Icardi Officially Wears PSG Uniform as Loan at The Last Minute

Mauro Icardi officially left Inter Milan to join Paris Saint Germain with loan status for one season. He also has a permanent option at the end of the season. There is no official release about the price, but Sky Italia estimated that Paris Saint Germain had to pay for about 5 million euros for the loan. While for holding him permanently, Paris Saint Germain will have to pay sixty-five million euro. In the Paris Capital, Icardi will wear a uniform with the number eighteen.

Before loaned to Paris Saint Germain, Icardi also had signed to extend the contract until 30 June 2022. If the contract was not extended, Icardi’s contract with Internazionale will end in 2021. The loan contract with PSG is just released on the last day of the summer transfer window on 2 September.

Icardi is not needed by Inter

From the beginning, Antonio Conte had confessed that Icardi is not part of his plan. Even, Internazionale had brought in Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez from Manchester United. Practically, the manager doesn’t need Icardi, he prefers to play the ex-Manchester United striker. Although Icardi was sure Inter will still be in contract with Inter, The manager will not let him down in the field.

Actually, Icardi wanted to stay. Icardi confessed that they had many from Naples. There are many clubs that had contacted him, but he said no as he loves Inter Milan. He wished that he could keep his career in Inter Milan until the end. Unfortunately, the new Milan Manager, Antonio Conte doesn’t put him on the squad.

As Icardi is not needed by Inter, some Italian club had eyes for him. Juventus Napoli, and AS Monaco were said to be interested in him. Even, Boca Junior was also interested in him. Wanda Icardi confirmed that the Argentine powerful club had contacted her. But the progress didn’t continue.

Napoli, Inter rival, was rumored to get Icardi. But later, Inter contracted Fernando Llorente instead. The husband and agent of Icardi, Wanda Nara had worked hard to get Icardi to play. Had been contacting several clubs, her hard work paid after Icardi could play for Les Parisiens.

Icardi Problems with Inter

Radja Naninggolan said Icardi is a good guy, but some Inter Players just could not forgive him. Radja had played with Icardi for one season when they both played for Inter Milan in 2018 until 2019. The problem comes from Wanda. Some inter players are irritated by her comments. Wanda is known to criticize outspokenly about other inter Milan Player. It was the thing that the only player in the changing room knows. Yet Icardi never made confirmation about it. The tense made the changing room atmosphere not conducive. Antonio Conte decided not to include Icardi on his squad as he will make the condition heats up.

Mauro Icardi confessed that he’s frustrated with the condition. Initially, Icardi was Inter Milan’s star. Since 2013, he had scored 109 goals and passed 23 assists. Even, he also was saddled as captain. But the captaincy is detached since he refused to play in the match against Sampdoria. Icardi made a drama that he had an injury although the scan reveals that he didn’t. It’s understandable that an MRI scan might not pick up everything. But the scan result showed that it was nothing. Not to prolong the drama, the Inter Milan manager decided to not put him on the squad. Later, Icardi threatens Inter Milan that they had violated him by not putting him on the training session.

Icardi as PSG firepower solution

Icardi will come as a solution for the Paris Saint Germain firepower. The striker trio, Neymar, Edinson Cavani, and Kylian Mbappe are injured. Neymar is still on the recovery of ankle injury. Cavani is on hip injury, while Mbappe suffers hamstring problems. Because of these problems, they are absent for some weeks. Neymar’s injury also prevented him to play for Brazil in Copa America. But filling in as Les Parisien firepower might not be easy, as Icardi was out of action for a long time in the Nerazzurri.

Although initially, he wants to stay in Milan, he expresses his gratitude towards Paris Saint Germain that has been giving trust in him. He promised that he will present everything for the team to progress further in every kind of competition. Icardi has the ambition to win trophies for his new club.

