Rangers edged close to the UEFA Cup quarter finals after a 2-0 win at home to Werder Bremen on Thursday.
Goals either side of half-time from Gabon international Daniel Cousin and Northern Ireland midfielder Steven Davis, assisted by horrendous errors from Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese, handed Rangers an important first leg lead.
It was a special night for Rangers captain Barry Ferguson who was setting a new Scottish record with his 77th appearance in European club competitions. And his side almost got off to a perfect start with only 60 seconds on the clock. Charlie Adam's first time shot from 20 yards looked to be heading towards the top corner until Wiese dived to his left to push the ball away. Although Werder Bremen were the visitors they were doing most of the pressing early on, without being able to test Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor. Adam's earlier shot clearly gave the midfielder a huge confidence boost and in the 13th minute he tried an audacious lob from the halfway line, after spotting Wiese off his line, but the ball flew harmlessly over.
The German side tested McGregor for the first time in the match in the 22nd minute. Swedish striker Markus Rosenberg let fly from 25 yards, but the Rangers keeper was equal to the task, acrobatically pushing the ball round the post.
In the 25th minute Adam came close for a third time. The Rangers midfielder's free-kick from the edge of the box took a deflection and bounced awkwardly in front of Wiese, who slapped the ball away.
Adam was clearly in the mood and in the 34th minute he took another free-kick, 30 yards from goal, which landed on the top of the net.
Despite these chances for Rangers it was Bremen who were controlling possession. McGregor was again called into action in the 44th minute, to save from Croatian Jurica Vranjes' header.
Keeper errorsBut in the 45th minute, from out of nowhere, Rangers took the lead. Cousin decided to try his luck from 35 yards but although his shot contained plenty of power it was straight at the Bremen goalkeeper. However, Wiese made an appalling blunder, pushing the ball up into the air and then failing to stop it dropping down behind him into the back of the net.
And at the start of the second half the Werder Bremen shot stopper was at fault again as Rangers doubled their advantage. Davis slid the ball into the path of Cousin but although he struck a decent shot from 16 yards Wiese should have been able to save comfortably instead of merely pushing it out in front of him.
The ball fell straight to Davis who slid in and poked it into the corner of the net and increase Rangers' lead in the 47th minute.
Bremen knew an away goal would put them right back in the tie and in the 75th minute Danish player Daniel Jensen tried his luck with a low drive which McGregor did well to save.
Rangers should have made sure of a quarter-final place in the 87th minute. Lee McCulloch, who had replaced Cousin in the 75th minute, knocked the ball under goalkeeper Wiese but with an empty goal at his mercy he hesitated, allowing Brazilian defender Naldo to make a tremendous last gasp tackle.
However, Rangers hung on to their two goal advantage to put themselves in the driving seat ahead of the second leg on Thursday, 13 March
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Arsenal's injured Croatian striker Eduardo Da Silva said Thursday that his recovery from the horror tackle which shattered his hopes of playing in UEFA EURO 2008 could take up to 15 months.
Eduardo suffered a compound fracture of the left leg following a tackle from Birmingham defender Martin Taylor at St. Andrews last month and originally expected to be out for at least nine months.
"Some doctors told me six months, others said I could play again in nine months but others say the recovery is going to take 15 months," the 25-year-old striker told the Jutarnji List newspaper.
Despite the injury, Eduardo said he had no intention of launching a legal case against Taylor. "Even if I wasn't sure that there had been no intention in the tackle, I'm not going to do it. It's difficult to prove," he said.
Eduardo suffered a compound fracture of the left leg following a tackle from Birmingham defender Martin Taylor at St. Andrews last month and originally expected to be out for at least nine months.
"Some doctors told me six months, others said I could play again in nine months but others say the recovery is going to take 15 months," the 25-year-old striker told the Jutarnji List newspaper.
Despite the injury, Eduardo said he had no intention of launching a legal case against Taylor. "Even if I wasn't sure that there had been no intention in the tackle, I'm not going to do it. It's difficult to prove," he said.
National technical director Gerard Houllier on Thursday urged rising French stars Samir Nasri, Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa to resist the lure of foreign clubs.
