Brazil Open Opportunities for Ronaldo's Back to National Team

Brazil coach Mano Menezes will do anything to ensure his team can be competitive in every game. He did not close the possibility of going back to wearing Ronaldo if it is reasonably necessary.Menezes is confident Ronaldo who had a three-time World Player can answer the challenge. According striker who is now 33 years old still have a decent ability to play in the national team.Now Il phenomenological play for Corinthians. He was still sharp. Of the 22 games he had a collection of 13 goals.Menezes being considered for now is the fitness of Ronaldo. Knee injury which often disturb current look is not annoying anymore. But many doubt if the players who formed the backbone of Brazil at the 2002 world champion was able to play excellent in 90 minutes.

In the era of the early 1990’s until 2000, Ronaldo is the most deadly striker in the world. Acceleration amazing dribbling skills plus high level of its players makes it difficult to stop anywhere.In the official game at club level he played as many as 502 party with a collection of 347 goals. While for the national team he has a collection of 62 goals from 97 parties. (AP)

Zinedine Zidane returns to help boost France team's morale

CLAIREFONTAINE, France Zinedine Zidane has made an appearance at France’s training camp to help coach Laurent Blanc restore the beleaguered national team’s confidence following its poor performance at the World Cup.Zidane, who won the 1998 European Championship and 2000 World Cup with France, spent Wednesday with the players at its camp in Clairefontaine.

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Blanc wanted the presence of Zidane and former France goalkeeper Fabien Barthez to help boost the low morale and instill some core values that were lost in South Africa.France’s entire squad went on strike at the World Cup in protest after Nicolas Anelka was sent home for swearing at then-coach Raymond Domenech.France was eliminated in the first round without winning a game at the World Cup in South Africa. (AP)

NBA all-stars joined President Barack Obama on Sunday to entertain wounded troops

WASHINGTON LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and other NBA all-stars joined President Barack Obama on Sunday to entertain wounded troops.The basketball superstars were joined by some retired legends, including Bill Russell and Magic Johnson. College player Maya Moore of the Connecticut Huskies women’s team also played.

The game was played for a group of “wounded warriors” – troops injured in action – and participants in the White House’s mentoring program.The action took place at a gym inside Washington’s Fort McNair, a short drive from the White House. The president was inside the gym for about two hours. (AP)

Yovani Gallardo is firm. Even if he's fortunate enough to make the All-Star team again next summer, he'll skip it."If the game is in Arizona

ANAHEIM, Calif. Yovani Gallardo is firm. Even if he’s fortunate enough to make the All-Star team again next summer, he’ll skip it.”If the game is in Arizona, I will totally boycott,” the Milwaukee Brewers pitcher said Monday.A year before Phoenix is set to host baseball’s big event, the state’s new immigration law kept drawing the attention of major leaguers.Kansas City reliever Joakim Soria, who leads the majors with 25 saves, said he would support a Latino protest and stay away. Detroit closer Jose Valverde can see himself steering clear, too.”It’s a really delicate issue,” said Toronto outfielder Jose Bautista, who leads the majors with 24 home runs. “Hopefully, there are some changes in the law before then. We have to back up our Latin communities.”

“If I do get chosen, I don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said.About three dozen protesters held signs Monday one block from the hotel where Major League Baseball held its welcoming news conferences. The demonstrators said they had over 100,000 petitions asking commissioner Bud Selig to move the 2011 All-Star game out of Arizona.Another protest was planned outside Angel Stadium before Tuesday night’s game.

Selig has not spoken directly on the subject. Asked in May about calls to shift next year’s game, he gave a defense of baseball’s minority hiring record. Selig did not take questions at Monday’s All-Star introductory event.Arizona’s much-debated measure takes effect July 29. The statute requires police, while enforcing other laws, to ask about a person’s immigration status if there is reasonable suspicion that the person is in the country illegally.”They could stop me and ask to see my papers,” Soria said. “I have to stand with my Latin community on this.”

The Mexican-born Gallardo said he’s talked with Soria and San Diego’s All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez about the Arizona law.”We don’t agree with it,” Gallardo said. St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols said he opposed the law and Valverde called it “dumb.”

Several All-Stars avoided the topic.”That’s a political thing,” New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano said. “I don’t have anything to say about it. They already made a decision. If I say anything it’s not going to make any difference.””Wrong guy,” teammate Alex Rodriguez said, pointing to other players in the interview room.

Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Rafael Furcal said he would wait for guidance from the players’ union.”The game is going on at this point, regardless,” said former All-Star Tony Clark, who played for Arizona last season and now works for the union. “Whatever decision an individual player makes, they would have the full support of the union.”The union has already condemned the law and said that if it is not repealed or modified additional steps would be considered.

Oakland closer Andrew Bailey, whose team holds spring training in Phoenix, said his sport was caught in a crossfire.”The Arizona Diamondbacks and Major League Baseball had nothing to do with making the Arizona immigration laws,” he said. “I know there are discrepancies. Hopefully, things can get resolved.”(AP) —

Octopus oracle picks Spain to win

BERLIN There’s been plenty of ink for Paul the octopus lately, and why not?The octopus, also known as the “Oracle of Oberhausen,” has successfully predicted the winner of six World Cup matches so far.Now, Paul has forecast the winner of Sunday’s championship match. And rather than go out on a limb – or maybe eight of them – the critter is sticking with the favorite, picking Spain over the Netherlands.Handlers of the 2 1/2-year-old floppy octopus – a resident of the Oberhausen Sea Life aquarium – usually have him make predictions only for games in which Germany plays. But because of Paul’s recent worldwide fame and demand for his pick for the final, they made an exception.

Here’s how the seer sucker makes his prognostications: Officials put a mussel inside each of two clear plastic boxes bearing the national flags of the teams in his tank. Paul then makes his choice by opening the lid with his tentacles and devouring one of the treats.Millions across Europe, in Taiwan and elsewhere watched a live TV broadcast Friday of his choice of Spain, complete with breathless commentary. He also predicted Germany over Uruguay in Saturday’s third-place game.Paul has gotten business proposals, has thousands of Facebook fans and even has the attention of world leaders.Animal rights group PETA wants him freed. Many Germans – upset that he correctly picked Spain over Germany in Wednesday’s semifinal – want him fried.”Paul is such a professional oracle – he doesn’t even care that hundreds of journalists are watching and commenting on every move he makes,” said Stefan Porwoll, the Sea Life aquarium manager. “We’re so proud of him.”After his prediction of his home country’s loss came true, German TV showed footage of a grilled octopus. That prompted Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to fret about the safety of “El Pulpo Paul,” as he’s known in Spain.

“I am concerned about the octopus,” Zapatero said. “I’m thinking about sending in a team to protect the octopus because obviously it was very spectacular that he should get Spain’s victory right from there.”In response to hundreds of angry e-mails from Germans, the aquarium actually took extra precautions, Porwoll said.”I even told our guards and people at the entrance to keep a close look at possible football fans coming after Paul for revenge,” he said, adding that the hate mail was outweighed by declarations of love and requests for predictions.

PETA says Paul’s tank is too small. But Porwoll said the creature was born in captivity and has never had to deal with any natural enemies, so dumping Paul into the Atlantic would likely mean death. He could live up to four years in captivity, Porwoll added.In the meantime, he might have a future beyond World Cup. A reporter from Greece asked if the mollusk medium could foresee the end of the financial crisis, and German TV stations have offered lucrative contracts, Porwoll said.After Arab news sites reported Paul’s picks, it was suggested he be sent to Iraq to choose between two bitter rivals – Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his main challenger, Ayad Allawi – vying to head the new government.Gary Jenkins, an economist with London’s Evolution Securities, hedged his market analysis note Friday with the phrase, “unless Paul says differently.”

Graham Sharpe, a spokesman for English bookmaker William Hill, said bettors have been asking the staff about the picks by the buoyant clairvoyant.”If you had just bet 10 pounds ($15) on each of Paul’s six successive winning selections … so far, you would have made a healthy profit of 84 pounds ($126) – but if you had put the winnings from each bet all onto the next one, you would now be looking at 1,400 pounds ($2,108) of profit,” Sharpe said.

