Snak

Det blev skam til sambafodbold på Swedbank Stadion i går. Irak var mere eller mindre levende statister mod det brasilianske landshold. Kaká var tilbage med et mål og en assist, og når han får fast spilletid i Real bliver Kaká selvskreven ved VM i 2014. Oscar var også klar med 2 mål. Han har en fin radar, der gør at rykkene kommer i eksakt rette moment i forhold til afleveringerne. I har ret i, at Neymar virkede lidt slidt. Enig i at Menezes burde skåne Santos-spilleren, men det må han nok ikke pga. Nike-kontrakten... Men en fed kamp. Masser af kram fra de brasilianske spillere til Iraks træner Zico inden kampen, og i pausen var der opvisning i samba og capoeira.
I den hjemlige liga avancerede Grêmio til 2. pladsen efter 3-1 over Sport Recife. NPato7 kan godt kysse Anderson Pico, Leandro og Marquinhos, der sikkert er med på holdplakaten hjemme på væggen :) Hugo fik pyntet på resultatet for hjemmeholdet på straffe.
Palmeiras røg ind i et katastrofenederlag til Coritiba. Tårerne blev ikke mindre af, at kampen blev afgjort kort før tid på et straffespark sat ind af Deivid.

Håber i alle har fået en god nats søvn !!! - for det bliver en lang dag og nat med passioneret VM - fodbold....

Bolivia - Peru

Colombia - Paraguay

Ecuador - Chile

Argentina - Uruguay.

Antigua & Barbuda - USA

(Kan fdog ikke forstå amerikanerne ikke har nedlagt oprotest over at skulle spille mod Antigua OG Barbuda på samme tid ?)

Guatemala - Jamaica

Guyana - Mexico (Spilles i houston, USA)

El Salvador - Costa Rica

Panama - Honduras

Canada - Cuba


Andib & TR1986

Mjaeh El Salvador skal jo vinde...og scorer mere end et mål ....fordi deres forsvar er af den forfatning det nu er....

"Fito" skal ihvertfald lave et par af dem her...

http://www.youtube.com/w…oJnFHUGmlr0

Mener det var Rudy Corrales som scorede i Overtiden sidst på Estadio Cuzcatlan...

http://www.youtube.com/w…n_DXoqhVBX0

kommentatoren går amok, publikum går amok, ligesom de vil i nat...

El Salvador største force er publikum....de er jo ganske animeret :-)

Så Adelante Cuzctlecos...!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/w…m_5LhXqFeYw


Samba

Håber også at Kaka bliver en del af den endelige trup - men som jeg skrev så håber jeg også snart der bliver valgt nogle træningsmodstandere der kan udfordre drengene rent defensivt.... - men godt med mål gør jo også men kan holde varmen i Sverige.

Viola 4 ever

Ja det ser ud til du har ret Luna.

Men der er nu stadigvæk mange kup at hente - Det undrer mig lidt der ikke var en italiensk klub der snuppede Felipe Gutiérrez fra Universidad Catolica - han var mere "færdig" end Castillo. Kan se Palermo har snuppet Carlos labrin fra Huachipato som også er et stort talent, De har dog beholdt midtanespillerenLorenzo Reyes lidt endnu - så der kunne ligge et kup at vente.

Apropos kup - så burde de italienske klubber kigge mod Mexico - de har styr på tingene og er i en voldsom sportslig udvikling - med et fantastisk talentarbejde de har jo nu vundet U-Vm et par gange og flere af de store europæiske klubber har jo opdaget det -Chelsea har købt Ulises Dávila fra Chivas, Marco Fabian (vel det største talent i nyere tid) har jo også været rygtet til Europa, Det samme med angriberen Martin Galvan fra Cruz Azul, det var vist Barca ogArsenal der var interesseret og så er der Tigres´ angriber Alan Pulido.

