Thursday, September 20, 2012

Europa League Madnessss!!!

Okay...maybe not madness per se, but there we some great moments.

Yes, perhaps a drawback to UEFA's match schedule could possibly be that after two days of unbelievable Champions League play, we must then watch one mashed up day of the Europa League. But there is never a tournament too boring for the Calcio Queen! Now, I couldn't watch every single match but, the ones I did catch were pretty good, especially the Liverpool-Young Boys match up, as exciting as I predicted. But perhaps the most exciting match of all was Calcio Queen v Computer, one that I indeed came out the loser. I unsuccessfully attempted to get a stream of the Napoli game that wasn't blurry and in some strange language. After a frustrating 30 min I gave up and put my full attention on watching Liverpool, which turned out to not be such a bad idea. Napoli ended up beating AIK 4-0. 

Yes, a win for Napoli, I could not be happier! A hat trick by Eduardo Vargas was only made that much sweeter with an additional goal by Blerim Dzemaili in the 91st minute. But, what seemed like what would be a perfect start to their Europa League campaign was marred by a red card for Marek Hamsik in the 75th minute, suspending him from the next match. That really is a huge loss, he is one of my favorite players and an important part of the Napoli side. Also in Italy, Inter Milan were held to a 2-2 draw by Rubin Kazan. Yuto Nagatomo was the savior there, scoring the equalizer in the 92nd minute earning the point for Milan. That, however, wasn't the only close call in Italy today. Udinese drew 1-1 with Anzhi with a goal from the incredible Antonio Di Natale in the 92nd minute. 

Now on to the English clubs. I could not be happier with Liverpool's performance today!! Like many teams, their star players were left on the sidelines to give some new comers their first starts. It was a high intensity match and I was very entertained throughout. The final score ended up being 5-3 Liverpool. Young Boys started off a bit shaky, scoring an own goal in the 4th minute to give Liverpool an early lead. After that, it was an up and down battle for the win right until the end. Young Boys equalized with a goal from Raphael Nuzzolo in the 38th, only to be countered two minutes later in the 40th with a goal for Liverpool from Andre Wisdom. Though the 2-1 Liverpool lead at halftime would have been perfectly fine, it didn't end there.The scorer of the own goal, Juhani Ojala redeemed himself in the 53th with a goal for Young Boys, which was made only that much better with another goal 10 minutes later from Gonzalo Zarate. Liverpool were now down 3-2, something big needed to happen, and boy did it! Sebastian Coates scored from range in the 67th, which from a glance, looked like it was nudged in by Borini, but it was proved a bit later that he missed the ball completely and the goal was given to Coates. It didn't matter though, Liverpool got the goal and it was tied at 3. Then, proof that subs really do make a difference, after coming on in the 67th for Oussama Assaidi, Jonjo Shelvey scored 2 more goals for Liverpool in the 76th and 88th securing the win for Liverpool in Switzerland. If there was any team that needed a win this week, it was them. Good job Liverpool! I have been waiting so long to say that! 



Not such great things can be said about the Tottenham-Lazio game, which ended in London with  0-0 draw. Clint Dempsey got the start for his new side, which I loved, its great seeing Americans in huge competitions like this, however, the Spurs other American, Brad Freidel was on the bench and Hugo Lloris was given the start in goal. This has caused quite a bit of controversy lately. If Freidel is doing consistently well in goal, then there really isn't any reason to change him. However, Lloris is amazing, he captains France and is one of the greats for them in goal. He is quite younger than Freidel, and AVB says that Lloris was bought for the future to be put in the goal at Tottenham. My opinion is that Tottenham is struggling and Lloris is too good to be sitting on the bench, and honestly, I think the people at Spurs know that. No matter what their statement is, I don't think that Lloris is going to be anybody's backup, certainly not until Brad Freidel decides to retire. But this match was pretty bad, and once again, it sucks to be Tottenham. There were two disallowed goals, one was from Clint Dempsey and was ruled off sides by the ref. It didn't look off to me, nor to anyone else, but what the ref says goes. The second came off a header, with a whistle for a foul against the offense right before the ball went into the back of the net. I was expecting more from Lazio, but a point on the road is definitely better than a loss.  

This weekend....

