Manchester Ambitions Reined In

December review

Champions League

The group stage has seen shock exits for Man U & Man City. When United were at their peak, teams from the smaller European leagues like Benfica & Basle would have been swept aside by a comfortable margin at Old Trafford. This season, two home draws against those teams cost them. Man City had a much tougher group, & couldn’t get the better of Bayern & Napoli.
Pundits like Keane & Southgate, in a snap reaction after Man U’s exit, talked of a team in transition. I thought it was premature at the time, & so it’s proved, with them now level on points with City at the top of the Prem. It looks like the title race will go all the way, so far United are coping with the injuries to the likes of Vidic & Jones. However, to go from UCL runners-up to a group stage exit in a year, is still a disaster for them.
Meanwhile, Barcelona have underlined their status as favourites again, with a crushing 4-0 win over Santos in the World Club Cup as well as beating Real 3-1 at the Bernabeu in La Liga.

The draw for the Europa League will have given further ammunition to the conspiracy theorists who believe Platini has an anti-English basis. The draws for Man U & City of Ajax & Porto respectively, are the toughest possible ties.

One of the greats of Braziilan football died last month. Socrates played in two world cups; & the 1982 side of Zico, Falcao, Junior, Eder, is widely thought of as one of the best teams not to have the won the World Cup.

Perfomance of the Year

Novak Djokovic. He went on a 41 match win streak this year, & won three of the four Slams, as well as a setting a new record of five Masters titles in a season. Although his season tailed off slightly with a back injury taking its toll (two retirements) & he finished with a 70-6 win loss record, it was still a standout performance.
Honourable mentions for Cadel Evans, Mark Cavendish, the All Blacks & the England cricket team.

Youth vs Experience

November review

UEFA Euro 2012

Talk about the commentators' curse. In my October blog I'd been praising Spain to the rafters, but an experimental England XI beat them 1-0. In this & the Sweden game we saw the promise of youngsters like Rodwell & Jones. We've been here before of course, it's one thing having good results in friendlies & qualifying, but can they deliver at the business end of a major tournament ? The first game against France will be crucial. If England win the group they would avoid Spain (assuming the Spaniards win their group) in the quarters. I think the semis is the best England can hope for.

ATP World Tour Finals

Roger Federer won the ATP Masters for a record sixth time. I think the shorter format (best of 3 sets) suited him. At the Slams, with the best of 5 set matches, I think fatigue can be a issue and the younger guys will still prevent him from winning a 17th major. Both Tsonga & Djokovic beat him this year from 2 sets down, something that Roger had suffered only once before, in Davis Cup (2003) to Hewitt.

Frazier & Lyle

Last month saw the passing of two great heavies, Joe Frazier & Ron Lyle. They fought in the golden age of the heavyweight division, the 1970's, an era packed with quality: Ali, Foreman, Frazier, Larry Holmes, Earnie Shavers, Jerry Quarry, Lyle. This is in stark contrast to the current situation where Eastern European fighters dominate. Sadly there is no statue of Frazier in his native city of Philadelphia despite his achievements-only one of Rocky Balboa.

Performance of the Month

Federer for winning at the O2, his 70th career tournament title.

Long White Cloud Lifted

Rugby Word Cup

The RWC semis were compelling viewing, especially the first. Wales, despite playing a man down for 60 minutes, scored the only try and were inches away from beating France (Halfpenny's penalty attempt crept agonisingly under the bar).
The emotion of the haka seemed even stronger in this tournament than normal. The electrifying new version featured the players dropping to one knee at dramatic intervals, and a final gesture of hanging the opponent. It was great theatre. The stadium would fall silent for the performance, only punctuating the gaps in the chanting with cheers.
The NZ win the final put an end to 24 years of hurt. The losses of past tournaments were sometimes due to choking under the pressure of expectation as the favourites, on one occasion(1995) an infamous case of alleged food poisoning was blamed.
The All Blacks winning feels like the natural order of things has been restored, like Brazil winning the (football) world cup. In both countries it is a viewed as a total disaster if they don't win the respective quadrennial competition. They don’t get any plaudits back home for a gallant loss in the semis.

Perfomance of the Month-October

It has to be NZ, for getting the monkey off their back after 24 years.

Honourable mention: Andy Murray who won in Shanghai, his 3rd title in a row (including Tokyo where he beat Nadal), to overtake Federer as world no. 3.

