SoccerNews Issue # 10, October 16th 2014 Continental/Division Tires Alexander Bahlmann Phone: +49 511 938 2615 Head of Media & Public Relations PLT E-Mail: [email protected] Buettnerstraße 25 | 30165 Hannover www.contisoccerworld.de Soccer News # 10/2014 2 News Yellow alert in World Cup champions’ country The euphoria over the World Cup title has evaporated. Three months after the great triumph in Rio de Janeiro the glitter surroun- ding the German national team is fading. The DFB team hit the hard fact of reality with a 1 - 1 (0-0) draw with Ireland, three days after a 2 - 0 (0 - 0) defeat by Poland in Warsaw. “We’ll hit back again next year”, national coach Joachim Loew promised after the draw in Gelsenkirchen, where Germany conceded the equaliser in the 94th minute after an inexplicably weak final phase. Wolfgang Niersbach, the President of the German Football Association (DFB), also showed some concern: “It would be exaggerating to say we are shocked. But it is of course totally annoying to concede Disappointment displayed on the faces of Sebastian Rudy, Lukas Podolski, Thomas Mueller and Erik Durm after the 1-1 draw with Ireland that felt the equaliser with the last action of the match”. like a defeat. (Photo: GES/Augenklick) At Schalke Arena it became clear that the defeat in Poland even linked the current situation with a recollection of the standings between the players and too many mistakes. During wasn’t a one-off slip-up. In both October matches the German bad times in German football: “It’s rumbling again”. And “Bild” the last eight minutes, including the four-minute added time, domination led to just one goal, with the defence tottering at commented: “They now have four stars on their shirts – but there was absolutely nothing to be seen of the style of neat decisive moments. The interim balance sheet is frustrating: they no longer play four-star football!” passing combinations, praised since 2010. Long, inaccurate The World Cup champions trail with just four points in fourth passes, actually forbidden by Loew, were played. “We did not place in Group D, behind Ireland (7 points), Poland (7) and The announcement by Loew and his players that they would keep calm at the end. In the last minutes we hit twenty long Scotland (4), who were arduously defeated 2-1 in September. easily let forget the defeat by Poland (ranked 70 in the world) passes. We haven’t played that many during the entire season. “Yellow alert in the World Cup champions’ country” read the against the Irish (64th), did not come true. After a combination That’s something I cannot understand”, said Toni Kroos, who headline in the football magazine “Kicker”. “Frankfurter Allge- of missed chances and a game without tempo, ideas and had scored for the lead in the 71st minute. That he was the best meine Zeitung” wrote about a “shrivelled fragment of a World clout in Warsaw, in front of 51,000 spectators, the German German player did not prevent him from joining the collective Cup champion”. The online service of the magazine “Spiegel” team, still ranked top in the world, again acted with misunder- sloppiness at the end. Soccer News # 10/2014 3 Loew’s change is more painful than expected The change planned by Loew in the run-up to the 2016 UEFA European Championship, “That was naïve”, said Loew, criticising the is more complicated and more painful than abandonment of his tactical guidelines. “In expected. There are many reasons why the principle we had already gained the three start to the qualification went totally wrong points. But then we lacked courage and hid after the 4-2 loss to Argentina in the interna- ourselves”, said team captain Manuel Neuer. tional friendly in Dusseldorf. On top of the “My shot could not be saved by the world’s retirements of Philipp Lahm, Mirolav Klose best goalkeeper. That was a great moment”, and Per Mertesacker there were the injuries rejoiced John O’Shea, the Irish scorer, who of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Sami Khedira, Marco gained the better of defender Mats Hummels. Reus, Benedikt Hoewedes and Mesut Oezil. The World Cup champion was totally frustrated. Prior to the match against Ireland, defeated “I will be blamed”, Hummels said, but Loew 6-1 and 3-0 in the last World Cup qualification, suggested the entire defensive line-up was at Christoph Kramer and Andre Schuerrle fell ill fault when the goal was conceded. with flu. The World Cup substitutes Erik Durm, Matthias Ginter, Julian Draxler and newcomer Antonio Ruediger were not yet ready to step into the larger shoes. Veteran Lukas Podolski acted as disappointingly as with Arsenal FC. And the remaining World Cup champions Arjen Robben of World Cup bronze medallists Netherland is challenged by Iceland’s Birkir Bjarnason. The