The FIFA Weekly Issue #36 by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)

ISSUE 36, 27 JUNE 2014

ENGLISH EDITION

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

ARGENTINA THE LOUDEST FANS NETHERLANDS LEARNING FROM HOCKEY MATCH FIXING SIMONE FARINA’S PRINCIPLED STAND Down to the last sixteen

Rendezvous in Rio

W W W.FIFA.COM/ THEWEEKLY

CONTENTS

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Interview: Thierry Henry He became a world and European champion with France and remains dedicated to Les Bleus. His advice to the current generation is “Play every World Cup as if it were your last.”

M y World Cup Neymar’s table soccer move, youngsters flirting on Copacabana beach, Klose’s record goal and getting stuck in Brazilian traffic: our correspondents give their personal impressions of this World Cup.

North and Central America 35 members www.concacaf.com

Oh, Rio! Brazil’s city of beaches is ready for the Round of 16. Alan Schweingruber took to the streets to immerse himself in Rio’s unique atmosphere on the search for stories about the World Cup’s knockout stage.

South America 10 members www.conmebol.com

Costa Rica The Ticos are the team of the moment. Now they want to keep their dream alive against Greece in the Round of 16.

“ Intentionally lose? Never!” During his professional career with AS Gubbio, Simone Farina turned down a match fixer. The Aston Villa community coach explains how integrity has always been his first priority.

Latin American dominance Latin American sides are impressing at the World Cup in Brazil. Argentina and their euphoric fans are just one side dreaming of the title.

Rendezvous in Rio Our cover shows Brazil’s coastal city at twilight with the Maracana in the centre.

The FIFA Weekly Magazine App The FIFA Weekly, FIFA’s football magazine, is also available in five languages as an e-Magazine on your tablet every Friday.

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Match 49

Match 50

Match 51

BRA - CHI 28 June, 13:00 Belo Horizonte

COL - URU 28 June, 17:00 Rio de Janeiro

NED - MEX 29 June, 13:00 Fortaleza

Getty Images / REUTERS

Round of 16

Gustavo Pellizzon / Caju

THIS WEEK IN THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL

Europe 54 members www.uefa.com

Africa 54 members www.cafonline.com

Asia 46 members www.the-afc.com

Oceania 11 members www.oceaniafootball.com

Sepp Blatter The FIFA President discusses new technology at the 2014 World Cup and the possibility of video challenges.

The Netherlands Coach Louis van Gaal is taking inspiration from the quick passing and high-tempo dribbling of field hockey.

Round of 16 Match 52

Match 53

Match 54

imago / AFP

1G CRC - GRE 29 June, 17:00 Recife

FRA - NGA 30 June, 13:00 Brasilia

Match 55

www.fifa.com 30 June, 17:00 Porto Alegre

Spiel 56

1H ARG - SUI 1 July, 13:00 Sao Paulo

www.fifa.com 1 July, 17:00 Salvador

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The FIFA World Cup™ is where all of us want to be.

UNCOVERED

The magic of radio A Carioca hangs on every word from commentators in the stadium, ignoring the television coverage entirely.

Anticipation builds in Rio

Gustavo Pellizzon/Caju

s the World Cup enters its third week and the Round of 16 approaches, one thing is already clear: Brazil 2014 is a phenomenal tournament. For the most part, teams have been working hard to deliver enthralling attacking football. The transition from the group stage to the knockout stages marks another turning point: from now on, anyone who loses a match goes home. The competition begins afresh in the Round of 16 with a “new” field of competitors, new dreams and new targets. Rio de Janeiro is at the centre of this new chapter as it ultimately prepares to crown a new world cham-

pion in the Final at the Maracana on 13 July. In this period of anticipation, Alan Schweingruber takes to the streets to learn something more about the Cariocas and their city.

M T

any Latin American fans are also based in Rio, mingling happily on the Copacabana. Thomas Renggli takes a closer look.

wo new aids – the referee’s spray and goalline technology – have proven to be useful additions to football during their introduction at the World Cup. FIFA President Blatter wants to continue down this route. In this week’s column,

he writes: “As is the case with goalline technology, if it proves possible to provide referees with other real-time decision-making tools for different game-changing situations in the future, we should be open to it,” naming video challenges as a specific example.

ore often than not, saying no requires a certain degree of courage. Simone Farina proved this when refusing to assist a match fixer during his playing career. The Italian tells us his story in this week’s “Turning Point”. Å Perikles Monioudis T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Ready for the knockout stage A breathtaking panorama of Rio de Janeiro, with its lagoon and Ipanema Beach on the far right.

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OH,â&#x20AC;&#x2030;RIO!

If there is one city that thrives on adventure, it is Rio de Janeiro. Now the Round of 16 is set to give this remarkable city an extra thrill. Alan Schweingruber (text) and Gustavo Pellizzon (images), Rio de Janeiro

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What will the night bring? A fisherman gazes out to sea in Rio de Janeiro.

ost people can conjure up a picture of the Copacabana in their minds. It is an image full of sun, music, waves and happy people. But on this particular evening, the mood on Rio de Janeiro’s world-famous beach is completely different. It is already dark, and the rain is falling heavily. Cars race down the streets sounding their horns and the boulevard

Apartment living On chilly evenings you can hear the

is entirely deserted. It is almost impossible to believe that the World Cup is being played here, right at this very moment. Of course, the gloomy atmosphere has nothing to do with the World Cup. It is simply that the rain has set in again – a common enough occurrence during the Brazilian winter. At times like these, the locals just hide away in their apartments and the weather becomes the taxi drivers’ main topic of conversation. In some ways, this curious atmosphere fittingly reflects the point now reached in this summer’s tourna-

ment. With the group stage drawing to a close, attention is already turning to the Round of 16’s first matches on Saturday. This is the point at which the slates are wiped clean. Only the next 90 or 120 minutes – or, in the worst-case scenario, penalties – will determine whether teams can celebrate securing a place in the next round or whether they need to book their flights home. Rio unusually quiet Walking down a residential street, the excitable tones of a TV commentator can be heard not far

The Round of 16: The group stages are over and the 16 best teams have qualified for the next round. From now on, the tournament takes on an entirely different format. Once the knockout stages are underway, there is no room for error. Here is an overview of the most dramatic Round of 16 clashes ever played at the World Cup finals. Dominik Petermann 8

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MEXICO 1986 France 2-0 Italy World and European champions battle it out Italy, world champions in 1982, and France, European champions in 1984, faced each other in the Round of 16 at Mexico 1986. France made a bright start to the encounter, taking the lead through iconic playmaker Michel Platini on the 15-minute mark. Italy’s hero of 1982, Paolo Rossi, was forced to watch events unfold from the bench as “Gli Azzurri” could find no way back into the game. “Les Bleus” finished the tournament in third place behind Argentina and Germany.

Gustavo Pellizzon / Caju (13), Getty Images (4)

MEMOR ABLE ROUND OF 16 C L A SHE S

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buzz from televisions floating on the still night air.

It is exceptionally quiet. Television screens flicker in many apartments.

Just another World Cup day The “Praia de Nazare” bar.

away. A quick glance up at a nearby apartment block and you can see that many of the residents have their balcony doors flung open, revealing flickering television screens within. It is still warm – about 22 degrees Celsius. Flags flutter from windowsills, providing a small indication of the undiminished national pride in the world’s fifth-largest country. And the locals certainly seem positive after A Seleção’s relatively smooth ride into the Round of 16. “If we win our last 16 game against Chile then we’ll win the World Cup,” says one confident hotel

porter while struggling with his umbrella as if unaccustomed to holding the object. “Once the Brazil engine gets going, nobody can stop us.” As the sun rises the next day, the last few clouds disperse and, although the streets are still wet, it looks like a sunny day is in store. On the beach, a homeless man has his morning shave. A little further on, close to the water, a young couple are lying entwined on the sand. Several joggers pass by in football shirts, some wearing headphones. Are they thinking about Brazil’s Round of 16 match against

ITALY 1990

USA 1994

Cameroon 2-1 Colombia AET Roger Milla sends Africa wild Cameroon’s 38-year-old striker Roger Milla made a name for himself at the 1990 World Cup by scoring two goals in extra time to fire the Indomitable Lions into the quarter-finals. Remembered for dancing by the corner flag each time he scored a goal, Milla became the oldest player to score at a World Cup in 1990 and then broke his own record four years later when he netted aged 42.

