Croatia vs England 2008: Exciting Match?

An exciting match seems to be waiting there at Zagreb tonight. With England gearing up for a revenge and Croatia looking to prove their Euro 2008 qualifying triumph over England were no fluke, fans of both sides are excited with the match. Croatia defeated England both at home and away during Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.

England and Croatia pulled off victories in their opening world cup qualifiers. It is not a ‘do or die’ match, but the match is very important for both sides considering the significance of the match. Croatia has got to prove that their victories over England during Euro 2008 qualifiers were not any flukes, while England is eyeing on taking revenge over Croatia. Croatian coach Slaven Bilic is confident ahead of the match and is very much happy with his side’s 3-0 victory over Kazakhstan in the world cup qualifying opener. Bilic expects a great game against England.

John Terry said that England got unfinished business with Croatia last year. He vowed that England was aiming to pick up three points. He asked his teammates to try their best to stave off the challenge of Croatia. Terry also expects that Rio Ferdinand will start against Croatia after shaking off his neck and back injury. Joe Cole, who scored both the goals for England against Andorra, is expected to be in the starting line up against Croatia.

One thing is for sure that the match is going to be an exciting one. Now, let us see if England can make a come back against Croatia to take some pride back to England.

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AFP

Croatia vs England 2008: John Terry not Worried about Pressure

English captain John Terry expressed that England players are capable of handling the pressure they are encountered with ahead of the high-profile world cup qualifier against Croatia. England was defeated twice by Croatia during Euro 2008 qualifying. So, England fans are looking for revenge for their double defeat this time around. So, English players are now felling some pressure as well because English fans are not happy with their performance in the opening world cup qualifier.

Most of the players of current England squad participated in Champion League. So, Terry thinks, handling pressure will not be a problem for England players. He has said, after playing champions league and premier league year after year, England players have been habituated to deal with pressure very well and it will not be a problem for England players against Croatia.

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Sky Sports

Theo Walcott Only Bothers his Performance Nothing Else Against Croatia

Theo Walcott can perhaps be termed as a surprise boy or wonder boy who very often becomes newspaper headlines surprisingly. First, his selection in England’s Germany-bound world cup 2006 squad during Sven Goran Eriksson’s reign as England coach came as a shock to many in England. At 17, he suddenly turned into a hotcake of English media. However, he could not come off the bench during the world cup and remained untested. In the last couple of years, he grew as a striker under Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, but until last season he could not manage to win a regular place in Arsenal line up. During the reign of Steve McClaren as England manager, he rarely earned international call up.

However, Theo Walcott, at 19, has recently created another big surprise when current manager Fabio Capello picked him up for the starting line up against England’s recent 2-0 victory over Andorra in world cup qualifying campaign, being preferred to former captain David Beckham on the right wing. Though his inclusion in the first eleven for Croatia encounter is not yet confirmed as Capello might weigh up Beckham’s experience over Walcott’s pace and potential, he is confident and does not bother whether he will be handed the first team action. He said that he played without fear and would not bother anything else except his own performance.

Walcott thinks he has enough experience with him both at Arsenal and England now, but he admits that he could not play as much as he was expected to. Now, let us see if Fabio Capello relies on his pace and talent or Beckham’s experience today against Croatia.

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AFP

Croatia vs England WC Qualifying: Fabio Capello Feels Confidence is Important

England manager Fabio Capello has said that confidence will be crucial for England in the match against Croatia. England is going to face Croatia today in Zagreb in the second match of world cup qualifying 2010 campaign. Though Capello started his reign as England manager with a 2-0 victory over Andorra last weekend, but the upcoming tie with Croatia will be the first real test of Fabio Capello.

Croatia is looking to earn a permanent reputation of being a side to whom England stumbles upon very often. England lost to Croatia twice during Euro 2008 qualifying campaign and eventually missed on a place in the final tournament of Euro 2008.

England manager Capello praised Croatia coach Slaven Bilic for his excellent job in his reign. However, indicating Croatia’s lose to Turkey on penalty during Euro 2008, Capello said that it must have cost them some confidence. The Italian also voiced that he had confidence in his team and he knew both strong and weak points of Croatia. However, he stressed to play with courage and confidence against Croatia. Capello also confirmed that England was going to play for victory.

