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FRUSTRATION IN SA

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There is a lot of frustration amongst the South African fans after their team recently lost 5-0 at the hands of Brazil. Even though they were taking on the five-time world champions, South Africa were not expected to receive such a hiding in front of the home supporters. They have a chance to redeem themselves when they take on New Zealand in a friendly that was only recently announced by New Zealand national team coach Neil Emblen. Emblen, who has been appointed as the interim manager until a permanent solution is found, will once again be leading the players for this match.

Emblen has been in charge of national team after he succeeded Ricki Herbert, who was the star of the World Cup 2010, following the national team’s failure to qualify for the World Cup 2014. The friendly match will be taking place just a few days before the start of the World Cup. This will be a great preparation for New Zealand, as they target to make an appearance in the World Cup for the 2018 season. The qualification round begins on September and Emblen has already laid down his target.

Emblen has been trying to revolutionise the national team during his unexpected short spell in charge of the team. He has been naming very youthful looking squads for the recent friendly matches.

“Given the nature of our situation with players now based all over the globe, it’s imperative we take every opportunity to bring the group together. A game in Auckland against strong opposition in South Africa – a country with which we enjoy a strong and competitive sporting relationship – ticks a number of important boxes for us on and off the field,” said the coach of New Zealand, whose team are without a win in the last six matches.

NZ TAKE ON JAPAN

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New Zealand will be taking on Japan in a friendly match at Tokyo tonight. Ahead of the match, there is uncertainty surrounding the future of manager Neil Emblen, as he has been appointed only for this match. He has been the assistant manager of former coach Ricki Herbert for the last three years during which time the national team achieved immense success. Hence, there is pressure on Emblen to at least preserve this status when New Zealand take on one of the World Cup qualified teams – Japan – in a friendly match.

Emblen has named a youthful looking squad for this encounter with a number of players around the ages of 19 and 20. Ryan Thomas and Tyler Boyd are one of the high-profile inclusions under the decision by the manager to introduce new players to the national team squad. However, Emblen is aware that he will be able to retain his job only with a good performance against Japan. The team has been on a poor run of form in the last five matches. Since they have failed to qualify for the World Cup 2014, it is imperative that the nation are in the best of shape prior to the start of qualification for the next World Cup, which is expected to take place in Russia.

“We’ll be certainly looking to show a brave possession-based brand of football. It’s not like we’re bringing in players that don’t deserve to be involved, but yes some of the older guys have now been overlooked for this game, a couple of players unavailable,” said Emblen regarding the upcoming match against Japan. Senior players like Marco Rojas, Tommy Smith, and Winston Reid are unavailable for this match due to several reasons. Smith, for example, has chosen to remain with Ipswich Town for this international break.

MOSS HAPPY

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New Zealand goalkeeper Glen Moss has stated that he will be extremely happy to captain the team when they take on Japan next month. This will be the first match for new New Zealand manager Neil Emblen, who was appointed on an interim basis recently. He takes over from Ricki Herbert and it will be a huge task to overcome the achievements of the former coach. Herbert managed to lead New Zealand to their first appearance in a World Cup in the 2010 edition. The team did exceedingly well during this tournament, but have suffered since then.

Herbert left the role as the New Zealand manager after the team failed to qualify for the 2014 World Cup. Emblen has stated that the path to qualify for the next edition, which will take place in Russia, begins with this match. However, he will be without important players like Tommy Smith and Winston Reid. In their absence, Moss is expected to captain the team. The goalkeeper, who is regarded as the Peter Shilton of this region, says that it will be an honour to lead the team. Japan are currently 48th in the latest FIFA rankings, while New Zealand are 91st.

Despite this gap, the goalkeeper is confident that New Zealand will be able to make an impact in this match.

“It was a pretty surreal moment when Embers told me I’d be captain for the match. I was already excited about the game and looking forward to getting into camp and now I’ve been made captain, it’s raised that feeling up a notch. It’s a pretty proud moment for me. Embers and I have known each other for a while now and I’ve also been in the set-up for a while now too going back to 2005,” said the goalkeeper about the possibility of captaining the team.

2014 DREAMING

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New Zealand were the surprise team to be present at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but it looks like they will not make it to the 2014 edition. They suffered a 5-1 defeat against Mexico in the first leg of the intercontinental play-offs. This result means that New Zealand must score four goals away from home and should also not concede. It is looking highly unlikely after Mexico recently appointed a new manager. The World Cup 2014 qualification campaign, thus, is looking to come to an end for New Zealand.

This will also bring an end to Ricki Herbert’s time as the national team manager. It has been a great time for New Zealand with Herbert as the main man. He has been able to astonish the world with some incredible tactical displays, which helped New Zealand get a surprise result against Spain in the last World Cup. The defensive organisation of New Zealand was highly praised, but it was not up to standard against Mexico. Herbert has been in charge of the national team since 2005, but it is now known that he will step down from his role after the second leg match.

“Ricki assumed control of the All Whites at a point of instability for our men’s national team. From the moment he stepped into the coaching role he began building and shaping a team which became one of the best sides we’ve ever had at a time when competition, in what is a truly global sport, has never been tougher. The impact Ricki has had on football in New Zealand is immense and it is testament to the fantastic job he has done,” said Hattum.

New Zealand’s FA chairman Frank van Hattum has confirmed that Herbert will not be forgotten for his exploits with the national team.