Romania 3-2 Argentina The end for Maradona The tournament’s surprise package Romania put paid to Argentina’s hopes of World Cup glory by beating the South American side 3-2 in the Round of 16. Former Argentina captain and star man Diego Maradona had tested positive for drugs in the group stage and ended his World Cup career on a sour note, watching his side’s remaining games at the tournament from the bench. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Selling Seleção shirts Market traders hope Scolari's team will go far.

Chile on S aturday, or perhaps about Costa Rica’s high flyers? The magic of the Round of 16 For many teams, the Round of 16 is seen as a mere stepping stone to bigger and better things, but for others, reaching the knockout stages is a historical event in itself. People in Honduras still talk about the 1982 World Cup. That year, their tiny nation played out two draws in their group matches against hosts Spain and Northern Ireland and were on

track to reach the Round of 16 when a controversial penalty in their final group match led to a 1-0 loss to Yugoslavia. The defeat was tough on players who had delivered the performance of their lives, and as the final whistle blew, they slumped to the ground sobbing like inconsolable children. The Chilean referee who awarded that spot-kick, Gaston Castro, became infamous in Honduras for preventing the greatest moment in the nation’s footballing history. The Round of 16 is the point at which the World Cup gets down to business and teams

Market Music is just one of the many things on sale.

reveal their true potential. Promising performances are no longer enough, weary older defenders are outpaced and old injuries start to flare up. More than anything, it is the players’ character that is challenged. There is no disputing the quality within Belgium’s young squad, for example, but it remains to be seen how Marc Wilmots’ charges will respond to setbacks such as conceding a late goal. Sports psychologists refer to this stage of the tournament as a mental test with four primary aspects: confidence, motivation, assertiveness and concentration.

MEMOR ABLE ROUND OF 16 C L A SHE S FRANCE 1998

KOREA / JAPAN 2002

France 1-0 Paraguay AET A golden first for France The golden goal rule came into force at France 1998. It worked just like sudden death in ice hockey, with the match ending as soon as one of the two teams scored a goal in extra time. The first golden goal was scored by France in their Round of 16 clash against Paraguay. The scorer was Laurent Blanc, whose 114th minute strike fired “Les Bleus” into the quarter-finals.

Senegal 2-1 Sweden AET Africa strikes again Senegal sprang a surprise in 2002 when they beat reigning world champions France 1-0 in the Opening Match. A 2-1 victory over Sweden after extra time in the last 16 saw the Lions of Teranga secure a place in the quarter-finals, becoming only the second African nation to reach the last eight after the “Indomitable Lions” twelve years previously.

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At last Flags depicting the current Brazil team have only been available for a couple of days.

4,000 kilometres in a motorhome At a dedicated World Cup campsite in the middle of Rio, Chilean and Argentinian football fans have taken up temporary residence in their motorhomes. Many have travelled up to 4,000 kilometres to live the World Cup experience first-hand. They spend their mornings resting before travelling to public screenings of the games at the Copacabana or to a match at the Maracana in the afternoon. Luis, from Santiago in Chile, peers out of his tent and laughs. Traffic rushes past on the

three-lane highway barely 20 metres away. “It’s not always easy to sleep here,” he admits, “but it’s the World Cup. That’s why we’re here. There are no rules; we drink lots of beer and enjoy the football.” For the Brazilians themselves however, there are rules during the World Cup - even if that’s difficult to imagine given all the samba clichés used to portray their country. The cardinal rule is that beautiful football is the key to victory. Another is that every single Brazilian must follow A Seleção.

The first of these rules will become far less important if Luiz Felipe Scolari is able to guide his team all the way through to the final stages of this tournament. The second is somewhat more interesting given the current transition underway in Brazil. At a busy market in the city centre, a place where only local goods can be found and gringos (the local term for any nonSouth American) attract considerable attention, flags showing the current team have only been available for the past few days. Previously, only football fans were familiar with names

GERMANY 2006

SOUTH AFRICA 2010

Ukraine 0-0 Switzerland AET, 3-0 on penalties Switzerland out without conceding a goal The Swiss suffered a bitter exit from the 2006 global showpiece. Having manoeuvred their way through the group stages without conceding a goal, “La Nati” faced Ukraine in the Round of 16. And with the game still goalless after 120 minutes, the Swiss proceeded to miss their first three penalties in the shootout and bow out of the World Cup in the first knockout round.

Ghana 2-1 USA AET Ghana reach the quarter finals The first World Cup on African soil saw another African team reach the quarter-final stage when Ghana secured a 2-1 victory over USA in the Round of 16. In doing so, the “Black Lions” became only the third African side to reach the last eight. They also put in a wonderful performance in their quarter-final clash with Uruguay and were a whisker away from becoming the first African side to reach the last four, but the South Americans ultimately prevailed on penalties. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Reliable This Argentinian motorhome has covered a few miles over the years.

such as Dani Alves, Dante and Hulk. Now they are everywhere you look. “It’s time for a new generation,” says one trader. “This team finally has a face; even my mother knows who the players are.” Fans with high hopes Far away from the beach, near the main railway station, men and women rush by in business dress and normal life continues. Here, Rio de Janeiro could be mistaken for any other city. The smell of fish drifts out from nearby

r estaurants. “Praia de Nazare”, a small bar on the corner, is buzzing with activity as its patrons watch a match. The bar, opened by a Portuguese immigrant in the 1960s, has already experienced its fair share of World Cups. Sitting at the counter is a nervous-looking man in his mid-fifties called Artillo. He is drinking beer wearing an Argentina shirt stretched across his ample stomach, but protests in perfect Portuguese whenever the action on the pitch frustrates him. Artillo comes from southern Argentina but has lived in Rio

Friends for life Artillo (left) from Argentina with his Brazilian friend. 12

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Waiting for the next match A young Chilean fan

for 32 years. He rummages around in his trouser pocket and pulls out an immaculately filledout fixture list. He taps a finger on the empty Final box. “I want to see my country here,” he says with the overconfidence a pint or two can bring, believing that, after a 28-year wait, this could be the Albiceleste’s year. With age comes wisdom Meanwhile, the oldest man in the bar is sat outside on a cheap plastic chair. He has his back turned to the television, choosing

Making a note The men record each and every result.

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passes the afternoon on his bus.

Laundry day World Cup visitors from across South America have set up camp in the middle of Rio.

“It’s not easy to sleep here, but it’s the World Cup. That’s why we’re here.”

instead to listen to a political broadcast on his pocket radio. “Before,” he explains, “I knew the name of every Brazil player. It was great. But I don’t bother anymore nowadays. I prefer to spend my time on more interesting things instead.” A jubilant cry rings out from the bar. Artillo embraces his friends, knocking over a glass of beer in the process. The old man on the plastic chair simply shakes his head. “This World Cup – it’s all a bit mad, isn’t it? And it’s only just getting started.” Å

Round of 16 Brazil - Chile, 28 June 2014, Belo Horizonte

Taking a breather Artillo makes the most of the 15-minute half-time break. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Costa Rica

Commitment and desire Costa Rica captain Bryan Ruiz is aiming high in Brazil.

Giant killers Sarah Steiner is a staff writer at The FIFA Weekly.

