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Football is also played in Laos. It was not a famous s nation
in soccer because of the political problems but now the situation looks good
for the game to move on. The biggest international match victory for Laos was
against Timor-Leste where Laos won by 6-1. As usual football is all about
defeating, being defeated and equal results, in 26th October 2010. The biggest
defeat for Laos was against United Arab Emirates in November, 1963. Laos
suffered a 15-0 defeat in that match. In 1961, Laos played its 1st
international game with South Vietnam. Laos was defeated in that match by 7-0.
Laos has a very long trip to go before the can qualify for the world cup or
even win the Asia championships.
Laos Team in one of Suzuki Cup competition.
In 2012 Laos played two international friendly matches,
against Philippines and Thailand. The friendlies were for the purpose of
preparing the teams for major national competitions which they were facing
ahead. In the 1st friendly Laos defeated Philippines by 2-1. The game with
Thailand saw Laos suffering a defeat of 2-1 in Bangkok.
Laos will play for the 1st time in Asia’s major competitions
in 2014 after qualifying for the 2014 AFC challenge cup. The tournament will be
held I Maldives. Football in Laos has been adversely affected by the political
instability inside Laos. Currently the peaceful condition makes it a suitable
home for the game again. To play in AFC Challenge cup will be a great success
for them.
Laos became a member of FIFA in 1952. The Lao Football
Federation is an organ responsible for football administration and supervision
in Laos.
Laos Premier League was established in 1990. The league
consists of 12 teams currently. If a team is relegated is normally obliged to play
in the Laos First Division. Lao Army FC is the only team which has won most
championship in the premier league since its establishment. It has won a total
of 8 titles.
Yotha FC is another team which participates in the Lao
Premier league. This team was established in 1997. In 2012 it was the second in the league tables
just after SHB Champasak who are the champions. Yotha FC collected a total of
26 points just one point above Ezra FC. Yotha FC has won the premier league 3
times so far, the last year they won being in 2011.
New Laos National stadium is a home ground for many teams
including Ezra FC, Lao Police FC, Friends Development FC and Yotha FC. It can
accommodate about 20,000 – 25,000 spectators. The other teams use either Laos
National Stadium or Champasak Stadium. Laos National stadium has a capacity of
20,000 and Champasak stadium has a capacity of 11,000.
The winning of the trophy of Lao Premier League means that
SHB Champasak FC has qualified for the AFC President’s Cup in the year 2014.
Phenauanphatthana FC has been relegated because it was the last team in the
league tables whereby it has played a total of 14 games and earned no single
point.
May be in something like 10 years from today Laos will be
participating in major tournaments in Asia by defeating big names like South Korea
or Japan. Time will tell.
They are also known as “The
Potters”. This is the oldest football club in UK. It was found in 1863. At that
time I guess there were no known football clubs all over Africa, Tanzania in
particular. The Potters have their own history when it comes to football talk
in UK.
Stoke City has been using
Victoria ground from the time it was established till 1997, when they built a
new stadium called Britannia. The Britannia stadium can take 27598 seasted
spectators. The current team coach is Mark Hughes.
Stoke City has some notable
players like Robert Huth, Peter Crouch, Matthew Upson and Jermain Pennant.
The club finished on the
13th in the last season of UK premier league. In 2010-2011 season Stoke City
reached the FA cup final for the 1st time. In that final Stoke was defeated by
Manchester City.
Marc Muniesa Joins Stoke City from FC Barcelona.
Photo: www.mirror.co.uk
The signing of Peter Crouch
from Tottenham Hotspur was a record for the club history. It was a £10 million
signing.
Stoke City participated in
UEFA Europa League in the season of 2011-2012. It went on four levels before
being eliminated by Valencia in the round of 32. In the 3rd qualifying stage
Stoke played with FC Hajduk Split from Croatia and won 1-0 on both home and
away legs. The team advanced on a 2-0 aggregate victory.
After eliminating FC Hajduk
Split, Stoke went in the play-off stage and encountered FC Thun from
Switzerland. Stoke won 4-1 at home and 1-0 on the away match. On aggregate
Stoke was 5-1 ahead of FC Thun and they advanced to the group stage.
