Soccer Squirrel World Cup Prediction League

I have set up a league at World Cup Predictions at http://www.fantasyfacup.com/worldcup

The League Name is: The Soccer Squirrel and the location is http://www.fantasyfacup.com/worldcup/leagues/863

You just have to predict the results of matches in the World Cup in Germany. It's free to enter, and you could win $1000!

Good luck, looking forward to the banter.

World Cup Golden Boot Betting

Having a flutter on the World Cup Golden Boot can add great excitement to following the tournament. As there are many contenders for this coveted prize the odds received can be very favourable. Hopefully I can help you find the right player with some extra information that should prove beneficial.

In the last 10 World Cups at least 6 goals have been required to win the Golden Boot. You should focus on teams that rely on an out and out striker to score their goals. One team that fits this bill is Portugal and the striker being Pauleta. He is in great form after scoring a hatrick on the weekend for the national team. Portugal is an attacking side and will create enough scoring opportunities for Pauleta. The team have a relatively easy group and should progress to the latter knock-out stages. Eight of the last ten golden boot winners have come from a European team further enhancing Pauleta as a strong candidate. Gary Lineker of England is the only player to win the golden boot outright without making it to the semi-finals. Brazil is expected to go this far but with attacking options in Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Adriano, Robinho and Kaka they are sure to be sharing the load.

I would advise on placing money on Pauleta who is 34/1 at the time of writing. This is great value for money. Thierry Henry also ticks all the right boxes but he is much shorter at 13/1. Check out the Latest Golden Boot Odds and pick your winner.

Straight From Skoko's Top Drawer

Previous Australian teams would have sat back and said "We've just beaten the European Champions" after accounting for Greece 1-0 in front of a record 95,103 crowd. Not on Guus Hiddink's watch. Hiddink was happy with 70% of the Socceroo's play but demanded "we are going to have to be tougher when we play Japan".

Man of the match Josip Skoko scored the match-winner with a superb left-footed half volley into the top right-hand corner, it was a peach of a goal. Australia played neat fluid football in the first half with Hiddink employing the new 4-2-3-1 formation. The unit was cohesive and there was a good understanding with each player knowing exactly what role they had to play. The second half petered out with a string of substitutions as Hiddink switched the team to a 4-4-2 formation. It was understandable as the Socceroos had undergone a lot of double training sessions in the previous 3 days. The Greeks looked like they were more interested in their trip after the game to Stalactites on Lonsdale Street for a kebab with the lot.

Miles Sterjovski who made a return to the side after a 12 month absence was prominent early. The winger was finding a lot of space but was let down with his touch and lacked the killer instinct when given the opportunity in front of goal.

Zeljko Kalac, a surprise selection in goal to some, was not given the opportunity to cement a starting spot as the Greeks failed to test him thoroughly. If anything Kalac looked shaky on the two occasions he was called into action.

As the Socceroos waved goodbye to Australia bound for Germany Hiddink stressed that there was still a lot improvement required before they would be ready for Japan on June 12.

"We need to put in the training and focus on improvement because games at World Cup level are decided on details," the Dutchman told reporters.

"We also have to get more physical strength because three games in such a short time will be difficult."

The Socceroos next play Holland in a friendly in Rotterdam on June 4 then their final hit out is against Liechtenstein in Ulm, Germany on June 7.

FIFA Finally Changes the Rankings

At long last. It has taken some time but finally FIFA has announced that they are overhauling the present system of World Rankings and implementing a new system on July 12th, 3 days after the World Cup final.

The present system is a joke. FIFA claims the rankings to be "a reliable measure for comparing national A-teams." reliable it is not. In the latest rankings the USA is ranked No.5 in the world behind Brazil, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Mexico. If this is a reliable comparison then Group E in the World Cup must be the Group of Death with the teams ranked as follows: Czech Republic (2), USA (5), Italy (11), Ghana (48). Is FIFA trying to say that they expect Italy to struggle to get progress to the Second Round? This will not happen, I find it hard to predict the Americans going through to the Second Round. Based on rankings the semi-finalists would be Brazil, Mexico, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. Brazil would beat Mexico in the final.

Under the new system FIFA will take into account games played over the last four years unlike the present system which was eight years. How can you judge a nation over an eight year period? Hardly the age old adage, "you're only as good as your last game" is it?

I will not bore you with how exactly FIFA give points for the type of game, the teams, home/away and all that jazz. FIFA has said that the new system will be based on the same factors but will weight them differently and let's hope more accurately.

Only time will tell if FIFA's new ranking system is an improved system but I can guarantee when the new rankings are released Australia will be far higher than their current ranking of 42.

Australia vs. Greece Post Game Reaction

Australia 1 – Overseas Internet Coverage 0

As I am currently based in the UK, I was very interested to watch or listen to today’s game using the power of the internet. Having spent fruitless hours trying to configure a streaming feed from a Chinese internet television company (TVAnts), I decided that the best result would be a radio broadcast.

ABC Radio Sydney was rumoured to be broadcasting the game and an advertisement on their site confirmed it. I clicked the “Listen” tab but was directed to a programme that certainly wasn’t football. I didn’t listen long enough to work out what it was because Josip Skoko had just scored. While it may have simply been an unfortunately timed cross to the Bondi Surf Life Saving club, I figured something was amiss. I searched for the correct feed but to no avail.

But how did I know Skoko had scored? Fortunately the Age website had a scrolling text commentary (here) of the game, though “scrolling” is rather generous. In truth the coverage consisted of 3-10 minute updates with little information. Posts such as the following served to illustrate the quality of the coverage:

21' Bresciano gets a small run at the top of the box, unable to control it and it is cleared to the boundary

Boundary?! I am not blaming the writers who were updating the commentary but the Age for choosing writers with little knowledge of the game. Believe me there’s thousands of us.

