRETARY; BLAZER CONTINUES AS CONCACAF GENERAL SECRETARYToday an unauthorized declaration
was made by Lisle
In case you missed these nuggets from the FIFA scandal...*This was literally one of the kickbacks
at the heart of the current firestorm at FIFA, delivered by Mohammed Bin-Hammam to Caribbean
Football Union members, and sealed with a kiss from a nice Mr. Warner - allegedly!Four bundles of
$100 bills totaling $40,000 neatly packed in a nice brown envelope.
An English take on the American dilemmaBob Bradley might be fired tomorrow and if he is I cannot
say I would be wholly surprised following that embarrassing surrender in the Rose Bowl. US Soccer
has lofty ambitions, which is noble, but Rome was not built in a day.With no Confederations Cup to
plan for, the World Cup is the next major international competition on the horizon in 2014, so
there is
I never thought I would be saying it, but I feel a bit sorry for Mohamed Bin Hammam.Banned for life
from football and with all his friends now deserting him. A few months ago it had all looked so
rosy as he dreamed of handing the 2022 World Cup over to the winning captain in his native Doha. as
FIFA President.
Q. Which English Championship team's fans were chanting 'USA, USA' yesterday...? A. Cardiff City's,
in tribute to West Ham's former England goalkeeper Robert Green, whose side lost 0-1 to the
Bluebirds at Upton Park in their first match under Sam Allardyce. As an England fan who watched
Green's butter fingers from behind the goal in Rustenburg, even I found that funny, although on
that chilly
Serie A started 2011 with an audacious gem from Slovenian starlet Josep Illicic (who wasn't in
South Africa) for Palermo yesteday:There was a cracking clash in Genoa, while Milan and Udinese
played a crazy eight-goal game, but Italian talk centred on Napoli's 3-0 demolition of Juve, with
Uruguayan Edinson Cavani netting a hat-trick, as a commentator gives up on objectivity:La Liga's
back too,
* Is the New York Cosmos' appointment of Eric Cantona anything more than a PR stunt? No, as Eric
has no passion for administration, but PR is important at this stage and the wow factor is grabbing
attention before the real battles of raising the money begin in earnest...It's often forgotten it
was Sheffield Wednesday who brought Eric to England before stupidly passing on him.
*"Somebody's f**ked up big" were Andy Gray's famous last words, referring to the appointment of the
subsequently impressive Sian Massey to run the line at Wolves v Liverpool on Saturday. Now that
somebody who has messed up is him, as the face of Sky Sports is out of work after the station fired
their figurehead in a rare moment of sanity.
Japan are the kings of the East after beating Australia in the Asian Cup Final in Doha, Qatar.The
Socceroos missed a number of chances but should do better next time, when they host the Cup in
2015. The final was watched by 37,000, but earlier 'official' crowds as low as 2,000 did nothing to
dispel jibes about FIFA's 114th-ranked nation hosting the World Cup.
Jonathan Spector has told NSC he is broadly supportive of West Ham's move from the Boleyn Ground to
London's Olympic Stadium, which was all but confirmed on Friday.The US international's team pipped
Tottenham Hotspur to be named preferred bidder by the 2012 Olympics Park Legacy Company and an
expected rubber stamp from the UK government will mean the Hammers move to a re-configured
60,000-seater
*Oh Deuce! With the score at 0-0, our man wins a PK in injury-time in the West London derby and
runs up to take it...*Wayne Rooney has a flashback with a wonder strike in the Manc derby: *Samuel
Eto'o finds the woodwork as Juve win the Derby of Italy*While the Uruguayan goal-machine Edinson
Cavani nets a Neapolitan brace to stay Serie A's top-gunner*Barça's La Liga lead is cut to five
after
Cher Monsieur Platini,I believe your UEFA organisation has out-done FIFA in fleecing the real fans
of the Beautiful Game.The cheapest ticket for this year's Champions League final will cost $286,
more than twice what it cost to watch Inter play Bayern in last year's showpiece."We don't think
the Champions League final is overpriced," UEFA spokesman Giorgio Marchetti announced to
incredulous
Jonathan Spector has said Premier League survival must remain West Ham's priority as they entertain
Burnley at Upton Park tonight for a place in the last eight of the F.A. Cup."Obviously the league
is more important for us, " he told NSC. "Our focus is certainly on the league but it is a nice
distraction when we have something else to play for.
