A blog about the latest soccer news, best players, transfer talk and anything else about the world game, with a heavy focus on the Selecao and Inter Milan!
Brazil played Sweden at the Emirates stadium in England last night and it was the youngster, Alexandre Pato that came off the bench to score the winning goal for his country in his first game for the Selecao. The game was to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1958 world cup final that was played in Sweden.
During the first half both teams had a lot of chances but nothing that was troubling either keeper all that much. There were a lot of substitutions throughout the match as expected for a friendly but two of them proved decisive. Shabaan replaced Sweden’s keeper at the restart while Pato came on after 60 minutes and and 12 minutes later the ball was in the back of the net. Shabaan had cleared the ball only as far as Pato who was able to snatch it then lift and curl it into the open goal.
Dunga was cautious about all the hype surrounding Pato and insists that he is not a starting member of the squad yet. He still has very little experience as a player and although Dunga admits he is very similar to a young Ronaldo aka The Phenomenon, at 18 years of age he shouldn’t have too much pressure on him. The youngster has been humble and asked for comparisons to Ronaldo and Pele to stop as he still has everything to prove.
So I’ve finally had a chance to thoroughly test out my new mercurial vapor IVs with a couple of matches so I thought I’d get round to writing this review. I’ve also taken pictures side by side with my old mercurial vapor IIIs (which are just over two years old now) so you can see the differences up close.
They are quite minor in fact, the obvious stuff includes the heel cup which isn’t as aggressive but still locks you foot in really well and more comfortably then before and I haven’t had any blisters yet either. The stud pattern is the same which is good as they work well and then there’s the lace cover that is supposed to allow a cleaner strike although I don’t think it makes any difference in that respect but it certainly keeps your laces clean!
The lace cover is a bit annoying in that it’s a little harder to put the shoe on and I dread the thought of ever having to change laces as it looks pretty hard to thread the lower parts. The visible carbon fibre under the sole is gone but I think it’s actually still there in the shoe, just hidden. There’s some that runs up the heel and if you fork out for the SLs then you’ll get the whole bottom part in carbon fibre. Although I’m not sure what other benefits the SLs have and if they’re worth the extra premium.
You notice immediately that the forefoot area is wider which is probably good for a lot of people that struggled to fit the mv 1,2 and 3s but for me it’s not so great as I have a skinny foot that suits the older narrow vapors. Still, tightening the laces a bit more resolves any of those issues. It does feel like the sizes are a little bigger though so be wary if you’re ordering online, I’ve always bought US 10.5 and had a snug fit from Nike but these are a tiny bit bigger. I could’ve gone with US 10 this time I think but it’s not a big difference. Just try out a pair first before putting down any cash.
During the match they were immediately comfortable and still have the great touch of the previous versions, the upper seems to be the same Tejin synthetic although perhaps a little stickier (but this may just be that they’re newer and my IIIs have worn off a fair amount already). Basically, if you liked the IIIs then you’re in for the same experience except the heel will be more comfortable, should be interesting to see what other colours are released around Euro 2008 time.
Just some video highlights of the best from round 30.
Milan only beat Torino 1-0 but truly assaulted their goal during most of the match.
Roma vs Empoli 2-1. Inter’s lead at the top has been cut short to just 4 points now. Although Giovinco was causing all sorts of problems for Roma, a couple of goals from Tonetto and Panucci were enough to settle this match.
Ronaldo gave an interview recently and the footage is below (although unless you can understand Portuguese, it might be best to read the translation below). It follows his unfortunate and possibly career ending injury and continues from my last post which updated his condition.
He’s stated that is heart desires to continue and he has a strong desire to do so but his body is giving off signs that it’s really tired, has suffered a lot and is asking to rest. He said that he will try to recuperate in the best manner possible and upon it’s completion, if his body is without any pain and he is without doubts, then he will continue to play.
We can only hope for the best and wait to see what happens.
