Angelos Charisteas (Above Left) scoring the winning goal for Greece at Euro 2004: Proving anything is possible

On Tuesday night, a 1-1 home draw against Estonia secured the Republic of Ireland a place at a major tournament for the first time in 10 years. Indeed, Euro 2012 will mark Ireland’s first appearance at a European Championship’s since 1988.

Yet, according to manager Giovanni Trapattoni, the Irish will not be there to make up the numbers. When asked whether or not his team could replicate the success of Greece at Euro 2004 answered, ‘Why not? It’s not a dream. We will need 100% commitment, but why not?’

Greece built their entire campaign in 2004 on an organised and committed defence and a strong squad work ethic. In a tournament of just 16 teams, anything is possible as the Greeks proved.

7 long months remain before the tournament begins, with preparation a fundamental precursor to any success that may follow. Some teams may be ravaged by injury while others will see their players coming into the tournament in a rich vein of form. Such factors will be crucial in who is successful.

However, just as Trapattoni feels Ireland are capable of replicating Greece, so should England, or Croatia, or Portugal. Those sides short of the level set by Spain, Holland and Germany at the last World Cup.

In international football terms, while it may be hard to accept, England are surely now what would be a mid table top flight side. What we must realise is that there is no shame in that, yes, if there was an international league we would be unlikely to win it facing the likes of Spain, Germany and Holland on a weekly basis. However, there is not, international competition remains in a cup format, and while it stays that way England should feel capable of winning Euro 2012.

After all, who expected Portsmouth, in a cup run that included a memorable victory over English champions Manchester United, to triumph in the FA Cup in 2008? And who expected Birmingham, who went on to be relegated, to triumph in the League Cup over Arsenal earlier this year?

Cup upsets are part of the very fabric of our game and with the fine margins at the top of today’s game, any side participating at Euro 2012 stands a chance, that is as long as they clearly understand the job at hand.

One question that must now be asked is how England should approach the tournament? Following their 1-0 victory over World and European champions Spain, could it be argued that England’s best approach is a counter attacking 4-5-1 cum 4-3-3?

England played with endeavour against Spain, with Scott Parker and Joleon Lescott tremendous in closing down the Spaniards at just the right times. Let’s not kid ourselves; the Spain side of last Saturday will become a completely different animal come next summer. However, if England are as organised as a team as last Saturday, it only ever takes a set piece to win a football match.

With Wayne Rooney suspended for the group stages, it is clear that England currently lack another truly world class striker. However, in the likes of Darren Bent, Jermaine Defoe, Danny Welbeck, Peter Crouch and Daniel Sturridge England clearly still have quality among their ranks.

The group stage draw will be crucial, with the possibility of drawing Spain, Portugal and France. On the other hand England could face Ukraine, Greece and Ireland. The comparative strengths of such groups is startling.

Regardless of the draw, if England can make it out of the group, stay injury free and play with commitment and tactical maturity, anything is possible.

This should not be taken as another story that because England beat Spain and Sweden they will win next summer. It is merely meant to remind those who already have Spain or Germany’s name on the trophy, England could win it, Ireland could win it, in fact anyone could win it.

Remember, the favourite may win the majority of the time, but as history proves, not all of the time.

Do you agree, is Euro 2012 wide open? Comment and follow me on Twitter @CamHumphries

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“Some people think football is a matter of life or death… I can assure them, it is much more serious than that.”

For many, Bill Shankly’s sentiments have permeated almost every facet of their lives, from John Westwood, who legally inserted ‘Portsmouth Football Club’ between his first and surname in addition to his 60+ Pompey-related tattoos (including the PFC engraved in his teeth), to more than 35 divorce cases which have cited the Football Manager video game series as a significant factor in relationship disintegration.

That any individual can commit themself to a computer game to such an extent is a point which barely requires consideration, but the fact that Portsmouth have assiduously flirted with extinction over the past 18 months illustrates a broader concern for football fans, whose dedication to the sport is critically disproportionate to what they receive in return. Following a team usually proves to be an expensive undertaking, with season tickets/match-day entrance an account-destroying alternative to forking out for a Sky subscription on top of the costly merchandise and travel expenditure required to be considered a ‘true fan.’