He admits that Paris Saint Germain has been a locomotive for international football. Many great players played for this club. The spirit of football is also strong in Paris. He is sure that he has enough ambition and skill to step further. He could not wait to play in Parc des Princes, a stadium which was known for its beauty and passion. He was very grateful, as finally, he gets a club to play after Inter Milan Hanged him in uncertainty. situs judi bola terpercaya

Tiki Taka, Tactic that Change Football World

When you heard about Tiki Taka, what is the first thing that came up in your mind? Of course, the answer is passing football style and Barcelona. This is normal, because this style is the style that was invented in Barcelona. Barcelona itself also still uses this style until today, although there are some modification and changes. But, we can say that Tiki Taka is important strategy that changes the face of football world in the last decade.

What Makes Tiki Taka Important?

Tiki Taka is football strategy that maximizes the passing route and movement of player. Therefore, when you see Barcelona or other team that adopted this strategy, played using Tiki Taka, you will see lot of short passes. It’s rarely to find Barcelona player send long pass or crossing into penalty box. Mostly, they only use the short passes and fluid movement of their player to find the right position to create the chances.

What makes Tiki Taka important is it destroys the stereotype of football strategy when it was popularized by Barcelona in 2008. At that time, most of team will only see football, mostly as physical play and put aside technique aspect. Fast and well-built player are important to have on a team. However, Tiki Taka doesn’t need that requirement to be played. This football style doesn’t use high pass too often. And, because of this strategy, every player, regardless their height or speed has same chance to play in a team. This condition gave birth on many different strategy and approach in a game. Therefore, we can find lot of new strategy was invented after Barcelona success with their Tiki Taka, including the strategy to beat Barcelona Tiki Taka.

The Strategy that Beat Tiki Taka

The most famous strategy to beat Tiki Taka is the total defense strategy. Jose Mourinho used this strategy on his second season as the Real Madrid coach. He use really deep and high press defense in front of the penalty box. They marked tightly two pivot player from Barcelona at that time, Xavi and Messi. Barcelona can’t build their normal play style and have to rely on crossing and long pass, which isn’t suitable with their player that has smaller stature than other team player. Jose-Mourinho-with-The-Strategy-that-Beat-Tiki-Taka

More than that, their opponent also use fast counterattack to create chance from the fullback position that has to move further forward, because Barcelona midfielder and attacker can’t penetrate the defense. This strategy work really well, and make Barcelona lose some of trophies. Opponent also has bigger chance to score a goal with this method, because Barcelona only leave small amount of player on the back. Usually, there are only two defender players, which is definitely not enough to defend against opponent that makes a counter with more number of players.

The other strategy that is also effective against Barcelona Tiki Taka is the zone area marking and positioning strategy. It was used by Bayern Munich, under Jupp Heynckes. He successfully beat Barcelona 3-0 in Camp Nou and 4-0 in Bayern Munich home. The strategy is simple. Bayern Munich player keep their position and press any Barcelona player that come into their area. Then, when attacking, they keep this strategy and attack fluidly. This make Barcelona player has to face one on one with other player and it make opponent easily pass them.

The Problem in Applying Tiki Taka for Other Team

With the success and achievement that Barcelona got, many teams and coaches try to adopt the strategy that Barcelona used, the Tiki Taka. They tried to copy the success of Barcelona with this strategy. However, it doesn’t work like what they imagined. Some of clearly failed application of Tiki Taka can be seen on AS Roma team in 2012. Their coach admitted that this tactic used too much stamina of their player. This is true, because player has to move around to create space. They also have to use more energy and stamina to focus and concentrate in creating connected passing route. The most stamina draining is when they have to defend against opponent attack. All players must do high pressure to the opponent once they lose the ball. This is the hardest part.

The main reason why many team failed to apply Tiki Taka strategy is the player. The player isn’t ready with this strategy. On the other hand, Barcelona player are mostly coming from their youth football academy, La Masia. And, since they were young, they have used this playing style, therefore, when they enter main team, they can easily adapt for this strategy. Their physique as well as focus has been trained for years on that academy.

