Disastrous Chiefs

Amakhosi recruited Dumisani Zuma, Philani Zulu, Teenage Hadebe and Bhongolethu Jayiya in the just-concluded transfer window while they also promoted Bruce Bvuma, Khotso Malope, Wiseman Meyiwa and Nkosingiphile Ngcobo from the development ranks.

Don't expect much from Chiefs, this is a message to the Chiefs man, they are going to have to dig deep for results, average players will have step up. This was a definite poor transfer window, nothing to pride themselves with as a footballing giants in SA.

The manager Bobby Motaung is failing the club dismally with his poor transfer policy and is doing the club no good when compared to other big teams in the PSL.

More could have been done by Chiefs in the transfer window, missing out on long term target Siphelele Ntshangase was available but Kaizer Chiefs failed to capitalize on signing the former Black Leopards attacking Midfielder.

The Glamour Boys were unconvinced by forwards Jonathan Phillipe, Okikiola Afolabi and Abdalla Hussein Kilala following their recent trials at Naturena. So for Chiefs it's always trailing players or signing players on free transfer...

I wonder how long is this disaster going to last.

Conte’s Contemplated Consistency

With a lot left to admire from this weekend’s action of football, one can easily point out Chelsea’s performance against Everton as the highlight of the week, regardless of Liverpool scoring more goals than Chelsea, it was Chelsea who stole the show.

Conte Set Up

3- At the back, a system which has been tried and tested and resulted not so successfully by a few managers in the premier league, Conte has come in and mastermind the formation play. It’s been known as an Italian philosophy to be more disciplined defensively. Antonio Conte deployed his 3-man at the back tactics after a three null loss to London rivals Arsenal. The loss proved to have been a blessing in disguise for Chelsea. The 3-4-3 offers a 3 man backline, which has been Gary Cahill, David Luiz, and Cesar Azpilicueta that is very strong against central attacks but can award space to the opposition down the flanks but that has not been the case with Chelsea, they field Marcos Alonso, a leftback who performs defensive duties and gives the Blues additional options going forward, as well as Victor Moses who adds more options on the attacking side for Chelsea. It is also important that one central midfielder in Chelsea system has the ability to cover in the defensive spots if a central defender is sucked out side to pressure the ball and Conte has arguably the two best defensive midfielders in league in the likes of N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic. These two midfielders rotate their responsibilities.

Rivals who tried 3 at the Back

Two most recent teams to execute the 3 man at the back were English giants Liverpool and Manchester United, Liverpool, also implemented the formation for the first time against Manchester United they lost the match 3-1 in the 2014/2015 season and the scoreline told a different story from Liverpool’s displayed performance. In that same season this worked particularly well for Liverpool in their 3-2 win against Tottenham earlier in the month of February at Anfield. Jordon Ibe and Lazar Markovic repeatedly attacked the Tottenham left side as Spurs defenders Danny Rose and Jan Vertonghen didn’t know how to handle Ibe and Markovic without leaving Daniel Sturridge or Mario Balotelli in too much space in the box. This is, in fact, how Liverpool found their eventual winner as Ibe and Adam Lallana, who had replaced Markovic, combined down the right wing to pull Spurs defense out of position. This created space in the box for Balotelli to move into where he then scored an easy tap-in goal for the Reds. United’s case wasn’t really so successfully under LVG and that became evident due to the fans complaining about the team’s style of play week-in and week-out.

Back to Stamford Bridge

After admitting that the 3-4-3 was his second preference, it may seem as if it was the best preferences for Conte, after kicking of the season with 4-2-4 system he wasn’t as satisfied about the team’s play and more especially the results. Chelsea have emerged as the Premier League's form team since Conte's decision to switch to 3-4-3 at half-time of a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in late September, scoring 16 goals and conceding none to record five consecutive victories. That on its own is a great collection of stats.

Chelsea as a team have not committed any defensive errors, recording also the most clean sheets (6), second highest goal scoring team (26), only Liverpool has more (30), 4^th with number of Passes sitting on 5,956 passes, they have also recorded same number of wins as Liverpool (8), 186 shots which makes them the fifth best team with shots, 23 goals inside the box level with Arsenal only Liverpool exceeds both teams with 25 goals in the box, 211 tackles thus far. And Only Tottenham (6) have conceded less goals than Chelsea’s (9)

Player Performance

When teamwork proves to be everything in a team it’s never really a good idea to single out individuals on their performance because we always want promote the idea of team effort. Chelsea have been solid as a team and there are of course players who seem to have revived their form and with that, that has rubbed off in giving the team a good fortune.

·         Eden Hazard, his performance once again against Everton was magical. Eden Hazard's new role in Chelsea's 3-4-3 system is making it easier for him to show his talent and shine in the "supersonic" intensity of Premier League football, according to head coach Antonio Conte.

"Eden is playing now more close to the goal," Conte explained. "He's participating more in offensive situations. I think it's better for him, this type of situation, which sees him staying in a position where he can finish easier compared to in the past. For this reason, I think and I want him to continue in this way. It's important in this type of football, this modern football, you must have talent and technique, but also run with intensity. You must have the strength to cope with contact. Modern football is this. You must have the talent, but support it with strength, speed and technique.”                                       
 The 2014/2015 player of the season has now scored seven goals -- more than his total for Chelsea in the entirety of last season, this is a resurgence in the Belgian’s form thus far in 2016/2017 season. He has featured in more Premier games than, Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil (9), Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho (10), Man United’s Paul Pogba (9) and Man City’s Kevin de Bryune (10). He is averaging an 85% pass completion rate level with Pogba but second to Ozil’s 87%. 455 that’s the number of successful passes only Pogba 525 and Ozil 472 has a better figure. Goals Scored from outside the box is 1 only de Bryune and Philippe Coutinho are sitting on 2. He also total’s a tally of 34 shot second to Philippe Coutinho’s 41.

