The World European Championships 2012

I feel like something of a failure, because I have failed to comment on that most dramatic of tournaments, the European Championships. If you need proof of just how great a competition it is, look at the way the entire world is enthralled - and that's without incorrectly adding the word "world" in front of it like some American sports might (you know who you are, Major League Baseball).

Anyway, what a great start to Euro 2012! My vote for goal of the tournament so far is this one by Blajsdfhdfus (or something like that) for Poland:



...but Van Persie's effort against Germany could run it close. Incidentally, the Group of Death is more than living up to its promise, and I'm excited for the conclusion.

England meanwhile, are chugging along happily, securing a draw against France, and looking to get a win against Sweden.

The biggest surprise however, has been Russia, who are looking really good so far. Dark horse? Maybe.

Meanwhile, Roberto Di Matteo was finally rewarded for winning the Champions League last season with a two year contract. This is the most exciting Chelsea management decision in years, so here's looking forward to next season!

Arrivederci England!

I guess it's been a long time coming, but Fabio Capello has finally left his position as England manager permanently. I say "finally," not because I have been calling for it as some have, but because it just seems a long time coming. It seems that there is a lot to process, but what follows is how I make sense of the situation, and what this means for England.

John Terry

The issue that finally broke the camel's back was the stripping of the captain's armband from John Terry. In what has become an incredibly messy affair, John Terry has been accused of racism and subsequently charged by the Police, only for the trial to be set for after Euro 2012. This caused a sticky situation for the Football Association, as they faced the prospect of having a "racist" captain England in this summer's major football tournament. Their response was to take Terry's captaincy away - without consulting Capello and with immediate effect. Here is where I have to stick my neck out a bit and say: I believe that this was the wrong decision.

First let me say that racism is never acceptable and action should always be taken against racial hatred and those who incite it. However, in any situation, do we not believe that a person is innocent until proven guilty? Moreover, it seems somewhat ridiculous that the FA made this rash decision based on a YouTube video and a lot of "he said, she said." I am certain that all of these things are explanations for Capello's lack of action. The FA however, are far more concerned with politics than common sense, and the furor online and in the press was clearly too much for them. They went over Capello's head, and he did what most managers would in such a situation and resigned.

Bad for England?

So where do we go from here? England must now face Euro 2012 in a matter of months with a brand new manager. What's more, Opta puts Fabio Capello as the most successful manager ever in terms of win percentage [click thumbnail to see table].



So is this the end of the world? I think not. Even though I do not agree with the way the FA dealt with the situation that led to his exit, I don't think that Fabio Capello was ever really the right man for the job. Yes, he had an amazing record at club level, but he had absolutely no international experience. His win percentage reflects his abilities as a manager in a domestic-like format, but his record in tournaments is telling in regards to his international capabilities. And let's not even begin to talk about his inability to speak English!

What this situation has presented is an opportunity for someone new to step in without the usual pressure of a big tournament. Obviously they will have to face the usual unrealistic expectations that accompany England to big tournaments, but this time England are coming off of a disappointing World Cup and a manager with little time to create a new team of his own. But who will that be? Twitter has exploded with people putting forth their suggestions - ranging from the clear favourite Harry Redknapp, to long shots such as Gary Lineker or even David Beckham himself! My personal choice would be Redknapp, but if the world does go bonkers and put Beckham in as manager, at least the ladies would have something to look at!

Poppies

With 11/11/11 upon us, it was nice to see the many tributes in the sporting world for Armistice/Remembrance day. Despite FIFA's best efforts, the England football team were finally given the go-ahead to wear poppies on their black armbands for their friendly match against Spain. I was so glad to see that common sense had prevailed. I guess that the worry had been that it was some sort of a political statement, and FIFA didn't want to have to start making exceptions to their rules. But in England, the poppy is nothing political (for most people). It doesn't have to be pro-war or anti-war. It is simply a symbol - a way for us as patriotic people to honour anyone who has died in any conflict. To deny us that show of respect would be heart-breaking. It was great then, to see the boys wearing their poppies with pride, and also observing a two minute silence before training and the game itself.

As a side note...in that very game, England beat the World Champions, Spain! Yes! It wasn't pretty, but it was efficient, and showed great promise for the future of the England team. Now if we could only see that in a tournament...

World Cup! World Cup!

