<div id="attachment_11095" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><div><figure class="external-image"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-11095" loading="lazy" src="/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/carlos-300x212.jpg" alt="How long does he have left?" width="300" height="212" class="size-medium wp-image-11095"></figure></div>How long does he have left?</div>
With Portugal on the verge of non-qualification for the World Cup in 2010, manager Carlos Queiroz is under extreme pressure and has the very real possibility of unemployment looming over him. Given this threat, and inevitability that this will occur, I ask you… How long before we see the Portuguese back in the Manchester United dugout alongside Sir Alex Ferguson?
With Portugal lying fourth in their World Cup qualifying group with only ten points from seven matches. Going into the qualification group as favourites, the current state of affairs comes as a real shock for the Euro 2008 quarter-finalists. 
Denmark have more or less qualified for the World Cup with Hungary and Sweden in equally strong positions. It was imperative the Portuguese overcame Hungary in the last match, but even still, the jobcentre still looms large for Queiroz. 
With Portugal lying third in Group A, level on points with fourth placed Hungary and two points behind Sweden who lie second. With two games remaining Portugal face Hungary and Malta, both in Portugal, nothing less than six points from these games will do. But Sweden do have a relatively straightforward fixture with Albania, before which, they play Denmark, a game that will decide the fate of Carlos.
Queiroz therefore may be looking for new employment sooner rather than later and the Old Trafford bench is a familiar environment, one where he has had success in the past as well.
During his first reign sat beside Ferguson for only one year but managed to help the Old Trafford side win the Premier League title on season 02/03, before being poached by Real Madrid. It was after an unsuccessful year in Madrid that he was brought back to Old Trafford by Ferguson to begin an extremely successful four-year reign as assistant manager.
As a number one, Queiroz is terrible, making mistake after mistake. He is also accountable for Portugal’s failure to qualify for Euro ’92 and after taking over a very talented Sporting Lisbon team, led them to three seasons of failure and was promptly dismissed. After his first stint at Old Trafford, Real Madrid offered him a dream job, one that he could not turn down, and one that was a veritable disaster. 
Sir Alex Ferguson welcomed the failed coach back to Old Trafford as his number two in July 2004 and so began a fruitful relationship. A number of trophies became housed at Old Trafford, including the 2008 Champions League trophy. Queiroz was seen as instrumental in United’s success, introducing new training methods and tactical plans that underpinned the Manchester United side of a few years back.
He also has an eye for talent spotting; he famously discovered Portugal’s so-called ‘Golden Generation’ and also had a hand in bringing Cristiano Ronaldo to Old Trafford. But these positives have not transpired into the managerial stage and who knows, he may be back sharing a glass or two of Chianti with Sir Alex before the year is out.

Will Carlos Queiroz be back at Old Trafford Soon?

