Hello everyone! I'm dropping you a line of two with just over 20 minutes to go before the start of the match between Argentina and Brazil.
And I'm doing it from a very particular location. As some of you might know, I'm in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil!
I've got my Argentina shirt and I'm ready to support our team in front of a couple of Brazilian friends of mine.
It's going to be a great experience and I'm looking forward for BASILE's team to give me reasons to be happy.
Lineups are confirmed and the first big surprise came with the decision BASILE made regarding who will be our captain today. There were talks about ABBONDANZIERI, SAMUEL, maybe MILITO, but COCO chose Juan Roman RIQUELME who will also be wearing the number 10 shirt.
Brazil won't have a magical number 10 playing for them today, because RONALDINHO is injured.
Our starting eleven?
ABBONDANZIERI
ZABALETA
COLOCCINI
MILITO
Clemente RODRIGUEZ
Lucho GONZALEZ
MASCHERANO
BILOS
RIQUELME
MESSI
TEVEZ
VAMOS ARGENTINAAAAAAAAA!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
43 comments:
Outclassed again. Let's hope Coco can make some improvements once he has more time to assess the needs of the team. I think we missed Crespo and Ayala today, but that's damn easy to say in hindsight. Messi looked 19 as well.
Hi there everyone,
By this time right now you all need to know that it has been frustrating weekend for me.
First of course is our basketball team defeat to Spain. What was more bitter was the fact that we came really close this time of putting things right against them. But the end, as what was said by Seba, we indeed lost to a better team. As for our own achievement for these past years has been an amazing journey. Runner up in the last World Championship and of course Olympic gold medallist in 2004.
And the next thing is of course is our football team performance in that friendly against Brazil. By looking at the result of course things may not be very encouraging. However please bear in mind, this Coco first game in charge and I'm pretty sure he got all his notes down for his next match already. Its fair that we should give him the chance. Remember he was appointed to help us qualify and win the World Cup in 2010 not the friendly international against Brazil.
John
Malaysia
What can I say? I am disappointed. Of course this is only the first match and COCO needs time to work with his players.
I think MESSI had a terrible game. He did EVERYTHING wrong, EVERYTHING. And the more he tried, the more he got frustrated, the more he failed.
It's just a game. He needs to learn that he can't make something magic everytime he touches the ball. Once he gets that right...we'll be on the right track.
I think Brazil looked good at the back. At times I thought it was Italy playing in yellow.
Worst of all? I got "abused" by my Brazilian friends! haha!
Then I head down to the Maracana stadium for the first time in my life and I watched Fluminense 1 - Vasco da Gama 1.
Nice experience.
Catch you up later.
Seba,
I was too impress with the Brazillian defence but at the same time I've notice that Dunga seems to be implementing a defensive minded approach to the team.
I feel Coco needs to look into this matter seriously as remember in Korea/Japan 2002, we struggle to break down teams that were playing defensive game.
John
Malaysia
well i cudnt watch the match bcoz it wasnt `covered by any of the channels.. However i m disappointed.
1stly somone has said its the 1st match of COCO, true but so is it for Dunga.
now i find the back 4 terribly inexperienced. WIthout Ayala, Heinze, Walter Samuel or Zanetti, i think we will continue to falter at the back.
If there is exp reqd in a team, it is a must in terms of defensive responsibilities...
however, Messi needs maturing, thats true, i hope Rijkard and COCO does a good job with him, even with Barca, Mesi sometimes seem to be holding the ball for 2 long same for tevez...
we need Crespo upfront for the clinical finishing, tevez may be good, strong and skillful, but Crespo is efficient, he scores 2 out of every 3 chances
Subh,
For your information, Dunga's first match in charge was a friendly last month against Norway which ended in a 1-1 draw.
Hi
It was an off day all round for the Albiceleste. We somehow just didn't click on the day and Brazil did. That was the difference between us and them, not because they're better than us.
Given ample time and a decent number of training sessions under their belts, the team will be back to it's best.
