Open letter to Luis Suarez

Dear Luis,

You did what you did. Due process was applied. Now for love of everything you hold dear, shut the fuck up and stop picking at this festering sore.

Yours etc,
The Euroballs team

Marking your card #13

The football never stops. Here's what we'll be keeping an eye out for this week.

It was a turbulent 2011/12 season in Switzerland, so here's hoping for better this season. The champions FC Basel kick things off away to Servette who have so far steered themselves around financial imperilment. Gone from the champions are Xherdan Shaqiri (FC Bayern) and Granit Xhaka (Gladbach), but the turnover of young talent continues with high expectations of Fabian Frei - who has been around for a while already - Darko Jevtic, Marcelo Diaz and Stjepan Vuleta - who haven't. Hopefully Sion can stay off the naughty step this season as they've brought in a bit of quality in the shape of Rino Gattuso and a big lummox up fron tin Kyle LAfferty (subject to international clearance). They open away from home at Grasshopper who have a certain Taulant Xhaka in their ranks.

Fresh from co-hosting the Euros, the Ukrainian league begins this week. It looks set to be another battle between Dynamo Kyiv - at home to Metlarugh Donetsk this week - and Shakhtar - also at home, to Arsenal Kyiv. Shakhtar have held onto their stars, for now at least, and look marginal favourites, though Dynamo have strengthened with the likes of Niko Kranjcar joining the club.

We're up to round 9 in Brazil's Serie A wher Atlético Mineiro lead the way by a point from Fluminense. And it's Flu who are involved in the big game this weekend, away to fourth-placed Botafogo. Will Clarence Seedorf make his debut for the home side? Corinthians may have won the Copa Libertadores while we were focusing on Euro 2012, but they remain second from bottom having won just one game so far this season. They're at home to Nautíco this weekend.

No rest for the wicked in Chile. Just a week after the Apertura final - won by U de Chile on penalties after two 2-1 results against O'Higgins - the Clausura began, though the finalists were given the week off. Therefore, with 14 of the 18 sides having played last week, La U begin their title defence on Monday against La Serena. O'Higgins are at home to early leaders Colo Colo. Peru dispensed with the Apertura/Clausura model for a more European style league which hits round 23 this weekend. It's a three-way fight with Real Atlético Garcilaso leading by one from Sporting Cristal who themselves are one clear of Universidad César Vallejo. The leaders take on last-placed Cobresol this week with Univ César Vallejo, The Poets, who have hit a rough patch of form, taking on fifth-laced José Galvéz.

Further north, MLS rumbles on. DC, Sporting KC and New York Red Bulls are away and clear in the East, San Jose and Real Salt Lake in the West. Seattle Sounders and the Vancouver Whitecaps are fighting for the final play-off place in the West and both have tough cross-conference games this week. Seattle travel across the country to play New York, while the Whitecaps go to Chicago to play the Fire who are still in with a chance of making post-season without the need for a play-off. The big news from the States this week though is that the New York Cosmos are back! Next season, they'll play in NASL2 as they try to work their way back up to the big time.

Back in Europe and to Scandinavia. The Swdish Allsvenskan hits half way this week with Elfsborg leading by six. Coming off the back of a big Europa League win, they take on Kalmar this weekend, also big winners in Europe during the week. Kalmar's league form, however, isn't all that as they sit just outside the relegation places. The Norwegian Eliteserien also reaches the half way point and it's Stromsgodset in front by four from Molde. Rosenborg are in third and their game against Haugesund, a point further behind them, is the pick of the week there. Denmark get their league off and running this weekend. Champions Nordsjaelland begin away to Horsens, but last season's second and third placed sides Kobenhavn and Midjtylland meet in the game of the week.

We'll see how that lot got on early next week.

European round-up #1

We said we'd pick a team in both major European club competitions and follow that thread through to the end. And at the first hurdle, both of our first choices bow out.

In the Europa League, we went for Jeunesse d'Esch, the Luxembourgeois side. Realistically, the tie was over after the first leg against Olimipija in Ljubljana. After a goalless first half, Djodje Ivelja put the home side in front and Brazilian substitute Franklin added two more late on for a 3-0 win. Any hope Jeunesse had of sneaking back into the game was snuffed out inside half an hour with Adnan Besic's goal and Sreten Stretenovic made it two before half time. Nik Omladic wrapped up a second 3-0 win and sent Olimpija through.