The question of which teams would stumble at the first hurdle in Group D, the so-called ’Group of Death’, was an issue that filled column inches across the globe prior to the start of the World Cup. A trio of bigname former tournament winners – Italy, Uruguay and England – were to jostle for top spot, spearheaded by their respective stars Andrea Pirlo, Luis Suarez and Wayne Rooney. One big name was certain to miss out on the Round of 16, but which would it be? That two of the above have already been knocked out came a close second to Spain’s early elimination as the biggest surprise of the competition so far. Costa Rica went through as group winners thanks to a series of battling displays that were testament to the Ticos’ commitment, will to win and increasing self-confidence. Before the World Cup started, team captain Bryan Ruiz said that, “everyone is talking about the other sides in our group as if we’re lucky just to be here, as if they’re all going to beat us anyway. But they should be careful because we could surprise a few people.” Mexico

Laszlo Balogh / REUTERS

The playmaker is representative of the team as a whole. Raised by a single mother in a poor district in the outskirts of San Jose, Ruiz learned to persevere and never give up at an early age. In 2006 his non-inclusion in the country’s World Cup squad caused uproar in Costa Rica because he was widely recognised as the nation’s most talented player for decades. Four years later he would have gone to the finals but the team missed out on qualification by a matter of seconds and an inferior goal difference. This time around Ruiz is determined not to have success snatched from his grasp. “We’ve made history and now we can start to dream bigger,” he said. In the Round of 16, Costa Rica will face a Greece side that squeezed through thanks to a last-gasp penalty. Los Ticos’ chances of progressing further may now depend more on their ability to find a way past a tight Hellenic defence than their own backline’s skill in keeping the Greek attack at bay. Å

“We’re here for our country” Sven Goldmann is a leading football correspondent at Tagesspiegel newspaper in Berlin and is currently at the World Cup in Brazil.

Rafael Marquez may well be 35 years old, but he is currently more indispensable to the Mexican national team than ever after enjoying a comeback he himself can barely have thought possible. Not only has Marquez has helped make Mexico’s fiveman defence almost impenetrable at the World Cup, he is also a threat at the other end of the pitch, scoring his side’s opener in their victory over Croatia in Recife. In that match El Tri conceded the only goal of their tournament so far and even that was just a late consolation for the opposition when the Mexicans were already 3-0 up. The Croatia game was Mexico’s last group fixture and with the final whistle approaching the score stood at 0-0, a result that

would have taken Marquez and Co into the Round of 16. Yet with the defender orchestrating the team’s play from his central position, Mexico were not content to run down the clock and continued to pour forward in attack. After winning a corner, four players leapt to meet the delivery but Marquez out-jumped them all and powered a header into the back of the net. He would later have a hand in creating Mexico’s third goal as well. The defender commands respect both out on the pitch and in the team’s Sao Paulo base. His words carry a weight of authority nobody dare challenge. In the build-up to Mexico’s last 16 encounter with the Netherlands at the Estadio Castelao in Fortaleza on Sunday, Marquez has reminded his colleagues what is at stake. “We’re here to write history,” he said. “We’re here for our country.” Having reached the end of the line in the Round of 16 at the last three World Cups, the defender is hoping to progress further this time in Brazil. Mexico’s defensive strength, Guillermo Ochoa’s goalkeeping heroics and Marquez’s strategic mind mean they stand a good chance of doing just that. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

NEWS FROM THE TR AINING CAMPS

This time last year, Marquez could hardly have dared to dream of playing on the global stage again as it appeared his time in the national team had come to an end. He was not included in the squad for the 2013 Confederations Cup, where Mexico were knocked out in the group phase after failing to win all but their final match, a dead rubber against Japan. Following a long and successful career at Barcelona, Marquez had opted to wind down his club career in the MLS with New York Red Bulls. In his homeland he was considered too old and too unsuited to the modern game to be a candidate for the national side. That all changed with Mexico’s disastrous World Cup qualifying campaign that included no less than three changes of coach and was only rescued by the USA scoring a last-minute goal against Panama. The new man on the touchline, Miguel Herrera, has enjoyed greater success after recalling Marquez to the starting line-up and instantly making him captain. Å

The Netherlands

Inspired by hockey Andreas Jaros is a freelance writer and lives in Vienna

Spirits could not be any higher at the exquisite Caesar Park Hotel in Rio de Janeiro, the team base of the Netherlands. Madonna once stayed here, and with Ipanema beach just a stone’s throw away, her classic hit Holiday would be an appropriate soundtrack for the Group A winners while resting between matches. A brief vacation would certainly be well-deserved after three extremely disciplined performances in Salvador, Porto Alegre and Sao Paulo in which the Oranje clocked up three wins, conceding just three goals and scoring ten, of which eight found the back of the net in the second half. The stage is now set for another showstopping performance against Mexico in the Round of 16.

Along the way, coach Louis van Gaal has proved himself to be not only a strategist but a meticulous engineer leaving no stone unturned in the quest to improve his side’s performance by even one or two per cent. The 62-year-old is not afraid to be inspired by the quick passing, high-tempo dribbling of field hockey, a sport in which his nation is an utterly dominant force. Just a few days ago, the Netherlands women’s team won the Hockey World Cup for the seventh time while the men’s side, permanently ranked in the top three in the world, stormed to second place. In other countries, a football coach would face ridicule and derision if he took inspiration from the world of hockey, but this approach is not without precedent in the Netherlands. Footballing genius Johan Cruyff had no qualms about studying international hockey matches in search of new ideas during his time as Ajax coach. Marc Lammers, a former coach of the Dutch women’s hockey team, even suggested that the revolutionary Total Football approach of

Wong Maye-E / AP Photo

Firing home Memphis Depay (centre) scores the Netherlands’ second goal in their 2-0 win over Chile.

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NEWS FROM THE TR AINING CAMPS

the 1970s was inspired by events on the hockey pitch: “Back then, hockey was all about tempo, creativity, individual brilliance and constantly changing positions, and this influenced our country’s brand of football.”

Belgium

The little things Andrew Warshaw writes for Inside World Football.

Van Gaal is so convinced of the benefits of this tactical crossover that he even has two former hockey players among his support staff. Team manager Hans Jorritsma was a member of the 1976 Olympic team, while ex-professional Max Reckers joined Van Gaal’s team as a performance analyst and will also follow his boss to Manchester United after the World Cup. Before the 1978 World Cup, former Argentina coach Cesar Luis Menotti also drew inspiration from the sport of hockey. He spent time observing the training sessions of Pakistan’s national squad, whose sophisticated wing play made them the sport’s high-flyers at that time. Three months later, El Flaco lifted the World Cup Trophy with Argentina and wrote to the Pakistan hockey team to thank them personally for their part in the achievement. Å

Succeeding in the World Cup is not just about the players a country has at its disposal. It’s not just about how good the coach is either or how many fans there are supporting the team in the stadiums. It’s the little things that make a difference – the camp, the food, the mood, the group dynamics – which is why Belgium are so upbeat as they head into the last 16 of the tournament. The Belgians, you see, have travelled a shorter distance than any other team in the early stage of the tournament according to official statistics. We all know that statistics don’t always tell the whole story but physical tiredness has a direct impact on mental alertness. Could Belgium take advantage of this fact? Belgium captain Vincent Kompany made just that point when his team were in Belo Horizonte for their first match. No sooner had they arrived in Brazil’s third largest city than they were assigned a training ground a mere 20-minute drive from the stadium where they kicked off their campaign against Algeria.

On yer bike Smiles and laughter all round at Belgium’s World Cup base.

“We’ve done everything we can in terms of preparation,” said the mild-mannered, multilingual Manchester City captain, just one of a spate of highly gifted English Premier League players in the Belgian squad. “We’ve been able to train in a calm environment. That kind of thing helps so much.” Belgium’s so-called golden generation may, on paper, have the world at their feet but as we’ve seen throughout this intoxicating tournament, the slightest imperfection can have a gigantic knock-on effect. Belgium had their awkward moments in both their first two matches against Algeria and Russia but the bottom line is that they did enough to progress. And a lot of that, according to Kompany, is down to staying fresh. “The calm surroundings and lack of travelling has helped, there’s no doubt about that,” he said. “For some training sessions we have only had to travel 45 minutes. In fact on occasions, we could even walk. Some teams have taken all day to get around. In my opinion you can’t prepare properly if you have huge travel time. The preparation has been a carbon copy of what I would have hoped.” There is still a long way to go, of course, before we see just how far Belgium can go under coach Marc Wilmots in their first World Cup for 12 years. But there is certainly a good team spirit, something many doubted given that fact that the Belgians have so many highly-paid individual stars. It’s how they blend as a unit that will ultimately count, says Kompany, who isn’t worried about individual egos getting in the way. “This is the first World Cup for most of us but I’ve been with this group for 10 years and we all get on really well,” he said. “We haven’t been at a World Cup for a long time and whatever happens I’ll remember it for ever.”

