My All-Time World Cup’s Greatest Eleven

Everyone agrees that good players are few – but great players are rare. A good player who takes on additional responsibility and performs admirably under pressure can become a great player. The time has come for me to pick (in my opinion), the greates eleven ever to have played the FIFA World Cup.

I have included 1 goalkeeper, 4 defenders, 4 midfielders and 2 attackers in a classic 4-4-2 formation for my dream team. I have also included 1 defender, 1 midfielder, 1 striker and 1 goalkeeper as substitutes.

Note that the years mentioned in brackets do not refer to the years that the players appeared in the World Cup, but the years in which their performances atht ehWorld Cup have deemed them worthy to be a part of the all-time greatest squad.

1. Goalkeeper: Walter Zenga (Italy, 1990)

Though Barthez and Buffon conceded the least number goals ever when their countries have won the World Cup, Walter Zenga was responsible for the most number of minutes keeping clean sheets (517 minutes – 5 clean sheets).

2. Defense: Roberto Carlos (Brazil, 2002), Paolo Maldini(Italy, 1990), Franz Beckenbauer (Germany, 1966 and 1970) and Cafu (Brazil, 1998)

Roberto Carlos and Paolo Maldini on the same team? Well, I cannot seem to keep either of the left backs away from my list. Cafu’s inspirational play during Brazil’s run to the finals in 1998 makes him an automatic choice for any squad. And of course, who can forget Beckenbauer, the father of the libero, and his goalscoring antics from midfield and defense in the 1966 and 1970 World Cups. In fact, he dislocated his shoulder during the semi-finals against Italy in 1970, but  played on with his arm in a sling, in what has been dubbed The Game of the Century.

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zenga_173394s

3. Mid-field: Zico (Brazil, 1982), Zinedine Zidane (France, 1998 and 2006), Diego Maradona (Argentina, 1986) and Johann Cruyff (Netherlands, 1974)

Zico, often called the ‘White Pele’, had an amazing tournament in 1982, when he became known as one of the world’s best dribblers and finishers ever.

Zindeine Zidane’s inspirational form led the French to their World Cup glory at home in 1998. Again in 2006, the odds seemed to be stacked against the French, but sublime form from Zizou saw them reach the finals.

Who can forget Diego Maradona’s tournament in ‘86? The Hand of God, followed by the Goal of the Century put him on the pedestal of eternal greatness.

Johan Cruyff was one of the most devastating mid-fielders ever to have graces the football field. He is widely regarded as one the best players ever.

4. Forwards: Ronaldo (Brazil, 2002), Pele (Brazil, 1970)

Found it extremely difficult to pick only teo forwards. Ronaldo’s form in front of goal in 1998 and 2002 will always put him on any goalscorer’s list. And what more can be said about pele? The Black peral joins Ronaldo in an all-Brazilian attack.

5. Substitutes: Bobby Charlton (England, 1966), Romario (Brazil, 1994), Bobby Moore (England, 1966) and Gianluigi Buffon (Italy, 2006)

Of course, I have not been able to name so many other great players, and it feels like no single list can do justice to all of them. Readers are welcome to form their own opinions and discuss them.

Why Spain Might use a Rotation Policy

Spain are one of the favorites at the World Cup since their Euro triumph.

What an opening three days of the World Cup! It has given us nothing less than the drama expected. What with the noise of the vuvuzelas, the hype around Maradona and his squad, Green’s blunder and Australia being mauled by Germany yesterday, we might forget that the most exciting teams of the tournament – Netherlands, Brazil and Spain are yet to play their first match.

So far we have seen 16 teams, and the next three days will acquaint us with the other 16 as well. I can’t  wait for Spain to take the field and show us if they are really worth all the expectations.

Why is Spain one of the favorites? Their results speak for themselves – Del Bosque have led Spain to victory in an incredible 33 of their last 34 games – and they have lost just once in his 48 games in charge. Ever since their Euro victory two years ago, Spain seem to have shed their ‘Chokers’ tag at the big tournaments, and look like a highly professional unit.

In fact, Spain have so many amazing players in their squad, that it’s hard to see which ones the manager actually names in their starting eleven.

Two years ago, Spain’s run to glory was largely attributed to the presence of Marcos Senna in mid-field, just ahead of the defense. This time, though, he is not a part of the squad, and Del Bosque might make the highly unpopular choice of playing both Alonso and Busquets deep in midfield.

This of course, alters the style of play, with Spain being forced to play a man less upfront. Xavi might have to play the link between defensive and offensive, connecting the midfield passes to Iniesta on the left, David Silva on the right, or Villa/Torres up ahead.

Vicente Del Bosque has an extremely talented squad at his disposal.