Is really going to be a good one back in the prem! I'll be watching Chelsea v Stoke on Saturday, but Sunday is definitely the big day. Liverpool v Manchester United and right after Arsenal v Manchester City. Those matches will be so incredible, I can't wait!! It was a busy week in the soccer world, I hope you enjoyed it. As always, may your days be as beautiful as the game we love so much! Ciao!!


Calcio Queen 


Europa League Time!!

I just love weeks like these!! Great matches on almost every day of the week!! Today starts the UEFA Europa League campaign, which means another day of some really competitive fixtures. Defending champs and Super Cup winners Atletico Madrid will be starting the defense of their title against Hapoel Tel-Aviv, lets see how many goals Falcao will get today. Here's a never ending list it seems of todays fixtures. Enjoy!!



1:00 pm EST

Liverpool v Young Boys
Udinese v Anzhi Makhachkala
Hapoel Tel-Aviv v Atletico Madrid
Viktoria Plzen v Academica de Coimbra
AEL v Borussia Monchengladbach
Fenerbahce v Marseille
Bordeaux v Club Brugge
Maritimo v Newcastle United
FC Copenhagen v Molde
Stuttgart v Steaua Bucuresti
Dnipro v PSV Eindhoven
Napoli v AIK

3:05 pm EST

Racing Genk v Videoton FC Fehervar
Sporting Lisbon v FC Basel
Inter Milan v FK Rubin Kazan
Partizan Belgrade v Neftchi
Athletic Bilbao v Hapoel Kiryat Shmona
Lyon v Sparta Prague
NK Maribor v Panathinaikos
Tottenham v Lazio
Bayer Leverkusen v FC Metalist Kharkiv
Rapid Vienna v Rosenborg
Levante v Helsinborg
Twente Enschede v Hannover 96

Always a bit overwhelming, but with a huge amount of games like this, there is bound to be a few surprises! I'm looking forward to watching the incredible Miroslav Klose and Lazio take on AVB and Tottenham, also my favorite Italian side Napoli!! The Liverpool-Young Boys match should be great as well, I remember watching the Young Boys from Bern a few years ago in qualification and they were impressive. No matter which match you choose (and there are quite a few) no doubt it will be amazing! Ciao


Calcio Queen 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Noite do OSCAR!!!!!!!

Too bad the final result was a draw....

Yes...no matter what the final result was tonight at the bridge I am still dedicating this blog entry to Oscar. Chelsea's Brazilian savior! It was his first start for Chelsea, first goal for Chelsea (and then second) and first Champions League appearance. His goals were the only 2 of the game and our 1 point is owed to that kid (I don't care that he's only a year younger than me...he looks like he's 12). Now I was clearly watching the Chelsea match...I would have given anything to be at Stamford Bridge tonight, so I'll start there.


The start of the Champions League season always seems to be a bittersweet one for Chelsea fans, though this time there was a different feeling. We are defending our title. Now I'm used to not seeing Drogba in the first few games, in the past years he was always serving some sort of suspension from the previous season at the beginning of the group stages. However, this time, Drogba would never be coming back, and instead, a kid who looked like this game was a bit past his bedtime was wearing the number 11 for Chelsea. Now, Oscar had subbed in a few times so far this season, and I thought he was pretty good, but a CL start against defending Italian champions Juventus? Interesting choice RDM. Well, even though we only managed a draw, Oscar impressed me, and I applaud RDM for taking the chance. Juve was going to be a tough game anyway. Italians are known for having the best defense in the world, and some of the problems that Chelsea ran into were due to that. Giorgio Chiellini alone is one of the best defenders in the world, it was going to be difficult either way, this is the Champions League its not meant to be easy. Chelsea had a good first half, Ramires, Oscar, and Hazard had some amazing crosses into the box, but it was hard for Torres to convert them into goals. He has struggled since coming to Chelsea and a wall of huge Italian defenders wasn't helping that situation. Neither side played badly per se. There were mistakes made by both sides. The midfield was a bit sloppy all together. Balls were given away countless times by both sides. Also, there were a lot of missed opportunities by both sides. A free kick by Andrea Pirlo in the 41st went wide, from an angle he's known to score from. Also, in the 21st Claudio Marchisio had an incredible opportunity on side while the Chelsea defense thought he was off, that shot was blocked by Cech. Chelsea had chances to up the score as well, Lampard hit an amazing free kick from 22 yards out in the 51st which was blocked by Buffon. RDM chose to liven things up in the midfield by replacing Ramires for Ryan Bertrand in the 59th and Oscar in the 73rd for Juan Mata. Mata is known to be creative in the midfield and was involved several times in the few minutes that he played. After two unbelievable goals by Oscar, two minutes apart, in the 31st and 33rd a limping Arturo Vidal scored one for Juve in the 38th, and sub Fabio Quagliarella scored the equalizer in the 80th. Each team took home one point, and though Chelsea won every single home game in the CL last season, this was still a good result. Juve was always going to be a tough game, I said it as soon as I saw the draw. A point against the second best team in the group is still good, Chelsea can't dwell on it, its time to move on. Elsewhere in group E, Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk beat Danish champions Nordsjalland, earning them the top spot in the group. 