Du finder også potentielle kup i Honduras (Allan Najar som vi tidligere har talt om her på tråden) og midtbanespillerne fra Panama Anibal "El Samurai" Godoy og Armando "pantera" Hooper begge spiller i Gody Cruz og sidstnævnte var tæt på et skifte til Valencia sidste år.

Så er der den offensive midtbanespiller fra DIM i Colombia 19årige Edwin Cordoba som også er værd at kigge nærmere på.

Eller venezuelanske Yohandry Orozco - midtbane/Angriber der vist er røget til tysk fodbold Wolfsburg mener jeg....

Der er en Irven Avila , peruviansk angriber fra Sporting Cristal som er med i landsholdstruppen - kunne være en mulighed til noget angrebsforstærkning - når nu Genoa nuppede Andy Polo fra Universitario.

og så kunne Sergio "chino" Araujo jo være spændende...han er jo lånt ud til Barca fra Boca - Real var vist også interesseret - men nu har catalanerne vist en forkøbsret på ham ...der er dog ingen der siger det bliver til noget...så en ny Batistuta, Daniel Bertoni og Ramon Diaz klon vil da ikke være at foragte.

El Éverito i længe ventet comeback (spol frem til 1:08):
http://www.vcfplay.com/t…mo-711.html

Hvis han kan genfinde niveauet fra før skaden - og ellers holde sig fra fast-food, natklubber, webcam-nøgenvideoer, Twitter-udskejelser og afbrændte biler - så er han La Ligas bedste spiller fraset R&B. I min optik.

Faktisk tænker jeg at Argentina har brug for Éver ...de har 2 hårde kampe her mod Uruguay og kampen i Chile....så det nu vi får set hvor Argentina står rent styrkemæssigt....:-)

Honduras ready for familiar foe Panama

PANAMA CITY, Panama -- With feet now firmly planted on the ground in Panama, the Honduran national team is thinking of only two things in advance of facing the host on Friday: obtain points at the Estadio Rommel Fernandez and take a step closer to advancing to the final round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2014 World Cup.

Honduras certainly faces a formidable challenge in the Canaleros, a team that has become one of the more respected sides in the region under the guidance of their former international Julio Dely Valdes.

Nevertheless, Honduras head coach Luis Suarez maintains that playing in Panama won´t be anything out ordinary for his team, which finds itself two points behind the Panamanians in the Group C standings of third round qualifying.

"If we´re afraid of a game like this, it would be better to not even show up," the Colombian told the Honduran Football Federation´s website. "This field is one of the easiest to play on. The stands are one hundred meters from the field, there´s an athletic track, and the players are well protected. I can´t see why there would be pressure, and if there were, we would just have to manage it."

The pressure may also be somewhat reduced because of the familiarity between the two rivals. Honduras and Panama have met frequently in recent years with remarkably even results.

Of the last seven encounters between them, Panama possesses a narrow 4-3 advantage in victories. During that run, however, neither team has managed to post wins in consecutive matches.

Panama surprised the 2010 World Cup participant in San Pedro Sula with a 2-0 away win to commence the current round. If Honduras can return the favor by winning in Panama, it would continue the streak of alternating wins and position the Hondurans closer to a place in the hexagonal.

"This game is life or death for us, and we´re going to take it on with that mentality," said defender Osman Chavez. "We know there´s no turning back, and there´s no tomorrow after these two games."

A loss by Honduras on Friday night means that the Catrachos would likely need to win a complicated match on Tuesday with visiting Canada in San Pedro Sula to conclude the round, possibly by multiple goals.

The Canaleros will progress to the hexagonal by securing three points against its Central American rival, making its last match against already eliminated Cuba a less formal affair

Mexico sees opportunity in qualifiers

HOUSTON, Texas -- Following a first training session on Wednesday at the practice grounds of Major League Soccer´s Houston Dynamo, the Mexican national team opened the doors to the media two days ahead of its match with Guyana at BBVA Compass Stadium.

Mexico has already secured its place in the final round of CONCACAF qualifying, making the environment in the team somewhat more relaxed than usual. Head coach Jose Manuel De la Torre has called in a squad with a number of new faces, leaving several regulars out for games versus Guyana and El Salvador to close out the semifinal phase.

