World Cup Scene

Wenger compares Arsenal ace to Wayne Rooney

admin — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 02:06:28 +0000

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has compared youngster Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Manchester United and England star Wayne Rooney. These comments come after the 18-year-old’s excellent display at the weekend in a 7-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers.

It was a performance that showed the increasingly fast development of the talented winger and many looking at the best odds on european championship 2012 are suggesting that he should be taken to Poland and Ukraine by England.

Wenger stopped short of saying just that, but the Gunners boss did admit that he was extremely impressed with how quickly Oxlade-Chamberlain has taken to life in the first-team.

The Frenchman said: “I feel that is always a brand of top players. They just play. When you saw Rooney start he played like it was natural; the same with (Cesc) Fabregas. They are happy on the football pitch and comfortable.”

“I feel Oxlade-Chamberlain could play central midfield (and) he could play second striker because he has something that is exceptional – he has a short back-lift and so when he has a shot on goal it’s difficult to block.

‘He can go right and left and he is the kind of guy who feels comfortable on the football pitch, not nervous.”

At the start of the season you think: “I will play him 20 games, maybe 25.mThat’s what happened to us last year with Wilshire.”

‘When they deliver a performance they play 45 (games) and then they play for the national team and then they get injured.”

“It’s about trying to find the right balance between having confidence and not being too early and too much under pressure.”

Arsenal’s leading scorer Robin Van Persie was also full of praise for the young Englishman, saying that he will no doubt go on to have a fantastic career for club and country.

The Dutchman said: “In the future, (he can) definitely (play for England). He’s a big prospect. Everyone is enjoying watching him. I do, you do and he brings something extra to the game and people just love it.”

“He’s not someone who thinks about negatives, just positives, and you can enjoy the game like that.”
As ever, Oxlade-Chamberlain is a player that will be watched closely by everyone involved in English football. He is a bright talent and one which many look forward to watching each week.

Looking Ahead to the 2014 World Cup

admin — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 10:40:54 +0000

The 2014 World Cup may be just under three years away but it is already firmly on the horizon. The draw for it has been completed and teams have already been eliminated from qualifying.

Most interest for qualifying will focus on Europe where 13 of the finalists will come from. The 53 teams have been divided into nine groups for which qualifying won’t begin until the completion of Euro 2012. Group A contains Croatia and Serbia which should make for an explosive clash. Belgium and Scotland are also here.

In Group B is Italy, Denmark and the Czech Republic. Bulgaria are also present but they aren’t anywhere near the side that made the final four in 1994.

In Group C, Germany, Sweden, Australia and the Republic of Ireland again all find themselves in the same group.

Netherlands and Turkey will fight it out for Group D but Hungary, Romania and Estonia have the ability to surprise.

Group E is wide open with Norway, Slovenia and Switzerland here.

Portugal and Russia would be favorites in Group F that also contains Israel and Northern Ireland.

Greece are in Group G along with Slovakia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

England are reunited with old foes Montenegro, Ukraine and Poland in Group H.

Finally in Group I, you have Spain, France and Belarus.

On paper you have some easy groups here but that is easier said than done and be cautious with your football betting.

Of next most interest is the South American qualifying. There are no groups here. Rather all countries play each other twice over 18 rounds. With Brazil the hosts, things are different this time round as they won’t be participating in qualifying. This has resulted in a slight tweaking of the football odds. Four teams receive direct entry and a fifth goes into a play-off.

Qualifying here has started as it has in Asia. 20 teams have made it through to the third round where they have been split into five groups of four. The top two from each group will advance from which they will be divided into two groups of five. They are halfway through the third round and will complete that at the end of February.

In Africa, they are about to begin the first round and in Oceania they haven’t yet begun anything.

The World Cup is the singularly most important sporting event in the world that just qualifying for it is a long and arduous journey. Succeeding in this is something that just not the teams but the whole country celebrates furiously. Some famous countries and great teams won’t get to make it to the 2014 World Cup. It is because of this that the qualifying matches are fought out as ferociously as the World Cup Final itself. Some teams also realize that certain stages along the way are in fact their World Cup Final.

World Cup Tickets on Sale in 2013 – FIFA

admin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:39:19 +0000

The 2014 World Cup organising committee has revealed that tickets for the event will be available for purchase in 2013. A “very complex operation” will put an estimated 3.3m tickets on the market in two years’ time.

The news was part of a number of ticketing and pricing-related announcements made at a “round table” meeting last week.

Thierry Weil, marketing director at FIFA, explained the aim is to ensure that as many fans as possible from host nation Brazil will be able to attend matches.

“We believe a large proportion of tickets will go to Brazilians,” he said.

“It’s our aim to make it possible for anyone to attend matches, from wealthier fans to those with lower incomes.”

