ITALY ACCUSED: ABUSE OF THE 4-1-2-1-2

Benito Mussolini has returned to the Italian throne, declaring the 4-1-2-1-2 as the official formation of the corporate state on the football pitch! Any alterations, variations, or opposition of any kind will be eliminated!

Okay, not really, but seriously Serie A—What’s up with the 4-1-2-1-2? Apparently, these days, the latest trend in “the boot” is the 4-1-2-1-2, and the Italians have beat this set-up to a pulp.

Such a formation is difficult to maneuver, as it requires precise execution from all parties involved. Crucial to its success is relentless activity coming forward from the outside backs, and thus structure in the defensive midfield to make up for its susceptibility to counterattacks with width. Also, given that the formation is designed for squads with a surplus of central midfielders, it is important to resist clogging the middle of the field.

The issue is that the requirements of the 4-1-2-1-2 are much more complicated and interdependent in comparison with some of football’s simpler formations. Consequently, its overuse in Serie A has resulted in inconsistency for those who employ its services, occasionally ineffective attacking schemes, and even horribly boring play.

Take, for instance, Inter Milan, 4-1-2-1-2 regulars. Coach Jose Mourinho loves the 4-3-3, but at Inter, he does not have the width to build such a design. Instead, the reigning Italian champs are abundant with central midfielders and have two attack-minded backs.

On paper, this is perfect for the 4-1-2-1-2. However, with an all-too compact midfield, the Nerazzurri rarely escape the middle of the pitch. Their player most apt at providing offensive width, Wesley Sneijder, is positioned at the tip of the diamond, as he is keen on finally attacking from the center midfield after playing on the flanks during his tenure in Madrid. Thus, Inter Milan are left ineffectively trying to force their play down the middle of the pitch, as was no more evident than in their 2-1 struggle over Cagliari on Sunday.

Then, you have AC Milan, who might as well have signed a contract with the 4-1-2-1-2. Despite starting a 37-year old left back (you know, the guy that’s supposed to get forward a lot) this past weekend, the Rosseneri remain intent on sticking with their trademark formation. And how does Milan look? Terrible—so terrible in fact that they probably deserve more than a paragraph of abuse.

Juventus, however, is a rare exception from this theme of structural failure in Italy. Unlike many of their competitors, the Zebras are able to employ the 4-1-2-1-2 and stretch the field. Thanks primarily to Fabio Grosso and Camoranesi, Juventus are able to widen their attack from the defense and midfield, respectively, and open up their formation to a bit of creativity.

As demonstrated by Juve, the 4-1-2-1-2 recipe can certainly work, but only with all the necessary ingredients. And even with a shortage of resources, teams like Bologna, Siena, Chievo, and Palermo persist to employ their country’s national football formation.

So why is Serie A so keen on the 4-1-2-1-2? It might have something to do with the style of Italian football and the make-up of today’s typical Italian footballer.

Italian football, in terms of both the national squad and the country’s professional league competition, is famous for its technical play. Unlike, say, the English Premier League, which stresses speed and quick attack, Serie A endorses structured, precise football.

Thus, Serie A is naturally inclined to develop a more technically-sound player. Technical skill makes for a strong player in the middle of the field; the best players technically often play the center midfield (versus those who excel athletically, players prone to wider positions). As a result, Italian football is home to a surplus of center midfielders, not coincidentally the first disposition in 4-1-2-1-2 employment.

The analogy makes sense, but all in all, is too simple to be accurate. It’s not like the Serie A winger is an extinct player; come on now.

So Italy, what's the deal? Your top-flight has no width and a lack of creativity. The issue is clear and the solution is not difficult. What's up Serie A?

Real Madrid: A Work in Progress

            A month into the 2009-10 campaign, Europe’s most anticipated team is fulfilling exactly what it promised: winning games and tallying boatloads of goals. 

            We’re talking about Real Madrid, of course.  Four games into their season, this summer’s big-spenders are undefeated, averaging an absurd four goals per game.  Impressive.

            But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.   The Spanish giants have been scoring like bros at a frat party, while featuring a squad that quite honestly may rival FIFA 2009’s World XI. But reading score lines does not equate to watching play—And that is where Madrid’s scoreboard dominance becomes deceiving.

            In observing the inaugural month of Los Galacticos II, what cannot be looked past is that the Real Madrid squad do not look fluid.  Their play is tainted by static motion and a lack of structure, and most notably does in fact resemble that of a World XI—no chemistry.  Nor have Madrid established a consistent line-up.  Depth is crucial, but rotations can be disruptive and must not be overused.

