Rioting started in London on Saturday the 6th of August in the Tottenham area (home of Tottenham Hotspur FC) and continued for the rest of the week, first spreading to other areas of London and then to other cities including Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Bristol.

The match between the two European heavyweights was due to take place in London on Wednesday the 10th. On Tuesday the 9th, the FA announced that they felt there was no choice to call off the game, offering a refund to the 70,000 people who had bought tickets to see the spectacle. As it was a friendly, the match does not have to be rescheduled elsewhere in the football calendar, and unfortunately for the fans, will simply go unplayed.

It seems that the decision to cancel the game was a prudent one, given that rioting continued on the 10th and an overstretched Metropolitan Police would have been in no way able to take on the duties they normally undertake for football matches held in the capital, and the influx of 70,000 people on the city may have exacerbated problems with transport – most importantly, visiting fans could have been put at risk.

This is not the only disruption the UK riots caused to the football world. In just the second week of the football season (and ahead of the first weekend of the Premiership), matches at some London grounds were cancelled because of the riots. Tottenham were due to be playing at home, and as Tottenham had been so central to the riots this game was postponed. Elsewhere in the English League, the Carling Cup matches West Ham v Aldershot, Crystal Palace v Crawley Town and Charlton v Reading were cancelled in London, and in Bristol, the tie between Bristol City and Swindon also failed to take place.

Some of England’s top players have spoken out against the rioters on social media site Twitter, with Manchester United and England stars Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand among those who have condemned the rioters in their tweets. Some UK media outlets were accusing social media sites of making it easier for rioters to coordinate their attacks, but the number of celebrities (including those in the sport world) appealing for the riots to stop on their Twitter accounts shows that essentially, social media was being used on both sides of the argument.

The riots seem to have died down at this point, and hopefully this means that the English Football League, and indeed the rest of the country, can return to normal, though the ticket holders and all of the fans who were planning to watch on TV throughout Europe will not get to see England play Holland in 2011.

This is because Real Madrid thought it would be a good idea to sign the youngster to a year-long contract before cross-town rivals Atletico Madrid got their hands on him. Coira is signed and sealed and is scheduled to be delivered to one of Real’s youth academies on Sept. 6th.

Coira won’t receive any money while playing with the Spanish league runners up from last year, but his father is going to be paid travel expenses. Messi is Coira’s hero and he said he’d like to be just like him. But Coira’s got a pretty good head start since Messi was almost twice his age, 13, when he joined Barcelona. He then debuted with the senior squad after he turned 16.

Atletico Madrid also Interested

It was reported that a Real Madrid scout saw the seven-year-old play and thought he was pretty good. But once word got out that Atletico was also looking at him and interested, then Real made sure they locked up his services, at least for a year. If things work out well after a year and both the club and player are happy, then the deal can be extended for another year, and so on until he reaches 16.

Coira lives in Madrid with his family and has an older brother playing in the Spanish second division, so the team didn’t have to travel half way around the world to Argentina to find him. But signing a child at seven years old isn’t exactly new for Real, as a spokesman said they’ve signed younger kids in the past, but declined to name who and how old they were. It seems that cradle robbing seems to be a favourite pastime of the franchise.

So while other seven-year-olds are playing with their friends and learning how to tie their shoes, Coira will have the weight of the world on his shoulders as he’ll now feel pressured to produce or be deemed a failure. Who knows, maybe the kid will end up being the greatest player in the world, but if he doesn’t meet expectations it can stunt his growth mentally.

Many football players stand out above their teammates at a young age for many different reasons and it doesn’t mean a thing. However, if they can dominate games when they’re about 13 or 14 years old, then there could be some realistic potential there. It’s way too early to tell at seven years old how good a player could be.

It’d be interesting to know if Real would have signed the youngster if Atletico Madrid didn’t show any interest in him. Anyway, we’ll see if he’s re-signed next year. In the meantime Coira will also spend the next 12 months learning how to write his name… just in case.

It was a home game for the USA at the Rose Bowl in California, but about 80 per cent of the fans were there to support Mexico, and this was disappointing to USA soccer officials. Bradley achieved a few high points while in charge of the team since 2006, including a victory over Spain in 2009 an the Confederations Cup. However, he followed that up by losing the tournament’s final despite holding a 2-0 lead over Brazil in the first half.

But other than that’, the USA has disappointed its fans quite often and Bradley was too interested in the sport’s tactical side rather than the emotional side of it. His sacking wasn’t a shock to most fans and neither was the hiring of Klinsmann as the U.S. has been trying to get him since 2006. They were close last year, but the German pulled out of contract talks at the last minute. The Americans have finally gotten him and he’s now the 35th person to manage the team in its history.

But while there’s no doubt the 47-year-old was once a great player, his managerial record is quite questionable. Klinsmann managed Germany back in 2006 to a third-place finish in the World Cup, but the event was held in Germany. A third-place finish at home for a team as strong as the Germans isn’t actually a feat to be proud of. It’s a disappointing result.