The Rugby World Cup starts Saturday and I can't wait.

Source: google.com via Rachel on Pinterest

England's chances are relatively slim, but remember, we've done it before...




Shortly after the whistle blew, this picture was taken. It is also the inspiration for the title of this post, as Jonny himself claimed to be yelling "World Cup! World Cup!" in his excitement.



Of course, as per usual, the favourites this year are the All Blacks, so here's a little something to set the mood...



Kind of makes you embarrassed for when the BYU football players attempt it...

Weekly Round-Up

In a shocking turn of events, I am actually going to write a post that is actually about sports this week!

Source: bbc.co.uk via Rachel on Pinterest

Last week England's cricket team became the number one test team in the world, after destroying the previous top team India. Alastair Cook was the star man with an amazing 294 runs. It's always great to see an English sports team succeed, especially when you consider that in 1999, England were sitting shamefaced at the bottom of the rankings. Here's to many more years at the top!

On to football, and the start of a brand new Premier League season. It came as much of a surprise to most that Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea all failed to win on the opening day - with all three teams drawing with underwhelming opposition (although we must give at least some credit to Newcastle, Sunderland and Stoke respectively). For your information, here were the results from that opening weekend:

Blackburn 1-2 Wolves

Fulham 0-0 Aston Villa

Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland

Newcastle 0-0 Arsenal

QPR 0-4 Bolton

Wigan 1-1 Norwich

Man City 4-0 Swansea

Stoke 0-0 Chelsea

West Brom 1-2 Man Utd

I guess you could look at this and predict an easy win for Manchester United this season (not that I would ever automatically rule out Man City...except I do), but I don't really believe that there's too much that you can learn from one round of matches, and I still believe anyone could win it.


Over in the United States, Robbie Keane has become the latest player to join the ranks of the MLS, by signing for L.A. Galaxy. Here's what he had to say about it: "I have always wanted to come and play in MLS so it's the perfect combination for me and a dream come true." Now as much as I love the MLS, I find it really hard to believe this statement. If it was indeed a "dream come true," then why on Earth didn't he come over earlier - some time before he turned 31? Come to think of it, why didn't he join Real Salt Lake or any other team here? I suspect that the "dream" lies in living in Los Angeles, rather than playing for their team...

It's Not So Good To Be Green

So the other day I read this article about Robert Green. Apparently he is considering international retirement. This would make him the third English goalkeeper (that is still playing) to make this move, after Paul Robinson and Ben Foster did the same. Other players such as Jamie Carragher and Paul Scholes have also taken similar steps away from international football, and this latest one has got me thinking - what has happened to good, lionhearted patriotism?

I'm beginning to realise just how much I refer to David Beckham in this blog, but to quote the great man's agent, "he will always be available for his country, when fit and if needed, he will be there." Now that's what I call duty to a cause. Now 36, he is no spring chicken, but if he were to be called up, he would be there in a heart beat.

From what I understand, most of the aforementioned players announced their international retirement due to a lack of opportunities...so really international retirement is the new way to save the embarrassment of not being picked for the first team. This is also being cited as Robert Green's excuse.

So not enough opportunities, eh Rob? O.K. then, let's take a look at the last time an English manager let you play...




I know, I know, it was just one mistake - in the opening game of the World Cup - perhaps we should just forgive and forget. So let's take a look at his club form for West Ham...who just got relegated...this is awkward...

Maybe he's right, he should definitely be England's first choice goalkeeper.

SUMMER

Now that Chelsea can officially win nothing this season, following their crushing loss to Manchester United, and with the rugby and basketball seasons over, I feel it is time to turn attention to the best thing about the summer: summer sports! I must admit, there was a time in my life when I bemoaned the summer, and greatly mourned the close of Premiership football each year...how very young and foolish I was. I am here to tell you that there exists a magic formula in sport, and this is it - the sun. There is something so very special about those sports that are half about the result, but just as much about sitting in the sun, eating strawberries and cream, and watching a fine sporting contest.

Cricket

Doesn't this just look like the perfect day?

Many people struggle to understand the sport of cricket, with its long matches and complicated rules. So here's the Sparknotes version: the most runs and you win. Try watching a game of Twenty20 first, as it's more exciting and it's fun to see them wack the ball so much - that's how I got hooked. Americans always argue that higher scores in sports are better, so then cricket would be the perfect sport - run totals are always in the hundreds! Well except sometimes when England have an off day...

