Chelsea are reportedly ready to “battle” Inter Milan for Lazio and Italy winger Antonio Candreva.

According to Darren Lewis in the Mirror, Chelsea are “rivalling” Inter for the consistent Candreva—currently playing with Italy at Euro 2016 under incoming Blues manager Antonio Conte—but his arrival at Stamford Bridge would not “threaten” current star midfielder Willian.

The 29-year-old has netted at least 10 goals in each of his last three Serie A seasons and would be a very useful addition given he can play a variety of positions down the right flank—including at wing-back—and also on the left or in the centre, per WhoScored.com.

Candreva‘s familiarity with Conte‘s methods would also make him an excellent signing as he could fit straight in to what will likely be a much-changed system at Stamford Bridge under the Italian.

However, he may be eager to stay on at Lazio next season, especially if Marcelo Bielsa is appointed as their new manager, per football writer Ed Malyon:

Inter are also seemingly ahead of Chelsea in the process of pursuing Candreva, with Siavoush Fallahi providing details of their initial offer and Lazio‘s demands:

Conte unquestionably needs to make changes over the summer as he looks to return Chelsea to the top of the Premier League table.

For quality and familiarity reasons Candreva would be a fine signing for the Blues, but the odds look stacked against them currently given the other clubs interested.

Meanwhile, Chelsea are also reportedly set for a contest as they pursue the signing of Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly.

According to Gazzetta Dello Sport (via Uche Amako in the Express), Napoli chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis has rejected a £19.2 million offer from the Blues for the Senegal international and, though Manchester United are willing to eclipse Chelsea with a £20.7 million offer, the Serie A club value him at £30.8 million. 

The west London outfit may be loath to go as high as £30 million in order to sign the 25-year-old Koulibaly, but they desperately need reinforcements at centre-back with John Terry past his prime and Gary Cahill worryingly inconsistent.

Well regarded for his hard tackling and ability to play the ball out from deep, Koulibaly could likely settle well in the Premier League and could potentially form an excellent long-term centre-back partnership with 21-year-old Kurt Zouma.

But seemingly Chelsea will have to up their bid significantly if they are to have any chance of persuading Napoli to sell. 

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/28M8vsy
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Liverpool reportedly have no intention of acquiring Real Madrid midfielder Mateo Kovacic or letting forward Danny Ings leave the club this summer. 

According to James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo, the former “isn’t on their list of targets” despite reports from Italy and interest in the Croatia international 12 months ago. Kovacic struggled for regular football in Spain during his first season at Real.

During his time with Inter Milan, the 22-year-old was extremely impressive. Here is a look at what he is capable of at his very best:

When the midfielder made the move from Milan to Madrid, there was a sense that he may not get the game time needed to flourish.

While adaptable in whether he can play in an advanced or deeper midfield positions, Kovacic always seemed to be down the pecking order. In the deeper roles, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos were preferred, while Isco and James Rodriguez battled for a No. 10 spot when the system catered to one.

There’s no denying Kovacic’s quality, though. As Fox Sports’ Keith Costigan noted recently, it’s tough for the player to show his best when he is on the bench at such a big club:

Liverpool wouldn’t be the right destination for the player at this time. Already, the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Adam Lallana and Roberto Firmino are battling for spots behind the centre-forward, and according to Pearce, the Reds are also seeking to close out a deal for Udinese midfielder Piotr Zielinski. Kovacic would potentially find himself struggling for game time on Merseyside, too.

La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t David F. Sanchidrian of AS) reported Kovacic is close to joining Roma on a season-long loan. Should that go through, he’ll be handed a chance to replace Miralem Pjanic as the team’s key playmaker following his move to Juventus; that seems like an ideal stage to relaunch his career.

As for Ings, the Reds were said to be “baffled” by speculation linking him with a possible switch to Rangers. The former Burnley man endured a difficult first season at Anfield, with much of his campaign spent on the sideline after injury problems.

Pearce added that Ings will “compete with fellow strikers Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi for a starting role with Christian Benteke’s future still uncertain.”

Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe expects Ings to become one of Klopp’s main options in the forward positions next season along with the names mentioned and Firmino:

It’s easy to see why Reds manager Jurgen Klopp would love to have a player such as Ings in the squad. The England international showed during his debut term in the Premier League with Burnley that he has an infectious enthusiasm for the game and a willingness to work hard at the point of the attack.

Ings has already shown glimpses of goalscoring potential, too. He netted for the Reds against Everton in the Merseyside derby before injury struck, while he grabbed 11 for Burnley in 2014-15 before they were relegated.

Klopp evidently loves his teams to attack and will want as many goalscorers in his squad as possible. As we can see here, courtesy of Squawka Football, the Reds were the most effective team in front of goal at the end of the Premier League season:

Ings is a player who impressed the Liverpool supporters in the nascent stages of his career at Anfield, and once he gets up to full fitness again, he has all of the attributes required to become an effective part of Klopp’s plans. The forward is a player who a lot of fans will be keeping a close eye on in pre-season as he continues his recovery.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/28J3UeU
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

It’s not like Boris to miss a trick. With just four days to go until the European Union referendum in Britain, and both sides grasping at so many straws it has been reported that chiropractors specialising in camels are at breaking point, it’s a wonder the Brexit boys aren’t doing a spot of last-minute canvassing in France.

After all, lest we forget, Europe is in crisis. While England boss Roy Hodgson must solve the conundrum of which of last season’s two leading Premier League goalscorers to leave on the substitutes’ bench against Slovakia—maybe even both—the rest of the continent can barely muster a decent striker between them. First they take our jobs, next they’ll be after our front men.

Such talk could be considered of the John Bull variety, were it not for the fact heavyweights Germany, Portugal, France and Italy, would all probably snatch your hand off at having Steve Bull at their disposal. Brexit bumbler Boris Johnson would likely go down a storm in Saint-Etienne.

