Posted on 01-06-2010 under
Jabulani Diaries,
Previews,
Tatiana
Photo: Adidas Fussball’s Flickr stream
Since its inception, the Tigerblog has always aimed to be the world’s favorite source of football analysis and poetry, and starting today we begin our coverage of the 2010 World Cup. In an effort to commemorate the hyperactive build-up to South Africa 2010 as well as the awe and majesty that will radiate from pitches from Green Point to Polokwane, the Tigerblog has assembled a squadron of footy-obsessed sociopaths elite observers to wax prosaic about the biggest sporting event (sorry Winter Olympics) of 2010.
Hey guys,
So the draw’s over and sweet mercy, I’m even more excited than before! Tons to talk about: Which giant is most likely to fall? Will Onyewu be ready to play 90 mins of top-level ball against England? Who will help Messi on Argentina? Who’s a better left back for Brazil, Fabio Aurelio, Cicinho or-gasp!-the dinosaur Roberto Carlos?
One subject that seems appropriate right now is how closely we should watch the African Cup of Nations. The African teams that will be playing in the WC will have a excellent opportunity to refine their lineups, rotations, and tactics at a high level of competition. Fortunately for them (but unfortunately for their European employers and the national federations’ insurance companies), I’d expect more than a few of the big teams to man the torpedoes and go all in to win the tournament, since there really is no substitute for the competitive pressure that comes in a tournament game. No friendly Portugal can play would prepare them for the fire of WC competition that their opening game counterpart Cote D’Ivoire (let’s see pics of that Puma jersey, Pab!) will have had by going hard in the Cup of Nations. That said, who’s the Cup of Nations favorite?
I’d also like to formally announce my conspiracy theory here: I don’t like the idea of Landon Donovan playing for Everton this winter/spring. I think some Englishman nobody cares about is going to try to be the Cornwallis of his generation and take him out. There’s always a huge marquee injury that occurs right before the World Cup (see Cisse, Rooney, and Owen, to name only a few), and I just don’t like this move. If I’m pressed, I’d say that the most likely person to do the dirty job would be Lee Bowyer, that asshole. Honorable mentions go to Kevin Davies, Gareth Barry and Nigel Reo-Coker. So watch out, Landon.
While I expect a number of players to rotate on this list, I think one of the breakout players this year will be Guillermo Ochoa, the emaciated and acrobatic Mexican GK. He’s got all the right moves, and while he may not be the primary reason why Mexico go through to the second round, he’ll be the primary reason why they will win a game in the knockout round. He’ll organize the defense, distribute the ball, and use his excellent reflexes to great effect, and his reward after the tournament will be a fat contract to play for Mallorca or somebody in La Liga and the requisite following of supermodels.
Man, this Jabulani fire is hot! What are you boys thinking? Dreaming about vuvuzelas? Haunted by Argentina’s inconsistency? Or just coveting one of those sweet Greece shirts?
Yours in footballing madness,
Aaron
Posted on 07-30-2009 under
footy haikus,
spirit animalsToday’s installment of the spirit animal series: Rivaldo the meerkat.
bright eyes bushy tail
and all while the prairie shrinks
your instincts endure
Posted on 07-24-2009 under
footy haikus,
spirit animalsToday’s spirit animal: Tigerblog favorite Ronaldinho the centaur.
bottomless talent
the only word to describe?
sagittarian
Posted on 04-07-2009 under
PreviewsHere we are the day before the epic showdown at the Camp Nou in Barcelona. Pretty exciting, no? Over here at the Tigerblog we’re having fits of epileptic joy, so don’t be surprised if you see passages that lo.,fsag;lkdk jsdlkf awjfmcoiaevj fpo!!!!!!
Also American viewers, thanks to the contemptible behavior of our ESPN footy overlords you’ll need to watch the game on ESPN Deportes if you can find it. I’d recommend Latino bars and restaurants. I’ve got one in Baltimore I’m planning to go to (Carlos O’Charlies on Eastern Ave, a great joint) and I’ll sure be drinking some refreshing and delectable micheladas. But you’re not here for restaurant tips, so enough about that.
Predictions
This game will probably start a bit slowly. We’ll probably see possession bogged down in midfield and our share of back-passes as the teams feel each other out and start looking for the soft underbelly of the respective defenses. After 20 minutes, we’ll start seeing some real chances, and at the 34th minute Xavi, Messi, and Eto’o will combine on a goal to push Barca in front.
A few minutes later, Van Bommel will pick up a yellow card.
Just before half, Bayern’s left back Lahm will go forward and pick out a cross the ball will settle nicely for old hand Ze Roberto who will smash it past Victor Valdes to tie the score right before the teams enter the dressing room for halftime.
Shortly after half Barca will find another goal, this time coming from the other side and combination play from Iniesta and Henry.