Oranje Neuer, Hummels, Kroos, Jerome Boateng and team lost 2-0 in Reykjavik. (Photo: Getty Images) Thomas Mueller failed to fulfil Loew’s demand to become new “alpha wolves”. When the pre- News viously harmless Irish played up at the end, nobody sent visible signals of active resistance to his team-mates. World Cup jet lag for top favou- only four points from three matches, in the rites – major crisis at Oranje Netherlands the clock shows “2 before 12” as Prior to the match Loew had said: “The strain Arjen Robben alarmingly stated. for the players is at the absolute limit”. Hardly any of the World Cup champions, except Kroos, They can’t thank Michel Platini enough in Hol- After a 2-0 defeat in Iceland the Dutch papers reached his best level. “You have the feeling land. The President of the European Football described a “catastrophe” and “postman foot- some players are lacking mental freshness, Association (UEFA) had decisively pressed ahead ball”. The World Cup bronze medallists are speed, dynamics and decisiveness”, disclosed with the increase of the European Champion- already trailing six points behind Iceland and the national coach. He will rest the stars for ship finals to 24 teams despite many queries the Czech Republic in Group A. Consequently the last European qualifier of the year against about the sense of the qualifying stage. Now, the new “Bondscoach” Guus Hiddink, who “midgets” Gibraltar in November. Further wins after just three rounds, the cumbersome obli- had led the “Elftal” into the 1998 World Cup should then follow in 2015. The European gatory task has become a sporting struggle semi-finals, has been heavily criticised at the Toni Kroos was the best German player, who scored Championship ticket is not yet endangered for survival for many favourites. There have start of his second term, with three defeats for the 1-0 lead against Ireland, but at the end contri- after the bad start, but it is not far from yellow never before been so many upsets in the first from four matches. It’s fortunate that the buted to the equaliser with a mistake. to red alert. few matches. Not only are World Cup champions third-placed teams now retain a chance to (Photo: GES/Augenklick) Germany suffering from World Cup jet lag with qualify for France with the change of system. Soccer News # 10/2014 4 The Dutch are in good company, however. Reigning European champions Spain suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat in Slovakia in Group C, costing former “Goalkeeper of the World” Iker Casillas his regular place. The Spanish fans were hardly recon- ciled with the follow-up 4-0 win in Luxembourg. With six points the Iberians are placed second behind the Slovaks. The Swiss also failed to convince with two defeats in Group E, before San Marino became the right opponents to build up confidence producing a 4-0 victory. Switzerland’s new coach Vladimir Petkovic, the successor to Ottmar Hitzfeld, is already under pressure. Slovenia and Lithuania are Switzerland’s rivals for the European Championship ticket, for group leaders Eng- land are already too far ahead with nine points, even though their 1-0 over Estonia, with Wayne Rooney scoring the winner, was anything but brilliant. Dull but successful, the Italians are managing their obligatory The San Marino syndrome: few roads, lots of cars and few accidents. (Photo: Alaexis) programme. After a 2-1 win over Azerbaijan, coached by former German national coach Berti Vogts, and a 1-0 in Malta, the Did you know ... “Squadra Azzurra” are on track for the European Champion- territory. Founded in the year 301, the world’s oldest republic ship finals with nine points in Group H, as are Croatia. Norway is only about half the size of Kiel in Germany or Cardiff, the are also contenders with six points. Fifteen-year-old Martin … that San Marino has the best road safety capital of Wales. Oedegaard made his debut during the 2-1 win over Bulgaria record in the world? thus becoming the youngest player ever in a European So are the Sammarinese better drivers than the rest of us? Championship qualification. Perhaps they are. However, a realistic look reveals that a com- You could be forgiven for believing that accidents are common parison with other much more densely populated states doesn’t Portugal changed their coach after a 1-0 loss to Albania. They where traffic is heavy, but San Marino provides the ultimate quite hold water; as San Marino only has a population of 31,000, achieved the turn-around under the new man, Fernando Santos, proof that you’d be wrong: this micro-state surrounded entirely the accident rate in absolute figures is correspondingly low. with a 1-0 in Denmark – thanks to World Footballer of the Year by Italy has the most cars per head anywhere in the world.