After a shaky start, Barcelona beat Spartak Moscow 3-2. Pique went off injured in the 12th minute, followed by a goal for Barca from Tello. Only to be equalized in the 29th by Dani Alves scoring an own goal. Romulo scored in the 59th for Moscow giving them the lead, for a little at least. The always incredible Messi scored in the 72nd and 80th securing the win for Barca. Also in group G, Celtic and Benfica each earned a point with a 0-0 draw. 

In group F, Bayern Munich beat Valencia with a goal in the 38th from Schweinsteiger and one in the 76th from Toni Kroos. Valencia did manage to get one right at the end from Nelson Valdez in the 91st. There was a bit of drama at the end of this one as well, with Adil Rami getting a second yellow in the 3rd minute of stoppage time earning him a red and an exclusion from their next match against Lillie. Unfortunately, Mario Mandzukic missed the penalty, but Bayern didn't need it with the final result ending with a 2-1 win for the Germans. The other match in the group ended with a 3-1 win for BATE Borisov against French side Lille

Manchester United also started their Champions League campaign with a win over Galatasaray from a Michael Carrick goal in the 7th minute. Also in group H, CFR Cluj-Napoca beat Braga 2-0 earning themselves 3 points as well. 

Heres a look at the tables now...

Group E

Shakhtar Donetsk                                       3pts
Juventus                                                      1pt
Chelsea                                                       1pt
Nordsjaelland                                              0pts

Group F

BATE                                                         3pts
Bayern Munich                                          3pts
Valencia                                                    0pts
Lillie                                                          0pts

Group G

Barcelona                                                  3pts
Benfica                                                      1pt
Celtic                                                        1pt
Spartak Moscow                                        0pts

Group H

CFR Cluj                                                    3pts
Manchester United                                    3pts
Galatasaray                                               0pts
Braga                                                        0pts 



Even though my Chelsea got a draw, today was still an exciting day! Its just the beginning of the group stages and we still have a lot more Champions League soccer to go! Tomorrow is the start of the Europa League season. Liverpool will be playing Young Boys and my favorite Italian side, Napoli will be beginning their campaign against AIK. Also, Tottenham will be playing Lazio which should be a good game. The Europa league is full of great teams, like Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Newcastle, Udinese, Lyon, and countless others. Too bad they all have to play on the same day! Oh well, that just guarantees tomorrow will be just as exciting as today! Ciao!!!



Calcio Queen 




And Now For Round Two!!!!!

Another day, another load of exciting games to watch!! 


I am so excited for day 2 of the UEFA Champions League!! Especially because my team is playing!! Playing to defend our title we are!!! Here's a list of today's schedule. Enjoy!!  



Chelsea v Juventus
Shakhtar Donetsk v FC Nordsjelland
Bayern Munich v Valencia
Lille v BATE Borisov
Barcelona v Spartak Moscow
Celtic v Benfica
Braga v CFR Cluj-Napoca
Manchester United v Galatasaray


We've got a great bunch of games to watch today!!! The Chelsea game is definitely the best out of this group, but Bayern-Valencia is a great match up too. Its is going to be a fantastic day! Can't wait for the results! Enjoy!!



74TAKYWT8VBN

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Mayhem in Madrid!!!

And all quiet on the Italian front....


Well, the first day of the 2012-2013 UEFA Champions League season is in the books! And what a day it was! There were some shockers, some disappointments, and everything in between. The first goal of the Champions League campaign was scored by Malaga's Isco in the 3rd minute. Malaga went on winning that game against Zenit, the only winner in group C, but more on that later. 

