The Italian Odd Couple


Selection permitting, come this evening we may have witnessed the sublime brilliance or infuriating petulance of one of the game's most peculiar strike partnerships; Mario Balotelli and Antonio Cassano. Very much cut from the same cloth the partners upon which Italian hopes are likely to rest are mavericks, playboys, eccentrics, the list of terms is endless. Given the temperament and tendencies of Balotelli one would be forgiven for expecting Cesare Prandelli to partner him with a level headed role model from which he could learn to curb his eccentricities. Instead the coach seems to embrace what makes the young City striker what he is and revel in the possibilities of his strike force. There really is a growing sense of master and student between the two. Upon arrival in Poland, Prandelli did, however, note one restraint he'd placed on the pair, "Mario actually wanted to share a room with Antonio but we didn't want to overdo it." A wise move one suspects!

Their 'rap-list' takes some reading. Ballotelli's training ground darts throwing 'pranks', experimenting with fireworks, confrontations with team mates, appearing unannounced at press conferences- of different teams, wearing an AC Milan jersey on national TV while playing for great rivals Inter, its all there. Not to be outdone the jovial Cassano can lay claim to "sleeping with 600- 700 women", being sent off and subsequently abusing the referee in the Italian Cup Final of 2003, imitating Fabio Capello, falling out with Sampdoria president Riccardo Garrone and generally being one to overeat and under train. As he puts it " I was born tired", tired in this sense we can take to mean lazy. Throughout much of his stint in Madrid he was ridiculed and lampooned as a clown of ever increasing weight and lessening value. Claims such as those made in his autobiography, 'Telling Everything' that he had a friend in Madrid whose job it was to "bring me three or four pastries after I had sex" probably didn't help his cause. Not that he cared what the media had to say about him one suspects. Cassano, like Balotelli, is a free spirirt. Just this week Balotelli's agent compared him to Peter Pan. In a curt reply to questions on the matter the young striker asserted that he is "more of a man than Peter Pan" although he did accept "I could be Peter Pan because I do things my own way, I'm a bit free". On the eve of a quarter final of the European Championships it was all a little surreal. Saving his best for last Balotelli out did himself in response to James Milner's claim that there are two Ballotellis- the one who can the win the game and the one who can get sent off at any minute- by simply saying; "he's fortunate that he knows two of me!"

For all their misdemeanors however they remain incredibly talented footballers, capable of putting England to the sword tonight should they be on their game. Cassano, at the age of 29, has collected two Italian Super Cups, one Serie A title and one La Liga. Ballotelli's haul at the age of 21 is truly remarkable; 1 Italian Super Cup, 1 Coppa Italia, 1 FA Cup, a Premier League Title, 3 Serie A titles and a Champions League. Their combined medal collection is one to marvel at and, given their idiosyncrasies, a huge testament to their incredible talent. José Mourinho once called Ballotelli "unmanageable". Roberto Mancini though perhaps gave the best insight into managing and tolerating such a talent in equal measures;

"I told him, if you played with me 10 years ago I would give you every day maybe one punch in your head..I don't speak to him everyday, otherwise I would need a psychologist, but I speak with him because I don't want him to lose his quality." Mario can be one of the top players in Europe. I don't want him to lose his talent."

Infuriating and inspirational in equal measure; the Odd Couple will tonight be given the grand stage upon which to silence their doubters and fire Italy to a semi-final date with Germany. Balotelli once wondered aloud after scoring against Manchester United; Why Always Me? Now that he has a partner in crime in the world of footballing mavericks, concerns of being singled out should no longer trouble him.

English Mentality Set To Fail


The dial of the English sporting pysche has long been preset at 'delusions of grandeur'. As a sporting nation England has much to pride itself on. It is steeped in the history of many of our favourite sporting games and indeed can boast the founding fathers of more than a few too. Unfortunately this is part of the problem for many an English supporter nowadays. Rather than give rise to the gentle awakening of a nations hopes and dreams, the past glories of the English signal the onslaught of more the raucous emotions of expectation and self-entitlement. One need not delve too deep into the annals of time to find a litany of examples. David Haye and Andy Murray, as well as the national teams in football, rugby and cricket provide ample evidence of premature proclamations of greatness. Successive English competitors display great promise, not great achievement. Those of a more forgiving nature may point to Ashes victories, near-perfect qualifying campaigns and RWC performances as a specious counterbalance to the presented argument, but ultimately these are borne out of nothing more than delusion. Nine years ago a proud and fine English team did indeed reign supreme in Australia, but this alone stands as justification of what has otherwise been a bombardment of bluster  from supporter and media alike.