Will Carlos Queiroz be back at Old Trafford Soon? - World Soccer Talk

<a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/the-new-gaffer-introducing-jol-at-hamburg/40/martin-jol/" rel="attachment wp-att-41" title="Martin Jol"><div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/2008/07/hsv.jpg" alt="Martin Jol" align="right" height="339" hspace="15" vspace="15" width="300"></figure></div></a>Fred Rutten isn’t the only new Dutch manager in the Bundesliga, as ex-Tottenham Martin Jol took over the reigns of Hamburg earlier this month. It’s been nearly 30 years since Jol’s last appearance in Germany. He made 9 appearances for Bayern Munich as a midfielder in 1978/79 before returning to the Netherlands the next season. His managerial journey has now mirrored his playing career, rotating among the northwestern European triangle of the Netherlands, England and Germany. This time around he hopes to spend more than a year in the Bundesliga.
Jol will be Hamburg’s 26th gaffer in the past 45 years. While this seems like a lot it’s actually the norm for the league (as next week’s entry on Bruno Labbadia will detail). The only manager to last longer than 4 years at Hamburg? Ernst Happel. Yes, he of Ernst-Happel-Stadion fame (the stadium was named for the two time European Cup winner and not vice versa, in case you were wondering). While fans would love it if Jol could emulate Happel’s European triumphs, they’d be satisfied with replicating his domestic success. Coincidentally both Happel and Jol began their managerial careers at ADO Den Haag. Anyway, it’s been 25 years since he Happel brought home the team’s last championship. Since then they’ve been a steady, if not spectacular, club:
 <a href="http://www.bundesligatalk.com/the-new-gaffer-introducing-jol-at-hamburg/40/hamburg-position/" rel="attachment wp-att-46" title="Hamburg Position"><div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/8/files/2008/08/hsv-tabellenpositionen.jpg" alt="Hamburg Position" align="middle" height="200" hspace="15" vspace="15" width="480"></figure></div></a>
They own the unique distinction of being the only remaining original Bundesliga side never to have been relegated. To continue staying afloat in the Bundesliga and hopefully challenge for silverware Hamburg must first and foremost continue developing their Dutch pipeline.
Currently Hamburg employ four Dutch players in their first team: Joris Mathijsen, Nigel de Jong, Romeo Castelen, and captain Rafael van der Vaart. Chelsea-flop Khalid Boulahrouz is also a recent member of this group. Together they comprise the second-largest national contingent in the squad and arguably its most talented. Hamburg has developed in somewhat of a Dutch Portugal. Portugal, for obvious reasons, is the destination of choice for young Brazilian talent making their initial move to Europe. Those who display enough promise are then snapped up by larger clubs. A crude analogy, to be sure, but it effectively describes the situation. Like the Bundesliga at large, Hamburg in particular has evolved into a showroom for foreign talent before it moves on to more lucrative English or Mediterranean shores.
The most obvious example of this will soon be Rafael van der Vaart, who has made his feelings quite clear about leaving Hamburg over the past year. For a time the rumor was that he’d end up at the Mestalla with Valencia. Now the bids have centered around the Spanish capital, either as part of Atletico’s summer signing spree or as Real’s ersatz Ronaldo. Although his contract runs through the 2009-2010 season it is clear that he is on his way out and almost certainly to the land of his mother’s birth. Hamburg would be well-advised to sell soon rather than risk losing a hefty (approximately 15 million Euro) transfer fee thanks to the <a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexplus!prod!CELEXnumdoc&amp;lg=en&amp;numdoc=61993J0415" title="Bosman Ruling Text" target="_blank">Bosman ruling</a>.
The best way to spend the van der Vaart money would be exactly how the club has in the past, on young players. While no one has or will likely ever confuse Hamburg for Arsenal, the club have made the decision to pursue mostly young professionals (three of the four Dutch players above are 25 or younger, for instance). It seems unlikely that Jol will alter this policy, although were he to try he’d find himself dealing with a much stingier board than Tottenham’s (and he won’t have a repeat of his run-in with Spurs’ director of football Damien Comolli).
Is Jol the man to have Hamburg fans partying like it’s 1983? Is there a limit to how many Dutch players German fans can stomach in the squad? Is it only a matter of time before Hamburg, taking their cue from North London, replace Jol with Sevilla’s current coach, Manolo Jimenez?
Next Week: Bruno Labbadia at Bayer Leverkusen

