Balotelli credits sizzling form to new found love

Mario Balotelli has had a blistering start to his AC Milan career. The 22 year old forward has already scored 7 goals in his 6 Serie A games for the Rossoneri and has helped in their rise up the table. He has also been in good form for the National side scoring a brace in the qualifier against Malta and a goal in their friendly against Brazil. Balotelli had become an isolated figure at Manchester City where he had become embroiled in on and off the field controversies and run-ins with fellow players and City manager Roberto Mancini. This led to his £19 million move to Milan in January.

And the Italian has attributed his recent success to his new girlfriend Fanny Nguesha. Balotelli met Nguesha late last year and the two have been going out ever since. The happiness in his love life seems to have directly resulted in an increase in productivity on the pitch.

“Am I in love? Yes,” Balotelli said. “She is determined, confident and generous. In a short space of time she found herself in sync with me.

“I could spend my whole life with someone like this. Thanks to Fanny I have rediscovered the balance that I need in my work”, added Balotelli.

He continued: “She puts our relationship first and foremost, so there are no distractions or rows before games. It’s not easy to be with me, because I almost have to give up on a private life, as I am constantly exposed to the public.”

Mario had earlier split from his former girlfriend Raffaella Fico with whom he had a daughter named Pia.

Balotelli was cup-tied in the UEFA Champions League, having represented City in the group stages and hence could not play for Milan against Barcelona. He will look to re-unite with the likes of Stephan El Shaarawy and Riccardo Montolivo at club level this weekend as Serie A action resumes with Milan travelling to Chievo.

World Cup 2014 UEFA Qualifiers: Dutch stay perfect while England hold on for draw

GROUP A
Serbia 2-0 Scotland
Belgium 1-0 Macedonia
Wales 1-2 Croatia

Former Arsenal man Eduardo Da Silva scored a late winner as Croatia came from behind to beat Wales in an entertaining game at the Liberty Stadium. Gareth Bale had earlier given the hosts the lead on 21 minutes from the penalty spot. It was Bale’s 5th goal in his last 6 internationals. The goal spurred the home team on and they finished the half the better side with Bale being denied by Croatian keeper Stipe Pletikosa a few times. The visitors stepped up their game in the second period and their efforts were rewarded when Dejan Lovren’s header pulled them level with 13 minutes to go. Having gotten back into the game, the Croats went for the kill and Eduardo’s low shot guaranteed all 3 points for Croatia.

The late show in Swansea meant Belgium had to win their game to keep pace at the top. Win they did and Eden Hazard was once again on the score-sheet as his goal gave Belgium a narrow 1-0 win over Macedonia. The win keeps them top ahead of Croatia only on goal difference with both teams on 16 points.

Scotland became the first European nation to be eliminated from World Cup qualification after their 2-0 loss in Serbia. The defeat was Scotland’s fourth in a row in competitive matches and means that they have no chance of overhauling either Belgium or Croatia at the top of the group. Filip Djuricic scored both of the home side’s goals within a span of 5 minutes in the second half. Djuricic currently plays for Heerenveen, but will be moving to Benfica in the summer.

GROUP B
Malta 0-2 Italy
Denmark 1-1 Bulgaria
Armenia 0-3 Czech Republic

Mario Balotelli continued his hot streak and was the star man for Italy scoring both goals in a less than convincing 2-0 win away at tiny island nation Malta. Balotelli scored an 8th minute penalty to hand the visitors an early advantage. Gianluigi Buffon then gave away a penalty after Claudio Marchisio’s horror backpass sold him short. But, he redeemed himself by saving the penalty and Malta were denied a way back into the game. On the stroke of half-time Balotelli’s cool finish put the Italians in total control and the ‘Azzuri’ were on cruise control for the rest of the game.

The Czechs rebounded from their loss to Denmark with a victory by an identical score line.  An excellent counter-attacking display away at Armenia saw the Czechs move above Denmark in the group and lie 3rd 2 points behind Bulgaria.

Denmark were held by Bulgaria to a 1-1 draw. Danish skipper Daniel Agger scored from the spot to equalize after Sergiy Manolev had given the Bulgarians the lead on 51 minutes. The result means that both sides are still in the hunt for the second spot which would give them a playoff berth. The result was favourable for the Italians as it pretty much assures them of automatic qualification holding a 3 point lead over  Bulgaria with a game in hand.