Bruno Fahy / Belga Photo

Wilmots, for his part, has made a point of impressing on his players – and you can see it in training – that they have the right attitude and focus on the task in hand rather than think about their lucrative club careers. “I have replaced I, I, I with we, we, we,” says Wilmots, who was on the bench on that fateful day in 1990 when, having outplayed England, Belgium fell to an extra time goal in the last 16. Little things made all the difference back then, like Belgium twice hitting the woodwork. Wilmots is doing everything he can to ensure that this time the little things work in his team’s favour. Å

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Name Thierry Henry Date and place of birth 17 August 1977, Les Ulis (France) Clubs Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona, New York Red Bulls French national side

Fred R. Conradâ&#x20AC;&#x2030;/â&#x20AC;&#x2030;laif

123 caps, 51 goals

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THE INTERVIEW

“You have to approach each World Cup as if it’s your last” Thierry Henry was a world and European champion with Les Bleus. His love for the French team remains as strong as ever and he believes this France team are in with a chance of winning Brazil 2014. Win or lose though, he says his compatriots should enjoy every moment of playing at a World Cup.

Do you remember the first time you saw France play? Thierry Henry: My earliest memory of watching France is Marius Tresor’s goal against Germany at the 1982 World Cup in Spain. It’s just a brief flashback. I was in the West Indies at the time, and there was an explosion of joy in my house – I didn’t really understand what was happening. I turned around and saw the replay of Tresor’s volley. Everyone knows what happened next.

Was it right then that you were won over by the French national side? I was just five then, so it was the only image I had of them. But Mexico 1986 definitely did trigger something. Les Bleus had a great run, knocking out Brazil along the way. That’s when I really started to take an interest. There was Euro 1984 too. As a supporter, it was easy to fall in love with that team.

You were just 16 when you first pulled on the France shirt is that right? Yes. I remember how proud I was when they gave me the official bag. I was playing for the youth side of course and I didn't know how far I would go in the national setup back then, but I was so happy to take that bag home with me. That's my first memory. Ask any player and he'll tell you it all starts with that official bag.

When were you first called up for the senior side? Against South Africa in 1997, for a match in Lens. I remember turning up at the hotel. I knew Youri Djorkaeff and Lilian Thuram from my time playing with them at Monaco, but that was about all. I remember arriving for training, and just sitting back and watching everyone!

At what point did you think that the feeling was mutual? That was also easy to tell, because it helps when you play in a World Cup that your

country is hosting. That coincided with my debut. The victory in 1998 was the high point – you dream about that as a young boy, you tell yourself that one day you’ll win the World Cup, but at the same time a small part of you knows that it’s a fantasy that’ll never become reality. And then, in the end, we did it, and the fact that we did so just along the road from where I grew up was truly incredible.

How do you feel when you see a France side being coached by Didier Deschamps ? A sense of continuity. It's good to see a guy who's won it all in charge. It makes me happy. He's been around, played the big tournaments and coached at top clubs. I knew him when he was captain and it was always on the cards. Everyone used to say he'd be a great coach, and that was even before he'd finished playing. And he's gone on and done it.

What advice would you give to the new generation of French internationals? The two pieces of advice that I would give them is to make the most of it, and to understand that experience comes from playing in tournaments like these. They’ll learn a lot, and it won’t always be easy, but this generation really does have the quality to do well and lift trophies. I hope they do it quite quickly. When you play in a World Cup, you never know if you’ll get the chance to do it again. I had the opportunity to play in four, so it probably seems a bit strange to say that, but you have to approach each one as if it’s your last.

Which current French players are you most impressed with?

I don’t think people are talking about him enough. It’s quite unusual to be so mature at such a young age, although playing at Real Madrid has clearly helped him.

It was your goal in 2006 that eliminated Brazil in the quarter-finals. With that in mind, how have you been welcomed here? Very well, actually; it’s an extremely welcoming country. I already visited last year. People like to chat, and ask you where you’re from. Some recognise me and some don’t, but generally they all know a bit about football. What surprises me about the people here is their generosity, their good humour and their desire to have fun. Of course they talk about my goal in 2006, but as I often say, at the end of the day, we didn’t win that tournament either. There can only be one team who returns home completely satisfied, and that’s the winner.

You rubbed shoulders with Lionel Messi at Barcelona. Do you think he is going to have a successful World Cup? Messi doesn’t play all by himself. Let’s talk about Argentina. It’s clear that if Argentina win, Messi will play well. At some point, the guys around him will have to help him out. Has Argentina’s time come? They haven’t won the World Cup in quite some time. So it’s not really a ‘Messi problem’. The team has to play as a unit, work hard, and only then will you see Messi performing at the top of his game – it’s as simple as that. Å Thierry Henry was speaking to Pascal De Miramon

There are a few. We lost Franck Ribery ahead of the World Cup, but he’s an amazing player. And then there’s Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane and so on. The guys in the midfield and up front are getting a lot of praise, but Varane is an extraordinary player. He’s composed, and already plays like a defender with a ten-year career under his belt. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

First Love Place: Duba, Saudi Arabia Date: 18 June 2014 T i m e : 7. 4 6 p . m .

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green felt playing surface, two goals and their goalkeepers and two free-standing outfield players. You press the player’s head to activate the kicking leg and pass the ball. Every football-obsessed kid has or had some version of the game lying around in their bedroom. And the youngsters now have another move to re-enact over and over again at home. In Brazil’s 4-1 victory over Cameroon in the final round of Group A fixtures, Luiz Gustavo caught the entire Cameroon defence napping with a pass towards the lurking Neymar. The striker moved his foot just as if pressure had been applied to his head, although not forwards like a miniature player, but to the side. It was a small, almost imperceptible movement, but masterfully done. The goal was another demonstration of Neymar’s phenomenal talent and yet more evidence of football’s fundamental simplicity. Football played with the head. Å Sarah Steiner

David Gray / Reuters

t was obvious at a glance that both Brazilian lads were born with football in their blood. The passing was elegant, the tricks plentiful, and the keepy-uppy skills so prodigious they could keep the ball off the sand for two whole minutes if they felt like it. But they didn’t feel like it for long today. Behind them, two girls had stretched out on a beach towel, and even at 14, you learn to prioritise. The lads sauntered over to the girls and delivered a few opening lines. One was obviously witty and everyone laughed. Yet another game where the Brazilians are world-beaters. The young gentlemen made themselves comfortable on a corner of the towel and worked on their already lustrous tans. And there was still more to come: one of them performed a stunt move using just one arm. Wow, where do you learn this sort of thing? In the backstreets of Brazil presumably. But then a mother’s voice summoned them from a nearby restaurant and the boys reluctantly took their leave. “We’ll be back later,” one of them said – in perfect British English. Å Alan Schweingruber

iroslav Klose scored his 15th goal at the World Cup finals in Germany’s 2-2 draw with Ghana, becoming the joint all-time top scorer with Ronaldo. He came off the bench and forced the ball home in the 71st minute after Howedes flicked on a Kroos corner. G erman TV studio analyst and goalkeeping legend Oliver Kahn was as thrilled as anyone at first, and was delighted to welcome his team-mate of many long years and now fellow pundit Mehmet Scholl for a post-match assessment of the game. But when the presenter mentioned the name ‘Solskjaer’, Scholl turned a shen-faced. Klose’s historic goal was indeed a carbon copy of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s last-gasp strike to snatch the 1999 Champions League for Manchester United against Bayern, a memory that still haunts Kahn and Scholl to this day. Å

Perikles Monioudis

arcus is one of the 15,000 volunteers whose charm and enthusiasm is creating such a warm, cordial atmosphere at the World Cup. He’s a driver with the official World Cup transportation service in Salvador. During our ride he explains that he loves the military and served in the foreign legion. We’re travelling in the fast lane, when Marcus suddenly jumps on the brakes and the car screeches to a halt at a red light. The driver behind him immediately starts honking his horn. Another simply overtakes. The traffic rolls past as if the stop signal was just an illusion. “We’re in an official car. If I drove on, tomorrow’s headlines would be: 'FIFA runs red lights,’” Marcus explains apologetically. He will continue to observe the Highway Code, up until the end of his assignment at least, at which point he may revert to the local norm. “The stronger and faster have the right of way,” he says. Not unlike the foreign legion. Å Thomas Renggli T H E F I FA W E E K LY

T HE DEBAT E

Clear boundaries

Stepping up Croatia’s players take their places behind the temporary mark.

