12-10-2010 20:50 Italy - Serbia

Sustaining The Momentum

Cesare Prandelli's start as Italy coach hasn't been exotically exciting but the former world champions have been more or less consistent and have shown improvement too since their disastrous 2010 World Cup finals.

Their 0-0 draw with Northern Ireland in Belfast on Friday evening saw the Azzurri top Group C with seven points from three matches. It wasn't a particularly impressive performance from Italy but for a side who are in transition, a draw away from home is a point gained rather than two points lost.

However, Prandelli should know that they must try to improvise on that performance and defeat Serbia in Genoa on Tuesday evening. The Eagles lost to Estonia at home on Friday and the former Fiorentina manager has warned his Italy players that wounded Serbia will be looking to bounce back, saying, "That result makes this game all the more difficult because they cannot make a mistake tomorrow. 

"I would have preferred to have avoided a hurt Serbia. But the fact that they have lost against Estonia is a sign that we must be prepared for surprises in this qualifying round because our group is very even.''

Trying To Fly Again

Serbia suffered arguably the worst defeat of Matchday Three in the Euro 2012 qualifiers on Friday as they went down 3-1 to Estonia in Belgrade. That defeat has dragged the Whites to fourth in the table with four points from three matches.

Vladimir Petrovic's side will be desperate for a much improved performance against Italy on Tuesday and more importantly will be keen for a win, which isn't very likely. However, the 55-year-old has demanded that his players step up their game and show their class and calibre.

"This was a real surprise for us and for our supporters,'' he said. "I believe we can improve in Italy provided we limit mistakes. I'm optimistic."



TEAM NEWS

Italy
Daniele De Rossi has already been ruled out of the match after he injured his thigh in a training session. Daniele Gastaldello could be given the nod in the starting line-up.

Serbia
Petrovic could be tempted to make changes to his line-up after Serbia's defeat to Estonia last week. Centre-back Nemanja Vidic is suspended and he is likely to be replaced by Neven Subotic in the line-up.

Prediction

Serbia do have the potential to make it tough for Italy and are also the Azzurri's bogey team. Even though they lost to Estonia in Belgrade on Friday, the Eagles have a formidable squad. Italy have been progressing steadily under coach Cesare Prandelli but may just have to settle for a draw.

Italy 1-1 Serbia

Read More

12-10-2010 20:30 Netherlands - Sweden

Winning Is A Habit
 
The Netherlands may have lost the 2010 World Cup final to Spain but they have been doing pretty well since then. Bert van Marwijk's side have won all their three Euro 2012 qualifiers and are currently on top of Group E with the full nine points.

The 1-0 win against Moldova on Friday evening didn't come off a brilliant performance but it did the job nevertheless. Once again it was in-form striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar who found the net and the Schalke hitman will be keen to add to his tally against Sweden.

But it is easier said than done as Sweden will pose a much tougher test for the Netherlands and Van Marwijk knows it, warning, "Sweden are very good opposition, we have a lot of respect for them and they have many qualities.

"Ball tempo is an important detail for us, we want to contain them but at the same time get our own passes in quickly. They are big and strong and their height advantage is also a weapon for them.''

Taking On The Leaders

Sweden were not in action on Friday and like the Netherlands have a 100% record in the Euro 2012 qualifiers. Erik Hamren's side are second in the group at the moment, with six points from two matches.

Sweden have been in great form so far in the qualifiers, having netted eight times and have yet to concede. The fact that they didn't play on Friday could be an advantage for the Blue-Yellows as they will be fresh for the visit to Amsterdam.

Key striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, formerly with Ajax, is relishing the challenge and say, "We're here to win, plain and simple. I think both teams will want to attack. It will be down to minimising mistakes. I learned my football [in the Netherlands] and have only positive memories of my time here."

The Netherlands have lost just one game in around two years but Sweden coach Hamren hopes to change that record and enthuses, "The Netherlands are unbeaten in two years, except for the World Cup final, so we're in for quite a challenge."



