Smitty's Mailbag

Can you explain the MLS's designated player rule? The most I know about it is that teams are limited to 3 designated players. Which seems kinda odd to me cause I would think everybody on the team would be a designated player. - Cory L., Raceland, LA

Photo Credit: zimbio.com

Nicknamed "the Beckham Rule," the Designated Player Rule was adopted as part of MLS's salary cap regulations for the 2007 season. The rule allows each MLS franchise to sign up to three players that would be considered outside of the team's salary cap (either by offering the player higher wages or by paying a transfer fee for the player), allowing MLS teams to compete for star players in the international soccer market. In a nutshell, it's a way for the league to either bring in talented foreign players or keep our better domestic players in the league by being able to offer them more money without incurring a penalty.

Each club has two Designated Player slots and clubs are allowed to “purchase” a third Designated Player slot for a one-time fee of $250,000 that will be dispersed in the form of allocation money to all clubs that do not have three Designated Players. Clubs will not have to buy the third DP roster slot to accommodate Designated Players 23 years old and younger. Designated Player slots are not tradable.

Here's a list of the league's current designated players:

Álvaro Fernández (Uruguay) - Chicago Fire
Sherjill MacDonald (Netherlands) - Chicago Fire
Oswaldo Minda (Ecuador) - Chivas USA
Hamdi Salihi (Albania) - D.C. United
Fabián Castillo (Colombia) - FC Dallas
David Ferreira (Colombia) - FC Dallas
Julian de Guzman (Canada) - FC Dallas
Oscar Boniek Garcia (Honduras) - Houston Dynamo
Landon Donovan (USA) - Los Angeles Galaxy
David Beckham (England) - Los Angeles Galaxy
Robbie Keane (Ireland) - Los Angeles Galaxy
Marco Di Vaio (Italy) - Montreal Impact
Shalrie Joseph (Grenada) - New England Revolution
Jerry Bengtson (Honduras) - New England Revolution
Thierry Henry (France) - New York Red Bulls
Rafael Marquez (Mexico) - New York Red Bulls
Tim Cahill (Australia) - New York Red Bulls
Freddy Adu (USA) - Philadelphia Union
Diego Chará (Colombia) - Portland Timbers
Kris Boyd (Scotland) - Portland Timbers
Álvaro Saborío (Costa Rica) - Real Salt Lake
Javier Morales (Argentina) - Real Salt Lake
Fredy Montero (Colombia) - Seattle Sounders FC
Mauro Rosales (Argentina) - Seattle Sounders FC
Danny Koevermans (Netherlands) - Toronto FC
Torsten Frings (Netherlands) - Toronto FC
Eric Hassli (France) - Toronto FC
Barry Robson (Scotland) - Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Kenny Miller (Scotland) - Vancouver Whitecaps FC


Michael Bradley just made a move to AS Roma. Chievo Verona got $4.6M and half-ownership interests in Romanian Adrian Stoian. Who got the better end of that deal and is that a good move for Bradley? - Cory L., Raceland, LA

Photo Credit: espn.go.com

There's no question that Roma is a better team than Chievo Verona and the addition of Bradley makes them that much more competitive and a favorite to grab a spot in a postseason tournament. In that regard, Roma is getting the better end of this deal as they get a starting central midfielder while giving up less than $5M and a 21 year old prospect who spent last season playing in Serie B. Stoian may turn out to be sensational, it's too early to tell, but for what Roma's looking to do right now and what the addition of Bradley means for them this season, it was an easy decision to pull the trigger.

As for how the move affects Bradley, I love it. After a terrific debut season in Serie A he now goes to a better team which, assuming he can win a starting job, will only help further his development as a player. And that is exactly what the U.S. Men's National Team needs from him right now. The move seems to be working out well so far as Bradley tallied a goal in this week's exhibition game against Liverpool.

There's been a lot of talk as to whether or not this Spanish National team is the best team ever to be assembled. Pele seems to think his Brazilian team from the 70s was better. How do you see it? - Cory L., Raceland, LA

Photo Credit: wired868.com

That's a tough one. Pelé's 1970 World Cup Champion Brazil team outscored its opponents 19-7 in 6 games en route to a perfect tournament. Three times in the tournament they scored at least 4 goals led by Jairzinho's seven and four more from that guy Pelé who you might have heard of. On the other side of the coin you have the 2012 Spain squad. Spain went 8-0 in Euro 2012 Qualifying outscoring their opponents 26-6, and then went on to go unbeaten and conceded just one goal in six games en route to the Euro 2012 Championship. It's worth noting though that Spain did draw with both Italy (1-1 in group play) and Portugal (0-0 before winning on penalties in the semifinals). If we're talking best team ever, I don't think you can have those kinds of slip-ups. Advantage: Brazil. However, don't forget that Spain won this last tournament without David Villa and without Carles Puyol. If they'd had both of them healthy then you might have a real debate on your hands.