            These struggles are largely attributed to the arrival of new personnel at the Bernabéu this year.  Newcomers Kaka and Karim Benzema are finding only limited involvement on the field and have been disappearing for long stretches of play.  (Christiano Ronaldo, however, is thriving, but he is an alien, i.e. his chest is made of body armor.)

            Madrid’s new look, though, has taken its toll on the entire squad, and right now it seems as if everyone is in transition mode.  The club has promised to build their renovation around their prized imports—and rightly so—but Bernabéu regulars are now finding difficulty in adjusting to their new roles within the team.  Featuring a creative, free-roaming attack, Manuel Pelegrini needs his squad to be structurally strong behind the ball—defensive roles Gago and Lass Diarra are struggling to stick with.  Club captain Raul also seems lost amongst his offensive unit, straying from his traditional role up top to foreign parts of the pitch.

            Okay, so already Los Galacticos is a repeat failure, right?  Not quite.  In fact, things couldn’t look better for Real Madrid.

            Building a team is no easy task.  It takes time.  But the fact that the new-look Madrid are thrashing opponents right off the bat with no team chemistry is unbelievable. It’s scary to think what they could achieve once they establish some familiarity on the pitch.

            It’s true, yes, Real Madrid have not been tested by the strongest of opposition, but there is this sense of power, this sense of the will-to-dominate when their army takes action on the field.  Quite honestly, this army looks poised to handle anything that comes its way.

            Good teams win games—no matter how the task is done.  The best teams, though, win with a process, a script currently being written in Madrid.  Real Madrid have their pieces.  I can’t wait to see what the puzzle looks like.

The USA on Mute

            In a way, you could say that there was not much noise made during the USA-Trinidad & Tobago match Wednesday night.  Yeah, a 1-0 victory was tainted by quiet showings from many of the American players and inharmonious play amongst the entire team, but literally, for most those watching the game, there was no noise. 

            In typical American fashion, United States soccer supporters were left to watch their national team from a live stream on the Internet through ESPN360.  But it was not the blurry picture or the lagging feed that was their biggest issue.  Throughout the past few years, since ESPN decided soccer was worthy of its time, American fan-faithful have become accustomed to a new TV series we call “The USA on Mute.”

            “The USA on Mute” is ESPN’s latest gift to American soccer.  The all-too-soccer-friendly sports network now provides its audience with an all-new interactive feature, one that enables those watching to personally control the volume on their very own feed!  It’s quite brilliant, really, and after enjoying ESPN’s commentary teams for the USMNT games through recent years, we now often find ourselves taking advantage of the new audio feature—turning the volume completely off.

            To put it bluntly, the commentary for ESPN’s USMNT broadcasts is awful.  The team of American soccer analysts at ESPN basically consists of former National Team players and then, recent sports-guy-soccer-converts.  Those who have represented our country on the soccer field deserve the utmost respect—but that does not mean they are shoo-ins for a job of play-by-play commentary.  Furthermore, someone new to the game should be the last person to land a similar position.  Think—Would ESPN ever assign anyone other than a basketball expert to commentate a basketball game?

            The latest culprits here are John Harkes and JP Dellacamera, the commentary duo for the T&T game Wednesday night, and for the USMNT in recent months.  For these two, the problem is not that neither lack knowledge of the game—Harkes was fantastic midfielder for the USMNT in the 90s and Dellacamera has been commentating soccer since the 80s—but rather that neither know how to present the game.  During broadcasts, Harkes is too busy trying to explain the “world’s game” in an American context, while Dellacamera is left reading off of stat sheets all night and occasionally asking Harkes for his translations.

            Harkes and Dellacamera are by no means ESPN’s worst, though.  You might remember, when ESPN first picked up the rights to USMNT soccer, before the 2006 World Cup, the infamous Dave O’Brien.  O’Brien, a longtime play-by-play baseball announcer for ESPN, was one of ESPN’s attempts at a “soccer-convert.”  But convert he could not quite do.

            Having never called a soccer game prior to the 2006 World Cup, O’Brien’s performance from the broadcasting booth was a disaster.  O’Brien polluted the atmosphere of his games with inadvertent stats, mispronunciation of players’ names, and incorrect usage of soccer terminology.  (A shot on goal was referred to as “blasting a kick” and free kicks were often deemed “penalty kicks,” for example.)  Quite comically, Marcello Balboa, O’Brien’s partner in the booth, was left interrupting and correcting the novice on air for his frequent errors.