There was no discussion of tactics or formations or anything slightly insightful. The chat screen that ran beside the commentary even had to prompt the writers by asking questions about the crowd, tactics, etc. I don’t even think it refreshed automatically.

However, the highlight was the moving graphic that accompanied the goal:





Yep, that’s right!

This rant might be seem petulant but most expats who are fans of soccer/football (who cares what we call it?!) would be bemused with the online coverage (or lack of) by both ABC Radio Sydney and The Age. Has the brain drain got this bad?

I sincerely hope that someone can point to a better online coverage than I found. Perhaps there was great coverage on another website and I’m a idiot for not searching harder for it. The thing is I was pressing “refresh” far too often in the vain hope that there might actually be an update.

So much for the information age, next time I’ll certainly be in a pub, even if it is a Walkabout.

Australia vs. Greece Preview

The Soccer Squirrel previews tonight's friendly between Australia and Greece.

Make no mistake tonight’s game against Greece is extremely important. Winning or losing is irrelevant, the aim is to be “fit, physically and mentally, tactically and in the strategic way of playing” in preparation for the World Cup opener against Japan. The game will be played in front of more than 90,000 passionate Melbournians at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Socceroo coach Guus Hiddink has said that he will not be using the lead-up matches to give fringe players an opportunity to force their way into the best XI. Hiddink will field his strongest possible line-up but will be without the injured Harry Kewell, Tim Cahill, John Aloisi and Josh Kennedy. It is widely tipped that Hiddink will use a 4-2-3-1 formation for the World Cup and as this game is a rehearsal he will implement the same formation. Mile Sterjovski and Josip Skoko are the beneficiaries of positions in the starting line-up replacing Kewell and Cahill.

One position that could provide a shock inclusion is the goalkeeper with sources close to the Aussie camp suggesting Zeljko Kalac may have forced his way into the team in front of Mark Schwarzer. The giant AC Milan goalkeeper known as "Spider" has impressed Hiddink in training and the decision will go right down to the wire. If Kalac impresses against Greece, Schwarzer - the hero against Uruguay - may find it hard to get back into the team for the opening World Cup game against Japan on June 12.

Mark Viduka will play as a lone striker in attack for most of the game with other striking options Aloisi and Kennedy out injured. Sterjovski will fill in for Kewell on the left, Jason Culina will play behind Viduka and Marco Bresciano will operate on the right wing. Vince Grella and Skoko will be the defensive midfielders shielding the back four of Scott Chipperfield, Lucas Neill, Brett Emerton and the re-instated Craig Moore. Hiddink will make few changes before 70 minutes but after this time expect the fringe players to be given a run.

The European Champions Greece will be looking to regain some respect against Australia as they failed to qualify for the World Cup. The opposition were chosen wisely as they will provide the Socceroos with a similar brand of football to World Cup opponents Croatia. With Melbourne’s strong Greek links the crowd atmosphere will be electric and with Greece fielding their strongest line-up the intensity required will be similar to a big game.

Likely teams:
Australia (4-2-3-1): Zeljko Kalac; Brett Emerton, Craig Moore, Lucas Neill, Scott Chipperfield; Vince Grella, Josip Skoko; Jason Culina, Marco Bresciano, Mile Sterjovski; Mark Viduka.

Greece (4-5-1): Antonios Nikopolidis; Georgios Seitaridis, Traianos Dellas, Ioannis Goumas, Takis Fyssas; Theo Zagorakis, Kostas Katsouranis, Stelios Giannakopoulos, Angelo Basinas, Georgios Karagounis; Angelo Charisteas.

The Soccer Squirrel Salutes Captain Viduka

The Soccer Squirrel would like to endorse the selection of Mark Viduka as the Socceroos captain for the 2006 World Cup. Congratulations Guus on making the right, though in my mind obvious, selection.

The only challenger for the captaincy was former captain Craig Moore, however his season has been marred by injury. Moore managed only 9 games for Newcastle this season passed and did not feature in the World Cup Qualifiers against Uruguay. In his absence Viduka took the reigns and performed admirably.

Craig Moore, formerly of Glasgow Rangers, is a tough defender who has played directly on Viduka in the impassioned Old Firm derbies in Scotland however he has no hard feelings towards his new Captain.

"The manager has made the decision and the manager believes, and I believe, that it's the best decision for the team," said Moore in his Scottish-Australian accent, "The team will always come first."

While Viduka’s temperament has often been questioned - after going AWOL when he first signed for Celtic, by Middlesbrough fans in a car park earlier this season – he has always answered his critics with goals and he has never shied away from shouldering responsibility. His goals to keep Leeds in the Premier League years ago are evidence of that. So too are his performances in the UEFA Cup quarter and semi-finals this year.

Mark Viduka performs best when the pressure is on and there is no greater pressure than leading your country in a World Cup against Brazil, not that he will be feeling any less pressure in the games against Japan and Croatia.

Now with the Socceroos captaincy, big Dukes appears ready to silence the nay-sayers who question his scoring record for his country. The pressure is on and the Soccer Squirrel predicts the boy will perform.

Mark Viduka, congratulations and good luck!

Soccer Basics: Team Formation

Ok all you novices out there who are jumping on the Australia bandwagon for the World Cup listen up. The Soccer Squirrel is giving you a few basics about the game of soccer so you can hold your own in a discussion about should Hiddink play a 3-5-2 formation or a 4-2-3-1 formation.

The team formation is how the players in the team are positioned on the pitch. Not all teams play the same formation, there are many different types of formation. The numbers you hear when a person is talking about a formation is the number of players in each area from the defense (not including the goalkeeper) to the attack. The numbers will always add up to 10 as this is how many outfield players there are on a team. For example a 4-4-2 formation is 4 defenders, 4 midfielders and 2 forwards.

