The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion
The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion |
| Under 21s mirror senior success Posted: 07 Jun 2013 04:41 PM PDT
JUNE 8 — The European Under 21 Championships got underway in Israel this week, with the eight qualifying teams split into two groups of four. The hosts, Norway, Italy and England make up the first group, with Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and Russia in the other. I watched the opening games for Spain and England, and they offered a pretty neat encapsulation of the respective strengths and weaknesses of state of the game in the two countries. First up were England against Italy on Wednesday. Stuart Pearce's team worked hard, showed plenty commitment and defensive discipline, but very little creativity or quality on the ball. They had hardly any chances to score but were holding on for a grim goalless draw until a free kick by Lorenzo Insigne beat goalkeeper Jack Butland to give Italy the points. On Thursday Spain opened their campaign against Russia, and dominated possession from the opening whistle. They controlled the flow of the game and produced plenty of eye catching passing football, but generally failed to find the killer final ball to unlock Russia's defence and also suffered from imprecise shooting on the few occasions they did threaten goal. Eventually a well-delivered free kick from Barcelona midfielder Thiago Alcantara was converted by Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata's glancing header to secure a deserved but hard-earned victory. There in a nutshell is English and Spanish football: the former with huff, puff and a battling spirit but little technical expertise; the latter oozing quality on the ball and dominating possession but lacking cutting edge. The contrast in the two teams' starting line-ups was also noticeable. Spain called on a group of players boasting a considerable amount of senior top flight experience for their clubs, with midfielders Isco and Illarra playing virtually every game for their respective clubs Malaga and Real Sociedad last season, as did defender Inigo Martinez for Sociedad and midfielder Iker Muniain for Athletic Bilbao, while David De Gea is well established in goal for Manchester United. England, by contrast, had much less experience to call upon, with very few members of Pearce's squad appearing regularly in the English Premier League and many of them belonging to clubs in the lower divisions or spending time on loan in those lower reaches. This discrepancy is partly due to the fact that English youngsters struggle to break into Premier League starting elevens for the simple reason they are rarely good enough, while Spanish football is much better at developing and integrating young players in senior football more quickly. But it's also because of England's time-worn failure to take under 21 football seriously. Whereas Spain (and others) have picked their best players for the current tournament, England placed more importance on meaningless senior team friendlies against Ireland and Brazil. The senior squad for those games contained Phil Jones, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jack Rodwell, all of whom could and should have been in the under 21 squad instead. Rather than playing a few minutes in a friendly knockabout, the experience of travelling to and participating in a serious, competitive tournament would have surely been a much greater benefit to the long-term development of those players. The influence of club managers is a significant factor, with Pearce's plans jeopardised by the reluctance of Manchester United, Arsenal and so on to release their players for summer international tournaments. Spain, meanwhile, have a far more consistent approach to youth team international football. Their current under 21 squad has been together throughout the qualifying campaign, so they now have a great deal of experience of playing together as a team, with the urge to promote some of them to the senior squad being resisted. Isco and Martinez, in particular, would have been good bets for the forthcoming Confederations Cup if the squads were picked without age coming under consideration, but Spain's preference is to keep their teams together so all the players progress at the same rate, receive opportunities to compete in major continental competitions and have consequently developed much more familiarity when they eventually graduate into the senior squad. The future of Spain's midfield, in particular, looks very bright. Senior team coach Vicente Del Bosque has the luxury of calling upon a remarkable array of world-class talent: Xabi Alonso, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta, Cesc Fabregas, David Silva, Juan Mata and Santi Cazorla. The current under 21 squad suggests the next batch will be just as masterful, with midfield trio of Illarra, Isco and Thiago potentially good enough to dominate the international football scene for the next decade. Spain's more considered, long-term approach surely benefits the development of those players and the success of their teams, while England's lack of a wider strategic vision is one of the many reasons why international success will probably continue to elude The Three Lions for many years to come. * This is the personal opinion of the columnist. | |