Klinsmann was only in charge of the national team for two years, which was his inaugural managerial position, and then headed to Bayern Munich during the summer of 2008. He only lasted 10 months there until he was sacked. In total Klinsmann’s managerial experience consists of 34 matches managed with Germany, where he won 20 games, drew eight and lost six for a winning percentage 55.55 per cent, and 45 games at Bayern, where he won 25, lost nine and drew nine for a winning percentage of 58.1.

But the most disappointing job on his resume came with Toronto FC of North America’s MLS. Klinsmann was hired as a special consultant with the club as it was one of the worst in the whole league. The problem is that after Klinsmann’s involvement they’re still one of the worst in MLS with the worst goal difference of all teams.

Klinsmann doesn’t have a lot of experience when it comes to managing football teams, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to fail. He hasn’t actually managed anywhere over the past couple of years, but won’t have to wait long to get back on the bike as the U.S. is scheduled to face arch rivals Mexico on Aug. 10th. Their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign starts up shortly after that.

Klinsmann could be an improvement over Bradley, but based on his record so far, it’s not going to be by much.

Donovan basically told the press that he’s not concerned if fans want to see the 53-year-old Bradley removed as manager. However, some players, such as goalkeeper Tim Howard, backed Bradley to the hilt and said he shouldn’t be blamed for the loss to Mexico.

Donovan was left on the bench when the USA kicked off their semi-final match against Panama and he questioned Bradley’s decision to the press. Donovan came on in the second half and set up the winning goal. Leaving your team’s best player on the bench is all too common in soccer and Bradley is playing with fire by doing so. He would have been crucified in the press and by fans if he didn’t start Donovan against Mexico and that’s likely why he started the game.

The problem with Bradley’s American squad at the moment is they aren’t playing consistent football. They’re an exciting bunch to watch, but are quite unpredictable. They’ll need to get their act together though once World Cup 2014 qualifying starts next summer. This means Donovan and Bradley will have to be on the same page if they’re to succeed.

Donovan is seen as a team leader by the players and they think highly of his opinion. If push comes to shove between him and the coach, there will be a division in the dressing room, especially with Bradley’s son Michael on the squad.

There’s no shame in losing to Mexico, but fans are worried that the rest of the CONCACAF teams are getting stronger while the Americans are slipping. They point to a lost to Panama in the group stage of the Gold Cup as a perfect example of this. This could cause some huge problems in world Cup qualifying as there are only three guaranteed places up for grabs in CONCACAF with the fourth-place team having to play off against one of the South American nations.

Some fans feel Bradley will struggle in qualifying matches because he tries to protect leads instead of adding to them. This defensive approach is seen as negative and usually backfires more often than not. If Bradley is on a short leash, there are several qualified candidates to take over his job as WCBetting.com has been informed. These include Jason Kreis (Real Salt Lake), Carlo Ancelotti (former Chelsea manager), Bruce Arena, (former U.S. national team manager), Marcello Lippi (Former Italian national manager), Marco Van Basten (former Holland manager) Guus Hiddink (current manager of Turkey), and Jurgen Klinsman (former manager of Germany).

Romario has been touring the 12 Brazilian host cities as a congressman recently and told the press on June 20th that he previously believed his home nation could put on the greatest World Cup showcase in history, but he now seriously doubts it after visiting the host cities.

Romario said the nation celebrated like there was no tomorrow when FIFA announced Brazil would host the 2014 WC tournament. He originally said Brazil would easily be able to host the event and thought that it would also be the greatest of all time. He told a Brazilian newspaper that he still believes Brazil will be able to host the Cup, but doesn’t think it’s going to be all that special when it takes place.

He said that after touring the country he doesn’t think things are going to run as smoothly as they should. He feels there are going to be problems with hosting the event and it’s not going to be the spectacle that he believes it could and should have been .

This will be Brazil’s second crack as putting on a World Cup as they also hosted it back in 1950. However, the country has been criticized over its preparations this time around as there have been numerous delays when it comes to the building of stadiums and the transportation infrastructure. It’s also been reported that the spending for the event is getting way out of hand.

New stadiums need to be built and others have to be renovated, but the costs just keep on increasing. In fact, the country’s budget for the 2014 World Cup has already doubled and officials are worried that the costs will rise even higher as the deadlines for stadiums and transportation get nearer.

Romario said that the host cities are struggling to meet the demands and requirements of FIFA for the event. But while government officials in Brazil admit that there have been some delays, they said most of the work is still on schedule and that everything will be ready on time when 2014 rolls around.

Romario also told the press that he thinks Ricardo Teixeira, the president of the Brazilian football federation, should step down from his position as the as leader of the organizing committee. Romario, in his role as a Brazilian lawmaker, has asked Teixeira for an explanation regarding allegations of irregular activities in the organizing committee. However, Teixeira has said that he and the country’s federation haven’t done anything wrong.

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The Argentinian’s future has been in doubt for a long time, as he even handed a transfer request earlier this season, and it was claims he didn’t go well together with the manager. Also, after the recent FA Cup final where City beat Stoke, Tevez said he had still to decide about his future.