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is known to be interested in Lyon pair Benzema, 20, and Ben Arfa, 21, while Real Madrid have been linked with 20-year-old Marseille playmaker Nasri.
But former Liverpool and Lyon boss Houllier believes the trio, who will play in UEFA EURO 2008 this summer, would be better served by staying at home.
"For those three players, it would be an error to leave for abroad now," Houllier told the sports daily L'Equipe.
"Nasri, Ben Arfa and Benzema are being selected in the best French teams. They are therefore in the best conditions to develop their game, progress and make that step up. They must stay and get more confidence into their game, assert their qualities and achieve things.
"And leaving Ligue 1 shouldn't just be a question of money. You must be professional in your approach to leaving. Going abroad must be motivated by the desire to assert your potential, your play."
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is known to be interested in Lyon pair Benzema, 20, and Ben Arfa, 21, while Real Madrid have been linked with 20-year-old Marseille playmaker Nasri.
But former Liverpool and Lyon boss Houllier believes the trio, who will play in UEFA EURO 2008 this summer, would be better served by staying at home.
"For those three players, it would be an error to leave for abroad now," Houllier told the sports daily L'Equipe.
"Nasri, Ben Arfa and Benzema are being selected in the best French teams. They are therefore in the best conditions to develop their game, progress and make that step up. They must stay and get more confidence into their game, assert their qualities and achieve things.
"And leaving Ligue 1 shouldn't just be a question of money. You must be professional in your approach to leaving. Going abroad must be motivated by the desire to assert your potential, your play."
Internazionale Milano Football Club, more commonly known as Inter, came into existence on 9 March 1908 in the back room of L'Orologiaio (The Clockmaker) restaurant in Milan. The impetus was provided by dissident members of the Milan Cricket and Football Club, who went on to become AC Milan.
The aim of these rebels was to open up the club to foreign talent at a time when AC Milan's regulations excluded all but Italian players - hence the name Internazionale. Even today, the club remain true to this original doctrine with more foreign players on their books (23 out of a professional playing staff of 45) than any other Italian club.
A century after the club's creation, Inter are ranked firmly among Europe's top clubs, with an impressive honours list of 15 Scudetti, five Italian Cups, three Italian Supercups, two European Cups, three UEFA Cups and two Intercontinental Cups.
What is more, the Nerazzurri are Italy's third most successful outfit in terms of silverware, bettered only by Juventus and fierce local rivals AC, as well the only side in the country never to have been relegated.
Due to a lack of financial resources, the club's early days were tough, so much so that the players even had to pay for their own shirts and boots. When the fascists came to power in Italy, the word "Internazionale" was deemed to be a reference to the international communist movement and, in 1932, Inter were forced to merge with the Unione Sportiva Milanese to become Ambrosiana-Inter until the fall of the regime. Ten years and two league titles later, Inter reverted to their old name.
Conveyor belt of talentTraditionally a key provider of talent for the national team, four of the players (Allemandi, Castellazzi, Demaria and Meazza) from the Azzurri side that triumphed at the 1934 FIFA World Cup™ in Italy were supplied by Inter, as were a further quartet (Ferrari, Ferraris II, Locatelli and Meazza again) for the FIFA World Cup victory in France four years later. The truly gifted Giuseppe Meazza, scorer of 283 goals in 408 official matches for Inter, stands out to this day as an exceptional striker and man. In 1979, a year after his death, the San Siro was renamed in his honour, with the agreement of the ground's co-occupants AC Milan, despite the strong rivalry between the two clubs.
The Moratti family has also left an indelible mark on Inter Milan. Under the chairmanship of Angelo Moratti (1955 to 1968) the Nerazzurri prevailed on pitches the world over, lifting three Scudetti, two European Cups and two Intercontinental Cups. His son Massimo, chairman since 18 February 1995, displays similar passion for the cause today.
The third name which will be forever associated with Inter is Helenio Herrera. While his playing career was unremarkable, Il Mago (The Magician) stockpiled an incredible haul of trophies as one of the world's most successful coaches.
