The Importance of David Villa

Fans of the beautiful game are presently gifted with an embarrassment of riches. Barcelona is playing the most attractive brand of football seen in ages. The Spanish national team is trying its best to emulate the style, and the results have been very good, although they have not yet exhibited the mesmerizing qualities of the Catalan club. Argentina and Brazil lavish praise on the Spanish style and seek to return to their own roots of aesthetically-conscious success.

With Argentina and Spain set to face off tomorrow, it will be interesting to see what new Argentine head man Sergio Batista brings to the table. Batista is a product of outstanding Argentinos Juniors and River Plate teams of the 1980s. He knew little other than success and his run of good fortune extended into a 2008 Olympic Gold Medal for his squad. Batista is known to be more pragmatic, but may experiment with an extremely aggressive 4-3-3 formation. He has recalled Andres D'Alessandro, a tactically pleasing left-winger who has been shut out of the national team since his idiotic performance in the waning moments of the 2004 Copa America final.

But it is Spain that has the world's attention right now. And rightly so. Many are wondering just how impressive La Furia's run can be. The European Championships are only two years away and the men in red had no problem dispatching Liechtenstein earlier this week. Fernando Torres looks to be back in form, while David Villa equaled Raul's all-time record of 44 goals for Spain. I've taken a while to get around to it, but it is El Guaje who is the focus of this article. Tomorrow, he will probably break Raul's record. Today, he gets a tribute from me.

What makes David Villa the world's most important player? Part of it is his humble roots. Though Villa played for Sporting Gijon and trained in Langreo, he adamantly reminds fans that his roots lie firmly in the small mining town of Tuilla, where his father worked underground. Villa's father encouraged the young Asturian through a childhood injury; though naturally right footed, Villa became functionally ambidextrous because his father helped him practiced with his left while the right leg was in a cast. Villa continued to move up the ranks despite the bafflement of some coaches. Much like many fans today, who look at the 5'9" 152 pound Villa in amazement, these trainers did not see anything special from a physical standpoint.

But Pepe Acebal summed it up best when he noted Villa's greatest strength: footballing instinct. Instinct is what leads Villa, who supposedly has no speed, to blow by defenders. Instinct allows a player without a signature move to use his footwork to make defenders look stupid. Villa is conditioned to make all the right moves. He doesn't even have to think about it. Few players are so fluid with the ball. Villa scores goals of both great effort and great skill. He scores goals of great significance. Luis Aragones made the fateful decision to make Villa the centerpiece of his attack for Euro 2008, relegating the legendary (but not nearly as productive) Raul to spectator status. The move has paid off in spades. Villa has shown the world the quality that many in Spain already knew to be commonplace. Villa lead Spain to the 2008 Euro Championship. In Spain's string of 1-0 wins during the World Cup, it was Villa who did the lion's share of the damage, before Iniesta finished off the tournament.

I read an article some months ago that compared tennis' Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in an interesting light. Essentially, it said, men want to be Nadal but they want to play tennis like Federer. Nadal is a force of nature, using a brutally strong swing and an indefatigable motor to overwhelm opponents. Federer is highly technical, fearless, and aggressive, destroying foes not with force but with precision. The comparison to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi is obvious. But David Villa takes cues from both players. He has Nadal's effort and Federer's courage. Men want to be David Villa and play like him.

Villa is quite simply the best player for aspiring forwards to emulate. Most people are similarly un-blessed with an imposing physique or blinding speed. But practice, effort, concentration, and conditioning can go a long way to making up for any physical limitations. Vigorously studying the game can help to develop the reflexes and intuition necessary to make the leap to higher levels of football. And if a player career does not come to fruition, one can always enter the coaching ranks having been well prepared.

There is a bar dedicated to Villa in Tuilla. There is a tribute song from Los Berrones. There is the reaction of the Argentine public to his arrival.
David Villa is the greatest player in the history of Spain. Everything he does from this point on will only increase his margin. In the word's of Villa's hero, Quini, Villa is "a phenomenon, the best in Europe." Fuerza Guaje!!

A Dedication: Gustavo Cerati

There have been few musicians in the world more influential than Gustavo Cerati. The early jazz artists of the 20th century expanded so many borders, then the early rockers of England made a huge impact, and of course followed the American and British rockers of the mid-twentieth century; but few have truly put a stamp on the twentieth century music scene the way Cerati has.

