Why France are Quite Good, Really.

From the beginning of May, I've been telling anyone that would listen that France would be a surprise package at the World Cup. While people were considering Courtois, I was admiring Lloris. While people were excited about Hazard, I was buzzing for Valbuena. And while people were complimenting Benteke and Lukaku, I was fawning over Giroud and Benzema.

Since winning the World Cup on home soil in 1998, France have been knocked out at the Group Stage twice in 2002 and 2010, and reached the Final in 2006. To say that France are a "boom or bust" team would be the most accurate description since the last time England were described as underachievers.

This time, it's business.

However, France are a team set up to go far in this competition. At the helm, they have a man in Didier Deschamps who knows what it takes to win the World Cup. Decisions taken by the manager have lead to a harmonious camp, including leaving out Samir Nasri, a volatile character to say the least. Of course, Nasri's girlfriend wasn't massively impressed by this decision, launching a personal attack on the FFF on every social networking site at her fingertips. How mature.

Yes, Olivier. Five.

As well as having what seems to be the right man for the job, France also have one of the deepest squads at the World Cup, boasting cover in a number of positions. Sagna and Debuchy at RB were arguably the two best at their position in the Premier League this season, Giroud is hardly a terrible replacement, should Benzema go down injured, Laurent Koscielny was, in my opinon, Arsenal's most consistent CB this season, and he only makes the bench behind Sakho and Varane, and Moussa Sissoko is more than capable of replacing Cabaye, Pogba or Matuidi. The only question mark I would have over the squad is the selection of Lucas Digne over Gael Clichy as a back-up for Patrice Evra at LB. Sure, Digne is young, and plays in a successful system at PSG, but can you really argue against the experience and pedigree of Clichy, were Evra to be rendered unavailable?

Naturally, the injury to Franck Ribery just a week before the start of the tournament was a blow the Les Bleus, but the way they have dealt with the situation has been really positive. Antoine Griezmann looks more than capable of filling that role, and if needed, they can switch to a 4-4-2 Diamond formation, with Valbuena supporting both Giroud and Benzema up front, which we saw work to devastating effect against Switzerland.

Majestic.

Indeed, in some ways, Ribery's injury has forced France together as a team, as there have been few reports of unrest in the camp, unlike in 2010. Back in South Africa, France were under the tutelage of Raymond Domenech, a man so absurdly power hungry, he made Kim Jong-Il look like a liberal. Now, with Deschamps in charge, and a harmonious squad without the personality of Nasri in there, France are beginning to play to their potential. They're playing with each other and for each other, rather than as shoddily glued-together individuals. No longer are we seeing arguments amongst one another. There is no more rolling about on the floor, or calling for an opponent to be carded.

These Frenchmen mean business, and I, for one, am right behind them.

The Kit World Cup: Group E&F

Group E:

France: Honestly, I've rarely wanted to buy a kit as much as I do France's new home shirt. The cut, the colour, the detail. Everything about it screams French sophistication and you can imagine the France teams of old wearing both these shirts. Imagine how much better Zidane, Petit, Pires, and Henry would have looked in these shirts. I'm not sure the world would be able to cope.

Ecuador: Lesser-known manufacturer Marathon will have done themselves a favour with these kits for the Ecuador team. Good colour combinations, and decent detailing on the shoulders make these kits quite appealing. All in all, a relatively good offering from the Ecuadorians.

Switzerland: The Swiss kits, predictably red and white, are relatively plain, but still look good on the players. Personally, I'm not a massive fan of the detailing down the sides of the shirts, but I do like the embossed cross on the home shirt. The detailing on the sleeves also looks very impressive, as does the collar piping on the away kit.

Honduras: Unsurprisingly, the Hondurans come into both the football tournament, and this fictional tournament, looking pretty average. The piping on the white home shirt looks very nice, but the unsightly badge on both kits really does nothing to help the look. Personally, I think the plain white is a little too plain, and could do with some detailing somewhere other than the shoulders and arms.




Group F:

Argentina: The classic Argentinian look of light blue and white stripes continues with this good looking Adidas shirt, nothing too radical about the home kit. The black Adidas stripes on the shoulders contrast well with the other colours. However, I'm not so keen on the away kit, the hoops all the way through the kit should be the same colour, rather than every single hoop being different. Big fan of the home kit, not so much the away kit.