GROUP C
Germany 4-1 Kazakhstan
Republic of Ireland 2-2 Austria

Joachim Loew’s German team put in a virtuoso first half performance as they dismantled minnows Kazakhstan in the return fixture at home after a 3-0 win away on Friday. Marko Reus opened the scoring in the 23rd minute and 10 minutes later Germany were up 3-0 with Mario Gotze and Ilkay Gundogan adding to the tally. The Kazakhs pulled one back just after half-time but it was no more than a consolation as Reus rounded things off in style with his second on 90 minutes.

David Alaba’s superb strike deep into injury time with virtually the last kick of the game denied Giovanni Trapattoni’s boys in green a home victory. Ireland had to settle for a share of the spoils and will once again rue a missed opportunity that jeopardizes their hopes of qualification. Ireland were very impressive and got back into the game brilliantly after Martin Harnik put the Austrians ahead on 11 minutes. West Brom striker Shane Long in particular had a stellar outing as the Irish fought back to turn the game in their favour with 2 goals from Jonathan Walters, the first of which was a penalty on 25 minutes. They went into the break ahead 2-1 and the Austrians came out battling in the second period as they laid siege to the Irish goal. They were rewarded ultimately when Alaba was given space just outside the box as he unleashed a left footed drive that looked to have taken a slight deflection on its way to goal.

GROUP D
Netherlands 4-0 Romania
Turkey 1-1 Hungary
Estonia 2-0 Andorra

Robin Van Persie scored a brace as the Dutch continued their impressive form registering their 6th successive win of the campaign to maintain their perfect record. The victory also means that the Netherlands win their last 16 qualifying games, both Euros and World Cup put together. Van Persie passed Dutch legend Johann Cruyff in the goal scoring charts with his double strike at the Amsterdam Arena. He now has 17 qualifier goals (again, both Euros and World Cup) and is level with Denis Bergkamp. Rafael Van der Vaart also scored for the second game running with Jermaine Lens adding one in the 90th minute.

Turkey and Hungary played out a 1-1 draw in Istanbul. Burak Yilmaz has been a goal machine this season and he gave the Turks the lead yet again. Hungary though found the equalizer on 73 minutes to earn a point. The Hungarians will see it as a point gained as it moves them ahead of Romania to second place in the group.

   
GROUP E (no Group E games scheduled for midweek)

GROUP F
Azerbaijan 0-2 Portugal
Northern Ireland 0-2 Israel

Portugal got back to winning ways with a comfortable win over Azerbaijan. Bruno Alves once again was on the score-sheet for the Portuguese for whom the win was a much needed one after they only managed a 3-3 draw on Friday against Israel.

Israel also won by the same margin beating Northern Ireland at Belfast with goals from Lior Rafaelov and Eden Ben Basat.

GROUP G (no games played in GROUP G)

GROUP H
Montenegro 1-1 England
Poland 5-0 San Marino
Ukraine 2-1 Moldova

In a game of two halves, England surrendered the early initiative to return home from Podgorica with a 1-1 draw. England were superb in the first half and dismal in the second. Slick passing with excellent ball movement saw the English assert their dominance in the first period and Wayne Rooney on his return to Montenegro got the opening goal. But, in the second half, England wilted under the constant pressure of the home side and in the end were lucky to emerge with a point as they withstood a battering from the Montenegrins in the second half. Dejan Damjanovic scored the equalizer for the hosts. The draw means England stay 2 points behind Montenegro and if they finish second would have to go through the playoffs to secure a place in Brazil next year.

Poland hammered whipping boys San Marino for five as Robert Lewandowski bagged a brace and his Borussia Dortmund colleague Tomasz Piszczek also scored.

Ukraine beat Moldova 2-1 to keep up with the leading pack. They are level on points with Poland, 4 points behind England, but both sides have played a game less and can cut the gap to one.