Paul is not without competition. There’s also Mani, a parakeet in Singapore, who predicted the Dutch would win Sunday by creeping out of his wooden cage and choosing between two cards that bore the two nations’ flags.In South Africa, Spanish team defender Carlos Marchena isn’t putting too much stock in Paul’s pick.”It’s only an octopus,” he said. (AP)

Spain's progress to their first World Cup final

Spain’s progress to their first World Cup final was seen by local media on Thursday as another vindication of their elegant brand of attacking football.Their 1-0 victory over Germany, who had been considered the most impressive side in South Africa to date, had Spanish newspapers praising Vicente del Bosque’s side and talking up their prospects for Sunday’s showdown against Netherlands.”The best in the world (and on Sunday the champions of the world)” sports daily Marca blared from their wraparound front page over a photo of the players celebrating Carles Puyol’s winning headed goal in Wednesday’s match in Durban.El Pais wrote: “If football is art and heroism, Spain is the team to follow. In their game against a fearsome and dazzling Germany they had everything, they were sublime in their play and knew to roll up their sleeves when required.”It was the manner of the victory, Spain’s best performance in the tournament so far, that was most commented on.

“Spain didn’t just win, they put on an exhibition, they played with evening suits on,” wrote daily El Mundo.”Once upon a time it was the Brazil team of 1970. Soon it will be Spain 2010 who will be talked about as the ultimate in a sport converted into one of the beautiful arts by the likes of Xavi, (Andres) Iniesta, (Xabi) Alonso and the other magicians.”Spain’s asphyxiating grip on the game may have been down to their ball-playing ‘artists’ in midfield but it was the shaggy-haired, old warhorse Puyol who was the center of attention in the papers and on the television news.The Barcelona center back, 32, is better known for his last-ditch tackles, flailing locks and never-say-die spirit than for his scoring prowess. He had only netted twice in 88 internationals before popping up with Wednesday’s vital goal.

SUPERMAN PUYOL“Was it Michael Jordan jumping near the penalty spot… or was it superman? No it was simply Puyol, with springs in his calves, and a cape of invincibility.” said El Mundo.Spanish left back Joan Capdevila told reporters: “It was time a defender scored a goal. I’m all for him shaving his head if we win the World Cup. If we win I’m going to try (to convince him).Del Bosque’s bold decision to leave out striker Fernando Torres and play winger Pedro instead had been a hot topic of conversation among fans before the kickoff but it was widely praised as an astute move.

“Del Bosque knew that he had to do something to surprise the Germans yesterday, and he did it. He surprised them and the whole world,” sports daily Mundo Deportivo wrote.Images of fans decked in red and gold, celebrating in bars, on the streets and in squares around the country on Wednesday night, filled the papers.”Spain is one big party,” wrote sports daily AS. “None of us have experienced anything like this not even the oldest of the old. It’s the first time the Spanish national team is going to play the final of a World Cup.””The whole country has been touched by the contagious enthusiasm of this group of players, the best we have ever seen. (After Sunday) it could be yet even greater.”(Reuters)

2014 World Cup head says plans now on track to Brazil

JOHANNESBURG  Preparations for the 2014 World Cup are back on track just two months after FIFA publicly criticized organizers for missing deadlines, Brazil’s top soccer official has said.”There are no problems,” Brazil soccer federation president Ricardo Teixeira said as the tournament’s official logo was launched Thursday.He acknowledged uncertainty over Sao Paulo’s role as a host city after Morumbi Stadium was removed from the project last month – despite repeated denials it would have to be dropped.FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke previously described Brazil’s lack of progress as “amazing.”FIFA awarded the 2014 World Cup hosting rights six years ago, but Brazil has barely begun building and renovating the 12 stadiums it needs.

Teixeira said that “the situation is completely different” to when Valcke spoke.”Some of the stadia have commenced building. We have already defined exactly what’s going to be happening in terms of budgets for the construction up to December,” he said through a translator.He did not cite any specific details, however.Teixeira said construction work at Belo Horizonte and Salvador had begun, but there were doubts over the status of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s biggest city, and Curitiba as hosts.”We will come up with a definition about what role Sao Paulo will play in the World Cup,” Teixeira said. “Will there be a stadium built or not? How will they participate as a city?

“The issue with Sao Paulo will have to be solved as quickly as possible. Curitiba Stadium is facing some financial constraints, but once financial guarantees are in place construction will begin.”Brazil also must upgrade airports essential to moving teams, fans and officials around such a large country.