England- RWC 2003

The fortunes of the English football team and mood of the nation are permanent bed-mates, such is the importance of the former to the latter. In no other sphere of the sporting world has the cerebral distortion outlined above been more prevalent. As major competitions have come and gone so too have average teams, poor performances and of course the now customary solution; the great and omnipotent inquest. Only during these months of fastidious research does the hiatus of the general public come about, and the brief respite for those of us looking in from afar present itself. Of late ,though, one feels the mood has changed a little and the thirst for unlikely glory been quelled somewhat. Repetitive evidence to the contrary of one's held beliefs is always likely to induce a period off re-appraisal. Coupled with Fabio Capello's untimely resignation in February and the internal strife which forced him to take such a course of action, the pysche of the English is markedly altered from even two years previous at the World Cup in South Africa. If there were a tagline for preparations in the English camp thus far it would be 'no expectations'. It has nearly become the mantra of the players and has been adopted by the media with equal readiness. A welcome change, say the playing staff led by captain Steven Gerard. And not before time, the writer would venture to add. The current culture of, at best, reserved optimism has somewhat of an eerie feel about it however. A mere temporary abatement, the eye of the storm if you will. Should qualification from one of kinder groups at these championships be secured, prepare yourself. The welcome lack of expectation may transform from a simple by-product of the preparation process to the altogether more daunting catalyst for another array of prophecies as to the chances of success.


Regardless, the English have good players. They always have good players. At these championships they do pose a threat, and are capable of going far should they succeed in forming a coherent team unit which for once is greater or at least equal to the sum of its parts. The air of calm surrounding the team must be a welcome addition to preparation and as such it is reasonable to expect this is a happier camp than on previous occasions. All bodes well for a good run to the knockout stages, and in reality this is somewhat of a 'free-hit' for Roy Hodgson. He has as close to nothing to lose as makes no difference. Little is expected and so should his team board an early flight home, the backlash will be far weaker than before and he will be given time to build his own team regardless. Should, however, an unlikely victory be achieved Hodgson and his charges will return national heroes.

Roy Hodgson

It is for this reason I find Hodgson's apparent outlook baffling. He is presented with the greatest opportunity of his career at these championships; to make a team currently viewed as a group of underachieving misfits into champions of Europe. The recent withdrawal of Gary Cahill raises some serious questions as to how ruthless Hodgson is prepared to be in achieving this goal. Martin Kelly has been drafted into the squad as Cahill's replacement.

Gary Cahill was ruled out following a clash in warm up game vs. Belgium

On the surface Hodgson's choice may be justified. After all the English public have oft willed management to disregard the older members of this squad in recent years, and instead give youth a chance. Hodgson has now done so. The problem however, is that nobody in their right mind can claim that Kelly has earned his call up over Rio Ferdinand for "football reasons"as Hodgson has claimed. Through whichever rose tinted spectacles you care to peer, Ferdinand is simply not an inferior player to Kelly. The United man has been in exceptional form since half way through the season and played the last 16 games of the Premier League. Omitting him on form or indeed fitness simply does not add up. Building for the future is all well and good but the immediate future is Euro 2012. You are at a major tournament, you simply have to give yourself the best chance you can to win. You do this by picking the best players available, and Hodgson has not done so. His hands may be tied by the presence of Terry in the squad, but this simply exposes the foolhardiness of picking the Chelsea captain in the first place. Ferdinand, for my money has been in  better form than Terry, certainly seems less disruptive and was never going to pose such problems as having to call up a right back with two minutes international experience to cover a central defensive injury.
While Ferdinand and his representatives have been accused of sour grapes over the issue, the veteran defender is more than entitled to feel aggrieved.

A partnership we will not see at Euro 2012.

What has struck me most about the issue is not particularly Ferdinand's omission but the wider context in which the decision has been made. The English, long accused of over confidence have apparently come full circle. Before they expected to conquer all before them and obnoxiously told the world as such, and while the bubuzelas of South Africa might not have drowned out such cocksure claims, the performance of superior teams eventually reduced them to a whimper. Approaching Euro 2012 expectations have been reset and the shouting of the rooftops approach conspicuous only in its absence. Unfortunately, no honourable alternative has arisen. Instead their new manager has the contempt to treat the European Championships as an exercise in evasion. The consequences of his decision may seem minimal, but the idea it represents is much larger. His actions have reduced the promise of a new beginning and accompanying hunger of his players to what is now fast becoming a training exercise for players less deserving than others.