·         N’Golo Kante; signed from last season’s champion Leicester City, Kante has been impeccable for Conte, partnering Matic in midfield. He has been a solider in the Blues midfield, giving out 10/10 performance on a consistent basis for the London Blues. Kante and Manchester City’s Fernandinho have played 11 games each more the Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka, Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson and Manchester United’s Ander Herrera. Kante is also amongst the top five passers, he sit on 4^th with 729 passes, Fernandinho is second with 834 passes and topping them is Jordan Henderson with 904 passes. Danny Drinkwater and Henderson are equal on the number of tackles executed (47) while Kante sits on (33) and Fernandinho is on (28). Kante’s defensive partner, (Matic) allows him to be more cautious because he is partnered by another defensive midfielder who is as tactical and technically aware defensively. This is effective for Conte because this lets the backline 3 less vulnerable to midfield turnover and teams attacking from the middle.

·         Diego Costa; the striking beast is arguable the best striker in the league currently alongside Sergio Aguero. Costa is the leading goalscorer of the league with 9 goals to his name and is second with 8 goals. Costa has been a working force upfront for Chelsea and he has delivered as requested. 964 minutes of game time, Costa has tallied a total of 37 shots third best after Aguero (44) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (57). Costa’s scoring touch has been more on the right foot, where he has produced the goods 8 times and only once on his left foot. None of his goals have been headers, only Romelu Lukaku has scored more headed goals and goals with his left foot amongst the top leading strikers. The Beast could be commended on his accuracy, with 7 shots outside the area he has scored 2 goals. The Spanish forward is also not as selfish as one would suggest, he has three assists to his name and that’s same number of assists as Lukaku. Lukakua also goes on to edge Costa in chances created, Lukaku has 19 chance created and Costa seconds him with 16 and also with shot accuracy it’s a 74% average for the Belgian forward and Costa is second with 68%.

Its safe and sensible to say that Antonio Conte has assembled a title-winning team and has the quality in depth and has implemented a winning system for Chelsea. Everton Manager Ronald Koeman, spoke highly of Chelsea and their display of football on Saturday when they ran over his team.

Koeman: “Chelsea showed us today very high level of football in every aspect of football,’ the Dutchman said.

‘How they work, how they run, how they press – we can learn from them. It’s a big lesson what happened today.

‘I never saw a team playing so well this system. This system is very difficult to play against, the movement of the players, Hazard.”

If already opponents are sending praises then Mr Conte could enjoy watching his team week in and week out. What is also fantastic about Chelsea and Conte is that the resurrection of some players, notably Victor Moses, Paul Scholes also came out and stated that as a Chelsea fan you could be happy with Moses’s progression under Conte. Moses has scored two goals and averaged three defensive actions-per-game in 10 Premier League appearances this season, winning 55% of his duels, and that’s a rather impressive set of stat too look at.          

Next up for them following the international break is an away clash at Middlesbrough, before taking on Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge.
Can they maintain their impressive form?

Source on Stats: http://www.squawka.com/news/teams/chelsea

PSL WEEKEND RUSH WRAP UP

Absolutely Sensational, two words that best describes this weekend’s footballing action. From the local shore of the PSL, CAFCL to the PL and further on to the La Liga, I guess it safe to say to there was some exciting action and results.

Premier Soccer League (PSL):

Cape Town Derby

It all started on a Friday night in the PSL when the fraternity was blessed with its first Cape Town derby. Newly formed Cape Town City came with a balanced string of results in their opening three fixtures of the PSL, a loss, a win and as well as a draw. Ajax Cape Town came to the party with no win but two draws and a loss. It was two former Orlando Pirates coaches who once worked together, Eric Tinkler was assistant to Roger De Sar. On the night it seemed like Roger was assistant to Eric for Cape Town City looked livelier in both halves. It was City who broke the deadlock after 20 minutes as Thato Mokeke's ball found Judas Moseamedi, who headed into the path of Jayiya to side-foot home from six-yards out. City managed to see off a late surge and claimed the three points.

Kaizer Chiefs picking up the pieces

After going more than 15 games without a win in the league, the Phefeni Glamour boys, Kaizer Chiefs recorded their second victory of the campaign and also keeping a clean sheet against the Team of Choice, Maritzburg United at the FNB stadium. It was a match were the Amakhosi fans were a bit more confident compared to their recent approach to matches after a poor start to their campaign carried on from last season. Lorenzo Gordinho along with William Twala were on the scoresheet as they lead Komphela to his second victory.    

   Could we say the Pressure is easing off on Steve Komphela?

