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Pastimes : Soccer World Cup MLS Euro Champions League etc -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: X Y Zebra who wrote (1196)	5/2/2002 5:34:27 AM
From: Dayuhan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5130

Looks like we don't get the Real Madrid - Manchester United final after all. Real did the job against Barcelona, though Barca actually outplayed Madrid for much of the time, and was undone only by lousy finishing. They missed Rivaldo, out injured for both legs, terribly. Wonderful buildup play, but nobody could put the ball in the net, and that's one thing Rivaldo can do. Man U of course was badly upset by Bayer Leverkusen, the side that everybody wrote off as the one that didn't belong. Bayer played well, but Man U did not play up to their reputation or their payroll and deserved to go out. The British press is already in a fearsome snit, and it will be interesting to see what happens in the off season. The departure of Veron is widely anticipated, as is the acquisition of a new (and badly needed) central defender. Alessandro Nesta's name is often heard, displaying an interesting Lazio - Manchester shuttle pattern. A fair amount on display as well for those who prefer the international scene. One of the nice things about watching club football is that you get a good look at some of the young players that have yet to move into the international scene. When the final rolls around expect Real to roll over Bayer, but keep an eye on Lucio, the young Brazilian defender. He was forced into the starting lineup due to injury, and everybody ran at him, figuring him to be the weak link. He wasn't, and he stood up very effectively to the likes of Michael Owen, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Ryan Giggs, etc. Very impressive performance for a 19 year old; one rarely sees defenders maturing so quickly. I'd look for him to appear in Brazil's lineup eventually. Fabio Rochemback of Barcelona is another young Brazilian with major potential. World Cup picks.... I hate to say it, but France still has the strongest squad, even though the injury to Robert Pires, who was in amazing form, will hurt them. Any team that can throw Henry and Trezeguet up front, Zidane and Vieira down the middle, and Thuram and Lizerazu in the back is going to be tough to handle. Width may be a problem, especially without Pires. Opponents will have to stuff the center and pray, but with Zidane in the picture they will have to pray hard. Argentina have to be next favorite. I want them to win, personally, and there's no doubt that they have the talent. The question is will they have the team play. The presence of Pellegrino and Ayala on the back line is key: they teamed up to give Valencia one of the stingiest defenses in Europe last season, and they don't need to be afraid of anyone. Needed: an aggressive rugged ball-winning midfielder in the Keane/Vieira mold to go with all that attacking talent. The rest of them file in somewhere behind, although on any given day a huge surprise can happen....