Nigeria: The Nigerian kits for this World Cup are in stark contrast to the Argentinians. I really like the white away kit, but really dislike the green home kit. The green on the arms should carry through onto the shirt, and the very thin pinstripes on the shirt are really quite ugly. In fact, the only thing I can really praise from this kit is the numbers and letters on the back, but that's scant consolation for the terrible kit. The away shirt, however, is very nice. The detailing is not over the top, and, as opposed to the home shirt, the light green works quite well.

Bosnia & Herzegovina: Two nice looking Bosnian kits from Adidas. Unlike the white Honduran kit, the white offering from the Bosnians doesn't look so plain due to the detailing and the Adidas stripes on the arms. Similarly, the blue away kit looks good because of the detailing Adidas have put on it. I would, however, have liked to see some difference in the two shirts.

Iran: These two Iranian kits from Uhlsport look surprisingly nice, considering they are for one of the lesser nations, manufactured by a relative unknown in the world of kits. One thing I particularly like about the away kit is the detailing of the cheetah on the shirt, which only really shows up if you look carefully. Also, the white kit looks really nice with the green collar and red stripe across the chest.



Round of 16 Matches:
France v Iran
Bosnia & Herzegovina v Switzerland

Chile Throw España in the Works

Are We Seeing the Death of Tiki-Taka?

It's 5 past 12, and barely ninety minutes ago, reigning World and European champions Spain were knocked out of the World Cup after just two games. My mind hasn't come to terms with it yet, but I'm sure it will, given time. I, amongst many of my friends, am pleased to see the back of Spain and I'll tell you why.

For far too long now, Vicente del Bosque and his band of merry compadres have waltzed through competitions, laying waste in the most nonchalant of fashions to any lesser team who dared to have the temerity to challenge their superiority. Racking up thousands of passes a game, the Spain of 2010 would wait for their opponents to have a lapse in concentration before stringing together 3 or 4 perfectly placed one-touch passes, resulting in David Villa or Fernando Torres walking the ball into the back of the net.

Sure, in 2008, tiki-taka football at both Barcelona and Spain was great to watch. It was new, it was exciting. Like anything, though, after 6 years, it all becomes a bit same-old same-old. By the Euros two years ago, I was shouting at the screen as Spain tried and failed to find a way past the mighty John O'Shea for them to give it to Xabi Alonso to just "have a pop". Admittedly they eventually won 4-0, but still...variation is nice.

The only man I feel sorry for. Plus Xabi Alonso.

So 2014 rolls around. I finish my university exams, and become increasingly excited for the impending World Cup. No matter how hard I try, though, I can't help but get a feeling that I want Spain to fall flat on their faces. Having won so often, you could see the swagger in their step from space. Their demeanour was similar to that of Roger Federer at Wimbledon, when he came onto Centre Court wearing a blazer pre-empting his own victory.

The way Holland went through Spain like a hot knife through butter, exposing their questionable defence, was a joy to behold. One of my friends even tweeted "As a semi-professional despiser of Spain, this is porn to me.", and I find it hard to disagree. Ramos has never been the most disciplined centre-back, Pique isn't the player he was two or three years ago, and Jordi Alba is the Spanish Kyle Walker, using blazing speed to make up for defensive incapabilities. Seemingly, the only solid defensive muchacho is César "Dave" Azpilicueta.

"Yeah, ok Vicente. Good luck without me!"

Up front, Fernando Torres is the biggest joke on the internet since John Terry missed that penalty in Moscow. The thought of Torres getting into the squad ahead of Alvaro Negredo, and on the pitch ahead of David Villa, is upsetting. Sure, Negredo dropped off the second half of last season, but he's still more willing
to work for the team than Torres is, and he'll get physical with whoever he's up against, which is more than Diego Costa or Torres seem to do.



Tactically, del Bosque seems at a loss to explain what's been happening. Understandably, against Holland, damage limitation was the order of the day. However, against Chile, and 2-0 just before half time, you'd have thought that the Spaniard at the helm of the footballing armada would have sacrificed a defensive player for the sake of an attacking threat, but no. Here are the subs he made:
Alonso -> Koke
Costa -> Torres
Pedro -> Cazorla
I don't know about you, but they don't look like game changing substitutions. Not only that, but as the game wore on, so did Spain's boring tactics. Their willingness to take potshots and test the Chilean keeper never grew, and their insistence on a passing game that so clearly didn't work was embarrassing to watch. Del Boy should have thrown on an extra forward and started pumping the ball long against the CB pairing of Jara and Medel, neither of whom are taller than 5'9". But he didn't. And I, for one, am glad.

