SPAIN 2 FRANCE 1 | FIFA U-20 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP A GAME RESULT

Spain won 2 -1 France in its last Group A match of the FIFA U-20 World Championships in Turkey to take Top spot & wait to see which Nation to play next Tuesday. That team will be any of the third placed from Groups C, D or F which will be confirmed.

Spain put in a marvellous 60 minutes of Football & then fell in intensity & could have even lost the game. During the best moments for Spain Paco Alcacer scored the opener in the 23rd min from a Jese pass, & then Jese took full advantage from a French defensive mistake to score the second in the 56th min for the Spanish U-20 Football Team.

From here France lifted substantially & was very unlucky as they hit the "wood-work" twice. Firstly in the 74th min by Kondogbia & a secondly by Sabaly in the 84th min. France was rewarded for their great second half effort with a goal that finally came for them in the 91st min from Vion.

The tournament now enters the "business end" phase & Spain will be tested & will need to attempt to avoid inconsistency in the latter part of their games. Worrying drop in form seen today by Spain that should alert the Spanish technical staff.

Match details: 

SPAIN 2: Sotres; Jonny, Derik, Llorente, Gayá; Campaña (Suso, 46’), Saúl; Jesé (Aketxe, 89’), Óliver, Rubén García (Denis Suárez, 77’); & Alcácer.
FRANCIA 1: Areola; Foulquier, Umtiti, Zouma, Digne; Lemina (Sabaly, 73’), Veretout, Kondogbia; Thauvin (Vion, 78’), Ngando (Bosetti, 60’) & Sanogo.

Goals: 1-0 (23’) Alcácer. 2-0 (56’) Jesé. 2-1 (91’) Vion.

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SPAIN 1 GHANA 0 | FIFA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP A GAME RESULT

Important win by the Spanish U-20 National Football Team 1 - 0 over Ghana in the Group A FIFA U-20 World Championships being held in Turkey. Earlier the other two teams of the Group France & USA drew 1 - 1 which gave Spain the chance to mathematically assure their presence in the next stage of the tournament if they could win. The Spanish youngsters did not disappoint. 

The first 20 min were brilliant from Spain which included the only,  & finally winning goal from Jese in the 13th min. Spain created multiple chances but failed to convert their opportunities & thus shut the match. This allowed Ghana the more stronger physically to created their chances with dangerous counter-attacks that at times nearly paid off for them. However, Spain held solidly in defence & the midfield was controlled by a very good Oliver who was outstanding.

Overall, Spain deserved the victory as they controlled the ball more & dominated the game. With the three points Spain leads the Group & awaits France in the last Group match were a draw will secure top spot.

Game details:

SPAIN 1 : Sotres; Manquillo, Puerto, Derik, Bernat; Saúl, Suso; Deulofeu (Jairo, 75’), Óliver, Denis (Rubén García, 87’); & Jesé (Campaña, 54’)

GHANA 0 : Antwi; Nketiah, Attamah, Lartey, Baba; Narh (Ashia, 68’), Salifu, Duncan, Acheampong; Boakye & Aboagye (Assifuah, 75’)


Goal: (13’) Jesé

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USA 1 SPAIN 4 | FIFA U - 20 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP A RESULT

Spain kicked off its participation in the FIFA U-20 World Championships being held in Turkey with a 1 - 4 victory over USA in its Group A match. An opening victory in theses types of tournaments is vital so as to not suffer unnecessary nerves & pressures in the other Group matches, & what a Group. The other two teams are France & Ghana both are physically stronger & will test Spain to the limit. In fact earlier France defeated Ghana 3 - 1 in their scheduled Group A match.

Spain was dominant & just victors with some fine play that will lift their confidence. There needs to be some fine tuning & no doubt will be discussed in the training sessions but overall a good start with a less than optimum US Soccer U-20 team.

The main Spanish Football protagonists were Real Madrid youngster Jese swho scored twice - in the 4th & 43rd min - & FC Barcelona "pearl" Deulofeu with his two goals - 41st & 61st min. Both these players are being closely watched as they are called to do big things in this U-20 World Championship. 

For the US team Gil got their goal in the 78th min with a fantastic power driver placed way beyond the reach of Spanish goalie Sotres. Nice bit of class shown.

