Some Comment on our Group Rivals
(Mods, if more appropriate to World Football please move)
Some press reaction to France & Switzerland's wins last night:
(ESP)-ZIDANE - THE SPARK IS BACK
2005-08-18 05:46 (New York)
ZIDANE - THE SPARK IS BACK
From Isabelle Rondeau, PA Sport
PARIS, August 18 (National Team) - Returning France captain Zinedine Zidane
and striker Thierry Henry reckon the spark is back in the team after their 3-0
friendly hammering of the Ivory Coast on Wednesday evening.
The international returns of 'Zizou', midfielder Claude Makelele and defender
Lilian Thuram following their decisions to come out of retirement proved
fruitful, with all three adding something the young French side had been lacking
for the past year.
Less than a month before the start of their final four 2006 World Cup
qualifiers, France seemed to have rediscovered their joie de vivre, with William
Gallas, Zidane and Henry all netting in front of a raucous La Mosson crowd.
``When I came on to the pitch wearing the blue shirt I felt a particular
emotion,'' said Zidane, who made his first appearance for Les Bleus since the
Euro 2004.
``Against the Ivory Coast we defended well and we were capable of being
decisive.
``Everyone put on a good performance and I believe the spark is back.''
Henry, who had not found the back of the net with France since last October
World Cup qualifier with Cyprus, is also convinced France are back on track.
``We have rediscovered our pace, our form and the pleasure of playing all
together,'' the Arsenal star said.
``Zizou brought us a great deal and we felt he was at ease with us.''
But Coach Raymond Domenech urged his men not to get carried away, with crunch
Group Four clashes against the Faroe Islands and the Republic of Ireland in
September and Switzerland and Cyprus a month later.
Les Bleus lie fourth in a group that could not be much tighter, with only
three points lying between them an and leaders Ireland.
``My players found the right balance against the Ivory Coast and we obviously
suffered less than in our past matches,'' Domenech said.
``I don't think there was a `Zidane effect' but a more all-round effect
triggered by the experience of Zidane, Thuram, Makelele and also (Willy)
Sagnol.''
And Switzerland's game...
Swiss World Cup bid gets boost after friendly
2005-08-18 08:49 (New York)
GENEVA, Aug 18 (AFP) - Switzerland's 2-0 win against Norway in a
friendly in Oslo has given the Swiss side an important mental boost
ahead of a brace of World Cup qualifying ties in coming weeks, coach
Koebi Kuhn said Thursday.
"It was important to do what we did. It's not just about the
result, but the manner which pleases me," Kuhn told the Swiss
newspaper Le Matin after his side convincingly stifled Norway on
Wednesday evening.
"We had a great match, this is what I wanted to see," he added.
Switzerland are currently second in Group 4 with 12 points, one
point behind Ireland with a game in hand.
The are due to face Israel in Basel on September 3, followed by
a trip to Cyprus, and can ill afford to drop a point or let the best
goal difference of the group slip with opponents like France and
Ireland looming in October.
The tabloid daily Blick said it was Switzerland's best game for
30 months.
"We are on the way to the World Cup," Blick headlined.
Striker Alexander Frei, top scorer in the French league with
Rennes last season, shrugged off his club's barren start to the
championship with Switzerland's first goal from a corner just after
half-time.
"Koebi Kuhn's players showed reassuring control, which says a
lot about their current possibilities," Le Matin commented.
Despite their performance against an unimaginative Norwegian
side, the Swiss were also helped by on a touch of luck.
Switzerland secured victory with an own goal after Norwegian
defender Claus Lundekvam's last ditch attempt to clear the ball from
the feet of a Swiss striker ricocheted off a teammate into the back
of the net.
Young Arsenal defender Phillipe Senderos was hailed by the Swiss
news agency ATS as "one of the best central defenders on the
continent".
After an unsettled career over the past year, midfield playmaker
Hakan Yakin - potentially Switzerland's creative response to
resurrected French midfielder Zinedine Zidane - marked his return to
the national side with an unusually combative performance.
"We saw that he was a great player. Hakan can still make
progress and we know what he's capable of," Kuhn said.