A blonde lobster in Union Jack shorts alternating between lecturing half-cut Brits on how Brussels bureaucracy is the real reason English clubs are struggling in the Champions League by day, and rugby tackling marauding Russians with a twin passion for bum bags and violence by night.

Just imagine him trying to fit in: “I love Tottenham, but I hate the Spurs! Chaps, where are you going? Lads…” All before hopping back to Blighty through a Eurotunnel he wants to block with sausage rolls if victorious. 

A dearth of high-quality European strikers—there’s a joke here somewhere about France and its unions—has been an undeniable feature of Euro 2016. When allied to the fact the art of defending is largely spoken of in the past tense, as relevant to today’s game as hanging a piece of Renaissance art at the Tate Modern, it hardly seems hyperbolic to report the death of the traditional No. 9.

It is certainly a theorem not being unduly challenged at Euro 2016. There are multiple factors as to why, after the second round of group-stage matches were completed, an average of 1.96 goals had been scored per game, dipping dramatically from 2.88 four years ago in Poland and Ukraine. That’s lower than any World Cup, and any European Championship since 1980. After Sunday’s games, it is now as low as 1.85 goals per game. 

For starters, the increase of participating nations from 16 to 24 has meant the involvement of several sides more likely to park the bus. It is no surprise some games have resembled a traditional domestic cup-tie between a giant and an underdog. Essentially that’s what they are.

The only living organism in the world that would expect Iceland to go hell for leather against Portugal is currently refusing to get out of his kit, and listening to “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” on a loop.

There’s also the fact finishing third will be enough to qualify from four of the six groups. The possibility of three points potentially being enough to claim a last-16 spot means less inclination to take undue risk in the first couple of games. The remarkable number of late goals is also important, with 13 out of the 48 scored so far coming in the 85th minute or later. 

At the same time, it would be disingenuous to suggest a better complement of strikers would not have troubled the scoresheet more often.

Arsene Wenger, not a scaremonger by nature, has long since proffered a view that Europe no longer produces proper, dyed-in-the-wool strikers in the traditional sense. He credits a decline in those who can either lead the line with bullishness, or are so infatuated with scoring goals they are not afraid to be hurt (or hurt others) to do it, as primarily being a result of the death of street football.

Academies produce technically proficient players, but ones cocooned from the real world. A world where centre-halves kick, nip, pinch, punch and nibble, and think practitioners of Rabonas would benefit from breaking rocks in searing midday sun.

No wonder Wenger, his words relayed here by Rory Smith for ESPN in 2014, is so keen to sign Jamie Vardy for Arsenal:

I believe [we live in a world where] society has changed.

We are much more protected than we were 30 years ago. We have all changed. We have all become a bit softer. [The South Americans] played street football, park football, football with friends. [For them], outside training [with their clubs], there was football as well.

Maybe in our history, street football has gone. In street football when you are 10 years old, you play with 15-year-olds, so you have to be shrewd, you have to show that you are good, you have to fight, to win impossible balls.

When it is all a bit more formulated, then it is less developing your individual skill, your fighting attitude.

Europe doesn‘t produce strikers anymore.

In this respect, for all the criticism aired at English football’s failure to produce enough international-class players, in terms of strikers, Hodgson‘s squad looks in pretty rude health.

At the 2002 World Cup the big decision for Sven-Goran Eriksson was to drop Darius Vassell after he had started England’s opener against Sweden. Only once in Vassell’s career did he break into double figure for league goals, scoring 12 for Aston Villa in 2001/02.

For Monday’s final group game against Slovakia it is taken as a given that Hodgson will leave out Harry Kane, even if he’s staying tight-lipped in his media briefings. The Tottenham man has looked leggy in the game and a half he’s played so far, perhaps no surprise given the Wales match was the 62nd he had been involved in this season.

His likely replacement against Slovakia, Daniel Sturridge, has played 45 times for Liverpool over the past two seasons combined. Kane’s figure for club and country over the same period is 118. No wonder when England’s players take a water break he requests warm milk.

That England can afford to leave out a player who scored 25 Premier League goals last season and 46 in his two full campaigns combined, should be cause for genuine optimism. Vardy, scorer of only one goal fewer than Kane last season, like Sturridge, is equally champing at the bit after his cameo and equaliser against Wales. 

International tournaments are brutal. Players don’t have time to play themselves back into form, or in Kane’s case, enjoy a week on a sun-lounger to rejuvenate legs that have stopped running exactly where he wants them to. He needs a break, unfortunately for both him and England, his trough in a season of billowing peaks has come smack-bang in the middle of a European Championship.

Hodgson said it was a straightforward call to bring on Vardy and Sturridge at half-time against Wales. Presumably then it should be equally as straightforward to start them both against Slovakia. Raheem Sterling is so out of sorts that it might be a relief to him were he left out.

A conservative streak, and predilection to tinker, could see Hodgson indulge his infatuation with Jack Wilshere and change his side’s shape to employ Wayne Rooney at the tip of a diamond formation.

England have looked better with a front three, though, and there is no reason why Sturridge and Adam Lallana either side of Vardy wouldn’t work against Slovakia. All three are capable of clever movement, with Vardy and Sturridge interchangeable on the left, and Lallana adding a little more discipline and willingness to track back on the right.

With Slovakia likely to sit deep, there is an argument Vardy won’t have any space to get in behind, thus negating his key asset. He adds aggression and needle, though, and forces defenders into mistakes with an incessant work rate that makes you question yourself, and think about trying harder on Monday morning.

A nothing ball into the channel invariably becomes a foot race when it is Vardy giving chase. He would also almost certainly have buried the chance Sterling skied against Wales.

