(This will come out in the January 6 edition of Business Mirror and my first article and blog post for 2009.
http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4127:allez-or-sing-the-blues&catid=31:sports&Itemid=65)
http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4127:allez-or-sing-the-blues&catid=31:sports&Itemid=65)
Allez! Or sing the blues.
by rick olivares
by rick olivares
Do you still see Zinedine Zidane heading in Emmanuel Petit's corner kick to beat Brazilian keeper Claudio Tarrafel for a 1-0 lead at the Stade De France in the FIFA World Cup Finals of 1998?
Do you still see David Trezeguet scoring the golden goal off Francesco Toldo at the Feyenoord Stadium in Rotterdam to beat Italy 2-1?
Or do you see Les Bleus' freefall after Zizou's headbutt of Marco Materazzi that gave Italy its fourth World Cup?
The French National Football Team has fallen out of FIFA's top ten rankings. They're on the outside looking in at number eleven. They struggled in Euro 2008 and are once more stumbling in the qualifiers for the World Cup Finals in 2010 at South Africa. They just might find themselves farther down the ladder.
The Gallic rooster, the symbol of their football team, should begin crowing for the Fédération Française de Football (FFF) to wake up.
If you have followed Les Bleus you will know that they aren't a bit like Brazil, Italy, or Germany who can just trot out a team and they'd be in the thick of the fight in almost every tournament whether continental or international. They field a talented team that makes a run for a period of eight years before they're retired from international duty.
While France runs on a diesel-like engine and don't score too many goals, they've been blessed with some talented midfielders who have led them to victory. Michel Platini, Bernard Genghini, and Alain Giresse helped Les Bleus to the Euro '84 title and the Olympic Gold Medal in Los Angeles a few months after.
In the late 1990's it was the turn of Zidane, Patrick Viera, Didier Deschamps, and Christophe Dugarry to lead the squad to a World Cup triumph in '98 and Euro 2000. Just when they seemed primed for greatness, they fell of the radar by playing a lackluster 2002 World Cup where they failed to get out of the first round much less score a single goal!
That team had a last gasp in Germany in 2006 while featuring their future stud in Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich) who was then playing for Marseille. Since then, they've lapsed into what is turning out to be a dangerous pattern of post-World Cup Finals play by coming out uninspired.
In Euro 2008, utilizing a 4-4-2 formation, Les Bleus became ineffective when midfielders Claude Makelele (Paris St. Germain) and Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon) could hardly mount any semblance of an attack. With Viera getting older, the team stalled. If team manager Raymond Domenech understood his squad at all, he would have used either Ribery or Samir Nasri (Arsenal) in the manner that Rafael Benitez has made Steven Gerrard an even more dangerous player for Liverpool by playing behind Fernando Torres in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
In qualifying play for South Africa, France is in fourth in a six-country group. In those four matches, they've scored five goals and surrendered six. Only the top two will advance and if they harbor any dreams of advancing, they must win both matches against second place Lithuania in a home and away series beginning March.
It is a young team that Domenech has but he must cut through his personal politics and bring his squad together. He has at his disposal some of the world's best goal scorers in Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka Chelsea), and Karim Benzema (Lyon), the heir to Zidane. And he has a lot of talent – world class at that – to utilize. As it is, he’s gone on to pick feuds with players like Trezeguet and is hanging on to his job by a thin lifeline.
Henry has found his form in Barcelona where the Catalan club looks to unseat back-to-back titlists Real Madrid this year with a sound attack formulated by Pep Guardiola.
He has superb attacking midfielders in Ribery, Nasri, and Sidney Govou from the seven-time (going on their eighth) French Ligue 1 champions Lyon. He also has the up-and-coming Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid) who can play defense and lead the counter attack. AC Milan's Mathieu Flamini has a good sense of tempo with a mind for creating for teammates. And there's Hatem Ben Arfa (Lyon) whose speed from the left wing will soon see him snapped up by the bigger clubs and Bordeaux’s Yoann Gourcuff whose dramatic goal—his first international play – leveled the score at 2-2 in a World Cup qualifying match versus Group 7 leader Romania last October 11, 2008. The draw earned a stay of execution for Domenech who has been pilloried by the French media for his team’s poor play.