Even though these matches won´t affect Mexico´s final standing in the group, the players still say that each opponent should be taken seriously and the games treated with the level of respect merited by any national team fixture.

"We have to take each game as an opportunity," said Zinha, who was called back to the national team after an absence of over a year. "We should have fun, try to be calm and give our best. Even though we have the ticket to the hexagonal wrapped up, we have to play seriously."

Mexico has maintained a perfect record thus far in the semifinal round, defeating Costa Rica twice last month, 2-0 on the road and 1-0 in Mexico City. El Tri now has twelve points from four matches after also having triumphed over Guyana and El Salvador in June.

A 3-1 victory over the Golden Jaguars began the round, followed by a 2-1 win in San Salvador thanks to a late Hector Moreno goal.

Qualifying success for El Tri comes on top of a number of other recent achievements by Mexican Football Federation sides, including the Olympic title secured this summer in London.

Mexico´s full team has won eight of ten matches this year across friendlies and qualifiers. Despite the fact that the team is already qualified for CONCACAF´s hexagonal, the players are motivated to continue that good run of form in the upcoming games.

"We need to close the year the same way we started, just like we´ve done up until now, with two wins more, while respecting the rivals, and always taking the games as seriously as we have up until now," said defender Francisco Rodriguez.

After taking on Guyana, Mexico will return home to Torreon, where it will play host to El Salvador to conclude the semifinal round.

For Guatemala, pair of WCQs are finals

GUATEMALA CITY -- Guatemala´s plan for reaching the final round of CONCACAF qualifying is as simple as it is challenging: get three points at home against Jamaica on Friday and then scrap for a point on the road in the United States next week.

The first leg comes Friday night at the Estadio Mateo Flores, where the Chapines face a formidable foe in Jamaica. With a trip to the U.S. awaiting them, the Guatemalans feel that their best chance to arrive at the final match day with possibilities safely intact is to beat the Caribbean side at home.

"For us, these are two finals," defender Elias Enoc Vasquez told CONCACAF.com after practice on Thursday. "The first is tomorrow, when we´ll try to give it our best, because we know that winning tomorrow we´re alive for the final match in the United States. But losing tomorrow would be disastrous for us."

A loss to Jamaica would not eliminate the Guatemalans, but it would mean that in all likelihood they would have to go to the U.S. and manage a win in Kansas City -- a challenge the group characterizes as more difficult than winning at home.

The three teams are tied atop Group A with seven points, though for the moment Guatemala and the United States enjoy a one goal advantage in goal differential over the Jamaicans (plus-two to plus-one).

The U.S. visits Antigua and Barbuda on Friday, a match from which the Chapines fully expect Jurgen Klinsmann´s side to take all three points. Antigua then visits Jamaica for the final match day, leading the Guatemalans to conclude that getting all three points from Friday´s encounter is absolutely critical to their chances.

"That´s what we´re all hoping for," said Vasquez. "First, win here, and then go to the U.S. with that impetus, and try to get a point. That would be ideal for us. That´s why tomorrow is like a final for us.

"It´s life or death. We shouldn´t take the role of favorites, but we have to do what we have to do. We´ll try to go for the three points. At home, we have to be more direct."

For his part, Guatemala head coach Ever Hugo Almeida, has worked this week on a strategy to expose what he feels are the few weaknesses in a Jamaican side that has 18 players on its roster based with clubs off the island.

"During the week, I think coaching is 90 percent of what happens," said Almeida. "During the game everything changes, the players are the most important. There´s nothing left to do but maybe make a few adjustments, and execute."

Almeida´s strategic stylings will be complicated this week, however, by the injury crisis that has hit Guatemala´s defense. Four central defenders who have served as starters during the qualifiers for Brazil 2014 are unavailable due to injury. The Paraguayan tends to play with three central defenders, but has only two available on his roster for the next pair of qualifiers.