Within these areas (defense, midfield, attack) there are specific positions. In defense the main positions are centre-back, right full back, left full back, left wingback, right wingback and sweeper. In a 4-4-2 formation you would have a left full back, two centre-backs and a right full back. Wing backs are similar to full backs but are used in more unorthodox formations like a 5-3-2 where the wing backs are expected to defend with the 3 central defenders but also provide width in attack as the team has no wingers.

In midfield you play between the defense and the strikers but there can be different roles for each midfielder. In a 4-4-2 formation there will generally be a left winger, a right winger, a central defensive midfielder and a central attacking midfielder. The role of the wingers is to support the attack by feeding the strikers with crosses into the box or to dribble past defenders and play creative passes. The defensive midfielder acts as a shield to the defense trying to break up opposition attacks and act as a go to player for the defense to relieve them of pressure. The attacking midfielder's main role is to push forward from midfield when in possession and create goal scoring opportunities for the forwards or score the goal themselves.

In attack is your forwards or strikers and their principle aim is to score the goals for the team. When there are two forwards in a formation there is generally a bigger bodied striker who plays deep into attack and acts as a target man. The other forward generally is more of a mobile player and links up between the midfield and the target forward to assist in making goals and scoring them.

So let's take Australia playing in a 4-2-3-1 formation as an example as this has been widely tipped as the formation that Hiddink will be using in the World Cup.

For starters Mark Schwarzer would be the goalkeeper but the goalkeeper is not included in the formation.

The 4 refers to the back defensive four of Emerton (the right full back), Chipperfield (the left full back), Moore (the centre back) and Neill (the other centre back).

The 2 refers to the line in front of the back four which would mean 2 defensive midfielders. These two would be Culina and Grella.

The 3 refers to the line of attacking midfielders in front of the defensive midfielders with Kewell (the left winger), Cahill (the central attacking midfielder) and Bresciano (the right winger).

The 1 refers to the lone striker. This would be Mark Viduka, the big tall Aussie star.

Well there you have it. I hope that gives all those still understanding the game a better view of what positions the Socceroo players have. Go Aussies!

Arsenal v Barcelona Champions League Final

Dear Football Flog,

I am an Arsenal fan and I was so shocked at the referee’s decisions against Barcelona on Wednesday night in the Champions League final. What did you think of the referee? Also Ronaldinho or Henry, who is better?

Andy from Parsons Green, London.

Dear Andy,

You claim to be an Arsenal supporter yet you live in the heart of Chelsea territory. I’ll answer your questions but I’m onto you Andy, you toff.

Well what a game it was last night. I too found myself seething at some of the referee’s decisions. I was calling the game for Serbian Radio Station B92 and Henry must have heard some of my analysis as he repeated my thoughts verbatim in his post match interview.

UEFA is run by Barcelona, there I’ve said it. How they appointed Hague as referee of the game is suspicious. He was the ref in the Barcelona-Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge and he did the exact same thing then. He sent off Del Horno early in the game when it should have been a yellow card. Before the game one of the linesmen was photographed wearing a Barcelona shirt. The linesman was swapped by UEFA because of the incident. However if you look closely at Hague in Wednesday night’s game there is definitely a Barcelona shirt underneath his black referee shirt.
It is amazing the similarities between Wednesday’s game and the Chelsea v Barcelona game at Stamford Bridge:
· Same referee
· Early controversial sending off
· Team with 10 men goes 1 goal up through a set piece
· Team with 10 men holds on and on
· Henrik Larsson comes on
· Finally Barcelona score two late goals to seal 2-1 victory

As for Ronaldinho and Henry I have to say Henry on the pitch and Ronaldinho off it. Ronaldinho had a very poor game on Wednesday night. This could have been down to the fact that I saw him out late the night before at a little Parisian hotspot called La Gare in Trocadero. He was certainly enjoying himself and had a delightful bevy of ladies surrounding him. He remembered me from when I was playing with lower league Parisian club Paris FC. I don’t want to go into the details of what happened next as it will be in my book but I’ll say this - Ronaldinho gave one assist in Paris and it wasn’t on the football pitch.

Until next time. All questions please mail to footballflog@yahoo.com

FF

Melbourne Signs Brazilian Duo

Melbourne Victory’s undercover operation in Brazil codenamed “Striker Alert” has unearthed two jewels with news strikers Fred and Claudinho have signed for the club. Only time will tell how precious these jewels are but for now Melbourne fans can get excited about the prospect of two Brazilians scoring beautiful goals next season.

26 year old Helbert Frederico Carreiro da Silva (Fred) was signed from Guarini in the Campeonato Mineiro, a Brazilian State Championship League. Campeonato Mineiro is considered a weak league by many but it has been known to produce some exceptional individual talent. Ronaldo and Tostão made their professional soccer debuts in this league. Tournaments in this league run for 3 to 4 months. In the latest tournament Fred was voted 4th best player after becoming the equal second top goal scorer. Before Guarini, Fred spent 10 seasons at leading Brazilian side America MG where he played alongside Arsenal star Giberto Silva, scoring 20 goals in 80 appearances. Melbourne Victory claim to have beaten Atletico Mineiro and Brazilian giants Cruzeiro to his signature. These two clubs are the biggest clubs in the Campeonato Mineiro.

24 year old Claudinho was signed from leading Brazilian team Atletico Paranaense who are currently 13th in the Brazilian Championship. The left footed striker appears to be the better of the Brazilian duo as he was playing at a higher level than Fred. Claudinho scored 30 goals in the State and National Brazilian leagues in approximately 100 appearances. Before plying his trade in Brazil, Claudinho had a short stint in France with Strasbourg as a junior.