Homage To Espana

The famous Bobby Jones quote about Jack Nicklaus 'he plays a game with which I am not familiar' -meaning he had taken the sport to another level-comes to mind after seeing Spain outclass Scotland with a 3-1 win on Tuesday. Scotland needed a win to qualify for Euro 2012, but Spain made it look like an exhibition. Like Barcelona, the Spanish team have great skill combined with superb fitness. They monopolise possession with their passing game & when they do lose it, can often quickly win the ball back with their pressing. Spain finished with a 100 % record-the only other nation to match that is our old chums Germany. Holland lost their perfect streak in a 3-2 loss to Sweden. Spain are in a class of their own at the moment, & can be the the first nation to retain the Euro title. The Germans & the Dutch will be the main challengers, with England another notch below.

US Open Tennis

Djokovic's win at the US Open means he joins a select list of men in the Open era to have won three slams in a calendar year (Federer, Nadal, Laver, Connors, Wilander are the others). He is nailed-on for me as the sportsperson of the year. Currently out with a back injury, his win-loss record for the year is a staggering 64-3.
Andy Murray's run was ended in the semis by Nadal, but it meant he became only the 7th man in the Open era to reach the semis or better of all four Slams in a calendar year.
Oliver Golding is the 1st Brit since Murray to win the boys title-in fact GB provided 3 of the 4 semi-finalists (Kyle Edmund & George Morgan the others). Add in that Liam Broady was the RU in the boys at Wimbledon & the future for the GB men is very bright; not forgetting the promise of Robson & Watson on the womens side.

Performance of the month-September

When originally drafting this, I was going to give it to Ireland for their first ever RWC victory over Australia, but they were knocked out by Wales in the quarters last Saturday.
The honours go instead to Mark Cavendish. Cav topped an incredible year by becoming the world road race champion, his honours list already boasting the Tour de France green jersey, 5 Tour stage wins & 2 Giro stages.

August Review

Some standout performances from the World Athletics Champs I particularly enjoyed:
Kirani James & David Rudisha in the 400 & 800 m respectively. James ran down the more fancied American Merritt in the final straight, Rudisha led from gun to tape.The Brits: Mo Farah’s gold & silver in the 5 & 10k, Dai Greene (G in 400 m H ). Hannah England’s unexpected silver in the 1500 m marks her out as a great prospect for 2012. Both Ennis & Idowu expressed their disappointment with silver medals, but will be spurred on to go one better at London 2012.
Bolt’s DQ from the 100 m is a strong argument for the current one false start DQ rule, brought in to suit TV scheduling, to be changed. As the rule stands you can be eliminated for only twitching in the blocks. The idea that the Olympic final could be run potentially without the sport's biggest star on the start line is madness to me. The IAAF need a re-think.


Performance of the month: the England test cricket team reaching the no.1 spot in the world rankings with a 4-0 series sweep of (previous no.1 team) India.

Premiership Predictions

Predictions for the top five:
Arsenal haven't made any signings to solve their problems in central defence or in goal, & the two best creative midfielders leaving is too not too promising either. No doubt they will flatter to deceive again this season & Gervinho may be able to score the goals when Van Persie is injured.
Liverpool can be contenders if they continue the form they showed last season when King Kenny took over. With players like Adam, Suarez, Carroll, (& Gerrard if fit) they look strong in attack but how strong is their defence ?
Man City might be the closest challengers to Man U, but I think even with their squad & the addition of Aguero, they will struggle to cope with balancing their their first season in the Champions League with a title run.
Chelsea have yet to make any big new signings but new coach Villas-Boas had a fantastic season with Porto, & if he can inspire Torres back to form they can push United.
I can't see anyone stopping Man U though. Rooney, Nani, Hernadez/Berbatov in attack & now Ashley Young has been added to the list of top class wingers at Man U. The defence with Vidic & Ferdinand/Smalling should be as tight as last year. the Community Shield win over Man City showed once more that they are the comeback kings, as they did v Blackpool & West Ham in the league last season, they overcame a two-goal defecit to win.
So my top 5 is
1. Man U
2. Chelsea
3. Man City
4. Liverpool
5. Arsenal

Yes We Khan

July review

Amir Khan’s five round demolition of Zab Judah keeps him firmly on course for a megabucks showdown with Floyd Mayweather next year. Judah, though 33 & with six losses on his record, had previously only lost to top drawer opposition (Kostya Tszyu, Mayweather etc).
On the same night, the British heavy title fight between Tyson Fury & Dereck Chisora exemplified the best of boxing. It only takes one punch with the heavyweights to turn a fight, but in this contest both fighters were even more vulnerable. Fury was wobbled in the 2nd & Chisora was often under sustained barrages, but both fighters showed their guts with fightbacks from the brink of defeat. In the end the fight went the distance, with mutual respect enhanced, & Fury took a well-deserved points victory.