Elsewhere in the Europa League, the biggest name involved was FC Twente and they completed a routine 9-0 aggregate win over Andorrans Santa Coloma. 6-0 up from the first leg, they were home and hosed. Other notable results were the 12-0 aggregate win for Elfsborg against Floriana and the 10-0 win for Gomel over Vikingur. Finnish side JJK held on against a major fightback from Stabaek before winning 4-3 on aggregate and a late goal from Rafael Ledesma ensured Suduva if Lithuania progressed at the expense of Daugava Daugaspils from neighbouring Latvia on away goals. After winning 5-2 in the first leg, FK Slovenia were all but there, but played out a 4-4 draw in the return against the Maltese version of Hibernian, Radan Sunjarevic with a last-minute equaliser. Kalmar overturned a 1-0 deficit from the first leg to beat Cliftonville 4-1, Icelanders IBV did likewise to St Patrick's, requiring extra-time before prevailing 2-1 and after draws at home in the first game, Cefn Druids, Bangor City and Bohemians were all well beaten away from home.



There were only three ties in the Champions League first round, and we were on the B36 Torshavn horse. After a 0-0 in Belfast against Linfield, it was all back to the Faroes. Again, it was 0-0 and extra-time couldn't find a winner either, so it was to penalties. Immediately, B36 handed the inititive to the visitors as Klaemint Matras missed the first spot-kick. With the next seven penalties all successful, Polish striker Lukasz Cieslewicz had to score to keep B36 in it, but missed and sent Linfield through.

The other ties were over after the first games. F91 Dudelange were 7-0 up on Tre Penne and won the second leg 4-0 to complete a huge win. Valetta were 8-0 up on Valletta, but only added one more in the return, an early strike from Brazilian attacker Jhonnattann.



So we say goodbye to Jeunesse d'Esch and B36 Torshavn. Your stays with us were short. For round 2, we're on the shoulders of Linfield in the Champions League as they take on AEL Limassol. In the Europa League, we're shouting for Olimpija who take on Tromsø. Here's to better luck this time.

(Ex)Goalkeepers yelling at defenders #53

Élie Baup

Marseillaise

Adding Champions League interest

Some time ago, we expressed the ennui we were experiencing with the Champions League. Well, in an attempt to liven up our interest in this and the Europa League, and given the first round of both competitions start this week, we're going to select a team now at random and follow the winners of the tie through the competition through to the final.

Now, like most of our ideas, we're a bit late to it given the Champions League actually began two days ago and we know the results of the first leg matches. There were big wins for Valletta - 8-0 over the Andorran side Lusitanos - and for Luxembourgeois champions F91 Dudelange who beat their San Marinese counterparts Tre Penne 7-0. Both those games are pretty much over, so instead, we'll pick one of the sides involved in the game that finished 0-0 in the first leg. So step forward....

B36 Torshavn

They secured that 0-0 against Linfield in Belfast and will be confident of getting the result they need back in the Faroes. As with things European, the second round draw is already done, so we know the winner will go on to play AEL Limassol.

In the Europa League, our random team selector (piece of paper, pin) gives us...

Jeunesse d'Esch

Runners-up in Luxembourg, three points behind Dudelange, Jeunesse were once immortalised in the Half Man Half Biscuit song Friday Nights And The Gates Are Low. They're away tonight to Slovenian runners-up Olimpija who finished a massive 20 points behind champions Maribor. Will a home defeat to Jeunesse d'Esch be rendered pointless tonight? The winner goes on to play Tromsø.

They Cayman saw and (divided and) conquered

There's a contingent in the north-west of England and a far smaller one on Fleet Street that could be forgiven for saying "I told you so" a hell of a lot today.

Manchester United's plan to relieve the burden of debt on the club - debt imposed solely by the current owners - is to register the company in the Cayman Islands, retaining what they describe as an 'executive office' in Manchester, and float on the New York stock exchange. The prospectus for the share issue mentions the word 'indebtedness' 43 times, making plain the reasons for this move.