Melbourne coach Ernie Merrick was especially pleased with the signings and the return of Archie Thompson.

“It’s almost an embarrassment of riches for us in the forward line at the moment,” Merrick said. “We’ve designed our recruitment strategy hoping Archie would return, but the news today that he will definitely be with us next season is a real bonus.”

After the recent signings Melbourne has four more positions available in its squad. Merrick has identified a quality left back and a central midfielder as the next players on his shopping list.

“We can now focus our energies into securing the services of a high-quality left back and central midfield player to provide the overall strength and depth we’ll need to challenge for the Hyundai A-League title.” Merrick said.

With attack being Melbourne’s weakness last season it looks as if Merrick is keen to put together a team that will focus on attacking. It is doubtful Merrick will play a straight forward 4-4-2 formation with an abundance of strikers in his squad. Two Brazilians are not coming all the way to Melbourne to sit on the bench and Thompson is a walk up starter. Merrick might play Fred as the striker in the middle with Thompson on his right and Claudinho on his left. This would leave a midfield of three with Steve Pantelidis most likely occupying the holding midfield position. Michael Ferrante, Kristian Sarkies, Vince Lia and new signing Adrian Caceres will be fighting each other over the remaining two positions. Whatever the formation is Merrick finally has some flexibility and depth in the attack. The defence will be similar to last season with Muscat, Piorkowski, Byrnes, Claeys, Ljeir and Storey sharing the duties.

The Soccer Squirrel would like to see more width added to the squad. Caceres is a very good prospect who can operate on the left wing. However one of Melbourne’s problems last season was when Sarkies played on the right he was prone to drifting inside too often. So whilst you are out shopping for players Ernie add a flying right winger to the list.

Merrick experimented with numerous positional changes in Melbourne’s first pre-season friendly against Richmond Eagles last week. Melbourne recorded a victory on the night with Vince Lia scoring the only goal of the game.

Thompson Rejoins Melbourne Victory

Melbourne Victory fans can breath a collective sigh of relief today after Archie Thompson revealed he would be returning to the club for next season.

Thompson has spent the last 6 months on loan to Dutch club, PSV Eindhoven, where he was given the opportunity to maintain his fitness levels for his participation in the World Cup. There was an option for PSV to buy the striker but they have decided not to take up this option.

Moving to Holland also gave Thompson the chance to work closely with PSV manager Guus Hiddink. The striker only made two appearances for PSV but the experience was invaluable.

“Getting the opportunity to play under the current national coach at PSV and prepare for the World Cup was an unbelievable opportunity, and I’d like to thank Melbourne Victory for allowing me to go there,” Thompson said.

“But I’ve played in Europe before and this is not the first time I’ve come back home. My family is settled here in Melbourne and the setup of the club and the support of the fans is brilliant.

“I really look forward to coming back because I know how fantastic the atmosphere is at Olympic Park. I even hear they are building a new stadium which will be amazing when it’s finished.

“I just can’t wait to go to Germany for the World Cup and give the Melbourne fans something extra to cheer about.

“I visited Victory training yesterday and all the boys are looking fit and raring to go. With the new signings coming on board I’m positive we can give the title a real shake next season.”

Thompson was a big hit in the A-League's inaugral season before leaving for Holland so he will inject some much needed attacking excitement into the Victory lineup.

Details of Melbourne Victory's two new Brazilian signings will be followed shortly.

The Cost of Christian

By Greg Horgan & Simon Ainsworth

Make no bones about it: Christian Vieri would be a fantastic signing for Sydney FC. He has in the past been a world class player, better than any other we have produced, and though his star is on the wane he was still in consideration for the Italian World Cup squad until his recent injury.

As written in yesterday's article "Sydney considers Vieri to replace Yorke" in The Australian, Vieri has produced some of his best performances at World Cups in the past. However his form this season has been less than dynamic yielding only 5 goals. Nevertheless a player of his status would be an amazing coup for Sydney FC and the A-League.

An A-League leader-board in the coming seasons with the names Christian Vieri (Sydney FC) and Mark Viduka (possibly Melbourne FC in 2007/08) is a mouth-watering prospect for A-League fans and, more importantly, potential A-league fans.

Before we get ahead of ourselves a dose of realism is required before swallowing the "leak" soup prepared by Vieri's friend and restaurant owner Attilio Labbozzetta.

Sydney FC last year posted a loss of $5.5 million in their first year. This is a massive loss in a competition where the primary aim of clubs must be consolidation given the financial troubles that beset former soccer league incarnations in Australia.

The Sydney club recently fell out with Pierre Littbarksi whose contract was cancelled by mutual consent and no doubt they will struggle to afford to pay their next coach Littbarski's $700,000 p.a. To suggest then that Sydney FC can afford to spend $1.5 million pa on Vieri, $400,000 more than they currently pay Dwight Yorke, would appear to be wishful thinking even if Anthony LaPaglia decides to help fund part of his salary.

Australia's new A-League should heed the lessons of the now defunct North American Soccer League (NASL) which collapsed in 1984. The NASL signed up old, high profile foreign players on inflated salaries including Pele, Cruyff, Best and Beckenbauer. Overexpansion was a huge factor in the death of the NASL but the wages paid to players in decline was a contributing factor.

Furthermore with so many sensational signings early in their existence, Sydney FC could struggle to build a loyal fan-base who will stick with them through the bad times when their best player might have two left feet and an inability to "score in a brothel". In fact if supporter numbers dwindle, remaining Hollywood FC fans might be taunted in future years with chants of "Are you Northern Spirit in disguise?"