Entertaining or Boring Play

Even though Tiki Taka brings lot of success and trophies for Barcelona, many people see it as boring play. Barcelona only passes around on their area and doesn’t have will to attack and score a goal. Arsene Wenger, Arsenal coach also said almost the same. In the earlier era of Tiki Taka, Barcelona use this sort passes football style to win the game. However, after that, especially after their opponent has found a way to counter this tactic, Barcelona was only passing around to avoid losing the game. Many fans also feel this way. They are lack of aggressive attack and killing intent. They only want to show the beautiful play.Entertaining-or-Boring-Play-From-Tiki-Taka

However, Barcelona under Luis Enrique started to leave the classic Tiki Taka. They use more direct play and using many different attack patterns. This is also the reason why Barcelona scored many goals at that time and make opponent has hard time when they face them. The long pass and counterattack has become one of part of this new Tiki Taka, beside short pass that they still kept using. The attack speed is also faster, because there is no player that can hold ball and playmaking, like Xavi. Now, we can still the Tiki Taka in Barcelona team. However, compared with old Tiki Taka, this new Tiki Taka is more interesting and dangerous.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, You Won’t Believe It

Undeniably, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi is the most popular football player, today. They can be considered as the best and dangerous striker in the world. We won’t call them as the best player, because football is all about team-play. The logic is simple. The best here means they are standing above other player, regardless their position. Now, just put them on the goal keeper position. Can they play as good as Buffon or Neuer? Therefore, the best player is only bull crap. Now, let’s leave that behind and talk about what makes them become the best and dangerous striker today.Cristiano-Ronaldo-and-Lionel-Messi

Their Goal Records

Of course, the main duty of a striker is scoring goals. And, these two players did their job really well. The title as the top scorer for the league where they play isn’t unfamiliar thing for them. Almost every season, they got this title. And because they play in same league, we can always expect that this title will go to one of them, one and another for every season. The record of their goal is also amazing. Maybe, you won’t be able to see the record like this for the next 10 years.

Cristiano Ronaldo himself has already scored 545 goals for all clubs where he played, from Sporting Club, Manchester United and Real Madrid. And, he also successfully scored 79 goals for Portugal. On the other hand, Lionel Messi has scored 538 goals for Barcelona, because this is the only club he has been played since his early professional career. And, for Argentina, he scored 77 goals. This data can be changed and add more goals in their record.

Their Special Physical Condition

The most important thing for athlete is their body or physical condition. And, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have perfect condition. Cristiano Ronaldo was blessed with strong and big body, like an athlete should be. His good muscle density level allows him to fight toe to toe with other player that has bigger frame. More than that, all football fans know how well-developed his legs muscle really is. This condition allows CR7 to unleash powerful kick, which make it almost impossible for opponent goalkeeper to defend against it. And, this body also makes him one of the fastest sprinters on the football field.

Lionel Messi (L), Gianluigi Buffon (M), Cristiano Ronaldo (R)

On the other hand, Lionel Messi can be considered as the football player with small body. With the height only 170 cm, he is one of the shortest players among other players that play in Europe. However, with this condition, he proved that he can fight equally with other player that has bigger body. His small body allows him to have lower center gravity, which support his playing skill. More than that, he also has better agility than most of player with this body. He can move and change direction very fast, which makes their opponent, has lot of problem, when they try to press him.

The funny thing is both of them have similar case when they were young. They have health issue that make them unable to play football, until the club where they were played, help them to cure it. Cristiano Ronaldo had to deal with racing heart condition, where he has to do a surgery to cure it at the age of 15. On the other hand, Lionel Messi past condition is well-known among football fans, especially Cules, the nickname of Barcelona’s fans. Messi had growth hormone deficiency problem. Both of these players were treated with the help from each of their club and turn into amazing football player like what we can see today.

