Snak

Gago podría reaparecer el domingo

BUENOS AIRES -- El mediocampista de Boca Juniors Fernando Gago, víctima de un pequeño desgarro en el superclásico ante River Plate, reflejó el martes una óptima recuperación que aumenta sus chances de volver a la titularidad el domingo próximo para la visita a Godoy Cruz de Mendoza.

El futbolista del seleccionado argentino inició la semana con un trabajo de mayor intensidad respecto de la anterior, en la que priorizó el descanso y la regeneración muscular.

Junto al kinesiólogo Leandro Betchakian y el preparador físico Pablo Santella, el volante central se exigió con piques cortos y largos al borde de una de las canchas de Casa Amarilla.

Además, tomó contacto con el balón y no evidenció secuelas de la rotura de cinco milímetros en el rector anterior derecho, por lo que es probable su presencia en el partido de la doudécima fecha del torneo Inicial.

En caso de reaparecer a dos semanas de su lesión muscular, Gago desplazará del equipo a Jesús Méndez, que fue titular en los partidos ante River, como defensor, y Rosario Central, en la mitad de la cancha.

Del mismo modo, el uruguayo Ribair Rodríguez también evidenció una evolución del desgarro en el aductor derecho, que sufrió el domingo 29 de septiembre en la victoria ante Quilmes.

El mediocampista devenido en marcador central se entrenó aparte en otro sector del predio y se aguarda sobre posible retorno ante Godoy Cruz en lugar del Claudio Chiqui Pérez.

Frente a ese panorama, la posible formación de Boca sería con Agustín Orión; Cristian Erbes, Rodríguez o Pérez, Daniel Díaz y Nahuel Zárate; Pablo Ledesma, Gago o Méndez y Juan Sánchez Miño; Juan Román Riquelme; Juan Manuel Martínez y Emmanuel Gigliotti.

En la jornada del martes, la mayoría de ellos,
que disputó el encuentro del domingo pasado ante Central, trabajó en el gimnasio primero y de forma regenerativa después, en uno de los campos de juego de Casa Amarilla.

Otro grupo, integrado por Guillermo Burdisso, Matías Caruzzo, Gonzalo Escalante, Federico Bravo, Claudio Riaño, Nicolás Blandi y Maximiliano Padilla, realizó tareas físicas de mayor intensidad.

Esta vez, a contramano con lo que sucede todos los martes, el DT Carlos Bianchi prescindió del fútbol en espacios reducidos para los jugadores de poca acción durante el fin de semana.

Desde el miércoles, el plantel volverá a entrenarse en doble turno, a las 9 y 16.30, para el próximo partido.

Boca, cuarto en el torneo Inicial con 20 unidades, a seis del líder Newell´s, visitará el domingo a las 21.15 al Godoy Cruz de su ídolo Martín Palermo, invicto como local este torneo.

Esto es Uruguay

20 long months ago, after having followed and become increasingly enraptured by Uruguayan football ever since watching Oscar Washington Tabarez’ team beat the greatest England side of my lifetime at Wembley in May 1990, I arrived in this beautiful country. Throughout that time, the question I’d always asked myself about its celebrated football team wasn’t just “how can such a tiny country have achieved such an incredible amount?”; but “why is it always such a constant, epic struggle? Why do Uruguay always, always, always have to do things the hard way?”

16 teams qualified from 24 finalists at the 1986 and 1990 World Cup. On both occasions, Uruguay qualified number 16. 8 teams qualified from 12 participants at the 1999 and 2007 Copa America. On both occasions, Uruguay qualified number 8. And with 4 sides qualifying directly for the World Cup Finals, and the fifth placed side playing off, Uruguay finished number 5 in 2002, 2006, 2010… and now they’ll finish number 5 in 2014 as well.

This isn’t some extraordinary coincidence; nor, tempting though it must be for many to ascribe, is it fate. There’s a reason for this: a reason why Uruguay only ever get going when the going gets truly tough. It’s because this country is The Land of the Last Minute.