It would be great to see Vieri in the pale blue of Sydney FC but let us hope that it does not come at the cost of financial prudence and the long term stability of the club.

(Picture courtesy of the BBC)

Kewell Tears Groin Muscle Again

Liverpool have annouced that Harry Kewell has torn his groin muscle. The Socceroo star limped out of the FA Cup final win over West Ham, just after half time on Saturday.

The 27-year-old has now been diagnosed with a tear in his groin. The Merseyside club is hopeful the 27-year-old will be playing within two to three weeks but seeing as this is the injury that kept him on the sidelines for two seasons his participation in the World Cup is still under threat.

Liverpool Football Club Head of Press Ian Cotton said: "We liaised closely with the Australian national team medical staff and their physio actually accompanied our club doctor to the scan this morning.

"That scan has shown Harry has torn one of his groin muscles. It has been agreed that Harry will receive treatment at Melwood for the next 10 days before joining up wth his international teammates in Holland. We expect him to be playing again within the next two to three weeks."

With Australia's World Cup campaign set to begin on June 12 against Japan Kewell has four weeks to be 100% fit. Guus Hiddink will give the potential match winner every opportunity to make an impact in Germany.

Milicevic Hits Out at Squad Selection

Australian defender, Ljubo Milicevic has lashed out at Socceroo officials for leaving him out of the World Cup squad.

The central defender captained his Swiss club side FC Thun and played in the Champions League and UEFA Cup this season. He suggested, tongue-in-cheek, that he would have had a better chance of getting into the squad if he was playing in the A-League compared to competing against world class players in the Champions League.

"Being left out is pretty hard to swallow considering the season I've had. I had to have a laugh. I'm not that surprised, to be honest. I never had much contact from the national team and I was always pessimistic about the World Cup. My instincts were right," Milicevic said.

"I think people involved have very short memories," said the defender. "I was captain of the under-20s and captain of the Olympic team. I picked up two injuries playing for Australia. I had a horrific run of injuries playing for Australia and came back (to fitness) to captain my team in Europe but I'm obviously not good enough for Australia."

Hiddink named two defenders from the A-League, Michael Beauchamp and Mark Milligan, in his squad. Milicevic obviously feels he deserved a place in the squad over these players, taking aim at the standard of Australia's national league.

"Maybe I should move back to Australia. You seem to have a better chance of playing for Australia if you're playing in the A-League than in the Champions League against Thierry Henry. In Australia, the opponents are obviously better than Thierry Henry."

"I played Champions League, UEFA Cup and captained my team and that's not good enough? I'm sorry. People I don't know and people who I never expected to hear from say it's bullshit."

Hiddink is known to favour players that are mobile and adaptable to different positions. The physically imposing defender seems to have not ticked enough boxes however he has been placed on standby for the World Cup squad.

The World Cup was supposed to be a shopping window for potential suitors for Milicevic. His performances in the Champions League and the UEFA Cup have led to several big European clubs showing an interest in the defender. "Within a month I should know where I'm playing next season. I'm going to focus on myself and my own career."

Gerrard a True Champion

Saturday’s FA Cup final between Liverpool and West Ham was one of the truly great finals that had spectators engrossed from start to finish. But for one man West Ham United would have been celebrating an amazing victory and that man was Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard.

For the neutral it was unfortunate to see West Ham lose on penalties. The only time Liverpool were the better team was from the nerve wracking penalty spot after 120 minutes of exhilarating football.

Some players ooze skill and class but a champion player is one that can pick up a side when they are dead and buried and somehow snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat. Gerrard is a champion.

Gerrard was immense throughout the final, his first goal was fantastic but the second which sent the game into extra time was a true gem. The inspirational skipper seemed to be down and out struggling with a leg injury in the final minutes of normal time. He briefly left the pitch, now some would have conceded and stayed on the sidelines, not Gerrard. As he run back into the action the ball rebounded towards him. As the ball approached, with the Liverpool section of Cardiff screaming “HIT IT”, Gerrard smacked the ball past the despairing Shaka Hislop to bring back scenes reminiscent of Istanbul.

Extra time was more like a battlefield with players struggling to stay on two feet due to cramp. It did have one moment of drama when West Ham captain Nigel Reo-Coker nearly grabbed the winner in the dying moments with a header from a free-kick. Pepe Reina though made a fabulous save to tip the ball onto the post and Marlon Harewood could not lift his badly cramped leg high enough to hammer home the rebound.

When it went to penalties the Cup engraver could have started writing Liverpool’s name into the trophy. In the end Reina was the hero saving three penalties but it was Gerrard who will be remembered for his lionhearted efforts. If England is looking for a hero to replace Wayne Rooney, look no further than Steven Gerrard.

England in Love with Warney

England just cannot get enough of Australian cricket star Shane Warne. In the early days he was public enemy number 1 in England but he has risen to hero status topping it off tomorrow when he will deliver the FA Cup final ball to referee Alan Wiley in Cardiff.

Warne will travel by helicopter from London to Cardiff before handing over the ball in the centre circle of the Millennium Stadium before the FA Cup final between Liverpool and West Ham United.

"I'm told I'm the first Aussie in history to deliver the ball and being the 125th FA Cup it makes it even more special," Warne said in a statement.

Warne has been served everything up on a platter in the UK with his own newspaper column, A-list parties, "the inflatable middle stump", captain of County cricket side Hampshire and his own leg spin youth academy. I've worked it out though, they are trying to keep Shane from returning to Australia at the end of this year to win back the Ashes.

Nice try Poms. Tough luck our Shane's blood flows green and gold.

You will never be respected as a top cricket side when you have a butler as your spin bowler, Giles come on!