Sturridge‘s willingness to take players on and make them commit, though exasperating at times when he overdoes it, could be key to breaking down deep-lying teams. He plays the game intuitively. Now and then he’s on a different planet to his team-mates, but then to get to the latter stages of an international tournament, you often need a player who is out of this world. Sturridge is England’s. 

The trio has only previously played together once before, a friendly defeat to the Netherlands in March. Still, with Hodgson playing his pack these days with the chilled air of a little jazz on a sedate Sunday afternoon, a lack of playing time together should not unduly worry him. I wouldn’t put it past him to give Marcus Rashford at least a half on Monday. Such has been Rooney’s influence in midfield in both games, the possibility of him playing further up the field has rarely been been mooted. 

The opening gambit then in Johnson’s final speech before Thursday’s referendum could well be: “Europe might not produce strikers anymore, but England have loads of the b–ers.”

When the tournament favourites have as their first choice striker the boo-boy of the politest fans in English football, something is afoot. According to Opta, no player has a better boos-per-minute ratio than Olivier Giroud. 

In fairness, the two undeniably world-class European centre-forwards, Robert Lewandowski and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, are currently toiling at having the weight of a nation’s expectations on their shoulders. That, and a lack of decent service into the box due to Polish and Swedish supply lines being more prosaic than polished. To watch either drop deep in an attempt to influence play is like Alfred Hitchcock leaving his place behind the camera to lend a hand in hair and make-up.

Germany’s blank against Poland saw them employ a false nine, which I’m still not convinced isn’t often just a polite way of saying you’re not in possession of a good nine. Presumably Mario Gotze, Mesut Ozil, Thomas Muller, Julian Draxler, and Andre Schurrle have to play rock-paper-scissors before every game to decide who gets the gig. Joachim Low has long since become exasperated at no hands being raised on requesting a volunteer.

On the night, Gotze was given football’s poisoned chalice, lasting 66 minutes of a game Germany finished with 69 per cent possession, three shots on target, and zero goals.

Gotze is a fine player, albeit not in outstanding form after a difficult season at Bayern Munich, but there’s a reason why “nine” is prefixed by “false” in this instance. Just because a bodybuilder from Crewe on Stars in their Eyes says, “Tonight Matthew, I’m going to be Elvis,” it doesn’t make him the King.

Although Gotze would argue he knows all about being lonesome after the Poland game.

Cristiano Ronaldo was more all shook up in Portugal’s goalless draw with Austria. Playing an orthodox No. 9 role he enjoys about as much as watching Lionel Messi pick up Ballon d’Ors, he managed to hit the woodwork, miss a penalty and have a goal chalked off for offside. All of which occurred in an eight-minute spell best watched with a canned laughter track. There was nothing canned about the sound of 330,000 Icelanders p—ing themselves laughing.

When Europe’s best player is forced to play outside of his ideal position due to a lack of viable alternatives, it’s a measure of the shortage Wenger laments. Portugal coach Fernando Santos paired Ronaldo with Nani. A problem shared is a problem halved and all that, but it’s not exactly Kevin Keegan and John Toshack.

After demonstrating a maelstrom of emotions all evening, by the end Ronaldo had taken 10 shots on goal, with pretty much every Portugal set piece in Austria’s half fair game for the captain. The only surprise was that he continued to let Rui Patricio take goal kicks. Over the two games Portugal have played, he has had 20 shots, more than nine other teams.

Ronaldo is the Crystal Maze captain who elects to play every challenge himself, even after he has suffered an automatic lock-in.

Gareth Bale has scored two free-kicks for Wales and never shirked his responsibilities, yet playing centrally—more often than not with his back to goal—he’s looked hamstrung. The space he gallops into when employed wider is not a luxury he enjoys through the middle. Against England, bar his goal, he spent large swathes of the game as though a supporter, watching on while his team-mates bid to keep their neighbours at arm’s length.

Like many of the coaches in France, Chris Coleman appears to have concluded that with goals at a premium, it’s paramount to have your leading light as high up the pitch as possible.

Italy have bucked the trend by using an old-fashioned partnership in the form of Eder and Graziano Pelle.

Toward the back end of qualifying, and in the build-up to France, Antonio Conte nailed his colours to the pair’s mast. Eder and Pelle started seven of Italy’s 10 games prior to the tournament opener against Belgium, despite neither figuring too prominently for Inter Milan and Southampton respectively at the end of the domestic season. Neither are outstanding as individuals. 

Two wins from as many matches against the much-fancied Belgians, and an always-stubborn Sweden outfit, has seen them score a goal apiece. Not a bad start for an Azzurri side labelled the worst in Italian history by many before they had even landed in France.

By using two strikers, Italy have been successful in pressing the opposition back, with runners from deep often profiteering from space vacated by neat movement on the part of the duo. They’re not Butch and Sundance quality, but as partnerships go, they are probably good enough to pose the odd problem for any defence. Other than perhaps Italy’s.

For Spain, Alvaro Morata was dire against the Czech Republic and deadly against Turkey.

Given Vicente del Bosque‘s side has now gone 10 games without conceding a goal and have one of the tournament’s outstanding players so far in Andres Iniesta, it may soon start to look a little ominous for everyone else. Even more so if Morata uses his performance against Turkey as a springboard for his international career. If he flops, they’ll probably revert back to a false nine, and render this article redundant by winning Euro 2016 at a canter.

Of the rest, not even West Ham United have been tempted to make a mega-money offer for any of the other strikers on show. Given they were weighing up a £26.5 million bid for Gandhi before a member of the backroom staff pointed out he died in 1948, it’s a measure of the lack of quality No. 9s at the Euros. They might not be as fashionable as they once were, but if either Low or Del Bosque claimed they wouldn’t love to be able to call upon a Miroslav Klose or David Villa they would be lying. 