The Glazer takeover was incredibly controversial. The family borrowed over half a billion pounds in order to buy the club then loaded the responsibility for paying that back onto the club itself, a move which has never seemed right even if it is allowed. Debt repayments and interest has taken another half-billion away from the club in the intervening period, yet the total debt still stands at over £400m. This is far away from the club that existed prior to the takeover, yet those supporters who did voice a concern at the time saying United was "not for sale" were wrong. Having sought to gain all the benefits from launching as a plc back in the day, they were up for sale from that point. However, under the plc, it remained a Manchester club. That will no longer be the case.

It sounds a trivial point when figures like half a billion here and 400 million there are being thrown about, but almost every football club started because of the desires of a community. At the top end more than any other, that community link has been eroded to the point of non-existence as clubs demanded a greater share of TV monies, became more business oriented and started describing fans as 'customers'. As TV money goes up, commercial revenues go up and the gate money each week becomes less important to the business, so the fan paying their money on the gate becomes less important. But the link to the community remained, however much it was watered down with plcs, foreign ownership and leveraged buy-outs. Now, United plan to remove any last vestige of that.

If the powers that be wish to do something symbolic to maintain a level of association and accountability, a simple demand that memeber clubs are registered, affiliated and pay tax in the same jurisdiction is a very simple thing to do. Even clubs owned by murky offshore owners - like Leeds United, for a random example - are entities incorporated within their governing FA's realm. If Manchester United want to move to the Cayman Islands, so be it. It was a competitive league season out there, with Elite and Scholars International going in to the final round of games level on points. But where Elite could only draw with George Town, Scholars - who play out of the 2500-capacity Ed Bush Stadium in West Bay - beat lowly Future 3-0 to take the title. It may skew the competitive balance of the Cayman Premier League, but if they're a Cayman club, then they must fall under the Cayman FA's auspices.

Moreover, while the FA and Premier League in England have been happy to see the game develop to the point we reach now, it falls increasingly to HMRC and notable journalists - Matt Scott and David Conn, for two examples - and bloggers - Swiss Ramble being particularly prominent - to scratch away at the surface of the corporate world of the game. Hiding the entire operation in the Caymans avoids all that scrutiny is not a good thing in any way. Sadly, the initial Glazer takeover did a fine job of divide and conquer among the support, so whether this causes a major stir will be interesting to observe.

Shifting a club, as opposed to a holding company or an individual owner, offshore ought to stir the FA into action. But as we've seen throughout the last 20 years or so, they're as rapacious in their capitalism as anyone, so expect this to be waved through with barely a murmur.

Yesterday at the Euros #19

This is the end. We often amaze ourselves when we actually see something through.

Spain were into their stride quickly with the 'ole's from the crowd beginning as early as the ninth minute. Ahead of the Portugal game, Andres Iniesta had said they'd combat the threat of Cristiano Ronaldo by denying him the ball. That didn't quite work, but if it was the intention to deal with Andrea Pirlo - surely the player of the tournament - then it worked a treat. Italy couldn't get hold of the ball and Pirlo cut a peripheral figure. Not only that, but while we all coo and gush over Spain's passing, what is often overlooked is the work that goes in off the ball. They press everywhere. When an opponent picks the ball up, he has a red jersey in front of him. There is no space, no time and no chance of building pressure.

The passing, as ever, was crisp and quick. With 15 minutes gone, Iniesta freed Alvaro Arbeloa down the right and he cut back for David Silva to head the opener. Late in the first half, Italy may have thought they were getting back into it and going in to the break only one down was a bit of a result. But then Jordi Alba got the ball on the left, tapped it infield to Xavi and hared off up the field. Xavi's return was predictably perfect and Alba smashed in his first senior international goal on the biggest stage. 2-0 and suddenly Italy had a mountain to climb.

The killer blow arrived late with Italy already down to ten men, substitute Thiago Motta forced off injured just moments after coming on. It was Cesare Prandelli's third and final change. Again it was Xavi with the money ball, again as a result of that pressing. Italy were robbed in midfield and two touches later it was in the back of the net off Fernando Torres's right boot. The fourth was cruel. Juan Mata had barely been on for a minute when Torres squared for him and he slotted it beyond Gianluigi Buffon to wrap up an emphatic win. It was Mata's first touch and, again, the movement off the ball simply exquisite in creating the opportunity. The three added minutes at the end must have felt like an eternity to anyone of even slightly Italian persuasion. Where was the mercy?