For the first time at the World Cup, FIFA have implemented the use of vanishing spray and goal-line technology. The results tell their own story.

ontroversial goals are now a thing of the past. Thanks to goal-line technology and the accompanying pictorial portrayal of the flight of the ball, spectators the world over are able to see the decision-making process as it happens: a goal will only be awarded if the whole ball crosses the line. The deliberately simplified images, which are very similar to the Hawk-Eye system used in tennis, depict the signals captured by the goal-line cameras to determine whether or not a goal has been scored. Once the advantages of the technology have been proved in a real-life case, it is hard to imagine professional football ever doing without it again.

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The same goes for the vanishing spray, which was also received with scepticism in some quarters until its benefits had been seen in a game. When a free-kick is awarded, the referee uses the spray to draw a line in front of the wall to prevent encroachment, thus putting an end to a trick even youth-team players would perform by tiptoeing closer to the ball as soon as the official’s back is turned. Maintaining the distance between the ball and the wall is not only necessary to keep the defending team in check, as free-kick takers often move the ball closer to the goal too. That can no longer happen because before referees mark the wall’s position, they spray a halfmoon shaped line in front of the ball as well. Both innovations help make the game more transparent in situations where the hu-

man eye alone is not enough, and they do not in any way undermine the officials’ authority. One day, the 2014 World Cup will be fondly remembered not only for its football but also for its use of new technical tools. Å

The weekly debate. Any thing you want to get off your chest? Which topics do you want to discuss? Send your suggestions to: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org

Elsa / Getty Images

Perikles Monioudis

T HE DEBAT E

PRESIDENTIAL NOTE

In this issue, FIFA.com users share their views on the World Cup so far. Goalline technology is good. It should have been introduced years ago! LinoLeary, Great Britain

This is the best Colombian team of all time. They’re even better than the side that played in the 1990s. Vamos mi Seleccion! Ballsphere, Great Britain

I love France no matter what happens! The passion of the players, the commitment – this generation could really win some trophies! Allez les Bleus! kkk533, France

Think about it! The referees and his assistants have to keep track of 22 players and a ball. Even the best referees can’t spot everything all of the time. Football should take advantage of technology whenever it becomes available! Deeelius, USA

I’m still expecting a lot from the Netherlands at this World Cup. They’ve got an almost perfect blend of Brazil’s beautiful football and the technical ability of many European sides. It really is a joy to watch them, even if they aren’t the number one team. The players aren’t selfish; instead they rely on one another and play clever passes. I think they’ll get to the final, but I’m personally backing my wife’s team, A Seleção, and the USA. Nevertheless, best of luck to the Oranje! robertestx, USA

Cesare Prandelli will be sorely missed. He’s a great coach and his time at the top of the game should be celebrated. Thanks to Prandelli, catenaccio is a thing of the past, and that’s perhaps his greatest legacy. All the best Prandelli!

Neymar is the World Cup’s top scorer – so far. I hope he carries on like this and wins the Golden Boot. He played extremely well against Cameroon and his team-mates gave their all too. I really hoped Croatia could qualify, but unfortunately they were unable to beat Mexico. virus920, Libya

“That’s Prandelli’s greatest legacy.”

ReusRepublis, Republic of Ireland

Rules are there for a reason and we can’t rely solely on human judgement. It’s time to make use of video cameras to help with difficult decisions – goalline technology works very well! brigitte.ode, The Netherlands

Football in a new dimension

Greece deserved their victory. The goalposts prevented them from getting a goal three times, but Greece are 12th in the FIFA world rankings. Is that down to luck? Certainly not. Well done Greece, you played like a team and not like 11 individuals. Macedonian_T , Great Britain

“Even the best don’t see everything.”

pectacular, thrilling, high-quality, simply magnificent. The football served up by the 32 teams at the World Cup can hardly be bettered. The tournament in Brazil is setting new standards for the sport. A Copa das Copas! At the present time football is moving into what we might call a new dimension in terms of pace, attacking intent and risk-taking. We are also making new, surprising discoveries in terms of technical aids. Goal-line technology is a big hit. If only one game-changing decision (as in France v Honduras or Italy v Costa Rica) can be proved right, this technological innovation has already paid off. The referees’ vanishing spray has turned in the briefest space of time from a much-ridiculed curiosity to an indispensable component of the game. At long last we are rid of remonstrating and cheating for the sake of mere centimetres. Why didn’t we introduce this spray 50 years ago? At the Congress I put forward the idea of video challenges for coaches. I suggested two “calls” per match for controversial incidents. For now this is only intended to initiate a discussion. But this tournament demonstrates that we should not seal ourselves off from modern life. As is the case with goal-line technology, if it proves possible to provide referees with other real-time decision-making tools for different game-changing situations in the future, we should be open to it, because transparency and credibility matter more than anything else in football. May we all continue to enjoy this wonderful World Cup.

Best wishes, Sepp Blatter T H E F I FA W E E K LY

ARGENTINIAN FANS

Messi in their hearts An Argentinian sun rises over the Copacabana.

Praying in the rain 足C olombian fans seek divine assistance for their team.

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ARGENTINIAN FANS

She wore a lone-star ribbon A Chile fan lets it go to her head.

Maradona, Messi & the Pope South American teams are dominating the World Cup in Brazil. No nation is staking a more powerful claim than Argentina. Thomas Renggli (words) and Joe Raedle (pictures), Rio de Janeiro T H E F I FA W E E K LY

ARGENTINIAN FANS

Painted and bespectacled Breathless tension among Brazil fans.

Celebrations abroad Uruguay supporters on the beach in Rio.

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ARGENTINIAN FANS

hey’re spending the nights on park benches, spreading out their sleeping bags on the sandy beaches, flying their flags between the Copacabana palms, drinking Fernet Branca with cola, and making a racket. A very loud racket in fact, louder than all the Dutch, Germans and Italians at this World Cup put together. More than 50,000 Argentina fans are trekking around Brazil in support of their team, adding a blue-and-white sheen to this summer’s tournament. And all the while, they awaken primal fears and the spectre of past failure in the footballing conscience of Brazil. Back in 1950 it was visitors from Uruguay who crashed the hosts’ World Cup party and made off with the trophy which had seemed Brazil’s for the taking prior to the final game. This time around, 64 years later, Argentina could fill the role of party poopers and add a new chapter to the Maracanaço, the Maracana trauma. “We’ll only go home after we’ve won the cup,” Martino told us, raising a fist wrapped in a blue-and-white scarf towards the heavens.

