Someone should have told Franco not to mix sport with politics.
Whiling away the hours with beer and olives in the summer of ‘74,
He cheered on the West Germans in Spain’s absence.

Franco thought he’d played his part in an Axis victory.
The defeat of Cruyff was another nail in the coffin of the Catalans.
But the injuries Franco sustained while slumped in front of the TV -
An attack of thrombophlebitis to be exact - led him to his own finale.

© Steve Porter 2006

The above poem is inspired by an article ‘The Unknown Dictator’, which was published in Catalonia Today in November 2005. It states that ‘the long hours Franco spent watching the 1974 World Cup were a contributing factor to the attack of thrombophlebits with which his long death agony began’.

For more football related poems go to:
http://www.footballpoets.org/p.asp?Id=18034

BREKFAST AT AITKEN'S

Ye shud ken thur’s a rowie (buttery) fir sale oan ebay. But michty me, fit a price! Fa wid pey ower £600 fir a rowie fan ye can get ane fir aroon 30 pence oan e High Street? Ma grannie wid hae kittens if she kent ony chiel wis shellin oot six hunner poon fir a rowie - nae fit ye wid ca weel-foggit. Gordon, e mannie fa bocht e rowie, must hae won e lottery but hit'll nae be lang afore he's pennyless if he kerries oan is spendrif wey. I unnerstan that a loon in Peterheid wis prepared tae swap a puckle o chicken peys fir it but his offer wisna taen up. Onywey, hae a keek at e gey expensive rowie:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ABERDEEN-AITKENS-ROWIE-Buttery-Morning-Roll_W0QQitemZ9509783255QQcategoryZ60824QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

THE DARK HORSES

By definition they are little known. Can teams like England and Spain be considered dark horses? I would be more likely to classify them as decent each way bets. I’m not yet convinced that either is really good enough to win this tournament, although England are already into the second phase and Spain have made an excellent start. In the case of the latter, what I think we mean when we call Spain a dark horse is: here’s a country that has a lot of good players and really should win a World Cup but never does. It will be interesting to see how the Spanish do this time. They appear to have a good team spirit and a lot of stars; but no real superstars. That might just work in their favour, but Spain have a horrible way of luring you into a false sense of security, only to let you down badly when you least expect it.
In my view, the real dark horses in this tournament are Switzerland, Mexico, Ecuador and the Ukraine. I know virtually nothing about the Swiss but many pundits are tipping them to do well. Mexico are ranked fourth in the world but have only one big star playing in Europe - Rafa Márquez of Barcelona. Ecuador have romped in to the last sixteen in some style, while Ukraine has broken a leg at the first hurdle.

THE GROUP OF DEATH

Every World Cup must have a 'group of death'. But when the draw is made who decides which section is the toughest? God, FIFA, Alan Hansen perhaps? Maybe it's a committee made up of all the above. In any case, a World Cup without a Group of Death would be like Wimbledon without Strawberries and Cream.

After the draw, the powers that be got their heads together and plumped for Group C: Argentina, The Netherlands, The Ivory Coast and Serbia & Montenegro. This Group of Death is even more lethal than in the past, given that it is made up of five countries rather than four. However, despite Montenegro recently voting for independence from Belgrade, the two countries will hope to make a last go of things together.

The Group of Death got underway tonight, with my tip for the top, Argentina, defeating the Ivory Coast 2-1. I'm not at all surprised that it turned out to be a close match. The Ivory Coast recently lost 3-2 against Spain in a friendly in Salamanca. The Africans were twice ahead in that game and looked like they could trouble many a side. They might well produce a deadly sting that could poison the dreams of the Dutch or give S&M a good whipping.

The opening World Cup match is only a few hours away so here are my predicitions.
If anyone can beat Brazil this could become the most open World Cup ever. There must be about ten countries in with a shout.
When the World Cup is in Europe a European team normally wins. Germany and Italy are the most succesful of the Europeans with three wins apiece. They are the most likely European winners again in my view. In spite of recent problems such as the match fixing allegations and talk of a summer of discontent, Italy have a strong squad. I recall another crisis in '82 when the Italians failed to win any of their first three games but went on to win the tournament.
It's difficult to assess the chances of the host nation as they haven't played a competitive match in two years. But they didn't look too bad to me in a recent friendly and home advantage is a major factor. It's worth bearing in mind that old Scottish proverb: Niver cast a cloot til Germany are oot. And remember that the Teutonic terriers were rubbish in the last World Cup but still got to the final.
But I think the strongest sides are Brazil and Argentina. Rather than be boring and predictable I am going to tip the latter to win their third World Cup and here's why...

Brazil way back in 1958 are the only non-European team to have won the World Cup on this continent. I believe there’s a good chance that could change this summer. Brazil are hot favourites, and rightly so, but if anyone can stop them I think it could well be their neighbours Argentina. So many South Americans are playing in Europe these days that they no longer need to acclimatise. Writing as I do for www.soccer-spain.com I see many of these Argentinians on a regular basis - around half the Argentine squad play their club football in Spain.For a lowdown on the Argentina squad and the clubs they play for click here
http://www.aboutaball.co.uk/html2/worldcup2006germany/argentina.php
For a list of all the World Cup stars playing in La Liga go to:
http://www.soccer-spain.com/ssdocs/worldcup2006/ligaplayers.html

Argentina won the last under-19’s World Championship. So if they don’t go all the way in this World Cup they might be even stronger next time round. Messimania is now sweeping Germany. He is just the latest in a long line of Argentinians to be burdened with the tag ‘the new Maradona’. The Argentines love their no.10’s and they like them small. Other current members of the squad who fit the bill are Pablo Aimar of Valencia and Javier Saviola of Seville. Add to this the sublime skills of Riquelme and other attack-minded options such as Hernan Crespo and Corinthians striker Carlos Tevez. Remember that Messi has not played for Barcelona since he faced Chelsea in early March. Argentina coach Jose Pekerman might be tempted to take some pressure off Messi and use him sparingly. So don’t be surprised if Messi starts on the bench, especially when Pekerman has such a vast array of talent at his disposal.