Imagine a place where, if you have to go out to deal with some minor administrative task, you have literally no idea how long it will take. If you’re lucky, it might take 10 minutes; if you’re unlucky, it might take 2 hours. Imagine a country where, if you become frustrated and find yourself on the verge of a sense of humour failure about anything at all, the response is always “tranquilo, tranquilo” – followed by the inevitable reassurance (although frequently, it feels like the exact opposite) that your problem will of course be dealt with… “mañana”.

Imagine a capital city in which even McDonald’s take 20 minutes to make a coffee, or 30 minutes to make a hamburger, and service in restaurants is considered an optional extra; an immigration service which sends you to queue after queue after queue after queue, meaning that you end up spending all day dealing with something that should really have taken 5 minutes in a country which wasn’t so terminally bonkers; and a state telecommunications monopoly with whom you arrange to install an internet connection in your new apartment, who tell you to be there between 9 and 5 on the given date, then fail to turn up, tell you anything about why, and expect you to reschedule the appointment: only for the same thing to happen again, and again, and again, and again. In my case, more than ten times in total.

Yet here’s the thing, my friends. Somehow, in spite of bureaucracy so exasperating that it often feels as though Uruguay was the creation of somebody’s very twisted sense of humour; or a way of life so laid back that I swear every single driver in this city takes at least 5 minutes just to get out of their car at the end of their journey, this country works. I’m not exactly sure how – but it does.

The people are friendly, welcoming and cannot do enough to help you; the quality of life is good, as long as you can afford it; the economy continues to grow; the internet, which was finally installed after a month of pleading telephone calls and multiple trips to Antel’s commercial centre, is fast, modern and reliable. And the country’s pride and joy, its football team, in whose honour it literally grinds to a halt whenever it plays, is still on the rails, and stumbling towards an incredible twelfth appearance at the game’s greatest tournament.

It might take a long time – a very long time – but ultimately, it all works out. And as it is with this country, so it is even more with its national team. I mean, honestly: did anyone really expect Uruguay, with everything we know about them, to go to Quito, saunter past the hosts, and qualify for the World Cup directly? Why finish fourth when you can finish fifth, and still ultimately secure the same prize? Why do it with a minimum of fuss when melodrama and suffering are on offer instead? Why do things the easy way? This is Uruguay. We have a reputation to uphold here!

Legend has it that two bulls – one young, the other old – were standing on a hill eyeing up a group of cows being herded into the pasture below. “Hey – let’s run down there and service some of those cows!” exclaimed the excited youngster. “No”, his senior replied – “let’s walk down and service them all”.

Thus in any group stage – whether in qualifying or at a major tournament – can La Celeste be found frequently in second gear: taking things gently, always ensuring that their energies are reserved until they’re really needed later. Were they needed in Venezuela and Peru? So serious had the situation become, yes; but were they needed last night? Daft as though it might sound, not really, no.

Please don’t misunderstand me and think for a moment that I’m somehow suggesting that Uruguay went out to lose the match. Of course they didn’t. But that edge, that garra, without which La Celeste are just another perfectly ordinary football team, was missing. Given that the players’ backs weren’t to the wall, that’s actually only natural.

And of course, the very thing which makes so many Uruguay sides so frustrating, so infuriating, so much like watching Groundhog Day, is also what’s enabled this country to over-achieve so extraordinarily often on the greatest of stages. Its footballers have an instinct for how to remain calm in the tightest of corners; how to face down overwhelming odds and succeed again and again and again. How to win by just doing enough.

So you’ll forgive me, I hope, if just this once, I neglect to obsess over Tabarez’ team selection or failure to truly renovate his side; or refuse to immerse myself in gloom over a disappointing performance and still more disappointing result. This is Uruguay, the Land of the Last Minute. Everything will work out in the end.

Meaning that on Tuesday, mark my words, the players will return to Montevideo, beat Argentina, and assure themselves of being seeded – as (how could it have ever been otherwise?) the eighth of the eight seeds – then they’ll enter a play-off in which defeat is unthinkable and would constitute the humiliation to end all humiliations, probably give the nation multiple heart attacks over the 180 minutes… and go through to Brazil, as the thirty-second of the 32 finalists.