TEAM NEWS

Netherlands

Midfielders Wesley Sneijder and Mark van Bommel have been suffering from injuries of late but both are expected to start against Sweden. Huntelaar is going to be the main striker for the Oranje again on Tuesday evening.

Sweden
Hamren will be without midfielder Emir Bajrami but Christian Wilhelmsson and Daniel Majstorovic both have recovered from their respective knocks.

Prediction

The Netherlands are in sensational form and will go into the match as favourites. However, Sweden are not easy pushovers and will be looking for at least a draw in Amsterdam. However, the Oranje should edge them eventually.

Netherlands 2-1 Sweden

Read More

12-10-2010 20:30 Switzerland - Wales

Swiss Knives Are Out

Following the defeat in Podgorica and the slide down to bottom of the table, the Swiss press were inevitably and inexplicably critical of the side's efforts.

The Swiss tabloid Blick, possibly in reference to the physical stature of the players, chose to brandish the team "embarasssing dwarves", whilst the Zurich based daily Tanges-Anzeiger dismissed the performance as "a momentous failure".

The most damning and educated criticism perhaps came from the Saturday edition of the popular Neue Zürcher Zeitung as the newspaper dismissed Switzerland's Euro 2012 campaign as already doomed.

".... and [the team] stays on course going somewhere, but certainly not to the Euro 2012. And certainly not into the fans’ arms. Where is it going? Only the wind knows the answer. The headwind,” wrote Neue Zürcher Zeitung.

Salvation Army

Following two matches and two defeats under two different managers, Flynn and John Toshack, Wales sit joint bottom of Group G with their next opponents Switzerland.

After a disappointing defeat to Montenegro in Podgorica, Wales were looking to pose a sterner test to the Bulgarians on Friday night but an early second half goal from Ivelin Popov and a Chris Gunter dismissal in stoppage time served to effectively end the Welsh challenge.

Flynn will be hoping that his youthful side, featuring the likes of Gareth Bale and Wayne Hennessey, can step up and save this swiftly unravelling qualifying campaign before it's too late.

Wales caretaker boss Brian Flynn takes his men to the St. Jakob Park in Basel knowing that anything less than a win will end hope of a spot in the finals of Euro 2012.

Switzerland, like Wales, have also endured a dismal start to the qualifying campaing and after overcoming World champions Spain in their opening game of the 2010 World Cup many thought that they would be appearing towards the top of the table.

The thunderbolt of an effort from Xherdan Shaqiri againt England remains the Swiss' only goal of their campaign and, following the conceding of a Mirko Vucinic goal in Montenegro, Ottmar Hitzfeld's side find themselves in a precarious position.

TEAM NEWS 

Switzerland
Switzerland may be without Werder Bremer goalkeeper Diego Benaglio, who missed out on Friday night after failing a late fitness test on a groin strain picked up in training. If he fails yet another fitness test the Young Boys 'keeper Marco Wolfli looks likely to take his place after starting in Podgorica.

It is also worth noting that prior to the match against Montenegro on Friday night, only 16 of Hitzfeld's squad trained as a precautionary measure.

Possible starting XI: Wolfli; Sutter, Von Bergen, Grichting, Zeigler; Barnetta, Inler, Fernandes, Degen; Yakin; Frei.

Wales

Wales caretaker manager Brian Flynn, who has been entrusted with guiding the team through this round of qualifiers, was dealt the blow that captain and talisman Craig Bellamy would be injured, following his recent exploits at loan club Cardiff City.

And following the dismissal of Chris Gunter on Friday night, the Wales manager will also be without his first choice right-back.

Possible starting XI: Hennessey; Ricketts, Williams, J Collins, D Collins; Edwards, King, Vaughan, Bale; Evans, Morison.

 Prediction

Switzerland 1-0 Wales  

Read More

12-10-2010 21:00 England - Montenegro

Forget Distractions, Focus On Football And Extend Winning Start

In the month since England's last match, there has been plenty for fans of the Three Lions to ponder. Firstly, the form of Wayne Rooney, who prior to the summer's World Cup in South Africa, was considered a world-beater and England's most potent weapon, has evaporated as revelations about his private life have boiled over. And notwithstanding the ankle injury that has sidelined him from Manchester United's last few games, Rooney has the chance on Tuesday to silence his critics or confirm their misgivings.

