Armenia know the next step won't be easy

Armenia enters 2014 with its highest FIFA ranking since its inception to the governing body, but one has to wonder what this truly means for Armenian football. Though happy with a climb in the rankings from the mid 100s just a few years ago, can Armenia really consider itself an imposing opponent on the world stage?

Two impressive rounds of qualifying (Euro 2012 & WC 2014), the latest including a 4-0 win in Copenhagen over Denmark, has brought this small nation footballing respectability. With this impressive form, UEFA Champions League runner-up Borussia Dortmund spent a hefty sum of 22 million Euros on Henrikh Mkhitaryan - arguably the best footballer Armenia has ever produced.

But respectability isn't the only thing Armenians want. They are yet to qualify for the Euros or World Cup after becoming an independent state in 1991 and playing first international match in October 1992. They want to play on the big stage, but getting there isn't going to be easy.

Armenia's newest challenge sees them placed in a group with Portugal, Serbia, Denmark (again) and Albania for qualification for the 2016 European Championships. It is hard to see Armenia advancing to the "Big Show" in France, and with that comes more questions about FIFA's ranking system - How much worth is there in Armenia being ranked number 30 in the world when it has yet to qualify for a major tournament?

Today, this small nation of 3 million residents (but with a diaspora of 27 million) lost 2-0 to Russia in a friendly. A win would have helped Armenia further climb FIFA's ranking system, but is this a true indicator of how a nation compares to others? Portugal, Serbia and Denmark are all ahead of Armenia in the rankings (and France are joining the group just for fun as they qualify as hosts). Despite the tournament expanding to 24 teams, finishing in the top 2 looks like a huge ask. No group is easy, but FIFA seems to think the system gives everyone a shot. 

Sepp Blatter certainly thinks so, and with that said it is a surprise that Jack Warner hasn't gotten Trinidad and Tobago in the top 10, or a place at the Euros!!!

All Armenians know is that they'll have to do it the hard way again.  

-Aris Alpian

The divide in European soccer is growing

I'd like to write about other European leagues and how great they were to watch this weekend, and there sre great teams in Serie A, La Liga, the Bundesliga and Ligue Un, but they are only getting competition in the Champions League.

Barcelona are unbeaten in the first 14 games of the season and have scored 42 goals in that time, conceding just 9 goals. Bayern beat Dortmund this weekend to extend their run to 13 unbeaten to start this season, and they have won 11 of those, letting in just 7 goals. Juve are top again in Serie A, starting 11-1-1, with Roma close, but only because they started at an unbelievable rate and have an amazing defense. PSG are also unbeaten, topping Ligue Un on 34 points from 14. Lille are second, rivaling Roma for tightest defense, conceding just 4 in 14.

So there is somewhat of a story there, but it's no surprise really. The top teams just get stronger and the competition gets weaker. Every major league in Europe, apart from England, still has at least one unbeaten team with about a third of the season gone. That may be great for stats and records, but there is a real gulf in class among the teams now, and it's not great to watch - teams are seeing a 2-0 loss as an acceptable result, because Barca, Real, Bayern and PSG are putting 4,5, 6 or 7 past teams. And that leads me into the Premier League - Man City have put 7 past Norwich and now 6 past Spurs, and Tottenham spent about $150 million this off-season. What hope do other teams have of competing if City can smash 6 past a team who were tipped for the top 4?

The gulf is growing, and not in a good way people. That European Super League we all dread may actually make the domestic season better - but that's another discussion.

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So City, Chelsea and Arsenal all had pretty easy wins this weekend. Games that had the potential to trip them up. They look like the strongest three teams in the division. Liverpool are close, but they're pretty evenly matched up with Manchester United this season. Spurs don't look like they are going to make the top 4 again, but they still have a chance to crack it - they just need to learn to defend, and to get some supply to a striker that cost a huge chunk of that Gareth Bale money.

The Merseyside derby was fantastic. Lead changes, great goals, a yellow that should have been a red, and that man again....Romelu Lukaku. Yes, I could have said Luis Suarez, and he deserve s a mention, but the young Belgian is an absolute beast. He is the ultimate lone striker. Big, strong, good in the air, quick, can finish and is just 20! But lest we forget, Chelsea own him. So Everton's shot a the top 4 is realistic, but they won't find another Lukaku next year, and Chelsea won't loan him out again.

West Ham and Fulham are in trouble. Both teams look weak, and their game next week is a real 6-pointer. Neither team is playing well, and the excuses given by Martin Jol and Sam Allardyce are not enough anymore. West Ham need Carroll back, but to expect him to come in and score 15+ in the second half of the season is unrealistic. Fulham can't defend right now, and as good as he is when they win, Berbatov becomes a liability when they're behind.

Some rich league football to keep us entertained this week - so we don't need to worry about the little teams too much. 

Come in Number 9, your time is up

Radamel Falcao is top scorer in Ligue Un.

Monaco won again this weekend and sit third in the league, just behind leaders PSG.