And that's your lot from Poland and Ukraine and what did we learn? That many people find excellence boring, that England have a long old road to travel from the tactical abyss they find themselves in, that the Dutch never fail to find new levels of in-fighting to ruin another tournament. The rise of the goalkeeper as captain is to be praised, especially where both captains in the final were the respective custodians. Special mention for Casillas too, who won his 100th international in the final, something nobody else has ever done. At 31, he could go on to play another two World Cups yet, maybe two more Euros too. We will not be sorry to see the end of the kick-off countdown. That's something that can be taken round the back and shot.

In four years time, almost half the nations affiliated to UEFA will appear in the finals in France as the competition is expanded to 24. If this is the last great European Championships, it's fitting that a truly great team won it.

Yesterday at the Euros #18

Germany's tournament, this. At least one of our staffers has been saying that for over a year now. So Italy would just roll over and let them pass through to the final then yeah? Err, not quite.

The first quarter-hour was Germany's. Mats Hummels probably should have scored from a corner, but rather snatched at his shot and it was knocked off the line by Andrea Pirlo. At the back, it looked like Hummels had Mario Balotelli in his pocket. Italy looked panicky every time the ball was played forward, but crucially, it didn't stick up there at the feet of Mario Gomez.

After weathering that, Italy grew into it and tested Manuel Neuer with shots from Riccardo Montolivo and Antonio Cassano. Moments later, Cassano wriggled free on the left and put in a great ball for Balotelli to head in powerfully. Germany were behind for the first time in the competition and were visibly rattled, losing their shape.

Germany were left open at the back as they looked for a way back in, operating with a very high line. All it needed was a well-weighted ball over the top for someone to run on to. Montolivo delivered the ball, Balotelli the run and he finished in emphatic style.

Loew made changes after the break, Miroslav Klose for Gomez at the break, Thomas Muller for Jerome Boateng later, and they did press forward. However, a back four of Balzaretti, Bonucci, Barzagli and Chiellini will eat all that up and more. They were fairly comfortable. And while Germany pressed, Italy countered. Twice Claudio Marchisio went close, once played in by Alessandro Diamanti and again when squaring to Antonio di Natale was the better option. Di Natale had a chance to win it and Balzaretti had the ball in the net from an offside position. Germany just couldn't get out.

They did get something in stoppage time as a needless handball gave Mesut Ozil the chance to pull one back from the spot, but it was all too little and all far too late.

Were Germany hampered by the injury that Bastian Schweinsteiger was struggling with in the lead-up to the game? He was conspicuous by his inconspicuousness throughout. The changes Loew made to his starting line-up didn't work, threw their usual gameplan away and disrupted their flow. This handed the early initiative to Italy which they exploited brilliantly. And it wasn't the Andrea Pirlo show. This was a real collective effort and Pirlo, though good as usual, was not running it all such as he did in the quarter-final against France. A one-man team they are not, such that anyone thought that in the first place.

Spain await in Sunday's final which throws up all sorts of tactical battles. The sides met in the group stages in a compelling 1-1 draw. Where's your money on this one?

Yesterday at the Euros #17

Boring has been the buzzword of late. Bizarrely, it's an epithet applied to Spain's football.

Much has been written on the subject, not least this from James Hunt, and we're not about to go into a great deal of depth here. Suffice to say that it's hardly Spain's fault that other teams are so worried about them that they forget to do what they need to do to win and resort to sitting back and allowing the Spanish the ball. France tried to contain them and it failed. The game was not much of a spectacle as a result.

So what would Portugal do? They'd have a crack at their neighbours. They came flying out of the blocks, putting the Spanish goal under real pressure early on. In turn, this forced Spain to up their game. The game ebbed and flowed, going from one end to the other. The only trouble was, nobody could find a goal.

As the game wore on, a goalless draw looked increasingly inevitable as the fear of losing outweighed the desire to win. The one time a really clear-cut opportunity presented itself, it came to Portugal. On the break, they'd engineered a four-on-two opportunity. The standard tactic of 'pass it to Ronaldo' was enacted, but he shanked his shot badly. Extra time came and went - it would be settled by penalties.

