Saturday, September 22, 2012

Juventus Vs Chievo Verona - Serie A - Game Preview By Roberto Rivelino



Juventus
 Vs Chievo Verona

Juventus Arena | 22nd September 2012 | Game Week 4 | 19:45 GMT


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Referee: Matteo Russo

Since the start of the season, Juventus have been dominant and the motivation for the Chievo match couldn't be better. Italian Super-Cup in the bag and 3 Serie A matches, 9 points and a comeback at Stamford Bridge after Chelsea being up 2-0, until Vidal and Quaglirella (this one at the 80th minute), tied the match.
Simone Pepe and Simone Padoin are still injured for the Home side, while Luciano is the biggest loss for Chievo's side.
Juventus are undefeated for 42 matches in Serie A, but, take notice, Chievo hasn't lost in the last 5 matches against them as well.

Squad list for the game.
Keepers - (1) Gigi Buffon, (30) Marco Storari and (34) Rubinho;
Defenders - (2) Lúcio, (3) Chiellini, (4) Martin Cáceres, (11) Paolo De Ceglie, (15) Andrea Barzagli, (19) Bonucci and (26) Lichtsteiner;
Midfielders - (6) Pogba, (8) Marchisio, (21) Andrea Pirlo, (22) Asamoah, (23) Arturo Vidal, (24) Giaccherini; (33) Mauricio Isla and (39) Luca Marrone;
Wingers / Forwards - (9) Vucinic; (12) Giovinco; (17) Nicklas Bendtner; (27) Quagliarella and (32) Matri.

Predicted Line-Ups.
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Roberto Rivelino.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Reading Vs Tottenham Post-Match Players Performances Analysis by Roberto Rivelino



Tottenham fans have to be happy. It was a good and deserved win.

Everyone seemed to go along and the team work was above all else. The players looked confident with the ball on their feet and at a tactical level they were all together and complemented each other.
Enjoyed Vertonghen's exhibition a lot. He surely could've been the Man of the Match had Defoe not scored those two goals and made that performance.


I was utterly disappointed with Gareth Bale. Missed two good chances and he wasn't even on his level, or what he used us to see. Still, he scored the 0-2 goal, with both feet, and got the ovation as he was replaced.
Sigurdsson was class and surely he will try and make Tottenham fans forget Luka Modric. He even has some resemblances with the Croatian, specially after the pass that opened the Reading defense and gave Lennon the assist for Defoe's first goal. He's composed and seems that the pressure of playing for a bigger team isn't affecting him.


Jermaine Defoe was classic. Scored two goals, but it could've been more. He runned all over the place and ruined Reading's defense as well. He's in a great shape and if Villas-Boas doesn't repeats what he did on Porto (by taking some of the players in form to the bench until they lost their boost - I don't believe he did it on purpose, he's just naive), Defoe will scored more goals than he did on the previous 2 seasons and will keep his feud as one of the best Tottenham strikers. Scored two great goals, with the second being labelled as a Wonder as Defoe picked the ball on half-way line and in the end sent the ball to the net with his left feet. Also he had more shots than any other Premier League player this weekend with 9, boosting his overall tally to a league of 26 this season. Man of the Match. 

Genoa 1-3 Juventus Post-Match analysis


Juve resilience shines through in Genova

September 16, 2012

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Genoa Vs Juventus - Serie A - Game Preview by Roberto Rivelino


Genoa Vs Juventus
Luigi Ferraris | 16th September 2012 | Game Week 3 | 14:00 GMT


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Referee: Gianluca Rocchi

Juventus, after beating Parma and Udinese on Game Week 1 and 2, are ready to play Genoa (who won Cagliari at home for 2-0 and lost to Catania, away, last Sunday, for 3-2), at Genova's own, Stadio Luigi Ferraris.
Lúcio returns from a twisted ankle and for the first time, Nicklas Bendtner, Mauricio Isla and Rubinho, all Juventus Summer signings, will be available for Massimo Carrera options, who, also, will surely consider that Wednesday Juventus will play Chelsea in London for the Champions League.
This match will be special for Ciro Immobile, Genoa's striker, who will face his beloved and previous team, Juventus. Immobile has played the two game weeks and scored one goal, against Cagliari, in 180 minutes played.