But not everything is rosy for the Colombian striker. As every good Sunday league player does, Falcao gave the coach the stare when his number was raised this weekend. No-one wants to be subbed, and while it's a chance to get a beer (energy drink) and snack (hot dog) for some, Falcao doesn't see himself as one of those.

Good to see though, because no-one should be smiling when they get taken off.

Can France do it? Will Zlatan miss out?

A World Cup with no Zlatan? Or one without Ronaldo? Add that to no Ribery, Benzema, or the crazy French.

It wouldn't be worth watching would it?

People (I'm not calling them fans) want to see the best players, but part of the drama is who is not there, and how they failed. England won their group, but still got a hard time from the media; Switzerland may be the weakest top seed, but they won their group and qualified easily; Mexico are set to be there even though they have had more chances than any other team.

But those teams will be there next summer, and no one will care how they did it. If France or Portugal are not there, you can bet people will remind them every day until the tournament ends.

I think the home teams in European qualifying will all win tonight, and while that will mean the end for Iceland, the margin of victory in the other games will determine who goes through.

France need to score early, or there will be a new generation of Ginolas and Cantonas, who are still blamed for them not making it to USA '94.

Romania got the away goal, so have a good chance to score 2 and qualify at home to Greece.

Sweden have to score 3 in my opinion as Cristiano always has a goal in him. If Portugal score, they should qualify on away goals, but Zlatan has something up his sleeve, I just know it.

I've been wrong on everything else though, so stay tuned for another 4 teams to be going to Brazil by the close of business - which 4 is anyone's guess!

Will Ireland fans care if France fail to make it to Brazil?

Remember this?

I'm sure Ireland fans will be learning the national anthem of Ukraine ahead of today's game - or just drinking a few of those famous Ukrainian beers...

Zlatan or Ronaldo - and you can't have both

So the big game tomorrow in the European playoffs for the Brazil 2014 World Cup has to be Greece v Romania. Can't wait for that one!

Then there's Portugal v Sweden. Cristiano against Zlatan. The two superstars have 48 goals between them this year, and 7 hat-tricks. With Lionel Messi injured, these two are the best two players in the game right now.

Zlatan has it all - the goals he scores are unbelievable, but his technique is phenomenal. He's such a character and has a personality that Brazil needs next summer.

Ronaldo is moody, elusive and more model than footballer. But what a footballer. He has everything, and has to be considered one of the greats of the game already - and he's only 28.

But we can't have both. Never team could win their group, although Sweden had a much tougher task after being paired with Germany. And the luck (or should we say bad luck) drew the two teams together. I wouldn't be bothered if Sweden or Portugal weren't there, but if Ronaldo and Zlatan aren't there, they will be missed.

France should beat Ukraine over two legs. They have quality at the back and in midfield, with Ukraine posing little threat in my opinion. Iceland are huge underdogs against Croatia, but they are the feel good story of European qualification. Greece and Romania is a game that doesn't excite me at all, which probably means it will be the best one. Neither team will do much in Brazil, but then I said that when Greece won the Euros in 2004!

I'm taking Sweden to win over the two legs, with Greece, Iceland and France joining them. Cristiano has it all already, and he'll sulk for a while, but then console himself with his model girlfriend, millions of dollars and addiction to sunbeds.

Are we close to a 'Foreigners With Benefits' rule?

(Here's a feature from our Special Writer in England in response to our article about nationality and sport.)

An English footballer made headlines this week by venturing an actual opinion. In the abstract at least, this is something to be welcomed in these times of clichéd platitudes and football authorities trying to sanitise the game to the extent of criminalising words whatever the context. After all, the concept of free speech has to be extended to those with whom you disagree.

That hasn’t stopped people criticising Jack Wilshere in the name of liberalism or progression though. “The only people who should play for England are English people,” said the Arsenal man, revealing a hitherto unknown interest in politics and an interesting take on what all this means. “We have to remember what we are. We are English. We tackle hard, are tough on the pitch and are hard to beat.”

Various opponents since 1966 might beg to differ and Wilshere was surely just unfortunate that his comments came at the moment a power vacuum opened up within the English Defence League. But whether or not he made his point eloquently enough, his wider view has the backing of his club boss, Arsène Wenger, and Harry Redknapp, who should actually be the England manager, according to Harry Redknapp.

Pertinently, Wilshere’s assertion that “if you live in England for five years it doesn’t make you English” is not only supported by geography students the world over, but helpful in highlighting a rule many feel is absurd: that a player can be capped for his country of residence after a continuous stay of that length after his 18th birthday. The question came about because England haven’t had a proper left winger for 20 years and Manchester United seem to have unearthed one in Adnan Januzaj – an 18-year-old who already has as many claims to separate nationalities as the British Isles but who might fancy playing in front of the ridiculously priced, and consequently empty Club Wembley seats some time after his qualification date in 2018.

“If I went to Spain and lived there for five years, I’m not going to play for Spain,” added Wilshere, no doubt to the relief of Xavi, Iniesta and Fàbregas.