In various scenarios that repeatedly emerge in each and every football calendar, a fans’ firmly held opinions alter and allegiances shift. For example, one fan may opine that their supported club is better than others within its country of origin based on several criteria, then later suggest that the entire league of that country is better than others that exist within the continent, and then support their national side which will almost always contain players from rival clubs that they spend 90% of the year criticising, and 10% selling their car to afford the fee to watch play.

Supporter standards aside, perhaps the most damaging cost to all lovers of the beautiful game is the absence of organised competition which regularly exhibits the globe’s finest talents. In reality, there are roughly between 100 and 150 exceptional footballers on the planet, and although certain players’ statuses are elevated due to completing poignant landmarks for their clubs, – such as loyalty in terms of appearances or scoring a goal which provided the difference between survival and relegation, winning a trophy and being a runner-up etc. – in every generation only a select few can legitimately be regarded as exemplary athletes within their field.

The UEFA Champions League is generally interpreted as the most esteemed stage a footballer can perform on (other than the FIFA World Cup), and its seeding process dictates a top category of eight teams who qualify based on their European performances over the previous five seasons. If we take that each squad contains about 10 world-class players at most, and that a small number of teams containing world-class players will always be just outside the top 8 seeds every year, then we are left with the 100-150 players I referred to earlier. For example, Manchester United – finalists in three out of the past four competitions – have the quality of Nemanja Vidic, Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra, but also the capable, but far from world-class standard, individuals such as John O’Shea, Darren Fletcher and Michael Carrick.

The same could be said for every team: Arsenal – Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie/Denilson, Abou Diaby and Laurent Koscielny; Bayern Munich – Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery and Bastian Schweinsteiger/Mario Gomez, Holger Badstuber and Daniel van Buyten; Chelsea – Didier Drogba, Fernando Torres and John Terry/Paolo Ferreira, Salomon Kalou and John Obi Mikel; AC Milan – Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Alexandre Pato and Antonio Cassano/Kevin Prince-Boateng, Mathieu Flamini and Ignazio Abate. The list goes on, but you get the picture.

It seems unfair, despite the multifarious reasons such as insurance, employment contacts and sponsorship arrangements, that in every generation of great footballers we are denied the opportunity to see the best in the sport compete with each other, devoid of unequalled influences. The unremitting universal media coverage prior to the recent European Cup Final between Manchester United and Barcelona implied that the globe’s best two teams were battling for the club game’s most prestigious honour. But the hidden rhetoric suggested that the fixture was merely the closest we could get this year to seeing the best players on the same pitch at the same time, an emphasis that was arguably more relaxed than the reportage before each of the five Barcelona v Real Madrid Clasicos last term.

Although the Catalans succeeded emphatically at the expense of their rivals – disregarding Madrid’s narrow extra-time triumph in the Copa del Rey – they also possessed the highest concentration of world-class talent. In no way am I arguing that great players make a great team, as numerous Bernabeu Galactico projects evince in addition to Liverpool’s sub-standard 2005 Champions League winning side, but that a regularly held competition with only the very best participants represented by only the very best management would provide football lovers with an unrivalled spectacle that transcends club-based supporter enmity.

Surely I’m not the only one curious about how Cristiano Ronaldo AND Lionel Messi would perform in the same team, much like a team with Zinedine Zidane and Francesco Totti at their peaks would be like, or Diego Maradona and Michael Laudrup, Pele and George Best, Paolo Maldini and Carles Puyol etc. etc. The merits of the club game are unquestionable; the transfer auctions, local derbies, league and cup honours and fan devotion, but what if every two years we could enjoy a summer tournament of purely exceptional quality without supporter bias, where the audience attended for the sake of enjoyment rather than enduring customary stress and inevitable heartache?