Match details:

USA - 1 : Cropper; Yedlin, Stanko, Torre, Ocegueda; Trapp, Joya; Villarreal (López, 73’), Gil, García (Cuevas, 55’); & Hernández (Rodríguez, 46’)

SPAIN - 4: Sotres; Manquillo, Derik (Llorente, 74’), Puerto, Bernat; Saúl, Campaña (Rubén García, 69’); Deulofeu, Óliver, Jesé (Alcácer, 76’); & Suso.


Goals: 0-1 (5’) Jesé. 0-2 (42’) Deulofeu. 0-3 (44’) Jesé. 0-4 (61’) Deulofeu. 1-4 (79’) Gil.

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FIFA U-20 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS | SPANISH TEAM STARTS TODAY AGAINST USA

The Spanish Football seniors are doing well in the Confederations Cup, the Spanish U-21 Football Team has just claimed the U-21 European Championship title & now its the turn of the Spanish U-20 National Team to show their stuff in the FIFA U-20 World Championships starting in Turkey.

Member of the Spain U-20 squad

The Spanish U-20 team kicks off today their Group matches against the United States. A match that will need a victory - if possible - to start the tournament well & without stress as Spain is in a difficult Group along with strong nations like Ghana & France.

The Spanish team has some real talent in their squad with players already playing in their local senior Clubs,  player like Deulofeu (FC Barcelona) , Suso, Óliver (At.Madrid) & Jesé (Real Madrid CF).

From here we send out lots of luck to the Spanish U-20 sqaud. We will be keeping an eye out on their progress. We hope they can manage to go far.

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SPANISH BASKETBALL | LIST HANDED IN FOR 2010 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Spanish National Basketball Selector & Coach SERGIO SCARIOLO has handed in his list of 15 Spanish players to make up the Spanish Basketball Squad. The 2010 BASKETBALL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS will be held this year in Turkey with a starting date of the 28th of August until 12th of Septembre. The big name missing from the current European Champions list is LA LAKER Spanish star poivot PAU GASOL who has voluntarily opted –out from participating after a long & exhausting NBA session that ended with his team winning the NBA Championship.

Spain will be in Group D along with France, New Zealand, Lituania, Lebanon & Canada

Here is the lista of players:

ASEFA ESTUDIANTES: Carlos Suárez.
BIZKAIA BILBAO BASKET: Alex Mumbrú.
CAJA LABORAL:Fernando San Emeterio.
GRANADA: Pablo Aguilar.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES: Marc Gasol.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS: Rudy Fernández.
POWER ELECTRONICS VALENCIA: Victor Claver & Rafa Martínez.
REAL MADRID: Sergio Llull, Jorge Garbajosa & Felipe Reyes.
REGAL FC BARCELONA: Juan Carlos Navarro, Ricky Rubio & Fran Vázquez.
TORONTO RAPTORS: José Manuel Calderón.

Three players will be dropped from this list closer to the start of the World Championships. Tweet

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WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFIERS: SPAIN DEFEATS 1-2 A BRAVE & WORTHY TURKEY (SEE VIDEO)

The evoked spirit of William Wallace ( Braveheart – see the below post) by
Turkish team Coach Terim was in the air tonight along with 25.000 screaming
Turkish fans pushing their national team TURKEY onwards, but the anxiety
of the final moments, the need to win & some vital defensive errors were the
few opportunities that SPAIN needed to take the match with a 1-2 final
scoreline.

The first half was a torrid affair for Spain as Turkey went all out looking to
get ahead as soon as possible. The European Champions were out of place &
feeling the “hostile” atmosphere as the Turks were playing with fire & with
the fighting spirit of “warriors”.

(photo elmundo.es)















They had to, they had no choice as tonight was a must win situation, their
prize for their endeavour & good play came in the 25th min when SENTURK
scored the games first goal to put Turkey ahead. This naturally took the roof
off the stadium as flares covered the turf with thick smoke that was
accompanied by chants of happiness. Turkey was on their way & managed to
rattle the Spaniards who slowly managed to regain their composure as the 1º
half went on & Spain even had some great chances.

