As a Club fan, I'm not sure if I want to see Meunier at RB. Sure, he is decent going forward but has a lot to learn defensively. Not making anyone forget he is a converted winger.
Hopefully we'll see our best XI in the friendly vs Colombia ... if Colombia comes over with anything less than their first XI, Wilmots could try out a few players too ... e.g. Jr. Malanda, Nainggolan, Cavanda, an "on fire" Carrasco, etc. Most of our players are doing well although there are still a few woes: - Benteke is back; I'd like to see him vs Japan and Lukaku vs Colombia (Batshuayi is also a very decent alternative) - Mertens seems to have hit his stride ... could be a starter at Napoli if his perfomance remains consistent - Hazard is fit again and worrying PL defenders - KDB is being targetted by several clubs; during the winter he might go back to the Bundesliga (to gain PL experience, he could also be loaned out to another PL club where he's a certainty; linking up with Benteke at A.Villa would be ideal) - Chadli will face tough competition throughout the season ... Spurs have incredible depth - Zenit looking at Defour ... would be great if he becomes Witsel's teammate over the winter - Fellaini needs to prove his worth soon (first impression was bad, yet Moyes will give him more chances) - Alderweireld = still cumbersome: it's looking more & more that he'll end up in rotation (hopefully also as a RB) - Vermaelen will most likely stay at Arsenal (Wenger probably will use him more than he has done so far this season) - V.Buyten remains a squad player and probably stays in rotation - Kompany should be fit again for the friendlies (City has a busy schedule ... in less important fixtures Vincent will get rest though) PS according to http://www.football-rankings.info/ these friendlies aren't reflected in our coefficient for the EURO2016 qualifying draw. The draw against Wales was but even winning that game 10-0 (= max pts gain) wouldn't have allowed us to move to pot 1. During the draw in february we'll be in pot 2 and after the play-offs we'll know in which pot those 7 teams will end up (France are the hosts). Seeing that there's no safer time to experiment with different rosters than this year (with regards to our FIFA ranking and a possible seed at WC2018) ... I'd say let Wilmots try out a few players that could prove valuable in Brazil (2014), France (2016), Russia (2018), ...
Eden Hazard named as 1 of the 23 contenders for the Ballon d'Or. I don't think he'll win it this year ... still he's in good company when you look at the other nominees: Gareth Bale (Real Madrid/Wales), Edinson Cavani (Paris St Germain/Uruguay), Radamel Falcao (Monaco/Colombia), Eden Hazard (Chelsea/Belgium), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris St Germain/Sweden), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona/Spain), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich/Germany), Robert Lewandowski (Borussia Dortmund/Poland), Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina), Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich/Germany), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich/Germany), Neymar (Barcelona/Brazil), Mesut Ozil (Arsenal/Germany), Andrea Pirlo (Juventus/Italy), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich/France), Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich/Netherlands), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich/Germany), Luis Suarez (Liverpool/Uruguay), Thiago Silva (Paris St Germain/Brazil), Yaya Toure (Manchester City/Ivory Coast), Robin van Persie (Manchester United/Netherlands), Xavi (Barcelona/Spain). Hazard is one of the youngest players on this shortlist. When Eden unlocks his potential as his career progresses, do you think he has shot at winning the Ballon d'Or?
More good news: Lukaku, Carrasco & Januzaj among the "Golden Boy Award" nominees. Here's the shortlist: Boakye (Elche), Bruma (Galtasaray), Can (Bayer Leverkusen), Cristóforo (FC Seville), Digne (PSG), Draxler (Schalke 04), Ferreira Carrasco (Monaco), Fischer (Ajax), Fred (Shakhtar Donetsk), Gnabry (Arsenal), Icardi (Inter Milan), Iturbe (Verone), Januzaj (Manchester United), Jesé (Réal Madrid), Kondogbia (Monaco), Kovacic (Inter Milan), Laxalt (Bologne), López (Udinese), Lukaku (Everton), Maher (PSV Eindhoven), Markovic (Benfica), Marquinhos (PSG), Mitrovic (Anderlecht), Nastasic (Manchester City), Niang (Milan AC), Omeruo (Chelsea), Chamberlain (Arsenal), Perea (Lazio), Pogba (Juventus), Quintero (Porto), Radosevic (Naples), Rafinha (Celta), Rebic (Fiorentina), Sanogo (Arsenal), Thauvin (Olympique de Marseille), Tiago Ilori (Liverpool), Óliver Torres (Atlético Madrid), Varane (Réal Madrid), Vilhena (Feyenoord) and Vitinho (CSKA).
