Athens Glory - Part I

Athens, for all its historic and mythical wonders will have the chance to put itself on the map of the world again during the month of May, as the city will host the biggest football and basketball club competition in Europe.

For some of us, it is a return to the city on which three years ago gave us not just one but two of the greatest sporting moment in Argentina’s history.

To kick off first, it's the Euroleague Final Four (basketball equivalent to the Champions League); as four of the best teams in Europe (CSKA Moscow, Panathinaikos, TAU Ceramica and Unicaja Malaga) will compete on who will have the rights to take home the Holy Grail of European Basketball.

Just as I've done a preview on the NBA play offs before this, I will do the same here, as three Tall Albicelestes will go into action on the 4th of May, also to re-live arguably the greatest moment in their career, only this time it is for their respective clubs.

Luis SCOLA and Pablo PRIGIONI of TAU Ceramica

There are occasions when despite having the best resources, you still need a little a bit of lady luck smiling on you. Well that's the case for TAU after having seen disappointment of not winning the Euroleague for the past two seasons, adding to the two consecutive painful defeats in the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB) play offs finals.

Could it be the same again? Only time will tell but not really if you have a team that boost the likes of Tiago SPLITTER, Serkan ERDOGAN, Igor RAKOCEVIC and Luis SCOLA, probably the best player in the world outside the NBA. Or should I say the best player in the world not playing in the NBA yet?

In the past, there have been numerous occasions and even transfer rumours that SCOLA is finally fulfilling his prophecy of playing in the NBA but from my point of view, he is already an NBA material. SCOLA will not have a much better time than now as he is currently in the form of his life, with a large number of NBA scout are expected to make the journey, huge attention are going to be placed upon him. This season he has got himself into the record books for being the highest point scorer (2,000 points) in Euroleague history. Part of those points came in the demolishing of Olympiacos in the play offs when he posted 20 points including 10 rebounds.

Furthermore with his team currently the favourites and leading the ACB, SCOLA is also heading the Regular Season MVP award (previous winners includes Arvydas SABONIS and also his national team colleagues Andrés NOCIONI and Walter HERRMANN). He is also in the running for the Euroleague MVP award as well.

What about Pablo PRIGIONI? Though most of time he might be living in the shadows of his superstar Argentinean colleague but there are many ways that SCOLA should compliment him for allowing to score those points, as together they form one of the Euroleague's signature duos.

His pick & roll and plus quality range of passing aces is as crucial as SCOLA sharp shooting skills. Furthermore his defensive quality is also recognize as steady as rock. He is regarded as one of the most unselfish point guard in Europe and if you want evidence, the stats will tell you why. Currently he has the most steels (52) and second highest assists in the Euroleague.

Should both SCOLA and PRIGIONI performed at their very best; TAU may able to lay the ghost of the past two seasons to rest. But most important of all, winning the Euroleague could be probably signal the time that SCOLA must move to the NBA, as San Antonio SPURS must be itching for his present on their roster come next season.

Pepe SANCHEZ of Unicaja MALAGA

Reaching the Final Four for the first time in their history, must be consider a great achievement for Unicaja MALAGA considering the fact that they lost two key players to the NBA in Walter HERRMANN and Jorge GARBAJOSA.

But in return they brought Jiri WELSCH vice versa add together with the present of Berni RODRIGUEZ, Carlos JIMENEZ plus an elegant playmaker in Juan "Pepe" SANCHEZ; they do look as a formidable side.

For the record PEPE is the first Albiceleste player to play in the NBA. However the NBA may have overlooked his great potential as it is so often all about points scoring rather than team effort. But in return his decision to move to the ACB has richly rewarded him. Throughout his time there he became one of the best point-guard in the league and was instrumental in helping Unicaja winning its first ACB title in 2006.

A true point-guard indeed, SANCHEZ's present on the court is a key factor for Unicaja as he knows how to run a team, adjust to every moment of the game and always focusing on helping others to shine. Simply put the stats aside and that is when you will learn to appreciate the type of player he is.

