Archives for category: Stars

El Matador!

January 12, 2011 //

Now this is the type of player I really like. “El Matador”, namely Edinson Cavani. Cavani finished 4th in the last World Cup with Uruguay where his role was less important than that of Forlan and Suarez since he was mostly used as a winger. However, it was an excellent experience for a player his age since Cavani is only 23 years old. After playing 2 seasons for Palermo, Cavani joined Naples this year where he plays center forward. El Matador has already scored 16 goals with 20% of them in overtime! Cavani has a great sense of placement in the penalty area and is an example for the rest of the team in terms of his fighting and team spirit on the pitch. With Forlan and Suarez, Uruguay promises to have a great offensive side in the next Copa America! I’ll be closely following Cavani’s career. He should stay at Naples where he is becoming a living idol.

See here the incredible 3rd goal of El Matador against Juventus last week-end. Cavani seems to head the ball but he scores using his heel in a scorpion like fashion!

Maracanazos like to pick their favorites.

Tags Cavani

Categories Stars

Without comment

December 21, 2010 //

Cavani scores an unbelievable goal in Naple’s 1-0 win against Lecce last week-end.

Maracanazos are in awe in front of such goals!

Tags Cavani, Napoli

Categories Clubs, Stars, Thumbs up

Story of a shirt…

October 26, 2010 //

This guest post is brought to you by Bruno from Les Voyages en Ballon who can also be found on this Facebook page.

Today is the story of a flamboyant looser’s shirt, namely Johan Cruijff’s one in the 1974 World Cup. Instead of Adidas’s 3 stripes, Cruijff’s shirt and short displayed only 2. Why? Adidas was the official sponsor of the Dutch team but Cruijff, who was under contract with Puma at the time, refused to be associated with the 3 striped brand and demanded to have his own customised outfit. Total craze. The rest of the Dutch team had the reglementary 3 stripes. Total football. Franz Beckenbauer, who was also wearing 3 stripes, didn’t seem to mind when he lifted the World Cup trophy under Cruijff’s nose.

Maracanazos like rebels.

Tags Adidas, Cruijff, Puma

Categories Stars, Thumbs up, World Cup

Chelsea’s year?

October 4, 2010 //

Will this be Chelsea’s year? The Stamford Bridge team has had a brilliant start in both the Premier League and in the Champions League . As often in these past years, they have beaten the Gunners with Drogba scoring his 13th goal in as many games against Arsenal! The problem though for the Blues is to keep up the pace next Spring and to win the Champions League for the first time. My take is if Essien is in good shape next April then they have a real chance this time around. Essien is key in Chelsea’s ability to move the ball forward quickly.

Maracanazos are ready to bet.

Tags Chelsea, Essien

Categories Clubs, Stars

Goodbye South Africa, Hello Brazil!

July 13, 2010 //

Spain has done it! They have become the 8th country in the history of the World Cup to proudly boast a star on their roja shirts! I am very happy for Iniesta who scored the winning goal. First of all he proves wrong all those that think that you need to have a body builded corpulence to make it in football. Then I like this player’s style. He plays forward, knows when to pass the ball and when to keep it and is one of the rare confrontational dribblers out there. In my mind he was the best player of the final. Another decisive factor in Spain’s win was Fabregas’s entry. He brought fast forward movements to the Spanish side who I felt was sometimes playing too laterally with Xavi.

I was very disappointed by the Dutch. Where have they left their flamboyant football? It is now the second time that they leave a violent mark on the World Cup, the first time being the infamous eighth final against Portugal in 2006. The quatuor which I had thought could make the difference was unable to get sufficient ammunitions from the midfield and Van Persie was transparent.

Apart from the final, here is my take on this 19th World Cup:

There were no new revolutionary or even marked evolutionary strategies.
The first round was as non-Cup like as usual.
I missed one single breathtaking game like Germany-Italy in 1970, Argentina-Peru in 1978, France-Germany in 1982, France-Brazil in 1986, England-Cameroon in 1990. The closest was probably Uruguay-Ghana for the incredible cliff-hanging suspense of that game.

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Categories FIFA, Maracanazo (the underdog), Stars, Teams, Thumbs up, World Cup

Can you win the World Cup without a great goalkeeper?

June 25, 2010 //

Let’t have a look since 1970.

1970 : Brazil. Felix was not considered a star goalkeeper.

1974 : Germany. Maier was one of the best goalies the National Mannschaft ever had.

1978 : Argentina. Fillol was un fenomeno.

1982 : Italy. Zoff. No comments needed.

1986 : Argentina. Pumpido? Didn’t leave many memories…

1990 : Germany. Illgner. Good but not outstanding.

1994 : Brazil. Taffarel. Good at stopping penalties but I wouldn’t qualify him in the A-list

1998 : France. Barthez was France’s best ever goalie.

2002 : Brazil. Was it Marcos or Dida? Asling the question already gives the answer…

2006 : Italy. Buffon. Same as for Zoff. Unbeatable.

Out of the last 10 World Cups, I would say that 50% of the winning teams had outstanding goalkeepers. Let’s look at the current lineup of teams already qualified for the eighth finals :

Uruguay : Muslera. Young but promising!

Mexico : Perez. I have my doubts…

Unites States : Howard. Not bad!

Ghana : Kingson. Don’t know enough about him.

Germany : Neuer. Could be.

