Columnists Archives - Page 55 of 78 - Inside World Football

Lee Wellings: Peerless Spain soothe club concerns

When you are as special as world champions Spain, it’s no surprise two games without a win is viewed as a mini-crisis.

But the emphatic response of Vicente del Bosque’s side to World Cup qualification concerns reminds us they are close to football immortality. A fourth consecutive major tournament win in Brazil 2014 would be a simply incredible achievement.

In the spirit of consistency I should reiterate my prediction for how the 2014 tournament will unfold.

Osasu Obayiuwana

Osasu Obayiuwana: Who will untie the Qatari knot?

Whether the Gulf state of Qatar likes it or not, the recurring question of its suitability for hosting the 2022 World Cup is an issue that will just not disappear into the Arabian sunset.

That’s evident from the robust end to the press conference that followed FIFA’s executive committee meeting, in Zurich, last Thursday.

And it’s not just because of the serious allegations of corruption in the bidding process, resurrected by the recent “Qatargate”

David Owen: Why Valcke can breathe again – but not China

Here are a few preliminary thoughts on the reform proposals approved yesterday by FIFA’s Executive Committee.

1. Jérôme Valcke can breathe again.

The third of the 10 points indicates that the ExCo has headed off a proposal put forward recently by the 53 European FIFA member associations that could, I think, have excluded FIFA’s general secretary from running for the FIFA Presidency.

Mihir Bose

Mihir Bose: Don’t blame Ferdinand blame the structure of football

The Rio Ferdinand saga has once again raised the hoary old question of club versus country, always a potent question in international football, particularly the English game. Over the years this has generated much heat, except in the case of Ferdinand this old story has taken a very modern, and it must be said, fascinating twist.

In the classic battles between club and country the story often went as follows. A player would be called up to play for England.

Lee Wellings

Lee Wellings: Is Mancini fit for City?

Come next season, will Roberto Mancini still be the manager of the world’s biggest spending football club of recent years?

If Manchester City’s owners in Abu Dhabi decide the time has come to move on from Mancini nobody could accuse them of lacking patience or support.

But is Sheikh Mansour among those now taking the view that while Mancini is undoubtedly a good manager, he’s not proving to be a great one?

Osasu Obayiuwana

Osasu Obayiuwana: Without a will, there’s no way to beat Africa’s cheats

During an exchange of correspondence, with a well-known and well-informed personality in refereeing, who’s handled top-level matches in Africa and around the world, including CAF Champions’ League, Cup of Nations and FIFA games, he made a telling statement that left me deeply concerned about how corruption and match-fixing has impacted on the continent.

“It seems an accepted norm in CAF (Confederation of African Football) that people know that bribery exists. But it appears that they cannot or do not want to deal with the matter,”

The AFC minefield turns toxic

Sadly, the AFC presidential and FIFA Executive Committee elections in Asia promise to deliver another battle-field of smear and grime. Some of the protagonists are set to disappear into their self-made trenches of libel and slander, while one (or two) others are quietly watching from the side-lines at present, but ready to hit the unsuspecting contenders at the opportune moment.

Sri Lankan Vernon Manilal Fernando has been eliminated from proceedings. Temporarily, they say.

Jean Francois Tanda

Jean Francois Tanda: Hard to say I’m sorry

What a story! Loads of Money. Qatar! One tournament every two years. A project including big names such as Barcelona, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Liverpool and the best football players worldwide. What a dream of a football league!

The story run by The Times of London has all the ingredients of a fairy tale for adults. And like the lovely stories for kids, it was freely invented. At least, all available information so far suggests it.

Mihir Bose

Mihir Bose: English football should not turn defeat into disaster

It is always tempting in sport to draw huge global lessons from one defeat or victory. That is a temptation that should be avoided for the simple reason that sporting victories or defeats on their own do not signify vast changes. That only emerges if they are part of a consistent pattern over several seasons.

The most potent example of this was provided by Barcelona. Before their match against A.C. Milan many were prepared to write their obituary.

Lee Wellings

Lee Wellings: Women’s football gets its day

Question; which international defender with over 100 caps had to start their career washing the underwear of Denis Bergkamp and his Arsenal team mates?

Surprise surprise it wasn’t a man. England’s Casey Stoney was a senior player for Arsenal when she had to do laundry to supplement her income.

That was in 1999 so how far have women in football come since then? Well let’s say there’s still work to do on the field –

Osasu Obayiuwana

Osasu Obayiuwana: CAF’s conspiracy of silence is holding Africa back

But for the incontrovertible geographical fact that Marrakech is in Morocco, I would have argued, to the death, that the just concluded Ordinary General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), which I attended, took place in Kim Jong Il’s Pyongyang, North Korea.

Speech after speech at the Palais De Congres eulogised its president, Cameroonian Issa Hayatou, who enjoyed the anniversary of his 25th year in power on Sunday, by securing a record seventh four-year term in office.

David Owen: An Irish team that deserves to be remembered

The island of Ireland is a place where history casts a particularly long shadow.

So perhaps I shouldn’t be as surprised as I am that so few people seem to know about a proud episode in the island’s footballing history that took place 99 years ago.

I first stumbled upon this years ago during one of my periodic trawls through the pages of an old Rothmans football yearbook.

With the centenary approaching,

John Yan

John Yan: 中超打不过《泰囧》CSL can’t match ‘Journey to the West’

新增三个赞助商，中超的市场经营板块，在新赛季开始前要好看许多了。打开中超官网，首页下方滚动的几个logo分别是：万达广场、耐克、三星、山东临工和雷曼光电。打开内页，会有哈尔滨啤酒、全体育传媒、CCTV5、新浪体育、体奥动力和五大连池等logo。三星之外，在联赛新赛季开赛前一周，还有华视传媒和神州租车两个新的市场和作者加盟。这样一个市场经营版图，至少logo数量，较前几年丰富了许多。

虽然中超的整体市场经营架构，仍然显得相对杂乱，CCTV5、新浪体育、全体育传媒这样的媒体合作伙伴，与其他市场商业合作伙伴，被混为一谈，但中超的市场号召力，连续三年逐年上升，是显而易见的事实。三星在春节之前已经明确赞助中超，传言为3年6000万人民币，之后还有在公交地铁等户外数字电视平台运营代理权的华视传媒，以及提供用车的神州租车。

Lee Wellings

Lee Wellings: Bayern have the brightest future

The darkest hour comes before the dawn. It’s difficult to think of a club whose prospects look brighter than Bayern Munich.

May 20 last year; Munich airport. Hundreds of supporters, most but not all German, packed into the club shop. Bayern shirts everywhere, in bags and on backs. Not what i was expecting after events of May 19. But hiding or sulking doesn’t seem to be in the DNA here.

Bayern somehow threw away their chances to win their home Champions league final,

Osasu Obayiuwana

Osasu Obayiuwana: Hayatou wins before a ball is even kicked

Until Tuesday, Issa Hayatou, in his 25th year as president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), was, at least in theory, at risk of being at the end of an unfavourable decision, from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, which could have stood in the way of getting another four-year term in office, that would take the Cameroonian’s tenure to a near 30-year stretch.

No longer. With CAS ruling that the case brought by Ivorian Jacques Anouma,