Herrera casts his spell"HH" was heavily inspired by the pre-war defensive system known as the Swiss bolt, the central rivet of which he reinforced still further. Herrera, however, never accepted his reputation as the champion of the system's successor, Catenaccio. Instead he chose to emphasise the fact that he had been the first to develop dedicated right-wing play, thereby creating the "channel" concept so in vogue today.
It is difficult to isolate the different elements of Inter's classic side (Sarti, Burgnich, Facchetti, Bedin, Guarnieri, Picchi, Jair, Mazzola, Peiro, Luis Suarez, Corso), as they formed a unit of incredible solidity. That said, attention must be drawn to two players in particular.
Firstly, elegant wing-back Giacinto Facchetti, the control tower of the Inter defence who won 94 caps for Italy. He also had a spell as chairman of the club, before losing a long battle with illness in 2006. Secondly, attacking midfielder turned striker, Alessandro Mazzola, who bagged 157 goals in 561 games for Inter and 22 goals in 70 appearances for Italy between 1963 and 1974.
Between 1970 and 2005, despite investing colossal sums in the transfer market, Inter had to "make do" with just three more Scudetti, three UEFA Cups and the same number of Italian Cups, although many supporters still hankered for the halcyon days of Herrera.
And after much chopping and changing, in 2004 Massimo Moratti finally hit upon the ideal coach in the shape of Roberto Mancini. This former stylish striker made light of the tricky transformation from player to coach by guiding his gifted and cosmopolitan squad to the league and cup double in 2006, before sealing the Scudetto again in 2007.
With 18 wins, 7 draws and just one defeat so far this season ( editor's note: as at 7 March 2008), Inter are in the process of clinching their third consecutive and 16 th ever league title. With the Moratti-Mancini double act continuing to reinforce its place in club history, this particular centenarian is showing no signs of slowing down.
The aim of these rebels was to open up the club to foreign talent at a time when AC Milan's regulations excluded all but Italian players - hence the name Internazionale. Even today, the club remain true to this original doctrine with more foreign players on their books (23 out of a professional playing staff of 45) than any other Italian club.
A century after the club's creation, Inter are ranked firmly among Europe's top clubs, with an impressive honours list of 15 Scudetti, five Italian Cups, three Italian Supercups, two European Cups, three UEFA Cups and two Intercontinental Cups.
What is more, the Nerazzurri are Italy's third most successful outfit in terms of silverware, bettered only by Juventus and fierce local rivals AC, as well the only side in the country never to have been relegated.
Due to a lack of financial resources, the club's early days were tough, so much so that the players even had to pay for their own shirts and boots. When the fascists came to power in Italy, the word "Internazionale" was deemed to be a reference to the international communist movement and, in 1932, Inter were forced to merge with the Unione Sportiva Milanese to become Ambrosiana-Inter until the fall of the regime. Ten years and two league titles later, Inter reverted to their old name.
Conveyor belt of talentTraditionally a key provider of talent for the national team, four of the players (Allemandi, Castellazzi, Demaria and Meazza) from the Azzurri side that triumphed at the 1934 FIFA World Cup™ in Italy were supplied by Inter, as were a further quartet (Ferrari, Ferraris II, Locatelli and Meazza again) for the FIFA World Cup victory in France four years later. The truly gifted Giuseppe Meazza, scorer of 283 goals in 408 official matches for Inter, stands out to this day as an exceptional striker and man. In 1979, a year after his death, the San Siro was renamed in his honour, with the agreement of the ground's co-occupants AC Milan, despite the strong rivalry between the two clubs.
The Moratti family has also left an indelible mark on Inter Milan. Under the chairmanship of Angelo Moratti (1955 to 1968) the Nerazzurri prevailed on pitches the world over, lifting three Scudetti, two European Cups and two Intercontinental Cups. His son Massimo, chairman since 18 February 1995, displays similar passion for the cause today.
The third name which will be forever associated with Inter is Helenio Herrera. While his playing career was unremarkable, Il Mago (The Magician) stockpiled an incredible haul of trophies as one of the world's most successful coaches.
Herrera casts his spell"HH" was heavily inspired by the pre-war defensive system known as the Swiss bolt, the central rivet of which he reinforced still further. Herrera, however, never accepted his reputation as the champion of the system's successor, Catenaccio. Instead he chose to emphasise the fact that he had been the first to develop dedicated right-wing play, thereby creating the "channel" concept so in vogue today.