The majority of Spanish fans (and EPL fans) will want either Alonso or Busquets to be dropped to accommodate Fabregas in midfield, or Torres in attack, but I doubt Del Bosque will do that. Nor will he risk losing width by taking out Iniesta or Silva. And on the question of whether Torres should play instead of Villa, their international stats speak for themselves – Villa has scored 38 goals in 58 games, whereas Torres has scored 24 in 73.

Why would Spain adopt a player-rotation policy?

Firstly, Spain’s players have injured over the course of the season. Fabregas has played less than 80 minutes since his injury against Barcelona. Torres and Iniesta have plagued by injuries all season. Xavi was doubt a for the World Cup.

Secondly, Del Bosque has the pleasant but important headache of leaving out at least two world-class players on the bench every game. With Fabregas and Torres (and even Jesus Navas) on the bench, he runs the risk of being blamed for his team selection should Spain lose a game. It is only logical that he should field different line-ups for different games. It’ll also keep his opposition managers guessing his tactics till the last second.

Torres and Fabregas look most likely to start on the bench.

Most imporantly, Spain begin their tournament on 16th June, as the last side of the tournament. Which means, should Spain reach the finals along with France, who played on the first day of the tournament, Spain would have played an equal number games in five days lesser. It makes sense to keep players fresh by benching them at crucial stages.

Either way, Del Bosque is certainly in an enviable position by having such an amazing array of talent at his disposal. Should Spain go on to win this World Cup, their domination of the sport for the last four years will have proved themselves to be one of the top sides in history as well.

Why Capello should Consider Playing Joe Hart

For all their battle-cries, England have come up short of the expectations of their fans. When England steam-rolled through their qualification rounds, it seemed like they would cruise through the group stages and the early knockout stages at least. And though England were the better side in their opening game against USA, it was, in the end, a disappointing draw.

Joe Hart thumps the air

Now England has never started well in big tournaments, and given the nature of the draw, (read: goalkeeping error), neither the squad nor the manager can really be blamed for the defeat. What was interesting, however, was to see that Green was back to his best in the next training session, not dropping a shot, as he was put through his paces by both James and Hart.

I think a few goalkeepers have made their mark already in this tournament, both positively and negatively. England’s Green and Algeria’s Chaochi seem to have made the biggest mistakes, whereas Nigeria’s Enyeama was outstanding between the posts against Argentina (in spite of a 0-1 loss).

England have had their fair share of controversy, even in the goalkeeping department. Several players and pundits, present and former alike have come to the fore offering their opinions. Of course, given Capello’s mindset, they could well have been blowing in the wind.

Whether Capello should have given his most experienced goalkeeper, James, a place in the starting eleven is debatable. But what I would like to see more than others is for young Joe Hart to be given a shot. I’ll look into a couple of pros and cons to assess if he can fit the bill.

1. Pros:

Joe hart saves

(a) An Excellent Season: Hart, of Manchester City, was on loan to Birmingham City this season. And no doubt, he has impressed everyone with his skills. He was nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Season award, along with Rooney and Milner. And although Milner eventually won it, Hart was chosen in the Premier League Team of the Season.

(b) Strong Basics: Although this can be true of any goalkeeper who represents his country at a World Cup, Hart has proven to be exceptionally strong in the air, and also has a brilliant instinct as a short stopper. If not now, at least in the future, he seems to be a sure shot for the England No.1 jersey.

(c) International Experience: Hart has been a regular for the England u-21 squad. He was chosen by Stuart Pearce in the preliminary England Under-21 30-man squad for Euro 2007, and later made the final 23. In the team’s final friendly before the finals, Hart was selected for his first Under-21 start, and played the full 90 minutes in a 5–0 win over Slovakia. He was also first choice for the Euro 2009 finals. In spite of conceding three goals in the semis against Sweden, he turned hero after saving a penalty and scoring one, as England won 5-4.

2. Cons:

Joe Hart

(a) Senior Experience: Though he has international experience, playing at a senior World Cup is a totally different ball game. I expected Capello to play him in dead-rubber matches, and at least a couple of friendlies, but he hasn’t been given those opportunities too often to prove himself. The idea of naming him the squad was to prepare him mentally for the future with the experience gained on the biggest stage.

(b) Starting Issues: If a Birmingham City fan was told at the beginning of the season that Joe hart would be such an important player for them, and even make the World Cup squad, he would not have believed you. Hart’s mistakes early in the season, most notably against Tottenham and Aston Villa, prove that he needs to time to acclimatize with the level of competition well before turning in with some outstanding performances. Though he played a majority of the season extremely well, the first few matches will surely not have missed Capello’s notice.

Capello was found joking of using a 4-3-1 formation, and playing ALL THREE of his goalkeepers at once. And after Green vowed to fight on as a man, it is difficult to see Capello picking anyone else for the next match against Algeria. Surveys, too, showed that the majority of supporters did not blame Green for the mistake.