(photo Marca: Senturk puts Turkey ahead 1-0)

The 2º half was a different affair, Spain recomposed itself drew in a deep
breath & put itself to work in the best way it knows how too, controlling the
ball & finding the gaps needed to push forward. Then in the 61st min a clear
header by Fernando Torres that was going straight into the back of the net
was deflected by the hand of a Turkish defender & a penalty was given to
Spain. XABI ALONSO took the shot & equalized in the 63rd min.

However, Spain didn’t then think about the draw & actually continued to look
for the win with Coach Del Bosque doing some chances that strengthened even
more the midfield to control the centre & gave oxygen to the forward line
( in Cazorla for Silva, Busquests for Senna & Guiza for Torres). The nerves &
the anxiety to win betrayed the Turks & in the last moment the Turkish
defenders allowed Guiza to go in via the right wing who then passed to
RIERA who scored the winner, Turkey were devastated, so close yet so far.

(photo Marca: Riera scores 1-2)

Great win for Spain – special mention for PIQUE who was outstanding - a side

that won its first match ever (& first goals) on Turkish soil & puts them in the
drivers’ seat for the World Cup 2010 tournament with a clear lead over the
rest in the Group. Turkey are now behind the eight ball as Bosnia won tonight
& opens a 4 point gap that puts them nicely in the 2ºposition of Group 5.

See the VIDEO of the highlights:

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TURKEY COACH TERIM EVOKES THE SPIRIT OF "BRAVEHEART" AGAINST SPAIN

SFS picks up this news piece from “AS” on how important it it is tonight for
TURKEY to defeat SPAIN. The Turks have to win & grab the 3 points or
risk giving up & allowing Bosnia to escape & take the 2ºposition of GROUP
5 & the other ticket for the World Cup in South Africa next year.

(Ali Sami Yen Stadium)

According to the cited paper Turkish Coach Terim has specifically wished &
enforced that tonight’s game be play not in the modern Ataturk Olympic
stadium with a 75,000 capacity, but in the older Ali Sami Yen Stadium home of
Istanbul Club Galatasaray with a capacity of 25.000. The idea is to convert the
playing ground into a pressure cooker for the Spaniards with the 12th man
being the fanatical Turkish fans who will roar (& flare) up the atmosphere to
intimidate Spain & give wings to Turkey. A note to bear in mind, Spain has
never scored a goal on Turkish soil!

The news is that Coach Terim will recall the spirit of “Braveheart” & of the
Scottish warrior William Wallace to impregnate his players for the job ahead,
the revenge of the loss last Saturday in Madrid 1-0. Let’s hope that this
enthusiasm stays within the realms of acceptable behaviour & that the local
authorities will enforce strict security rules as to avoid any possibility of injuries
to the fans & importantly the players who are at the mercy of “flying” objects
that can cause serious damage to their physical being.

SFS recovers the video from “Braveheart” with William Wallace giving his
pre-battle speech before facing the English army…Tonight Turkey & Spain will
“battle” in a sporting & gentlemanly manner for the 3 points. For the former
it will be a fight to the “Football death” & for the latter its honour, pride & its
direct ticket to the South Africa World Cup.

Don´t miss it!

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PRE-MATCH WORLD CUP 2010: FOR TURKEY A MUST WIN GAME AGAINST SPAIN

(photo: JUAN MANUEL BUENO / MARCA)

Turkish Captain & Villareal player NIHAT, revs up this team at the press
conference:

“Hemos llegado a un punto, como selección nacional de Turquía, en que
ganar a cualquier equipo ya no es fantasía” We´ve got to a point, as the
Turkish National Team, that to win any other team is no longer a fantasy”.

TURKEY meets tonight at Istambul, the current European Champions SPAIN
in a must win game, after losing in Madrid 1-0 last Saturday.

This is how the classification for Group 5 stands at this moment:

1. Spain 15pts
2.Bosnia 9
3.Turkey 8

4.Belgium 7
5.Estonia 2
6.Armenia 1
The surprise here is Bosnia who has grabbed 2ºplace & could put in danger
Turkey´s participation in the next World Cup. The solution? A victory tonight!

Here are the speculated starting line-ups for both sides according to the press:

Turkey: Volkan Demirel; Gökhan Gönul, Ibrahim Üzülmez, Ibrahim Kas,
Hakan Balta; Sabri Sarioglu, Mehmet Aurelio, Emre Belözoglu; Arda, Tuncay;
& Nihat.