Hodgson insists any of the five strikers he has brought to Euro 2016 are more than good enough to help England into the tournament’s latter stages. We will likely have a better idea of just how much depth he has at his disposal after the Slovakia game. 

Maybe for now, it’s better not to take Boris’ word for it.

All stats provided by WhoScored.com unless otherwise stated

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/28J3XHg
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Henrikh Mkhitaryan‘s agent will reportedly still try and seal a deal to send his client to Manchester United this summer rather than keep him at Borussia Dortmund for another season.

Speaking to the BBC (h/t Goal.com’s Chris Davie), Mino Raiola declared his intention to make sure Mkhitaryan is playing his football at Old Trafford next season:

It would be a sin to stop talking.

I am a positive guy. If I wasn’t confident of reaching some kind of conclusion, I wouldn’t try

I am very proud Manchester United want him and the talks are being held in a good atmosphere, but at the moment Dortmund are still saying no.

Mkhitaryan has just one year remaining on his deal with Bundesliga side Dortmund, but Paul Hirst of the Times has stated the player knows where he wants to play next:

Yet German publication Bild (h/t Bleacher Report’s Clark Whitney) reported how Dortmund are determined not sell their gifted No. 10:

If Raiola can broker a deal, Mkhitaryan could be a very useful player for new United manager Jose Mourinho. As a classy playmaker, he thrives between the lines and can score and create goals.

Mourinho, often chided for his pragmatism, isn’t usually associated with flair players. Yet, in reality, the Portuguese coach has always made room for at least one creative hub.

Deco operated in the role for Porto, while Wesley Sneijder did the same job for Inter Milan. But it’s the way Mourinho used Mesut Ozil while at Real Madrid that offers a potential template for how he could make things work with Mkhitaryan.

Mourinho often deployed the languid schemer on the right but gave him the license to roam into the middle and dictate things as a provider in the final third. It’s the same role Mkhitaryan thrived in for Dortmund last season when the Armenian helped himself to 21 goals and 20 assists, per WhoScored.com.

Mkhitrayan could be the ideal preference to Juan Mata, a player Mourinho sold to United while at Chelsea, despite his obvious talent.

Talks Started for Breel Embolo

Mourinho has always favoured a counter-attacking game, one reliant on pace out wide. Perhaps that explains why United are already reportedly showing interest in Basel winger Breel Embolo.

Guardian journalist Fabrizio Romano confirmed the Red Devils have even opened talks about the Swiss teenager’s agent:

Italian source Gianluca Di Marzio (h/t Metro) also reported United have asked super agent Jorge Mendes for help with any deal.

As a jet-heeled, creative forward, Embolo fits the kind of player Mourinho has built his fast-breaking style around in the past. At Chelsea it was Arjen Robben and Damien Duff, before Eden Hazard and Willian took the Portuguese to another Premier League title.

Embolo appears ready to step up the standard of his game. The 19-year-old has been catching the eye for Switzerland at UEFA Euro 2016. In fact, he starred in his nation’s recent 0-0 draw with hosts France, according to Squawka:

Embolo has the talent and versatility to operate on either flank or through the middle, a quality that would lend Mourinho‘s new-look United squad plenty of tactical flexibility.

As a young star on the rise, he’d also fit United’s historic fidelity to developing youthful talent, an area where Mourinho‘s credentials are sure to be under scrutiny.

Adding more pace and guile to an attack that was static for most of last season is an obvious priority for Mourinho. The targets currently said to be on his radar suit the kind of counter-attacking game he’s likely to make the norm at Old Trafford. 

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/1tDJbOJ
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

So little was expected of the Italy national team as the 2016 European Championship began.

The Azzurri were without two of their best midfielders due to injury, and their forward line was a hodgepodge of journeymen and youngsters unproven at international level.  

The overall talent level of the final squad was considered one of the worst in the country’s history, and the imminent departure of manager Antonio Conte, bound for Chelsea next season, was expected to be a distraction.

Even though they possessed what was probably the stoutest defence in the tournament, they were expected by many to be the big flop of the competition.  In a group that contained a major pre-tournament favourite in Belgium and a Zlatan Ibrahimovic-led Sweden team, some even expected them to crash out at the group stage for the third time in their last four major tournaments.

With two rounds of play in Group E now complete, the script has certainly been flipped.

Conte was roundly criticized in the week before the tournament for keeping players like Eder and Emanuele Giaccherini on the final roster, leaving younger players like Jorginho at home and not even considering players like Domenico Berardi for the preliminary roster.  

The fact that the No. 10 shirt went to Thiago Motta only made the howling louder.  The re-emergence of his old standby, the 3-5-2, renewed talk of him being tactically inflexible.

But so far, Conte has defied his critics.  Some of the most controversial inclusions on his roster have made some of the most important contributions.  His tactics, considered by some to not be viable for the modern international game, have held up.  Italy have some very plain weaknesses, but the team that was expected to struggle to get out of the group have won it with a game to spare.

We’ll start with the positives, and in doing that, the defence must be mentioned first.

The back line has been lifted whole cloth from Conte‘s former club Juventus.  Goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon has been his typically excellent self when called upon—although he has not been called upon all that much.

The Azzurri have only allowed three shots on target in their first two games, all of them against Belgium in the opener.  That speaks to the incredible work done by the so-called BBC—no, not Real Madrid‘s version, but the Juve trio of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini.

The trio have played together for so long—five-and-a-half years, to be exact—that they can practically read each other’s thoughts.  Against Belgium, they constantly frustrated the Red Devils by getting into passing lanes and interrupting buildup play.  

Chiellini marked star striker Romelu Lukaku completely out of the game.  There was a nervy moment or two near the match’s end, but at the end of the night, Belgium never truly looked like they were going to score.