Continued on Page TWO

1.Argentina have an embarassment of riches up front

Whilst Gonzalo Higuain may have grabbed the headlines (and the hastily awarded itv.com man of the match award), the impressive displays of his fellow attacking team-mates suggest that Argentina may have the best strikeforce at the World Cup. The way that Higuain managed to work in fluid synchronicity with the mesmeric Messi, industrious Tevez and tricky di Maria in a revolving quartet of creativity was a thing of pure beauty. Aside from the aforementioned foursome, Sergio Aguero managed to cap off an impressive 15-minute cameo with an assist, whilst treble-winning 30-goal hitman Diego Milito failed to even make it off the bench.

2.Players appear to be getting even stupider

A colleague of mine initially made this point on Tuesday in light of earlier World Cup events, but the petulant behaviour of Nigeria’s Sani Kaita must rank as the most idiotic act of stupidity that this tournament has seen so far. With his side 1-0 up against an anaemic Greece after 33 minutes, Kaita foolishly kicked out at Greece’s Vasilis Torisidis, in a move that ultimately cost his side three valuable points.

3.Individual mistakes can be decisive

Due to the short nature of international tournaments, the damaging effect of mistakes can be far crueller than those committed in domestic leagues. Yesterday we saw three players’ unfortunate gaffes directly lead to goals. Argentina’s ponytailed centre-back Martin Demichelis’ defensive error allowed Lee Chung-Yong to nip in and score an unlikely goal for South Korea. Nigeria’s Vincent Enyeama, whose performances up until the 71st minute of yesterday’s game had made him an early contender for player of the tournament, failed to control a tame shot and provided Vasilis Torosidis with the opportunity to net the winning goal for Greece. France centre-back Eric Abidal’s failure to stay in line with the rest of his defence allowed Mexico forward Javier Hernandez to beat the offside trap and coolly slot the ball past Hugo Lloris.

4.Sacre bleu!

France are bad. Really bad. Although yesterday’s limp display was an ever so slight improvement upon their showing against Uruguay, it is clear that there are deep problems existing within the French camp. On the brink of an ignominious first-round elimination, France deservedly lost to a well-drilled Mexico side. Raymond Domenech’s side looked disjointed and unimaginative, failing to create any clear chances and displaying a woeful lack of fluency. Although the players must share the blame, questions must be asked of the much-maligned outgoing manager, who has woefully mismanaged an undeniably talented group of footballers.

5.The boot-iful game

For some of the world’s biggest companies, the World Cup is an unbelievable platform for product placement. Whilst watching the three games yesterday, I couldn’t help but notice the ridiculous number of players wearing the same orange and silver Nike boots (apparently the boot in question is known as the “Mercurial Vapor Superfly II”). Having been alerted to their prevalence during Argentina v South Korea, I decided to tally up the number of players wearing them in the day’s subsequent games; Greece v Nigeria & France v Mexico featured no less than twenty (yes, TWENTY) players sporting said boots. According to Nike statistics, 40% of all players at this summer’s World Cup are wearing them.

Given that Carlos Tevez and Georgios Samaras were spotted wearing them, it seems as though they’re suited to both excellent and completely rubbish footballers alike.

Follow me on twitter at www.twitter.com/zarifrasul

Click image below to see a gallery of the Brazilian babes at the World Cup

The favourites
The underachievers
Fallen giants
Surprise Nations

The so called “Favourites”

Brazil- It’s rare to enter a WC without Brazil being amongst the group of favourites, and this is no different. After their poor showing in Germany 06 this Brazil team under guidance of coach Dunga will see anything but lifting the Jules Rimet trophy as a failure. Starting from the top down you can justify their place in this group. They have arguably the best goalkeeper in the world in Julio Ceaser. A defense spearheaded by the no nonsense Lúcio, with their usual gut busting full backs in the form of Douglas Maicon and Michel Bastos. A midfield where Kaka is given freedom to roam and Gilberto Silva he task of protecting the back 4. An attack where the likes of Robhino or Luis Fabiano can cut through a defense without hesitation. The only doubt cast over this squad was the decision by Dunga to leave Pato, Ronaldinho, and Adriano behind.