GROUP I
France 0-1 Spain

World and European champions Spain got back to the top of Group I with a 1-0 victory at the Stade de France courtesy a Pedro Rodrigues goal. In a game with chances for both sides, France had their  opportunities , but they lacked the cutting edge up front as Karim Benzema continued his barren run in front of goal which is now in excess of 1000 minutes of football after yesterday’s game.

In the only game on the night in Group I, Pedro’s strike helped lift the Spaniards over France in the standings. The first half saw both teams go close with Andres Iniesta and Franck Ribery missing gilt-edged chances. The two keepers, Hugo Lloris for France and Victor Valdes for Spain, were also in top form as they kept their sides in the game. Pedro then broke the deadlock in the second half after latching on to a lovely cut back from Nacho Monreal who was deputising for the injured Jordi Alba at left-back.

France’s attempts to get back in the game got that much harder when they were reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of midfielder Paul Pogba. The young French midfielder earned 2 quick yellows in less than 60 seconds for a couple of dangerous tackles that brought his participation to an early end.

The World Cup that almost didn't happen

Brazil will host the 2014 FIFA world cup next year in what promises to be a carnival of football.  While the national team prepares for the competition with a series of friendly games, the latest of which sees them take on Russia at Stamford Bridge tonight.

This will be the second time that the country will stage football’s premier competition.  In 1950, the third edition of the tournament was held in Brazil.  Uruguay upstaged the Selecao to lift the trophy, their second overall.  However, it was a tournament that almost never happened.

World war two had ensured the cessation of sporting activity around the globe.  After Italy had triumphed in 1938 the war had put paid to the 1942 cup originally scheduled to be held in Brazil.  1946 also did not see the light of day as Europe continued to be embroiled in war.  So after a gap of 12 years, the competition resumed when FIFA awarded the rights to Brazil.  Most of Europe was still recovering from the effects of the war and was in no position to conduct a tournament of that scale.

This edition saw many firsts; it was the first world cup to be called the Jules Rimet trophy some to mark the 25^th anniversary of Rimet’s presidency.  It was also the first time that a round robin format was used.  The 16 teams were divided into four groups and the winner from each group made it into the final four where they competed against each other in another round robin scrap.

2-time defending champions Italy, winners in 1934 and 1938, had lost a lot of their players in an air disaster during the war. FIFA however, were very interested in persuading the Italians to come as a top draw attraction. The Italian federation, though initially hesitant, finally agreed to send its players by boat rather than air due to financial constraints. Along with Brazil as hosts, the 2 teams received automatic qualification. Germany and Japan were barred from competing in the qualifying program as they remained under occupation post the war. Germany had also undergone partition and the football federations of the newly formed nations had not been formed.

TOURNAMENT OF WITHDRAWALS

A lot of teams refused to participate particularly the countries behind the then Iron Hand group, such as the erstwhile USSR, 1934 finalists Hungary and 1938 finalists Czechoslovakia. In South America, Argentina, Ecuador and Peru withdrew after the qualifying round of games. In Argentina’s case, it was down to a dispute with the Brazilian football federation (CBF). Due to this, the remaining South American teams automatically qualified and hence Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia all made it through.

Philippines, Burma and Indonesia withdrew from the Asian region and that meant India qualified by default. Austria and Belgium also pulled their teams out citing inexperience and unpreparedness as reasons. This opened the door for Switzerland and Turkey to qualify without even playing their last round of matches.

England finished top of the British qualification group while Scotland finished behind them. The Scots however did not make the trip to Brazil in controversial circumstances owing to a commitment made by their Federation Chairman George Graham. Graham before the start of the qualification process had insisted that Scotland would take part in the World Cup only if they finished as winners of their home qualifying set up. After the Scots finished second, England captain Billy Wright spoke to his Scottish counterpart George Young to try and convince Graham to change his mind, but he refused to wilt and his decision saw the Scots being denied an opportunity to compete.

Turkey, who had got a free ride into the Cup pulled out on account of financial reasons and the cost of travelling to South America. To cover for the slots left vacant by the withdrawal of Turkey and Scotland, FIFA invited France and Portugal to take part. Portugal declined, but the French accepted and were included in the draw for the 1950 World Cup.