From the beginning, his work with Soda Stereo took Latin America by surprise. He was the voice of the continent in the late 1980s and early 90s. After leaving the band in the late 90s, his solo work was monumental in shaping rock music even in the United States. His work Bocanada preceded the big electronic rock/pop fad. 

His music was my high school album. So many memories are linked to his songs, that I still get goose-bumps from his voice in En La Cuidad de la Furia, from Ultimo Concierto Disco A. What hapenned to him is extremely sad. He hasn't left us in body yet, but his soul is some where in music heaven. He will be missed, but never forgotten. His music will live in the memories of my generation.

Here are a couple of videos spanning a portion of his career (from Soda to Adios):

Sin Codificar - Los Wikipedia - Cumbia Gramatical

Tendrian que utilizar esto para ensenar las clases de espanol aca en EEUU...

Player Injury Compensation

It is unprecedented that a player have to compensate another for an injury incurred during a soccer game. But that is exactly what Mauro Camoranesi (naturalized Italian in 2006) is being forced to do. However, one would imagine there is a statute of limitations on such a case. It appears not, as the incident in question dates back to 1994. The victim: Pizzo, who was left with these injuries: The medical report indicated ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, posterior cruciate ligament tear, lateral collateral ligament rupture, rupture of internal and external meniscus of the knee capsule, biceps tendon, nerves several, bruises and tears, being about to be severed femoral artery. He never played again. From what I understand, whatever team contracts the player is the one who continues paying for medical expenses. There are also player unions that pay injured players should they be unable to continue playing.

Do you think that Camoranesi should have been forced to pay Pizzo now in 2010, or even back then in 1994? Should players be held liable for injuries committed on the field?

Link to Maradona Speech

Maradona's Farewell Speech

After listening to this the cold logic still stands: we need hardware in the trophy cabinet. And we need a coach who can get that for us. But I believe more criticism should be directed towards Don Julio and his band of thugs, not towards Diego. It is true what he says in this speech, when he joined the team it was in disarray. He did move it forward: the team was more aggressive, offensive and now has a spectacular unity. I would hate to see that destroyed. I feel bad for Diego, especially because no coach should stay on when 7 of his crew are being let go. This opinion piece quite well describes Grondona's way of handling national coaches.

The End of an Era

I am opposed to any representative of Argentina's soccer team making a political statement. On principle, for that matter, I am opposed to a representative of any sports organization making political statements of the type that Maradona made this past week in Venezuela. It is not his place. Now let me make myself clear though, I am opposed to the person making public statements, but I am not opposed to the person holding these sentiments. I could care less if Maradona is best friends with Chavez and Fidel, and still loves and supports Che. There are a lot of people with these sentiments, and well, I don't care. But what Maradona did this past week was unsupportable. On the basis of his statements and appearances alone, he should be fired.

From the date of this writing, it appears that he will not be staying on as head coach of the Argentine national team. The reasons stem more from his barrio-like beliefs of keeping his most loyal aides by his side. Considering the fact that he grew up in Villa Fiorito, we need to understand his decision. When you grow up in those places you are in a true dog-eat-dog scenario. You must have a close group of loyal friends. I understand this, and really I understand his sympathy for "socialism". I understand his tirades at the media, and his decision to bring Veron and Palermo to the World Cup instead of Cambiasso and Zanetti. I understand, because if you take his upbringing and his education into account you shouldn't be surprised. It always stuns me when people act shocked at his actions. There is no need to. It is totally predictable.

I am mostly filled with relief that Don Julio and Diego were not able to come to some sort of agreement. Mostly because I look forward to a functional coach who can make the right decisions and win some hardware for Argentina. Everyone talks about Bianchi, but he hasn't coached in a long time, and is too afraid to tarnish his reputation. So I don't even consider him for the position. Sabella appears to be Grondona's choice, but he has limited experience as a head coach. Although his time as el Kaiser's sidekick on the national team and at River, Monterrey, etc could come in handy. Even with his terrific Libertadores win in 2009, he still needs more experience in my opinion. El Checo Batista is a great choice, given his experience with the last Olympic gold medal and his abundant experience on top of the U-21 national team. But his Olympic performance was not beautiful, it was more practical. (Although slamming Dunga's Brazil sure does count for something.) For me the two best choices are Ramon Diaz and Cholo Simeone. Ramon Diaz has the most amount of experience for the job, and Simeone has a beautiful tactical system. This isn't just my inner-River speaking, this is the reality. I plead with you, Don Julio, make the right choice.

