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

Brazilian League - the most competitive in the World?

The Brazilian League (or 'Brasileirão') can easily put forward the case to be the most competitive league in the World!

The Proof? Just look at the top 1 and 2 clubs for every one of the 35 years since it started.....there isn't two of the same!

35 seasons and never the same final 2 in Brazil. Try finding that in England...Spain..Italy or Argentina...

The first club on the left indicates the champion with the 2nd placed team on the right.
e.g. in 1971 Atletico-MG were the champions with Sao Paulo in 2nd place.

1971: Atletico MG x Sao Paulo
1972: Palmeiras x Botafogo
1973: Palmeiras x Sao Paulo
1974: Vasco x Cruzeiro
1975: Inter x Cruzeiro
1976: Inter x Corinthians
1977: Sao Paulo x Atletico-MG
1978: Guarani x Palmeiras
1979: Inter x Vasco
1980: Flamengo x Atletico-MG
1981: Gremio x Sao Paulo
1982: Flamengo x Gremio
1983: Flamengo x Santos
1984: Fluminense x Vasco
1985: Coritiba x Bangu
1986: Sao Paulo x Guarani
1987: Flamengo x Inter
1988: Bahia x Inter
1989: Vasco x Sao paulo
1990: Corinthians x Sao Paulo
1991: Sao Paulo x Bragantino
1992: Flamengo x Botafogo
1993: Palmeiras x Vitoria
1994: Palmeiras x Corinthians
1995: Botafogo x Santos
1996: Gremio x Portuguesa
1997: Vasco x Palmeiras
1998: Corinthians x Cruzeiro
1999: Corinthians x Atletico - MG
2000: Vasco x Sao Caetano
2001: Atletico PR x Sao caetano
2002: Santos x Corinthians
2003: Cruzeiro and Santos
2004: Santos and Atletico PR
2005: Inter and Corinthians
2006: Sao Paulo and Inter

Try finding that elsewhere!

In terms of who won the most titles, in order:

5 titles:
Flamengo
Note: the 1987 title is disputed by the Brazilian Federation and according to them, Sport Recife won it (the clubs broke away on that year). Therefore there is an argument for Flamengo having won 4 titles.

4 titles:
Palmeiras
Vasco da Gama
Internacional
Sao Paulo

3 titles:
Corinthians

2 titles:
Grêmio
Santos

1 title:
Atletico-MG
Guarani
Fluminense
Coritiba
Bahia
Botafogo
Atletico-PR
Cruzeiro

Sunday Gossip from the UK

AC Milan are on the verge of making a sensational swoop for Celtic keeper Artur Boruc. (Sunday Mail)
I believe that there is a real possibility in this piece of gossip. Firstly because AC Milan's Dida is out of contract at the end of the season (possible destination: Barcelona) and secondly because Boruc is likely to use Celtic as a stepping stone to a bigger club. In terms of replacements, Celtic would have a ready-made one if they managed to sign the Hearts of Midlothian keeper, Craig Gordon, who is a quality player and the #1 Scottish player in his position.

Sunderland boss Roy Keane is ready to offer big money for striker Craig Bellamy if he is unloaded by Liverpool. (Sunday Mirror)
If anyone is going to manage to 'tame' Craig Bellamy, it will be ex-Man Utd player now coach Roy Keane. Bellamy has already managed to cause controversy at Liverpool, after allegedly hitting team mates with a golf club whilst drunk in a bender in Portugal. However, his football does speak for itself and he would be a quality addition to Sunderland - unlikely to happen unless they were promoted to the Premiership though.

Manchester United could lure Celtic midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura to Old Trafford. (People)
The Japanese international has proved to be one of Gordon Strachan's best buys at Celtic, albeit he had his doubters before anyone had seen him play in Scotland. I doubt that he will be moving to Man Utd in the summer, although he may leave Celtic for another club but the continent would be a more likely destination in my opinion.

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho could hand Glen Johnson a second chance at Chelsea and bring him back from his loan spell at Portsmouth while shipping Paulo Ferreira out of Stamford Bridge at the end of the season. (People)
Portuguese player Paulo Ferreira never managed to live up to his massive price tag, and he came to Chelsea as one of Mourinho's loyal players from previous clubs. I think it would make sense to give Glen Johnson, an England (sporadic) international, the chance to progress through Chelsea. He is performing well for Portsmouth and just needs more experience at the top level with Chelsea. The question would be who would buy Paulo Ferreira and for how much? I doubt any club will pay the inflated fee that Chelsea paid for him a few years ago...

Atletico Madrid have opened the door for Manchester United to swoop for striker Fernando Torres. (News of the World)
This story has made the rounds for at least 1 or 2 years now - surely Torres will move out of Atletico Madrid if they continue to underperform in La Liga? There would be few better clubs for him than Man Utd and a potential partnership with Ronaldo, Rooney and co.