Euro 08 Beholds A Russian Czar....Andrei Arshavin

I picked the Netherlands as the winners of this summers competition long before their amazing display in the opening group stages. I also felt that they would continue to entertain and dismantle teams as they moved towards the finals. So today when I sat down to watch the match I felt, yes Russia is a sleeper team, but Holland should be able to come out with a positive result. My predictions turned out to be wrong as Russia from the start pushed Holland into a defensive stance with their attacks and eventually stifled masterful midfield players such as Van Deer Vaart and Wesley Sneidger. I also saw an impressive display of a Russian player who wore the number 10 on his jersey. This player had something to do with almost every counter attack the Russians executed. I soon realized he was the player I read that impressed Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger so much that he contacted the players club manager about a possible transfer to the Emirates. This player is 27 yr old Andrei Arshavin and he so far is the new found gem and star of Euro 08. Today the World, myself included now know who this player is and I believe that if he does end up in the Premiereship or another top league next season, we could be looking at a future World Player of the year. All one has to do is watch a repeat of the Russia Vs Holland match and look at highlights of his performances for his club to agree with my opinion.

Arshavin to me is a real attacking player. He is multi-dimensional and can play on the wing or upfront. Currently he plays a supporting striker role, a position that Arsenal utilizes Hleb in. What is impressive about this player is he is the whole package. Arshavin is short but stocky and he has great dribbling skills. He is able to use them along with his balance to move around defenders. He also is very intelligent, he chooses his passes or shots on goal depending on the situation. He has an array of shots at his arsenal, he is able to be a poacher in the box as well as a master at long range shots. He is also an effective free kick taker and has scored goals using his head. Arshavin expresses confidence in his play, he is not afraid to take on defenders and even the goal keeper. A number of his goals came from audacious attempts of chipping the ball over the keepers head, kicking the ball out of the keepers hand and even lurking behind the goal and pouncing on an unexpected keeper dropping the ball to kick it. Some of his moves have the flair of household names such as Ronaldo, Henry, Messi and Ronaldinho. He seems to be a player that has the mindset of Henry, one that knows his ability to score and scores but still wants to incorporate his team mates into the play by distributing beautiful passes into the box.

Arshavin currently plays in Russia for Zenit St. Petersburg where he has scored 47 goals in 217 appearances. Last season he started in all 30 matches in the season, scoring 10 goals and distributiing 11 assists while guiding his team to their first league title. It seems that he has decided to use the Euro's as a stage to gain the attention of top flight clubs in Europe. Reports mention that he has expressed a desire to move to a top flight club in England, Arsenal or Chelsea being his favoured choice. He also plays an integral role in the Russian national team. He has made 36 appearances and has scored 13 goals. He was suspended during Russia's first two opening matches in Euro 08 and his presence was deeply missed as Russia was totally dismantled by Spain. His return to the team saw the team winning a place in the knock out stage of the competition. Today the took their success one step further by knocking out Holland to earn a semi final spot and a chance to win the competition. Arshavin has scored two goals in the competition already and has played an integral role in the setting up of the other goals. His relentless movement and precise passing have left defenders and goal keepers alike in awe as the ball passed through the goal. I am really hoping this player becomes an Arsenal member and graces the premiereship with his awe inspiring skills.

Mexico's future rest in the Premiereship

The mexican team has seen an emergance of promising talents in the form of Giovanni Dos Santos, Carlos Vela and Nery Castillo. These attacking prodigys attracted English clubs looking to bolster their offense. Castillo was the first to touch the shores of England when joined Manchester City on a loan spell in January. He however failed to impress due to unfortunate injuries. Carlos Vela was signed to Arsenal for a couple of seasons now but was forced to go on loan spells in Spain in order to to fullfill his requirements to get a work permit. He has now been granted a work permit and will join Arsenal next month for preseason training. Last but not least is Dos Santos the Barcalona youth midfielder that was projected to eventually be Ronaldinho's heir at the Spanish club. He grew tired of limited playing time and decided to move on to Tottenham. These young players once they settle should entertain fans with beautiful attacking performances.