Joe Raedle / Getty Images (5)

Vocal muscle hits some false notes Martino is a Boca Juniors fan, and also a devoted follower of La Albiceleste (the whites and sky blues), as the Argentinian national team is nicknamed. Around his neck he wears an amulet bearing an image of Pope Francis. His left upper arm sports a tattoo of his second personal patron saint: Diego! Maradona of course, a footballing god and a true great on the field, if something of a controversial figure off it. The Argentinian icon has withstood many a fierce storm. In the eyes of his devotees he remains the saviour who won his country their most recent world title in 1986. “He’s a magician, an acrobat,” said Martino, struggling a little for the right words to sum up his idol. “Diego is the greatest player of all time,” he continued, the stony determination on his face making it clear it would be a waste of time debating the merits or otherwise of a certain Pele with him. With their numerical and vocal muscle, the Argentinian fans are a force to be reckoned with in Brazil. But they are also striking a few discordant notes. For their first match against Bosnia, a handful of fans used force to gain admission to the Maracana stadium. A group of Chilean supporters also failed to abide by the rules, storming a barrier in the media centre prior to their tie against Spain and charging en masse into the stadium. Apart from these unwanted noises-off, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: the World Cup in Brazil is being dominated by teams from North, Central, and particularly South America. Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and Costa Rica have emerged as the big winners of the first two weeks of the tournament. That brings us back to the question on most people’s lips before the tournament: will there be a significant home advantage? Every World Cup on the American continent has been won by a South American nation: by Uruguay at home in 1930 and at Brazil 1950; by Brazil at Chile 1962 and at Mexico 1970; by Argentina on home soil in 1978 and at Mexico 1986; and by Brazil again at USA 1994. It ain’t half hot, except when it’s not Former Italy coach Cesare Prandelli clearly felt the climate was a significant factor: “The players from South and Central America live and play in these conditions. That’s an advantage.” The ex-coach chose not to mention that football in Italy is also played in temperatures far exceeding 30°C, especially in Sicily and in the south. German strategist Joachim Low agreed that the climate in Brazil is a bonus for the “home” nations: “They know how to cope with the conditions and they’re used to playing in the midday heat.” Germany are one of the hardest-hit in terms of the extreme weather, as all three of their group stage matches

were played out in the hotter, more northerly locations of Salvador, Fortaleza and Recife. Ecuador’s Colombian coach Reinaldo Rueda tried to put the climate debate into perspective: “Brazil is basically as big as a continent. There are several climatic zones, so you can’t really talk about home advantage.” Events on the field and results support his position. England, for example, lost their crunch meeting with Uruguay in Sao Paulo in very British temperatures of around 10°C. The travelling England supporters had clearly not bargained for anything but blazing heat in Brazil and showed up in shorts and flip-flops. As it turned out, they were caught by surprise, both by the chill and their team’s sub-par performance. The visiting hordes from Argentina are far better prepared. They have brought locally blended mate tea with them from home, and otherwise simply pick up the essentials from local supermarkets. Anyone short of a place to stay will find Martino’s door open: “I always have room for three or four more.” But will there be a place for Argentina in the Final on 13 July? Despite a convincing group stage campaign, lingering doubts remain. Coach Alejandro Sabella’s side qualified for the knockout stages without dropping a point but hardly looked invincible. The pivotal question remains whether a gifted collection of individuals spearheaded by Lionel Messi can pool their talents and become a world-beating team.

“I always have room for three or four more.”

Banishing the memories of 2010 Whatever happens, Argentina owe their fans a decent run at this tournament. They last reached the World Cup Final in 1990 and their campaigns at the finals since then have all petered out tamely: in the 1994 Round of 16 against Bulgaria, the 1998 quarter-finals against the Netherlands, at the group stage in 2002, and to Germany in the quarter-finals in both 2006 and 2010. All these memories are painful but the most bitter of all is the disaster four years ago when they were handed a comprehensive 4-0 quarter-final thrashing by Die Mannschaft and Maradona’s antics as national coach at times bordered on satirical. In Brazil, everything is different and Argentina are on the right track for a happy ending. Martino and his travelling companions are already contemplating a possible showdown with their old adversaries, Brazil. Thanks to the draw and the way the contest has unfolded, the meeting cannot take place until 13 July at the Maracana. Up to that point a huge burden of expectation rests on Messi’s shoulders. The Barça superstar’s iconic status in his home country becomes tangible when 50,000 voices bellow a prolonged and thunderous “MEEEEESSSSIIIII” in tribute to the man they see as the Messiah. One of those voices belongs to coach Sabella. “Our game is better when we get Messi on the ball. Regardless of what ends up happening at this World Cup he’s one of the best players in footballing history.” And should Messi’s extravagant repertoire not prove enough on its own, Argentina can always call on two sources of divine intervention: Pope Francis and the Hand of God. Just in case, of course. Å T H E F I FA W E E K LY

FREE KICK

F I F A 11

Highest-scoring World Cup matches

Tipping point Alan Schweingruber

avesdropping on other people’s conversations is not the done thing, even at the best of times, and all the more so in a restaurant. But what are you supposed to do when it is unavoidable? For example, when your partner is outside smoking a cigarette and you’ve left your smartphone at home... Woman: “Are you going to be watching the World Cup again today?” Man: “I’ve already planned which games I want to watch. We should watch them together.” The woman lights a cigarette and blows smoke in the man’s face. Man: “After all, we’re heading into the Round of 16. That means new rules apply.” Woman: “We’ve already established our rules. Look, we need to talk. All you think about at the moment is football and Robben, Neymar and Rooney or whatever they’re called... Man: “Rooney got knocked out.” Woman: “So what? They can all get knocked out for all I care!” She takes a sip of red wine and stands up. “You wouldn’t be saying that if you’re team had qualified,” the man says as she walks away, heading for the restroom. In the meantime a good-humoured waiter arrives to clear the table. He disappears into a small storage room before coming out wheeling a cart with a television on top. “Who do you think is going to win, Chile or Brazil?” he asks the man, who rolls his eyes in response. You can just tell what is going to happen when the man’s partner returns. When she does, she sees the television and says: “Ok fine, I’ve been thinking long and hard about this. Tomorrow I’m going to fly to Stockholm for two weeks to see my mother. You can watch the rest of the World Cup in peace. Maybe a break will do us good.”

Confused, he looks up at her. “You don’t have to do that...” “I know, but I want to.” “Really? And what exactly are you going to do for a fortnight in Sweden?” “I’ll find things to do. I’ll catch up with friends and go out for meals.” The conversation stalls. “Are you going to see Lars?” “Lars? No! I don’t meet up with my ex-boyfriends. He’ll be watching the football anyway.” “And what if he’s not?” “Lars’ll be watching the football, I know he will be.” “What makes you say that?” asks the man, upset. “Because he always watches the football.” “Really? And yet you still kick up a fuss with me?” The woman raises her eyebrows. “We broke up because of the stupid football.” This is all getting a little bit too much for me: it seems ridiculous to break up over football. I turn away and see Brazil and Chile getting off to a frenetic start. It looks like a great match and I’m looking forward to another 90 minutes of this. But then by chance I glance out of the window and see my partner chatting to another man smoking outside. They seem to be enjoying themselves. I quickly wave the waiter over and ask for the bill. Å

The weekly column by our staff writers

Austria - Switzerland: 12 goals Result: 7-5 Date: 26 June 1954 Location: 1954 World Cup, Switzerland

Brazil - Poland: 11 goals Result: 6-5 Date: 05 June 1938 Location: 1938 World Cup, France

Hungary - West Germany: 11 goals Result: 8-3 Date: 20 June 1954 Location: 1954 World Cup, Switzerland

Hungary - El Salvador: 11 goals Result: 10-1 Date: 15 June 1982 Location: 1982 World Cup, Spain

France - Paraguay: 10 goals Result: 7-3 Date: 08 June 1958 Location: 1958 World Cup, Sweden

Argentina - Mexico: 9 goals Result: 6-3 Date: 19 July 1930 Location: 1930 World Cup, Uruguay

Hungary - Korea Republic: 9 goals Result: 9-0 Date: 17 June 1954 Location: 1954 World Cup, Switzerland

West Germany - Turkey: 9 goals Result: 7-2 Date: 23 June 1954 Location: 1954 World Cup, Switzerland

France - West Germany: 9 goals Result: 6-3 Date: 28 June 1958 Location: 1958 World Cup, Sweden

Yugoslavia - Zaire: 9 goals Result: 9-0 Date: 18 June 1974 Location: 1974 World Cup, West Germany

Italy - USA: 8 goals Result: 7-1 Date: 27 May 1934 Location: 1934 World Cup, Italy

Source: FIFA (FIFA World Cup, Milestones & Super latives, Statistical Kit, 12/05/2014) T H E F I FA W E E K LY

MIRROR IMAGE

Cairo, Egypt

1994

Boaz Rottem / Getty Images

Television is a window to the world, or more accurately, to the World Cup. Local men and boys gather in a street to watch a match at the 1994 tournament in the USA.