And it is for this reason that I think Saviola and Tevez should have started, while Messi should have taken Bilos' spot in midfield. Why because these players along with Riquelme, Lucho and Mascherano played together in the World Cup and so have already built up an understanding between them. Given the limited amount of preparation time, this would have been a more logical starting lineup . Anyway, Coco is the coach and I know he'll do a brilliant job in our next game(s).
VAMOS Argentina
Ingi
Papua New Guinea
I really don't think Tevez, Messi and Riquelme link up well. They got crowded out so often when in possession. They needed a target man like Crespo or Cruz to push or suck the defenders away. Well, if Crespo or Cruz are too old then try Maxi Lopez. Even Maradona needed a Valdano.
Zabaleta played a great game I think, he is really full of energy.
But you really have to hand it to that man Kaka... he really is quite some footballer. I would trade Riquelme for him...
Allan
Hong Kong
I wouldn't compare Riquelme to Kaka because although both players in the same vein in terms of pulling strings for their respective teams but the approach is different.
John
Malaysia
Hi,
Lets take the positives from the defeat. We did click well at times, we had our chances but didnt take them. Brazil were pretty flat except catching us on the counter attack. Bilos was playing quite well down the left and i think Zabaleta is excellent on the right hand side. The rest of them are still moulding as a unit and as time goes by, it can only get better.
Rgarding Messi, maybe we should not be too critical of him, if you realised, he ws trying his best, maybe against the "ENEMY" he wanted to really show something, Yes at times it didnt work, but his energy level was high and he kept chasing most of the balls that most of the rest just stood and watched.
Kaka is good, but comparing him with Riquelme is absurd. Both are diferent players who have had good days and bad days, maybe Yesterday Kaka had his day, im sure Riquelme will have his. Sometimes people tend to remember someone for the bad they have done and not the good things that they can contribute.
Look Ahead Guys..the future looks bright. Keep the Faith in the Blue Aand White
Cheers,
Alwin
Malaysia
3-0!!!!!!!!
i can' believe it,
what were they doin
Hey Seba,
what do you think of COCCO's over-confidence?
i really don't feel comfortable with that.
i think hey should implement a more cautious approach in a pre-game speech especially when we it's BRASIL...
what can i say to my brazillian friends who are abusing me ever since...
they keep saying 4-0 haha
chill its just a friendly..
whosoever tuk that 4-0 seriously, I didnt
Nice response! Lots of messages! Keep them coming.
I'm still in Rio but the rain is following me! Hate it!
I think we've lost the match due to our lack of precision in front of Brazil's keeper. That miss by INSUA was awful (great pass by KUN by the way!) and then there was that shot by ZABALETA that almost hit CICINHO for an own goal.
Then KAKA came in and changed everything.
It was really worrying to see our left hand side struggling like that. BILOS and CLEMENTE didn't team-up very well and ELANO came from the right of Brazil's attack to punish us twice (granted CLEMENTE was already replaced at that time).
Let's not jump the gun here and give COCO some time to work with the players.
I think TEVEZ (who played reasonably well) and MASCHERANO both had a really busy week with their move to West Ham being talked about and their exit from Corinthians. They both were abused by the Brazilian fans during the match and I don't think they were in the right track of mind to play that game.
Again, I didn't like MESSI. I think we should not punish him for trying too hard, but we will be making a big mistake if we let him continue playing that way without letting him know that it is not the way.
If he tries something special 4 or 5 times per game, that's fine. But not if he tries to do it the whole 90 minutes.
COLOCCINI should not play international football again. It's an old issue now. He will never be as fast as we need him to be. I hope he doesn't play for Argentina anymore.
I was pleased to see SOMOZA making a solid debut. At times he looked like a 100-caps veteran and he played better than MASCHERANO. Thumbs up for him!
KUN had a great pass for INSUA but then he disappointed me with a nasty hit on LUCIO's leg from behind. He should have seen the red card instead of yellow. He was lucky but I don't like to see players reacting thay way when they are frustrated.
I agree we might be lacking in striking power and we may be missing CRESPO a bit.
I'm sure COCO will work hard to revert the image we left in London on Sunday.
Brasil Bashing ! Brasilian personnel with names indicative of mierde:
Dunga
Kaka
Elano
Dudu
Some lighthearted foolishness to assist in putting Sunday in the rear view mirror !