However if the stats are that important then the following could serve as a great example on how PEPE’s inspiration works best, when it really matters. In the play off decider against Winterthur BARCELONA, PEPE became the match hero for scoring 11 points including a 3 pointer with 7.7 seconds, as in the process he also collected 4 rebounds and 3 assists.

Rest assured, should PEPE provide the inspiration that Unicaja needs, the city of Malaga could be in for a big fiesta, come the 6th of May. And just who knows, a return to the NBA could be on the cards.

The final four fixtures are as follows: -

Semi-Finals (4th May 2006)
CSKA Moscow vs. Unicaja Malaga
Panathinaikos vs. TAU Ceramica

The final and the 3rd/4th placing match will be on Sunday, 6th of May. All matches will be played at the OAKA Olympic Stadium.

A further note to this article on why I wish to see all three players performed at their very best as their form could be crucial to Sergio HERNANDEZ's plan for the FIBA Americas. Good luck boys

VAMOS SCOLA!!!
VAMOS PABLO!!!
VAMOS PEPE!!!

HEINZE still with a shot at two titles

But that means that the Manchester United defender won't be travelling to Athens to face Javier MASCHERANO's Liverpool.

Gabriel HEINZE had a really hard time chasing KAKÁ at Old Trafford a week ago and tonight it was more of the same. The Brazilian was unstoppable and alongside Clarence SEEDORF they tore Manchester United apart to knock them out of the UEFA Champions League.

HEINZE and his team-mates will now have to concentrate to continue fighting for the Premier League title and prepare for the FA Cup final in what will be the official re-opening of mythical Wembley Stadium.

MASCHERANO will never walk alone

History repeats itself. And history is sure teaching José Mourinho a very hard lesson. But apart from the managerial battle between the self-pronounced Special One and Rafa BENITEZ, there is something else that I would like to highlight after watching the UEFA Champions League semifinal match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge: Javier MASCHERANO will play in the final!

After he played a great World Cup in Germany, he went back to Corinthians and he started living a very difficult season. He got in the middle of a fight between the Brazilian team and the guy who owned him and Carlitos TEVEZ: Kia JOORABCHIAN, head of the MSI consortium.

So after a very controversial few days in São Paulo, the due emigrated to England and they were placed at Upton Park to play for West Ham.

It all looked really great for them and the team looked like they could achieve something this term. Maybe reaching a place in the table that will take them to Europe next season. But suddenly, it all started going horribly wrong for the Hammers. The Argentine duo were not playing very often and out of the two, there was no doubt that Javier MASCHERANO was the one suffering the most. Gone was Alan PARDEW and at one time there were rumours that West Ham could be punished if they played MASCHERANO and TEVEZ.

Javier was even involved in a horrible scene when Tottenham’s Jermaine DEFOE decided to bite him in the shoulder. That was the last time he played for West Ham. October 26th, 2006. Long time, huh?

Then it was dark times for him. The prospect of playing professional, high profile football again before the summer break was doomed by a FIFA regulation that impede players to wear three different shirts in one season. Javier had already play some games for Corinthians and some for West Ham. But FIFA allowed him to move to Liverpool and boom…he is now in the UEFA Champions League final match.

It was thanks to Rafael BENITEZ’s vision. He knew Javier was something special and he gambled with him. More than a gamble, I would say it was a safe bet by Liverpool’s head coach. And now it’s paid off.

For those who saw the match you may agree with me by saying he was arguably the best player on the field. If he wasn’t, then he clearly was amongst the best three or four in company of Jamie CARRAGHER, José REINA and Dirk KUYT.