Secondly, a couple of Capello's selections for this squad - Kevin Davies and Jack Wilshere - could be handed the opportunity to show that age is not an issue at either end of the spectrum.

Thirdly, while speculation about Capello's successor is filling column inches even though he won't be leaving for at least another 18 months, the Italian can continue to rehabilitate his reputation by maintaining his 100 per cent start to this Euro 2012 qualifying campaign. Amid the premature debate about the credentials of Englishmen Harry Redknapp, Steve McClaren and Sam Allardyce, it is worth remembering that England have lost only one of their last 10 matches; shame it was the most important one, against Germany in South Africa.

However, the current campaign has begun impressively. A 4-0 victory over Bulgaria - when Jermain Defoe claimed the first England hat-trick at the new Wembley and Rooney showed his old sharpness by helping to lay on all four goals - was followed by a 3-1 win in Switzerland when Rooney and substitutes Adam Johnson and Darren Bent all found the net.

Since then Wayne's world has crumbled somewhat; Montenegro coach Kranjcar believes his call-up despite poor club form shows England are nervous of his side. "Capello is aware we have a good team and called for Rooney as he wants to leave nothing to chance," Kranjcar told the Daily Mail.

Debutants Aim To Maintain Perfect Qualifying Record 
 
The Croatian coach - father of Tottenham's Niko - hopes to write a glorious page in the history of Montenegro on Tuesday. It will certainly be a new chapter as England, founders and pioneers of the game, are meeting the newest members of Uefa for the very first time. Not even club sides from England and the young independent Balkan nation have previously met competitvely.

Yet Montenegro's debut Euro campaign could not have started more encouragingly.

Having beaten Wales and Bulgaria in their opening two qualifiers, Montenegro made it an impressive hat-trick of 1-0 victories last Friday against Switzerland in Podgorica. That win, secured by a Mirko Vucinic goal and some resilient defending, saw them overtake England to go top of Group G.

Kranjcar told journalists afterwards: "We could have taken a point from this match and been satisfied but we took our chance and got a very important win. I managed to convince my players we could beat Switzerland and finish second in the group. They reacted brilliantly. The Swiss were organised, dangerous at times, but our defence was well prepared. Also, our goalkeeper [Mladen Bozovic] was brilliant."

So Montenegro will take to the Wembley pitch brimming with the confidence that comes from a perfect record of nine points out of nine.

“England are still the favourites to win the group but we are not going to London as shopping tourists, we will be looking to prove our worth and get something out of this game," the coach added to Sky Sports.

"This team has the capacity to capitalise on any blunders England might make so we won't just roll over. We have shown against the Swiss that we are capable of playing good football against tough opponents, and that 1-0 wins over Wales and Bulgaria were no fluke.

“The players have accepted my vision and performed with the utmost commitment and professionalism, hence we now believe we are good enough to at least finish runners-up in the group and clinch a play-off berth."

TEAM NEWS

England

The 33-year-old Bolton Wanderers forward Kevin Davies is in the squad for the first time and joins Darren Bent, Peter Crouch and Wayne Rooney among the attacking options. Back in the squad are Robert Green, Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole, while Arsenal's 18-year-old midfielder Jack Wilshere has joined up with the seniors after helping the Under-21 side beat Romania on Friday.

No England fixture would be complete without pre-match withdrawals, and this time Phil Jagielka and Aaron Lennon had to drop out with injuries, their places filled by Gary Cahill and Stewart Downing, respectively, before John Terry suffered a back injury and returned to Chelsea on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Manchester City midfielder Gareth Barry joined up with the squad after being given leave to arrive late for personal reasons. Already ruled out of contention by injury were Frank Lampard, Jermain Defoe and Theo Walcott.

There is much speculation that both the combative, in-form Davies and the promising Wilshere - who earned his first and only England cap so far in the friendly win against Hungary in August - will feature at some stage, though in both cases probably from the bench.