Cavin Johnson beaten by Kgoloko Thobejane

With a coach like Cavin Johnson at your dugout you would expect your team to do justice against a newly promoted team, but it was not the case on Saturday. Baroka FC claimed their first win of the Absa Premiership campaign, as they defeated Platinum Stars 1-0 at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium. Mbongeni Mzimela's rash challenge on Richard Matloga inside the box was penalised to have been a bookable offence and thereby a penalty was awarded. Ndivivhawo Ravhulali stepped up for Baroka and fired his spot-kick past Mazimela from 12 yards, 1-0.  After boldly coming out and saying his would win the league, this was Thobejane’s first win of season.              

Was he way ahead of himself when he made his statement?

 3 out of Four for Clinton’s Arrows

 After a disastrous performance against Orlando Pirates in their opening fixture, Golden Arrows have recorded three straight wins and their third came over the weekend when Clinton Larsson faced his former employers Bloemfontien Celtic. Arrows are the log leaders currently and they were facing a team that has played more games than Mamelodi Sundowns but still they are at the foot of the table. Wayde Jooste handed the visitors the lead after his teammate Nkanyiso Mngwengwe cancelled out Alfred Ndengane opened the scoring in the second half. That was the ultimate goal to put Arrows at the top the league table.

5 Goal Thriller at Peter Mokaba

Polokwane City entertained Ekurhuleni based Highlands at the Peter Mokaba Stadium. It was the highest goal scoring match of the weekend and it was between a newly promoted team and a team once known for their high pressing football. Thobani Mncwango netted his second of the season with a close-range finish as he opened the scoring, the visitors were awarded a penalty after 29 minutes, which Collins Mbesuma took the penalty and managed to convert to level matters. Former Amakhosi and Orlando Pirates striker’s equaliser made his history, as the Zambian became the fifth player to score 99th goals in the PSL. Rodney Ramagalela picked out Sipho Jembula, who slotted home from close range and Polokwane City was in front again. Former Jomo Cosmos striker Charlton Mashumba bagged his second of the season by turning home Jose Garcia's cross and wasted no time to put Highlands on level terms. In the 73rd minute a strike from Jabu Maluleke. His first goal of the season.

Players to watch:

Jayiya: Cape Town City

Mashikinya: Cape Town City

Aubrey Modiba: SuperSport United

Xola Mlambo: Bidvest Wits

By: Vuyolethu Sithatu

Shakes Mashaba and his unknown Selection Criteria

Today national coach Shakes Mashaba announced his WC qualifier sqaud and as usual a lot left for question

WC Qualifier Sqaud

Goalkeepers: Jackson Mabokgwane, Itumeleng Khune, Brighton Mhlongo

Defenders: Ramahlwe Mphahlele, Rivaldo Coetzee, Thulani Hlatshwayo, Abbubakar Mobara, Diamond Thopola, Tebogo Langerman, Eric Mathoho, Thabo Matlaba

Midfielders: Dean Furman, May Mahlangu, Thulani Serero, Oupa Manyisa, Ayanda Patosi, Keagan Dolly, Aubrey Modiba, Mpho Makola, Hlompho Kekana

Strikers: Eleazar Rodgers, Thamsanqa Gabuza, Thobani Mncwango, Sibusiso Vilakazi, Tokelo Rantie

What team does Rantie play for, how many minutes has he played, he only made his debut on Sunday for Genclerbirligi he was introduced in the 79th minute with Genclerbirligi and they were leading, but Konyaspor managed to snatch an equaliser in the 80th minute. A minute of Bad Luck..

May Mahlangu, The 27-year-old had been clubless for many several months since leaving Sint-Truidense in July, and after turning down moves to both Dynamo Dresden and Randers. Mahlangu is yet to feature for Dinamo.

Still gets called up..

Jackson Mabokgwane, probably third choice at Orlando Pirates but yet gets the call up ?

Do we still want to be patience with Shakes, the man who said that he uses a criteria of performance and not history for selection. What good have the players I've mentioned above done thus far.

It's not like we don't we don't have quality.

Xola Mlambo, despite spending just six months at Chippa, the 25-year-old proved himself enough to get a coach like Gavin Hunt wanting him in his WIts squad. To some extent I believe he is a better player than Mahlangu despite both players playing in different parts of the world. Even Thamsanqa Sangweni is far better in my opinion

Another prospect to look at is Nathan Pulse who is top South African goalscorer in the league yet he and second placed Rhulani Manzini are overlooked for Gabuza who has featured mostly in the second half for Pirates but yet Shakes said he uses a criteria of performance.

Darren Keet who is now a part of the students has kept three clean sheets in his last three matches better than first choice keeper Itumeleng Khune... now how has that justified coach Shakes Mashaba's criteria?

Amakhosi Redeem Themselves.

Highlands vs. Kaizer Chiefs
Makhulong Stadium, Thembisa
Kick-Off: 19H30 p.m.

FT Score: Highlands 0 (0): (1) (0) Kaizer Chiefs (Lebese 65’)

In what seemed to be one of the most anticipated matches of midweek amongst the PSL fixtures, it
all has been so because of the Kaizer Chiefs’ poor run in form. In a clash against newly promoted
Highlands one could expect Kaizer Chiefs to easily bag the three points, but with a whole a lot of
pandemonium at Naturena it has been a worrying concern whenever Chiefs play.

In the first 45 minutes both teams played well but yet in patches, in the first ten minutes Highlands
looked livelier compared to Chiefs, they pressed and already in the second minute Mphahlele
committed a foul against Mashumba. Minutes after Chiefs were starting to pick themselves up as
Lebese was released by Ekstein and his tame shot resulted in Kaizer Chiefs’ first corner of the half
that too couldn’t bring the first goal of the match.