The Ability that They Have

The football skill is important, so they can play better and make their team win the match. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have everything that needed to be the most standout player on the field. Cristiano Ronaldo with his speed can easily pass the defender. The height stature also helps them to deal with crossing. When there is corner kick, we can say Ronaldo is the most dangerous player in penalty box. And of course, his main weapon is the powerful cannon kick. He can unleash this kick with his left or right foot, and both of them are equally good. He is the type of post player who can convert any chance into goal.

Messi, on the other hand, can be said as the polar opposite of Cristiano Ronaldo. With his small stature, he can’t play power football like Ronaldo did. However, Messi optimize his dribbling skill and vision. We can say that Messi is one of the best dribbler in history. He even compared with Maradona when he made similar goal like what Maradona did in World Cup 1986 against England. Messi also beat 5 opponent and goalkeeper from the middle of the field then score a goal. Messi also has one of best vision in game. He can find out the chance and his teammate to send pass for a goal. Both players also have devastating free kick skill. Therefore, we can say them as the best in creating chance and score a goal today. (Read: The Most Hilarious Moments In Football)

Which One is The Better than Other?

People love to compared Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, and try to find which one is the best. But, we can say that each of them is the best in their position, which coincidentally is different position. Ronaldo is more like post player, while Messi is second striker and even attacking midfielder. Messi is more like playmaker, while Ronaldo is more to classic winger and striker. Therefore, we can only compare them, if they have exact same position. However, if we have to choose which one is the better player, we would choose Messi. We look at it from the handicap that Messi has compared to Ronaldo, in this case is his small body. Both, we can say that both of them are one of best striker you can find, and you must be grateful to have chance to watch they played the game.

The Most Hilarious Moments in Football

As one of the most popular sports, football certainly has many moments. We cannot miss the most goals in a match, fastest red card, or even some fastest goals. Here are some of the most hilarious moments in football of all time.The-Most-Hilarious-Moment-in-Football

Most goals in a match

Chelsea – Jeunesse Hautcharage

In the first leg of Cup Winner ‘Cup in 1971, Chelsea managed to beat with a score of 13-0 at Stamford Bridge. In the second leg, the Blues managed to add aggregate to 21-0 after successfully producing 8 additional goals.

Manchester United 9-0 Ipswich Town (1995)

Well, the score of 9-0 in this party is clearly nothing compared to the results of amateur league games in Nigeria, but the score in Manchester United vs. Manchester United. Ipswich Town was produced in one of the best competitions on earth; Premier League.

The Red Devils, who were chasing Blackburn Rovers, points up very well at Old Trafford. Andy Cole scored five goals; Mark Hughes added two goals, while Paul Ince and Roy Keane packed each one. The scoreboard showed a 9-0 position when referee Graham Poll blew the final whistle.

At the end of the season, Manchester United must be willing to finish in second place under Blackburn Rovers who became champions with only one point difference. While Ipswich finished last and degraded. To date the score 9-0 in a match on March 4, 1995 was still faithfully recorded as the biggest home record victory in the Premier League.

Arbroath 36-0 Bon Accord (1885)

On September 12, 1885, Arbroath competed against the Bon Accord in a Scottish Cup game. The first half of the game ended already with a score of 15-0. The other 21 goals followed in the second half, so the final result of the match was 36-0 to host Arbroath.

It is said that Arbroath’s dominance over Bon Accord in the game, Jim Milne Sr who escorted the host’s goal did not touch the ball at all throughout the game. He even called a few times to leave the goal to shelter from the rain under the umbrella of a spectator. agen sbobet

Another fact expressed by Dave Stormont. Dave is the referee who leads the “silly” game. Dave said that if he really did his job as a referee, then the Bon Accord would probably accept a bigger defeat, maybe around 43-0. This match also put John Petrie as the top scorer (13 goals). The record can only be equaled 200 years later in a match in Australia.