I do believe that we should first address this mayhem. Now I chose not to watch this game, for the simple fact that I can't stand either team and why would I put myself through that? But I did refresh my phone every minute to get up to date results on all of the other games around Europe (I watched the AC Milan-Anderlecht game). As I was looking at the Madrid-City game I was in total disbelief. Though for a majority of the game it was scoreless, Madrid had ridiculous attacking numbers. The final stats for them were 35 shots and 12 on goal, Joe Hart had his work cut out for him with 9 saves. I did see one of his saves early on, it was incredible, he is hands down one of the best keepers in Europe, possibly the world. If I HAD to choose the team I wanted to win this one it would probably be City, but as soon as they got their first goal in the 68th, Madrid equalized in the 76th. They were on top again with another goal in the 85th, only to be shut down again when Madrid scored again in the 87th. The third and winning goal for Madrid came in the 90th by hands down my least favorite player in the entire worldddddddd. Ronaldo. Good thing Dortmund also won their game against Ajax to keep Madrid tied for 1st in the group of death. 

PSG pleasantly surprised me with their 4-1 win against Dynamo Kiev. Ibra scored a penalty early on in the 9th, with three more coming from Alex (yaayy!! I love him even though he's no longer at Chelsea), Thiago Silva, and Javier Pastore. This was PSG's first real test competing at the top level and it seems as if they did pretty well. The group isn't too difficult, their only real test should come when they play Porto, who also won their game against Dinamo Zagreb. After conceding a goal due to a penalty early on, Arsenal  won 2-1 against Montpellier with goals from Podolski and Gervinho. They did well against the defending French champs and if they keep this form up, could even win the group. Schalke beat Olympiakos in the other game in group B. 


Now onto group C action! I watched the AC Milan-Anderlecht game for several reasons. I normally support AC Milan so I enjoy watching them (which was why I didn't watch a match between two teams I hate) plus, Anderlecht has all of that young Belgian talent that I talk about oh so much. Milan hasn't exactly had a great start to the season, they're currently 13th in Serie A and have yet to score a single goal at home, this includes today's home match. They have been dealing with injury problems and it is still very early in the Serie A season, only 3 games so far. The season in Belgium has been going on for quite a bit longer, Anderlecht have 13 games in the book so far this season. Milan just didn't seem to get it together, they were sloppy and there was no fluidity at all, Anderlecht were the better team. There were some great chances, but no side produced a goal. After a pretty sad first half for Milan, things seemed to pick up for them at the beginning of the second half. The only stand out player for me was Kevin Prince Boateng, who was subbed out in the 59th minute. The last person I thought to be taken off would be him (he apparently felt the same way, the cameras caught him throwing a water bottle on the ground in anger). But his replacement, El Shaarawy made an immediate impact. He had some amazing crosses and a few shots, but, in the end produced nothing. Anderlecht had a few stand out players, Belgian international Guillaume Gillet, (who I wrote about only last week!) impressed me once again with his performance. A right back who always seemed to make his way up to goal, Gillet also had a few promising moments. Malaga beat Zenit 3-0 in the other group C match.

Here's a look at what the tables look like now...

Group A

PSG                              3pts
FC Porto                       3pts
Dinamo Zagreb             0pts
Dynamo Kiev                0pts

Group B 
Schalke                           3pts
Arsenal                           3pts
Montpellier                     0pts
Olympiakos                     0pts

Group C
Malaga                            3pts
AC Milan                         1pt
Anderlecht                      1pt
Zenit St. Petersburg        0pts

Group D
Real Madrid                      3pts
Borussia Dortmund           3pts
Manchester City                0pts
Ajax                                  0pts


An exciting day 1 to the UEFA Champions League group stages is already over! Tomorrow has some really great matches, including my defending European Champions Chelsea! I can't wait! Here's to tomorrow being just as exciting as today!! Ciao!!

Calcio Queen 

The Day Has Finally Come!!!!!!!!!

I've been waiting for the return of the UEFA Champions League for so long!! The day has finally come!! Today marks the beginning of the group stages, here are list of todays matches. Enjoy!!!!