Highlands with recruits from some of the PSL teams, had Mbesuma have his first attempt at goal
going to high from a Franklin Cale cross. As Chiefs continued with picking themselves up Twala’s
finish from Ekstein and Lebese’s great work of combination went way over to produce a goal. Chiefs
applied the pressure and had Highlands pinned in their half for some moments. On attempt to break
away on a counter Gordinho took one for the team by committing a cynical foul which resulted in
him bagging a yellow card.

It ended 0-0 in the first half and a lot of question to be asked concerning being clinical in the final
third.

Second stanza of the match Chiefs looked the most sharpest in the first ten minutes and caused a
few threats for Highlands. Katsaviro was introduced in place of Manqele that proved to be a more
tactical move by coach Komphela, he add a bit of pace and in the 62 minute Twala missed a lovely
opportunity to put Chiefs ahead when his header in the six yards box glanced wide. Moments after
he was brought down by Leonard and it saw Chiefs being awarded a penalty, George Lebese stood
up and beat Kapini to put Chiefs ahead in the 65th minute.

The men from Naturena introduced Simphiwe Tshabalala for goalscorer Lebese, Tshabalala returns
from a length injury and proved his fitness in the past weekend in the MDC scoring the winning goal
for the MDC side.

Highlands tried to cause a few problems for Chiefs through Theron on the right and successfully
beating Khumalo but that didn’t result to anything much.

In the dying moments of additional time, Itumeleng Khune found himself at fault of collecting the
ball in the air when he stepped his foot out of the 18-yard box with the ball still in his hands, a freekick was awarded to Highlands and Khune took the responsibility in making the save. That happened
to be the last kick off the match as Kaizer Chiefs recorded their first league victory since April.




Starting Line Up:
Highands: Kapini, Leonard, Mbara, Ngalo, Ledwaba, Khuboni, Khwela, Cale (Zwane), Mbesuma
(Mvala), Garcia (Theron), Mashumba
Chiefs: Khune, Mphahlele, Mathoho, Gordinho, Khumalo, Katsande, Twala (Parker), Maluleka,
Lebese (Tshabalala), Ekstein, Manqele (Katsaviro)


By Vuyolethu Sithatu

Manchester derby: The most expensive United v City match-up ever?

This Saturday's Manchester derby is set to be the most expensive match-up in the history of football.

The Old Trafford showdown will not only pit Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola - the most-decorated managers in Europe - against each other, but also 22 players worth over £670m in transfer fees.

Manchester United lead the way with a predicted starting XI costing £350.55m, including the world's most expensive player, Paul Pogba, who returned to the club this summer for £93.25m from Juventus.

Saturday's predicted line-ups would total £672.4m in transfer fees

The hosts are also likely to field Anthony Martial (£57.6m) and Luke Shaw (£28m), who both broke the record for the world's most expensive teenager when they were signed, as well as Juan Mata (£37.1m), Eric Bailly (£30m) Marouane Fellaini (£27.5m) and captain Wayne Rooney (£27m). 

In contrast to those mega sums, star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was signed for free in the summer, after the Swede left Paris Saint-Germain at the end of his contract. 

The Manchester City predicted line-up cost the club £321.85m to assemble, with Kevin de Bruyne (£54.5m), John Stones (£50m), Raheem Sterling (£49m) and Leroy Sane (£37m) among their most expensive additions over the past two years.

Sky Sports have searched through the record books and we believe that the previous most-expensive match-up was November 2015's El Clasico, when Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid 4-0 at the Bernaebeu.

The Real Madrid v Barcelona line-ups in November 2015 totalled £562m

On show that day, among others, were Gareth Bale (£85.3m), Cristiano Ronaldo (£80m), Luis Suarez (£75m), James Rodriguez (£63m) and Neymar (£48.6m), with the combined transfer totals coming to £562m.

Real Madrid's team of Galacticos actually came to £370.45m - almost £20m more than the cost of the team United are expected to field this weekend. But, between them, the two Manchester clubs are set to break a record…

By Peter Smith and Edward Higgs

Source :  SkySport.com

One of the Greatest: Andres Iniesta

If there is anything close to human godliness then it has to be Dos Andres Iniesta, arguably the best
Midfielder of his generation and too many could be the greatest midfielder of all time if not the
greatest player. Andres Iniesta is preferably one of the most wonderful footballers, he effortlessly
displays great finesse and is one of the most technically gifted footballers of all time.

With the opening of this piece highly praising Dos Andres, it could be argued that he unfortunately
was born in the wrong era, but how fair is this on Iniesta? how can we continuously rank him
amongst the greatest but yet say he was born in the wrong era. We say this because Messi and
Ronaldo are better goalscorers than him and yet technically he exceeds both players effortlessly. If
there’s any player that can make things happen for either Spain or Barcelona it has to be the
mastermind magician Andres Iniesta, his display in the 2008 knockout stages of the Champions
League against Chelsea was followed by him being included in the squad of Spain which was about
to dominate the world for at least 4 years. From 2008 Euro Spain, the better demonstrators of the
Tiki-Taka, were crowned champions of Europe and that team had Andreas Iniesta and Xavi being the
engine of the team.