F.A. Cup 5th Round - West Ham 5:1 Burnley (HT: 1-0)Hitzlsperger 23' - Rodriguez 71' Cole 48'Cole
50'Reid 58'Sears 92'Jonathan Spector played the last 17 minutes as West Ham cruised into the last
eight of the F.A. Cup by thrashing Burnley at Upton Park tonight. Spec provided the assist for the
Hammers' fifth, fired home by Freddy Sears in injury time.
UEFA Champions League, Round of 16, Second LegsTransfer rumours of 'Fabregas to Barça' will be
relit this evening in Catalonia as Arsenal take a slender advantage to the Camp Nou, while Shakhtar
Donetsk fly Eastern Europe's flag with a narrow lead over Roma.Italian clubs are up against it, all
trailing from their home legs: A defeat for the giallorossi in Ukraine coupled with Milan sinking
in
*I relished Liverpool's 3-1 win over Man U as an rip-roaring wormhole back to the '80s English
football I grew up on. But what was the point of Alex Ferguson calling a press ban on United before
the game, as if he was expecting defeat - it was no loss to the fans anyway.Speaking to the
protagonists, preferably exclusively, is the whole point of a hack going to a game, but player
quotes remain
With nature wreaking havoc in Japan (and not forgetting Libya and other man-made trouble spots),
it's a good day to remind ourselves that despite what Bill Shankly/Henry Russell Sanders joked,
football is not a matter of life and death. Our thoughts and prayers go out...*Tottenham's historic
advance was deemed well-earned in England, but Italy's best-selling daily instead screamed "The
Best Team
"Many of them voiced the same message I heard in that Paris hotel lobby: 'We don't really like the
status quo, but nominating you is impossible.' Nobody had the courage to do it. The prevailing mood
was fear."Grant Wahl will not become FIFA President in 2011.The midnight deadline passed last night
and it seems certain none of FIFA's 208 member associations have backed Grant's clean-hands
campaign
We ought to give a pat on the back to Frankie Simek, who starred in Carlisle United's Johnstone's
Paint Trophy win against Brentford on Sunday and became the first American Wembley cup final winner
since Jemal Johnson in 2008, or the first at the new Wembley with an American accent let's
say.Frank has always been an impressive performer in my eyes, and could easily have worked at a
higher level.
Robbie Findley made his long-awaited debut for Nottingham Forest as a sub in their 3-2 win at home
to Leicester City this afternoon.As 'USA, USA' chants echoed around the City Ground, reviving
memories of John Harkes' and Ben Olsen's spells in Robin Hood's old haunt, the former Real Salt
Lake star entered the fray with ten minutes left on the clock with the game poised at 2-2.
Jonathan Spector has told NSC he is not fazed by fear of relegation as West Ham enter the final
stretch of their 2010/11 EPL campaign, and wishes Avram Grant would pick him more in midfield.The
Hammers sit second to last with five games to play, but are only two points inside the drop zone.
However, they face an awesome test on the road today at Chelsea, whose six wins out of seven have
rekindled
Jonathan Spector has told NSC he is considering his options and cannot be sure he will still be at
West Ham next season.After five years in the claret and blue, the US international's current deal
expires in June and so far there is no extension on the table."I don't know to be perfectly
honest," Spector told NSC of his future at Upton Park.
If agents are known as 'Mr. 10%'s for what they take out of soccer, then Jack Warner is Mr.
