View Poll Results: Who will score more goals in this season
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Christiano ronaldo
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Lionel messi
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06-09-2014, 06:11 PM
#851
Di Maria hails Messi captaincy
9 حزيران 2014
Angel di Maria has praised Lionel Messi's captaincy of Argentina, revealing the Barcelona star was the players' choice for the role.
Messi was named skipper of his country in August 2011 by head coach Alejandro Sabella, and will lead a team fancied by many as potential tournament winners to this year's FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
And Di Maria - who, alongside Messi and the likes of Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain, provides Argentina with a fearsome attacking line-up - has backed the captain to shine at this year's tournament.
"It was our choice who wears the captain’s armband and we chose Messi," the Real Madrid man told AS.
"Hopefully he has a great World Cup. He's a fantastic player, and as a person, a great friend and a very good team-mate. He's a great captain.
"We all want the team to go well. The group is very united and we worked hard to get here. We want to continue down this path.
"I tell the same story (about meeting Messi for the first time). When he went to the Olympics and I met him he was strong. Everyone was talking about Leo
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06-09-2014, 06:13 PM
#852
ormer England manager believes Messi can be key
Glenn Hoddle suffered at the hands of Argentina as a player and manager at the World Cup.
But the former Tottenham midfielder is backing Lionel Messi and Argentina to be victorious in Brazil this summer, saying the diminutive striker can finally eclipse Diego Maradona.
Hoddle represented the Three Lions during the 1986 finals, which Argentina won largely thanks to Maradona after his ‘Hand of God’ goal helped end English hopes in the quarter-finals.
Maradona added a stunning second effort in a 2-1 win and Hoddle believes Messi is in the right state to do the same this year.
“I think he [Messi] has had his mind on the World Cup for some time actually,” Hoddle said.
“I think he knows he needs to prove himself for Argentina to eclipse Maradona, who won the World Cup virtually on his own, and that will maybe drive him and Argentina over the line. That is a real challenge for him.”
Hoddle went on to manage England at the 1998 finals in France where they again suffered against Argentina.
David Beckham was sent off for kicking out at Diego Simeone and, after Michael Owen’s wonder goal in a 3-3 draw, the ten men lost out on penalties as Paul Ince and David Batty missed from the spot.
Hoddle thinks there is far less pressure on England this summer, but maintains that Roy Hodgson’s men must reach the quarter-finals for the tournament to have been a success.
“I think if we get to the quarter-finals think that will be excellent,” he added.
“When you are in the quarter-finals, anything can happen. It doesn’t mean you can’t go on and win it from there, but I think that will be enough of an experience for the youngsters to have dealt with.”
Having played in the heat of Mexico in 1986, Hoddle is well aware of the issues England’s players will face playing in Manaus.
The Amazonian city hosts their opening match against Italy where the temperature and humidity will be tortuous.
“There are going to be some challenges, particularly for the first game, but that’s a part of playing in the World Cup,” he said.
“It’s always played in the summer so you are always going to have to change your tactics a little bit to suit the conditions. Players will be challenged from that, no doubt about it.
“We played in altitude and heat in Mexico. The altitude isn’t quite the same in Brazil and is going to be a little bit cooler than it was in Mexico.
“Playing in 110 degrees and altitude was incredible. I remember losing 14lbs in one game!”
Current World and European champions Spain became the first European team to win the tournament outside of their home continent when they were victorious in South Africa.
But Hoddle thinks it will be too tough for them to be successful again in South America.
“There have been some really good European sides who have gone to South America and tried to win the World Cup, but no one has ever done it,” he said.
“There have been great Dutch, French, German and Italian teams, but not one has won it on the continent.”
Even if England do not meet expectations, Hoddle, who will be jetting out and working as a pundit during the tournament, is excited for it all to begin.
“Brazil is a special place to have the World Cup,” he added.
“There is always something else that happens, new players who hit the world scene, or individual skills that come out of it - things that we’ve not seen before. I am looking forwards to it.”
*Glenn Hoddle was speaking at the Continental Road to Rio Roadshow.
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06-09-2014, 06:16 PM
#853
Thiago Silva has warned fellow World Cup defenders that "out of this world" Lionel Messi is ready to wreck their dreams of glory.
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Silva, 29, will captain host nation Brazil when they kick off their attempt to win a sixth global crown against Croatia in the 2014 tournament's opening game on Thursday.
A major obstacle en route to that ultimate ambition could be neighbours and fierce rivals Argentina, for whom Messi is expected to star.
Having already faced the Barcelona playmaker in the Champions League, Silva told Placar magazine that Messi, whose 2013-14 season was peppered with injury problems, still has the ability to ruin the hopes of Brazil.
"The forward who takes away the dreams of everyone is Messi," Silva said. "I played against him three times when I was at Milan and once with PSG.
"When play comes down one side of the pitch, he's out of this world. To stop Messi in a one-on-one, you can only do it with a rifle in your hand.
"Despite his recent injuries, he's a player who's going to give defenders a lot of work during the World Cup."
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06-09-2014, 06:20 PM
#854
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06-09-2014, 11:46 PM
#855
Messi auger maria connection was ultimate in the second goal against Slovenia
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06-11-2014, 12:10 PM
#856
Bosnia won’t man-mark Messi, says coach Susic
June 11, 2014
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BRASILIA: Bosnia coach Safet Susic said on Monday he didn’t plan to man-mark Argentine superstar Lionel Messi for his side’s first ever World Cup showdown on Sunday in the Maracana.
“We never put a player on another ... We have (Muhamed) Besic but putting him only on Messi wouldn’t be very good,” said Susic after a 5-1 warm-up win over a youth select from Brazilian outfit Santos.
Susic told reporters he preferred a zonal system and that whose job it would be to close Messi down would depend on where the Barcelona striker happened to be at any given time.
He did not give any hints as to his line-up, saying only that “everyone is ready to face Argentina.” Bosnia beat an under-21 Santos select on the island of Guaruja just off the coastal city of Santos in Sao Paulo state.
Stuttgart’s Vedad Ibisevic netted twice and Izet Hajrovic of Galatasaray, Senad Lulic of Lazio and Edin Visca of Istanbul BB also got on the scoresheet in rainy conditions.
As well as Argentina, Bosnia will also meet Iran and Nigeria in Group E.
Shock omission
Robbie Keane said that he was as surprised as anyone by Landon Donovan’s shock omission from the United States World Cup squad, calling him on Monday “the face of US soccer.”
Keane and Donovan play up front together in the MLS for Los Angeles Galaxy but neither will be in Brazil because the Irish failed to make it and Donovan was controversially dropped by US coach Jurgen Klinsmann.
Donovan, 32, a veteran of three World Cups, last month underlined his continuing prowess by becoming Major League Soccer’s all-time leading scorer with a brace in a 4-1 win over Philadelphia.
His failure to make the United States squad was greeted with disbelief by US fans and media — a sentiment shared by the evergreen Keane, 33.
“Everyone was surprised because he’s a top, top player,” Keane said, ahead of the Republic of Ireland’s friendly in New Jersey, in the United States, against World Cup qualifiers Portugal.
“He’s the face of US soccer. “I can only judge him on what he’s done at the LA Galaxy since I’ve been here, and he’s been absolutely fantastic this year.”
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06-12-2014, 12:01 AM
#857
Messi vomiting due to anxiety. ?.......
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06-12-2014, 05:48 PM
#858
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06-12-2014, 05:50 PM
#859
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06-14-2014, 01:24 PM
#860
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