His excellence was inevitable in 2009 he went on and won the Champions League with Barcelona
against Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United. His performance that season was once again
sensational. He had become a recognized as also a feared individual in the Barcelona army. He was
clearly the first name on the team sheet.

Well that carried on to the 2010 World Cup where they partnered up once again, Xavi and Iniesta
the masterminds, the engineers of Spain’s midfield as they led Spain to their first World Cup title. It
was a remarkable achievement for the country, but what was more remarkable was how Iniesta
scored the winning goal in final against the Netherlands. Well-taken first touch and followed up with
a composed finished proving his extent of prowess.

The 32-year old midfielder has been an instrumental figure for both club and country for quite some.
In 2011 he was once again instrumental against the Red Devils where at the end of the match,
Wayne Rooney said that in his opinion, Andres Iniesta is the best player in world. It seems like that
had a serious impact on Iniesta, as his performance in the following year/season grew from
magnificent to beyond magnificent.

If 2012 wasn’t enough for Iniesta to win the Ballon D’or then I guess we always question what must
happen for any other player to win the prestigious award besides Messi and Ronaldo, with the
Brazilian Kaka being the only player to do so. We can’t turn a blind eye to Iniesta’s performance that
year. The only thing that he felt short from on the “unknown” criteria to select a winner was
probably the number of goals scored but I feel like if that is included then it’s unfair to players who
play in positions that do not allow them to poach for goals. Fabio Cannavarro was a defender when
he won the award, do think goals were such a huge factor to decide on the winner. The competition
of Messi and Ronaldo has shadowed players like Iniesta, Sneijder and Xavi from winning the Ballon
D’or. 2012 was the year Andres Iniesta was named European Player of the Year, it was well
deserved as he was part of the Spanish team that won the 2012 UEFA EURO Championship.

Ballon D’or obtained?

2015 he was the captain to the team that was blessed with the MSN strike force. They won a treble
which included the UEFA Champions League. And the 2015/16 season saw Iniesta also being a part
of double-winning Barcelona team, the La Liga and Copa Del Rey titles, of which became his 30th and
31st career titles, two more than the legendary Pele. This past season saw Iniesta recording an
impressive 88% pass-completion rate and he was the brains behind the MSN.

2016 EUROs seem like the perfect platform for Iniesta to once again justify we are blessed to be
alive to see him play, after being included in 2008 and 2012 team of the tournament and being
voted player of the tournament in 2012 it seems like he has already prepared to see his name on the
team of the tournament. His performances against the Czech Republic and Turkey last night was
world class once again, looks 50 is actually 32 but players like he is 23 years.

I guess we all see a Ballon D’or winner whenever Iniesta plays. The Spanish Darling is arguably
engraved on the list of one of the greatest footballers.

What a time to be alive, Dos Andres!

Euro 2016 has already kicked off

Euro 2016 has already kicked off and to many expectations were set up.
A fair start to the tournament and it's pretty much going to get more entertaining I tell you.
So far we have seen young players emerging and the usually big players making a statement that they are going to show and mean business.

The opening match was an entertaining match, France is one of the blessed teams when it comes to the squads. Payet in my opinion proved he is ready for the El'Classico. Honestly I don't see any team bossing another easily, but so far Germany has had the most convincing win concerning their score line against Ukraine. Konoplyanka, Pyatov and Yarmolenko were superb against the World Cup Holders last night.

Croatia is another team we cannot turn a blind eye on them. The El'Classico rival stars Ivan Rakitic and Luka Modric dominated the midfield fairly well but the introduction of 18 year old Emre Mor was essential as he was adding value to the teams efforts along with Arda Turan also Özyakup was quite impressive.

Another team which goes unnoticed is Poland,a team with individuals that can prove to be the game changers and fortune holders of the team, Seville's Grzegorz Krychowiak was a marvel to watch as usual hopefully in the following match Piotr Zieliński will be used effectively he could feed Robert Lewandowski quite adequately.

England once again raised concerns if they are actually going to ever win a major tournament. Naive was the word used best to describe Roy's tactics as the match proceeded. How Raheem Sterling finished the match is a serious matter which needs to be attended. Why didn't Vardy feature at all? Why was Sturridge never used or why make changes that do need suggest defending a 1-0 lead or looking out to get a second. Spurs' Rose was sensational on the evening.

Bale and company did themselves a favour by securing a win. A shocking or rather a "blonde" performance by Aaron Ramsey. Jonathan Williams was quite refreshing to watch has a bit of flair to his play.

With 8 matches played and 14 goals played we can expect more from this year's euro.

My list of players to watch
* Rafa Silva (Portugal)
* Piotr Zieliński (Poland)
* Arkadiusz Milik (Poland)
* William Carvahlo (Portugal)
* Grzegorz Krychowiak (Poland)
* Renato Sanches (Portugal)
* André Gomes (Portugal)
* João Mário (Portugal)
* Julian Draxler (Germany)
* Emre Can (Germany)
* Anthony Martial (France)
* Yannick Carrasco (Belgium)
* Emre Mor (Turkey)
* Kingsley Cowman (France)

Lets keep the Debate going.