There are plenty of rumors rolling around the Deuce may be headed to Liverpool. It's also widely reported that Deuce wants to play Champions League ball. Liverpool is not going to be playing in the Champions League this season. Something is not adding up. Can you  help me to understand the "logic" involved here? - Cory L., Raceland, LA

Photo Credit: guardian.co.uk

To me Liverpool doesn't make a lot of sense. Well, let me rephrase. The move makes a lot of sense to Liverpool. Dempsey would pair nicely with Steven Gerrard in the midfield and this move coupled with a couple others could make Liverpool a serious contender again. But as you said, Liverpool isn't playing in the Champions League this year. Maybe Dempsey grew up a huge Liverpool fan and that's who he's always wanted to play for. Otherwise, I'm as confused as you are. I'm still waiting for PSG to swoop in and make Deuce an offer. I could see him and Zlatan Ibrahimović teaming up to be quite a tandem. And yeah, PSG is playing in the Champions League this season.


That does it for this issue. As always a special thanks to everyone who wrote in. And remember, as the great G$ Meyer says Reading is for Winners, especially when you read Smitty's Mailbag.

Got a question for the mailbag? Click on the link at the top of the page or email us directly at smittysports.blogspot@hotmail.com.

Spain Does it Again

Photo Credit: uefa.com

Congratulations to La Furia Roja, winners of Euro 2012. Spain defeated Italy 4-0 today to capture their second consecutive Euro Cup sparking a debate as to whether or not this Spanish team is among the best teams ever assembled. Spain capped off the tournament with 5 consecutive shutouts outscoring their opponents 12-1 in their six game run to the title. Let's not forget the fact that they played this tournament without David Villa - the Euro 2008 Golden Boot Winner - or Carles Puyol - their anchor on defense. Granted Spain caught a bit of a break when Italy lost Thiago Motta to a shredded hamstring in the second half after the Italians had used all three of their allotted substitutions forcing them to play a man down for much of the second half, but it was already 2-0 at that point and Italy would've been hardpressed to overcome that deficit even at full strength.

Some other interesting details from Spain's win today:

*Jordi Alba's goal was his first ever for Spain. It was a busy week for Alba who also inked a 5 year deal with Barcelona on Thursday after five years with Valencia. Alba came up through the Barcelona youth system before getting released in 2005.

*Spain is the first country ever to win back-to-back European Championships.  West Germany made three consecutive finals from 1972 to 1980, but lost the 1976 final to Czechoslovakia on penalties.

*Fernando Torres's second half goal won him the tournament's Golden Boot. Not bad for a guy who couldn't buy a goal for Chelsea earlier this season.

*Torres and Juan Mata joined a small group of players who won the Champions League and European Championship during the same year. The others are Luis Suárez (Internazionale and Spain in 1964) and Hans van Breukelen, Berry van Aerle, Ronald Koeman and Gerald Vanenburg (PSV and Netherlands in 1988). Torres and Mata both scored in the Euro 2012 Final.

*Spanish keeper Iker Casillas has won 100 of his 137 international matches, becoming the first player ever to reach a century of international wins. He also holds the world record with 79 clean sheets.

The A to Z - from Angels in the Outfield to Tomislav Zubcic

A is for Angels in the Outfield. Remember that flick from the mid 90s? Well Angels rookie Mike Trout made a catch this week that was straight out of the movie taking a home run away from Baltimore's J.J. Hardy. If you haven't seen it yet, it's definitely worth a look. Tell me that's not reminiscent of the catch a young Matthew McConaughey made in the movie. I'm just saying. Hardly seems fair that a team that has Albert Pujols on it would need any help, but you never know. Anyhow, back to the movie, how ridiculous was that cast? Danny Glover, Tony Danza, Christopher Lloyd, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Neal McDonough, Adrien Brody and McConaughey? Not to mention former AL batting champion Carney Lansford as Ken 'Hit or Die' Kesey.

Photo Credit: angelswin.com

Photo Credit: supamov.net

B is for Balotelli. The Polarizing Mario Balotelli scored twice for Italy against Germany on Thursday to lead the Italians into the Euro 2012 Final. The 21 year old striker who recently helped lead Manchester City to an English Premier League title, struck once with his head and once with his feet in the first half against the favored Germans, and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon the Italian defense took care of the rest limiting the Germans to a stoppage time penalty kick in the second half and nothing more. Balotelli is tied with Mario Gomez (Germany), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Mario Mandzukic (Croatia) and Alan Dzagoev (Russia) for the tournament scoring lead with 3 goals. Italian coach Cesare Prandelli summed up Balotelli's performance against Germany best when asked if this was the best match of Balotelli's career: "Balotelli's career has just started."

Photo Credit: thefa.com

C is for Casillas. Spain's starting goalkeeper Iker Casillas was at the center of the action on Wednesday as Spain outlasted Portugal 4-2 on penalties to advance to their second straight Euro Cup Final. The Real Madrid keeper denied Joao Moutinho and Bruno Alves drilled a shot off the crossbar during the shootout setting up Cesc Fàbregas's clincher.