Squad list for the game.
Keepers - (1) Gigi Buffon, (30) Marco Storari and (34) Rubinho;
Defenders - (2) Lúcio, (3) Chiellini, (4) Martin Cáceres, (11) Paolo De Ceglie, (15) Andrea Barzagli, (19) Bonucci and (26) Lichtsteiner;
Midfielders - (6) Pogba, (8) Marchisio, (21) Andrea Pirlo, (22) Asamoah, (23) Arturo Vidal, (24) Giaccherini; (33) Mauricio Isla and (39)Luca Marrone;
Wingers / Forwards - (9) Vucinic; (12) Giovinco; (17) Nicklas Bendtner; (27) Quagliarella and (32) Matri.

Massimo Carrera's Word.
"This game is every bit as crucial as Chelsea (...) We are facing a difficult side in a fiery atmosphere like Marassi. Plus, when Juventus come to town there is always a surge in motivation and determination from our opponents."
"We have to fight them on the same level with that degree of passion. Don’t forget last season Genoa took points off us both home and away."
About Chelsea game on Wednesday: “Squad rotation is the wrong term, because we do not have first choice picks and reserves. Every time we will put out the side that can give us the best guarantees (...) It’s important for a player to step on to the pitch, regardless of the opponent or whether it’s the Champions League or Serie A."
"Fortunately we have options to choose from. Lucio has recovered, so has Nicklas Bendtner, while Mauricio Isla played 76 minutes with Chile and is available (...) Will Andrea Pirlo be rested? He is a champion and knows how to deal with his energy levels."

Roberto Rivelino.

Friday, September 14, 2012

Nenê might comeback to Brazil in January



Nenê might come back to Brazil (where he already represented Palmeiras and Santos) in January and to represent Corinthians. Rumors today say the primordial reason is so he can have more spot-light to the National Team. Though, he also leaves the European door open by saying he can play "3 more years in Europe". Milan wanted him in August, but due to the financial terms the deal didn't wen through.

It seems being the best player in Ligue 1 for the third straight year wasn't enough for Mano Menezes to have him picked to the Canarinha.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Will Raúl Meireles be missed for Chelsea?



If you fail to sign Luka Modric, try and try again. And then at the last minute turn to Raul Meireles…

After months of chasing the Croatian midfielder; the player himself handing in a formal transfer request and still not getting any further, Chelsea needed to look into alternative options. On “Deadline Day”, with hours remaining in the 11/12 transfer window, Meireles handed in a transfer request and found himself signing for Chelsea not long after, where he was reacquainted with André Villas-Boas.

Meireles conceded that he didn’t want to leave Liverpool, but the chance to work with his old friend AVB was too good to refuse. So Chelsea forked out a reported £12m for a player that wasn’t exactly wanting to come to Stamford Bridge. It’s fair to say he wasn’t welcomed with open arms. Not initially, anyway. Although he was a last-minute coup for Chelsea, Meireles’ services were desperately needed with Michael Essien having suffered a long-term injury. He was thrown straight in at the deep end and struggled to make an impression. However, as the season progressed he grew in confidence and succeeding in winning over the fans (just about). He was an integral part of the team that managed to overcome the might and force of Barcelona, even sacrificing himself playing in the Champions League final (of which Geoff Shreeves was the first to remind him) by taking down Mascherano on the halfway line to save his team-mates from a counter-attack. That moment of self-sacrifice is one of the few moments that will remain in the memory of many Chelsea fans, alongside that goal against Benfica en route to Munich. What. a. goal.