You can also join the Euro Fantasy League. Its not easy to choosing a team though. Join Euro Fantasy League 

John Comitis has bought Mpumalanga Balck Aces this should be interesting

Former Ajax CT chairman John Comitis confirmed that he has bought MP Black Aces & the PSL has sanctioned the deal

England Euro 2016 Squad

A lot needs to rectifed concerning Hodgson's selcetion
Firstly how earth is Wilshere on that team yes we all know I am fan of Jack but he missed the entire season and now he is selected
Midfielders like: Ward-Prowse, Carrick, Mark Noble and Barry left behind but played throughout the season... how does that make sense.
Moving on to the striking department yes Rashford is talented but is he better than Defoe? Hell no Defoe is more complete and more experienced and 15 goals to the 4 of Rashford and has a better rate of aerial duels.
Andy Carrol has 9 goals and we know the aerial threath he imposes.

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart (Manchester City), Fraser Forster (Southampton), Tom Heaton (Burnley).

Defenders: Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), John Stones (Everton), Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur), Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool).

Midfielders: Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Ross Barkley (Everton), Fabian Delph (Manchester City), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Danny Drinkwater (Leicester City), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Adam Lallana (Liverpool), James Milner (Liverpool), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Andros Townsend (Newcastle United), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal).

Strikers: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Jamie Vardy (Leicester City), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United).

LVG Losing Valuable Games for Manchester

Without putting both Manchester United and Liverpool in comparison, as Liverpool had the better performance. Ball possession favoured Liverpool and furthermore. But without putting Liverpool into analysis their performance was top of the drawer.

With everything being questioned when it comes to LVG losing it entirely, it seems like yesterday's starting lineup was one of the talking points tactically. Yesterday's starting lineup consisted of United's  three  promising young sensations. Guillermo Varela, Marcus Rashford along with Anthony Martial who were the young prospects fielded by van Gaal.

After successive and impressive European and Premier League debuts for Marcus Rashford scoring four goals in the process, two in Europe and two in the league against the Gunners of Arsene Wenger. That was enough for Rashford to be adored by the fans. Going forward with absentees such as Rooney evidently it would be expected that Rashford would take up the role of putting the ball behind the net as martial too was out for a short injury spell. His return then so made it complicated for LVG to remain simply tactical minded.
Looking into the performance of the youngsters of Manchester United:

• Guillermo Varela had a rating of 6/10, he was steady despite the presence of those around him who weren't. He has and is still making it seen that he is a suitable first choice right-back.

•  Marcus Rashford he secured a rating of 5/10, placed on the side. He misjudged an early half-chance and spent the rest of the half offering assistance to Varela. He was subbed at the break.

• Anthony Martial, with the same ratings as Rashford, the young number 9 found himself isolated throughout. On a rare occasions he found himself selling the ball, and to that extent Liverpool's defence were present to snuff him out.

LVG's  big tactical mess up was apparent through the set up of Rashford and Martial. The quality and abilities of Martial are undoubtedly questionable. The Frenchman has been a versatile player for Man United, able to be utilized on the wings and upfront. The presence of the emerging goalscoring talent in Rashford was compromised when he was shifted on the side where he had to create and supply for Martial. Disappointingly he created 0 chances, had 1 take-on and only had one shot off target. Effective tactics by LVG? I don't think so.
Anthony Martial on this occasion was shifted to an out-and-out striker role and had a better rate of take-ons: 4,  compared to one of  Rashford and no shot on or off-target for him.
With Rashford scoring 4 goals in a space of 4 days on his debuts was LVG naive of not trying to place a more productive attack against Liverpool?
Patience is emerging short on LVG with the fans and to some who cannot stand it have already called from his head.


By: Vuyolethu Sithatu
@MAVUYOSTAR

Stats: by  http://europa-league.squawka.com/europa-league/10-03-2016/liverpool-vs-man-utd/matches

England Euro Strike force

With not much success in any of the international competitions and also having failed to win anything with the past golden generation of the likes of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Ashley Cole and David Beckham just to name a few, England could be blessed and look set to put their hopes and faith upon the country’s latest quality of strikers.

 The likes of Premier League joint leading scorer Jamie Vardy, ever experienced captain of Manchester United and England Wayne Rooney, the young Hotspur striker Harry Kane, injury prone striker of the Merseyside Red Daniel Sturridge and last but not least a striker with 137 EPL goals Jermaine Defoe. Besides Daniel Sturridge who has been on the side-lines for most of this season for Liverpool and as well as Rooney who has had a rather slow start to the season concerning his goalscoring.

 England does boast of three strikers who are consistent in their goal scoring; Vardy(15), Defoe(9) and Kane(12) have scored a number of 36 EPL goals collectively, if you were to put both Rooney and Sturridge in the equation that would tally up a total of more than 40 goals. 

What’s the way forward with such quality strikers for the England coach Roy Hodgson? Without the brilliant ball players in the midfield like Gerrard and Lampard or Scholes it seems like the people of the Queen will look to the likes of Jordan Henderson, Delle Ali, Ox lade Chamberlain, Ross Barkley, Raheem Sterling and Adam Lallana to do the creative work or marshalling the midfield. 

Are these players fit enough to supply strikers…

For coach Hodgson it will fall down to the formation he chooses to go with considering the frontmen he has in line up. With Wayne Rooney as the captain it is guaranteed he will get a place in the starting 11. 

With that being said, a 4-4-2 formation set out as a 4-1-2-1-2 with the likes of Barkley, Sterling, Lallana and Rooney able to play the number 10 role, England could find themselves more than willing to have two men upfront. Splitting the function of the two central midfielders: one can be assigned to a deep role preferably Henderson/Ali and probably and use Rooney as the further placed midfielder in a number 10 role behind preferred strikers Vardy and Kane, with then Ali/Henderson  and Barkley creating the  rest of the diamond-shape midfield.