On Friday, Sweden were simply neutralized.  The interplay between the three centre-backs was so good that man-marking Ibrahimovic became unnecessary.  They constantly handed the big Swede off between the three of them and stifled their buildup play so effectively that Zlatan was often found dropping deep into midfield just to receive the ball.  When he played farther up front, the back line caught him offside.

That held the game scoreless long enough for the Italians to break the deadlock through one of the unlikeliest sources.

One of the most controversial of Conte‘s call-ups, Eder had only scored once since he moved from Sampdoria to Inter Milan in January.  Observers wondered why a more in-form player wasn’t chosen.

They ended up eating their words when the Brazil-born striker took a headed pass from Simone Zaza, cut in hard and slammed the ball past Swedish ‘keeper Andreas Isaksson.

This was the continuation of a trend for Conte.  Apart from Eder, one of his other most puzzling selections, Giaccherini, has proved decisive in the tournament.  

The diminutive midfielder looked to be destined for an early hook on Monday against Belgium—but a goal that started as an excellent long ball from Bonucci vindicated Giaccherini‘s spot in the starting XI. The 31-year-old has played the full 90 minutes in both matches, playing as one of Conte‘s box-to-box players.

As positive as things have been, though, Conte still has a crack to paper over: his midfield.

The middle of the park is clearly the weakest phase of Italy’s game.  It isn’t helping Conte that his two best midfielders, Claudio Marchisio and Marco Verratti, missed out on France due to knee and hernia injuries, respectively.

In their absence, Conte has had to come up with ways to create chances.  The players that have manned the midfield for the first two games—Giaccherini, Marco Parolo and Daniele De Rossi—will all run for days and have been good defensive contributors, but they aren’t a creative force.  Indeed, the best passer on the team now is probably Bonucci.

The centre-back tried several times on Friday to replicate the pass that cleaved open the Belgian defence for Giaccherini‘s opener on Monday, but the Swedes looked wise to it.  He can still make that pass and trigger other attacks from the back, but someone in the midfield has to step up to supplement him.

This lack of creativity has been manifest in the number of opportunities Italy have managed to create.  They’ve managed to take only 20 shots this tournament—a number Belgium nearly exceeded in game one alone.  Spain and France have both taken 36 shots in their first two games, Germany has 34.  Of the so-called big teams in the competition, Italy’s attack has seen by far the fewest opportunities in front of goal.

The silver lining here is that, for the most part, the Italians are making their shots count.  Nine of those 20 shots have found the target.  Three of those have been goals.  Two more would have found the back of the net were it not for Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who denied both Graziano Pelle and Ciro Immobile with the kind of save that only a handful of ‘keepers today can make.

With their midfield unable to match the output of their more elite competitors, being clinical is key.  The Azzurri have been so thus far, but all it takes is one cold spell up front for the goals to dry up completely—putting even more pressure on the men in defence to be as perfect as they have been so far.

Conte has certainly proved his doubters wrong thus far.  Every move he’s made has come good, from keeping Giaccherini and Eder in the lineup to his inspired substitution of Zaza for Pelle against Sweden, which added just enough pace up front to unbalance the Swedish defence and eventually punch through.

But this is not a perfect team by any means.  The midfielders are still struggling to create, and if they come up against a top-of-the-line midfield like those of France, led by Paul Pogba, or Spain, led by Andres Iniesta, they could very well be overwhelmed in the middle of the park and fall heavily onto the back three.

But that back three have shown they can shoulder quite a lot of weight.  Going as deep into the tournament as Italy did four years ago will obviously require a lot of things to go exactly right, but stranger things have happened at the Euros.

The 2004 Greece side that won the whole tournament provided the road map for such a victory.  With a defence as solid as Italy’s, the Azzurri can beat anyone in the field—so long as they manage to pot a goal or two at the other end.

All in all, the first part of the group phase has been very positive, in no small part thanks to Conte himself.  

As the knockout stages beckon, it remains to be seen whether he can do enough to shore up his weaknesses.  If he can do that and outscheme his more talented opponents, Italy could very well cause one of the biggest upsets in the history of world football.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/23jkOBV
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Italy came into their Euro 2016 game against Sweden knowing that it would be a different test than the one they passed against Belgium in Group E on Monday.

The Belgians and their high-octane attack were going to look to play on the front foot, allowing holes for the Italians to play through a makeshift defensive line that was missing three players due to injury.  

The Swedes, on the other hand, weren’t going to press as far up.  The Italians were going to have to do the one thing they are weakest at in this tournament—break down an opposing defence in possession.

Much of the controversy that arose after Italy manager Antonio Conte finalised his 23-man squad for the European Championship had to do with the lack of creativity in the side.  With so many questions up front, people wondered where the goals would come from.

For 88 minutes on Friday, as Italy slogged through what looked like it would be a scoreless draw, those questions grew louder and louder until one of Conte‘s most controversial selections broke the deadlock and claimed a 1-0 victory for the Azzurri.

The buzz coming into the game concerned how close the Italians could come to replicating their 2-0 win over Belgium, one of the tournament favorites, in the opener.  The team themselves were quick to play down expectations.  

In a pre-match press conference, Conte repeatedly told reporters (h/t Football Italia) “we’ve done nothing.”

Wing-back Antonio Candreva was similarly guarded, telling another presser (h/t Football Italia), “We are not qualified yet [for the knockout rounds], it’d be wrong to start making calculations now.”  

Captain Gianluigi Buffon, whose international career has spanned nearly 20 years, was quick to remind the press (h/t Football Italia) that, “Historically, we have problems in the second game [of a tournament].”

That warning certainly produced painful memories of Game 2s past in major tournaments.  The freshest wound came two years ago, when the Azzurri limped to a 1-0 defeat against Costa Rica that saw them surrender the initiative in their group.  In Euro 2008, they failed to respond to an opening loss and needed a penalty save from Buffon to scrape a 1-1 draw.