Strengths: Goals from every area of the field bar the goalkeeper.

Weaknesses: Weaknesses at the back with attack minded defenders.

Spain- Labelled a perennial under achiever, Spain head to South Africa playing the best football in the nation’s history. They won Euro 2008 in an almost effortless fashion and although the WC will pose a tougher test, you wouldn’t put it past them to go all the way. They went on a 35 game unbeaten streak. They eased through qualifying. They have one of the best goalkeepers in the world in Iker Casillas. They have possibly the best front 2 heading into this tournament in Fernando Torres and David Villa. And are spoilt for choice in midfield with names, like Xavi, Inniesta, Fabregas, Senna, Xabi Alonso and Sergio Busquets just to name a few. So what’s stopping them from going all the way? Nobody but themselves.

Strengths: Clinical forwards, and an army of talented midfielders.

Weaknesses: Consistency. They have never maintained consistency throughout a WC.

Argentina- So far Diego Maradona’s spell as Argentina’s coach can only be described as eventful. Saying that they scraped qualifying by the skin of their teeth would be exaggerating, but they did cut it fine. Despite not beating Brazil in their 2 games and getting hammered 6-1 by Bolivia, they still head to South Africa with one of the best squads. Maradona has mixed and matched youth and experience. With players like Juan Seba Veron with bags of experience, and the likes of 22 year old current world player of the year Lionel Messi. By looking at this squad you can already see where they’re strongest. They have an abundance of fire power. With the likes of Messi, Tevez, Higuain, Aguero, and Diego Milito, once can’t help expect a bagful of goals from this team. Their only weakness here is Maradona’s indecisiveness. He’s so far used 78 players during his spell as coach and is not any closer to knowing his best XI.

Strengths: An embarrassment of riches up front

Weaknesses: Left out 2 big names in Cambiaso and Zanetti. Still doesn’t know best XI

Click here to see the underachievers

The World Cup is a stage not only for established players in football, but it’s also a stage where young rising stars can showcase their talents and become household names in years to come.

Here are the top 10 young stars to look out for at this year’s World Cup in South Africa:

Mesut Ozil (Germany)

Young, talented and highly ambitious, three words to describe Germany’s rising star Mesut Ozil.

Playing his football for Bundersliga side Werder Bremen, the 21-year-old has already established himself as one of, if not, the Germans main man for World Cup glory. Ozil put himself on the map when he was just 17, when the German attacking midfielder signed for Schalke 04 in 2005. In 2008 Ozil signed for Werder Bremen for an estimated £4.3 million and has since shined very brightly.

Ozil was playing his international football for the German U-21 team and was the key catalyst to his side winning the U-21 European Championships last summer.

Ozil will be taking a huge step playing for the senior national team, but with the talent he possesses the midfielder is sure to be a big hit for Germany and the tournament in whole. A definite one to watch this summer and clubs around Europe will no doubt be monitoring the German ace in South Africa.

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Alexis Sanchez (Chile)

Known as ‘El Nino Maravilla’ (the wonder boy) the Chilean is exactly that. The 21-year-old Udinese winger is blessed with explosive pace, bags of trickery and has a keen eye for goal. With all these attributes at his disposal, the Chilean poses a major threat for any full-back that comes up against him this summer.

Sanchez has already managed to make 28 appearances for his country and has netted 11 times along the way. Chile boasts a real star in the making, and a great tournament for the young winger/striker could spark interest from a number of clubs around Europe and in England. Watch out for him this summer in South Africa, he looks to be a potential star of the tournament.

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Simon Kjaer (Denmark)

At only 21 years of age, the Danish centre-back has already established himself as a first-team performer for Serie A side Palermo in under just 2 years. A lot of interest has been shown in the 6’ 2’’ defender in recent months and a buy out clause of £11 million will no doubt attract more attention this summer.