Photo Credit: mid-day.com

D is for Derek Jeter. The Yankee Captain doubled off Chicago's Jose Quintana in the first inning of Friday night's contest moving him ahead of Cal Ripken and into 13th place on the all-time hits list with 3185. Jeter, who has 97 hits on the season, needs 67 more to tie Nap Lajoie for 12th. Lajoie, in case you aren't familiar with him, played second base for the Phillies, Philadelphia A's and Cleveland Naps between 1896 and 1916. He won the American League Triple Crown way back in 1901.

Photo Credit: andaplayertobenamedlater.com

E is for Euro 2012 Final. It all comes down to Sunday. The 2006 World Cup Champions Italy, who actually considered withdrawing from this year's tournament due to match-fixing scandals in the Serie A, will take on the 2010 World Cup and reigning Euro Cup Champions Spain for all the marbles. I'll be the first to admit that I didn't see this coming. I didn't even have Italy getting out of their group, let alone into the Finals. But here they are. Taking on a banged up Spanish team that's playing without their leading scorer from the World Cup (David Villa) and without their defensive leader (Carles Puyol). But hey, that's why they play the game. I don't see a lot of scoring taking place on Sunday, but you can be assured that you'll see some pretty good soccer if you tune in. Spain and Italy already played each other during the Group phase and played to a 1-1 draw. Antonio Di Natale gave Italy a 1-0 lead in that one only to have Cesc Fábregas equalize just moments later.

Photo Credit: telegraph.co.uk

F is for Festus Ezeli. Or Furkan Aldemir. Pick one. The 6'11" Nigerian-born Ezeli was taken with the 30th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors after 5 years at Vanderbilt. The Turkish-born Aldemir stands 6'9" and has been playing professionally in Turkey since 2007, and impressive feat considering he doesn't turn 21 until August. The Clippers selected Aldemir with the 53rd pick in the draft. The real question though isn't which player will have a better NBA career, it's which player has a better NBA name.

Photo Credits: swishscout.com / eurohopes.com

G is for Great Britain. David Beckham won't be representing Britain at the 2012 London Olympics as coach Stuart Pearce has opted to go a different direction using his three overage (older than 23) player slots on Welshmen Ryan Giggs and Craig Bellamy and 24 year old Englishman Micah Richards. Beckham had appeared in 115 games for England, a record for a field player, but hasn't represented his country since 2009. Beckham has 2 goals and a team high 5 assists for the surging Galaxy who have won 3 straight in June following their elimination from the U.S. Open Cup.

Photo Credit: rawstory.com

H is for Harper. Have any doubts about 19 year old Bryce Harper's maturity as a player? On June 16th, Harper went 0 for 7 with 5 strikeouts against the New York Yankees. A lesser man might delve into a prolonged slump, but Harper's right back to tearing up opposing pitcher tallying three multi-hit games in the past week. On the year, Harper's hitting .274 with 8 homers and 6 steals and who has him as a keeper in his fantasy league? This guy.

Photo Credit: blogs.bettor.com

I is for Injuries. NBA Champions Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade will both be sitting out the 2012 Summer Olympics as they tend to injuries sustained during the Miami Heat's title run. Both Bosh and Wade were part of the 'Redeem Team' back in 2008 that went 8-0 en route to a Gold Medal. Bet you couldn't name the other 10 members of that squad: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Jason Kidd, Carmelo Anthony, Carlos Boozer, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Tayshaun Prince, Michael Redd and Deron Williams. James, Williams, Bryant, Paul and Anthony are all expected to return this summer. And yeah, that's Chris Bosh hiding in the background as usual like a Bosh.

Photo Credit: viennagardners.wordpress.com

J is for James. Ok, so LeBron James has finally won his NBA Championship meaning he'll no longer be in the same category as Karl Malone and Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing and all the other great players who never won an NBA Title. Now a lot of the media has started changing their tones about LeBron saying how great he is and how the fans should appreciate him more, and I've got to be honest with you. I don't think they get it. Nobody disliked LeBron because of anything he did on the basketball court. He is an unreal talent, I don't think anyone can dispute that. People don't like LeBron because of 'The Decision', because he took the easy way out by joining forces in Miami with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and because of how he handles himself during interviews. I don't care if he wins eight titles or however many he promised he'd win. I don't like LeBron James, and I don't have to. How you like them apples?

Photo Credit: clnsradio.com

K is for Kentucky. The reigning NCAA Men's Basketball Champion Wildcats just had six players drafted in the 2012 NBA Draft: Anthony Davis (Hornets #1), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Bobcats #2), Terrence Jones (Rockets #18), Marquis Teague (Bulls #29), Doron Lamb (Bucks #42) and Darius Miller (Hornets #46). And yeah, that ties an NBA record for players drafted in a single draft in case you were wondering. More on that next week.