In my last blog I introduced a new feature, which, given the frequency which I write this blog, I’m going to rechristen:

Performance of the Month

For pure sporting achievement, Cadel Evans win in the Tour de France, after twice finishing second, could take top spot. Honourable mention to Mark Cavendish for winning five stages & the green jersey for the first time.
It wasn’t just Cav, July was a great month for the Brits. There was British success at the world swimming championships with golds for Becky Adlington, Liam Tancock & Keri-Anne Payne; Michael Phelps also added to his extensive medal collection, though Ryan Lochte got the better of him twice (200 free & 200 IM).
Lewis Hamilton & Jenson Button won the German & Hungarian GPs respectively.
The England cricket team are 2-0 up in the Test series against India, Stuart Broad in particular has stood out with both bat & ball, taking up the all-rounders mantle of Botham & Flintoff.

But my perf of the month goes to Darren Clarke. The amiable Northern Irishman has had to deal with well documented personal tragedy, & his win at the Open was his first major at the age of 42, having been a 200-1 shot with the bookies before the tournament.

Dig the New Breed

Wimbleon Review

The Men’s final showcased a new brand of tennis, with incredible retrieving and returning, and maybe the tennis of the future at the top level. The contrast could not be greater than with the serve-dominated finals of the past, like Sampras v Ivanisevic 1998. I think there was only one serve-volley point in the whole match (when Djokovic was serving it out) and then it was only as a surprise weapon.
Mats Wilander was considered exceptional when he won three of the four majors in 1988. Now it’s almost commonplace. Federer has done it three times (2004, 06, 07) & Rafa did it last year. It’s a tough call now to bet against Nole doing the same this year.
If it wasn’t tough enough for Murray trying to win a Slam with Fed & Nadal around, now you have Djokovic, who has raised his level to leapfrog Roger & Rafa to world no. 1, & now astonishingly won 50 of his last 51 singles matches.

Petra Kvitova was the surprise ladies champion. Her big lefty serve should see her as a regular finalist for the next few years. While reaching the final was a welcome return to form for Sharapova, I wonder if it’s the end of an era with both Wiliams sisters going out in the fourth round. Serena reaching that stage after such a long injury lay-off was no mean feat however, & if she can continue to improve her fitness, I wouldn’t want to rule her out of contention for the US Open.

There was one Brit in a Wimbledon singles final this year, Liam Broady was the boys' runner-up, the best British performance since Miles Kasiri in 2004 .It’s notoriously difficult to predict whether a junior will be a success in the pro ranks. Although Federer & Edberg are past winners of the boys' titles, there is a far longer list of ex-junior champions who haven’t set the pro ranks on fire. Only time will tell whether Broady is another Murray, or another Kasiri (who peaked at 504 in the world rankings), though he does seem to have a good temperament.

Time for an exciting new feature, readers (yes, both of you)

Performance of the Week

This week I’m going for Tommy Voeckler, for his strength & guts in living with the climbers through the Pyrenees, & so holding onto the yellow jersey.

A Class Apart

Champions League final

Barcelona’s victory was the most convincing display I’ve ever seen in a final. A work colleague thought Man U would have been disappointed to lose it. Nonsense. Barcelona are so far ahead of anyone else it's no disgrace losing to them. If they carry this form on into next season, surely no-one can deny they deserve to be ranked among the all-time great teams: the DiStefano Real Madrid side of the 50's, Cruyff's Total Football Ajax team who won a hat-trick of titles in the 70's, or the Milan of Gullit, Van Basten, Rijkaard (winners 89,90)

Wimbledon

Despite just coming off a year-long injury lay-off, Serena Williams is the bookies' favourite for the title, which shows both what a great athlete & competitor she is, but also the poor state at the very top of the womens game. Serena has won a slam before in similar circumstances- 2007 Aussie Open when ranked 81 in the world. She’s in the top half with Sharapova, & I think the winner of that semi will lift the title.

