The Bitter Fruit of the Transfer Market

Ball Harambee by Bagga Wilks

Transfers at the eleventh hour can strengthen or weaken a team. It also means not good news for those already in the roster. The transfer of Fellaini from Everton to Manchester United will unquestionably strengthen the Manchester United mid-field. It will mean Anderson might never be a regular starter for Manchester United and Cleverly will see less playing time.

Arsenal is the beneficiary of the Gareth Bale trade to Real Madrid as it made Ozil available. In his first game Ozil settled in right after the referee’s whistle even though it often takes players coming into the EPL one year to adjust. Wenger’s patience paid off and as they displayed against Sunderland Arsenal, will be a contender all season.

Mourinho acquired the players he wanted to possible triumph in his return to Stamford Bridge. Samuel E’too made his debut. Willian, the Brazilian, was not included in the roster and the new Chelsea is still struggling to find the right chemistry.

Manchester City is also struggling to integrate new players and a new coach. They are far from sharp and could only manage a draw at Stoke City. The departed Tevez is rejoicing as he will get to play regularly as the point striker for Juventus in Serie A. Juventus has readily integrated Tevez into the lineup even though they could only manage a draw against the newly reconstructed Inter Milan.

A.C. Milan sent Prince Boateng to Schalke in the Bundesliga, and re-possessed Kaka who had wallowed in Real Madrid’s bench since he transferred to La Liga a couple years ago. Kaka will now play regularly and try to get back to the form of the old Kaka. He joins with Balotelli and Robinho but Robinho against Torino was not in the game. Kaka did not sparkle. A.C. Milan drew 2-2 with Torino in a game that Torino deserved to win.

Across the river in La Liga, Spain, Neymar is settling in and his combined play with Messi should produce numerous highlights. One wonders why Alex Song transferred to Barcelona as in the prime of his career when he had established himself in the EPL. He has become a bench warmer at Barcelona.

Bale scored in his debut for Real Madrid but Real Madrid’s game ended up as a draw. All eyes are on Bale to determine if he can live up to the money spent for his acquisition. Like Ozil, he might not need much time to justify the bounty on his head.

Those who have lost places as a result of eleventh hour trades will certainly seek new pastures in the January transfer market.

Spain Loses Its Footing in the New World

Ball Harambee By Bagga Wilks

Although not known as a principal colonizer in Africa, Spain won the World Cup convincingly in South Africa, 2010. The Spanish Empire was in fact more established in the New World and much of Latin America with the exception of Brazil came under the rubric of the Spanish crown. In the Confederation Cup, Spain ventured to Brazil as the new conquistadors of world football. But alas, the world champions were dethroned by Brazil who had the advantage of playing at home in front of a patriotic but troubled nation.



It was befitting that the final in the Confederation Cup would conclude with Spain vs Brazil. Everyone anticipated a photo-finish contest but Brazil simply outplayed the Spanish team, surprising many soccer pundits who pontificated that Spain 2010 and in the European Cup 2012 was not just the best team at this juncture but the best ever in the history of the game.



In tournaments like the World Cup and the Confederation Cup, the endurance of teams is severely tested as teams are playing back to back games. Some of the Spanish stars like Xavi and Iniesta are no longer young lions and the rigor of league play and national duties are beginning to take a toll on the performance of these aging lions.

Scolari’s squad did not allow Spain the space to play their passing game. From the genesis of the first half, Brazil pressured Spain and had the champions discombobulated from which they did not recover. Further adding to the Spanish disarray, Brazil scored in the opening minutes of the match. It was downhill for Spain for the remaining ninety minutes.



As the match progressed, Spain’s grueling semi-final with Italy left the champions bereft of energy and they failed to get into their established rhythm. What does this 3-0 victory over the World Champions mean for Brazil? Scolari has put together a team that combines “skill and steel” as one of the television commentators stated insightfully. The Confederation Cup is when boys become men. Neymar is on his way to Barcelona with ample confidence gained in the Confederation Cup. Gustavo and Paulinho are the men of steel in mid-field and Oscar, Neymar, Fred and Hulk provide the skill in the attacking third. Marcelo and Alves are splendid attacking full backs and David Luiz and Thiago Silva constitute a fortress with the veteran goalkeeper, Julius Caesar at the back.

Brazil hosts the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. The demonstrators throughout the tournament have sent a clear message to the Brazilian government that life is more than football. If Brazil is to calm the waters in 2014 and 2016, the government will have to vigorously tackle the widespread corruption that involves businessmen and elected officials. The pressing issue of social justice must be immediately tackled. In the words of the late reggae superstar, Peter Tosh, there will not be peace in the streets unless the Brazilian government can demonstrate that they are committed to social justice.

Neymar Dazzles and the Movement Mushrooms

Ball Harambee By Bagga Wilks

Neymar has ignited Brazil and his spectacular performance thus far in the Confederation Cup has been instrumental in Brazil getting to the semi-final where they will likely play Uruguay. The other semi-finalists will be Spain and Italy and that sets up a Brazil vs Spain final to conclude the Confederation Cup, the precursor to the World Cup to be held in Brazil in 2014.



As Neymar and his compatriots dazzle on the field, the protest movement of millions of Brazilians is sending a clear message to the government that expenditures on stadiums should not come at the expense of people’s lives. The government inastutely raised the cost of mass transportation and the protest movement has forced a rollback in those price increases. To stem the rising tide, the President of Brazil in an address to the nation has promised greater expenditures on health and education. The government’s belated wakeup call might not be sufficient to stem the mushrooming unrest.

Scolari’s squad has been triumphant playing at home and even though Neymar has come of age in the tournament, the Brazilian World Cup team has a long road to travel to return to the top of the heap in world soccer. The back four of Daniel Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz and Marcelo were impregnable until David Luiz in the Italy game had to leave the field injured. Dante, the Bayern Munich central defender does not cover as much ground as David Luiz and the two goals by Italy were scored when he replaced David Luiz.

With Marcelo, Scolari has a dilemma. Marcelo has great offensive skills as a left fall back and combines well with Neymar. But on counter-attacks, he leaves gaping holes in the Brazilian left flank. One of the defensive mid-fielders will have to plug that hole.



Against Italy, Scolari brought in Hermanes for the injured Paulinho. Hernanes has played well for Lazio in Serie A but he is yet to show up while representing the national team. Against Italy he was missing in action. Fred, as a striker, displayed his attributes against Italy but Hulk is yet to impress. Oscar played for Brazil in the 2012 Olympics, then joined Chelsea for the 2012-2013 EPL season and is now playing in the Confederation Cup. He has not been effective as Oscar must be in need of a rest.

Scolari made a grave mistake by not selecting Ramires who like Paulinho can run up and down the pitch until the cows come home. Scolari’s Brazilian national team still needs some tinkering and will be truly tested if they play Spain, the World Cup defenders, in the final of the Confederation Cup.



Neymar and most of the Brazilian squad have come out in support of the widespread demonstrations. The Confederation Cup represents Neymar’s showcasing his talent on the world stage. In the fall, he will join the great Messi in Barcelona. The two together will produce for the years to come highlight reels that will be immortalized on YouTube for the ages.