Let's not forget what Maradona has done for us before we criticize him too much. As coach, he brought passion and a love for the albiceleste that no other coach has shown. And as a player he brought the entire world beauty that has never been replicated. Dale Diego, siempre vas a ser querido por todo el pueblo Argentino!

Nuevo Comercial Coca-Cola Mundial 2010 Argentina

Publicidad Quilmes para la Copa Mundial Fifa 2010

Argentina's Chances in South Africa

By most accounts Argentina has the most formidable attacking force in the world. With Barcelona’s brilliant Messi, Inter’s poacher Diego Milito, Madrid’s top goal-scorer Higuain and City’s workhorse Tevez at the front. Even Spain’s combined Villa-Torres attacking force cannot compare to Argentina. Even with this goal-scoring potential, the Castrol rankings only give Argentina a 7.5% chance of bringing the trophy back to Buenos Aires this summer. How can it be that England has a 10.4% chance of winning, Spain has a 16.1% chance and Brazil has a 23.6% chance of winning according to the Castrol rankings? The answer most likely lies simply in the coach. England undoubtedly has one of the worst squads in years, but with veteran coach Fabio Capello at the helm, most believe that the team will be disciplined enough to successfully rely on their set pieces, air balls and boring futbol. Spain has the all-around best squad, and their success lies in the best midfield in the world. Brazil, like England, has a horrible squad. The difference between the two teams is that Brazil's coach chose the wrong players, while England doesn't have too many quality players to choose from. Also, Dunga’s creative-squandering strategy left out prodigies like Hernanes and Dagoberto, and skilled players like Ronaldinho. So the disparity must lie in the confidence of the coaching staff. Maradona showed a total lack of judgement by leaving out players that were on every observer’s lists, such as: Cambiasso, Zanetti and Lisandro Lopez. Aside from that, no one really believes that he will be able to unleash Messi’s inner-beast.

Let’s look at his starting XI:

                Higuain-Messi

Di Maria-Veron-Mascherano- Jonas G.

Heinze-Samuel-Demichelis-Otamendi

                    Romero

What he got right: Higuain and Messi are a great duo. Higuain is always dangerous with the ball. He can shoot from any position, he works hard, and can get inside the box. His passing is also underrated. Mascherano and Di Maria are great midfield choices. Di Maria is spectacular with the ball. And his awesome goal against Canada on the edge of the box shows his fantastic goal scoring abilities. Samuel and Demichelis are good options in the back four. Both have come off relatively good seasons, with Samuel now considered one of the best center backs in the world after his Champion’s League work. Romero is really the only viable choice for starting goalie. (Don’t we wish Fillol was still around!)

My starting XI: 
                                                      

                                             Higuain        Messi

                              Perotti    Lucho Gonzalez   Di Maria                     

                                                Mascherano

                               Ansaldi-Samuel-G.Milito-Zabaleta

                                                    Romero

I would have Messi come in from the right, while Higuain would be square in the middle. Perotti and Di Maria would be attacking down the flanks with Lucho controlling the strings from a position in between CM and AM. Mascherano would fetch the loose balls as DM. Ansaldi and Zabaleta add height and lateral defensive prowess. Samuel must start as CB, and I believe G. Milito is playing slightly better than Demichelis, and combines better with Messi. Romero stays. My forward subs would be: Tevez, D.Milito and Lisandro (perhaps Cavaneghi as well). Midfield subs: Maxi Rodriguez, Pastore, Cambiasso and Veron. Defensive subs: Demichelis, Garay, Burdisso and Otamendi. My sub keepers would be Andujar and Carrizo.

Another one of the issues with Maradona’s team is his choice of substitute players. Palermo, Garce and Blanco should not be on the team. Neither should the starters Heinze and Jonas.

Argentina should win all three group stage games. Nigeria may give the team some trouble. But the final of the Olympics should be a demonstration that Argentina can easily beat Nigeria. Korea and Greece shouldn’t give the team trouble. Within Group B Argentina will pass, and then I believe Nigeria or Greece will (this perhaps will be decided on goal differential). It will be a general disappointment if Argentina does not make even a semifinal appearance. Teams that will trouble Argentina: Brazil, Spain, Germany, Cameroon and Ivory Coast. Let’s wait and see!

Castrol Ranking Info: Argentina Profile , Castrol Homepage