Ukraine Vs Greece 0-1 World cup Playoff Highlight

Dimitris Salpigidis scored the only goal and Greece got a place at the 2010 World Cup courtesy of a victory over Ukraine in Donetsk.

France Vs Ireland in World cup 2010 Qualifier Highlight

Finally, yesterday France got the ticket to the World cup 2010 and here is its highlight:

English Angle: England Don't Need A No. 9 To Win In 2010

Fabio Capello's squad, as ever, looks a little short up front, but Goal.com's Alan Dawson believes this needn't hold back the Three Lions on their quest to re-establish themselves as one of the international scene's top teams...

Italy proved just as much with their 2006 World Cup squad as the awkward Luca Toni managed to record just two goals during that competition. The goal-scoring burden fell on the shoulders of the supporting Azzurri cast, with players such as Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti, Gianluca Zambrotta, Alessandro Del Piero, Fabio Grosso and Marco Materazzi lending their weight towards the goal-getting effort.

England manager Fabio Capello does not have the luxury of calling up a relentlessly net-bulging No. 9 like the Alan Shearers, Jimmy Greaves and the Bobby Charltons of the past, so, bar Michael Owen - should the northern crock ever return to a sustained run of full match fitness - the Italian tactician should arguably focus more on where the Three Lions are blessed with quality in abundance: the midfield.

By skirting clear of England's favoured 4-4-2 formation - a system that has not borne fruit for an unwanted number of years now - and opting for the more continental and flexible 4-2-3-1, Capello can suitably answer the question of whether Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard can play in the same team together. All too often they were slotted into the centre of the 4-4-2 and, consequently, England fans were left underwhelmed as they failed to dovetail.

Under Rafael Benitez at Liverpool, Gerrard is flourishing more than ever and calls from esteemed figureheads such as Zinedine Zidane have declared that the Scouse skipper is the best in the world. The influence he has at club-level certainly seems to be unrivalled and so Capello's primary task must be replicating that on the international arena, by, presumably, continuing to deploy him in the No. 10's role.

How can you accommodate the pair?

A 4-4-2 can often be too rigid and concrete, with set roles too defined, whereas the 4-2-3-1 has room for negotiation, meaning that Gerrard could even be positioned further up-field. It is possible that he could perform the same duties as his club's local rival Tim Cahill has recently been doing with Everton while they suffered from a striking crisis.

Both Gerrard and Rooney can effectively share the role of the spearheading trequartista. They would then have to rely on an incoming midfield or two - from Frank Lampard; Theo Walcott; Ashley Young; Shaun Wright-Phillips; the resurgent Aaron Lennon; and Joe Cole (when he returns) - to take advantage of the second ball.

Comparisons between Gerrard and Lampard are futile and ultimately pointless. They play different roles. Gerrard now supports Fernando Torres while Lampard is effectively an attack-minded box-to-box midfielder. His defensive work is often understated. He is strong in the tackle and his positional sense in the deeper areas of the midfield is nothing short of wise.

Source: goal.com

Evra says France's fans lack football culture

France defender Patrice Evra has slammed French fans, claiming their lack of support for the national team shows a lack of football culture and that their support paled in comparison to that he receives at Manchester United.

A disastrous Euro 2008 saw them eliminated at the group stage after failing to win a match and French players were jeered by their own fans at the Stade Velodrome during a friendly defeat by Argentina last month and Evra, who was sidelined for the match, has hit out at the boo boys.

"I was disappointed to see the fans shouting 'ola' when the Argentinians were doing their tricks," he told France sports daily L'Equipe.

"(Manchester United team-mate and Argentina striker Carlos) Tevez, when he came back from international duty, told me he felt as if he was playing in Buenos Aires.

"There were (Diego) Maradona and Argentina flags in the stands. I still haven't seen a (Thierry) Henry flag or a (Franck) Ribery one at the Stade de France.

"The supporters need to be behind us. If they want us to get to the World Cup they will need to do something different."

Evra added: "We don't have the sporting culture of Brazilian, Argentinian, Italian or English fans.

"When I arrived in England, I had the impression that I was doing a new job. Because of the impact of the stadiums and the supporters...there it's a religion.

"We don't lose on purpose, nobody does that, we all go out there to win.

"In three years at United I have just lost two games on the trot for the first time, I understand that we have to win the next game. But even when we've lost, they've still applauded us, not booed."

Evra admits the players have been affected by the jeers and has urged the fans to get behind every single member of the France camp ahead of the crucial double header against Group Seven rivals Lithuania.

"It certainly affects us," he continued. "We talk about it between ourselves.

"I'm at a great club. When you have 76,000 people behind you, it gives you a massive boost, but if you hear boos from the fifth minute, you can't feel the same thing.

Green is ready for England - Zola

West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green has been tipped to win an England recall by his club manager Gianfranco Zola.

The 28-year-old Green has one England cap and has not been in any of manager Fabio Capello's squads since March.

But after a fine display against Liverpool, Zola said: "I have told Robert that if he continues to perform, he will be back in the England squad.

"Capello knows what is the right thing to do, and Green knows he must continue to perform every week like he is now."

Green was outstanding in Monday's 0-0 draw at Liverpool, which lifted the Hammers to 13th in the Premier League table. It was also his third consecutive clean sheet.

Zola added: "I am delighted with Robert. He is looking very comfortable now. He was getting some stick but now he is getting the rewards he deserves.

The Italian, who was appointed in September, also revealed he feels his ideas are starting to bring success at the club.

"When I first arrived I wanted to improve the way we played, to be more offensive," Zola said. "But we discovered that we needed to improve in defence, and that is what we are trying to do.

"Our objective is to keep clean sheets and to score more goals. We will be working on that.

"The team is responding to what my staff and I are saying. They are keen to react and follow what we want, and that gives us hope for the future.

"My players are going through a good spell, we must not lose this momentum. Things had not been going well but things are now improving on our side of things, we must keep it going."

From : bbc.co.uk

Capello takes issue with Gerrard injury claim

England coach Fabio Capello has risked the wrath of Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez after forcing Steven Gerrard to report for duty ahead of Wednesday's friendly in Germany, despite being declared unfit by his club.

Gerrard sustained a minor groin injury at Bolton Wanderer's on Saturday and Liverpool's doctors ruled him out of the international match in Berlin.

But Capello has ordered Gerrard to undertake the 200-mile journey to England's Hertfordshire team hotel, where he is being assessed by Football Association medical staff before a final decision on his availability is reached on Monday.

Chelsea and England captain John Terry is also being assessed following the foot injury he sustained during Chelsea's 3-0 victory at West Bromwich Albion.

An FA spokesman said: "John Terry and Steven Gerrard have both reported to the team hotel tonight [Sunday] and will be assessed tomorrow [Monday] by the England medical staff."

The decision to assess Gerrard will no doubt open a club versus country row and the crunch will come if England's doctor's declare the Liverpool skipper fit to play in Germany.

This is the first time that Capello has exercised his right under FIFA rules to have his own medical staff examine a player whose club claim is injured.

With the likes of Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney ruled out before the Italian named his 23-man party and Joe Hart, Gerrard and possibly Terry pulling out before the Three Lions have begun a training session, Capello's efforts at maintaining the momentum built up by four straight World Cup qualifying wins have been cruelly undermined.