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MIRROR IMAGE

Salvador da Bahia, Brazil

2014

Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP

Even in the internet age there is no substitute for good old TV – albeit a flat-screen model – set up for outdoor viewing during the current World Cup.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

FIFA WORLD R ANKING Rank Team

→ http://www.fifa.com/worldranking/index.html

Change in ranking Points

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Spain Germany Brazil Portugal Argentina Switzerland Uruguay Colombia Italy England

0 0 1 -1 2 2 -1 -3 0 1

1485 1300 1242 1189 1175 1149 1147 1137 1104 1090

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 23 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 52 54 55 56 57 57 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77

Belgium Greece USA Chile Netherlands Ukraine France Croatia Russia Mexico Bosnia-Herzegovina Algeria Denmark Côte d'Ivoire Slovenia Ecuador Scotland Costa Rica Romania Serbia Panama Sweden Honduras Czech Republic Turkey Egypt Ghana Armenia Cape Verde Islands Venezuela Wales Austria Iran Nigeria Peru Japan Hungary Tunisia Slovakia Paraguay Montenegro Iceland Guinea Sierra Leone Norway Cameroon Mali Korea Republic Uzbekistan Burkina Faso Finland Australia Jordan Libya South Africa Albania Bolivia El Salvador Poland Republic of Ireland Trinidad and Tobago United Arab Emirates Haiti Senegal Israel Zambia Morocco

1 -2 1 -1 0 1 -1 2 -1 -1 4 3 0 -2 4 2 -5 6 3 0 4 -7 -3 2 4 -12 1 -5 3 1 6 -2 -6 0 -3 1 -2 1 -3 5 3 6 -1 17 0 -6 2 -2 -6 1 -9 -3 1 -2 0 4 1 1 3 -4 3 -5 4 -11 3 3 -1

1074 1064 1035 1026 981 915 913 903 893 882 873 858 809 809 800 791 786 762 761 745 743 741 731 724 722 715 704 682 674 672 644 643 641 640 627 626 624 612 591 575 574 566 566 565 562 558 547 547 539 538 532 526 510 498 496 495 483 481 474 473 470 460 452 451 444 441 439

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Ranking 01 / 2014

02 / 2014

03 / 2014

04 / 2014

05 / 2014

06 / 2014

1 -41 -83 -125 -167 -209

78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 90 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 110 112 113 114 115 116 116 118 119 120 120 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 134 136 137 137 139 140 140 142 143 144

Top spot

Biggest climber

Bulgaria Oman FYR Macedonia Jamaica Belarus Azerbaijan Congo DR Congo Uganda Benin Togo Gabon Northern Ireland Saudi Arabia Botswana Angola Palestine Cuba Georgia New Zealand Estonia Zimbabwe Qatar Moldova Equatorial Guinea China PR Iraq Central African Republic Lithuania Ethiopia Kenya Latvia Bahrain Canada Niger Tanzania Namibia Kuwait Liberia Rwanda Mozambique Luxembourg Sudan Aruba Malawi Vietnam Kazakhstan Lebanon Tajikistan Guatemala Burundi Philippines Afghanistan Dominican Republic Malta St Vincent and the Grenadines Guinea-Bissau Chad Suriname Mauritania St Lucia Lesotho New Caledonia Syria Cyprus Turkmenistan Grenada

-5 3 0 0 1 2 4 7 0 10 1 -2 -6 -15 -1 1 71 -5 7 14 -5 -1 -5 -2 11 -7 -4 1 -2 -6 -2 0 -5 0 -10 9 6 -7 3 15 -4 -7 -3 35 0 -7 -6 -11 -5 -3 -3 11 -2 -5 -4 -7 50 31 -5 2 -4 2 -2 -6 -12 13 -8

Biggest faller

425 420 419 411 397 396 395 393 390 386 383 382 381 381 375 364 358 354 349 347 343 340 339 334 333 331 329 321 319 317 296 293 289 289 284 283 277 276 271 271 269 267 254 254 247 242 241 233 229 226 221 217 215 212 204 203 201 201 197 196 196 194 190 190 189 183 182

144 146 147 148 149 149 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 164 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 176 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 190 192 192 192 195 196 196 198 198 200 201 202 202 204 205 206 207 207 207

Madagascar Korea DPR Maldives Gambia Kyrgyzstan Thailand Antigua and Barbuda Belize Malaysia India Singapore Guyana Indonesia Puerto Rico Myanmar St Kitts and Nevis Tahiti Liechtenstein Hong Kong Pakistan Nepal Montserrat Bangladesh Laos Dominica Barbados Faroe Islands São Tomé e Príncipe Swaziland Comoros Bermuda Nicaragua Chinese Taipei Guam Sri Lanka Solomon Islands Seychelles Curaçao Yemen Mauritius South Sudan Bahamas Mongolia Fiji Samoa Cambodia Vanuatu Brunei Darussalam Timor-Leste Tonga US Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Papua New Guinea British Virgin Islands American Samoa Andorra Eritrea Somalia Macau Djibouti Cook Islands Anguilla Bhutan San Marino Turks and Caicos Islands

45 -9 6 -14 -3 -6 -9 -8 -8 -7 -8 -5 -5 -9 14 -7 -4 -12 -5 -5 -5 22 -5 5 -6 -9 -7 -5 5 10 -6 -8 -6 -7 -6 -8 -5 -5 -4 -4 16 0 0 -6 -6 0 -10 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

182 175 171 166 163 163 158 152 149 144 141 137 135 134 133 124 122 118 112 102 102 99 98 97 93 92 89 86 85 84 83 78 78 77 73 70 66 65 61 57 47 40 35 34 32 28 28 26 26 26 23 21 21 18 18 16 11 8 8 6 5 3 0 0 0

TURNING POINT

Name Simone Farina Date and place of birth 18 April 1982, Rome Position Defender Clubs 2001–2002 AS Roma 2001–2002 Catania (on loan) 2002–2004 Cittadella 2004–2006 Gualdo 2006–2007 Celano 2007–2012 Gubbio Current employment Community coach at Aston Villa.

“Lose deliberately? Never.” After rejecting an approach to rig a game as a player, today Simone Farina stands as an example for integrity in the worldwide battle against match fixing.

Pio Figueiroa

n September 2011 I was still a professional footballer at Serie B club AS Gubbio when I received an invitation from an old team-mate to go and have a chat. It took me a while to remember who he was when he called me because I hadn’t heard from him in ten years. I knew him from much earlier in my career, when I had been a very young player in Rome. He picked me up in his car in the town centre on a sunny morning and we drove to a café. He had brought a friend along and after the three of us sat down he quickly got straight to the point: he wanted me to make sure Gubbio lost against Cesena in a cup match that was still two months away by at least three goals. My reply was instant: no. My ex-colleague must have thought that because I was a defender I would be in a posi-

tion to make Gubbio lose against Cesena, who were better than Gubbio anyway. He offered me €200,000, approximately five times my annual salary at the time. Integrity comes first in my opinion. On top of that I wasn’t even remotely interested in ruining my chances as a footballer. I had sacrificed so much to get to the level I was at and it would have destroyed my dream, my whole ambition in life. I wanted to play and I wanted to play cleanly. My former colleague accepted my decision but he still asked whether he could contact my current team-mates and whether I would give him the phone numbers of the team captain or club president. I refused to help him in any way. He didn’t insist and he didn’t threaten me but I was nevertheless desperate to leave right away. They took me back to the town centre and when I left my former teammate made a signal to me from the car not to tell anyone of our meeting. However, back at home I spoke to my wife and then got in touch with the Italian Footballers’ Association. They told me I could face a ban if I went straight to the police. I followed their advice and first thing the next day I went to the offices of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), who then informed

the police. My d ecision to say no directly led to 17 people being arrested. The next few months were difficult. Who could I turn to for help? I felt as if I had been abandoned. I was worried about my family, especially my two children. It meant the end of my playing career but I never doubted my decision for an instant. Honesty pays off and today I travel all over the world as a Fair Play Ambassador in order to tell players of my experience. I have fulfilled another dream too: I work as a community coach at Aston Villa and help take care of youngsters. Å As told to Perikles Monioudis

In Turning Point, personalities reflect on a decisive moment in their lives. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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NET ZER KNOWS!

