"I never predict anything and I never will do."
TDH was looking over the Champions League draw and thinking, "Could we, in any of these matches, divine something useful about the even bigger competition to follow in June?" It's not such a far-fetched thought - the Trini-Tobagans, at least, must have had a bit of a shudder at seeing Crouch and Gerrard romp over Depo Sarsparilla.
And there are some match-ups that could be interesting. TDH doubts Mourinho will want to let Makelele take on L'il Ron the Cowboy alone, so we may just see what JT can do with him, with Carvalho doing his best to interfere with Eto'o, the keeper, or whoever else is around.
Milan v Munich will give us a chance to see Sheva up against Lucio, which, let's face it, is not exactly a fair fight. Madrid v Arsenal may feature Robinho versus big Sol, and Sven will find out if the man still has legs. Or it could be Ronaldo, which would also be informative, as Brazil may well meet England in the semifinals. At least, we can hope. If we're lucky, we'll see Essien take on Gattuso in a later round - that'll be a cracker in Germany, no matter what.
One of the other interesting questions that always bubbles up around this time is whether there are any national squads that play as well as the world's best club teams. It's a hard one, since only the club teams are together week-in, week-out (except if you're Argentina, where you all play at Villareal). And while the top club teams are strong everywhere, every national squad - even Brazil - has at least one weakness.
But think - who would do better against Milan, Bayern, and Barca: Brazil, or England? England's grittiness might just give them the edge, even with Brazil's bags of offensive talent. It's a comforting thought, no?
And there are some match-ups that could be interesting. TDH doubts Mourinho will want to let Makelele take on L'il Ron the Cowboy alone, so we may just see what JT can do with him, with Carvalho doing his best to interfere with Eto'o, the keeper, or whoever else is around.
Milan v Munich will give us a chance to see Sheva up against Lucio, which, let's face it, is not exactly a fair fight. Madrid v Arsenal may feature Robinho versus big Sol, and Sven will find out if the man still has legs. Or it could be Ronaldo, which would also be informative, as Brazil may well meet England in the semifinals. At least, we can hope. If we're lucky, we'll see Essien take on Gattuso in a later round - that'll be a cracker in Germany, no matter what.
One of the other interesting questions that always bubbles up around this time is whether there are any national squads that play as well as the world's best club teams. It's a hard one, since only the club teams are together week-in, week-out (except if you're Argentina, where you all play at Villareal). And while the top club teams are strong everywhere, every national squad - even Brazil - has at least one weakness.
But think - who would do better against Milan, Bayern, and Barca: Brazil, or England? England's grittiness might just give them the edge, even with Brazil's bags of offensive talent. It's a comforting thought, no?
posted by Daniel Altman at 5:16 PM
1 Comments:
I don't know, I'm sure I'm being boring as bats**t here, but I think England would consistently run those club sides close, but when Brazil are clicking, I just don't see any team in the world being able to live with them. Not even Barca.
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