| The year in blockbusters — so far Posted: 07 Jun 2013 04:35 PM PDT JUNE 8 — We've now entered the most exciting time of the year for mainstream movie fans: summer! This means we are going to be treated to some of the year's biggest blockbuster movies. Despite my strong love for arthouse and independent films, I've never forgotten the main reason why most people go the movies in the first place, which is to have fun and be wowed by a sense of wonder and spectacle that only the biggest of movies can provide. So I'll be just as excited as the next guy when I see the latest trailer for Man of Steel or Star Trek Into Darkness or Iron Man 3. We still have about a week to go till we get to see Man of Steel, probably THE summer blockbuster event of 2013, just like how the Dark Knight or Transformers movies were the year they were released. With a very clever (and teasing) promotional campaign as teasers and trailers gradually reveal more and more footage from the film, I think the latest trailer has got everyone who's seen it salivating at the prospect of finally seeing the film when it finally opens soon. Compared to last year, this year's blockbusters seem to have a "bigger" feel. In any other year, a new Iron Man movie would be the hot ticket of summer, but in addition to the behemoth that is Man Of Steel, we'll also see Guillermo Del Toro's latest movie Pacific Rim, and there's also the Brad Pitt vehicle World War Z by Marc Foster (it now seems like an eternity since Foster made his mark with the small and intimate Monsters' Ball), and we haven't even begun talking about a new Wolverine movie and my personal choice Elysium, the new film from District 9 director Neill Blomkamp. Then there's also Kickass 2, a follow-up to 300 that's written by Zack Snyder but directed by someone else, The Lone Ranger by the always dependable craftsman Gore Verbinski (which at a reported US$250 million is the most expensive Western ever made), and not to mention the animation giants of Monsters University and Despicable Me 2, this summer's really looking good for popcorn munchers everywhere. However, what we're getting in quantity has so far not been proven the same by the quality of the blockbusters that have opened so far this year. The fact that JJ Abrams did so brilliantly with his Star Trek reboot from a few years ago meant that Star Trek Into Darkness had a lot to live up to, and unfortunately it failed to do so. It wasn't at all a bad film, but it just didn't have that special something that made watching the Star Trek reboot over and over again such an effortless and enjoyable exercise. The Great Gatsby is, as is usually the case with Baz Luhrmann films, dazzling to look at but not much more. Fast and Furious 6 is what you'd already expect from the Fast and Furious franchise, but at least all that slam-bang action is enjoyable. The Hangover Part III is at least better than Part II, but they shouldn't have bothered making sequels anyway. Of the summer blockbusters that have opened so far here in Malaysia, only Iron Man 3 showed a bit more spark and life, making it a film just as likeable as the first one, mainly thanks to the magnetic presence and thespian skills of Robert Downey Jr. But lest we forget, the earlier part of the year has also seen a few blockbusters opening, and just like last year's Chronicle, the year's best blockbuster movie so far was one that opened in January/February, a time usually reserved by studios to dump products they deem a bit of a failure and not really deserving of a summer push (The Darkest Hour, anyone?). That movie was Jack Reacher, only the second movie directed by the hugely talented Christopher McQuarrie (screenwriter of The Usual Suspects and writer/director of the unsung gun-slinging classic The Way Of The Gun) and starring a lean and mean Tom Cruise who's at the top of his game and is absolutely game for anything. Playing like an extension of the ultra cool tricks McQuarrie pulled in The Way Of The Gun, it's heartening to see the movie become a box-office smash, pulling in around US$220 million at the worldwide box-office, and possibly kickstarting a new movie franchise for Tom Cruise. Not doing so good at the box-office was what was supposed to be Arnold Schwarzenegger's comeback movie, The Last Stand. Directed by Korean genre master Kim Jee-Woon (who made I Saw The Devil, A Tale Of Two Sisters and The Good, The Bad, The Weird) it may be a flop in terms of box office (costing US$30 million and only pulling in US$37 million) but I think that it's a bona fide artistic success, showing people how a good old action movie is done, which is to say with a healthy dose of over the top violence and a lot of humour. Perhaps in time it will be considered an action movie classic. Maybe by next week Zack Snyder will wipe away the "less-than-impressed" smirk off my face when Man Of Steel opens. And maybe Guillermo Del Toro and Neill Blomkamp will again prove what great genre directors they are with Pacific Rim and Elysium, but at the moment I still can't quite believe that one of my favourite films of the year is one starring Tom Cruise! Bring on the summer! * This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
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