Even in times of joy, the second game of the group stage has been a speed bump—the second contest of their 2006 World Cup triumph was the infamous Brian McBride game, which ended 10 men on nine and knotted at 1-1.

But the meeting with the Swedes produced possibly the most painful memory of them all.  Leading 1-0 against Sweden in the group stage of Euro 2004, Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the equaliser with an outrageous backheel flick that squeezed into the millimetre of space between the crossbar and the head of Christian Vieri, who was covering the post.

The draw deprived Italy of control of their own destiny, and when the Swedes drew 2-2 in the final round against Denmark, the Azzurri were out.  

That game is when Zlatan became Zlatan.  Juventus bought him that summer, and his rise to become one of the most successful strikers of the generation kicked off in earnest.

Italy would look for revenge here, and it looked like it was in the cards.  Sweden were coming off a dull game against the Republic of Ireland, while Italy had the momentum after their upset of the Red Devils.

But the need to break down a set defence began thwarting the Italians early as their weaknesses started to show through.  

As it had been on Monday against Belgium, Italy’s midfielders took far too long to make their decisions.  Several times wing-backs Candreva and Alessandro Florenzi were in crossing positions but took the few extra seconds on the ball that allowed Sweden’s defence to cover up any potential free runners.

The game’s first opportunity fell to midfielder Marco Parolo, who took a good layoff by Florenzi and fired at Andreas Isaksson‘s goal, only to have it deflected harmlessly into the arms of the ‘keeper.

On the other end of the field, Italy’s greatest strength was holding fast.  The defence, lifted entirely from Conte‘s former club Juventus, put Ibra and the rest of the Swedish attack on lockdown.  

The most dangerous moment he produced in the first half came in the 14th minute when he looked up expecting a penalty after a clash with Andrea Barzagli, but referee Viktor Kassai correctly whistled him for initiating the contact and gave the free-kick to Italy.

Ibrahimovic spent the majority of the first half deep in his own midfield, trying to pick up the ball and forward it on to the attack.  When he did get into the box, his old Serie A nemesis Giorgio Chiellini shut him down.

It was a game reminiscent of Conte‘s Juve teams, who lacked real flair players and often slogged to victories against sides that weren’t on their level from a talent standpoint.

It’s the kind of match that perfectly exemplifies Conte‘s coaching philosophy, which is all about the team.  No one player is as important as the whole squad.  Individual skill is necessary, but its purpose is to finish a scoring chance off.  It’s the team and the tactics that are relied on to create them.

That philosophy was on display throughout the game, especially as the second half got under way.  The team started combining with each other better than in the first, and four minutes in, Eder—whose impact on the first half had been confined to his running and efforts off the ball—laid the ball off perfectly for Graziano Pelle, who blasted high and wide.

More chances followed, all of which coming from team moves rather than individual flair.  A short corner saw Candreva fizz in a cross that would have been a sure Daniele De Rossi goal had a Swedish defender not gotten his head to it at the last moment.  A minute later, a set play from a corner was aimed for Eder, who just missed controlling what could have been a volley attempt from short range.

The defence was similarly effective as a unit.  Wherever Ibrahimovic was, one of the back three was in his back pocket.  They were truly emblematic of Conte‘s team-play ethos, catching Ibrahimovic offside twice— the second time crucially as a Swedish cross from the left flank slipped by everyone to get to the big striker on the far post.  

Ibra was perhaps lucky in this instance that he was offside—it spared him the embarrassment of skying the ball over the bar from about a foot away.

Conte put his fingerprints on the game on the half-hour, when he took off a disappointing Pelle and inserted Simone Zaza.

When you talk about no-nonsense players, Zaza is on the top of the list, but the increase in pace he provided gave Italy’s group moves that extra step they needed to start getting really dangerous.  

His headed pass to Marco Parolo only 90 seconds after his introduction set up the Azzurri‘s first real opportunity of the second half, one that only failed when Kim Kallstrom made an impressive intervention in the box against Emanuele Giaccherini.

The game loafed towards full time still deadlocked.  The Italians smothered every attempt Sweden made to get forward, and the frustration of Ibrahimovic was becoming palpable.  

On the other end, the Azzurri continued to try to combine to break through.  In this, they were either too imprecise with their passing or, in the case of Parolo, horribly unlucky when he saw an excellent header clip the crossbar from a Giaccherini cross.

Just when it looked like a scoreless tie was assured, the goal came.  It was typical Conte style—from three of the most unglamorous players on the field on one of the most unglamorous plays in football.

It came just after an attempted cross by substitute Stefano Sturaro was blocked out for a throw in.  Chiellini came up and fired the ball long.  Zaza went up and headed it straight into the path of Eder, who cut in hard to the inside.

The Brazil-born striker’s inclusion in the lineup had been one of the biggest controversies of Conte‘s selection.  He had only scored once since joining Inter Milan in January, and his inclusion even in the preliminary squad was seen as outrageous.

All that was probably running through his mind as he got to the middle of the field and, freed up by an astounding error by Andreas Granqvist, unleashed a beautiful curling strike that left Andreas Isaksson desperately pounding the turf.

Four minutes of stoppage time later—a period that included a heart-stopping moment when Bonucci appeared to grab an opponent’s shirt in the box with seconds to go—the Italians were through to the round of 16 with a game to spare.  The Swedes are on the brink of elimination, having failed to put a shot on target in 120 minutes of group play.

At the beginning of the tournament, few expected Italy would have claimed such a distinction.  A result against the Republic of Ireland is still necessary to win the group, but they will be able to play that game with much less pressure than they would have been under if they only had four points rather than six.

This game was not pretty—it may have been one of the uglier displays of football in the tournament so far.  But Italian football has never been about looking pretty—it’s about what works.  And so far, Conte‘s no-nonsense, team-based approach has produced two victories.  