He is currently one of the most talked about defenders on the market, and his performances this season have no doubt credited such gossip. Kjaer is young, strong, quick and very assured when in possession of the ball (everything a defender must acquire to become a great one).

Although Kjaer is still very young, he is highly rated in Europe and is tipped to be a world-class centre-back in the near future. Look out for the solid defender this summer, he is sure to be a big hit this summer.

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See the next 4 stars on page 2

Owen Coyle is the fans favourite, and quite rightly too. His name was sang at the highest volumes during his time as a player for the Wanderers, and his credentials as a manager are good. To get Burnley to the Premiership isn’t a small achievement. Other names include Hughes, Peter Reid and Neil Warnock. All great technical coaches in their own right, but whether they’ll be right for the Reebok faithful, we’ll soon see.

The problems that faces a club after a managers dismissal are there for everybody to see. Nine out of ten times, uncertainty surrounds the dressing room. Who will be next in? Is my place in the Bolton squad secure? This slowly develops into some players trying to give their all, but worrying too much as they go about their business. One wrong pass could be all it takes with some managers. There’s also the personality factor.

When Gary Megson took over the reins at the club, he inherited a squad full of talent that had showed promise but never quite achieved it. However, nestled within that squad were some outstanding players that had made their way into the fans hearts; Stelios Giannakopoulos and Ivan Campo, to name just two. It was these players that had been to the top, and tried to push Bolton there too, and they both saw what could so well happen when a new manager joins a club.

These two fantastically gifted players were shoved out of the Reebok dressing room, left to ponder over the good old days, and why? All because of their big ambitions, and the respect that they instantly command, were too much for a manager that was used to commanding players where a famous brand of crisps, are the main diet. Okay, Stelios and Campo had both seen better days, but they were quality that stood out within the squad, and after they departed, Bolton missed them tremendously.

Recently, however, these two household names have discussed the transition that the club went through. They have both described it as an unusual time, where the fans that had supported then so well in the past, could sense what was going wrong behind the scenes. Ivan Campo, now playing for AEK Larnaca, told the Daily Mirror; “I’m not surprised that Gary Megson has been sacked, the players were not with him. They didn’t trust him and the style of football he played was far too simple”.

This sums up the task that a new manager at Bolton will face. He needs to command the dressing room, whilst understanding this Lancashire clubs culture and background. He needs to see talent, and use it to the best of it’s ability. The next Bolton manager, whoever it may be, needs to use his common sense, and ensure that this passionate and historical club become what they showed so much promise of becoming not too long ago.

The Bolton Wanderers Football FanCast is available as a weekly audio podcast discussing views and news from around the club and the Wanderers-World-Wide-Web.

To listen to their exclusive interviews with Stelios Giannakopoulos, click here.

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The other strongest European countries all qualified for the finals in South Africa next summer, with some nations more impressive than others. Spain and The Netherlands both won all of their matches and topped Group 5 and 9 respectively, and Spain especially who have Liverpool’s Fernando Torres and Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas among their ranks, will head into the tournament as one of the favourites. Elsewhere Italy and Germany both remained unbeaten, and will be there or there abouts at the FIFA 2010 World Cup once again.

England led by Fabio Capello were in good form as they won their first 9 qualifying matches, and expectations will be high once more come next summer. With many Premiership stars featuring, including Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, Chelsea’s Frank Lampard and Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard, a fully-fit England can compete with almost anyone. The other group winners were Denmark, Switzerland, Slovakia and Serbia, who will all provide a tough test for any nation in the tournament next summer after coming through one of the toughest qualifying sections.

The 4 play-off fixtures decided the last four World cup qualifiers from the European section, and France, Portugal, Greece and Slovenia all progressed in varying circumstances. The most controversial game was the match between France and Ireland, where the fixture was heading to penalties before France scored thanks to a helping hand from Barcelona striker Thierry Henry to break Irish hearts. Elsewhere, Greece secured a 1-0 aggregate win over Ukraine, Slovenia caused an upset and won an ill-tempered encounter with Russia, and Portugal who were without injured Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo cruised past Bosnia-Hercegovina.