After the draw was completed and the four pools identified, the Indian Football association, the AIFF, decided against sending its team to the World Cup citing travel expenses, lack of preparation and team selection issues, though FIFA had agreed to bear a major part of the travel expenses. India had played barefoot in the 1948 Olympics leading to FIFA subsequently banning barefoot play. The then Indian captain Shailen Manna though claimed that the reasons offered by the AIFF were a screen meant to cover up the real reasons behind the association’s backing out.

France also pulled out due to the amount of travel that they would have to undertake during their group matches bearing in mind the financial and logistical difficulties involved. And since their withdrawal came late, there wasn't enough time to call in replacements. Hence, the tournament began with just 13 teams instead of the intended 16.

HOW IT PROGRESSED

The first round saw the teams split into 4 pools of 4 teams each. The number was ultimately reduced to 13 due to the various pull-outs. The increased number of games under the new format was meant to generate more revenue in an attempt to recover significant investments made on stadiums and facilities by the Brazilian authorities. England came into the competition as one of the favorites but were dumped out early as they were shocked 1-0 by the USA and also lost to Spain by an identical score line. Defending champions Italy, suffered their first ever World Cup loss when they were beaten by Sweden 3-2. As a result, they too failed to progress into the final knock-out.

Powerhouses Brazil along with Spain, Sweden and inaugural champions of the 1930 World Cup Uruguay progressed to the final four. Brazil were the favorites to take home the cup, and the feeling was amplified after they thumped Sweden 7-1 and Spain 6-1. They went into their final game needing just a draw to win the World Cup on home soil. On July 16 at the iconic 'Estadio do Maracana' in front of a massive capacity crowd of an estimated 205,000, they faced Uruguay in the final match of the tournament. The hosts even took the lead 2 minutes into the second half and it looked like going to plan and the home crowd were ready for a grand celebration. Then came the equalizer and more was to follow as with 11 minutes left Alcides Ghiggia scored a second for the Uruguayans which turned out to be the game winner. Unbridled joy turned to despair for the Brazilian players and the fans as things went pear shaped after starting so well. This match when the mighty ‘Selecao’ were upset came to be known as the ‘Maracanazo’ (in Portuguese, roughly translates to ‘the Maracana Blow’). The word since is a slang for when an underdog team upsets the Brazilian national team or when a small club upsets one of the ‘Big Four’ of  Vasco da Gama, Flamengo, Fluminense and Botafogo.

Football had been brought back on the world stage and sport was instrumental in reviving nations and international ties post the casualties of war. The first World Cup after the war, the ‘Campeonato Mundial de Futebol’, was a sporting success, but it was a World Cup that almost wasn't.

CONMEBOL & CONCACAF World Cup 2014 Qualifiers: Review

Messi and Higuain turn on the style for Argentina, Colombia crush Bolivia

Lionel Messi scored a penalty and set up 2 assists for Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain as Argentina brushed aside Venezuela 3-0 at home. Argentina move to 23 points from their 10 games and are top of the qualifying group, 4 points ahead of Colombia. The match was largely a one-sided affair with Argentina's goalkeeper Sergio Romero hardly called into action.

Five different players found the back of the net as Colombia routed Bolivia 5-0. Midfielder Macnelly Torres put the hosts ahead midway through the first half. Defender Carlos Valdez, strikers Teofilo Gutierrez and Radamel Falcao, and substitute full back Pablo Armero completed the rout. Falcao's goal was his 6th of the campaign. The win takes Colombia to 19 points and they look to be Argentina's main competition in the race for the top spot.

Uruguay were thwarted by a late equalizer for Paraguay from substitute Edgar Benitez. Uruguay have struggled during the qualification campaign since their fine run in the last World Cup. Luis Suarez had just put his side ahead 4 minutes before the equalizer in what appeared to be a game winner at the time. However, Uruguay captain Diego Lugano's mistake proved costly as Benitez stole in and grabbed the equalizer beating Fernando Muslera in goal. Uruguay have 13 points from 10 games while Paraguay are still bottom of the 8 nation group with 8 points.