It is difficult to isolate the different elements of Inter's classic side (Sarti, Burgnich, Facchetti, Bedin, Guarnieri, Picchi, Jair, Mazzola, Peiro, Luis Suarez, Corso), as they formed a unit of incredible solidity. That said, attention must be drawn to two players in particular.
Firstly, elegant wing-back Giacinto Facchetti, the control tower of the Inter defence who won 94 caps for Italy. He also had a spell as chairman of the club, before losing a long battle with illness in 2006. Secondly, attacking midfielder turned striker, Alessandro Mazzola, who bagged 157 goals in 561 games for Inter and 22 goals in 70 appearances for Italy between 1963 and 1974.
Between 1970 and 2005, despite investing colossal sums in the transfer market, Inter had to "make do" with just three more Scudetti, three UEFA Cups and the same number of Italian Cups, although many supporters still hankered for the halcyon days of Herrera.
And after much chopping and changing, in 2004 Massimo Moratti finally hit upon the ideal coach in the shape of Roberto Mancini. This former stylish striker made light of the tricky transformation from player to coach by guiding his gifted and cosmopolitan squad to the league and cup double in 2006, before sealing the Scudetto again in 2007.
With 18 wins, 7 draws and just one defeat so far this season ( editor's note: as at 7 March 2008), Inter are in the process of clinching their third consecutive and 16 th ever league title. With the Moratti-Mancini double act continuing to reinforce its place in club history, this particular centenarian is showing no signs of slowing down.
Former Spain boss Javier Clemente is the new coach of struggling Real Murcia following the sacking of Lucas Alcaraz on Thursday, the Primera Liga club said on their website. Clemente, who was close to becoming the Iran national team coach last month, inherits a side second from bottom in the Primera Liga, six points from safety, with five wins from 26 games since winning promotion last season.
"It hurts me to make these types of decisions especially when Alcaraz has been working so hard, but it's the results that count," Murcia president Jesus Samper told a news conference.
Alcaraz was in his second season at the helm after steering them to third place in the second division last year. "Clemente has the capacity, the professionalism, the talent and a great knowledge of football," Samper added. "We should all now get behind the new coach to move this project forward. He has the spirit of winner and is familiar with the squad."
Miracle worker?Clemente, 57, has been given a contract until the end of the season and will be presented on Friday. He will be seeking to end a run of four consecutive defeats when he takes charge for the first time for Sunday's league match at home to Getafe.
He took charge of Spain after their failure to qualify for the UEFA EURO 1992 in Sweden, guiding them to both the quarter-finals of the 1994 FIFA World Cup and EURO 1996.
He was appointed Serbia coach in July 2006 but was sacked in December last year after the team failed to qualify for the EURO 2008 finals.
As a club coach he achieved his greatest success at Athletic Bilbao, steering the Basque side to the league title in 1983 and a league and cup double the following season. His other clubs include Atletico Madrid, Espanyol, Real Sociedad, Real Betis and Olympique Marseille.
"It hurts me to make these types of decisions especially when Alcaraz has been working so hard, but it's the results that count," Murcia president Jesus Samper told a news conference.
Alcaraz was in his second season at the helm after steering them to third place in the second division last year. "Clemente has the capacity, the professionalism, the talent and a great knowledge of football," Samper added. "We should all now get behind the new coach to move this project forward. He has the spirit of winner and is familiar with the squad."
Miracle worker?Clemente, 57, has been given a contract until the end of the season and will be presented on Friday. He will be seeking to end a run of four consecutive defeats when he takes charge for the first time for Sunday's league match at home to Getafe.
He took charge of Spain after their failure to qualify for the UEFA EURO 1992 in Sweden, guiding them to both the quarter-finals of the 1994 FIFA World Cup and EURO 1996.
He was appointed Serbia coach in July 2006 but was sacked in December last year after the team failed to qualify for the EURO 2008 finals.