Highlights Stoke City vs FC Thun in UEFA Cup (2011-2012)
Stoke was then placed in
group E with Besiktas, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Dynamo Kiev. It finished on the 2nd
position in group E, and qualified to play in the round of 32 with Valencia of
Spain. Valencia put off Stoke dream to go to the final as it defeated Stoke by
1-0 at home and away.
Preparation for the next
season is up on the move and Stoke have some new signings. Jermain Pennant has
been signed on a one year deal. Erik Pieters has been signed from PSV Eindhoven
at €3,600,000 on a 4 year deal. Marc Muniesa from Barcelona has been given a
four year contract. Muniesa played for the Spain national team of Under 21.
It is a time now for the
Spanish technical bench to think about how to play differently in big
competitions. The Spanish national team started very well in its campaign for
the Confederations cup trophy.
They won against Uruguay, against Nigeria and
also against Tahiti. There was a very tough battle against Italy in the semi
finals. The Andrea Pirlo’s side played so hard to resist the dangerous attacks
from the Spaniards. Italy played defensively, touching the ball as little as
possible but striking fiercely in the forward line. The penalty shoot out decided
for the Spanish team to advance to the final.
Spain vs Uruguay highlights
The weakness of FC Barcelona
in the UEFA Champions league is still like a hangover to FC Barcelona players.
The majority of players in the national team come from Barcelona. Many teams
have already learnt the way they play. They understand how to disturb Xavi and
Iniesta. Italy succeeded in that tactic and no wonder they were safe until the
penalty shoot out.
Back to the 1st leg of UEFA champion’s
league against FC Bayern, Barca was astonished by the playing of FC Bayern
players. Bayern disturbed the normal flow of the ball for Barca midfield. They
denied any chance for Messi to play his game like in La Liga. They blocked all
finishing passes from Xavi and Iniesta. Inthat way Barca just played well in
their half, but not on Bayern’s half. That way many teams including Brazil have
learnt to decipher those harmful tactics of the Spanish players.
Brazil team combined many
tactics. They run so fast. They play long passes. They bock all killer passes
from the Spanish midfield. Iniesta was blocked. Xavi was also in hard time.
It seems Spain and Barcelona
don’t have plan B. Ahead of world cup they must come back and sit down to come
up with the squad which will retain the world cup. The game between Finland and
pain is another example where a team which is not expected pulls the giant with
a draw. Imagine Spain was at home.
I think it is high time that
the technical bench of Spain to go back and rebuild the team along Alcantara,
Alvaro Morata and Isco. There should be a mix of young talents and some aged
players. The trend of using many FC Barcelona players should be discouraged
because every team is learning how to decipher their plans. There should be a mix of players from Mallorca,
Malaga, Deportivo, Betis and Atletico Madrid. Let them build their team along
the Spanish under 20 and Under 21.
The Tanzania Mainland
premier league has been finalized by the ceremony of prize-giving. The ceremony
was organized by the league sponsor Vodacom (Tz) Ltd. The champions Yanga FC
was given the 1st prize of 70 million Tanzanian shillings.
Abdallah Kibaden is the best team coach for the last season
Photo by: www.mambouwanjani.blogspot.com
The 2nd position
team Azam FC was also given its prize of 35 million Tanzanian shillings. In the
3rd position it was Simba FC and the 4th position in the league was taken by Kagera
Sugar FC. The prize for Simba was 25 million Tanzanian shillings, while that of
Kagera Sugar was 20 million Tanzanian shillings.
The best scorer in the
league came from the emerging team in Tanzania football Azam FC. This is the Ivory
Coast international player called Kipre Tchetche. Kipre scored a total of 18
goals in the league. He has been given a prize worth 5 million Tanzanian
shillings.
The best goal keeper did not come from the big teams of Yanga or
Simba. David Baluani from Tanzania Prisons has become the best goal keeper in
the League.
The Top goal scorer for last season Kipre Tchetche
Photo by: www.ippmedia.com
There was also a special
prize for the best team coach for last season. The local team coach who won a
70.5million Tanzanian shillings prize is called Abdallah Kibaden Mputa. Kibaden
has been coaching Kagera Sugar in the finished season.
Kibaden has been taken
by Simba FC for the next season. There was a prize for the most disciplined
player. Fuli Maganga from JKT Mgambo FC, won a 5 million Tanzanian shillings
prize as the most disciplined star.