Adios Spain, and RIP tiki-taka, and good riddance!

The Inaugural Kit World Cup: Groups C&D

Group C:

Colombia: The Colombians bring to the table two very different kits for this World Cup. The home kit looks very nice. From a distance. The unsightly blue diagonal stripes across the shirt are ugly, aside from the bold one across the shoulder. As for the away kit, the fact that I'm not a huge fan of red isn't a great help, but there's nothing offensive about the shirt. In all, the away kit looks nicer than the home, but neither are particularly stunning.

Japan: This home kit actually looks really good, especially on the players. The contrast of the blue from the bright pink piping on the arms and across the shoulders looks so nice when the kit is on, and the colour of the away kit, although aggressive, is also good when combined with the piping. The use of lighter blue on the home kit around the badge represent the "rising sun" of the Japanese flag.

Côte d'Ivoire: Similar to the Cameroon kits showcased in yesterdays blog, the Ivory Coast team come in to the tournament boasting kits with tribal patterns. Both the home and away kits have the patterning on the shoulders, as well as under the arms. I assume this is made of a mesh kind of material to allow sweat to be wicked away on the warm Brazilian afternoons. The colours of orange and green are what we've come to expect from les éléphants, and they look quite good. A nice pair of kits.

Greece: Two very nice, clean kits from the Greek team at this World Cup. There's no messing about with these shirts. Blue and white, and white and blue. Watching Georgios Samaras light up Group C in these kits will be more of a pleasure than usual when he's wearing these kits.


Group D:

Italy: The Azzurri come into the tournament with a relatively un-Italian pair of shirts. Generally, the Italians arrive wearing sharp suits (which they did) and sporting even sharper kits (which they don't). The home kit looks ok, but the overall design isn't quite what we have come to expect. I think the away kit is really quite bland. The stripes down the middle of the shirt look dated, and there's nothing exciting about the way the shirt is cut, or the features of the piping. Overall, a pretty poor showing, especially after the high they hit in 2006 with both their kits, and their performances.

Uruguay: These Uruguayan shirts are nice and simple, and all respect to them for that. The blue in the collar of the away shirt looks really good, and the cut out collar on the home shirt is equally nice. Uncomplicated shirts and nice designs make these quite appealing.

Costa Rica: Nope. Don't like these shirts at all. The design across the shirt combined with the badge makes it look like a goalkeeper diving despairingly for a ball, which is something that, in this group, he could well be doing often. The collar looks nice, but the design on the shoulders is unsightly. In all, not a particularly good showing from the Costa Ricans.

England: Once again, Nike show why they are the manufacturer to beat when it comes to World Cup kits. This England pairing is much better than almost anything they ever had under Umbro. The cut of the kit looks great on the players, and the red is an ideal shade to represent the English fighting spirit. The lack of piping and detail on the shirts is also a throwback to England's more famous kits. Anyone remember anything happening in the summer of '66?

Round of 16 Matches:

Greece v Uruguay
England v Côte d'Ivoire

NFL Draft Review

Well, it's been about 3 weeks since I last published anything about the NFL, so I guess now is as good a time as any to get back to business having finished my second year university exams.

Better late than never, I'll be reviewing the first round of the NFL Draft. You know, that blog I did aaaaages ago, of which you only understood about 40%? Yeah, a follow-up on that. Like I said; better late than never!

Best Value Pick: HaHa Clinton-Dix
When Clinton-Dix dropped past the Ravens at 17, and then the Jets took Calvin Pryor at 18, the obvious landing spot for him was Green Bay at 21. In the former Alabama man, the Packers are getting an NFL-ready Free Safety who can cover the field quickly, which will be key in the pass-happy NFC North, especially with the Lions receiving corps now boasting Eric Ebron as well as All-Pro WR Calvin "Megatron" Johnson. Not only that, but check out his get up on the night of the Draft. This is one sharp-dressed man.
Special Mention: CJ Mosley to Baltimore. (Ozzie Newsome hinted that Mosley was a Top 10 player on the Ravens' draft boards, maybe even Top 5. To pick him up at 17 is, quite frankly, a steal.)