300%.For the CONCACAF boss and FIFA Vice-President sold World Cup tickets at a 295% profit,
according to a former customer who spoke to the BBC on last night's 'Panorama' special.Norwegian
ticket broker Atle Barlaup told Jack's hunter-in-chief Andrew Jennings how he bought 820 of
Trinidad & Tobago's 2006
I used to hate the old Wembley despite its 'hallowed turf' and twin towers.The cathedral of
football? More like a shabby 1920s stadium in the middle of nowhere with appalling sightlines, rude
staff and overpriced tack and canteen fodder instead of proper merchandise and food and drink.It
also had no atmosphere, so far were the fans from the pitch, which many felt (wrongly) was the
reason England
Zurich - AFC chief Mohamed Bin-Hammam and FIFA Vice-President Jack Warner have been temporarily
suspended from all football activities, but President Sepp Blatter is in the clear."No
investigation against Blatter is warranted," announced FIFA Ethics Committee chair Petrus Damaseb
this afternoon, but a full investigation into the suspended duo will be carried out by Justice
Torres, with a final
It's business as usual as Sepp Blatter was re-elected as FIFA President with 172 votes and 17
abstentions.As the stressed-looking General Secretary Jérôme Valcke called each nation's
representative to the polling booth, I was reminded how FIFA works for the likes of Blatter - Aruba
has as much say as Brazil, Vanuatu as much clout as England, Bangladesh the same amount of votes as
Jack Warner: A Life in Crime 1966-2011We should be happy that Jack Warner is finally out of
football, but his long-overdue exit still leaves a bad taste.I was on my way back from Euro U21 in
Denmark when I heard the news. Part of me wanted to rejoice, the other thought it was FIFA playing
yet another get-out-of-jail-free card.
It's Copa America time again, with hosts Argentina kicking-off in La Plata against Bolivia at 20:45
EST.Brazil are seeking a hat-trick of Copas, having beaten La Albiceleste in the final of 2004 and
again, devsatatingly, in 2007:Argentina will be hoping that Buenos Aires' Estadio Monumental will
host a happier occasion on July 24th than last Sunday's relegation for River Plate and ensuing
The 2011 Copa America has reached the knock-out stages.Sat 16th: COLOMBIA v PERU 16:00, ARGENTINA v
URUGUAY 19:15Sun 17th: BRAZIL v PARAGUAY 16:00, CHILE v VENEZUELA 19:15I never quite know what to
make of the South American Championship. Because there are only ten CONMEBOL nations they have to
invite guests, like the USA in 1995 or 2007, so it feels odd from the start.
The US women and Brazilian men both exited big tournaments yesterday on penalties.And if you
thought missing three spot-kicks was abject enough, the seleçao fluffed four in their Copa America
clash with Paraguay (Elano, Thiago Silva, Andre Santos and Fred all failed). Not that that makes
yesterday's loss in Germany feel any better.
If the Womens World Cup whetted your appetite, make a date for the 2012 Olympic Games here in
London.As I said, the football has not sold out and once the global ticketing machine returns its
spares, there should be seats available next summer, particularly at the regional venues. There are
also packages available and more tickets will go on sale this winter in the US and elsewhere.
A dozen footballing figures which caught my eye this week...0 - The number of times Bolivia were
caught offside in this month's Copa America.3 - The number of Zinedine Zidane's sons enrolled in
Real Madrid's academy.7 - The goals netted by the 2014 World Cup's top gunner so far, Vietnam's Lê
Công Vinh.
Jonathan Spector penned a two-year deal with Championship side Birmingham City yesterday, his
fourth English team.With only three days to go before the Blues' season begins, the Illisnoisan put
pen to paper on his free transfer.The 25 year-old US international will be now be hastily leaving
his London Docklands pad after seven years playing for Charlton and then West Ham, for pastures new
in
"The islanders (the English) are the pirates of the world, a bunch of pirates...I will make their
lives hell... In 2014, I'll be able to get away with anything. The most slippery, unthinkable,
Machiavellian things - denying press credentials, barring access, changing game schedules. While
I'm at the CBF, at FIFA, they won't get past the door!
The EPL is back, though it barely went away. And after only one game, Manchester United, with Wayne
Rooney's new tonsure to the fore, look most likely to win it again, despite a defence already
succumbing to injury. I was delighted to see Ashley Young slot in with aplomb. I watched a lot of
him on and off the field when Jay DeMerit was at Watford and he is one of those quiet but brilliant
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the Caribbean...Jack Warner, the infamous former
CONCACAF boss and FIFA Vice-President, is back in the news.Still smarting from his banishment in
June after almost three decades in the corridors of football power, Warner has taken aim at Chuck
Blazer, his long-term colleague who reported him to the FIFA Ethics Committee for reasons hitherto
Jürgen Klinsmann loves his job. And that is good.I am used to England managers on the edge of a
nervous breakdown, and the last time I watched Klinsmann in a press conference, before the 2006
World Cup, he was defensive and at times brittle as German inquisitors pressed him on a clearly
ropey eleven's chances of victory.