CONMEBOL Results
Peru 1-0 Chile
Argentina 3-0 Venezuela
Uruguay 1-1 Paraguay
Colombia 5-0 Bolivia

Honduras peg back Mexico, USA edge Costa Rica in snowy conditions

Honduras fought back from a 2-0 deficit to force a draw against Mexico to take them to the top of the CONCACAF standings with 4 points from two games. Mexico have 2 points from their two games ahead of the clash with USA in Mexico City on Tuesday night. Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez scored twice to put the Mexicans on top. But, Carlo Costly inspired the Hondurans' fightback with a brace of his own.

Clint Dempsey's effort for the solitary goal of the night saw the USA beat Costa Rica 1-0 in a match played in the midst of a heavy snow storm at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. USA now have 3 points from 2 games and are second behind Honduras.


CONCACAF Results
Honduras 2-2 Mexico
USA 1-0 Costa Rica

UEFA World Cup 2014 Qualifiers: Results

GROUP A
Croatia 2-0 Serbia
Macedonia 0-2 Belgium
Scotland 1-2 Wales

Wales kept their hopes of qualification alive with a hard fought come from behind win over Scotland at Hampden Park. Both sides saw key players withdrawn due to injury, Steven Fletcher was taken off for Scotland when he landed awkwardly on his head from a corner and Gareth Bale went off at half-time for Wales with an ankle injury. Wales were the dominant side creating plenty of chances in the first half, but the Scots took the lead through Paul Hanley in injury time of the 1st period. Robert Snodgrass then almost doubled the lead with a curling free-kick. However, Snodgrass conceded a penalty and was sent off for his second yellow in the 72nd minute. Aaron Ramsey converted from the spot to pull Wales level and taking advantage of the numerical superiority, the Welsh added a second through Hal Robson Kanu securing a vital 3 points in their quest for qualification.

Veteran striker Ivica Olic scored one and set up one as Croatia beat Serbia 2-0 at home in Zagreb. Mario Mandzukic scored the opener for Croatia when Olic capitalized on Serbia left back Aleksandr Kolarov's erroneous back pass and squared to Mandzukic who made no mistake. On 37 minutes, Olic added one of his own to double the advantage. Luka Modric and Ivan Perisic both went close to adding to the scoreline in the second half, but the first half lead proved enough in the end for the Croats who are second in the group only on goal difference being level on points with leaders Belgium.

Belgium fought their way to a 2-0 victory at Skopje in a nervy encounter against Macedonia. After surviving early pressure from the hosts, Kevin de Bruyne put the Belgians ahead in the 26th minute. Belgium went into the break with the advantage and came out playing much better in the 2nd half. Eden Hazard was then brought down inside the box on 62 minutes after playing a neat one-two with Marouane Fellaini. He stepped up himself to take the spot kick and scored the insurance goal to put the result beyond doubt.


         Team         Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Belgium         5 4 1 0 10 1 9 13
2 Croatia         5 4 1 0 8 2 6 13
3 Wales         5 2 0 3 5 12 -7 6
4 Serbia         5 1 1 3 6 7 -1 4
5 Macedonia 5 1 1 3 3 6 -3 4
6 Scotland         5 0 2 3 3 7 -4 2


GROUP B
Bulgaria 6-0 Malta
Czech Republic 0-3 Denmark

Alexander Tonev's hat-trick helped Bulgaria rout Malta 6-0 in their World Cup qualifier in Sofia. The game was played inside an empty stadium without spectators as Bulgaria were punished by FIFA for incidents of racist abuse hurled at certain Danish players during their game in October.

Denmark earned their first win of the campaign with a surprisingly easy win away in Olomouc. Andreas Cornelius, Simon Kjaer and Niki Zimling got the goals for the Danes. Italy lead the group with 10 points, one ahead of Bulgaria, having played a game less as they were involved in a friendly against Brazil on Thursday night.
        Team           Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts

1 Italy                   4 3 1 0 10 4 6 10
2 Bulgaria           5 2 3 0 10 3 7 9
3 Denmark           4 1 2 1 5 4 1 5
4 Czech Republic   4 1 2 1 3 4 -1 5
5 Armenia           3 1 0 2 2 4 -2 3
6 Malta           4 0 0 4 1 12 -11 0


GROUP C
Kazakhstan 0-3 Germany
Austria 6-0 Faroe Islands
Sweden 0-0 Republic of Ireland

Germany for the first time employed a team without any strikers in their game against Kazakhstan. The change didn't seem to hurt them too much as they emerged with a comprehensive 3-0 win away from home. Two goals in the space of 2 minutes midway into the first half from Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mario Gotze  set the Germans on their way before Thomas Mueller added a third in the 74th minute.