On defense, Marseille's Steve Mandana (who will be backed up by Atletico Madrid’s Gregory Coupet) is the starting keeper and even with only a few caps to his resume, he should get better. But to shore up their inconsistent defense (that largely depends on which side of the bed William Gallas get up from), they'll need to make a decision... start the former Arsenal captain or not. If Gallas remains uninspired, Domenech should start Bayern Munich’s Willy Sagnol, AS Roma's Philippe Mexes, Arsenal's Gael Clichy, and Chelsea's Florent Malouda.
Not all the blame, however, can be laid at Domenech's feet. The team is wanting in leadership; a void that has not been filled since the retirement of Zizou. And the French squad is clearly in transition as the old guard -- Zidane, defender Lillian Thuram, keeper Fabian Barthez, and midfielders Roberto Pires and Youri Djorkaeff -- have all hung up their national boots.
The onus now is on Henry or even Ribery to pick this team up. Who else when the rest of the squad is quite young?
France has never been a defensive-oriented team in the way the Italians or the Greeks are and if the team strikes early, it adds on to their confidence. Domenech would do well to stay away from his cherished 4-4-2 and get his team on the attack.
Because at this point when you're playing catch up for the last few buses (or airplanes to be more precise) to South Africa, you need to score some goals.
Note: Rick roots for the French National Football Team and says he became an uber fan with Zidane (who was still with Juventus then) leading them to victory in '98. He has French kits with Zidane (as with Real Madrid) and Jeremy Toulalan. He'd love to complete a collection of Patrick Viera, Thierry Henry, Karim Benzema, Youri Djorkaeff, and Franck Ribery. It is of coincidence that the French wear blue which is his favorite color next to brown. He is real upset the French Football Federation will sign up with Nike in a few years time. He feels that France and adidas are synonymous. If you want him to be eternally grateful to you (and subservient), get on his good side by helping him get French football kits.
If you're asking if he likes any other teams -- then you should know he also cheers for the Netherlands (Ruud Van Nistelrooy), Spain (Ces Fabregas), Argentina (Gabrielle Batistuta & Juan Roman Riquelme), and Brasil (Pele, Socrates, Roberto Carlos, and Ronaldinho). He had a chance to purchase a retro Franz Beckenbauer Germany kit but it was going to set him back by $110. He instead bought a Julius Erving Philadelphia 76ers jersey for $125. Go figure.
Do you still see David Trezeguet scoring the golden goal off Francesco Toldo at the Feyenoord Stadium in Rotterdam to beat Italy 2-1?
Or do you see Les Bleus' freefall after Zizou's headbutt of Marco Materazzi that gave Italy its fourth World Cup?
The French National Football Team has fallen out of FIFA's top ten rankings. They're on the outside looking in at number eleven. They struggled in Euro 2008 and are once more stumbling in the qualifiers for the World Cup Finals in 2010 at South Africa. They just might find themselves farther down the ladder.
The Gallic rooster, the symbol of their football team, should begin crowing for the Fédération Française de Football (FFF) to wake up.
If you have followed Les Bleus you will know that they aren't a bit like Brazil, Italy, or Germany who can just trot out a team and they'd be in the thick of the fight in almost every tournament whether continental or international. They field a talented team that makes a run for a period of eight years before they're retired from international duty.
While France runs on a diesel-like engine and don't score too many goals, they've been blessed with some talented midfielders who have led them to victory. Michel Platini, Bernard Genghini, and Alain Giresse helped Les Bleus to the Euro '84 title and the Olympic Gold Medal in Los Angeles a few months after.
In the late 1990's it was the turn of Zidane, Patrick Viera, Didier Deschamps, and Christophe Dugarry to lead the squad to a World Cup triumph in '98 and Euro 2000. Just when they seemed primed for greatness, they fell of the radar by playing a lackluster 2002 World Cup where they failed to get out of the first round much less score a single goal!
That team had a last gasp in Germany in 2006 while featuring their future stud in Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich) who was then playing for Marseille. Since then, they've lapsed into what is turning out to be a dangerous pattern of post-World Cup Finals play by coming out uninspired.