MASCHERANO showed some touches of brilliance in the art of winning the ball and then give it to another boy in red. He lost a couple of ball that could have cost Liverpool dearly, but the number of time he dispossessed Chelsea players was far superior as were the short and long passes successfully delivered to a team-mate.
At one time, in extra-time, he stole a ball in midfield by going to the floor with a sliding tackle and then he got up in a nano-second to send Dirk KUYT through to face Petr CECH in a clear cut chance. Only that the Dutchman was flagged for offside.

But my favourite two moments of the nights for Javier were the following:

Late in the game, he chased Salomon KALOU down the sideline and with a sliding tackle he touched the ball and made it rebound on KALOU’s leg before it left for a throw in for Liverpool. In that very moment, all of the Anfield crowd went into delirium and applauded MASCHERANO with all they had. And Javier asked them for more. He made a gesture asking them to support the team even more.

And after the game, just before the penalty shoot-out, Liverpool skipper, Steven GERRARD, looked for Javier MASCHERANO to congratulate him and give him thumbs up for his wonderful display.

Once the whole Anfield crowd and legend Steven GERRARD recognise a player for his job well done, then I think he can relax now, he has found a club he can play for a long long time.
You can go to Athens now and see if you can relieve your Olympic memories before you help Argentina in our quest for the Copa America!

VAMOS JAVIER MASCHERANO!

Tall Argies advance in the NBA Playoffs

Further to Seba's article, while our football players had some mixed fortunes in the English Premiership, across the Atlantic Ocean was a different story altogether. What a great weekend it was for the Tall Albicelestes as all four players were on the winning side, with two of them already qualified for the second round.

Carlos DELFINO & Detroit PISTONS First Through

Carlos DELFINO's Detroit PISTONS became the first team to progress further by defeating the Orlando MAGIC 97-93, to complete a 4-0 whitewash in their series. Quiet night for DELFINO as he contributed 8 points & 1 rebound

BULLS Knocks Defending Champion Out!!!

Andres NOCIONI's quote was tacked above Shaquille O'NEAL's seat in the Miami HEAT locker room before the 3rd game of the series, with the key phrase marked in yellow highlighter.

"We will not sweep Miami,'' the Chicago Bulls forward said. But NOCIONI was wrong.

The Bulls won that third game 104-96 in which was the first road playoff win for the franchise sin the "JORDAN/PIPPEN Era". Chapu posted 10 points, 8 rebounds & 2 assists.

And on Sunday, the swept was accomplished. Chicago knocked the defending champions out in the first round by beating them 93-79 in the fourth game and will now be facing the Detroit Pistons in the second round. NOCIONI posted 11 points, 5 rebounds & 1 assists.

It'll be Carlitos vs. Chapu. So we can say now that we will have an Argie in the Eastern Conference Finals regardless of the outcome of the series between Bulls and Pistons.

SPURS lead 2-1 against NUGGETS

On Saturday night San Antonio Spurs took a 2-1 lead in their series against the Denver Nuggets by defeating them 96-91 on their own stadium. Manu GINOBILI combined well with Tim DUNCAN & Tony PARKER by posting 19 points, 7 rebounds & 5 assists. On the other hand Fabricio OBERTO despite being given limited time play, manage to post 4 points and 1 rebound.

Argentines in action in England

Despite Javier MASCHERANO being left out of the Liverpool team that played against Portsmouth today (as Rafa BENITEZ clearly want to keep him fresh for the second leg of the Champions League semifinal against Chelsea), there were five Argentines in action in Today's Premiership fixtures.

They experienced some mixed fortunes with Carlos TEVEZ and Gabriel HEINZE being on the winning side, while Liverpool duo of Gabriel PALETTA and Emiliano INSUA and Middlesbrough's Julio ARCA lost their respective matches.

Let's take it one by one:

Carlos TEVEZ:

West Ham played a game that looked like a final against Wigan Athletic. They needed to win to try and cut out the points difference with the Latics and to position themselves higher in the table to face the last two games with a shot to avoid relegation.

And they won 3-0 in style. Carlitos didn't score and had no assists, but his work rate was there to be seen and his pace caused all sorts of problems to the Wigan defense.

