Miscellany: The Marquis, National Team Gossip, Super-Copa Red Card Blues, The CL Draw & Strike News!

[jenny-jenkins.livejournal.com]

Miscellany: The Marquis Gives An Interview, National Team Gossip, Super-Copa Red Card Blues,
The CL Draw & Strike News!

The Marquis Weighs In: "Vincente Del Bosque - 'Ozil is Simply Brilliant.'"

From Kicker Magazine comes the following interview. It is translated by me, jenny_jenkins. Many thanks to Karin (soccergirl63) for the scans of the magazine!

Kicker: Nuri Sahin, Sami Khedira, Mesut Ozil and Hamit Altintop with Real Madrid. Ivan Rakitic, Piotr Trachowski with Sevilla. Why are Spanish teams relying on German and German-trained players?

VdB: Ever since Breitner and Netzer arrived at Real Madrid 30 years ago, many of them have triumphed here.

Kicker: Is it a formula?

VdB: Of course not. There are exceptions. But you can always rely on German players. They are professionals of the highest order: physically strong, but also well trained and tactically intelligent. The younger generation shows this especially.

Kicker: What do you think of [Mesut] Ozil and [Sami] Khedira's first season at Real?

VdB: They played a good season. They are players who make difference. Khedira is more of a classic type: an absolute team-player of great efficiency. Ozil is simply brilliant.



Brilliance & Efficiency!


Kicker: Are they players you'd like in your team?

VdB: They are players who would help any coach. I am happy with the team I have, however...



National Team Gossip - In Every Sense!


The Unauthorized Version!

Everyone's Favourite National Team Captain Philipp "The-Dwarf-At-Right-Back" Lahm has landed himself in some minor hot-water (though those of you who know anything at all about Philipp Lahm will agree he probably isn't losing sleep over it).



The Cover-Art for Philipp "Unflappable" Lahm's Book!


He's written a book. The book is being given publicity by Bild and is apparently critical of past coaches. According to Philipp (according to Bild) Felix Magath is a bully with a screw loose, van Gaal doesn't give a shit about defence, Voeller's team practices in 2004 were hour-long sessions and the team filled the time before being chucked out of the European Championships in the group stages playing video-games, and Klinsi's idea of a tactical plan going into a game is to tell his team to "score a goal."

Tell us something we didn't already know Philipp - please!

It's a tempest in a tea-pot, and is making all the sport's pages. It will likely have no lasting consequences either. If these "revelations" are the most shocking thing to come out of the book it will one hell of a dull read.

Still - a tempest in a teapot it is - complete with banner headline on DFB.de informing the fans that the player's council and Loew & Co. will be chatting with Philipp about the book. They have already announced in advance though that the idea of stripping Philipp of his captaincy is out of the question for the moment.



Mesut with Philipp Lahm and Bromantic Interest Lukas Podolski!


Now then, the question you are all asking of course is: How does this affect Mesut?

Well, we'll have to wait until the book comes out (Jenny will be pre-ordering!) to see if Philipp has spilled some ink on his current National teammates and if anything scandalous has come out - like Mesut losing 2 out of 100 Playstation games (!!), cheating at chess with Oliver Bierhoff, or arguing with Schweini over who gets to sit next to Lukas Podolski at dinner.



Go on Mesut! Tell us what you've done!



2. The Authorized Version!

Meanwhile, in more depressing (and DFB authorized!) news, friend Sami Khedira is out for a few weeks with an adductor injury which is why he didn't play yesterday against Galatasaray. That means he'll not be getting a call-up for the National Team for the first week of September when Germany hope to smash Austria and qualify early for next summer's tournament.

Alas, this means less of our favourite bromance because Mesut has received a call up to join the team in Gelsenkirchen. On the plus side this means we can expect to see him against Austria on September 2, 2011!

Mesut will also be reunited with his old friend from Werder Bremen Per "The Friendly Giant" Mertesacker!



Mesut With The Friendly Giant!


The last time we saw Sami Khedira in action he was, of course, rescuing Mesut from a nasty situation -




- And the footage suggests that in the heat of the moment, Mesut was less than properly grateful.

But never mind! Happily, it all seems to have blown over. Sami isn't the type to hold a grudge, and they were all smiles during practice over the past few days.





Indeed, Mesut seemed entirely returned to his usual, cheerful, ball-trickster self!





The Red Card (Twittering) Blues


There is some lingering confusion over what is happening to Mesut. Or what he has said about last Wednesday's incident. Or what is being said about him.

 
"They say we're saying what?"

A minor time-line -

One day after the Super-Copa second leg, the media were reporting that Mesut Ozil had confirmed on Twitter that David Villa had insulted his religious beliefs.

Two days after the Super-Copa second leg, the media were reporting that Sami Khedira's Twitter had just confimed that Mesut Ozil has no Twitter account and that he had said no such thing.