Brazil is steeped in football history and was the birth place some of the sports’ greatest players, such as Pele and Ronaldo.

Brazil has not hosted the World Cup since 1950. It was the first post-war World Cup and the first with the renamed Jules Rimet trophy. The tournament was won by Uruguay, and anyone following the Betfair betting will be expecting South American countries to do well in the 2014 World Cup.

Tickets for 2014 will be allocated using a lottery similar to the much-maligned system used by the 2012 Olympics. FIFA will provide small ticket offices in Brazil, to ensure that fans with no internet access will not miss out on the tournament. The governing body operated a similar system in South Africa, last year.

Hospitality chief, Jaime Byrom, claims that Brazil 2014 could be one of the most popular World Cups in history, with regard to ticket sales. “I can already say that the number of requests [for tickets] so far surpasses any previous World Cup.”

Fans hoping to buy tickets should familiarise themselves with the FIFA.com website, which will provide the majority of booking services, over the next few years.

However, as anyone following the Euro 2012 betting will know, there is a major tournament to come between now and the 2014 World Cup.

Fans have already begun snapping up tickets for the tournament which will be held in Poland and Ukraine.

Venezuela shock Argentina

admin — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 10:50:25 +0000

South American minnows, Venezuela, have done the unthinkable, to secure their first win of the Brazil 2014 qualifying campaign. Los Llaneros dispatched their CONMEBOL rivals, Argentina, 1-0 on Tuesday evening, at a stadium in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela. “We made history,” said Venezuelan midfielder, Cesar Gonzalez.

What makes Venezuela’s victory over the Argentines seem even more remarkable, is that the latter team featured a typically ‘all-star’ line-up, including Lionel Messi and Malaga F.C.’s Martin Demichelis. The sky blues were arguably not playing their best football but that shouldn’t diminish Venezuela’s achievement. Those following the online betting will still have been hugely shocked.

Fernando Amorebieta, of Spain’s Athletic Bilbao, scored the winning goal for Venezuela, just after the half-time break. The strike came from a Juan Arango corner. Arango, who plies his trade at German outfit, Borussia Monchengladbach, has drawn praise for his performance on Tuesday, which included a number of solo efforts on goal.

Buenos Aires-born goalie, Mariano Andujar, was Argentina’s saviour, for much of the evening. The 6ft 4in player saved two of Arango’s strikes, including from a free-kick in the first half.

Alejandro Sabella, chief of the Argentine national side, told the assembled press that his country “must improve”. The 56-year-old, who played for South American teams, Estudiantes and River Plate, in a football career lasting fifteen years, said that Venezuela “did not let us build attacking plays”.

However, Tuesday’s result could ultimately prove irrelevant for both teams and the betting reflects this. Los Llaneros will need to maintain their winning form for the next two years, while Argentina will have to suffer an untold collapse to ruin their hopes of World Cup qualification.

British pair can spring World Cup surprise

admin — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 11:46:39 +0000

When the European draw for the World Cup qualifying groups were announced, there would have been a few national team coaches shaking their heads, but Group A is clearly the toughest to call.

While the likes of England, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands look to have straight forward tasks ahead in their attempts to reach Brazil in 2014, others will cursing their luck.

13 nations will qualify for the finals, with the nine group winners automatically going through and the eight best group runners-up advancing to the play-offs, where only four will qualify.

Group A has six teams that will all have hopes of making the finals, but only one will be certain of getting on a flight to South America. Here are the contenders.

Croatia – Will certainly start as favourites, with Slaven Bilic’s men currently sitting ninth in the Fifa world rankings. Worth noting though, that they have not beaten Scotland or Serbia in previous meetings and anyone placing football bets should remember this.

Serbia – Not the team they were in 2010, but still have quality players in their squad – with the likes of Nemanja Vidic, Branislav Ivanovic and Dejan Stankovic to select from. The games against rivals Croatia are likely to prove crucial.

Scotland – Having failed to qualify for any major tournament since the 1998 World Cup, the Scots will be even more desperate to make it to Brazil. They appear to be making some progress under Craig Levein, but scoring goals still looks to be their problem.

Wales – Gary Speed has some of the finest young players in the UK to select from – the likes of Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey among them – but any injuries will leave his squad thin. They have the attacking players to cause any team problems, but they leak too many goals and must rectify that to stand a chance in this group. Those looking for football tips should expect them to be involved in high-scoring games though.

Belgium – Ranked 37th at present, many feel Belgium are a team to watch over the next few years. A young squad is made up of players making a name for themselves at home and abroad, including Romelu Lukaku, Marouane Fellaini and Vincent Kompany.

Macedonia – Despite being above Wales in the rankings, Macedonia look the outsiders of the group. Skipper Goran Pandev is a class act, but they don’t look to have enough to make an impact in a tough group.