But coach Fabio Capello has some intriguing selection decisions to make.

Jagielka had produced two impressive central defensive performances in last month's victories over Bulgaria and Switzerland, and was expected to retain his place against the Montenegrins, which would have forced Capello to choose between Ferdinand and Terry as his partner. That dilemma looked to have been resolved by default with the Everton man's injury, but Terry's late withdrawal suggests that Ferdinand will now partner Cahill or Joleon Lescott.

Barry is likely to start alongside Steven Gerrard, with Adam Johnson pressing his claims for a start after excelling in his last two appearances. In attack it's really a case of perming any two from the four available strikers, though Capello may typically delay announcing his team until shortly before kick-off.

Possible starting XI: Hart; G Johnson, Ferdinand, Cahill, A Cole; A Johnson, Gerrard, Barry, Milner; Rooney, Bent.
Montenegro
Key midfielder Stevan Jovetic is ruled out until February with damaged cruciate ligaments in his right knee, while defensive midfielder Nikola Drincic is another long-term absentee.

But Montenegro have coped well without 20-year-old Fiorentina playmaker Jovetic, who sustained his injury in a challenge with club-mate Mario Bolatti.

Jovetic had scored six goals in 13 appearances for his country before the injury and was named Montenegrin footballer of the year in 2009, but coach Zlatko Kranjcar will rely on the likes of Mirko Vucinic and Elsad Zverotic, scorers in the three qualifiers to date, and striker Radomir Djalovic to provide the attacking threat. Vucinic combined well with midfielder Mitar Novakovic for Montenegro's goal against Switzerland.

With the substitutions made in that game largely tactical, Kranjcar will be tempted to keep faith with the same 11 starters against England.

Possible starting XI: Mladen Bozovic; Basa, Jovanovic, Savic, Djudovic; Vukcevic, Boskovic,  Novakovic, Zverotic; Djalovic, Vucinic.

Prediction
England 2-0 Montenegro 

Read More

12-10-2010 21:00 Scotland - Spain

Still On Course For Second Spot
 
Much has been written about Scotland’s 4-6-0 formation in the defeat against the Czech Republic, but a glance at Group I sees them in second place with four points from three games.

A win over Spain, however unlikely that may seem, will see them top the group, yet should they draw, or lose and the Czech Republic beat Liechtenstein in the group’s other game on Tuesday they will go above Craig Levein’s men with six points.

World Champions Still On Top
 
Spain, meanwhile, will hope to maintain their perfect record in qualifying and make it three wins out of three after already beating Liechtenstein and Lithuania in their opening two games, bagging seven goals in the process.

Indeed the European champions’ record in qualifying is quite frightening. It has been three years since the Spanish dropped points in a qualifying match, back in September 2007 with a 1-1 draw in Iceland, a game in which Xabi Alonso was sent off after only 20 minutes.

History Repeating?

Yet Vicente del Bosque’s men will be wary of the Scots, who have shown a tendency to miss out on qualifying but claim some notable scalps along the way, particularly at Hampden Park.

The Netherlands were beaten 1-0 back in a Euro 2004 qualifying play-off, courtesy of a James McFadden goal, while in Euro 2008 qualifying the Scots were at it again, beating France home and away with two more narrow victories – a reminder of football’s great ability to surprise and results which will give the Scots hope.

TEAM NEWS

 Scotland
Scotland have injury doubts over Alan Hutton, Gary Caldwell, Steven Whittaker and Graham Dorrans who all missed training on Sunday but are expected to be passed fit for the visit of the reigning world champions. Meanwhile, midfielder Darren Fletcher did train despite picking up a knock against the Czech Republic.

One man who will miss out is the suspended Barry Robson. However, Lee McCulloch rejoins the squad after serving a ban which saw him miss the defeat in Prague and may feature after Craig Levein admitted he will use a different game plan against Spain after coming under criticism for his 4-6-0 formation against the Czechs.

Possible starting XI: McGregor; Hutton, Weir, McManus, Whittaker; Dorrans, Caldwell, Fletcher, Morrison, Naismith; Miller.

