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All Ben McAleer posts on WhoScored.com Articles RSS

Player Focus: The Loss of Luiz Gustavo is Colombia's Gain

by Ben McAleer at Friday, Jul 4 2014 13:30
Player Focus: The Loss of Luiz Gustavo is Colombia's Gain Real Madrid’s decision to sell Claude Makélélé to Chelsea in 2003 signalled the beginning of the end of the first Galacticos era for the club. Florentino Perez opted to cash in on the Frenchman that saw now Real Madrid Castilla manager Zinedine Zidane ask: “Why put a...
Categories: Player Focus

Team Focus: France's Strength in Depth Can Lead Them to Glory

by Ben McAleer at Thursday, Jul 3 2014 16:00
Team Focus: France's Strength in Depth Can Lead Them to Glory A little over 4 years ago, France’s World Cup hopes were left in tatters. The players refused to train after Nicolas Anelka was sent home following a row with head coach Raymond Domench, culminating inLes Bleus crashing out at the group stages of South Africa 2010. In the aftermath of the Worl...
Categories: Team Focus

Player Focus: Sánchez The First Star to Fall from Brazil 2014

by Ben McAleer at Tuesday, Jul 1 2014 15:40
Player Focus: Sánchez The First Star to Fall from Brazil 2014 Without question, Chile quickly became supporters' second team at the World Cup. Having knocked Spain out of the competition and gone toe-to-toe with Brazil, La Roja’s brand of high-intensity, attacking football won them the plaudits they rightly deserved. However, it wasn’t to be their ...
Categories: Player Focus

Player Focus: Rampaging Robben Leading the Dutch Charge in Brazil

by Ben McAleer at Monday, Jun 30 2014 15:40
Player Focus: Rampaging Robben Leading the Dutch Charge in Brazil Much has been said of Arjen Robben's exploits in the aftermath of Netherlands’ 2-1 win over Mexico. Wesley Sneijder dragged the Oranje back into the tie with a thumping volley in the 88th minute, before Klaas-Jan Huntelaar fired the Dutch into the quarter-finals of the World Cup from the spot....
Categories: Player Focus

Team Focus: Highest Rated World Cup Group Stages XI

by Ben McAleer at Friday, Jun 27 2014 17:15
Team Focus: Highest Rated World Cup Group Stages XI 136 goals were scored in the group stages of the 2014 World Cup, a significant improvement on South Africa 2010 where the ball hit the net 101 times in the opening 48 games. European giants Spain, Portugal, Italy and England all crashed out at the first hurdle, while Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Arge...
Categories: Team Focus

Player Focus: Enner Valencia Shines Despite Ecuador's Early Exit

by Ben McAleer at Thursday, Jun 26 2014 16:30
Player Focus: Enner Valencia Shines Despite Ecuador's Early Exit Back in 1996, Manchester United signed Karel Poborsky from Slavia Prague for a reported £3.5m. The winger was part of the Czech Republic side that made it all the way to the Euro 1996 final, only to fall to a 2-1 defeat to Germany at the last hurdle. United swooped for the winger on the back o...
Categories: Player Focus

Team Focus: Colombia's Fearsome Attack Living Up to Expectations

by Ben McAleer at Wednesday, Jun 25 2014 16:15
Team Focus: Colombia's Fearsome Attack Living Up to Expectations The more said about Colombia during the 2014 World Cup, the better - that's the feeling amongst fans and pundits alike. The South American nation has, unsurprisingly, taken the tournament by storm, with their brand of attacking football winning them the admirers they deserve. The 4-1 win over Japan ...
Categories: Team Focus

Player Focus: Paulinho's Poor Performances Denting Brazil's World Cup Hopes

by Ben McAleer at Tuesday, Jun 24 2014 16:25
Player Focus: Paulinho's Poor Performances Denting Brazil's World Cup Hopes When Paulinho secured a £17m switch to Tottenham Hotspur from Corinthians last summer, comparisons were drawn between the midfielder and Chelsea legend Frank Lampard. I intend to follow in his (Lampard’s) footsteps as he is a very professional guy, the Brazil international said when told...
Categories: Player Focus

Player Focus: Guillermo Ochoa Key to Mexico's Potential Progression

by Ben McAleer at Monday, Jun 23 2014 16:30
Player Focus: Guillermo Ochoa Key to Mexico's Potential Progression Silvestre Varela’s late header in Portugal’s 2-2 draw with USA on Sunday night gave Paulo Bento’s side a fighting chance of progressing to the second round of the World Cup. Defeat would have seen them crash out of the competition having fallen to an embarrassing 4-0 defeat to Germ...
Categories: Player Focus

Team Focus: Germany's Adaptation of the 'False 9' Can Steer Them to Glory

by Ben McAleer at Saturday, Jun 21 2014 09:00
Team Focus: Germany's Adaptation of the 'False 9' Can Steer Them to Glory Taking Miroslav Klose to the World Cup as the only striker was always going to be a risk for Germany, but it was one that Joachim Löw was willing to take. The decision to overlook Mario Gomez, Max Kruse and Kevin Volland was perhaps a controverisal one and has the potential to backfire.Despite ...
Categories: Team Focus