Unhappy Players May Leave

Listening to tonight's "From The Pitch" with Marcelo Balboa, a rare piece of honesty from a professional soccer player. Maybe not so surprising given that the honesty was from Bouna Coundoul, a man known for said virtue. Clearly unhappy at the Rapids' sacking of his goalkeeper coach, he called for a petition to get him back. Otherwise, he may just end up coaching Bouna for the Senegal national team. The point is that Bouna didn't know anything about the sacking until his agent called him. Not all players have to know what is going on all the time but you would think he may have been consulted. Message to the organization: Please don't make your best players unhappy. Now he has received the call-up for the national team, it may not be long before Bouna starts getting tempting offers from abroad.
Another piece of honesty: this was the first time I listened to the show. It was excellent even though I could barely get reception and ended up listening on the web. Good range of topics (relegation in the MLS? foreign players in the EPL, player ratings for games etc.), just need more fans calling in. Former Rapid Nat Borchers talked about his experiences in Norway and was candid about England not qualifying for Euro 2008. The players froze, he said, under the relentless pressure of the media. I still think the coach was largely to blame but he does have a point. Just how can players like Gerrard and Lampard play so badly when they dominate for their clubs? Don't really agree with Borchers suggesting Croatia may actually win next year, however. We just made them look very good because we were so inept.

Player of the Day:
Abdulkader Keita. An inspired second half substitute for Olympique Lyonnais who was instrumental in ensuring his team got a draw against the mighty Barcelona today in the Champions' League. 2-1 down with not much time left, his pacy runs and determination eventually led to a clumsy challenge from the Barca defense in the box and Lyon equalized from the penalty spot. He also scored a hat trick for the Ivory Coast this month. Not bad, he and Drogba together.