Additionally, history doesn´t seem to be on the Chapines´ side. Guatemala has never beaten Jamaica in an official match, a streak that includes a dozen contests over the last two decades.

"We have to reverse what´s come before," concluded Vasquez. "They say we´ve never beaten Jamaica, now we´ll have to try to change that paradigm and do things well."

The challenge for Guatemala on Friday night is undoubtedly huge. But all the same, the Guatemalans know that their chances to advance to the hexagonal, and those of qualifying for a first-ever World Cup, hang in the balance against Jamaica.

Antigua looks to win on and off the field

NORTH SOUND, Antigua and Barbuda -- Antigua and Barbuda may sit at the bottom of the Group A table in the third round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2014 World Cup, but don´t tell that to the thousands of fans who will stream into the sold-out 10,000 seat Sir Vivian Richards Stadium on Friday for a Matchday Five encounter against the United States.

The Benna Boys will face the North American giants for the first time on home soil, hoping to keep their faint prospects alive of advancing to the hexagonal.

Gordon Derrick, General Secretary of the Antigua and Barbuda Football Association, spoke with CONCACAF.com, stating that the country of nearly 82,000 is ready for the challenge ahead.

"We know mathematically we have a slight chance of qualifying if all goes well, but we won´t be a walk over," said Derrick, who was elected President of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) in May. "The international exposure for Antigua has been tremendous, we have about 1,100 tourists on the island just for this game and all the tickets have been sold out and local fans will be out in their national colors and jerseys."

The CFU President said that the gates will be unlocked three hours before the opening whistle and, regardless of the final result, there will be a party afterwards to demonstrate Caribbean warmth and hospitality. He also stressed that the game will provide a boost to the economy of Antigua, a nation establishing itself as a leading Caribbean destination.

"Football opens so many doors and we are looking at this game from several angles," Derrick commented. "We already have 17 media houses here, hotels are happy and knowing that this game will be shown globally gives us a chance to showcase the beauty of our island.

"It´s been a hectic but fun experience."

In the first meeting between the two sides last June, Antigua earned praise for its play in a 3-1 loss.Carlos Bocanegra gave the U.S. an 8th minute lead, an advantage that was doubled through a Clint Dempsey penalty kick just before the interval. Peter Byers, who leads the Benna Boys with 10 qualifying goals, halved the deficit in the 65th minute, but Herculez Gomez restored the two-goal cushion shortly afterwards.

It was that type of performance that strengthens Antigua and Barbuda belief in an upset, especially at home.

"We still have a chance to qualify and that is the most important thing," said Antigua team manager Fernando Abraham. "We will be setting out with every single possible tool, weapon that we need to go and win that game.

"We are very conscious about our football here in Antigua … and we are a tourist country, and we would want every single opportunity to showcase Antigua. We definitely want the US to be here. We have a chance. We want to be able to use the twelfth man in the stands to help us win that game so that we could move forward to the next round. This is a historical game. We´ve never (had) a US federation or association team play against Antigua in Antigua."

Heightening the excitement level even further was the news that standout striker Dexter Blackstock will return to the squad. The 26-year-old Nottingham Forest player missed both encounters against Guatemala in September, but according to team management he is now ready and rearing to go.

The addition of Blackstock was not lost on Antigua and Barbuda captain George Dublin, who realizes that his team needs to be at its best to obtain what would be an historic triumph: "We´re definitely hungry to prove a point that we are not just about being competitive. We´re about being competitive and getting the right result, and that´s what we´re going to try to do for these last few games."

Win, lose or draw, this Antigua and Barbuda team has accomplished more than any other.And that is something from which to build a sturdy legacy.

Ten teams still alive for five hex berths

With only one spot settled for next year´s hexagonal, the final qualifying phase of CONCACAF´s World Cup semifinal round has just about everybody else on edge.

Eight teams have legitimate chances of clinching one of the five remaining berths. Guatemala, the United States and Jamaica are tied atop Group A; El Salvador is one point ahead of Costa Rica in Group B; while Panama leads Honduras and Canada by two points in Group C.