                                                     Worst Value Pick: Kyle Fuller
Although no doubt a very good CB, Kyle Fuller was not a Top 15 pick. Darqueze Dennard and Justin Gilbert were the top 2 cornerbacks in this class, and Fuller should realistically have been taken nearer the bottom of the first round. Chicago would have got good value in a trade in this draft class, with a lot of teams eager to jump up the board to grab their man. They could have traded back to the mid-20 range and still picked him up.
Special Mention: Sammy Watkins to Buffalo. (Undoubtedly a Top 5 pick, but the Bills were thinking of trading up to no.1 to grab him. Just stop, Buffalo.)

The "How Did He Fall THAT Far" Pick: Teddy Bridgewater
Not even a week from the draft, people were talking about the former Louisville QB as a potential 1st overall pick, but Bridgewater showed how badly a sub-par Pro Day can affect draft position. He eventually fell to no.32 and the Minnesota Vikings, who had traded back up into the first round to grab him. He should perform well in the NFL under Mike Zimmer's tutelage, and with Adrian Peterson as his RB to take some pressure off.
Special Mention: Johnny Manziel to Cleveland. (The most hyped player coming into the draft falling to no.22? Come on.)

The Inaugural Kit World Cup: Groups A&B

Inspired by a certain Mr Tom Perkins doing the National Anthem World Cup, I decided to turn my hand to a similarly themed knockout tournament by looking at the kits of each team and ranking them by group, and forming a competition around the kits. Early favourites include France, Holland, and Brazil's efforts put forward by Nike, but we'll see as the tournament progresses.

Group A:

Brazil: Produced by Nike, this offering is the classic yellow with green trim that we have come to expect. Very smart and clean cut, the green collar looks great on the players. I'm marginally less impressed with the blue away kit, but the dark green alternate kit really pleases me. The kit's colour contrasts beautifully with the Brazilian crest, and would look great on the pitch. Unfortunately, Brazil will probably only wear yellow or blue.

Croatia: It's hard to extol the virtues of a kit that looks even more like a tablecloth than Man Utd's 2012/13 home kit, but I'm gonna have to give it a go, aren't I? Well, the plain red sleeves on the home kit are a nice change from previous versions, and the way the numbers fit perfectly into a 4 square section is appealing to the eye. The white shorts, blue socks combo also works really well with the red on the shirt. As for the away kit, the checked trim is surprisingly nice, and the red collar also looks good against the all-blue kit. Not much bad to say about the away kit, but the home kit leaves a lot to be desired. I realise it's a traditional design, but please, Croatia, stop.


Mexico: A really poor effort from the Mexican FA and Adidas here. The striped green below the crest doesn't look good at all, and the electric look of the red and white across the chest would probably look better if it were solid colour. The green above the crest would be more appealing as a block colour all over, but overall this is a terrible showing from Mexico. The away kit isn't much better, with a reddy-orange shade covering the majority of the kit, and black stripey mountains ranging across the chest. Terrible. I think we can safely say that Mexico won't be progressing in this tournament.

Cameroon: A typically Cameroonian approach from the African giants, the tribal patterns on the kits are surprisingly pleasing to the eye, and from what I saw against Mexico the other day, the yellow tribal patterns don't show that much on the pitch, so this kit is actually pretty nice and will battle it out with the Croatian kit for a place in the last 16.




Group B:

Spain: Another classic look for Spain's home kit is hard to bash, although the red could be slightly lighter to give a more traditional look. That said, the away kit A) doesn't look very nice and B) is black, and will make the team sweat buckets. Realistically, not a great showing from the reigning World Champions.

Holland: A universally recognisable kit with regards to international football, the Dutch always provide great kits, normally in orange and blue. This year is no exception. The orange home kit is a brilliant look, and the subtlety of the badge really brings the shirt full circle. As for the away shirt, the blue look is good, although I would prefer the same colour throughout, rather than the change from blue to navy from the chest out to the shoulders. Overall, though, a great look for the Dutch this summer.

Chile: Two good looking kits representing Chile's charge through the competition, the contrasting collar on the home kit looks really nice, and the trim on both kits is appealing. The fact that the design is practically the same for both is, however, a little disappointing.