However, after Tevez scored two of the three goals in City’s league game against Stoke yesterday (yes, Stoke again). Mancini told reporters:

“He has a five-year contract and has told us he wants to stay”.

Carlos Tevez have score 20 goals this season and he is a vital player for the Manchester side, now finally managing some success under the new billionaire owners… With the latest victory and Arsenal’s recent poor form, they even have the chance of finishing third, which means automatic qualification to the Champions League group stages.

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The unbeaten Czech Republic sits in first place in the group with 12 points from four wins. Germany is in third place in the group with eight points from two wins and two overtime losses. Neither team has lost in regulation time yet.

The fifth-ranked Czechs have played some excellent hockey as shown by their record. The ninth-ranked Germans have also been one of the strongest teams in the tournament and have surprised most experts with their performance.

The Czech Republic edged their neighbours and former countrymen Slovakia 3-2 in their first qualification game and then beat the Russians by the same score. Unlike Slovakia, who lost their games by one goal, the Czechs are winning theirs by one goal with timely scoring and excellent goaltending.

Germany has been unlucky and has lost both of their qualification games, also by a goal, but both of them went to penalty shootouts, allowing them tom pick up valuable points along the way. They were edged 5-4 by Finland in their first qualifying game and then 4-3 by Denmark.

Predictions

Both of these teams will qualify for the playoff rounds. This should be another close game, but look for the Czechs to keep their winning streak alive as they’re a little too strong for Germany. They should win by one or two goals.

Good odds for a Pakistan win can be found at William Hill.

Pakistan will be hoping to reach the semi final of the tournament for the first time since 1999. They started the World Cup pretty well with wins against Kenya and Sri Lanka. Their batsmen then struggled against minnows Canada, but their bowlers saw them through for another win. They didn’t play too well in the next match either and were beaten by New Zealand. The fielding and bowling were especially poor in that match, but they recovered to beat Zimbabwe and then reigning champions Australia.

The West Indies also got off to a pretty good start. After struggling and losing to South Africa, they reeled off three straight wins against Ireland, Bangladesh and the Netherlands. They also had a lead against England and looked certain to win the match, but collapsed and ended up losing it. They followed that up with a loss to India.

Going into the match it looks like Pakistan has the edge, but anything can happen in a one-game knockout. West Indies has struggled at bat in the middle of the order and they’ll need Chris Gayle to produce some runs at the top of the order along with Kieron Pollard and Devon Smith. However, they need to come into the game healthy.

Pakistan will be looking for some good partnerships and can’t afford to lose wickets in quick succession. They will be depending on Misbah ul Haq and Younis Khan to come through for them with the bat when needed.

The West Indies are going to need their bowlers to be at their best. This means Kemar Roach will need a big game. Pakistan may use Shoaib Akhtar for this match as he could replace Wahab Riaz. However, Shahid Afridi is going to be depended on to continue his excellent bowling as is Umar Gul.

Predictions and odds for Pakistan vs West Indies

West Indies have lost five of their past six games against Pakistan and it’ll probably be six out of their last seven after this encounter.

Bookmaker William Hill has the odds of a Pakistan win at 8/15 and the odds of a West Indies victory at 6/4.

Both of these teams have reached the quarterfinal stage of the tournament and will just be playing this game for positioning in Group B. A win for the West Indies would see them vault over both England and India and they’d end up second place in the group.

India could make some line-up changes in this match. We might see Suresh Raina replace Virat Kohli or Yusuf Pathan as he is a good fielder, batsman, and bowler. Gautam Gambhir hasn’t been performing too well in the batting department, but he won’t be moved from the number three spot.
Ravichandran Ashwin could be used as a second spinner. He’s been sitting out while Piyush Chawla has been playing. Harbhajan, Munaf Patel, and Zaheer Khan have all been bowling well. India has been having a few problems at bat and need big games from Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul missed West Indies game against England and he may miss this one too. Devendra Bishoo and Andre Russell played well in that game as Russell hit 49 and also took four wickets. Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard have played well as usual and Devon Smith has joined them. Ramnaresh Sarwan will need to chip in as well for the team to be successful.

India has won three matches, lost one, and drawn one of their last five while West Indies has won three games and lost two in their past five.

This is an important match for the West Indies and they’ve done well against India over the years. They should be more motivated than the Indians and that should be enough to see them pull out a win here even though India will have the home crowd support.

The likely teams will be:

West Indies: Chris Gayle, Devon Smith, Darren Bravo, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kieron Pollard, Devon Thomas, Andre Russell, Darren Sammy, Sulieman Benn, Kemar Roach, and Devendra Bishoo.

India: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina/Yusuf Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel.

Kemar Roach has bowled well for West Indies and has 13 wickets in the tournament so far. He could cause some problems for the Indian batsmen. Virender Sehwag could be the key for India if he gets them off to a fast start with the bat.

According to bookmaker WilliamHill.com, the odds of India winning the match are listed at 1/3 with the odds of a West Indies win at 12/5.