The question now is what can you expect from these three young players. Castillo 24, is an attacking minded player that can play on both wings as well as upfront. I have a feeling that Manchester City new manager Mark Hughes might play him upfront, utilizing his pace to unsettle defenders and score or contribute goals with his partner. Nery started his European career at the Greek team Olympiacos and scored 30 goals in 105. He then was bought by Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk made only six appearances with them before he was loaned to Manchester City. It was reported that Castillo was so uncomfortable at Shakhtar he decided to finance his own transfer fee for the loan to go through. Despite his clubs determination not to sell him, I cannot see him returning back to Eastern Europe. Castillo appeared for the Mexico team 15 times prior to his injury and managed to score 5 goals. As soon as he shakes his injury he will most likely be implemented in Mexico's upcoming World Cup qualifiers since ex Manchester City manager Sven Eriksson is now Mexico's national team manager.

The next impressive Mexican player is Carlos Vela. Vela 19 is also a multi dimensional attacker. He can play on both wings as well as upfront. He played in the midfield for Osasuna last season on loan and recently he was applied upfront in a forward position for Mexico. Arsenal's manager Arsene Wenger hinted that he felt that he was more suited as a forward in the Arsenal line up. If this is the case, I expect Vela to provide depth Arsenal's lineup probably to the sacrifice of Bendtner. Vela is a skillful player that enjoys using his pace and dribbling skills to force defenders into making fatal mistakes which then opens a chance for a shot or pass towards goal. His most popular performance was against Real Madrid where he wrecked havoc on defenders forcing them to resort into fouling him as a means of consoling him. Vela should be able to fit into the entertaining passing game Arsenal is reknowned for. Vela has made a number of appearances for the senior Mexican team and has scored 5 goals in less than 10 appearances.

The final member of the young Mexicans to join an English club is 19 yr old Giovanni Dos Santos. Giovanni is an attacking midfielder that can also serve out his fair share of tackles on the defensive side. Like his two national team mates he can also be implemented in on either wing or upfront. Giovanni is the son of Brazilian footballer Zizinho and joined Barcalona as a teenager before graduating to the first team last season. Last season he made 38 appearances for Barcalona due to injuries in the first team. He managed to score 4 goals and 4 assists. Three of his goals came from a splendid end of season hat trick appearance against Real Murcia. Dos Santos uses his pass and his passing skills to contribute to attacking movements. Out of the three Dos Santos relies less on tricks to move forward, his movements are like Messi's driving forward with excellent ball control instead of step overs. He is also pretty strong for his age and is able to overcome pressure from defenses. Giovanni's international career started in the youth stages and his form was so impressive he is now a part of the Senior National team, however he has failed to score any goals.

The future is bright for these Mexican prodigies and they will now be playing in the World's most diverse and entertaining league. The experience they will learn in the premiereship can only contribute positively to the development of these players. I believe that Dos Santos will probably have the most successful season of the three in the Premiereship. He will most likely be given more playing time than the other two since Tottenham's manager is looking to revamp the team. His partnership with other new players such as the promising Croation, Modric could bring the Spurs the much wanted success in the league. Castillo's contribution depends highly on the decision of Mark Hughes to utilize him. Vela will have to impress Wenger during the pre-season to ensure a starting place in the team's lineup. Theo Walcott is determined to break into first team striker position and this could provide each player a challenge to impress their manager to

Where does the future lie for the World's greatest player?, Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo had a brilliant club season. A season that other players could only dream of. He scored over 40 goals, won the English Premiereship title for the second time in a row and won the most elusive of trophies, the Champions League Cup. He did this while perfecting the art of attacking football and collecting numerous individual awards on the way. He has now earned the accolades from his peers and rival fans alike across the world. Later on in the year everyone expects him to win FIFA Player of the year. His only disappointment this season came from his international duties in Euro 08. Portugal after having a magnificent start fell short to the powerhouse known as Germany and left Ronaldo ample time to contemplate on his club future. Real Madrid acknowledging the fact that Ronaldo expressed interest in joining them someday decided to focus their energies on persuading Ronaldo to set his goals on becoming their marquee player for seasons to come. This did not go well with Ronaldo's current club Manchester United. The club has realized how important the young man is to their continued success and refuse to let go of the midfielder who has contributed to over 40% of Manchester's magnificent goal tally in the past season. A bitter war has now begun over the two clubs due to Madrids audacious attempts to lure the Portuguese. Ronaldo has also fueled his club's temper by refusing to to put an end to rumours of his desire to apply his trade in the La Liga, by teasing the press with ambigous remarks and putting off his final decision until further notice.