            To be fair, though, O’Brien, Harkes, Dellacamera and their studio counterparts cannot be entirely blamed for their inabilities to call soccer games.  Rather, the fault falls at the feet of ESPN.  Despite its great success as a sporting network, ESPN is the epitome of the American sports scene.  Their ignorant and naive approach to a sport foreign to mainstream America, like soccer, is entirely unprofessional.

            Take, for instance, two explanations from ESPN regarding Dave O’Briens appointment as commentator back in 2006:  For one, it was hoped that O’Brien’s “signature voice from a mainstream event” would popularize that summer’s World Cup broadcast.  And two, it was suggested that “soccer [had] been given its due to have [Dave O’Brien] delivered to the sport.”  Based on these assertions, we can only infer that ESPN is encouraging their soccer commentators to translate USMNT broadcasts to an American context, as John Harkes and JP Dellacamera are too often guilty of doing.

            What ESPN and their commentary crew must realize is that they cannot “Americanize” soccer.  The network seems to want to appeal to their average viewer by compromising between the game and the American sports fan.  In reality, however, they are merely losing attendants, because of a poor, inaccurate portrayal of the game.  For someone new to soccer, they need not to be taught by play-by-play commentary, but by simply watching the game through the most natural experience.  More importantly, for those who know soccer, the last thing they want is a commentator explaining to them what they already know.

            Soccer fans in the United States are admittedly happy, though, that unlike in the past, they now at least have access to watch their national team perform.  It would just be nice if they didn’t have to watch the USA on mute.

Bittersweet Win for USA

            From scaring world-class opposition to scaring fan faithful, the United States Men’s National Team has enjoyed its own personal Halloween vacation through the past year.  After last night’s 2-1 win over El Salvador, the latter was the more prevalent.  And with the World Cup less than a year away, it would be nice if this weren’t the case.

            Inconsistency has become the USA’s theme for the year of 2009.  Let’s rewind back to January 24 when the red, white, and blue defeated Sweden in a game highlighted by Sacha Kljestan’s thrilling hat trick.  Despite the fact that this was basically a B-team clash for each side, the USMNT began the year on the right foot: A win over a quality European nation with a brilliant performance from a highly-touted up-and-coming talent.  Less than 3 weeks later, things couldn’t have been better when the Americans handily dealt with the Mexicans 2-nil in Columbus.

            Things weren’t all good for long, though.  Before World Cup qualifying took its summer vacation, the USA finished the spring at 3-2, struggling to draw El Salvador and suffering an embarrassing 3-1 defeat in Costa Rica.  At this, the Americans’ victories over Trinidad &Tobago and Honduras salvaged little satisfaction.

            Then, came the famed Confederations Cup showing.  When the USA lost to Italy and Brazil in their first two group B matches, American soccer was no further along than it was 10 years ago, nothing but an afterthought in the world’s great sporting nation.  But when the USMNT crushed Egypt, beat Spain, and took Brazil to the brink in the World Cup tune-up’s championship, American soccer was at its pinnacle, a world-class side now to be reckoned with.

            Come mid-August, approaching the infamous Azteca match, the message to the Mexicans was in: Beware.  The newly-rejuvenated USA was destined to end its winless streak on Mexican soil.  However, finding it hard to escape tradition, the Americans crumbled upon a 1-0 lead, eventually falling 2-1 to a relentless Mexican side.

            Now, despite a 2-1 USA victory last night, the post-game mood is bittersweet.  The result is nonetheless a great one for the United States, but as we put this year in perspective, there are a few distressing details that at this point cannot be ignored.  The common denominator amongst all their CONCACAF matches the past eight months is that the Americans have not won on foreign soil once.  The ability to win away from home is crucial in advancing American soccer to a higher level.

            More importantly, too often the USMNT play to the level of their opponents.  This is fantastic when our national team is taking on the likes of Spain and Brazil, but terribly detrimental when facing much weaker CONCACAF opponents, which much more often is the case.  As happened Saturday night, the Americans should not find themselves struggling through a must-win situation against a team like El Salvador.