The New Gaffer: Introducing Jol at Hamburg

The New Gaffer: Introducing Jol at Hamburg - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="350" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/rediff.com/sports/football/2002/jun/28pic2.jpg" height="277"></figure></div>First of all, let me say what a super performance Germany gave last night. They tactically outclassed Portugal from the get go and thoroughly deserved their win. Anyway, enough of yesterday, now for today’s big clash. Before yesterday, I’d have put my house on Croatia winning this game, now I’m not so sure I don’t have a niggle like yesterday but Turkey have shown you write them off at your peril. The Croats have played some excellent stuff in this tournament but Turkey have shown tremendous nous and spirit to come back from the dead in two straight games.
Realistically though, Croatia started slowly but have begun to improve game on game, their second string beating Poland 1-0 with a goal from Klasnic and I honestly think that Luka Modric has been one of the star players at this tournament so far. Turkey need to get a man marker on him and try to stifle his creativity. Having said that though, Germany put Frings on him and he danced around him like a statue. Turkey’s danger man is Turan; he loves to come from deep and attack the ball, playing off Nihat and Tuncay. Will Croatia go like for like or simply get the ball down and try and play their way through? Turkey have also lost first choice keeper Voltan after Jan Koller’s acrobatics, so Rustu Recber comes in for his for his record extending 117th cap tonight and the former Barcelona player will be keen to show he’s lost none of his abilities at 35 years of age.
Turkey have shown us all that they&nbsp;are a fast breaking team who&nbsp;play&nbsp;positive, possession&nbsp;football.&nbsp;Both sides have shown that they like to play good attacking football and play with pride for their nations. It is a lesson England would do well to try and emulate in future under Capello. The British press&nbsp;are complaining that this is the weakest of the 4 games but I’m disappointed to hear that type of criticism. Then again, the commentary in last night’s Portugal v Germany game was so biased toward Portugal as&nbsp;to be embarrassing, Ronaldo’s personal fan club defending his every action, slating every German challenge on him and then&nbsp;they didn’t bother interviewing any German players at the end&nbsp;which was really sad to see.&nbsp;Old habits die hard in British football coverage even in 2008.
Both sides fully deserve to be here and I think we’ll get a great game of football. Using my head, I’m going for a Croatian win, maybe 3-2 or 2-1, but if Turkey get a late goal, hold on tight because we’ll get a grandstand finish.

Euro 2008 Croatia v Turkey Preview & Prediction

Euro 2008 Croatia v Turkey Preview &amp; Prediction - World Soccer Talk

So here we go, we’ve had 12 days of blood and thunder football, sublime skills, shock results, new stars and the retirement of legends. Tonight sees the first of the Quarter Finals and what a way to start this section of the competition. There is no doubting over the last 10 years, Portugal’s stock has risen immensly&nbsp;and this tournament sees the team probably have their best chance of winning a major tournament. Whilst I appreciate they were the host nation last time round, sometimes the weight of expectation from your countrymen can&nbsp;bow down&nbsp;on a side and the pressure can disrupt the best of players.
<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="300" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41852000/jpg/_41852548_scolari300.jpg" height="300"></figure></div>There will be no excuses for Scolari’s men tonight: They know this game is there for the taking and a potential and probably semi-final meeting with the crafty Croatians. On paper, Portugal should rip Germany to pieces, be far too canny, too sly and too much&nbsp;pace for Germany to cope with. Yet, I’ve this nagging feeling borne out of the fact that I’ve seen this type of situation too many times with Germany. They always survive somehow; always get the last minute winner, the&nbsp;last minute goal line clearance, always the deflection bounces their way. Perhaps that’s down to watching them beat England time after time until 2000. Even in the Croatia game, when they were outplayed for long periods of the match, I still expected them to snatch a late equaliser. Surely it can’t happen again? Honestly, Portugal will either win this game by 3 or 4 or lose 1-0. It’s that type of game for me.
We’ve 4 wonderful quarter finals to look forward to, the football purist would love to see Portugal, Croatia, Holland and Spain go through. How would we feel on Monday morning if we were looking at Turkey, Germany, Italy and Russia as semi-finalists? I wouldn’t mind Turkey and Russia, both sides have really impressed me but my first 4 would conjure up two of the best semi final line ups the Euro’s have ever seen. Italy and Germany have been fortunate, very fortunate but that’s their football history and the tenacity that they show in international football. You can never write them off.
Scolari will be picking a full strength side tonight, full of flair and ability. Germany have fitness doubts over Frings and Podolski and manager Joachim Low banished to the stands for this game. Is this the game that Portugal finally come of age and dismantle one of the old guard of European giants? I think they will, but I’m still going to have that nagging doubt right to the final whistle but then again I thought that during USA 94 when Hristo Stoichkov destroyed them in a wonderful win for Bulgaria. The nagging will persisit&nbsp;though,&nbsp;unless of course the Portuguese go 3 up before half time, then I’ll only be slightly concerned until the final whistle. &nbsp;Portugal to win 3-1