As a club coach he achieved his greatest success at Athletic Bilbao, steering the Basque side to the league title in 1983 and a league and cup double the following season. His other clubs include Atletico Madrid, Espanyol, Real Sociedad, Real Betis and Olympique Marseille.
Internazionale Milano Football Club, more commonly known as Inter, came into existence on 9 March 1908 in the back room of L'Orologiaio (The Clockmaker) restaurant in Milan. The impetus was provided by dissident members of the Milan Cricket and Football Club, who went on to become AC Milan.
The aim of these rebels was to open up the club to foreign talent at a time when AC Milan's regulations excluded all but Italian players - hence the name Internazionale. Even today, the club remain true to this original doctrine with more foreign players on their books (23 out of a professional playing staff of 45) than any other Italian club.
A century after the club's creation, Inter are ranked firmly among Europe's top clubs, with an impressive honours list of 15 Scudetti, five Italian Cups, three Italian Supercups, two European Cups, three UEFA Cups and two Intercontinental Cups.
What is more, the Nerazzurri are Italy's third most successful outfit in terms of silverware, bettered only by Juventus and fierce local rivals AC, as well the only side in the country never to have been relegated.
Due to a lack of financial resources, the club's early days were tough, so much so that the players even had to pay for their own shirts and boots. When the fascists came to power in Italy, the word "Internazionale" was deemed to be a reference to the international communist movement and, in 1932, Inter were forced to merge with the Unione Sportiva Milanese to become Ambrosiana-Inter until the fall of the regime. Ten years and two league titles later, Inter reverted to their old name.
Conveyor belt of talentTraditionally a key provider of talent for the national team, four of the players (Allemandi, Castellazzi, Demaria and Meazza) from the Azzurri side that triumphed at the 1934 FIFA World Cup™ in Italy were supplied by Inter, as were a further quartet (Ferrari, Ferraris II, Locatelli and Meazza again) for the FIFA World Cup victory in France four years later. The truly gifted Giuseppe Meazza, scorer of 283 goals in 408 official matches for Inter, stands out to this day as an exceptional striker and man. In 1979, a year after his death, the San Siro was renamed in his honour, with the agreement of the ground's co-occupants AC Milan, despite the strong rivalry between the two clubs.
The Moratti family has also left an indelible mark on Inter Milan. Under the chairmanship of Angelo Moratti (1955 to 1968) the Nerazzurri prevailed on pitches the world over, lifting three Scudetti, two European Cups and two Intercontinental Cups. His son Massimo, chairman since 18 February 1995, displays similar passion for the cause today.
The third name which will be forever associated with Inter is Helenio Herrera. While his playing career was unremarkable, Il Mago (The Magician) stockpiled an incredible haul of trophies as one of the world's most successful coaches.
Herrera casts his spell"HH" was heavily inspired by the pre-war defensive system known as the Swiss bolt, the central rivet of which he reinforced still further. Herrera, however, never accepted his reputation as the champion of the system's successor, Catenaccio. Instead he chose to emphasise the fact that he had been the first to develop dedicated right-wing play, thereby creating the "channel" concept so in vogue today.
It is difficult to isolate the different elements of Inter's classic side (Sarti, Burgnich, Facchetti, Bedin, Guarnieri, Picchi, Jair, Mazzola, Peiro, Luis Suarez, Corso), as they formed a unit of incredible solidity. That said, attention must be drawn to two players in particular.
Firstly, elegant wing-back Giacinto Facchetti, the control tower of the Inter defence who won 94 caps for Italy. He also had a spell as chairman of the club, before losing a long battle with illness in 2006. Secondly, attacking midfielder turned striker, Alessandro Mazzola, who bagged 157 goals in 561 games for Inter and 22 goals in 70 appearances for Italy between 1963 and 1974.
Between 1970 and 2005, despite investing colossal sums in the transfer market, Inter had to "make do" with just three more Scudetti, three UEFA Cups and the same number of Italian Cups, although many supporters still hankered for the halcyon days of Herrera.
And after much chopping and changing, in 2004 Massimo Moratti finally hit upon the ideal coach in the shape of Roberto Mancini. This former stylish striker made light of the tricky transformation from player to coach by guiding his gifted and cosmopolitan squad to the league and cup double in 2006, before sealing the Scudetto again in 2007.