No worries; Argentina will learn from the mistakes made in this friendly and improve.
Hey seba,
i have a question for you...
I want to know your view on the NEW ronaldinho game?!!!
hey didn't play against us in that friendly but i think they were lucky hey DIDN"T....
because i'm watching Brasil-wales game at the moment and i think that the number 10 sucks big-time...
what do you think of his chances into making it back on top of the world again? huh...
Me, i think he is done for good.
he has nothing more to show, he falls down every time he catches the ball, and his reactions are slower than my mother.
i think it's MESSI this year for Barca and the World, not Ronaldinho...
please give me your view on this
thanks...
Jordan...
I agree,
RONALDINHO sucksssssssssss
the most over-rated player in history...
MESSI is the man....
Hey Seba,
when are you going to write again in your fan blog
i keep checkin every hour and there's nothing...
come on ma buddy...
You guys must be drinking too much mate ! Messi better than Ronaldinho ? Por favor !!!!!!!
Well Johnny,
Those were actually Ronaldinho's own words, when asked was he the best player in Barcelona. So why argue about it?
John
Malaysia
Seba,
Its been a while since you have updated your blog. Just to let you know that today the Hockey World Cup kicks off in Germany. And Argentina will be playing New Zealand. Best of luck to them.
No doubt that we are not in the same level as Germany, Netherlands, Australia but I'll be giving them the amount support as I've given to our beloved football and basketball team.
One thing that surprise me when is that exclusion of our best player Jorge Lombi from the team. Any particular reason for such decision?
Perhaps maybe you can give us a couple of interesting article by posting in this blog as the tournament gets underway. Till the VAMOS ARGENTINA!!!
John
Malaysia
Anonymous,
Ronaldinho is a VERY gracious fellow !
all the best to albicelestes for the hockey world cup.... i hope it is an India-Argentina final....... then, with jorge lmobi out.....we will win the game.....
no channel showed the argentina-brazil game in India.....and from what i gather from you tube clips and news reports, the scoreline flatters brazil........so, the supporters should not be extremely disheartened...
and about Messi.....I think Basile needs to play him in a wider role.....remember Barcelona.....has Eto as the frontman.......
May be we can have Tevez/Messi playing a wide role and have a target man.....Crespo, Figueroa, or may be Diego Militio.....
Basile must also work out a strategy to protect the defence from quick breaks.....Mascherano and Somoza will have a major role if Basile needs to persist with the all out attack philosophy.
Hi everyone,
Just for the info, our hockey team didn't made a great start in the Hockey World Cup. We lost to the New Zealand Black Sticks by 3-0. Not that I'm hoping that our team stand a chance to win the trophy but lets hope we can have good finish in the tournament. Next match is against Spain and lets hope there is positive outcome in that match.
Subh, India made an impressive start to their campaign despite going down to Germany 3-2. Best of luck in their next match.
John
Malaysia
Hard luck for both Indian and Argentina
John. Thanks for your encouraging comments about India's performance.
But ...Conceding a goal with 40 seconds left. ...I can't help this feeling of deja vu. I am sick and tired of seeing India lose due to late goals.
Everygame, we play well and battle hard to undo everything at the end.
2000 Olympics....we lost a semi-final place due to a goal in the last 14 ....seconds
2002 ...Asian games Final....against South Korea...we conceded a goal in the last 2 minutes
2003 Champions' Trophy....we gave 3 goals to Netherlands in last 5 minutes to lose 3-4.
2004 Olympics....We lost to Australia with a last minute goal...
the list goes on.....
Pekerman.....have heart......there is a bigger choker than you in the World of Sports...
anyway...hoping for the best in the next few games.....
tough luck for Argentina...did not expect the Kiwis to beat them.....
Subh,
If I were you, I would still have some optimist as judging by the grouping, Argentina are going to have a real tough time. Lets see, apart from New Zealand we have Olympic gold medallist Australia, Japan, Pakistan and Spain.
