Archive for February, 2007 Page 3 of 13



Zidane set to show his magic in Chiang Mai

Everyone is expecting the Zidane magic to dazzle the audience in Chiang Mai. How can we blame them for it, it is obvious that the French magician has obviously not lost any of his lusture, months after he has retired. The retired player is more powerful than the ones who have not retired!

‘Zizou fever’ hit Chiang Mai city yesterday as enthusiastic local fans eagerly wait to watch French maestro midfielder Zinedine Zidane put on a show in the Adidas Impossible Match today.

The whole world could be forgiven for feeling jealous at the northerners who will have the unique opportunity of witnessing the three-time Fifa World Player of the Year return to the field for the first time since he hung up his boots after the 2006 World Cup.

Zidane mania has gripped the northern province since the former Real Madrid star arrived on Wednesday. Upon landing in Chiang Mai, Zidane caused mini chaos, with large groups of fans, both Thai and foreigners, scrambling to get closer to the star to take a picture and collect an autograph from their favourite player.

Zidane, who inspired France to victory in World Cup 1998, will lead the Predator team - which includes several star Thai players such as veteran striker Kiartisak Senamuang - against the F-50 side consisting of well-known players from Malaysia, Singapore and Thai legend Piyapong Piewon.

Viva, Zizou!

On credit cards

There is no doubt that in this modern era, credit cards is an indispensable tool for us to conduct business transactions with. After all, can you imagine yourself walking into a store with thousands of dollars in your pocket in order to buy a luxury item? Even Zinedine Zidane will not do that, he would use a credit card!

Of course the issue with credit cards is always the debt issue. This is mostly due to those who have the cards spending it unwisely and not managing their personal finances correctly. They also apply for the wrong credit card which do not fit their budget. Do you know that there are now 0% credit cards with 0% balance transfers? For those who wish to use credit cards but are on a tight budget, this is the type of cards which are suitable for them. So go for these cards, but make sure you check out the fine print first.

This is a sponsored post

Celebrity news

Celebrity pictures, they have as well. This is a blog that I came across recently which talks about Hollywood celebrities and celebrity news. Frankly I would prefer to see football stars in all their photographic glory but I just thought I’d mention this blog here because I find it interesting. Before this I was not really interested to know who is Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan or Anne Hathaway but these names keep cropping up all the time. So I decided to read up a little and now know a little bit more about them.

I guess you can say that celebrities — whether they are actresses or football stars — do share a common trait after all, and that is they are always in the limelight, no matter what they do.

Political graveyard

I sure do not know who is George Lindemann Sr, but the page sure has an interesting list of individuals, most of them politicians, dating back three or four decades ago. Most of them are dead now, and this website provides the information on whether they are still alive and if not, the location of their burial place. It would be useful for those who are looking up on history for past politicians and would like to know where they are buried if they have already passed away. Useful resource, definitely!

Zidane to coach youngsters in Thailand

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Zidane will be appearing at a coaching clinic in Chiang Mai, Thailand, to help aspiring young players play the beautiful game. Perhaps it is not as inspiring as helping out with prom gowns but nonetheless, it does show another side of Zizou that we have never seen before.

French soccer legend Zinedine Zidane will appear at a clinic in Chiang Mai, Thailand, Saturday and help aspiring young players.

He will train 40 players chosen from eight schools in the province and donate 1,000 footballs to provincial authorities.

Zidane will also play a charity match with leading players and film stars from Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia at the Chiang Mai municipal stadium. (Source)

Stretching your opponent

Stretch is a good football term. One that every good coach should understand and teach his players, whether they are playing in real estate in Del Mar or in rural areas. Let us make this simple. Take a rubber band and “stretch” it. The bigger you make the opening in the rubber band, the larger the box you can put it around. But if you stretch too much, the band may break, but that’s like the defense, and more on that later.

In football terms, when you have possession of the ball you want to stretch the field in width. By playing to the sidelines you open space that you can exploit against your opponents. Keep in mind the term of “playing to the touchlines”. If you only stretch within 8-10 yards of the touchline you leave space between yourself and the boundary that is difficult for your players to utilize before the ball goes out of bounds.

Remember, you can only use the space that is in front of you. Defenses like to be compact. That restricts space and makes it easier to defend. It’s like trying to get a string that is already tied into a loop around that box. It is tough to do if the string will not stretch.

The answer for our kids is still jumpers for goalposts

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Some of the world’s best football players were interviewed about how they first come to know about the sport. The above picture is that of a young Ronaldinho learning his trade. He does look like he could use nose surgery though.

HOW I LEARNED TO PLAY…

RONALDINHO

“I spent a lot of time training at Gremio. After training I went to play futsal. After that I’d play with my friends in the streets and when I got home I played with my brother. My life is football and always has been.”

ZINEDINE ZIDANE

“Everything I have achieved in football is due to playing in the streets with my friends.”

DIEGO MARADONA

“I guess we were potrero (waste ground) children more than anything. If our parents were looking for us, they knew where to find us. We would always be there on the potrero, running after the ball.”

RONALDO

“Every time I went away, I was deceiving my mum. I’d tell her I was going to school, but I’d be out on the street playing football. I always had a ball at my feet. In Brazil, every kid starts playing street football very early. It’s in our blood.”

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