Moyes is creating Man U for today and for the future. By
taking Phil Neville and Ryan Giggs it means that Man U has started to adapt FC
Barcelona style when they gave ex player Pep Guardiola a chance to manage the
team.
David Moyes. New Man United Coach
Photo by:www.premierleague.com
The coming of Phil Neville and Ryan Giggs in the technical
bench of Manchester United means that the team has a long term plan by making
sure that the treasures of long time serving players are not wasted for
nothing. The shadows of Fergie will still be reflecting the back end of Man U. On
the side of Ryan Giggs, he has been at Man U as a player since 1991. This is a
very long time experience needed by the team which has been playing successfully
for more than 15 years in the English premier league.
Giggs has won two champions league with United as a player
in both 1999 and 2008. His experience in UEFA champions’ league is a great
thing for a team coach. He knows how to fight with other teams outside EPL.
Other
teams like Real Madrid should follow this trend for more success in the team.
Look for example, Pep Guardiola, he played for Barcelona previously and he was
doing a coaching role for the youngsters of FC Barcelona before he was elected
to be FC Barcelona coach.
Ryan Giggs has Joined Man U technical bench.
Photo by:www.thelast1augh.wordpress.com
No one expected Pep
to take a team from Frank Rijkaard and win everything in 2009. On my view Man U
is sailing in the right direction for recruiting their legends in the technical
bench. Giggs has been participating in crucial matches and he is still
magnificent in his age of 40. In future either Phil or Ryan can be given the
opportunity to coach the team once Moyes becomes of age.
By scoring 168 goals in 941 matches, it means that Giggs can
motivate the players for more success, with patience and hard work.
Simba sports Club is one of the football giants in Tanzania.
It is the only team to have reached the CAF championship final in Tanzania. In
1993 Simba played in the final against Stella Abidjan. In the second leg which
decided the winner Simba was defeated by 2-0 in Dar es Salaam. In the finished
season the team finished on the 3rd position just below Azam FC who were in the
2nd position.
Kapombe in red jersey in one of the match between Simba vs Yanga
The team has some potential players. The goal keeper Juma
Kaseja is also in the Tanzania national team. Kaseja is a captain for the
national side. His contract with Simba has ended and the management was not
interested with offering him a new one. That is to say Kaseja now has to look
for the other team to play for. Is it proper now for a man like him to try
looking for a team in another country? It is possible. As the best goalkeeper
for almost 10 years now he is experienced enough to play even in Europe.
Another remarkable player in Simba sports club is Shomari
Kapombe. Kapombe plays in the right back. He is a very talented player in that
he is not only satisfied with sticking at the defense, but he always go in
front to produce some harmful strikes and crosses to the opponents. During the match
with Ivory Coast in June 16th 2013, Kapombe drove the ball in the left side and
created a very good cross which was then finished perfectly by Thomas Ulimwengu
“the Buffalo”.
The main target of Simba FC in the next season will be to
fight for the best two positions at the top, since this will give them a chance
to play in one of the African Champions at the club level.
The world cup 1974 will be remembered because of the two European
giants who fought to play in the final. The tournament took place in West
Germany. The 1974 tournament was played from 13th June till 7th July.
It was Holland and West Germany who played in the final.
To reach the final West Germany had to play hard in its group to qualify for
the 2nd round.
In group 1 there were West Germany, East Germany, Chile
and Australia. West Germany beat Chile by 1-0. It then played Australia and won
by 3-0. It then played with their big political rivals East Germany and it went
down by 1-0. That made East Germany top leaders of group 1. West Germany was
the second with only 4 points. Chile was the 3rd with 2 points while Australia
secured only 1 point which they got on their match against Chile. The result of
Australia versus Chile was a 0-0 draw. The 2 winners of the group would advance
to the 2nd round and that is what happened.
Holland was in group 3 with Sweden, Bulgaria and Uruguay.
Uruguay was not an easy team to play with and I think was the most feared team
in the group because of their history of winning the world cup twice in
history. Holland played Uruguay and won by 2-0. The other match was against
Sweden where it ended on a goalless draw. Holland then played Bulgaria and they
won by 4-1. Holland qualified as the group winners followed by Sweden. Holland
collected a total of 5 points in three matches they played, and with 6 goals.