But here’s the rub. Wilshere’s entitled to say who he thinks should be eligible for England – and he was later at pains to point out that he has “great respect” for the many athletes who represent England and Great Britain despite being born abroad – but any rule change wouldn’t just affect England. It has to be the same for all countries, even though definitions of nationality don’t always tally: France have long chosen players from former colonies and dependent territories because there is a tradition of seeing those countries as “greater France”, and yet some players born and raised in France choose to represent their ancestral lands because of “a lack of integration”. The Italians have been discussing this for so many decades that they have long used the word “oriundi” for “foreign” players – mainly South American with Italian ancestry – who turn out for the Azzurri. And let’s not forget that plenty of Wilshere’s compatriots are currently raising their children in Singapore, Malaysia, the Emirates and many other countries besides, without a second thought of them ever being anything other than English.

Former France captain Patrick Vieira was born in Dakar, Senegal

So the real question is: what’s nationalism? Because the truth is that it can mean very different things. English and Irish nationalism, for example, are almost polar opposites: the former tainted by association with colonialism, imperialism and arrogance; the latter feted for rebelling against its controlling neighbour. It’s not that England only attract the kind of people who’ve just shed a tear over Tommy Robinson’s departure, it’s just that no one is denying they have their share of people whose political persuasions are quite far to the right. Of Enoch Powell.

It’s easy for me to sneer. I’m English but I don’t support England. I support Manchester United and, when I was growing up, England was the team Bryan Robson used to get injured playing for. When I was following my team around the continent, some ‘England fans’ were hanging effigies of David Beckham and singing “if the Nevilles play for England so can I” so many of us just assumed they were all people who couldn’t read. I’m lucky because I watch international games as a neutral. But I fully appreciate that many people are good supporters of clubs who don’t routinely play in elite competitions and for whom “Ing-er-lund” represents a genuine chance to support a team that, at least in theory, is taken seriously around the world.

So maybe the question of whether England should forsake the “foreigners with benefits” rule and “go native” should be left to the supporters’ club. Even if FIFA permits “nationality” through grand-parentage, Jack thinks England should make a stand for clear, black and white lines.

It won’t be very popular if Januzaj scores against England, but at least this burning issue stopped people talking about Wilshere smoking for a while.

-Vance

Is the season already over? Perspective people.

Arsenal and Spurs are first and second, Barcelona, Athleico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Napoli still have 100% winning starts to the season. I'm sure fans of those teams want the season to end now (maybe not Spurs fans finishing behind Arsenal), but let's have some perspective.

Just because Real Madrid spent a billion euros (or whatever it was) on Gareth Bale, then failed to win the next game, doesn't mean they are suddenly awful. Even though Newcastle won and Man City didn't, it doesn't mean the Geordies are now title contenders. West Ham haven't scored for 3 games, yet it doesn't mean they never will again - not sure on that point actually, it could be Christmas before Kevin Nolan decides he needs some goal bonus money to buy an extra turkey or two.

Although we are about a tenth of the way through the season already, let's get some perspective. Teams are still forming, players are getting used to each other and managers are trying to find the right system. It doesn't mean a manager won't get sacked before the end of September - that's just football.

***

Neymar grabbed another assist for Barcelona as they made it 14 goals in 4 games. Critiano Ronaldo signed a new contract as he didn't think 50 million euros a year was enough to pay for his spray tans and hair cream. Rafa Benitez is killing it in Italy - there is a real chance we'll never have to watch him play chess on a BBC Football interview again. The Derby d'Italia finished 1-1, with Inter looking a much better team than they did last year. Dortmund won 6-2 with Lewandowski looking back to his best - Pep is going to have a tough time at Bayern Munich. It's not that his team aren't one of the best in Europe, it's just impossible to really improve on what they did last season.

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Oh, and Falcao scored again as Monaco remain top of Ligue Un.

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In other news, Kaka is already injured....bet he wishes he had a pal like Dani Alves, who apparently offered Eric Abidal part of his liver to aid his recovery....Mario Gomez is out injured again, those 2 yard tap-ins are going to miss him. 

Where Are They Now?

You might remember them.

In Argentina's lone Primera league match today, two names that most footy fans may be familiar with--Maxi Rodriguez and Gabriel Heinze--made their marks for Newell's Old Boys against Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata with a 3-0 romp to bring them to top of the table.

Oh, and Newell's third goal by Peruvian Rinaldo Cruzado was assisted by some French bloke named David Trezeguet.

Not a bad squad that current Barcelona manager Gerardo Martino left behind.

Geezer of the Day

This guy would have to be in the conversation about best French striker of all time. 30 goals in 54 games for the national team. 134 in 215 games for Marseille and countless (well, not countless, just too many to list) goals for AC Milan, Bayern Munich and Bordeaux.

Loved a volley, was great in the air and was a fantastic finisher. Also gives me a reason to hum the French national anthem, which has to be one of the best there is. Today's Geezer is Jean-Pierre Papin.

And one of many tributes on YouTube...