Dinamo Zagreb v FC Porto
Paris Saint-Germain v Dynamo Kiev
Montpellier v Arsenal
Olympiakos v Schalke 04
AC Milan v Anderlecht
Malaga v Zenit St Petersburg
Borussia Dortmund v Ajax Amsterdam
Real Madrid v Manchester City




No matter which game you choose to watch I guarantee they will all be incredible! This is the Champions League after all. But, the easy choice for the best match of the day definitely goes to Real Madrid v Manchester City. Who will end up on top? We'll have to wait and find out. The road to Wembley starts TODAY!!!! 

Monday, September 17, 2012

The Snub Heard Around the World

To shake or not to shake...

Apparently the younger of the Ferdinand brothers chose not to shake, which is appropriate, since it was just a match played in the schoolyard by a bunch of kids. Oh, wait...it wasn't? It was a grown man pretty much causing a tantrum in front of millions of viewers worldwide? Oh that was very mature of you, Anton. NOT! There was a lot of speculation as to whether or not Ferdinand was going to shake the hands of John Terry and Ashley Cole ahead of Saturday's Chelsea-QPR match, even more so than the game itself. It pretty much turned out exactly how people expected it would, Terry and Cole, the only two adults out of the three apparently, were all ready to shake the hand of every QPR player, until Ferdinand obnoxiously and obviously skipped the hands of the two Chelsea players. No one would have really thought much into it, unless Ferdinand didn't make such a big deal about it. Now, I'm not just saying this from the point of view of a Chelsea fan, Ferdinand was clearly making a big deal out of something as simple as a handshake. JT's good name has been cleared, and I, as well as everyone else I'm sure just want all of this to be over. But no, Ferdinand had to remind us all, and prove how childish he was in the process. Well, thats enough on that! Cole and Terry were the bigger men, and hey, it's not like JT isn't used to people snubbing him on the handshakes (Wayne Bridge...this means you). Next time, let's try to keep the personal problems off the pitch gentlemen. 

Now onto the game itself! The result was a 0-0 draw and honestly, I'm okay with that. There was a fast, high intensity energy throughout the match and either side could have come up with a goal. Chelsea had a few amazing shots on goal, stopped by new QPR keeper, Julio Cesar. Unfortunately (for everyone else, not QPR obviously) the Brazilian legend chose to end his time with Inter in Serie A, to play for the prem in England, and out of all the teams, he chose QPR. Actually, a majority of QPR's starting line up was sort of a whos who of rejected players from around Europe. I mean, they were pretty busy in this transfer window, I guess its time to break the new guys in. Park and Fabio from Manchester United, played well, Park is even QPR's captain. Fabio was subbed out in the 20th due to injury, poor guy can't catch a break. Why he would choose to play the exact same position as his twin brother is beyond me, obviously the better one will get to play, Fabio only had 5 starts for Manchester United last season, his twin, Rafael getting the rest. But you know what, I'm rooting for him at QPR, it's your time to shine Fabio, show us what you've got! Andrew Johnson and Bobby Zamora both came from Fulham, and actually work extremely well together, unfortunately, Johnson went off in the 33rd, also due to injury. Another newcomer, Jose Boswinga, from Chelsea, umm have fun...I didn't like you anyway. 
The Chelsea subs immediately made a difference, Daniel Sturridge, a player who I really want to see more of, both for England and Chelsea, I think he's just great, and Moses with his first start really widened things up for Chelsea, the away side, and had some magnificent crosses. For now, Chelsea is still at the top of the table, with Manchester United in a close second, who also won this weekend (boo who cares), just in case you were wondering. :) 

But the team that impressed me the most this weekend would have to be Arsenal. Sure it was against a newly promoted Southampton side, and 2 of the 6 goals were own goals from them but, still! Since the news of Van Perise's exit this summer everyone was a little nervous about how Arsenal was going to fair without him, and apparently its not too bad. Of the 4 goals scored by the Arsenal players, there was one by Podolski, two by Gervinho, and one by Theo Walcott, exactly the people you would expect to step up with Van Persie gone. My fav Oliver Giroud replaced Podolski in the 75th, a goal is coming for him soon I can feel it!