Tennis

Yes, I realise that tennis is going all year round, but the climax of the tennis season for many people is that wonderful tournament, Wimbledon. There's nothing like (Kent) strawberries and cream, sunshine, a struggling British hope, and lots and lots and lots of rain to make a great British summer!


Baseball

Now I won't profess to be a huge baseball fan...THIS is a huge baseball fan...

But I did stay up all night in 2004 to watch the Red Sox win the World Series...that's gotta count for something, right? Anyway, much like cricket, baseball is a sport that - for me - is best enjoyed casually, with a cool (non-alcoholic) beverage, and good company.

Athletics

Known in the United States as "track and field", athletics is getting a lot of exposure due to Usain Bolt, which is fair...because he can run the 100m in 9.58 seconds without even breaking a sweat. Anyway, despite the strangeness of having regular competitions of "I can run faster/jump higher/jump longer than you" or the triple jump (weirdest event ever, I have never understood where that came from), there is something really compelling about watching these competions and rooting for your country's athletes. I challenge you to do it (sometime other than during the Olympics) and not get hooked!

For England, and St. George!

Yesterday was St. George's day, and as is custom in England, there were numerous newspaper articles lamenting the loss of a great tradition of a national holiday celebrating England - Ireland have St. Patrick's Day, the United States have the 4th of July...and so on and so on. No doubt plenty of things have been said about English and their patriotism/lack thereof. However, despite the relative unimportance of St.George's day in the English calender, I argue that, perhaps, the English are more patriotic than ever...it is simply manifested differently - through sport.

I know, I know, I would say that in a sports blog; but no one who has ever been to England during a World Cup could possibly argue any different.

For those of you who don't know, England's sporting teams are notoriously unlucky and decidedly average at many sports that we so arrogantly consider to be "ours"; and none more so than the England football team. In the 46 years since 1966, England have failed to win a single World Cup or European Championship. This then, is a tribute to our great, underachieving English football team!

We Was Robbed!

We English do love a good scapegoat. The following are specific reasons why we did not win certain past Word Cups/European championships.

1986 - The "Hand of God" - Maradona cheats to win. In the aftermath of the Falklands War, it is a rivalry that has lasted to this day.




Of course, he also scored a rather good second goal...but we ignore this.

1998 - David Beckham gets sent off. Becomes a hate figure in England.

If you don't know what happened, you can watch it here.

Euro 2004 - The goal that never was, by Sol Campbell.


2010 - The goal that most definitely was, but the linesmen were blind.




Germany went on to win 4-1, but this goal would have made it 2-2, with the momentum in England's favour.

Penalties

For some reason, there exists a curse that springs up as soon as England are involved in a penalty shoot-out. Having only won one in the six that they have been involved in in major competitions, they are not what we would call "penalty masters". And they are usually lost in excruciating circumstances against the Germans. So long World Cup 1990, 1998, 2006 and Euro 1996 and 2004.

On the Plus Side...

English football fans are among the best in the world, and hopefully one day we will be rewarded with a victory that will spark celebrations that will be even greater than when the rugby team won the World Cup in 2003.





But until then, we will just continue to be fiercely patriotic. At least when England play.

Glory Days

England's rugby team lost to Ireland this weekend, thus forfeiting the Six Nations Grand Slam. How appropriate that it should also be on the weekend after St. Patrick's day. I was an unfortunate spectator to this display of great ineptitude by England - the time difference and kind start time meant that I could watch at a rather pleasant 11am - and, although I was mostly just glad to be able to watch some international rugby, it saddened me to see England play so poorly when I can still remember that World Cup and Grand Slam winning team of 2003. It still gives me chills to think of that last-minute drop-kick by Jonny Wilkinson. My current background is (obviously) a tribute to that sweet moment.

You know it's strange, but despite this loss, England are the winners of the 2011 RBS Six Nations trophy - which apparently means nothing if it's not a Grand Slam. Here, with their shining trophy, are Martin Johnson and Lewis Moody looking very...well, moody...

Ah well... I guess you can't have it all...

However, over on this side of the pond, BYU Basketball are very much living their glory days, and loving every minute of it. Proud participants in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, here is a wonderful tribute to the awesomeness that is BYU.