In the second round
West Germany was placed in group B with Poland, Sweden and Yugoslavia. West
Germany won their games in a spectacular fashion. It actually won all three
matches in group B and collected all 6 points to top the group. Muller scored
the only goal against Poland to give the Germans a victory of 1-0. This match
was observed by 59,000 spectators in the Waldstadion, in Frankfurt.
West Germany played
another match against Yugoslavia, and they won it by 2-0. Breitner scored the
opener in the 39th minute, and then Muller finished with the second goal in 8
minutes before the end of the match. The victory of 2-0 against Yugoslavia gave
the Germans a lot of courage and zeal to win the remaining group matches.
West Germany vs Holland 1974 FIFA World Cup Final
When they played with Sweden, there was a festival of goals. This big victory was not an easy thing for the Germans. In that tie Sweden started to score the opener in the 24th minute. Normally when your opponent goes one step ahead of you especially in football, it somehow brings a shock on the other side. The only wise thing to do before anything is to return the scored goal. Ralf Edstrom, the Swedish striker created some pressure to the Germans after scoring the opener.
After playing so hard the Germans, being supported by a lot of home fans in Rheinstadion in Dusseldorf city, they equalized in the 51st minute. Wolfgang Overath lifted up the hopes of the Germans and they were back in business again.
The match between West Germany and Sweden was so fascinating. This is because in 3 minutes, three goals were obtained. In the 52nd minute the Germans went ahead when Rainer Bonhof scored the second goal for his side. Not so long after the Germans have scored their goal, in the 53rd minute, the Swedish players responded with an equalizer. This time it was Roland Sandberg who revived the Swedish team with the second goal. The match went on and it seemed that the result could be 2-2.
The Germans continued to build their attacks and in the 76th minute they scored the 3rd goal. Just one minute before the end of the game the Germans got a penalty. Uli Hoeneb finished the score board by winning a penalty and making the score board read 4-2 in favour of the Germans. In that way, West Germany qualified to the next stage after winning all three games thus collecting 6 points and a total of 7 goals.
In group A there were Holland, Argentina, East Germany and Brazil. Holland’s 1st match was against Argentina. Holland played very well being backed up by the famous total football and they defeated Argentina by 4-0. The 1st goal was netted by Johhan Cruyiff in the 11th minute and the last goal was scored by Cruyiff again in the 90th minute. After playing well and winning their 1st match they encountered East Germany.
Holland punished the East Germans by 2-0. The first goal was scored by Johan Neeskens in the 7th minute and the second goal was netted in by Rob Rensenbrink in 14 minutes after the second half. Holland had to play with Brazil and they won their match with Brazil by 2-0. Holland goals were all obtained in the 2nd half. Neeskens scored the opener in the 50th minute and Cruyff finished the chapter by scoring the second goal in the 65th minute.
Holland was predicted to win the world cup in 1974 because their total football style was so hard to be deciphered by their opponents. Try to imagine that Holland won all their matches and secured all 6 points. They scored a total of 8 goals and this made them stay at the top in group A. This style of total football has been shown by FC Barcelona recently from the times of Luis Van Gaal to Frank Rijkaard to Pep Guardiola and recently Tito Vilanova. This style made Barcelona win everything in 2009 under Pep Guardiola.
The final match brought together the winners of group A and B. It was a very tough match on my opinion because Netherlands was playing with the hosts. On the other hand West Germany was playing against a Team which won all the matches in group A without conceding any single goal. Their goal keeper went on holiday. The other fact comes from the reality that Holland had their style of total football which was not easy to dismantle it and many teams faced a very hard time to win against Holland.
As soon as the match started Holland got a penalty. This was only 2 minutes after the game has started. Cruyiff was dropped down by Uli Hoeneb. Neeskens scored a penalty and put Holland ahead. In the 25th minute the Germans got a penalty and Breitner scored it to equalize. The score board was now 1-1. In the 43rd minute Muller scored a second goal for West Germany. The match went on half time with a score of 2-1 on favour of West Germany.
This final match had something interesting in that all the goals were obtained in the 1st half. The second half was played but no team allowed another goal from the opponent. The total football did not win. The Holland fans and players will remember this match. It seems the same scenario came again in the 2010 world cup in South Africa where the Netherlands lost to Spain by 1-0. What should be done by the Netherlands to win the world cup? Can they make it in the next year in Brazil?