With much to say about England’s strikers, which pairing would do the 3 lions justice?

Vardy sitting already on 15 goals, Harry Kane on 12 goals they both tally up close to 30 goals.  If this was the duo to lead England then preferably Rooney will be a third striker in the team but from a midfield role.

The inclusion of Defoe would be best compliment by any of the strikers for he has proven to be a quality striker in any partnership. Sturridge on the other hand too is very mobile and athletic, his movement on and off the ball is hard to deal with for defenders and with clinical strikers such as Defoe and Kane their positioning in the opponent’s 18-yard box is excellent and  that’s if the supply is as brilliant as the strikers goal scoring rate.

Not touching on the team’s defence and midfield the main focus is the strike force. Can they do justice at this year’s European Competition?

Jamie Vardy, Harry Kane, Jermaine Defoe, Wayne Rooney and if fit Daniel Sturridge, can these men score England through?

We are yet to find out…

You have not been deserted football fans

Greetings Football fanatics

Do not hesitate, or do not feel forgotten, The World of Marvelous Football is still up and running regardless of the less promised updates. Unfortunately its exam’s time and most of you as the audience are still schoolers and some of you not but if I have to post articles I think its best that I provide adequate stories and not make them less informative.

Trust me there is so much to write about, from how Pirates dismantled Chiefs, to how Kaizer Chiefs have tried to make a few changes in their team’s line up, how Chelsea are still praying for better days and how Jamie Vardy is king of the EPL at the moment, how Manchester United is labelled the boring team… in Spain Messi’s absence doesn’t seem to be a problem for Barcelona and Sevilla on the other hand doing good with the quality and depth of their squad not forgetting Belgium who are now ranked  1^st  in the world and it’s all overwhelming right? Well that’s football for you. And I know to some, you can afford to miss out on the news, reviews and so forth. But then that doesn’t mean you can’t bring forward what you would like to see on the blog. Platforms are still open and feel free to drop request.

The international break is never a friend of us football fanatics, so hold on tight because when we make a return it’s the first instalment of the El Classico.

Kind Regards

Marvelous Bloggger. 

And it's exactly a year since #SenzoMeyiwa was killed, but his murder remains a mystery.
One year on and still nothing on who killed Senzo Meyiwa and why... South Africa was promised justice for Nzori, but after 365 days, ZERO.

South Africa’s Pride and Joy in Africa

South Africa’s Pride and Joy in Africa

BY: Vuyolethu Sithatu

As Orlando Pirates were victorious in Egypt against Al Ahly, too many it could’ve been the night of their lives and too many that is yet to come.

After an unconvincing performance at Orlando Stadium in their 1-0 first leg victory over their African rivals, much of the concerns raised were surrounding the fact that Orlando Pirates had once lost on their return leg in the 20143/2014 CAF Champions League Final to Al Ahly SC.

With a lot of the odds against them concerning history repeating itself and the threat delivered by the fans, Orlando Pirates had to leave South Africa with a strong mind-set and arrive in Cairo with a positive attitude.

In just the opening half of the match, it fell evident that the Sea Robbers might have left their mental toughness on the shores of Mzansi. The Soweto Giants were trailing by 2 goals to null after half time thanks to Gabonese striker Malick Evouna who scored in first-half injury time and too many in attendance at Suez Stadium in Suez, east of Cairo felt like it was over as the Red Devils had the crowds backing. After the half time talks, with no clear indication on how things would pan out coming into the 2^nd half of the second leg of the CAF Confederation Cup semi-finals, Ezikamagebhula came out with yet another disappointing start to another half, with just eight minutes into the second half, Al Ahly bagged their second. It took substitute Kermit Erasmus to come with the blue & red pens to rectify their first half mistakes and write their own story for the night after he scored and put Ezikamagebhula ahead on away gaols in the 57^th minute. The man who is in African Form, was to follow, Thamsanqa Gabuza scored a deflected second gaol in the 75^th minute, and it was already game on for the Bucs who proved yet again that they one powerhouse to reckon when it comes to their African Excellency.

Thabo Matlaba ensured that Pirates put out a statement to whoever they would be meeting in the final; that they are out to win it, when he scored a third for the team on that night in dying minutes of that match.

The strike by Matlaba wasn’t enough as Amr Gamal pulled one back for Ahly in injury time and it was all left for Thabo Rakhale who finished it off and added salt to the wounds of the “Club of The Century”, Al Ahly as he scored the fourth and final goal which saw the Buccaneers show all the grit and fight as they humiliated Al Ahly to a 4-3 home defeat and reaching the final of CAF Confederations Cup final by 5-3 on aggregate.

Pirates will meet Etoile du Sahel in the two-legged final late next month. The Tunisian club withstood a charge from Zamalek in their second leg in Cairo, losing 3-0, which was enough to go through 5-4 on aggregate.

Much can expected on the both evenings of the two-legged finals.

But what needs to be put to the spotlight is the excellent string of result which has prevailed continuously under the mentorship of Eric Tinkler, but most importantly the character which Ezimnyama Ngenkani have shown. They have been fighting throughout the battlefields of African, emulate the class of 95, displaying flair, finesse and flamboyance. It has been a team performance and individual brilliance has been there but they have soldiered on in solidarity. Barely having an off season and by doing so, maintaining consistency in their performance every time they play in the CCC. Regardless of the slow start to the domestic league, they have shown great intentions in obtaining continental glory. They have recorded wins from the word “impossible”, beating the best of the best.