Now onto the team that made me the most sad this weekend. I want Liverpool to do well, I really do, I just don't know what the problem is! Luis Suarez is one of my favorite players ever, and he was the savior of this game against Sunderland, scoring the tying goal in the 71st after having conceded one in the 29th. Liverpool's starting line up is full of stars, their captain Steven Gerrard, Borini, Daniel Agger, Glenn Johnson, Martin Skrtel, Stewart Downing, and of course Luiz Suarez, so then why are they currently 17th in the table? Sure its early in the season but, they have yet to win a game so far this season, drawing 2 and loosing 2. This is a club with great history, and one that I really respect, I hope that as the season progresses, things look up for them. 
Another disappointment, Spurs (I could care less if they continue to suck or not) managed their first win of the season against newly promoted Reading, and are currently in the middle of the table with 5 points. 

Man City could also only manage a draw against Stoke (hahahahaha!!) I also need to mention that I just finished watching the Newcastle-Everton game and it was fantastic! Thats why this league really is the best in the world, even a game between sides like these can be edge of your seat nail biters! Everton was the better team throughout the first half, deserving the lead at half time, until Newcastle really stepped it up in the 2nd half, starting with an equalizer from Demba Ba in the 49th minute. But it was the last 10 min that really were spectacular. 2 disallowed goals for Everton, one, an offsides call that didn't seem to be offsides, and the second, a ball clearly over the line, but not according to the linesman. Just when you thought it was over, Victor Anichibe scored what seemed to be a game winner for Everton in the 88th, until Demba Ba came back 2 minutes later in stoppage time to equalize for Newcastle yet again! The game was really great!

Next time....

Now if you thought this week in the prem was great, just wait until tomorrow. CHAMPIONS LEAGUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been waiting for so long it seems for the return of my favorite league in the whole entire world! There are so many games I wish I could watch them all! I can't wait to watch my Chelsea defend their title against Juve on Wednesday. The most exciting game on Tuesday will definitley be the group of death match between Real Madrid and Manchester City...too bad I hate them both, here's to Dortmund and Ajax winning that group! (sighhh I can dream can't I?) I do love every game in this league though, and Europa League on Thursday! It's going to be an exciting week in the soccer world, enjoy it! May your days be as beautiful as the game we love!! Ciao!!!!

Calcio Queen 

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold

Well, in this case hot...red hot. Red white and blue hot that is!!

Yess!! We did it! Team USA needed a win at home against Jamaica and we managed it beautifully. It wasn't perfect of course, it never is for us. I mean the number of shots that hit the post and the cross bar were ridiculous. The kind of bad luck that the US national team is kind of famous for. Though the final result was only 1-0 the US was definitely the better team throughout and deserved the win. The game winner came off a beautifully crafted free kick in the 56th minute by Hercules Gomez. The Klinsman camp should be so proud of this win, especially since I recently read in the headlines that it could be his fault that the US has been struggling so much. Well I hate whoever started that one!!! I love Jurgen Klinsman, I thought he should have taken the job to be our manager waaaaayyy back in 2006 when he stepped down from the same job for the German team. It took 5 years for the US soccer federation to finally realize what I've been saying for so long but, better late then never I guess. It hasn't been perfect, but he's making a difference. He's experimenting with the team, trying out some new guys. During last night's game I was blown away by newcomer Graham Zusi, who has got his start because of Klinsman. He also understands the importance of Clint Dempsey...I mean Dempsey is not only my favorite player in the entire world (yeesssss!!!!!) he is the backbone of our team and needs to be used as such. Some of my other favorites like Jozy Altidore and Maurice Edu have struggled to find a permanent spot under Klinsman, but they are both strong for their clubs, Altidore in the Netherlands and Edu recently signed for Stoke, that I think they will soon be able to bust their way back in. Well it's pretty clear how big a spot my national team has in my heart. Our next games are must wins, but I am optimistic. Watch out Brazil, the yanks are coming! Also in CONCACAF Mexico won (as always) and they are through to the next round (boooooooo). 