Anderlecht confirm talks with Chelsea over signing Kevin de Bruyne (loan deal). I really hope he can go on loan to Schalke instead ... more likely to play in the UCL or at least Europa League after january ... he did well in the Bundesliga and Kevin is more likely to improve there.
Schalke & Wolfsburg renewed their interest while Dortmund asserted they don't need KDB. Maybe Bayer Leverkusen joins in ... yet either Schalke or Wolfsburg are already decent clubs. At least at these clubs he can step up a level (compared to Bremen in the previous season) ... the same situation as Lukaku (Everton instead of WBA) except KDB could be going to a club that competes at UCL level. Of course Anderlecht and probably Essevee want KDB but I agree that it's very unlikely he'll join them during the winter. PS Man Utd looking at Witsel (PSG was 'interested' during the summer) ... still there will be plenty of rumours ... maybe when the transfer window draws nearer we could start a transfer thread ... some of our guys need the ideal transfer (/loan deal) ... KDB could happen ... Witsel, Defour and Vermaelen maybe ... Nainggolan has been linked to Juve and Inter for a while now (he'll eventually move to a bigger club) ... Alderweireld, Chadli and Fellaini will need to make it work at their 'new' clubs.
There was also supposedly a clause in his transfer deal to Chelsea that stipulated he could not be loaned back to Anderlecht.
We'll only be in pot two again for Euro 2016 qualifying? What more can we do, we had a near perfect run in WC qualifying!
Uefa has a different ranking system from fifa. www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Download/uefa/KeyTopics/69/80/93/698093_DOWNLOAD.pdf We actually moved from bottom pot 3 to middle of pot 2 thanks to this WC campaign. Platini mentioned that euro 2016 qualifying will be radically changed, I'm curious to see what they will come up with. It's about time to announce the format considering the draw is already in february.
Most likely 9 groups (1 x 5, 8 x 6) ... top two from each group and the best team in third place advance. The other eight play-off for the final four spots.
So far I've heard that it would stand yet alterations can't be excluded ... later this month we might get more info ... that draw is in february IIRC.
Looking forward to Qatar2022 ... champagne football - à l'état brut ... let's go raw: http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-november-19-2013/unnecessary-muffness PS our current players possess a great deal of finesse & control while our most exciting prospects will unlock more & more of their potential. It only seems counter-intuitive, yet we'd excell at football in its most primal form ... a fight. We've got copious amounts of youthful talents, speed, physical strength, workrate, stamina, strength in depth, technical skills, team spirit, etc. ... all the raw materials to play pure football with passion ... with a clear vision and intelligent support, it has all the makings of a formula for Ws.
'Pogba's performances and achievements in 2013 saw him pip striker Romelu Lukaku - who finished second - to the award, which judges the best player in the world under the age of 21 ...' - goal.com Januzaj came in 7th ... he 'finished' in first place among the players aged 18 or younger. Y.F-C didn't get into the top 20.
UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying format leaked? Based on what the Romanian FA made public: 8 groups of 6 teams and one of 5 teams => Pot 1: Spain, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, England, Portugal, Greece, Russia, Bosnia-Herzegovina Pot 2: Croatia, Ukraine, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, Republic of Ireland Pot 3: Serbia, Turkey, Slovenia, Israel, Norway, Slovakia, Romania, Austria, Montenegro Pot 4: Armenia, Poland, Scotland, Finland, Latvia, Wales, Bulgaria, Estonia, Belarus Pot 5: Iceland, Northern Ireland, Albania, Lithuania, Moldova, FYR Macedonia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Cyprus Pot 6: Luxembourg, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Faroe Islands, Malta, Andorra, San Marino, Gibraltar Check here for more info.
Belgians in the Premier League ... the season so far: 29 Goals: Lukaku 9 Hazard 8 Benteke 4 Januzaj 3 Kompany 2 Mirallas 2 Dembele 1 17 Assists: Mirallas 5 Hazard 4 Chadli 2 Lukaku 3 Dembele 1 De Bruyne 1 Januzaj 1 @all: have fun on NYE and let 2014 be a great year.
Apparently he is eligible to play for Belgium, Turkey, Serbia, Kosovo and Albainia. Maybe he's undecided- I don't see why he should be though- this is a no brainer for me.