With 18 wins, 7 draws and just one defeat so far this season ( editor's note: as at 7 March 2008), Inter are in the process of clinching their third consecutive and 16 th ever league title. With the Moratti-Mancini double act continuing to reinforce its place in club history, this particular centenarian is showing no signs of slowing down.
The aim of these rebels was to open up the club to foreign talent at a time when AC Milan's regulations excluded all but Italian players - hence the name Internazionale. Even today, the club remain true to this original doctrine with more foreign players on their books (23 out of a professional playing staff of 45) than any other Italian club.
A century after the club's creation, Inter are ranked firmly among Europe's top clubs, with an impressive honours list of 15 Scudetti, five Italian Cups, three Italian Supercups, two European Cups, three UEFA Cups and two Intercontinental Cups.
What is more, the Nerazzurri are Italy's third most successful outfit in terms of silverware, bettered only by Juventus and fierce local rivals AC, as well the only side in the country never to have been relegated.
Due to a lack of financial resources, the club's early days were tough, so much so that the players even had to pay for their own shirts and boots. When the fascists came to power in Italy, the word "Internazionale" was deemed to be a reference to the international communist movement and, in 1932, Inter were forced to merge with the Unione Sportiva Milanese to become Ambrosiana-Inter until the fall of the regime. Ten years and two league titles later, Inter reverted to their old name.
Conveyor belt of talentTraditionally a key provider of talent for the national team, four of the players (Allemandi, Castellazzi, Demaria and Meazza) from the Azzurri side that triumphed at the 1934 FIFA World Cup™ in Italy were supplied by Inter, as were a further quartet (Ferrari, Ferraris II, Locatelli and Meazza again) for the FIFA World Cup victory in France four years later. The truly gifted Giuseppe Meazza, scorer of 283 goals in 408 official matches for Inter, stands out to this day as an exceptional striker and man. In 1979, a year after his death, the San Siro was renamed in his honour, with the agreement of the ground's co-occupants AC Milan, despite the strong rivalry between the two clubs.
The Moratti family has also left an indelible mark on Inter Milan. Under the chairmanship of Angelo Moratti (1955 to 1968) the Nerazzurri prevailed on pitches the world over, lifting three Scudetti, two European Cups and two Intercontinental Cups. His son Massimo, chairman since 18 February 1995, displays similar passion for the cause today.
The third name which will be forever associated with Inter is Helenio Herrera. While his playing career was unremarkable, Il Mago (The Magician) stockpiled an incredible haul of trophies as one of the world's most successful coaches.
Herrera casts his spell"HH" was heavily inspired by the pre-war defensive system known as the Swiss bolt, the central rivet of which he reinforced still further. Herrera, however, never accepted his reputation as the champion of the system's successor, Catenaccio. Instead he chose to emphasise the fact that he had been the first to develop dedicated right-wing play, thereby creating the "channel" concept so in vogue today.
It is difficult to isolate the different elements of Inter's classic side (Sarti, Burgnich, Facchetti, Bedin, Guarnieri, Picchi, Jair, Mazzola, Peiro, Luis Suarez, Corso), as they formed a unit of incredible solidity. That said, attention must be drawn to two players in particular.
Firstly, elegant wing-back Giacinto Facchetti, the control tower of the Inter defence who won 94 caps for Italy. He also had a spell as chairman of the club, before losing a long battle with illness in 2006. Secondly, attacking midfielder turned striker, Alessandro Mazzola, who bagged 157 goals in 561 games for Inter and 22 goals in 70 appearances for Italy between 1963 and 1974.
Between 1970 and 2005, despite investing colossal sums in the transfer market, Inter had to "make do" with just three more Scudetti, three UEFA Cups and the same number of Italian Cups, although many supporters still hankered for the halcyon days of Herrera.
And after much chopping and changing, in 2004 Massimo Moratti finally hit upon the ideal coach in the shape of Roberto Mancini. This former stylish striker made light of the tricky transformation from player to coach by guiding his gifted and cosmopolitan squad to the league and cup double in 2006, before sealing the Scudetto again in 2007.