Fastest red cards

Steven Gerrard, Liverpool vs. Man. United, 2015 (38 seconds)steven gerrard got a red card in 38 seconds

It may not be the fastest, but it must be a moment Gerrard will never forget when considering one of his last matches with Liverpool. I do not know what entered Gerrard’s mind when entering in the second round. Perhaps because Liverpool is currently in a position left behind, then he vent his annoyance by stepping on Herrera’s foot. Referee Martin Atkinson who saw the incident could not provide tolerance despite Gerrard only 38 seconds in the field. (Read also: )

David Pratt, in a game of Chippenham Town versus Bashley, in 2009 (the record is 3 seconds)

I do not know what is in the mind of David Pratt, attack the striker from Chippenham Town club who competed in the seventh caste of English football. In the game counter Bashley, Pratt immediately launched a two-foot tackle shortly after the referee blew the first whistle. The tackle wasn’t hit the ball, but the opposite leg. The referee also had no choice but to reward him with a red card rather than taking the risk of something more severe.

Lee Todd, in a game of Cross Park Farm Celtic versus Taunton East Reach Wanderers in 2000 (in 2 seconds)

This is probably the most bizarre red card a player ever experienced. Lee Todd, an amateur footballer who played at Celtic’s Cross Park Farm club was rewarded with a red card in just two seconds. And the red card Todd did not get for committing an offense to an opposing player, but cursed over the sound of referee’s whistle.

Players with the fastest goals ever made

Roy Makaay

The Dutch origin striker scored the fastest goal in the Champions League against Real Madrid with a note. 10.12 seconds after the first-round kickoff whistle sounded in the 2006/07 season. At that time Makaay was still strengthening Bayern Munich club and brought FC Hollywood to a 2-1 victory at the Allianz Allianz Arena and stepped into the quarter-finals. Until now Makaay is still the record holder for the fastest goal scorer in the Champions League.

Alan Shearer

Alan Shearer

As is known, Shearer is one of the best strikers ever owned Newcastle and England national team. Throughout his professional career, Sharer has scored 379 of his 733 appearances in all competitions. But there is one goal that is always known especially by the Premier League public when Shearer scored quickly against Manchester City. At that Shearer managed to maximize the ball that City goalkeeper tried to throw away when the game has been running 10.4 seconds 2002/03 season.

Jesus Navas

Navas just made a surprise when bringing his team Manchester City to shave off Tottenham Hotspur with a score of 6-0 in Premier League 2013/13 continued at Etihad Stadium at the weekend. Navas made a surprise with a quick goal when the game has been running 12 seconds. Spanish national team players are successfully using the ball gag spit Sergio Aguero is not able to be caught goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Hakan Sukur

This legendary Turkish striker scored a brilliant goal in World Cup history within 11 seconds. The unsolved record took place in the 2002 World Cup third place winner against South Korea host on June 29 at Daegu World Cup Stadium. The goal is started when defender Hong Myung-Bo wants to feed the ball into goalkeeper Lee Won-Jae. Suddenly Ilhan Mansiz successfully stole the ball and then forwards the flow of the ball to Hakan Sukur who stood nearby. Staying face-to-face with Won-Jae, the attacker who then defended Parma (Italy) was shooting the ball with his right foot.

7 Mind-blowing Facts About Football that Everyone Should Know

Football is  a fact the most prominent sport in the whole world. People take this sport very seriously and we all know that athletes in the football pitch are paid very well just because of this sport. Being the most famous sport in the world makes the fans of football is scattered everywhere around the world, starting from the third-world-countries to big countries where football is like everything, say for example like in Brazil and the UK. If you are a massive football fan, there are plenty of unique facts about this beloved sport that you really need to know. Those facts will expand your knowledge about football and answering any football trivia will be easier for you after knowing the facts. Below are 7 mind-blowing facts about football that everyone, including you, should know.7-Mind-blowing-Facts-About-Football-that-Everyone-Should-Know


Football or Soccer?