Spain
The visitors also have injury problems and are already without key men Xavi, Fernando Torres, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro, Jesus Navas and Raul Albiol.

Xabi Alonso missed the win over Lithuania due to illness, but is expected to be fit, whilst Sergio Ramos picked up an ankle knock in Friday’s win but should also be passed fit to play.

Possible starting XI: Casillas; Ramos, Pique, Puyol, Capdevila; Busquets, Alonso; Iniesta, Silva, Villa; Llorente.

Prediction

Scotland 0-1 Spain

Read More

12-10-2010 13:00 South Korea - Japan

Out With The Old, In With The New

By virtue of his talent and club affiliation, Park Ji-Sung is undoubtedly South Korea's talisman and most recognizable star.

Yet as a result of a knee pain he won't be the focal point as his country host familiar rivals Japan in Seoul this evening, where a few fresh faces will make up manager Cho Kwang-Rae's matchday squad while the Manchester United man is sidelined.

The new South Korea boss has overseen a friendly victory over Nigeria and a deflating defeat at home against fellow Asian Cup contenders Iran, so a positive result and performance against the Blue Samurai will go a long way to lifting morale with Qatar 2011 around the corner.

Asia's showpiece event in January is where Korea will look to end a silverware drought at the tournament that extends back to 1960 and matches like this one present invaluable preparation against an opponent they could well face.

Cho was quick to point out that he is an advent of attractive football after his appointment, though he will be concerned that his team were frustrated by a comfortable Iran after an impressive victory over Nigeria.

Japan are in fine form and won't be any easier to beat than Afshin Ghotbi's side, though the Koreans were hugely impressive at the World Cup in South Africa.

Yoo Byung-Soo is the K-League's top scorer at only 22 years of age and has set the domestic scene alight, set also to make his international debut against the Japanese.

It'll be very much a baptism of fire if he does as his fellow countrymen never take this clash lightly; incredibly, it'll be the third time these two meet this year.

On their last meeting Park Ji-Sung was the catalyst for a 2-0 win over Japan in Saitama, just as the two sides prepared to depart for the World Cup.

A loss at home though and that result will be quickly forgotten; this is a sporting rivalry that has matured over the years and one that has never been taken lightly by the Koreans, which sets us up a tantalising affair despite its friendly tag.

Coming Of Age

It was back in May that beleaguered manager Takeshi Okada was the subject of heavy criticism for his conservative tactics, before he proved doubters wrong as he came within a whisker of taking the team to an unprecedented quarter final berth at the tournament.

Korea were by contrast rather more assured of themselves as they walked away with a huge win over their rivals back in May, though some might argue that the roles have been reversed somewhat as they prepare to meet again.

Japan have made a stunning start to life under Alberto Zaccheroni, beating heavyweights Argentina for the first time in their history earlier this week, with praise lavished on the Italian coach by the media.

There's a sense that this could be a coming of age for a team that is being encouraged by the former Scudetto winner to begin to believe in itself as a football power.

Certainly there is something of a golden generation coming through with Japanese players starring in Europe and announcing themselves both as individuals and a unit in South Africa.

The likes of CSKA Moscow's Keisuke Honda and Bundesliga starlet Shinji Kagawa represent a bright, immediate future.

Zaccheroni's 4-3-3 formation looks set to bring the best out of the attacking quality that is inherent in his squad all over the park, though he'll be employing it without first-choice centre-backs Tulio Tanaka and Yuji Nakazawa, who are both injured.

Shinji Okazaki will similarly miss out after netting the winner against Argentina, while his club teammate Takuya Honda is denied the chance to make his international debut.

Centre-back Yuzo Kurihara is struggling with injury, which leaves a slightly inexperienced back-line that will be patrolled on either flank by energetic duo Yuto Nagatomo and Atsuto Uchida.

Cultured midfielder Yasuhito Endo is seto to win his 100th cap for his country as the Japanese players look to prove their mental strength on a difficult trip and against an opponent whom they've struggled with in recent times.

Prediction

South Korea 2-1 Japan

Read More