Sports Then and Now

St. Louis Athletica officially announced its final 22-player roster today. The roster consists of 18 active players and four developmental players, denoted here with a “D” following their names.

Kristina Larson, the 17th overall pick in the 2010 WPS draft, will begin the season on the injured reserve list, as she suffered a stress fracture recently. Niki Cross was signed as a free agent to complete the roster.

The announcement comes ten days before the WPS kicks off their season on April 10. St. Louis will host FC Gold Pride on April 11. Read the rest of this entry →

Tim Cahill will lead Australia in the World Cup.

Australia is one of the World Cup participants with the strongest links to English league teams. Many players from the Premier League, Championship and lower divisions are likely to feature for the Socceroos in South Africa, and whilst some are journeymen likely to have a limited impact, Tim Cahill is a top class international capable of making a big impression at the finals.

Cahill has a historic place in Australian football history, scoring his team’s first ever World Cup goal in Germany four years ago. His two goals against Japan also meant he was the first Aussie scorer of a World Cup brace and maiden World Cup man of the match. He will surely increase his tally this time around.

An international record of 19 goals from 37 matches is an excellent goal to games ratio, especially considering the Everton man’s deep-lying position. It is easy to see why he has a reputation for being a goalscoring midfielder, but as any Toffees fan will tell you, his game is about more than arriving late in the box and scoring headers.

These are fine attributes, but Cahill’s creative skill and tenacity are often overlooked. Top Premier League midfielders cannot rely on goals alone and Cahill’s passing and tackling mean he can play in a flat midfield as well as in a midfield diamond or withdrawn string role.

Australia performed well in Germany, losing unluckily in round two to Italy. Despite not being favorites to win 2010 FIFA world cup, another second round appearance is achievable and perhaps needed, as the Aussies will go to the next World Cup without Mark Schwarzer, Brett Emerton and perhaps Cahill. This is his chance to shine and it is a safe bet that the famous corner flag boxing celebration will be in use.

The Women’s Professional Soccer league (WPS) announced that the Atlanta Beat will host the 2010 WPS All—Star Game presented by the U.S. Coast Guard on Wednesday, June 30th.

The game, which will take place at the Beat’s new stadium in Kennesaw, Ga., will be televised live on Fox Soccer Channel and available on Fox Sports Net (FSN) and its affiliates at 7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT, including a pregame show live from Atlanta. Read the rest of this entry →

Saint Louis Athletica of Women’s Professional Soccer, WPS, opened their 2010 exhibition schedule with a 4-0 win over the University of Illinois Women’s team on Saturday. Kristina Larsen, Eniola Aluko, Madelaine Edlund, and Shannon Boxx all tallied goals for Saint Louis.

For Coach Jorge Barcellos the game was a chance to see a lot of his new players and his new midfielder, Boxx, especially impressed him.

“She was unbelievable,” exclaimed Barcellos. “To have a player with this type of confidence in the field, and to control the game as she did, is incredible. She raises the level of the game, she helps us keep possession of the ball, and she orchestrates where every player should be. Just incredible.” Read the rest of this entry →

Kaká is the leader of the Brazilian squad for the 2010 World Cup.

A team does not become one of the World Cup 2010 betting favorites without talent in all positions and great overall depth, but Brazil’s hopes of glory are strongly pinned to the performance of their top player Kaká. The Real Madrid playmaker should be one of the stars of the tournament and prove on a global stage why he was once voted the World player of the year.

Some of the world’s greatest ever players do not have great World Cup records and Kaká’s previous appearances – 25 minutes as a substitute in 2002 and a solitary goal, albeit a superb one, in an unmemorable Brazilian campaign four years later – means the best Brazilian player of his generation might end up being included on that list.

However, everything is in place for Kaká to make this his career-defining year. At 27 he is at his peak and part of a team that is many observers’ favorite to lift the trophy. He is the attacking heartbeat of the Samba Kings, able to prompt attacks with his guileful passing and surging dribbling.

True, the goals have dried up recently – only four since he was voted the world’s best in 2007 – but he is hitting the net regularly for free-scoring Real Madrid and can be expected to get more chances for his national team in the summer, who often go through the motions in friendlies.

Not since 1986 has a World Cup-winner be sustained throughout the tournament by the brilliance of one man, and whilst it might be too much to expect Kaká to hit the heights Diego Maradona reached in Mexico, if he plays his best it is probably safe to say that World Cup 2010 odds will back Brazil to become world champions for the sixth time.

Is Diego Maradona capable of leading Argentina to success at the 2010 World Cup?

Usually World Cup previews focus on the players who are likely to be involved but Argentina, as with most things involving Diego Maradona, are a special case. The sputtering qualification campaign which saw the Albicelestes secure their place in the tournament with a late goal against Uruguay was well documented. Equally well reported was Maradona’s foul-mouthed rant which followed that win. His outburst earned him two month ban from his official duties, meaning he missed the 2010 Football (Soccer) World Cup Draw.

However, it’s highly unlikely that Maradona’s absence is the reason behind a lacklustre run of friendly games for Argentina. A defeat to Spain in November suggests the side will struggle to cope when it comes up against the leading contenders at the World Cup. More worrying though were the unconvincing wins over Costa Rica and Jamaica. The former was described by Argentine newspaper La Nacion as “a victory which didn’t provide the necessary answers”.

Despite this, Maradona said that he has decided on 60 per cent of his squad already. And this could be part of the problem. Although players such as Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano would no doubt walk into any other team in the world some of the manager’s other favourites are more puzzling. Jonas Guiterrez is a fine example of this. He currently plays in the English Championship and although his pace and ability to go past players are not in question, he struggles with crossing and shooting and it’s hard to envisage him ever making a massive impact on the world stage. Read the rest of this entry →