In my opinion I believe Ronaldo will be requesting to leave England this year. I do not believe he will leave because of financial greed. Instead I believe he wants to face a new challenge. Ronaldo has won all major trophies in England including the Champions League and it would seem that he would find it hard to regain the passion and form to top the past season. Ronaldo is a player that is obssessed with goals and challenges. He constantly works hard to improve his mental and physical aspects of the game. I watched his performance in the Euro 04 recently and could see major differences between the teenager that played in that match and the man he has become today. Gone was the slim built midfielder with a knack to do countless step overs and hit long range shots. He now turned into a powerful hybrid player, not a midfielder not a striker but a player that ghosts around the attacking front looking for the ball. He now added a number of other impressive options to his arsenal. He no longer relied on shooting from outside the box, but also improved on his aerial capabilites and inside box shooting. He also implement his pace and step over techinque only when he knew the percentage of beating his defender was high and not just for showboating to the pleasure of the crowd. He also spent hours on the training field practicing and perfecting the art of free kicks. All this shows evidence that this is a player that has to be motivated to perform at the highest levels. I am more than confident that at this moment Ronaldo is preparing himself for Euro 12 so that he may get over from dropping out so early in the competition. When he walked away from the pitch alone, it showed that he felt disappointed in himself for failing the task. This is why I believe Man U should swallow their pride and let Ronaldo go if he wishes.

I believe that Manchester United can force Ronaldo to stay with the club. This I believe would eventually lead Ronaldo to start losing interesting in the developments on the pitch, and he could start performing below par. We saw when Ronaldinho won the CL and he realized that he has won everything his form decreased dramatically. I fear this could happen to him. What Real Madrid represents to Ronaldo is a new challenge. He will have to establish himself into a new team and new system. He will then have to use his abilities to help his team win maintain the La Liga title and win the Champion's League. This will provide him with a goal to continue to maintain his brilliant form. I would not be surprised if Ronaldo manages to achieve these goals at Real Madrid, they too will have the pain of seeing him move on to one of the Serie A giants. Another interesting note is that Ronaldo's mother is a diehard Real Madrid fan and has stated her desire to see her son play for the club. Despite the fact that she has been quoted as saying that she believes he should stay with Manchester United, this may highly influence his decision. Ronaldo has already expereinced the passing of his Father and knows the reality that mortality is temporary. It seems to me that Ronaldo realizes anything can happen in football and he may not gain this opportunity again. We now have to wait to hear his announcement in the next 48 hrs.

Euro 08 opening matches review

The Euro's have begun with a firing start. This year's championship is extra enticing because of Europe's top clubs are all looking to add players to their growing rosters. Players and even managers are using the competition as a platform to highlight their talents. So far the opening matches have concluded and here is a brief look at what has developed so far.

Top Team: The Netherlands: Holland had the enormous task of confronting Italy in their first match and they were up to it. The Orange men performed brilliantly demolishing the Italians with three stunning goals. The first goal was a controversial slip in by goal poach Van Nistelrooy. An Italian defender who was hurt took himself off the pitch without the referee's acknowledgement and allowed the dutch striker to remain on side to kick in a pass into the box. The second goal also came from a Real Madrid man. The dutch midfielder Snieder who hit an amazing close range shot to foil the experienced goal keeper Buffon. The final goal came from the likes of Barca defensive midfielder Van Bronkhorst who heading in a cross to nail the coffin closed for Italy. It was the first time Italy has ever been beaten by such a wide margin in the tournament. Runner Up: Spain.

Top player: Spain's David Villa: Rumour has it that Valencia is in a cash burden and are willing to sell their strike man this summer. Villa added more value to his abilities by scoring a hat trick against Russia in their opening match. Villa partnered upfront with Liverpool striker Fernando Torres proved to be a nemesis to the Russian defense line. He managed to time his run to meet Torres pass and slip the ball into the back of the net. He then met a pass through pass from Iniesta to score his second goal. In the second half Torres was sent to the bench and Villa then played the remaining time as a lone striker. He continued his fine form by scoring a magnificent goal that showcast his individual skills. There is no question that Villa has made an impression on the scouts present at the competition. Runner up: Portugal's Jose Boswinga and Germany's Podolski.