Now on to UEFA qualification. There were actually some shockers there! I'll start with the game that I fully watched...90 minutes of my time went to this. I really hope I'm not a bad luck charm but I watched the England Ukraine game and...oh dear. England is lucky actually, that they even managed to scramble a point out of this one, Ukraine was the better side throughout the match, and that was without Shevchenko. I'm actually kind of pissed that England got the point, their goal was off a penalty in the 87th minute. Now I say kind of pissed because as expected, Frank Lampard took this penalty and no matter what colors he has on there is no situation humanly possible on this earth that would have me root for Super Frank to miss a penalty. He did his job, saved the team, he truly is super. Some not so super things for England, with captain Terry out because of injury Steven Gerrard took that role on, he unfortunately received a red card disqualifying him from the next match. Also, I'm not one to point fingers, but if there was a guy who just had a horrible game it would be poor Tom Cleverley, he missed some huge chances not helping at all with the situation. 
Another team that drew was my team to watch for, Belgium, but it was to Croatia, one of the teams I already knew would be a threat. I attempted to watch the game online, it was a bit fuzzy and I eventually gave up, but it wasn't before I witnessed the amazing shot from range by Guillaume Gillet to equalize in the 45th minute and get the point for Belgium. Another game that I caught for quite a bit longer was the France Belarus game. Now the French team is one that over the past two years I am really starting to enjoy watching. I guess its true what they say, that when you hit rock bottom there is nowhere to go but up because after the horrific 2010 World Cup, France has improved so much, and I'll say it again I really enjoy watching them. I would rather watch them than Spain honestly, I'll say it I don't care, I'm soooooooo bored with Spain. They beat Georgia by the skin of their teeth with a goal in the 86th. Hugo Lloris made his way to Tottenham a few weeks ago, allowing me to see more of him in the premier league which is good. But my French player to watch and pretty much new favorite would probably be Oliver Giroud, it may take some time for him to settle at Arsenal, but when he does I really think he'll do some great things. 

The subject of the French national team actually reminds me why I do like watching international soccer every once in a while. People are always super opinionated with club teams, love some, hate others. This is a way, for me at least, to enjoy watching players who have the unfortunate luck to play for a club team that I hate...and trust me, I hate a lot. Karim Benzema is a perfect example. It's my blog I'll just say it...I hate Real Madrid, maybe more than any other club in the world. When ever I see Benzema play for France, I always forget that he is French, I'm really able to appreciate him in a way that I never would if I were watching a Real Madrid match. The same goes for his teammate Mezut Ozil, I love the German team and think he's a great player, but with Madrid I'm just annoyed by everything. There are lots of other players I love watching play for country because I hate their club, Sergio Aguero or Samir Nasri (what other club could I hate?) However, there are circumstances where I just hate everyone, all the time, (coughhh Man U) 
No shockers anywhere else around UEFA, Germany, Italy (yayyyy!!), the Netherlands, and Portugal all won their games and the groups are beginning to look as expected, with the stronger teams at the top of the tables. 

As I predicted (because I really am just sooooo smart) CONMEBOL is getting all weird and Colombia is slowly rising to the top. They beat a Chile side 3-1, a Chile side that included Alexis Sanchez. They were no match for Falcao who scored 2!! I surprise myself with my predictions!! Colombia is currently 2nd in the table. Heavy hitters Argentina and Uruguay both drew again, to Peru and Ecuador respectively. This is an interesting group, considering that since Brazil are the hosts, they get an automatic spot, meaning that these teams don't have to deal with them at all in qualifying which is a big plus for them. 

Unfortunately just as I was getting into the WC qualifying it has sadly come to an end. Not again until October will we be able to watch our countries battle it out for a spot in the 2014 World Cup. But, no fear, club play has returned to us once again!!! Chelsea plays QPR this weekend, and after what happened last year (I get soooo mad even thinking of it) you know I'll have some thought after that game. But, what I'm most excited for...next week the CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RETURNS!!!!!!!! My Chelsea are defending the title against Juventus, am I scared? Umm Yes, if anyone knows how good they are its me, I wrote about them here before the draw even took place! I have faith in Chelsea though! We'll do it!! Cheer your team on no matter who they are!! As always may your days be as beautiful as the game we all love so much!! Ciao!!

Calcio Queen 



Monday, September 10, 2012

I've Got Brazil Fever!!

Okay...maybe its more like a cold, or a slight cough even. 