With Kaizer Chiefs failing to do what Pirates has done, which is progress further and further on when participating in continental competitions, it is fitting to say that Pirates is more dominant continentally compared to Chiefs, who on the other hand are more dominant nationally.

What’s also fitting to question is that can Chiefs transfer their domestic momentum or rather status into their continental campaign and can Orlando Pirates on the other hand transfer their continental momentum into their domestic campaign?

Well there is much to look out for concerning these two Soweto Giants… Both forever on a quest to maintain their winning reputations as powerhouses of South African football.

The World of Marvelous Football Would Like To Wish Orlando Pirates; Buccaneers, Bucs, Ezikamagebhula, Sea Robbers, Ghosts, Happy People, Amabhakabhaka,
Ezimnyama Ngenkani, all the best in their quest to continental glory. You have made South Africa’s football fraternity proud.

 

Thabo Rakhale celebrating his goal with Thabo Qalinge

Image by: AMR ABDALLAH DALSH / REUTERS

Post Written By: Vuyolethu Sithatu 

@MAVUYOSTAR

Mutlichoice Diski Challenge Skills

The young stars of South African Football

Can Barcelona Be Merciless without Messi

Being arguably the greatest player to ever hit the football scene according to others, Lionel Messi founds himself on the side lines due to a knee injury and it has been dark in city of the Catalonians, after suffering their 2^nd defeat of the season, so it seems like the absence of Lionel Messi is felt.

As the four time Ballon D’or winner continues his recovery from the knee injury he suffered last month it seems like Barcelona will join him in doing as they look to recovery from a disappointing result against Seville. The men from Catalan were unfortunate to see themselves fall short and flat on a second loss in the 2015/2016 season, which too many rivals it raised a sense of relieve and if heartless, probably joy.

The result against Sevilla sent out a rather unconvincing message to their rivals, as they proved to be less of a threat without Lionel Mess. Messi having been the best Barcelona player over the last 6 years or more may see his unfortunate absence from the squad being a burden for Barcelona in maintaining that fiercely strike force; the MSN.

Messi vs Celta Vigo

When Barcelona lost 4-1 to Celta Vigo, Barcelona had the presence of Messi for the full 90 minutes, he delivered 1 cross, a 75% pass rate with 35% being complete passes, he had 7 shots in that game from the 18 of Barca of which 4 were on target and 3 of those shots were actually saved, 1 shot off target, two of his shot we blocked and 1 got off the woodwork.
Messi created 6 of the Barcelona’s 16 chances as 5 were key passes and 1 came as an assist. He further on in trying his luck by having 7 take ons in which 5 were well executed and he failed on two occasions. Aerially he was in thick off things with a rate of 33% and also one defence interception. As a quality player he felt the need to up his perform to his peak to salvage a positive result in the dying moments of the match as it was becoming too much of a realty to lose 4-1 to Celta Vigo.

The stats above can suggest that if Messi is not in the game, the results are bound not to favour Barcelona. With that being mentioned, the question that will need answering is that is Messi even more influential to the likes of Iniesta, Neymar and Suarez? We are yet to find out.

Barcelona vs Sevilla

Sevilla was the team responsible for handing Barcelona their second, and it was a Messi-less Barcelona which on that night they were merciful.  Barça created a total of 20 chances on that evening and expectedly maintained a rather satisfying passing percentage of 86%, with Sevilla trailing behind with 73%. On the wings Barcelona were more adventurous delivering a whipping tally of 28 crosses and with 14 take-ons. The result itself doesn’t reflect the entire performance stats of both teams. The defence stats also prove that Seville were at receiving end of the pressure applied by Barcelona.

This was a Barcelona team which was without the great Lionel Messi. It was Neymar and Suarez who were responsible of making things happen, they were joined upfront by 20 year old Munir El Haddadi Mohamed and he only had one shot at goal and setting up two chances.

Messi vs Atletico

Against one of their huge rivals in the Spanish La Liga, Coach Luis Enrique chose to start the big clash against Atletico Madrid with Lionel Messi on the bench, until the 60^th minute where the Argentinian forward was desperately introduced as they were looking to bag the full 3 points against Atletico. It was no surprise that it would become a worthy move, as Messi clinched the 2^nd goal in the 77^th minute and it was in great style as it seemed to be the goal needed to close the show. With the less time on the pitch Messi had 10 take-ons, created 2 chances and having a passing rate of 93%. Much can be said about his introduction against the Madrid based team.

In conclusion, what can be said is that the complete excellence of either MSN or Barcelona  is alive in Messi’s presence, not taking anything away from Neymar and El’ Pistore, the MSN strike-force is deadly with Messiah part of it.

And with the El Classic edging nearer and nearer, it seems like Real Madrid might face a Merciful Barcelona and yet a Messi-less one if he is fully fit by then, and this could count much to their desire as they are also willing to maintain a rather positive start to the 2015/2016 campaign. But the 22^nd of November might prove to be still far for Messi to hopefully make a return. But the question remains can Barcelona be merciless when they are without Messi?

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Statistics source : http://www.squawka.com/

http://www.squawka.com/