Ireland held the Swedes to a goalless draw. The Irish put up an excellent defensive display that managed to nullify the threat of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and co. and their efforts were rewarded with a point. Ireland have now gone 14 away qualifiers unbeaten under manager Giovanni Trapattoni.

Austria hammered the Faroe Islands 6-0 in the other game.

          Team                   Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts

1 Germany                   5 4 1 0 18 6 12 13
2 Sweden                   4 2 2 0 8 5 3 8
3 Austria                   4 2 1 1 11 2 9 7
4 Republic of Ireland   4 2 1 1 7 8 -1 7
5 Kazakhstan           5 0 1 4 1 11 -10 1
6 Faroe Islands           4 0 0 4 2 15 -13 0


GROUP D
Andorra 0-2 Turkey 
Hungary 2-2 Romania
Netherlands 3-0 Estonia

Netherlands continued their perfect run in the qualifying campaign as they won their 5th straight game. Three second half goals got the job done for the Dutch who struggled in the first half and lost play-maker Wesley Sneijder to injury. Sneijder, making his first appearance after missing the last 4 internationals, limped off with a suspected groin injury and was replaced by Rafael Van der Vaart who scored the opening goal early in the second half. Robin van Persie and Ruben Schaken added to the goals tally to round off the night for the Dutch.

Romania snatched a 2-2 draw at Hungary. The game at the Ferenc Puskas stadium was played behind closed doors after some sections of Hungarian fans chanted anti-Semitic slogans and displayed offensive slogans in a friendly against Israel last August. The result sees the two teams still tied on points, but Romania are second ahead on goal difference.

Turkey continued their push for qualification with a 2-0 win at Andorra. Selcuk Inan gave them the lead from a free-kick before in-form striker Burak Yilmaz added another just before the break.


        Team         Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Netherlands 5 5 0 0 16 2 14 15
2 Hungary         5 3 1 1 12 7 5 10
3 Romania         5 3 1 1 10 6 4 10
4 Turkey         5 2 0 3 6 6 0 6
5 Estonia         5 1 0 4 1 9 -8 3
6 Andorra         5 0 0 5 0 15 -15 0


GROUP E
Slovenia 1-2 Iceland
Norway 0-1 Albania

Unfancied Albania shocked Norway with a 1-0 win in Oslo to dent the Norwegians' chances of qualification.  Hamdi Salihi netted the all important goal for the Albanians who held on for victory despite a late sending off.

Tottenham midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson scored a brace to help Iceland overturn a 1-0 deficit and emerge 2-1 winners from their game against Slovenia in Ljubljana. Switzerland who the lead the group were not in action.


         Team        Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Switzerland 4 3 1 0 7 1 6 10
2 Iceland         5 3 0 2 6 5 1 9
3 Albania         5 3 0 2 6 5 1 9
4 Norway         5 2 1 2 6 6 0 7
5 Slovenia         5 1 0 4 4 8 -4 3
6 Cyprus         4 1 0 3 4 8 -4 3


GROUP F
Israel 3-3 Portugal
Luxembourg 0-0 Azerbaijan

Fabio Coentrao grabbed a late equalizer deep into stoppage time as Portugal fought their way back to salvage a point from their qualifier away in Israel. It looked to be a comfortable afternoon for Cristiano Ronaldo and co. when Bruno Alves headed the Portuguese in front within 2 minutes. Israel though managed to turn the game in their favor with goals from their strikers Tomas Hemed and Eden Ben Basat that saw them go into the break 2-1 ahead. Rami Gershon scored 20 minutes from time to make it 3-1 to the hosts. Portugal then managed a late rally inspired by their star player and captain Ronaldo. He provided the assist for Helder Postiga to score Portugal's second before Coentrao popped up with the equalizer late in the game. The draw means they stay level on points with Israel but the Israelis stay second ahead on goal difference. Leaders Russia did not play on the night.