Fabio Capello also called on England fans to support the teams, in stead of booing. He admitted that England’s past form was disappointing, but he thinks England badly needs the support of the fans at this moment more than ever. Capello thinks it is a new game, team and manager and his side is confident ahead of the match.

England manager also confirmed that star defender Rio Ferdinand was fit and there was no injury woe in the squad. Now, let us see if England can come out of their bad patch against Croatia in today’s meeting.

Related article:

Goal.com

Croatia vs England World Cup 2010 Qualifying Live in Super Sports?

These days, so much is being talked about Setanta television channel that it has bought the tv rights of away matches of the England national team that most English fans will not be able to enjoy the match live tomorrow. So, I was searching for more information about the match and live tv channel coverage. Well, I stumbled upon to the website of Super Sports television channel and I was shocked that the match was going to be broadcast live tomorrow on Super Sports 5. To be honest, I am shocked…… and I really can not believe that most English fans will not be able to watch the match, but people in South African will be enjoy it. This is really tragic and I am sure that it is time football fans start discussing about the way tv rights are managed. Football is not only a sport but it is a passion for millions of people in all over the world. England is the place where football was originated. In this country, no other sport is popular. So, I really wish that people have some common sense and try to make some changes. Well, if you are in South Africa or in other parts of Africa and if you have access to Super Sports 5, then you should watch the match. Even if you are not a fan of England or Croatia, still I would urge you to watch the match because most of the people in England would not be able to do so. It has become a much-discussed subject in internet and in the media. Let us see if there can be any change at all.

‘We Hate Setanta’: The Dilemma of Modern Football

‘We Hate Setanta.’ Yes, this is the slogan of many English fans now. They really hate this TV channel. Before going to everything, I hope you know that Setanta is an Irish television channel. Well, it may be an Irish TV channel, but it is gradually becoming an important part of life of most English football fans. Setanta has the TV rights of England’s away matches in world cup qualifying round and the bad part is that it is not a very popular channel in England. Setanta is a cable channel and that is that most people can not watch its programs unless they subscribe to the channel.

In England, Sky television is the most popular cable channel. It is very popular and they cover almost every event live and exclusive for British people. So, England wanted to put an end to the monopoly of Sky Sports and they gave the away matches to another television channel. Setanta got it and became very important. Now, the problem is that most people in England do not subscribe to the channel as it needs more money. As a result they could not watch the Andorra vs England match live on Saturday. Setanta Sports did not even allow terrestrial channels like BBC and ITV to broadcast highlights of the match. It was like a national disaster for England as football is most popular sports and there is overwhelming supports for the sports in England. Now, if the English fans could forget the sadness of Andorra match because Andorra was a weak team, then the bigger sadness is waiting for them tomorrow when they are going to face Croatia.

This match is going to be on Setanta too and it is not still clear if terrestrial television channel will be bale to broadcast any highlights. In fact, Setanta demanded too much money and BBC and ITV are not eager to pay the money for the highlight. So, unless there is a last-minute deal, there is a huge possibility that English fans will not be able to see the Croatia vs England match tomorrow live unless they are subscribers of Setanta television channel. That means that, majority of the people in England will not be able to enjoy their world cup qualifying 2010 match.

I think that it is a dilemma of modern football. On the one hand, everything is done in the name of football. Everyone related to football management, the clubs and companies want to take advantage from the immense popularity of football. Well, on the other hand, football is increasingly becoming the hotcake of the rivalry of major television channel. Thus, football is now almost terrestrial free-to-air tv channels and it is now the property of cable channels. This is the case in almost all the European country. Often, they have to watch their favorite matches in cable channels. Sometimes, even they have to watch a football match at pay-per-view. This is a total disaster for football because football is a sports for the ordinary people. However, it is increasingly becoming a sport which will be enjoyed by rich people. I am sure that ticket prices of football matches will be increased significantly in the next few years. Thus, only rich people will be bale to enjoy football matches.

Thus, you can hate Setanta, but you have to buy its service if you want to England’s matches.