Now they are levelled in points with Wigan (35) but trail on goal difference by 5, so West Ham will have to get at least one point from the last two matches if Wigan are to lose both.

Up next for the Hammers is a tough test at Upton Park against Bolton, while Wigan play against Middlesbrough. The good news for West Ham is that Manchester United have won today and they could secure the title in any of the next two matches (Manchester City and Chelsea), so the Red Devils could field a team of substitutes in the last game of the Premiership against West Ham.

Gabriel HEINZE:

United started off with all sorts of problems at Goodison Park and Everton took a 2-0 lead. That result, combined with a temporary 2-1 Chelsea victory over Bolton, had the two title contenders with the 82 points each, with 3 games to play and the crucial encounter between them at Stanford Brigde on May, 9th.

But Gabriel HEINZE's team came from behind and scored 4 goals in the second half, while Chelsea allowed Bolton to score their second and now Manchester United is clear 5 points at the top of the standings.

If both teams win their next game (Manchester United will visit Manchester City, while Arsenal will entertain Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium), then the Red Devils could be crowned champions with a win or a draw against Chelsea at Stanford Bridge.

Gabriel PALETTA and Emiliano INSUA:

Out of the fight for the league title, with a place in next year's UEFA Champions League already in the bag and with a very important game on Tuesday against Chelsea for the Champions League semifinals, Rafa BENITEZ preserved his key men.

So Liverpool came to play against Portsmouth without REINA, CARRAGHER, FINNAN (I think he was injured anyway), AGGER, RIISE, GERRARD, MASCHERANO, PENNANT, CROUCH and KUYT.

So with an almost entire reserve team, the couple of Argentine defenders, Gabriel PALETTA and Emiliano INSUA, had a chance to start for the Reds.

It wasn't easy for them and Portsmouth won 2-1. With one of the goals coming when MWARUWARI out-paced PALETTA before beating DUDEK.

Emiliano INSUA made his absolute debut for Liverpool after he was loaned from Boca Juniors in January 2007 . He did quite well playing as a left-back and he even had an effort off target. INSUA will stay at Anfield Road until August 2008. He is 18 years old.

Julio ARCA:

He entered the game in the 64th minute when his team (Middlesbrough) were losing 2-1 at home against Tottenham. He couldn't do much and the Spurs came out victorious 3-2.

BREAKING NEWS: SAVIOLA to play for Real Madrid

After more than one endless soap operas regarding Javier SAVIOLA's future, it appears that he will leave FC Barcelona to play for non other than arch-rivals Real Madrid.

Prestigious Spanish sports newspaper Marca is confirming the news that SAVIOLA will join fellow Argentineans Gonzalo HIGUAIN and Fernando GAGO at the White Empire on July 1st this year.

Personally, I think it is a good move for the Little Rabbit as he was underestimated very often by manager Frank RIJKAARD at Barça.

There were rumours of SAVIOLA having 15 offers from 6 different countries, but I doubt there was a club bigger than Real Madrid interested in his services at the present time, so I believe it is a wise choice by him.

However, he must know that he will be exposed to abuse from Barça fans the first (and every) time that he'll face the Catalan Giants wearing a white jersey.

It remains to be seen whether if he will have enough chances to play for the first team in Madrid. But it doesn't change his situation that much, as it was the same at Barça.

Good luck to Javier in this next experience and here's hoping that this is good news for our National Team, provided that he plays more regularely and has more chances to hit form.

The return of a warrior

Three days for that nightmare to be forgotten. Three days before he starts patrolling the midfield and reaching both areas with his incredible display of energy. Three days that seem longer than those horrible almost 200 days since he got injured in that friendly between Argentina and Spain.

Maxi RODRIGUEZ will go to the bench for Atlético de Madrid this Saturday against Betis and this is great news for our national team.