“The three main priorities we have are airports, airports, airports,” Teixeira said.Organizers also are considering dividing the 12 host cities into four regions to limit travel.Teixeira also admitted that Brazil, which has a reputation for high urban crime, has issues guaranteeing security.”It’s not surprising – this is a problem that’s not linked to any specific country,” he said. “We have sent a huge security group to South Africa, they were here for a few days and they had to analyze the situation and pick on those issues that needed to be sorted.”(AP)

Dunga is out as coach of Brazil's national soccer team

RIO DE JANEIRO Dunga is out as coach of Brazil’s national soccer team.The coach and his staff were fired Sunday, two days after Brazil was beaten by the Netherlands in the World Cup quarterfinals.The announcement was made by the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF). The decision was widely expected after the 2-1 loss to the Dutch. Brazil led 1-0 on Robinho’s first-half goal, but allowed two goals and had a player sent off in a dismal second-half performance in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

“With the closing of the work cycle that started in August 2006 and ended with the elimination of Brazil from the World Cup in South Africa, the CBF announces the dismissal of the Technical Commission of the Brazilian team,” the federation said in a statement.A new coach will be appointed before the end of the month, CBF said.Former Brazil player Mano Menezes, AC Milan coach Leonardo and Wanderley Luxemburgo are being mentioned as potential successors to Dunga.

Luiz Felipe Scolari, who coached Brazil to its fifth World Cup title in 2002, had been mentioned as a successor, but he has signed a two-year deal to be with the Brazilian club Palmeiras.

The new coach and his staff are likely to face several exhibition matches in the next few months and then the South American championship – the Copa America – in 2011 in Argentina. Dunga returned to Brazil with the team early Sunday and was met with applause and cheering by fans in his native Porto Alegre in southern Brazil. Brazil will host the World Cup in 2014 for the first time since 1950. (AP)

world cup 2010 match preview: England vs United States

When England entered their first World Cup in 1950, they went down to a famous 1-0 defeat at the hands of the amateurs of USA in a match that became known as the ‘Miracle on Grass’.The game has come a long way in America since that match and, while most firmly expect an England victory in Rustenburg on Saturday, an upset would hardly be viewed as miraculous.England have mixed feelings going into the 2010 tournament. While Fabio Capello has turned the team around following the failure to qualify for Euro 2008, winning all but one of his competitive matches, the disjointed performances in the warm-up games for South Africa have done little to inspire confidence.

USA, though, have also struggled to convince during their warm-up matches, and it is largely the memories of last year’s 2-0 victory over Spain in the Confederations Cup that will provide hope of a win in what represents a huge match for both countries.”For the last six months, all we’ve seen is US-England, so if you’re a casual sports fan at home you might think this is the World Cup final,” USA star Landon Donovan said in his press conference ahead of the game.

“We’re not like Brazil where if they don’t win the World Cup soccer is still the biggest thing in anyone’s mind, but this is a great opportunity to grow the sport.”USA could adopt a 4-5-1 formation for the match with Jozy Altidore as a lone striker, with Japan enjoying success against England using the same formation as they dominated the midfield battle. With Donovan and Clint Dempsey out wide, the tactic would not be overly defensive.England have largely used 4-4-2, and a change seems unlikely at this stage, but it was only when Joe Cole was brought on as a substitute against Japan that England were able to compete in the middle, so Capello’s hand may be forced.USA coach Bob Bradley has said all 23 players in his squad are ready to play the full 90 minutes, although Oguchi Onyewu’s lack of match practice in recent months remains a concern. For England, Gareth Barry’s absence could prove problematic given the lack of an alternative holding midfielder in the squad.England player in focus: Aaron Lennon. England’s right winger has often been central to hopes of unlocking opposition defences and, while Joe Cole should offer creativity from the left, Lennon could become the focus if his team struggle. He’ll come up against an experienced opponent in USA captain Carlos Bocanegra, the former Fulham man who now plays in Ligue 1 with Rennes, so Fabio Capello will hope the Tottenham man can rediscover his pre-injury form on the big stage.USA player in focus: Landon Donovan.