Photo Credit: ukathletics.com

L is for Lukas Rosol. When you think tennis, Rosol probably isn't the first name that comes to mind. Well, you can bet that's changed for Rafael Nadal. The 11 time Grand Slam winner was shocked in the second round at Wimbledon by the 26 year old Czech 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. This was the earliest Nadal was eliminated in a major since 2005 when Luxembourg's Gilles Müller ousted him at Wimbledon. Rosol's joy was short-lived though as 27th seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber beat him in straight sets 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 in his next match.

Photo Credit: worldtennismagazine.com

M is for MLS. MLS reasserted its dominance at the U.S. Open Cup this week as the last of the lower tier teams were eliminated from the competition setting up an All-MLS semifinals. The Philadelphia Union knocked off the Harrisburg City Islanders 5-2, Sporting Kansas City eliminated the Dayton Dutch Lions 3-0, Chivas USA got a goal 4 minutes into second half stoppage time to upend the Charlotte Eagles 2-1, and in the only quarterfinal match between 2 MLS squads, the 3-time defending champion Seattle Sounders defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0. Seattle will now take on Chivas USA on July 10th in one semifinal while Sporting and the Philadelphia Union will face off in the other semifinal on July 11th.

Photo Credit: buzzbox.com

N is for New Orleans Hornets. It figures that as soon as I leave Louisiana the Hornets would become interesting again. With two picks in the top ten, the Hornets got a legitimate big man in Kentucky's Anthony Davis and a possible point guard of the future in Duke's Austin Rivers. Throw in Kentucky's Darius Miller who was selected in the second round and the draft was especially kind to the Bees. I don't know that these additions make New Orleans a contender, but at the very least it should make them relevant.

Photo Credit: zimbio.com

O is for Oswalt. Who's the best team in baseball right now? If you guessed the Texas Rangers, you'd be correct. And now their rotation has gotten a boost with the addition of veteran Roy Oswalt. In two starts since his return, Oswalt has defeated the Rockies and the Tigers and is part of what has become a loaded rotation that includes Matt Harrison (11-3, 3.16 ERA), Colby Lewis (6-6, 3.51 ERA) and Yu Darvish (10-4, 3.57 ERA). Remember when the best pitcher the Rangers had was Roger Pavlik and all they did was hit? Those were simpler times.

Photo Credit: diamond.toppscards.com

P is for Pettitte. New York's pitching staff took quite a hit this week (pun intended) when Andy Pettitte was struck by a ground ball against the Indians Wednesday and broke his left ankle. Pettitte is expected to miss at least two months and was placed on the 60-Day Disabled List. Pettitte joins fellow starting pitchers CC Sabathia and Michael Pineda on the DL. All together the Yankees have 9 pitchers on the DL right now but still sit atop to the American League East.

Photo Credit: nydailynews.com

Q is for Quick. It didn't take long for the Los Angeles Kings to show their appreciation for their starting goalie Jonathan Quick. Just a few weeks after clinching the franchise's first Stanley Cup title, Quick was rewarded with a 10 year extension worth a cool $58M. The 26 year old from Milford, CT led all goalies this past postseason with a 1.41 Goals Against Average and a .946 save percentage.

Photo Credit: blog.mitchellandness.com

R is for Rehab. Ryan Howard is on the comeback trail. After tearing his achilles tendon on the final play of last year's NLDS against St. Louis, Howard has finally returned to the diamond taking the field for the Lakewood BlueClaws of the South Atlantic League. Howard is 3 for 6 in two games with 3 runs batted in.

Photo Credit: delawareonline.com

S is for Scott Brooks. The Oklahoma City Thunder and coach Scott Brooks are closing in on a new contract after some tumultuous negotiations. Brooks has been at the helm for the Thunder for four seasons now and seen their winning percentage improve each season. The Thunder came within 3 wins of an NBA title this year before coming up short against the Heat denying Brooks the chance to join a select group of players to win NBA Championships as players and coaches. Brooks was a member of the '94 Rockets team that defeated the New York Knicks in 7 games.

Photo Credit: mnwolves.blogspot.com

T is for Thome. The Phillies are willing to move their left-handed slugger to an AL club looking for a DH. After a slow start to the season, Thome has hit .295 in the month of June including a 12 for 36 stretch as a DH in interleague play against the Orioles, Twins and Blue Jays in which he homered four times. Now 41 years old, Thome has 609 homers in his Major League career dating way back to 1991.

Photo Credit: lehighvalleylive.com

U is for Uncle Drew. If you haven't seen the commercial yet starring NBA Rookie of the Year Kyrie Irving, you should definitely check it out.

Photo Credit: ohellnawlblog.com

V is for Verlander. As we approach the half way point of the 2012 Major League Baseball season, Detroit Tigers ace Justin Verlander is quietly turning in another sensational season as he's on track to go 17-11 with 255 strikeouts and a 2.69 ERA. It's not quite the 24-5 250 strikeout 2.40 ERA season that won him a Cy Young a year ago, but it's nothing to sniffle at. Verlander has won at least 17 games in 5 of the last 6 seasons.