Australia: Another classic home kit, Australia's green and gold is traditional for all their sports teams, and this offering is no exception. The collar sets it apart from the Brazil kit. The away kit is also nice, with a nice colour combo between the deep blue representing the sea, and the gold representing the outback. A good combination from the Aussies rounds off a very strong Group B.

Round of 16 Matches:

Brazil v Australia
Holland v Croatia

World Cup Round Up: 12th-16th June

This series will feature the ups and downs every few days throughout the World Cup, highlighting all that is good, and all that needs improvement to make the greatest show on turf exactly that. Considering I've been glued to the television for all but 45 minutes of the games so far, I think I'm fairly well qualified to give my two centavos.

GOOD:

The Games: So far in Brazil, we've seen 3.41 goals per game (as of the end of Germany v Portugal), which I'm sure many of you will agree sounds like a festival of football worthy of the name. In particular, games involving lesser known countries such as Switzerland v Ecuador, and Costa Rica upsetting Uruguay, have
really brought the tournament to life. Even larger teams are going out on the sun-kissed pitches of Brazil's largest cities and playing football that is pleasing to everyone. Long may it continue!

The Minnows: Teams like Ecuador and Costa Rica, and even to some extent Australia have really shown some great flashes of football. Costa Rica's surprise victory over Uruguay delighted England fans across the
world, and no doubt relieved the pain of a defeat to Italy, as well as blowing Group D wide open. Look out for Matthew Leckie in Group B to cause Spain and Holland some trouble in Australia's next two games, he could be a real bright spark.

The Biggest Players: All the talk before the World Cup was about Messi, Neymar et al. being able to perform on the biggest stage of them all, and they have not let their many admirers down. Neymar showed up in the first game of the tournament with a penalty and well placed, albeit scuffed, shot past "The Octopus" Stipe Pletikosa in the Croatia goal. Not to be outdone, Andrea Pirlo completed 103 out of 108 passes, and ran the entire show in Manaus in Italy's victory over England. Then, last night, in the Maracana, one of the most famous stadia in the world, Messi came alive in the second half. Jinking past a number of Bosnian defenders, Messi knocked the ball with consummate ease past a hapless Asmir Begovic. Let's hope these guys keep it up.

England: As a "neutral" supporter, this England team has the potential to be really exciting. With the likes of Sterling, Barkley, Sturridge and Lallana, the Three Lions have a group of young playmakers who have the potential to light up the world for years to come. Whether Roy Hodgson uses them wisely or not remains to be seen, but I believe that England should make it at least as far as the Quarter Finals, although I think the Final would be a massive over-achievement. However, we all know how prone England are to choking in the big games.


BAD

The Referees: The first few days of the World Cup saw numerous bad refereeing decisions. The Brazilian penalty on the first night, as well as the "foul" on Diego Costa against Holland were both poor decisions. The game that stands out for me, though is the Mexico-Cameroon match, which saw two genuine goals clocked off for various reasons. Those decision, had they gone the other way, could have seen the game well and truly over before the 61st minute winner that eventually saw Cameroon off. With 2 extra goals under their belts, Mexico could have rested key players before tomorrow's game against the hosts.

The Coverage: For the most part, the commentary teams have been relatively good. Lawrenson's sparkling wit often pulls his partner along, but over on ITV, Tyldesley and Townsend provide commentary so banal that I'm surprised I haven't fallen asleep listening to them. The BBC's coverage team includes Thierry Henry and Clarence Seedorf, two world class footballers in their time. Meanwhile, ITV have gone closer to home with the likes of Lee Dixon and Ian Wright, both of whom provide little insight outside of the obvious, whereas the team on the BBC, including Shearer and Ferdinand, give viewers a taste of life in the camp, and indeed explain the complexities of international football to a far greater extent than the ITV crew ever have.

Anti-Government Protesters: Brazil has been a melting pot of political and social problems for years now, and no more so than the last 6 months in the build-up to the World Cup. Whilst I believe that there are problems that need sorting in one of the most financially diverse countries in the world, I don't think that violent protests during the World Cup is the way to do it. Keep the protests until after the tournament, when the government can see that FIFA have stripped away any possible revenue outside tourism, and they can begin to restore parity before the Olympics arrive in Rio in 2016. That said, if a stray missile hit Adrian Chiles, I probably wouldn't shed a tear.