THE OBJEC T

Can an unfancied team make it to the World Cup Final? Question asked by Fabio Rossi, Alba, Italy

Perikles Monioudis

Decent prospects Gunter Netzer is by no means writing off the underdogs.

I Sven Simon / imago, FIFA Sammlung

’

m really enjoying this World Cup, and I hope the excitement continues into the last 16. I think the underdogs definitely have a chance, although I have my doubts whether any of them can make it as far as the Final. Chile are having a magnificent tournament, confirming the potential they showed in their warm-up matches. They can compete with the biggest footballing nations, even in tournament play. That’s not entirely unexpected. I’ve watched the team summon up a fighting spirit from deep down, right when it matters on the day. Chile are aggressive, inspired and clearly have plenty of healthy team spirit. It will be very interesting to see how they fare against Brazil. I don’t need to go into how difficult the challenge will be, but I trust Chile not to freeze in awe of the five-time world champions. Jorge Sampaoli and his team are not going to be put off by big-name opponents.

For an unfancied team to reach the Final, there is one fundamental and decisive factor: whether or not they are able to survive an off day. No team in the world plays at its absolute best for seven straight games. Injury and suspension take their toll, and you’ll always have a match in which two or three vital players aren’t on top form. Teams that make it to the Final must be able to cover for absent players, although that applies equally to Brazil, Argentina or Germany. Å

laying the ball with your hands has always been among the greatest temptations in football, and not just for outfield players who try to surreptitiously steer the ball with their hand or arm, hoping the referee looks away at the right moment. Of course, goalkeepers need not worry about handling the ball, as they are entitled to be as tactile as they please. The board game pictured above, made in 1910, originates from England and is part of the FIFA Collection. Its name, “Finga Foota”, makes it clear that this is one occasion when the ball should be dribbled, passed and shot using the fingers. To play the game, players wear protective rubber covers over their index and middle fingers and slip their fingers through a cardboard strap to which one of six cut-out figures is then attached, allowing the participants to play as Charlie Chaplin or another well-known personality. It is clear that this game has an element of comedy about it. Imitating sporting events with the fingers remains a popular pastime, even though the appeal of finger football has diminished over the years. Skateboarders develop skate parks, tricks and competition routines with the help of miniature models, and the finger-sized boards they use for dry runs can now be found in the toy section of almost every supermarket. Mini-skateboards may become as popular as toy cars, but unlike playing with cars, a certain amount of dexterity is needed to generate the right roll on a finger skateboard. It could even be regarded as a useful training exercise for budding pianists, darts players or hairstylists. With that in mind, perhaps football fans should get back in training with “Finga Foota” – after all, you never know when it might come in handy! Å

What have you always wanted to know about football? Ask Gunter Netzer: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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The FIFA Weekly Published weekly by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Internet: www.fifa.com/theweekly

FIFA QUIZ CUP

One somersaulting goalscorer, two boots in two colours and 23 players from 23 clubs. Test your knowledge!

Publisher: FIFA, FIFA-Strasse 20, PO box, CH-8044 Zurich Tel. +41-(0)43-222 7777 Fax +41-(0)43-222 7878 President: Joseph S. Blatter

Who scored his 15th World Cup goal in a match against Ghana?

Secretary General: Jérôme Valcke Director of Communications and Public Affairs: Walter De Gregorio Chief Editor: Perikles Monioudis

K Just him

Staff Writers: Thomas Renggli (Author), Alan Schweingruber, Sarah Steiner Art Direction: Catharina Clajus

L Both of them

R Just him

S Both of them

Five men with these names are playing at this World Cup for teams from... O Japan I Asia and South America E South Korea A Africa, Asia and South America

Picture Editor: Peggy Knotz Production: Hans-Peter Frei Layout: Richie Krönert (Lead), Marianne Bolliger-Crittin, Susanne Egli, Mirijam Ziegler

Which football association's World Cup squad contains 23 players from 23 different clubs?

Proof Reader: Nena Morf, Kristina Rotach Contributors: Sérgio Xavier Filho, Luigi Garlando, Sven Goldmann, Hanspeter Kuenzler, Jordi Punti, David Winner, Roland Zorn Contributors to this Issue: Andreas Jaros, Pascal De Miramon, Dominik Petermann, Alissa Rosskopf Andrew Warshaw

The left boot is a totally different colour to the right boot, but who wore this footwear at this summer’s World Cup?

Editorial Assistant: Honey Thaljieh Project Management: Bernd Fisa, Christian Schaub Translation: Sportstranslations Limited www.sportstranslations.com Printer: Zofinger Tagblatt AG www.ztonline.ch

Getty Images (6) / AFP (2)

Contact: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org Reproduction of photos or articles in whole or in part is only permitted with prior editorial approval and if attributed “The FIFA Weekly, © FIFA 2014”. The editor and staff are not obliged to publish unsolicited manuscripts and photos. FIFA and the FIFA logo are registered trademarks of FIFA. Made and printed in Switzerland. Any views expressed in The FIFA Weekly do not necessarily reflect those of FIFA.

The answer to last week’s Quiz Cup was KING Detailed answers on www.fifa.com/theweekly Inspiration and implementation: cus

Send your answer by 2 July 2014 to feedback-theweekly@fifa.org. Correct solutions to all quizzes published from 13 June 2014 onwards will go into a draw in January 2015 for a trip for two to the FIFA Ballon d’Or on 12 January 2015. Before sending in answers, all participants must read and accept the competition terms and conditions and the rules, which can be found at: http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/af-magazine/fifaweekly/02/20/51/99/en_rules_20140613_english_neutral.pdf T H E F I FA W E E K LY

A S K T H E W E E K LY

T HIS WEEK’S POLL

Which keeper will win the adidas Golden Glove?

How does the new marking spray disappear after a short time? Joao Silva dos Santos, Sao Paulo (Brazil)

The adidas Golden Glove is awarded to the best goalkeeper at the conclusion of the tournament. Who are your candidates at this stage? Email your thoughts to: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org

L A S T W E E K’S P O L L R E S U LT S Which two Group H teams will qualify for the Round of 16? 66% 16%

Belgium and Russia

Belgium and Korea Republic

Belgium and Algeria

Russia and Korea Republic

Algeria and Russia

Algeria and Korea Republic

WEEK IN NUMBERS

matches and four months, the terms of the ban handed to Uruguay striker Luis Suarez by the FIFA

100

World Cup goals was the milestone reached by the French national team in their 5-2 victory over Switzerland in Group E, with Olivier

Disciplinary Commit-

Giroud the player who

tee. The 27-year-old

completed the century for

years had passed without Algeria winning a game at a World Cup finals before the Fennecs finally broke their losing streak with a 4-2 victory over

was found guilty of

Les Bleus. The first goal for

biting Italian oppo-

France – and the first goal ever in

Korea Republic in their second game in Group H.

nent Giorgio Chiellini

World Cup finals history – was

The result saw the Algerians become the first

in the teams’ World

scored by Lucien Laurent against

African side to net four times in a single match at a

Cup group stage clash.

Mexico in Uruguay in 1930.

World Cup finals.

Getty Images

The spray that comes out of the aerosol can consists of 20% butane gas, 1% surfactant and around 2% other substances. The rest is water. When the substance is sprayed on the pitch, the butane “expands” causing it to foam. The marking evaporates as soon as the foam bubbles burst. The spray remains visible for between 30 seconds and two minutes and does not leave any harmful residues behind. The foam is biodegradable and each aerosol can contains 147 millilitres. (thr)