Around the 60-65th, Bayern will remove Van Bommel to protect him from more bookings, and bring on Tim Borowski, and Barca will take off Rafa Marquez for Gerard Piqué.
After a half mostly filled with end-to-end play, around the 75th minute Barca will get another goal, this time afer their own left back Dani Alves gets involved going forward and working with Xavi and Messi.
At this point, Barca will remove Iniesta for Sergio Busquets
As the game reaches it’s conclusion, Bayern will earn a corner and get players forward. I predict Bayern to score the game’s final goal on a set piece, and then the match will conclude. Two end of half goals to save Bayern’s bacon heading back for the second leg, and good flowing attack from Barca. A man can dream the impossible dream, yes?
Final score of game 1: 3-2 to the boys from Barcelona.
I can’t wait for tomorrow. It should be some terrific and compelling ball. Feel free to look back over the Ultimate preview using the links below, and of course you can disagree/call me a jackass in the comments should you want to raise some hell, and I’ll see you back here for wrap-up after the game’s all over!
Posted on 04-06-2009 under
PreviewsApologies for the delay folks; sometimes life can get in the way of even something as titanic as the Barca-Bayern matchup. And I’d also like to use this space to give a big FUCK YOU to ESPN for only showing this game on ESPN Deportes. ESPN is a terrible steward for football in this country, and whoever decided to not show the Barca-Bayern game on any of the English speaking networks made a horrible error in judgement and is holding football fans in this country hostage. Seriously, fuck yourself Bristol.
Anyway, today we’re talking strategy.
How Bayern can win:
Defensively, Bayern Munich should do all they can to force Leo Messi and Theirry Henry wide into the corners and wings. Obviously other teams try this and Messi and Henry dribble and pass their way out, but Bayern might have the quality to do this successfully if they have the commitment. This will helps central defenders Lúcio and Martin Demichelis play to their strengths as zone defenders by muscling attackers out of dangerous positions in the box and winning crosses in the air.
It would be extremely interesting if Jürgen Klinsmann decide to have his wing midfielders Franck Ribéry and Bastian Schweinsteiger switch sides. Doing so would allow Ribéry to work against Éric Abidal and Rafa Marquez, who are both decidedly slower and less-skilled than the defenders on the opposite side, Dani Alves and Carles Puyol. Franck would have fewer defensive responsibilities since the threat of attack from that side of Barca’s defense isn’t as strong.
In a similar vein Klinnsman may want to flip his central midfielders so that Mark Van Bommel, Bayern’s captain—who will most likely have a defensive assignment in this tie—lines up opposite Xavi so the München man can keep a closer eye on his former teammate.
Also, if Luca Toni isn’t full strength, Bayern may want to consider lining up with a 4-5-1 formation, perhaps adding a midfielder like Tim Borowski or even central defender Daniel Van Buyten playing slightly ahead of the defense as a very conservative holding midfielder. Doing so would congest the middle of the field on the defensive end and could frustrate the Barca attack. While Lukas Podolski wouldn’t be the ideal lone striker up top, Luca Toni could very well be, if healthy. if Bayern were able to attack by throwing some midfielders forward to try to produce chances it could make up for this.
As stated previously, manager Klinsmann isn’t much of a tinkerer, so I wouldn’t expect anything drastic provided everyone is fit. But a switch of Ribéry and Schweinsteiger may be the kind of button that he could push and receive a payoff.
How Barca can win:
For Barcelona’s defending, the key will be to try to win back possession in Bayern’s half or in the midfield. If they can continue to have success at this as they have throughout the season, they should be able to keep a lot of pressure on the Bayern defenders and force an error with this type of scrutiny. If they can shift some of the responsibility of defense from the defenders to the midfielders and even attackers tracking back, Barcelona will have more opportunities to force its will on Bayern and play their own style. Also, though I counted on Rafa Marquez starting for the Catalans, Pep Guardiola may want to start Gerard Piqué, who has been in sensational for the Spanish national team in their recent contests.
In the midfield, Barca will want to ensure that it controls possession and be sure to neutralize Bayern’s ageless Ze Roberto and the winger Schweinsteiger. Franck Ribéry will have his success against Barca, but they should be willing to except strong play from Ribéry provided they aren’t letting Bayern’s peripheral midfielders have too much influence. In that vein Barca make want to have central midfielder Yaya Touré challenge Mark Van Bommel on the offensive end, as MVB will have his hands full with Xavi and Ze Roberto may not have the defensive chops to take on the stronger Yaya.
In the attack Barca will want to try to give Eto’o, Henry, and Messi the ball on timing runs so they can take advantage of Bayern’s center backs, who can be shaky when the ball is played into space. If they start getting service behind the Bayern defensive line, they can get great chances on the run. If Barcelona can find a way to beat the offside trap and receive the ball behind open space, it could be goals galore for the Catalans.
Don’t worry folks, tomorrow the Tigerblog will be bringing the noise with the preview, coming to you live from Avon, NC.