Having signed for a rumoured £8m at Fenerbahçe, Meireles leaves a tender Chelsea midfield looking even more depleted. As Meireles prepares for bigger, better and hostile things in Turkey, his ex-colleagues in Lampard, Mikel, Ramires, Romeu and even Brazilian wonderkid, Oscar, are left to fight it out for the two “double-pivot” spots in Di Matteo’s 4-2-3-1. With five players fighting for two places, you would think there’s a lot of cover and strength in depth. Oh how numbers are deceiving…

There’s a lot of question marks surrounding those five players. Mikel and Romeu are the only two distinguished, out-and-out defensive midfielders out of the bunch, both of whom still have a lot to learn. Mikel has severely improved over the years, but he’s still not a definite name on the teamsheet. Lampard fought valiantly for the remainder of last season in a position that doesn’t best suit him, and it could be argued that the formation isn’t to his taste, either. Ramires is full of energy and would probably be best modelled as a box-to-box midfielder, though he’s been deployed in more attacking roles since Di Matteo came in (perhaps because Chelsea were lacking the personnel last season…) which has only been effective on a few very notable occasions. *cough* Chip over Valdes in the Camp Nou. *cough* And lastly, Oscar, the £25m youngster who is yet to cement a stronghold within the starting line-up, and that’s without considering the fact that he’s more effective further up the pitch.

It’s not as if there’s a Claude Makélélé within the Chelsea ranks anymore, or even more recently, a Michael Essien. There’s a lot of competition for the midfield spots, yes, but we’re yet to witness someone make that position their own. (Now’s your time, Oriol!) That being said, I don’t think letting Meireles go is as severe as many are making it out to be, but I do find the decision to let Meireles leave with no time to find a replacement rather baffling. I don’t think we’ll miss him per se, but I’ll miss having the occasional chuckle at his haircuts – if you can call them that – and I’m grateful for his work ethic and his efforts during his time at Stamford Bridge. Don’t forget he played a big part in the side that brought home the Champions League… and they will never be forgotten.

Thank you and good luck, Raul.

By Gdostephens.

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Inter Milan 1-3 AS Roma - Post-match Performances Commentary


Inter Milan 1-3 Roma.


It was a good game to watch, specially if we consider that it was an open game, end to end.


Enjoyed Francesco Totti, Marquinho and Stekelenburg's performances for the away side.
I refuse to say that Osvaldo is up there with the Man of the Match mentions because of his stupid red card at the end and that's why Osvaldo doesn't deserves to be at Milan, Inter or Juventus. He shows no-brain decisions on moments that can cost his team(s) something in the future. Though, he scored a great goal and made another great, trivela, assist to Marquinho's goal.
Totti had those two great assists, but the second, for the wonder goal of Osvaldo, was purely amazing. He runs as much as Andrea Pirlo does for Juventus, but the class is there, as is Pirlo's.
Marquinho was consistent and in the end he scored a great goal, in which we can also blame Castelazzi, specially considering that he is an experienced goalkeeper (he can never suffer that goal), but that doesn't takes credit from Marquinho at all. He likes to get up the field and he risks the shot a lot.
Stekelenburg had two great rushes, but the one that sticks out the most is the one on Milito's feet that even led to some penalty appeal's, with no sense. It was a shame the TV didn't show his good save in the stoppage time to Sneijder's bicycle kick.

From Inter... Sneijder, Nagatomo and Álvaro Pereira deserve a good mention.
Sneijder is always the watch. He is consistent, always on the ball and always active. His heart at the end of the game is always racing and today it was no different. Absolute class with the ball on his feet. He deserved better contribution by Cassano and Milito up front.
Nagatomo has four lungs. He was always running and seemed a warrior sometimes. But with the ball on his feet he has to think a lot better. Still, a good complement to Álvaro's runs in the attack.
Álvaro Pereira was being "bullied" by Porto and was training alone for nearly 2 months and that was shown today. He was everywhere and he did a good match, but near the 60th minute he was tired and couldn't take it anymore, so he got replaced, but he is, without a doubt, a World Class left back. His skills were shown and his style as well with that tribute to Recoba on the socks.