England : James. Calamity is his surname…

Argentina : Romero. Not decisive.

Japan : Kawashima. Don’t know enough about him.

Slovakia : Mucha. Don’t know enough about him.

Brazil : Julio César. Excellent.

Netherlands : Stekelenburg. Don’t know enough about him.

Paraguay : Villar. Average.

The other 4 teams are not known yet so I won’t make any comments except if Spain qualify. Casillas is great even though he had a complicated season with Real Madrid.

So do you think this year’s World Cup winner will have a great goalkeeper? Do you think a team can win without one?

Maracanazos think that goalkeepers have one of the toughest positions in a team.

Enjoy one of the most memorable goalkeeper saves ever : Banks vs Pele!

Categories Stars, World Cup

Why I want Barça to beat Real tonight

April 10, 2010 //

The clasico of clasicos is in just over 1 hour from now. This clasico is even more important since both teams are tied at the first place of the Liga. Real Madrid are ahead because of a better goal difference but in case there is a tie tonight, Barça will lead because in the Spanish Liga it is the specific goal difference between the 2 teams that matters and Barça has won the first game 1-0.

So why do I want Barça to win:

They simply have a style that I prefer. Great passing, players always in movement, willingness to play towards the goal and not laterally.
Messi, Messi, Messi! The best player in the world without question. Just love his capacity to make a difference.
The patience in building a team and not spending hundreds of millions of euros to mend a patchwork like Real.
The aim of forming young players in-house and giving them their chance.
Thierry Henri plays for Barça and he is a personal favourite (hope he plays tonight).

Maracanazos like to take sides.

Tags Barça, clasico, Real madrid

Categories Clubs, Stars

Duos that have made history

March 27, 2010 //

You often see duos being discussed about in the movie industry, think Laurel & Hardy , Thelma & Louise, or Abbott & Costello. What about in football? The ones that come to mind and among my favourites are:

Kaltz and Hrübesch (Hamburg SV): Kaltz who was left defender delivered incredible centers that Hrübesch then headed straight into goal
Zoff and Scirea (Juventus): those 2 had unlimited confidence in each other in the defense zone
Cruyff and Neeskens (Ajax) : Neeskens was Cruyff’s watchdog in the midfield
Iniesta and Xavi (Barcelona): creativity and technical excellence at its best

The problem in current football is that with players changing clubs ever so often that coaches rarely have the time to cement the playing relationship that duos need to achieve to reach the quality level of the list above.

What other duos would you think about?

Maracanazos think in twos

Categories Stars

The best goal comment ever?

January 22, 2010 //

OK, I know that you have probably seen this video hundreds of times but what the heck it stills sends shivers each time I see and listen to it. When you combine the genius of Maradona and the passion of Victor Hugo Morales (who by the way is Uruguayan ), probably the best football commentator that ever was, you just get a pure moment of magic. I wish European commentators would sound more thrilled when they comment games. Do you know of any?

Update : I translated Morales’s comment in English:

“Maradona has the ball. 2 players are on him. Maradona steers the ball. The genius of world football tears off to the left. He can pass to Burruchaga, still Maradona, genius, genius, genius, ta,ta, ta, goooooooooooooooool, I want to cry Holy God, hurray football, I want to cry Holy God, hurray football, gooolaaazoooo Diegoooool, this is for crying, sorry, in a memorable run, the play of all times, cosmic keg,..from what planet are you to have left so many English trailing behind you, so that the country can be one tight fist shouting for Argentina. Argentina 2 England 0, Diegol, Diegol, Diego Armando Maradona, thank you God. For football, for Maradona, for these tears, for this Argentina 2 England 0…”

You can really feel and listen that Morales has given his best here and that he is almost breathless at the end of this memorable comment. I just love it!

Maracanazos like to listen to South American commentators.

Tags Maradona, Victor Hugo Morales

Categories Stars, Thumbs up, World Cup

Ronaldinho is back!

January 18, 2010 //

Since a couple of weeks, Milan AC fans have been witnessing the comeback of Ronaldinho. Many critics said his career was over since his golden days over at Barça and I must admit that I was partly in agreement! It looked like Ronaldinho was not taking his career too seriously and that Milan was some kind of last stretch with the odd moments of genius that this player can have.

This seems to have changed. Apart from this weekend’s hat trick against Sienna, his first in the Italian league since starting in the 2008/09 season, I think that Ronaldinho has very intelligently adapted his rhythm during matches to be in line with his physical capacities which are more limited than a few years ago. Ronaldinho now manages his moments of play as a function of his physical shape. Instead of burning too much energy, he now uses his incomparable skills at certain key times – which he can anticipate due to the experience gathered in the past 10 years or so – to deliver magical passes, dribble or now even score. Milan AC forward Borriello must be a happy guy having both world ace passing stars Ronaldinho and Beckham on his team! Ronaldinho’s way back to shape is excellent news for Milan AC who now trail arch-rival Inter by only 6 points but with one game less and with next Sunday’s game against them.

Ronaldinho’s comeback is also very good news for Brazil’s coach Dunga. With Robinho being out of shape (he was taken out by Manchester City coach Mancini this Sunday against Everton after only the 52nd min), Dunga now has a credible alternative on the left side of the auriverde midfield for the World Cup.

Maracanazos should never write-off stars.

Tags Brazil, Milan AC, Ronaldinho

Categories Stars, Thumbs up

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