Photo Credit: blogs.bettor.com

W is for Wimbledon. No one from Great Britain has won Wimbledon since 1936 when Fred Perry defeated Gottfried von Cramm. Scottish born Andy Murray has been the semifinals in 3 straight years and is through to the fourth round this year following his win over Marcos Baghdatis. With Rafael Nadal's early exit, is it possible that this is the year?

Photo Credit: bleacherreport.com

X is for Xavier Hernández. If Spain captures the Euro 2012 title tomorrow he will have amassed the following hardware: 6 La Liga titles, 2 Copa del Reys, 5 Spanish Supercups, 3 UEFA Champions League titles, 2 UEFA Super Cups, 2 FIFA Club World Cups, a World Cup, two European Football Championships and a FIFA World Youth Championship. Yowzah.

Photo Credit: forum.akccoonhounds.org

Y is for Youkilis. Does this look weird to anyone else?

Photo Credit: usatoday.com

Z is for Zubčić. Tomislav Zubčić. Gotta love the NBA draft. The Croatian forward was taken with the 56th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors. 

Photo Credit: draftexpress.com

Euro 2012 Semifinals Set

The Euro 2012 Semifinals are set with Portugal taking on Spain on Wednesday and Germany taking on Italy on Thursday. Let's take a quick look at each of the four remaining teams:

SPAIN (World Ranking - 1)

Photo Credit: voxxi.com

Tourney Results:

D 1-1 vs Italy
W 4-0 vs Ireland
W 1-0 vs Croatia
W 2-0 vs France
vs Portugal

Leading Scorers - Xabi Alonso, Fernando Torres, Cesc Fábregas - 2
Assist Leader -  David Silva - 3

Worth Noting - Spain defeated Portugal 1-0 at the 2010 World Cup by a score of 1-0. While goalscorer David Villa won't be there for the rematch, much of the squad that outshot the Portuguese 19-9 and dominated the game with 60% possession is returning.

PORTUGAL (World Ranking - 10)

Photo Credit: 3news.co.nz

Tourney Results:

L 1-0 vs Germany
W 3-2 vs Denmark
W 2-1 vs Netherlands
W 1-0 vs Czech Republic
vs Spain

Leading Scorer - Cristiano Ronaldo - 3
Assist Leaders - João Moutinho, Nani - 2

Worth Noting -  Portugal has only reached the Euro Cup Final one time back in 2004 when they were the host nation. Considered the favorites going into the Final, they were shocked 1-0 by Greece on a goal from Angelos Charisteas.

GERMANY (World Ranking - 3)

Photo Credit: stadiumastro.com

Tourney Results:

W 1-0 vs Portugal
W 2-1 vs Netherlands
W 2-1 vs Denmark
W 4-2 vs Greece
vs Italy

Leading Scorer - Mario Gomez - 3
Assist Leader - Mesut Özil - 3

Worth Noting - Germany is now 14-0 in Euro Qualifying and Euro Cup matches during this tournament. The Germans have outscored their opponents 43-11 during that stretch and scored 3 or more goals in 9 of those matches.

ITALY (World Ranking - 12)

Photo Credit: nbcsports.msnbc.com

Tourney Results:

D 1-1 vs Spain
D 1-1 vs Croatia
W 2-0 vs Ireland
D 0-0 vs England (won 4-2 on penalties)

Leading Scorers - Andrea Pirlo, Antonio Cassano, Antonio Di Natale, Mario Balotelli - 1
Assist Leader - Andrea Pirlo - 2

Worth Noting - Italy defeated the Germans in the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup in Germany by a score of 2-0 getting goals in the 119th and 121st minutes. That would set the stage for Italy's fourth World Cup Title which they'd claim after a shootout win against the French.

Euro 2012 - Group D Recap

Smitty's Prediction: France, Sweden
Actually Advancing: France, England

FINAL GROUP D STANDINGS

MATCH RESULTS

France 1 England 1
Ukraine 2 Sweden 1
England 3 Sweden 2
France 2 Ukraine 0
England 1 Ukraine 0
Sweden 2 France 0

Euro 2012 - Group C Recap

Smitty's Prediction: Spain, Croatia
Actually Advancing: Spain, Italy

FINAL GROUP C STANDINGS

MATCH RESULTS

Spain 1 Italy 1
Croatia 3 Ireland 1
Croatia 1 Italy 1
Spain 4 Ireland 0
Spain 1 Croatia 0
Italy 2 Ireland 0

Euro 2012 - Group B Recap

Smitty's Prediction: Germany, Netherlands
Actually Advancing: Germany, Portugal

FINAL GROUP B STANDINGS

MATCH RESULTS

Denmark 1 Netherlands 0
Germany 1 Portugal 0
Portugal 3 Denmark 2
Germany 2 Netherlands 1
Portugal 2 Netherlands 1
Germany 2 Denmark 1

