Fulus

My 2nd favorite: Fringe

Happy New Year - 2010!

New Year's Eve 2010 Fireworks in Sydney, Australia. Photo source: www.news.com.au 

Absolutely FABIO-LOUS!

via www.football-italia.net

Just take a look at Fabio Capello's managerial CV – it is staggeringly impressive.

Milan (1991-96, 97-98) – Four Scudetti, that Champions League success over Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona, three Italian Super Cups and a European Super Cup. Real Madrid (1996-97, 2006-07) – Two La Liga titles in the two years he was afforded. Roma (1999-2004) – a League title and an Italian Super Cup. Juventus (2004-06) – Two Scudetti that were later marred by the Calciopoli scandal. England (2007- ) – Qualification for the 2010 World Cup made to look embarrassingly easy. Fabio Capello really is one of the most highly-decorated Coaches in world football and his appointment by the English FA should receive more praise, particularly after the Steve McClaren debacle.

His disciplinarian attitude and organisational aptitude make it easy for armchair pundits to label him as the embodiment of the Catenaccio-style, the traditional Italian approach to football.

The It Crowd

Roberto Mancini said he wanted to work in England and, after he was overlooked in favour of Carlo Ancelotti for the Chelsea job, here he is at Manchester City. He joins the aforementioned Carletto, Gianfranco Zola, Fabio Capello and Giovanni Trapattoni in spreading the influence of Italian tacticians in an area of Europe that traditionally criticised our style of football.

It is amusing that with certain television and newspaper pundits still trotting out the old ‘catenaccio’ cliché of Serie A, they are all clamouring to bring a bit of that approach to the British Isles.

Will Mancio be a success at Eastlands? Considering he’ll probably revolutionise the squad during a January spending spree, it’s rather difficult to make any kind of prediction. I can say that he has three Scudetti on his CV, but one was handed to him by the Calciopoli judges, another thanks to a complete lack of competition and a third snatched in the final 20 minutes of the season. I may scoff – and I frequently do – but Jose Mourinho hasn’t done any better on the Champions League front than his predecessor.

Some in Italy say this brain drain of Coaching talent is bad for football in the peninsula, as Luciano Spalletti goes to Zenit St Petersburg and yet more consider overseas experiences. I happen to consider it a positive, as it helps end the myth that the Serie A mentality is boring, negative and defensive. Can you think of a less catenaccio-style tactician than Spalletti? Of course some people will never change their views of the Italian game, but these are the same folks who when asked about a Frenchman will picture a mime in a stripy shirt, a beret and a garland of garlic around his neck. 

There is another reason this is to be considered a boon for Serie A, as despite the export of so many of our top managers, there are still only three foreign Coaches in the entire League. Imagine that situation in the Premiership – impossible! It is giving the opportunity for promising young tacticians like Gian Piero Gasperini, Walter Mazzarri, Mimmo Di Carlo and Massimiliano Allegri to gain valuable top flight experience and create a more balanced Serie A than we’ve seen in many a year. There’s quality all the way through, as seen by recent shock victories for Bari, Parma, Cagliari and Napoli. 

Does that mean these managers will go on to spread their wings abroad some day? It may well be the case and I’d welcome anything that helps people understand what Italian football is really all about.

via www.football-italia.net

Did you know the "best football league" in the world wants Italian tacticians to take care of its football teams? Here is a good read from my favorite website! A good one for the nay sayers when it comes to Italian football!

My all time favorite TV show!

FOX Broadcasting Company: 24.

International Academy Bramshill trains MPS officers

National Policing Improvement Agency's (UK) International Academy, Bramshill has trained 20 MPS officers in the area of training delivery. An event worth to be proud of!

Read about it on NPIA website!

The Situation Room at White House

A new Way Forward for the Afghan War!

Watch President Barak Obama's address on the new Afghan War strategy.

The Mumbai Massacre: a documentary on the horrendous 26/11 attack

Obama Afghanistan strategy: More troops in quickly, drawdown in 2011 - CNN.com

STORY HIGHLIGHTS30,000 troops to be deployed within six months, President Obama saysObama: More troops would quicken transfer of responsibility to AfghanistanObama wants most U.S. troops out of Afghanistan in 3 years, officials sayPresident: Goals are to deny al Qaeda a safe haven and reverse Taliban's momentum

via www.cnn.com