Tranquilo. Mañana. Esto es Uruguay. And try as they might, I’m not at all sure that the people would have it any other way.

Bring on Argentina… I guess

Fear, envy, hysteria, bragging rights… emotions usually associated with the Clásico have been replaced by a feeling of fait accompli, that despite three impressive wins over Venezuela, Perú and Colombia, Uruguay’s fate was decided by CONMEBOL’s scheduler. And here they arrive, mighty Argentina, well plain old Argentina since Messi ain’t playing. And for the first time in a long time, both Argentina and Uruguay seem bored by the possibility.

Argentina will not feature Messi, nor Higuaín or the guy who has turned Boca Juniors into a force to be reckoned with, no not the has-been known as Riquelme, but Fernando Gago. Instead, Argentina will feature Agüero, Di María & Lavezzi. This Argentina even without Messi still knows how to fill a score sheet.

Unfortunately without Messi, without Uruguay needing to beat them to get in, Tuesday will be anticlimactic at best, football stripped of any romanticism, the Clásico cosigned to dullness. A pity really, last June, Uruguay played Brazil – a game Uruguay lost – a game that served to remind the sky-blue that certain games need to be played on high flame, expect the flame to be much lower here.

Tenfield is reporting Uruguay will go with Stuani & Ruso Pérez from the outset, and will employ a 4-2-2-2 formation-

The game might be interesting however if Uruguay decides to forgo any notions of niceties and go for the jugular by stomping Argentina right out of El Centenario, but I doubt whether it’ll get that ugly, going for the win – or attempting to – is the mindset Uruguay should always have when they face Argentina, but in this situation, given the fact that it won’t really matter, I would rather see OWT start Abel Hernández, while giving Ramírez a full 90 minutes.

What occurs Tuesday won’t change Uruguay’s lot but it will be interesting to see if Uruguay actually tries to go for a win instead of playing not to lose.

Arg, det var sent Ecuador skal spille, havde håbet at se kampen.

Også er det rette hold selvfølgelig El Nacional med deres Puros Criollos holdning...




Ellers får jeg 3 måneder på San Cristóbal, så det er vist begrænset med fodbold, øen ligger 1000km fra hovedstaden. Dog har jeg 14dages ferie, så det måske være jeg er heldig..

Ellers får jeg 3 måneder på San Cristóbal, så det er vist begrænset med fodbold, øen ligger 1000km fra hovedstaden. Dog har jeg 14dages ferie, så det måske være jeg er heldig..

Der var jeg mere heldig. Jeg boede i en by, hvor jeg kunne se fodbold, når byens lokale helte spillede på hjemmebane. De nåede da også finalen det år, hvor jeg var derover.

Jeg syntes ellers jeg er ganske heldig, at kunne arbejde med galapagos dyreliv.

Larissa skulle have fået frækt tilbud fra Messi med lidt penge i posen? Ja, han havde nok ikke fået noget gratis. Bare leje af en stol for at nå op må også koste lidt...
Vi lader lige billederne tale for sig selv:
http://www.lancenet.com.…948899.html

Goi - fedt ! hvis du keder blandt øglerne så husk at kigge ind forbi bloggen her...


Samba

Larissa skulle have fået frækt tilbud fra Messi med lidt penge i posen? Ja, han havde nok ikke fået noget gratis. Bare leje af en stol for at nå op må også koste lidt...
Vi lader lige billederne tale for sig selv:
http://www.lancenet.com.…948899.html

Hehehe - vi har jo altid vidst at Leo var en lille frækkert - det næste bliver vel at der florere billeder af Messi med bukserne nede om anklerne og gummi i endetarmen...men det virker da til han har udviklet en slags personlighed efterhånden.

@Goi
Det var udelukkende i fodboldmæssig forstand.

@An

Jeg spurgte skam om de havde på fastlandet, men den gik ikke, så ville det blive et andet land. Ellers er det jo ikke være end man tager en rejse til, for fodboldensskyld...