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 | Who's THIS??!?! (Nice thighs, btw! :)) I know who it is - but that's because I watch La Liga with a passion; but do many?? Ismael Urzaiz - giant striker with Athletic Bilbao. Strong - largish. But does he play with Raul on a regular basis?? How well did Bilbao do this season? Get to the European Cup Final, like Real and Morientes did they?!?!?! Pray, Mr Camacho! WHY did you leave Morientes at home?!?!?!? "Raul had no more than a couple of half chances as he was snuffed out by Norway's defence. What a difference his Real Madrid teammate Fernando Morientes might have made to the proceedings had he not been left at home." (sports.com) |
WHY did Molina play, when sitting on the bench were two goalkeepers of the highest standards (both were in goal at the European Cup Final, only weeks ago). Canizares has been Spain's first goalie for 2 years. WHY MOLINA (relegated with Atletico Madrid)?????????
"Iversen's looping header over the hopelessly displaced Francisco Molina was enough to put Norway's collection of Anglos in pole position of Group C." (Soccernet)
 | Who's this?!?!? Bless his purified cotton socks! Gaizka Mendieta of Valencia, of course! Much regarded as one of Europe's players of the season. Any club would give their eye-teeth (and maybe front ones too) to have him in their side. |
| Who the hell's THIS??? I tell you who! The man is named FRAN and he is one of my least favourite players anywhere!!! Plays for Deportivo la Coruna - la liga winners - that is the ONLY reason that I can think he might have even stood a chance of getting into the Spanish squad!!! |  |
"By the time coach Jose Antonio Camacho freed his most creative players from the bench, Norway were well in control.. . . There were just 25 minutes remaining but Camacha wasted the first seven of those before finally sending on Valencia's inspirational Gaizka Mendieta and the elusive Alfonso. Only then did Spain move up through the gears." (Soccernet)
"Obviously I blame Alan Shearer, but then I always do. Blaming Alan Shearer has become such a reflex that when I'm at home I blame Alan Shearer if the bin men don't turn up or the cat sicks up on the carpet instead of the lino. But it is mostly his fault, nevertheless. Apart from games against kick-me-Charlie places such as Luxembourg, Shearer hasn't scored a goal for England since 1929. He just doesn't get on the end of it. Ask him where the end of it is, and he can't tell you. Yet he is never substituted, so nobody else gets a chance in the job. The upshot is that we have all these young skinny players nipping about serving this beefy roundhead, who comports himself like the proverbial chap who lost a yard and found a ha'penny. Thank goodness this is his farewell tournament. For one thing, he will at last be able to give his full attention to the bins."
I beg your pardon, that appears to be Lynn Truss's anarchical views on Shearer as written in "The Times"! Off with her head!!!!! :) OK, LET'S BLAME SHEARER FOR THIS TOO!!! I'm happy with that!
Nah, I am so disappointed. In the way Spain played - not by the fact they lost! I haven't mentioned Norway in any of this. OK, perhaps they deserve some praise for their stifling tactics - but, really, I want to see a team with some FLAIR win this competition - not the clodhopping likes of Norway. I see them all the time in the Premiership anyway. Oh well, Viva Portugal!!!! :))
When asked about his decision to leave the likes of Gaizka Mendieta kicking his heels until late in the second half, and to pick goalkeeper Francisco Molina from relegated Atletico Madrid rather than Santiago Canizares or Iker Casillas, Camacho was his usual defensive self.
“I can only field 11 players at a time,” was all the coach would say. “It’s just not possible to play everyone.”
Camacho blamed the defeat on bad luck and the referee and defended the way his side had played.
"We attacked, or tried to attack, for the full 90 minutes, not even slacking off towards the end.
"It wasn't a question of fatigue or of not having the right players.
"I've told the players that I'm not worried about anything. If we continue to play like that we'll win our last two games and qualify for the quarter-finals.
"The problem today is that the ball just wouldn't go in."
Teams and things
NORWAY (4-5-1): 1 T Myhre (Everton) - 14 V Heggem (Liverpool), 4 H Berg (Manchester United; sub 16 D Eggen, Alaves, 59min), 3 B Bragstad (Rosenborg), 2 A Bergdolmo (Rosenborg) - 18 S Iversen (Tottenham Hotspur; sub: 21 V Riseth, Celtic, 90), 7 E Mykland (Panathinaikos), 19 E Bakke (Leeds United), 11 B Skammelsrud (Rosenborg), 20 O G Solskjaer (Manchester United) - 9 T A Flo (Chelsea; sub: 17 J Carew, Rosenborg, 70). Substitutes not used: 12 F Olsen (Seville), 13 M Bakke (Molde), 5 T Andersen (Wimbledon), 6 R Strand (Rosenborg), 8 S Solbakken (Aalborg), 10 K Rekdal (Valerenga), 15 J A Riise (AS Monaco), 22 S I Bjornebye (Liverpool).
SPAIN (4-2-2-2): 22 F Molina (Atlético Madrid) - 2 M Salgado (Real Madrid), 6 F Hierro (Real Madrid), 18 Paco (Real Zaragoza), 3 A Aranzabal (Real Sociedad) - 4 J Guardiola (Barcelona), 21 J Valeron (Atlético Madrid; sub: 7 I Helguera, Real Madrid, 80) - 17 J Etxeberria (Atlético Bilbao; sub: 11 Alfonso, Real Betis, 73), 8 Fran (Deportivo La Coruna; sub: 16 G Mendieta, Valencia, 73) - 10 Raul (Real Madrid), 20 I Urzaiz (Atlético Bilbao). Substitutes not used: 1 S Canizares (Valencia), 13 I Casillas (Real Madrid), 14 G Lopez (Valencia), 5 Abelardo (Barcelona), 9 P Munitis (Racing Santander), 12 Sergi (Barcelona), 15 V Engonga (Real Mallorca), 19 J Velasco (Celta Vigo). Booked: Salgado.
Referee: G El Ghandour(Egypt).
