Ten notable exclusions from Euro 2012

Eurosport Italia published this list. Can't say I disagree. Reporting the list below.

1. VILLA -- Barcelona, Spain -- injury
2. PUYOL  --  Barcelona, Spain  --  injury
3. ROSSI  --  Villareal, Italy  --  injury
4. RICHARDS  --  Manchester City, England  --  choice
5. SOLDADO  --  Villareal, Spain  --  choice
6. DEJONG  --  Ajax, Netherlands  --  choice
7. GUIDETTI  --  Feyenoord, Sweden  --  choice
8. MARIN  --  Werder Bremen  --  choice
9. GOURCUFF  --  Lyon, France  --  choice
10. CACAU  --  Stuttgart, Germany  --  choice

Like the author, I am especially surprised about Richards and Soldado, who both played a stellar season in their respective clubs.

On the one hand, "there is no room for everyone" is a piss-poor excuse to justify bad picks. On the other hand, it is true that some will be left out, and sometimes it makes sense to rely on "fame."

Ought I to bring a bold young striker who's currently in great shape but has little international experience... or should I rely on the old guard, counting on the fact that they're going to deliver when the occasion calls for it?

Beats me. In 2006, the two oldest teams in the tourney (by far), Italy and France, ended up playing the final. In 2010, Spain and Netherlands were among the youngest. A sapient mixture of both is probably the way to go.

Roddick and S. Williams out!

Two of my very least favorite athletes in the world knocked out in the very first round of the Roland Garros. Ahahaha! I'm lovin' it. Bye bye Rod-dick and little bitch Williams.

Also, the pictures below are hilarious. LOL

   

Italy's 23 and more betting scandals

As expected, here's Italy's 23. Summary and some analysis here.

Of course, it wasn't going to be easy. In the last few hours, several players and coaches were searched or arrested in yet another round of the betting scandal that started hitting Italian football  a couple of years ago. Juventus coach Conte and defender Bonucci (who's on the list) are among those targeted. So is Genoa defender Criscito, who was removed from the shortlist this morning after news of his arrest. It was unclear whether he would have ever made it to Euro 2012. Some comments here and here. (Juventus are also eyeing Capello for Conte's job now: see this).

GOALKEEPERS
Buffon (Juventus)
Sirigu (PSG)
De Sanctis (Napoli)

DEFENDERS
Maggio (Napoli)
Abate (Milan)
Balzaretti (Palermo)
Bonucci (Juventus)
Barzagli (Juventus)
Chiellini (Juventus)
Ogbonna (Torino)

MIDFIELDERS
Pirlo (Juventus)
Marchisio (Juventus)
Giaccherini (Juventus)
De Rossi (Roma)
Thiago Motta (PSG)
Nocerino (Milan)
Montolivo (Fiorentina)
Diamanti (Bologna)

FORWARDS
Cassano (Milan)
Balotelli (Manchester City)
Giovinco (Juventus)
Di Natale (Udinese)
Borini (Roma)

RESERVES
Ranocchia (Inter)
Destro (Siena)


There are no surprising and notable absences, except of course those that we got used to by now. All the old school strikers (Totti, Del Piero, Gilardino, Pazzini, Borriello) are too old to be useful, and some of the new ones (Matri, Quagliarella) have done very poorly this season. The sad truth is simply that this generation of Italian players lacks any serious goal-scorer. We have plenty of quality in the midfield, and some really great play-makers, but that's of no use if nobody puts it in the goal. Our most prolific striker is 35-year-old Di Natale: in good shape, but slow and absolutely no match for Spain's, Germany's, and England's rocky defenders.

My ideal starting 11... Buffon;  Maggio, Bonucci, Barzagli, Chiellini;  De Rossi, Thiago, Pirlo, Montolivo;  Balotelli, Di Natale.

Cesare Prandelli at today's press conference

Spain's list of 23 announced

Euro 2012 player lists are starting to pour in. Italy's and Germany's are expected today. Spain's selection analysis here. Most notable exclusions: Adrian and deGea, but is anyone surprised of the latter? Villa is expected not to make it.


GOALKEEPERS
Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)
Victor Valdes (Barcelona)
Pepe Reina (Liverpool)

DEFENDERS
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
Gerard Pique (Barcelona)
Juanfran Torres (Atletico)
Alvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid)
Raul Albiol (Real Madrid)
Javi Martinez (Bilbao)
Jordi Alba (Valencia)

MIDFIELDERS
Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)
Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid)
Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)
Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona)
Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona)
Santi Cazorla (Malaga)

FORWARDS
Pedro Rodriguez (Barcelona)
Juan Mata (Chelsea)
Jesus Navas (Sevilla)
David Silva (Manchester City)
Fernando Llorente (Bilbao)
Fernando Torres (Chelsea)
Alvaro Negredo (Sevilla)


As usual, on paper they are unbeatable. Here's my ideal starting 11 from this selection, assuming of course equality of fitness and disposition:  Casillas;  Ramos, Pique, Albiol, Juanfran;  Iniesta, Xavi, Cesc;  Silva, Pedro (Mata), Llorente.

Calendars

Just a couple of simple calendars to keep track of stuff. Very few details, and they're pretty fugly. Better ones at some later time, probably!

F = football
CY = cycling
G = golf
T = tennis
T&F = track and field / athletics
VB = volleyball
F1 = Formula 1 racing


.

my Euro 2012 printable scoreboard

The size is 24x36". It can be printed at any print shop. I got mine done for around $15, full color on stock white paper, but YMMV.

Download the PDF here

It is wise to write in pencil at first, so you can update the standings as the group stage progresses. Then, in the knockout stage, you can draw the flags yourself in addition to writing team names and scores.

I did one of these for the World Cup 2010 and it worked great! I hung it on the wall with a few thumb tacks and it was a lot of fun to update it after each game. Plus, it really does help you keep track of everything.

This is free for your own personal use, but I ask that you make no money from it. Feedback is welcome!

click to enlarge

Sports ahoy in the summer of 2012!

This blog will host my reflections on this summer's major sporting events. I will blog news, scores, and analyses from a variety of international sources. I will also live-tweet the key match-ups and races as time allows. Below is my intended coverage.


(Click on each logo to see the event's official websites).

	TENNIS Roland Garros May 27 – June 10
	BASKETBALL NBA Finals mid-June: exact dates TBA
	ROAD CYCLING Critérium du Dauphine June 3-10
	ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL Euro 2012 June 8 – July 1
	GOLF The U.S. Open June 14-17
	TENNIS Wimbledon June 25 – July 8
	VOLLEYBALL World Grand Prix Final Four June 27 – July 1
	ATHLETICS European Championships June 27 – July 1
	ROAD CYCLING Tour de France June 30 – July 22
	VOLLEYBALL World League Final Four July 4-8
	GOLF The Open Championship July 19-22
	ALL SPORTS The XXX Summer Olympics July 27 – August 12
	GOLF The PGA Championship August 9-12
	TENNIS U.S. Open August 27 – September 9

Some competitions happen weekly or bi-weekly and are worth following regularly:

	ATHLETICS Diamond League May 21 – September 7
	RACING Formula 1 World Championship March 16 – November 25

Coming soon: my own original printable 24x36" spread of Euro 2012 and a visual calendar of events. It's going to be an awesome summer! :-)

.