With 18 wins, 7 draws and just one defeat so far this season ( editor's note: as at 7 March 2008), Inter are in the process of clinching their third consecutive and 16 th ever league title. With the Moratti-Mancini double act continuing to reinforce its place in club history, this particular centenarian is showing no signs of slowing down.
The South Korean K-League kicks off its 26th season on Saturday, with reigning champions Pohang Steelers taking on cup holders Chunnam Dragons. The two teams are renewing acquaintances for the first time since locking horns in last season's two-legged cup final, when the Dragons emerged triumphant with back-to-back wins over their southeastern rivals.
The Steelers, however, are keen to prove that winning the championship after finishing fifth in the regular season was no fluke. Brazilian coach Sergio Farias, who masterminded Pohang's fairytale run in the play-offs, outlined their ambitions: "Our aim is to reach the final and win it like we did last year. We're preparing for the new season, in which we're hoping to play more organised football with a balance between attack, midfield, and defence."
That said, Farias will be banking on the scoring prowess of his compatriots: Denilson and Aldo. The Brazilian duo arrived during the winter from Daejeon Citizen and Brazilian side Paulista FC respectively, are expected to lead the frontline, while midfielder Fabiano was recruited from Marilia Atletico Clube to fill the gap left by Tavares, last season's Most Valuable Player.
For their part, Chunnam are eager to shrug off the unwanted tag of 'tournament team', with three FA Cup victories the only major achievements of their 13-year history. Park Hang-Seo, the Dragons' new coach, has set a realistic target of reaching the six-team play-offs, but for the time being he will be without three key players - goalkeeper Yeom Dong-Gyun, midfielder Kim Chi-Woo, and striker Ko Ki-Gu - who were injured while on international duty last month.
Top trio aim to atoneOn Sunday, it is the turn of a trio from the midwest, who have dominated the league in recent years, to begin their campaigns, and all will have redemption as their target.
Perennial champions Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma lost the final against Pohang after finishing first last season, and their coach Kim Hak-Bum is hungry for success more than ever. "Every coach says their goal is to win the championship but I think it's a cliché," Kim said. "Scoring most goals and conceding least goals in the league are my priorities. The more goals we score, the more fans we will see in the stadium. And by conceding fewer goals, we'll be able to stabilise and stay on top of the table."
In fact, the former was already achieved last year with the Pegasus scoring no less than 43 goals in 26 games. But it was their neighbours FC Seoul who had the league's meanest defence with 16 goals.
Yet despite that miserly record, which was thanks largely to the consistent performance of veteran goalkeeper Kim Byung-Ji, Seoul narrowly missed out a place in the play-offs due to a lack of firepower. Attempting to address this, coach Senol Gunes has brought in Serbian forward Dejan Damjanovic from Incheon United to partner Park Chu-Young.
Last season's runners-up, Suwon Samsung Bluewings, did not spend big during the close season to bolster their already formidable squad. However, coach Cha Bum-Kun had no choice but to trade star forward Ahn Jung-Hwan for Korea DPR midfielder An Yong-Hak with Busan I'Park, this following Korea Republic captain Kim Nam-Il's departure to Japanese outfit Vissel Kobe.
Managerial changesOn the south coast, meanwhile, the managerial merry-go-round has been in full swing. Busan I'Park, for example, moved to appoint former South Korean international striker Hwang Sun-Hong as coach. The 39-year-old is set to make his debut in the dugout against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on Sunday at Busan Asiad Stadium, where he opened the scoring in Korea Republic's 2-0 win over Poland at the 2002 FIFA World Cup™.
As for Gyeongnam FC, although they lost their attacking duo of Cabore and Popo, who left for J.League sides Tokyo FC and Kashiwa Reysol respectively, there was some cheer when former FC Seoul boss Cho Kwang-Rae returned to take the reins at his hometown club after an exile of three years. His predecessor, meanwhile, Park Hang-Seo, who led Gyeongnam to fourth place last year but resigned shortly afterwards, did not take long to return to the game with Gwangyang-based outfit Chunnam Dragons.