            We do not have long of a wait to see how our national team follows up last night’s performance, however.  On Wednesday, the USMNT is set to take on Trinidad & Tobago in the Port of Spain, Trinidad.  T&T are admittedly a weak side, but the location of this match gives the USA a challenge it is in desperate need of.  A win is obviously the only option, but should America perform well away from home, its fan faithful may be able to ease their worries—just a bit.

Dutchmen on the Move: "The Adventures of Bayern and Robben" and Communism in Madrid

            This past Friday, Arjen Robben signed with Bayern Munich from Real Madrid for a fee around 25 million euro, and thus now begin The Adventures of Bayern and Robben.  Robben joins French international Franck Ribery behind the wheel of the Bayern Batmobile, and the two should form a deadly attacking combo, threatening opposition from either side of the pitch.  Like Ribery, Robben has established himself as one of the world’s elite wingers, after successful stints throughout Europe at PSV, Chelsea, and Real Madrid.  Upon his move to Germany, Robben should enjoy punishing crime in the infamously poor Bundesliga defense.

            Indeed, only days after the move, The Adventures of Bayern and Robben have begun.  In this season’s first episode, the Dutchman was brilliant.  As Bayern Munich took on Wolfsburg, Robben entered the game as a second-half substitute and in only a half-hour’s time, netted two goals, both of which were assisted by Ribery.  Largely to the credit of their new attacking duo, Bayern dismantled the defending Bundesliga champs 3-nil.

            Fortunately, for the German giants, Robben’s arrival couldn’t have come at a better time.  The club find themselves in a bit of turmoil, coming off a very disappointing second place domestic finish last season and going winless in their first three games this year, while struggling with the transfer demands of their best player in Ribery.  Robben’s exceptional speed, vision, and distribution and finishing abilities will most definitely bolster Bayern’s attack.  The club also hopes that his partnership with Ribery will keep the Frenchman less dissatisfied this season.

            All in all, expect both Arjen Robben and Bayern Munich to bring out the best in each other.  It should be a big year for both parties.

            Elsewhere in the world of football, Robben’s national counterpart Wesley Sneijder also completed his own transfer across European borders this past week.  This Dutch winger was convinced into joining Inter Milan by Jose Mourinho after it appeared Real Madrid no longer wanted his services either.

            Sneijder looks to be a significant addition to his new club as well.  Mourinho had repeatedly stressed this summer that his team was largely lacking a playmaker.  Well, Wesley Sneijder happens to be quite a playmaker, and now that Inter have their final puzzle piece, they, like Bayern, look a much more potent side.  Unsurprisingly, in Sneijder’s first appearance with his new club, Inter coasted to a 4-0 victory over city rivals AC Milan.

            How funny that with these transfers, Real Madrid now look like the communists of European football: Stealing big names from big clubs and redistributing their outcasts to teams in need.  Robben and Sneijder both had great careers at Real Madrid and it seems mind-blowing to suggest that these two could not find their place in the Real squad.  But unless Francisco Franco has something to say about it, Madrid look poised to continue their offloading. 

            As for the Dutchmen, while having left Madrid for different countries, they now find themselves in very similar situations.  Both Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder arrive at their new clubs as the centerpieces of projects built for a season of improvement.  Thus, we can expect big things from these two this year, and thanks to communism, we can expect big things from their respective clubs as well.

Book Review: The Beckham Experiment

            Consider yourself a sports fan?  If so, The Beckham Experiment is a must-read.  With inside access to the Los Angeles Galaxy and interviews with Galaxy personnel, including Beckham himself, Sports Illustrated columnist Grant Wahl reveals the truth—scandals, secrets, and all—that now maims David Beckham’s famed tenure here in America.  Quite simply put, The Beckham Experiment is the most important piece of literature ever written concerning soccer, its struggle, its growth, and its mere presence, in the United States.  Here are my final thoughts on the book…

1.    1. Hollywood > Beckham: Naturally, you would think that the world’s biggest athlete and the world’s biggest sporting scene would mesh well together.  But in terms of on-field production, David Beckham + America = disaster experiment.  And why?  Pop icon status is nothing new for Beckham, but for the first time in his life, Goldenballs was immersed into Hollywood, unlike anything he had ever encountered in England or in Spain.  Ultimately, Beckham was in way over his head and his responsibilities as a celebrity were detrimental to his commitment to the Galaxy.