He spoke with Olé and talked about how he lived this time away from the pitch, how he remembers that great goal he scored against Mexico in the World Cup, how his grandfather is a key figure in his life and how his childhood hero surprised him after he got injured.

“I had the surgery in the morning and at night, my mobile phone rang and I heard him saying: “Hi Maxi, is Cholo speaking”. I was excited to talked to him. Diego SIMEONE was my childhood hero. When I played as a little boy, I pretended to be SIMEONE. So you can imagine what it meant to me for him to call me that day. I was also called by HEINZE, FIGUEROA, Gonzalo RODRIGUEZ and even XAVI (the FC Barcelona midfielder). He is adored by the supporters of Atletico de Madrid and I wish that one day he can have the chance to coach me”.

“I met SIMEONE when he was in the national team and I was a young kid playing for the sparring team in Argentina’s training sessions. Back in those days he always supported me and he used to tell me to keep up my hard work that one day I’d make it. I remember I was lucky enough to play against him once. I was in Espanyol and he played for Lazio. After the game we swapped shirts. Those are memories that I’ll keep forever.”

“My leg has responded very well. It is an injury that is very tough and it depresses you at the beginning, because everything is very slow and it seems like you’ll never have the chance to play again. But here I am. I’m ready now.”

“To play in the Copa America is one of my goals. I have it on my mind. But I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself because I don’t want to take a false step. I want to take it slow, play some matches for Atlético…but at the same time, I’ll work the best I can to return to our national team and have the manager (Alfio BASILE) to consider me”

“I know that BASILE have always said good things about me and it really makes me proud when I read on the news what he said about me. It is one of those things that give me strenght, because it was a short period that I shared with him prior my injury, just two days. And we just talked about basic things for that friendly against Spain. I wish I’m still in his plans for the Copa America”

“BASILE also called me after the surgery. He always gave me peace of mind. He said not to rush my recovery, not to try and comeback right away. That really helps.”

“Everytime the number of the AFA (Argentine Football Association) appears on my mobile’s caller ID, I’m happy. Because there is nothing better than the Albiceleste for me.”

“I don’t know if I’m a player identified with our national team. I leave that for others to say. I feel I’m estimated. I’m always eager to play for Argentina.”

“I think I’ve lived wonderful things with the Albiceleste: Being U20 World Cup champions and doing it in your own country was really important. It even caused my name to be known in Buenos Aires, because when you are from the inner Argentina (Rosario), it is harder for the people in the big city to know who you are. That Youth World Cup title opened the doors of Europe for me. And then, of course, playing in Germany 2006 was really huge for me, despite that pain that still remains inside”.

“I just watched my goal against Mexico once right after the World Cup. The thing is that I tried to forget about the World Cup, such was the pain that I felt after being knocked out by Germany. I tried to do things not related to football. I didn’t even watch the semifinals or the final. I think I’ll forget that pain that Germany 2006 left me if I have the chance to play the next World Cup (South Africa 2010).”

“Back in Madrid, I watched that goal more often. I wanted to look for things to cheer me up and to lighten my mood while I was injured.”

“My grandfather became a celebrity in Argentina! After the World Cup, the media interviewed him more than they interviewed me! But he deserves the recognition. He did a lot of efforts to take me to my local club (Malvinas) when I was a little boy. And besides, he was the one who insisted that I use the left foot to kick the ball aswell. It was thanks to him that I managed to scored with my left against Mexico”.

Draw For The FIFA 2007 Women's World Cup

The draw for the 5th edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, which took place last Sunday in the city of Wuhan, has just been concluded, and we could be in for a real tough time. Grouped together with our ladies in Group A, are defending champion Germany, England and Japan. We will provide you some inside information and preview pertaining to the Señoritas Albicelestes, in the future, especially towards the build up of the tournament.



But for now, here is the complete draw:-

Group A - Germany, Argentina, England, Japan

Group B - USA, Nigeria, Sweden, Korea DPR

Group C - Norway, Australia, Canada, Ghana

Group D - China PR, Brazil, Denmark, New Zealand

Now I would just like to share on what a remarkable improvement have the ladies made, since they're historically debut four years ago when the competition was held in the United States.