ON THE EDGE

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New Zealand came into the FIFA World Cup 2010 with an expectation that they would be the whipping boys, but they finished the tournament as the only team not to have suffered a defeat. Even the eventual champions Spain suffered a defeat over the course of the tournament. Much of the success was attributed to the three defenders at the back formation for New Zealand. National team coach Ricki Herbert, though, is willing to try out a few things before his team reaches the 2014 World Cup. New Zealand are extremely close to reaching the second consecutive World Cup.

The only have to negotiate a play-off match from a team in the CONCAF region and it is likely to be Mexico. Ahead of the match with Saudi Arabia in the OSN Cup, Herbert said that he wants to switch to a defensive four formation. This could see only Tommy Smith and Winston Reid as the centre backs, while Tony Lochhead will be playing at left back. It is expected that either Leo Bertos or Ben Sigmund will be picked to play in the right back position. Speaking ahead of this match, Herbert said that he wants New Zealand to be ready for any possible situation. He is willing to try out a few things in this match.

“We’re going to try a whole raft of things and see how it goes. Some might work, some might not. Siggy played at right back against China [last year] and he did a good job. Leo could play fullback but Tony will probably play left back, with Winston, Tommy and Glen Moss in goal. It’s going to be incredibly demanding. But it’s more about, are players comfortable in their roles, do we feel we’ve got the right sort of connections, the right sort of links?” said Herbert.

PASTON RETIRES

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The former Wellington Phoenix goalie, Mark Paston, has announced his retirement from international football.

Paston had quit club football in March this year. At that time, he had said that he might continue playing international football. But, after assessing his condition in the last few months, he decided to quit football completely.

Talking to the reporters while announcing his retirement, Paston said, “I have enjoyed my time away from football in the last few months and I think this is the right time for me to hang the boots.”

“I am excited about my future life. I will be doing something new and I want to have my focus on that.”

“I want to thank my fans for giving me tremendous support over the years. I also want to wish my teammates best of luck for the remaining World Cup qualifying matches. We have a very good chance to make it to the World Cup finals for the second time in a row.”

Meanwhile, the manager of the New Zealand team Ricki Herbert has hailed Paston for being a great servant of New Zealand football.

Herbert said, “Mark was one of the most passionate footballers I have ever worked with. He was a manager’s delight.”

“His contribution in the 2010 World Cup campaign was immense. The saves that he had made in both the qualifying games against Bahrain were fantastic.”

“Obviously, losing him at this point of time is a big blow for us. He was one of the most experienced guys in the team and we needed him for the rest of our qualifying campaign. But, he thought that the time had come for him to move on and we should respect his decision.”

Paston made a total of 36 appearances for the New Zealand team.

NELSEN SETTLES IN

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Ryan Nelsen has slowly begun to settle down at Toronto FC. The former New Zealand international was appointed as the head coach of Toronto FC in January this year. The club officials had huge expectations from him, but, Nelsen couldn’t live up to those expectations in the first few matches.

Toronto FC managed to secure just one victory in its first 12 MLS matches this season. Nelsen had to face a lot of criticism for that and there were talks about his sacking.

But, in the last 3 weeks or so, Toronto FC has shown improvement in its performance. The team has secured 5 points in the last 3 games with a win over DC United and has moved up one position in the Eastern Conference Points table. They are still at no. 9 though.

When asked about his team’s performance in the season so far, Nelsen said, “We were not up to the mark in the first few games, but, in the last couple of weeks, we have had some positive results and that has raised the confidence level of the team.”

“I don’t think we have played that badly. If you see the results, we have lost most of the matches just by one goal. No team has really been able to thrash us, but, it’s the points which matter and we haven’t got enough of them.”

Nelsen also admitted that the arrival of Steven Caldwell from Birmingham City on loan has strengthened the defense of his team.

Nelsen said, “Steven is highly experienced and his arrival has certainly made our defense strong. He has so far shown good form and we are hoping that he will continue in the same manner in the rest of the season as well.”

NELSEN STARTS MANAGERIAL ROLE

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The Toronto FC manager Ryan Nelsen will have to do without the services of the German midfielder Tortsen Frings after the veteran announced his retirement. The 36-year-old is currently the star player within the Toronto FC squad, while he is also the highest earner as well. Since joining the club in 2011, he has been one of the influential members over the last few years. However, he has announced his retirement just as Nelsen arrives at the club. The former QPR defender recently took over his first managerial job of his career. He lost in his first friendly match as the Toronto FC manager.

Nelsen will be taking charge of his first game in the MLS when Toronto FC take on Vancouver Whitecaps during the weekend. Even though the departure of Frings means that Nelsen will have a significant wage budget available for him to spend on a high profile player, the departure of one of the established players within the team is certainly a cause for concern. The 36-year-old Frings has been suffering from a number of injury problems in recent years. He has revealed in a statement that he has taken this decision with the best for the team in mind. He has paid tribute to his time with the MLS team.

“I always want to do what’s best for the team and that is why I have decided to step away. I really enjoyed my time in Toronto and playing for Toronto FC. I wish the club all the best this season and hopefully they can continue to embrace the winning spirit that I brought to the team,” said the midfielder. Over the years, he had represented top German clubs like Werder Bremen, Bayern Munich, and Borussia Dortmund. He has also played 79 matches for the national team as well.