Hiddink Shoots for the Stars not the Pavement

I nearly choked on my Corn Flakes this morning as I read Con Frantzeskos’ article “World Cup squad hedging its bets” on Crikey. The reasoning behind the opinion was ill informed and lacked insight.

Mr. Frantzeskos you believe that first of all the Australian World Cup squad is ‘best described as conservative’ and secondly picked under the influence of the Football Federation of Australia (FFA). You are showing a lack of knowledge and a lack of respect to Australian football.

The Socceroo squad consists of Australia’s top level players with the last few squad positions taken up by players who, Graham Arnold explained, were in very close competition with nine others. Your argument that we turn our backs on the players that got us to our first World Cup since 1972 and stack the team with youth is preposterous. If we stack a team with youth at a World Cup it will be throwing lambs to the slaughter. The World Cup is no time to experiment with youth in the hope of unearthing a gem. It is fine to name stars like Pele or Owen (I disagree that they were in relative obscurity) as examples of players who made a name for themselves at the World Cup but Australia does not have any young players of this ilk. Please name someone who you think could, as you say, ‘explode into international prominence’.

Your point that the FFA had influence on squad selection is insane. A coach of Guus Hiddink’s stature would never be undermined and have his employers influence team or squad selection. Unlike your opinions there is reason to Hiddink’s selections. The Dutch maestro already knows his starting XI and for the majority of the tournament, barring injuries, it will be quite settled. The players picked will be smart and flexible, able to switch tactics and positions if required.

Your negative attitude of ‘if Australia can't win the World Cup, then it should be aiming to blood the World Cup stars of tomorrow’ astounds me. Australia winning the World Cup is a long shot however putting in our best performance each mate and seeing how far we can go has to be our aim. Luckily the squad does not share your feelings and have a quiet confidence about what stage they can get to. A successful Cup run will be of greater benefit to the future of Australian football compared to ‘grooming the next generation of Aussie Socceroo stars’. Seeing 11 young Australians get smashed by Brazil in front of a worldwide audience will do nothing to inspire young Australian soccer players. Harry Kewell and Mark Viduka are players the youngsters can identify with, not unknowns.

You have the right intention to see Australia develop a new generation of soccer stars as our current crop of internationals are ageing. However, there are established tournaments like the U/17 and U/20 World Youth Championships and the U/23 Olympic Games to develop the young talent on the international stage. Just ask Mark Milligan and he will tell you that representing Australia at two U/20 World Youth Championships was the best learning platform to prepare him for the challenge of a World Cup.

Everyone has different levels of optimism but I believe we should all get behind Guus Hiddink and the Socceroos and give them the best support possible for the joy ride that is going to begin on June 12. Come on Aussies!

McLaren On a Wing and a Prayer

Middlesbrough’s loss to Sevilla in the UEFA Cup final last night gave us all a better view of the new England manager, Steve McLaren.

The FA giving McLaren the England post was like Schumacher tossing his Ferrari keys to a Formula 3 test driver. He has some good form behind him as a coach but as an international manager he is not ready.

What has McLaren actually done? He has won one trophy, the League Cup. Don’t try and say he was the mastermind behind Manchester United’s treble or else you will have Sir Alex to answer to. McLaren guided Middlesbrough to this season’s UEFA Cup Final on a wing and a prayer. It was the stuff of fairytales with dramatic victories over FC Basle and Steau Bucharest in the quarter and semi finals respectively. However it was a nightmare finish in the final with Middlesbrough beaten 4-0. The score line was harsh on Boro with 3 late goals however they were outplayed all night.

McLaren’s answer to getting Boro out of trouble against Basle and Bucharest was to send on 4 strikers. Was it tactical genius or plain luck that Massimo Maccarone, the fourth striker, bobbed up on both occasions to score the winners? What did Steve, the one trick pony, do last night when the game was slipping away from Boro? He put four strikers on the pitch when they were getting belted in midfield and Sevilla scored 3 goals in the last 12 minutes.

You can see where this is leading. I’ll paint you a picture. It is the World Cup semi-final, England vs. Brazil. Brazil has gone 1 goal up through Ronaldinho and time is running out. Sven leans over to Steve and says “What do we do???”
McLaren replies, “I have an idea, send on Walcott to join Owen and Crouch up front and push Joe Cole further forward.”
Sven, “Done!”
England get belted 4-0 ending Sven's tenure, as he passes the reins onto a man unqualified for the job (the Middlesbrough captain, Gareth Southgate, even says so).

McLaren is a very good coach as he can develop players and teach them the game. He has left Middlesbrough in good shape by developing the youth system which will provide a solid foundation for the future of this club. Unfortunately for England fans an international coach requires solid tactics and man-management skills, McLaren lacks these attributes. Time will tell if he can make the step up but my humble opinion is the FA should have just skipped the interviews and given it to Guus Hiddink.

Josh Kennedy: Player Profile

Don't expect the young man with the biblical appearance to work miracles in Germany but he will offer our attack a different option. The 23-year-old, is 6ft 4inches tall, plays for Bundesliga 2 (German 2nd division) club Dynamo Dresden but after the World Cup he will move to German top-flight club Nurnberg.

Kennedy represented Australia at under-17 and under-20 level before heading overseas to play professionally in Germany.

At the age of 18 he became the youngest Australian to play in Germany's top flight.
He spent a couple of years on loan in lower divisions, then returned to the top flight in 2003-04 where he wasn't given much of a chance. He was then signed by second division Dynamo Dresden where he has become a first team regular.

Kennedy has scored 7 goals in 25 games this season with 4 assists. Not overly impressive figures but he has been playing for a club that is struggling. Nurnberg have seen enough talent in the young striker to sign him.

"Josh adds something totally different to what we have got - if you look at the (Mark) Viduka's and (John) Aloisi's they are both very good with their back to goal," Arnold said.