Euro 2008 Portugal v Germany Quarter Final Preview

Euro 2008 Portugal v Germany Quarter Final Preview - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="300" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40320000/jpg/_40320819_koller300_ap.jpg" height="300"></figure></div>Tonight sees the first dual clash with Czech Republic playing Turkey whilst Switzerland host Portugal. With Portugal through as Group Winners, all eyes will be on Geneva. We could potentially have a first in Group qualification with the fact that should tonight’s game end in a draw, we will go straight into&nbsp;a penalty shoot out to decide who finishes runners up in the group. I hope we don’t come to that and the game is completely decided before the final whistle is blown.
It’s looking more and more likely that the Czechs will revert to playing Koller and Baros together up front. This tournament has really shown just how much quality they’ve lost from midfield with the retirements of Nedved, Berger, Smicer, Poborsky and the injury to Rosicky. They’ve played a game that is based on midfielders bursting forward to link up with the front man, but the quality simply hasn’t been there.
Turkey also may look to starting the game with the team that finished the 2-1 victory that eliminated the Swiss as coach Fatih Terim looks to guide the Turks through. <div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="170" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/news.bbc.co.uk/images/haber/728.jpg" height="200"></figure></div>He made a tactically brilliant change at half time to&nbsp;swing the game in their favour and Terim has often been underrated as a coach, the disappointing spell as coach of&nbsp;AC Milan perhaps diluting his achievements at Fiorentina and Galatasaray and his first stint as national coach.&nbsp;
Turkey certainly looked back to their best in the second half against the Swiss and this game is make or break for both coaches. I’m going to go for a 1-0 win for the Czech Republic tonight, which will then lead them to a&nbsp;potential clash with Germany in the&nbsp;Quarter Finals.
Tonight’s other game will probably gives us a chance to see the players on the fringes of the Portuguese squad, with Queresma, Almeida and Nani expected to start. Switzerland will be playing for pride tonight but know that their opponents will have several players trying to prove to Phil Scolari that they deserve a chance of being in his first choice XI. Whilst it would be nice&nbsp;for the Swiss to get anything out of this, I can’t see them beating Portugal and&nbsp;think it could be a&nbsp;3-0 defeat for the Swiss. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Euro 2008 Group A Final Match Predictions

Euro 2008 Group A Final Match Predictions - World Soccer Talk

<div><figure class="external-image"><img src="/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/euro2008_logo.gif" vspace="15" hspace="15" align="right" alt="euro2008_logo.gif"></figure></div>I’ve finally had a chance to catch up on watching some of the Euro 2008 matches I missed. The jet lag hit me later in the week, so I found myself watching many of the games this week at weird hours on DVR.The one thing about football is that it can be so subjective. Earlier in the week, I found myself watching the 1-0 Croatia win against Austria game on the giant screen TV at the FanZone in Zurich. To me, Croatia looked like a very hard working team in the first half who were playing some wonderful football. Especially impressive was Ivica Olic, the Croat striker who plays for Hamburg, who was a workhouse throughout the game putting in an incredible performance. If ever there was a player who would do well in the Premier League, Olic is it.In their game against Austria, Croatia changed their tactics in the second half, which allowed Austria to press forward more. And it was the Austrians who impressed me, putting to bed all the fears about them being the worst team in the tournament.So I was surprised when I returned to the States and was hearing and reading the comments about Croatia looking weak in their first match. Against Germany, the Croats showed their true strength in their 2-1 win and it’s now Germany — many people’s favorites to win Euro 2008 — who risk getting knocked out of the tournament depending what happens in their final match against Austria.The other thing I found surprising when I returned to the States was the perception among many that this has been a boring tournament thus far. Sure, it’s easier to enjoy the atmosphere and games when you’re experiencing them in Switzerland, but still, the tournament to me has been one of the most exciting football events in quite some time, even more so than World Cup 2006. The France against Romania nil-nil match was horrible, but aside from that, I’ve enjoyed all of the other matches.Speaking of Romania, their 1-1 draw against Italy on Friday was a brilliant match to watch. So much goalmouth action with balls hitting the post or goalkeepers pulling off incredible saves. Buffon’s penalty save, too, was amazing to watch. Romania could have easily won the match in the first half, while Italy showed in this game their masterful technical touches — beautiful flicks, excellent ball control, deft passes and wonderful creativity — something which is desperately lacking in the Premier League and on the England national team.Italy, though, has to feel cheated by the goal that was ruled offside. On replay, it’s clear that the goal should have counted. But when I watched it in real-time, it looked to me to be offside, so I empathize why the referee and assistant referee thought the whistle should have been blown for offside.I’ve been writing about how impressed I’ve been about Holland since Monday and they completely blew me away again on Friday with their 4-1 win against France. In fairness, the French are to blame for this scoreline as they had plenty of chances to score. Just as in the match against Italy, the Dutch took full advantage of the chances they had with their clinical finishing.While Holland and Croatia continue to impress, Portugal can be added to that list. In their first game against Turkey, I thought the Portugese looked very entertaining with Pepe, especially, being a revelation. Portugal also looked breathtaking in the 3-1 win over Czech Republic. So far this tournament, the Czechs have done very little to impress me.For all of the bad press Austria got from the pundits and their own fans before the tournament started, I’ve been more impressed by the Austrians than Switzerland. Austria deserved to get the 1-1 draw against Poland earlier this week, and the penalty decision by Howard Webb, I believe, was a correct one.Speaking of Switzerland, the national team was dealt a cruel blow when Alex Frei was injured in their 0-1 loss to Czech Republic. But in the Swiss 2-1 loss to Turkey, it was Turkey’s Arda Turan who was the relevation. The Galatasaray winger scored two beautiful goals. The first, a beautifully taken header, and the second was an amazing shot in the last minute of the game, which will be one of the goals of the tournament.The one group I haven’t had a chance to watch so far this tournament is Group D because I was traveling throughout the day on Tuesday and missed Spain‘s demolition of Russia and the entertaining game between Sweden and Greece. I’m looking forward to seeing those matches on Saturday.