Spain: Iker Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Marchena or Albiol, Piqué, Capdevila;
Senna, Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Silva, Riera; & Fernando Torres.

(FOTO: JUAN MANUEL BUENO / MARCA)

If Spain manages to win this very tough game against Turkey they will virtually
have guaranteed their direct pass to the World Cup tournament in South Africa
for 2010. They too are pumped up to win at all costs & thus secure for the fans
a grand game that will be watched by millions in Turkey, Spain & the World.
Good luck to both sides.

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SPAIN HINTS AT ITS STARTING 11 AGAINST TURKEY THIS WEDNESFDAY. PLUS TERIM TO SEVILLA FC ?

(photo:AS)

Looks like this starting 11 against Turkey last Saturday will change.

According to Spanish media (“AS” for example) who are following the
Spanish National Team in Istanbul for the World Cup 2010 qualifier this
Wednesday night against TURKEY, Spanish Coach Del Bosque may have
given a hint of the official line-up. In today’s training session at the “Ali Sami
Yen” stadium Coach Del Bosque rehearsed with the following line-up:

Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Marchena, Piqué, Capdevila; Senna, Xabi Alonso;
Silva, Xavi, Riera; & Fernando Torres.

If this is finally the starting 11, there are notable changes from the team that
defeated Turkey last Saturday 1-0 here in Madrid. Firstly, Valencia CF defender
MARCHENA comes in for team-mate Albiol, secondly Spain will play with
wingers SILVA & Liverpool FC player RIERA, with Spain having only one
true forward who will be FERNANDO TORRES.

(photo: AS)

Spain is expecting a totally different Turkish side that will go out as if this
game is a final. The Turks must win to keep at bay Bosnia who is surprisingly
second on the Group 5 table & thus endangering the second place for Turkey
that keeps open the chance for World Cup qualification. The home crowd will
do all their best to create a hostile atmosphere for Spain who also look to seal
the Group with a win, a victory were they will have to overcome a very stiff
& motivated opponent who would have learnt from last Saturday & have

already shown that they are not to be taken lightly. Least tomorrow.

What is certain is that we are all in for a mighty match tomorrow that promises
to have us all biting our nails until the last minute. Can’t wait!

(Photo:AS)

By the way, while we are at it, news from Turkish daily “Milliyet” claim that
National Coach Fatih Terim has an offer from SEVILLA FC. Terim answered
media when asked if there was any truth to this news with …” we will see…
now I have Turkey on my mind…”. Mysterious reply, don´t you think?

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WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFIERS: SPAIN WINS 1-0 A HARD TURKEY TEAM (SEE VIDEO)

The current European Champions SPAIN knew beforehand that this would
be a tough match as part of its Group V World Cup 2010 qualifying rounds.
TURKEY was a semi-finalist in the last Euro 2008 tournament & are a class
act, & it showed tonight in the way they set up their strategy & game plan.
However, Spain is a finely tuned machine & managed to tire & open up the
Turks in one of the few chances that they had to score the only goal of the
game & win 1-0.

The 1st half saw Turkey apply what it had learnt from studying Spain on video;
a tight defence, a midfield well organized to pressure Spain’s play makers Xavi
Hernandez & Xabi Alonso, to then open up the wings for the counter-attacks.
The plan nearly paid off early as Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas had to make
two vital saves in the first 10 minutes that if the ball had gone in SFS maybe
writing about something totally different. The Spanish team were uncomfortable
without the ball & Turkish players Senturk, Nihat & Tuncay were causing
headaches. But Spain with its experience & patience held out the first half
knowing that the next 45 min were still up for grabs if they stayed loyal to their
playing philosophy.

(Pique scores 60th min)

It was just this, the beginning of the 2nd half that saw Spain regain control
of the ball thanks to the extreme physical effort put in by the Turks that
opened up spaces. In an individual play by Fernando Torres, that had to be
fouled, the free kick was to give its fruit. Xavi took & placed it in the way of
Sergio Ramos alone behind the defence who knocked it into the path of
PIQUE who scored his first International goal & the winner in the 60th min.