Hart has himself said that he will be using this tournament to learn for ‘England legend’ David James. Issues have been raised that because of his age and inexperience, Hart might not be as commanding over his defense as he needs to be. But like Alex McLeish, Birmingham’s manager, persisted with Hart after his initial hiccups, and helped him carve a niche for himself, Capello might do well to give the promising youngster an opportunity.

Valentino Rossi Severely Injured; faces Two Months Out

Nine time motorcycling and current defending champion Valentino Rossi suffered a serious injury today, during the practice session of the Italian Grand Prix.

The 31-year old was gunning for third place during qualifying, with 15 minutes remaining when he suddenly lost control of his bike and was thrown off. As soon as he realized he couldn’t get up, paramedics rushed onto the tarmac and helped him off. Initial scans revealed a broken shin, and at least two months to recover from the injury. The medical squad confirmed that his shin was indeed fractured, and had almost pierced through the skin. He was flown off to a hospital immediately. He has been diagnosed with a ‘displaced and fractured tibia’.

Rossi was severely injured in the Qualification of the Italian Grand Prix

The Yamaha rider was contemplating his title defense with a top-two finish in today’s qualifying for tomorrow’s race, but his dreams have been dealt a real blow now. The impetus, now, is surely with Lorenzo and Casey Stoner to make full use of his absence and take an insurmountable lead in the championship. Rossi had been the fast rider the day before qualifying, and is currently second in the Championship, behind Yamaha teammate J Lorenzo.

The next race is the British Grand Prix, on June 20th. Initial estimates have ruled him out of the Dutch, Spanish, US and German races as well.

The 31-yr old, sporting a new  haircut, appeared calm as he spoke of his crash. Rossi has been recently in the news for contemplating a move from MotoGP to either F1 or rally racing.

PotterMania: Muggle Quidditch

Yea, you read right.

Quit-itch!

If you, like me, are one of the readers of the massively famousHarry Potter series, then you are in for a treat. Quidditch is indeed, now a real sport.

Before you start getting excited, you should first know that there is no magic involved – the game has been (obviously) modified to suit our non-wizard disadvantages. The game was first ‘invented’ in the real world in 2005, by Xander Manshel, a student of Middlebury College, in Vermont, USA. In less than five years, the mythical sport has gained so much popularity that it boasts of an administrative association, it’s own rules, a World Cup and more than 200 colleges as  participants.

The Intercollegiate Quidditch Association was formed in 2007 to form a governing body for this sport. Before this form of the game, many people had already come up with variations of J.K.Rowling’s literary creation, with the game essentially consisting of a mixture of volleyball, handball and basketball rules. To simulate broomsticks, players used bicycles, unicycles, and sometimes even motorcycles.

Intercollege Quidditch Association

The ‘Quaffle’ was a football/volleyball, and the ‘Bludgers’ were  softer balls that the ‘Beaters’ tried to knock down the other teams players. Sometimes, even tennis racquets and balls were used as Bludgers, but due to lesser accuracy, were replaced by other balls.

However, ever since the IQA has taken over the administration of the sport, (and Xander now refers to himself as Commissioner Manshel), the rules have been tweaked so as to make the sport look more like it’s fictional origin. Players wear capes, and handle a broomstick in between their legs, which makes it more difficult to run and handle the Quaffle. Beaters can aim at the other players with large rubber balls and try to knock the Quaffle away from the Chasers. Every team has a Keeper, to man the three hoops which form the goalposts on either end of the field.

But the more excited among you Harry Potter fans must be looking for the Seeker and the Snitch in this Muggle version of the game! So here it is: the Snitch is not exactly a ball, but a neutral player (generally a cross-country runner), dressed in gold, who has a ball hanging in a sock from his pants! The Seekers on both teams try to catch this player and try to tag the ball in the sock from his pants. In most of the games, the Seeker is allowed to enter the field only at half-time. Sometimes, he is given the authority to enter the field at any time he wants. In more ambitious versions of the game, the Snitch-holder and the Seekers can run around the entire campus where the game is being held – there is no restriction to the field! The Snitch, however, is worth 50 points, unlike the 150 in the books.

Referees have the authority to call fouls, and in some cases, even remove the offending player from the field by showing him a ‘Red Wand’ (similar to a red card in football).

More recently, the sport was in news when Bronx High School of Science lost 30-50 to Lenox High School, in New York. Though the Seeker of Bronx High jumped across a fence to catch the Snitch (and eventually caught it), he had lost his broom during the jump, and hence, the match was deemed over.

Quite an interesting sport, though, personally am not very sure if it’ll catch up to the rest of the world as well!

A quidditch Team

The IQA also organizes the World Cup every year – it is an inter-collegiate event in the USA and boasts of some prestigious names like Boston University, Harvard University and Massachusetts as well!  In the 2009 Word Cup, Middlebury won the finals against Emerson, defeating them 60-10. The sport made it to the cover of Wall Street Journal and Life magazine as well. The World Cups receive a fair amount of spectators, and even some broadcasting.