"(But) Kennedy gives us a totally different option that if we want to change our style of play, we can...instead of having three or four of the same options."

Kennedy's manager, John Grimaud, also believes he offers the Socceroos something different in attack.

"He offers a point of difference for the Australian team," said Grimaud.

"People often say players like Mark Viduka are strong in the air, but I can tell you none of them are a patch on Josh. He's a great header of the ball. He brings something different."

"If the Socceroos are struggling, if they run out of ideas, they could do worse than just knock long balls up to Josh."

I guess what they are all trying to say is, Kennedy is Australia's answer to Peter Crouch.

Here is a song the Aussie fans could sing about Kennedy at the World Cup, to the tune of Kanye West "Jesus Walks".

(Joshua Walks)
Guus show me the way because the defense try to break me down
(Joshua Walks with me)
The only thing that I pray is that my feet don't fail me now
(Joshua Walks)
And I don't think there's nothing I can do now to right my wrongs
(Joshua Walks)
I wanna to talk to Guus but I'm afraid cause we ain't spoke in so long
(Joshua Walks with me with me with me)...

The Dutch Magician Pulls Few Surprises Out Of His Hat

Australia’s 23 man squad for the World Cup in Germany was announced today. Hiddink’s squad consists mainly of experienced campaigners with no major surprises. The World Cup bolter was the inclusion of German based striker Josh Kennedy along with Mark Milligan, the versatile Sydney FC defender, as the other uncapped rookie.

Australia's 2006 World Cup Squad is:

Goalkeepers: Ante Covic (Hammarby, Sweden), Zeljko Kalac (AC Milan, Italy), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, England)

Defenders: Michael Beauchamp (Central Coast Mariners), Stan Lazaridis (uncontracted), Mark Milligan (Sydney FC), Craig Moore (Newcastle United, England), Lucas Neill (Blackburn Rovers, England), Tony Popovic (Crystal Palace, England)

Midfielders: Marco Bresciano (Parma, Italy), Tim Cahill (Everton, England), Scott Chipperfield (FC Basel, Switzerland), Jason Culina (PSV Eindhoven, Netherlands), Brett Emerton (Blackburn Rovers, England), Vince Grella (Parma, Italy), Harry Kewell (Liverpool, England), Josip Skoko (Stoke City, England), Mile Sterjovski (FC Basel, Switzerland), Luke Wilkshire (Bristol, England)

Forwards: John Aloisi (Alaves, Spain), Josh Kennedy (Dynamo Dresden, Germany), Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory), Mark Viduka (Middlesbrough, England).

Hiddink announced that he had made up his mind on the majority of the squad but the last 3 positions were up for grabs right down to the last minute.

"We had to think - Graham Arnold, Johan Neeskens and me - about two or three positions who were open still until the last date," Hiddink said.

"It was not a guarantee which I told the players in Holland when we started preparing before the Uruguay games, that it is not a fixed selection. In the end we managed to bring in some young players as well for the number 20-23 positions."

"Of course we have in our heads the basic positions of the team. Of course we can be flexible and we will work on that regarding our opponents. Sometimes it's good to play with four strikers, sometimes it is good during a game to play with two strikers so we will work on that but basically the format is fixed."

On announcing the squad via video linkup the Dutch maestro announced that Australia was in no way going to Germany just to make up the 32 teams.

"We're happy to be there, of course, but this team is not just going to be participating," the Dutchman said in broken English.

"This team wants to go to a surprise and make the second round of the competition. But we have a tough group.

"Japan is a good team, with many European based players. Brazil - everyone knows about Brazil. Brazil will be a special game, and Croatia is tough because of the links between them and Australia."

Australia begins its World Cup campaign on June 12 against Japan in Kaiserslautern before taking on World Champions Brazil on June 18 in Munich.
The Socceroos finish the group stage against Croatia on June 22 in Stuttgart.

The Socceroos will play 3 warm up matches in preparation for Germany. European champion Greece will be the first opponent in Melbourne on May 25, before the Socceroos travel to Rotterdam to play Hiddink’s home nation Holland on June 4. Finally they take on minnows Liechtenstein in Germany on June 7.

Look out for more to follow on The Soccer Squirrel as we preview some of the lesser lights that made the Socceroos World Cup squad.

Australia's Possible World Cup Squad

Guus Hiddink names the Australian World Cup squad today. The Soccer Squirrel assesses the contenders from the definites to the outside bets.

Australia’s World Cup squad which will be announced at 11 am this morning is believed to be mostly made up of the 23 players that participated in the two legs against Uruguay in November.

The best starting XI only has one query and that is Tim Cahill. The Everton midfielder is still struggling with a knee injury and it will be a race against time to see if he is available for the first match against Japan on June 12. Cahill will be included in the squad as Australia will take 3 standby players to Germany in case of injury.

Hiddink has been known to gamble on youth – especially in big games – however it looks likely only Michael Beauchamp, Brett Holman and Mark Milligan will be the youth included that did not make it to Uruguay. Milligan and Beauchamp, the two candidates from the A-League, will provide backup in defence. Holman is a creative midfielder who could be a replacement for Cahill if the injured star does not recover.

Craig Moore is a welcome re-inclusion into the squad after battling his way back from a series of injuries that blighted his season. The solid defender has been a rock in recent games with his club Newcastle United only conceding 4 goals in his last 7 games.