This changed everything, as now Turkey had to chase the ball while Spain
played around in its usual brilliant & skilful manner unnerving the opposition.
The gaps appeared & Spain continued dominating. With the next game on
Wednesday in mind Spain made substitutes changing Villa for debutant
MATA, Carzorla for SILVA & Torres for LLORENTE. More chances came
Spain’s way with a special mention to an incredible save by the Turkish
goalie from a Xabi Alonso crack-shot.

A great & hard fought win to Spain who were pushed by a competent &
serious Turkish side that deserve a mention & same of its players who were
outstanding: Aurelio, Tuncay, Sentuk & Nihat who was tiredless. Spain went
from average to good to very good with special mention to Pique, Albiol,
Ramos, Xabi & Xavi Hernandez would is/was a true reference point. Lastly,
although he didn’t score Fernando Torres was outstanding with what he
does OFF the ball that wins SFS attention. His “unseen” movements open
spaces & gives paths to his team-mates that are valuable & vital in these sorts
of games. Well done!

Next clash in Istanbul Turkey next Wednesday, were another win here for
Spain would virtually guarantee them the pass to the next World Cup. But
they must be careful as Turkey on home soil has the ability to surprise as
they nearly did tonight away.

Here is the VIDEO of the highlights - thanks Rafa!! Lets hope Youtube

does´nt withdraw it later ;-):

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PRE MATCH DETAILS: SPAIN & TURKEY REVEAL STARTING LINE-UPS

The Spanish National Team Photo: Who will replace Iniesta?

It seems both Spain & Turkey have showed their playing cards for tomorrow
nights World Cup 2010 Group 5 qualifying match in Madrid. According to
local media SANTIAGO CAZORLA (pictured) is the man chosen over
David Silva to substitute injured Andres Iniesta in the starting line-up. The
Spanish team would look like this:

Casillas, Ramos, Piqué, Albiol,Capdevila, Xabi Alonso,Senna, Xavi,
Cazorla,Torres & Villa

As we can see, it seems David Villa has recovered in time from his knee
problem to join Fernando Torres upfront.

The Turkish Coach also let known his team according to media after their
training session this afternoon, with both Spanish based players Mehmet
Aurelio (Betis) & Nihat ( Villareal) in the starting line-up. The Turkish team
would look like this:

Volkan Demirel, Gokhan Gonul, Emre Asik, Ibrahim, Hakan Kadir Balta,
Tuncay Sanli, Mehmet Aurelio, Emre Belozoglu, Arda Turan, Nihat &
Semih Senturk.

Good side that should push the European Champions. Don´t miss it, 22.00
local Sp time & you can surf into SFS at the end for images & result.

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THE ROAD TO THE WORLD CUP 2010: SPAIN vs TURKEY - A PRE-HYPE VIDEO

Found this while surfing “YouTube”. It’s a pre-hype video elaborated by a
guy called Sabit who is from Sydney Australia. A lot of work has gone into
the 3min clip & one can see the TLC with a balanced treatment given to both
teams. Well done mate!

Check it out, thought I’d post it on SFS to build up the atmosphere a bit as
a way to countdown what will be the Spanish National side first real serious
test of its World Cup 2010 qualifying Group matches. Turkey is a team to be
respected with a line-up of talented players that can give Spain a surprise if
they let down their guard.

A big game which will be played this upcoming Saturday the 28th at the
mythical “Santiago Bernabeu Stadium” in Madrid in front of a crowd of 95,000
& watched throughout the World. It will be the first of a double clash with
Turkey when they again meet the following Wednesday away.

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SPANISH NATIONAL TEAM: JUAN MATA SUBSTITUTE FOR INIESTA

The Spanish national squads’ medical team have confirmed the injury of
FC Barcelona midfielder ANDRES INIESTA. The player has torn muscle
fibres that will keep him out of the Spanish Team for the upcoming double
World Cup 2010 qualifying games against Turkey, the first match of which
will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid this upcoming
Saturday.

This has forced Spanish Coach Vicente del Bosque call up from U/21
duties VALENCIA CF youngster JUAN MATA to substitute Iniesta
in the “A-team”. This is not the only injury concerns for Coach Del Bosque,
midfielders Xavi Hernandez & Silva have ankle problems along with David
Villa (knee) & Xabi Alonso (muscle), which the medical team is supervising
& will decide if extra action is needed.

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