Its that time of year again, when the club season that we have waited so long for is stopped, only a few weeks after it started for the international break. It seems like the summer of 2014 is so far away, well it kind of is, but the qualification process is quite a lengthy one, and I have to admit the long drawn out process actually does get me super excited for when the time actually comes. The first round of games are over, and there were some surprises, but honestly the results were pretty standard for me. Except of course for CONCACAF. Ohhhh its too difficult for me to even write that the U.S. lost to Jamaica (a game that wasn't even broadcast in this country, but alas, I could go on about the subject of the absence of soccer in America for days...so I wont) and that Mexico of course won. I'll never give up on my boys in red, white, and blue however and there still is one more day of games to go.

But the most interesting conference in qualification is most definitely UEFA, just because the sheer volume of the games. The game that I watched that day was Italy v Bulgaria, with the commentary in spanish because again, thats what I have to do in this country if I want to watch soccer, but I didn't need to know what was being said to know that it wasn't good. I do know some spanish, so I got some things here and there, they talked for a while about the Mafia and the match fixing in Italy, so thats great...not. My Azzuri were pretty sub par, especially against a team like Bulgaria who they should have beaten. Throughout the first half the Bulgarians had a majority of the possession and scored first leaving the Azzuri trailing for about 5 minutes when they equalized. Things were looking up when Osvaldo scored again before the half was over, but the Bulgarians equalized a few minuted into the second half and Italy was forced to settle with a draw. The other threat in group 2, the Czech Republic also drew against Denmark so currently Armenia, yes, Armenia is at the top of the group with 3 points. But this is of course the beginning of qualification so the stronger teams in this group, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Denmark will still have time to gather up more points. 

Other than the draws in group 2, most of the other teams that you would expect to win in UEFA qualifying did. England thrashed Maldova 5-0, which lets be serious they really needed this win so I say good for them! I also have to add that Bosnia-Herzegovina scored 8 against a side from Liechtenstein that could only muscle up 1. I saw the clips from this game and they were pretty awesome! Goals from all over the place! Including a hat trick from Manchester City's Edin Dzeko. All of the heavy hitters, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, France, and even Ireland and Russia all won their games. The team that I want to keep my eye on throughout qualification this time around is definitely Belgium, who also won. In a few years they really are going to be a force to be reckoned with, but their team now is still pretty awesome. Most notably my favorite, Eden Hazard, obviously, he is like a breath of fresh air at Chelsea! He's made a huge impact since his arrival this summer and things can only get better. Keeping on the Chelsea theme, Lukaku also plays for Belgium, he is still pretty young, but he is the future both for Chelsea and for Belgium. The Belgians also have plenty of other Premier League heavy hitters like the head underneath the awesome head of hair that is Fellaini from Everton, and Vincent Kompany from Manchester City. I'm so excited to see what these guys are going to do, especially when some of the tougher games roll around. Though I'm pretty sure they won't get much grief from a group that includes Macedonia, Wales, and Scotland. The real threats are probably gonna be Croatia and definitely Serbia. 

The most surprising result from CONMEBOL would probably be the (I don't want to say it but I have to) embarrassing 4-0 loss Uruguay suffered at the hands of Colombia. Uruguay is one of my favorite teams in this conference, Luiz Suarez, Diego Forlan, and Edison Cavani are some of my favorite players but even they were no match for Colombia and the I just came out of nowhere it seems to blow everyone's mind Falcao. He scored in the 2nd minute, and early goals like that always start the opposing team off kind of shaky, trust me I know. He pretty much embarrassed Chelsea in the same way at the UEFA Super Cup. But honestly, as I was sitting there in disbelief as he just scored goal after goal I realized that they were just amazing. The kind of goals that even though they're against your favorite team, when you see them you just smile and say, wow that was just incredible. Though he claims that he's going to stay at Atletico, I think that the big clubs are going to pay some huge bucks for a talent like that. And for Colombia in qualifying, sometimes it just takes one person to completely change a team, and the fact that they beat the defending Copa America champions 4-0, well I think CONMEBOL could have another big player on their hands. Even though they're currently in the middle of the CONMEBOL table, this huge Falcao ego boost is obviously pushing this team in the right direction. 

And this was only day one!!

There are going to be so many more stories and upsets from qualifying, however at the end of this week, we'll be finished with the WC qualifying and back to club play (YAYYYY!!!) There are a bunch of games tomorrow too, and a whole day of watching soccer seems like a pretty perfect day to me. May your days be as beautiful as the game we all love so much! Ciao!

Calcio Queen