Euro 2012 Group A Recap

Smitty's Prediction: Greece, Russia
Actually Advancing: Greece, Czech Republic

FINAL GROUP A STANDINGS

MATCH RESULTS

Greece 1 Poland 1
Russia 4 Czech Republic 1
Czech Republic 2 Greece 1
Poland 1 Russia 1
Czech Republic 1 Poland 0
Greece 1 Russia 0

ESPN's Top 40 Players to Watch in Euro 2012

ESPN.com recently came out with a list of their Top 40 players in the Euro 2012 Tournament. Here's a rundown of their list in case you missed it:

1. Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal - Striker

Photo Credit: cristianoronaldopictures.info

Age: 27

Club: Real Madrid

Caps: 90

Goals: 32

2. Andrés Iniesta - Spain - Midfielder

Photo Credit: fanpop.com

Age: 28

Club: Barcelona

Caps: 64

Goals: 11

3. Xavi Hernández - Spain - Midfielder

Photo Credit: forum.globaltimes.cn

Age: 32

Club: Barcelona

Caps: 108

Goals: 10

Euro 2012 Preview

Photo Credit: 1goaltube.blogspot.com

We're just days away from one of the world's most prestigious soccer tournaments as Euro 2012 gets ready to kickoff. Here's a quick preview of what we have to look forward to over the next month:

Group A: Poland, Greece, Russia, Czech Republic

Matches:
06/08/12 - Poland vs Greece
06/08/12 - Russia vs Czech Republic
06/12/12 - Greece vs Czech Republic
06/12/12 - Poland vs Russia
06/16/12 - Czech Republic vs Poland
06/16/12 - Greece vs Russia

FIFA Rankings (World/Europe):
Poland (65/32)
Greece (14/10)
Czech Republic (26/16)
Russia (11/8)

Prediction: I see Greece and Russia advancing out of Group A. Both nations turned in strong performances during Qualifying losing just one match between the two of them. The Czechs finishing second behind Spain in Group I, which is understandable, but also suffering a bad loss against Lithuania (Lithuania's only win during Qualifying). As a result they needed to knock off Montenegro in a playoff, which they did, but I don't see them advancing to the Round of 8. Poland, one of the host nations, is just happy to be in the tournament so I don't see them doing a lot of damage despite the homefield advantage.

Player to Watch: Roman Pavlyuchenko, Russia

Photo Credit: telegraph.co.uk

The 30 year old Russian striker recently left Tottenham Hotspur to return to his homeland joining Lokomotiv Moscow. A contributor to the National Team since 2003, Pavlyuchenko scored 3 goals during Euro 2008 and four more during Euro 2012 Qualification. He has 20 international goals in 47 career appearances including 2 against England, 1 against Spain, 1 against the Netherlands and 1 against Argentina.


Group B: Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Portugal

Matches:
06/09/12 - Netherlands vs Denmark
06/09/12 - Germany vs Portugal
06/13/12 - Denmark vs Portugal
06/13/12 - Netherlands vs Germany
06/17/12 - Portugal vs Netherlands
06/17/12 - Denmark vs Germany

FIFA Rankings (World/Europe):

Netherlands (4/3)
Denmark (10/7)
Germany (2/2)
Portugal (5/4)

Prediction: This is the Group of Death if ever there was one. Four of the world's top ten teams, and only two will advance. Germany went a perfect 10-0-0 during Qualifying outscoring its opponents 34-7 and the Netherlands' only blemish was a 3-2 loss in Sweden as they outscored their opponents 37-8. Denmark and Portugal met twice in Qualifying with both clubs winning on their home turf, but Portugal also suffered an embarrassing 4-4 home draw with Cyprus and a 1-0 loss in Norway conceding the group to Denmark and needing a playoff with Bosnia and Herzegovina to advance. After a scoreless draw in the first leg, they erupted for a 6-2 win in the second, but their lack of consistency makes them tough to bet on. Given the ridiculous form of the German and Dutch clubs, I think you have to figure both of them will advance. Apologies to the Danes, but even though they finished ahead of Portugal during Qualifying, I see them bringing up the rear.


Player to Watch: Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Netherlands

Photo Credit: thesun.co.uk

The 28 year old Schalke 04 striker led all players with 12 goals during Qualifying and is coming off a terrific year in the Bundesliga in which he became the first Dutch player to lead the league in scoring. KJH finished the regular season with 29 goals and helped Schalke to a third place finish and a spot in the 2012-13 Champions League. With 31 career goals for the Netherlands in 53 career appearances, he's just 9 goals shy of Patrick Kluivert's national team record. 