Cuba is the only team so far mathematically eliminated entering matches Friday and Tuesday, but Antigua & Barbuda and Guyana are on the brink.

With four victories in as many games, Mexico is the only side that has clinched a berth in the final six-team round of qualifying.

Since berths are undecided in each of the three groups, nearly every game could have impact on who advances and who doesn´t.

Group A

Regardless of the results Friday, nobody can clinch a berth from Group A until Tuesday night.

Guatemala, the United States and Jamaica have all have seven points, but the Americans and Chapines are ahead of Jamaica on goal difference.

Two former Major League Soccer players -- striker Carlos Ruiz and midfielder Marco Pappa -- who have scored stunning late goals for Guatemala against the United States in the past, could play a key role against the Americans this time. Ruiz´s 88th-minute header gave the Central Americans a 1-1 draw at home during 2002 qualifying and Pappa´s 83rd-minute equalizer also gave his side a 1-1 draw in June.

The United States will have central midfielder Michael Bradley, whose absence was noticeable in Jamaica´s 2-1 home win on September 7. The American attack, however, might not be at its best at Antigua on Friday, missing midfielder-forward Landon Donovan with a knee injury. Coach Juergen Klinsmann also left two hot goal-scorers off the team -- Chris Wondolowski, who leads MLS with 25 goals, and Jozy Altidore, who shares the Dutch league scoring lead (eight goals).

The Jamaicans, who have called in eight MLS players, play at Guatemala on Friday and return home win against Antigua on Tuesday. Coach Theodore Whitmore will put his trust in the likes of strikers Luton Shelton and Ryan Johnson, midfielder Demar Phillips, who missed the U.S. matches due to injury, among others. Midfielder Andre Lewis, an 18-year-old youth international, also was called in.

A draw or loss to the United States will eliminate Antigua, which reached the semifinals for the first time in its history. The Caribbean side, which won its first five games in the second round of qualifying, have managed only a point in its last five. However, at home during qualifying, it has allowed only three goals in five games.

Group B

The second-place Salvadorans could clinch a spot in the next round with a win at home over Costa Rica on Friday. Any other result would seemingly favor the Ticos, who host winless on Tuesday. On the same day, El Salvador will travel to at Azteca Stadium face Mexico.

Costa Rica will have to play without Saprissa defender Gabriel Badilla, who apparently aggravated an ankle injury. His spot was taken by Herediano´s Pablo Salazar, called into the squad for the first time in seven years.

While Mexico already has clinched its place, El Tri still could play a pivotal role in determining who moves on and who stays home.

After playing at Guyana on Friday, the Mexicans host the Salvadorans. Coach Jose Manuel de la Torre has called in many regulars including defenders Hector Moreno and Francisco Rodriguez, midfielders Andres Guardado and Angel Reyna and strikers Aldo de Nigris, Javier Hernandez and Olympic hero Oribe Peralta.

Guyana, which twice has scored two goals in a game in the semifinals, still has a chance to reach the next round. The Caribbean team would need to win both of its games - including an upset over Mexico on Friday.

Group C

With nine points, Panama is in position to advance relatively easily. Los Canaleros could clinch with a victory at home against Honduras on Friday before playing at Cuba on Tuesday.

The Hondurans, conversely, would be bolstered by a result in Panama City, giving them confidence entering Tuesday night´s confrontation against Canada in San Pedro Sula. Los Catrachos will have to make do without goalkeeper Noel Valladares and midfielder Roger Espinoza, who were sidelined by ankle injuries.

Canada, in third place behind Honduras due to goal difference, needs a big win over winless Cuba in Toronto on Friday to make itself more secure entering Tuesday´s clash. For example, a three-goal victory over Cuba and a draw or loss by Honduras against Panama would put Canada in position to advance with only a draw in its final match.

The North Americans, however, will have to compensate for the loss of career scoring leader and midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, who was injured in the last round of qualifying.