This game proved, as Giaccherini colourfully put it to reporters after the game (h/t Football Italia), “This Italy side … has cojones.”

That quality, that “grinta” that was such a hallmark of the Juve teams that won back-to-back-to-back Serie A titles with Conte at the helm, has been decisive so far in this tournament.  

With Euro 2016 proving to be one of the most wide-open tournaments we’ve seen in years, that approach could—if everything goes right—reap the ultimate reward.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/261WRUU
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Italy maintained their place atop Group E and clinched a berth in the knockout rounds at Euro 2016 with a 1-0 victory over Sweden on Friday at Stadium Municipal in Toulouse, France. Eder played the role of hero with the game-winning goal in the 88th minute.

The match featured extended stretches of listless play from both sides. The Azzurri seemed content to play for a draw for much of the fixture before finding the late winner. Meanwhile, Sweden’s attacking woes continued as they generated no shots on target.

Here’s an updated look at the Group E table ahead of Saturday’s clash between Belgium and Ireland:

Paul Myers of RFI noted ahead of the match that Italy head coach Antonio Conte was pleased with his side’s determination in an opening victory over Belgium. He was focused on making sure the players didn’t lose that edge during the rest of group play, though.

“It was a good performance against Belgium and we made the best start to the tournament,” Conte said. “But we’ve not done anything yet, nor have we already qualified for the last 16, which is our first objective. We must have our feet firmly on the ground.”

To say the first half lacked action would probably be an understatement. The teams combined for just four total shot attempts with only one of those on target. Sweden won the possession battle at 59 per cent, but they created little sustained attacking pressure.

Italy seemed content to slow the pace and rely on their back line to thwart any offensive forays from the Blue and Yellow. The only moments of tension were long, floated passes into the box, usually directed toward Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but the Azzurri did well to track down loose balls and clear.

Oliver Kay of the Times came away surprised by Italy’s style of play in the first 45 minutes:

Nothing much changed immediately after the half-time break. The Azzurri did increase their offensive efforts during the first 15 minutes of the second half, but they still never committed a lot of numbers forward. Keeping the clean sheet to ensure a draw clearly remained the biggest goal.

Parody Twitter account Boring James Milner jokingly summed it up best:

Finally, a match with very few memorable moments received a thrill at the end as a terrific individual effort from Eder allowed him to create space before burying the only goal of the match. Simone Zaza earned the assist for a header into the forward’s path.

Anthony Lopopolo of The Score noted it was the perfect time for Eder to come alive:

WhoScored.com highlighted the Inter Milan star’s success at the international level:

Looking ahead, Italy now have the option to rest some starters in the group finale against Ireland after ensuring their advancement. The Azzurri may wait to see what’s still on the line after tomorrow’s match in the group before deciding how to handle the fixture, though.

Things are far more unsettled for Sweden. Erik Hamren’s side have lacked efficiency in the final third. That’s problematic heading into a match with Belgium that they will likely need to win, though they will need to wait another day to know the exact details. Either way, there’s a lot of work to do before Wednesday.  

Post-Match Reaction

To follow.

All match statistics courtesy of the tournament’s official site.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/23giSdk
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/uIxVOV

Jose Mourinho recently posted a picture of himself on Instagram captioned “Always working,” and Manchester United will need him to be busy this summer. After three seasons of underperformance and transfer windows which did not quite go well enough, he has a lot of work on his hands.

And that work has, of course, already begun.

Bringing in Eric Bailly is a forward-thinking long-term move, the kind which hints at the existence of a plan. But while he might have the necessary talents, the 22-year-old cannot be expected to slot straight in as a reliable first-choice Premier League centre-back.

Centre-back is a position which rewards experience. Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic both improved a great deal in their mid-to-late 20s, for example. At the 2008 UEFA Champions League final in Moscow—the end of their peak season together—they were 29 and 26 respectively.

So, some forward planning has clearly already been done, but what of the more short-term concerns?

To reshape the squad to his own ends, Mourinho will first have to decide on the formation he plans to set them out in. Louis van Gaal never quite seemed to settle on a plan, trying 3-5-2, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1 and 4-1-4-1 during his time in charge. It seems reasonably safe to assume the Portuguese will not be so indecisive.

In broad terms, Mourinho-ball has generally meant a 4-2-3-1 with inverted wingers overlapped by attacking full-backs who provide width. In his final season at Inter Milan, for example, Brazilian right-back Maicon got more league assists than any other member of his squad.

His holding midfielders have often been physically imposing, but technique on the ball is obviously important to him too. Michael Essien in his first spell at Chelsea, Thiago Motta at Inter and Luka Modric at Real Madrid represent three different types in holding midfield, but each fit beautifully into Mourinho‘s midfield two.

The United manager has worked with some of the great forwards of their generation, such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba—all very different types of player, each of whom excelled under his management.

What all this tells us is that given a certain level of quality, there is a lot of flexibility in the type of players Mourinho is prepared to deploy in specific positions.

It also tells us that his best teams have always had truly outstanding players as part of their make-up. One of the key things that needs to happen at United this summer is an upgrade in the baseline of quality of their squad.

Barring Anthony Martial, Luke Shaw and David De Gea, there are not too many players at Old Trafford that other top clubs would look at with envy. Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick were once that, and Marcus Rashford may well get there.

However, in general ever since United sold Ronaldo and brought in Antonio Valencia, Michael Owen and Gabriel Obertan, there has been a steady decline in overall squad quality.

The starting lineup for the 2008 Champions League final was packed with all-time heavy-hitters—the starting lineup for the 2016 FA Cup final was not. Even by the time of the 2011 Champions League final, it was clear a decline had set in.

Of course, not every player in a squad has to be at the very top level for that squad to be phenomenally successful—witness Jesper Blomqvist or David May in the 1999 squad, or John O’Shea in 2008. But the decent, useful squad players need to become the exception rather than the rule over the next few years if United are to get back among the elite.