Group C: Spain, Italy, Ireland, Croatia


Matches:
06/10/12 - Spain vs Italy

06/10/12 - Ireland vs Croatia

06/14/12 - Italy vs Croatia

06/14/12 - Spain vs Ireland

06/18/12 - Croatia vs Spain

06/18/12 - Italy vs Ireland


FIFA Rankings (World/Europe):

Spain (1/1)
Italy (12/9)
Ireland (18/13)
Croatia (8/6)


Prediction: Even with all of their injuries, I think Spain is a lock to make it to the Round of 8, but with all the turmoil in Italy amidst their match fixing scandal and talks of withdrawing from the tournament all together, I'm not sure the normally reliable Italians are a safe bet. Croatia finished second behind Greece during Qualifying suffering road losses to Georgia and the Greeks, but they bounced back with a big 3-0 win over Turkey in the first leg of their playoff. While the Irish only lost once during Qualifying, to Russia, I don't know that they'll be able to hang with these giants of European soccer. So I'm going to go with Spain and Croatia.


Player to Watch: Xavi Hernández, Spain

Photo Credit: thesun.co.uk

32 year old Xavi has finished third in the Ballon d'Or voting the past three years, and while more a facilitator than a scorer, there's no questioning his impact both at the club level for Barcelona and the international level for Spain. Xavi had 10 goals and 7 assists for Barca in La Liga and 2 goals and 3 assists in just 5 matches for Spain during Euro 2012 Qualifying. With Spain riddled with injuries throughout the lineup, it's going to be vital for Spain to have Xavi at the top of his game.


Group D: Ukraine, Sweden, France, England


Matches:
06/11/12 - France vs England

06/11/12 - Ukraine vs Sweden

06/15/12 - Ukraine vs France

06/15/12 - Sweden vs England

06/19/12 - England vs Ukraine

06/19/12 - Sweden vs France


FIFA Rankings (World/Europe):

Ukraine (50/28)

Sweden (17/12)

France (16/11)

England (7/5)


Prediction: Now I love English football having been enamored with the squad since the days of Alan Shearer and Michael Owen. That said, do these tournaments ever go as planned for the English? On paper they should advance, but in my mind, they're not capable of winning these big games. And now with a new coach, they seem like even less of a sure thing, so I'm going to say the French and Swedes will roll on to the Round of 8 while the co-host Ukrainians will be content to enjoy being in the tournament and playing host.


Player to Watch: Zlatan Ibrahimović, Sweden

Photo Credit: itv.com

Ibra erupted for 28 goals in Serie A this year en route to the league's scoring title, but AC Milan finished second in the league behind Juventus. It marked the second time the 6'5" Swede had led the league having also done so back in 2008-09 while playing for Inter. Ibra led the Swedes in scoring during Qualifying tallying 5 of their 20 goals. If Sweden is going to advance to the Round of 8, Big Z will have a big role in it.




So to recap, I have the following teams advancing to the Round of 8:

Greece, Russia, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Croatia, France, Sweden.

What do you all think?

Midweek Mailbag - Soccer, Soccer & More Soccer

Carles Puyol is looking at maybe having surgery on his knee, and will most likely not be fit for the Euro 2012 tourney. I know he's just one guy, but he's pretty well the anchor of that back 4 for Spain. How big of a loss would it be to not have him when Spain tries to defend their Euro title? - Cory L., Raceland, LA

Photo Credit: guardian.co.uk

Tough break for Carles "don't call me Carlos or Charles" Puyol. Any time you lose one of your starters, particularly one of your team leaders, it's a blow. Fortunately for Spain, they're incredibly deep in the back. Even without Puyol they can trot out an imposing back line consisting of Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Gerard Piqué (Barcelona), Raúl Albiol (Real Madrid) and Álvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid). Puyol is 34 now and the reality is that Spain was going to need a plan to move forward without him in the near future anyways. Now they're just going to have to do it a little bit sooner than expected. The bigger concern in my mind for Spain is that they will be without their leading scorer from their World Cup run as David Villa continues to recover from his broken leg suffered with Barcelona. Spain will have to get production from somewhere else on the field or teams like the Netherlands or Germany will be able to upset the defending champs.

Quick Hits

VERLANDER WINS THE AL CY YOUNG AWARD

Photo Credit: zimbio.com

This shouldn't come as a shock to anyone. The Detroit Tigers right hander wasn't just good this year, he was historically good. Justin Verlander led the majors with 24 wins, and won the AL Pitching Triple Crown with a league leading 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts. He also threw a no hitter against the Blue Jays, led the majors with 251 innings, threw 4 complete games iincluding a couple shutouts...  Simply put, the dude was ridiculous. No surprise that he won the award unanimously garnering all 28 first place votes. The Angels Jered Weaver finished second, Tampa's James Shields third, New York's CC Sabathia fourth and Verlander's teammate and closer Jose Valverde fifth. Now the next question is, is Verlander also your AL MVP? I say yes, but I'm sure there will be plenty of voters who think otherwise. I'd also like to note that I drafted Verlander, Weaver and Valverde this past year in fantasy baseball. That would be a lot cooler if i didn't choke in the semifinals and finish third...