On the mens’ side, Nadal & Federer are in opposite halves of the draw & I can see them meeting in the final, with Rafa triumphant.

What chances of British glory ? I was saying to a mate last week there was no strength in depth with the men. Then James Ward made the semis at Queens. Ward faces Llodra, an exponent of the dying art of serve & volley, in the first round. I think Llodra will come through in five tough sets.
Two of the women have been drawn together, apart from that I think Watson has a good chance of reaching the second round.
Murray has a tough draw, if it goes as projected, from r3 it would be Cilic, Gasquet(or Wawrinka), Roddick & if he gets past that lot in one piece then Nadal. I think he will do very well to get to the semi with Rafa.

The Streak

French Open

Considering Djokovic is on a 39 match win streak, I was surprised to see that Nadal is still favourite with the bookies for the French Open.
Prior to this year, he had never beaten Nadal on clay, now he has done it twice (Madrid & Rome finals). The question is whether he can do it over five sets.

In the past, some commentators have (harshly) has questioned his attitude due to several high profile retirements, eg Wimbledon 2007 semi v Nadal, with foot blisters (though his previous two rounds were five & four hour matches respectively v Baghdatis & Hewitt ) & 2009 Aus Open (v Roddick) with heat exhaustion. Clearly there’s nothing wrong with the mental side of his game now. Serbia’s Davis Cup victory in December has been the catalyst for this amazing run which has pushed Federer down to no. 3 in the rankings
I think the Djoker can stay unbeaten until the grasscout season, surpassing Vilas’ record (46 straight wins) in the process.

Sharapova has returned to her best form recently, achieving her best ever result on clay in winning Rome, & is back in the top ten. Wozniacki will again be trying to justify her no. 1 ranking by breaking her duck at the majors, but for me Clijsters is still favourite to win her first title at Roland Garros.

Champions League Final

This year sees a dream final, between the two teams who have been consistently the best two club sides in the world over the last four years or so. The Reds play their 3rd final in four years, Barca’s sequence since 2008 reads semi, final, semi, final. Man U are domestic champs for the 4th time in five years, & Barca completed a league threepeat this year. Hopefully Barcelona will not repeat the diving & histrionics which marred their semi with Madrid; & instead showcase their ability as the undisputed masters of the possession game. If Man U can cut off the supply to Leo Messi, they still have to cope with Villa, Iniesta, Xavi …
Barca to win 2-1.

Djoker Tops the Pack

Although not at his very best today, Murray was outclassed by Djokovic. Murray has not won a set in his three Slam final appearances, a big worry for his fans. His talent is unquestioned, but as I blogged in my July post, he seems to have no answer when he’s being outhit. Djokovic did play an incredible match (and tournament), his retrieving was in the same class as Rafa at his best, & he was able to hit winners while doing the splits from way behind the baseline.

In my September blog I worried that the Fed may not win another Slam. He has now lost two Slam SFs in a row to Djokovic. Notwithstanding his victory at the Tour Finals, last week's results just reinforce my view that another major will elude him. Arguably Djokovic was fortunate to win in five sets in the Flushing SF, but here he won in straight sets. Federer wasn’t hitting his spots on serve, which has often got him out of trouble in the past. Rog will still have a great chance at Wimbledon, where only a select few of the top players are comfortable.

Nadal lost in the QFs, as he did last year. If Rafa can stay largely injury-free, he will still be the man on clay , & I’m still tipping him to be the year-end no. 1.

The hoary old argument that women don’t deserve equal money was blown out of the water here. The second longest match of the tournament, 4 hr 44 min, was Kuznetsova-Schiavone (4th round, 16-14 in the 5th) a new record for a womens Slam match.
Is it the end of an era in the womens game? Venus Williams retired from a Slam with injury for the first time, & there’s still no sign of Serena making a comeback. Sadly Henin has taken doctors’ advice to retire due to her elbow injury, as I’ve said before, my favourite woman player with her volleying ability & sublime backhand. Like Murray, Wozniacki’s wait for a Major title continues, but this despite her being world no. 1. Before winning the final, Clijsters had announced this would her last full-time year on Tour, perhaps Wozniacki won’t be too pleased to hear she’ll be back to defend the title next year.