This cannot happen in one summer. Indeed, the seeds of the 2007/08 season were sown long before. Ferdinand was signed in 2002, Ronaldo in 2003 and Rooney in 2004. Edwin van der Sar arrived in 2005, while Vidic and Patrice Evra were bought in January 2006.

Owen Hargreaves, Carlos Tevez and Anderson were the only key figures in the 2007/08 squad signed that summer—Nani also arrived then, but his impact was felt a little later.

Obviously, Sir Alex Ferguson had the luxury of long-term planning available to him in a way few other managers ever have done. His job came under some pressure in the mid-2000s, during what Gary Neville called “the Djemba-Djemba years” in his autobiography, Red, but the manager kept building and was richly rewarded.

Mourinho needs to improve things a little more immediately. To that end, the short-term thinking that would be involved were United to sign Ibrahimovic would be a helpful sticking plaster while the more major surgery is being undertaken.

Every player who comes in this summer needs to serve one of two functions. One option is that they upgrade the quality of the current first XI, which Ibrahimovic clearly would. The other is that they could potentially form part of an impressive Champions League final starting XI in four or five years’ time, which is presumably the hope for Bailly.

The side’s most obvious weakness is in defence. It is perhaps no coincidence that this is the area Mourinho has attempted to strengthen first. But Bailly cannot be the only defensive signing. A really top-drawer centre-back should remain No. 1 on the wishlist, though identifying that target will be a challenge in a highly competitive market.

That much is obvious. Less obvious is what to do about central midfield.

Carrick has signed a contract extension, and Rooney has finally made the move people have been expecting for a long time to become a midfielder for club and country.

Add Bastian Schweinsteiger—who looks revitalised by his recent injury break, is in good shape and scoring for his country at Euro 2016—Ander Herrera, Morgan Schneiderlin and there are five players available for two positions, without even considering Marouane Fellaini or the fact that Timothy Fosu-Mensah may well end up being a midfielder.

But even with all those options available, unless Schweinsteiger truly gets back to peak fitness, there are no world-class options there—no one on the level of Modric, Motta or Essien at their peaks.

Unless there are substantial outgoings, it is hard to see anyone of the highest level arriving—promising young talent would be a more likely fit here.

A right-winger to match the quality of Martial on the left could be a huge asset, and the rumoured links with Henrikh Mkhitaryan would make a lot of sense. His agent Mino Raiola—also Ibrahimovic‘s agent—has said the player wants to move to United, per Alex Bywater of MailOnline.

Mkhitaryan is coming off the back of a hugely successful season, with 11 goals and 15 assists in the Bundesliga and offers an almost unparalleled degree of positional flexibility. He has played left, right and central for Borussia Dortmund this season, both in deeper-lying and more advanced roles, per WhoScored.com. 

That level of flexibility would mean Mourinho could find a way to allow plenty of involvement for players such as Rashford and Memphis Depay while also adding quality to the side.

There is a lot of work to be done, but this summer has to be the start, rather than an end in itself. Next season should be one of building and consolidation—no one is expecting United to win the 2016/17 title, but a realistic run at the 2017/18 trophy has to be within striking distance this time next year.

For now, a combination of elite players in key positions and promising young talent is the key to reshaping the squad.

It is a good job Mourinho is “always working” because there is a lot of work to be done.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/21qpjcq
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Argentina legend Diego Maradona has said his compatriot, Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi, is “dead to me” following his controversial feud with former team-mate Maxi Lopez. 

According to Radio Metro (h/t Football Italia), Maradona was asked if the 23-year-old should be part of La Albiceleste’s squad for the upcoming Olympics, to which he replied:

Icardi doesn’t exist to me. He could be captain of the cosmos, after what happened I’m a fan of [Lopez]. That’s not done, brother.

You feed him, you let him in your house and then this happens? No. Those who don’t have moral codes are dead to me.

The pair were team-mates at Sampdoria when Icardi entered a relationship with and later married Lopez’s ex-wife Wanda Nara. Lopez has since refused to shake hands with the Inter forward.

According to the MailOnline’s David Kent, Icardi also had Lopez’s three children with Nara tattooed on his arm, tweeting: “I love these three little angels:”

Per Fox Sports (h/t Goal’s Daniel Edwards), Icardi recently opened up on the controversy:

Everyone speaks about the Wanda issue without knowing the truth. When I started with her I played alongside Diego Milito, [Javier] Zanetti, [Esteban] Cambiasso, [Walter] Samuel, and they all knew the story because I told them.

I was a friend of the couple, an acquaintance, and it was all very normal. After that, Wanda split up and we kept in contact, and it just happened. 

I fell in love, that’s something you should judge solely on its own merits. But [Lopez] was not my best friend, nothing like that. We were colleagues in Sampdoria, nothing else.

The striker netted 16 goals for Inter last season, and while that wasn’t enough to earn him a place in Gerardo Martino’s Copa America squad, he is on the shortlist for Rio 2016, per Edwards. He added:

I was a little surprised to be on the Rio list because after everything that’s been said, in Twitter and social media everything comes out, some people believed I was never going to get called.

It is great to be on the Olympic list because it is a prize for my Inter performances. 

I can tell Martino that here in Italy I am on the front pages every Monday, but of the sports newspapers. In Argentina I am always linked to the show business world. If you are a national team coach, you can only judge on what happens on the pitch.

Due to his age, Icardi can be included in the Olympic squad without taking one of the places reserved for three overage players.

He will be among the most experienced and proven strikers at the tournament if he is selected, which could give Argentina an excellent chance of picking up a medal.

La Albiceleste have gained two golds and a silver in the last three Olympics they’ve qualified for, and further success could be on the cards.

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/28JOMTD
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J