USA SCORES GOALS (PLURAL), SNAPS SKID UNDER KLINSMANN

It's funny, I was actually talking to my buddy Cory today before the lineups of today's USA-Slovenia game were released about how I'd like to see Edson Buddle and Jozy Altidore on the field together. Wish granted. And not only that, but Klinsmann changed up the formation to allow for more offense abandoning the lone striker approach in favor of a 4-4-2. Buddle and Michael Bradley were inserted into the lineup to play along with Altidore and Clint Dempsey to give the offense a little more umph, and it worked to the tune of 3 goals in a 3-2 win on the road in Slovenia. Granted the defense was a little suspect, but a win is a win, and before today, we hadn't scored 3 goals in a game since our last tuneup match before the 2010 World Cup when we beat Australia 3-1. That was 25 matches ago. Ironically, it was Buddle who led the charge in that match too scoring a pair of goals. Today, Buddle opened the scoring with a brilliant strike from 25 yards out, Dempsey headed in a corner from Michael Bradley and Altidore buried a PK. Great stuff from the offense. Now don't get me wrong, this team is still very much a work in progress, and the change in formation exposed some more of our weaknesses at the back, but considering we entered play today with just one win in seven matches, I will take it.

EURO 2012 FIELD ROUNDED OUT

Photo Credit: sportingopinions.com

Ireland, Portugal, Croatia and the Czech Republic have claimed the final four spots for the 2012 European Football Championship. Robbie Keane and Ireland drew 1-1 with Estonia today giving them a 5-1 aggregate win, Portugal exploded for 6 goals against Bosnia-Herzegovina after a scoreless draw in the first leg to advance by an aggregate score of 6-2, Croatia pitched a second consecutive shutout against Turkey playing to a comfortable 0-0 draw after winning the first leg 3-0, and the Czech Republic swept Montenegro 2-0 and 1-0. So the field is now set, headlined by eight of the world's top ten teams: Spain (1), Netherlands (2), Germany (3), Italy (6), England (7), Greece (8t), Portugal (8t) and Denmark (10t). Host nations Poland (64) and the Ukraine (58), and qualifiers Croatia (12), Czech Republic (47), France (15), Ireland (25), Russia (13) and Switzerland (18) round out the field of 16. The tournament is set to kick off on June 8th. Spain is the reigning champion.

FOUR INDUCTED INTO HOCKEY HALL OF FAME

Congratulations to Joe Nieuwendyk, Ed Belfour, Doug Gilmour and Mark Howe, all of whom were inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday.

Nieuwendyk played 20 seasons for the Flames, Stars, Devils, Leafs and Panthers and finished his career with 564 career goals - 21st most all time. He was a Stanley Cup winner three different times with three different teams in three different decades: with the Flames in 1989, with the Stars in 1999 and with the Devils in 2003.

Photo Credit: bleacherreport.com

Belfour was a goalie in the NHL for 17 seasons starting out with the Blackhawks and also spending time with the Sharks, Stars, Maple Leafs and Panthers. He won 484 games in his career - third most all time - allowing just 2.50 goals per game and posting 76 career shutouts.

Photo Credit: bearconsults.wordpress.com

Gilmour played 20 seasons for the Blues, Flames (teaming up with Nieuwendyk to win the 1989 Stanley Cup), Maple Leafs, Devils, Blackhawks, Sabres and Canadiens. He had 450 goals and 964 assists - 12th most all time - in his career.

Photo Credit: torontomapleleafsatoz.blogspot.com

Howe was a defenseman for 16 seasons for the Hartford Whalers, Flyers and Red Wings. The son of the great Gordie Howe led the U.S. to a silver medal at the 1972 Olympics (bet you didn't know we won a silver in ice hockey in 1972) and was one of the best two-way defensemen in the NHL in the 80s finishing his career with 197 goals and 545 assists.

Photo Credit: whalernation.tv

COACH K BREAKS BOBBY KNIGHT'S RECORD

Photo Credit: soldieroftheday.com

Congratulations to Mike Kryzgksgywe... Congratulations to Coach K for becoming the winningest coach in Division I Men's Basketball history. With Duke's 74-69 win over Michigan State today, Mike Krzyzewski won his 903rd career game moving him ahead of his coach and mentor Bobby Knight. Per ESPN, Knight released the following statement after the game: " After reading about Roger Banister and the Four Minute Mile, I thought it would be neat to be the first coach to win 900 games. Once I reached that, I was hoping Mike would be the first person to surpass it. I also think it is neat for a coach and his former player to have the opportunity to win this many games while each one was coaching at nearly the same time. He made great contributions to our Army team, as a player and has been a great example as a coach of how to do things the right way. There is no one I respect more for the way he went about coaching and following the rules than Mike. The history of college basketball has had no better coach than Mike Krzyzewski."