Three days after the Super-Copa second leg, Sami Khedira was apparently made aware of what was going on, logged onto his official Facebook site and confirmed that he has no Twitter, Mesut Ozil has no Twitter, and that Facebook is his (Sami's) only site.

Result: Neither of the boys has Twitter. It has not been confirmed or denied that Villa insulted Mesut's religious beliefs - mainly because Bild failed to clarify the point - or if they did, Mesut refused to comment.

We do know he was verbally abused because Madrid officials have confirmed to As that he was. We just don't know what about because they refuse to say.

As a result of this confusion, David-Villa-Hate-Groups are springing up all over the Internet, which is most regrettable.

Also - the decision has come down. Mesut is banned for one match. If the news reports in the German media are correct, he is banned for the next super-copa match which will take place, at the earliest, in one year.


The Champions League Draw! 

(And Prepare yourselves for some Déjà Vu)






Top-seeded Real Madrid is in Group D.

The other teams are -

Ajax
Dinamo Zagreb
Olympique Lyon

Mesut played against two of these teams (Ajax and Lyon) last year and did a splendid job. He debuted in the Champions League with Madrid against Ajax and was, as Marca recalled on his one-year anniversary a week and a half ago - quite splendid - bewitching the crowd with his ball-control, elegance and his lovely assist for Gonzalo Higuain.

His assist in the second leg against Ajax was perfectly beautiful too - a gorgeous back-heel to cushion Xabi Alonso's free-kick before Benzema slotted home just before the half. Later in the game, Mesut's quick feet earned a penalty for Cristiano Ronaldo to make it four in the Amsterdam Arena in Ajax's biggest home defeat in their history.





Against Lyon, Mesut was involved in 3 of the 4 goals that were scored against them on Aggregate.


(Happy) Strike News!

The first league match of the season is against Real Zaragoza on Sunday. Madrid will be playing away. Last year, Mesut scored a goal, away, in the first half of the season when we played Zaragoza.

So let's press our thumbs for another!

And that, my dears, is all the news that's fit to print!


Many thanks to andriy_7 for some splendid photographic research!

And finally -


An Article On The Red-Card Situation


As has been mentioned, Madrid lost 5-4 on Aggregate to Barcelona in the Super Copa and Mesut was red-carded for leaving the bench during the fracas following Marcelo's foul on Cesc Fabregas. He was hit several times in the face before being sent off.


      
Mesut with Pipita after the match.


So what does this Red Card mean? I don''t have the energy to translate Marca, so I've found an article on an English football blog that did it for us!


Marcelo, Ozil and Villa could serve bans from Supercopa red cards a year from now.

By Rob Paton
Thursday 18 August 2011
From: A Different League

Marcelo, Mesut Ozil and David Villa were all sent off during the closing stages of last night’s Supercopa de Espana between Barcelona and Real Madrid, but they may only serve any suspensions handed down, a year from now.


 


The Supercopa as a competition falls under the jurisdiction of Alfredo Florez. From this season, Copa del Rey and Supercopa disciplinary punishments for sendings off and complaints from teams about player behaviour will be handled by exclusively by Florez of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).

Florez takes the role as a one-person Competition Judge, and it is understood that a new policy being brought in also means subsequent bans handed down for sendings off will only apply to the same competition. If a player is shown a straight red card in the Copa del Rey, and he receives a three-game ban, it is for the next three Copa del Rey games his club are involved in. The same applies to the League, and at the moment to the Supercopa de Espana.





Marcelo was shown a straight red for the challenge on Cesc Fabregas that triggered the mass brawl at the end of last night’s second leg fixture, whilst Ozil and Villa clashed in the ensuing coming together, and were also shown red cards.

In examining the referee David Fernández Borbalán’s notes from the game, Marca report that Florez can only rule upon the three red cards, as the incident involving Jose Mourinho and Tito Vilanova was not seen or reported by match officials, whilst the brawl can only be acted upon should one of the clubs make a formal complaint.

Falling in line with Article 115 - ‘entering an opponent from behind and making contact, without touching the ball’ - Marcelo is left vulnerable to a one-game, three-game or even month-long ban.





Meanwhile, Villa and Ozil’s dismissals fall under Article 119 - ‘ coming off the bench, entering the field of play, raising hands and grabbing opponents’ shirts several times’ - are subject to either one-game or three-game bans, with the decision on the trio of players’ fates down to Florez.

Their bans will be for the next Supercopa de Espana games their team plays, unless - as will be the case this season - the incidents under investigation are deemed serious enough for an immediate cross-competition ban. League disciplinary procedures are handled by the Competition Committee, that Florez is President of. There is also an Appeals Committee, but all judicial systems are run under the authority of RFEF.

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