Just a quick post for the matchday 29 highlights of the derby of Rome. Lazio left it late but defeated Roma in a five-goal thriller. Check out the highlights below.
I stumbled upon this cool compilation recently and just had to post it. It’s just all amazing ball control, think Berkamp and Zidane. I think it’s the most important skill to have, when you can control any ball you give yourself so much extra time to do things even if other parts of your game are lacking. Enjoy!
Just some quick video highlights of the best action from this round.
I personally found the best match by far this week between Fiorentina and Genoa. Not that Genoa put up much of a fight but the Viola just played so well. It marked the return of Adrian Mutu and he wasted no time picking up where he left off. A brilliant assist for the first goal and an incredible power drive for the second. Enjoy below.
Inter did enough to get back to winning after a terrible champions league exit. They defeated Palermo 2-1 and the first goal saw Vieira and Ibrahimovic combine well and then Jimenez wrapped things up.
Roma came from behind to defeat Milan. Although Kaka’s goal was easy on the eyes, they left themselves open yet again and gave a crucial game away.
So I finally got my FG mercurial vapor IVs today after a mix up where I ended up with the wrong size and had to send those ones back!
I haven’t had a chance to test them out in a full game yet, I’ve just tried them on around the house. The first noticeable thing is that the forefoot is wider which many will be happy about, me not so much as my feet are fairly thin anyway so I’ve never had a prob with the vapors before. Underneath the studs are pretty much the same tried and tested formation nike’s been using for a while. It works well anyway and the only problem is sometimes if your body is quite low and the pitch is somewhat wet you can slip as the studs on the front are a bit shallow. If it’s a real problem then you’d probably get soft ground boots instead.
The heel cup has had a big change. It doesn’t fully cover the heel as it did in the IIIs but still has the most important locking points so it’ll probably be fine. I liked the heel cup introduction in the IIIs although it did take a little getting used to as it was quite stiff to begin with. I got the vivid blue/anthrite colour which is basically black until light hits them and then you get some bluish/green specs reflecting the light back. I prefer white shoes but couldn’t be bothered waiting till they (if they) release them. My IIIs have almost given up on me after 2 years of weekly service, so I needed news boots fairly quickly.
I’ll be putting some pics up later to compare them with the IIIs and I’ll write up how they go during the game on the weekend.
Four goals in 25 minutes from ten men. That’s what was required shortly after Torres sunk Inter’s chances in the 64th minute.
Although Inter played very well for most of the game, they can only blame themselves for not being clinical in front of goal. Too many chances were wasted and although Burdisso’s second yellow just before 50 minutes was soft and they will feel somewhat robbed again, it doesn’t change the fact that they didn’t put away the goals when they should have. Mancini should take some blame for a questionable starting line up. Figo should have started, he’s the only player that could have consistently opened up Liverpool’s defense and supply the attackers with the perfect ball. Although Zlatan failed to deliver yet again in a big match, the pressure perhaps too much for him. At least the defense was playing well, apart from the occasional Maicon lapse but Cambiasso and Vieira needed creativity in front of them.
We’ll have to suffer some more this season as champions league glory isn’t realised for the umpteenth time. Check out the highlights below, hopefully they’ll last without UEFA claiming them off youtube.
Inter celebrated 100 years of separation from the club that later became AC Milan and did not want foreigners in the game. They did so in style as they defeated Reggina 2-0 at home. The win is a much needed confidence booster after their shock defeat last week at the hands of Napoli to end their unbeaten season. Also it should help them mentally to take on Liverpool in a few days. A do or die match to stay alive in the champions league and a very difficult task indeed. At least Ibrahimovic is back after knee worries but the back line will be irregular to say the least! Cordoba and Samuel’s seasons are over and Materazzi is suspended for the coming match. It will probably see Burdisso and Chivu together as long as the latter can shake off his shoulder problem. Either way, enjoy the highlights of the serie A match.