Yeah it's great to see Eden boss around and he isn't slowing down ... in the first match of 2014 he created 5 chances and 2 were sitters for Oscar (instead of the dive Oscar should have scored the first one too) ... the 2013/2014 season could come down to the wire and I'm guessing Hazard won't get much rest in 2014 too ... during his time at LOSC it was unimaginable to play without him (he started in 100+ consecutive games = Ligue 1 record) and seeing that he had to endure more fouls than any other player ... I 'pray' he doesn't suffer another injury. About Januzaj: he was born & raised in Brussels ... Man Utd came for him when he was 16 = already having spent his formative years at Belgian clubs ... without a shadow of a doubt, he's a Belgian player ... even if he joins another NT, he won't share their football culture (mainly focussing on education here which was imparted from a very young age) ... at 18yo he's already a quality player (most likely the best in his age bracket) which is something that I'd like to be synonymous with the label Belgian player ... even more so when our players ply their trade in the big leagues ... also he definitely fits in our NT ... but for now he has only made his choice known at club level ... for country his case is less clear cut ... although we can use his creative spark, can you really show disrespect if he joins Kosovo instead ... to promote his career, Belgium is the best choice ... yet so far he has refrained from this mutually beneficial opportunity ... had he starved other prospects in our youth NTs without having the intent to join the senior team, that would have felt wrong ... but he declined call-ups from every NT and has consistently 'postponed' his choice (asserting not before becoming a regular at club level) ... regardless the media have done their worst to create controversy and profit from it. PS do you feel that the media portrayal of Adnan is fair and unbiased ... journalistic integrity when it comes to the most popular sport isn't a given ... I admit to lacking reliable information as far as what can be attributed to Adnan (e.g. those could have been questionable sources that caused Wilmots unlucky comment ... to say the least it was taken out of context by the media) ... without knowing all the facts, I find it hard to voice a strong opinion ... even worse ... the media circus reaches another level at Man Utd ... British tabloids are more extreme, Man Utd has been facing special circumstances (especially when it comes to their transfer policy), Adnan is an extraordinary player and so is his background, etc. ... nevertheless Januzaj has acted with maturity beyond his years ... looking at his comments, Bakkali seemed to enjoy the media attention more ... an example of his more childish behaviour: PPS when you look at our future prospects, some of the most gifted amongst them will be confronted with the same choice as Bakkali, Lukaku, Benteke, Kompany, etc. ... I'd like Januzaj, Carrasco, Musonda, Tielemans, etc. to join our NT too ... however only if there's a genuine connection to our football culture ... e.g. compared to Januzaj, the 'Andreas Pereira' case is a bit different (born & raised in BE: 4 to 9yo at Belgian clubs, 9 to 16yo at PSV and then Man Utd) ... he asserted that he wants to join the Brazilian NT if he can break through at club level + he gets the call ... yet he did starve other kids at NT level ... as far as I know Brazil didn't 'charm' him but he said it was his childhood dream of joining the Brazilian NT ... he actually makes me feel more respect towards Januzaj as you can't blame him for starving others at jr. NT level. In short: only in the eyes of the Belgian NT can Januzaj be called a 'homegrown player' ... if another FA succeeds, they'll win over a Belgian player ... seeing that I based my opinion on limited trustworthy sources, I'd have to temper it ... at least show respect if Adnan chooses Kosovo instead ... losing it because the media circus takes you for a ride #useless / because Adnan joins our NT #priceless.
Not in-depth but well-made: Still have some unwanted currency to attend a friendly here & there ... yet had to scrap a holiday in Brazil eventhough I could have visited my godmother who I haven't seen since my Confirmation (free lodging would have made up for the lack of spiritual guidance ) ... started wondering what the price will be in 2020 ... looks expensive:
2020 will be in all kinda cities in Europe, shouldn't be too expensive with Ryanair and the likes. Anyone see the announcement for the Red Devils camp in Brazil? 95 euro for a simple emplacement in the camp! F*cking ridiculous if you ask me. I was contemplating on spending a few nights there when Belgium plays in Rio, but with prices like that.... No thanks man, maybe one or 2 nights, although I still think a ho(s)tel/cheap hotel would be cheaper and more convenient.
It's a Dutch company that organises it ... maybe you'll get something similar to Tomorrowland ... probably Stromae or Pat Krimson is the best you can hope for but maybe you get lucky and some decent local bands/artists will provide entertainment (for some couleur locale, I'd still go out though) ... in any case for 95 euros you should get more than just a spot in the camp. In 2020 each qualified host team is guaranteed to play two home matches in the group stage ... there's a fair chance that Brussels will be selected ... as capital of Europe, BXL could even land the opening game ... in September we'll know.
To be honest I really don't care about the performances from Belgian artists, nor do I particularly care about the fact that they will offer Belgian beer. That's not really the reason I go there. I want to stay in the Belgian Camp to watch the games with Belgians and party with Belgians, some days. But seeing as the KBVB are aiming for such a ridiculously high price, I guess that won't be an option for me.