Having being in the shadows of continental rivals Brazil for many years, the team achieved the unexpected when they defeated them in last year Sudamericano Femenino by 2-0. Though the team has met with minimum requirement to qualify for the World Cup, the most significant importance of that result allowed us to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the first ever in our women's football history.

I was really ashamed that I did not include them in our Best of Argentina 2006 Top 10 review last year, after having just found out what a major achievement it was for us.

VAMOS SEÑORITAS!!!

Scola, Wolkowyski Give Thumbs-Up To Argentina

Luis Scola has given Argentina’s Olympic qualifying hopes a shot in the arm by confirming he will play for the country at this summer’s FIBA Americas Championship. BC Khimki veteran Ruben Wolkowyski has also said he intends to play.

With Walter Herrmann having all but ruled himself out and his fellow NBA-based players Manu Ginobili, Fabricio Oberto and Andres Nocioni hinting they will miss, national team coach Sergio Hernandez was desperate for some good news and now he’s got it.

Both Wolkowyski and Scola were important members of the teams that captured gold at the Athens Games in 2004 and silver two years earlier at the FIBA World Championship in Indianapolis.

Power forward Scola, who plays in Spain with ACB giants Tau Ceramica, told the Clarin newspaper: "I have never said I wouldn’t play (at the FIBA Americas Championship) or that I was in doubt."

Wolkowyski, a 2.07m BC Khimki center speaking ahead of his team’s Russian Superleague playoff tie with Dynamo Moscow Region, told the Ole newspaper: "I want to play at the pre-Olympic championship."I always want to play for the national team. It has given a lot to us, so we have to give something back too."Every Argentinian’s dream is to play in the national team, as well as mine."

However, the 33-year-old says that at his age, taking the summer off could make sense as he tries to prolong his career."I am fine now, but on Friday I start to play two games in two days and I am not 25 years old," he said."If it has been six or seven years ago, I would have walked all the way to join the national team, but now my body feels trips and games."I also want to see if I can sign for another team which would allow me peace of mind when joining the national team."

Scola was philosophical about the possible absences of veterans."This change does not have to be necessarily bad," Scola said."What we have to do is to leave comparisons aside. If we compare, we’ll have problems. We’ll have to start writing a new story as a team."

The three teams with the best chances of taking the two qualifying places in the tournament that is staged from August 22 to September 2 in Las Vegas are the United States, Argentina and Brazil."It will be a real war," Scola said."It will be terribly tough. The United States play at home and Brazil are a great team who want to take one of the berths."There are also some good teams like Puerto Rico and Venezuela, plus some others who always make it complicated for you, such as Panama and the Dominican Republic."

courtesy of http://www.fiba.com/

Inter: A title with a little bit of Tango

Yes, they won the league title last year but it was on a desk and not on the pitch. Nobody will remember that title.

But today, Internazionale became the Italian champion for the season and they won it in style, deservingly.

By beating Siena 2-1 with both goals scored by controversial Marco MATERAZZI, Inter took their tally to 15 league titles. This is the first time they win the league on the pitch since 1989.

This success has an extra value for a few Argentinians who are wearing the black and blue, but specially for the big captain: Javier ZANETTI.

He's suffered immensely since arriving to the "nerazzurri", but his work rate and determination, as well as his talent and commitment have made him a symbol of the Italian giants. He deserves to be the first one to lift that trophy.

Along with him, in today's starting lineup, there were another 4 Argies: Nicolás BURDISSO, Esteban CAMBIASSO, Santiago SOLARI and Julio CRUZ. Mariano GONZALEZ stayed in the bench, while Hernán CRESPO is injured and Walter SAMUEL was sidelined.

So it is a triumph for a great bunch of Argentinians and they deserve it.

Congratulations to them!