Luxembourg and Azerbaijan played out a goalless draw in the other group game of the night.


        Team                Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Russia                 4 4 0 0 8 0 8 12
2 Israel                 5 2 2 1 13 8 5 8
3 Portugal                 5 2 2 1 9 6 3 8
4 Northern Ireland 4 0 3 1 3 5 -2 3
5 Azerbaijan         5 0 3 2 2 6 -4 3
6 Luxembourg         5 0 2 3 2 12 -10 2


GROUP G
Liechtenstein 1-1 Latvia
Slovakia 1-1 Lithuania
Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-1 Greece

An Edin Dzeko double helped Bosnia to a convincing home win over Greece. Vedad Ibisevic added the other for the hosts. The win took Bosnia top of the group on 13 points, with Greece 3 points behind them. Slovakia are 3rd, a further 2 points adrift, after they were held to a draw in Zilina by the Lithuanians. Minnows Liechtenstein earned their first point of the campaign when they drew 1-1 against Latvia at home.


          Team                 Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Bosnia-Herzegovina 5 4 1 0 18 3 15 13
2 Greece                 5 3 1 1 6 4 2 10
3 Slovakia                 5 2 2 1 6 4 2 8
4 Lithuania                 5 1 2 2 4 7 -3 5
5 Latvia                 5 1 1 3 6 9 -3 4
6 Liechtenstein         5 0 1 4 2 15 -13 1


GROUP H
Moldova 0-1 Montenegro
Poland 1-3 Ukraine
San Marino 0-8 England

England thrashed San Marino putting eight goals past them. The result was never in doubt as San Marino have traditionally been the whipping boys of Europe by virtue of being the worst team in the continent. Six different scorers found the back of the net for Roy Hodgson's team; Jermaine Defoe grabbed a brace with Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Frank Lampard, Ashley Young, Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge grabbing a goal each. With the win, England kept pace with leaders Montenegro who they play next on Wednesday.

Montenegro were reduced to 10 men in their qualifier away at Moldova when Milorad Pekovic was sent off on the hour mark for a second bookable offence. But, the Montenegrins held fort and in the 78th minute, striker Mirko Vucinic pounced onto Marko Basa's knockdown from a corner to score the game winner and maintain their 2 point advantage at the top of the group.

Ukraine claimed an impressive away win at Poland. Two quick goals from Andriy Yarmolenko and Oleh Gusev meant the visitors were up 2-0 inside 7 minutes. Lukasz Piszczek reduced the deficit for the Poles in the 18th minute, but they never really recovered from the early setback. Roman Zozulia then added the 3rd in the last minute of the first half. Poland keeper Artur Boruc made numerous saves to keep the scoreline from getting worse.


         Team        Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 Montenegro 5 4 1 0 13 2 11 13
2 England         5 3 2 0 20 2 18 11
3 Ukraine         4 1 2 1 4 3 1 5
4 Poland         4 1 2 1 6 6 0 5
5 Moldova         5 1 1 3 2 8 -6 4
6 San Marino 5 0 0 5 0 24 -24 0


GROUP I
Spain 1-1 Finland
France 3-1 Georgia

France took over top spot in Group I as Spain were held to a surprising draw at home by Finland. Mathieu Valbuena was the star on the night with 2 assists and a goal. Olivier Giroud broke the deadlock on the stroke of halftime heading in a Valbuena free-kick. The diminutive midfielder then scored France's second with a powerful half volley just minutes after the restart and then provided a cross for Franck Ribery for Les Bleus' third of the night. The win takes France to 10 points, 2 ahead of Spain who they face in a table-topping clash at the Stade de France on Wednesday night.

Teemu Pukki scored a 79th minute equalizer for Finland as they exploited the Spanish defence on the counter which was incidentally their first attempt on target of the match. Sergio Ramos captaining the side in his 100th appearance for Spain had earlier headed the hosts in front from a corner just after half-time. The late equalizer meant dropped points for Spain as Finland withstood wave after wave of Spanish attack to hold on for a draw.