Now, we've gone over penalties many, many times. We've discussed practice, technique, whether goalkeepers should dive or stand still. What we haven't discussed is the order of your first five takers. Surely, your best exponent of the art goes early - certainly in the first three. Spain sent their best - Xabi Alonso - up first. His shot was saved. Step forward Joao Moutinho: also saved. Iniesta finally got one on the board before Pepe and Pique did likewise. Then bizarre decision number one. Bruno Alves had almost got to the penalty spot when Nani caught him up and sent him away. Nani scored, followed by Sergio Ramos with a cheeky Panenka. Up stepped Bruno Alves again. What on earth was going through his mind having been usurped previously is anybody's guess. Off a long run, he absolutely smashed his kick - too much as it turned out and it came back off the bar. Fabregas won it with an unsaveable spot kick, going in off the post. Cameras cut instantly to Ronaldo, Portugal's designated man for the fifth penalty, a penalty that wasn't required.

The technique on all bar Alves's kick was excellent. Where Portugal fell down was in their selection, their undermining of Bruno Alves and of leaving their best player to take a kick that in any event may not have been needed. That was foolish in the extreme.

Today, the second semi-final as Germany take on Italy. No German side has beaten Italy at a major championships. It's a brave punter that predicts that run to continue.

Yesterday at the Euros #16

Well that was depressingly familiar.

All tournament long, it's been a source of some pride that there had not been a goalless draw. That England were involved when one did was inevitable. They got themselves stuck as they attempted to deal with the conundrum that is Andrea Pirlo.

We saw Holland fail to deal with Bastien Schweinsteiger earlier in the competition. Holland's deep-lying midfielders did not push out to close him down and he passed them to an early elimination. Pirlo, if anything, sits even deeper than Schweinsteiger and that left England with a problem. If they push out to close him down, they leave themselves wide open at the back. Stand off him and he'll boss things. The solution was to have the forwards dropping a bit deeper to pressure him. This had the consequence of compressing England's two banks of four into what became a back eight. With Wayne Rooney in particular dropping deep to track Pirlo, there was no outlet and on the rare occasions England won possession, it was given away almost immediately.

And yet, for all they enjoyed the overwhelming majority of the ball, Italy couldn't fashion any really clear-cut chances. Their own lack of width combined with England's desire to funnel them into the middle - their one area of strength with Joleon Lescott and John Terry particularly good - saw them get tangled up too often and resorted to shots from 25 yards and more. One of those almost crept in, Daniele de Rossi with a wicked, swerving effort the hit the outside of the post. For all that Pirlo was in charge out there, Italy simply couldn't break an obdurate England down in the initial 90 minutes or the additional half hour.

And so to penalties, the English bete-noire. When Ricardo Montolivo screwed Italy's second penalty wide of the goal, there was a glimmer of hope that this time might be different for England. Pirlo's delicious Panenka seemed to swing things back Italy's way and Ashley Young hit the bar and Ashley Cole fired a weak effort in that Gianluigi Buffon saved easily. England undone on penalties yet again.

Cue the hand-wringing and the blaming of luck. It is not luck, nor lack thereof, that decides penalty shoot-outs. Blaming luck allows you to gloss over the skill deficit in this area. It seeks to minimise the failings. It is the last resting place of the scoundrel. Books have been written on penalties. You can practice all you like, but there has to be more to it than just taking pot-shots from 12 yards. There needs to be critical analysis of technique, an understanding of why a penalty is missed and why it is scored, a plan to take better penalties more often. It happens so often in tournament football that it has to become part of the process.

So what did we learn? Well not a lot about England. A new manager in charge for only five weeks got results in distinctly unflashy style and took them as far as anyone else could and as far - beyond, even - anyone expected. His real job starts now, trying to put into place a system which can produce both players and, more critically, coaches, trying to find a voice, a style, so we never again see England absolutely stink the place out at a major championships. For Italy, for all they were massively superior, that lack of width was quite alarming and a harsh booking keeps Cristian Maggio - one player who can supply width - out of the semi-final. It's unlikely that Germany will be too afraid of what they saw here.

Some days off now before the semi-finals. First, on Wednesday, it's Spain v Portugal with Italy v Germany to follow a day later. It's difficult to conclude other than the best four sides at the tournament have progressed through to this point.