The next Brazil Olympics football team - what do you think?

Here is a possible Brazilian football squad for the next Olympics
(under-23) - what do you think?


Goalkeepers
Cassio (Grêmio - Brazil)
Renan (Internacional - Brazil)

Defenders
Ilsinho (Sao Paulo - Brazil)
Rafinha (Schalke 04 - Germany)
Alex Silva (Sao Paulo - Brazil)
Gladstone (Cruzeiro - Brazil)
Edcarlos (Sao Paulo - Brazil)
Lima (Atletico-MG - Brazil)
Marcelo (Real Madrid - Spain)
Carlinhos (Santos - Brazil)

Midfielders
Denilson (Arsenal - England)
Diego Souza (Grêmio - Brazil)
Arouca (Fluminense - Brazil)
Elton (Corinthians - Brazil)
Lucas (Grêmio - Brazil)
Wagner (Al-ittihad - Saudi Arabia)
Diego (Werder Bremen - Germany)
Anderson (Porto - Portugal)

Forwards
Rafael Sobis (Real Betis - Spain)
Jo (CSKA Moscow - Russia)
Alexandre Pato (Internacional - Brazil)
Diego Tardelli (PSV Eindhoven - Holland)

Managers of Brazilian clubs = Stability?

Brazilian clubs tend to fire their managers/ coaches at the first sign of trouble. Instability seems to be their middle name - the proof? Just compare the longest serving managers in England x Brazil:

Brazil
1) Vagner Mancini @ Paulista - 2 years and 4 months
2) Mano Menezes @ Grêmio - 1 year and 10 months
3) Renato Gaucho @ Vasco - 1 year and 7 months

England
1) Dario Gradi @ Crewe - 23 years and a few months
2) Alex Ferguson @ Man United - 20 years and 3 months
3) Arsene Wenger @ Arsenal - 10 years and a few months

This difference probably also reflects the ability of the clubs to structure their plans - short-term x long-term!

Sunday Gossip from the UK

Portsmouth keeper David James is wanted by Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate to replace Mark Schwarzer. (People)
The former England international goalkeeper has played extremely well for Portsmouth this season and it is hardly surprising to hear about other clubs interested in him. Mark Shwarzer has been linked to clubs in the continent so it smells like this could really happen!

And Boro are also poised to make a new bid for West Brom winger Zoltan Gera. (News of the World)
Hungarian international Zoltan Gera is too good to be playing in the English First Division - unless West Bromwich Albion return to the Premiership this season, I'd expect Zoltan to leave the club.

Aston Villa are prepared to offer Tottenham £8m plus striker Juan Pablo Angel for Robbie Keane. (News of the World)
This deal looks great for Aston Villa but not so for Spurs. Robbie Keane may misfire from time to time but in terms of sheer skill, he's got it! As for Juan Pablo Angel, he ought to look for a move - in my opinion to the continent, which may suit his football style better - but Spurs would be mad to take him. Unlikely deal in my opinion...

Arsenal are considering moving for CSKA Moscow keeper Igor Akinfeev, 20. (News of the World)
Igor is a superb keeper with a huge amount of potential, if Arsenal is really considering to take him on he'd be a great acquisition for the Gunners. Jens Lehmann is due to leave the club, in the next year or so, so it is critical that Arsene Wenger finds a replacement and the Russian would fit the bill.

Tottenham are also lining up an £8m swoop for giant Serb Nikola Zigic, who plays for Racing Santander. (News of the World)
If there was a player suitable for English football, Zigic would be it - his height alone would allow Spurs to take advantage of dead ball situations to add it to their traditional passing game. The question is, for how much? Is Racing likely to sell the giant striker? I think so, but Spurs would have to pay a substantial amount for him....this one will depend on other Spurs targets this summer.

New Young Brazilian players to watch out - part II

Following on from suggestions directly from Brazil, here are some more young players to watch out for - they will make their mark in Europe soon:

• Fagner - defender - played for Corinthians of Sao Paulo in Brazil (mainly for the Under-17 side, only 7 games for the first team) until recently and only 17 years old. He played well for the Brazil Under-20 side which won the South American championship recently and was signed by PSV Eindhoven in Holland on a free transfer for 5 years (until 2012) moving overseas in the summer when he completes 18 years of age;
• Sergio Mota - midfielder - young midfielder who plays for Sao Paulo youth team, Sergio Mota was one of the best players coming ou of this year's 'Copa Sao Paulo de Juniors' which is the most prestigious annual youth tournament in Brazil;
• Soares - forward - signed from Figueirense this season after a tremendous performance for the Santa Catarina club last year. Soares has already started to perform well for Fluminense of Rio de Janeiro with a number of goals and a first team place assured. One to watch out!
• Cicero - midfielder - another Fluminense capture from Figueirense. Soares & Cicero are known as the 'Casal 20' due to their strong performances playing alongside one another.
  

• Alex Silva - defender - on loan at Sao Paulo from Iraty of Parana, the young 21 year old defender is the younger brother of Luisao who plays for Benfica and Brazil. He is expected to be signed permanently by Sao Paulo at the end of his contract in July 2007.
• Guillherme - forward - Cruzeiro player who plays for their youth team, Guillherme was another one of the best players to come out of this year's Copa Sao Paulo de Juniors.
  

Libertadores Cup - latest update

This week most of the second round matches of the group stage of the 2007 Copa Libertadores (the South American Champion's League equivalent) were completed - here is how the Brazilian clubs have performed:

27/02/07

Grêmio 0x0 Cucuta (Colombia) - Group 3
The Porto Alegre side disappointed against the Colombian team's defensive strategy in front of 39,710 fans. The team struggled to break down a stubborn Cucuta side, and Grêmio seem to have felt the loss of their center-forward Tuta upfront due to an injury recently, as they found difficult to create many opportunities. A poor result at home, however the team remains in top position in its group with 4 points and still to lose a match this season.

28/02/07

Sao Paulo 4x0 Alianza Lima (Peru) - Group 2
Sao Paulo stretched their unbeaten run to 25 matches after this game - the last time they lost was on 24th September 2006 (Palmeiras 3x1 Sao Paulo). The 19,694 fans who witnessed the match, saw Sao Paulo dominate the game against a weak Alianza side. Good result, expected to win and now second in the group (4pts x Necaxa-Mex 6 pts).

Internacional 3x0 Emelec (Ecuador) - Group 4
The defending champions were backed by 34,327 fans and there was only one name in their lips: Alexandre Pato. The Brazilian Under-21 star was the name of the game, scoring a superb goal and creating another - Pato's record for the first team now reads 5 games played, 5 wins for Internacional and 4 goals scored. Good result for Inter, now recovered from the loss in their 1st game away from home.

01/03/07

Santos 1x0 Defensor Sporting (Uruguay) - Group 8
Santos won yet another game to lead their group with 6 points. This was a difficult match, with few players playing to their potential, in the end Ze Roberto scored the winning goal. The public must have expected a poor game as only 9,409 fans showed up to witness it. Good result for Santos and keeps them in line to qualify to the next round.

Other results: Banfield-Arg 4x1 El Nacional-Ecu; America-Mex 1x4 Libertad-Par; Necaxa-Mex 2x0 Audax Italiano-Chi; Velez Sarsfield-Arg 1x1 Nacional-Uru; Toluca-Mex 1x2 Bolivar-Bol; Boca Jrs-Arg 1x0 Cienciano-Per