There will be few surprises in midfield and attack as the proven stars of Australia have been in dominating form for their respective clubs. Kewell and Viduka, arguably our two best players, have been hitting peak form at the right time of the season. Both will play in Cup finals as their final club games for the season before participating in the World Cup. Viduka will be leading the attack for Middlesbrough in the UEFA Cup final on Wednesday whilst Kewell will line-up on his left wing for Liverpool in the FA Cup final on Saturday. Let’s hope this is not the last Cup final that our stars feature in this year…

POSSIBLE AUSTRALIAN WORLD CUP SQUAD

Definites: Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, England), Zeljko Kalac (AC Milan, Italy), Craig Moore (Newcastle United, England), Lucas Neill (Blackburn Rovers, England), Tony Popovic (Crystal Palace, England), Jason Culina (PSV Eindhoven, Netherlands), Vince Grella (Parma, Italy), Marco Bresciano (Parma, Italy), Tim Cahill (Everton, England), Brett Emerton (Blackburn Rovers, England), Scott Chipperfield (FC Basel, Switzerland), Mark Viduka (Middlesbrough, England), John Aloisi (Alaves, Spain), Archie Thompson (PSV Eindhoven, Holland), Harry Kewell (Liverpool, England).

Probables: Ante Covic (Hammarby, Sweden), Michael Beauchamp (Central Coast Mariners), Stan Lazaridis (uncontracted), Ljubo Milicevic (FC Thun, Switzerland), Josip Skoko (Stoke City, England), Brett Holman (Excelsior, Netherlands), Ahmad Elrich (Fulham, England), Luke Wilkshire (Bristol City, England).

Possibles: Mark Milligan (Sydney FC), Mile Sterjovski (FC Basel, Switzerland), Joel Griffiths (Leeds United, England), Michael Thwaite (National Bucharest, Romania), Jon McKain (Politehnica Timisoara, Romania), Neil Kilkenny (Birmingham City, England).

Outside Bets: Brad Jones (Middlesbrough, England), Josh Kennedy (Dynamo Dresden, Germany), Patrick Kisnorbo (Leicester City, England).

Tony Vidmar Out of the World Cup

Socceroo hero Tony 'Dry Your Eyes Mate' Vidmar has ruled himself out of contention for the World Cup due to an irregular heart beat.

Vidmar is going to return to Australia to have further tests and to determine if he can continue his playing career.

In 2001 Vidmar walked from the Centenario Stadium in Uruguay with tears streaming down his face after failing to qualify for the 2002 World Cup, thinking that was his last chance to participate in a World Cup. It wasn't to be. The no nonsense defender triumphantly played in both matches against Uruguay to help Australia qualify for the 2006 World Cup, even smashing in a goal in the penalty shootout. The injury is a knockout blow but Vidmar has put on a brave face masking the devastation that must be going on inside. In 2001 Australia shared Vidmar’s tears; in 2006 we share his pain.

"It's something that has come as a real shock but due to the seriousness of the situation I had no other choice in the interests of my own health and the team that I withdraw from being considered for the World Cup squad," said Vidmar.

"When I return to Australia I'll have some further examinations and once I have that information I'll decide if I will play on but in the short term it would be too much of a risk."

"Of course I would love to play in the World Cup, it's been a dream of mine and I have been in four campaigns but until I am fully aware of my health situation I can't risk playing."

"Though I won't be on the field with my team mates I'll be joining the rest of Australia in giving them my full support."

Tony from The Soccer Squirrel hear hear on your fantastic Socceroo career. The rest of Australia will never forget the contribution you made to get the Socceroos to Germany.

You Heard It Here First, AGAIN!

The Soccer Squirrel has once again been at the forefront of Australian Soccer coverage. Contributor Greg Horgan didn't need to speak to Mark Viduka to know that the striker had a substantial impact on Middlesbrough reaching the UEFA Cup final, he saw it in his eyes at the start of the 2nd half as written in, “Viduka Watch: Middlesbroughs Triumph”. As was revealed in the Guardian's article, “Viduka finds his voice and his form to keep the dream alive” the Australian captain inspired the team to victory against Steaua Bucharest with a motivational half time speech. Middlesbrough midfielder George Boateng claimed the speech was "one of the most inspiring things" he has ever heard. We will never know exactly what Mark "Braveheart" Viduka said but let's hope he can use some words to similiar effect before the Socceroos take on the Brazilians on June 18th.

Soccer Betting Preview 5/5/2006

We have come to the last round of the Premiership season, usually the most nerve wracking. However with all 3 relegation spots taken there will be no teams playing for their Premiership lives until the last minute of injury time. There is the coveted 4th place up for grabs which qualifies either Tottenham or Arsenal to next season's Champions League. All will be in vain for Spurs if the Gunners go on to beat Barcelona in this years Champions League final as this will effectively knock Tottenham out of the running due to a technicality.

This week's betting fixtures look easy on the eye. With some teams season over mentally it is easy, in theory, to predict what will happen. The age old saying of 'nothing is certain except for death and taxes' rings true on the final day.

So here are my tips for this weekend:

Latest Soccer Odds from William Hill

I'll start with my banker which has been making all the happy punters on The Soccer Squirrel a few extra shekels for the weekend - Bolton to smash Birmingham 3-0 (8/15)
Arsenal to beat Wigan 3-1 in the last ever game at Highbury (1/5)
Villa to play out a scoreless draw with Sunderland (wake me up when this games finished) (5/2)
Blackburn to end the season on a high against Man City 2-0 (8/13)
Fulham to knock off Middlesbrough who's focus is on the UEFA Cup 3-0 (4/6)
Man Utd to clinch 2nd spot beating Charlton 3-0 (2/9)
Newcastle and Chelsea to play out a draw (11/4)
Liverpool to continue their good run of form beating Portsmouth 2-1 (4/6)
Finally Tottenham to secure 4th spot by beating FA Cup finalists West Ham 2-1 (8/11)

There is some money to be made on these tips. Click here to place your bets. Happy punting!