However in India's group, you got South Korea, Netherlands, England, South Africa as well as Germany. Since the Koreans (they won 3-2!!!) created a shocker in their opening match against the Netherlands, seems to me like the entire group in quite open.
Anyway we'll see what's happening in the next few weeks. By the way Seba, its been a while since we've heard from you. Hope to see you back soon
John
Malaysia
Subh,
I have some bad news for you. India lost to England 2-3 yesterday. Best of luck in the next match.
John
Malaysia
Thank you all for your concern about my lack of posting. I've just arrived in Buenos Aires after a few days in Rio and I'm going to have a hard time in finding a moment to write because unfortunatelly my grandfather is in intensive care and I'm going to stay close to him as much as I can.
I've been extremely busy lately and I'll do the best I can to keep writing about Argentina.
I hope you can bare with me and I really appreciate your interest in reading my stuff.
I'll be back soon.
Seba,
I'm very sad to hear about your grandfather. Hopefully everything is alright there with you. Its ok take your time as no matter what, in life family is always important.
Take care
John
Malaysia
argentina sucksss.
from now on BRAZIL is my team...
Vamos Brazil..
Great performance from Boca last night. That might have been the best match I have seen since moving to BsAs in January. Constant pressure in the second half applied by the Coco loving Juniors.Beautiful midfield play and Palacios was everywhere. If the seleccion can work as a team like that, then good things would happen.
Just to let you know that my Granpa is better now! I saw him today and he was even talking to me about Racing Club and our problems up-front! I love him! God bless him!
And thank you very much for your words John!
By the way...it`s Argentina 0 - Spain 0 (second half) in the Hockey World Cup.
Seba,
Glad to hear about your Grandpa's recovery. Hope everytihng will be fine, if there is anything help you would need, you friend around the world will be obliged to help.
Takecare,
Alwin
Malaysia
Seba,
Great to hear your Grandpa is better.
Regards,
Asian Fan (Singapore)
Seba,
Great to hear that your grandpa is doing well. Our prayers (Argentinian fans worldwide) and thoughts are with him.
By now everyone should know despite putting up a fighting performance against Spain until we force the game to a 1-1 draw. Things didn't go down well against Australia as we were thump 4-0. Today we take on Pakistan and best of luck to them. I guess the team is really missing the present of Jorge Lombi.
By the way, yesterdat night I was watching Tevez making his debut for West Ham in the match against Aston Villa. I must say that he look a bit out of tune for moment but I can assure as he gets back his form it is going to be one hell of a Hammering time. Mascherano was not brought in but it will just a matter of time before he does.
VAMOS ARGENTINA
John
Malaysia
Seba,
As you the Davis Cup match against Australia is coming soon. Perhaps you can get give us some details or article regarding this match. Must be an instant cracker!!!
John
Malaysia
Seba,
As you the Davis Cup match against Australia is coming soon. Perhaps you can get give us some details or article regarding this match. Must be an instant cracker!!!
John
Malaysia
Hi everyone,
Although our chances of reaching the hockey world cup is almost out of reach, but our boys have manage to salvage some pride with a famous victory over former champions Pakistan.
I would like to give a shout to our heroes of the day Matias Damian Vila for his goal and Juan Manuel Vivaldi for some spectacular saves. Lets hope we can have a great finish to the by beating champions and positioned ourself better during the classification matches.
VAMOS ARGENTINA
John
Malaysia
Granpa is improving everyday! I'm dedicating all my time to be with him and he's happy to share time with me.
I really thank you for your prayers and thoughts.
He is a huge part of my life and I was devastated last week when he was in a critical condition.
Hopefully I'll post an article but I wanted to thank you all before I do that.
Seba,
Great to hear that your grandpa is doing well. Kindly please send my regards to him.
Anyway, hockey world cup latest, we've lost to Japan 4-3.
John
Malaysia
good to hear grandpa is doing well.
May he get well very very soon..
regards to him .. seba.. we can definitely wait for ur blogs, take ur time.
btw, just read the news which says that pardew (the coach of west ham) said that he doesnt know how to fit the 2 Args in his team, he says he will have to figure it out... just the thing that is expected when players are bought without any background work... haha
Post a Comment