This pacy attacker is very much the star of the USA team and he can provide a real threat out wide, frequently swapping flanks with Fulham’s Clint Dempsey. The English defenders will be fully aware of his capabilities following his loan stint with Everton earlier this year, and Ashley Cole may be a little wary of facing the man whose tackle nearly ruled him out of the tournament. If Donovan gets a chance to play on the left flank, Glen Johnson will need to curtail his natural instinct to support the attack.Key battle: Wayne Rooney v Oguchi Onyewu. Rooney finally ended an international goal drought with his strike in the warm-up match against Platinum Stars, but he may have the chance to really kick-start his England career on Saturday. USA centre back Onyewu, the former Newcastle loanee, joined AC Milan from Standard Liege last summer but made just one appearance in Serie A after suffering a knee injury on international duty. USA coach Bob Bradley believes Onyewu is fit to play the full 90 minutes but, as he has not appeared in any of the warm-up games, it is essential that he gets back up to speed from the off.Trivia: England boss Fabio Capello gave USA coach Bob Bradley some help and insights into the world of management during his time at AC Milan in the 1990s.Stats: Wayne Rooney was involved in more goals than any other player in Europe during the qualification campaign, with nine goals and five assists. USA have not kept a clean sheet in a World Cup finals match since beating England 1-0 in 1950.Odds: England (1.50), the draw (4.20), USA (7.00) with Bet365. USA are 15.00 to win 1-0, which could be worth a flutter.Prediction: USA showed they are capable of causing shocks in the Confederations Cup last year, and their experience in South Africa may give them an advantage in terms of adapting to the altitude. However, England are firm favourites for the match and should have enough to clinch a victory.

Mexico enter the cooking pot for Cup start

The once-improbable dream of a World Cup in Africa kicks off on Friday when Mexico face the home team in the deafening cauldron of Johannesburg’s 90,000-seat Soccer City stadium.The Mexicans will have to contend not only an army of jiving supporters in a frenzy of patriotic fervor but an ear-splitting blast from the biggest array yet of vuvuzela trumpets, the loudest fan instrument on the globe, which severely curtails communication between players and coach.The stadium, biggest in Africa, has been shaped like a calabash or cooking pot and the Mexicans may feel they have been put on the fire when they meet Bafana Bafana, South Africa’s much improved national team.

Once mocked by even their compatriots as hopeless under-achievers, and still one of the lowest-rated World Cup hosts, at 83rd in the rankings, South Africa come off a run of 12 unbeaten matches and are new national heroes.Their performance has added to an unprecedented rush of nationalistic excitement in South Africa, which was tormented for years by negative and even domestic pessimism that the world’s most watched sporting event was too big for Africa to handle.

That pessimism has been transformed in recent weeks, encouraged by FIFA’s belated decision to sell tickets for cash, and South Africans of all races can scarcely contain their excitement and pride at being in the world spotlight.Successfully hosting this tournament for the first time in Africa will mean much more for the hosts than just sport.

RACIAL RECONCILIATION

Racial reconciliation, the affirmation of an often troubled post-apartheid nation, future investment and millions of tourist dollars are at stake.African leaders believe this tournament, a massive logistical undertaking, will enable the continent to overturn stereotypes of disaster, conflict and failure and prove it is a vibrant can-do region ripe for investment and development.

A string of comparatively minor crimes against journalists and three Greek players in recent days have been reminders that security in one of the globe’s most violent countries outside a war zone is one of the tournament’s biggest concerns.And six people were injured in a crowd crush at Cape Town’s main World Cup fan zone on Thursday when thousands of people tried to get in.But none of this will dent South African euphoria.

The weight of expectation and the joyful street parades of the last few days could however undermine South Africa’s concentration.Their Brazilian manager, Carlo Alberto Parreira, said on Thursday they had expected calmness and focus but he could understand the distracting party on the streets.

“I don’t want my players to be affected by all of that. Now we have a World Cup game…we want to make this country proud.”If they can hold their nerve in the midst of the noise and atmosphere — Soccer City’s bowl design is likely to boost the sound levels — Mexico do not intend to be a pushover.

Manager Javier Aguirre told reporters they would love to spoil the giant party. “My team has come here to play football, not make friends and do some sightseeing,” he said.

But the history book favors South Africa. Mexico have a poor record in opening games, while the two previous starting matches featuring African teams resulted in shock triumphs for Cameroon over Argentina in 1990 and Senegal over France in 2002.

CONFIDENCE BOOST

Mexico’s confidence has been boosted by a win over defending champions Italy in Belgium last week and good performances against England and the Netherlands in other recent friendlies.The opening match, starting at 1400 GMT (10 a.m. EDT), is likely to see both teams going forward to end a tradition of cautious and dull starts to the tournament.

In Friday’s other game, France are likely to make a nervous start against Uruguay in Cape Town after a series of unimpressive warm up games which ended with a worrying 1-0 defeat by China. They look a far cry from the dominant team that won the World Cup in 1998 and the European trophy two years later.Uruguay on the other hand, though one of the tournament underdogs, have had an impressive warm-up with wins against Switzerland and Israel.(Reuters)