Euro 2008: Better Than World Cup 2006 So Far

Euro 2008: Better Than World Cup 2006 So Far - World Soccer Talk

After one set of games, we now have the groups beginning to take shape and we move into the second phase of matches. Everyone who wins in this particular round knows that they still have a chance of qualifying or indeed making sure that they&nbsp;have qualified for the Quarter Finals. <div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="200" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/soccerlens.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/potuguese-fan.jpg" height="200"></figure></div>
The first of tonight’s matches sees the Czech Republic play Portugal, the winner definitely through to the next round. Looking at both sides first games, Portugal will be strong favourites to win tonight and if they play anywhere near as well as they did Saturday night, then they’ll over-run the Czechs. Yet the Czechs will also know that they were fairly fortunate against a very resolute Swiss team and will be looking to give a far better account to themselves than they did.
They looked quite poor up-front though and the strikers will need to offer a lot more for them to&nbsp;have any chance of taking anything from the game. I’m going for a 3-1 Portugal win in this match.
The second game features Switzerland v Turkey. Both teams need to win to have any chance of having a strong chance of qualification so we should see an open game. Switzerland were a lot better than I thought they would be in the first game but couldn’t finish.<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" border="0" align="right" width="240" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/soccerlens.com/images/small/Swiss1_120x80.jpg" height="160"></figure></div> With Yakin coming in for the injured Frei, they’ll have clever player pushing them forward. Turkey looked shell shocked on Saturday, they never got into the game and were quiet flattered by a 2-0 score line.
I expected a lot more from them than they showed, which really surprised me. Whilst they’re not the strongest Turkish side of recent years, Portugal made them look very ordinary and they’ll be up for showing everyone a lot more. I think the home support will be crucial tonight and I’m going to plump for a 1-0 win&nbsp;to Switzerland.

Euro 2008 Group A Match Predictions: June 11, 2008

Euro 2008 Group A Match Predictions: June 11, 2008 - World Soccer Talk

Real Madrid defender Pepe scored his first goal for Portugal today in their game against Turkey. While the goal was impressive, the interplay between Pepe and captain Nuno Gomes was exceptional. There are few aspects of soccer that are a better example of teamwork than a well executed one-two. Watch this perfect example:

Video Highlights of Pepe&#039;s Goal For Portugal Against Turkey

Video Highlights of Pepe&#039;s Goal For Portugal Against Turkey - World Soccer Talk

Video Highlights of Pepe's Goal For Portugal Against Turkey

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ALL POSTS TAGGED "Portugal - Page 24"

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Euro 2008 Group A Match Predictions: June 11, 2008

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Video Highlights of Pepe's Goal For Portugal Against Turkey