In Euro 2008, utilizing a 4-4-2 formation, Les Bleus became ineffective when midfielders Claude Makelele (Paris St. Germain) and Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon) could hardly mount any semblance of an attack. With Viera getting older, the team stalled. If team manager Raymond Domenech understood his squad at all, he would have used either Ribery or Samir Nasri (Arsenal) in the manner that Rafael Benitez has made Steven Gerrard an even more dangerous player for Liverpool by playing behind Fernando Torres in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
In qualifying play for South Africa, France is in fourth in a six-country group. In those four matches, they've scored five goals and surrendered six. Only the top two will advance and if they harbor any dreams of advancing, they must win both matches against second place Lithuania in a home and away series beginning March.
It is a young team that Domenech has but he must cut through his personal politics and bring his squad together. He has at his disposal some of the world's best goal scorers in Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka Chelsea), and Karim Benzema (Lyon), the heir to Zidane. And he has a lot of talent – world class at that – to utilize. As it is, he’s gone on to pick feuds with players like Trezeguet and is hanging on to his job by a thin lifeline.
Henry has found his form in Barcelona where the Catalan club looks to unseat back-to-back titlists Real Madrid this year with a sound attack formulated by Pep Guardiola.
He has superb attacking midfielders in Ribery, Nasri, and Sidney Govou from the seven-time (going on their eighth) French Ligue 1 champions Lyon. He also has the up-and-coming Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid) who can play defense and lead the counter attack. AC Milan's Mathieu Flamini has a good sense of tempo with a mind for creating for teammates. And there's Hatem Ben Arfa (Lyon) whose speed from the left wing will soon see him snapped up by the bigger clubs and Bordeaux’s Yoann Gourcuff whose dramatic goal—his first international play – leveled the score at 2-2 in a World Cup qualifying match versus Group 7 leader Romania last October 11, 2008. The draw earned a stay of execution for Domenech who has been pilloried by the French media for his team’s poor play.
On defense, Marseille's Steve Mandana (who will be backed up by Atletico Madrid’s Gregory Coupet) is the starting keeper and even with only a few caps to his resume, he should get better. But to shore up their inconsistent defense (that largely depends on which side of the bed William Gallas get up from), they'll need to make a decision... start the former Arsenal captain or not. If Gallas remains uninspired, Domenech should start Bayern Munich’s Willy Sagnol, AS Roma's Philippe Mexes, Arsenal's Gael Clichy, and Chelsea's Florent Malouda.
Not all the blame, however, can be laid at Domenech's feet. The team is wanting in leadership; a void that has not been filled since the retirement of Zizou. And the French squad is clearly in transition as the old guard -- Zidane, defender Lillian Thuram, keeper Fabian Barthez, and midfielders Roberto Pires and Youri Djorkaeff -- have all hung up their national boots.
The onus now is on Henry or even Ribery to pick this team up. Who else when the rest of the squad is quite young?France has never been a defensive-oriented team in the way the Italians or the Greeks are and if the team strikes early, it adds on to their confidence. Domenech would do well to stay away from his cherished 4-4-2 and get his team on the attack.
Because at this point when you're playing catch up for the last few buses (or airplanes to be more precise) to South Africa, you need to score some goals.
Note: Rick roots for the French National Football Team and says he became an uber fan with Zidane (who was still with Juventus then) leading them to victory in '98. He has French kits with Zidane (as with Real Madrid) and Jeremy Toulalan. He'd love to complete a collection of Patrick Viera, Thierry Henry, Karim Benzema, Youri Djorkaeff, and Franck Ribery. It is of coincidence that the French wear blue which is his favorite color next to brown. He is real upset the French Football Federation will sign up with Nike in a few years time. He feels that France and adidas are synonymous. If you want him to be eternally grateful to you (and subservient), get on his good side by helping him get French football kits.
If you're asking if he likes any other teams -- then you should know he also cheers for the Netherlands (Ruud Van Nistelrooy), Spain (Ces Fabregas), Argentina (Gabrielle Batistuta & Juan Roman Riquelme), and Brasil (Pele, Socrates, Roberto Carlos, and Ronaldinho). He had a chance to purchase a retro Franz Beckenbauer Germany kit but it was going to set him back by $110. He instead bought a Julius Erving Philadelphia 76ers jersey for $125. Go figure.
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