Hello old friends, Visiting to let you know that James was incredible tonight vs Bolivia. He played on high altitude as if he had 4 sets of lungs. Amazing. What a player. Falcao ex-Portista scored the winning goal after an excellent play that originated from James. 2-1 final score.
So the international break is thankfully over without any notable injuries to Porto's players. Denmark 2-1 Portugal --Once again Rolando and Moutinho played the full match, while Varela stayed in the stands. Sounds like an incredibly disappointing match for Portugal, who will now have to go through the play-offs just to get to Poland/Ukraine. I expect Moutinho to remain a starter under Bento, but Rolando probably didn't help his cause as a part of the defense that conceded 5 goals combined to Iceland and Denmark in these 2 games. And obviously Varela needs more matches, we'll see if he starts this weekend in the cup game for Porto. Germany 3-1 Belgium --Defour was an un-used sub, as Belgium were officially eliminated from Euro 2012. But they certainly have an exciting group of young talent, and hopefully Defour will be a big part of their bid to make the WC in 2014. Also, since he only played 15 total minutes during their last 2 matches, there is a real chance he could start this weekend in Porto's cup match. Venezuela 1-0 Argentina --Otamendi once again started and played the full 90, but unfortunately Argentina continues to struggle and get heavily criticized by their fans. Don't know whether Ota will remain in the starting XI in the future, but these 2 games should help his confidence once he gets back to Portugal. Paraguay 1-1 Uruguay --Once again Alvaro started for Uruguay, but was replaced in the 2nd half. Cristian Rodriguez made a late cameo (83rd minute sub), but Fucile stayed on the bench. All in all, 4 out of 6 points for Uruguay is pretty good to start their WC qualifying campaign, but they'll be disappointed to have allowed Paraguay to equalize in stoppage time. Bolivia 1-2 Colombia --As mentioned by TeSo, a tremendous debut for James Rodriguez, who played the entire match and was superb by all accounts. Guarin also started and was subbed out in the 2nd half, and it sounds like he had a nice game as well. So definitely a great start to Colombia's qualifying campaign, as the altitude at La Paz makes things very tricky for any visiting team. Romania (U-21) 0-2 France (U-21) --Mangala again captained his side to victory, as France remains well on course to qualify for the U-21 Euros in 2013. I certainly look forward to seeing more of Mangala, and it's great for him to play in these NT matches since he hasn't gotten a lot of opportunities at Porto so far. Mexico 1-2 Brazil --Apparently Hulk finally got his chance to start for Brazil, but I didn't hear how he did.
Guarin and James were arguably the best players on the field in Bolivia. Falcao then came in and score a huge last second goal. Wish he was still with your team (As I am sure most of you do too.) Hope Fredy and James continue to start and do a great job with your club. They have a lot of confidence right now and I think that will translate into more wins for you and Colombia.
Thanks for the update, and congrats on the win at Bolivia. Guarin has been so solid for club and country over the last year, so I'm not shocked to hear that he played well. He was especially fun to watch at the Copa America, definitely a leader of your NT. But for James, I'm shocked to hear that he had the stamina to play the full 90 minutes at the high altitude of La Paz. Really tells me that the kid has a very high level of fitness to go along with his obvious talent and maturity. About this time last year he wasn't even playing for Porto, so it's pretty amazing to think how far he's progressed in less than a year. I think he's got more potential than anyone on Porto, by the way, so hopefully he has a long and successful career with the NT as well.
O Jogo reported last night that Belluschi will be extending his contract at Porto for 2 more years, through the 2014-15 season. If anyone's curious, here's a look at the contract situation for the roster right now: Helton--June, 2014 Bracali--June, 2014 (10M Euro release clause) Kadu--[I think he's still on a youth contract, not sure] Sapunaru--June, 2013 (25M Euro release clause) Fucile--June, 2014 (20M Euro release clause) Rolando--June, 2015 (30M Euro release clause) Otamendi--June, 2015 (15M Euro release clause) Mangala--June, 2016 (50M Euro release clause) Maicon--June, 2014 (30M Euro release clause) Alvaro--June, 2016 (30M Euro release clause) Alex Sandro--June, 2016 (50M Euro release clause) Emidio Rafael (Rafa)--June, 2013 (10M Euro release clause) Fernando--June, 2014 (30M Euro release clause) Souza--June, 2015 (25M Euro release clause) Guarin--July, 2014 (30M Euro release clause) Belluschi--June, 2015 (30M Euro release clause) Defour--June, 2016 (50M Euro release clause) Moutinho--June, 2015 (40M Euro release clause) Hulk--June, 2016 (100M Euro release clause) Djalma--June, 2016 (30M Euro release clause) Iturbe--June, 2016 (60M Euro release clause) Kleber--June, 2016 (40M Euro release clause) Walter--June, 2015 (30M Euro release clause) Varela--June, 2015 (40M Euro release clause) James--June, 2016 (45M Euro release clause) Cristian Rodriguez--June, 2012 (25M Euro release clause) [Key players who might have a future at club] Danilo [On loan to Santos, joining Porto in January]--June, 2016 (50M Euro release clause) Kelvin [Brazilian AM/winger; On loan to Rio Ave]--June, 2016 Christian Atsu [Ghanian winger; On loan to Rio Ave]--July, 2014 Andre Castro [Portuguese CM; On loan to Gijon]--June, 2014 Sergio Oliveira [Portuguese AM; On loan to KV Mechelen]--June, 2012 (30M Euro release clause) David Bruno [Young Portuguese DF; On loan to Trofense]--June, 2014 [Guys who will probably be loaned/sold/released] Beto [On loan to Cluj]--July, 2013 Kieszek [On loan to Roda]--June, 2014 Hugo Ventura [Portuguese GK; On loan to Olhanense]--June, 2014 Ukra [Portuguese winger; On loan to Braga]--June, 2014 David Addy [Ghanian LB; On loan to Panetolikos]--June, 2013 Sereno [Versatile Portuguese DF; On loan to Koln]--June, 2012 Miguel Lopes [Not sure about his situation, was supposed to join Zaragoza]--June, 2013 Soares [Brazilian MF On loan to Recreativo Huelva]--June, 2014 Yero [Senegalese striker; On loan to Gil Vicente]--July, 2014 Andre Pinto [Portuguese CB; On loan to Olhanense]--Not sure about contract Ivo Pinto [Portuguese CB; On loan to Leiria]--Not sure about contract Abdoulaye Ba [Senegalese CB; On loan to Academica]--Not sure about contract Edu [Youth MF; on loan to Trofense]--Not sure about contract