        Team Pl W D L GF GA +/- Pts
1 France 4 3 1 0 8 3 5 10
2 Spain 4 2 2 0 7 2 5 8
3 Georgia 5 1 1 3 3 7 -4 4
4 Belarus 4 1 0 3 3 8 -5 3
5 Finland 3 0 2 1 2 3 -1 2

Brazil vs Italy: A meeting of old foes

It is international break time again. And it's a period that often causes much agitation to many a football manager. Players get time out to either put their feet up, do punditry, jet off AWOL and issue 'come and get me' pleas. Some players do however get the chance to represent their countries in friendlies and qualifiers.

Brazil continue their World Tour with a friendly against Italy tonight in Geneva. Brazil being the hosts of next year's FIFA World Cup have to resort to such games to give their players much playing time as they are exempted from playing their regional qualifiers. The Italians meanwhile play only one qualifier as compared to the other teams.

The 2 countries are the most successful nations at the World Cup with a combined 9 trophies between them. Brazil won their 5th crown in 2002 at Korea/Japan while Italy last lifted the trophy in the subsequent edition in 2006 in Germany.

Since then, Spain have come to be the dominant team in world football and few teams have managed to knock them off the perch. With a World Cup and 2 European championships, the Spaniards' dominance has been total. Other teams from the continent such as Germany and Netherlands have also seen a revival. Brazil and South American football have been pushed to the fringes a bit and on the world stage their flair has been countered by the clinical efficiency of the continental game. Uruguay, South America's sole representative in the semis of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and their success to a good degree can be attributed to the fact that they now play a European type of game.

The current Brazilian crop is one that is looking for an identity. As always, there is never shortage of prodigious talent from the Selecao. The star of the lot is Neymar, the preening 21 year old striker from Sao Paulo. The man billed as the 'most marketable sports star in the world' has been the subject of much transfer talk for a few years now as he's linked to a move to Barcelona or Real Madrid. Giving him company are a host of other youngsters such as Oscar from Chelsea, Lucas Moura from PSG and also Danilo, David Luiz and Leandro Damiao. Thiago Silva and Hulk, both only 26, are the veteran faces in the team but Silva is missing from the game due to an injury. Dante and David Luiz, are likely to don the defensive responsibilities for Brazil in his absence. Luiz Felipe Scolari was brought in at the end of last year for his 2nd stint as Manger of the Selecao as the Federation lost faith in Mano Menezes. In their last outing which was Scolari's first game in charge, they were beaten 2-1 by England at Wembley quite comfortably on a night when only Neymar and Oscar showed some signs of fight. They are on a rebuilding phase and every match provides a window for Scolari to test players in order to come up with the best possible squad going into the World Cup at home. Ronaldinho was recalled for the England game but his poor showing sees him axed and Kaka has been given a call-up.

Italy finished Runner-Up only to Spain in last year's European Championships. Cesare Prandelli's Italy are a well established team with a set squad. They do play more attacking football unlike teams of the past. However, they are still a very solid unit defensively marshaled by the excellent trio of Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Barzagli. The evergreen Andrea Pirlo leads the midfield pack ably assisted by Claudio Marchisio and Daniele de Rossi. This is one area of the pitch where the advantage is clearly with the Italians. Mario Balotelli has been on a roll for AC Milan in Serie A since sealing a move to the Rossoneri from Manchester City in the January transfer window. He has scored 8 goals in 7 games and was a key player in Italy's run to the finals, especially in the semis where his power packed performance put paid to Germany's hopes. Italy are top of their qualifying group, a healthy 4 point lead.

The two teams last met in the Confederations Cup in 2009 with Brazil winning on the night 3-0. Brazil had defeated Italy on penalties in the finals of the 1994 World Cup when led by Dunga they lifted their 4th title.
Italy will travel to Brazil again later in the year for the latest edition of the same tournament.

Likely XI's
Brazil: Julio Cesar,  Dani Alves, Dante, David Luiz, Filipe Luis, Fernando, Hernanes, Hulk, Oscar, Neymar, Fred


Italy: Buffon; Maggio, Bonucci, Barzagli, De Sciglio; De Rossi, Pirlo, Marchisio; Giaccherini; Osvaldo, Balotelli.