K-League Round 1 fixturesSaturday 8 March 2008Pohang Steelers-Chunnam Dragons
Sunday 9 March 2008FC Seoul-Ulsan Hyundai Horangi Suwon Samsung Bluewings-Daejeon Citizen Gwangju Sangmu-Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma Busan I'Park-Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Gyeongnam FC-Daegu FC Jeju United-Incheon United
The Steelers, however, are keen to prove that winning the championship after finishing fifth in the regular season was no fluke. Brazilian coach Sergio Farias, who masterminded Pohang's fairytale run in the play-offs, outlined their ambitions: "Our aim is to reach the final and win it like we did last year. We're preparing for the new season, in which we're hoping to play more organised football with a balance between attack, midfield, and defence."
That said, Farias will be banking on the scoring prowess of his compatriots: Denilson and Aldo. The Brazilian duo arrived during the winter from Daejeon Citizen and Brazilian side Paulista FC respectively, are expected to lead the frontline, while midfielder Fabiano was recruited from Marilia Atletico Clube to fill the gap left by Tavares, last season's Most Valuable Player.
For their part, Chunnam are eager to shrug off the unwanted tag of 'tournament team', with three FA Cup victories the only major achievements of their 13-year history. Park Hang-Seo, the Dragons' new coach, has set a realistic target of reaching the six-team play-offs, but for the time being he will be without three key players - goalkeeper Yeom Dong-Gyun, midfielder Kim Chi-Woo, and striker Ko Ki-Gu - who were injured while on international duty last month.
Top trio aim to atoneOn Sunday, it is the turn of a trio from the midwest, who have dominated the league in recent years, to begin their campaigns, and all will have redemption as their target.
Perennial champions Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma lost the final against Pohang after finishing first last season, and their coach Kim Hak-Bum is hungry for success more than ever. "Every coach says their goal is to win the championship but I think it's a cliché," Kim said. "Scoring most goals and conceding least goals in the league are my priorities. The more goals we score, the more fans we will see in the stadium. And by conceding fewer goals, we'll be able to stabilise and stay on top of the table."
In fact, the former was already achieved last year with the Pegasus scoring no less than 43 goals in 26 games. But it was their neighbours FC Seoul who had the league's meanest defence with 16 goals.
Yet despite that miserly record, which was thanks largely to the consistent performance of veteran goalkeeper Kim Byung-Ji, Seoul narrowly missed out a place in the play-offs due to a lack of firepower. Attempting to address this, coach Senol Gunes has brought in Serbian forward Dejan Damjanovic from Incheon United to partner Park Chu-Young.
Last season's runners-up, Suwon Samsung Bluewings, did not spend big during the close season to bolster their already formidable squad. However, coach Cha Bum-Kun had no choice but to trade star forward Ahn Jung-Hwan for Korea DPR midfielder An Yong-Hak with Busan I'Park, this following Korea Republic captain Kim Nam-Il's departure to Japanese outfit Vissel Kobe.
Managerial changesOn the south coast, meanwhile, the managerial merry-go-round has been in full swing. Busan I'Park, for example, moved to appoint former South Korean international striker Hwang Sun-Hong as coach. The 39-year-old is set to make his debut in the dugout against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on Sunday at Busan Asiad Stadium, where he opened the scoring in Korea Republic's 2-0 win over Poland at the 2002 FIFA World Cup™.
As for Gyeongnam FC, although they lost their attacking duo of Cabore and Popo, who left for J.League sides Tokyo FC and Kashiwa Reysol respectively, there was some cheer when former FC Seoul boss Cho Kwang-Rae returned to take the reins at his hometown club after an exile of three years. His predecessor, meanwhile, Park Hang-Seo, who led Gyeongnam to fourth place last year but resigned shortly afterwards, did not take long to return to the game with Gwangyang-based outfit Chunnam Dragons.
K-League Round 1 fixturesSaturday 8 March 2008Pohang Steelers-Chunnam Dragons
Sunday 9 March 2008FC Seoul-Ulsan Hyundai Horangi Suwon Samsung Bluewings-Daejeon Citizen Gwangju Sangmu-Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma Busan I'Park-Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Gyeongnam FC-Daegu FC Jeju United-Incheon United
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