2.    2. In America, Business > Sport: Although admittedly said from a fan’s perspective, too often for inside parties, American sports become, above all else, a business.  And in the Beckham Experiment, this was its downfall.  Beckham’s people became so preoccupied with promotions, money-making, and status positioning in the Galaxy ranks that in the end, Beckham’s performance on the field received the least attention.  From a business perspective, the Beckham Experiment was an enormous success, but otherwise, not so much.

3.    3. Dear MLS, Stay “American”: Perhaps the biggest winner in The Beckham Experiment is the MLS itself, as the league has enjoyed huge increases in income and popularity since Beckham’s arrival.  Now, MLS has its issues—turf fields, which Beckham himself complained about, awful travel accommodations, a lack of funds—but it is growing and improving.  Beckham’s people, notably former Galaxy coach Ruud Gullit, approached MLS with their “European expertise” expecting the league to kiss their feet.  Two years later, MLS has learned better.  In order to succeed, the league must not succumb to all foreign ways, but retain a bit of Americana, and in doing so building an identity and establishing itself as bigger than the “Beckhams” it houses.

4.    4. Maturity is Landon Donovan: Donovan was another big winner in The Beckham Experiment.  The LA Galaxy forward went through a lot during the first two years of Beckham’s tumultuous MLS tenure: giving up the club captaincy at the request of Beckham’s advisors, performing in Beckham’s shadow despite being the league’s best player and receiving an inferior salary, etc.  Eventually, though, Donovan worked up the courage to call Beckham out as a bad teammate and he has now regained the armband for Los Angeles.  All in all, Landon Donovan has emerged from the Beckham Experiment as a more mature individual and a more professional athlete.

5. Alan Gordon is the Man: Although uninvolved in the tension amongst the Galaxy locker room and front office, The Beckham Experiment sheds light on one of Los Angeles’s lower-profile stars in Alan Gordon.  Gordon emerges in Grant Wahl’s book as the protagonist in an underdog story.  The occupant of an apartment shared with two fellow Galaxy roommates, Gordon earns a terribly low salary and coaches a girl’s youth soccer team on the side to make enough money to get by.  Hampered by drugs and alcohol in his past, Gordon, despite being slow of foot and a showcase of ordinary skills, has worked his best to not only remain contracted with the Galaxy, but to have also earned a pay raise last year.  Congrats to him.

Hooligan Guest Article: Arsenal Update by Willard Hancock

Despite serious grammatical errors and a raging bias, we have decided to privilege Willard Hancock with a guest post on behalf of his beloved Arsenal...

Three games played and Arsenal is looking pretty damn good. 10 goals in two league matches and an impressive slash lucky win against Celtic… I’m not complaining, but it is interesting to hear people continue to write us off. AND! For those of you who are shocked, let it be known I saw this coming 2 years ago. I’ll remind you that Arsenal is the only team that matters, all the other teams just show up to play us. It would indeed be very boring if we won every year.

Something interesting to point out… Only 1 striker (Eduardo) has scored for us thus far. This doesn’t bother me as long as the goals keep coming, but it scares me a bit that William Gallas is the leading scorer for the team. One from a header, another off the ass, and he managed to smother one in with his lower lip (despite what replays may tell you, it was his lip that scored). A little side note, I wonder which is more likely to happen, Gallas scores with his feet or Shevchenko scores…Ponder on that for a min.

This Wednesday we take on Celtic at the Emirates. They should wrap things up here, although I expect AW to twik the starting 11 a bit to keep every1 healthy in preparation for the United game. I think Fabregas will sit this one out with groin problems or what have you, nothing serious. Not too much to say about this one. We’re a shoe in.

Now for the reason I am writing this blog, Arsenal V. United 12:15ET on FSC. I’m looking forward to this one and predicting a 3-1 win to the Arsenal with goals from RvP, Arshavin, and William Gallas’ penis. I’m certain his penis will smack one in for us (no homo). With Ferdinand out and van der Sar turning 93 this year I am willing to bet AW’s squad take care of business at Old Trafford. As for United, some kid named Rattanak Seng (look him up on facebook he is real) thinks Park Ji-Sung will sneak 1 in for a consolation goal and then celebrate by showing 52,000 fans how to properly cook a cat, b/c I’ve always wanted to know. Of course if my predictions are wrong I will gladly tattoo a picture of Wayne Rooney across my back 

Well that’s that, I’m gonna go back to watching Royal Pains. I find the white guy with the curly hair amusing and the Indian girl is good looking. Decent show I guess. Good night, more later.

-Willard Hancock (Subtleaggro)