In the language of English, the sport is called football. However, if you come to the United States, football is a completely different kind of sport. The sport where 22 players running on the pitch kicking a ball in order to score a goal is called “soccer” there. Many people cannot just understand why Americans call the sport “soccer” instead of “football” like the rest of the world. However, the USA is not the only English-speaking place where “soccer” is used to name the sport. Canada is also using “soccer” to name the game. Beside USA and Canada, other English-speaking countries use “football” to name the game.

Where Did “Soccer” Come From?

Even though the term “soccer” is used to call the sport in USA and Canada only, the interesting fact about the term is that the term “soccer” was actually created by the people of England. They come up with the word “soccer” and later the term is also recognized as the alternative name to call the sport. However, it was not popular and they kept using “football” as the official term. The term “soccer” is actually a shortened term of “Association Football”. The term is too mouthful and thus people of England short the term into “Assoc Football”. By the 19th century, it was widely known as “soccer” because people like to add the “-er” additional sound to that shortened words and terms, hence “soccer”.Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Unlucky Zlatan

One of the most famous football players right now is probably Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swedish footballer is currently playing for Manchester United. However, did you know that before coming to Manchester United, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has played for numerous clubs? Yes, he has and six of them have won the Champions League. They are: Ajax, Barcelona, Inter, Juventus, Milan and Manchester United. They are all have won the Champions League but Zlatan has never actually won the trophy himself.

It’s Raining Red Card

A red car is used to basically kick a player out of the pitch. Once a player receives a red card, whether it is an instant red card or a second yellow card, he needs to get out of the pitch, leaving his team one man down. Red card is not something that appears quite frequently in a football match. However, did you know that the record of red card issued during a single football match is 20 red cards? Yes, those much red cards were shown in single match between Sportivo Ameliano and General Caballero. It was in a football league of Paraguay. By the end of the match, the pitch looked like a joke because only a couple of players left there. The rest of them have been kicked out of the pitch earlier because of the red cards.

Run Run Run!

Ever wondered why football players are paid really high? Probably you are jealous because they can be very rich just by playing football on the pitch. However, playing football professionally is something that you cannot take for granted. A lot of energy, passion, and skills are needed to play professionally in a match. Just so you know, the average of distance that football players run during a game (except the goalkeepers of course) is 9.65 km in every game. When did the last time you run that far? Well, football players must do it every week, not counting the distance they have to conquer during pre match and daily training.

Where Did He Come From?

Normally, a football player can only play for one country, his birth place country. However, at some points, there are some players who are breaking that simple rule. Say for example, Barcelona legend, László Kubala. Kubala is the only player in the world, to this day, who play for three countries. All the countries that he has played for are all recognised by FIFA. Kubala has been played for Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Spain. At first, Kubala, whose parents’ were of Czech origin played for Czechoslovakia. Then he probably realized that he was brought up in Budapest, Hungary so that he later joined Hungary national football team and played for them. Kubala soon has his career grew better and better. He spent a lot of time playing for Spanish team Barcelona and later became Barcelona icon. At that point, Kubala changed again his decision about national team and he decided to leave Hungary national team and play for Spain instead.

Killed in Actions

A football player died on the pitch sometimes happens. The unfortunate event is of course devastating for the rest of the team, the fans, and of course the player’s family. However, the most horrible event has probably happened. In 1998, a tragedy happened in Congo because not only one player but the entire football team gets killed because of lightning struck. A heavy rain followed by horrible lightening killed an entire football team in a match among the villages of Bena Tshadi to the nearby village Basangana. It is probably the most horrifying died-on-the-pitch case in football history.

Those are some of the interesting facts about football that everyone needs to know. Football is a really popular sport and people around the world love to watch the game, play the game, and being enthusiast about the game. By knowing all the trivia about football, you can brag even more considering that now you know most of the unique facts about the sport.