Tag Archives: Lionel Messi

“Under former coach Dunga, the team lacked the samba rhythm for which the Brazilians had become known; the players seemed full of skill and ability but cohesion was non-existent. “What a transformation the current head coach has effected. “The man who guided Corinthians to the domestic, continental and world titles …

Who I’d like to see win the World Cup and who I think will win are two completely different things. I’d like to see Argentina win it. For Leo Messi. To take his rightful place on the “best ever” shortlist, Messi, who, in my opinion, is the best player of …

My interest in football is at best tangential. But I love drama in all its forms and last night I was perfectly placed to experience it all. As a Trini, I have over the years lived through the Soca Warriors’ ups and downs, and the Jack Warner horror show. As the …

Trinidad and Tobago cricket all-rounder Dwayne Bravo set a milestone for cricket and local sport yesterday after earning an ESPYs nomination for its “Best Play” category. Now, the former West Indies ODI captain and Tranquillity Secondary student only needs to outdo four-time FIFA Player of the Year and Argentina star …

Who says friendly international football matches are meaningless? Adventurous Roma right back and two-time World Cup player Maicon certainly charged into mythical status last weekend after getting expelled from the Brazil international team and simultaneously pioneering a whole new range of uses for condensed milk. Football fans and pranksters worldwide …

In the not-so-feel-good story of the 2014/15 season so far, an obscenely wealthy club downed its poor neighbour 2-0 while over 31,000 spectators looked on in the European Super Cup at Cardiff, Wales. Real Madrid’s starting XI cost a combined TT$3.85 billion (£364 million) in transfer fees, which could get …

“Ask me not,” Everald “Gally” Cummings says, “what he did for the game but what the game did for him.” The former Strike Squad coach is responding to a question about disgraced former FIFA vice-president, Austin Jack Warner. Inviting the normally outspoken national player to be “brutally honest,” we had …

Do not adjust your television set; there is still no meaningful football on the planet at the moment. Well, to be fair, there is the National Super League and United States Major League Soccer. Hey, sometimes you get a dance with the hot chick at the club. And sometimes you …

So the ruthless Germans have won the Cup after all? It wasn’t the outcome Wired868 expert Lasana Liburd foresaw. But he has now decreed that tiki-kaiser shall henceforth succeed tiki-taka as football’s dominant style. Liburd’s opinion dovetails with the post-final view expressed by TV6’s Sweet Samba guru Keith Look Loy. …

Presumably, the German footballers passed the World Cup trophy around at a good tempo with no unnecessary showboating or fumbles. The 2014 World Cup belonged to the efficient, unrelenting Germans in the end. And the baby-faced assassin Mario Götze, who drew ire last year for ditching boyhood club, Borussia Dortmund, …

What players have left their individual stamp on the Brazil 2014 World Cup? Colombia’s James Rodriguez, Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Brazil’s Neymar, Germany’s Manuel Neuer and Netherlands’ Arjen Robben comes to mind. But no player has been at the epicentre of his team’s tactics as well the opposition’s as much Messi. …

Dutchman Tim Krul might be the first player ever to decide a football match without playing in the active part of the game. Ninety minutes of regulation time plus 30 minutes extra time had expired when Uzbekistan referee Ravshan Irmatov allowed Krul on to the field to replace first choice …